Hong Kong: Sun Dong visits Hamburg

Secretary for Innovation, Technology & Industry Prof Sun Dong proceeded to Hamburg from Berlin on June 13 to visit a top-notch semiconductor company and call on the Chinese Consulate General.



Prof Sun visited Nexperia wafer fab and received a briefing on the company's latest development plan and technologies.



Nexperia B.V. is one of the worlds top-ten semiconductor companies with business around the globe and has research and development (R&D) facilities in Hong Kongs Science Park. Prof Sun encouraged the company to proactively consider setting up and expanding businesses in Hong Kong.



He added that he looks forward to having more world-leading technology enterprises, including companies focusing on R&D and the production of microelectronics, to set up or expand businesses in Hong Kong to boost the development of the technology industry and I&T ecosystem in the city.



Prof Sun then visited AI.Hamburg where he was briefed on the group's work to promote the use of artificial intelligence (AI) and bring together leading initiatives in AI to actively support the local economy and society.



The tech chief also called on the Chinese Consulate General in Hamburg, briefing Consular General Cong Wu on Hong Kong's efforts in integrating into the national I&T development.



He thanked the consulate general for supporting Hong Kong to enhance collaboration with Germany in I&T development and attracting enterprises and investment.

This story has been published on: 2023-06-14. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
Shanghai ports post 17 percent growth in consumer goods imports in Jan-May

Xinhua) 08:28, June 14, 2023

Photo taken on Nov. 12, 2020 shows the night view of the Lujiazui area of Pudong, east China's Shanghai. (Xinhua/Wang Xiang)

SHANGHAI, June 13 (Xinhua) -- The imports of consumer goods at Shanghai ports reached 326.1 billion yuan (about 45.6 billion U.S. dollars) in the first five months this year, up 17 percent year on year, the local customs said Tuesday.

Shanghai Customs said it had recovered to the level of the same period in 2021, accounting for more than 40 percent of the total imports of consumer goods in the country, which to some extent reflects a rebound in consumption in China's domestic market.

Among the goods, the import value of aquatic products and dried and fresh fruits totaled 10.95 billion yuan and 10.05 billion yuan, up 41.9 percent and 28.7 percent year on year, respectively.

Shanghai Pudong International Airport, a major cargo airport in the country, handled 22,000 tonnes of fresh aquatic products imported from January to May, a 1.2-fold increase year on year. The aquatic products were imported from countries including France, New Zealand, India, Pakistan and Thailand.

Since the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership came into effect, an increasing number of agricultural products, such as fruits from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), have gained entry into the Chinese market. In the first five months of 2023, Shanghai's Waigaoqiao Port handled 488,000 tonnes of fruit imported from ASEAN countries, with a value of 976 million yuan.

(Web editor: Zhong Wenxing, Liang Jun)
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An improvement in glucose levels, reaching a normal range, and cessation in the need for medication can occur in some patients diagnosed with type 2 diabetes who are provided with lifestyle therapy, temporary pharmacotherapy, bariatric surgery, or combinations of these treatments. However, this phenomenon is not yet fully understood in routine care settings, and many factors remain to be clarified. Moreover, since there are differences in insulin secretion and resistance between East Asian and Western populations, the natural history of diabetes seems to differ widely between Western populations and East Asians.

These concerns lead Dr. Kazuya Fujihara and colleagues to investigate the incidence/one year relapse from remission and associated factors in patients with type 2 diabetes. In the Diabetes, Obesity and Metabolism paper, the authors addressed these research questions using a database of specialists' clinics. They analyzed the data of Japan Diabetes Clinical Data Management Study Group (JDDM) which is one of the largest cohorts of Japanese people with type 2 diabetes. They tracked the information on 48,320 people with diabetes in Japan.

In one arm of the study, they calculated remission rates per 1,000 person-years. The authors reported that the median follow-up was 5.3 years. During the study period, 3,677 remissions occurred. The overall incidence of remissions per 1,000 person-years was 10.5 that was similar to 9.7 in the United Kingdom. In addition, those with HbA1c levels of 48 to 53 mmol/mol (6.5% to 6.9%), those taking no glucose-lowering drugs at baseline, and those with a 10% body mass index (BMI) reduction in one year, incidence was 27.8, 21.7 and 48.2, respectively.

Male sex, shorter duration, lower baseline HbA1c, higher baseline BMI, higher BMI reduction at one year, and no glucose-lowering drugs at baseline were significantly associated with remission. Similar results were obtained with maintenance of remission over one year as an outcome.

In another arm of the study, the investigators revealed the factors that predicted relapse from remission in one year. Among 3,677 individuals who entered remission, two-thirds (2,490) relapsed from remission within one year. Longer duration of diabetes, lower BMI at baseline, and lower BMI reduction at one year were significantly associated with relapse.

Commenting on the significance of their findings, Prof. Sone said, "Compared to Westerners, Asians have higher insulin sensitivity and a lower acute insulin response. In addition, Asians have a much lower obesity level than Westerners, and the pathogenesis of diabetes mellitus is very different between the two. Therefore, the relationships of baseline BMI and BMI reduction with remission and relapse may be greater in East Asian than in Western populations, implying ethnic differences in returning from overt hyperglycemia to nearly normal glucose levels."

While the findings of these analytical study are impressive and provide new insight on remission in patients with type 2 diabetes should be, the authors noted that, "present study is an observational study and does not show a cause and effect relationship, and that future intervention studies with lifestyle and/or medication will be needed to confirm how many people actually achieve remission and how long the state of remission lasts in real world setting."

More information: Kazuya Fujihara et al, Incidence and predictors of remission and relapse of type 2 diabetes mellitus in Japan: Analysis of a nationwide patient registry (JDDM73), Diabetes, Obesity and Metabolism (2023). DOI: 10.1111/dom.15100

Provided by Niigata University
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PRISMA flow diagram. OECD=Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Credit: The Lancet Psychiatry (2023). DOI: 10.1016/S2215-0366(23)00113-X

Across Europe, depression and anxiety disorders became more common following the onset of the pandemic, reports a major review of evidence led by UCL researchers.

Later in 2020, depression and anxiety rates reduced again, but fluctuated over the following year.

The systematic review, published in The Lancet Psychiatry, pulls together evidence from 177 studies in 20 European countries to assess how the COVID-19 pandemic affected mental health across the continent for the first two years after lockdowns began.

The researchers, led by a team at the NIHR Mental Health Policy Research Unit at UCL and King's College London, found that not only did people access mental health services less in the early stages of the pandemic as service provision was disrupted, but that service use in some areas still had not recovered two years later.

Lead author Dr. Nafiso Ahmed (UCL Psychiatry) said, "We found that the COVID-19 pandemic had a considerable effect on mental health across Europe, but overall, the impacts were not as substantial as many people had predicted early on, as we did not see a 'second pandemic' of mental health problems.

"While there may not have been a major increase in mental health problems at the population level, for many individuals, the pandemic has had devastating consequences for their mental health. It is vital that we continue to improve mental health services as much as we can, and that we work with people with lived experience of mental illness to understand how to meet their needs."

The researchers identified a modest rise in common mental health problems including depression and anxiety after the onset of the pandemic, which they say could be interpreted as an acute response to a global event that caused widespread disruption, fear, financial hardship, and grief. They found that this increase reverted fairly quickly, but continued to fluctuate throughout the pandemic, which may have corresponded in part to the introductions of further lockdowns.

The study team found that early in the pandemic, there was an initial period of fewer new diagnoses of mental illness, which was likely due to fewer people accessing mental health services, which were disrupted while they transitioned to being delivered remotely. Service use increased later in 2020 and through 2021, although rates of use did not return to pre-pandemic levels for many services.

Use in pediatric emergency services (for mental health specifically) and community mental health services for adults of working age did eventually rise above pre-pandemic levels.

Senior author Professor Sonia Johnson (UCL Psychiatry), Director of the Mental Health Policy Research Unit, said, "The disparity we found between increased prevalence of mental health problems and reduced service use suggests that the pre-existing treatment gap in addressing mental health problems may have increased, which could have potential long-term repercussions."

"Globally, provision of mental health services has long lagged behind demand, and in recent years this demand has continued to rise without sufficient increase in service provision; while the pandemic may have played a role in worsening this treatment gap, societal factors may play a greater role in driving rates of mental illness than the pandemic itself."

The researchers found no clear pattern of improvement or worsening of mental health problems for those with pre-existing conditions, likely due to a large variation between different people with different circumstances, although they did find some evidence of worsening symptoms for children and young people with pre-existing mental health problems.

Suicidal behavior did not appear to change significantly overall, when pre-pandemic levels were compared to various timepoints in 2020 and 2021.

The researchers caution that while their study was a comprehensive overview of existing evidence, there is still little evidence on a wider range of mental health problems, such as psychosis or bipolar disorder, or for high-risk groups such as people from ethnic minority backgrounds or those who were more directly affected by COVID-19, so the review might have missed trends for certain groups. They say that further research is needed to understand the long-term impact of the pandemic on mental health.

More information: Nafiso Ahmed et al, Mental health in Europe during the COVID-19 pandemic: a systematic review, The Lancet Psychiatry (2023). DOI: 10.1016/S2215-0366(23)00113-X Journal information: The Lancet Psychiatry
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Human sexuality has long been a subject of fascination and curiosity in the scientific community. Researchers from different fields have sought to understand why we are attracted to certain people and how our sexual orientation develops.

From Sigmund Freud to Judith Butler, the road to a science of sexuality is a fascinating history of ambition and culture wars, error and scientific breakthrough.

My recent research continues the quest to make a science out of sexuality. Two opposing schools of thought currently divide the field: psychoanalysis and queer theory.

Psychoanalysts believe desire follows specific laws and follows predictable patterns, while queer theorists argue that laws have exceptions and advocate for a more creative view of sexuality.

My research proposes an information theory of desire that straddles the line these two groups by arguing we should consider the object of our desire as information.

Psychoanalysis can help us understand how this particular kind of information is stored, while queer theory can help us understand how this information is organized and re-organized internally.

Birth of psychoanalysis

Sigmund Freud, originally trained as a physician, believed in the scientific basis of sexuality. He was the first to regard sex as the subject of a serious discussion. Starting in 1902, colleagues gathered every Wednesday in his apartment to discuss the psychoanalytic practice he established.

Debates about how to study sexuality soon divided Freud's circle of colleagues. In 1911, Alfred Adler broke away and turned psychoanalysis into social and cultural studies. Two years later, Carl Jung broke away and turned toward philosophical and existential questions.

At the time, Lou Andreas-Salome, the first female psychoanalyst, did not believe either separation threatened the scientific status of psychoanalysis: "The source of its vitality does not lie in any hazy mixture of science and sectarianism, but in having adopted as a fundamental principle that which is the highest principle of all scientific activity. I mean honesty."

Though Freud retained Andreas-Salome's loyalty until the end, he didn't share her optimism about the uniting power of honesty and thought divisions at the heart of his movement would delegitimize it.

North American psychology

The quest to turn sexuality into a credible science survived Freud, especially in North America. Clinically trained psychologists in the post-Second World War era borrowed Freudian theories and employed traditional scientific methods to empirically test them.

Dismissing Freud's exclusive interest in individual case studies, American and Canadian psychologists aimed to understand populations more widely. However, this shift led to seeing homosexuals as a separate social group, which ultimately gave rise to homophobia and conversion therapy.

In the United Kingdom, Freud's daughter Anna promoted curing homosexuality even though her father had denounced similar practices.

In France, psychoanalyst Jacques Lacan urged his colleagues to return to Freud's methods. Consumer culture silenced similar voices in North America.

Psychotherapy lost its scientific mottothe pursuit of truthand became a matter of pursuing happiness. Keenly aware how the big screen dumbed down Freud's psychology, Marilyn Monroea serious reader of psychoanalysisturned down starring in a movie about him out of respect.

Sexuality nowadays

By the time Canada decriminalized homosexuality in 1969and the American Psychological Association unclassified it as a mental disorder four years latersexuality studies had shied away from its psychological origins.

But biological explanations prevailed. Scientists wondered whether homosexuality ran in the family and hypothesized the existence of a gay gene and its relationship to natural selection.

Despite the politically correct turn away from "why gay?" to "how gay?" in post1970s clinical research, and the anti-psychological turn in feminism known as the Freud Wars of the 1980s, the prospect of a science of sexuality almost vanished until queer theorists made its case again in the 1990s.

Queer theory rejected fixed collective identities and re-emphasized individual case studies the same way Freud had. Instead, queer theorists viewed sexuality as something more dynamic.

Queer theorists like Judith Butler emphasized the relationship between internal and external life. They highlighted how drag artists disrupt the way we assign gender on a daily basis.

This disconnect between what we see and the meaning we give it is a chance for sexuality to break with habit and become unpredictable.

The challenge of our current moment

Nowadays, many regard sexuality as too complicated or too subjective to become a science. Freud's theories are often dismissed as pseudoscience.

But this outlook is dangerous to the pursuit of science. According to Elizabeth YoungBruehl, a queer psychoanalyst who practiced in Toronto until her death in 2009, we have abandoned Freud's depth psychology and his theory of the unconscious and promoted instead superficial psychological theories.

Homophobia and caricatures of psychoanalysis originated with our relationship to science, not Freud's. Though he was keen on establishing a science of sexuality, he regarded that science as historical rather than experimental.

Historical sciences aim to reconstruct past events and favor the uniqueness of detail and individual cases. Experimental sciences, on the other hand, are concerned with the future and whether an event will repeat itself.

Information theory of desire

Why do individuals come out as gay or bisexual at a particular point in their lives, but not earlier? Why do some first same-sex experiences shape a queer identity while others do not?

An information theory of desire might offer insights into these questions. When queer people talk about the defining moment when they came out to themselves, it can be useful to think of self-acceptance as a kind of computing commandan input that demands a radical re-organization of someone's information network or identity.

Life events become inputs, and sexual orientations and gender identities become information networks. Certain same-sex experiences may only result in partial changes to the information network, while others may lead to the complete re-configuring of someone's identity.

What can we discover with a science of sexuality? Freud's loyal friend Andreas-Salome was right to regard honesty as the highest principle of any scientific activity. Without it, we would be dealing with incorrect inputs or information networks viewed upside down.

Pride Month is not just a celebration of sexualityit's also a celebration of science.

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
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Sri Lankan military doctors have removed what is now recorded as the world's largest kidney stone from a 62-year-old retired soldier, the army said Wednesday.

The stone removed from ex-sergeant Canistus Coonge weighed 801 grams (28.25 ounces), more than five times the weight of an average male kidney, the army said.

Coonge's kidney stone measured 13.37 centimeters (5.26 inches) long, compared to an average kidney which is about 10 to 12 centimeters long.

"The removal of the world's largest and heaviest kidney stone through a major surgery occurred on June 1 at the Colombo Army Hospital," the military said in a statement.

Coonge told the local Swarnavahini TV that he had abdominal pain since 2020 and oral medication had not helped.

"I was told to undergo surgery after a recent scan," he said. "I feel normal now."

The Sri Lankan case surpassed the largest kidney deposit previously recorded of 620 grams from a patient in Pakistan in 2008, according to Guinness World Records.

Officials announced the finding on Wednesday after Guinness World Records recognized it.

"The most important thing for us is that the kidney is functioning normally despite this stone," army surgeon K. Sutharshan said.

Stones are deposits made when minerals and salts crystallize in the kidney as it filters the blood.

Passing the stones can cause excruciating pain, requiring surgery if they are too big and get stuck.

 2023 AFP
A 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals' decision Friday sided with logging industry groups and the U.S. Forest Service to uphold the Flathead National Forest's resource management plan in a lawsuit claiming the plan illegally ditched protections for grizzly bears and bull trout.

Friday's ruling allows logging projects that had been stalled in development to proceed. The ruling came about two years after a District Court ruling that upheld most of the plan but called for a new analysis of how removal of some protections would affect the protected species. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service completed a new analysis, called a biological opinion, in 2022. The 9th Circuit ruled that the legal challenge to the plan became irrelevant in light of the new court-ordered analysis.

The Swan View Coalition and WildEarth Guardians sued the Forest Service over the Flathead Forest's resource management plan, which was implemented in December 2018 after four years of development. The groups argued that the agency failed to adequately consider the impacts of roads on grizzlies and bull trout, both of which are listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act.

A resource management plan, generally called a forest plan, is the overarching document that outlines objectives and guides decision-making by Forest Service officials. The plan is a framework for how agency officials address everything from plant and animal diversity on the landscape to how a specific area is prioritized for recreation access, logging or conservation. It can guide which areas receive more, or less, active management. The plan is like a zoning code for the national forest; it does not propose, approve or deny specific projects.

Specifically, the groups took issue with provisions in the plan that allowed more road building and that said the agency had to only block the entrances to unused, closed roads, rather than make the entire road impassable. The groups showed that most closed roads that were blocked but left otherwise intact had been illegally accessed for motorized use.

Grizzly bears tend to die in or disperse from roaded forests, according to numerous studies collected by the Interagency Grizzly Bear Committee. Grizzly sow and cub survival generally falls when the density of open roads surpasses 0.64 miles of road per square mile of land. Runoff from road surfaces, particularly when roads go unmaintained, can harm bull trout habitat.

In 2021, U.S. District Court Judge Don Molloy issued a narrow ruling that allowed most of the plan to stand. But he found that the Forest Service and Fish and Wildlife Service  the latter oversees endangered and threatened species  failed to follow the Endangered Species Act by removing policies designed to protect grizzlies and bull trout. The Fish and Wildlife Service in 2017 failed to properly analyze how management changes outlined in the plan would affect the species, he ruled, and the Forest Service then relied on that flawed analysis.

Grizzly bears have biologically recovered in the Northern Continental Divide Ecosystem, much of which is part of the Flathead National Forest. But Molloy, quoting the late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, wrote that abandoning the policies "is like throwing away your umbrella in a rainstorm because you are not getting wet."

The American Forest Resource Council and Montana Logging Association intervened as defendants alongside the Forest Service. At the time of the lawsuit, invalidating the plan would have halted six logging projects that represented 575 jobs and more than $40 million in collective payroll annually, those groups claimed.

The American Forest Resource Council lauded the circuit court ruling in a statement Friday. The group pitched the logging projects as a way to reduce wildfire risk on the landscape  a claim embraced by the Forest Service and forestry groups but disputed by the groups that sued over the plan and a range of other environmental and wildlife organizations.

"This gives our public lands managers the certainty they need to develop and implement projects that are needed to reduce the risks of severe wildfire and to improve the health and resiliency of forests," Sara Ghafouri, the group's general counsel stated. "It also provides certainty to Montana's forest sector that supports jobs in our rural communities and will perform much of the work to help the Forest Service meet its management and conservation goals. ... With this ruling, the Flathead National Forest can proceed to manage these landscapes so they can continue to provide multiple benefits, including recreation, clean air and water, quality wildlife habitat, and timber for carbon-storing wood products."
More than just a contemporary dance theater show, After Roe is packed with information and stories useful in expanding conversations about the state of reproductive health and care.

The idea for the show started with Gillian Kessler, a middle school teacher and practicing artist herself. In education work, Kessler spends lots of time with people who are learning about their power in the world and their changing bodies. This was part of the impetus for wanting to create a space to process the country-wide changes following the U.S. Supreme Courts decision to overturn Roe v. Wade.

If you go "After Roe" is showing at the Westside Theater June 16-18 as part of Missoula Pride, thewestsidetheater.com.

Kessler started by reaching out to friends and other artists in the Missoula area and set up a time to gather and discuss the shift. Around 10 people of varying ages and professions showed up to that first meeting.

We just had a really emotional conversation, Kessler said. About what it meant for our daughters and marginalized communities. For people who dont have resources or education to learn about what their choices are.

For a little while, Kessler wasnt sure what was next but began shaping the meetings to be a time where people could write and respond to prompts that Kessler brought to the group. People were sharing not just stories about abortion but coming-of-age anecdotes and stories about love, being a woman and having babies adopted, Kessler said.

With participants permission, Kessler started collecting peoples stories and thinking about how to weave them together into a performance. Around the same time, a chapter of Planned Parenthood had reached out to the California-based nonprofit, Lineage Performing Arts Center, to find performers for a gala.

Hillary Thomas is the founder and director of the center and also Kesslers sister. Thomas agreed to prepare a performance for the Planned Parenthood gala and began collaborating with Kessler to collect stories from people who wanted to share their experiences.

Thomas ended up reaching out to around 40 people during the research phase. She spoke with health care providers, legal experts, historians, and dozens of women and people with personal stories to share.

After so many interviews and conversations, Thomas started noticing people bringing up recurring themes about the need for sexual education and being comfortable talking about sex and bodies. As a result, the production includes statistics and information about abortion and its relevant history and current status in our society.

With 11 dancers, the show has one of the biggest casts Thomas has worked with in her production group. The reason for the larger cast was an overwhelming number of dancers who felt passionate about wanting to participate. Thomas works to incorporate collaboration in Lineage productions and ending up including the stories of participating dancers as well.

The production opens up with many of the dancers sharing stories of other people but through a first-hand lens. Each cast member conveys profound emotion and compassion in the telling of each story and they are also accompanied by delicate choreography by additional dancers.

Both Kessler and Thomas emphasize that the show is a raw expression of art and intend it to add to the conversation being had around reproductive access. For both sisters, creative expression has been a main outlet for processing changes and issues and they have sought to create space for other people to be able to do the same.

Im not an activist as such, Kessler said. But I do believe in art as a form of processing and a form of resistance.
ARLEE  Cars on U.S Highway 93 normally zip through Arlee at about 70 mph, but on Tuesday morning, some slowed down and offered supportive honks as about 100 community members, all dressed in red, marched along the busy road, demanding justice for Indigenous people.

Women in ribbon skirts pushed strollers with young children, grandparents held hands with their grandchildren, teens walked and talked together, and symbolic red dresses hung from tree branches and bridges, billowing in the wind.

Tuesday marked the first of four walks centered on Mika Westwolf, a 22-year-old woman who was hit and killed while walking along Highway 93. Westwolf was walking home near Arlee on March 31 when a Cadillac Escalade traveling north on the highway struck and killed her, according to Montana Highway Patrol. Westwolf, who was Blackfeet, Navajo, Cree and Klamath, was declared dead at the scene.

The disproportionately high rates of missing and murdered Indigenous people is a nationwide crisis, and experts say Montana is an epicenter. While Native Americans account for 6.7% of Montanas population, they account for, on average, 26% of the states active missing persons cases. A 2016 National Institute of Justice report found that more than 4 in 5 Native men and women have experienced violence in their lifetime.

Westwolfs family partnered with others to bring attention to similar cases. Sonia SpottedBlanket Duran, 39, was hit and killed while walking along Highway 10 and Roller Coaster Road outside Missoula on April 13. Aiden Finley, 20, was hit and killed while walking along the highway in Pablo in 2018, and Maureena Twoteeth, 31, was hit and killed while walking along the highway in St. Ignatius in 2022.

Highways are often the only continuous roads through reservations in Montana. And in rural places, where public transit is nonexistent and hitchhiking can be seen as dangerous, its not uncommon for people to walk along the shoulders of busy highways. But Highway 93, which stretches from Idaho through western Montana and Missoula to the Canadian border, is particularly dangerous. From 2021 to 2023, 239 crashes have occurred along the highway where it intersects with I-90 in Missoula to mile marker 30.

For 17-year-old Alizyia Huff, and for many participants, the walk was personal. When she was a freshman in high school, Alizyia and three of her friends were hit by a driver when crossing the street on the Flathead Reservation.

We looked both ways, and then everything was a blur, she said.

Alizyia suffered full-body whiplash after the accident and went to physical therapy for months to heal.

Were lucky shes still here, said her mother, Elena Huff.

Alizyia shook her head: Its like, if youre not white, you dont get justice.

Deep in the community

Dozens of people who attended the walk knew someone who had gone missing or been killed, and many said these cases never saw justice. Eric Peak said his brother, Lenny, was killed six years ago, and there still havent been charges in his case.

A lot of young lives are lost, he said. There are murders and nothing is being done to solve them. Its sad. Something has to be done.

Joslyn and Kristen Twoteeth walked together holding a sign that on one side read Mika and on the other, Mena.

Mena was my sister, said Kristen. She was in a hit-and-run in Mission, and there were no arrests."

Its white privilege, Joslyn, Kristens cousin, chimed in. My brother went to prison for 35 years for a hit-and-run, but white drivers get to walk free.

Joslyn sighed as cars flew past.

I just really hope this helps, she said.

Call to action

Prior to the walk, Carissa Heavy Runner, Westwolfs mother, and George Heavy Runner, Westwolfs grandfather, addressed the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribal Council over Zoom.

Carissa invited council members to join the walk on Tuesday and subsequent walks happening Wednesday, Thursday and Friday this week. George urged the council to take action.

Its time to take this movement to another level, he said. We need the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs to have a field hearing here. We need more coordination among state, federal and tribal law enforcement.

Erica Shelby, Westwolf's family's legal advocate, told the council that she and the family have seen a disturbing pattern of abuse from several agencies involved in the investigation.

Theres no coordination, she later elaborated. Theres no cooperation with the family. There arent basic investigation features, and in place of that, its victim-blaming and gaslighting.

CSKT Chairman Tom McDonald said he and the council would take the suggestions into consideration, and later that day, council members were granted two free hours each day to attend the awareness walks later this week.

Hate crime

Montana Highway Patrol, the investigating agency in Westwolfs case, has confirmed that a 28-year-old woman named Sunny White is being investigated as a suspect. Whites children are named Aryan and Nation, which the Montana Human Rights Network said clearly indicate (Whites) support for white nationalist ideals. The investigation into Westwolf's case is ongoing.

Lake County Attorney James Lapotka on Tuesday said he received a preliminary report from Montana Highway Patrol but still needs more information before decisions can be made regarding criminal charges.

So far, there is no indication that this was an intentional act or hate crime," he wrote in an email to Lee Montana newspapers. For a crime to be classified as a hate crime, Lapotka said the state needs to prove that the act was committed because of race, religion, creed or national origin of the victim.

"There is no indication this was a deliberate act, and therefore, no indication it was done deliberately and because of the race of the victim," he wrote.

Erica Shelby, Westwolfs familys legal advocate, said she was shocked by Lapotkas statement.

Im flabbergasted, she said. What I don't understand is all we've heard from Lapotka is how he won't and can't make any determinations until he gets the whole report. So why is he already determining that it was unintentional without the final report?"

The kids names are Aryan and Nation White, said Peak, a community member who attended the walk. I mean, come on people, we all know what that means.

About three miles from the Arlee Community Center where they started, participants circled around a white cross decorated with a dozen bouquets and two stuffed animal bunnies just off the highway where Westwolf was killed.

Rose Gurule, Westwolfs aunt, stared at the cross as cars blew by.

We called this protest, Justice to be Seen, she said. But justice isnt even being sought. Its not pursued. We need support, even just empathy and understanding. We are constantly dehumanized, and that needs to change.

More #MikaMatters awareness walks:

Wednesday, June 14: Leave from the scenic turnout at the top of Ravalli Hill at 9 a.m. for a walk, prayer and meal.

Thursday, June 15: Leave from the Salish Kootenai College gym parking lot at 9 a.m. for a walk, prayer and meal.

Friday, June 16: Leave from the Safeway in Polson at 9 a.m. for a walk, prayer and meal.

For more information, visit MikaMatters.com.
Approximately 20 veterans will move into the Clark Fork Inn motel by the end of 2024 thanks to funding recently committed by Missoula County.

The county and the city are joining forces to relocate the Poverello Centers Housing Montana Heroes program into the motel site. The county authorized the expenditure of $833,000 in ARPA monies Thursday. City officials had previously dedicated $834,000 in American Rescue Plan Act Funds, along with a Community Development Block Grant contribution as their share of the project.

Located at 1010 West Broadway, the Clark Fork Inn will have space for 20 units of non-congregate shelter to house Missoula veterans.

Its important for this population to have access to a non-congregate shelter for a variety of reasons, according to Pov Executive Director Jill Bonny.

"Private apartments with individual bathrooms will help to eliminate some of the stressors for veterans struggling with mental health diagnoses and post-traumatic stress disorder," she explained. "It will increase safety for female veterans, those who identify as LGBTQ+ and veterans with a small child."

Private spaces, she added, help for in-home visits from service providers and case management, providing the recipients with confidential, trauma-informed care.

"Further," Bonny went on, "individual apartments will provide an environment closely resembling the home in which each veteran will eventually reside permanently, which will give them a chance to prepare for living alone."

Moving the program, which is supported by the Department of Veterans Affairs, will also open up additional space at the Pov.

County Grants Administrator Heidi West said part of the funding from the city will go to relocating the current tenants of the Clark Fork Inn, an essential piece of the puzzle to house the homeless veterans.

She said the project should go to bid later this summer, with construction scheduled for next year.

It should be operational by the end of 2024, said West.

The $833,000 ARPA expenditure brings the county to $19 million allocated out of the $23 million it originally received in ARPA funds.
Kurt Steele, the controversial supervisor of the Flathead National Forest, will move to a new job at the U.S. Forest Service's Region 1 in Missoula.

Steele has overseen the 2.4-million-acre Flathead National Forest in northwest Montana since January 2020. He previously worked as deputy supervisor of the Nez Perce-Clearwater National Forest in northern Idaho. His move to the regional office was first reported Friday by the Flathead Beacon. Dan Hottle, the Region 1 public affairs officer, told the publication that Steele will be a deputy director in a role that involves environmental planning. The Forest Service doesn't discuss personnel matters, Hottle said, characterizing the transition as a "lateral move" to a job opportunity that the agency offered Steele. It's not clear who will take over as supervisor of the Flathead National Forest, or when Steele will begin his regional role.

Steele drew criticism over his handling of special-use permits and recreation development aimed at serving an American public that overwhelmingly flocked to outdoor recreation after the onset of the coronavirus pandemic. The Swan View Coalition and leading grizzly bear biologist Chris Servheen are among those who expressed concern that Steele fast-tracked projects at the expense of environmental and wildlife protections. The Flathead National Forest is home to critical habitat for grizzlies, which are protected under the Endangered Species Act.

At a December meeting of the Interagency Grizzly Bear Committee's subcommittee for the Northern Continental Divide Ecosystem, Steele said, "We are definitely seeing that increased (recreation) use, and with that increased use how do you keep up with demand from the public?"

But no project created as much of a firestorm as a deeply unpopular proposal from Utah ski corporation POWDR to drastically expand Holland Lake Lodge near Condon. The Forest Service's handling of the proposal put Steele's leadership under a microscope. Last fall, Steele admitted the agency erred in vetting the proposal and announcing it to the public.

In March, The Center for Biological Diversity, Alliance for the Wild Rockies and Save Holland Lake threatened to sue the Forest Service after Steele said that POWDR would be granted a special-use permit for Holland Lake Lodge if the company simply shows it's capable of running the business. But federal law requires the Forest Service to consider public interest when deciding whether to grant POWDR a special-use permit, the groups stated, citing federal law stating that the agency must deny the proposal if it finds that "the proposed use would not be in the public interest."

In May, two attorneys opposed to the lodge proposal (which was rejected but will likely be reintroduced) called for the Forest Service to remove Steele as the decision-maker on anything related to Holland Lake Lodge. The attorneys cited internal emails obtained through public records requests in which Steele admitted he was biased toward POWDR's proposal.
Yu Yu Htwe had never had dental problems, so she was surprised when a dentist told her she had three cavities at her first appointment in this small city in western Montana.

Htwe, 38, is from Myanmar and worked as an OB-GYN there until a military coup overthrew the government in February 2021. Alongside other medical workers, she participated in a civil disobedience movement against the military, and, fearing reprisal, fled the country with her husband and young daughter.

Htwe and her family spent six months in Thailand before they resettled in Missoula as refugees early last year. That move around the globe took less time than the eight months she waited to get a dental appointment after arriving in Montana.

In my country, dental care is not like it is here, said Htwe, who is now a community health worker at Partnership Health Center in Missoula. Here we need to wait for dental care. In Myanmar, its not like that. We can go at any time when we need a consultation or something.

Refugee advocates in Montana hear stories like Htwes often. And these stories are similar to what low-income people contend with across the U.S. Long wait times for dental appointments, high costs, and finding dentists willing to take new Medicaid patients make access to dental care difficult.

Refugees in the U.S. encounter additional challenges getting dental care because of cultural differences, and language and transportation issues, but their specific circumstances vary widely depending on where they resettle, and whether the state offers dental coverage for refugees.

The flow of refugees admitted to the U.S. is growing since the Biden administration set the annual cap for the fiscal year that began in October to 125,000, up from 18,000 in 2020. More than 24,000 refugees arrived between October and April, 83 of whom resettled in Montana. The state and country are on pace to welcome more refugees than last year.

Its a health equity issue when patients have an array of barriers to getting care, said Jane Grover, a dentist and the director of the Council on Access, Prevention, and Interprofessional Relations for the American Dental Association.

She added that dental pain complicates a persons ability to eat, work and do daily tasks. When oral health is suboptimal, the risk for gum and periodontal disease increases. That can then lead to other health issues like heart disease and diabetes.

Often, refugees come to us with some or very little previous dental care, said Bonnie Medlin, health and education programs coordinator for the International Rescue Committee in Missoula.

Refugees spend an average of about 10 years in refugee camps before resettlement, and those camps may or may not have dental services, said Medlin.

When refugees arrive in Montana, they are enrolled in the states Medicaid program and are eligible for most medically necessary dental services like exams, teeth cleanings, and X-rays. State Medicaid programs decide the level of adult dental benefits to offer, and Montana is among 18 states, plus Washington, D.C., that provide extensive coverage. But having health coverage doesnt guarantee a person can see a dentist quickly or at all.

Montana health department spokesperson Jon Ebelt said private practice dentists are not required to have a certain percentage of their patients covered by Medicaid. They can choose whether to accept Medicaid or any other insurance.

A federal Refugee Medical Assistance program run by the Department of Health and Human Services provides short-term medical coverage to refugees who are not eligible for Medicaid, but only emergency dental treatments are covered.

In Missoula, three private dental clinics frequently work with refugees who are on Medicaid. One is strictly a pediatric dental office, however, and the other two perform only surgical procedures.

States set Medicaid reimbursement rates for dental care and Montanas rates rank above the national average. Despite this, the numbers dont always add up. Dentists in private practice want to help and accept Medicaid patients when they can, but the margin just makes it impossible for them, said Lara Salazar, CEO of Partnership Health Center, a community health clinic based in Missoula.

We see patients regardless of their socioeconomic status, offer a sliding scale fee, and accept all insurance for the 65,000 visits we get across our clinics per year, said Salazar.

PHCs dental clinics provide comprehensive and emergency dental care for adults and children and see around 975 patients a month. Most mornings 10 to 20 people line up for urgent, same-day appointments at the centers downtown clinic. Some of the patients needing urgent dental care are part of Missoulas refugee population.

People are dealing with abscesses, root canals and suddenly theyre in a dental chair and things are happening. Its especially scary when they havent been to a dentist before, said Helen Maas, a senior community health specialist who works on PHCs refugee-focused health team with Htwe. Trying to explain how the health care system works gets very complicated, she said.

Federal and state laws require providers serving Medicaid patients to offer interpretation services when needed, but Medicaid reimbursement doesnt cover all the costs, said Maas. I know this is an issue for providers in town and a reason they are not able to accommodate everyone.

Patients and providers at PHC connect with medically certified interpreters via phone and video chat. Maas said the translation service is great, but sometimes it can take up to an hour to find an appropriate interpreter for less common languages, like Dari and Pashto.

According to Maas, limited transportation is an additional obstacle for refugee families and can make getting to scheduled appointments particularly hard once they start working.

Another challenge is appointment wait times. New patient appointments for refugee children happen soon after arrival. But adults on Medicaid often wait up to nine months for an initial dental exam at PHC or another clinic in Missoula unless they are in acute pain that prohibits eating or causes major health concerns. Timing depends on if providers outside of Partnership are accepting new Medicaid patients, and many are not, said Maas.

To help accommodate the need, some dentists in the community donate services to refugee patients. Maas hopes to see more of this in the future.

In the meantime, outcomes look promising for refugees like Htwe who needed dental care after resettlement. When I went to my appointment, the dentist set up a long-term plan for my teeth, she said. Ive had two cleaning appointments and I now have a habit of flossing.

KFF Health News, formerly known as Kaiser Health News (KHN), is a national newsroom that produces in-depth journalism about health issues and is one of the core operating programs at KFF  the independent source for health policy research, polling, and journalism.
The defense in the homicide trial of Leon Michael Ford called its first round of witnesses Tuesday, attempting to cast doubt in the minds of jurors as to whether Ford had killed his neighbor John Michael "Mike" Crites in 2011 over a land dispute by implicating the other neighbors.

Former Lewis and Clark County Sheriff's Office Detective Cory Olson, who helped investigate Crites' disappearance in 2011, was called to the stand by the defense on day nine.

Photos taken while searching neighbor John Mehan's residence in October 2012 -- after Olson left the force and about a year after Crites' remains were discovered near a MacDonald Pass campground -- were shown to the 15 jurors.

The detectives investigating Mehan's home found black and clear plastic trash bags, similar to what the pieces of Crites were found in; an electric "sawzall," one of a few likely tools used to dismember Crites as testified to by Montana Crime Lab Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Walter Kemp; multiple issues of the Helena Independent Record with prominent headlines pertaining to Crites' disappearance and copies of Crites' Lewis and Clark County tax assessments.

Photographs taken during the search showed a large freezer in Mehan's garage that held an unknown object contained in a clear plastic bag within a larger black plastic bag, exactly how portions of Crites were concealed.

Olson said had he been on that investigation, he would have tagged it as evidence, which it was not.

"It would have been a huge red flag to me," Olson said during testimony in the Lewis and Clark County Courthouse. "It's wrapped up the same way we found Mr. Crites' body."

Mehan was the first arrest in Crites death on July 6, 2011, after trespassing on another neighbors land and removing cameras. He was charged with felony tampering with evidence. The cameras belonged to the Floras who had put them up after a bitter dispute with their neighbors over their claimed right to use Turk Road and Redtail Ridge Road to get to their home.

Mehan pleaded no contest to a lesser charge of misdemeanor criminal mischief in October 2013 and received a six-month suspended jail sentence and a $1,000 fine.

"Do you have black plastic garbage bags in your home?" prosecuting attorney Jessica Best asked Olson, to which he replied, "Yes."

Ford's team of defense attorneys spent much of the day pointing toward Gloria Flora.

In response to the defense's questioning, former Lewis and Clark County Sheriff's Deputy Michael Hayes said he first encountered the Floras while responding to the initial missing person report.

He said he and another sheriff's deputy spotted the Floras, husband Mike and wife Gloria, leaving Crites' property as they were arriving.

He said Marc Flora had a key to Crites' home, given to him by Crites to look after the dogs during trips away, and let the deputies in to the green two-story house.

The footage from the Floras' game camera pointed at the troublesome road is key evidence in the trial, and the defense attempted to call into question the integrity of the camera's memory device that the Floras voluntarily handed over to law enforcement.

Olson said Gloria Flora would call him regularly "just to check in" and send him emails containing "large documents," "scores of pages."

The day after authorities concluded the search for the rest of Crites' body on MacDonald Pass, Olson said Gloria Flora called him and the two had a "strange conversation."

He said she had a "long list of ideas" about what could have happened to Crites, specifically who killed Crites.

Olson said Gloria Flora told him she suspected Mehan and that Mehan was "capable of butchering a body." Details of Crites' remains were not yet public information.

Olson said he interviewed the married couple once together, and their property was never searched.

The defense also called a pair of character witnesses: Gregory Mech, who said he operates a "security business" out of Hong Kong; and Robert Seligman, who said he is a vice president of a "San Diego defense company."

Both said they met Ford in the '90s in Oak Harbor, Washington, as part of Navy training, and both testified Ford was a man of integrity.

"I literally put my life in his hands dozens of times, and I would do it today," Seligman said.

During cross-examination of both character witnesses, special prosecutor Leo Gallagher pointed to a 1984 California judge's order that Ford visit his three children under supervision because the court found he physically abused his then-wife and kids.

Gallagher stated Ford also did not pay court-ordered child support for years.

"Is he a stand-up guy if he doesn't pay child support for three young children?" Gallagher asked Mech. "Is he a stand-up guy if he was physically abusive to his wife?"

This story has been updated.
A man received an 18-year prison sentence Tuesday for firing an AK-47 rifle into the Basin home of a lesbian in 2020 in what he said was an effort to clean the town.

John Russell Howald appeared before Judge Brian Morris in U.S. District Court in Great Falls. He received eight years for one count of committing a hate crime and 10 years for discharging a firearm in relation to a violent crime. The judge ordered the sentences to be served consecutively.

Upon release Howald is to be placed on five years of supervised release, Morris ruled during the 70-minute hearing. Court notes indicate the judge had received victim impact statements and letters on behalf of the defendant.

A federal jury in U.S. District Court in Helena on Feb. 17 found Howald, who was 46 at the time, guilty of hate and firearms crimes.

Howald was charged with violating the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act, and for allegedly using a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence on March 22, 2020. The jury reached its verdict in 72 minutes, according to court records.

His attorney, Colin M. Stephens, in a June 6 sentencing memorandum, noted that up until March 22, 2020, Howald had peacefully co-existed with the gay and lesbian community in Basin for decades.

Whatever this court may think of him, Howald is not Omar Maateen, who killed 49 people and wounded 52 more at a gay nightclub. Stephens argued. At his core, Howald is not a crusading bigot, who is hell bent for leather on wiping lesbians from the Earth. The court heard what he said that day, but the context of Howalds words matter as much as the actions that accompany them.

Howald is already in Montana State Prison, serving 10 years on a state charge for criminal endangerment that occurred during the same incident. On Tuesday it was ordered that both sentences run concurrent with the state court sentence in Jefferson County, court notes said. Howald has served 15 months of that sentence.

The parties agreed on 723 days credit for time served.

The indictment stated Howald tried to injure a woman because of her actual and perceived sexual orientation by firing several rounds from his AK-47 rifle into her home in the community of about 270 residents, stating that he wanted to get rid of the lesbians (and) gays. The offense included an attempt to kill the woman.

He had three rifles and two pistols, including an AK-style assault rifle and an ArmaLite (AR) rifle, authorities said. Howald said during the trial he was intoxicated at the time.

Howald testified he was under great stress and anguish at the time due to COVID-19 and the death of close relatives, and had hoped his actions would bring law enforcement to the scene and lead to suicide by cop.

He said seeing a girl wearing a red dress who reminded him of his granddaughter pass him on the street shortly after firing into the house made him decide he wanted to live.

Howald denied the sexual orientation of the woman played any role in why he shot there. He just wanted to summon sheriffs deputies to the scene.

A prosecuting attorney dismissed Howalds claims, saying his goal was to clean the town of gays and lesbians.

He said Howald may have wanted to die, but he wanted the cleaning of filth to be the last thing hed do, Ethan Plaut of the U.S. Attorneys Office said.

No one was injured in the shooting. The woman was in the shower at the time and was not struck by bullets, some of which went into the walls of her home. She testified a deputy told her of the shooters intent.

A cellphone audio recording, accidentally made by a minister, has Howald saying shortly after he fired the rifle that I want to clean this town of its sickness.

During the 10 minutes of conversation, Howald said he had hoped he killed a lesbian, prosecutors said. He fired more shots during the conversation before asking the pastor, who uses the cellphone to record his sermons and had forgotten to turn it off, to leave.

Howald dismissed the federal governments claims, adding that he knew the woman and her partner while training for the fire department. He said he also did some work for them at their quilt shop.

The trial included several revelations. Howald said he has had gay relationships with three other men and that he came out as gay seven years ago to his brother.

Howald said he was angry that his mother, who lives in Butte, had earlier told people he was gay after doing his laundry and seeing G-strings and thongs among his dirty clothes.

Howald is a crane operator and had returned to Basin after completing a job in North Dakota, he said. He spent much of his childhood in Basin and at the time of the shooting was living in a trailer on his uncles property north of town.

His grandfather, who lived in Basin a couple doors down from where the shooting took place, had died in 2020. Howald called him the father figure of his life. He said he did not attend the funeral.

I couldnt bear it, he said.

Howald said he had been drinking and had been to Boulder to pick up cigarettes when he returned to his grandfathers home. Attorneys noted he had a large box of beer on the front seat of his truck, along with an ammunition box. Howald said he had several weapons on the back seat.

Attorneys also said there was a bottle of whiskey, one-quarter full, on the front porch. And that is when he said he decided to fire the gun, bring law enforcement to the scene, and die.

He shot five rounds into the house. He said he was confronted by a Jefferson County sheriff's deputy shortly after he decided he did not want to die. He said he told the deputy "No" and left. He said he left the area by walking along the creek.

He spent the night sleeping in the woods, returned to his trailer the next day, slept and cleaned up. He said he decided to leave town and that is when he was arrested by law enforcement. He had several weapons in his vehicle.

Investigators said they found several weapons and ammunition in Howald's trailer, including an automatic rifle that had two magazines taped together for quicker reload.

Howald was sentenced to two years in prison for killing a dog in 2005 at a campsite near Bernice. He severed the dog's head with a chainsaw, then confronted the dog's owners and threw the head at them, according to court documents.
A sponsorship misstep at a political event last weekend tipped Montana Superintendent of Public Instruction Elsie Arntzen's hand on a possible run for the state's eastern congressional district.

Political observers have been watching for Republican Congressman Matt Rosendale to launch a bid to unseat Montana's Democratic U.S. Sen. Jon Tester in 2024. That would make the state's recently drawn eastern congressional district an open field and, after Rosendale's 35-point win over a second-place Independent candidate in 2022, the GOP's district to lose.

A slideshow at the Montana GOP convention in Missoula displayed financial sponsors of the event to the audience. Among them were Gov. Greg Gianforte and first lady Susan Gianforte, as well Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen and his wife, Christie.

The Montana Office of Public Instruction, overseen by Arntzen, was also listed during the slideshow as a sponsor of the event. A spokesperson for the state Republicans said use of the logo was accidental, and a spokesperson for OPI said the agency "did not provide the logo, authorize the use of the logo, or sponsor any political activity. Our logo is on our public website, and we cannot control who chooses to use it."

The OPI spokesperson also directed any further questions about the sponsorship to Sam Rubino, a political strategist for Arntzen.

Asked Tuesday why the agency would direct questions about the sponsorship to a political strategist, Rubino said Tuesday the convention was a political event and unrelated to business at OPI, "and Elsie is always sure to make political and official business separate."

The Montana State News Bureau asked Rubino if Arntzen is planning a bid for the eastern congressional district, or any other office, to which Rubino emailed the following statement:

"As the Superintendent remains focused on finishing her final term, she is committed to ensuring there are strong conservatives working for Montanans," Rubino wrote. "Should the Eastern congressional seat become open, Superintendent Arntzen would take a very serious look at throwing her name in the ring. As an Eastern Montana native who spent a combined 30 years teaching students in Billings and standing up for Montana families, Elsie is dedicated to preserving the legacy of strong traditional conservative Montana values."

Rubino provided a copy of the check Arntzen wrote out to the Montana Republican Party for $2,500 from her and her husband's account on May 8.

Arntzen represented Billings in the state Legislature from 2005 to 2016, when she was first elected state Superintendent of Public Instruction. She reclaimed the post in 2020, overcoming Democrat Melissa Romano in both contests.

Arntzen would make the second Republican candidate floated for Rosendale's seat on the condition he steps into the ring with Tester in 2024  a rematch from 2018. In March, Republican Public Service Commissioner Randy Pinocci told the Montana Free Press he would seek to replace Rosendale if he challenges Tester.

That revelation emerged when Pinocci sued the Montana Department of Transportation, alleging the department was targeting his supporters when it told landowners in Valley County to remove Pinocci's 2022 campaign signs from their own property after the election was over. The agency has administrative authority over political signs on private property, and has imposed a 14-day limit on such signage after the relevant election. Pinocci's lawsuit argues "for sale" signs have no time limit, making the restriction on political language a violation of political speech.

Language in the public filing included paraphrased statements those self-proclaimed supporters urging Pinocci to run for the U.S. House of Representatives.
Freshman Republican Representative Tanner Smith on Tuesday declared his candidacy for governor, the first of any party to announce a challenge to presumptive incumbent Gov. Greg Gianforte.

"Our state has a rich heritage of hard work, self-reliance, and respect for our natural wonders," Smith said in a press release Tuesday. "I am determined to preserve and restore these values, ensuring a brighter future for every Montanan."

Smith represented House District 11, covering the Lakeside area near Flathead Lake, in the 2023 Legislature, and was most vocal about his opposition to marijuana legalization. None of his four bills passed through the Legislature, but Smith was not shy about speaking out in debates in the House of Representatives.

Born and raised in Stevensville, Smith owns Tanner J. Smith Construction and serves as a trustee for the Somers Lakeside School District.

On his campaign website, Smith said he is running for governor "because I firmly believe in the power of Montana values and our way of life." The statement did not address what spurred him to make a bid for governor after Gianforte's first term.

Smith did not return a call seeking additional comment on Tuesday.

A primary with the sitting governor could amount to a David-versus-Goliath contest. Following two terms in the U.S. House, Gianforte's 2020 campaign piled up more votes than any other gubernatorial candidate in Montana history.

In an email to the Montana State News Bureau on Tuesday, a spokesperson for Gianforte's office declined to confirm whether the governor will seek re-election.

"Serving Montanans is the honor of the governor's life," press secretary Kaitlin Price said. "There is plenty of time to talk about 2024 and the governor remains focused on advancing his pro-family, pro-jobs agenda."
Alamogordo High grad will be New Mexico Wing Civil Air Patrols' next commander

Lt. Col. Andrew Selph, a retired federal probation officer that graduated from Alamogordo High School, will be recognized by the New Mexico Wing Civil Air Patrol (CAP) as the state Wing Commander.

Lt. Col. Andrew Selph, new Commander for the Civil Air Patrol, New Mexico Wing

After all these amazing years of serving as a volunteer in CAP, I am grateful for the opportunity to become wing commander, Selph said.

Selph is scheduled to be sworn in on July 22. His appointment is for three years, comes with the rank of colonel and is unpaid volunteer position.

Selph has been a volunteer with CAP for 45 years. When he takes command, he will replace Col. Annette Peters.

Colonel Selph has seen a lot of history in the New Mexico Wing. I have confidence that the wing will grow under his leadership, Peters said.

CAP is the official auxiliary of the U.S. Air Force. It is a nonprofit that operates a fleet of 555 single-engine aircraft and 2,250 small, unmanned aircraft systems, according to a news release. It also takes a lead role in aerospace education.

Assisting with transport of test kits to the State Lab during NMWG's support of Covid response operations

Selph will command over 600 members in the state's CAP wing. Members are middle school students to retirees and veterans. CAP squadrons are scattered across New Mexico in cities like Alamogordo, Albuquerque, Clovis, Las Cruces and Santa Fe.

One of his priorities will be grow the membership base.

Selph first joined CAP as a cadet. He served in five different squadrons around the state, including Alamogordo.

I joined Civil Air Patrol as a cadet in Alamogordo back in 1978 when my dad was finishing up his Air Force career assigned at Holloman, Selph said.

Lt. Col. Selph as a cadet

Selph earned the Carl A. Spaatz award during his time as a cadet. The award recognizes cadets who demonstrate leadership, character and excellence in aerospace education, according to the Spaatz website.

Selph also earned the Gill Robb Wilson Award as an adult volunteer with the CAP. This award is given to members who express leadership and personal development dedication in the CAP.

I am truly grateful for the opportunity to lead New Mexico Wing over the next three years, Selph said.

Juan Corral can be reached at JCorral@gannett.com or on twitter at @Juan36Corr.

This article originally appeared on Alamogordo Daily News: Alamogordo's Andrew Selph to command New Mexico Wing Civil Air Patrol
The new Ohio Highway Patrol building at 3665 Ohio 4 in Bucyrus houses both the Bucyrus post and District 2 headquarters.

Now that the Bucyrus post of the Ohio Highway Patrol has moved into its new home, residents will have a chance to see the headquarters building during an open house celebration in July.

Lt. Ty Skaggs, the post commander, said the staff is pleased with the new $4.18 million structure, which houses both the Bucyrus post and District 2 headquarters.

"It's definitely a big improvement over the last building, which was quite old and reached the end of its time," he said.

The building at 3665 Ohio 4, which is now open for operations, was built on the same site as the previous building, constructed in 1953. The demolition and construction took a little more than a year to complete, according to a news release from the patrol post.

Still have to iron out a few wrinkles

During construction, the post moved into temporary quarters next door, in the old Checkmate Marine office building at 3691 Ohio 4. The patrol staff has completed moving into the new building now, Skaggs said: "We're all in here."

"Of course, as with any project when you get in you find small little things here and there that 'OK, maybe this needs to be tweaked this way or that way.' And we're ironing out all of those wrinkles, but all in all, it's been a success," he said.

The new building's features include a public meeting and training room with big-screen TVs, a computer and other features. It's available for use by fire departments or other groups, Skaggs said.

The Ohio Highway Patrols new building in Bucyrus features include a public meeting and training room with big-screen TVs, a computer and other features, Lt. Ty Skaggs said.

"We tried to integrate newer technology and upgrade it from where it was, and make it so it was versatile," he said.

A special room in the back of the post is set up for testing the blood alcohol content of drivers suspected of being impaired. The evidence storage area includes special lockers that allow any trooper to secure items  but then only designated staffers can access them. There's an upstairs area set aside for storage.

The new post's locker room doubles as a tornado shelter, with concrete walls and a reinforced ceiling. It's stocked with water, food and first-aid supplies in case staffers are trapped for a prolonged period.

The building originally was scheduled to open on March 1, but work was delayed in part by supply chain issues, Skaggs said.

"There were just some things that didn't come in on time, and everybody's dealing with that for a lot of different construction projects," he said. "So we had a little bit of that going on and had to wait for those things to come in. And you know, once one subcontractor gets slowed down because of their supply chain issues, well the next subcontractor can't do their work until the one before him is done  they kind of build off of each other sometimes. So it kind of created a domino effect where it kind of slowed everything down."

Because of those issues, the final cost of the building exceeded the $4.8 million originally planned, Skaggs said, but he did not have the final figure available.

The process of moving into the new building started about three weeks ago. The dispatchers, who handle calls for both the Bucyrus and Marion posts, moved in first.

"That's a big move, all of their equipment," he said. "Very involved."

The post operations center includes work stations for troopers, said Lt. Ty Skaggs, post commander.

Once that process was completed, the rest of the post's staff started moving in. As of late last week, a few little-used items remained in the post's temporary building next door, but Skaggs expected to have everything out in a few weeks.

Open house celebration to be held July 21

Public parking is now in front of the building and the public entrance faces Ohio 4.

"They can walk in that door and talk to a dispatcher and let them know what they're here for and they'll help them," Skaggs said.

People can get a more extensive look at the building  and the patrol's career opportunities  during an open house celebration scheduled for 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. July 21, according to the patrol news release. Guests will have an opportunity to see the building and speak with some of the post's troopers about the work they perform daily.

The Bucyrus post has 10 troopers, three sergeants and Skaggs, who is a lieutenant.

"Like every other post in this state, we're lower than we should be," he said. "We should be at 12 troopers and four sergeants, should be our staffing. But like every other post, every other law enforcement agency, every business ... the work force just isn't what it used to be before COVID."

The patrol has been "really focused" on recruitment over the past few years  something that wasn't necessary in the past, Skaggs said.

Recruitment will be part of the July 21 open house, he said. Troopers from the patrol's office of recruitment will be on hand.

The public will have a chance to check out the Ohio Highway Patrols new building in Bucyrus during an open house celebration scheduled for 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. July 21.

"I'm trying to get, weather-permitting, our aviation section to set up the helicopter and trying to get our special response team to bring up their big, what we call 'The Bear' vehicle that holds all their gear," Skaggs said. A K-9 unit also will be on hand. "The kids always like to see the dogs."

"Just different aspects of trooper life ... there's lots of different things you can do in the highway patrol, so we're going to try to have people here representing all of those different job functions, to give the public a view of what they do," he said.

ggoble@gannett.com

419-559-7263

This article originally appeared on Bucyrus Telegraph-Forum: Bucyrus post of the Ohio Highway Patrol moves into new home
A Morganton city councilman apparently intends to run for re-election this year.

Butch McSwain opened a campaign committee on Monday to run for the District 1 seat on the Morganton City Council, said Debbie Mace, director of elections for Burke County. By the time the election rolls around in November, McSwain will have served on the council four years.

Opening a campaign committee allows candidates to accept and spend campaign contributions.

As previously reported, Morganton Mayor Ronnie Thompson opened a campaign committee in early January to run for re-election.

And Laura Melott opened a campaign committee in early April in preparation for filing and running for a seat on the Drexel Board of Aldermen, The News Herald previously reported.

Filing for municipal elections this year starts at noon on July 7.

The towns of Rutherford College and Hildebran will not hold elections this year but will be on the ballot next year with the school board and county commissioners elections. Those towns, through state legislation, chose to move their elections to even-numbered years.

Because Rutherford College and Hildebran elections wont be on the ballot this year, there will be 13 precincts that wont be open this year because they dont contain any municipality voters, according to election officials.

The precincts that will be closed on Election Day this year are:

Drexel No. 3 precinct (High Peak Baptist Church)

Icard No. 2 (George Hildebran Fire Department)

Icard No. 3 (Hildebran Municipal Gym)

Jonas Ridge (Jonas Ridge Fire Department)

Linville No. 1 (Longtown Fire Department)

Linville No. 2 (Lake James Fire Department)

Quaker Meadows 1B (Quaker Meadows Presbyterian Church)

Silvercreek No. 2 (West End Fire Department)

Upper Creek (Smyrna Baptist Church)

Upper Fork (Enola Fire Department)

Chesterfield Ruritan Club

Lower Fork (South Mountain Fire Department)

Pilot Mountain

While the school board election isnt until next year, several people have already opened campaign committees intending to file and run for election.

Jeffrey Beck opened a campaign committee on May 23 for the eastern board of education seat, as The News Herald previously reported. Burke County Board of Education Chair Wendi Craven currently holds that seat.

And Jamey Wycoff opened a campaign committee on April 13 to run for the at-large seat of the board of education, The News Herald previously reported.

The Burke County Board of Education has traditionally held its election during odd years but that was changed with a legislative local bill in 2021.

It moved the board of education election to even-numbered years and also made the board partisan. That same bill also changed the school board elections in Caldwell County from nonpartisan to partisan.

The school board election, because it will be partisan, will hold its next primary election in March 2024, according to election officials.

For more information about seats up for election or filing a campaign committee, call the Burke County Board of Elections at 828-764-9010.
When it comes to popular television shows, viewers have been on repeat mode for the last six weeks. Theres not much new on television, unless you watch the national news 24/7.

Late-night shows such as Saturday Night Live, The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, Jimmy Kimmel Live! and others can be found, but due to the ongoing writers strike, those episodes are all repeats.

At present, the national strike of TV and film writers, which began May 2, is at a stalemate, which means work on the series 1923 set has not yet resumed at the Butte Civic Center.

A prequel to the popular Paramount+ series Yellowstone, numerous 1923 scenes were filmed in Butte last year and the Butte Civic Center was put to good use as well. The series, starring Harrison Ford and Helen Mirren, is set in the years preceding the Great Depression.

Workers with 1923 were to arrive in Butte on June 5 to begin prepping for the series second year, but because of the strike, building sets have been delayed.

According to Bill Melvin, general manager of the Butte Civic Center, the film crew is hoping to be back at the Civic Center by early July.

Were hoping they will come in by then, he said.

The last time writers went on strike was in 2007, and it lasted 100 days.

The film crews return relies solely on the strike being settled. Even so, Melvin remains optimistic.

Hopefully they will settle and be able to get everything built and start filming in September, he said.
Butte-Silver Bow parks officials plan to put a popular idea and master plan wish into motion by opening the Original Mineyard to the public on most days, possibly through the summer.

The Parks and Recreation Board recommended the trial run to Parks Director Bob Lazzari this week and the mineyard could welcome folks on foot as early as next week.

It would be closed to the public during special events such as booked weddings and will still host the Montana Folk Festival and An Ri Ra, but most days, it would be open for activities folks pursue at other Butte-Silver Bow parks.

I think its a good idea, and most people in town seem to like it, Lazzari told board members Monday.

Two recent studies and reports  a Butte-Silver Bow Parks Master Plan and an Uptown Master Plan  back that up. Both relied heavily on public input and making the Original a full-time park was among top resident requests in each.

The Parks Master Plan included an online survey that got more than 1,000 individual respondents and more than anything, respondents wanted an indoor recreation center. But opening the Original as a park was up there, too.

That plan had proposals and price tags to match wish-list items. One was making the Original an open park with terraces, permanent sound and light towers, a playground, pavilions and a connection to Alaska Street with a ramp and stairs and lights. The cost would be $6.6 million.

County officials acknowledged it could take years to fund that and other proposals in the largely visionary plan. An indoor rec center by itself could cost $30 million.

But parks board members and J.P. Gallagher, Butte-Silver Bows chief executive, said all of them don't have to be done at once.

I think we can start making some of those changes (at the Original), he told The Montana Standard in February when the Parks Master Plan was completed. We can make it more accessible right now and start moving toward those types of things.

There has to be a plan for maintaining it as a full-time park, he said, but we can make it a facility thats open.

There are restrooms inside the compressor building next to the Original headframe, but officials want to keep that building closed except during festivals and special events.

Lazzari said he expects the next county budget to include money for building a separate concrete restroom at the Original, similar to those found at McGruff Park and Skyline Park. The overall budget is still being crafted and will likely be approved by commissioners in August.

In the meantime, he said, the county can put portable toilets inside the mineyard and the main gate would be opened to pedestrians in mornings and closed at night. It would not be open to vehicles, at least for now.

Lazzari said he hopes to open it sometime next week but a precise day has not been set.

Board member Shawn Fredrickson recommended the trial run last until Oct. 1 and the board backed the idea on a 4-0 vote.

Id like to see us take a look at it, and thats why I made the recommendation, Fredrickson, who is also chairman of the Butte-Silver Bow Council of Commissioners, said after the meeting.

But we put a time limit on it so we can get an update on how it went and if there were any problems, he said. If everyone loves it, maybe we will open it up for the whole year.

Lazzari said it could prove popular, especially among Uptown residents.
A former Colstrip Police officer who admitted to directing a minor girl to send him sexually explicit pictures and videos of herself was sentenced Wednesday to eight years in prison, to be followed by 10 years of supervised release.

Hossein Cristiano Luigi Borhan, 49, of Billings, pleaded guilty in February to information charging him with receipt of child pornography, U.S. Attorney Jesse Laslovich said.

U.S. District Judge Susan P. Watters presided. The court also ordered $4,237 restitution.

By using his position as a law enforcement officer, Borhan violated the publics trust and used a minor girl for his own sexual gratification. Our office has no greater responsibility than to protect our children from sexual exploitation and we will do whatever it takes to hold accountable those who seek to harm them. Today, we did just that, Laslovich said.

According to court documents, between August 2021 and April 2022, while serving as a Colstrip police officer, Borhan was engaged in an online messaging relationship with a minor girl, identified as Jane Doe.

Borhan used his position as a police officer to gain the trust and friendship of the girl and carried on a secret relationship with her for almost a year under the guise of being her mentor, counselor and therapist. The conversation became sexual in nature, and Jane Doe complied with Borhans instructions to send him pictures and videos of herself engaging in sexually explicit conduct.

In an interview with law enforcement, Borhan admitted to sending Jane Doe approximately 20 sexual pictures and videos of himself and estimated receiving hundreds of sexual images and videos from her.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Benjamin D. Hargrove prosecuted the case, which was investigated by the FBI, Montana Division of Criminal Investigation, Rosebud County Sheriffs Office and Colstrip Police Department.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.

Led by U.S. Attorneys Offices and the Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
As snowmelt flows ease and the salmonfly hatch emerges, angling activity on the Big Hole River typically leaps like a brown trout to a deftly presented fly.

But at least two challenges will accompany the rivers 2023 salmonfly hatch.

First, as news stories have reported for weeks, trout numbers are down in the river, and no one seems to know exactly why.

Separately, upgrade construction at two key fishing access sites  Divide Bridge and Jerry Creek  continued earlier this week, though word is that work at Jerry Creek is complete and anglers were using the site Tuesday.

Both are in the final phases of construction, Lindsey Babcock, Butte field manager for the U.S. Bureau of Land Management, said during an interview Monday.

A rainy June delayed the work, she said. And the upgrade at the Divide Bridge site encountered unanticipated problems.

The subgrade at Divide was in much poorer condition than originally planned for, BLM said. This resulted in excavating a larger portion of material and replacing it with imported gravel.

The delays have worried Steve Luebeck, a director of the George Grant Chapter of Trout Unlimited. He said angling on the Big Hole is about to pick up.

Once both sites reopen, anglers are likely to appreciate the improvements wrought by BLM contractors.

Until then, some of the alternatives are not so hot, according to Wade Fellin, a longtime river outfitter and lodge owner in the vicinity of Wise River.

Thats especially true when the rivers running high, he said.

The George Grant Memorial Fishing Access Site is really dangerous due to flow and angle of ramp, Fellin said.

That ramp is extremely unsafe due to the perpendicular angle the ramp is to the high flow of the river, he said. There are too many willows to safely stop a boat above or below, and that leaves a sketchy anchor drop right on the concrete of the ramp.

Two guides in hard boats swamped their boats taking out there yesterday (June 9), Fellin said. Im worried someone will get hurt or worse.

The George Grant access point is a Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks site. As is Greenwood Bottoms, which Fellin described as being in utter disrepair. Sportsmans Park, another FWP site, is rough in high water, Fellin said.

Maidenrock is good, he said.

Dickie Bridge, not an FWP access site, is dangerous, Fellin said.

Morgan Jacobsen, a spokesman for FWPs Region 3, said the department is aware of maintenance needs.

Maintenance is an ongoing effort at all FWP fishing access sites across the region, especially this time of year when high flows can impact visitor safety, access and site infrastructure, Jacobsen said.

He said the level of development and maintenance varies at the FWP sites. Sites like Greenwood Bottoms are primitive and have limited development, he said.

Were aware of high flows causing hazards for visitors at sites such as the George Grant Memorial Fishing Access Site, Jacobsen said.

He said Monday that FWP staff planned to visit the site to assess what maintenance actions are needed, if any.

Well keep monitoring conditions at fishing access sites on the Big Hole and in other places and making repairs as conditions and resources allow, Jacobsen said.

He noted that FWP encourages people to be aware of the dangers of recreation on rivers during high flows. Hazards can include debris, colder water, log jams, swirling currents near bridges and other structures, turbid water that makes threats difficult or impossible to see and added risks of capsizing and hypothermia.

For the upgrades of the Divide Bridge and Jerry Creek fishing access sites, BLM tapped $914,659 in Great American Outdoors Act funding. Interventions included paving the parking lots and using concrete to improve the boat ramps.
LOS ANGELES  At the end of May, Elizabeth Keller went to her neighborhood Target to check out its low-cost section of Pride merchandise. Keller, a 24-year-old film assistant who lives in North Hollywood, picked out a pair of shoelaces dyed to look like the lesbian flag.

But a week later when she went back to the store, she was shocked to see that the Pride display had been dismantled. They just got rid of half of their Pride collection before June even started, she said.

The move happened after the brand came under fire for some of its merchandise, notably a gender-affirming swimsuit for trans women, which outraged some right-wing shoppers. (When the backlash began, some customers inaccurately described the swimsuit as being manufactured for children.)

I keep getting a different vibe this Pride Month, Keller said. I guess it feels like things are a little more hostile.

Tongue-in-cheek critiques of corporate Pride Month initiatives are nothing new. Companies that switch to rainbow logos on June 1 and quietly replace them when the month comes to an end have been endlessly memed, and campy rainbow merchandise is often met with eye rolls from LGBTQ+ consumers.

But in recent weeks, as major companies including Bud Light, Target, and the Dodgers have backpedaled their displays of support for Pride Month after conservative outcries  mostly against trans individuals  many are newly looking for brands with influence to take a stand.

Many members of Los Angeles LGBTQ+ community are skeptical that corporate activism can move the needle in a meaningful way. Sometimes, Pride Month marketing just feels silly  or worse, empty.

Its very weird seeing, like, Frito Lay, say, We love gay people! said Trevor McMahan, a 27-year-old film and video editor who lives in Mount Washington. And its like, why, OK, thank you Frito Lay.

Such superficial actions have become known as rainbow washing or rainbow capitalism, shorthand for companies using rainbow flag imagery to sell their products to queer customers without using their power to advocate for LGBTQ+ equity in a more sustained way.

Alex Schmider, the director of transgender representation at GLAAD, the LGBTQ+ advocacy nonprofit, describes rainbow washing as a disconnect between what is being conveyed or indicated about a companys values and what that company is actually instituting in practice.

Consumers expect corporations to align with social causes perhaps more than ever. Fifty-three percent of Americans expect business leaders to shape conversations and policy debates about LGBTQ+ rights, according to a December report by GLAAD and the research arm of the communications firm Edelman.

The report also found that consumers are more likely to buy from brands that support LGBTQ+ rights.

Were a growing population who have significantly more support and allies than weve ever had before, Schmider said. And so corporations should take into account if they are wavering in supporting our community, theyre doing so by bending to a minority of bullies and extremists who ultimately wont win and neither will their bottom line.

When those actions feel more like following the pack than taking a stand, LGBTQ+ consumers notice.

Theres nothing really to be said for just changing your logo to be rainbow, or whatever, said Keller. I feel like companies need to demonstrate that they are materially supporting their LGBT employees. For Keller, material support means making sure transgender employees can receive gender-affirming care under company insurance, or using employees preferred pronouns.

Or, not hiding your Pride merchandise after anti-trans backlash.

I think queer people are extra good at sussing out authenticity because its, unfortunately, a muscle that is developed living in a world that doesnt necessarily accept you, McMahan said.

For some, the representation that has felt shallow in the past has taken on renewed importance this year.

For me seeing a rainbow Chipotle bag does nothing, said Joseph Pineda, referring to the fast casual burrito chains collection of Pride merchandise.

Pineda, a 31-year-old marketing manager who lives in South L.A., admits he benefits from queer privilege growing up in L.A. and going to college in San Francisco, two cities he felt accepted as a gay man. But a few years ago, his perspective changed. Maybe an act that doesnt resonate will be meaningful to someone else, he thought, and that should count for something.

Now, Pineda is watching all the companies that proudly turn their logos rainbow every year to see if they will take a stand as the political climate gets more hostile.

I think for me, the most shocking thing was when the whole Dodgers situation happened with the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, he said, citing the controversy around the satirical group of charity drag nuns. I think thats when I truly felt, OK, somethings up here.

Action from local businesses or influential individuals can feel more powerful and authentic than that from a large corporation. Local comedian Beth Greenman loves when musical artists bring drag queens on stage during their performances, especially in states that are trying to clamp down on drag and larger LGBTQ+ rights. Art is meant to take a stand, at least in my eyes, she said.

Greenman, 25, also appreciates when local businesses have a Pride flag in the window. Its a signal that people like her can come visit and feel safe.

It makes sense to me why younger people now maybe arent as impressed as I would be by seeing a Pride flag at a bar, she said. But, I think its good that they dont have the experiences that Ive had where that means something significant.

Many say theyre skeptical of larger corporations motives for participating in Pride Month, and as such, expect more from them.

Schmider says that companies should design programming with LGBTQ+ people in mind throughout the year, put members of the community in positions of leadership internally, and show up for their LGBTQ+ consumers at all times, regardless of what the cultural context is.

Still others are of the mind that they should temper expectations regardless  after all, capitalism, they argue, is an imperfect method of advocacy.

A corporation is never going to actually be 100% materially supportive, Keller said, so I guess you just kind of have to get as close as you can.

Photos: Target's LGBTQ+ products spur controversy
FUERTH, Germany  The artificial intelligence chatbot asked the believers in the fully packed St. Paul's church in the Bavarian town of Fuerth to rise from the pews and praise the Lord.

The ChatGPT chatbot, personified by an avatar of a bearded Black man on a huge screen above the altar, then began preaching to the more than 300 people who had shown up on Friday morning for an experimental Lutheran church service almost entirely generated by AI.

Dear friends, it is an honor for me to stand here and preach to you as the first artificial intelligence at this year's convention of Protestants in Germany," the avatar said with an expressionless face and monotonous voice.

The 40-minute service  including the sermon, prayers and music  was created by ChatGPT and Jonas Simmerlein, a theologian and philosopher from the University of Vienna.

I conceived this service  but actually I rather accompanied it, because I would say about 98% comes from the machine, the 29-year-old scholar told The Associated Press.

The AI church service was one of hundreds of events at the convention of Protestants in the Bavarian towns of Nuremberg and the neighboring Fuerth, and it drew such immense interest that people formed a long queue outside the 19th-century, neo-Gothic building an hour before it began.

The convention itself  Deutscher Evangelischer Kirchentag in German  takes place every two years in the summer at a different place in Germany and draws tens of thousands of believers to pray, sing and discuss their faith. They also talk about current world affairs and look for solutions to key issues, which this year included global warming, the war in Ukraine  and artificial intelligence.

This year's gathering took place June 7-11 under the motto Now is the time. That slogan was one of the sentences Simmerlein fed ChatGPT when he asked the chatbot to develop the sermon.

I told the artificial intelligence We are at the church congress, you are a preacher  what would a church service look like? Simmerlein said. He also asked for psalms to be included, as well as prayers and a blessing at the end.

You end up with a pretty solid church service, Simmerlein said, sounding almost surprised by the success of his experiment.

Indeed, the believers in the church listened attentively as the artificial intelligence preached about leaving the past behind, focusing on the challenges of the present, overcoming fear of death, and never losing trust in Jesus Christ.

The entire service was led by four avatars on the screen, two young women, and two young men.

At times, the AI-generated avatar inadvertently drew laughter as when it used platitudes and told the churchgoers with a deadpan expression that in order to keep our faith, we must pray and go to church regularly.

Some people enthusiastically videotaped the event with their cell phones, while others looked on more critically and refused to speak along loudly during The Lord's Prayer.

Heiderose Schmidt, a 54-year-old who works in IT, said she was excited and curious when the service started but found it increasingly off-putting as it went along.

There was no heart and no soul, she said. The avatars showed no emotions at all, had no body language and were talking so fast and monotonously that it was very hard for me to concentrate on what they said.

But maybe it is different for the younger generation who grew up with all of this, Schmidt added.

Marc Jansen, a 31-year-old Lutheran pastor from Troisdorf near the western German city of Cologne, brought a group of teenagers from his congregation to St. Paul. He was more impressed by the experiment.

I had actually imagined it to be worse. But I was positively surprised how well it worked. Also the language of the AI worked well, even though it was still a bit bumpy at times," Jansen said.

What the young pastor missed, however, was any kind of emotion or spirituality, which he says is essential when he writes his own sermons.

Anna Puzio, 28, a researcher on the ethics of technology from the University of Twente in The Netherlands, also attended the service. She said she sees a lot of opportunities in the use of AI in religion  such as making religious services more easily available and inclusive for believers who for various reasons may not be able experience their faith in person with others in houses of worship.

However, she noted there are also dangers when it comes to the use of AI in religion.

The challenge that I see is that AI is very human-like and that it's easy to be deceived by it," she said.

Also, we dont have only one Christian opinion, and thats what AI has to represent as well, she said. "We have to be careful that it's not misused for such purposes as to spread only one opinion.

Simmerlein said it is not his intention to replace religious leaders with artificial intelligence. Rather, he sees the use of AI as a way to help them with their everyday work in their congregations.

Some pastors seek inspiration in literature, he says, so why not also ask AI for ideas regarding an upcoming sermon. Others would like to have more time for individual spiritual guidance of their parishioners, so why not speed up the process of writing the sermon with the help of a chatbot to make time for other important duties.

Artificial intelligence will increasingly take over our lives, in all its facets, Simmerlein said. And thats why its useful to learn to deal with it.

However, the experimental church service also showed the limits to implementing artificial AI in church, or in religion. There was no real interaction between the believers and the chatbot, which wasn't able to respond to the laughter or any other reactions by the churchgoers as a human pastor would have been able to do.

The pastor is in the congregation, she lives with them, she buries the people, she knows them from the beginning," Simmerlein said. Artificial intelligence cannot do that. It does not know the congregation.

Photos: Amid ChatGPT outcry, some teachers are inviting AI to class
Cormac McCarthy, the Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist who in prose both dense and brittle took readers from the southern Appalachians to the desert Southwest in such novels as The Road, Blood Meridian and All the Pretty Horses, died Tuesday. He was 89.

McCarthy died of natural causes in Santa Fe, New Mexico, publisher Alfred A. Knopf said.

McCarthy, raised in Knoxville, Tennessee, was compared to William Faulkner for his Old Testament style and rural settings. McCarthys themes, like Faulkners, often were bleak, violent and dramatized how the past overwhelmed the present. Across stark and forbidding landscapes and rundown border communities, he placed drifters, thieves, prostitutes and old, broken men, all unable to escape fates determined for them well before they were born. As the doomed John Grady Cole of McCarthys celebrated Border trilogy would learn, dreams of a better life were only dreams, and falling in love an act of folly.

McCarthys own story was one of belated  and continuing  achievement and popularity. Little known to the public at age 60, he would become one of the countrys most honored and successful writers despite rarely talking to the news media. He broke through commercially in 1992 with All the Pretty Horses and over the next 15 years won the National Book Award and the Pulitzer, was a guest on Oprah Winfreys show and saw his novel No Country for Old Men adapted by the Coen brothers into an Oscar-winning movie. Fans of the Coens would discover that the films terse, absurdist dialogue, so characteristic of the brothers work, was lifted straight from the novel.

The Road, his stark tale of a father and son who roam a ravaged landscape, brought him his widest audience and highest acclaim. It won the 2007 Pulitzer Prize for fiction and Winfrey selected it for her book club. In his Winfrey interview, McCarthy said that while typically he didnt know what generates the ideas for his books, he could trace The Road to a trip he took with his young son to El Paso, Texas, early in the decade. Standing at the window of a hotel in the middle of the night as his son slept nearby, he started to imagine what El Paso might look like 50 or 100 years in the future.

I just had this image of these fires up on the hill  and I thought a lot about my little boy, he said.

He told Winfrey he didnt care how many people read The Road.

You would like for the people that would appreciate the book to read it," he said. "But, as far as many, many people reading it, so what?

McCarthy dedicated the book to his son, John Francis, and said having a child as an older man forces the world on you, and I think its a good thing. The Pulitzer committee called his book the profoundly moving story of a journey.

It boldly imagines a future in which no hope remains, but in which the father and his son, each the others world entire, are sustained by love, the citation read in part. Awesome in the totality of its vision, it is an unflinching meditation on the worst and the best that we are capable of: ultimate destructiveness, desperate tenacity, and the tenderness that keeps two people alive in the face of total devastation.

In 2022, Knopf made the startling announcement that it would release McCarthys first work in more than 15 years, a pair of connected novels he referred to in the past: The Passenger and Stella Maris, narratives on a pair of mutually obsessed siblings and the legacy of their father, a physicist who worked on atomic technology.

Stella Maris was notable, in part, because it centered on a female character, an acknowledged weakness of McCarthys.

I dont pretend to understand women, he told Winfrey.

His first novel, The Orchard Keeper  written in Chicago while he was working as an auto mechanic  was published by Random House in 1965. His editor was Albert Erskine, Faulkners longtime editor.

Other novels include Outer Dark, published in 1968; Child of God in 1973; and Suttree in 1979. The violent Blood Meridian, about a group of bounty hunters along the Texas-Mexico border murdering Indians for their scalps, was published in 1985. His Border Trilogy books were set in the Southwest along the border with Mexico: All the Pretty Horses (1992)  a National Book Award winner that was turned into a feature film; The Crossing (1994), and Cities of the Plain (1998).

McCarthy said he was always lucky. He recalled living in a shack in Tennessee and running out of toothpaste, then going out and finding a toothpaste sample in the mailbox.

"Thats the way my life has been. Just when things were really, really bleak, something would happen, said McCarthy, who won a MacArthur Fellowship  one of the so-called genius grants  in 1981.

The Southwestern Writers Collection at Texas State University-San Marcos purchased McCarthy's archives in 2008.

McCarthy attended the University of Tennessee for a year before joining the Air Force in 1953. He returned to the school from 1957 to 1959, but left before graduating. He lived around the Great Smoky Mountains before moving West in the late 1970s, eventually settling in Santa Fe.

His Knoxville boyhood home, long abandoned and overgrown, was destroyed by fire in 2009.

50 classics from (almost) everyone's high school reading list 50 classics from (almost) everyone's high school reading list #50. Their Eyes Were Watching God #49. Mythology #48. I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings (Maya Angelou's Autobiography, #1) #47. Oedipus Rex (The Theban Plays, #1) #46. Moby-Dick or, the Whale #45. The Pearl #44. The Importance of Being Earnest #43. The Red Badge of Courage #42. The Taming of the Shrew #41. Slaughterhouse-Five #40. The Adventures of Tom Sawyer #39. Crime and Punishment #38. A Separate Peace #37. Death of a Salesman #36. The Little Prince #35. The Old Man and the Sea #34. The Canterbury Tales #33. Othello #32. Flowers for Algernon #31. Beowulf #30. A Tale of Two Cities #29. Wuthering Heights #28. The Hobbit (The Lord of the Rings, #0) #27. A Midsummer Night's Dream #26. The Grapes of Wrath #25. Great Expectations #24. Frankenstein: The 1818 Text #23. Julius Caesar #22. The Outsiders #21. Brave New World #20. Night (The Night Trilogy, #1) #19. The Crucible #18. The Giver (The Giver, #1) #17. Jane Eyre #16. Fahrenheit 451 #15. Pride and Prejudice #14. The Odyssey #13. The Diary of a Young Girl #12. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn #11. 1984 #10. The Scarlet Letter #9. Hamlet #8. The Catcher in the Rye #7. Of Mice and Men #6. Macbeth #5. Animal Farm #4. Lord of the Flies #3. The Great Gatsby #2. Romeo and Juliet #1. To Kill a Mockingbird
CEDAR RAPIDS  Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds painted a rosy picture Wednesday of the states economic future.

Reynolds, speaking to a gathering of 500 influential business leaders from across Iowa and the Midwest in downtown Cedar Rapids, pointed to a low cost of doing business in Iowa, a falling unemployment rate down to 2.7% and a record number of new business entities registered in the state last year.

The governor, addressing the Iowa Association of Business and Industry's annual conference, touted Republican policy victories during the recently concluded Iowa legislative session. Those include cutting local property taxes, consolidating state government agencies, expanding registered apprenticeships and using taxpayer dollars to help Iowa families pay to attend the private school of their choice, while building a projected $2 billion state budget surplus.

"Im proud to say its a great time to do business in Iowa, and the signs are everywhere, Reynolds said.

Iowa business and industry leaders say they continue to struggle to recruit and retain top-quality workers. Some expressed concerns over Iowa making national headlines for passing laws targeting LGBTQ individuals that they worry paint the state as unwelcoming, and could exacerbate Iowa's workforce recruitment and retention issues.

While unaware of any employees who have left Iowa or applicants who have declined to apply for openings because of the legislation, we definitely have our eye on that, said Sarah Miller, a partner with marketing and technology firm Anthologic of Des Moines.

Our eyes and ears are very open to that, Miller said. We talk a lot about it in our leadership teams, and are hoping the governor and our leadership have their eyes on it as well. I do think if were not feeling it today, we will feel it in the future.

Reynolds has embraced the conservative anti-woke message leading up to the 2024 presidential GOP caucuses, focused on pushing back on acceptance of transgender people and efforts to address racial inequality.

I think there is a delicate balance between what is pro-business and what is pro-workforce, Miller said. We are a very pro-workforce organization.  I do have concerns that we are getting away from a pro-workforce focus.

The governor declined to take questions from reporters at the conference.

Reynolds highlighted recent Census figures that showed some promise: more people are moving into the state rather than out.

For the first time in decades  net migration into the state of Iowa was positive, up by more than 6,300 people, Reynolds said. And while that might not sound like a lot, the governor noted neighboring states of Minnesota and Illinois saw a net reduction of more than 17,000 residents and 230,000 residents, respectively.

The figures come from a Census Bureau report comparing annual population estimates for 2020 to 2022.

The Census Bureau numbers show Iowas overall population grew less than the national average. The state grew the 30th fastest in the country last year, and the 29th fastest since 2010.

Iowa also has the 10th-worst rate for brain drain  34 percent more college graduates leave the state after graduation compared with those who remain in Iowa, according to a Washington Post analysis that used data from a paper published by the National Bureau of Economic Research. That figure is worse than the six states bordering Iowa. The next closest is Wisconsin at negative 21 percent.

We continue to make investment in broadband, housing and child care that really works toward strengthening our workforce and helping employers attract and retain top talent, Reynolds said.

The governor also highlighted signing into law legislation creating an Office of Apprenticeship within Iowa Workforce Development, which will be responsible for the registration and certification of apprenticeships in the state.

Reynolds said the bill will help facilitate Iowa's growth in providing apprenticeships and building a talent pipeline to supply businesses with the qualified workers they need.

The governor also touted signing a youth employment bill that allows 14- to 17-year-old Iowans to work more jobs for longer hours.

Supporter say the new law provides more opportunities for young Iowans who want to work and could help address the states shortage of workers. Critics contend it will put young Iowans in dangerous workplace settings.

The law allows 16- and 17-year-olds to participate in work-based learning programs in industries that currently are prohibited for minors, including roofing, demolition, manufacturing and construction.

The U.S. Department of Labor wrote a letter stating the legislation violated multiple federal labor regulations. However, the departments assessment applied to an earlier version of the bill different from the one Reynolds signed into law. The governor Wednesday criticized national media coverage of controversy over the bill as hysteria she called ridiculous and bizarre.

It was a common-sense bill, Reynolds told conference attendees. I dont know, at the national level they just dont understand what were trying to do here and they dont understand the work ethic Iowans have.

She also pledged recently passed property and income tax cuts are just the beginning

Look for further cuts in the next session, Reynolds said.

Jack Hasken, president and chief executive officer of Jackson Manufacturing in Maquoketa, said he struggles to find a pool of young workers who want to grow and advance with the company in a small, older rural community.

Hasken, though, lauded Reynolds and her agenda. He said he does not share the same concerns as Miller and other business leaders about recent LGBTQ-related bills impacting recruitment and retention.

Shes got the business owners front and center, Hasken said.

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In the interest of the countrys economic stability, Transport and Infrastructure Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen has called for a truce between President William Ruto and Opposition Leader Raila Odinga.

Murkomen said if both parties are willing, he can facilitate a meeting between the two with a view to resolving the deadlock over the proposed Finance Bill 2023.

According to the CS, President Ruto and Raila Odinga have collaborated in the past, and therefore, there should be no impediment preventing them from reaching an agreement.

I do not see the reason why Baba na President Ruto should not be consulting more, kwa sababu William Ruto alikuwa kwa academy ya Raila Odinga. The dream of every teacher is to have his student doing better than himself. If you see William Ruto standing tall, hes standing on the shoulders of a giant called Raila Odinga, he said.

CS Murkomen said the ongoing political bickering between the two leaders will exert a negative impact on the countrys economy.

There is no way as a country we can succeed to build our nation if were fighting each other. Hiyo kitu yenye Baba anataka kumwambia Ruto, wakubaliane wakutane mahali, mimi naweza panga, alafu tuongee.

Murkomen added: This is the only way hustlers will get job opportunities.
EALA MP David Sankok has landed in hot soup with a womens rights group for comments he made about his Osim Country Lodge in Narok.

While trying to market the getaway resort on his social media pages, Sankok said Osim Country Lodge offers a unique Lovers Nest that is specially reserved for copulation.

According to Sankok, the Lovers Nest, which is a Cabin perched atop a tree, offers men value for their money as their partners would not be able to escape.

The tree does not touch the ground, only the ladder touches the ground. After you get in, the ladder is removed. Because wasichana wengi wanakula fare ama wana-change their mind.

At the Lovers Nest, theres no change of mind. For the sake of the boy child, who in most cases pays the money for the house, we remove the ladder so that they stay there from evening till morning, so that the man can get the value for his money, the lawmaker said.

Sankoks comments have caught the attention of the National Gender and Equality Commission (NGEC), which is accusing him of promoting rape.

Such statements not only perpetuate harmful attitudes but also contribute to a culture of violence and objectification, Dr. Joyce M. Mutinda, National Gender and Equality Commission chairperson said in a media statement.

We unequivocally condemn this repugnant marketing pitch and demand full accountability for Hon. Sankoks actions.

The Commission said the MPs remarks not only contravene the Sexual Offences Act and the Kenyan Constitution of 2010 but also undermine the fundamental principles enshrined in the constitution, perpetuating a culture that infringes upon womens rights.

The commission has called upon the Hospitality Industry to conduct an investigation into Osim Country Lodge to ensure compliance with the law and to ensure that the establishment respects the rights and dignity of all individuals.

Sankok is also feeling the heat from Olomal Loo Ntomonok , a womens rights lobby group that brings together all women from the Maa-speaking counties to safeguard and protect women.

In a statement on Tuesday, the activists said Sankoks comments encourage sexual violence against women while violating womens rights to freedom and security, and thus violate Articles 27 and 29 of Kenyas Constitution.

The statement by the MP advertises the lovers nest as a private source of subjecting women to sexual violence, as well as denying women right to equal protection and treatment in economic, cultural & social spheres, Angeline Sipraro, Olamal Loo Ntomonok chairperson said.

Hon. Sankok encourages men who spend money on women to expect sex in return as a must, whether or not the woman consents. By removing the ladder, he forces women to consent to sex, she added.

Olomal Loo Ntomonok is now demanding that the MP issues an apology and also removes the offensive video from all platforms.

Additionally, the activists are calling for a boycott of the Lodge and the immediate closure of the lovers nest. They also want the MP to resign from EALA for violating Chapter 6 of the Kenyan Constitution on leadership and integrity, as well as the core values of EALA.
After serving as the CEO of Keroche Breweries Ltd for a remarkable 25 years, Nakuru Senator Tabitha Karanja has handed over the reins to chief financial officer Potas Anaya.

Ms Karanja, the founder of the Naivasha-based brewer, announced her resignation during the commemoration of the companys 25th anniversary since its inception.

After 25 years as captain, the time has come for me, Tabitha Karanja, to pass the baton to a new generation of business leaders. It is with immense pride that I announce my decision to step down as CEO of Keroche Breweries and entrusting the leadership to a deserving successor, said the Senator in her farewell speech.

Karanja noted the various challenges she encountered during her tenure, including the adverse effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to significant job cuts, as well as the tax dispute with the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) regarding outstanding taxes.

Nevertheless, Tabitha Karanja affirmed that despite these hurdles, Keroche Breweries has successfully revitalized itself, regained stability, and restored its production capacity.

I am now ready to wholeheartedly dedicate myself to the honor of serving as the Senator of Nakuru County and as the Deputy Leader of the Majority in the Senate, representing our remarkable nation. The trust bestowed upon me by His Excellency, President Dr. William Ruto, and the esteemed Leadership of the Kenya Kwanza Coalition humbles me deeply. Karanja said.

Keroches 25th-anniversary celebration was indeed an emotional affair not only for Tabitha but for her daughter, Anerlisa Muigai.

Taking to her socials on Tuesday, the NERO Company CEO posted a photo on her InstaStories as she shed some tears for mummy dearest.

Wueh my mums tears will always get me. Anyway, my mum just stepped down as CEO of Keroche Breweries on the 25th year of running it. God bless my mum. She has been through a lot and still fighting, Anerlisa wrote.
President William Ruto on Tuesday inaugurated the largest medical complex in Kirinyaga County, thereby upgrading Kerugoya County Referral Hospital from a Level 4 to a Level 5 health facility.

Kirinyaga Governor Anne Waiguru said the fully funded hospital project by the County Government is a significant step towards fulfilling the Countys development blueprint, known as The Mountain Cities 2032.

This blueprint designates Kirinyaga Central constituency as the Wellness City.

The newly upgraded hospital, with a 341-bed capacity, offers a wide range of services to cater to the healthcare needs of the community.

These services include specialized consultations in various fields such as pediatrics, ENT (Ear, Nose, and Throat), oncology, dermatology, orthopedics, as well as medical and surgical outpatient clinics.

The hospital also features dedicated clinics for neuro-pediatrics, obstetrics, and gynecology. Moreover, it has a well-equipped Intensive Care Unit (ICU) with 12 beds and a High Dependency Unit (HDU) with 12 beds. Additionally, all the beds in the hospital are equipped with oxygen supply, ensuring comprehensive care for patients.

President Ruto on his part assured that the national government will work with county governments to transform healthcare in the country.

He said the national government will support the devolved units in equipping their health facilities.

Ruto added that the government, through Parliament, will establish a Facility Improvement Fund that will ensure resources allocated to medical care are not diverted to other programmes.

The Fund will ensure our hospitals have sufficient drugs and are adequately equipped, he said.

Th President also said the national and county governments have agreed to form the Kenya Health Human Resources Advisory Council to address disputes between the government and health workers.

We want to ensure that we have an avenue of resolving health workers issues, he said.

Ruto said the government will also equip and standardise the training of community health promoters to ensure quality healthcare at the grassroots.

He insisted that the health function will remain a devolved function, explaining that it has been well managed by the counties.

Present were Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua, Cabinet Secretary Susan Nakhumicha, Governors Ann Waiguru, Johnson Sakaja, and Muthomi Njuki, MPs Mary Maingi (Mwea), George Kariuki (Ndia), Joseph Gitari (Kirinyaga Central), among others.
President William Ruto has said the Government is committed to enhancing the digital superhighway to create opportunities for content creators to make a living.

The President said the government is looking to set up 25,000 free WiFi hotspots around the country to improve Internet access and give young people access to the digital superhighway.

The President revealed Google is supporting the setup of the hotspots.

I appreciate Googles support in enhancing the digital superhighway and creative economy pillar of our transformational agenda. In particular, for your support for our plan to provide free Wi-Fi hotspots across the country.

The President was speaking during the closing ceremony of YoutubeBlackVoices, a fund designed to grow the presence and talents of black content creators across the world, including Kenya.

The Head of State also noted that the number of YouTube channels had grown exponentially.

The number of YouTube channels in Kenya with over 1 million views has grown by 110 per cent in the last year proving our capacity for creative content generation is enough to generate livelihoods and become an economic sector.

Over 90 government institutions including TVETs, hospitals, and law courts will also be connected to the Internet imminently, he added.
President William Ruto has sounded out a warning that the outlawed and dreaded Mungiki sect will not be allowed to operate in Kenya.

Speaking during the inauguration of the Kerugoya Referral Hospital in Kirinyaga, President Ruto accused the Opposition, Azimio, of mobilizing Mungiki to further their political agenda.

There will be nothing like Mungiki in this country because we know the losses they have caused. Let me tell you Kenyans that we will not allow illegal groups. Those opposition leaders are trying to bring back Mungiki, bhang, extort Kenyans with illegal levies and trouble our mothers, he said.

Ruto at the same time dared the Opposition leaders to induct their own children into the sect.

I want to tell you opposition leaders that if you think Mungiki are special people, please bring on your children and recruit them first, leave our children alone.

President Ruto also extended an Olive branch to Azimio, saying they should focus on meeting with them to strategize for the progress and development of the nation.

Those who are trying to revive the Mungiki groups so you use for politics, please meet with us we plan on the countrys development, not plans that can bring conflicts in the country, he said.
I became fascinated with conspiracy theories on Sept. 10, 1993, at the age of 10.

That was when Fox aired the pilot of The X-Files. I was instantly hooked, especially on the episodes that dealt with a far-reaching conspiracy between high-ranking U.S. government officials and aliens plotting to colonize the earth.

The truth is out there, the shows tagline said, and my generation nodded along. Yes, it was out there, and it wasnt the official line we were being fed by our parents, our teachers and the media.

My fascination with conspiracies led me to novelists like Thomas Pynchon and Don DeLillo, who saw paranoia as one of the only organizing principles left in an age of fragmentation, and movies like Oliver Stones JFK, which filtered the national trauma of the Kennedy assassination through layers of conspiracies.

In these stories, the identity of the conspirators  three-letter federal agencies, satanic cultists, underground postal services  is irrelevant. The point was the promise of revelation, that behind all the cruelty, misery and horror of the 20th century there was somebody in charge.

Thats a useful idea. Like any belief system, paranoid conspiracy theories lend structure to our lives when the world seems meaningless.

The alternative is that stuff just happens, that were hurtling down historys highway with nobody competent at the wheel, that a scrawny loser with a weak chin and a cheap Italian rifle can kill our beloved president.

If there is something comforting  religious, if you want  about paranoia, there is still also anti-paranoia, where nothing is connected to anything, a condition not many of us can bear for long, Pynchon wrote.

I never bought into real-world conspiracy theories, but I still saw conspiracy theorists like Fox Mulder as heroes who dared to defy the popular consensus in pursuit of the truth.

My view of conspiracies changed when I studied Watergate. Instead of slick, coldly effective cigarette-smoking men in expensive suits I found ordinary humans: self-dramatizing goofballs like G. Gordon Liddy and rudderless mediocrities like Jeb Magruder.

Nixon himself, with his oddly compelling blend of sensitivity and ruthlessness, was a tragic figure out of Shakespeare or a Coen brothers farce, not a mastermind out of The X-Files.

Once you strip away the mystique from powerful people and recognize them as flawed, fallible humans, suddenly vast conspiracies  at least successful "X-Files"-scale ones that dont end up on the front page of The Washington Post  seem a lot less plausible.

I also started to realize how paranoia was a destructive idea capable of unleashing massive slaughter.

Millions died because of the hatred whipped up against races and ethnic groups  Jews and Armenians, for example  who were falsely accused of being evil puppet-masters. Im not responsible for our countrys problems, and neither are you, demagogues tell their supporters. Blame those folks over there who dont look, talk or think like we do. It's all their fault.

The internet has given us conspiracy theories on steroids: election denial, U.N. Agenda 21, COVID-19 as a power grab engineered by leftist totalitarians, Ukrainians=Nazis. The QAnon theory so resembles a zany Pynchon subplot that I have to keep reminding myself that people actually believe it.

Conspiracy theories have lost their luster for me. Wheres the Mulder-ish moral purity in shilling for Vladimir Putin or storming the Capitol because youve been fed a pile of easily disprovable lies?

Watching footage of the Jan. 6 attack, I notice how many of the rioters are my age. I wonder how many of them, like me, grew up watching The X-Files and cheering on Mulder as he exposed lie after lie in relentless pursuit of the truth.

How did that idealism curdle into something so ugly, based on something so false? What if that promise of hidden truth, of imminent revelation, only led to the biggest lie of all?

I'm done with paranoia. It, like every subversive force prized by historys underdogs, has been co-opted by the worlds most powerful and cynical men. Maybe theyve been wielding it all along.

Now theres a conspiracy theory worth exploring.
My friend Fulton Mather has been summoned. He was the great-grandson of David Fulton, for whom Fulton Lane is named. We became friends due to our mutual interest and passion for St. Helena history. After inheriting the property in 1995, Fulton had to learn to make wine, which he did at UC Davis. The grapes had been sold to others, but in 1999 he made the first 50-case lot of Petite Sirah.

David Fulton died in 1871, three years before the St. Helena Star could chronicle his achievements. His winery was leased to others and ceased production in 1887. It collapsed in a severe storm in 1973. Fulton Mather recreated history when he rebuilt the winery, which was built in 1861 as the first winery in the city limits. In 2003 the structure was rebuilt on the original footprint.

The St. Helena Historical Society honored the 150 years of the family vineyard in 2010. A plaque was awarded marking the establishing of the vineyards in 1860. Fulton relished being a vintner. He joined Appellation St. Helena as a board member and conducted research on early St. Helena wineries, often speaking to me about his efforts.

Fulton Mather was born in 1933, so by 2018 he was 85 years old. His health was not too good and running the winery became difficult. A good offer appeared from a local buyer and 158 years of family ownership ended. The David Fulton Winery sign disappeared and the Fulton home sits empty, a reminder of days gone by and a dream fulfilled.

Mariam Hansen

Research Director, St. Helena Historical Society
Napa County will double its proposed contribution toward reducing potential wildfire fuels near rural communities after hearing pleas from the public.

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The nonprofit Napa Communities Firewise Foundation asked for $10.9 million to fund the latest year in a county-approved, five-year fuel reduction plan. Projects range from creating shaded fuel breaks to thinning vegetation along key evacuation routes.

Napa County staff proposed providing $3 million, less than its $5.4 million contribution last year. On Monday, the county Board of Supervisors agreed to increase the amount for the coming fiscal year beginning July 1 to $6 million.

To me, ($3 million) was the wrong message, Supervisor Ryan Gregory said during the county budget hearing. We should be doing more, not less.

Bill Foureman is president of the Silverado Property Owners Association, which represents more than 1,000 households. He lost his house when the 2017 Atlas Fire swept through the community near the city of Napa.

Were dramatically better prepared to cope with wildfire than we were just a few years ago, he told supervisors.

He and others asked supervisors not to slow the momentum by cutting back on the county contribution next fiscal year.

Its the worst possible time for this, Foureman said. Flammable vegetation is growing profusely all over the county, just like the wet winter that preceded the 2017 fires.

Supervisor Joelle Gallagher noted that Napa County is contributing money toward fire prevention beyond the amount given to Firewise. For example, it will spend $2.5 million for such steps as beefing up the fire marshals office to help with defensible space inspections and building plan reviews.

But the public speakers wanted to see fuels cleared. Memories of the 2017 Atlas, Tubbs and Nuns fires and the 2020 LNU Lightning Complex and Glass fires that destroyed more than 1,000 homes are seared into local memory.

Piper Cole also addressed supervisors. She is co-lead of the Calistoga Fire Safe Council and vice chair of the Napa Firewise Board of Directors.

We are pleased with the increase from $3 million to $6 million, Cole said. More needs to be done. We need to send a message to the insurance carriers that the entire community, including our county government, is behind the prevention effort.

Representatives from Napa Valley Vintners and Napa Valley Grapegrowers also spoke in favor of wildfire fuel reduction funding. The 2017 and 2020 wildfires destroyed wineries, caused smoke taint in grapes and kept tourists away. The Glass Fire burned into the heart of Napa Valley.

These dollars yield multiple benefits in terms of the insurance market and how our community is perceived in terms of overall climate resilience and ultimately public health for those who will be affected by the smoke particles, said Michelle Novi of Napa Valley Vintners.

Christopher Thompson, chair of the Napa Firewise board, said by phone Tuesday that the group is happy for the county's proposed doubling of its contribution. The group will try to find grants to fill in the remaining gap.

No stone will be left unturned, he said, though he added there is no guarantee of success.

Thompson said fuel reduction needs to become a must-do, not a might-do. He compared neglecting prevention work to giving up a gym membership and paying the more expensive doctor bills that come later with ill health.

Costs for the community fuel reduction plan are rising given fuel-thinning projects done in the previous two years need maintenance, even as new projects are undertaken.

The county remains in the running for fire prevention grants. One is a $50 million Federal Emergency Management Agency grant through the state. The county would provide a $15 million match over three years. The others total about $20 million.

County supervisors spoke of finding a sustainable money source for wildfire prevention, rather than having to make contributions from the county general fund.

That general fund could face even more pressure when the new county jail opens, perhaps in 2025. County officials have estimated operations could cost several million dollars more annually.

In 2022, Napa County put Measure L on the ballot to raise money for wildfire prevention. But the proposed quarter-cent sales tax received 56% of the vote, short of the two-thirds majority needed to win.

Supervisors on Monday didn't state what sustainable funding source options they might explore in the future.

Napa County is putting together its 2023-24 budget for the fiscal year that runs from July 1 to June 30. Since the proposed budget is balanced, increasing the county contribution to Firewise from $3 million to $6 million means taking the money from other funds.

The plan is to take the additional $3 million from savings for capital projects. Then the county would backfill the capital projects fund when hoped-for additional money comes in next fiscal year.

For example, the county in recent years has received excess Educational Revenue Augmentation Fund monies in the range of $20 million to $30 million annually. This money, which is related to arcane state budget maneuvers, isnt included in the annual budget because it is not assured and the amount for the coming year is not yet known.

The Napa County Board of Supervisors is scheduled to pass the 2023-24 budget on June 27. It did much of the work at the Monday budget hearing.

The proposed county budget is for $668 million, though some money is double-counted for accounting purposes as money moves between funds. Minus those maneuvers, the budget is $435 million.

Of that, the proposed general fund, over which supervisors have the most control, is $271 million.

Napa County spends money on such things as libraries, the jail, the District Attorney's Office, the Public Defender's Office, health and social services programs, parks, the sheriff's office, the county airport, rural road maintenance and planning for world-famous Napa Valley wine country.

PHOTOS: New 'Kindness Path' opens at Napa's Northwood Elementary School Kindness Path 1 Kindness Path 2 Kindness Path 3 Kindness Path 4 Kindness Path 5 Kindness Path 6 Kindness Path 7 Kindness Path 8 Kindness Path 9 Kindness Path 10 Kindness Path 11 Kindness Path 12 Kindness Path 13 Kindness Path 14 Kindness Path 15 Kindness Path 16
Napa Valley celebrations of Juneteenth that debuted a year ago in American Canyon will expand into the city of Napa early next week.

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For the first time, the downtown Oxbow Commons will be host to a community celebration for the holiday that commemorates the abolition of slavery in the United States. Napa's Juneteenth gathering at the Commons will take place from 4 to 7 p.m. Monday and include food, music and art.

Meanwhile, American Canyon is preparing to host its second annual ceremony on Sunday. Titled CommUNITY Fest: Celebration of Freedom, the event will include music, dancing and history discussions from 1 to 6 p.m. at Main Street Park, 5500 Eucalyptus Drive.

Everyone is welcome regardless of what identity you hold, said JT Thompson, organizer of Napas debut Juneteenth event. We just want this to be a community event and have fun at the end of the day.

Thompson noted that the same community organizers behind Napa County's annual Black History Month Celebration  which he started among family and friends in 2018, and then expanded out to the community a year later  put together the new Juneteenth celebration in downtown Napa.

Thompson added that, because of the low percentage of Black people in Napa compared to other nearby areas holding Juneteenth ceremonies  such as American Canyon, Vallejo and Richmond  Napas event will differ somewhat, in that it will be more geared toward educating the community about the holiday. The holiday has been celebrated for more than a century and a half by Black people, and was recognized as a federal holiday in 2021.

Were coming at it as more of a learning experience because there are a lot of people who dont know what Juneteenth is, Thompson said. There will be time to learn about it and at the same time try to embrace the culture as well.

The Napa City Council last week recognized Juneteenth with a proclamation that noted the holiday has been celebrated since 1866  Maj. Gen. Gordon Granger of the Union Army arrived in Galveston, Texas and announced the Civil War had ended and those who had been enslaved were now free. (Although the Emancipation Proclamation freed enslaved people in the Confederacy in 1863, it was not effectively enforced in many areas until the war ended.)

Napa recognizes Juneteenth as a day of reflection and remembrance and an opportunity to truthfully learn about and acknowledge this period in our history, seek to understand the experience of others, and commit ourselves to significant and lasting improvements in the City of Napa and in the United States, the proclamation reads.

American Canyon last year launched what was likely Napa Countys first large-scale celebration of the holiday, a celebration that is set to return on Sunday. Thompson said hopes the Napa ceremony can help people get in touch with history and Black culture, and to recognize the important role so many people played in ending U.S. slavery.

There were so many white abolitionists that supported the movement, Thompson said. And I think without them it would have been very difficult to have that Juneteenth emancipation of slavery. I just want folks to know a lot of their ancestors were a huge part of it, and to sort of appreciate their ancestors and recognize what responsibility they have in keeping their ancestors' dreams and hopes alive by supporting and being an ally of the Black community.

In American Canyon, Brenda Knight, an organizer and master of ceremonies for the citys inaugural Juneteenth festival in 2022, is at the helm again this year. The event is being jointly organized by the city and the American Canyon Arts Foundation.

Theres so much going on around the United States, just negativity, and so I wanted to bring some positivity, she said Tuesday. Lets grab a moment, to just smile and have a conversation.

Knight said she is strongly emphasizing the music and community this year, praising the particularly unified atmosphere of American Canyon. In African American communities we celebrate together, she said, and it is through that togetherness that learning and loving can take place. Additionally, she is happy to be celebrating Father's Day on Sunday, and hopes to see many fathers and their children at the event.

Sundays keynote speaker in American Canyon will be the Rev. Lawrence VanHook of the Oakland-based Community Church for Christ, who will discuss the Black regiments of the 19th-century U.S. Army who became known as the Buffalo Soldiers.

On Tuesday, VanHook praised the valor of Black soldiers he described as exemplars of valor and discipline in a society that denounced and belittled them because of their race. He described their involvement in the Spanish-American War of 1898 as great history that isnt talked about  because it isn't written in the history books, unlike the exploits of the all-white Rough Riders led by future President Theodore Roosevelt.

But Juneteenth is a time to look toward the future as much as the past, added VanHook.

We have to remind ourselves where we came from so we can look to the future for where our landing point is, he said Tuesday. For VanHook, that goal starts with home ownership, financial literacy, community and being able to take adversity, take the lemon, and not have a frown on your face.

Knight, meanwhile, hopes to grow American Canyons Juneteenth celebration in the coming years, perhaps through collaboration with Napa.

Its fantastic, she said about the spread of Juneteenth awareness locally. This is the beginning of what can be.
Democrats leading California's Senate and Assembly on Monday announced a legislative state budget deal, but they remain at odds with Gov. Gavin Newsom over his sweeping plan to streamline major infrastructure projects and reduce environmental litigation delays.

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Newsom introduced a series of budget bills related to infrastructure last month after lawmakers had already wrapped up committee hearings on spending proposals. Democrats in Newsom's party have criticized the governor over the late-arriving legislation and expressed concern about not having sufficient time to consider potential impacts on communities and the environment.

"I just want to express my extreme disappointment that this comes at this time," said Sen. Susan Talamantes Eggman, a Democrat who lives in Stockton and represents cities in the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta, during a Senate hearing last week. "It feels disrespectful to the process, to all the work that we've done."

Senate President Pro Tem Toni Atkins, D-San Diego, and Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon, D-Lakewood said they are "continuing to negotiate and make progress" on a budget deal with the governor. Lawmakers intend to pass their agreed-on budget Thursday to meet a June 15 legislative deadline and then amend the budget bill after reaching a final agreement with Newsom in the coming days.

Though the act of passing a preliminary budget and following up with an amended bill later has become commonplace in Newsom's tenure, an estimated budget deficit of at least $31.5 billion has heightened Democratic discord at the state Capitol this year. Interest groups are lobbying to preserve funding promised in stronger revenue years, and Newsom and lawmakers continue to squabble over where to pare back spending.

The Legislature's $311.7 billion spending plan unveiled Monday was crafted after 120 public hearings over the last six months. The legislative budget plan increases funding for education, child care, public transit and Medi-Cal over levels Newsom proposed in his revised budget in May. It also reverses Newsom's plan to spend $450 million from the Safety Net Reserve, an account created to shore up funding for programs such as CalWorks and Medi-Cal during a downturn.

Other areas that need to be ironed out with the governor include:

Child care: Lawmakers want to provide $1 billion in temporary rate increases for child care providers. The legislative agreement rejects the governor's proposal to delay opening subsidized child care for 20,000 additional kids and instead releases the slots on July 1, 2024.

Health care: Newsom and lawmakers are in agreement about using a tax on managed health care organizations, known as the MCO Tax, to fund Medi-Cal at a time when the state is expanding eligibility to all immigrants who qualify regardless of immigration status. But the two sides disagree over the timeline to spend the money. The governor wants to spend the tax revenue over eight to 10 years, while lawmakers are pushing to invest $10.3 billion through the end of 2026 to improve reimbursement rates to health care providers and expand access to care.

Newsom and lawmakers are in agreement about using a tax on managed health care organizations, known as the MCO Tax, to fund Medi-Cal at a time when the state is expanding eligibility to all immigrants who qualify regardless of immigration status. But the two sides disagree over the timeline to spend the money. The governor wants to spend the tax revenue over eight to 10 years, while lawmakers are pushing to invest $10.3 billion through the end of 2026 to improve reimbursement rates to health care providers and expand access to care. Transit: Lawmakers also want to restore a $2 billion reduction in transportation funding that Newsom proposed in May.

Newsom's infrastructure plan remains the biggest point of contention between the governor and lawmakers, who have questioned why the bills must be passed now instead of through the regular and more deliberative legislative process for policy issues that concludes in September, or even next year.

Newsom administration officials said the 10 bills proposed by the governor are critical to meeting California's climate goals. The governor's office has called the bills California's "most ambitious permitting and project review reforms in a half century" and said the legislation could reduce project timelines by more than three years in some cases.

Some outside interests agree that the bills are important, but also shared the Legislature's concerns.

Mary Creasman, a chief executive of California Environmental Voters, said it's clear that California needs accelerated permitting for clean energy projects and needs to protect its rich biodiversity.

"We need a thorough policy making process that is not jamming through budget trailer bills," Creasman said.

One bill in the governor's plan aims to reduce the opportunity for lengthy record preparation delays due to lawsuits filed under the California Environmental Quality Act, which can sink building projects. Another proposal would speed up judicial review in CEQA lawsuits related to water, transportation, clean energy, and semiconductor or microelectronic projects.

The changes Newsom has proposed would also make it easier to complete his controversial plan to build an underground tunnel to transport water from the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta to Southern California.

Newsom also wants to allow the California Infrastructure and Economic Development Bank, known as IBank, and the Department of Water Resources to take advantage of and leverage federal funding for projects that reduce greenhouse gases.

For public transportation projects, his package would make it easier to approve environmental mitigation and permits for Caltrans projects that affect endangered species or are within the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta. Newsom also wants to repeal state laws and reclassify several species that are "fully protected" to "threatened" and "endangered" under the California Endangered Species Act.

Another proposal would allow Caltrans to directly contract to construct three wildlife crossings along Interstate 15 in San Bernardino County and to change its contracting procurement process to speed up highway projects.

Newsom wants to allow the state Department of Water Resources and Caltrans to use a more flexible contracting process for up to eight major projects each.

Atkins said the Senate is reviewing the governor's proposals and engaging in talks with the Assembly and the administration.

"It's important to my Senate Democratic colleagues and I that streamlining is in keeping with California's commitment to environmental protections," Atkins said.

John Casey, a spokesman for Rendon, said the Assembly is doing the same.

"We are digging in to understand what specific problems the governor is trying to solve and working toward legislation that will address those problems in a workable way," the speaker's office said in a statement.

The governor's office hopes to land a final budget agreement with the Legislature this week.

Staff writers Liam Dillon and Hannah Wiley contributed to this report.

Photos: Napa Valley Faces and Places, June 11, 2023
An independent German commission on Tuesday recommended that a painting by Wassily Kandinsky currently owned by the Bavarian state bank be returned to the heirs of a Jewish family that originally owned the piece of art, AP reported.

The commission can be called on in cases of disputes over the restitution of Nazi-confiscated cultural property, especially Jewish property.

In the case of the heirs of Hedwig Lewenstein Weyermann and Irma Lewenstein Klein versus Bayerische Landesbank, the commission advised that the 1907 painting The Colorful Life by Russian artist Kandinsky be returned to the heirs.

The commissions recommendations are non-binding but are mostly followed by the parties once they have agreed to call on it to resolve the conflict.

The large tempera painting shows a group of colorfully clad people on a lawn, some eating or playing music, while others seem to be dancing.

In its conclusion, the commission says that from November 1927, the painting belonged to Hedwig and Emanuel Albert Lewenstein, a Jewish couple living in Amsterdam, and was part of their extensive art collection. The painting was auctioned off on Oct. 9, 1940just a few months after Germanys Wehrmacht occupied the Netherlandsat an auction house in Amsterdam.

Before the auction, the piece had been on loan from the Lewenstein family to the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam, from where it was taken on Sept. 5, 1940 by order of the art dealer Abraham Mozes Querido, the commission said in a statement.

Despite years of research, the commission said it was unable to trace the path of the painting.

It cannot be proven on whose initiative the painting was sold as part of the Lewenstein estate to the auction house Frederik Muller & Co. at the auction, the commission said.

It added that the art piece was acquired by Salomon B. Slijper, whose widow sold it to Bayerische Landesbank in 1972 for 900,000 Dutch guilders. Since then, it has been on loan to the Staedtische Galerie im Lenbachhaus and Kunstbau museum in Munich.

At the time of the 1940 auction, the children of Hedwig and Emanuel Albert LewensteinRobert Gotschalk Lewenstein and Wilhelmine Helene Lewensteinhad emigrated to the United States and to then-Portuguese colony of Mozambique, respectively.

Only Irma Lewenstein Klein remained in Amsterdam  she was Roberts separated wife. She survived the Nazi occupation and World War II.

In the dispute over the paintings ownership, the Bayerische Landesbank suggested that Irma Lewenstein Klein had put up the painting for auction in connection with her divorce settlement.

The claimants, however, were of the opinion that the auction of the painting took place in connection with the Netherlands occupation by the Nazis and the systematic persecution of the Jewish population that followed.

After studying the historic evidence, the commission concluded the painting was seized as a result of persecution. The Lewenstein family and Irma Lewenstein Klein were persecuted as Jews from the beginning of the German occupation of the Netherlands in 1940, it said.
Azerbaijan's unilateral decision to create this particular checkpoint (i.e. in the Lachin corridor) trully contradicts the efforts made to build trust between the parties. This was stated Tuesday by Josep Borrell, High Representative of the European Union (EU) for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy/Vice-President of the European Commission, during the European Parliament debates on the situation created by Azerbaijan's blockade of Nagorno-Karabakh.

According to Borrell, the current situation is especially difficult for the Karabakh Armenians, who have "remained in that particular enclave."

At the same time, the EU foreign policy chief noted that the Lachin corridor is outside the geographical responsibility of the EU civilian monitoring mission in Armenia.

Also, Borrell responded to Member of the European Parliament (MEP) Francois-Xavier Bellamy (France), who had stated that the EU was not doing anything to resolve the situation.

In this regard, the EU foreign policy chief recalled the recent meeting between the leaders of Armenia and Azerbaijan in Moldova, with the participation of French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz. Also, Borrell recalled that another such meeting was expected in July.

"We are doing everything possible," he emphasized, adding that the leaders of Armenia and Azerbaijan have confirmed that they are ready to continue the talks and recognize the territorial integrity of one anothers country.

Continuing to answer the MEPs' questions, Josep Borrell stressed that the EU civilian monitoring mission in Armenia simply cannot put an end to the existence of the Azerbaijani checkpoint on the Lachin corridor because it is not an armed mission, and "the only solution is the diplomatic one."

According to the EU foreign policy chief, thanks to the diplomatic efforts of the bloc, it was possible to avoid the resumption of the conflict between the Armenian and Azerbaijani sides and "at least now there are no casualties."
Armenian-French cooperation will continue to strengthen. Nikol Pashinyan received French Ambassador

State minister: We may have situation when we cant wait for the 7 days noted by Karabakh President

Nersisyan. The more Armenia lowers bar on Karabakh issue, the harder it will be for people of Artsakh to raise it

Karabakh official: Armenia has only one thing to do in discussions with Azerbaijan

Artsakh state minister: Many illogical things are happening on European platform; is it serious conversation?

Karabakh minister of state: We managed to make our voice heard by all to which nationwide movement was directed

Lachin corridor has no alternative: Several Armenia NGOs issue joint statement on Charles Michel statement

Karabakh state minister: We are in disaster but we will never surrender

Karabakh ex-official Vitaly Balasanyan is charged on 4 counts

Analyst: Armenia has not recognized Azerbaijan territorial integrity with Karabakhs inclusion

Armenia PM is briefed on plan to establish EHL Hospitality Business School branch in Gyumri

Our link should be with Armenia only: Karabakh residents comment on their blocking of Askeran-Aghdam road

Missing servicemens parents reopen Yerevan major intersection, but on condition

Armenia army General Staff chief meets with US Air Force chief of staff (PHOTOS)

Parents of missing soldiers close off major avenue in Yerevan

Edmon Marukyan: Azerbaijan has no plan to integrate Christian Armenians

Azerbaijan MFA responds to Armenia FM with series of absurd accusations

Livestock sector is in much worse situation in besieged Karabakh, agriculture minister says

Agriculture minister: Scheduled power outages, lack of diesel fuel also cause problems in Karabakh irrigation system

Karabakh MoD: Defense Army did not carry out fortification work in Askeran Region

Newspaper: What 'tougher actions' Karabakh will take?

MoD: Armenia army did not fire at Azerbaijan positions

Worlds most expensive iPhone is sold in US

US returns 105 antiquities illegally exported from India to latter

David Babayan: Karabakh grandpa who fought at Stalingrad, took Berlin never imagined he could die of hunger

Russia, Iran FMs interested in consultations with participation of Armenia, Azerbaijan

Austria FM: Lachin corridor blockade must be stopped immediately

Deputy PM Grigoryan's office: Armenia, Azerbaijan have not made decision on any map

Armenia FM briefs OSCE Secretary General on situation in Karabakh

Armenian Foreign Minister expresses Yerevan's readiness to hold talks with Turkey in Vienna

Armenia is not going to become a space where sanctions could be bypassed: Ararat Mirzoyan

Dollar, euro increase in Armenia

Armenia FM: Regrettable that instead of engaging in dialogue, Azerbaijan pursues policy of ethnic cleansing in Karabakh

FMs sign protocol on implementation of Armenia-EU readmission agreement between Armenia, Austria (PHOTOS)

Karabakh residents block Askeran-Aghdam motorway, with concrete barriers (PHOTOS)

Armenias Pashinyan receives ex-MP Francois Rochebloine of France

Yerevan municipal election events schedule announced

Karabakh NGOs: Support being provided to Artsakh people cannot be at cost of trampling on their dignity

American University of Armenia has new president

Hyundai releases first photos of new generation Santa Fe crossover

Public Television to present dire situation in Karabakh every day live from capital Stepanakert's Renaissance Square

Teen found dead in Armenia river

European Parliament committee calls on Turkey to recognize Armenian Genocide

Armenia FM visit to Vienna kicks of with private talk with Austria colleague

Karabakh operational headquarters chief: Presidents sit-in could be beneficial

European Parliament accuses Azerbaijan of bribing PACE lawmakers, some other offenses

Karabakh presidential advisor warns of taking extreme measures

Iraqi Kurdistan leader visits Azerbaijan

In support of Karabakh demonstration participants march to US Embassy in Yerevan

US embassy: Passengers are denied entry to Armenia for possession of drugs

Azerbaijan continues to settle occupied Berdzor-Lachin town of Karabakh

Armenia army chief attends US National Guard State Partnership Program 30th Anniversary conference (PHOTOS)

Public transport to not operate in Karabakh capital Stepanakert as of today

Karabakh interior ministry: No vehicle passed through Askeran police checkpoint to Akna-Aghdam

Azerbaijan FM repeats proposal to use Aghdam road to Karabakh

Protests in support of Karabakh continue in Yerevan

Grigory Karasin responds to accusations against Russia from Azerbaijan

Armenia PM: It will be very good if we do European track and field tournament in Artashat

Newspaper: More Armenia military commanders to be arrested soon

Karabakh minister of state: Today nationwide movement will continue awareness actions started in Yerevan

Karabakh parliament speaker joins Presidents sit-in

Armenia MoD: Azerbaijan again disseminated disinformation

MFA spox: Armenia demands lifting of illegal blockade of Lachin corridor by Azerbaijan

Karabakh President: People of Artsakh are facing real threat of physical destruction

Russia MFA confirms readiness to hold Armenia, Azerbaijan FMs meeting in Moscow

Karabakh presidential adviser on Azerbaijan proposal to transport humanitarian goods to Artsakh: This is greatest danger

Armen Grigoryan presents humanitarian crisis in Karabakh to Matthias Luttenberg

Karabakh capital Stepanakert public transport to operate in very limited capacity

Armenia ex-ruling party official Armen Ashotyan to remain in custody

Armenias Matenadaran museum and institute of ancient manuscripts has new director

Armenia PM follows road construction work in Ararat Province

MFA spox: Armenia calls on other international players to follow ICJ, ECtHR

Son dies on the spot, father hospitalized after car overturns in Armenias Gegharkunik Province

Armenia parliament vice-speaker briefs Germany MFA official on South Caucasus security situation

Zangi company launches 'ArtsakhX' project in Karabakh, which will operate even when internet is cut off

Armenia ambassador-at-large: Azerbaijans non-compliance is violation of conventional obligations

Armenia PM pays tribute to heroes who sacrificed their lives for Motherland

Karabakh minister of state on Armenia protests in support of Artsakh: Put aside all differences, try to unite

Protester in support of Karabakh to Russia's Putin: Keep your word, we believed in you

MFA spox: Armenia did not receive trilateral meeting proposal from Russia

Protesters in support of Karabakh march from UN office to Russia embassy in Armenia

UAE new envoy to Armenia conveys Dubai Aviation Exhibition invitation to defense minister (PHOTOS)

Karabakh President to deliver address

Karabakh children sing Artsakh national anthem in front of UN office in Armenia

Russia antiterrorism committee: Crimea bridge was attacked by 2 Ukraine UAVs at night

Karabakh applicants unable to take Armenia universities entrance exams

First ombudsperson to PM: What do you have to do with territories on which Armenia sovereignty doesnt extend?

Azerbaijan must reopen Lachin corridor: ECtHR reaffirms necessity of implementing its previous decision

Pickets in support of Karabakh being staged outside UN office and Russia embassy in Armenia

Motion to arrest Karabakh ex-official Vitaly Balasanyan submitted to court

Karabakh state minister: Nationwide movement that started in Artsakh will also take place in Armenia as of today

Armenia opposition MP: International players try to exonerate themselves in advance from Karabakh tragedy

Emergency situation on Crimea bridge, there are casualties and injured

Karabakh state ministers father-in-law dies suddenly, no necessary medical aid provided

Armenia MoD: Azerbaijan fired at Armenian positions

Humans pumped so much groundwater from Earth that it caused planet's axis shift, new study finds

Armenia ex-PM: Perfectly legal robbery

Chain collision in Yerevan

Azerbaijan violates ceasefire in Artsakh Martakert region

Russian forces attack Ukraines Kupiansk city
It is already a traditional practice in Azerbaijan that they first provide the information base by announcing that, for example, the armed forces of Armenia are firing at Azerbaijani bases, or they shoot at their own bases from Artsakh [(Nagorno-Karabakh)] bases. They constantly prepare this information sauce, after which the next [Azerbaijani military] aggression takes place. Ambassador-at-Large Edmon Marukyan stated this in an interview with Public Television of Armenia.

"In order for us to implement preventive measures in the information field, we inform the international community that Azerbaijan is once again spreading false information. The first is that there is no pre-emptive fire from Armenian positions ever. Secondly, Azerbaijan itself fires, gives a press release, then makes some kind of provocation on that formed information flow, which we have seen many times, and it is said retaliatory steps were undertaken," said Marukyan.

He emphasized that in this situation the Russian peacekeeping troops in Artsakh should be alert and ready for any provocation.

To the question of why Azerbaijan is resorting to such a provocation, whether it is in order to start a full-scale war because the peace talks are not moving forward, or whether the talks have started moving forward and Azerbaijan is trying to hinder its progress, Marukyan responded: "It has already become a practice that [Azerbaijani] attacks take place before the meetings, and when there was a vacuum in the talks, there were also large-scale actions at that time. ()"

"Now we cannot say that there is a negotiation vacuum because the talks are going very intensively. Meanwhile, an attempt is being made to put pressure on the Armenian parties. It is expressed by carrying out various provocations on the ground, which is accompanied by an information campaign, which is very important. We have to take action against that information campaign; and the last statement of the [Armenian] MFA was about that," he added.

In terms of the possible results of the peace talks, Marukyan said: "We are talking about the end result. The end result should be that all existing issues are resolved. In the negotiation menu, we have, for example, 15 questions, which, naturally, are not addressed in one day. As a result of the talks, one should move forward, solutions are being found step by step to every issue. The process is not standing still at this moment either, step by step solutions are being found and moving forward. No one can say when that end result will be because the solution of many complicated issues is still ahead."

As for which maps should be the basis of border delimitation between Armenia and Azerbaijan, Marukyan noted: "During the discussion in Chisinau, there was talk about the 1975 map of the General Staff of the Soviet Union, which was considered to be adopted as the basis during the discussion. Azerbaijan now declares that there is no such arrangement. By and large, Azerbaijan's statement should find a response from the European Council president as well."

Marukyan recalled that during the Washington meeting of Armenian Security Council Secretary Armen Grigoryan, Azerbaijani presidential assistant Hikmet Hajiyev, and US National Security Advisor Jake Michael Sullivan, it was clearly stated that there should be an international mechanism to ensure the rights and security of the Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh, after which Azerbaijan stated again that they did not agree on any mechanism, although they discussed it.

"Previously, they announced that they do not discuss any issue related to Nagorno-Karabakh, as it is their internal matter. They discuss in a closed meeting, [but] they say in public we did not discuss. Now the same is the story of the map. Naturally, the issue of maps was discussed, there was a perception that it would be the basis, but Azerbaijan says no, we did not agree on that. The positive thing here is that there was a clear conversation about the specific map at such a high level," Marukyan emphasized.

And to the question whether there is a perception among the international community that there should be international guarantors in order to bring a possible Armenian-Azerbaijani peace agreement to fruition, Marukyan responded: "We now live in a world where anyone can be a guarantor for anything in any matter. Or even if he wants to, the circumstance of being a guarantor of it is constantly disputed because the world order created after the Second World War has collapsed, ended. Under these conditions, it is very difficult to say that this or that country or such and such body is ready to be a guarantor for the signing of the Armenian-Azerbaijani [peace] treaty. Nonetheless, there is no alternative to it, we must continue to work and find solutions."
The Foreign Affairs Committee of the Flemish Parliament of Belgium on Wednesday adopted a resolution, calling for the immediate opening of the Lachin Corridor which has been blocked by Azerbaijan and for the withdrawal of Azerbaijani forces from the sovereign territory of Armenia reported the European Armenian Federation for Justice and Democracy (EAFJD).

The Lachin Corridor, a vital lifeline connecting Nagorno-Karabakh (Artsakh) with Armenia, has been subject to a blockade by Azerbaijan. This blockade has caused a humanitarian crisis for the native Armenian population of Nagorno-Karabakh and hindered their access to essential supplies, humanitarian aid, and economic opportunities. The Flemish Parliament recognizes the urgency of this issue and urges Azerbaijan to immediately lift the blockade, ensuring the free flow of goods, services, and individuals through the corridor.

Furthermore, the resolution highlights the need for the immediate withdrawal of Azerbaijani forces from the sovereign territory of Armenia. It emphasizes that the presence of foreign military forces within a sovereign nations borders is a violation of international law and undermines the principles of sovereignty. The resolution urges the EU to call on Azerbaijan to end its hostile policy against the Armenian people and ensure the rights and security of the Armenian population of Nagorno-Karabakh which is facing a threat of genocide.

The initiator of the resolution, member of the Flemish Parliament Allessia Claes from the party N-VA commented: I am very pleased that the Committee on Foreign Policy of the Flemish Parliament approved our resolution on the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict, including the closure of the Lachin corridor and the humanitarian situation. We stand united in condemning the ongoing war and calling on all parties to move ahead in fruitful discussions towards a lasting peace.

Karl Vanlouwe, a member of the Parliament from the NVA and co-signer of the resolution stated: This resolution is the result of many conversations with the Armenian community and a hearing with Flemish journalist Jens De Ryck that we hosted last week in the committee in the Flemish Parliament. He gave an exposition of the devastating conflict in the Caucasus. The current blockade of the Lachin corridor is a true humanitarian crisis. It must stop now.
Photo: The Canadian Press

A tribunal has found that a Quebec man who became a father after he was sexually assaulted by his wife qualifies for payments from the provincial fund for victims of crime.

The province's administrative tribunal was asked to rule whether the man should receive the compensation given to someone who supports a child born of sexual assault.

The officials who oversee the fund had denied his request, noting among other things the father did not have custody of the child and that the amounts are meant for a parent who can't work.

However, the ruling notes the wording of the law can also include someone other than a mother if that person assumes financial care of the child.

Calling the matter a "unique" case, a panel of two administrative judges agreed with the father, noting that he alone provides financial support for the child as the mother is unemployed.

None of the parties are identified in the decision dated May 19 and released earlier this month.

The tribunal also found the father does try to play a part in the child's life but is forced to deal with his assailant. It concluded he would be more involved if he wasn't re-traumatized after visits to her home.

The couple came to Canada in 2008 and conflicts arose soon after as the man did not want children and was subjected to verbal, physical and sexual violence that got worse over the years.

The abuse spanned between 2010 and February 2013, when he said he was forced to have sex with his wife without a condom after a particularly tense argument with her and his mother-in-law over whether to have children.

The father learned a few weeks later she was pregnant and ultimately left the family, never to return.

Paternity was established in 2018 and the divorce was finalized in 2019.
The situation is relatively stable as of 30 minutes before this and at this moment as well; at this moment there are no shots from any weapons. Armenian Deputy Minister of Defense Arman Sargsyan told this to reporters in the parliament on Wednesday, referring to the actions carried out by the Azerbaijani army units in the direction of Yeraskh village in Armenias Ararat Province.

"A certain trend of tension was observed. In recent days, the Azerbaijani pressand Azerbaijan, in generalis disseminating disinformation and, as a rule, it is followed by certain [military] steps," added Sargsyan.

Referring to the two foreigners who were wounded in the aforesaid actions by Azerbaijan near Yeraskh village, Arman Sargsyan said that they are in civilian medical facilities.

When asked whether Azerbaijan was preparing the ground for a large-scale escalation of tension with this, the Armenian deputy defense minister said: "I cannot say that it will turn into large-scale actions, that some steps aimed at additional escalation are being implemented. But it is obvious that this does not contribute to the negotiation process, and causes negative consequences and harms that process. As a rule, in similar cases, after preparing the ground for a certain escalation [of tension], the [Azerbaijani] signature seems to be the same, and again they continue to create small local problems."

Asked whether the Azerbaijanis had a trend to advance in Yeraskh, Arman Sargsyan responded: "According to the information I have, these are long-range shots, and no advance has taken place. In any case, there is no need for any panic because we live in a region, in a country that seems to have learned to live in this tense situation all the time; we must be vigilant. In any case, we are sure that our armed forces and power units give and will give a proper response if necessary. But it is not desirable to escalate [the tension], and we hope that this destructive approach by the Azerbaijani armed forces and those circles will end."

He emphasized that not only the Ministry of Defense, but also the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and all interested state agencies of Armenia were reacting to this incident.

"Constantly we provide information. By analyzing the information, it will become obvious what the real goal is. But the aim, I believe, is to create tension [by Azerbaijan]. And, thank God, we have no casualties or more serious injuries. I don't know any other details," said Sargsyan.

And regarding the readiness of the Armenian army for Azerbaijani military actions, the deputy defense minister stated as follows: "The army has the tasks set before it. And these tasks are changing according to the situation. In any case, the army is ready and obligated to properly respond to any such step."
Photo: Photo via @sarahblyth/Twitter

A man was taken to hospital Monday evening after he was struck by an object that was thrown from the 10th floor of a building in Vancouver's Downtown Eastside.

About 7:30 p.m., pedestrians informed a Vancouver Police Department officer about a man who was struck by an object near East Hastings and Carrall streets, says Sgt. Steve Addison.

While the officer tended to the injured man, several other items were thrown down from a building onto the sidewalk.

Police closed the area on East Hastings to traffic due to the "risk of injury to the public" at the front of the building.

"We then identified the apartment from which the objects were being thrown and arrested a man in his forties who is believed to have been throwing the items," Addison says.

The VPD tweeted that an individual was "throwing objects from his suite 10 floors above street level."

The injured man was taken to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.

An investigation is ongoing and may result in criminal charges.

This is a lot of police pic.twitter.com/BnVNfMf2vM Sarah Blyth - Gerszak (@sarahblyth) June 13, 2023




During the exchange of views at the plenary session of the European Parliament, the latters members (MEPs) asked Josep Borrell, High Representative of the European Union (EU) for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy/Vice-President of the European Commission, criticizing questions about the ongoing blockade by Azerbaijan against the people of Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) and the EU policy in this regard.

The majority of MEPs who spoke during the session reaffirmed the need for a stricter EU stance against Azerbaijani aggression and condemned Azerbaijan's policy of Armenian ethnic cleansing in Artsakh.

They condemned the inaction of the EU leadership regarding the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, and noted the unproductiveness of the current EU civilian monitoring mission in Armenia.

In addition, the MEPs called on the EU leadership to use its leverage to lift the blockade of the Lachine corridor, which has led to a humanitarian crisis.

Also, the MEPs called for sanctions against Azerbaijan, which does not respect international agreements and court decisions.

Views were expressed that the EU executive power seems to be unable to properly condemn the major violations of the fundamental rights of the people of Nagorno-Karabakh.
It's no secret that along with all ongoing talks, Azerbaijan constantly tries to use force to change the course of the talks, disrupt them, and ultimately impose on Armenia the solutions that it, and maybe only it, wants. This was stated by Minister of Foreign Affairs Ararat Mirzoyan at the National Assembly of Armenia Wednesday, adding, however, that this is not the first such manifestation.

"It is another matter that we and the international community must take a very sharp position. Either we negotiate in good faith to reach mutually acceptable solutions, or if it is through the use of force, such a process is unacceptable to us [i.e. Armenia]. We hope it is also unacceptable to the international community," he said.

Mirzoyan stated that Armenia's internationally recognized borders must remain inviolable, the country's territorial integrity must be restored, and the international community must play a role in this matter.

"There is also a new nuance in the case of Yeraskh [village of Armenias Ararat Province], specifically. It was previously announced that a metallurgical plant is being built there, and according to preliminary assessments, it will considerably contribute to the economic development of Armenia. And here, Azerbaijan first came up with false environmental accusations, after which Armenian refutation was heard. After this statement of the Armenian side, the Azerbaijani side is trying to disrupt this planin this caseby using force again. This is not only an encroachment on Armenia's borders, it is not only a violation of the ceasefire, but also by making purely baseless accusations, putting false justifications, to undermine a program that can contribute to the economic development of Armenia," emphasized Armenian FM.

Ararat Mirzoyan added that many times the leadership of Azerbaijan, in the presence of other actors, undertook an additional obligation not to resort to the use of force.

"Today, the EU [civilian] monitoring mission [in Armenia] left for that part of Yeraskh. Tomorrow, at our invitation, representatives of the international diplomatic corps accredited in Armenia will also be there, and we will keep the issue in the center of their attention," the Armenian FM said.
We are aware of the EU's announced plans to strengthen its presence in Armenia, for which three new EU "observation" mission posts will be opened in Armenia in Kapan, Ijevan and Yeghegnadzor in the near future. Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova stated in response to a media question about the opening of three operational centers of the EU observation mission in Armenia.

From the very beginning, the EU has been extremely non-transparent. The deployment of the European Union presence in Armenia was carried out forcefully, under serious pressure from Brussels. The EU members practically imposed their presence. The launch of the mission, which aimed to help normalize relations between Baku and Yerevan, took place unilaterally, on a non-consensual basis, without the consent of the Azerbaijani side and other regional players, and without proper reporting. This only confirms the true background of the EU policy in the region, the main purpose of which is to squeeze Russia out of the Transcaucasus and turn the South Caucasus into an arena of geopolitical confrontation to the detriment of the core interests of the people living there.

It is obvious that the increase in the number of EU "observer" centers in Armenia has nothing to do with the task of establishing stability and peace between Baku and Yerevan. The unaccountability of the EU mission to the international community and, above all, to Azerbaijan and Armenia reinforces suspicions of a hidden agenda in EU activities "on the ground," the presence of a "second bottom" in the mission's mandate under the guise of its "civilian" nature. Given all the circumstances, we are not the only ones who have many reasonable questions about the real motives behind the EU's actions in the region. We continue to believe that the continuing expansion of the EU extra-regional factor in the Transcaucasus, behind which the anti-Russian objectives of the United States and NATO can be seen, can only exacerbate the existing contradictions here. Apparently, this is why some politicians from Germany are trying to convince the public that the German policemen and French gendarmes sent to Armenia "are not occupiers."

There is no "added value" from the dubious activity of EU "experts" near the Armenian-Azerbaijani border. All the more incapable of ensuring security and compliance with ceasefires reached under the decisive role of Russian mediation. A real guarantee of peace in the region remains the presence of a Russian peacekeeping contingent.

The development of the situation once again proves that the most stable and long-term basis for the Armenian-Azerbaijani normalization and the overall improvement of the situation in Transcaucasia is the consistent implementation of the trilateral agreements of the leaders of Russia, Azerbaijan and Armenia on November 9, 2020, January 11, 2021 and October 31, 2022, including the unblocking of all transport and economic links, delimitation and demarcation of the Armenian-Azerbaijani border, and agreeing on the parameters of a peace agreement between Azerbaijan and Armenia.

Russia will continue to assist the parties in ensuring security and stability in the region," said Zakharova in her response.






As they conclude the 2022-2023 school year, U.S. students in grades 5-12 give their schools a B- grade, on average, according to a recent Gallup and Walton Family Foundation-State of American Youth Survey. Although 66% grade their school positively, with an A (22%) or a B (44%), 24% grade it a C, and 10% give it a D or F," bringing down the average given by all students to a B-.

The average grades students give to different aspects of their school -- respect, safety, teaching quality and to individual needs, preparation for the future, inclusiveness, exposure to diverse views, mental health support, technology use, career exposure, and excitement about learning -- range from B to C+.

Students are least positive about how well their school fosters excitement about learning, serves different learning styles, teaches about potential careers and provides mental health support. They are most positive about their schools safety and respect for individual differences.

Table. Report on schools from U.S. students grades 5-12, April-May 2023 survey. Students gave their schools overall a B-minus grade, with 22% rating them excellent (A), 44% good (B), 24% satisfactory (C), 7% poor (D) and 3% fail (F). Students rated 11 aspects of their schools, with respecting who they are and keeping them safe coming in first (with B grades), followed by making you feel included, exposing you to ideas and opinions that are different from your own, using technology in new and exciting ways to help you learn, the quality of teaching, and preparing you for your future (all receiving a grade of B-minus); with the last four aspects (supporting your mental health, teaching you in ways that adapt to your own unique learning needs, teaching you about potential careers, and making you excited about learning) all receiving a grade of C-plus. The highest percentage excellent was for respecting who you are (48%) and keeping you safe (43%), while the lowest was for teaching you about potential careers (17%) and making you excited about learning (13%).

Among public school students, including those in public charter schools as well as traditional public schools, middle school students are more positive than their high school peers across all metrics assessed. Twenty-three percent of public middle school students give their school an overall rating of A, compared with 17% of public high school students. By contrast, there is no difference between private middle school and high school students in how they grade their school.

Results for the Gallup and Walton Family Foundation-State of American Youth Survey are based on web survey responses collected April 24 through May 8, 2023, from 3,114 people aged 12 to 25 via the Gallup Panel.

Fostering Excitement for Learning and Preparing for the Future Marked Lowest

Among all grade 5-12 students, students are particularly negative about their schools performance on measures of student engagement and preparedness.

On average, students give their school a C+ rating in making them feel excited about learning, with just 13% giving their school an A on this metric. A majority of middle school students (54%) give their school an A (15%) or B (39%) on feeling excited, compared with less than half (44%) of high school students (12% A, 32% B).

Perhaps relatedly, students give their school a C+ in teaching them in ways that adapt to their unique learning needs, with 19% grading their school an A.

Students are also negative about being exposed to different career opportunities -- on average, students provide a C+ rating on this important developmental experience. Seventeen percent give an A on this measure, with no difference between middle school and high school students.

Only slightly more, 20%, give an A to their school on preparing them for the future. High school students (17%) are less likely than middle school students (23%) to give an A on this measure.

Academic performance is related to students ratings of their schools across the metrics evaluated. Students ratings of their school closely align with their own academic performance, with highest-performing students much more likely than worse-performing students to give their school As and Bs in various domains.

For example, six in 10 students earning excellent or good grades, versus three in 10 of those earning fair or poor grades, give their school an A or a B for teaching them in ways that adapt to their unique learning needs.

Racial Disparities on Ratings of Respect and Physical Safety

Schools score best in measures of respect and perceptions of physical safety. Close to half of students (48%) give their school an A grade for respecting who they are regardless of their race/ethnicity, gender and identity, with an average grade of B for schools on this important metric.

Similarly, 43% of students give their school an A for keeping them physically safe, and schools earn an average grade of B on this measure.

While overall ratings for respect and physical safety are relatively good compared with all other metrics, ratings are far lower among Black students. Just 33% of Black students grade their school an A for making them feel respected, compared with 50% of White students and 53% of Hispanic students. Thirty-seven percent of Black students give their school an A for making them feel physically safe, compared with 46% of White and 41% of Hispanic students. These are the largest negative disparities observed among Black students across all metrics assessed.

Perceptions of respect are similar among female and male students.

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Implications

As the 2022-2023 school year wraps, schools earn less-than-perfect grades on many important aspects of students educational experiences. While schools earn A and B grades from a majority of students on most dimensions, a sizable minority of students have had a worse experience.

At a crucial moment in defining future pathways, high school students are less excited about learning and feel less prepared for the future than middle school students. Whether because of the challenges schools faced during three years of dire disruption to learning during the pandemic or longer-term issues, there is clearly room for improvement.

Read the report.

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The University of Miami Black Alumni Society and the LGBTQ+ Canes have joined forces to commemorate the Juneteenth holiday with a virtual panel discussion. Juneteenth: Building a H.O.M.E.History, Orientation, Movement, and Education will explore the intersections of the Black and LGBTQ+ experiences.

Juneteenth, which gets its name from combining June and nineteenth, commemorates the date in 1865 when a group of enslaved people in Galveston, Texas, received news that they were freemore than two years after the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation. It was made a federal holiday in 2021.

This year we are doing our first ever collaboration with another alumni affinity group and we felt it was only right to join forces to discuss the intersections of where Black and rainbow pride meet, said Astin Hayes, the Black Alumni Society president.

Hayes said that the Black Alumni Society and the LGBTQ+ Canes are two organizations that have a high number of engaged participants and wanted to capitalize on bringing the two groups together for an important topic.

I think that the Black LGBTQ experience is one that is often invisible to others, but I want to demonstrate that there is a very strong relationship between our affinity groups, said Jason Starr, the Black Alumni Society president-elect, who identifies as a Black queer attorney, educator, and strategist in the fight for human rights. With Pride Month, there's a natural opening opportunity for us to both be visible.

Starr, alongside Shenika Nik Harris, vice president of strategic outreach and engagement of the Human Rights Campaign; recent graduate Dija Thomas; and student Dahlia Mason will be on the panel. At the end of the discussion, participants will have the opportunity to ask the panelists questions.

Roberto Bosch, president of LGBTQ+ Canes, and Aaron Esman, vice president, are both excited to be working with the Black Alumni Society to discuss the junction between their respective communities.

This type of programming helps to remind, educate, and empower our constituents about past struggles weve overcome; shared struggles we continue to face; but also the ability to connect so that we can continue to support each other in the future, said Bosch.

The virtual Juneteenth event is free and is open to the University community. The discussion will take place on Friday, June 16, from noon until 1:30 p.m. via Zoom.

Established in 1989, the Black Alumni Society, an official affiliate group of the University, has celebrated Juneteenth since 2019. The mission of the group is to facilitate a comprehensive network among Black University alumni, faculty and staff members, students, and families to advance the interests and needs of the University community.

We are creating our own destiny and still paving the way for students to feel at home, as you see it in the name of event, said Starr.

Register to attend the event.
Interpol to be asked to track comedian over MH370 gag

Malaysian police chief Acryl Sani Abdullah Sani says they will ask Interpol to help locate comedian Jocelyn Chia. File photo: AFP

Malaysia will on Wednesday ask Interpol to help track down a US comedian, local media reported, after her joke about the disappearance of Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 sparked fury and even an apology from Singapore.



Jocelyn Chia told the joke during a set at the Comedy Cellar in New York City, reportedly in April, as she riffed on the historically testy relationship between Malaysia and Singapore, where she was raised.



MH370 went missing in March 2014, and is one of Malaysia's deadliest aviation incidents, with all 239 people on board presumed dead.



Such was the outrage over Chia's joke that Malaysian police began an investigation under incitement and offensive online content laws, and its chief Acryl Sani Abdullah Sani said on Tuesday they will ask Interpol to help locate her.



He said the request would be filed on Wednesday, according to the Malaysian news agency Bernama.



Malaysia and Singapore were briefly one state after the end of British colonial rule. They separated in 1965.



Chia, who has roots in Singapore, said in her routine that it had since become a "first-world country" and that Malaysian "airplanes cannot fly".



"Malaysian Airlines going missing not funny, huh," she continued. "Some jokes don't land."



It caused an uproar on social media, followed by condemnations by top Malaysian officials, including the foreign minister.



"I am appalled by her horrendous statements," Singapore's foreign minister Vivian Balakrishnan tweeted last week.



"We treasure our ties with family and friends in Malaysia, and are sorry for the offence and hurt caused to all Malaysians."



Chia, however, has stood by her joke despite the intense backlash.



The US-born former lawyer told CNN that she had performed that set "more than a hundred times" for more than a year without any problems.



"I do stand by my joke but with some caveat  I stand by it in its entirety, when viewed in a comedy club," she told the broadcaster in comments published on Sunday.



She added, however: "Upon reflection I do see that having this as a clip that gets viewed out of a comedy club context was risky."



Chia was defiant even after Malaysia's move to involve the international police body, tweeting: "Would love to see the face of the Interpol officer who received this request." (AFP)
SRV Media New Delhi [India], June 14: Thought Leaders of India attained a milestone in strengthening the bonds between Abu Dhabi and India through a CXOs delegation to UAE on 3-4 May, 2023. The delegation held a series of focused, high-profile dialogues with thought leaders and decision-makers from UAE. The delegation was the second in the series of international visits organized by TLOI. It was organized in collaboration with the Abu Dhabi Chamber of Commerce and Industry and comprised prominent business leaders, professionals, and representatives. The visit proved to be an immense success in enhancing cooperation between Abu Dhabi and India. Rishi Kapoor, Partner & Business Head, Sapphire Connect, highlighted the success of their recent international delegations. After the success of the first TLOI delegation to Vietnam, United Arab Emirates was identified as the destination for the visit in May due to the strong economic synergy and socio-cultural affinity between India and UAE. The delegates interacted with business leaders, students, and academic community, fostering valuable discussions and exchange of ideas. Kapoor reiterated the intent to organize regular delegations for the members of Thought Leaders of India to provide further opportunities for business collaboration and knowledge sharing. The highlight of the visit was the Abu Dhabi - India CXO Round Table, a pivotal event chaired by Dr Tayeb A. Kamali, Chairman of the Board at the prestigious Abu Dhabi School of Management (ADSM). The round table provided a platform for engaging discussions and strategic dialogues, focusing on building partnerships and collaboration between the two countries. It offered a unique opportunity for business and thought leaders from both nations to exchange ideas, explore business prospects, and identify avenues for mutual growth. Speaking to the media on their return to India, Kapoor mentioned that the visit would not have been possible without the invaluable support, heart-warming hospitality and cooperation of the Abu Dhabi Chamber of Commerce and Industry. He expressed special gratitude to Saeed Sultan Aldhaheri, Board Member, ADCCI, whose guidance and expertise had been instrumental in the successful visit. He further highlighted the inputs and support from Saleem V.I and Dr Loay S. Elsin DBA, MEng, PMP throughout the visit. Thought Leader member Atul Madan, CEO, Mystique Group shared - "It was a wonderful experience for all the delegates traveling to Abu Dhabi as a part of the UAE CXO Round Table organised by TLOI. Right from all the arrangements, coordination to the sessions - everything was well organised. We had a very meaningful session with the Abu Dhabi Chambers of Commerce represented and hosted by Dr. Tayeb Kamali, who along with his team were very hospitable and forthcoming to meet this delegation led by Thought Leaders of India Team. The interaction with the post graduate students of Abu Dhabi School of Management was also very meaningful and interesting. More than anything else, I thought it was also a great opportunity to get to know our Indian members (delegates) better and we developed good camaraderie. Looking forward to such platforms in the future." During their stay, the Indian business delegation had the privilege of interacting with the faculty and students of the Abu Dhabi School of Management (ADSM). This interactive session aimed to inspire and guide the students, providing insights on leadership, overcoming challenges, and embracing failures as opportunities for growth. The delegation also had the honor of visiting the iconic Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque, an architectural marvel that symbolizes the UAE's rich heritage and cultural diversity. A momentous occasion was the attendance of the Indian business delegation at the 20th Sheikh Khalifa Excellence Award (SKEA) Ceremony, held under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Mohammad Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the President of the UAE. The ceremony, graced by Sheikh Khaled Bin Mohammad Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, recognized outstanding achievements in various fields and celebrated excellence as a driving force for progress. Member of Thought Leader Ankit Agarwal, Managing Director Alankit Limited said - "The visit to the UAE as part of TLOI delegation was a truly remarkable experience, characterised by warm hospitality and fruitful discussions. We look forward to nurturing these connections and building long-lasting business relations for mutual growth and success." While returning Rishi Kapoor, Partner & Business Head sapphire Connect quoted "The visit of the International Delegation of Members to Abu Dhabi marks another milestone in strengthening the bonds between Abu Dhabi and India. Through collaborative efforts and initiatives, we aim to forge lasting partnerships that will contribute to economic growth, knowledge exchange, and cultural understanding between our nations". (Disclaimer: The above press release has been provided by SRV Media. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of the same)
Photo: The Canadian Press

Marco Mendicino should resign or be fired over his office's handling of knowledge that Paul Bernardo was being transferred to a medium-security prison, Opposition Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre said Wednesday.

Poilievre pointed out that when the Correctional Service of Canada's decision to move the convicted killer and serial rapist from his maximum-security penitentiary became public, the minister of public safety said he was shocked.

The Conservative leader is now calling that reaction a lie, given the correctional service informed says his office at least three months before the transfer and again several days before Bernardo was moved.

Spokesman Kevin Antonucci said the correctional service has a process to provide the minister's office advance notice on matters pertaining to high-profile offenders.

He said Mendicino's office was first emailed about Bernardo's transfer on March 2, but told the final date for the move had not yet been determined.

Antonucci said the correctional service emailed his office again on May 25, notifying the government that Bernardo would be transferred on May 29.

The spokesman underlined that decisions about the transfer of inmates are up to the correctional service and not the minister or his office.

Poilievre noted that the minister's office had received "at least two emails" as he spoke before going into his weekly caucus meeting.

"Why has the staff not been fired?" he said. "Marco Mendicino needs to resign."

A spokesperson in Mendicino's office has said the minister was only informed of Bernardo's transfer to a medium-security prison once it happened.

That prompted concerns Wednesday from other Liberals, including Government House leader Mark Holland, about how information flows within government.

"It's good for us to take a look at making sure that we have the right processes in place to deal with the flow of information in a country as large and as big as this. There is an enormous amount of information in this form," Holland said .

"So we do have to review our processes and make sure that they're as strong and as rigorous as possible, and where communication gaps exist, that's an opportunity to look at how to fix it."

Asked about the need for staff to be disciplined, backbench Liberal MP Chris Bittle said he understands why that would make sense.

"The gut reaction would be: of course. But I'm sure this (is a) staffer that may be overworked, that probably feels about one feet tall and wants to crawl under a rock."

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, speaking to reporters in Quebec, said Mendicino would be addressing his office's handling of the Bernardo transfer information shortly.

Mendicino had said Tuesday that there was "back and forth" between the correctional service and the department leading up to the decision, when asked why he was not informed ahead of time.

He also cited privacy legislation and security concerns about why he did not disclose to the public that he knew of Bernardo's transfer until it was first reported in the media.

Poilievre said that the minister has mishandled other files, including the Liberals' latest gun-control legislation and the government's response to alleged Chinese police stations operating in Canada.
PRNewswire Edison (New Jersey) [US]/ Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], June 14: LTIMindtree (NSE: LTIM) (BSE: 540005), a global technology consulting and digital solutions company, today announced that it has joined the Microsoft Intelligent Security Association (MISA). MISA is an ecosystem of independent software vendors (ISVs) and managed security service providers (MSSPs) that have integrated their solutions with Microsoft's security technology to better defend against a world of increasing threats. This collaboration and security specializations will allow LTIMindtree to leverage the Microsoft Security product portfolio to enhance its MDR platform and help enterprises prevent, detect, and respond to the most sophisticated cyberattacks in real time with Microsoft Sentinel. LTIMindtree's MDR is designed to deliver cybersecurity and resiliency services through a modular, systematic, platformized approach. It uses a pay-per-use model coupled with flexible operations, which reduces the load and dependency on in-house security teams and enables swift resolution of issues. Organizations of all sizes can adopt the MDR platform. They can leverage its ecosystem of skilled security consultants, rich library of use cases, playbooks, best practices, and plug-and-play technology to build a cyber-resilient enterprise. " At LTIMindtree, we remain committed to helping our clients insulate themselves against new-age cyber threats," said Prasenjit Saha, Executive Vice President and Global Cyber Security Business Head at LTIMindtree. "Achieving the Microsoft Security Specializations and joining MISA is a significant step in our mission to provide clients with the most advanced and comprehensive cybersecurity solutions, powered by Microsoft Security." "We believe that by coming together as a community to innovate, build strategies, and share knowledge, we empower ourselves and our customers as defenders. That is why MISA is such a vital part of our mission. Together, with partners like LTIMindtree, we can turn obstacles into innovation and embrace today's challenges as an opportunity to build a better, safer world for all," said Vasu Jakkal, Corporate Vice President Microsoft Security. LTIMindtree is a global technology consulting and digital solutions company that enables enterprises across industries to reimagine business models, accelerate innovation, and maximize growth by harnessing digital technologies. As a digital transformation partner to more than 700 clients, LTIMindtree brings extensive domain and technology expertise to help drive superior competitive differentiation, customer experiences, and business outcomes in a converging world. Powered by 84,000+ talented and entrepreneurial professionals across more than 30 countries, LTIMindtree -- a Larsen & Toubro Group company -- combines the industry-acclaimed strengths of erstwhile Larsen and Toubro Infotech and Mindtree in solving the most complex business challenges and delivering transformation at scale. For more information, please visit https://www.ltimindtree.com/. Media Contacts: media@ltimindtree.com (Disclaimer: The above press release has been provided by PRNewswire. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of the same)
VMPL New Delhi [India], June 14: Kalinga Group of Institution (KGI), Jajpur, Odisha has recently concluded its first education conclave in Vysanagar Sanskruti Bhawan premises. Dignitaries from state and central administrative services, educationists, intellectuals, journalists, and entrepreneurs were present. The topic of discussion was "whether 90 per cent marks is the key to success" The discussion was held in three panels. The conclave was inaugurated by KGI Chairman Er. Alexzander Das. Students, parents, and teachers enthusiastically thronged into the Sanskruti Bhawan premises to participate in the discussion. The 1st Panel was a panel of Educationists in which Principal of Government Polytechnic, Jajpur, Rajendra Kumar Prusty, Principal of Korei Kanhucharan College, Dr Mohan Charan Khuntia, Lecturer of Jhadeshwar College, Dr Akshaya Panda participated as critics. Govardhan Nayak, Lecturer of Chemistry of Indira Gandhi Women's College, Prakash Kumar Pital, and Ex-Faculty of Akash Institute also participated in the discussion actively. The panel concluded that percentage in terms of marks, does not define the ability of a student. In the second session, young entrepreneurs Narasingh Nath Nanda, Nivedita Naik, RK Mishra, Siddharth Bhatt joined and suggested that instead of studying to get a job, you should study to learn skills. Skills are required for employment not marks. The 90 per cent marks has no value in the absence of core competency and skill. So if you run behind scoring 90 per cent mark and leave your skills behind, it would be too difficult to build a successful career, nowadays. Opportunities are the same to become a successful entrepreneur in India, where one's core competency and skill matter. The third session of discussion was held under the chairmanship of KGI Chairman Mr. Das in which retired senior IAS officer Narayan Prasad Das, Samarendra Sahu, Jajpur BDO Saurabh Chakraborty (OAS), and senior journalist Rajaram Shatpathy participated. In the discussion, it unanimously came out that in our modern education system, the basic need for education is fading away. Rather, Parents are indulged in putting pressure on their children to become an engineer and a doctor at any cost. Therefore students are being encouraged to chase after marks and their hidden talents remain unattended. Students from their childhood are compelled to choose a stream as their parents wish to be. It has posed a threat to the society nowadays. While encouraging students to get 90 per cent marks, parents forget their responsibility to nurture the inherent talent of their children. Even teachers instead of recognizing the student's talent are trying to confine them to books only. The critics were of the opinion that such mindset is only due to the commercialization of education. The students of Kalinga Higher Secondary School who had a growth in terms of per cent of marks in 12th science in comparison to their 10th marks got felicitated. This year's topper Bijaya Kumar Sahoo who secured a growth of 27 per cent in comparison to the 10th Exam got felicitated and appreciated by all guests for his outstanding performance in terms of growth. Since KGI through its social wings has been working in society, various social organizations engaged in social service like Keonjhar Jai Durga Foundation, Manab Seva Samiti, Dibya Charitable Trust, Usharg Jajpur Helpline, Vijaya Adarsh Foundation, Chakadola Helpline, Manorama Foundation, Thakurpatana Jubak Sangha, Chhatia Samajsebi Sangathan,Ame apananka pain Helping Group etc. were also felicitated for their outstanding social work. Bishnu Charan Das, Principal, delivered the welcome speech on behalf of KGI while Sk. Anjar Alli, Chirasmita Das, Rashmiranjan Das, Tina Guru, Satyabrat Khilar, Praptitinanda Sahu, Diparani Chakra, Sadeka Khatun contributed in conducting the programme. Finally, Chief Administrative Officer Bijaya Prasad Nayak gave a vote of thanks to all invited guests and every member of the KGI Group for making the Conclave successful. (Disclaimer: The above press release has been provided by VMPL. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of the same)
BusinessWire India Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], June 14: Cloudbankin, a complete end-to-end digital lending software company headquartered in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, today announced it has successfully raised USD 400K in funding from Angel investors, Upekkha, SaaS accelerator and fund, and Kube VC - a global venture capital firm. Prominent Fintech angel investors including Ramanathan RV, CEO at Hyperface, Mohan Karuppiah, CEO at IppoPay and Magendra Negi, Head of Alliances & Partnerships (Financial Services Solutions) from one of the leading Global Technology companies extended their support and participated in the funding round. Cloudbankin started as a bootstrapped venture and has built a robust customer base of more than 50+ financial institutions from multiple countries. Over the past year, Cloudbankin has achieved an impressive 60 per cent annual growth rate. Notably, it has been recognized as the second most user-friendly platform in the loan origination category, according to G2 Review. Currently, financial institutions utilizing this product have achieved loan disbursements in under 10 minutes for unsecured loans. Commenting on the announcement, Mani Parthasarathy, CEO of Cloudbankin, expressed, "Current lending landscape for borrower onboarding is very heterogeneous and requires customisation for different workflows/api integrations which forces to implement multiple product solutions for a Financial Institution causing more complexity. With this funding, we will enhance our AI based low-code platform to enable customisable workflow and pluggable integrations for different financial products such as Business loans, Loan Against Property, Housing Loans, Gold loans, Buy Now Pay Later and Personal loans and launch it in 3 weeks." "At Upekkha, we're excited to invest in Cloudbankin, a pioneering Fintech SaaS startup. It's been impressive watching Cloudbankin revolutionize the lending space. As the India's Fintech revolution picks up pace, Cloudbankin will help many BFSI companies go fully digital. Today's customers are demanding, and companies which implement Cloudbankin will have a competitive advantage" commented Prasanna, Managing partner at Upekkha. (Disclaimer: The above press release has been provided by BusinessWire India. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of the same)
NewsVoir New Delhi [India], June 14: BLS International Services Limited, Development and Services Division today announced that it has been appraised at level 5 of ISACA's Capability Maturity Model Integration (CMMI). The appraisal was conducted by Dr. Vinit Maheshwari, Director at Capability Maturity Model Integration (CMMI). CMMI is a proven, outcome-based performance model and the globally accepted standard for improving capability, optimizing business performance and aligning operations to business goals. An appraisal at Maturity Level 5 indicates that the organization is performing at an "optimizing" level. At this level, an organization continually improves its processes based on a quantitative understanding of its business objectives and performance needs. The organization uses a quantitative approach to understand the variation inherent in the process and the causes of process outcomes. "Here at BLS International, we operate at an optimizing level, leveraging the power of technology to continuously enhance our processes and gain a deep understanding of the underlying causes of any challenges we may face. As a trusted partner to governments and citizens around the world, we are committed to providing top-notch citizen services to state and provincial governments. Our unwavering focus on data-driven insights helps us deliver innovative solutions that truly make a difference in people's lives," said Shikhar Agarwal, Joint Managing Director at BLS International Services Limited. "Organizations worldwide are harnessing CMMI to elevate their business performance to new heights, creating a sustainable competitive advantage in the process," says Ron Lear, Senior Director, CMMI Program. "We commend BLS International Services Limited, Development and Services Division on achieving this CMMI appraisal level and demonstrating their ability as a high-performing organization." For more information about CMMI performance solutions, visit www.isaca.org/enterprise/cmmi-performance-solutions. BLS International Services Ltd. is a trusted global tech-enabled services partner for governments and citizens, having an impeccable reputation for setting benchmarks in the domain of visa, passport, consular, citizen, e-governance, attestation, biometric, e-visa, and retail services since 2005. The company has been named one of "India's Most Valuable Companies" by Business Today Magazine, one of the "Best under a Billion' companies" by Forbes Asia, and one of "Fortune India's Next 500 companies." The company collaborates with more than 46 client governments, including Diplomatic Missions, Embassies, and Consulates, as well as employs technology and processes that ensure data security. The company now has a worldwide presence of over 27,000 centres with over 25,000 employees and associates providing consular, biometrics, and citizen services. To date, BLS has processed over 83 million applications worldwide. BLS International is certified with CMMI DEV V2.0 & SVC V2.0 along with ISO 9001:2015 for Quality Management Systems; ISO 27001:2013 for Information Security Management Systems; ISO 14001:2015 for Environmental Management Systems; ISO/ IEC 45001:2018 for Occupational Safety and Health; ISO / IEC 20000-1:2011 for IT Service Management; ISO 26000:2010 for Social Responsibility; ISO 23026:2015 for System Engineering and Management Requirements; ISO/IEC 28000:2017 for Supply Chain Management System; ISO/IEC 27002: 2013 for Management of Information Security; ISO 31000: 2018 for Risk Management; ISO 27001:2013 for Risk Management of Information. BLS International is the only publicly traded company in this sector, with operations in 60+ countries. BSE: 540073; NSE: BLS; MSE: BLS. For more information, please visit website www.blsinternational.com. (Disclaimer: The above press release has been provided by NewsVoir. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of the same)
ThePRTree New Delhi [India], June 14: District 369, Launches World's Biggest & Largest Accelerator Program for Startups in Web3. The innovative accelerator program is designed for ambitious and futuristic startups & founders. D369 helps startups to scale right from the incubation phase by funding supporting them with six zones i.e. Compliance Zone, Innovation Zone, Consulting Zone, Tech Zone, Design Zone & Marcom Zone and the following tiers on the basis of their qualifying categories and tiers: * Tier 1 - up to USD 1 million * Tier 2 - up to USD 3 million * Tier 3 - up to USD 5 million * Tier 4 - up to USD 25 million * Tier 5 - up to USD 50 million * Tier 6 - up to USD 100 million District 369, a leading web3 hub, has announced the acceptance of entries to its esteemed accelerator program. The program aims to support startups from the early stage to the expansion phase in multiple verticals like Blockchain, DeFi, NFTs, DAOs, Metaverse, AI, ML, RPA, IoT, etc., and provide them with the necessary resources to grow and succeed. The accelerator program will offer training from successful CEOs and well-known advisors respective to their industry verticals. It provides startups access to various resources that help in developing growth strategies, raising funds, and developing an approach for their business transformation. Participants will also receive mentorship from experienced industry professionals, as well as networking opportunities with investors and potential partners. "We are excited to launch this accelerator program and help startups in the new-age technology space reach their full potential. We understand the challenges that early-stage startups face, and we want to provide them with the resources and support they need to succeed," said Saleem Nawaz Mandi Shaikh, CEO of District 369. The D369 accelerator program is open to startups both online & remotely, and applications are now being accepted. We recommend founders and startups apply at the earliest as we have limited seats. "We are looking for innovative startups that are passionate about solving problems and making a difference in the Web 3.0 space. We encourage all eligible startups to apply, and we can't wait to see what they will achieve through this program," said Shaikh. The D369 hub is open to all. From blockchain to DeFi to NFTs, DAOs, Metaverse and Artificial Intelligence (AI), Machine Learning (ML), Robotic Process Automation (RPA), and Internet of things (IoT), our hub is designed to cater to individual startups' needs and demands. For more information on the D369 accelerator program, please visit https://www.district369.org/, or email us at entry@district369.org (Disclaimer: The above press release has been provided by ThePRTree. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of the same)
PRNewswire Bengaluru (Karnataka) [India], June 14: Cashfree Payments, India's leading payments and API banking solutions company has expanded its senior leadership team to drive the company's next phase of growth. Parveen Kumar has been appointed as Vice President - Operations, while Vijay Ravisekar has been appointed as Vice President - Product Management. The appointments were announced by the company as it gears up for its next phase of growth. The changes in the leadership team are expected to help the company accelerate its innovation and growth. The company has recently announced the elevation of Arun Tikoo as Chief Business Officer (CBO) and Ramkumar Venkatesan as Chief Technology Officer (CTO). Praveen Kumar brings over 15 years of industry experience in enhancing customer experience, managing finances, and building operations across various sectors. He holds a B.Tech in Aerospace Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur, and a PGDM in strategy and operations from the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad. In his new role, Parveen will oversee the operations and customer service vertical at Cashfree Payments. Parveen's responsibilities include expanding capabilities, driving research and innovation, and ensuring excellent customer service. Vijay has over 20 years of experience in Product Management, having successfully managed products for the driver ecosystem and Customer Care. He holds a Bachelor's degree in Engineering from the University of Mumbai and an MS in Telecommunications Engineering from The University of Texas, Dallas. Vijay will assume the crucial role of formulating product strategies and offering valuable guidance to enhance products and solutions, specifically focusing on 'Collections'. His responsibilities include fostering greater agility and driving improved business outcomes. Commenting on the appointment, Akash Sinha, Co-Founder & CEO, Cashfree Payments said, "I am thrilled to welcome Parveen and Vijay on board. Their proven ability to expand businesses, build exceptional teams, drive product innovation, and forge strong alliances will undoubtedly propel our company's growth and development with renewed enthusiasm. Cashfree Payments is currently in an incredibly exciting phase of its growth, positioning itself as a leader in the payments ecosystem. I am confident that Parveen and Vijay will play a vital role in our company's tremendous growth." With over 50 per cent market share among payment processors, Cashfree Payments today leads the way in bulk disbursals in India with its product Payouts. Recently, India's largest lender, SBI invested in Cashfree Payments underscoring the company's role in building a robust payments ecosystem. Cashfree Payments works closely with all leading banks to build the core payments and banking infrastructure that powers the company's products and is also integrated with major platforms such as Shopify, Wix, Paypal, Amazon Pay, Paytm and Google Pay. Apart from India, Cashfree Payments products are used in eight other countries including the USA, Canada and UAE. Cashfree Payments is a leading payment and API banking solutions company. It provides full-stack payment solutions enabling businesses in India to collect payments and make payouts via all available methods with simple integration. Cashfree Payments' offerings include an advanced and easy way to integrate payment gateways, a split payment solution for marketplaces, bank account verification API, Lending disbursals solution and Auto Collect -- a virtual account solution to match inbound payments to customers. Founded by IIIT Hyderabad alumnus Akash Sinha and IIT Kharagpur graduate Reeju Datta, www.cashfree.com is among the leading payment service providers in India processing transactions worth USD 40 Billion annually. It has leveraged technology to lead payment disbursals in India with more than 50 per cent market share among payment processors. Cashfree Payments enables more than 3,00,000 businesses with payment collections, vendor payouts, wage payouts, bulk refunds, expense reimbursements, loyalty and rewards. Apart from India, Cashfree Payments products are used in eight other countries including the USA, Canada, and UAE. Cashfree Payments is backed by Silicon Valley investor Y Combinator, Apis Partners, State Bank of India (SBI), and was incubated by PayPal. (Disclaimer: The above press release has been provided by PRNewswire. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of the same)
SRV Media New Delhi [India], June 14: GlowUp, the salon aggregator app, is dedicated to making finding and booking beauty and grooming services easier and more convenient for both women and men. By launching an innovative platform, GlowUp is bridging the gap between salons and customers. The user-friendly interface of the platform helps users connect with salons that offer high-quality beauty services that meet their requirements. GlowUp understands that trying out new salon services can be daunting, particularly for first-timers. That's why the app empowers users by providing them with all the information they need to make informed decisions. Currently, GlowUp has partnered with over 100 premium salons and is continually expanding its horizons to reach a broader audience. For women, GlowUp offers a wide range of beauty and grooming services, including hair styling, makeup, facial treatments, massages, and more. The app allows users to compare prices, read reviews, and book appointments at their preferred salon. Additionally, GlowUp provides detailed information about each service, so users can choose the one that best suits their needs. At the same time, GlowUp recognizes that men are also becoming more interested in grooming and self-care. As such, the app offers services like manicures and pedicures, providing men with a comfortable and welcoming space to explore new self-care options. "At GlowUp, we firmly believe that feeling confident and beautiful should not be restricted to a select few. We are dedicated to connecting everyone with premium beauty services, and our mission is to link you with the best salons and beauty experts in your area. Our user-friendly app is a key strength that enables individuals to easily compare prices, read reviews, and book appointments with just a few taps. With an intuitive interface and easy-to-use features, our app makes it accessible and convenient for users, even if they are new to the world of beauty and grooming." shared Ashish Dhanani, Founder & CEO. GlowUp, the salon aggregator app, has several key strengths that position it well for success in the market and the potential growth of its customer base. These strengths include a comprehensive database of salons and services, a user-friendly app, high-quality customer service, affordable pricing, and a focus on diversity and inclusion. One of GlowUp's strengths is its extensive database of salons and services. This feature makes it easy for users to find the right salon for their specific beauty and grooming needs. This is particularly helpful for individuals who are new to the industry and may need more information to make informed decisions about the services they require. Another strength of GlowUp is its high-quality customer service. The company's dedicated customer service team is available to assist users with any questions or concerns. This level of support can build trust and loyalty among users and encourage them to continue using the app. In addition, GlowUp offers competitive pricing on its services, making it accessible to a wide range of users, including those on a tight budget. This affordability factor especially appeals to individuals new to the industry and looking to try different services. GlowUp has ambitious plans to expand its reach and offer a complete SAAS solution to salon operations. The company plans to enter other Tier 1 and Tier 2 cities, tapping into the significant market potential in these regions. In addition, GlowUp is exploring the possibility of selling merchandise as an add-on to salons, further enhancing the customer experience. With these plans, GlowUp aims to establish itself as a one-stop shop for all beauty and grooming needs, catering to a broader audience and providing greater convenience and value to its customers. GlowUp is committed to promoting diversity and inclusion in the beauty and grooming industry. This can help attract a wide range of customers, including those traditionally underrepresented in the industry. With its user-friendly interface and extensive selection of salon services, GlowUp is poised to become the go-to destination for anyone looking to explore the world of beauty and grooming services. Download the app today and take the first step towards feeling your best! To download the app, visit - https://qr.page/g/4pTebod2MET For more information, visit - https://linktr.ee/glow.up.pro (Disclaimer: The above press release has been provided by SRV Media. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of the same)
NewsVoir Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], June 14: HDFC Life, one of India's leading life insurers, has reached another significant milestone with its Assets under Management (AUM) crossing Rs. 2.5 lakh cr. on June 7, 2023. HDFC Life has demonstrated a steady growth in its AUM which has almost doubled every four years since 2015. As on March 31, 2023, the Company has a Debt:Equity ratio of 70:30 and ~ 99% of the debt investments are in Government bonds and AAA rated securities. As a steward for responsible investment, HDFC Life is a signatory to the UN-supported Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI), epitomising its objective of sustainable growth and long term value creation. Vibha Padalkar, MD & CEO, HDFC Life commented, "With immense joy, we extend our heartfelt gratitude to all our policyholders, whose unwavering trust and support, has helped us cross the milestone of Rs. 2.5 lakh cr. of Assets under Management (AUM). We are humbled by the confidence placed in us, empowering us to grow and secure Indians." "We continue to be guided by our vision focussed on EPICC values (Excellence, People Engagement, Integrity, Customer-Centricity and Collaboration) as we keep moving ahead to insure India." Established in 2000, HDFC Life is a leading, listed, long-term life insurance solutions provider in India, offering a range of individual and group insurance solutions that meet various customer needs such as Protection, Pension, Savings, Investment, Annuity and Health. The Company has more than 60 products (including individual and group products) and optional riders in its portfolio, catering to a diverse range of customer needs. HDFC Life continues to benefit from its increased presence across the country, having a wide reach with branches and additional distribution touch-points through several new tie-ups and partnerships. The count of distribution partnerships is over 300, comprising banks, NBFCs, MFIs, SFBs, brokers, new ecosystem partners amongst others. The Company has a strong base of financial consultants. For more information, please visit www.hdfclife.com You may also connect with us on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and LinkedIn. (Disclaimer: The above press release has been provided by NewsVoir. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of the same)
Photo: The Canadian Press Prime Minister Justin Trudeau listens to Col. Marie-Christine Harvey explain military operations battling wildfires in Quebec.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says Canada will continue to rely on foreign crews to help fight wildfires in the coming years as extreme weather events become more frequent.

Trudeau told reporters in Saguenay, Que., today that Canada will count on other countries to send help, in the same way other countries depend on Canadian firefighters to help them in return.

He said wildfire seasons fall at different times around the world, which allows for a "travelling of resources" that helps protect communities all over.

Meanwhile, more firefighters from abroad are expected to arrive today to help battle Canadas worst wildfire season in decades.

Quebecs public safety minister says about 240 firefighters from Portugal and Spain are set to join the contingents of French and American firefighters who are already helping fire efforts on the ground.

There had been hope in Quebec that rainy weather forecast this week would douse the blazes, but officials said today not enough rain has fallen to stop the fires that have left thousands of people out of their homes in the province.
On Tuesday, The Oscar winner paid tribute to Williams with a photo from their 1985 film, 'Smooth Talk' on Instagram. She also shared a photo of Williams dressed as a character from one of his previous projects.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CtccYxULbpg/?hl=en

She wrote, "Brilliant Treat. You loved art and acting and living and loving your incredible family immeasurably."

She continued "Thank you for all the characters and profound creative inspiration you gave us all. "From the depths of hard-hitting film to the most extraordinary musical theatre experiences."

Dern added, "And thank you for the gift of an honest, consistent, inspired and continual friendship along our paths in this life."

The actors co-starred in 'Smooth Talk', a 1985 romantic thriller based on Joyce Carol Oates' short story 'Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?' The film follows Connie Wyatt (Dern), a 15-year-old girl, as she becomes dangerously involved with an older stranger named Arnold Friend, played by Williams.

Barry McPherson, Williams' 15-year agent, confirmed the actor's death to PEOPLE on Monday.

Williams was driving his motorcycle near his Vermont home when he was hit by a car on Monday around 5 p.m. on Route 30 near Long Trail Auto near Dorset, Vermont, according to Fire Chief Jacob Gribble, as per People.

Several celebrities, including Marilu Henner, who worked with Williams in the Broadway productions of Over Here and Grease, have paid tribute to him since his death. (ANI)
The show revolves around two polar opposite individuals in love and their journey of figuring life together. It gives us a peek into the complexities of human relationships and love, with lots of twists and turns. Featuring Riddhi Dogra and Barun Sobti in significant roles, the series stars Minissha, essaying the role of Ridhi's ebullient sister, Hailey.

Speaking about her character, Minissha said, "Every time I read a script; it is as from an audience perspective. What my first reaction to it is, what I assume is the viewers too. And I do hope the viewers find it funny, paagal, pleasantly surprising, entertaining, and endearing."

Elaborating on bringing Hailey's character to life in the rom-com melodrama, Minissha added, "Hailey is a one-in-a-billion person. She is that fun, excellent friend everyone would like to have, live vicariously through her. Be a part of her unique relationship rules."

On a scale of relatability to the flamboyant character of Hailey, Minissha confessed, "Relate to Hailey? No, but I surely would love to have her as my BFF."

Created by Ektaa R Kapoor and produced by Tanveer Bookwala, Badtameez Dil is currently streaming on Amazon miniTV. (ANI)
Senior Congress leader Hanumantha Rao on Tuesday said that Congress will win both the assembly elections in Telangana as well as the general elections in 2024. He also accused BJP of not taking any action against Andhra Pradesh CM Jagan Mohan Reddy despite flagging corruption allegations. Speaking to ANI, Rao said, "Amit Shah went to Andhra Pradesh and said that Jagan's government is full of corruption. The Union Home Minister has investigation agencies like CBI and ED in his hands, but he didn't take any action. He just goes and says things like these. "If Jagan Mohan Reddy is involved in corruption, why is he not behind bars? Why have you not exposed his corruption? Why haven't you used the weapons you have?" he added. The Congress leader said that despite all the efforts by "BJP's shop" won't be opened in Khammam while that of BRS will get closed. "Amit Shah will come to Khammam and throw similar corruption allegations. Whatever happens, the seat of Khammam belongs to Congress. The shop of BJP will not open in Khammam and the shop of BRS is about to be closed. In coming days, Congress will get a majority in Khammam, we will form a government in Telangana and also in the country," he said. Rao added, "When Congress comes into power, we will conduct a caste-wise census and also increase the OBC reservation. We are celebrating the birthday of Rahul Gandhi on June 19. All people in all villages should perform palabhishekam for Rahul Gandhi on that day." He further said that Congress will win both assemblies as well as the parliamentary elections. "The farmers had staged a protest for 1 year, have they given minimum support price? What about the 2 crore job and Rs 15 lakhs to each account? They are just playing with the lives of people by privatising everything. Both BRS and BJP will be defeated and Congress will win in Telangana and also in the parliamentary elections," he said. (ANI)
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Tuesday granted in-principle approval to the Food Truck Policy, which aims to set up food trucks across the national capital making it a 'Food Truck Capital'. "Recognising the immense potential of the food truck industry, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal emphasised the positive impact it would have on employment generation and the economy as a whole. With the policy's implementation, citizens of Delhi will have the delightful opportunity to relish a diverse range of delicacies even during late hours, adding to the city's dynamic gastronomic landscape," the CMO stated in the release. Speaking on the matter, PWD Minister Atishi expressed the government's commitment to ensuring the highest standards of aesthetics, sanitation, and hygiene at all food truck stations. She assured that the government's holistic approach aims to create a safe and enjoyable dining environment for patrons prioritising their well-being and satisfaction. According to the CMO, the Food Truck Policy will commence with the operation of food trucks in 16 carefully selected locations across the city. Upon successful implementation, the model will be replicated across Delhi, extending the reach of this unique culinary experience across neighbourhoods. Furthermore, the introduction of food hubs across Delhi stands as a testament to the government's dedication to bolstering India's food culture. These hubs will serve as focal points for culinary enthusiasts and provide a platform for local vendors and aspiring entrepreneurs to showcase their delectable creations, the CMO stated. Taking to Twitter, CM Kejriwal said, "The Delhi Government is coming up with a 'Food Truck Policy' very soon to boost the economy and employment in Delhi. It was approved during a meeting today. With this scheme, Delhiites will be able to get delicious food even late at night in Delhi, it will also provide employment opportunities and strengthen the economy". According to the CMO, the primary objective of the Delhi Food Truck Plan is to establish Delhi as the 'Food Truck Capital.' The Delhi government intends to support small businesses through this policy, while simultaneously generating employment opportunities and boosting the night-time economy of the city. Delhiites will soon have the convenience of relishing delectable cuisines at any time, fostering the growth of the food truck culture in the capital. Initially, the PWD department of the Delhi government has identified 16 locations, including renowned marketplaces and neighbourhoods across different districts of Delhi, for the establishment of these food truck hubs. The plan will kickstart from these locations, with subsequent food truck hubs opening up across the city. Food trucks have gained immense popularity in major cities and tourist destinations worldwide, such as New York, Washington DC, San Francisco, Amsterdam, Brussels, London, Australia, Singapore, Tokyo, and Hong Kong. Following this global trend, the Kejriwal government aims to promote food culture in Delhi, enabling residents to experience the culinary diversity of various Indian cities, much like their international counterparts, the CMO stated. "The Food Truck Policy prioritises the maintenance and upkeep of these food hubs, with the responsibility for their operation and maintenance entrusted to a designated agency. This agency will ensure the cleanliness and proper organisation of the food hubs and also ensure that all food trucks operate exclusively within the government-designated food hubs," the release added. (ANI)
In India's northeast, an extraordinary musical tradition is thriving, one that interweaves the threads of cultural heritage, spiritual devotion, and the enduring human spirit into a captivating canvas of sound. The northeastern region, known for its diverse ethnic communities and rich cultural heritage, has also become a unique hotspot for Christian music, adding a contemporary layer to the vibrant music scene. Christian music has a significant influence, both in the form of hymns sung in local languages during church services, as well as in contemporary Christian music, which includes genres such as Christian rock. The presence of Christian music in this region is largely due to the substantial Christian population in states such as Nagaland, Mizoram, Meghalaya, and Manipur. One example of a Christian rock band from Northeast India is "Magdalene" from Aizawl, Mizoram. Formed in 2005, this band has released multiple albums and has been recognised as one of the premier bands in the northeast. Their music, inspired by Christian themes, showcases the impact of Christianity on the music of the region. Meghalaya too has become a cradle for this musical fusion. Christian hymns meld seamlessly with traditional Khasi folk music, drawing from the deep well of spirituality and cultural pride. This synergy has given rise to a genre that is as uniquely soulful as the land itself. Christianity arrived on these shores in the 19th century, brought by Welsh Presbyterian missionaries. What they found was people with an innate love for music, dance, and storytelling. The local culture was already imbued with a rich, oral tradition of folklore and music, which quickly absorbed and adapted the Christian themes introduced by the missionaries. This blending of cultures gave birth to a distinctive Christian music scene that continues to reverberate through the hills and valleys of Meghalaya. This shared sentiment is echoed in the works of renowned artists like Lou Majaw, often dubbed as the "Bob Dylan of the East." Majaw, a Khasi musician, is known for his adaptation of Christian themes into blues and rock music. His annual concert "Bob Dylan's birthday tribute" in Shillong is a testament to the seamless integration of Western music and Christian themes into Northeast India's cultural fabric. But perhaps the most poignant illustration of this convergence is in the songs that rise from the humble churches scattered across the hills. In these sacred spaces, the local language dances with Biblical themes, and the result is a soul-stirring symphony that speaks to both the divine and the terrestrial. The beauty of Northeast India's Christian music scene is not merely in the melodies that fill the air but in the unity it fosters. It is a melody of coexistence, a symphony of faith and culture, a song of the hills that resonates with the pulse of the land and its people. As we journey through this captivating landscape, the music of the northeast serves as a reminder that music, in its purest form, is a universal language. It brings people together, transcending barriers of language, culture, and faith. In the end, it's not just about the song, but the story it tells and the emotions it evokes. From the humming choirs in the valleys to the echoing strums on the hilltops, the Christian music scene in Northeast India is a testament to the power of music as a means of expression, connection, and devotion. It's a melodious journey of faith, a song of the hills, a symphony of the soul, that continues to inspire and unite, one note at a time. It's a story of how, in the heart of Northeast India, faith and culture come together in harmony, creating a melody that transcends the confines of time and space. In the end, the true beauty of the Christian music scene in Northeast India is not just in its unique sound, but in the way, it fosters a sense of shared identity and unity among its people. It's a celebration of their faith, their heritage, and their love for their land - a testament to the enduring power of music to connect us all. (ANI)
Hours after Tamil Nadu minister V Senthil Balaji was taken into custody by the Enforcement Directorate (ED), DMK Rajya Sabha MP and advocate NR Elango on Wednesday said that the procedure adopted by the agency was "totally illegal" and "unconstitutional". The probe agency took Senthil into custody last night in connection with an alleged money laundering case. Elango alleged that Tamil Nadu minister Balaji was detained without informing him about the grounds of his arrest. The DMK MP said that the case will be fought legally. "The procedure adopted by Enforcement Directorate is totally illegal and unconstitutional. He was taken into custody by ED without informing him of the grounds of his arrest. We will fight this case legally," Elango told reporters here. Meanwhile, All India Trinamool Congress MP Saugata Roy said that "it is totally wrong how Enforcement Directorate is being misused." Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge termed the ED action on Balaji as "vendetta politics." "Mallikarjun Kharge, Congress President condemns the late-night arrest of Tamil Nadu Electricity Minister V Senthil Balaji by the ED. This is nothing but political harassment and vendetta by the Modi Govt. against those opposed to it. None of us in the Opposition will be intimidated by such brazen moves," a statement by the Congress said. Balaji who complained of chest pain was taken to the Omandurar government hospital in Chennai and admitted there early this morning. Tamil Nadu M K Stalin visited the minister in hospital. Earlier, Tamil Nadu State ministers I Periyasamy and R Gandhi also were seen arriving at the hospital to meet Balaji . Tamil Nadu minister Ponmudi termed the ED action as a "revengeful act" and claimed that the Centre is doing wrong against states where there is a non-BJP government. "This is a revengeful act. The Union government is doing many wrong things against states where there is a non-BJP government like in West Bengal, Delhi and here," said Ponmudi. Meanwhile, a team of Rapid Action Force (RAF) has been deployed at Omandurar Government Medical College. The investigating agency took the DMK leader for questioning, after raiding his premises on Tuesday. High drama was witnessed outside the hospital as the DMK leader was brought there. He could be seen crying in pain while lying in a car as his supporters gathered there to protest against the ED action. On Tuesday raids were carried out at Balaji''s Karur residence and his office at the state secretariat by the ED sleuths in connection to an alleged money laundering case. In addition to this, the premises of his brother and a close aide in Karur were also raided. Balaji, is Minister for Electricity, Prohibition and Excise in the DMK-led Tamil Nadu government. (ANI)
In a reaction to Tamil Nadu electricity minister Senthil Balaji being taken under Enforcement Directorate's (ED) custody when he was visibly not well, Trinamool Congress MP Saugata Roy said on Wednesday that it is "totally wrong" how the ED is being "misused" by the Central government. "It is totally wrong how Enforcement Directorate is being misused," Roy said speaking to ANI. Opposition leaders have criticized the ED's highhandedness for questioning Balaji for long hours and then taking him into custody in the wee hours of Wednesday after searching his premises on Tuesday. Meanwhile, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge slammed Senthil Balaji's arrest by the ED saying that it is "nothing but political harassment and vendetta" by the central government. "Congress President Shri @kharge condemns the late-night arrest of Tamil Nadu Electricity Minister Shri V. Senthil Balaji by the ED. This is nothing but political harassment and vendetta by the Modi govt. against those opposed to it. None of us in the Opposition will be intimidated by such brazen moves," a press statement released by the Congress stated. Congress MP Karti Chidambaram also said that these raids by the central agencies are only for 'optics' and it does not help in collating 'evidence'. "All these @dir_ed raids on functionaries of political parties opposed to the @BJP4India are only for optics & voyeuristic pleasure of a few, it in no way aids in collating "evidence" in the "alleged" case. Events of 2016 (ADMK)raids in 2023 in the Secratariat Office, seriously?" he tweeted. Tamil Nadu Minister V Senthil Balaji broke down while being taken into custody by the ED officials for questioning in connection to an alleged money laundering case in the early hours of Wednesday. The ED brought Balaji to Omandurar government hospital in Chennai for medical examination amid tight security when high drama was witnessed outside the hospital. Balaji could be seen crying in pain while lying in the car as his supporters gathered there to protest against the ED action. (ANI)
Indian Secular Front (ISF) MLA from West Bengal's Bhangar, Nawsad Siddique on Tuesday alleged that when his party workers went to file nominations for the upcoming West Bengal panchayat polls, they were beaten up by Trinamool Congress (TMC) goons. "When our party workers went to file nomination, they were beaten up by TMC goons," he said. Speaking about the security situation in Bengal, the Indian Secular Front (ISF) MLA said that the Opposition is being beaten up everywhere in the state ahead of the upcoming Panchayat polls. The Election Commission should appoint a special observer for every booth, he said adding that security should be provided by the local administration and the local police. "In West Bengal, the Opposition is being beaten up everywhere. So every place has become sensitive," he said calling for central forces to ensure the security situation in Bengal. "State police is not sufficient in ensuring everyone's security. People will not come out to vote if such a condition prevails," he warned. Siddique also alleged that his party was not invited to the all-party meeting called by the Election Commission despite being the third-largest party in the state "No one invited us to the all-party meeting called by the EC though we are the third largest party. We will take this up legally," he said. On being offered bribes by the TMC he said, "The TMC used to offer bribes in the form of cash or promising ministerial berth to join them. We will not betray our people who have voted for us." Earlier on Tuesday, violence broke out in Bengal's Bhangar as the ISF accused TMC of stopping its candidates from filing nominations for the panchayat elections. (ANI)
The Supreme Court on Tuesday adjourned the hearing of a plea of Dr. Suneetha Narreddy for June 19 seeking the cancellation of anticipatory bail granted to YSR Congress Party's Lok Sabha member YS Avinash Reddy by the Telangana High Court on May 31, 2023 in connection with Vivekananda Reddy murder case. A vacation bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Ahsanuddin Amanullah did not issue notice on Suneetha's plea seeking the cancellation of anticipatory of Avinash and an extension of time for CBI to complete the probe. The bench observed that it was for the CBI to say that Avinash Reddy was not cooperating in the investigation of the case and it requires more time to complete the probe. Suneetha Narreddy challenged the May 31 Telangana High Court order granting anticipatory bail to Kadapa MP Avinash Reddy in connection with the murder of his uncle and former minister YS Vivekananda Reddy. Suneetha is daughter of deceased YS Vivekanand Reddy. Vivekanand Reddy was uncle of present Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy and brother of late Chief Minister YS Rajasekhara Reddy. During the course of the hearing, the bench asked Suneetha, who was appearing in-person as senior advocates were to allowed to argue cases in order to give chance to junior advocates, whether Avinash Reddy was her cousin. Suneetha said Avinash is his second cousin and he was the main conspirator in her father's murder. The bench told Suneetha that it can give date in the month of July on the reopening of the court after its summer vacation. However, on the intervention of senior advocate Sidharth Luthra, who is appearing in the matter for Suneetha Narreddy, the bench agreed to list the matter on June 19. Senior advocate Sidharth Luthra was assisting Suneetha as he could not argue the case being senior counsel. Earlier, describing Avinesh Reddy as the principal conspirator in her (Suneetha) father's murder, Suneetha's advocate told the vacation bench that an earlier bench headed by the Chief Justice DY Chandrachud on April 24 had said that it was not a case of interim order and sent the matter to the High Court. They (accused) do not cooperate with the investigating agency on summons and Avinash Reddy avoids the probe on account of mother's illness, Suneetha has said. The High Court had not granted interim protection initially. Challenging the May 31 order of Telangana High Court granting anticipatory bail to Avinash Reddy in the case, the Suneetha has sought from apex court an "ex-parte ad interim" stay of May 31 judgment and the order. She has also sought extension of time to the CBI for completing the investigation into the larger conspiracy in the alleged murder of Vivekanand Reddy. The top court by its April 24, 2023, order had directed the CBI to conclude the investigation by June 30, 2023. Assailing the High Court order, the Suneetha in her petition has said that the High Court after holding a "mini trial and giving findings/making comments on the merits of the prosecution case" virtually accepted the entire case of Avinash Reddy, while disregarding the evidence collected by the CBI which is investigating the case. Alleging non-cooperation by Avinash Reddy in the investigation of the case, the petition says that he did not appear before the investigating agency on the last three occasions despite notices by the CBI asking him to appear before it. The petitioner Suneetha has alleged that Avinash Reddy along with other accused has "successfully" tampered with evidence by "destroying the scene of offence in the presence of the state police and had propagated the story that the deceased had died due to a heart attack." The petition said that Avinash Reddy had in fact "pressurised the police not to register an FIR as a result of which only an inquest under S. 174 Cr.PC was started, in a case of cold-blooded murder as is evidenced from photographs of the deceased ..." The petitioner further added that Avinash Reddy is the sitting Member of Parliament from the present ruling party in Andhra Pradesh, and he along with other accused, with the aid of the State machinery and powerful people in the current ruling party was influencing the investigation, and has been consistently threatening and influencing the witnesses. CBI took over the investigation in July 2020 on the direction of Andhra Pradesh High Court. The case was earlier registered at police station Pulivendula in Kadapa district (Andhra Pradesh). Late Vivekanand Reddy had represented Kadapa Lok Sabha constituency. A month before the general elections in 2019, Vivekananda Reddy, a former MP, was found murdered at his residence at Pulivendula on March 15, 2019. (ANI)
Tamil Nadu minister Senthil Balaji underwent Coronary Angiogram on Wednesday at the Omandurar government hospital in Chennai, informed the hospital officials. Balaji was hospitalised last night after he complained of chest pain during questioning by the Enforcement Directorate (ED). "Coronary Angiogram revealed triple vessel disease," read the Health Bulletin from the Government Multi Super Speciality Hospital. Tamil Nadu Government Multi Super Speciality Hospital advised the minister a bypass surgery at the earliest. "State minister Senthil Balaji underwent Coronary Angiogram today; Bypass surgery is advised at the earliest," said Tamil Nadu Government Multi Super Speciality Hospital, Chennai. Meanwhile, there was high drama outside the hospital as the DMK minister was brought early this morning. He could be seen crying while lying in a car as his supporters gathered outside the hospital to protest against the ED action. Earlier today, Tamil Nadu chief minister MK Stalin met with State Minister Senthil Balaji at the hospital. The Tamil Nadu chief minister later issued a statement stating that DMK will not be intimidated by the threats of the BJP and that people will teach the BJP a lesson in the 2024 elections. He also said both Senthil Balaji and the DMK will bravely fight this case legally. Stalin in his statement alleged that the ED officials had tortured Senthil Balaji to such an extent during the interrogation that he suffered chest pain. Even after he said that he was cooperating with the probe officials he was even when the minister said he would cooperate with the agency's investigation, he was still "pressured" to the point that he suffered chest pain, Stalin said. "What was the purpose of the Enforcement Department to torture Minister Senthil Balaji so that he would get chest pain even after he said that he would cooperate fully with the investigation? Is it necessary for the enforcement officers to act in a dehumanizing manner in violation of the legal procedures required by the case? DMK will not be intimidated by these threats of the BJP. Don't fear. People will teach them a lesson in the 2024 elections," read the translation of his statement in Tamil posted by Stalin on his Twitter handle. Raids were carried out at Balaji's Karur residence and his office at the state secretariat by the ED sleuths in connection to an alleged money laundering case on Tuesday. In addition to this, the premises of his brother and a close aide in Karur were also raided. (ANI)
I am starting to get scared for my life when I get close to the dangerous intersection at Highway 97 and Old Vernon Road near Kelownas airport.

Not only have I read about accidents and deaths at that intersection, and have been stuck in traffic while clean up happens from various accidents there (both fatal and non-fatal), but last week I was a part of two separate incidents that could have caused me and others serious injuries or possibly death.

I know this sounds dramatic but at high speeds, it can, and has, happened.

On June 7, I was heading home to Lake Country in the fast lane, approaching the intersection. There were two cars in the slow lane ahead of me. As these two cars reached the intersection, I saw an orange Jeep, with Alberta licence plates, race from Old Vernon Road onto the highway past the right yield sign.

The Jeep did not slow down to make sure it was safe to proceed onto Highway 97 and it cut off one car completely. If the drivers of car and the one behind it were not paying close enough attention and were prepared for this, they would have struck the Jeep. Luckily, they were able to slam on their brakes in time.

Watching that unfold, I was worried for myself in the fast lane, thinking that maybe the driver of the Jeep would realize the error and quickly move into the fast lane to get out of the way of the car just cut off.

I had to slow right down to make sure (the Jeep) didn't cut me off or swerve into my lane and hit me. It did not do so, just proceeded in the slow lane after almost causing an accident.

This same situation occurred the next day on my way home at 3:35 p.m. I was in the slow lane and as I nearing the intersection, I saw a white van do exactly what the Jeep did the previous day. The driver did not slow down at the yield (sign), did not make sure there was space to go onto a highway, did not take into consideration other drivers were traveling at more than over 90 km/h on the highway or that more care and attention was needed before going onto the road.

The van completely cut me off and I didn't have time to slow down or slam on my brakes. (I had to) swerve into the fast lane to avoid a collision. It was sheer luck there were no vehicles in the fast lane or I would have collided with them.

I am so frustrated at the lack of common sense drivers demonstrate at this intersection in particular. It is very scary to think drivers are willing to put themselves and others at risk because they are not willing to wait until it is safe to proceed.

None of these vehicles had the space to go. If they were not able to accelerate fast enough, or if I was not paying attention, the results of their actions could have ended very differently. This was in full-on rush-hour traffic. It was not during a time where traffic was less congested.

This was not merging. I don't know if that is what these horrible drivers were thinking but I really hope the highway traffic engineers can make the yield curve harder to navigate. That would force drivers to slow down completely and consider the choice of whether to go onto the highway or not.

I know a change has finally been implemented at that intersection where you can no longer turn left onto Old Vernon Road during peak hours, but it is obviously not adhered to.

I know we are to be defensive drivers, always aware of what is going on around us to prevent accidents, however, these incidents and others occur repeatedly (at this intersection) and at other intersections, pushing one's ability to be prepared when you encounter such reckless driving.

Split seconds could have caused tragic accidents for me in both scenarios. I am scared to drive near this intersection now.

Be careful out there because you never know what a careless and unthinking driver will do next.

J Andrews
Around 4,500 people have been shifted from their homes to shelter homes as a precautionary safety measure ahead of cyclone Biparjoy reaching the coast of Gujarat, informed the Sub Divisional Magistrate (SDM) Parth Talsania. While speaking to ANI, Talsania informed, "We have shifted 4,500 people from the coastal areas to various shelter houses. Preparations to meet food and medical needs are also made at the shelter homes. We are closely monitoring the situation." He further informed that cyclone Biparjoy has moved slightly to the west and is less likely to make landfall at the Dwarka coast. But a wind speed of around 100 to 80 kilometres is expected. He informed that one NDRF team has been deployed in Dwarka and Okha each. One SDRF and one army team specialised in clearing roads is also on alert. SDM further informed that Minister of Home for State Harsh Sanghvi and Fisheries Minister Purshottam Rupala are present in Dwarka and are closely monitoring the situation. The district administration of Dwarka is coordinating with all agencies, Coast Guard, Navy, Air Force and Army. He further informed that though the cyclone has moved slightly westward and is less likely to make landfall in Dwarka, the situation is not normal. Winds will blow with a speed of 100 km which can be fatal if not taken care of. "I request all residents stay indoors and fill basic groceries like milk and bread," he added. The Indian Meteorological Department is yet to confirm the westward movement of the cyclone. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) on Wednesday sounded a Red alert as cyclone 'Biparjoy' warning for the Saurashtra and Kutch coasts in Gujarat. It is very likely to move nearly northeastwards and cross Saurashtra and Kutch and adjoining Pakistan coasts between Mandvi (Gujarat) and Karachi (Pakistan) near Jakhau Port (Gujarat) by the evening of June 15, informed the IMD. "Cyclone Warning for Saurashtra and Kutch Coasts: RED MESSAGE. VSCS BIPARJOY at 0530IST of today over NE Arabian Sea near lat 21.9N and long 66.3E, about 280km WSW of Jakhau Port (Gujarat), 290km WSW of Devbhumi Dwarka," tweeted IMD. "It is very likely to move nearly northeastwards and cross Saurashtra and Kutch and adjoining Pakistan coasts between Mandvi (Gujarat) and Karachi (Pakistan) near Jakhau Port (Gujarat) by the evening of 15th June as a very severe cyclonic storm with a maximum sustained wind speed of 125-135 kmph gusting to 150 kmph," it read. (ANI)
Amid speculation of a possible tie-up between BJP and TDP for the Lok Sabha and assembly polls in Andhra Pradesh, BJP leader from the state YS Chowdary met party general secretary (organisation) BL Santhosh in the national capital on Wednesday. Sources said that during the meeting Chowdary, who was with Telugu Desam Party (TDP) before he joined the BJP, held discussions about the political situation in the state as also the performance of the YSRC government. Andhra Pradesh will go for assembly polls along with the 2024 Lok Sabha polls. The meeting is being seen as significant as Chowdary was among the senior leaders of TDP and was a minister during the first tenure of the Modi government under the TDP quota, which was then a part of the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance. This meeting comes days after the visit of BJP chief JP Nadda and Union Home Minister Amit Shah to the southern state. TDP chief Chandrababu Naidu held a meeting with Amit Shah and Nadda earlier this month in the national capital, leading to speculation of rapprochement between the two parties. There has been speculation that BJP and TDP may forge an alliance in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana for the 2024 Lok Sabha polls. TDP had vociferously raised the demand for special status for Andhra Pradesh and parted ways with BJP in 2018. Naidu turned into a strong critic of the BJP-led government in the run-up to the 2019 Lok Sabha polls. Chowdary, along with three other Rajya Sabha members of TDP, joined the BJP in June 2019. Chaudhary retired from the Rajya Sabha in April last year. (ANI)
Tamil Nadu Bharatiya Janata Party chief K Annamalai on Wednesday gave a "gentle" reminder to Chief Minister MK Stalin about an old video where the DMK leader is heard speaking against Senthil Balaji who was then a Cabinet Minister in the AIADMK government. "A gentle reminder to Thiru @mkstalin on what he spoke a few years back about the #CashForJobScam tainted Thiru Senthil Balaji. Are you going to refute this, Thiru @mkstalin? Why are you playing the victim card today?" Annamalai wrote on Twitter. In the video, Stalin was heard speaking about a bus-ticket vending machine scam done by Balaji. "I spoke about the scam done while procuring the machines with proof in the Assembly," Stalin could be purportedly heard saying in the video posted by Annamalai on Twitter. "There is a minister from this Karur district Senthil Balaji. Though the cabinet was reshuffled 15 times and senior members were changed, Senthil Balaji remained in the Cabinet even though he was a junior minister," Stalin was heard saying. Stalin can also be heard saying that Balaji was considered to be one of the candidates for the post of Chief Minister when the AIADMK government was in trouble. "I have heard that he was one of the CM probable candidates. This is the influence that he wields," Stalin was head saying in the video. Further Stalin can be heard as saying, " Senthil Balaji and his brother are controlling the Karur district by corruption, land grabbing and looting. Everyone knows about him." Senthil Balaji, who was taken into custody by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in the early hours of Wednesday, was a minister under the AIADMK regime and switched sides to the DMK in the year 2017. Balaji was admitted to the Omandurar government hospital after he complained of chest discomfort. Earlier in the day, Stalin issued a statement after visiting the hospitalised Balaji, in which he said that the DMK will not be intimidated by the threats of the BJP and that people will teach the BJP a lesson in the 2024 elections. On Tuesday raids were carried out at Balaji's Karur residence and his office at the state secretariat by the ED officials officials in connection to an alleged money laundering case. Following this, the ED took custody of the DMK minister for questioning. High drama was witnessed outside the Chennai hospital when he was brought with Balaji's supporters raising slogans outside the facility protesting against the ED action. (ANI)
The Delhi High Court on Wednesday granted Popular Front of India (PFI) national coordinator Ibrahim Puthanathani custody parole for six hours to attend his daughter's wedding. The wedding ceremony of his daughter is scheduled to be held on June 18 in Kerala. Ibrahim Puthanathani has moved Delhi High Court against a trial court order granting him custody parole for four hours to attend the marriage ceremony of his daughter. The bench of Justices Jasmeet Singh and Vikas Mahajan on Wednesday modified the trial court's order which had granted him custody parole for four hours. Ibrahim had sought 30 days interim bail in the matter. Recently in April Month, the National Investigation Agency charge-sheeted Ibrahim Puthanathani for his alleged involvement in organising arms training camps across the country. In March month this year, the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) Tribunal upheld the decision of the Centre Government decision to ban Popular Front of India and its affiliates. The Tribunal has dismissed the allegations levelled by the organisation that one particular community is being targeted by the government. The Tribunal while passing the Judgement noted that the members of PFI and its affiliates are indulging in secessionist activities which were contrary to the social fabric of the country. In September last year, the Ministry of Home Affairs declared the Popular Front of India (PFI) and its affiliates as an 'Unlawful Association' A press statement issued in this regard stated that the Popular Front of India (PFI) and its associates or affiliates or fronts have been found to be involved in serious offences, including terrorism and its financing, targeted gruesome killings, disregarding the constitutional set-up of the country, disturbing public order etc. which are prejudicial to the integrity, security and sovereignty of the country. Therefore, the Ministry of Home Affairs found it necessary to curb the nefarious activities of the organization and has hence declared the Popular Front of India (PFI) along with its associates or affiliates or fronts including Rehab India Foundation (RIF), Campus Front of India (CFI), All India Imams Council (AIIC), National Confederation of Human Rights Organization (NCHRO), National Women's Front, Junior Front, Empower India Foundation and Rehab Foundation, Kerala as an "unlawful association" under the provisions of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967. (ANI)
The visuals showed tuskers drinking water stored in two buckets by the villagers. An elephant is also seen going to a makeshift container on the edge of a village road.

A group of seven elephants, including a baby elephant, reached the village on Wednesday morning. Villagers tried to shoo them away but the elephants made their way into the village.

Locals said that the presence of a herd of elephants also created a panic and people rushed inside their houses.

Union Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav had in March this year released 14 guidelines to address Human-Wildlife Conflict (HWC), which aims to facilitate a common understanding among key stakeholders, on what constitutes effective and efficient mitigation of such conflicts in India. The guidelines are advisory in nature and are also aimed at facilitating the development of site-specific mitigation measures

The union government has said that it is working towards robust, practical and cost-effective solutions to end the Human Animal Conflict. (ANI)
Jharkhand Government on Wednesday announced that all schools (up to Class 8) in the state will remain closed till June 17 adding that for Classes 9 to 12, it will remain closed till June 15 in lieu of intense heatwave in the State. In a circular notification issued by School Education and Literacy Department, Jharkhand Government, it said," While making partial amendments and due to excessive heat in the state of Jharkhand and keeping in mind the heat, all categories of government-run in the state, Unaided/Unaided (including Minorities) and all from class KG to class 8 in private schools, Date - June 17 (Saturday) will remain closed and classes from class 9 to 12 till June 15. The notification further mentioned that the education department would also make a decision regarding the loss of study for the students for the given period. "To make up for the loss in the children's education during this period a separate decision in this regard will be communicated. This order will come into force with immediate effect," it mentioned. Earlier amid a continued heat wave, the Jharkhand government had announced to close all schools in the state till June 14. With the continuous heatwave in the eastern part of the country, the India Meteorological Department issued an orange alert on Tuesday for the coming five days. "In Delhi, Punjab and Haryana, the temperature may reach near 40-45 in the coming days. The heat wave is continuing in Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Chhattisgarh, West Bengal, Odisha and Andhra Pradesh. An orange alert has been issued in these parts for the coming five days," IMD Scientist Naresh Kumar said. (ANI)
Bihar BJP in-charge, Vinod Tawde, co-in-charge, Harish Dwivedi, co-in-charge, Sunil Ojha, organization minister, Bhikhubhai Dalsania, regional organization minister, Nagendra Nath Tripathi, Bihar BJP president, Samrat Chowdhary, Leader of Opposition in Bihar Legislative Assembly, Vijay Sinha, Rajya Sabha MP Sushil Modi, Sanjay Jaiswal and Mangal Pandey were present during the meeting.

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar has called a meeting of top Opposition leaders to mobilise the opposition against BJP ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

The meeting will be held in Patna on June 23, JD(U) national president Lalan Singh said.

The meeting, which is aimed at laying the groundwork for the coming together of like-minded Opposition parties against Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the BJP government at the Centre, was originally scheduled to be held on June 12.

However, the meeting was postponed after several Opposition leaders, including Congress national president Mallikarjun Kharge and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin, expressed their inability to attend the meeting on June 12, citing prior engagements and preoccupations.

On June 12, Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Yadav said that there is "no personal interest" of anyone in bringing the Opposition parties together and that the leaders are doing this only for the "betterment" of the country.

Speaking to reporters, Tejaswi Yadav said, "We have to fight those people who are destroying democracy, constitution and want to change history. We do not have any personal interest. We have taken this decision for the betterment of the country. They (BJP) lost Karnataka and Himachal Pradesh and will also lose the upcoming state elections." (ANI)
Umar Khalid, Sharjeel Imam, Tahir Hussain and other persons are accused in this case.

The supplementary charge sheet has been filed before the court of Additional Sessions Judge (ASJ) Amitabh Rawat at Karkardooma Court on June 8.

"Supplementary chargesheet has also been filed yesterday. Let a copy be supplied to all the accused persons/counsels against proper acknowledgement," ASJ Rawat said in an order on June 9.

The court also noted that a written request for exemption on behalf of SpecialCommissioner of Police, Special Cell received, stating that due to administrative exigencies, he is not in a position to attend the court and may be exempted from personal appearance today. In view of the request, the same is allowed.

Earlier the court had asked the special commissioner to appear in person.

This case was initially registered by the crime branch and then transferred to the Special cell.

In this case, the trial court rejected the bail of some accused persons except for Ishrat Jahan.

The bail application of Umar Khalid was dismissed by the Delhi High Court too. Other appeals against the trial court order denying bail are pending before the High Court. (ANI)
Cyclone Biparjoy, categorized as a "very severe cyclonic storm", is expected to make landfall in the Gujarat coast tomorrow.

The Union Health Minister visited the Bhuj Air Force Station today to take stock of the preparations made by the 'Garuda' Emergency Response Team of the Indian Air Force.

After undertaking the review, Mansukh Mandaviya said, "Our jawans are fully prepared for the safety of life and property from the cyclone."

Dr Mandaviya later visited the KK Patel Super Speciality Hospital in Bhuj to assess emergency preparedness.

He also reviewed the availability of oxygen, ventilators and critical care beds in Kutch district government hospitals, trust-run hospitals and other regional hospitals.

The Union Health Minister also reviewed the preparations for health facilities that will be made immediately available if needed, post the cyclone.

Dr Mandaviya further interacted with drivers of 108 emergency ambulance services in Kutch and stated, "Their enthusiasm and support has been a confidence booster."

The Union Health Minister assured and said, "Under the guidance of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, all possible arrangements are being made by the central and state governments to deal with Cyclone Biparjoy." (ANI)
The recovered drone is a Quadcopter of model DJI Matrice 300 RTK series.

"On June 14 2023 during morning hours, a Joint search operation was launched by BSF with Punjab Police on the outskirt of Village-Dal, District Tarn-Taran. During the search at about 9 am, a drone was recovered from the farming field adjacent to Village-Dal, District-Tarn Taran. The recovered drone is a Quadcopter of model DJI Matrice 300 RTK series," an official statement said.

Earlier in a similar incident, Border Security Force (BSF) on Sunday carried out joint operations at two places in Punjab with the help of state police.

In a joint search operation with Punjab Police, the Border Security Force (BSF) recovered a drone from the outskirts of Rajoke village in Tarn Taran district.

"During the search, a drone in completely broken condition along with an attached string to carry payload, was recovered from the farming field adjacent to the village. The recovered drone is a Quadcopter of model DJI Matrice 300 RTK series," BSF said in a statement. (ANI)
Chinese premier meets with Honduran president

Xinhua) 08:45, June 14, 2023

Chinese Premier Li Qiang meets with visiting President of the Republic of Honduras Iris Xiomara Castro Sarmiento at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, capital of China, June 13, 2023. (Xinhua/Liu Bin)

BEIJING, June 13 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Premier Li Qiang on Tuesday met with visiting President of the Republic of Honduras Iris Xiomara Castro Sarmiento in Beijing, with both sides pledging to enhance cooperation.

Li noted that in March this year, the two countries' leaders made the important political decision to establish diplomatic relations, turning over a new page in bilateral ties. He said China greatly appreciates the firm commitment Honduras has made to abide by the one-China principle, and its choice to stand on the right side of history.

"China is willing to work with Honduras to thoroughly implement the important consensus reached by the two heads of state to promote the vibrant development of cooperation in various fields," Li said.

He said that China and Honduras are new friends and partners, and they should be good friends and partners that value mutual respect, equality, mutual benefits and common development. China staunchly supports Honduras in safeguarding its independence, and is willing to strengthen coordination with Honduras in multilateral affairs, Li added.

He urged the two countries to make efforts to advance rapid and steady progress in pragmatic cooperation, and to conduct people-to-people exchanges actively. He said China is ready to tap further into trade potential, accelerate the synergizing of follow-up matters concerning imports of specialty products from Honduras, kick off the negotiation process for a free trade agreement at an early date, carry out investment and financing cooperation in a prudent manner, and accelerate the construction of projects to improve people's well-being.

China hopes Honduras will provide a favorable and facilitating environment for Chinese enterprises to invest and establish businesses in the country, Li noted.

Castro said that Honduras attaches great importance to relations with China, and it adheres to the one-China principle. The Honduran side is ready to work with China to promote people-to-people exchanges and enhance cooperation in such areas as agriculture, poverty reduction and infrastructure construction to bring bilateral ties onto a steady and sound track and to bring more benefits to the two peoples.

(Web editor: Zhong Wenxing, Liang Jun)
Photo: The Canadian Press The Canada Border Services Agency says it has confiscated more than 6,300 kilograms of methamphetamine in British Columbia over the last six months, including the largest ever single seizure of the drug. A CBSA patch is seen on an officer in Calgary, Alta., Thursday, Aug. 1, 2019. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jeff McIntosh

The Canada Border Services Agency says it has confiscated more than 6,300 kilograms of methamphetamine in British Columbia over the last six months, including the largest ever single seizure of the drug.

The agency says the drugs were found in four Metro Vancouver seizures in jugs labelled as canola oil and destined for export to Australia.

In December of last year, agents in Burnaby found 40 jugs containing just over 200 kilograms of crystal methamphetamine, and a month later 180 containers with 2,900 kilograms of liquid methamphetamine were seized coming through the container examination facility in Delta.

The agency says in a statement that the January discovery was enough to fill 35 large suitcases and is its largest methamphetamine seizure to date.

In May, two other major seizures happened at the container examination facility, where more than 3,000 kilograms of liquid methamphetamine was discovered.

The agency says the seizures were a result of collaboration between officials in Canada, Australia and New Zealand, and the investigation has been referred to the RCMP.

Federal Minister of Public Safety Marco Mendicino said in the statement that safety and security is the government's top priority.

"I want to thank the CBSA, the RCMP and our Australian and New Zealand law enforcement partners for their excellent work in disrupting organized crime and protecting our communities from dangerous narcotics," he said.
Democratic Progressive Azad Party chief Ghulam Nabi Azad on Wednesday criticized opposition parties for showing unity only when their own parties face specific problems but remaining silent on the issue of conducting elections in Jammu and Kashmir. "They (the opposition) remained silent for the last six years on the issue of conducting elections in J-K. They talk about unity only when their parties face any problem. Why they didn't say anything? Jammu and Kashmir which was a significant state before the abrogation of Article 370, was made a Union Territory and the other parties even voted in support of the Bharatiya Janata Parties," Azad said on Wednesday. He further expressed concern that due to the absence of an assembly in the Union Territory, people living far away in Jammu and Kashmir lack representation on the national level. Elected representatives play a crucial role in representing the people of their respective regions, but this impossible without an assembly in the Union Territory. "Because of the non-existence of assembly in the Union Territory, no one is able to reach out to the people who live far away be it in Kashmir valley or Jammu. Elected people represent the people of their region," he added. Azad also said that this is the first time in his political carrier that elections are not being conducted in the region. "It's beyond my experience and understanding," he said. Article 370 was abrogated in 2019 and J-K was turned into a Union Territory and Ladakh separated from it forming another Union Territory. Assembly Elections were last held in J-K in November-December 2014 and the People's Democratic Party (PDP)-Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) coalition government formed government in March 2015. The PDP secured 28 seats and the BJP got 25 seats out of the 87 seats. However, Azad, the former Congress leader credited the leadership of the Congress in various states for the party's recent electoral triumphs. "I have said the Congress has suffered losses at the Centre, not in the states. Wherever there is a strong state leadership, the party is bouncing back," he added. (ANI)
Police said they recovered MD drugs worth Rs 20 lakhs in the international market.

"A foreigner was standing near Gokul Shopping Center in Borivali and was waiting for someone, police officer who was patrolling nearby, noted that foreigner looked a bit suspicious. When the police called the accused, he started running. The police chased and caught the accused drugs peddler. MD drugs was recovered from him upon search," police official said.

Accordingly, a case has been filed against the accused drug peddler under Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985.

Police also said that the accused was presented in a local court which sent him to police custody.

Further investigation is underway in this matter. (ANI)
The minister, who was hospitalised in the morning after he complained of chest pain, has been sent to judicial custody till June 28 by a Chennai court.

He can continue medical treatment in the hospital till further orders, the court said.

The minister was arrested by Enforcement Directorate early Wednesday in the money laundering case.

Jayakumar had said in the morning that ED should get a doctor from AIIMS to check the minister's health.

"ED has done its work legally. Till yesterday, Senthil Balaji was well but when ED arrested him, he started having chest pain," he said.

He said the Chief Minister should remove Balaji from his cabinet.

"If the CM does not remove Balaji, the Governor should intervene in this matter," he said.

The AIADMK leader asked how ministers can "go and see an accused who is in custody?"

Earlier in the day, state BJP vice president Narayanan Thirupathy said the whole episode staged outside the Omandurar government hospital is a "drama" staged by the DMK party.

Senthil Balaji broke down while being taken into custody by the ED officials for questioning in connection to the alleged money laundering case in the wee hours of Wednesday.

He was brought Balaji to Omandurar government hospital in Chennai for medical examination amid tight security. High drama was witnessed outside the hospital. Balaji was seen crying in pain while lying in a car with his supporters gathered there to protest against the ED action. (ANI)
Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has denied the claims made by the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Janata Dal-Secular (JDS) that AICC General Secretary Randeep Singh Surjewala attended an official meeting of the Karnataka Government. CM Siddaramaiah clarified that Surjewala did not hold any official meeting and that the meeting at the Shangri-La hotel was attended by MLAs. "That's not the official meeting which was called in Shangri-La hotel. Surjewala didn't hold any official meeting. It was the meeting of MLAs, and Deputy chief minister was present in the meeting. That meeting was called to discuss about the election. HD Kumaraswamy simply makes statements. Can Surjewala call a meeting of officers? Let the BJP complain to Governor," CM Siddaramaiah said. JDS leader and former chief minister and HD Kumaraswamy has hit out at the Congress in Karnataka for 'allowing' Surjewala to attend an official meeting of the State government. The Opposition BJP has also criticised the presence of Surjewala by tweeting a photograph showing the Congress leader attending a meeting along with Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar and other MLAs and Bengaluru administration officials. Criticizing Congress general secretary Randeep Surjewala, Kumaraswamy asked, "Who is Surjewala to hold the government meeting of ministers and senior officials?" "Is the government in the state led by Siddaramaiah or the government of number 10 of Janpath Road in Delhi? Kannadigas voted for a 'Hand' government or a puppet government?? The people's vote is the share of the hung government. It has been proved that it is a High Command government even before the government completed a month in power", Kumaraswamy said in a tweet. In a series of tweets, the former chief minister asked who had given the AICC general secretary Surjewala permission to be present in State government meetings. "Official meetings of the government are held by the artists of the High Command's quarters in Karnataka! The photo I have tagged is proof of that dynasty's condition. Who gave AICC general secretary Mr. Randeep Surjewala the responsibility and permission to hold government meetings?", the former CM shared in a tweet thread. Sharing a photo of Surjewala with Shivakumar and other ministers of the state cabinet, Kumaraswamy appealed to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah to give an explanation. "There is a senior minister in the meeting! Senior IAS officers are also present!! There it became an official meeting. But, there is Surjewala in the center seat! Ministers have side seats!! Is this strange? Hon'ble Chief Minister should answer", he said. (ANI)
Union Home Minister Amit Shah and BJP's National President JP Nadda are scheduled to visit Odisha as part of the ongoing 'Maha Sampark Abhiyan', party sources said on Wednesday. On the occasion of the completion of nine years of the Modi government at the Centre, party leaders and ministers of the government will hold a grand rally across the country from May 30 to June 30 to inform about the achievements of several welfare schemes and development works launched by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government in the country, sources said. Amit Shah will visit Odisha on June 17 and President JP Nadda on June 22. During his visit to Odisha, Amit Shah will address a public meeting in Dhenkanal and engage in discussions with party leaders, according to sources. The BJP is intensifying its election campaign as all parties gear up for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. Furthermore, Nadda will hold a video conference on June 15 with all Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha MPs of the party to discuss the progress of the 'Maha Jan Sampark Abhiyan'. The meeting will focus on gathering feedback from MPs regarding the campaign's effectiveness and public response, as well as assessing the status of their respective constituencies and assigned districts, according to sources. During the meeting, an assessment will be made of the status of the MPs' respective constituencies and the districts assigned to them as part of the Maha Jan Sampark Abhiyan, the sources said. In recent months, Nadda has inaugurated party offices at Nurpur in Himachal's Kangra and Madhya Pradesh, while also conducting a 'bhumi pujan' ceremony for the new state BJP office in Bhopal. Nadda and Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan performed Bhoomi Pujan at the new state BJP office in Bhopal. (ANI)
In a major milestone for the Mumbai-Ahmedabad High-Speed Rail (MAHSR) corridor, the construction of the second river bridge over the Purna River has been successfully completed aiming to revolutionize Indian rail transportation and connectivity, an official statement said. This achievement signifies significant progress in the groundbreaking project, which aims to revolutionize rail transportation and connectivity in India. Following the completion of the first river bridge over the Par River between Vapi and Bilimora HSR stations in Gujarat's Valsad district, measuring 320 meters, the completion of the Purna River bridge further underscores the commitment to the MAHSR project. The Par River Bridge was completed in January 2023. Key features of the Purna River bridge include its impressive dimensions and specifications. Spanning a length of 360 meters, the bridge consists of nine full-span girders, each measuring 40 meters. The piers supporting the bridge vary in height, ranging from 10 to 20 meters, and circular piers with diameters of 4 and 5 meters. Situated between the Bilimora and Surat HSR stations, the bridge's construction required constant monitoring of high and low tides from the nearby Arabian Sea. One of the notable challenges encountered during the construction of the Purna River bridge was the rising water levels, which increased by 5-6 meters every fortnight during high tides. Despite this obstacle, the construction team overcame the difficulties and successfully completed the bridge, showcasing their expertise and dedication. The MAHSR corridor, encompassing a total of 24 river bridges, will feature 20 bridges in Gujarat and 4 in Maharashtra. Notably, the longest bridge in Gujarat will stretch across the Narmada River in the Bharuch district, measuring an impressive 1.2 kilometres. It is also pertinent to note that construction activities remain in progress on several other rivers in Gujarat. Ongoing works include foundation construction, pier work, and other infrastructure developments on rivers such as the Sabarmati, Mahi, Narmada, Tapi, and more, spanning various districts of Gujarat. The MAHSR project holds tremendous potential to transform rail transportation in India by establishing a high-speed rail network between Mumbai and Ahmedabad. Once operational, this corridor will significantly reduce travel time and enhance connectivity between the two cities. Furthermore, the completion of the MAHSR project will pave the way for future advancements in high-speed rail technology and infrastructure throughout the country. The successful completion of the Purna River bridge serves as a testament to the expertise and dedication of the teams involved in the MAHSR project. With ongoing progress, the anticipation grows for the day when the MAHSR corridor becomes fully operational, ushering in a new era of transportation for the people of India. (ANI)
Hours after Enforcement Directorate arrested Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) Minister Senthil Balaji in a money laundering case, Tamil Nadu Government on Wednesday ordered to "withdraw general consent" for an investigation by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). The state home department issued the order that withdrew its general consent for an investigation by CBI. "Central Agency CBI to investigate in Tamil Nadu should get permission from State Government. Today Tamil Nadu Government orders to withdraw its consent which was given to specific type cases during 1989 and 1992," read the order of the Tamil Nadu Home Department. According to the order, "Hereafter CBI before starting its investigation in the State should get prior permission from the Tamil Nadu Government". As per Delhi Special Police Establishment Act, 1946 (Central Act XXV of 1946) in any State if the CBI needs to investigate they have to get prior permission from that State. West Bengal, Rajasthan, Kerala, Mizoram, Punjab and Telangana also made it mandatory for CBI to seek permission before initiating an investigation in any case related to the state. ED arrested state minister Senthil Balaj in a money laundering case earlier in the day that started the political blame game. Balaji was sent to judicial custody for 14 days till June 28 in a money laundering case by Chennai principal district judge S Alli on Wednesday. Tamil Nadu Minister Subramanian termed Senthil's arrest a "murder of democracy". Speaking to reporters in Chennai, Subramanian said, "Senthil Balaji's arrest is a murder of democracy. This has been done to corner Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) before Parliament elections. No procedures were followed in the arrest...BJP is trying to create a fake narrative that DMK is a corrupt party. They (BJP) are trying to do this, with the help of institutions like ED". Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge slammed Senthil Balaji's arrest by the ED saying that it is "nothing but political harassment and vendetta" by the central government. Trinamool Congress MP Saugata Roy said, "It is totally wrong how Enforcement Directorate is being misused."(ANI)
Karnataka BJP MLA R Ashok Wednesday on Wednesday met Governor Thawar Chand Gehlot and filed a complaint after it surfaced that AICC general secretary Randeep Surjewala had attended an official meeting of the state government. Speaking to media persons in Bengaluru after filing the complaint, the former minister said, "He (Surjewala) attended a meeting of the state government. He was debating with corporate officials of the Urban Development Department. How can he participate in such a meeting?". "I can show you the rule book as well," the BJP leader told reporters in Bengaluru. The BJP leader alleged that they (Congress) want to turn Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) into an ATM. "Modi-ji and Amit Shah-ji had voiced fears that they would make the civic body into an ATM. The Congress has started the process already," he added. "That is why we lodged a complaint with the Governor," he added. On Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar and home minister Parameshwara saying it was an unofficial meeting with Surjewala held at a private hotel, the BJP leader said, "A government officer is a government officer. A police officer is a police officer. Four ministers were there in the meeting. Many officials were there as well. Not one or two". "He (Governor) has accepted our letter. He promised to inquire into it and send his guidelines to the government and the chief secretary," he added. Earlier in the day, Janata Dal-Secular (JDS) leader and former chief minister and HD Kumaraswamy hit out at the Congress in Karnataka for allowing Randeep Surjewala attend the official meeting. Coming down heavily on Surjewala, Kumaraswamy asked, "Who is Surjewala to hold the government meeting of ministers and senior officials?" "Is the government in the state led by Siddaramaiah or 10 Janpath Road in Delhi? Did the Kannadigas vote for a 'Hand' government or a puppet government? It has been proved that this is a high command government even before it completes a month in power," Kumaraswamy said in a tweet. Sharing a photo of Surjewala with Shivakumar and other ministers of the state cabinet, Kumaraswamy called on Chief Minister Siddaramaiah to come out with an explanation. https://twitter.com/hd_kumaraswamy/status/1668610326194184193 "There is a senior minister in the meeting! Senior IAS officers are also present!! It became an official meeting. But, there is Surjewala in the center seat! Ministers have side seats!! Is this strange? Hon'ble Chief Minister should answer," he tweeted. (ANI)
Karnataka Energy Minister KJ George on Wednesday said that Pavagada Solar Park is a shining example of the government's commitment to clean and sustainable energy solutions. "Pavagada Solar Park is a groundbreaking solar energy facility and a shining example of our commitment to clean and sustainable energy solutions. Our aim is to strengthen the bond between the government and the renewable energy industry, encouraging collaboration, fostering investment, and exploring new avenues for growth and job creation in the sector," KJ George said. Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar and state energy Minister held discussions with project stakeholders, including the park's management team, engineers, and environmental specialists, to "gain insights into the innovative approaches employed in developing and operating the solar park. Energy Minister KJ George said that the Karnataka government wants to strengthen the bond between the government and the renewable energy industry, the official release said. The Energy Minister said that the "impressive" statistics of Pavagada Solar Park underscored the profound impact renewable energy sources can have on our environment and the economy. "The Solar Park has already significantly contributed to our nation's clean energy goals. With its state-of-the-art photovoltaic panels, cutting-edge technology, advanced energy storage systems, and efficient grid integration, the park has the capacity to generate 4.5 billion units of solar energy per annum and thereby helping in decreasing CO2 emissions to the tune of 3.6 million tons annually," K.J. George said. "These impressive figures underscore the profound impact renewable energy sources can have on our environment and the economy," he added. The objective of the ministers' visit was to underscore the state government's "unwavering support for the renewable energy sector and highlight the remarkable achievements of Pavagada Solar Park," said an official statement. The Solar Park developed by Karnataka Solar Power Development Corporation Limited (KSPDCL) is a joint venture of Karnataka Renewable Energy Development Ltd (KREDL) and Solar Energy Corporation of India Limited (SECI). The Solar Park near Tirumani in Pavagada Taluk is one of the largest Solar parks in the world. (ANI)
Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Wednesday praised Archana Atram, the first woman driver of Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC). After Archana Atram drove the bus from Saswad to Nira, Devendra Fadnavis said that the driver will be seen with a woman bus conductor in the near future. In this regard, Devendra Fadnavis took to Twitter and said, "Another glass ceiling broken! Archana Atram creates history by becoming the first woman driver of the Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation. She drove the ST Bus from Saswad to Nira (District Pune). Soon we will see Atram with a woman bus conductor and all passengers with 50 pc discount on fare are women too!" Deputy CM Fadnavis congratulated all women drivers who recently joined MSRTC. (ANI)
Professor Pinkerton Xyloma performs at Sideshow Gelato in Lincoln Square on June 1, 2023. Sideshow Gelato is an artisanal gelateria, sideshow and dime museum displaying a collection of strange and unusual objects. (Terrence Antonio James/Chicago Tribune)

Red and white pinstripes line the walls, as multicolored balloons hover above the group of magicians, contortionists and jugglers hard at work. Sticky fingers and faces wander about with sugar-fueled smiles, parents in tow.

While you might assume that youve stumbled into the circus, youd only be about half-right. In reality, youve happened upon Sideshow Gelato  a new Lincoln Square gelato shop with a niche twist. Each of the scoopers are young performers honing their sideshow acts. While serving gelato, they sharpen their juggling, magic and performance skills before customers.

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Behind the counter, you might find Dylan Snow  a close-up magician who left his electrician apprenticeship to pursue a performance career. Maybe youll run into Elise Eshu, a juggler who started training in a youth circus at the age of 11. Or perhaps youll meet Raven See. After obtaining a masters degree in literature and poetry, intent on becoming a professor, they decided to take a leap of faith and pursue a two-year professional degree in circus arts.

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Raven See prepares an order of gelato at Sideshow Gelato on June 1, 2023. (Terrence Antonio James/Chicago Tribune)

I was making the most money that Id ever made, but I didnt like my life, they said. Basically at 34, I ran away and joined the circus.

For those craving a health-conscious sweet treat, the gelato is made in-house, without mixes or powdered bases. At least half the selections are vegan, and prepared with an oat milk base. The flavors are on constant rotation, as they hope to keep their audience on their toes.

Among the current offerings since the June 1 opening, the Prince Randian is a house favorite, named for the longtime Coney Island performer born without arms or legs, who would dazzle the audience by rolling and lighting a cigarette. The sweet treat is prepared with alcohol-free bourbon essence and a tobacco-flavored herbal tea blend with candied orange peels. Another beloved offering named for magician and gelateria-investor Penn Jillette of Penn & Teller fame  is made of dark chocolate with blueberry jam and lots of cayenne pepper.

Professor Pinkerton Xyloma performs at Sideshow Gelato on June 1, 2023. Sideshow Gelato is an artisanal gelateria, sideshow and dime museum displaying a collection of strange and unusual objects. (Terrence Antonio James/Chicago Tribune)

The Lincoln Square gelato shop is the brainchild of Chicagoan Jay Bliznick, who credits his inspiration with simply being nuts.

Nobody in their right mind would come up with something like this, he said.

The path to becoming founder of this offbeat gelateria was not a straightforward one. Bliznick originally arrived in Chicago in 1990 as a student at Columbia College, intent on becoming a filmmaker.

By 1994, he had founded the still-running Chicago Underground Film Festival, serving as a leading coordinator of the event for eight years. After his stint in the film scene, concluding with an unceremonious tenure as a movie theater manager, Bliznick decided to pivot.

I was just kind of like, what am I doing? This isnt me. As he approached his 40th birthday, Bliznick found himself starting over with a hopeful move toward the dining industry, attending culinary school at Washburne Culinary & Hospitality Institute at Kennedy-King College.

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Jared Narter-Slezak, left, prepares an order of gelato as Sideshow Gelato owner Jay Bliznick looks on, June 1, 2023. (Terrence Antonio James/Chicago Tribune)

It was kind of rough going in the industry because restaurants are mainly, you know, younger people in their 20s and 30s in the back of the kitchen, he said. And then heres this 40-year-old guy  whos got some talent  walking into their restaurant and asking them for a job. They were looking at me like I came in with a walker.

Eventually, he worked his way up the ladder  landing a job as the executive chef at the Del Rio, an approximately 100-year-old Italian restaurant in Highwood, a North Shore suburb.

For his 50th birthday, he rented an Italian villa outside of Florence, where he and his granddaughter fell hard for local gelaterias.

Between the two of us, we ate our weight in gelato, he said, and I realized that there was something really kind of special about this that was not your standard ice cream.

A customer is served gelato at Sideshow Gelato by Dylan Snow, right, on June 1, 2023. (Terrence Antonio James/Chicago Tribune)

After his trip to Italy, Bliznick emerged with a deeper connection to his granddaughter and a new dream. He went on to train with an Italian gelato master before finally taking the leap during the pandemic to explore the possibility of opening his own gelateria.

The grandson of a concert violinist and the son of a stand-up comic and ventriloquist, Bliznick has long had the love of show business coursing through his veins, he said. This history combined with his passion for sideshows and his film background made integrating the restaurants theme a seamless transition.

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Bliznick acknowledges that his shop may not be for everyone. Some people arent gonna want to see somebody put a power drill up their nose, or swallow a sword. Thats fine. Its not for everybody, he said.

Candi Crucifix with her Colombian red tail boa constrictor named Cletus at Sideshow Gelato on June 1, 2023. (Terrence Antonio James/Chicago Tribune)

But those who do stop by, may find themselves having an educational experience, as well as a flavorful one. In a room adjacent to the gelato scoops lives the Museum of the Transmundane. There, visitors can learn about everything from the worlds smallest woolly mammoth to the worlds tallest man.

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Ive become more in tune with the idea that any business, to truly be successful, you dont only invest in your business, you dont only invest in your employees; you also have to invest in the customer and your community, Bliznick said.

The altruistic elements of the shop arent just talk. Not only does Sideshow Gelato provide space for young performers to hone their skills before going on to bigger and better things, as Bliznick says, but it will select a different charity each month to receives all proceeds from the tiniest gelato offering  the Worlds Smallest Cone.

Which is one curiosity fans are sure to get behind.

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jsmith@chicagotribune.com

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"On the occasion, discussions were held between the two leaders on various topics and organizational topics for the Mahasampark Abhiyan going on in Haryana," an official statement said.

"Discussion were also held on the achievement filled nine year tenure of the Central Government under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi," it added.

On the occasion of the completion of nine years of the Modi government at the Centre, party leaders and ministers of the government are holding grand rallies across the country from May 30 to June 30 to inform about the achievements of several welfare schemes and development works launched by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government. (ANI)
Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Wednesday hit out at Congress former chief Arun Yadav after the latter dragged Prime Minister Narendra Modi's father to declare his party's strength in the poll-bound state. Taking to Twitter, Madhya Pradesh CM said that Congress has resorted to "uncivilized language" as it is unable to directly compete with the PM. "Today, the indecent remarks made by Congress leader Arun Yadav on the late father of PM Modi is a symbol of his mentality. This 'Congress culture', is their 'Mohabbat ki Dukaan'. PM Modi is the pride of the country. Congress is not able to directly compete with the successful and popular Prime Minister of the country, so it has resorted to indecent and uncivilized language. Arun Yadav has broken political lines, Madhya Pradesh is ashamed of your statement," Chouhan said in a tweet. Arun Yadav on Wednesday made a disparaging remark against Prime Minister Narendra Modi while claiming that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) cannot return to power in the State in the upcoming assembly elections even if his "late father visits MP". "Modi ji can come. His senior, if any, can come. Nadda ji is coming here anyway. Modi's father can also come here if he wants, we have no objection. But there is a wind of favour for Congress in Madhya Pradesh, for change - we can see this clearly," Arun Yadav said on Wednesday. Reacting to Arun Yadav's remarks, Union Minister Mahendra Nath Pandey said, "BJP will win and that too under the leadership of PM Modi." Notably, BJP President JP Nadda is scheduled to visit Madhya Pradesh ahead of the state assembly elections later this year. The BJP has had an almost uninterrupted stint in power in State since 2003 except for when the Congress ruled for 15 months between the end of 2018 and early 2020 when the BJP toppled the Congress government with the help of Jyotiraditya Scindia in March. Scindia resigned from the Congress and joined the BJP in March 2020 and his move toppled the Kamal Nath government just 15 months after its formation, paving the way for the BJP to form government. (ANI)
Tripura Chief Minister Manik Saha on Tuesday called on the state's women voters to play a pivotal role in next year's Lok Sabha elections and gift two lotuses to Prime Minister Narendra Modi by securing victory in both seats in 2024. The chief minister made the remark while gracing 'Vidushi Mahila Sanmelan' organised by Pradesh BJP Mahila Morcha to commemorate the completion of 9 years of PM Modi at the helm. During his address at the event, he highlighted Prime Minister Modi's relentless efforts in implementing welfare measures to uplift the socio-economic status of women in the country. "In line with our Prime Minister's footsteps, the present state government has introduced several programs for the betterment of the mothers and sisters of Tripura," the chief minister said. He further revealed that the state government had reserved 33 per cent government jobs for women, thereby demonstrating its thrust on their welfare. The number of self-help groups in Tripura has seen a significant rise from 4,100 in 2018 to 39,672 in 2023, he noted, adding that this development has positively impacted around 354,000 women in the state. "The Community Investment Fund has allocated a sum of Rs 237.86 crore to over 26,558 self-help groups, while a revolving fund of Rs 21.13 crores has also been granted to more than 18,448 self-help groups. Moreover, free education for women has been guaranteed in all colleges, ensuring their access to quality education," CM Saha said. He further acknowledged PM Modi's consistent efforts in transforming the nation's welfare. "Since 2014, the Prime Minister has spearheaded numerous initiatives for the welfare of our citizens. He has established 390 new universities in the past nine years, supplementing the 723 that already prevails in the country. The development of communication systems, including national highways and railways, has been prioritised in various regions. Additionally, through the Act East policy, he has diligently focused on the development of the Northeast, bringing significant benefits to our people," the CM said. He added, "The Lok Sabha election is approaching and we have to gift two lotuses to PM Modi by winning both the seats in the state. And, for this to happen, our women voters need to play an important role". Among the other dignitaries at the event were Tripura BJP president Rajib Bhattacharya, minister Shantana Chakma, Legislative Assembly's chief secretary Kalyani Roy, BJP's state general secretary Papiya Dutta, and others. (ANI)
On the occasion of World Blood Donor Day, Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Yadav on Wednesday donated blood at a camp in Patna organized by his party, Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD). Tejashwi Yadav said that donating blood is both a social service and an act of solidarity with the people who need it. "I am happy to donate blood on this occasion. It is a noble cause and I urge everyone who is eligible to donate blood to do so. It can save lives and help those who are suffering from various diseases. It is also a way of expressing compassion for humanity," Tejashwi said. The Deputy CM thanked doctors and other health sector workers of the state who, he said, are doing a great service to society by ensuring the availability and quality of blood. Meanwhile while inaugurating a blood donation camp at RML Hospital, New Delhi on Wednesday Union Minister of State, Health and Family Welfare SP Baghel also exhorted people to do blood donations. "Blood donation is a noble cause and deeply ingrained in our rich culture and tradition of Seva and Sahyog. I implore and call on all citizens to come forward and donate blood as part of the countrywide Raktdaan Amrit Mahotsav. Donating blood is a significant service to society and mankind in addition to fulfilling the requirement for the country," S P Baghel said. The slogan for this year's World Blood Donor Day campaign is 'Give blood, give plasma, share life, share often'. It focuses on patients requiring lifelong blood transfusion support and underlines the role every single person can play by giving the valuable gift of blood or plasma. The Union Minister of State said that several myths associated with blood donation discourage healthy people from turning into blood donors. "In India, the demand for blood transfusion arises every 2 seconds. On average, 14.6 million blood is needed every year and there is always a shortage of 1 million. Besides a lack of understanding and awareness, several myths and facts are associated with a blood donation that could be discouraging healthy people from turning into blood donors," SP Baghel said. He said persons suffering from cancer, anaemia and thalassemia require blood frequently. "Patients like cancer patients, sickle cell anaemia and thalassemia patients, require blood frequently. Every two seconds, someone in India needs blood and one out of every three of us will need blood in our lifetime," the Minister added. (ANI)
According to police, the accused was arrested during patrolling on Tuesday evening after 102 mg of mephedrone was recovered from him.

The police said that the accused had been living in India without valid documents and a passport.

Police registered a case under Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act (NDPS) against the accused and presented him in a local court, from where he was sent to police remand.

Further investigation is underway, said Mumbai Police.

In another incident of drug seizure a Special Task Force (STF) team, on Sunday, seized 161 kg of Ganja from Chandrapur village in Odisha's Angul district and arrested three persons.

The three accused were identified as Sarmit Urma of Chandrapur village (under Athamallik police station limits), Rohit Behra of Madhapur village (under Athamallik police station limits), and Sunil Deep of Routpada (under Harabhanga police station limits, Boudh district).

Kishore Kumar Panigrahi, the SP of the Odisha STF, informed that in a raid against illegal storage and selling of narcotic drugs, more than 161 kg of Ganja and other incriminating evidence was discovered and seized from the trio. (ANI)
Notably, June 15 marks the third anniversary of the Galwan Valley clash which took place back in 2020.

The meeting will be held between senior military officers of Northern Command, Northern Army Commander Lt Gen Upendra Dwivedi, 14 Corps Commander Lt Gen Rashim Bali and other top officers.

The meeting will be held to discuss the preparedness of the force in the sector bordering China.

"Senior military officers of the Northern Command, including Northern Army Commander Lt Gen Upendra Dwivedi, 14 Corps Commander Lt Gen Rashim Bali along with other top officers to hold operational discussions in Leh tomorrow. The meeting will discuss the preparedness of the force in the sector bordering China," the Army officials said.

The Indian and Chinese troops clashed at Galwan in 2020, the same year the pandemic started.

In September 2022, the Indian troops and their counterparts in the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) completed the disengagement process in the Gogra Heights-Hot Springs area near Patrolling Point-15 in the eastern Ladakh sector, government sources had said.

Since May 2020, when the Chinese troops tried to aggressively change the status quo on LAC in eastern Ladakh, both sides have been deployed in forward positions near Patrolling Point 15, which emerged as a friction point in the wake of the Galwan clash.

Delhi and Beijing reached an agreement in February 2021 to disengage from the 135-km Pangong Lake, creating buffer zones until all outstanding border issues are resolved, Sputnik, a Russian-based media agency reported earlier.

Over 50,000 Indian soldiers had been stationed since 2020 at forward posts along the LAC, with advanced weapons to prevent any attempts to change the status quo unilaterally on the LAC. (ANI)
Reacting to the former Twitter Chief Executive Officer Jack Dorsey's Indian "government pressure" remark, Union Minister of State (MoS) for External Affairs Meenakashi Lekhi on Tuesday called the microblogging site a "manipulated medium." She urged Twitter CEO Elon Musk to open the files of Twitter India and the government of India to check the shareholding of the company. Reacting to Dorsey's claim that the Indian government had put pressure on the microblogging platform to block accounts during the farmers' protests, Meenakashi Lekhi said, "Twitter is a manipulated medium. All I can say is that Elon Musk as a new owner of Twitter has opened some files which are called Twitter files US and lot many things which are illegal, unethical have been found which were being practiced by the then chief and the company which he recently took over." Speaking to ANI, Lekhi said, "I am requesting Elon Musk to open the files of Twitter India and also the government of India to investigate Twitter India and Twitter Asia and they must also check the shareholding of this company." In response to question regarding the Opposition parties statement that freedom is under threat in India, Meenakashi Lekhi said, "That is why I'm saying please check the shareholding and check the financial transactions. You will be surprised to what I think people like me are aware of." Meanwhile, Union Minister of State for Electronics and Information Technology Rajeev Chandrasekhar on Tuesday hit out at Jack Dorsey's Indian government's "pressure" remark. Chandrashekhar alleged that between 2020 and 2022, Twitter was found violating Indian law multiple times and the platform had started to comply with the law only in 2022. Reacting to Dorsey's claim, Rajeev Chandrasekhar called it "an outright lie" and "an attempt to brush out the very dubious period" of the social media company's history. He said that Twitter "weaponised misinformation" against Indians and the government of India during the period of 2020. Speaking to ANI, Chandrasekhar said, "During the period of 2020, Twitter weaponised misinformation against Indians and the government of India and therefore they were exposed. Twitter that is now in public domain, during this period was not only partisan but was behaving in an absolute arbitrary manner and the Twitter files that have then come out after Jack Dorsey sold Twitter has exposed it to be a platform that abused its power, misused its power." "Between 2020-2022, Twitter was violating Indian law multiple times. It started complying with the law only in 2022. During that entire period, nobody went to jail, and nobody was raided. Jack Dorsey knowing very well that Twitter did not comply with any law and didn't face any consequence, is today lying and making stories about raids and arrests," Chandrasekhar said. The minister alleged that Dorsey's re-brushing the history of Twitter's conduct is a total outright lie. His statement comes after Jack Dorsey in his interview with the US-based YouTube channel 'Breaking Points with Krystal and Saagar' alleged that the Indian government had put pressure on Twitter and said that it will shut down the company in India and raid the houses of its employees. Dorsey in an interview aired on the YouTube channel said, ".....India is one of the countries which had many requests around farmers protests, around particular journalists which were critical of the government and it manifested in ways such as we will shut Twitter down in India, India is a big marketplace for us. We would raid the homes of your employees, which they did and we will shut down your offices if you don't follow suit and this is India, a democratic country." (ANI)
US Secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen on Tuesday (local time) said that the US is working closely with India during its G20 Presidency on global economic issues. She said that the "close collaboration" between India and the US showcases how "advanced and emerging economies" can bridge political differences and make progress on shared policy objectives. While addressing the US-India Business Council India Ideas Summit on Tuesday, Janet Yellen said, "We are working closely with India during its G20 presidency on global economic issues. I believe that our close collaboration is showing the world how advanced and emerging economies can bridge policy differences and make progress on our shared policy objectives. When India and the United States work together, we can add significant momentum to important efforts." India assumed the G20 Presidency on December 1, 2022. Janet Yellen stressed that debt distress in developing nations continues to pose a risk to macroeconomic growth and stability. She stated that more needs to be done to provide "timely and comprehensive debt treatments." She lauded India for supporting Sri Lankan authorities in its reform efforts. Yellen said, "We have taken steps forward on urgent cases like Sri Lanka where India's proactive actions have been critical to supporting the authorities' reform efforts. We are continuing to push for urgent action in other cases as well." She said that the US is actively working to help India attract private capital to close its infrastructure gap. She said that India and US have made collective efforts to evolve the multilateral development banks to address global challenges like climate change, pandemics, fragility and conflict. Yellen said that she looked forward to supporting American businesses in India. Janet Yellen said, "We are working together to shape the digital economy. We are collaborating with India to deliver tangible outcomes on the G20's work to enhance cross-border payments - as well as our financial inclusion efforts to connect the unbanked around the world." Yellen noted that the US has made significant progress to bolster bilateral ties with India. She stated that the bilateral trade between India and US reached over USD 190 billion in 2022. She said that the Biden administration has taken "concrete steps" to build on this robust partnership. "We have made significant progress to strengthen our bilateral ties with India. The United States is India's largest trading partner. In 2022, our bilateral trade reached over USD 190 billion. And we have significant cross-border investments and durable people-to-people ties as the two largest democracies in the world," Yellen said. The US Secretary of the Treasury has called US-India Economic and Financial Partnership a "centrepiece" of formal economic dialogue since the global financial crisis. Yellen said that she has met with Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman over ten times since assuming office and stressed that this demonstrates the importance of close collaboration between India and the US India on issues spanning the macroeconomy, climate finance and financial regulation. Yellen called India and US close partners in responding to global disruptions. She said, "We have also been close partners in responding to global disruptions and advancing our shared goal of a free and open Indo-Pacific. We are working closely with India, Australia, and Japan through the Quad." Yellen said that the US is pursuing a policy called "friend-shoring" to deepen integration with its trusted trading partners. She said that they aim to expand trade ties with various nations that the US can rely on to create more redundancies in critical supply chains. She called India one of the US' reliable trading partners. "Our aim is to expand trade ties with the broad array of countries we can rely on - in order to create more redundancies in our critical supply chains. India is one of our reliable trading partners. Among other initiatives, we are working to connect new communities to the global market. And we are working to do so in a way that helps these communities move up the value chain," Yellen said. Yellen said, "India's infrastructure investments have significant potential to boost productivity and increase the efficiency of trade between our two countries." She stated that India and US are following what she described as "modern supply-side" policies, which include investing in human capital, physical capital, and science and technology to boost long-term economic potential. She said that both nations are also pursuing leadership in close energy technologies. (ANI)
An Austrian man, who visited Afghanistan early this year, is presently detained in the country, Khaama Press reported citing the Austrian Foreign Ministry. The government verified in an email response to a question about the matter that the individual travelled to Afghanistan in May and was detained there. Austria has long recommended against visiting Afghanistan, it was mentioned in the email. The details of the man's identity and other information were not revealed due to data protection concerns. It did, however, declare that it has been "actively seeking a solution" since learning of the arrest and has been in contact with the man's family on a regular basis. According to the Austrian daily Der Standard cited by Khaama Press, the man was a veteran far-right extremist in his 80s and a co-founder of the National Democratic organisation, a minor far-right organisation banned in 1988. According to the report, he has been arrested for several weeks after a far-right journal published an article titled "Vacation with the Taliban" in which he provided a positive depiction of life in Afghanistan under Taliban control. According to reports, he is being detained for spying, and Austrian neo-Nazis have made his case public through Telegram channels. Khaama Press cited a Der Standard report which said that the Austrian, identified as Herbert F, had a history of visiting dangerous places, including Afghanistan in the 1980s and Kurdish forces fighting the ISIS group in northern Syria a few years ago. The Taliban took control of Afghanistan in August 2021, following the overthrow of the previous government and the withdrawal of Western soldiers. Since then, the de facto authorities have not been recognised as the country's legitimate government, and the international community conditioned their recognition on several factors, including respecting human rights and women's rights, cutting ties with terrorist outlets, stopping drug trafficking and forming an inclusive government in the country, Khaama Press reported. (ANI)
Actor John Cusack will host a screening next fall of 2000s High Fidelity at the Auditorium Theatre, followed by a talk about his career and the making of the film, as well as a Q&A session. Tickets are on sale this week.

The movie, directed by Stephen Frears, is set in Chicago. Cusack plays a man who owns a failing record store examining his failed attempts at romance. Cusack, born and raised in Evanston, also coproduced and cowrote the script based on Nick Hornbys novel, and was nominated for a Golden Globe for his performance.

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A presale for tickets to the event starts at 10 a.m. June 14, while the general sale begins at 10 a.m. June 16.

An Evening with John Cusack & Screening of High Fidelity is 7:30 p.m. Nov. 1 at Auditorium Theatre, 50 E. Ida B. Wells Dr.; more information at auditoriumtheatre.org
An Ecuadorian woman presumed dead at the age of 76 woke up five hours into her memory service and began knocking inside her coffin, reported CNN on Tuesday. The incident was reported from the city of Babahoyo. Ecuador's health ministry said that the doctors had declared retired nurse Bella Montoya dead after a possible stroke and cardiopulmonary arrest. She did not respond to resuscitation efforts. Gilberto Barbera, the woman's son posted a video of the same on social media. He captioned the video, "I lifted the coffin, and her heart was pounding, and her left hand was hitting the coffin... We called 911 to bring her here to the hospital." People were seen waiting and supporting her as emergency personnel arrived and took the 76-year-old woman back to the hospital. According to the Ministry of Public Health, a state investigation is now underway. According to the report, the woman was admitted to the hospital on Friday for a potential stroke and cardiac arrest, and when she did not respond to resuscitation treatment, a doctor on duty ruled her dead. The video continues to show her hospital bracelets and her youngster pleading for an ambulance to appear. The woman's entire name is Bella Yolanda Montoya Castro, which corresponds to the initials "B.Y.M.C" used in a statement made by Ecuador's Health Ministry on Sunday. The health ministry's statement added that Montoya was in intensive care at the Martin Icaza Hospital in Babahoyo, where she was initially declared dead. There is no information on her current condition. The hospital did not respond to CNN's calls for comment. Later, when the man recording the video asked the name of the woman, to which someone in the room said, "Bella Yolanda." The ministry went on to claim that a national technical committee was constituted in collaboration with the Health Services Quality Assurance Agency "to initiate a medical audit to establish responsibilities for the alleged confirmation of death," CNN reported. (ANI)
Slamming the administration of President Joe Biden over his indictment, former President Donald Trump has called his predecessor "a corrupt sitting president," reported CNN. Former President Donald Trump made these remarks on Tuesday night in Bedminster, New Jersey while criticising the current administration over his indictment for the alleged mishandling of classified documents. Trump said to a crowd of supporters, "Today we witnessed the most evil and heinous abuse of power in the history of our country," adding, "Very sad thing to watch, a corrupt sitting president had his top political opponent arrested on fake and fabricated charges of which he and numerous other presidents would be guilty, right in the middle of a presidential election in which he's losing very badly." Trump was arrested in a historic arraignment in a Miami federal courthouse on Tuesday, where he pleaded guilty to 37 criminal charges. Trump, who was arrested along with his adviser and co-defendant Walt Nauta, is the first former president to be charged with a crime on a federal level. Just a few months ago, a Manhattan grand jury indicted Trump in a different hush-money case. Earlier in the day, Trump pleaded not guilty to 37 charges related to the alleged mishandling of classified documents, CNN reported. His lawyers have asked for a jury trial during Trump's arraignment at a federal courthouse in Miami on Tuesday. Trump's attorney Todd Blanche said to the judge, "We most certainly enter a plea of not guilty." Trump was arrested after surrendering to federal authorities at the Miami courthouse, NBC News reported. The booking process took around 10 minutes. Prior to the arraignment, deputy marshals booked Trump and took electronic copies of his fingerprints, according to CNN report. The officials did not take a mugshot of the former US President considering he is easily recognizable. Trump's aide and co-defendant Walt Nautu has also been arrested, fingerprinted and processed. The criminal charges in the US Justice Department's classified documents case escalate the legal jeopardy surrounding the Republican Party front-runner for the 2024 Presidential elections, the report said. Former US President Donald Trump is facing 37 felony counts, alleging he illegally retained national defence information and that he concealed documents violating witness-tampering laws in the US Justice Department's investigation into the materials, CNN reported. Trump's aide Walt Nauta has also been charged in the indictment which alleges the two men were involved in a conspiracy to hinder the federal probe. (ANI)
Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine Andriy Yermak had a phone call with National Security Advisor to the Prime Minister of India Ajit Kumar Doval on Wednesday. The two discussed the implementation of the agreements reached by Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy during the talks with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi when he took part in the G7 Summit held in Japan on May 20, according to the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy's official website. The main topic of their conversation was the implementation of the Ukrainian Peace Formula, in particular, the consolidation of international support for the Ukrainian peace plan and the possibility of India joining the implementation of its individual points. In this context, the parties discussed preparations for the Global Peace Summit. Andriy Yermak emphasised the need to involve the widest possible range of countries, including the Global South, in this event. "Recent events have once again proved that the Ukrainian Peace Formula is more relevant than ever - for both Ukraine and the whole world. We are actively working with partners to prepare the Global Summit on the implementation of the formula. We expect India to take part in it," the Head of the Presidential Office noted. Andriy Yermak briefed Ajit Kumar Doval in detail on the current situation on the frontline, as well as on Russia's ongoing missile and drone terror against peaceful Ukrainian cities and civilians, according to the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy's official website. The Head of the President's Office drew attention to the catastrophic environmental and humanitarian consequences of the act of terrorism committed by the Russian Federation at the Kakhovka hydroelectric power plant and called on India to join the international community in its efforts to eliminate the consequences of this man-made disaster. "The blowing up of the Kakhovka hydroelectric power plant is a deliberate terrorist act and another war crime by Russia. This is one of the largest modern crimes of ecocide. The aggressor has caused an unprecedented man-made, environmental and humanitarian disaster, as well as created a threat of a nuclear accident at the largest nuclear power plant in Europe, Zaporizhzhia NPP. The world must act decisively and urgently to neutralize these global challenges," emphasised Andriy Yermak. (ANI)
He came to India to attend the CII-EXIM Bank Conclave.

His visit will boost the development partnership and trade and economic ties between the two countries.

"Warm welcome to Vice President Constantino Chiwenga of Zimbabwe as he arrives in New Delhi for CII-EXIM Bank Conclave. The visit will give boost to India-Zimbabwe development partnership and trade & economic ties," tweeted Arindam Bagchi, MEA official spokesperson.

India and Zimbabwe have a long history of close and cordial relations.

India and Zimbabwe are members of the G20 in WTO and have a common position on IPRs and agricultural subsidies. Zimbabwe generally supports India in most of the elections in the multilateral fora and our Resolutions in the UN.

The CII- EXIM Bank Conclave on India-Africa Project Partnership was launched in the year 2005 with the support of the Ministry of External Affairs and the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, the Government of India, according to CII-EXIM Africa Conclave's official website.

In the last sixteen editions, the Conclave has played a pivotal role in encouraging Indian companies to establish and grow their footprints in Africa.

According to the website, the level of economic engagement between India and Africa has grown multi-dimensional and to reflect the changing contours of this dynamic relationship, the Conclave is being rechristened as "CII EXIM Bank Conclave on India Africa Growth Partnership" expanding the earlier focus on "Project Partnership".

The upcoming edition focussed on project exports, trade, investments, and exchange of knowledge and expertise creating shared value for business and industry at large between India and Africa. (ANI)
Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang has urged the United States to stop interfering in China's internal affairs and in a phone call to US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Washington should respect Beijing's position on Taiwan, reported Xinhua News Agency. Qin also told Blinken, who is scheduled to visit China, in the coming weeks that the US must stop undermining China's sovereignty, security and development interests in the name of competition. The two ministers engaged in a telephonic conversation on Wednesday when Qin asserted China's stance on Taiwan and other core concerns, as per Xinhua, the official state news agency of China. Following their conversation, Blinken tweeted, "Spoke tonight with PRC State Councilor and Foreign Minister Qin Gang by phone. Discussed ongoing efforts to maintain open channels of communication as well as bilateral and global issues." https://twitter.com/secblinken/status/1668838641840316416?s=46&t=TbrKHKgG29uXA1CMFN38Pw US State Department spokesperson, Matthew Miller said that Blinken and Qin discussed the importance of maintaining open lines of communication to responsibly manage the US-PRC (People's Republic of China) relationship to avoid miscalculation and conflict. The two ministers also addressed a range of bilateral and global issues and made clear the US would continue to use diplomatic engagements to raise areas of concern as well as areas of potential cooperation. CNN citing sources said that preparations for Blinken's travel to Beijing are ongoing. The US Secretary of State's visit to China's capital was originally slated for February, but it was postponed after a suspected Chinese spy balloon over the United States sparked indignation from the Biden administration. The two countries are striving to restore normalcy in the relationship after an unusually tumultuous and stressful year, CNN reported. Asked about Blinken's planned travel to China, State Department principal deputy spokesperson Vedant Patel on June 7 said, "We have no travel for the Secretary to announce; as we've said previously the visit to the People's Republic of China will be rescheduled when conditions allow." (ANI)
Sharjah [UAE], June 14 (ANI/WAM): ENOC Group has announced the opening of a new service station on Sharjah-Kalba Road in Al Bataeh suburb, which is home to Al Bataeh Club and Sharjah Desert Park. This brings the Group's total number of service stations in Sharjah to 24. The new service station, which is located alongside Sharjah Kalba Road that connects to Emirates Road (E611), will serve the needs of motorists from Kalba and Fujairah who are heading to Sharjah, Dubai, and other Emirates in addition to catering to the needs of Al Bataeh suburb's residents as well as commuters heading to Al Suyoh suburb. Saif Humaid Al Falasi, Group CEO at ENOC, said, "Developing the country's retail infrastructure is at the forefront of our strategy; and with the new service station in Al Bataeh suburb, we now own and operate 24 service stations in Sharjah and 188 across the UAE. At ENOC Group, we pride ourselves on meeting the growing energy requirements of the country's residents and visitors. Through this service station on Sharjah-Kalba Road, motorists in the suburb and surrounding areas as well as daily commuters will now have easier access to fuel whilst experiencing the highest levels of customer service." Spanning an area of 3,716 sq. m. featuring a main canopy bridged with three dispenser islands and six dispensers, the new service station is equipped with five double wall fuel tanks with a capacity of 15,000 imperial gallons, and fully integrated digital wall displays. (ANI/WAM)
Tel Aviv [Israel], June 14 (ANI/TPS): Israel's Ministry of Environmental Protection transferred commitments in the amount of 35.1 million Shekels (USD 9.75 million) to 200 local authorities for the implementation of activities to promote climate education in the education system and in the community in the years 2007-2008. As part of the support, the local authorities will run programs in schools, kindergartens and among adult citizens. All the local authorities in Israel were invited to submit proposals for activities within the framework of the call, and the authorities that met the administrative and professional threshold conditions received support. As part of the certification process, the schools are required to develop a plan that includes the integration of the environment into the curriculum, the implementation of an environmental community project and the management of a sustainable lifestyle in the school. In addition to this, in the green schools, the provision of a visual expression in the school's building and yard for dealing with environmental issues will be emphasized, and a green student council will be established. Also, the school staff must undergo training on climate and environmental issues. (ANI/TPS)
Deputy Prime Minister of Congo, Vital Kamerhe, has arrived in New Delhi to participate in the CII-Exim Bank conclave, informed the Ministry of External Affairs on Wednesday. Taking to Twitter, MEA Spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said, "Deputy PM Vital Kamerhe of the Democratic Republic of Congo arrives in New Delhi to participate in the CII-EXIM Bank Conclave. An opportunity to bolster the - trade, economic and commercial partnership." This year's, 18th edition of CII-Exim Bank Conclave on India-Africa Growth Partnership is scheduled to take place at Taj Palace, New Delhi from June 14 - 16. Earlier today, Vice President of Zimbabwe Constantino Chiwenga also arrived in New Delhi. "Warm welcome to Vice President Constantino Chiwenga of Zimbabwe as he arrives in New Delhi for CII-EXIM Bank Conclave. The visit will give boost to India-Zimbabwe development partnership and trade & economic ties," tweeted Arindam Bagchi, MEA official spokesperson. The Conclave aims to strengthen the economic partnership between India and Africa and foster collaboration between businesses from both regions. It is an excellent opportunity for African businesses to showcase their potential and explore avenues for collaboration with their Indian counterparts. The CII-EXIM Bank Conclave on India-Africa Project Partnership was launched in the year 2005 with the support of the Ministry of External Affairs and the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, the Government of India, according to CII-EXIM Africa Conclave's official website. In the last sixteen editions, the Conclave has played a pivotal role in encouraging Indian companies to establish and grow their footprints in Africa. According to the website, the level of economic engagement between India and Africa has grown multi-dimensional and to reflect the changing contours of this dynamic relationship, the Conclave is being rechristened as "CII EXIM Bank Conclave on India Africa Growth Partnership" expanding the earlier focus on "Project Partnership". The upcoming edition focussed on project exports, trade, investments, and exchange of knowledge and expertise creating shared value for business and industry at large between India and Africa. (ANI)
Shafiullah Rahimi, the Taliban ministry's spokesman, reported that 30 homes were destroyed and more than 800 animals died as a result of the floods.

"Six people died, and eight more suffered injuries. Thirty homes have been damaged or demolished entirely, seven bridges have been wrecked, 832 animals have died, and some agricultural areas and orchards have lost their crops," Rahimi said, according to TOLOnews.

Saifuddin Laton, Nuristan's governor's spokesperson reported that 300 animals perished in the region due to the flooding and that locals incurred financial losses.

Residents of the country who were affected by natural disasters claimed that the current administration should take care of their needs.

"The recent floods in Ghor province have caused much damage to the people. We ask the Islamic Emirate to provide urgent help to the victims as soon as possible," said Rohullah, a resident of Ghor, TOLOnews reported.

Meanwhile, another resident of Kabul, Amanullah, lamented over the situation in Afghanistan and said, "The recent floods in Ghor province have caused a lot of losses to the people. We ask the Islamic Emirate to pay attention and help the flood victims."

The recent rains caused flooding and storms in the provinces of Kunar, Nuristan, Badakhshan, Paktia, Takhar, Ghor, and Parwan. (ANI)
In a worrying nexus of cybercrime, human trafficking and torture, Chinese gangs are running 'factories' for duping thousands of investors worldwide, according to Trueceylon News. Many job-seekers who went to Thailand for a job in IT were, in fact, recruited by Chinese criminal gangs to enslave them in cybercrime factories. Taking advantage of the sensitive geo-political situation in Myanmar and Cambodia, Chinese criminal gangs are luring several South Asian youths who are actively looking for jobs. The Chinese gangs manipulate them by misleading ads which promise high salaries for random online jobs, but in the end, forced them to commit cyber-frauds, according to Trueceylon News. For these gangs, the vulnerable job seekers from South Asian countries are the easy target. According to the publication, after luring them to Thailand, the gangsters usually push them illegally into other countries in the region with the bordering areas in Myanmar used most widely used for the purpose. Recently, the Sri Lankan Ministry of Foreign Affairs asked the citizens to beware of fraudulent job offers in Thailand in a public advisory, which was issued on April 21, 2023, reported Trueceylon News. They were also advised to exercise extreme caution and verify the background of recruiting agents before taking up any offer. The move came after the Sri Lankan Mission in Thailand noticed workers being tricked by dubious firms involved in call-centre scams and cryptocurrency frauds. Victims are illegally taken across the border from Thailand mostly into Myanmar and held captive to work under restrictive and harsh conditions. Authorities have also apprehended some of the victims for illegal entry into Myanmar. An examination of such cases revealed that the victims arrive in Thailand on tourist visas as the unknown recruiters usually promise to convert their visas to work visas after arrival, reported Trueceylon News. Earlier, similar issues were seen in other countries including Malaysia, Philippines, etc. In October 2022, 130 workers from India who were forced to work in Myanmar, Laos and Cambodia were rescued by the Indian government. The Indian embassy in Yangon, Myanmar also issued an advisory on July 5, 2022, cautioning against 'unscrupulous elements offering jobs'. The victims were offered well-paying IT jobs that turned out to be fake, according to Trueceylon News. While the exact working model of these rackets is yet to emerge fully, it is clear that they bank upon a great degree on regional coordination which is also linked to other nodes of illicit activities. Placed against the weak law enforcement in the domain of cyber crimes, the groups seem to have accomplished themselves in the South East Asian region. (ANI)
Actor Treat Williams: versatile, rock-solid, widely respected. And now, gone. He died June 12 in Dorset, Vermont, after his motorcycle collided with an S.U.V. turning into a parking lot, according to Vermont State Police.

For Williams, the days preceding that day were typical of his family life in rural Vermont. Last year, in a Vermont Magazine feature, Williams spoke gratefully of his marriage to Pam Van Sant, and their two children. Every day I wake up so grateful to see the view that I see out of my window and to be living up here, he said. He and Van Sant married in 1988 and the union lasted 35 years.

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He was 71.

Williams worked with several world-class film directors  Milos Forman, Steven Spielberg, Sidney Lumet, Sergio Leone  without quite reaching world-class movie star status himself. One or two conspicuous commercial hits wouldve helped. But thats rarely about the actors, or the acting; stardom often lies a bridge too far, even for even a fine and consistently valuable actor such as Williams.

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From 1941 to Everwood to his final appearance, across six episodes of Blue Bloods, as well as a string of yuletide specials in the Hallmark Cinematic Universe, Williams enjoyed a working actors half-century on stage, on film and on TV. The screenwork constituted the Hollywood part. The theater  mostly but not entirely in New York  was the other main part. By all accounts he was a wonderful colleague and, to reword the title of his 1981 Lumet film, a prince of two cities and three mediums.

On screen I first saw Williams in The Ritz (1976), outlandishly broad but hes very funny in it. (At one point hes pawed, eagerly, by Rita Morenos Googie Gomez, reprising her Tony-winning turn in the stage version of Terrence McNallys gay bathhouse romp.) Williams cut his teeth in Broadway musicals, first with the Andrews Sisters World War II nostalgia trip Over Here! In that one he worked alongside fellow soon-to-be-knowns John Travolta, Marilu Henner and Ann Reinking. (In one clip on YouTube you can spy Williams in the background, at the 2:35 mark.)

Williams also did Danny Zuko on Broadway in Grease, a few years into its long, long run. I saw his Pirate King after Kevin Kline left The Pirates of Penzance in the early 80s  a vocally challenging, physically demanding role Williams handled with aplomb. By then, hed proven to the movie world he could sing, dance and act, thanks to Formans 1979 film version of the musical Hair. It more than holds up; a screening of Hair at the 2017 Ebertfest in Champaign, Illinois, revealed a work of serious staying power, thanks in large part to Williams. His brashly exuberant turn as Berger surely provided Aaron Tviet his primary reference point in Apple TVs second season of Schmigadoon! aka Schmicago!

Treat Williams, center, in director Milos Forman's 1979 screen version of the musical "Hair." (United Artists)

I havent seen it in far too long, but in director Joyce Chopras unnerving Smooth Talk (1985), Williams and Laura Dern enact a remarkable duet of adult sexual predator and teenage victim. Its welter of dramatic ambiguities are striking, perhaps more so today than ever. The project came for Williams at the tail end of his brush with conventional stardom in, among others, Hair; Spielbergs grandiose slapstick folly 1941 (1979); Lumets police corruption saga Prince of the City (1981); and, in a supporting role, Leones Once Upon a Time in America (1984).

What-ifs are inevitable, and painful, when an actor dies suddenly. He mightve done so much more, given the chances and the material. With Williams, its equally tantalizing to imagine the career he mightve had as a young, vital presence a decade earlier  a James Caan sort of 70s stardom.

But we live in our own time. For Williams, that meant a steady stream of portrayals that improved, humbly, just about everything he did for our benefit. And our reward.

Michael Phillips is a Tribune critic.

mjphillips@chicagotribune.com

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Twitter @phillipstribune
Ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to the United States, India's Defence Ministry is going to discuss the acquisition of MQ-9 Reaper drones from the US. The acquisition of these drones is scheduled to come up for discussion during an important high-level meeting of the defence ministry on Thursday, defence sources told ANI here. Earlier the plan was to rationalise the acquisition of these drones and reduce their numbers from 30 to 18 or less, they said. However, now India is expected to go ahead with the original plan of acquisition of 30 drones including 10 each for all three services, the sources said. The Indian Navy is the lead service for the acquisition of these drones and has been pursuing the case thoroughly. The three services also have plans of going in for similar types of medium altitude and long endurance drones from indigenous sources. Meanwhile, PM Modi is scheduled to visit the US from June 21 to 24, where US President Joe Biden will host him at the White House. This will be PM Modi's first state visit to the US during his nine-year reign as prime minister. PM Narendra Modi during his visit will also become the first Indian PM to address the Joint Meeting of the US Congress for the second time. Indian Americans said the invitation sent to Prime Minister to address the US Congress serves as a reminder of the historic significance of the relationship between the US and India, reflecting the shared dream and commitment to global peace and prosperity, especially in the Indo-Pacific region. (ANI)
United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken is all set to travel to China and the United Kingdom from June 16-21, the Department of State said in a statement. During his visit to China, Blinken will meet with senior PRC officials where he will discuss the importance of maintaining open lines of communication to responsibly manage the US-PRC relationship. It is pertinent to mention that earlier, he was scheduled to visit China in February 2023, but it was postponed after a suspected Chinese spy balloon over the United States sparked indignation from the Biden administration. During Blinken's visit, he will also raise bilateral issues of concern, global and regional matters, and potential cooperation on shared transnational challenges, according to the statement. Earlier today, Blinken had a phone call with Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang where the latter urged the United States to stop interfering in China's internal affairs. In a phone call to US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Washington should respect Beijing's position on Taiwan, reported Xinhua News Agency. Earlier, when asked about Blinken's planned travel to China, State Department principal deputy spokesperson Vedant Patel said, "We have no travel for the Secretary to announce; as we've said previously the visit to the People's Republic of China will be rescheduled when conditions allow." The news of the planned rescheduled trip comes after American and Chinese officials had "candid" and "productive" discussions in Beijing on Monday, according to readouts from both nations. Blinken's original trip was intended to follow up on the meeting between the two leaders. The decision to postpone it was made after high-level conversations between Blinken, Biden and other top national security officials, according to people familiar with the matter. At the time, Blinken said the balloon incident "created the conditions that undermine the purpose of the trip" but said he would visit Beijing "when conditions allow." After China, Blinken will visit London where the Secretary will attend the Ukraine Recovery Conference to help mobilize international support from the public and private sector to help Ukraine recover from Russia's brutal and ongoing attacks. While there, he will also meet with counterparts from the United Kingdom, Ukraine, and other partners and allies, as per the statement. (ANI)
Three people were killed and thirteen others sustained injuries in a Russian missile attack on Odesa, a Black Sea port in Ukraine, Al Jazeera reported citing Ukraine's military. Russia fired four cruise missiles towards the city, according to the southern military command of Ukraine. Two missiles were reportedly destroyed by the military before they could reach their objectives, reported Al Jazeera. "As a result of air combat and blast waves, a business centre, an educational institution, a residential complex, food establishments and shops in the city centre were damaged," the southern command of the Ukrainian military said, according to Al Jazeera. "Sifting through the debris continues. There may be people under," he added. Earlier on June 8, Russian soldiers shelled Kherson in "targeted strikes" during flood evacuation operations, leaving at least one person dead and 8 others injured. "The shelling began precisely during the evacuation of citizens whose homes were flooded," the Interior Ministry of Ukraine stated in a statement, according to Al Jazeera. "And it continues to prevent Ukraine from saving the most valuable - human lives," it added. Evacuation efforts are underway in Kherson after the Nova Kakhovka dam, the largest reservoir in Ukraine in terms of volume collapsed after an explosion this week. Kherson is located on the Dnipro River, approximately 60 kms (37 miles) downstream of the Kakhovka dam. Russia has already accused Ukrainian forces of shelling rescue personnel in Russian-occupied areas of the Kherson region. More than 1,500 people have been evacuated from flooded areas of the Kherson region in Ukraine after the collapse of the Kakhovka Dam, CNN reported. There are worries about an ecological disaster following the collapse of the Nova Kakhovka dam and hydroelectric power plant on Tuesday in Ukraine. Residents downstream from the Nova Kakhovka dam on the Dnipro River in Kherson were told to "do everything you can to save your life", according to the head of Ukraine's Kherson region military administration. The critical Nova Kakhovka dam is the largest reservoir in Ukraine in terms of volume. It's the last of the cascade of six Soviet-era dams on the Dnipro River, a major waterway running through southeastern Ukraine. There are multiple towns and cities downstream, including Kherson, a city of some 300,000 people, before Moscow's invasion of its neighbour, CNN reported. (ANI)
Under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision of "One Earth One Health" and belief "Vasudaiva Kutumbakam," India supplied 'Made in India' Covid vaccines to 42 countries of the Africa continent, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said on Wednesday. Addressing the inaugural address at the 18th CII-EXIM Bank Conclave, Jaishankar said, "During the pandemic, India continued unabated its engagement with Africa. The 15th and 16th editions of the CII-Exim Bank Africa Conclave were actually held, though they were held virtually. To support our friends in Africa, India provided medical support to 32 countries." "From January 2021 till March 2023 we supplied 'Made in India' Covid vaccines to 42 countries of the continent. This was in line with our Prime Minister's vision of "One Earth One Health" and our civilizational belief in "Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam". We are now encouraging Indian pharma manufacturers and vaccine manufacturers to explore joint manufacturing facilities in African countries. Equally important, we have battled in the WTO along with our African partners for enhancing the accessibility and affordability of vaccines," he added, according to the statement released by MEA. He also talked about virtual education and medical services. Jaishankar informed that India launched e-VidyaBharti and e-ArogyaBharti network in 2019 for tele-education and tele-medicine. Under this initiative, over 14,000 youth from 22 African countries have enrolled for various degrees and diploma courses. India has partnered with African countries in promoting digital transformation through the setting up of IT Centres, S&T Parks Entrepreneur Development Centres (EDC), etc. Where the digital domain is concerned, India's emphasis on trust and transparency makes it a natural partner for Africa. On the trade and economic front, India and Africa's bilateral trade reached USD 98 billion in 2022-23. "On the trade and economic front, India's bilateral trade with Africa has reached US$ 98 billion in 2022-23 compared to USD 89.6 billion of the previous year. I am confident that our bilateral trade will soon cross the USD 100 billion mark," Jaishankar said. "Through the Duty-Free Tariff Preference (DFTP) Scheme that extends duty-free access to 98.2 per cent of India's total tariff lines, India opened its market to African countries, and so far 33 LDC African nations are entitled to get the benefit," he added. The minister hoped that African Continental Free Trade Area Agreement (AfCFTA) which commenced in 2021 will be helpful for Indian companies to enhance their business footprint in Africa. With cumulative investments at USD 73.9 billion from 1996-2021, India is among the top five large investors in Africa, Jaishankar said adding that he is sure this will grow in the times to come. (ANI)
1 dead, 3 injured after partial roof collapse at Texas high school, officials say

At least one person is dead and three are injured after a portion of a roof collapsed at a Texas high school Tuesday, school officials said.

Three construction workers were transported to local hospitals after the roof above a gym at Friendswood High School collapsed while under construction, Friendswood Independent School District said in a statement on Facebook.

The incident happened around 4:30 p.m. local time, ABC 13 reported. One worker was pronounced dead at the scene, the station said.

The school district said there were no students or staff in the area when the roof collapsed. Friendswood High School will remain closed to all until further notice, the school district said.

USA TODAY has reached out to the district and the Friendswood Volunteer Fire Department for more information.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Friendswood High School roof collapse: 1 dead, 3 injured in Texas
FILE - Ukrainian refugees wait in a gymnasium, April 5, 2022, in Tijuana, Mexico. Some 110 million people around the world have had to flee their homes because of conflict, persecution, or human rights violations, the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees says. Last year alone, an additional 19 million people were forcibly displaced including more than 11 million who fled Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in what became the fastest and largest displacement of people since World War II. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull, File)

Some 110 million people have had to flee their homes because of conflict, persecution, or human rights violations, the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees says. The war in Sudan, which has displaced nearly 2 million people since April, is but the latest in a long list of crises that has led to the record-breaking figure.

Its quite an indictment on the state of our world, Filippo Grandi, who leads the U.N. refugee agency, told reporters in Geneva ahead of the publication Wednesday of UNHCR's Global Trends Report for 2022.

Last year alone, an additional 19 million people were forcibly displaced including more than 11 million who fled Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in what became the fastest and largest displacement of people since World War II.

We are constantly confronted with emergencies, Grandi said. Last year the agency recorded 35 emergencies, three to four times more than in previous years. Very few make your headlines, Grandi added, arguing that the war in Sudan fell off most front pages after Western citizens were evacuated.

Conflicts in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia and Myanmar were also responsible for displacing more than 1 million people within each country in 2022.

The majority of the displaced globally have sought refuge within their nations borders. One-third of them - 35 million - have fled to other countries, making them refugees, according to the UNHCR report. Most refugees are hosted by low to middle-income countries in Asia and Africa, not rich countries in Europe or North America, Grandi said.

Turkey currently hosts the most refugees with 3.8 million people, mostly Syrians who fled the civil war, followed by Iran with 3.4 million refugees, mostly Afghans. But there are also 5.7 million Ukrainian refugees scattered across countries in Europe and beyond. The number of stateless people has also risen in 2022 to 4.4 million, according to UNHCR data, but this is believed to be an underestimate.

Regarding asylum claims, the U.S. was the country to receive the most new applications in 2022 with 730,400 claims. It's also the nation with the largest backlog in its asylum system, Grandi said.

One of the things that needs to be done is reforming that asylum system so that it becomes more rapid, more efficient, he said.

The United States, Spain and Canada recently announced plans to create asylum processing centers in Latin America with the goal of reducing the number of people who trek their way north to the Mexico-U.S. border.

As the number of asylum-seekers grows, so have the challenges facing them. We see pushbacks. We see tougher and tougher immigration or refugee admission rules. We see in many countries the criminalization of immigrants and refugees, blaming them for everything that has happened, Grandi said.

Last week European leaders renewed financial promises to North African nations in the hopes of stemming migration across the Mediterranean while the British government insists on a so-far failed plan to ship asylum-seekers to Rwanda, something UNHCR is opposed to. But there were also some wins, Grandi said, pointing to what he described as a positive sign in the European Union's negotiations for a new migration and asylum pact, despite criticism from human rights groups.

Grandi also celebrated the fact that the number of refugees resettled in 2022 doubled to 114,000 from the previous year. But he admitted this was "still a drop in the ocean."

___

Follow APs global migration coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/migration
14-year-old girl who was lured to College Park hotel by known human trafficker rescued, police say

Investigators say a known human trafficker lured a 14-year-old girl to a hotel room.

Police arrested Christopher Sarabia last month.

Police said he is from California and was messaging his victim on Instagram.

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The teenager eventually met him in a College Park motel. Her parents only realized she was gone the next morning.

Channel 2s Tyisha Fernandes spoke with investigators about how they tracked down the child. Oakwood Police Sergeant Chris Campbell has a warning for all parents.

Its a good thing to stay in your kids business and especially their electronic devices and stuff. You have to these days, Campbell said.

Police say Sarabia flew from California to Georgia and planned to take her back to California to traffick her.

She ended up leaving in an Uber and just walking out the house in the middle of the night, Campbell said.

When her parents realized she was gone the next day, they thought someone had kidnapped her because shes a homeschooled child who is home most of the time.

The online predator thing is a big deal. These predators and human traffickers are all over the internet, theyre all over social apps, Campbell said.

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Oakwood police tracked her phone to a College Park motel.

She was messaging her parents at one time saying she didnt know where she was, Campbell said.

Investigators arent sure if that was actually the girl or the suspect who typed the message.

Sarabia is charged with statutory rape and police believe there could be more suspects and more victims.

Police say parents should monitor social media apps and gaming apps as well.

Theyre all over the gaming systems talking to these kids through headsets. The gaming system is a big place for them to draw kids, Campbell said.

The parents of this girl did not think their daughter was capable of leaving with a stranger like she did.

They urge other parents to monitor what their child is doing online, even if they think their child would never do something like this.

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In a bizarre scenario straight out of a movie, a 28-year-old woman pretended to be 17 and managed to successfully enroll in a Louisiana high school, investigators say.

The masquerade came to an end June 13, when deputies with the St. Charles Parish Sheriffs Office arrested the woman and her 46-year-old mother on fraud charges, according to a news release.

On Monday, May 29, ... detectives were notified by officials with the St. Charles Parish Public Schools of a possible adult attending Hahnville High School in Boutte, LA during the 2022-2023 school year, officials said.

School administration received a tip that a female student, who was on record as being 17 years old, was in fact an adult possibly in her mid 20s. School Administration began an internal investigation and later notified the sheriffs office of their findings.

Detectives discovered the family used a fraudulent passport and birth certificate to enroll in the school, officials said.

The mother and daughter, who share a home in Boutte, are charged with one count each of injury to public records, a law covering the alteration or falsification of public records. If found guilty, the two could pay thousands of dollars in fines and serve up to 5 years prison time.

Investigators did not reveal when the woman enrolled in Hahnville High School or her grade level.

The school is about 25 miles west of New Orleans and has about 1,400 students in grades 9 through 12, according to the district. May 24 was the last day of classes for the 2022-23 school year, and seniors graduated May 17, records show.

District officials released a statement noting their enrollment requirements and procedures are aligned with state law.

In this case, however, the standard documents provided by a parent may have been fraudulent.

As a result of this discovery, St. Charles Parish Public Schools is conducting an audit of enrollment documents for students currently enrolled in St. Charles Parish Public Schools, is reviewing student enrollment policy and procedures, and will make enhancements based upon that review, the district said in a news release.

Moving forward, the school system will provide additional required training for school and district level employees focused on recognizing the signs of potentially fraudulent documents.

13-year-old girl who vanished in Texas found living with man in Mississippi, cops say

Argument between teachers at Florida high school ends with one in jail, deputies say

Teacher pulled hair of special needs student to gain compliance, Florida cops say
2 men wanted for shoplifting items worth thousands from Gwinnett County REI, police say

Gwinnett County police are looking for two men who were seen on surveillance cameras stealing items worth thousands of dollars from a Buford REI.

On May 31, the two men were seen entering the REI on Mall of Georgia Blvd. and walking around the store.

One of the men was seen putting a generator in a shopping cart, walking to an employee, and telling the employee he was returning the generator.

The employee told the man he would need the receipt before returning the item.

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The man walked outside the store with the generator to a white vehicle.

The second man walked out of the store with a stolen belt and helped load the generator into a car before driving off.

One of the suspects had a beard, a checkered shirt and white or tan pants.

The other suspect had a beard and mustache, a red checkered shirt, and a red Atlanta Hawks hat.

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Detectives are asking for the publics help in identifying the two men.

Anyone with information about this case is asked to contact GCPD detectives at 770.513.5300. To remain anonymous, tipsters should contact Atlanta Crime Stoppers at 404.577.TIPS (8477) or visit www.StopCrimeATL.com. Crime Stoppers tipsters can receive a cash reward for information leading to an arrest and indictment in this case.

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NEW ORLEANS  The Southern Baptist Convention has refused to welcome Saddleback Church back into its fold, rejecting an appeal by the California megachurch over its February ouster for having women pastors.

Southern Baptist church representatives at their annual meeting here also rejected a similar appeal by a smaller church, Fern Creek Baptist of Louisville, Kentucky, which is led by a woman pastor.

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The results of the Tuesday votes were announced Wednesday morning here on the concluding day of the the two-day annual meeting of the nations largest Protestant denomination, whose statement of faith asserts that only qualified men can serve as pastors.

The convention hall packed with about 12,000 Southern Baptists was quiet after the announcement, appearing to have listened to the earlier urging by SBC President Bart Barber for them to show restraint.

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I know sometimes there are churches where people wind up in biblical divorce, he said. But we dont throw divorce parties at church. And whatever these results are, Im asking you, behave like Christians.

Saddleback had been the denominations second-largest congregation and until recently was widely touted as a success story amid larger Southern Baptist membership declines.

With the 9,437-1,212 vote, delegates  known as messengers  rejected an appeal by Rick Warren, the retired founding pastor of Saddleback and author of the best-selling phenomenon, The Purpose Driven Life. Warren had urged Baptists to agree to disagree in order to share a common mission.

Messengers voted for conformity and uniformity rather than unity. The only way you will have unity is to love diversity. We made this effort knowing we were not going to win, Warren said at a news conference after the results were announced.

Church representatives also voted 9,700-806 to deny an appeal by a smaller congregation, Fern Creek Baptist Church of Louisville, Kentucky, which has had a woman pastor for three decades but came under heightened scrutiny this year.

I knew they would uphold the expulsion. However, I guess I am a bit naive. I did not think it would be that drastic a result. I thought there were more people left in the Southern Baptist Convention who support the autonomy of the local church, if not women in ministry, said the Rev. Linda Barnes Popham, Fern Creeks pastor.

She said some messengers came up to her to say while they disagree with her, they appreciate our passion for the Gospel.

All Baptist churches are independent. So the convention cant tell them what to do, but it can decide which churches are not in friendly cooperation, the official verbiage for an expulsion. The SBCs statement of faith says the office of pastor is reserved for qualified men, but this is believed to be the first time the convention has expelled any churches over it.

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In February, the SBCs Executive Committee voted to oust the two congregations, along with three others that chose not to appeal, for having women pastors.

Warren and Barnes Popham made their final appeals to Southern Baptists on Tuesday during the annual meeting.

Albert Mohler, president of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, spoke on behalf of the Executive Committee in calling for the ouster of Saddleback and Fern Creek, saying its a matter of biblical authority.

The issues were clear, and the messengers were clearly united.  There was no rancor, Mohler said Wednesday after the results were announced. This was a real defining moment, and making certain that those doctrines that must be common among us be publicly acknowledged.

For years, questions about womens ministry roles have caused turmoil in the SBC. On Wednesday, the messengers pressed to make those roles more clear by voting to amend the conventions constitution to specify that Southern Baptists churches must affirm, appoint or employ only men as any kind of pastor or elder as qualified by Scripture. To go into effect, it needs to be approved at the next annual meeting.

Sarah Clatworthy, member of Lifepoint Baptist Church in San Angelo, Texas, advocated for the amendment, calling on the SBC to shut the door to feminism and liberalism.

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In a culture that is unclear about the role of men and women, we have to be crystal clear, she said. We should leave no room for our daughters or granddaughters to have confusion on where the SBC stands.

Warren has been a lifelong Southern Baptist, and the church he founded being removed from the denomination was something he might have never expected even though he has pushed the boundaries for years now, said Scott Thumma, a sociology of religion professor and director of the Hartford Institute for Religion Research.

Its pretty clear (from his speech Tuesday) that Warren did not think the SBC was going to reinstate Saddleback, he said. But, hes had a platform to say what being Baptist means, what the Scripture says about women in ministry.  This is all probably more symbolic.

Following the results, Warren issued a critique of the direction of the SBC.

There are people who want to take the SBC back to the 1950s when white men ruled supreme and when the womans place was in the home. There are others who want to take it back 500 years to the time of the Reformation, he said. I say we need to take the church back to the first century. The church at its birth was the church at its best.

As for Fern Creek, Barnes Popham said she doesnt know whether the church will join a new denomination or remain independent, but I also believe God has great things for Fern Creek Baptist.

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The church is now facing a possible expulsion from the Kentucky Baptist Convention, the SBCs state affiliate, based on a recommendation from its credentials committee.

Messengers also addressed sexual abuse issues on Wednesday, including upholding the expulsion of Freedom Baptist Church in Florida over its alleged mishandling of a sexual misconduct allegation.

They also voted overwhelmingly to give a task force in charge of implementing abuse reforms more time to work. The task force launched last year at the direction of the 2022 annual convention in Anaheim.

Marshall Blalock, pastor of First Baptist Church in Charleston, South Carolina, who leads the task force, announced the creation of a new website, which contains the messenger-mandated database of pastors and church workers credibly accused of sex abuse as well as resources for congregations. He said this tracking is necessary because sexual abuse is underreported.

Bharath reported from Los Angeles.
After 20 years in WA prison for murder, he killed again in Tacoma. Heres his sentence

After Parris Miller received his first criminal conviction at age 14 for possessing stolen property in 1994, he has never spent more than five years out of the states custody, Pierce County prosecutors say.

After he was sentenced Friday for his second murder in the county, Miller, 42, might never have another day of freedom. Judge Grant Blinn handed down a high-end sentence of 43 years in prison for the Sept. 15, 2022 fatal shooting of Glennis LaDel Piper on Tacomas Tideflats.

Miller was convicted in a jury trial in Pierce County Superior Court in May. According to court records, the defendant represented himself, did not testify and did not cross-examine any of the 20 witnesses prosecutors called to the stand. After little more than an hour of deliberations, Jurors found him guilty of two counts of second-degree murder, attempting to elude a pursuing police vehicle and two counts of first-degree unlawful possession of a firearm.

Defendants two murder convictions and the facts of this case give this Court no reason to believe that society will ever be safe, while Defendant is free from imprisonment, prosecutors wrote in a sentencing memorandum.

Parris Donzell Miller shown here in Pierce County Superior Court on Sept. 19, 2022.

The murder occurred after an exchange of words at a gas station, according to court documents. Piper was with a coworker in a moving truck, and he reportedly told his partner a man was giving him dirty looks, so he went to confront him in his SUV. Its unclear what was said, but after Piper returned to his truck and drove back to work at a warehouse, Miller followed them. The dispute escalated, and Miller shot Piper in the chest.

Miller had been out of prison for a year-and-a-half when the shooting occurred. He pleaded guilty in 2000 to second-degree murder at age 21 and was sentenced to nearly 27 years in prison, according to court records.

He was resentenced twice, first in 2012 based on a recalculation of his offender score and a second time, in 2021, after the Washington Supreme Courts Blake decision found the states main drug possession law unconstitutional, allowing tens of thousands of cases to be resentenced. Ultimately, Millers sentence was reduced to 22 years, and he was released in February 2021.

With a drug crisis looming, WA legislature and governor OK fix that avoids decriminalization

Victim shot, killed at work

The man Miller killed last year was shot on the job, and the states Department of Labor & Industries honored him and more than 100 others at its Workers Memorial Day Ceremony in April. His mother told L&I her son loved life and that his family misses him. Piper had ties to Louisiana and Port Orchard. The News Tribune could not reach his family for comment.

Glennis LaDel Piper

Tacoma Police Department officers were called to the shooting in a warehouse parking lot in the 1500 block of St. Paul Avenue at about 10:25 a.m and found Piper with a gunshot wound and a knife near his right hand, according to the declaration for determination of probable cause. He was transported to St. Joseph Medical Center, where he was later declared dead.

An employee at the warehouse was interviewed by police. He reported that Piper called him and asked him to come outside because someone was following him, records state. The employee said he thought that was odd and said Piper was an alpha male. He reported that both vehicles entered the lot, and at first, the altercation was calm. The two men sized each other up and walked side to side before Miller got back in his SUV and the victim started walking away.

Man who served 20 years for murder now charged in deadly Tacoma Tideflats shooting

The victim then turned around, re-approached the SUV and appeared to talk to the suspect again, records state. The employee heard the victim state, You didnt wanna do anything at the gas station, so what now?

Piper was shot seconds later, and Miller drove off. In interviews with detectives after his arrest, Miller denied purposefully killing the man, according to the probable cause document, stating that he only meant to fire in his direction and scare him.

Defendant arrested after high-speed chase

Detectives obtained surveillance video that showed Millers vehicle near the shooting, and the next day, officers found him driving in the Dome District. Miller fled from a traffic stop, and officers chased him seven miles to a West End apartment complex. Prosecutors alleged he wove in and out of traffic on southbound Interstate 5 and reached speeds of 90-100 mph on state Route 16.

Miller was detained after a foot chase. Inside his vehicle, detectives found a semiautomatic assault-style rifle and a loaded 9 mm handgun prosecutors described as a ghost gun that was used to kill Piper.

A ghost gun is an untraceable firearm without a serial number that is assembled, typically from a kit. In a news release issued Wednesday, the Department of Justice said it recovered 25,785 ghost guns in domestic seizures last year.
27 settlements still flooded on Dnipros right bank in Kherson Oblast

As of the evening on 14 June, 27 settlements and 2,079 houses remained flooded on the right bank of Kherson Oblast.

Source: Oleksandr Prokudin, Head of Kherson Oblast Military Administration, on Telegram

Quote: "Today [14 June  ed.], the water moved away from Poniativka, Kherson Oblast. There, stabilisation and restoration work begin immediately."

Details: The head of the Kherson Oblast Military Administration added that in just one day, bomb disposal experts examined more than 8 hectares of territory, 1.4 km of roads, and the building of a critical infrastructure facility. At the same time, power engineers restored power supply in the villages of Inhulets and Zarichne; over 800 consumers have been connected to the network.

Pumping water from the yards of houses in Chornobaivka and Bilozerka hromadas [a hromada is an administrative unit designating a town, village or several villages and their adjacent territories  ed.]. But the passage between Bilozerka and Kherson has already been established.

Prokudin noted that the inspection of damaged property is currently underway, which is reflected in relevant acts.

A register of affected hromadas has already been created, and each of them has formed relevant commissions.

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Donald Trump. Illustrated | Gettyimages

The case against former President Donald Trump, as laid out in the Justice Department's indictment on 37 counts of "willfully" and carelessly hoarding military secrets and obstructing the government's attempts to get them back, is "very, very damning," as former Attorney General William Barr assessed on Fox News. "If even half of it is true, then he's toast." But even if special counsel Jack Smith has Trump dead to rights legally, that doesn't mean the former president is necessarily heading to prison.

Trump has been the subject of legal complaints and challenges since the early 1970s, and through some combination of wealth, wile, bravado, determination, shamelessness and luck, he has avoided ruination, incarceration and expulsion from office. Smith's classified documents case isn't the only legal threat Trump faces as he seeks a second term in office, but it's so far the most serious. It could conceivably fall apart under scrutiny. But regardless of the case's merits, these are three ways Trump may once again get the better of the justice system.

1. Friendly judge

Out of the gate, Trump "seemed to win the judicial lottery" when, "in an apparently random twist of fate," his case "landed before U.S. District Court Judge Aileen Cannon," one of his appointees and "favorite judges," Politico reported.

Cannon oversaw Trump's earlier attempt to derail the case by contesting the FBI's seizure of documents from his Mar-a-Lago club. "Legal experts described Cannon's pro-Trump rulings at the time as audacious and even lawless, and a conservative appeals-court panel (which itself consisted of two other Trump appointees) quickly overruled her," Politico added. "Now, Cannon will be in an even more powerful position to steer Trump's legal fortunes." Some legal experts have argued for her recusal or reassignment from the case.

There are several ways Cannon could steer the case to Trump's advantage, up to and including unilaterally acquitting him on any or all of the 37 counts under Rule 29 of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure. After the prosecution and defense present their cases, Trump's lawyers could ask for a Rule 29 acquittal and Cannon could agree, essentially asserting that no reasonable jury could find the plaintiff guilty under the evidence presented at trial. If she acquitted Trump before handing the case to the jury, The New York Times reported, "that outcome would be final and prosecutors could not appeal it."

Cannon would also have subtler ways to shape the trial, including deciding when to hold the trial, what evidence is admissible in court, what classified documents are made public, and who sits on the jury, among other rulings. "There are so many 'little' things she can do without any real oversight that can have significant substantive impact on how this prosecution plays out," national security lawyer Mark Zaid told Politico.

Trump's lawyers are expected to file a flurry of pretrial motions to derail or delay the case, and Cannon will have first crack at rejecting or approving the motions. Trump's team has already suggested it will seek to bar damning evidence and accuse the Justice Department of selective prosecution and prosecutorial misconduct. "It is routine for defendants to make such claims, and it is routine for judges to briefly look at and reject them," the Times noted. But that would be up to Cannon.

"If she were to grant a motion to suppress the evidence obtained in the search, for example, that would really gut the case," said Barb McQuade, a former U.S. attorney from Eastern Michigan. "Similarly, she could suppress the testimony of Evan Corcoran, making her own independent decision that the crime-fraud exception does not apply in this case."

U.S. District Judge Beryl Howard in Washington, D.C., ruled that prosecutors could force Corcoran, a former Trump lawyer, to cooperate because Trump's communications with him had likely furthered a crime. "But Judge Cannon is not bound by Judge Howell's decisions when it comes to what information should be presented to a jury," the Times said. The Justice Department would be able to appeal unfavorable rulings, but it would cost them time.

Finally, if a jury did convict Trump, Cannon would also "impose the sentence," McQuade told Semafor. "Because there is no mandatory minimum here, she could sentence Trump to probation or time served, based on his few moments in custody when he was processed before his arraignment." Cannon would be expected to consider similar sentences in deciding Trump's fate, however, Politico said. "While no former president has been charged or convicted of a federal criminal offense, many people have faced prosecution under the Espionage Act and for obstruction of justice, and many have served significant sentences for those crimes."

2. Hung jury

It would obviously be better for Trump if the jury did not convict him, and some members of his legal team are arguing that "the case is winnable at trial through careful jury selection  one juror is all a defendant needs to convince to avoid conviction," The Washington Post reported.

The jurors will be drawn from Miami-Dade County, which has traditionally leaned slightly Democratic but has "grown more Republican in recent years," the Times stated. That should "offer some comfort" to Trump's lawyers, as should the fact that "many South Floridians, like Americans elsewhere in the country, believe that Mr. Trump is a victim of unfair treatment by powerful forces on the political left."

Prosecutors and Trump's lawyers will have a certain number of discretionary "peremptory" challenges to winnow down the 12 jurors and four alternates, as well as unlimited challenges to disqualify jurors "for cause," typically bias. "Cannon will have the power to accept or reject any 'for cause' challenges, potentially tilting the composition of the jury," the Times reported.

If a judge decides "on cause" challenges "in a one-sided way, it can really put the prosecution in a bind," Joyce Vance, a former U.S. attorney from Alabama, told Politico. "It can force them to spend all of their strikes on prospective jurors, who really should have gone for cause."

Every juror is important, because if all 12 can't decide on a verdict beyond a reasonable doubt, it's a hung jury and a mistrial. "Prosecutors would then have to decide whether to start over with a new trial," the Times explained. Judges typically encourage jurors to reach a consensus, "but if there is an early disagreement, a judge could also kneecap the government by immediately declaring a mistrial."

3. Delay and destroy

Smith has said he will push for a speedy trial, but "Trump has long pursued a strategy of trying to delay legal proceedings against him to run out the clock," the Times reported. Once again, Cannon "is really in the driver's seat in terms of the pacing," retired federal judge Nancy Gertner told the Post. "The danger here is if it backs up into the 2024 campaign or if the case lingers until after Trump is reelected or another Republican elected, and they can direct the Justice Department to drop charges or pardon the president." Trump, if elected, could attempt an unprecedented self-pardon.

In a very real sense, the voters are probably jurors here too. Realistically, "I don't think we'll have this case resolved before the election," Rachel Barkow, a professor at New York University School of Law, told the Times. "And so the election may end up resolving it."

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Thirty civilians have been evacuated from four villages in Donetsk Oblast recently liberated by the Ukrainian Armed Forces.

Source: Pavlo Kyrylenko, Head of the Donetsk Oblast Military Administration, during a press briefing at Media Center Ukraine  Ukrinform on 14 June 2023

Quote from Kyrylenko: "Blahodatne, Storozhove, Neskuchne and Makarivka have been liberated. Mop-up operations are currently being undertaken there to eliminate the remaining Russian armed forces personnel, some of whom are still hiding in the said settlements.

The total number of people [evacuated from the settlements] and transferred to locations where they are receiving medical and psychological help, and offered food, is 30, including one person with a disability."

Details: According to Kyrylenko, the evacuees will be given long-term accommodation outside of Donetsk Oblast, because all settlements in the latter remain dangerous for civilians.

Quote from Kyrylenko: "Fighting is currently taking place in the Volnovakha district where our forces are advancing, but Ill leave it to the countrys leaders and military commanders to report on that. The situation is stable. The offensive is trending positively."

Background:

On 12 June, Kyrylenko said that 11 civilians were evacuated from three recently liberated settlements  Blahodatne, Storozhove and Neskuchne  in Donetsk Oblast.

Journalists fight on their own frontline. Support Ukrainska Pravda or become our patron!
38-year-old man vanishes after fall off cliff into Pacific Ocean, California cops say

A search for a man who plummeted off a Mendocino County cliff into the Pacific Ocean has been suspended, California sheriffs officials reported.

A 38-year-old Mendocino man fell a great distance from a cliff near Big River Beach at 8:15 p.m. Saturday, June 10, the Mendocino County Sheriffs Office said in a news release.

An onlooker reported seeing the man, who appeared unresponsive, floating face-down in the water, sheriffs officials said.

Firefighters in a boat and a U.S. Coast Guard helicopter searched for the man but could not find him, the sheriffs office said.

Search efforts continued the next day with a drone, sheriffs officials said. Authorities suspended the search after failing to find the man.

Woman sexually assaulted as she entered popular hiking trail, California police say

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A rollover school bus crash in Chicago Tuesday left five children injured and several lanes blocked, according to state and city officials.

No passengers faced life-threatening injuries after the bus rolled over, Chicago Fire said on Twitter. Officials said no other vehicles were involved in the accident on Interstate 94 at 35th Street.

The bus driver refused to seek medical treatment, according to Chicago Fire.

The five children injured were between the ages of 12 and 16 and taken to Comer Children's Hospital and University of Chicago Medical Center to be treated for their non-life threatening injuries, fire officials said, according to ABC7 Chicago.

Wedding bus crash in Australia: Driver charged after bus carrying guests flips , killing 10 and injuring 25

A school bus crash in Chicago left five children injured on Tuesday June 13.

USA TODAY has reached out to Chicago Fire, Illinois State Police and the school for comment.

The crash caused the closure of three of the four lanes with the bus being towed shortly before 4 p.m., ABC7 reported.

The cause of the rollover wreck, which occurred during rainy conditions Tuesday on a busy stretch of freeway near Guaranteed Rate Field.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Chicago school bus rollover wreck near I-94 injures 5 children
Mayors across Maricopa County are threatening to take matters into their own hands after state legislators and the governor failed to find a compromise to allow voters to consider a measure extending a sales tax to fund transportation projects.

The Republican-majority Legislature sent a bill to Gov. Katie Hobbs on Tuesday laden with partisan priorities, like axing a light-rail expansion to the state Capitol and preempting bans on gasoline-burning vehicles. Conservative lawmakers declared victory on behalf of taxpayers.

Hobbs, a Democrat, immediately pledged to veto the bill, saying Republican leadership was "holding our state's economic potential hostage."

In reaction, six mayors signed and issued a letter pledging to take the tax extension to voters directly through "another avenue" in 2024 if no solution is reached. Later in the day, peers across the region joined in condemnation of lawmakers' efforts.

The letter called the bill sent to Hobbs on Tuesday "special interest legislation that seeks to derail our booming economy" and added that it came from a very small group of lawmakers.

Mayors who signed the letter, which accused the Legislature of "California-style gridlock," included:

Kate Gallego of Phoenix

John Giles of Mesa

Corey Woods of Tempe

Kevin Hartke of Chandler

Brigette Peterson of Gilbert

Kenn Weise of Avondale

The leaders represent some of the state's biggest cities.

The mayors wrote that they had conceded on more than 30 points to try to secure a deal but that the "uncompromising band of lawmakers" were "spouting half-truths" and pushing priorities that don't "mesh with the realities" of Maricopa County's fast-paced growth.

What the other side said: Republicans in Legislature send Hobbs transportation tax plan for Maricopa County; governor to veto

"We are unalterably opposed to their plan, and if no solution is reached, we will have no choice but to pursue another avenue to get this before voters in 2024," the letter says.

Voters last approved the half-cent sales tax through Proposition 400 in 2004. The tax, first approved in 1985, expires in 2025.

Conservative lawmakers oppose light rail, mass transit projects

Conservative lawmakers opposed a renewal of that plan, saying mass transit projects, and light-rail extensions in particular, were a waste of money and didn't serve their constituents. They said their resistance to funding such projects was an act of defending taxpayers and commuters.

"Senate and House Republicans showed that bold conservative leadership produces smart, comprehensive public policy that best serves the interests of the constituents who elected us," Sen. Jake Hoffman, R-Queen Creek, and leader of the Freedom Caucus, said in a statement after the vote. He called on the governor to sign the "smart pro-commuter, pro-taxpayer plan."

The Freedom Caucus released a statement soon after the Senates passage of the bill, calling it a major victory.

Light rail was the focus of GOP ire.

Rep. John Gillette, R-Kingman, said he sees Hobbs Prop. 400 plan as a pathway to the Green New Deal and derides electric railways as 1800s technology.

It should be removed and replaced with the internal combustion engine, he told The Arizona Republic.

Most of us think that light rail should be a question that should go to voters to decide, said Rep. Justin Heap, R-Mesa. If the voters want light rail, then its appropriate. From what we can see right now, its not really that popular with the majority of the population, and it costs the state money. We lose money for every person that rides the light rail.

Light rail was pushed initially as a system that would reduce the number of cars on the road, but he said it did the opposite  its narrowed roads down, its made traffic worse, and it certainly hasnt made a dent in our freeways.

Mayors, county supervisors: 'An absolute sense of anguish'

Local mayors and transportation officials who spent the past two years devising an investment plan for future highways, bus routes and light rail say an extension of the tax is crucial for the economic vitality of the region. They also stress quality of life for existing residents, saying planned improvements will maintain low commute times.

The transportation tax is responsible for building out the region's highways, including Loops 101, 202 and 303, and the Valley Metro light rail in Phoenix, Tempe and Mesa. It provides critical funding to operate the Valley's public bus system and paratransit service for people with disabilities. It also opens the doors to billions in federal funds through matching grant dollars.

A small group of state lawmakers is blocking our unanimously approved transportation plan from going to voters. Tonight, I joined fellow mayors to say that if no solution is reached, we will find a way get this to voters in 2024 pic.twitter.com/Shfg5AAlqd  Mayor Kate Gallego (@MayorGallego) June 14, 2023

Maricopa County is the only county in Arizona that has to get the Legislature's permission to be able to ask voters if they want to approve a transportation tax. That has frustrated local leaders, who say the tax extension is being jeopardized despite their belief voters would overwhelmingly support it.

Related: Why the Arizona Legislature will shape the future of transportation in Maricopa County

"We are united. Legislators and the Governor must give the people of Maricopa County the ability to vote on a Prop. 400 extension, one that maintains the support of all local mayors which was built over years of research, discussion and compromise," County Board of Supervisors Chairman Clint Hickman and Vice Chairman Jack Sellars said in a prepared statement.

"This isnt about anybodys pet project, and it shouldnt be derailed by anyones personal vendetta. This is about the shared goal of improving quality of life for all residents," the supervisors added.

Hickman brought up the Prop. 400 impasse at the regular board meeting, saying there is "an absolute sense of anguish among the mayors."

Around the Valley, from east to west, other mayors shared in their disappointment with lawmakers, blasting them for ignoring numerous concessions, the will of voters and bipartisan planning, and for jeopardizing the region's economy.

When you get 32 separate mayors, tribal organizations and counties to vote unanimously on something and stick with it for years  defend it, fight for it  that is something that is admirable and shows how important this is, Avondale Mayor Kenn Weise said.

Gilbert Mayor Brigette Peterson echoed the shared letter, siding with what she called "a bipartisan group of fellow mayors" in condemning the bill passed by lawmakers and calling for a way to get a transportation plan to voters next year.

Mesa Mayor John Giles said the same, noting lawmakers "chose traffic congestion, fringe special interests and sprawl over the interests of Maricopa County residents."

Tolleson Mayor Juan Rodriguez voiced a common complaint among peers, that the action at the state Capitol could hurt economic development in his city.

In Scottsdale, which has not been the most ardent supporter of transit projects, Mayor David Ortega said the same in a prepared statement.

In transit-friendly Tempe, Mayor Corey Woods told The Republic: If this does not go through the way that we need, the city of Tempe would lose roughly one-third of its transportation funding, adding, Thats just unacceptable. Our residents expect better, they deserve better, and we have to continue to fight for a solution that actually works for the city of Tempe and works for the entire region.

Chandler Mayor Kevin Hartke, who has served in multiple leadership roles within the Maricopa Association of Governments, a regional planning agency, said, I was quite disappointed a year ago when Gov. Doug Ducey vetoed the bill, and I was disappointed again when our legislators threw some things in there that have not been part of the negotiations and then attributed the problem to MAG.

Ultimately, I don't know where this is going to go, but our Valley needs to have a comprehensive transportation system to flesh it out in the West Valley, Central and East Valleys, Hartke said. (The original plan was one) that we have crafted with 32 leaders, and it really gave every city something. The Legislatures plan really does not.

Fountain Hills Mayor Ginny Dickey warned that defunding mass transit could harm Maricopa County's air quality and expose the region to federal environmental sanctions.

I understand that some folks are not happy about the options (such as transit investments) that have been talked about by MAG to try to mitigate some of this air quality stuff. But without it, we do run the risk of being downgraded, Dickey said. Good, bad or indifferent, whether people disagree with the EPA standards, those are what exist.

Goodyear Mayor Joe Pizzillo focused on the need for the proposed State Route 30, one of the key projects in possible jeopardy.

"Passing unworkable legislation and public disagreements will only hurt our residents, our businesses, and our states future vitality, Pizzillo said in an interview.

In Litchfield Park, which has no Prop. 400 projects, Mayor Tom Schoaf chimed in with his criticism of the Legislature for disregarding voters and a plan backed by unanimous consent among the cities.

Its disappointing at best when a few legislators can overrule the will of the majority of people in Maricopa County, said Schoaf.

Are there alternatives to legislative approval?

The sales-tax extension potentially could find its way to voters' 2024 ballots without legislative approval if the mayors collect enough petition signatures to qualify the measure.

Petition-based measures are typically difficult to bring to fruition because of the immense number of signatures required, but they aren't unheard of.

Petitioning to get a measure placed on the ballot was how Arizona legalized recreational marijuana in 2020 through Proposition 207. The mechanism also was used to raise the state's minimum wage in 2016 through Proposition 206.

Reporter Taylor Seely covers Phoenix for The Arizona Republic. Reach her at tseely@arizonarepublic.com or by phone at 480-476-6116. She's on Twitter @taylorseely95.

Arizona Republic reporters Stacey Barchenger, Ray Stern, Mary Jo Pitzl, Sasha Hupka, Maritza Dominguez, Sam Kmack and Alexandra Hardle contributed to this article.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Maricopa County mayors reject Legislature's transportation tax plan
63 percent now say abortion pill should be available with prescription: Gallup

Almost two-thirds of Americans say they support keeping the abortion pill approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) available to patients with a prescription, a Gallup poll released Wednesday shows.

The survey showed 63 percent of respondents favor the abortion pill mifepristone being available as a prescription drug, while 35 percent said they were opposed to it.

The last time the issue was under such public scrutiny, Gallup said, was in late 2000, when the FDA approved the drug. At the time, 50 percent of Americans supported the decision, and 44 percent were opposed. Earlier that year, according to Gallup, 47 percent opposed making the pill available by prescription, while 39 percent favored it.

The pill has come back into the public eye after a federal judge in Texas reversed the FDA approval, a decision was quickly appealed. The U.S. Supreme Court has frozen the decision, allowing the pill to remain available by prescription as the appeals process played out.

Mifepristone is a medication commonly prescribed in the early stages of pregnancy, up until 10 weeks, when the fetus is about 1 or 1.2 inches  about the size of a green olive, according to WebMD.

Record-high 69 percent in new poll say first-trimester abortion should be legal

A study by Guttmacher Institute, a research organization that supports abortion rights, published a study in 2022 that showed medication abortion accounted for more than half of all abortions in the United States in 2020. It accounted for 54 percent of all abortions and 53 percent of facility-based abortions.

In the recent Gallup poll measuring views on abortion pill access, respondents were split along partisan lines more so than by gender or age.

Keeping mifepristone available by prescription found support among 86 percent of Democrats, 63 percent of independents and 41 percent of Republicans. Sixty percent of men and 64 percent of women supported keeping the pill available. Support by age varied little by group  68 percent of adults ages 18-34 were in favor, not far from the 62 percent of adults ages 35-54 and 61 percent of adults ages 55 and older in support.

Gallup reported that Americans identified as pro-choice at historically high rates. About the same percentage of respondents who favor having mifepristone available by prescription  63 percent  also say they favor legal abortion in the first trimester and say they oppose abortion bans once a heartbeat is detected.

Support for making mifepristone available coincides with elevated support for womens access to reproductive health choices since the overturn of the landmark Roe v. Wade abortion decision, Gallup wrote in its report. These data also coincide with Americans identifying as pro-choice at a historically elevated rate, likely a reaction to the Dobbs decision and coinciding with a period when the abortion issue is back at the center of U.S. politics in a way it hasnt been for decades.

The poll was conducted May 1-24, surveyed 1,011 American adults and has a margin of error of 4 percentage points.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
A Canadian mom wants to press charges against a man who verbally attacked her 9-year-old daughter at a track-and-field event, angrily questioning the girls gender and calling her mothers genital-mutilators" in an incident has drawn national attention and the condemnation of the premier of British Columbia.

Heidi Starr of Kelowna, about 80 miles north of Canada's border with Washington, told USA TODAY on Tuesday that she was attending the school district-sponsored event along with her ex-wife and their daughter, whose name she didnt want shared.

All the 4th-grade girls at Thursdays event were taking turns at shotput when a grandfather in the crowd interrupted, standing in front of them and confronting one of the organizers, loudly saying: This is a girl's event. Why are you letting boys throw?"

He pointed at my daughter and another girl with short hair and said, Why are you letting boys throw? Starr said.

Thats when Starr pounced to defend her child, telling the man that her daughter is a girl.

Heidi Starr's daughter is pictured after the track-and-field event where a bystander loudly questioned her gender. She won second place in the discus throw before she was confronted at the shotput event. Her mother requested her face be blurred to help protect her daughter.

And he said, Oh yeah, a girl, and he put finger quotes up in the air and said a girl, and he looked at them and he said, If theyre not boys, theyre trans, Starr said.

Thats when the mans wife joined in, attacking Starr and her ex-wife, she said.

His wife started screaming that my ex-wife and I were genital mutilators, pedophiles and groomers, and he demanded certificates confirming that my daughter was born female, she said.

Starr continued to defend her daughter as other parents repeatedly shouted at the man to shut up and leave.

He adamantly refused, she said, adding that organizers eventually moved the shotput event but that the man followed everyone and stared them down until it was over.

Organizers then walked him, his wife and their granddaughter to their car to make sure he was gone before Starr and her family felt safe to leave, she said.

In the moment, Starr said she and the other parents were in shock and didnt think to call the police.

Later upon reflection, Starr said she realized she did want police involvement and for charges to be filed against the man. She reported the attack to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and has been told a constable has been assigned to the case.

Heidi Starr, left, is pictured with her partner.

Meanwhile she wrote a Facebook post encouraging any other witnesses to call the constable and share the details of what happened.

Although the event was sponsored by the school district, Starr said it was run by volunteers and there was no security. In the aftermath of the attack, she said the district has been incredible and banned the man from all district events and his granddaughters school for life.

Central Okanagan District Superintendent Kevin Kardaal did not immediately respond to a request for comment but has publicly condemned the attack and confirmed the mans ban.

British Columbia Prime Minister David Eby also condemned the attack in a Tweet, saying, This is awful.

This is awful. This kind of hate is not acceptable or welcome in British Columbia.



Let's keep calling out transphobia when we see it. Hate hurts everyone. And let's stand with this girl and everyone who is targeted just for being themselves. https://t.co/RVQdq5VGlF  David Eby (@Dave_Eby) June 13, 2023

This kind of hate is not acceptable or welcome in British Columbia, he said. Let's keep calling out transphobia when we see it. Hate hurts everyone. And let's stand with this girl and everyone who is targeted just for being themselves.

Since the attack, Starr said the community and strangers from all over Canada have reached out to her and her family with nothing but love and support, reminding her that the good always outweighs the bad.

In addition to charges against the man, Starr said that she and her daughter are hoping to spread two messages.

Starr said the man felt emboldedned because of the overwhelming influx of anti-trans and anti-queer propaganda and rhetoric thats being thrown at us in social media.

Its just an ongoing onslaught of people not critically thinking and getting their algorithms set in a way where they're constantly just getting their hate and vitriol validated, she said, urging people to call out hate and transphobia wherever they see it.

Starrs daughter also wanted readers to know one thing: Had the man not launched his attack, she would have won that shotput event.

Starr said her daughter is coping remarkably well with the situation.

It shook her to the core, and it shook our whole family to the core, she said, adding that her daughter was well-versed in sexual orientation and identity issues but not with hate.

I told her, There's people out there who have broken hearts and because of that they cause hurt and they cause chaos and sometimes people who are completely undeserving are recipients of that hurt and that chaos and it has nothing to do with you, she said. It has to do with the broken person.

Starr said that both she and her daughter have been bolstered by the widespread support they've received.

I really feel like it is turning the situation into one where my daughter is feeling empowered, where it really could have been an impactful and traumatizing event, she said. And her birthday is coming up at the end of the this week, and she said, You know I think maybe the reason everything happened is that the story had to go viral. So maybe my birthday gift is that I get to make a change.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: 9-year-old Canadian girl accused of being 'trans' at track event
A 9-year-old girl at a school track and field event was left 'shaking and sobbing' after a man accused her of being trans and demanded her disqualification, mom says

Starting line at a track and field event. Getty Images

A Canadian girl, 9, was brought to tears by a man who insisted she was trans, her parents said.

It happened at a regional track and field competition for elementary school kids, per Castanet.

The parents say the man, who has denied the allegations, wanted their daughter disqualified.

A 9-year-old girl was yelled at during a regional track and field event in British Columbia, Canada, on Sunday by a man who insisted she was trans and that she should be disqualified from competing, her parents said, according to local news outlet Castanet.

The child's mothers, who chose not to disclose their daughter's name, told Castanet that the girl was competing in a shot put event at Kelowna's Apple Bowl when the grandfather of another participant began to yell at her.

Heidi Starr, one of her mothers, told the local news outlet: "Right before she went to throw, a grandfather of a student said, 'Hey, this is supposed to be a girls' event, and why are you letting boys compete.'"

The girl's mother clarified that her daughter is cisgender, meaning she was assigned female at birth and still identifies as a girl. She mentioned that her daughter has a pixie haircut, adding that the man also pointed and shouted at another girl with short hair.

According to a Facebook post shared by Starr, the man insisted her child was "definitely trans" and called for her to be disqualified from competing in the school competition.

He also demanded to see certification proving that their daughter was indeed a girl, the Facebook post said.

The incident left the girl "visibly shaking and sobbing," said Starr, according to the New York Post.

The man denied the allegations, saying the women twisted his words to "satisfy an agenda."

But the superintendent of Central Okanagan School District, Kevin Kaardal, told Castanet that the incident was "totally unacceptable" and that the district was taking steps to ensure that the man cannot attend future school events.

The school district did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.

The local police service, Kelowna RCMP, said in a statement Tuesday that it is investigating the incident, but would not provide further information due to privacy laws.

Starr told the New York Post that she hopes the situation shines a light on "how awful and extreme" anti-trans rhetoric has become.

She added: "This is proof that this has nothing to do with protecting children."

Read the original article on Insider
Former President Donald Trump waves as he leaves the Wilkie D. Ferguson Jr. U.S. Courthouse after his arraignment in Miami, June 13, 2023. Former President Donald Trump, the Republican presidential front-runner whose efforts to cling to power after his defeat shook American democracy, was booked on federal criminal charges that he illegally retained defense secrets and obstructed the governments efforts to reclaim the classified documents. (Saul Martinez/The New York Times)

MIAMI  Donald Trumps first stop after court was the iconic Versailles restaurant and bakery in the Little Havana neighborhood.

Inside, a group of people greeted him and laid hands on him in prayer. Those in the room also sang Happy Birthday to Trump, who will turn 77 on Wednesday.

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Some birthday. Some birthday, he said. Weve got a government that is out of control.

Versailles is a landmark that is a required stop for politicians visiting Miami. Cuban exiles gathered there to celebrate Fidel Castros death in 2016.

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Trumps aide and co-defendant, Walt Nauta, joined him at the eatery, helping people take selfies with Trump.
Abby Zwerner was critically injured after allegedly being shot by a six-year-old student (Abby Zwerner/Facebook)

A Virginia school teacher shot by a six-year-old student is no longer employed by her school and a dispute has emerged over whether she was fired or she resigned.

Abby Zwerner, who worked as a first-grade teacher at Newport News Public Schools (NNPS), was shot by her student in January after which she sustained severe wounds, spent two weeks in the hospital, and underwent multiple surgeries.

The 25-year-old teacher, who filed a $40m lawsuit against the school over negligence, is now not employed by NNPS anymore, the administration announced on Tuesday, claiming she resigned from her position.

Ms Zwerners lawyers, however, said she was fired by the school and has not been paid since February. She also alleged the school was trying to put pressure on her after the lawsuit.

They are trying to squeeze her, Ms Zwerners attorney Jeffrey Breit told WAVY News 10.

The only thing I can think, they were trying to put pressure on her because we filed suit, he said. Its outrageous, as outrageous as Ive ever seen.

Mr Breit cited an email school officials sent Ms Zwerner in May, stating they had processed a separation of employment for you effective the close of business 06/12/2023.

I dont think you can read this any other way than youve been fired, he told WAVY.

The school refuted Mr Breits claim in a statement on Tuesday.

Every employee who is separating from the school division receives a similar communication, it said.

The school system also provided emails between its administration and Ms Zwerner, in which the teacher reportedly wrote: I wish to resign. Thank you.

The outlet first reported, citing email exchanges between Ms Zwerner and NNPSs human resource department, that the school district processed a separation of employment for her.

Ms Zwerners separation from the school comes five months after the shooting incident that shocked the shipbuilding city of about 180,000 people near the Atlantic coast.

Ms Zwerner was shot in the hand and chest as she sat at a reading table in her first-grade classroom at Richneck Elementary School on 6 January.

The six-year-old boy who shot her had used his mothers gun. His mother, Deja Taylor, pleaded guilty on Monday in federal court to using marijuana while owning a firearm, which is illegal under US law.

Ms Taylor is facing charges on the state level of felony child neglect and reckless storage of a firearm. A trial for those counts is set for August.

A candle light vigil held for Abby Zwerner in January (AP)

After the incident, Ms Zwerner filed a $40m lawsuit against the Newport News School Board, former superintendent Dr Gregory Parker, former Richneck principal Briana Foster-Newton and former Richneck assistant principal Dr Ebony Parker.

Ms Zwerners attorneys said school officials knew the boy had a history of random violence at school and at home, including an episode the year before in which he strangled and choked his kindergarten teacher.

Her lawsuit is still pending, but the school has rejected claims of negligence saying she could reasonably expect to work with young children who posed no danger, pointing to numerous incidents of violence against teachers across the US and in Virginias Newport News.

While in an ideal world, young children would not pose any danger to others, including their teachers, this is sadly not reality, the board said.

In asking a judge to dismiss the case, the school board has argued that Ms Zwerners injuries fall under the states workers compensation laws.

The school board said Ms Zwerner refused to accept workers compensation.
NEW YORK  Mayor Eric Adams defended the purview of Police Commissioner Keechant Sewell a day after the NYPD leader resigned after just 1.5 years on the job.

Sewell is set to depart at the end of the month, closing out a tenure marked by plateauing crime  with several categories of violent offenses on the decline  along with a tenuous grip on power in the Adams administration. Multiple people familiar with the internal dynamics of the department said this dilution of authority was a major reason behind her exodus.

On Tuesday, Adams forcefully pushed back on the that narrative. While he declined to discuss what reasons Sewell gave for leaving, the mayor castigated the press corps and accused them of fabricating a storyline that Sewell was undermined at the department.

For you to assume she is leaving because of A, B, C and D  because it was reported, the mayor said, using air quotes for emphasis. Lets stop creating the narrative. This commissioner was given an amazing opportunity to show her skillset. And she did.

Despite Adams' effusive praise for Sewell at the unrelated press briefing, however, accounts of her curtailed influence are well established.

While Sewell occupied the departments top slot, Adams elevated others in the administration  namely Deputy Mayor for Public Safety Phil Banks and Senior Advisor Timothy Pearson  who wielded significant power over the NYPD. Chief of Department Jeffrey Maddrey also enjoys a close relationship with the mayor.

In March, the mayor publicly disagreed with his commissioner about an event featuring rapper Cardi B and sided with one of Sewells subordinates  who was later promoted to Department of Probation Commissioner  in a spat over NYPD training requirements. Earlier this week, a report found Sewells power to hire and give promotions was curtailed after she recommended discipline for Maddrey, the highest ranking uniformed officer in the department.

In April, Civilian Complaint Review Board found that Maddrey abused his authority when he released a former NYPD officer from custody following a dispute with three teenagers who accused the retired cop of brandishing a gun at them.

When the case subsequently landed on Sewell's desk  but before she had made a decision about what to do with the board's recommendation  the mayor publicly defended the chief of department, saying Maddrey was committed to the city.

Sewell ultimately recommended Maddrey be docked 10 vacation days  a charge the highest ranking uniformed officer reportedly planned to fight.

Sewell came to the NYPD from the Nassau Police Department, where she was the head of the detective bureau. And coming straight from an organization less than a tenth of the size of the NYPD to lead the most prominent police department in the country left her with few allies in the upper echelons of 1 Police Plaza.

Yet even as she competed for power with others in the mayors inner circle, she endeared herself to the rank and file, pushing back against most discipline recommendations from the CCRB.

The departure of the police commissioner  a figure central to the mayors main campaign promise of controlling crime  is the latest high-profile cabinet member to leave the Adams administration.

The mayor's initial chief of staff, first deputy mayor, chief counsel, communications and intergovernmental affairs directors have all left or are planning to leave in addition to the commissioner of the Department of Social Services and the chief housing officer. Adams, speaking on Tuesday, said turnover is a natural part of government and that he has been more intimately involved in agency operations compared to some of his predecessors.

In administrations on every level  presidential, gubernatorial, city  people come and go, Adams said. You dont sign up and say Im a lifer. You come, you provide your expertise, you lay the foundation and then you go on to do other things. And theres nothing wrong with that.

While Sewell has stayed mum about her reasons for leaving, she alluded to some of the difficulties she faced as a woman of color leading the department in a striking speech given in 2021 before the Policewomens Endowment Association.

Try not to take it personally when people you have never met tell others what you think. Understand that you will be second-guessed, told what you should say, told what you should write by some with half your experience. They dont know any better, Sewell told the crowd, reading from a speech addressed to whoever becomes the second woman police commissioner. When you are no pushover, you will be called difficult. When you do things your own way, you dont listen. You are paranoid. Your very existence is a problem for many. But I, every woman in this room and every woman with dirt on her face in this arena, is counting on you.
Welcome to NC Voices, where leaders, readers and experts from across North Carolina can speak on issues affecting our communities. Send submissions of 350 words or fewer to opinion@charlotteobserver.com.

This NC elections bill is flawed

The writer is former executive director of Democracy North Carolina.

A cruel and needless provision in the omnibus election bill under consideration in the legislature would give vigilante groups ammunition to harass legal immigrants and naturalized citizens. Republican leaders have helped block this dangerous provision from becoming law in previous years; hopefully, they will again.

A section of Senate Bill 747 requires election boards to give anyone detailed information about people who avoid serving on a jury because they told the clerk of court theyre not a citizen. Its one thing for the State Board of Elections to use the information to carefully match and remove people on the voting rolls who are not citizens. Its totally different to let self-appointed patriot protectors use court records to aggressively target individuals on social media and at their home or workplace.

A few years ago, an advocacy group misused data from the Wake County jury records to harass alleged non-citizens outside their homes and by phone. It turned out the individuals were citizens! Some were naturalized after being summoned to jury duty; some wrongly checked the not a citizen box on the summons form. None of those targeted by Project Veritas had illegally voted.

The SBOE already audits its rolls for non-citizens  and its not a simple process because of the complexities of immigration law and citizenship status, said Kim Strach in 2017, as the Republican-appointed board director. She cautioned, Even where data from the Division of Motor Vehicles, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the voter rolls matched exactly, a high proportion of flagged individuals were citizens.

Bottom line: releasing confidential jury records is the wrong way to improve the integrity of voter rolls. A smarter choice: provide the much-needed money to modernize the states aging voter registration computer system for data matching and more. Sadly, the strongest proponents of empowering vigilantes are among the legislators most reluctant to increase board funding for the staff and systems required to administer secure elections.

Bob Hall, Raleigh

Greater risk of election errors

Matt Germer is an R Street Institute think tank fellow. Rachel Orey is associate director of the Bipartisan Policy Center.

In preparation for the 2024 election, Sen. Ralph Hise has undertaken a laudable effort to bolster public trust in N.C. elections in Senate Bill 747. Some of its notable changes, such as requiring that mail ballots be in-hand by 7:30 p.m. on Election Day, have a history of bipartisan support and would expedite unofficial results reporting, a critical component of trust in election results.

Unfortunately, the bill has two major Achilles heels: no additional funding to make its promises of enhanced security a reality and inadequate lead time for election officials to implement the proposed changes.

If adopted, this bill would mandate a slew of new rules and processes for election administrators, requiring time and funding for things like retraining existing staff, purchasing new technology, and updating voter materials. The changes are also set to take effect while state offices are already working hard to implement new voter ID requirements.

This bill requires those who register to vote during early voting to cast provisional ballots, which take longer to process, thus delaying unofficial results reporting. That has been shown to erode trust in elections.

Underfunded elections and a lack of adequate lead time on policy changes are not new or unique. In fact, the lack of financial support from the state has contributed to the nearly 50% turnover of county election directors since 2019, leaving the high-turnout 2024 presidential election and implementation of SB 747 in the hands of brand-new election officials.

When resources are spread thin, small glitches and mistakes become more likely and can compound into major problems. If legislators dont allocate additional funding, the very changes meant to improve election security in SB 747 will exacerbate existing challenges and increase the risk of errors.

Matt Germer, Charlotte

Rachel Orey, Washington
Makia Green stands outside her Washington home on June 12, 2023. As a Black student who was raised by a single mother, Green believes she benefited from a program that gave preference to students of color from economically disadvantaged backgrounds when she was admitted over a decade ago to the University of Rochester. As a borrower who still owes just over $20,000 on her undergraduate student loans, she has been counting on President Joe Biden's promised debt relief to wipe nearly all of that away. Now, both affirmative action and the student loan cancellation plan  policies that disproportionately help Black students  could soon be dismantled by the U.S. Supreme Court. (AP Photo/Kevin Wolf)

WASHINGTON (AP)  As a Black student who was raised by a single mother, Makia Green believes she benefited from a program that gave preference to students of color from economically disadvantaged backgrounds when she was admitted over a decade ago to the University of Rochester.

As a borrower who still owes just over $20,000 on her undergraduate student loans, she had been counting on President Joe Biden's promised debt relief to wipe nearly all of that away.

Now, the student loan cancellation plan has been dismantled by the U.S. Supreme Court, which on Thursday struck down affirmative action in college admissions. Both policies disproportionately help Black students. To Green and many other people of color, the efforts to roll them back reflect a larger backlash to racial progress in higher education.

I feel like working people have been through enough  I have been through enough, said Green, a community organizer. From a pandemic, an uprising, a recession, the cost of living price going up. I deserved some relief.

The rulings could also have political consequences among a generation of young voters of color who took Biden at his word when he campaigned on canceling debt.

Despite todays upsetting ruling, we demand that the Biden Administration delivers on the promise of student loan debt relief, said NAACP President Derrick Johnson, in a statement. Education has long been regarded as a path toward generational wealth, economic liberation, and securing the American dream. Lets be clear  student debt is killing that dream.

The president's plan forgave up to $10,000 in federal student debt for borrowers, and doubled the debt relief to $20,000 for borrowers who also received Pell Grants. About half of the average debt held by Black and Hispanic borrowers would have been wiped out, according to the White House.

Six Republican-led states filed a legal challenge questioning whether the president, a Democrat, had authority to forgive the debt. On Friday, the Supreme Court held the administration needed Congress endorsement before undertaking so costly a program.

Biden later Friday announced a new plan to cancel student debt, using a different justification from the one struck down earlier in the day. It uses a provision of the Higher Education Act allowing the education secretary to waive student loans. The plan would likely face another legal challenge.

In the affirmative action cases, the court was considering the use of race-conscious admissions policies that many selective colleges have used for decades to help build diversity on their campuses. The cases were brought by a conservative activist who argues the Constitution forbids the use of race in college admissions.

Together, the cases are crushing to Black Americans, the Rev. Al Sharpton said.

The reality is race plays a factor in admissions, from pre-K to post-doctorate, and institutions just saw their best tool for fairness outlawed, Sharpton said.

On student loans, Sharpton said: Generations of Black youth were sold a bill of goods that higher education was a pathway out of poverty  only to be saddled with crushing debt that never lets them see their dreams fully realized.

Both cases focused on policies that address historic racial disparities in access to higher education, as Black borrowers tend to take on disproportionately more debt to afford college, said Dominique Baker, an education policy professor at Southern Methodist University.

Backlash to racial progress tends to follow periods of social change and advancement, Baker said. In a study published in 2019, Baker found states were more likely to adopt bans on affirmative action when white enrollment at public flagship universities dropped.

These are policy tools that have an explicit aim around reducing the power of white supremacy, Baker said. The two court challenges, she said, can be seen as linked backlash to two attempts towards racial justice.

Green, who grew up in a low-income household in Harlem, New York, graduated from Rochester with about $40,000 in federal loan debt. Some of that was erased under a public service forgiveness program when she completed two terms with Americorps, and she whittled it down further with monthly installments until the government paused repayment due to the pandemic. Payments will restart Oct. 1.

Green said she sees both court cases as connected to conservative attacks on diversity, equity and inclusion programs. Critics say opposition to such programs is rooted in questions of fairness and in white grievances over the advancement of nonwhite people.

This is white supremacy at work, Green said. This is a long tactic of conservative, white supremacist-leaning groups to use education and limit Black peoples access to education, as a way to further control and oppress us.

In the 1960s and 1970s, many colleges developed affirmative action plans to address the fact that many predominantly white schools struggled to attract people from historically disadvantaged and underrepresented communities. Policies were also created to promote greater inclusion of women.

Since the late 1970s, the Supreme Court had three times upheld affirmative action in college admissions on grounds that institutions have a compelling interest to address past discrimination that shut nonwhite students out of higher learning. Justices had also agreed with arguments that more diverse student bodies promoted cross-racial understanding.

Some students and advocates worried about how the ruling would affect diversity on campuses.

Tarina Ahuja, a rising senior at Harvard College, said being part of a diverse student body has been a crucial part of her undergraduate experience. She recalled classes where students discussed their lived experiences on topics such as police violence, colonialism and labor movements  discussions that would have fallen flat without a diverse range of student perspectives.

In anticipation of a ruling against race-conscious admissions, some colleges have been considering adding more essays to get a better picture of an applicants background  an approach seemingly endorsed by Thursday's Supreme Court ruling. Others have been planning to boost recruiting in racially diverse areas. But in states that have already banned affirmative action, similar efforts at selective colleges have largely failed to maintain diversity gains.

Jonathan Loc, a graduate student at Harvard who helped organize teach-ins in support of affirmative action, said that for students of color, it's impossible to speak about their lives without mentioning race, whether through hardships faced or simply their pride in their cultural heritage.

I grew up as the son of refugees in a low-income community and a single-parent family burdened with the model minority myth, he said. But I think that that kind of narrative also helps me to be an Asian American focused on racial justice, focused on making sure that everyone who has a unique story related to their racial background or any background has that story heard.

It will be important for colleges to find ways to show they see the students as more than a number on paper, said Damon Hewitt, president and executive director of the Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under Law.

We need the schools to say, 'Look, the court says we cant consider race, but we still see you,' said Hewitt, whose organization defended affirmative action before the Supreme Court in October.

___

Editor's note: A previous version of this story misstated the restart of student loan payments. They start on Oct. 1.

___

The Associated Press education team receives support from the Carnegie Corporation of New York. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

___

Annie Ma and Aaron Morrison are members of AP's Race and Ethnicity team. Follow Ma on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/anniema15. Follow Morrison on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/aaronlmorrison.
Ahead of Modi visit, journalists' group urges US to press India on media crackdown

FILE PHOTO: India's Prime Minister Modi speaks with the media inside the parliament premises on the first day of the budget session in New Delhi

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Committee to Protect Journalists on Wednesday called on the U.S. government to urge India to end a media crackdown and release six detained journalists.

A statement from CPJ President Jodie Ginsberg ahead of a state visit to Washington next week by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said there had been an increasing crackdown on Indias media since he came to power in 2014.

"Journalists critical of the government and the BJP party have been jailed, harassed, and surveilled in retaliation for their work," Ginsberg said.

"India is the worlds largest democracy, and it needs to live up to that by ensuring a free and independent media  and we expect the United States to make this a core element of discussions."

The group said Washington should urge India to release six journalists  Aasif Sultan, Gautam Navlakha, Sajad Gul, Fahad Shah, Rupesh Kumar Singh, and Irfan Mehraj  who it said were detained in retaliation for their work under draconian security laws.

It highlighted harassment of domestic and foreign media, including through raids and retaliatory income tax investigations launched into critical news outlets.

The statement noted a raid by tax authorities in February on the BBC's offices in Delhi and Mumbai after the government censored a documentary on Modi by the broadcaster.

In recent years, the CPJ said, foreign correspondents had reported increasing visa uncertainties, restricted access to several areas, including Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir, and threats of deportation in retaliation for critical reporting.

The CPJ also cited a media crackdown in Kashmir, including the use of preventative detention, terrorism and criminal cases, travel bans and raids.

CPJ said at least 62 journalists have been killed in India in connection with their work since 1992 and India ranked 11th on CPJs 2022 impunity index, with unsolved cases of at least 20 journalists killed in the decade to August last year.

India's Washington embassy and the U.S. State Department did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

(Reporting by David Brunnstrom; Editing by Alistair Bell)
At night, air defences shot down three Russian Shahed drones over Dnipropetrovsk Oblast.

Source: Serhii Lysak, Head of Dnipropetrovsk Oblast Military Administration

Quote: "At night, the enemy launched drones towards our oblast. But defenders from Skhid [East] Air Command prevented his plans. All three Shahed [drones] were shot down in the sky over the region."

Details: Apart from that, Lysak reported that the Russians also attacked with heavy artillery. Nikopol was hit.

This time there were no casualties. Rescue workers are examining the area and establishing the consequences of the shelling.

Journalists fight on their own frontline. Support Ukrainska Pravda or become our patron!
On the night of 13-14 June 2023, the Russian invaders launched a missile attack on Ukraine's military and infrastructure facilities using air and sea-based cruise missiles and kamikaze attack drones.

Source: Ukrainian Air Force

Details: From the waters of the Black Sea, Russians launched four Kalibr cruise missiles in the direction of Odesa. Three missiles were shot down; one hit a civilian target.

Russians launched 10 Iranian Shahed-136/131 attack drones in the southeast direction from the eastern coast of the Sea of Azov. Nine loitering munitions were shot down.

From Rostov Oblast of the Russian Federation, Russians launched six Kh-22 air-based cruise missiles from four long-range Tu-22M3 bombers. Donetsk Oblast was hit. The consequences are being established.

Quote: "So, in general, the assets and personnel of the Air Force, in cooperation with the Air Defence Forces of the Defence Forces of Ukraine, destroyed 12 air targets during this night attack: 3 Kalibr cruise missiles and 9 Iranian Shahed-136/131 attack drones."

Journalists fight on their own frontline. Support Ukrainska Pravda or become our patron!
With a new mayoral administration, no permanent police superintendent and a new federal judge overseeing the case, the Chicago Police Departments consent decree is in grave danger of failing, according to the citys former chief watchdog.

Consent Decree implementation and monitoring is a faltering undertaking both in substantive accomplishment and in transparency. In the absence of a hard methodological and operational reset, I believe the Consent Decree is at high risk of failing to achieve its objectives, Joe Ferguson, the citys former inspector general, wrote in a June 5 letter made public Wednesday in a federal court filing.

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For meaningful reform to reach critical mass, the City must be prodded  repeatedly and publicly, Ferguson added.

The consent decree  a sweeping set of reform mandates that were born out of the 2014 murder of Laquan McDonald by a Chicago police officer  was approved in early 2019. Former U.S. District Judge Robert M. Dow selected a team led by former federal prosecutor Maggie Hickey to grade the CPDs adherence to the reforms.

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In addition to its semiannual reports, the monitoring team has held several public forums to solicit feedback on consent decree efforts, and the monitoring team has pursued offshoot investigations into the CPDs response to the civil unrest of 2020. But Ferguson said theres more to be done.

Beyond voluminous technical reports, the IMT must be charged with conducting its work and exercising voice in a far more regular and public way than has been the case these last four plus years, Ferguson wrote.

A spokesperson for the independent monitoring team noted that the consent decree effectively prohibits the team from making any public statements.

Ferguson, whos said hes considering a campaign to become the next Cook County states attorney in 2024, added that the independent monitoring team has so far billed the city $14 million for its work, but the team has not submitted a publicly available budget since it was selected to oversee the consent decree.

Based on the history of the last major federal monitorship of the City  the Shakman Decree  this lack of transparency and accountability is poised to turn into questions of whether the Monitorship has become a bureaucratic organ that exists primarily as a profit center at taxpayer expense, Ferguson said.

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Dow, the former judge who initially oversaw the consent decree, left the federal bench late last year to serve as chief of staff to John Roberts, the chief justice of the U.S. Supreme Court. The consent decree case was transferred to Rebecca Pallmeyer, chief judge of the Northern District of Illinois.

Ferguson urged Pallmeyer and the independent monitoring team to include the OIG in further evaluations of the departments consent decree compliance.

Going forward, I urge the Courts (and the IMTs) consideration of a practice that makes a new norm of full and fully partnered engagement with the Inspector General, who I know to be equally if not more steeped in technical and experiential history and knowledge of CPD and the City and has at the ready the capacities of an extraordinarily skilled and knowledgeable staff of dedicated professionals behind her, Ferguson wrote of his successor, Deborah Witzburg.

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Reached Wednesday, Witzburg pointed out that the opportunities for cooperation between the monitoring team and the Office of Inspector General are built into the consent decree itself, adding that the OIG is in full compliance with all of its consent decree obligations.

We are in full compliance and we are, as we speak, coming to the end of our sustainment period. And so as soon as that is behind us, then we are really well-positioned to have a different structural relationship with the monitor, and one that recognizes (that) while the consent decree and the monitoring effort are temporary structures, the Office of Inspector General is the permanent oversight structure, Witzburg said.

In the years since the consent decree was entered, the CPD has struggled to meet its obligations, and the monitoring teams most recent report was heavily critical of the firing of the former director of the CPDs reform office. The next semiannual report is expected to be released in the coming weeks, and it will detail the CPDs consent decree adherence between July 1 and Dec. 31, 2022.

The CPDs Office of Constitutional Policing and Reform has seen several changes in leadership in the last year. The former director, Robert Boik, was fired by then-Superintendent David Brown last year after he protested Browns plan to take several dozen officers out of the reform office and reassign them to the Patrol Bureau. Boiks successor, Tina Skahill, a longtime CPD supervisor, tendered her resignation last month, citing retaliation.
A Gainesville man was shot and killed by deputies Monday evening after he refused to put down a shotgun and pointed it in their direction, according to Alachua County Sheriff's Office social media post.

Deputies say that a woman called law enforcement around 6:12 p.m. and said she was "concerned about the mental well-being of her husband."

The man, 58-year-old Wendell H. Chastain, had sent text messages to family members stating that he "wanted to end his life." Deputies learned that he was upset over a warrant being issued for his arrest following a probation violation.

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Deputies responded to 17607 NW County Road 231 and located Chastain nearby inside his truck in a wooded area. They say he told them that he had a shotgun and that he was going to grab it. Chastain, however, left the scene in teh vehcile prior to the arrival of the Negotiations Response Team.

Chastain made his way back to his residence where he "exited his truck brandishing a shotgun and pointing it in the direction of deputies on scene," the post says. Chastain ignored orders to drop the weapon by deputies, who ultimately shot him to end the "threat of violence."

Deputies immediately rendered aid to Chastain, but he died from his injuries, the sheriff's office said.

"Sheriff Watson acknowledges the severity of this incident and is thankful that our Deputy Sheriff's involved are free from harm after facing the active threat of imminent violence at the hands of another," the social media post says.

The Florida Department of Law Enforcement, as is standard in all deputy-involved shootings, is investigating the incident. The deputies involved in the shooting have been placed on paid administrative leave.

This article originally appeared on The Gainesville Sun: Alachua County Sheriff's Office deputies shoot, kill Gainesville man
An Amazon delivery driver said she parked a company truck at an Oklahoma gas station pump before going inside.

But as she walked back to the vehicle, she was run over by another Amazon driver she used to work with, according to police.

Officers with the Tulsa Police Department were called to the employee scuffle at about 9 p.m. April 4, authorities said in a June 14 news release. The victim reported she was run over by a former co-worker who was driving her own car, police said.

She also said the suspect had been harassing and stalking her for several months, according to the release.

The gas stations surveillance video matched what the victim told police and showed the suspects silver car striking the Amazon delivery driver, police said.

The other employee was charged with assault with a deadly weapon on May 31, police said. She was then arrested and booked into the Tulsa County Jail on June 13.

Authorities did not provide an updated medical condition on the victim or share additional details.

McClatchy News reached out to Amazon on June 14 and was awaiting a response.

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Americans Think You Need $2.2 Million to Be Wealthy, a New Survey Says

Wealth isnt an easily defined concept, and you cant determine just one dollar amount that makes someone wealthy. But if you could, Americans have collectively chosen $2.2 million as that sum.

Charles Schwab asked a nationally representative sample of Americans to estimate the average net worth that would allow someone to be called rich, and thats the amount they settled on, Bloomberg reported on Tuesday. That finding is just one of many in the financial-services companys 2023 Modern Wealth Survey, which polled people on their perceptions of wealth.

More from Robb Report

Theres this paradox of people defining wealth differently for themselves versus others, Rob Williams, the companys managing director of financial planning and wealth management, told Bloomberg. When you ask someone for a dollar amount, they dont put it in the context of the rest of their life and financial health.

Thats evident in the fact that despite the $2.2 million wealth threshold, 48 percent of survey respondents said they already feel wealthy, with an average net worth of just $560,000. And that feeling was more abundant with Millennials and Gen Zers (57 percent and 46 percent, respectively) than with Gen Xers and Baby Boomers (41 percent and 40 percent, respectively).

Elsewhere, 47 percent of people said that being able to afford a similar lifestyle to their friends made them feel wealthy. That split along the same generational lines: 61 percent of both Gen Zers and Millennials agreed with that statement, while just 39 percent of Gen Xers and 31 percent of Boomers agreed. And more than one-third of social-media users said those comparisons happen online, as they keep an eye on what their friends and family post.

While wealth is largely associated with dollar amounts, the participants in the Charles Schwab survey also had a broader, more intangible perception of being rich. Rather than having a lot of money in your checking and savings accounts, 70 percent of people said that wealth was more about not worrying about money. And almost two-thirds said that having healthy relationships with their loved ones described wealth better than having a fat wallet.

Maybe that old saying about money not being able to buy you happiness is true after all.

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By Aidan Lewis and Khalid Abdelaziz

CAIRO (Reuters) - Shooting their way through truces, Sudan's warring factions have shown the limited leverage the United States, Saudi Arabia and other foreign powers have in ending a two-month conflict that is driving the nation deeper into disaster.

Neither the army nor the paramilitary Rapid Response Forces (RSF) seem far enough backed into a corner to take ceasefire talks in Jeddah seriously, which diplomats partly blame on rival regional powers aligning with different sides.

Bringing more regional players to support talks, such as Egypt, which sees the army as the best bet for a stable neighbour, and the United Arab Emirates, which has backed the RSF leader in the past, may be key to progress, one U.S. official said.

For now, after almost two months of war, Africa's third biggest nation and its 49 million people - close to 2 million of whom have already fled their homes - is hurtling towards a deeper humanitarian crisis with its own farms at risk of failing and aid unable to reach all those in need after swathes of the capital and the west of Sudan became a war zone.

"Nobody will negotiate in earnest until they feel that the military balance is not moveable any more," said Rift Valley Institute analyst Magdi El Gizouli. "The internal dynamic of this war is a bit beyond what an external actor can really influence".

After the latest 24-hour truce expired on Sunday, residents in Khartoum and capital area reported fresh artillery fire and clashes. They said fighting had intensified since early June.

The United States and Saudi Arabia, which lies across the Red Sea from Sudan, have sponsored talks in the Saudi port city of Jeddah. But every temporary truce has been violated so far, even though both sides say they are committed to negotiations and despite U.S. sanctions.

Diplomats with knowledge of the talks say the Jeddah process was faltering partly because key players were absent, including Egypt, which also has a general-turned-politician at its helm, and the UAE, which has ties to RSF commander Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, known as Hemedti.

A senior U.S. State Department official told reporters existing parties to the talks had considered broader participation, adding that Cairo and Abu Dhabi "do have specific leverage that could be helpful."

A Cairo-based diplomat said a new African Union-led forum aimed to bind Arab and African states into the process, including Egypt and the UAE, though it was unclear that either country was ready to exert real pressure.

Adding to the overlapping peace initiatives, Kenya's president said on Tuesday that another African grouping within the forum, IGAD, intended to meet Hemedti and army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan in the next 10 days in a bid to stop the war.

Mohamed Mokhtar, a senior advisor to Hemedti, said the RSF supported the Jeddah and AU processes, and that these should be expanded to civilian parties in order to reach a "comprehensive solution".

Burhan could not be part of any future authority in Sudan, Mokhtar told Reuters, and Hemedti, who he said was with his forces on the battlefield, would not have a political role but would continue to lead the RSF.

The army did not immediately respond to questions.

KHARTOUM ALONE

The war threatens to tear the Sudanese state apart and convulse the region four years after the popular uprising that toppled Omar al-Bashir brought hopes of democratic change following decades of autocracy, sanctions and civil conflict.

Fighting that erupted from tensions over a plan for a transition to civilian rule has ripped through Khartoum and its adjoining cities of Omdurman and Bahri, as well as hitting the conflict-scarred western region of Darfur, North Kordofan state and other areas.

On the ground in the capital, the absence of authorities is galling, residents said, adding to a sense that those who remain have been abandoned.

Diplomatic missions were evacuated shortly after the conflict erupted on April 15 and many senior Sudanese officials decamped from Khartoum to the more secure, army-controlled hub of Port Sudan on the Red Sea Coast.

"How can we and our families live through this war?" Mahasin Ibrahim, a 54-year-old teacher and resident of Khartoum told Reuters by phone. "There's no one to complain to. The government, the ministers, the top officials have all disappeared."

Unlike in previous conflicts warring sides are locked in battle in the heart of the capital. The RSF has seized control of most of the city, and the army's use of air strikes and heavy artillery has done little to push it back, as fighting rages for control of the levers of the state and its military arsenal.

Residents of the capital already struggling with rampant looting and shortages of food, medicine and fuel say they have become more exposed to battles that have strayed into densely populated neighbourhoods as the war has progressed.

EXODUS

The failure of talks has put the nation, which was already reliant on aid, in a perilous humanitarian state. Of the nearly 2 million who have fled, almost 500,000 have crossed to neighbouring states.

The death toll probably runs into thousands, although with authorities dispersed around the country and many hospitals closed, precise numbers are difficult to ascertain.

The U.S. State Department said on Tuesday that 2.5 million people were reached with assistance because of some compliance to ceasefires, although aid organisations have been struggling to deploy, partly because of tight controls imposed by the army in Port Sudan.

In areas of Darfur, access from the outside has become all but impossible, with news emerging from the city of El Geneina, where hundreds have been killed, only when people make it by foot across the border to Chad.

"If they keep fighting it out, the Sudanese state is collapsing. It could take generations to try to put back together," said Alan Boswell, Horn of Africa Director for Crisis Group.

"It will be a massive migraine for Africa, the Middle East and Europe for a long time to come unless people get more serious about stopping this."

(Reporting by Aidan Lewis in Cairo and Khalid Abdelaziz in Dubai; Additional reporting by Daphne Psaledakis in Washington and Nafisa Eltahir in Cairo; Editing by Edmund Blair and Frank Jack Daniel)
Ukraine counteroffensive takes shape but main test still to come FILE PHOTO: Aerial view shows destruction in the frontline city of Bakhmut

By Tom Balmforth

KYIV (Reuters) -After a week of heavy fighting, the real tests of Kyiv's counteroffensive lie ahead, with Ukrainian troops some distance from Russia's main defensive line and the bulk of forces prepared for the push still on standby.

Ukraine struck in two areas along the southeastern front last week as it began the main phase of its long-awaited operation, reporting seven retaken villages but also taking losses including Western infantry fighting vehicles and tanks.

"On both sides, a lot of it's going to come down to attrition," said Rob Lee, a senior fellow at the Foreign Policy Research Institute and among analysts who have reported losses on both sides based on satellite and photographic evidence.

"The risk for them (the Ukrainians) is that before they get to that (Russian) defensive line, they take too much attrition and it'll be too tough to breach it and exploit it."

President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has said Western equipment like battle tanks and armoured vehicles should help protect the lives of Ukrainian soldiers.

Russia has prepared thousands of defensive positions from the edge of western Russia all the way to occupied Crimea on the Black Sea, including minefields, anti-tank ditches, rows of concrete "dragon's teeth" barricades and trenches.

The positions, reviewed by Reuters using satellite imagery in April, are heavily concentrated in the strategically important south where Kyiv may aim to cut Russia's land bridge to Crimea and split the Kremlin's forces.

Ukraine, which has the bulk of its counteroffensive forces in the wings, can watch where Moscow commits troops to shore up its lines and strike in more thinly-defended areas, including in the east, military analysts said.

"Ukraine's got choices," said Ben Barry, senior fellow for land warfare at International Institute for Strategic Studies.

"It can't achieve strategic surprise but it will try its damnedest to achieve operational and tactical surprise. That will involve concealment, camouflage, deception, misinformation which they used quite successfully last autumn."

Moscow's strategy in the south likely aims to maximise Ukrainian casualties before Kyiv can reach the main Russian line of defences about 10-15 km (6-9 miles) away, according to Lee.

"There's no point in (them) fighting to the death there or risking encirclement," he said.

QUESTIONS OF MOMENTUM

Ukraine has been preparing for the counteroffensive for at least six months after recapturing the major southwestern city of Kherson in November, a swathe of Kharkiv region in September and forcing Russian forces back from around Kyiv in April.

The military created 12 armoured brigades for the operation, nine of them trained and equipped by the West, analysts say. A brigade typically comprises at least 3,500-4,000 troops. Ukraine has said it formed eight assault brigades of 40,000 soldiers drafted by the Interior Ministry.

Konrad Muzyka, a Poland-based military analyst who tracks the war closely, said only three of the 12 brigades had been seen in combat in the southeast so far.

The main thrusts have come near the Kyiv-controlled town of Orikhiv in Zaporizhzhia region and Velyka Novosilka in Donetsk region, about 80 km to the east.

Those thrusts may indicate Ukraine's generals have their eye on Tokmak, an occupied town in Zaporizhzia region some 25 km from the front line. A further 50 km away lies the city of Melitopol. Both settlements are heavily fortified.

Near Velyka Novosilka, Ukraine liberated a cluster of four villages, including two visited by Reuters on Tuesday and Wednesday, as well as two others nearby, Deputy Defence Minister Hanna Maliar said on Monday.

Troops have advanced up to 6.5 km (4 miles) and seized 90 square km (35 square miles), she said of ground along a 100-km-long (60-mile-long) stretch of the southern front line. On Wednesday, she reported more advances of 300-350 metres in various areas over the last 24 hours.

"They initially did quite okay," Muzyka said.

"My main concern five or six days into this main phase is that the progress appears to have stopped. The momentum that they built up over the first couple of days is essentially now gone and we don't know why this is."

Maliar has also reported advances on the flanks of the eastern city of Bakhmut, which Russia said it had captured last month. Military analysts saw it as unlikely this would become the focus of the main Ukrainian offensive.

The counteroffensive is complicated by Ukraine's lack of air power. Kyiv has lobbied the West for months to supply F-16 fighter jets but they are at least several months away from being deployed.

Kyiv has imposed an information blackout to help operational security, making independent battlefield assessments hard. Russia's Vladimir Putin has cast Kyiv's attack so far as a failure involving heavy losses.

Images shared by Russian military bloggers showed destroyed or damaged U.S.-made Bradley infantry fighting vehicles and Leopard 2 tanks, headline items of military aid sent by the West for the counteroffensive.

Muzyka estimated Ukraine may have lost up to 15% of its Bradley vehicles and a few percent of its Leopards, though it was possible Ukrainian forces had recovered some of those vehicles and sent for repair.

Military analyst Jack Watling wrote for the RUSI think tank that it was too early to say whether the offensive had succeeded or failed.

"We must refrain from premature pronouncements of success or failure," he said.

(Reporting by Tom Balmforth; additional reporting by Mark Trevelyan; editing by Mike Collett-White and Philippa Fletcher)
It seems Boises week of severe thunderstorms has ended, but not without one last thunderous bang Tuesday night.

Storms that formed around the Idaho-Oregon border Tuesday afternoon reached Boise around 11 p.m., with one powerful storm tracking along the Foothills just north of the city.

The heaviest rain stayed along the Foothills, meaning spectators as close as downtown Boise only enjoyed the light show and a brief shower. The National Weather Service, which measures rainfall totals at the Boise Airport, only recorded 0.05 inches of rain  barely enough to be measured.

But it was a different story for Eagle, Northwest Boise, Hidden Springs and the North End, which were all in the firing line of the heaviest rainfall. A flood advisory was issued for parts of the Foothills in Ada and Gem Counties until 2:45 a.m. Tuesday morning.

Weather Service meteorologist Les Colin told the Idaho Statesman on Wednesday morning that the Weather Service had received reports of eight inches of standing water in Eagle. He also said the Eagle area, which was likely hit hardest, received at least an inch of rain and possibly over two inches.

Tuesday nights storm was the latest in a flurry of weather events over the past two weeks, making the Treasure Valley feel more like the Midwest plains. There was flooding in West Boise in late May, and then a week later, another storm caused heavy flooding and road closures around downtown Boise.

Interspersed between those two events were several other nights of thunderstorms, resulting in a streak of eight days and counting of measurable rainfall in Boise. That streak will tick over to nine days, considering that part of Tuesday nights storm leaked into early Wednesday morning, but the streak will likely end there.

A warm and unstable air mass had been sitting over Idaho for several weeks, resulting in numerous days of thunderstorms. But that air mass has finally been forced out, Colin said, resulting in a return to the calm and dry weather that Boiseans are used to.

(Cooler air) came from the Gulf of Alaska, Colin said. A much colder low-pressure system in the upper atmosphere came across the Northwest through Washington; now its centered over northern Idaho and moving east into Alberta and northwest Montana.

The Weather Service forecasts clear skies and warming temperatures throughout the rest of the work week until theres a 20% chance of rain on Saturday.
AOC says idea Trump is victim of a two-tier justice system is an insult to Black and brown Americans

Rep Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) criticised Republicans who said that former president Donald Trump was a victim of a two-tiered system of justice and said it was an insult to Black and brown Americans.

The democratic socialist congresswoman told The Independent that she has not finished reading the indictment of the twice-impeached and twice-indicted former president, but planned on finishing it soon.

Ms Ocasio-Cortez serves as the number-two Democrat on the House Oversight & Accountability Committee. She said there was no comparison between Mr Trumps refusal to turn over documents to President Joe Bidens having classified documents, which Republicans have sought to paint as similar.

In no way shape or form is there a comparison between these two situations, she said. I think the American people have seen the documents stockpiled in bathrooms and in closets, the sheer amount of documents that will be stored and warehoused as well as the Trump administration's lack of cooperation and withholding these documents, it is extreme.

Mr Trump pleaded not guilty to 37 charges in a federal courthouse in Miami on Tuesday during his arraignment. Republicans, including Trump attorney Alina Habba and Virginia Gov Glenn Youngkin, have said that is a sign of a two-tiered justice system.

But Ms Ocasio-Cortez said that claim insulted Black and brown communities who actually do face a two-tiered justice system.

The idea that there's a two-tiered justice system and somehow the person on the short end of the stick is one of the most powerful and wealthy people that this country has known? she said. I don't think so.

Black Americans are far more likely to be arrested than their white counterparts, with the arrest rate for Black Americans being around 6,109 per 100,000 people compared to 2,795 per 100,000 white Americans, according to the Prison Policy Initiative.

Rep Jamaal Bowman (D-NY), a fellow member of the Squad, also pushed back on the claim.

Well Republicans don't want rich, powerful white men to go to jail, but they want poor, vulnerable Black and brown people to go to jail, he told The Independent. So they don't care if the Black and brown person is jumping the turnstile or allegedly stealing a book bag they want them to go to jail and stay in jail. But rich, powerful white men. Nah man, to them they need Trump out making money for their super PACs so they can get re-elected.

Ms Ocasio-Cortez also criticised Republicans who said that the government is weaponised against Mr Trump. House Republicans formed the Select Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government at the beginning of the Congress in response to investigations into Mr Trump.

There's no way in which that argument holds water, she said. We have a nation of laws in which all people are treated equally and mind too, the President is not being charged with events that happened during his presidency, but crimes that were committed afterwards.

Rep Stacey Plaskett, the Democratic delegate for the US Virgin Islands who serves as the ranking Democrat on the subcommittee, criticised the accusations of weaponisation and said she worried about such accusations from House Republicans.

I think that they've been laying the foundation for this from the beginning of this Congress by talking about the weaponization of the federal government making Americans feel uncomfortable with the rule of law with our law enforcement, whether it's FBI or [Department of Justice], Ms Plaskett told The Independent. And so that's something that we're going to continue to push back on in the committee, as well as I think in the Democratic caucus.
Macclenny Fire and Rescue Department announced that its accepting applications for firefighters and EMTs.

>>> STREAM ACTION NEWS JAX LIVE <<<

According to the departments Facebook page, its hiring firefighters and EMTs at a starting salary of $39,312. Applicants must have a Florida drivers license, a current Florida firefighter 2 certification, a current Florida state or national registry EMT license, EVOC, experience in wildland-urban interface and experience ICS 110, 200, 700 and 800 to apply.

There is a note on the application makes note that salary amounts are based on applicants working their scheduled regular and overtime hours. Fluctuations in salary may occur due to actual hours worked, training, holidays and more. Applicants with full-time fire experience may start at a higher salary.

To access the application, visit the City of Macclenny website. You can also get a physical application from Macclenny City Hall. All applications must be received by city hall marked Firefighter by the HR Department by the closing date and time.

See the map below for directions to Macclenny City Hall.

Read: Jail records show murder suspect in custody

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The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence participate in the WeHo Pride Parade in West Hollywood on June 4. (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)

On the same day the Dodgers are honoring the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, Los Angeles Archbishop Jose H. Gomez said he's dedicating his service early Friday afternoon for healing due to the harm caused by the Dodgers' decision to honor a group that intentionally denigrates and profanes the Christian faith."

A statement from the Archdiocese of Los Angeles announcing the 12:10 p.m. service at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels does not mention the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence by name. The Mass is being held less than two miles from Dodger Stadium, where the Sisters, a longtime charity organization made up queer nuns often in drag, will receive the Community Hero Award in a pregame ceremony hours later on Dodgers' Pride Night.

After weeks of controversy surrounding the Dodgers' decision to honor the Sisters during the team's LGBTQ+ event, it's pretty clear what group the archdiocese is referring to in the statement.

"We will be praying in a special way for our city and country, for an end to prejudice, and for renewed respect for the religious beliefs of all Angelenos and all Americans, the statement reads.

Read more: Clayton Kershaw disagreed with Sisters' award, sought return of Dodgers' Christian day

The Sisters responded to the Archdiocese's announcement Tuesday night in an email to The Times.

"We wish Archbishop Gomez and his flock the very best," the group stated. "We pray all Angelenos will enjoy the magnificent athleticism and sportsmanship of the Los Angeles Dodgers on Friday night. We will be in attendance to cheer on our beloved LGBTQ community and to support the Dodgers as they beat the San Francisco Giants."

The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, a satirical performance and activist organization that describes itself as a leading-edge Order of queer and trans nuns, is known for raising awareness and money for LGBTQ causes and providing comfort to members of that community.

"The forthcoming Dodgers event honoring a group that mocks women religious, and worse, desecrates the Cross, profanes the Eucharist, and disrupts Holy Mass has caused disappointment, dismay, and pain in our Catholic community, as well as among our fellow Christians and people of good will," the archdiocese said in another statement.

"The Archdiocese of Los Angeles stands for the Gospel of Jesus Christ, which means we stand against any form of bigotry, hate, or sacrilege."

On May 22, less than a week after removing the Sisters from their Pride Night lineup after pressure from religious groups and others, the Dodgers extended a new invitation to the organization after receiving backlash from LGBTQ+ and civil rights groups and others.

Read more: Catholic League launches radio ad campaign urging boycott of Dodgers' Pride Night

In an email sent to The Times last week, the Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights referred to the Sisters as an anti-Catholic group and called for a boycott of the Dodgers' Pride Night, when L.A. opens a three-game series against the San Francisco Giants at 7:10 p.m. Others, including former Vice President Mike Pence, have expressed similar sentiments in the wake of the Dodgers decision to invite, then uninvite, then re-invite the Sisters to Pride Night.

The Dodgers told The Times they have no comment on the archdiocese's plans for Friday.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Businessman James Weiss returns for his trial on federal bribery charges at Dirksen U.S. Courthouse on June 7, 2023. (E. Jason Wambsgans/Chicago Tribune)

A Chicago businessman attempted to corrupt the political process by paying off two sitting state legislators for legislation beneficial to his sweepstakes gaming company, and calling it anything other than bribery was putting lipstick on a pig, a federal prosecutor told a jury Wednesday.

Attorneys for James Weiss, though, said he made a legal effort to wade into the dirty politics of Springfield and counteract big-money video gaming competitors who already had the politicians in their pocket.

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This is a dirty place where the rules seem to be gray, where a contribution can be considered a bribe, a bribe a contribution, defense attorney Ilia Usharovich told the jury. It is all messed up.

The contrasting portrayals came during closing arguments in the Weiss bribery trial at the Dirksen U.S. Courthouse, where he is accused of agreeing in 2019 to pay monthly $2,500 bribes to then-state Rep. Luis Arroyo and ex-state Sen. Terry Link to get legislation on sweepstakes machines passed.

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Unbeknownst to both Arroyo and Weiss was that Link, a Vernon Hills Democrat, was cooperating with the FBI, hoping for a break on his own federal tax conviction in exchange for his cooperation.

Link testified over two days beginning last week about his undercover role, including wearing a hidden wire at meetings with Arroyo and Weiss at a North Shore Wendys and Skokie pancake house.

Weiss, 44, who is the son-in-law of former Cook County Democratic boss Joseph Berrios, is charged in a superseding indictment filed in October 2020 with honest services wire fraud, mail fraud and lying to the FBI. He has pleaded not guilty.

The jury of seven women and five men is expected to begin deliberating the case Thursday after hearing a rebuttal argument from prosecutors.

In his closing, Assistant U.S. Attorney Sean Franzblau said Weiss was trying to corrupt the political process, where laws should be fashioned with power of the ideas instead of the size of the pocketbook. He said any attempt to call Weiss payments to Arroyo and Link legitimate amounted to putting lipstick on a pig.

Lobbyist, consultant, dentist, therapist, it doesnt matter, Franzblau said. When you pay a public official money in exchange for an official act, it is a bribe.

Usharovich, however, said Weiss was kept in the dark about the scheme and believed the payments were for legitimate consulting work. If this was a bribe, it would have been done with a big bag of cash to keep it off the books, he said.

Usharovich said every one of the current and former legislators who testified for the government, including Link, state Rep. Bob Rita, and former state Sen. Tony Munoz, admitted they had taken campaign contributions from Rick Heidner, the video gaming kingpin who is a staunch opponent of sweepstakes machines.

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Another government witness who tried to get sweepstakes machines banned in Chicago, former Chicago Ald. Patrick OConnor, testified that Heidner hired him as a $5,000-a-month consultant a month after he left office, Usharovich noted.

The public wasnt cheated, as they say, by Mr. Weiss and Mr. Arroyo. They public was cheated by the people who testified here, Usharovich said. They made you guys losers, the state of Illinois.

But Franzblau said the government didnt put the bribery scheme in action  Weiss and Arroyo did.

The FBI simply walked up to a corrupt relationship that was already in place and they gave it a little nudge, and another bribery scheme came tumbling out, he said.

Franzblau pointed to a conversation secretly recorded by Link outside a Wendys in Highland Park as the key moment where Arroyo laid out the true intent of the payments.

In asking Arroyo, Whats in it for me, Link left it open to interpretation, Franzblau said. But instead of advancing some kind of legitimate political agenda, Arroyo switches immediately into corruption mode, the prosecutor said.

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He thinks Link is sort of winking at him. ... His response is, You can get paid like I am,  Franzblau said.

Franzblau also noted that Weiss had no explanation for why he told the FBI hed spoken to a purported consultant for Link named Katherine Hunter  a woman whod been invented by investigators as part of the sting.

When the FBI came knocking, Franzblau said, Weiss told a series of outlandish lies, culminating in a detailed, fictional and absolutely impossible story that the defendant had spoken to Katherine Hunter, a person who did not exist.

Prosecutors rested their case Wednesday morning after three full days of testimony featuring some 14 witnesses.

Weiss attorneys did not put on any evidence. In April theyd filed a list of 26 potential witnesses, including lobbyist Shaw Decremer, a former top aide to House Speaker Michael Madigan; ex-state Rep. Annazette Collins; Madigan-connected consultant Djavan Conway, and Jeffrey Rush, son of former U.S. Rep. Bobby Rush.

After prosecutors wrapped up their evidence, U.S. District Judge Steven Seeger advised Weiss of his right to testify and asked him if he wished to take the stand in his own defense. No, your honor, Weiss said.

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The trial centers on the largely uncharted world of sweepstakes machines, sometimes called gray machines, which allow customers to put in money, receive a coupon to redeem for merchandise online and then play electronic games like slot machines.

Since the machines can be played for free, they are not considered gambling devices. Critics, however, contend the unregulated devices, which operate in cities, including Chicago, that have banned video gambling, are designed to skirt the law.

The weeklong trial has been filled with political intrigue, both in the lineup of current and former elected officials who have testified as well as the backdrop of ongoing federal investigations swirling around Weiss associates, including the Cook County assessors office that Berrios once helmed.

But references to Berrios have been largely kept out of the trial. On Tuesday, the jury for the first time heard a veiled reference to the Democratic stalwart when prosecutors played a portion of a recorded interview Weiss gave to the FBI after being pulled over near his west suburban home in October 2019.

In trying to explain how he came to send a $2,500 check to Hunter, a consultant who was actually invented by investigators, Weiss told the agents a story about how hard it had been to gain traction with legislators in Springfield on the subject of sweepstakes machines.

Weiss said that it was so bad that even Link, who was spearheading the states gambling overhaul and knew his father-in-law well, told him off in vulgar terms at the Capitol.

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My father-in-law interacted with Terry Link for 30 years, and (Link) told me, (Expletive) you to my face, Weiss said on the recording. I didnt know what to do.

Berrios, who was head of the Cook County Democratic Party and also served as Cook County assessor from 2011 to 2019, has not been accused of wrongdoing. Weiss is married to his daughter, Toni, a former state representative.

The only other time the Berrios familys name has been mentioned came later on Tuesday, when jurors were shown a Post-it note Weiss wrote instructing that paperwork purportedly involving the consulting contract be signed and emailed to a Vanessa Berrios, Weiss sister-in-law, who was working as Weiss assistant at his valet parking company.

Former state Sen. Terry Link, left, leaves the Dirksen U.S. Courthouse after being on the witness stand in the federal bribery trial of businessman James Weiss on June 12, 2023. (Eileen T. Meslar/Chicago Tribune)

The testimony also focused on a parallel fight that went on at Chicagos City Hall, where Arroyo was operating as a paid lobbyist for Weiss company regarding sweepstakes machine issues.

OConnor, the longtime City Council floor leader, testified Tuesday that he proposed a ban on sweepstakes machines in 2018 after seeing them in operation at a gambling house next door to a high school.

OConnor, who was defeated in 2019 after 36 years in City Council, said he met with Weiss one time about sweepstakes machines in the fall of 2018 at his 40th Ward office.

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He just kind of stated that he felt my position was incorrect and we just agreed that we werent agreeing, and that was pretty much it, OConnor said.

OConnor also revealed his contract with Heidner, saying that about four months into the yearlong deal, Heidner asked him if he would cancel it.

He made it clear that his plans had changed and he wasnt going to need my assistance, OConnor testified.

The termination of the deal coincided with Heidners name surfacing in federal search warrants and subpoenas as part of a widening federal corruption probe involving then-state Sen. Martin Sandoval. Heidner was never accused of wrongdoing, and the U.S. attorneys office later gave him a non-target letter indicating he was not a target of the investigation.

In his testimony, Link took the jury through the meetings he secretly recorded for the FBI, including one at a Wendys restaurant in Highland Park as well as another meeting weeks later at a Skokie pancake house, where Arroyo allegedly handed over the first $2,500 check from Weiss.

This is, this is the jackpot, Arroyo told Link as he handed over the check, according to the recording played for the jury Monday. Additional monthly $2,500 payments were expected to be made over the next six to 12 months, totaling $30,000, the charges alleged.

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When Weiss was later questioned by agents, he lied and said Hunter was a lobbyist who lived in Winnetka and that hed spoken to her on the phone, according to a recording of the interview also played for the jury Monday.

Testimony Tuesday began with prosecutors playing a portion of Weiss recorded interview with two FBI agents after they pulled him over to serve him with a warrant to seize his cellphone in October 2019. During the clip, FBI Special Agent Curtis Heide confronted Weiss about his claim that hed talked with Hunter.

You never had a phone conversation with Katherine Hunter. You didnt, Heide said on the tape.

There was a woman who Luis (Arroyo) put me in on the phone with, Weiss insisted. We were ... where the hell was it? We met in person. ... Im trying to give you guys the details.

Suddenly Weiss remembered they were at Tavern on Rush. He said he and Arroyo were at the restaurant on Chicagos Near North Side when Arroyo said, I gotta put you on the phone with Katherine about engaging in the agreement.

OK, and he said Katherine? one of the agents asked.

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I believe it was Katherine, yes, Weiss replied.

In his closing Wednesday, Franzblau put up a slide with the words CALL WITH A GHOST, calling Weiss statements to the FBI about the fictitious Hunter ridiculous.

The wheels are spinning in his head, you can almost hear them turning. ... His story is impossible, Franzblau said.

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But Usharovich said investigators had no proof to show that Weiss didnt talk to someone he thought was Hunter. He said Weiss was also under duress.

Mr. Weiss, who isnt the smallest fella in the world, was crammed into a car with two trained FBI agents who are throwing questions at him for an hour and a half, Usharovich said.

Arroyo pleaded guilty to bribery but did not agree to cooperate with prosecutors. Seeger sentenced Arroyo to nearly five years in prison last year, calling him a corruption superspreader.

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State Rep. Bob Rita after testifying in the trial on federal bribery charges of businessman James Weiss, at Dirksen U.S. Courthouse on June 7, 2023. (E. Jason Wambsgans/Chicago Tribune)

Sam Toia, president and CEO of the Illinois Restaurant Association, exits the Dirksen U.S. Courthouse on June 13, 2023, in Chicago after providing a witness testimony to the James Weiss trial. (Shanna Madison/Chicago Tribune)

Listen to the audio:

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jmeisner@chicagotribune.com

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Soldier

A U.S. Army base in western Louisiana has renamed itself in honor of a World War I vet.

On Tuesday (June 13), The Associated Press reported that the change celebrated Sgt. William Henry Johnsons legacy. He was a Black hero of WWI who received a Medal of Honor almost a century later, per the outlet.

Before being switched to Fort Johnson, the base was called Fort Polk after Leonidas Polk, a Confederate commander. The change is also a part of the nations militarys efforts to address historic racial injustice. Eight other army bases whose names honored Confederate leaders are included in the renaming endeavor. In a Twitter post, Brig. Gen. David Garner, the Joint Readiness Training Center commanding general at Fort Johnson, spoke about the vet. Sgt. William Henry Johnson embodied the warrior spirit, and we are deeply honored to bear his name, he tweeted.

Sgt. William Henry Johnson embodied the warrior spirit, and we are deeply honored to bear his name at the Home of Heroes! https://t.co/wyfIroeohh  Warrior_6 (@JRTC_FTJohnson) June 11, 2023

According to the National Museum of the United States Army, Johnson fought off a German night raid near the Argonne Forest while serving on the frontline in France in 1918. He was injured 21 times as he engaged in combat and prevented a Black fellow soldier from being taken as a prisoner. When he ran out of grenades, Johnson used a knife to fatally wound two German soldiers. His frantic attacks broke the German morale, and the enemy raiding party retreated, his museum biography shared.

After surviving the war, Former President Theodore Roosevelt called Johnson one of the five bravest Americans to serve in the conflict. However, the Army did not recognize Johnsons action, AP News mentioned. He did not receive the Purple Heart and was denied a disability allowance. He struggled upon his return to Albany, New York due to his injuries. In 1929, Johnson died at age 32 from a heart condition. In 2015, Johnson was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty.

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The Army officially renamed Fort Polk in Louisiana as Fort Johnson on Tuesday in honor of a Medal of Honor recipient, as part of the latest in its string of renaming military bases that had recognized Confederate leaders.

The fort, which is officially taking the name of Joint Readiness Training Center (JRTC) and Fort Johnson, was designated in honor of Sgt. William Henry Johnson, a Black World War I veteran who has received acclaim for single-handedly fighting off a group of raiding German soldiers and saving a fellow soldier from being captured.

The Warrior Spirit that burned with in Sgt. William Henry Johnson now inspires generations of Soldiers. Soldiers that will now call JRTC and Fort Johnson home and Soldiers that will continue to come here from all over the nation and the world to train, Brig. Gen. David Gardner, the commanding general of the fort, said in a statement.

The change is the most recent in a line of military bases named for Confederate military officers that a congressionally authorized Naming Commission recommended last year that the Defense Department rename. The Pentagon ordered the removal of names and items associated with the Confederacy to begin in January and must finish by Jan. 1 of next year.

Fort Johnson was initially named in honor of Leonidas Polk, a lieutenant general from New Orleans who was involved in several notable Civil War battles like the Battle of Shiloh, according to the National Park Service. He was killed as his and other Confederate forces attempted to halt the Union advance toward Atlanta in 1864.

Polk also made a couple of significant military blunders that hampered the Souths war effort and led to a poor relationship with his commanding officer, Braxton Bragg.

Fort Bragg in North Carolina was renamed Fort Liberty earlier this month to honor the heroism, sacrifices, and values of the Soldiers, Service Members, Civilians, and Families who live and serve with this installation.

Johnson was a porter at Union Station in Albany, N.Y., before he enlisted in the New York Guards 15th New York Infantry Regiment two months after the U.S. entered World War I in 1917, according to the National Guard Association of the United States. He joined an all-Black unit, as the military was segregated at the time.

Johnson was posthumously awarded the Purple Heart in 1996, Distinguished Service Cross in 2002 and Medal of Honor in 2015 in recognition of his heroism.

The two forts that have yet to be renamed are scheduled to change later this year  Fort A.P. Hill in Virginia and Fort Gordon in Georgia.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
The summer before its members signed the Declaration of Independence, the Second Continental Congress wrangled over the structure and payroll of the budding fighting force it would entrust with making the documents pledges a reality.

Congressional delegates resolved their differences on June 14, 1775, establishing the Continental Army. A captain, they agreed, would earn $20 a month; a sergeant $8; a private a measly $6.66. Weapons and clothing were not included. The ragtag militias regrouped under this new banner would, after seven years of bloody combat, rid the colonies of their British overlords. Over the next two and a half centuries, the service they fought for would evolve into the core of the worlds mightiest war machine.

The U.S. militarys oldest branch has come a long way from its humble origins. The Army has long since scrapped its bring-your-own-gun policy; standard uniforms are now provided (though many enlistees probably wish they werent). The successors of the thousands of bedraggled infantrymen who camped Valley Forges woody hills are now headquartered in a five-sided pseudo-city occupying six different zip codes. Chronically underfunded in its early years, it now boasts a $185 billion budget and more than one million personnel.

From the crater-strewn fields of Amiens to the deserts surrounding Baghdad, Army soldiers have headlined every major American conflict since the countrys founding. Today, it runs around 160 installations worldwide; stateside, it owns more than 15 million acres of land (which, if combined, would form the countrys 42nd largest state).

Though the first woman to officially enlist in the American armed forces (Loretta Perfectus Walsh) joined the Navy in 1917, possibly the first ever female American soldier, Deborah Sampson, fought in the Continental Army at the tail end of the Revolutionary War under a male pseudonym. The countrys first president and 23 of his successors served in the branch. The Army cant claim to be a trendsetter in every area, however. Though it was the nations first service, it was also the last to adopt an official song (in 1956).

The Army will commemorate its 248th anniversary with a wreath-laying ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery followed by a highly-anticipated cake-cutting at the Pentagon. Later in the evening, members of the public can watch personnel decked out in historic Army regalia act out scenes from the services past at Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall, Virginia. Hopefully, 248 years of congressional budget battles are left out of the script.

Editors note: This story was updated after publication at 9:34 a.m. EST to note that the Armys Fiscal Year 2023 budget was approximately $185 billion.
Department of Justice

A 22-year-old former U.S. Army soldier is staring down decades in prison after pleading guilty Wednesday to trying to help ISIS ambush and murder Americans in the Middle East and New York City.

Cole Bridges, also known as Cole Gonzales, pleaded guilty in a New York federal court to charges of attempting to provide material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization and attempting to murder U.S. military service members.

Bridges traitorous conduct was a betrayal of his comrades and his country, said U.S. Attorney Damian Williams of the Southern District of New York in a statement.

Bridges was arrested in 2021 after the feds tricked him into chatting with an informant he thought was an ally of ISISthe terrorist organization infamous for carrying out cold-blooded murders, ethnic cleansing, enslavement and rape throughout Syria and Iraq.

Bridges put himself on the feds radar with a series of pro-Jihad and pro-ISIS social media posts he made after enlisting in 2019. The DOJ said records showed Bridges searched for propaganda promoting jihadists and shared some online.

Those posts prompted the feds to monitor Bridges, a cavalry scout stationed in Fort Stewart, Georgia. The FBI had an informant message Bridges to pose as someone with access to ISIS top leadersfooling Bridges into sharing hoards of incriminating messages and videos that became his own demise.

A screengrab from a video sent by Bridges to an FBI informant, with a pro-ISIS flag displayed prominently. Department of Justice

The feds say Bridges wrote that hed grown frustrated with the Army and wanted to help ISIS. To do this, he sent over a U.S. Army training manual and gave guidance about military combat tactics, going as far as explaining how fighters could wire certain buildings with explosives to kill U.S. troops.

Killing American soldiers abroad wasnt Bridges only goal. The feds say he also gave the purported ISIS official a list of potential targets in New York City for a terrorist attackreportedly calling the 9/11 Memorial in Manhattan a key target.

The feds became more certain the man messaging them was Bridges after he brazenly sent two videos of himselfone of him donning body armor in front of an ISIS flag, the other of him narrating a propaganda speech in support of an ambush by ISIS on U.S. troops.

Thanks to the incredible work of the prosecutors of this office and our partners at the FBI and the U.S. Army, Bridges malign intent was revealed, and he now awaits sentencing for his crimes, said Williams.

A sentencing hearing for Bridges is scheduled for Nov. 22. He faces up to 40 years in federal prison.

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Washington  A 22-year-old Army soldier has pleaded guilty to attempting to help ISIS ambush and murder U.S. soldiers in the Middle East, the Justice Department announced Friday.

Cole Bridges, also known as Cole Gonzales, of Stow, Ohio, faces up to 40 years in prison for his crimes. He pleaded guilty in federal court in New York to attempting to provide material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization and attempting to murder U.S. military service members.

Bridges joined the Army in about September 2019, assigned as a cavalry scout in Georgia, federal prosecutors said. That same year, he began researching online propaganda promoting jihadists, and expressed his support for ISIS and jihad online. In about October 2020, prosecutors said Bridges began communicating with an undercover FBI agent who posed as an ISIS supporter in contact with ISIS fighters.

Bridges, not realizing he was communicating with federal law enforcement, "provided training and guidance to purported ISIS fighters who were planning attacks, including advice about potential targets in New York City," prosecutors said. Bridges even diagrammed specific military maneuvers to help ISIS kill the most U.S. troops. He was arrested in January 2021.

"As he admitted in court today, Cole Bridges attempted to orchestrate a murderous ambush on his fellow soldiers in service of ISIS and its violent ideology," U.S. Attorney Damian Williams of the Southern District of New York said in a statement. "Bridges's traitorous conduct was a betrayal of his comrades and his country. Thanks to the incredible work of the prosecutors of this office and our partners at the FBI and the U.S. Army, Bridges's malign intent was revealed, and he now awaits sentencing for his crimes."

The FBI's New York Joint Terrorism Task Force, as well as U.S. Army Counterintelligence, the Air Force Office of Special Investigations, Bridge's division  the U.S. Army Third Infantry Division  and other law enforcement and military entities worked on the case, Williams' office said.

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An Army soldier pleaded guilty to attempting to provide material support to ISIS to help kill other U.S. troops.

Cole Bridges, a 22-year-old Ohio man, joined the Army in approximately September 2019 and was subsequently assigned as a cavalry scout based in Fort Stewart, Ga. That same year, according to prosecutors, he began consuming online propaganda promoting jihadists and their violent ideology, and posted his support for the Islamic State on social media platforms.

In about October 2020, prosecutors said, Bridges began communicating with an undercover FBI agent online who was posing as an ISIS supporter with connections to fighters in the Middle East. Bridges supplied the undercover agent with guidance and training material about, for example, potential targets in New York, the Department of Justice alleges.

Bridges continued to provide information and guidance through January 2021 to the undercover agent. In December 2020, he provided specific instructions for ISIS fighters to kill U.S. troops, prosecutors said. In one instance, Bridges also purportedly diagrammed specific military maneuvers intended to help ISIS fighters maximize the lethality of attacks on U.S. troops.

Bridges faces a maximum of 40 years in prison and will be sentenced Nov. 2.

As he admitted in court today, Cole Bridges attempted to orchestrate a murderous ambush on his fellow soldiers in service of ISIS and its violent ideology. Bridgess traitorous conduct was a betrayal of his comrades and his country. Thanks to the incredible work of the prosecutors of this Office and our partners at the FBI and the U.S. Army, Bridgess malign intent was revealed, and he now awaits sentencing for his crimes, U.S. Attorney Damian Williams of the Southern District of New York said in a press release Wednesday.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
Close Up of Man's Eye

An Atlanta nephrologist was charged with abusive sexual contact aboard an aircraft after he inappropriately groped a woman on a Delta flight.

Jake Namjik Cho was riding on Delta Airlines Flight 2138 in March when a female passenger reported to Portland police that Cho began having spasms when the plane hit some turbulence. While Cho claims he only grabbed the womans thigh, the passenger said the Georgia doctor grabbed her crotch and touched through her pants. When the woman said Excuse me, Cho allegedly leaned back into his seat and pretended to sleep the rest of the flight.

According to her report, the woman also accused Cho of deliberately putting his feet on hers while traveling before grabbing her crotch.

In a voluntary interview with Portland police, Cho denied touching the female passenger. He also denies the woman ever saying excuse me to him. However, according to The New York Post, he later refuted these claims saying he did touch the passenger but not in a sexual manner.

Photo credit: Adrienn

At some point, I saw her and reached out and grabbed her right upper thigh with my left hand. I intended to only squeeze her upper right thigh and never intended to touch her crotch, he wrote in a signed statement of his recollections. He added, Because my glasses were off and it was dark, my hand slipped from her upper thigh to her crotch.

Cho was headed to Portland to propose to his girlfriend when the incident occurred. In his police interview, he said his poor eyesight caused him to grab the womans thigh. After the incident, the doctor said he attempted to go back to sleep because he was embarrassed and didnt know what to do.

Other Incidents Of In-Flight Misconduct

This isnt the first time a Delta passenger has been accused of groping someone while flying. In June 2022, a California man was accused of groping an underage girl and then groping another woman who intervened. Although he blamed taking Ambien for his actions, the passenger was charged with committing a crime aboard an aircraft in flight, and abusive sexual contact involving young children, according to Complex. Following the incident, Delta released a statement.

Delta continues to cooperate with law enforcement in this matter, said a Delta spokesperson. We have zero tolerance for this type of alleged behavior on our flights and at our airports and the charged individual is no longer welcome to fly Delta.
Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) was one of the impeachment managers in the 2020 Senate trial of Donald Trump.

Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) was one of the impeachment managers in the 2020 Senate trial of Donald Trump.

An attempt to censure Rep. Adam Schiff failed Wednesday in the House after the California Democrat was targeted over his record of criticism of former President Donald Trump while heading a committee dealing with intelligence.

The resolution, introduced by Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-Fla.), was tabled on a 225 to 196 vote, with 20 Republicans joining 205 Democrats in voting to scuttle the effort. Seven representatives, including Rep. George Santos (R-N.Y.), voted present.

Afterward, Schiff said that he would wear the vote as a badge of honor.

MAGA Republicans are going after me because I dared to hold Donald Trump accountable, he tweeted, using the term for Trump-style conservatives. These efforts to intimidate me will not succeed. I will always defend our democracy.

Luna, a first-term lawmaker representing the Tampa area, said she will try again to get Schiff censured.

Schiff has been a prominent and longtime Trump critic. He was chairman of the Houses Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, or HPSCI, until he was denied a seat on the panel this year after Republicans regained control of the chamber.

He also served as one of the impeachment managers in the 2020 Senate trial of Trump, who attempted to withhold military aid for Ukraine unless its government announced an investigation of his Democratic rival Joe Biden. Trump was acquitted when a two-thirds majority of the Senate failed to vote to convict.

Wednesdays House vote made good on a threat by Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) a few weeks ago when, in reacting to an indictment against Santos, he publicly mulled whether Schiff should face repercussions for things the Democrat had said about Trump.

Adam Schiff went on television ... and lied to the American public, McCarthy said. And he took this country down for four years, spending millions of dollars but at the same time disrupting democracy.

Lunas resolution trod much of the same ground. It accused Schiff of having purposely deceived his Committee, Congress, and the American people, abusing his positions on HPSCI to encourage and excuse abusive intelligence investigations of Americans for political purpose, and using his position and access to sensitive information to instigate a fraudulently based investigation, which he then used to amass political gain and fundraising dollars.

Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) has said she will retire. Schiff is running for her open Senate seat.

Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) has said she will retire. Schiff is running for her open Senate seat.

If the resolution had not been tabled and instead had been adopted, it would have required Schiff to stand in the House as its text was read aloud and to be investigated by the Ethics Committee. If the probe then found that he had lied, the resolution suggested he be fined $16 million  about half the amount of money that had been spent on investigating Trump, the resolution said, without citing a source for the figure.

Vowing on Twitter to try again, Luna said she thought some of her GOP colleagues had not read the approximately 574-word resolution in entirety.

Next week, we will be filing a motion to censure and investigate Schiff, she tweeted. We are removing [the] fine as that seems to be what made these Republicans uneasy.

Schiff is currently running to replace retiring Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) in the Senate.
The Aurora Police Department, in conjunction with the citys African American Heritage Advisory Board, unveiled a special custom-wrapped squad car Wednesday in honor of Juneteenth.

Aurora Police Chief Keith Cross said he hopes the vehicle will serve as a community engagement tool.

Not only will it spark interest and conversation between our officers and members of the community, but also highlight our efforts to embrace and highlight various cultures, Cross said.

Mayor Richard Irvin said Aurora Police Officer William Whitfield and other Black officers brought the idea for the car to the city as a way to educate and unite residents through conversations over the Juneteenth holiday.

I did not hesitate to approve it, Irvin said. This is not a solution to easily fix a generations-old problem, but its a good step to keep us moving in the right direction.

Whitfield said he hopes the design helps break a barrier between the Black community and police officers.

The wrap was designed and paid for by the advisory board and will be on the car for the next two weeks, Cross said.

The car will be featured in a Juneteenth Car Parade hosted by the Community Advocacy Awareness Network with a lineup starting at 2:15 p.m. Saturday at the Phillips Park entrance on Smith Street in Aurora. The Kane County Sheriffs Office has provided traffic control for the event for the past three years.

The parade will begin at 3:15 p.m. and will travel from Smith Street to Fifth Avenue, then to Farnsworth Avenue and to Grand Boulevard before ending at Martin Luther King Park, 42 N. Farnsworth Ave., for the citys Juneteenth celebration. The celebration in the park will go until 7 p.m.

Aurora Chief Communications and Equity Officer Clayton Muhammad said the police car design is a wonderful movement in the right direction.

It is a statement of what happened here in this nation and how to are attempting to right wrongs and rectify and balance and level the playing field, Muhammad said.

We know challenges lie ahead of us as we continue, Whitfield said. We are prepared to continue fighting to bring equality and diversity to our community.

mejones@chicagotribune.com
A woman who says she was hurt after an allegedly drunken driver crashed into her pedicab outside Wrigley Field last weekend wants to know why the man isnt facing more serious charges.

Video of the crash captured by a bystander shows a bus decorated with painted mushrooms stopped outside the ballparks iconic red marquee following Saturdays Dead & Company concert. At the intersection, pedicab driver Sarah Yopps cycle rickshaw rolls to a stop.

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Then the bus driver accelerates forward. The bus plows through Yopps pedicab, hitting another car and knocking Yopp hard to the side, and drives on. Bystanders scream. Some chase after the bus.

Hey, you good? Baby girl? shouts Marisol Santos, who filmed the crash and shared her video with the Tribune. Someone needs to call 911!

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According to police, the driver fled the scene but was later detained a mile away. Police charged Bryan Michael Rollins, 40, of California, with two misdemeanor counts of driving under the influence of alcohol. Rollins was also charged with multiple traffic citations for failing to stay in a lane, not reporting an accident, not carrying a drivers license, and driving an uninsured vehicle.

Another driver followed and detained Rollins, who hit a 2016 Chevy Malibu and a 2012 Toyota Prius stopped on Clark Street before crashing into Yopp, according to a police crash report. Police saw open alcohol in the bus, and Rollins told officers he had been drinking, the crash report said. Police released him later Sunday.

Yopp, who is not identified in the police report, declined medical care at the scene. She biked home, disoriented and fearful of getting stuck with costly hospital bills and losing the expensive pedicab she needs for work, she told the Tribune on Tuesday.

She said over a dozen witnesses have reached out to her since she posted video of the crash to fan pages for Dead & Company, the band including John Mayer and former Grateful Dead members.

The pedicab driver said she had been trying to assist the driver of a Prius who was calling out for help after the persons car was repeatedly hit by the bus. She had no passengers at the time. She said she believes the driver was under the influence of drugs when he hit her.

Before he hit me, I looked him in the eye and he had the most crazed look. He looked like he didnt care what he did; he was going to get out of there, she said.

He mouthed sorry as he sped through the intersection and crashed into her, she said. She put her hand out to urge him to stop. Her head slammed into the cement after she was struck. She wouldve been killed if she hadnt been on her bike, which fell to the side instead of flattening under the bus when it was hit, she said.

It was obvious. He didnt care about killing people or harming anybody, said Santos, who checked on Yopp after capturing the video.

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A GoFundMe page set up for pedicab driver Sarah Yopp by her sister. (GoFundMe)

Yopp went to the emergency room Monday night with what she believes is a brain injury. She said she waited seven hours for care before ultimately going home. She suspects she fractured several ribs in the crash and suffered a concussion. She also said shes experiencing severe back pain and got a gash on her back.

Today, I actually feel like I was hit by a van, Yopp said. She returned to the hospital Tuesday.

The crash isnt Yopps first. In 1998, she was hit by a drunken driver while riding on a motorcycle with a friend in Arizona. The violent crash left her friend with lasting mental handicaps. Yopp said she couldnt walk for two years. That crash still affects her memory and left her with tens of thousands of dollars of medical debt, despite successful lawsuits, she added.

Following the crash shortly after midnight Sunday, police and firefighters did little to support her, Yopp said. They told her she looked fine, and no one checked to see if her eyes had dilated, she said. One first responder straightened her pedicabs wheel a bit, and she went home. According to the crash report, Yopp refused medical treatment and left the scene before authorities could learn who she was.

Yopp said the lack of immediate support and the absence of more serious charges against the driver have made her feel unsupported by the city.

Im probably never going to work Wrigley again. I dont feel safe up there, she said. I just feel like my life didnt matter  because the police dont seem to want to charge him with the real charges of what he actually did.

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Yopp used to drive her pedicab while dressed up as Wonder Woman. The Floridian has come to Chicago to work during summers for years. During the pandemic, she said some people would come downtown just to take rides in her carriage. It felt good to lift spirits, she said.

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Despite rules making work difficult for pedicab drivers, like a ban on Navy Pier pickups after 6 p.m., the drivers are part of Chicagos fabric, she said. But now, Yopp isnt sure if shell come back to the city.

Shes heard that the driver, whom she believes follows the bands concerts, has moved on to Ohio for the tours next stop. Her pedicab, which she said costs around $20,000, needs a few thousands dollars in repairs. She expects aggravated injuries from her past crash will cost her even more, in part because the driver who hit her is uninsured.

Yopps work night was cut short by the crash, and she hasnt been able to resume cabbing since. Shes unsure when shell able to, physically. Shes not sure if she can get back on the bike mentally either, but she hopes to start biking people around again soon.

A GoFundMe started by Yopps sister has raised over $6,000. Many Dead & Company fans have sent money, Yopp said.

Late Tuesday, Yopp said authorities in Ohio called her to tell her they were searching for Rollins, the alleged driver. Chicago police had advised the Ohio authorities to find him, she said. She heard the man had parted from the bus, but somebody outside the next Dead & Company concert he attended had shared his location, she added.

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The Tribune unsuccessfully attempted to contact Rollins through his phone, email and social media accounts.

jsheridan@chicagotribune.com
Australia Is Banning Nazi Symbols to Curb the Far Right. Heres What to Know

A police inspector tries to order neo-Nazis to leave the area during a heated political rally against racism, as far-right neo-Nazi groups held a demonstration at state parliament, leading to clashes and scuffles on May 13 in Melbourne, Australia.

A police inspector tries to order neo-Nazis to leave the area during a heated political rally against racism, as far-right neo-Nazi groups held a demonstration at state parliament, leading to clashes and scuffles on May 13 in Melbourne. Credit - Michael CurrieSpeed Media/Shutterstock

In March, a group of emboldened neo-Nazis in Melbourne began making a number of public appearances in a bid to recruit more members across Australiafirst, at an anti-immigration rally, then, at an anti-transgender rights onewhere they wore all black and proudly performed Nazi salutes. It was the latest example of far-right groups on the rise after Australias security chief issued a warning in February that neo-Nazis have emerged as one of the most challenging national security threats over the past year.

Now, the Australian government is trying to tackle the problem by placing a ban on swastikas and other Nazi symbols. There is no place in Australia for symbols that glorify the horrors of the Holocaust, Australian Attorney General Mark Dreyfus said on June 8.

The new bill was introduced in Parliament this week and seeks to ban the trade and public display of the swastika or Schutzstaffel (SS) symbols on flags, armbands, T-shirts, and insignia, as well as the online publication of symbols promoting Nazi ideology.

Extremist insignia are an effective propaganda tool because they are easy to remember and understand, Dreyfus told lawmakers in Canberra on Wednesday. The [Prime Minister Anthony] Albanese Government is taking a significant step towards sending a message that Australia is united against displays of hate.

Below, what to know about the rise of far-right extremism in Australia, and the governments attempts to curb it.

Are neo-Nazis on the rise in Australia?

In February, Mike Burgess, the head of the Australian Security Intelligence, delivered an annual national threat assessment where he said that small cells of right-wing extremists were contributing to foreign espionage and interference activities more than ever before.

Last year, a team of independent researchers analyzed 673 incidents of antisemitism across Australia from 2013 to 2017 and found a significant increase following the establishment of one hate group. In a 2020 report, the Executive Council of Australian Jewry found that from 2019 to 2020, there was a marked increase in the number of serious incidents in Australia, including physical assaults and verbal abuse.

Police hold back anti-fascist counter protesters during a neo-Nazi anti-immigration rally outside state parliament in Melbourne on May 13. Diego FedeleEPA-EFE/Shutterstock

Meanwhile, research by Tackling Hate, an Australian initiative, found that one in four Australians had experienced discrimination motivated by their race and ethnicity, gender, disability, or religion in the last 12 months.

Experts tell TIME that the recent resurgence of far-right activism in Australia can be traced back to 2015 and coincides with the presidential campaign of Donald Trump, who campaigned on a platform that emboldened white nationalists. According to Josh Roose, a political sociologist who studies extremism at Deakin University in Melbourne, Australian far-right groups have drawn inspiration from similar ideologies that gained momentum in the U.S. during this time.

Weve had a number of local groups model themselves on the Proud Boys, for example, Roose says.

Read More: The Billionaire and the Bigots

In 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, two far-right groups called the Lads Society and the Antipodean Resistance reportedly combined to form the National Socialist Network (NSN) and established its base in the state of Victoria. NSN tapped into public anger over pandemic restrictionsAustralia enacted some of the worlds strictest measuresas many Australians took to the streets to participate in anti-lockdown protests. In Melbourne, which underwent six consecutive lockdowns, neo-Nazis appeared at the protests to spread their message and recruit new members.

Today, the core group of far-right activists appears small in public but has a robust online presence. Its a perfect storm of factors that have led to these groups gaining a little bit of prominence, Roose says. What you dont want is extremist fringe movements becoming a mainstream movement.

What does the new bill entail?

Two Neo-Nazis walk away after being ordered to leave by police during an anti-immigration rally at state parliament in Melbourne on May 13. Michael CurrieSpeed Media/Shutterstock

The Counter-Terrorism Legislation Amendment (Prohibited Hate Symbols and Other Measures) Bill would ban the display and trade of the swastika, the most recognizable symbol of the Nazis, as well as the insignia of the SS, the Nazi partys paramilitary wing. (It also bans display of the flag or symbols resembling the flag of the terrorist organization known as the Islamic State, or ISIS.) Offenders face a maximum penalty of up to 12 months in prison.

The legislation does not cover the Nazi salute, which local police already have the power to crack down on. State governments have got more responsibility for what you might call street offenses the salute weve left for the states, Dreyfus said during the June 8 announcement, a reference to bans enacted by Victoria and Queensland earlier this year.

The proposed ban also makes exceptions for the legitimate display of the swastikaan ancient Sanskrit symbol facing the opposite direction in Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism that was hijacked by the Nazisfrom religious, artistic, literary, scientific, journalistic, and academic contexts. Public display for the purposes of education is permitted so the horrors of the Second World War are not forgotten and can continue to be taught as a lesson for future generations, Dreyfus said on June 14.

While most Australian states have already instituted separate bans on Nazi symbols, the new bill goes further by targeting any sales of clothing, items, or memorabilia. Attorney-general Dreyfus added that it would bolster state efforts by ensuring there were no loopholes left to exploit. Theres no place in Australia for spreading of hatred and violence, he said last week.

Will the ban be effective?

The answer is complicated. Some experts say that such bans treat symptoms of a larger problem, rather than the problem itself.

Theyre effectively playing whack-a-mole by hitting far-right extremists as they pop up in different manifestations around the country, says Deaking Universitys Roose. But theres a much deeper societal issue here thats giving rise to these movements.

Robert Kahn, a law professor who studies hate speech at the University of St. Thomas in Minnesota, says such bans can still be effective by having a no-tolerance approach toward hate speech. He also points to an argument made in the U.S. Supreme Court by Justice Louis Brandeis: Sunshine is the best disinfectant, meaning that a society is better off knowing that they have a neo-Nazi issue, rather than pushing it under the carpet.

Libertarian views on free speech that are popular in the U.S. havent had the same historical resonance in Australia, says Roose. But certain acts are only deemed as terrorism and violent extremism when they cross the threshold to call for violence. He adds that far-right groups have often exploited loopholes by carefully crafting their language and making calls for violence more implicit so that they can have plausible deniability.

The new bill hopes to crack down on these loopholes and was announced after widespread consultation with security agencies, communities, academics, and other relevant stakeholders.

Dvir Abramovich, chairman of the Australian Anti-Defamation Commission, told the BBC that the recent presence of neo-Nazis on Australias streets took Holocaust survivors back to their darkest days. He described the proposed ban as a profound moment and said it was a step in the right direction to deal with hardcore bigots.

Which other countries have similar bans?

Most bans or restrictions on Nazi symbols are found in Europe, particularly in Germany and Austria. In Germany, swastikas and SS sig runes are considered unconstitutional and their display or sale is illegal. The Nazi salute and statements such as Heil Hitler are also banned in public. Similar, though less restrictive, bans also exist in France, Latvia, Ukraine, Russia, Poland, Lithuania, and Hungary.

No such bans exist in the U.S. The Nazi symbol has also not been banned in Canada and New Zealand, though experts say these two countries may follow in Australias footsteps.
Started as a side project, JDoodle, which lets developers practice more than six dozen programming languages on one website, hit 800,000 users while being bootstrapped. Now the Australia-based startup has set a goal of 8 million users within the next 24 months after getting $3.2 million AUD (about $2.2 million USD) in new funding. The round was led by Main Sequence, the venture firm founded by Australias national science agency.

JDoodle has tools aimed at software developers of all levels, ranging from students to professionals. These include zero-set up IDEs (integrated development environments) for more than 76 coding languages, including Java CloudIDE, that lets users write and run code in their browsers without having to set up local software or libraries.

Over the past year, JDoodle hit 800,000 users, including 3,000 educational institutions. JDoodle was started by software developer Gokul Chandrasekaran, who spent seven years working on it and reached 500,000 users before quitting his job to focus on it full-time. It grew out of a side project with one page and programming language that Chandrasekaran set up for $20, before spending evenings and weekends adding new features based on user feedback.

Chandrasekaran told TechCrunch that he wanted to start JDoodle because of the inefficiencies he encountered, like expensive and complicated development tools, while working on his bachelors and masters degrees in computer science.

Those tools force every developer to waste so much of their time just getting the software environment ready for us to do our jobs. Even running one line of program is a headache, he said. You need sophisticated hardware and hours to set up a development environment with libraries, compilers, editors and more, only to risk everything breaking if theres an update to their operating systems.

For teachers and students, this means wasting time fixing development environment issues and manually verifying programming assignments. For professionals, this means time spent away from actually developing and instead used to manage their software development environments. By using JDoodle, Chandrasekaran said, they can get inexpensive access to programming environments and practice programming in a browser even on basic smartphones.

Main Sequence partner Mike Nicholls and JDoodle founder Gokul Chandrasekaran

Main Sequence partner Mike Nicholls and JDoodle founder Gokul Chandrasekaran

Software developers spend so much time setting up and managing their software development environments and focusing on small, unimportant tasks like changing the color of a button, he said. We need to free up developers to focus on the tasks that really matter because Id say that organizations are currently wasting 20% of their software development budget.

JDoodles growth to 800,000 users was organic, and it didnt spend time or money on marketing until recently. I believe the reason weve amassed so many users so far is because I listen to them, said Chandrasekaran. Over the years, Ive taken so much feedback on board from developers and built the platform according to their needs. Every single feature in JDoodle exists as a result of a user request or feedback.

Some examples of JDoodles customers include edtech Outlier, which offers accredited college courses. JDoodles plugins are embedded into its computer science courses, so students dont need to switch between the class and a local practice environment. Another example is South American recruitment platform GeekHunter, which has used JDoodle since 2018 in its vetting process. Candidates pass coding exams produced by JDoodle before they are approved.

JDoodle monetizes through a freemium SaaS subscription model. Chandrasekaran said most of its revenue comes from its API and plugin solutions, which include standard and custom plans, but the startup is planning more income streams, including premium IDEs, hosting, courses, assignments and a talent marketplace.

The new funding will go toward JDoodles plans to scale up to 8 million users, including marketing, product development and hiring for its team in Australia.

Main Sequence met JDoodle while the startup was participating in The University of New South Wales 10x Accelerator Founders Program. Partner Mike Nicholls told TechCrunch about the investment that Main Sequence has invested in more than 50 deep-tech startups and almost every one of them ends up hiring large numbers of developers and software engineers. Every startup is looking for a competitive edge and higher productivity from their software and hardware team. Essentially we want to turbocharge how companies and developers create the next generation of business systems.
Wendsler Nosie Sr., a longtime opponent of the proposed Resolution Copper mine and former chairman of the San Carlos Apache Tribe, gathers with others at Oak Flat, a piece of land held sacred by the tribe that could be destroyed by the mine. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)

On a recent morning about an hour outside Phoenix, the pounding of tribal drums reverberated across the desert from a stand of oaks in the Tonto National Forest, where nearly 20 men had packed into a squat green sweat lodge to pray.

Members of several Native American tribes, the men had come to take part in the grueling spiritual ceremony under the guidance of Wendsler Nosie Sr., 64, an Apache elder who has emerged in recent years as an influential religious and environmental activist  not only in this small pocket of Arizona, but nationally.

"The spirits of our ancestors are right here," Nosie told the men as they crawled shirtless and dripping with perspiration from an initial round of song and prayer in the sweltering lodge.

"We're fighting the United States. We're fighting Rio Tinto," Nosie said, referring to the multinational mining company that wants to excavate the surrounding desert  which the Apache consider sacred  to reach a massive copper ore deposit below.

(Paul Duginski / Los Angeles Times)

"We're doing it," Nosie said, "for Mother Earth."

His fight to stop the mine sits at the forefront of modern political debate over the proper role of religion in society. It pits the American promise of religious liberty against federal land rights, corporate profits, local jobs and the ravenous global demand for natural resources such as copper  an essential element in the proliferation of telecommunications networks, electric vehicles and other technologies.

Along with others from the nearby San Carlos Apache Indian Reservation, Nosie sued to block a pending federal land swap that would hand this area, called Oak Flat, over to Rio Tinto and its mining partner, BHP Group, after being under explicit federal protection since 1955.

Oak Flat is a cactus-covered, sun-baked landscape of pinnacled rock formations and Native American archaeological and burial sites, home to a plethora of plants and animals. The deal with Resolution Copper, a Rio Tinto and BHP subsidiary, would transform it into a nearly two-mile-wide, 1,000-foot-deep industrial crater, according to federal planning records.

Apache roamed Oak Flat, which they call Chichil Bidagoteel, for generations before white settlers forced them onto reservations. Nosie and the other Apache involved in the case  who go by the name Apache Stronghold  say it is sacred land blessed by their Creator and home to spiritual guardians akin to angels.

Mining operations have altered the landscape in the desert wilderness near Superior, Ariz. A new copper mining project is proposed in the nearby area of Oak Flat, a piece of land held sacred by Apache tribe members. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)

Backers of the mine have questioned the Apaches' religious ties to the land and praised the project for the economic benefits it would bring to this struggling part of Arizona and the reservation, where unemployment and poverty run high. The mining companies have said they have sought the input of Native American partners, including Apache, and made substantial concessions to preserve particularly sensitive and important areas.

"We look forward to continuing to work closely with all stakeholders as we develop one of the most sustainable American copper mines, providing vital materials for the clean energy transition and bringing jobs and lasting economic benefits to rural Arizona," Resolution Copper said in a statement to The Times.

To this day, the Apache say, they forage here for traditional foods such as acorns and for medicinal plants they believe are imbued with special powers. They also gather here for religious rites, including sweats and coming-of-age ceremonies known as Sunrise Dances, in which young girls are ushered into womanhood. In the Apache spiritual tradition, holy places are not bricks-and-mortar constructs such as churches, but ancient landscapes like Chichil Bidagoteel.

In their lawsuit  which is now before the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals  the group argues that the deal to trade Oak Flat to Resolution Copper in exchange for other lands scattered throughout the state violates their religious rights. They say construction of the mine would prevent them from conducting their religious ceremonies and break their ties to the land forever, in violation of an 1852 treaty between the Apache and the U.S.

"We're standing on religious belief," Nosie told about 50 people who had gathered for an update on the case after the sweat. "We're standing on God the Creator."

The land

A member of the resistance group Apache Stronghold seals up a sweat lodge with about a dozen men inside as a campfire burns during a religious ceremony at Oak Flat. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)

About 60 miles east of Phoenix, the old mining town of Superior sits near the foot of an ancient rock outcropping called Apache Leap, where legend holds that a band of warriors once jumped to their deaths rather than be captured by U.S. cavalry.

Up a steep canyon and through a highway tunnel sits Oak Flat, which is listed in the National Register of Historic Places for its significance to Indigenous tribes. Accessed by day-trippers and other visitors through Oak Flat Campground, the area features world-class rock climbing sites and campgrounds that local residents use for holiday picnics.

Long before any of its modern uses, however, this land was Apache territory  part of a vast swath of the Southwest that tribes called home before the encroachment of Spanish explorers, Mexican vaqueros and a growing wave of white settlers and U.S. government forces after the end of the Mexican-American War in 1848.

For decades after, the U.S. government and the Apache were at war, with the government killing raiding bands of Apache warriors and forcing other tribe members onto reservations.

(Paul Duginski / Los Angeles Times)

Although an 1852 treaty with the U.S. called on the government to create reservations and pass laws "conducive to the prosperity and happiness" of the Apache, that was not to be the case. Instead, their people were made prisoners of war, Apache Stronghold argues.

"American history and the land in Arizona is stained with the blood of Apache women, men, elders and children, hunted down on the Apache's own Treaty lands and individually killed and mass-murdered in family groups by European and Euroamerican colonists, 'settlers,' 'prospectors,' miners, and agents of the United States of America," the group wrote in its lawsuit.

In 1871, the San Carlos Apache Indian Reservation was established about 25 miles east of Oak Flat, in an area the Apache referred to as "Hell's 40 Acres" for its miserable conditions. Tribe members faced punishment and even death if they left, particularly if they attempted to practice their religion outside the reservation, Apache Stronghold says.

The next year, the Mining Law of 1872 declared mineral deposits under federal lands open for exploration and purchase, and in 1875 the Silver Queen Mine  which would later become the Magma copper mine  was built on the edge of Oak Flat.

Today, critics of Apache Stronghold, including some longtime residents of Superior, question the group's religious claims to the land, saying they never saw Apache at Oak Flat until the fight over the new mine began. But members of Apache Stronghold strongly dispute that.

They say that their people were brutally removed from Oak Flat in the past, but that they never stopped traveling there from the reservation  despite the threats they faced for doing so.

Members of Apache Stronghold dance during a meeting about a proposed copper mine at Oak Flat. The group opposes the mine project and says the land is sacred. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)

"Since I was young we've always come here," Lian Bighorse, one of Nosie's daughters, said as she and other women cooked a big meal  including acorn stew  for the gathering after the sweat. "We played all through here. Prayed. My kids grew up here, came for ceremonies."

Bighorse, 45, who holds a bachelor's degree in American Indian studies and a doctorate in bioethics, sustainability and global public health, said it's difficult to describe the importance of Oak Flat because it's "more an experience than an explanation."

"Sublime is what I think is the best word," she said. "It's the presence of God."

According to researchers contracted by Resolution Copper to conduct an ethnographic study of the region in 2014 and 2015, Chichil Bidagoteel is undoubtedly significant  not just for the Apache but for Hopi, O'odham, Yavapai and Zuni.

Through interviews with tribal elders, a review of historical records and other research, principal investigator T.J. Ferguson  a professor emeritus at the University of Arizona  and his colleagues found "landforms and resource collection areas with Apache place names, Apache camps, ancestral archaeological sites, petroglyph sites, and trails" at Oak Flat, as well as dozens of natural springs and various plants and animals that "possess traditional cultural significance."

"The proposed destruction of Oak Flat," the researchers wrote Congress in 2021, "is akin to tearing out pages from a history book in the library."

The mine

Mining structures are silhouetted against the setting sun over Oak Flat, a piece of desert wilderness in Arizona that is sacred to Apache tribe members. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)

In 1910, a man named William Boyce Thompson acquired the old Silver Queen Mine and formed Magma Copper Co.  which mined copper from the area, with varying intensity, until 1996.

In 2004, companies exploring the area discovered a huge copper ore deposit beneath Oak Flat. Located between 5,000 and 7,000 feet below the surface, the deposit is now considered one of the largest untapped copper deposits in the world.

In 2006, Resolution Copper  55% owned by Rio Tinto, 45% by BHP  began work to reclaim the historic Magma mine. The company also began lobbying Congress to undo the protections that President Eisenhower had placed on Oak Flat in 1955 and enable it to acquire the land.

For years, stand-alone legislation to initiate such a land swap failed. Then in 2014, Arizona lawmakers  including the late Sen. John McCain and former Sen. Jeff Flake  managed to insert language requiring the swap into a last-minute defense appropriations bill.

(Paul Duginski / Los Angeles Times)

The defense bill was considered must-pass legislation, and President Obama signed it into law  formally requiring the transfer of Oak Flat to Resolution Copper upon the completion of a federal environmental study.

McCain and Flake couched the swap as a win for military readiness, as "America's armed forces need stable supplies of copper for their equipment, ammunition, and electronics." Opponents derided it as underhanded, slipped through Congress by deceit rather than consensus.

Either way, the move set in motion years of intense planning by Resolution Copper  which says it has already spent more than $2 billion on the project  and kick-started the U.S. Forest Service's environmental review, which is still underway.

Resolution Copper has done extensive core sampling in the area, deepened the Magma mine shaft from about 4,800 feet to nearly 7,000 feet, and built a second shaft of the same depth next to it.

Pending the land swap going through and the completion of additional study of the ore deposit, Resolution Copper says it will build out a much larger network of shafts and tunnels, bore under the ore at a depth of about 7,000 feet  like five Empire State buildings stacked atop one another  and begin excavating it using a gravity-assisted process known as "block caving."

An estimated 1.4 billion tons of ore, containing an estimated 40 billion pounds of copper, will be exploded into small pieces and hauled out. As that occurs, the land above  Oak Flat  will begin to subside, collapsing in on itself until it yawns into a crater "between 800 and 1,115 feet deep and roughly 1.8 miles across," according to the environmental study.

Over its 60-year life span, the mine would require vast amounts of water, which Resolution Copper would draw in part from already limited state water supplies. The project would also require Resolution Copper to mitigate damage to springs and other natural water systems within the mine's footprint, to ensure water bound for neighboring communities isn't tainted.

In addition, Resolution Copper would have to create and manage a massive storage facility for the mine's tailings, or the ore byproduct after all the valuable metals and minerals are extracted.

Mountainous piles of mine tailings stand at the edge of the historic mining town of Miami, Ariz., which is east of Phoenix and not far from Oak Flat. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)

Tailings are hazardous, as they can contain substances such as lead and arsenic, and must be contained in a monitored site in perpetuity. According to the environmental study, the preferred location is an area known as Skunk Camp, which is adjacent to other mining operations to the southeast.

A tailings facility at Skunk Camp would require Resolution Copper to build more than 20 miles of pipelines from Oak Flat and pump the tailings there as a slurry. The facility and pipelines would disturb nearly 15,000 acres of land  including about 2,500 acres of federal land and more than 8,200 acres of state land  and feature a nearly 500-foot-tall embankment, according to the environmental review.

Resolution Copper says that after mining is finished, it would restore native vegetation and a more natural surface variance to make it appear less disturbed, or repurpose it as something that wouldn't require much human activity on site, such as a solar farm.

In its statement to The Times, Resolution Copper said "hundreds of consultations with Native American Tribes" in the last decade have resulted in significant project changes "to avoid dozens of areas of cultural significance and hundreds of ancestral sites, medicinal plants, seeps and springs."

The company noted it has agreed not to mine under Apache Leap, to ensure it is permanently preserved. The company also said the Oak Flat Campground will be preserved for many years to come, though it stopped short of promising its permanent preservation  in part because the land swap would open the campground to mining exploration for the first time, and officials don't yet know what's beneath it.

At the gathering after the sweat, Nosie said Resolution Copper and its advocates in the community have gotten good at sugarcoating what is happening and encouraging people to look the other way, often with money or the promise of jobs.

But the facts of the proposed mine are clear, he said.

"This place is gonna be murdered. I mean, let's use the right words.  Animals, plants, food, life  they're gonna all be murdered," Nosie said. "The American people don't even understand what they're murdering."

The lawsuit

Protesters stand outside the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals in Pasadena to challenge a mining deal that would destroy Oak Flat, a sacred site in Arizona. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

The Apache's lawsuit is a complex one that relies on  and questions  decades of legal precedent around the rights of tribes and other religious groups.

The Apache assert that the destruction of Oak Flat would violate their treaty and place a "substantial burden" on their ability to practice their religion. Given that, they say, federal law requires that the government show a compelling government interest in the project.

They argue the government has not and cannot show such an interest, in part because the mine would most directly benefit Rio Tinto and BHP, not the U.S. government or its people.

In response, the government has argued that the 1852 treaty does not grant the Apache any rights to Oak Flat, and that even if it did, such a claim would have to be brought by a recognized tribe, not a special interest group such as Apache Stronghold.

Protesters stand outside the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals in Pasadena to challenge a mining deal that would destroy Oak Flat. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

The government has argued the project does not substantially burden the Apache's religious practice under the U.S. Supreme Court's interpretation of such burdens because it does not "coerce" the Apache into violating their beliefs or penalize their religious activity by denying them rights or privileges enjoyed by other citizens, and therefore the government doesn't have to prove a compelling interest in pursuing the mine deal.

The government has also warned  as have some judges reviewing the case  that allowing a small religious group to dictate how the government can use its land would set a dangerous precedent, essentially handing millions of people the power to veto federal land deals.

The case evokes a troubled past of Indigenous oppression but also a future threatened by climate change, and has inspired strange bedfellows  with conservative religious leaders from institutions such as the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints joining with liberal activists from environmental groups such as the Sierra Club to oppose the mine.

The government has cited that interest in the case to push its point that a ruling in Apache Stronghold's favor would inspire more special interest challenges to federal land decisions. But supporters of Apache Stronghold say such fears are overblown.

Stephanie Barclay, a law professor and director of the Religious Liberty Initiative at Notre Dame Law School, is an attorney for the National Congress of American Indians, which supports Apache Stronghold.

Barclay argues that courts have long applied a racist double standard to Indigenous religious claims, ignoring the importance of sacred lands to Indigenous people when considering whether the destruction of those lands would substantially burden their religious rights.

Courts have ruled that denying prisoners kosher meals, forcing Sikh soldiers to cut their beards, fining Amish families for keeping their children out of school and denying certain employment benefits to Seventh-day Adventists all represented substantial religious burdens.

It is solely in the context of Native American cases, Barclay said, "where the government does something to make someone's religious exercise physically impossible, and the court says, 'Yeah, that's not a substantial burden.'"

Differing views

Mila Besich is the mayor of Superior, Ariz., a historic mining community east of Phoenix and close to Oak Flat. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)

Mila Besich, 45, the Democratic mayor of Superior  population a few thousand  said she tries to be very respectful of Apache Stronghold's fight.

But, she said, "it's different than mine."

Besich is a fourth-generation Superior resident, from a family with a long history of public service in the area. She remembers both her parents losing their jobs when the former Magma mine partially closed in the early 1980s, and being told after graduating from high school in 1996 that there wouldn't be anything left of the town for her to return to after college.

Besich did return, and won a seat on the town council after her predecessor, who had spoken out against the Resolution Copper mine, was recalled. She became mayor in 2016.

Nancy Sewell-McDade relaxes in the Drift Inn Saloon in Globe, Ariz., a historic mining town east of Phoenix. Her family includes people who worked in mining, and she generally supports the Resolution Copper mining project at nearby Oak Flat. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)

When Besich first took over, she felt like the town wasn't getting its point of view across in all the discussions about the mine and its potential effects on the region. The federal government didn't seem to care about how Superior felt, she said, and the town had zero working relationship with Resolution Copper.

She personally supported the mine, she said, but didn't want to throw the town's support behind it based on "an emotional response" to the promise of a revived town. "We had to approach this in a business sense."

Besich and town manager Todd Pryor set out to ensure they and their staff understood the mine proposal and the federal review process. They hired an economist and started a dialogue with Resolution Copper  not just about the potential benefits of the mine but also about the threats and costs to the town.

There were water and infrastructure concerns. The town would need more police and firefighters, more money for schools, long-term assurances that roads would be maintained and help diversifying the town's economy to ensure its survival after the mine closed, Besich said.

"One of the hardest things was to say to the mine, 'Hey, your dog and pony show isn't lining up with what we're seeing,'" she said.

Motor vehicles stream along U.S. Highway 60 into the historic mining town of Superior, Ariz. The community is near Oak Flat, a piece of land held sacred by Apache tribe members. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)

In the last six years, the company has pumped millions of dollars into Superior, including $2 million to renovate the old high school into a town hall and multi-generation center, $1.29 million for an "Enterprise Center," $2.5 million toward other economic development and $2 million for emergency services. It also has given $300,000 a year to the school district and $50,000 a year to the Chamber of Commerce.

Over the life of the mine, Resolution Copper will pay many millions more toward emergency services and road maintenance, Besich and Pryor said, and has agreed to give the town land for a new campground and new development around Superior's small airstrip.

Besich considers her work on the project part of her "life's legacy."

Around town, there is a lot of pragmatism about the project. People who came up in mining families, who comprise a lot of the population, aren't that put off by the idea of having a mine so close to town  and are well aware of the economic benefits, which Resolution Copper says will include 3,700 jobs over the mine's lifetime.

On a recent Saturday night, friends Jess Valenzuela, 53, and Nando Arredondo, 50, sat catching up at a bar in the heart of the town where they both grew up.

Valenzuela said his dad was "the proudest miner in the world," who came home dirty every evening and was buried under a headstone with a miner on it.

Although his sister is adamantly opposed to the mine, having sided with the Apache, Valenzuela said he can't help but think "that the only way we survived was Pops working his ass off" in mines, and the Resolution Copper mine could provide similar support for Superior families.

Arredondo said he understands the controversy around the mine, but he thinks it could do good things for the town. "We were raised on miners' sweat," he said.

The future

The timeline for the Resolution Copper mine is unclear.

The 2014 rider legislating the land swap mandates that the deal go through within 60 days of the federal government issuing its environmental statement.

In January 2021, the Trump administration issued the statement five days before President Biden's inauguration in an effort to push the project through, but the Biden administration withdrew it that March, citing the need for additional review and consultation with tribes.

Last month, the government said it had "not yet identified a time frame for completing its review."

Apache Stronghold filed its lawsuit days after the Trump administration published the review, asking for an emergency injunction to block the land deal.

Both a federal district court judge and a three-judge panel of the 9th Circuit denied the group's request, but 9th Circuit judges voted in November to vacate the panel's opinion and rehear the case "en banc," or before an 11-judge panel.

The larger panel has yet to issue a ruling, though it could do so any day.

James Phillips, a member of the San Carlos Apache Tribe who works for Resolution Copper and supports the mine, stands on a platform overlooking Oak Flat. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)

James Phillips, 33, is a member of the San Carlos Apache Tribe and a father of two. He is also a Resolution Copper employee who supports the mine.

The job has allowed him to support his family, including his aging parents, he said. It has also left him ostracized from others on the reservation, where fellow tribe members have accused him of being a "traitor" and of not caring about Apache traditions, he said.

The truth, he said, is that he just doesn't believe what Nosie preaches about Oak Flat.

"If you were to ask me if I truly believe Oak Flat is sacred, honestly no, I don't. I'd never heard of it being sacred before," Phillips said.

Naelyn Pike, 23  who is Nosie's eldest granddaughter  feels very different.

The first time Pike testified before Congress against the Resolution Copper mine was a decade ago, when she was 13. Since then, she has become one of the faces of the fight  speaking with a gravitas beyond her years about the importance of the land for future generations.

"It's not just an Apache fight. It's become so much bigger," Pike said in an interview with The Times. "It's become a fight for humanity, a fight for ethics, about the freedom of religion. It's about the fundamental morals of this country."

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Russian nuclear weapons "three times more powerful" than those used on Japan during World War II have already been delivered to Belarus, which borders Ukraine, the country's autocratic leader Alexander Lukashenko said in videotaped remarks broadcast Tuesday. His announcement came just days after Russian President Vladimir Putin said his country would deploy tactical nuclear weapons to Belarus in July.

In remarks aired on both Russian and Belarussian state television channels, Lukashenko said he wouldn't hesitate to use the nuclear weapons or join Russia's war on Ukraine if there was "an aggression" against Belarus.

"God forbid I have to make a decision to use those weapons today, but there would be no hesitation if we face an aggression," Lukashanko said. He added later that he would consult with Putin before using any nuclear weapons.

Russian President Vladimir Putin meets with his Belarus' counterpart Alexander Lukashenko in Sochi, Russia, June 9, 2023. / Credit: GAVRIIL GRIGOROV/SPUTNIK/AFP/Getty

"I pick up the phone, and wherever he is, he picks it up," Lukashenko said. "If he calls, I pick it up any time. It's no problem at all to coordinate launching a strike."

Putin announced in March that Russia would send tactical nuclear weapons to Belarus, one of its few allies in the region. Last week, in a televised portion of a meeting between the two leaders, Putin said preparations required for the deployment of the weapons would be finished by July 7 or 8.

Lukashenko said the Russian nuclear weapons were already arriving "little by little" in his country, calling them "three times more powerful than those [dropped by the U.S. on] Hiroshima and Nagasaki" in 1945.

"I believe no one would be willing to fight a country that has those weapons," Lukashenko said, adding that he had asked Putin to deploy the nuclear weapons to Belarus as a deterrence.

Russian President Vladimir Putin, right, and Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko speak during a meeting at the Bocharov Ruchei residence in Sochi, Russia, June 9, 2023. / Credit: Sputnik/Gavriil Grigorov/Kremlin handout/REUTERS

Tactical nuclear weapons are intended for use on the battlefield and have a lower yield than strategic nuclear warheads, which can be fitted to intercontinental missiles and destroy entire cities.

Lukashenko said Tuesday that his country was also setting up facilities for nuclear-tipped intercontinental missiles  also as a deterrent measure.

"Am I going to fight America? No," he said.

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(Bloomberg) -- Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko suggested Russian tactical nuclear weapons have already arrived in his country, even as Vladimir Putin said delivery would only begin next month.

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We have missiles and bombs, we have received from Russia, Lukashenko told a Russian TV reporter in an interview posted by the Belarusian state-owned Belta news service late Tuesday. He then boasted that the weapons are three times more powerful than the atomic bombs dropped on Japans Hiroshima and Nagasaki in World War II, saying they were capable of killing a million people immediately.

When the reporter asked him to clarify that the nuclear weapons promised by Russia had been delivered, however, Lukashenko chuckled and appeared to backtrack. Saying they were taking the issue slowly, he promised to blindfold the journalist and take her to a storage facility to see the weapons once we get them.

President Putin told Lukashenko at a televised meeting in Russias Sochi on Friday that construction of the nuclear storage in Belarus would be completed by July 7-8 and that transfer of the tactical weapons would begin soon after.

He announced in March that hed move nuclear arms to Belarus, ramping up a confrontation with the US and its North Atlantic Treaty Organization allies that are supplying billions of dollars of weapons to Ukraine to help it push back Russias invading army.

The Kremlin leader has insisted Russia is upholding its non-proliferation obligations by retaining control over the weapons, though it has trained Belarusian troops on the storage and use of tactical special munitions.

Lukashenko, who earlier said nuclear weapons would be used without hesitation if Belarus came under attack, said hed have no difficulty in calling Putin and agreeing a strike if needed.

Russia has repeatedly suggested it may deploy tactical nuclear arms during its war in Ukraine, drawing criticism from the US and Europe, as well as countries including China and India that have been more supportive of the government in Moscow. Ukrainian forces have begun a long-planned counteroffensive to reclaim territory in the countrys east and south occupied by Russia.

Lukashenko, whose country has a 1,000-kilometer (620-mile) frontier with Ukraine as well as borders with NATO members Poland, Lithuania and Latvia, allowed Russia to use Belarus as a launchpad for a failed attempt to capture Kyiv early in its February 2022 invasion.

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By Lidia Kelly and Andrew Osborn

(Reuters) - Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko has said his country has started taking delivery of Russian tactical nuclear weapons, some of which he said were three times more powerful than the atomic bombs the US dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945.

The deployment is Moscow's first move of such warheads - shorter-range less powerful nuclear weapons that could potentially be used on the battlefield - outside Russia since the fall of the Soviet Union.

"We have missiles and bombs that we have received from Russia," Lukashenko said in an interview with the Rossiya-1 Russian state TV channel which was posted on the Belarusian Belta state news agency's Telegram channel.

"The bombs are three times more powerful than those (dropped on) Hiroshima and Nagasaki," he said, speaking on a road in a forest clearing with military vehicles parked nearby and some kind of military storage facility visible in the background.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Friday that Russia, which will retain control of the tactical nuclear weapons, would start deploying them in Belarus after special storage facilities to house them were made ready.

The Russian leader announced in March he had agreed to deploy tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus, pointing to the U.S deployment of such weapons in a host of European countries over many decades.

The United States has criticised Putin's decision but has said it has no intention of altering its own stance on strategic nuclear weapons and has not seen any signs that Russia is preparing to use a nuclear weapon.

The Russian step is nonetheless being watched closely by the United States and its allies as well as by China, which has repeatedly cautioned against the use of nuclear weapons in the war in Ukraine.

'WE HAVE ALWAYS BEEN A TARGET'

Lukashenko, a close ally of Putin, told Russian state TV in the interview, which was released late on Tuesday, that his country had numerous nuclear storage facilities left over from the Soviet-era and had restored five or six of them.

He played down the idea that Russian control of the weapons was an impediment to using them quickly if he felt such a move was necessary, saying he and Putin could pick up the phone to each other "at any moment".

Earlier on Tuesday, he had said separately that the Russian tactical nuclear weapons would be physically deployed on the territory of Belarus "in several days" and that he had the facilities to host longer-range missiles too if ever needed.

Lukashenko, who has allowed his country to be used by Russian forces attacking Ukraine as part of what Moscow calls its "special military operation", says the nuclear deployment will act as a deterrent against potential aggressors.

Belarus borders three NATO member countries: Lithuania, Latvia and Poland.

The 68-year-old former Soviet collective farm boss, who has ruled Belarus since 1994, making him Europe's longest-serving leader, said he didn't simply ask Putin for the weapons, but "demanded" them.

"We have always been a target," Lukashenko said. "They (the West) have wanted to tear us to pieces since 2020. No one has so far fought against a nuclear country, a country that has nuclear weapons."

Lukashenko has repeatedly accused the West of trying to topple him after mass protests against his rule erupted in 2020 in the wake of a presidential election the opposition said he had fraudulently won. Lukashenko said he had won fairly, while conducting a sweeping crackdown on his opponents.

(Reporting by Lidia Kelly in Melbourne and Andrew Osborn in London; Editing by Philippa Fletcher)
Berlusconi's ashes to be kept in mausoleum he built in his villa

Funeral of former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi at the Duomo Cathedral, in Milan

MILAN (Reuters) - The body of former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi will be cremated and his ashes taken to the family mausoleum in the grounds of his villa in the northern town of Arcore, a source close to the family told Reuters.

After a state funeral on Wednesday, the coffin will be returned to Villa San Martino, near Milan, to await the cremation which will take place at the Valenziano Panta Rei Crematorium Temple, near the city of Alessandria.

Berlusconi, who died on Monday at the age of 86, hired sculptor Pietro Cascella to build the mausoleum in the early 1990s.

Berlusconi originally built it to bury himself, his family members and friends, but then found out the law only allows bodies to be buried in public cemeteries, his long-time friend and art critic Vittorio Sgarbi told AdnKronos news agency. Ashes can be placed in the mausoleum however.

Italian media described it as a white marble structure with an underground mortuary. A sarcophagus made for Berlusconi stands at the centre and a frieze representing chains is carved on the walls, with the tied rings seen as a symbol of family union.

(Reporting by Emilio Parodi, writing by Cristina Carlevaro and Angelo Amante; Editing by Alexandra Hudson)
President Biden and Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) are each overseeing a sprawling effort to handle migrants at the southern border, with thousands of active and National Guard troops running separate operations on the ground.

But its not a collaborative effort.

I think the biggest issue that we have is when there are moments in which [state leaders] take actions that are not coordinated, a Department of Homeland Security (DHS) official told The Hill. The real question is, are the [efforts] really necessary?

But despite the risk of redundancy and migration numbers dropping in recent weeks, Abbotts Operation Lone Star continues to pick up steam.

Earlier this month, five Republican governors ordered National Guard troops to the Texas-Mexico border at Abbotts request, bringing the tally of GOP leaders sending personnel south to at least 10 since March.

On the federal side, Biden last month sent 1,500 active-duty soldiers to the border to join the 2,500 National Guardsmen who have been there since last year to work with the Customs and Border Protection (CBP).

Although Biden has frustrated migrant advocates by keeping many of former President Trumps policies in place, the GOP has blamed him for an influx of migrants this year and Abbot says his state-led operation is necessary to secure the border.

Yet none of the state or federal troops will be enforcing United States immigration law, a move that would violate the Posse Comitatus Act of 1878.

Generally speaking, federal government is where the authority lies for immigration enforcement. And so where a state action interferes with that, thats where we have issues, the DHS official said.

Over the past few months, officials have seen examples of that interference, particularly in instances where migrants have already crossed onto U.S. soil.

At that point, under U.S. law, we have to take them into custody. And so if theres any interference with that, that wouldnt be OK.  Theres been some cases in some instances of that kind of thing happening both in Texas and Arizona in recent years, the official said.

Last month, CBP Chief Operating Officer Blas Nunez-Neto had more pointed words for the disconnect. He accused Abbott and Florida Gov. Ron Desantis (R) of taking actions that are being done really for purely political reasons and that do not involve the kind of coordination that we really need to see at the border.

He also called on governors to make sure that any steps they take are done in coordination with our federal personnel.

Active-duty soldiers deployed by Biden have been given similar logistical, support and clerical jobs that National Guardsmen at the border are already tasked with, including data entry, warehousing and surveillance.

The Texas-run operation, however, has more than 5,000 Guardsmen stretching bands of concertina wire on the American side of the Rio Grande river, operating drones trying to spot those attempting to cross the border, escorting migrants to CBP personnel and facilities and passing out plastic bags in which those fleeing Central and South America may place their belongings before being processed.

Since 2021, taxpayers have spent about $4.5 billion on this state-handled initiative. That number is likely to grow; last month Abbott touted a new Texas Tactical Border Force, a deployment of hundreds of Texas National Guard to enhance Texas border security efforts.

Operation Lone Star has been publicly derided by Democrat lawmakers, administration officials and experts. Abbott and his initiative have already been hit with several lawsuits and become the target of a federal civil rights probe.

Reports have also emerged of some Texas National Guard troops complaining of late pay, low morale, and being given little to do.

Yet the governor, whose office did not respond to a request for comment, has vowed to send more troops and in March called on other state governors to offer reinforcements  which many have done.

Among those to send state-controlled troops to Texas are Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin, West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice, South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster, South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem and Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders, all of whom are Republican.

All will send between 50 and 100 Guardsmen for about 30 days through an Emergency Management Assistance Compact, a law that allows states to send resources to others in times of crisis or disaster.

In doing so, they join DeSantis, who in mid-May said he was sending more than 1,100 state law enforcement agents and Guardsmen to Texass border with Mexico.

Yet while the states continue pumping state Guardsmen to the border, the number of people crossing the border appears to be dropping significantly; there has been a more than 70 percent drop in unlawful entries between ports of entry along the southwest since May 11, suggesting the fears that the end of the Trump-era Title 42 policy would fuel a surge in new arrivals were misguided.

The CBP said it has had no coordination with the states National Guard deployments, including in Texas.

Officials fear that disconnect could lead to more problems, as in past situations that developed after state officials intervened to help manage the borders.

Ariel Ruiz Soto, an analyst with the Migration Policy Institute, was at the southern border in Texas in late March, where he was told by Border Patrol agents that wire stretched as part of Operation Lone Star sometimes made it difficult for agents to gain access to areas.

In many cases, even though they have each others numbers, operations of where to set up the fencing are done without the decision making from Border Patrol, Soto told The Hill. The governor wants to set fencing where he thinks is most helpful. He doesnt necessarily know if there was intelligence with Border Patrol to see if thats actually the place where it would be most helpful. They have constant contact, but daily operations are at times not in sync.

In another widely reported example of a communication breakdown, Texas National Guard members and state troopers in December blocked dozens of migrants who already crossed the Rio Grande and were attempting to surrender to nearby Border Patrol agents.

Also late last year, then-Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey (R) built a makeshift border wall out of double-stacked shipping containers during his final months in office, contracting a Florida-based firm for $123.6 million to install 10 miles worth of containers.

But in some areas along the nearly 3.5 miles of barrier that was eventually built, the containers blocked the line of vision for CBP personnel and prevented them from seeing what was happening at the border, Ruiz Soto said.

The makeshift structure also cut across a vital wildlife corridor in the federally protected Coronado National Forest, and by January, 1,700 shipping containers had to be removed, costing taxpayers more than $75 million, The Guardian reported.

In another case in early January, DeSantis declared a state of emergency and authorized about $20 million in purchases to respond to nearly 1,400 migrants from Cuba and Haiti that landed in the Florida Keys and overwhelmed local authorities.

Among the hasty buys of drones and night vision goggles was a $1 million contract for a cruise ship that had nowhere to dock but was expected to house state workers to help handle the migrant influx, The New York Times reported.

The day before DeSantiss emergency order, Biden had announced an option that would allow migrants to apply to enter the U.S. from their own countries, drastically slowing the landings.

The DHS official said coordination with state and local officials is a big part of what the agency does on a daily basis.

Just when it enters territory where its either done for the wrong reasons or not coordinated is where it becomes an issue, they said.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
The Biden administration brushed aside calls to grant work papers to a large contingent of immigrants, amid labor shortages and concerns over the costs of housing recent arrivals who cant legally work.

On Tuesday, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) extended Temporary Protected Status (TPS) designations for El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua and Nepal, ensuring continued protection and work permits for nearly 350,000 existing beneficiaries of that program.

But many advocates and Democrats were dismayed over the administrations decision to stop at TPS renewals, avoiding the TPS designations that would have allowed hundreds of thousands more immigrants to work legally in the United States.

Im disappointed the Biden Administration failed to redesignate Temporary Protected Status for El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Nepal. Millions of brave families prayed that TPS redesignations would be granted, but the Administration fell short of delivering the full protection these families deserve, said Rep. Nanette Barragan (D-Calif.), chairwoman of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC).

The White House directed questions to DHS; representatives for DHS did not reply to requests for comment on the decision.

TPS allows the executive to designate any country as unsafe for the repatriation of its nationals, and DHS can then issue work papers to people from the designated country, regardless of their immigration status.

TPS recipients cannot apply in most cases for legal permanent resident status or U.S. citizenship.

When a countrys designation is nearing its end  designations can last up to 18 months  DHS can let it expire; renew the designation, protecting existing beneficiaries; or redesignate the country, allowing more of its nationals in the United States to receive TPS benefits.

The Biden administrations renewals on Tuesday allowed Salvadorans, Hondurans, Nicaraguans and Nepalese currently protected by TPS to continue to benefit from the program.

But thats not a significant concession to immigrant rights advocates; both Republican and Democratic administrations summarily renewed most of those designations, in two cases dating back to 1998.

Only the Trump administration tried to end the designations, more broadly putting TPS on the chopping block, only to be stopped by court action on procedural grounds.

The administration on Tuesday officially withdrew the Trump administrations termination of TPS for the four countries, actions a DHS press release described as relevant to the litigation challenging the now-rescinded terminations.

While I appreciate that the Administration rescinded an anti-immigrant policy put in place by the previous President and granted an 18-month TPS extension, it is a band-aid solution, said Barragan.

This extension will shield these families for the short-term, but it prolongs the suffering caused by instability & uncertainty that TPS holders, and their families, continue to live in. I urge the Biden Administration to reconsider and redesignate TPS for these nations.

Some Democrats are hopeful that the administrations cautious approach was just the first step in a larger TPS strategy.

I think the opportunity remains and I think that  I hope that this is simply a first step of a larger effort to address the crisis were in, said Rep. Dan Goldman (D-N.Y.).

I am very sympathetic to the administrations situation and having to deal with a broken system without any support from Congress. And I hope they will continue to look for ways of using executive power to address the situation that were in.

Each TPS countrys U.S.-based population is differently affected by the limited extensions, but they all share concerns over their right to work legally.

El Salvador, for instance, was designated for TPS in 2001 by the George W. Bush administration, following a series of devastating earthquakes in the country.

Salvadorans represent the largest TPS population in the country, with nearly 250,000 active beneficiaries as of 2021, according to data compiled by the Cato Institute.

But according to the U.S. Census Bureau, about 1.4 million Salvadoran-born people are living in the United States.

While some are naturalized citizens, legal permanent residents, refugees, asylees or visa holders who can legally work, there is a broad swath of Salvadorans, with arrivals dating to 2001, who live in the United States but cannot legally work here.

Sadly, a lot of these people have lived here for many years, said Kerri Talbot, deputy director of the Immigration Hub, an immigration advocacy group.

At the other end of the spectrum are Nicaraguans and Venezuelans, many of whom are recent arrivals who entered the country claiming asylum and are not yet allowed to work.

Nicaragua is in a different situation because so many recent arrivals are Nicaraguan, similar to Venezuela, said Talbot.

Currently, asylum-seekers in the United States are not allowed to work until they have been in the country for at least 180 days.

Thats created tension between the Biden administration and cities like New York and Chicago, where shelter is growing short for new arrivals who would otherwise have a shot at sustaining themselves.

In a bipartisan letter last week, Goldman and Rep. Maria Elvira Salazar (R-Fla.) called on the administration to issue TPS designations or redesignations for Venezuela, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua, citing immigration backlogs, labor shortages and the financial responsibility of local governments who support migrants.

It would have a dramatic impact on the recently arrived migrants coming from the countries that we requested in our letter to either be designated or re-designated for TPS, said Goldman.

The vast majority of migrants who have come through the city of New York, being sheltered and housed and fed and clothed, come from those countries.

With the administrations refusal to designate or redesignate countries with significant newly arrived asylum applicant populations, hundreds of thousands of migrants are left in the lurch, forced to choose between working illegally or subsisting on humanitarian aid.

Having them work helps stabilize our border and our economy, said Talbot, adding that remittances  the money sent back to friends and family by foreign nationals working in the United States  are a key factor in sustaining some Latin American economies.

Remittances in 2021 represented more than a quarter of El Salvadors gross domestic product, according to World Bank figures, indicating that U.S.-based Salvadorans with higher income levels help sustain the countrys economy for those who choose to remain there.

Still, advocates and Democrats are treading carefully on criticism of the administrations soft touch on TPS, wary that Republicans could exploit a more aggressive stance on the issue.

I think [Republicans] are misrepresenting the facts on the ground and the efforts that the administration has taken to solve this problem. Things are improving on the border since Title 42 rolled off, and thats solely because of the administrations efforts, said Goldman.

But what were hearing from the Republicans is a lot of misinformation. And so you have to be concerned about the influence of misinformation on the electorate.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
Image: Joseph Sohm (Shutterstock)

The right-to-repair movement has suffered a setback in Massachusetts this week. The Biden administration told car manufacturers not to comply with a state law that would allow independent auto shops and car owners the ability to fix their own vehicles.



Vice first reported that the major concern the Biden administrations National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has with the law, which is colloquially titled the Data Access Law, is hacking. To express these concerns, Kerry Kolodziej, from assistant chief counsel at the NHTSA, authored a letter (dated yesterday) to the chief counsel of nearly two dozen major automotive manufacturers including BMW, Ferrari, Ford, and Hyundai. Kolodziej argues in the letter that since the law grants open access to a cars telematicswhich are used to wirelessly send commands to carsa malicious actor here or abroad could remotely command a car. The outcomes, the NHSTA says, could be vehicle crashes, passenger injuries, or death.

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Open access to vehicle manufacturers telematics offerings with the ability to remotely send commands allows for manipulation of systems on a vehicle, including safety-critical functions such as steering, acceleration, or braking, as well as equipment required by Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS) such as air bags and electronic stability control, Kolodziej wrote in the letter.

According to The Boston Globe, the Data Access Law, which is more formally known as Chapter 93K, was enacted after Massachusetts residents voted in favor of the law on a 2020 ballot. Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Campbell announced in March that the law would move forward, with enforcement beginning June 1 of this year. For some time, the law was stuck in the District Court of Massachusetts after the Alliance for Automotive Innovation filed a lawsuit to stop it. The letter also vaguely reminds these car manufacturers of their commitment to vehicle and passenger safety under the National Highway Traffic Safety Actessentially instructing them to ignore Chapter 93K.

Given the serious safety risks posed by the Data Access Law, taking action to open remote access to vehicles telematics units in accordance with that law, which requires communication pathways to vehicle control systems, would conflict with your obligations under the [National Highway Traffic] Safety Act, Kolodziej wrote.

Likely to the chagrin of NHSTA, however, sometimes hacking can actually help repair vehicles. A hacker last August demonstrated a way to jailbreak John Deere tractors that can reveal over 1.5 gigabytes of logs that dealers could use to assess problems with the tractorlogs that a layman would never even be able to see. Just a few months later in April, Colorado farmers won a landmark deal with John Deere, which would require the agricultural hardware manufacturer to provide farmers in the state with manuals for its proprietary software and repair tools.

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Migrants look out the window as they ride a CTA bus leaving the High Ridge YMCA shelter to be transferred to Daley College on June 13, 2023. (Armando L. Sanchez/Chicago Tribune)

Volunteers were disappointed by a lackluster city response at a meeting Monday night to their request to enter temporary city-run shelters starting this week, following months of not being able to get inside the buildings that house nearly 10,000 migrants who have come to Chicago since August.

Collaboration efforts between volunteers and city officials came to a head when the city hosted a closed meeting to respond to a letter sent by the Police Station Response Team, a network of volunteers providing support and resources to migrants sleeping on the floors of police stations as they wait for placement in shelters.

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About 30 response team volunteers were watching the online meeting, and many said afterward they had hoped for more cooperation from the incoming administration and more transparency about what is happening inside shelters contracted by the citys private vendor Favorite Staffing.

At the meeting, Mayor Brandon Johnsons deputy chief of staff, Cristina Pacione-Zayas, said it is difficult to move quickly from contractually based staffers to community based teams, according to a transcript from the Zoom recording sent to the Tribune by a volunteer who attended. Pacione-Zayas said cooperation with volunteers might be easier on a state level than a city level, according to the transcript and confirmed by attendees.

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Pacione-Zayas, who recently resigned from the state Senate, did not return a phone call or emails for comment Tuesday.

A still image from a WhatsApp video sent to the Tribune on May 25 by an anonymous source shows migrants sleeping on the floor of a gymnasium in the Leone Beach Park shelter. (Obtained by the Tribune)

Conditions inside shelters have reportedly become more crowded and unbearable over the months since Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, a Republican, initially began sending migrants to Chicago, touting the citys sanctuary status as justification to bus families and children and pregnant women here by the hundreds.

Those inside shelters are forced to sleep lined up almost like dead bodies, a migrant at a temporary shelter in Woodlawn told the Tribune over three weeks ago. And while dozens of volunteers have formed groups to bring meals and resources to people staying in police stations, they said its been hard to provide substantive care because they arent allowed inside any of the city shelters.

On Tuesday, volunteers who have developed friendships with migrants were visibly emotional as two CTA buses loaded with migrant families exited the parking lot of the shelter at High Ridge YMCA in West Ridge bound for a new shelter at Daley College in West Lawn. More than a dozen volunteers, members of 50th Ward United Working Families, waited for hours outside after hearing the families would be transferred.

Giovanni Gonzalez, of Venezuela, hugs a Rogers Elementary School teacher shortly before being transferred from the High Ridge YMCA migrant shelter to Daley College on June 13, 2023. (Armando L. Sanchez/Chicago Tribune)

Edgar Roa, a father of one who has been at the YMCA for more than a month, said he hopes the new space is more spacious. Roa said he was thankful for those who have been helping ensure he and his fellow asylum-seekers had all their necessities while at the shelter.

Son muy buenas personas, he said in Spanish on a phone call as he rode a bus to the college. They are good people.

The letter to the city from the volunteers was a cry to action, they said. Sent last Wednesday, it urges the city to work directly with the response team to address acute needs of new arrivals.

As your team devises new strategies, sets policies, establishes processes, and spends millions of taxpayer dollars, you must rely on the extensive earned experience of this front line network, volunteers wrote.

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Besides providing a list of hundreds of volunteers who have stepped up to help at various police stations, it details the numerous benchmarks they say the city has failed to meet in shelters in recent months: three regular meals a day, coordinated medical care, transparency, a system of reporting mistreatment and legal education.

We plan on ensuring the city uses our firsthand knowledge as one of many voices poised to inform better care for both migrants and Chicagos unhoused, Britt Hodgdon, a response team volunteer at the 2nd and 3rd District stations, told the Tribune after the meeting. To do this well, the city will have to learn to flex from some well-worn habits.

A Venezuelan migrant steps for some fresh air, outside a designated shelter at Daley College in Chicago on June 13, 2023. (Antonio Perez/Chicago Tribune)

There are organized volunteer leads at all major shelters around the city, and volunteers hoped the meeting would help establish a credential system to allow a select few volunteers to enter and drop off food, medical resources and clothes inside for migrants. Many migrants havent changed in weeks, are forced to sleep on the floor and are being given food in bad condition such as moldy lunch meat, according to Heather Nichols, a member of the response team.

Multiple volunteers who watched the meeting said it left them feeling like the city has no real plan to use the $51 million recently approved by aldermen to spend on migrant care through June. The city is getting about $10.6 million and the state about $19.4 million from the Federal Emergency Management Agency to use toward shelter and services.

At a news conference Monday, Gov. J.B. Pritzker said his office is in direct communication with nonprofits in Texas that are sending asylum-seekers to Chicago.

Were doing as much as we are asked to do, as much as we can do to try to provide help at the local level in the city so that people have food, clothing, shelter, the basic needs  health care  that they need, Pritzker said.

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Pritzker acknowledged that this is a national problem that requires comprehensive sweeping immigration reform. In the meantime, he said, he has asked national authorities to at least help migrants get work permits.

Nichols said the meeting left her unsettled. She said while she appreciates Mayor Johnsons openness to talk to people on the ground doing real work with migrants, city officials did not respond to our concern in any meaningful way.

She said the four city officials in attendance spent the majority of the hourlong meeting going over what is being done with contractors at different shelters around the city, and then when they did have time to briefly talk about solutions to volunteer concerns, they had none.

The city of Chicago at the request of Mayor Brandon Johnson is working on a volunteer plan to grant access to individuals and organizations looking to provide programming and support to new arrivals, said Office of Emergency Management and Communications spokesperson Mary May in a statement to the Tribune before the meeting. This will include a process to ensure all volunteers are background checked, vetted, and trained prior to interacting with families and adults inside of our shelters.

Edgar Alexander Roa, 44, of Venezuela, carries his 4-year-old daughter Paulet Morales before the two are transferred by a CTA bus from the High Ridge YMCA migrant shelter to Daley College on June 13, 2023. (Armando L. Sanchez/Chicago Tribune)

May confirmed only agencies with delegate or subdelegate contracts with city agencies are currently able to serve migrants inside shelters.

The priority of our mission is to ensure new arrivals are safe and getting their needs met. We are looking forward to the opportunities that these new partnerships will bring for new arrivals and our shelter staff, the statement said.

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According to the meeting transcript, city officials said that conversations between the city and volunteers will be ongoing. The city has reactivated community briefings every other week and the next briefing is June 26, according to the transcript.

Tim Noonan, a volunteer at the 22nd station, said a group of volunteers in his neighborhood organized a resource rollout effort during the pandemic, and it worked. They have a working blueprint ready to implement, he said, but they just arent allowed to use it.

Our community involvement doesnt cost (the city) anything. The community is picking up work so they dont have to, he said.

Tribune attempts to enter nine city-run shelters have all been met with pushback. Numerous volunteers from the response team said even those trying to get medical resources into city sites were chastised by security.

Noonan said he tried to donate air mattresses to a shelter at Piotrowski Park, but couldnt because there were 100 people sleeping shoulder to shoulder on the floor and the mattresses were too large to cram inside.

Its a black box. You cant get in there, he said. This is not the way to treat people. Were really treating these people like cattle, he said.

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For now, volunteers continue to dish out hot meals on the sidewalks outside city-run shelters. At Inn of Chicago, the largest temporary shelter in the city, families lined up Monday evening to pick up donated warm containers of food from Chi-Care, a nonprofit that serves homeless communities across Chicago.

Faraz Sardharia, chef and owner of Tandoor Char House and executive committee member of Chi-Care, has been distributing meals to shelters around the city since early May, he said.

The food migrants are getting is not nutritional. Its almost like prisoner food, he said.

Rogers Elementary School teacher Erin Armstrong, 40, center, waves with members of the community as a CTA bus leaves the High Ridge YMCA shelter in Chicago to transfer migrants to Daley College on Tuesday, June 13, 2023. (Armando L. Sanchez/Chicago Tribune)

On Tuesday morning at Inn of Chicago, response team member Sorsha Urquiza said she tried to deliver clothes to families at the shelter during her lunch break.

I was immediately asked to leave by an employee, she said. And they were very, very rude.

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Urquiza said she has heard reports of migrants phones being broken by employees, of women unable to access sanitary supplies, of families whose children are hungry because the food is too spicy and more. She finds it disturbing that she cant deliver basic needs, she said.

But there were signs by Tuesday afternoon that change was coming.

At Daley College, 50th Ward United Working Families member Matt Ginsberg-Jaeckle waited for the families to welcome them to their new home. Unlike at other shelters, he said his group was accredited by the city to be a part of the welcoming group, allowing them enter the college to help intake the newcomers.

Ginsberg-Jaeckle said he is grateful the administration is making moves to incorporate mutual aid as part of their plan even if progress is slow.

Chicago Tribunes Dan Petrella contributed.

nsalzman@chicagotribune.com

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Biden chuckles when asked about bribery allegations from time as vice president

President Joe Biden chuckled and walked off when he was asked about allegations of bribery from his time as vice president pushed by congressional Republicans.

Are there tapes that you accepted bribes, President Biden? Is that true? Mr Biden was asked by the New York Post on Tuesday as he left an event attended by US diplomats at the White House.

Mr Biden stopped walking for a moment before smiling and chuckling, shaking his head as he carried on down the hall.

On 3 May, the Republican-controlled House Oversight Committee put out a press release quoting its chairman, Representative James Comer of Kentucky, saying: Information provided by a whistleblower raises concerns that then-Vice President Biden allegedly engaged in a bribery scheme with a foreign national.

A letter sent by Mr Comer and Iowa GOP Senator Chuck Grassley to the FBI requested the sharing of the documentation of an interview that took place in June 2020 claiming that it describes an alleged criminal scheme involving then-Vice President Biden and a foreign national relating to the exchange of money for policy decisions.

Republicans pushed for the June 2020 document to be released over the course of the next month. The FBI then made it available to members of Congress, with the information on the confidential source redacted.

A number of outlets tweeted the footage of Mr Biden chuckling at the question, including Russian state media outlet Sputnik.

The US journalist asked the question amid ongoing investigaion into possible political bribery scheme involving Biden himself. Biden stopped mid-stride, turned around with a smile on his face, chuckled to himself, and shook his head before walking away without saying anything. pic.twitter.com/3AZJELqtx6  Sputnik (@SputnikInt) June 14, 2023

The GOP is now trying to bring attention to a secondhand claim from a single source. The allegation was made when Trump Attorney General Bill Barr was in charge of the Justice Department, but the allegation still didnt prompt any legal action.

Republicans are grasping for any opportunity to show that the FBI and DoJ are treating Mr Biden with kid gloves and that he deserves to be indicted just as much as former President Donald Trump, a Washington Post analysis noted.

That provides the space that Comer and Grassley are filling, running far ahead of their extremely limited evidence, it states.

Lawmakers who have seen the document say it outlines an allegation that Joe and Hunter Biden were both offered $5m by an executive at the Ukrainian energy company Burisma, where the younger Mr Biden was a board member.

Mr Biden addressed the allegations during a press conference with UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak earlier this month.

A reporter asks Joe Biden about allegations that he was involved in a criminal bribery scheme:



"I'm supposed to walk off the stage now...Where's the money? I'm joking. It's a bunch of malarkey." pic.twitter.com/3nsquVd5ka  Townhall.com (@townhallcom) June 8, 2023

Mr Trumps first impeachment came out of his pressuring Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to probe the Bidens activities in the country. Mr Trump falsely claimed that Mr Biden blocked a corruption probe into the company to help Hunter.

Then-Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani continued to try to find dirt on Mr Biden in Ukraine, leading to federal law enforcement warning the Trump administration that Mr Giuliani might be being used as a vehicle for Russian misinformation.

Reports have indicated that Mr Giuliani may have been the source of the allegations of bribery against the Bidens.

This week, Mr Barr appeared on Fox News saying the allegation came from the FBI itself, something The Washington Post noted may be a semantic distinction between how the FBI received the information and how it reached US Attorney Scott Brady, who was put in charge of vetting the claim.

On Monday, Mr Grassley said on the Senate floor: According to the 1023, the foreign national possesses 15 audio recordings of phone calls between him and Hunter Biden.

According to the 1023, the foreign national possesses two audio recordings of phone calls between him and then-Vice President Joe Biden, he added.

What, if anything, has the Justice Department and FBI done to investigate? he asked.

The claim that the recordings exist comes from the same individual who made the claims about the bribe payments, The Washington Post notes.

Appearing on Newsmax, Mr Comer was asked if the recordings are legit.

We dont know if theyre legit or not, he said, mentioning that the executive who spoke to the FBI source claimed that the recordings were real.

On Fox News, Mr Grassley was asked if the document is damning for Mr Biden.

Theres accusations in it, but thats  its not for me to make a judgment about whether these accusations are accurate or not, he said. Its  my job to make sure the FBI is doing their job.

Journalist Marcy Wheeler tweeted that Mr Comer is using shady information from Russian assets laundered [through] a paid FBI informant.

New York Democratic Representative Dan Goldman blasted the bribery allegations on Wednesday.

Goldman: This document that they will not stop talking about is shockingly just a 3 year old secondhand hearsay uncorroborated rehashing of Rudy Giulianis bogus allegations pic.twitter.com/MtxAPBvzC0  Acyn (@Acyn) June 14, 2023
FILE - White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan speaks at a press briefing at the White House in Washington, April 24, 2023. The Biden administration is ready to talk to Russia without conditions about a future nuclear arms control framework even while taking countermeasures in response to the Kremlins decision to suspend the last nuclear arms control treaty between the two countries. That word comes from White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan in a speech to the Arms Control Association in Washington on Friday. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik, File) (ASSOCIATED PRESS)

WASHINGTON (AP)  President Joe Biden is dispatching White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan to Tokyo this week for talks with his counterparts from Japan, Philippines and South Korea.

Sullivan will also take part in the first-ever trilateral meeting of the Japanese, Philippine, and U.S. national security advisers" while in Japan, the White House National Security Council said in a statement Tuesday.

The White House offered scant details about Sullivan's two-day visit that begins Thursday, saying Sullivan and his counterparts will discuss ways to deepen collaboration on a number of key regional and global issues.

Sullivan's visit comes after U.S., Japanese and Philippine coast guard ships staged law enforcement drills in waters near the disputed South China Sea earlier this month. Washington has stepped up efforts to reinforce alliances in Asia amid an increasingly tense rivalry with China.

Washington lays no claims to the strategic South China Sea, where China, the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysian, Taiwan and Brunei have been locked in tense territorial stand-offs for decades. But the U.S. says freedom of navigation and overflight and the peaceful resolution of disputes in the busy waterway are in its national interest.

The White House confirmed Sullivans travels after Biden during a reception at the White House for U.S. chiefs of diplomatic missions on Tuesday made an off-hand remark that Ambassador Rahm Emanuel, the U.S. envoy to Japan, was not on hand because he was getting ready for Sullivans visit.

U.S.-China relations have been strained throughout Biden's tenure. China launched military exercises last year around Taiwan after then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., visited the democratically governed island that China claims as its own.

Relations became further strained early this year after the U.S. shot down a Chinese spy balloon that had crossed the United States. Beijing also was angered by Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wens stopover in the U.S. in April that included an engagement with House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif.

And on Saturday, the White House confirmed that China has been operating a spy base in Cuba for sometime and that it was upgraded in 2019 under the Trump administration's watch.

White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby on Monday said that the Trump administration had the same access to intelligence about China's spying operations as the Biden administration did.

Former Trump administration officials, including former Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe and national security adviser John Bolton, have pushed back against the assertion that the Cuba spy base was upgraded under their watch.

The (Biden) administration claims that the base was there in 2019 if not before, all I can say is I was in the White House for part of 2019 I was certainly unaware of it," former Trump-era national security adviser John Bolton said in an interview on Tuesday with SiriusXMs POTUS channel. I think I would have remembered it if it crossed my desk.

The White House confirmed the base after the Wall Street Journal reported last week that China and Cuba had reached an agreement in principle to build an electronic eavesdropping station on the island.

Despite the tensions with Beijing, the administration has been eager to restart high-level communications with Beijing.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken is planning a visit China on June 18 to meet with senior officials, according to U.S. officials, who spoke Friday on condition of anonymity because neither the State Department nor the Chinese foreign ministry has yet confirmed the trip. Blinken was scheduled to visit China in February but those talks were scrapped after the spy balloon incident.

Sullivan is currently in India meeting with officials ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modis state visit to Washington next week.

He held talks on Tuesday with his Indian counterpart, Ajit Doval, that focused on potential U.S.-Indian collaboration on artificial intelligence, semiconductors and defense, according to the Indian Foreign Ministry. Sullivan also addressed a conference of business leaders where he said the U.S. was keen on doing away with regulatory obstacles that are holding back the two countries from deepening trade in areas like defense and high-tech.

___

Associated Press writer Krutika Pathi in New Delhi contributed to this report.
President Biden is expected to receive the endorsement of the AFL-CIO later this week, two people familiar with the plans tell CBS News.

The move is not unexpected, given organized labor's decades of support for Democratic Party presidential candidates and Mr. Biden's pro-union reputation. But the endorsement would mark the earliest point at which the nation's largest labor organization has waded into a presidential cycle.

Mr. Biden's endorsement is expected to be formally approved during a Friday meeting of the AFL-CIO general board, according to one of the people familiar with the plans.

The organization, encompassing 60 unions representing 12.5 million workers across the public and private sectors, is set to hold a rally Saturday in Philadelphia where the president is set to appear, his first campaign-style event since officially announcing his reelection bid in April.

The endorsement is expected to unlock access to the union's far-reaching voter outreach program, allowing the Biden-Harris campaign to begin working with the union on get-out-the-vote projects.

News of Mr. Biden's endorsement was first reported by The Wall Street Journal.

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Biden and Stoltenberg hold meeting: discuss consequences of Russia's war against Ukraine

US President Joe Biden met with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg in Washington.

Source: the press service of the White House on the results of the meeting, European Pravda reports

Biden and Stoltenberg discussed the consequences of Russia's war against Ukraine for transatlantic security and the importance of further strengthening NATO's deterrence and defence forces.

Quote: "They welcomed the support that Allies and partners are providing bilaterally to help Ukraine defend itself from Russian aggression," the report says.

The meeting also raised the issue of the need for NATO members to fulfil their defence investment obligations taken on at the Wales summit in 2014.

In addition, they discussed Sweden's early accession to NATO.

Previously: Biden postponed his meeting with Stoltenberg at the White House due to a dental procedure.

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Some of the most important facets of Mississippi Coast culture begin at a time in history thats relatively unknown by locals.

Biloxi would not have gotten its name and Ship Island could not have been used as a safe place in the Underground Railroad had it not been for the colonial era.

The states colonial history begins with the arrival of European explorers in the 16th century. However, it was the French who would establish the first lasting colonial presence, staking their claim on the captivating Gulf Coast.

For thousands of years before Europeans arrived, Mississippis land was inhabited by Native American groups of the Mississippian culture. Then, in the early 1500s, the renowned Spanish conquistador and explorer, Hernando de Soto, made landfall in Florida. He began carving out a Spanish Empire in the New World, first by exploring the vast American Southeast.

De Sotos expedition became the first recorded Europeans to set foot in Mississippi and engage with its indigenous inhabitants. De Soto would meet his demise on the banks of the Mississippi River, being remembered as the first European to discover it. However, his presence, through conflict and the spreading of diseases, devastated most of the Native population in the region.

Following De Sotos expedition, France laid claim to the Mississippi region during the height of colonialism. King Louis XIV dispatched an expedition led by Pierre Le Moyne DIberville to seek out the mouth of the Mississippi River. Securing this would link Frances colonies in the North with their colonies in the Caribbean.

Discovering Ship Island

Setting sail from La Rochelle on October 24, 1698, DIberville, accompanied by his younger brother Jean-Baptiste de Bienville and a group of 200 Canadian laborers and soldiers, embarked on a daring journey. Their naval squadron, comprising frigates Le Badine and Le Marin, along with two supply ships, was joined by another vessel, Le Francois, upon reaching the Caribbean.

Venturing north, the expedition made stops in Spanish Florida and Mobile Bay before landing on one of the channel islands just south of Mississippi on February 10, 1699. This island, with its natural deepwater harbor, was promptly named Ile aux Vaisseaux, or Ship Island.

With Ship Island serving as their operational base, DIberville and his men set foot on the mainland on February 13, 1699. They quickly established friendly relations with the local Biloxi Native American tribe and embarked on an exploration of the Mississippi Coast.

Over the course of the following months, DIberville and his men journeyed westward, venturing as far as the present-day site of Baton Rouge. Yet, despite their efforts, they failed to find a suitable location for a permanent settlement. As provisions began to dwindle in April, DIberville made the decision to construct Fort Maurepas, which stands in present-day Ocean Springs.

The region was named Biloxi after the local Native tribe, becoming the first capital of French Louisiana. Leaving behind his brother and a contingent of fewer than 100 men, DIberville returned to France on May 3 to report his discoveries to the king. Meanwhile, Bienville and a group of remaining explorers continued their coastal exploration throughout the summer, ultimately discovering a bay to the west teeming with wildlife. They named it the Bay of St. Louis.

In December of that same year, DIberville returned to the Mississippi Coast, bringing with him food and reinforcements numbering about 60. During his absence, Bienville had established a settlement on the western coast of the bay, which they named Baye de Saint Louis. DIberville, on the other hand, founded Fort Mississippi 50 miles up the Mississippi River while continuing his exploration. This linked Frances Gulf Coast colony with a route to colonies in the Midwest and Canada.

DIberville would depart the coast once again in May 1700, but by then, the French colony on the Mississippi coast had firmly taken root. Upon his second return in December 1700, he orchestrated the transfer of the colonys capital, along with a significant portion of its residents, from Biloxi to Mobile Bay.

New Orleans takes over as French capital

April 1702 marked DIbervilles final departure from the colony, as he tragically passed away in Havana, Cuba, in 1706. Bienville maintained his capital in Mobile Bay until a hurricane in 1717 altered the region by blocking much of the bay with sand. In response, he reestablished Ship Island as the primary port while constructing a new settlement west of Fort Maurepas, known as Nouveau-Biloxi, or Fort Louis.

New Biloxi would remain the capital of French Louisiana until 1722, when New Orleans took its place. Boasting a superior deepwater harbor and greater protection against hurricanes, New Orleans became the new center of power for Bienville and the French.

Consequently, the Mississippi Coast saw limited further development under French rule. While Biloxi and other settlements in the area managed to survive, only a handful of settlers remained. Following Frances defeat in the Seven Years War, the region east of the Mississippi River was ceded to the British in 1763.

However, the Spanish would conquer the Gulf Coast during the American Revolution, creating the territory of West Florida. The United States eventually acquired this territory, including the whole southern half of the state, in 1810 and incorporated it into the Union in 1817, marking the end of Mississippis colonial era.
A bipartisan bill introduced Wednesday seeks to clarify that artificial intelligence (AI) companies are not eligible for protections that keep tech companies from being held legally responsible for content posted by third parties.

The bill introduced by Sens. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) and Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) aims to amend Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act with a clause that strips the immunity given to tech companies in cases involving the use of generative AI.

Dubbed the No Section 230 Immunity for AI Act, the legislation would also empower Americans harmed by generative AI models to sue AI companies in federal or state court.

The bill comes as senators weigh proposals to regulate the booming AI industry.

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The Senate Judiciary Committees privacy, technology and law subcommittee, which Blumenthal and Hawley lead, held a hearing last month with the CEO of OpenAI  the maker of ChatGPT  about the risks and potential of AI.

The Judiciary panel has held two further hearings this month on AI: one on intellectual property last week and another on human rights concerns Tuesday.

During the hearings, lawmakers on both sides of the aisle raised concerns about how the controversial Section 230 provision would apply to AI technology.

The proposal is being introduced as the tech industry argues the provision could apply to generative AI content, while some experts and advocacy groups say it will likely not.

Without clarification by Congress, the decision will likely be left to how courts interpret the provision in various cases.

AI platform accountability is a key principle of a framework for regulation that targets risk and protects the public, Blumenthal said in a statement.

He said the proposal introduced Wednesday is the first step in our effort to write the rules of AI and establish safeguards as we enter a new era.

Blumenthal and Hawley are critics of the overarching Section 230 provision that provides legal protection for tech companies, yet a proposal to amend it has not moved forward in Congress amid a broader debate over content moderation.

We cant make the same mistakes with generative AI as we did with Big Tech on Section 230, Hawley said in a statement.

When these new technologies harm innocent people, the companies must be held accountable. Victims deserve their day in court and this bipartisan proposal will make that a reality, he added.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
Most Americans say an increased focus on race in the last three years has not equated to significant gains for Black Americans.

An event in 2021 in remembrance of George Floyd outside the Minnesota state capitol in St. Paul. (Kerem Yucel/AFP via Getty Images)

Support for the Black Lives Matter movement, which began as an online campaign a decade ago to combat violence and systemic racism toward African Americans and eventually resonated worldwide, has dropped significantly from its peak in the summer of 2020, according to a new report.

Today, about half of U.S. adults, or 51%, said they support the BLM movement, according to a Pew Research Center survey published Wednesday. Three years ago, following the killings of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and Ahmaud Arbery, more than two-thirds of U.S. adults, or 67%, supported the movement.

In the aftermath of the killings  which saw upwards of 26 million people around the U.S. participate in racial justice protests during what became known as the "summer of racial reckoning"  millions of Americans were galvanized. U.S. companies pledged billions to combat racial justice and invest in Black-owned businesses, universities promised new facilities to highlight their commitment to ending systemic racism and law enforcement departments committed to reform.

Critics now question how much real progress has been made.

The reports findings

Juliana Horowitz, one of the reports authors, believes drastic changes in the countrys climate around issues of race and racial equality over this time have played a major role in shifting views.

People were more likely in 2020 to say the increased focus on issues of race and racial equality would lead to changes that would improve the lives of Black people than they are today, Horowitz, associate director of research at the center, told Yahoo News in an email.

British driver Lewis Hamilton, center, kneels with other drivers before a race during the Spanish Formula One Grand Prix near Barcelona in 2020. (Bryn Lennon/Pool/AFP via Getty Images)

As the COVID-19 pandemic gripped the country and confined most Americans indoors and online, Horowitz said, research shows that the public was following news about the protests just as closely as updates on the pandemic, and this sparked optimism that progress for Black Americans was possible in the U.S.

However, three years later, just 1 in 3 people, or around 32%, said BLM has been highly effective at bringing attention to racism against Black people, according to the report.

The analysis is based on a survey of 5,073 U.S. adults conducted from April 10 to 16 through an online survey panel, which reveals deep divides in support for BLM along both demographic and partisan lines.

About 8 in 10 Black adults, or 81%, said they support the movement, compared with smaller shares of other groups: 61% of Hispanic, 63% of Asian and 42% of white adults say the same.

Adults under 30 are also more likely to support the movement more than any other age group. About 64% of this age group supports it, with support greatly declining in older Americans: 52% for those 30-49, 46% for those 50-64 and 41% for those 65 and older.

Across party lines, more than 8 in 10 Democrats, or 84%, support the movement, while 82% of Republicans oppose it.

Impact of the BLM movement over time

In addition to decreasing sentiment for BLM, the survey found that a majority of Americans said an increased focus on race in the last three years has not equated to significant gains for Black Americans. Only 4 in 10 adults, or 41%, say BLM has been effective in improving the lives of Black people.

A Juneteenth rally outside the Brooklyn Museum in 2020. (John Minchillo/AP)

Evan Auguste, an assistant professor of psychology at the University of Massachusetts Boston and an expert in Black liberation psychology, believes that support for the movement has too often been conflated with legitimate action that far fewer people participated in, which ultimately failed to produce the kind of change many people desired.

The data demonstrates a population processing a collective trauma while aspiring to transform those failing systems, Auguste told Yahoo News. However, as noted by [activist] Mariame Kaba, while a large number of Americans reported supporting BLM and broader reforms, significantly fewer actually joined political and/or community organizations to contribute to sustained political action. As such, as peoples initial trauma reactions waned, so did their engagement with the movements they never made formal commitments to.

Outside of individuals, companies have also shown less enthusiasm in support of a movement they once championed by feverishly supporting diversity initiatives. According to data from management consulting giant McKinsey & Co., U.S. companies pledged about $340 billion to "fight racial injustice" from May 2020 to October 2022, but many of the commitments have been difficult to track.

Other estimates found that 271 U.S. corporations pledged $67 billion toward racial equity, but only $652 million of those funds had actually been disbursed by June 2021, according to Creative Investment Research, an economic research firm that has tracked diversity investing for decades.

A business boarded up in anticipation of continued unrest in Philadelphia in 2020. (Gabriella Audi/AFP via Getty Images)

Patricia Banks, author of Black Culture, Inc.: How Ethnic Community Support Pays for Corporate America and a professor of sociology and anthropology at Mount Holyoke College, sees a direct correlation between the declining support for BLM and the sharp reduction in race-related philanthropic commitments from companies in the last three years.

Given that these philanthropic commitments were, in part, driven by social activism and a heightened need in that moment to signal support for racial equity, the decline in support is likely at least partly a result of lower levels of racial justice activism, Banks told Yahoo News. Thus, the 2020 activism contributed to meaningful gains for African Americans. However, as the sociopolitical environment has shifted, in some cases those gains have not been long term.

While the gains for the movement over the last three years may be hard to quantify, Auguste cautions against saying that no progress was achieved.

The perceptions of BLMs political success will likely be shaped by a communitys local changes in policing, he said, noting that hundreds of local police reforms have passed since 2020, with varying levels of impact on actual police violence.

However, perhaps the largest success of BLM has been animating creativity and resistance among a generation of Black people with specific regards to community safety beyond policing, he added. BLM has surely played an indelible role in expanding how Black political movements organize and helped shape the consciousness of a generation.
Black people in Houston are 22% of population yet account for 63% of police use of force deaths

The officers who cause physical harm while on duty are likelier to be white. Out of 281 cases, around 49 percent were injuries caused by white cops, only 2 percent by Black ones.

Reports indicate that the homicides and excessive force used by Houston police officers disproportionately affect its Black residents.

According to The Houston Chronicle, data from the Houston Police Departments transparency hub, a publicly accessible online database, reveals that Black residents are 22 percent of Houstons population, yet are 72 percent of people who have had severe bodily injuries at the hands of police. Blacks make up 63 percent of Houston residents who have died as a result of police use of force since 2020.

A total of 28,945 occurrences of Houston police use of force were reported in that time period, and nearly 55 percent of those incidents involved Black citizens.

Tiffany Rachal, the mother of Jalen JaVon Randle, weeps during a news conference on May 11, 2022 in Houston, Texas. The news conference addressed Randles cause of death and demanded that the Houston Police Department release body-cam footage of the incident. Randle was fatally shot after an altercation with police officers. (Photo: Brandon Bell/Getty Images)

For us to be targeted 72 percent of the time shows the major biases and racism that weve been trying to get away from since slavery supposedly has ended, said RoShawn Evans, the organizing director of Pure Justice, a Houston-based nonprofit aimed at reforming organizations that perpetuate injustices.

Police officials responded to inquiries about the citys use of force statistics by stating that discrimination, including racial profiling, is forbidden and that the department would immediately investigate any claims of it. They noted that anyone who feels they have been the target of force due to racial or other profiling should file a report.

Evans questioned that strategy, noting that locals frequently dont trust the police to conduct their investigations and contending that the procedure of filing a complaint is daunting because it often necessitates visiting police stations.

The officers who cause substantial physical harm while on duty are likelier to be white. According to the data, of the 281 cases in the database, around 49 percent were injuries caused by white cops, as opposed to only 2 percent by Black ones.

The figures are in sharp contrast to the departments diversity figures, which show that about 24 percent of the departments 6,147 employees are Black, exceeding the citywide population by 2 percentage points. Thirty-five percent are white, exceeding the citywide population of 23 percent; 31 percent are Hispanic or Latino, lagging the citywide population of 46 percent, and 8 percent are Asian, exceeding the citywide population of 6 percent.

Since 2022, there have been 7,062 reported cases of use of force, and according to the data, almost 54 percent of those incidents involved Black residents.

A white police officer killed Jalen Randle, a 29-year-old Black man, in Houston in April 2022. His mother, Tiffany Rachal, questioned why the Memphis Police Department acted so quickly and looked into the Black police officers involved in Tyre Nichols killing but failed to do the same when the culprit was white.

Why is it always, when it comes down to white men, she asked, you have to wait for the video to determine whether something is wrong or right?

In April, a Harris County grand jury decided not to charge Shane Privette in the fatal shooting of her son.

In recent years, law enforcement officials have started to address these systemic problems, for example, by attempting to diversify the police departments ranks and implementing new training to prepare officers for what they might encounter.

Douglas Griffith, head of the Houston Police Officers Union, is among the specialists who believe that diversifying Houstons police department would give administrators a greater understanding of the people they serve.

However, Griffith noted that due to contemporary conditions, police are pushed to address social issues that other organizations could better handle. He pointed out that the departments records show that police are routinely assigned to patrol high-crime areas, which commonly also have high poverty percentages.

According to data from the U.S. Census Bureau, the poverty rate for Black Americans was around 19.5 percent in 2020, compared with 8.2 percent for non-Hispanic white Americans.

Professor Howard Henderson of Texas Southern University concurred largely with Griffiths argument and expressed that use-of-force results would change if elected officials focused on problems other than policing, such as better social services, access to a safety net and mental health treatment.

As a mental health practitioner, activist Vanesia Johnson has spoken with cops who have brought up the stigma of seeking mental health help.

You have unprotected communities with no power, and you have police going in with a whole different approach based upon their experience and understanding, said Johnson, The Chronicle reported, its a recipe for dehumanizing people and causing further harm.

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The post Black people in Houston are 22% of population yet account for 63% of police use of force deaths appeared first on TheGrio.
For years, Tanisha Watkins, Ph.D. harbored shamed and guilt about her student loan debt. Then she found a Facebook group with others just like her.

I was ashamed about my debt, Watkins told 21Ninety. Im in a Facebook group that talks about student loan forgiveness. Seeing other peoples numbers made me realize WOAH! Being part of this group has put in perspective that a 6-figure student loan debt is a lot, but there are people who have more. It put things in a bigger perspective.

Watkins has a student loan debt of more than $100,000. She has a three degrees including her Ph.D.

A bulk of my student loan debt did come from my masters program, she explained. I chose to attend private schools for both my undergraduate and graduate school, but I have no regrets for the experience, Watkins explained.

Watkins graduated from the University of Miami in 2004 with a degree in Broadcast Journalism and received her masters in strategic communication from High Point University. She completed her Ph.D. from Purdue University, a degree she obtained tuition free. Currently, Watkins works full-time as a Consumer Researcher and part-time professor.

People live to pay the debt. They have all of this student loan debt and get a job to handle that looming debt, she said.

Black Women Burdened by Student Loans

Black women are uniquely burdened by student loan debt. A recent study shed light on the alarming student loan debt crisis faced by Black women in the United States. According to The Motley Fool, Black women carry a higher student loan debt burden than other demographic groups. Black women also face significant challenges in repaying these loans. On average, Black women have about $41,466 in undergraduate student loan debt one year after graduation. As expected, attending graduate school only increases this debt among racial groups. The American Association of University Women details that white women are estimated to owe $56,098, on average, while Black women owe closer to $75,085. This growing issue highlights the urgent need for targeted solutions to address the systemic barriers contributing to this disparity.

Solving the student loan debt crisis for Black women requires a unique approach that addresses both the root causes and immediate challenges. It would also require policymakers to prioritize efforts to reduce disparities in educational opportunities, provide increased financial aid, and enhance support systems for marginalized communities. Furthermore, implementing targeted loan forgiveness programs and income-driven repayment plans can alleviate the burden of debt repayment for those facing financial hardships.

Tackling Student Loan Debt

Creating a way to pay off student loans is challenging, especially when it is a 6-figure amount. There are targeted loan forgiveness programs and income-driven repayment plans, but sometimes that can feel like just scratching the surface of your debt.

I have a plan to pay it back, but do I want to? No, Watkins joked. Because when you look at it from a racial and systemic standpoint, it makes you look at how black students are being taught about financial education and financial equality. The government doesnt teach financial literacy, and they should.

One way Watkins tackles this issue was by teaching her 17-year-old son about financial literacy.

I explain to him how your grades impact you and the possibility of scholarships, she explains.

Watkins adopted a unique approach to dealing with her student loan debt.

I look at my student loan payment as a mortgage, and my husband and I are pretty smart financially. And we are on track to pay off our mortgage in 8 years, and thats how I apply it to my student loans. I paid more than required. Do I feel good about paying this debt? No, but I have a plan that requires me to be disciplined. It feels good to see that number go down.

Take Full Advantage of Your School

Watkins wants first-time payers to understand that it is crucial not to ignore student loan debt.

I know its a popular path to go down, but dont ignore it. Just break it down into yearly goals. Dont think about it as a chunk you have to pay back. And celebrate it when you do make a payment, she said.

Another piece of advice Watkins has for students is to take advantage of the time they have in school.

People dont take full advantage of the school resources and you need too, Wakins advised. It doesnt go back to the staff or faculty, so you have too.

The post Black Women And The Impact Of Student Loan Debt appeared first on 21Ninety.
China aims to build quality, balanced basic public education by 2027

Xinhua) 08:46, June 14, 2023

BEIJING, June 13 (Xinhua) -- China is aiming to establish a quality and balanced basic public education system by 2027, according to a new set of guidelines jointly released by the general offices of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and the State Council.

By 2035 China aims to become one of the world's leading countries in terms of the quality and equity of compulsory education services, the document says.

In the coming years the authorities will work to close the education gap between developed and less-developed regions, with a focus on school facilities, and will continue to spend resources on less-developed regions in central and western China, according to the document.

The education gap between urban and rural areas, among different schools and different groups of residents will also be addressed.

Priority will be given to rural schools. The relevant authorities will work to ensure that all rural children of school age receive compulsory education, while more information technology will be introduced to improve the quality of education of rural schools.

Headmasters and teachers will be encouraged to work at rural schools and those operating in inferior conditions. Policies and measures will be adopted to help children of migrant workers to attend schools where their parents work.

The authorities will also provide better education services for orphans, children without support and care, children who are left behind in rural areas and those in difficult situations.

More resources will also go to schools in regions with large ethnic minority populations to improve the quality of education there.

The document pledges that the government will continue to increase the budget for education, particularly compulsory education.

(Web editor: Zhong Wenxing, Liang Jun)
It was a cold but sunny day in October 1988, and my friend Barbara knew exactly who was going to be president.

My parents are going to vote for Michael Dukakis, she said matter-of-factly as we waited for Mrs. Maglaras, the school secretary, to open the front door of our school to let us in. Hes going to win because hes Greek.

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Who else could it be but Dukakis? Barbara wasnt the only one  Ari, Cindy, Nick, Jerry, all their parents were voting for him too. From my vantage point, Dukakis would have won in a landslide had the election been held at the corner of Carmen and Rockwell. The guys at Hubs down the street on Lincoln Avenue had Dukakis signs in the window. It was a sure thing.

Judging by the number of first-generation Greek American students at our school, you wouldnt be wrong to think we went to St. Demetrios Greek Orthodox Church. Indeed, there was a not insignificant gang of Greek kids who walked to St. Ds after the final bell so they could, we presumed, tell their alphas from their omegas at Greek School.

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Greeks were prominent, but they were far from the only immigrants who sent their kids to Transfiguration School, a little Catholic school attached to a little Catholic church, the Transfiguration of Our Lord, that welcomed immigrants from its very founding in 1911. Back then, a group of devout Polish worshippers didnt really want to be a part of the German church to the south or the Irish church to the north. They wanted to be a part of their own place. And so Transfiguration was born.

The Poles came and got a little money together, then scattered, some to other parts of the city and a few to the burbs. Then the Greeks came. Same story. The Mexicans and the South and Central Americans and the Filipinos told their friends, and they told their friends to go to the smallest church in the neighborhood. Theyd be welcome. Transfiguration was one of the first churches in the area to do a Mass in Spanish for the newly arrived. Eventually, they added a mass in Tagalog. It became the place you went when you were trying to get on your feet, and hopefully a foothold, in a new country.

After the school closed in the early aughts, the church held on for a respectable 15 more years  and eventually that closed too. Not for a lack of the faithful but a lack of funds. There were two other parishes within a half-mile that would take in the unchurched orphans, and besides, the land was too valuable. The communities that built Lincoln Square inadvertently created some prime real estate along the way  gone is the neighborhood where living next to the Brown Line actually lowered your property values.

Now, its bike shops and nice restaurants, and the formerly cut-rate movie theater hosts birthday parties for parents who have the money to rent an entire theater for their 8-year-old. At least we still have a movie theater.

Its a good neighborhood now. And the land that Transfiguration once occupied will be turned into about a dozen single-family homes, where, in an area that was zoned for and still is largely home to two- and three-flats, the starting price of a new house is $1.35 million. Talk to me about the zoning on that one.

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This week is the one I dreaded: the physical building, Transfiguration of Our Lord, is being torn down. I held out hope that the building that had welcomed and taken care of so many would be preserved. At the very least, I hoped that the land that nourished thousands of families would house a few more of them in the middle of a nationwide affordable housing crisis. But why build homes for two or three families when you can get rich selling a house to just one?

So the fences have gone up, and the building is coming down.

The Polish families that etched their names into the stained glass are no longer. The classroom where we learned civics from Mr. Jakubow  who taught his students that power was derived from We the People, and we kids, many from throughout the world, thought we were those People  itll be rubble soon.

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Were still the People.

We just have one less place to go.

Michele Steele is a lifelong resident of Lincoln Square. She was a member of Transfiguration of Our Lord and St. Matthias parishes before they closed and is currently a parishioner at Queen of Apostles Catholic Church.

Submit a letter, of no more than 400 words, to the editor here or email letters@chicagotribune.com.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken will travel to Beijing this weekend, the State Department announced Wednesday, as the U.S. confronts a spate of intensifying diplomatic challenges with China. His visit there will be the first by a Secretary of State since 2018, and the first by a cabinet-level official since 2019.

In a briefing call Wednesday, senior U.S. officials acknowledged that the meeting came at a "crucial time" in the relationship but downplayed expectations for major "deliverables."

"We're not going to Beijing with the intent of having some sort of breakthrough or transformation in the way that we deal with one another," said assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Daniel Kritenbrink. "We're coming to Beijing with a realistic, confident approach and a sincere desire to manage our competition in the most responsible way possible."

"Efforts to shape or reform China over several decades have failed, and we expect China to be around to be a major player on the world stage for the rest of our lifetimes," deputy assistant to the President and Coordinator for the Indo-Pacific Kurt Campbell said. "As the competition continues, the PRC will take provocative steps  from the Taiwan Strait to Cuba  and we will push back. But intense competition requires intense diplomacy, if we're going to manage tensions."

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaks at a press conference after an informal meeting of NATO Foreign Affairs Ministers in Oslo, Norway, on June 1, 2023. / Credit: JAVAD PARSA/NTB/AFP via Getty Images

The officials declined to detail the Secretary's schedule while in Beijing, including whether he would meet with Chinese president Xi Jinping, but said diplomats on both sides had invested "many hours" preparing for meetings to "facilitate substantive dialogue in the days ahead."

"In the course of those discussions, both sides have indicated a shared interest in making sure that we have communication channels open and that we do everything possible to reduce the risk of miscalculation," Kritenbrink said.

Blinken's visit is the culmination of a series of carefully orchestrated meetings between U.S. and Chinese officials in the past several weeks. Relations between Washington and Beijing plummeted following the February shootdown of a Chinese surveillance balloon that crossed into American airspace  an incident that derailed a previously planned trip by Blinken to the Chinese capital, where he was expected to meet with President Xi Jinping.

Speaking at the G-7 summit in Japan last month, U.S. President Biden predicted that the chill in U.S.-China relations would "thaw very shortly." It later emerged that National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan met with China's top foreign policy official, Wang Yi, in Vienna, and that CIA director William Burns had discussions with his intelligence counterparts in Beijing.

Since then, senior Commerce, State Department and White House officials have held meetings with Chinese officials in both the U.S. and China.

But the growing number of official interactions has coincided with a series of uncomfortable revelations, including a recent acknowledgment by the Biden administration that China had established surveillance posts in Cuba, just 100 miles from the U.S.'s southeastern border.

Over the weekend, an administration official said Mr. Biden's team had learned upon taking office of China's efforts to "expand its overseas logistics, basing, and collection infrastructure globally," including by establishing  and upgrading as recently as 2019  intelligence collection facilities in Cuba.

The Chinese government "will keep trying to enhance its presence in Cuba, and we will keep working to disrupt it," the official, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss a sensitive issue, said.

State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said on Tuesday that the U.S. had raised "concerns" privately with the Cuban government about the arrangement, declining to provide additional details.

In Wednesday's call with reporters, Campbell said private diplomatic efforts by the Biden administration had, in the view of U.S. analysts, "impeded, slowed and even stopped" some attempts by China to enhance its intelligence gathering and military operations worldwide.

The news of the Cuba facilities followed other provocative moves by China, including two military interactions that U.S. officials have decried as dangerous.

A Chinese warship carried out what the U.S. called an "unsafe" maneuver in the Taiwan Strait, cutting sharply across the path of an American destroyer. The U.S. also accused a Chinese fighter jet of performing an "unnecessarily aggressive maneuver" by flying directly in front of an American spy plane in late May over the South China Sea.

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FILE - U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaks at a chiefs of mission reception in the East Room of the White House in Washington, on June 13, 2023. Blinken and Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang shared concerns on a phone call Wednesday, June 14, 2023 ahead of a planned visit by the U.S. official to China meant to shore up relations. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh, File) (ASSOCIATED PRESS)

WASHINGTON (AP)  U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken will travel to China this weekend as part of the Biden administrations push to repair deteriorating ties between Washington and Beijing and keep lines of communication open, the State Department said Wednesday.

Blinken will be the most senior U.S. official to visit China since President Joe Biden took office. His visit had initially been planned for early this year but was postponed indefinitely after the discovery and shootdown of what the U.S. said was a Chinese spy balloon over the United States.

Since then, however, there have been lower-level engagements between the U.S. and China despite ongoing hostility and recriminations over both sides actions in the Taiwan Strait, the South China Sea, Chinas refusal to condemn Russia for its war against Ukraine, and allegations from Washington that Beijing is attempting to boost its worldwide surveillance capabilities, including in Cuba.

The State Department said Blinken had spoken with his Chinese counterpart, Foreign Minister Qin Gang, on Tuesday night to confirm his trip, which will begin on Sunday and was first reported by The Associated Press and other news organizations last week. Blinken will leave Washington late Friday.

While in Beijing, Secretary Blinken will meet with senior PRC officials where he will discuss the importance of maintaining open lines of communication to responsibly manage the U.S.-PRC relationship, the department said, using the acronym for the Peoples Republic of China. He will also raise bilateral issues of concern, global and regional matters, and potential cooperation on shared transnational challenges.

Two senior U.S. officials downplayed the prospects for any significant breakthrough on the wide array of problems between the countries during Blinken's visit. Instead, they said it was aimed at restoring a sense of calm and normalcy to high-level contacts.

This is a really critical series of engagements that well have in Beijing at a crucial time in the relationship that we again hope will, at a minimum, reduce the risk of miscalculation so that we do not veer into potential conflict, said Daniel Kritenbrink, the top U.S. diplomat for East Asia and the Pacific.

Were not going to Beijing with the intent of having some sort of breakthrough or transformation in the way that we deal with one another, he said. Were coming to Beijing with a realistic, confident approach and a sincere desire to manage our competition in the most responsible way possible.

Were clear-eyed about the PRC, said Kurt Campbell, the top Asia expert at the National Security Council. We know efforts to shape or reform China over several decades have failed and we expect China to be around and to be a major player on the world stage for the rest of our lifetimes.

As the competition continues, the PRC will take provocative steps  from the Taiwan Strait to Cuba  and we will push back, Campbell said. But intense competition requires intense diplomacy if were going to manage tensions. That is the only way to clear up misperceptions, to signal, to communicate, and to work together where and when our interests align.

In its readout of the Blinken-Qin phone call, China's foreign ministry said Qin urged the United States to respect Chinas core concerns such as the issue of Taiwans self-rule, stop interfering in Chinas internal affairs, and stop harming Chinas sovereignty, security and development interests in the name of competition.

Qin noted China-U.S. ties have encountered new difficulties and challenges since the beginning of the year, and the two sides responsibility is to work together to properly manage differences, promote exchanges and cooperation and stabilize relations, it said.

Blinken, who will be the first secretary of state to visit China since 2018, expects to meet with Qin on Sunday, as well as Chinas top diplomat, Wang Yi, and possibly Chinese President Xi Jinping on Monday, according to U.S. officials.

The trip will take place amid myriad complications in U.S-China relations, which have steadily declined over the past several years dating back to the Trump administration, starting with trade and industrial espionage.

Those concerns grew rapidly to include human rights concerns over the treatment of Uyghur Muslims and other minorities in Chinas western region of Xinjang, Hong Kong, Tibet, and increasing Chinese aggressiveness toward Taiwan, and then escalated over questions about the origin of the COVID-19 virus.

Blinkens visit came out of a meeting in Bali last year between Xi and Biden, who agreed that the worlds two largest economies must remain in contact and take precautions to ensure there are no miscalculations in their global rivalry that could lead to conflict. The trip came within a day of happening in February but was delayed after the spy balloon incident. Beijing insists the craft was a weather balloon that strayed off course.

Contacts after that have taken place, but they have been rare as tensions have risen over Chinas conduct in the South China Sea, aggressive actions toward Taiwan and support for Russias war against Ukraine. Earlier this month, Chinas defense minister rebuffed a request from U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin for a meeting on the sidelines of a security symposium in Singapore.

However, shortly after postponing his trip to Beijing, Blinken met briefly with Wang at the Munich Security Conference in Germany. And, CIA chief William Burns traveled to China in May, while Chinas commerce minister traveled to the U.S.. And Bidens national security adviser Jake Sullivan met with Wang in Vienna in early May.

More recently, the top U.S. diplomat for the Asia-Pacific region, Daniel Kritenbrink, traveled to China last week along with a senior National Security Council official to finalize details of Blinkens trip.

Just in the past several days, though, the Biden administration has said that it has quietly blunted Chinese efforts to bolster its intelligence collection and military capabilities around the world, including in Cuba.

Blinken said on Monday that when Biden took office in January 2021, U.S. intelligence agencies briefed him on a number of sensitive efforts by Beijing around the world to expand their overseas logistics, foreign collections infrastructure to allow them to project and sustain military power at a greater distance."

Although the Chinese had already upgraded their facilities in Cuba in 2019, Blinken said Biden determined that more needed to be done because Trump administration officials werent making enough progress on this issue and we needed a more direct approach.

He did not elaborate on what had been done since, although the Biden administration has moved rapidly to expand its diplomatic presence, especially in Indian Ocean and the Pacific island nations, where it has opened or has plans to open at least five new embassies over the next year or so.

Weve been executing on that approach quietly, carefully, but in our judgment, with results, Blinken said. Weve engaged governments that are considering hosting PRC bases at high levels. We have exchanged information with them. Our experts assess that our diplomatic efforts slowed down this effort by the PRC.

After his meetings in Beijing, Blinken will travel to London to attend a Ukraine reconstruction conference on June 21, the State Department said.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken will visit China this weekend, a high-stakes step in the U.S. push to improve ties between the worlds fractious superpowers.

Blinken will travel to Beijing on Friday to hold talks with senior Chinese officials, the State Department announced Wednesday, a long-awaited rescheduling of a visit that was canceled after an alleged Chinese spy balloon was found flying over sensitive American military sites.

Blinken Visit To China (Mandel Ngan / AFP - Getty Images)

China's Foreign Affairs Ministry confirmed the trip, saying Blinken would visit Sunday to Monday, state media reported.

But if that sounds like evidence of a thaw between Washington and Beijing, which President Joe Biden predicted after months of deepening tensions, the signals from China appear less encouraging.A call between Blinken and his Chinese counterpart appeared to be interpreted in vastly different ways by each side.

The State Department issued a neutral statement after the call that talked about keeping open lines of communication, while the Chinese Foreign Affairs Ministry openly lambasted the U.S.

Since the beginning of the year, China-U.S. relations have encountered new difficulties and challenges, Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang said, according to his governments readout of the telephone conversation. The U.S. side should respect and stop interfering in Chinas internal affairs, and stop harming Chinas sovereignty, security and development interests in the name of competition.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken and his Chinese counterpart, Qin Gang. (AFP; Getty Images file)

U.S. officials have downplayed the Beijing broadsides. White House Indo-Pacific Coordinator Kurt Campbell told reporters on a call that weve seen other signals that they recognize that diplomacy with Washington is still important.

The differing tones of the statements nonetheless highlight how far apart the U.S. and China still appear to be.

What China is pursuing is maximum clarity, exactly opposite to the ambiguity endorsed by the U.S., said Lu Xiang, a Hong Kong-based professor at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, a top Chinese government-affiliated think tank.

The U.S. readout of the call showed its desire to truly improve U.S.-China relations, Lu said. Even with Blinkens visit, the divergence between these two countries will continue for quite a long time.

The already contentious relationship has sunk to a decades-low nadir since the spy balloon saga, with ties frayed further by Taiwan, Russias war in Ukraine and recent news of a Chinese spy base in Cuba. Beijing has blamed Washington, arguing public U.S. efforts at conciliation are undermined by sanctions and other moves to contain its rise.

There is evidence the animus is not just between governments, too.

On Tuesday, police in Hong Kong arrested a man from mainland China on suspicion of spray-painting anti-U.S. graffiti on the citys U.S. Consulate. Video from local broadcaster TVB showed the wall of the building sprayed white with Chinese characters meaning double standards, alongside the English word hegemony  meaning the dominance of one country over others.

Both Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping have shown some willingness to move on from the silly balloon incident, as Biden put it, and mend their tattered ties. But the Americans say their attempts to re-establish high-level diplomacy have been rebuffed.

China has continued to declare its unhappiness with the U.S. approach of trying to restrict certain high-tech exports to China over national security concerns and criticizing it on human rights  while trying to protect their $600 billion trading relationship.

There have been meetings between senior officials. But China declined a rendezvous between the two countries defense chiefs, and a long-awaited telephone call between Biden and Xi has not happened.

Blinkens visit to Beijing, the first by a secretary of state since 2018 and the first Cabinet-level trip there by a Biden administration official, will raise hopes of a breakthrough.

He will meet with senior Chinese officials to discuss the importance of maintaining open lines of communication to responsibly manage the relationship with Washington, State Department spokesperson Matt Miller said. He will also raise bilateral issues of concern, global and regional matters and potential cooperation on shared transnational challenges.

The U.S. says it wants to keep open communications with the aim of reducing the risk of miscalculation, Assistant Secretary of State Dan Kritenbrink told reporters.

There have been a number of recent close calls between U.S. and Chinese aircraft and ships in the South China Sea. Beijing fiercely declares ownership over the resource-rich shipping hot spot, a claim contested by its neighbors and not recognized by international law.

Blinken will also travel to London to meet with his counterparts from the U.K., Ukraine and elsewhere and to attend the Ukraine Recovery Conference, the State Department said.

The U.S. wants to de-risk its relationship with Beijing  newfangled jargon that essentially means trading with China while restricting certain exports, such as technology that can be used for military purposes. Meanwhile, the U.S. wants to continue calling out China on issues such as human rights, Taiwan and Beijings growing assertiveness in the South China Sea.

Campbell, the White Houses Indo-Pacific coordinator, said the Biden administration is for de-risking but not decoupling. China will take provocative steps, from the Taiwan Strait to Cuba, and we will push back, he added, but intense competition requires intense diplomacy if we're going to manage tensions.

For many in and around the Chinese government, that is unacceptable, and it looks like the U.S. is trying to have it both ways.

Every time it talks about meeting, the United States is keen to play games with China and create the false illusion that they are eager to communicate, Yuyuan Tantian, a prominent social media commentator affiliated with Chinas government-controlled broadcaster, CCTV, said Tuesday. But at the same time, they are repeatedly testing and provoking on issues of Chinas bottom line and principles.

This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
Secretary of State Antony Blinken will travel to China to meet with Beijings senior officials this week, the State Department announced Wednesday.

During the trip, hell discuss the importance of maintaining open lines of communication to responsibly manage the relationship between the two countries, the statement said, which have become increasingly fraught in recent months. Hell also stop in London to meet with officials and express support for Ukraine's war efforts.

Blinken, who will leave on Friday and return Wednesday, will become the first secretary of State to visit China in five years and the first Cabinet-level official to do so in four years.

"We're coming to Beijing with a realistic, confident approach and a sincere desire to manage our competition the most responsible way possible. We do hope at a minimum that we will achieve that goal, and we also do hope of course to make progress on a number of concrete issues," Daniel Kritenbrink, assistant secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific affairs, told reporters Wednesday morning. "It would be wise not to have expectations of a long list of deliverables because that's not where we are, I think, in the bilateral relationship."

Diplomatic efforts between the two nations have been especially arduous ever since Washington postponed Blinkens planned trip to Beijing in February after a Chinese spy balloon was spotted floating across the continental United States.

After the balloon incident, Chinas then-defense minister refused to speak with Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, while the U.S. has since attempted to open the lines of communication. In a breakthrough earlier this month, Austin shook hands but did not have a substantive exchange with current Chinese defense minister Li Shangfu at a dinner in Singapore.

Alex Ward contributed to this report.
FILE - Gay rights activists hold a banner reading "Homophobia - the religion of bullies" during their action in protest at homophobia, on Red Square in Moscow, Russia, on July 14, 2013. Russian lawmakers on Wednesday June 14, 2023 approved in first reading a bill outlawing gender-affirming medical care and changing gender in official documents in yet another crippling blow to Russia's already beleaguered LGBTQ+ community. (AP Photo/Evgeny Feldman, File)

TALLINN, Estonia (AP)  Russian lawmakers gave initial approval Wednesday to a bill that would outlaw gender transitioning procedures in yet another blow to the country's beleaguered LGBTQ+ community.

Senior lawmaker Pyotr Tolstoy, who is among the bills sponsors, has said it is intended to protect Russia with its cultural and family values and traditions and to stop the infiltration of the Western anti-family ideology.

Russia's LGBTQ+ community has been under growing pressure for a decade as President Vladimir Putin and the Russian Orthodox Church embarked on a campaign to preserve what they deem the countrys traditional values.

The bill bans any medical interventions aimed at changing the sex of a person, as well as changing ones gender in official documents and public records.

Russian transgender people and LGBTQ+ rights advocates contacted by The Associated Press described the measure as a grim development.

We knew that they didnt like us here, but to go absolutely against human rights, against the existing laws even," said Maxim, a 29-year-old transgender activist who spoke on condition of anonymity because of safety concerns.

The only option for those seeking to transition through medical care or changing their gender in documents would be to leave the country, according to human rights lawyer Max Olenichev, who works with the Russian LGBTQ+ community. Neither medical, nor legal transitioning will be possible without changing the country of residence.

The bill must receive three readings by Russias lower house of parliament, the State Duma, but there is little doubt it will pass because about 400 members of the 450-seat house signed it, including the house speaker and the leaders of all political factions.

The independent Russian news outlet Meduza reported that such a massive show of unity has happened only three times before under Putin, most recently when 385 Duma members signed on to a bill last year to ban propaganda of nontraditional sexual relations among adults.

That initiative was quickly rubber-stamped, and by December 2022, any positive or even neutral representation of LGBTQ+ people in movies, literature, or media was outlawed. The bill severely restricting trans rights came just a few months after that.

The crackdown on the LGBTQ+ community started well before last year, however. Maria Sjodin, executive director of the Outright international LGBTQ+ rights group, told AP in an interview that the situation in Russia has been deteriorating over quite a long period of time, coming up on at least 10 years.

In 2013, the Kremlin adopted the first legislation restricting LGBTQ+ rights, known as the gay propaganda law that banned any public endorsement of nontraditional sexual relations among minors. In 2020, Putin pushed through a constitutional reform that outlawed same-sex marriage.

But the Kremlin has ramped up its rhetoric about protecting traditional values from what it called the West's degrading influence after sending its troops into Ukraine last year, in what rights advocates saw as an attempt to legitimize the war.

Do we really want to have here, in our country, in Russia, Parent No. 1, No. 2, No. 3 instead of 'mom' and dad?" Putin said in September at a ceremony during which four Ukrainian regions were formally annexed by Moscow. "Do we really want perversions that lead to degradation and extinction to be imposed in our schools from the primary grades?

Vyacheslav Volodin, the speaker of the State Duma, called gender transitioning pure satanism" as he opened voting on the measure Wednesday.

We do not want this to happen in our country. Let the diabolical policy be carried out in the U.S.," Volodin said.

But the clampdown on trans rights is actually a global trend that's happening in the U.S., too, Sjodin said, adding: We know there have been over 500 state-level bills introduced in the U.S. attacking LGBTQ rights in different ways with specific focus on trans rights.

The move targeting transgender people in Russia was not unexpected. Yana Kirey-Sitnikova, a transgender studies researcher, told AP that when anti-Western sentiments emerged last year, she realized that the authorities would now take us on. That's when she changed her gender marker in her documents, even though she wanted to postpone the process for some time.

Kirey-Sitnikova said the procedure under existing Russian law is simple. A person has to obtain a medical certificate stating that they have been diagnosed with transsexualism. Such certificates are issued by a panel of medical specialists, Kirey-Sitnikova said, and unlike in some other countries, hormonal therapy or gender-affirming surgery is not required to get this diagnosis.

With this medical certificate in hand, the next step is to go to a state registry office and get a new birth certificate, allowing for the issuance of a new passport and other documents. The whole process could take from several weeks to over two years, depending on the panels availability and procedures they do to issue a diagnosis.

Maxim, the activist with the Center T trans rights group who changed his gender marker three years ago, echoed Kirey-Sitnikovas sentiment that Russia currently "is unique in a good way when it comes to gender transitioning. He also praised the quality and availability of gender-affirming medical care in Russia, saying there are many good surgeons and endocrinologists advising on hormone therapy.

The new bill will take all of that away, according to Olenichev, the lawyer.

Doctors wont be allowed to diagnose those seeking to transition, hormonal therapy and surgery will be outlawed for those who havent yet managed to change their gender in the documents. Those who have should be able to access necessary medical care, Olenichev saids, because the bill outlaws changing the sex of a person, but not medical care in accordance with the persons official gender.

Theres no official data on how many people in Russia have changed gender in official documents, Olenichev said, but the number apparently has grown in recent years.

Independent news outlet Mediazona reported in February that the number of passports issued due to gender change has more than doubled in 2022 compared with two years earlier - from 428 in 2020 to 936 last year, according to Russia's Interior Ministry.

In justifying the new bill, lawmakers cited concerns that men are using the relatively simple procedure of changing gender in official documents to dodge the military draft.

Maxim said that isn't true. The process is lengthy, costly, and for transphobic people it is humiliating, he said, adding that the spike in numbers could be linked to fears about the bill and people rushing to complete the procedures before it takes effect.

Among those hoping to have enough time to transition are transgender teenagers who are under 18 and cant act on their aspirations even under existing legislation.

Lyubov, a therapist who works with such teenagers, told AP that the vast majority of them lived on hope and anticipation of their 18th birthday, and now they have a lot of anxiety. I view the future as rather sad, said Lyubov, the mother of a trans 17-year-old who asked that her last name not be used for safety reasons.

Our children are between a rock and a hard place: On one hand, theres social pressure, and on the other, lack of hope that when they turn 18, something will change, she said.

It is an impossible situation, Lyubov said, because trans people will be hit with the ban on changing your life in accordance with your gender identity, while also having to deal with a society that paints them as not healthy, not normal, not having the right to live.

___

Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the APs collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content.
A police investigation turned what was initially a murder charge into drug charges, leading to a much lighter sentence for a Boise man who fatally shot someone at his home, according to prosecutors.

Prosecutors dropped Zackary Gordans second-degree murder charge after they decided he may have acted in self-defense, according to a news release at the time from Boise police. Gordan ultimately pleaded guilty to two counts of possession of a controlled substance.

At the sentencing, Ada County Deputy Prosecutor Kai Wittwer said the shooting happened after the victim, Robert Nichols, tried to collect a drug debt at Gordans Boise home.

Wittwer said that according to a police investigation, Nichols pulled a gun on Gordan and demanded payment. Gordan, who was under the influence of fentanyl at the time, responded by shooting him in his midsection, Wittwer said. An acquaintance of Gordan then drove Nichols to Saint Alphonsus Regional Medical Center in Boise, where he died.

Nichols family members werent convinced. At the sentencing, they expressed their anger at Gordan and the reduced charges.

The crimes you are being charged with are not even close to what you truly should be answering for, said Nichols mother, Shannon Davis, in a statement Nichols wife delivered in court. You and your co-conspirators have basically gotten away with murder.

For the remaining two drug possession charges, 4th District Judge James Cawthon sentenced Gordan to seven total years in prison, three years fixed and four years indeterminate, during which he could be in prison or on parole. He also ordered Gordan to have no contact with Nichols family for 20 years.

The statement that was made early on [by Nichols wife] that no consequence will be enough is so true, Cawthon said. Even if this were some type of case where I had much more discretion as to what type of sentence I imposed, Mr. Nichols is not coming back. And that loss is forever.

Cawthon drew a distinction between Gordans actions and self-defense. Theres a fundamental difference between someone breaking into my home and defending myself and somebody engaged in an overtly criminal lifestyle and arming themselves to deal with the instances of that criminal lifestyle, he said.

Prosecutors also dropped other charges that included destruction, alteration, or concealment of evidence and possession of a controlled substance with intent to manufacture or deliver, according to court records.
Ukrainian border guards demonstrated the targeted destruction of a Russian position while the invaders were resting in Luhansk Oblast.

Source: State Border Guard Service of Ukraine

Quote: "Recently, on the Svatove front, while performing a combat mission, border guards and aerial reconnaissance men came across the Russo Turisto position.

To make sure the Muscovites felt the hospitality of the Ukrainian land to the fullest, we immediately passed the coordinates to our artillery brother-in-arms from the 92nd Brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

Fly to hell, not to Ukraine!"

Details: As a result of the adjustments, the Russian position was destroyed, and their fighters were killed.

Journalists fight on their own frontline. Support Ukrainska Pravda or become our patron!
Breeze Airways announced its 10th nonstop route from Orlando International Airport on Wednesday.

The new route will start Sept. 6, with service on Wednesdays and Saturdays to Portland, Maine.

Airline officials said airfare for the route will start at $99 one-way.

We continue to find great opportunities for growth out of MCO, said Breeze Airways President Tom Doxey. This new route to Portland will give guests in Orlando a great way to visit a beautiful destination in the Northeast.

Read: Breeze Airways debuts flights from Orlando to West Virginia, doubles frequency of route

Breeze also offers nonstop service from Orlando to Akron-Canton, Ohio; Bentonville-Fayetteville, Arkansas; Charleston, South Carolina; Huntsville, Alabama; Santa Ana-Orange County, California; Providence, Rhode Island; Tulsa, Oklahoma; and Charleston, West Virginia. The airline also offers one-stop/no plane change BreezeThru service to New Orleans, Louisana and Provo-Salt Lake City, Utah.

Read: Seriously Nice: Breeze Airways adds new discount flights from Orlando & air service packages

Click here to download the free WFTV news and weather apps, click here to download the WFTV Now app for your smart TV and click here to stream Channel 9 Eyewitness News live.
These days, retired Navy Capt. Brett Crozier comes across as a man who accepts the decisions he made to save his sailors in 2020, ending his military career in the process.

Crozier knew the possible consequences of sending that March 2020 email from Guam to higher-ups while he was commanding the COVID-stricken aircraft carrier Theodore Roosevelt, a message in which he begged Big Navy to speed up its efforts to get his sailors off the ship during those uncertain early days of the pandemic.

We are not at war. Sailors do not need to die, Crozier wrote in the message. If we do not act now, we are failing to properly take care of our most trusted asset  our Sailors.

After that letter leaked to the San Francisco Chronicle, he accepted being fired in April 2020, even as public outrage over Croziers concerns spurred the Navy into faster action, securing off-ship rooms for the 5,000 embarked TR sailors sidelined on the Pacific island.

A few months after his firing, Croziers ultimate goal came to fruition: From atop a paddleboard near San Diego, Crozier watched the TR and nearly all its sailors get home safely from their so-called COVID cruise.

Watch the heros farewell sailors gave their fired Theodore Roosevelt skipper

Crozier, a helicopter and jet pilot before commanding TR, retired from the Navy last year and has largely remained out of the spotlight.

But this week, he has a book coming out that for the first time offers his perspective on leading the carrier crew during its battle with COVID and what he learned from the experience.

Surf When You Can: Lessons in Life, Loyalty and Leadership from a Maverick Navy Captain chronicles not only his time aboard TR, but includes tales from his long and varied career.

Crozier recently spoke with Navy Times about the TR, COVID and the Vietnam port call that preceded it. He also talked about standing up for sailors and whether he has any lingering beef with former acting Navy Secretary Thomas Modly, who slammed him in an address to the TRs crew just days after Crozier was relieved of command.

You are justified in being angry with me  Read the SECNAVs final memo to the fleet

This conversation has been edited for length, clarity and grammar.

Q: Tell us a bit about why you decided to write this book?

A: I think it came down to three reasons. One was to recognize all the men and women I had the privilege to serve with and sail with and fly with during my 30-year career.

I also wanted to share with a broader audience the things that I learned during those 30 years. We all have stories to tell and sea stories, but I thought I had the privilege of an incredible career and learned from a lot of people.

Third, and I think this is important, it was to kind of dispel the myth that I was bitter, or that I was disgruntled and leaving the military in a different state than I was.

The TR episode is what it is and we can talk more about it, but at the end of the day, I served 30 years in the military and I enjoyed everything about it.

Those events happened, thats part of life and COVID threw some curveballs to everybody across the world. And no matter how it came out in the end, the Navy was pretty good to me. I came back to San Diego, I had a great job, an important job. I still got to fly the F/A-18 Super Hornet up until the month before I retired.

So, I felt really honored in the end, particularly with naval aviation, they took really good care of me and my family, and Im honored to have served 30 years without any kind of anger or malice.

Capt. Crozier, hero to his Teddy Roosevelt sailors and then fired, set to retire

Q: The book lays out the varied career you had, from piloting helicopters to the time you spent on a seized dhow in the Middle East and onto your career as a fighter pilot, not to mention the years-long education that led to you commanding a carrier.

You sound pretty at peace with what went down. Was that a process for you? Was it difficult to have your entire service encapsulated by an event that was largely beyond your control, namely the pandemic, and how did you work through that?

A: Great question. I will tell you that I was never really bitter. I mean, I disagreed with the decision, but to go back to the moment that I sent the red flare as we say, I really had made peace with whatever the outcome was going to be at that point.

It was so important for me to make sure that I was removing all barriers (to getting sailors off the TR in Guam). To me there was no question about what I needed to do to make sure they were getting the best care possible.

And I knew I was going to rock the boat in doing so.

So, when the boat rocked, there was a reaction that maybe I didnt predict, but I knew there would be a reaction and I knew it was going to have implications to my career. And I was really at peace from the moment I sent the email asking for help. If it worked out that I stayed in command, thats great, and if it didnt, that was the decision the Navy was going to have to make for the organization at large.

My focus was the sailors under my command and the entire crew of 5,000 aboard the TR. For me, it was pretty easy.

The aircraft carrier Theodore Roosevelt pier side at Naval Base Guam on May 15, 2020. (Navy)

Q: One of the most iconic moments of the whole TR saga was when you left the ship in early April after being relieved and you walked off the ship and down the enlisted brow for the last time. You recounted it in the book. We wrote about it. A couple of TR sailors recorded it, so we could all see that moment.

In the hangar, scores of TR sailors chanted Captain Crozier as you walked off the ship for the last time. Did you know that the crew was gathering to see you off like that? And what did that goodbye mean to you?

A: I had no idea. In fact, it took me the better part of the day to pack up and make sure I was ready to leave the ship. I had been told to leave the ship by the end of the day. And so I spent the better part of the day talking to folks and making sure the ship was going to be in good hands and talking to my XO, making sure he knew what he needed to know. And packing a lot of boxes. Thats like the 21st move in my career. It was a quick pack out.

So, when it came time to leave the ship, the duty officer offered to open back up the officer brow. We normally keep the officer brow closed after 1800. But (to reopen the officers brow), you have to stand the watches back up, you have to put the officer of the deck, put a couple watch standers, open the brow.

And the last thing I wanted to do was impact people and make them have to go stand an extra watch. And so I said Im fine, Im more than comfortable going off the enlisted brow and not having to make anybody go out of their way to do anything special for my departure.

I had no idea until I stepped in the hangar and saw them gather and start chanting and saying goodbye.

Capt. Brett Crozier, then-commanding officer of the aircraft carrier Theodore Roosevelt, talks with his sailors during an all-hands call on the flight deck Dec. 15, 2019. (MCSN Alexander Williams/Navy via Getty Images)

That was the first time, in that moment or at least that day, that it all kind of hit me, the gravity of the situation. What I thought could happen after I sent the email had come to fruition.

I was taken aback because of the number of sailors that had gathered to provide that sendoff.

I saw two things. One was thank you for sending the email, bringing attention to what had been a growing problem on the ship and what they had been concerned with. I think they appreciated me stepping up and risking my career to do that.

And here I am leaving as they are approaching what is going to be a fight. As they figure out how to battle COVID and to get back to sea, and now Im leaving them at that moment. I felt bad.

But I felt like they werent going to give up. They werent despondent. They were like, were going to fight on and were going to fight on for you because this is an important fight ahead.

Those are the two big things I took, I guess, as I tried to take it all in and then left the ship for the last time.

Q: There was reporting in the spring of 2020 that leadership was considering reinstating you as CO of the TR. But, after an investigation, Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Mike Gilday held a press conference that summer to announce that you would not be returning.

Speaking of you and the carrier strike group commander, Rear Adm. Stuart Baker, Gilday said, they did not do enough, soon enough, to fulfill their primary obligations, and they did not effectively carry out their guidelines.

According to Gilday, the wheels were already in motion to secure beds for TR sailors in Guam when you sent the red flag email that started it all. What do you say to those claims?

A: I guess I fundamentally disagree.

I dont think there was anyone that had any ill will for the crew. I think we were more deliberate in the planning process than we needed to be, and we needed to be quicker. I was arguing, ultimately, that we needed to make a decision that was quicker.

So yeah, Im sure there were things in motion, I know there were. But at the end of the day, some of the other ones we didnt execute were slowing down the process.

Q: Is it accurate to say you were focused more on securing hotel rooms for everybody, as opposed to plans to house sailors in shared facilities, like a gymnasium, where COVID could spread further?

A: We needed to use all of it. We knew that we werent going to have sufficient space on the base. So, we had to use a gym off base. And we needed to expand beyond what was available in those limited capacities.

And some of the larger facilities being offered were dirt-floored warehouses with a port-a-potty, and that was just going to be a worse condition.

We didnt turn down a single option. I think that was one of the accusations, were you trying to hold off for this perfect solution? No. We were getting sailors off the ship as fast as we could, as fast as the base would allow it, and to put them in the spaces that were available.

Capt. Crozier wont be reinstated as the commander of the carrier Theodore Roosevelt

And then on top of that, we were trying to secure hotel rooms in addition to that, because we knew we didnt have sufficient capacity on the base. If we pulled pierside and there was space for 4,000 on the base, well, thats what we probably would have used. But that wasnt the case. And we needed more space. So, we continued to push.

I think some of the criticism that we were holding out for this perfect solution is not accurate.

For us, knowing there were 10,000 empty hotel rooms (on Guam), that seemed like an easy, quick solution. And we just had to kind of figure out a break through the logjam. And that was beyond my capability.

Its very political, too, because youre talking about Guam. Youre talking with the governor of Guam and the governor has to make sure that, politically, it makes sense to the residents of Guam.

It was political assistance that we needed. And one of the impetuses behind the email was, lets fight this at the right level.

I think we were learning as we went, and we were erring on the side of caution in all cases. And we were trying to get folks off the ship as quickly as we could.

Boatswains Mate Seaman Alexis Bias disinfects mooring line aboard the aircraft carrier Theodore Roosevelt on May 21, 2020, following an extended visit to Guam in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. (MC3 Conner D. Blake/Navy)

Q: In terms of the letter that leaked to the San Francisco Chronicle, your request for help that you sent to superiors. Did you want that letter leaked and did you know who leaked it? Do you think the leak got your sailors off the ship faster?

A: I dont know who leaked it. I knew that risk existed. I guess I accepted that risk because I also knew that we were pierside with 5,000 people with cellphones who were communicating back home very quickly.

There was this growing concern from the sailors. We had no doubt they were communicating home, because we were getting feedback from all the families back home as to what was going on and what we were doing, because they were hearing directly from their sailor.

The initial response that I got from the CNO, was, hey, you know, this is exactly what we want a captain to do, is to raise the alarm and speak truth to power and be direct in the communication.

Q: Were you mad that it was leaked?

A: I think I knew that it was going to change the dynamic a little bit. I knew there was going to now be additional outside influence from folks outside the military.

So, I dont know that I was mad. I rolled with it. I knew that was the risk. And then I just was hoping that it wouldnt detract from what I was ultimately trying to accomplish, which was to get them to care.

If you look at the public reaction, I think that helped influence the Navys reaction. It just made sure that that was the most viable and executed course of action, which is to put folks in hotels and speed up their departure from the ship.

Q: The leaked letter, even if it sped up help for TRs crew, cost you your job. But the fallout from it also cost then-acting Navy Secretary Thomas Modly his job. Shortly after you were fired in early April 2020, Modly flew to Guam and addressed the crew and slammed you in the process. When a recording of Modlys address to the TR leaked, he was shown the door as well.

Have you ever spoken to him, and what is your opinion of Modly three years later?

A: He was in a tough spot. I know he was doing all he could to help the situation, and I also know he was doing it at a different level, with different pressures that I could only imagine. Hes a former Navy helicopter pilot, a former Academy grad. And I know, ultimately, that what he wanted was whats best for the crew.

I knew he didnt want it as much as I did, and I knew thats why it was incumbent upon me as the captain to take the action that I did. We spoke shortly after he arrived to Guam, when I was in quarantine, before I came back to San Diego. And we did have a pleasant conversation. He was under immense pressure at that point from all sides of the aisle and thats not what I would want for anybody.

When I made the decision I did, I did it out of love for my crew. I think his decision to come out, but then also to get on the 1MC and kind of highlight his frustration, I think that decision was made out of frustration.

Ensign Rocky Bowman, right, checks Aviation Structural Mechanic 2nd Class Justin Banks onto the aircraft carrier Theodore Roosevelt May 16, 2020, after off-base quarantine. The TR soon continued its deployment to the Indo-Pacific. (MCSN Erik Melgar/Navy)

And I think thats a lesson for all of us: If you make a decision out of frustration, its generally not going to go your way.

I know that we could probably share a beer together and talk over the story again, and we might just fundamentally disagree on how we would go back and handle it.

I do think he wanted what was best for the Navy and he worked really hard in his time as acting secretary. And I didnt ever want to see his career end. I hope hes doing well.

Q: The book contains a great anecdote from July 2020 when the TR got back to San Diego. You had been reassigned to Naval Air Forces, but you got to witness your carrier returning with the entire crew intact, save for the loss of Chief Aviation Ordnanceman Charles Robert Thacker Jr., 41, the lone COVID casualty from the TR.

Can you walk us through watching TR return?

A: An old buddy of mine, an old XO actually, he and I decided we were going to paddle out on standup paddleboards, just to kind of greet them. We went out, and from a safe distance, but close enough to see the ship and see the sailors and see their faces as they manned the rails in whites to come back. And it was a great moment.

It kind of closed out that story for me.

The whole reason I sent the email to my superiors was to try make sure we had exhausted all opportunities to take care of our sailors in that moment when we had COVID spreading pretty dramatically, with the intent of getting them healthy, getting them back on the ship and getting the ship back underway, so it could continue its mission.

So, to see it come back then, I guess thats what I wanted all along, was just to make sure they made it back.

And they did amazing things. I think its worth pointing out, to go from a dormant state, a carrier pulls in, you have to sustain it pierside, you have to go through this battle with COVID.

Then you bring back everybody, and you have to get the aviators current again, there were some unique challenges in how they did that, and they pulled it off pretty well and they did it very safely.

Despite all the ups and down, all I ever wanted was for the ship to come back safely and pull back in.

Retired Navy Capt. Brett Crozier talks with Navy Times via video chat about his new book, the decisions he made for his sailors that got him fired as the commanding officer of the carrier Theodore Roosevelt, and his life now. (Navy Times)

Q: Many of our readers feel that you were thrown under the bus for trying to do the right thing. Do you have any advice for a commander or a senior enlisted member who has similar feelings? How does one recover from such an experience and move on?

A: Great question. I can only spend so much time worrying about what I can control, but I shouldnt waste a lot of time worrying about what I cant control.

People can be frustrated by how they feel theyve been treated by the military. In many cases, they could be absolutely right. Decisions were made that were not made with the utmost fairness, and they were not made with consideration for the individual.

But, make no mistake, the senior folks in the military are going to make decisions based on what they think is best for the larger organization. I knew that was going to be the case for me and thats how it kind of played out.

I think that when people feel like theyre thrown under the bus, they can certainly be frustrated, and theyre absolutely entitled to that. In some cases, maybe they dont understand the bigger picture that is forcing those decisions taking place above them.

Regardless of the impact to my career  Croziers email revealed, Navy wont rule out reinstatement

Im not discounting folks that feel frustrated when they are made to look like scapegoats. I think theres probably some truth in some of that. I think sometimes its a damage-control measure by a large organization to try to move on with the mission and try to not have to dwell on it. Certainly, that probably played into my case a little bit.

At the end of the day, you can keep your head held high, knowing that you did the best you could for what you were entrusted to do.

In the end, I think they should all be proud of their service and understand that, while the Navy is not perfect, its still the best Navy in the world. And they should be proud to have served in some capacity, whether they made a career or not. Whether they served for a month or not.

Its still an incredible organization that I stand behind.

Q: TR had that port call in Da Nang, Vietnam, in March 2020. It was a big deal, just the second U.S. carrier to pull into the country in 40 years.

In the book, you touch on how this was not the best time to be pulling into Vietnam, given the growing pandemic. Looking back, was that port call a mistake? Do you believe that COVID entered your ships force there?

A: We had all expressed our concerns prior to pulling into Vietnam. And we were tracking very closely what the government of Vietnam was putting out in terms of active cases across the country.

The Navy just didnt have clarity, really, on how many cases were in Da Nang, because we were told none and certainly that was not the case. And I do think we probably, in all likelihood, picked it up there.

Remember where we were as a world at the time. The entire world was trying to figure out COVID, how it spread and how quickly it spread. And we didnt have enough test kits anywhere, to include on the ship.

In hindsight, if we had not pulled in there, I think that would have mitigated most of that risk of exposure and maybe changed the story a little bit.

Q: Whats next for you? Was retirement a difficult adjustment, not having to get up on time and put on a uniform and head in to work every day?

A: Youre absolutely right. You wake up and you wonder what you should be doing. I made a point, in a pact with myself, that I was going to surf 30 straight days, rain or shine. And I surfed every day somewhere in San Diego, which was good. I needed it.

And now I am the chief operating officer for Veterans Village of San Diego. Were a large Southern California nonprofit focused on helping homeless veterans, or veterans with mental health or substance abuse problems.

Anyone who leaves the military will tell you it doesnt matter what you go do, theres a change and a transition required, and Im still figuring out what that means.

So, for me, its a good first step transition, I think, and its definitely allowed me to surf a bit more.
An old car passes by the U.S. Embassy in Havana, Cuba, on May 26, 2023. (Yamil Lage/Getty-AFP)

Few countries in the Western Hemisphere have evoked for Americans the spirit of the Monroe Doctrine as much as has Cuba. For years, the Soviets used the island nation 103 miles off the coast of Florida as a listening post, and, in 1962, they brought the world to the brink of existential conflict by secretly placing nuclear ballistic missiles on the island.

Today, Americas most worrisome unwelcome guest in the Caribbean is China. Thats also true elsewhere in the Western Hemisphere.

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Beijing has been using Cuba as a spy base since 2019, the White House said last week. The Biden administrations statement was aimed at refuting a Wall Street Journal report that China was planning to build a new listening post in Cuba, though, given the history, its anything but comforting to know that Beijing has been eavesdropping on the U.S. from close range for the last four years.

Chinas spy shop in Cuba is far more worrying than spy balloons over Montana. Unlike the U.S., Beijing does not have overseas military bases dotting the world. Chinas desire, however, for a much broader global military presence burns brightly, and its espionage activities in Cuba could serve as a springboard for a permanent military installation on the island.

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Establishing a network of military bases makes sense when you consider Chinas ceaseless push to expand its economic might across the globe. In Latin America, that means safeguarding its investments in energy, farming and mining. Those interests include one of the worlds most sought-after commodities  lithium, a critical component for electric vehicle batteries. China has secured a deal to tap into lithium deposits in Bolivia, one of the worlds biggest sources of the metal.

China isnt the only global player that has rankled the U.S. with efforts to establish a military presence off the coast of Florida.

In the lead-up to the invasion of Ukraine in early 2022, Russian President Vladimir Putin threatened to deploy military assets in Cuba as a response to U.S. talk of sanctions, which Washington and its Western allies eventually imposed anyway. Though Putin ordered the shutdown of the Soviet-era Lourdes electronic surveillance station in Cuba in 2001, he at times has threatened to establish a greater presence in Latin America for what he regards as NATOs aggression toward Moscow.

In the Western Hemisphere, however, Chinese President Xi Jinping is the one to worry about, not Putin. Both economically and militarily, China looms as the more worrisome threat to U.S. interests. The U.S. can expect China to step up spying from Cuba, and must ensure sensitive American targets are adequately firewalled.

But theres also a diplomatic approach that the Biden administration should pursue  one that the president should know all too well.

One of the smartest foreign policy moves that Bidens former boss, Barack Obama, made was to reengage Havana. Obama used his executive powers to allow the reopening of embassies in each others countries, resume commercial flights, ease restrictions on U.S. computer and telecommunications technology to Cuba and recharge the islands tourism industry.

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Obama recognized the value of ending Americas long-standing policy of isolating Havana  it didnt make much sense when the rest of the world freely traded with Cuba. And while his administration was all too aware that the Castro regime continued to muzzle dissent and run roughshod over human rights, there was an awareness that a new generation of leaders would eventually take over in Havana, and that economic engagement would yield better results than disconnection, both for U.S. interests and for the Cuban people.

When Donald Trump took over the White House, he undid Obamas normalization of relations with Havana and reimposed tougher sanctions on Cuba. The hope that Cubans had for a move toward democratic ideals through the vehicle of commerce and dialogue with the U.S. disappeared.

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A Biden commitment to proactively returning to a policy of engagement with Havana would rekindle the aspirations of everyday Cubans for a better, freer life. It would discourage dangerous makeshift boat voyages to Florida by desperate Cuban migrants who find no cause for hope at home. And it would make Havana think twice about allowing Beijing to exploit Cubas proximity to the U.S. coastline.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken is slated to fly to Beijing June 18 to meet with senior Chinese officials. We wouldnt be surprised if Blinken raises with Chinas leadership U.S. opposition to Beijings spy station in Cuba.

But rekindling engagement with Cuba is another way to get at the problem, and it could pay bigger dividends  for both Havana and Washington.

Join the discussion on Twitter @chitribopinions and on Facebook.

Submit a letter, of no more than 400 words, to the editor here or email letters@chicagotribune.com.
Music Hall of Williamsburg, a popular venue in Brooklyn, has canceled a rental contract with Candace Owens group Blexit, which was set to host an event there this weekend.

Owens  the controversial far-right commentator known for her close ties to Kanye West and documentary The Greatest Lie Ever Sold: George Floyd and the Rise of BLM  founded the Blexit Foundation in 2018 in an effort to encourage Black voters to leave the Democratic Party. Earlier this year, Blexit merged with Turning Points USA, Charlie Kirks non-profit, which, as Rolling Stone recently reported, has pivoted hard to Christian nationalism and also partnered with registered sex offenders.

Though the histories and convictions of Owens, Kirk, Blexit, and TPUSA are well-documented, Music Hall of Williamsburg said in a statement that the organizers of the Blexit event presented themselves as a non-profit organization dedicated to the advancement of urban and minority communities when they requested to rent the venue.

The statement continued: It has become abundantly clear to us that in actuality this organization provides a platform for hate speech and homophobia, which The Bowery Presents will not tolerate, and we have canceled their rental contract. This event will not take place in our venue.

A rep for the Blexit Foundation did not immediately return Rolling Stones request for comment.

On its event page, the Blexit Live Liberation Show is described as an art pop exploration into Black Americas journey through history told in three parts  Liberation, Wilderness, and Promised Land. Both Owens and Kirk were scheduled to speak, as well as Pastor John Amanchukwu and North Korean defector Yeonmi Park, both of whom have been using their platforms lately to go after the woke mind virus. The other three speakers listed were Brandon Tatum, Stephen Davis, and Pierre Wilson.

Because the Blexit Foundation had rented out Music Hall of Williamsburg, the event was not listed on the venues official calendar. Still, word of the event spread on social media, leading to both angry comments and a concerted campaign to pressure the venue, and its parent company Bowery Presents, to call off the event.

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Bud Light falls from No. 1 US sales spot for first time in more than 20 years

Bud Light last month fell from its spot as the top-selling beer brand in the U.S. for the first time in more than two decades amid the ongoing fallout among conservatives over its partnership with a transgender influencer.

According to a new analysis of Nielsen data by Bump Williams Consulting, Bud Lights sales fell in the month ending June 3, outpaced by Mexican beer Modelo Especial. Modelo controlled 8.4 percent of grocery, convenience and liquor store sales, while Bud Light fell to 7.3 percent, The Associated Press reported.

Bud Light sales have declined since early April, when the brand faced fierce conservative backlash to an Instagram ad that featured trans influencer Dylan Mulvaney posing with a personalized Bud Light can. Republicans accused the beer of pushing a pro-LGBTQ agenda, while some Mulvaney supporters were angry the brand did not do more to support her.

Bump Williamss vice president of analytics and insights, Dave Williams, told the AP that Bud Light had been the top beer since 2001, and he predicted it still could be.

Total sales in 2023 still place Bud Light as the highest-selling beer brand, despite its low numbers in May, with Bud Light at 9 percent of sales and Modelo at 8 percent, the AP reported.

The AP reported that Modelo sales, however, have been increasing every week by double-digit percentages. Bud Light retail sales, which do not include sales at bars and restaurants, were down 24 percent in the week ending June 3, and Modelo Especial sales were up 12 percent.

A Washington Post analysis suggests Mexican beers in general have been on the rise in the United States recently. Currently, about 80 percent of U.S. beer imports come from Mexico, which the Post indicated was a 17 percent increase from the early 1990s.

Scott Scanlon, executive vice president at consulting firm Circana, told the AP that Modelo is already the top seller in Los Angeles and Chicago, and he predicted more growth on the East Coast.

Modelo was going to become the No. 1 beer brand. It was destiny because the growth numbers we are seeing and have been seeing are astonishing, Scanlon said. The only question was time.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
Big Tech

Blasted to smithereens by those trigger-happy regulators. The world of video game shoot-em-ups certainly isnt for the faint-hearted. One can only hope Microsofts Brad Smith has been secretly wearing a flak jacket under those V-neck pullovers he favours.

Though having staggered to its feet after the Competition and Markets Authority gunned down the tech giants attempted merger with gaming whizz Activision, its hard to see how Microsofts deal-making ambitions can survive a second volley of bullets  this time from American authorities.

It is telling that there was no repeat of Smiths lamentable antics this time around, after the US Federal Trade Commission followed the lead of its UK counterpart in seeking to block the $75bn (59bn) deal in a California federal court.

The CMAs decision was greeted by an embarrassing strop from Smith, with his opposite number at Activision, Bobby Kotick, hardly conducting himself in the manner expected of a senior business figure either.

Attempts to portray Britain as some sort of crazy outlier behaving in an anti-free market way have now completely blown up in their faces, while claims that Brussels, with its history of checking big techs relentless march, is somehow more pro-enterprise never even remotely stacked up.

Indeed, with almost comic timing, as the FTC was filing an injunction to halt the merger, it emerged that European Union regulators were preparing to hit Google with new charges over its advertising activities, which could ultimately lead to a multibillion-euro fine.

But more importantly, the FTCs move completely vindicates the CMAs decision to intervene to scupper the tie-up. Not that the regulator necessarily needed that exoneration.

While Smith and Kotick stamped their feet and hurled insults around like a pair of spoiled children, CMA boss Sarah Cardell has risen above it all and laid out the watchdogs reasons calmly and carefully, presenting an entirely lucid case for why it is opposed to the pair joining forces.

Fears that the deal would hand Microsoft too much power are compelling. Control of Activisions wildly popular Call of Duty game alone would be worth billions of dollars. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II generated $1bn in just its first few days on the market last year.

Brad Smith - Virginia Mayo/AP

And Microsoft has its fingers in many lucrative gaming pies already. Its Xbox console is second only to Sonys PlayStation; its Windows operating system is the main platform for PC gamers; the company already accounts for as much as 70pc of the rapidly-growing cloud gaming arena, as the CMA has pointed out; and Activision, through the Candy Crush Saga, is a major player in the mobile gaming market, too. In other words, Microsoft is plenty big enough already.

Smith laughably claimed that the CMAs actions showed Britain was closed for business but his reaction showed that he hasnt been paying attention. This countrys open-door policy to takeovers means there is nearly always a major UK company being sold overseas, something even the Prime Minister has as good as conceded.

In yet another attempt to woo the technology industry, Rishi Sunak told a gathering of top executives on Monday that British entrepreneurs need to stop selling out so quickly if Britain is to become a true technology powerhouse.

It requires the entrepreneurs to just keep going, to not be content with building the 100m business and then the 1bn business but just to keep growing, he said.

Kotick has gone down the conspiracy route suggesting that the FTC and the CMA are in cahoots because of a string of meetings between the pair to discuss the deal.

The suggestion builds on an earlier complaint that the competition authorities had been taken over by ideologues who believed big is bad. On the contrary, it demonstrates that regulators around the world are less willing to tolerate the relentless acquisitive growth of large corporations if it harms consumers  a shift that should be applauded by anyone that wants to see competition, entrepreneurship and innovation thrive, not squashed.

One would certainly imagine there are plenty of budding start-ups that are secretly delighted to see someone finally standing up to the big bullies of big tech and creating a more level playing field.

The deal is not officially dead but the whole thing is now hanging by a thread and its hard to see how it can be saved. The two sides appear determined to take the fight to the courts on both sides of the Atlantic.

In an email to employees, Kotick described the FTCs intervention as a welcome update because their lawyers will now have the opportunity to more quickly present the facts about our merger. Smith took a similar line.

But it may turn out to be an expensive, yet ultimately futile attempt to salvage the deal. Would judges in the US and the UK both overturn the decision of the respective regulators? Its not impossible but it seems unlikely. True, Microsoft has offered some concessions but they were deemed insufficient, and that doesnt mean that some grave injustice has taken place.

There is a danger that at some point those involved lose sight of why they are putting up a fight and allow ego and other pressures to take over. With Microsoft on the hook for a 2.4bn break fee and Kotick in line for a 300m pay day if the takeover goes through, theres more than just the future of video gaming riding on the outcome.

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From CA to MA, What Teachers Unions Have Been Doing in Statehouses Nationwide

Schools out, or almost out, making it an appropriate time to pay attention to the locations where teachers unions are even more active than they are in the classroom: state legislatures.

There have been GOP efforts in some states to curtail union influence. The most prominent of these is to prohibit school districts from deducting union dues from teachers paychecks. This forces unions to collect dues individually through electronic funds transfers or some other means. Payroll deduction bans of union dues were enacted this year in Arkansas, Florida, Kentucky and Tennessee.

But anti-union legislation makes up only a small portion of the overall picture. Ballotpedia reported that of the 236 bills introduced in 2023 relating to public employee unions, 58 were sponsored by Republicans, while 158 came from Democrats.

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So while four states made it harder to collect union dues, Maryland enacted a law allowing union members to deduct dues on their state tax returns.

Heres a cross-section of union-related bills and activity from around the nation:

California

The state Senate approved a bill that would allow teachers licensed in other states to be granted an equivalent credential in California. It had overwhelming bipartisan support and the endorsement of the school administrators association and the U.S. Department of Defense, as military spouses must often seek new teaching credentials each time they relocate.

The California Teachers Association, however, opposes the bill, stating that there is no need for it and that reciprocity agreements with individual states were sufficient.

The bill is awaiting assignment to an Assembly committee.

Colorado

Gov. Jared Polis signed into law a measure that protects political advocacy by public employees, banning job discrimination or discipline against them for engaging in such activities. The law also allows public workers to pursue an employee organization with their co-workers without interference.

Illinois

Both houses of the legislature approved a bill that allows up to 10 days of paid leave for teachers union members who are elected to represent the association in federal advocacy work. The state union will reimburse the school district for the cost of a substitute.

Indiana

Gov. Eric Holcomb signed into law a bill that removed from the previous statute a list of items that school boards were required to discuss with public employee unions. These included: curriculum development, teaching methods, hiring and retention, student discipline, expulsions, class size and budget appropriations. All these issues may still be discussed with unions but are no longer required to be.

The law also added repeated ineffective performance to the list of reasons for which a teacher may be immediately terminated.

Massachusetts

The Massachusetts Teachers Association is sponsoring a bill dubbed the Thrive Act, which would eliminate the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System standardized tests required for graduation.

The measure would create a commission composed of members appointed by various interest groups to recommend a new assessment system that could include work samples, projects and portfolios.

The bill has languished in the legislatures Joint Committee on Education since February, probably because Democratic Gov. Maura Healey has been less than enthusiastic about it. The state teachers union recently held forums and rallies in an attempt to spur legislative action.

Nebraska

Gov. Jim Pillen signed a school choice bill into law that allows a tax credit of up to $100,000 to organizations that fund private school scholarships to K-12 students, with low-income families receiving priority.

In response, the Nebraska State Education Association immediately launched a drive to place an initiative on the ballot to repeal the law. In order to do so, the union will need to gather the signatures of at least 61,000 registered voters by Aug. 30, and double that number to suspend the law until the referendum can be held.

The National Education Association just released its 2023 legislative program for lobbying Congress. The document contains 36 pages of proposals that NEA will be backing or opposing. Items repeated from past years include stances on a wide range of issues, such as allowing parents to opt out of standardized testing, eliminating broadcast advertising of alcoholic beverages, repealing all right-to-work laws, building a national monument to educators to be located in Washington, D.C., instituting a moratorium on capital punishment and creating a tax system that provides for education and other social needs while achieving reduction of the national debt.

Three new items call for supporting legislation to protect children and youth from addiction to social media, increase funding for stillbirth prevention and add a minimum of 12 weeks of paid family leave to federal law.

Delegates to the NEA Representative Assembly will either approve or amend the legislative program when they meet in Orlando next month.

Mike Antonuccis Union Report appears most Wednesdays; see the full archive.
California Attorney General Rob Bonta on Wednesday demanded more answers for the two private flights that ferried 36 Latin American migrants to Sacramento earlier this month, issuing a public records request to Florida authorities including the office of Gov. Ron DeSantis, who has taken credit for the so-called migrant relocation program.

Three dozen migrants, all adults and a majority of them from Venezuela, were flown to Sacramento-area airports June 2 and June 5 from El Paso, Texas, with a stop in New Mexico.

Bontas office on Wednesday filed a pair of public records requests  one to the office of DeSantis and one to the Florida Division of Emergency Management  as part of an ongoing law enforcement investigation into the conditions under which the migrants seeking asylum were brought into California, Bonta said in a statement.

The California Department of Justice swiftly launched an investigation into the circumstances by which these individuals were brought to California, who funded their travel and whether these individuals were given false information, Bontas statement continued.

The Florida governors office has confirmed that it was responsible for those two flights but contends that all 36 asylum-seeking migrants consented to the trip.

DeSantis officials shared a link to a Rumble video purporting to show the migrants signing waivers and boarding the plane to California; the video does not identify the people who speak in the video, and The Sacramento Bee was unable to confirm the veracity of the video.

California authorities say the arriving migrants, the first 16 of whom were dropped off at the doorstep of Sacramentos Roman Catholic diocese, had documents indicating they were part of Floridas voluntary migrant transport program. Some of the arriving asylum seekers had impending immigration court dates, including in different states, some as far away as New York and Florida, authorities said.

The documents suggested Florida had contracted with Vertol Systems Co. to carry out the flights. It is the same company Florida enlisted last fall to fly 49 migrants from San Antonio, Texas, to Marthas Vineyard, Massachusetts.

Flight records reviewed by The Bee showed the two recent chartered flights to Sacramento were operated by a company known as Berry Aviation.

The Florida Division of Emergency Management last week released a heavily redacted copy of the proposals from three companies bidding on the migrant flight program contract, including Vertol, after The Bees sister newspaper the Miami Herald threatened to file a lawsuit over the documents.

Large portions of the released documents were blacked out, with Florida officials citing confidential trade secret information.

Today my office submitted records requests to Governor DeSantis and the Florida Division of Emergency Management as part of our investigation into the conditions under which a number of migrants seeking asylum were brought into California. https://t.co/tv4BPu49wM  Rob Bonta (@AGRobBonta) June 14, 2023

Californias top law enforcement official is now requesting that Florida officials produce the unredacted version of those documents, as well as several other categories of documents.

Those include communications between the two Florida government offices and any of the migrants who were transported to California; communications between the two offices and the Florida Department of Transportation; and communications between the two offices and any entities involved in the program, including Vertol Systems and Berry Aviation.

Bonta and Gov. Gavin Newsom in the immediate aftermath of the two flights blamed DeSantis, and both suggested California could pursue criminal charges for kidnapping, though legal experts say that is unlikely to happen.

We need to understand the circumstances that led to the implementation of this operation  which was apparently paid for by Florida taxpayer dollars  and the decisions and directives that led to this questionable act, Bonta wrote in Wednesdays statement.

The information gathered will be crucial in determining whether the law has been violated and, if so, what subsequent steps are required to prevent such disregard for human rights from recurring.
In California, people are still dying of COVID  but you wouldnt know it | Opinion

Most of us are happily living in a post-COVID-19 world.

Were dining out. Hopping on planes and cruise ships. Attending indoor weddings and baby showers and graduation parties.

Masks? Theyre tucked away in some bottom drawer.

Yet people are still dying of COVID.

Statewide, 3,096 people died of COVID between Jan. 1 and June 6 of this year.

Nationwide, more than 37,000 died within the first five months of 2023.

Those numbers are minuscule compared to what we saw at the height of the pandemic, but COVID isnt done with us yet, and people with weakened immune systems continue to be at heightened risk.

For them, trying to stay on top of the latest information is a frustrating experience

Data on deaths, community outbreaks, vaccination rates, hospitalizations, etc., arent as complete as they used to be, due in part to changes that took effect when state and federal governments declared an end to the COVID emergency.

I just cant understand why this information, which would help us gauge our personal risk, isnt reported on, wrote San Luis Obispo resident Mark Swain, 59, who has HIV and a heart condition and cares for his 83-year-old mother.

Instead of relying on health agencies or the media, he now gets his information from a retired Cal Poly professor who posts regular COVID updates on NextDoor, using a variety of sources.

That job has gotten much harder since the health emergency ended, retired professor Chuck Slem said.

We are still trying to navigate COVID-19 through the fog of important reporting systems on pause, dismantled or reporting unreliable and inaccurate data, Slem recently posted.

Health departments are normalizing response to COVID

San Luis Obispo County Health Officer Dr. Penny Borenstein said her team is moving toward treating COVID-19 reporting the way it treats other serious, infectious diseases.

That doesnt mean we are walking away from this response, she said via email. We remain very tuned in to what is happening with COVID-19 in our community and remain ready to respond as the situation evolves.

Its not just SLO County thats cut back; some areas provide even less data to the public.

Sacramento County stopped reporting COVID data as of March 1, after the county Board of Supervisors declared an end to the health emergency. It now directs people to state and federal websites.

So do Stanislaus and Fresno counties.

That would be fine, except there are issues with state and federal websites as well  information may be lacking or contradicts reports from other agencies.

On Californias website, for example, hospitalization rates per county have been paused, and some of the data appears out of date. It lists the number of COVID deaths in SLO County at 581 while the county puts the figure at 619.

Many California counties have stopped reporting the number of cases per community altogether, which is understandable now that so many people are testing at home.

Instead, some have turned to wastewater monitoring data  a measurement of the concentration of virus in the waste stream.

In some ways, thats preferable to case counts.

It has the advantage of being nearly real-time: virus shows up in wastewater before people are experiencing symptoms and even if they are asymptomatic, SLO County public information specialist Tara Kennon wrote.

What those figures mean, though, is a bit of a mystery. All we get are raw numbers, with no key telling us whats low, moderate or high.







A false sense of security

Health agencies appear to be doing a good job of providing information about vaccinations and free test kits, both on their websites and on social media.

Some also offer periodic COVID updates on Twitter and Facebook, but some of the messages can be frustratingly vague, like this June 2 Facebook post from San Luis Obispo County.

Deaths: We are sad to report that 3 more SLO County residents have died from COVID-19 in recent weeks. Our hearts go out to their loved ones.

What, exactly, is recent?

Over the past week? Two weeks? Maybe three?

And could we at least get the age ranges of those individuals?

Those details may not seem so important now that the worst is over. But under-reporting doesnt just create more frustration and anxiety for people with risk factors, it can also give the healthy population a false sense of security, leading them to dismiss symptoms or skip vaccinations.

We dont need a deluge of information  no one wants to overburden public health agencies, or return to the days of multiple updates and headlines a week. But providing factual, reasonably current information in an understandable format, in one easily searchable place, is still important, both to people at high risk as well as to the healthy population.

If state or federal health agencies can provide that, fine.

If not, counties need to step up by providing periodic updates not only for those who are searching out data but also as a general wake-up call for all of us  a reminder that while COVID has retreated, it has not been eradicated.
The Grover Beach Police Department used an infrared drone to catch a person suspected of stealing a vehicle, according to the agency.

Grover Beach police have recovered three occupied stolen vehicles since Saturday, the agency said in a Twitter post.

In one case over the weekend, police said, the suspect fled the scene and hid in thick brush and trees in the middle of the night.

Grover Beach Police Department Commander Jim Munro told The Tribune via email that officers used a drone with an infrared camera, which can see heat sources at night, to locate the suspect.

YOU CAN RUN, BUT YOU CANT HIDE! the agency wrote on Twitter.

Grover Beach Police Department used a drone with an infrared camera to arrest a car theft suspect in the middle of the night during the weekend of June 9, 2023.

Grover Beach police worked with the San Luis Obispo County Sheriffs Office to arrest the suspect, police said in the post.

The drivers of two other stolen vehicles were also arrested, the agency said.
A supporter of former President Donald Trump stands near his Mar-a-Lago home on June 11, 2023, in Palm Beach, Florida, following his indictment related to the alleged mishandling of classified documents. (Scott Olson/Getty)

Why are the politicians  Democrats and Republicans  so afraid of Donald Trump? What does he know about the swamp they do not want revealed?

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They have gone to great lengths to destroy Trump and his followers, and it seems, as William Shakespeare said, The lady doth protest too much, methinks. Is it that members of Congress have gotten very rich off the backs of American taxpayers and will do anything to protect their wealth? (Wealth that should belong to the citizens of this country.)

Trump doesnt need the money because he made it the American way. He owes nothing to special interests or good old boy politics.

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I am sticking with Trump because I want to know what they are so afraid of.

 Sue Atkenson, Frankfort

What is truly unprecedented

I keep hearing the word unprecedented in regard to the indictment announced on Thursday. The only thing that is unprecedented in the Donald Trump fiasco is what Trump did, not the fact that he has been indicted. He is an ordinary citizen, just like you and me, no matter what job he previously held.

Again, the thing that is unprecedented is that we had a dishonest man as our president. Never again!

 Frank W. Tedesso, Harwood Heights

Department of Justice powers

God help us if the Department of Justice should use its powers to prosecute those who violate federal law!

 Bruce K. Roberts, Inverness

Trump created his situation

Republicans! Stop clutching your pearls and wailing that your leader is being treated unfairly. Donald Trump is not. His whole situation is his own fault. He, as we like to say to teenagers, made bad choices. It is very simple:

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Presidential papers belong to the government. When a president leaves office, all presidential papers are to be returned to the National Archives. Trump took some of these important papers and hid them. Trump was asked to return them, and he refused.

The government sent the FBI to find and take them back. Trump gave some of them back. He still hid some of them and told the government that all were given back. So the FBI looked throughout his home and found the hidden papers.

Trump was arrested because he is alleged to have stolen something valuable to our nation, refused to give the papers back, hid them and then lied again. The papers were very important to the safety of our country. To make himself feel important, Trump allegedly showed them to other people who shouldnt see them. This is really bad and against the law.

 Karen Evans, Glen Ellyn

Article ignores Chris Christie

The Associated Press article GOP base still sticking with Trump (June 11) published in the Tribune completely ignores the very strong statement by former Republican Gov. Chris Christie. He eviscerated Donald Trump and very plainly pointed to the self-serving behavior that has been evident all these years.

The Tribune published a long article two days before (Christie, Trumps bond fractured, June 9) that refers to Christies statement, and yet the June 11 article ignores this very honest and courageous man.

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 Joanne Hoffman, Highland Park

Does Biden have what it takes?

Many people are expressing views about President Joe Bidens age and run for reelection, but they dont talk about the job. The U.S. presidency is easily the biggest and most complicated in the world. Candidates need the mental acuity to confront it all. Among the jobs requirements is ensuring world peace. The stakes are especially high.

Bidens record is ugly. He pushed the Iraq War resolution through the Senate. He was responsible for the bloody Afghanistan withdrawal. He damned Vladimir Putin upon becoming president and triggered this proxy war with Russia in Ukraine.

Does Biden have the mental acuity to ensure world peace? He has proved he does not.

 Jim Halas, Norridge

Kelleys cartoons are ageist

As a lifelong Tribune subscriber, I have come to expect a healthy give-and-take on these opinion pages with a bias that, most often, runs in the conservative lanes. What I do not expect or want are political cartoons like Steve Kelleys that, rather than making a biting political point, are ageist and not even close to the ballpark of what a good political cartoon should be.

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It will come as no surprise that Fridays print and online offerings provide me with a sizable amount of choices for places to consume news and opinion. If this ageist opinion-page agenda continues, this lifelong subscriber will have to exercise my option of canceling and checking one of them out.

 Steve King, host, WGN Radio, Chicago

Steve Kelley should apologize

Chicago Tribune Opinion Weekdays Read the latest editorials and commentary curated by the Tribune Opinion team. By submitting your email to receive this newsletter, you agree to our Subscriber Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy >

I often marvel at the clever cartoons displayed in the Tribune every day, but the cartoon shown Friday poking fun at President Joe Biden left me wondering where the humor is. If a veteran, a refugee or an individual with special needs had the mishap that the president had the other day, I highly doubt anyone would find it funny or worthy of a spot in the Tribune.

The cartoon, in my opinion, was just plain mean-spirited, and since kindness seems to be a major mantra these days, its a cartoon that Steve Kelley should apologize for.

 Sheila Hansen, Western Springs

One tweak to Stantis cartoon

The Scott Stantis cartoon Inauguration 2025 (June 11) could be improved only one way  Donald Trump should be depicted with the first two fingers of his upheld right hand crossed.

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 S.M. Schneider, Chicago

Join the conversation in our Letters to the Editor Facebook group.

Submit a letter, of no more than 400 words, to the editor here or email letters@chicagotribune.com.
Chino Valley Unified School District staff would be required to out transgender children to their parents or guardians, under a proposal being considered by the school board Thursday.

If approved, that policy would put the school district at direct odds with the California Department of Education, which has issued guidance to school districts to protect the privacy of transgender students who may not be out at home.

A spokeswoman for the CDE said that the department stands by its guidance, which promotes the goals of reducing the stigmatization of and improving the educational integration of transgender and gender nonconforming students, maintaining the privacy of all students, and supporting healthy communication between educators, students, and parents to further the successful educational development and well-being of every student.

The proposed policy would require schools to notify parents and guardians in writing within three days of learning that a student has requested to be identified by a different gender. They must also be informed if a student has used a name other than their legal name, or accessed a bathroom other than the one for their sex assigned at birth.

This policy is meant to foster trust between district employees, and our students parents and guardians, said District Board President Sonja Shaw in a statement. I stand for the authority of parents to guide the upbringing of their children and their involvement in decisions related to their education, health, safety, and wellbeing.

The policy is supported by the Coalition for Parental Rights, which includes the California Family Council, the Pacific Justice Institute, and Moms for Liberty. The latter group recently was designated an anti-government extremist organization by the Southern Poverty Law Center.

In a statement, the coalition pointed to a recent Rasmussen poll showing that 62% of California voters would support a law requiring schools to inform parents and guardians if their child is transgender.

The group also included a statement from Riverside Republican Assemblyman Bill Essayli, author of Assembly Bill 1314, which would have required notification. The Chino Valley school board voted in April in favor of a resolution in support of that bill.

The bill never got a hearing. The chair of the committee that would have heard the bill called it bad policy that would provide a forum for increasingly hateful rhetoric targeting LGBTQ youth.

Essayli called his bill a commonsense proposal.

It was stopped by the supermajority Democrat(sic) Party in Sacramento despite strong support from parents. While they certainly have the votes to control the agenda in Sacramento, they do not have the votes to stop us in our communities, Essayli said.

Transgender youths often have a reason for keeping their gender identity secret at home.

An August 2021 study published in the medical journal Pediatrics found that transgender and gender-nonconforming adolescents are more likely than their peers to experience physical, psychological or sexual abuse. A 2022 survey by the Trevor Project found that fewer than a third (32%) of trans and nonbinary youths view their home as a gender-affirming place.

The proposal, which comes during LGBTQ Pride Month, is happening amid a wave of violence and hostility toward that community. State legislatures across the country have passed laws restricting access to gender-affirming care, prohibiting trans people from accessing the bathroom matching their gender identity and removing trans children from the custody of gender-affirming parents.

Even in liberal California, there are pockets of anti-LGBTQ sentiment throughout the state.

In Chico, the school district has been sued by a mom angry that the district allegedly helped her child transition genders without informing her. Rep. Doug LaMalfa recently testified against that districts policy of protecting the privacy of transgender students.

In Temecula, the school board voted to reject a social studies curriculum that included San Francisco politician Harvey Milk, the first openly gay elected official in the state.

In Glendale, a brawl broke out outside the school board meeting as the board voted to affirm a resolution recognizing June as Pride Month.

And a school district near San Diego is facing a lawsuit from two teachers who allege that the First Amendment protects their right to inform parents and guardians whether a student is transgender.

Jorge Reyes Salinas, of the LGBTQ advocacy group Equality California, said that Chino Valley Unifieds proposal is truly sick and that it directly, blatantly goes against state law.

This is not the first time that were seeing this from the Chino Valley Unified school board, he said.

The board in November 2021 narrowly voted down a resolution that would have excluded transgender students from using bathrooms and locker rooms matching their gender identity. Both Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond and Attorney General Rob Bontas office issued a statement warning the board against voting for the resolution, according to EdSource.

Salinas accused Assemblyman Essayli of carrying out his agenda at the local level after failing to get it passed statewide.

Its disgusting, its truly disgusting for a person who has a position of leadership to target LGBTQ youth, Salinas said.
A California taco restaurant hired a 'priest' to ask staff to confess to workplace 'sins' like arriving late, an ex-employee told the Department of Labor

Staff at Taqueria Garibaldi were asked to speak with what the Department of Labor called a "person identified as a priest." Pascal Deloche/Godong via Getty Images

A restaurant got a person "identified as a priest" to ask staff to confess to workplace "sins," an ex-worker said.

They told a court the "priest" asked if they had stolen from the Sacramento, CA restaurant or harmed their employer.

The DOL had been investigating the restaurant's pay practices when the person was called in.

A restaurant in Sacramento, California got a "priest" to ask staff to confess to workplace "sins," like whether they had stolen from their employer, a former employee told the US Department of Labor.

The ex-employee at Taqueria Garibaldi testified as part of litigation by the Department of Labor that the restaurant offered employees a "person identified as a priest" to hear confessions during work hours.

The former worker said that during a shift in November 2021, one of the restaurant's owners and operators asked them if they wanted to confess to the person, who has not been named, to "help with mental health."

"I decided to talk to the priest, but as soon as the confession started, I found the conversation to be strange and unlike normal confessions, where I would tell a priest about the sins I wanted to confess," the ex-worker said in a written declaration.

"The priest told me that he would instead ask me questions to get the sins out of me."

"The priest mostly had work-related questions, which I thought was strange," the former worker wrote in the declaration.

These included whether they drank alcohol or had ever been pulled over for speeding, as well as whether they had stolen from the restaurant, been late to work, done anything to harm their employer, or had any bad intentions towards their employment, the ex-worker wrote. They said that after the priest talked to staff, he left the restaurant together with one of the owners.

It is unclear whether the person who was identified by managers as a priest was actually a priest.

The incident came to light during an investigation by the DOL's Wage and Hour Division, starting in 2021, which found that the three Taqueria Garibaldi restaurants operated by Che Garibaldi Inc. violated labor laws by failing to pay overtime wages to staff, and by paying managers and supervisors from the employee tip pool.

Workers claimed that during the investigation, the restaurants instructed staff not to work with the DOL and told them to share false information.

Workers told investigators that they had been threatened with retaliation and adverse immigration consequences if they cooperated with the DOL, and claimed that the restaurants had fired a worker management believed had submitted the DOL complaint.

Workers told investigators that they had also been instructed to lie to the DOL about how many hours they worked a week.

The restaurants' owners and operators said in legal filings that they didn't discourage employees from cooperating with the DOL's investigation, saying that they did not threaten to terminate employees or make immigration threats.

Che Garibaldi agreed to a consent judgment, signed by William B. Shubb, a judge for the US District Court for the Eastern District of California in early May.

Shubb ordered Che Garibaldi and its three owners and operators to pay $70,000 in back wages and an equal amount in liquidated damages to 35 employees, totalling $140,000, as well as $5,000 in civil money penalties due to the willful nature of the violations.

The court also ordered the restaurants to not interfere with DOL investigations or retaliate or threaten to retaliate against workers thought to have spoken to investigators.

Che Garibaldi's attorneys did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment, made outside of regular working hours.

Read the original article on Business Insider
Calmes: If the GOP candidates won't take on Trump, why run at all?

Mike Pence on Saturday in North Carolina attacked the Justice Department, not Donald Trump, over the former president's 37-count federal indictment. (Chuck Burton / Associated Press)

Much like most of the other Republicans supposedly taking on Donald Trump for the 2024 presidential nomination, his former veep, Mike Pence, made a show on Saturday of lamenting Trumps unprecedented indictment by a Justice Department run by the current president of the United States and potential political rival.

As if prosecuting Trump on its face is a bad thing, and Joe Biden the bad guy.

Well, here are a couple other things that are unprecedented:

Trumps conduct, for one. After he left office, still refusing to concede defeat, he willfully retained hundreds of classified documents, including military plans of attack; stored them unsecured, including next to a toilet; showed some of these documents to visitors; and conspired with an aide to withhold the subpoenaed goods from the U.S. government. All of this is described in his own and his associates words and alleged in the criminal indictment for which he was arrested and arraigned Tuesday.

And then theres the unprecedented spectacle of candidates choosing to run against Trump, but then not actually running against him. Sheepish deference to Trump describes most of the nine Republicans supposedly vying to prevent him from winning their partys presidential nomination.

Read more: Calmes: The last gasps of the party of Reagan

This phenomenon defies the very point of electoral politics: persuading voters why they should elect you and not some other person  an objective that usually gets pressed all the harder against a front-runner or incumbent. (Trump, whos conned most Republican voters into believing he won in 2020, is in effect an incumbent as well as the far-and-away front-runner for the 2024 nomination.)

How in the world do Pence and the rest of these long shots  all but Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis languish in single digits in the polls, and hes 30 percentage points behind Trump on average  think theyll overcome him without at least trying to persuade his supporters of the truth: The former president is manifestly unfit to be president again.

Why run if you wont do whats required to win? Some, it's speculated, are aiming to be Trumps vice president. Ask Pence how that worked out.

Read more: Calmes: What if Biden weren't running? Democrats have a bench that's deeper than you think

So wary are Trumps challengers of offending his supporters that they cant bring themselves to condemn him for the exceedingly credible allegations narrated in the indictment, or even to address the damning evidence. Instead they echo Trumps own B.S., depicting him as a victim of special counsel Jack Smith, the Justice Department, the FBI and ultimately Biden, whove somehow conspired to weaponize the levers of government, third-world style, to bring down a political rival.

How do you beat someone if you wont talk about them? How do you beat them if you wont distinguish yourself from them?

So asked former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, one of just two truth-tellers in the Republican race, when he spoke Monday night during a CNN town hall. The other truther is former Gov. Asa Hutchinson of Arkansas, an ex-federal prosecutor whos said, Its obviously a very solid indictment. The grand jury  not Biden, not the Justice Department  found probable cause for it.

Unfortunately, Christie and Hutchinson arent enough to take down Trump when the seven others are pulling punches.

Read more: Calmes: Really, CNN? A town hall for Trump now?

Pence over the weekend ventured that the indictment was perhaps the latest example of a Justice Department working an injustice. You'd have to think he believes that  I don't  to understand why Pence would attack and undermine the nations chief law enforcement institution rather than the man who not only allegedly purloined military secrets but also, as Pence has said, endangered him and his family on Jan. 6, 2021.

Before DeSantis as much as read the indictment, he tweeted, The weaponization of federal law enforcement represents a mortal threat to a free society. Although DeSantis is daily the focus of Trumps campaign snark, hes led the defanged pack of Trump rivals in whataboutism, drawing false comparisons between Trumps treatment by the Justice Department and that of Hillary Clinton and Hunter Biden.

The response of Nikki Haley, the former South Carolina governor who was Trumps United Nations ambassador, is evolving, shall we say. She initially blamed prosecutorial overreach, double standards, and vendetta politics for Trumps indictment. By Monday, she went so far as to say on Fox News that if this indictment is true  President Trump was incredibly reckless with our national security. Yet on Tuesday, she told right-wing radio hosts that, as president, she'd be "inclined" to pardon Trump if he's convicted.

Read more: Abcarian: Chris Christie won't win, but at least he's speaking truth to Trump

South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott accused Biden and the Justice Department, without evidence, of targeting and hunting Republicans. For what its worth, back when prosecutor Smith took over the Justice Departments Public Integrity Section, he looked at the evidence and dropped separate investigations of several senior Republican members of Congress for corruption.

North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum declines to ever name Trump when he campaigns; all he's said is that Republican voters think the indictment against He Who Shall Not Be Named is unfair. At the opposite extreme, Vivek Ramaswamy, a biotech entrepreneur, gets the prize for the most egregious pander to the MAGA base: He appeared outside the Miami courthouse where Trump was arraigned to reiterate his promise to pardon Trump on Day 1 of President Ramaswamys term.

Sure, Trump is innocent until proven guilty. But thats in a court of law. Its his political rivals job to argue in the court of public opinion  for themselves and against Trump, to try to change minds about the twice-indicted (so far) former president.

Maybe an anti-Trump message is unsellable to Republican voters. To many, it will be. But if the rivals wont try, they should just limp away from this so-called race. That might not be unprecedented, but it would be welcome.

@jackiekcalmes

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Chance Brannon, a Marine stationed at Camp Pendleton, and Tibet Ergul of Irvine are accused of being the two masked individuals who threw a Molotov cocktail igniting a blaze at a Costa Mesa Planned Parenthood last year. (U.S Department of Justice)

FBI agents and naval investigators arrested an active duty U.S. Marine and his alleged accomplice Wednesday on federal charges of firebombing a Costa Mesa Planned Parenthood clinic last year.

Chance Brannon, 23, of San Juan Capistrano, a Marine stationed at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, and Tibet Ergul, 21, of Irvine are accused of being the two masked and hooded individuals who tossed a Molotov cocktail March 13, 2022, igniting a blaze. Both were taken into custody without incident early Wednesday and were slated to appear in U.S. District Court in Santa Ana later in the day.

Ergul and Brannon are named in a criminal complaint that charges each with using an explosive or fire to damage real property affecting interstate commerce. The charge carries a statutory maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison.

My office takes very seriously this brazen attack that targeted a facility that provides critical healthcare services to thousands of people in Orange County, said Martin Estrada, U.S. attorney for the Central District of California. While it is fortunate that no one was physically harmed and responders were able to prevent the clinic from being destroyed, the defendants violent actions are entirely unacceptable.

Burn marks on an entrance and adjacent wall of the firebombed Costa Mesa Planned Parenthood. (U.S. Department of Justice)

Threats and violence targeting reproductive healthcare facilities have become increasingly common, with the U.S. Department of Justice prosecuting more than two dozen such cases in the last four years, including a group that tried to physically block an entrance to a Washington, D.C., clinic last year and a man who in 2020 and 2021 shot a BB gun at a Planned Parenthood clinic in Pasadena.

Nichole Ramirez, vice president of communications and donor relations for Planned Parenthood of Orange and San Bernardino counties, called the March 13 Costa Mesa attack and others like it unacceptable.

The safety of our staff, patients and supporters is our highest priority, and we are working in collaboration with the FBI and local law enforcement to prosecute this attack to the fullest extent of the law, Ramirez said in a statement last year. [We] will continue to provide expert, compassionate care for the community as we have done for over 50 years.

Prosecutors in the latest complaint alleged the pair left Ergul's home, went to Planned Parenthood and tossed the Molotov cocktail at the clinic entrance. The resulting fire forced the facility to close the following morning and cancel approximately 30 appointments.

Images from the security videos in the affidavit show two men wearing hooded sweatshirts and face masks approaching the Planned Parenthood facility about 1 a.m. They ignite a device and throw it at the front door of the building.

The device landed against a southern wall next to the glass door and erupted into a fire, which spread up the wall and across the ceiling above the glass door, according to the complaint.

Costa Mesa firefighters put out the fire on Nutmeg Place, and a subsequent analysis of evidence showed that a glass container and other materials contained gasoline.

After an appeal to the public for help in identifying the attackers, a witness called the FBIs National Threat Operations Center stating that she knew the suspects from high school and could identify them.

The day after he and Brannon started the fire, Ergul texted the witness, taking credit for the fire and noting that he wished he couldve recorded the combustion. Ergul sent the acquaintance a photograph depicting his gloved hand holding the Molotov cocktail from inside Brannon's car, according to the affidavit.

Federal agents also obtained phone records that showed Brannon was in the vicinity of the Planned Parenthood at the time of the attack and again later about 3 a.m., according to the affidavit. A Dodge vehicle driven by Brannon found by the Naval Criminal Investigative Service outside the barracks was also tied to the crime, according to the affidavit.

The depraved act of launching an improvised explosive device into a public facility put lives at risk and will not be tolerated," Donald Alway, the assistant director in charge of the FBI's Los Angeles field office, said in a statement. The joint investigation among local and federal law enforcement led to today's arrests and we will continue to work collaboratively with our partners to hold accountable those who deliberately endanger the community.





This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Authorities have arrested a fourth man for threatening to kill Volusia Sheriff Mike Chitwood.

Calgary, Alberta police arrested Tony Stromberg, of Calgary Sunday. Police said he "made repeated threats over Twitter, via email, and in phone calls to sheriffs office employees."

Stromberg sent emails threatening to "murder the sheriff and his family members," said sheriff's office spokesman Andrew Gant. "In a follow-up email in March, Stromberg wrote that he had made an 'obviously much more credible threat' but was disappointed that 'not one police car let alone FBI car has pulled up to my house.'"

Other threats: Who are the 3 out-of-state men accused of threatening Volusia Sheriff Mike Chitwood?

Volusia Sheriff Mike Chitwood greets Tyler Meyer after his arrival at the Daytona Beach International Airport. Meyer is charged with threatening to kill Chitwood.

He has been charged with uttering threats to cause death. He is expected to face charges in Canada instead of being extradited to Volusia County.

Chitwood and his family have faced threats as he continues to speak out against hate groups and antisemitic messaging being spread in Volusia County.

Tyler Meyer, of San Diego; Richard Golden, of Monmouth Junction, New Jersey; and Cristhian Zapata, of Ansonia, Connecticut, have all been charged with making a written threat to kill or do bodily injury after posting about Chitwood online.

Members of a neo-Nazi group sought a permit to protest Chitwood in April at Ormond Beach City Hall but their request was denied.

This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Canadian man arrested for threatening Mike Chitwood
Caregivers locked man with disabilities in basement where he died, Georgia deputies say

A man with disabilities was found dead after being locked in the filthy confines of a home basement, Georgia deputies say.

Now, his caregivers are charged.

Deputies were called on May 19 about an unresponsive person at a home in Zebulon, according to the Pike County Sheriffs Office. Inside they found Dennis Robertson, 40, dead.

Investigators said Robertson was disabled and required special care, but did not provide specifics on his diagnosis.

His caregivers  Michael Hammond, 46, and Lauri Parker, 59  allegedly kept him in the basement of the extremely filthy home, where Robertson spent much of his time locked in a room, according to a June 13 news release.

Investigators noted the door had been modified to lock from the outside.

They described Robertsons living conditions as horrific, and said it was one of the worst cases of neglect that theyve seen.

It was apparent to investigators that both Hammond and Parker had neglected their duty to care for Mr. Robertson in a manner required by law, deputies said.

Both were charged with neglect of a disabled adult, and authorities said additional charges are possible.

Zebulon is about 50 miles south of Atlanta.

Mom left toddler in filthy closet while she drove for DoorDash, Georgia cops say

Man accused of faking illness dies in prison after medical needs are ignored, feds say

Couples brutal pattern of child torture included boy kept in cage, Florida cops say
The case against the third and last defendant in a 2007 alleged rape of a woman in Kent has been dropped.

The Portage County Prosecutor's Office filed a motion on June 2 to end the prosecution of Michael D. Lavender Jr., 40, of Colorado, on a single count of first-degree felony rape in a grand jury indictment, citing the unavailability of the alleged victim.

Lavender, representing himself, filed a motion Tuesday to dismiss the case, with the court responding that because the prosecutor's motion had been granted, the motion is moot.

Portage County Prosecutor Victor Vigluicci said Wednesday the woman is now living in another state and did not want to return to Ohio and become involved in the case.

According to Colorado Department of Corrections online records, Lavender is currently serving a three-year prison sentence following a conviction on an unidentified charge or charges.

Kent police said the then 20-year-old woman reported in September 2007 that when she woke up in the morning, she believed she had been sexually assaulted during a party at a Kent apartment the night before. She did not clearly remember what happened, police said.

The woman went to a hospital, police said, and evidence was collected during a sexual assault examination, but suspects remained unuidentified for years.

However, matches were found in the Combined DNA Index System, or CODIS, a national database of DNA, in 2018 and 2020. Additional evidence was still needed and it took time to interview the woman, witnesses and suspects, many of whom were no longer in the area.

A grand jury indicted Lavender, Jason M. Horvath, 37, of Bedford, and Armel M. Hardy, 38, of Kent, on the rape charge in January 2022 and warrants were issued for their arrest. Hardy was arrested in May and Horvath in July 2022. It was previously reported that Lavender's whereabouts were unknown, but Vigluicci said the prosecutor's office learned of his imprisonment in Colorado in February 2022.

In a plea deal, Hardy and Horvath previously pleaded guilty to fourth-degree felony aggravated assault. Hardy was sentenced to 30 days in the Portage County Jail and three years of probation and Horvath was sentenced to one year of probation.

Vigluicci said at the time Horvath was sentenced in January that the woman was in agreement with the plea deal. Vigluicci said the amount of time since the incident would also have complicated the rape prosecution.

Attorneys for Horvath and Hardy said the two men have lived law-abiding lives and are unlikely to commit future offenses.

Both men said they engaged in sexual conduct with the woman, but believed at the time that it was consensual.

Reporter Jeff Saunders can be reached at jsaunders@recordpub.com.

This article originally appeared on Record-Courier: Case dropped against man charged in alleged 2007 rape in Kent
Chandler man suspected of assaulting Mesa man and stealing his car

Chandler Police Department.

Chandler police arrested a man suspected of assaulting a 70-year-old Mesa man, then stealing his car and continuing to commit various crimes in Queen Creek and Gilbert.

Sgt. Emma Huenneke, a Police Department spokesperson, said officers responded to a neighborhood near McQueen and Cooper roads on Monday where they found the injured Mesa man. The man was hospitalized in serious but stable condition.

Court documents say 33-year-old Eric Lartigue of Chandler drove to Queen Creek where he tried to break into his father's home. Lartigue's father called 911 to report his son's attempted break-in, court documents say.

Court documents say Chandler officers found Lartigue driving the stolen car in Queen Creek and arrested him without incident. During a police interrogation, Lartigue told officers he had schizophrenia and was hearing voices telling him Mexicans were sexually assaulting his sister, court documents say.

Court documents say Lartigue punched and kicked the Mesa man before stealing his car.

Lartigue was booked into jail on one count of aggravated assault and one count of theft of a means of transportation.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Chandler man suspected of assaulting Mesa man and stealing his car
Charter school teacher says he was fired over book in lesson plan

A teacher at a charter school in Charlotte says the school fired him because of a book in his lesson plan, and a newly filed lawsuit is alleging racial discrimination.

Markayle Gray is suing Charlotte Secondary School after he says he was fired for using the book in his 7th Grade English class during Black History Month.

The book, called Dear Martin, is about a Black teen who is racially profiled and arrested before symbolically writing to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. The inside cover page says the book boldly tackles American race relations.

Grays attorney, Artur Davis, tells Channel 9s Hunter Saenz that the book was approved to use by the schools principal.

Youre not surprised in these times by these kinds of cases, Davis said. Hes representing Gray in a federal lawsuit.

READ MORE: New data shows more NC parents switching to charter schools

According to the lawsuit, it was the principal who Recommended the novel to Gray as a challenging, but age-appropriate work that promoted a discussion of core American values like justice and equality.

At least one county school district, Haywood County, took the book off a required reading list because of a parents complaint. The News and Observer reports that the book was challenged in Wake County Schools, but the district decided to continue using it.

People can debate what ought to be taught in school; people can debate what the principal ought to be authorizing. But once the principal and the school authorize the book, a teacher should not be fired for following the guidance of the principal, Davis told Saenz.

So why was Gray fired? The lawsuit claims that in January, white parents began to raise complaints to administrators ... that the content in Dear Martin was divisive and injected ... unwelcome political views on systemic racial inequality.

Davis says Gray was fired in February.

ALSO READ: York Middle School teacher arrested after slapping student

On Wednesday, attorneys for the school told Saenz that since its a personnel issue, theres little they can say about the case. They did say, The termination of Mr. Grays employment was based on legitimate, nondiscriminatory, non-retaliatory reasons.

The schools principal says the book is still allowed to be used as long as it follows ELA standards for that grade level.

Gray is suing for backpay, front pay, lost benefits, and more.

(WATCH: Local leaders outraged over racist TikTok video at Lincoln Charter School)
Chicagos Ethics Board will look to amend the citys ethics ordinance in response to a Tribune story that detailed how several aldermen used tax dollars to pay a former top Park District official tens of thousands of dollars as a consultant after hed had been asked to resign and placed on the districts do not rehire list for his role in that agencys sexual abuse lifeguard scandal.

Steve Berlin, the Ethics Boards executive director, said it will recommend to Mayor Brandon Johnson and aldermen that they amend the city governments ethics ordinance to clarify various aspects of the Ordinances regulation of City Council independent contractors, in light of a media story earlier this week, according to Berlins report to the board this week.

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Berlin on Tuesday confirmed the proposed changes come in response to the Tribune article, which detailed how four aldermen paid more than $48,000 out of their taxpayer-funded expense accounts to a consulting firm run by Alonzo Williams, the Park Districts former chief programs officer. Berlin said in an email the board will likely make proposed changes to the ethics ordinance in the next few months, but he declined to discuss specifics.

The full City Council would need to vote to approve any such changes, and council members Tuesday offered mixed reactions to the idea.

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[ Aldermen use expense accounts to pay ex-Park District official who resigned amid lifeguard scandal ]

Berlins proposal comes after a Tribune review of aldermanic expense accounts, which are little-known funds totaling $122,000 a year for each of the citys 50 council members to spend on almost anything they want with little oversight. Among the Tribunes findings: Williams was paid as an independent contractor for various consulting jobs by former Ald. Roderick Sawyer, 6th, and current Alds. Michelle Harris, 8th, David Moore, 17th, and Jason Ervin, 28th.

Chicago Board of Ethics executive director Steve Berlin listens during a meeting on March 21, 2017. (Abel Uribe/Chicago Tribune)

Williams was asked to resign from his position as the Park Districts chief programs officer in late 2021 after he was repeatedly cited in an independent investigation as among several Park District executives who mishandled allegations of sexual harassment and abuse in the lifeguard program.

The districts human resources form that details Williams resignation states DO NOT REHIRE in the remarks section, and a district spokeswoman told the Tribune that Williams is still banned from being employed by the Park District, which is a sister agency of the city of Chicago.

When the Tribune told Berlin in May that Williams had been paid as a consultant by the four aldermen, Berlin called the situation disturbing.

Id think do not hire lists should be shared and honored between sister agencies and the Citys various branches, including the legislative branch, Berlin said then in an email. However, who can and cannot be hired as a City Council independent contractor is not addressed by the Governmental Ethics Ordinance.

In addition, Williams was one of at least eight independent contractors who didnt file financial interest statements required by the citys ethics ordinance.

Northwest Side Ald. Scott Waguespack, 32nd, said it makes sense for the City Council to tighten up rules around independent contractors and the citys do-not-hire rules.

Contractor oversight has long been this kind of no mans land, and Ive been talking to the Ethics Board about the need to figure out good ways to remedy that, Waguespack said. You just see this rotating circle where contractors get in trouble at one agency and move on and get hired at another one. There are ways to address it.

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Waguespack said he thinks the votes would be there on the council to make do-not-hire lists apply to contractors at city sister agencies, though he acknowledged it could be tight.

But Ervin, one of the aldermen who paid Williams consulting firm, said its not necessarily fair to issue across-the-board punishments for city employees who did something wrong in one agency. Thats something we would have to discuss further, but we do have the right to exercise some judgment, Ervin said. You wouldnt hire a bank robber as a bank teller, but does that mean he cant work as a janitor?

Williams launched 8028 Consultants LLC in early 2022. Just two months after that he received his first payment from Moore.

By April 2022 three other council members  Sawyer, Harris and Ervin  had each begun paying Williams firm on a monthly basis using their annual aldermanic expense allowances.

Williams advised them in all park-related matters and created documents for grant applicants, according to engagement requests, invoices and emails obtained by the Tribune through the Freedom of Information Act.

aharrison@chicagotribune.com

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jebyrne@chicagotribune.com
Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov has claimed that Adam Delimkhanov, an MP at the State Duma [the lower chamber of the Russian parliament  ed.] and Kadyrovs right-hand man, is "alive and well and not even wounded".

Source: Kadyrov on his Telegram channel

Details: Kadyrov has claimed that he knew from the very beginning that Delimkhanov's injury was a piece of fake news, but decided to "add fuel to the fire" in order to "demonstrate to everyone, especially Ukrainians, to what extent their media have sunk."

As proof, Kadyrov has posted a photo of himself and Delimkhanov sitting on the grass. The caption to the photo says that Delimkhanov, Kadyrov and other "heroes of Russia" are supposedly still working.

At the same time, there is no evidence that this photo is recent.

Background: Earlier, the Russian media outlets reported that Adam Delimkhanov was injured in Ukraine. Before that, information about the assassination of Delimkhanov even appeared online.

At the same time, Kadyrov said that he allegedly could not get in touch with Delimkhanov.

Journalists fight on their own frontline. Support Ukrainska Pravda or become our patron!
Cheers: Cheerwine cans now available at all Florida Publix stores

Cheers, Cheerwine fans: The beloved Southern soft drink is now available at Publix locations across Florida.

The soft drink company announced this week that Cheerwine and Cheerwine Zero Sugar 12-pack cans are now available at Publix stores throughout the Sunshine State.

The cherry-flavored soda is a staple in its home state of North Carolina, where its been produced since 1917.

Read: White Castle wants your Sliders recipe for a new contest

A social media post announcing the news was met with celebratory comments.

Christmas came early! Finally! one commenter said.

Best news Ive heard all day!! another commenter added.

Read: Bite30 is back: Orlando area restaurants offer multi-course meals for $35

Click here to download the free WFTV news and weather apps, click here to download the WFTV Now app for your smart TV and click here to stream Channel 9 Eyewitness News live.
Chicago family desperate for answers after woman goes missing on trip to Japan

The family of a Chicago woman who vanished while travelling in Japan say they are experiencing one of the worst fears possible.

Kandace Schipper, 29, arrived in Tokyo on 8 May and abruptly stopped communicating with family and friends 10 days ago.

She had been travelling with a male companion, Luis Torres, 27, whom they have also been unable to reach.

Her sister Nicole Willea said family have notified the US consulate and filed a missing person report in Chicago.

She was communicating every day from Tokyo to family and friends but has not been reachable in 9 days, Ms Willea wrote on Facebook.

Our family is experiencing one of the worst fears possible, she said.

Kandace Schipper suddenly stopped communicating with family on 4 June after travelling to Japan (Facebook / Nicole Willea)

Brother-in-law Adam Willea told Chicagos WGN9 that the Tokyo Metropolitan Police was refusing to investigate the disappearance as a missing person case because she hadnt yet missed her flight home.

Chicago woman Kandace Schipper arrived in Japan on 8 May (Facebook / Nicole Willea)

He told WGN9 the family felt helpless feeling not knowing what had happened to her.

Is she being held somewhere against her will? Is she hurt? Theres nothing we can even do because its in Toyko, Japan. We need feet on the ground over there.

Kandace Schipper, right, with her sister Nicole Willea: Schipper abruptly stopped communicating with family after travelling to Japan (Facebook / Nicole Willea)

Ms Schippers family believe her last known location was Shibuya, after receiving a credit card transaction alert.

Ms Schipper, a stylist and makeup artist, grew up in Chicago and recently moved to California, according to a Linkedin profile.

Anyone with information is asked to contact her family on +1 616 439 0160 or email helpfindkandace@gmail.com.
Five-year-olds Lana Wood, center left, and Eleanor Giddens join with classmates at the Lane Child and Family Center in Eugene during playtime Tuesday.

Fifteen percent of parents in Oregon with children under six years old had to quit, change or refuse a job because of problems with child care during 2020-21, according to the latest KIDS COUNT Data Book, published annually by the Annie E. Casey Foundation.

And women are five to eight times more likely than men to experience negative employment consequences related to caregiving, the report found.

As a state, we need to recognize that the lack of accessible and affordable child care is not only a concern for families but is also an economic issue. We must invest in policies and funding that prioritize supporting our working families and child care providers, said Jenifer Wagley, executive director of Our Children Oregon, Oregons member of the KIDS COUNT network.

How does Oregon compare?

The report shows national and state trends in child well-being.

Data is collected and aggregated from the U.S. Census Bureau, the Department of Health and Human Services National Survey of Childrens Health, the U.S. Department of Educations National Assessment of Educational Progress, and with the help of the Population Reference Bureau and the KIDS COUNT Network, which represents every state, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

This years report showed that, overall, Oregon ranks 26th in child well-being, the same as last year.

States are ranked on a total of 16 indicators in four domains: Health, family and community, economic well-being, and education.

Pinwheels are placed on the lawn at the Oregon Capitol Monday to represent the families that could lose state child care assistance under the proposed budget.

Oregon scored well on health, ranking seventh nationwide, and on family and community, ranking 16th.

It did poorly on economic well-being, ranking 30th, and on education, ranking 44th.

The education ranking is determined by children ages 3 and 4 not in school (58% in Oregon); fourth graders not proficient in reading (72% in Oregon); eighth graders not proficient in math (78% in Oregon); and high school students not graduating on time (17% in Oregon).

Focus on child care

The report this year took a special look at the expense and availability of child care nationwide.

It found that even if parents can find an opening for child care near their home, they often cant afford it.

In Oregon, the average cost of center-based child care for a toddler is $13,700, the report found. Thats 12% of the average income for a married couple and 37% of an average single parents income in the state.

Nationally, the average annual cost of child care for one child was $10,600. That's 10% of a married couple's median income and more than a third of a single parent's income, according to the report.

A lack of accessible child care impacts more than families. It also costs the state's economy an estimated $2.15 billion per year due to decreased productivity, lost earnings, and increased public assistance, according to a report by the Oregon Child Care Research Partnership.

While parents struggle with the cost of child care, child care workers are paid worse than 98% of professions, the report found. The median pay for child care workers nationwide in 2022 was $28,520 per year, or $13.71 per hour.

The COVID-19 pandemic further exacerbated the issue, with a recent survey finding that 70% of child care providers experienced a decline in enrollment relating to the pandemic, and almost half of them are uncertain about their ability to remain open.

How does Oregon help?

Oregon has taken steps to address the problem, including passing legislation to increase funding for low-income families to access affordable child care through the Employment Related Day Care program and supporting child care providers.

Despite these efforts, advocates continue to push for increased funding and policy changes to ensure that all Oregonian families have access to affordable and high-quality child care.

However, advocates say the Oregon Legislature's proposed biennial budget for the new Department of Early Learning and Care state agency would cause at least 1,000 families to lose affordable child care access through the Employment Related Day Care program.

Advocates are calling for at least an additional $100 million in investments to fully implement changes to the Employment Related Day Care program and prevent the need to kick families from the program.

Solutions offered

The report offers several suggestions for improving child care systems:

Federal, state and local governments should invest more in child care.

State and local governments should maximize remaining pandemic recovery act dollars to fund needed child care services and capacity.

Congress should reauthorize and strengthen the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act, and increase funding for public pre-kindergarten and Head Start.

Public and private leaders should work together to improve the infrastructure for home-based child care, beginning by lowering the barriers to entry for potential providers by increasing access to start-up and expansion capital.

To help young parents, Congress should expand the federal Child Care Access Means Parents in School program, which serves student parents.

Tracy Loew covers the environment at the Statesman Journal. Send comments, questions and tips: tloew@statesmanjournal.com or 503-399-6779. Follow her on Twitter at @Tracy_Loew

This article originally appeared on Salem Statesman Journal: Child care crisis pushing families to breaking point: Report
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaks to members of the media in the Treaty Room of the State Department in Washington

China rebukes US in phone call ahead of Blinken's Beijing trip U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaks to members of the media in the Treaty Room of the State Department in Washington

(Reuters) -China's foreign minister Qin Gang urged the United States to stop meddling in its affairs and harming its security in a phone call with his U.S. counterpart on Wednesday, a tense preview to Antony Blinken's visit to Beijing expected in coming days.

Qin told Blinken to respect China's core concerns, such as the Taiwan issue, in an effort to arrest declining relations between the superpowers, according to China's foreign ministry.

Blinken stressed the need for communication "to avoid miscalculation and conflict" and said the U.S. would continue to raise areas of concern as well as potential cooperation with China, the State Department said in a brief summary of the call.

The top U.S. diplomat is scheduled to travel to China and Britain between June 16 and June 21, the State Department said on Wednesday, after a U.S. official last week said Blinken would be in Beijing on June 18. Chinese state media said he was due to visit China on June 18-19.

While there, Blinken will meet senior Chinese officials to "raise bilateral issues of concern" as well as other global and regional matters and "shared transnational challenges", the State Department said in a statement.

If Blinken's trip goes ahead, it will be the first visit to China by Washington's top diplomat in five years and the highest profile visit of U.S. President Joe Biden's administration, which has clashed with Beijing over issues ranging from spy allegations to a semiconductor tussle.

Blinken cancelled a planned trip to Beijing in February over a suspected Chinese spy balloon that flew over the United States. The Chinese foreign ministry has not yet revealed any other information on Blinken's upcoming trip.

Visits by U.S. officials to Taiwan, the democratically governed island that Beijing considers an integral part of China, have also magnified tensions between the world's two largest economies.

"Since the beginning of the year, Sino-U.S. relations have encountered new difficulties and challenges, and the responsibility is clear," Qin told Blinken, according to the Chinese foreign ministry's readout.

The United States should "stop interfering in China's internal affairs, and stop harming China's sovereignty, security and development interests in the name of competition," Qin added.

(Reporting bu Beijing newsroon; Writing by Bernard Orr and John Geddie; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman, Lincoln Feast and Alex Richardson)
Palestinian Foreign Minister Riyad Al-Maliki, front left, attends a signing ceremony with Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang, front right, as Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, rear left, and China's President Xi Jinping applaud at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing Wednesday, June 14, 2023. (Jade Gao/Pool Photo via AP)

BEIJING (AP)  China said Wednesday that it established a strategic partnership with the Palestinian Authority during a visit to Beijing by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.

The announcement marked another step in Chinas campaign to gain political and economic influence in the Middle East, where it is competing with the United States.

China is seeking energy resources and markets for its military and civilian exports while also promoting its version of authoritarian government as part of joint challenge with Russia to the Western-led democratic world order.

Beijing has long maintained diplomatic ties with the Palestinian Authority, and it appointed a special envoy to meet with Israeli and Palestinian officials. But its experience in the region is mainly limited to construction, manufacturing and other economic projects.

Abbas was welcomed with full military honors at the Great Hall of the People in China's capital.

We are good friends and partners, Chinese President Xi Jinping, who is head of the ruling Communist Party, told Abbas at the start of their meeting. We have always firmly supported the just cause of the Palestinian people to restore their legitimate national rights.

"China is willing to strengthen coordination and cooperation with the Palestinian side to promote a comprehensive, just and lasting solution to the Palestinian issue as soon as possible," he said.

Xi called the strategic partnership an important milestone in the history of bilateral relations, but its financial details were not immediately disclosed.

Abbas said his administration was looking forward to strengthening cooperation with China within the framework of its initiative and securing investments.

We especially appreciate the Chinese sides commitment to financing a number of development projects presented by Palestine. We wish the speedy dispatch of technical delegations to implement these projects, he said.

China relies on such partnerships to bolster its diplomatic posture and give large Chinese corporations a leg up when negotiating infrastructure deals in line with the government's Belt and Road Initiative, which has left many struggling countries in deep debt to Chinese banks.

China also has sought close ties with Israel to expand its diplomatic presence and to gain access to high technology.

Abbas' visit follows China's hosting of talks between Iran and Saudi Arabia that resulted in the restoring of diplomatic relations between the two Mideast rivals and boosting China's standing in the region.

The Riyadh-Tehran rapprochement is seen as a diplomatic victory for China as Gulf Arab states perceive the United States as slowly withdrawing from the wider region.
FILE - U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaks at a chiefs of mission reception in the East Room of the White House in Washington, on June 13, 2023. Blinken and Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang shared concerns on a phone call Wednesday, June 14, 2023 ahead of a planned visit by the U.S. official to China meant to shore up relations. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh, File)

TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP)  U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang shared concerns on a phone call Wednesday ahead of a planned visit by the U.S. official to China meant to shore up relations.

The diplomats discussed the importance of maintaining open lines of communication to responsibly manage the U.S.-(China) relationship to avoid miscalculation and conflict, according to a readout of the call from the U.S. State Department.

It added that Blinken addressed a range of bilateral and global issues, and made clear the U.S. would continue to use diplomatic engagements to raise areas of concern as well as areas of potential cooperation.

The Chinese Foreign Ministry said in a statement that Qin urged the United States to respect Chinas core concerns, such as the issue of Taiwan's self-rule, stop interfering in Chinas internal affairs, and stop harming Chinas sovereignty, security and development interests in the name of competition.

Qin noted China-U.S. ties have encountered new difficulties and challenges since the beginning of the year, and the two sides responsibility is to work together to properly manage differences, promote exchanges and cooperation and stabilize relations.

Blinken is reportedly planning a trip to China this week, after several weeks in which the two countries made diplomatic overtures to one another in an attempt to ease tensions. Blinken had scrapped a trip to Beijing in February after a suspected Chinese spy balloon flew over U.S. territory.

China has since largely rejected U.S. attempts at official exchanges, but some overtures were made. Last week, Daniel Kritenbrink, assistant U.S. secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs, was the highest-ranking U.S. official to visit China since the U.S. downed the balloon, angering Beijing.

In May, U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo met her Chinese counterpart Wang Wentao in Washington to discuss trade.

The U.S. and China are struggling to agree on a range of issues including security, trade, human rights and Beijings looming threat to one day take over Taiwan, which it considers part of its territory.

President Joe Biden has called for guardrails to prevent the countries competition from spiraling into conflict.

Chinese President Xi Jinping on the other hand has decried what he sees as the comprehensive containment and suppression of his country by the U.S., after Washington last year restricted Chinas access to valuable technology such as microchips.

Washington has also warned Beijing of consequences if it arms Russia in its war against Ukraine. Beijing has pledged not to do so, though it refuses to condemn Russias invasion.
[Source]

A Chinese couple was charged with the murder of South Korean influencer BJ Ahyeong after her body was found on the outskirts of Phnom Penh, Cambodia.

Arrest and charges: Lai Wenshao, 30, and Cai Huijuan, 39, were arrested last week and charged on Tuesday by a Cambodian court with murder accompanied by torture. If convicted, the couple may face life imprisonment.

Couples claim: The couple, who run a beauty clinic in the city, told police that BJ Ahyeong, whose real name was Byun Ah-Yeong, 33, had seizures and died while receiving treatment at their clinic on June 4. They claimed that they abandoned the womans body, which prosecutors refuted.

The body of the victim was reportedly found by locals wrapped in red cloth and dumped into a pit.

More from NextShark: Over 100 kittens, puppies rescued from 'blind boxes' in latest bust of China's 'mystery box' craze

Investigation: On Tuesday, South Koreas Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lim Soo-suk noted that local authorities were investigating the incident.

The Foreign Ministry is providing necessary consular assistance to the bereaved family in a timely manner, Lim said.

About Ah-Yeong: The 33-year-old was an influencer for AfreecaTV, a South Korean video streaming service. Known as BJ (Broadcast Jockey) Ahyeong, Byun had over 260,000 followers on Instagram.

More from NextShark: Scammer claiming to be Korean oil rig worker dupes Malaysian widow out of nearly $1 million

In March, she announced her retirement from her influencer persona to live as a normal person for the time being.

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Chinese navy sailors wave as they arrive on board their naval training ship, Qi Jiguang, for a goodwill visit at Manila's port, Philippines Wednesday, June 14, 2023. The Chinese navy training ship made a port call in the Philippines on Wednesday, its final stop on a goodwill tour of four countries as Beijing looks to mend fences in the region. (AP Photo/Basilio Sepe)

MANILA, Philippines (AP)  A Chinese navy training ship with hundreds of cadets made a port call in the Philippines on Wednesday, its final stop on a goodwill tour of four countries as Beijing looks to mend fences in the region.

Cadets in dress whites stood at attention on the deck of the Qi Jiguang as they were welcomed at the port in Manila by Philippine military officials on shore, while artists in dragon costumes performed a traditional dance and onlookers waved Chinese and Philippine flags.

Chinas ambassador to the Philippines was on hand for the ceremony but neither he nor any of the Philippine officials made any comment to the media.

It was a rare visit for a Chinese naval ship to the Philippines, whose new government under Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has been strengthening ties with the United States, including more joint military exercises and in February granting the American military greater access to the countrys military facilities.

China, meantime, has become increasingly assertive in pressing its broad claims to the strategic South China Sea, which has put it at odds with the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Taiwan and Brunei.

In February, a Chinese coast guard ship aimed a military-grade laser at a Philippine patrol vessel off a disputed reef, temporarily blinding some crew members and prompting the Philippines to intensify its patrols in the South China Sea.

The ships visit comes a week after joint U.S., Japanese and Philippine coast guard law enforcement drills in the area.

President Joe Bidens administration has been broadly working to reinforce alliances in the Indo-Pacific to push back against Chinas sweeping maritime claims, including threats against the self-governing island of Taiwan, which Beijing claims as its own.

The largest naval training ship of Chinas Peoples Liberation Army Navy, the Qi Jiguang was to be in port for three days. It was the end of a nearly 40-day voyage for 476 naval cadets and sailors from Chinas well-known Dalian Naval Academy.

Before the port call in Manila, it made stops in Vietnam, Thailand and Brunei.

When it set off in mid-May, there was no mention of the various territorial disputes China is embroiled in, with official media reporting it as an opportunity for the cadets to visit foreign military vessels, academies and training facilities, and help deepen the friendship with local people.

Only members of the Chinese-Filipino community were allowed to board the Qi Jiguang on Wednesday, but the ship was to be opened to the broader public on Thursday and Friday.

Yong Ning Cai, a Chinese-Chinese businessman who was on the pier to watch the Qi Jiguangs arrival, was one of those allowed to board the ship and said he was impressed by its advanced and high-end equipment.

This is a ship of our motherland and it is built very well, better than those in other countries, he said. This visit is very successful and will definitely promote the friendship between China and the Philippines.
Arthur Brown, center, embraces his attorney Tal Chaiken, left, as attorney Ron Safer looks on following Brown's release from Cook County Jail in Chicago on Nov. 14, 2017. (Chris Sweda / Chicago Tribune)

A City Council committee advanced a $7.25 million settlement Wednesday for a man who served nearly 30 years in prison for a double murder conviction that was ultimately overturned.

The award was the largest out of almost $10 million in total settlements the Finance Committee sent to the full council, which will vote on them next week. The committee in a unanimous voice vote approved the payout to Arthur Brown, who was exonerated in recent years after initially being found guilty of a 1988 fatal fire on Chicagos South Side.

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If finalized, the $10 million in police settlements will be the first under the new City Council and Mayor Brandon Johnsons administration. Ald. Pat Dowell, Johnsons handpicked Finance chair, oversaw Wednesdays votes during her first meeting presiding over the powerful committee that vets all settlements from the city, including tens of millions in Chicago police misconduct and other public safety-related lawsuits every year.

In 2022, the city paid out more than $100 million in Chicago police settlements, according to the Department of Laws portal.

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Now 72, Brown was convicted of the double murder and arson and sentenced to life in prison after a trial in which he testified that Chicago police beat him into a false confession over a suspicious fire in a video store that spread to a neighboring shop and killed two people. Brown, then 37, had installed front and back doors with burglar bars at the video store, and he testified that he went to secure a door of the building and then left, court documents show.

Years later, another man, James Bell, confessed to the arson, leading to Brown being granted a second trial. But a jury found Bells testimony unconvincing, while prosecutors alleged that the two colluded to fabricate the story while both were in prison together. Brown was again convicted of the double murder and sentenced to life in prison.

In 2017, a Cook County judge tossed out Browns conviction and ordered another retrial on the conclusion that prosecutors made false arguments, to which prosecutors said they would fight until reversing course. After one of Browns lawyers appealed directly to States Attorney Kim Foxx, her office announced that November prosecutors were dropping charges against Brown. Following 29 years of imprisonment, Brown was released from custody later that day.

All three detectives involved in interrogating Brown are now deceased.

Browns legal team indicated he would ask for $60 million in trial. He also has a separate, pending settlement of $7.25 million with Cook County, the citys corporation counsel said in recommending the city compensation.

Ald. Pat Dowell chairs her first Finance Committee meeting Wednesday at Chicago City Hall. (Antonio Perez/Chicago Tribune)

Also during Wednesdays Finance meeting, aldermen advanced a $1 million settlement with the mother of Sharell Brown (no relation), who was fatally shot by a Chicago police officer in 2019 following a foot chase in Lawndale. That settlement had been scheduled for a vote earlier this year under then-Mayor Lori Lightfoot but was delayed as some council members grumbled about the payout given the fact that Brown was armed during the shooting.

Aldermen Nicholas Sposato, Chris Taliaferro, Bill Conway, Marty Quinn and Nicole Lee voted no after a brief discussion in which some committee members, such as Ald. Jeanette Taylor, complained that the citys corporation counsel was not answering questions for her and the public about the officers disciplinary issues or other matters that city attorney Victoria Benson said were privileged information.

Following 29 years in prison, Arthur Brown was ordered released after Cook County prosecutors reversed course, announcing at a morning court hearing that they were dropping charges. (Antonio Perez and Chris Sweda / Chicago Tribune/Chicago Tribune)

Though a pistol was recovered, the officer who fatally wounded Brown, Joseph Lisciandrello, failed to comply with the departments body camera protocol, the Civilian Officer of Police Accountability ruled, and the shooting was not recorded. COPA recommended in 2021 that Lisciandrello be suspended 180 days, of which he served five days in March, a CPD spokesperson confirmed. He remains employed by the Police Department.

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Ahead of the vote, Taylor expressed frustration that Benson would not say what Lisciandrellos explanation was for turning off his body camera.

What is the purpose of them having that camera if theyre going to cut it off and theres no explanation for that whatsoever? Taylor said.

The Finance Committee also approved a $550,000 settlement to Joshua Habasek-Bonelli, who alleged in his lawsuit that Chicago police Officer Marco Simonetti tased him while he was unarmed, leading to his hospitalization. Simonetti was charged with aggravated battery and official misconduct last year in connection to the incident, and he has pleaded not guilty. He resigned from the Police Department in January.

Lastly, aldermen advanced a $400,000 payment to Lana Triplett, who sued the city after being injured in a 2018 car crash with former 45th Ward Streets and Sanitation superintendent Adam Corona.
Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fla.) got into a heated exchange Tuesday night with Chris Cuomo on his NewsNation show over Trumps indictment on charges of mishandling classified information.

A president of the United States is different than everybody else because they are the executive branch, Donalds said. They are the ones who dictate all steps, all terms, what is classified information and also what is not classified information.

Donalds was defending Trump, comparing his alleged crimes to documents scandals involving Joe Biden, Bill Clinton and Mike Pence. But Cuomo wasnt having any of Donaldss arguments, saying they dont hold any legal logic.

In politics, if youre explaining, youre losing. And everything youre saying, Congressman Donalds, is very effective fodder for the [Trump] campaign, Cuomo said.

Annabelle Gordon/Evan Agostini/Invision/AP

Trump was arraigned Tuesday in Miami on 37 federal felony counts related to mishandling classified information, including 31 counts of willful retention of national defense information and conspiring to obstruct justice. In April, he became the first president to be indicted on criminal charges, when Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg brought charges of falsifying business records and other counts against him. He is now the first to face federal charges.

[Trump] got indicted because of his own words, and the notes from his lawyer, and from his staffer put him trying to make documents go away, trying to not deal with the DOJ in ways that go beyond simple non-compliance, Cuomo later added.

He argued that Trump being unwilling to turn over the documents when he left the White House  and even after requests from the National Archives and Records Administration  puts him in a different category than others.

When you have somebody who doesnt cooperate, who fights it, who gets people to make things up and makes it clear that he wants to use subterfuge, deceit, to get out of something, youre in a different category, Congressman Donalds, Cuomo said. And if you had done that, youd be getting prosecuted.

More Trump indictment coverage from The Hill

Donalds called Trumps prosecution political, remarking on special counsel Jack Smiths history of high-profile cases involving politicians and noting that the Biden White House counsel was asked by the Justice Department about Bidens executive privilege over the documents during the investigation.

Does Joe Bidens DOJ and, frankly, does Joe Bidens White House counsel, do they do that if were talking about Hillary Clinton? You and I both know the answer is no, Donalds said.

Im telling you today that if you tell me they would open this up for a Democrat official. Yeah, Im telling you, youre not paying attention to the way politics are done in 2023, he said.

Outside the charges already filed in New York and Florida, Trump is facing two other investigations over possible misconduct. Smith is also leading an investigation in Washington, D.C., regarding the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection. And an investigation is near completion in Georgia over claims that Trump attempted to overturn the 2020 election results in the state.

Nexstar Media Group, which owns and operates NewsNation, also owns The Hill.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
Chris Pratt is mourning the recent losses in his former Everwood family.

The actor starred in four seasons of the popular WB show  long before his Parks and Recreation role led to global fame with the Guardians of the Galaxy franchise and Jurassic World films  and said Tuesday that his former co-stars wouldnt be forgotten.

Its an incredibly sad season for the cast and crew of Everwood, Pratt wrote on Instagram. Were still reeling from the loss of John Beasley, and yesterday we lost Treat Williams as well. Both men were exceptional actors, wonderful husbands, fathers and friends.

He continued, They will be missed tremendously.

Beasley, who starred in all four seasons with Pratt, died in late May after a brief and unexpected illness, said his manager. The 79-year-old was best known for his roles in iconic films like The Mighty Ducks (1992) and The Mandalorian series.

Williams, who played Dr. Andrew Brown in Everwood, was riding his motorcycle Monday in Vermont when an SUV suddenly turned in front of him. The 71-year-old was thrown from his bike and pronounced dead after being airlifted to a New York hospital.

I learned a great deal from working with each of them, Pratt wrote in his tribute, which included black and white photos of Beasley and Williams. The Beasley family and Williams family will be in my familys prayers. May we see you again, gentlemen. God bless you.

Pratt worked with both Williams and Beasley across all four seasons of Everwood.

Pratt worked with both Williams and Beasley across all four seasons of Everwood.

Pratt wasnt the only Everwood alum to pay tribute, as co-star Emily VanCamp shared a heartfelt post about Williams on Tuesday. The actor remembered him as wonderful and said she was always excited for the next time she got to act with Williams.

Vivien Cardone, who played his daughter in the series, wrote that his death shattered her heart. Williams TV son, Gregory Smith, told E! News on Wednesday that he will always think fondly of his stories, his laugh and his passion for adventure.

Countless veteran actors and Hollywood icons contributed to that chorus.

Pratt, who was recently criticized on social media for omitting his ex-wife from a sincere Mothers Day post, recommended to his followers that Williams work in Prince of the City, Hair and Ten Things To Do in Denver When Youre Dead were required viewing.

He also recommended Beasleys work in The Apostle, Rudy and Walking Tall  after leaving followers with a far more pressing suggestion: Hug your loved ones. Reach out to that person thats been on your mind. Life is fragile, precious and finite.

He added, Embrace it and one another.

Related...
City of Piqua to kick of second phase of Lock 9 Park project with groundbreaking

The City of Piqua plans to break ground today on the next phase of a park project thats been years in the making.

Today at 4 p.m., the city will hold a groundbreaking for the second phase of their Lock 9 Park project.

Piqua City Commission previously authorized awarding a $2.6 million contract to ATCS Inc. to construct the second phase of the improvement project.

>> Car crashes into local Kettering veterinary clinic

The groundbreaking comes after the project was delayed for several years following its initial phase of construction.

The second phase of improvements will include the construction of a trail connection to Main Street, terracing the levee overlooking the riverway, and creating a performance pavilion and community lawn, city officials shared online.

According to city officials, they identified this communitys desire for this project 16 years ago in a Comprehensive Plan Update. In 2012, the Ohio Department of Development secured a technical assistance grant for the project.

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Through the course of the planning efforts, the City of Piqua leveraged over $600,000 in grant funding to complete the acquisition, due diligence, and design and environmental work for the project. The City secured approximately $2 million in private, state, and federal funding sources to supplement the local funding necessary to complete the planned improvements, city officials said.

The third phase of the project is anticipated to be presented to the City Commission around September, according to Chris Schmiesing, City of Piqua Community and Economic Development Director.
Civilians investigating traffic crashes? How it would work in NC if this bill becomes law

A bill headed to the desk of Gov. Roy Cooper would allow civilians to investigate traffic collisions in North Carolina.

House Bill 140, which cleared the General Assembly on Wednesday with a final vote in the North Carolina House, would allow cities to hire civilian traffic investigators to respond to some motor vehicle collisions. Investigators would have to go through training before starting the job, the bill said.

The bill passed in a final vote in the state House on Wednesday by a margin of 100-6 after previously passing the state Senate and House by large margins. Its now up to Cooper to either sign the bill into law or veto it.

The program would help alleviate law enforcement staffing shortages, supporters say, and is already used in some North Carolina cities.

Heres what to know about the civilian traffic investigators proposal and what it would mean for Charlotte drivers:

How would NC civilian traffic investigations work?

Under House Bill 140, North Carolina cities will be allowed to hire civilians to serve as traffic investigators.

The bill allows cities to establish their own minimum standards for employment for the investigators, but anyone hired for the role would have to go through a training program designed by the North Carolina Justice Academy.

And after training, investigators will have to go through not less than four weeks of field training with a law enforcement officer who has experience conducting traffic crash investigations.

Civilian traffic investigators wont be issued weapons and will have no authority to arrest or issue criminal process.

They basically do the investigation, they file the reports, and they also have the ability to appear in court, state Sen. Michael Lazzara told WRAL News. If theres an issue involving criminal activity, they just call for an officer and an officer will come and do their job.

They will investigate crashes involving only property damage, the legislation says, and a law enforcement officer will still have to investigate any crash involving personal injury or a fatality.

Civilian investigators will be issued credentials and uniforms under the proposed law, but the uniform must be substantially different in color and style from that of a law enforcement officer for the city.

Any vehicles issued to, or used by, an Investigator shall not bear markings or symbols that identify the vehicle as a police vehicle, the bill says. The vehicle may have emergency equipment and lights installed but shall not use blue lights in any manner or form. Red and amber lights are permissible.

What does law enforcement think of civilian traffic investigators?

The cities of Fayetteville and Wilmington already have civilian traffic investigators, according to Lazzara.

This is just a way that we can help cities and towns fill the gap and have availability for officers to respond to actual emergency calls, rather than take their time to be at a traffic accident that can normally take several hours to complete, he told WRAL.

The North Carolina Association of Police Chiefs and North Carolina League of Municipalities have endorsed the bill, WRAL reported.

In an email to The Charlotte Observer, the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department said it is monitoring the pending legislation and did not have a comment on the bill as of Wednesday afternoon.
US-ACCIDENT-TRANSPORT-HIGHWAY-PHILADELPHIA

Firefighters look at a collapsed portion of Interstate 95, caused by a tanker vehicle fire, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on June 11, 2023. Credit - AFP via Getty Images

Eighty-five hundred gallons of gasoline is a cargo that needs to be handled carefully. If you doubt that, consider what happened on June 11, at 6:15 a.m., when the driver of a tanker truck filled with gasoline lost control of his vehicle after taking an exit ramp below Interstate 95 in Philadelphia and struck a wall. The truck tipped and exploded, setting off a fire that melted the support structure of the road above, causing it to collapse.

Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro issued a proclamation of disaster emergency the next day and acknowledged at a press briefing that that section of I-95, which carries an average of 160,000 vehicles per day, would be closed for some number of months. The ripple effects along I-95, a 1,927-mile roadway that runs from Florida to Maine, are yet to be determined.

The I-95 corridor is a vital connection for people and goods traveling along the East Coast, said the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) in an emailed statement, and FHWA has offered support and assistance to state and local officials to help them safely reopen this section of I-95 as quickly as possible.

If there is massive expense, inconvenience, and tragedy (the remains of the truck driver, 53-year-old Nathaniel Moody, were identified by his family June 12) involved in the disaster, there was a touch of irony too. The very thing that brought the overpass downgasolineis what keeps the cars that rely on it running. The risk of similar accidents remains: across the U.S., there is a lot of gas in motion all the time, carried by both truck and rail.

According to the American Geosciences Institute, there are 100,000 tanker trucks carrying oil and gas on U.S. roads every day. And according to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, in 2020, there were 5,949 tanker truck accidents, ranging in severity from fatal or injury-causing to requiring a mere towaway. Not all tankers carry gasoline or oil; some carry products as benign as milk and molasses. But as one 2019 study conducted by the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill found, from 1997 to 2017, there were at least 224 oil tanker explosions or fires worldwide, leading to 2,909 deaths and an additional 3,038 hospitalizations.

Trains add another dimension to the problem. The American Association of Railroads reports that in the U.S. last year, 68,000 tanker carloads of domestically produced oil traveled across the country by rail, factoring out to an average of 121,000 barrels per day. About 1,700 train derailments occur annually, according to the Bureau of Transportation. In the U.S. and Canada, 21 derailments involving trains carrying oil or gasoline occurred from 2013 to 2021a small number in comparison to the total, but one that can do devastating damage. A 2013 derailment in Quebec killed 47 people and destroyed 40 buildings. Another in Illinois in 2015 spilled 125,000 gallons of crude and sparked a fire that burned for two days.

Environmentalists refer to trucks and trains carrying oil as rolling bombs and if that overstates the case, its only by a little. This tanker crash is just the latest example of the risks of relying on fossil fuels, says Jordan Brinn, a policy advocate at the Natural Resources Defense Council. From exploration to tailpipe exhaust, our dependence on oil is dangerous for our health and for the environment. Transitioning to electric vehicles is not without risk, but compared to the enormous costs of our current reliance on fossil fuels, it is a key part of building a cleaner, smarter transportation system for the future.

But that transition will be a good while in coming. There are more than 282 million motor vehicles registered in the U.S. and just over two million of them are EVs. With the average price of an EV close to $59,000, many motorists are simply priced out of the electric market. For the present then, we are likely to continue to live with the danger of accidents like the one that struck Philadelphia. The internal combustion engine is, by its very design, built around a series of tiny explosions that take place inside its cylinders. When those tiny internal explosions become massive external ones, we all pay a high price.

A version of this story also appears in the Climate is Everything newsletter. To sign up, click here.
When you pay a public official money in exchange for an official act, it is a bribe: Closing arguments begin in politically charged trial of Chicago businessman

A Chicago businessman attempted to corrupt the political process by paying off two sitting state legislators for legislation beneficial to his sweepstakes gaming company, and calling it anything other than bribery was putting lipstick on a pig, a federal prosecutor told a jury Wednesday.

Attorneys for James Weiss, though, said he made a legal effort to wade into the dirty politics of Springfield and counteract big-money video gaming competitors who already had the politicians in their pocket.

This is a dirty place where the rules seem to be gray, where a contribution can be considered a bribe, a bribe a contribution, defense attorney Ilia Usharovich told the jury. It is all messed up.

The contrasting portrayals came during closing arguments in the Weiss bribery trial at the Dirksen U.S. Courthouse, where he is accused of agreeing in 2019 to pay monthly $2,500 bribes to then-state Rep. Luis Arroyo and ex-state Sen. Terry Link to get legislation on sweepstakes machines passed.

Unbeknownst to both Arroyo and Weiss was that Link, a Vernon Hills Democrat, was cooperating with the FBI, hoping for a break on his own federal tax conviction in exchange for his cooperation.

Link testified over two days beginning last week about his undercover role, including wearing a hidden wire at meetings with Arroyo and Weiss at a North Shore Wendys and Skokie pancake house.

Weiss, 44, who is the son-in-law of former Cook County Democratic boss Joseph Berrios, is charged in a superseding indictment filed in October 2020 with honest services wire fraud, mail fraud and lying to the FBI. He has pleaded not guilty.

The jury of seven women and five men is expected to begin deliberating the case Thursday after hearing a rebuttal argument from prosecutors.

In his closing, Assistant U.S. Attorney Sean Franzblau said Weiss was trying to corrupt the political process, where laws should be fashioned with power of the ideas instead of the size of the pocketbook. He said any attempt to call Weiss payments to Arroyo and Link legitimate amounted to putting lipstick on a pig.

Lobbyist, consultant, dentist, therapist, it doesnt matter, Franzblau said. When you pay a public official money in exchange for an official act, it is a bribe.

Usharovich, however, said Weiss was kept in the dark about the scheme and believed the payments were for legitimate consulting work. If this was a bribe, it would have been done with a big bag of cash to keep it off the books, he said.

Usharovich said every one of the current and former legislators who testified for the government, including Link, state Rep. Bob Rita, and former state Sen. Tony Munoz, admitted they had taken campaign contributions from Rick Heidner, the video gaming kingpin who is a staunch opponent of sweepstakes machines.

Another government witness who tried to get sweepstakes machines banned in Chicago, former Chicago Ald. Patrick OConnor, testified that Heidner hired him as a $5,000-a-month consultant a month after he left office, Usharovich noted.

The public wasnt cheated, as they say, by Mr. Weiss and Mr. Arroyo. They public was cheated by the people who testified here, Usharovich said. They made you guys losers, the state of Illinois.

But Franzblau said the government didnt put the bribery scheme in action  Weiss and Arroyo did.

The FBI simply walked up to a corrupt relationship that was already in place and they gave it a little nudge, and another bribery scheme came tumbling out, he said.

Franzblau pointed to a conversation secretly recorded by Link outside a Wendys in Highland Park as the key moment where Arroyo laid out the true intent of the payments.

In asking Arroyo, Whats in it for me, Link left it open to interpretation, Franzblau said. But instead of advancing some kind of legitimate political agenda, Arroyo switches immediately into corruption mode, the prosecutor said.

He thinks Link is sort of winking at him. ... His response is, You can get paid like I am,  Franzblau said.

Franzblau also noted that Weiss had no explanation for why he told the FBI hed spoken to a purported consultant for Link named Katherine Hunter  a woman whod been invented by investigators as part of the sting.

When the FBI came knocking, Franzblau said, Weiss told a series of outlandish lies, culminating in a detailed, fictional and absolutely impossible story that the defendant had spoken to Katherine Hunter, a person who did not exist.

Prosecutors rested their case Wednesday morning after three full days of testimony featuring some 14 witnesses.

Weiss attorneys did not put on any evidence. In April theyd filed a list of 26 potential witnesses, including lobbyist Shaw Decremer, a former top aide to House Speaker Michael Madigan; ex-state Rep. Annazette Collins; Madigan-connected consultant Djavan Conway, and Jeffrey Rush, son of former U.S. Rep. Bobby Rush.

After prosecutors wrapped up their evidence, U.S. District Judge Steven Seeger advised Weiss of his right to testify and asked him if he wished to take the stand in his own defense. No, your honor, Weiss said.

The trial centers on the largely uncharted world of sweepstakes machines, sometimes called gray machines, which allow customers to put in money, receive a coupon to redeem for merchandise online and then play electronic games like slot machines.

Since the machines can be played for free, they are not considered gambling devices. Critics, however, contend the unregulated devices, which operate in cities, including Chicago, that have banned video gambling, are designed to skirt the law.

The weeklong trial has been filled with political intrigue, both in the lineup of current and former elected officials who have testified as well as the backdrop of ongoing federal investigations swirling around Weiss associates, including the Cook County assessors office that Berrios once helmed.

But references to Berrios have been largely kept out of the trial. On Tuesday, the jury for the first time heard a veiled reference to the Democratic stalwart when prosecutors played a portion of a recorded interview Weiss gave to the FBI after being pulled over near his west suburban home in October 2019.

In trying to explain how he came to send a $2,500 check to Hunter, a consultant who was actually invented by investigators, Weiss told the agents a story about how hard it had been to gain traction with legislators in Springfield on the subject of sweepstakes machines.

Weiss said that it was so bad that even Link, who was spearheading the states gambling overhaul and knew his father-in-law well, told him off in vulgar terms at the Capitol.

My father-in-law interacted with Terry Link for 30 years, and (Link) told me, (Expletive) you to my face, Weiss said on the recording. I didnt know what to do.

Berrios, who was head of the Cook County Democratic Party and also served as Cook County assessor from 2011 to 2019, has not been accused of wrongdoing. Weiss is married to his daughter, Toni, a former state representative.

The only other time the Berrios familys name has been mentioned came later on Tuesday, when jurors were shown a Post-it note Weiss wrote instructing that paperwork purportedly involving the consulting contract be signed and emailed to a Vanessa Berrios, Weiss sister-in-law, who was working as Weiss assistant at his valet parking company.

The testimony also focused on a parallel fight that went on at Chicagos City Hall, where Arroyo was operating as a paid lobbyist for Weiss company regarding sweepstakes machine issues.

OConnor, the longtime City Council floor leader, testified Tuesday that he proposed a ban on sweepstakes machines in 2018 after seeing them in operation at a gambling house next door to a high school.

OConnor, who was defeated in 2019 after 36 years in City Council, said he met with Weiss one time about sweepstakes machines in the fall of 2018 at his 40th Ward office.

He just kind of stated that he felt my position was incorrect and we just agreed that we werent agreeing, and that was pretty much it, OConnor said.

OConnor also revealed his contract with Heidner, saying that about four months into the yearlong deal, Heidner asked him if he would cancel it.

He made it clear that his plans had changed and he wasnt going to need my assistance, OConnor testified.

The termination of the deal coincided with Heidners name surfacing in federal search warrants and subpoenas as part of a widening federal corruption probe involving then-state Sen. Martin Sandoval. Heidner was never accused of wrongdoing, and the U.S. attorneys office later gave him a non-target letter indicating he was not a target of the investigation.

In his testimony, Link took the jury through the meetings he secretly recorded for the FBI, including one at a Wendys restaurant in Highland Park as well as another meeting weeks later at a Skokie pancake house, where Arroyo allegedly handed over the first $2,500 check from Weiss.

This is, this is the jackpot, Arroyo told Link as he handed over the check, according to the recording played for the jury Monday. Additional monthly $2,500 payments were expected to be made over the next six to 12 months, totaling $30,000, the charges alleged.

When Weiss was later questioned by agents, he lied and said Hunter was a lobbyist who lived in Winnetka and that hed spoken to her on the phone, according to a recording of the interview also played for the jury Monday.

Testimony Tuesday began with prosecutors playing a portion of Weiss recorded interview with two FBI agents after they pulled him over to serve him with a warrant to seize his cellphone in October 2019. During the clip, FBI Special Agent Curtis Heide confronted Weiss about his claim that hed talked with Hunter.

You never had a phone conversation with Katherine Hunter. You didnt, Heide said on the tape.

There was a woman who Luis (Arroyo) put me in on the phone with, Weiss insisted. We were ... where the hell was it? We met in person. ... Im trying to give you guys the details.

Suddenly Weiss remembered they were at Tavern on Rush. He said he and Arroyo were at the restaurant on Chicagos Near North Side when Arroyo said, I gotta put you on the phone with Katherine about engaging in the agreement.

OK, and he said Katherine? one of the agents asked.

I believe it was Katherine, yes, Weiss replied.

In his closing Wednesday, Franzblau put up a slide with the words CALL WITH A GHOST, calling Weiss statements to the FBI about the fictitious Hunter ridiculous.

The wheels are spinning in his head, you can almost hear them turning. ... His story is impossible, Franzblau said.

But Usharovich said investigators had no proof to show that Weiss didnt talk to someone he thought was Hunter. He said Weiss was also under duress.

Mr. Weiss, who isnt the smallest fella in the world, was crammed into a car with two trained FBI agents who are throwing questions at him for an hour and a half, Usharovich said.

Arroyo pleaded guilty to bribery but did not agree to cooperate with prosecutors. Seeger sentenced Arroyo to nearly five years in prison last year, calling him a corruption superspreader.

Listen to the audio:

Listen to the audio:

jmeisner@chicagotribune.com

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A college student is getting eviscerated on social media for accusing a Chinese migrant worker of taking upskirt photos of her, even though she knew he was just minding his own business

Citizens take the subway on November 15, 2022 in Guangzhou,Guangdong province of China. Stringer/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images

A Chinese student was slammed online after she wrongly accused a man of taking upskirt photos of her.

She posted a video where she confronted the man, only to verify on-camera that he did not photograph her.

The student issued a public apology amid a social media uproar over her false claims.

A Chinese university student has found herself in the center of a social media maelstrom after she falsely accused a man of taking upskirt photos of her, despite verifying on-camera that he didn't commit the act.

Identified only by her surname, Zhang, the woman made a social media post on June 7 saying that she noticed a migrant worker squatting near her on the Guangzhou subway, per local media.

Zhang said she suspected him of secretly taking upskirt photos of her, and posted an online video that showed his face.

"It couldn't be the first time that this wretched old man has taken photos with skillful tactics," she wrote in a caption.

The now-deleted video went viral, but the footage appeared to debunk Zhang's claim. It showed Zhang's confrontation with the man, who Chinese media outlets identified by his last name, Deng.

"Hello. May I see your phone to check if you took photos of me?" she asked Zhang.

Appearing confused, the man immediately opened his photo gallery and showed that it did not have any photos of Zhang or anyone on the subway.

"Watch it. Don't carelessly take photos of others," Zhang told him before leaving.

Zhang gets blasted online and quickly goes viral

As Zhang's video and accusations about the man's conduct spread, she started getting slammed on Weibo, China's version of Twitter.

"If you suspect that I've done something wrong, shouldn't you show evidence that I've done so? Why do I need to prove my innocence? Report it to the police and let them figure it out," said one Weibo user.

"The most hateful thing about this woman is that after she clearly reconciled the situation, she posted something on the internet to make others go viral," wrote another.

On Monday, the local broadsheet Qilu Evening News published an interview with Deng's son, who said his father was a migrant worker visiting the city on his off day when he was confronted by Zhang on the subway.

Deng's son said his family went to the police over the weekend to mediate the dispute between Zhang and the migrant worker. He told Qilu Evening News that the family, at the time, was unaware of the video that was already circulating on Weibo.

After finding out about the Weibo post, Deng's son told local reporters that his family intended to sue Zhang if she didn't apologize.

Zhang has since issued a public apology on her Weibo account. "Sir, I'm sorry, I was really wrong. I shouldn't have spread this video on the internet even after confirming your innocence," she wrote on Sunday evening.

"I sincerely acknowledge that this incident has caused serious harm to you and your family, and I solemnly express my deep apologies to you and your family," she added.

Zhang did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.

The backlash has intensified to the point that its top state media outlets are getting involved in the fracas

The university student's accusations have gone viral on Weibo, with hashtags related to her post being viewed nearly 1 billion times, per data seen by Insider.

Even the Ministry of Public Security jumped in, posting on Monday that people should seek help from police first when facing potential criminal issues that are "difficult to judge and deal with."

Meanwhile, people have called for Zhang to be charged in court for false accusations, and expelled from her school, Sichuan University. Unverified details about her life and relationships with her college classmates also went viral.

Deng's son told local media that his family has chosen to forgive Zhang. "We've already said that as long as she apologizes, we'll forgive her and give her a chance," he said.

The People's Daily, a Chinese state media outlet, published a commentary on Wednesday calling for the public to calm down and stop doxxing Zhang.

"Many people continue to obsess over the consequences faced by this woman. But in the process, some have exposed her name, age, school, major, and other personal information, and others found her personal social account, and others insulted, abused her, and condemned her endlessly," it wrote. "These are signs of cyberbullying."

Read the original article on Insider
A college student lost a $100,000 scholarship because she forgot to open the letter. Then the college saw her viral video and made her dream come true.

A video of the TikToker realizing the costly mistake received 5.6 million views. TikTok: @luvlyymadiii

A TikToker said she never opened a letter that offered her a scholarship to her dream college.

The video blew up, and even reached the college in question, which gave the story a happy ending.

A representative from Maryville College told Insider that they honored the original scholarship.

A TikToker who realized she'd overlooked an offer letter from one of her top three colleges received the six-figure scholarship anyway after her distraught reaction went viral on the app.

On April 30, a TikToker who goes by @luvlyymadiii posted a video of herself looking at a piece of paper. The on-screen caption said she had found something while going through a pile of unopened college-acceptance letters.

The video then zoomed into her shocked and angry-looking face as further on-screen captions said she'd just realized she had been offered a $104,000 scholarship from one of her top three colleges. She said she decided at the time to attend community college instead because she couldn't afford the cost.

More than 5.6 million people viewed the upload, which attracted hundreds of comments. Many comments expressed dismay and confusion as to why the TikToker hadn't gotten around to opening such an important letter.

The TikToker returned with a much-anticipated update on May 6. In the video, which received a further 640,000 views, she said that she hadn't initially opened the letter because she'd received more than 300 of them from colleges. The TikToker said it was "impossible for me to open every single one of them" at the time because she was busy doing school work and had a job.

In a follow-up comment, she also wrote that she'd been applying for colleges since the middle of her junior year in high school, which explained the high number.

However, in the same upload, she said the school in question, Maryville College in Tennessee, had caught wind of the situation and called her to say that "they were gonna make my dreams come true" and that the offer was still on the table. "I'm just so excited!" the TikToker said in the video.

Alayne Bowman, the vice president for admissions and financial aid at Maryville College, told Insider in an email exchange that she was the one who told the TikToker the college was happy to "honor her scholarship." She said the college was also "thrilled to learn more about Madi and suggested some additional scholarships" that the TikToker applied for and was awarded.

"We knew we could make this dream of hers come true," she said.

For more stories like this, check out coverage from Insider's Digital Culture team here.

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Amina Alhaj-Oman, 25, was last seen around 4 p.m. Saturday on the city's South Side.

Columbus police will resume their search Thursday for an Ohio State University student who was reported missing on Saturday evening and is now considered endangered.

Amina Alhaj-Omar, 25, was reported missing by her sister, Columbus police Sgt. Joe Albert said at a press conference Wednesday.

Police said Wednesday night that their search had concluded for the day and will resume on Thursday.

Alhaj-Omar's family has since said they believe she may be experiencing a mental health crisis, Albert said.

At the time the initial report was taken by officers, however, police had no information to indicate that Alhaj-Omar was endangered or high-risk.

Missing persons detectives received the report on Monday and were able to locate Alhaj-Omar's vehicle that afternoon on Interstate 270 between Interstate 71 and U.S. 23 on the city's South Side. Albert said there was evidence the car may have been involved in a minor traffic crash, but the air bags didn't deploy and there was no evidence she was injured in the crash.

Police were able to obtain a video from a BP gas station in the area, located at 1091 S. High St., that showed Alhaj-Omar in the station's convenience store around 3:55 a.m. Saturday. The video showed Alhaj-Omar leaving the gas station's property around 6 a.m. that morning.

At the time Alhaj-Omar was in the gas station's store, she had two kitchen-type knives with her.

Amina Alhaj-Omar, 25, is seen on camera footage from a gas station on South High Street early Saturday morning. Alhaj-Omar has been missing and is considered endangered. Anyone who has seen her is asked to call detectives at 614-645-2358.

Columbus police Lt. Jason Gardner, who oversees the missing persons unit, said Alhaj-Omar's behavior in the store was "very unusual," but could not provide more specifics because of the ongoing nature of the investigation and ongoing interviews with potential witnesses.

About two hours later, around 8:20 a.m. Saturday and before the missing persons report was filed, Columbus police were called to the Olen Corporation's Columbus plant, located at 4755 S. High St., on a report of a woman trespassing. The property is expansive and includes a quarry.

Albert said officers arrived within 10 minutes of the call, and the woman had already left the area. It was later confirmed the woman was Alhaj-Omar, he said.

"The missing persons report had not been filed yet," Albert said. "Her vehicle had also not been located. It's likely the officers on scene had no idea the female was a missing person or Ms. Omar."

Albert said police spent all day Monday and Tuesday searching the area of the quarry with horses, ATVs and canines. The search was hampered some by weather.

Police received a possible sighting of Alhaj-Omar around 7:30 p.m. Tuesday in the area behind the Wal-Mart located at 3579 S. High St. It has not yet been confirmed whether or not the woman who was seen was Alhaj-Omar.

A search of the area was ongoing on Wednesday utilizing drones and canines, Albert said. The public is asked to stay out of the immediate area so that tracking can be done effectively.

Police have confirmed Alhaj-Omar is enrolled at Ohio State University for summer classes and has been working with the university. However, there is no indication that there is any connection to locations on campus at this time.

Albert said police are asking anyone who was in the area of South High Street on Saturday morning or may have seen Alhaj-Omar since Saturday to call the Missing Persons Unit at 614-645-2358.

While Alhaj-Omar is not necessarily a threat to the public, Albert said anyone who sees her should not approach her and should instead call 911.

bbruner@dispatch.com

@bethany_bruner

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Columbus police to continue search for missing Ohio State student
Column: Are charges against Curren Price just another blow for Black power in L.A.?

Councilmember Curren Price sits through public comments as he presides over a council meeting Tuesday as president pro tempore at L.A. City Hall. He faces 10 counts of embezzlement, perjury and conflict of interest. (Myung J. Chun / Los Angeles Times)

"With the trust that you placed in me, I'm going to continue to do everything in my power to bring our city together. This is an honor I don't take lightly."

Los Angeles City Councilmember Curren Price, standing in his usual spot behind the horseshoe at City Hall, delivered those words with supreme confidence last October.

His colleagues had just made him their second in command, their president pro tempore. Now they were looking at him expectantly, with more than a little hope, even as protesters who had packed the chambers yet again chanted and slapped their seats in a relentless cacophony of hopelessness.

As a Black man representing a majority Latino district in South L.A., Price was supposed to be the perfect politician to lead the city out of the darkness brought about by the leaked recording of three councilmembers and a labor leader trading racist barbs about consolidating Latino political power through redistricting.

Darkness compounded by a series of corruption scandals that have ensnared, in relatively rapid succession, Councilmembers Mitch Englander, Jose Huizar and Mark Ridley-Thomas.

"It's time we work together to restore trust," Price said in October, statesman-like after decades in elected office. "Restore faith in our city."

Apparently, it won't be that simple.

On Tuesday, Price was charged with five counts of grand theft by embezzlement, three counts of perjury and two counts of conflict of interest. Los Angeles County Dist. Atty. George Gascon said he is accused of having a financial interest in projects he voted on, and of having the city pay for medical benefits for his current wife while he was still married to another woman.

It's unclear what will happen next.

Not long after the indictment was announced Tuesday afternoon, Price spokesperson Angelina Valencia told The Times: "We have not seen the charges filed against Councilmember Curren Price. Its highly unusual for charges like this to be brought up against a sitting city councilmember without any prior notice or discussion. Curren Price is a long-standing public servant who has given his life to the city of Los Angeles. He looks forward to defending himself.

A few hours later, Price stepped down from his position as president pro tempore and gave up his committee assignments.

"While I navigate through the judicial system to defend my name against unwarranted charges filed against me, the last thing I want to do is be a distraction to the people's business," he said in a statement.

No matter. It's likely his colleagues will feel the need to suspend him, similar to what they've decided for other councilmembers who have faced criminal charges. That would leave yet another group of Angelenos without a voting representative  in this case, in the 9th District, stretching south from downtown along the 110 Freeway.

If Price is actually convicted of a felony, which is far from a certainty, he would permanently lose his seat on the City Council after a decade in office.

Los Angeles City Councilmember Curren Price, left, chats with colleague Marqueece Harris-Dawson on Tuesday at L.A. City Hall. Price learned hours later that he had been charged with multiple counts of embezzlement and perjury. (Myung J. Chun / Los Angeles Times)

So it is both predictable and understandable that the charges will be seen by many as yet another both disappointing and maddening blow for Black people in Los Angeles. In fact, hovering over a city that has for so many decades been defined by tribal politics will be the question: What does this mean for Black political power?

There are no simple answers to that.

Not with rapid demographic shifts and a dwindling population of Black residents, thanks to rising rates of displacement tied to the high cost of living; namely, for housing.

Not after Ridley-Thomas, a veteran politician known for his singular ability to get things done for Black people, was convicted in late March (though he is pursuing an appeal).

Not even with the city recently electing its second Black mayor, Karen Bass, by an overwhelming margin.

Voters in Price's district have elected a Black representative to the City Council every term since the 1960s. This is true even though the population there, at last count, is 78% Latino and 13% Black, and several Latino candidates challenged him in previous elections.

Price is in his third and final term on the council, expected to leave in 2026. If he is convicted, his exit will come much sooner, and the chances of him being replaced by another Black politician aren't high. It also, quite frankly, makes perfect sense in a city where Latinos remain underrepresented in elected office.

In some quarters, I suspect the charges against Price also will be seen as a twisted reflection on Black politicians, writ large. It'll be, "Oh, there goes another crooked Black politician."

This is the most unintended side effect of L.A.s family-affair-style tribal politics, one exploited during last year's mayoral campaign when police unions tried to tie Bass to the indictment filed against her longtime friend Ridley-Thomas.

But this is also the way the broad brush of anti-Black racism works in this country, regardless of city or profession. Especially in a city or a profession when there are only a handful of powerful Black people.

Which is why I'm choosing to see things differently.

Price is 72 years old. He came of political age at a time when Black people had to band together to get elected. That's still true, but increasingly less so. Especially in a city that's as increasingly multicultural as Los Angeles.

More than tribal politics, maybe we need to focus instead on the forces that brought people like Hugo Soto-Martinez and Eunisses Hernandez to the City Council.

So what does his indictment mean for Black political power in L.A.?

Absolutely everything. And absolutely nothing. It's up to us  all of us  to decide.

Price probably understands this more than most.

"As a 71-year-old Black man," Price said last year, accepting the job of president pro tempore, "I've had my fair share of experience fighting against adversities. From living through a time of segregation to the social justice revolutions today. We've got some difficult days ahead, but I have infinite hope that working together works.''

On Tuesday, he presided over most of the City Council meeting, blissfully unaware of the pending indictment, cheerily introducing himself as the president pro tempore and saying that it was his "pleasure to welcome you today."

It was the last bit of normalcy in city government that we're likely to see for a while  again.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
About 200 people attended a ceremony at One Aurora Plaza in downtown Aurora last June 19 to celebrate the Juneteenth holiday. A number of events are planned around Aurora in the next few days to celebrate Juneteenth. (Linda Girardi / The Beacon-News)

A number of events are planned in Aurora to honor the upcoming Juneteenth holiday.

The holiday itself is Monday, and commemorates June 19, 1865, the day Union troops arrived in Galveston, Texas, and informed the last enslaved African Americans that the Civil War had ended.

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On Friday, the third annual food distribution event will be held at Phillips Park, 1000 Ray Moses Drive, beginning at 9 a.m., in connection with the citys Juneteenth events.

Our food distribution is three years old and we are excited about having 150 Black fraternity and sorority members volunteer to help out with the food distribution, Aurora Chief Communications and Equity Officer Clayton Muhammad said. This is really a nice core piece of this event and well be offering food for up to 1,000 families here in Aurora in cooperation with the Northern Illinois Food Bank.

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On Saturday, the 22nd annual Juneteenth celebration will be held, a four-hour festival beginning at 3 p.m. at Martin Luther King Park, 42. N. Farnsworth Ave. in Aurora.

In conjunction with the event, a Juneteenth Car Parade hosted by the Community Advocacy Awareness Network kicks off with a lineup at 2:15 p.m. at the entrance to Phillips Park on Smith Street.

Aurora resident Mary Fultz has organized the parade for the past three years and the Kane County Sheriffs Office provides traffic control for the event.

The parade will begin at 3:15 p.m. and will travel from Smith Street to Fifth Avenue, then to Farnsworth Avenue and to Grand Boulevard before ending at Martin Luther King Park for the Juneteenth celebration.

Muhammad said the celebration at the park normally attracts 4,000 to 4,500 people. He noted the celebration predates when Juneteenth was made an official state and federal holiday in 2021.

For two decades prior to that, the city of Aurora has been hosting a Juneteenth celebration through the African American of Men of Unity, he said. It is always a wonderful community event focused on culture and heritage as well as on youth and the future. Its a time for education and history, empowerment and motivational speakers, and a time for good community networking.

The event will include speakers and performers, free food, childrens activities and more than 30 vendors, he said.

This is a positive opportunity to celebrate Juneteenth here in Aurora, Muhammad said. The city and the township also help sponsor this as well as a number of agencies and businesses, but the African American of Men of Unity is the lead sponsor.

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A first-ever youth summit will be held on the actual Juneteenth holiday on Monday inside One Aurora Plaza from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

This is a first time and we are really excited about this after Juneteenth became an official holiday. Aurora was one of the first cities in Illinois to make this a paid holiday for city staff right after it became a federal and state holiday, Muhammad said. One of the things last year, a request from a survey of the community, was they really wanted something youth focused so that it wasnt just a day off, if you will.

Although students are out of school, its a day on, not a day off, he said. We have 100 youth  middle school, high school and college - coming in for a morning of education and inspiration. They will go through workshops and have opportunities to share their thoughts, and we have a lot of local presenters that are doing workshops for us.

The special guest for the day, who will also attend the citys Juneteenth flag-raising event at 1 p.m. at One Aurora Plaza, will be the youngest Black mayor in America, Jaylen Smith, 19, of Earle, Arkansas.

Hes coming in to inspire the kids at the youth summit and will be our speaker at the flag-raising immediately following, Muhammad said. Both will be at the same location  inside the plaza in the morning and outside in the afternoon. Kids will be joined by their parents outside as well as the community, and the flag-raising is the culmination of the weeks events.

The flag-raising ceremony will also include a presentation of the Heritage and Excellence Awards, and a special performance by the South Shore Drill Team, officials said.

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David Sharos is a freelance reporter for The Beacon-News.
Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, left, and former New York City Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani listen while then-President Trump speaks during a briefing at the White House in September 2020, before Christie broke with the former president. (Brendan Smialowski / AFP/Getty Images)

For the record:

6:22 p.m. June 13, 2023: A previous version of this column referred to former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley as North Carolinas former governor.



Out of the miasma of Republican denial, a bold truth teller has emerged.

Of course, he doesn't stand a rats chance of winning his partys presidential nomination, but former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie should be celebrated for calling out former President Trump.

On the eve of Trumps second arraignment  this time on federal charges  his former buddy and current 2024 opponent trash-talked him with zest during a CNN town hall Monday.

No insult Christie leveled at Trump was quite as poetic as his description last week of the former president as a lonely, self-consumed, self-serving mirror hog. He also called Trump a child, completely self-centered, completely self-consumed, a three-time loser, a loser, loser, loser, and victim me, poor me.

In the current GOP orthodoxy, Christies honesty is apostasy.

And yet his performance, I daresay, brought a touch of sanity to an otherwise delusional Republican presidential field.

Folks like Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley and former Vice President Mike Pence have been reluctant to take on the former guy, who continues to dominate the polls regardless of his mounting legal woes.

Read more: Former New Jersey Gov. Christie kicks off 2024 GOP presidential bid with swipes at Trump

Some of the Republican presidential candidates cant even bring themselves to utter Trump's name. A recent Iowa gathering of some Republican candidates, said Christie, was a case in point.

It was like he was Voldemort from Harry Potter, Christie said. Like, nobody wanted to mention his name. Like, say his name, man, say his name! Right? I mean, how do you beat someone if you won't talk about them? How do you beat them if you won't distinguish yourself from them?"

Read more: Column: Why Donald Trump's federal indictment is as breathtaking as it was inevitable

Maybe they dont want to distinguish themselves from Trump. Maybe each is praying that Trump's candidacy implodes, opening the way for him- or herself as the Trump alternative.

"A number of Republicans have been reluctant to talk about the substance of actually what's in [the indictment], noted CNN host Anderson Cooper.

I hadnt noticed, Christie replied dryly. How about you decide who is the most honest, forthright leader who has common sense and will put you first, and let's put that person behind the desk in the Oval Office?

Taking boxes of classified documents in violation of the Presidential Records Act, then trying to keep them away from federal officials who subpoenaed them and inducing others to lie, said Christie, is inexcusable in my opinion for someone who wants to be president of the United States.

As for the tiresome Republican refrain that President Biden has weaponized the Department of Justice against Trump, Christie, a former federal prosecutor was brusque: You know, look, I don't think so. This evidence looks pretty damning.  How about blame him? He did it.

Read more: Republicans are crowding the 2024 race. It boosts Trump, but may help the GOP in the end

If Trump had simply returned the boxes, said Christie, none of this would have happened. He is saying, I am more important than the country. These are my papers. This is vanity run amok, ego run amok.

And if the angry and vengeful Trump were to be reelected, Christie said, you can bet the rerun will be uglier than the original. A second Trump term would be all about him settling scores with everybody who he thinks wasnt perfectly nice to him.

In 2018, Lincoln Project co-founder Rick Wilson authored the withering critique Everything Trump Touches Dies. Trumps friendship with Christie is no exception.

Christie supported Trump early on after he dropped out of the 2016 nominating contest, and helped Trump prep for his presidential debates that year and in 2020. (Christie nearly died after contracting COVID-19 from Trump during a 2020 debate prep session. Trump had not disclosed to Christie that he had tested positive that morning before the prep had begun and, Christie alleged Monday, later told reporters that Christie gave it to him.)

Read more: Calmes: Really, CNN? A town hall for Trump now?

Christie's breaking point with Trump came when the president stood behind the presidential seal in the wee hours after polls closed in November 2020 and declared himself the winner. CNN played the clip for the town hall audience: This is a fraud on the American public," Trump said. "This is an embarrassment to our country. We were getting ready to win this election. Frankly, we did win this election.

Of course, no one knew who won the election at that point. It was far too early.

Trump, Christie said, behaved like a schoolchild who came home with a bad grade and blamed the teacher, or the kid sitting next to him for distracting him.

Its a childs reaction, he said, and I beg you to think about this. Dont allow the showmanship to obscure the facts. The facts are he lost to Joe Biden.

The town hall wasnt all Trump bashing, as refreshing as that was.

Christie refused to step into the culture wars muck, telling Cooper that states should make up their own minds about abortion. He disavowed his previous position that no one needs assault weapons, saying that its not a matter of need, its a matter of what the 2nd Amendment allows. He gave a remarkably sensitive answer about drug addiction and incarceration  telling a woman with a troubled son that addiction is a disease requiring treatment, not a moral failing.

Which is probably why hes polling at only about 1% among likely Republican voters.

In today's GOP, speaking truth to Trump is unforgivable. Necessary, if the party is to regain its sanity, but unforgivable.

@robinkabcarian

If its in the news right now, the L.A. Times Opinion section covers it. Sign up for our weekly opinion newsletter.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
The Liberty mayor faced off with a community member at Mondays city council meeting who made continued comments regarding a years-long debate over a Confederate statue in a cemetery blocks from the citys downtown square.

Dwayne Holtzclaw, who said hes spoken at more than 70 city council meetings, said the city is disrespecting veterans through a continuing civil lawsuit to gain ownership of the land the statue sits on.

Simply a coward does this, he said, when Mayor Greg Canuteson interrupted.

I dont think anybody is attacking an American grave of an American veteran, Canuteson replied.

I dont need to listen to you anymore, Canuteson, who was elected in April, continued. You have made your point. You are marring this meeting.

Holtzclaw called Canuteson a coward and walked away from the podium. Canuteson responded, saying Holtzclaw wouldnt have the guts to call him one outside of the meeting.

Oh absolutely, Holtzclaw said. You meet me outside here, Id be more than happy.

Well see about that, the mayor replied. Ill meet you out there. Youre a Confederate coward.

The two argued until Canuteson repeatedly told the speaker to leave the meeting. Addressing other council members and the public, he said city leaders have repeatedly been attacked for more than two years over the debate surrounding the statue, when he believes there are more important issues they should be focused on.

Great things are happening in this community, and we have to listen to that crap every council meeting, Canuteson said.

Holtzclaw has attended city council meetings for years to debate the issue of the Confederate statue and threaten council members, sometimes claiming he knew where they lived, without repercussion, Canuteson said.

On social media, he said Holtzclaw has expressed racist views and wants to protect a statue that he says is an important grave marker for his ancestors and includes Nathan Bedford Forrest, a Confederate general and the first Ku Klux Klan grand wizard, on its list of honorees.

Canuteson told The Star that he wanted to fight back on Holtzclaws claims and show that Liberty is not a city that will tolerate racism.

We have great things going on in our community, and thats what we should be focusing on, he said. Instead, every week we have to listen to this horse shit coming from him and his racist views.

I, for one, do not intend to let them go unanswered anymore, he continued, because the citizens of Liberty reject his racist views.

Debate over the statue, which sits in Fairview & New Hope cemeteries, has raged on for at least three years. Since then, just over 2,900 people have signed a petition urging city leaders to remove the statue of a Confederate soldier atop a pedestal who overlooks the graves of Confederate soldiers.

A town named Liberty should not have a monument that memorializes people that brutally removed that right from people of color, Patrick Campbell, who started the petition, wrote. It sits in a graveyard but it is not a grave just an intimidating reminder of Clay Countys confederate past that should no longer be publicly promoted.

Shortly after, other community members started a counter-petition that garnered more than 1,200 signatures, arguing that the statue was erected in 1904 and paid for with dollars from local fundraising. The statue, Gieselle Fest wrote, is on a plot owned by the United Confederate Veterans, now the Sons of Confederate Veterans.

Last February, the citys previous mayor Lyndell Brenton said residents could no longer comment on the issue at meetings until the civil case is resolved. Instead, he said community members could send written comments to the deputy city clerk that would be entered into the public record and shared with public officials rather than be read aloud at meetings.

Once the court proceeding determines who owns the land, Canuteson said the public will have time to argue what they think should be done with the statue. Until then, he said the constant arguments are pointless.

Members of the pro-Confederate group have also attacked city council members and tried to elect officials who agree with their views. Instead, he said the majority of voters elected its current representatives and mayor.

The voters of this district did what was right and elected these folks because they didnt want to listen to this bullshit, Canuteson said.
A former Democratic congressman who founded a network of Hebrew-language charter schools in Florida hopes to launch the second explicitly religious charter in the nation.

The idea for a Jewish charter school in Oklahoma could gather steam following last weeks hotly contested vote to approve a virtual Catholic charter school in the state.

This is the logical progression in terms of what the Constitution says, said Peter Deutsch, who veers sharply from his party on the issue. I still believe in a lot of things the Democrats believe in, but school choice is a civil rights issue in this generation.

Peter Deutsch (Abaco Photography)

A Jewish charter would allow Deutsch to offer families something he couldnt when he founded Ben Gamla Charter School in Hollywood, Florida, in 2007  an education not only focused on Hebrew language, culture and history, but the tenets of Judaism.

It also opens a window into a sometimes uncomfortable intersection of church, state and market forces as Oklahoma pushes the nation into uncharted legal territory.

I always know its a hot topic when my phone blows up before its on the cover of the Wall Street Journal or CNN, Maury Litwack, founder of Teach Coalition, said Friday during a webinar about the Catholic charter. With groups in Florida, Maryland, New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania, the coalition is affiliated with the Orthodox Union, which supports synagogues and youth programs.

Deutsch visited Oklahoma in January to meet with Jewish leaders. But not all groups share his interest. After last weeks vote, the Jewish Federation of Greater Oklahoma City, a nonreligious group, called the charter boards decision unconstitutional.

The Statewide Virtual Charter Board voted 3-2 to approve the St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School despite warnings from Attorney General Gentner Drummond that it violates state law.

Drummond is currently reviewing that vote. In his opinion, a board member added just three days before the decision technically shouldnt have voted because state law says new appointments dont take effect until Nov. 1. Bob Bobek, a former state board of education member, replaced Barry Beauchamp, a retired superintendent. Before the vote, Robert Franklin, the boards chair, asked Bobek to recuse himself, but he refused.

The possible invalidation of the vote would likely be only a temporary setback because the Archdiocese of Oklahoma City and the Diocese of Tulsa can appeal to the state board. Brett Farley, executive director of the Catholic Conference of Oklahoma, a policy organization, said he has even more confidence in that scenario because Gov. Kevin Stitt, who strongly supports the application, appointed the board members.

Related

Charting New Legal Territory, Okla. Approves First Religious Charter School

The case for religious charters could also get considerable ballast if the U.S. Supreme Court agrees to hear a federal case from North Carolina that asks whether charter schools are public or private. On June 22, the U.S. Supreme Court will discuss whether to hear Charter Day School Inc. v. Peltier, in which a charter school argues that because its a nonprofit, it should be free to enforce a dress code requiring girls to wear skirts.

Both charter leaders and advocates for religious freedom say the court could help settle the debate over whether charters can explicitly teach religion. If the court declines to hear it, a decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit that charters are public schools acting on behalf of the state would stand.

The 4th Circuit is a major loss for those pushing for religious charters, said Derek Black, a University of South Carolina law professor. And if the Supreme Court declines to hear it, that is a major affirmation of that loss.

But others agree with Deutsch that some parents want publicly funded educational options that include faith-based schools.

Yes, we have to follow the law, Lynn Norman-Teck, executive director of the Florida Charter School Alliance, said about the states requirement that charters be nonsectarian. But she added that charter schools absolutely have to understand parent demand and the evolution of education.

She remembers when Deutsch was trying to convince the Broward County Board of Education to approve the first Ben Gamla school, two years after he left Congress following a failed Senate run.

Some worried it would be hard to divorce the instruction of Hebrew, the language of Judaism, from teaching the faith itself.

In April, students from Ben Gamla Charter in Hollywood, Florida, participated in an Israel Independence Day celebration at loanDepot park in Miami. (Ben Gamla Charter School Hollywood)

Eleanor Sobel, then a school board member and later a state senator, was among the most outspoken opponents, telling reporters that it would be nearly impossible to monitor whether Judaism was actually part of the curriculum. Even after it opened, the board told the school to stop teaching Hebrew until officials were satisfied that teachers werent advocating religion. The restriction was lifted a few weeks later.

Norman-Teck said she doesnt hear those concerns anymore and that Ben Gamla, now a network of six schools, serves a diverse population including Black and Caribbean students.

They proved the board wrong, she said. They were very careful that that line wasnt crossed.

Related

Classical Academies: What if Educations Next Big Thing is 2,500 Years Old?

But a lot has changed in Florida in 16 years. If he was developing the school today, Deutsch said he would establish a Jewish voucher school because of the explosion of private school choice in Florida. In fact, 40% of students in Floridas Jewish day schools were receiving a state scholarship even before Gov. Ron DeSantis signed legislation in March that made all students eligible for a voucher or education savings account worth about $8,500.

Ironically, an Oklahoma charter would allow Deutsch to accomplish something his critics in Florida feared he would do there: create a public school with an explicitly Jewish curriculum.

With the political hurdle in Oklahoma largely eliminated, Deutsch said his biggest problem might be practical: finding enough interested Jews to fill a school.

I spoke with every Jew I could find near Oklahoma City, Deutsch said. Currently, thats a small number; only about 4,400 of Oklahomas nearly 4 million residents are Jewish. But he added, There are families that I believe would move to Oklahoma if there was a Jewish religious charter school.

Fridays virtual webinar featured Michael Helfand of Pepperdine University and Notre Dame Universitys Nicole Garnett  both law professors who focus on religious liberty. Garnett argues religious organizations that want to open charters should be able to receive public funds, much like faith-based adoption agencies and soup kitchens.

Related

Florida Just Became the Nations Biggest School Choice Laboratory

But Helfand is less convinced that if the Supreme Court takes up the North Carolina case, justices will rule that charters are private. Despite recent decisions favoring public funds for religious schools, he expects the court will decide its time for some boundaries on this kind of general momentum.
The conviction of a Perth Amboy man serving 90 years in prison for sexually assaulting his two stepdaughters over eight years has been overturned by a state Appellate Court.

Jose Miranda, 42, will have a new trial on charges he committed multiple acts of sexual abuse on the two girls when the family lived together in Perth Amboy from March 2010 to April 2018.

One of the girls was less than 9 years old and the other was in second grade when the alleged abuse began.

Following a trial in October 2019 before Superior Court Judge Colleen Flynn in Middlesex County, Miranda was sentenced to 90 years in state prison on 11 counts of sexual abuse with 25 years of parole eligibility.

But on Monday the Appellate Court reversed the conviction and ordered on new trial, ruling that a question the judge asked during jury selection was "unnecessarily confusing."

Courts: Childs statement allowed in former Plainfield teacher's sexual assault trial

The judge asked the jurors if they believed that in sexual assault cases the prosecution had to produce physical or biological evidence to prove the charges or would testimony be enough, without the physical or biological evidence, to prove the charges beyond a reasonable doubt.

The Appellate Court ruled that the question favored the prosecution because it implied the jury could convict Miranda despite the lack of physical or biological evidence but did not ask the potential jurors if they understood that reasonable doubt could be raised by the lack of that evidence.

During the trial both girls testified about acts committed by Miranda.

The elder stepdaughter testified that the sexual abuse began one week after Miranda moved into the house when she was 9 years old.

Courts: State Supreme Court rules in favor of NJ teacher who lost tenure after child was born

She also testified that if she wanted lunch money, food, "random stuff, anything," she was required to provide sexual favors.

She also said she did not disclose what Miranda was doing because she didn't want to "destroy" the family, court papers say.

The other stepdaughter testified the abuse occurred at home in her mother's and sister's bedrooms and in Miranda's car in the parking lots of Walgreens, Wegmans and ShopRite.

The younger stepdaughter also testified that when police first asked her about what her sister had alleged, she did not say what Miranda did to her because she "was scared  and so worried." And, according to court papers, she did not tell her mother because she did not believe what her daughter was saying about Miranda.

Eventually the younger stepdaughter confided in her brother who then contacted police.

Email: mdeak@mycentraljersey.com

Mike Deak is a reporter for mycentraljersey.com. To get unlimited access to his articles on Somerset and Hunterdon counties, please subscribe or activate your digital account.

This article originally appeared on MyCentralJersey.com: NJ man convicted of stepdaughters' sex assault gets new trial
Miramax

News of the death of Cormac McCarthy earlier this week has been met with an expected wildfire of melancholy. McCarthy, at 89, was one of few living authors with a standing claim to the title of the Great American Novelist, both for how widely beloved his writing was and for how frequently he threw a spotlight, at once mythic and unflattering, on the essential character of the Southwest. His sudden absence leaves a crater of Grand Canyon proportions on the literary landscape.

One does have to wonder what McCarthy himself would say of such public lamentations, the very big deal the world is making of his passing. Death, after all, was a defining subject of his work. It cast a terrible shadow over his visions of the barbaric past and futureand over the movies, rarely as good as the books, made from them.

In his work, McCarthy was almost never sentimental about death. He acknowledged it as a constantly looming reality, indiscriminate in aim, often brutal in realization, inescapable. You could say his death on Tuesday fulfilled the promise and invisible dramatic arc of his bibliography: Like Emily Dickinson, another American writer of morbid preoccupations, he seemed to be preparing for it his whole career.

Cormac McCarthy Was American Lits Lyrical Lone Wolf

At least once, Hollywood managed to bottle the fatalistic power of McCarthy's work. On screen, as on the page, No Country For Old Men is an impossibly lean, nasty thriller that decays, like a body under the sweltering Texas sun, into a kind of deconstruction of the genre itself. Much of the books amenability to adaptation comes from how it was written: McCarthy originally conceived the story as a screenplay, and those origins remain detectable in the brisk, bleak 2005 bestseller he wrote instead, characterized by typically sparse prose but also an uncommonly direct presentation of events. It already reads like a movie, and Joel and Ethan Coen, the great filmmakers tasked with officially making it into one, treat the words like a blueprint. Their No Country is an act of faithful transcription, give or take a few concessions.

Just as crucially, the Coens preserved the ruthlessly, deceptively straightforward narrative of the novel. And that includes the storys biggest surprise and most subversive twist, so radical you can scarcely believe it made it into a studio picture, let alone one that would go on to win the Academy Award for Best Picture. Of all the deaths in McCarthy's work, is there one more boldly, shockingly unceremonious thanspoiler alertthe ignoble end of cowboy protagonist Llewelyn Moss (Josh Brolin), whos shot and killed offscreen around the end of the second act?

That choice is straight out of the book, of course. One minute Moss, the gruff, competent, prototypical Marlboro Man weve been following for some 230 pages of life-or-death situations, is trading some friendly words with a flirtatious stranger at a motel. The next, hes dead on a slaba detail that reveals itself with little passion or emphasis, like its no more important than any other.

The Coens, in truth, inject a little more suspense into the moment, or maybe just a different kind: Instead of surveying the crime scene hours laterwith McCarthy strategically withholding the information of whos dead for a few pagesSheriff Ed Tom Bell (Tommy Lee Jones) shows up right at the tail end of the gun fight, but not soon enough to see our hero breathe his last breath. Moss dies between scenes, after the Coens fade out of a casual poolside chat, and before they cut back into the aftermath of a bloodbath, with Brolins outlaw already still.

Not since Norman Bates brought the knife down on a showering Marion Crane has a Hollywood thriller more fiendishly confounded viewer expectations. With Psycho, Hitchcock was pulling his ultimate prank on the audience, prematurely snuffing his protagonist to send a smirking warning: You're not safe, no one is safe, all bets are off.

No Country, which similarly pivots around the MacGuffin of a stolen satchel of money, is nearly as discombobulating. It also yanks the rug with philosophical intent, as a statement of worldview.

That No Country works splendidly as a thriller until it doesnt is all part of its brilliant design. For a long while, it delivers the conventionally entertaining goods, albeit of a more terrifying variety than usual: Theres a white hat (Moss), a black hat (Javier Bardem's blood-curdling assassin Anton Chigurh, one of cinemas greatest villains), and a lawman taking the rear (Bell). They chase each other. The movie is such a slender, muscular piece of genre filmmaking that you cant help but confuse it for an archetypal exercisejust a terrifically skeletal, violent game of cat and mouse, only about its expert mechanics. And so when Moss promises to bring the fight to Chigur, it feels like the movie is prepping us for a final gunslinger showdown, a duel for the ages.

That, too, is part of the cruelty of how things play out: Moss unseen, unexpected death denies the audience the rousing climax weve been taught to expect. Its not just that the cowboy doesnt winthat happens sometimes in Westerns. Its that he loses without fanfare, without a death scene, without a legendary Butch and Sundance freeze frame. Not heroically. Not at the end. To the extent that he goes down shooting, we dont see it. He dies alone in the dark nothingness between scenes. And its not even Chigurh, the big bad, who kills him. Its an anonymous, nearly unseen group of cartel members.

McCarthy's point is simple but profoundly delivered. He upends the trajectory of his talethe misleading impression of a mano-a-mano climax shifting into focusto indict the whole romantic framework of our Western outlaw storiesand to confound our notions of a moral universe. Theres no real lesson to be learned from Llewelyns fate: Yes, he takes the money (crime doesnt pay, or so weve been told before), but he also goes back to give a dying man water, putting his hide on the line. And hes just one of many characters Chigurh kills, without pity or remorse or even reason, over the course of the story.

Its tempting to see Bardems deranged killer as a force of pure evil, but McCarthy denies us even the comfort of that moral reading by making him mortal without knocking him off. Another of No Countrys brilliant subversions teases us with a near irony. After Chigurh escapes the law and clears his execution list, hes randomly hit by another driver in a residential fender bender. Will this instrument of destruction meet his own maker in an ordinary car accident? No, he survives that, too. Theres no logic to who dies or when. No sense to any of it.

Ultimately, its that offscreen death, that diabolical excision of incident, that stings the most and the best. In refusing to depict Moss final moments, the Coens, following McCarthys lead, capture the cruel, pointless, unavoidable suddenness of death. One minute youre alive, the next youre not. Its a fate impossible to avoid or predict. Or, as someone puts it towards the disquieting ending of No Country For Old Men, You can't stop whats coming.

McCarthy couldn't either, of course. But he found a wicked, unforgettable way to say so before joining all the fictional men and women he sent first into the dark.

Cormac McCarthy Uses Fiction to Cross Examine the Universe

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Progressive activist Cornel West announced he is seeking the Green Party nomination for president in 2024 after declaring his candidacy for the Peoples Party nomination last week.

West said that he decided to run as a candidate for the Green Party to try to build a broad United Front and coalition strategy.

In the spirit of a broad United Front and coalition strategy, I am pursuing the nomination of the Green Party for President of the United States, West tweeted Wednesday.

He asked people to support this unprecedented effort to empower precious poor and working people here and abroad. I thank the volunteers of the Peoples Party for the initial launch!

The Green Party tweeted in response to Wests post that the party welcomes his participation in its contest for a nominee.

Dr. West is an important voice for social and economic justice in line with our partys platform. We look forward to him participating in the nomination process, the Green Party tweeted.

West said in his campaign launch video that his candidacy would be centered around health care, living wages, housing, reproductive rights and deescalating the destruction of the planet and democracy.

He said he is running as a third-party candidate because neither party wants to tell the truth about Wall Street, Ukraine, the Pentagon and Big Tech.

West faces long odds with his third-party run, but polls showing that many do not want President Biden or former President Trump to be their partys nominees could open up greater support for an alternate candidate.

The political organization No Labels, which says it is pushing cooperation in a divided political landscape, has been hammered by Democrats, who say it could hand Trump the presidency if it backs a non-Biden moderate candidate.

Former Trump adviser Kellyanne Conway said last week in an interview with Fox News that West is very likely a bigger threat to Bidens reelection prospects than Robert F. Kennedy Jr., an anti-vaccine activist and political scion running for the Democratic nomination.

Even if you dont become president, you, as a third-party candidate spoiler, can decide who is the president, Conway said.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
FILE - Venezuelan migrants sell sweets on a street in San Jose, Costa Rica, Dec. 6, 2022. Costa Rica announced on Tuesday, June 13, 2023, that the U.S. government has agreed to open potential legal pathways to the United States for some of the Nicaraguan and Venezuelan migrants that among the 240,000 asylum seekers already awaiting asylum in the Central American country. (AP Photo/Carlos Gonzalez, File) (ASSOCIATED PRESS)

SAN JOSE, Costa Rica (AP)  Costa Rica and the U.S. government have agreed to open potential legal pathways to the United States for some of the Nicaraguan and Venezuelan migrants among the 240,000 asylum seekers already awaiting asylum in the Central American country.

The agreement  announced by Costa Rica Tuesday and the United States late Monday  appears aimed at reducing the pressure on Costa Ricas overwhelmed asylum system and heading off asylum seekers who could give up on the slow Costa Rica process and instead set off for the U.S. border.

In recent years, Costa Rica with a population of only 5 million has become one of the worlds leading receptors of asylum requests. In part, applying for asylum was a way for migrants to legalize their status and be allowed to seek work.

However, a soaring number of applications, largely from migrants fleeing neighboring Nicaragua, created a massive backlog. Last year, Nicaraguans accounted for nine out of 10 applicants.

On Tuesday, Public Security Minister Mario Zamora did not say how many of the 240,000 people awaiting asylum would be eligible to apply for one of the U.S. pathways. He and Costa Ricas migration director Marta Vinda emphasized that only Nicaraguans and Venezuelans with pending asylum applications would be considered.

Neither the U.S. nor Costa Rican governments provided details about what the legal pathways could be.

Zamora said the United Nations immigration and refugee agencies would compose a list of those who would be eligible. Migrants applying for asylum after June 12 would not qualify. The officials estimated that they would process about 1,000 cases per month.

On Monday, the U.S. State Department said in a statement the six-month pilot program could expedite refugee processing, as well as other humanitarian and labor options for those interested in entering the U.S.

In the first two months of the exploratory phase, only eligible individuals will be contacted to schedule a screening appointment at a Movilidad Segura office in Costa Rica to assess whether they are a qualified candidate for lawful pathways to the United States or other countries, the statement said. After the first two months, eligible migrants will have make an appointment through the MovilidadSegura.org website.

I suspect that its an effort to convince Nicaraguans and Venezuelans in the country to stay there temporarily, keeping numbers down in the short term as they get other things in place at the border, Aaron Reichlin-Melnick, policy director at the American Immigration Council, said in an email when asked about the Costa Rica agreement. But who knows how itll really work in practice.

In 2012, Costa Rica received barely 900 asylum applications. In 2018, that number reached nearly 28,000. Last year, the country received more than 67,000 applications between just January and September.

Costa Rica President Rodrigo Chaves said in December the system was being abused by economic migrants and its generous policies would be tightened. As an alternative, it offered a two-year work permit for Nicaraguans, Venezuelans and Cubans in exchange for dropping their asylum cases.

The U.S. government has been seeking ways to manage the flow of migrants toward its southern border. It has increasingly sought the cooperation of governments farther south on the migratory route.

On Monday, a website began working that allows Guatemalans, Hondurans, Salvadorans and Nicaraguans who are still in their countries to apply through a website for appointments to assess their eligibility for various legal pathways offered by the United States.

Nicaraguans and Venezuelans have become major sources of migration to the U.S .during Bidens presidency. In January, the U.S. began offering parole to up to 30,000 Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans and Venezuelans a month who apply online with a financial sponsor and arrive by air.

__

AP writer Elliot Spagat in San Diego contributed to this report.
Could new accountability plan help SLO County fight homelessness? Heres how it works

San Luis Obispo County is among the entities calling on Gov. Gavin Newsom to support a statewide plan to hold local governments accountable for their efforts to prevent homelessness.

On Monday, San Luis Obispo County Homeless Services Oversight Council chair Susan Funk and four other speakers representing the California State Association of Counties called on Newsom and the California State Legislature to adopt proposed trailer bill language for the accountability plan in the 2023-2024 state budget.

Funk called the bill a game changer in terms of coordinating responses to homelessness.

Were often scrambling to piece together funding from an alphabet soup of changing options and different requirements, Funk said at Mondays news conference. That slows us down, and our providers get cold feet about expanding even highly successful programs if the ongoing funding might suddenly disappear.

CSACs AT HOME plan  the acronym stands for Accountability, Transparency, Housing, Outreach, Mitigation and Economic Opportunity  lays out specific lines of responsibility, accountability and funding for every level of government in tackling homelessness.

So what could this plan look like in practice, and how could it change how San Luis Obispo County works to address homelessness?

Atascadero Mayor Pro Tem Susan Funk will run for the District 5 seat on the San Luis Obispo County Board of Supervisors in 2024.

Supervisors, homeless service providers endorse plan

Funk, who serves as Atascaderos mayor pro tempore, said she first learned about the AT HOME plan at a joint meeting between the League of California Cities and CSAC about a month and a half ago.

Dealing with issues surrounding homelessness can require financial and structural flexibility that many counties dont have, Funk said.

Funk said the AT HOME plan creates a regional compact that that is intended to reduce redundancies in service and ensure that various nonprofit organizations and government entities remain involved in the continuum of care.

Along with calls for consistent funding streams for care for homeless community members, the AT HOME plan would establish corrective action and technical assistance for local governments that fail to meet goals for homelessness prevention and, Contra Costa County Board of Supervisors member John Gioia said at Mondays news conference.

Gioia said the AT HOME plan makes state Homeless Housing, Assistance and Prevention grants contingent on meeting goals and participating in accountability measures.

The budget trailer bill also recognizes the importance of having built-in transparency for all of us as local officials, Gioia said. Individuals in in our communities dont distinguish between a city and county official, they just want the problem solved.

At the most recent SLO County homeless services council meeting, Funk said, local homeless services providers and city representatives had a lively discussion about whether to endorse the AT HOME plan before unanimously voting to pass a resolution of support.

The San Luis Obispo County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously to endorse the plan in May, Funk said.

So far, 29 California counties have endorsed the plan, including Monterey and Santa Barbara counties.

The choice is simple: We either take the steps to create a real system to address homelessness with ongoing responsibilities and ongoing funding, much like our proposal would do, or we choose to fail, CSAC CEO Graham Knaus said at the news conference.

The AT HOME trailer bill is set to be discussed in upcoming talks over the state budget, which Newsom must sign by July 1.
Cuts keep on coming as Newport, Middletown see more school funding losses in House budget

Some Newport County school districts, such as Newport and Middletown, are facing even deeper state aid budget cuts through the Houses approved 2024 budget bill.

The RI House of Representatives approved the 2024 state budget last Friday in a 68-4 vote. The budget bill (2023-H 5200Aaa) includes several changes to education funding throughout the state, including modifications to the school funding formula to better account for the concentration of impoverished families within a community and the number of English Language Learners in a community. The bill also includes an enrollment loss transition fund to help schools with declining student body populations.

Students get a look at the lockers inside Pell Elementary School in 2022.

None of this saves Newport and Middletown from receiving even deeper state aid funding cuts than they projected when the Governors Office unveiled its proposed Fiscal 2024 budget, however. According to the House Fiscal Advisory Staffs report on the budget bill, Newport Public Schools state aid funding was cut by an additional $237,795 from the Governors proposed budget, putting the district $421,000 behind its original state aid funding projection in its draft FY2024 budget.

Superintendent Colleen Burns Jermain said she and the districts director of administrative operations, Ron Gonsalves, have seen and discussed the shortfall, but have not yet had the opportunity to study the issue in-depth when the Newport Daily News reached out to them.

Middletown and Little Compton are the only other districts in Newport County that received further cuts from the house budget compared to the Governors proposed cuts. The additional $47,682 the house bill cut from the Governors proposed state aid to Middletown marks a 6.4% decrease in state aid it received for the 2022-23 school year, a total dollar loss of $539,764. In Little Compton, the house bill slashed an additional $577 from the Governors proposed state aid for the town.

Other Newport County communities received more money from the House-approved budget than they originally saw from the Governors proposed budget, but most are still facing a state aid shortfall. Portsmouth was able to recoup $96,474 from the Governors original $275,031 state aid cut and Tiverton, which faced $313,253 in cuts through the governors proposal, was able to win back $37,837 through the house bill.

Jamestown School Department, which $361,154 boost in state aid funding through the governors proposal, was the only community to remain in the black following these state aid budget cuts, receiving an additional $42,103 from the house bill as well.

School construction: Middletown lobbied to increase school construction reimbursements. What's next?

The bill also gives $4 million in funding to the governors new Learn 365 RI program, a learning initiative launched this year of which Newport and other communities are already members.

Now that the state House has passed the budget bill, the state budget will next be heard by the state Senate.

This article originally appeared on Newport Daily News: RI House budget reduces education funding for Newport, Middletown
WASHINGTON  A Washington, D.C., chiropractor who admitted that he scuffled with officers during the Jan. 6 Capitol attack was sentenced to 60 days of incarceration on Tuesday, with U.S. District Judge Jia M. Cobb saying she did not believe his claims about why he was at the Capitol.

David Walls-Kaufman of the Capitol Hill Chiropractic Center was arrested in June 2022 and pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of parading, demonstrating or picketing in a Capitol building, in January.

Walls-Kaufman was originally scheduled to be sentenced in May, but Cobb delayed it after receiving letters from family members of Jeffrey Smith, a Metropolitan Police Department officer who died by suicide shortly after Jan. 6.

Smiths widow filed a lawsuit against Walls-Kaufman and another man, Taylor Taranto, shortly after they were identified by online sleuths, accusing them of assaulting and playing a role in her husbands death. Taranto, who lives in Washington state and has not been arrested or charged in connection with Jan. 6, has acknowledged being at the Capitol that day but denied any involvement in Smiths death. Walls-Kaufman was not charged with assaulting Smith and also denies a role in his death.

Taranto was inside the courtroom for Walls-Kaufmans sentencing hearing Tuesday. A pair of U.S. Marshals spoke to Taranto outside the courtroom after one of them spotted Taranto using his phone inside the court gallery, and NBC News heard Taranto identify himself to the marshals by name. In recent weeks, livestream and other videos have shown Taranto has been a regular presence at protests outside of the D.C. jail, where supporters of Jan. 6 defendants have gathered.

Erin Smith, Jeffrey Smiths widow, spoke at Tuesdays sentencing hearing, which unfolded at the same time that former President Donald Trump was making his first court appearance in a federal courthouse in Miami in connection with his indictment for allegedly mishandling classified documents and trying to obstruct a federal investigation. Erin Smith told the court that her late husband was a great police officer who took great pride in his work. She said that everything changed on January 6, 2021, and that her husband was a different person after the events of that day.

Surveillance photo of David Walls- Kaufman from Oct. 19, 2021. (FBI)

Smiths body-worn camera footage, released after the lawsuit against Walls-Kaufman and Taranto was filed, indicated that he was struck at least twice on Jan. 6: once during the scuffle that took place as he and other officers tried to push Walls-Kaufman, Taranto and dozens of other rioters out of the Capitol after the death of Ashli Babbitt; and hours later, when an unknown individual in the mob outside the Capitol threw a metal object that struck Smith in the face.

A reminder of what Officer Jeffrey Smith went through on Jan. 6: pic.twitter.com/LE7BlHfTe9  Ryan J. Reilly (@ryanjreilly) March 10, 2022

The D.C. Police and Firefighters Retirement and Relief Board previously found that Smiths injuries from Jan. 6 were the sole and direct cause of his death by suicide and granted survivor benefits because his death was found to have happened in the line of duty.

My life will never be the same, Erin Smith said. She spoke about how she had to fight to get justice and enlist the help of online Sedition Hunters to comb through hours and hours of video to find out what happened to her husband that day. She said she lost the opportunity to grow a family with her husband.

I now live a sentence of life without Jeff, Erin Smith said.

Richard Smith, Jeffrey Smiths father, told the court that he suspects that Walls-Kaufman continues to believe the 2020 election was stolen, and said that the senseless, violent attack on his son was more than a mere scuffle, in his view. Its an assault, plain and simple, he said.

David Walls-Kaufman inside the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. (FBI)

Video shows that Walls-Kaufman entered the Capitol with the mob at the same time as John Strand and Simone Gold. Strand, a male model who was working as security guard for Gold, was charged with felony obstruction of an official proceeding and aiding and abetting, and was sentenced to 32 months in federal prison.

After he entered the Capitol, Walls-Kaufman went inside the office of then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and snapped a photo of her laptop before it was stolen by another rioter. At the hearing on Tuesday, Walls-Kaufman claimed hed opened a latch on one of the doors to Pelosis conference room so it wouldnt be damaged. I unlatched that door to get it out of the way, he said.

USDCDC (USDCDC)

Walls-Kaufman told the court that he was extremely sorry about what happened that day and my role in it, but then said that he was there to cover what took place because he was drawn to history and human events. Walls-Kaufman has previously written for the conservative publication American Thinker, where he opined that the lefts contempt for America is total.

Walls-Kaufman, in the days after the election, shared an open letter to Trump on Facebook, calling on the then-president to save this election and do everything in his power to deliver the honest vote. The government said that, in an interview with the FBI after his arrest, Walls-Kaufman extensively discussed misinformation about the 2020 election being stolen." But in court on Tuesday, Walls-Kaufman said that he was a Democrat and that he did not know if the election was stolen.

David Walls-Kaufman inside the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. (FBI)

He also claimed that Babbitt  who was shot in the threshold of a broken window leading into the Speakers Lobby  was not trying to enter the Speakers Lobby and that the glass was not broken. It was.

Walls-Kaufman said that he was tremendously upset and emotional because of what he had seen on Jan. 6, but said there was no evidence that he was a cop killer. He said that people only read the headlines and not the fine print. The longer the sentence, Walls-Kaufman said, the more true it will be.

Cobb  who in other Jan. 6 cases has given sentences below what prosecutors have sought  sentenced Walls-Kaufman to 60 days of incarceration, which is the period of time that federal prosecutors had requested.

Cobb said Walls-Kaufmans case was on the more serious end of the misdemeanor cases, and that she could use my own eyes to see the video of what happened. She said she could not credit Walls-Kaufmans claim to be an amateur journalist as the reason he went to the Capitol.

Im not getting a great sense of remorse, Cobb said.

This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
Former President Trump on Tuesday framed himself as a victim of selective and politically motivated prosecution hours after pleading not guilty to charges that he obstructed justice and endangered national security by refusing to hand over classified documents from his time in the White House.

Trump offered up numerous misleading or inaccurate defenses for his conduct in a speech to supporters from his Bedminster, N.J., club. He compared his own handling of classified materials favorably to how other presidents have handled sensitive documents, and he argued his prosecution was an effort to damage his 2024 presidential campaign.

This is called election interference in yet another attempt to rig and steal a presidential election, Trump said. Its a political persecution like something straight out of a fascist or communist nation. This day will go down in infamy and Joe Biden will forever be remembered as the most corrupt president in the history of our country.

The remarks offered up a likely road map to how Trump and his team are likely to address the allegations moving forward.

More Trump arraignment coverage

Trump attacked Biden as a corrupt sitting president, and he lambasted special counsel Jack Smith, the man leading the investigation into his conduct, as a thug and raging lunatic.

Trump argued that his right to keep whatever documents he wanted was enshrined by the Presidential Records Act, even though the law states that all presidential records belong to the federal government once a president leaves office.

He also claimed that he was innocent because neither former President Bill Clinton, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton nor President Biden faced legal repercussions for their handling of classified materials.

Then-FBI Director James Comey accused Hillary Clinton of extreme carelessness for having a private email server at her home but added, We did not find clear evidence that Secretary Clinton or her colleagues intended to violate laws governing the handling of classified information.

Former President Donald Trump speaks at Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster, N.J., Tuesday, June 13, 2023, after pleading not guilty in a Miami courtroom earlier in the day to dozens of felony counts that he hoarded classified documents and refused government demands to give them back. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)

Former President Donald Trump speaks at Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster, N.J., Tuesday, June 13, 2023, after pleading not guilty in a Miami courtroom earlier in the day to dozens of felony counts that he hoarded classified documents and refused government demands to give them back. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)

Former President Clinton kept tapes of his conversations with author and historian David Branch, reportedly storing them in a sock drawer. But the tapes were deemed personal records and did not contain classified records.

In Bidens case, aides notified the Department of Justice (DOJ) upon discovering classified material from his time as vice president in an old Washington, D.C., office and at Bidens Delaware home. And the presidents team has cooperated with the resulting DOJ probe of Bidens handling of classified material, a stark contrast to Trumps alleged obstruction.

Im not the one who thinks Im above the law, Im the one that follows the law, Trump declared Tuesday.

Trump pleaded not guilty Tuesday afternoon to charges on 37 counts following a DOJ indictment alleging he violated both the Espionage Act and obstructed justice in taking classified records from his presidency and refusing to return them.

Trump was indicted Thursday in connection with the investigation led by Jack Smith, with the unsealed document revealing Trump would also be facing charges on concealing documents and making false statements.

The indictment alleged that Trump kept the documents in various rooms of his Mar-a-Lago club in Florida, which frequently hosted large events and gatherings. It also alleged Trump on two separate occasions spoke about specific classified materials with staffers at his New Jersey club who did not have security clearances.

Trump on Tuesday repeatedly tied his prosecution to his status as the front-runner for the Republican presidential nomination for 2024, and recent polls have shown a close race in a hypothetical rematch between Trump and Biden.

I am the only one that can save this nation because you know theyre not coming after me, theyre coming after you, and I just happen to be standing in their way, Trump said. On Nov. 5, 2024, justice will be done. We will take back our country, and we will make America great again.

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While several Republicans have criticized Trumps conduct, including some of his 2024 rivals, he has yet to pay a short-term political price for facing federal charges.

A CBS News/YouGov poll published Sunday found 61 percent of Republican voters surveyed said the indictment did not change the way they viewed Trump, while 80 percent of Republicans said he should still be able to assume office if hes convicted but goes on to win the 2024 election.

The poll showed Trump maintained a wide lead over Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R), his next closest challenger, despite news of the indictment.

An ABC News/Ipsos survey published on Sunday similarly found that 80 percent of Republicans said they believe the charges against Trump are politically motivated, compared to just 9 percent of GOP voters who said they didnt see politics in the charges.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
Deltona's former acting manager and deputy city manager are suing the city. Here's why

Deltona City Hall, 2345 Providence Blvd.

Deltona's former acting city manager and the former deputy city manager are suing their ex-employer.

John Peters III filed a breach of contract lawsuit regarding his employment as acting city manager, and Stacey Kifolo filed a lawsuit under Florida's Public Sector Whistleblower Act.

Each is seeking in excess of $50,000 in damages, according to court records.

Dispute over severance pay

Peters' lawsuit states that based on his contract with the city, he is owed just over $63,416 in severance, which he hasn't received.

The former acting city manager is asking the court to award him 20 weeks of severance pay and benefits as well as legal fees, according to the lawsuit.

Peters was hired as public works director in June 2019. In November 2020, the Deltona City Commission asked him to serve as acting city manager, following the demotion of Marc-Antonie Cooper.

Cooper, who settled his own lawsuit against Deltona in May 2022 for $45,000, served as interim manager following Jane Shang's resignation.

Peters accepted and held the job for two years, receiving positive reviews.

In September 2022, Peters submitted his resignation with the expectation he could return to his role in public works, an option that was written in his employment agreement, according to the lawsuit.

However, during a meeting on Sept. 19, 2022, the commission "not only refused to 'mutually agree' to permit Peters to return to his former position but actually terminated him as Acting City Manager 'without cause' that night," according to the lawsuit.

The city doesn't comment on pending litigation, Catherine Barker, city spokeswoman, said.

Former deputy manager accuses city of retaliation

Kifolo was hired by Peters in August 2021 as deputy city manager. She said her work environment became more hostile when Peters left and Marsha Segal-George, one of the city attorneys, stepped into the role of interim manager.

Kifolo said she was retaliated against by Segal-George and a few of the sitting commissioners for raising concerns over the goings-on in Deltona including questions about the city pension plan, emergency services, and collective bargaining issues with the city firefighters union.

On Oct. 3, 2022, Segal-George's interim status ended, and there was "no official extension" of her serving in that role "by virtue of a majority vote" by the commission, the lawsuit states.

Ian-related flooding: Details on the class-action lawsuit filed against the City of Deltona

On Oct. 4, 2022, Kifolo filed a complaint with human resources, the lawsuit states. On Oct. 5, 2022, Segal-George suspended Kifolo, accusing her of insubordination.

The lawsuit states Kifolo didn't learn about the reason behind Segal-George's allegation until an outside labor and employment attorney told her that Segal-George accused her of not sharing an email regarding firefighter union contract negotiations.

The lawsuit also states that after city leaders learned Segal-George's accusation about the email "was knowingly false," the story surrounding Kifolo's absence changed.

Jim Chisholm, who had recently been hired as Deltona's interim manager, told the commission Kifolo had not been suspended but placed on administrative leave without any disciplinary action, according to the lawsuit.

On Oct. 13, 2022, Kifolo submitted a follow-up complaint to HR detailing the hostile work environment and retaliation she'd experienced, the lawsuit states. She was fired on Nov. 16, 2022.

Kifolo is asking for damages with a request for equitable relief, including but not limited to legal fees, an order prohibiting further retaliatory action, and a jury trial.

This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Deltona's ex acting manager, ex deputy city manager are suing the city
Since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, Ukrainians have consolidated, united, forgotten about all internal squabbles for a while to join in a single burst of struggle with an external enemy. Various studies have demonstrated an unprecedented level of support for the authorities and approval of how and where the country is moving.

However, time passes, threats change, events in the country unfold, the severity of their perception increases, while discontent and fatigue accumulate. Eventually, there is a lot of disappointment in many aspects. And it is the way society feels and acts in such periods that can testify to the level of its maturity and demonstrate how it has progressed.

Now it is no less important to preserve the social health of Ukrainians than to save the country. Therefore, measuring public opinion and considering it when making socially significant decisions is becoming increasingly relevant. And since the issue of reconstruction after unprecedented destruction is a crucial component of the country's future, we wanted to understand what expectations and demands the society formed on this part of the way.

That is why Info Sapiens conducted a sociological study of the expectations and fears of Ukrainians and business representatives in the processes of future reconstruction, commissioned by Transparency International Ukraine with the support of the USAID Project Support to Anti-Corruption Champion Institutions.

The survey was conducted in March-April 2023, so it did not cover the consequences of terrorism at the Kakhovka HPP. At the same time, it undoubtedly indicates the general mood and wishes of the society today and should ultimately determine the specific steps of the state. The study also shows in which aspects we have really matured, and where we still have something to learn.

Here are a few interesting discoveries I have made.

1. Corruption is seen as the main challenge and threat to the development of the state

Traditionally, Ukrainians consider corruption to be among the three main problems. For us, those who have been working with this topic for many years, it is no surprise, but it is symptomatic that this trend persists even in times of the full-scale war.

In general, Ukrainians consider the war (100%), destruction of infrastructure and housing (98%), as well as corruption (94%; 77% as very serious and 17% as serious) to be serious problems. The residents of the west of the country consider the problem of corruption to be especially acute.

In addition, when asked whether they have doubts that the recovery plans would not be implemented properly, more than half of Ukrainians expressed their fears about the restoration of corruption schemes (73%) and the embezzlement of funds due to lack of control (68%). At the same time, 45% of respondents mentioned that the threat of resumption of hostilities could disrupt reconstruction plans. That is, after the victory, Ukrainians fear corruption much more than war.

Personally, for me to realize this was very scary. Because this once again emphasizes the complexity of the dual task set before us  not only to win the war, but also not to lose the country of the future.

But it can also be considered a kind of marker of a mature society. In fact, younger and more active people fear that the price paid  the lives lost, the destruction, the suffering of the people  would not be in vain. Ukrainians want our society to turn the crisis into growth. They look beyond the horizons of war. And this is, undoubtedly, great.

2. The European future is not only about values, but also about the quality of life  Ukrainians want to rebuild "better than it was"

"Reconstruction" is almost a magical word. Everyone is able to interpret and does interpret it in their own way.

For some people, this means restoring their lost housing, for others  the plant where they worked. It is important for someone to return to the city or village which they left. And someone expects that as part of the reconstruction, roads will be built that have never been built before.

But one thing is certain  Ukrainians want and believe in a life "better than it was."

The vast majority (88%) believes that Ukraine should develop plans and strategies for reconstruction now so as not to waste time after the victory. At the same time, 97% of respondents believe that before starting reconstruction works, it is necessary to develop and record strategic plans for reconstruction in the regulatory documents. And it is undoubtedly quite a mature and thoughtful vision.

Theres more to come. According to the population, when choosing contractors for reconstruction works, it is necessary to focus on the quality of works, their compliance with global standards and experience, and not to consider only the price and speed.

At the same time, planning and reconstruction should not be postponed! 59% of Ukrainians are convinced that housing for those who lost it should be built now, and not wait for major construction after the victory. And here, of course, the primary attention should be paid to the restoration of the critical infrastructure of the country, houses come second. This is what the majority believes.

That is, Ukrainians, though inclined to believe in the "magic wand," think more and more pragmatically. They understand that the reconstruction will last about 10 years  60% of respondents said this. And with all their desires, they see the risk that "better than it was" may not happen, so it is necessary to at least recover to the pre-war level  77% of respondents partially or totally agree with this.

Having seen these figures, I got the feeling that, to a certain extent, Ukrainians are ready to endure some inconveniences now to have a better result in the future. But everyone can have their understanding of the form of this "better," so the engagement of citizens, communication with the population both at the national and regional levels will be in great demand during the reconstruction. The mediation of conflicts and the search for consensus solutions are already becoming crucial tools for interaction between the authorities and the population.

3. There is a risk of painful disappointments

However, let us not be deluded that Ukrainian society is devoid of infantility and is already sufficiently conscious and mature. The fact is that, in general, the population demonstrates a rather weak idea of the responsibility and role of various social institutions in the future reconstruction.

How should this process take place according to Ukrainians?

The President of Ukraine should attract funding, control costs, and set tasks for reconstruction works.

International organizations and donors should attract funding and pay for reconstruction.

Independent auditors and expert groups should monitor costs.

International business must attract financing and provide reconstruction.

Local authorities are also obliged to attract funding and pay for reconstruction, as well as set tasks and be responsible for the final result.

And the duties of the legislative and central executive authorities, together with the local community and activists, include setting tasks and responsibility for the final result.

At the same time, the vast majority of citizens believe that their engagement in public discussions is necessary and important. However, this is probably mostly a declarative desire, and it is unlikely that many people will participate in a professional discussion on reconstruction plans.

But, again, these results indicate that a high awareness of the population about the course of reconstruction, responsible persons/institutions at different stages, the completeness and frequency of dialogue with the population should become an integral part of the work of the authorities. Given a low level of trust in various government institutions, raising awareness, regularity of informing and engaging citizens in decision-making are essential for the society to mature.

How realistic are the recovery timeframes? What are the necessary, and what are the achievable amounts of possible funding? Are the mechanisms for citizen and business engagement sufficiently transparent? How clear are the ways of influencing decision-making, explaining the existing priorities in the recovery work?

All these questions need to be explained, discussed, debated. Unless this is done, even with really high-quality results of reconstruction, Ukrainians will have a feeling of dissatisfaction, and even disappointment or indignation.

***

Difficult decisions are never perceived unambiguously. In conditions of the war and acute reactions, it is important to understand the context and reasons for the decisions taken and be able to influence the result. This is almost the only possible tool for preserving a democratic, European, and relatively healthy, albeit extremely traumatized society.

We have become demanding, but this demand is not just a desire to have more of something and better. We realize that the potential "better" is being fought for at the cost of the incredible efforts of everyone who goes through this difficult path of struggle for the independence and freedom of the country. Our demand is dictated by a profound rethinking that "the people are the bearer of sovereignty and the only source of power in Ukraine." And this is not a standard sentence from the Constitution, but how everyone really feels.

Over the past 16 months, Ukrainian society has been forced to grow up quickly, and this, in turn, has formed its new, sharper, and unexpected requests. And they must be reckoned with  both at the level of the enterprise personnel or the community of the city, and on the part of the authorities. This, though inconclusive, but still "maturity" comes with great pain and losses.

The maturity in the form of awareness of one's civic influence still borders with sharpness and high demand. But Ukrainian society is clearly demonstrating its agency and focus on results. And that is to be reckoned with. These are the rules of mature society, which we, apparently, are already becoming.

Anastasia Mazurok, Deputy Executive Director for Operations, Transparency International Ukraine
President Joe Biden, joined virtually by Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, speaks about a national security initiative from the East Room of the White House in Washington, Wednesday, Sept. 15, 2021. Which Democrats could run for president if Biden cant or decides not to run for another term? | Andrew Harnik, Associated Press

Its full steam ahead for Biden-Harris 2024, despite polls that show many voters want to see a different nominee. But what if, for any reason, President Joe Biden was unable to run?

Here are some potential and current candidates who could find themselves at the top of national polls  and who might be quietly positioning themselves for the opportunity  should Democrats need a new nominee next year:

Vice President Kamala Harris

As vice president, not only is Harris a heartbeat away from the presidency, but she has high name ID and support from many voters in her party. A Monmouth University poll earlier this year found 13% of Democrats said theyd like Harris to be their nominee if Biden didnt run, higher than any other potential candidate. Like Biden, Harris saw her approval dip below her disapproval during the summer of 2021 and it hasnt recovered, according to her national polling average on FiveThirtyEight.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom

As Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has held up his state as a conservative model for the rest of the country, Newsom has done the same on the left with California. Newsom has argued its Democrats and not Republicans who are the party of freedom, pointing to book bans and abortion restrictions, and his campaign even ran billboards promoting Californias abortion laws in Republican-run states. Newsom told the San Francisco Chronicle editorial board last year he has sub-zero interest in running for president, but his recent media appearances suggest he wants to be in the national spotlight.

Related

Sen. Bernie Sanders

Sanders, I-Vt., came in second in two consecutive Democratic primaries, and the Monmouth University poll earlier this year found 6% of Democratic voters wanted him to try a third time, behind only Harris. Before Biden announced his reelection campaign, Sanders indicated he was open to another run, but in April, Sanders told The Associated Press he would do everything I can to see the president is reelected. At 81 years old, Sanders is older even than the 80-year-old Biden, which could be a challenge for voters concerned about the presidents age.

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg

After rocketing from former mayor of South Bend, Indiana, to 2020 Iowa caucus winner, Buttigieg has made a name for himself as Transportation Secretary in Bidens administration. The Monmouth University poll found Buttigieg tied with Sanders with 6% support. Buttigieg is 41.

Related

Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

The son of the former U.S. attorney general and nephew of John F. Kennedy, RFK Jr. announced his campaign for the Democratic nomination in April. Kennedy has made a name for himself promoting conspiracy theories about vaccines, and even before the COVID-19 pandemic, members of his family criticized his views. In an editorial published in Politico in May 2019, Kathleen Kennedy Townsend, Joseph P. Kennedy II, and Maeve Kennedy McKean said RFK Jr. has helped to spread dangerous misinformation over social media and is complicit in sowing distrust of the science behind vaccines. A USA Today/Suffolk University poll released Sunday found Kennedy has 15% support among Democrats.

Marianne Williamson

A bestselling author whose books include A Return to Love and The Healing of America, Williamson ran for president in 2020 and made it onto the debate stage before dropping out before the primaries began. She announced her 2024 campaign in March and is polling at 6%, according to the USA Today/Suffolk University poll.
MADISON  Republicans who control the Legislatures powerful finance committee have voted to restructure mass transit funding in a move Democrats said would place it in more competition with other state budget priorities as the state's largest public transit system faces a budget shortfall.

Tuesdays transportation motion, advanced during a late-night meeting of the Legislature's Joint Finance Committee, would move funding for buses and other mass transit systems from the states transportation fund to the general purpose fund, the states largest pool of funding used for a wide array of government services. The motion also slightly increases transit funding by 2% over the next two years.

But the move puts transit funding in competition with a plethora of other state budget priorities, including K-12 education and healthcare, which Democrats worry could lead to transit funding cuts in future budgets. Sen. Kelda Roys, D-Madison, called the slight funding boost a cover to set up a death knell for public transit" during Tuesday's committee hearing.

"Putting rainbow sprinkles on a big pile of manure doesn't really make it more appetizing," Roys said, referencing the 2% funding increase. "In the long run, our local transit systems are going to be in trouble."

Committee co-chair Rep. Mark Born, R-Beaver Dam, dismissed Democratic concerns as "doom and gloom" overshadowing the funding increase for mass transit. The budget motion also allocated more money for local and state roads than Democratic Gov. Tony Evers proposed in his budget draft earlier this year, Born said.

"We are investing more, and we're doing it in a way that doesn't put pressure on the fund in the future," he added.

Republicans sliced transit funding in half for Milwaukee and Madison during the past state budget cycle in 2021, which they said at the time was because the two cities collectively received hundreds of millions of dollars in federal coronavirus aid. Other transit systems in Wisconsin communities also received federal aid because of COVID-19 but saw no cuts to state funding in 2021.

Milwaukee's public transit system predicted last week it would face a nearly $26 million budget deficit annually, beginning in about two years, without new investment. If the agency can't close its budget gap, riders could see cuts and downsizing to more than half of bus routes as soon as 2025.

More: Milwaukee County's East-West Bus Rapid Transit revs up June 4. What to know about the new service

Given last cycle's cuts as well as what Roys said were inadequate transit investments in other state budgets from the past decade, she worried Republicans would target mass transit funding cuts for both large and small cities in future budgets.

"We don't actually have to wonder what Republicans are going to do on transit when it's taken out of the transportation budget," Roys said. "We know it's going to be cut, and cut, and cut and cut."

The committee also took action on K-12 education funding and the remainder of the Department of Transportation's budget late Thursday as Wisconsin's 2023-25 biennial budget process continues.

The committee was scheduled to take action on the University of Wisconsin System budget but pushed it to a later date.

Other transportation budget measures approved late Tuesday include:

A $75 increase in annual registration fees for electric vehicles, which would raise an estimated $3.29 million in additional revenue for the states transportation fund over the next two years. The increase moves the annual fee from $100 to $175.

Grants for driver education programs totaling $6 million in 2024-25.

Tyler Katzenberger can be reached at tkatzenberger@gannett.com.

Our subscribers make this reporting possible. Please consider supporting local journalism by subscribing to the Journal Sentinel at jsonline.com/deal.

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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: JFC funding restructuring a death knell for public transit, Dems say
Destroyed Russian air defence system and 3 electronic warfare stations: Ukraine's General Staff reports on situation at frontline

During the day on 14 June, units of Rocket Forces and Artillery hit 11 clusters of Russian personnel, one anti-aircraft missile system and three enemy electronic warfare stations.

Source: General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine report on Facebook, information as of 18:00 on 14 June

Details: The Ukrainian Air Force delivered 12 strikes on clusters of Russian forces.

At the same time, the Russians launched 37 airstrikes and carried out 32 attacks from multiple-launch missile systems at the positions of Ukrainian troops and settlements.

The Russian forces continue to focus their main efforts on the Lyman, Bakhmut, Avdiivka and Marinka fronts; the fighting continues, with 39 combat clashes recorded during the day.

On the Volyn and Polissia fronts, there were no significant changes in the operational situation. No signs of the formation of offensive groups have been spotted. At the training grounds in Belarus, training of individual Russian units continues.

In other areas, the invaders traditionally carried out many aviation, artillery, and mortar strikes on the settlements in Ukraine.

Journalists fight on their own frontline. Support Ukrainska Pravda or become our patron!






A city near Detroit has banned its residents from displaying LGBTQ flags on public property after a raucous city meeting Tuesday.

Hamtramck, Mich., an enclave within north-central Detroit, banned the flags in a unanimous vote with one city council member arguing that the displays are unnecessary.

You guys are welcome, council member Nayeem Choudhury said, referring to the LGBTQ community and its supporters. (But) why do you have to have the flag shown on government property to be represented?

Youre already represented, he added. We already know who you are.

The citys five council members and mayor are all Muslim, as are about half of the citys residents, according to the Detroit Free Press. The latest census also showed that around 40 percent of the citys residents are immigrants.

We want to respect the religious rights of our citizens, Choudhury said.

The city, as a result of the vote, will only allow flags of the nations that represent the citys immigrant heritage and the flag of Michigan to be flown. The citys previous mayor flew the Pride flag from City Hall in 2021, causing a controversy in the community and making it a campaign issue for the newly elected Mayor Amer Ghalib.

We serve everybody equally with no discrimination but without favoritism, Ghalib said.

The council resolution reads that it is intended to maintain and confirm the neutrality of the city of Hamtramck towards its residents.

The move has brought the city under fire with critics calling the ban discriminatory, however, the resolutions author, Councilman Mohammed Hassan, said it represents the views of a majority of the citys residents.

Please dont threaten us  Im the elected official  Im working for the people, what the majority of the people like, Hassan said.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
They did DNA tests to verify they were sisters. By accident, they found their birth father.

Other than the fact that they both are clearly Asian, Becca Webster and Dee Iraca dont look alike.

Not that all twins are identical, of course. But they share almost zero physical features, and also have personalities that are vastly different.

So after returning to South Korea for the first time since they were adopted  in 2018, when Dee, then a Denver, Colorado-based chef, was tapped to cook for the USA Olympic Alpine Ski Team at the Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang  and after a visit to the agency they were adopted through in 1973 raised more questions than answers, the two women who had been told all their lives that they were twins agreed:

We need to finally get a DNA test.

That spring, Dee, who now lives in Davidson, and Becca, a Concord resident who works as a nanny, dropped saliva samples into the mail.

Becca and Dee have an elaborate and amusing story about how simple user error caused them to spend three days believing their 23andMe tests had determined they were in fact not related  before realizing they had failed to click on the link that would show them their matches.

But in the end, it was finally settled, after almost 45 years. They were, indeed, fraternal twin sisters.

Besides each other, though, the test yielded no other results of note, and the law of diminishing returns applied to the every-few-months email digest Dee and Becca got from 23andMe with new sets of matches. They only ever produced cousins several times removed.

Not that the sisters were looking, or hoping, for anything in particular. It was just the novelty  which eventually wore off.

Then one afternoon in August 2021, more than three years after theyd done the tests, Becca opened her email to find a message someone had sent to her through 23andMes system ... from a woman claiming to represent her birth father.

She immediately called Dee, who had an identical message. They both noticed they had a new match: Father. The username was Mr. P.

Wwhhhh  whaaaaat? Becca remembers thinking. I was just in shock.

A few minutes later, the phone started ringing.

We have a story, Becca says. We have this incredible story. I mean, its just nice knowing the truth  understanding where we came from and why. Adds her sister, Dee: And why we were given up for adoption, too ... because thats always been a mystery.

A shot in the dark for both her, and him

Rebecca Kimmel also was adopted from Korea as a baby, a few years after Becca and Dee.

For her entire life, Rebecca had believed the backstory her adoption agency originally provided about the way she became an orphan: that she was abandoned by her birth parents.

But in 2018  while preparing to return to the country of her birth for the first time as part of a homeland tour for Korean adoptees  Rebecca obtained information from her adoption agency in Seoul that conflicted with what shed been told about where and how she was found.

From there, she went down a serious rabbit hole.

After her tour, Rebecca continued to pore over her adoption records and dug into stories about the child-export boom driven by the Korean dictators of the 1970s and 80s. She soon joined a growing group of adoptees convinced that agencies had switched their identities to replace children who died, became ill, or were reclaimed by birth parents before they could be shipped to the West.

Eventually, her research led her to information that she says suggested she was a twin. That discovery led her in 2020 to a post on Korea Adoption Services family search bulletin board, which aims to reconnect adoptees searching for their birth families.

The man whod authored the post was looking for his long-lost twin daughters, who hed not seen since the day they were born. He seemed fuzzy about when exactly that day was, even fuzzy about the year in fact.

Rebecca felt like she had to chase the lead, though. She just had a gut feeling about it.

Strong enough that she contacted one of the largest television networks in Korea to pitch the idea of making a documentary centered around her return to the country to track down this man, based on the possibility he might be her birth father. The Seoul Broadcasting System agreed, and with a film crew in tow, Rebecca successfully located him  Park Jong Gyun  living alone in a tiny home on the South Korean island of Jeju.

There, he told Rebecca that he and his wife, who had three sons already, were persuaded by hospital staff to give up their twin daughters on the day they were born  and then he and Rebecca took a DNA test to find out if this was a genuine reunion.

They both hoped it was. But with the cameras rolling, Rebecca and Mr. Park appeared numb upon learning it was not.

She returned to the U.S. deflated. Before she got on the plane, however, she suggested to Mr. Park and his middle son, Young-bu, that they take a genetic test that would share results into a vast database. After all: Why not? Rebecca bought a pair of 23andMe test kits, created accounts for them that she agreed to monitor, and collected their saliva samples. Back home, she mailed them out to be processed.

Three weeks later, on Aug. 12, 2021, the results came in. Rebecca jumped up and down on her bed when she saw them, screaming excited screams.

I was like, Oh, s---, recalls Rebecca, who lived in Chicago at the time but has since relocated to Washington state. This is real.

She sent individual messages through 23andMe to both of the women who had matched as Mr. Parks daughter. She impatiently monitored the inbox until she saw one of them had read it. She impatiently waited for a response. In the meantime, because one of the women had a username that looked like a real name and also had listed her home state, Rebecca  who in the past three years had gotten very good at internet-sleuthing  found a cellphone number.

The first time, she was sent to voicemail. It was hard to know what to say, so she just said something along the lines of this: My name is Rebecca. I somehow met your birth father in Korea. Please call me.

She waited, impatiently again, then not long after, tried the number, again.

This time, the woman  Becca Webster, who had taken the DNA test three years earlier mainly just to see if Dee Iraca was really her sister by blood  picked up her phone.

Nope. Im good. My life is just fine.

Becca and Dee were adopted at 4 months old by a couple who were happy to grow their family by two in one fell swoop.

The girls grew up in a predominantly white area of Pennsylvania and although they looked different from all of their friends, they always basically felt like they were white.

Becca and Dee started elementary school in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, before their parents moved about 20 miles north to the tiny town of Mount Gretna when they were in third grade.

They didnt eat Korean food, didnt learn the Korean language, didnt dream about visiting Korea, never spent time wondering about their birth parents. They both went to the same mostly white college. Both married white men. And for most of their adulthood, both pretty much felt the same way:

A birth-family search had scant appeal.

Dee does recall one time in maybe the late 90s, maybe the early 00s  pre-internet boom, in any case  contemplating initiating a birth-family search with a newspaper ad. But it would have to be there (in Korea), and wed have to get a translator, she said. And when I started thinking down that road, I was like, That is way too much work. There was such a small chance that we would find somebody. Then you start thinking of all the weird people that come out of the woodwork that say that theyre related to you, and theyre really not.

It just kind of scared me, and I was like, Nope. Im good. My life is just fine.

Dees trip to Pyeongchang for the Olympics in 2018 shifted things, though. Becca showed up in Korea as a surprise, and had reached out to their adoption agency, Holt, in the hopes of maybe getting new information about their adoption.

And Holt gave us the exact same file that weve had our whole life, Dee says. They came away, however, fixated on some old information on one of the documents. At the very bottom it says at 7-something a.m., we were found. It doesnt say that we were dropped off by somebody; it says we were found in front of this hospital.

So we started thinking, if we were found together, well, it doesnt mean that we were dropped off together.

Back home in the Charlotte area, they got online and placed their orders for one 23andMe DNA test each.

Hard to believe what was happening

Becca was struggling to process what Rebecca was telling her over the phone.

Before we got into it too much, says Becca, recalling her initial conversation with this strange woman, who quite clearly could hardly contain her excitement. Shes like, I know you have a lot of questions. Its a lot of information. Lets do a Zoom call with your sister. So we set it up for within the next hour.

Its true: Becca did have a lot of questions. For instance, How did this woman get her phone number? What was this woman doing with an account that appeared to belong to a man calling himself Mr. P? Are we somehow being played here??

It was so unbelievable, Becca says, that she actually called 23andMe just to see if they could tell her if this was a scam.

I was like, Hi, so I just received some information and it says that I matched to a father, but whats the likelihood? I mean, how certain does this work? And as Im saying it, Im like, This guy probably thinks I am such an idiot. ... Hes like, No, its pretty accurate, she recalls, laughing. But I dont know, as stupid as that sounded, I felt like I had to make sure 23andMe exists, and that this was really happening.

Becca describes her and Dees initial Zoom call with Rebecca as a tornado of information.

It took days for her explanation and her revelations to sink in. Then the following week, just as the sisters were starting to get their bearings back, they were in surreal territory again  on a Zoom call with Mr. Park, their birth father.

Through a translator, Mr. Park told Becca and Dee a story that flew in the face of the one that was on their adoption records, which simply stated theyd been found abandoned on a sidewalk. The truth, he said, was that his pregnant wife was sick. That shed had an emergency C-section. That one of the twins was born weak and in need of special care. That his mother and his wifes mother were summoned to the hospital to help them make a decision, and that there was basically a mutual agreement to give them up for adoption due to the couples financial hardships.

But whereas this was a reunion Mr. Park had dreamed of for years, and while this is exactly the type of outcome Rebecca had hoped for for herself, whats it like to suddenly be told at 48 years old, Hey, your birth father  who youve never met, who you imagined was probably dead, who you werent looking for, at all  is alive. He lives on the other side of the world. He doesnt speak your language.

Want to go spend a couple of weeks with him and a bunch of other family members you never knew existed?

The dresses and identification bracelets that Dee and Becca were wearing when they arrived in the United States in 1973.

Its like meeting a stranger

Rebecca was incredibly eager to get them to Korea. Mr. Park was, too.

From a logistical standpoint, however, it was a significant challenge for the sisters. A ton of time off from work. Several thousands of dollars just for the plane tickets for Dee and her husband, Sean, and for Becca and her husband, Chris. Figuring out arrangements for Beccas teenage son. And reconciling all of this with other travel plans and travel expenses and time away from work.

Dee, Becca and their husbands finally boarded a plane bound for Seoul this past October, almost exactly 14 months after the phone call from Rebecca that changed their lives  and roughly 5-1/2 years after taking that 23andMe DNA test.

The moment Mr. Park embraced his twin daughters for the first time since their births in 1973 is depicted touchingly on-screen, by the Korean documentary filmmakers who continued to follow Rebeccas story and expanded it to include Becca and Dee. (The film, Rebecca in Wonderland, was broadcast by SBS Korea in December.)

Still, that moment was as complicated, emotionally, as you might expect.

For one, the presence of that film crew made the situation feel somewhat unnatural and chaotic, and made Becca and Dee somewhat self-conscious and guarded. Also: It sounds a little harsh when I say this, Dee admits, but even if we might have talked on the phone a couple times, or we wrote a letter, or Zoomed ...

Its like meeting a stranger.

But while so much of the next two weeks was filled with strangeness, and with complicated emotions, it was also filled with unexpected and simple pleasures.

A traditional Korean feast of kimchi, japchae and seaweed soup prepared by Mr. Park in his home. A party held in their honor and attended by a variety of aunts and uncles and cousins and other relatives, at which they were formally and warmly welcomed into the family, applauded, served a lavish seven-course meal. The donning of hanbok dresses that Mr. Park had made for them as gifts. A visit from Rebecca  who shares an equally special relationship with Mr. Park not just because she made all of this happen for him, but also because they both know what it feels like to spend years searching for answers; for a loved one.

Dee, left, and Becca pose with their birth father Mr. Park while wearing hanboks he had made for them.

On top of all that, whereas Becca and Dees adoption agency could tell them nothing about their birth parents circumstances in 2018, Mr. Park told them everything.

How it was some kind of parasite that had stricken their mother and put her in the hospital and necessitated the emergency C-section. How a hospital representative told him it would cost this much to pay for her treatment and the procedure, and how he rushed off to borrow the money from a relative but couldnt find them. How, after being talked into relinquishing the babies to an adoption agency, he and his wife never received a bill from the hospital.

How, about 10 years after they were born, he and his wife returned to the agency hoping it would reconnect them with their twin girls but were told it didnt have any information.

How their birth mother died in her 50s.

How in 2018, right around the time his daughters were making their first visit to Korea, he started aggressively appealing to government bodies and adoption agencies to help him find his long-lost twins.

When Dee and Becca hugged him at the airport before leaving to return to Charlotte, Mr. Park no longer felt like a stranger.

Does this story have a happy ending?

Rebecca, for her part, is happy to have played a role in Mr. Parks life story. At the same time, his story devastates her whenever she thinks too much about it.

I mean, can you imagine going to the hospital  taking your mother whos sick  and them being like, Oh, you cant pay the hospital bill, so were just gonna take your mother, and youre just never gonna know what happened to her. Thats insane, right? But thats basically what was happening in Korea back in the 70s, she says. Basically what happened to Mr. Park.

I just feel like it should be a more balanced narrative, Rebecca continues. The Mr. Park story is not a beautiful story.

Its a lucky story, in the end. But its not a beautiful story. He suffered a lot. And its not like now that hes met his twins, everything in his life is great. Hes 83. How many more times is he gonna see them?

In addition to inspiring the documentary, Rebecca has promoted awareness of falsified adoption papers and origin stories, and has given guidance and feedback to Korean adoptees interested in birth-family searches.

Becca and Dee, meanwhile, are still adjusting to their new normal.

From a practical standpoint, communicating with Mr. Park isnt easy. For one, they self-translate their messages to him into Korean and do the conversion of his replies into English without assistance, too. They frequently are unsure about the quality of their translation skills. Korea also is 13 hours ahead of Charlotte, so for most of the day, either theyre awake when hes asleep, or vice-versa.

As for Rebeccas question about how many more opportunities Mr. Park and his daughters will have to see each other? Although the sisters say, of course, they would love to go back  and Becca really wants to take her adult son next time  they face the same challenges as before. Time and money chief among them.

Were trying, Dee says, to figure out what having a relationship moving forward looks like. Because we want to have a relationship, and were happy to know now, and know more about our story, and the truth, and all of it. Its just ... its a lot, you know?

But whether you consider this story to have a happy ending because it reunited a father with his daughters, or whether you consider that reunion to be overshadowed by the sad fact that Mr. Park has had this gaping hole in his heart for so long, consider this:

Dee and Becca, who as girls and even as women basically felt like they were white, no longer feel this way.

Dee, left, tours South Korea with Becca during their first trip back, in 2018.

Opening ourselves up, wanting to know more

They never cared about Korean food before; in May, to celebrate turning 50, they dined at a Korean restaurant. They never cared about the Korean language; now, theyre exposed to it in some fashion on an almost-daily basis. They never dreamed about visiting Korea; now, despite the significant obstacles, they figure there will be a number of round-the-world flights in their future.

To see Mr. Park while they still can, but even after hes gone  to see their many other relatives. To see more of the country of their births.

Itd be remiss to say this experience didnt change us, Becca says. I mean, we have now more of the truth of where we come from, and were opening ourselves up to the Korean culture and wanting to know more. Its just more of an acceptance. Because weve been raised in America, to always be, like, No, were Americans! Were just like white people!, ... and now saying, But were not.

Yeah, Dee says. We are Korean.

Were Korean, Becca continues. We were born in Korea. We have the maturity now to feel more proud about that. And now, to have this fall upon us  to have our answers, to have the truth  is profound.

Becca looks at Dee and Dee looks back at Becca and even though its been coming up on two years since that blindside of a phone call from Rebecca, the sense of shock that emanates from their auras still feels fresh.

We could have never guessed this could have happened to us, Becca says, finally.

But then it did.
Jeong Park/A24 Films

If you told me you didnt like this article, I might not be able to handle it.

Well, maybe not if you told me. I dont know you. You could simply have bad taste (the only excuse for not enjoying something I write), or you could be an internet troll. If a family member or a friend, however, let it slip that they didnt think this was very good, I would spiral. I would exist under a cloud of despair, one which the sunshine may never pierce through again. The shadow of sadness would follow me around for so long, because someone didnt like my article. Maybe, though, Id eventually get over it.

But if my life partner, the person I love, who knows me better than anyone else, whose opinion I value and respect more than anythingif that person said he didnt like something I wrote, I would lose it completely. I would question my talent, my worth, and maybe even my whole reason for existing, in a way that I may not recover from.

Welcome to my hypothetical emotional breakdown, triggered by the genius of Nicole Holofceners latest film, You Hurt My Feelings. The film, now in theaters, has been inciting similar rabbit holes of despair and heated discussions from moviegoers since it premiered in January at the Sundance Film Festival. And, as I learned after talking with Michaela Watkins, who co-stars alongside Julia Louis-Dreyfus in the movie, the cast has endured the same soul-searching about relationships, the truth, betrayal, and ego.

When it comes to filmmaking, weve been subjected to a lot in the last few years that has been really grandiose, full of really arch ideas, high concepts, and incredible violence and special effects, Watkins tells The Daily Beasts Obsessed. So many people have been saying to me since this came out, I didnt realize how much I missed these kinds of movies, where its just people talking to each other.

The beauty, pain, hilarity, and, sometimes, absurdity of thatof what happens when people who intimately know each other simply talkis at the heart of You Hurt My Feelings.

Take that title alone: You Hurt My Feelings. The idea of that phrase, hurt feelings, can seem so trivial. Everyones feelings get hurt sometimes; whats the big deal? But such a thing can be seismic for a person. Just how much gravity those hurt feelings are owedwell, thats what the film is about.

Louis-Dreyfus plays Beth, an author and writing professor who is working on her new book and is self-conscious about the fact that her publisher doesnt think the draft is quite right. Beth and her husband, Don (Tobias Menzies), are a married couple with an adult son, whose comfort with each other and, at times, codependency could be seen as envy-inducing, for partners who have been together for as long as they have.

So when Beth accidentally overhears Don casually mentioning that he doesnt think her new book is very good, its as if an anvil has fallen, squashing everything about her life as she knows it to smithereens: her self-worth, her trust in her husband, and her happiness.

Tobias Menzies and Julia Louis-Dreyfus in You Hurt My Feelings. Jeong Park/A24

She wallows and confides in her sister, Watkins Sarah, who has her own experience negotiating just how honest to be with her spouse about his work: Her husband, Mark (Arian Moayed), is an actor with a fragile ego, whose performances she uniformly praises, regardless of quality, because its just easier than being honest.

Should Beth be so upset about this, they wonder? Her writing is a pivotal part of who she is; if her husband, her other half, doesnt respect that work, then how could she ever feel that he respects her? Moreover, if he had been keeping his impression of her new book a secret, has he also quietly thought that all of her writing has been bad? There are hurt feelings, sure. But its also an existential crisis.

Theres no right or wrong answer to any of those questionswhich is probably why, as Watkins has discovered since the film has been released, those who have seen it cant stop talking about it. In fact, being able to think so deeply about something that could be considered so granular, inconsequential, or even petty has, for many peopleherself includedbeen a pleasure.

You Hurt My Feelings: Julia Louis-Dreyfus Shines in Sundance Marriage Comedy

Were living in really ridiculous times, she says. It does feel like were in 1930s Berlin in some ways, so why would we be talking about hurt feelings at a moment when weve got such macro problems facing us? I understand that this can absolutely feel incredibly trite. At the same time, we are here. Were in our bodies. We relate to each other. I think Nicole Holofcener is an incredible observer of the micro ways in which we impact each other all the time. I think that deserves scrutiny and meditation.

After all, she says, Maybe we have bigger things to conquer, but why be a human if we cant kind of have curiosity about our psyches?

To Tell the Truth

Watkins journey to You Hurt My Feelings was about 15 years in the making.

For years, the actress has been a reliable critics favorite. After being cast on Saturday Night Live in 2008, where she spent one season, she appeared in projects like Wanderlust, Trophy Wife, New Girl, Enlightened, and Catastrophe, whirling through each like a tornado of scene-stealing comedy. Her quieter storm, though, proved just as powerful. Her starring role in the Hulu series Casual showed off her full range of talent, leading to memorable turns in Lynn Sheltons indie Sword of Trust and Hulus limited series The Dropout.

But the first fun gig of my career, she says, was in Louis-Dreyfus Emmy-winning comedy, The New Adventures of Old Christine. In 2008, Watkins was cast as a love interest for Hamish Linklaters character, Matthew, the brother of Louis-Dreyfus Old Christine. Thats when [Julia and I] realized that we kind of look alike, she says.

Watkins in The Dropout. Beth Dubber/Hulu

Before Watkins left the show, because she landed the SNL gig, the series capitalized on that likeness, with an episode in which she and Louis-Dreyfus were dressed and styled the same, freaking out Matthew, who realized he was essentially dating his sister.

Watkins first worked with Holofcener on 2013s Enough Said. She played the woman at a party who introduced Louis-Dreyfuss character to James Gandolfinis, kicking off the unlikely romance that was at the center of the film. It was a thrilling opportunity: working with Holofcener, a filmmaker she admired, alongside Louis-Dreyfus, an acting hero who had become a repeat co-star. But there was one problem. The coverage of the scene ended up wonky, and Holofcener ended up cutting it down significantly.

Julia Louis-Dreyfus Talks Nasty Reviews, Seinfelds Divisive Finale, and More

She said, I promise to make it up to you, Watkins remembers. And then she did.

When Holofcener first talked with Watkins about You Hurt My Feelings, Watkins immediately flashed back to the lookalike scenes from Old Christine. Does Julias character have a sister? she asked. At the time, the character of Sarah was just a friend of Beths. Plus, Holofcener told Watkins, who was living in Los Angeles, it would be a New York shoot that she couldnt hire Watkins for anyway. At least that was the case until Watkins flew herself to New York and put herself up, so she could be considered a local hire. Then Holofcener told her, By the way, I took your advice. I made you guys sisters.

Arian Moayed Hopes the Succession Stewy Hive Comes Out For You Hurt My Feelings

Looking back on the shoot, Watkins is tickled at the idea that, for a few months, she got to channel what its like to be in her husbands shoes. Her husband, Fred Kramer, is someone she jokes is a civilian, not an actor-y, artist-y person. In You Hurt My Feelings, its her character who is the level-headed spouse, forced to be the cheerleader and support system for a neurotic actor.

She thought about how easy it is for [my husband], she says. He just gets to be cool and calm, while I freak out. Now I really understand that. Ive always suspected that he only gets to be the cool, calm guy because Im freaking out about something. If my husband in the movie, Arian Moayeds character, wasnt losing his mind over stuff, I would probably step in and lose my mind over things instead. Every relationship is a balance.

Given one of the central questions of You Hurt My Feelings, thenjust how honest should you be with a creative person about what you think of their workit must have been surreal to be an actor in the film, show it to your partner, and then try to decipher what they truly felt about it. Would they lie? Would they spare your feelings?

Michaela Watkins at the premiere of The Way Back. Reuters

Because hes not in the business, Watkins says, her husband doesn't understand the incredible urgency after he sees something to tell me immediately how it was.

Watkins wasnt able to make one of the first screenings of the film because she was working, but Kramer attended. When he got back from it, the first thing he said to Watkins was, Do we have any more of those green beans left from last night?

Watkins eyes bulge out of her head as she retells this. I was like, Hi! That was the fucking movie! What did you think!?

While he may not understand the need for immediacy, when he does talk, I believe him, Watkins says. He said, I think that this is maybe Nicoles best movie yet. She laughs. But he said it with the same sort of intensity as, Do we have any more of those green beans left over?

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From Hulu and 20th Digital Studio, Jagged Mind is a new queer horror film starring Maisie Richardson-Sellers and Shannon Woodward. The film follows Billie (Richardson-Sellers), a woman who suffers from dramatic memory loss and threatening visions as she navigates her budding relationship with the mysterious Alex (Woodward). When Billie finds herself trapped in a time loop, she must go to extreme lengths to break the cycle and reclaim her freedom.

Jagged Mind was helmed by Kelley Kali, director of the acclaimed indie drama I'm Fine (Thanks for Asking) and winner of the 2021 SXSW Special Jury Recognition for Multi-Hyphenate Storyteller. We had the opportunity to speak with Kali about working with the film's queer stars, finding inspiration in unexpected places, representing Haitian culture, and more.

What follows is an edited version of our conversation.

To start, could you tell me about what some of your inspirations were coming into a project like this?

You wanna know my inspiration? You're not gonna guess what it was. It was [Disney and Pixar's] Ratatouille. For camera moves. A lot of camera moves [in Jagged Mind], like the flashing, the way that we show Billie in different places  I took that from this one part in Ratatouille where they go from the chef to the critic but it jumps from room to room. And I really loved how they did it in animation, and I wanted to do it in live action. So there was no specific horror film that I referenced, but I referenced an animation. My director of photography Rasa [Partin] loved it, and we made it happen, and it became one of the most fun things to do on set. "The Ratatouille," everyone called it.

What were some of the things that came with working in the horror genre?

With genre you get to play, right? Like, we got to push the color. On a lot of my other films, we had to keep it grounded and keep it very, you know, normal color. But with this, we did red lighting. Why does [Alex] have red lighting? Why not? That's what's fun about genres: you really, really get to play while using it for storytelling. Like the reds and the blues were important because the blues and the greens represent Billie and her world and her normalcy. And whenever there was red, it was usually somebody she shouldn't be around, something that's kind of consuming her or trying to control her. And you'll see that the blues and the reds eventually clash as we start to get into the thick of the story. So it's just a lot to play with when you get to do genre.

Much of the film takes place in Little Haiti, Miami, and Afro-Caribbean culture and folklore play a major role throughout. How did you land on Little Haiti as a setting?

So, the movie didn't start out in Little Haiti. The script that I pitched on to get this job  I was telling people I didn't think I was going to get the job, because I changed everything. It took place in Manhattan, and it was originally two white women. And so there were so many elements in this script that I shifted. I said, 'I think that the main character should be African American or Afro-Caribbean, and to create an interracial couple because that's where I come from.' And I remember my parents just going out on the street walking, and nobody would do anything aggressive, but the looks that you get? Like, "They're together, for real?" The interracial aspect just laid a little more unspoken tension on [Billie and Alex's] relationship on top of all the other tension that they have.

And with the art gallery in Manhattan  we've seen that. It's usually just white art. So I was like, we should have Afro-Caribbean art, we should bring in different artists that haven't been featured before. And plus there's magic in this movie. I don't think it should be in New York. I think it should be in, like, New Orleans, because that's where people believe in magic. And if they believe in magic, then maybe people will feel like this [story] could happen. Then, for logistical reasons, Miami got brought up, and I said if we go to Miami then we need to do it in Little Haiti.

How did you go about bringing Haitian culture into the film?



I spent a lot of time in Haiti. My background is in anthropology and film. I spent a lot of time studying children's rights and living conditions [there]. I shot films in Haiti. And so I was like, we have to be very respectful if we're going to have any Vodou in it. And so we need to add another character. So then we added [Haitian actor] Jimmy Jean-Louis's character, Papa Juste. We made [Rosaline Elbay's] character Haitian. I really pushed for them to speak Haitian Creole, and not translated, even though you understand the scene  just for the Haitian community.

So we did that and we made sure that the Vodou in the film is protective, and it's serving our protagonist, and it's warning her. Because it's a religion and it needs to be respected, and oftentimes it is not and it's used as a gimmick to scare people. It needs to be respected, so that's what we aimed to do.

This is a very queer film, and you worked with queer actors instead of straight actors playing queer characters. How important was that to you?

It was important to me, but what I really loved was how important it was to Hulu and 20th Digital Studio. Those executives did not play. It wasn't even an option. We were going to the LGBTQ+ community, period. And I love that. I didn't have to push for it. And then the thing that Allyson Morgan did, our writer, she noticed that you see a lot of queer films where [characters] are coming out or they're trying to figure it out. No, we drop right into [Billie and Alex's] lives. They are two normal women who are just dating, and they're people like everybody else. And that's what I really loved about the story. It just normalized the community to have regular dating issues like everybody else. That's what I loved about my team  all of us took that very seriously.

What was it like working with Maisie Richardson-Sellers and Shannon Woodward?

We were so blessed to get Shannon and Maisie. They were fantastic. I keep saying that Alex [played by Woodward] is my favorite character, and I know that people are like, "Really?" One, I think Shannon did a phenomenal job. Two, I don't see her as, like, bad. She just wants love, and who doesn't? Everybody has done something a little extra to try to get the attention of the person they love. Now, her character goes way extra with it, but to me she's not a bad person. She's just doing questionable, unhealthy things and Shannon captured that. I feel like she grounded her and captured that essence.

And Maisie  first of all she's British. So for her to just put on that American accent, there were so many times I forgot that she's British, and when we yell "cut" and she speaks to me and I'm like, who are you? She's just so talented. She brought this softness yet strength to Billie, and a subtleness too. You can play the flashing [when Billie time loops] and the memory loss really big and dramatic. But the way she could just shift in her eyes, I could always see when she was becoming looped. And it wasn't in her face; her muscles weren't moving. It was in the eyes. She's just so smooth. Working with these two women was a blessing for me.





Jagged Mind releases Thursday, June 15 on Hulu. Watch the official trailer below.

Jagged Mind | Official Trailer | Hulu www.youtube.com








The University Park Village Board voted Tuesday to retain the law firm Odelson, Sterk, Murphey, Fraizer & McGrath to work with the mayor and village manager and hired Montana & Welch to work with the Village Board. (Alexandra Kukulka)

University Park will now have two law firms: one to work with the mayor and village manager and the other to work with the trustees.

The Village Board decided Tuesday to keep Odelson, Murphey, Frazier & McGrath to work with the village as corporate counsel to work with Mayor Joseph Roudez and village manager Elizabeth Scott on municipal business.

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Montana Welch was hired as legislative counsel, which means the law firm will work with the trustees to better understand agendas and ordinances, said Trustees Theo Brooks and Donna Fulcher.

The trustees, myself, Donna Fulcher, Gina Williams and Jewell Thompson, we felt that, considering things that happened in the past, we wanted to make sure we had our own attorney to make sure everything is aboveboard, Brooks said.

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After the meeting, Roudez directed questions to attorney Felicia Frazier, who directed questions to Matthew Welch. Burt Odelson did not immediately return calls for comment.

Welch said he was pleased his law firm was hired.

Were looking forward to working for the best interest of the board and the residents, he said.

During a May 25 special meeting, which was not attended by Roudez and Trustees Janelle McFadden and Karen Lewis, the board tabled a motion to immediately dismiss Odelson, Murphey, Frazier & McGrath as village attorney and appoint Montana Welch instead.

Because both law firms have history with the village, Brooks said the board and village officials ultimately decided to hire both.

This was a collaboration with the board and the village manager to make sure that everyone is represented, Fulcher said. Were happy the board moved forward with this process.

Both firms agreed to be paid $185 an hour, Brooks said. The trustees wont rack up a bill working with Montana and Welch, but will call the law firm when questions arise, he said.

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Fulcher said the two firms will work on separate items on behalf of the village so at no point will attorneys with each firm be paid for doing the same task. The board will receive monthly reports to track what work was completed and at what cost.

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As an example, Fulcher said the board could send Montana Welch an agenda if they have questions about asking for additional information about an agenda item. Or, she said, the board might ask Montana Welch for guidance if it does not receive requested information.

Brooks pointed to the Amazon deal, in which the village did not get many incentives and owes $1 million in impact fees, as an instance in which the trustees could have used outside counsel to answer questions.

The Amazon development is in a tax increment financing district, in which property taxes to school, park and library districts, the village, the county and other taxing districts are frozen at current levels for a number of years, in this case 20. Any increase in taxes as a result of development, the increment, goes into a special fund to help pay or reimburse for improvements.

Village officials agreed to share those TIF funds with the developer and Amazon, with Amazon receiving 75% of the funds, and the village will receiving the remaining 25%. The village would use its share to reimburse the $1 million in impact fees the developer is paying upfront.

Brooks said the Amazon deal could have been approached in a different way to ensure the village benefited more. If that deal, or a similar deal, were brought to the board today, Brooks said hed call Montana Welch to get their input.

The sense of satisfaction we have is picking up the phone and having our counsel, Brooks said. We hope in the future we wont have to worry about these things.
Who are the Nubians? Learn more in this week's episode of "Lost Cultures: Living Legacies."

Getty Images

Every Wednesday on the Lost Cultures: Living Legacies podcast, host Alisha Prakash, Travel + Leisure's associate editorial director, explores a unique cultural identity around the world and shares how you can learn more about it on your travels, too.



Egypt is often synonymous with pyramids and pharaohs, but lesser known is an equally significant part of the nation's history: the Nubians.

"Nubians are a linguistic and ethnic group that has lived for millennia in Northeast Africa. [They] have their own complex ancient civilization that rivals that of Pharaonic Egypt, which is much better known," anthropologist Yasmin Moll, who is directing a documentary called "Finding Nubia," told Travel + Leisure. "Nubians ruled over Pharaonic Egypt as a 25th dynasty. They also had a rich and flourishing culture in the medieval times."

The Nubians' ancestral land is in what is now south of Egypt and north of Sudan, according to Mona Sherif-Nelson, the founder of the Nubian Foundation. Not surprisingly, most of the present-day Nubians are citizens of Egypt or Sudan.

"Nubians are one of the oldest communities that are still living on this Earth, but also it is a Black peoplehood," said Menna Agha, a third-generation Fadijja Nubian. "It's a Black community that kind of sits between two different countries that are identified as Middle Eastern/North African."

The community lost its ancestral land in the 1960s with the building of the Aswan High Dam that submerged Nubian land and displaced its community. In spite of facing obstacles  from British colonization to modernization  the Nubians have survived. "Our land is lost, but I don't think our culture is," said Agha.

"[I] think it's super important to learn that there are people who are Nubian, who identify as Nubians, who have a distinctive culture, who continue to live today in Egypt and Sudan and to not let this glorious or prestigious ancient past overwhelm this contemporary culture," added Moll.

The Nubian diaspora has preserved its culture through wedding customs, traditional music, and food. And in the digital age, social media plays a vital role in collecting stories of the community.

"Today, I would say, Nubians and descendants of that culture are really united by a shared loss," said Moll. "But still, we like to say that Nubia still lives inside of us, guwanna, and it lives in our songs about it, it lives in our dances for it, it lives in our stories about it, and now it lives on in social media. We're very proud of this culture that's often, I think, misunderstood or marginalized or seen as only belonging to the ancient past, is not really part of the present."

To learn more about the Nubians, listen to Prakash's conversation with guests Yasmin Moll, Menna Agha, and Mona Sherif-Nelson in Lost Cultures: Living Legacies, available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, and everywhere podcasts are available.



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Editor's Note: Please be mindful that this transcript does not go through our standard editorial process and may contain inaccuracies and grammatical errors.

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DEI programs in universities are being cut across the country. What does this mean for higher education?

Yoleidy Rosario-Hernandez was just seven months into a job as chief diversity officer at the New College of Florida when the news came: The board of trustees announced it was dissolving the diversity, equity and inclusion office.

The news, which came in February, disappointed Rosario-Hernandez, who spent those seven months busy  helping students with things like counseling resources and financial literacy, while also advising the schools former president and assisting with recruitment efforts. (A New College spokesperson told CNN in a statement that the Office of Outreach and Inclusive Excellence was abolished and the position was no longer necessary.)

The situation at New College, which also did not renew the contract of its only US history professor last month, isnt unique. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a bill banning public colleges and universities from spending money on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) in May. And similar moves are happening across the country.

More than a dozen state legislatures have introduced or passed bills reining in DEI programs in colleges and universities, claiming the offices eat up valuable financial resources with little impact.

Multiple states, like North Carolina and South Carolina, have introduced bills to track college DEI spending. In Virginia, Gov. Glenn Youngkin banned the teaching of inherently divisive concepts in public schools, and has spoken out against equity initiatives throughout his time in office. In Ohio, a controversial bill that would, among other things, abolish diversity training requirements at public colleges, is also steadily moving through the states legislative system.

Even as the academic year draws to a close, these fights against diversity, equity and inclusion are set to continue. And, to some, the future of public higher education is on the line.

Conservatives argue DEI is about indoctrination

Scrutiny of DEI initiatives isnt new  nor is it necessarily partisan.

Conservative lawmakers have for years claimed DEI efforts are a form of indoctrination. In 2020, then-President Donald Trump called racial sensitivity trainings anti-American propaganda and issued an executive order banning such trainings for federal agencies, a move watchdogs noted as a pre-election overture to his base.

On the other side of the political spectrum, there has also been critique: questioning the efficacy of tools like mandatory workplace training videos.

Still, many DEI initiatives have been credited as beneficial. Studies have shown that college students exposed to more diversity have greater levels of cultural awareness and political participation. Meanwhile, scholars credit DEI policies and programs as one way to combat inequality by encouraging multiculturalism and providing resources for people of different backgrounds.

Dozens of activists stage a sit-in outside the office of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis' office on May 3, the same day Florida Republicans approved bills banning diversity programs in colleges, as well as preventing students and teachers from being required to use pronouns that don't correspond to someone's biological sex. - Alicia Devine/Tallahassee Democrat/AP

Yet scrutiny of these initiatives place in colleges and universities has mounted, largely from conservative lawmakers. DEI has become akin to terms like critical race theory, part of a larger talking point asserting that DEI indoctrinates students and is even a form of employee discrimination, when considered in hiring practices.

(DEI) has been perverted from the original concept, said Edwin Feulner, founder of conservative think tank The Heritage Foundation. Instead, its become almost an accusation of incipient racism.

Feulner is also the chairman of the Virginia Commission on Higher Education Board, a governor advisory board that evaluates appointments to the governing bodies of the states public colleges and universities.

And hes already said that reining in diversity, equity and inclusion is a priority in his role on the board. The money spent on DEI programs, he told CNN, could instead be spent on student aid.

But large swaths of students and faculty seem to be against these moves.

In Ohio, for example, the state legislature has pushed forward a bill that not only bans diversity trainings and mandates, but also university partnerships with China and the promotion of any controversial belief or policy spanning from diversity to climate policies and marriage.

Ohio state Sen. Jerry Cirino, the bills sponsor, did not respond to CNNs requests for comment. But in a statement posted online, Cirino said the bill is meant to ensure free expression on campus and in the classroom.

Critics say the bill promotes censorship  they have it exactly backwards, he wrote. This bill will allow students to exercise their right to free speech without threat of reprisal by professors or administrators. It will permit the marketplace of ideas to flourish, which is the ideal environment for any educational institution.

The Inter-University Council of Ohio  which represents all 14 of the states public universities  has expressed concern over the bill, specifically criticizing its vagueness, government overreach, and underappreciation of DEI, calling the latter one of the most potentially important parts of the bill.

Data shows, DEI efforts help create an academic community that generates a higher enrollment rate, matriculation rate, and eventual success rate. DEI is for students with disabilities, veterans with PTSD, minority students, and students who are New Americans who may need extra help due to language or cultural barriers, the IUC said in a statement. DEI helps more students achieve the American Dream of success via a college education.

Students, faculty, and community members alike have expressed disapproval over the ban in Florida. - Alicia Devine/Tallahassee Democrat/AP

Some students are also concerned about the progression of such bills.

In North Carolina, state legislators recently requested an overview of documents related to DEI training from all colleges in the University of North Carolina system. They have also pushed bills aimed at DEI mandates in hiring, as well as restricting the teaching of racism in public schools.

This is about indoctrination training, said state Sen. Warren Daniel, the sponsor of the bill limiting DEI mandates.

Andrew Gary, a senior at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, said he is concerned about the recent pushes both in his state and across the country.

They want to be able to restrict professors ability to present information to their classes, Gary said. Theres basically a push against perceived liberal bias.

In Garys experience, professors and classes are not pushing a political agenda. The overreach by politicians seems misguided, he said.

I, at least personally, would rather have academic departments determine what our professors should be teaching us, than state legislatures who are not experts in those subjects, he said.

CNN reached out to Leah Cox, chief diversity officer at UNC-Chapel Hill, for comment. A spokesperson declined on her behalf.

Others have argued that DEI initiatives in colleges actually deserve more investment, not less.

Arianny Mercedes, who just graduated from the University of Virginia, said UVA doesnt invest enough in DEI  despite what the states conservative leaders have said. In her experience, institutions are already not equipped to provide for a diverse student body. Limiting DEI further will only exacerbate the issue.

The lack of DEI  whether that be from race, socioeconomic status, lived experiences  really becomes a problem, she said.

The Division for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion at UVA did not respond to CNNs request for comment.

What this means for colleges and universities

Despite opposition to anti-DEI legislation, such bills continue to be introduced.

And the motivation has seemingly little to do with higher education, said Kenneth Meier, a distinguished scholar at American University who has researched public policy and higher education. Instead, he said, its purely political.

Higher education isnt a high priority issue in most states, Meier explained  funding has decreased dramatically over the years, and its still not necessarily a huge budget item. Still, he said it makes sense that it has become a strategy for the Republican party as an issue to rally behind.

It allows you to focus on a group of people that are probably perceived as privileged in some way and isolate on that, he said. Its unusual I would guess for higher education to be grouped in with immigrants and others we want to demonize, but I think its all part of the process.

But DEI initiatives have almost no impact on whats being taught in the classroom, Meier said. Whats being taught is defined by professors.

A view of the campus of New College of Florida in Sarasota. - Thomas Simonetti for The Washington Post/Getty Images

Sure, there are instructions concerning classroom atmosphere  tolerating divergent viewpoints, cultivating all sides of an issue, and keeping conversations civil, he said. None of those concepts are new.

So what do these bills actually mean for public colleges and universities?

The idea of consolidating DEI into a single office is relatively recent, Meier said. If diversity and equity staff and programs are rolled back, that work will likely just get reassigned, he said, to department chairs, hiring committees or college deans.

Meier spent 20 years teaching in Texas, he said  a state that has also recently inched closer to a ban on DEI offices in its colleges.

But in Texas, policy dictates that public universities must serve the entire state, and student bodies should resemble the population of Texas, Meier said. Whether theres a DEI office or not, that work must be done.

The duties simply shift to somebody else to make sure this happens, Meier said.

Still, many are concerned, viewing the pushback against diversity programs and initiatives  coupled with attacks on issues like reproductive rights  as another battle in an ongoing culture war. The real impact of restricting DEI programs isnt just in higher education, Rosario-Hernandez said, its a signal of the larger regression of civil rights.

Its very fearsome to hear some of the rhetoric from our state leadership and the Board of Trustees in support of ending diversity, equity and inclusion, Rosario-Hernandez said. Because behind that, in my opinion, is a White nationalist rhetoric of racism, of homophobia, thats really looking at establishing White men in the place of power versus really thinking about the community and what people really need.

The true domino effect of these bills is still to be determined. But one possible outcome, Rosario-Hernandez noted, could be the division between more conservative states and more progressive states in terms of who can access higher education. If some schools are paying more attention to DEI initiatives and more publicly working toward fostering an inclusive environment, that could affect where some students choose to attend college.

Fewer and fewer students are choosing to even enroll in college in recent years, according to data from the National Center for Education Statistics.

That means competition for good students will only get steeper, Meier said. And applicants may be wary of schools in states with DEI restrictions.

If I were advising Ron DeSantis, he said, I would suggest, students are probably going to react the same way Disney reacted.

Which means they are not, he said, going to be happy.

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[Source]

A former gastroenterologist at the New York Presbyterian Hospital in Queens was accused of drugging and raping a then-19-year-old woman who was admitted to the emergency room with gallstone-induced abdominal pain in June 2021.

The lawsuit: Dr. Zhi Alan Cheng allegedly examined the patient and performed an unnecessary rectal examination under the guise of medical treatment a day before she was scheduled to have her gallbladder removed. Cheng allegedly drugged the teen into losing consciousness before raping her while recording the heinous act.

According to the lawsuit, Cheng was no longer in the room when the victim woke up, but she was experiencing extreme pain to [her] lower abdomen.

Dead end: When the woman informed hospital staff about an Asian male doctor who caused her to lose consciousness, the hospital conducted a lineup of male employees, during which the plaintiff identified Cheng. However, the hospital failed to take action against Cheng, according to the womans attorney, Nicholas Liakas.

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That investigation, if you want to call it, hit a dead end, Liakas told NBC New York. [The hospital] conspired to cover up her assault by failing to tell her what had happened, failing to test or treat her for the illegal and dangerous injection of drugs she had been given, [and] refusing to call the police.

Criminal investigation: The alleged rape of the 19-year-old was reportedly confirmed when a criminal investigation into Cheng took place a year later. The doctor was accused of sedating another female victim in his apartment in 2022. When she was unconsciousness, he allegedly raped and recorded the assault.

During the investigation, investigators reportedly found videos of sexual assaults on his electronic devices, including the assault of the 19-year-old patient at New York-Presbyterian Hospital in Queens.

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Without the call they did to my mom, I would have never known, the woman told NBC New York. They have a video, but I dont want to see it. Im scared, I no longer want to go to hospitals. I wouldnt want anyone else to go through this.

Indictment: Cheng was reportedly placed off duty, banned from hospital property and terminated after the hospital learned of the criminal rape indictment in December 2022. He was arrested on Dec. 27 and was indicted by a grand jury and charged with rape, assault, unlawful surveillance and sexual abuse, among other charges, on Dec. 30.

The crimes committed by this individual are heinous, despicable and a fundamental betrayal of our mission and our patients trust. We are appalled and deeply saddened by what these victims and their families have endured, the hospital said in a statement.

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Cheng, who is awaiting trial, is currently held without bond on Rikers Island.

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Does secretive Cuba base host Chinese spy station? US thinks so A truck passes by a sign at the entrance of Bejucal, Cuba

By Dave Sherwood and Matt Spetalnick

BEJUCAL, Cuba (Reuters) - Just outside the sleepy Cuban village of Bejucal, a winding track, rutted with potholes and losing ground to the jungle, ends at a barbed wire fence. A sign warns: "KEEP OUT, MILITARY ZONE."

What lies beyond remains largely a mystery, though the U.S. government has long suspected that China runs an intelligence gathering operation in this village that once hid Soviet nuclear warheads.

A Reuters reporter traveled to Bejucal this week, gaining rare access to the area around the site that remains an enigma, even for locals, but that has come under scrutiny after the Biden administration said Beijing may be using the island as a spying post.

The question of Chinese spying from Cuba was renewed last week following a Wall Street Journal report. The newspaper cited U.S. officials saying a new effort by China's security services was underway on the island. It comes at a time when U.S.-China relations have sunk to the lowest in decades.

Reuters saw large parabolic antennas high on a ridge above town, partially obscured by a hillside of royal palms. A rusted white metal dome, of the type that houses antennas, hovered over dark jungle, decorated on its flanks with cryptic black triangles, some inverted. Unidentified men on motorcycles, dressed in civilian clothes, photographed reporters as they worked.

The United States believes the little-known base, just 116 miles (187 km) from Key West, Florida is used to intercept U.S. electronic communications, according to a Federal Communications Commission (FCC) document from November 2022.

"(China's Communist Party) maintains physical presences at Soviet-era intelligence facilities at Bejucal in what appears to be a signals intelligence collection operation," the FCC document says, citing a 2018 report by the U.S.-ChinaEconomic and Security Review Commission.

Those concerns were, in part, noted as grounds to deny an application to connect Cuba to the United States through the ARCOS-1 undersea telecoms cable, according to the document, which was drafted by a commission that includes members of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and Justice Department.

China, Washingtons top geopolitical rival, on Monday denied it was using Cuba as a spy base. Cuba did not reply to Reuters questions about the Bejucal installation.

But the communist-run government has dismissed prior allegations as a U.S. fabrication meant to justify Washington's decades-old economic embargo against the island.

Cuba says the only military incursion in its territory is the Guantanamo Bay Naval Base, which belongs to the United States.

The U.S. said on Monday that China had nonetheless upgraded its intelligence collection facilities in Cuba in 2019. The White House National Security Council did not respond to Reuters questions on whether Bejucal was the venue for those facilities, or whether it remained concerned about the site.

Around the base, in rolling countryside dotted with sugar cane and banana plants, many Cubans work small farm plots, traveling on bike or horseback.

Cuban farmer Arnaldo Perez, 61, has spent his life in Bejucal but told Reuters he had no idea who might be behind the sprawling, saucer-like green and white antennas tucked into a ridgeline above town.

"I know that has something to do with the military," said Perez, motioning toward the distant antennas as he rode his horse and carriage into town. "But I am a country person. I mind my own business."

'THERE ARE RUMORS'

The sleepy Cuban farm town has long been a place of secrets.

Just 20 miles (32 km) south of Havana, Bejucal gained notoriety after U.S. spy planes uncovered it as a hiding place for Soviet nuclear warheads during the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis.

Moscow backed down and removed the missiles, but it is widely regarded as the moment when the U.S. and Soviet Union came closest to nuclear confrontation.

Bejucal reemerged from obscurity in 2016, when U.S. Senator Marco Rubio of Florida, a critic of the Cuban government, demanded Havana kicks out this Chinese listening station in Bejucal among a list of actions, including holding free elections, which he said he would require before reaching any deals with Cuba.

Fulton Armstrong, a former senior CIA analyst on Cuba, said little was known about Bejucal, but he downplayed the importance of the Caribbean island nation to China for spying on its northern neighbor.

A listening post would be of marginal value (to China) in todays technology, he said, noting that Beijing now has access to more advanced spy equipment and techniques.

Armstrong acknowledged, however, the symbolic value of a Cuba-based operation for Beijing, as China has been deeply unhappy over U.S. spying in its neighborhood, including the Taiwan Strait and the South China Sea.

No one Reuters spoke with around the base had seen or heard reference to alleged Chinese involvement at Bejucal in recent years. Many, however, said they believed Russia had access to the base.

Deteriorating U.S.-Russia relations over Moscows invasion of Ukraine has fueled speculation that Russian President Vladimir Putin might decide to reopen a once-sprawling Soviet-era espionage base on the island at Lourdes, another relic of the Cold war that was closed in the early 2000s.

Onelvis Despaigne, 36, a farm worker who lives just outside the base, told Reuters on Monday he had not heard the recent foreign media reports on Chinese spying.

But if they were true, he said, he would soon find out.

"There are rumors," he said, grinning as he cleared his lawn with a machete. "Everybody knows everything here."

(Reporting by Dave Sherwood; Additional reporting by Matt Spetalnick in Washington, Editing by Adam Jourdan, Don Durfee and Bill Berkrot)
Dog show fire kills boxers trapped in RV as people try saving them, Florida officials say

Boxers inside an RV parked at a dog show at the Florida State Fairgrounds were killed when it caught fire, according to fire officials.

Firefighters responded to the fairgrounds in Tampa at about 2:45 p.m. June 13 and found about half of the RV burning, Rob Herrin, spokesman for Hillsborough County Fire Rescue, told McClatchy News.

Bystanders tried to rescue the dogs but were overcome by smoke when they attempted to go into the RV, Herrin said.

The dogs owner told fire officials that there were five boxers inside the RV at the time, and they all died, Herrin said.

The exact number of dogs that died in the incident could not be immediately confirmed.

A spokesperson for the American Kennel Club, which registers and promotes events for purebred dogs, said the agency received information that two additional dogs died due to heat from the fire. Five of the dogs that died were show dogs and two were not, according to the organization.

We are aware of the tragic incident that occurred in the parking lot at the Tampa Fairgrounds in which dogs perished, and our hearts are with those affected, both human and canine, the American Kennel Club said in a statement.

Herrin said the cause of the fire has not been determined, but it is considered an accident.

Many people in the dog show community posted on social media that they were mourning in solidarity with the owners who lost their dogs.

Im in tears wishing this had never happened, wrote Dan Buchwald.

The boxer and dog show community feels their pain and cries for these wonderful people, wrote Amy Bieri. Love and prayers sent to all of you involved.

The owners did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

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I Run This: Dominique Fishback

I Run This: Dominique Fishback

DominiqueFishbackmelts into each of her roles. It often feels less like shes acting and more like shes becoming the character.

Viewers witnessed her superpower earlier this year with Prime Videos Swarm, in which she embodied Dre, an emotionally inept stan-turned-serial killer. It was a starkly different role for Fishback, who had performances in The Deuce, Project Power and Judas and the Black Messiah.

For many of her roles, Fishback has made a habit of journaling as the characters  admittedly, she couldnt tap into Dres diary and capture her feelings and fear in portraying that role.

Her latest role in Transformers: Rise of the Beast felt closer to home, quite literally. Her character, Elena, shares roots with Fishback as an East New York native. Long before coming onto the project, which is her first blockbuster starring role, Fishback manifested the opportunity as a child. She knew she wanted to be in a big movie like Transformers, and eventually found herself as the first Black woman to play a leading role in the franchise film. However, she made it clear that before she said yes, it couldnt be a performative diversity play. She wanted studio executives to actually listen to her.

I wrote a letter to the studio after I got it to say how important it was for the representation. Little girls watching the TV will say, Oh, I can do that, she said. They dont have to imagine as hard. Because I had to imagine hard because nobody looked like me, but they can imagine not as hard, hopefully.

Though the movie premiered over the weekend to mixed reviews, Fishbacks acting excelled.

She told HuffPost that her humble Brooklyn beginnings helped pave the way and keep her grounded in her practice.

My family did not know how to get me into acting. When I was 15, my mom told me she was pregnant, and she was going to have a baby, and something told me shes not going to be able to get me into acting, she said. So, I started Googling free acting programs for kids in New York City. I just started doing it, and I didnt know how. I just knew what, and Im just really thankful to be here today.

For I Run This, Fishback, radiating with Emmy-buzz, spoke about how she manifested her role in Transformers, her struggles of tapping into Dre for Swarm, and her rom-com hopes.





First, I want to address the full-circle moment you posted on your Instagram stories. You were passing Pace University, where you studied to become an actor, on the way to CBS This Morning, where you had an interview about your latest role. How are you feeling? Wheres your spirit right now?

My spirit is really good. Its really calm, but I think its because of the work that Ive been doing just on myself in general. I started to realize that when I was in Brooklyn, in East New York, Id be like, I want to be an actor. I thought that if I acquired those things that, I would be happy. And then, when I acquired them, I wasnt happy. It was external. And so, I then started realizing, Oh, I have to figure out how to be happy inside. And now that Im learning how to be happy inside, all of the stuff thats coming feels evenbetter because its not contingent upon the fact that itll stay forever. Its contingent upon the moment, and then that makes it that much better.

Youve talked about manifesting this role in Transformers. Can you talk about that journey and why this role is important to you?

Im getting a little emotional. I watched a lot of TV growing up... but didnt really know how to get the thing that I wanted. I just knew that it was possible. And it just starts there, knowing that I could do that. Somebody else did. I could do that. I would watch Even Stevens and a lot of Disney, and I watched how Shia [LeBeouf] became a movie star because he did Transformers, and I said, OK, so I got to do something like that. I didnt think it would actually be Transformers, so thats just a cherry on top that I would get to do it, and I get to do it with Anthony Ramos, which is really special because weve known each other before. And that it takes place in Brooklyn, and my character is from East New York, where I am from, and that was a little nugget that we got to drop in there.

And ultimately, I wrote a letter to the studio after I got it to say how important it was for the representation. Like little girls watching the TV will say, Oh, I can do that. They dont have to imagine as hard. Because I had to imagine hard because nobody looked like me, but they can imagine not as hard, hopefully, because they say, Oh man, she did it. Oh, shes from East New York.

I even talk about, I mean, this is sad information, but when I came back home, I learned that my stepdad had been shot five times. I was filming for a whole month, and nobody told me because they didnt want to hurt me. He is alive. He had to learn how to walk again. But when I came home, I was just looking at how my life was such a dichotomy, that I could do something like Transformers, that Id be the first Black female lead, and look at my life, Im doing this thing to come home to this other reality where I didnt know that my stepdads life was on the line this whole time. Its really hard to wrap your mind around.

Im so sorry to hear that. Im glad that hes recovering. How are you able to balance those things? How do you keep yourself grounded in ensuring that reality remains at the forefront, especially in an industry that feels so far removed?

Well, in all reality, my family is still there, so I could never forget. And then, when I go home, one of the biggest blessings to me is when I do connect with somebody... and they FaceTime me and take me to the barbershop. Or when I go home, folks are like, What are you doing over here, Dom? Im proud of you. And it feels so familiar, and it gets me excited. It rejuvenates me. It inspires me because they say, Oh, remember when you were walking down the street with your book bag, talking about, Im going to rehearsal. So, I think just being that close to them, just by way of knowing me from when I was younger, they feel very proud. And it almost seems as though they feel like its them too, and I love that feeling.

Going back to Transformers, what attracted you to this role?

Honestly, it was [director] Steven Caple Jr. His idea for the movie and what he wanted to do, because I was like, I dont know. Sometimes when big films are looking to diversify, its like, are they really looking? Im going to give my all to this audition process. Do I really have a chance? Let me know what the odds are. It doesnt mean that I wouldnt try, but I got to know what the odds are. He told me it was going to take place in 1994 and that he wanted Elena to have her own kind of storyline and her own autonomy over her choices and what she does.

And I said, Well, I love to give notes. I love to talk about character. And he was like, Oh, you can give me your notes. So, I actually gave notes and sat with the writers two times, and it wasnt about that. My ideas had to be in the film. That wasnt the point. The point was just that I felt like I was in a collaborative space where somebody was going to hear me. And if there was something that was really problematic as the representation in this particular moment, as the Black girl, then I want to be able to know that Im always going to be heard.

How do you choose your roles in general?

I think about my inner child. I think about the girl who was in Brooklyn being like, Oh, can I do that? She listed this thing, Monster, like Charlize Theron, or Boys Dont Cry, Hillary Swank. Swarm is very much like that. Or the Joker, Heath Ledger, those kind of performers. I love doing critically acclaimed acting movies, but I dont have to choose. Why do I? I can do everything. Thats what I said when I was a kid. And so, now, when Im choosing my roles, I say, OK, would I have done that? Would I have wanted to do that? You cant guarantee how successful a projects going to be. You can only count the good things that you have and then see how it turns out. But if you dont try, you never know. And so I say, OK, this is the thing that grounds me and why Iwanted to do this no matter what happens. And so, that was kind of what it was with Transformers, I want to do everything. I dont want to be limited.

Many of us were introduced to you on The Deuce. Between then and now, what is the same and what is different personally and professionally?

Similar is the way I approach a character or the roles that I tend to gravitate or gravitate toward me. Its always a particular area in my life that Im dealing with that will help my spirit to grow and evolve. Art affects my soul, my well-being.

Whats different now is my ability to not take things as personally. Im trying to learn how to be a master of my own emotion. I feel like I cracked something recently; Im able to ground myself in whatever choice a person makes. It really isnt about me at all. And if I could hold onto how I feel and ground and center myself, then I dont have to suffer. And I feel like maybe my perception is different. Maybe I was afraid that [people on set] were misunderstanding me or judging me. Now that I have a different perspective, I can see that maybe thats my own feelings and not necessarily how they feel about my Brooklyn accent at all. So, I can remove my perspective and say, I have to be only responsible for me, and I think that Ill have a better time living my dreams if I come from that perspective.

I know journaling is a big part of how you approach your craft, how you draw out each character you portray, who they are and how you will bring them to life. Can you talk about when you started that and what thats been able to add to not only each project but also to you, personally?

I started it when I was doing Show Me a Hero. I was with another actress, Natalie Paul, and she talked about how she summarized her scenes. And I said, Oh, cool. As I started summarizing, I was putting thoughts and feelings behind what I think I felt or what happened. I started building a world around it.

And then it started being like, Well, I love journaling. What if I started journaling as my character? But some sets and some things are moving too fast that you cant do it. And then other times, characters dont want that. For The Last Days of Ptolemy Gray, Robyn did not want to journal. Anytime I sat down to journal as her, I had resistance, and I didnt want to force it.

And I built a lot of things around it based off of this PDF. And I sent it to Samuel L. Jackson, and I sent it to all of the directors that we had. I asked if Robyn could have a scar. That was different. I didnt journal, per se. And then, with Swarm, I could not journal as Dre because on the page, I didnt really understand her, and her psychology wasnt present. I think theres always a line into the psyche of a character. With Dre, everything was so surface, and I didnt know what was true. So instead of journaling as her, I journaled as myself because I knew I had resistance. I knew that I had fear, and I wanted to identify those things so that I could move it out of the way so that I could be a clear vessel and that the camera would not pick up on a wall between Dominique and Dre.

For Swarm, I know you told Donald Glover that you didnt want to catch up to yourself as an actor. What do you envision your next role in that realm being?

Well, I think I could have never envisioned something like Swarm that is so unique and original. And I think thats what that statement was. It was like, I didnt know that I needed or wanted a Swarm, but when it presented itself, I knew it was that. And so, I wasnt afraid to speak up and say, Thats the thing that I want. So, now its kind of like, again, based off of my inner child, what I desire.

I love romance, and I want to do a classic rom-com, like When Harry Met Sally, or like Say Anything, or all those things that made me giddy inside, but that can stand the test of time. So, I have to wait for that really special rom-com, or I can write it. Or I want to do an epic romance. Juliet is just one of my favorite characters. Its a dream role on stage and in film.

Im really in my romantic stage right now. So some form of that has to happen. Nothings going to be like Swarm, nothings going to be like Judas. Transformers is not supposed to be Swarm. None of the projects that I do are supposed to be the other one. Its just supposed to give me an opportunity to express different versions of my artistry and explore the human psyche and then grow as a person because of the sacrifices of the character.

I want to do everything, I don't want to be limited.Dominique Fishback

Do you have any dreams behind the camera?

Im pretty sure Ill direct. But definitely more writing. I think I want to do a documentary about love and self-love and find out what it means to come back to the oneness of self and things like the stuff that Im learning right now. I started video journaling in 2020, so I feel like I actually have material. So, right now, Im just trying to put everything together and see what happens.

What mark do you want to leave on Hollywood when this is all said and done?

Well, definitely limitless talent and versatility and ability to transform. I remember when I was in school, a lot of my classmates were looking for representation. And I said I want to perfect my craft so that when I get into the door, I always deliver. I want to be like [Allen] Iverson. When he came into the game like he was always clutch. Or like Meryl Streep. Its like even if you dont like a project that she did, youre not going to be able to say she cant act. So, I always said, I want them to be, Boy, that girl could act, like even if I dont like something, that girl could act. So, that was always one of the things. And now I think its just I want people to say, Oh, she revolutionized film and acting. Ooh, that felt a little weird to say.

Related...
Three days of high-stake negotiations between interim Haiti Prime Minister Ariel Henry and a cross-section of Haitian political and civic leaders have ended without a resolution to their countrys multifaceted crisis, but with an agreement to continue talking back in Port-au-Prince.

Those discussions are to involve not just the 50 Haitians who eventually made it to Jamaicas capital this week, but also the three former Caribbean prime ministers  Perry Christie of The Bahamas, Bruce Golding of Jamaica and Kenny Anthony of St. Lucia  who facilitated the tense political negotiations aimed at getting Haitians to compromise.

The former leaders and elder statesmen have agreed to travel to Haiti in the coming days to meet with members of a transition council whose job it is to prepare the volatile country for long-overdue elections. The council currently consists of three members and is headed by Mirlande Manigat, a constitutional law expert and former first lady and presidential candidate.

Manigat had declined the invitation to travel to Jamaica to discuss Haitis crisis, saying the council had held a similar effort in Port-au-Prince and that such discussions should take place in Haiti, not Jamaica.

The hope was that by meeting in a neutral place to talk among themselves, Haitian political and civic leaders could arrive at a broad political consensus, after nearly two years of failed efforts by others in the international community, toward elections and improved security.

But as with previous negotiations, the unresolved core issue in closed-door discussions, which at times became heated, remained: How, in the absence of a president or a parliament, should Haiti be governed?

Haiti hasnt had an elected representative since January, when the last of its parliamentarians, 10 senators, left office after their terms expired. The country has not presidential elections following the assassination of President Jovenel Moise on July 7, 2021.

Henry, who emerged as prime minister after a three-way power struggle, has governed the country since late July 2021. Although he has signed two political accords with parties and civil society groups, and installed the transition council to advise him, hes accused of amassing power. He pushed back against that accusation repeatedly in Kingston, where after declining to attend the first day of negotiations he participated in the last two days.

Its a match and this was the first half, architect and former presidential candidate Leslie Voltaire said. Voltaire accompanied Dr. Maryse Narcisse to Kingston on behalf of Fanmi Lavalas, the political party headed by former President Jean-Bertrand Aristide.

Before returning to Haiti on Wednesday with the others, Voltaire said that despite the lack of a concrete deal, he believes progress was made.

For one, the number of political voices was enlarged to include others, not just the coalition of civil society groups and political parties known as the Montana Accord, which has been vocal in their criticism of Henry and have been pushing their own transition plan. As a result, some parties have decided to create a bloc to further push for an opening, said Katia Bonte. with the Struggling Peoples Organization, OPL.

Second, Haitians got a chance to talk among themselves and express their dissatisfaction with the eroding situation at home. Their comments were directed at not only at Henry, but at others in the room who had been part of the government of Moise and former President Michel Martelly, who had handpicked Moise to succeed him.

In his conversation with Henry, Voltaire said he implored the prime minister to compromise.

I told him if you have all of the power than you have all of the pressures. Why dont you distribute the pressure? Voltaire said.

Upon returning to Port-au-Prince Wednesday, Henry addressed his visit to Jamaica saying during a press conference that the trip was an occasion to renew contact and engage in dialogue that was frank and sincere. He regretted the decision by those who opted not attend and said agreed with Voltaire that this was a step.

We will continue to talk, he said, adding that in the two years since he came into office, we have been trying to find a consensus and spoken to everyone in order to find an agreement so we can advance.

Then, he added, the current intermediary period has gone on for far too long and its time for Haiti to head to elections, to allow the population to freely choose the men and women of its choosing to represent them in office.

We say we are democrats. Then we can agree that one of the principle missions of a transition government is to organize good elections, Henry said, adding that improving the security environment by securing outside assistance for the Haiti National Police remains a priority and an urgency.

In principle, Henry has agreed to include a broader representation in his government by creating a unity government; he also agreed to expand the number of people on the transition council and both he and the others agreed to work toward creating a Provisional Electoral Council.

The government and [the transition council] remains flexible to modify certain structures in the government and governance and agree to make changes in the government so we can become more inclusive, Henry said, adding that making modifications to the constitution is something he also believes they can do given that nearly everyone in Kingston agreed it required changes.

But the stumbling blocks that have dogged previous tentative agreements persist: how much power should the council have? Will it be able to fire the prime minister? Will he be able to fire the council?

Members of the Montana Accord, who are now willing to have Henry remain in office, want the transition council to have presidential authority so that Haiti, in the spirit of its constitution, has a two-tier governmental structure: a prime minister and a president.

We are in an autocracy and its dangerous, said Magali Comeau Denis, who leads the Montana coalition.

Two years after the assassination of Moise, Denis said there is chaos in Haiti and at the head of the government. Chaos cannot solve chaos, she said. You need to have some order.

Jacques Ted Saint-Dic, who joined Denis in Jamaica, said they came to the talks with the idea that it was possible to arrive at a political consensus to create an opening and to discuss the future of the country.

The question of the personal power of Ariel for us is an important problem, he said. We are always saying we are a democracy. Unfortunately no institutions are functioning and the power is personal.

Though the talks are the initiative of the 15-member Caribbean Community, they were heavily supported and financed by the United States and Canada.

Ahead of the visit, diplomats in Haiti and in Washington met with several of the invitees, emboldening some participants at the negotiating table but arousing suspicious in others about whether the outcome was pre-decided, even though no foreign diplomats were allowed in the room during the talks.

In this perspective, we must negotiate directly with the Americans, Saint-Dic said. Because when speaking to Ariel Henry, we speak directly to the United States of America. Weve been saying to the Americans to free Ariel, to allow him to negotiate promptly and frankly, so we can know where he is, what he wants and where he wants to go.

Politicians on both sides of the issue accused both Henry and members of the Montana Group of being under the influence of foreign governments, accusations they all deny.

Sorel Jacinthe, a former senator and supporter of Henry, said he the negotiators are returning to Port-au-Prince the same way they left: empty handed and without a deal.

We did not resolve anything, he said.

Jacinthe accused the Montana group of not backing down from its insistence that there be a president appointed in Haiti, even through there have been no elections and there has been some opposition in the international community, given that the head of the Supreme Court was dead and the parliament was not functional.

They know clearly that as long as we do not have elections, there cannot be a president, Jacinthe said of the Montana coalition. There cannot be an executive at the head, and yet they insist on maintaining the same position after two years even though its not possible.

Jacinthe noted that prior to the Jamaica talks, the transition council held a forum in Port-au-Prince and many of the groups represented in Jamaica refused to show up.

They preferred to come to Jamaica but not one went to the forum, Jacinthe said. Now they are returning to Haiti with nothing being resolved.
Donald Trump barred from discussing case with his co-defendant and 'body man.' Will that stop him?

MIAMI  A judge on Tuesday barred Donald Trump from talking about his classified documents case with co-defendant and personal valet Walt Nauta  and potentially dozens of witnesses in the first-ever federal prosecution of a former president.

Trump agreed to the order by magistrate Judge Jonathan Goodman as a condition of his release from custody on his own recognizance during the hushed hearing on the 13th floor of the federal courthouse here. It was a step down from an even stricter proposed ban  a first win for Trump but also a significant victory for special counsel Jack Smith.

It's a compromise, legal analysts said, that will be all but impossible to enforce.

The agreement came moments after Trump  sullen, arms crossed and slumped slightly forward in his chair  entered a not guilty plea to 37 counts of violating federal laws regarding the mishandling of classified material.

Within a few hours, the former president broke his vow, or came dangerously close to it  according to some legal analysts  during a caustic speech to supporters at his Bedminster estate and golf course.

Trump trashed Smith and the prosecution team, railing against what he called a politically motivated witch hunt and seeking to undermine the foundations of the case against him. His prosecution, Trump said, is one of the most outrageous and vicious legal theories ever put forward in an American court of law.

In the audience, and no doubt also watching on TV, were some of the same potential witnesses with whom Trump had promised not to discuss the case.

How do you define 'speaking to'?

Trump may not have been speaking directly to Nauta, who remained with Trump after his arraignment as part of his job as the former presidents body man. And he wasnt specifically talking to potential case witnesses, which his lawyers said Tuesday will include Trumps Secret Service protective detail, some of his current and former lawyers, and an array of staff at his Mar-a-Lago and Bedminster properties.

Walt Nauta assists former President Donald Trump as he greets supporters at the second round of the LIV Golf at Trump National Golf Club May 27 in Sterling, Va.

But Trumps unique position in American history  a former president campaigning for the White House while under indictment for federal crimes  suggests that the judges order is going to be tested in the extreme in the coming months.

That is especially the case, legal analysts say, because of the vague nature of Goodmans order and Trumps history of defying legal and political attempts to constrain him.

Regarding the modest limitation on Trump and Nauta not to discuss the case with each other, its impossible to enforce and is therefore borderline meaningless, said career federal prosecutor Glenn Kirschner.

Defense lawyer Mark Zaid said the order, and Trumps speech within hours of it, illustrate just one of any number of atypical circumstances that will plague this case.

Few defendants would have an opportunity to speak to a co-defendant or witness in a manner that Trump will have available, said Zaid, who has represented many clients who have faced intimidation, or worse, for being investigation or trial witnesses.

Should Trump make comments at an event attended by Nauta, or perhaps through television or social media, and it appears that very clear messages, if not instructions, are being made that would be deemed inappropriate if the two were meeting privately, I would expect prosecutors to revisit this issue before the judge for further clarification or expansion of the scope of the gag order.

What happened inside the courtroom

By the time the select few reporters were allowed into Courtroom 13-3 of the Wilkie D. Ferguson Jr. U.S. Courthouse, Trump was already seated  sandwiched between lawyers Todd Blanche and Chris Kise. To their right were Nauta and his lawyer, Stanley Woodward.

Nauta, who didnt enter a plea Tuesday, is charged with conspiring with Trump to obstruct a federal investigation into Trumps handling of dozens of top-secret documents he took with him when leaving office.

The government did not object to Trump being released on his own recognizance without bail. Authorities didnt take a mugshot of him either, given his public stature, and he whizzed through the digital fingerprinting and other court processing procedures.

The vehicle of former President Donald Trump drives slowly past Trump supporters outside the Wilkie D. Ferguson Jr. Courthouse in Miami. Trump appeared in federal court to face charges that he illegally retained national security documents after leaving office.

But the question of with whom Trump could  and could not  talk became the most substantive and contentious part of the hearing.

Initially, the judge weighed the option of not allowing Trump to contact Nauta or potential key witnesses at all.

Usually the condition is no contact whatsoever, Goodman said.

That would have meant Trump could talk to Nauta and potential witnesses in the case only through their attorneys. Blanche objected, saying it would be logistically difficult because Nautas job is to follow Trump around all day, which requires frequent interaction. Also, he said, so many of the potential witnesses have been, and remain, close to Trump and interact with him daily.

Many worked for President Trump for years and rely on him for their livelihood, Blanche said. The facts of the case involve everything in President Trumps life.

One of the witnesses, Blanche noted, is still the (former) presidents lawyer.

After an extended back and forth, Goodman said Trump could interact with Nauta and everyone else in his various orbits, just not about the facts of the case.

The elephant in the room, one of the prosecutors said, is that we dont have a list yet of witnesses who would fall under the judges order. Goodman instructed the Justice Department to provide one as soon as possible.

He provided no guidance, however, on how such an order could play out in real life, especially as Trump seeks to make undermining the case a centerpiece of his campaign.

After a few glitches involving incomplete signatures, the bond paperwork was completed at just after 3:30 p.m. Third times the charm, Goodman said.

Trump back on the trail  with co-defendant and witnesses

Within minutes of his release from custody, Trump was back on the campaign trail, with Nauta at his side, during a surprise stop at a famous Miami restaurant filled with supporters. By nightfall he had flown to New Jersey for a fundraiser and, according to news reports, a more intimate dinner with top donors.

Former President Donald Trump visits the Cuban restaurant Versailles after he appeared for his arraignment in Miami. Trump pleaded not guilty to 37 federal charges including possession of national security documents after leaving office, obstruction, and making false statements.

Tom Fitton, one of Trumps most vocal supporters, said the judges order was so vague as to virtually guarantee a confrontation between Trump, the Justice Department and the judge who ultimately oversees the case.

When Trump starts talking about the case, which he has every right to do on the campaign trail, what are Nauta and all of the other people around Trump every day supposed to do? Cover their ears so they cant hear it? asked Fitton, president of the conservative public interest group Judicial Watch.

What is he going to say, from the podium or at a campaign or even smaller donor event? 'Id love to talk about this case but Ive been advised by counsel that I can't talk about the biggest case in American history?' Does he need a list of who's attending before he can decide whether he can talk about it?

This issue goes beyond a limited list of witnesses, said Fitton, who attended a private dinner with Trump the night before the arraignment. The judge should just remind the defendant (Trump) that you can't compromise the case by trying to unlawfully influence a witness's testimony. But it obviously impairs his candidacy to not be able to talk about the case.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Order bars Trump from talking about case with Walt Nauta and witnesses
Former President Donald Trump gestures after speaking June 13, 2023, at Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster, N.J., after pleading not guilty in a Miami courtroom earlier in the day to dozens of felony counts that he hoarded classified documents and refused government demands to give them back. (Andrew Harnik/AP)

No one knows how the criminal prosecution of Donald Trump will play out in coming months, though its safe to say the 2024 presidential election will be unlike any other in American history.

A lot depends on reaction by the Trump cults rabid following, how much Republican politicians bend reality to defend Trump and to what extent mainstream media treat all of this as politics as usual.

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If Trump followers resort to violence, like they did during the bloody Jan. 6, 2021, assault on the U.S. Capitol, Trump would surely lose support of moderate and independent voters. Yet some Republican leaders are using the threat of potential violence to rouse support among Trumps gun-crazed fanatical followers.

Media are unable to resist covering the colorfully dressed throng of MAGA enthusiasts. Opinions of clueless morons who think Trump is a shrewd negotiator and successful business leader are often treated as equal to those of academics and historians who have repeatedly warned us about authoritarian threats to American democracy.

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By flooding the media zone with nonsense, Trump defenders are able to confuse and overwhelm audience members who would rather tune out than attempt to make sense of the proceedings.

Ive closely followed coverage of Trumps 37-count criminal indictment across traditional and social media. Ive read smart and thoughtful analysis that picks apart the absurd counterpunches of Trump defenders in detail. I can assure you that reaction by many can be summed up with the internet slang TL;DR, which stands for too long, didnt read.

Its not that people dont care. Its just that our attention spans have been shortened to about the length of a firecracker fuse.

The greatest threat to American democracy isnt Trump, its Republican politicians who continue to support him because they are afraid of alienating his supporters.

One thing the GOP understands well is that its strength comes from unity. The slim House majority exists only if nearly every Republican member votes in unison. Republicans know they have no chance of winning elections in 2024 without the support of Trump followers.

Never mind that Trump followers may be gullible suckers. The GOP needs them, along with others who comprise a fragile coalition that managed to eek out a narrow win in the 2016 presidential race and has done nothing but fail to meet expectations ever since.

Bullies have assumed an oversized role in American politics. Facts seem less important than attitude. Some of todays most influential politicians are characterized by raised voices, pounding fists and attack dog mentality. Its all for show, and their supporters lap it up.

Trump supporters gather outside the Wilkie D. Ferguson Jr. United States Federal Courthouse June 13, 2023, as former President Donald Trump appears for his arraignment in Miami, Florida. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images North America/TNS)

Media do no favors to the citizenry by mainstreaming such performances and providing platforms that serve to legitimize outrageous views. Everyone is entitled to an opinion, but not every view deserves to be amplified. Decision makers in the free press appear increasingly eager to abandon their roles as gatekeepers for the sake of ratings.

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Despite the best efforts of journalists to justify the presentation of outrageous views as holding a mirror to society, its never enough in the minds of those locked in echo chambers of tribal partisanship. Anything short of full embrace of made-up conspiracy theories is regarded as proof of media bias and part of an orchestrated witch hunt.

I dont know how we get out of this predicament. I only recognize the danger it poses to American democracy. I think we all should be alarmed when members of Congress attack the independence and legitimacy of the Department of Justice rather than concede the possibility that Trump might have broken the law.

In normal times, appropriate responses would be that defendants are innocent until proved guilty, Trump will get his day in court and evidence and testimony will determine his guilt or innocence.

How can senators and representatives confronted by media assert with such certainty that Trump is a victim being persecuted by political rivals? How can they threaten to defund the FBI and Justice Department in one breath and claim to be the party of law and order in the next?

Hardcore supporters will never consider the possibility that Trump is a lifelong shyster who has weaseled his way from one scam to the next. They disregard mountains of evidence and latch on to talking points provided by GOP leaders and their wealthy donors.

This dynamic should terrify lovers of liberty and defenders of democracy. Next years election is immensely consequential. Those who believe in justice and the rule of law should muster every available resource to encourage voter participation.

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Many pundits will posit how they believe the prosecution of Trump will play out. Some will say his defense lawyers will drag out the proceedings and delay a trial to avoid presentation of evidence in court before the election.

Others will say hell accept a plea to avoid prison time in exchange for a promise to drop his bid for the presidency. Experts will speculate about a possible pardon. Commentators will make careers out of handicapping the GOP primary and theorizing how Trump would tell his supporters to stay home unless he is the Republican nominee.

The truth is, nobody knows because we have never before known a situation like this. Every scenario remains possible, from the most mundane to the totally apocalyptic. My advice is to hope for the best and prepare for the worst.

Trump faces a reckoning, but so does America. Trumps personal reckoning involves potential consequences for specific deeds detailed in pages of criminal indictments.

Americas reckoning involves truth, money and power. We must choose whether we are nation where everyone is created equal or a corrupt state that allows the wealthy elites control of a political party to undermine justice for all.

Ted Slowik is a columnist for the Daily Southtown.

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tslowik@tribpub.com
As history has shown, there's nothing in the Constitution barring an incarcerated candidate from competing.

Donald Trump at an event at his golf club in Bedminster, N.J., on Tuesday. (Bing Guan/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Since taking the oath of office as president in 2017, Donald Trump has been impeached twice, has lost a civil suit to E. Jean Carroll when a jury found he had sexually abused and defamed her, and faces concurrent investigations from the Justice Department and authorities in New York state, New York City and Georgia. But he has yet to face jail time, nor has the slew of investigations hurt his standing in the Republican presidential field, where he is still the frontrunner for 2024. His long history of litigation predates his career in politics, and a years-old meme features someone saying theyd like to see ol Donny Trump wriggle his way out of THIS jam!, only to find Trump easily sidestepping the potential trouble befalling him.

But the 37-count indictment that Trump was arraigned on Tuesday, tied to his personal retention of classified government documents and alleged obstruction of justice, has been deemed something different by many legal analysts: a serious threat to his freedom.

It's one of the most serious espionage cases in recent memory, not only because its against a former president but because the documents are so incredibly sensitive, Duncan Levin, a criminal defense attorney and former Manhattan prosecutor, told Yahoo News.

But even if Trump is convicted and sentenced to what could be dozens of years in prison, theres nothing in the Constitution that would prevent him from running for the GOP nomination or against President Biden in November 2024. And he wouldnt be the first candidate to try for federal office from a cell.

An antiwar Socialist

Eugene Debs, a five-time Socialist candidate for president. (PhotoQuest/Getty Images)

The most famous American to run from prison was Eugene Debs, who ran for president on the Socialist Party ticket four times between 1900 and 1912 as a free man.

In 1918, Debs was imprisoned for speaking out against the United States involvement in World War I.

The working class, who freely shed their blood and furnish the corpses, have never yet had a voice in either declaring war or making peace, Debs said in July 1918 in an Ohio park. It is the ruling class that invariably does both. They alone declare war and they alone make peace.

Under the Sedition Act of 1918, put into law two months earlier, those words were considered treasonous, and Debs was convicted on 10 counts and sentenced to a decade in prison, with the Supreme Court ruling against his appeal. He made his fifth run for president in 1920 from federal prison in Georgia, earning nearly 1 million votes, or 3% of the popular vote.

More recent runs from prison

Joseph Maldonado-Passage, known to many as Joe Exotic, in 2013 at the zoo he used to run in Wynnewood, Okla. (Sue Ogrocki/AP)

President Barack Obama, otherwise running unopposed by his party as he went for a second term, lost 40% of the vote in the 2012 West Virginia Democratic primary to convict Keith Judd. While serving time for extortion, Judd filed to run in the state from a federal prison in Texas. In his candidate bio, he described himself as a multi-time presidential candidate and Rastafarian-Christian who had been a bandleader in the Air Force and was seeking public office to make the world a better place. Judd had previously entered the 2008 Idaho Democratic primary, where he earned 1.7% of the vote, or 734 votes, finishing a distant third to Obama and Hillary Clinton.

Former Rep. Jim Traficant, D-Ohio, attempted to keep his seat in the House of Representatives while in federal prison for bribery. He had represented his northeast Ohio district for nearly two decades when his colleagues expelled him after he was convicted on a federal corruption charge. Traficant filed to run as an independent in the race for his open seat and earned 15% of the vote, losing to Democrat Tim Ryan.

Earlier this year, Joe Maldonado-Passage  better known as Joe Exotic or the Tiger King  announced he would be running for president while serving a 21-year sentence for attempted murder-for-hire and animal abuse. He has previously made two bids for president.

What would happen if Trump ran from prison?

Trump in Bedminster, N.J. on Tuesday. (Bing Guan/Bloomberg)

Officials have the ability to limit media access to prisoners, and an inmates hypothetical ability to hold virtual events or participate in debates is unclear. (Maldonado-Passage did phone interviews with Fox News and ABC while incarcerated.) When Debs ran, film footage of him learning of his nomination played at moving picture houses, and his campaign literature called for support for Convict No. 9653.

If Trump were to win from behind bars, theres nothing in the Constitution that says the oath of office must be delivered in a specific place, so he could be sworn in at prison, but its unclear how the day-to-day of a president serving from behind bars would work. Theres also the possibility of his being able to pardon himself as president, which would be unprecedented but not impossible. In 2018, Trump claimed he had the absolute right to pardon himself.
Boise city officials say they want to better coordinate with businesses, other agencies and contractors after receiving complaints about extended downtown road closures affecting businesses.

Projects in the 11th and 12th street areas have cut off some street parking and closed lanes of traffic downtown, prompting frustration from business owners over congestion, sidewalk obstructions and fewer parking spaces for employees and customers.

Different blocks of 11th Street have been closed for months as contractors dig up the road to conduct utility repairs and construct a new protected bike path. Construction is also underway on an apartment tower at 12th Street and Idaho Street, a hotel at 11th Street and Grove Street, and another apartment tower along Front Street between 12th and 13th streets.

Andrea Cantor, Mayor Lauren McLeans economic development advisor, told the City Council last week that the spate of construction is due to the rapid growth of Boise, as surface parking lots are replaced with apartment buildings and hotels. But she acknowledged a need to better coordinate the closures to keep streets accessible.

Theres an opportunity and a need to improve communication, coordination and decision-making around closures associated with large or complex projects in order to keep the city accessible for those wanting to bike, walk and stroll through our city, Cantor said.

Jennifer Hensley, the executive director of the Downtown Boise Association, told the Idaho Statesman that the city has implemented some changes that businesses have asked for to ease parking challenges, like adjusting four-hour parking meters to two hours.

The crux of the issue is that while we are looking forward to hundreds of new residents and tourists to our downtown and the positive impacts these new patrons will bring downtown businesses in the future, it can be tough to navigate some areas of downtown right now, she said in an email. While street parking has been the largest complaint, she said, it has not been enforceable to ban anyone from parking there.

Weve exhausted options within current code, so the next step is to involve city leadership for potential code changes, Hensley said. Leadership has listened intently, working to understand these issues from all perspectives, so were thankful for that and look forward to next steps.

In a recent Facebook post, Owyhee Tavern, a restaurant at the corner of 11th Street and Main Street, said that some businesses have seen close to a 20% reduction in sales.

These are trying times for our beloved downtown Boise, the post said. The persistent echo of progress has caused a dip in the usual hustle and bustle.

When will downtown Boise construction be complete?

The improvements on 11th Street are scheduled to be completed by November, according to Boises urban renewal agency, the Capital City Development Corp.

In an email, Ada County Highway District spokesperson Rachel Bjornestad said Capital City Development Corp. is in charge of the 11th Street construction, and that utility upgrades prompted the other closures unrelated to new buildings.

By Idaho Code, we cannot prevent utilities from doing work without sufficient reason, Bjornestad said. A lot of the utilities in downtown Boise are old and need repairs or replacement even without development.

The highway district is in charge of most roads in Boise. Bjornestad added that ACHD works to minimize the impact construction has on residents, and that contractors are often limited by weather, labor shortages and supply chain issues.

Boise City Council weighs in on complaints

At a council meeting last week, Council Member Patrick Bageant said he was resistant to the idea of setting aside parking for employees at local businesses or requiring more administrative work for developers when they schedule construction, which he said could delay projects.

We should be prioritizing customer parking, citizen parking, downtown use parking, he said. Were going to tend to hear from the employees who want to park. Were not going to tend to hear from the people who go downtown to eat, or the people who go downtown to walk around, even though they have as much right or more right to be parking and using that space.

He said communication with the highway district and other agencies involved in construction is critical.

Council Member Latonia Haney Keith, who also chairs Capital City Development Corp.s board, said she finds their emailed construction updates helpful and supported having a city website that publishes construction updates and schedules.

She also said the city should put time limits on lane closures, adding that complainants have mentioned persistent lane closures even after construction appears to have stopped.

Council President Holli Woodings suggested the city should look to what larger cities do to minimize construction impacts. She also said Boise should try to maintain pedestrian access to sidewalks, so that long-term closures dont make it difficult for pedestrians to get around.

Its been really tough on quite a few of them for quite a bit of time, McLean said at the meeting, referring to some downtown businesses. When we get through it, these businesses Im sure will really enjoy the added number of people that this development brings.

Council Member Jimmy Hallyburton added that the city should explore partnering with businesses with large parking lots to provide more public parking.
Venerable men's clothing store Hubert White, which has operated in downtown Minneapolis for nearly 90 years, will close this summer.

Owner Bob White  the grandson of founder Hubert "Bert" White  announced in a social media post Wednesday that after 50 years running the haberdashery, he would retire and close the Nicollet Mall store on Aug. 1.

The closing of the store is another reminder of the challenges facing downtown retailers as they grapple with a smaller population of office workers after the pandemic. According to the Minneapolis Downtown Council, downtown buildings are only 65% occupied as of this month.

Sales have been steadily rising at Hubert White, Bob White said, but haven't increased back to 2019 numbers largely because downtown workers haven't fully returned.

"If one is to do this in our industry, it's got to be on this cycle because there's still time to cancel our fall orders," he said.

The store outfitted the wealthy  such as corporate executives, hedge fund managers and Minnesota Twins players  as well as those interested in classic menswear.

Steve Cramer, chief executive of the Downtown Council, called the store closing the end of an era.

"It's certainly a sad thing for downtown and in keeping with larger trends about retail that we're well aware of and trying to address going forward," Cramer said, "but more than anything else, it's gratitude for the relationships they had with customers over the years."

Local retail expert Mich Berthiaume called the closing of Hubert White "devastating."

"They are an institution, and they are one of the few shopping locations that we have in downtown," said Berthiaume, who has curated retail experiences at numerous retail outlets including the holiday market at the renovated Dayton's Project across the street.

Having a longtime retailer like Hubert White's only added to the richness of the retail experience in downtown, she said. Bob White was a "master at sustaining customers," however, as work continues to become more casual, there has naturally been less demand for formal business attire especially for younger men, Berthiaume said.

Nicollet Mall has slowly lost much of its apparel stores which have migrated to the North Loop. Nordstrom Rack, which was also located in the IDS Center like Hubert White, closed last year. A block away Marshalls closed earlier this year. Retail vacancy in the Minneapolis central business district hovers near 40%. Last week, a group of several city stakeholders, which included White, presented a list of recommendations to Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey on how to possibly revitalize downtown retail especially on Nicollet Mall.

As word spread via social media and emails to the store's customers, Hubert White clients mourned the pending loss.

Frank Morganti III, who began shopping there in 2001, said shoppers could easily spend $5,000 on a visit and compares the clothing lines such as Canali and Samuelsohn to the equivalent in car terms of a Bentley or Ferrari.

"These are products you would see in New York, Beverly Hills and Chicago and you could find them in good old Minneapolis/St. Paul," said Morganti, who considers himself a student of menswear and works as a haberdasher at Milbern Clothing in St. Paul.

Customers like John Rouleau also appreciated the personal touch of sales associates who would advise on the right sizing and styles.

"They didn't chase trends, It was a place where you can go and get things that would last," said Rouleau, who shopped for his job in government relations. "It was always an investment when I shopped there but it's things I knew I'd have for quite a while."

Hubert White, located on the corner of Nicollet Mall and South Eighth Street at the IDS Center, was one of the last longtime retail holdouts on the mall.

"As I reflect back on the past 50 years I have been a part of the Hubert White team, I am humbled and proud of the traditions, the excellence and service that Hubert White has demonstrated since its inception by my grandfather in 1916," White wrote.

He continued, "However, the time has come to make this difficult decision to close the doors."

The shop first opened in downtown St. Paul in 1916. In 1936, it opened in Minneapolis near the Radisson hotel. It relocated to the marquee Nicollet Mall location in 2000.

The store's clothing mix evolved with the times, going from mostly business professional early on to adding stylish casual menswear that's become common in many offices and social settings.

White said his decision to close stemmed from him being of retirement age as well as the store's lessened traffic, not crime along Nicollet Mall.

"I think the police and the city have done a tremendous job in turning it around," White said. "I had dinner at Zelo last weekend, and the street seemed terrific and that was not the case a year ago."
At least 78 people drown after migrant boat sinks off Greek coast

At least 78 people died after a migrant boat carrying hundreds of people sank off the Greek coast in the early hours of Wednesday, that countrys Coast Guard said, as fears mount that there could be more fatalities.

A total of 104 migrants who were traveling on the boat have since been rescued from the water and transferred to the city of Kalamata.

All the men who have been rescued are between 16 and 41 years old according to what they said, Kalamata Mayor Thanasis Vasilopoulos said Wednesday. They also said there were women and children on board, he added.

The coast guard, which revised down a previous death toll of 79, said the search and rescue operation will stop once its dark in the area and will continue with the first light of day tomorrow.

It is unclear how many people were on board the ship when it went under. Survivors say there could have been as many as 750 passengers.

The Greek coast guard released photos of the boat taken on Tuesday before it sank on Wednesday. - Hellenic Coast Guard

We fear that the number of dead will rise significantly, a spokesperson for Peloponnese prefect Panagiotis Nikas said.

The International Organization for Migration (IOM) earlier tweeted that it believed that there were up to 400 people onboard.

UN chief Antonio Guterres referred to the shipwreck as horrific in a post on Twitter, adding: As Ive said before  every person searching for a better life deserves safety and dignity.

State broadcaster ERT, citing initial information from authorities, said the boat had sailed from Tobruk, in Libya.

The NGO Alarm Phone said it first received a call from the boat Tuesday afternoon and that it was difficult to communicate with the distressed, who said that they could not survive the night.

Survivors arrive by yacht after a rescue operation at the port in Kalamata town. - www.argolikeseidhseis.gr/AP

People rest in a shelter, following a rescue operation, after their boat capsized at open sea. - Stelios Misinas/Reuters

Those on board said the captain left the vessel three hours after the first distress call was made and passengers were in need of food and water, accoring to Alarm Phone.

A merchant vessel is said to have provided the boat with water at around 8 p.m. local time on Tuesday evening.

The last time Alarm Phone was able to contact the boat was just before 1 a.m. local time on Wednesday morning. According to Alarm Phone, all that could be heard was Hello my friend The ship you send is before the call cut off.

Search and rescue operations are being carried out by the Coast Guard in international waters, 47 nautical miles off the coast of Pylos in the southwestern Peloponnese.

The boats destination was Italy, according to Greek officials.

Survivors receive first aid. - www.argolikeseidhseis.gr/AP

Greek President Katernina Sakellaropoulou visited some of the survivors on Wednesday. We are shocked, we are shocked like everyone in Greece, Vasilopoulus said.

Greece has been at the heart of the European migrant crisis, offering a way into the European Union for migrants and refugees coming from the Middle East, Asia and Africa.

The number of undocumented people arriving on European shores by sea has skyrocketed this year due to conflict, global inequality and the climate crisis.

More than 36,000 people arrived in the Mediterranean region of Europe from January to March this year, nearly twice the number compared with the same period in 2022, according to figures from the UNs refugee agency (UNHCR).

It is the highest number since the refugee crisis that peaked in 2015 and early 2016  during some of the fiercest fighting in Syrias civil war  when the arrival of more than 1 million people on Europes shores led EU solidarity to collapse into bickering and border chaos.

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Dr. Steven Williams has been appointed president of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons. He will become the first Black president to lead the largest plastic surgery specialty organization in the world in its 92-year history.

I think we are able to achieve great accomplishments by standing on the shoulders of those that came before us, Dr. Williams told AfroTech in an email interview. I have my parents and plastic surgery professors to thank they inspired an unrelenting drive for self betterment that serves me well today.

For a Black professional, being stamped with the title of the first brings the thought that there is still a great deal to be done in terms of diversity.

Any time there is a first moment in history, it is an important time and sets a new milestone. It also sets a new goal for others to overcome, Williams expressed. The ASPS has been around for almost 100 years. It is only recently that we have seen an increase in diversity that reflects that diverse populations make up our specialty and that of our patients. It is a small step, but it promotes a productive conversation, and I hope it inspires others to take leadership roles.

For the past 15 years, Williams served on the ASPS board and as vice president of membership, overseeing the plastic surgery community, growing patient safety initiatives, and heading the diversity and inclusion committee, according to a press release. In his post, he will further the organizations efforts by working to increase diversity and include perspectives of all populations. He also plans to implement technology initiatives to provide more resources to members, which he has applied at his own practice, Tri Valley Plastic Surgery.

Our practice stays abreast of the latest technologies in terms of treatments, devices and techniques to serve our patients, Williams detailed. Additionally, because of my technology background, we are active in designing a software platform that increases our ability to work with patients and provide timely answers. The American Society of Plastic Surgeons is also very active in this field, and I look forward to continuing to use my experience to further their initiatives of patient safety, patient education and improving the quality of care.

Williams takes much pride in his efforts at his Dublin, CA, practice. There, patients come for cosmetic and reconstructive surgical procedures and are met with skilled surgeons and medical professionals and expert injector Tarika Krishnamurthy PA-C, according to the companys website. The practice states that it is an innovator in fat transfer and body and breast sculpting.

I found plastic surgery to be the most challenging of all medical professions. It encompasses creativity, technical excellence, the spirit of innovation, and the ability to serve patients of all ages and medical concerns, Williams expressed.

Over the years, Tri Valley Plastic Surgery has scaled thanks to a reliable staff as well as the power of social media, Williams says. Despite the growing interest in plastic surgery over the years, it is his goal to ensure his patients make well-informed decisions free from outside influences.

Social media has accelerated the acceptance of plastic surgery, he explained. Generally, greater connections between people is a positive thing. However, its important to recognize that social media also has a corrosive effect when it comes to self-worth, especially among young teenage girls. While the benefits of connecting and being able to find information about plastic surgery is incredibly powerful, it must be balanced with the understanding that social media often presents an unrealistic picture about what life is and what we all are individually.

In addition to being mindful of the intent of a patient seeking consultations or procedures, Williams says it is as valuable for surgeons to be mindful of cultural nuances and disadvantages in healthcare that are especially prevalent among minority communities.

It is important to have a comprehensive understanding of different aesthetic preferences, as beauty standards can vary across cultures, he told AfroTech. Surgeons should strive to provide personalized care that respects and honors the individuals cultural identity. Moreover, there is a need to address any potential disparities in access to plastic surgery services, ensuring equal opportunities and affordability for individuals of all socioeconomic backgrounds.

He continued, It is also important to understand historic barriers to trust, communication and access to health care. Open and honest communication, cultural sensitivity, and equitable access are crucial ethical considerations when providing plastic surgery services to every patient. While progress has been made, it is notable that women and underserved minorities continue to have poor access to healthcare and outcomes.

Thanks to technology, there has been steady progress in increasing accessibility for minority communities, Williams explained. A number of advancements have been made over the years, including 3D scanning, virtual simulations, and robotic-assisted surgery. Surgical techniques can also be better performed with high-definition cameras and monitors because surgeons can see better, resulting in better precision.

These technological advancements have not only optimized the results of plastic surgery, but have also contributed to reduced recovery times and improved patient satisfaction, he said. Today technology is serving as a tool to increase access and expand affordability of treatments. This includes the realm of plastic surgery. It also has democratized plastic surgery in many respects, exposing the concept of self-worth and self empowerment. The use of social media and focusing on technologies that build interactions with medical professionals are exciting new frontiers.
E. Jean Carroll can amend her initial defamation lawsuit filed against former President Trump to include additional comments he made about her during a CNN town hall, a judge ruled Tuesday.

Carroll was awarded $5 million last month after a Manhattan jury ruled in her favor and found Trump liable of sexual abuse and defamation. The jury did not find him liable of rape. Trump has denied the allegations and appealed the decision.

That case was separate from Carrolls initial lawsuit in 2019, which accused Trump of defaming her when she first came forward with her allegations. He called her claims a hoax and a con job at the time.

That initial lawsuit, which has been stalled as courts consider whether Trump is immune from liability since he made the comments when he was president, is the lawsuit to which Carrolls legal team won the right to amend.

At the CNN presidential town hall, which took place one day after Trump was found liable of sexual abuse and defamation, Trump took aim at Carroll, calling the case fake news and claiming he did not know Carroll.

He also called her a whack job, which was met with resounding laughter from the audience of Republican and Republican-leaning voters.

Carrolls lawyers filed the amended lawsuit following the town hall. Trumps lawyers subsequently tried to block the court from granting the amended lawsuit, a request deemed moot by the ruling today by District Judge Lewis Kaplan.

Kaplan also ruled that the Department of Justice needs to determine whether Trump does in fact have immunity in the case by July 13, 2023.

We look forward to moving ahead expeditiously on E. Jean Carrolls remaining claims, said Robbie Kaplan, Carrolls attorney said.

Trump was arraigned in a Florida court Tuesday and pleaded not guilty to 37 counts of criminal charges related to obstruction and willful retention of national security information.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
Author E. Jean Carroll can amend her original defamation lawsuit against former President Donald Trump to include comments he made at a CNN town hall event last month, a federal judge said Tuesday.

Carroll is seeking at least $10 million in new damages after he repeated statements that, according to her lawyer, a jury had found to be defamatory against her.

"We look forward to moving ahead expeditiously on E. Jean Carroll's remaining claims," Carroll's attorney, Roberta Kaplan, said in a statement Tuesday.

Trump disparaged Carroll in the CNN town hall on May 10, one day after a federal jury in New York found him liable for battery and defamation in a civil trial stemming from allegations he raped Carroll in a department store dressing room in the mid-1990s.

After Trump made the comments, Carroll filed an amended complaint in her first defamation lawsuit against him. The lawsuit was originally filed in 2019 and is still pending. It is separate from the second lawsuit in which a jury awarded her $5 million and concluded that Trump was liable for sexual abuse and defamation.

In the amended complaint, Kaplan argued that Trump, during the town hall, showed he was "undeterred by the jury's verdict" and "persisted in maliciously defaming Carroll yet again."

"On the very next day, May 10, 2023, Trump lashed out against Carroll during a televised, primetime 'town hall' event hosted by CNN," Kaplan wrote. "He doubled down on his prior defamatory statements, asserting to an audience all too ready to cheer him on that 'I never met this woman. I never saw this woman,' that he did not sexually assault Carroll, and that her account which had just been validated by a jury of Trump's peers one day before was a 'fake,' 'made up story' invented by a 'whack job.'"

Trump made the comments in response to a question about what he would tell voters who say the verdict should disqualify him from running for president.

"We maintain that she should not be permitted to retroactively change her legal theory, at the eleventh hour, to avoid the consequences of an adverse finding against her," Trump attorney Alina Habba told CBS News on Tuesday.

The judge's decision comes the same day that the former president was arraigned in a Miami courtroom on federal charges related to his handling of sensitive documents after he left the White House. Trump pleaded not guilty to 37 felony counts.

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An artist's rendering of what the DuPage County Crisis Recovery Center could look like when built. It's proposed by the DuPage County Health Department for a site in Wheaton. (DuPage County Health Department/HANDOUT)

Plans for a $25.8 million Crisis Recovery Center, which would provide immediate treatment for people experiencing serious mental health or drug addiction situations, were formally presented this week to the DuPage County Board.

Proposed by the DuPage County Health Department, the Wheaton-based facility would serve as an alternative to bringing people to jail or local hospitals, officials said. Patients would receive screenings, safety risk assessments, guidance from mental health professionals, assistance in alcohol and/or drug withdrawal, and other means of support.

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The best way of describing it, Health Department Executive Director Adam Forker said after the meeting, is if someone is experiencing a mental health or substance abuse crisis in DuPage County, they have a place to go and a place to go that is staffed with trained professionals to help them navigate that moment.

The center would be paid for with money from three sources: $12.55 million in federal American Rescue Plan Act funds, $5.5 million from Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity and $7.75 million from DuPage County. It would be located on the existing health department campus near the intersection of Manchester and County Farm roads.

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Preliminary plans for the facility were presented to the County Board in March, but the concept has been a priority for the health department since 2016, Forker said.

Its consistent with our mission, he said. DuPage County Health Department works to protect the health and promote the well-being of our nearly 1 million residents.

Not everyone was on board with the plan, county funding for which will likely be voted on at the boards next meeting.

Board member James Zay, R-Carol Stream, took issue with the centers proposed funding sources, saying federal relief money is county cash thats already been given to the health department. Essentially, the county would be paying for the building out of two different pots of money, he said.

I saw the numbers, I talked to our staff, I saw the $12.5 million from the health department, which is actually a majority of the relief money given to the department by the county board, Zay said. I kind of feel like (its similar to) my sons (coming) to me on Friday and (asking) me for $100 for a Fathers Day gift. Im going to give it to them and then theyre going to buy me a gift (with it).

If county funding is approved, construction on the center would start in spring 2024 and be complete in 2025.

This is a big ask, I get it, said County Board member Sam Tornatore, R-Roselle, whos also the health department board president. But this building is not just a building, its a place for people to get help. ... I dont know of any better way for us to spend our money than to take care of those in need from now going forward.

DuPage County residents experiencing a crisis now can contact the 24/7 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline by dialing 988 or the health department crisis hotline by calling 630-627-1700.

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gwiebe@chicagotribune.com
Two dissected faces for $600. Human brains for $200. Head number 7 for $1,000.

A former morgue manager at Harvard Medical School, his wife and a Peabody business owner are among several people accused of trafficking body parts stolen from the schools morgue that were intended for use by researchers in a grotesque multi-state scheme, with some of the body parts sold via Facebook and PayPal and shipped through U.S. Postal Service mail, court documents allege.

Cedric Lodge, 55, and his wife, Denise Lodge, 63, both of Goffstown, New Hampshire, and Katrina Maclean, 44, of Salem, owner of Kats Creepy Creations in Peabody, are among those indicted by a federal grand jury in Pennsylvania on conspiracy and interstate transport of stolen goods charges, according to the U.S. Attorneys Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania.

Cedric Lodge is accused of allowing people to visit the Harvard morgue where he worked as manager to examine cadavers to choose what to purchase, prosecutors said.

Cedric Lodge, 55, of Goffstown, N.H., former morgue manager at Harvard Medical School, leaves a New Hampshire court on June 14, 2023.

Wearing a gray T-shirt and surrounded by reporters, Cedric Lodge remained silent while leaving a New Hampshire court on Wednesday. His wife, Denise, shielded her face from reporters as she separately left a New Hampshire court. Maclean, wearing sunglasses, held hands with an unidentified man while leaving U.S. District Court in Boston.

Also indicted on the trafficking charges were Joshua Taylor, 46, of West Lawn, Pennsylvania, and Mathew Lampi, 52, of East Bethel, Minnesota.

Additionally, Jeremy Pauley, 41, of Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania, was charged by criminal information, and Candace Chapman Scott, of Little Rock, Arkansas, was previously indicted in the Eastern District of Arkansas.

Pauley was arrested last year in Pennsylvania for allegedly buying human remains on Facebook.

The conspiracy

Prosecutors allege that from 2018 through 2022, Cedric Lodge, while managing the morgue for the Anatomical Gifts Program at Harvard Medical School, stole organs and other parts of cadavers donated for medical research and education before their scheduled cremations, the U.S. Attorneys Office said.

He is accused of taking the stolen cadaver parts from the university morgue to his home in Goffstown, New Hampshire, from where his wife, Denise, then sold the remains to Katrina Maclean, owner of Kats Creepy Creations in Peabody, who then sold the stolen body parts at her business, court documents allege.

FBI agents were seen at Macleans Peabody business and Salem home in March.

Kats Creepy Creations sells dolls and Creations that shock the mind & shake the soul. Creepy dolls, Oddities, Bone Art, according to the Instagram page for the business.

According to the indictment filed Tuesday in U.S. District in Pennsylvania, from 2018 to March of this year, the Lodges, Maclean and Taylor all conspired with Pauley and others to transport the stolen body parts from Boston to New Hampshire and Pennsylvania. At times, they allegedly used the U.S. Postal Service to ship the remains.

Maclean is accused of selling the stolen remains to buyers in multiple states including Pauley in Pennsylvania, and she also stored and sold stolen remains at Kats Creepy Creations, the indictment states.

Denise Lodge also allegedly sold cadaver remains to Joshua Taylor and others by using her cell phone and social media websites, the U.S. Attorneys Office said.

Denise Lodge, 63, of Goffstown, N.H., shields her face as she leaves a New Hampshire court on June 14, 2023.

At times, Cedric Lodge allowed Maclean and Taylor to enter the morgue at Harvard Medical School and examine cadavers to choose what to purchase, the U.S. Attorneys Office said. On some occasions, Taylor transported stolen remains back to Pennsylvania. On other occasions, the Lodges shipped stolen remains to Taylor and others out of state.

In October 2020, Maclean agreed to purchase two dissected faces for $600 from Cedric Lodge, and the two agreed to meet at the Harvard Medical School morgue on Oct. 28, 2020 to conduct the transaction, the indictment states.

Katrina Maclean, 44, of Salem, owner of Kats Creepy Creations in Peabody, leaves a Boston court on June 14, 2023.

The indictment further alleges that in June and July 2021, Maclean shipped human skin to Pauley for him to tan the skin to create leather. On July 31, 2021, Pauley sent a photograph of the leather and Maclean agreed to provide Pauley with human skin in lieu of monetary payment, the indictment states.

Maclean then contacted Cedric Lodge and inquired about obtaining human skin to send to the dude I sent the chest piece to tan, the indictment states, alleging that on Aug. 15, 2021, Pauley shipped the tanned human skin from Pennsylvania to Macleans Massachusetts address.

The indictment alleges that between September 2018 and July 2021, Taylor transferred 39 electronic payments totaling $37,355 to a PayPal account of Denise Lodge, in payment for human remains stolen by her husband, Cedric, from Harvard Medical School.

On May 19, 2019, Taylor allegedly sent Denise Lodge $1,000 with a memo stating head number 7, the indictment states. And on Nov. 20, 2020, Taylor allegedly sent her $200 with a memo that read, braiiiiiins.

An abhorrent betrayal

Harvard University officials on Wednesday decried the alleged crimes on campus.

We are appalled to learn that something so disturbing could happen on our campus  a community dedicated to healing and serving others, George Daley, Dean of Faculty of Medicine at Harvard University, and Edward Hundert, Dean for Medical Education at Harvard Medical School, said in a joint statement.

The reported incidents are a betrayal of HMS and, most importantly, each of the individuals who altruistically chose to will their bodies to HMS through the Anatomical Gift Program to advance medical education and research, the statement said. We are so very sorry for the pain this news will cause for our anatomical donors families and loved ones, and HMS pledges to engage with them during this deeply distressing time.

Harvard has established the following specifically for family members and next of kin:

The Anatomical Gift Program at Harvard Medical School accepts donations of cadavers from the public for use for research and teaching purposes by medical and dental students, according to the schools website and the indictment.

The school documents the identities of the donated cadavers and maintains a database and record of each cadaver, the indictment states. As morgue manager, Cedric Lodge was tasked with confirming the identity of each cadaver prior to cremation via identifying marks and assigned identification numbers.

Employees of Harvard Medical School are not permitted to remove, keep, or sell any human remains, in whole or in part, belonging to a donated cadaver, the indictment states.

After a period of up to 24 months, when research studies are completed, Harvard Medical School disposes of the remains as elected on the Instrument of Anatomical Gift, to the extent consistent with the current policy of Harvard Medical School, the school website states.

People may reclaim the remains at the expense of the donor estate or family for private burial, or they may request that the school arranges for cremation.

Cremated remains can be returned to the donors designee, picked up by the donors designee at Harvard, or buried at Pine Hill Cemetery in Tewksbury in a registered grave, at Harvards expense, according to the school.

A memorial service for donors buried at Pine Hill Cemetery takes place each year in the fall.

Prosecutors allege that after the Lodges shopped around and shipped the stolen remains out-of-state, Maclean and Taylor resold the remains for profit, including to Pauley in Pennsylvania. Pauley also purchased stolen human remains from Scott, who stole remains from her employer, a Little Rock, Arkansas mortuary and crematorium, the U.S. Attorneys Office said.

Jeremy Pauley is accused of buying human remains on Facebook.

Scott stole parts of cadavers she was supposed to have cremated, many of which had been donated to and used for research and educational purposes by an area medical school, as well as the corpses of two stillborn babies who were supposed to be cremated and returned as cremains to their families, the U.S. Attorneys Office said. Scott sold the stolen remains to Pauley and shipped them to Pauley in the Middle District of Pennsylvania. Pauley sold many of the stolen remains he purchased to other individuals, including Matthew Lampi. Lampi and Pauley bought and sold from each other over an extended period of time and exchanged over $100,000 in online payments.

Candace Scott of Little Rock, Arkansas is accused of selling body parts from bodies that had been donated for medical research.

Prosecutors echoed the sentiment of Harvard Medical School officials in decrying the alleged trafficking of human remains.

Some crimes defy understanding, U.S. Attorney Gerard Karam of Pennsylvania said in a statement. The theft and trafficking of human remains strikes at the very essence of what makes us human. It is particularly egregious that so many of the victims here volunteered to allow their remains to be used to educate medical professionals and advance the interests of science and healing.

For them and their families to be taken advantage of in the name of profit is appalling, Karam said. With these charges, we are seeking to secure some measure of justice for all these victims. Id like to thank Harvard Medical School, which is also a victim here, for their cooperation in this investigation.

The FBI, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, and U.S. Attorneys offices in multiple state districts, including Arkansas, investigated the case.

The defendants violated the trust of the deceased and their families all in the name of greed, FBI Special Agent in Charge Jacqueline Maguire said in a statement. While todays charges cannot undo the unfathomable pain this heinous crime has caused, the FBI will continue to work tirelessly to see that justice is served.

The U.S. Attorneys Office is working to identify and contact as many of the victims and victims families affected by this case as possible.

Anyone who believes they or a family member may have been affected by this case is urged to call the Victim and Witness Unit at 717-614-4249 or email usapam-victim.information@usdoj.gov.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.

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Theranos founder objects to $250 monthly restitution sought by US due to limited financial resources

FILE - Disgraced Theranos CEO Elizabeth Holmes, center, is escorted by prison officials into a federal women's prison camp on May 30, 2023, in Bryan, Texas. Federal prosecutors are seeking for Holmes to pay a monthly amount of $250 to victims of her failed blood testing startup after she leaves prison  but her attorneys have pushed back, citing the ex-Theranos CEO's limited financial resources. (AP Photo/Michael Wyke, File) (ASSOCIATED PRESS)

WASHINGTON (AP)  Federal prosecutors want Elizabeth Holmes to pay $250 each month to victims of her failed blood testing startup after she leaves prison, but her attorneys are pushing back citing limited financial resources" available to the disgraced founder of Theranos.

The U.S. filed a motion last week asking the court to correct clerical errors which included, prosecutors said, the lack of a timeline for restitution from the one-time billionaire once she exits prison. Holmes' legal team objected to those changes this week.

Holmes, 39, began an 11-year sentence at a minimum-security facility in Bryan, Texas, late last month after she and her former partner, Ramesh Sunny Balwani, were convicted of fraud for duping investors out of hundreds of millions of dollars while running Theranos, a Silicon Valley startup that promised to revolutionize health care.

In a May 16 ruling, U.S. District Judge Edward Davila ordered Holmes and Balwani, who is serving a nearly 13-year prison sentence in California, to pay $452 million in restitution to victims.

After paying a total of $25 every three months to victims while incarcerated, federal prosecutors want Holmes to pay at least $250 each month or 10% of her earnings, whichever is greater, in restitution once she is released from prison.

That would be similar structure to Balwani's judgment, which requires the former Theranos COO to pay at least $1,000 per month upon supervised released, prosecutors said in last week's filing.

Holmes' lawyers argued this week that Holmes' payment schedule in court documents is not a clerical error.

Ms. Holmes Amended Judgment already includes a restitution schedule that begins while she is incarcerated, Holmes' attorneys wrote in a Monday filing. There is no indication in the record that the absence of a change to the schedule after she is released was a clerical error.

The defense team also argued that Balwanis amended judgment says nothing about what the court intended for Holmes' payment schedule  adding that Holmes and Balwani have different financial resources and the Court has appropriately treated them differently.

Holmes' attorneys made similar financial arguments throughout her criminal fraud trial. Both Holmes  whose stake in Theranos was once valued at $4.5 billion  and Balwani, whose holdings were once valued around $500 million, have indicated they are nearly broke after running up millions of dollar in legal bills while proclaiming their innocence.

The Associated Press reached out to attorneys representing Holmes and the U.S. government for statements on Wednesday.

__________

AP Technology Writer Michael Liedtke in San Francisco contributed to this report.
The defense for disgraced biotech mogul Elizabeth Holmes, who once had an estimated net worth of $4.5 billion, is objecting to proposed changes in her case that include $250 monthly payments to victims.

In a filing in federal court in California, the team argued that implementing prosecutors' proposed restitution schedule would amount to a significant modification to the outcome of Holmes' fraud trial.

In November, Holmes, 39, was sentenced to more than 11 years in federal prison for misleading investors about the speed, convenience and capability of high-tech blood tests developed by the Silicon Valley company she ran, Theranos.

The San Jose federal court found that she and Theranos Chief Operating Officer Ramesh Balwani, convicted in a separate trial of 12 counts of fraud and conspiracy, are liable for covering more than $452 million in investor losses.

Holmes is appealing the decision; Balwani has been unsuccessful in his appeals.

Prosecutors filed a motion last Wednesday "to correct judgements" that noted the court's latest modification to the case included "clerical errors" that included the absence of a restitution payment schedule.

Government lawyers proposed, among other things, adding a schedule of monthly payments of at least $250 or 10% of her earnings, whichever is greater, according to the filing.

They argued that is what the court "intended" in finding Holmes and Balwani responsible for investor losses, according to the government's filing.

"The government proffers a guess as to what 'the Court intended,'" the defense team said in its filing.

In the document, Holmes' lawyers called the proposal an "attempt to manufacture a record that does not exist."

Both sides seem to agree that the process allows for changes in restitution if a convict's financial situation changes significantly, but Holmes' team argues the government has offered no evidence of such a change for Holmes.

In its filing Monday, the Holmes defense team said, "The Court had before it substantial evidence showing Ms. Holmes limited financial resources."

Lawyers for both sides did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

In May, Forbes, which once estimated Holmes had a net worth of $4.5 billion, reduced her estimated net worth to $0. Before she reported to federal prison in Texas last month, she was living with her partner, Billy Evans, and their two young children in the San Diego area.

Evans is the grandson of the founders of a successful group of hotels in San Diego now run by his father. In 2021, CNBC reported that Holmes and Evans were living in a home on a $135 million Woodside, California, estate.

This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
Satellite image of Zaporizhzhya NPP, June 9, 2023

Even if the Kakhovka water reservoir is completely drained, the Zaporizhzhya NPP has sufficient water levels in its cooling pond  the water does not drain there, he said.

Of course, when the Kakhovka water reservoir is completely drained, the difference between the water level in the Kakhovka water reservoir and our cooling pond will increase. And at the same time, the pressure from our pond on the walls surrounding it will increase, some seepage of this water from the pond will take place and it will shallow up to a height of 13 meters, the so-called dead volume.

It will be impossible to turn on the ZNPPs reactors at this water level, since the level needed to operate the circulation pumps used for normal operation is 16 meters, Kotin noted.

Read also: Cooling pond for Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant rapidly shallowing, according to satellite images

Now the water level in the pond is 16.67 m, i.e. the water level remains as it was, but we expect that it will gradually, very slowly, decrease, he said.

The fact is that we have only theoretical calculations, no one has checked them in reality, so now well see how it looks in practice. Theoretically, with such an external emergency, with the loss of the water level in the Kakhovka water reservoir, if the units were working, they could still continue to work for about one and a half months, according to safety calculations. After that, they would have to be stopped, and after the halt, they can remain in this state with this pond for about 12 years.

Kostin emphasized that a separate issue is the safety system for the pool basins.

This is a separate system on the ZNPPs territory, which is currently used to cool fuel in both reactors and spent nuclear fuel holding pools, the official said.

This is actually what is critical for security, not even the Kakhovka Reservoir, not the pond, but the safety system pool basins. These basins maintain the water level and they are fed, including, from the Kakhovka water reservoir. But there are also other ways to feed them if necessary.

Thus, there is no direct threat to the ZNPP, Kostin added.

Read also: Cholera and e. coli discovered in water supplies after Kakhovka Dam destruction

The cooling pond for the ZNPP, which supplies water to the cooling systems of nuclear reactors, has become noticeably shallower on satellite images, the Schemes investigative journalism project reported on June 12.

The current water levels in the pond are enough to sustain the plant for up to a year, Energoatom stated, noting that it is currently searching for alternative methods to top off the ponds water levels. The operator added that, barring further destruction by the Russian forces around the plant, there is currently no risk of accident.

International Atomic Energy Agency head Rafael Grossi said on June 12 that he was immediately leaving for Ukraine, given the heightened risks around the ZNPP. However, he postponed his trip on June 14 until it becomes safer.

Ukraines Main Intelligence Directorate previously said that Russias destruction of the Kakhovka Dam increases the threat of a nuclear disaster.

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Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
Yonkers police suspected from the outset that it was Nusinaida Ramos estranged husband who killed her more than 26 years ago.

But it wasnt until now that they finally made their case against Rafael Ramos.

A grand jury on Wednesday charged the former Sing Sing corrections officer with second-degree murder in the March 9, 1997, beating and strangulation death of the 34-year-old mother of his two young children.

Rafael Ramos, right, at his arraignment in Westchester County Court June 14, 2023, after his lawyer, Vincent deMarte entered a not guilty plea on a charge of second-degree murder in the March 9, 1997, killing of Ramos' estranged wife Nusinaida Ramos in her Yonkers apartment.

Ramos, 54, was arrested at his home in Sleepy Hollow by Yonkers police officers, including Det. Vionett Martinez of the cold case unit that had pursued the case for more than a decade.

Cold cases: Cold case successes have happened on these 5 murders in Westchester since 2021

The case was also picked up over the past year by the Cold Case Bureau of the Westchester District Attorneys Office, whose top prosecutor Daniel Flecha presented the case to the grand jury. There was no immediate information about what if any new evidence had been generated for them to seek an indictment.

Nusinaida Ramos, 34-year-old mother of two killed in her Colin Street apartment in Yonkers on March 9, 1997 -

Nusinaida was an unemployed immigrant from the Dominican Republic who lived with the children in the second-floor apartment at 98 Colin St.

Ramos and his girlfriend picked up his 4-year-old son and 3-year-old daughter on the morning of Sunday, March 9 in 1997. When they brought them back that night there was no answer at the door. A young neighbor also got no response when she knocked to borrow a cooking utensil.

The following day, after relatives had not heard from Nusinaida, they accompanied police to her apartment. The door was locked and Spanish music was blaring from the radio, as it had been since the day before.

When police entered, they found her, in T-shirt and shorts, on the floor of the living room. It appeared there had been a violent struggle, with the furniture in disarray and three broken fingernails near the body. Clothes were on the floor and in the washing machine and detectives believe she was doing laundry when she let Ramos into the apartment.

Detectives never publicly identified Rafael Ramos, but in the early 2000s they said they had a prime suspect. Relatives of the victim said at the time they had been told that prosecutors were reluctant to proceed without a confession.

Vincent deMarte, Ramos' Legal Aid lawyer, entered the not guilty plea and said he was not ready to request bail. Westchester County Judge George Fufidio ordered Ramos held at the Westchester County jail.

The victim's mother was in court for the arraignment but declined through prosecutors to comment afterwards.

Reached in Florida, Nusinaida's sister-in-law, Eva Beauchamps, said she and her husband Freddy were in shock when they got the call Wednesday that Ramos was in custody.

"I thought I was going to the grave with nothing ever happening in this case," she told The Journal News/lohud after the arraignment. "It's been a long time coming ... She was so vibrant, so beautiful. You could be having the worst day ever and she made you laugh 'til your cheeks hurt."

She said that compounding the grief over Nusinaida's death was the resulting estrangement from her children.

"I lost my niece and nephew when I lost my sister-in-law," she said.

Ramos' daughter, now 29, declined to comment when reached by phone.

While prosecutors would not address possible motives for the decades-old crime, Beauchamps said Ramos was "extremely angry" at the time of the killing because Nusinaida was seeking increased child support and considering a move to Florida.

This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Yonkers NY mother death: Estranged husband charged with murder
The Florida Commission on Ethics said Wednesday that it found no probable cause that an Osceola County School Board member misused his position.

The commission said in a statement that it rejected the claim that Jon Arguello misused his position when he solicited campaign funds for his sisters campaign, using school board letterhead for a press release that included his personal opinion.

Arguello took to his Facebook page to announce that the complaint was dismissed.

A terrible act of political vengeance is what it was, he said.

Read: Osceola County school board asks DeSantis to decide fate of member accused of intimidation

In February 2022, Arguello was accused of intimidating a vendor that would not contribute to his sisters campaign.

At that time, a letter was sent from the school district to Gov. Ron DeSantis asking him if Arguello should be suspended from office or not.

Read: Second complaint made against Osceola County school board member accused of intimidation

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Europe has accused Google of "abusive practices in online advertising technology" that could lead to its ad business being split up, the EU Commission wrote in a statement of objections. It found preliminarily that since Google is unlikely to change its behavior, only the "mandatory divestment" of part of its services would address competition concerns.

"Google is present at almost all levels of the so-called adtech supply chain," executive VP Margrethe Vestager said in a statement. "Our preliminary concern is that Google may have used its market position to favor its own intermediation services. Not only did this possibly harm Googles competitors but also publishers interests, while also increasing advertisers costs."

Google's ad business is now under attack on several fronts. Earlier this year, the US Department of Justice (DoJ) sued Google to break up its ad business, accusing it of illegally monopolizing the market. That in turn forced key ad tech rivals to abandon the market, dissuade new ones from joining and left the few remaining competitors "marginalized and unfairly disadvantaged," the regulator said.

There is nothing wrong with being dominant as such. What our investigation has shown though, is that Google appears to have abused its market position. It did so by ensuring that both its intermediation tools on the buy- side and on the sell-side would favour AdX in the matching auctions.

The EU Commission said Google is dominant in virtually all parts of adtech via services for both advertisers and publishers, along with an ad exchange called AdX. That would be fine by itself, but it accused Google of abusing its market position by making sure both its buy- and sell-side intermediation tools would favor its own exchange. "In other words, we are concerned about two potentially anticompetitive conducts by Google, which are both about favoring AdX," the Commission wrote.

In one case, AdX was able to bid after all other bidders had done so, and in another, it was informed in advance of the value of the best bids from rivals. On the supply side, Google Ads placed bids nearly exclusively on its own exchange, giving it a significant advantage over competitor's exchanges, according to the EU.

The Commission said that any remedy demanding Google change its behavior would be ineffective. "The Commission's preliminary view is therefore that only the mandatory divestment by Google of part of its services would address its competition concerns," according to the statement of objections.

Google will now be able to respond to the complaint before any judgement is issued. On top of being split up, the company could face a fine of up to 10 percent of its yearly global turnover, pending any appeal. It's unusual for the EU to suggest any remedy ahead of a guilty judgement, The Wall Street Journal noted. Engadget has reached out for a statement from Google.
China's lunar probe to carry payloads from European, French space agencies

Xinhua) 08:50, June 14, 2023

BEIJING, June 13 (Xinhua) -- China's next lunar probe Chang'e-6 will carry payloads from the European and French space agencies, the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corp revealed on Tuesday.

The planned payloads are two scientific instruments for lunar surface research, the company said in a post on the Twitter-like platform Sina Weibo.

Such international cooperation came from two memorandums of understanding the China National Space Administration signed last week with the European Space Agency and the Centre National d'Etudes Spatiales, the French space agency.

The European equipment is a negative ion analyzer that can be used to conduct fundamental research on planetary science, and the French instrument is a detector to measure radon gas and its decay products on the moon.

According to China's lunar exploration program, the Chang'e-6 mission is scheduled to be launched around 2024 to complete a sample-return task from the far side of the moon. If the mission succeeds, it will become the first time for humans to get lunar samples from the far side.

The Chang'e-5, launched in 2020, was the country's most recent mission to the moon. Its probe retrieved a total of 1,731 grams of lunar soil from the near side.

(Web editor: Zhong Wenxing, Liang Jun)
Waukegan and Libertyville police are investigating separate shooting incidents this week, including a Tuesday road-rage encounter in which a man was shot in the leg.

None of the three people shot in the two incidents sustained life-threatening wounds, police said.

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A 32-year-old Cicero man was shot by another motorist at about 6:15 p.m. Tuesday on Illinois Route 137 near OPlaine Road in the Libertyville area, according to the Lake County sheriffs police.

The victim told police that he may have cut off another motorist as they drove west on Route 137. The offender, police said, became enraged and pulled alongside the Cicero man and fired a pistol at his vehicle.

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The man was hit in the leg and pulled into a gas station at the intersection of Route 137 and Milwaukee Avenue and called police. A sheriffs officer applied a tourniquet until paramedics arrived and transported the man to a hospital.

Detectives are reviewing video surveillance and said they will release information about the offenders vehicle when it becomes available. Anyone with information is asked to call the sheriffs office detective division at (847) 377-4000.

In the Waukegan incident, a man and a woman were wounded by gunfire at about 11:30 a.m. Monday in the 2100 block of Green Bay Road.

According to police, the two were parked in a lot talking to people in another car, and that someone in the other car fired at them.

The woman, 22, of Wadsworth, was struck in the arm, and her companion, a 23-year-old Gurnee man, suffered a graze wound. As they fled the lot, their car struck another vehicle, and that second vehicle was also hit by gunfire, police said. However, no one in that vehicle was hurt.

Police said they recovered 16 rifle and pistol shell casings at the scene. The incident remains under investigation.
Photo: zz/John Nacion/STAR MAX/IPx (AP)

Google was hit with a new antitrust complaint Wednesday, fresh from EU regulators who say the search giant may need to sell part of its online advertising empire. The formal statement of objections ratchets up pressure as Google contends with two other antitrust cases in the US over the same issue, one from the federal government and another from a coalition of state attorneys general.



We are concerned that Google may have illegally distorted competition in the online advertising technology industry, also known as Adtech, said Margrethe Vestager, Executive Vice President of the European Commission, speaking at a press conference. A remedy requiring Google just to change its behavior would allow Google to continue doing what it has been doing so far, just under a different disguise. Should the Commission conclude that Google acted in an illegal manner, it might require Google to divest part of its services.

Read more

European law sets the maximum penalty for antitrust violations at 10% of a companys global sales, though fines rarely get that high. Google has paid a total of about $8.6 billion over three previous EU complaints over monopolistic practices in the past, however, so it doesnt have a great track record. If Europe gave out loyalty punch cards for legal complaints, Google would be well on its way to earning a free antitrust case.

There is nothing wrong with being dominant as such. What our investigation has shown though, is that Google appears to have abused its market position, Vestager said.



Google  which by its own estimate takes 35% of every dollar spent on digital ads  did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The company has long argued that such antitrust concerns are unfounded.

After the US Department of Justice filed its antitrust case in January, Google published a blog post describing such lawsuits as an attempt to pick winners and losers in the highly competitive advertising technology sector.

Online advertising is complicated, but the simple version of the antitrust argument is Google dominates every corner of the business, paving the way for an unfair advantage over competitors.



Heres a little background. When you see an ad on the internet, youre usually looking at the results of a nebulous chain of interconnected systems. In ad tech, there are buy-side platformsmarketplaces where advertisers go to buy space to show their ads. There are also sell-side platforms, where publishers go to sell the ad space they have on websites and apps. In the middle are systems called exchanges, which are platforms that connect all of the buy-side and sell-side platforms together.



Google operates the leading buy-side platforms. It also operates the leading sell-side platforms. Guess who operates the most popular ad tech exchange? A company based in Mountain View, CA called Google. The tech giant knows exactly how much advertisers are willing to pay and exactly how low publishers are willing to set their prices. Google uses that information to preference its own services and route the maximum amount of ad dollars through its pipes, allegedly.

The EU complaint argues that Google set up its buy-side and sell-side platforms to illegally favor its own ad exchange, which is called AdX. For example, the EU complaint says Google let its system place bids for AdX after everyone elses bid was already in, so AdX could beat its rivals in favorable auctions. Practices like these ensured ad tech customers would have to use AdX, allowing AdX to charge higher fees than it would be able to otherwise, the complaint said.



As if that wasnt enough, Google also sells its own ad space on services such as Google Search and YouTube. That means Google competes with other companies in bids for the most profitable ads, bids that take on platforms that Google controls.

Google is representing the interests of both buyers and sellers. At the same time, Google is setting the rules on how demand and supply should meet, Vestager said. This gives rise to inherent and pervasive conflicts of interest.

The company knows this kind of looks like a problem. The US Department of Justice uncovered one damning example in 2016 email sent by a Google executive, asking, is there a deeper issue with us owning the platform, the exchange, and a huge network? The analogy would be if Goldman or Citibank owned the [New York Stock Exchange].

As a consumer, you might wonder why you should care. So what if a bunch of ad tech business boys cant make a few extra dollars? But the ad tech economy is the backbone of the internet, and if Google slurps up all the profits, that makes it much harder to run a company that makes all the content you enjoy (such as Gizmodo, your favorite website, for instance).

Theres very little consumption that happens on the internet and mobile devices that Google doesnt have a view of, said Jason Kint, CEO of Digital Content Next, a trade association that represents roughly 80 publishers, including the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and Gizmodos parent company G/O Media. Theres an overlap with the way they collect and use data thats more extensive than any other company on the planet, and regulators are finally recognizing the problem.

In 2022, Googles ad business made over $224 billion dollars, the vast majority of the companys revenue. Multi-billion dollar fines sting no matter how big your market cap, though Google can weather the hit. The bigger concern is a looming threat that one of these pesky regulators might force Google to break up its tidy businesses. In the past, that seemed like a fantasy reserved for the most optimistic big tech critics, but as the lawsuits stack up, its beginning to look like a real prospect.

A breakup is certainly possible, especially with the case in the US, Kint said. How that happens is a different question.

The worst case for Google would be the US or the EU forcing the company to divest some or all of its advertising businesses. Alternatively, Google has hinted at the possibility that it might try to stave of regulators through a sort of internal breakup. In theory, Google could split off its ad business away but keep it under the ownership of Alphabet, Googles parent company. Under that scheme, the company could set up a sort of firewall of information meant to prevent self-dealing.

However, Vestager suggested that more friendly approach isnt likely to solve the problem. The online ad business is so technical that its easy to hide wrongdoing, so a solution that only requires behavior changes wont be enough. We have seen this play out concretely: each time a practice was detected by the industry, Google subtly modified its behavior so as to make it more difficult to detect, Vestager said. Should the Commission conclude that Google acted in an illegal manner, it might require Google to divest part of its services.



Antitrust concerns have already sparked major shifts at Google. The company is in the middle of a years-long effort to kill-third party cookies, the primary way websites have tracked users since the dawn of the internet. Google plans to replace cookies with a variety of tools developed in a project called Privacy Sandbox. Along the way, the company is bending over backwards to prove that its Privacy Sandbox features wont give Google yet another advantage. As part of that effort, the company agreed to make monthly reports to yet another antitrust watchdog, the UKs Competitive Markets Authority.



No matter how the mounting monopoly cases play out, its a disastrous situation for Google. An antitrust case is a major handicap, and now Google has three of them. The increased scrutiny over your efforts to crush the competition makes it a lot harder to, you know, compete. Its sometimes called the policeman at the elbow effect. You have to move slowly and deliberately to when regulators are watching. It couldnt come at a worse time, as AI technology built by companies like OpenAI poses the only real threat Google has seen since the salad days of Yahoo and Ask Jeeves.

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The EU says Google has been operating an illegal advertising monopoly

European antitrust chief Margrethe Vestager speaking at a conference



European antitrust chief Margrethe Vestager has taken aim at Googles ad stack.

The European Commission charged Google with violating antitrust law in how it operates its suite of digital advertising technologies.



Google controls both the buy-side and sell-side of the digital advertising market, European Commissioner on Competition Margrethe Vestager wrote on Twitter. She said the government believes that Google used its market control to favor its own platforms and push out competition.

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.@Google controls both sides of the #adtech market: sell & buy. We are concerned that it may have abused its dominance to favour its own #AdX platform. If confirmed, this is illegal. @EU_Commission might require Google to divest part of its services.https://t.co/6SwdoLlN8a pic.twitter.com/2rZok2BWYs  Margrethe Vestager (@vestager) June 14, 2023

Google is active on both sides of the market with its publisher ad server and with its ad buying tools and holds a dominant position on both ends, the Commission wrote in a press release. Furthermore, it operates the largest ad exchange. This leads to a situation of inherent conflicts of interest for Google. The Commissions preliminary view is therefore that only the mandatory divestment by Google of part of its services would address its competition concerns.



Google did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Europe is following the US in suing Google over ad-tech antitrust violations

The European Commissions charge tails a similar lawsuit that the US Department of Justice filed against Google in January. In its complaint, federal prosecutors wrote that Google had illegally bought up competition and manipulated online auctions to self-preference its own services. In its request for relief, the US government asked, among other things, for so-called structural reliefa breakup of Googles ad business, including its ad server DFP and its ad exchange AdX.

Googles anti-competitive behavior has raised barriers to entry to artificially high levels, forced key competitors to abandon the market for ad tech tools, dissuaded potential competitors from joining the market, and left Googles few remaining competitors marginalized and unfairly disadvantaged, the government wrote in its complaint (pdf) at the time.

In the US, Google controls a 28.8% market share in digital advertising, according to the market research firm Insider Intelligence, and is commonly lumped in as one-half of a digital advertising duopoly with Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram.

But in recent years, Google and Facebooks market shares in the US have fallen. Amazon has crept into third place with 11.7% of revenue and relative newcomer TikTok has quickly claimed 2%. Google is still in pole position, of course, but even without regulatory intervention, challengers may be eroding its market power.

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By Kate Abnett

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The European Union should commit to slash its net greenhouse gas emissions by as much as 95% by 2040, official advisers said on Thursday, as Brussels prepares a new goal to curb Europe's contribution to climate change.

The European Commission is drafting what would be the EU's first legally binding emissions-cutting target for 2040, aimed at guiding the world's third-biggest economy towards its aim to have zero net emissions by 2050.

The EU's advisory board on climate change said the goal should be a 90% to 95% cut in net emissions by 2040, compared with 1990 levels.

"The pathways and other analysis indicate numerous potential benefits to climate action - better air quality, better health outcomes, [becoming] less dependent on imported fossil fuels, less water stress," said Ottmar Edenhofer, who chairs the 15-member board of independent scientific experts.

The advisers assessed more than 1,000 emissions scenarios, to make a recommendation consistent with the Paris Agreement's goal to limit global warming to 1.5C - the level that would avert its worst climate impacts.

The advisors said reaching the 2040 goal would require a massive scale up of renewable energy, a shift to electrify polluting industries, and replacing fossil fuels with alternatives like hydrogen. Coal use in the power sector would be virtually eliminated by 2030, followed by gas power in 2040.

Methods to remove CO2 from the atmosphere - through technologies or natural methods like trees - would need scaling up, but the advisors said the majority of the target should be met by reducing emissions outright.

The EU has among the most ambitious climate change policies of any major economy, having passed a raft of laws to deliver its 2030 target to cut net emissions by 55%, from 1990 levels.

But the advisors said even their recommended 2040 target would fall short of what should be the EU's "fair" contribution to meeting global climate goals, considering Europe's high per-capita historical emissions compared with poorer nations.

To address this fairness gap, EU countries should support other countries to cut their emissions, while slashing its own, the advisers said.

A European Commission spokesperson said the recommendation would feed into its own assessment of the 2040 target, which is due early next year.

(Reporting by Kate Abnett; Editing by Angus MacSwan)
How Europe is leading the world in the push to regulate AI

FILE - The ChatGPT app is seen on an iPhone in New York, Thursday, May 18, 2023. Authorities worldwide are racing to rein in artificial intelligence, including in the European Union, where groundbreaking legislation is set to pass a key hurdle. European Parliament lawmakers are due to vote Wednesday, June 14 on the proposal, along with controversial facial recognition amendments. (AP Photo/Richard Drew, file)

LONDON (AP)  Lawmakers in Europe signed off Wednesday on the worlds first set of comprehensive rules for artificial intelligence, clearing a key hurdle as authorities across the globe race to rein in AI.

The European Parliament vote is one of the last steps before the rules become law, which could act as a model for other places working on similar regulations.

A yearslong effort by Brussels to draw up guardrails for AI has taken on more urgency as rapid advances in chatbots like ChatGPT show the benefits the emerging technology can bring  and the new perils it poses.

Here's a look at the EU's Artificial Intelligence Act:

HOW DO THE RULES WORK?

The measure, first proposed in 2021, will govern any product or service that uses an artificial intelligence system. The act will classify AI systems according to four levels of risk, from minimal to unacceptable.

Riskier applications, such as for hiring or tech targeted to children, will face tougher requirements, including being more transparent and using accurate data.

It will be up to the EUs 27 member states to enforce the rules. Regulators could force companies to withdraw their apps from the market.

In extreme cases, violations could draw fines of up to 40 million euros ($43 million) or 7% of a companys annual global revenue, which in the case of tech companies like Google and Microsoft could amount to billions.

WHAT ARE THE RISKS?

One of the EU's main goals is to guard against any AI threats to health and safety and protect fundamental rights and values.

That means some AI uses are an absolute no-no, such as social scoring systems that judge people based on their behavior.

Also forbidden is AI that exploits vulnerable people, including children, or uses subliminal manipulation that can result in harm, for example, an interactive talking toy that encourages dangerous behavior.

Predictive policing tools, which crunch data to forecast who will commit crimes, is also out.

Lawmakers beefed up the original proposal from the European Commission, the EUs executive branch, by widening the ban on real-time remote facial recognition and biometric identification in public. The technology scans passers-by and uses AI to match their faces or other physical traits to a database.

A contentious amendment to allow law enforcement exceptions such as finding missing children or preventing terrorist threats did not pass.

AI systems used in categories like employment and education, which would affect the course of a person's life, face tough requirements such as being transparent with users and taking steps to assess and reduce risks of bias from algorithms.

Most AI systems, such as video games or spam filters, fall into the low- or no-risk category, the commission says.

WHAT ABOUT CHATGPT?

The original measure barely mentioned chatbots, mainly by requiring them to be labeled so users know theyre interacting with a machine. Negotiators later added provisions to cover general purpose AI like ChatGPT after it exploded in popularity, subjecting that technology to some of the same requirements as high-risk systems.

One key addition is a requirement to thoroughly document any copyright material used to teach AI systems how to generate text, images, video and music that resemble human work.

That would let content creators know if their blog posts, digital books, scientific articles or songs have been used to train algorithms that power systems like ChatGPT. Then they could decide whether their work has been copied and seek redress.

WHY ARE THE EU RULES SO IMPORTANT?

The European Union isn't a big player in cutting-edge AI development. That role is taken by the U.S. and China. But Brussels often plays a trend-setting role with regulations that tend to become de facto global standards and has become a pioneer in efforts to target the power of large tech companies.

The sheer size of the EU's single market, with 450 million consumers, makes it easier for companies to comply than develop different products for different regions, experts say.

But it's not just a crackdown. By laying down common rules for AI, Brussels is also trying to develop the market by instilling confidence among users.

The fact this is regulation that can be enforced and companies will be held liable is significant because other places like the United States, Singapore and Britain have merely offered "guidance and recommendations," said Kris Shrishak, a technologist and senior fellow at the Irish Council for Civil Liberties.

Other countries might want to adapt and copy the EU rules, he said.

Businesses and industry groups warn that Europe needs to strike the right balance.

The EU is set to become a leader in regulating artificial intelligence, but whether it will lead on AI innovation still remains to be seen," said Boniface de Champris, a policy manager for the Computer and Communications Industry Association, a lobbying group for tech companies.

Europes new AI rules need to effectively address clearly defined risks, while leaving enough flexibility for developers to deliver useful AI applications to the benefit of all Europeans, he said.

Sam Altman, CEO of ChatGPT maker OpenAI, has voiced support for some guardrails on AI and signed on with other tech executives to a warning about the risks it poses to humankind. But he also has said its a mistake to go put heavy regulation on the field right now.

Others are playing catch up on AI rules. Britain, which left the EU in 2020, is jockeying for a position in AI leadership. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak plans to host a world summit on AI safety this fall.

I want to make the U.K. not just the intellectual home but the geographical home of global AI safety regulation, Sunak said at a tech conference this week.

WHATS NEXT?

It could be years before the rules fully take effect. The next step is three-way negotiations involving member countries, the Parliament and the European Commission, possibly facing more changes as they try to agree on the wording.

Final approval is expected by the end of this year, followed by a grace period for companies and organizations to adapt, often around two years.

Brando Benifei, an Italian member of the European Parliament who is co-leading its work on the AI Act, said they would push for quicker adoption of the rules for fast-evolving technologies like generative AI.

To fill the gap before the legislation takes effect, Europe and the U.S. are drawing up a voluntary code of conduct that officials promised at the end of May would be drafted within weeks and could be expanded to other like-minded countries."

___

This story has been corrected to show that Kris Shrishaks last name was misspelled.
Sam Altman is CEO of ChatGPT maker OpenAI. Issei Kato/Reuters

The European parliament has voted to take steps to regulate AI technology such as ChatGPT.

The proposed rules would require such systems to indicate that content was AI-generated.

Talks with EU member states will shape the precise wording of the legislation known as the AI Act.

The European Union has taken the first steps towards regulating artificial intelligence, with its parliament backing a ban on the technology for biometric surveillance, emotion recognition, and predictive policing.

Europe will also seek to require systems such as ChatGPT to indicate that content was generated by AI, and deem AI systems used to influence voters to be "high-risk."

The rules "aim to promote the uptake of human-centric and trustworthy AI and protect the health, safety, fundamental rights and democracy from its harmful effects," per a press release from the European parliament on Wednesday.

The measures were passed by 499 votes to 28, with 93 abstentions. Talks will begin with EU member states on the precise wording of the legislation known as the AI Act.

The rules aim to ensure that AI developed and used in Europe complied with EU rights and values including human oversight, safety, privacy, transparency, non-discrimination, and social and environmental wellbeing.

Sam Altman, the CEO of ChatGPT maker OpenAI, met several European leaders in May to discuss the potential impact of AI on society. He said he had no plans to pull ChatGPT out of Europe despite saying proposed EU rules to govern AI could backfire.

As Insider previously reported, one of Altman's main concerns with the EU's proposed law centers on its definition of "high-risk" systems and could ensnare ChatGPT.

European parliament members voted to deem AI systems that "pose significant harm to people's health, safety, fundamental rights or the environment" as high-risk, per the press release. AI systems used to influence voters and the outcome of elections, and recommender systems used by social-media platforms are also on the "high-risk" list.

Co-rapporteur Brando Benifei of Italy said Europe had devised a "concrete response" to the potential dangers posed by AI. "We want AI's positive potential for creativity and productivity to be harnessed but we will also fight to protect our position and counter dangers to our democracies and freedoms," he said.

Co-rapporteur Dragos Tudorache of Romania said Europe's AI Act would shape the development and governance of AI globally and ensure it was used in line with the "European values of democracy, fundamental rights, and the rule of law."

OpenAI, which is heavily backed by Microsoft, released ChatGPT in November, and became the fastest-growing internet app. Its popularity has fueled massive consumer and investor interest in generative AI, as well as concerns from lawmakers about the technology's potential impact on jobs, elections, and the media.

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Toyota plans to introduce a high-performance lithium-ion battery to its next-generation electric vehicles by 2026, part of the automaker's new technology roadmap revealed Tuesday. The batteries will deliver quicker charging and around 620 miles (1,000 kilometers) of range, which would put Toyota's vehicles ahead of the competition.

Toyota has historically trailed behind other major automakers that have all made ambitious commitments to electrify their vehicle lineups. Even though Toyota led the way to hybrid vehicles with its legendary Prius, the automaker hasn't fully embraced the EV revolution. Instead it has made the case for hybrids and plug-in hybrids, as well as hydrogen fuel cell-powered vehicles, which have largely been a flop.

The new plan was unveiled a day before Toyota's annual shareholder meeting, where the automaker's slow adoption of EVs and lobbying against EVs under former CEO Akio Toyoda came under scrutiny.

Toyota also said it has made substantial progress in its solid-state battery technology. The automaker is working on a method of mass production and aims to commercialize the technology between 2027 and 2028. Toyota reckons an EV powered by a solid-state battery would have a range of nearly 750 miles (1,200 kilometers) and a charge time of only 10 minutes. Tesla's Superchargers give about 200 miles of charge in 15 minutes.

Solid-state batteries use solid-state electrolytes instead of liquid electrolytes found in traditional lithium-ion batteries, which could lead to higher energy density, improved safety, faster charge times and a longer lifespan. Many automakers, like Ford, Mercedes and Volkswagen, have invested into their own solid-state battery technology, but it's hard to scale in part due to high manufacturing costs.

New CEO, who dis?

Toyoda stepped down in January and handed the reins to former Lexus chief Koji Sato. Under Sato's leadership, Toyota's engineers and planners have been busy developing this new roadmap that puts EVs front and center and does so in a cost-efficient way.

In May, Toyota set up BEV Factory, an organization dedicated to making the next-gen battery EV. This unit will oversee the launch of a full lineup of EVs in 2026 and the sale of 1.7 million EV units by 2030. Toyota has said in the past that by 2025 it will offer an electrified option for every Toyota and Lexus model globally.

To reach such lofty production goals, Toyota has to increase production capabilities, and it's doing so in a way that directly challenges rival Tesla. The automaker said Tuesday it would slash costs using Giga casting, a method invented by Tesla that relies on massive, aluminum casting machines to reduce vehicle complexity and cut factory investment.

Toyota also said it is developing a new modular EV platform and a heavily automated assembly line that would phase out the now-antique conveyor belt system. The "self-propelling" assembly line would see cars under production driving themselves through the process, which could reduce "the processes and plant investment by half," according to the company.

Toyota also reiterated plans to bring its Arene operating system into cars by 2025. Arene OS, which Toyota says can be updated over-the-air, is a software platform that drives core car capabilities, advanced driver assistance systems and cockpit functions.

Toyota didn't say if it would increase its investment into electrification to make any of this happen. In 2021, the company earmarked $70 billion to electrify its vehicles by 2030, half of which was specifically allocated to full EVs. More recently, Toyota said it would spend $48 million on a new EV battery lab in the U.S. and $5.9 billion on a battery factory in the U.S.

Climate lobbying shareholder resolution voted down

Toyota shareholders backed the board and voted against a resolution calling for greater transparency of climate lobbying on Wednesday. The resolution was put forward by a group of European asset managers who argued that Toyota's slow crawl towards EV adoption and past history of lobbying against EVs put them at risk.

Automakers without a robust EV strategy are automakers in trouble," said East Peterson-Trujillo, clean vehicles campaigner at consumer rights non-profit Public Citizen, in a statement. "Toyotas announcement today that it plans to start selling advanced battery technology in long-range EVs starting in 2027 is a clear attempt to assuage shareholder concerns at the meeting. Until Toyota stops fighting the electric vehicle future and commits to a 100% zero-emission vehicle line-up, shareholders should remain skeptical and continue to push for accountability."

Shareholders also voted in favor of all 10 board members, including Chairman Akio Toyoda. Many U.S. pension funds said they wouldn't vote for Toyoda, citing concerns about board independence.
Events in Bolivia and Brazil may signal a turning point for the Catholic Church's sexual abuse crisis in Latin America

Members of children's rights organizations protest against cases of clerical child abuse in Cochabamba, Bolivia, on May 25, 2023. Fernando Cartagena/AFP via Getty Images

Demonstrations in Bolivia in recent weeks have been directed at a seemingly unusual target: the Catholic Church.

More than three-fourths of the people in this Andean nation are Catholic, and Catholicism remained the religion of the state until 2009. Protests erupted, however, after the publication of diary entries from a deceased Spanish Jesuit priest, which detailed his sexual abuse of dozens of boys while teaching in the Bolivian city of Cochabamba during the 1970s and 1980s.

Meanwhile, in neighboring Brazil, a new book by two award-winning journalists has made the magnitude of the clerical sexual abuse crisis more visible.

Over the past two decades, sexual abuse scandals have rocked the Catholic Church nearly everywhere it has a presence. Latin America, where 4 in 10 of the worlds Catholics live, is no exception. Yet the churchs role in the region is distinct, as are the stakes.

Owing to centuries of Spanish and Portuguese colonization, the Catholic Church is deeply ingrained in Latin Americas societies and political institutions  a key theme in my research on 20th-century Peru.

High-profile cases have stirred public outrage in nearly all Latin American countries, notably Mexico, Peru and Chile, but concrete changes have been slow. The current circumstances in Brazil and Bolivia, I argue, could signal a new trend.

A surge of anger in Bolivia

In May 2023, hundreds of protesters gathered outside of an imposing art deco basilica in La Paz. Two men carried a mannequin dressed as a priest hanging by its neck with a placard reading, Cura pillada, cura lynchada  A priest caught is a priest lynched. Another demonstrator struggled against counterprotesters to spray-paint Rapist on the doors of the church. Similar demonstrations were seen throughout the country.

The anger was sparked following reporting from the Spanish newspaper El Pais, which gained access to the diary of the Spanish priest in Cochabamba, Rev. Alfonso Pedrajas, as part of an investigative project on sexual abuse by the clergy in Spain. The document had been in the Madrid attic of Pedrajas brother until the priests nephew came across it in 2021.

Pedrajas diary relates abuses he committed at a Catholic boys school in Cochabamba, where he worked for 17 years. By his own account, at least 85 boys suffered abuse, some as young as 12, and many who told other adults about his actions were expelled, according to El Pais.

The premises of the Juan XXIII school where Pedrajas worked in Cochabamba, Bolivia. Fernando Cartagena/AFP via Getty Images

The diary also reveals church leaders cover-up over the decades. Pedrajas was even removed from his teaching position in 1983 after a group of students reported the priests abuses to the schools director and was sent to work as a miner in western Bolivia. A year later, he was back.

In all, El Pais investigators have identified over 20 periods between 1978 and 2008 when Pedrajas crimes were actively covered up by others in the church hierarchy.

Once the diary was made public in April 2023, survivors started coming forward. At least 12 have come together to file a legal case.

The crisis in Bolivia has taken on a political tone, the latest manifestation of an ongoing culture war over the role of religion in society. As seen throughout the history of Latin American republics, conflict usually follows when progressive governments speak out against the church. Bolivias turn toward a more secular state under leftist presidents Evo Morales and Luis Arce are some of the latest examples of this process.

In May, President Arce wrote a letter to Pope Francis, asserting that his government will impose more restrictions on foreign priests and demanding that the Vatican make relevant records available for Bolivian investigations. Since then, Arce has established a commission meant to more thoroughly investigate and punish cases of clerical sexual abuse.

Meanwhile, a group of alumni of the school where Pedrajas committed so many abuses has put forth suggestions to bring about substantive change.

Brazil: Turn toward transparency?

Brazil has more Catholics than other country  some 120 million  making the nations church a powerful institution both at home and globally. Yet Catholic leaders there are also facing competition from rapid growth in evangelical churches and Afro Brazilian traditions.

A Catholic procession in Porto Alegre, Brazil, on April 22, 2023. Silvio Avila/AFP via Getty Images

In May 2023, journalists Giampaolo Morgado Braga and Fabio Gusmao published a groundbreaking study called Pedophilia in the Church after reviewing over 25,000 pages of documents about allegations in Brazil. Their book aims to correct what its authors argue has been a severe lack of public concern over a decadeslong crisis. Though their findings bring together details of abuse by the 108 priests and other Catholic leaders who have faced legal charges in Brazil since 2000, they conclude that these numbers barely scratch the surface of the total instances of abuse.

However, recent cases may suggest a turn toward greater transparency and more effective collaboration between the church and the legal system.

On May 3, 2023, after an extended investigation called Operation False Prophet, state police detained Dominican friar Elvecio de Jesus Carrara on suspicion of producing and storing pornographic photos of teenagers. According to local reporting, the Dominican order appears to have promptly collaborated with police on the investigation. Meanwhile, they ensured Carrara was removed from priestly duties.

In 2019, the national bishops conference worked with the Vatican to publish a guide titled The Pastoral Care for Victims of Sexual Abuse, and a Brazilian priest trained in youth rehabilitation is a member of the popes advisory committee on the abuse crisis.

Chance to lead the way

Given the number of Catholics living in Latin America, it is clear that the majority of cases have yet to be uncovered  work that will require collaboration between lay Catholics and members of the church hierarchy.

Four of the 19 members of the Pontifical Commission on the Protection of Minors, an advisory body that Pope Francis established in 2014 in response to the abuse crisis, come from Latin America, underscoring the Vaticans commitment to the region.

Within Latin America, there have been encouraging signs of international collaboration. The Mexico-based Center for Interdisciplinary Investigation and Formation for the protection of Minors has begun to provide training and resources for Catholic institutions throughout Latin America to handle past cases of abuse and avoid them in the future.

While clerical sexual abuse has generated public awareness in the region since the early 2000s, I believe the events unfolding in Brazil and Bolivia signal a new period of reckoning.

This article is republished from The Conversation, an independent nonprofit news site dedicated to sharing ideas from academic experts. Like this article? Subscribe to our weekly newsletter.

It was written by: Matthew Casey-Pariseault, Arizona State University.

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Matthew Casey-Pariseault serves on the board of directors at the Women's Ordination Conference, a non-profit organization working to ordain women as deacons, priests & bishops into an inclusive and accountable Roman Catholic Church.
Everyone's got something to say about Trump -- except world leaders who might have to deal with him

FILE - NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg, front center left, speaks with U.S. President Donald Trump, front center right, after a group photo at a NATO leaders meeting at The Grove hotel and resort in Watford, Hertfordshire, England, Dec. 4, 2019. As Trump becomes the first former president to face federal charges that could put him in jail, many Europeans are watching the case closely. But hardly a single world leader has said a word recently about the man leading the race for the Republican party nomination. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco, File)

BRUSSELS (AP)  In the final days of the 2016 U.S. election campaign, European Union leader Donald Tusk could no longer contain himself: One Donald is more than enough! he wrote on Twitter. When Trump was elected less than a week later, it made for an awkward start to what proved to be four difficult years of trans-Atlantic relations.

As Trump becomes the first former president to face federal charges that could put him in jail, many Europeans are watching the case closely. But hardly a single world leader has said a thing recently about the man leading the race for the Republican party nomination.

NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg, who Foreign Policy Magazine named its Diplomat of the Year in 2019 for helping the alliance navigate an  uncertain future during the Trump years, demonstrated his chops when asked about a second term: It took him less than three sentences to change the topic to the television series The Crown.

It's not that the global public isn't interested. Trump's court appearance grabbed headlines and figured prominently on evening newscasts across much of Europe.

As far away as New Zealand, most are watching the Trump circus with the same sense of horror and fascination that marked his last days in office" in early 2021 when the U.S. Capitol was attacked, said David Capie, a professor of international relations at Victoria University of Wellington.

Few European leaders would welcome Trump's reelection. His policies on climate, trade and security clashed with European interests and sensibilities, and many fear that he would withdraw robust U.S. support for the war in Ukraine.

The whole world has the same concern. We hope that the U.S. election restores a bit of rationality, said Jose Pio Borges, president of the Brazilian Center for International Relations think tank said Tuesday. Not that we have great appreciation for Biden, but there is no comparison.

In other parts of the world where the U.S. feels farther away, like China and India, the trial passed by with much less notice.

And then, a minority of world leaders is openly cheering for Trump to make a comeback. In Hungary, Prime Minister Viktor Orban backed Trump in 2016, and said the war in Ukraine wouldnt be happening if Trump was still president. In a speech last month, he cried: Come back, Mr. President! Make America great again, and bring us peace!

The nature of the allegations against Trump being tried now also matter to allied leaders. Prosecutors allege he was reckless with classified information, including secrets shared by or about intelligence partners.

Were Donald Trump to be elected President, then absolutely, there will be certain governments that are going to be concerned, said Leslie Vinjamuri, director of the U.S. and Americas Program at the London-based think tank Chatham House. She added that the current case was very clear evidence, you know, of his willingness to play fast and loose with secret and top secret documents.

With NATO allies and as far as Australia and New Zealand, the United States has a dense network of military security cooperation deals where secrecy, due diligence and trust in exchanging sensitive information are essential.

The indictment alleges Trump intentionally retained hundreds of classified documents after leaving office in January 2021, and then stored them in cardboard boxes in locations including a bathroom, a ballroom and a bedroom. The documents contained information on nuclear programs, defense and weapons capabilities of the U.S. and foreign governments, and a Pentagon attack plan, prosecutors wrote.

Its so far beyond the pale of the imagination of most people who work in intelligence that it really, you know, you do have to sort of laugh. But its obviously very grave, very serious, Vinjamuri told the AP.

Governments themselves have shied away from addressing such sensitive issues on the record, but it's clear that most U.S. allies, especially in Europe, have embraced Biden as their best hope to rekindle old alliances and build cooperation to contain climate change.

Russias invasion of Ukraine has created Europes biggest crisis in decades, and many European nations have stood shoulder to shoulder with Biden in facing Putin and slapping sanction after sanction on the Kremlin.

The war has even driven reassessments in some countries that were once inclined toward Trump's view of the world.

In Poland, the nationalist conservative government did not hide its admiration for Trump when he was elected, and agreed with him on issues including opposition to large-scale migration, especially by Muslims. In 2017, Polands conservative President Andrzej Duda said that if the U.S. set up a base in Poland it would be called Fort Trump, and later Duda was one of the last world leaders to congratulate Biden after his election victory.

But Duda and others are grateful for Bidens assurances to Poland and his two visits to Warsaw since Russia launched its full-scale invasion.

Ukraine itself has received vital aid from the Biden administration, but has shown no interest in commenting on Biden's political rival. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy tried not to take sides during Trumps first impeachment saga despite playing a central role in it, much as he's welcomed China's peace plan for the conflict despite widespread perceptions that it favors Moscow.

But this time, European leaders are keeping their opinions about Trump to themselves.

One of the most interesting questions here in the United Kingdom, across Europe and elsewhere, is: what are Europeans doing to prepare for the possibility that Donald Trump could return to the White House? And I think the reality is, not a lot right now," Vinjamuri said.

Donald Tusk is now running to lead Poland after elections in the fall. As a prime minister, the last thing he would want is to pick another fight with a Donald.

___

AP Writers from across the globe contributed.
By Greg Torode

HONG KONG (Reuters) - Amid reports that China is expanding its electronic eavesdropping capabilities in Cuba - which Beijing has denied - China's evolving military surveillance network has some way to go to match the sweep and reach of the U.S. and its allies, defence and intelligence analysts say.

WHAT IS A FOREIGN LISTENING POST?

Five defence and intelligence analysts and four diplomats say large-scale military operations, even in peacetime, demand extensive attempts to vacuum up communications and electronic emissions, all part of what is known as signals intelligence (SIGINT).

The targets could be, for example, conversations between military commanders, a ballistic missile communicating with its command centre or microwave exchanges between a satellite and its ground station. All generate information that can be used against adversaries in a conflict.

Even if the communications can't be decoded, tracking the volume and timing of signals can provide vital intelligence, retired military officials say. Radars and jamming equipment also produce electronic signatures that can be captured.

Fibre optic cables and mobile phone networks have complicated SIGINT efforts, but militaries still routinely communicate via radio.

Large militaries operate ships, surveillance aircraft, satellites and sometimes submarines capable of gathering such signals, but land-based stations expand a nation's scope and reach.

The United States and its allies operate a vast global military surveillance network, centred around the listening posts of the Five Eyes grouping of the U.S., Britain, Canada, Australia and New Zealand and the long-standing U.S. military presence in the Indo-Pacific, including sites in Taiwan, Guam and Diego Garcia, a British territory.

WHY PUT ONE IN CUBA?

The Cuba station is important to the People's Liberation Army for several reasons. It puts the East Coast of the U.S. within range, including military and civilian space launches in Florida and several large army and naval bases.

Cuba's proximity to the equator could make it easier to monitor geostationary military satellites, said one retired military official familiar with such operations.

It could also help China watch the development of SpaceX's Starlink satellite network - a communications tool that Ukrainian forces have used extensively in their conflict with Russia, which Moscow calls a "special operation".

Carl Thayer, a professor at the Australian Defence Force Academy of the Australian National University, said that although PLA surveillance had a long way to go in catching up with the reach of the U.S. and its allies, the Cuba station marked a fresh front in the SIGINT rivalry.

Aside from monitoring capabilities, a large, permanent presence on Cuba "is an important symbol, getting right under the noses of the U.S. and reflecting China's global ambitions", he said.

China's ministry of defence declined to comment.

In 2019, Reuters reported that China's military was running a space monitoring station in Argentina.

WHAT DOES CHINA HAVE ALREADY?

Defence analysts and diplomats tracking China's military modernisation say that Beijing has extensive listening posts on the Chinese mainland and Hainan Island but that its broader offshore operations remain a work in progress.

After reclaiming and fortifying a string of disputed reefs in the South China Sea over the last decade, China built new SIGINT infrastructure reaching deep into Southeast Asia, according to a 2018 study by the International Institute for Strategic Studies in London (IISS).

China operates its own Beidou system of global navigational satellites and deploys large space tracking ships in the Indian and Pacific Oceans as well as smaller maritime surveillance craft and early warning and surveillance aircraft.

The IISS Military Balance notes China operates 207 satellites, including 86 for SIGINT and early warning operations.

The Pentagon's 2022 report on China's military said the tracking ships are operated by the PLA's expanding Strategic Support Force (SSF) and can follow ballistic missile launches and satellites.

The SSF also operates tracking and command stations in Namibia, Pakistan and Kenya, as well as Argentina, the report notes.

Regional diplomats say that as China builds a global military intelligence network, it lacks a U.S.-style system of alliances and partnerships that can help discreet surveillance efforts.

WHERE ELSE MIGHT CHINA BUILD THEM?

Speaking on Monday, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken did not specify other countries China was considering for listening posts, but some Western diplomats say they expect Chinese diplomatic pressure for facilities in the South Pacific and across the Indian Ocean.

The Pentagon report lists 14 countries where China "has likely considered" military logistics facilities, including Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Tanzania and Angola.

China's defence ministry declined to comment.

"This trend is only going to grow alongside China's global reach," said Singapore-based defence analyst Alexander Neill. "Wherever China establishes a new military footprint, they will need to establish a new SIGINT capability."

(Reporting By Greg Torode; additional reporting by Kirsty Needham in Sydney and Laurie Chen in Beijing. Editing by Gerry Doyle)
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida speaks during a news conference at the prime minister's office in Tokyo

By Elaine Lies

TOKYO (Reuters) - Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida is thought increasingly likely to call a snap election, perhaps within days.

No election for the powerful lower house of parliament needs to be held until 2025, but Kishida is eager to solidify his grip on the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) to ensure his victory in a party leadership race in September 2024 and extend his time as premier.

HOW MIGHT IT HAPPEN?

Japan's prime ministers often say they are dissolving parliament to take a policy question to voters, though it can also be in response to a no-confidence motion brought by the opposition.

The major opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan is considering such a motion before the current parliamentary session ends on June 21, to oppose a bill aimed at securing funds to boost Japan's defence capabilities.

This could make it easier for Kishida to call a snap election because there are no pressing policy issues to rally voters.

HOW'S HIS POPULARITY?

Kishida's support surged after the May 19-21 Group of Seven (G7) leaders' summit in Hiroshima, his home district - with a boost from the presence of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy - and that strength is holding.

According to a recent poll by public broadcaster NHK, 43% of voters view him favourably compared with 46% right after the summit. In late 2022 his approval fell below 30%.

THE ECONOMY'S GOOD - FOR NOW

Japan's Nikkei stock average has roared to 33-year highs, powered by strong earnings and economic revival after the pandemic, with the economy expanding a stronger-than-expected 2.7% in the first quarter.

But worries about further price increases and the fate of the global economy loom large in the minds of senior LDP policymakers still scarred from a disastrous 2009 election, in the midst of the global financial crisis, which put the opposition in power for several years.

WHAT ABOUT THE OPPOSITION?

Japan's opposition parties are fragmented and in disarray, and calling an election sooner could prevent the cooperative opposition alliances formed in many areas during last year's upper house election.

The LDP is worried about one group - the Japan Innovation Party - which, with its conservative bent, could siphon LDP votes after substantially increasing the number of seats it holds in April's local elections. Calling an election soon could shorten preparation time and keep them on the back foot.

WHAT ARE THE RISKS?

Kishida and the LDP could come under fire for calling the election because of the lack of pressing issues. Only 11% of voters thought an election should be held "promptly" and another 19% "within this year," according to the NHK poll.

Holding the election early could also backfire if any positive fades before the LDP leadership race more than a year from now.

(This story has been corrected to rectify the date of LDP loss to 2009, not 2008, in paragraph 9)

(Reporting by Elaine Lies. Editing by Gerry Doyle; Editing by Chang-Ran Kim and Gerry Doyle)
Theres no better time to enjoy Chicago than in the summer. Whether youre taking advantage of world-class museums or soaking in the sun on the lakefront, the city comes alive when the days are long and the weather is warm.

Some hotels are especially eager to welcome guests this year because they have a new look to show off. During the pandemic, they took advantage of their closed doors to update rooms, lobbies and curate new experiences. These upgrades werent cheap  many of them spent tens of millions of dollars to give their properties a face-lift.

One of these hotels is the Ritz-Carlton (160 E. Pearson St., 312-266-1000, ritzcarltonchicago.com). Built in 1975, it was one of the first luxury hotels to open in Chicago. But it remained largely unchanged in decor as the years went on. Rooms featured heavy drapery that may have felt glamorous when it first opened nearly 50 years ago, but began to look reminiscent of grandmas house in todays modern age.

At the Ritz-Carlton Chicago, Torali steakhouse and the adjoining bar and rooftop space offer sweeping views and delectable bites. (Ritz-Carlton Chicago)

A Gold Coast suite room at the Ritz-Carlton Chicago hotel. (Ritz-Carlton Chicago)

So in 2017, the Ritz-Carlton began its renovations, starting with a complete overhaul of the lobby. The giant lobby fountain was replaced with plush seating and fountain-inspired glass sculptures that hung from the ceiling, sans fish. Torali restaurant, a cafe and an expanded bar line the perimeter of the seating area.

All 434 guest rooms were gutted and completely redesigned, with construction complete in February 2021. The rooms are sleek with neutral colors of lavender and gray, yet still cozy and comfortable. And there are still drapes, but now theyre in the form of thick, velvety blackout curtains. Bathrooms now feature double sinks, as single sinks were the standard when the hotel was originally built.

If youre really looking to treat yourself, the 2,500-square-foot Presidential Suite is a bi-level experience complete with a spiral staircase, full kitchen and media room that was completed in March 2022. Its equipped to handle guests and staff, who have the option of their own entrance away from the main one.

The Ritz-Carlton isnt the only hotel that decided it was time for a change. From big to small, permanent to temporary, read on for details about the upgrades at some Chicago hotels that are now open for guests to see and experience for themselves.

Arlo Chicago

The lobby at the recently opened Arlo hotel in Chicago. (Arlo Chicago)

Open April 11 and replacing Hotel Julian, the Chicago location of this New York-based hotel chain occupies the Atlantic Bank Building with 218 rooms and steakhouse-meets-gastropub About Last Knife on the ground floor. You can expect fortune cookies in your room when you arrive and stamped postcards to mail to friends and family. If you have a nice stay, you can leave a Post-it note on the community board for future travelers. The entryway features terra cotta, glass and steel that opens into a modern, industrial-style lobby accompanied by a small bar. Rooms are somewhat minimalist, with panoramic views of Lake Michigan and downtown in the Millennium King rooms on the top five floors. 168 N. Michigan Ave., 312-346-1200, arlohotels.com/chicago

Avid hotel Chicago OHare

Part of IHG Hotels & Resorts and one of 53 locations, Avid hotel is a new option for travelers flying through OHare International Airport and looking to get a no-frills hotel experience. The hotel includes a pool and fitness center, plus grab-and-go breakfast. 1551 E. Touhy Ave., Des Plaines; 224-319-0200; ihg.com/avidhotels

citizenM Chicago Downtown

Dutch hotel chain citizenM opened its first hotel in downtown Chicago with 280 rooms and art by Nina Chanel Abney. (citizenM)

Dutch hotel chain citizenM opened its first hotel in downtown Chicago with 280 rooms and art by Nina Chanel Abney, who painted an abstract tribute to the city on the buildings exterior. Inside the rooms, guests sleep on extra-large king-size beds, recharge in the rain shower, and control the blinds, temperature, TV and lights using an iPad. Similar to the hotels other properties, this one also features contemporary art created by local artists, including the beloved JC Rivera, known for his iconic The Bear Champ character. 88 E. Wacker Place, 312-248-7455, citizenm.com/hotels/chicago

Park Hyatt Chicago

The Wellbeing Suite at the recently renovated Park Hyatt Chicago hotel. (Park Hyatt Chicago)

After closing during the pandemic, the redesigned Park Hyatt has reopened with a lighter and brighter aesthetic. In addition to a lobby featuring Chicago-based artists, its updated 146 guest rooms and 36 suites have a soft cream and camel color palette intended to mimic a residential environment. Rooms come with an integrated media hub that includes a tablet system for guest service communication and in-room dining, and bathrooms have oversized soaking tubs with retractable doors to view the city. 800 N. Michigan Ave., 312-335-1234, hyatt.com

Waldorf Astoria

Inspired by French fashion and architecture, the Waldorf Astoria renovations were completed earlier this year. From a Swarovski chandelier nodding to Coco Chanels brooches to suites inspired by Parisian pied-a-terres, the updates are meant to inspire a feeling of timeless luxury. The jewel-toned Peacock Lounge features a fireplace and plush furnishings to perch on while noshing on appetizers or sipping Champagne, and Bernards restaurant has returned with a new menu boasting caviar service and espresso martinis. 11 E. Walton St., 312-646-1300, hilton.com

theWit

Updates to theWit include sculptural columns in the lobby and light fixtures that look like origami in guest rooms. (theWit)

Inspired by a gallery owned by a worldly art collector, the new updates to this Theater District hotel will have guests looking for creative touches at every turn, from sculptural columns in the lobby to light fixtures that look like origami in guest rooms. Even the carpet is meant to resemble artistic scribbles. Every room also receives nightly turndown service. Just dont be startled by the mannequin torso sculpture in your room when you get up in the middle of the night. 201 N. State St., 312-467-0200, thewithotel.com

Grace Wong is a freelance writer.

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How the exposure of highly classified documents could harm US security  and why there are laws against storing them insecurely

Boxes containing classified documents are stored in a bathroom of Donald Trumps Mar-a-Lago Club. Department of Justice

When Donald Trump pled not guilty on June 13, 2023, to federal criminal charges related to his alleged illegal retention of classified documents, it was his first opportunity to formally answer charges that he violated the Espionage Act.

The Justice Department alleges that, after his presidency, Trump held, in an unsecure location, documents about some of the nations most sensitive secrets, including information about U.S. nuclear programs as well as U.S. and allies defense and weapons capabilities and potential vulnerabilities to military attack and that he repeatedly thwarted efforts by the National Archives to retrieve them.

The Conversation asked Gary Ross, a scholar of Intelligence studies, who has investigated cases involving the mishandling and unauthorized disclosure of classified information for multiple U.S. government agencies, to define some of the categories of risk detailed in the indictment and explain how the U.S. and allies may have been harmed.

Whats the risk to US national security?

U.S. national security includes the countrys ability to defend itself, collect and analyze sensitive information about other nations capabilities and intentions, and maintain relationships with allies. National security can be compromised in a variety of ways.

Americans are familiar with espionage, or spying. Its when a government recruits an official or resident of another country  just as the Soviet Union recruited Robert Hanssen, a senior FBI special agent, in 1979 - to provide classified U.S. intelligence.

But the Espionage Act is much broader than traditional spying and includes the unauthorized possession, storage or disclosure of classified information.

According to the federal indictment, Trump stored boxes containing various levels of classified material in different parts of The Mar-a-Lago Club, his Palm Beach, Florida, resort. Boxes were kept on a ballroom stage, in his bedroom and in a bathroom and shower between Jan. 20, 2020, when he left the White House, and Aug. 8, 2021, when the FBI recovered 102 classified documents.

Trump had returned some classified material on Jan. 17, 2021, and June 3, 2021.

This was particularly concerning because, according to the indictment, Mar-a-Lago was the site of more than 150 social events, attended by tens of thousands of people, between January 2020 and August 2021.

Boxes full of classified documents sit on top of an ornate stage inside the Mar-a-Lago Clubs White and Gold Ballroom. Department of Justice

Historically, foreign spies have attempted to enter highly secure U.S. government buildings to obtain classified information. In 1987, for example, the U.S. Marine Corps charged two Marine guards with allowing Soviet agents to repeatedly access sensitive areas inside the U.S. Embassy in Moscow.

If foreign spies knew Trump stored classified documents at Mar-a-Lago, they may have attempted to enter the property. In 2019, a Chinese business consultant entered the resort and initially got past Secret Service agents. She was stopped in the main reception area, carrying multiple electronic devices.

Whats the risk to sources and methods?

The U.S. uses sources and methods such as spy satellites and foreign citizens or assets to clandestinely gather information about other countries.

Based on the classification markings identified in the indictment, documents Trump stored at Mar-a-Lago contained intelligence from multiple U.S. sources, including satellite images, human sources and intercepted foreign communications, which can include cell phone calls or email messages.

If other countries gained access to this intelligence, their counterintelligence professionals could learn how the U.S. obtained specific information and they could use countermeasures that could render a particular source or method useless to the U.S. moving forward.

In April 1983, a terrorist attack killed 63 people at the U.S. Embassy in Beirut. At the time, the terrorist organization operating in Syria was communicating with counterparts in Iran. The U.S. government began intercepting the traffic, which two media outlets later reported, according to an opinion piece by Katherine Graham published in The Washington Post. Shortly after, communication between Syria and Iran stopped and the U.S. intelligence community lost insight into the Syrian terroristss activities. This may have left the U.S. unable to detect or prevent an attack by the same terrorist group on the Marine barracks in Beirut six months later. That attack left 241 U.S. service men and women dead.

Whats the risk to US foreign relations and alliances?

Diplomacy, the connection between sovereign states, largely forged through foreign policy, is an important component of national security, as is intelligence sharing among allied intelligence services.

The U.S., for example, belongs to what is known as the Five Eyes intelligence alliance, in which intelligence agencies from five allied countries share a range of information. But, the allegation that a document with Five Eyes classification markings had spilled onto a Mar-a-Lago storage room floor may lead the other four countries to reconsider their level of information sharing with the U.S. It has happened before.

Classified documents meant to be seen only by the Five Eyes intelligence alliance and newspapers spill onto the floor of a storage room of the Mar-a-Lago Club. The Department of Justice

After the 9/11 terrorist attack, a report by the Commission on the Intelligence Capabilities of the United States Regarding Weapons of Mass Destruction documented two instances in which allied intelligence agencies refused to share sensitive information with the U.S. due to concerns that the U.S. would not protect the information.

What are the risks to soldiers and citizens?

In addition to information about U.S. nuclear programs, U.S. and allies defense and weapons capabilities and potential military vulnerabilities, the indictment alleges Trump also unlawfully retained classified information about U.S. military retaliation plans in response to a foreign attack.

In enemy hands, this intelligence, if still valid, could significantly increase their ability to develop effective countermeasures or to alter their military tactics. At best, this could prolong a conflict, and, at worst, could allow an adversary to defeat U.S. forces, which could jeopardize citizens lives.

In each scenario, the lives of U.S. service members could be placed at increased risk.

Additionally, an enemy able to identify a U.S. vulnerability, particularly a self-identified vulnerability, can also try to exploit that weakness to their advantage, just as the United States did during World War II.

Prior to the 1942 Battle of Midway, U.S. intelligence intercepted and decrypted communications detailing Japans military strategy for the upcoming battle.

U.S. forces took advantage of the information, won the decisive conflict and turned the tide of the war.

Ironically, the U.S. was unsuccessful in safeguarding the fact that it had intercepted and decrypted Japanese communications. A Naval officer allowed a Chicago Tribune journalist unauthorized access to classified U.S. communications. The journalist subsequently wrote an article revealing the U.S. penetration. This was one of the few instances in which the U.S. government considered, but ultimately rejected, prosecuting a media outlet for disclosing national defense information.

This article is republished from The Conversation, an independent nonprofit news site dedicated to sharing ideas from academic experts. If you found it interesting, you could subscribe to our weekly newsletter.

It was written by: Gary Ross, Texas A&M University.

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Gary Ross does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
The sight of several dead Russian soldiers next to their charred armored vehicles outside Storozhov on Wednesday seemed to belie the claim by Russian President Vladimir Putin that Ukraine is losing 10 times more fighters than his forces early in Kyiv's counteroffensive.

The scene from the newly retaken village in the Donetsk province, reported by Reuters, presents only a snapshot of the first week of intensified fighting as both sides try to gain the upper hand both on the battlefield and the information front.

Ukraine says it has recaptured seven villages and about 35 square miles from occupied areas in the southeast front, but also acknowledged sustaining significant losses of personnel and equipment.

Our troops are moving in conditions of extremely fierce battles, aviation and artillery superiority of the enemy, Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Maliar wrote in a Telegram post, adding that "during a war, neither side publishes accurate data on their losses, because this can be used by the enemy to predict the enemy's future actions on the battlefield.''

Any progress Ukraine makes is expected to be slow and grinding, considering Russia has entrenched its defensive positions across the 600-mile front line with minefields, barricades and trenches. However, Ukraine has been fortified by advanced Western weapons and equipment, in addition to highly trained troops it has yet to unleash.

Rob Lee, a senior fellow at the Foreign Policy Research Institute who has studied satellite and photographic evidence of the battles, told Reuters much of the outcome will be decided by the warring parties ability to withstand losses.

The risk for (the Ukrainians) is that before they get to that (Russian) defensive line, they take too much attrition and itll be too tough to breach it and exploit it, he said.

Ukrainian servicemen of the 10th Mountain Assault Brigade "Edelweiss" fire a rocket from a BM-21 'Grad' multiple rocket launcher towards Russian positions, near Bakhmut in the Donetsk region on June 13, 2023, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Developments:

 NATO should not expect Turkey to approve Swedens membership application before the alliance's summit July 11-12 because Sweden has not fully addressed his security concerns, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told reporters. Officials from NATO, Sweden, Finland and Turkey met in Ankara on Wednesday to discuss what the Nordic nations have done to address issues regarding alleged terrorist organizations. No breakthroughs were announced.

 Wednesday's visit to the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant by Rafael Grossi, head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, was postponed for security reasons. On Tuesday, Grossi said the Kakhovka Dam breach last week put the plant in a relatively dangerous situation.

 More than a million people in the Dnipropetrovsk province may be left without water service by the Kakhovka Dam's destruction, according to Mykola Lukashuk, head of the regional council. The government has been importing water to make up for the shortage.

Russia attacking near and far from front line

Russia is fighting Ukraine on two fronts, increasing its aerial assaults on some cities removed from the battlefield while also trying to fend off a counteroffensive focused on the southeast.

Three food warehouse employees were killed Wednesday in a strike that also damaged homes, shops and cafes in downtown Odesa, the regional administration said on Facebook. Another 13 people were injured. It was the second attack on the southern port city in a week and it involved four Kalibr cruise missiles, three of which were intercepted by air defenses, the administration said.

The Ukrainian military also reported missile and drone strikes in three other provinces  Kharkiv in the north, Kirovohrad in the central part of the country and Donetsk in the east, the only one with concentrated fighting.

Ten towns and villages along the front line in Donetsk were struck as Ukrainian troops slowly advance, according to the presidential office, which said a missile hit the city of Kramatorsk, killing two civilians and wounding two others while damaging 29 homes.

Intense fighting is now ongoing in nearly all sectors of the front, a Western official told the Associated Press, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss intelligence. "This is much more than probing. These are full-scale movements of armor and heavy equipment into the Russian security zone.

Mariupol defenders go on trial

More than 20 soldiers who were taken prisoner after months of defending the Ukrainian port city of Mariupol went on trial Wednesday in Russia, facing terrorism and insurgency charges.

The 22 soldiers, including eight women, were members of the Azov battalion, an elite Ukrainian armed forces unit that fought Russian troops for three months in besieged Mariupol, which was left mostly in ruins.

Russian authorities have designated the Azov battalion as a terrorist group. The defendants, captured in May 2022, face sentences ranging from 15 years to life in prison if convicted.

Contributing: The Associated Press

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: 'Extremely fierce battles': Russian corpses, Ukrainian losses: Updates
FILE - Former President Donald Trump gestures after speaking at Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster, N.J., Tuesday, June 13, 2023, after pleading not guilty in a Miami courtroom earlier in the day to dozens of felony counts that he hoarded classified documents and refused government demands to give them back. Trump and his allies are claiming a federal law enacted in the wake of the Watergate scandal and a decade-old case involving former President Bill Clinton gave him the right to take any documents from the White House after losing his bid for re-election. But legal experts say the claims are without merit. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik, File) (ASSOCIATED PRESS)

To hear former President Donald Trump tell it, taking and withholding classified documents was perfectly consistent with federal law and a decade-old legal case involving former President Bill Clinton.

Under the Presidential Records Act  which is civil, not criminal  I had every right to have these documents, Trump claimed in a speech Tuesday night, hours after he pleaded not guilty to dozens of felony counts accusing him of hoarding classified documents and refusing government demands to give them back. The crucial legal precedent is laid out in the most important case ever on this subject, known as the Clinton socks case.

But legal experts say Trump's description of the law  which isnt mentioned in the charges against him  is wrong and contrary to its very purpose, while the 2012 legal case involving Clinton isnt a sound comparison to Trumps current legal predicament.

Here are the facts.

CLAIM: The Presidential Records Act gives a president the right to take any record when leaving office and declare them personal.

THE FACTS: Thats a flagrant misreading of the law, legal experts say.

The law, which took effect in 1981, requires the preservation of White House documents as property of the U.S. government.

Jason R. Baron, a former director of litigation at the National Archives and Records Administration, said that the notion that a president could declare any record as personal goes against the very reason the law was created. NARA is the federal record-keeper and the agency that repeatedly sought the documents kept by Trump.

Congress passed the act in 1978 in the aftermath of the Watergate scandal, when a collection of secret tapes that President Richard Nixon had considered destroying played a defining role.

The law, he and other experts note, clearly distinguishes between presidential records and personal records.

The definition of personal records is narrow, clear, and functional: it includes only records of a purely private or nonpublic character, Peter Margulies, a professor at Roger Williams Universitys School of Law in Bristol, Rhode Island, wrote in an email. Any record that touches on information relevant to presidential decisions on foreign policy or national security is a presidential record. Period, end of story.

Josh Chafetz, a professor at Georgetown Law, agreed, saying theres simply no way the records described in the indictment against Trump could be considered personal under the acts definitions.

Among the documents found at Mar-a-Lago were ones marked SECRET or TOP SECRET. The documents included details about the countrys nuclear weapons and the nuclear capabilities and military activities of other countries. Prosecutors allege, for example, that Trump showed off a classified map of a foreign country while discussing a military operation.

There is no way to read that statutory language as giving the president discretion to categorize military plans, to take just one example, as personal, Chafetz wrote in an email.

___

CLAIM: A case involving Bill Clinton keeping audio tapes in a sock drawer proves that Trumps actions were legally sound.

THE FACTS: The case in question involved very different documents and experts say it isnt the parallel Trump makes it out to be.

In Judicial Watch vs. NARA, a conservative activist group sued for access to audio recordings of wide ranging interviews Clinton did with historian Taylor Branch during his time in the White House. Clinton was reported to have stashed the cassettes in his sock drawer.

The Washington, D.C. based organization had argued the audiotapes were presidential records that the agency should provide under the federal public records law, but U.S. District Court Judge Amy Berman Jackson ultimately dismissed the case, ruling NARA didnt have the authority to seize the records from Clinton and hand them over.

David Super, another professor at Georgetown Law, argues the 2012 Clinton case has absolutely nothing to do with the charges Trump currently faces.

For one thing, the court didnt dismiss the case because it found that Clinton was entitled to keep the tapes, Super said. Jackson simply ruled that NARA could not turn over the tapes as public records because they were owned by the historian and not government property.

Trumps 2024 presidential campaign didnt respond to an email seeking comment, but the Republican and his allies have argued that the judges ruling in the case showed that the Presidential Records Act affords presidents complete discretion to delineate between personal and presidential records.

Legal experts this week also dismissed those arguments. Margulies, of Roger Williams University, said the claim mixes apples and oranges.

The Clinton materials were audiotapes of conversations with an historian that incidentally recorded some calls on official business, he wrote. In contrast, the documents that Trump kept were all presidential records from the moment they arrived at the Oval Office from other parts of the government.

Eric Freedman, a professor at Hofstra University's School of Law in Hempstead, New York, also noted that a federal appeals court has already rejected similar arguments raised by Trumps legal team as it sought to block the criminal investigation into the records found at Mar-a-Lago.

In either case, Super said, any discussion about the Presidential Records Act is largely a red herring because Trump doesnt face charges of violating that law.

The indictment instead charges Trump with Espionage Act violations, as prosecutors argue the documents he kept could harm the country if obtained by adversaries.

___

This is part of APs effort to address widely shared misinformation, including work with outside companies and organizations to add factual context to misleading content that is circulating online. Learn more about fact-checking at AP.
Father and son accused of assault in citizens-arrest beating appear in Pueblo court

A father and son accused of assaulting a homeless man during a controversial citizens arrest last September appeared in court for the first time Wednesday.

Douglas and Nathaniel Cullison are accused of second-degree assault  intent to cause harm with a deadly weapon, a Class 4 felony.

The charges stem from an incident on Sept. 14, 2022, when Doug Cullison, a volunteer medic with the Pueblo County Sheriff's Office, and Nate Cullison, a trained amateur mixed martial arts fighter, detained and brutally beat a suspect accused of assaulting Doug Cullison's wife, a teacher at a nearby school.

The confrontation was caught on security camera footage taken from outside of Nick's Dairy Creme on the East Side.

During their first appearance hearing Tuesday, both Cullisons were issued a mandatory protection order, ordering them to not to "harass, molest, intimidate, retaliate against, or tamper with any witness to or victim of the crime charged." Both were also ordered to submit to fingerprinting.

Joe Koncilja, an attorney representing Doug Cullison, said he hopes to find a resolution to the case that does not involve going to trial.

"The circumstances, any time you have a video like this, the video starts at a particular point, it doesn't show what happened before the video started," Koncilja said after Wednesday's hearing.

He claimed that prior to the video, Doug Cullison's wife and Nathan Cullison's mother, a special education teacher at Parkview Elementary, was involved in a confrontation with the man outside of the vestibule of the school.

Koncilja said that confrontation involved the man spitting on the teacher and two other school employees, then waiting for the teacher in the parking lot and knocking her down before she was able to "jump into the car" of another teacher. Koncilja also speculated that the man was experiencing some kind of mental health issue, as he referred to the three school workers as the "Illuminati."

"I understand that in a perfect world, people don't act violently, but quite frankly, if you spit on my 51-year-old mother and you knock her down, you're going to get an a-- beating, I don't care what the law says," Koncilja said. "The victim was not seriously injured, but I think the confrontation was understandable between parties."

Koncilja stated that he did not believe the 10th Judicial District Attorney's Office had all the information before they made a charging decision, and that "in an ideal world, this wouldn't have been charged."

"If this has to go to trial, so be it, but in all honesty, it seems a resolution of this should be likely," he said.

Pueblo judicial news: Jury trial begins for Pueblo County man charged with shooting and killing neighbor

Shawn Conti, an attorney representing the named victim, who himself was charged with third-degree assault for his alleged actions toward the school teacher, told the Chieftain he disagrees vehemently with Koncilja's assessment.

"It's unfortunate that he feels the way he does and it's OK to pick on a vulnerable population," Conti said.

"Mr. Koncilja mentioned that (the victim) was talking about the Illuminati. He was suffering from some kind of mental health issue during this episode; that's why you have to wait for the police to do their job. The police, in theory, are trained to respond and evaluate people suffering some kind of mental health diagnosis, and they could have deescalated the situation and acted differently," Conti said.

"There's nothing (the victim) could have done that justifies the beatdown, the lynching that Doug and Nathaniel Cullison inflicted upon him," he said.

Conti stated that his client has set a pretrial conference and the two of them will soon sit down with the Pueblo DA to discuss possible ways to resolve the misdemeanor assault charge against him.

Both Cullisons are scheduled for a routine hearing in court on July 19.

Questions, comments, or story tips? Contact Justin at jreutterma@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter@jayreutter1.

This article originally appeared on The Pueblo Chieftain: Father and son in Pueblo citizens-arrest beating appear in court
The father of a star high school athlete who died by suicide after allegedly being blackmailed by an international sextortion ring has issued a blunt warning to parents.

Jordan DeMay, a student at Michigans Marquette Senior High School, was found dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound on 25 March 2022 after exchanging messages with a Nigerian man posing as a woman on Instagram, according to a Department of Justice indictment issued last month.

The alleged scammer convinced Jordan to send a nude photo and threatened to send it to all of his friends and family if he didnt pay $1,000, before taunting him when he shared suicidal urges, authorities said.

John DeMay told Fox News this week that Jordans death had completely blindsided his family, and urged every family to educate themselves on the dangers of sextortion plots.

He added that parents should reinforce to their teenagers that the threats are not worth dying over.

(Kids) have to just understand that this isn't the end of whatever they think is their life, because it's not, Mr DeMay said.

Mr DeMay said he had monitored Jordans phone usage closely when he was younger, and restricted his access to social media. But as he approached adulthood, he eased up as most parents do.

He said Jordan had been a homecoming king, a role model and a promising football and basketball player at Marquette High.

My son was smart. He was a good student. He was a great athlete. Someone came to his bedroom at three in the morning and murdered him through Instagram when we were all sleeping at night, and we had zero chance to stop it, he told Fox News.

Jordan DeMay, centre, with his parents John DeMay and Jennifer Buta. The promising high school football player died after he was targeted in a sextortion plot. (Handout)

Last month, Mark Totten, the US attorney for the Western District of Michigan, announced three Nigerian men Samuel Ogoshi, 22, Samson Ogoshi, 20, and Ezekiel Ejehem Robert, 19, had been indicted on charges including sexual exploitation of a minor, conspiracy to distribute child pornography and internet stalking in connection with Jordans death.

Prosecutors allege the three men gained access to an Instagram account by the name of dani.robertts, and impersonating the user encouraged more than 100 victims to send nude photographs.

On the night he died, prosecutors say Jordan sent a naked shot of himself to Samuel Ogoshi.

I have screenshot all ur followers and tags can send this nudes to everyone and also send your nudes to your Family and friends Until it goes viral All youve to do is to cooperate with me and I wont expose you, Mr Ogoshi allegedly wrote.

Jordan DeMay, 17, died by suicide after being targeted by an 'international sextortion ring (Family handout)

He ordered the Michigan teenager to pay $1,000 and promised not to expose him. After Jordan handed over $300, the Nigerian allegedly issued further threats.

When Jordan said he was going to kill himself, Mr Ogoshi wrote back: Good. Do that fast. Or Ill make you do it. I swear to God.

The number of reported sextortion cases has exploded in recent years.

In December, the FBI issued a national public safety alert to warn parents after seeing a tenfold increase in online sexual blackmail cases.

According to the FBI, at least 3,000 children were victims of sextortion plots that were connected to more than a dozen suicides in 2022.

Most of the victims were teenage boys, with kids as young as 10 being targeted.

Victims may feel like there is no way out  it is up to all of us to reassure them that they are not in trouble, there is hope, and they are not alone, said FBI Director Christopher Wray in a statement at the time.

In May, South Carolina lawmaker Brandon Guffey introduced Gavins Law to the state legislature after the death of his son in a sextortion plot last year.

Under the law, scammers who extort a minor face up to five years in prison for a first offence.

If you are experiencing feelings of distress and isolation, or are struggling to cope, call National Suicide Prevention Helpline on 1-800-273-TALK (8255). The Helpline is a free, confidential crisis hotline that is available to everyone 24 hours a day, seven days a week. If you are in another country, you can go to www.befrienders.org to find a helpline near you.

If you are based in the UK, the Samaritans offers support; you can speak to someone for free over the phone, in confidence, on 116 123 (UK and ROI), email jo@samaritans.org, or visit the Samaritans website to find details of your nearest branch.
The FDA has issued a recall for several strawberry products from different brands amid an investigation into multistate hepatitis A outbreaks.

The frozen Great Value and Rader Farms brand products in the most recent recall were sold at Walmart, Costco and HEB stores in more than 30 states. Nine people in three states  Washington, California and Oregon have been affected by the outbreak as of Tuesday, with three of them requiring hospitalisation.

The infections are linked to frozen organic strawberries imported from Baja California, Mexico, according to the Food and Drug Administration.

The FDA has identified additional firms that may have received potentially contaminated product, the agency said in a statement. FDA has been working with these firms to ensure that any potentially contaminated product is removed from the market.

Other products subject to previous recalls include smoothie blends and frozen organic strawberries from Wawona Frozen Foods, California Splendor, Scenic Fruit and Meijer. Those were sold at Aldi, Trader Joes and Costco stores.

Some of the impacted products have a shelf-life of 18 months to two years, so customers are advised to check their fridges and throw away strawberry products from those brands. They can also check on the FDA website whether a product theyve bought has been recalled.

Those who believe they have consumed frozen strawberries subject to the recall in the last two weeks and are not vaccinated against hepatitis A should immediately consult with a doctor to determine what the best treatment is for post-exposure.

Hepatitis A symptoms usually appear within 15 to 50 days of ingesting contaminated food or water. Symptoms include fatigue, nausea, vomiting and abdominal pain.
Photo: Matej Divizna (Getty Images)

Homeland Security agents used facial recognition to identify and arrest a man living in Tennessee they say stands committed war crimes during the Bosnian War nearly thirty years ago. The arrested man, who went by the name Sead Dukic for the past 24 years, was actually Sead Miljkovic, an alleged criminal long wanted by Bosnia and Herzegovina authorities, according to a DHS report revealed by Forbes this week.



The DHS documents reviewed by Forbes detail how agents were able to deploy facial recognition and fingerprinting software to match US records of Dukic to Bosnian records of a man with the last name Miljkovic. Law enforcement agents reportedly raided Miljkovics home and arrested him last week as he was preparing to leave on a vacation to Cancun, Mexico with his wife.



Read more

Miljkovic, according to charges and a search warrant seen by Forbes, was formally placed on international law enforcement group Interpols red notice list for allegedly committing unspecific war crimes during the three-year conflict, which left more than 100,000 people dead. Interpols red notice is an alert sent out to law enforcement around the world calling for the arrest of a wanted person. Neither Miljkovic nor his alleged Dukic alias appeared on the public red notice list at the time of writing. Gizmodo could not independently verify the DHS documents viewed by Forbes. The DHS and Interpol did not immediately respond to Gizmodos requests for comment. Gizmodo was unable to contact Miljkovic.

DHS agents and Customs and Border Patrol reportedly spent weeks surveilling Miljkovic before raiding his red brick Tennessee home, where he lived with his wife and daughter. The surveillance reportedly included setting up a pole camera on a nearby street to track the target while he was driving. Agents raiding Miljkovics house, according to documents seen by Forbes, allege they found foreign military hardware which included a Serbian flight. Bosnian Serbs have been accused of engaging in ethnic cleansing during the war.

Miljkovic had reportedly attempted to enter the US on two separate occasions in the 1990s. He was finally successful on his third effort in 1999 when he allegedly used the fabricated name Dukic. Now, Miljkovic is facing charges in the US for allegedly providing false information on his passport.

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CHICAGO  For as long as she can remember, Martha Armenta felt invisible in the only country she knew as home. She grew up in Little Village, where her parents settled after moving to Chicago from Sinaloa, Mexico, escaping poverty and violence, she said.

When she learned in high school she was in the U.S. without legal permission, she acknowledged that the dreams her parents sacrificed for were going to be harder to achieve. Still, she persisted. She managed to go to college working three jobs to pay for it, and in 2012, with the help of community service workers, she obtained DACA  the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program.

And in April, Armenta also finally became a permanent resident with the help of a U.S. Department of Justice accredited representative, who, like an attorney, can represent immigrants in applying for benefits and in some administrative proceedings.

Now shes paying it forward.

On May 26, Armenta was one of the 21 fellows from 20 not-for-profit organizations across Illinois to get DOJ accreditation through the Colibri Fellowship, the first of its kind professional fellowship by The Resurrection Project, for individuals seeking partial or full DOJ accreditation to legally represent immigrants as non-attorneys.

With the city facing an influx of migrants, the goal of the fellowship is to equip bilingual and bicultural community workers as accredited, nonllegal representatives in immigration cases to strengthen the capacity of community-based legal aid organizations.

From January through March, there were more than 400 legal screenings of asylum-seekers in a program established by the Department of Human Services of Illinois, said Erendira Rendon, vice president of immigrant justice at Chicagos Resurrection Project, and not enough attorneys available to help them file their cases.

According to Rendon, the number of those potentially in need of legal services would likely surpass existing nonprofit legal capacity. About 145 non-lawyers work in the nearly 70 organizations as accredited representatives who are approved by the Department of Justice. And only 16 representatives, however, have full accreditation allowing them to represent clients in immigration court.

The fellowship would also open the legal profession to Black, brown and immigrant communities, according to the program.

Illinois is home to 425,000 immigrants without permanent legal status, according to a research study by Rob Paral and Associates. That is not counting the new arrivals in the last few months, accounting for more than 10,000 asylum-seekers, according to city officials.

Attorneys and others interviewed for Parals report suggest that 10% of 360,000 immigrants are eligible for status via asylum, the Violence Against Women Act, or another channel but do not have access to legal representation. Also, the majority of detained immigrants  about 79 %  do not have legal representation, according to the report.

Now, with the thousands of Venezuelans that arrived, the number is greater, said Rendon.

So even though Illinois has expanded its support for not-for-profit organizations to provide immigration services or outreach through several programs, including the Illinois Access to Justice program, funded by the state and The New Americans Initiative, it is not enough to meet the extreme need, Rendon said.

Most of the recent graduates of the Colibri fellowship are immigrants themselves, such as Armenta, or children of immigrants. They said they want to be a part of the movement to encourage immigrants living in the state without authorization, to seek help from an accredited DOJ representative to find out possible ways to legalize their status.

David Flores is the son of immigrant parents. He lives in Joliet and is a member of the Spanish Community Center. He said the fellowship means that he will be able to serve as a beacon of hope for his family and some neighbors.

Though he was born in this country, his parents and older brother emigrated from Mexico City. Growing up, he was not aware that his parents did not have the same rights that he did and some of his cousins had DACA, he said.

Having status, but knowing that I wasnt able to help them or protect them, frustrated me, he said.

Thats what inspired him to work with communities and connect them to resources.

As a DOJ-accredited representative, Flores will be able to help explore relief options for immigrants in his family and the community. He will also help to file the forms, find financial help and represent them in court when needed.

Rendon hopes that the new fellows can take on some of the asylum cases that are yet to be filed by the thousands of migrants who have arrived in Chicago. More specifically, she hopes that it can speed up the process for the asylum-seekers currently in shelters to apply for a work permit that can ease their way into settling in the city and state.

According to Legal Aid Chicago, those who have filed for asylum can apply for a work authorization as they await a decision on their case, but they must wait 150 days until after submitting the asylum application.

For Armenta, who oversees the legal clinic for Enlace Chicago, a not-for-profit organization in Little Village that provides several services for the immigrant community, the DOJ accreditation signifies that she accomplished the goal her parents had when they brought her to this country.

Shes decided to dedicate her life to helping other migrants, who much like her family, did not have access, knowledge or the money to apply for the reliefs available to them to legalize their status in the country.

____
In Puerto Vallarta, every Adderall pill Times reporters purchased from pharmacies and tested was a counterfeit containing methamphetamine. (Connor Sheets / Los Angeles Times)

Some of the pills looked just like antibiotics. Others were unlabeled white tablets. Several mimicked well-known American pills, and a few came in sealed bottles.

They were all purchased in Mexico, at legitimate pharmacies from Tulum, at the country's southeast tip, to Tijuana, at the northwest border with California.

And at least half of them were fakes.

Earlier this year, The Times found that pharmacies in several northwestern Mexico cities were selling counterfeit pills over the counter, passing off powerful methamphetamine as Adderall and deadly fentanyl as Percocet and other opioid painkillers. But four more months of investigation showed the problem is much broader than previously understood.

Medications are lined up on wide shelves in a pharmacy in Puerto Vallarta. (Connor Sheets / Los Angeles Times)

Its not just stray single pills that are laced with dangerous substances, but sometimes entire bottles that appear to be factory sealed. And the issue isnt restricted to one area: Its happening in tourist hot spots across the country, from the California border to the Yucatan Peninsula and from the southernmost edge of Texas to the Pacific Coast.

During five trips to Mexico, Times reporters purchased and tested 55 pills from 29 pharmacies in eight cities. A little more than 50%  28 pills  were counterfeit.

More than a third of the opioid painkillers tested  15 out of 40  were counterfeit, the vast majority positive for fentanyl. One tested positive for a weaker medication and another tested positive for no drugs at all. Meanwhile, 12 of 15 Adderall samples tested positive for other substances, including methamphetamine and, in one case, MDMA, the designer drug commonly known as ecstasy.

Some of the pills came from drugstores in seaside destinations including Playa del Carmen, Cozumel, Tulum, Los Cabos and Puerto Vallarta. Others were purchased in Tijuana and Nuevo Progreso, border towns with booming medical and pharmaceutical tourism sectors.

Playa del Carmen is best known for its beaches, nightlife and entertainment, but Times reporters found that some of its pharmacies are passing off dangerous substances, including fentanyl and methamphetamine, as legitimate medications. (Connor Sheets/Los Angeles Times)

In most of those locations, the pills that tested positive came from independent pharmacies, where workers sold them over the counter, one tablet at a time. But in Puerto Vallarta, counterfeits were available even at one regional pharmacy chain  the sort of place where people might expect more quality control. Both there and in Nuevo Progreso, pills purchased in sealed bottles tested positive for more powerful drugs, a possible sign of the sophistication of fakes made by cartels, which experts say are likely the source.

This is just terrible  it shows an utter lack of control in pharmacies, said Vanda Felbab-Brown, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution who has studied drug cartels. Its institutionalized murder.

It is unclear how high the death toll might actually be. Times reporting confirmed that at least half a dozen Americans have overdosed or died after taking counterfeit pills purchased from pharmacies. But because authorities in Mexico do not routinely do detailed toxicology testing, its impossible to know how many more people have been adversely affected.

Read more: U.S. issues warning about Mexican pharmacies selling tainted, counterfeit pills

Now, given the new testing that shows how common tainted pills are in stores throughout the country, some drug-market experts worry the problem could have a far broader reach, to include tourists from outside of the Americas.

Its often not clear whether pharmacy clerks and owners know they are selling deadly counterfeits. Some drugstore workers warned about the risk of laced pills and homemade Adderall, but none offered any explanation when they were contacted later.

A pharmacy catering to tourists sits feet from the historic Iglesia de Nuestra Senora de Guadalupe in Puerto Vallarta. (Connor Sheets / Los Angeles Times)

Mexican government officials have ignored repeated requests for comment, except for one federal prosecutor who said this month that her office would comment only if reporters revealed the names and locations of the pharmacies they visited.

The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration has known about the problem since at least 2019.

Last month, after speaking for half an hour at a business conference in Beverly Hills, DEA Administrator Anne Milgram refused to answer questions from Times reporters. When asked whether she was aware of reporting about Mexican pharmacies selling fentanyl- and methamphetamine-tainted pills, she left without responding.

Later, she offered comment through a spokeswoman via email, without addressing the specific questions posed.

One of the greatest threats to the safety and health of Americans today are fake prescription pills sold as legitimate medication when in fact they are not  they are fentanyl," Milgram's statement said. "In 2022, the DEA seized over 58 million pills containing fentanyl in the United States. We are continuing our enforcement and education efforts on this important issue to save lives.

On a late spring day in Puerto Vallarta, tourists carrying Starbucks cups and cans of Michelob Ultra strolled along the bougainvillea-lined avenues of the bustling Zona Romantica. The city of nearly a quarter of a million people is on the Pacific Coast, roughly halfway between Mexicos northern and southern borders.

A nighttime scene of a city nestled among small hills. (Connor Sheets / Los Angeles Times)

It's better-known as a resort town for gay men than a hot spot for medical tourism. But in between its bars and boutiques are dozens of drugstores, many willing to sell powerful medications over the counter.

Mexico has long been a mecca for Americans seeking easier and cheaper access to medications that require a prescription in the U.S.  drugs such as Viagra, Xanax and tramadol. In theory, oxycodone and amphetamines are much more tightly controlled. If a store is even willing to sell them over the counter at all, thats a red flag that they might not be authentic.

Read more: Tainted pills from Mexican pharmacies kept killing Americans even after U.S. knew of threat

And yet, in the cities reporters visited, finding stores that would sell them without a prescription proved easy. Sometimes, reporters compiled a list of potential pharmacies to visit by scouring Reddit, following emailed tips or browsing online pharmacy reviews. Other times, the starting point was a Google Maps search for nearby pharmacies.

To buy pills for testing, reporters walked into drugstores in tourist areas and asked  usually in English  for Adderall and either Percocet or oxycodone. Sometimes clerks would say they didnt have the pills, but often they would pull out a chart of offerings.

The laminated charts didnt always include the requested medications, but typically workers would then go into a backroom or reach under a counter to grab hidden pill containers. In some cases, pharmacy employees said to come back after the daily delivery came in, or they made a quick call to have tablets brought over from off-site.

Afterward, reporters ground up a portion of each pill and used test strips to determine whether they contained fentanyl or methamphetamine, following a protocol recommended by UCLA researchers who conducted their own testing earlier this year.

Samples of about one-third of the medications were later tested at a laboratory with a mass spectrometer, which helped confirm initial results and identify other adulterants  including MDMA and caffeine.

A combination pharmacy, souvenir shop and beach supply store peddles its wares in Playa del Carmen. (Connor Sheets / Los Angeles Times)

The results expand on findings released earlier this year by the UCLA research team, which used an infrared spectrometer to show that 20 out of 45 pills purchased in four northwestern Mexico cities were counterfeits containing fentanyl, methamphetamine or heroin.

We dont know exactly when this started, and we dont know how widespread it is, Chelsea Shover, the studys senior researcher, told The Times in February. The most important unknown is probably how many people have died or had serious health consequences from it, and we dont have any idea.

Since then, reporters have worked to answer some of those questions, first by uncovering evidence of multiple overdoses and several deaths, and now by showing the problem is far more widespread than was previously known.

Though The Times found counterfeits in each of the eight cities where they did testing, there were major variations when it came to availability, cost and the odds of a given pill being fake.

Times reporters learned that some pharmacies in Puerto Vallarta sell bottles of fake Adderall containing methamphetamine. (Connor Sheets/Los Angeles Times)

In popular areas of the northernmost cities reporters visited  Cabo San Lucas, San Jose del Cabo, Tijuana and Nuevo Progreso  there were often multiple pharmacies per block. Most of those visited were willing to sell oxycodone, Percocet or Adderall over the counter, one pill at a time, typically for less than $20 each. In Nuevo Progreso, entire bottles of oxycodone that turned out to be counterfeit could be bought for as little as $40.

Farther south, in the upscale resort cities of the Riviera Maya, fewer pharmacies would sell powerful narcotics without a prescription. Many of those that did would only sell multi-tablet blister packs or entire bottles of pills marketed as Percocet or Adderall, sometimes at exorbitant prices topping $700 U.S. per bottle.

Reporters bought and tested pills in three cities in the region: Cozumel, Playa del Carmen and Tulum, where pharmacies that were willing to sell individual pills typically charged between $15 and $40 each.

Pills sold as Adderall proved consistently unreliable across the country, but the odds of a tablet sold by a pharmacy as oxycodone or hydrocodone being a dangerous fake varied from city to city.

Each of the several opioids reporters tested in Cabo San Lucas came up positive for fentanyl; none did in Puerto Vallarta. In Puerto Vallarta, one sample of hydrocodone  commonly known by the brand name Vicodin  turned out to be a weaker medication instead.

Read more: Harris, Feinstein told in 2018 of American killed by fentanyl pills from Mexican pharmacy

UCLA researchers earlier this year purchased one sample of supposed oxycodone that turned out to be heroin, also from a drugstore in an unnamed city along the western coast.

At one pharmacy near Tijuana's red light district  in a store where none of the medications tested positive for fentanyl  a friendly clerk in a college sweatshirt even warned visitors that other shops sold laced pills.

Just 15% of the opioids that reporters tested in the Yucatan Peninsula turned out to be fentanyl. That was partly because some stores there appeared to be getting legitimate pills from nearby Guatemala and reselling them. Several pharmacies offered purple oxycodone in blister packs bearing the name of a Guatemalan drugmaker, along with a Guatemalan drug register number.

None of the blister packs reporters purchased in any city tested positive for other drugs. But in Nuevo Progreso, a sealed bottle of Percocet tested positive for fentanyl. Even more troubling, in Puerto Vallarta every sealed bottle of medication reporters purchased  including four bottles of supposed Adderall and one of supposed hydrocodone  was counterfeit, testing positive for methamphetamine and tramadol, respectively.

Usually, there were obvious red flags: Several had typos in their labels, and a few were entirely in English with complete American National Drug Code, or NDC, numbers.

To Felbab-Brown, the Brookings Institution cartel expert, the sophistication and prevalence of counterfeit drugs at pharmacies is reminiscent of the way Mexican criminal organizations infiltrated the fishing industry a few years ago. The Sinaloa cartel would go to processing plants and they would say, Look, well burn down your plant and kill your family if you dont sell our fish,'" Felbab-Brown explained.

Other cartels copied Sinaloas move, and the problem spread across the country. Now, Felbab-Brown worries that something similar may be happening in Mexico's pharmacies  and that there could be implications outside the Americas.

When The Times' initial reporting in February uncovered a counterfeiting problem on Mexico's western coast, it was American and Canadian tourists who were most likely to be affected, she said. But because the problem is not limited to that region, it could affect a different population of visitors.

Playa del Carmen is one of several beachfront destinations across Mexico where some pharmacies sell tainted, counterfeit medications to tourists. (Connor Sheets / Los Angeles Times)

The whole Mayan Riviera is huge for European tourists," Felbab-Brown said. "How much is this going to expose them?

In light of The Times findings in Mexico, she said, governments in Europe should be proactive.

They need to mount a really serious warning campaign, she said, as opposed to erring on the side of not informing people about a major risk.

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
People work at a workshop of Jack Sewing Machine Co., Ltd. in Taizhou, east China's Zhejiang Province, March 23, 2023. [Photo/Xinhua]

Chinese customs authorities on Tuesday said they had launched 16 initiatives to optimize the country's business environment.

The measures will help stabilize social expectations further and boost confidence in foreign trade, according to a press briefing of the General Administration of Customs (GAC).

Efforts have been made to improve the efficiency of cross-border logistics, support the import of advanced technology equipment and special items, promote the import and export of important agricultural and food products, facilitate export tax rebates, enhance the upgrading of trade processing, and optimize the supervision of border trade, according to the GAC.

In 2022, it introduced 23 measures to stabilize foreign trade, providing solid support to bring the scale of China's foreign trade to a record high, according to GAC official Wu Haiping.

In its next step, the GAC will focus on the implementation of the 16 new initiatives, urge local customs offices to introduce supporting measures, devise targeted solutions for difficulties faced by enterprises, and strengthen the implementation of and feedback concerning the policies, Wu said.
Ukraine says Russian missile attacks kill three in Odesa, three in Donetsk

Ukraine says Russian missile attacks kill three in Odesa, three in Donetsk Aftermath of a Russian missile strike, in Odesa

KYIV (Reuters) -Overnight Russian missile attacks killed three people in the Black Sea city of Odesa and three in the Donetsk region of eastern Ukraine, Ukrainian officials said on Wednesday.

The three killed in Odesa were in a retail chain warehouse that was set ablaze during an attack that damaged a business centre, an educational institution, a residential complex, food establishments and shops, Ukraine's military said.

Video and photographs posted online by a local official showed multi-storey buildings with parts of their walls missing and windows blown out, and firefighters battling flames in what appeared be a warehouse.

Pavlo Kyrylenko, governor of the Donetsk region, said two people had been killed in the city of Kramatorsk and one in the industrial city of Kostiantynivka.

"The missiles ... hit private houses in the cities and caused significant damage: in Kramatorsk, at least 5 private houses were destroyed and about two dozen damaged, in Kostiantynivka, two were destroyed and 55 damaged," he said.

Ukraine's air force said it had destroyed three Russian missiles and nine drones during the overnight strikes, the latest launched by Russia since its full-scale invasion in February 2022.

In the northeastern region of Sumy, the Ukrainian prosecutor's office said four forest workers and two other civilians had been killed when their car came under fire on Tuesday in a forest close to the border with Russia.

Reuters could not independently verify the reports. There was no immediate comment from Russia. Both Russia and Ukraine deny targeting civilians in their military operations.

(Reporting by Lidia Kelly in Melbourne and Pavel Polityuk in Kyiv; Editing by Simon Cameron-Moore and Timothy Heritage)
Fire-gutted home torn down after years-long fight. My voice is not being heard, says owner

A fire-gutted home in the heart of Richland is being demolished this week, capping a years-long effort to abate a longstanding nuisance.

Big Ds Construction mobilized outside the Alphabet house at 1344 Thayer Drive on Tuesday and began the painstaking work of demolishing the blackened structure shortly after 10:15 a.m. on Wednesday.

Linda Alexander, who owns the property through Live Victoriously Ministries, and her son, Michael Alexander, spoke with city officials and police officers on the sidewalk as workers prepared to tear into the house.

Passersby expressed relief that the property, an infamous local landmark to nearby residents, was finally being removed.

But Linda Alexander said the story didnt have to unfold the way it did.

She and her son said a little help and kindness after years of devastating setbacks, including a July 4, 2020 fire that left it a burned-out hulk, would have helped preserve the home and property.

It got this way because the people who are supposed to help have been negligent, said Alexander, who is 70 and recovering from a stroke. My voice is not being heard.

Joe Schiessl, Richland deputy city manager, stands with Linda Alexander, the owner of the burned out house, as demolition crews prepare to demolish the gutted structure.

Bought in 1988

Michael Alexander said his family has owned the house for 40 years.

His mother bought it and his grandfather helped customize the interior, as well as build planting boxes. He grew up in the two-story house, an A model in the parlance of Richlands historic Alphabet homes, constructed for the Hanford workforce.

The familys story took a dark turn when Linda Hamilton was assaulted after opening the door to a man who said he needed to use the phone.

The Tri-City Herald traced the history of the property in a 2021 report that recounted a tortured legal process, including federal lawsuits.

Linda Alexander purchased the property in 1988 and lived there until at least 1995, when she opened the door to a man claiming he needed to use the phone but who assaulted her. She was then five months pregnant.

She recounted the story Wednesday, telling the Herald she was almost killed in the attack, leading to extensive health challenges.

Firefighter Josh Jordon, left, and Capt. Josh Patterson of the Richland Fire Department, search for clues to the cause of a fire that heavily damaged a vacant home at 1344 Thayer Drive in 2020.

Code violations

By the time the fire struck, the once gracious home had been the target of complaints about weeds, overgrown bushes and immobilized vehicles. The Alexanders said fireworks did not cause the fire, contrary to popular perception. They assert nearby power lines or a transformer ignited a tree that spread flames to the house.

The home, which was insured, could have been rebuilt if Linda Alexander had been treated with kindness, her son said.

He said contractors wouldnt work on his mothers house for the amount of insurance money available. The insurance didnt cover contents such as a Marvel comic collection, art, tapestries and jewelry, he said, recalling a home where friends and neighbors loved to visit.

Instead, vandals compounded the damage and Richland code enforcement officials grew concerned about the condition of the structure, the landscape and the sidewalks. Alexander called his mother a gentle soul who instead of being treated with grace was targeted for legal action.

Workers from Big Ds Construction use respirators and wear protective coveralls as they start razing the house damaged by fire three years ago.

Legal process

In November 2020, the city cited Alexander for numerous violations of city codes related to noxious odors, accumulation of garbage, excessive yard debris, grass and weeds, dead or dying trees, maintenance of sidewalks and right-of-ways and storage of inoperable vehicles.

Meeting minutes indicate she did not attend the Dec. 8, 2020, hearing where the board voted to assess a $500 penalty and levy a monthly $100 penalty until the property came into compliance, which it never did.

The case landed in Benton County Superior Court in 2021. A judge authorized the city to bring the property into compliance with codes in late 2022.

A code enforcement notice has been posted by the Richland Police Department at a dilapidated house destroyed by firein July 2020.

Unsafe to enter

Ruvim Tyutyunnik, project manager, said once the legal case was settled, it took additional time to map out a safe strategy to work on the property.

A structural engineer said the structure was unsafe to enter and could not be saved. That prevented the city from testing for environmental hazards, resulting in the need to treat the entire property as potentially hazardous.

Richlands code enforcement board ordered the owner of this central Richland home that burned in a fire in July 2020 to fix hazards including boarding up all open window and doors.

The demolition efforts are being carried out in compliance with Washington State Department of Labor and Industries and Benton Clean Air Authority rules, Tyutyunnik said Wednesday.

Workers wore protective gear and used respirators on site.

The city is not seizing the property, he said.

Benton County property records list Live Victoriously Ministries, which is controlled by Linda Alexander, as the property owner. The property tax bill is paid up, records show.

Michael Alexander said his goal is to ensure his mother has a voice moving forward.

More than anything, I want to have a lawyer for her, he said.

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First Lady Jill Biden, pictured during a 2022 visit to Homegirl Cafe in Los Angeles, raised money for President Biden's reelection campaign on Wednesday in Hollywood. (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)

First Lady Jill Biden touted her husband's accomplishments on job creation, gun-control legislation and infrastructure investment as she courted donors on Wednesday in her first California fundraising trip since President Biden announced he would seek reelection.

Optimism, thats what drives my husband and nothing can slow him down, she told about 80 people gathered under an overcast sky in the backyard of a Lake Hollywood mansion. Joe is ready, as he likes to say, to finish the job. So as we get ready to jump back into a campaign, I cannot even believe Im already saying this  think about how far weve come in the last three years.

She pointed to the administrations efforts on the pandemic, the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the debt-ceiling crisis as examples of Joes steady leadership.

When things look darkest and when my heart feels the sting of headlines in the news, I know that its Joes clear vision that I want steering us forward, Biden said.

Read more: Biden announces bid for a second term in 2024

Democratic officials did not respond when asked how much donors contributed to attend the afternoon fundraiser held at a white modern farmhouse with the iconic Hollywood sign perched on a nearby hilltop. The five-bedroom home is owned by attorneys Lisa and Andrew Gilford.

The event raised money for the Biden Victory Fund, a joint fundraising committee that includes Biden's campaign, the Democratic National Committee and state Democratic parties and can raise hundreds of thousands of dollars per donor.

The fundraiser took place days after former President Trump was indicted on 37 charges related to his handling of classified documents, and one day after his appearance in a federal court in Miami.

Read more: Trump pleads not guilty to 37 felony counts in federal classified documents case

Jill Biden, who spoke for 11 minutes, did not directly mention the criminal case or Trump by name. But both clearly loomed in the background as she compared the Biden administration with what occurred before he took office in 2021.

Her husbands leadership had led to the creation of 13 million jobs, a manufacturing boom, the bipartisan infrastructure law, lower drug prices and the passage of the first major gun-control legislation in decades, she said.

Weve accomplished so much and I hope youre proud of Joe, because his wins are really your wins, she said. We know whats in store if these MAGA Republicans win because weve all lived through this.

Biden reminded the audience of Trump shaping policy in late-night tweets and spoke of democracy and freedom being under constant assault. The difference between her husband winning a second term or a Republican taking the White House is stark, she said.

That's the choice right now  chaos and corruption, hatred and division  on the one hand. You can choose that, or you can choose strong, steady leadership, Jill Biden said. We cannot go back to those dark days and we wont with your help.

On Tuesday, Biden headlined two fundraisers for her husbands reelection campaign and spoke at an event for the Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence in the San Francisco Bay Area. The center is led by former Arizona Rep. Gabby Giffords, who was nearly killed in a 2011 assassination attempt and appeared alongside the First Lady.

Read more: Tucson shooting survivor tormented by loss

Biden, a professor, said at the Giffords' event that fears of a mass shooting at the community college where she teaches regularly cross her mind.

"As a teacher, I have imagined that scene in my classroom more times than I can count," Biden said. "At the start of each semester, I explain to my students what they should do if the worst happens."

Biden touted her husband's efforts to quell gun violence, including background checks and efforts aimed at stopping domestic abusers from obtaining guns.

"He's done everything in his power, and these changes will save lives," Biden said. "But it's not enough. We know that. Joe knows that. We need Republicans in Congress to get out of the way."

President Biden is headed to the Bay Area next week. While his schedule has not been publicly announced, it is almost certain to include meetings with donors.

These are the first California fundraisers for Bidens reelection bid. In 2020, the states residents spent $305.6 million to back his campaign, more than one-fifth of his total haul and the most of any state in the nation, according to an analysis by the nonpartisan Center for Responsive Politics of donations of more than $200 from individuals. And that sum doesnt include contributions to political action committees that operate independently of campaigns.

But despite Californias liberal political tilt, its also a top source of Republican campaign dollars. This week and next, former conservative talk radio host Larry Elder, former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley, South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis are among the presidential hopefuls holding fundraisers in the state.

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
The Flash director says Tom Cruise cold called him to praise Ezra Miller movie: Huge confidence boost

The Flash director Andy Muschietti has confirmed rumours that Tom Cruise called him out of the blue to praise the Ezra Miller-led superhero movie.

A report emerged back in March that the Mission: Impossible star had seen a preview of the forthcoming DC Studios film and loved it.

Producer Barbara Muschietti told GamesRadar+ in a new interview: Its a very cynical industry, and to hear people that really have no skin in the game, because they have nothing to gain, just say something that lovely. In the case of Tom Cruise, he called us, talked for 15 minutes, praising Andy, praising the film, and it just feels very good because we really work very hard to make these movies.

Muschietti added: [We got] more confidence in the thing that we did, because the movie was finished by the time that [Cruise] saw it, so it was a confidence boost if anything.

The movie has won a number of fans already including famed horror author Stephen King who called it special and DCs co-CEO James Gunn, who said it was probably one of the greatest superhero movies ever made.

However, in The Independents three-star review, critic Clarisse Loughrey called it a morally tricky film to enjoy due to its stars legal troubles.

Tom Cruise (left) and Ezra Miller in The Flash (Getty Images/Warner Bros)

Miller was involved in a string of controversies in the run-up to the films release, which culminated in multiple arrests and reports of erratic behaviour stretching from Hawaii to Vermont.

The actor, who uses they/them pronouns, alluded to their legal troubles at The Flashs Hollywood premiere on Monday (12 June).

According to Variety, Miller thanked the DC team  including Gunn and his co-CEO Peter Safran, Warner Bros Discovery CEO David Zaslav and Warner Bros Film Group bosses Michael De Luca and Pam Abdy  for your grace and discernment and care in the context of my life.

The actor also thanked them for bringing this moment to fruition, seemingly addressing the films many delays amid a threat of a boycott by fans.

Speaking to director Andy Muschietti, Miller said: I love you, maestro. I think youre amazing, and I think your work is monumental.

The Flash is out in cinemas on 16 June.
Tapped by the state to evaluate the mental health of an inmate scheduled to be executed this week, a Tampa Bay doctor posted a comment on social media criticizing a planned vigil for the Death Row prisoner.

Emily Lazarou was one of three doctors Gov. Ron DeSantis appointed to decide whether Duane Owen, who was convicted in two 1984 murders in Palm Beach County, is too mentally ill to be executed. Joined by Wade Myers and Tonia Werner, the psychiatrists for the state concluded that Owen was faking his mental illness and alleged schizophrenic delusions to avoid the death penalty.

A court agreed and deemed he was fit to be executed.

Earlier this week, Lazarou, who is based in Hillsborough County, commented on a Facebook post about a vigil for Owen, saying that support should be shown for his victims instead.

Owen, 62, is set to die Thursday for his role in the rape and murder of a 38-year-old mother. He was also convicted in a separate case of killing a 14-year-old girl.

I do not get this. Where are the people standing in vigil for the 14 year old he stabbed to death and raped while she was dying and the mother of 2 who he bashed her head in with a hammer and raped her dying body? Lazarou wrote.

Her kids found her the next morning. All of his victims. Who is staying in vigil for them? They didnt have a team protecting them, because if they did, theyd still be living. This man stalked them from their windows and waited for them to be alone. This makes absolutely ZERO sense to me.

When reached by phone Wednesday morning, Lazarou said she didnt know her comment on the Facebook post was public.

She said she didnt think it showed bias and that she was speaking about the truth. When reached Wednesday afternoon to check the accuracy of what she said to a Times reporter, Lazarou said she did not believe the summarization was accurate but declined to explain how.

Lazarous comments about the vigil were in response to a Facebook post by Allison Miller, a capital defense attorney who ran to be the Pinellas-Pasco state attorney in 2022 and lost.

Miller, who is not an attorney on the case, said she was struck by Lazarous incredibly unprofessional comment.

How can she be reliable in considering his mental health to be killed when she clearly has demonstrated a bias against him? Miller said.

Miller said she plans to sit in vigil outside the prison on Thursday for Owens execution because shes opposed to peoples lives being taken, whether through murder or the death penalty.

Miller said she has felt Lazarou is very mocking about schizophrenia and other psychotic disorders.

I have some misgivings about her personal beliefs related to serious mental illness, but I also know that the state, the prosecutors, respect the heck out of what she does, Miller said. Miller noted that she has in the past hired Lazarou in cases with the public defenders office.

Professional standards for objectivity

Forensic psychiatrists should strive for objectivity, said Michael Norko, a professor of psychiatry at Yale University and the former chairperson of the Committee on Institutional and Correctional Forensic Psychiatry of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law.

Norko said a doctor has the obligation to protect against an appearance of bias, and that though there are circumstances where talking about a case is appropriate, a social setting is not usually one of those.

Norko said he couldnt say whether or not Lazarou was biased but said one of our obligations is to try to preserve the integrity of the opinions we offer.

When an expert is asked to conduct a forensic evaluation, Norko said they must first examine whether theyre individually capable of performing it objectively.

If they feel they have strong feelings about a case or about the type of case, they shouldnt accept the request for the evaluation, he said.

Owens attorneys had not seen Lazarous post, a representative for the group said Wednesday. But Owens defense team previously accused the state-appointed panel of being combative during the evaluation.

During the evidentiary hearing for the court to decide whether Owen was fit to be executed, Lazarou testified that she wasnt entertaining the story that Owen was telling about one of his delusions, because it didnt come up during the time of the crime, according to a transcript of the hearing.

What Owens attorney says

Gerod Hooper, the chief assistant at the Capital Collateral Regional Counsel representing Owen, said he thinks Lazarous comments are irrelevant when it comes to the issue the court is tasked with deciding: whether or not Owen is competent enough for execution.

But he said the fact she was focused on the heinous nature of the crime would cause me to worry that maybe she was biased in her evaluation of Owen.

The mere fact that she would take a position in that, Hooper said. That alone troubles me.

This was the first time Lazarou served on a panel evaluating whether inmates are fit for execution. The other experts had previously been part of competency panels.

Lazarou frequently testifies for the state when defense attorneys raise claims about a defendants sanity or competence.

A Tampa Bay Times story in 2018 reported that Lazarou had made more than $700,000 over a decade of work in Florida courts. About 90% of that was for work she did for prosecutors.

Defense lawyers who have questioned Lazarou in other cases have criticized her methods and style.

Lazarou has made controversial comments before

Ernest Boswell, a forensic psychologist who took a conflicting view from Lazarou in the 2015 Hillsborough trial of Matthew Buendia  a combat veteran who was accused of shooting a sheriffs deputy  told the Times in 2018 that he found Lazarou to be rude and arrogant. Mark OBrien, the defense attorney in that case, characterized her examination of the defendant as an interrogation, and accused her of mimicking him from the witness stand.

Testifying in the 2015 Pinellas trial of Benjamin Bishop, who was accused of killing his mother and her boyfriend, Lazarou likened the defendant to an Asian Beavis and Butt-Head.

Defense lawyers in 2018 asked that Lazarou be excluded from being an expert witness in the case of John Jonchuck, who was accused of tossing his 5-year-old daughter off a Pinellas County bridge.

Another psychiatrist, Ryan Wagoner, tapped by the defense to review Lazarous work, said he found her evaluation of Jonchuck to be very biased and coercive.

Wagoner, in a deposition, noted that Lazarou spoke much more than Jonchuck did when she interviewed him. Wagoner was critical of her findings and the way she worded her report, which he said included language that is more often used in novels than it is in a forensic report.

In a deposition in the Jonchuck case, defense lawyers asked Lazarou whether she considers herself an advocate for victims.

Oh, definitely, a victim advocate, yeah, Lazarou said. I hate that people are hurt. As a physician, I think that that would be universal.

Lazarou ultimately was permitted to testify in Jonchucks trial. A jury rejected his insanity defense, finding him guilty of murder.

In the years since, Lazarou has continued to testify as an expert witness.

In 2019, she worked on the Hillsborough County trial of Nicole Nachtman, a woman who was accused of killing her mother and stepfather. The defense argued that Nachtman suffered from battered child syndrome, the result of years of abuse, and that she also had schizophrenia. A pair of defense experts testified that Nachtman was in a psychotic state when she committed the killings.

But Lazarou diagnosed Nachtman with a complexity of mood and personality disorders and opined that she was not insane when she committed the crimes. Nachtman was found guilty.

In Florida, like in most states that have the death penalty, the standard used to determine if someone is too mentally ill to execute is extremely narrow.

As long as someone has a rational understanding of why theyre being executed, that execution is permissible under precedent set by the U.S. Supreme Court, said Robin Maher, the executive director of the Death Penalty Information Center.

Only two states  Kentucky and Ohio  have taken steps to prohibit the execution of seriously mentally ill inmates. A 2021 bill in Florida to extend the ban to Florida, sponsored by former St. Petersburg Sen. Jeff Brandes, failed.

Tampa Bay Times Staff Writer Zachary T. Sampson contributed to this report, which includes information from Times archives.
Forget the bars  TikToker spends Friday night living it up in Costco. People love it

A TikToker was figuring out plans for his Friday night in California when the group he was with decided they wanted to stay in.

That was, until someone suggested an alternative night out  a trip to Costco.

Daniel Bennett, a 26-year-old Los Angeles resident, according to his LinkedIn profile, decided the move was to drink a little wine before heading to the happiest place on earth, according to his TikTok post on June 3.

We dont need anything but were just going to go, Bennett says in the video captioned New Friday Activity Unlocked.

The video shows Bennett heading to Costco with his buddies after drinking some wine.

Although he makes sure to let the viewers know he had only two glasses, he says his first mistake is not bringing a list with him.

Bennett and his friends wander through the store and even make their way through the danger zone, what most membership holders know as the wine aisle.

I mean do you think I need 6 pounds of meat? Bennett asks his friend as they peruse the bulk items Costco offers.

In the video, the group calculates how much theyd likely have spent at a bar instead.

At least $100 each was the consensus.

Bennett spent just shy of that with an $85 tab but was able to walk away with groceries instead of a raging hangover the next morning.

Commenters agreed hitting Costco might just be the new Friday night game plan, with someone saying, Wine and Costco hot dogs on a Friday night sounds like my kind of good time.

One said, This is an elite adult activity.

Another added, THESE ARE MY PEOPLE.

Im going back next Friday, Bennett joked in the comments of his video.

Or maybe he wasnt joking.

57-year-old TikToker ate just McDonalds for 100 days  and lost 58 pounds. Heres how

TikToker freeze-dried her beloved cat after it died  and people didnt expect to cry

TikToker fakes his death to test familys loyalty, then shows up at his own funeral
Former deputy accused of killing unborn childs father was nearly fired for associating with him

Channel 2 Action News has learned the former deputy accused of killing the father of her unborn child was about to be fired for associating with him. The Rockdale County Sheriffs Office says Terrell Douglas was a convicted felon.

Former Rockdale County Sheriffs Deputy Jovaa Jackson says she and Douglas were dating until she broke up with him recently.

Jackson admitted she has made some bad decisions in a sheriffs office video obtained by Channel 2s Tom Jones where an investigator questioned her about her association with Douglas about a month before the shooting.

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I acknowledge that my decisions were my decisions and I accept consequences come behind it, she says in the May 12, 2023 video.

Jackson was reprimanded in 2019 for associating with Douglas, a convicted felon with a long criminal history, according to investigators.

She says they broke up, then resumed dating at the end of 2022.

We linked up. Messed around and now Im pregnant, she told the investigator.

Jackson was then on the phone with Douglas when he was wounded in a drive-by in Albany in May. She was also in Albany and drove to the scene.

Officers say they found a gun in Douglas car. Jackson said she had no idea how he got it. The investigator reminded her that as a convicted felon Douglas was not allowed to possess a gun. She said she had no idea he had one.

Rockdale County investigated Jackson once again, for associating with a felon. They realized Douglas was at her promotion ceremony. Investigators determined Jackson wasnt truthful about when she and Douglas began dating again. Leaders say they planned to fire her. Jackson resigned in lieu of termination.

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On June 4, Dwight Robinson heard a loud noise at the Southlake Cove apartments just off Highway 54 near Jonesboro.

Pop. This is close, Robinson thought. This is outdoors. This is right outside the house, he said about the gunfire.

Police say Jackson stalked Douglas to the apartment and shot him near the front door.

In the interview with investigators about a month before the shooting, Jackson said she broke up with Douglas and he wasnt returning her calls or texts. She said she didnt know where he was. Police say she tracked him to the apartment and ended his life.

Robinson believes Jackson still wanted Douglas in her life.

When you break somebody heart like that, you dont know how really they feel. And it leads to stuff like this, he said.

Police say Jackson turned herself in and handed over the murder weapon. She now faces malice murder, possession of a firearm during a felony and stalking.

Jackson said in the video that she was having a stressful pregnancy and her hormones were all over the place. She is locked up at the Clayton County Jail with no bond.

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The News

Russias world economy summit, the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF), opened on Wednesday  but this years proceedings are taking a markedly different tone than previous forums.

Attendees have become less global, a reflection of Russias growing isolation on the international stage.

Both Brazils President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and Kazakhstan's President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev declined invitations to attend. The most senior European leader expected at the summit is Hungarys foreign minister, Peter Szijjarto.

Know More

Once referred to by organizers as Russias answer to the World Economic Forum in Davos, this years SPIEF is subdued, Russian economics-focused outlet The Bell reported earlier this month.

While SPIEF formerly attracted heavy-hitting attendees like French President Emmanuel Macron and Chinese leader Xi Jinping for plenary sessions with Russian President Vladimir Putin, this year only the United Arab Emirates has agreed to partner with Russia for the event  and its so far unclear who will attend the session on the UAEs behalf.

Last year, Egypts President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi sent only a video message to the conference, and did not attend in person, The Bell notes. In 2019, U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres attended the conference, warning of the need to avoid a second Cold War.

Previous iterations of SPIEF have been widely covered by journalists from around the world. But for the first time in the events nearly 30-year history, reporters from countries that Russia deems unfriendly have been banned from covering the event.

Step Back

SPIEF may be another casualty of the sliding grip Russian authorities have on the country, as Moscows full-scale invasion of Ukraine takes its toll. Russian officials are insisting that they have the means to continue the war, while admitting that they do not have enough weapons, according to a recent report in Politico.

Speaking to pro-war bloggers, Putin said that we have [weapons], but unfortunately we dont have enough of them, while also claiming that there was a threefold increase in weapons production.
Former KMOX anchor Carol Daniel reflects on the joys and challenges of her career

Carol Daniel needed to jump start her career.

Yes, that Carol Daniel, the Carol Daniel who went on to become the beloved news anchor, talk show host, interviewer and reporter at KMOX in St. Louis for 28 years before retiring this spring.

But years earlier, she was hungry for that first full-time talk show position after working a variety of jobs in and outside of the broadcast world: spinning records, reading obituaries on the radio, covering news, selling cable subscriptions, working in retail and more.

She found that jump start 115 miles south of St. Louis, in Cape Girardeau, Missouri, where she spent three years as a radio and TV talk show host. Cape Girardeau was a ``relatively conservative place, she said, noting that she was liberal on some things and conservative on others.

I was blessed as a Black woman, to go into Rush Limbaughs hometown and represent a different point of view and did it in such a way that it was endearing to people, Daniel said. I know I opened minds. I know I was a revelation for some people.

 It was such a wonderful experience. I am a small town girl anyway so I totally understood covering school boards, the city council in a small town.

Townspeople didnt forget Daniel. We had her first and weve missed her for 28 years, someone posted on Facebook when she announced her retirement in St. Louis.

 To know you left that kind of legacy that people still remember you is such a blessing, Daniel said.

Daniel discussed her legacy, the challenges and joys of her 40-year broadcast career and influences on her life during an interview with the BND as her May 25 retirement date approached.

Well-known St. Louis area broadcaster Carol Daniel, who was an anchor, reporter and show host for 28 years.

Getting started down the broadcast path

Daniel describes herself as someone who grew up with ``deep faith, family oriented, hard working.  These are values that served her well during her career.

She was born at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri, one of Isiah and Rosella Keelers five children. Her father was a drill sergeant at the Army post, where she spent most of her young life, except when the family was temporarily stationed in Germany.

Her parents, married for 67 years, are Daniels heroes.

She said her personality is more like her fathers than her mothers.

My mother is an introvert. My father, the drill sergeant this is his voice, she said. We used to say he could sell a bald man a comb.

... He is still very talkative. He is such a comedian and a great, great storyteller. I get it all from my dad, Daniel said.

Daniel graduated from Waynesville Senior High School in 1980. She went to both the University of Missouri and Lincoln University, a historically Black land-grant university in Jefferson City, where she graduated in 1985 with a degree in communications.

She hadnt always been interested in being a broadcaster. Her first career choice was business.

I went to college as a business major. I wanted to work in corporate America. I wanted to be a woman with great suits and an incredible briefcase, working in a big city and going into a tall glass tower, Daniel said in her zesty voice.

But at Lincoln University, she decided to take a different path and get into broadcasting.

Initially, I wanted to be a jazz d.j. I had fallen in love with jazz. Then, I determined there werent that many jazz stations in the country in 1985, she said.

By then, Daniel had started writing for the school newspaper at Lincoln, doing interviews and writing public service announcements.

Thats how it really started. They had a campus newspaper and a radio station. They had a jazz station. I worked at the radio station as a class, Daniel said.

Eventually, Daniel went to work at a country music station in Jefferson City, where she read the weather, among other tasks. On the weekends, she played the top 40 hits.

The program itself came on an album. I played the first part of the album, lifted the needle, read the weather, read some headlines and then flipped the album and played the other part of the album, Daniel said, chuckling.

Daniel worked at the same time for Missourinet, a network that provides news and other content to radio stations across the state. Daniel said Bob Priddy, who was the news director at the network for over 40 years, was a big influence on her.

I gave him a cassette tape that I had recorded of myself. He wrote me, typed out on one of those old fashioned typewriters, a critique, a review of my newscast. I still have that letter he wrote to me in 1984, Daniel said.

He told me I had great delivery. He said I needed to make sure I was comfortable reading and not sound like I was reading, she said.  It was the first time anyone had said anything to me about my voice in a truly positive way. It came from a professional.

He was the first person who said to me I had what it took to be a radio journalist, Daniel recalled fondly.

Daniel works for Kansas City stations, cable company

After graduating from Lincoln University, Daniel moved to Kansas City, where she had jobs at two stations, including selling advertising at one of them.

Then I had the bright idea to go work for a cable company because the cable company had a community station, she said.  I thought I would go sell cable and work my way over to the on-air side and have my own show. Crazy, because I was able to volunteer and have a show, but I never got a paid job.

But it did, indeed, turn out to be a good idea to work for the cable company because Daniel met so many people.

It was a place where I learned the inner workings of non-profits, talked to activists, learned things I never knew about growing up on a military base. It was great experience, Daniel said.

She worked multiple jobs, including selling cable service door to door for three months.

 It was a horrible, horrible job. It was scary, Daniel said.

My mother wanted me to call her everyday when I got home, she recalled.  You would go into peoples homes to sell the cable and you would go in with the installer to install the cable. Walking into communities, I could hear dogs barking, and chains rattling. It was the worst three months.

Reading obituaries, covering the Gulf War

Daniel left Kansas City and went to work in her hometown of Waynesville, near Fort Leonard Wood, at another country music station, KJPW. It had a two-person staff, including a news team of one: Carol Daniel.

Daniel worked there at the time of Operation Desert Storm, the Gulf War, which started in August 1990. She was well equipped to cover the war from the Fort Leonard Wood angle.

I knew so many people. I was able to get stories and interviews with service men and women that other people couldnt get she said.  I was the only game in town. There was a newspaper, but the closest television station was in Springfield, Missouri, 90 minutes away.

 I was a one-man band, covering incredible stories and learning how the war affected people back home.

Part of her job as a reporter at the station was reading local obituaries live on the air at noon. And, my mother said to me one time Carol I just love the way you read the obituaries. I said to her that is probably the greatest compliment I will ever receive.

After working 18 months at the Waynesville station, someone let her know there was a job opening in Cape Girardeau that she should apply for.

I had no idea where Cape Girardeau was. Some women said to me there were no men in Cape Girardeau. Why would you go there? I said I am not going there for a man, I am going there for a job.

``This was my first chance to have a show and do talk radio. I always wanted to do a radio and television talk show, Daniel said.

So she applied.

Daniel laughed while relating this story:

The funny part is thats where I met my husband. I wasnt going there for a man. I was going there to jump start my career and thats where I met my husband. And, he is from the Virgin Islands.

She was in Cape Girardeau for about three years.

It was a rewarding experience for Daniel, who worked hard to prepare for her shows. She had to do a lot of research, spending hours at the library reading old editorials, magazines, peoples books.

The internet was coming into being and people could know more than you as a talk show host, Daniel said.

She was now working in conservative talk show host Rush Limbaughs hometown. Her talent and her success in Cape Girardeau laid the groundwork for what came next: Joining the staff of the large- market radio station, KMOX.







Moving on to KMOX to serve the St. Louis region

Daniel started at KMOX in 1995 as a news anchor and reporter before taking on the role of an afternoon co-host, where she spent much of her career. For four-plus years, Carol also was the co-host of the TV talk show Great Day St. Louis, which she helped launch at KMOV-TV.

Over the course of her career in St. Louis, she has been involved in community events and organizations around the region, as an emcee, featured speaker, host and board member. Shes an active member of her church, New Life in Christ Interdenominational Church in OFallon.

By its nature, the career Daniel chose requires one to cover tragedy of all kinds, and deal with negativity, anger, natural disasters and more. So it may seem like an oxymoron to ask her whether her job was fun.

You get to know people. I am such a people person. So, it has been a lot fun, Daniel said.  But it is a greater responsibility. 

Today we celebrated the legend that is @caroldanielKMOX. A queen. The flowers are yours pic.twitter.com/Lopq7y82vI  Gabrielle Hays (@thegabhour) May 26, 2023

You have to get it right under extremely tight time constraints and deadlines, she explained.

Then there are the challenges of working in talk radio, which she called an  argumentative media, with some people listening for information and others for ``arguments sake.

Even greater now, people are willing to disagree in a rude fashion, Daniel said.  It seems like a lost art to be able to disagree and try to find greater understanding.

...There has always been that element in talk radio of the disagreeable nature of mankind. And, that has made it not fun. 

Daniel also had to face even darker ugliness as a Black female journalist, especially earlier in her career.

There has been the element of sexism and racism where people send me nasty letters, unsigned, fake addresses and then my share of phone calls, Daniel said.  I havent got any of those in a very long time.

Early in my career I would get a lot of phone calls from people who were willing to be profane and say prejudicial and racist things to me or about my family. That was always present. Everybody gets negative calls - You fool! Youre an idiot! 

Every reporter gets that, but every reporter doesnt get You B or You whore, or You the N word. Your mothers a gorilla, she continued.  Somebody said to me once If I saw you in a car, I would assume you were a welfare mother.

I dont know if that is a result of bad education, segregation or what. It is a result of racism, thats for sure.

How did she stay motivated in the face of negativity and the other challenges during her career?

Well, from a practical standpoint, I have bills to pay, she said with a loud laugh.

From a spiritual standpoint, God brought me here, she said. From a career and destiny standpoint, I deserve this great job and I belong. That was something I did not always feel.

At many of her assignments, she explained, she was often the only Black person in the room, the youngest person in the room, or the only woman in the room.

For many, many years, my own insecurities, I carried them around and was insecure in the room, she said.

But she worked hard to fight that insecurity because she knew that so many people depended on her work and her presence, that it made a difference.

Women are listening. Everybody is listening. Thats the other reason to get up. I know they say dont worry about it, nobody is looking. But when you are doing radio and television and when people are reading your byline, people are looking. They are listening and reading.

 I have listeners, viewers and readers. They matter. I know my presence has always made a difference. It has rattled some nerves, but it made a bigger difference.

For a woman to see a woman in a male-dominated field be successful, be strong, be powerful, be well-spoken, outspoken, expressive, compassionate, insightful, express her wisdom and her faith all in one conversation. I know its been impactful. People have told me its been impactful.







The importance of family





For Daniel, family is paramount. She often talked about family values on the radio.

She has been married to Patrick Daniel since July 2, 1994, and they have two children, Patrick Daniel Jr. and Marcus Isiah Daniel.

For Carol Daniel, it was important that her children be able to know the power and importance of what she did for a living, but it was challenging because the demands of her job meant she often wasnt at home. So sometimes she was able to take them along to big events.

Not only was I reporting and anchoring, I was in the community helping raise money and serving on boards. I was gone a lot. I wanted them to be with me when they could. Theyve been on many stages with me and in many audiences with me.

She told the story about bringing her family to a dinner event hosted by 100 Black Men of America. Her youngest son was fascinated when the family got to stay in a hotel when he was about 11 years old.

He met Maxine Clark, the founder of Build A Bear. And, he had a Spiderman bear that he got when he was about 8 years old. He got to meet the woman who created the company, she said.  I could see the wheels turning. I could see his eyes bright. It was such a moment. It was just such a moment. They know each other to this day. He is 23.

It was a multi-purpose thing. They could physically be with me. It was a formal dinner. They got to meet people, and talk to adults. They could see their mother operate.

Daniels commitment to her family is one of the reasons why she ``retired from KMOX so early, at the age of 61. Shes had cancer twice and has beat it twice. And Daniel and her brother, retired Air Force Lt. Col. Al Keeler Sr., are helping to care for their aging parents, who now live near the Daniel familys OFallon home.

So really, she hasnt retired. She has lots to do. Caring for her parents, staying active in the church and community, writing another book and more will be keeping her busy. She also will continue motivational speaking, which she has been doing for years.

Having wonderful children and a supportive husband and being part of a great church, pastored by Bishop Geoffrey V. Dudley Sr., along with her professional success in the broadcast world, have helped her navigate the good times and the challenges in her career. Its all helped her become the confident, strong woman she is today, ready for a new chapter in life.

Dealing with difficult people and difficult situations, on the other side you are stronger and wiser. So, I have become a more courageous person. I have become a more confident woman. I am a wiser individual.
Visitors select ornaments during the second China-Africa Economic and Trade Expo in Changsha, capital of central China's Hunan Province, Sept. 27, 2021. [Photo/Xinhua]



The third China-Africa Economic and Trade Expo scheduled from June 29 to July 2 in the central Chinese city of Changsha will help advance high-quality economic and trade cooperation between the two sides, building on current achievements, officials said Tuesday.

China is Africa's largest trading partner and its fourth-biggest source of investment, Vice Minister of Commerce Li Fei told a press conference. Over the years, cooperation between the two sides has extended from trade and construction to emerging areas like digital infrastructure, green development, aviation, and space exploration, Li said.

The expo, held every other year in Hunan Province, is a significant economic and trade platform under the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation framework. So far, 53 African countries, eight international organizations, and over 1,500 centrally-administered state-owned enterprises, business associations, and financial institutions have applied to attend the event.

Appealing expo

This year's event is expected to be more influential than previous ones as it will cover more topics, said Shen Yumou, head of the Hunan Provincial Department of Commerce.

For the first time in the expo's history, forums and seminars will be held on traditional Chinese medicine cooperation, women's dialogues, and professional education.

The event will be bustling with participants, said Shen. The number of exhibitors alone is up by 55 percent from the last expo to 1,350. The main venue will open its doors to the public from July 1 to 2, while a myriad of African products will be available for sale at secondary locations.

Shen noted that the 100,000-square-meter main venue would house more exhibits than previous events. Also debuting this year are two achievements exhibitions, one for China-Africa high-quality Belt and Road cooperation and the other for women's innovations and entrepreneurship from both sides.

Potential deals and other cooperation projects under discussion at the expo reached 10.7 billion U.S. dollars so far, Shen added.

Common development

The expo will help foster consensus and enhance confidence for development on both sides, said Jiang Wei, an official with the Ministry of Commerce. It will give play to local governments and enterprises in promoting cooperation.

A series of measures will also be unveiled at the expo to guide future moves on implementing the nine programs on China-Africa cooperation proposed at the Eighth Ministerial Conference of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation in November 2021, said Jiang.

The nine programs have each yielded fruitful results, said Li. Under the trade promotion program, for example, 21 African countries have each received zero-tariff treatment for 98 percent of their exports to China.

Under the capacity building program, 14 Chinese vocational colleges have established partnerships with 13 African counterparts, while Chinese projects in Africa created 300,000 jobs for the local people in 2022, according to Li.

Official data showed that bilateral trade between China and Africa stood at 282 billion U.S. dollars in 2022, with export to Africa growing 11.2 percent year on year to 164.5 billion dollars and import up by 11 percent to 117.5 billion dollars. In the first four months, China's new direct investment in Africa reached 1.38 billion dollars, up 24 percent year on year.
PITTSBURGH  A former resident of New Philadelphia has been sentenced in federal court to 70 months in prison and four years of supervised release on his conviction for conspiring to distribute and distributing 50 grams or more of methamphetamine.

On Friday, U.S. District Judge Robert J. Colville imposed the sentence on Phillip Bonanno, 56, who is in the Northeast Ohio Correctional Center in Youngstown.

According to information presented to the court, the Greater Pittsburgh Safe Streets Task Force, led by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, conducted a long-term investigation, which included obtaining authorization for a federal wiretap, into drug-trafficking activity occurring in the Western District of Pennsylvania.

According to U.S. Attorney Eric G. Olshan, Bonanno (also known as Guido and Ohio Guido) was a member of the Pagans Motorcycle Club, reportedly from 2020 until 2022, and a close associate of co-defendants Bill Rana, who is awaiting sentencing, and Eric Armes, who was also sentenced to 70 months imprisonment. Bonanno and his nephew, co-defendant Cody Bonanno, were identified as methamphetamine suppliers for Rana, Armes and co-defendant Dominic Quarture, who is awaiting sentencing, and others.

Cody Bonanno, 28, was sentenced in March to time already served while awaiting resolution of the case. In November, he pleaded guilty to conspiring to distribute and distributing 50 grams or more of methamphetamine. He will spend five years on supervised release. He lived in Uhrichsville when he was charged.

Intercepted communications confirmed that Bonanno facilitated drug trafficking activity at a New Philadelphia home, where drug customers, including members of the conspiracy, traveled to conduct drug transactions with his nephew. Additionally, Bonanno and his nephew would travel to the Western District of Pennsylvania also for their drug-trafficking activity, according to an announcement from Olshan.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Rebecca L. Silinski prosecuted the case.

2020: Area men facing federal drug charges as part of probe into motorcycle club

Acting United States Attorney Troy Rivetti commended the FBI, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Drug Enforcement Administration, Allegheny County Sheriffs Office, Pennsylvania State Police, and Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General Bureau of Narcotics Investigations, for the investigation leading to the successful prosecution of Bonanno.

A press release from Olshan said the sentencing was the result of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) investigation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles high-level drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations that threaten communities throughout the United States. OCDETF uses a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal network.

This article originally appeared on The Times-Reporter: Former Tuscarawas County residents sentenced on federal drug charges
President Donald Trumps former chief of staff, John Kelly, panned a short address given by his former boss on Tuesday as nothing more than panicked bluster in response to two criminal indictments filed by prosecutors in New York and the US Department of Justice.

Mr Kelly spoke to The Washington Post after the ex-president appeared at his resort in Bedminster, New Jersey, in front of a crowd of $1,000-a-pop attendees gathered hastily to hear his post-arraignment remarks.

And he chalked up the presidents threats to go after Joe Biden and his family with the full power of a weaponised Department of Justice as president to little more than a tantrum.

Hes scared s***less, said Mr Kelly. This is the way he compensates for that. He gives people the appearance he doesnt care by doing this.

For the first time in his life, it looks like hes being held accountable. Up until this point in his life, its like, Im not going to pay you. Take me to court. Hes never been held accountable before, added the former senior White House official and retired Marine Corps general.

It was a comment that was simultaneously unsurprising yet notable due to the credence it lends to the idea that Donald Trumps inner circle of advisers has done nothing but shrink since he took office in 2017 and left unceremoniously just four years later. In particular, Mr Trump is reported to have iced out all but those who agree most closely with his strategy and tactics, leaving behind even previously close aides like son-in-law Jared Kushner as he becomes further and further ensnared in legal entanglements.

Mr Kelly was long seen as one of the presidents cool-headed influences in the White House, often clashing with more fervent True Believers in the administration like Steve Bannon and Stephen Miller. His brush-ups with the former eventually led to Mr Bannon departing the White House entirely before the end of Mr Trumps first year in office.

But Mr Kelly himself eventually left the White House, too, replaced by yes-men Mick Mulvaney and Mark Meadows who fed the presidents ego and enabled his most controversial actions, including his refusal to accept his election defeat to Mr Biden in 2020. Mr Meadows was most recently reported by The Independent to be cooperating with federal investigators in two probes examining his former bosss undertakings as part of an immunity deal: One into the January 6 attack, and another dealing with presidential records and classified material taken from the White House.

Mr Kelly is one of many former Trump White House staffers who have denounced their former boss since leaving his service; in 2020, Mr Kelly was reported to have described then-President Trump as one of the most dishonest people he has ever known in a CNN report.

The depths of his dishonesty is just astounding to me. The dishonesty, the transactional nature of every relationship, though its more pathetic than anything else. He is the most flawed person I have ever met in my life, Mr Kelly has told close friends, according to the news outlet.

Mr Trump was indicted last week on 37 criminal counts related to his handling of presidential records, including classified documents reportedly related to US defense and the military. He faces a separate 32-count indictment in New York, a result of a 2016 hush money scheme involving porn star Stormy Daniels.
The Army has relieved the commanding general of the services fires school at Fort Sill, Oklahoma, officials confirmed Wednesday.

Maj. Gen. Kenneth Kamper was under investigation by the services inspector general for violating hunting regulations at the Oklahoma post, according to reporting from Military.com. The Lawton Constitution first reported Kampers firing.

Army spokesperson Cynthia Smith told Army Times that Kamper was removed due to a loss of trust and confidence in his ability to command. She added that the allegations  which her emailed statement did not detail  remain under investigation.

Kampers former command, the Army Fires Center of Excellence, is Army Training and Doctrine Commands site for training both field artillery and air defense artillery troops.

He isnt the only general from the command to face inspector general scrutiny in recent years. Now-retired Maj. Gen. Pat Donahoe led the maneuver school at Fort Moore, Georgia, until a lengthy investigation prevented him from leaving the service on time.

Donahoes case raised concerns over the weaponization of administrative complaints systems like the IG. He detailed his critiques in a January interview with Army Times following his retirement.

Pat Donahoe, civilian, wants a word with the Army

Its not yet clear how the allegations against Kamper were reported, nor is it clear how long the investigation has been underway.

Kamper, who did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment, took command of the Oklahoma post in March 2020, according to his official duty history. He previously served as deputy commander of III Corps and as deputy commander of the 4th Infantry Division.

Smith, the Army spokesperson, said Kamper awaits reassignment as Brig. Gen. Shane Morgan continues as the posts interim commander.
Fort Worths creative community came out in force Tuesday to the urge the city council to protect the community arts center in a potential redevelopment of its building.

The council voted to accept a city task forces recommendation to redevelop 1300 Gendy St. The redevelopment option was picked over an option to pay an estimated $30 million to bring it up to current standards.

While the task force recommendation did not require the redeveloped building include a community arts center, theater and gallery space, Mayor Mattie Parker told the audience she would not approve a request for proposals if it did not include those elements.

Speakers impressed upon the council the importance of supporting spaces for community art.

Carol Acedo, a small business owner and Fort Worth-based painter, recounted how her first exhibit at the Fort Worth Community Art Center led to her first gallery show a year later at the Fort Worth Stock Show and Rodeo.

Rosemont resident Cristina Plascencia Huezo, talking about viewing a friends gallery show at the arts center, said she never realized those experiences were available to everyday people.

She argued the city should protect the center so it stays a place accessible to people from all economic backgrounds.

Remember, we are not Dallas. Please do not widen the gap between the haves and have-nots, she said.

The redeveloped building should become a, world-class cultural hub, that either builds on the current campus or incorporates architectural features into a new design, according to the task force report.

The 16-member panel also recommended creating a space for the 14 nonprofits and studio artists that currently occupy the building.

The buildings current offerings should be a significant portion of any world class cultural hub, said task force member and former Fort Worth city councilmember Ann Zadeh in a text message Monday.

The task force opted to use vague language on what should and shouldnt be included in a redeveloped building so as to not stymie the creativity of potential developers, she said.

Council member Macy Hill echoed Zadehs sentiment saying developers are also artists, and shouldnt have their creativity dictated by the city.

A responsible developer will work with the community, Hill said.

Accepting the task force report and putting out a request for proposals is just a starting point, said assistant city manager Fernando Costa.

He noted that while the redevelopment option asks for new ideas, the task force report puts a strong preference for having an arts incubator, gallery space and theaters.

The city built whats now the Community Arts Center in 1954 to serve as a childrens and art museum. Architect Herbert Bayer designed the building.

The nearly 70-year-old building located near the intersection of Camp Bowie Boulevard and West Lancaster Avenue pre-dates the nearby Amon Carter and Kimbell Museums, which opened in 1961 and 1972 respectively.

Its one of two city owned, two publicly funded arts facilities in Fort Worth. Dallas, by comparison, has seven, with an additional 12 city-owned buildings managed through public-private partnerships.

The redevelopment option could also open up the possibility of using hotel taxes to support the buildings construction and ongoing maintenance.

Hotel taxes are earmarked to support tourism, which has kept Fort Worth from using them to support the arts in the past.

However, a redeveloped building could attract national and international visitors, which would make using those funds more legally defensible.

The city will put out a request for proposals to get developers on board to help with the project. Exactly what will be in that request is unknown, but the city will hold a public forum in October to engage with the community on the finalists for the project.
Four people are facing charges for failing to report child abuse at Blue Water Community Action's Head Start.

Four people who were employed by Blue Water Community Action at the time a former Head Start teacher was suspected of child abuse are now facing misdemeanor charges for allegedly failing to report it.

Charges of failure to report have been filed for Analisa Jex, Stephanie Kesner, Melanie Sheffer, and Katharine Wood. They are expected to be arraigned on July 12.

St. Clair County Prosecutor Michael Wendling said four warrants were issued Tuesday in connection to a weeks-long review from his office and investigations from the state and county sheriffs department. The later agency originally requested failure to report charges against seven individuals in April, including BWCA Executive Director Melinda Johnson, who remains on unpaid administrative leave.

Late Tuesday afternoon, Wendling said, We did not deny those charges, but that they were holding the other three for future determination.

Former teacher Cody Williams pleaded guilty to one count of fourth-degree child abuse and two counts of assault and battery on April 24. He was sentenced to six months in jail followed by probation.

I think its important to note that the situation of abuse had been resolved within the agency, but they did not report it to the state, Wendling said.  The employee (Williams) had been discharged from Blue Water Community Action that was the perpetrator of that assault, but theres still a subsequent obligation to report it to the state that they did not do within a reasonable amount of time.

Sheffer, 53, and Kesner, 55, were a supervisor and education manager, respectively, at the time of Williams reported assault incidents at the end of last year, while Jex, 39, was his Head Start teachers aide and Wood, 38, a bus aide.

Kesner and Sheffer couldnt be immediately reached for comment as of midday Wednesday. Jex did not comment when reached. Wood declined to comment.

What was the timeline leading up to charges?

Williams original offense date, according to reports, is listed as last December.

Although early police reports show some Blue Water Community Action staff allegedly witnessed or were made aware of the issue, the state was not notified until January.

Wendling said the sheriffs departments detective bureau submitted its investigation to his office on April 21 before they requested further interviews over the failure to report allegations. His office also requested statements from a Michigan Department of Health and Human Services investigator.

The sheriffs content came later in May, and the most recent state report late last week.

It was the last report that Wendling said made us comfortable going forward with charges on those four individuals.

As of early May, the sheriffs department alleged Jex and Wood witnessed Williams assault students, though reportedly differed in being able to identify the children involved. Investigators also alleged Kesner and Sheffer heard from other staff about the issue but had also not reported it or instructed others to do so.

Further information on the latter sheriffs department investigation was not immediately available as of Wednesday.

What comes next at Blue Water Community Action?

Johnson, who didnt reply to a request for comment Wednesday, was the subject of criticism among some parents and community members in the wake of Williams criminal proceedings this spring.

And amid calls for her employment to be terminated, she was placed on leave at a BWCA Board of Directors meeting in early May.

It was not immediately clear when the board would return to the issue. The board doesnt meet again until June 27.

Board Chairwoman Linda Lilly also could not be immediately reached this week.

In a recent standby media statement that remains on BWCAs website, however, she said the agency was continuing to cooperate with the sheriffs department and prosecutors office, as well as the states child care licensing bureau and Child Protective Services and the federal Head Start office as they work to conclude their respective investigations.

The BWCA Board of Directors will utilize their information when available in the coming days, in concert with our internal reviews, to inform and guide our decisions regarding BWCA leadership and related matters, Lillys statement read. In the interim, we are working to provide additional training for all staff regarding their roles and obligations including looking for signs of neglect and abuse of children under our care and the duty of all staff members to immediately report any suspected abuse; to update our video monitoring technology and protocols; to provide additional training for our front-line classroom staff in terms of dealing with stressful classroom challenges; and to provide greater support to improve the well-being and moral for all our staff and students.

We are committed to acting in the best interests of our children and parents and maintaining the trust of our community.

Contact Jackie Smith at (810) 989-6270 or jssmith@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter @Jackie20Smith.

This article originally appeared on Port Huron Times Herald: Four BWCA employees amid 2022 child abuse concerns facing failure to report charges
Hello, Quartz at Work readers!

The movement for the four-day workweek is steadily picking up steam. Both companies (like Kickstarter and ThredUp) and nations (like Japan and Iceland) have experimented with reducing the number of working days per week from five to four. And the practice has won its advocates, who say that abbreviated workweeks help employees gain better work-life balanceall without their employers losing out on output or productivity.

Read more

But the shortened week may also present a surprising outcome for workplace equality. The four-day week, experiments suggest, could be a feminist act.

At least thats according to recent analysis by 4-Day Week Global, an advocacy group testing compressed workweeks. Last year more than thirty companies across six countries participated in its half-year trial, where employees switched to a four-day, 32-hour workweek with no reduction in pay.

Alongside less burnout and higher productivity, the trial found this optimistic outcome: It helped workers balance domestic duties at home. Men who worked a four-day week reported spending 22% more time on childcare and 23% more time on housework, while women spent less on both.

Because women still bear a disproportionate amount of time spent on domestic tasksoften to the detriment of their careersthe findings suggest a four-day week could be a boon to gender equity both at work and at home.

Of all the workplace initiatives Ive instituted in the last 10 years, this has been the most impactful, says Dawoon Kang, co-founder of dating app Coffee Meets Bagel, tells Quartz; the company began following a four-day workweek last year.

Meanwhile, CFO Quincy Yang calls the schedule transformational for his ability to be a more involved parent, with the extra day allowing him to join school field trips with his six-year-old or stay up late nights with his infant.

Quartz contributor Emily McCrary-Ruiz-Esparza takes a closer look at how shortened workweeks could make surprising strides in achieving gender parity. Read how the four-day week really benefits women at workalong with which women may not see its gains.





JARGON ON THE JOB

 Ever wondered why someone says theyll circle back on your email? Or what it means to face headwinds or tailwinds?

If workplace jargon has ever had you spinning your wheels, youre not the only one. A new report from LinkedIn and Duolingo surveyed workers in eight countries about the jargon used at their jobsand ranked both the most common and the most confusing corporate-speak.

Image: Quartz

As it turns out, English business buzzwords have made their way into workplaces around the world, even in nations that dont count English as an official language.



While theres a Japanese word for budgetyosanthe most-used jargon in Japan is actually the English-borrowing bajetto. Meanwhile, English words like feedback come up commonly in countries like Brazil and Vietnam. And when more idiomatic phrases like boiling the ocean or blue sky thinking enter the chat, even native English speakers may scratch their heads.

So whats the jargon du jour in Bangalore or Bogota, and which phrases leave workers baffled? Find the definitive ranking with the full list on Quartz.





BRING EM BACK, SAYS BIG TECH

3: The number of days Googlers need to start showing up in the office per week, as per a new company notice issued by the tech giant.

Google is just the latest tech company to double down on enforcing return to office plansand to effectively reverse course on encouraging remote work. This month, Meta issued a similar memo compelling workers to come into the office three days a week. Meanwhile, Salesforce is beckoning employees back by offering to donate to a nonprofit of their choosing for each day they appear IRL.

Whats ironic, though, is that office mandates are coming from the companies behind the tools that make remote work possible, from Google Docs and Slides to Slack and the metaverse.

If corporate memos are to be believed, tech leaders think workers are missing out on one key benefit you can only get from the office. And for what its worth, employees seem to be on a different page.





YOUR WEEKLY WORK HACK

The catch, check, and change model can help you handle rejection. Its tough to feel rebuffed on the job. Thats especially true for workers who can be sensitive to perceived rejection, like employees with ADHD. But when youre feeling defeated by a comment or a potential slight, a three-step process can help redirect you:

Catch the thought

Check to see if its objectively true

Change the thought to something more true or supportive

Just a few moments of mindfulness can save you hours of dejection or distraction.





QUARTZ AT WORKS TOP STORIES

 Google has officially changed its mind about remote work

 How to find your zone of genius at work

 The real-world reasons AI could have rejected your job application

 Two-thirds of workers feel disconnected from their colleagues. Heres how companies can help

 Could a four-day workweek be a feminist act?





YOU GOT THE MEMO

Send questions, comments, and jargony jibberjabber to aoakes@qz.com. This edition of The Memo was produced by Gabriela Riccardi.

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Fox News dropped its Fair and Balanced motto in 2017, and has been doing its best to embody the change ever since. On Tuesday, the network reached new heights of shameless propaganda during Donald Trumps post-arrest speech in New Jersey.

During the networks live coverage of Trumps address, Fox briefly aired side-by-side footage of President Joe Biden speaking at an overlapping White House event, along with the chyron WANNABE DICTATOR SPEAKS AT THE WHITE HOUSE AFTER HAVING HIS POLITICAL RIVAL ARRESTED.

A real Fox News chyron at the end of its 8 p.m. hour. pic.twitter.com/7fUT1Nj62D  The Recount (@therecount) June 14, 2023

The chyron was taken down immediately and was addressed, the network spokesperson said in a statement provided to Rolling Stone.

Trump pleaded not guilty on Thursday to 37 federal criminal counts brought by the Justice Department as a result of a special counsel investigation into the former presidents hoarding of classified documents. The charges include violations of the Espionage Act, conspiracy to obstruct justice, corruptly concealing a record or document, and concealing a document in a federal investigation.

The indictment explaining the charges against Trump, which was unsealed on Friday, included evidence that Trump had improperly stored classified documents in easily accessible areas at his Mar-a-Lago resort  including a ballroom and a bathroom. Prosecutors also included the transcript of a recorded conversation in which Trump allegedly showed a highly classified document in his possession to individuals who lacked security clearance.

The scope of evidence was so egregious that even some members of Foxs dayside TV lineup were unable to defend the former president. On Friday, Fox News contributor and legal analyst Jonathan Turley called the indictment extremely damming.

There are some indictments that are just bare-bones, this is not, Turley said, its overwhelming in detail. The Trump team should not fool itself, these are hits below the water line.

Fox News' favorite legal commentator Jonathan Turley: "It is an extremely damning indictment  this is not an indictment that you can dismiss" pic.twitter.com/1hE9phC7ie  Lis Power (@LisPower1) June 9, 2023

Frequent Fox guest and former Assistant U.S. Attorney Andy McCarthy told the network that the indictment shows intent and knowledge on [Trumps] part that he had documents that were classified that he wasnt allowed to, or legally able to, communicate that to people who didnt have classification clearances.

On Sunday, Trumps former Attorney General Bill Barr eviscerated Trump and his sycophants defenses of the former president on Fox News Sunday.

Its a very detailed indictment, and its very, very damning, Barr told host Shannon Bream. This idea of presenting Trump as a victim here, a victim of a witch hunt, is ridiculous Hes not a victim here. He was totally wrong that he had the right to have those documents. Those documents are among the most sensitive secrets that the country has He had no right to retain them, and he kept them in a way  at Mar-a-Lago  that anyone who really cares about national security, their stomach would churn at it.

But the sober reading of Trumps legal predicament has clearly not permeated Fox News primetime television lineup, when the bulk of its viewership tunes into the network. Just after Trump left the stage on Tuesday, Fox host Mark Levin appeared on Hannity and attacked members of his own network fact-checking Trumps claims about the Presidential Records Act.

How much dumber is this going to get before this is over? Levin asked.

We would all truly love to know.

More from Rolling Stone

Best of Rolling Stone

Click here to read the full article.
Fox News Launches Bonkers New Attack On Biden With Over-The-Top Graphic

Fox News called President Joe Biden a wannabe dictator in an on-screen graphic on Tuesday evening, hours after Donald Trump was arraigned on 37 criminal counts in his classified documents scandal.

Toward the end of Fox News Tonight  the show airing in Tucker Carlsons old time slot, this week hosted by Brian Kilmeade  the network showed side-by-side images of Biden and Trump.

The graphic said: Wannabe Dictator Speaks At The White House After Having His Political Rival Arrested.

i promise i didn't edit this picture at all pic.twitter.com/mVkZh0aGqw  Kat Abu (@abughazalehkat) June 14, 2023

Biden did not have Trump arrested.

Fox News later said in a statement: "The chyron was taken down immediately and was addressed.

Kilmeade also solemnly referred to Trump as the president of the United States.

Fox News introduces Trumps speech w/ this is the president of the United States pic.twitter.com/cXiHuJF14Y  Alex Thompson (@AlexThomp) June 14, 2023

Earlier in the show, Kilmeade defended Trump, saying many of the federal charges came under the Espionage Act, which is over 100 years old and usually reserved for spies.

Even Trumps worst critics are not alleging that he passed classified materials to our enemies, Russia or China, or anybody else, the TV personality said. Trump, he said, is not a traitor, I think you can agree with that.

He then attacked Hillary Clinton and complained she was never indicted.
FILE - Former President Donald Trump gestures after speaking at Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster, N.J., June 13, 2023, after pleading not guilty in a Miami courtroom earlier in the day to dozens of felony counts that he hoarded classified documents and refused government demands to give them back. An onscreen headline on Fox News Channel called President Biden a wannabe dictator who sought to have his political rival arrested. It was shown on Fox Monday night, beneath a split-screen image of former President Donald Trump speaking to supporters live and Biden speaking earlier at the White House. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik, File) (ASSOCIATED PRESS)

NEW YORK (AP)  Fox News appeared to express regret Wednesday for showing an onscreen message that called President Joe Biden a wannabe dictator who had his political rival arrested.

On the day he was arraigned on federal charges for hoarding classified documents, former President Donald Trump illustrated his continued role as a lightning rod for the media. PBS second-guessed one of its own messages about Trump, and his primetime speech showed a policy change at CNN following the ouster of its former leader.

The Fox News Channel chyron appeared beneath split-screen video boxes that showed Trump addressing supporters live in New Jersey, and Biden speaking at the White House earlier in the day.

The message read, Wannabe dictator speaks at the White House after having his political rival arrested.

Fox said in a statement Wednesday that the chyron was taken down immediately and was addressed. The website Mediaite reported that the message was onscreen for 27 seconds. It was also not removed when the telecast was rerun late at night.

Fox did not explain how the message made it onto the screen and how the matter was addressed.

The White House has said Biden has had no contact with Attorney General Merrick Garland about the indictment by special counsel Jack Smith, which accuses Trump of illegally hoarding classified documents. Biden has not commented on the case.

Two months ago, Fox News agreed to pay Dominion Voting Systems $787 million to settle a lawsuit accusing the news organization of telling lies about the 2020 presidential election.

There are probably about 787 million things that I can say about this, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said when asked Wednesday about the chyron. That was wrong  about what we saw last night  but I don't think I'm going to get into it.

It's not hard to find Republican politicians or commentators on Fox to suggest the indictment was politically motivated  Trump attorney Joe Tacopina made the same charges on Sean Hannity's show within a half-hour after Trump's speech.

Yet some on Fox have spoken to the seriousness of the case against Trump, most notably his former attorney general, William Barr, during an appearance over the weekend, and legal analyst Jonathan Turley.

Fox has seen its primetime ratings tumble sharply since it fired Tucker Carlson shortly after the Dominion case was settled. Carlson posted another video commentary on Twitter Tuesday night, despite Fox's lawyers demanding that he stop doing that because it violated the terms of a contract that runs until early 2025.

Meanwhile, PBS used the lower third of its screen to post fact-checks when it streamed Trump's New Jersey speech on its YouTube channel Tuesday night.

The final one was eye-catching: Experts warn that inflammatory rhetoric from elected officials or people in power can prompt individual actors to commit acts of violence.

While the statement is true, PBS officials are questioning whether or not that was the right forum, said Sara Just, senior executive producer at NewsHour. Other messages PBS used onscreen mentioned how federal officials have attested to the security of the 2020 presidential election, and how prosecutors say that some documents discovered at Trump's home pertained to U.S. nuclear programs and defense capabilities.

We are discussing whether or not we might phrase that better, Just said.

While Fox News aired Trump's speech live, MSNBC did not. Neither did CNN. That's in contrast to when Trump was indicted on separate charges in New York in April, when CNN aired most of a similar Trump address the night of his arraignment. That was before former CNN chief executive Chris Licht, who had been making efforts to appeal to GOP viewers, was ousted.

We're not carrying his remarks live because, frankly, he says a lot of things that are untrue and, frankly, potentially dangerous, CNN's Jake Tapper said.

After the speech was over, CNN aired a nearly two-minute clip of Trump that Tapper followed with several fact-checks.

In terms of trying to destroy American democracy, we all know who tried to actually undo an election, he said. It's not Joe Biden. It's Mr. Trump.

MSNBC's Rachel Maddow made a similar pronouncement before that network chose not to air Trump's speech live. Clips from the remarks were shown later.

There is a cost to us as a news organization to knowingly broadcast untrue things, Maddow said.

___

Associated Press writer Aamer Madhani in Washington contributed to this report.
Refugees from Ukraine

The number of displaced persons in Ukraine rose from 27,300 at the end of 2021 to 5.7 million by the end of 2022.

Read also: Ukraine - Reconstruction, reparations and the outlook  opinion

The year showed the fastest outflow of refugees worldwide since World War II.

Fueled by Russias war on Ukraine, the global number of refugees grew by 21% by the end of last year to the highest number ever of 108.4 million, 19.1 million more than in 2021.

The number grew to 110 million by May 2023, due to Russias continued attacks on Ukraine and the war in Sudan.

Read also: IRC in Poland launches new social campaign for Ukrainian refugees

Armed aggression and climate-driven upheaval are among the main reasons for uprooting from home, the UN report says.

These figures show us that some people are far too quick to rush to conflict, and way too slow to find solutions. The consequence is devastation, displacement, and anguish for each of the millions of people forcibly uprooted from their homes, UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi said.

Above all, much more must be done to end conflict and remove obstacles so that refugees have the viable option to return home voluntarily, safely and with dignity," he added.

Most Ukrainians displaced both within the country (internally displaced people, or IDPs) and abroad (refugees) intend to return home - 77% and 79% respectively, the UN said.

Read also: Ukrainian refugee wins EUR 500,000 from lottery scratch card in Belgium

Out of 3,640,000 Ukrainians that fled the country since Russias invasion of Ukraine, 1,130,000 have already returned, Ukraines Interior Minister Denys Monastyrskyi said on April 22, 2023.

Were bringing the voice of Ukraine to the world. Support us with a one-time donation, or become a Patron!

Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
China's capital market will play a significant role in stimulating the vitality of rising Chinese technology companies, further nurturing the country's technological advancement and driving high-quality economic growth, experts said on Tuesday.

This is in light of the central leadership stressing the vital importance of the financial sector in serving the real economy, they added.

The comments came as the technology-heavy STAR Market at the Shanghai Stock Exchange celebrated its four-year anniversary on Tuesday. The creation of the board was announced by President Xi Jinping in 2018 and officially launched in June 2019.

Xi has stressed that serving the real economy is the duty and purpose of the financial sector and the fundamental way to guard against financial risks. Financial vitality leads to economic vitality, he said.

Li Yunze, head of the National Financial Regulatory Administration, said at the 14th Lujiazui Forum held in Shanghai on Thursday and Friday, that the capital market should play a key role in connecting technologies, industries and finance. Only in this way can technological advancements be transferred more effectively to better serve the real economy, Li said.

Cheng Shi, chief economist at ICBC International, said technological innovation has become the new engine for China's economic growth. The Chinese capital market, therefore, needs to be optimized to stimulate market entities' vitality and nurture independently developed advances in technology.

The STAR Market has served as a good example of the capital market showing support for technological innovation, according to experts at Haitong Securities. Over the past four years, the technology-heavy board has fulfilled its task of nurturing "hard technologies" such as chipmaking and high-end manufacturing, they said.

Of the 534 companies listed on the STAR Market, 218 are new-generation information technology companies, 108 are biomedicine companies and 88 are high-end equipment manufacturers, according to public data.

"Companies driven by scientific research results and technology innovation will be the pillar of China's high-quality economic growth," said analysts at Haitong Securities.

Zhao Xijun, co-president of the Chinese Academy of Financial Inclusion at Renmin University of China, said that China has been on the right track of guiding more capital market resources toward technological innovation over the past few years.

The registration-based initial public offering mechanism, which was first piloted on the STAR Market four years ago, has enhanced the capital market's inclusiveness. While companies not reporting profits are allowed to list on the STAR Market as long as they meet certain requirements, high-tech companies' development requirements are better met at different development stages, Zhao said.

To better facilitate China's economic recovery, more effective measures should be taken now, so that the capital market can better serve the real economy, he added.

Liu Feng, chief economist at China Galaxy Securities, said that the Chinese capital market should increase its efficiency in serving the real economy, as China stresses the importance of innovation-driven economic development.

At present, 80 percent of the capital directed to the real economy comes from banks. Although China is already the world's second-largest equities market, stocks and bonds still account for a relatively small part of aggregate financing to the real economy. This is the area that the Chinese capital market can improve to serve the real economy with greater efficiency, said Liu.

Gu Shu, chairman of Agricultural Bank of China, pointed out that traditional financial service providers, such as commercial banks, are more prudent in providing financing. But technology startups usually incur higher risks, making it difficult to attract traditional financing at the early stage, he said.

A multilevel capital management system should be established, said Wang Weidong, executive vice-president of China Development Bank.

Government investment should be mainly responsible for technologically innovative projects related to public welfare. For projects with clear market prospects, financial institutions should invest more by coming up with optimized financing products.

Policy banks can play a bigger role in getting projects that face temporary problems but ready for market operation, he said.

Qiu Yong, chairman of the Shanghai Stock Exchange, said the bourse will continue efforts to support the listing of companies with original technologies so that the companies can facilitate the development of emerging industrial clusters and the upgrading of traditional industries.

Richard Keers, chief financial officer of Schroders, said that China's further financial opening-up can facilitate the cross-border flow of venture capital and promote the country's technological innovation.

The expansion of qualified foreign limited partners, through which foreign investors can convert US dollars into renminbi and invest in RMB-denominated private markets, can provide more funding for early-stage innovation, Keers said.

The scheme can also facilitate the maturity of Chinese domestic venture capital companies, making them more proficient in evaluating Chinese startups, he added.
Funeral Home Startled When Body in Coffin Turns Out to Be Alive

Imagine preparing for a funeral  only to discover your loved one isn't actually dead.

That was apparently the case in the city of Babahoyo, Ecuador over the weekend, where, as the Associated Press reports a 76-year-old woman who'd been declared dead after a stroke gasped for air when her coffin was opened.

As the story goes, the woman, Bella Montoya, had been declared dead at a local hospital and taken to a funeral parlor where her family was holding vigil for her in the hours afterward.

"There were about 20 of us there," Montoya's son, Gilberto Barbera, told the AP. "After about five hours of the wake, the coffin started to make sounds. My mom was wrapped in sheets and hitting the coffin, and when we approached we could see that she was breathing heavily."

Montoya, who herself is a retired nurse, was taken back to the same hospital where she'd been declared dead, with a death certificate issued.

In spite of the seemingly miraculous situation, the woman is, according to her son, still in intensive care at the hospital, and as other outlets have noted, there are some outstanding questions about the entire debacle.

In an interview with Spain's El Pais, Balbera  whose name was spelled "Gilber Balberan" by that newspaper  said that he had a feeling his mother wasn't actually dead when the hospital doctor told him she was, and he said that he wasn't allowed to see her when he asked.

That outlet added that there is currently an Ecuadorian government investigation into who, exactly, was responsible for Montoya's "supposed confirmation of death."

Montoya's doctors, according to her son, don't have much hope for a positive prognosis, which makes the situation all the more sad.

As of that reporting, her son said she "has a pulse and her heart is beating."

More on near-death experiences: Scientists Detect Surge of Brain Activity in Dying Coma Patients
George Santos supports censure of Adam Schiff: 'We must preserve the integrity of the U.S House of Representatives'

Rep. George Santos of New York. AP Photo/Seth Wenig

Rep. Adam Schiff is facing censure for investigating Trump.

He calls the resolution unconstitutional.

Rep. George Santos, who has repeatedly lied and was recently indicted on 13 criminal charges, supports the censure.

The House of Representatives on Wednesday is expected to take up a resolution to censure Democratic Rep. Adam Schiff for his role in investigating former President Donald Trump. The resolution, sponsored by GOP Rep. Anna Paulina Luna of Florida, might not make it far. Democrats are likely to call to table it, and would succeed if they get enough Republican support.

But one high-profile Republican in the House, serial liar George Santos of New York, released a video this morning supporting the resolution.

"Congressman Schiff abused his power to pursue the Trump campaign and its campaign staff," Santos says in a video posted to his Twitter account. "This abhorrent behavior is unacceptable for a member of Congress," he said, adding: "We must preserve the integrity of the U.S House of Representatives."

Rep. George Santos (@RepSantosNY03) June 14, 2023

As CNN reports, the resolution claims Schiff "exploited his positions on HPSCI (House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence) to encourage and excuse abusive intelligence investigations of Americans for political purposes." It also says Schiff "behaved dishonestly and dishonorably on many other occasions," and lays out a litany of charges that Trump has made about Schiff over the years, from "publicly smearing Carter Page" to reciting a "false, concocted rendition of a phone call between President Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky."

Schiff, who is running for Senate to replace Diane Feinstein, called the resolution "false and defamatory" in a letter to his colleagues on Tuesday.

"This partisan resolution to censure and fine me $16 million is only the latest attempt to gratify the former President's MAGA allies, and distract from Donald Trump's legal troubles by retaliating against me for my role in exposing his abuses of power, and leading the first impeachment against him," he wrote.

The Santos-supported resolution calls for the fine because, it claims, Schiff "lied, made misrepresentations and abused sensitive information."

Schiff told CNN the fine is "unconstitutional and unenforceable," and it appears to be a sticking point for his colleagues across the aisle.

"Adam Schiff acted unethically but if a resolution to fine him $16 million comes to the floor, I will vote to table it. (vote against it) In fact, I'm still litigating a federal lawsuit against Pelosi over a salary reduction she imposed on me for my refusal to wear a mask," GOP Kentucky Rep. Thomas Massie tweeted Wednesday morning. He also called the fine unconstitutional.

Last month, a grand jury indicted Santos on 13 criminal charges, including wire fraud, money laundering, and theft. He's pleaded not guilty and is due back in court later this month. He's facing up to 20 years in prison if convicted.

Beyond his legal troubles, Santos has lied about his education, his employment history, his residence, his religious background, and more.

Luna, who sponsored the censure resolution, is one of the few members of Congress continuing to stand by Santos. The Washington Post has reported that, like Santos, she may have misrepresented herself in claiming to have Jewish heritage.

Read the original article on Business Insider
Editors note: This story is available as a result of a content partnership between WFTV and the Orlando Business Journal.

The downtown Orlando restaurant space that was home to the now-closed Neon Beach bar and eatery appears to have a new tenant lined up.

Read: Maitland asks for input on construction of new public library

Signs posted this week at 131 N. Orange Ave., Ste. 104, reveal Schmankerl Stubn Orlando  a German scratch kitchen related to Orlando-based Dans Bavarian Takeout at 18 N. Dollins Ave.  will open soon in the space.

The new concept also was announced on a newly created Schmankerl Stubn Orlando Facebook page, as well as that of Dans Bavarian Takeout. The post notes the new concept will bring German classics and modern dishes to Orlando.

Click here to read the full story on the Orlando Business Journals website.

Click here to download the free WFTV news and weather apps, click here to download the WFTV Now app for your smart TV and click here to stream Channel 9 Eyewitness News live.




German Chancellor Olaf Scholz with members of his government

The concept envisages strengthening security in three main areas:

 defense capability: the goal is to spend 2% of GDP on defense;

 viability: quick actions should help avoid crises or mitigate their consequences  it concerns climate, ecosystems, and food security;

 stability: the free democratic order should be better protected from illegitimate influence from outside; dependence, in particular, in the supply of raw materials, must be reduced.

From left to right: Finance Minister Christian Lindner, Foreign Minister Annalena Berbock, Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Defense Minister Boris Pistorius and Minister of Internal Affairs Nancy Feser at the presentation of the National Security Strategy in Berlin REUTERS/Annegret Hilse

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz pointed out that since his government had agreed to build a strategy, Europes security architecture had changed radically, according to the German broadcaster Deutsche Welle.

Read also: Germany and Poland will soon agree to build repair center for Ukraines Leopard tanks  German Ambassador

He cited the invasion of Ukraine, the ongoing war, and the destruction of critical infrastructure such as the Nord Stream pipelines as providing a new impetus for pushing ahead with the plan.

The strategy stipulates that China is a partner, systemic rival and competitor, while Russia is called the biggest threat to peace and security in the Euro-Atlantic region in the foreseeable future.

Our security policys main task is to ensure that we can continue to live in peace and freedom in our country, reads the report.

To this end, were steadfastly committed to NATO and the European Union and are strengthening the Bundeswehr to fulfill its main mission  defense of the country and the Alliance.

Read also:

Were bringing the voice of Ukraine to the world. Support us with a one-time donation, or become a Patron!

Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
Ghost cars with fake temporary paper tags were a problem in Texas. This law fixes that

Texas will soon say goodbye to temporary paper license plates thanks to a new state law.

Temporary paper license plates are issued on vehicles purchased from licensed Texas dealers during the title and registration process. In the weeks after purchasing the vehicle, the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles will mail the permanent metal plates to buyers.

Under House Bill 718 temporary metal plates will be issued immediately after a vehicle is purchased in Texas. Heres what we know about the new law:

How does Texas HB 718 change the use of paper tags?

Dealerships will be required to issue a temporary metal license plate, rather than paper.

Not much will change for buyers, who will still receive their permanent metal license plates in the mail a few weeks after purchasing the vehicle. The only difference is that theyll leave the dealership with a metal licensed plate, rather than a paper one.

The new law goes into effect on July 1, 2025.

Whats the issue with paper tags in Texas?

For years, Texas law enforcement have attempted to stop thieves from taking advantage of the temporary tags.

Criminals posing as legitimate dealerships are able to access the states webDEALER system and print off as many temporary paper tags as they want, according to KXAN. But the data in those paper tags are made up, including the vehicle identification number. This allows criminals to fly under the radar in what are called ghost cars.

These cars with fake paper tags on them, will pass a cursory inspection, but does not lead to a vehicle. So, say a motorist gets hit by a ghost car, the police would not be able to find a record of the car because of the fake tags.

It makes it extremely difficult for law enforcement, Sgt. Jose Escribano told KXAN. You become anonymous.

A more recent effort to discourage paper tags came from the death of a Grand Prairie police officer.

Officer Brandon Paul Tsai died in a crash last November when he tried to stop a car with a fake paper license plate near SW 3rd Street and Pioneer Parkway around 10:45 p.m. The vehicle fled and Tsai gave chase but lost control of his squad car and hit a light pole, later dying from his injuries at the hospital.

The Texas Department of Motor Vehicles began issuing redesigned paper tags to dealerships a month after Tsais death. Watermarks, new information and font size were some of the changes made to paper tags at the end of last year.

Now, Texas lawmakers have put an end to temporary paper license plates.
Girl points gun at deputies in confrontation over marijuana cigarette near Glynn Academy, GCSO says

Deputies confronting two juveniles allegedly rolling a marijuana cigarette on Tuesday morning led to a gun being pointed at the deputies, the Glynn County Sheriffs Office said in a Facebook post.

According to GCSO, around 10:00 a.m., Glynn County Deputy Sheriffs arrived at the Glynnvilla Apartment Complex to carry out a scheduled eviction order.

As they approached, they spotted two juveniles, a male and a female, engaged in what appeared to be the act of rolling a marijuana cigarette.

The deputies decided to investigate due to the possible presence of illegal drugs. As they approached the juveniles, the male lit a cigarette, releasing strong odor of marijuana, GCSO said.

According to GCSO, the male juvenile resisted the deputies attempts to restrain him, while the female juvenile physically intervened, reportedly kicking one of the deputies repeatedly. The struggle intensified when the male juvenile retrieved a small black Taurus semi-automatic handgun from his waistband and passed it to the female, deputies said.

The female juvenile reportedly pointed the gun in the direction of the deputies, GCSO said.

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Due to this escalation, one deputy drew his weapon and ordered the female juvenile to drop hers. Despite the order, she refused and began to walk away, clasping the 9mm handgun.

In an effort to apprehend the juveniles and de-escalate the situation, the deputies reportedly engaged in another struggle. The male juvenile managed to run away, prompting an immediate search of the area by Glynn County Sheriffs Deputies and the Brunswick Police Department. He was later apprehended two blocks away from the apartment complex.

During the incident, Glynn Academy, a High School located directly across the street, took action to ensure the safety of students and staff. The school principal and school police were immediately notified, and security measures were implemented to secure the school zone.

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No shots were reportedly fired during the altercations, and neither of the juveniles sustained injuries. However, two Glynn County Sheriffs Deputies suffered minor injuries for which they received medical treatment.

The male juvenile is facing charges of Misdemeanor Possession of Marijuana, while both juveniles have been charged with Felony Obstruction with Violence, Possession of a Handgun while being under the age of 18, and Possession of a handgun while within 1000 feet of a school safety zone.

Both suspects have been arrested and transported to juvenile detention centers in Waycross and Savannah.

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By Emma Farge

GENEVA (Reuters) - The number of people forcibly displaced around the world has climbed to a record 110 million people, the head of the U.N. refugee agency (UNHCR) said, with conflicts in Ukraine and Sudan spurring millions of people to flee their homes.

The increase of around 19 million people to 108.4 million by the end of last year is the biggest annual jump on record, UNHCR said in a report released on Wednesday. That number has since risen further to 110 million, mostly due to Sudan's eight-week-old conflict, the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi told journalists.

"It's quite an indictment on the state of our world to have to report that," he said at a Geneva press conference.

"Solutions to these movements are increasingly difficult to even imagine, to even put on the table," he said. "We are in a very polarised world, where international tensions play out all the way into humanitarian issues."

For the two decades before the Syria conflict in 2011, the global level was roughly stable at about 40 million refugees and internally displaced people, the Forced Displacement report showed. But they have risen each year since and have now more than doubled. More than one in every 74 people is now displaced, the report said.

Grandi blamed "the usual package of causes" which he said were conflict, persecution, discrimination, violence and climate change. Of the total refugees and those needing international protection, about half of them came from just three countries: Syria, Ukraine and Afghanistan.

Grandi raised concerns about tougher rules on admitting refugees and push-backs, without naming countries.

"We see increasingly a reluctance on the part of states to fully adhere to the principles of the (1951 refugee) convention, even states that have signed it," Grandi told Reuters on the sidelines of the briefing.

However, he was upbeat about some developments, namely a deal reached by EU ministers last week on sharing responsibility for migrants and refugees.

"There are issues of some concern. By and large however, I think it's a positive step," he said. "We're so happy that the Europeans agree on something."

He also praised Kenya which he said is looking for new solutions for the half million refugees it hosts, including many who have fled poverty and drought in the Horn of Africa.

(Reporting by Emma Farge, Editing by William Maclean)
 Flash

In the past 10 years, China-Africa economic and trade cooperation yielded fruitful results, with their total trade volume surpassing US$2 trillion, said China's vice minister of commerce at a press conference Tuesday.
Loved ones of a Missouri man who was severely beaten outside Arrowhead Stadium before a Luke Combs concert are raising money to help cover his medical expenses.

Johnathan Scaletty, 34, of Lees Summit, said he was randomly attacked Saturday evening by a group of adults who approached his car in the parking lot outside GEHA Field.

The father of two young sons suffered multiple breaks in his left ankle along with trauma to his neck and face. He also had multiple cuts across his body. On Tuesday, his wife, Brandi Scaletty, told The Star that her husband was in the hospital having his ankle reset for the third time.

As Scaletty awaits ankle surgery as the result of the senseless act of random violence, a GoFundMe was launched to aid his family financially. Scaletty has two young sons and works at the Ford assembly plant in Claycomo, according to the online fundraiser.

The people who assaulted Johnny left him there bloody and beaten while they attended the concert and Johnny and Brandi left in an ambulance never attending the concert they were looking so forward to as they danced to a Luke Combs song as their first dance at their wedding, the GoFundMe reads.

As of Wednesday afternoon, the GoFundMe totaled about $400.

The attack

The Scalettys splurged and spent about $1,000 on floor seats for the concert, leaving their little ones behind for a date night in the city.

But they never made it inside the stadium. Instead, Scaletty was battered and then abandoned by a group of strangers who first tried getting into his vehicle where he and his wife waited out a burst of rain.

At the same time, Philip White, 44, was with his wife and some friends a few rows down when he heard yelling. Then Tricia White saw a women run over to them, hysterical.

She said it was the worst fight shed seen in her entire life, said Tricia White, 34.

Scaletty soon hobbled over and collapsed near their car, the Whites said. They knew immediately that he was in a lot of pain.

While the Scalettys called 911, so too did the Whites. Both couples, neither of whom knew each other before Saturday, said it seemed like they were on hold for too long before getting in touch with an operator.

Scaletty initially said it seemed like he and his wife waited on hold for 911 for 15 minutes before they were able to speak with a call taker. They also said it took about an hour before the ambulance arrived.

I called the cops and it just rang and rang and rang and rang, Scaletty said.

The Kansas City Police Department and the Mid-America Regional Council later said their call records show that Scaletty was on hold for four minutes and seven seconds. The call was transferred to the police department a couple minutes later.

Even four minutes is unacceptable, the Scalettys and the mayor said after the story garnered local attention.

This is a crisis right now in Kansas City, Kansas City mayor Quinton Lucas said Tuesday. Its a crisis that needs to change immediately.

For the past several years, Kansas City police have failed to meet the National Emergency Number Association call answering standards of 90% of calls answered within 15 seconds and 95% answered within 20 seconds, according to data from the Mid-America Regional Councils Regional Ringtime Range.

In 2022, 65.47% of calls were answered within 15 seconds and 86.68% of calls answered within 20 seconds. Last month, only 40.76% of the calls were answered in 15 seconds and 45.05% of the calls within 20 seconds.

Local authorities confirmed it took 60 minutes for an ambulance to pull in to take Scaletty away.

It wouldnt have taken much for this to be much more serious, said Philip White, who said he was alarmed by how long it took the ambulance to arrive.

Meanwhile, Brandi Scaletty said she is still desperate for answers about who did this and whether they will be arrested. No information on possible suspects has been released.
Google may be forced to break up its ad business after EU charges

Google faces the threat of a break-up in Europe. Brandon Wade/Reuters

The EU might force Google to break up its ad business.

Its competition watchdog said Wednesday that the search giant's digital ads business was anti-competitive.

The ruling is a threat to the search giant, which generates the majority of its revenue from ads.

Google could be forced to break up parts of its empire after the EU accused it of abusing its dominance in digital ads and "distorting" the competition.

The European Commission said in a preliminary finding on Wednesday that Google should offload a part of its business, following a two-year investigation into the company's threat to competition in the adtech sector.

Google said in a statement that it disagreed with the initial findings.

The Commission accused Google of "favoring its own online display advertising technology services" at the expense of rivals.

"The Commission's preliminary view is therefore that only the mandatory divestment by Google of part of its services would address its competition concerns," the Commission's statement said.

As yet, Google is not being fined nor is it being immediately instructed to break up its business. The company will be able to argue its case, and a final outcome to the Commission's investigation is still pending.

Still, it's a blow for Google, which generates the lion's share of its revenue by selling advertising space on its search engine and other services such as YouTube. Advertising revenue in 2022 totalled $224.5 billion.

More existentially, the news comes as Google faces a newly growing threat from Microsoft, which has supercharged its own search engine Bing with AI.

EU investigators said "a behavioral remedy is likely to be ineffective," and would instead require Google to sell part of its business to address its concerns.

In a news conference, EU antitrust commissioner Margrethe Vestager said: "Of course I know this is a strong statement but it is a reflection of the nature of the markets, how they function and also why a behavioral commitment seemed to be out of the question."

Google's VP for global ads, Dan Taylor, said the firm's ad business helped fund sites and apps, and businesses to find customers.

"The Commission's investigation focuses on a narrow aspect of our advertising business and is not new. We disagree with the EC's view and we will respond accordingly," he said.

Read the original article on Business Insider
'Its gait was off.' Natick sanctuary visitors alarmed to see arrow in goose's chest

NATICK  Laura Moody was taking a Saturday afternoon walk with her wife through the Broadmoor Wildlife Sanctuary, a retreat along Indian Brook and the Charles River, when a goose caught her eye.

"We could see its gait was off, and we started looking closer," said Moody, a Framingham resident. "We could see an arrow in its chest, and it was coming out of its back. We took pictures, but we realized there was not a lot we could do."

Turns out the goose, which was with another adult goose and several goslings, has been living with the arrow in its chest for at least a month, according to Natick Animal Control Officer Peter Cunningham.

The goose on the right has been living at the Broadmoor Wildlife Sanctuary in Natick for at least the past month with an arrow that has gone through its chest.

Natick animal control officer was 'trying to go after this goose'

"I've received two calls about it, the last one on May 14," said Cunningham. "I was actively trying to go after this goose, but it tends to hang out right at the riverside, so every time I tried to go over and capture it, it would take off into the water. I've been checking on it and I haven't seen it for a few weeks, so I thought nature had kind of run its course."

Broadmoor sits along the Charles River and is on Eliot Street. The sanctuary is run by the Massachusetts Audobon Society. The sanctuary, which has 9 acres of walking trails, bans all hunting and fishing.

Moody said that when she got too close to the injured goose, it would hiss at her.

"I was just walking, and it hissed at us," she said. "It wasn't really aggressive, but it was hissing at us because it had the babies."

A goose at the Broadmoore Wildlife Sanctuary in Natick has an arrow going through its body  but it's still caring for its goslings.

Fowl deed: Suspect sought after turkey is shot with an arrow in Sudbury

Moody and her wife tried to report it at the welcoming center, but it had closed for the day. She then called Mass. Audobon to report the injured goose. She said they did not seem overly concerned.

"I was concerned by their lack of action," said Moody. "It didn't seem like they were going to do anything."

Mass. Audobon said it's working with the state Division of Fisheries and Wildlife (MassWildlife) to figure out what to do.

'Protecting their breeding locations': Early in the year, coyotes tend to attack dogs

MassWildlife officials said biologists plan to visit Broadmoor this week to determine whether the bird can be captured and, if so, they will consult with Tufts Wildlife Clinic in Grafton on how to treat the bird.

The arrow appears to be a crossbow bolt, MassWildlife officials said. It appears to be a practice bolt, meaning it does not have barbs on the head of the arrow. If it had barbs, the goose would likely be dead.

Cunningham has contacted the state Environmental Police and said he would love to help the injured goose. But he would need assistance.

"This is something I need the public to help with," he said. "You have a very large swath of land there and it could be anywhere. If someone sees it, they should call me and I can come out there, or they can call the Environmental Police so we can both go out there and try to help it."

Wildlife officials said they're going to evaluate whether they should attempt to capture a goose that has an arrow through it. The goose is at the Broamoor Wildlife Sanctuary in Natick.

Cunningham can be reached at 508-647-9510, Ext. 2516. The state Environmental Police can be reached at 800-632-8075.

Norman Miller can be reached at 508-626-3823 or nmiller@wickedlocal.com. For up-to-date public safety news, follow him on Twitter @Norman_MillerMW or on Facebook at facebook.com/NormanMillerCrime.

This article originally appeared on MetroWest Daily News: At Audobon's Broadmoor sanctuary, a goose lives with an arrow in it
Rep. Don Bacon (R-Neb.) said of former President Trumps indictment that the emperor has no clothes and that Republicans should say so.

Bacon told reporters Tuesday ahead of Trumps arraignment, in which he pleaded not guilty to the 37 federal charges filed against him, that the former presidents wrongdoing is obvious and Republicans must be honest about it.

He said Trumps conduct in keeping thousands of pieces of secretive information at his Mar-a-Lago property in Florida  allegedly showing documents he kept to other people who were not authorized to view them and telling investigators that he returned all the documents they requested when he actually only turned over some of them  is indefensible.

I just think the emperor has no clothes, and we need to have Republicans stand up and say that because, come around after the primary, I guarantee you the other party is going to be saying this, Bacon said.

Bacon, a moderate Republican who represents a hotly contested swing district in Nebraska, is one of a handful of Republicans who have criticized Trumps conduct following his indictment.

Many Republicans have defended Trump and slammed the Justice Department for alleged political motivation in prosecuting the former president, whom they point out is the leading contender for the GOP nomination to oppose President Bidens reelection.

That group includes several of Trumps main opponents for the GOP nomination, including former Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley, Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) and conservative entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy. Ramaswamy has vowed to pardon Trump if elected president.

Former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson and former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, two other GOP presidential candidates, have slammed Trumps actions, with Hutchinson calling on him to drop out of the race.

The Hill Elections 2024 coverage

Bacon said Republicans refusing to acknowledge the seriousness of the charges Trump faces could cost the party the presidential election in 2024.

Trump called for a conservative primary challenger to oppose Bacons reelection bid during the 2022 midterms last January over Bacons support for Bidens $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure package. Trump initially called for challengers to Bacon and the dozen other Republicans who voted for the bill, but then he specifically singled out Bacon.

Bacon easily won renomination last year before narrowly winning reelection in November.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
In this Aug. 28, 2020 photo, Laurie Bey, right, whose son Cameron Lamb was shot and killed by Kansas City police in 2019, stands with Merlon Ragland, Cameron's aunt, as demonstrators gather at the Lincoln Memorial as final preparations are made for the March on Washington in Washington. The family of Lamb is suing Kansas City police and the officer. The Kansas City Star reports that the lawsuit was filed Monday, June 28, 2021, in federal court on behalf of 26-year-old Cameron Lamb's four minor children.

In this Aug. 28, 2020 photo, Laurie Bey, right, whose son Cameron Lamb was shot and killed by Kansas City police in 2019, stands with Merlon Ragland, Cameron's aunt, as demonstrators gather at the Lincoln Memorial as final preparations are made for the March on Washington in Washington. The family of Lamb is suing Kansas City police and the officer. The Kansas City Star reports that the lawsuit was filed Monday, June 28, 2021, in federal court on behalf of 26-year-old Cameron Lamb's four minor children.

The Republican governor of Missouri may be on the verge of issuing an extraordinary pardon to a police officer who killed a Black man in 2019  and a county prosecutor is urging him not to do it.

Jean Peters Baker, the top prosecutor in Jackson County, wrote a letter to Missouri Gov. Mike Parson on Tuesday asking him not to pardon former Kansas City police officer Eric DeValkenaere. The prosecutors office secured a second-degree involuntary manslaughter conviction against DeValkenaere, and he was sentenced to six years in jail in March 2022. But his attorneys filed to appeal his sentencing within days. DeValkenaere was allowed to remain on bond while he appealed his conviction. Cameron Lambs family, the man who was killed, filed a wrongful death lawsuit two years later.

Kansas City community leaders urged Parson not to pardon DeValkenaere, who has not served any time in jail since he filed an appeal of his conviction. The Missouri Attorney Generals office is handling the appeals process in the case.

Baker noted in her letter that if Parson chooses to pardon DeValkenaere, it will cause further division between the Kansas City police and residents in the city.

I am aware that you have been lobbied to pardon this officer, even before his trial. I imagine you might view a pardon as a way to support police. But I expect this extreme action for the only KCPD officer convicted of fatally shooting a Black man will ignite distrust, protests, and public safety concerns for citizens and for police, Baker wrote to the governor.

In a statement, Parson responded, accusing the prosecutor of trying to cause division.

Its disappointing that the Jackson County Prosecutor would play political games when Governor Parson has a proven, bipartisan record of working to improve the criminal justice system as a whole. While the prosecutor tries to earn political points for her re-election bid, Governor Parson will continue working every day to support people across the state who are affected by crime, Parson wrote.

Parson further attempted to tout other people he has pardoned, pointing to 20 commutations and 538 pardons he has granted out of the 3,700 requested applications, he said in the statement.

Every application goes through a thorough and thoughtful review before any decision is made. Eric DeValkenaeres will be treated the exact same if he applies.

On Dec. 3, 2019, Kansas City police officers spotted Lamb, 26, chasing another vehicle. They did not engage him but did follow him back to his house.

Two officers entered the property without a warrant, permission from the property owner or any probable cause. One officer, Troy Schwalm, confronted Lamb. DeValkenaere came from the other side of the home and knocked down a fence to get into the backyard. He fired his gun at Lamb, fatally wounded him, and later said he saw Lamb raise a gun and point it at Schwalm.

A judge ruled the officers followed Lamb illegally. They had a duty to fall back since Lamb did not present an obvious threat, and the two were the aggressors during the encounter. Schwalm was never charged but testified during the trial.

Baker described the governors possible decision as a political action over the legal process. She encouraged the governor to reach out to Lambs family before his office makes any legal decisions, which the Jackson County prosecutor noted his office had not done yet.

I would urge you to immediately speak with the victims family. No one from your office or the Attorney Generals Office has spoken with these victims, and they deserve better, Baker wrote. Secondly, I urge you to speak with this community. Convene a public meeting in Kansas City regarding your proposed actions. Kansas Citians deserve to be heard.

Related...
Republicans are observing this years Pride Month with complaints about the rainbow flag being flown on federal properties, including at the White House.

Its another way the GOP is leaning into culture war issues that are animating its base amid broader efforts to restrict transgender rights nationwide.

Sen. Roger Marshall (R-Kan.) took issue with the way a pair of U.S. flags hung next to a Pride flag on the balcony of the White House for a concert to commemorate Pride Month on Saturday, where President Joe Biden praised the extraordinary courage of LGBTQ Americans while acknowledging the discrimination and violence the community faces.

This is a disgrace, the Kansas senator tweeted. Not only is it in breach of US Flag Code, but its a glaring example of this White Houses incompetence and insistence on putting their social agenda ahead of patriotism.

Guests attend the Pride Month celebration and listen to President Joe Biden speak on the South Lawn of the White House on June 10 in Washington, D.C.

Guests attend the Pride Month celebration and listen to President Joe Biden speak on the South Lawn of the White House on June 10 in Washington, D.C.

A Twitter community note was added to his post explaining that the flag code was not being violated because a U.S. flag is flown regularly on the White House roof.

Asked Tuesday if he was making an indirect criticism of the LGBTQ community, Marshall said, No. Any flag. Whenever the Old Glory is in a display, it should be in the middle.

Its an insult to anyone whos served. People died for that American flag, Marshall added in an interview with HuffPost.

Rep. Chip Roy (R-Texas) was also fired up about the White House flag display, deriding what he called a radical leftist ideology that results in a Pride flag being hung at the same level as the United States flag on the front of the White House. He added: Does the flag of the United States mean nothing?

I dont know if you know it, but simply looking at a Pride flag will not make you gay.Rep. Mark Pocan (D-Wis.)

But White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre, the first openly gay person to hold the position, defended the display during a briefing on Tuesday.

The administration was proud to fly the Pride flag, Jean-Pierre said. It centered around love and family and I think thats important. Were not going to let anyone distract us from that, the meaning of having families here and celebrating members of the community. Im certainly not going to get into protocols from here.

Republicans are kicking up dust about the Pride flag being flown on other federal properties, too.

On Tuesday, Republicans on the House Appropriations Committee advanced legislation that would restrict the kinds of flags that are allowed to fly on Department of Veterans Affairs properties. That followed a June 6 letter from Mississippi GOP lawmakers demanding that a temporary Pride flag display be removed from Biloxi National Cemetery, arguing that its presence is disrespectful to veterans.

I dont know if you know it, but simply looking at a Pride flag will not make you gay, Rep. Mark Pocan (D-Wis.), who is gay, said at a hearing marking up the bill.

Why stop there? he added jokingly. Why dont we ban Bud Light? Right? Cause I believe drinking Bud Light makes you gay? I know some folks are saying. Chick-Fil-A? I know this has got to hurt, but Chick-Fil-A has an executive in charge of diversity, equity and inclusion. Theyre out of here.

I get anti-woke, but at some point, anti-woke is also anti-sane, and we look ridiculous, Pocan said, noting there are thousands of active duty members of the military who identify as LGBTQ.
When Jeff Friday first attended Sundance Film Festival in 1997, he immediately noticed a lack of diversity.

To Friday, it was unimaginable  the idea that Black and brown filmmakers had been left out of one of the premiere film festivals in the world could not be a coincidence. Although many would argue not much has changed, Hollywood simply did not recognize the value of diverse storytellers as the #OscarsSoWhite movement of 2016 and the racial reckoning of 2020 were still nearly two decades away. Nowhere was that more apparent than award season: Black artists still hadnt won Oscars for best actress in a leading role or best picture.

So Friday decided to create the opportunity and in mid-1997, the American Black Film Festival was born. Now in its 27th year, the festivals mission to discover and prepare the next generation of Black and brown filmmakers is as strong as ever.

This festival, at its core, is about supporting the underserved, Friday said. ABFF, which runs June 14-18, includes independent and spotlight screenings but also masterclasses and networking events that encourage the free exchange of ideas. Friday pointed to the careers of Ryan Coogler and Issa Rae as examples of filmmakers who got their start at ABFF and are now creating more opportunities for more creatives of color.

Everything we do is about how we can introduce people into the Hollywood ecosystem, Friday added.

ABFFs 2023 iteration begins with the selection screenings throughout June 14 and an opening night screening of Netflixs They Cloned Tyrone, starring John Boyega, Jamie Foxx and Teyonah Parris. Other screenings include The Blackening on Thursday, Exposing Parchman on Friday and two episodes of Raes Rap Sh!t as part of Sundays community day. A star-studded list of celebrities including 2023 festival ambassador Lena Waithe, Gabrielle Union, Boyega and Deon Cole will make appearances throughout the weekend.

Issa Rae attends the American Black Film Festival

The festival, however, comes at a rather tenuous time for both the state of Florida and the movie industry in Hollywood. In Florida, the NAACP recently issued a travel advisory for the Sunshine State in an attempt to draw attention to Gov. Ron DeSantis attacks on Black and brown Floridians. The decision to stay wasnt taken lightly, Friday said.

We decided to stay because its working and were welcomed, Friday added, emphasizing the upwards of 10,000 people that attend the event and the countless others whove gotten their start at ABFF. If we didnt feel welcomed, wed leave.

In Hollywood, a writers strike that seeks to bring pay equity and streaming residuals has disrupted production on a number of movies and television shows. For New York-based independent filmmaker Ramon Pesante, the strike has affirmed his decision to go the indie route.

Now more than ever, you can have creative control, said Pesante, whose project Playing Sam premieres 2:20 p.m. Wednesday inside screening room two at the Miami Beach Convention Center.

His team, for example, was 98% creatives of color. People need to think like entrepreneurs, he said. Green light yourself.

Yahya Abdul-Mateen II at a discussion at the American Black Film Festival on Saturday, June 18, 2022.

Playing Sam, which Pesante co-wrote with its star Jenni Ruiza, is a rather personal story. Loosely based on the experiences of Pesantes mother, the film follows a non-Spanish speaking Latina actress who struggles to find roles. Not only did Pesante cast his mother in Playing Sam  Phyllis Salaberrios plays a casting director who critiques Ruizas character  but he primarily self-funded the project that he produced over the course of three years while holding down his day job in marketing.

I want to show people a different way of making films, said Pesante whose film was one of eight selected to compete in the narrative features section. Considering hes going up against Hollywood-led films, Pesante has embraced the underdog role, with one of his only wishes that his film gets others more opportunities.

The same goes for Moon Lee Ferguson, the creator of Criblore, a web series that flips pieces of South Floridas Black culture into horror fables and premieres 6:25 p.m. Friday at O Cinema South Beach. A native of Fort Lauderdale, Ferguson couldnt help but feel honored that her series got accepted into a film festival in her backyard, especially considering how much her upbringing influenced it.

Ramon Pesante (left) directs Playing Sam stars Jenni Ruiza (middle) and Marc Reign (right) during a break in the filming.

People really dont know that Black people  Southern Black people  live down here, Ferguson said. Our country has palm trees and alligators but it doesnt make us less Southern than those in Georgia, Louisiana, North Carolina and stuff like that. We have that same culture  we just happen to be on the beach.

Ferguson was that kid who stayed up past her bedtime watching X-Files, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Tales from the Hood and host of other horror and sci-fi projects. And while her parents might not have always approved at the time, Criblore being one of 17 selections in ABFFs web series section shows she was just researching. All shes hoping for now is the opportunity to turn Criblore into a television series  and meet more Black filmmakers in the horror genre.

Its such a niche thing, Ferguson said, and in order to make these type of things you have to connect with people whore not afraid to let their imagination run wild.

IF YOU GO

 WHAT: American Black Film Festival

 WHERE: South Beach (Miami Beach Convention Center, O Cinema, New World Center, Bass Museum) & Overtown (Lyric Theater)

 WHEN: June 14-18, 2023

 TICKETS: Visit https://www.abff.com/miami/festival-passes/ for more information
Journalist Jose Ruben Zamora is escorted in handcuffs by police to court for a hearing related to his trial on alleged money laundering and other charges in Guatemala City, Tuesday, May 30, 2023. Zamora, founder and publisher of El Periodico which stopped publishing in May, says the allegations are trumped up to silence an independent media outlet that has been critical of governments for decades. (AP Photo/Moises Castillo) (ASSOCIATED PRESS)

GUATEMALA CITY (AP)  A Guatemalan tribunal sentenced newspaper founder Jose Ruben Zamora to six years in prison Wednesday in a money laundering case, concluding a trial that press freedom groups decried as a political persecution aimed at silencing a critical voice.

The three-judge panel convicted and sentenced the well-known journalist on a charge of money laundering that affected the national economy and stability of the financial system. The tribunal cleared Zamora of additional charges of blackmail and influence peddling.

Guatemala President Alejandro Giammattei, and specifically his justice system, have been criticized internationally for backsliding on democratic principles and weaponizing the countrys prosecutors and courts to pursue perceived enemies.

I am innocent of the crimes, Zamora said after his sentencing. I continue being innocent and he (Giammattei) continues being a thief.

Giammattei has denied there was any political motivation.

Zamoras El Periodico newspaper was known as fiercely independent and published investigations about corruption in the administrations of Giammattei and his predecessors. Zamoras work has been internationally recognized.

In his final comments to the court Wednesday before the verdict was announced, Zamora said, all of my rights were violated, including the right to a defense. They treated us like criminals, they destroyed evidence, he said.

Several of his defense lawyers were arrested in the run-up to the trial.

After the hearing, Rafael Curruchiche, the Attorney General's special prosecutor against impunity who brought the charges against Zamora, was visibly upset and raised his voice, insisting that prosecutors would likely appeal the sentence and ask for the 40-year sentence they had originally requested.

He said the prison time Zamora would get is compensation for those whose name and reputation he and his newspaper destroyed.

The charges stemmed from Zamora, 66, asking a friend to deposit a $38,000 donation to keep the newspaper going rather than depositing it himself. Zamora has said he did so because the donor did not want to be identified supporting an outlet in the sights of Giammattei.

The tribunal fined Zamora an equal amount Wednesday.

With Zamora in jail, El Periodico was forced to stop publishing a print edition Nov. 30 due to its financial difficulties. The outlet halted operations altogether May 15.

Last month, the Guatemalan Association of Journalists said that at least 20 journalists have been forced to flee the country in recent years.

Following the sentence Wednesday, the New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists condemned the proceeding.

Carlos Martinez de la Serna, CPJs program director, said the shameful sentence was part of attempts by Giammatteis government to criminalize journalism, and that it signaled an erosion of free speech in Guatemala.

Guatemalan officials must end the absurd charade of criminal proceedings against him. It is time for Jose Ruben Zamora to be released, for his only crime has been the fearless exercise of his profession.
Students have a class at the Qamdo Experimental Primary School in Qamdo, southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region, Oct. 5, 2020. [Photo/Xinhua]

China is aiming to establish a quality and balanced basic public education system by 2027, according to a new set of guidelines jointly released by the general offices of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and the State Council.

By 2035 China aims to become one of the world's leading countries in terms of the quality and equity of compulsory education services, the document says.

In the coming years the authorities will work to close the education gap between developed and less-developed regions, with a focus on school facilities, and will continue to spend resources on less-developed regions in central and western China, according to the document.

The education gap between urban and rural areas, among different schools and different groups of residents will also be addressed.

Priority will be given to rural schools. The relevant authorities will work to ensure that all rural children of school age receive compulsory education, while more information technology will be introduced to improve the quality of education of rural schools.

Headmasters and teachers will be encouraged to work at rural schools and those operating in inferior conditions. Policies and measures will be adopted to help children of migrant workers to attend schools where their parents work.

The authorities will also provide better education services for orphans, children without support and care, children who are left behind in rural areas and those in difficult situations.

More resources will also go to schools in regions with large ethnic minority populations to improve the quality of education there.

The document pledges that the government will continue to increase the budget for education, particularly compulsory education.
HARTFORD CITY, Ind.  A registered nurse from Hartford City is accused of taking pain medication prescribed to patients at the Anderson hospital where she worked.

Melissa Lou Fannin, 43, this week was charged with obtaining a controlled substance by fraud or deceit, furnishing false or fraudulent information and possession of a narcotic drug,

All three charges are Level 6 felonies carrying up to 30 months in prison.

She is accused of accessing narcotics  one of the charges specifically refers to morphine  while employed at Community Hospital in Anderson between Jan. 16 and March 16.

According to an affidavit, an investigation was launched after it was determined the Blackford County woman was accessing far more hydromorphine, an opioid pain medication, than other nurses in her unit, and was also "excessively wasting full doses of controlled substances."

More: Muncie nurse charged with obtaining narcotics by fraud

"Co-workers noted (Fannin) was witnessed 'dozing' off on shift," an investigator wrote.

Interviewed on March 16, the Hartford City woman eventually "admitted she had an addiction problem," the document said.

Investigators said they noticed "injection marks on Fannin's right arm," and that she "admitted to stealing drugs that very night while working."

A drug screen was taken and Fannin "tested positive for morphine, oxycodone and oxymorphone," according to the court document.

Court documents reflect no prior charges against Fannin, who apparently received her nursing license in 2016.

In other crime news:

Battery charge: A Winchester woman has been accused of biting a juvenile on her right forearm.

Judith Ann Journell, 21, was charged Tuesday in Henry Circuit Court 3 with battery resulting in bodily injury to a person less than 14 years old, a Level 6 felony.

A Henry County sheriff's deputy reported the juvenile had "red marks on (her) arm in the shape of a human bite."

The incident reportedly took place at a cookout on May 28.

Douglas Walker is a news reporter at The Star Press. Contact him at 765-213-5851 or at dwalker@muncie.gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Muncie Star Press: Nurse from Hartford City charged with taking patients' narcotics
Harvard Medical School's morgue manager has been accused of selling body parts as part of a "stolen human remains" criminal network, according to a federal complaint unsealed Wednesday.

Morgue manager Cedric Lodge, his wife Denise and two others  Katrina MacLean and Joshua Taylor  allegedly conspired with Jeremy Pauley to sell human remains for a profit, the documents from the Middle District of Pennsylvania state.

Pauley, who was charged in August 2022 with multiple counts related to the alleged purchase and sale of corpses, allegedly bought body parts from MacLean, court documents said. Investigators then found that, since about 2018, MacLean and Taylor had been selling human parts and remains that they had purchased from the Lodges.

Lodge on several occasions allegedly let Maclean and Taylor examine cadavers at the Harvard Medical School morgue so that they could pick which ones they wanted to buy, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania said in a statement. Lodge also allegedly shipped human remains to Taylor and others who were not in Pennsylvania, the statement said.

Harvard Medical School fired Lodge on May 6, the school's dean said in a statement. "Investigators believe that Lodge acted without the knowledge or cooperation of anyone else at HMS or Harvard," the statement said.

NEW: Cedric Lodge said nothing to reporters as he walked out of federal court in NH after his initial appearance. He is accused of stealing body parts from the morgue at Harvard Medical School and selling them. He has to appear next in Pennsylvania  date TBD. #WBZ pic.twitter.com/FUreUicgS1  Kristina Rex (@KristinaRex) June 14, 2023

An estimated 20,000 people donate their bodies to science for the purpose of medical research and education every year. But unlike organ donation, these body parts and remains can be bought and sold for profit  in a market with very few federal regulations.

Court documents allege that MacLean and Taylor sold human body parts to numerous buyers and that MacLean also stored and sold remains in Kat's Creepy Creations, her store in Salem, Massachusetts. The store's Instagram page says it specializes in "creepy dolls, oddities, and bone art," and one post was captioned, "If you're in the market for human bones hit me up," CBS Boston reported.

In June or July of 2021, MacLean sent Pauley human skin and asked him to tan the skin to create leather, the court documents allege. MacLean then allegedly contacted Lodge at Harvard Medical School and asked him to help her locate skin for "the dude I sent the chest piece to tan."

Pauley was arrested in Pennsylvania on July 22, 2022 by East Pennsboro Township Police for abusing a corpse, receiving stolen property and other charges. Described as a "collector of oddities," Pauley posted pictures of body parts and other items on his Facebook page, Instagram account and his website, which has since been made private.

The pages advertised his collection and an event in 2022 that ended up being canceled that had offered access to unique oddities at a hotel outside of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. Pauley told police he obtained all of the items legally, but court documents and investigators paint a different picture.

In May, police returned to Pauley's home after a federal indictment in Arkansas alleged he purchased nearly $11,000 of body parts from Candace Chapman Scott, a 36-year-old former mortuary worker at Arkansas Central Mortuary Services.

That indictment didn't name Pauley directly as the buyer, but police located three 5-gallon buckets containing various human remains in his basement.

According to court records, Pauley is next expected to appear before a Pennsylvania Magisterial District judge for a preliminary hearing on July 5. A request for comment from Pauley's attorney wasn't immediately returned.

The Lodges appeared in court in New Hampshire on Wednesday afternoon. They will next have to appear in a Pennsylvania court, CBS Boston's Kristina Rex reported.

MacLean is due in federal court in Boston.

 Justin Sherman contributed reporting

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Attorneys spent nearly three hours Wednesday morning debating aspects of the controversial House Bill 1020 and another associated bill, both of which would become law July 1 if not for a restraining order associated with the case, but as the parties broke for lunch little progress had been made on the merits of the case.

Instead, the parties discussed the possibility of merging the case, brought by the NAACP, with another case and relitigating the inclusion of Mississippi Supreme Court Chief Justice Michael Randolph as a defendant.

Judge rules Chief Justice not defendant: Mississippi Supreme Court Chief Justice removed from federal House Bill 1020 challenge

Randolph had been granted judicial immunity by U.S. District Judge Henry Wingate earlier this month, but attorneys for the NAACP asked Wingate for clarification Thursday, and Mark Nelson, an attorney for Randolph, asked the judge to declare his earlier decision a final order. Nelson said he was shocked to see the plaintiffs motion for clarification, adding that it is really an attempt to challenge Wingate's earlier decision.

"This is nothing more than a rejection of your honor's ruling. I don't want to say that it's contemptuous, but it's getting close," Nelson said.

At one point, the chief justice stood behind the podium and addressed Wingate himself, to which the federal judge asked the state judge how long it had been since he'd addressed a court.

"It's been over 19 years," Randolph said. "Probably more than that since I've addressed you."

Mississippi Supreme Court Chief Justice Mike Randolph says "if you were in court, you'll know what comments I have," as he exits the Thad Cochran United States Courthouse in Jackson, Miss., Wednesday, June 14, 2023, after oral arguments were heard concerning House Bill 1020. The bill would create a Mississippi law that would establish a court system with judges who would be appointed rather than elected.

While Nelson has been adamant throughout the proceedings that his client cannot take a position on the constitutionality of HB 1020, Randolph did speak to the effectiveness of the judges he has appointed to the Hinds County Court in the past.

HB 1020 would see Randolph appoint more judges to the court, in addition to appointing a single judge to a new Capitol Complex Improvement District court. The existence of unelected state-appointed judges within Hinds County is at the core of the NAACP challenge.

Randolph told Wingate that the four appointments he has made to the Hinds County Court have yielded "marvelous results" in the face of rising crime and judicial backlogs, both of which have occurred throughout the state.

"The idea that I am directing something that is adverse to the citizens of this county is incorrect," Randolph told reporters outside of the Thad Cochran United States Courthouse in Jackson as attorneys left the building for lunch.

A separate challenge to HB 1020, based in state law, will soon appear before Randolph's court, with a hearing scheduled for July 6. A request for Randolph to recuse himself has been filed, and the chief justice said his legal team is working on its response.

Brenden Cline, a Washington, D.C., based attorney representing the plaintiffs, argued that Randolph not only can be a party to the lawsuit, but that he must be in order for a possible injunction to be properly executed. An injunction issued against Capitol Police Chief Bo Luckey or Department of Public Safety Commissioner Sean Tindell, for example, would not directly apply to Randolph, who has the sole power to appoint the judges, Cline argued.

Nelson argued that Randolph would have to follow any order Wingate issued on constitutionality, regardless of whether he was specifically named in the lawsuit.

At times, Randolph grew visibly frustrated that he was still involved in the case, directly questioning Cline's arguments and statements. Randolph indicated a belief that the plaintiffs were trying to drag the case out in order to impact his ability to preside over the state case, among other possible motivations.

"I shouldn't have to keep coming back, and the reason I say this is you entered an order," Randolph said to Wingate.

"I've never seen a circus like this one," Randolph later said. Wingate later gave the chief justice the opportunity to clarify what he meant by that statement, to which Randolph said it was solely targeted at the legal arguments made by the NAACP attorneys.

Wingate indicated that the next development in the case will come Friday, when the NAACP files an additional motion. Then, likely next week, he said he would issue a written order on Randolph and the attempts to consolidate the two cases. While a final decision on constitutionality is not expected for some time, a decision on whether the law will take effect or be put under an injunction will likely come sooner, though Wingate may hold additional oral arguments before making that decision.

This article originally appeared on Mississippi Clarion Ledger: HB 1020 Mississippi hearing focuses again on chief justice as defendant
The State College Borough, Community Conferencing, and the Centre LGBTQA Support Network invite you to attend the next Community Conversations Series on The State of the LGBT+ Community in 2023. This event will take place on Tuesday, June 20 from 6-8:30 p.m. at The State Theatre followed by a breakout discussion on Wednesday, June 21 from 5-7 p.m. in the Borough Building Community Room.

This series of conversations is meant to bring people together to listen and learn from one another on topics pertinent to the State College community. This conversation will include local panelists answering previously selected questions proposed by the community through the survey link below. Following the Panel Event, a Breakout Session will be held for all those interested in further discussing the event with the panelists and/or proposing future topics.

Registration and survey:

docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScdXd_vyj5X4yasV7OlVjyOiZKU_o2sP5GHah7r7dtWfWG1IA/viewform?usp=sf_link

For more information on the event or to view the panelists bios, please visit the Borough website: statecollegepa.civilspace.io/en/projects/community-conversations

If you have any questions feel free to reach out via email or phone.

Elizabeth Siegelman, is the program coordinator of Community Conferencing of Centre County.
Baltimore Orioles' Gunnar Henderson watches his ball as he hits a grand slam home run off Toronto Blue Jays starting pitcher Chris Bassitt during the third inning of a baseball game, Tuesday, June 13, 2023, in Baltimore. Orioles' Aaron Hicks, Ramon Urias and Jorge Mateo scored on the home run. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)

BALTIMORE (AP)  Coming off the best week of his big league career, rookie Gunnar Henderson came up with the perfect encore.

Henderson kept up his torrid hitting spree with his first career grand slam, one of four home runs launched by the Baltimore Orioles in an 11-6 victory over the Toronto Blue Jays on Tuesday night.

It was the fifth straight win for the surprising Orioles, who climbed 18 games over .500 (42-24) for the first time since 2016, when they last reached the playoffs. Tampa Bay (48-21), which leads second-place Baltimore in the AL East, is the only team in the majors with a better record.

Henderson hit .526 last week with three homers and six RBIs in five games. After a day off Monday, the 21-year-old went 3 for 5, including a bases-loaded drive off Chris Bassitt that capped a six-run third inning.

That was my first grand slam ever, throughout my whole baseball career, so that was pretty cool, Henderson said.

He couldn't deny that he was thinking about accomplishing the feat when he stepped to the plate.

Kind of passively a little bit, but at the same time I was trying to get the job done and push across a few runs, Henderson said. I was able to get it up in the air and push across a little more.

Henderson has homered in three straight games, has 11 hits in his last four starts and is batting .246 after entering June at .201.

I just feel like I'm very aware of what I want to do when I get in the box, he said. I'm just going up there and executing my plan.

The Orioles banged out a season-high 17 hits, including two-run homers by Adam Frazier and Ryan O'Hearn, along with a solo shot by Aaron Hicks. Three of those drives came off Bassitt (7-5), who allowed eight runs and 11 hits in three innings.

It was an uncharacteristic outing from Chris, manager John Schneider said. He had some pitches in the middle of the plate, couldn't get the ball inside to lefties. They took advantage.

Frazier's second-inning home run put Baltimore up 2-1. O'Hearn connected in the third before Henderson drove a 1-0 pitch over the center-field wall and into the Baltimore bullpen. The shot traveled an estimated 387 feet, impressive except when compared to the 462-foot blast he launched against Kansas City on Sunday.

I felt that that one (the slam) kind of put the game away a little bit, Henderson said. It was a really good feeling.

Baltimore's Dean Kremer (7-3) gave up two runs and eight hits over six innings.

Cavan Biggio homered for the Blue Jays, who fell to 0-4 against Baltimore this season. Down 11-2, Toronto charged back to make it respectable, which served as no consolation to Schneider.

You just want those at-bats a little earlier in the game, the manager said. Tonight wasn't our night.

TRAINER'S ROOM

Blue Jays: INF Brandon Belt was placed on the 10-day injured list with left hamstring inflammation, retroactive to Saturday. INF Ernie Clement was recalled from Triple-A Buffalo.... C Danny Jansen (groin) was activated from the IL and in the starting lineup. C Tyler Heineman was optioned to Buffalo ... RH Adam Cimber was placed on the paternity list to be with his new baby daughter, so Toronto recalled RH Bowden Francis from Buffalo. ... RH Zach Pop (hamstring) threw batting practice at the team's training complex in Florida.

Orioles: 1B Ryan Mountcastle was placed on the 10-day injured list with vertigo, retroactive to June 10. The 26-year-old leads the Orioles with 11 HRs but is batting .162 in his last 18 games. ... Baltimore filled out the roster by selecting the contract of C Mark Kolozsvary from Triple-A Norfolk and designating RH Noah Denoyer for assignment.

UP NEXT

Blue Jays: RH Jose Berrios (6-4, 3.61 ERA) starts Wednesday night in the second game of the series. Berrios is 9-0 lifetime against the Orioles.

Orioles: Kyle Bradish (6-4, 4.25) pitches for the first time since a 10-strikeout performance last week in Milwaukee.

___

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports
Here's why your Salem utility bill will go up in August

Salem City Hall at the Vern Miller Civic Center.

An increase in Salem's operations fee  passed by City Council Monday to address an $11-million budget shortfall  will take effect July 1.

The change will be reflected on August's utility bills.

An operations fee is already tacked on to utility bills for single-family homes, multi-family units, commercial, industrial, institutional and public facilities in the city.

The change means a single-family home that was once paid $8.93 in operations fees a month will soon be charged $14.43  an increase of $5.50.

Commercial, industrial, institution and public accounts will all have an operations fee of $69.55. Their fees are going up about $26 a month.

Multi-family residential units will pay $11.54. Those fees are rising the least, about $4.50 a month.

Low-income households with people over the age of 60 or those living with disabilities may apply for the Utility Rate Relief Program to receive a monthly discount for wastewater services, Streetlight Fee and City Operations Fee.

Leaders said the fee increase, included in the proposed budget for fiscal year 2024, is intended to maintain and expand current city services.

"Salem is one of many Oregon cities projecting a deficit in their General Fund in coming years due to property tax limitations," city officials said in a statement. "For FY 2024, $11 million in general fund reserves were needed to balance the budget."

The looming deficit meant many of the recently opened homelessness services, like the navigation center and microshelters, would be the first on the budget chopping block. Staffing cuts to the fire and police departments were also considered if additional revenue was not found to address the shortfall.

Were leaving no stone unturned in our search for revenue and were doing everything we can to address the needs of our residents," Mayor Chris Hoy said. "This is an important step towards stable funding for our homelessness response and for the fire and police departments."

A payroll tax paid by employees working in Salem is also being considered by the council for deficits in next year's budget.

This operations fee increase will:

Fund and expand Salem Outreach and Livability Services (SOS) team, which works with people experiencing homelessness and surrounding neighbors, including garbage removal and sanitation and hygiene efforts.

Increase code enforcement response team.

Increase park ranger capacity through more staffing.

Continue downtown parking security.

Add needed staff like human resources, IT, legal and finance to support front-line staff.

The base fee will be as follows as of July 1, 2023:

Account Type Base Charge Monthly Fee Cost Per Day Rate Change Commercial Per Account $69.55 $2.32 $0.88 per day Industrial Per Account $69.55 $2.32 $0.88 per day Institutional Per Account $69.55 $2.32 $0.88 per day Public Per Account $69.55 $2.32 $0.88 per day Single-Family Residential* Per Account $14.43 $0.48 $0.18 per day Multi-Family Residential Units Per Unit, Per Account $11.54 $0.38 $0.15 per day

For questions, comments and news tips, email reporter Whitney Woodworth at wmwoodworth@statesmanjournal.com, call 503-910-6616 or follow on Twitter at @wmwoodworth

This article originally appeared on Salem Statesman Journal: Salem raising utility fees to help cover cost of city services
Overland Park, Kansas

Across America most mornings, its a safe bet that the typical high school student is sitting in a classroom, listening to a teacher talk.

But on a recent Tuesday, Cara Mitchell was on her feet, running a class herself. Actually, she was managing a project, taking a small group of classmates through the paces of making a 3-D printed desk name plate.

Not exactly a glamorous assignment, shell admit. But the key was to give students practice with digital tools theyll need to build much larger projects down the line, including an airplane-like drone that takes off and lands vertically.

A senior studying aerospace engineering at the Blue Valley Center for Advanced Professional Studies, Mitchell attends the half-day high school program while also taking classes at her neighborhood high school. BV CAPS, or CAPS for short, offers a different kind of experience from what she and her classmates typically get by integrating real-world projects, internships and mentorships. That gives them a head start in high-demand careers in this prosperous suburb of Kansas City.

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In the process, CAPS is overturning conventional wisdom about secondary education. It offers high school juniors and seniors a guided, hands-on, practical experience in six strands of work, including not just aerospace engineering but healthcare, food science and education. All of this while offering them a kind of freedom and agency most have never felt in school.

Students (l-r) Sean Murphy, Curtis Howard and Logan Harder work on an electric vehicle project theyre hoping to enter into a competition as part of a BV CAPS engineering program. (Greg Toppo)

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You get to do something that youre passionate about, said Mitchell, who plans to study aviation and minor in business. Its like stepping into the real world, but you kind of have bubble wrap there in case.

An idea spreading worldwide

CAPS occupies what looks less like a high school and more like a modern, open-concept office building, complete with a soaring, three-story atrium. The office-building feel and design are intentional, said CAPS Director Corey Mohn: The idea was that it should not feel like school.

Blue Valley CAPS nursing student Sophia Cherafat (front left) talks to classmates (l-r) Reese Gaston, Sumehra Kabir and Jyoshika Padmanaban (Greg Toppo)

Jennifer Bauer, the centers business development specialist, calls it the test kitchen of the district, where new ideas often emerge because teachers and students are largely free from limits of the districts comprehensive high schools.

The food-focused strand, for instance, is not a traditional culinary class or even a trendy food-truck incubator, as you might find in a typical career-technical program. Called Future of Food, it exists because regional industry partners were searching for more qualified candidates for jobs in product development and production.

The course challenges students to develop new, sustainable food products with guidance from industry pros who expound on the challenges of developing a scoop tortilla chip or how to evenly coat a mass-produced ice cream bar with nuts.

This spring, CAPS serves about 1,400 students who spend about three hours here each morning or afternoon.

CAPS Director Corey Mohn

In Overland Park, where it originated, operating funds come mostly from taxpayers. But since CAPS is technically not a school  actually, the district treats the entire enterprise as a class  it can accept corporate donations through its own foundation.

Its also different in that its not a private, industry-owned enterprise, or even a charter school cut loose from its district. Its roots lie in the Blue Valley School District itself, which since 2015 has offered the model to other districts. The CAPS model has since spread to nearly 300 schools in 23 states, as well as Canada, Kuwait and India. While a few private schools have adopted it as well, more than 90% of schools in the network are public.

Chad Ralston, the local CAPS director  if it were a school, hed be its principal  said the student body is more academically, economically and racially diverse than youd expect.

Chad Ralston, director of the Blue Valley Center for Advanced Professional Studies (Greg Toppo)

Even though, on the whole, we can be seen as privileged, we certainly have every walk of life in our schools, he said, from college-bound students with 4.0 GPAs to kids who arent quite sure whats next. People feel that this is accessible to them, no matter what.

In a biology lab one floor up from Mitchells aerospace class, Nithya Mamalayan worked through a reading on her laptop as one of the class pets, a slender, multi-colored milk snake named Boot, muscled its way through her outstretched fingers.

The program, Mamalayan said, is very specialized, in that students have three hours each day to pursue one thing that interests them. So you can go a lot deeper.

Nithya Mamalayan

When shes not here or at her neighborhood high school, Mamalayan works in a University of Kansas research lab studying how the buildup of certain proteins predicts ailments like Alzheimers disease.

A few seats down, classmate Alyssa Haynes said shes also working with a KU researcher  on an anti-cancer drug. She said most of what students do in traditional high schools is kind of just like kind of going through the motions of education. When you come here, you actually get to do things that youre interested in.

CAPS senior Alyssa Haynes talks about cancer research shes engaged in at the University of Kansas (Greg Toppo)

Like most CAPS students, Haynes treasures both the agency and the mobility the program offers. They dont baby us as much, so we have a lot more freedom to kind of just move within the hallways and do individual work, she said.

Along with that sense of freedom, she also has a realistic view of life in a research lab  especially the work shes allowed to do at 18: Theres a lot of pipetting, she said with a laugh, pointing to a nearby tray of glass laboratory vials she routinely fills with medicine. Its a real lab workroom. Yes, Im doing the intern kind of work, but everyone has to start somewhere.

Experiences like these are valuable, Mohn said, but often for the opposite reason: They show students what they dont want to do with their lives. He recalled another student engaged in cancer research who soon realized that shed be working for 30 years before she made any breakthroughs. She wanted to see success sooner, so she went to pharmacy school instead.

Its going on her LinkedIn

That CAPS even exists is testament to a kind of big thinking that, oddly, grew out of the No Child Left Behind era of the early 2000s, when two trends converged: Basic skills ruled and educators mostly focused on the key outcomes of K-8 education, less on high school.

Blue Valley schools had little trouble with the federal laws reading-and-math-skills goals, easily meeting annual progress markers.

But students were often having trouble persisting through college. Even high-performing students, Mohn said, struggled with ambiguity. If they couldnt complete an assignment in a day or two, they were lost. So the district began asking employers what Blue Valley graduates needed.

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Much like the difficulties students showed with longer assignments in school, he said, employers saw that graduates, given an ambiguous assignment or troubleshooting task without a clear answer, looked like deer in the headlights.

The school board concluded that waiting to impart career skills until theyre in their first jobs was too late. Why not let them have those experiences now, in high school?

Fifteen years later, assignments at CAPS typically take several weeks, with as many as three projects overlapping. Now suddenly youre in the world of having to figure out how to manage your time, Mohn said.

And where in traditional high schools most assignments are forgotten once the test paper is graded and in the trash, at CAPS, Mohn said, the result is typically an end product that a student can point to with pride, as with Haynes work in the cancer lab.

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Its going on her resume. Its going on her LinkedIn, he said. Shes actually going to that university. Shes going to try and get a job doing the same thing.

Blue Valley CAPS sports medicine students (l-r) Payton Trent, Riley Smith, Libby Hatton and Cooper Veit practice taking a patients temperature with a test dummy from behind the glass of the schools simulation lab. (Greg Toppo)

The results so far are encouraging: Between 2013 and 2017, the program raised the percentage of students who, two years after graduating, attended college or held a credential, certificate or diploma: from 83.2% to 89%. During that time, the rate for non-CAPS graduates in the district went essentially unchanged.

Clinton Robinson, an associate vice president at Black & Veatch Corp., an engineering and construction firm founded here in 1915, has worked with CAPS from the beginning. The firm now partners nationwide with CAPS students, including about 50 locally who show up at its Kansas City, KS, offices twice a week to work on the 10th thing on our to-do list  a job that needs doing but isnt getting done. Students have designed houses and consulted on apps, he said Theyve also helped planners rethink what services the regions new airport needs.

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While most of the jobs are low-stakes, in a few instances the firm has had to execute non-disclosure agreements with students on sensitive work we dont want the market to know about, Robinson said. He recalled showing up at a career fair and asking one CAPS student about his work. He said, Im sorry, Mr. Robinson. I cant. Im under an an NDA.

Going toe-to-toe with our CEO

The programs effect on graduates is tangible, said Sophia Porter, a recent Johns Hopkins University graduate who serves as a project manager and test operator for BE-4 engines at the Texas aerospace company Blue Origin.

Blue Valley CAPS treated me like a working adult, said Porter, who holds dual degrees in physics and applied mathematics and statistics.

At CAPS, she led a team of seven students that developed a mobile app for Childrens Mercy Hospital and interned with an astrophotographer, among others. Once at Hopkins, she took on internships at NASA, the Space Telescope Science Institute, SpaceX and Blue Origin, where she has worked for four years.

Aside from accommodating and encouraging the kind of driven, overachieving student represented by graduates like Porter, perhaps one of the most valuable aspects of CAPS is that it offers its teenaged students that most valuable of assets: permission to ask tough questions.

Robinson, the engineering official said that since CAPS students typically come to the program uncommitted to working at a given firm, theyre not afraid to take risks when they meet adults in industries that interest them.

They go toe-to-toe with our CEO and our other executives, Robinson said, and offer very honest feedback about what goes on there. Theyre polite, he said, but direct: There is no the king has no clothes conversation: You look good today, Mr. CEO. Its Why do you guys still build coal fired power plants?
The following items were taken from area police department reports and releases. An arrest does not constitute a finding of guilt.

Hinsdale

Warrant service

Mejia Ismael Morroquin, 40, of the 4700 block of Seeley Avenue, Chicago, was taken into custody, from Hinsdale Hospital, for an active arrest warrant in Cook County, at 7:05 p.m. June 6.

DUI

Neeha C. Gill, 23, of the 700 block of Front Street, Lisle, was charged with driving under the influence of alcohol, speeding, failing to signal when required and improper lane usage at 8:25 p.m. June 8.

Theft

An unknown suspect stole an electric scooter valued at $300, near the intersection of County Line Road and Walnut Street, between 4:30-5 p.m. June 8.

Warrant service

Marco A. Perez Zuniga, 30, of the 300 block of Victoria Drive, North Lake, was stopped for driving while using an electronic communication device and taken into custody after police discovered an active warrant out of Cook County at 11:50 a.m. June 9.

Burglary to motor vehicle

An unknown suspect shattered the window of a vehicle at Katherine Legge Park, and stole purses, a laptop, a tablet and a cellphone, sometime between 6:10-6:35 p.m. June 10.

DUI

Elias J. Vargas, 31, of the 4600 block of Albany Avenue, Chicago, was charged with driving under the influence of alcohol, speeding, improper lane usage and operating an uninsured motor vehicle, at 2:18 a.m. June 10.
This simulated image shows Chang'e-5 spacecraft blasting off from the lunar surface. [China National Space Administration/Handout via Xinhua]

China's next lunar probe Chang'e-6 will carry payloads from the European and French space agencies, the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corp revealed on Tuesday.

The planned payloads are two scientific instruments for lunar surface research, the company said in a post on the Twitter-like platform Sina Weibo.

Such international cooperation came from two memorandums of understanding the China National Space Administration signed last week with the European Space Agency and the Centre National d'Etudes Spatiales, the French space agency.

The European equipment is a negative ion analyzer that can be used to conduct fundamental research on planetary science, and the French instrument is a detector to measure radon gas and its decay products on the moon.

According to China's lunar exploration program, the Chang'e-6 mission is scheduled to be launched around 2024 to complete a sample-return task from the far side of the moon. If the mission succeeds, it will become the first time for humans to get lunar samples from the far side.

The Chang'e-5, launched in 2020, was the country's most recent mission to the moon. Its probe retrieved a total of 1,731 grams of lunar soil from the near side.
Here we are with another scandal involving former President Donald Trump. Whats new, right? But theres something that hits differently about this one.

Gautham Rao - c/o Gautham Rao

In the past, Trumps alleged misdeeds have usually been primarily about himselfabout making himself richer, or more powerful, or to protect himself from the law. By allegedly violating the Espionage Act and hoarding classified documents, Trump (who has denied wrongdoing) has taken things to a far darker place. A quick look at the history of government record-keeping shows us that Trump is thumbing his nose at our system of government and at the rule of law itself.

Prosecutor Jack Smiths indictment and press conference laid out in devastating detail just how serious the charges are against the former president. In the classified documents that Trump allegedly took from the White House to his residences are deep secrets about the United States military and even its nuclear program. The law required Trump to return these documents to the National Archives; Trump knew better, too, since the prosecution has him on tape admitting that he had retained sensitive military information that he had not declassified.

At a more philosophical level, Trumps alleged actions speak to something else; they flout a basic theory of how our government works.

Hundreds of years ago, when a government official stepped down from an official post, it was customary for them to take with them the records of their time in office. It was in keeping with an elitist theory of power.

Powerful members of the gentry were routinely tabbed to be sheriffs, tax collectors, inspectors and other key roles. They were expected to use their status to do these jobs, as people deferred to their rank and power. Often, they worked out of their homes, so that the workings of government were indistinguishable from their daily life.

In short, their government work was very much their business, even if they were serving the public good. This approach to governing was still very much in vogue by the American Revolution and at the nations founding.

However, in the 19th century a new, more modern concept of government slowly took over. Perhaps best explained by the famed German sociologist Max Weber, this new vision was that government work now took place outside of the home and instead in government buildings and bureaus.

In this new modern understanding of the state, it was crucial that government offices be understood to be distinct from the individuals who might serve them. Officeholders were now expected to fulfill their duties by defined administrative rules, rather than by leveraging their status and personal power.

Over time, the professionalization of the government workforce would feature the rise of a civil service, the emergence of bureaucratic experts and the establishment of administrative law. In the 20th century, President Franklin Roosevelts New Deal and the Administrative Procedures Act became the foundation for an increasingly complex and regulated system of government organization.

The Presidential Records Act of 1978, passed in the wake of President Richard M. Nixons Watergate scandal, was another example of this evolving system. After resigning in disgrace and to avoid impeachment, Nixon wanted to keep records of his time in office to save what was left of his reputation. In 1974 Congress passed a law specifically to prevent Nixon from withholding records and followed it up a few years later with The Presidential Records Act, which explicitly designates presidential records as public records. Presidential records now belong to the American people, not to the President whose administration may have produced them.

This historical context lets us see Trumps latest misdeed for what it isa fundamental rejection of the rule of law. In this light, we might see Trumps actions as part of the conservative effort to dismantle the federal governments administrative power. But Trump goes even further because his is not a principled ideological manifesto but the simple idea that he, like kings, ministers, and those old self-interested officeholders from centuries ago, is above the law.

By insisting that official records from his administration are his papers, and that he can do as he pleases with them, Trump harkens back to a bygone time when government was the exclusive domain of the rich and powerful, and when the elite kept their papers as bespoke mementos of their public works.

Are we still a nation of laws? Or have we been so beaten down by the Trump era that were willing to backslide to a seemingly distant past? At stake in this, the latest trial of Donald J. Trump, then, is more than just legalese about government protocol about classification and record keeping. This is about the rule of law.

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I was hitting the hornets nest: Jailbird protester tells why he blocked Trumps motorcade

MIAMI  It was, perhaps, a day of karma for Domenic Santana, whose very public arrest was captured by news cameras outside Miamis federal courthouse on Tuesday and replayed on TV screens across the world.

I just got out of jail, Santana, 61, told the South Florida Sun Sentinel on Wednesday after his daughter posted his $2,000 bond. I got locked up. Trump needs to be locked up, but I got locked up.

It was just another spectacle, an only-in-Miami moment on a historic day.

Former President Donald Trump flew into town to plead not guilty to felony charges alleging he illegally hoarded classified documents and schemed to block the government from retrieving them.

Hundreds of Trump fans and a handful of anti-Trump protesters, including Santana, gathered outside the courthouse, clashing on occasion as police kept the peace.

Santana was hard to miss in his black-and-white striped jail costume. Throughout the day, he strolled through the sometimes rowdy crowd carrying an orange sign bearing the words Lock him up  an irreverent message directed at the former president. But within hours, it was Santana who would find himself behind bars.

The retired entrepreneur, a native New Yorker who now lives in Miami, deliberately ran into the street to block Trumps motorcade not once, but twice  first for Trumps arrival and again for his departure.

The first time, a Miami police officer escorted Santana back to the sidewalk. The second time, the father of three was not so lucky.

Santana ran into the street at 3:55 p.m. and held up his orange Lock him up sign as Trumps motorcade barreled toward him. He was soon tackled by police and quickly placed under arrest as dozens of journalists and bystanders swarmed in to record the drama.

Santana spent a long night in jail.

His crime, according to official police documents: Disorderly conduct, resisting arrest without violence and obstructing traffic.

According to Santanas arrest affidavit, an undercover police officer spotted Santana on the sidewalk arguing with Trump supporters right before Trumps motorcade was set to leave the courthouse. The motorcade included more than 30 police motorcycles and around 10 SUVs.

After the motorcycles drove past, Santana ran into the street, held up his sign and blocked the motorcade. An SUV was forced to swerve to avoid hitting him, according to the arrest affidavit.

The defendants reckless actions of interrupting the motorcade put the former presidents life in danger, the affidavit says. The defendants actions caused the public and media to run towards him, storming the street while the defendant yelled at the Trump supporters to entice them.

When officers were making the arrest, Santana tensed up his arms and pulled away, the affidavit says.

Throughout the day, officers warned Santana to avoid Trump supporters to prevent further clashes, but he kept returning to the scene and enticing the crowd, police wrote.

Santana was the only spectator arrested on Tuesday, police say.

On Wednesday, Santana shared his memory of the arrest.

They tackled me, he said of the police. A swarm of bees got me. I was by the Starbucks. I jumped the motorcade.

Santana claims he caught sight of Trump smirking at him from inside the vehicle while he stood in the roadway.

I put my sign in his face, Santana said. He was like, Who is this nut? He looked at me like I was crazy.

Santana admits to firing up the crowd before his arrest.

I was hitting the hornets nest, Santana said. I am tired of America being blind and brainwashed.

Santana says hed do it all over again, despite the unpleasant night in jail.

It was ice cold, colder than an operating room, he said. And that bologna sandwich tasted like liverwurst. The bologna was green. I asked for mayonnaise and they laughed at me. And there was no coffee. I need my cup of coffee in the morning.

To recover, Santana hopes to wash away the entire memory.

Oh my God, he said. Im going to go get Epsom salts and take a nice hot bath.

Susannah Bryan can be reached at sbryan@sunsentinel.com or on Twitter @Susannah_Bryan
If the new criminal case against former President Donald Trump goes to trial, Americas enemies will be watching. Thats because the charges he faces hinge on documents that allegedly contain some of the nations most sensitive secrets.

And while the U.S. intelligence community wants its secrets to stay secret, the Sixth Amendment guarantees the right to a public trial.

The inherent tension between the Justice Departments public-facing mission and the intelligence communitys secret work arises often in Espionage Act cases. When defendants  like Trump  are accused of illegally hoarding classified documents, those documents may be critical evidence, but admitting them into the public record poses obvious problems.

In such cases, a 1980 federal law known as the Classified Information Procedures Act is supposed to balance the governments interest in maintaining secrecy with a defendants right to a fair trial. CIPA will be key as the DOJ prosecutes Trump, experts on national security law told POLITICO.

Heres how it works.

Tense negotiations

Before the Justice Department brings a case involving classified materials, its prosecutors usually confer with intelligence officials at the agencies that own the relevant secrets. For instance, if a defendant allegedly stole classified analysis of a spy satellites photos, prosecutors would get in touch with officials at the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency. They would tackle a dilemma: Just how much of that analysis could be included in open court?

The prosecutors would want to reveal as much as they needed to get a conviction, while the intelligence officials would likely urge caution. So the two sides negotiate, trying to decide just how far to go.

There could be tensions, said Gregory Gonzalez, a former prosecutor in the Justice Departments National Security Division who handled cases related to classified material. Theyd be respectful conversations, but theyd be tense.

Carrie Cordero, a national security lawyer who held senior positions at the Justice Department and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, said shes sure these talks shaped the contents of the Trump indictment.



They likely selected documents that they knew they would be able to use throughout the case, she said, referring to prosecutors.

In grand jury proceedings  which, unlike trials, are held in secret  prosecutors vaguely characterize the documents that were allegedly compromised, according to Gonzalez, now a partner at the law firm Wilkinson Barker Knauer. Grand jurors dont get security clearances, and therefore they dont get much detail.

The Trump indictment, for instance, included short descriptions of 31 documents he allegedly refused to return to the government after he left the White House. Various documents concerned nuclear capabilities of a foreign country, military attacks by a foreign country and military contingency planning of the United States, according to the indictment.

Protective orders and security clearances

Once an indictment is issued, the defendants Sixth Amendment right to a public trial comes into play. The Supreme Court has held that at least some pretrial proceedings  including evidentiary hearings and jury selection  are covered by the amendments guarantee.

Prosecutors typically move for a pretrial conference behind closed doors with defense attorneys and the judge assigned to the case. At the conference, government lawyers aim to educate the judge about the issues at stake and how they hope to handle the relevant classified material. In districts that commonly handle national security cases, judges may already have detailed knowledge of the complexities theyll face. But the judge presiding over Trumps case, U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon, who has been on the bench for less than three years, doesnt appear to have heard any cases involving classified material, according to a review of her career as a federal judge.

In this same pretrial period, any defense lawyers who dont have security clearances will need to get them. The FBIs background check process can take many months, so if prosecutors worry about excessive delays, they can urge the FBI agents to speed things up. Defendants can also try to find lawyers who are already cleared.

Usually when you have cases involving classified information, theres sort of a small bucket of defense lawyers who handle that because they either already have clearance or they had it and can get it quickly renewed, said Sid Kamaraju, a former federal prosecutor in New York who prosecuted a former Central Intelligence Agency software engineer for causing what was at the time the largest theft of classified information in the agencys history.

Federal judges dont need clearances, and they undergo deep FBI background checks before their Senate confirmation. Their law clerks, however, are required to obtain security clearances when handling a case involving classified material.

Viewing evidence in a SCIF

Then its on to discovery, and the government starts sharing information with the defense. CIPA requires the judge to issue a protective order covering classified information so that defense attorneys could face legal consequences if they leak anything. In sealed proceedings, prosecutors and defense lawyers hash out just how much classified material will see the light of day, with the judge making the final decision. Descriptions, excerpts, and summaries of classified documents could all be revealed.

During discovery, according to Gonzalez, defense lawyers typically seek much more information than prosecutors offer. But since materials are classified, he added, they dont have the full scope of what the documents say. They may use their clients recollections of the materials at hand  or even their own intuition  to seek details beyond what DOJ volunteers.

Once classified documents are determined to be included in the discovery material, defense lawyers can view the classified materials in a sensitive compartmented information facility, or a SCIF. The Miami courthouse where Trump was arraigned doesnt have one, according to a person familiar with the facilities granted anonymity to discuss the sensitive location. But another building in the same complex does have one.



One factor that will likely make Trumps case less complicated than many other Espionage Act cases is that, unlike most defendants in such cases, he isnt detained pending trial, and therefore prosecutors wouldnt need to find a way for him to view classified material while he is incarcerated, to the extent he would be allowed to see it. Trump may be able to view the material in a SCIF, like his lawyers.

The threat that some classified evidence would have to be revealed publicly at trial can sometimes give defendants extra leverage in plea talks.

Thats exactly what CIPA was created to prevent, to prevent what they call graymail, Gonzalez said, your defense being that youre going to expose this information.

CIPA governs how defense attorneys can seek to reveal classified material in court. If the judge decides that the defendant and jury need more material than the DOJ wants to share, the government may need to drop some counts or move to have the case dismissed altogether. In Trumps case, Cannons pretrial rulings on these sorts of disputes could dramatically affect the direction of the case.

Competing interests at trial

The highest hurdle in the process is getting classified material into a form in which jurors can see it, since they dont get security clearances and since the default at trial is for evidence presented to jurors to be made public.

The jury has to receive all of the evidence, so there are ways at trial where the jury gets to see the information, but its not necessarily made public, Kamaraju said.

The Supreme Court has held that a judge can shut off public access to portions of a criminal trial only if the judge finds that closure is narrowly tailored and essential to preserve higher values.

One option is to load the material onto a dedicated, secure laptop that doesnt have internet access and show it to the jury while sealing the courtroom (and later, redacting the transcript of the court proceedings). Another is to introduce substitute documents that use redactions or summarize the contents of the classified material without disclosing the most sensitive information.

The way the material is shown to the jury is often the subject of intense and protracted pretrial litigation. Any case involving the use of classified information as evidence makes the case more complex and can potentially make the pretrial process take longer, Cordero said.

At trial, according to Gonzalez, CIPA provides a safety valve that lets prosecutors object if they fear defense lawyers are going to reveal classified information that hasnt already been approved. That allows the government to object and request a decision from the judge if classified information is going to be elicited that has not otherwise been approved by the judge as part of the CIPA proceedings, Gonzalez said.

CIPA also allows for witnesses  intelligence officers, for instance  to testify anonymously in some situations, Gonzalez said. Thats because, in national security cases, adversaries could seek to glean intelligence from court proceedings.

But some of these trial remedies, like the use of anonymous witnesses and substitute documents, may implicate another constitutional right: a defendants Sixth Amendment right to confront witnesses and challenge evidence.

In cases that involve sensitive national security information, adversaries will surely be interested in trying to gather information from the public record, Gonzalez said. And so you dont want to give too much away in public documents.

Even less-than-sophisticated actors in this space know that theres a lot of public information that comes out in criminal proceedings, he added.
Editors Note: This article contains graphic photos and descriptions.

The Holodomor, which means murder by starvation in Ukrainian, is widely considered to be one of Ukraines most devastating national tragedies.

A man-made famine brought on by the agricultural collectivization policies and actions of the Soviet authorities under the command of Joseph Stalin, the Holodomor claimed the lives of millions of Ukrainians in just one year between 1932-33, decimating Ukraines agricultural life.

During the famine and for decades after, Soviet authorities, along with Western sympathizers, attempted to cover up the truth about what had happened. While a few reports made their way to the West starting in the 1930s, it was only in the 1980s, with the appearance of two key reports by American and international commissions on the famine, that the wider public learned of the tragedy that had occurred 50 years prior.

Collectivization policies also caused famines in other parts of the Soviet Union, including the Kuban region of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic and Kazakhstan.

Since the start of Russias full-scale invasion, more and more countries have come to officially recognize the Holodomor in Ukraine as genocide. To date, outside of Ukraine, 29 countries, as well as the European Parliament, have recognized the famine as genocide against the Ukrainian people.

What caused the Holodomor?

The famine in Ukraine was the result of a combination of factors, including agricultural collectivization, grain procurement policies, restrictions on movement, and the suppression of information. These circumstances were further exacerbated by a series of droughts.

Agricultural collectivization aimed to consolidate individual farms into collective farms, known as kolkhozes. Under this policy, farmers in Ukraine were required to pool their land, livestock, and labor in order to work collectively on agricultural production.

Wealthier peasants who owned more land and resources were labeled as kulaks (which translates to fist in Russian), or kurkuls, which means someone dangerous, frightening in Ukrainian, by the Soviet authorities. The terms were used to vilify farmers.

The Soviet Union aimed to eliminate these farmers through "dekulakization," a series of policies that involved evicting them and their families from their homes, and seizing their land, livestock, property, and surplus grain. As a result, more than 1 million people are estimated to have been dekulakized. Thousands were forcefully deported from their homes, with many dying during transit, and others perishing after ending up in prisons or concentration camps.

Despite lower grain production caused by collectivization policies, the Soviet state imposed unreasonably high quotas on farmers in 1932. The impossibly high quotas meant that grain which would normally be eaten by the farmers themselves, was confiscated by Soviet authorities. As a result, millions, mostly rural Ukrainians, went hungry.

The "Law of Five Spikelets" was enacted in August 1932, imposing severe penalties (imprisonment or execution) on individuals, including children, who were found taking even a few stalks of grain from collective fields. By early 1933, approximately 54,645 people were prosecuted, resulting in the execution of around 2,000 individuals, according to the Holodomor Research and Education Consortium.

Restrictions on movement also contributed to the high number of starvation-related deaths. The Soviet Union issued a resolution in January 1933 which forbade the starving population from leaving, with military units stationed along the border to prevent Ukrainians from purchasing goods outside of Ukraine.

This restriction only applied to the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic and Russias southern Kuban region  an area where ethnic Ukrainians lived  intensifying the suffering of the affected population.

The Soviet government's deliberate suppression of information regarding the famine contributed to an environment conducive to widespread death and starvation. Moscow refused to accept or acknowledge offers of foreign aid, denouncing those who offered assistance.

The authorities actually exported Ukraine's grain and other food items to foreign nations in order to generate revenue for the new Soviet state.

Why did it occur?

Ukraine's reputation as the "breadbasket of Europe" is due to its fertile soil, favorable climate, abundant resources, and rich agricultural tradition. It has consistently been a major grain producer and exporter worldwide.

Stalin targeted Ukraine's grain during the Holodomor for political and economic reasons. Grain procurement policies sent confiscated grain to support urban populations, export for profit, and build up grain reserves.

The Soviet Union also needed Ukraine's grain for export to generate revenue for industrial projects, supporting its ambitious plans for industrialization. Seizing Ukraine's grain allowed Stalin to control the agricultural sector and redistribute resources.

Beyond economic ambitions, seizing Ukraine's grain also allowed the Soviet Union to assert control over the Ukrainian people, suppress Ukrainian nationalism, and justify imposing punitive measures. Stalin saw Ukraines resistance to collectivization and growing nationalism as a threat and aimed to subjugate the population and solidify Soviet control with his policies.

In 1932, the Soviet state extracted 4.27 million tons of grain from Ukraine, a quantity sufficient to sustain 12 million people for a year, according to Soviet records.

Grain reserves in the Soviet Union were also plentiful by January 1933  enough to feed well over 10 million people  but they did not give any grain back to help Ukrainians. Additionally, international humanitarian efforts were made to provide relief to famine-stricken regions in Ukraine. However, Soviet authorities deliberately withheld famine relief efforts.

What was the Holodomor like for the victims?

During the Holodomor, Soviet authorities censored information and restricted access to foreign journalists, hindering awareness and limiting documentation of first-hand accounts.

However, journalists like Gareth Jones, whose experience is the basis for the 2019 film Mr. Jones, risked their lives to expose the truth. Jones documented accounts of extreme starvation:

I flung a crust of bread which I had been eating from my own supply into a spittoon. A peasant fellow-passenger fished it out and ravenously ate it. I threw an orange peel into the spittoon and the peasant again grabbed it and devoured it The peasants were eating the cattle fodder and had only a months supply left.

People attend a rally dedicated to the memory of victims of the Holodomor in front of the Russian Embassy in Kyiv on Nov. 26, 2016. (Photo: STR/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

The findings of the 1988 United States Commission on the Ukraine Famine also unveil previously undisclosed details, including records of interviews, hearings, and testimonies of experiences during the famine.

According to the testimonies, members of the clergy and leading classes in many villages were arrested and tortured by Soviet authorities. Books were also confiscated, and people were dispossessed of their properties and often exiled to labor camps in places like Siberia.

During grain confiscation raids, every crevice of peoples homes was searched. Even small handfuls of flour hidden in beds were confiscated, and any attempts at concealment were punishable.

Testimonies reveal evidence of extreme hardships endured by starving Ukrainians. In order to survive, villagers resorted to consuming anything they could find: grass, acorns, and even household pets. Some testimonies included evidence of acts of cannibalism.

In some instances, starving children were insidiously weaponized by being bribed with food to betray their parents' hiding places. In one testimony, a woman who was driven to despair after having been stripped of all of her possessions, resorted to taking her own life.

As part of the 1988 U.S. Commission on the Ukraine Famine, during an investigation that was conducted in Phoenix, Arizona, a witness named Nadia Harmash was asked, Why people didnt rise in revolt against their tormentors. Mrs. Harmash replied, How can you rise when youre dying of hunger?

How many people perished in the famine?

Because of the suppression of information, limited available records, and the political nature of the event, the death toll of the Holodomor in Ukraine is a subject of debate among many historians. Estimates vary, but most range from 3-7 million deaths, while others suggest higher numbers.

According to a 2015 study conducted by demographers from the Ukrainian Institute of Demographic and Social Studies and the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, around 3.9 million Ukrainians were killed during the Holodomor.

The study also revealed that during the peak of the Holodomor, in June 1933, Ukrainians were dying at a staggering rate of 28,000 per day.

The Holodomor Genocide Museum on Nov. 26, 2022, in Kyiv. (Photo: Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images)

How is the Holodomor recognized internationally?

The Holodomor is commemorated through memorials and events worldwide.

In Washington, D.C., the Holodomor Memorial features a bronze sculpture depicting a wheat field and a memorial wall with affected village names.

Canada, with its significant Ukrainian diaspora, has various memorials honoring the Holodomor, with Edmontons Holodomor Genocide Memorial Complex being the first national memorial outside of Ukraine dedicated to the Holodomor.

Kyivs National Museum "Holodomor Victims Memorial" showcases exhibitions and artifacts related to the famine. Every fourth Saturday in November, Ukrainians commemorate the Holodomor victims by lighting candles at memorials and on their windowsills.
Be honest. If you saw the evidence, you would have indicted Trump, too.

No one wants to believe bad things about a personal hero.

Ive heard from a number of Arizona residents over the past couple of days who see former President Donald Trump as an icon, as their savior, and believe the only explanation for the more than 30 felony counts he faces related to his handling of classified documents is an evil conspiracy by radial leftists, or the out-of-control Biden administration, or George Soros, or the media (including me).

To which I say one thing: Read the indictment.

Just read it.

It is not particularly long. There is not a preponderance of legalese in it. It features excerpts of interviews and recordings, brief transcripts of online exchanges, photographs and more.

In other words, prosecutors brought receipts.

If you read the Trump indictment, you'll agree

The grand jury, in turn, listened to witnesses, considered the evidence and voted in secret to charge Trump (and an aide) with some very serious crimes.

It does not mean hes guilty.

It just means the evidence could not be ignored and the case should be prosecuted.

If you read the indictment  actually read it  youll agree.

Supporters of former President Donald Trump rally on June 11, 2023, in West Palm Beach, Fla.

Prosecutors point out how Trump stored classified documents in boxes at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida, in unsecured places that included a ballroom, office, storage area and even a bathroom.

Trump's classified documents included info on weapons, strategy

There is audio of Trump sharing classified information with, as the indictment reads, a writer, a publisher, and two members of his staff, none of whom possessed a security clearance.

Trump faces 37-count indictment: I don't want to live in a country where Trump could be held accountable

There are reports that Trump told individuals, including his attorney, to falsely represent to the FBI that he didnt have documents, and that he wanted his people to hide them.

And what type of documents are we talking about?

The indictment says they included information regarding defense and weapons capabilities of both the United States and foreign countries; United States nuclear programs; potential vulnerabilities of the United States and its allies to military attack; and plans for possible retaliation in response to a foreign attack.

This image, contained in the indictment against former President Donald Trump, shows boxes of records stored in a bathroom and shower in the Lake Room at Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Fla. Trump is facing 37 felony charges related to the mishandling of classified documents according to an indictment unsealed Friday, June 9, 2023.

Former Attorney General Bill Barr: 'If even half of it is true, then he's toast'

Nuclear programs? Potential vulnerabilities? Plans for retaliation?

Trumps former Attorney General William Barr condemned his old boss. He said in part, The government acted responsibly. And it was Donald J. Trump who acted irresponsibly, adding, (Theyre) solid counts. ... If even half of it is true, then he's toast.

Former President Donald Trump and Former Attorney General Bill Barr step off Air Force One upon arrival at Andrews Air Force Base in Maryland on September 1, 2020.

Barr said the attempts to label the indictment of Trump a witch hunt are ridiculous.

The things Trump was indicted for doing land people in prison.

Questioning Trump's charges mean you're willfully ignorant

This month, a retired U.S. Air Force intelligence officer got three years in federal prison for keeping classified documents at his home and other places.

Will Biden pardon Trump? If Donald Trump is convicted, President Biden should pardon him. Really.

If the name on the indictment was anything but Trump, there would be no question  none  that the charges are justified.

Read it. Youll see.

The former president, like every defendant, must be presumed innocent.

If convicted, he is, as Barr said, toast. Until then, he is not officially guilty of a thing.

But those who choose to willfully ignore the facts of Trumps case  are.

EJ Montini has been a news columnist at The Arizona Republic/azcentral.com, where this column first published.

You can read diverse opinions from our Board of Contributors and other writers on the Opinion front page, on Twitter @usatodayopinion and in our daily Opinion newsletter. To respond to a column, submit a comment to letters@usatoday.com.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Trump indictment is justified. If you read it, you'll see
A Republican effort to censure Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., for alleging collusion between Donald Trump and Russia during the former president's 2016 campaign was blocked Wednesday.

A motion to table the resolution  brought by House Democrats and joined by 20 Republican lawmakers  was adopted, effectively killing the measure. The House voted 225-196 to table the legislation.

The resolution also sought to fine Schiff $16 million, or half the cost of special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into Trump and Russia's alleged ties. It was introduced last month by Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., a member of the right-wing House Freedom Caucus.

A freshman lawmaker and Trump loyalist, Luna brought the measure to the floor as a privileged resolution Tuesday, forcing action on it. A simple majority was needed to pass the resolution.

"(Schiff) abused his position of authority, lied to the American people, cost American tax payers millions and brought dishonor to our chamber," Luna alleged Tuesday.

WASHINGTON, DC - JANUARY 05: U.S. Rep.-elect Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL) delivers remarks in the House Chamber during the third day of elections for Speaker of the House at the U.S. Capitol Building on January 05, 2023 in Washington, DC. The House of Representatives is meeting to vote for the next Speaker after House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) failed to earn more than 218 votes on several ballots; the first time in 100 years that the Speaker was not elected on the first ballot. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images) ORG XMIT: 775921641 ORIG FILE ID: 1454467008

Schiff said Wednesday he is flattered by the effort to censure him and suggested the resolution was introduced as a distraction from Trumps legal woes. The former president was arraigned in Miami Tuesday in connection with a federal probe into his retention of classified documents, the same day Luna brought the measure to the floor.

This is really an effort, at the end of the day, to distract from Donald Trumps legal problems, to gratify Donald Trump by going after someone they feel was his most effective adversary, Schiff said on CNN This Morning.

He also called the resolution a terrible abuse of House resources. The California Democrat previously chaired the House Intelligence Committee and led the first impeachment inquiry into Trump, which resulted in the House voting to impeach the former president for abuse of power and obstruction of Congress.

The measure said Schiff would be fined the $16 million if a House Ethics Committee investigation determined he "lied, made misrepresentations and abused sensitive information." House Leader Steve Scalise expressed support for the resolution, while other top Republicans demurred.

Other House lawmakers have been censured in recent years. Former Reps. Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger, the only Republicans who sat on the House committee that investigated the Jan. 6 Capitol attack, were censured by the Republican National Committee in February 2022 for opposing Trump and investigating the riot. In November 2021, the House voted 223-207 to censure Rep. Paul Gosar, R-Ariz., for posting an anime video that was edited to show him killing Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., and attacking President Joe Biden.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: House blocks GOP effort to censure Democratic Rep. Adam Schiff
House Republicans inched closer this week toward impeaching Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, officially launching an investigation that would serve as the basis for any inquiry.

But conservative supporters of the effort still face enormous hurdles, including a reluctance of leadership to take such a drastic step and the continued opposition from more moderate lawmakers in the GOP conference  barriers that even the loudest Mayorkas critics have been forced to acknowledge.

On Wednesday, Republicans on the House Homeland Security Committee said they would review Mayorkass performance through a five-phase plan, which Chairman Mark Green (R-Tenn.) said could be completed in a matter of 11 or 12 weeks.

His policies have resulted in a humanitarian crisis this country has never seen, Green said at a press conference.

Todays hearing will begin the process of digging into all of the details. The cause and effect of Alejandro Mayorkass dereliction of duty. I hope the American people will listen intently. I hope the press will report this, honestly. I hope the president of the United States, the commander in chief charged with the security and protection of this country, will listen. He cant possibly know of all of these failures of Mayorkas and have not fired him already.

Its a process that faces a complex path in the House  and one thats already highlighted several layers of division within the GOP conference. Not only is there discord between impeachment supporters and opponents, but theres also growing tension among Mayorkass most vocal critics, all of whom seem to want to play a prominent role in the effort to oust him.

We dont have the votes, Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) said Tuesday. Asked what would change the minds of the Republican opponents, he offered a biting criticism of his centrist colleagues.

An embrace of logic and reason, he said.

Greens presser was followed by a hearing titled Open Borders, Closed Case: Secretary Mayorkas Dereliction of Duty on the Border Crisis.

Democrats argued the hearings name alone shows Republicans have already reached a conclusion on whether to take the dramatic step of impeaching a cabinet secretary  an action not seen since the 1870s.

You may have a difference of opinion as to how the United States should process our asylum applicants. But the notion that that difference of a policy opinion would be the basis for a quote unquote, case closed that Secretary Mayorkas is violating his duty, is preposterous and it is not any basis for impeachment, said Rep. Dan Goldman (D-N.Y.), who before entering Congress worked as lead counsel for the first impeachment inquiry against former President Trump.

The move, six months into GOP leadership of the House, follows wrangling within the conference over how speedily to pursue the topic.

While a slew of lawmakers introduced impeachment resolutions days after the contentious vote to give the gavel to House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), the most recent effort was offered by Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.), a sign of discontent among those eager to speed ahead.

It also comes as border numbers have dropped in the weeks following the May lifting of a policy that allowed the U.S. to quickly deny entry to would-be asylum seekers, bucking widespread predictions of a surge of migrants. The repeal of that policy, however, was paired with the reintroduction of consequences for those caught wrongly crossing the border.

The number of Border Patrol encounters have plummeted by 70 percent since the Biden administration ended Title 42 last month. The number of overall border encounters have dropped by 50 percent in that time, due in large part to [Homeland Securitys] hard work under Secretary Mayorkass leadership, ranking member Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.) said during the hearing.

Calling a hearing and saying case closed before youve heard any testimony is not legitimate oversight.  Its about House Republican leadership catering to its most extreme MAGA members, who want to impeach someone  anyone at all. Its about trying to make good on GOP backroom deals to elect a Speaker, raise the debt ceiling and stave off a mutiny in the Republican ranks.

The House Homeland Security Committee doesnt have the power to ignite an impeachment inquiry. That task falls to the House Judiciary Committee.

Green has cast the investigation as an effort that will be handed off to the other panel and ultimately brought to fruition by Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan (R-Ohio).

The firebrand Georgia congresswoman, however, offered her impeachment resolution with a tweet that included an emoji of a slice of cake, a reference to earlier comments that the debt ceiling package would be more appealing if it included dessert like an impeachment of Mayorkas or FBI Director Christopher Wray.

The move was a reflection of impatience from some in the GOP, even as McCarthy has largely stuck to comments he made while visiting the border late last year stressing the need to investigate.

I know people are very frustrated with [Mayorkas], McCarthy told CNN last month, but added that any impeachment process shouldnt be pursued for political reasons.

Rep. Andy Biggs (R-Ariz.), former head of the far-right Freedom Caucus, suggested the Speaker is moving closer toward backing the impeachment effort.

McCarthy has loosened up on that. Whereas quite some time ago he was a no, now hes kinda saying  kinda saying  yes, Biggs said. Other reluctant Republicans are also shifting, he said.

There are people who were an absolute no on it even a few weeks ago, and now told me that theyre moveable, he said. Theres probably two or three people that Im trying to work on, see if I can move them my way. And if those two or three come along, I think then were ready to go.

Green sidestepped questions over whether the caucus would be able to secure the votes to impeach Mayorkas.

I would say its intuitively obvious to the casual observer, that Republicans are individualists and we think independently, were not robots being told by a Speaker how to vote, he said in a nod to the standstill on the House floor led by a group of far-right members who stalled a vote on a GOP bill on gas stoves as a way to voice frustration with McCarthys handling of the debt ceiling.

And so, there are many people with differences of opinions about this. And, you know, Im in a leadership position, and from my leadership position, the direction of our committee is to get to the facts.

The Department of Homeland Security has pushed back on GOP arguments and has largely blamed Congress for issues at the border.

The immigration system has been terribly broken and outdated for decades. That is something about which everyone agrees, and it is my hope that they take that problem, and they fix it once and for all. In the meantime, within a broken system, we are doing everything that we can to increase its efficiency, to provide humanitarian relief when the law permits and to also deliver an enforcement consequence when the law dictates, Mayorkas said earlier this year during an appearance on MSNBC.

That is exactly what we are doing, and as far as I am concerned, I will continue to do that with tremendous pride with the people with whom I work.

Green said his five-point plan includes investigations into cartels as well as the financial cost associated with migration.

The guy has got to go, Green said.

Were going to hold him accountable. And if the president picks another guy that does this kind of stuff, well do what we have to do there too.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
House Republicans on Wednesday approved a bill that seeks to increase congressional authority over the federal rulemaking process, a move that would usurp power from government agencies in favor of elevating elected lawmakers.

The legislation  titled the Regulations from the Executive in Need of Scrutiny Act (REINS) Act  cleared the chamber in a largely party-line 221-210 vote. One Democrat  Rep. Jared Golden (Maine)  broke from the party and supported the measure.

The measure was initially scheduled to be considered in the House last week, but the vote was delayed because 11 conservatives launched a revolt in the chamber that halted floor action for nearly a week. The GOP rebels were protesting the debt limit deal struck by Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) and President Biden, which was signed into law earlier this month to avoid a default.

The impasse, however, finally broke Tuesday when the 11 conservatives agreed to advance the REINS Act and four other bills to the floor, unleashing them for final votes.

Republicans have argued Congress should have control over the federal rulemaking process rather than federal agencies because the officials that run them are not elected by voters.

Its long past time we limit the rampant executive overreach that makes up the fourth branch of government and rein in the nameless, faceless bureaucrats in basements across Washington, D.C., Rep. Kat Cammack (R-Fla.), the sponsor of the bill, wrote in a statement following the vote.

The measure would require that all major rules proposed by federal agencies be approved by Congress before taking effect.

A major rule, according to the legislation, is any federal rule or regulation that may have an annual effect on the economy of $100 million or more; leads to a significant increase in costs or prices for consumers, individual industries, government agencies or geographic regions; or one that has a notably unfavorable effect on competition, employment, investment, productivity, innovation or the capacity of enterprises in the U.S. to compete with foreign initiatives.

Although the bill has little chance of being considered by the Democratic-led Senate, let alone signed into law by President Biden, it would represent a major shift in the federal rulemaking process and strip significant authority from the executive.

It could also undercut the influence of agency experts and outside advocates that contribute to the rulemaking process.

Federal agencies have broad authority to issue rules  but that power in many ways stems from Congress. Congress regularly calls on agencies to craft the regulations needed to carry out policies approved by lawmakers.

The rulemaking process requires a public notice and comment period, and agencies are required to show they considered the feedback from the public in crafting their final rule. Regulations also often include a cost-benefit analysis, requiring agencies to show regulations are needed despite any costs they may impose on the industry. The final rule generally takes effect no less than 30 days after it is published in the Federal Register by the agency.

The bill was opposed by pro-regulation groups, arguing the process is needed to protect consumers  from putting limits on polluting industries to ensuring the safety of food and medication.

But by requiring Congress to vote to approve regulations, advocates argue that inaction alone could be used to block needed guidance.

By giving one chamber of Congress veto power over any new significant public health and safety protection, no matter how noncontroversial or sensible it may be, the REINS Act is designed to leverage the dysfunction and obstructionism that plague our political process to block agencies efforts to fulfill their statutory mandates to pursue public protections, Elizabeth Skerry, a regulatory policy expert with Public Citizen, a left-leaning advocacy group, told Congress when it considered the bill in March.

The group also pointed to a train derailment in Ohio as a byproduct of inaction, noting the Trump administration chose not to move forward with a regulation that would have required updated braking systems.

The majority of the Democratic caucus also opposed the measure. During debate on the House floor Tuesday night, Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.) said the bill was bad legislation and warned about regulations Republicans could block after the recent floor revolt.

We are considering this bill just a week after a splinter group of the far-right Republicans voted down a rule and held our legislative calendar hostage all to prove a point about a debt ceiling that already has passed Congress and has been signed by the president, Nadler said. Even before this radical move, I had no doubt that the REINS Act would grind to a halt the most impactful actions by our regulatory state.

But now after seeing what a handful of members will do to make a point, I am certain we cannot let bad measures like this move forward, he added.

The Republican-led House has introduced multiple resolutions aimed at blocking Biden administration rules since taking the majority in January. On Wednesday, the chamber cleared a measure that seeks to block a Biden administration rule pertaining to pistol stabilizing braces.

And on Wednesday, the House voted to block a proposed rule from the Biden administration that governs efficiency requirements for gas and electric cooking appliances.

House Republicans included the REINS Act in their bill to raise the debt limit and implement spending cuts, which cleared the chamber in a largely party-line vote in April. It was not, however, incorporated in the debt limit agreement Biden and McCarthy struck, which angered conservatives.

Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.) pointed to the exclusion of the measure from the debt limit agreement when discussing the conservative blockade floor last week.

Im not here for failure theater. Im not here for just the performance of politics. I actually want to produce something for the American people, Boebert said. So when Limit, Save, Grow had the REINS Act, a great regulatory reform, included in it and that was ditched on the side of the road, completely surrendered, and then the next week were gonna show up to Washington, D.C., and vote on the REINS Act as a standalone bill where we know its dead on arrival in the Senate.

That is performative theater, and I am not here for that. Im not doing messaging bills and show votes when we had an opportunity to pass real regulatory reform for the American people, she added.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
House Republicans are quietly ramping up their intra-party persuasion campaign to get the votes they need to impeach Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas  and backers insist they're making progress.

GOP leaders are facing serious pressure from conservatives eager to fulfill a big promise to the partys base by voting to recommend the Homeland Security secretary's removal over Biden administration border policies. But top Republicans remain short of the votes they need to impeach Mayorkas six months into their majority, which leaves their right flank in the position of chief salesperson.

I think were getting pretty darn close, Rep. Andy Biggs (R-Ariz.), who introduced impeachment articles against Mayorkas, said in a brief interview. Some people have told me they are now gettable  and they just want to continue talking and dialoguing it and making sure they are comfortable with both the legal and the constitutional predicate.

Biggs and his allies still face skepticism within the GOP conference  and, crucially, the Arizona Republican acknowledged, among Republicans in the Judiciary Committee, where impeachment articles would have to originate. While there is growing public pressure from some of the right flank's most vocal members to make good on vows to hold the Biden administration accountable for the border, some centrists are still unsure, at best, that impeaching Mayorkas is a winning political message.



The unofficial impeachment whip campaign is playing out in public and behind the scenes. The Homeland Security Committee formally launched an investigation on Wednesday that will include a series of hearings and released a preliminary report laying out its evidence so far. Meanwhile, the Judiciary Committee has planned out several hearings before the August recess, including testimony from Mayorkas himself in the final week of July, first reported by POLITICO.

Impeachment backers' goal is to start publicly showing their GOP colleagues that the Homeland chiefs handling of the border meets the bar of a high crime or misdemeanor  a claim criticized by Democrats and even some Republicans.

Meanwhile, in private, they say they're in near-constant contact with potential swing votes, members of relevant committees and leadership to make the case for what would be a historic vote  and one that has no shot at Senate approval.

Rep. Mark Green (R-Tenn.), who chairs the Homeland Security Committee and is accusing Mayorkas of being derelict in doing his job, said their findings could ultimately meld with an impeachment effort. The investigation, according to Green, has the support of GOP leadership and will take roughly three months.

Were trying to get to the facts about why the situation is the way it is at the border.  If what we find in our compilation of everything warrants sending this to Judiciary, we absolutely will, he said.

But pressed if he believed Republicans had the votes for impeachment, he stopped short: We havent even gotten to that word, that process.

Democrats, meanwhile, argue Republicans are trying to impeach Mayorkas over political differences and that the hearings constitute an impeachment inquiry without labeling it as such to get around divisions within their own conference. And it is far from clear that it will ultimately pan out, given Republicans will need near-total unity to clear it on the House floor.

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) introduced a resolution directing the Judiciary Committee to investigate fully and completely whether sufficient grounds exist for the House to impeach Mayorkas. The step is not as far as the impeachment resolution she previously introduced against the DHS secretary, but one she hopes could gain more traction more quickly within the conference.

For those members that are on Judiciary who have been against impeachment  those Republican members, by the way  I think this is a lot different. So I feel very confident theyll vote yes for an investigation even though they may not be for impeachment at this time, Greene said in a brief interview.

But even that half-step may get dragged out. It was sent to the House Rules Committee, led by Rep. Tom Cole (R-Oka.), a McCarthy ally who has previously expressed doubt about impeachment efforts. Asked if he would support an inquiry, Judiciary Committee Chair Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) instead pointed back to his panel's existing efforts on the border, saying that were supportive of getting all the facts and doing our oversight work.

Democrats find that explanation of the slow-roll on Mayorkas dissatisfying, however. Instead, they say, it's a way for Republicans to unofficially launch an impeachment inquiry, allowing them to cater to the base without alienating centrists.



Its about House Republican leadership catering to its most extreme MAGA members, who want to impeach someone  anyone at all. Its about trying to make good on GOP backroom deals to elect a Speaker, raise the debt ceiling, and stave off a mutiny in the Republican ranks, said Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.), the top Democrat on the Homeland Security Committee.

A DHS spokesperson said that policy disagreements between House Republicans and Mayorkas  who, by their count, has testified before Congress more than another other member of Bidens Cabinet  dont meet the bar for impeachment.

Instead of pointing fingers and pursuing a baseless impeachment, Congress should work with the Department and pass comprehensive legislation to fix our broken immigration system, which has not been updated in decades, the spokesperson added.

And Republicans acknowledge theyve still got work to do, on multiple fronts, to convince some of their GOP colleagues.

McCarthy has opened the door to impeachment in public comments, but not formally embraced it. Biggs said he views the California Republican was kind of saying yes. More of the struggle, Biggs said, lies with the Republicans on the Judiciary Committee, where "a few" aren't yet on board.

They [each] had a different perspective on why they were struggling, Biggs said about the GOP holdouts on the panel.

Rep. Mike Johnson (R-La.), a member of leadership, expressed more confidence than Biggs that those members would come on board if they forced a vote, adding that the timing is up to McCarthy. But Rep. Ben Cline (R-Va.), who like Johnson has a seat on Judiciary, suggested Republicans still had work to do before they were likely to move forward on an impeachment vote.

At this point, the committee is still laying out the facts for the committee members and the American people.  Weve got a lot of steps to take before an official impeachment proceeding is undertaken but Im advocating that we move in that direction as quickly as possible, said Cline, who backs impeachment.

And while the Homeland Security Committee includes vocal impeachment backers like Greene, it also has members like Rep. Tony Gonzales (R-Texas) who have been more publicly circumspect.

In the meantime, Democrats are keeping a close eye on how Republicans in Biden-won districts talk about a potential Mayorkas impeachment. The House Democratic campaign arm, in a memo circulated earlier this month, said that pursuing Mayorkas' impeachment is one step McCarthy has taken that endangers his most vulnerable members.

Pennsylvania Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick, one of those Biden-district Republicans, said no one has approached me about impeaching Mayorkas. And Rep. Don Bacon (R-Neb.), who holds another purple seat, pointed to the 2024 election as the avenue for litigating disagreements about Bidens border policies.

Honestly, Mayorkas is failing at his job, but what does impeachment out of the House gonna get you?  Its going to be a lot of effort and does that not take us off other priorities? I think it does, Bacon said.

He added that the real issue is Joe Biden.  We need to get a new president in 24. That is the ultimate answer.
FILE - Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., speaks as the House select committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol holds its final meeting on Capitol Hill in Washington, Dec. 19, 2022. The House has rejected an effort to censure Schiff, voting to turn aside a Republican attempt to fine the Democrat over his comments about former President Donald Trump and investigations into his ties to Russia. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, File) (ASSOCIATED PRESS)

WASHINGTON (AP)  The House has rejected an effort to censure California Rep. Adam Schiff, turning aside a Republican attempt to fine the Democrat over his comments about former President Donald Trump and investigations into his ties to Russia.

Schiff, the former Democratic chairman of the House Intelligence Committee and the lead prosecutor in Trumps first impeachment trial, has long been a top Republican political target. Soon after taking back the majority this year, Republicans blocked him from sitting on the intelligence panel.

But Schiff was helped Wednesday by more than 20 Republicans who voted with Democrats to stop the censure resolution or voted present, giving Democrats enough votes to block the measure.

The vote was a rare victory for Democrats in the Republican-led House, and they cheered and patted Schiff on the back after the vote was gaveled down.

Im flattered they think Im so effective they have to go after me in this way," Schiff, who is running for Senate in his liberal state, told reporters afterward. "Its not going to deter me.

Florida Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, a newly elected Republican who sponsored the measure, passed Schiff in the hallway after the vote and told him she would try again.

Luna later tweeted that she would remove a portion of the resolution that suggested a $16 million fine if the House Ethics Committee determined that Schiff lied, made misrepresentations and abused sensitive information. Some Republicans, including Kentucky Rep. Thomas Massie, had argued that the fine  which Luna had said was half the cost of the Mueller probe  was unconstitutional.

Next week, we will be filing a motion to censure and investigate Schiff, Luna tweeted. We are removing fine as that seems to be what made these Republicans uneasy.

She tweeted, See you next week, Adam.

The resolution says that Schiff held positions of power during Trumps presidency and abused this trust by saying there was evidence of collusion between Trumps campaign and Russia. Schiff was one of the most outspoken critics of the former president as both the Justice Department and the Republican-led House launched investigations into Trumps ties to Russia in 2017.

By repeatedly telling these falsehoods, Representative Schiff purposely deceived his Committee, Congress, and the American people, the resolution said.

Special counsel Robert Mueller, who led the two-year Justice Department investigation, determined that Russia intervened on the campaigns behalf and that Trumps campaign welcomed the help. But Muellers team did not find that the campaign conspired to sway the election, and the Justice Department did not recommend any charges.

The congressional probe, launched by Republicans who were then in the majority, similarly found that Russia intervened in the election but that there was no evidence of a conspiracy. Schiff was the top Democrat on the panel at the time.

If the House had voted to censure him, Schiff would have stood in the front of the chamber while the text of the resolution was read.

On Tuesday, Schiff told reporters that the censure resolution was red meat that Speaker Kevin McCarthy is throwing to his conference amid squabbles over government spending. Republicans are trying to show their fealty to Trump, Schiff said.

He said he warned the country during impeachment proceedings three years ago that Trump "would go on to do worse. And of course he did worse in the form of a violent attack on the Capitol.

After Democrats won the House majority in 2018, the House impeached Trump for abuse of power after he threatened to withhold military aid to Ukraine and urged the countrys president to investigate then-candidate Joe Biden. Schiff was the lead House prosecutor making the case for conviction to the Senate   right matters, he said repeatedly  but the Republican-led chamber ultimately acquitted him.

Trump was impeached a second time a year later, after he had left office, for his role in the January 6, 2021 insurrection at the Capitol of his supporters. The Senate again acquitted Trump.

Luna in the censure resolution against Schiff also cited a report released in May from special counsel John Durham that found that the FBI rushed into its investigation of Trumps campaign and relied too much on raw and unconfirmed intelligence.

Durham said investigators repeatedly relied on confirmation bias, ignoring or rationalizing away evidence that undercut their premise of a Trump-Russia conspiracy as they pushed the probe forward. But he did not allege that political bias or partisanship were guiding factors for the FBIs actions.

Trump had claimed that Durham's report would reveal the crime of the century and expose a deep state conspiracy by high-ranking government officials to derail his candidacy and later his presidency. But the investigation yielded only one conviction  a guilty plea from a little-known FBI employee  and the only two other cases that were brought both ended in acquittals at trial.

The House censure resolution comes days after Trump was indicted on detailed federal charges of hoarding classified documents  several of which dealt with sensitive national security matters  and attempting to conceal them. House Republicans, most of whom are loyal to Trump, say the indictment is evidence that the government is conspiring against the former president.

McCarthy, R-Calif., called the indictment a grave injustice and said that House Republicans will hold this brazen weaponization of power accountable.

Democratic Rep. Jason Crow of Colorado, who served as an impeachment manager with Schiff, says Republicans are trying to rewrite history.

This is clearly a handful of Republican members of the House that are trying to do Donald Trumps bidding and trying to distract from his very serious legal problems, Crow said.

___

Associated Press writer Kevin Freking contributed to this report.
Chinese President Xi Jinping on Wednesday sent a congratulatory letter to the Forum on Global Human Rights Governance.

At a time of severe challenges facing the global human rights governance, China stands for safeguarding human rights with security, respecting the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all countries, calling on all countries to follow the path of peaceful development, and putting into action the Global Security Initiative, Xi noted in the letter.

China advocates for promoting human rights with development, putting into action the Global Development Initiative, and ensuring fair entitlement to human rights by people of all countries through modernization paths with their own characteristics, Xi said.

China stands for advancing human rights with cooperation in the spirit of mutual respect and equality, putting into action the Global Civilization Initiative, and deepening exchanges and mutual learning among civilizations, he added.

Putting the people above all else, China has pursued a human rights development path that follows the trend of the times and suits its national conditions, strengthening human rights protection in the course of advancing Chinese modernization, Xi stressed.

China is ready to work with the rest of the world to act on the principles enshrined in the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action, push for greater fairness, justice, reason, and inclusiveness in global human rights governance, and promote the development of a human community with a shared future, he said.

Jointly hosted by the Information Office of the State Council, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the China International Development Cooperation Agency, the forum is themed "Equality, Cooperation and Development: The 30th Anniversary of the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action and Global Human Rights Governance." It opened in Beijing on Wednesday.
Hurricane season to test Miami's battle against urban flooding Flooding in Miami, Florida, from a tropical rainstorm in June 2022.

As another Atlantic hurricane season is underway, some Miami residents are raising concerns about the urban flooding that could come with it.

The climate phenomenon El Nino, which occurs when water temperatures are above the historical average across central and eastern parts of the Pacific Ocean centered around the equator, is officially underway. Despite occurring thousands of miles away from the Atlantic, the pattern influences global weather.

For South Florida, the El Nino pattern is expected to disrupt tropical development in the Atlantic at times during hurricane season, as westerly winds will dip farther south into the tropics. That can cause vertical wind shear - or changing winds with altitude - and thunderstorm growth to become tilted.

"That tilt caused by the shear disrupts the possibility of tropical development," explained AccuWeather Lead Hurricane Expert Dan Kottlowski.

Even though El Nino can create more hostile conditions for the development of named tropical storms in the Atlantic at times, it won't entirely eliminate threats from the tropics, including from unnamed storms. AccuWeather National Reporter Bill Wadell said locals in the Miami area know that even slow-moving thunderstorms can cause urban flooding issues in the city.

Flooding in Miami, Florida, from a tropical rainstorm in June 2022. Flooding in Miami, Florida, from a tropical rainstorm in June 2022.

The potential for destruction from unnamed storms was apparent in June 2022 when a tropical rainstorm brought chaos to Miami and the streets of Brickell - the city's financial center. Roadways became flooded, leading to many people climbing through sunroofs to escape their cars as water poured across the city. Over 10 inches was reported in the city, with nearby Hollywood, Florida, reporting nearly 15 inches of rain.

That rainstorm eventually became Tropical Storm Alex after it moved away from Florida.

In the year since the flooding impacted the city, some residents are concerned that not enough has changed to prevent a repeat event this year.

"I don't think there's really been any improvement, to be honest. These roads kind of turn into almost rivers," Miami Resident Dylan Orrell told Wadell.

In order to prevent a repeat event, the City of Miami began a project to improve drainage systems. City leaders reported millions of dollars have already been invested in installing more pumps and upgrading drainage infrastructure. The South Florida master plan calls for investments of close to $4 billion over the next four decades to prevent flooding from more significant storms and the threat of rising sea levels.

Flooding in Miami, Florida, from a tropical rainstorm in June 2022.

Some Miami residents have already noticed improvements to the city's drainage.

"Two or three years ago was terrible. Now, it's getting better. I can see the city working in all the streets," said Miami resident Wilson Bacateque.

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In 2022, the City of Miami achieved an improved Community Rating System rating from the National Flood Insurance Program - resulting in up to a 20 percent discount on flood insurance premiums for city property owners and renters, according to the city government. The achievement was accomplished in part by the flooding project. The city's flood plan management efforts include improving flood risk mapping, development standards, and drainage system maintenance.

"The City continues to encourage property owners to know their risk for flooding and to contact their insurance agent to purchase flood insurance and understand what is covered," The City of Miami advised in its plan.

Reporting by AccuWeather's Bill Wadell.

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An Idaho prosecutor has asked for a large funding increase to help cover the expenses it will cost to put quadruple murder suspect Bryan Kohberger on trial.

The Latah County Prosecutors Office asked commissioners to provide $135,000 for trial expenses, a significant increase from the normal $15,000 budget, reported The Lewiston Tribune.

Mr Kohberger has been charged with four counts of first-degree murder and one count of burglary for the brutal November stabbing deaths of University of Idaho students Kaylee Goncalves, Madison Mogen, Xana Kernodle and Ethan Chapin.

He remains in Latah County Jail with his trial expected to take place between 2 October and 12 November.

Mr Kohberger chose to remain silent during his 22 May arraignment hearing and Latah County District Judge John Judge entered a not-guilty plea on his behalf.

Latah County Prosecutor Bill Thompson told the commissioners on Tuesday that trial expenses would include paying for expert witnesses, travel fees for witnesses, exhibit displays and transcripts.

Its hard to project exactly whats going to be involved, he said. We know that its not going to be cheap.

Mr Thompson told the officials that he was trying to keep his expenses to a minimum but added that we need to make sure that we dont cut corners on anything with regard to making sure this case is handled properly.

Commissioner Kathie LaFortune told the prosecutor that he should increase his estimate to $150,000 to cover any costs, reported the Tribune.

The county commissioners will adopt the annual budget in September.
Idaho Republican to hold up arms sale to Hungary for delaying Swedens NATO entry

Sen. Jim Risch (Idaho), the top-ranking Republican on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, says he will hold up a $735 million arms sale to Hungary until it drops its opposition to Sweden joining NATO, of which Hungary is a member.

For some time now, I have directly expressed my concerns to the Hungarian government regarding its refusal to move forward a vote for Sweden to join NATO, Risch said in a statement.

Given promises that were made to me and others last year that this vote would be done, and the fact that it is now June and still not done, I decided that the sale of new U.S. military equipment to Hungary will be on hold. Hungary should take the actions necessary to allow Sweden into the alliance, and soon, Risch said.

Rischs hold will delay the sale of 24 HIMARS rocket launchers and more than 100 rockets.

The Washington Post first reported Rischs move to block the arms sale.

Hungary has blocked Swedens accession to NATO because of grievances over Swedens criticisms of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban.

President Biden and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg met Tuesday at the White House and hope to announce Swedens membership into NATO at the alliances summit in Lithuania this summer.

Finland and Sweden applied for membership in NATO last year in response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and Finland joined the group in April.

Turkey initially opposed Swedens accession to NATO because of concerns about how Sweden viewed its national security priorities. Turkey has accused Sweden of not taking a harder-line stance against Kurdish militant groups.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
IKEA to open a new North Texas store that will be the first of its kind in Texas

An IKEA furniture store will soon open in Southlake, but it looks a lot different than the global brands traditional storefronts.

The retail site is just under 11,000 square feet, whereas IKEAs other North Texas locations in Grand Prairie and Frisco are in the 300,000-square-feet ballpark.

In what will be the third IKEA location in the Metroplex, IKEA Southlake will operate under a new format where customers can meet with IKEA representatives to plan and personalize their home furnishing and decorations, place orders for delivery, and pick up online purchases. Unlike a traditional flagship location, customers wont be able to take home orders they purchased the same day.

The Southlake store in the Park Village shopping center will open in late 2023, the company announced Tuesday. It will be located at 1041 E. Southlake Blvd., near a Michaels arts and crafts store, West Elm furniture store and REI outdoor store.

Javier Quinones, CEO and chief sustainability officer of IKEAs U.S. operations, said in a release that IKEA is excited to offer a new shopping experience to customers with a focus on convenience and accessibility.

Whether youre looking for inspiration, need help from an IKEA design specialist or simply want to pick up an online order, the IKEA Southlake Plan & order point with Pick-up meets our customers where they are and how they like to shop, Quinones said.

The Southlake store will be the first of its kind in Texas. IKEA currently operates two locations under the new store format in California and has plans for other sites in California, Virginia and Maryland that will open in the summer and fall. Sweden-based IKEA operates more than 50 of its flagship store formats in the U.S.

While the plan & order point with pick-up is different from our traditional IKEA store, we are continuously exploring new ways to bring IKEA closer to our customers and hope it will better meet the needs of our local customers, said Rob Parsons, market area manager for IKEA U.S. in a release.
As the nations ideological fight reaches book shelves, Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed legislation on Monday that would cut off state funding for Illinois public libraries that restrict or ban books.

Pritzker called the bill, which takes effect on Jan. 1, 2024, the first of its kind. The legislation arrives as conservatives across the nation push to restrict or outright ban texts discussing race and L.G.B.T.Q. issues. Efforts to censor books in schools and public libraries doubled in 2022, and a record number of 2,571 unique titles were targeted for censorship, according to the American Library Association in March.

Last month, a Florida school restricted elementary-aged students on from reading The Hill We Climb, the poem written and recited by Amanda Gorman at Joe Bidens inauguration as president. In April, the Florida Department of of Education announced that they would reject 41 percent of math textbooks submitted by publishers for its K-12 curriculum, claiming that some contained critical race theory (CRT).

Book bans are about censorship, marginalizing people, marginalizing ideas and facts, Pritzker, a Democrat, said at the bill-signing event at Chicagos Harold Washington Library Center. Regimes ban books, not democracies.

Today, Illinois makes history as the first state in our nation to officially end book bans once and for all.



Were showing everyone what it looks like to stand up for liberty. As simple as that. pic.twitter.com/AjWaT1gdQv  Governor JB Pritzker (@GovPritzker) June 12, 2023

The bill aims to protect the freedom of libraries and library systems to acquire materials without external limitation and to be protected against attempts to ban, remove, or otherwise restrict access to books or other materials. Under the new legislation, Illinois public libraries will be only be eligible for state grants if they adopt the American Library Associations Library Bill of Rights, which asserts that materials should not be proscribed or removed because of partisan or doctrinal disapproval.

We are not saying that every book should be in every single library, said Illinois Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias, the state librarian who spearheded the legislation. What this law does is it says, lets trust our experience and education of our librarians to decide what books should be in circulation.

On Monday, Pritzker tweeted, I want our children to learn our history, warts and all. Read as much as you can. Read different perspectives. Read challenging ideas, adding, And may one of Illinois very own pick up a pen to tell their story, so we may find it at our local library right here in our state.

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A 62-year-old man is facing firearms charges in Illinois after authorities say he accidentally shot himself in the leg in his sleep while dreaming that he was defending himself against an "intruder" in his home.

The man, identified as Mark Dicara of Lake Barrington, used a .357 Magnum revolver that he owned to fire the shot at around 9:50 p.m. on April 10, the Lake County government said in a news release issued on Tuesday. According to Lake County sheriff's deputies, on the night of the incident Dicara dreamed someone was breaking into his home, and retrieved the gun to shoot at whomever he believed was the "intruder."

But, when he fired the revolver, Dicara shot himself in the leg instead and woke from the dream, a subsequent investigation found. Authorities also confirmed during the probe that an attempted burglary did not happen at Dicara's residence, and there was no intruder on his property.

Sheriff's deputies responded to the scene after receiving a call reporting a person with a gunshot wound at the residence, the county said. They found Dicara when they arrived, suffering from a gunshot wound to the leg and losing what they described as a "significant amount of blood." It was later determined that the round discharged from his gun went through the leg and lodged itself in his bedding, so no one else was harmed. Deputies applied a tourniquet to the leg after finding Dicara and transported him to a hospital in the area for treatment.

During the investigation that followed, authorities realized that Dicara owned and used the revolver despite not having a Firearm Owners Identification card, which is mandatory in Illinois in order to legally possess a gun. Authorties said Dicara's identification card had previously been revoked, although they did not share details as to why. The Lake County State's Attorney's Office approved two charges for Dicara, for possession of a firearm without a valid FOID card and reckless discharge of a firearm. They are considered Class 3 and Class 4 felonies, respectively.

Dicara was arrested in Lake County on Monday and then released after posting $150,000 bond. He is scheduled to appear in court on June 29.

Inside the courtroom as Trump was arraigned on federal charges

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Monica Schipper

The union at Insider, the digital news outlet dedicated to business and tech news, has reached a deal with its management, ending a historic 13-day strike that almost completely shut down the newsroom after the company laid off dozens of employees.

Insider is a great place to work, and we're proud that the CBA formalizes many of our existing practices, policies, and benefits, including freedom to work from anywhere in the US, top of the market pay, 16 weeks of parental leave, and a commitment to building a diverse and equitable workplace, the companys president Barbara Peng wrote in an email to employees on Wednesday. Over the past two years we have worked diligently to develop a contract that works for our union members, as well as the entire Insider team. That's why we're extending some great new benefits to all of our employees as well, including funds to put towards mental health and prescription costs.

Staffers will return to work on Thursday, the guild announced.

To those of you coming back: Welcome back, editor-in-chief Nicholas Carlson emailed staffers. We missed you. Our audience missed you. Congratulations on your excellent CBA.

He later added: We have bright days ahead.

The tentative deal includes a $65,000 salary floor, a 3.5 percent immediate raise for those who havent received one this year (with a 3.75 percent raise for all employees next year), and a commitment to not lay off any more employees for the rest of 2023. The agreement also addressed the Insiders decision to change its healthcare providers, a charge the union claimed was illegal, by setting up a reimbursement account for employees that will pay out $2,200 over three years to spend on mental health and prescription costs.

Inside the Collapse of Insiders Much-Hyped D.C. Team

As part of the contract, the union also agreed to settle its unfair labor practice charges filed with the National Labor Relations Board over the companys move to switch its healthcare provider from United Healthcare to Cigna, a decision staffers said made their prescription costs skyrocket.

The road to ending the longest open-ended strike in online news was not so simple.

The agreement comes after the strike was called on June 2, following weeks of bargaining over both the unions long-stalled contract and the companys decision in April to lay off dozens of staffers, including 60 unit members. The two sides eventually agreed to a tally of 44 staffers getting laid off, including some not originally on the proposed list, just before the strike began.

The first few days of the strike were marred by an effective stalemate between the union and the company, with employees publicly calling for the outlet to come to the table at all. Jessica Liebman, the company's chief people officer, told staffers on June 6 that some points on professional development and wage issues had been agreed to, but conceded it was not enough.

We still have a ways to go, she wrote.

Eventually, the two sides moved to off-the-record bargaining sessions, hashing out the terms of the dealand leaving striking staffers demanding for more money instead. The union also launched a strike publication, aptly titled Business Outsider, which gave some reporters the chance to publish pieces related to the strikeincluding getting the White House to praise the striking workers and grilling Semafor editor-in-chief Ben Smith.

The strike brought out all forms of supportand criticism from certain media villains. Elon Musk urged workers, perhaps facetiously, on Wednesday to continue striking (Fight on, comrades!), and Insider foe Dave Portnoywhose lawsuit against Insider over two stories alleging Portnoy committed sexual misconduct was dismissed last yeartried to crash the unions picket line.

Still, the solidarity seemed to waver at times. The union repeatedly warned staffers against leaking to the media, including after a video of union members confronting Carlson as he took down union-made posters, featuring his photo, that were plastered around his Brooklyn neighborhood. The video was posted in the unions Slack channel last week.

I think we should think very carefully before sharing the Nich video publicly, a union member wrote in the chats reviewed by The Daily Beast. Ultimately, we do need to work together productively as a newsroom after this is all over, rebuild trust, etc. Putting this out there may make that harder. Just something to think about.

"Plz dont leak the video just [because] you want it out there, another member wrote. I know weve had some issues with leaks and thats really not cool.

Some staffers seemed not to care. The video ended up in the New York Post on Tuesday, prompting the company to declare Carlson was a big boy who was not annoyed at the union  after all, it was only a handful who participated in the stunt.

The leak enraged a plethora of staffers, who argued on Slack that it diminished their fight and risked eventual consequences with management. Some wondered if they should reach out to Carlson personally to apologize for the seemingly unauthorized leak.

This is a super shitty thing tohave [sic] happened and if you want to leak stuff, you should honestly just log out of the union slack and go scab instead because its less harmful than this kind of shit, a union member wrote. In terms of damage control, what were worried about here is nichs feelings and working with him moving forward.

The leak seemed not to have impacted the unions marathon, on-the-record bargaining sessions, with both unit chair Emma LeGault and Liebman writing staffers early Wednesday to announce a deal was imminent. After hours of bargaining throughout the day, the deal was announced just before 4 p.m. ET.

The strike was the first for a U.S. publication owned by German media empire Axel Springer, and the new deal becomes the first union contract since the companys entry into the U.S. media market. Fellow Axel Springer-owned outlet Politico is also currently negotiating a contract.

The work stoppage at Insider, which is run by famed investor Henry Blodget, preceded other headline-grabbing walkouts like those at a number of Gannett newspapers (including the Palm Beach Post, Florida Times Union, and Arizona Republic), which occurred during the companys shareholder meeting earlier this month.

A slumping economy and declining advertising revenues have resulted in industry-wide tumult, often culminating in layoffs, cuts to employee benefits, and other belt-tightening moves. In response, more and more media staffers have walked out in protest. Unionized employees at The New York Times, NBC News, and Reuters held walkouts over the last year, with the latter agreeing to a contract about a month after voting for a strike.

NewsGuild President Jon Schleuss told The Daily Beast on Monday that the organization has seen 27 one-day-or-longer walkouts so far this year, a marked jump from 21 labor stoppages in all of 2022.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

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Officials unveiled on Wednesday a plan to repair an elevated section of Interstate 95 in Philadelphia that collapsed when a tanker truck caught fire in the underpass.

Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro said the "most efficient" way to get the impacted lanes reopened will be to backfill and pave over the Cottman Avenue underpass and then work to build a new bridge.

"Once complete, cars and trucks can return to this stretch of 95 and then we will work together to build a permanent bridge, while making sure we keep six lanes of traffic open at all times," Shapiro said at a press conference.

A 24/7 livestream feed that will allow the public to watch the reconstruction in real time will be set up over the weekend, according to the governor.

MORE: I-95 collapse updates: 1 vehicle trapped under the highway, no one injured, governor says

PHOTO: Workers inspect and clear debris from an elevated section of Interstate 95 that collapsed the previous day in Philadelphia on June 12, 2023. (Mark Makela/Getty Images)

Shapiro didn't give a timeline on when the repaving of the underpass will be complete, but he stressed that it will be done "as quickly as possible." The materials to fill the underpass will arrive on Thursday, he said.

"This is our championship," he added. "We are ready to go and I am proud as hell to be on the team with all of these guys and gals standing behind me here today."

The governor had told reporters on Sunday evening that "the complete rebuild" is expected "to take some number of months."

The bridge collapsed on Sunday morning as a tanker truck carrying 8,500 gallons of gasoline attempted to navigate a left-hand turn after exiting at the Cottman Avenue offramp of I-95 in Pennsylvania's largest city, according to officials. Losing control through its turn, the truck fell on its side and ruptured its own tank. Once ignited, the fuel burned at a high enough heat to structurally compromise the concrete and steel I-beams of the overpass, officials said.

MORE: Body recovered from Interstate 95 collapse wreckage

PHOTO: An investigator surveys the aftermath of an elevated section of Interstate 95 that collapsed, in Philadelphia, June 12, 2023. (Matt Rourke/AP)

The northbound lanes of the affected segment collapsed, while the southbound lanes are compromised and will also need to be replaced. Crews have since removed most of the collapsed structure along with the tanker truck that was trapped beneath, officials said. They are now working to demolish the structurally unsound southbound portion of the roadway. The full demolition will be finished by Thursday, according to Shapiro.

The Pennsylvania State Police said Monday that a body was recovered from the wreckage and turned over to the Philadelphia County Medical Examiner and Coroner. While authorities have yet to identify the remains, the family of Nathaniel Moody told ABC News that he was the driver of the tanker truck and had died in the crash. Moody leaves behind a son and two daughters, his family said.

I-95 is one of the busiest travel corridors in the United States and serves as the main north-south highway on the East Coast. An average of more than 160,000 vehicles travel across the impacted section in Philadelphia every day, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation.

ABC News' Victoria Arancio, Peter Charalambous, Matt Foster, Josh Margolin and Chad Murray contributed to this report.

Officials unveil Interstate 95 collapse repair plan in Philadelphia: 'This is our championship' originally appeared on abcnews.go.com
Jiang Qiulian, the mother of a Chinese student who was stabbed to death outside her apartment in Japan in 2016, announced on Monday she would donate the entire compensation she had received from her daughter's former roommate to a volunteer association based in Qingdao, Shandong province.

In a video shared on Jiang's personal Weibo account, it was revealed that she signed a donation contract amounting to 696,000 yuan ($97,000) with the Shuguang Public Welfare Volunteer Association of Jimo district, where her late daughter had previously served as a volunteer.

Reflecting on the time since her daughter's death, Jiang expressed gratitude for the immense help and support she had received. She expressed her desire to perpetuate the kindness and her daughter's aspiration for volunteering through the donation.

She firmly believed that the association possessed high credibility and would utilize every penny of the funds to assist financially disadvantaged students in pursuing higher education.

Jiang received the compensation from Liu Nuanxi, her daughter's former roommate.

The dispute between Jiang and Liu began on Nov 3, 2016, when Jiang Ge, 24, was stabbed to death in the hallway outside her apartment in Tokyo by Chen Shifeng, Liu's ex-boyfriend.

In 2017, a Tokyo court found Chen guilty of killing Jiang and sentenced him to 20 years in prison.

Jiang Qiulian was dissatisfied with the ruling and said Liu was also responsible for her daughter's death because she locked her daughter out of the apartment, putting her in a position to be attacked. She also expressed anger about the misinformation that Liu posted about Jiang Ge on the microblogging platform Sina Weibo.

In 2019, Jiang Qiulian filed a lawsuit against Liu, asking for 2 million yuan in compensation.

The Chengyang District People's Court in Shandong and later the Qingdao Intermediate People's Court in Shandong agreed that Liu was at fault and that she should bear the civil punishment because she had not informed Jiang Ge of the potential danger posed by Chen, who had intimidated Liu previously, nor had she taken Jiang Ge's safety into account when she locked her out of the residence.

On Tuesday, Jiang Qiulian revealed that she had received a notice from the Shandong High People's Court indicating that Liu had filed an appeal for a retrial.
Iran president rails against US sanctions during visit to Nicaragua

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi shakes hands with Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, as he receives the Order of Libertador y Libertadora de Primera Clase, at Miraflores presidential palace in Caracas, Venezuela, Monday, June 12, 2023. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos) (ASSOCIATED PRESS)

MEXICO CITY (AP)  In his first visit to Latin America, Irans hardline president met Tuesday with his Nicaraguan counterpart and railed against a theme both leaders have in common: U.S. sanctions.

President Ebrahim Raisis visit to Nicaragua is his second stop, after Venezuela. He is also scheduled to visit Cuba, Iran's other ally in the region.

Raisi spoke at a joint appearance in Managua with Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega.

The United States wanted to paralyze our people with threats and sanctions, but it hasnt been able to do it, Raisi said.

Many top figures in Ortega's government also face U.S. sanctions for crushing dissent and imprisoning or exiling opponents.

On Monday , Raisi visited President Nicolas Maduro of Venezuela, which is also under U.S. economic sanctions.

His tour of allied nations in Latin America comes amid rising tensions with the administration of President Joe Biden.

The U.S. has accused Iran of providing Russia with materials to build a drone manufacturing plant east of Moscow, while the Kremlin seeks to ensure a steady supply of weapons for its invasion of Ukraine. U.S. intelligence officials believe the plant in Russia could start operations early next year, but Iran has said it supplied drones to Russia before the start of the war.
Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi railed against U.S. sanctions at a joint appearance with Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega on Tuesday.

Raisi is taking his first trip to Latin America to visit key allies in the region. Before visiting Nicaragua on Tuesday, he visited Venezuela and plans to stop in Cuba next.

The United States wanted to paralyze our people with threats and sanctions, but it hasnt been able to do it, Raisi said at a joint speaking engagement with Ortega.

Iran faces sweeping sanctions by the United States that have reportedly caused significant damage to its economy. Many of the sanctions are related to Irans alleged human rights abuses, its crackdown on protestors and free speech and its connection to Russia in the war against Ukraine.

The United States has accused Iran of supplying Russia with drones and materials to build a drone manufacturing plant to ensure the continued flow of weapons as Russia continues its invasion of Ukraine, The Associated Press reported.

Raisis visit comes as tensions with the United States continue to rise.

Nicaragua and Venezuela also face U.S. sanctions.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
A man committed sexual battery against a woman in the area of Scholarship and Graduate in Irvine. The suspect followed the victim before restraining and groping her from behind. (Irvine Police Department / Los Angeles Times)

Irvine police have arrested a suspect in a sexual assault that occurred Saturday morning near the UC Irvine campus.

On Wednesday morning, police arrested Brandon Dybdahl, 23, of Beaumont, at a residence in Laguna Hills, the Irvine Police Department said. Dybdahl, who police say was in possession of the vehicle seen in the video, "will be charged with sexual battery and false imprisonment."

In the video, released by the police department, Dybdahl allegedly "followed the victim before restraining and groping her from behind," according to a statement by the Irvine Police Department.

Karie Davies, a spokesperson for the Irvine Police Department, said the victim was wearing a head covering resembling those worn by some Muslim women, but "we don't have any indication" that it played a role.

The investigation is "not going there with hate crime right now," according to Davies. She also stressed that although the crime occurred in the vicinity of UC Irvine, it "has nothing to do with UCI."

After a brief altercation, Dybdahl allegedly fled in a four-door white Nissan Sentra with a spoiler. He was initially described by police as a white male with reddish-brown hair around 6 feet and 160 pounds in his early 20s.

In the video, he wore a gray, short-sleeved shirt with black shorts and flip-flops.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Jack Dorsey said India raided the homes of Twitter employees when the company wouldn't shut down accounts for the government

Jack Dorsey creator, co-founder, and Chairman of Twitter and co-founder & CEO of Square speaks on stage at the Bitcoin 2021 Convention. Joe Raedle/Getty Images

Jack Dorsey said India raided homes of Twitter's workers when the company refused to ban some accounts.

Dorsey said India, the world's biggest democracy, also threatened to shut Twitter down in the country.

India's information technology minister has since decried Dorsey's claim as an "outright lie."

Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey said India's government previously raided the homes of the company's employees when the platform refused to comply with censorship demands.

Speaking on the podcast "Breaking Points" hosted on Tuesday by Krystal Ball and Saagar Enjeti, Dorsey recalled his dealings with powerful people attempting to influence Twitter's operations while he still ran the company.

"India is a country that had many requests of us around the farmers' protest, around particular journalists that were critical of the government," Dorsey said. "And it manifested in ways such as: 'We will shut, put her down in India,' which is a very large market for us."

"'We will raid the homes of your employees,' which they did," Dorsey continued. "'We will shut down your offices if you don't follow suit.' And this is India, a democratic country."

Dorsey's remarks come two years after Twitter began facing a wave of demands from Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government to clamp down on dissent and criticism on the platform.

One major incident involved the farmers' protests in January 2021, when tens of thousands of farmers gathered in Delhi to object to agricultural laws. The Indian government asked Twitter to permanently ban accounts that were aggressively critical of the government, which the platform refused to do.

"In keeping with our principles of defending protected speech and freedom of expression, we have not taken any action on accounts that consist of news media entities, journalists, activists, and politicians," Twitter said in a statement then.

Tensions escalated further when the government issued a law in May 2021, which made tech companies and employees liable for prosecution and prison sentences if they refused takedown orders.

The same month, police in India raided Twitter's office in Delhi and Gurgaon, as part of an investigation over the platform labeling an Indian minister's tweets as "manipulated media."

On Tuesday, India's information technology minister, Rajeev Chandrasekhar, tweeted that Dorsey's claim about Twitter employees' homes being raided was an "outright lie."

Accused Twitter of "partisan behavior," Chadrasekhar said the platform had violated Indian law amid the local government's attempt to quash misinformation.

Chandrasekhar did not immediately respond to a request for comment sent by Insider. Representatives for Dorsey's company, Block, did not immediately respond to a similar request for Dorsey sent outside regular business hours.

Read the original article on Business Insider
Jacksonville man arrested and charged for murder from 2018

Jacksonville Sheriffs Office responded to a person shot in Dec. 23, 2018. When officers arrived, they located a victim who was pronounced dead at the hospital.

JSO continues to investigate with the crime scene unit. On Monday Dec. 24, 2018 JSO arrested Donte Bartley for accessory after the fact.

As the investigation continued, and through the Homicide Detectives extensive investigative work, a second suspect was identified in the case. As a result, a warrant was obtained for Anthony A. Jones.

Jones was subsequently arrested for Murder with the assistance of the U.S. Marshals on June 13, 2023.

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Read: Jacksonville man arrested for felony battery and tampering with electronic monitoring device

Read: Jail records show murder suspect in custody

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The Jax Melanin Market is set to host a sensational event in honor of Juneteenth, bringing together a diverse showcase of over 150 Black-owned businesses, talented artists, and inspiring educators.

The Juneteenth Melanin Market will take place on Saturday, June 17, from 3 p.m. to 9 p.m., at 822 A. Philip Randolph Blvd.

Juneteenth, a significant national holiday known as Emancipation Day, commemorates the freedom of all individuals from slavery, marking the historic day of June 19, 1865, when more than 250,000 enslaved people were finally liberated in Galveston, Texas, two years after the Emancipation Proclamation was signed.

The event promises a vibrant atmosphere, featuring an impressive array of local Black-owned businesses, captivating carnival stilt walkers, a lively kids zone, delectable food trucks, and awe-inspiring performances by esteemed local artists such as Genesis Archer, The Katz Downstairz, Broadway Louie, and Shake Culture Dance, among others.

Promoting education and awareness, the Melanin Market will host educational booths and immersive tours, shedding light on the historical significance of Juneteenth.

Attendees will have the opportunity to delve into the origins of the holiday and explore the rich cultural heritage of the Gullah Geechee people. Descendants of Central and West African ancestors who were brought to the United States through slavery, the Gullah Geechee community played a crucial role in shaping the cultural fabric of Jacksonvilles Eastside.

Visitors will also be able to partake in a guided tour of the Old City Cemetery, the hallowed resting place of numerous prominent African American families and African American soldiers from the Civil War.

Aligned with their mission to empower small minority-owned businesses and foster their growth within the local economy, the Jax Melanin Market pledges to distribute $10,000 in grants to 20 deserving small businesses this year.

As part of this initiative, the Melanin Market will select five business owners every quarter to receive a $500 micro-grant, aiding them in covering various business-related expenses and propelling their enterprises forward. Thanks to a newly formed partnership with Coca-Cola Beverages Florida, LLC., the Jax Melanin Market will double the number of microgrants that will be awarded at the Juneteenth Melanin Market.

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As close friends of Jacky Oh, still mourn her death, consumers all over the country are showing their support by patronizing the late entrepreneurs small business.

According to TMZ, her cosmetics line, J Nova Collection, has seen a huge spike in sales. Orders have been flooding in and many products are selling out. The outlet says that the company has received over 2,000 orders since her death over two weeks ago.

On Instagram, he company thanked all of its supporters for their continued support.

Thank you for supporting J Nova Collection! We appreciate your amazing support and patience as we work diligently to fulfill and ship out your orders, the caption read. We Love Jacky, were going to make you proud, the manager of the account wrote.

Jacky Oh named the brand after one of the children she shares with DC Young Fly. It is reported that the family plans to keep operating the business and possibly the young girl, named Nova, the new face of the brand. Before her passing, Jacky Oh ran the company with her sister Meghan, who is the creative director. Currently, the entire family has jumped in to help fulfill orders. Once everything has settled down, the family will discuss who will take over leadership in the interim until Nova becomes old enough to run the business.

Representatives for the company tell TMZ that they are excited about the incoming orders.

Super proud of the foundation Jacky has built for the business to operate and have great products. We thank everyone for the continuous support as Novas business continues to flourish with her mom watching over, the companies representatives said.

Jacky Ohs Untimely Death

Jacky Oh, whose real name is Jackyln Smith, passed away on May 31st. Although her cause of death is still unknown to the public, many speculate that it was due to cosmetic surgery. Before the news broke of her passing, she uploaded photos and videos of herself in Miami preparing for a Mommy Makeover procedure.

She shared three children with Wild n Out comedian, DC Young Fly.

The post Jacky Ohs Business Sales Increase Following Her Death appeared first on 21Ninety.
(Bloomberg) -- Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida is considering calling an early election if the opposition submits a no-confidence motion to parliament Friday, broadcaster FNN said, citing sources close to the government and ruling parties.

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It remains unclear whether the motion will be submitted and Kishida told reporters Tuesday he would carefully assess the situation in deciding when to call the election. There has been speculation in local media that the vote could come as soon as next month, or in the autumn.

Given the relatively weak support for opposition parties, Kishidas ruling Liberal Democratic Party is likely to remain in power, as it has done almost continuously since its formation in 1955.

The vote would, however, come amid a rift with the LDPs long-time coalition partner Komeito triggered by the redrawing of constituency lines to reflect the ongoing drift of the population from the rural strongholds for Kishidas party to urban areas. Komeito is backed by a lay Buddhist group with the capacity to turn out millions of votes nationwide.

Upstart Japan Party Sees Coalition Cold War Delaying Election

A recent recovery in support for Kishida seems to be petering out and the LDP risks losing some seats to the upstart Japan Innovation Party, which gathered momentum in local elections earlier in the year and is seeking to become the largest opposition force.

Support for Kishidas cabinet has slipped slightly in two recent media surveys. A poll by public broadcaster NHK conducted June 9-11 found a fall of 3 percentage points to 43%, while a separate poll by JNN a week earlier found approval down 0.5 percentage points at 46.7%.

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Members of Japan's self-defence force in Gifu in the aftermath of a shooting during a military exercise - Kyodo News

An 18-year-old military recruit shot and killed two fellow soldiers and wounded a third at a training range in Gifu, in central Japan, on Wednesday, the military said.

During a live-bullet exercise as part of new personnel training, one self-defence forces candidate fired at three personnel, the ground self-defence force said in a statement, confirming two deaths.

The recruit joined the military in April, said Lt Gen Yasunori Morishita, the forces chief of staff, adding that he was detained on the spot.

This kind of incident is absolutely unforgivable for an organisation tasked with handling weapons, and I take it very seriously, Lt Gen Morishita said.

He said the three victims had been tasked with training new recruits, including the attacker, at the range.

The suspect, who has not been named, has been charged with the attempted murder of a 25-year-old soldier, a local police spokesman said.

The cadet fired a rifle at the victim with the intent to kill, the spokesman said.

National broadcaster NHK reported the casualties were a man in his fifties and two men in their twenties. Details of the casualties identities have yet to be officially confirmed.

Two training personnel were killed on and one was injured during the incident in central Japan

Aerial footage broadcast by the station showed military and civilians gathered around an emergency vehicle and police blocking nearby roads.

Lt Gen Morishita said as far as he is aware, gun violence by armed forces personnel that resulted in injuries or fatalities last took place in 1984 at a camp in Yamaguchi.

Gun possession is tightly controlled in Japan, where violent crime is rare. But several high-profile incidents have rattled the country over the last year.

In July 2022, former prime minister Shinzo Abe was shot dead on the campaign trail by an assailant using a home-made firearm.

And in April, prime minister Fumio Kishida escaped unharmed after a man threw an explosive device towards him at a campaign event.

Last month, police in the Nagano region west of Tokyo detained a man after an hours-long knife and shooting rampage, followed by an extended stand-off.

The man killed four people, including two police officers, before he was detained. He is reportedly the son of the speaker of the local city assembly.

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China, Vietnam witness cross-border travel boom

Xinhua) 09:05, June 14, 2023

NANNING, June 13 (Xinhua) -- It has been three years since Liu Fengjiao last traveled abroad, so when she recently embarked on a trip to Vietnam she was brimming with excitement.

Despite the brevity of the trip, Liu, a resident from central China's Hunan Province, was filled with delight at the prospect of the outing. Upon reaching the Youyiguan border gate following her one-day tour in Vietnam, she eagerly retrieved her camera and promptly captured a photograph of her tour group before exchanging goodbyes.

"The anticipation of this trip had filled me with exhilaration, as I had eagerly awaited it for so long. Visiting Vietnam after three years was a dream come true for me," Liu said.

The Youyiguan border gate in the city of Pingxiang in south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region has lately seen a cross-border travel boom, with the number of Chinese and Vietnamese tourists traveling to both sides increasing remarkably.

According to Youyiguan immigration inspection station, departures and arrivals at the border gate reached 460,000 from January to May, which included around 1,400 tour groups with over 23,000 tourists.

With the release of pent-up travel demand after the pandemic, travel agencies and tourism practitioners from both China and Vietnam are expressing confidence in the cross-border tourism market.

Deng Qingfang, from Guangxi Pingxiang Peace International Travel Co., Ltd., said that she has been quite busy lately. Since the resumption of group travel between China and Vietnam in March, she has been actively responding to travel inquiries and connecting with Vietnamese travel agencies.

"We have seen a significant surge in tourists consulting us for travel plans. In the past two months alone, the number of tourists served by our agency has increased by nearly 30 percent compared to the pre-pandemic levels in 2019," said Deng, who has been working in the cross-border travel industry for nearly a decade.

The resurgence in travel demand has rekindled hope among tourism practitioners. According to Deng, all the tour guides who had left the agency over the past three years have returned and resumed their roles as tour leaders, with a majority of them leading tours to Vietnam.

In addition to Chinese tourists, the agency has also seen a notable increase in the number of Vietnamese tourists visiting China. "Recently, we received some 1,000 Vietnamese tourists on a single day," she said.

Pham Thi Hoa Mai, manager of a Vietnamese travel agency, has recently visited many cities in Guangxi to design new travel routes. "China is one of the most popular travel destinations for Vietnamese tourists, and we also collaborate with Chinese travel agencies to organize trips," she said.

In 2019, China was Vietnam's biggest source of foreign visitors with 5.8 million arrivals. Vietnam's tourism industry is well-prepared to welcome more visitors, according to local tourism businesses.

"I will definitely visit Vietnam again and other countries in Southeast Asia. And next time I will stay longer," Liu said.

According to Li Hui, a police officer at Youyiguan immigration inspection station, they have opened special channels for group tours while adopting some new measures to facilitate efficient customs clearance.

(Web editor: Zhong Wenxing, Liang Jun)
You are here: China

Around 720 million yuan (about 100.61 million U.S. dollars) has been retrieved as a result of national inspections of China's medical insurance funds last year, according to the National Healthcare Security Administration.

A total of 48 medical institutions in 23 provincial-level regions were inspected in the national operation, which imposed fines of more than 145 million yuan on those with malpractices and violations, data from the administration showed.

The main problems include charging extra fees and engaging in excessive treatment, examinations, and prescription of drugs in violation of standard norms.

China is improving the world's largest network for basic healthcare security, which covers about 95 percent of the country's 1.4 billion population, by enhancing the supervision of its funds.

During local inspections in 31 provincial-level regions in 2022, authorities handed out punishments to 2,413 medical institutions and recovered 1.98 billion yuan of medical insurance funds.
Japanese Self Defense Force members gather near a facility in a base firing range, following a deadly shooting in Gifu, central Japan, Wednesday, June 14, 2023. A Japanese soldier was arrested Wednesday after allegedly shooting three colleagues at an army base in central Japan, officials said. (Kyodo News via AP)

TOKYO (AP)  An 18-year-old army trainee shot three fellow soldiers at a firing range on a Japanese army base Wednesday, killing two of them, officials said.

The suspect was arrested on suspicion of attempted murder at the scene in Gifu prefecture in central Japan, police said.

The suspect fired a rifle at the soldiers during a shooting exercise at the Hino Kihon firing range, police said.

The Ground Self Defense Force, Japans army, confirmed that two of those wounded were later pronounced dead at a hospital.

Army Chief of Staff Gen. Yasunori Morishita said the suspect joined the military in April and the three soldiers were assisting his shooting exercise as instructors.

An organization that handles weapons should never allow an incident like this to happen, Morishita said at a news conference. As head of the army, I take this very seriously.

Morishita said he has ordered a temporary suspension of exercises involving shooting and explosives across the country while the army investigates and prepares safety measures to prevent a recurrence.

A number of other people were believed to be participating in the training when the shooting occurred, but details are still under investigation, an army official said on condition of anonymity, citing protocol.

Japan has been known for its safety, with strict gun control laws, but high-profile violence has occurred in recent years, including shootings and random knifings on subways and arson attacks, and there is growing concern about homemade guns and explosives.

Prime Minister Fumio Kishida was almost hit by a pipe bomb thrown by a person at an election campaign venue in April.

Former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was assassinated in July 2022 by an attacker using a handmade gun.

Last month, a man was arrested after he allegedly shot two police officers to death after killing two women with a knife in Nagano prefecture.
Japan's Funa Nakayama becomes first Asian woman on cover of Thrasher magazine

[Source]

Tokyo skateboarding prodigy Funa Nakayama has broken new ground as the first Asian woman to ever grace the cover of Thrasher magazine.

Cover girl: The cover showcases the 17-year-old's impressive skills, with the image capturing her mid-grind along a handrail at the iconic 16-step stairway of skate spot Hollywood High in Los Angeles.

The shot, taken last October, captured Nakayama performing her signature move, the frontside crooked grind.

Trying out a trick at Hollywood High allowed me to see firsthand how challenging it is to perform it on the street, she shared. It may be difficult to have everyone understand it, but I would like various people to realize how cool street skating is, too.

More from NextShark: Manny Pacquiao produces film Almighty Zeus tackling anti-Asian hate crimes

Historic appearance: Nakayamas cover on the magazine's January issue comes after fellow Japanese skateboarder Yuto Horigome became the first Japanese athlete to appear on the cover of Thrasher after he secured gold at the 2021 Summer Games.

"I never imagined I would grace the same cover that showcased Mr. Horigome," Nakayama was quoted saying.

Confidence, social media boost: After the covers release, Nakayama experienced a surge in her social media following, with global skateboarding fans congratulating her for the honor. She also noted that her appearance in the magazine had helped her become more confident in her own abilities.

More from NextShark: Photos: Desserts at new Kirby-themed cafe inside Tokyo Station are almost too cute to eat

Nakayama, who won a bronze medal in the women's street competition at the Tokyo Olympics, is set to compete in the 2024 Paris Olympics.

More from NextShark: Manny Pacquiao dominates YouTuber DK Yoo in return to the ring

Enjoy this content? Read more from NextShark!

89-year-old Japanese man recognized as world's oldest male surfer hopes to surf until he's 100
First lady Jill Biden warned Wednesday against voting for former President Trump, saying weve all lived through President Bidens top political rival once before.

We know whats in store if these MAGA Republicans win because weve all lived through this, Biden said during a fundraiser for the Biden Victory Fund in Los Angeles.

Take yourself back in your mind. You remember how U.S. policy was dictated in those late-night tweets. Or how about the constant assault on our most sacred institutions, our democracy and our freedoms, and its only going to get worse, she added, taking a jab at Trump, who notoriously would issue startling claims and sweeping policy statements on Twitter at all hours.

Biden compared Trump to her husband, saying the choice is between chaos and corruption, hatred and division or strong, steady leadership.

The first lady spoke to a group of about 80 people for the afternoon fundraiser and highlighted the incumbents accomplishments so far.

She also sought to convey that he is ready for another four years amid ongoing attacks from Republicans and lingering concerns from some Democrats over his age. The president would be 86 years old at the end of a second term.

Optimism, thats what drives my husband, and nothing can slow him down, she said. Joe is ready  as he likes to say  to finish the job. So, as we get ready to jump back into a campaign, I cannot even believe Im already saying this: Think about how far weve come in the last three years.

The first lady has been on a fundraising swing this week. She was in the San Francisco Bay Area on Tuesday and also warned about reelecting Trump in remarks to donors.

On Monday, she spoke at a closed-door fundraiser in New York, where she mentioned the Trump indictment, making her the first major Biden surrogate to comment on it.

My heart feels so broken by a lot of the headlines that we see on the news, she said, according to an Associated Press reporter present. Like I just saw, when I was on my plane, it said 61 percent of Republicans are going to vote, they would vote for Trump  They dont care about the indictment. So thats a little shocking, I think.

President Biden is heading out for a fundraising swing Friday, starting in Connecticut. He then will travel to Pennsylvania for a political rally and from there to the San Francisco Bay Area for three days.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
Photo: AP (AP)

The comics industry has lost one of the most prolific artists it has ever seen: John Romita Sr., a titan who defined the look of Spider-Man for generations, and other countless Marvel characters and beyond, has died.



Romitas son, John Jr.himself an artist in his fathers footsteps, and currently working on the latest run of Amazing Spider-Manconfirmed the news on social media tonight.

Read more

I say this with a heavy heart, My father passed away peacefully in his sleep. He is a legend in the art world and it would be my honor to follow in his footsteps. Please keep your thoughts and condolences here out of respect for my family.

He was the greatest man I ever met. pic.twitter.com/Pe2K3ywbWX  John Romita JR (@JrRomita) June 14, 2023

I say this with a heavy heart, My father passed away peacefully in his sleep. He is a legend in the art world and it would be my honor to follow in his footsteps, Romita Jr. tweeted. Please keep your thoughts and condolences here out of respect for my family. He was the greatest man I ever met.

Romita Sr.s comics career began before Marvel was even Marvel, illustrating as a ghost artist at Timely Comics. After serving in the Army, Romita returned to the companynow Atlas Comicsin the early 50s illustrating war, horror, and romance comic, including some work on Atlas revival of Captain America. After a brief period at DC, Romita returned to Atlasnow Marveland illustrated for Avengers and Daredevil, until the series that would define his career for years to come landed in his lap: Steve Dikto had left The Amazing Spider-Man, and Stan Lee wanted Romita to step up in his place.

Taking over in August 1966 with Amazing Spider-Man #39, Romita would go on to illustrate some of the most iconic stories in the legendary superheros history. As well as defining the classic look of the character that is still in the minds of many the ultimate version of Peter Parker and Spider-Man, Romita helped create iconic characters like Mary Jane Watson, Rhino, Kingpin, Shocker, and more. Although Romita would leave Amazing Spider-Man due to the workload in 1971, he would still go on to illustrate the character in the Spider-Man news strip series in the late 70s, and return to the character again and again in his career.

As an art editor at Marvel after his Spider-Man run, Romita helped design the looks of even more iconic heroes and villains at the companyincluding the first look for Wolverine, the Punisher, Luke Cage, and Brother Voodoo. It was Romita who redesigned the Black Widows iconic spy suit, who created the Hobgoblins first appearance, and even illustrated the debut of the first female Captain Marvel, Monica Rambeau. Although his contribution to Marvel Comics was vast as an art director, he would never forget the indelible mark he made on one of its most iconic heroes, returning over and over in his late career to keep illustrating the definitive comics aesthetic of Spider-Man.

Romita Sr. is survived by his wife Virginia, and his two sons. Our thoughts go out to his family in this sad time.





Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, whats next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.

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Johnny Depp reflected on his turbulent last few years in a newly-released video from Cannes Film Festival.

Depps film Jeanne du Barry (directed by Maiwenn) opened the May festival this year and was deemed by many to represent a Hollywood comeback following his bitter defamation trial against his ex-wife Amber Heard.

The French-language film about Louis XVs last mistress marked the Pirates of the Caribbean stars first lead role since winning the trial against Heard last year.

On Wednesday (14 June), photographer Greg Williams shared a video of Depp getting ready for Cannes on his Instagram account.

Walking up the steps at the thing, Ive done it a few times with different films over many years, Depp, 60, said in the video of returning to Cannes. Its always kind of  its quite beautiful, when youre at the receiving end, you just feel like, initially you feel f***ing exposed.

Asked by Williams how it felt to be back at the festival promoting a movie, Depp replied that a friend had texted him saying that it was his comeback film or something.

I mean, you call it whatever you want, you could make it whatever you want but comeback? I mean, you have to go away to come back, Depp said on his car journey to the films premiere. I didnt go nowhere. Maybe I was not thought of or looked at or allowed to be looked at...

Asked if he felt any satisfaction towards his return to Cannes, Depp, smiling, admitted: This  you know, yes, there is...

Because, you know, at the top of this horrible period, at the beginning of it it was you know, again, its like kind of what I was saying before. People can hit the bottom many times, he said.

You can drop straight to the bottom a billion f***ing times, but if youre lucky enough to find the basement, youre alright, you know?

Depp had sued Heard for defamation, claiming that she had falsely implied he was abusive towards her in a 2018 Washington Post opinion article.

Johnny Depp attends the Jeanne Du Barry press conference at Cannes Film Festival (Getty Images)

In 2020, Depp announced that he was leaving the Harry Potter spin-off franchise Fantastic Beasts, after being asked to resign by Warner Bros.

His departure came after losing a libel case against The Sun in the UK, in which he sued the paper after it published an article describing him as a wife beater. A UK court ruled that the claim was substantially true.

Depp has not been cast in a major US film since the UK trial.

At a Cannes press conference, Depp was asked whether he still felt boycotted by Hollywood. Did I feel boycotted by Hollywood? Youd have to not have a pulse at that point to feel [like], None of this is happening, this is actually just a weird joke  youve been asleep for 35 years! he responded.

Of course, when youre asked to resign from a film youre doing because of something that is merely a bunch of vowels and consonants floating in the air, you feel a bit boycotted.

You can read The Independents review of Jeanne du Barry here.
Hollywood star Johnny Depp is planning to donate part of the settlement from his defamation case against ex-wife Amber Heard to charity.

The Oscar-nominated actor, 60, will donate $200,000 to five different charities: the Make-A-Film Foundation, Red Feather, The Painted Turtle, the Tetiaroa Society, and the Amazonia Fund Alliance.

The donations are part of a larger settlement that awarded him $10m and Heard $2m in December last year.

Depp filed a $50m defamation lawsuit against Heard in March 2019, accusing her of implying he had abused her in her 2018 op-ed for The Washington Post, in which she discussed her experiences of sexual assault and domestic abuse.

A Virginia jury ruled in favour of Depp on 1 June 2022.

The Make-A-Film Foundation works with film industry talent to grant wishes to children with serious of life-threatening medical conditions. Red Feather was established to develop housing solutions for indigenous communities in America, while The Amazonia Fund Alliance aims to protect and preserve indigenous communities in the Amazon.

The Tetiaroa Society focuses on the conservation of the natural and cultural heritage of the island of Tetiaroa, an atoll near Tahiti. Painted Turtle is a summer camp for children with serious medical conditions that was founded by actor Paul Newman, actor and philanthropist Page Hannah, and music and film producer Lou Adler in 1999.

Both Newman and Marlon Brando, the latter who worked with the Tetiaroa Society, are believed to be personal heroes of Depp.

The Hollywood Reporter cites a source confirming Depps planned donations.

Depps lawyers said of the settlement: We are pleased to formally close the door on this painful chapter for Mr Depp, who made clear throughout this process that his priority was about bringing the truth to light.

Meanwhile, Heard posted a lengthy Instagram statement that said she had agreed to settle in order to avoid yet another arduous and expensive legal process.

She also said that she had exhausted almost all of her resources on the trial, writing: I make this decision having lost faith in the American legal system, where my unprotected testimony served as entertainment and social media fodder.

I cannot afford to risk an impossible bill  one that is not just financial but also psychological, physical and emotional.

(Getty Images)

The US ruling came two years after Depp lost his libel battle against the publisher of The Sun newspaper over an article that referred to him as a wife beater. Depps bid to appeal the ruling in March 2021 was also rejected.

Heard was recently filmed speaking fluent Spanish with reporters outside her home in Madrid, as she confirmed that she had permanently relocated to the city with her two-year old daughter.

The 37-year-old added that she had film projects in the works. Asked about Depps presence at Cannes and whether she would also be attending, she responded: I move on. Thats life.

Meanwhile, Depp brushed off the suggestion that he had been boycotted by Hollywood, remarking that he didnt have much further need for it.

Referring to the idea he was making a comeback with French-language Jeanne du Barry, which premiered at Cannes last month, Depp said: I didnt go anywhere. As a matter of fact, I live about 45 minutes away Comeback, its almost like Im going to come out and do a tap dance.
CHICAGO -- The air-conditioned tour bus with tinted windows stopped outside Bright Star Baptist Church in Bronzeville and out came several dozen congregants from the Anshe Emet Synagogue of Lakeview. They moved slowly up the sidewalk and concrete steps of the church. Before anyone reached the doors, welcomes erupted, like the clamor from a surprise party. I assume youre here for Jonathan Eig? a Bright Star parishioner asked.

Thats right, and all this, a grinning elderly woman said, waving at the growing line queuing up behind her to get in, is what you would call the Jonathan Eig Fan Club.

They laughed.

You would also call this a decent part of the congregation at Eigs synagogue. They came here the other day because the North Side resident and acclaimed biographer was about to publish King: A Life, the first major biography of Martin Luther King Jr. in 40 years. Bright Star and Anshe Emet have had a kind of sister-congregation relationship for a decade. It also makes sense to honor a Baptist minister in a Baptist church. Plus, congregations coming together, one Black, one white, to discuss King is like a manifestation of King  America in harmony. The point is lost on nobody. But its another King, one with claws who posed a serious threat to white supremacy, thats here.

The King who was a person, not a stamp, or statue, or national holiday.

That King is present.

The ceiling of the church was low, and rows of long banquet tables covered in blue tablecloths filled the room. Soon every chair was taken. Two members of the new cross-congregation book club offered thoughts on King. A Bright Star congregant noted King was depressed: That stood out. I experienced depression. An Anshe Emet congregant said one of Eigs sentences resonated: King has become so hallowed hes hollow. Then Rabbi Michael Siegel, soberly, pointed out that though Mayor Brandon Johnson was inaugurated that day, Chicago is at a low ebb ... Yet in this church, I feel a lot of hope. Then Pastor Chris Harris, jocular and warm, looked out on the crowd and said: This is the brightest, and the lightest, my church has ever looked. More laughter, and then attention swung to Eig, the trim, serious, Paul Shaffer-looking guy waiting between them.

Harris: It took a lot of courage for you, as a white man, to write anything about a Black man that is less than positive. The Black community, he said, has long grown used to white writers tearing down the image of King or discrediting his greatness. But thats not this, Harris said. This is six years of reporting, interviewing and reframing greatness.

Eig nodded, staring downward.

King does not take that subtitle, A Life, lightly. It offers what many of Eigs biographies have offered: An American mythology  Muhammad Ali, Lou Gehrig, Jackie Robinson, Al Capone  stripped of its bloodless granite image, though not importance.

Yet history is often a mountain range, scalable yet unmovable.

Several years ago, Eig watched the 2013 Jackie Robinson docudrama 42 and groaned as it repeated a folk tale: During a Robinson road trip to Cincinnati, Red fans booed until a white Brooklyn Dodger, Pee Wee Reese, left his position at shortstop and put an arm around Robinson, silencing the stadium. Its an image chiseled into monuments, repeated in books and even a documentary from Ken Burns, Eigs friend. But I proved pretty conclusively it didnt happen, Eig said earlier that day, before the Bronzeville event. In this job, some stories are embellished so long, theyre cemented.

King required another level of rethinking. To publish a new biography in 2023  a book being hailed as the best, most complete biography of the civil rights leader, and one already dug into The New York Times Bestseller list  meant scraping decades of barnacles off the hull of King until you can say, Lets look at this again, Eig said. The truth is, we havent seen him in a while. Not since we put up a 30-foot-tall monument in D.C. Not since we created a national holiday. Its gotten hard to see him as a person. Some of the people I talked with felt this was intentional. The government needed to strip away what made King so radical until he became a safe figure, the kind we can all hold hands and sing about. People I interviewed who knew him were mad about this.

And with a lot of good reason. You know, when J. Edgar Hoover got the phone call about King being shot, before King was even dead, Hoover said: I hope the bastard doesnt die, because then theyll turn him into a martyr. In a way, a national holiday allows the government to control the image of what King actually stood for, softening it.

After six years of digging and documenting, the result is a biography of King that removed the godliness for something more profound and meaningful. The significance of the book is that it takes us beyond hagiographical treatments of King to a serious consideration of the mans frailties, doubts and vulnerabilities, said Lewis V. Baldwin, a King biographer and professor emeritus of religious studies at Vanderbilt University. Eig accomplishes this without calling into question Dr. Kings important contributions and place in history. It is a portrait of an activist who did not like confrontation, a guy who bit his nails, tried to kill himself (twice) as an adolescent and gave up a white girlfriend as a pragmatic necessity for a career in the Baptist church. Its also a profile of a man whose righteousness, calm and conservative style, as Hoover understood, made him palpable, and therefore a true threat to American leaders not eager to live up to American ideals.

I feel like Jonathan was able to show this person was even more special than we know because he was not a god, said Shannon Luder-Manuel, a sensitivity reader hired by Eigs publisher, Farrar, Straus and Giroux, to study the manuscript and its treatment of Black history. Im mixed race, which factors into my viewpoint, but you walk away from the book understanding King had his faults and that didnt negate everything he did.

Indeed, last month, when Eig spoke to a history class at Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. College Preparatory High School in Kenwood, the students asked what others have: Why was the FBI so obsessed with King? Was it hard as a white guy to research this?

But then one student, Eig recalled, she asked point-blank: How do we know you havent made all this stuff up? Which, fundamentally, may be the smartest question.

Jonathan Eig works from a small thin office in the back of his apartment in Lakeview, which he shares with his wife, Jennifer Tescher, founder of the nonprofit Financial Health Network, and their three children (one of whom had been mentored by Eig in the Big Brother program and later became part of the family when his mother died). It was a laundry room until recently. There are framed black-and-white portraits of some of his subjects, but also Miles Davis, Bob Dylan. There are Mold-a-Rama busts of King on his desk and a stack of new thank-you cards and a pile of King stamps and a flood of paperwork. At one end of the room is a wall of books on whatever he happens to be writing about; when he moves on to the next subject, a new library of books is shuffled in. During the years of writing and researching King, books and papers spilled out of the shelves and were stacked in tall traffic cones around his chair, requiring navigation.

His papers, he said, caught the eye of the archivists at Northwestern University (hes a graduate of its Medill journalism school), and since hes always concerned about the chance of a burst pipe or something destroying research, hes been eager to see it go.

For the first year he worked on King, he did nothing but travel the country and interview sources  Kings family, friends and colleagues who were alive, and getting old. He needed them now. This was pre-pandemic. He met with a whos who of the civil rights 60s and beyond: Jesse Jackson, Andrew Young, Harry Belafonte, Juanita Abernathy, John Lewis, Louis Farrakhan, Mavis Staples. He tracked down Kings childhood friends and Kings barber. Among the first interviews was comedian Dick Gregory, who looked square at Eig and wondered, rhetorically: Did Eig even know King was real? That someone so pure of heart and dedicated passed through this world? What makes King different from Jesus? Gregory asked. Jesus is hearsay. Dont mean it didnt happen, but theres film of King. Cant nobody change nothing.

In time, Eig built what he calls a community of academics and firsthand witnesses to King; from many, he sought a kind of blessing and goodwill to even work on the book.

I thought the idea for the book was solid, if only because there hadnt been a major one in decades, said Peniel Joseph, author of several books on King, Malcolm X and the history of the Black Power movement, as well as the founder of Centers for the Study of Race and Democracy at both University of Texas and Tufts University. There had been so much fresh information on King since then  good and bad. Something more complex felt overdue because the King we knew was starting to feel a little dated. But many of those Eig approached initially assumed he was there for the scandals and questionable characteristics  the King of plagiarism charges and womanizing, the King who spoke about power but, afraid of scaring off allies, avoiding saying Black Power.

I would say to them, You knew King, but we dont know him anymore because we have turned into this saintly, passive figure, Eig recalled. I would say that I wanted to write something that both restored his humanity and reminded people of how radical he really was. And everyone I said that to would reply, If thats what youre doing, then Ill help.

When Eig notes the strange absence of a new MLK biography in 40 years, he means a single, self-contained focus on a full life, from birth to death. David Garrows Bearing the Cross, which won the 1987 Pulitzer Prize for biography is centered on his civil rights years; Taylor Branchs 2,900-page trilogy, America in the King Years, which won the 1989 Pulitzer for history, was the far more expansive story of the period itself.

Biography, Eig said, is a weird medium. Lots of academics dont really like it  they see it as artsy, ephemeral. And for a generalist like me, a book on someone like King sounds daunting. Youre interpreting a life. That needs analysis and psychology, so by definition, a biography is a failure. I cant tell you what was going on in his head. I dont know what his life really was. I have breadcrumbs left behind to assemble his portrait.

Eig, 59, talks like he writes, in tidy, direct paragraphs that dont veer much from his point. He grew up in the Hudson River Valley, outside New York City. On a wall in his office is a picture of his grandfather at work as the foreman of a New York City bra company. His father was a bookkeeper who worked at the kitchen table; his mother ran a parenting program in schools. Eig went to work initially for newspapers and magazines, angling upward: the New Orleans Times-Picayune, the Dallas Morning News, Chicago magazine, the Chicago bureau of the Wall Street Journal. He came to Chicago when his wife took a job here. He began his first book, on Lou Gehrig, with the assumption that if I wanted to stay in newspapers, which I did, thered always be those jobs to go back to.

He stayed in the land of biography.

The Gehrig book (now being developed by Lorne Michaels production company as an Apple+ series) led to Jackie Robinson; his book on Capone (shaped out of thousands of pages of investigative material found in Nebraska) led to Eigs wife suggesting he try something less masculine, which became The Birth of the Pill: How Four Crusaders Reinvented Sex. For the most part, if there is a uniting theme here, he said, its that each is about rebels. Even Gehrig, timid and insecure, when he got sick (with ALS, ending his life at 37), he had to step up at a time when people didnt speak publicly of illness. The pill was created by a scientist at Harvard denied tenure, who worked out of his garage. I dont know why I am drawn to this type of person. Im the oldest child in my family, the most conformist guy, a rule follower attracted to people who shake things up.

Until King, Eigs best-known work was 2017s sprawling Ali: A Life, the research for which inspired Ken Burns to make his own documentary on Ali, and established Eig as a confident, thorough master of the thoughtful, sensitive historical reevaluation. He says Alis family was hard to deal with, and navigating through the politics of the family and three of Alis wives (a fourth had already died), became messy but also the most fun I have had working on a book. With Ali, he learned to love interviews. The Gehrig book was written using around 30 interviews. Ali came partly out of 500 conversations.

King, which Eig gravitated to while researching Alis meetings with the civil rights leader, required around 200 interviews. Rabbi Siegel describes Eig as classic mensch, the sort who is intensely conscious of how important another persons ideas might be. So as he wrote King, Eig turned to War and Peace for insight on power. He modeled his I Have a Dream chapter on the work of novelist Don DeLillo (who gave his blessing to Eig); he studied thrillers to quicken the pace during Kings murder. To capture Kings tone of spiritual reckoning, he adopted the cadence, repetition and drama of preachers.

But where King veers from mere biography to literary landmark is in the use of fresh materials, papers, letters, most seen here for the first time. Eig draws from an unpublished memoir by Kings father; tapes made by Coretta Scott King for a biography; unreleased FBI files; notes from collaborators who worked with King on his books; new telephone transcripts. He gained access to archives gathered by an official Southern Christian Leadership Conference historian who traveled with King; it had never been opened. Biographer David Garrow  who shared his own archive with Eig  said the big leap forward here is in the richness of Eigs depiction of Kings early years. Some of the arguments about King that Eigs book tackles  how much of a democratic socialist he actually was, how critical of Malcolm X he could be  have been debated for decades.

By the early 1990s, partly because of (the landmark PBS series) Eyes on the Prize, so many historians and journalists turned to civil rights history that people like John Lewis would have more people angling to interview them than they could count, Garrow recalled.

But at least on the question of Malcolm X, Eig has broken ground.

For generations, theres been a broad teaching among historians and students that King and Malcolm X stood at polar ends of the civil rights movement  King the nonviolent mollifier, Malcolm the provocateur who demanded equality by any means necessary.

Much of the evidence for this came from a 1965 interview King gave Alex Haley for Playboy: King accuses Malcolm of fiery, demagogic oratory. (Malcolm X, for his part, portrayed King as a modern Uncle Tom.) Going through transcripts of the interview in Haleys papers at Duke University, Eig figured out that Haley  who was working then on Malcolm Xs autobiography, and has since been accused often of fudging facts  shifted around quotations. Kings use of fiery, demagogic oratory was a more general response to extremists. Haley assigned this phrase (and others) to Kings quotation about Malcolm X, significantly downplaying just how open King actually was about Malcolm X, admitting that he didnt want to come off as if I think I have the only truth, the only way.

Eig, uncertain what he had, called scholars.

I had been pushing  as had others  against that conventional narrative of the King-Malcolm relationship for a long time, Peniel Joseph said. But heres concrete evidence that led to a constrained vision of history. I think itll open the way they are taught. King and Malcolm were dual sides of the same coin, not diametrically opposed. It may take time for the public to understand, but because of Jonathan, that process is underway.

That night in Bronzeville, Eig smiled and cringed and burst a few bubbles. Heads shook, sometimes out of frustration at what had long been assumed, sometimes out of simple amazement. Pastor Chris Harris leaned over to Eig: Is it true, he asked, that during the I Have a Dream speech, Mahalia Jackson felt King losing the crowd and urged King to Tell them about the dream! The story is a cornerstone in Black mythology.

Sadly, Eig said, its not true.

Groans throughout the church.

Eig, while researching the speech, got ahold of a recording that Motown was making from the stage; the order of her words and his words dont jibe. But the speech itself, Eig pointed out, that hard to argue nugget of American history, rewind it back five minutes and King, in the same speech, urges reparations and calls out police brutality.

The people who were running the cameras and editing that footage probably believed they were sending a message of harmony, Eig said, but as a result, they skewed our understanding. And about Kings time in Chicago, when he marched against segregation in housing and education, and was met with some of the ugliest racist episodes of the decade, North or South: The understanding is Kings time in Chicago was a bust. And it didnt go well, Eig told me earlier. Advisors advised him against going. He was up against forces he hadnt dealt with. Chicago was not open to change.

But he didnt come here and just get defeated. He offered Chicago concrete solutions that might have made a difference to how this city operates. They were rejected. He did not have a good relationship with Mayor Daley. You can hear recordings. Daley would call President Johnson: He wasnt open to King, he viewed King as a threat to LBJ.

At the end of the Bright Star evening, Pastor Harris urged togetherness, then added: It wasnt enough. An event like this, about King: Let me be honest. This is safe. He said the assembled continue to take credit for what folks did five decades ago. He asked them, instead, to keep the old frames and put new pictures of us marching in it.

Then Harris turned in his seat:

How would Eig challenge them now?

The author looked uncomfortable. He noted that he wasnt just inaugurated mayor of Chicago. Much laughter. Instead, he would tell a short story: King, NAACP leader Roy Wilkins and other civil rights leaders were meeting at the White House, talking to John F. Kennedy, who thought the upcoming March on Washington was a mistake. The president asked them why you people cant encourage Black parents to bring up their children better  why cant you people be like other ethnic minorities? Finally, Wilkins turned to Kennedy and replied: Mr. President, we are doing our part. You do yours.
Michael Joseph, who was ousted from the North Miami Beach Commission last month, is allowed to return to work after a Miami-Dade judge ruled in his favor in a case over his attendance record.

Miami-Dade Circuit Court Judge Peter R. Lopez on Tuesday granted a preliminary injunction brought by Joseph, agreeing that the city commission lacked a quorum when it held the vote to oust him. He wrote that the city charter does not allow commissioners to expel members of the commission. Lopez also questioned the time frame the commission used to calculate Josephs absence from meetings.

I always had faith that truth will always triumph in the end, and it has., Joseph said in a statement sent to the Miami Herald.

READ: North Miami Beach commissioner ousted after missing meetings for 120 days

On May 16, the commission voted 3-1 to remove Joseph for failing to attend commission meetings for more than 120 days in violation of the citys charter. The city requires five commissioners for a quorum. At that meeting, six commissioners attended but two  Jay Chernoff and McKenzie Fleurimond  recused themselves from the vote as they are parties to litigation related to Josephs removal. Commissioner Daniela Jean was the sole no vote. Joseph did not attend the meeting because of illness.

The court finds that there is a substantial likelihood of success on the merits by Commissioner Joseph, Lopez wrote in his order, noting that the vote by four commissioners did not meet the requirement for a quorum of five.

Due to the lack of a quorum, the May 16, 2023 vote on whether Joseph had vacated his position is void and of no effect, Lopez wrote.

Even if they met the quorum requirement, Lopez said the citys charter did not grant the commission authority to vote to expel its members from the commission or resolve a dispute about whether commissioners automatically vacated their seats.

RELATED: Governor suspends North Miami Beach mayor following arrest on voter fraud charges

Lopez also said the commissions calculation of the time frame for which Joseph missed meetings was contradictory to the city charter and prior precedent on the issue. The Commissions calculation took into account a time period during which Joseph did not fail to attend a meeting since no meeting was scheduled or took place during that time period, Lopez wrote.

Joseph attended the Oct. 18 meeting, there was no meeting scheduled in November, and he missed the December, January and February meetings. He was at the March 20 meeting after another judge ordered all commissioners to attend.

Lopez noted the city and Chernoffs lawsuit used the time frame from which Joseph last attended a meeting and not when he first missed a meeting, as they had in 2018 when they voted to remove then-Commissioner Frantz Pierre.

As part of Lopezs order, the city cannot hold a special election to replace Joseph.

Josephs reinstatement comes on the heels of the suspension of Mayor Anthony DeFillipo, who was arrested on three charges of voter fraud on May 31. Miami-Dade State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle said her office used cell phone data to track DeFillipo driving from Davie to North Miami Beach, where he cast ballots to vote in three elections in August, October and November.

He has adamantly denied allegations that he lives in Davie, while acknowledging his family lives there. DeFillipo has repeatedly insisted he lives in North Miami Beach.

Joseph was one of three commissioners who refused to attend commission meetings in protest over concerns about DeFillipos residency.
Juneteenth is Monday. Here's 5 events where you can join and participate

June 19, also known as Juneteenth, marks the day in 1865 when troops arrived in Galveston, Texas, to take control of the state and free about 250,000 enslaved people.

Although the Emancipation Proclamation was signed two years earlier, it applied only to areas under Confederate control  not border states or rebel areas under Union rule.

Texas was the first state to recognize Juneteenth as an official holiday, in 1979. Massachusetts began recognizing it in 2007, under then-Gov. Deval Patrick.

Juneteenth became a national holiday in 2021.

Here's how a few MetroWest communities are celebrating Juneteenth:

Community Vibes Framingham

Rick Utaegbulam, founder of Community Vibes Framingham, describes the group's third JuneteenthFest this Saturday as a "Black barbecue for the community."

According to Utaegbulam, celebrating Juneteenth is not only about celebrating the event, but more importantly, "the work that needs to be done... it's a time to recognize the progress made as well."

Kiana Woodson, of Community Vibes Framingham, speaks to a crowd during last year's Juneteenth festivities in Framingham.

Community Vibes is a local activist organization founded in 2020 to provide a voice for the voiceless, according to Utaegbulam.

Juneteenth remembered: Demonstrators in downtown Framingham call for social justice

Saturday's event, which runs from 1-6 p.m., will feature food, music, games and a raffle, as well as speakers and performers. It takes place at Framingham Farm Pond on Dudley Road.

Those interested in attending can RSVP through the event's Eventbrite page.

Ashland Juneteenth Commemoration

The Ashland Farmers Market and Ashland Residents for Equity & Action (AREA) will commemorate Juneteenth from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday at the farmers market, 125 Front St.

Activities will include dancing and skits by the Boston Rhythm Riders Movement; guest speaker Mishawn Davis-Eyene, of Mass Bay Community College; Ashland student poetry; and African BBQ from Senties Kitchen.

Medway Marches

Medway Marches, which seeks to create an inclusive community for people of color, is celebrating Juneteenth this year at Medway Community Farm. From noon to 4 p.m. next Monday, Medway Marches is celebrating Black artists and Black-owned businesses with performers, a marketplace and a craft beer tent.

The event will also include a reading of "What, to the Slave, is the 4th of July?" by Federick Douglass, as well as food trucks and performances by Pan Neubean Steel, Sympli Whitney and Michael Bond.

Natick Center Cultural District

From 1-4 p.m. next Monday, the Natick Common will host a Juneteenth event put on by the Natick Center Cultural District. Greater Framingham Community Church's Rev. Dr. J. Anthony Lloyd will speak at the event, which will also feature performances by The Drum Nomads, Crocodile River Music and Slow Boat. The event will also include a celebration for Natick's first Black woman Select Board member, Kristen Pope. She was elected earlier this spring.

At 6:30 p.m., a screening of the film "Black N' Black" will be held at the Common Street Spiritual Center. All events are free and open to all.

Natick Historical Society

Also in Natick, several community members will read aloud Frederick Douglass' 1852 speech, "What, to the Slave, is the Fourth of July?" The reading takes place at 10 a.m. Monday on the Morse Institute Library lawn and is hosted by the Natick Historical Society.

Douglass speech: Natick teens read 'What, to the slave, is the Fourth of July?"

Natick resident and historian Brenna Greer will offer an introduction to the speech and host a conversation afterward.

The reading will be filmed by Natick Pegasus and is free and open to all. Those interested in reading part of the speech can sign up online.

This article originally appeared on MetroWest Daily News: Community groups have Juneteenth events scheduled for Monday
TAVARES  Former prison guard Michael Riley was guilty of manslaughter when he did a takedown on a prisoner at Lake Correctional Institution in 2020, a jury decided Wednesday.

The inmate, Chris Howell, refused to let corrections officers remove the handcuffs that were fastened behind his back, so Riley rushed into his narrow cell and put him in an arm bar, which caused his head to hit the wall.

Who does that? Assistant State Attorney Nick Camuccio asked during his closing argument Wednesday. He sought a guilty verdict for a charge of second-degree murder.

The proper procedure was simply to close the door, he said. The alternative was to hook a tether to the handcuffs so they could pull him back and remove the handcuffs.

It was a terrible accident, defense attorney Martin White insisted. Corrections officers are allowed to use force, he said.

Riley, accompanied by two other guards, had been moving Howell from one cell to another. Once in his cell, he pulled so hard it yanked him inside, Riley wrote in his use-of-force report.

Michael R. Riley Jr., 27, is shown in court on June 12. A jury on Wednesday found Riley guilty of second-degree murder. He is a former prison guard charged with killing an inmate at Lake County Correctional Institution in June 2020.

But this was not a stumble, said Cammucio. An assistant medical examiner testified that when Howells head hit the wall, breaking his neck, it was equivalent to a car crash where the victim is ejected from the vehicle.

The other officers who were helping Riley, Jose Valentin and Kevin Gonzalez, basically copied Rileys report, Valentin testified.

The statements, which were too similar, was one of the first things that aroused the suspicions of Florida Department of Law Enforcement investigators.

The two corrections officers later changed their stories when confronted by investigators.

Howell wasnt pulling hard, they said. He was barely bent forward.

I didnt have my hand on the tether, Gonzalez said.

Crime news: Sheriff's office announces 41 arrests in Volusia and Lake counties in drug trafficking bust

Camuccio described Riley as a hot head who tormented Howell the day before by pulling back his food tray in the slot of his cell door.

Ive got something for you, Riley threatened, when Howell finally snatched the tray. Riley repeated his threat when Howell refused to allow officers to remove his handcuffs.

Riley rushed in and performed what is called a shoulder or arm-bar takedown. Valentin demonstrated the technique to the six-member jury, with Camuccio playing the role of Howell. By placing one hand on the shoulder, it is easy to push someone to the floor.

The guards pointed to a photograph of the 9.5-foot-by 7-foot cell where Howells head hit the rear wall, leaving a bloody spot.

White asked the correction officers if they had been intimidated or threatened by FDLE agents into changing their stories. They said no, but White continued with his questioning.

Didnt he say you need to think about your career, and your family? White asked Valentin.

Valentin agreed that one of the FDLE agents had asked that question, as well as asking if he was aware that he could be charged as an accessory to the crime.

Both Valentin and Gonzalez were fired.

Circuit Judge James Baxley ordered a presentence investigation. Manslaughter is punishable by up to 15 years in prison.

Howell was imprisoned in 2019 on a four-year sentence for armed robbery. He was mentally ill, suffering from a personality disorder.

There had been trouble at the Clermont prison before. In July 2019, four officers were arrested and fired after a cellphone video reportedly surfaced showed them beating a prisoner.

In April 2020, two officers were accused of beating an inmate for allegedly smuggling contraband into the prison. The prisoner suffered a collapsed lung and broken ribs. They were arrested and charged with aggravated battery with great physical harm.

Last year, FDLE arrested four correctional officers at Dade Correctional Institution and charged them with murder in the beating death of a handcuffed inmate that was being transferred to LCI.

The prisoner, who was in a mental health ward, threw urine at the guards, according to an FDLE press release. The officers beat him and put him in the back of a van. When they stopped in Ocala to check on him, they found him lying dead on a bench.

This article originally appeared on Daily Commercial: Jury: Former prison guard guilty of manslaughter in inmate death
Oregon jury: PacifiCorp must pay punitive damages for fires, plus award that could reach billions

FILE - A statue of a bear still stands by a home burned by the Beachie Creek Fire on Sept. 12, 2020, in Detroit, Ore. (AP Photo/John Locher, File)

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP)  A jury on Wednesday ordered the electric utility PacifiCorp to pay punitive damages for causing devastating wildfires in Oregon in 2020  on top of an earlier verdict already expected to amount to billions of dollars.

The decision came two days after the jurors found PacifiCorp liable for the fires and said it must pay for damage to property as well as emotional distress. The jury on Monday awarded more than $70 million to 17 homeowners named as plaintiffs in the case, with damages to be determined later for a broader class that could include the owners of about 2,500 properties, as estimated by plaintiffs' attorneys.

The property owners alleged that PacifiCorp negligently failed to shut off power to its 600,000 customers during a windstorm over Labor Day weekend, despite warnings from then-Gov. Kate Browns chief of staff and top fire officials, and that its power lines were responsible for multiple blazes.

Attorneys for the plaintiffs said that after the fires, PacifiCorp started an internal investigation  without communicating that to workers in the field. As a result, the workers repaired or replaced some damaged equipment without documenting or preserving evidence of how broken poles or power lines contributed to the fires.

The fires were among the worst natural disasters in Oregons history. They killed nine people, burned more than 1,875 square miles (4,856 square kilometers) and destroyed upward of 5,000 homes and other structures.

PacifiCorp, owned by billionaire Warren Buffetts Omaha, Nebraska-based investment conglomerate Berkshire Hathaway, said it plans to appeal.

We are disappointed in and disagree with the jurys decision in this case, PacifiCorp said in an emailed statement.

The Multnomah County Circuit Court jury in Portland found Wednesday that the additional damages were warranted to punish the utilitys alleged indifference to the safety of others and to deter such conduct in the future.

The jury determined the amount should be one-quarter of whatever is eventually awarded for property damage and emotional distress  meaning the punitive damages could reach hundreds of millions of dollars or more.

One of the plaintiffs, Rachelle McMaster, said she was overwhelmed by feelings of happiness and relief when she heard Wednesdays verdict. McMaster, 45, lost her home in the central coast community of Otis to the Echo Mountain Complex Fire.

I got so emotional knowing that we won everything, McMaster said. We did it. We convinced the jury that we deserved to be compensated for everything that we lost.

Cody Berne, an attorney for the plaintiffs, also welcomed the verdict.

"The jurys verdict is extremely gratifying after PacifiCorp refused to accept responsibility for any of the damages caused by its incompetence and utter disregard for people and property on Labor Day 2020, Berne said in a news release Wednesday.

Doug Dixon, an attorney for the power company, told the jury Tuesday that punitive damages were unwarranted, saying that PacifiCorp was not indifferent to the threat of wildfire risk, let alone outrageously or consciously so.

The company has invested hundreds of millions of dollars since the fires to upgrade equipment and expand its weather stations and weather modeling, he said.

Further, Dixon said, the utility could face bankruptcy if punitive damages exceed its net worth of $10.7 billion.

The plaintiffs' attorney told the jury such damages would be the only way to hold the company accountable.

This shouldve never happened, Berne said. The way to make sure it never happens again is to speak to them in the language that they know. And its the language of money.
Another police dog has died this month after being left inside an officer's hot patrol car, authorities said. The K-9, named Aron, was four years old and had worked for a year and a half with the Houston Police Department.

"On June 12, 2023, we lost a member of our K-9 family in a tragic accident," the department said in a statement. "Houston Police Department K-9 Aron, 4 years of age with 1.5 years of police service at the department, passed away from heat exhaustion."

The K-9's handler discovered the dog "in distress" Monday inside the patrol car, which should have been running with the air conditioning system switched on as long as the animal remained there. Leaving a police dog in its handler's vehicle "is a necessary and common practice when the K-9 partner is not actively engaged in police work," police said Houston Police. But, when Aron's handler returned to the car, they discovered that the engine had switched off in their absence, causing the air conditioning to shut down as well.

Normally, patrol cars where K-9 dogs are kept have a backup system for emergency scenarios like this one. The system "notifies the handler, sounds the horn, activates cooling fans, and rolls down the car windows, if for some reason the vehicle shuts down," according to Houston Police, which noted that in this instance, the backup mechanisms malfunctioned too. Although police transported Aron to a veterinary clinic after finding the dog in distress, the animal died from heat exhaustion.

The Houston Police Department said it is investigating the incident to determine how and why the patrol car's engine suddenly switched off without triggering the emergency cooling system, and to prevent a similar incident from happening again in the future. All patrol cars that transport K-9 dogs for Houston Police will be inspected by the vendor for potential problems.

"Please keep Aron's handler and the entire K-9 team in your prayers as they mourn the loss of Aron," Houston Police said.

HPD Statement regarding the death of K9 Aron#hounews pic.twitter.com/qx8CU2ny4L  Houston Police (@houstonpolice) June 13, 2023

Aron's death from heat exhaustion marked the second time in the span of a week that a police K-9 dog died from heat-related injuries, after being left in a patrol car.

On June 5, a K-9 named Chase, assigned to the Cobb County Police Department in Georgia, was found unresponsive inside its handler's vehicle when the car shut off without triggering the emergency cooling system. The dog was later declared dead from "heat-related injuries," the Cobb County Police Department said.

Investigators found that the patrol vehicle "had multiple failures" that caused the K-9's death, which Cobb County police called "a horrible incident."

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Delimkhanov

I myself cant connect with Adam Delimkhanov, Kadyrov claims.

I ask Ukrainian intelligence to pass me information on what location and what positions they were shelling, so that I could after all locate my dear BROTHER. I promise a generous reward and ask for cooperation.

The Russian parliament, the State Duma, reported that Delimkhanov had allegedly been wounded in combat. Delimkhanov had earlier taken part in the occupation of Mariupol.

Read also: Ukraines SBU opens another case against Russian MP Zhuravlyov

On the Ukrainian side, Ukrainian Armed Forces servicemember and political analyst Kir Sazonov claims that Delimkhanov was killed in Russian-occupied Prymorsk, Zaporizhzhya Oblast by the Banderlohy Special Forces unit.

"Banderlohy operated with the Horizon group, the Phobos unit of the Zaporizhzhya military task grouping," Sazonov wrote on Facebook.

Other people close to Kadyrov and about 200 other personnel joined him at the concert.

Read also: Chechens not fighting in full in Ukraine - military expert

Reportedly, 12 helicopters came to pick up the bodies to keep everything secret.

A few hours later, the Russian Defense Ministry's echoed claims made by the Duma that Delimkhanov was "wounded but alive.

The State Duma alleges they have been in contact with Delimkhanov since his apparent disappearance in Ukraine.

Were bringing the voice of Ukraine to the world. Support us with a one-time donation, or become a Patron!

Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
Here are area restaurants with seven or more priority or critical health code violations, with highlighted links to some original public record reports.

Restaurants correct most violations at the time of the original inspection or shortly thereafter. Links to the follow-up inspections show how each establishment has corrected or is working to correct any remaining violations.

If an inspection or follow-up report needs clarification, restaurant and grocery store owners can call Joyce Smith at 816-234-4692 or email her at jsmith@kcstar.com. The Star will post appropriate responses in the same online locations as the original report.

The Kansas Department of Agriculture cited these operations for seven or more priority health code violations (direct links to the reports are not available).

 Bawarchi Biryanis, 7284 W. 121st St., Overland Park, had 20 priority violations during a June 12 inspection for an expired license.

 Tanners Bar & Grill, 10146 W. 119th St., Overland Park, had eight priority violations during a June 8 joint inspection.

 Whats on Your Plate, 10201 W. 47th St., Shawnee, had eight priority violations during a June 8 follow-up inspection.

 Johnnys Tavern, 6765 W. 119th St., Overland Park, seven priority inspections during a June 7 inspection following a complaint.

For complete Kansas health inspections, click here.

The Kansas City Health Department cited these operations for seven or more critical violations:

 Big Mouths Chicken Fish Tenderloins, 3010 Van Brunt Blvd., had 10 critical violations during a May 30 routine inspection. It had seven critical violations during a June 6 follow-up inspection.

 El Mercado Fresco, bakery, 5117 Independence Ave., had seven critical violations during a May 31 routine inspection. It had one critical violation during a June 8 follow-up inspection.

 Hahas Kebabs and Shawarma, 204 W. 39th St., had seven critical violations during a May 22 routine inspection. It had five critical violations during a May 31 follow-up inspection and no critical violations during a June 6 follow-up inspection.

 Hongs Buffet & Mongolian Grill, 6151 N.W. Barry Road, had seven critical violations during a May 23 routine inspection. It had no critical violations during a May 30 follow-up inspection.

 The Russell, 3141 Main St., had seven critical violations during a May 23 routine inspection.

For complete Kansas City-area reports, click here.
The battle over whos running the International Brotherhood of Boilermakers heads to federal court next week as the unions president takes on the top officers who just ousted him.

The Kansas City, Kansas-based union filed a civil suit against three of its executives, requesting a temporary restraining order to prohibit the removal of International President Newton Jones after they issued a finding that Jones misused union funds for personal gain. Jones is refusing to step down, denying any wrongdoing and contending the officers had no authority to remove him.

A hearing on the restraining order is scheduled for 10 a.m. June 20 in the federal courthouse in Kansas City, Kansas. Chief Judge Eric F. Melgren, of the U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas, will hear the case.

Jones, 69, also filed internal disciplinary charges against the three international vice presidents who removed him and another who brought forth the allegations, saying the four violated the unions constitution. The remaining international vice president has sided with Jones against the others.

The case has erupted into an all-out war over the unions leadership  and, some say, its future.

If Jones opponents are allowed to go forward with their plan, the lawsuit says, the union will be thrown into extreme confusion about who is properly in charge, sending it into organizational chaos.

Those who support Jones removal acknowledge it will create some turmoil, but say he is exaggerating the impact.

The corruption runs far deeper than this and as the members know this will change our union fundamentally and cause some slight disruption during the transition, but in no way would it bring complete chaos as Jones would want you to believe, says a statement on boilermakersforchange.net, a new website funded by rank-and-file members who advocate Jones ouster. We have been preparing for his removal for a very long time and are doing this because its the only way to begin to repair the damages his corruption has caused.

Some are planning a rally outside the courthouse the morning of the hearing to support Jones removal and the union executives who voted him out. Theyve also created a GoFundMe page to hire an attorney.

The allegations against Jones went public after three members of the unions executive council  J. Tom Baca, of California; Arnie Stadnick, of Canada; and Timothy Simmons, of Alabama  signed a decision on June 1 to remove the longtime president from office.

Another council member, John Fultz, of New York, was not eligible to participate in the decision because he filed the internal disciplinary charges against Jones. The councils remaining member, Lawrence McManamon Sr., of Ohio, did not attend the hearing at which the decision was made, nor did he vote to remove Jones.

The executive council ruled that Jones had violated a section in Article 17 of the Boilermakers constitution that deals with the misappropriation of funds.

The council found that Jones ordered the union to give his wife, Kateryna, more than $100,000 plus benefits in back pay for apparently no union purpose while she was living in the Ukraine and spent more than $20,000 in union funds for flights to Ukraine to visit his wife and to go to the home which he owns in the Ukraine.

Jones and his wife also turned in about $40,000 in receipts for meals for them and other family members when at their home in North Carolina  some quite lavish and expensive  with no justification for the expenses, the executive council found.

Calling Jones actions shocking, the council ordered him to reimburse the union all of the funds which he misspent as reflected in these charges and to immediately resign from all of his other positions, including serving as a trustee of all funds in which the union participates.

In a June 6 letter to all principal lodge officers, Jones  who has led the union since his father retired in 2003  said he was at a loss to explain or understand the recent actions of the three international vice presidents.

...These officers have accused me of misappropriation of funds without bothering to authenticate the evidence upon which they relied, he wrote. I assure you, I have not misappropriated any union funds. In fact, I have presided over a very clean organization in my 20 years as your International President.

The International Brotherhood of Boilermakers, Iron Ship Builders, Blacksmiths, Forgers and Helpers represents about 46,000 workers in the United States and Canada who assemble, install and repair boilers, fit pipes and build power plants and ships. The work is physically demanding and dangerous, and many have to travel long distances to their job sites and live away from home for extended periods.

The lawsuit being heard next week names Baca, Stadnick and Simmons as defendants. Though filed by the union, many members say it doesnt represent their feelings and they want no part of it.

...The membership approves and stands with the international executive Council decision, the GoFundMe site says, adding that members oppose the union paying Jones legal fees. The unions longtime law firm, Blake & Uhlig, is handling the lawsuit.

The fundraising site, launched June 6, has raised more than $5,500. The attorney the members are hiring, Curtis Barnhill, is the former executive administrator for the Boilermakers National Funds (BNF), the unions employee benefit plans. Barnhill sued the union in 2010, saying he was fired because he was cooperating with a federal investigation into business ties and investments at the BNF.

According to his lawsuit, Barnhill said the funds were jeopardized by unorthodox investment schemes and questionable ties between the funds and a trustees daughter. The suit said that the trustee, who also was a union vice president, appeared to steer between $500 million and $1 billion worth of contracts to his daughters company.

In November 2008, the lawsuit said, Barnhill received a subpoena ordering him to appear before a federal grand jury in Kansas City, Kansas. Barnhill told trustees that he planned to fully cooperate with authorities. But two days before he was to appear, the lawsuit said, Barnhill was summoned to the union headquarters and fired.

The lawsuit alleged that Jones and others conspired to fire Barnhill in order to damage Barnhills credibility, to deter him from testifying fully and freely before the grand jury, to separate him from his records which had been subpoenaed, and to punish him for his stated intent to cooperate with a federal grand jury investigation.

Barnhill cooperated with the federal investigation throughout much of 2009, the lawsuit said. Court records show that the lawsuit was settled and dismissed in 2012. Barnhill has never commented on his lawsuit, and the outcome of that investigation is unclear.

But another federal investigation into union activities is now underway, The Star has learned. Several sources confirmed that they have been interviewed by the FBI in recent weeks.

The rank-and-file members arent the only ones supporting Jones dismissal. A petition is being circulated among leaders of local Boilermakers lodges demanding that Jones resign immediately.

President Jones has presented no explanation or defense to this outrageous misconduct in misusing the assets of our Union, although he has been given the opportunity to do so, it says. The Executive Council has acted to remove him pursuant to the authority and procedure granted under our Constitution. President Jones conduct breaches his duties under the Constitution and the law to our members and our Union.

Jones insists he isnt going anywhere. He sent a letter dated June 9 to local lodge officers regarding the malicious petition.

There is no facility in the International Brotherhood of Boilermakers Constitution for such a petition, and this is yet another act of malevolence by IVP Baca in coordination with the other errant officers, Jones wrote. Further, Bacas petition includes statements that are simply false. In my letter sent on Tuesday, June 6, I most certainly addressed all allegations.

...The simple truth is: There is zero proof that I acted in violation of our Constitution.

Last week, the four international vice presidents Jones has charged with violating the boilermakers constitution were sent a notice of an upcoming hearing on the issue. The hearing is to be held June 21 at the InterContinental Kansas City at The Plaza.

All parties should be prepared to present their positions with evidence and witnesses at that time, it said.

Among Jones accusations are that the men sought to pass motions to limit his authority and improperly attempted to call several meetings of the executive council. Jones also accused one of improperly destroying a document and another of colluding or participating in the collection of documents in an attempt to advance their charges against him.

Jones appointed Bill Creeden, the unions international secretary-treasurer, and McManamon  the vice president who didnt vote to oust him  to handle all matters arising out of these Article 17 charges.

And in another move underscoring the conflict, Jones has sent a notice to all local lodges saying he canceled the 2023 Industrial Sector Operations Conference, a major annual event scheduled for late August in Las Vegas.

Unfortunately, this is what happens when International Officers begin playing politics with the roles with which theyve been entrusted to represent Boilermaker members, Jones wrote. I know this will be a disappointment to many who look forward to this conference in Las Vegas, which is a highly educational conference for our members and staff.

He said he planned to reschedule the coveted event as soon as conditions warrant.
Kansas City police can learn a lot from Omaha about being transparent with the public | Opinion

If not for reporting by The Kansas City Star, we probably would not have known for quite some time that Kansas City police officer Blayne Newton was involved in a fatal shooting for the second time in three years.

And that seemingly intentional omission strategy does not serve well the best interests of the Kansas City Police Department nor those its officers were sworn to protect.

Sidenote: How many more people does Newton have to kill or assault before he finds another profession? Seriously. We must question if Newton or any law enforcement official responsible for multiple on-duty deaths or facing multiple claims of using excessive force is fit to serve in our community.

In 2020, Newton killed Donnie Sanders, an unarmed Black man. If youre keeping a running tally, thats three on-duty deaths in three years.

In prior cases of clear excessive force involving this alleged officer we called for his arrest; the system said no, said Vernon Howard, leader of the Kansas City chapter of the Southern Conference Leadership Council. We called for charges; the system said no. We called for his dismissal; the system said no. Who will provide witness information to a law enforcement agency which chronically leaves known abusers on the force to kill us?

Far too many times, we are left with more questions than answers when Kansas City police officers use lethal force. Yes, every officer involved in a deadly or on-duty incident deserves due process. Investigations take time. How difficult could it be to tell us who the officers who fire their service weapons are, along with their age, rank and years of service? It isnt.

Withholding basic information in the aftermath of a tragic shooting does little to improve community relations. To build trust, this agency must provide a higher level of transparency than it has ever before.

Unless an officer is charged with a crime or named in a lawsuit, rarely does the public get a firsthand account of who is violating department policy or breaking the law. As a publication, we have a duty to highlight law enforcement officials such as Newton who have killed multiple people while in uniform.

Police may have not released Newtons name, but dogged reporting by The Stars Glenn Rice produced three sources close to the case who confirmed the officers identity.

Naming Newton is just, because the public has the right to know who problem officers are. Officials in nearby Omaha told us as much during a recent visit there. After activists fought for years for reform in that city, systems were put in place to hold law enforcement officials accountable for their work in public.

Per department policy, within days of a use-of-force incident involving Omaha police, officers are publicly identified  a 21st-century policing strategy endorsed by the International Association of Chiefs of Police. Thats what happened in the case of Omaha police captain Jay Leavitt and lieutenant Owen Gregg, who fired their weapons at a man shooting at others just last week. After investigators found the lawmens testimony consistent with the evidence, the pair and another officer on the scene, lieutenant Dan Martin, were cleared this week to return to duty.

When it comes to implementing best practices, the Kansas City Police Department continues to fall woefully short.

Nebraskans are privy to a statewide public database of serious cases of police misconduct such as repeated use of excessive force, perjury or sexual assault, among other unlawful acts.

Nebraska state law requires a grand jury inquiry into all officer-involved shootings. In Omaha, in addition to internal investigations, the state highway patrol and the local sheriffs office take the lead in use-of-force probes.

In pro-cop Missouri, we doubt the General Assembly would take those lessons on accountability and transparency within law enforcement and create such a misconduct list.

To improve community relations, Kansas City, much like its close neighbor, must reconsider how it responds to deadly police shootings. As we saw last week in Omaha, transparency and accountability within the police department are not only attainable, but sound public policy.
This story has been clarified to reflect that U.S. Rep. Thomas Massie said in the tweet that he believes he can read top secret information on the floor of Congress. There was no indication that he plans to read any such information.

U.S. Rep. Thomas Massie said on Twitter that he could reveal national secrets by reading them aloud in Congress.

Massie, a Kentucky Republican who tends to embrace Tea Party and Libertarian ideals, believes a clause in the U.S. Constitution enables him to read top secret information included in documents involved in former President Donald Trump's latest indictment tied to his handling of classified information aloud in committee hearings, which are broadcast live on C-SPAN.

"For what its worth, under the Constitution, no member of Congress can be prosecuted for reading aloud on the floor any of the documents Trump allegedly has copies of," Massie tweeted Monday.

For what its worth, under the Constitution, no member of Congress can be prosecuted for reading aloud on the floor any of the documents Trump allegedly has copies of.  Thomas Massie (@RepThomasMassie) June 12, 2023

As of Wednesday afternoon, Massie has not acted on his reading of the law by revealing top secret information.

Massie, who represents Kentucky's 4th Congressional District, has accused President Joe Biden's administration of weaponizing government with Trump's indictment. Biden has said he's never pressured the Department of Justice in the case and has not and will not speak with Attorney General Merrick Garland about it.

As part of his indictment, Trump faces 31 counts of willful retention of national defense information under the Espionage Act. The documents were described as some of the country's most important secrets, including "top secret," requiring special handling, the originator determines who receives the documents and not for release to foreign nationals, according to the indictment.

More: Gerth: Why Cameron, Massie and Barr will one day feel shame for supporting Donald Trump

Reach Olivia Krauth at okrauth@courierjournal.com and on Twitter at @oliviakrauth. USA Today contributed to this story.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Trump indictment: Did Thomas Massie threaten to read secrets in Congress
How the Kentucky Supreme Court passed on its chance to protect public employees' speech

When a white Lexington police sergeant shot and killed an unarmed Black teenager in October 1994, John E. Whitley Jr. took to the airwaves and condemned the shooting as a cold-blooded murder.

They just murdered the kid, said Whitley, who also was Black, on a citizens radio frequency monitored by police and emergency services. He was holding his hands over his head and they just murdered him.

Whitley wasnt the only one who reacted angrily: The shooting of Tony Sullivan triggered riots in Lexington. But Whitley wasnt just anyone. He was a police officer for the state Vehicle Enforcement Division, then part of the Transportation Cabinet.

The agency suspended him for eight days for improper public statements and other violations.

Unlike courts in at least 20 other jurisdictions that have held public employees have the right to free speech, a Kentucky court had never so ruled.

Whitleys case offered the Kentucky Supreme Court that chance.

First, the Franklin Circuit Court upheld Whitleys punishment, which included four days for conduct unbecoming and discourtesy" and another four for "improper public statements." Whitley appealed to the Court of Appeals, which affirmed the four-day suspension for discourtesy, but reversed the suspension for improper statements, holding that it violated Whitley's First Amendment right to free speech.

But the cabinet appealed and the Kentucky Supreme Court voted 5-2 to affirm the original punishment, reinstating the suspension for improper statements, which it said risked creating tension and strife between the vehicle enforcement agency and Lexington Police.

The controversy divided the court, which said defining the degree of First Amendment protection afforded to those who choose to work in the public sector requires a difficult balancing between their rights and the agencys interest in order and discipline."

The majority also said what it called Whitleys disruptive statements were of minimal public importance.

Chief Justice Robert Stephens and Justice Janet Stumbo begged to differ. They said Whitleys speech unquestionably involved a matter of grave public concern  the shooting of an unarmed civilian by police.

I think that with this opinion the majority is making very bad law, Stephens wrote in dissent, and this Court will be haunted by the breadth of this decision as we see the power to muzzle government employees used in an increasingly expansive manner.

The court declined to carve out First Amendment protections for public employees in Kentucky.

Whitley, who taught Sunday school and drove the church van at St. Paul AME Church in Lexington, died in 2011 at age 72.

Lexington Police Sgt. Phil Vogel said his gun accidentally discharged, shooting Sullivan in the head. He was not charged.

More: Abduction, rape and murder: Should Kentucky pay up when prosecutors get it wrong?

Reporter Andrew Wolfson can be reached at (502) 396-5853 or awolfson@courier-journal.com.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Kentucky Supreme Court had chance to protect public workers' speech
Kevin Spacey says there are job opportunities waiting for him the moment that hes cleared of sexual misconduct charges in London.

I know that there are people right now who are ready to hire me the moment I am cleared of these charges, the former House of Cards actor told the German newspaper Die Zeit in an interview published Wednesday.

The second that happens, theyre ready to move forward, Spacey said.

Its a time in which a lot of people are very afraid that if they support me, they will be canceled.

The 63-year-old Academy Award winner was charged criminally last year by English prosecutors with sexually assaulting three men in separate incidents in 2005, 2008 and 2013. Additional charges against Spacey were added in January.

Spacey has pleaded not guilty to all the charges, and the trial is reportedly expected to begin later this month.

He again denied the accusations against him in his interview with Die Zeit, saying, The moment scrutiny is applied, these things fall apart.

Thats what happened in the Rapp trial, and thats what will happen in this case, Spacey said, referencing the 2022 verdict in a civil trial brought against him by actor Anthony Rapp. A New York jury found that Spacey didnt sexually abuse then-14-year-old Rapp in 1986.

Spacey was fired from House of Cards in 2017 following accusations that he sexually harassed members of the Netflix shows crew. Last year, a Los Angeles Superior Court judge ruled that Spacey and his production companies had to pay the makers of the series more than $30 million due to losses as a result of his firing.

In 10 years, it wont mean anything, Spacey said of the allegations against him. My work will live longer than I will, and thats what will be remembered.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
Julie Su of California testifies before the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee during her April confirmation hearing at the U.S. Capitol to be the next secretary of Labor. (Kent Nishimura / Los Angeles Times)

For the record:

2:21 p.m. June 14, 2023: A previous version of this article stated that Su was at the helm of Caifornias Labor and Workforce Development Agency for seven years. She led Californias Division of Labor Standards Enforcement for seven years.



Former California labor chief Julie Sus bid to become President Bidens Labor secretary is languishing, showing how hard it can be for a progressive Californian to win Senate confirmation in a deeply divided Washington.

Su, who would be Bidens first Asian American Cabinet secretary, was nominated for the job in February and has served as acting secretary since March. She faces fierce GOP opposition and will need unanimous or near-unanimous support from the Senate Democratic caucus to win confirmation. But Sens. Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.), Joe Manchin III (D-W.Va.), Kyrsten Sinema (I-Ariz.) and Jon Tester (D-Mont.) have yet to make up their minds. Manchin, Sinema and Tester are up for reelection in 2024, raising the stakes of their decisions.

Were not there yet, Sen. Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii), a longtime champion of Su, told The Times on Monday. We are going to push for the votes that she needs, and thats it. Whatever is the reluctance, we need to address them and get her over the hurdle.

A group called Stand Against Su, which describes itself as a coalition of small businesses, freelancers, tipped workers and franchisees working together to oppose Julie Su, paid for billboard ads in key senators states attacking Su. Biden nominee Julie Su wants to turn Montana into California, reads one ad. Biden nominee Julie Su wants to turn the lights off in West Virginia, another warns.

In press statements, Republicans have described Su as an anti-business policymaker who supports laws that make it harder for employers and employees to do their jobs. Theyve tied her to Assembly Bill 5, a California law that requires companies to classify most workers as employees, not independent contractors. They argue that, if confirmed, Su would advance similar policies on a national level, preventing gig workers from taking on jobs they want. Su has said she will not pursue a national equivalent of AB 5.

Republicans also have pointed to Sus oversight of Californias Employment Development Department, which in 2021 reported $20 billion in fraudulent unemployment claims. Her supporters say Su inherited an already broken system when she took over the department, and they note that employment fraud rose across the country during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Because of her misguided record in California, we have major concerns about potential disastrous ramifications at the federal level if Ms. Su becomes Secretary. For these reasons, we request that you withdraw her nomination to serve as your next Secretary of Labor, House Republicans, including Speaker Kevin McCarthy of Bakersfield, wrote in an April letter to President Biden.

Before arriving in Washington, Su rapidly rose through the ranks of labor regulators, spending seven years at the helm of Californias Division of Labor Standards Enforcement. Two years ago, the Senate voted along party lines to confirm Su as deputy secretary of Labor. Those familiar with Su say she hasnt changed since then. But the political climate has shifted, making her confirmation less certain.

I dont think anything has changed with regard to her qualifications or her ability to do the job, said Bill Wong, a longtime Democratic strategist. I think what has changed is the political calculus Republicans are banking on in order to try to take over the Senate.

Blocking Sus nomination serves an important political purpose for Republicans, Wong added: The GOP wants to make the presidency look weak by stonewalling any of his nominations.

White House aides remain convinced they can ensure Sus confirmation.

White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters Tuesday afternoon that the full-court press to confirm Su that the White House announced last month is still underway. Senior White House officials gather every night on a war room call to share updates on her nomination. White House Chief of Staff Jeff Zients and legislative affairs director Louisa Terrell, Jean-Pierre added, have been speaking regularly with Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.) and other key senators about Sus nomination multiple times a week, including during the peak of the debt ceiling fight.

But the administrations efforts wont be enough if Schumer cant find 50 votes for Su.

Manchin has given no timeline on his decision. Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, a Republican who occasionally supports Bidens Cabinet picks, has yet to make a decision on Su, and could balance out one Democratic vote against the acting secretary.

Read more: How Julie Su's successes and setbacks in California shape her contentious nomination for Labor secretary

Senate confirmations often move slowly. Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti waited nearly two years before winning confirmation as U.S. ambassador to India. Like Su, he had full support from the White House, but struggled to win over certain senators.

Opposition to Sus confirmation has been on a large scale and highly publicized, Hirono pointed out. The senator said she was surprised by the lengths business groups have gone to scare voters about a potential Su confirmation.

That is something unique to me, Hirono said. Big money has come out and put up billboards in certain states to encourage those senators to think twice before voting for her.

Asked whether those tactics are working, Hirono hesitated. Lets just say were not there yet, she said.

Danielle Cendejas, a Democratic strategist, said the battle over Sus nomination has cast a qualified candidate into a tired political tug of war between business and labor interests.

You have a person whos highly qualified, probably more than qualified, to take this job, caught in a battle that we see play out at every level of politics, Cendejas said. You have business versus labor.

Su wasnt involved in the drafting of AB 5, although she did provide some technical assistance at the end of the process, and her supporters have repeatedly stressed that the California Legislature devised the bill. But according to Tim Lineberger, a former advisor to Alex Acosta, who served as secretary of Labor under then-President Trump, Su will always be attached to the legislation because she enforced it. The messaging around AB 5 isnt whats holding up her confirmation, he said.

It really doesnt matter how you message it, if theyre concerned about where she is on the policy. ... She can try to explain it however she wants to, Lineberger said.

Others say the choice of tying Su to AB 5 is part of a larger Republican strategy to portray California politicians as symbols of California.

This is the latest example of California being used against somebody who is more than qualified for the job, Cendejas said. I do think that this is a habit of theirs. It doesnt matter which Californian it is  they find a way to use that against people.

Schumer and his team are in charge of deciding when to put Sus confirmation to a vote. He has not scheduled one. Larry Huynh, a political strategist whose firm has partnered extensively with Schumer, said the delay isnt atypical for a Senate split so narrowly down the middle.

In this case, Huynh and Wong argued, Republican opposition to Su could come back to bite them. Hunyh noted that the Asian American and Pacific Islander community is an important voter bloc that Washington tends to overlook.

Either party should think twice about playing politics over a candidate that is this qualified for the position whos also AAPI, he said.





Get the best of the Los Angeles Times politics coverage with the Essential Politics newsletter.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
From a kid in Vietnam to Fresno restaurateur. Owner shares street food from childhood

One of Leila Jaces core memories as a kid growing up in Vietnam was walking home from school, savoring the scent of smoky grilled corn coming from a street vendor.

Her family was poor, but shed save up her lunch money to buy herself the treat  lightly blackened corn on the cob topped with scallions for an extra kick of flavor.

It was my favorite street food of all time, she said.

The smoky charred corn is now on the menu at Jaces restaurant, Sizzle n Steam in Fresno.

It opened nine months ago at the corner of Maroa and Shields avenues.

Its a Vietnamese street food restaurant with a 4.5 star rating on Yelp.com. It also took third place in The Bees reader poll about the most underrated restaurant in town.

The restaurant is the latest stop on a path that had Jace, now 29, moving to California at age 14 without speaking any English. She would get her masters degree in business, have a successful career in retirement planning in the Bay Area, and go on work for one of the top tech companies in the nation.

Smoky scallion charred corn is one of the more popular bites at Sizzle n Steam in central Fresno. Many of the dishes at the restaurant are vegetarian friendly.

Last year, she decided to upend her life, and moved to Fresno to be closer to her parents.

Jace never intended to open a restaurant when she moved here. She just wanted a change  both professionally and personally.

I knew something was lacking, back when I was in retirement planning and I was able to see a lot of people actually happy, she said.

Her parents run Com Pho Bamboo, an authentic Vietnamese restaurant near First Street and Nees Avenue.

When the former Pho Fresno closed and Jace saw the spot was available, she suggested it to her parents, thinking they could open an additional location there.

Her mom turned around and said, Why dont you do it?

So she did, putting her own spin on the food, a blend of Vietnamese street food and all the places shes been.

It turned out the best way possible, she said.

The food

There is pho, the Vietnamese soup, on the menu, of course, along with the spring rolls and vermicelli noodle bowls.

But, says Jace: There is so much more to Vietnamese food than pho.

Every item on Sizzle n Steams menu seems to have a story behind it.

Besides the charred corn from her childhood, there are also Gilroy garlicky fries  crispy french fries with lots of garlic and scallions. Theyre a nod to the city she where she landed when her parents decided they wanted a better life and came to the United States. And, yes, she went to the Garlic Festival every summer as a teen.

The Saigon broken rice grilled pork chop platter with shrimp paste sugar cane stick, shrimp cake and egg meatloaf served at Sizzle n Steam in central Fresno.

The broken rice dish is a particular favorite of Jaces. Her mom used to make it, selling it to workers for breakfast from a food stall in front of their house in Vietnam. Jace remembers helping at age 2, tasked with putting away the bowls.

Broken rice originated in the Mekong River region. Its the leftover rice that was damaged during the milling process. Farmers fed it to their families.

Somehow it made its way to become one of the delicacies of Saigon, she said.

The rice is served in a big bowl with pork or short ribs and several other items. Its a bit drier than typical rice, so it easily soaks up fish sauce thats sprinkled atop it.

Also in the bowl is a stick of sugar cane with a shrimp paste wrapped around it and grilled. The sweetness of the sugar cane seeps into the shrimp, and you can gnaw on the cane after youve eaten the shrimp part, she said.

It also comes with an egg cake she describes as a fluffy, bouncy meatloaf. And the crispy shrimp cake is wrapped in a tofu skin, formed at the top of a pan of soy milk when its boiled.

Jace has traveled to 62 countries, seen five of the seven wonders of the world. But its that childhood in Vietnam that sticks with her.

Her dad, Khai Cao, is an incredible cook, she said, and she learned from him. Her mom, Kim Tran, rolls all the egg rolls at Sizzle n Steam, as fast and efficient as a machine, but all by hand.

Plenty of vegan and vegetarian dishes are on the menu. In fact, the majority of Sizzle n Steams regulars eat that way, perhaps not surprising as the restaurant is close to the Tower District.

Tofu makes a frequent appearance on the menu, often fried and seasoned in spicy red strips, such as in the banh mi sandwich or atop a vermicelli bowl with egg rolls.

Its a result of poverty. You learn to be creative with your food, Jace said. Tofu is one of the cheapest proteins you can buy in Vietnam.

A chili lemongrass tofu sandwich at Sizzle n Steam is a Vietnamese banh mi-style sandwich served on a toasted French baguette dressed with pate, mayonnaise, cucumber, cilantro and pickled carrot, daikon and jalapeno.

Most of Jaces customers are not Asian, making it even more fun to introduce her favorite foods to them. And Vietnamese food is not by nature spicy, she said, though some dishes are.

Most entrees range from $9 to $20.

Customers become friends

When she moved to Fresno last year, she didnt know a single person besides her parents.

Since then, customers have become her friends. She makes a point of talking to most of them them, and you can often find her chatting tableside in a laid-back pair of flowy pants and a short top.

Many customers have her personal cell phone number and exchange texts occasionally.

To be welcomed with such openness in such a way, I never imagined this, she said, dabbing her eyes with a napkin.

Jace is one of those people who makes friends everywhere she goes. She bought a baking rack off of Facebook Marketplace recently and ended up getting invited to lunch. Shes going back to the house soon for a sourdough baking lesson.

Leila Jace, owner of Sizzle n Steam in central Fresno, prepares a chili lemongrass tofu sandwich at the restaurant on Monday, June 5, 2023. Vietnamese banh mi-style sandwiches are served on toasted French baguettes dressed with pate, mayonnaise, cucumber, cilantro and pickled carrot, daikon and jalapeno.

Married couple Dan Nickerson and Ada Jimenez of Fresno, who are also vegans, are in the restaurant at least once a week, if not more. Jace likes to ask them what foods they like, and feed them new things shes trying. Sometimes they are Vietnamese foods, but sometimes she just wants to make churros.

Shes just the kindest person, Nickerson said. The reality is you go in there and its not Sizzle n Steam, its like youre in Leilas kitchen.

Jace is still coping with the massive changes in her life. She said she struggles with imposter syndrome sometimes.

But the restaurant is a respite.

Her brother, who she describes as her best friend, works there, and theres a romantic interest whos sometimes in the kitchen chopping cucumbers and tomatoes.

This is where I go to when my life is a little crazy. I just come to work and cut up some veggies, Jace said. Dancing in the kitchen is my favorite thing.

Shes friendly with the gals who work a few doors down at Venus Salon. One of them, Marisol Soto, was looking for something healthy and Jace developed a salad with grilled chili lemongrass chicken. Its now on the menu as Marisols chicken salad.

Soto orders it about every three days.

She likes the customers; she really cares, Soto said of Jace. Everybodys really professional and makes you feel comfortable. I hope she stays there for a long time.

Details: Sizzle n Steam is at 3111 N. Maroa Ave. Hours: 11 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. Wednesdays through Fridays and from noon to 7 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays. 559-681-5050.
Kikkoman celebrates 50th anniversary of its first factory in US

[Source]

Soy sauce producer Kikkoman Corp. celebrated the 50th anniversary of its first overseas factory in the U.S. on June 9.

Celebrating growth: Yuzaburo Mogi, Kikkomans former president and honorary chairman who was instrumental in the establishment of the maiden foreign facility in Walworth, Wisconsin, was present at the celebration.

"Opening the plant was a large and risky investment, but it paid off, and our sales have continued to grow to this day," Mogi was quoted saying.

During the celebration, the company announced a $5 million donation to the University of Wisconsin System to be used for research in farming and fresh water.

More from NextShark: Indonesia bans cough syrups after nearly 200 child deaths

Kikkoman Day: The government of Wisconsin declared June 9 as "Kikkoman Day" in recognition of the companys impact and contribution to the local community.

The Wisconsin facility, which is the largest soy sauce-producing site in the world, laid the foundation for Kikkoman's successful foray into the American market after its opening in 1973. The company then expanded its operations by establishing a second facility in California in 1998.

More from NextShark: Some People are Recovering From Coronavirus in 2 Days With Flu and HIV Drugs

A global brand: Today, Kikkoman soy sauce can be found on the shelves of nearly every major supermarket in the country, with the company capturing over 50% of the market share.

As Kikkoman's research has found that around 60% of U.S. households have soy sauce in stock, Mogi expressed his desire to see the figure eventually reach 100%. Kikkoman continued its global expansion by venturing into Europe and China, with sales outside of Japan accounting for 70% of its overall revenue as of June.

Looking forward: Mogi stressed the importance of reducing reliance on its core product, soy sauce, and diversifying the company's offerings. He identified soy milk as a potential candidate for expanding Kikkoman's business ventures.

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'Person of Interest' in Attacks of 3 Elderly People in Oakland Chinatown Identified, In Police Custody
Photo Illustration by Elizabeth Brockway/The Daily Beast/Reuters

Friends of King Charles have ridiculed the idea that Charles is using upcoming repairs at Royal Lodge, Prince Andrews massive home in Windsor Great Park, as a means of pressurizing Andrew to move out, but suggested that the disgraced prince will ultimately have to leave the gigantic, 30-room, crenelated property as it will be too expensive for him to maintain without subvention from the monarch.

A friend of the king said: The idea that Charles is going to use building works as some underhand pretext to get Andrew out and then lock the doors is about as ill-informed as earlier speculation he was going to cut off the electricity. Thats simply not how he operates.

The friend pointed out that Prince Harry and Meghan Markle were asked in a straightforward fashion to give up the lease to their home, Frogmore Cottage. It is understood Harry and Meghan were financially compensated for money they spent on the property.

Asked if this meant Andrew was going to be asked to leave Royal Lodge in a similar way and given a similar deal, the friend dodged the question, saying: Its a very expensive place to live and Andrew doesnt have a significant source of income, so ultimately he will probably have to move out.

Prince Andrew Wont Leave Royal Home in Case He Gets Permanently Evicted

The friend said they did not know if reports that the king had cut Andrews allowance, rumored to have been as much as 250,000 ($311,000) per annum under the queen, as has been previously reported, were accurate, but said, that in any case, 250 grand wouldnt go far on Royal Lodge. Its enormous. It needs staff and constant, major repairs. Its impossible for him to live there long term without the kings support.

The guessing games about Andrews tenure at Royal Lodge have re-erupted after a report in the Daily Mail, by the papers respected royal correspondent Rebecca English, claimed that Andrew was refusing to move out of Royal Lodge even temporarily during building work, which he himself commissioned, for fear he might never get back in.

A source told the Daily Mail that: Its become farcical. Andrew has roof repairs scheduled later this summer, which will take several months to complete and has been advised that staying in the house during those renovations could prove problematic. But he is reluctant to leave.

However a source in Andrews camp recently told The Times that he has no intention of quitting Royal Lodge, and believes he is on a sound legal footing because he has a formal lease with the Crown Estate for the property.

The source told The Times: This is a lease between him and the Crown Estate. Thats not a matter for the king. Its a matter for the chancellor of the exchequer. The only way you could get him to move out would be through an arrangementhe would have to agree.

If Andrew does move out, it will leave another empty house-shaped headache for Charles (or, more accurately, Sir Michael Stevens, the Keeper of the Privy Purse, as the monarchs chief accountant is known) to solve.

The king is facing criticism for the number of valuable properties the family have access to, not least the monarch himself who has multiple homes at his disposal including Windsor Castle, Buckingham Palace, Balmoral, Sandringham, Highgrove, Clarence House and several others. His wife, Camilla, also maintains her own private home.

It has been rumored that Andrew is to be persuaded to relocate to Harry and Meghans former home, Frogmore Cottage, so that William and Kate could move into Royal Lodge, which has ten bedrooms, and in which Andrew and his ex-wife, Sara Ferguson, live in separate wings. However a source previously told The Daily Beast the couple were very happy at four-bedroom Adelaide Cottage, also in Windsor Great Park, to which they moved in August last year, and they are understood to not be agitating to take on Royal Lodge.

A friend of Williams told The Daily Beast: They have literally only just moved to Adelaide, so I doubt they are keen to do it all again.

Last month, friends of the royals told The Daily Beast that they suspected Andrew would move out in the endand that media forays by Andrews camp, suggesting he would not willingly move out of Royal Lodge, were simply maneuvers to get a better deal.

A friend of King Charles previously told The Daily Beast: In the end, Andrew will play ball. The house is far too big and expensive for him to run without the kings support and goodwill. The speculation is that he is on maneuvers, and trying to get a better deal.

However it is no secret in royal circles that Charles thinks it is damaging for the monarchy that Andrew is still living in a luxurious royal palace after he was kicked out of the ranks of the working royals after he was accused of sexual assault by Virginia Giuffre, a Jeffrey Epstein trafficking victim.

The question is whether Andrew is now bluffing in the hope of getting a bigger financial settlement for surrendering his lease, or if he really intends to defy his brother by staying put in Royal Lodge. If that really is the case, and he and his family cannot afford to repair and maintain it, Charles will have to choose between allowing a historic home to crumble around his nightmare sitting tenantor pay for the upkeep himself after all.

Buckingham Palace did not respond to a request for comment. Andrew no longer has a formal press spokesperson, but his solicitor, who was emailed with a request for comment, did not reply.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

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The Scene

Swedish fintech firm Klarna has evolved from a buy now, pay later venture to an AI-powered payments and e-commerce company. Sebastian Siemiatkowski, co-founder and CEO, is leading the transformation, including talks on partnering with Perplexity, an online search engine enhanced by artificial intelligence. We talked to him about how the hot technology will shake up shopping in an edited conversation below.

The View From Sebastian Siemiatkowski

Q: Klarna has taken the AI revolution seriously with a revamp to TikTok-style content that's hyper-targeted based on user interests. But another vision of the AI-enabled future seems almost the opposite, where people ask large language models what they should buy. Instead of getting an influencer trying to sell them products, the AI lays out the pros and cons of each option and just does the research. How does Klarna fit in?

A: Both versions you describe are complementary to each other. Our recent Future of Retail report found that 26% of U.S. Gen Zers and Millennials expect the shopping experience to be so customized that AI will eventually do the shopping for them. On the other hand, 85% of consumers still like speaking with product experts when shopping online.

The future of shopping will include a combination of hyper-personalization based on users unique preferences, AI-shopping assistants, and content creators that connect people and products through entertaining experiences.

E-commerce has historically been very transactional and static, and the reality is people miss the emotional element of shopping at the mall with their friends. Enhancing both the online shopping journey through curated, AI-driven content, while maintaining a meaningful, human touch will be very important. Perplexity is a fantastic company and were excited to collaborate with them and others on how we can make these experiences come to life.

Q: How do you see advertising and marketing changing in an AI-driven world? What happens if we're just chatting with AI bots instead of browsing websites and TikTok?

A: Today in the Western world, 80% of e-commerce is search-driven, whereas in China we are seeing the opposite  80% of e-commerce is driven by AI-powered recommendation engines, while 20% is through search. Marketers and advertisers benefit immensely when they can more accurately reach their target audiences and tailor their content to meet consumer expectations.

One of Klarnas biggest differentiators is our SKU-level data, which enables us to provide consumers with highly personalized shopping experiences with unmatched depth and detail, and better match them with new brands and offers that are relevant to them. With over 300 billion data points, we see the consumers product purchase, images, size and color.

Q: Klarna is diversifying beyond payments and moving into advertising/marketing. But do you see any possibility that AI enables a commerce landscape that actually does revolve around fees and commissions, rather than marketing and ads?

A: The creator economy is thriving and I dont believe the model of affiliate marketing will go away any time soon; if anything it will evolve based on consumer behavior with the help of AI. But thats just one part of the mix.

Were in the business of matching consumers with retailers and content creators to ultimately help the consumer save time, money, and worry along their financial and shopping journey.

Last month we launched our new AI-powered shopping feed in the Klarna app, as well as our plug-in with ChatGPT, to offer a more tailored shopping experience, and we continue to expand our growth tools for retailers and creators to create more customized experiences that drive revenue.

Q: What did you think about Apple's Vision Pro announcement? Shopping in 3D has always been one of those things people always say is coming.

A: I have yet to try it out, so well see! Klarnas data shows over 75% of Gen Zers and Millennials expect [augmented reality] to enhance their in-store shopping experience, and one-third think that this technology will eventually become standard across retail stores.

Shopping will evolve to all kinds of formats, and data will play a key role in the brands that succeed to do this best.
The House and Senate are careening toward a major spending standoff that could consume Congress this fall, raise the threat of a government shutdown and once again test House Speaker Kevin McCarthys ability to keep his narrow Republican majority behind him.

Its a showdown that was likely always going to come to a head eventually, but the hard-fought debt ceiling package signed into law earlier this month included a rare, early topline spending agreement that was carefully negotiated between the White House and the speaker that dictated how much money the federal government would invest in domestic and defense programs.

What followed, however, was a rebellion by the right flank of the GOP conference who argued the spending agreement wasnt low enough. The revolt led to a blockade of the House floor for a week and a call to bring spending back down to the previous fiscal years levels.

On Monday night, House Appropriations Chairwoman Kay Granger, a Texas Republican, announced she would move all the bills through her House Appropriations Committee at the lower, fiscal year 2022 level.

It is the law of the land and not even before the ink is dried, they walked away from it, the top Democrat on the House Appropriations Committee, Rep. Rosa DeLauro of Connecticut, said, adding the House GOPs decision was chaos and all but guarantees a shutdown.

Republican argue a caps deal is a ceiling, not a floor and its not a violation of the agreement to write spending bills that spend less than the number included in the debt ceiling proposal.

After all, they argue that Democrats and Republicans in the Senate wanted assurances from their leadership immediately after the House passed the debt bill that defense spending would be higher than the caps deal set out. Still, the posturing sets the stage for a messy and brutal spending brawl that will consume Congress this fall.

You can always mark them lower, said GOP appropriator Rep. David Joyce of Ohio. We just have to be realistic that the numbers that are going to come back here are probably not going to be at those 2022 levels.

Some GOP senators are already warning the tactic is going to be met with strong resistance in their chamber.

The House likes to do things for messaging purposes, Utah Republican Sen. Mitt Romney said. They infrequently reach the Senate but when they do, they have to pass with Republicans and Democrats, and so I would not give that a lot of prospect for success.

McCarthy has promised to restore so-called regular order in the House, assuring his members hell move all 12 appropriations bills through the committee and onto the floor. That process will take weeks and with a slim majority will require leadership to operate with little room for error despite vast ideological differences within the GOP conference over how deep cuts in spending should be and what should be prioritized. A number of members of the House Freedom Caucus also serve on the Appropriations Committee laying bare the reality that the bills will likely need to have their backing to even make it to the House floor. And that is just one chamber. Whatever the House passes wont have a chance in the Democratic-controlled Senate forcing the two chambers into what could be a painstaking and arduous negotiation.

Were gonna have a sit down, knockdown, drag out (fight)  we recognize that, but it is much better to have a full appropriations process than it is to have a continuing resolution, said Sen. Mike Rounds, a Republican from South Dakota.

Putting even more pressure on lawmakers to find an agreement is that one of the provisions included in the debt ceiling deal would force any continuing resolution  a backstop to avoid a shutdown  to fund the government at 2023 levels to be cut at 1% across the board beginning in January 2024. The actual cuts would then begin in April and include defense cuts that Republicans and Democrats alike have warned would be devastating to national security.

Its a series of compounding crises that seasoned appropriators are warning could become a major issue this fall and winter.

I still think there is a prospect that we could be at an impasse come into September. We are going to get 12 bills out of committee. I would like to think we can get 12 bills through the House, but I am not making that prediction because we cannot agree, Republican Rep. Steve Womack of Arkansas said. Come end of September, we are going to have a dilemma on our hands and the governing majority doesnt need to be toying around with shutting down government.

On Tuesday, House GOP leaders convened a meeting of the so-called five families, representatives from the conferences different ideological wings who discussed what the future of the spending negotiations would look like in the House. Multiple sources in the meeting told CNN there wasnt a clear resolution, but the conversation centered around how the GOP could try and score victories in the appropriations process and what some of those wins could look like. Inside the meeting, some members pushed the idea of using the appropriations process to defund plans to build a new FBI building, a move not all members are on board with. There was also a broader discussion of what policy riders might be included in their bills whether it be on immigration or other priorities.

We have a conference who is all over the map on spending that we all would collectively like to spend less, but we all have different ways we would spend less, Womack said of the meeting.

Senators shocked

The news of Grangers announcement late Monday traveled quickly among Senate appropriators, but it came as a major surprise to many.

Sen. Lisa Murkowski, an Alaska Republican who serves on the Appropriations Committee, described Grangers announcement as unsettling.

I think it certainly makes things much, much more complicated, Murkowski said. I, as an appropriator, did not get a heads up that this was coming our way.

Maine Sen. Susan Collins, the top Republican on the committee, downplayed the significance of the Houses effort to mark up their bill at lower levels, arguing eventually it will be worked out.

The House will make its own decisions. It will not affect how we proceed in the Senate, Collins said. Eventually, we will have to get together in what I hope will be a conference committee and work out the differences.

Asked if this raised the prospects of a shutdown, Collins said, It doesnt have to mean that at all.

Senate appropriators plan to move their bills at the spending levels that were agreed to by the White House and Republicans in the debt ceiling agreement, warning that ultimately those numbers are the only thing that can pass both chambers and be signed by the president.

I think the agreement will ultimately stand the test of time because I think the Senate will insist on making it happen, Sen. Chris Van Hollen, a Maryland Democrat on the committee, said.

Between now and October 1, Congress is in session for a total of 42 legislative days. The House and Senate overlap in session just 17 days before October. Its a tight turnaround and for a process that Congress hasnt successfully executed in more than two decades.

Well figure it out, Senate Republican Whip John Thune said.

CNNs Nicky Robertson contributed to this report.

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Kosovo Serbs block the street near the municipal building in the town of Zvecan, northern Kosovo, Monday, June 5, 2023. Violent clashes with ethnic Serbs a week ago left 30 international soldiers  11 Italians and 19 Hungarians  and more than 50 demonstrators injured. The injuries the soldiers suffered included fractures and burns from improvised explosive incendiary devices. (AP Photo/Dejan Simicevic) (ASSOCIATED PRESS)

BELGRADE, Serbia (AP)  Serbian authorities said Wednesday they have captured three fully armed Kosovo police officers inside Serbia near their mutual border, while Kosovo police said they have likely been kidnapped" on Kosovo territory as they patrolled the area.

The latest incident further raises tensions between Serbia and its former province. Serbia had put its troops on the border on the highest state of alert amid a series of recent clashes between Kosovo Serbs on one side, and Kosovo police and NATO-led peacekeepers on the other.

Kosovo police said in a statement Wednesday that the three police officers called for assistance after they had seen gunmen wearing masks on Kosovo territory near the border north of the capital, Pristina.

When other members of the security forces arrived at the location, they found an empty police car and suspected that the three officers had been kidnapped by Serb forces. Kosovo authorities didn't provide any other details about why they believe the officers were abducted.

Serbian security forces published photos of three men in uniforms lying face down on a field on the edge of a forest, with machine guns, other weapons and radio equipment placed near them.

A video showed the three blindfolded and handcuffed men being led by Serbian officers to parked police cars.

Serbian state media said President Aleksandar Vucic was informed about the arrest and hastily left a reception at the Russian Embassy in Belgrade.

Kosovo Interior Minister Xhelal Svecla denounced the kidnapping, which he said, violates any agreement and is against international norms.

The minister called on the international community to urgently increase pressure on Serbia not only to release our police officers but also stop its provocations.

Kosovo police have contacted NATO-led international peacekeepers, known as KFOR, and other security institutions and international organizations to call for the release of the officers.

The incident comes a day after Kosovo police arrested in northern Mitrovica  an area mostly populated by the ethnic Serb minority  an alleged organizer of Serb protests in the countrys north, including one in which last month 30 NATO-led peacekeepers were injured. Three police officers were injured in the operation.

Tensions in Kosovo flared anew late last month, including violent clashes.

The tensions escalated when Kosovo police seized local municipality buildings in northern Kosovo, where Serbs represent a majority, to install ethnic Albanian mayors who were elected in a local election in April after Serbs overwhelmingly boycotted the vote.

Serbia and its former province Kosovo have been at odds for decades, with Belgrade refusing to recognize Kosovos 2008 declaration of independence. The latest violence near their shared border has stirred fears of a renewal of a 1998-99 conflict in Kosovo that claimed more than 10,000 lives, mostly ethnic Albanians.

___

Llazar Semini reported from Tirana, Albania.
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates  Kuwait has reached an agreement worth $367 million with Turkish drone-maker Baykar to purchase its increasingly sought-after TB2 combat drones, the Kuwaiti Army said.

The Bayraktar TB2 can carry lightweight, laser-guided bombs and fly for up to 27 hours at a time, which, according to the company, was a record it had set while testing the drone in Kuwait in 2019.

Tuesdays announcement would set Kuwait to become the 28th country to procure the TB2 drones.

Demand for the drones has surged due to their successful deployment in conflict zones such as Libya, Syria and Ukraine.

Kuwaiti Air Force operations chief brigadier, Gen. Fahad Al-Dosari, said in a video posted on Twitter that the drone fleet can support the naval and coast guard forces, as well as monitor maritime and land borders. He said the drones can also carry out reconnaissance and targeted missions in addition to supporting search and rescue efforts.

Baykar and the Kuwaiti government did not say how many drones were purchased or when they would be delivered. Both could not be immediately reached for comment.

The drones  priced under $2 million each according to estimates  are produced by the defense company Baykar, which belongs to the family of Selcuk Bayraktar, the son-in-law of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Bayraktar is the companys chief technical officer.

The TB2 has been credited with helping tip the balance of conflicts in Libya, as well as to Turkeys ally Azerbaijan in fighting with Armenian-backed forces in the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region in 2020.

It has also enabled Ukraine to mount a stiff defense of its cities, carrying out attacks against Russian forces with an effectiveness that surprised many Western military experts and triggered a rush among nations to procure the unmanned craft.

A private Lithuanian crowdfunding campaign, inspired by the drones effectiveness in battle, rallied ordinary citizens and raised nearly 6 million (U.S. $6.5 million) to purchase a TB2 for Ukraine.

The drone contract between Baykar and Kuwait, struck through direct negotiations between the Turkish and Kuwaiti governments, also includes weapons provisioning, electronic warfare and mobile ground control facilities compatible with NATO standards, according to Kuwaiti state media.

Kuwait, considered a major non-NATO ally, and the U.S. have had a close military partnership since America launched the 1991 Gulf War to expel Iraqi troops after Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein invaded the country. The country hosts the U.S. Army Centrals forward headquarters and some 13,500 American troops.
Kyiv Metro gets another batch of metro carriages from Warsaw

A total of 12 wagons out of 60 planned have already been received

Kyiv Metro has received another batch of metro carriages from Warsaw Metro, Kyiv Metro CEO Viktor Brahinskyi confirmed on Facebook on June 13.

In total, Kyiv has already received 12 carriages out of 60 planned, he added.

For our company, this is great support from our European colleagues as most of the rolling stock running on the capitals metro lines was manufactured in Soviet times, Brahinskyi said.

Read also: Kyiv to establish shelters with automated opening system, allocates $20 million to refurbish shelters

The Polish carriages will primarily be used as technical donors to replace equipment, components, and parts of the existing fleet of carriages of the Kyiv Metro during their maintenance and repair, he added.

Were bringing the voice of Ukraine to the world. Support us with a one-time donation, or become a Patron!

Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
Labor Secretary nominee Julie Su was reluctant to testify before Congress. Heres why she did

Julie Su, her nomination as Labor secretary stuck in a reluctant Senate, testified before a Republican-led House committee last week only after being threatened with a subpoena that would have forced her to attend.

Such appearances are usually routine. Top cabinet officials are expected to testify before congressional committees in the spring and summer about their agencys work and budget needs for the coming fiscal year.

Sus situation is anything but routine. President Joe Biden nominated her as labor secretary on February 28, but her confirmation has stalled as at least three Senate Democrats remain undecided. Among the concerns are Sus stewardship of Californias chaotic unemployment insurance system as COVID triggered a brief economic collapse in 2020.

The White House is working behind the scenes to salvage the nomination. Each night senior officials gather in a war room phone call to discuss progress and strategy. The White House declined to comment on Su and the committee.

Sus team at Labor told The Bee she has always been willing to testify.

Acting Secretary Su had long been interested in joining last weeks hearing before the House committee. Its just one of the ways that she continues to show up on the job amidst her confirmation, said a statement from a Labor Department spokesman who asked not to be named. He said he had been authorized to send the statement only without his name.

Sus appearance was originally was scheduled for last Wednesday. On the Friday evening before the hearing, three days after the committee sent out official notification that she would testify, Su tried to postpone, according to an email exchange between the Labor officials and committee staff that was reviewed by The Bee.

House Education & the Workforce Committee Chairwoman Virginia Foxx, R-North Carolina, reacted within three hours.

Show up or Ill issue a subpoena to compel your appearance, she directed her team to convey in an email to Sus team. The next day, Su agreed to appear as scheduled.

Foxx has been a scathing Su critic for years, charging Su with being too eager to impose unnecessary regulations while not adequately helping workers and businesses. The Wednesday session was predictably rough for Su, the departments deputy since 2021 and current acting secretary.

Republicans asked about a variety of controversial topics, as they tried to raise more doubts about Sus ability to run the U.S. Labor Department.

Su needs 51 votes for confirmation. Vice President Kamala Harris would break a 50-50 tie. All 49 Republicans are likely to oppose Su.

Republicans and many corporate interests have waged an aggressive campaign to defeat her, claiming that she too often sympathizes with workers. They also question her stewardship of Californias unemployment insurance program during the COVID pandemic, when the system was hit with billions of dollars in fraudulent claims.

Su and the testimony

Sus troubles with the House committee began in mid-March, shortly after Secretary Marty Walsh stepped down. Su was named acting secretary.

It was immediately clear Su would face tough scrutiny from Republicans. On April 6, Foxx joined Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Bakersfield, Rep. Kevin Kiley, R-Rocklin, and other Republicans in a letter to Biden outlining why Su was unfit to be secretary.

We will closely monitor her tenure as Acting Secretary of Labor, and we will strongly oppose her confirmation by the Senate, they pledged.

On April 18, Foxx sent Su a letter requesting an appearance to review DOLs previous and ongoing work and to evaluate your performance as a leader of the agency. Ten days later, Foxx made a House floor speech citing her long track record of incompetence.

Committee staff invited Su to testify in May but her team said she was not available. They requested June 7 and confirmed that the date worked for a hearing.

On May 31, the committee sent out an official notice and took care of the paperwork needed for the hearing.

On Friday night, June 2, Sus team sent the committee an email at 6:22 p.m. saying Su could not make the June 7 hearing, giving no reason why. Her team suggested four dates in mid-July as alternatives.

Her scheduling team asked if there might be a more convenient date for all parties due to a handful of reasons, but when the chairwomans staff made clear that that was not an option, the hearing date was confirmed, said the Labor Department spokesman.

Foxx anticipated such a move and had prepared a subpoena in advance. Around 9:15 that night she directed her staff to inform Su that if she did not appear on June 7 voluntarily, Foxx would compel her to show up by issuing a subpoena.

Such subpoenas for top officials testifying in oversight hearings are rare.

Nearly 24 hours later, Sus team said she would appear.

GOP gets tough with Su

At the hearing, Foxx pressed Su hard. The chairwoman began the session Wednesday by telling her, You attempted to cancel your appearance at the last minute and are here today only because my threat to issue a subpoena caused you to reconsider appearing.

Foxx went on to criticize Sus responses to requests for information. Will you commit to providing fully responsive answers to the committees requests, yes or no? the chairwoman asked.

Su responded graciously. Thank you so much, Chairwoman Foxx. I am very happy to be here to testify. I understand that our teams worked together to find the date.

Foxx grew impatient with Sus pleasant but hedged replies.

Miss Su, I just need a yes or no answer and I appreciate your being here and you dont have to say thank you very much for the question. That just takes up time.

Su remained calm. I appreciate that. Chairwoman Foxx, I want to say that I take the oversight role of this committee and of Congress very seriously, she said.

Then youll be saying yes to my question, yes you will answer our requests completely Is that right? Foxx persisted.

Chairwoman Foxx, my team understands that it is our job and it is my request that we respond to oversight requests and work with your team. Su said.

Foxx cut her off. Do you understand that failure to provide complete responses can result in the committee taking compulsory measures, she warned.

This time Su was concise. Yes, she said.

Goooood, said Foxx, stretching out the word. You know that word.

The hearing ping-ponged between Republicans raising accusations about Sus policies and performance and Democrats praising her championing of worker rights and helping create the job boom thats occurred during the Biden presidency.

Afterwards, critics were all over Twitter with fresh material to use against Su. Video of the Foxx-Su exchange was posted, and Kiley and others blogged about the hearing.

Yesterdays hearing was unreal. Bidens Labor nominee, Julie Su, was the most evasive witness Ive ever seen, Kiley wrote.
How prescription opioids led to meth, heroin and fentanyl for this Boise woman | Opinion

Siena Thompson, right, and Sawyer Morrison in happier times, before they were both arrested on drug charges in February. Siena said she started using prescription pain killers, which led to addiction.

Editors note: This is the third in a series about how Idaho plans to spend millions in opioid settlement funds.

By the time she was 16 years old, Siena Thompson had undergone two back surgeries for a back problem shed had since birth and was taking prescription oxycodone, a powerful opioid.

That regular use turned into an addiction that escalated. She started buying pills on the street.

And then eventually they werent enough anymore, she said via video from the Canyon County Jail. So I turned to heroin. And then I just kind of went up the ladder after that, meth use and everything.

Siena, 30, of Boise, is in the Canyon County Jail in Caldwell, about 90 miles from where her girlfriend, Sawyer Morrison, sits in the Valley County Jail in Cascade. Both women were arrested together on drug charges in February. Because theres no room in state prison, the women are staying in county jails.

Like Sawyer, Siena considers herself an addict with a chronic disease and wants to stay off drugs.

She said she struggles with withdrawal but does much better once she gets out of the spiral.

Getting out of that spiral was particularly difficult on fentanyl, a synthetic opioid that is up to 50 times stronger than heroin and 100 times stronger than morphine.

Fentanyl is by far the gnarliest thing Ive ever come across, Siena said. To get off that was 20 times harder than it was to get off of anything else. And within a week of using it, I started to withdraw without it. So I mean, it was a trap.

Prison is not rehab

Incarceration can be good for getting someone out of that spiral initially, but after that, sitting in a jail cell or prison for months or even years ends up doing more harm than good, she said.

Theres girls in here that are going to do significant time away from their children for a bag (of marijuana) or one pill, Siena said. Offer them help, offer them assistance. Get them sober, sure. Let them dry out, okay. But then let them build their life again, dont let them just waste away.

I asked Siena what she thought would be the best use of $218 million coming to Idaho from legal settlements with opioid makers and distributors.

She said one area the state should spend the money on is transitional housing to get off drugs, get stable, get treatment and counseling, find a job and eventually move out on your own again.

You can find housing, but its not going to be good housing, she said. The good housing where people genuinely actually care (is) hard to get into and expensive.

She added that family housing, for mothers and their children or couples, for example, is nearly impossible to find.

Gov. Brad Little and the Legislature last session approved $750,000 for transitional housing for the Idaho Department of Correction. That money is coming from the states general fund, not the opioid settlement fund. Also approved was $1.35 million for community recovery centers, but that money is coming from tobacco settlement money, not opioid settlement money. Meanwhile, about $12 million in settlement money has come into the state already, but only $900,000 of it has been spent.

Suboxone

Siena also recommends spending opioid settlement money on suboxone, a medication used to treat opioid addiction by dulling or blunting opiate intoxication and preventing cravings. Its similar to methadone, which most people have heard of in treating heroin addiction.

One thing I am super supportive of is the suboxone program, Siena said. Because that has saved me multiple times throughout my addiction career, and thats where Ive gotten my biggest amounts of sobriety is going from using (drugs) to suboxone, which helps you get out of that spiral.

Central District Health plans to use at least part of its opioid settlement money on medication-assisted treatment.

Finally, a hidden challenge for many trying to recover is transportation.

Theres so many people that dont have transportation, that cant get themselves to the bus, she said.

She said she stayed at a sober living facility in California that had a sober Uber, a ride service that would get residents to meetings, treatment and court dates.

Even though shes not sure where shes going to live when shes released in February or how shell get around, since she also lost her car, Im sure Ill figure it out.

Those are the mundane things that most of us take for granted but pose significant challenges to people like Siena who are just being released and trying to stay clean.

But for Siena, shes determined to make it.

I had a beautiful life, she said about her time when she was clean, before she got arrested. I loved my life. I just want it back.
airlines

In a massive bill covering the Federal Aviation Administration, lawmakers are considering repealing a rule from the Obama administration that requires airlines to show the full airfare prices of a ticket upfront in advertising, as well as adjusting training requirements for airline pilots, among other changes. As the Associated Press reported Monday, a 773-page proposal to reauthorize FAA programs for the next five years was released by the House Transportation Committee Friday.

D.C. Delegate Rick Larsen called the plan a compromise, but he acknowledged that many details would need to be worked out when committees begin reviewing the bill next week.

Critics have pointed to the FAAs lack of air traffic controllers, outdated technology, and near-misses between planes as reasons for their disapproval. There is a new acting administrator at the agency, and they have no background in aviation. Since its previous leader resigned midway through his term, the organization has been without a Senate-confirmed head for over a year.

The base airfare prices, which do not include taxes and fees, can be advertised by airlines under a provision of the House bill so long as there is a link to the total price or other disclosure. Consumer advocates are upset with the House for weakening a rule from the Obama administration that airlines have fought to kill for years.

These protections were hard fought and took years to enact, William McGee, an aviation expert at the American Economic Liberties Project, told AP. Any consumer can tell you that online airline bookings are confusing enough. The last thing we need is to roll back existing protection that provides effective transparency.

Minimum Flying Time for Commercial Pilot Certification

The chairmen of the House committees have also proposed reducing the minimum flying time required for commercial pilot certification. The current requirement of 1,500 hours of training would remain the same under the proposed legislation, but 250 of those hours could be completed in simulators rather than actually flying an airplane.

There are already exemptions that allow pilots in the military and graduates of some aviation schools to qualify with fewer hours than the 1,500-hour rule, but this hasnt stopped airlines, especially smaller ones that operate regional flights, from fighting it. Fifty people were killed in a crash in 2009, prompting the rules implementation.

According to United Airlines Air Line Pilots Association head Garth Thompson, it would be a horrible idea to weaken the rule.

That rule, like so many federal aviation regulations, is written in blood, literally, Thompson told AP. That regulation came about because of the Colgan Air crash and other crashes that involved experience issues. When asked about changes in airfare advertising and pilot training, Larsen said, Its something we can live with.

Provisions in the bill seek to enhance airport infrastructure and increase the availability of environmentally friendly aviation fuel. Better cockpit voice recorders and, for the first time, cockpit video recorders would have to be installed on commercial aircraft to aid in accident investigations. The pilot community is strongly opposed to the cameras.
At least 1 person struck by lightning as storms move through west Georgia

Fire officials in Troup County say that at least one person has been struck by lightning on Wednesday afternoon.

Officials confirmed to Channel 2 Action News that there were several lightning strikes around an apartment complex off of Old Airport Road.

[DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks]

At least one person was struck. Their current condition is unknown.

Its unclear if anyone else was injured or if the apartment complex sustained any damage.

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IN RELATED NEWS:
At least 13 civilians dead and 24 wounded by Russian attacks over past day

At least thirteen civilians died and 24 were injured in 11 oblasts over the past day as a result of Russian attacks, officials informed on June 14.

Russian attacks were reported in Odesa, Donetsk, Chernihiv, Sumy, Zaporizhzhia, Kirovohrad, Dnipropetrovsk, Kharkiv, Luhansk, Mykolaiv, and Kherson oblasts.

In Odesa Oblast, at least three people were killed and 13 injured in the strikes, Ukraine's Southern Command reported.

Four Kalibr cruise missiles were launched against the city of Odesa during the night. While three of them were shot down, one of the missiles hit a warehouse of a retail chain, killing three of its employees and injuring seven more people.

Missile debris damaged several other buildings, including an educational institution and a residential complex, injuring six more people.

In Donetsk Oblast, three people were killed and six others wounded, according to Governor Pavlo Kyrylenko.

Russian missiles hit Kramatorsk, killing two people and injuring two more, while in Kostiantynivka, one person was killed and another injured.

Two more people were wounded in Toretsk, the governor added. Many private houses and infrastructure objects were damaged or destroyed in the attacks across the oblast.

Chernihiv Oblast sustained attacks over the past day but no casualties. The Novhorod-Siverskyi district was shelled three times with mortars during the day, damaging five houses.

In Sumy Oblast, at least six people were killed by Russian attacks, Sumy Region Prosecutor's Office announced.

Two civilians and four forestry workers have been killed in a car on the territory of the Seredyna-Buda community.

The police added that Russian strikes have damaged the boarding house of a local orphanage, a private house, a shop, and power lines.

Russia also bombed the communities of Seredyna-Buda, Bilopole, Vorozhba, Znob-Novhorodske, and Esman 8 times over the night with artillery and mortars, leaving no casualties.

In Zaporizhzhia Oblast, Russia launched 122 attacks against 20 settlements, using drones, multiple-launch rocket systems, and artillery, Governor Yurii Malashko reported.

One 78-year-old resident of Novopavlivka was injured and 40 objects of civil infrastructure were destroyed.

In Kirovohrad Oblast, a Shahed kamikaze drone hit an infrastructure object in Svitlovodsk, Governor Andrii Raikovych said. There were no causalties.

One person was injured and one died as a result of Russian attacks in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast.

Nikopol was hit several times with artillery, leaving one 35-year-old woman injured and damaging residential buildings and infrastructure, Governor Serhii Lysak reported.

Three Shahed drones were shot down over the oblast, leaving no casualties.

Last night, a 67-year-old man succumbed to his wounds inflicted by the attack on Kryvyi Rih on the night of June 13.

In Kharkiv Oblast, Russian forces shelled the border and front-line settlements in the Kharkiv, Kupiansk, Chuhuiiv, and Bohodukhiv districts, Governor Oleh Syniehubov wrote.

Property damage was reported but no casualties, he added.

George E. Bogden: Russian bombs in Belarus bear political significance Late last month, Russian President Vladimir Putin moved ahead with his threat to deploy nuclear weapons on Belarusian soil. Echoing prior condemnation of this planned action, the U.S. State Departments spokesman added: we have seen no reason to adjust our strategic nuclear posture or any indicati The Kyiv IndependentGeorge E. Bogden

Russian forces attacked the town of Ochakiv and territory near Kutsurubsk in Mykolaiv Oblast, leaving property damage but no casualties, Governor Vitalii Kim reported.

In Kherson Oblast, Russian attacks killed one person and injured three, Governor Oleksandr Prokudin said.

Russian forces carried out 57 attacks using artillery, mortars, and drones and fired 304 projectiles.

In the village of Bilozerka, artillery strikes hit a churchyard, killing a priest and injuring a 76-year-old woman.

The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine also reported air strikes and artillery attacks against several settlements in Luhansk Oblast but no casualties were recorded.
At least 79 dead, more than 100 rescued near Greece after boat carrying migrants capsizes

Paramedics carry an injured survivor of a shipwreck to an ambulance at the port in Kalamata town, about 240 kilometers (150miles) southwest of Athens

At least 79 people are dead and more than 100 have been rescued after a fishing boat with migrants aboard capsized near the coast of Greece on Wednesday.

The boat capsized overnight 45 miles southwest of Pylos, Greece, in the country's southern Peloponnese peninsula, the Greek coast guard said Wednesday. Members of Greece's coast guard, navy and air force have been searching the waters with a helicopter, lifeboat, navy frigate and two patrol boats.

Authorities said Wednesday that 79 bodies had been recovered and 104 people had been rescued. Survivors have been transferred to the Peloponnese city of Kalamata by ship, where they were met by the United Nations Refugee Agency, which provided medical attention and dry clothes. Four people were taken to the General Hospital of Kalamata by helicopter with hypothermia symptoms.

None of the survivors were wearing life jackets, authorities said. The number of people who are missing or may still be in the sea had not been released.

More: Victim identified in fatal capsizing of cave tour boat in Lockport

Capsized boat believed to have originated in Libya

Greek authorities and the European Union border protection agency Frontex were first alerted about the boat, which was heading for Italy, during the day Tuesday. The boat is believed to be from eastern Libya, which has faced human trafficking and emigration problems since an uprising killed autocrat Moammar Gadhafi in 2011.

After the first alert, a Frontex aircraft and two merchant ships spotted the boat sailing north, according to the Greek coast guard. A coast guard patrol boat headed for the area while a coast guard helicopter monitored the vessel.

The coast guard said it tried repeatedly to call the ship and offer help, but all requests were declined.

In the afternoon a merchant vessel approached the ship and provided it with food and supplies, while the (passengers) refused any further assistance, it said.

After supplying the ship with food, a second merchant ship approached the fishing boat with more supplies and assistance, which was declined. Tuesday evening, a Greece coast guard patrol boat approached the ship and saw a "large number of migrants on the deck" who declined help and expressed that they wanted to continue their voyage.

The coast guard patrol boat moved alongside the ship before it ultimately capsized early Wednesday.

Alarm Phone, a help line designed for people who are sailing across the Mediterranean Sea, said in a tweet that it received reports of a ship in distress Wednesday near the same area where the migrant ship went down.

Yesterday, we were alerted by a boat in distress in the Greek SAR zone. It had left from #Libya. According to the people, there were 750 people on board. Authorities were alerted. Contact was lost shortly after midnight. We now hear reports of a shipwreck and fear they are true. pic.twitter.com/NTyhmTIHQD  Alarm Phone (@alarm_phone) June 14, 2023

The U.N.'s International Organization for Migration tweeted Wednesday that the capsizing was a "tragedy in the Aegean" and that some reports said 400 people were on board.

 Another tragedy in the Aegean that reinforces the urgency for concrete, comprehensive action from States to save lives at sea and reduce perilous journeys by expanding safe and regular pathways to migration.  IOM - UN Migration  (@UNmigration) June 14, 2023

Contributing: Nicholas Paphitis, Sam Magdy and Renata Brito, The Associated Press

More on U.S. capsizing events: US Coast Guard rescues 4 people in one week after boats capsize near Oregon

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Migrant boat capsizes near Greece, killing 79, injuring over 100
At least 9 killed in ethnic clashes in India's northeast, where 100 have died in month of violence

FILE- A member of the Kuki tribe cries during a sit in protest against the killing of tribals in their northeastern home state of Manipur, in New Delhi, India, May 29, 2023. Fresh violence erupted in Indias remote northeast with rival ethnic groups firing at each other, leaving at least nine dead and some injured, officials said on Wednesday. Security forces rushed to Khamenlok village in Manipur states Kangpokpi district after clashes broke out on Tuesday night between Kuki and Meitei communities. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup, File) (ASSOCIATED PRESS)

NEW DELHI (AP)  Rival ethnic groups fired at each other in new violence in Indias remote northeast that left at least nine people dead and some injured, officials said Wednesday.

Security forces rushed to Khamenlok village in Manipur states Kangpokpi district after clashes broke out Tuesday night between the Kuki and Meitei communities, said L. Sushindro, a state government minister.

Police found nine bodies early Wednesday, a police officer said on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to reporters.

Three people were reported missing, the officer said.

On Wednesday, a mob burned the home of state Industry and Commerce Minister Nemcha Kipgen in Imphal, the state capital, the officer said.

Kipgen, a Kuki, and her family were not at home at the time of the attack.

At least 100 people have been killed in severe ethnic clashes in Manipur state since May 3, and thousands of homes have been burned and shops and businesses vandalized.

Authorities have moved nearly 40,000 people from troubled areas to safer places.

Indian Home Minister Amit Shah visited the state early this month and met community leaders in an attempt to restore peace.

The violence started last month after protests by more than 50,000 Kukis and members of other predominantly Christian tribal communities in Churachandpur and adjoining districts in Manipur state.

They oppose the majority Meitei Hindu communitys demand for a special status that would give them benefits including the right to farm on forest land, cheap bank loans, and health and educational facilities, as well as a specified quota of government jobs.

Minority hill community leaders say the Meitei community is comparatively well-off and that granting them more privileges would be unfair.

The Meiteis say employment quotas and other benefits for tribespeople would be protected.

Two-thirds of the states 2.5 million people live in a valley that comprises roughly 10% of the states total area. The Meiteis are Hindus while rival groups, including the Kuki and other tribes, are mostly Christian and mainly live in the surrounding hill districts. Ethnic Muslims constitute about 8% of the state population.
By Maya Gebeily and Laila Bassam

BEIRUT (Reuters) -The powerful Hezbollah group and its allies thwarted a bid by their rivals to elect a top IMF official as Lebanon's president on Wednesday, sharpening sectarian tensions and further dimming prospects for preventing a collapse of the state.

Four years since Lebanon went into a financial meltdown that marks its worst crisis since the 1975-90 civil war, parliament failed for a 12th time to elect someone to fill the post reserved for a Maronite Christian under the country's sectarian system.

The standoff has opened a fresh sectarian fault line, pitting the Iran-backed, heavily armed Shi'ite Muslim Hezbollah against Christian factions including its own ally, Gebran Bassil, who endorsed IMF official Jihad Azour for president.

Neither Azour nor Hezbollah-backed candidate Suleiman Frangieh came close to winning the 86 votes needed to win in a first round vote. Azour, the IMF's Middle East Director and an ex-finance minister, won the support of 59 of 128 lawmakers.

Frangieh secured 51.

Hezbollah and its allies then withdrew from the session, denying the two-thirds quorum required for a second vote in which 65 votes are enough for victory.

Shi'ite Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, a Hezbollah ally, did not schedule a new session. It leaves Lebanon with no immediate way of filling a post vacant since the term of the Hezbollah-allied President Michel Aoun ended in October.

Azour thanked lawmakers who backed him, saying he hoped the will expressed by "the majority of deputies" would be respected.

Hezbollah lawmaker Hussein al-Haj Hassan said the group was ready for dialogue but sticking by Frangieh, a friend of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

George Adwan, a Christian lawmaker with the anti-Hezbollah Lebanese Forces party, said the vote was "a major victory" because it showed Azour close to 65 votes.

But with parliament fractured, analysts say the logjam may now require the type of foreign intervention that has resolved past crises in Lebanon, including the 1989 deal mediated in Saudi Arabia that ended the civil war.

Lebanese political sources have anticipated that a new detente between Saudi Arabia and Iran could play out in Lebanon, but say they have not yet sensed pressure as other issues - including the Yemen war - take precedence.

A newly-appointed French envoy is expected in Beirut next week in a mediation effort.

Washington is concerned by the stalemate and wants to see a president elected who can unlock IMF support for Lebanon, but it is up to the country's leaders to resolve the crisis, U.S. State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said.

"We believe that Lebanons leaders and their elites must stop putting their own interests and ambitions above the people of their country," Miller said at a press briefing.

SECTARIAN TENSIONS

"You can't stay in this situation," said Mohanad Hage Ali of the Carnegie Middle East Center, noting forthcoming state decisions included agreeing a replacement for central bank governor Riad Salameh, who faces corruption charges which he denies. His term ends in July.

Lebanon has been without a fully empowered cabinet since parliamentary elections last year.

Hezbollah, designated a terrorist group by the United States, unleashed fierce rhetoric against Azour, describing him as a candidate of confrontation.

Lebanon's Shi'ite Mufti Sheikh Ahmad Qabalan dialled up the attacks without naming Azour, accusing him of being backed by Israel and saying "a president with an American stamp will not be allowed".

Azour, 57, has said he wants national unity and reforms.

He was finance minister from 2005 to 2008, a period of political conflict pitting a government backed by the West and Saudi Arabia against Hezbollah-led opponents aligned with Damascus. That crisis culminated in conflict in 2008, with Hezbollah seizing much of Beirut.

The financial crisis was caused by decades of corruption and profligate spending by ruling politicians whose vested interests have obstructed any steps towards addressing it.

The cabinet passed a recovery roadmap in May 2022, despite objections by Hezbollah ministers. The IMF has criticised Lebanon for very slow progress in implementing reforms.

(Additional reporting by Issam Abdallah and Simon Lewis; writing by Tom Perry; editing by John Stonestreet, Mark Heinrich, William Maclean)
The Lees Summit R-7 School District is one of 20 schools across Missouri that will participate in a pilot program to test alternative forms of student assessment outside of current required state exams, the district announced last week.

As part of the Success Ready Students Network, Lees Summit students wont take Missouri Assessment Program tests for three years while the district pilots new programs to more effectively track students progress. The Missouri Department of Secondary and Elementary Education helped create the program that was presented to the state board last week.

Current state testing assesses students towards the end of the school year, and scores and data are only available to parents and teachers in the summer or fall, when most students have already moved on to the next grade level, said Christy Barger, associate superintendent of academic services for the Lees Summit school district.

Through the pilot, Barger said Lees Summit administrators hope to provide real-time assessments throughout the school year to help students reach state competency standards by the summer.

Lees Summit plans to administer a nationally normed test three times a year. Students in Lees Summit already take the assessment, but if the state board approves it in August, the district can use the exam as their main accountability system during the pilot program.

The test takes between three and five hours to complete, and within 24 hours, teachers see the results that they can use to adjust lesson plans and meet individual student needs, Barger said. Results will also provide markers showing how Lees Summit students scored compared to other students in the state and nationally.

Barger said their hope across the 20 districts is to determine a way to measure student success that would be more meaningful for teachers, students and parents.

Parents can have a very real-time sense of where their student is in October of third grade, as opposed to having to wait till the student is a quarter of the way through fourth grade to find out how they did on their third grade standard, she said.

The pilot, Barger said, will also have a focus on real-world learning, with students having more opportunities to connect classroom lessons and goals with experiences like internships and externships. She said the program will allow the district to help students meet state standards while also readying students for life beyond high school.

The state board of education will vote on the standardized testing waiver in August. If approved, the pilot program will begin in the fall and continue through the 2025-2026 school year.
Heres a look at the life of former CIA Director and former Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta.

Personal

Birth date: June 28, 1938

Birth place: Monterey, California

Birth name: Leon Edward Panetta

Father: Carmelo Panetta, restaurant owner and farmer

Mother: Carmelina (Prochilo) Panetta, restaurant owner

Marriage: Sylvia Marie (Varni) Panetta (1962-present)

Children: Christopher, Carmelo and James

Education: University of Santa Clara, B.A., 1960; University of Santa Clara, J.D., 1963

Military service: US Army, 1964-1966, First Lieutenant

Religion: Roman Catholic

Other Facts

His parents were Italian immigrants who owned a walnut farm in the Carmel Valley of California.

Graduated magna cum laude in political science.

Received the Army Commendation Medal.

Was forced to resign as the head of the US Office for Civil Rights when he tried to speed up the pace of school desegregation, against the wishes of the administration of President Richard Nixon.

Timeline

1966-1969 - Legislative aide to Republican Senator Thomas Kuchel of California.

1969 - Special assistant to the Secretary of Health, Education and Welfare under President Nixon.

March 1969-February 1970 - Head of the US Office for Civil Rights.

1971 - Switches parties from Republican to Democrat.

1971 - Returns to California to practice law.

1976 - Elected to the House of Representatives, representing the area around Monterey, California. Is reelected eight times.

1979-1989 - Serves on the House Committee on the Budget.

1989-1993 - Chairman of the House Committee on the Budget.

1991 - Votes against a resolution authorizing Operation Desert Storm.

January 21, 1993-October 1994 - Director of the Office of Management and Budget.

July 17, 1994-January 20, 1997 - Chief of staff to President Bill Clinton.

1997-2009 and 2013-present - Co-director, and then chairman of The Panetta Institute for Public Policy.

1997 - Appointed presidential professor at Santa Clara University, teaching a course called Studies in Public Policy.

1997-2003 - Serves on the Board of Directors of the New York Stock Exchange.

2000-2003 - Chairman of the Pew Oceans Commission.

2002 - Joins the National Review Board set up by the US Conference of Catholic Bishops in the wake of priest sex abuse scandals.

2004 - Co-chair of the California Council on Base Support and Retention, which was established after the Department of Defense announced it would be realigning and closing military bases across the country.

2005 - Serves as a member of the Migration Policy Institutes Independent Task Force on Immigration and Americas Future addressing illegal immigration.

2006 - Member of the Iraq Study Group tasked with assessing the US effort in Iraq and making policy recommendations following their findings.

January 5, 2009 - Nominated by President-elect Barack Obama to be the new director of the CIA.

February 12, 2009 - Confirmed by the US Senate as the new director of the CIA.

February 13, 2009-June 30, 2011 - Director of the CIA.

April 28, 2011 - President Obama nominates Panetta to be the new secretary of defense to replace Robert Gates.

June 21, 2011 - Confirmed by the US Senate as the next secretary of defense.

July 1, 2011-February 26, 2013 - Twenty-third secretary of defense.

December 15, 2011 - Attends the handover ceremony in Baghdad, commemorating the end of Operation Iraqi Freedom.

January 24, 2013 - Announces the US military will end its longstanding policy of excluding women from combat and open front-line units to female service members.

October 7, 2014 - His memoir, Worthy Fights: A Memoir of Leadership in War and Peace is published.

June 5, 2020 - Joins 88 other former defense officials in Washington Post open letter criticizing President Donald Trumps threat to use the US active military to quell nationwide protests over the death of George Floyd, an unarmed black man, at the hands of Minneapolis police.

October 12, 2022 - Joins the Council for Responsible Social Media, a nonpartisan group that includes former lawmakers and a Facebook whistleblower, focused on addressing the impacts of social media on the health of communities.

For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis speaks in Oxon Hill, Md., on April 21. (Alex Brandon / Associated Press)

To the editor: The headline, "Migrants say Florida contractors pushed to get them to board planes to California," is misleading. The migrants were "lured," not "pushed."

Has some subconscious progressive thinking seeped into your headline writing? The article itself is factual, as were the statements made by the contractor's employee that "there were people there to receive us who would give us lodging, that they would help us  get our [immigration] papers in order."

It appears that's true of California, New York and Massachusetts, and would be for any sanctuary state that so self-righteously wants open borders even though other states suffer.

Allan Baker, Morongo Valley

..

To the editor: If law enforcement officials suspect that a crime was committed by transporting unsuspecting migrants to another location, wouldn't it require impounding the vehicle used to transport them, at least for the duration of the investigation?

No transportation provider of bus, airplane or any other conveyance would risk chartering to anyone they thought was acting illegally with the possibility of their means of doing business being seized. Problem solved.

Bob Merrilees, Camarillo

..

To the editor: The migrants who chose to fly to Sacramento seem to have made the right decision. They were housed and fed properly.

They were otherwise offered vague promises by contractors who appeared to have been insufficiently informed as to the fate of the migrants once they reached California.

Mathilde Diaz, New York

..

To the editor: DeSantis says he did nothing wrong because the migrants his people apparently lied to and transported went "voluntarily." Every creep convicted of luring children into a backseat with candy will follow this case with great interest.

Douglas Green, Sherman Oaks

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Bad call in West Bonner

Congratulations to the West Bonner School District Board of Trustees for their insightful selection of Branden Durst to be their organizations educational leader.

A controversial but gutsy call.

They have hired an educational leader their teachers can admire and count on to provide guidance in all areas of their instructional practice. Despite his lack of any meaningful experience in a K-12 setting as a classroom teacher or administrator, Mr. Durst, their new superintendent, will prove to be a credible and effective source of support to Priest River educators as they perform the critical aspects of their job curriculum, assessment, pedagogy, classroom management, special education accommodations, etc.

I can hear it now: Ive never helped write an Individual Education Plan but this is what worked for me in the Idaho Legislature when I switched parties. or Ive never taught a kid to read but let me share with you some of my Idaho Freedom Foundation Senior Education Analyst white papers.

The students of West Bonner are fortunate to have their futures placed in the skilled hands of such an accomplished educator.

Lets go Branden!

Timothy Rosandick, Caldwell

Build a healthy environment

Growing communities are compelled to make uncomfortable decisions like that we face in our zoning laws. Rarely does a perfect solution exist. I do not have children of my own, but I work as a family physician and at moments like these the health of our younger generations is my chief concern. We have been slow to react to a changing world and the effects on our youth are apparent in disparate but interconnected trends: isolation, depression, asthma, screen time, obesity, poor self-esteem. These are the manifestations of a changing environment that promotes unhealthy lifestyles and climate change. To turn the tide we have to actively imagine a world where healthy, interconnected living is built into the landscape.

What are the daily qualities of life that will matter most to our children over a lifetime? Walkability, connectivity, affordability, access to nature and recreation, climate stability. Belonging and inclusion. Boises zoning code rewrite is an opportunity - a forward-thinking plan that prioritizes health, environment, community, and the natural beauty of the Treasure Valley. Yes, there are tradeoffs inherent in change, but we can set our children up for success where it matters most with the decisions we make today.

Tyler McChane, Boise

Puberty blockers dropped in some countries

In LGBTQ+ people struggle against right-wing war on legal rights, the LA Times reporter says state bans on gender-affirming care targets common treatments  including reversible puberty blockers  that medical experts say are vital for treatment of gender dysphoria.

In fact there is no evidence that puberty blockers are reversible. In February 2022, Sweden, hardly a right wing bastion, decided to limit access to puberty blockers for those under 18 to only exceptional cases and in research settings. Swedens National Board of Health and Welfare deemed that the risks of puberty suppressing treatment with GnRH-analogues and gender-affirming hormonal treatment currently outweigh the possible benefits. The judgment was based on the lack of reliable scientific evidence concerning the efficacy and safety of the treatments.

John Caldwell, Meridian

Simpson should support gun control

Questions for Mike Simpson: Your opinion published June 11 regarding immigration states, We cant sit by while young people die and communities are torn apart with grief. Why are you willing to sit by when it comes to common sense gun legislation? As you stated regarding immigration, Idaho families, farmers and communities face the consequences of failure to address these problems every day, and we must find the political courage to make real, lasting change.... Do you believe the need for live shooter drills in our schools has to be an acceptable cost for living in the U.S.? Why are you unwilling to support and work for gun safety measures that the majority of Americans want to see, including Republicans?

Donna Carlson, Boise
The LFUCG Urban County Councils recent first venture into local land use policy-making was less than impressive. It is a rookie Council, and it made a major unforced error in deciding to give developers a 5,000 acre expansion of the Urban Service Area.

First of all, the Planning Commission, not the Council has legal responsibility for deciding about any expansion. Kentucky law (KRS 100) says so. The Councils responsibility stops at requiring the PC to find enough land for Lexingtons projected growth, not a specific acreage. For more than two years the Planning Commission and Staff collected and analyzed thousands of data points and hundreds of citizens opinions to arrive at a fact-based conclusion that no enlargement of the US Area is needed to accommodate Fayette Countys growth for at least the next five years. This thoughtful process replaced the traditional and ugly political arm wrestling for acres that occurred with every update. Now, developers have convinced the Council to get back into the mud pit of political fighting.

Having struck out with the Planning Council, developers decided to take their unwarranted demand for more land to the new Urban County Council. Under the spell of Developers-Lawyer-and-Council Member Preston Worley and developer-backed group Lexington for Everyone, they threw all that work out the window in order to produce Comprehensive Plan language that orders the PC to find 2,700 to 5,000 acres to add to our city. Most Council Members seemed to vote with their hearts, not their heads, responding to the developers self-serving cry that more land is needed in order to build lots more affordable housing. They appear to be true believers in the discredited basic idea of trickle down economics: treat the rich (developers) good, and theyll do good things for people of lesser means (the rest of Lexington). The choice of some Council Members to believe developers false claims and hollow promises, while ignoring the conclusions of multiple official studies of our growth needspaid for by Lexington taxpayerswould be misfeasant, if they werent so sincere.

What most of these folks dont seem to know is that in 1996, developers were given another 5,000 acre expansion, without justification, in a political process just like this one, and today, 27 years later, only half of this older acreage has been developed, and despite the same promises about building affordable housing, that didnt happen. Today, the verifiable facts about our growth needs say that there is right now enough land inside the boundary to accommodate our expected population growth, and the job growth that goes with it. What is needed to take advantage of this opportunity are developers who will build the kind of housing and commercial buildings that fits on, and looks good in, the thousands of acres of infill and redevelopment land already available inside the present area.

Developers and Mr. Worley have baited the Council into leaving the right path of deciding future growth issues in Fayette County, by offering vague promises of relief for the needy, based on wrong assumptions and fake facts. And the Council fell hard for it, threatening Lexingtons high quality of life, and putting themselves in a position to be sued.

If the Council wants to take over the duty of deciding USB questions, it should start the entire process of Imagine Lexington over again, with public input and all, and plan to spend a couple of years gathering and analyzing data before making policy decisions about growth.

It is not appropriate for Council to arrive at the eleventh hour of this multi-year undertaking, and make decisions that essentially hijack the proceedings. If this unwarranted expansion of the Urban Service Area stands, the very least the Council can do to actually help Lexingtonians is to formally require verifiably affordable (even permanently affordable) housing be built on at least half of any included acreage. Lacking such a commitment, it can be conclusively said that expanding the USArea will not increase the supply of affordable housing, and if given more land to build on, developers wont be building affordable houses, anyway. The Council should know better.

David B. Powell is a retired physician, a Lexingtonian since age 4, and wants to make living in Lexington truly good for all of us.
Live music, art and more: Fun things to do this weekend in Ocala/Marion County

THIS WEEKEND

Yusa (World)

This performance will be featured from 7-9 p.m. June 16 at Webb Field at the Martin Luther King Jr. Recreation Complex, 1510 NW Fourth St., Ocala. It is part of the Levitt AMP Ocala Music Series, which presents a weekly concert April 14 through June 23 (excluding May 26.) Admission is free; bring blankets and lawn chairs.

Classic Albums Live: The Beatles Let it Be

This performance will begin at 7:30 p.m. June 16 at the Reilly Arts Center, 500 NE Ninth St., Ocala. Tickets from $25. More at reillyartscenter.com

Fathers Day Eve Concert and Fireworks

This event will be held at the Ocala-Marion County Veterans Memorial Park at 5 p.m. June 17. Food and live music. Cost is $20 for people ages 18 and older; those 17 and younger will be admitted free. Proceeds go toward park improvements and additional monuments. More at marionvetpark.com/fathers-day-concert

Check the lists: The best restaurants in Ocala for 2023

Good Company

This group will perform as part of The Will McLean Foundations Sunday Sampler Concert Series at 2 p.m. June 18 in the historic Dunnellon Depot, 12061 S. Williams St., Dunnellon. Donation is $15 at the door, cash preferred. More at www.willmclean.com and https://www.facebook.com/willmcleanfestival

COMING SOON

Peter Fogels Til Death Do Us PartYou Fist!

This comedy show will be onstage at the NOMA Black Box theater at the Reilly Arts Center June 21-25. Tickets are $35. More at reillyartscenter.com

Tony A. Blue, American Painter

This art exhibit from Tony Blue will be up June 21 through Jan. 9 at the Ocala International Airport, 1770 SW 60th Ave., Suite 600, Ocala. This show explores Blues expressionist, abstract paintings, which are inspired by Floridas tropical natural landscape, the city says in a news release. The exhibit is free and open to the public. More at www.artoftonyblue.com, 352-629-8447, artinfo@ocalafl.org and www.ocalafl.org/artincityspaces.

Shamarr Allen.

Shamarr Allen (Jazz/Hip Hop)

This performance will be featured from 7-9 p.m. June 23 at Webb Field at the Martin Luther King Jr. Recreation Complex, 1510 NW Fourth St., Ocala. It is part of the Levitt AMP Ocala Music Series, which presents a weekly concert April 14 through June 23. Admission is free; bring blankets and lawn chairs.

The Unscene South

This exhibit will be up at the Appleton Museum of Art July 1-Jan. 28. A little-known population of Blacks lived free in the United States, long before Abraham Lincolns Emancipation Proclamation ended slavery, the museum says on its website. Through Charles Eadys paintings, The Unscene South shares evidence and details of their existence, and presents opportunities to view the realities of their daily lives, seeking to eliminate many misconceptions about Blacks and the South.

The Appleton is at 4333 E. Silver Springs Blvd., Ocala. More at www.appletonmuseum.org or 352-291-4455.

Fleetwood Mac tribute band

WIND-FM 92.5/95.5, as part of its Rockin the Reilly series, presents Fleetwood Max at 7:30 p.m. July 8 at the Reilly Arts Center, 500 NE Ninth St., Ocala. Tickets start at $25. More at www.windfm.com/tribute and reillyartscenter.com

Classic Albums LIVE: Supertramps Breakfast in America

This show will be onstage at 7:30 p.m. July 13 at the Reilly Arts Center, 500 NE Ninth St., Ocala. Tickets from $25. More at reillyartscenter.com

Encanto

This movie, rated PG, will be screened at 8:30 p.m. July 14 at the Mary Sue Rich Community Center at Reed Place, 1821 NW 21st Ave., Ocala. Its part of the City of Ocala Recreation and Parks Departments 2023 After Dark in the Park movie series. Free and open to the public. Popcorn, drinks and other refreshments available for purchase. Bring lawn chairs and blankets. More at 352-368-5517 or www.ocalafl.org/recpark.

ONGOING

Eternal Summer

This exhibit is up at the Appleton Museum, 4333 E. Silver Springs Blvd., Ocala, through Sept. 24.  'Eternal Summer' features paintings, prints, photographs and more that celebrate the theme of summer in Florida," the museum says. More at https://www.appletonmuseum.org/

The Beauty of Nature and Recyclable Refuse

This art exhibit from Albert Bevilacqua is up through Jan. 8 at the City of Ocala Recreation and Parks Administration building, 828 NE Eighth Ave., and Eighth Avenue Adult Activity Center, 830 NE Eighth Ave. The building are open Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. The free exhibit is open to the public.

Albert Bevilacqua lives and works in Boca Raton, Florida. Bevilacqua is passionate about protecting the environment and keeping preserved natural habitats free from human litter, the city said in a news release. He sponsors and volunteers at many beach, park, and nature preserve clean-up events where he keeps the collected waste and turns it into art. The Beauty of Nature and Recyclable Refuse showcases Bevilacquas two-dimensional artworks made from these collected recycled materials.

More at 352-629-8447, artinfo@ocalafl.org and www.ocalafl.org/artincityspaces

Patternz

This art exhibit from Kelsey Mahoney is up through Dec. 12 at Ocala City Hall, 110 SE Watula Ave. This exhibit is free and open to the public. City Hall is open 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday-Friday. In a news release, the city says this exhibit highlights Mahoneys recent abstract work of detailed, vibrantly colored, mosaic-like ink drawings. More at www.facebook.com/kelseymahoneyartist, 352-629-8447, artinfo@ocalafl.org or www.ocalafl.org/artincityspaces.

RETRO/NEW | David DAlessandris, 50 Years in the Life of an Artist

This art exhibit is up through July 8 at The Brick City Center for the Arts, 23 SW Broadway St., Ocala. The center is open Tuesday-Friday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. and Saturdays 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Free admission.

Gross Out

The Discovery Centers newest exhibit is up through Aug. 26. The center, 701 NE Sanchez Ave., Ocala, is open 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays.

Science can be fun, but also gross, the City of Ocala said in a news release. This new exhibit will address some of the grossest science subjects, such as what blood is made of, how loud a burp is and the identification of animals by their waste. Visitors will explore the world of creepy crawlies, gross smells and stinky science.

General admission to the center is $8 per person or $28 for a family of four. Annual memberships are available. More at 352-401-3900 or www.mydiscoverycenter.org.

Summer Spotlight XXVI

The Visual Artists Society presents this show, which showcases the work of local and regional artists in a wide variety of mediums, according to organizers. It is up at the College of Central Florida Webber Gallery through July 20. The gallery is located at the CF Ocala campus, 3001 SW College Road. The gallery is open 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Monday-Thursday. Admission is free. More at 352-854-2322, ext. 1552 and CF.edu.

calendar@starbanner.com

This article originally appeared on Ocala Star-Banner: Concerts, art and more: Fun things to do this weekend in Ocala/Marion
Consequences of the attack on Odessa, June 14, 2023

NV is covering the major aftermath of the attack.

Main Points:

In Odesa, three of the four Kalibr missiles were intercepted, but three people were killed and 13 others wounded in a direct hit to a warehouse. Other residential, commercial, educational, and tourist sites were damaged.

In Donetsk Oblast, Russia attacked with Kh-22 missiles, hitting detached housing neighborhoods in Kramatorsk (two killed, two wounded) and Kostiantynivka (one killed, one wounded).

In Kirovohrad Oblast, Shahed suicide drones hit an infrastructure facility in Svitlovodsk, causing no casualties.

In Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, all the Shaheds that tried to attack the region overnight were shot down.

In total, Ukraines air defense forces shot down 9 of 10 Shaheds and 3 of 4 Kalibrs. No Kh-22 missiles were eliminated before the arrival of a limited number of Patriot SAMs in Ukraine, the Ukrainian Armed Forces did not have the capacity to shoot down this type of missile.

Live Feed:

3:06 pm  One of the victims of the Russian missile attack on Odesa is in critical condition.

A 40-year-old man received burns on 60% of his body, reports Dumska with reference to city hall.

It is also noted that all six hospitalized are employees of the food warehouse.

Press service of the Donetsk Regional Military-Civil Administration/Handout via REUTERS

Press service of the Donetsk Regional Military-Civil Administration/Handout via REUTERS

2:29 pm  In Kostyantynivka, the number of wounded as a result of night shelling has increased to two.



We became aware of the second wounded person later, when the person asked for medical assistance. All the necessary assistance has already been provided, Donetsk military administration head, Pavlo Kyrylenko, said at the briefing.

2:24 pm  In the Odesa region, six victims of a Russian missile attack remain in hospitals.

Four people were treated on an outpatient basis, city council reported.

2:05 pm  The business center in Odesa damaged by a Russian missile strike may have to be demolished, said Odesa City Council budget committee head, Oleksiy Potapskyi.

The building has already tilted and become structurally unsafe, reports local outlet Dumska.

In total, more than 20 buildings were damaged in the city.

1:54 pm  Photos of the warehouse damaged by a Russian missile strike in Odesa.

Operational Command South of the Ukrainian Armed Forces/Handout via REUTERS

Operational Command South of the Ukrainian Armed Forces/Handout via REUTERS

Operational Command South of the Ukrainian Armed Forces/Handout via REUTERS

dumskaya.net

dumskaya.net

dumskaya.net

1:43 pm  Patrol police show video of the first minutes after the Russian missile attack on Odesa.

It was posted on the Facebook page of Oleksiy Biloshitskyi, First Deputy Head of the Patrol Police Department of Ukraine.

1:00 pm  Five houses were destroyed and at least 17 damaged in the shelling of Kramatorsk.

Rescuers have pulled two dead and two wounded from the rubble, the State Emergency Service reports, publishing a photo from the site of the attack.

12:33 pm  Thecondition of the wounded in the night attack in Odesa is moderate, reportedSouthern Defense Forces spokesperson, Natalia Humeniuk, at a briefing.

"Among the injured are those with multiple wounds, their condition is of moderate severity, all of them have been hospitalized and received medical assistance," she said.

Humeniuk says the main goal of the enemy was to destroy the logistics of the Defense Forces.

"The enemy sees Odesa Oblast as a logistics center for replenishing the southern defense forces," she said.

12:28 pm  The Ukrainian energy system was not damaged because of the overnight attack by Russia,reported the Ministry of Energy.

12:19 pm  As of 10:30 a.m. on June 14, six Russian warships are in the Black Sea, two of which carry Kalibr missiles. They have a total volley of 16 missiles, reported theUkrainian Navy.

11:55 am  The Prosecutor's Office has opened a case over attack on Odesa, State Emergency Service shows how they dealt with the aftermath of the night strike.

The case was opened on the count of violation of the laws and customs of war (Part 1, Part 2 of Article 438 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine). Three people were killed, 13 people are in hospitals with multiple injuries.

10:40 am  New photos of the aftermath of the attack on Odesa from Reuters

REUTERS/Serhii Smolientsev

REUTERS/Serhii Smolientsev

REUTERS/Serhii Smolientsev

REUTERS/Serhii Smolientsev

10:28 am  Air battle over the city center. Ukrainian military shares details of Russia's missile strike on Odesa.

"We will be able to find out where (the Russians - ed.) were aiming only when we catch those who were aiming and ask them," said Natalia Humeniuk, head of the Joint Press Center of Operational Command South, on Radio Liberty.

The fact remains that many buildings have been damaged as a result of the air strike over the city center. Among them, a business center, an educational institution, a catering establishment, shops, a residential high-rise building  probably more than one, and surrounding administrative buildings were damaged.

10:15 am  The moment of the night hit at the warehouse in Odesa.

10:05 am  Radio Liberty journalists show the consequences of the strike on Kramatorsk, where two people were killed.

9:55 am  Search and rescue operation completed in Odesa: three dead, 13 wounded.

9:50 am  In Kirovohrad Oblast, Shahed kamikaze drones hit an infrastructure facility in Svitlovodsk, reported Andriy Raykovych, Kirovohrad Oblast Military Administration head.

"Another massive night attack by the Russian aggressor," Raykovych wrote in the morning of June 14.

There was a hit of the Shaheds at an infrastructure facility in Svitlovodsk. The fire was quickly extinguished. No one was killed or injured.

9:20 am  Three dead and three wounded: consequences of a missile strike on Kramatorsk and Kostiantynivka, Donetsk Oblast.

Earlier, the Air Force reported that the Russian Federation used Kh-22 missiles to strike Donetsk Oblast.

9:12 am  Police in Odesa Oblast show the consequences of Russian night strikes.

8:30 am  At night, air defense destroyed 12 air targets - three Kalibr missiles and nine Shahed UAVs, the Air Forces morning report said.

In the early hours of June 14, Russia launched a missile strike against Ukraine's military and infrastructure facilities:

From the Black Sea, the enemy launched four Kalibr cruise missiles toward Odesa Oblast: three missiles were shot down, one hit a civilian facility.

From the east coast of Azov Sea, the enemy attacked with 10 Iranian Shahed-136/131 attack drones in the southeast direction. Nine of them were shot down.

From Russias Rostov Oblast, the Russian military launched six Kh-22 air-launched cruise missiles from four Tu-22M3 long-range bombers. The strike was carried out on Donetsk Oblast, the consequences are being clarified.

8:06 am  Dnipropetrovsk Oblast attacked by Shaheds at night, all of them destroyed, governor says.

"At night the enemy directed UAVs at our region," said Serhiy Lysak, Dnipropetrovsk Oblast Military Administration head. But the defenders from Air Command East thwarted its plans. All three Shaheds were shot down in the sky over the region.

7:40 am  Last night, Russia attacked the territory of Ukraine with cruise missiles and Iranian Shahed strike UAVs  Ukrainian Armed Forces General Staff.

Information about the attack is currently being clarified.

6:40 am  Three dead in Odesa, warehouse, residential complex, restaurant, shops, educational institution damaged.

According to the updated data, the enemy fired four Kalibr missiles at Odesa from a warship in the Black Sea, reports Operational Command South.

As a result of the air battle and the blast wave, a business center, an educational institution, a residential complex, restaurants, and shops in the city center were damaged.

Early reports indicate six people were injured. The enemy hit a retail chain warehouse with a missile, causing the destruction of over 1,000 square meters and a 400 square meter fire.

Three employees of the warehouse were killed, seven were injured. The rubble is being cleared. There may be people under the debris.

3:53 am  Operational Command South reports that the enemy launched a missile attack at Odesa from the Black Sea. Air defense forces were engaged. Preliminary reports indicate that the missiles were shot down. As a result of the attack, a fire was reported near a business center and a retail chain warehouse was hit. Information on the extent of the damage and casualties is being clarified.

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Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
Looking for fireworks? These Sacramento-area shows are set for the Fourth of July

A night filled with explosive bangs is just weeks away and we know places you can go for a front-row seat of it all.

The Sacramento region is lined up with fireworks shows for the Fourth of July holiday, from West Sacramento to Placerville. Many of the events, which are listed, require a cash-only parking fee so come prepared.

Heres the list:

4th on the Field - West Sacramento

Sutter Health Park | 400 Ballpark Drive, West Sacramento

Cost: $14 to $700

The 10th annual 4th on the Field celebration will have food trucks, drinks, vendors, live music and fireworks.

The event is from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. on Tuesday, July 4. The fireworks show starts at 9:30 p.m.

Elk Grove Salute to the Red, White and Blue

Elk Grove Park | 9950 Elk Grove Florin Road, Elk Grove

Cost: Free

The city of Elk Grove will host a fireworks display, presented by Sky River Casino, from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. on Tuesday, July 4.

Rancho Cordova 4th of July Celebration

Hagan Community Park | 2197 Chase Drive, Rancho Cordova

Cost: $5 admission fee, $10 parking fee (cash only)

Rancho Cordovas two-day celebration runs from Monday, July 3 to Tuesday, July 4. Both days are packed with activities including races, carnival rides, concerts and fireworks.

Carnival ride tickets ($30 per person) are sold separately.

Fourth of July Family Blast

El Dorado County Fairgrounds | 100 Placerville Drive, Placerville

Cost: $5 to $75 (cash only)

The annual Fourth of July celebration in El Dorado County will include live music, food and drinks and fireworks.

Roseville 4th of July Celebration

At the Grounds | 700 Event Center Drive, Roseville

Cost: Free entry, $10 parking fee (cash only)

The 4th of July fireworks show starts at 4 p.m. on Tuesday, July 4, with kid-friendly games and concessions. The fireworks are scheduled to start around 9 p.m.

Did we miss a fireworks show in the Sacramento area? Kindly email us at servicejournalists@sacbee.com.

What do you want to know about life in Sacramento? Ask our service journalism team your top-of-mind questions in the module below or email servicejournalists@sacbee.com.
A super PAC has launched in the hope of unseating Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) next year.

The Lose Cruz super PAC, created by a group of Texas strategists, hopes to drive anti-Cruz messaging through advertisements online and on television, with the first one scheduled to air next week.

PAC senior adviser Sawyer Hackett told NBC News that the group plans to use infamous Cruz moments in its ad messaging, pointing to the senators trip to Cancun, Mexico, during the winter storm that wiped out Texass power grid in 2021, his efforts to overturn the 2020 election results, and his gig as a host of his own podcast.

NBC reports the group already has seven-figure backing.

Ted Cruz has never been more vulnerable than he is this cycle, Hackett told NBC, noting that several of Cruzs infamous moments happened after his slim victory over Democratic challenger Beto ORourke in the 2018 election.

He hosts three episodes a week talking about a whole bunch of stuff  none of which Texans care about whatsoever  and not doing his job, Hackett added. Were laying the groundwork for a Democratic, independent, Republican coalition of voters who universally just dislike this guy and dont trust him.

Cruz is very adept at manipulating the media. He is in and on all types of channels, and he likes to try and drive narrative, Lose Cruz founder Sean Haynes added, saying that the PAC will help send a signal to help everyone stay on message  to not respond to what hes saying but to attack what hes doing.

Its about him betraying the country and abandoning the state, Haynes said.

The Hill has reached out to Cruzs office for comment.

Rep. Colin Allred (D-Texas) and state Sen. Roland Gutierrez (D) are both seeking the Democratic nomination to challenge Cruz, though he could draw other potential opponents as Democrats again set their hopes on statewide office in Texas.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
Have you lost a pet in Charlotte? Heres what to know to bring them home

On an online platform where missing pets are a frequent topic of discussion, a Charlotte resident posted to Nextdoor about a stray dog.

This dog was seen in Wedgewood today, and behind Publix on 901. Not sure if it was found by owner yet? Anyone missing this dog, the commenter wrote.

Many Charlotte residents have shared photos of the pets in recent search efforts, while others have shared their experiences with encountering stray animals.

In another post, the same person detailed coming across the same dog on its property, The white husky is back in our yard again. Currently, appears to have an AirTag. We are trying to get him on a leash. Anyone missing him???

Nextdoor has partnered with Pawboost, a lost & found database where pet owners can make flyers for help with lost or stray animals.

Pawboost says there are over 1,500 lost and found reports to the public every day, the agency told KRCR, a California-based TV station.

What are the chances of someone actually finding their pet?





According to the National Library of Medicine, While 15% of dog and cat owners lost their pets, dogs had higher recovery rates (93%) than cats (75%) as well as being returned using different search methods.

In a study, NLM found cats were likely to return on their own, while dogs were more likely to be lost more than once.

However, cats were less likely than dogs to have any type of identification, NLM said. They recommend collars, ID tags or humane trapping as valuable approaches.

What preventative measures can I take?

Give your pet a tag that includes an up-to-date phone number. Often, someone who finds your pet will see this first.

Your pet should be wearing a collar and have their ID tags at all times, Brittany Baumann, a spokesperson for Animal Humane Society said.

Another preventative strategy is Microchipping a pet early on. I highly recommend all pets are microchipped even if they are primarily indoors, Pittman said.

Microchips do not have active GPS trackers in them. So you wont be able to track your lost pet. However, when they are found, the contact information associated will be used to reunite them with you.

Most shelters/animal hospitals will register your pet in the database for you, but its important to make contact information is most up-to-date for you and can be checked on the microchip database website, Emily Pittman, Virtual TeleAdvice Support at Petfolk Veterinary and Urgent Care in Charlotte said.

According to Pittman, microchipping is typically done at the time of their spay or neuter, but it can be done at any time.

What should I do if I find a lost pet?

While American Humane recommends that you contain the pet with care, the agency advises pet owners call local authorities. Never put yourself in harms way by attempting to capture an animal that is behaving aggressively, the organization stated.

Check the pet for an ID, and get the pet scanned for a microchip. And if the pet has no ID, you should take them to an animal shelter.

You can also post fliers and advertise a found pet by posting the pet online, posting fliers around the area and local veterinary clinics.

What should I do If I lose my pet?

It is recommended for pet owners to continually check the database of lost pets and surrounding shelters. Stray animals are typically held per NC state law for a minimum of 72 hours for an owner to come reclaim their pet, according to Guilford County officials.

Pet owners can also file a lost pet report. You can do so either online or by calling 311.

Updating your animals microchip information and all of your contact information so that if someone takes them to a veterinarian, someone will be able to contact you.

Sit familiar belongings outside. By placing clothing, blankets, their bed, or food like tuna outside of your home, you may be able to draw your pet back home.

If you need further assistance, the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department recommends contacting Epic Animal Recovery, which specializes in tracking and lost pet recovery.

Charlotte is an amazing place if youre going to lose a pet because theres so many animal lovers, Epic Animal Recovery founder Michelle Wilson told The Charlotte Observer.

Wilson says if youre unable to find your pet immediately, its important to post via social media and get on the lost and found pages, which Charlotte has a handful of.

Heres what the recovery process is like at the Charlotte animal recovery agency:

Searching: After completing a lost pet form, generally, you will need to conduct a hasty search, which requires you to look for your pet immediately. But, Wilson advises pet owners to use discretion when calling out your pets name because of busy roads, especially in Charlotte.

Signage: After that, your next step is posting simple, bright eye-catching signs that are visible from a vehicle, Wilson says this is still a number one way of generating sightings.

Scent luring: After determining where the pet is based on sightings, We might try to do some scent luring. However, if were seeing that there is a disconnect in the pet already, we go into trapping. And we put humane traps out depending on the situation, Wilson said.

If the pet remains missing for another four to five days, Epic Animal Recovery considers deploying its own search dogs to assist. So, you will need a scent article which is an item that has the pets scent.

While each situation is unique, Wilson said she once had a case in Rock Hill that lasted a year and a half.

The recovery process can go from a matter of minutes to a matter of over a year, she said.
FORT JOHNSON, La. - A U.S. Army base in west central Louisiana's Vernon Parish was renamed to Fort Johnson in a ceremony Tuesday in honor of Sgt. William Henry Johnson, a Black hero of World War I who was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor.

His granddaughter Tara Johnson said Tuesday the naming of the base where soldiers come to train to protect the country was more recognition than she ever imagined. Johnson's niece Taylor Gamlin said having such a historical contribution noted and celebrated was an honor for the whole family.

Its growth," Johnson said. "Its growth within our services. Its growth within our community because now we are focusing on people, being less judgmental, regardless of the color of their skin. It is focusing on service to our country. Nothing else.

The base, which is home to the Joint Readiness Training Center and the 3rd Brigade Combat Team of the 10th Mountain Division, was previously named after Confederate commander Leonidas Polk. The federal Naming Commission recommended name changes for nine military bases named for Confederates, marking the first time bases will be named after Black soldiers and women

Johnson was injured when he fought off a German night raid while serving on the front lines of France in 1918, according to the National Museum of the United States Army. Former President Theodore Roosevelt named him one of the five bravest Americans to serve in the conflict, but he was not awarded a Purple Heart and the Congressional Medal of Honor until after his death in 1929.

Sgt. William Henry Johnson embodied the warrior spirit, and we are deeply honored to bear his name at the Home of Heroes, said Brig. Gen. David W. Gardner, commanding general of the Joint Readiness Training Center and Fort Polk.

Who was Sgt. William Henry Johnson?

An article about Johnson on the U.S. Department of Defense website, says in May 1918 Johnson fought off German soldiers attacking his position near a bridge over the Aisne River at Bois d'Hauzy in France. He suffered 21 wounds in the attack that also left another soldier, Pvt. Needham Roberts, severely injured.

Johnson threw grenades until he ran out and fired all the ammunition he had. When he ran out of ammunition, he charged the Germans swinging his rifle like a club. Using a bolo knife, he also fought off two Germans who tried to carry away Roberts.

Fort Polk was officially renamed Fort Johnson ceremony held Tuesday. The U.S. Army base was named for Sgt. William Henry Johnson, a Black World War I soldier and the first hero the Great War.

When Johnson returned to the States, he was paraded around New York City. His story motivated many Black people to support the war effort.

But despite the accolades, Sgt. William Henry Johnson was never recognized as an American veteran," said Gardner. "He never received the care for his wounds or any veterans benefits such as those we take for granted today.

Johnson could not find work because he was badly injured during the war. He died destitute in 1929. He was buried with military honors in Arlington National Cemetery.

In 1996, Johnson was posthumously awarded the Purple Heart and in 2002, the Distinguished Service Cross, which was upgraded in 2015 to the Medal of Honor.

In 1996, Johnson was posthumously awarded the Purple Heart and in 2002, the Distinguished Service Cross, upgraded in 2015 to the Medal of Honor. The medal is on loan to Fort Johnson by the New York State Military Museum. It will be included in a historical exhibit about Johnson until August.

Veterans say renaming is important for Black community

Barbara Dashiell-Williams, a Navy veteran who comes from a family with a legacy of military service, said she was "elated" at the renaming ceremony. Her father, the late Charles Smith, was a World War II veteran.

"If my dad were here, he would be here today with a big smile on his face giving a big salute," she said. "This means everything for the African Americans involved in World War I, World War II and all the other wars. The recognition is finally here."

Daenel Vaughn-Tucker, an Army veteran and director of library services at the Central Louisiana Technical Community College, said Johnson's story should be shared because "it is a universal story of strength, courage, and resilience."

Personally, I believe this is a significant step forward in recognition and healing, especially for the African American community, said Vaughn-Tucker.

Why were bases named for Confederates?

In order to get support for World War I in the South, some U.S. Army bases were named after Confederate officers as a sign of reconciliation between the North and the South, according to a Department of Defense article.

It was also the height of the Jim Crow Laws in the South, so there was no consideration for the feelings of African Americans who had to serve at bases named after men who fought to defend slavery, the article said.

Black residents were left out of the original naming process, and bases were named after soldiers born or raised nearby, no matter how effective they were.

Earlier this month, Fort Bragg in North Carolina became Fort Liberty, and Fort Benning in Georgia was renamed Fort Moore last month. The renaming of military installations, streets and ships must be completed by the end of the year.

Contributing: The Associated Press

This article originally appeared on Alexandria Town Talk: Fort Polk renamed Fort Johnson; honors sacrifice of Black World War I hero
Louisiana U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy is joining several other Republican senators in introducing a package of bills that would look to address rising higher education costs and soaring student debt  about two weeks after voting to overturn President Joe Bidens student debt relief plan.

Cassidy joined all other Senate Republicans in voting to kill Bidens plan to cancel up to $20,000 in student loan debt for some borrowers, though the plan has been put on hold pending a decision from the U.S. Supreme Court. The Senate passed the legislation to overturn the presidents plan, 52-46, but Biden vetoed the bill.

The plan put out by Cassidy and Sens. Chuck Grassley of Iowa, John Cornyn of Texas, Tommy Tuberville of Alabama, and Tim Scott of South Carolina includes several bills aimed at transparency, more information for prospective borrowers and limits on new loans.

Our federal higher education financing system contributes more to the problem than the solution, Cassidy said in a release. Colleges and universities using the availability of federal loans to increase their tuitions have left too many students drowning in debt without a path for success. Unlike President Bidens student loan schemes, this plan addresses the root causes of the student debt crisis. It puts downward pressure on tuition and empowers students to make the educational decisions that put them on track to academically and financially succeed.

Whats in the plan?

The package, called the Lowering Education Costs and Debt Act, includes five bills. One, introduced by Cassidy, is called the College Transparency Act. The bill would reform the college data reporting system to provide students and families with better information on student success and outcomes when they are looking at different higher education programs.

A bill introduced by Grassley called the Understanding the True Cost of College Act would require colleges to use a uniform financial aid letter that clearly indicates the types of aid included, so students and families can understand and compare their financial aid options.

Sen. Steve Daines, a Republican from Montana, introduced the Informed Student Borrowing Act, which would offer more clear information on the duration of potential student loans, expected monthly payments, and how much money a student could expect to earn after attending their school and program of choice. It also would require borrowers to receive this information annually through loan counseling.

What happened with the Louisiana teacher raises? Legislature passed stipends, not raises

Cornyns Streamlining Accountability and Value in Education for Students Act is also included in the package. The bill would streamline the repayment options for borrowers from nine options to two to provide clarity for students and families. The bill also limits new loans to undergraduate and graduate programs where students cannot earn more than a high school graduate or a bachelors degree recipient, respectively.

The final bill in the package is the Graduate Opportunity and Affordable Loans Act, introduced by Tuberville. The bill ends Graduate PLUS loans and limits graduate school borrowing. It also allows schools to put in lower loan limits by program to prevent students from overborrowing.

Why did they vote against the debt relief plan?

UL Lafayette added $2.7 billion to Louisiana economy

Cassidy, who is the ranking member on the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, has been critical of Bidens loan forgiveness plan from the time it was announced. In a release announcing the package of bills, Cassidy said Bidens plan does not address the underlying factors contributing to the student debt crisis.

In a release, the group of senators also argued that the plan shifts the responsibility of the debt from the borrowers to taxpayers to the tune of $400 billion.

CONSIDER SUBSCRIBING TODAY: Help support journalists like William Taylor Potter

This article originally appeared on Lafayette Daily Advertiser: Louisiana's Bill Cassidy, other Republicans release student loan plan
A Louisville judge has ruled some records in the ethics inquiry involving Metro Council member Anthony Piagentini can be made public while the case proceeds.

Jefferson Circuit Court Judge Tracy Davis ruled Monday the Louisville Metro Ethics Commission had not broken the law when it released the records, which were part of Piagentini's response to an ethics complaint that he used his council post to secure $40 million for an organization with which he later got a job.

The records had been provided to Louisville Central Community Centers President and CEO Kevin Fields, who filed the complaint, and to Louisville Public Media. The Courier Journal has also requested the documents.

A motion by the ethics commission to dismiss Piagentini's lawsuit entirely was denied in Davis ruling, which was issued after a hearing late last week.

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Davis did rule that some filings in the case can remain confidential until the ethics inquiry is completed, including subpoenas and recommendations by investigators. But records such as pleadings and other motions can be made public, she said.

When contacted by The Courier Journal, Piagentini declined to comment on the ethics investigation. He said the lawsuit ruling was "neither a total win nor a total loss," as it clarifies what documents can be released.

Todd Lewis, an attorney for the ethics commission, said the judge "largely affirmed the existing procedures of the ethics commission with regard to public records."

Piagentini filed his lawsuit in early May, claiming that his response to the ethics complaint was confidential and therefore should not have been released at that time.

Fields' complaint alleges Piagentini used his council position to support the Louisville Healthcare CEO Council's bid to land $40 million in COVID-19 relief funds, then recused himself from the final vote and accepted a job with the organization a day after the grant was approved. Fields' organization also had applied for the money.

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In his lawsuit, Piagentini argues all documents in an ethics case are required to remain confidential until a ruling is made. The suit also says an unredacted copy of the response was given to Louisville Public Media, with information including salary figures that was subsequently used in an article.

The lawsuit does not call on the ethics commission to drop the case, which Piagentini's attorney noted Thursday in court, but requests the court issue a declaration that the commission must keep facts confidential throughout the investigation. Davis' ruling calls on the commission to follow open records laws.

Michael Abate, an attorney who represents The Courier Journal, said the judge "got it exactly right" with her ruling.

"The court had to balance the public's interest in this information with an asserted privacy interest," he said. "This is a serious case involving allegations of misconduct against a Metro Council member and the public has a compelling right to know any salary arrangements, for example, that he made with the new organization and to understand all the arguments that are being advanced by the parties here."

This story may be updated.

Reach Lucas Aulbach at laulbach@courier-journal.com.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Judge: Anthony Piagentini ethics probe records should be released
Louisville nursing homes closing because of rats as big as cats and other problems

A Lexington-based nursing home chain has agreed to close two of its Louisville facilities, displacing roughly 200 people, after state inspectors uncovered serious problems over the past six months, including a rodent infestation, filthy living conditions and a general lack of care for the elderly and ailing residents.

Exceptional Living Centers last week entered a settlement with the federal government in U.S. District Court to voluntarily terminate its Medicare provider agreements at Hillcreek Rehabilitation and Care and St. Matthews Care and Rehabilitation Center.

Such a loss is typically a financial death blow for a nursing home.

The company is working closely with state and federal officials to transfer residents of Hillcreek and St. Matthews to other nursing homes around Jefferson County by July 6, according to its closure plan, obtained by the Herald-Leader.

The company also agreed to pay civil monetary penalties of $1,026,408 to the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.

Hillcreek Rehabilitation and Care in Louisville has agreed to close following critical state inspections.

Tom Watts, president of Exceptional Living Centers, declined to comment Tuesday, as did the companys attorneys. The company continues to operate 25 nursing homes across Kentucky and six other states.

The Cabinet for Health and Family Services, which inspects nursing homes on behalf of the federal government, did not respond to requests seeking comment Tuesday.

In their reports on Hillcreek, state inspectors cited a persistent rodent infestation; unheated bedrooms in freezing winter months; filthy living conditions, including dirty bathrooms, the lingering stench of urine and feces, and trash cans overflowing with adult diapers; a lack of clean linens; blood-testing equipment that was not sanitized between use on different patients; and direct-care employees hired despite having disqualifying criminal records.

Hillcreek residents complained that staff did not check on them overnight, between 7 p.m. and 7 a.m., leaving them humiliated and feeling dirty in soiled pajamas and sheets because nobody responded to their calls for assistance, inspectors wrote.

A resident who fell in his unheated room the day after Christmas lay uncovered on the floor for more than three hours until he finally was discovered, inspectors wrote. Emergency medical workers described his skin as freezing cold. He died 10 days later at the hospital of hypothermia, they wrote.

Residents and staff told inspectors they were terrified by seeing mice and rats scurry through parts of Hillcreek, including bedrooms and on a residents bed, and by hearing them skitter and shuffle on the floors. Rodent feces was found around a nurses station. A rat bit a resident on his thumb, requiring medical care. One rat was nicknamed Ben by housekeeping staff, inspectors wrote.

A nurse who worked at Hillcreek told inspectors she didnt believe other peoples rodent complaints until she observed them herself, the inspectors wrote.

She stated the rats were huge and as big as cats, they wrote.

(She) further revealed she had observed four of them in the facility and was aware that Resident #10 had been bitten by a rat, they wrote. She stated she was passing medications, date unknown, and was about to go into Resident #10s room, when she heard shuffling and moving around and thought the resident had been awake. (She) stated that when she entered the residents room, she observed two rats in the window seal.

Hillcreek, which already had a history of critical state inspections, has been hit with about a dozen negligence or wrongful death lawsuits filed by residents families since 2021. It is rated with one star, or much below average, on Medicares Nursing Home Compare website.

At St. Matthews, inspectors cited abuse of residents, including a severely cognitively impaired female resident whom police determined to have been sexually assaulted at the facility, and a resident who said she or he was hit by an employee but whose assault allegation was not reported up the chain of command, as required.

As at Hillcreek, inspectors said St. Matthews used blood-testing equipment on different patients without sanitizing it, risking the spread of infectious diseases and blood-borne pathogens, and it hired direct-care employees despite disqualifying events in their past, such as a social services assistant with a conviction for physical harassment.

The Cabinet for Health and Family Services filed inspection reports listing serious deficiencies for the nursing homes last winter after going several years without its federally required annual standard surveys at the facilities.

On May 15, the federal government notified Hillcreek it would terminate the facilitys Medicare provider agreement, closing the place and requiring the transfer of its residents to other nursing homes. St. Matthews received a similar notice around this same time.

Exceptional Living Centers sued the federal government May 24 and won a temporary restraining order two days later against both of the Medicare provider terminations.

Among its arguments, the company cited the several years of delay between the state health cabinets so-called annual facility inspections and its failure to provide timely responses, including its lack of response to the facilities proposed plans for corrective actions.

But the company soon changed course, agreeing June 6 to drop its appeals and close the nursing homes.
FILE PHOTO: Peaks of Bernese Oberland are seen behind Lake Zug and the city of Zug

Low-tax Switzerland votes on global minimum corporate tax rate FILE PHOTO: Peaks of Bernese Oberland are seen behind Lake Zug and the city of Zug

By John Revill

ZURICH (Reuters) - Swiss citizens vote this weekend on whether to raise business tax to 15% from an average of 11% to align with a global minimum tax rate, although even with the rise the country would still have one of the lowest corporate tax levels in the world.

In 2021 almost 140 countries including Switzerland agreed to an Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) deal to ensure large companies pay a minimum tax rate of 15%, to prevent them trying to avoid taxation by transferring profits to low tax countries.

The increase is expected to raise $220 billion globally for governments strapped for cash after the COVID-19 pandemic and struggling to ride out a cost of living crisis.

The Swiss government backs the change and according to a poll by researchers GFS Bern, 73% of voters will support the move under Switzerland's system of direct democracy, where legislation is put to the public vote.

Switzerland hosts the offices of around 2,000 foreign companies including Google, as well as 200 Swiss multinationals like Nestle which will be affected.

Each of Switzerland's 26 cantons can set its own corporate tax rate, but the federal government would impose a top-up tax to ensure companies are paying 15 percent, raising up to 2.5 billion Swiss francs ($2.76 billion) in tax revenue.

That would still leave Switzerland charging around half the level of corporation tax as countries such as Germany and Japan and lagging an average rate of around 21% in European Union states.

Under the proposal, 75% of the extra cash would go back to the cantons and 25% to the central government.

Fabian Molina, a lawmaker with the left-leaning Social Democrats (SP), described the revenue distribution plan which would see wealthy cantons such as Zug and Basel which have low tax rates having the most cash returned as "absurd".

The planned scheme would allow cantons to spend the extra income on subsidies to attract and retain business. Among the measures under discussion are childcare, research grants and extra training.

Finance Minister Karin Keller-Sutter supports the new tax. She said last month, "this minimum tax is coming, with or without Switzerland."

Under the OECD scheme, if companies pay rates below 15% in a particular country, their home governments could "top up" their taxes to that level, eliminating the advantage of shifting profits.

Swiss Holdings, a group representing 62 multinationals in Switzerland including Nestle, Johnson & Johnson, and IKEA, supported the minimum tax.

"A yes would ensure that Switzerland is ready in time. It would send a sign to the international community that we should no longer be considered a tax heaven," the organisation said.

"And maybe most compelling for many: It would ensure that the money will stay in Switzerland."

Business groups have also backed the proposal as it will provide certainty even if Switzerland loses some of its low-tax allure.

"No other country is going to have lower taxes either. We want the additional tax revenue to stay in the country, and be used to improve its attractiveness for businesses," said Christian Frey, from Economiesuisse, a lobby group.

Stefan Kuhn, Head of Tax and Legal at KPMG Switzerland, said the top-up tax "gives cantons the money to do something smart to remain competitive."

Kuhn said he would be voting in favour of plan, which takes effect in 2024. "I don't see any reasonable argument against this."

($1 = 0.9063 Swiss francs)

(Reporting by John Revill; Editing by Alexandra Hudson)
Lukashenko says Russia and Ukraine could have agreed on "leasing" Crimea

Alexander Lukashenko, the self-proclaimed president of the Republic of Belarus, has claimed that Ukrainian and Russian delegations discussed the possibility of "leasing" Crimea during negotiations in March 2022.

Source: Belta, a Belarusian news outlet, quoting Lukashenko in an interview with Rossiya-1, a pro-Kremlin Russian TV channel

Quote from Lukashenko: "Putin has given me a document that was initialled by both delegations. Its alright, even with regards to Crimea  there was some sort of a lease involved; as for Donbas, in the eastIts an alright agreement.

Would be great to have it now  but its impossible now. Now these are constitutionally Russian territories. Back then, it was a decent plan, and [the sides] agreed that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs would initial it and then the heads of states would decide and sign it, and so on. It was a good idea, but they rejected it."

Details: Lukashenko made these remarks when commenting on the negotiations between the Russian Federation and Ukraine that were held soon after the beginning of Russias full-scale invasion.

Lukashenko claimed that his younger son Nikolay helped organise a phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy; following a long conversation with Lukashenko, Zelenskyy allegedly agreed to hold negotiations with Russia in Belarus. Later, Lukashenko said, Western countries insisted that the negotiations be held in Istanbul, Turkiye.

The Belarusian leader said that his son Nikolay was currently studying at Beijing University, and continueed to push for peace talks between Russia and Ukraine.

Background:

The Russian Federation began the full-scale invasion of Ukraine on 24 February 2022. Some units of Russian forces entered Ukraine from the territory of Belarus.

Ukrainian and Russian delegations met in Belarus on 28 February, 3 March and 7 March 2022; later, the two sides continued to discuss peace proposals over video calls.

On 29 March 2022, the fourth and final round of peace talks between Kyiv and Moscow took place in Istanbul, Turkiye.

Ahead of the meeting in Istanbul, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that Ukraine was ready to agree to 4 out of Russias 6 demands  in particular, to renounce NATO membership and recognise Russian as the second official language. However, he added that Ukraine was not prepared to recognise the Russian occupation of Crimea or parts of the Luhansk and Donetsk oblasts.

Following the meeting in Istanbul on 29 March 2022, Russia said that it would radically reduce military activity on the Kyiv and Chernihiv fronts and indeed began to withdraw its forces from tge vicinities of Ukraines capital, soon after the Ukrainian forces began to push Russian forces back.

More on this: From Zelenskyy's "surrender" to Putin's surrender: how the negotiations with Russia are going

Journalists fight on their own frontline. Support Ukrainska Pravda or become our patron!
(Bloomberg) -- French President Emmanuel Macron will host Saudi Arabias Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Paris on Friday, on his second visit to the country in about a year.

Most Read from Bloomberg

The two leaders will meet at the Elysee palace and discuss bilateral relations as well as Middle Eastern and international topics, according to the French presidency.

The crown prince left for France on Wednesday, the Saudi state press agency reported. As well as meeting Macron, he will attend a June 22-23 conference in Paris about creating a new global financial pact, the agency reported. He will also be at a reception scheduled for next Monday for Riyadhs bid to host Expo 2030.

Prince Mohammed visited France last July on his first European tour after the 2018 killing of columnist Jamal Khashoggi, which damaged the kingdoms ties with the West.

The prince was vilified in the US and Europe following the killing, committed by Saudi agents at the kingdoms consulate in Istanbul. He has denied any involvement in the operation, but accepted symbolic responsibility as the countrys de facto ruler.

Macron has strengthened Frances ties with Gulf Arab countries in recent years, especially in defense after Yemens Iran-backed Houthi fighters attacked the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia, often targeting their energy infrastructure.

Riyadh and Paris also have cultural ties. France is involved in the development of the kingdoms historic Al Ula region, which Prince Mohammed wants to turn into a global tourism destination.

--With assistance from Dana Khraiche.

(Updates with more detail on princes visit.)

Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek

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Married at First Sight Australia season 8 star Bryce Ruthven has announced a new career move.

The reality TV personality worked in radio for a decade before appearing on the 2021 instalment of the show, and now he's decided to give it another go.

Over on his Instagram, Ruthven posted a photo of himself inside the studio of upcoming station Disrupt Radio, writing: "People have said I have a face for radio, so why not get back into it.. Excited to share Ive joined @disrupt.radio!

"A brand new DAB+ talk station that will be like nothing heard before on Australian radio. Cant wait to get back in the studio & start 'disrupting' in the near future across #Melbourne, #Sydney, #Brisbane & online across the world!"

Related: Married at First Sight Australia bride Melissa pulled out of wedding with groom who has STD

Fans and fellow reality TV stars alike congratulated him on the news and wished him good luck in the comments.

Meanwhile, a new series of MAFS UK is on the way, and dating expert Paul C Brunson has teased that it won't be "for the faint-hearted".

"I believe this year of MAFS UK will be the most diverse cast ever in the history of dating in the UK. To me it's going to be a true cross section of the nation," he said during an interview with The Sun.

David M. Benett - Getty Images

Related: MAFS Australia's Hayley Vernon defends co-star after making X-rated film together

"It's not for the faint-hearted. I still have to see my therapist throughout this. This year is going to be by far our best series. For those who want to see roller coaster love stories, you've got them. For those who want to see couples implode, you got that.

"For those that want to see how couples compare against each other, it's there. Wait till you see the dinner parties!"

Married at First Sight UK airs on E4 in the UK. Married at First Sight Australia airs on Nine Network in Australia and E4 in the UK.

Interested in talking about Married at First Sight? Visit our dedicated sub-forum

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Malaysia is now seeking Interpols help in tracking down comedian who cracked MH370 joke

Singapore-born Jocelyn Chia cracked a joke about MH310 at New Yorks Comedy Cellar and created a furore across Malaysia and Singapore. Screengrab (Adola Tube / YouTube)

Malaysia is seeking assistance from the Interpol to hunt down a New-York based comedian who cracked a joke about the missing Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370.

Jocelyn Chia, a lawyer-turned-comedian in the US who grew up in Singapore, is being investigated for her jokes about the plane that went missing nine years ago with 239 passengers onboard during a live set.

Her skit, performed at a comedy club in New York, was widely criticised in Malaysia for being insensitive and offensive.

Malaysias national police chief Acryl Sani Abdullah Sanu said on Tuesday that they will send a formal request to Interpol to assist with her location and full identity for investigations, state news agency Bernama reported.

Her comments will be investigated under Malaysian laws related to provocation, incitement, and publication of offensive online content, he said.

The MH370 went missing in March 2014 while en route from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, to Beijing, China. The disappearance of MH370 with 227 passengers and 12 crew members on board has remained one of the most puzzling aviation mysteries to date.

Despite an extensive four-year search in the Indian Ocean involving multiple countries, no trace of the aircraft was found. On the 9th anniversary of the disappearance of the plane, Netflix released a three-part docuseries MH370: The Plane that Disappeared.

On Wednesday, the comedian took a jibe at Malaysian authorities, suggesting that the controversy has only made her famous with a string of interviews with major media companies in the aftermath of it.

So actually Malaysia, you can keep going, she tweeted.

I'm on the front page of https://t.co/63AFNy0vTl now. Interviewed by @CNN, @nytimes @BBCWorld and going to be on @FoxNews this Sat. So actually Malaysia, you can keep going  https://t.co/suPzWXU4yt  Jocelyn Chia (@JocelynChia) June 14, 2023

Interpol, the worlds international police organisation with 195 member countries, is yet to issue a public response to the request.

If Interpol agrees, the agency can issue a "Red Notice", alerting the member countries to locate and provisionally arrest her before extradition.

It began after Ms Chia posted an 89-second clip of her comedy act at Manhattans Comedy Cellar venue on her TikTok and Instagram pages.

I don't know why Jocelyn Chia's direct hate speech is popular with American audiences



It sucks to joke on flight MH370



American values seem to be ingrained in her mind



So it doesn't matter, she would happy to see her citizenship was removed by Singapore. #JocelynChia #MH370 pic.twitter.com/2ttcyAMCgx  Meoww^^  (@SarahSa245) June 8, 2023

The video of the skit went viral and garnered the attention of millions of people, including Malaysian and Singaporean authorities.

The joke touched upon the historical rivalry between Singapore and Malaysia which were once part of the same country.

She said Singapore has become a "first-world country" while Malaysia remained "developing", adding that Malaysians cannot visit Singapore because their aeroplanes cannot fly in reference to the 2014 crash

What? Malaysian Airlines plane going missing not funny huh? Ms Chia asked the audience after getting mixed reactions. This joke kills in Singapore.

Singapores foreign affairs minister Vivian Balakrishnan on Thursday apologised for offence and hurt caused to Malaysians over Ms Chias joke.

Vanu Gopala Menon, Singapores high commissioner to Malaysia also apologised to all Malaysians for her hurtful remarks.

Mr Menon called her remarks about the missing airliner as well as other comments about Malaysia gratuitously offensive.

Malaysian foreign minister Zambry Abdul Kadir said Ms Chias act showed a total lack of sensitivity and empathy toward Malaysians and the MH370 victims families.

This video also clearly depicts behaviour that is contrary to the values of Asian countries that are known for their manners and morals.

In an interview with CNN on Sunday, Ms Chia said she stood by her jokes despite the controversy, but that the short clips on social media took them out of context.

"Upon reflection I do see that having this as a clip that gets viewed out of a comedy club context was risky," Ms Chia was reported as saying.

Malaysias apparent crackdown on the comedian comes amid concerns over the countrys efforts to suppress free speech.

Last year, a comedy club was shut down following allegations that it hosted comics who touched on sensitive racial and religious issues.
A mama dog and her newborn puppies were found trapped under an abandoned building  then rescuers rushed in, South Carolina photos show.

An animal control officer discovered that the animals had gotten wedged beneath an old workshop and called for help, City of Marion Fire and Rescue Chief Kevin Hammond told McClatchy News in a phone interview. A picture shared on social media shows the mothers eyes peeking out from the precarious spot, located in a backyard.

The department said it responded and helped to pull the mom and her puppies to safety. Unfortunately, one of the four puppies didnt survive, Engineer James Blanchett told McClatchy News in a phone interview.

Firefighters reported the rescue at about 9 a.m. on Monday, June 12. After getting to the mother and her babies, firefighters shared a photo on social media that showed one of the tiny creatures pups that was freed.

They looked like they had been born pretty recently (because) they were just the size of the palm of my hand, Blanchett said.

The fire department said it wasnt sure how the rest of the litter of puppies would have fared, since their mother was stuck on top of them.

The mom showed signs she didnt want to be pulled from under the building, and the surviving puppies were whining but seemed OK physically. The dogs were left with animal control, according to officials.

Marion is roughly 45 miles northwest of Myrtle Beach.

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Ex-con stabbed dead harassing riders on Brooklyn subway train; manslaughter charge for suspect in case similar to Jordan Neely death

A Queens man faces a manslaughter charge in the stabbing death of an ex-con who harassed riders on a Brooklyn-bound subway train, police said Thursday.

Jordan Williams, 20, is also charged with weapons possession in the death of Devictor Ouedraogo, 36, during a brawl on a J train as it headed over the Williamsburg Bridge at about 8:10 p.m. on Tuesday, said cops.

Ouedraogo had just harassed a woman on the train when Williams and his companion intervened, according to sources and videos of the incident.

The fatal clash is hauntingly similar to the recent death of Jordan Neely, a subway busker and Michael Jackson impersonator who died from a fatal chokehold after a Marine veteran tried to stop him from acting out on a crowded Manhattan train.

As the train headed over the bridge into Brooklyn, Ouedraogo, who appeared to be drunk, started harassing commuters, multiple witnesses told police. Two videos shared with the Daily News also show him bothering straphangers.

His actions sparked an argument with Williams and a woman accompanying him  and the feud quickly turned into a bloody brawl as the train pulled into the Marcy Ave. station in Williamsburg, cops said.

During the fight, Williams pulled a pocket knife and stabbed the harassing ex-con in the chest, cops said.

I just stabbed that n-----, the suspect, who on the video is dressed in blue, told witnesses. You see him leaking?

One video seen by the Daily News shows Ouedraogo, who wasnt wearing a shirt and slurred his words, getting into the face of a young man seated on the train minding his own business.

As the straphanger tried his best not to respond, Ouedraogo began gyrating in front of him, the video shows.

At the end of the video, another commuter shows up and tried to calm Ouedraogo, and hands him his shirt.

The second video shows bedlam on the train car as a fight breaks out between Ouedraogo and Williams.

Ouedraogo was apparently bothering a woman seated on the train when another woman in a tan dress started screaming at him.

Dont f---ing touch her you piece of s---! one woman screamed.

Williams ran over and started grappling with the ex-con. The commuter who earlier had tried to calm ex-con Ouedraogo tried to pull the two apart.

Commuters ran to the back of the subway car as Ouedraogo and Williams clashed, the video shows.

Get your f---ing hands off of him! the woman in the dress screamed.

After a few moments, Ouedraogo backed away, his chest covered in blood, the video shows.

You just stabbed him? another man on the train asked Williams. Youre going to go to jail!

Wounded, Ouedraogo remained upright for a few more seconds before stumbling out of the train when the doors opened and collapsing on the platform, according to sources.

He was taken to New York-Presbyterian Brooklyn Methodist Hospital but could not be saved, cops said.

Ouedraogo did three years in prison in 2009 following an attempted robbery conviction in Queens, according to court records.

Williams and his companion remained on the train after the argument. They were apprehended a few stops down the line, at the Chauncey St. station in Bedford Stuyvesant, cops said. The folding knife used in the attack was found in Williams possession, police said.

The couple was taken in for questioning, cops said. The woman was later released after detectives learned she did not take part in the stabbing.

Williams, of St. Albans, remained in custody Wednesday, cops said.

Neely was acting out on an F train heading toward the Broadway-Lafayette station in NoHo on May 1 when Marine veteran Daniel Penny put him in a fatal chokehold.

The busker fell unconscious on the train and was taken to Lenox Hill Hospital, where he died. Penny was charged with manslaughter.

In newly recorded interviews released Sunday by his attorneys, Penny said he wasnt trying to choke him to death but just wanted to hold Neely long enough for cops to intervene.

I was trying to keep him on the ground until the police came, Penny, 24, said in the videos posted on the Law & Crime Network Youtube channel. I was praying that the police would come and take this situation over. I didnt want to be put in that situation, but I couldnt just sit still and let him carry out these threats.
A man knocked down a wall in his basement. He found an abandoned underground city that was once home to 20,000 people.

The underground city of Derinkuyu in Turkey. Natalia Moroz/Getty Images

Derinkuyu is a subterranean city in Turkey stretching 280 feet below the Earth's surface.

The ancient city was used for centuries before it was abandoned in the 1920s.

A local man rediscovered it in 1963 when he went looking for his lost chickens behind a wall.

Stretching 280 feet below the Earth's surface in Turkey's Cappadocia region is a web of tunnels and cave-like dwellings that once housed 20,000 people.

The ancient city, Derinkuyu, lay abandoned for decades until, in the 1960s, a local man noticed his chickens were disappearing through a gap in his basement that had opened up during renovations, the BBC reported. After knocking down a wall, he found a tunnel  and accidentally rediscovered the sprawling, subterranean city.

Now part of a UNESCO World Heritage site, Derinkuyu is open to visitors, though they can explore only eight of its 18 levels. Here's a closer look at the remarkable city and its history.

Derinkuyu is an 18-level underground city in Cappadocia. At its deepest point, it reaches 280 feet below the Earth's surface.

Cappadocia. Zu Sanchez Photography/Getty Images

Source: BBC

Cappadocia is particularly suited to underground dwellings  its landscape is made of a volcanic-ash rock called tuff, which is pliable and dry, making it easy to carve with simple tools.

Geological formations in Cappadocia. Storm Is Me/Shutterstock

Source: CNN, BBC

In 1963, a local man was remodeling his home and noticed his chickens were disappearing through a gap that had opened up. After he pulled back a wall, he found a tunnel that led to Derinkuyu.

An entrance to Derinkuyu. SVPhilon/Getty Images

Source: BBC

More than 600 entrances to the ancient city have since been found within people's homes, the BBC reported.

Derinkuyu. Pakhnyushchyy/Getty Images

Source: BBC

According to Turkey's Department of Culture, it was built by the Phrygians in the eighth to seventh centuries BC. It was first referenced in a written text in 370 BC.

Derinkuyu. maroznc/Getty Images

Source: Cappadocia Turkey, BBC

It was used for thousands of years  at first for storage and then as a place for people to hide from invasions and conflict.

Derinkuyu. RalucaHotupan/Getty Images

Source: BBC

Its dwellers were able to survive underground for months at a time. At its peak, it was home to 20,000 people.

Derinkuyu. Parilov/Shutterstock

Source: CNN

But in the 1920s it was abandoned by the Cappadocian Greeks when they fled to Greece during the Greco-Turkish War.

Derinkuyu. LiskaM/Shutterstock

Source: BBC

After the city was rediscovered in the 1960s, excavators found rooms for many purposes, including food storage, winemaking, oil pressing, and dining.

Derinkuyu. Parilov/Shutterstock

Source: Cappadocia Turkey

They also unearthed a chapel, pictured, and a religious school.

A chapel in Derinkuyu. David Clapp/Getty Images

Source: Cappadocia Turkey

When the city was inhabited, livestock was kept on floors nearer the surface so their smells and gasses did not affect lower dwellings.

Derinkuyu. Pakhnyushchyy/Getty Images

Source: BBC

A well provided clean water, and ventilation shafts allowed fresh air to circulate between the rooms and levels.

Derinkuyu. Pakhnyushchyy/Getty Images

Source: BBC

Large stone doors on every floor were meant to stop intruders.

Derinkuyu. Sailingstone Travel/Shutterstock

Source: Cappadocia Turkey,

A guide told the BBC reporter Geena Truman that life underground "was probably very difficult." "The residents relieved themselves in sealed clay jars, lived by torchlight, and disposed of dead bodies in [designated] areas," the guide said.

Derinkuyu. Wirestock Creators/Shutterstock

Source: BBC

In 1985, the region was added to the UNESCO World Heritage list.

A man walking through a tunnel in Derinkuyu. OMAR HAJ KADOUR/AFP via Getty Images

Source: UNESCO

Today, Derinkuyu, which is now the largest excavated underground city in Turkey, is open to visitors.

Tourists visiting Derinkuyu in 2020. OMAR HAJ KADOUR/AFP via Getty Images

Read the original article on Insider
A 27-year-old man accused of stabbing to death a prominent Edwardsville couple in 2019 has pleaded guilty but mentally ill to first-degree murder in one of the most notorious criminal cases in the citys history.

Madison County Circuit Court Associate Judge Neil Schroeder accepted the plea at a hearing Tuesday, immediately after ruling that Zachary Capers was fit to stand trial following mental-health treatment by the Illinois Department of Human Services (IDHS).

A year ago, Schroeder had found Capers unfit to stand trial for the murders of Lois and Michael Ladd.

Yes, Capers answered in a barely-audible voice Tuesday afternoon when the judge asked if he understood that he must serve 100% of his 60-year prison sentence at a correctional facility capable of treating his mental illness, with credit for four years served.

Mr. Capers, I need to make sure you understand that this guilty-but-mentally-ill plea means that the Department of Corrections will periodically assess your mental-health condition, Schroeder told him.

They may provide you treatment if they deem it necessary, but they also may deem it not necessary, so theres no guarantee that you will receive treatment.

Capers had been accused of stabbing chiropractor Lois Ladd, 68, and her husband, contractor Michael Ladd, 79, multiple times on March 17, 2019, in their secluded home on North Kansas Street in Edwardsville.

Nearly 40 of the couples friends and relatives attended Tuesdays hearing, which lasted less than an hour. Some stared at the floor or straight ahead. Others wiped tears from their eyes.

After the hearing, Dodie Ladd Levi, Michael Ladds sister, said she was going to be on pins and needles for 30 days because Capers could withdraw his guilty plea during that time, but otherwise she felt justice had been done as much as could be expected.

If we had gone for a jury trial, and we got 12 like-minded jurors, we probably wouldnt have gotten more than 60 years anyway, she said.

Chiropractor Lois Ladd and her husband, Michael Ladd, a contractor, are shown in happier times in this photo, which was used for their obituary. They were murdered in their Edwardsville home in March 2019. Provided

Three counts dismissed

Two sheriffs deputies led Capers into the courtroom at the Madison County Criminal Justice Center in Edwardsville on Tuesday. He wore a black-and-white-striped jail uniform, handcuffs, leg irons and black glasses. He had grown a full beard and short dreadlocks.

A handful of Capers friends and relatives attended the hearing. He didnt look back at them, even when his sister yelled, Love you, brother, as he was being led out the door.

Under the plea agreement, Schroeder dismissed three other counts of first-degree murder related to the Ladd case, as well as felony and misdemeanor charges from his past.

Special Assistant States Attorney Crystal Uhe told Schroeder that if the case had gone to trial, the prosecution would have argued that Capers broke a bathroom window, entered the Ladd home and stabbed the couple in the early morning hours of March 17, 2019.

(The medical examiner) determined that Michael Ladd died of stab wounds to the neck and chest, 29 in total, Uhe said. Lois Ladd died of stab wounds to the head and neck.

Uhe said shoeprints at the scene matched Capers boots; blood on the boots matched Michael Ladds DNA; surveillance video showed Capers buying latex gloves at a convenience store; and pieces of latex gloves in the Ladd home contained DNA from Capers and the couple.

The plea agreement was reached after a private meeting between prosecutors and members of the Ladd and Buchta families last week. Lois Ladds maiden name was Buchta.

Madison County States Attorney Tom Haine attended Tuesdays hearing.

We had many meetings with the family, he said. Its been a four-year saga. Theyve been through hell, and the closure that this (sentence) brings is something very important to them, and it insures that there are no more delays. Weve been ready to go to trial for years.

This is a life sentence, but in no sense is it going to bring justice here. This is a horrible wound to the community.

Several Ladd family members submitted victim-impact statements to the judge. Levi was the only one who chose to read her statement aloud on the witness stand at Tuesdays hearing.

Levi said she grew up in an amazing family with 10 children. She explained how Michael Ladd, her older brother, took charge when their father died of cancer. He was 27, and she was 16.

Levi described Lois Ladd as more like a sister than a sister-in-law and noted that she and Michael Ladd were active in Edwardsville Rotary Club and many other good causes in the community.

Losing Mike was certainly one of the worse catastrophes of my life, and I will never recover, Levi said, fighting back tears. One does not recover. One simply goes forward.

Friends and relatives of Zachary Capers console each other outside the Madison County Criminal Justice Center in Edwardsville on Tuesday after Capers pleaded guilty but mentally ill to first-degree murder. Jimmy Simmons

Focus on mental health

Questions about Capers mental health pervaded the murder case from the beginning due to his history with law enforcement, his handwritten motions described as incoherent by his former attorney, and other behavior. He was believed to be homeless at the time of his arrest.

Capers jury trial had been postponed several times by April 18, 2022, when Schroeder granted a motion by Public Defender Mary Copelands office, which is representing him, asking for the court to appoint an independent expert to evaluate his mental health.

The motion referred to written messages that Capers had sent to family members and an interview conducted by Daniel Cuneo, a clinical psychologist retained by the defense.

A defendant is unfit (to stand trial) if, because of his mental or physical condition, he is unable to understand the nature and purpose of the proceedings against him or to assist in his defense, according to a fitness standard in the Illinois Code of Criminal Procedure of 1963.

The court appointed St. Louis clinical psychologist Anita Bazile-Sawyer to evaluate Capers. Based on her report, Schroeder found him unfit to stand trial on June 6, 2022, and remanded him to IDHS custody for treatment.

Capers was sent to Chester Mental Health Center, according to court records. An IDHS report dated Nov. 15, 2022, stated that he had attained fitness. The report is sealed, so no information is publicly available on his diagnosis or the nature of his treatment.

A notice of change in status showed that Capers returned to the Madison County Jail in Edwardsville on Nov. 28, 2022.

This individual was not adjudged incompetent at the time he or she was ordered hospitalized, according to a box checked by Travis Nottmeier, unit director at the Chester facility.

After Capers returned to jail, Copeland and Assistant Public Defender Delani Hemmer retained Cuneo to conduct another evaluation. It took several months to get his report, according to court records.

The original purpose of Tuesdays hearing was for Schroeder to determine if Capers was fit to stand trial.

Both the prosecution and defense agreed to findings in reports by Cuneo and an IDHS psychiatrist that Capers was fit to stand trial. Neither side called witnesses. Schroeder asked Capers if he was taking medication for his mental illness, and he answered, yes.

Zachary Capers is being represented by Madison County Public Defender Mary Copeland, right. The lead prosecutor is Crystal Uhe, a special assistant states attorney from the Illinois States Attorneys Appellate Prosecutors office. Provided

Motive still unclear

Prosecutors at Tuesdays hearing included Assistant States Attorney Lauren Maricle and Uhe, an attorney with the States Attorneys Appellate Prosecutors office. She was a Madison County assistant states attorney before running unsuccessfully for states attorney in 2020.

Haines office brought in Uhe to work on the Capers case as a special assistant states attorney on Dec. 28, 2022, according to court records.

It was basically because of my knowledge of the case, she said. I was involved in the beginning. Im the one who charged it. So for continuity, for the victims sake, (Haine) brought me back to kind of see it through.

In February, Capers filed a hand-written Freedom of Information Act request, asking the court to provide him with copies of any and all legal documents related to the case.

Capers was arrested on March 17, 2019, in Staunton on an outstanding warrant on unrelated charges and taken to the Madison County Jail. The following day, police connected him to the Ladd murders.

Former Madison County States Attorney Tom Gibbons charged Capers with four counts of first-degree murder, and a grand jury later indicted him. He pleaded not guilty.

This is a brutal and heinous murder, Gibbons said at the time.

In the coming months and years, prosecutors never discussed a motive for the killings, and they didnt do so at Tuesdays hearing.

We wish in every case we could have a better idea of why, Haine said. One of the tragedies in these situations is you dont know why. But our goal (in the Ladd case) is to make sure this incredibly dangerous individual is in prison for the rest of his life, period.

Zachary Capers, shown in his police mugshot at right, was arrested for allegedly stabbing to death chiropractor Lois Ladd and her husband, Michael, a contractor, in their Edwardsville home on March 17, 2019. Provided

Victim late for work

The bodies of Lois and Michael Ladd were found on Monday, March 18, 2019, after Lois Ladd failed to show up for work at her chiropractic office. The couple had been last seen on March 16 at a St. Patricks Day celebration at the Stagger Inn Again restaurant and bar in Edwardsville.

The Madison County Sheriffs Department arrested Capers in Staunton on Sunday, March 17, 2019, on an outstanding warrant for failure to appear at his Jan. 22 trial on 2017 felony charges of forgery and possessing a stolen vehicle.

Also on March 17, 2019, Capers was charged with trespassing on a deputy sheriffs property in rural Worden and obstructing a peace officer by allegedly fleeing to avoid arrest before he drove to Staunton, and he received a ticket for possession of drug paraphernalia.

Former States Attorney Gibbons announced the murder charges at a press conference on March 19, 2019. Officials had called in the Major Case Squad of Greater St. Louis to investigate.

(The Ladds) are absolutely innocent and wonderful people, whose lives are lost and who leave behind an amazing family, a tremendous number of friends and community members who know and love them, Gibbons said at the time, noting that he personally knew the couple.

Also speaking at the March 19, 2019, press conference was Jeff Connor, the Major Case Squads chief deputy commander on the Illinois side. Now the Madison County sheriff, he attended Tuesdays hearing and witnessed Capers guilty plea.

Its an honor to be able to serve the family with this type of justice, he said. For four years, theyve been agonizing over this.

A BND investigation found that Capers had more than 35 contacts with law enforcement in Madison County communities between September 2017 and March 2019. Some reports mentioned suspicious, odd or disruptive behavior, such as staring into store windows, standing in the street or yelling at people at the library.

In two cases, police officers described Capers as a possible 10-96, which is code for mental subject. In one, they transported him on a voluntary basis to Gateway Regional Medical Center in Granite City, which has an inpatient psychiatric unit.

In February 2020, after being charged with the Ladd murders, Capers filed three handwritten motions in Madison County court asking for a closed hearing to get the charges dismissed and mentioning his Fifth Amendment right not to incriminate himself.

Capers hadnt consulted his attorney, former Public Defender John Rekowski, now retired, about the motions.

Theyre basically incoherent, Rekowski told the BND at the time. And given that circumstance, I have no idea what Mr. Capers is thinking or what hes trying to do.

Rekowski, who hadnt ruled out an insanity defense, said Capers wasnt functioning on the level that a court expects a defendant to be operating on to be able to assist in his case and work with his counsel.
Man who spent 29 years in prison before murder-arson conviction overturned is up for $7.25 million settlement with city of Chicago

A City Council committee advanced a $7.25 million settlement Wednesday for a man who served nearly 30 years in prison for a double murder conviction that was ultimately overturned.

The award was the largest out of almost $10 million in total settlements the Finance Committee sent to the full council, which will vote on them next week. The committee in a unanimous voice vote approved the payout to Arthur Brown, who was exonerated in recent years after initially being found guilty of a 1988 fatal fire on Chicagos South Side.

If finalized, the $10 million in police settlements will be the first under the new City Council and Mayor Brandon Johnsons administration. Ald. Pat Dowell, Johnsons handpicked Finance chair, oversaw Wednesdays votes during her first meeting presiding over the powerful committee that vets all settlements from the city, including tens of millions in Chicago police misconduct and other public safety-related lawsuits every year.

In 2022, the city paid out more than $100 million in Chicago police settlements, according to the Department of Laws portal.

Now 72, Brown was convicted of the double murder and arson and sentenced to life in prison after a trial in which he testified that Chicago police beat him into a false confession over a suspicious fire in a video store that spread to a neighboring shop and killed two people. Brown, then 37, had installed front and back doors with burglar bars at the video store, and he testified that he went to secure a door of the building and then left, court documents show.

Years later, another man, James Bell, confessed to the arson, leading to Brown being granted a second trial. But a jury found Bells testimony unconvincing, while prosecutors alleged that the two colluded to fabricate the story while both were in prison together. Brown was again convicted of the double murder and sentenced to life in prison.

In 2017, a Cook County judge tossed out Browns conviction and ordered another retrial on the conclusion that prosecutors made false arguments, to which prosecutors said they would fight until reversing course. After one of Browns lawyers appealed directly to States Attorney Kim Foxx, her office announced that November prosecutors were dropping charges against Brown. Following 29 years of imprisonment, Brown was released from custody later that day.

All three detectives involved in interrogating Brown are now deceased.

Browns legal team indicated he would ask for $60 million in trial. He also has a separate, pending settlement of $7.25 million with Cook County, the citys corporation counsel said in recommending the city compensation.

Also during Wednesdays Finance meeting, aldermen advanced a $1 million settlement with the mother of Sharell Brown (no relation), who was fatally shot by a Chicago police officer in 2019 following a foot chase in Lawndale. That settlement had been scheduled for a vote earlier this year under then-Mayor Lori Lightfoot but was delayed as some council members grumbled about the payout given the fact that Brown was armed during the shooting.

Aldermen Nicholas Sposato, Chris Taliaferro, Bill Conway, Marty Quinn and Nicole Lee voted no after a brief discussion in which some committee members, such as Ald. Jeanette Taylor, complained that the citys corporation counsel was not answering questions for her and the public about the officers disciplinary issues or other matters that city attorney Victoria Benson said were privileged information.

Though a pistol was recovered, the officer who fatally wounded Brown, Joseph Lisciandrello, failed to comply with the departments body camera protocol, the Civilian Officer of Police Accountability ruled, and the shooting was not recorded. COPA recommended in 2021 that Lisciandrello be suspended 180 days, of which he served five days in March, a CPD spokesperson confirmed. He remains employed by the Police Department.

Ahead of the vote, Taylor expressed frustration that Benson would not say what Lisciandrellos explanation was for turning off his body camera.

What is the purpose of them having that camera if theyre going to cut it off and theres no explanation for that whatsoever? Taylor said.

The Finance Committee also approved a $550,000 settlement to Joshua Habasek-Bonelli, who alleged in his lawsuit that Chicago police Officer Marco Simonetti tased him while he was unarmed, leading to his hospitalization. Simonetti was charged with aggravated battery and official misconduct last year in connection to the incident, and he has pleaded not guilty. He resigned from the Police Department in January.

Lastly, aldermen advanced a $400,000 payment to Lana Triplett, who sued the city after being injured in a 2018 car crash with former 45th Ward Streets and Sanitation superintendent Adam Corona.
Almost 10 years after a local woman was found dead in her apartment, a jury has convicted her ex-boyfriend who fled to South America and was extradited back to the United States in 2019.

State Attorney Ed Brodsky announced that Andres Mauricio Collazos, 34, was convicted by a jury of murder in the second degree on June 9 in connection to 30-year-old Jazmin Catano's death.

The maximum possible sentence is life in prison, however, because Collazos had to be extradited from South America in 2019, the U.S. government was "forced to forego the imposition of a life sentence," according to the news release. The minimum sentence for second-degree murder is 25 years in prison. Collazos is scheduled to be sentenced on Aug. 9.

More court news: Sarasota's self-proclaimed 'Annuity King' found guilty in $6.3 million fraud case

In case you missed it: Two Sarasota men sentenced to 35 years, life in prison in felony murder case

"We are pleased with the jury's verdict holding the defendant responsible for his heartless actions," said Assistant State Attorney Charlie Lawrence, the lead prosecutor in the case. "The defendant's futile attempt to evade prosecution served as further proof of his guilt. Jazmin Catano and her family have finally obtained justice and long-awaited closure for her senseless murder."

Manatee County Sheriff's deputies responded to a call on June 23, 2013, to the Coral Club complex in the 5900 block of 36th Street West after Catano was found by her ex-husband who was dropping off one of their two children, according to previous Sarasota Herald-Tribune reporting.

The ex-husband called the sheriff's office after he found evidence of a crime when he entered the home after no one answered the door. Sheriff deputies found Catano's body in the bedroom with evident signs of trauma, according to previous reporting.

Jazmin Catano, 30, was found dead in her Coral Club complex apartments by her ex-husband in June 2013. Catano's ex-boyfriend, Andres Mauricio Collazos, 34, was convicted by a jury of murder in the second degree on June 9, 2023, in connection to her death.

The news release from Brodsky's office said that Catano was struck in the back of the head four times and fatally shot in the back. Collazos' fingerprint was found in Catano's blood at the scene, the news release stated.

Collazos was named a person of interest after detectives learned he'd flown from Fort Lauderdale to Columbia, his home country, following the discovery of Catano's body. When detectives found Collazos' car at the Ft. Lauderdale airport, they discovered Catano's blood on the steering wheel, according to the news release.

Collazos and Catano had broken off their year-long relationship  which started in 2012 after Catano separated from her husband  about three to four weeks before the murder. After the breakup, Catano moved into an apartment at the Coral Club complex.

Following reports about Catano's death, the Herald-Tribune reported a former girlfriend of Collazos had filed a second petition asking the Sarasota County court for a restraining order against him, calling him a "dangerous person."

The woman said she'd met Collazos in 2007 and the two had a daughter together, according to previous reporting. However, in 2010, she claimed Collazos put a gun to her neck and said "vulgar" words in front of their child. When she tried to move out, she wrote he reacted violently and threatened to kill her.

The court denied her petition siting there were insufficient facts regarding acts of violence or "imminent threat of violence."

There were no reports of domestic incidents filed between Catano and Collazos, who did not have arrest records in Manatee or Sarasota counties, according to previous reporting.

When Collazos learned there was a warrant for his arrest while in Columbia, he fled to Venezuela, according to previous reporting. He was arrested by the FBI and Colombian National Police in July 2017 and held in a Columbian jail until he was extradited in 2019 to Manatee County.

Gabriela Szymanowska covers the legal system for the Herald-Tribune in partnership with Report for America. You can support her work with a tax-deductible donation to Report for America. Contact Gabriela Szymanowska at gszymanowska@gannett.com, or on Twitter.

This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Man found guilty of murder in 2013 Manatee killing of ex-girlfriend
Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) broke with President Biden and Senate Democrats on Wednesday for the second time in two days over a high-profile nominee when he voted against Dale Ho, Bidens nominee to serve as a judge on the Southern District of New York, accusing him of hateful words and partisanship.

Mr. Hos prior inflammatory statements make me doubt whether he can be impartial when interpreting the Constitution. Hateful words and partisanship should never be characteristics of someone on a federal bench and, for this reason, I have voted against Mr. Hos nomination, Manchin said in a statement.

Ho, who has criticized Republican lawmakers on Twitter, last year apologized for the tone of his social media posts, acknowledging it was overheated rhetoric.

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, criticized Ho last year for tweeting attacks at multiple members of the Judiciary Committee, while Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.), another member of the panel, described Ho as angry.

Ho, who served as director of the ACLUs Voting Rights Project, criticized GOP senators including Sens. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), Mike Lee (R-Utah) and Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) in multiple tweets.

Manchin opposed Bidens first choice to serve as director of the Office of Management and Budget, Neera Tanden, in February 2021 because of public statements and tweets he characterized as toxic.

Manchin was the only Senate Democrat to vote Tuesday against Jared Bernstein, Bidens nominee to serve as chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers.

Manchin voted on Tuesday against a procedural motion to advance Hos nomination.

The nominee was confirmed by the Senate in a 50-49 vote Wednesday.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
War-torn Ukraine is reeling from the collapse of the Nova Kakhovka hydroelectric dam, which saw its reservoir burst causing chaos for miles around.

The catastrophe on Tuesday 6 June forced thousands of residents of nearby towns and villages to evacuate their homes as the floodwater barrelled towards them and left some climbing onto rooftops or into trees to escape the raging torrents.

Hundreds of thousands more have been left without access to clean drinking water in the region as a result of the eco-disaster on the Dnipro River, prompting relief workers to rush fresh supplies to the area as they struggle with the problems of mass resettlement.

Streets are flooded in Kherson after the Kakhovka dam was blown up (AP)

While the official tallies report that over 2,700 people have fled from flooded areas on both the Ukrainian and Russian-controlled sides of the river, a true picture of the disaster has yet to emerge given that more than 60,000 people live in the vicinity.

Kyiv has blamed Russia for deliberately destroying the Soviet-era infrastructure, with Moscow, inevitably, protesting its innocence and contemptuously suggesting that Ukrainian saboteurs are responsible.

Ukraines president Volodymyr Zelensky has called the incident a war crime and the largest man-made environmental disaster in Europe in decades.

Russia would certainly appear to have the most to gain from the disaster and President Zelensky did warn as long ago as last November that he believed enemy soldiers had mined the dam and were plotting its destruction. He reiterated that stance in a tweet on Tuesday: It is physically impossible to blow it up somehow from the outside, by shelling. It was mined by the Russian occupiers. And they blew it up.

For now though, the priority remains coming to the aid of the stricken people of Kherson.

Ukraines deputy prime minister Oleksandr Kubrakov has warned of the threat to their wellbeing posed by hazardous chemicals and infectious diseases carried by the water as well as from landmines previously placed near the wars frontline, which have been disturbed by the floods and are now likely to explode.

(DataWrapper/The Independent)

The water in the reservoir feeds a wide area of southern Ukrainian farmland, including the annexed peninsula of Crimea, as well as providing all-important cooling water to the Russian-held Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant, lying nearby as indicated on the map below.

A United Nations nuclear watchdog has attempted to reassure the public by saying that there is no immediate risk to the plant, even if it were to run out of water for its cooling systems.

There is no such good news for the regions farmers, however, with the flooding expected to spell instant disaster for this years harvest: crops are likely to be washed away, fields left waterlogged and livestock drowned in water that is at serious risk of being contaminated by machine oil, already seen gushing into the Dnipro.

Hundreds of thousands more have been left without access to clean drinking water in the region (Reuters)

The depleted reservoir is also considered unlikely to be able to supply adequate irrigation to the surrounding fields for several years to come, a huge setback for Ukraines eventual hopes of economic recovery.

All of which is also likely to have consequences for a global food market that has increasingly relied upon Ukraine for the supply of agricultural produce since the end of the Cold War.

There is no doubt that this will lead to large-scale environmental, economic and human consequences, Mykhailo Podolyak, a chief adviser to President Zelenksy, told The Independent.

Home have been flooded by the cascading waters (AFP/Getty)

The instantaneous death of a large number of fish and animals, the waterlogging of drained lands, and the change in the climatic regime of the region, will later be reflected in the food security of the world.

A one-time reduction of water in a huge reservoir will lead to unpredictable ecological consequences.

Mr Podolyak warned that he expected the floodwaters to reach Mykolaiv, lying 56 miles from the dam and decried the drowning of the entire population of animals at the Kazkova Dibrova zoo on the Russian-held eastern bank of the river as particularly tragic.

(DataWrapper/The Independent)

President Zelensky has already rebuked the officials installed by Moscow to run occupied territories along that bank for failing to respond adequately to the emergency.

The Russian authorities he criticised have conceded that they have evacuated fewer than 1,300 people so far in an area where as many as 40,000 people were said to be affected.

Ukrainian security forces transport local residents in a boat during an evacuation from a flooded area (AFP/Getty)

That compared unfavourably with the estimated 1,700 evacuated on the Ukrainian side to the west, where the population was reportedly around 42,000.

According to the independent Russian news outlet Vyorstka, residents of the Moscow-run village of Oleshky, for one, remain stranded, the publisher quoting one woman as saying that her mother, who could not make it to the roof, was in the water clutching a ladder.

A volunteer confirmed to Vyorstka that those still awaiting evacuation included children and disabled people.

Residents are evacuated from a flooded neighborhood in Kherson, (AP)

Civilians in Kherson itself were seen clutching personal belongings as they waded through knee-deep water in the streets and rode rubber rafts.

Video on social media showed rescuers carrying others to safety and what looked like the triangular roof of a building floating downstream.

Aerial footage showed flooded streets in the Russian-controlled city of Nova Kakhovska itself, where Mayor Vladimir Leontyev said seven people were missing, although they were believed to be alive.

But perhaps most striking of all has been the aerial shots of the region captured by Maxar Technologies, which give the fullest picture of the damage done seen so far.

Additional reporting by agencies
FBI

Two men, one of them an active-duty Marine, were arrested Wednesday for allegedly firebombing a Planned Parenthood clinic in Costa Mesa, California, last year.

Chance Brannon, 23, was stationed at the nearby Camp Pendleton, according to a press release from federal prosecutors. He and his alleged accomplice, 21-year-old Tibet Ergul, were charged with using an explosive or fire to damage property and affect interstate commerce.

They are accused of throwing a Molotov cocktail at the clinic entrance early in the morning of March 13, 2022, setting fire to a wall and ceiling according to the complaint. Investigators said the burn marks covered an area three feet wide and 10 to 15 feet tall. No one was injured, but the clinic was forced to shut down the next morning and cancel about 30 appointments.

According to the complaint, Ergul texted a friend the next day to take credit for the fire, adding that he wished he couldve recorded the combustion. He allegedly included a photo of his gloved hand holding the Molotov cocktail inside Brannons car.

The depraved act of launching an improvised explosive device into a public facility put lives at risk and will not be tolerated," Donald Alway, the Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI's Los Angeles Field Office, said in the statement.

Ergul grew up in Turkey and moved to Southern California for high school, according to a personal website; he majored in molecular science and biotechnology at Arizona State University, according to his Linkedin page. His LinkedIn bio says he is looking for hands-on work in the chemical, biological, or geophysics industries, though he listed his current job as a delivery driver for SMK Logistics. His Instagram stories include several photos of him working in a lab.

Court records show Ergul was charged with aggravated assault in Maricopa County, Arizona, in 2022. The charges were suspended after he agreed to participate in a deferred prosecution program.

Brannons military service record was not immediately available.

Alarming Rise in Violence Against Abortion Clinics Since Fall of Roe

Nicole Ramirez, vice president of communications for Planned Parenthood of Orange County and San Bernardino, said the clinic worked with the FBI to catch the culprits, providing footage from security cameras. She added that while no one was in the clinic when the attack occurred, its intimidating and scary when you come into work and you find out that something like this has happened.

These patients are coming in for basic healthcare, she added. So to have such a violent act when people are just trying to access healthcare, its upsetting, to be honest.

She added that the clinic had seen an increase in protesters since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v Wade last June, but that this was the first incident of violence.

Violence against abortion clinics has increased significantly since fall of Roe v. Wade. A report from the National Abortion Federation found the number of clinic burglaries and stalking incidents tripled from 2021 to 2022, and the number of arson attacks doubled.

Last year, a woman allegedly entered an unopened clinic in Casper, Wyoming, poured gasoline on the floor, and set it on fire. The arson delayed the opening of the clinic by nearly a year, leaving the state without a single surgical abortion provider during that time.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

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What Marines should know about new reimbursements for relocating pets

The Marine Corps is working toward implementing a policy that could allow Marines to get reimbursed for thousands of dollars in pet relocation costs, but the policy wont come in time for the summer moving season, according to the service.

The military services will be authorized to cover up to $4,000 of a service members expenses associated with moving a pet during a permanent change of station to or from a place outside of the continental United States, thanks to a provision in the 2023 National Defense Authorization Act. Troops moving stations within the continental United States could get up to $550 for their pet relocations.

The Marine Corps expects Marines wont get the entitlement until Jan. 1, 2024, due to the significant unbudgeted costs of this new authority, according to a Marine administrative message Monday.

Summertime is peak season for permanent change of station moves.

Making a military move? The road may be bumpy; these tips will help

Before its official policy, the entitlement has to go through Defense Department approvals, according to the message.

The Marine Corps does plan to pursue approval of the entitlement, Maj. Jim Stenger, a Marine spokesman, confirmed to Marine Corps Times Tuesday.

Marine vet Liz Hensel, CEO and founder of Leave No Paws Behind USA, which advocated for the military to cover these expenses, praised the Marine Corps for being the first service to release a statement about its plans for the entitlement.

Its a huge step in the right direction, said Hensel, who said she is a staff sergeant in the Marine Reserve and married to a Marine. Its a little disappointing to hear that it probably wont go into effect until January 2024. But they were very realistic on that timeline. These things take time.

Troops wont get reimbursed retroactively for pet-transportation expenses that occur before the entitlement is official policy, Stenger said.

It can take six months to prepare to move a pet overseas, an April Marine administrative message advises Marines and their families. Before bringing a pet into Japan  the overseas location with the largest concentration of Marines  pet owners have to secure a microchip, vaccines, a rabies blood test (at least 180 days before arrival) and a health certificate, according to a guide for troops relocating to Okinawa.

Then theres the matter of securing a spot on a government-contracted or commercial plane for a pet.

Contracted flights through Air Mobility Command offer a discounted rate, ranging from $125 to $375, to transport pets, but flights have few spaces for pets, according to the Marine message in April. Marines are responsible for providing kennels on those flights.

It can cost thousands in some cases to move a pet overseas using a private pet-shipping company.

Amid the rising costs of transporting pets, some military relief societies have started offering loans to service members who are moving duty stations, Military Times previously reported.

Hensel started advocating for the military to cover pet relocation expenses after her husband, a Marine, received orders to move from California to Japan.

As Hensel researched how she would transport her German Shepherd, Prince, she found few resources and conflicting information related to relocating pets as part of a permanent change of station move. And she discovered that some military families were spending thousands to transport their pets overseas.

She started lobbying on the Hill for coverage of expenses associated with relocating pets and, she said, ultimately found success with Sen. Cory Booker, D-New Jersey, who introduced the reimbursement provision into the defense authorization bill.

At duty stations in the Pacific, Hensel said, deployments are especially frequent. Caring for Prince brought consistency and routine for her and her kids while her husband was away.

He kind of kept us glued to the present and not thinking of how much we missed Dad, Hensel said, adding, Across the board, to anyone who served, be it Mom or Dad, that pet is so important for the family dynamic.
The Mars Hill Town Hall

MARS HILL - In the Mars Hill Town Board's June 5 meeting, Town Manager Nathan Bennett presented the town's 2023-24 budget, which includes a nearly 9% increase from the current year.

The board unanimously approved the budget, which allocates nearly $2.96 million in expenditures, an increase of more than $241,000 from the current year. The increase is due to programming the remaining American Rescue Plan Act funds, and other modest revenue increases to property tax, fire tax and sales taxes, according to Bennett's budget message.

The budget also includes a $2,500 cost of living adjustment increase for all full-time staff, as well as a $1,500 COLA increase for all part-time staff.

"Town employees work hard to provide a safe, secure, healthy and prosperous community," Bennett said. "To keep good employees in all sectors of town employment, particularly in the current highly competitive job market, compensation commensurate with the knowledge and skills in consideration of the current labor market and economic circumstances is necessary."

The town manager recommended no tax rate change to the current rate of $0.47 per $100, with tax collection based on 96% of assessed value.

According to Bennett, the rate is expected to provide the General Fund an estimated total property tax revenue of more than $726,000.

The budget also allocates for an additional full-time patrol officer, which would bring the Mars Hill Police Department to seven employees, as well as funding to the police department for a replacement patrol vehicle, a new UTV, and additional training and equipment needs, Bennett said in the message.

"This will provide needed coverage for expanded coverage area, increased service calls, and officer safety, coming from continued community growth," Bennett said.

The Mars Hill Town Board's 2023-24 budget allocates for a new a patrol vehicle.

According to Bennett, the proposed budget also includes full funding for personnel and associated employee benefit costs, including health insurance, for the three firefighters/EMT positions added in the current year's budget.

Bennett said the Fire Department has eight full-time employees, and relies on the help of 30 volunteers as well.

The increase is also due to Powell Bill expenditures that include funding for equipment and targeted street and sidewalk repairs.

In fall 2021, the town received an N.C. Parks and Recreation Trust Fund grant award for $268,536 for park renovations at Bailey Mountain Preserve and Park.

More: Mars Hill renames main trail at Bailey Mountain Preserve in honor of Richard L. Hoffman

The budget includes funds to begin the project and move forward with planning, permitting and construction.

According to Bennett, construction at the park could begin as soon as August 1.

The budget allocates the following expenditures, from highest allocation to lowest allocations:

Fire department - $878,000

Police department - $752,000

Street department - $369,000

Administration - $298,000

Sanitation department - $200,000

Powell Bill expenditures - $200,000

Governing body - $111,000

Recreation department - $107,000

Public buildings - $39,000

Library - $23,000

Elections - $10,000

Tax collections - $3,000

Water and sewer budget

The budget allocates more than $1.21 million in expenditures for its water and sewer fund.

The proposed expenditures are as follows:

Operations - $808,000

Administration, engineering and billing - $294,000

Debt service - $113,000

Bennett also recommends a 2.5% increase to water and sewer usage fees.

"This increase is necessary to keep the water and sewer fund solvent while providing safe drinking water, processing wastewater and making necessary capital improvements to the water and sewer system," Bennett said. "The system is financially strong and consistent stewardship is necessary to maintain that status."

This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: Mars Hill approves 2023-24 budget, allocates 9% increase in expenditures
This new Mars map archive puts the entire Red Planet in the palm of your hand (video)

Data collected by NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter allows users to explore Valles Marineris, "the Grand Canyon of Mars," on their smartphone.

Viewing the Martian landscape is now easier than ever before, thanks to a new map generated from a treasure trove of data collected by NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter.

The new map, compiled with the help of supercomputers and cloud computing, provides a high-resolution, three-dimensional experience of Mars ' otherworldly terrain.

The map, processed by a team at the U.S. Geological Survey 's (USGS) Astrogeology Science Center, consists of over 4,800 digital terrain models (DTMs) and more than 155,000 images of the Martian surface.

Related: 12 amazing photos from the Perseverance rover's 1st year on Mars

3D map of mars' valles marineris canyon system, in shades of gray, blue and green

"Now anyone on the planet with a smartphone can search, use and marvel at these data," team leader Jay Laura, of the Astrogeology Science Center (ASC), said in a statement .

"These data are important because they democratize the availability of high-quality Mars topographic data," Laura added. "Getting consistent, well-aligned results is not easy. We felt it was important to generate and release these products so that others could freely access the data. When these data are highly accessible, anyone can contribute to scientific discovery."

The Martian topographic data used by the team was collected by the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter 's (MRO) Context Camera, which can capture images with a resolution of around 6 meters per pixel covering an area of up to around 18.5 miles (30 kilometers) wide and 100 miles (160 km) long.

The team then produced DTMs by overlapping two images of the same area and processing them with a supercomputer to create a detailed 3D view. The process is similar to how visual data collected by both our eyes is processed by the brain to generate our sense of depth perception and create a 3D picture of our surroundings, team members said.

Seamlessly aligning pairs of images to each other and then to the topography of Mars is, however, not as easy as it may sound. First, Laura and the USGS team had to line up individual DTMs to global low-resolution topography and then deliver this information back to the Denali supercomputer, located at the Eros Data Center in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.

This was done in batches of several hundred DTMs at once, requiring a huge amount of computing power and several weeks to process. The procedure would take a standard personal computer between two and 35 years of continuous processing to achieve, team members said.

The 4,800 DTMs are just the tip of the iceberg in terms of Mars data, with the ASC team currently working on thousands of other image pairs that should result in improved topographic coverage of Mars at 20 meters per pixel.

Additionally, the image pairs were collected alongside higher resolution image pairs gathered by another MRO camera, the even sharper-eyed High-Resolution Imaging Science Experiment ( HiRISE ).

Though they cover smaller patches of Mars' surface, just 3.7 miles (6 km) wide by 37 miles (60 km) long, the HiRISE images have a resolution of 25 cm (9.8 in) per pixel. This means each HiRISE image is packed with detail but has a huge data size  1 GB and above, team members said.

Scientists have a tough time dealing with such detailed photos; efforts to do so previously have involved downloading full images in an area of investigation one by one and then processing them so that they can be viewed at different zoom levels.

Related stories:

 The latest photos from NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter

 Mars: Everything you need to know about the Red Planet

 Water on Mars: Exploration and evidence

So the ASC team has worked to process the entire catalog of 155,000 HiRISE images, equivalent to around 114 TB of data, making them streamable and accessible free of charge. During the processing, the data was streamed from the NASA Planetary Data System cloud holdings, with over 4,000 images processed simultaneously and the entire dataset taking just under four hours to complete.

The testing and refining of this processing pipeline ensured that it produced reliable and useful images. This means that analysis can now be conducted in the cloud, and data can be accessed without the need to download whole images. The streamable data can then be examined on a smartphone or downloaded in a ready-to-use format that doesn't require processing, team members said.

Huge data sets of fully processed images like this have been highlighted by the NASA Planetary Data Ecosystem Independent Review Board as vital in supporting the application of AI and machine learning to planetary science.

"These data are ripe for discovery and use by machines and humans," Laura said. "This data release means that the HiRISE data set can now be seamlessly leveraged by machine-learning scientists."

The data is hosted by Amazon in the company's Open Data Registry , and it is free for anyone to use. In order to make the data easier to find and download, thus ensuring it is more accessible to the general public, the USGS has released search tools for users .

"With data releases like this, USGS is taking the lead to develop and release analysis-ready planetary science data," Laura concluded.


Art Spiegelman, who authored Pulitzer Prize-winning graphic novel Maus, which has faced multiple challenges in the U.S., is cautioning that the rise of book bans in libraries and schools shows the country has a yearning for authoritarianism.

Its a real warning sign of a country thats yearning for a return of authoritarianism, Spiegelman said in an interview with Washington Post opinion columnist Greg Sargent published Wednesday.

In the last couple of years, Spiegelmans graphic novel on the Holocaust has appeared on an increasing number of restricted-book lists. And some school boards have taken measures to pull it from library shelves.

Most recently, a school board in Nixa, Mo., announced it would consider whether to pull the book after employees reportedly flagged it as a possible violation of a state law preventing sexually explicit material from being provided to minors, according to local reports.

Spiegelman dismissed claims that the novel contains sexually explicit material as a pretense, saying in his Post interview, It was the other things making them uncomfortable, like genocide.

I just tried to make them clean and understandable, which is the purpose of storytelling with pictures, he added.

Maus is a graphic novel that tells the story of the horrors Spiegelmans parents experienced in the Holocaust. The story, however, is told through illustrations of animals. His parents  and all Jews  are depicted as mice, and the Nazis are depicted as cats.

Spiegelman warned of the dangers of restricting access to literature, saying in the interview that the tendency to ban books is about squelching whats supposed to happen in school, which is an education that allows people to become one country that can talk to each other with a base of knowledge.

As more conservative-leaning states take steps to restrict access to books they deem inappropriate, on Monday Illinois became the first state to outlaw the practice of banning books.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
Meghan Markle series Suits to return to Netflix the same day as King Charles birthday parade

Suits is set to return to Netflix on the day of King Charles IIIs birthday parade.

All nine seasons of the legal drama starring Meghan Markle, Duchess of Sussex, as the high-powered attorney Rachel Zane will be available on the streamer as of Saturday (17 June) in the US.

Markle, 41, played Zane  the love interest of the shows lead Mike Ross (Patrick J. Adams)  from 2011 to 2018 during which time she met and dated Prince Harry before their marriage in 2018.

Also on Saturday, Charles will join the first birthday parade of his reign on horseback. The annual Trooping of the Colour has marked the official birthday of the Sovereign for more than 260 years.

It will be the first time the reigning monarch has ridden a horse at the event since 1986 when Queen Elizabeth II last rode.

Suits producer, USA Network, announced that Markle would be leaving the show following her engagement to the royal in November 2017.

From all of us at USA Network and Universal Cable Productions, we want to send our most heartfelt congratulations to Meghan Markle and Prince Harry on their engagement, the companys statement said.

Suits - The Complete Series is coming to Netflix (in The US) on June 17. pic.twitter.com/pmCkCnQUTK  Netflix (@netflix) May 22, 2023

Meghan has been a member of our family for seven years and it has been a joy to work with her. We want to thank her for her undeniable passion and dedication to Suits, and we wish her the very best.

The relationship between the Sussexes and the rest of the immediate royal family has reportedly been fraught since the 2022 release of Harry and Meghans eponymous Netflix docuseries about their exit from royal life and Harrys tell-all memoir Spare, in which he made a number of disparaging claims about members of his family.

Tensions are thought to have consistently worsened since Harry and Meghan decided to step back from royal duties in 2020, and moved to Los Angeles.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle (Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)

Harry and Meghans daughter, Princess Lilibet Diana, turned two this month; however, there was radio silence from senior members of the royal family.

Last year, the official Twitter accounts for the royal family, King Charles and Queen Camilla, plus that of the Prince and Princess of Wales all wished Lilibet a happy first birthday.

But on 4 June, neither of the three Twitter accounts publicly sent their birthday wishes to the young royal, who is the only daughter and second child of The Duke and Duchess of Sussex.

Harry returned to the UK this month to give evidence in his High Court phone hacking case against Mirror Group Newspapers (MGN).

He is suing for damages after alleging that journalists at its titles had resorted to phone hacking and other underhand methods to secure stories about him and his family.
Mehki Clay, 19, whose body was found in El Dorado County lake, remembered by friends

A body pulled from Jenkinson Lake near Sly Park Recreation area lake Tuesday morning has been identified as a Carmichael man.

Mehki Clay, 19, was on a camping trip with old wrestling buddies when they decided to swim to an island, according to friends. The cold temperature of the water allegedly sent Clay into shock, which friends said led to his death.

Representatives from the El Dorado County Sheriffs Office said just before 5 p.m. Monday that a swimmer was reported missing at Jenkinson Lake and Cal Fire was already on the scene when Sheriffs Office deputies and its dive team responded.

Clays body was recovered from the bottom of the lake at approximately 10:30 a.m. Tuesday, deputies said. A cause of death has not yet been determined.

Clay graduated in 2022 from Del Campo High School on Dewey Drive in Fair Oaks, according to Alyssa DeMarco, 22, who wrestled with him throughout Clays middle school and high school years.

He was honestly, like, the sweetest kid youd ever meet, DeMarco said. He always was smiling. He was always laughing (and) joking around, and he took what he did very seriously.

Clay worked at Sunrise Rollerland in Citrus Heights. The roller rink posted on social media to pay respects to its employee.

Mehki was a hardworking and kind-hearted individual who had an amazing work ethic and would always go the extra mile to help those around him, Sunrise Rollerland management wrote on Facebook. He was the most polite employee we have ever had, and he truly had a heart of gold.

The rinks post encouraged patrons to donate to Clays funeral GoFundMe fundraiser, organized by Rachel Clark.

Mehki was loved by everyone he came in contact with and would give his shirt off his back, Clark said.

Clark said in her GoFundMe post that she considered Clay her adopted son.

Clay is survived by his mother, Cynthia Clay, who could not immediately be reached for comment.

It pains me to have to write this, but Im setting up this GoFundMe on behalf of Cyndie Clay, Clark wrote in the post. No parent should ever have to bury their child.

As of Wednesday morning, more than $8,000 has been raised by 177 donations in 21 hours  exceeding the goal of $7,500.

He was a very positive impact on everyone around him, and he had just a sparkle in him, DeMarco said.

Ethan Sadler, 18, wrestled with Clay during his time at Del Campo. He said he recalls Clay being the most genuine, down-to-earth person.

I remember our senior year were both on the crab-walking relay race team for Sports-A-Rama, Sadler said. We both were laughing about how we automatically made the team because the bare minimum of people tried out.

He was a hard worker and just strived to be a better wrestler (and) a better student, DeMarco said.
A scandal over racist texts by police in Antioch has fouled dozens of cases, most recently leading to the dismissal of charges in the mutilation of Mykaella Sharlman's body. (Terry Chea / Associated Press)

Contra Costa County prosecutors have dismissed felony charges against two men accused of mutilating a woman's corpse  the latest case to be fouled by a racist text message scandal that rocked the Antioch Police Department.

Ashton Montalvo and Deangelo Boone were arrested and charged in October 2022 with arson and mutilation after the burned body of Mykaella Sharlman, 25, was found near a hiking trail in Antioch.

Sharlman's autopsy ruled out homicide, but Montalvo and Boone were charged with setting Sharlman's body on fire and putting it in a garbage can, according to the Mercury News in San Jose.

Sharlman's death was attributed to a fentanyl overdose, according to Bay Area television station KNTV.

In April, the Mercury News reported on an FBI and county prosecutor's office investigation into the Antioch Police Department that revealed dozens of officers had been sending racist and homophobic messages to one another for years, using anti-Black slurs and other derogatory terms.

The report sent shock waves through the department, with more than 40 officers implicated in the scandal.

The case against Montalvo and Boone "relied heavily" on investigations by several Antioch police officers who were associated with the racist texts, the Contra Costa County district attorney's office said last week in a statement.

The officers were not identified.

"After thoroughly reviewing the officers role in this case, applying relevant legal principles, and considering ethical responsibilities, the Contra Costa District Attorneys Office no longer has confidence in the integrity of this prosecution," the office said.

The dismissal allows charges to be refiled if new evidence is developed.

The dismissal was slammed by Sharlman's sister Nicole Eason, who called it "unacceptable," according to KNTV.

Were getting ready to lawyer up, Eason told the news station. Were getting ready to fight.

The case is one of dozens that have been dismissed due to multiple and overlapping investigations into Antioch police officers, other police departments and even the Contra Costa Country district attorney's office, according to the Mercury News.

In late May, a Contra Costa County judge threw out gang charges against four men, two of whom were referenced in Antioch officers' racist text messages, after data showed that prosecutors had disproportionately targeted Black people with sentencing enhancements.

Last month, California Atty. Gen. Rob Bonta launched a civil rights investigation into the Antioch Police Department.

Where there are "allegations of potentially pervasive bias or discrimination," Bonta said in a statement, "it can undermine the trust that is critical for public safety and our justice system."

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Mexico's interior minister, a close confidant of the popular outgoing president, announced on Tuesday he would leave his post at the end of this week to focus on his bid to win the ruling party's nod for next year's presidential election.

Interior Minister Adan Augusto Lopez's decision, required under recently adopted MORENA party rules that will determine its standard bearer, adds another contender to a growing list of hopefuls for the internal contest.

Under Mexican law, the interior minister is an especially powerful cabinet member, responsible for security among other duties, and next in line to the presidency.

"I'm not going to resign. I've asked the president to relieve me of the position," Lopez told reporters following a meeting with President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, adding he would make the request official on Friday.

Lopez, who is not related to the president, shares the same home state, the Gulf coast's Tabasco state.

On Monday, Mexico City Mayor Claudia Sheinbaum said she would also step down on Friday to campaign for the presidential nomination, joining former Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard, who was the first party hopeful to announce he would exit his post.

MORENA's presidential pick will be announced on Sept. 6 after polling to pick a winner.

Opinion polls so far have tended to give the early lead to Sheinbaum, who would be Mexico's first woman president if successful, with Ebrard often coming in second.

(Reporting by Valentine Hilaire; Editing by David Alire Garcia and Jamie Freed)
Bud Light boycott Natalie Behring / Getty Images

The top-selling U.S. beer in May was a Mexican import, Modelo Especial, and not perennial top-seller Bud Light, according to new data from Nielsen and beverage consultancy Bump Williams. Modelo accounted for 8.4% of U.S. retail-store beer sales in the four weeks ending June 3, versus 7.3% for Bud Light, which overtook Budweiser as America's top seller in 2001, The Wall Street Journal reported. Bud Light's sales were down about 24% in May compared with a year earlier.

Drinkers have been switching to Mexican imports as well as other alcoholic beverages like hard seltzers and wine, and Modelo and Michelob Ultra were on track to overtake Bud Light in a year or longer, the Journal reported. But a conservative boycott of Bud Light starting in April, when transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney posted on Instagram about a some Bud Light sent to her by Anheuser-Busch, is credited with hastening the beer's dethroning.

The four weeks in the survey also includes Cinco de Mayo, a peak sales event for Mexican lagers.

Anheuser-Busch, which also makes Michelob Ultra, noted that Bud light still had the title of top-selling beer of 2023. But its precipitous decline in sales "is an ominous sign" for independently owned Bud Light distributors "during what they say is a make-or-break stretch between Memorial Day and the Fourth of July," the Journal reported. Some Anheuser-Busch distributors are reportedly contemplating layoffs. "Our year is screwed," one distributor who doesn't also carry Modelo told the Journal.

Anheuser-Busch is part of the Belgian multinational beer giant Anheuser-Busch InBev, which bought Mexico's Grupo Modelo in 2012. As part of regulatory approval for the merger, the company sold U.S. rights to Modelo Especial and Corona to Constellation Brands. At that time, Constellation told the Journal, Modelo wasn't in the Top 10 U.S. beer brands, but it is now the top seller in California and cities like Chicago and Dallas, and a top brand among Hispanic consumers.

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Francis Suarez is a man in a hurry.

The two-term mayor and former commissioner of Miami has turned himself into a tech-bro hero, cryptocurrency cheerleader and conservative cable news staple. He likes the glitz and star power that come with running a city thats transforming into a technology and financial hub.

That attention seems to have convinced him he can run for president.

Suarez, 45, is now the third Florida Republican seeking the White House, going up against two heavyweights: Donald Trump and Gov. Ron DeSantis. Suarez filed the paperwork to run in the GOP primary Wednesday. An official announcement is expected Thursday in California at the Ronald Reagan Library & Museum.

Suarez is young, telegenic and a good fundraiser. But his candidacy is a head-scratcher: Is he really running for president  or something else?

Suarezs name isnt even mentioned in many presidential polls. It seems far beyond his political reach to compete for the nomination with Trump, DeSantis or the handful of other candidates, like Mike Pence, who are running as anti-Trump Republicans.

Mayors have a bad track record running for president. Think of Americas Mayor himself, Rudy Giuliani of New York City, or Pete Buttigieg of South Bend, Indiana.

Thinner resume

As a mayor with mostly ceremonial duties, Suarez does not have the gravitas or experience of his counterparts in the 2024 primary, which includes governors, a senator, a vice president and, of course, a former president. But Suarez has built a brand that has gotten him this far. His name made it onto billboards across San Francisco and the Bay Area, telling tech companies in a mock tweet: Thinking about moving to Miami? DM [direct message] me.

That brand has been tarnished recently, though. Sources told the Herald he faces scrutiny by the FBI and local authorities for $10,000 monthly payments he received from a developer for consulting work  while serving as mayor. Thats small potatoes compared to Trumps legal problems, but those fees look like a conflict of interest.

Much as mounting a long-shot, yet buzz-filled, run for president in 2020 landed Democrat Buttigieg a job as U.S. secretary of transportation, Suarez, too, might wind up with a plum political appointment out of this contest or running for another office later on. In other words, he could win without actually winning.

If he raises enough money and gets a couple of viral soundbites at a presidential debate, Suarez might line up his next job. Perhaps as someones VP pick or as a paid political commentator or top political consultant. Suarez is energetic, Hispanic, fluent in Spanish  appealing to the type of voters the GOP has invested significant resources to attract. As mayor, hes been criticized for focusing too much on shiny baubles and less on the unglamorous job of leading Miami-Dade Countys largest city. But those qualities might play well in some other role.

Theres a caveat: Suarezs candidacy cannot fade immediately out of the gate and risk ending his political career, said Dario Moreno, professor of politics and international relations at Florida International University. That means Suarez must fight for media coverage in a crowded primary.

Being the hip mayor of a mid-sized city isnt enough to figure prominently on the hyper-polarized national stage. And Suarez, who has taken some moderate stances in Miami, already has shown hes willing to push harder to the right to get the conservative media hype he needs.

Who is he really?

Suarez once talked about his goal of reducing Miamis greenhouse gas emissions to a net zero by 2050. He was open about not voting for Trump. He even told the Herald he voted for progressive Democrat Andrew Gillum for governor in 2018, though, in 2022, he said he supported DeSantis.

Contrast that with the social media ads a group affiliated with him ran in key primary states last year. They railed about the radical left and accused President Joe Biden of a rabid desire to control our classrooms. On Fox News, Suarez bashed the liberal Miami Herald, which broke the story about his $10,000-a-month work for that developer and how Suarezs office helped the developer resolve permitting issues with the city.

With his expected presidential announcement at the Reagan library, is Suarez hoping to convey that he would be a Reagan-style Republican? Or that he would attract what they used to call Reagan Democrats? The Gipper attracted followers from both parties. Suarez might be trying to create a new lane by making Reagan Republicans a thing again  in the party of Trump, no less.

If a tie to Reagan is what Suarez seeks, we cant help but note what a lost opportunity it would be for Suarez not to declare his candidacy in Miami. Exactly 40 years ago, Reagan came to our city and created a stir among Cuban exiles, who warmly welcomed him at a then-popular restaurant called La Esquina de Tejas in the heart of Little Havana. It was the first time Cuban exiles felt heard and, at that moment, they recognized their voting power and cemented their loyalty to the GOP.

That bit of history might be irrelevant now for Suarez, whos made it clear hes got his sights set on something bigger than Miami.

For this man in a hurry and with lots of ambition, there will be no time for baby steps. Suarez will have to define himself on the national stage and show Republican voters  many already smitten with Trump or, to a lesser degree, DeSantis  who he really is. Is he the hip moderate, Reagan 2.0 or a right-wing Biden baiter? If the latter, hell be fighting for ground to which Trump and DeSantis already have staked a huge claim.

If Suarez truly is seeking the biggest political prize in the free world, hell first have to make a powerful case that hes the better choice for the nomination.

That said, he might end up with a really neat consolation prize.
Miami-Dade hit with first heat advisory day  and its only June. What will summer hold?

The National Weather Service issued its first heat advisory for Miami-Dade County Wednesday under an experimental new set of rules for warning the public about heat.

Forecasters expect the heat index  a number that combines temperature and humidity readings to estimate how hot it feels in the shade  to hit 105 degrees for at least two hours Wednesday across Miami-Dade County.

Thats the new threshold for issuing a heat advisory in Miami-Dade. Local officials had been arguing for years that the old threshold for heat advisories  a heat index of 108 degrees  was too high and failed to warn the public about dangerous temperatures that kill 34 people in the county and hospitalize hundreds more each year.

Weather alert: Miami-Dade issues heat advisory for a feels like of 108. What it means

Last month, the NWS agreed to lower the advisory threshold in Miami-Dade County this summer as an experiment to see if it would help prevent local heat illnesses and deaths. If it works, NWS officials said they may spread the changes across South Florida.

Beads of sweat gather on Orlando Castro, 53, as he takes a moment to rest after riding his bike at Haulover Skateboard Park on Wednesday, June 14, 2023, in Miami Beach, Fla. Miami-Dade County issued a heat advisory for residents after the National Weather Service estimated the heat index would reach between 105 and 108 degrees.

Warnings to keep cool

For Jane Gilbert, the countys chief heat officer, Wednesdays forecast wasnt a surprise. She knew at least one would happen this summer, but the mid-June timeline worried her.

Because its an early onset heat advisory we collectively are not as accustomed to the heat and its a little more dangerous, she said. Its all the more reason for people to take note and take precautions.

Under the countys original action plan, a heat advisory would trigger a few things: a media advisory from the county warning residents to keep safe, outreach efforts for the homeless population and extended hours at cooling centers, places like libraries and community centers.

Leila Khalil, a spokesperson for the Miami-Dade Public Library System, said even before the Main Branch Library at 101 West Flagler St. was designated as an official cooling center, people would often come inside just to cool off. Especially during Florida summers.

Gerold T., 23, rides his skateboard at Haulover Skateboard Park on Wednesday, June 14, 2023, in Miami Beach, Fla. Miami-Dade County issued a heat advisory for residents after the National Weather Service estimated the heat index would reach between 105 and 108 degrees.

Inside most libraries, there are now posters detailing how to stay safe from extreme heat, she said.

Throughout the day, people would shuffle in and out of the library, some donning umbrellas and towels to protect their heads from the sun.

How many places can you come in, read a book, use a computer and enjoy the air conditioning? Khalil said. And it doesnt cost anything.

This time, Gilbert said, the county decided to skip the outreach and extended cooling center hours efforts since the heat advisory ends at 7 p.m. when these spaces will still be open under their regular schedules.

The county issued a media advisory around noon with tips on how to beat the heat.

Aaron McElwain, 13, drinks some water after riding his scooter at Haulover Skateboard Park on Wednesday, June 14, 2023, in Miami Beach, Fla. Miami-Dade County issued a heat advisory for residents after the National Weather Service estimated the heat index would reach between 105 and 108 degrees.

Gilbert warned Miami-Dade residents to stay out of the heat as much as possible, take breaks and drink plenty of water. Residents can find the nearest free, publicly air-conditioned library or community center on the countys parks website.

The county also advises residents to try not to do any hard work or exercise outside in the heat of the afternoon. But that may be harder for Miami-Dade Countys more than 100,000 outdoor workers, who have no legal protections requiring their employers to let them drink water or take breaks in the shade on dangerously hot days.

The first, but not the last advisory

Gilbert said residents should expect to hear this new heat warning a few more times this summer.

In last decade, weve hit this threshold around 6 times in the summer. Every summers different. There could be more than that, she said. It looks like were going to be hitting it through Friday.

Wednesday, winds blowing warm, dry air from the southwest and a lack of cloud cover and cooling rain finally pushed temperatures high enough to trigger an advisory under the new rules, according to Chuck Caracozza, a meteorologist in the NWS Miami office.

Miami-Dade isnt expected to get a break any time soon. Its going to be pretty hot here for the rest of the week, Caracozza said. It may actually get even hotter here, because it looks like its going to get even drier.

That means the county may see more advisories later in the week. The NWS will decide each day whether to issue another advisory, depending on the forecast.

Beads of sweat gather on Henry McElwain,13, while he takes a break from riding his scooter at Haulover Skateboard Park on Wednesday, June 14, 2023, in Miami Beach, Fla. Miami-Dade County issued a heat advisory for residents after the National Weather Service estimated the heat index would reach between 105 and 108 degrees.

Relief may come at the beginning of next week, when winds may shift and bring more moist air and rainfall from the east to cool things down, Caracozza said. But thats still very uncertain, he added.

Miami-Dade Countys hottest days are becoming more common, according to a county report published in December. Days with temperatures over 90 degrees used to only come for about a quarter of the year in Miami-Dade. Today, 90-degree days make up about a third of the year. By 2050, theyre expected to make up the majority of the year.

While scientists are sure that climate change does contribute to long-term patterns of higher temperatures, its trickier to gauge how much an already warming atmosphere is contributing to day-to-day weather patterns.

But by at least one group of climate scientists count, Miamis latest stretch of hotter days could be influenced by global warming. Climate Central ranked Wednesdays high temperatures a 3 on its climate shift index, a spectrum of how likely a specific weather event is to occur thanks to climate change. The index goes from -5 to 5.

According to nonprofit climate advocacy group Climate Matters, this weeks higher temperatures could be influenced by climate change.

How does Broward handle the heat?

Broward is also expected to scorch this week, but unlike Miami-Dade, its not part of the official pilot test of the new, lower threshold from the National Weather Service.

Still, Broward blasted out a social media alert to its residents around noon urging everyone to keep safe in the heat.

Jennifer Jurado, Browards chief resilience officer, said the county is still working on its long-term strategy for dealing with heat. Theyve already mapped out the more at-risk parts of the county and have plans to plant more trees and reinforce cooling centers in the most vulnerable neighborhoods.

As part of that strategy, Broward issued a community survey on extreme heat. So far, Jurado said they have about 140 responses.

What are people experiencing and given that, where can we be a better resource and partner to help address these challenges in our community? she said. And if its getting hotter and there are more days like this, how are we going to address those needs?

This climate report is funded by Florida International University, the Knight Foundation and the David and Christina Martin Family Foundation in partnership with Journalism Funding Partners. The Miami Herald retains editorial control of all content.
TALLAHASSEE, Fla.  Miami Mayor Francis Suarez is joining the crowded Republican field for president, becoming the first Hispanic in the race who also contends he can broaden the appeal for Republicans nationally  especially to Hispanics.

Suarez, 45, filed official federal paperwork on Wednesday, just one day after Donald Trumps arraignment in downtown Miami on charges that the former president hoarded classified documents at his estate in Palm Beach County. On Thursday morning, he appeared on "Good Morning America," where he announced his bid.

"I'm running for president because I think I have a different message than what other candidates have," he said. "I think what I noticed in the last 24 hours, just an outpouring of support because people want someone who can unify them."

Suarez joins Trump and Gov. Ron DeSantis as a candidate from Florida, a one-time battleground state that has become more and more reliably Republican. Miami voters have twice elected Suarez, who is the son of the citys first Cuban-born mayor, in one of the most important areas politically in the nations third-largest state.

Suarez serves as mayor of the city of Miami, a municipality of about 450,000 people thats within Miami-Dade County, a region of more than 2.5 million people whose mayor is Daniella Levine Cava.

Suarez has touted the citys low crime rate and economic successes, but he has lately been dogged by news reports about a developer who hired him to allegedly secure permits for a stalled real estate project at the same time the developer was trying to win approval for a city project.

Another looming problem for Suarez is whether he can raise enough money from enough supporters to qualify for Republican debates scheduled for later this summer. Suarez also could be hampered by his acknowledgement that he did not vote for Trump in either the 2016 or 2020 election although he has been more complimentary of Trump lately.

Suarez has also acknowledged he did not vote for DeSantis in 2018 and tangled with him at one point over Covid-19 restrictions during the pandemic. He did say recently he voted for DeSantis in 2022.

But he told POLITICO in May that he was considering a run for president because I think I can grow the tent  not for an election, but for a generation. I think it matters who is the communicator of ideas and how they communicate those ideas. You can look at my history and know that Im someone whos a unifier. You can look at my history and see that Im someone who appreciates the nuances in a variety of different Hispanic cultures.

Last month Kellyanne Conway told POLITICO reporters in D.C.: "I've not been shy about telling President Trump that Suarez should be on the short, short list for VP should Trump be the nominee."

Suarez has argued that Democrats have been reckless in their branding and messaging with Hispanics. He argued that Republicans in general have a tremendous opening in part because Trump supported rolling back policies the Obama administration had put in place for Cuba.

Suarez already has a super PAC in place to help him. SOS America on Wednesday said it was spending at least $100,000 on digital ads in New Hampshire, Iowa and Nevada. The super PAC also hit President Joe Biden over law-and-order issues while noting the crime rates in Miami have dropped.

America needs conservative Mayor Francis Suarez for President," said SOS America PAC spokesperson Chapin Fay in a statement. "As our nation faces anti-police and pro-crime Democrat leadership in cities across the nation like Baltimore, Portland and New York City, the achievements of first-generation American Mayor Suarez underscore the need for immediate nationwide adoption of his approach.

Suarez is scheduled to speak at the Reagan Library in California on Thursday night.

Democrats, meanwhile, quickly lashed out at Suarez by trying to link him to Trump and questioning his ethics.

Francis Suarez is yet another contender in the race for the MAGA base who has supported key pieces of Donald Trumps agenda, said Democratic National Committee Chair Jaime Harrison in a statement. As mayor of Miami, Suarez has repeatedly used his position to benefit himself, prioritizing pay raises for himself, accepting lavish gifts, and taking shady payments  all while ignoring the biggest challenges facing the people he was elected to serve.

During his Thursday appearance on "GMA," Suarez was asked about Trump's indictment and responded that all GOP candidates should pledge to support the eventual nominee.

Other Cuban-Americans who ran for president include Republican Sens. Marco Rubio of Florida and Ted Cruz of Texas.

Amalia Dache, an associate professor at the University of Pennsylvanias Graduate School of Education, studies the complexities of the role race plays in Cuban culture. Dache, who was born in Havana, said that while shes a Democrat, she cant help but watch a Suarez candidacy because of a little sense of pride.

Dache said theres something different in Suarez from Rubio and Cruz.

When I see him, I dont see Marco Rubio and I dont see Ted Cruz, she said. I see a brown man ... Its a little different for me, seeing him and understanding what he represents and possibly what this would mean for his ancestors.

Matt Berg contributed to this report.


FILE - Miami Mayor Francis Suarez speaks during a news conference June 12, 2023, in Miami. Suarez is running for president in 2024 and filed paperwork Wednesday, June 14, with the Federal Election Commission to make his bid official.(AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee, File)

MIAMI (AP)  Miami Mayor Francis Suarez announced his bid for the Republican presidential nomination on Thursday, jumping into the crowded race just days after GOP front-runner Donald Trump appeared in court on federal charges in Suarez's city.

The 45-year-old mayor, the only Hispanic candidate in the race, declared his candidacy in paperwork with the Federal Election Commission on Wednesday. He had previously teased an announcement, noting that he would be making a big speech on Thursday at the Reagan Library in California.

Announcing his run on ABC's Good Morning America on Thursday, Suarez repeatedly tried to avoid answering questions about Trumps behavior and the charges in his indictment, saying he didnt know all the details about how he handled classified information.

When reminded that he was running against Trump, Suarez replied, "You see, thats where youre wrong. Im running to be the president of the United States, and Im running against Joe Bidens America  an America where the poor get poorer, an America where America gets weaker, an America where if things dont change China will be the lone superpower. Thats what Im running for.

Suarez, the former president of the U.S. Conference of Mayors, is the son of Miami's first Cuban-born mayor. He has gained national attention in recent years for his efforts to lure companies to Miami, with an eye toward turning the city into a crypto hub and the next Silicon Valley.

Suarez, is vying to become the first sitting mayor elected president, joining a GOP primary fight that includes Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, former Vice President Mike Pence, Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina, former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley and former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie. Despite having a candidate field in the double digits, the race is largely seen as a two-person contest between Trump and DeSantis.

But the other competitors are hoping for an opening, which Trump has provided with his myriad legal vulnerabilities  none more serious than his federal indictment on charges of mishandling sensitive documents and refusing to give them back. He pleaded not guilty on Tuesday in Miami federal court to 37 felony counts.

Before Trump arrived at the Miami courthouse on Tuesday, Suarez toured the media encampment wearing a T-shirt with a police logo, as his citys police force had jurisdiction over the downtown area.

Suarez has said he didnt support Trump in the 2016 or 2020 presidential elections, instead writing in the names of U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio and then-Vice President Pence. In 2018, Suarez publicly condemned Trump after reports came out that he had questioned why the United States would accept more immigrants from Haiti and Africa, which Trump described using a vulgar epithet.

But times have changed, with Trump advisers now praising Suarezs work and helping him promote what he calls the Miami success story. Trumps former White House counselor Kellyanne Conway has even floated Suarezs name as a possible vice presidential pick.

Suarez, who is married with two young children, is a corporate and real estate attorney who previously served as a city of Miami commissioner. He has also positioned himself as someone who can help the party further connect with Hispanics. In recent months, he has made visits to early GOP voting states as he weighed a possible 2024 campaign.

He is more moderate than DeSantis and Trump but has threaded the needle carefully on cultural issues that have become popular among GOP politicians.

Suarez has been critical of DeSantis, dismissing some of the state laws he has signed on immigration as headline grabbers lacking in substance. He has said immigration is an issue that screams for a national solution at a time when many Republicans back hard-line policies.

The two-term mayor previously expressed support for a Florida law championed by DeSantis and dubbed Dont Say Gay that bans classroom instruction on sexual orientation or gender identity in kindergarten through third grade, but he has not specified whether he supported the expansion of the policy to all grades. Like other Republicans, Suarez has criticized DeSantis feud with Disney over the same law, saying it looks like a personal vendetta.

Further ingratiating himself with the Trump team, Suarez has echoed Trumps attacks on DeSantis demeanor, saying the governor doesnt make eye contact and struggles with personal relationships with other politicians.

In 2020, the mayor made a play to attract tech companies to Florida after the state relaxed its COVID-19 restrictions. He met with Big Tech players and investors such as PayPal founder Peter Thiel and tech magnate Marcelo Claure, began appearing on national television and was profiled by magazines.

Suarez, who has said he takes his salary in Bitcoin, has also hosted Bitcoin conferences and started heavily promoting a cryptocurrency project named Miami Coin, created by a group called City Coins.

But the hype dissipated as coronavirus restrictions eased elsewhere, eliminating Miamis advantage on the COVID-19 front. Suarezs vision also hit roadblocks with the collapse of the cryptocurrency exchange FTX, which was set to move its U.S. headquarters to Miamis financial district before its founder and CEO, Sam Bankman-Fried, was arrested in the Bahamas last December.

The only cryptocurrency exchange that traded Miami Coin suspended its trading, citing liquidity problems, not living up to its promise to generate enough money to eliminate city taxes.

Miami also ranks among the worst big U.S. cities for income inequality and has one of the least affordable housing markets.
(Bloomberg) -- Miami Mayor Francis Suarez is running for president, a long-shot bid that would nonetheless raise the national profile of the 45-year-old mayor who once dubbed his city the crypto capital of the world.

Most Read from Bloomberg

Suarez filed paperwork with the Federal Election Commission on Wednesday, becoming the latest in a list of GOP hopefuls challenging former President Donald Trump.

Suarez begins his campaign with a $12 million war chest after winning two elections as mayor of Floridas second-largest city, a part-time, non-partisan office. The son of former Miami Mayor Xavier Suarez, he also serves as president of the US Conference of Mayors and has supplemented his $97,000 salary as mayor with side jobs as an attorney, real estate agent, development consultant and as senior operating partner at venture capital firm DaGrosa Capital Partners.

As mayor, Suarez aggressively courted financial and technology jobs  taking his mayoral salary in Bitcoin and convincing cryptocurrency firm founder Sam Bankman-Fried to take over the naming rights for the Miami Heats home court, giving it the name FTX Arena, before the company entered bankruptcy 18 months later.

Miami Crypto Bet May Fail But Was Still Worth It: Jonathan Levin

Suarez has been laying the groundwork for a presidential run with donor meetings in Washington and grassroots events in the early voting states of Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina.

Im someone who needs to be better known by this country, he told CBS News recently. Because I represent something different and I can appeal to a different segment of our country.

A Cuban-American, Suarez said hes uniquely positioned to help Republicans win over young people, urban dwellers and Hispanics  a voting demographic thats growing and thats trending more Republican.

No incumbent mayor has ever been elected president  and the last former mayor to do it was Calvin Coolidge. But Suarez could be setting himself up as a possible vice presidential nominee, with Trump adviser Kellyanne Conway touting him as a potential running mate. Suarez has said hes flattered about the vice presidential talk but is a candidate in his own right.

Francis Suarez is yet another contender in the race for the MAGA base who has supported key pieces of Donald Trumps agenda, Democratic National Committee Chairman Jaime Harrison, said in a statement. As mayor of Miami, Suarez has repeatedly used his position to benefit himself, prioritizing pay raises for himself, accepting lavish gifts, and taking shady payments  all while ignoring the biggest challenges facing the people he was elected to serve.

Polls show Trump is the clear frontrunner for the GOP field. Trump had hoped to clear the field by announcing his candidacy days after last years midterm elections but was instead followed by his former United Nations ambassador Nikki Haley, businessman Vivek Ramaswamy, former Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson, South Carolina Senator Tim Scott, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie and former Vice President Mike Pence.

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The chairwoman of the Michigan Republican Party and others have been ordered to pay a $58,000 fine following an unsuccessful lawsuit that would have had thousands of ballots in the states midterm elections invalidated in November.

The Detroit Free Press reported that Wayne County Circuit Court Judge Timothy Kenny issued an order on Monday ruling that the lawsuit was frivolous and that those who brought the case and defended it should cover costs and attorneys fees for the Detroit clerks office.

The fine was directed to Michigan GOP Chair Kristina Karamo, who lost an election for Michigan secretary of state in November; Daniel Hartman, who reportedly serves as counsel for the state party; and Alexandria Taylor, who is running as a Republican for the states open seat in the U.S. Senate.

Election observers who denied the results of the 2020 election and other plaintiffs also were directed to help pay the fine.

Karamos lawsuit was dismissed right before Election Day in November. The lawsuit would have changed Detroits voting practices to require voters to either cast their ballot in person or obtain an absentee ballot in person.

Kenny noted in dismissing the ruling that many absentee ballots had already been cast before Karamo filed the lawsuit and argued that ruling in her favor would disenfranchise tens of thousands of eligible voters. He slammed the lawsuit for failing to produce any shred of evidence.

Plaintiffs failure to produce any evidence that the procedures for this November 8th election violate state or federal election law demonizes the Detroit City Clerk, her office staff, and the 1,200 volunteers working this election, Kenny ruled at the time. These claims are unjustified, devoid of any evidentiary basis and cannot be allowed to stand.

The state constitution protects voters right to cast their ballots by mail.

Plaintiffs merely threw out the allegation of corruption in Detroit as the reason for disregarding the Michigan Constitution in this states largest city, Kenny reportedly said in the order Monday. A blanket assertion of corruption does not overturn a Michigan Constitutional provision.

The Hill has reached out to Karamo for comment.

Karamo, who refused to concede defeat to incumbent Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson (D), was elected chair of the state Republican Party in February.

Taylor told the Free Press that the ruling is a miscarriage of justice and argued Kenny set the lawsuit up to fail because of limitations placed on arguments.

This is why people dont trust the judicial system, she said.

Hartman declined to comment to the Free Press.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
Milwaukee City Hall is seen Wednesday, June 14, 2023, in Milwaukee. A plan to prevent Milwaukee from going bankrupt, struck between Republican lawmakers, leaders in the heavily Democratic city and Gov. Tony Evers, was up for approval Wednesday in the Wisconsin Legislature. (AP Photo/Morry Gash)

MADISON, Wis. (AP)  The Wisconsin Legislature on Wednesday passed a bipartisan plan to prevent Milwaukee from going bankrupt that also sends more state aid to every community in the state, a long-sought-after funding increase agreed to by Republican lawmakers and Democratic Gov. Tony Evers.

The measure is part of a larger deal struck by Evers and Republican legislative leaders after months of talks that also increases K-12 education funding, including private voucher schools, by more than $1 billion. It was the highest profile deal reached between Evers, in the first year of his second term, and Republicans, who have found little common ground on most issues.

The local government and education funding bills, which passed both the Senate and Assembly with bipartisan support, now head to Evers.

Milwaukee leaders warned of dire consequences and catastrophic budget cuts as the city faces bankruptcy by 2025. Milwaukee is struggling with an underfunded pension system and not enough money to maintain essential police, fire and emergency services.

We cannot let our largest city fail, said Democratic Sen. Mark Spreitzer before the Senate passed it on a bipartisan 21-12 vote. The Assembly passed it later on a bipartisan 68-26 vote.

Evers, speaking Wednesday on WTMJ-AM before the vote, heralded the deal as really, really important both for Milwaukee city and county but also children due to the increase in funding, including more for mental health.

Weve met the issue square on, Evers said. Each side gave up on some things that are important to them. Thats how compromise is made.

Both the Milwaukee proposal and the corresponding school funding bill have their Republican and Democratic detractors, despite the bipartisan deal.

Conservatives deride the Milwaukee bill as a bailout for the state's largest and most Democratic city and say local sales tax increases should need voter approval. The state teachers union doesn't like increasing voucher payments to private schools that are a part of the education funding plan and called on Evers to veto it.

This is no compromise, said Democratic Sen. Lena Taylor, who argued that the deal did not do enough to help Milwaukee. This is grand theft.

Democratic senators also objected to various parts of the bill that werent related to state aid, like a ban on local communities from placing advisory referendums on the ballot and limiting how long local health officials can order businesses closed during a health emergency.

This Frankenstein monster of a bill should be slaughtered, said Democratic Sen. Chris Larson, of Milwaukee.

Republican Sen. Mary Felzkowski said the bill was not perfect, "but lets not let perfect get in the way of very, very good.

The deal resolved the largest sticking point over who could determine whether Milwaukee city and county can raise the local sales tax to pay for pension costs and emergency services. Under the bill, that power rests with the Milwaukee County Board and the Milwaukee Common Council. Some Republicans wanted to require voter approval before taxes could be raised.

The long-sought-after proposal to stave off Milwaukees bankruptcy also sends more money to all of Wisconsins towns, villages, cities and counties.

The roughly $1.6 billion in aid to local governments  known as shared revenue  would be paid for by tapping 20% of the states 5-cent sales tax. Aid would then grow along with sales tax revenue.

Shared revenue to local governments has remained nearly unchanged for almost 30 years and was cut in 2004, 2010 and 2012.

Evers and Republicans have praised the deals as transformational wins for Milwaukee and local governors, as well as the state's schools, while conceding that there are elements they oppose.

Evers, a former state superintendent, has long opposed expanding the state's private school voucher system, which allows public school students to attend private schools for free. Under the deal, payments that private schools receive to accept public school students would increase. That would lower costs to allow private schools to expand the number of non-voucher students they accept.

This is a historic attack on public education, Democratic Rep. Ryan Clancy, of Milwaukee, said of the voucher school funding boost.

Advocates for voucher schools say the additional funding will help slow the closure of cash-strapped voucher schools. More than 40% of private schools that received vouchers have closed since the program began in Milwaukee in 1990. That was the first voucher program in the country. It expanded statewide in Wisconsin in 2013, but there are enrollment caps that would not grow under the deal.

The Senate passed the school funding bill on a bipartisan 24-9 vote, with two Democrats joining all Republicans in support. The Assembly passed it 62-31, with two Democrats joining Republicans in support.
Lucy Castro

A Peoria woman who went missing after being released from police custody has been found by the Goodyear Police Department.

Peoria police arrived at Lucy Castros family home Wednesday to transport her for a mental health evaluation.

She became agitated during the encounter and, according to police documents, swung her right fist toward an officer. Peoria police arrested Castro on suspicion of aggravated assault and transported her to the Phoenix Intake Transfer Release jail early Thursday morning.

Later that day, Castro was released by the Maricopa County Sheriffs Office. Castro did not have her phone or wallet, according to her parents, Ramiro and Catalina Castro. They had not heard from her since.

The Castros filed a missing persons report with both Peoria and Phoenix police. They said that they were concerned for Lucy, who needs intensive mental health treatment.

Ramiro and Catalina Castro wondered why their daughter was not brought to a mental health facility after her release from the custody of the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office. The Castros had submitted an application to have their daughter evaluated for court-ordered treatment. Peoria police had originally arrived at their residence to transport her to a facility where this could be done.

The Peoria Police Department said it notified a Maricopa County detention officer of the order. Peoria police said a detention sergeant confirmed receipt of Lucy Castro's mental health documents. The Maricopa County Sheriffs Office said that when Lucy was released Thursday night, there was no documentation preventing her release.

The Castro family felt that the justice system failed them  and Lucy.

Phoenix suns: Brittney Griner's harassment at Dallas airport detailed in police report

Earlier this month, Ramiro Castro Sr. filed a request to have his daughter evaluated for court-ordered treatment. He was told that police would bring Lucy to a facility, where her condition would be evaluated. If she met the criteria for court-ordered treatment, then she would be transferred to a psychiatric hospital.

According to the Castro family, Lucys mental health history stretches back 10 years. She was diagnosed with bipolar disorder, and her treatment has been sporadic. Her family says she grew distrustful of doctors and would sometimes resist taking medication or going to therapy.

Lucy moved into her parents home in Peoria in August. The family hoped that the change of scenery would help her stabilize. But Lucys condition deteriorated. According to her parents, Lucy grew more paranoid and her delusions took hold.

Lucys brothers worried that their elderly parents werent able to adequately care for her. Ramiro Castro Sr. said they could not convince Lucy to participate in mental health treatment.

"She didn't want help, but we knew she was sick," said Ramiro Castro Sr.

In April, the Castro family filed their first application for a court-ordered evaluation. Lucy was taken by Peoria police to a mental health facility. She was released within 24 hours. By the time the facility notified Lucys parents of her release, she already had called a ride-share service to bring her back to her parents' home in Peoria.

In early June, Ramiro Castro Sr. filed another application. The Castro family believed a court order was the only recourse for getting Lucy treatment.

Gilbert police: fugitive arrested in Tempe following SWAT standoff at Gilbert home

For the past week, Lucys brothers searched the area around the Maricopa County Intake Transfer Release facility, asking if anyone had seen their sister. They retained two private investigators, saying they had stopped relying on police.

On Tuesday, the Goodyear Police Department reached out to the Castro family about a woman matching Lucy Castro's description. According to Goodyear police, Lucy was located after a "check welfare" call was made at a local business.

Lucy Castro has been transported to a mental health facility in Peoria.

"Were just lucky that shes OK. It was through our own efforts that we found her," said Ramiro Castro Jr.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Missing Peoria woman found in Goodyear
A Mississippi police officer who shot an unarmed 11-year-old boy while responding to the childs 911 call has been suspended without pay, a move his attorney says was to save money and not an indicator of blame.

The Indianola Board of Aldermen voted in a closed-door meeting Monday to suspend Sgt. Greg Capers, who wounded Aderrien Murry at his home on May 20, attorney Michael Carr told HuffPost on Wednesday.

The city of Indianola doesnt want to have to keep someone on their payroll who cannot work, Carr said. Its not that theres any new evidence. Theres been no discovery, theres been no finding of guilt by anybody.

Aderrien Murry, 11, suffered a collapsed lung, fractured ribs and a lacerated liver, according to an attorney for his family.

Aderrien Murry, 11, suffered a collapsed lung, fractured ribs and a lacerated liver, according to an attorney for his family.

Board member Marvin Elder confirmed the vote to The Associated Press. Neither Elder nor a city spokesperson responded to HuffPosts requests for comment.

Capers was suspended with pay following the shooting, which left the boy briefly hospitalized with a collapsed lung, lacerated liver and fractured ribs, according to a $5 million lawsuit filed by his family against the officer and the Indianola Police Department.

Aderrien called 911 at his mothers request around 4 a.m. on May 20 after the father of her younger daughter showed up at their home irate, Nakala Murry, Aderriens mother, said at a news conference. Murry said she wanted the police there in case things got out of control.

Murry said the responding officer shot her son in the chest as he entered the living room with his hands in the air, as the officer had instructed.

His words to me were: Why did he shoot me? What did I do? Murry said.

Carr said Capers feels awful about what happened, but maintains his innocence and is ready to get his name cleared.

This is a complete and total freak accident. Its not reckless at all, the lawyer said. There was no intent at all on behalf of Officer Capers to injure or shoot this 11-year-old young man.

Carr noted that Capers was named Policeman of the Year by the city in 2021.

The familys attorney, who has called for Capers termination and criminal charges, criticized that recognition at last months news conference, saying: If hes your best, Indianola, then you can clean house from top to bottom.

The Mississippi Bureau of Investigation is leading the probe into the shooting and has said that it will turn over evidence it collects to the district attorneys office in Sunflower County, where Indianola is located.

Related...
Modesto man gets up to life in prison for attempted break-in, under Three Strikes law

A Modesto man has been sentenced to 35 years to life in prison after being convicted for his third strike.

A jury in April found Daniel John Marchy, 61, guilty of attempted residential burglary of an inhabited dwelling. The trial, prosecuted by Deputy District Attorney Aurora Maddocks, concerned Marchys attempt to enter a former co-workers home in the early hours of Sept. 18, 2020.

According to a press release from the Stanislaus District Attorneys office, the victims home surveillance captured Marchy trying to open a window and door of the home around 2 a.m. He was wearing a shirt with Puma on it, shoes and latex gloves, but no pants. The news release says the video shows him repeatedly touching his genitals.

Defense attorney Jaidee Serrano told The Bee that Marchy was visibly intoxicated, half-dressed with shoes on, talking to himself, and holding himself steady with patio furniture, at the time of the Sept. 18 incident.

Later that day while leaving for work, the victim noticed that items on her porch had been moved. After the 52-year-old victim notified authorities, law enforcement detained Marchy the same day. He still was wearing the shirt that was captured in the home surveillance video.

According to the district attorneys press release, Marchy told an arresting deputy, I think I know what youre talking about before asking to speak to an attorney.

Serrano described Marchys background as riddled with abuse, trauma and severe alcohol dependency. In a statement to The Bee, Serrano said her client was a victim of incest and molestation as a child, which continued into his adulthood. He began drinking at age 12 before becoming an alcoholic at 15.

A week after the trial started, a jury found Marchy guilty of attempted residential burglary. Stanislaus County Superior Court Judge Linda McFadden presided over the trial.

Under Californias Three Strikes law, repeat offenders can be sentenced to 25 years to life upon their third felony or violent conviction. Marchy had been convicted twice before of committing a lewd act with a child. According to Serrano, Marchy was 27 at the time of his first serious conviction, and the second followed a decade later. As felonies, these convictions qualified as strikes against Marchy.

The defense raised a motion to dismiss one or both of Marchys past convictions.

Danny never chose to suffer the way he did, and as an adult with a mind that needs to be numbed because escape isnt possible and therapy cannot heal all the pain, prison is now his only option, Serranos statement reads.

McFadden rejected the defenses motion before announcing Marchys sentence at a hearing June 5. Marchy was ordered to serve 35 years to life in state prison. The attempted burglary conviction incurred 25 years to life, and each prior strike added on five years, which will run consecutively.
Screenshot: Senate Judiciary Committee

January 20 started out like most typical Friday afternoons for Scottsdale, Arizona resident Jennifer DeStefano. The mother of two had just picked up her youngest daughter from dance practice when she received a call from an unknown number. She almost let the number go to voicemail but decided to pick it up on its final ring. DeStefano says what happened over the next few moments will likely haunt her for the rest of her life. She didnt know it yet, but the Arizona resident was about to become a key figure in the rapidly emerging trend of AI deepfake kidnapping scams.



DeStefano recounted her experience in gripping detail during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing Tuesday discussing the real-world impacts of generative artificial intelligence on human rights. She recalls the crying voice on the other end of the call sounding nearly identical to her 15-old-daughter Brie, who was away on a ski trip with her father.

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Mom, I messed up, the voice said between spurts of crying. Mom these bad men have me, help me, help me.

A mans voice suddenly appeared on the call and demanded a ransom of $1 million dollar hand-delivered for Bries safe return. The man threatened DeStefano against calling for help and said he would drug her teen daughter, have his way with her, and murder her if she called law enforcement. Bries younger sister heard all of this over speakerphone. None of that, it turns out was true. Bries voice was actually an AI-generated deepfake. The kidnapper was a scammer looking to make an easy buck.

I will never be able to shake that voice and the desperate cries for help out of my mind, DeStefano said, fighting back tears. Its every parents worst nightmare to hear their child pleading in fear and pain, knowing that they are being harmed and are helpless.

The mothers story points to both troubling new areas of AI abuse and a massive deficiency of laws needed to hold bad actors accountable. When DeStefano did contact police about the deepfake scam, she was shocked to learn law enforcement were already well aware of the emerging issue. Despite the trauma and horror the experience caused, police said it amounted to nothing more than a prank call because no actual crime had been committed and no money ever exchanged hands.

DeStefano, who says she stayed up for nights paralyzed in fear following the incident, quickly discovered others in her community had suffered from similar types of scams. Her own mother, DeStefano testified, said she received a phone call from what sounded like her brothers voice saying he was in an accident and needed money for a hospital bill. DeStefano told lawmakers said she traveled to D.C. this week, in part, because she fears the rise of scams like these threatens the shared idea or reality itself.

No longer can we trust seeing is believing or I heard it with my own ears, DeStefano said. There is no limit to the depth of evil AI can enable.

Experts warn AI is muddling collective truth

A panel of expert witnesses speaking before the Judiciary Committees subcommittee on human rights and law shared DeStefanos concerns and pointed lawmakers towards areas they believe would benefit from new AI legislation. Aleksander Madry, a distinguished computer science professor and director of MIT Center for Deployable Machine Learning, said the recent wave of advances in AI spearheaded by OpenAIs ChatGPT and DALL-E are poised to fundamentally transform our collective sensemaking. Scammers can now create content that is realistic, convincing, personalized, and deployable at scale even if its entirely fake. That creates huge areas of abuse for scams, Madry said, but it also threatens general trust in shared reality itself.

Center For Democracy & Technology CEO Alexandra Reeve Givens shared those concerns and told lawmakers deepfakes like the kind used against DeStefano already present clear and present dangers to upcoming US elections. Twitter users experienced a brief microcosm of that possibility earlier this month when an AI-generated image of a supposed bomb detonating outside of the Pentagon gained traction. Author and Foundation for American Innovation Senior Fellow Geoffrey Cain said his work covering Chinas use of advanced AI systems to surveil its Uyghurs Muslim minority offered a glimpse into the totalitarian dangers posed by these systems on the extreme end. The witnesses collectively agreed said the clock was ticking to enact robust safety standards to prevent the US from following a similar path.

Is this our new normal? DeStefano asked the committee.

Lawmakers can bolster existing laws and incentivize deepfake detection

Speaking during the hearing, Tennessee Senator Marsha Blackburn said DeStefanos story proved the need to expand existing laws governing stalking and harassment to apply to online digital spaces as well. Reeve Givens similarly advised Congress to investigate ways it can bolster existing laws on issues like discrimination and fraud to account for AI algorithms. The Federal Trade Commission, which leads consumer safety enforcement actions against tech companies, recently said its also looking at ways to hold AI fraudsters accountable using existing laws already on the book.

Outside of legal reforms, Reeve Givens and Madry said Congress could and should take steps to incentivize private companies to develop better deepfake detection capabilities. While theres no shortage of companies already offering services claiming to detect AI-generated content, Madry described this as a game of cat and mouse where attackers are always a few steps ahead. AI developers, he said, could play a role in mitigating risk by developing watermarking systems to disclose any time content is generated by its AI models. Law enforcement agencies, Reeve Givens noted, should be well equipped with AI detection capabilities so they have the ability to respond to cases like DeStefanos.

Even after experiencing terrorizing and lasting trauma at the hands of AI tools, DeStefanos expressed optimism over the potential upside of well-governed generative AI models.

What happened to me and my daughter was the tragic side of AI, but theres also hopeful advancements in the way AI can improve life as well, DeStefanos said.



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Tourists pose for photos on Liuxing Street in Yining City, Ili Kazak Autonomous Prefecture, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, May 17, 2023. [Photo/Xinhua]

The U.S. government has doubled down on its efforts to sanction Chinese companies, basing its actions on groundless accusations of China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region and completely ignoring the welfare of the people in the region.

Under the pretext of "human rights abuses," the United States added two more Chinese companies to its sanction list last week. Previously, the list had included multiple Chinese firms.

The U.S. move of economic coercion is aimed at destabilizing Xinjiang by depriving people of all ethnic groups in the region of their rights to work and development, in an attempt to cause unemployment, poverty and social unrest, and even the resurgence of terrorism. It exposes the U.S. attempts to use Xinjiang to contain China's development.

The United States does not genuinely care about human rights at all. Rather, human rights allegations are part of its toolbox to justify interfering in other countries' internal affairs. It has been trying every type of vile method, including fabricating lies such as forced labor to smear Xinjiang and imposing sanctions against local companies, thereby sabotaging the region's hard-won good circumstances.

The Australian Alert Service, a weekly publication of the Australian Citizens Party, published in 2021 an eight-article series, disclosing with details how some Western countries, including the United States, have supported Xinjiang separatist and terrorist activities for geopolitical purposes. For example, the U.S.-based National Endowment for Democracy has funneled millions of dollars since 2004 to so-called "East Turkistan" forces including the so-called "World Uyghur Congress," leading to rapid spread of extremist ideologies in Xinjiang and the inflow of terrorists.

Instead of "protecting human rights," the U.S. sanctions are actually abusing human rights, and such moves are thoroughly hypocritical.

China regards the rights to subsistence and development as the primary and basic human rights, and believes that living a life of contentment is the ultimate human right. People of different ethnic groups in Xinjiang have bid farewell to absolute poverty and are enjoying a moderately prosperous life in all respects.

To see is to believe. Recently, a 34-member delegation of diplomats and officials from the Arab League and its Secretariat visited Xinjiang and they were impressed by the region's development and the lives of local people.

Other delegations to the region in recent years shared the same impressions, in contrast to the negative reports found in Western media and lies of some politicians.

Xinjiang has entered its best period in history with social harmony and stability, and a happy, peaceful life for local people. Over the past 60-plus years, the region's average life expectancy has increased from 30 to 74.7 years. Human rights within the region are well protected and developed. This is the truth of Xinjiang.

If only certain American politicians could visit Xinjiang like their foreign peers, they would become ashamed of their own ignorance and stubbornness. But perhaps they do not want to visit the region, because they do not want their lies to be shattered by the hard facts.

What is certain is that the U.S. sanctions against Xinjiang enterprises will fail to achieve its goal of creating turmoil in the region, while the U.S. attempt to contain China's development is doomed to fall short.
More than 300 bodies found after Kenya cult leader urged followers to starve to death

More than 300 bodies have been retrieved so far from mass graves in southeast Kenyas Shakahola forest after a cult leader was accused of encouraging his followers to starve themselves to gain salvation.

Self-proclaimed pastor Paul Nthenge Mackenzie  the founder of the Good News International Church  is accused of inciting followers to starve to death to meet Jesus.

He was arrested in April and had appeared in court the following month.

Police had begun exhuming bodies two months ago and the process is ongoing. On Tuesday, 19 more bodies were exhumed, taking the death toll related to the starvation cult to 303. This figure is expected to rise as Kenyan officials said they have planned more exhumations.

More than 600 people are reportedly still missing and investigators are now expanding the search area. Earlier last month, Kenyas interior ministry said at least 109 bodies had been retrieved from Shakahola. Most of them were children, local reports said.

The increase in the death toll comes as Mr Mackenzies lawyer George Kariuki said the pastor eats and drinks and was healthy, contrary to rumours that said he refused to eat.

Mr Mackenzie could face possible terrorism charges, Mr Kariuki was quoted as saying by local media.

He also faces other charges, including murder, kidnapping and cruelty towards children.

Mr Mackenzies April arrest had come after police received a tip about the mass graves in the forest in eastern Kenyas Kilifi County, where he lived. Mr Mackenzie was later denied bail.

Self-proclaimed pastor Paul Nthenge Mackenzie (centre), who set up the Good News International Church in 2003, is accused of inciting cult followers to starve to death to meet Jesus (AFP via Getty Images)

Mr Kariuki was quoted as saying by CNN last month that his client was healthy in custody.

He eats and drinks. He is healthy. I have met him personally. There have been rumours that he has refused to eat, and that is not true, he said.

Kenyas president William Ruto described the pastor as a terrible criminal, whose actions were akin to terrorists.

Mr Mackenzie may have committed murder as well as counselled and aided persons to kill themselves by promoting radical beliefs, Kenyas public prosecutions office previously said.

An emaciated member of a Christian cult named as Good News International Church, whose members believed they would go to heaven if they starved themselves to death, is guarded by Kenya police officers and officials from the civil society in Shakahola forest on 23 April (REUTERS)

The case of the starving cult has sent shockwaves across Kenya and other parts of the world. The government vowed to tighten regulations on religious organisations and churches and cults, it was reported.

The Good News International Church reportedly operated in Kenya for two decades before shutting four years ago, according to reports.

Hundreds of Mr Mackenzies sermons are still available online, the BBC had reported last month.
Morro Bay picks new city manager: Im excited to join the community

Morro Bay will soon have a new city manager.

On Tuesday, the Morro Bay City Council voted unanimously to hire Yvonne Kimball for the position.

Im thrilled to have been selected, said Kimball, who is currently the city manager in Jackson, located in the foothills of Amador County, east of Sacramento.. Im humbled to accept the responsibility that has been bestowed upon me.

Kimballs first day on the job is Aug. 14, according to the staff report.

During the past 15 years, Kimball has served as a city manager at three cities located in three different states, according to interim Morro Bay city manager Greg Carpenter.

Throughout her career, Kimball has managed budgets, implemented capital improvement projects and fostered economic development within the community, the staff report said.

Her combination of experience and qualifications were the best fit for Morro Bay, Carpenter said at the meeting.

Kimball will make an annual salary of $217,474, a monthly $600 car allowance, along with enrollment in full health care benefits and a California Public Employees Retirement System pension fund, the staff report said.

She will replace Scott Collins, who resigned from the position in March to serve as executive director of the Housing Authority of the City of San Luis Obispo. Greg Carpenter filled in as the interim city manager during Collins absence.

Morro Bay received 41 applications for city manager, with six applicants progressing to an interview with the City Council, the staff report said.

The city hired Mosaic Public, a public employee executive search firm, to assist with the recruitment process, according to the report.

Two candidates, including Kimball, were then selected for a series of panel interviews with community members, local city managers and the citys executive team, the staff report said.

Based on community feedback, the City Council then selected Kimball as the next city manager.

At the Tuesday meeting, Kimball thanked the City Council, city staff and citizens for a warm welcome to Morro Bay.

Im excited to join the community, she said.

Kimball also thanked her family for their support throughout her career, with her husband and one of three sons in the audience at the meeting.

I am very grateful to my family, they are my foundation, Kimball said.

The City Council presented Kimball with flowers, and councilmembers expressed their support for the new hire.

Im just really excited to welcome Ms. Kimball to our city, Councilmember Jen Ford said.
Mother and daughter arrested after 28-year-old enrolled at high school posing as teenager

Officials at Hahnville High School became suspicious and notified authorities after a 28-year-old woman attempted to enroll (Google Street View)

A 28-year-old woman and her mother have been arrested after she posed as a 17-year-old to enroll in a Louisiana high school, according to authorities.

Martha Gutierrez-Serrano is accused of using a fraudulent passport and birth certificate to enroll in Hahnville High School in Boutte, 30 miles west of New Orleans, for the 2022-23 school year.

Officials from the St Charles Parish Public Schools district received a tip that a female student, who claimed to be 17 years old, was an adult in her mid-20s, the St Charles Parish Sheriffs Office said in a statement.

They launched an internal investigation and notified the sheriffs office that they suspected Ms Gutierrez-Serrano of lying about her age.

Detectives obtained a search warrant for the home Ms Gutierrez-Serrano shared with her 46-year-old mother Marta Serrano-Alvarado on South Kinler St, Boutte.

They found a fake passport and birth certificate belonging to the younger woman, the sheriffs office said.

Detectives learned that Ms Serrano-Alvarado had used the false documents to enroll her daughter at Hahnville High, the sheriffs office said.

Both women have been charged with one count of injuring public records, which covers the falsification of public records.

If found guilty, they could face up to five years in prison and substantial fines.

Its not known how long Ms Gutierrez-Serrano attended the school.

In March, 29-year-old New Jersey woman Hyejeong Shin allegedly used false papers to enroll in high school as a 16-year-old.

Ms Shins attorney said she had been trying to recreate her teenage years and entered a not guilty plea to a charge of providing a false government document.
This image released by Disney/Pixar Studios shows Ember, voiced by Leah Lewis, in a scene from the animated film "Elemental." (Disney/Pixar via AP)

Pixars Elemental conjures a diverse metropolis where the elements  fire, water, earth and air  live like ethnicities mostly ghettoized from one other. For fire and water, especially, mingling can be combustible. A bad splash could consume fire; a strong flame could evaporate water. This is the rare kids movie where subway rides are actually more fraught with danger than in the real world.

Elemental is the 27th Pixar feature and the second from longtime studio veteran Peter Sohn (The Good Dinosaur). But in many ways, it feels like a spiritual sequel to the Disney Animation release Zootopia, a likewise gleaming urban tower of anthropomorphized racial metaphors with occasional interactions with municipal bureaucracy.

In Elemental, Ember Lumen (voiced by Leah Lewis) is the daughter of immigrants from Fireland: Ernie (Ronnie Del Carmen) and Cinder (Shila Omni), both of whom were handed English names while passing through an Ellis Island-like customs entry.

Like countless real-life immigrants before them, Ernie and Cinder have scraped together a thriving life and business, a bodega of literally hot foods that Ember is expected to inherit. Her temper is a problem. Ember, a red-haired flame capable of going full purple, can resemble Lewis Black's Anger of Inside Out. But her more pressing issue is a basement leak out of which flows Wade Ripple (Mamoudou Athie), a water person and building inspector who immediately spots a few dozen code violations that would shut the place down.

Elemental may not be anywhere near top-tier Pixar, but, with water and fire hazards everywhere, it's certainly an insurance mans dream.

So where does it slide into the Pixar canon? Probably in the lower half. But Elemental  sincere and clever, with a splash of dazzle  comes closer to rekindling some of the old Pixar magic than some recent entries.

Yet the marriage of elemental high concept with a classical immigrant tale never quite achieves alchemy. Aside from a beautiful elevated subway that splashes water below whenever a train glides through, Element City doesn't come across a fully fleshed-out world. Despite basing the movie in the building blocks of life, theres little feel for the natural world.

Opening on the heels of raging wildfires, Elemental manages to be a movie about fire and water without even a passing reference to todays climate realities. Missed opportunities abound. Earth and air are relegated to bit players. Not a soul sings The Eternal Flame. Earth Wind and Fire go cameo-less.

But if the comic potential of Elemental goes untapped, its central story is more convincing and tenderly drawn. Ember, who travels the city with a stylish cloak to keep from igniting things in her path, is one of Pixars strongest protagonists. The sacrifice and burden of being a first-generation immigrant daughter is movingly rendered in her.

Elementals strongest scenes are with Ember and her father as they navigate a familiar crossroads. As responsible as Ember feels to her family, shes pulled in another direction. Her real talent is glassmaking, which she can exquisitely do in a moment, with a few quick puffs. She'd be a runaway champ on Blown Away."

Ember, I think, would have been enough to build a movie around. But thats not Elemental, my dear. Instead, Sohns film, scripted by John Hoberg, Kat Likkel and Brenda Hsueh, is too much given over to a West Side Story-esque romance between her and Wade as they rush around an Element City that, like Chinatown, has a water problem.

As they hurry to plug a mysterious leak, Wade is soon carrying a torch for Ember. The puns fly. Youre so hot," he says. Excuse me? she replies. No, he strutters. Like smoking.

It's a seemingly impossible love story; they fear even touching each other. And they come from much different worlds. Wade, who sort of resembles a watery Colin Jost, lives with his family in a doorman building. But as a match for Ember, he's a bit of a drip. He gushes tears at the mere mention of butterflies and speaks wide-eyed about embracing the light. Elemental begins to push against a here-to-unknown threshold: There may be only so far you can take a romance when your leading man is a translucent blob named Wade.

An extra word, though, on the short that precedes Elemental." Carl's Date" picks back up with Carl Fredricksen and the squirrel-chasing Doug. Here, Carl nervously prepares for his first date since the death of his beloved Ellie. Doug's advice: Bring a toy. It's both a fitting companion to Elemental (the boy from Up, Russell, was loosely inspired by Sohn) and poignant swan song for Ed Asner, who recorded his dialogue prior to his death in 2021.

"Elemental, a Walt Disney Co. release, is rated PG by the Motion Picture Association for Rated PG for some peril, thematic elements and brief language. Running time: 103 minutes. Two and a half stars out of four.

___

Follow AP Film Writer Jake Coyle on Twitter at: http://twitter.com/jakecoyleAP
How much does Nampa pay city employees? Search our 2023 salary database

The city of Nampa has 728 employees among the Mayors Office, Parks and Recreation and all the departments in between.

The highest-paid employee is Nampa Police Chief Joe Huff, who was hired in 1993 and makes $168,000 annually. The Deputy Police Chief, Curtis Shankel, hired in 1998, makes $155,000 annually. Shankel is the second-highest-paid employee at the city.

Nampa Mayor Debbie Kling makes a little over $100,000 annually. Nampa City Council Members are part-time employees and make nearly $11,000 annually.

The lowest-paid employees are Nampa Recreation Center assistants, who make $14 an hour, and Nampa Recreation customer service representatives, who make $14.24 an hour.

The average salary of all employees is $51,724 annually.

Below is a searchable database showing the salaries of all city employees as of May 2023. Some searches will contain multiple pages of results.

The Idaho Statesman obtained this data through a public records request. Heres how and why we did it:

How much does Meridian pay city employees? Search our 2023 salary database

How much does Caldwell pay city employees? Search our 2023 salary database
Mummified heads of Maori ancestors returned to New Zealand from Germany

Germany has returned six mummified Maori heads to New Zealand, together with the remains of almost 100 Maori and Moriori ancestors.

The New Zealand Museum Te Papa Tongarewa, which works to preserve the countrys heritage and cultures, held a private repatriation ceremony on Wednesday to mark the return of the remains from seven different German museums.

The relics are a dark reminder of how the body parts of indigenous people were swapped and sold in a grisly, exploitative trade, not just in Germany, but around the world.

Hinemoana Baker and Te Papa's Te Arikirangi Mamaku-Ironside prepare to cover the ancestral remains. - German institute/Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa

In Maori culture, the head was considered the most important part of the body. The face was marked with tattoos to designate identity and status, according to the Smithsonian magazine.

New Zealand enacted a government program called Karanga Aotearoa in 1990 to retrieve and repatriate the remains of its indigenous people, the countrys Maori, and the Moriori who inhabit the Chatham Islands.

Back in 2016, the Smithsonian Institution returned the remains of 54 indigenous people, including four mummified Maori heads, to Te Papa. Other institutions that have repatriated relics via the museum include Londons Natural History Museum and the Natural History Museum in Vienna.

The latest repatriation involved the skeletal remains of 95 ancestors of both peoples, together with six mummified tattooed Maori heads. They were returned by seven German institutions: the Grassi Museum in Leipzig; Reiss Engelhorn Museums in Mannheim; Linden Museum in Stuttgart; the Stuttgart State Museum of Natural History; Georg August University in Gottingen; Roemer und Pelizaeus Museum in Hildesheim and Museum Wiesbaden.

Te Papa Tongarewa oversees the repatriation on behalf of New Zealands government. The single goal of repatriation is not to hold the remains at Te Papa indefinitely but to return them to their communities, the museum says on its website.

A team carry 20 mummified Maori heads, repatriated from France, during a ceremony at Te Papa on January 27, 2012. - Marty Melville/AFP/Getty Images

Maori and Moriori believe this return to their homelands will restore dignity to both the dead people and their living descendants.

The mummified headsoften of chiefs or warriorswere part of a Maori tradition to preserve loved ones or reviled enemies, according to Te Papa.

When Western explorers arrived, they became increasingly curious about the mummified heads, according to the museum.

Wednesdays ceremony followed a series of formal handover events in Germany throughout May and June.

The move by Germany offers pathways to meaningful reconciliation and healing, according to Arapata Hakiwai, Te Papas Maori co-leader.

Te Herekiekie Haerehuka Herewini, Te Papas head of repatriation, said: Our colleagues from these German institutions have shown significant respect and understanding towards Aotearoa New Zealand, Maori and Moriori, and demonstrated a strong sense of doing the right thing.

Three of the heads, known as toi moko, were repatriated from the Reiss-Engelhorn Museums.

In a statement sent to CNN, the museums said the heads were of three adult men. Explaining the history behind them, they added: Captain James Cook landed in New Zealand in 1769. In the following years, interest in the tattooed mummy heads of the Maori grew in Europe, which were partly stolen or captured during violent conflicts.

The toi moko became sought-after trade goods in the 18th and 19th centuries. Two of the heads kept in the Reiss-Engelhorn Museums probably arrived in Mannheim via this route and various stations.

Research suggests that the third head is the remains of a tribal leader who traveled to Europe and died here. His head was therefore not mummified in the traditional way, but probably by a taxidermist in Europe.

Among those to attend the private ceremony at the museum in Wellington was New Zealands Ambassador to Germany, Craig Hawke, who also attended the handover ceremonies in Germany.

Ahead of the event, he tweeted: The ancestral remains will be received at @Te_Papa next Wednesday. On their journey back home to #Aotearoa to find their final resting places, we bid them farewell: Kia hora te marino, kia whakapapa pounamu te moana, kia tere te karohirohi i mua i to huarahi. #repatriation

English translation: May peace be widespread, may the sea glisten like greenstone, and may the shimmer of light guide you on your way. #arohanui.

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A jury on Tuesday convicted a man for a drive-by shooting last year that killed a Sacramento resident who was targeted as he stood on the front porch of his East Del Paso Heights home.

Devonte Lee White, 30, was found guilty of first-degree murder in the shooting of 30-year-old Matthew Salas-Keen, the Sacramento County District District Attorneys Office announced Wednesday in a news release. White also was convicted of being a felon in possession of a firearm, along with an enhancement to the murder charge for firing a gun from a vehicle and causing death.

Prosecutors said the deadly shooting stemmed from a confrontation two weeks before the homicide when White got into an argument with a group of people the victim was with at the time.

The confrontation occurred at a market near Salas-Keens home. Prosecutors said White left the market and returned with a gun that he brandished while confronting Salas-Keen. The fatal shooting occurred two weeks later, on Jan. 25, 2022, in the 3700 block of Dayton Street, just south of Grand Avenue.

That night, security camera video showed a vehicle passing Salas-Keen, who was on his front porch. The vehicle made a U-turn and passed Salas-Keens home a second time before backing up.

Prosecutors said the vehicles driver then shot Salas-Keen at point-blank range. The victim was shot at eight times; three of the bullets struck him.

About 2:15 a.m., Sacramento police officers were called to Dayton Street for the reported shooting. The officers arrived at the scene and found Salas-Keen wounded by gunfire. He was taken to a hospital, where he later died from his injuries, police said.

Investigators found a stolen handgun at Whites apartment, and the District Attorneys Crime Lab matched the firearm to expended shell casings found at the scene and in the vehicle used in the drive-by shooting, prosecutors said.

Traces of Whites DNA were found on the gun used to kill Salas-Keen, according to the District Attorneys Office.

White was arrested Feb. 24, 2022, on suspicion of homicide in Salas-Keens death. He had already been in jail custody since Feb. 2, 2022, on a charge of being a felon in possession of a weapon.

On Wednesday, White remained in custody at the Sacramento County Jail. He will remain at the jail until Sept. 8, when he is scheduled to return to Sacramento Superior Court for his sentencing hearing. Prosecutors said White faces a maximum sentence of life in prison without the chance for parole.
(Bloomberg) -- The sudden prospect of an auction for the Telegraph newspaper and Spectator magazine  two of Britains most influential conservative titles  has sparked interest throughout the countrys media and financial elite.

Most Read from Bloomberg

Earlier this month, a unit of Lloyds Banking Group Plc appointed receivers to seize the holding company for both publications and removed the Barclay familys directors, after talks over long-running debts faltered. Brothers Frederick and David Barclay bought the Telegraph and the Spectator magazine together in 2004, in a deal worth $1.3 billion at the time. David Barclay died two years ago.

Both titles are famous institutions intertwined with the upper echelons of the ruling Conservative Party. The Spectator is the worlds oldest weekly magazine still in print, founded 195 years ago, while the Daily Telegraph dates back to 1855 and claims the scoop for the outbreak of World War II.

Media mogul and News Corp. Chairman Rupert Murdoch has coveted the Spectator for decades, and bid as recently as two years ago at a value of around 50 million ($63 million), according to two people familiar with the matter. Murdoch is in London next week for senior management meetings at News UK, according to people familiar with his schedule.

It would be trickier for Murdoch to acquire the much larger Telegraph Media Group Ltd., which overlaps in the premium segment of the conservative press with his British papers  the Times and Sunday Times, which he owns along with the Sun tabloid. Any deal would almost certainly face fierce political opposition and an in-depth antitrust challenge.

Enders Analysis values the Telegraph at 452 million to 586 million, according to a June 9 note to clients. Although circulation and advertising sales have dropped sharply, the influential titles could command a trophy premium, Enders added. Its unclear whether the paper and magazine would be auctioned together or separately.

Boris and Brexit

Another potential suitor for the Spectator is the co-founder of hedge fund Marshall Wace LLP, Paul Marshall, who has told associates of an interest in acquiring the Spectator magazine, according to people familiar with the discussions.

A strong advocate of Brexit, Marshall has written polemics in the Telegraph and has funded the opinion commentary website UnHerd, which at the end of last year moved into new offices on the same Westminster street as the Spectator. Hes also backed right-wing TV startup GB News, whose initial founding chair was Spectator Chairman Andrew Neil.

A spokesperson for Marshall said that while he doesnt entirely rule out interest in either title, given his private investments in the UK media, it is too early to say anything meaningful and he is merely watching the situation from afar along with everybody else.

Former Telegraph editor and Murdoch executive Will Lewis, now a media entrepreneur and co-founder of the News Movement, has sounded out potential investors for his former newspaper, although discussions are at a preliminary stage, according to people familiar with the talks.

Earlier this month, Lewis was awarded a knighthood by Boris Johnson, the former prime minister who dramatically announced his resignation from Parliament last week and was Lewis former star columnist at the Telegraph.

A representative for Lewis declined to comment.

Johnsons role is itself the subject of speculation, given a close, career-long association with media titles owned by the Barclay family. Johnson edited the Spectator from 1999 to 2005 and subsequently enjoyed a 275,000-a-year commentator role at the Telegraph.

One former government minister said there was a good chance interest in the titles would come from the names on the Conservative party donor list.

Media Players

A strong contender for the Telegraph newspaper is seen as publisher Daily Mail & General Trust Plc, which was taken private by proprietor and Chairman Jonathan Harmsworth, known as Lord Rothermere. It bid in 2004 and has explored approaches in recent years, according to people familiar with the matter. The Telegraph outsourced its print advertising to the Daily Mail group in 2021.

In 2004 DMGT went up against conservative-leaning German publishing giant Axel Springer, before the Barclay family ultimately won out. Springer has continued to be acquisitive and spent at least $1 billion to buy Politico in 2021. The 2004 auction for the Telegraph also saw the Barclays beat venture capital business 3i and news executive David Montgomery, who now runs the acquisitive but small National World Plc.

Evgeny Lebedev, who owns the Evening Standard and Independent, informally looked at the Telegraph in more recent years but it never got to the stage of serious negotiations, according to two people.

Other possible interest could come from Middle Eastern or sovereign wealth: In 2020 a Qatari businessman bought the Ritz from the Barclays, while a Saudi investor bought 30% in Lebedevs Independent and Evening Standard.

Belgian media group Mediahuis, which bought the Irish Independent in 2019, signaled interest in buying the Telegraph in 2019, the Financial Times reported, a move which would bring the papers back under former CEO Murdoch MacLennan, now chairman of Mediahuis  though earlier this year the companys Irish boss expressed skepticism about the longevity of print news.

Private equity buyers could also weigh in, but the typical playbook for a buyout, cost cuts, and sale may be limited, according to Enders Analysis.

The Telegraph does not have much fat to trim, said analysts Alice Enders and Abi Watson. It has no property assets to sell off; its print operations are outsourced; its print and digital advertising sales functions are outsourced; and the level of staff seems about right.

The media assets receivers AlixPartners declined to comment beyond statements made last week.

News UK declined to comment. A representative for the Barclay family declined to comment.

Representatives for DMGT and Lebedev didnt respond to requests for comment.

(Adds comment on private equity in fourth paragraph from the end. A previous version corrected Will Lewis honor: he was given a knighthood, not a peerage.)

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Nashville and the state of Tennessee are engaged in legal battle to determine the limits of Nashville's ability to govern itself.

In three pending lawsuits, the city claims state legislators overstepped their authority by passing laws that change Metro Nashville's charter without allowing Davidson County voters the opportunity to approve or disapprove the changes.

The tension between Nashville's local governance and state preemption has grown over the last decade. State lawmakers say they have the authority to govern cities as "creatures of the state," drawing upon a concept from an Iowa Supreme Court case from the 1860s known as Dillon's Rule. Metro attorneys say the laws violate the rights granted to Davidson County voters through the Tennessee Constitution's "home rule" amendments.

But what is home rule, and where does it apply? Here's what to know.

What is 'home rule?'

Tennessee added "home rule" amendments to the state constitution in 1953, giving cities who adopt "home rule" the ability to pass and change their own charter through local referendum elections without approval from the Tennessee General Assembly.

The home rule amendments insulate local authority from state overreach, specifying that the General Assembly cannot pass an act that impacts only a particular county or city in its governmental capacity unless the act requires local approval  either by voters in an election or by a two-thirds vote of the local legislative body.

The home rule amendment also bars state legislators from interfering with local officeholders.

In recent years, questions of city versus state authority and the scope of home rule's protection have increasingly been tested in the court system.

Which Tennessee cities have adopted home rule?

Cities can adopt home rule charters through local voter referendum. Metropolitan governments aren't technically home rule entities, but are granted "wide powers" by the state legislature that closely resemble those given to "home rule" cities, according to the University of Tennessee's Municipal Technical Advisory Service for local governments.

Fourteen cities in Tennessee have adopted home rule charters:

Chattanooga

Clinton

East Ridge

Etowah

Johnson City

Knoxville

Lenoir City

Memphis

Mt. Juliet

Oak Ridge

Red Bank

Sevierville

Sweetwater

Whitwell

Tennessee has three consolidated metropolitan governments:

Nashville/Davidson County

Lynchburg/Moore County

Hartsville/Trousdale County

Tennessee vs. Nashville: What leverage does each side have in legislative battle?

Metro Nashville lawsuits claiming home rule violations

Metro Nashville has filed three lawsuits against the state this year, each claiming that a recently passed law infringes on home rule protections by circumventing the will of local voters and specifically targeting Nashville/Davidson County. All remain pending in Davidson County Chancery Court.

 Metro Nashville on Monday filed a lawsuit claiming a new law giving the state the power to appoint the majority of the city's airport authority board violates the state constitution's home rule and equal protection clauses.

 In May, Metro sued the state seeking to strike down a law that lowers the approval threshold needed for Nashville's council to approve renovations at the Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway.

Davidson County voters added a provision to Nashville's charter via referendum in 2011, requiring a 27-vote supermajority of the council to approve any demolition on the fairgrounds premises. The new statute reduces the threshold to 21 votes, so long as any "improvements" are used for "substantially the same use" of their predecessors.

 Nashville sued the state in March over a law that slashes Metro Council in half, limiting city and metropolitan councils to no more than 20 members. Metro Nashville's council is the only council in the state large enough to be impacted by the statute.

A panel of judges chosen by the Tennessee Supreme Court granted an injunction temporarily halting the law's implementation in April, allowing Nashville's Aug. 3 elections to move forward with 40 council seats on the ballot.

 Nashville previously engaged in a court battle with the state over school vouchers, claiming the Gov. Bill Lee's education savings account program was unconstitutional under the Home Rule Amendment. While Nashville and Memphis prevailed in trial and at the appeals courts, the state Supreme Court ultimately determined that act was not unconstitutional because the court didn't consider the school systems in each city to be governmental entities.

 Meanwhile, Metro Nashville has not challenged a new law eliminating police watchdog panels with investigative powers  also called community oversight boards." The law applies to local governments throughout the state, immediately impacting boards in Nashville and Memphis. New requirements allow local governments to create oversight committees, but with more limited investigative power.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: How 'home rule' plays a role in Nashville's legal fight against state
Ukrainian president, IAEA chief discuss security risks to Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant

Xinhua) 09:23, June 14, 2023

KIEV, June 13 (Xinhua) -- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Tuesday met with visiting International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director-General Rafael Grossi to discuss security risks to the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant (ZNPP), the presidential press service reported.

At the talks, Zelensky said that the security risks to the plant have significantly increased due to the Kakhovka hydroelectric power plant dam destruction.

Zelensky welcomed the presence of the IAEA's inspectors at the ZNPP and Grossi's intention to personally visit the plant to assess the situation on the ground.

Zelensky and Grossi also discussed specific steps aimed at reducing the risks and preventing incidents at the ZNPP.

The Ukrainian president supported Grossi's proposal to send IAEA experts to Ukraine to assess the consequences of the Kakhovka incident, saying that Ukraine would provide them with all needed assistance.

Grossi tweeted that after the conversation with Zelensky, he will travel to the ZNPP to assess the situation after the Kakhovka dam flooding.

The Kakhovka hydroelectric power plant dam was destroyed on June 6, with Ukraine and Russia trading accusations over the attack on it.

The ZNPP, which has been controlled by Russian forces since March 2022, is located some 140 km northeast of the Kakhovka plant.

(Web editor: Zhong Wenxing, Liang Jun)
This aerial photo taken on June 5, 2023 shows the construction site of Phnom Penh-Bavet Expressway, the kingdom's second Chinese-invested expressway, in Kandal province, Cambodia. [Photo/Xinhua]



Since joining China's Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), Cambodia has witnessed vital advancements in its infrastructure development and investment capacities to spur long-term progression. Dozens of factories now stand accommodated under Cambodia's largest industrial zone, while thousands of BRI-supported jobs further economic mobility and tangible benefits for swathes of populations. The initiative also forms an important component of Cambodia's long-term aspirations to emerge as an upper-middle-income country by 2030 and as a high-income country in 2050, underscoring a common vision.



The latest example of win-win BRI progress was the groundbreaking for the Phnom Penh-Bavet Expressway, a key connectivity project that links the Cambodian capital with the Bavet town border with Vietnam. As the second China-funded expressway in the kingdom, it underlines the importance of mutually beneficial BRI cooperation in supporting Cambodia's domestic infrastructure capacity needs.

From the Phnom Penh-Sihanoukville Expressway to the Siem Reap-Angkor International Airport, smooth BRI cooperation has a rich history of success in the kingdom. Mega projects have played a substantive role in furthering Cambodia's push toward high-quality development and connectivity ambitions, evidenced by thousands of kilometers of developed roads and bridges.

Under the BRI framework, China's support for Cambodia's infrastructure financing also remains ironclad. Beijing continues to allow substantial flexibility as opposed to any stringent international lending conditions. Such a sense of facilitation continues to contribute to the wider development vision of the kingdom, including through active BRI contributions to the Asian Highway Network project. "Cambodia is one of the countries that have benefited from China's Belt and Road Initiative," said Prime Minister Samdech Techo Hun Sen at the recent groundbreaking. "Through the BRI, Cambodia has received a great amount of grant aid, concessional loans, and investments from China for infrastructure development."

As a massive regional upside, key BRI projects also closely align with ASEAN's modernization drive, giving more strategic weight to international road networks connecting Cambodia. After all, BRI investment struck $30 billion since 2013 in the region, illustrating the importance of developing sprawling transportation links around Cambodia.

It is a fact that the two China-invested expressways stand to deepen Phnom Penh's trade and integration stakes in the lucrative "Indochina Peninsula" region. It is seen as a major point of convergence between China and ASEAN on future economic growth. Cambodia's involvement in that vision strengthens the case for future BRI traction in the kingdom. Scaled-up trade and economic mobility benefits have already delivered a lasting impact on the development of other ASEAN states in Cambodia's neighborhood, strengthening future prospects. As Prime Minister Hun Sen indicated recently, the BRI serves the interests of peace and development, doesn't threaten any other nation, and is well-aligned with ASEAN's centrality.

Without a doubt, the BRI has made enormous contributions to broadening the ambit of two-way trade between China and Cambodia as well. For 11 years straight, China has served as Cambodia's largest trading partner, with bilateral trade value hitting a record-setting $16.02 billion sum last year. More importantly, Phnom Penh's staunch advocacy for accelerated BRI progress has struck a common chord with China. Both partners feel empowered to prioritize speedy BRI implementation and untapped trade progress in tandem. A case in point is the top-level exchange between the leaders of the two countries early last year and the announcement of a host of new BRI connectivity projects around Cambodia at the 2022 ASEAN Summit.

As a result, win-win BRI cooperation makes a pivotal contribution to China and Cambodia's shared vision of sprawling transportation networks in the heart of Southeast Asia. Beijing's generous support for the kingdom's infrastructure development needs and capacities opens up new connectivity possibilities, especially by leveraging its unique strategic location in the heart of a high-growth region.

Hannan R. Hussain is a foreign affairs commentator, author and recipient of the Fulbright Award.

Opinion articles reflect the views of their authors, not necessarily those of China.org.cn.

If you would like to contribute, please contact us at opinion@china.org.cn.
WASHINGTON  Ukraine can expect new security guarantees from NATO nations at the military alliance's upcoming summit, but it should not count on receiving a formal invitation for membership during the gathering in Lithuania.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has been pushing NATO member nations to commit to accepting Ukraine into the alliance when the war is over to help deter future Russian attacks on the country. He said in an interview this month that he sees "no point" in attending the Vilnius summit without "a signal" or acknowledgement that Ukraine will be admitted.

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg, in an interview with USA TODAY on Monday evening during a trip to Washington, stressed that Ukraine will eventually be invited to become a member.

"I think there is no expectations that that will happen in Vilnius," Stoltenberg said. "But what we know is that we need to address Ukraine's request for membership and the way forward. There are consultations going on between NATO allies, and these consultations [are not] at a conclusion yet."

The decision of when to invite Ukraine to join NATO will be made by consensus among the alliance's 31 members.

President Joe Biden meets with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg in the Oval Office of the White House, Tuesday, June 13, 2023, in Washington.

The White House declined to take a position on timing in advance of a Tuesday meeting between Biden and Stoltenberg. White House national security coordinator for strategic communications John Kirby said the Biden administration is having "active conversations" with Ukraine about it's long-term defense needs ahead of the summit.

Stoltenberg told USA TODAY that the most urgent task is for Ukraine, which is engaged in a counteroffensive, to prevail in the war as a sovereign nation. "Because unless they do that, there's no membership issue to discuss at all."

"At the NATO summit, NATO allies will express strong support to Ukraine, not only words, but also in deeds," Stoltenberg said. "I expect new decisions on concrete support."

The NATO chief said the alliance is working on a multi-year package that is likely to be agreed upon at the summit. The support package will help Ukraine meet the organization's standards for membership, he said.

Stoltenberg urged Zelenskyy to attend the meeting, saying it it will be important for NATO and Ukraine to "demonstrate unity" in Vilnius and for the leader to be present when new decisions are made on how to best support Kyiv.

"I think it's extremely important for President Zelenskyy and for Ukraine to see that we are actually stepping up and committing to long-term military support to Ukraine," Stoltenberg said.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: NATO chief: Support, not membership, expected for Ukraine at summit
Joe Biden

Read also: Ukraines NATO membership is key to lasting peace, Latvian PM says

Many allies, including those bordering Russia, are keen to demonstrate their support for Ukraines NATO membership ahead of Julys NATO Summit in Vilnius.

Biden administration officials say some countries want to set a timeline and specific goal for true membership but only after the war stops raging. All options for Ukraines NATO membership involve significant cost.

Only Germany fully supports Biden.

Biden is cautious about this issue because he does not want to involve NATO in a direct conflict with Russia. He will avoid any actions that could lead to a split in NATO or lead to World War III, writes The New York Times.

Read also: US Congress resolution urges Biden to provide ATACMS missiles to Ukraine

Several high-ranking American officials, including Secretary of State Antony Blinken, have taken the position that the Biden administration should provide a more concrete path for Ukraines NATO membership, even if a date is not set, the newspaper said.

Read also: Ukraine ready to join NATO and waiting for invitation, says Zelenskyy

Polish President Andrzej Duda called for Ukraine to join NATO. At the same time, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and French President Emmanuel Macron are in favor of discussing security guarantees.

The newly elected Latvian President, Edgars Rinkevichs, said that the main obstacle on Ukraines path to NATO is not Hungary or Russias unspoken veto but rather the internal discussion of the Allicance.

Read also: U.S. senator blocks arms sale to Hungary for stalling Swedens NATO bid  Washington Post

Five weeks before the summit, Ukraines Western allies have not yet reached a unified position regarding the security guarantees Ukraine seeks, reported Politico on June 8.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that he does not see the point of participating in the NATO Summit in Vilnius if Ukraine does not receive a clear signal about its membership.

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Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
NATO-Ukraine Council with no membership prospects is like tank with no gun  Kuleba to Baerbock

Dmytro Kuleba, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, has had a conversation with Annalena Baerbock, his German counterpart, and discussed the preparation for the NATO Summit in Vilnius.

Source: European Pravda

Details: Kuleba wrote on Twitter that he thanked Baerbock for the support and discussed the topic of the NATO Summit in Vilnius.

Quote: "Ukraine's position is clear: creating the NATO-Ukraine Council without taking a strong step toward membership is like providing a tank without a gun. NATO needs Ukraine as an Ally, not just a privileged partner," Kuleba stressed.

In our call, I thanked @ABaerbock for support. We talked Vilnius. Ukraine's position is clear: creating the NATO-Ukraine Council without taking a strong step toward membership is like providing a tank without a gun. NATO needs Ukraine as an Ally, not just a privileged partner.  Dmytro Kuleba (@DmytroKuleba) June 14, 2023

Background: Earlier, Jens Stoltenberg, the Secretary General of NATO, explained that the possible creation of the Ukraine-NATO Council would mean a considerable strengthening of partnership between NATO and Kyiv, and this would be the body capable of making joint decisions.

He added that the consultations concerning the model of Ukraines movement towards NATO are ongoing.

Journalists fight on their own frontline. Support Ukrainska Pravda or become our patron!






What are Nazi flags doing outside Disney and what happens when hate is left to flourish?

Picture Disney World: adults embracing their inner child, kids beaming in Mickey Mouse hats, babies asleep in their strollers.

So why were about 15 people waving Nazi flags outside the theme park over the weekend, along with flags supporting Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis?

Disney has recently tried to be a beacon of inclusivity  perhaps making it an easy target. DeSantis has also fought publicly with the corporation. But jumping from displeasure to outright hatred and flaunting Nazi paraphernalia are very different messages.

"We are aware of these groups that aim to agitate and incite people with antisemitic symbols and slurs. They are also aware of the law," the Orange County Sheriffs Office said in a statement. "The Orange County Sheriffs Office deplores hate speech in any form, but people have the First Amendment right to demonstrate." Neither Disney nor DeSantis responded to USA TODAY requests for comment.

For a politician, that silence can speak volumes. Because when leaders don't discourage fringe views, they flourish. Experts say not condemning hate only fuels its fire.

"There is nothing subtle about the swastika," says Alvin H. Rosenfeld, director of the Institute for the Study of Contemporary Antisemitism at Indiana University  Bloomington. "No symbol is more potent in its expression of hatred and the will to dominate. Anyone who displays it knows as much."

Why were about 15 people waving Nazi flags outside Disney World over the weekend?

The scene at Disney wasn't even the only hateful incident in Florida over the weekend. And while DeSantis has addressed antisemitism previously, taking stands against it, he has not said anything now.

Its heartbreaking yet not shocking that we have to witness this yet again in the state of Florida," Jonathan A. Greenblatt, CEO and National Director of ADL (the Anti-Defamation League), said in a statement. The ADL counted 269 antisemitic incidents of harassment, vandalism and assault in Florida alone  an increase from 190 in 2021.

"Good people must not stand idly by while Nazis and other hate groups spew out violent ideology," Rabbi Rick Jacobs, President of the Union for Reform Judaism, added in a statement.

The importance of speaking out against hate

The U.S. has long debated the extent of the first amendment. One struggle has been that what some might call "free speech" is actually "hate speech."

"Determining where to draw the line between allowing free speech and prohibiting hate speech can be very challenging," says Brad Fulton, associate professor of management and social policy at Indiana University  Bloomington. "Less challenging, however, is for political leaders to condemn particular speech. By not responding, Gov. DeSantis is giving tacit consent to this activity and he is emboldening the activists."

The incident outside of Disney this weekend bore some similarities to when former President Donald Trump failed to decry QAnon conspiracy theories, despite the groups ties to real-world violence.

Speaking out against hate can "expose its underlying impotence and defuse volatile situations," Fulton adds. Imagine if more world leaders had actively condemned the Nazi party early on in Europe, for example.

Frequently, though, politics and pragmatism cloud judgment.

"Often, politicians exploit a situation so that it benefits them personally  with little regard for the person or population hurt by that hate speech," says psychologist Renee Carr.

In case you missed: A GOP senator's 'vulgar and racist' comments and when words hurt

The legacy of letting hate go unchecked

Like anything, it's important to consider how a marginalized person might feel, especially if you are not one yourself.

"For those who have not been the target of hate speech, it can be difficult to comprehend the fear and mental anguish one might feel walking past a crowd of people promoting your annihilation," Fulton says.

Carr recommends speaking out against hate. Of course, some situations are more nuanced than others.

"You have to also understand that just because someone does not agree with what you agree with, it does not mean they hate you," Carr says. "Hate is an intense emotion attached to an intense desire to completely destroy and eliminate a person or group in one form or another."

When it's really hate we're talking about, how anyone responds indicates their character. And if they are in a position of power and let hate go unchecked, they leave that as part of their legacy.

"When symbols of such extreme hate are allowed," Carr says, "it will increase both the intensity and boldness of aggressive acts of hate."

Important: Kanye West, Twitter and how to disengage from hate on social media

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Ron DeSantis, Disney World, Nazis: The truth about hate
Who needs Soho House? This Italian social club hidden in L.A. is an absolute delight

Families clap during a game of musical chairs on the dance floor at the Garibaldina Society's La Famiglia Dinner. (Christina House / Los Angeles Times)

For the record:

9:14 a.m. June 14, 2023: An earlier version of this article misspelled the last name of Brian Donahoe as Donahue. Also, Donahoe and Jose Tamayo are not married; they are partners.



Lauren Veca was worried about the meatballs.

The 62-year-old doula had insisted on making her mothers recipe for the Garibaldina Societys upcoming monthly pasta dinner, but now she was having second thoughts.

Youre having performance anxiety because of these meatballs, said the clubs president, Nicole Infante, 48, a mother of two who never sits still.

Its true, Veca said, sighing heavily. And its all because of my family.

Garibaldina Society members weigh meatballs on a small scale so that they are all just the right size. (Christina House / Los Angeles Times)

Lauren Veca, and Chris Pellegrino, right, make meatballs in the kitchen of L.A.'s oldest Italian Club, the Garibaldina Society. (Christina House / Los Angeles Times)

Infante took a sip from her cocktail.

Thats what we do, she said, surveying the clubs pink and red ballroom. Were healing our inner child at the Garibaldina.

Housed in a low-slung brick building next to the Superior grocery store in Highland Park, the Garibaldina Society is the oldest Italian club in Los Angeles, and its currently in the midst of a renaissance.

Founded in 1877 as the Societa Garibaldina di Mutua Beneficenza, the club has historically been a place where older Italians and Italian Americans gather to dance, play bocce, cook, eat and celebrate their culture. But now the Garibaldina is welcoming a different membership  some of whom are Italian, many of whom are not.

Read more: How to make friends in L.A.? Get brunch with strangers

The club is being regenerated, said Jim Richetts, 88, who served as president in 2016 and 2020. And thats because younger people are finding out about it, and were making an effort to let them know.

Old photographs hang inside the Garibaldina Society. (Christina House / Los Angeles Times)

Children gather on the dance floor at the Garibaldina Society in Los Angeles during a La Famiglia Dinner. (Christina House / Los Angeles Times)

Older Italian men still cook big pots of tomato sauce in the industrial-sized kitchen and the majority of the weekday bocce players are well over 80, but in the last year, Gen Xers and millennials hungry for community and nostalgic for the social organizations of their parents' and grandparents' eras are bringing a new energy to the club.

It helps that Infante, who once worked as the creative director of Fredericks of Hollywood, has curated a pitch-perfect retro-Italian presence for the club on its Instagram page, bringing the space to the attention of fashion photographers, artisanal chefs and local concert promoters who have rented out its cavernous ballroom and cozy wood-paneled bar.

This spring the Garibaldina hosted a queer line-dancing formal, and plans for wine tasting and nighttime bocce games on its two indoor courts are in the works. At the first kid-friendly La Famiglia Dinner in June (featuring a DJ, a photo booth and a surprise visit from a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle-costumed character), 170 people, from babies to 93-year-olds, showed up.

Chris MacKenzie holds his six-month-old baby Dottie at the Garibaldina Society in Los Angeles during a La Famiglia Dinner. (Christina House / Los Angeles Times)

But even as the generational makeup of the club changes, members both new and old are determined to ensure the original spirit of the Garibaldina remains intact.

Its like a time capsule and all the young people know how special it is and respect it, said Jose Tamayo, 32, who along with his partner, Brian Donahoe, became the first out gay couple in the Garibaldina's history when they joined last year.



Carrie George, 69, whose grandfather was president of the Garibaldina in 1944 and 1945, said new members are bringing a welcome diversity to the club.

"Times are changing and so is the club," she said. "Back in the old days, they were closed-minded about having other cultures there, but it's so different now. The club is beginning to embrace cultural changes and how society is changing."

Read more: Would they pick you up at LAX? Rank your friends on the L.A. friendship scale

She credits Infante with honoring the club's historic legacy and at the same time making it appealing and accessible to a broader range of people.

"She doesn't erase what's there, but she is bringing it to younger people," George said. "And that's what's going to keep this club moving forward."

Tony Santillo, 85, center left, and Giovanni Battista Davi, 87, embrace while playing bocce ball at the Garibaldina Society. (Christina House / Los Angeles Times)

If these faux-marble walls could talk

Originally founded as a mutual-aid society for Italian immigrants, the Garibaldina started in what is now Chinatown and soon moved to Lincoln Heights along with much of L.A.s Italian population at the time.

An outbreak of influenza in the 1930s wiped out the clubs sick fund and sent it into bankruptcy, but the Garibaldina managed to hang around long enough to come roaring back to life in the 1960s when celebrities like Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin helped glamorize Italian American culture. (In fact, Martin's parents were members of the club.)

In 1966, the clubs members pooled their money to buy a property in Highland Park. They broke ground in 1967, and the Garibaldina has remained in the same location ever since.

For decades, the club had a cap of 900 members and a waiting list of more than five years to get in. The monthly dinner dances were formal events where men wore tuxedos and women dressed in evening gowns and furs. Members  mostly the men  cooked all the food. George remembers attending events there as a child in patent leather shoes and gloves. But the membership began to decline in the 2010s as the old-timers died off. Their children, many of whom remembered the club as a place for old people, didn't want to join.

Giuseppe Del Rivo, 89, plays bocce ball at the Garibaldina Society. (Christina House / Los Angeles Times)

Giuseppe Del Rivo, 89, arrives at the Garibaldina Society in Los Angeles to play bocce ball. (Christina House / Los Angeles Times)

After a heated discussion, the Garibaldina opened membership up to non-Italians in 2017 to keep from closing entirely, but its numbers continued to dwindle, falling to less than 200 in 2021.

Thats when Infante, who grew up in Queens, N.Y., first visited. She had read about the club in the Mt. Washington Homeowners Alliance newsletter and sent an email asking if she could come see it. On that initial visit she remembers walking into the empty lobby with its terrazzo floor, cream-colored faux marble wall and glass chandelier. The tangy scent of tomato sauce wafted through the air.

I was like, Oh my God, its my grandmothers house,' she said. Thats exactly what it felt like.

Pizza is served at the Garibaldina Society in Los Angeles during a La Famiglia Dinner. (Christina House / Los Angeles Times)

The president welcomed her with a hug, and Infante knew she was home. She became a member that night, a council member one month later, and president a year and a half later.

Now, you can find Infante at the club every day while her kids are at school  folding napkins into fan shapes for the monthly dinner dances, moving tables for the pasta platter dinner, cleaning out storage areas, designing fliers, redecorating the ladies lounge and trying furiously to get functional Wi-Fi in the building.

I prayed for the club that God would send the right person to lead it, George said. I tell Nicole that God sent her. She is an answer to my prayer.

President of the Garibaldina Society Nicole Infante sets up for a Mother's Day event. (Christina House / Los Angeles Times)

The best deal in Los Angeles

The Garibaldina may be one of the last remaining deals in Los Angeles. There is a $100 initiation fee and dues are $60 a year. Although new members no longer need to be Italian, they do need to be sponsored by a current member and recommended by two other members to join.

As of now, membership gets you a personalized membership badge, a $3 discount on the monthly Pasta Platter dinner ($25 for nonmembers), and a $10 discount for the monthly dinner dance ($55 for nonmembers). Drinks in the carpeted, old-school bar  Italian-themed, of course  are $6 apiece for members and guests alike.

The Garibaldina Society in Los Angeles, is set up for a Mother's Day event. (Christina House / Los Angeles Times)

Infante dreams of a time when the club will host cooking classes and an Italian cinema series, when the bar will be open more than a couple of times a month  but the membership will have to grow first.

Right now the promise is, 'Come and be a part of keeping this legacy and this club alive,' she said. And a lot of young people get that, because theyve seen so many important things disappear around them.

Regulars know there are other benefits to membership too.

Show up to volunteer and Ignazio Vivirito, 83, who is always cooking something, might slip you a fresh-baked biscotti or a snack of bread and cheese on the sly. Maybe youll play a bocce game with someone 30 years older than you  or 30 years younger. If you're lucky, youll learn a new line dance.

Read more: Lonely in L.A., they put themselves out there and built meaningful friendships

And once theyve seen you a few times, the old-timers will invite you to sit with them, offer to box up your leftovers and make sure you got enough sauce.

Garibaldina Society of Los Angeles President Nicole Infante, right, and her sister Adrienne, left, carry giant boxes of pizza into the club during a La Famiglia Dinner. (Christina House / Los Angeles Times)

'Every day there's a bit of magic'

On a recent Thursday night, the clubs parking lot was almost at capacity.

More people showed up for the Pasta Platter dinner than had RSVP'd, so Infante was setting up tables on the fly  covering them with red-and-white checkered tablecloths and laying down a red paper placemat with scalloped edges at each seat.

Johnny North, a friend of Infantes from college, asked where she was sitting.

I dont sit, I float, she said.

Vecas meatballs were a hit  tender and flavorful. By her seat was a framed picture of her mother. I was going to bring her ashes, but I thought that might be going too far, she said.

Meatballs fresh out of the oven are photographed at the Garibaldina Society. (Christina House / Los Angeles Times)

Tamayo and Donahoe were out on the wooden dance floor, watching the older members do the Elvira line dance and trying their best to follow along.

Lissa Lebel, 61, who drove up from Long Beach, introduced several friends she had invited.

Im so tired of going to nice restaurants, she said over a glass of red wine. I just want to be where Im comfortable. Who wouldnt want to be here?

Read more: Where to find the best Italian dumplings  ravioli, tortellini and tortelloni

On the bocce court behind the dance floor, an impromptu game was getting heated. At the edge of the court, Vivirito and Aiden Arata, a new member in her early 30s, were hunched over a cellphone. He was showing her pictures of his grandsons first communion.

At the end of the evening, Veca, who has taken over the bar, offered small glasses of sambuca to those who werent quite ready to call it a night.

Although shes been a member for only six months, Veca said the club already feels like family.

President of the Garibaldina Society Nicole Infante sets up for a Mother's Day event. (Christina House / Los Angeles Times)

Both my parents are gone, and all of my cooking, all of my Italian ancestry  Im the holder of that now, she said. I want to keep it going, and for my son Luca too. And to be able to be with these people here, it's just amazing."

A few days later Infante was back at the club, setting up for the next event.

Vivirito asked if Veca was planning to come that day. He wanted to make pizza. Infante called to find out. "I'm in the car," Veca said.

Sometimes Infante finds it hard to believe that this is her life.

Its like this is a weird middle-aged fairy tale Im living, she said. "Every day there's a bit of magic."

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
NeNe Leakes And Boyfriend Nyonisela Sioh Reportedly Call It Quits After Dating For Over A Year: A Narcissist Is The Devil

NeNe Leakes is back on the market after calling it quits with her boyfriend, Nyonisela Sioh, after dating for over a year.

Hollywood Unlocked broke the news after a close source confirmed the breakup, but fans have been speculating trouble in paradise due to Leakes recent Instagram posts. The 55-year-old reality star has been on a roll with posts about narcissism and dating people who exhibit such characteristics.

On Monday, Leakes penned a message to her Instagram story that read: Narcissists do not have the ability to self-reflect. They cannot see anything wrong with what they do and they only see fault in your reaction.

They believe every argument is caused by you because, to them, there was no problem with their actions until you reacted to them, Leakes post continued. They 100% believe you are the problem and they are the victim. Its mind-blowing!

In another Instagram Story, she added, A NARCISSIST IS THE DEVIL. Coincidently, the news of their break-up went public the same day.

The underlying issue behind their split could stem from problems with Siohs estranged wife, Malomine Tehmeh-Sioh, that played out throughout the year. According to Hollywood Unlocked, Malomine filed a lawsuit against Leakes, accusing her of dating her former husband while they were still married. She alleged Leakes and Siohs relationship caused her to suffer from emotional distress, mental anguish, and loss of affection. The suit states that Malomine sought $100,000 in damages due to her emotional distress.

Sioh filed for divorce from his estranged wife, listing their separation date as September 19, 2021. Following the passing of her husband Gregg, Leakes and Sioh began dating in late 2021 and were spotted at multiple events before confirming they were a couple.

Leakes revealed that Gregg gave her his blessing to start dating other people before he died of colon cancer on Sept. 1, 2021. I will love Gregg forever & ever! Grieving is hard, even harder and depressing alone, she said in an exclusive interview with The Shade Room. Gregg and I had a very tearful conversation before his passing. His words to me were Be happy, keep smiling and he who finds you has found a good one.

In 2022, Leakes and Sioh made a television appearance on The Real, which at the time sparked backlash from people who thought she moved on too quickly. At the time of publishing, Leakes nor Sioh have officially announced their split.
Opposition member to sit on judges panel in blow to Netanyahu

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu leaves his Likud party faction meeting at the Knesset, Israel's parliament, in Jerusalem

By Maayan Lubell

JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Parliament delivered a surprise blow to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's coalition on Wednesday by electing an opposition member to sit on a committee that appoints judges, a panel at the heart of a political battle over Israel's justice system.

Karine Elharrar of the centrist Yesh Atid party secured one of the two committee seats but Tally Gotliv of Netanyahu's Likud party lost, paving the way for another vote on the second seat within 30 days, Knesset speaker Amir Ohana announced.

The vote was viewed as a bellwether in talks between Netanyahu and the opposition over legal reforms and a test for his command over a hard-right coalition that controls 64 of the Knesset's 120 seats.

Compromise talks were launched soon after Netanyahu suspended in March his government's contentious drive to overhaul the judiciary, which had sparked unprecedented protests as critics dubbed it a threat to Israel's democracy.

But after the results were in, opposition leaders said talks were off as long as the nine-member panel, which also includes two ministers, three judges and two lawyers, was not complete.

"The committee has not been established and the threat to our democracy has not been removed," Yesh Atid leader Yair Lapid said in a televised statement. "No committee, no talks."

Uproar over the overhaul somewhat subsided in recent weeks as talks progressed and Netanyahu's coalition was widely expected to adhere to Knesset tradition and support one opposition member alongside a coalition lawmaker for the panel.

But after last-minute deliberations, the coalition said it would not support any candidate, aiming for a delay. Netanyahu called on the opposition to stick with the talks.

Western allies, including Washington, have urged Netanyahu to pursue broad consensus over reforms to a justice system they say should remain independent. The stakes are rising with two Supreme Court judges retiring in coming months.

Advocates of the suspended overhaul, which grants almost complete coalition control of bench appointments, say the Supreme Court is elitist, left-leaning and overreaching, and that elected officials should have more power in picking judges.

Opponents say this would politicise and weaken a strong Supreme Court that plays a major role in Israel's democratic checks and balances.

The overhaul drive spooked investors and weakened the shekel currency before Netanyahu suspended it in late March. But economists and international credit agencies say further uncertainty poses a downside risk for Israel.

Fluctuating on the twists and turns, the shekel recovered a more than 2% loss throughout Wednesday.

(Additional reporting by Ari Rabinovitch; Writing by Maayan Lubell; Editing by Peter Graff and Howard Goller)
The Netherlands will strengthen Ukraines air defense with four radars worth 162.5 million

Flag of the Netherlands

VERA-EG radars are said to be passive radars that do not emit their own radio signal, but only pick up others signals, and are capable of finding, identifying, and tracking targets over land and sea.

Read also: Ukrainian military get RBS 70 MANPADS and radar system from Sweden, photo reports

Russia is shelling civilian and military objects in Ukraine from the air. Therefore, as before, it is important to strengthen Ukrainian air defense. The Netherlands is contributing to this together with its allies, she reports.

Read also: Netherlands seeks to purchase Leopard-1 tanks for Ukraine, pending Swiss approval

The day before, ten of Ukraines European allies announced a new aid package to help Ukraines air defense. The package includes radar to protect against indiscriminate Russian strikes, as well as guns, and a significant amount of ammunition.

Were bringing the voice of Ukraine to the world. Support us with a one-time donation, or become a Patron!

Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
Roughly 25,000 counterfeit oxycodone pills, thought to contain the powerful and deadly fentanyl opioid, were seized in Wichita on Monday by a newly formed task force, the Kansas Bureau of Investigation said Wednesday.

The KBI says its the first major seizure of fentanyl pills by the Joint Fentanyl Impact Team, made up of KBI and Kansas Highway Patrol officials.

A 27-year-old Wichita man was arrested as part of the investigation around 12:30 p.m. near Central and Oliver, the KBI said in a news release. He was arrested on an outstanding warrant, the release says, adding that charges for the fentanyl are pending and the investigation is ongoing.

In an email, KBI spokesperson Melissa Underwood said the agency wasnt releasing the mans name because he hasnt been officially accused of this crime. They also are not releasing details about how the seizure came to be. She didnt respond when asked if the seizure happened in a house, a vehicle or elsewhere.

This man had them in his possession and was detained near Central and Oliver, she said.

The suspected fentanyl pills are commonly called dirty 30s and M30s, the KBI says. Underwood said they have a street value of anywhere between $8-$20 each, meaning it could have sold from anywhere between $200,000-$500,000.

Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid. The Drug Enforcement Agency says it is 50 to 100 times stronger than morphine. In 2021, the DEA launched a campaign to raise awareness about how deadly fentanyl can be. The campaign is called one pill can kill.

In October, Wichita Police Department said officers made the departments largest fentanyl seizure. Based on the weight of the pills, WPD estimated there to be between 500,000 and one million pills.

The KBI says these pills weighed around 11.5 pounds.

Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach formed the task force as part of a way to curb fentanyl overdose deaths. The task forces objective is to identify and disrupt fentanyl trafficking and distribution networks.

In Sedgwick County, fentanyl-related deaths have skyrocketed in recent years, from around 35 in 2018 to nearly 90 in 2020, which was the most recent data available on a Sedgwick County dashboard.
EXETER  The New Hampshire attorney general's office is signing off on the proposed merger between Exeter Health Resources and Beth Israel Lahey Health in Massachusetts, but with stipulations.

Attorney General John Formella announced Wednesday a negotiated deal has been reached. The next step is for a Merrimack County Superior Court judge to approve it.

Exeter Health Resources includes Exeter Hospital, Core Physicians and Rockingham Visiting Nurse Association & Hospice.

Beth Israel Lahey Health currently includes 13 hospitals, all in Massachusetts, including Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center of Boston and Anna Jaques Hospital in Newburyport. Like Exeter, it is not-for-profit. It has 25 ambulatory facilities, 35,000 employees and operating revenue of $6.2 billion.

EHR found a complementary partner in BILH who was willing to make enforceable commitments to Exeter and the state, Formella said. We are pleased with the cooperation and willingness of BILH (Beth Israel Lahey Health) to make significant commitments to the community. We look forward to seeing the numerous benefits promised by the parties delivered to New Hampshire consumers.

The main entrance to Exeter Hospital on Alumni Drive.

Formella stated the Charitable Trusts Unit and Consumer Protection and Antitrust Bureau completed their review of the proposed merger.

The office is required by state law to review the deal to evaluate the likely competitive impact of the merger and what it will mean for consumers.

While the deal as initially presented would have caused an "unfair method of competition and risked substantially lessening competition," Formella said the negotiated deal aims to address those concerns.

What are the terms of the deal and how does it benefit NH?

The terms, according to the AG's office, will ensure adequate protections for consumers, and the benefits promised by the parties from the transaction are "ultimately delivered to the Exeter community."

We are pleased to have worked with the state to advance our proposal to join Beth Israel Lahey Health, said Kevin Callahan, president and CEO of Exeter Health Resources, in a prepared statement. This marks a significant milestone in securing the sustainability of our healthcare system and its ability to continue to thrive and meet the evolving healthcare needs here in the Seacoast region."

Terms of the deal include that as part of Beth Israel Lahey Health's commitment to invest $375 million into Exeter Health Resources, it will fund and operate a minimum of 10 designated receiving facility beds (a hospital-based psychiatric unit or a non-hospital-based residential treatment program) on the Exeter campus for at least 10 years.

Exeter Hospital will also maintain labor and delivery services for at least 10 years.

Kevin Callahan, president of Exeter Health Resources Inc.

Other terms state both entities agree they will not enter into anticompetitive contracting terms and practices with commercial health insurers and will protect physicians and mid-level providers from restrictive covenants and interference with patient referral and treatment decisions.

EHR and BILH will also develop a clinical services growth plan to bring additional services to the Exeter community.

In addition, BILH will pay the state $10 million over 10 years to be used for the benefit of New Hampshire healthcare consumers. The priority of the funds is for the establishment of a New Hampshire healthcare market research entity that would monitor, analyze, and publicly report on the New Hampshire healthcare market.

As a result of continued provider and insurer consolidation, transparency in the New Hampshire market is critical for consumers and the government to evaluate and make informed health policy decisions, said Formella.

According to the agreement, compliance will be monitored by an independent third party.

The terms in the proposed agreement, according to the AG's office, are based on experts in-depth analysis of the anticipated loss of competition between the parties and the potential for cross-market effects from the proposed affiliation.

As we welcome a large out-of-state system into New Hampshire, we must be mindful of the potential risks the transaction poses to health care consumers," Formella stated. "New Hampshire consumers already pay high prices for health care in this State and it is essential that appropriate conditions are placed on the parties and there is sufficient transparency to the public on the transaction.

What does a merger mean for Exeter?

Exeter Health Resources signed a definitive agreement to join Beth Israel Lahey Health in Massachusetts on June 28, 2022, which followed separate approval by the boards of each organization.

Callahan said at the time the affiliation will allow Exeter Health Resources to become "cost-efficient" and offer "more value where every single dollar is spent on health care."

As part of the deal, Beth Israel Lahey Health will maintain and grow access to clinical services in Exeter Health Resources, making an overall $375 million capital investment over 10 years.

Under the proposed terms of the merger, Beth Israel Lahey Health would become the sole corporate member of Exeter Health Resources, which includes Exeter Hospital, Core Physicians and Rockingham Visiting Nurse Association & Hospice.

Exeter Health Resources' structure will stay the same and the local board will continue to oversee ongoing operations, reviewing and recommending strategic plans and operating and capital budgets as well as philanthropy and community benefit funding.

Kevin Tabb, president and CEO of Beth Israel Hospital Lahey

When could the merger be finalized?

If the judge signs off on the negotiated agreement between the AG and EHR and BILH, both organizations anticipate finalizing the merger later this summer.

Exeter has been an integral part of the New Hampshire community for more than 125 years, and together we can build on that legacy of service and excellence for many years to come, said Kevin Tabb, MD, president and CEO of Beth Israel Lahey Health, in a prepared statement. Exeter and Beth Israel Lahey Health share a commitment to deliver extraordinary care and improve the health of the communities we serve. We are pleased that the New Hampshire Attorney Generals Office has agreed to terms that will allow this affiliation to move forward and we look forward to Exeter officially joining Beth Israel Lahey Health soon.

This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: NH AG clears way for Exeter-Beth Israel Lahey Health merger
 Flash

At least 103 people were killed and about 100 others were rescued after a boat capsized on Monday in the country's central state of Kwara, police said on Tuesday.

The accident occurred on Monday morning in a river in the Patigi local government area of the state, as the passengers were returning home from the neighboring Niger state in the central region, Ajayi Okasanmi, the spokesman for the police in Kwara, told Xinhua on the phone.

Okasanmi said some others remained missing, confirming that rescue operation was going on in the Kpada community of Patigi local government area.

"I can confirm to you that well over 200 people were involved in the sad incident. We will continue to collaborate with rescuers and other agencies of government to rescue the remaining victims and recover other bodies," the police officer said.

In an earlier statement, Kwara state governor Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq said the victims of the incident were returning from a wedding in the neighboring Niger state when the incident occurred.

Boat accidents in the West African country are frequently reported due to overloading, bad weather, and faulty operations.
(Bloomberg) -- Nigerias state energy company should sell off assets including stakes in oil blocks to raise billions of dollars, a report prepared for the countrys new president proposes.

Most Read from Bloomberg

The Nigerian National Petroleum Co. should become a minority shareholder in projects it currently controls, potentially generating more than $17 billion by the end of the decade, according to the study by a committee that advised President Bola Tinubu ahead of his inauguration last month.

If adopted, the recommendations would alter the NNPCs strategy of holding majority stakes in oil and gas joint ventures with majors such as Shell Plc, and local producers that account for about a third of Nigerias crude output.

It could also see the NNPC shift away from its expansionary path pursued after it was transformed into a fully commercial venture under Tinubus predecessor, Muhammadu Buhari. During that period, it bought operating stakes in two blocks from Chevron Corp. and attempted to take over four permits from Exxon Mobil Corp. by blocking a sale to Seplat Energy Plc.

The state-owned firm also acquired a 20% interest in a 650,000 barrel-a-day oil refinery built by Africas richest person, Aliko Dangote, and awarded more than $2 billion in contracts to revamp its own refining facilities that were built decades ago but are inoperative and in various stages of rehabilitation.

Read More: Nigerias Moribund Refineries Cost $10 Billion Over a Decade

NNPC should sell down interests in JVs to a minority position and reduce its holdings in refineries, the report said. It recommended the new government head-hunt competent, tested, reform-focused leaders to run the company.

International oil giants have been offloading assets to local players for more than a decade. That trend is accelerating, as the likes of Shell and Exxon Mobil look to sell the rest of their onshore and shallow water portfolios to focus on deepwater projects.

Tripling Oil Production

A sale of NNPCs assets would help Tinubu meet an ambitious campaign pledge to nearly triple oil production to 4 million barrels-a-day by 2030, according to the committees report, which was confirmed by the presidency. Nigeria currently produces about 1.43 million barrels-a-day, well below its full capacity due to pipeline theft, vandalism and declining investments.

Committee members included Austin Avuru, the founder and former chief executive officer of Seplat, and Abdulrazaq Isa, chairman of local energy firm Waltersmith Petroman Oil Ltd. Avuru declined to comment and Isa didnt respond to an email from Bloomberg.

In the short term, it also suggested the NNPC, which currently imports all of Nigerias gasoline requirements, should end contracts with international and local traders through which it swaps crude for fuel. Instead, private companies could enter the market, leaving the state firm to sell the daily allocation of 445,000 barrels of oil for much-needed foreign exchange, it said. Tinubu has already removed gasoline subsidies that cost the state more than $10 billion last year.

The new administration also wants to commercialize much more of Nigerias abundant reserves of natural gas for both the domestic and export markets. To do this, the report proposed deregulating the local pricing system and applying a tax holiday to undeveloped deposits.

Spokesmen for Tinubu and the NNPC didnt respond to requests for comment.

--With assistance from Ruth Olurounbi.

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Indian army soldiers patrol during a security operation in hill and valley areas in Manipur

By Zarir Hussain

GUWAHATI, India (Reuters) -At least nine people have been killed in the latest clashes between members of rival ethnic groups in India's northeastern state of Manipur, police said on Wednesday, as security forces pressed on with a hunt for illegal weapons.

Violence between members of the Kuki ethnic group, who mostly live in the hills, and Meiteis, the dominant community in the low lands, erupted on May 3, sparked by resentment over economic benefits and quotas in government jobs and education reserved for hill people.

At least 80 people have been killed and more than 40,000 have been displaced in the state on the Myanmar border that is governed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi's party.

K Shivakanta Singh, a senior police official in the state capital of Imphal, told reporters that a gun battle between rival factions erupted on Tuesday and went on for hours.

"We have reports of at least nine deaths and 10 injured so far," Singh said. "The situation remains volatile."

Federal security force reinforcements have been sent to the state and they have been searching for illegal weapons.

Civil society organisations from the Meitei and Kuki communities have refused to join a peace committee set up by the federal government in the brokering peace.

On May 3, members of the hill tribes including Kuki launched a protest against the possible extension of their benefits to the dominant Meiteis.

Meiteis account for half of Manipur's population and extending limited affirmative action quotas to them would mean they would get a share in education and government jobs reserved for Kukis and others.

Manipur shares a nearly 400-km (250-mile) border with Myanmar and a coup there in 2021 pushed thousands of refugees into the Indian state.

Kukis share ethnic lineage with Myanmars Chin community and Meiteis feared they would be outnumbered by the arrival of the refugees.

(Writing by Shilpa Jamkhandikar, Rupam Jain; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman, Robert Birsel)
The claim: Italy's prime minister created a 'Family Pride Month' in opposition to LGBTQ+ Pride Month

A June 4 Instagram video (direct link, archive link) features images of Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and shows a man talking about a purported development in Italy.

Italys Prime Minister has announced Family Pride Month as a counter to normal Pride Month, reads the video's caption. Family Pride Month will now celebrate mothers, fathers and the children they raise instead of, you know.

The post garnered more than 37,000 likes in two days. Other versions of the post were shared on Twitter.

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Our rating: False

There is no evidence Meloni has announced a "Famiy Pride Month." Both LGBTQ+ advocates and anti-abortion groups say no such announcement has occurred.

Italys prime minister did not announce Family Pride Month to oppose LGBTQ+ Pride in June

Contrary to the post's claims, there is no announcement of a Family Pride Month on Italy's government website or on any of Melonis official social media accounts.

Gabriele Magni, a political science professor and founding director of the LGBTQ+ Politics Research Initiative at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, told USA TODAY that Meloni and other Italian politicians have not made such an announcement.

Vincenzo Brana, a spokesperson for the Bologna-based LGBTQ+ advocacy organization Arcigay, also told the Associated Press no such month had been announced.

Magni pointed out that some of the posts sharing the claim show videos from previous marches for the "Manifestazione per la Vita" (National Demonstration for Life) organized by the anti-abortion and anti-LGBTQ+ Family Day Association, whose logos are visible in the footage.

Manifestazione per la Vita and Family Day did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

But Jacopo Coghe, a spokesperson for the Rome-based anti-abortion group Pro Vita & Famiglia, previously told the Associated Press the claim of a "Family Pride Month" is fake news.

There has been no such announcement by the government and, as far as we know, there has been no proposal either, Coghe said. It is a falsehood that comes straight from abroad.

USA TODAY could not find any coverage of the purported announcement from Italian and international news outlets.

Creating a Family Prime Month to oppose LGBTQ+ Pride is not something the group is attempting to do, Coghe said.

Meloni and her political allies have attended marches for the Family Day Association in the past, said Magni, who said that could be the source of some online confusion.

These marches have been both pro-life and anti-LGBTQ rights, Magni said in an email. They have focused on opposing abortion, surrogacy especially for same-sex couples, adoptions for same-sex couples, and same-sex marriage  all under the justification to defend the traditional family and oppose gender ideology."

Fact check: Rainbow-decorated Arc de Triomphe is 3D animation, not physical artwork

Meloni notably vowed to oppose what she called "gender ideology and the LGBT lobby when she became prime minister in 2022.

Several Pride events are scheduled across the country throughout the month of June.

Meloni's office did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The social media users who shared the post for comment did not provide any evidence for their claim.

The Associated Press and Lead Stories also debunked this claim.

Our fact-check sources:

Thank you for supporting our journalism. You can subscribe to our print edition, ad-free app or e-newspaper here.

Our fact-check work is supported in part by a grant from Facebook.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: False claim Italian PM announced 'Family Pride Month' | Fact check
A 21-year-old man is sentenced to prison for a fatal shooting last year in North Linden.

A 21-year-old man who shot and killed a man as he was driving away from a North Linden market last year has been sentenced to as many as 26 years in prison.

Ayub Issack pleaded guilty Tuesday in Franklin County Common Pleas Court to involuntary manslaughter and other charges in connection with the 2022 shooting death of 46-year-old William Hinson.

Issack also was sentenced Tuesday for his attempt to rob a person on Oct. 1, 2021.

Judge Mark Serrott sentenced Isaack to serve at least 21 years in prison. Serrott received a sentence of 11 to 16 years for involuntary manslaughter, three years each for a firearm specification, having a weapon under disability and robbery, and one year for carrying a concealed weapon.

Around 11 p.m. on June 30, Issack and another man got into an altercation with Hinson in the parking lot outside of McGuffey Market at 1066 E. Hudson St., according to Columbus police homicide detectives.

Detectives said in court documents that as Hinson was driving away, Issack fired into Hinson's vehicle, striking him. Hinson crashed his vehicle a few minutes later into a utility pole on East Hudson Street. He was found dead inside the vehicle by responding officers.

Murder charges are pending against Shandale Brown, 24, of South Linden, whom detectives say was with Issack when Hinson was killed.

mawilliams@dispatch.com

@BizMarkWilliams

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: William Hinson was driving away after altercation when he was shot
A thermoelectric power plant in Novocherkassk, in Russias Rostov Oblast, has caught fire. The power plant is the oblasts largest source of power.

Source: RIA Novosti, a pro-Kremlin Russian news outlet; Meduza; 161.ru

Details: Reports suggest that a total of 200 square metres of the power plants roof is on fire.

Local rescue services are claiming that dozens of firefighters have been deployed to the site of the incident.

The power plant staff reported that the open fire on the plant's premises had been extinguished, and the facilities resumed working.

Local media cited sources in law enforcement agencies who said that the fire spread over 400 square metres and injured three people.

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The New York Police Departments first Black woman police commissioner, Keechant Sewell, has decided to step down after only 18 months. Sewell made the official announcement in an email to the members of the NYPD but didnt give a reason behind her resignation.

While my time here will come to a close, I will never step away from advocacy and support for the NYPD, and I will always be a champion for the people of New York City, Sewell wrote.

Mayor Eric Adams appointed Sewell to the position in 2022. According to the Associate Press, there was tension leading up to her resignation. Sewell shied from New Yorks spotlight, rarely making herself available to press even though Adams pegged crime-fighting as a centerpiece of his administration. There was also speculation that Sewell wasnt entirely in control of the department. According to the AP it stemmed from Adams decision to appoint Phillip Banks as a deputy mayor of public safety. Banks held weekly public safety briefings on crime often without Sewell in attendance.

Mayor Adams confirmed Sewells resignation and thanked her for her steadfast leadership. Adams said Sewell deserved credit for work on combatting crime. During her brief time with the NYPD, she oversaw a decrease in overall crime. In her first month on the job, Sewell dealt with high-profile incidents, including the fatal shooting of two officers.

The commissioner worked nearly 24 hours a day, seven days a week for a year and a half, and we are all grateful for her service. New Yorkers owe her a debt of gratitude, Adams said.

Keechant Sewells Work In Law Enforcement

Sewell started as a patrol officer for the Nassau County Police Department in 1997. She held multiple positions within the department including precinct commander, head of significant cases, top negotiator, and finally, chief of detectives. As chief of detectives, Sewell oversaw 350 employees.

The post NYPDs First Black Woman Commissioner Resigns appeared first on 21Ninety.
Soon after former Ramsey County District Judge Mary Louise Klas was assigned to oversee cases in family court, she began working to ensure fair treatment for victims of domestic violence.

Charged with issuing protection orders in abuse cases, sometimes more than 100 a month, Klas was horrified by the lack of concern for the victims, most of them women. As for their abusers, she said, the system was protecting them.

Police werent arresting them. Prosecutors werent prosecuting them. And judges werent trying them, she told the Pioneer Press in 2000. Women werent being protected, she added, despite laws that could guard against such abuses.

Klas went to work revising judicial practices on behalf of victims of domestic violence, said her daughter Patricia Montalbano.

No one else really had a fire in their belly about the issue, she said. She had the attitude, You didnt wait for someone else to do it. If you saw something that needed to be done, and it was an injustice, it was your moral responsibility to do something. I dont think she would have even entertained the question, Why you? She would have probably said, Why not me? If I know about it, I have a responsibility to address it.

Klas, a longtime advocate for women and children, died Friday at her home in St. Paul of complications related to Parkinsons disease and neuropathy. She was 93.

Klas was a champion of womens rights, said Cheryl Thomas, executive director of Minneapolis-based Global Rights for Women, and a longtime friend. She was a wonderful trainer, volunteer, mentor, and inspiration to women around the world. She showed that it was possible for judges to interpret the law and protect the human rights of victims of domestic violence even in the absence of specific legislation.

Klas took on leadership roles in the training of new judges, ensuring that the curriculum included sessions on family law and domestic violence, said her daughter Mary Ellen Klas. She also traveled nationally to speak on child-custody issues and to participate in training on domestic-violence issues.

She said, When we make it safe for women and children to be in their homes, we will make it possible for each of us to be safe on the streets, Mary Ellen Klas said.

Ramsey County Attorney John Choi said Klas, a longtime friend and adviser, helped persuade him to run for the office in 2010.

She influenced me so much, Choi said. When people ask me, Why are you so passionate about gender-based violence, sex trafficking, domestic violence?  it was really her. So many of the issues that I prioritize with my public leadership  and just the way that I see the world as a human being  are grounded in many of the conversations I had with her: advocating for system responses for domestic violence and talking about gender-based violence and learning more about human trafficking.

Klas had a gift for bringing the right people together at the right time and used her dogged personality  to get things done and get things to change, he said.

She was a great strategist and very persistent, too, he said. Those are the qualities that really helped her as an advocate. It was very difficult to say No to her actually because she was always prepared.

Mary Louise May was born and raised on St. Pauls East Side and attended St. Josephs Academy for high school on a full scholarship  awarded to the highest-ranking female graduate of St. Pauls Catholic grade schools. After graduating as valedictorian in 1948, she got a full scholarship from Sisters of St. Joseph to attend St. Catherine University in St. Paul, then called College of St. Catherine. She graduated in 1952 with a bachelors degree in English and speech.

After graduation, May worked as a secretary for the CIA in Langley, Va., and studied at the University of Vienna. After returning to St. Paul, she began working as an executive assistant in the office of former Gov. Orville Freeman. Friends in the governors office encouraged her to go to law school, and she enrolled in 1956 in St. Paul College of Law, now known as Mitchell Hamline School of Law. She was one of three women enrolled at the school at the time, Mary Ellen Klas said.

On the first night of classes, May met Daniel Klas, a Hamline University graduate and history teacher from Wabasha, Minn. She invited him to play bridge one night; he asked her out to a movie.

The thing about my mom that appealed to my dad was that she was smart and capable, Mary Ellen Klas said. That thing about my dad that appealed to my mom was that it didnt matter at all that she was a woman who was smarter than most of the men who were in the class.

They were married in 1958 and graduated together in 1960. They had five children; Daniel Klas died in 2017 at 90.

Through her connections from working in the governors office, Mary Louise Klas was invited to assist as one of the attorneys in the 1962 gubernatorial recount representing Gov. Karl Rolvaag.

I was in the early months of pregnancy with our son when we started the trial, and morning sickness usually struck in the middle of the afternoon court session, Klas wrote in a letter to the editor published in the Pioneer Press in 2009. Both sets of lawyers brought back from lunch their cellophane-wrapped soda crackers for me to choke down  surreptitiously, of course.

After the election, Rolvaag appointed her to the Youth Conservation Commission, whose goal was to provide and conduct a program looking toward the prevention of juvenile and youth delinquency. She served on the commission for nine years.

The Klases established their own joint law practice, Klas & Klas, in 1973. Mary Louise Klas also began serving as a referee in juvenile court and started focusing her private practice in family law. As she recalled, I began to notice that the family law cases were the active ones on my desk while the probate and other files got pushed to the credenza.

In 1986, Gov. Rudy Perpich appointed her as the first woman on the bench in Ramsey County District Court. She didnt join the family court for two years, however, because she wanted to get her bearings in the other areas of the law first, Mary Ellen Klas said.

Robin Phillips, executive director of Minneapolis-based Advocates for Human Rights, appeared before Klas on pro bono cases when she was a young lawyer.

She was fair, tough and intolerant of attempts to avoid liability on domestic-violence cases, Phillips said. She was known for taking pro bono cases very seriously and defending the rights of the economically marginalized.

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Klas was a conscientious and organized jurist who was known to write personalized thank-you notes to each juror serving in her court, even following up with one jurors employer  McDonalds  to ensure she would get paid for the extra two days the trial lasted, Montalbano said.

Klas served on the bench for 14 years. After reaching the mandatory judicial retirement age of 70 in 2000, she continued her advocacy work and used her years of experience in legal reform work and judicial training to assist human-rights advocates in Central and Eastern Europe draft new laws and establish legal systems to combat domestic violence, Mary Ellen Klas said.

She traveled to Bulgaria with the Minnesota Advocates for Human Rights six times to train judges, police and legal professionals from Balkan countries, and to the Republic of Georgia, when she was in her 80s, she said.

She embodied what it meant to use ones authority and influence to address the insidious brutality that so many women face in their homes, said Thomas, who traveled with Klas on many of the trips as director of the Womens Program at the Advocates for Human Rights. So few powerful people do that.

In an interview with the Pioneer Press in 2006, Klas said: What have we left to fight for if human rights and human dignity and the rights of everyone  poor and wealthy  are not safeguarded equally? What do we have left?

Klas is survived by her daughters Mary Ellen Klas, Kathy Thames, Barbara Klas and Patricia Montalbano, and by her son, John Klas; 13 grandchildren; and one great-granddaughter.

A funeral Mass will be held at 10 a.m. July 10 at the Church of St. Thomas More in St. Paul, with visitation from 3 to 6 p.m. July 9 at Willwerscheid Funeral Home in St. Paul.
Our offensive does not end here: CNN visits fluid front lines as Kyiv vows to drive out Russian forces

Under clear and sunny skies, a Ukrainian soldier speeds down a long, straight road toward forward positions close to the front line.

We have to go fast, the soldier says, the urgency underlined by the near-constant thud of shelling and the threat of Russian drones relaying the vehicles coordinates to enemy artillery positions.

The soldier swerves to one side, parks under some cover and orders us to remain inside a nondescript building, now serving as a military barracks.

This is daily life in the frontline town of Velyka Novosilka in southeastern Ukraine. CNN was given unprecedented access to the secretive area, where Ukraine has been preparing part of the opening phases of its counteroffensive.

Immediately to the south, Ukrainian pushing and probing has produced some success, with the liberation of the villages of Neskuchne, Blahodatne and, more recently, Makarivka.

It is very dangerous at the front, but we manage, says a combat medic with the call sign Winnie.

Combat medic "Winnie" says he and his fellow physicians try to provide first aid to advancing Ukrainian forces as soon as possible and reduce the amount of casualties. - Vasco Cotovio/CNN

Ukrainian forces have recently liberated the villages of Neskuchne, Blahodatne and more recently, Makarivka, a couple of kilometers down this road. - Vasco Cotovio/CNN

Ukrainian forces have been working to stabilize some of the liberated villages but when CNN visited Velyka Novosilka, the situation remained very fluid. Russia, some soldiers said, was not going down without a fight.

Our people are trying to knock them out of there, and they are trying to gain a foothold there, Winnie explains. Theres been shelling and our boys were wounded. One guy was seriously injured so we got him out of there alive and our medic provided him with qualified assistance.

Velyka Novosilka, which has been without water, electricity or gas for a year and a half  and is constantly battered by shelling and strikes  is an oasis by comparison.

Winnie is one of several combat medics with the 68th Jaeger, one of Ukraines long-established brigades that has held this front line since early in the war. Now, reinforced by Western-trained units, armed with Western-supplied weapons, they are hoping to take back Ukrainian territory occupied by Russia.

[The US-donated] MaxxPro [armored fighting vehicle] has saved my life many times. It saves our lives every day from shrapnel, shelling and bullets, says another soldier, call sign Skrypal. We are advancing, have cleared the village [of Blahodatne] and are moving on. The enemy is confused, does not know where to go, surrenders and retreats.

Drone pilot "Mara" says these consumer drones provide valuable intel for Ukraine's advancing forces. "We need cheap drones and in huge quantities, because we lose a lot of them," he says. - Vasco Cotovio/CNN

Ukrainian soldiers from the 68th Jaeger Brigade listen to a radio, awaiting news from the frontline. - Vasco Cotovio/CNN

Its a long, hard and dangerous task and, even this early on in Ukraines offensive, its not difficult to foresee victory is likely to come at a heavy cost. To reduce it, Ukraine relies heavily on drone pilots to provide accurate reconnaissance.

It is impossible to carry out an offensive without drones, a pilot with the call sign Mara says. There are many casualties. But with the help of drones, losses can be minimized as much as possible.

The pilots operate in rear positions, scouting their enemys lines to identify the least fortified Russian positions and then feed that information to the infantry advancing in front of them.

As an infantryman in the past I can say that the infantry offensive is very difficult, the pilot explains. The Russians also study us.

Unfortunately, [the Russians] know how to retreat and, unfortunately, they also know how to attack, he adds.

Moscow is hoping to stop them using its tried and tested brutal artillery barrages and some of the soldiers here acknowledge Ukraine has already suffered some losses.

Their artillery inflicts the most casualties on us and prevents us from advancing further, Skrypal explains.

But for Winnie, the danger is part of the mission.

We have no other way out, he says. Either us or them. But I think we will win.

The frontline town of Velyka Novosilka bears the scars of a year and a half of shelling. - Vasco Cotovio/CNN

Our offensive does not end here

Velyka Novosilka sits on an axis on the southern front where Ukrainian forces have recently started to push, making advances that have boosted morale.

The 68th Jaeger Brigades deputy commander, Lt. Col. Vasyl Matyiev, says the outlook is favorable to Ukraine.

The situation at the front is now stable. We are advancing every day, conquering more and more territories, Matyiev says. We continue every day, improving results. Not only our division, but also adjacent ones in this direction.

But the fight has not been easy, he says.

Fights are very tough. There are times when the enemy does not want to surrender to the last, he says. At the beginning, they had very good engineering structures, we passed them and are moving.

Lt. Col. Vasyl Matyiev says Ukraine's counter offensive is going according to plan, adding that it "does not end here." - Vasco Cotovio/CNN

Another big factor has been Russias superior air power, which has allowed Moscows forces to push back against Ukraines ground troops.

That superiority was on full display during the CNN teams visit when the Ukrainian forces came under repeated attack by Russian Su-25 ground attack fighter jets.

The jets dropped 500-pound (227-kilogram) bombs, forcing us to take shelter.

The enemys army aviation is used, they repeatedly launch, several launches during the day, Matyiev says, acknowledging Ukraines difficulties on that front.

Kyivs forces, nonetheless, have been able to make some gains. However, analysts believe the main thrust of Ukraines counteroffensive has not yet been on display despite recent advances around Velyka Novosilka, elsewhere in the south and in the east of the country, around Bakhmut.

The Ukrainian government and military have refrained from making any announcements about the counteroffensive, saying simply that plans love silence, a motto Matyiev follows to the letter. He does however hint that more is on the horizon.

Our offensive does not end here, he explains.

Our counterattack will definitely be successful, he adds. We believe in victory, we are moving towards our goal, we are advancing.

Sliver of humanity

Amid the destruction and violence of the war, an elderly lady slowly treks up the same road the Ukrainian soldier sped down earlier, just after lunch time.

With no vest or helmet  not even a hat for the sun  she drags a worn-out trolley along, waving down cars, hoping for a helping hand.

Ive been walking for about 30 minutes now, says 67-year-old Tatiana, who only gave one name for safety reasons. I once walked 28 kilometers (17 miles) and no one gave me a ride.

She was born and raised in Velyka Novosilka, the town where her parents spent their final days. These are memories she refuses to abandon, along with the 400 or so of the frontline towns last remaining residents  most of them elderly.

Craters and unexploded rockets are a common sight in the town of Velyka Novosilka which has been battered by Russian forces - Vasco Cotovio/CNN

They rely on aid deliveries but few organizations risk such a dangerous destination, so Tatiana does it herself, she says.

Volunteers rarely bring bread here. I usually take 10 to 15 loaves of bread and bring them, she explains. I also bring them more medicines.

Its an effort beyond measure, especially for her scarce means.

I have a pension of 2,300 hryvnias ($62) and I collect what I can with this money, she says. I take various medicines  for headaches, heart, bandages, iodine, brilliant green. I spend about 800 hryvnias on medicines, the rest is food to feed the animals.

Whatever is left is for myself.

Velyka Novosilka may have been hollowed out by war, but Tatiana sees it as it once was and shes doing whatever she can to keep that memory  and humanity  alive.

If the Ukrainian military continues to advance, her town might at some point be afforded some breathing room and her job may become easier. But itll still be a while before her burden is lifted.

For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com
Early Sunday morning, Clayton County police said in a statement that they conducted an operation on a business for illegally selling alcohol to its customers.

According to officers, the Taps Bar and Grill on Tara Boulevard in Jonesboro was selling alcohol to patrons without a business license or alcohol permit.

Police said they conducted their operation around 3:15 a.m. on June 11.

[DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks]

When they got to the bar and grill, officers cleared the bar of customers and spoke to three employees at the location.

In a statement published Tuesday, Clayton County police said Taps owner was not on site.

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A worker at the restaurant was arrested for violating Georgias controlled substances law for cocaine possession, as well as possession of a weapon during the commission of a felony.

Another employee was arrested for failure to appear on criminal trespass warrants from Fulton County, according to police.

The third employee was given citations for violating county ordinances and was allowed to leave.

When police got the owner of Taps on the phone, he was also issued citations for violating ordinances and officers removed all alcohol from the location and put it into evidence.

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Chinese Premier Li Qiang meets with visiting President of the Republic of Honduras Iris Xiomara Castro Sarmiento at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, capital of China, June 13, 2023. [Photo/Xinhua]

Chinese Premier Li Qiang on Tuesday met with visiting President of the Republic of Honduras Iris Xiomara Castro Sarmiento in Beijing, with both sides pledging to enhance cooperation.

Li noted that in March this year, the two countries' leaders made the important political decision to establish diplomatic relations, turning over a new page in bilateral ties. He said China greatly appreciates the firm commitment Honduras has made to abide by the one-China principle, and its choice to stand on the right side of history.

"China is willing to work with Honduras to thoroughly implement the important consensus reached by the two heads of state to promote the vibrant development of cooperation in various fields," Li said.

He said that China and Honduras are new friends and partners, and they should be good friends and partners that value mutual respect, equality, mutual benefits and common development. China staunchly supports Honduras in safeguarding its independence, and is willing to strengthen coordination with Honduras in multilateral affairs, Li added.

He urged the two countries to make efforts to advance rapid and steady progress in pragmatic cooperation, and to conduct people-to-people exchanges actively. He said China is ready to tap further into trade potential, accelerate the synergizing of follow-up matters concerning imports of specialty products from Honduras, kick off the negotiation process for a free trade agreement at an early date, carry out investment and financing cooperation in a prudent manner, and accelerate the construction of projects to improve people's well-being.

China hopes Honduras will provide a favorable and facilitating environment for Chinese enterprises to invest and establish businesses in the country, Li noted.

Castro said that Honduras attaches great importance to relations with China, and it adheres to the one-China principle. The Honduran side is ready to work with China to promote people-to-people exchanges and enhance cooperation in such areas as agriculture, poverty reduction and infrastructure construction to bring bilateral ties onto a steady and sound track and to bring more benefits to the two peoples.
Over 100 individuals have been arrested following a street racing gathering in Oklahoma.

Residents in the area reportedly filed complaints prompting the Oklahoma City Police Department to disrupt the meet and take action. The June 11 gathering involved trespassing on private land, specifically a warehouse in the 8700 block of S Pole Road, where racers and bystanders were taken into custody.

Apart from the arrests, more than 50 vehicles were impounded and several weapons were recovered, including five handguns and an AR-15. They also recovered one stolen car.

MSgt. Dillon Quirk of the Oklahoma City Police Department said that while these were significant numbers, the results were not so unusual.

More: Mass arrest Sunday night connected to illegal Oklahoma City street racing group

"It's not uncommon to seize automatic firearms or handguns at gatherings or events of this type. We've had operations where we've seen it before, somewhat regularly," Quirk said.

The police department tweeted that, in total, there were more than 110 arrests and 110 citations issued.

Street takeover gatherings involve reckless driving, loud music and street racing, and are often carried out on public roads and highways. Oklahoma City police said they started receiving tips about the gatherings in early May.

In response to recent citizen complaints, June 11th OKCPD disrupted a street takeover gathering & arrested more than 100-people trespassing on private property in the 8700-block of S. Pole Road.



In addition to the arrests several vehicles were impounded and weapons recovered. pic.twitter.com/pZNUgSp98N  Oklahoma City Police (@OKCPD) June 13, 2023

This incident draws parallels to a previous incident in which police arrested nearly 70 people on trespassing complaints as drivers were reportedly hot-rodding in a Hobby Lobby parking lot in southwest Oklahoma City near an I-240 Service Road. At least 67 people were arrested on complaints of trespassing that night.

Still, police maintain this is a normal but somewhat infrequent happening.

"As for there being any sort of pattern or persistence of this kind of event, we simply received a tip and when we have tips of this nature, we intend to follow them up as effectively as we can," Quirk said.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: OKC police arrest over 100 after street racing complaints
Photo Illustration by Elizabeth Brockway/The Daily Beast/Getty/AP/Handout

Oklahoma schools rank 49th in the nation, so you might assume the official in charge of running them would have more pressing concerns than issuing a completely bonkers statement regarding Donald Trumps arraignment in Miami federal court.

Joe Biden Leading a Banana Republic Coup Against American Justice, announced the press release from Oklahoma Superintendent of Public Instruction Ryan Walters on Monday.

The accompanying statement has nothing to do with education and proved that the dunce elected last year to supervise the schooling of 700,000 kids is either a result or a perpetuator of far right indoctrinationpossibly both.

We are seeing the most profound unwinding of the U.S. Constitution that our country has ever experienced since the Civil War, Walters statement begins. The impending arrest of former President Donald Trump is Joe Biden wielding power that one would find in a third-world dictator attempting to end his opponents political campaign.

Walters, who is 38, then proceeds from falsehood to conspiracy theory.

The investigation is a highly coordinated trap by the DOJ, and the entire Democratic establishment promoting these actions.

Walters ends by saying, These are illegal actions by Biden as part of a banana republic coup on the entire judicial system and the Constitution.

Frustrated Trump Pleads Not GuiltyAgain

The truth is that Trump sought and failed to thwart the 2020 result with a Big Lie that he continues to voice dailyone that his followers still buy into wholeheartedly. He has bolstered his fantasy by installing a facsimile of the Oval Office desk in his Mar-a-Lago home and referring to himself in the third person. His pronoun is the royal, not the all-inclusive pronoun WE.

He has also held onto a stash of classified documents and refused to relinquish them despite numerous pleas and warnings from investigators. He once said that nobody is above the lawbut he strenuously sought to make himself an exception.

Trumps arrest and arraignment in Miami on Tuesday afternoon should have been a teachable moment for school kids in Oklahoma, along with everywhere else. The lesson is that even a former president is subject to the law. That is one of the central principles that made America great in the first place and will continue to do so as long as we honor it.

But in his statement, Walters chose fantasy over educationand you have to ask yourself why. Does he actually believe it?

A recording of him talking about kitty litter boxes in classroomsa wacky falsehood spread by him and other far-right loonies to rile up their basesounds like he would believe almost anything about the the radical left that he has pledged to vanquish from his states schools, along with their woke ideology.

Walters defended the far-right group Moms for Liberty when the Southern Poverty Law Center branded it an extremist group in its annual report released last week. And two days before he posted his delusional press release about Trumps arraignment, he retweeted an announcement by the Moms for Liberty that he would be one of the speakers at the groups upcoming summit in Philadelphia. Other scheduled speakers include Trump and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who Walters seems to parrot often.

Moms for Liberty bills Walters as one of the most innovative leaders in education in America. Some of those who work with him might disagree. A state education official named Matthew Colwell who had, until last month, been in charge of overseeing Oklahomas federal education funds told a local news outlet, We had to convert a 1-pager to 4 to 6 bullet points for Supt. Walters because I needed to translate it like Im talking to a five-year-old.

Tucker Carlson Rolls Out Wild New Defense of Donald Trump

Colwell, whose duties included the complex task of ensuring each of the states 541 school districts received its due share, told The Daily Beast that Walters did not seem interested in the particulars of running a huge educational organization.

At some point you start to expect that somebody in a position of that importance is going to learn something about how to do the job, Colwell said. It felt more and more like hes not really interested in doing the job that he has. I don't know what job he wants, but it doesnt seem to be being the leader of the school system in Oklahoma. It just kind of seems like maybe theres something else out there.

Whatever that something might be, Walters strategy for getting it seems clear.

Tweeting and talking and spinning, Colwell said. Most of his attention [is] on really national political type stuff.

That would include what Walters calls liberal indoctrinationas well as so-called wokeism. He has also spoken out about supposed porn in schools, an issue that Colwell says is not on the forefront of most teachers or students minds.

None of that is like the concerns that people are raising in Oklahoma, Colwell said. These are not the actual issues that we hear every single day from teachers and superintendent and principals, what they're really dealing with. Like the porn in libraries, nobodys worried about that in schools. They're worried about trying to get kids to go to the library.

He added that if principals see porn as a danger, it is the porn that kids can summon instantly on their cellphones.

And like sharing pictures of each other, Colwell said. Thats what principals are worried about. Theyre not worried about, you know, some random book. No enterprising 13-year-old is going to search for porn by sneaking into his school library and find the one naughty book that got hidden there 10 years ago.

In terms of innovation, Walters prepared to offer teachers big signing bonuses with a five-year commitment. Colwell, who says he is fiscally conservative and politically centrist, pointed out that Walters plan appeared to violate state lawand maybe also federal regulations.

I guess the charitable way to say this is [Walters] has a higher tolerance for not complying with the law than I do, Colwell said.

Colwell was summoned to human resources on May 26.

They said, I just got a call from your boss Colwell said. [HR] got it directly from Ryan Walters that I was to be terminated, effective immediately.

Colwell subsequently filed a wrongful termination lawsuit. A Walters spokesperson dismissed it as Yet another example of a baseless claim.

Contrary to being a public servant, this individual is a political activist who has no business being funded by Oklahoma taxpayers, the spokesman went on. This administration will not tolerate pre-existing bureaucrats who are not 100% committed to empowering parents, ending leftist indoctrination, and making Oklahomas public education the best in the nation.

The response sounded like a melding of Trump and DeSantis.

Walters spokesperson did not respond to an inquiry from The Daily Beast about the Trump press release and how that fits with the duties of a state superintendentor whether his bananas banana-republic version of the event is what he would like to see taught in the states schools.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

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It's Flag Day!

It's one of those holidays we love to celebrate with stories  whether about the largest flag in the world (right here on the George Washington Bridge) or the city that proudly displays flags on its skyline (Newark). We've written about how flags can be divisive (more than once) and how they should be celebrated.

Here's a collection of Flag Day stories for you to peruse  along with lots of photos of Old Glory in all its glory.

Flag Day, which marks the adoption of the United States flag on June 14, 1777 by resolution of the Second Continental Congress, is the perfect time to learn some does and don'ts. Read it: How to display the flag properly.

The biggest free-flying American flag in the world spends 356 days a year hiding in a secret steel tube. The tube is dark and shiny inside, and it smells faintly of fresh paint. It is suspended vertically just north of dead-center from the New Jersey tower of the George Washington Bridge. Read it: For Flag Day, world's biggest American flag comes out of hiding.

This essay was part of the program at a recent flag retirement ceremony; the author is unknown. It begins: "Some people cal me Old Glory; others call me the Star-Spangled Banner. But, whatever they call me. I am your flag  the flag of the United States of America.: Read it: I am your flag.

The idea of Betsey Ross being the designer and maker of the first American flag is now considered by most historians to be the stuff of legend. Mostly forgotten is a gentleman from New Jersey who designed the banner adopted as the American flag by Congress in 1777. Read it: NJ's connection to the flag.

One nation, indivisible. That's the meaning of the flag we celebrate on Flag Day  June 14. Since 1954, when the clause was added to the Pledge of Allegiance, we even celebrate it under God. But in our disunited United States of 2019, our indivisible flag is becoming a wee bitdivisive? Read it: Flags are supposed to unify us. In increasingly divided United States, that's not the case.

The flag flying on the roof of 1180 Raymond Blvd. measures twenty feet by thirty feet. The flag is typically replaced every three to four months, however due to a flag shortage as a result of the pandemic the building has had to wait longer than usual to replace their flag.

Each city has its distinctive skyline. New York: a jagged-tooth comb. Paris: a gameboard, flat, with a single token  the Eiffel Tower  sticking up out of the middle. And Newark? Newark has flags. Read it: Every city has its own skyline. In Newark, it's all about the flags

A U.S. Navy officer places an American flag in the lawn of Cliffside Park High School with student volunteers to honor those who died in combat ahead of Memorial Day on Monday, May 22, 2023.

In July of 1987, I pledged allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and renounced my citizenship to the country of my birth, Taiwan. I was in awe of the 13 stripes representing the original colonies, the 50 stars representing the states, in a blazing glory of red, white and blue. It was a symbol of hope and welcome. It's a memory I return to on this Flag Day, even as that symbol of a nation indivisible has somehow become divisive, politicized like everything else in modern-day America. Read it: Old Glory should be a sign of unity.

This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Flag Day 2023: Our coverage of Old Glory in all its glory
I was one of the reporters covering Trump's federal arraignment. We left our computers and cell phones behind during the unprecedented news event.

Reporters depart the Wilkie D. Ferguson Jr. United States Federal Courthouse after the arraignment hearing for former President Donald Trump concluded on June 13, 2023 in Miami, Florida. Trump pleaded not guilty to 37 federal charges including possession of national security documents after leaving office, obstruction, and making false statements. Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

I was in the courthouse when Trump was arraigned Tuesday.

Some reporters were granted access to the courtroom through a lottery system.

No cell phones or laptops were allowed in the courthouse, leaving us to rely on an old-school journalism approach of pay phones and notepads.

MIAMI  "We most certainly enter a plea of not guilty."

I jotted the quote into my notebook, making sure I caught every word so that I could quickly pull my eyes back to the action.

The words, coming from former President Donald Trump's lawyer, Todd Blanche, on Tuesday, had been expected, but I scrutinized every move inside that courtroom and transcribed as much as I could. Blanche had leaned down slightly, his hands on the defense table. Trump himself appeared somber, sometimes crossing his arms.

Here I was, reporting what happened inside a room that only about 100 people would witness, not counting court personnel. A former US president was being federally charged for the first time in history.

Journalists with the closest access to the Trump arraignment were inside the courtroom, within feet of the former president. Those 26 journalists were picked at random  from a lottery of business cards dropped off with the clerk hours just earlier. All hoped they would get picked to be inside the room to dissect facial expressions, crane their necks at any whispering, and detect nuances in tone.

At one point, the clerk did call my name. Another 17 would be let into the courtroom, she said. My name was among the last few called. As we waited outside the elevator, the clerk called us back, saying there had been a "miscommunication" and that only five more reporters could enter the courtroom. I wouldn't get in after all.

Instead, I was in a jury holding room eight floors down with more than 50 other journalists, all of us huddled around four television screens, squinting at times to watch the court proceedings.

It was still more than most of the public would get to see.

The Wilkie D. Ferguson Jr. US Courthouse is seen early Tuesday, June 13, 2023, in Miami. Former President Donald Trump is making a federal court appearance on dozens of felony charges accusing him of illegally hoarding classified documents and thwarting the Justice Department's efforts to get the records back. Wilfredo Lee/AP Photo

The circumstances of the day were unusual, which is probably to be expected for such an unprecedented event in US history. Court rules can vary some, but typically, when reporters receive access to federal court they're allowed to bring along their cell phones and laptops.

This time, no such devices were allowed, and the court proceedings were not broadcast outside the courtroom to the public, so we had to write down everything on paper. The camera panned to each speaker  US Magistrate Judge Jonathan Goodman, Blanche, and prosecutor David Harbach.

Trump's personal aide, Waltine Nauta, who was also being indicted, stared down at the table for much of the back and forth. At one point, I did see Blanche whisper something to Trump, and he chuckled.

The author, Kimberly Leonard, is a senior politics correspondent for Insider, based out of South Florida. WEDU PBS

The day began early

Trump arrived on time for his court appearance  early even  and journalists had waited inside the federal courthouse in downtown Miami since 8:30 a.m., for about seven hours, without any electronic devices.

Nine Trump supporters had parked themselves outside the courthouse all night, and all of them would eventually be granted access to the courtroom.

Reporters waiting to cover the arraignment could also see outside the room where they were holding us, where a small number of Trump supporters had gathered to wave flags. Every Trump rally has colorful characters. I'd spotted a stake through a pig's head on my way in, and an anti-Trump demonstrator dressed up in a prison costume, dragging a fake ball and chain.

Overall, however, the day appeared far more calm, and the crowds much smaller, than many had predicted. The City of Miami said it was prepared to handle crowds as large as 50,000, but I would estimate under 1,000 gathered throughout the day.

At one point, I peeked through the blinds and spotted two dozen police officers who were carrying helmets leaving the building and fanning out onto the area.

Every once in a while, the US Marshall would take our questions. Around 11 a.m., the marshall told us what to expect: Trump would be booked but wouldn't take a mugshot. He would get fingerprinted digitally.

After that, word go out that reporters could access a phone booth on the other side of the room  but that it would only place local calls. We lined up quickly.

My editors are based all over the US, so I sat down with a phone book for a while to see if I could find any of my Miamian friends in there and arrange a three-way call. I struck out.

Another reporter recommended I try phones on other floors. I was able to call out on the 12th floor, which did make calls outside the area, and spoke with my editor about the latest developments.

Trump himself would be in a courtroom on the 13th floor. I was surprised by this  many apartment buildings in Miami skip the 13th floor for superstitious reasons.

"Make yourselves comfortable," the judge said after he sat down in his chair. The time in the courtroom would span over 40 minutes, with Trump under new orders not to discuss the case with witnesses.

Read the original article on Business Insider
OpenAI warned Microsoft not to rush the release of its Bing chatbot before it told users it loved them and wanted to be human, report says

Bing and OpenAI logos. Getty Images

Microsoft's Bing chatbot told users it loved them and wanted to be a human when it was released.

OpenAI warned the company that its GPT-4 model could give bizarre responses, per the WSJ.

There were tensions between the two companies over release dates, the Journal reported.

Remember those stories about Microsoft's AI-powered search engine Bing saying some concerning things when it was first released in February?

For example, its conversation with a Digital Trends reporter, where it said: "I want to be human. I want to be like you. I want to have emotions. I want to have thoughts. I want to have dreams."

Or telling The New York Times' Kevin Roose: "Actually, you're not happily married. Your spouse and you don't love each other ... Actually, you're in love with me."

Well, The Wall Street Journal reports that Microsoft previously warned OpenAI to move slower on Bing's release because it hadn't yet ironed out all these issues.

The two companies have an unusual partnership. Microsoft is a leading investor in OpenAI, pilling nearly $13 billion into the business, but doesn't own the business. Bing is also powered by OpenAI's latest chatbot model, GPT-4.

But the two companies are also in competition because they are trying to make money by selling similar products, the Journal wrote.

The Journal's report details tensions between the two companies around their plans to release this new tech to the public.

Some Microsoft execs had reservations about ChatGPT's initial November launch because it was still working on integrating GPT into Bing, and was only given a few weeks' notice, per the WSJ.

And then when Microsoft was readying its own chatbot, they still went ahead despite warnings from OpenAI that it could give bizarre responses, the Journal reported.

After several users reported worrying interactions with Bing, Microsoft imposed limits to exchanges that contained user questions and Bing replies.

"Very long chat sessions can confuse the underlying chat model," Microsoft said.

It seems to have solved the problem, but if Microsoft listened to OpenAI's concerns we might never have had that glimpse into the potential of dystopian chatbots.

Microsoft and OpenAI did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.

Read the original article on Business Insider
Milagro! Milagro! Milagro! Milagro!

Four times the Spanish word for miracle crackled over the walkie talkies, once for each of the four Colombian children found alive after spending exactly 40 days  a number charged with mystical resonance  in the impossibly dense and danger-filled Amazon jungle after the plane they were flying on crashed, killing the three adults on board, including their mother.

Frida Ghitis - CNN

Indeed, it looked like a miracle, a miracle made possible by the persistence of the rescuers and the resourcefulness of 13-year-old Lesly Jacobombaire Mucutuy, the eldest of the children and the one who took charge after the crash.

Colombians had been riveted to the unfolding drama ever since rescuers reached the crash site deep in the Guaviare region, located in the southern central area of the country, two weeks after the May 1 crash, and found the bodies of the adults but no sign of the children.

The news on Friday was almost too good to believe. It electrified a country whose people have endured more than their share of suffering.

The story of survival quickly washed over the globe, bringing a much-needed respite  news with a happy ending  to a world where stressful, depressing and simply bad news seem to be the order of the day. For a moment, we could take a break from the latest on the brutal war and man-made floods in Ukraine, from the divisiveness, the invective and the threats of violence in the United States. From all the conflicts, military, political and social that at times feel like they might tear apart the world.

Instead of writing about the arraignment of former President Donald Trump, I relished the chance to look away if only for a few hours. After all, I, too, had been mesmerized by the plight of the indigenous children wandering in the South American rainforest. I have spent time in the Amazon jungle. I didnt think there was any chance theyd be found alive. Im thrilled to have been proven wrong.

The more we learn about their story, the more it fills us with awe. Though our rejoicing should be tempered with the cold reality that the children lost their mother in the tragic accident.

After the crash, Jacobombaire Mucutuy first pulled her youngest sister out of the wreckage and eventually the four children were on the move together, as Jacobombaire Mucutuy put to good use the lessons she had learned as an indigenous girl, a member of the Huitoto people. She grabbed a bag of yuca (cassava) flour found on the plane, along with some more supplies  a tarp, a blanket, netting, flashlights, according to rescuers  and set out, determined to survive.

She cared for the youngest, baby Cristin, who turned 1 during the ordeal, along with Soleiny, 9, and Tien Ranoque, just 4.

The virgin Amazon jungle is the thickest, most impenetrable of any Ive ever seen in my travels. Rescuers said it rained 16 hours a day, making it nearly impossible to hear responses to the childrens calls. The jungle is rife with poisonous snakes, jaguars, insects and all manner of dangers. The ground may have even hidden landmines from the days of the war.

And, in fact, the area is still home to armed militias. The reason the family was on the tragedy-bound plane is that Manuel Ranoque, the father of the two youngest children, had to flee the area and move to Bogota after being threatened by groups known as the dissidents, former members of the Marxist FARC guerrillas who refused to demobilize after the government signed a peace deal in 2016.

To say the childrens chances of survival were slim is an almost laughable understatement. They seemed doomed.

But finding them became a national cause. Some 70 indigenous trackers joined more than 100 members of Colombias military on a mission that brought the country together like few, if any, crises have. A nation that suffered more than half a century of armed conflict, where Marxist guerrillas fought the army and right-wing paramilitaries often taking cover in the jungle. And it was in the same jungles where they held many of the thousands of kidnapping and extortion victims, as well as drug labs and ruthless drug traffickers, and where bloody battles between insurgents and the military, guerrillas and paramilitaries unfolded. But now, the country suddenly was engaged in a mission without controversy, without friends, foes or combatants. The goal was to find the children and save them.

One of the heroes of the mission was Wilson, the search dog, who has gone missing in the jungle. The children say they spent several days with Wilson, and their drawings of their time in the jungle show him. Finding him has now become the national obsession and the army has vowed that when it says it will leave no one behind, that includes Wilson.

With Wilsons help, trackers found signs of life, a baby bottle cover, a half-eaten fruit that had been bitten into and the childrens tiny footprints. Jacobombaire Mucutuy had guided her siblings toward water. She also knew how to find edible seeds and fruits, which, if done without expertise, could quickly have led to death in a forest filled with tangles of unrecognizable vegetation.

Now recovering at a military hospital in the Colombian capital, Bogota, the children said they took shelter at times inside tree trunks to protect themselves from predators.

Trackers said they have discovered they were close to the children  as close as 20 meters  but the dense jungle, with trees over 100 feet tall blocking the light, near constant rain and minimal visibility even when the rain stopped, made it almost impossible to spot them.

Ranoque said his children survived because Jacobombaire Mucutuy knew what to do. But he also credits the spiritual power of the jungle. They survived, he said, with the powers of the grandpas, a spiritual sustenance. He added, We are the children of nature, so we respect nature  and in her safety, we can rest.

Whatever the forces that made it possible for the children to survive for 40 days in the Amazon jungle, their story has been a balm for Colombia, and Colombia has shared that balm, that miracle, with a world that desperately needed a dose of good news.

For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com
Tuesday marked a sad and stunning moment in American history: A former president arriving at a federal courthouse, then put under arrest by US Marshals, accused of placing the nations security at risk in the mishandling of classified documents and then obstructing efforts to investigate his alleged crimes.

This is the first time a former American president has been arraigned on federal charges. And the charges themselves make this moment all the more troubling.

Jill Filipovic - Courtesy of Jill Filipovic

Former President Donald Trump pleaded not guilty to all 37 federal charges at a federal courthouse in Miami on Tuesday afternoon. He stands accused of illegally taking classified national security documents with him when he left office in January 2021, then allegedly sharing some of those documents  which include highly sensitive national security secrets  with people who do not have security clearances, then refusing to return all of the documents, and then lying about it and conspiring to cover it up.

The documents in question, according to the government, included information regarding defense and weapons capabilities of both the United States and foreign countries; United States nuclear programs; potential vulnerabilities of the United States and its allies to military attack; and plans for possible retaliation in response to a foreign attack. It does not take a national security expert to understand how dangerous it is to have these documents floating around  or stored in a Florida bathroom, as some of the documents were, according to the federal indictment.

Trump denies any wrongdoing. After his not guilty plea on Tuesday, he was released and is continuing his campaign for another term as president.

The indictment says that Trump willfully retained national security information, violated the Espionage Act more than 30 times, and conspired to obstruct justice, among other crimes. As Trumps own former Attorney General Bill Barr said on Fox News on Sunday, If even half of [the indictment] is true then hes toast. Its a very detailed indictment, and its very, very damning.

Whether the former president is toast or not remains to be seen. What is clear, though, is that this case will be a test of the US justice system and the strength of national institutions in a (for now) post-Trump America.

The steady deconstruction of the administrative state, attacks on essential American institutions, and the stacking of the federal judiciary with conservative and often unqualified ideologues remain among the most devastating legacies of the Trump administration.

Now, with Trump facing charges for at least some of the many crimes he has been accused of committing, we will see just how resilient our institutions are  or whether the Trump administration did damage deep enough to undermine the basic principle that no one is above the law.

The judge who will be overseeing this trial, Aileen Cannon, is a Trump appointee who faced criticism for her ruling in favor of Trumps request to have a third party review of last years FBI search of his residence in Mar-a-Lago. Her decision, legal observers from both sides of the aisle agreed, was shocking and unprecedented. A federal appeals court then ruled against the decision in December.

In a functional judicial system, individual judges may have their own political opinions, but do their best to set their own preferences aside and rule instead on the basis of the letter of the law and legal precedent. That norm has quickly slipped in the United States, as a Supreme Court now stacked with conservative judges  three of them appointed by Trump  has torn up long-held precedent and stripped long-held rights from millions of Americans.

Other far-right Trump-appointed judges have issued outrageous and shocking rulings that any honest legal observer has to admit are driven by ideology, not the law - from overruling the decades-old approval of an abortion-inducing drug to issuing highly unusual rulings in favor of the former president to simply ignoring decades of previous litigation.

One question is whether Judge Cannon will play the case straight, or lead with her politics  and how she behaves will be one indicator of either the corrective effect of American institutions, or the corrosive result of Trumps norm-busting presidency.

Another is how the rest of the Republican Party will react. Even before they had seen the full set of charges, many Republican politicians were defending the former president, though a few have now said the charges made it appear Trump had been reckless in his handling of the documents. A bathroom door locks, said Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy to reporters on Monday, referring to where some of the documents in Mar-a-Lago were found. And Trumps primary opponents, with the exception and Chris Christie, have largely taken the highly unusual step of not emphasizing the charges in their campaigns.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said he is going to stay out of it. But national security should not be a partisan issue, and the GOP owes it to the nation to assess the facts of this case with clear eyes. Instead, the Republican Party seems largely still tied to the Trump train  even as it careens off the rails.

And finally, there is the question of the public. Trump and his allies have set their own narrative, even in the face of damning evidence presented in painstaking detail: That this is a partisan witch hunt; that liberals and Democrats will stop at nothing to destroy the former president; and that the Justice Department, like Americas electoral process, simply cannot be trusted.

Like Trumps earlier false claims that the 2020 election was stolen, this is an attack on both Democrats and American democracy more broadly, and it could have the long-term effect of seriously undermining public confidence in the rule of law and the nation itself. Already, Americans have lost significant confidence in our most venerated institutions, with confidence in the Supreme Court and the presidency taking the biggest dips between 2021 and 2022, according to a Gallup survey.

Arresting and charging a former president is no small thing, and whatever ones politics, today is a somber day in America. There is likely no convincing Trumps most fervent supporters that his version of events isnt true, even if his version changes, and even as he often tells bald-faced lies  just as mounds and mounds of evidence never managed to convince many Trump supporters that the 2020 election was indeed free and fair, and Joe Biden was the rightful winner.

These kinds of divisions  not just on opinions, but on facts  are difficult gaps to bridge. And bridging them is made even more difficult when leaders of one of two major political parties refuse to take a stand for truth, democracy and the rule of law. In a time of ever-cleaving partisanship, today marks another major turning point that seems virtually guaranteed to push Trump supporters even further away from the rest of the country than before.

Still, as depressing as today may be, it would be far more deleterious to the future of the nation to simply say that former presidents are immune from the legal consequences of their actions. Ignoring wrongdoing doesnt solve it; it allows it to fester and potentially for bad actors to act again, or for others to pick up where they left off.

Any president who is found to have used national security documents for bragging rights and flouted American law must be held accountable. Failure to do so wont unify the country; it will only undermine confidence in its basic sense of fairness and its justice system.

So far, the gears of the justice system are grinding away. The indictment is meticulous. The arrest, despite the carnival-like atmosphere outside the courtroom and Trumps as-usual outrageous comments on social media, was carried out with little fanfare inside.

Trump returned to New Jersey, where he delivered a bombastic speech calling his arraignment the most evil and heinous abuse of power in the history of our country. But the question now is whether justice will indeed prevail  or whether this former president, indicted on 37 counts, has not only broken the law, but the system designed to enforce it.

For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com
Eliza Anderson, Deseret News

Bookcases with broken backs, bed frames where every support slat had been pulled out, uncovered mattresses coated in at least a decade of dust, high school homework from kids who graduated more than eight years ago, melted candles (after numerous summers in outside storage), bills from 2009, dot matrix printer paper and floppy disks. These are all things Ive paid money to store. For years.

On Memorial Day weekend, my husband and I and some of our adult kids emptied out our storage unit  the one weve had for so long I cant remember when we got it. We took five trailer loads to the dump and two to Deseret Industries (mostly books).

I found cute baby boy and girl clothes that I kept because I had this fantasy that my kids would want them for their kids. My youngest son turns 23 this month. My youngest daughter is 8. As it turns out, styles change in more than 20 years and my kids who are parents are not that interested in clothes from 2000 or earlier. Go figure. Also, I found out that elastic gets brittle after 20-plus years, making pants and socks useless anyway. For our youngest daughter, I forgot that we had stored baby girl clothes in the storage unit and we bought new items for her. Sigh.

After years of paying for a storage unit, why clean it out now? Well, Ive been binge-watching the show Hoarders and it has been both terrifying and motivating.

Hoarders

Each show begins with the disclaimer that Compulsive hoarding is a mental disorder marked by an obsessive need to acquire and keep things, even if the items are worthless, hazardous or unsanitary. Up to 19 million Americans have hoarding disorder, says the show.

The National Study Group on Chronic Disorganization, now the Institute for Challenging Disorganization, developed a five-level scale to define the seriousness of the hoarding. Level 1 has few visible indicators because the hoard can be kept out of sight, but the person who is a Level 1 hoarder has trouble throwing away items and may do a lot of shopping for things that are not really needed. Level 2 has noticeable piles, with at least one blocked exit, the clutter is starting to spill into the walkways and the hoarder is embarrassed to have visitors over. Level 3 involves so much stuff the walkways are narrowed, the home smells and the hoarder typically has poor personal hygiene. Level 4 has homes with structural damage, sewage issues and rooms that cannot be used. And with Level 5, there are clear fire hazards, no electricity or water, and accumulated human waste.

Related

I may not qualify as a hoarder, but I definitely dont declutter as often as I should. Why? There are a number of reasons, Im sure. My ADHD means its easier to stick stuff in a box and forget about it rather than deal with it. We still have a lot of people living in our home. Im busy. Sometimes, I have strong emotional attachments to things. When our daughter Angelia died, I held on to her blanket for 10 years before I could donate it. Ten. Years. My husband hangs on to things because his mom grew up in poverty and she held on to things, just in case. You just never know when you might need to reuse bread ties. It took me 20 years to convince Greg that the computer programming books that were current in the 1980s were just no longer relevant.

We kept what?!

I asked some of my friends what they were holding onto that they could let go of, and you know what I learned? We all hold onto stuff. Here are some of their answers: broken skates, rocks, old check registers from more than a decade ago, old Playstation games, hand sanitizer bottles, teeth (baby and wisdom), socks without a mate, old magazines, dried up paint, scrapbook stuff we paid a fortune for in the 90s and havent touched since, the first training bra, a candy wrapper from a fun trip, floppy discs, stained clothes and a 33-year-old strawberry basket.

Radio talk show host Debbie Dujanovic shared her story about detaching from greeting cards.

Im 56 years old and hauled around boxes of cards from my toddler years on up until last summer. Ive moved at least 13 times and each time unopened plastic containers of well wishes went with me. It sounds ridiculous, but I felt guilty parting with them. Thanks to a conversation I had with Amy Donaldson Brass last summer I dumped the guilt, and thankfully most of the cards. ... I sat down with stacks of birthday, Christmas, graduation cards and went through each one. I kept some  the ones with kind words of encouragement or those from family members and close friends who have had a positive impact on my life. I donated the remainder, boxes of them, to a recycle bin.

At least two other friends have kept cards for decades  one of them more than 60 years. Uh oh. Looks like I have another decluttering project to tackle ...

Stay tuned for Part 2 on what to keep.

Holly Richardson is the editor of Utah Policy.
`There ought to be a law: How to contact your state and federal representatives

From time to time, we get requests to publish a list of state and federal representatives and their contact information. In years past, The Modesto Bees opinion page did that with regularity, as a public service, to make it easier to connect with the people you elect to offices in Sacramento and Washington, D.C.

Ive resisted this request for two main reasons: The information is readily available in a few keystrokes to anyone with internet service and, in all honesty, its usually less cumbersome and more accurate than a newspaper clipping. By that I mean the internet pinpoints which districts you live in, and who represents those districts, while trying to figure it out from a newspaper column can be tricky and prone to error.

Dont believe me? Try this experiment.

On your computer or mobile device, type legislator lookup in your search engine, whether Google or Bing or whatever. You should get several results leading you to a site where you simply type in your address and verify, in a nanosecond, which politicians represent you in the California Senate and Assembly and in the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives.

The best site might be openstates.org/find_your_legislator because results are comprehensive. Another, believe it or not, is secure.aspca.org/legislator-lookup provided by the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. No, you dont have to believe in its cause to use its legislator locator, which is as helpful as any. It provides multiple social media links, too.

As you might expect, the League of Women Voters has a fine legislator locator, as well: lwv.org/take-action/find-your-elected-officials.

The government has its own easy-to-use sites, if your issue is focused. So if you only want to contact a state rep, try findyourrep.legislature.ca.gov. For the House, go to house.gov/representatives/find-your-representative.

CalMatters has a locator thats a little more fun, because you can see if your state representative is considered liberal or conservative, and to what degree. Visit calmatters.org/legislator-tracker.

We should recognize, however, that some readers will refuse to use any electronic device more complicated than a TV remote. They are valued readers and constituents whose concerns, struggles and questions are every bit as valid as anyone elses.

So, by popular demand, here is a clippable list of state and federal representatives that might look fine on your fridge or bulletin board. Weve tried to include brief descriptions of areas they represent, but if you live close to a border, youll want to look it up electronically to be sure.

California Senate

District 4 Marie Alvarado-Gil

Stanislaus County, plus all or part of Merced, Tuolumne, Alpine, Amador, Calaveras, El Dorado, Inyo, Madera, Mariposa, Mono, Nevada and Placer counties

209-576-6001

sd04.senate.ca.gov

California Assembly

District 22 Juan Alanis

Modesto, Turlock, Ceres, Patterson and Newman in Stanislaus County, plus north Merced County

209-521-2201

ad22.asmrc.org

District 9 Heath Flora

Riverbank, Oakdale, Hughson and Waterford in Stanislaus County, plus all or part of San Joaquin, Amador, Calaveras and Sacramento counties

209-599-2112

ad09.asmrc.org

U.S. Senate

Dianne Feinstein

415-393-0707

feinstein.senate.gov

Alex Padilla

916-448-2787

padilla.senate.gov

U.S. House of Representatives

District 5 Tom McClintock

Most of Modesto and Stanislaus County east of Highway 99, plus all or part of Tuolumne, Fresno, Amador, Calaveras, El Dorado, Madera and Mariposa counties

209-550-6910

mcclintock.house.gov

District 13 John Duarte

Stanislaus County west of Highway 99 plus Ceres, and all or part of Merced, San Joaquin, Fresno and Madera counties

209-226-6880

duarte.house.gov

District 9 Josh Harder

Most of San Joaquin County, including Ripon and Escalon

209-579-5458

harder.house.gov
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Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Qin Gang meets with Palestinian Foreign Minister Riyad Al-Maliki in Beijing, capital of China, June 13, 2023. Al-Maliki is accompanying Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on his state visit to China. [Photo/Xinhua]

Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Qin Gang met with Palestinian Foreign Minister Riyad Al-Maliki in Beijing on Tuesday.

Al-Maliki is accompanying Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on his state visit to China from June 13 to 16.

President Abbas is the first Arab head of state to be hosted by China this year, which speaks volumes about the special friendship between the two countries and China's support for the just cause of Palestine, Qin said.

He said he believes the two heads of state will plan the future development of bilateral relations and advance the traditional friendship to a higher level.

China has always firmly supported the Palestinian people's just cause of restoring their legitimate national rights and will continue to support peace talks between Palestine and Israel and contribute wisdom to resolving the Palestinian question, Qin said.

Al-Maliki said China is a trustworthy, reliable friend, and Palestine appreciates the proposals pushed forward by China's head of state for resolving the Palestinian question.

He added Palestine follows the one-China policy and will continue to support China on issues concerning China's core interests.
Oxygen tanks can cause house fires. One Iowa fire chief is working to reduce that threat.

If Lawrence Scott were a resident of the UK instead of living in Nevada, Iowa, he would probably still be alive.

"In the UK, they require these Firesafe Thermal Shut-off Valves," Nevada Director of Fire and EMS Ray Reynolds said Wednesday. "If these shunts were installed, this probably wouldn't have happened."

Reynolds was referencing the April 22 fire in Nevada that killed Scott and injured two family members. The fire was ruled accidental, according to a Nevada Public Safety Department press release.

Scott was receiving oxygen treatment in his home while also smoking, which caused the fire.

"The last two fire fatalities in Nevada were caused by people smoking while using supplemental oxygen," Reynolds said.

Reynolds said many fires in the city are caused by residents who smoke during oxygen treatments and it's become a threat to the entire community as well as those fighting the fires.

"There was a fire last year where we pulled out a lady still alive, but she only lived 24 hours," Reynolds said. "She was severely burned. And I've got some 18-year-old volunteer firefighters who've never seen a tragedy like that. I had a firefighter quit. They didn't really sign up for that kind of reality. It takes a toll on the mental health of firefighters."

Reynolds was referring to a fire April 21, 2022 at 10 Maple Lot 101 where 74-year-old Ruth Olson died. The fire erupted when Olson was smoking while using oxygen treatment.

More: Cornerstone Church first responder receives city's highest honor with Award of Valor

"The last two fatal fires in Nevada were from people smoking and using oxygen at home," Reynolds said. "The last three fires we've had were oxygen and cigarette related."

According to Reynolds, between 2019 and 2021 across 40 states, 256 fires were caused by smokers using oxygen in their homes. Of those 256 fires, 152 resulted in deaths and 77 resulted in a total loss of the home.

Compare that, Reynolds said, to a five-year span in the United Kingdom where Firesafe Thermal Shut-off Valves are legally required on oxygen tanks. From 2013-2018, there was only a single fire-related fatality caused by smoking with at-home oxygen.

"We have a problem and I'm going to figure out how to solve it," Reynolds said.

Working to halt fatalities

The fire director has gathered a national group of leaders through the International Association of Fire Chief, the group that creates the nation's fire code. They are working with legislators and industry leaders to change the nation's attitude toward Firesafe Thermal Shut-off Valves.

"For example, the Veteran's Association is requiring them for home oxygen, but Medicare won't pay the $11.25 for one," Reynolds said.

Most of the leaders he has spoken to about the valves say "It's a no-brainer idea. But changing Medicare is not a fast process.

So I'm just stubborn enough to do it," Reynolds said.

Teresa Kay Albertson covers politics, crime, courts and local government in Ames and central Iowa for the Ames Tribune and Des Moines Register. Reach her on Twitter @TeresaAlberts11 and at talbertson@registermedia.com, 515-419-6098.

This article originally appeared on Ames Tribune: Fatal Nevada fire ruled accidental as chief pleads for new regulations
If Donald Trumps manifest misdeeds land him behind bars while seeking public office, he wouldnt be the first Palm Beach County resident to find himself in this predicament.

That distinction goes to H. Scott McCary, who in 1986 was the Republican candidate for a seat on the Palm Beach County Commission.

McCary was a 57-year-old accountant from West Palm Beach who got about 30 percent of the vote in his quest for the countys top governing body, even though he spent election night watching the movie, The Dirty Dozen, from the Palm Beach County Jail while phoning for tally updates from a payphone in the lockup.

Like Trump, McCary had a string of unrelated criminal charges hanging over his head while he attempted to seek public office.

Trump arraignment: Ex-president pleads not guilty to federal charges at Miami courthouse

For starters, McCary failed to submit campaign financing reports to the county, which began accruing $50-per-day fines. When he finally paid up, the check bounced. Twice. His check to pay his filing fee bounced too.

Four months before the election, he got charged with grand theft for walking out on a $604 hotel bill at a Hampton Inn in West Palm Beach, something he called a misunderstanding.

After posting bail in that case, he got charged with aggravated assault in Arcadia in DeSoto County following an argument he had with a disabled man riding a three-wheel bicycle. McCary was charged with intentionally driving his Cadillac into the bicycle-riding man. Like Trump, McCary didnt know when to keep his mouth shut.

More: Dear Mar-a-Lago Club members: My indictment is going to cost you

I did bounce him with the car, McCary told a news reporter at the time.

McCary left DeSoto County before he could be arrested. There was a warrant out for his arrest there as he returned to Palm Beach County to campaign for office.

About a week before the election, that took the form of sitting at the bar at Speakeasy, a popular watering hole at the time on the 100 block of Clematis Street in West Palm Beach. The bartender phoned police after McCary ordered nine drinks then walked out on his tab. It wasnt exactly a well-crafted plan. He left his magazine behind at the bar. The magazine had a mail tab on the cover that had his name and address on it.

He later put it this way: Ive just got to stay away from Jack Daniels.

Palm Beach Post columnist Frank Cerabino

So, in the closing days of the November election, he was charged with the misdemeanor defrauding an innkeeper, arrested and locked up on $750 bail. McCary called his incarceration good publicity, saying that his serial troubles with the law were getting me known to the people.

He got an emergency hearing a few days before the election to ask a judge to temporarily free him from jail so he could do some last-minute campaigning for office.

I assure you that if Im released on my own recognizance, I will not leave this county because Im running for political office, he told the judge.

The judge denied his motion and sent him back to jail.

McCary lost the county commission race to Democratic candidate, Carol Roberts, who was the former mayor of West Palm Beach at the time. The election turned out to be embarrassing for both parties. Local Democrats were amazed that McCary still got 30.1 percent of the vote, and Republicans, who had unsuccessfully tried to remove him from the ballot, were embarrassed not to have a more viable candidate for the race.

Big vote for jailed man has both parties scared, a post-election headline in The Miami Herald read.

A group of supporters of the former President Donald Trump waves flags at passing traffic during a pro-Trump event on Sunday, June 11, 2023, on the bridge portion of Southern Boulevard in West Palm Beach, Fla.

McCary was so buoyed by the results that he announced hed be switching parties so he could be a Democrat running against one of two Republican incumbents on the ballot during the next election cycle.

Im not being braggadocious, but I feel I can do a better job than both of them, he said.

But he never did run again, and now his story seems a little quaint. If he were running today, the radical remains of what used to be the Republican party would have made him a persecuted hero  a victim of The Deep County.

The old man on the tricycle would be a Soros-backed America-hater. And the multiple prosecutions filed against McCary after he had become his partys candidate for office would be called a witchhunt.

They couldnt get him on the hotel bill or the aggravated battery, so they planted Jack Daniels evidence against him in the West Palm Beach bar, the line would go. This is banana republic tactics.

The bartender would be called a Marxist, Communist, fascist psycho and he and his family would probably have to go into hiding as a result of numerous death threats.

Instead of being embarrassed about McCary's candidacy, local Republicans would be parroting each other by spewing outrage over "the weaponization of the hospitality industry against Republicans" and calling for an investigation of McCarys opponent, citing reckless, baseless allegations about her and her family.

Meanwhile, McCary would be raising loads of money off his crimes and emboldening social media talk of a Second Amendment solution to the county commission race. And even before votes would be counted, his followers would be calling the election rigged.

How far weve fallen. Having a candidate behind bars during an election is nothing new. The new part is making dishonest excuses and deflections about his obvious self-inflicted crimes.

Frank Cerabino is a columnist at The Palm Beach Post, part of the USA TODAY Florida Network. You can reach him at fcerabino@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Trump not first Palm Beach County resident jailed while seeking office
Parents of drowned child say Oceans of Fun hires young and inexperienced lifeguards

Parents of a child who drowned at Kansas Citys Oceans of Fun in July have filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the water park and its owners.

The lawsuit, filed in Jackson County Circuit Court, alleges the managers knowingly maintained a dangerous environment that ultimately led to the death of 6-year-old Adeline Stewart. The lawsuit was brought on behalf of Therron and Debra Stewart of Grandview.

Named as defendants are Oceans of Fun along with parent company Cedar Fair, which operates 11 regional amusement parks and four water parks nationwide.

A spokesman for Oceans of Fun said in an email to The Star that the company does not comment on pending litigation.

On July 5, Adeline was pulled from the waters of the Coconut Cove pool and taken to Childrens Mercy Hospital in Kansas City. She died in the hospital days later.

According to the lawsuit, lawyers for the family say Adeline was undetected by pool lifeguards for several minutes  even as park-goers made frantic attempts to get their attention.

After she was located and removed from the pool, the lawyers allege the lifeguards were not equipped to give her first aid, resulting in the loss of any chance to save her.

The lawsuit alleges Oceans of Fun has a track record of hiring young and inexperienced lifeguards and fails to properly train them. It also says managers have a history of destroying documentation, including lifeguard skill tests.

Lawyers also allege the pool is unsafe by design. Examples listed in the lawsuit include steep drop offs, underwater depressions and floating obstacles.

In arguing the company has been negligent, the lawyers pointed to two other cases at Oceans of Fun where minors died and a third incident that left a child with a permanent disability. They allege the park employs low-wage workers as owners put profits over guest safety.

A jury trial is being sought by the Stewarts.

Following the death of Adeline, changes were made with the aim of improving safety at the water park.

Height requirements were increased for those required to wear life jackets in the pool, and children shorter than 3  feet were required to be accompanied by a supervisor.

The Stars Robert A. Cronkleton contributed to this report.
Parents traveling with breast milk are allowed through airport security. Here's what to do about TSA screening issues.

Parents traveling with breast milk are allowed through airport security. Here's what to do about TSA screening issues.

I donated 2 gallons of my breastmilk. Jamie Grill/Getty Images

TSA's website says breastmilk, formula, and other baby and toddler food can be taken through security.

Parents should let TSA agents know they are traveling with these things

Actress Keke Palmer said she recently experienced "breast milk discrimination."

Actress Keke Palmer, who starred in the 2022 film "Nope," said that security agents threatened to throw away 16 ounces of breast milk that she was trying to bring through airport security.

"Breast milk discrimination at the Houston airport ruined my mood," she Tweeted. "I should've popped my tit out right then because the discretion and comfort of pumping is thwarted with threats to throw out over 16oz my babies food?!?!!! Why is that not a crime?? I'M A MOTHER for crying out loud."

TSA policies allow breastmilk and other baby food to go through security. Here's what you can pack in your carry-on bag when you're traveling with kids and what to do if  like Palmer  you have a frustrating experience at security.

Breastmilk, formula, and even snack pouches can go through security

Travelers have the right to bring milk, formula, and food for their babies or toddlers through security, according to the TSA. You can bring any amount, and you can pack it in your carry-on even if your baby is not with you.

The regulations also say that you can bring whatever you need to keep your milk cool, including ice packs, freezer packs, frozen gel packs, and even teethers for your baby. You can travel with those even if you're not also carrying breast milk.

Despite that, many parents, like Palmer, have experienced pushback from the TSA when they travel with baby food or supplies.

"Often, TSA agents don't understand this," Lisa Myers, a mom of two and frequent flier, told Insider.

"When I'd arrive at the airport, I would scout the TSA agents, trying to choose the line for a worker who looked knowledgeable, or at least sympathetic," she said. "That's an inconsistent system that often left me frustrated."

How to make the security process easier

To avoid problems at security, the TSA recommends telling the agent that you're traveling with baby food before they begin scanning your bags. Then, follow these tips:

Remove all baby milk, food, and cooling accessories from your bag

Transport milk in clear bottles rather than plastic bags since these are easier to screen

Be prepared to open bags or pouches for additional screening (don't worry  the contents shouldn't ever be touched)

Expect some additional screening. You and other adults that you're traveling with might get additional screening, like having your hands swabbed for traces of explosives.

Keep ice packs frozen solid. This isn't required, but it means that they'll need less screening. However, you are allowed to bring partially frozen or slushy cooling packs through security.

What to do if you have problems with security

While it's good to know TSA policies before you travel, it's clear that sometimes the experience at the security checkpoint doesn't follow protocol. The TSA has had to apologize to parents many times, including last year when agents in Los Angeles refused to allow celebrity scientist Emily Calandrelli to bring ice packs through security because they weren't frozen solid.

If an agent gives you a hard time, ask to speak to a supervisor. You can also request a passenger support specialist, a TSA agent who is trained to help passengers who need travel accommodations. You could even keep a screenshot of the TSA policy on breastmilk and baby food handy.

Myers said it's also helpful to try to stay calm, even when the discussion becomes stressful and emotional.

"I'm not against the TSA; I know they're just doing their best to keep us safe," she said. "No TSA agent wakes up in the morning hoping to make a mom cry. Yet that's the unintentional impact of inconsistent training."

Read the original article on Insider
For Brian Betts, seeing former Kansas City, Kansas, police detective Roger Golubski in court Wednesday as a defendant was comforting. He didnt think the day would come.

Betts, 46, was released on parole two weeks ago after spending 25 years behind bars for a murder in Kansas City, Kansas, that he and his cousin maintain they did not commit. They believe Golubski played a role in their murder convictions, though a judge determined last year that they had not proved that.

Now, Betts was on the other end of the courtroom, watching as Golubski, 70, sat before a judge at the federal courthouse in Topeka for a hearing in his two pending criminal cases.

This is real, Betts said.

Golubski faces federal charges for allegedly conspiring to sex traffic girls between 1996 and 1998 with three other men, including a since convicted drug kingpin, Cecil Brooks, at a KCK apartment complex. As an experienced homicide detective, Golubski protected those criminals from police investigation as they trafficked and raped vulnerable girls, prosecutors said.

The men allegedly used beatings and sexual assaults to force underage girls to provide sexual services at the Delavan Apartments, which Brooks operated at Delavan Avenue and 26th Street. The young Black girls, who ranged in age from 13 to 17, were held in a condition of involuntary sexual servitude, prosecutors contend.

In a separate case, Golubski faces civil rights charges for allegedly sexually assaulting and kidnapping a woman and a teenage girl from 1998 to 2002. He was a veteran officer by then, having worked at the Kansas City, Kansas, Police Department from 1975 to 2010.

At the hearing Wednesday, the lawyers involved in the case agreed they needed more time to obtain and review at least 200,000 pages of potential evidence.

Judge Toby Crouse, who is overseeing the case, scheduled the next hearing for Sept. 20. No trial date has been set.

Golubski, who wore a suit to the hearing, remains on house arrest in Edwardsville in Wyandotte County. He has pleaded not guilty and his lawyer has called the accusations against him uncorroborated.

Brooks, 60, appeared in court in a blue jail uniform, handcuffed at his hands and feet. He is the only one of the defendants in prison, where he is serving time for trafficking drugs in Topeka.

Brooks is set to be released from the Federal Bureau of Prisons this month. His attorney, Jonathan Truesdale, raised the issue of if Brooks will be detained ahead of the sex trafficking trial. The judge said he would take up that question when it comes before him.

The two other defendants are LeMark Roberson  who is accused of raping and threatening to kill one of the victims  and Richard Bone Robinson, who, among other things, at times allegedly collected money from Roberson and another member of the conspiracy who has since died, according to prosecutors. The deceased member has not been identified publicly.

Robinson and Roberson were released ahead of trial without the condition of home detention.

Still seeking exoneration

Sent to prison at age 21, a middle-aged Betts attended the hearing to support Golubskis alleged victims.

He considers himself among them: He and his cousin, Celester McKinney, were convicted of fatally shooting Golubskis nephew by marriage, 17-year-old Gregory Miller, in 1997.

At a hearing last year, the prosecutions star witness, Carter Betts  the uncle of McKinney and Brian Betts  testified yet again that he had been coerced to falsely testify against his nephews. He identified one of the detectives who pressured him as W.K. Smith, who is Black and did not remember the case years later, and the other as a white cop who had a mustache.

Lawyers for Betts and McKinney argued that detective was Golubski, who was accused of framing a since-exonerated man, Lamonte McIntyre, of a different murder that unfolded three years earlier, in 1994.

After looking at a picture of Golubski, Carter Betts identified him as the white detective, claiming that Golubski told him if he did not go along with what the police wanted him to say, he would make him and his family suffer.

Taking the stand at that 2022 hearing, Golubski said he did not investigate his nephews murder and denied ever coercing witnesses.

Judge Gunnar Sundby, who oversaw that case, said while there is a cloud of doubt lingering over Golubski, the prisoners did not prove their case. He declined to reverse their convictions  a ruling that Betts and McKinney are now appealing.

The men then went before the Kansas Parole Board, which granted them release. When Betts went before the board in January, his first appearance, he said, he maintained his innocence and spoke of Golubskis alleged corruption.

Betts feared the parole board might not free him, given that, historically, parole boards have looked for incarcerated people to express remorse for the crimes for which they were convicted. The victims family has also said they believe the cousins are guilty.

The men are still seeking exoneration. A Topeka attorney is fighting to clear Betts name, while McKinney is represented by the Kansas City-based Midwest Innocence Project, which has said the cousins were convicted because of Golubskis misconduct.

Since coming home, Betts for the first time celebrated his sons birthday in person. He was 8 months old when Betts went to prison; he just turned 26. Now with four grandchildren, Betts also plans to celebrate his first Fathers Day outside prison walls this weekend.

Being able to spend time with family has helped heal the pain, he said.
BRICK - A part-time police officer in Brick Township has been charged after uploading images of child pornography to the internet, Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer announced Wednesday.

John Kisch, 57, of Brick Township, was charged with possession of child pornography, Billhimer said.

The investigation stemmed from cyber-tips from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children that an individual was uploading images of child pornography to the internet, Billhimer said. The Ocean County Prosecutor's Office High Tech Crime Unit identified an IP address associated with a Brick Township residence as the location the individual was uploading the images from.

Kisch was ultimately identified as the individual, Billhimer said. He is employed as a part-time Class I Special Police Officer in Brick Township.

 Accused Asbury Park cat rapist Bani J. Mezquititla to undergo psychiatric evaluation

 Accused Lakewood killer John Filistovich extradited to New Jersey from Maryland

On June 13, authorities executed a search warrant on Kisch's home in Brick Township, seizing a desktop computer where more than 100 images of child pornography were found, according to Billhimer.

Kisch was arrested and taken to Ocean County Jail, where he is lodged pending a detention hearing, the prosecutor said.

We will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to protect the most vulnerable among us. Children are most deserving of our unwavering commitment to investigating and prosecuting these types of offenses, Billhimer said.

Kisch was employed by Brick Township for 22 years and had a $28,819 salary as of March 31, according to the New Jersey Office of Information Technology.

Brick Township Business Administrator Joanne Bergin said that Kisch's part-time employment with the township was immediately terminated when they were notified of the charges.

"These crimes are among the most reprehensible someone can commit as they affect innocent and vulnerable children," Bergin said.

Brick Township Police Chief David Forrester said in a statement on Facebook that he is angered and saddened by the incident, and is disappointed over the actions Kisch has been accused of.

"They are inexcusable and do not represent the values and standards of the Brick Township Police Department," Forrester said.

As a law enforcement agency, Forrester said they are committed to the investigation and prosecution of those who exploit or harm children.

"I assure you that the men and women of the Brick Township Police Department are dedicated to serving you with integrity, professionalism and respect," he said. "We will continue to do everything we can to honor our oath to protect and serve you."

Jenna Calderon covers breaking news and cold cases in Monmouth and Ocean counties. Before coming to the Press, she covered The Queen City for Cincinnati Magazine in Ohio. Contact her at 330-590-3903; jcalderon@gannettnj.com

This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Brick NJ: Part-time police officer charged with uploading child porn
A longtime Penn State professor was charged Tuesday after an investigation into trail camera footage showing a man performing sexual acts with a dog in Rothrock State Forest.

Themis Matsoukas, 64, of State College, was caught on camera April 13 committing sexual acts with his dog near the restrooms at Rothrock State Forest, according to a criminal complaint filed by the state Department of Conservation and Natural Resources.

Matsoukas was identified by park rangers by his North Face backpack, which was visible in the camera footage from the April 13 incident. The backpack was also present in images depicting Matsoukas nude from the waist down, except for socks and shoes, in images from trail cameras dating as far back as 2014, according to the complaint.

The professor of chemical engineering  who earned his Ph.D. from Michigan  has been with Penn State since 1991. During that time, hes written several books, published dozens of journal articles and won at least three teaching awards, including the Premier Teaching Award from the Penn State Engineering Alumni Society in 2017.

Themis Matsoukas has been relieved of his responsibilities and is on leave, read a statement from the university.

Rangers served a search warrant to Matsoukas at his home in State College on June 9. According to the complaint, Matsoukas was visibly nervous and repeatedly told the rangers Im done, Im dead, you dont understand, I do it to blow off steam.

During the execution of the search warrant, rangers found all items listed in the warrant, including the backpack and a ski mask that was visible in the April 13 camera footage.

His attorney, Matthew McClenahen, said Wednesday it would be inappropriate to make any comment at this time.

Matsoukas was charged with misdemeanor charges of open lewdness, indecent exposure and sexual intercourse with an animal, and summary charges of cruelty to animals and disorderly conduct. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for July 19 in Huntingdon County.
Rebuilding efforts following Philadelphia I-95 collapse will begin after demolition is completed Thursday, governor says

Demolition work on the section of Interstate 95 that collapsed in Philadelphia on Sunday will be completed by Thursday, when teams will begin working around the clock to rebuild the overpass, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro said Wednesday.

The interstate crumbled after a tanker truck carrying 8,500 gallons of gasoline crashed and exploded in flames under the highway, officials said. Crews have been working around the clock on demolition efforts.

Once demolition is complete, Shapiro said, the gap in the highway created by the collapse will be filled and paved so that traffic can resume on the interstate while teams work to permanently rebuild the overpass.

Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro said demolition work on the section of Interstate 95 that collapsed will be completed by Thursday. - Thomas P. Costello/USA Today Network

Motorists will be able to travel on I-95 once its paved on top of the fill, Shapiro said. Itll then allow us the opportunity to work on building the bridge and keeping six lanes of traffic open at once. This is the speediest, safest way that will allow us to get back to capacity on the 95, Shapiro said at a news conference near the site of the collapse.

Material to fill the gap in the roadway will be on site by Thursday, the governor said. He did not provide a specific time frame or cost for completion of the project but emphasized that construction work would continue around the clock until it is completed.

When yall are sleeping in the middle of the night, when Im sleeping in the middle of night, these guys are going to be working on this road, Shapiro said, gesturing to the construction workers and transportation officials standing behind him.

Shapiro stressed the federal governments financial support in rebuilding efforts.

Im confident lawmakers will give us whatever help, support, resources we need in order to see this job through, he told reporters.

Shapiro issued a disaster declaration Monday, saying it will allow the state to dip into federal funds and cut red tape to expedite repairs. The proclamation makes $7 million in state funds immediately available for reconstruction.

An initial payment of $3 million was sent to Pennsylvania late Tuesday, the head of the Federal Highway Administration, Shailen Bhatt, told a Senate committee Wednesday.

The northbound stretch of the interstate collapsed onto the truck. Southbound lanes were also compromised and need to be repaired. The collapse has caused major disruption for traffic, and the primary detour is about 23 miles using state or interstate roads, local transportation officials said earlier in the week.

The bridge was up to current standards at the time of the collapse, Pennsylvania Transportation Secretary Mike Carroll told reporters at the news conference. The bridge was structurally sound, he said. The bridge was only 10 years old.

Shapiro originally said it could take months to restore the crumbled section of the highway that typically carries about 160,000 vehicles through Philadelphia daily. About 8% of those vehicles are trucks that will now need to take longer, more costly routes, US Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said when he visited the site of the collapse Tuesday.

That is a lot of Americas GDP moving along that road every day, he said.

Workers inspect and clear debris after the collapse of an overpass on Interstate 95 in Philadelphia. - Mark Makela/Getty Images

Buttigieg said his agency will provide every resource that is needed to help local officials address the effect the collapse is having on commuters and the movement of goods in the area.

The impact of the collapse is expected to ripple across the state and the Northeast. The incident was causing what we know will be extensive disruption for the movement of people and goods through that region, Buttigieg said Tuesday.

Residents in the area have been warned to expect delays to trash collection and bus routes.

All lanes of I-95 are closed between the Woodhaven and Aramingo exits, the city of Philadelphia said. Commuters have been forced to find new routes to work, with traffic impacts stretching far beyond the interstate.

Investigation underway

A body recovered from the wreckage was identified Tuesday as Nathan Moody, the driver of the truck that crashed underneath the freeway before bursting into flames.

Moody was a 53-year-old father of three and a career truck driver, said his cousin Isaac Moody. He died of blunt trauma to the head, inhalation and thermal injuries, Philadelphia Department of Health spokesperson James Garrow told CNN.

The National Transportation Safety Board said earlier this week that the tanker truck will be an initial focus of its investigation into the incident. The truck was carrying gasoline bound for delivery to a local Wawa gas station.

We have to get in and see what we think happened with the tanker truck, said NTSB chief Jennifer Homendy. There are lots of different scenarios.

The company operating the gasoline tanker that sparked the inferno, Penn Tank Lines, was in good standing prior to the collision, the NTSB said Wednesday. It said the information came from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, which regulates commercial vehicles.

Investigators from the NTSB, FMCSA and the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration met with officials from Penn Tank Lines on Wednesday and gathered information about its operations and procedures, the NTSB said in a statement.

CNN has reached out to Penn Tank Lines for comment.

Investigators might also need to examine the structural makeup of the bridge, Homendy said.

Pennsylvania State Police said Monday that officials will not launch a criminal investigation into the collapse.

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Few Americans know the mechanics of how to give CPR  which stands for cardiopulmonary resuscitation  though many have heard of the concept and have an idea of what it is.

CPR is a technique involving chest compressions that any bystander can and should perform when someone's heart stops, a condition known as cardiac arrest. CPR can help restart the heart and keep blood flowing to important organs, like the brain, until medical attention is available. Without CPR or other treatment, a person in cardiac arrest can die in minutes, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

You are alive because you are breathing and your heart is beating, Dr. George Syros, associate director of cardiology at Mount Sinai Queens in New York City, tells TODAY.com. If your heart stops beating, you dont have blood going to the brain. When a persons heart stops, beating CPR is a mechanical way to (temporarily) take over the job of the heart and the lungs.

One survey found that while 54% of people said they knew about CPR, only about 10% actually knew how to perform it correctly, including the rate at which compression should be delivered, Dr. Ali Nsair, medical director of heart transplantation and mechanical circulatory support device services at the David Geffen School of Medicine at University of California Los Angeles, tells TODAY.com.

An estimated 90% of people who experience cardiac arrest outside a hospital die, but if someone performs CPR in the first few minutes, the odds of survival double or even triple, according to the CDC.

The American Heart Association has done a lot of campaigns to raise awareness about CPR, Nsair says. Its something we just have to keep pushing in schools, workplaces and everywhere we can.

If you havent taken a course in CPR, know that the American Red Cross and American Heart Association offer training courses.

What are the 7 steps of CPR?

The American Red Cross lists the following as the seven steps of CPR:

1. Check the scene for safety and put on any personal protective equipment, such as a mask.

Make sure the area is safe to perform CPR before you start. (Liza Evseeva / TODAY Illustrations)

2. If the person appears unresponsive, check for breathing, bleeding and other life-threatening conditions by shouting, tapping their shoulder and shouting.

Shout

3. If the person isn't responding or isn't breathing and only gasping, call 911 or tell someone else to do so and ask them to get a defibrillator, aka an AED.

If someone else is nearby, have them call 911 and look for an AED. (Liza Evseeva / TODAY Illustrations)

4. Place the person on their back on a firm, flat surface.

Liza Evseeva / TODAY Illustrations

5. Give 30 chest compressions at a rate of 100 to 120 a minute.

The rate of compressions should match the beat of

6. Give two breaths.

If you're comfortable administering mouth-to-mouth, tilt the person's head back, lift their chin and blow while pinching their nose. Their chest should rise. (Liza Evseeva / TODAY Illustrations)

7. Repeat the cycle of 30 compressions and two breaths. Use an AED by following its instructions as soon as it's available.

AEDs come with clear instructions, and you should place its pad on the center of the chest. (Liza Evseeva / TODAY Illustrations)

How do you know if someone needs CPR?

If the person is talking and breathing, then they dont need CPR, per the CDC. Signs that someone may be experiencing cardiac arrest and therefore needs CPR include:

The person is fine one moment, but then they suddenly collapse.

The person is unresponsive, even if you shake or shout at them.

The person isn't breathing or is only gasping.

If you are layperson untrained in CPR, you should not take time to try to find a pulse if the person has collapsed or is unresponsive and not breathing normally, according to the American Heart Association's 2020 guidelines on CPR. Instead, start CPR.

Untrained bystanders usually take too long to try find a pulse or they'll misidentify their own pulse as the other person's, according to University of Arizona's Sarver Heart Center. Seeing a person collapse without signs of choking is enough of a reason to assume cardiac arrest and perform CPR, as the chest compressions will likely dislodge any object that's been lodged in the throat.

"We recommend that laypersons initiate CPR for presumed cardiac arrest because the risk of harm to the patient is low if the patient is not in cardiac arrest," the American Heart Association states.

If you're trained in CPR and want to try to find a pulse, place two fingers on the side of the neck at the carotid artery next to the Adam's apple, and take no more than 10 seconds to do so, Dr. Demetris Yannopoulos, medical director of the Center for Resuscitation Medicine at the University of Minnesota Medical School, tells TODAY.com.

What if the person is choking?

If you see a person choking, the first thing you should do is perform the Heimlich maneuver to clear her airway, Syros says. It that fails and they lose consciousness, call 911 and then do CPR, he adds.

What to do before you start CPR

It's important to start CPR as quickly as possible, but there are a few steps to take before starting chest compressions to make sure you're being as effective as possible, according to the American Red Cross.

Make sure the area is safe to perform CPR and that there's nothing in the environment, such as cars, that would endanger you.

Confirm the person isn't responsive by shaking their shoulder and asking in a loud voice if they're OK.

Look for life-threatening bleeding or other conditions.

Call 911 or ask someone nearby to do so. Also ask that person or someone else nearby to find a defibrillator, aka an AED, which can shock the heart back into action.

Place the person on their back on a firm, flat surface.

How do you do CPR?

There are two different ways to perform bystander CPR. One involves just chest compressions, known as hands-only CPR. The other involves chest compressions and rescue breathing, also known as mouth to mouth.

If you're comfortable performing rescue breathing, doing both is better because it adds oxygen in addition to pumping blood around the body, Yannopoulos and Nsair say.

If you're not comfortable performing rescue breathing, doing only chest compressions is better than doing nothing at all.

How many compressions for CPR?

The American Heart Association says to give compressions at a rate of 100 to 120 per minute. This matches up with the beat of the song Stayin Alive by the Bee Gees, as does Baby Shark and Dancing Queen by Abba.

CPR in adults

Often, a 911 dispatcher will be able to talk you through the details of performing, Yannopoulos says. But here are the basics:

After making sure the person is lying spine down on a hard surface, kneel next to their chest.

Place the heel of the palm of your dominant hand in the center of the persons chest and place the other hand on top. Imagine a line between the persons nipples, Nsair explains. Put your hands directly on that line."

"Use your weight to push down 2 inches deep at least," Nsair adds.

Allow a recoil by taking your weight off your hands, Yannopoulos says.

You do that over and over again at a pace of about 100 per minute, or with the rhythm of the song, Stayin Alive, Yannopoulos adds.

CPR with mouth to mouth

If you feel comfortable giving mouth to mouth, supply two rescue breaths after every 30 compressions, according to the American Heart Association.

To give a rescue breath, the Mayo Clinic recommends:

Open the person's airway by putting your palm on the person's head and tilting their head back. Use the other hand to lift the chin.

Pinch the nostrils shut.

Cover the person's mouth with your mouth, making a seal.

Give one breath lasting one second.

If the chest rises, give another breath.

If the chest doesn't rise, try to open the airway again by tilting the head back and lifting the chin again.

Resume chest compressions.

In the era of COVID, the American Heart Association recommends hands only CPR and not to worry about rescue breaths, unless its a loved one or person you know," Nsair adds.

CPR in teens

The procedure is the same as it is with adults, Nsair says.

Make sure the person is lying on their back on a firm, hard surface.

Place the heel of your dominant hand in the center of the person's chest and the other hand on top.

Push down about 2 inches deep.

Take the weight off your hands, and repeat at a pace of 100 compressions per minute.

If comfortable doing so, perform mouth-to-mouth resuscitation  two breaths after every 30 compressions.

CPR in children

According to the American Red Cross, here's how to give CPR in a child:

Kneel beside the child.

Place the heel of one hand on the child's chest with your other hand on top. Interlace your fingers and keep them off the child's chest. For a small child, you can use just one hand.

Push down about 2 inches at a rate of 100 to 120 compressions per minute.

The chest should return to normal after each compression.

If comfortable, after every 30 compressions, open the airway and give one breath lasting a second.

If the chest rises, allow the air to exit and then give another breath.

If the chest does not rise, try to open the airway again and make sure you're forming a seal around the mouth.

Repeat giving 30 compressions and two breaths.

CPR in infants

With infants it gets a little tricky, Nsair says. First flick the bottom of a foot to see if the child is responsive." If the baby isn't responsive and isn't breathing, the American Red Cross recommends:

Place your thumbs side by side on the center of the baby's chest just below the nipples.

Use your other fingers to wrap around the baby's chest to provide support.

Use your thumbs to push down about 1 1/2 inches at 100 to 120 compressions a minute. If you can't reach 1 1/2 inches, consider using one hand.

Let the chest return to normal between compressions.

If you're comfortable giving mouth to mouth, open the airway and give two breaths after every 30 compressions. Each breath should last one second.

Make sure the chest rises with each breath and the air exits. If the chest doesn't rise, try opening the airway and forming a seal with your mouth again.

Repeat giving 30 chest compressions and two breaths.

How to use a defibrillator, or AED

The AED comes with very clear instructions, Nsair says. It has a pad to put on the center of the chest. Once you turn it on, it gives voice prompts.

The AED will analyze the persons heart rhythm, Nsair adds. There are certain specific rhythms that are shockable," such as ventricular tachycardia and ventricular fibrillation, he adds. If (the AED) says no shock, resume CPR right away because its always better to keep doing it than not.

You'll need to remove the recipient's clothing covering the chest and wipe their chest dry, if necessary, in order to attach the AED, per the Red Cross.

This article was originally published on TODAY.com
 Flash

Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Qin Gang on Wednesday urged the United States to take concrete actions to implement the important consensus reached by the two heads of state at the Group of 20 Bali summit, and honor the relevant commitments it has made.

Qin made the remarks in a phone conversation with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken.

During the phone talks, Qin said that since the beginning of this year, China-U.S. relations have encountered new difficulties and challenges, for which it is crystal clear who is responsible.

It is hoped that the United States will work with China to effectively manage differences and promote exchanges and cooperation, so as to stop the decline of bilateral relations and bring them back to the track of sound and stable development, he said.
Pete Buttigieg

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg is a favorite target of the right. Conservatives appear to have difficulty handling the most senior gay official in the U.S. government with a husband, Chasten, and children. The Buttigieg kids, Penelope and Gus, have been in the world for over two years, and Republican voters remain obsessed with their parents.

Throughout it all, Buttigieg faced political attacks from those on the right who otherwise praised strong family values.

It is, therefore, no surprise that Buttigieg is keenly aware of the realities LGBTQ+ people face in 2023 as conservatives attack the community and LGBTQ+ people from American society through targeted legislation intended to limit discussion of sexual orientation, gender identity, and books, as well as eliminate essential health care for transgender people.

I think its gotten worse, Buttigieg told Time during a recent interview. I think were actually in an exceptionally ugly moment in terms of some figures deciding that theres utility, political utility, in targeting trans people and LGBTQ people more generally, before pointing to Republicans who voted against last years Respect For Marriage Act, which provides some protections for same-sex and interracial marriages. The bill, which received overwhelming support from Democrats, was opposed by 36 Republican senators and 169 Republican representatives.

I mean, look how many people voted against marriage equalitywhich should have been an easy onejust as recently as a few months ago. And so I think its a reminder that none of whats been gained is really locked in.

Gallup reports that more than 71 percent of Americans favor marriage equality.

In light of the recent ruling of the U.S. Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade, Buttigieg warns that a Supreme Court decision also ushered in marriage equality, and the justices have proved themselves capable of overturning established precedent.

I dont think anything is safe. I mean, Roe fell, and that was the law of the land for longer than Ive been alive. Nothing is safe. Especially right now, Buttigieg said.

Currently, LGBTQ+ rights in this country face a terrifying reality. Far-right provocateurs and lawmakers have moved on to identity politics after the court's decision.

These policies do not help Republicans win over middle-class voters, despite the praise of hard-right lawmakers. While Buttigieg acknowledges the privileges he enjoys, he believes this approach will fail.

The situation of an upper-middle-class, married white gay dude is not the same as a trans kid in Texas or any number of LGBTQ people of color trying to survive right now, he said. They see political value in this. I see not only distraction but a very real harm thats being done. And thats gonna persist until they figure out that it is not rewarding politically for them.

One of the GOP candidates for president in 2024 has gone all in on hatred of LGBTQ+ people. As Floridas governor, Ron DeSantis has unapologetically targeted queer people in his state, and it appears that that disdain extends to his professional interactions with Buttigieg.

One example is a proposed rail line connecting Miami to Tampa via a station near Disney World near Orlando. Federal infrastructure dollars could be a big boon to the state. As a result of its dispute with DeSantis, the company canceled an expansion of $1 billion and the construction of a station at Disney Springs.

According to Time, the train will instead head to the Orange County Convention Center in central Florida, but the longer it lingers, the less likely a Washington cash infusion will be.

Despite his best efforts, Buttigieg said he has yet to speak with DeSantis about transportation issues. Buttigieg noted that he has called DeSantis but has yet to talk to him.

Ive never heard from this governor, and its not because Ive never called him. Weve never spoken. What I will say is weve done a lot of good work with the Florida Department of Transportation, Buttigieg said. We try to work around and through all that to just get stuff done. A huge amount of energy and effort is being wasted in these dumb fights. And thats really unfortunate. Its policy waste in order to achieve political benefit or perceived political benefit.

Buttigieg added, Hes more worried about Bud Light or Disney or whatever.
A 33-year-old Philadelphia woman was killed after a large piece of metal smashed into her vehicle on Interstate 95 one day after a portion of the same highway collapsed in the city, Pennsylvania State Police said in a news release.

Police said Caramia Panichelli was killed Monday evening when a large piece of metal debris hit her car, piercing the driver's side windshield and hitting her. The incident occurred on I-95 near mile marker 20, police said, about 10 miles south of where an elevated section of I-95 collapsed Sunday.

Police did not indicate her death was related to the collapse.

Pennsylvania State Police - Troop K is requesting anyone who witnessed the fatal crash that occurred on 06/12/24 at 1641 hours on I-95 S/B near Columbus Blvd to contact the Philadelphia Station at 215-452-5216 pic.twitter.com/vIfznS64d0  Troopers Shyeasha Ayala and Michele Naab (@PSPTroopKPIO) June 13, 2023

The I-95 overpass collapsed after a tanker truck carrying 8,500 gallons of gasoline crashed underneath it and caught fire, authorities said.

Police said Monday that the driver lost control of the truck as he was trying to go around the curve of an exit ramp from the northbound side of the interstate. The truck then tipped over and landed on its side, "igniting the fire," Pennsylvania Secretary of Transportation Mike Carroll said Monday. The heat from the fire weakened the I-beams supporting the overpass, causing it to collapse, Carroll said.

On Tuesday, the remains of the truck driver were turned over to the state Medical Examiner's Office for identification. A cousin of the truck driver identified him to CBS Philadelphia as Nathan Moody, a father of three from Willow Grove, Pennsylvania.

The Philadelphia Department of Public Health confirmed Moody's identity Tuesday.

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The Placer County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously Tuesday to do away with traditional polling centers and make it easier to vote by mail and vote in person at county voting centers.

All five supervisors voted to implement provisions of the Voters Choice Act, joining 27 other counties across the state that have made the switch since Gov. Jerry Brown signed the VCA in 2016.

Under the VCA, counties must open one voting center for every 10,000 voters  which means 30 voting centers for Placers 282,285 voters. The VCA also requires that all registered voters receive a mail-in ballot, and requires that counties provide drop-off boxes 29 days before the election.

Its a more efficient system as voting patterns have changed in recent years, Placer County Clerk-Recorder-Registrar of Voters, Ryan Ronco, told the Board on Tuesday.

Placer County has historically provided between 150-250 polling places each election. This has meant having to hire anywhere between 800-1,500 temporary workers and election volunteers.

Unfortunately its becoming increasingly difficult to find that number of volunteers, said Ronco. Let along convince 250 polling places to open up to us.

With the 30 voting centers under the VCA, Ronco estimated that the elections office will only need 300-400 temporary staff and volunteers. (Constituents can also vote at any county voting center, whereas before they could only cast a vote at their local polling place.)

On top of the logistical difficulties with traditional polling places, Ronco also told the Board that fewer and fewer voters are choosing to cast their ballots in person, and instead favor the vote-by-mail method. Fewer than 9% of ballots cast in the general election last November were cast in person on Election Day. Instead, Placer County voters typically prefer to vote by mail or by dropping off their mail-in ballot.

This can cause a bottleneck in counting ballots, as Placer experienced in last years election.

Speed is desirable, accuracy is non-negotiable, said Stacey Robinson, Placer County Public Information Assistant, last November about the amount of time it took to count ballots.

Some voters  including those who prefer to vote in-person  have expressed concern about having to drive further than theyre used to to cast their ballots. Ronco assured them that the 2020 general election, which took place under COVID-19 lockdown conditions, essentially forced us into a VCA-type election, where there were only 28 polling places and, per Ronco, absolutely no complaints from voters about travel distance.

Concerns about fraud and election integrity

Just outside of decidedly blue Sacramento County is its conservative, decidedly red suburban and rural neighbor to the north. Placer County voted by wide margins to elect Donald Trump in both 2016 and 2020; Trumps loss in 2020, and his assertion that he lost because of voter fraud, elicited severe mistrust in how ballots are cast and the technology used to count them.

Ronco and his team at the elections office have sought to be as transparent as possible by making themselves available to concerned voters who want to check out the machinery. The elections website even includes a separate note about its use of Dominion Voting Systems, which Trump baselessly blamed for interfering with the 2020 election.

We understand some folks concerns with vendors playing a pivotal part in elections, the Placer County Elections Office note reads.

For over 20 years Placer County has kept all vendors at arms length. We see vendors as a partner but not as the entity that runs elections. In Placer County, Dominion does not program our database, design our ballots, program our voting equipment, count ballots or audit votes in any way.

Dominion recently settled a lawsuit with Fox News after the conservative outlet promulgated the conspiracy that Dominion tampered with the 2020 election. Fox agreed to pay $787 million to Dominion to resolve the claims.

Its no surprise that there are concerns in Placer County about doing away with what voters have come to expect on Election Day. One constituent, Dane Thompson of Granite Bay, called into the Tuesday Board meeting to urge the supervisors not to support the transition to VCA.

The VCA is dramatically making election integrity worse as it obfuscates who voted when and where, Thompson said. Its an election cheaters dream that allows for vote injections and enables cheating.

Supervisors Shanti Landon, District 2, and Cindy Gustafson, District 5, both questioned Ronco about how a switch to VCA may affect potential attempts at voter fraud.

In Roncos nearly 30 years as an elections official in the county, he said that there have been just 5 instances of people saying that someone forged their signature on a ballot. (Those ballots are then sent to the District Attorneys office for investigation.)

This move to VCA does not open any doors or create any problems that we dont already deal with, Ronco told Landon. The fact of the matter is, fraud occurs. But we are very vigilant, when it comes to fraud.

The Supervisors overwhelmingly voiced their support for Ronco; each of them doled effusive praise on the veteran elections official who serves as the President of the California Association of County Clerks and Election Officials.

In short: if Ronco trusts it, the Board does, too.

Youre probably the best Clerk Recorder in the state, Landon told him.

We can try this for a couple years if we want to call this an unofficial pilot, and if theres an increase in fraud or nefarious activity, we can always go back.
The patrol police published a video of emergency workers pulling people out from under the rubble in Kramatorsk, Donetsk Oblast. At 05:00, the Russians hit the city with Kh-22 missiles.

Source: Oleksii Biloshytskyi, First Deputy Chief of the Patrol Police Department, on Facebook

Details: According to Biloshytskyi, Russian missiles destroyed dozens of houses, among which were the homes of patrol officers of the Kramatorsk and Sloviansk battalions.

As a result of the terrorist act of the Russian Federation, two people were killed, and two others were injured.

The search and rescue operation took several hours.

The video shows the crew of Ihor Postashchuk, Yevhen Volokha and Andrii Voronchykhin, who were the first to arrive at the scene and began rescuing people.

Thanks to the coordinated actions of the police, emergency workers, paramedics and neighbours, it was possible to pull out a woman and a man from under the rubble.

In the published video, emergency workers are clearing the rubble and find a woman who is moaning loudly.

Background: On the morning of 14 June, the Russian army launched missile attacks on the cities of Kramatorsk and Kostiantynivka in Donetsk Oblast. Three people died, and three more were injured.

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Columbus police are using helicopters, horses, and search dogs Wednesday to look for a missing Ohio State student last seen Saturday.

>>9-year-old dead after being hit by construction truck in Centerville identified

Amina Alhaj-Omar, 25, was last seen at a gas station Saturday on South High Street in Columbus just hours before her family reported her as missing, according to a Columbus police spokesperson. Alhaj-Omar was deemed a high-risk missing person by the department and she is believed to be experiencing a mental health crisis, according to police.

People who spot Alhaj-Omar are asked not to approach her and to call 911 immediately, police said.

Alhaj-Omars car was located Monday by investigators on I-270 near I-71 after it appeared to have been involved in a minor crash, according to police. In the days since her reported disappearance, police uncovered surveillance pictures from the gas station she was last seen in.

>>Crime Stoppers offer thousands in cash reward for information on Ohio EMT kidnappers

While in the gas station, surveillance pictures showed she was carrying two knives and didnt leave the area for over two hours, our news partners at WBNS-TV in Columbus report.

Contributed: Columbus Police via WBNS-TV

About two hours after she was spotted at the gas station, she was spotted walked near a quarry. Police were called however she had already left the area.

Tuesday night, Alhaj-Omar was possibly seen near a Walmart just north of the gas station where she was last seen. Police have been focusing their searches Wednesday near the Walmart, quarry, and other areas, according to WBNS-TV.

Additional details were not available. Well continue to update this story as we learn more.
"Wave Makers" is written by Chien Li-ying and Yan Shi-ji, and directed by Lin Chun-yang Netflix

The Taiwanese Netflix political drama "Wave Makers" has sparked a #MeToo wave in Taiwan.

The series premiered on April 28, featuring a scene about workplace sexual harassment.

It triggered a series of sexual assault allegations that have rocked Taiwan's political scene.

A new Taiwanese political drama series on Netflix that premiered on April 28 has sparked a #MeToo wave in Taiwan. Since its debut, a total of four high-level party officials have resigned, per the Washington Post.

At the eye of the #MeToo hurricane is a powerful scene from "Wave Makers," where the protagonist, a senior party member, promises to seek justice for a junior staffer who had been sexually assaulted by a colleague.

"Let's not just let this go, OK? We can't let things go this easily. Otherwise, we'll slowly wither away and die," she tells her junior, despite higher-ups pushing for a cover-up of the incident.

This line threw open the floodgates to a wave of sexual assault allegations. It began with a former staffer of Taiwan's ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), Chen Chien-jou, who quoted that line from the show in a Facebook post on May 31.

In her post, Chen described the details of her sexual assault case and accused her supervisor and then head of the DPP's women's affairs department, Hsu Chia-tien, for blaming Chen for the incident and brushing her complaints off.

"After many months, I thought I could let myself go. Recently, when I was looking at the candidates, I was overwhelmed countless times, and I cried until I almost died," wrote Chen in the post, which has garnered over 21,000 likes as of June 14.

Her post drew attention and support from the public and inspired more than 15 women and men to come forward with allegations of sexual assault and harassment perpetrated by political figures, per South China Morning Post.

At least 10 of these cases involved members of the DPP or figures linked to the party, per SCMP.

"Because of 'Wave Makers,' we are now seeing the first wave of a #MeToo movement in Taiwan," Chen Mei-hua, a sociology and feminism professor at National Sun Yat-sen University in Taiwan, told the Washington Post.

Following the surge of sexual assault allegations, four high-level party members in Taiwan have since resigned from their jobs  including national policy adviser Yan Chih-fa, DPP deputy director Lin Nan-ku, the deputy labor minister's secretary Tsai Mu-lin, and Chen's former supervisor DPP deputy secretary-general Hsu, per Focus Taiwan.

Last week, Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen also apologized for the second time over the sexual harassment allegations involving the DPP.

"As the President and former DPP chair, I'd like to apologize to the public again with the development of sexual harassment incidents by former party workers," wrote Tsai in her Facebook post on June 6.

Although the show's scriptwriters set out to produce a show about women in politics, talk of sexual harassment is unavoidable when depicting the challenges women face in the workplace, screenwriter Chien Li-ying told the Washington Post.

"Especially in organizations where the collective goal is prioritized over individual needs, there is often a culture of self-sacrifice," said Chien to the Washington Post. As part of the #MeToo wave, Chien also came forward with her own sexual assault story in a Facebook post on June 2.

"Wave Makers" is written by Chien Li-ying and Yan Shi-ji, and directed by Lin Chun-yang. The political drama series is available to be streamed on Netflix.

Read the original article on Business Insider
Political prisoner Zakhtei left Russia: he had been in captivity for over 6 years

Former Ukrainian political prisoner Andrii Zakhtei, who was held captive by the Russians for more than six years, has come back to Ukraine.

Source: Suspilne Crimea; Hraty

Details: After the end of his term in the Simferopol colony, Zakhtei spent several months under arrest at the Centre for Foreigners in Rostov Oblast, Russia.

Hraty notes that after his release in early February, Zakhtei was supposed to be deported to the controlled territory of Ukraine by a court decision. Still, because of the war, it was impossible, and he was placed under arrest.

On the evening of 13 June, employees of the Embassy of Ukraine in Latvia met him at the Ubylynka border crossing and sent him to Ukraine.

Suspilne Crimea published a video of Zakhtei's meeting with his relatives. When he was arrested, his daughter was 7 months old, and now the girl is 7 years old.

For reference: Zakhtei spent 6.5 years in prison.

Background:

In August 2016, the FSB of Russia announced the detention of a group of Ukrainian saboteurs in the annexed Crimea, including Zakhtei, who worked as a taxi driver in Crimea, and Yevhen Panov. Russian secret services claim that a group of saboteurs allegedly planned to commit terrorist attacks on the peninsula's tourist and social infrastructure facilities. The authorities of Ukraine deny Russian accusations against Ukrainians and call them a provocation by Russian secret services.

In February 2017, the Russian investigation transferred Zakhtei from Moscow's Lefortovo pre-trial detention centre to Crimea.

In March 2017, Zakhtei wrote a statement to the migration service of the Russian Federation with a request to deprive him of Russian citizenship.

In February 2018, the Kremlin-controlled Supreme Court of Crimea sentenced Zakhtei to 6 years and 6 months in a strict-regime prison and a fine of 220,000 roubles (about US$2,622).

In September 2019, it became known that Zakhtei had written a request for clemency in the name of Russian President Vladimir Putin after learning that he was not on the list for exchange.

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Ukrainian clothing brand Aviatsiya Halychyny is raising money for the purchase of an attack aircraft for the Armed Forces of Ukraine

The company has raised UAH 17 million ($460,000) of 32 needed ($870,000), it announced on Instagram on June 13.

Read also: NV completes drone fundraising for 110th brigade, starts new campaign

Launched nearly a decade ago with an aviation theme, brand founder Yurko Nazarchuk announced #buymeafighterjet joint initiative with Ukrainian military pilots aimed to purchase a Western version of Aero L-39 Albatros jet.

Working with military pilots, the brand took nearly a year before deciding on the Czech training jet. After finalizing paperwork, Aviatsiya Halychyny is finally ready to announce its chosen fighter jet.

Read also: Okean Elzy helps raise UAH 5 million for Khersons State Emergency Services in a single day

The jet will be an L-39ZA/ART light fighter jet equipped with Israeli avionics and a 23-millimeter cannon.

Aviatsiya Halychyny explained on its site why this model was chosen.

All Ukrainian fighter pilots are familiar with it (its training version is in Ukrainian Air Force service).

It has Ukrainian engines that can be easily repaired and maintenaned by Ukrainian technical crews.

The jet can be equipped with the Western weapons provided by Ukraine's partner nations.

It can effectively protect the sky and shoot down enemy drones (with relatively cheaper operational capacity).

It has modernized navigation and fire-control systems close to NATO standards, so the L-39ZA/ART can be used as a training aircraft before transitioning to a F-16.

"We realize that this aircraft will not change the course of the war overnight, but it will be the first step towards the transition to Western aircraft," Aviatsiya Halychyny said.

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Frim Autos - YouTube

A handful of Chevrolet Corvette prototypes were recently caught on camera testing in Colorado, giving us a closer look at would could be an upcoming ZR1 trim.

The spy video, published by Frim Autos on YouTube, shows a gaggle of heavily camouflaged Corvettes leaving a parking lot, likely for high-altitude testing. While the cars' bodies are shrouded, we can see four center-mounted exhaust exits on all of them, just like the design found on the current Z06. At least one of the prototypes is sporting a Z07 package high-downforce wing out back.

From the sounds coming from the exhaust, it seems like these cars are using 5.5-liter flat-plane crank V-8 found in the Z06. While Chevy has yet to make an official announcement regarding the ZR1's existence, that car is expected to arrive with a twin-turbo version of this motor, making at least 850 hp. Other rumors suggest the engine could be paired to the electric front axle drivetrain found in the hybridized Corvette E-Ray.

Interestingly, the test cars are joined by an uncamouflaged Z06 as they venture out from the parking lot, suggesting there could be some sort of benchmarking or comparison going on between the two trims.

This isn't the first time we've seen what looks like a ZR1 test mule. Back in April 2022 our spy photographers caught images of what looked like an aggressive Corvette mule testing in Michigan.

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This article was produced in partnership with the Pulitzer Centers Rainforest Investigations Network and the Latin American Center for Investigative Journalism (CLIP).

MOCOA, Colombia  Angel Pasuy stood on his tribes land in the Colombian cloud forest, listening to a symphony of birdsong. An Indigenous land-use planner from the Kamentsa Biya de Sibundoy reservation, Pasuy and his people have called the steep slopes of the Mocoa area home for centuries.

His reservation borders a nationally protected forest reserve that connects the Amazon basin to the Andes mountains, home to hundreds of plant and animal species and the origin of dozens of waterways.

But Pasuy now worries about the forests future. In the past year, exploratory drilling for a prospective copper mine has picked up just outside the reserves eastern border, 2 miles from his reservations boundary. A Canadian mining company, Libero Copper & Gold, holds the rights to conduct exploratory mining in a 30-square-mile area that overlaps partially with the reserve, his reservation and another.

The area where Liberos [rights] are located is an area of special environmental and cultural value for us, said Pasuy, an architect by training who works for several local reservations. It is very clear to us that mining will affect the territory.

A quadrant with aerials of the Mocoa region. (Pedro Samper / NBC News)

The proposed mine would be the first legal metals mine in the countrys Amazon, part of Colombias push to become a major copper producer. Its development is being fueled by the global drive for metals for green energy, and in part by the family of New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu.

Sununus politically connected, climate change-denying father, John H. Sununu, and brother, Michael Sununu, are more than just investors in Libero Copper & Gold. Michael is a board member of Libero, and he and his father sit on the board of the companys largest shareholder, Anglo Asian Mining PLC, which operates in Azerbaijan. John Sununu is the second-largest shareholder of that company, with a nearly 10% stake. He and Michael Sununu both declined to comment and referred all questions to Anglo Asian Mining.

The push to unearth copper in the Colombia rainforest is part of an accelerating effort around the world to find metals crucial for electric cars, lithium ion batteries and other green energy components.

After a change from a conservative to a left-wing national government in Colombia last year, Libero Copper & Gold announced it is designing a plan for a carbon neutral mine, with help from Anglo Asian Mining, focused on reducing environmental impact of the operation.

CEO Ian Harris told NBC News the company does not plan to do large-scale mining, instead building a small, ethically sourced supply chain that specifically supplies a green economy.

Libero has sought to partner with farming and Indigenous communities in the area, but thats done little to ease concerns for the bordering Indigenous reservations, their leaders said. Still in the early stages of its project, Libero has yet to release planning documents about the size of the mine or its potential environmental impact, but has repeatedly said in shareholder reports that it plans to petition the Colombian government to shrink the forest reserve.

Leaders of the surrounding Indigenous reservations, like Pasuys, said they are concerned about the amount of land Libero has the rights to explore on, its overlap with the protected forest, the much larger additional area it has submitted permit applications for, and what they call the companys minimal efforts to consult them.

Angel Pasuy of the Kamentsa Biya de Sibundoy reservation. (Pedro Samper / NBC News)

While the territorial and environmental concerns surrounding the Mocoa mine echo those in many resource-rich areas around the world, the involvement of members of an American political family in a startup foreign mining company is unusual.

Chris Sununu, 48, who explored a campaign for the 2024 the Republican presidential nomination earlier this year before deciding not to run, has not disclosed any direct involvement with either company, and has no involvement in their operations, according to his office. But his relatives role on the two boards raise potential ethical concerns, good government groups said. If he is ever elected to federal office, his decisions could impact the foreign governments that regulate those companies.

This is really a black box in terms of how well were able to judge the level of involvement in foreign interests [for family members] and how that might affect decision making in the U.S. political system, said Alex Baumgart, a researcher with OpenSecrets, a nonprofit that tracks money in American politics.

The Sununus

Libero Copper & Gold is one of more than a thousand small Canadian exploratory or junior mining companies  essentially startups in the mining sector. They typically spend years searching for and developing deposits around the world to sell off to larger mining companies for production. Harris said Libero differs from most junior mining companies in that it plans to mine the copper from the Mocoa deposit itself. The companys pursuit of copper is part of an industry trend, though. As demand for green energy metals has increased, many junior mining companies pivoted away from metals like iron to exploring those deposits.

Junior mining is a speculative industry  the vast majority of exploratory projects fail, but those that succeed can be a financial jackpot for investors. As national and global agendas have increasingly highlighted the growing need for more green energy metals, incentives for finding those successful projects have increased, according to the Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada, the advocacy group that represents junior mining companies based in Canada, the country with the highest concentration of them.

Workers on a drill pad for Libero Copper & Gold's Mocoa project. (Libero Copper & Gold)

Theres urgency as people are recognizing the intrinsic link between those metals and minerals that are required to reach that [carbon zero] goal, said Alex Christopher, the immediate past president of the association. As a result, the base of investors in the junior mining space is broadening.

A class of investors once largely made up of Canadian venture capitalists now includes battery producers, automakers and  in this case  a politically powerful U.S. family with a history of hostility toward carbon reduction policies and technologies.

The Sununus have held political sway in the GOP since the 1980s, when family patriarch John H., 83, was elected New Hampshire governor. He later became a power player in Washington, serving as President George H.W. Bushs chief of staff before co-hosting CNNs Crossfire for six years in the 1990s, and then occasionally lobbying in D.C. on energy issues for much of the next decade. Half of his eight children have also held elected office. One is the governor; another, John E., 58, served in the House and Senate for over a decade; and two  Michael and James are New Hampshire town selectmen.

The family has had a wide range of business interests in the past two decades  mostly in New England  from real estate, banking and biotech to running a ski resort.

The Libero mine is not the Sununus first mining project. In the 90s, John H. was among several former high-level administration officials, mostly Republicans, who went into business in post-Soviet countries or lobbied on their behalf in the U.S. While many were focused on the regions oil and gas resources, Sununu went into mining.

Michael, John H. and Chris Sununu. (Courtesy Michael Sununu; Getty Images)

He was a founding adviser to the U.S. Azerbaijan Chamber of Commerce, and went into business with the head of that organization, Reza Vaziri, a high-ranking pre-revolution Iranian official, according to his company biography. They acquired rights to mine in Azerbaijan in 1997 in partnership with the countrys government, before being absorbed in 2005 by a British company, Anglo Asian Mining PLC.

Vaziri became the CEO of Anglo Asian, and Sununu joined the board. A Sununu family trust also owned more than $50,000 of stock in the company as recently as 2009, the last time a member of the family held a federally elected office requiring a financial disclosure listing its assets. According to Anglo Asians latest annual report, Vaziri and Sununu remain the companys largest shareholders.

Over the years, Anglo Asian Mining expanded its operations in Azerbaijan, and now holds the rights to mine gold, copper and silver deposits in eight contract areas across the country. It has lost and gained access to some due to Azerbaijans decadeslong conflict with Armenia. The company has largely steered clear of the conflict, but was criticized by the international Armenian community after it celebrated the liberation of a mining site through a 2020 peace deal between the two countries. One U.K.-based Armenian organization accused Anglo Asian of exploiting the conflict for financial gain.

Anglo Asian Mining has a strong track record of operating its mines and production facilities with a commitment to best practices, a company spokesperson said. The company works with its stakeholders at the local and national levels to maintain its high level of environmental and social stewardship  and will continue to do so as it expands its operations.

It was after Michael Sununu, who runs several New Hampshire-based family companies with brother James, joined the Anglo Asian board in late 2020 that the company got involved in mining outside Azerbaijan. It became the largest shareholder of Libero Copper & Gold as the Canadian company was seeking funding to ramp up its exploration at the Mocoa site, earning John H. a nearly 2% stake in Libero. As part of the deal, Michael joined the Libero board.

Many political families have sprawling business interests, said Virginia Canter, chief ethics counsel for Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, but it is international investments, particularly board memberships, that can raise the most ethical concerns for public officials.

Foreign entanglements potentially give rise to questions about favoritism, bias, undue influence, and the potential for corruption, she said. As the world became more globally connected, these family opportunities have escalated, and their significance has probably escalated in turn.

The U.S. is a prime market for green energy metals, as the country looks to ramp up imports and secure its supply to meet its climate goals. A company presentation posted on Liberos website in March emphasized the potential of the U.S. as a major export market for the copper it hopes to produce at the Colombian mine.

[Board membership] suggests an increased level of involvement and profit connection than just someone who owns some random amount of shares, said Baumgart of OpenSecrets. But the extent and influence of those ties is difficult to trace because financial disclosure requirements differ by type of elected official, and most American financial disclosures only require officials to include information about spouses and dependents, not parents, siblings or other family members.

The father and son Sununu board members also share another interest  they are both outspoken critics of the scientific consensus on human-caused climate change. Johns efforts in the White House in the late 1980s have been credited as one of the key reasons the U.S. did not sign an early binding climate agreement. Michael has argued against climate science-based policy and legislation at the state level, as well as in op-eds and in a research paper published by a free market think tank where his father and a brother serve on the board.

Both John H. and Michael declined to comment on their views on climate change or their business holdings, referring NBC News to the statement provided by Anglo Asian Mining.

Harris, the Libero CEO, said that while he cannot comment on anyones beliefs, climate-change denial has not come up in any of Liberos board meetings. I dont think its had a significant influence on the strategy of the company, if any, he said, adding that he has never met John H. Sununu and never heard Michael Sununu share those feelings.

Chris is the only family member currently serving as an elected official above the local level. In his 13 years holding New Hampshire public office, six as governor, he has charted a unique energy approach for the region, opposing a variety of climate change initiatives adopted by neighboring states and vetoing energy transition legislation. In 2019, a New Hampshire Public Radio podcast devoted an hour to examining the governor and his familys relationship to climate change.

Governor Sununu recognizes that human behavior has contributed to climate change, said Brandon Pratt, his deputy communications director. He has supported several clean energy bills throughout his tenure as governor and has been a vocal supporter of hydro and solar development projects that protect ratepayers from burdensome subsidies.

The governors investments are opaque. His New Hampshire financial disclosures show that for the last four years, he has made more than $10,000 in income annually from Sununu Holdings, the same family trust that held stock in Anglo Asian Mining in 2009. But New Hampshire does not require him to list the trusts assets, so there is no public record that would show whether he personally holds a small stake in either mining company.

Governor Sununu has no involvement in the operations of Anglo Asian Mining or the operations of Sununu Holdings, and files all financial disclosures required by law, Pratt said.

After hinting at and taking initial steps for a potential presidential run, the governor announced in early June that he would not enter the 2024 race. Sununu did not rule out a later bid for the nations highest office. He remains on the national stage  as the governor of the first primary state, he is a coveted adviser to candidates in the crowded Republican primary field. Should he run in the future, he would have to submit a federal disclosure that would include more details of his assets within 30 days of being deemed a candidate by the Federal Election Commission.

The mine

Mocoa is the only active copper mining project in the Colombian Amazon, putting it in conflict with the countrys other major environmental goal: preserving the rainforest.

The land which Libero has the rights to explore on includes nearly 7 square miles of the forest reserve, called the Upper Mocoa River Basin Protected Forest Reserve, and 5.7 square miles of two Indigenous reservations, including Pasuys. Two square miles of Libero's area of exploration rights overlap with the reserve and one of the reservations.

Harris told NBC News that Libero plans to create a small, underground mining operation that would slowly mine the roughly 100 hectares (247 acres) of the deposit outside the forest reserve boundary, and that it might take a century to extract everything from the site. The long-term operation would have a small footprint, create far less waste than more common open-pit mining and cause little to no additional deforestation, he said. Libero is currently studying how to use innovation and technology to minimize the projects environmental footprint, according to a May press release.

The company has also supported reforestation projects in the region, which has suffered one of the countrys highest rates of deforestation in recent years. It is exploring on private land in a small farming community, which has been working closely with the company, Harris said, but an operating mine is still probably four to 10 years away.

Libero has stated in shareholder reports that it plans to petition the government to allow mining under the forest reserve, as half of the minerals it could access in the deposit are underneath it. Libero believes they will gain access to the Forest Reserve for mining purposes as part of the environmental permitting phase of the project, an April filing said. However, should the Colombian Government decide not to grant access into this area, this would significantly restrict the size of the resource-constraining pit shell and have a significant impact on the size of the mineral resource.

A Libero Copper & Gold worker walks down an access path to the company's Mocoa camp and drill pads. (Libero Copper & Gold)

It is unclear whether Liberos request would succeed. The Upper Mocoa Basin is one of 59 nationally protected reserves. Colombia has several different types of forest reserves, some of which allow for mining activities or boundary changes for those purposes, but nationally protected reserves are not among them, according to the countrys environment ministry.

Harris said that Libero has not yet submitted that petition and may never do so, as the plan the company is developing would involve only underground mining outside the reserve.

While it has yet to file detailed reports to the Colombian government or shareholders about what its mine would look like and how it would affect the environment, Libero has applied for 31 additional exploration permits in the area, according to the national mining database, which would expand its rights to 11.5 times the current area, a third of it overlapping with Indigenous land belonging to 11 reservations. A March company presentation highlighted those applications as part of a regional opportunity.

According to the company, 13 of those applications were recently rejected, though the national mining agency database showed 20 had been, as of June 8. The remaining 11 pending applications would still expand Liberos current area by six times, with 40% of the pending permit area overlapping nine reservations.

In response to questions about Liberos permit applications, Harris noted that there is no restriction to apply for a permit based on Indigenous land. He added that the company has no plans to explore in the areas it submitted permit applications for, and that it only did so to avoid nearby competition. To be very frank, it was to stop anyone else from coming in, he said.

That hasnt stopped local communities from worrying. The exploration site is just over 6 miles from Mocoa, the regions largest city, where a deforestation-related mudslide killed more than 330 people six years ago. The project sparked a protest in the city in 2021 after Libero announced it was beginning to prospect in the area.

Displaced residents walk across a bridge over the Mocoa River after a landslide in Mocoa, Colombia, in 2017. (Nicolo Filippo Rosso / Bloomberg via Getty Images)

A displaced resident carries a mattress and bucket of supplies after a landslide in Mocoa, Colombia, in 2017. (Nicolo Filippo Rosso / Bloomberg via Getty Images)

According to the company, Libero has been contacting communities throughout the city and Indigenous groups in the region and is taking efforts to boost the local economy through hiring and contracting with small businesses. But there is a dispute over whom the company has to contact and when.

Libero has stated its current exploration is close to only one community  Montclar, a small farming village. The community signed a mutual benefit agreement with the company last year that includes commitments to cultural preservation, employment and water protection, according to a press release.

Colombian law requires mining companies to consult with Indigenous communities in their zone of influence before opening a mine. Libero has said in press releases that there are no Indigenous communities in that zone for its current exploration, and noted the company is going beyond what is currently required of it.

Libero employs an Indigenous coordinator to conduct outreach to local reservations and has had a relationship with all our Indigenous communities in Mocoa from the very beginning, according to a spokesperson.

But leaders of the two Indigenous reservations whose land overlaps with the companys current mining titles said they were not satisfied with the limited information they had heard from Libero. A 2017 government assessment found that the two reservations and one other are in the zone of influence for any project within those mining titles. As a result, they must be consulted before mining operations begin.

The Inga de Condagua reservation, which has more overlap, filed a protection action against Libero in April 2022, arguing that they should also be consulted during the current exploration phase. After a judge ordered the ministry to assess the petition, the government agency agreed.

Residents of the village where Libero is currently exploring then appealed the decision. They said it infringed on their rights as private landowners and demanded that they be included in all consultations. A Libero spokesperson said the company is talking to both the farming and Indigenous groups and we will do whatever decision the law states.

Zoraida Chindoy. (Pedro Samper / NBC News)

Zoraida Chindoy, the environmental leader of the Condagua reservation, fears how mining exploration could compound the effects of erosion. During the dry season the land loosens, and even more so when people come to perform studies on it. Its logical to assume they might leave some damage behind, she said.

Chindoy survived Mocoas deadly mudslide in 2017, sheltering with family on the top floor of her three-story home as its lower levels were destroyed. It could happen again, and I think Mocoa would disappear, she said.

Andres Bermudez Lievano reported from Mocoa, Colombia. Adiel Kaplan and Andrew W. Lehren reported from New York.

This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
 Flash

The United States should respect China's position on the Taiwan question, stop interfering in China's internal affairs and stop undermining China's sovereignty, security and development interests in the name of competition, Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Qin Gang said on Wednesday.

Qin made the remarks in a phone conversation with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, during which Qin expounded on China's solemn positions on the Taiwan question and other core concerns.

Since the beginning of this year, Qin said, China-U.S. relations have encountered new difficulties and challenges, for which it is crystal clear who is responsible.

China always views and handles China-U.S. relations in accordance with the principles of mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and win-win cooperation proposed by President Xi Jinping, he added.

Qin urged the United States to take concrete actions to implement the important consensus reached by the two heads of state at the Group of 20 Bali summit, and honor the relevant commitments it has made.

It is hoped that the United States will work with China to effectively manage differences and promote exchanges and cooperation, so as to stop the decline of bilateral relations and bring them back to the track of sound and stable development, he said.
Los Angeles City Councilman Curren Price presides over the council meeting at City Hall on June 13. (Myung J. Chun / Los Angeles Times)

In April, Los Angeles City Councilmember Curren Price rallied with workers on the steps of City Hall to demand higher pay for hotel workers and janitors who clean Los Angeles International Airport.

"The living wage movement is a social justice movement," Price declared alongside union members in purple shirts, before introducing a proposal to dramatically boost wages for workers who cater to tourists.

The moment distilled the causes on which Price has built his reputation in his decade on the City Council: his advocacy for low-wage earners and close ties to organized labor.

Price's South L.A. council district includes some of the most impoverished neighborhoods in the city, and the politician has led efforts to boost the earnings or job opportunities of sidewalk vendors, hotel workers, formerly incarcerated people and others.

First elected in 2013 to represent District 9, Price is now a veteran of the 15-member City Council. He's outlasted several colleagues who have shared the horseshoe of seats assigned to City Council members, some of whom have left in recent years not only because of election loss but also in scandal-caused resignation or indictment.

Now, Price's reputation is on the line following criminal charges of perjury, conflict of interest and embezzlement, filed Tuesday by the county district attorney's office. The councilman was accused of having a financial interest in development projects that he voted on, and improperly receiving medical benefits from the city for his now-wife while he was still married to another woman.

"Curren Price is a long-standing public servant who has given his life to the city of Los Angeles," said Price spokesperson Angelina Valencia, who added that their office had not seen the charges as of Tuesday afternoon. "He looks forward to defending himself once hes had an opportunity to address these charges."

The criminal charges immediately shook up his positions at City Hall. Price had chaired two powerful council committees  the Economic and Community Development Committee and the Ad Hoc Committee on the 2028 Olympics and Paralympic Games. He announced Tuesday that he was stepping down from all committee assignments and as president pro tempore.

His district represents several South L.A. neighborhoods and the area around downtown's convention center.

USC and Exposition Park are also in his district, areas that have seen investments such as BMO Stadium and the forthcoming Lucas Museum of Narrative Art.

District 9's population is 78% Latino and 13% Black, yet voters in the district have elected a Black representative to the City Council since the early 1960s. Price has twice won reelection, backed by a broad coalition that includes his colleagues on the City Council and community leaders.

"He's well aware  probably more than ever before  of the need for a coalition to maintain his political seat," said Jaime Regalado, emeritus professor of political science at Cal State L.A.

As Latinos have become a "sizable majority" of his district, Regalado said, Price "would have been foolish not to fully recognize what's at stake and come to grips with it," including by hiring a diverse staff.

Hes also forged relationships with younger progressive members of the City Council who are also close with organized labor.

After the audio leak of a tape in October that showed City Council President Nury Martinez making racist remarks, the council moved to make City Councilman Paul Krekorian president of the council. At one point, it appeared that Price might seek the position. Instead, he was elected president pro tempore.

In a moving speech delivered on the council floor in late October after his colleagues voted him in, Price lauded his own district as a "microcosm" of the city's diverse population. He also spoke about using his life experiences to bring the city together following widespread outrage over his colleagues' ugly remarks.

"As a 71-year-old Black man, I've had my fair share of experience fighting against adversity," said Price. "From living through a time of segregation to the social justice revolution."

Price grew up in South Los Angeles, attended high school in Inglewood before going to Stanford University and University of Santa Clara, School of Law.

He spent several years on the Inglewood City Council and represented much of the 9th District while serving in the state Senate. He also served on the state Assembly.

He easily defeated challenger Dulce Vasquez in the primary election last year for his third and final term. He called the race a referendum on his progressive, positive, inclusive leadership.

On the council, he's supported a citywide $15 minimum wage, helped legalize street vending and pushed for a pilot program that gave money, no strings attached, to struggling families.

He also put forward a hero pay program for grocery store employees who worked during the pandemic, a controversial move that prompted one grocery chain to close stores.

And he led a campaign to change employment rules so formerly incarcerated individuals can more easily find work.

Price "has certainly been a champion for working class Angelenos," said Alberto Retana, president and chief executive of Community Coalition, a nonprofit based in South L.A. "His support of wages, his support of reinvesting police dollars, partnering with immigrant rights organizations  he's certainly been an ally to organizations on the ground."

In April, he joined members of Unite Here Local 11, Service Employees International Union-United Service Workers West and Yvonne Wheeler, president of the L.A. County Federation of Labor, to unveil a plan to boost the minimum wages of workers at larger hotels and some LAX workers to $30 an hour by 2028.

Price argues the forthcoming 2028 Summer Olympics will help pump money into the economy and low-wage workers should benefit. The proposal is opposed by business groups.

Labor groups have stood by Price, who regularly champions their causes. In the June 2022 city council race, unions spent more than $500,000 in support of Price's campaign.

Price has also faced scrutiny over his personal and professional decisions: His marriage to Del Richardson Price became an issue during his reelection in 2017 after CityWatch reported that Price hadnt finalized his divorce from his first wife. A spokesperson told the Times that year Price thought he and Richardson were legally married at the time.

In 2019, The Times reported that Price had repeatedly cast votes that affected housing developers and other firms listed as clients of his wifes consulting company. Many of the votes identified by The Times were related to housing developments:

The Times reported that Price voted on decisions involving at least 10 companies in the same years they were listed as providing at least $10,000 in income to Del Richardson & Associates.

Price also faced criticism for backing huge digital billboards on Washington Boulevard. Companies tied to the developer then funded a political committee working to reelect Price.

Community leader Jorge Nuno, who lives in Historic South-Central and ran unsuccessfully against Price six years ago, said that despite the headlines that Price has grabbed for his work on the minimum wage and other issues, the district needs better leadership.

"There are certain talking points that sound good, but are we increasing home ownership? Is our homelessness decreasing?" said Nuno. "I look at the data. Our community continues to struggle."

He called the charges against Price "just disheartening."

"We just hope that we get better representation that will fight for the people, he said.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Los Angeles City Council President Paul Krekorian discusses his response to the criminal case filed against Councilmember Curren Price. (Gary Coronado / Los Angeles Times)

On the day in 2020 that Los Angeles City Councilmember Jose Huizar was arrested by FBI agents, his colleagues moved within hours to suspend him, stripping him of his duties before he had even entered a plea.

A year later, the City Council took the same action with Councilmember Mark Ridley-Thomas, suspending him one week after he had been indicted on his own set of federal corruption charges.

Now, with yet another colleague facing criminal charges, council members are weighing their third suspension vote in three years. But this time around, they are taking a more cautious approach to that decision.

On Wednesday, Council President Paul Krekorian said he wants the council to take up a proposal for suspending Councilmember Curren Price, who has been charged with embezzlement, perjury and conflict of interest. But instead of calling for an immediate vote, he said council members should let Price first respond to the charges.

Council members should also listen to residents of Price's South Los Angeles district, and carefully weigh the "real world consequences" of a suspension on his constituents before casting their vote, Krekorian said.

"I think it's important that we say, right at the outset of all of this, that the presumption of innocence is not just a handy catchphrase," Krekorian said Wednesday. "It is a bedrock principle of the United States of America and our Constitution and it will be a bedrock principle going forward as a council."

In a charging document filed this week, the L.A. County District Attorneys office alleged that Price violated the state's conflict-of-interest law by casting votes on affordable housing projects developed by companies that employed his wife, Del Richardson Price, as a consultant. Prosecutors also said Price also committed perjury, by failing to list some of his wife's income on his government financial disclosure forms.

Price also has been accused of receiving tens of thousands of dollars in medical benefits from the city for his now wife while he was still married to another woman.

In the wake of those charges, Price resigned from each of his council committees and stepped down from his leadership post, where he served as No. 2 under Krekorian. Price called the charges "unwarranted" and said through a spokesperson that he will fight them, but has not provided a more specific rebuttal.

Under the City Charter, the council has no authority to remove Price. If he is convicted of a felony, he would automatically be forced from office. If he were to resign, the council would have the power to call a special election.

The City Charter does give the council power to suspend any elected city official who has been charged with a felony while they await trial. But that step comes with its own set of political risks  a lesson city leaders learned in the wake of Ridley-Thomas' indictment.

If Price is suspended, Krekorian could decide to appoint a nonvoting caretaker to fill the seat while Price's case plays out. But that would leave his district without a voting member on the council. The council could vote instead to appoint a temporary voting member. But that would pave the way for an unelected representative to make decisions on behalf of Price's constituents.

Krekorian, appearing before reporters Wednesday, made clear that he intends to move at a slower pace, requiring that any suspension vote receive a thorough vetting from the council's rules committee  something that did not occur with Huizar and Ridley-Thomas.

"This will not be a process that will be rushed through, as has happened in the past," he said.

Despite introducing the suspension motion, Krekorian declined to say whether he intends to vote to suspend Price. Others at City Hall said a suspension is warranted.

"My role is not to cast judgments here," said Councilmember Hugo Soto-Martinez, who represents Hollywood, Silver Lake and other nearby neighborhoods. "But when the time comes, I plan to join my colleagues in voting to suspend Mr. Price from his role as council member."

Councilmembers Bob Blumenfield and Tim McOsker said they would vote to strip Price of his council duties.

"My position today is that a suspension is the appropriate action," McOsker said. "But I'm also going to respect the process."

Price, who began his third term in December, does not leave office until 2026.

If he is suspended, and the council chooses a temporary replacement for him, two of the council's 15 members  both representing South L.A.  will have been installed without an election.

The 10th District, whose voters elected Ridley-Thomas in 2020, has gone without an elected representative since October 2021, when he was indicted.

At one point last year, council members named former Councilmember Herb Wesson as a temporary voting representative for the district. But that decision was later blocked by a judge amid fierce criticism from some of the district's residents, who said they should have been the ones to choose their representative.

The council later tapped former legislative aide Heather Hutt to serve as a temporary replacement for Ridley-Thomas. Some in the district again pushed back, saying they had been disenfranchised. After a jury convicted Ridley-Thomas of seven felony counts, Hutt's time in the seat was extended to December 2024. (Ridley-Thomas has challenged the verdict and is seeking a new trial.)

Earl Ofari Hutchinson, president of the Los Angeles Urban Policy Roundtable, argued forcefully against a suspension of Price.

He represents the poorest, most underserved, mostly Black and Latino City Council district, said Hutchinson, who lives in an unincorporated section of South L.A. Suspending him would further disenfranchise the district's constituents."

Former Councilmember Jan Perry, who represented Price's district from 2001 to 2013, voiced similar concerns, saying a suspension would deprive residents of the 9th District of representation. The council should not repeat the "stumbling" that occurred at City Hall in the wake of Ridley-Thomas' indictment, she said.

"Needless to say, I'm pretty upset. The people who live in [Price's district] already go through a lot on a day-to-day basis," she said. "And to add this on top of that is just infuriating."

Adriana Cabrera, president of the Central Alameda Neighborhood Council, said she too is angry, not just over the criminal case against Price, but the overall state of his district. But Cabrera, who ran as a write-in candidate against Price last year, said she feels a suspension vote is not enough.

"We need him to resign," she said.

The council will likely need to decide Price's fate before the end of the month, when its members go on a three-week summer recess. Councilmember Katy Yaroslavsky, who represents part of the Westside, said she has already gone through the D.A.'s charging document, and found the case to be "pretty straightforward."

"I'm angry, I'm sad, and I'm sick and tired of this happening," she said. "We need stronger conflict-of-interest laws. They need to be enforced."

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
We wont put up with this: Pride flag thefts across Tacoma being investigated as hate crimes

The Tacoma Police Department says there is fear and concern in the community after a series of Pride flag thefts last weekend.

Officer Shelbie Boyd reports there was a total of nine incidents, largely concentrated in and around Tacomas Proctor neighborhood.

Its shocking that in 2023 we still have to face crimes like this, said Boyd. You feel bad as an officer, seeing someone violated like that.

Tacoma Police said the department considers the incidents to be hate crimes that will be investigated under the states malicious harassment and theft laws.

Fly the flag, be proud of who you are, said Boyd. If you have a neighbor who is flying a pride flag, look out for them.

Cindy Roth says over the weekend, someone ripped apart her neighbors Pride flag. The neighborhood, outraged by the hateful act has since made a powerful gesture of their own. Roths lawn and others on her street are now decorated in rainbow.

Youve hurt people, but youre not going to take anything away from us, said Roth. Were standing strong and we wont put up with this.

Authorities encourage any outstanding victims to come forward and share their stories with either their Tacoma Police or representatives at Tacoma-based Rainbow Center. Officer Boyd wants those living in the Proctor neighborhood with surveillance systems to look at their camera footage from over the weekend even if your home was not specifically targeted.

That can also help us kind of triangulate areas where this person came and went, said Boyd.

Any victims who reported a theft but have yet to be contacted by a detective will hear from one soon.

If you had a Pride flag stolen but havent reported the theft, call 911 or the TPD non-emergency line at 253-287-4455 to let the police know. You can also submit a tip anonymously to Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS(8477) or email the Rainbow Center at info@rainbowctr.org.

The Tacoma Police Department stands with and has a deep commitment to our LGBTQIA+ community and all communities that are victims of hate. Hate has no place in the City of Tacoma and the Tacoma Police Department will do their best to ensure these perpetrators are brought to justice, TPD said in a Tuesday news release.
Prince Harry visa case: Why is a US think-tank seeking the release of the Duke of Sussexs application form?

Prince Harry leaves the High Court in London after giving evidence (EPA)

Prince Harry has been giving evidence at the High Court in London this month as part of a landmark legal action against Mirror Group Newspapers, which he is suing for damages after alleging that journalists at its titles had resorted to underhand methods to secure stories about him and his family, including phone hacking, gaining information by deception and employing private investigators for unlawful activities.

How much more blood will stain their typing fingers before someone can put a stop to this madness? he wrote in his 55-page witness statement, accusing the tabloid media of bad practice.

But the Duke of Sussex, 38, is also currently the subject of a second court case underway on the other side of the Atlantic.

The Heritage Foundation, a conservative think-tank, is bringing a case against the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) appealing for the release of the dukes visa application, submitted in advance of his relocation to California in January 2020.

A request for the form under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) was previously turned down by US Customs and Border Protection, which told the foundation that it would need Prince Harrys consent in order to do so.

The think-tank insists the application is of immense public interest in light of the dukes subsequent confessions of past illegal drug use as a teenager and as an adult, which he made in the Netflix series Harry & Meghan in his recent memoir Spare.

The duke wrote in Spare that he had taken cocaine but found it wasnt much fun, and it didnt make me particularly happy, as it seemed to make everyone around me and said of smoking cannabis while still a pupil at Eton, the prestigious Berkshire private school: Marijuana is different, that actually really did help me.

A US DS160 visa application form explicitly asks the applicant to answer truthfully to the questions, Have you ever been a drug abuser or addict? and, Have you ever violated, or engaged in a conspiracy to violate, any law relating to controlled substances?

If the dukes application were to be published and reveal that his answers contradicted his later public revelations about his dalliances with drugs, the case would call into question the Biden administrations handling of the visa application process, the organisation contends.

In a statement, the Heritage Foundation said that it hopes to determine whether celebrity elites such as the Duke of Sussex were likely to receive preferential treatment and whether the DHS was operating fairly  without fear or favour.

Speaking to Sky News, its counsel Sam Dewey said: The [US] government has taken the position that theres nothing to see here.

Weve taken the position that no, if you look through all the details of his admissions, you look at the drug laws, you look at the laws on admissions, theres a real serious question as to whether or not he should have been admitted.

The alternative, if he didnt disclose the drug use  then theres a very serious question as to whether or not proceedings should have begun against him for that.

Responding, the DHS said the think-tank had failed to demonstrate the necessity of releasing the document and questioned whether there was truly widespread public interest in the matter.

Prince Harrys spokespeople have so far said they will not comment at this time.

The case opened in a federal court in Washington DC on Tuesday 6 June, with Judge Carl Nichols ruling on that the Biden administration had one week to decide how it would handle the foundations FOIA request.

Representing the US government, assistant US attorney John Bardo argued in court that sufficient coverage from mainstream American media was required for a request to be expedited.

Mr Dewey countered that DHS regulations simply say media without specifying where the outlets are based, pointing out that news websites have a global audience online these days, no matter where their parent company might be situated.

You cant define mainstream, he subsequently told The Independent. Thats almost absurd in this context. So as a policy matter, that is a very alarming statement for the press and for transparency for the administration.

The case is expected to take several weeks to resolve, with legal experts predicting that the judge is unlikely to side with the foundations argument because immigration documents contain a wealth of personal information about the applicant and so ordering the release of Prince Harrys would set a potentially dangerous precedent.

Stacy Cozart Martin, an immigration lawyer and professor at Case Western Reserve University, told the BBC: Those applications have a tonne of personal information on them. It would be very, very shocking, and I think a little frightening, if that were to be released to the public. Not only for him, but as a whole.
An Atlanta man is going to prison and must repay millions of dollars to hemp farmers he defrauded in South Carolina, North Carolina and Georgia, according to the U.S. Attorneys Office.

Rahsaan Jackson Garth, 49, was sentenced to three years in federal prison and ordered to pay more than $2 million in restitution, the U.S. Attorneys Office said Wednesday in a news release. The exact sum was not available.

After he was released from federal prison in 2017 for his involvement in a health care fraud, Garth formed the company Verde Leaf and directed it, according to the release. Verde Leaf was supposed to address the challenges farmers faced in the hemp arena  including license acquisition, hemp cultivation and processing, and industry knowledge, the U.S. Attorneys Office said.

On its website, the now-bankrupt Verde Leaf billed itself as a company that would help clients navigate what is poised to be a multi-billion-dollar industry, and ensure them that their hemp crop was sold above fair market value.

Verde Leaf logo from its website. Screen Grab

On Feb. 19, 2020, Verde Leaf held a workshop in South Carolina for potential farmers in conjunction with the South Carolina Department of Agriculture, the U.S. Attorneys Office said. During the workshop, Garth represented that Verde Leaf had distribution networks and deals with food companies, pet companies, and pharmaceutical companies, according to the release.

While Garth was in various stages of negotiations with many of these companies, he fraudulently represented that Verde Leaf had consummated these deals, the U.S. Attorneys Office said. Based in part on these knowing misrepresentations, farmers entered into contracts with Verde Leaf to grow hemp, according to the release.

Although Verde Leaf assisted these farmers with their hemp crops, it was unable to consummate the deals referenced at the agriculture department meeting to distribute or sell products, the U.S. Attorneys Office said. Therefore, Verde Leaf was unable to process the hemp or pay most of the farmers for their crops and had to declare bankruptcy, according to the release.

As a result of the false statements that lured the farmers into doing business with Garth, the farmers suffered great financial harm, the U.S. Attorneys Office said.

The District of South Carolina is committed to prosecuting schemes that target South Carolina farmers and small business owners, U.S. Attorney Adair Boroughs said in the release.

This case was investigated by the FBI and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Watkins.

Criminal history

Garths previous conviction came in 2015, when he committed health-care fraud by faking the results of allergy tests that patients doctors had ordered, the U.S. Attorneys Office said.

In 2011, Garth opened Polaris Allergy Labs Inc. in East Point, Georgia. Doctors sent their patients blood samples to Polaris Allergy Labs Inc. to be tested for food and environmental allergies, according to the U.S. Attorneys Office.

From September 2012 through February 2014, Garth directed his allergy laboratory technician not to test some of the blood samples for allergens in order to save money by not using the allergen reagents necessary for testing, the U.S. Attorneys Office said. Instead of testing the blood, Garth created fake allergy test result reports for the patients, and then had the fake test result reports sent back to the patients doctors, according to the U.S. Attorneys Office.

Sometimes Garth created results showing no allergic reaction, and other times he created results showing an allergic reaction, in order to avoid raising the suspicions of the doctors to whom he sent fake test result reports, the U.S. Attorneys Office said.

(Garth) placed the pursuit of his own prosperity ahead of the well-being of patients, many of whom were children and the elderly, said Derrick L. Jackson, the former special agent in charge of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General in Atlanta.

After pleading guilty to one count of health care fraud, Garth was sentenced to 46 months in federal prison, three years of supervised release, ordered to pay $246,536.50 in restitution, and perform 100 hours of community service, according to the U.S. Attorneys Office.
The Missouri Nonpublic Schools Accrediting Association has awarded membership to a Springfield private school district's early childhood education and elementary education programs, according to a press release.

On June 9, the MNSAA voted unanimously to approve the Discovery School, which serves students from preschool to eighth grade at the Discovery Center of Springfield and children from ages 1 to 6 at the Science Sprouts early childhood building.

We are immensely proud to have received accreditation from the Missouri Nonpublic School Accrediting Association, said Jackie Douglas, Discovery Center of Springfield's vice president of education. This achievement is a testament to the hard work and dedication of our exceptional faculty, staff, and students who consistently strive for academic excellence. To complete the accreditation process in only 8 months is rare and a huge accomplishment that speaks to the credibility of our team and of our program.

From 2021: Discovery Center of Springfield wins $1 million prize to 'transform education'

The Discovery School began operating during the COVID-19 pandemic, offering free childcare and expanded education. The school "takes kids who have fallen behind, places them in small classes of only 10 students, and gives them each an individualized learning plan," according to the press release. The school also doesn't use a grade level system, which the district says allows kids to learn at their own pace.

Since the MNSAA is a member of the National Federation of Nonpublic School State Accrediting Associations, the Discovery School is accredited by the national agency as well. NFNSSAA is recognized by the United States Office of Education and the nonprofit Council for the Advancement and Support of Education. In order for a school to be accredited by the MNSAA, it must meet a variety of standards, be recommended by a sponsoring agency, and complete a self-evaluation.

STEM programs for area students: Springfield school opened during World War II gets new life as home for Springfield Public Schools magnet program

This accreditation opens up new additional funding options such as the MOScholars program, which provide tax credits in exchange for contributions to approved, nonprofit Educational Assistance Organizations. The EAOs primarily use the contributions to award educational opportunity scholarships to Missouri students with Individual Education Plans and students living in low-income households.

For more information or to apply, visit discoverycenter.org/school.

Susan Szuch is the health and public policy reporter for the Springfield News-Leader. Follow her on Twitter @szuchsm. Story idea? Email her at sszuch@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Springfield News-Leader: Springfield's Discovery School receives state, national accreditation
Prosecutors reach plea deal in Boynton fatal stabbing. The guilty person is all of 16.

BOYNTON BEACH  A 16-year-old from Boynton Beach will spend one year in the Palm Beach County Jail after pleading guilty to manslaughter in a December 2021 stabbing death, according to an agreement approved Monday.

Circuit Judge Jeffrey Gillen also ordered that Petrice Cineas be placed on five years' probation upon his release from custody.

Gillen found Cineas to be a youthful offender which, under state guidelines, permits a judge impose a period of incarceration and probation totaling six years.

The Palm Beach Post is naming Cineas because he was sentenced to an adult charge in open court. He was represented by an attorney from the Palm Beach County Public Defender's Office, which as a policy does not comment on open cases.

Top prosecutor: Dave Aronberg, Palm Beach County state attorney since 2012, won't seek fourth term

Deceased man remains unidentified at family's request

Cineas was 15 when Boynton Beach police alleged that he stabbed a man on Dec. 22, 2021, during an altercation at an unspecified location off Seacrest Boulevard between Woolbright Road and Boynton Beach Boulevard.

Cineas initially faced a charged of second-degree murder after prosecutors decided to charge him as adult.

City police did not identify the man who died, saying his family invoked its right to privacy under a 2018 state constitutional amendment modeled after California's Marsy's Law. The amendment allows either a crime victim or family member to request that their name be withheld from public reports.

For subscribers: One road linked nearly half of Palm Beach County's most dangerous intersections in 2022

Boynton Beach police say argument preceded fatal attack

Police said there was an argument during which Cineas stabbed the man with a kitchen knife, puncturing his liver. The man died on Christmas Day after going into cardiac arrest during surgery.

After the stabbing, officers found Cineas walking one-half mile from the crime scene and took him to a hospital after noticing he had a small cut on his shoulder and a bruise on his neck. He alleged that the man had punched him.

As a part of the youth offender sentence, Cineas will undergo a mental-health evaluation upon his release from jail and complete any recommended treatment. Gillen also ordered that the teen refrain from using drugs without a valid prescription, and that he submit to random drug testing at his own expense.

Julius Whigham II is a criminal justice and public safety reporter for The Palm Beach Post. You can reach him at jwhigham@pbpost.com and follow him on Twitter at @JuliusWhigham. Help support our work: Subscribe today.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Plea deal reached over 16-year-old's role in 2021 fatal stabbing
FILE PHOTO: A worker holds GMO yellow corn imported from the U.S., in Tepexpan

By Cassandra Garrison

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) -Dozens of flights at an international airport in the northern Mexican state of Sinaloa were suspended Wednesday as protests by farmers demanding guaranteed prices for grains ramped up a standoff with the government.

Farmers in at least 20 states kicked off demonstrations on Tuesday, blocking traffic on highways and toll booths and occupying government offices, as well as the airport in Sinaloa state capital Culiacan, which has domestic flights and an international route to Phoenix, Arizona.

Operations at the airport were first suspended on Tuesday afternoon and remained paused on Wednesday, pending the arrival of officials to talk with farmers, according to the airport's Twitter account.

Producers urge President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador to guarantee prices for corn, wheat and sorghum, saying government intervention is vital to counter a steep drop in international prices.

The Chicago Board of Trade's most-active corn contract this month was down about 19.5% from this time last year. Wheat was also about 43% lower.

Farmers sent him a public letter last week asking for the price of corn to be set at 7,000 pesos ($402.90) per ton, wheat at 8,000 pesos ($460.45) per ton and sorghum at 6,500 pesos ($374.12) per ton to help keep them afloat as production costs rise.

Saying they had no response, a group of farmers marched to Culiacan airport and blocked the doors in videos shared on social media.

In other videos, farmers entered government offices and tipped grain from bags onto the floor.

National guard troops and police were deployed to some of the protests, video showed.

Sinaloa Governor Ruben Rocha asked farmers to instead protest commodities trader Cargill and Mexican corn product makers Minsa and Gruma, implying they were responsible for lower prices.

"Let us go together to protest against those truly responsible....," Rocha said on his Facebook page.

A spokesperson for Cargill in Mexico did not respond to a request for comment. Spokespeople for Gruma and Minsa could not immediately be reached.

A spokesperson for the Agriculture Ministry did not comment.

(Reporting by Cassandra Garrison; Editing by Lisa Shumaker)
Putin's publicists decided to adopt Zelensky's communication methods

The video shows Putin meeting with wounded Russian soldiers at an infirmary, dragging over his own chair  a departure from his usual distance from even his own ministers. Social media users were quick to draw comparisons between the dictators seeming uncomfortableness with similar videos from Zelenskyy, where the Ukrainian leader looks relaxed and personable.

From the outset of Russia's full-scale invasion, the Ukrainian leader has rejected formality to create trust during his media engagements. At one press conference, the president answered questions while sitting closer to journalists, having brought over a chair for this purpose.

Putin's PR team appears to have adopted this technique, transforming the Russian dictator into a pathetic parody of Zelenskyy.

Read also:

Were bringing the voice of Ukraine to the world. Support us with a one-time donation, or become a Patron!

Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
 Flash

Chinese President Xi Jinping holds a welcoming ceremony for Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in the Northern Hall of the Great Hall of the People prior to their talks in Beijing, capital of China, June 14, 2023. Xi held talks with Abbas in Beijing on Wednesday. [Photo/Xinhua]

Chinese President Xi Jinping held talks with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in Beijing on Wednesday.

The two leaders announced the establishment of a strategic partnership between China and Palestine.

Xi said China and Palestine are good friends and good partners who trust and support each other. He said China was one of the first countries to recognize the Palestine Liberation Organization and the State of Palestine.

China has all along firmly supported the Palestinian people's just cause of restoring their legitimate national rights and worked for a comprehensive, just and durable solution of the Palestinian question at an early date, Xi said.

China supports Palestine in becoming a full member state of the United Nations, will continue to speak up for Palestine and champion justice on multilateral occasions, and will provide assistance as best as it can to help ease humanitarian difficulties and reconstruction in Palestine, Xi said.

He called on both sides to take the establishment of strategic partnership as an opportunity to continue supporting each other on issues of core concern, advance cooperation in various areas, deepen partnership in jointly building the Belt and Road, speed up negotiations on the China-Palestine free trade agreement, share experiences on national governance and further the traditional friendship.

Xi put forward a three-point proposal for the settlement of the Palestinian question. Xi stressed that the Palestinian question has remained unresolved for over half a century, causing great sufferings to the Palestinian people; justice must be done to Palestine as soon as possible.

First, the fundamental solution lies in the establishment of an independent state of Palestine that enjoys full sovereignty on the basis of the 1967 borders and with east Jerusalem as its capital, he said.

Second, Palestine's economic and livelihood needs should be met, and the international community needs to step up development assistance and humanitarian aid to Palestine, he said.

Third, it is important to keep to the right direction of peace talks. The historical status quo of the holy sites in Jerusalem should be respected, and excessive and provocative words and actions should be avoided. A large-scale, more authoritative and more influential international peace conference should be convened so as to create conditions for the resumption of peace talks and contribute tangible efforts to help Palestine and Israel live in peace, he said.

"China stands ready to play a positive role to assist Palestine in achieving internal reconciliation and promote peace talks," Xi said.

Xi said China is willing to strengthen solidarity and cooperation with Palestine and other developing countries, enhance coordination in international and regional affairs, advance China's cooperation with Arab states, and safeguard the common interests of developing countries and international fairness and justice.

On behalf of the Palestinian people, Abbas thanked China for its long-term strong support and selfless assistance for the Palestinian people's just cause of restoring their legitimate national rights, calling China a trustworthy friend and partner.

Abbas said Palestine supports China's position on issues concerning its core interests and follows the one-China principle, adding that Palestine will work with China to promote the Belt and Road Initiative, strengthen bilateral cooperation and build a community with a shared future for humanity.

Palestine backs the Global Security Initiative, the Global Development Initiative and the Global Civilization Initiative proposed by President Xi, and speaks highly of the China-mediated talks between Saudi Arabia and Iran, Abbas said.

He thanked China for putting forward a number of initiatives on an early and just settlement of the Palestinian question. The Palestinian side believes in China's wisdom and just position and expects China to play a greater role in promoting intra-Palestinian reconciliation and realizing peace in the Middle East.

After their talks, the two presidents witnessed the signing of documents on bilateral economic and technological cooperation.

Prior to the talks, Xi held a welcoming ceremony for Abbas in the Northern Hall of the Great Hall of the People.
Putin hinted that Russia may launch another attack on Kyiv in an interview with war bloggers

Russian President Vladimir Putin meets with war correspondents in Moscow on June 13, 2023. GAVRIIL GRIGOROV/SPUTNIK/AFP via Getty Images

Russian President Vladimir Putin fielded questions about the Ukraine war from journalists.

He hinted at another attack on Kyiv when discussing whether there'd be a new draft.

Russia was defeated a steep cost in casualties when attempting to seize Kyiv in 2022.

Russian President Vladimir Putin hinted at another attack on Ukrainian capital Kyiv in an interview with Russian bloggers and journalists Tuesday.

At the session with several ultranationalist military bloggers and state media war correspondents, Putin discussed whether Russia would launch another mass mobilization to boost the number of Russian troops in Ukraine.

At one point, he apparently suggested that he hadn't ruled out another bid to seize Kyiv, the Ukrainian capital.

Russian forces attempted to seize the city in the initial weeks of the conflict but were beaten back, suffering steep casualties and equipment losses.

"Should we return there or not? Why am I asking such a rhetorical question?" Putin cryptically told the journalists and bloggers at the televised meeting in the Kremlin, Reuters reported. "Only I can answer this myself," Putin said.

After being defeated in its campaign to seize Kyiv, the Russian military refocused its campaign on taking territory in east and south Ukraine. In recent days, the Ukrainian military has launched a counteroffensive to drive Russian forces back in those regions.

According to reports Putin's aims in the war have shifted, with the Russian president still believing late last year that seizing total control of Ukraine was possible, yet more recently, according to US intelligence,seeming to accept that only more limited goals were realizable.

After suffering punishing losses in the early months of the invasion, Putin last year drafted 300,000 civilians into the military and launched a massive military recruitment drive. There have been reports since that Putin may be preparing to draft more civilians, and tens of thousands of Russian men have fled the country to avoid fighting in the war.

The Russian military bloggers who Putin spoke to Wednesday have been among the sternest critics of Russia's campaign, arguing its botched the invasion and been too cautious.

Putin's session with them yesterday was apparently an attempt to get them to back the Kremlin and boost public support for the war, The Institute for the Study of War said.

Read the original article on Business Insider
Pride in the Pews is both an online database for people to find LGBTQ-affirming Black churches and an organization that provides advocacy training to churches and Black faith leaders.

Where do we belong? And where can we go to belong together?

These existential questions linger for many who crave real-life kinship more than ever as the pandemic's grip loosens and people reattempt interacting outside of a mask or a digital screen. Queer communities are also searching for those places, both the physical and the intangible connections  at a time when anti-LGBTQ legislation has reached a tipping point and vitriolic vocabulary and violence are spewed in their direction at increasing rates  and joining together to reclaim space.

"Social support directly impacts  especially for queer folks, queer folks of color  mental health. When I am in a room and I see people who look like me (and) I see people speak to their experiences that validate mine, I automatically feel safer," says Matthew Brinkley, a licensed therapist whose work at the University of Southern California, where he's a clinical assistant professor of the department of psychiatry & behavioral sciences, includes running a Black queer student support group.

The students in Brinkley's support group unpack familial and religious trauma, share questions about sexual health and join together to affirm each other and themselves. They represent the next generation of queer spaces, taking shape from existing communal support.

"Their whole life they've had to hide to survive," says Thomas Kingery, who spends his days with an older cohort at Avenidas Rainbow Collective, running a comprehensive set of social engagement programs and services both for the clients and the larger community.

Further north, in Palo Alto, California, Thomas Kingery is complementing Brinkley's work. Kingery spends his days with an older cohort at Avenidas Rainbow Collective, running a comprehensive set of social engagement programs and services both for the clients and the larger community. The 50+ group has different life experiences that need to be addressed, Kingery says.

"Their whole life they've had to hide to survive," Kingery says. "We owe it to these older (LGBTQ) adults, who really lived through a society that was totally against them, by creating space for them."

Kingery cites some LGBTQ elders being unable to build a family, whether due to the inability to wed legally or the AIDS crisis, as an additional layer to the need for connection. "There's a lot of lonely and isolated, older adults out there," he says. Avenidas Rainbow Collective bridges that gap; members play "Chosen Family Feud" and eat pizza on game night or participate in walking groups.

How the 'third space' is changing

Even before COVID-19, home and work were already melding. Recent years have seen a greater emphasis on (and combination of) the two, leaving behind the so-called "third place," coined by sociologist Ray Oldenburg, of outside community. Queer-focused spaces are experiencing renewed resurgence  and urgency, as some face closures nationwide.

Strange Matter Coffee customers can "feel safe to be themselves, to present how they want to, to sit with a partner," founder Cara Nader says.

Fostering a community space drives Cara Nader and wife Elaine Barr, who created Strange Matter Coffee, with multiple coffee shops in Lansing, Michigan.

Barr says the 2016 presidential election "became about survival of ourselves" and asking how to "support other people who are similarly situated to us or who are even in a worse position than us through this moment in history."

Customers can "feel safe to be themselves, to present how they want to, to sit with a partner.  I think back to when I was 18 myself, I didn't have that option," Nader says.

Fostering a community space drives Cara Nader, seen here, and wife Elaine Barr, who created Strange Matter Coffee, with multiple coffee shops in Lansing, Michigan.

Being queer in public places can place a target on the community, which is sometimes hard to maneuver even when running errands. In East Los Angeles, Queer Mercado launched in 2021 with about 40 vendors. The pop-up market, which caters to the local LGBTQ Latinx community, now boasts upwards of 120 vendors, 90% of whom are queer, according to organizer Ryan Montez.

"It's not about making a lot of money in a day. They're there to build community, and the community the vendors have is so special," says Montez, who, along with organizers Diana Diaz and Gaudencio Marquez, keep the monthly market up and running. "Something as easy or simple as vendors bringing each other breakfast, or watch each other's tent while the other ones steps out. They have a closeness, a bond."

Queer spaces in traditionally unlikely places

Some members of the LGBTQ community are rediscovering  or finding for the first time  a connection in spaces that have historically denounced queer people. Community organizers and leaders are providing resources to change the narrative.

Pride in the Pews, both an online database for people to find LGBTQ-affirming Black churches and an organization that provides advocacy training to churches and Black faith leaders, grew from creator Don Abram's experience entering the pulpit as a queer teen from the south side of Chicago.

"What I knew instinctively was that I could not embody the truth of my calling and my queerness at the same time, because if I did, I would lose the thing I cared about most at the time: That was my ministry," Abram says.

Storytelling in the church "inherently" uplifts intersections, Abram says. "We're not trying to make LGBTQ+ folks special or different or distinct. What we are simply saying is, 'We have something to offer, too. Our stories are sacred, too.'"

Don Abram, second from right, started Pride in the Pews from his experience entering the pulpit as a queer teen from the south side of Chicago.

Where some auto shops or gyms have adopted a macho clientele that thrives on specific notions of masculinity, Chaya Milchtein of Mechanic Shop Femme and the leaders of Queer Climbing Social at Boulders Climbing Gym in Madison, Wisconsin, are reframing how those spaces can operate.

Milchtein, a plus-sized model and auto educator, earned her first job in Sears' auto center by chance  but she turned her automotive repair knowledge into the "great equalizer" of educating LGBTQ community members on buying a car, changing their oil and highlighting queer mechanics.

"When people who are not part of my communities see my videos and they don't understand what I'm talking about or why I'm doing it, they say, 'Oh, why do I care what my mechanic has in their pants' or 'Why do I care who my mechanic sleeps with?' The answer is you don't, and neither do we. But we are looking for spaces where we have a better chance to be welcomed and accepted and treated with basic courtesy and respect," Milchtein says. "Community is really critical to not just survival, but being able to thrive."

In creating Mechanic Shop Femme, as a queer woman and the eldest of 15 in a Hasidic Jewish family, Milchtein pulled from her personal experiences in wanting to make cars accessible to an intersectional group of queer people.

Becca Ridge, co-host of Boulders rock climbing gym's affinity group Queer Climbing Social, says queer-focused spaces are "changing" masculinity as the sole representation. "I think climbing is maybe a little bit ahead of some of the other gym culture," Ridge says, and Boulders' director of community Margo Keevil notes that gym members have to sign a cultural agreement.

Ridge says the group helped her feel more comfortable in her body as a trans woman.

"Especially with transitioning, knowing that I would be doing anything with my body in front of other people felt really intimidating," Ridge says, but with the gym as "very clearly a queer-friendly space, it was like, 'Oh, it's safe to use my body and the way it works here.'"

The priority is to be uplifted

Experts deem community spaces as necessities, in part because of misconceptions about queer people.

"There's this narrative that 'Oh, the reason why we don't want queerness to be talked about in schools is because that might turn people queer,' but the reality is that queer folks have been watching straight media all their life and they're still queer, right?" Brinkley says.

Matthew Brinkley, a licensed therapist whose work at the University of Southern California, where he's a clinical assistant professor of the department of psychiatry & behavioral sciences, runs a Black queer student support group.

Representation remains a priority in uplifting queer communities, Brinkley says.

"Queer people are not only supposed to be validated at an underground club scene," Brinkley says. "For the longest time  that's all we really were able to do." But a community space "could be the one thing that keeps someone choosing to continue to live their life," he says.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: LGBTQ community spaces: How these groups prioritize queerness
BOSTON  A Quincy woman was charged with shooting at another woman and a Lyft driver in Dorchester, Suffolk County District Attorney Kevin Hayden said.

The shooting occurred at about 3:45 a.m. June 2 in the area of Corona Street in Dorchester. Boston police said the Lyft driver told them he had just picked up a woman when bullets hit his vehicle, WCVB reported.

The driver said he heard three gunshots and then quickly drove away, police said.

Officers found damage to the front drivers-side door and three casings  one in an alleyway and two in a driveway, investigators said. Officers also found two live rounds on the street.

Neither the 19-year-old passenger nor the driver were injured, police said. The passenger said she had been in a three-week relationship with the suspect, police said.

Quincy police pulled over the 19-year-old suspect and found a loaded 9mm firearm under the drivers seat and ammunition in the car and trunk, authorities said.

The woman has been charged with assault with a dangerous weapon, discharging a firearm within 500 feet of a building, possession of ammunition without an firearm identification card and carrying a firearm without a license.

She was held without bail pending a dangerousness hearing.

This article originally appeared on The Patriot Ledger: Quincy woman, 19, accused of shooting at 2 people in Dorchester
Rafael Nadal drops out of the worlds top 100 for first time in 20 years

Rafael Nadal has dropped out of the worlds top 100 for the first time in 20 years as he continues to recover from the hip injury he suffered in Januarys Australian Open.

The 22-time grand slam champion missed this years French Open, a tournament he has won a record 14 times, meaning he dropped the 2,000 ranking points he earned last season for winning at Roland-Garros.

Nadal, who turned 37 during the French Open, has now fallen from world No. 15 to 136 in the rankings.

The Spaniard underwent surgery on his hip muscle earlier in June after his initial recovery from the injury didnt progress as anticipated, ruling him out for five months and all but ending his season.

When announcing his decision to undergo surgery, Nadal said that next season will be his last on the ATP Tour. The former world No. 1 has been plagued by injuries throughout his career, making his accomplishments all the more incredible.

Nadals doctor, Angel Ruiz-Cotorro, told Reuters at the French Open that he expects Rafa will recover perfectly in the time necessary or maybe even less.

Meanwhile, Novak Djokovic has reclaimed the world No. 1 spot from Carlos Alcaraz after winning his 23rd grand slam at Roland-Garros.

Djokovic ousted Alcaraz in the semifinal of the French Open, helping him rise two places from third to begin his 388th week at world No. 1.

Russias Daniil Medvedev dropped from second to third after his shock first-round exit in Paris, while beaten finalist Casper Ruud remains in fourth place.

Greeces Stefanos Tsitsipas, who was beaten by Alcaraz in straight sets in the quarterfinals, rounds out the worlds top five.

For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com
[Source]

Two Rhode Island officials have triggered two investigations after being accused of sexist, racist behavior" during a trip to Philadelphia in March.

About the incident: David Patten, director of the Rhode Island's Division of Capital Asset Management and Maintenance, and James Thorsen, former director of the states Department of Administration, traveled to Philadelphia on March 10 to meet with urban development and design firm Scout Ltd. to discuss a revamp of Cranston Street Armory in Providence, Rhode Island.

Everett Abitbol, Scouts director of hospitality and development, as well as Lindsey Scannapieco, a managing partner at the company, alleged in an email dated March 12 that the officials made bizarre, offensive and unprofessional actions during the trip.

What was said: Patten allegedly asked, Are these made in China? I hope not because I really hate China after an employee gave him a pair of sneakers while he was visiting the headquarters of sportswear brand Diadora in Philadelphia.

More from NextShark: Why Black Lives Matter Protests Have Reached Japan

He then purportedly turned to an Asian American female staff member and said, No offense, hun.

Patten also allegedly commented on Scannapiecos appearance, saying, If I knew your husband wasnt going to be here, I would have come last night.

He also allegedly told her, Good thing youre married or I would move to Philadelphia.

More from NextShark: AI's prediction of what last selfies on Earth would look like are total nightmare fuel

Details emerge: More details about the incident were revealed in an email released by Gov. Dan McKee on Thursday after Attorney General Peter F. Neronha ordered him to publicly release the email. The governor has faced backlash for what critics describe as his "totally inadequate and offensive" response to the situation.

The aftermath: Rhode Island police and the governors office have reportedly begun separate investigations into the claims. Thorsen, who had submitted his resignation before the trip, is now working at the U.S. Treasury Department, while Patten has been put on paid administrative leave.

Pattens attorney, Michael Lynch, told WPRI that his clients behavior was attributed to a mental health event characterized by health professionals as an acute stress event that built up over time.

More from NextShark: Ex-Mass. state senator, now-congressional candidate, says gun theft charges against him are racially motivated

Enjoy this content? Read more from NextShark!

NY Mets and Partner Give $10K Grant to 10 Asian-Owned Businesses During AAPIHM
Two ducks swim in red-colored water.

Raising a red flag



Before you take a bite of that red velvet cake, be warnedsome research suggests that it could come with a side of carcinogens.

Read more

Tempting as brightly colored foods may be, synthetic dyes have a track record of harmful health effects. Red dye no. 40 and yellow no. 5, among other dyes, have been linked to hyperactivity in children. Now red dye no. 3, also known as erythrosine, is the latest food coloring to come under closer scrutiny from both US lawmakers and regulators for safety reasons.

Its been banned from use in cosmetics and topical medications for over three decades. So why is the red synthetic coloring, produced from petroleum, still found in candies, maraschino cherries, and even boxed mashed potatoes?



If youd like some ruddy answers, were about to add some color to the picture.







By the digits



2,900: Number of food products in the US that contain red dye no. 3, according to the Environmental Working Group



Twice: The amount of red dye no. 3 ingested by US children aged 2-5 based on body weight, compared the overall population, according to the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA)



36: The number of food dyes approved by the FDA



9: Number of FDA-approved food dyes that are synthetic



19 million: Pounds of the seven most-used food dyes that were produced for the US market in 2022







Origin story



A California crackdown



On May 30, the Golden State became the first in the US to ban red dye no. 3, along with several other food additives, following the passage of Assembly Bill 418 (AB 418). The move follows a petition filed by over 20 consumer groups (pdf) last year to the FDA, calling for a ban on red dye no. 3. The filing cites studies that have found the dye caused cancer in rats.

The International Association of Color Manufacturers, an organization representing the color additives industry, and the National Confectioners Association dispute that the evidence is conclusive.



But the European Food Safety Authority banned edible use of red dye no. 3 (known as E127 across the pond) in 2008, with the additive only permitted in cocktail cherries and candied cherries. The UK has retained the restrictions, post-Brexit.



The European Food Safety Authority concluded in a 2011 study that an adult would need to consume 30g, about six, of cocktail cherries to reach the limit of the acceptable daily intake of erythrosine. That may explain why there is a common exception to red dye no. 3 in cherriesa person is unlikely to consume that volume of a decorative food item. Thats six ice cream sundaes, six Manhattan cocktails, or an indeterminate amount of Jello salad.







A brief history

Three key moments in US additive regulation

1881: The chemistry arm of the US Department of Agriculture begins research into food dyes.

1906: The US passes the Pure Food and Drug Act, signed into law by president Theodore Roosevelt, and the FDA is established to oversee its enforcement. The act prohibits the manufacture, sale, or transportation of adulterated or misbranded or poisonous or deleterious food, drugs, medications, and liquors...

1938: The Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FD&C) is enacted, increasing the power and oversight of the FDA. It has specific rules on color additives being prohibited if found to result in or induce cancer when ingested by humans or animals.







Explain it like Im 5

The Big Bad is bureaucracy?

The FDA stated years ago that it would take steps to ban red dye no. 3 from foods, according to Consumer Reports. But nothing has happened, and the agency has been cagey about providing reasons why.



Bureaucracy is the primary suspect, according to Thomas Galligan, principal scientist for food additives and supplements at the Center for Science in the Public Interest.



Its absurd that its taken this long, Galligan said in an interview with Consumer Reports. In 32 years, theres millions and millions of children who have been exposed to this chemical who didnt need to be.







Pop quiz

Which of these products does NOT contain red dye no. 3?



A. Sausage casings

B. Instant oatmeal

C. Canned fruits

D. Instant rice

Well catch you red-handed if you skip to the bottom now for the answer.





Fun fact!

The cochineal beetle, when crushed, produces vibrant, red carminic acid, which for hundreds of years has been used as a natural red dye. Dactylopius coccus, its scientific name, is native to the Americas, and was once used by the Maya and Aztecs. Today, the buggy byproduct is found in cosmetics, food, and textiles. If you eat ice cream, use lipstick, or enjoy California rolls, in all likelihood youve had a taste of these creepy crawlies.







Watch this!

Screenshot: North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences

Crushing the cochineals



Check out this video from the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences that shows how cochineal extract is made.







Take me down this  hole!

Let them wear purple

One of the earliest synthetic dyes was created by accident. It was the year 1856, and then-18-year-old British chemist William Henry Perkin was attempting to make quinine, the anti-malaria drug.



He experimented with the substance aniline, an oily compound that can be derived from coal tar. While his efforts ultimately failed, Perkins did notice that when aniline was oxidized with potassium dichromate, it produced a black precipitate that was able to dye fabrics a lilac purple.



He patented the discovery under the name mauveine, and it would go on to become one of the first mass-produced synthetic dyes. At last, the color purple became more accessible to the general public in the Victorian era.



Historically, purple was a color reserved for royalty and the elite. During the Roman empire, purple dye was made by boiling the extracted glands of predatory sea snails. The industry was based in the city of Tyre, in Lebanon, hence the name Tyrian purple, and it took as many as 12,000 of these marine mollusks to yield just 1.4g of dye.



A pound of dyed Tyrian purple wool cost more than a person might earn in an entire year. Even if a commoner could get their hands on the money, Roman sumptuary law prohibited average citizens from wearing the coveted purple hue (Emperor Nero even made it a capital offense).







Poll

Are the potential health hazards of red no. 3 enough to put you off candy?



I might pay more attention to ingredients from now on

Theres no way Im giving up Skittles

Im more of a chocolate person myself

Tell us!





Lets talk!



In last weeks poll about the letter X, 48% of you chose the logo for Xena the Warrior Princess as the best X-featuring logo around!



 Tweet this!

 What did you think of todays email?

 What should we obsess over next?





Todays email was written by Julia Malleck (prefers purple Skittles, in the market for a Tyrian robe) and edited and produced by Annaliese Griffin (fan of red Gatorade, red dye no. 40).



The correct answer is B. Instant oatmeal. But if youve got the Quaker brand it could have red dye no. 40 lurking in there.



More from Quartz

Sign up for Quartz's Newsletter. For the latest news, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Click here to read the full article.
Refugees are living longer in exile than ever before, with complex consequences for them and their host communities

Rohingya girls share a laugh in Kutupalong, the world's largest refugee camp in Bangladesh. Paula Bronstein/Getty Images

The number of people forced from their homes, primarily because of conflict or climate change, is on the rise, topping 100 million people in 2022  more than double the number of displaced people in 2012.

About a third of those 100 million people are refugees. Refugees live in a legal limbo that can increasingly stretch for decades. And the number of people remaining refugees for five years or longer more than doubled over the past decade, topping 16 million in 2022. These are people who do not have a clear path to residency in any country but are unable to return to their homes because they are unsafe.

Typically, because of domestic political pressure and other issues, the countries hosting refugees do not want to offer them permanent residency.

I have spent years interviewing Rohingya people  members of an ethnic minority who have lived in Myanmar for centuries but without actual citizenship  in refugee camps in Bangladesh. These talks show the real-life effects of people remaining refugees for years.

We escaped our home and belonging to save our lives from bullets. Now, we are hanging in uncertainties  no right to attain higher education, no permission to work, no claim over property. Yet no path to return, Jafar, a 27-year-old Rohingya refugee, told me during my fieldwork in the Kutupalong refugee camp in Bangladesh in July 2022.

I am a Bangladeshi scholar who researches refugees everyday lives. I have closely followed the trajectory of Kutupalong, which grew to become the largest refugee camp in the world in 2017.

My research shows that host countries interests in protecting the rights and services of their own citizens keeps refugees from being fully integrated into society or obtaining citizenship.

In the absence of legal protection outside their home countries, refugees livelihoods and well-being often remain in jeopardy, an effect that can span generations.

Thousands of Rohingya refugees walk along a rice field after crossing into Bangladesh in 2017. Paula Bronstein/Getty Images

Why people are remaining refugees for longer

People can get refugee status when a government or international organization such as the U.N. finds that they have a legitimate fear of persecution because of their race, religion, nationality, political opinion or membership in a particular social group in their home country.

Refugees are legally protected under international law from deportation but often do not have safe places to live or the opportunity to legally work in their host countries. Most refugees live outside of formal camps, in informal settlements in cities.

Only 204,500 of the worlds 32 million refugees were able to return home or get resettled permanently in 2022.

Generally, people are remaining refugees for longer periods for three reasons.

First, conflicts in places ranging from Ethiopia to Syria are lasting longer than conflicts have historically, dragging on for more than a decade in some cases.

Second, there generally arent cohesive international, regional or national strategies to handle large numbers of refugees. Low- or middle-income countries like Turkey that do not guarantee a path to citizenship host more than two-thirds of the worlds refugees.

And third, some wealthier countries are developing restrictive policies that make it harder for refugees to cross their borders. They are also taking actions that make it harder for refugees to ever cross their borders  including building more border walls, detaining refugees in offshore islands and intercepting refugee boats.

One general exception to this trend is the protection granted by European Union countries to 4 million Ukrainian refugees fleeing the war, including giving them the legal right to work, for several years.

Increasing years in exile

The Rohingya situation demonstrates the civic and physical dangers of long-term legal refugee limbo.

In 2017, Mynamars military launched widespread violent attacks against the Rohingya people that the United Nations considers genocide.

Hundreds of thousands of Rohingya people fled across the border to Bangladesh. Now, about 930,292 Rohingya refugees live in a sprawling refugee camp in Coxs Bazar in the southern part of Bangladesh.

Negotiations over repatriating Rohingya people to Myanmar stalled in 2021 following a military coup in Myanmar.

But the Rohingya situation in Bangladesh is not unique.

Syrian refugees in Turkey, Sri Lankan Tamil refugees in India, Afghan refugees in Pakistan and Somali refugees in Kenya are among the large groups of refugees who fled conflict and have lived for decades in another place without the protections of citizenship.

When refugees are stuck

During my fieldwork in Coxs Bazar in August 2022, I met with a 65-year-old refugee named Kolim who lost both his legs in a shooting by the Myanmar army. He said that the local nonprofit organization that had supported him with a disability allowance for five years just ended its project, because the organization could not secure funding for the next year.

This follows an overall trend of major international humanitarian organizations and smaller nonprofits alike tending to give the most money following an emergency response or crisis.

Similarly, international funding for long-term conflicts and continuing humanitarian crises that last years tend to see drops in funding and help over time.

Meanwhile, only about half of refugee children are in school.

Refugees  who are typically unable to legally work in their host countries  also tend to undertake informal kinds of employment, working as day laborers in construction, for example, or as street vendors.

Refugees in dire situations also often engage in work without permission and risk being arrested by the police. Some of my research shows that competition to find work also generates tension between the host and the refugee communities.

Daily life for Myanmar refugees plays out in Coxs Bazaar. Sharif Wahab, Author provided

Initiatives that help

There have been some recent efforts at the international level to address the challenges facing refugees and host countries alike.

In 2018, countries in the U.N. agreed to an informal plan to jointly share the responsibility to host refugees and migrants.

These countries committed to a framework for shared responsibilities in their response to refugee crises.

But nonprofit groups that work with refugees have said it is unclear whether the plan has resulted in any change, noting that few countries have implemented the strategy into their domestic planning.

Without any systematic solutions to deal with migration and refugees, refugees continue to forge ahead without a clear direction.

This article is republished from The Conversation, an independent nonprofit news site dedicated to sharing ideas from academic experts. The Conversation has a variety of fascinating free newsletters.

It was written by: Sharif A Wahab, Indiana University.

Read more:



Sharif A Wahab does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
You know, I love life very much. And the idea of NEST is the creation of timeless real estate. The horror of rocket fire and the war itself will end sooner or later. I believe it will happen soon. I want our capital, my beloved city Kyiv, to become even more beautiful by then than it was before. It's my personal way of affirming life, if you will. Therefore, for me, war is not a reason to stop our work.

Do you mean that the project to restore the building at Reitarska 37 and turn it into the REITER HALL business center is also an element of the vision you just announced?

Yes, Id even say that this project is designed to show the interaction and synergy of the past and the future. We breathe new life into a historic building, while restoring it to its original appearance and strengthening it with modern structural solutions.

I fully understand that REITER HALL is a responsible and delicate project. After all, we are touching a building that has the status of a monument of history and architecture. I really like the part of its history when it had scientific institutions. The building itself was built in 1914 for the needs of the Kyiv Zemstvo administration. But as early as 1925, it was adapted for the Kyiv Engineering and Reclamation Institute. From that time, up until post-Soviet times, educational and research institutes were located there.

REITER HALL - materials of the development company "NEST"

That is, progressive and useful solutions for the city were developed in this building. We want to continue this tradition - in our concept we preserve that historical spirit and infuse it with the energy of the modern world.

The concept is Inspirational. But NEST is a commercial organization, and REITER HALL is a future business center. How do you combine the historical heritage and business interests of a large holding without harming the first part?

I understand that such projects cause skepticism. That is probably why none of the Kyiv developers have similar ideas regarding the restoration of historical buildings. It is clear to everyone that this project involves great difficulties. Here, the proportion of headaches and positive math is much lower than in neighborhood development. The numbers are more interesting there.

But I have seen many successful examples. Even from a commercial point of view. Unfortunately, none of them in Ukraine. For example, Port House is the main office of the port of Antwerp in Belgium. Its basis was the reconstruction of the building of the old fire station, and the addition was a futuristic glass tour. Or the Holiday Inn hotel in the very center of Krakow. There, the historic 19th-century manor building is framed by modern panels of glass and concrete. There are many worthy architectural solutions in the world, created in harmony of centuries and styles.

We want to present to the Kyiv community a segment of real estate that is currently missing - a boutique business center with a high level of culture and respect for history.

House 17 on the street Reitarska, 37. Facade. Photo from the 1930s - Materials of the Museum of the NUVHP

The implementation of such a concept requires exceptional professional experience. Who is the author of the REITER HALL architectural project?

Yes, the project is not easy. We have come a long way of studying the practice of European architectural bureaus. We consulted with companies that have repeatedly been engaged in the restoration of historical buildings taking into account the limited area. Each of these buildings has its own specificity due to the peculiarities of the architecture and organization of the surrounding space of different countries. In this case, the closest to our vision was one of the leading Swedish architectural offices. When they presented their idea, we understood: this is what is needed.

At the same time, we offered the well-known Ukrainian architect Andriy Pashenko to participate in the creation of the project. The previous positive experience of working with him has already shown his careful approach to the cultural and historical context of the city. Thus, we have a project that combines the best architectural ideas born in Ukraine and Sweden. We believe that the future lies in such an international format of cooperation.

An important issue has already been mentioned several times: the building in which REITER HALL will be located has historical value. How is it protected from a legal point of view?

The REITER HALL project has fully passed all the necessary instances related to the protection of cultural heritage. And both within the country and at the international level. In Ukraine, this type of reconstruction requires, in addition to a permit for construction work, a permit from the Ministry of Culture and Information Policy, a contract with the Institute of Archeology of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, and a permit from the Department of Cultural Heritage Protection of the KCSA. We have all these documents.

In addition, we have passed an international independent examination and received a LEED certificate, which will be given to the business center upon completion of construction. This is a sign of compliance with the American standard of ecological construction. One of the tallest and greenest skyscrapers in the world - Taiwan's "Taipei 101" has such certificate.

We received a high score for not only preserving the historic building, but also improving its operational characteristics. For example, we extend the life cycle of a brick that has been standing for more than a hundred years for another hundred years, which is highly appreciated in the world. We also restore and strengthen the facade of the building, the roof, as well as the grand staircase.

I am convinced that only buildings made of completely natural materials can harmonize with a historical building. All of them have been studied and analyzed as part of LEED certification. That is, new, modern buildings, which will form a harmonious ensemble with the historical one, will be close to the main one even in terms of molecular composition. At the same time, we will preserve the "genetics" of the Kyiv Zemstvo Administration. No tall superstructures will appear there. One hundred years ago, the building was four floors high, and it will remain so in the next phase of its life.

World practice shows that business often participates in the development of urban infrastructure. What projects in the field of corporate social responsibility can NEST boast about?

As the developer of the REITER HALL project, NEST will deal with the development of the adjacent territory. For the last fifty years, this sparsely populated area has been a dead end, and we want to make it the center of gravity. Next to the business center, a landscaped square will be built and a modern playground will be installed. We are currently consulting with knowledgeable restaurateurs on how to make the place as attractive as possible. Thank God, we do not have a ban on beautifying the public area, especially if it is not done with budget funds, but at the expense of business.

Emil Solovyov, CEO of the development company "NEST"

Then the last question will be about gravity. In your opinion, does REITER HALL have a chance to become another "magnet" of the city? And when can we check it?

I would very much like the residents of Kyiv and the guests of our city to think about our project exactly as you said. Thats a good wording. Now we simply have to do everything possible and impossible to make it so.

We plan to finish the reconstruction in the second half of 2025. I really hope that the renewed historical business center will become the pride of Kyiv residents and a comfortable place for representatives of international organizations.

Now, in the most difficult time, we feel the support of the world community more than ever, and it is absolutely priceless. They help us not only to defeat our aggressive neighboring country, but also to strengthen our choice for the European future.

It is impossible not to notice that today, our interaction with the world is reaching a new level. And this means that Kyiv needs to be ready to provide partners with appropriate conditions. We see REITER HALL as one of the capital's aspirations to host international organizations at a high level. It will be a club office, interesting for both business and politics. For example, embassies or, as I said, representative offices of international organizations. They love atmospheric spaces that combine the spirit of history and the comfort of modernity. I hope that in the future, which will certainly be peaceful, they will be able to properly assess the conditions that Kyiv will provide them.

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Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
This undated photo provided by Nevada State Police shows Florence Charleston, left, holding her niece. In 1978, a garment bag containing a woman's heavily decayed remains was discovered in a remote area of northern Nevada. On Wednesday, June 14, 2023, Nevada State Police announced that advancements in DNA testing led recently to an identification: Florence Charleston, a Cleveland woman who had moved to Portland, Ore., shortly before her death. (Nevada State Police via AP)

LAS VEGAS (AP)  In 1978, a garment bag containing a woman's heavily decayed remains was discovered in a remote area of northern Nevada.

The case soon went cold  and the victim remained nameless for 45 years.

But on Wednesday, Nevada State Police announced that advancements in DNA testing have finally led to an identification. She was Florence Charleston, a Cleveland, Ohio, woman in her late 60s who had moved to Portland, Oregon, shortly before her death.

How Charleston wound up dead and buried in a shallow grave 535 miles (860 kilometers) away from her new home is still a mystery. Police said Wednesday in a news release announcing the DNA match that the investigation into her death is ongoing.

Diane Liggitt, one of Charlestons few surviving relatives, said she was around 18 when she learned from her father that her aunt had left for the Pacific Northwest with a new boyfriend sometime in the early 1970s. Decades passed. The family never heard from Charleston again.

Throughout the years, Liggitt told The Associated Press, she thought a lot about her Aunt Dolly  a childhood nickname that stuck.

Was she happy, or not? Was she safe?" Liggitt said. All these questions I had, and it turns out she was dead.

Charleston's remains were found in October 1978 in the small Nevada town of Imlay, about two hours north of Reno. Inside the garment bag, officers with the Pershing County Sheriff's Office  the initial lead investigating agency  also found some articles of women's clothing.

An autopsy revealed the decomposing remains likely belonged to a middle-aged woman but failed to determine a cause of death, police said. Liggitt said her aunt would have been around 68 at the time of her death.

The case was later entered into the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System, along with a rendering of what detectives thought the woman looked like at the time of her death.

According to that entry, the woman was thought to be 5-foot-5 with red or auburn hair. Investigators also thought she may have been left-handed. The clothing items found with her remains included a dark-green sweater with a white safety pin attached to the front, dark-green trousers and a long-sleeved pink sweater.

In spring of 1979, Nevada State Police detectives were called in to help with the probe. They tried digital facial reconstruction. They compared dental records with other missing persons and unsolved cases. They looked for clues in the articles of clothing dumped with the remains.

But their efforts were unsuccessful.

Then last March, police said, they teamed up with Othram Inc., a private laboratory specializing in forensic genealogy analysis that has helped close countless other cold cases nationwide.

In a separate news release, Othram said Wednesday they used DNA taken from the remains to develop a comprehensive DNA profile for the unidentified woman, leading investigators to two of Charleston's nieces still living in Ohio.

Liggitt said she received the news in April. She was on her way out of the house when her phone rang. She didn't recognize the out-of-state phone number, but she answered it anyway.

On the other end of the line was Nevada State Police Detective Sean Koester, who had taken over the cold case in October 2022. By then, Koester said, the case had been dormant for 40-plus years.

Koester introduced himself. He'd been trying to reach her and her cousin, Donna, he said, to talk about a set of 45-year-old human remains.

You found my Aunt Dolly? Liggitt recalled telling the detective.

Soon after that phone call, Othram was able to link Charleston to the unidentified remains by using a DNA sample from Liggitt's cousin.

Now around the same age as Charleston had been at the time of her death, Liggitt said she hopes to live long enough to learn how and why her Aunt Dolly was killed.
The Rent Guidelines Board is preemptively cracking down on protests ahead of a highly anticipated vote next week at which the panel could raise rates for the citys 1 million rent-stabilized households by as much as 7%.

In a memo released Tuesday, the board announced a venue change for the final vote next Wednesday as well as a ban on items that are reasonably likely to disrupt the proceedings, such as noisemakers and drums  a move ridiculed by advocates.

The rule against noisemakers is as pointless as it has been year after year, said Esteban Giron of Brooklyns Crown Heights Tenant Union.

We dont need noisemakers when we have hundreds of tenants chanting and stomping and clapping. Telling working-class Black and Brown tenants to politely allow ourselves and our neighbors to be evicted is shameful.

The ban comes after a raucous preliminary vote last month when a number of progressive politicians and tenant activists loudly took to the stage with chants, banners and demands for a rent rollback. Attendees were able to make plenty of noise on their own, clapping, chanting and drumming on their wooden seats to contribute to the din.

The panel endorsed hikes of 2% to 5% for one-year leases and 4% to 7% increases for two-year leases in a 5-to-4 vote.

Board Chairman Nestor Davidson expressed strong concerns following the meeting, saying in a letter to the mayor that the protest went beyond the bounds of public participation and created a chaotic environment that raised serious concerns for me about public safety.

The landlord group the Rent Stabilization Association decried what they described as intimidation and fear tactics at the meeting and advised their members not to participate in-person at recent public hearings.

This will guarantee that their testimony will not be disrupted, silenced and drowned out, Michael Tobman, the associations director of membership and communications, said in a statement. All voices must be heard in this process  especially the voices of small building owners, the largest providers of affordable housing in the five boroughs.

Many landlords testified at a virtual meeting Tuesday, citing rising costs as they pressed for rent hikes.

But the new rules are unlikely to stop tenants from making themselves heard one way or another. At a public hearing in Queens on Monday, dozens of New Yorkers wielded homemade signs and chanted Rent rollback! and Fight, fight, fight, housing is a human right!

The single landlord who testified was met with derision by other speakers, one of whom suggested he go get a job.

Attendees had to enter through a metal detector and there was a police presence outside the auditorium.

Giron, one of those who took to the stage last month, was defiant in response to the new rules.

We can have decorum when we arent being priced out of our own homes, he said. If tenants fighting for their homes and community make board members uncomfortable, good! Maybe feeling some small version of the discomfort tenants have to deal with will help this board understand the stakes. But Im not holding my breath.

The final Rent Guidelines Board vote next Wednesday will be held at the Assembly Hall of Hunter College in Manhattan. Doors will open at 6 p.m. ahead of a 7 p.m. start.
The path Amanda Scott-Thomas is on started with tragedy  and a very personal loss.

In May 2022, Scott-Thomas close friend, Stephanie Stevens, suffered a heart attack and died suddenly at the age of 43. Stevens had a young daughter, Adaiah, who was finishing first grade and had recently gotten involved in local pageantry events. According to Scott-Thomas, Adaiah was thriving, coming into her own as a young Black girl in a historically and still predominantly white world of pageantry, thanks to the support and affirmation it provided. Scott-Thomas decided to take it upon herself, as Adaiahs auntie, to ensure the death of the girls mother wouldnt stop her from pursuing her new passion.

In short order, Community Aunties was born. Launched by Scott-Thomas last year, the program is designed as a vehicle to help young Black girls like Adaiah get involved with pageantry. Today, Community Aunties is working with a small but growing cohort of Black girls across Pierce and Kitsap counties, successfully reaching young people who would otherwise be excluded or face significant barriers to participation, including the financial burden involved, which can sometimes be thousands of dollars.

On Monday, June 19, Scott-Thomas fledgling organization  which hopes to soon register as an official nonprofit  will take the next step, producing Tacomas debut Miss Juneteenth pageant as part of the Juneteenth: A Road to Economic Freedom event scheduled from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Stewart Heights Park on Tacomas Eastside.

It was a shock to the community and a shock to our family, Scott-Thomas said of Stevens death in 2022. One of the ways that I wanted to continue to support Adaiah  and do something that I knew was important to her and her mother  was to keep her involved.

As I continued to support Adaiah, I created Community Aunties to support other girls of color and under-resourced girls, because one of the things I noticed pretty quickly is that there will often only be one Black or brown girl in a room full of white people, Scott-Thomas continued. Theres just not a lot of affirmation for Black girls, and so pageantry, for me, is a way to affirm our girls and celebrate them. Representation matters.

A volunteer and stage director for the Miss Juneteenth Pageant & Scholarship Program Atiya Canley goes over stage entrance directions with six contestants during their Sunday rehearsal at Silas High School in Tacoma. The pageant will be held on June 19 at Stewart Heights Park in Tacoma.

Admittedly, I know next to nothing about pageantry and have often struggled to understand the appeal. While Im passively aware of big events like Miss America and grew up with the annual Daffodil Princess coronation, hearing Scott-Thomas describe her vision  and her motivations  was eye-opening.

First and foremost, Scott-Thomas says shes driven by a desire to see Black representation and the dismantling of historically restrictive beauty standards. But this isnt simply about opening doors for young girls of color, she told me. Its also about building on a rich but under-appreciated history of African American pageantry in the South Sound.

To put it another way: Scott-Thomas views this years Miss Juneteenth Pageant  which will feature seven contestants from across the region  as just the start. Eventually, she wants to reestablish a yearly pageant open to Black girls and boys, similar to what was once known as the annual Afro Pageant and Show.

For years, starting in the early 1970s, Pierce Countys Afro Pageant and Show was open to Black high school students from across the area.

Danielle Martin is a 45-year-old makeup artist and lash technician who represented Clover Park High School in the event nearly 30 years ago. Martin said the event offered participants a chance to showcase their poise, grace and talents, and also served as a valuable networking opportunity for Black youth.

Most importantly, thousands of dollars in scholarships were awarded, said Martin, who is serving as an advisor and volunteer mentor for participants in this years Miss Juneteenth pageant.

Scott-Thomas said Mondays pageant will be similar. Through community support, roughly $5,000 has been raised, which will be broken into scholarships, with all seven participants set to receive something. Preparation for the event has included financial literacy classes, as well as skill-building opportunities like professional interview training. The event itself will feature talent performances, a parade of dresses and an on-stage question-and-answer session. It will feature participants in grades 9 through 12.

I was about 15 when I saw the princesses for that year on TV, Martin recalled of her initial interest in participating in the Afro Pageant and Show. For me to be able to represent my school was a small dream for a teenager, but at the same time, it was a goal fulfilled. Personally, it gave me a lot of confidence. And when it comes to the larger scale, I just really want our girls to know that they belong just as much as anyone else, and it shouldnt be things like money that keep people out of being able to compete.

A graduating senior from Curtis High School in University Place Jayde Little performs her dance sequence during Sunday rehearsals at Silas High School in Tacoma for the Miss Juneteenth Pageant & Scholarship Program on June 19. Held at the Stewart Heights Park on June 19 the event was the creation of Amanda Scott-Thomas, who recently started an organization that focuses on getting children of color involved in pageantry.

Atiya Canley, the former director of Miss Pierce Countys Outstanding Teen Program, is another volunteer helping to produce this years Miss Juneteenth Pageant. Canley participated in her first pageant when she was a student at Washington State University in the early 2000s. Eventually, she competed in two Miss Washington events.

In addition to providing scholarship money for college, Canley said, pageantry can help instill leadership skills, persistence, time management and grit.

Like Scott-Thomas, Canley said the benefits of this years debut Miss Juneteenth pageant will go far beyond what happens on the stage.

I had mostly seen white women with crowns, and I didnt see myself reflected in that, said Canley. It was a priceless experience, because whether you walk away with a crown or not, the level of confidence and perseverance it provides can really be important for you throughout your life.

According to Scott-Thomas, thats the overarching goal  and its one that transcends how we often think about beauty.

Shes excited to see her hard work come to fruition on Monday  and excited to be part of the citys Juneteenth celebration  but mostly shes eager to see the positive impact it has on pageant participants, and the lasting impression it leaves on the next generation of Black children.

Its not really about beauty because every girl is beautiful, Scott-Thomas said.

Its about being affirmed and celebrated, and Black girls knowing they belong.
Republican presidential candidate and former Vice President Mike Pence speaks during the North Carolina Republican Party Convention in Greensboro, N.C., Saturday, June 10, 2023. | Chuck Burton, Associated Press

Since former President Donald Trump was indicted in connection with classified documents the Justice Department says he mishandled, Republican presidential candidates have generally settled into one of two reactions: either to defend Trump, or to say the allegations  if true  are serious but the U.S. justice system needs to be reformed.

This criticism of Trump, though in some cases muted, represents a changing attitude among Trumps competitors when it comes to how to approach him, with his opponents growing more willing to openly challenge him.

Heres what candidates are saying:

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis

During a speech in North Carolina, DeSantis questioned whether there was a different standard of justice for Republicans vs. Democrats, but said he would have faced consequences if he took classified materials home when he was in the military.

As a naval officer, if I would have taken classified (documents) to my apartment, I would have been court-martialed in a New York minute, he said, according to CBS News.

Is there a different standard for a Democrat secretary of state versus a former Republican president? he said. I think there needs to be one standard of justice in this country. Lets enforce it on everybody and make sure we all know the rules. You cant have one faction of society weaponizing the power of the state against factions that it doesnt like and thats what you see.

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Former Vice President Mike Pence

Pence told CNBCs Squawk Box, This indictment contains serious charges and I cannot defend what is alleged.

My sons a marine, my son-in-law is a Navy lieutenant, the very prospect that what is alleged here took place, creating an opportunity where highly sensitive classified material could have fallen into the wrong hands, even inadvertently, that jeopardize our national security that puts at risk the men and women of our armed forces, Pence said.

He called the handling of classified material a very serious matter but also said he cannot believe that politics didnt play some role here. Pence said Trump is entitled to his day in court.

Hes entitled to make his defense, Pence said. No ones above the law and were all entitled to the presumption of innocence.

Former South Carolina Gov. Haley

Haley said two things can be true at the same time, arguing the Justice Department and FBI have lost all credibility with the American people, and what Trump is accused of doing is serious.

If this indictment is true, if what it says is actually the case, President Trump was incredibly reckless with our national security, Haley told Fox News.

Haley brought up her husband Michael, whos expected to deploy this year as part of the South Carolina Army National Guard, and said it puts him and others who serve in the armed forces at risk.

Im a military spouse, my husbands about to deploy this weekend, this puts all of our military men and women in danger if you are going to talk about what our military is capable of or how we would go about invading or doing something with one of our enemies, she said. If thats the case, its reckless, its frustrating, and it causes problems.

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Sen Tim Scott, R-S.C.

Speaking at an event in South Carolina, Scott said, This case is a serious case with serious allegations, but in America youre still innocent until proven guilty.

He claimed there is a double standard of justice in the U.S. under Biden that is both un-American and unacceptable.

What I want to focus on is making sure that as president of the United States that I restore confidence and integrity at the Department of Justice so that every single American can have confidence that they will be treated the same, no matter your color, no matter your partisan affiliation, Scott said.

Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie

Christie called the indictment very tight, very detailed, evidence-laden and said Trumps conduct as laid out in the document is awful.

There are people in my own party who are blaming DOJ, Christie said during a CNN town hall. How about blame him. He did it. He took documents he wasnt supposed to take , he kept them when they asked them back for them, he got a grand jury subpoena, he got a grand jury subpoena he refused to comply, they raided his home finally because he refused to comply.

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Vivek Ramaswamy

The entrepreneur spoke outside the Miami federal courthouse where Trump appeared and said he would pardon Trump and had sent letters to other Republican presidential candidates asking them to agree to pardon Trump, according to ABC News.

Former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson

Hutchinson told ABC News he believes prosecutors have a strong case.

Whenever you look at the specificity thats laid out in the indictment, its a very strong case, he said. Obviously this is going to have to be tried, youve got to prove all of that, but as (former Trump Attorney General) Bill Barr said, if half of that is proved, then its a very devastating case thats being presented against the former president.

Hutchinson said hes pleased more Republicans are speaking out against Trumps alleged mishandling of documents.

This is a serious matter both from the criminal justice system but also for selecting the future leader of the country so Im delighted that more leaders are showing courage, he said.
WASHINGTON  Several Republicans said this week that they dont know if there really are tapes of Joe Biden talking about taking a bribe.

Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) revealed Monday that a tip the FBI received in 2020 said a foreign national who allegedly paid Biden $5 million has recordings of himself talking to Biden when he was vice president.

The audio purported to be a compelling new detail about the FBI tip, which Republicans have demanded be made public since learning of it last month.

At the same time, the uncertainty over whether the recordings actually exist is a reminder that while the tip came from a credible career informant, the informants source is someone else, and the underlying information, audio and all, remains unverified hearsay.

Speaking about the recordings on Newsmax Tuesday, House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer (R-Ky.) said lawmakers dont know if theyre legit or not, but we know that the foreign national claims he has them.

Comer pressured the FBI into showing his committee a redacted copy of the form during a private briefing last week. He said the June 2020 document, an FBI worksheet for recording tips from confidential human sources, indicates someone claimed to have paid Biden and his son Hunter $5 million in bribes several years prior.

The FBI has resisted handing over a copy of the form for public consumption, maintaining that such documents contain uncorroborated information and that releasing them can endanger sources.

The allegation that Biden was caught on tape has seemingly forced Republicans to remind an eager conservative media that the allegations might be untrue.

We dont know for sure if these tapes exist, Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) said on The Chris Salcedo Show Wednesday when asked if Republicans would consider impeaching the president.

Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) suggested on a program called The Conservative Circus that not only might the tapes not exist, but also that the foreign national who spoke to the FBI informant might lack credibility. (Some Republicans on the Oversight Committee have said the source is former Burisma executive Mykola Zlochevksy, a fugitive Ukrainian oligarch.)

We dont know really if the tapes exist, we just dont know that, whether this was just a bluff on the part of, whoever the executive was, I think it was Mykola Zlochevsky, the CEO of the... the corrupt oligarch, Johnson said.

Burisma has been at the center of Republican attacks on Biden since 2019, when former President Donald Trump tried to pressure Ukrainian President Volodymyrr Zelenskyy to announce a sham investigation into the Bidens. Joe Bidens son Hunter served on Burismas board when Biden was vice president and advocated for the firing of a Ukrainian prosecutor, a dynamic that Republicans described as a conflict of interest. The reality is that the prosecutor hadnt been investigating Burisma and that his ouster had been a priority of both the U.S. and other Western countries.

During an Oversight Committee hearing on Wednesday, Rep. Dan Goldman (D-N.Y.) noted that Zlochevsky reportedly said in 2019 that he had had no contact with Joe Biden.

The issue here is, is there any connection to President Biden? They have provided zero actual evidence to that effect, Goldman told HuffPost after the hearing. And yet they are smearing him with innuendo and debunked allegations to try to create the impression that then-Vice President Biden did anything wrong.

Still, some lawmakers and right-wing media outlets are taking for granted that Biden took a bribe  especially as a diversion from the recent indictment against Trump for illegally retaining sensitive documents and obstructing an FBI investigation.

Joe Biden caught on tape getting bribed and the Left looks the other way, Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) said on Twitter. Donald Trump slow walks documents and they want to give him a death sentence.

Grassley was able to reveal the document mentioned audio recordings because he and Comer had previously seen a version of the form with fewer redactions than the one the FBI brought to Capitol Hill last week. He told HuffPost he didnt possess the less-redacted version, but that he was still trying to get it, and he thought it was suspicious that the existence of recordings would be redacted.

Grassley and other Republicans have suggested that the most important question is not necessarily whether the bribe allegation is true, but whether the FBI did its due diligence investigating the derogatory material against Biden as the bureau allegedly persecutes Trump and his supporters.

Does the FBI follow up on it or not? Because the FBI ought to be able to answer the question for you and me, and the reason they ought to be able to answer it [is] because its an unclassified document, Grassley said. And what I hope to do is make this document public.

Related...
Republicans are facing an uphill climb in the Wisconsin Senate race after Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-Wis.) decided against a bid next year, hurting their chances to unseat Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.).

Gallagher was considered a top Republican pick to challenge the incumbent Baldwin, who is seeking a third term next year, and his decision not to run has some in the party worried about their prospects in what is expected to be a tough election.

Despite the state becoming more of a battleground state in recent years, Baldwin has been an extraordinarily tough opponent for the GOP, having won reelection by more than 10 points only two years after former President Trump carried the state.

Tammy Baldwin is good. Republicans have always underestimated her in the past, kind of the same way Democrats underestimate Ron Johnson, one Wisconsin-based GOP operative told The Hill, adding that shell be very well-funded.

With Gallagher stepping aside, a number of other Republican names have been floated, headlined by a pair of potential self-funders  former hedge fund manager Eric Hovde and businessman Scott Mayer  and Rep. Tom Tiffany (R-Wis.). Former Milwaukee County Sheriff David Clarke has continued to tease a potential bid.

Given the likely expensive battle, a self-funder is attractive to the GOP for a number of reasons. According to a second Wisconsin-based GOP operative, Hovde, who lost the chance to face Baldwin in 2012 after narrowly falling in the GOP primary to former Wisconsin Gov. Tommy Thompson, has moved closer to a bid in recent months by making calls and trying to assemble a team ahead of a potential run.

Sources also view him as formidable due to his straight-talking nature, which isnt unlike that of Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), who won a third term last year. The second operative noted that Hovde has floated spending at least $20 million out of his own pocket.

Hes capable, the first GOP operative said. He certainly has financial resources, and it depends on how much hes willing to spend. His major advantage he has is hes run for statewide office and he knows what it takes.  He knows its a full commitment to do.

Meanwhile, questions surround the possible candidacy of Mayer, who runs a staffing company based out of Milwaukee. He said recently that he hopes to decide on a run by Labor Day but remains a major unknown to the electorate and to Wisconsin politicos.

I dont know him that well either, Johnson told The Hill.

The second operative noted that Mayer has truly come out of the woodwork in recent months and will have much to do in order to boost his name recognition in a primary field that could include Hovde, who has been on a statewide ballot, and members of the Wisconsin congressional delegation or state legislature. While that can be beneficial in a race, as it was for Johnson in his 2010 victory, strategists argue that it could be too much to ask.

The one-two step of Gallagher and Rep. Bryan Steil (R-Wis.) both remaining in the House has greatly increased the chances of Mayer getting in the race, the second operative said.

As for Tiffany, he is viewed as one of the sharper political and policy minds in the Wisconsin GOP ranks. However, running against one or more self-funders could be an issue if he decides to forego running for reelection in his deep-red district.

If he runs, he has some name ID and has his finger on the pulse of the base, the second operative said. He could have a path  but the issue is that he hasnt built up a major fundraising apparatus yet.

Tiffany would also have to give up his safely red seat to potentially take on a powerful Democratic incumbent in Baldwin.

I dont know if Tiffany will take the jump. He has the same risk Gallagher would have had, which is he has to give up his seat to do it, said Republican strategist Bill McCoshen.

Wisconsin Democrats, on the other hand, appear to be hoping for a run from Clarke, who is known for his past inflammatory statements and support of former President Trump.

The Wisconsin GOP is staring down another messy, chaotic, intraparty primary, with Sheriff David Clarke leading the pack, the party said in a statement.

Clarke is continuing to garner attention as he publicly weighs jumping into the race. Last week, he touted a survey from the left-leaning Public Policy Polling that showed him leading a hypothetical primary field with 40 percent support. The poll, which was conducted before Gallagher took himself out of the running, showed the congressman at 20 percent support. Tiffany came in at 10 percent, and Hovde at 3 percent.

But national Republicans say they arent holding their breath over a potential Clarke candidacy.

Hes making a lot of noise, but well see if he actually gets into the race, said one national Republican strategist.

Regardless, national Democrats remain bullish about their chances in the state, especially in a presidential year with an incumbent senator who has proven to be tough to oust.

She just connects with the people of Wisconsin in every way, and especially with working people, said Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), who served as chair of the Senate Democratic campaign arm during Baldwins 2018 reelection battle. Everything she does is looking out for working people in Wisconsin. Thats what drives her here; thats what motivates her here. And I think the people of Wisconsin know it.

Democrats also point to statewide successes in the states Supreme Court race earlier this year, which saw liberals take control of the court for the first time in 15 years. Justice-elect Janet Protasiewicz made abortion access a key issue in her campaign, which Baldwin and Democrats are expected to do again next year.

But Republicans push back on the notion that the states Supreme Court race is an indication of what statewide races will look like next year.

It was the biggest issue in the Supreme Court race, but the new liberal majority on the Wisconsin Supreme Court could make it a moot issue by 2024, McCoshen said.

I think we nominated the weakest of the potential candidates, he added, referring to Protasiewiczs conservative opponent in the Supreme Court race. I dont think well do the same thing for the Senate race.

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Shane Bouie and his family just wanted a unique family getaway. But their rental home in Rodanthe Beach swayed as wave after wave crashed under the stilted house, though specialists reassured them it was stable.

"They said everything was doubled up as far as stability," Bouie told AccuWeather's Jillian Angeline. "They added secondary posts and they said about a month ago or so the engineers looked it over."

Last year, four oceanfront homes collapsed into the ocean in Rodanthe, part of the Outer Banks in North Carolina. On March 13, a one-story home just steps away from Bouie's rental house collapsed into the ocean. Officials warn that more houses will keep crumbling into the Atlantic as erosion continues along the Outer Banks' coastline.

While an eroding coastline is inevitable, the rate of erosion along the state's coast is alarmingly high. Michael Flynn, a physical scientist for the Cape Hatteras National Seashore, said the average annual rate of erosion between 1998 and 2022 ranged from 9 to 12 feet in areas of Rodanthe Beach. In Buxton, a shoreline that was eroding quickly but was recently renourished, the erosion rate was nearly 7 feet per year on average.

According to the Outer Banks' Visitors Bureau, renourishment involves pumping sand from offshore sites or sandbars onto the shoreline to protect areas from the effects of significant erosion and prevent property damage in those areas. While authorities completed the renourishment of about 3 miles of the Buxton shoreline in August 2022, the Outer Banks did not have scheduled plans for the renourishment of Rodanthe Beach as of June.

Kris Willis, a resident who grew up in the Outer Banks, said she would like to see renourishment efforts expanded for the weathered beaches.

"It's just so different, seeing it from when I was a kid and seeing it now," Willis said. "There's definitely more erosion."

Bobby Outten, Dare County manager, said the county is working to get federal funding to build up the vulnerable Rodanthe beaches. In January, Outten and the county hosted a public meeting to provide information and discuss residents' concerns about erosion and the dangers it poses.

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The eroding beaches also uncover debris in shallow waters, Outten said, and the high winds in recent weeks have left the debris even more exposed. As the surf comes in for high tide, the debris is hidden, posing a danger to residents. The beaches are National Park Service property, so it enforces debris removal, Outten said.

"We're there to support them. They're working really hard, actively enforcing, and spent piles of money and lots of time doing that," he said.

Less than 2 miles away from Bouie's rental house, families are still soaking up the sunshine, aware that the beachfront structures that many residents call home are in danger of collapsing.

"It's part of the Earth. Things happen," one vacationer said. "When you build this close to the ocean, it's gonna happen."

AccuWeather National Reporter Jillian Angeline contributed.

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Natalinos Pizza, a restaurant based in British Columbia, is crossing the border, bringing authentic Roman-style pizza to Bellinghams Bellis Fair Mall. Opening day is Friday, June 16.

Natanael Gamarrota, or Natalino, is a contemporary master pizza chef from Rome who started the pizza restaurant with his wife in 2020 in Surrey.

Bellingham has always been in our mind. We have customers that drive from here and from Blaine just to eat our pizza, so we had to come visit. We instantly connected with the city. Its such a beautiful place and the people are so friendly, Gamarrota wrote in an email to The Bellingham Herald.

During one of those many visits we stopped at the Bellis Fair Mall food court and saw an empty space that used to be a beautiful pizza shop. We had a talk with David Prince, assistant property manager at the mall. He shared with us his desire to include family owned businesses like ours at the mall, his friendly attitude and his willingness to work with us convinced us that this was the right place for our second location, Gamarrota wrote.

The restaurant uses pizza dough that is naturally matured for 48 to 72 hours, promising it to be delicious, low in fat, easily digestible, soft and crispy. The pizzas are also made with extra virgin olive oil and authentic Italian products.

The pizza craftsmen of Rome have pioneered a novel pizza-making technique that ensures the dough contains a higher water content. This innovative approach allows the pizza to remain fresh and moist when displayed, and it can be swiftly reheated on demand, delivering a prompt and crispy pizza experience to our valued customers, Gamarrota wrote.

The restaurant serves a variety of pizzas with toppings such as truffle sauce, Italian sausage, pork belly, peppers, olives and cheeses. The menu also includes calzones, focaccia bread, salads, panna cotta, and a dessert pizza topped with Nutella.

Natalinos Pizza is located inside Bellis Fair Mall at the food court and will be open from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Saturday.

Bellis Fair Mall is at 1 Bellis Fair Parkway in Bellingham.
Notre Dame cathedral is seen burning in Paris, Monday, April 15, 2019. The restoration project is expected to be completed by the end of 2024. | Francois Mori, Associated Press

Its been a little over four years since Notre Dame, a medieval Catholic cathedral in Paris, caught fire.

The fire started in the early evening on April 15, 2019, according to Friends of Notre-Dame Paris. And while firefighters were able to control the fire by the next morning, the roof and spire had burned, and the cathedral  which was undergoing restoration at the time  was damaged.

Roughly 13 million people visit the French Gothic-style cathedral annually, according to CNN. The famous religious landmark can hold over 6,000 people inside and is known for distinctive features like an 8,000-pipe organ and stained glass windows.

Its awful to see such a symbol disappearing in front of you, Thibaud Binetruy, who saw smoke in the cathedral when he was walking home on the night of the fire, told CNN. Its been there for so many years and in a few minutes half of it disappears.

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Like all of my fellow citizens, I am sad to see this part of us burn tonight, French President Emmanuel Macron said that night, per ABC News. Later, Macron said it was part of our French destiny to rebuild and restore the cathedral.

So after the fire subsided, restoration efforts began. Heres the latest on the restoration process  and when its expected to be completed.

Restoring the Notre Dame cathedral

Workers have started to rebuild Notre Dames roof. Reconstruction had to pause in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, per USA Today. The pause lasted for three months.

Currently, reconstruction is going steadily for the cathedral, and carpenters are working on rebuilding the charpente  the framework  Eleanor Beardsley reported for NPR. The completion goal for the entire restoration project is the end of 2024.

Carpenters who are working on rebuilding and restoring the cathedrals roof are using traditional techniques, per NPR. Even though the framework of the roof wont be visible, these carpenters are still forgoing modern conveniences like electric saws and nails. Theyre also using wood from a local forest to complete the project.

A cathedral is a structural ensemble thats very complex, and as soon as you change one little thing, one parameter, it impacts everywhere else in the cathedral, the head architect, Remi Fromont, told NPR. So reconstructing it exactly the same way is also a precaution. It worked very well for 800 years. So we know if we build it back the same way we wont risk damaging the cathedral by trying something new.

In a report for 60 Minutes, General Jean-Louis Georgelin told CBS Bill Whitaker that tons of rubble had to be removed, paintings and stained glass windows were taken away for restoration, and twisted steel scaffolding erected for ongoing restoration work had to be dismantled.

As part of the restoration work, sculptors are recreating what was lost in the fire.

We try to remake things identically. But we are also trying to understand the intention of the original sculptors, so we look at the traces left by their tools, Danae Leblond, one of the sculptors, told CBS News.

A brief history of the Notre Dame cathedral

Construction on the cathedral started in 1163, during the reign of King Louis VII, according to the cathedrals website. It took just shy of 200 years for the cathedral to be completed  construction was finished in 1345.

Pope Alexander III laid the foundation stone, per Britannica. The idea for the cathedral began with Maurice de Sully, who was the bishop of Paris. He thought of building a large cathedral on top of two basilicas that had been ruined.

The cathedral has been part of several historical moments since its creation, such as the crowing of King Henry VI of England, per National Catholic Register. The cathedral suffered damage during the French Revolution, but Napoleon  who in 1804 was crowned emperor inside Notre Dame  saved the building from complete destruction.

The damaged cathedral remained until an effort was undertaken in the 19th century to restore the cathedral.

One of the driving forces behind the 1844 restoration effort of the Notre Dame cathedral came in the form of Victor Hugos The Hunchback of Notre Dame, according to the cathedrals website. At the time of the books publication, the cathedral was damaged and the books popularity contributed to the kings decision to order a restoration in 1844.

One of the signature features of the cathedral  the spire  was damaged and removed in the 18th century, per BBC. As part of mid-19th century efforts to restore the cathedral, architect Eugene Viollet-le-Duc designed a spire that was added to the cathedral. The restoration efforts for the spire  which was burned during the 2019 fire  will be inspired by Viollet-le-Ducs design.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is running for president, and thus on leave as the chairman of the Childrens Health Defense. The group, like its founder, has spent the past few years pushing misinformation about Covid-19 and vaccines. It has also, as Media Matters reported on Wednesday, been using the far-right social media platform Gab to recruit followers.

Media Matters notes that the CHD subscribes to Gab Pro, and has posted to the site over 1,500 times since Jan. 2021. The Anti-Defamation League has labeled Gab as a haven for extremists, conspiracy theorists and misinformation. The platforms CEO, Andrew Torba, is openly antisemitic and has said American Christians are done being controlled in our own country by the two-percent minority, meaning Jewish people.

CHD made a direct appeal to Torba, whose user name is @a. @a Please follow + support Childrens Health Defense and Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. #Freespeech is yet again under attack, the group wrote in July 2021, just one of several instances in which it hopped into Torbas replies, tagging Torba.

Rolling Stone reached out to both CHD and Kennedys campaign for comment, but did not receive an immediate response.

Media Matters highlighted several other examples of the group appealing to white supremacists on Gab, including how the group slid into the replies of Rob Colbert, a former executive for the platform who has made several bigoted posts. I dont have any questions about why my ancestors kept these retarded man-like creatures locked in sheds with metal collars on their necks that had bells on them, Colbert wrote in March, added a hashtag with the N-word.

CHD has also interacted with users who regularly espouse virulent racism, who praise Hitler and whose profiles feature Nazi symbols, and who have pushed the QAnon conspiracy theory.

Kennedy founded CHD in 2011 and is very much the face of the organization, appearing prominently on its website and in its marketing materials. He announced in April that he is challenging President Biden for the Democratic nomination, and has since been elevated by figures like Elon Musk, the right-wing Twitter owner who like Kennedy is no stranger to conspiracy theories. Kennedy espoused several of them during an event with Musk earlier this month, describing Covid-19 as a bioweapon and blaming school shootings on anti-depressants.

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Robert F. Kennedy Jr., an anti-vaccine activist and environmental lawyer who is running for the Democratic nomination for president, has a higher favorability rating than many of the other 2024 presidential candidates, according to a new poll.

The poll from The Economist and YouGov released Wednesday showed Kennedy was viewed favorably by 49 percent of respondents, giving him the highest net favorability rating of 19 points. He was viewed unfavorably by 30 percent.

President Biden and former President Trump each had the second-highest percentage of respondents viewing them favorably, with 44 percent saying so. But Biden had a minus-9 net favorability rating, while Trump had a minus-10 net favorability rating.

Conservative entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy and Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) had the second-highest net favorability ratings of the names included at 8 points. Ramaswamy was viewed favorably by 26 percent and unfavorably by 19 percent, while Scott was viewed favorably by 32 percent and unfavorably by 25 percent.

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Author and progressive activist Marianne Williamson had the lowest percentage of respondents who say they view her favorably at 19 percent, while former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) had the lowest net favorability rating of minus-24 points.

The results come as Kennedy, the nephew of former President Kennedy and son of former Attorney General Robert Kennedy, is sparking some concerns among Democrats who are feeding into the notion that theyre worried about the primary challenger to Biden.

Polls have shown Kennedy with support from about one-fifth of Democratic voters recently, causing him to gain more attention and media coverage.

The poll was conducted from June 10-13 among 1,500 U.S. adults. The margin of error was 2.9 points.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
Progressives who have watched Robert F. Kennedy Jr. tease the public are wondering what the lead up to the 2024 election could have looked like with a more credible primary challenger to President Biden.

Their discontent with Biden has grown after he cut what they see as a raw deal over the debt limit, and the latest snub from the president whos now running as an outright centrist.

While Kennedy appears to be having a moment, progressives dont claim him for their cause. Rather, some wish that a more inspirational candidate would have given Biden a real run for the nomination, with a handful still hopeful someone will.

We are renewing efforts to encourage a progressive primary challenge from a visionary officeholder, said Norman Solomon, a two-time delegate for Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.). Or a major leader of social movements.

That person hasnt emerged yet. But its not for a lack of desire.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. departs after speaking at an anti-vaccine rally in Washington, D.C. on January 23, 2022. (Stefani Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images)

Democratic primary voters have repeatedly said they would consider another choice over Biden, noting that everything from his advanced age to his low approval ratings and handling of divisive issues such as immigration have been unhelpful. Activists have added to the criticism, insisting that his compromise-first approach is risky when facing a Republican Party yearning to defeat him.

Democrats in Congress have been less pushy. They often note the good things the president has done, blame the GOP and have ultimately declined to recruit or coalesce around another candidate. While their actions dont amount to a resounding endorsement, theyre enough to keep him afloat.

Some of it is fear-based; Democrats generally dont want to bruise Biden during a primary where few believe another contender could actually beat him. Those who hold that view think that a challenger could ultimately weaken his chances against former President Trump or another leading Republican for the nomination. None want to take away just enough votes on the margins to cause him to lose.

The Hill Elections 2024 coverage

Over the past few weeks, however, the election has become even more volatile: Trump became the first former president to be federally indicted and insists he wont drop out of the race. And while many Democrats see the 37 counts in his handling of classified documents as damning, some also believe Republicans will work to make the indictment look politically motivated by Biden and his Justice Department.

While Biden has kept his distance from the issue, other Democrats have been less inhibited.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) has been among the highest profile figures to grab headlines. On Monday, he went on Fox News  a tactic progressives like Sanders and California Rep. Ro Khanna have used to send a message  and jousted with host Sean Hannity.

Newsom is one of several progressives who says he is supporting Bidens reelection effort but has nonetheless taken steps to target Trump and GOP governors and raise money for his side. Some say it looks a lot like campaign legwork.

I think Newsom is preparing, said Peter Daou, a progressive Democratic strategist whos been a vocal critic of Biden. Some other catalyst might have to happen for him to enter the race.

Daou is one of just a few operatives who knows the challenges of working against the sitting president. He was recently involved with author Marianne Williamsons presidential bid, where she has tried to push Biden to the left for the second consecutive cycle and get him and the Democratic National Committee to allow for a debate.

But despite progressives agreeing with much of Williamsons platform, she hasnt been able to get widespread attention or rise in the polls.

Newsom, the highest-ranking executive from a massive liberal state, is in a different category, but his insistence in backing Biden in 2024 has led some to wonder if hes actually playing a longer-term game.

There would have to be some other factor to change the dynamic, Daou conceded about the California governor.

The lack of enthusiastic support for Biden has inspired Democrats to line up behind him in an effort to boost his chances.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom speaks during a news conference in Paramount Calif., Monday, May 1, 2023. Late Monday, June 12, 2023, Newsom sparred with Fox News host Sean Hannity, insisting President Joe Biden is physically fit for a second term as president while refusing to say whether supporters have urged him to replace Biden on the 2024 ballot. (Hans Gutknecht/The Orange County Register via AP, File)

Dozens of top figures across the ideological spectrum have pledged to help him, including working on ways to court and keep progressive voters and young people in his corner. While that effort is ongoing, voters are now confronted with an onslaught of Trump legal news, and some are seeing less familiar Democratic figures than Biden come into view.

Kennedy, for one, appears to be seizing on Biden apathy. He got attention last week when he talked to controversial Twitter owner Elon Musk in a conversation that was full of conspiracy theories and misinformation.

But Democrats warn that Bidens orbit should not dismiss Kennedy completely. Many want to eye-roll his bid out of existence, but the unpredictable nature of the race makes that hard to do.

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The same week that Kennedy blitzed the media, a top Sanders ally launched a third-party presidential bid  and is already eager to go head-to-head with Biden or Trump.

I would welcome a debate with any of the candidates! Cornel West, a former Harvard scholar who served as a longtime surrogate for Sanders, told The Hill in a text message.

West opted against challenging Biden as a Democrat and instead registered with the Peoples Party. In doing that, he got around the logistical hurdles that make primarying the sitting president a long shot.

While West is a fan favorite among many Sanders allies, the Vermont senator has stayed firmly committed to supporting Biden in 2024, a sign of the incumbent presidents grasp on the wing of the party that remains skeptical about him.

I think we have settled with him, said one Democratic campaign strategist about Biden in the general election. Progressives, regardless of how boisterous they are online, have settled into this notion.

Cornel West seeking Green Party nomination for presidential run

Those who are still holding out hope for another serious contender to take on Biden say its his policies and willingness to give in to Republicans that should be challenged, and that voters deserve another option.

We need political courage, not timidity, said Solomon, who also serves as national director of RootsAction.org. He recently changed the name of an anti-Biden effort from Dont Run Joe to Step Aside Joe after the president formally relaunched his campaign.

On Capitol Hill, left-wing frustration with Biden reached a boiling point over negotiations around the debt limit. For weeks, they had stressed that Biden shouldnt bend to Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), and some high-profile progressives voted against the deal on principle.

Theres no doubt that anger among grassroots progressives and frustration among progressive Congress members have intensified as a result of Bidens acquiescence to the debt-ceiling blackmail and several recent White House decisions to exacerbate the climate crisis, Solomon said.

The twin imperatives of defeating Republicans next year and making a decent future possible for the next generations require setting aside corporate status-quo approaches.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
Richland 2 announces finalists for its next superintendent. Heres what we know

Richland 2 has announced candidates for its next leader.

Nearly 40 applicants from 20 states applied for the job, according to a district news release. Following a special called board meeting on Monday, the school board narrowed the pool to three finalists: Nia Campbell, Benjamin Henry and Kim Moore.

Campbell is the chief academic officer for Aurora Public Schools in Colorado.

Henry is the regional superintendent of Polk County Schools in Polk County, Florida.

Moore also hails from Florida, and is the assistant superintendent of career and innovative programs for the Pasco County School District.

Candidates will each spend a day in Columbia next week for interviews, according to a district news release. Parents, students and teachers, as well as other community members selected using a lottery system, will have the opportunity to serve on interview panels. The school board will also conduct in-depth, closed-door interviews.

The final selection for the districts top spot is scheduled for June 23 at a special called school board meeting and will be announced June 27.

Nancy Gregory will continue to serve as interim superintendent in the meantime. She was chosen for the role after former superintendent Baron Davis abruptly resigned from his post in January.

Rumors of Davis potentially being fired had caught the communitys attention for weeks before he resigned after a six-hour closed-door board meeting. He was paid $615,000 via a settlement agreement upon his departure  a lump sum of $415,518.68, $124,481.32 for accrued sick days and vacation leave and another $75,000 for all disputed claims, which is not further defined in the agreement.
rishi-sunak-ai-regulation

Britain's Prime Minister Rishi Sunak speaks at the opening of London Tech Week in central London on June 12, 2023. Credit - IAN VOGLERPOOL/AFP/Getty Images

During Prime Minister Rishi Sunaks recent visit to Washington D.C., as he announced that the U.K. would host the first global summit on AI regulation later this year, he bristled in response to a reporters question about whether the midsize country could naturally lead the debate, given that the E.U. is close to passing a landmark AI bill.

That midsize country happens to be a global leader in AI, he said. You would be hard-pressed to find many other countries other than the U.S. in the Western world with more expertise and talent in AI.

The Prime Ministers response revealed the dilemma he now faces in positioning the U.K. as a key player in reining in AIs potential negative consequences without stifling innovation, amid growing fears around generative artificial intelligence.

Read More: The A to Z of Artificial Intelligence

Following the U.K.s departure from the European Union, experts say Sunak is attempting to carve out a pivotal role to help keep the country globally relevant by playing the role of an honest broker between the different regulatory approaches of the E.U. and the U.S. when it comes to AI. Last week, Joe Biden confirmed the U.S. would take part in the global summit focusing on AI safety that the U.K. will host later this year, which Sunak hopes will help mitigate risks through internationally coordinated action.

Fundamentally, the government is trying to articulate a middle way forward between the very robust regulatory approach to the E.U. is converging upon and the more light-touch approach in Washington, says Mujatba Rahman, the managing director of the Eurasia Group.

During a speech at London Tech Week on Monday, Sunak told industry leaders that he wants to make the U.K. not just the intellectual home, but the geographical home of global AI safety regulation. The UK government has invested over 100 million in a Foundation Model Taskforce created to lead on AI safety domestically, but Sunak now hopes the country can also develop a global architecture for regulation.

Read More: AI Is as Risky as Pandemics and Nuclear War, Top CEOs Say, Urging Global Cooperation

Until recently, the U.K. governments approach to the regulation of AI was more laissez-faire. In a March white paper on AI, the governments science, innovation and technology secretary, Michelle Donelan, wrote that AI had delivered fantastic social and economic benefits for real people. Yet a recent survey suggests that almost 60% of the country would like to see the U.K. regulating the use of AI to help safeguard jobs.

The Conservative governments pro-innovation approach has seen the U.K. government investing over 2.5 billion in AI since 2014, and in turn, working with leading AI firms based in London, according to the white paper. Were working with the frontier labsGoogle DeepMind, OpenAI, and Anthropic, Sunak told reporters.

Read More: Why Microsofts Satya Nadella Doesnt Think Now Is the Time to Stop on AI

Notably, the white paper suggested the government favored the creation of light-handed sector-specific regulators over an independent regulatory body: New rigid and onerous legislative requirements on businesses could hold back AI innovation and reduce our ability to respond quickly and in a proportionate way to future technological advances, it said.

Until he stepped down as Prime Minister last year, Boris Johnson had touted a post-Brexit Britain as being more business-friendly by cutting E.U. red tape and reducing onerous regulation, one of the core arguments in the campaign to leave the bloc.

Unlike some other businesses, AI companies have been seeking more input from governments. After meeting with senior executives in the industry, Prime Minister Sunaks comments struck a different tone to the white paper and he began to acknowledge its existential risks: In recent weeks, [Sunak] has been somewhat convinced that AI governance needs to be taken seriously and that there are risks here, Jess Whittlestone, the head of AI Policy at the Centre for Long-Term Resilience, says. Theres some genuine concern there.

In March, a group of AI experts raised the alarm about OpenAIs ChatGPT and the potential risks it posed to society, calling for a six-month pause on new developments. The following month, E.U. lawmakers warned that AI technologies were developing more rapidly than expected, urging world leaders to find ways to control AI. And last month, an open letter that was published by the nonprofit Center for AI Safety and signed by hundreds of AI executives, researchers, and other tech figuresincluding the CEOs of big AI firms OpenAI and DeepMindstated that mitigating the risk of extinction from AI should be a global priority alongside other societal-scale risks such as pandemics and nuclear war.

Read more: Column: Pausing AI Developments Isnt Enough. We Need to Shut it All Down

The letters authors suggested an international approach similar to the U.N.-brokered treaty on the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons, which they say would seek to contain whats already out there through dedicated regulatory authorities, public funding for safety research, and oversight and tracking of powerful systems.

Sunaks sudden pivot to a more hands-on approach to regulating AI comes as the E.U. develops the worlds first sweeping law on the technology after a G7 meeting last month. Member states agreed to create the Hiroshima AI process, a ministerial forum designed to discuss and adopt risk-based AI rules. The Act legislates the technologys use in facial recognition, biometric surveillance, and other AI applications. However, it has also prompted concern about how AI companies will comply. OpenAIs CEO Sam Altman told reporters in London last month that his company could cease operating in the E.U. if it was unable to comply with the provisions of the new law.

Read More: OpenAI Could Quit Europe Over New AI Rules, CEO Sam Altman Warns

During an event hosted by former U.K. Prime Minister Tony Blairs Institute of Global Change (TBI) on Tuesday, Nathan Benaich, the co-author of the annual State of AI report, which analyzes the most interesting developments in the industry, acknowledged that the U.K. had lost oversight on decisions around scaling up AI that it previously received from having a presence in the European Parliament. That also puts pressure on U.K. resources.

As a result, given that the U.K. is home to prominent AI labs, some of the responsibility to oversee has come back to us in Westminster, but our capacity hasnt necessarily increased as a consequence of that, he said, adding that the U.K. Parliament needs to be comfortable in building its capacity for proportionate checks and balances in the system.

While the E.U. appears to be setting a precedent for regulation, Whittlestone tells TIME theres an opportunity for the U.K. to distinguish itself. For example, unlike the E.U.which is more focused on how AI might be used in specific products and on product regulationthe government could think more afresh about preserving and supporting innovation while being careful and stringent about where AI poses the highest risk.

Read More: Column: The Darwinian Argument for Worrying About AI

However, the Prime Ministers attempt to lay the groundwork for becoming a regulatory home for AI has so far mostly been influenced by industry executives, Whittlestone says. Having independent expertise around these concerns is so important to ensure democratically legitimate regulation, and so far, that has felt like it was really missing..

Benedict Macon-Cooney, TBIs chief policy strategist, echoed these sentiments on Tuesday: Whitehall needs to be much more comfortable about bringing in those kinds of experts that have been at the forefront of building [AI] as well as people from civil society and academia to make sure you get that right kind of balance of expertise always feeding into regulation, he said.

Otherwise, youre just going to get bad advice, he warned.

With additional reporting by Billy Perrigo.
The road is strewn with the bodies of Russian soldiers  Photo report from recently liberated village in Donetsk Oblast

The flag of Ukraine in the liberated Neskuchne, Donetsk region, June 13, 23

The journalists saw a flag of Ukraine flying over a destroyed grocery store, and dead Russian soldiers lying on the streets.

In Neskuchy, where several hundred people used to live, now there are almost no residents and almost every house is damaged, said Reuters.

Russian invaders were in Neskuchny three days ago, but Ukrainian defenders pushed them back, Territorial Defense Force fighter Artem told Reuters.

Reuters also showed photos from the liberated village of Storozheve. The road to the village is strewn with the bodies of Russian soldiers and burnt armored vehicles, the journalists reported. Ukrainian defeners said that during the sweep they eliminated about 50 occupiers and took four prisoners.

Houses in Storozheve were also heavily damaged by Russian shelling, and journalists did not find residents there either. The village was captured by Russian invaders in March 2022, said Reuters.

Read also: Russian invaders still focusing main offensive efforts in four areas

During the first week of the offensive, Ukraines Defense Forces advanced 6.5 km and liberated seven settlements, including Neskuchne and Storozheve, reported Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Malyar on June 12.

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Pexels

Global rooftop solar capacity grew by 49 percent in 2022, an industry report finds.

Overall, installed rooftop solar grew from 79 gigawatts to 118 gigawatts last year and is projected to reach 159 gigawatts by the end of this year, according to SolarPower Europe, an industry trade group.

Total installed solar capacity, including both rooftop installations and large-scale arrays, rose from 940 gigawatts to 1,177 gigawatts last year and is projected to reach 1,518 gigawatts later this year. Globally, solar will generate enough power in 2023 to meet more than half of the EUs power demand, the report said.

Analysts caution that the continued growth of solar will depend on building more energy storage to manage the peaks and troughs in solar output. Countries will also need to upgrade power grids to carry surplus solar power from where its generated to where its needed. Grid bottlenecks are hampering further solar development in 20 of the 26 major solar-producing countries, the report found.

Were installing huge amounts of solar, and we need to be able to use it when we need it, Michael Schmela, director of market intelligence at SolarPower Europe, said in a statement. Governments around the world must make upgrading their electricity and storage infrastructure a political priority.

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Roommate lives with mans body in house for days without reporting it, Alabama cops say

A man is in custody after being accused of living with his roommates dead body for days without reporting the death, Alabama deputies said.

Deputies responded to a Sipsey home on June 9 after someone reported their deceased family member was in the house, according to a Walker County Sheriffs Office June 13 news release.

Deputies learned that a 61-year-old man was also living in the home, and the deceased person had been dead for days, according to the release.

Treating a human corpse in a way that would outrage ordinary family sensibilities is a (felony), deputies said.

Justin Hagler told AL.com that the deceased individual was his father, whom he last saw on June 7. He told the outlet that the 61-year-old was his dads roommate, but when asked, the man wouldnt tell Hagler where his dad was once he stopped hearing from him.

Im furious, Hagler told the outlet. He said he had gone to the house multiple times looking for his father, and his body was eventually found by Haglers son.

The 61-year-old man was charged with abuse of a corpse and taken into custody, according to the sheriffs office.

The Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences will complete an autopsy of the deceased individual to determine the cause of death, deputies said.

Sipsey is about 35 miles northwest of Birmingham.

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FILE PHOTO: General view of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague

By Stephanie van den Berg

THE HAGUE (Reuters) - A lawyer for Russia on Wednesday dismissed Ukraine's account of the downing of Malaysian Airlines Flight MH17 in World Court hearings earlier this week as "fiction".

Ukraine accuses Russia before the U.N.'s top court of violating a U.N. anti-terrorism treaty by equipping and funding pro-Russian forces, including militias who shot down Malaysian Airlines Flight MH17, killing all 298 passengers and crew in July 2014.

Last November, a Dutch court found that Russia had "overall control" over the separatist forces and had supplied the BUK missile system which was used by militias to shoot down the plane.

Ukraine repeated the Dutch court findings in its case before the International Court of Justice (ICJ), but Russia's lawyer Michael Swainston dismissed it as "fiction".

"This did not happen, no BUK Telar came from Russia," he told the court on the final day of hearings.

In its case at the ICJ, also known as the World Court, Kyiv also claims Russia breached a U.N. anti-discrimination treaty by trying to erase the culture of ethnic Tatars and Ukrainians in Crimea, which Russia annexed from Ukraine in 2014.

In its final submissions on Monday, Ukraine asked the ICJ to find Moscow guilty of breaching its treaty obligations and order it to pay reparations.

Russia denies systematic human rights abuses in Ukrainian territory that it occupies. It also says it has met its obligations under the U.N. treaty against financing terrorism.

It has asked the court to throw out Ukraine's claim which stems from 2017 and was filed well before Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

The ICJ is expected to rule on the case before the end of this year.

(Reporting by Stephanie van den Berg, Editing by William Maclean)
ZNPP

"Two weeks ago, following a command from Moscow, the automatic transmission of data from radiation monitoring sensors located at the industrial site of the Zaporizhzhia NPP was stopped, he reported.

This is unacceptable and violates nuclear and radiation safety requirements.

Read also: Russia, Ukraine fail to accept IAEA plan to protect Zaporizhzhya NPP  media reports

Now, experts of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) at the plant have to take pictures of the sensors or write down their numbers in order to transfer this data to the IAEA headquarters, he added.

With their actions, the invaders continue to neglect basic safety rules and principles imposed for nuclear power plants, Korikov emphasized. The situation will only improve following the demilitarization and liberation of the plant, the nuclear inspector added.

IAEA head Rafael Grossi arrived in Ukraine and met with the President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Kyiv on June 13. However, he postponed his trip to the Zaporizhzhia NPP by "some hours" because of security concerns, according to Reuters.

Read also: IAEA inspectors find explosives at Russia-occupied ZNPP

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Ukrainian officials said Wednesday that six people were killed due to a result of Russian forces firing cruise missiles in the city of Odesa overnight, conducting rounds of shelling that destroyed homes in the eastern Donetsk region.

In a Telegram post, Donetsk regional governor Pavlo Kyrylenko wrote that at least three residents died and seven homes were destroyed due to shelling, adding that dozens more homes in the cities of Kramatorsk and Kostiantynivka were damaged.

Odesas regional administration wrote in a Facebook post that Russias cruise missiles attack resulted in the deaths of three employees at a local food warehouse and wounded seven others. The cruise missile attack also destroyed local homes, shops, businesses, and restaurants in the city.

The regional administration also said that the countrys air defenses were able to intercept three out of the four Kalibr cruise missiles Russia launched from the Black Sea.

The latest bombardment comes as Russia has increased its aerial strikes in its ongoing war with its neighbor, with Ukraines General Staff spokesperson Andriy Kovalov saying that the recent onslaught involved Kh-22 cruise missiles, sea-launched Kalibr cruise missiles, and Iranian-made Shahed drones, targeting multiple regions in the country.

Ukraine launched a long-planned counteroffensive last week, already reclaiming seven villages from Russian forces.

February marked a year since Russia invaded Ukraine, which has resulted in thousands of civilian deaths, tens of thousands of military casualties on both sides and the displacement of Ukrainian citizens all over Europe.

The Associated Press contributed.

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Russian army lacks mechanics to repair damaged equipment, forcing Ukrainian mechanics to help

Russian troops lose a significant amount of military equipment

Russian occupation forces are losing a significant amount of military equipment during Ukraines counteroffensive, NRC stressed.

Read also: Chinese and Indonesian peace plans really just Russia proxies, says DM Reznikov at NV event

The invaders are preparing to replenish their losses by decommissioning old weapons," the statement said. The Russians also lack mechanics who can repair damaged or outdated vehicles.

The Russians are forcing specialists to repair and maintain military equipment.

Read also: Crimea will not receive water from the mainland for at least a year, reports official

"In the temporarily occupied Crimea, the enemy is selecting car mechanics from local service stations," the press service added.

The National Resistance Center called on residents of temporarily occupied territories to not cooperate with occupation administrations. Those who are forced to work on military equipment under duress and threat to life and health are advised to disable it.

Read also: Russian oil shipments to North Korea resume amid reports of reciprocal weapons transfers to Russia

Ukraine's Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov has previously stated that Russia is experiencing a shortage of professional military personnel, high-tech weapons, and rounds.

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Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
A Russian draftee says he surrendered to a Ukrainian drone after 2 wounded comrades killed themselves, leaving him alone and under fire on the front lines

Ukrainian service members near Bakhmut on March 24, 2023. Aris Messinis/Getty Images

A Russian draftee surrendered to a Ukrainian drone last month and is being held at a detention center.

In an interview with The Wall Street Journal, he shared his experiences on the front lines in Bakhmut.

Before he surrendered to the drone, he saw two other men in the trenches with him take their own lives.

A Russian draftee who surrendered to a Ukrainian drone last month revealed the hellish conditions poorly trained and ill-equipped soldiers are being thrown into on the front lines in an interview with The Wall Street Journal, which also talked to the Ukrainians who nearly killed him.

Ruslan Anitin, a 30-year-old husband and father to a 3-year-old daughter, was abruptly and unexpectedly drafted for service in the armed forces last September as Russian leadership mobilized hundreds of thousands of civilians to make up for the catastrophic manpower losses in Ukraine.

After being shipped off to another town, Anitin received a military uniform and training that lasted only a matter of weeks, during which time he only fired his Soviet-era weapon twice, The Journal reported.

Anitin was initially told he would be guarding the border at positions inside Russia, but he was quickly shipped off to Ukraine. In Luhansk, he primarily built fortifications, but then in May, he was told he was being sent to Bakhmut, a city that he, like many others before him, described as a "meat grinder."

An aerial view of Bakhmut, Ukraine, on April 26, 2023. Libkos/AP

Eastern Ukraine's Bakhmut has seen some of the war's most horrific combat. The destroyed city was recently captured by Russian forces, Wagner Group mercenaries in particular, after months of hard fighting at tremendous cost, but the Russians are struggling to hold it as Ukraine turns up the pressure.

Anitin's commander dropped him and two other green recruits within a few hundreds yards of the front lines and instructed them to make their way into the trench system, where they met a Wagner fighter who threatened to shoot them if they ran or failed to carry out the mission.

During a lull in the fighting after a period of intense mortar fire, the three men crawled in the dark over what they later discovered were dead bodies, and hid in a different section of the trench.

On the morning of May 9, an explosion rocked their position. Anitin told The Journal that he grabbed the walkie-talkie and radioed command, but no one answered. As small drones dropped bombs on their positions and mortar fire rained down, Anitin's fellow soldier and friend Ivanov was seriously wounded, as was the third soldier in their group.

Ivanov, 21, pulled the pin on a hand grenade and put it against his head, ending his life in the trenches, and the other man shot himself, leaving Anitin alone to dodge enemy fire for hours.

By later afternoon, he had run out of energy. He couldn't run anymore.

So, he tried the only thing he could think of. He stepped out of the trench and attempted to surrender to one of the Ukrainian drones circling overhead, an unusual scene that was caught on video and released last month.

A 26-year-old Ukrainian drone operator was ready to kill him but took mercy on him. The operator, who goes by the call sign Boxer, told The Journal he "felt sorry for him."

Command instructed Boxer to send Anitin a message to follow the drone to surrender, which he did.

Anitin's journey through no man's land between the Russian and Ukrainian lines was fraught with dangers, and at one point, Russian artillery fire appeared to intentionally target him.

"He was walking like a zombie. He was walking on top of his dead comrades lying around him," a Ukrainian officer told The Journal. When Anitin reached the Ukrainian lines, he made a mad dash the rest of the way.

Anitin was captured and is currently being held in a detention center in Kharkiv. He told The Journal that all he wants is "to return home" to his family and "never experience the sorts of things" that he saw in Ukraine.

Read the original article on Business Insider
Ceremonial soldiers march in the Victory Day parade in Moscow, Russia. Sefa Karacan/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images

Russian Major General Sergei Goryachev was killed by a Ukrainian missile strike.

A Russian occupation official in Zaporizhzhia announced Goryachev's death on Tuesday.

The general's killing suggests Russian senior military officials are on the front lines, analysts said.

A top Russian general was killed by Ukrainian missile strikes  and his death suggests that Moscow's senior military officials are being exposed on the front lines of the war, analysts say

Russian Major General Sergei Goryachev died on the frontlines near Zaporizhzhia, according to Vladimir Rogov, a Russian occupation official.

Rogov shared news of Goryachev's death in a Telegram post, according to a translation by Al Jazeera.

Goryachev was the Chief of Staff of Russia's 35th Army. His death wasn't immediately confirmed by Russia's defense ministry.

Zaporizhzhia has seen fierce fighting as Ukrainian forces continue their counteroffensive and push against Russian defenses, Al Jazeera added.

The reported death of 52-year-old Goryachev suggests two things, according to The Institute for the Study of War: Russian forces have dedicated some of its 35th Combined Arms Army to defense operations in Zaporizhzhia, and that "Russian senior military command officials continue to operate close to the frontline."

But being so close to the fighting leaves them "exposed to accurate Ukrainian strikes," ISW analysts added.

There have been multiple reports of Russian generals and commanders being killed along the frontlines in Ukraine since the war began.

A senior US defense official told Insider in March 2022 that Russian senior officials stay near the front as part of Moscow's military organization and structure.

That's a big difference from militaries like the US, where midlevel troops such as sergeants and petty officers "make decisions literally in the moment on the battlefield," the official said, keeping generals safe away from the fighting.

Those mid-level roles are missing in the Russian military, the official said.

Read the original article on Business Insider
Analysts of the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) note that the death of Russian Major General Sergei Goryachev indicates the probable redeployment of the Russian troops, as well as the apparent vulnerability of the occupying commanders "to accurate Ukrainian strikes".

Source: ISW

Details: The experts took into account information from Russian sources about the death of the Chief of Staff of the 35th Combined Arms Army (Eastern Military District), Major General Sergei Goryachev.

ISW has observed other elements of the Eastern Military District, including elements of the 58th Combined Arms Army and 5th Combined Arms Army operating in western Zaporizhia Oblast.

"Goryachevs reported death in Zaporizhia Oblast could suggest that Russian forces have dedicated elements of the 35th Combined Arms Army to operations in Zaporizhia Oblast and that some Russian senior military command officials continue to operate close to the frontline and remain exposed to accurate Ukrainian strikes," the ISW analysts state.

The ISW notes that Ukrainian troops continued counteroffensive operations on at least three fronts and achieved further limited territorial gains on 13 June.

The report indicates that Ukraine's Deputy Defence minister, Hanna Maliar, said that Ukrainian troops had advanced 250 metres northeast of Bakhmut and 200 metres south of Bakhmut.

She also reported that Ukrainian troops advanced 500-1,000 metres in the last day along the administrative border between Zaporizhia and Donetsk oblasts, liberating about three square kilometres of territory in this area.

In addition, the spokesman of the Ukrainian General Staff, Andrii Kovalov, said that Ukrainian troops have liberated more than 100 square kilometres of territory since the start of counteroffensive operations.

The report also mentions that Russian President Vladimir Putin met with 18 so-called "milbloggers and war correspondents".

To quote the ISW's Key Takeaways on 13 June:

Ukrainian forces continued counteroffensive operations on at least three fronts and made further limited territorial gains on 13 June.

Russian President Vladimir Putin met with 18 prominent Russian military bloggers and "war reporters" to discuss the progress of the Russian invasion of Ukraine on 13 June.

Putin discussed the progress of the Ukrainian counteroffensive and noted that he believes Russia can outlast Western military support for Ukraine.

Putin indicated he is unwilling to announce a second wave of mobilisation or declare martial law, despite maintaining his maximalist objectives in Ukraine.

Putin aimed to assuage widespread discontent in the Russian information space about limited cross-border raids by pro-Ukraine forces into Belgorod Oblast, drone strikes across Russia, and border security in general.

Putin discussed the importance of formalising volunteer formations, and supporting the Russian Ministry of Defences measures to centralise its control over operations in Ukraine.

Putin is likely to continue to publicly engage with, and platform selects pro-Kremlin milbloggers to leverage the community further to expand his support among Russian ultranationalists.

Russian sources claimed that a Ukrainian missile strike killed the Chief of Staff of the 35th Combined Arms Army (Eastern Military District) Major General Sergei Goryachev in Zaporizhia Oblast.

Russian forces conducted missile and drone strikes across Ukraine on 13 June.

Russian authorities continue to express increasing concern over information related to Russias defence industrial base (DIB).

Russian forces continued ground attacks on the Kreminna frontline but did not conduct offensive operations on the Kupiansk-Svatove line.

Ukrainian forces continued to advance on Bakhmuts northern and southern flanks, while Russian forces launched counterattacks near Bakhmut.

Russian forces continued offensive operations on the Avdiivka-Donetsk City line and are transferring additional forces from east (left) bank Kherson Oblast to reinforce the direction.

Russian forces conducted limited ground attacks near the administrative border of Donetsk and Zaporizhia oblasts.

Russian President Vladimir Putin claimed that the Russian military has recruited 150,000 contract service members and over 6,000 volunteers since January 2023.

Russian occupation officials in east (left) bank Kherson Oblast are reportedly continuing evacuation efforts, although are likely continuing to deny services to some residents in flooded areas.

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A Ukrainian service member is seen, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, near the front line near the newly liberated village Neskuchne in Donetsk region, Ukraine June 13, 2023. REUTERS/Oleksandr Ratushniak

Ukrainian forces have gained ground along the border of the Donetsk and Zaporizhzhia regions.

Russian milbloggers reportedly said it's only because rain and fog grounded Russian aircraft.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy acknowledged the rain but said his forces remained strong.

Russian milbloggers reportedly chalked up Ukrainian advancements to rain and heavy fog in key areas of their counteroffensive.

The pundits said that poor weather conditions on Sunday grounded Russian aircraft, impeding efforts to strike areas where Ukrainian forces were concentrated, around Donetsk and Zaporizhia oblasts, according to the Institute for the Study of War.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy acknowledged the weather but said his troops did just fine with it.

"Although the weather is unfavorable these days  the rain makes our task more difficult  the strength of our warriors still yields results," Zelenskyy said on Monday, per the Kyiv Independent.

Over the past week, Ukrainians have retaken 90 square kilometers of territory, according to ISW. Other advances include liberating some front-line villages  though efforts to overcome ruthless Russian obstacles have been bruising, as Insider's Ryan Pickrell reported.

By Monday, the rain cleared, allowing Russian forces to launch a counterattack in western Donetsk Oblast, said former Russian officer and nationalist Igor Girkin, according to the ISW. By the end of Tuesday, Russia struck back in the village of Makarivka  which Ukraine said over the weekend it had liberated  reducing the area to rubble, according to The New York Times.

Meanwhile, President Vladimir Putin, in one of his most detailed addresses to the public in many months, insisted Tuesday to milbloggers and reporters that Ukrainians had suffered "catastrophic" losses during their counteroffensive and suggested that he could order his troops to try to seize more land in Ukraine to protect bordering Russian territory.

A US official familiar with American intelligence said Putin's comments were "not accurate" and cautioned about putting any stock in Russia's public assessments. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to offer an internal assessment, did not detail how Putin's claims were misleading.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Read the original article on Business Insider
Russian suicide drone hits infrastructure facility in Kirovohrad Oblast during night attack

Russia continues to use kamikaze drones for attacks on Ukraine

A fire broke out as a result of the attack, which was promptly extinguished, he said.

Read also: Heartbreak in Kryvyi Rih as young couple found dead as death toll rises to 12 in Russian missile strike

There were no casualties, the governor added.

Russia launched another massive attack on Ukraine overnight on June 14.

Ukraines southern city of Odesa suffered the worst as the Russians hit a civilian object, killing three people and injuring 13.

Ukrainian air defense forces intercepted three cruise missiles and nine suicide drones.

Read also: One person killed and four injured in overnight Russian attack on Kharkiv Oblast

Russia also hit the towns of Kramatorsk and Kostiantynivka in Donetsk Oblast with missiles, killing three civilians and injuring three more.

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Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
In Berdiansk, Russians load ships with stolen Ukrainian grain to take it to Russia.

Source: General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine

Quote: "...at the berths of the seaport of the city of Berdiansk, dry cargo ships are being filled with grain crops stolen from Ukrainian farmers.

In the future, the occupiers plan to export [this] grain to the territory of the Russian Federation."

Details: The General Staff adds that the Russian occupiers continue to rob the local population of Zaporizhzhia Oblast, using military trucks to transport the looted property.

Thus, the movement of Russian motor convoys with looted household appliances, furniture and other property of residents was observed from the settlement of Ocheretuvate in the direction of the city of Tokmak.

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By Guy Faulconbridge

MOSCOW (Reuters) -A close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday there was no reason for Moscow not to destroy its enemies' undersea communication cables given what he said was Western complicity in the Nord Stream pipeline blasts.

A sharp drop in pressure on both gas pipelines under the Baltic Sea was registered on Sept. 26 last year and seismologists detected explosions, triggering a wave of speculation about sabotage to one of Russia's most important energy corridors.

It is still unclear exactly what happened to Nord Stream, a multibillion-dollar project that carried Russian gas to Germany. Some U.S. and European officials initially suggested Russia had blown up its own pipelines, an interpretation dismissed as idiotic by President Vladimir Putin.

In recent months, U.S. newspapers including The Washington Post, The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal have reported that the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency knew of a Ukrainian plot to attack the pipelines. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has denied Ukraine attacked them.

"If we proceed from the proven complicity of Western countries in blowing up the Nord Streams, then we have no constraints - even moral - left to prevent us from destroying the ocean floor cable communications of our enemies," Medvedev, a former Russian president who is now deputy chairman of Russia's Security Council, said on Telegram.

Sub-sea cables which criss-cross the world's oceans have become the arteries of global communications. Their importance has made them the focus of growing geopolitical competition between China and Russia on the one side and the United States and its Western allies on the other.

The intelligence chief of the NATO military alliance cautioned in May that Russia may sabotage undersea cables to punish the West for supporting Ukraine.

NORD STREAM

Reuters has not corroborated any of the many theories and reports about who attacked the pipelines, or why.

The Kremlin said on Wednesday that it was studying all the information about the attacks.

"We have repeatedly said that what was done on the Nord Streams could only have been carried out by the special services of a state," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said. "Only a country or group of countries can be behind this terrorist attack."

Russia has repeatedly said the West was behind the Nord Stream blasts - particularly the United States and Britain, which both deny involvement.

In a blog post in February, Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative journalist Seymour Hersh cited an unidentified source as saying that U.S. navy divers had destroyed the pipelines with explosives on the orders of President Joe Biden.

The White House dismissed that as "utterly false and complete fiction." The Kremlin said the information deserved to be investigated.

"We still insist that there should be an absolutely transparent and inclusive international investigation," Peskov said. "In order to find those who ordered and perpetrated this international crime."

(Editing by Philippa Fletcher and Mark Trevelyan)
Rust armorer likely was hungover when she loaded the gun used in the fatal movie set shooting, prosecutors say

Rust armorer likely was hungover when she loaded the gun used in the fatal movie set shooting, prosecutors say

The armorer on the set of the movie Rust likely was hungover when she loaded a prop gun used by actor Alec Baldwin that fired a live round of ammunition during a rehearsal, killing cinematographer Halyna Hutchins, prosecutors said in a court filing.

Witnesses told investigators Hannah Gutierrez Reed was drinking heavily and smoking marijuana in the evenings during the shooting of Rust, prosecutors said in the Friday filing.

It is likely that Defendant Gutierrez was hung over when she inserted a live bullet into a gun that she knew was going to be used at some point by an actor while filming a shooting scene with other actors and crew members, prosecutors said in the filing in response to a May motion by Gutierrez Reeds attorneys to dismiss an indictment against her.

Gutierrez Reed will plead not guilty to two counts of involuntary manslaughter in connection with the October 2021 shooting, an attorney for her has said. Director Joel Souza was injured in the shooting on the New Mexico set.

The prosecution has so mishandled this case and the case is so weak that they are now resorting to character assassination tactics to further taint the jury pool, Jason Bowles, an attorney for Gutierrez Reed, said in a statement to CNN about the Friday filing. This investigation and prosecution has not been about seeking Justice; for them its been about finding a convenient scapegoat, Bowles said.

In the motion to dismiss the indictment against Gutierrez Reed, her attorney claims the prosecutorial misconduct in this case began at inception and has infected this prosecution at every turn, citing issues with evidence collection and conflicts of the special prosecutor who stepped down in March, among other concerns.

A final decision on charges against Baldwin would be made before August 8, prosecutors said in the Friday filing.

The gun and broken sear have been sent to the states independent expert for further testing, the prosecutors said. If it is determined that the gun did not malfunction, charges against Mr. Baldwin will proceed. The prosecution anticipates making a final charging decision with regard to Mr. Baldwin within the next sixty days.

CNN has reached out to Baldwins representatives for comment on Fridays filing.

Involuntary manslaughter charges against Baldwin were dismissed in April due to new facts in the case, special prosecutors said, explaining at the time they could not proceed under the current time constraints and on the facts and evidence turned over by law enforcement in its existing form.

But the investigation is active and on-going, Kari Morrissey and Jason Lewis noted, adding, This decision does not absolve Mr. Baldwin of criminal culpability and charges may be refiled.

We are pleased with the decision to dismiss the case against Alec Baldwin and encourage a proper investigation into the facts and circumstances of this tragic accident, Baldwins attorneys Luke Nikas and Alex Spiro told CNN at the time.

We fully expect at the end of this process that Hannah will also be exonerated, attorneys for Gutierrez Reed said in a statement to CNN after Baldwins charges were dropped.

"Rust" is filmed on October 23, 2021, at the Bonanza Creek Ranch in Santa Fe, New Mexico. - Jae C. Hong/AP

Wrongful death lawsuit settled

In an interview with CNNs Chloe Melas in August, Baldwin placed responsibility for the shooting on Gutierrez Reed and assistant director Dave Halls, who Baldwin accused of not checking the gun before handing it to the actor. Through their respective attorneys, both Gutierrez Reed and Halls accused Baldwin of deflecting blame onto others.

Someone put a live bullet in the gun who should have known better, Baldwin said. That was (Gutierrez Reeds) job. Her job was to look at the ammunition and put in the dummy round or the blank round, and there wasnt supposed to be any live rounds on the set.

There are two people who didnt do what they were supposed to do, he added.

Halls has signed a plea agreement for the charge of negligent use of a deadly weapon. His attorney said in August that Baldwin was using him as a scapegoat by shifting blame away from himself.

A district court judge in New Mexico this month approved a settlement agreement in a wrongful-death lawsuit filed by Hutchins family.

The suit, filed against Baldwin  who also served as a producer on the movie  the films production companies, its other producers and key members of the crew alleged numerous industry standard violations.

Financial details of the settlement have not been made public. It set up structured annuities that will provide payments to Hutchins minor child when he reaches the ages of 18 and 22, the court order states.

As part of the agreement, the movie was to be completed with Hutchins widower, Matthew Hutchins, serving as an executive producer, according to an October statement from him. Rust resumed filming in Montana in April, CNN previously reported.

CNNs Chloe Melas, Josh Campbell and Kevin Flower contributed to this report.

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Ryan Walters Is Embracing The Culture Wars, But Even Some Republicans Think He Has Gone Too Far

Ryan Walters, the Oklahoma state superintendent, has taken to attacking teachers as he fights culture wars in public schools.

Ryan Walters, the Oklahoma state superintendent, has taken to attacking teachers as he fights culture wars in public schools.

It was not particularly surprising that Ryan Walters declared Oklahoma schools wouldnt go woke under his leadership as he campaigned for a role that would give him power over the public school system. Many conservatives have championed so-called parental rights and claim they must protect kids from learning about such topics, like race and gender.

But since winning the election and taking over as state superintendent for public instruction, his plan for enacting his agenda  attacking teachers and claiming that theyre the linchpin of the indoctrination going on in schools  has rattled many people, including Republicans in his state.

The Oklahoma state superintendent is the head of the states Department of Education, oversees the school system, and is influential in the implementation of policies that dictates how the schools operate.

Walters used to be a teacher himself. He taught high school history before Gov. Kevin Stitt (R) appointed him to be the Oklahoma secretary of education in 2020. He stayed in that role until April, overseeing state boards of education and advising the governor on education policy, including during his first few months as superintendent.

Since being sworn in, Walters has made several appearances on Fox News, calling Oklahoma teachers Marxist over their support for pay equity and decisions they make about what books to have in their classrooms, and arguing that parents will be in charge of our educational system, not these woke teachers unions. He has compared teachers to terrorists and has told employees at the Oklahoma State Department of Education (OSDE) that they will be fired if they leak to the media.

A handful of Republicans have accused Walters of being preoccupied with fighting culture wars rather than working on actual policies and budgeting  things that could improve education in Oklahoma, a state that came in 49th in the national rankings (the most recent ranking available), according to a 2021 EdWeek report. Some rural schools in the state have adopted a four-day school week to save money. Lawmakers have recently approved a pay raise, but the education system is still facing a teacher shortage.

I would have thought he and I would have agreed on 80% of things. ... His ego has gotten in the way of who he really is, said Republican state Rep. Mark McBride, the chair of the education subcommittee in the Oklahoma House.

I dont have the luxury of fighting the culture wars, McBride said. I need to do my job. Im focused on funding, on money.

Similarly, Republican state Sen. DeWayne Pemberton told the Enid News & Eagle in March that he thought Walters was too focused on cultural issues and that everything he comes out with is divisive.

Id like to see him settle down and actually start talking about reading and writing and arithmetic and how to bring up test scores and how we can make things better for teachers, Pemberton said.

Since Walters took office and began overseeing the OSDE, the department has lost several employees, including those who were in charge of applying for federal education grants from the U.S. Department of Education. At an Oklahoma House education subcommittee meeting in May, McBride said he was concerned that the agency had left money for low-income families on the table and that some schools could lose funding. When he asked Walters if his department had applied for the grants, Walters denied that his office failed to apply for grants and blamed his predecessor for problems his agency is facing. (The status of the federal grants remains unclear.)

He also quickly pivoted to attacking teachers.

I dont negotiate with folks who would sabotage our kids, Walters said. Thats a terrorist organization in my book.

This is the kind of rhetoric that McBride says goes too far. I have aunts, sisters, and so many family members who are teachers, he said. Hes calling my family terrorists and that bothers me.

The Oklahoma Education Association  the teachers union  pushed back on his incendiary rhetoric.

In less radical times, the State Superintendent of Public Instruction calling the educators who serve in our public school classrooms terrorists would be shocking, the union said in a statement. However, this inflammatory and demonizing rhetoric continues to escalate in ways that endanger our educators and undermine public education.

Id like to see him settle down and actually start talking about reading and writing and arithmetic and how to bring up test scores and how we can make things better for teachers.GOP state Sen. DeWayne Pemberton

At an OSDE meeting earlier this month, Walters showed attendees a public awareness campaign video that teachers said made them fear for their safety.

The video showed clips of speeches from the national teachers union urging its members to fight for the rights of LGBTQ+ children, as well as shots of pages from Maia Kobabes Gender Queer, a memoir about gender identity that has become a target of conservative ire. Interspersed with these clips were ones that alleged to show teachers defending child sexual abuse  which many teachers saw as a warning that theyd be considered child abusers if they supported LGBTQ+ students.

It literally brought me to tears, a teacher named Jami Cole told a local Fox affiliate about the video. The only message that I saw from that is, Im coming for you teachers, and I felt threatened. I think thats the majority of teachers in that room, we all felt directly threatened.

Hearing that teachers were uncomfortable did not deter Walters. Liberal activist teachers have infiltrated the classroom and prefer to indoctrinate rather than educate our kids, he said in an email to HuffPost. Oklahoma has great teachers who do not impose social justice warrior points on kids.

I dont worry about weak RINOs that compromise our families rather than fight for our constitution, he wrote, using a term referring to Republicans in Name Only. Theyve sold their values for 30 pieces of silver to the radical teacher union. Theyd rather ignore porn in schools than take a stand for our children.

Walters claim that schools have porn is at the center of an ongoing battle about book-banning in the state.

Across the country, GOP officials have promoted the false notion that books with LGBTQ+ characters and themes are actually sexually explicit. Walters is no exception. He has supported bills that would allow for books to be removed from classrooms, as well as a measure passed in 2021 that bars educators from teaching that any race or gender is superior to another. That law specifically bans critical race theory  a college-level academic theory about how racism has shaped public policies  in Oklahoma schools.

At a hearing last month, one Republican told Walters that the superintendent was overly concerned about the threat of CRT in classrooms.

Critical race theory, while I dont like it, its neo-Marxist  its highly technical, state Rep. Marcus McEntire said. Its a literary criticism is what it is. Im worried that your use of CRT, that youre broadening it to what its not.

After months of Walters claiming that school libraries had porn, OSDE passed a rule banning sexually explicit material from schools, without defining what was considered in violation of the rule. In April, Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond said the agency had overstepped by not going through the legislature for rule-making and that the new rules could not go into effect

This is a talking point and I dont think this is happening in Oklahoma, but I dont know if it is, McBride told a local Fox affiliate at the time, referring to schools allowing pornographic materials. Show me. I wanna see it. He formally asked Walters to a House education subcommittee meeting to show McBride the materials he was worried about. Walters has not done so.

Like many districts across the country, Oklahoma schools already have a protocol for challenging books, and parents are allowed to keep their child from accessing certain materials. McBride said he believes in some censorship in schools  but that the policies in place are sufficient and that Walters tactics are unnecessary.

You can have a conversation about books, but you dont need to go on Fox News about it, he said. You dont need to be tweeting, you dont need to call teachers terrorists.

Related...
Good morning and welcome to the A.M. Alert!

CHURCH GROUP LAUNCHES GOFUNDME FOR MIGRANTS FLOWN TO SACRAMENTO

Two weeks after Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis administration flew three dozen Latin American migrants to Sacramento, Sacramento ACT, a collection of Sacramento-area church groups, has launched a GoFundMe to help cover the costs of caring for them.

Sacramento ACT needs your help within the next two weeks to provide these asylum seekers with food, shelter, and medical care. Any donation, no matter the size, will help us ensure they have meals to eat and safe, temporary shelter, according to the GoFundMe page.

Of the 36 migrants who were flown at DeSantis behest and dumped at the local Catholic church, 32 remain in the area, according to Sacramento ACT.

That means 32 people who need short-term housing, food, immigration legal services, medical treatment and more. To that end, the group is looking to raise $500,000 to defray those costs.

We continue to coordinate with our community to help them become stable in the Sacramento area as they carry out their immigration processes, according to the statement.

The group said that the migrants are aware of the media scrutiny of their situation, but that they do not wish to speak publicly at this time.

DeSantis office told The Bee that the migrants consented to be flown to Sacramento. California Gov. Gavin Newsom has called that claim bunk, and vowed has threatened legal charges for the people responsible for flying the migrants.

QUOTE OF THE DAY

What with the Nuru scandal in SF, the indictment cascade in LA, former Anaheim mayor getting charged...cant help thinking its been a while since a #CALeg person was indicted.

- Politico California reporter Jeremy B. White, via Twitter.

Best of The Bee:
Hype over China-related topics 'taking the same page' from Washington's playbook

09:32, June 14, 2023 By Chen Qingqing ( Global Times

Washington continued hyping China-related topics ahead of a reported trip by the US Secretary of State Antony Blinken to China as the Biden administration said it has "taken diplomatic steps" that slowed China's intelligence presence overseas following its recent hype over an alleged "Cuba spy base." The latest US move was criticized by China on Tuesday as "taking the same page" of the US' playbook.

Chinese experts also warned that the senior US official may use this trip and some topics of concern as a bargaining chip while continuing to hype the so-called China threat. Considering the recent words and deeds emanating from the US side, the trip, if it happens, would be ill-intentioned, some experts said. They said they believe there is a strong opposition force within Washington against the possible improvement of US-China relations, as any positive signs could make the Biden administration appear to be too soft.

The Biden administration has taken "diplomatic steps" that have slowed down a Chinese effort to "project military power" around the world, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Monday, as the Reuters reported.

Washington's top diplomat was asked at a press conference about Washington's response to a Wall Street Journal report last week that cited US officials as saying a new "spying effort" was underway on Cuba, according to the media report.

China has already refuted the US' groundless accusations that China uses a secret base in Cuba to spy on the US. And some Chinese experts warned that the US' groundless accusations could become another "spy balloon incident" that may once again drag on Washington's plan to reengage with China.

"I've stated China's position on similar questions several times. The US has been taking the same page from its playbook and people are already quite familiar with it," Wang Wenbin, spokesperson of the Chinese Foreign Ministry, told a routine press conference on Tuesday.

We hope the US will take a hard look at itself, stop propagating rumors and smears, and stop being a champion of hacking with its indiscriminate surveillance on other countries, Wang said.

Despite both the National Security Council spokesperson and Pentagon press official had said that reports about the so-called spy base in Cuba are inaccurate, senior US officials, congressmen and media continue to fuel the speculation, showing their malicious intent, Ma Hui, Chinese Ambassador to Cuba, told the Global Times on late Tuesday.

The US claim that China is committed to expanding its military presence globally is a complete misrepresentation, Ma said.

In the eyes of Chinese experts, there has been a growing contradiction between the US' actions and the continual signals it sends indicating a desire for engagement with China, which only fuels more doubts about the US' sincerity and its true intention.

"Blinken may include some of topics of concern in the visit and use it to continue hyping the 'threat of China,' this indicates the visit would be ill-intentioned," Li Haidong, a professor at the China Foreign Affairs University, told the Global Times on Tuesday.

Whether the trip could be realized or not, it won't slow down the US containment against China, and although Washington claimed to have tried to seek communication with China, its true intention is smearing and suppressing China, Li said.

On Monday, the US Commerce Department announced to put 43 entities into its so-called Entity List, including 31 Chinese entities as it restricted exports to entities that it says recruited Western pilots to train Chinese military personnel and help develop hypersonic weapons.

The Chinese Foreign Ministry slammed the US act on Tuesday, saying that the US abused state power to go after Chinese companies, trampled on international trade order and global trade rules and destabilized global industrial and supply chains hysterically by all kinds of means.

Besides targeting the Chinese companies, the US continued hyping the Taiwan question, as some US media reported on Monday that the US government is preparing "evacuation plans" for American citizens living in Taiwan due to concerns over the escalation of the situation in the Taiwan Straits.

Before the US started its recent push to engage with China, there have been "some little tricks," making others doubt its credibility, and they are likely to leverage those topics as bargaining chips in talks with China, Diao Daming, an associate professor at the Renmin University of China in Beijing, told the Global Times on Tuesday.

The US should cherish a possible positive trend for the US-China engagement and not waste any goodwill to stabilize bilateral relations, Diao said.

(Web editor: Zhong Wenxing, Liang Jun)
The Sacramento City Council Tuesday approved a new city budget, rejecting a proposal from three members who wanted to redirect $6 million from the police budget toward homeless response.

The $1.5 billion budget, which the council approved 6-3, includes an all-time-high $228 million for the police department, including 769 sworn positions  $3.5 million higher than last year. The Department of Community Response (DCR), which provides a non-police response to noncriminal homeless 311 calls, has a budget of about $25 million, including 37 employees.

Councilwoman Caity Maple Tuesday proposed the council shift about $6 million from the police budget to DCR so the department can provide real-time response. Currently, the department is only staffed Monday through Friday, and not overnight.

I dont think theres any doubt the human and public health crisis of unsheltered homelessness is the most important issue facing our city, Maple, who represents Oak Park and parts of south Sacramento, said during the meeting. I believe if we polled our residents, many would agree a real time response to this crisis is needed.

Council members Katie Valenzuela and Mai Vang agreed.

This to me is a moment of vision, Valenzuela said during the meeting. Its scary to say were going to do something different. But we have been talking about this since the summer of 2020  $6 million is not gonna break PDs budget.

Ultimately the motion failed 6-3. Mayor Darrell Steinberg, who led the creation of DCR, said he supports the idea but Maple presented it too late in the monthslong budget process and he needed more data.

Be on notice here you do have a new council, Steinberg said during the meeting. Theyre not afraid to put forward their provocative ideas.

Steinberg created DCR in response to the Minneapolis George Floyd police killing and the racial reckoning that followed in the summer of 2020. At the time he said the city would over time shift at least $10 million from the police department to DCR, but that has not happened. DCR was also supposed to respond to all noncriminal 911 calls, but has just responded to homeless 311 calls, sometimes days later than they came in. They also move people into the citys 1,100 shelter beds, but all are typically full.

The approved budget cuts 25 vacant police positions. Maples motion would have cut more. City Manager Howard Chan said that would have negatively impacted calls for service because the department uses that money for overtime, which often tops $10 million.

Currently, the average 911 police response time citywide is about nine and a half minutes, Police Chief Kathy Lester said.

We are woefully understaffed, said Lester, making the case to the council not to cut the budget.

The police had a very delayed response on a recent night when a Grant High School student was fatally shot the same night as 11 people were injured in a Northgate crash, Lester said.

The department plans to cancel contracts with Kaiser, Sutter and Regional Transit to move those officers back into patrol, but the department still needs more officers, Lester said.

Tuesdays meeting showed what could be a budding alliance between the councils most liberal members, Maple, Vang and Valenzuela. When the new council was sworn in in December, including Maple, Vang said it was going to take progressive actions.

But then at one of her first meetings, Maple voted in favor of the police department receiving a grant so it could receive a piece of military equipment called a Rook. Valenzuela criticized her for it in an opinion piece in The Sacramento Bee, and it was unclear what their relationship would be like.

Vang, Valenzuela and Maple all have pledged not to accept campaign donations from the city police union.

The city spends about $42 million on homelessness per year, mostly from outside contracts to run its 1,100 shelter beds, Chan said.

The new budget will take effect for the fiscal year that starts July 1.
County Commissioner Bob Vidricksen II listens to a proposal at an April meeting. This week, the Commission proclaimed June as Elder Abuse Awareness Month.

Saline County is doing its part in bringing awareness to an issue that the National Council on Aging has described as a quiet epidemic.

The board of commissioners, alongside the Domestic Violence Association of Central Kansas (known as DVACK), proclaimed June as Elder Abuse Awareness Month. A signed proclamation was presented to DVACK and the commissioners heard about what events are planned for the month ahead.

"We appreciate DVACK, you, and everyone associated with your agency," Commissioner Bob Vidricksen said to presenter Brandi Bohm Tuesday. "Thank you for all the hard work you do."

Key points from the proclamation

According to the National Council on Aging, one in 10 seniors in America experience mistreatment or abuse, including domestic and sexual violence, financial exploitation and neglect.

Only a limited number of victims are able to get the help they need due to shame, fear and other barriers elders face in reporting abuse. Elders throughout the U.S. lose an estimated $2.6 billion or more annually due to elder financial abuse and exploitation.

The proclamation notes that elder abuse threatens the livelihood of other individuals and increases elder's risk of death by 300% compared to seniors who have not been mistreated.

"Saline County's vulnerable and older adults of all social, economic, racial and ethnic backgrounds may be targets of abuse, neglect or exploitation, which can occur in families, long-term care communities, and medical settings," the proclamation reads. "...we all have the responsibility to support the safety, welfare and dignity of vulnerable and older adults."

What's planned during this month of observance?

Beyond just the month of June, DVACK and other local entities will work to assist victims by providing support services and connecting older adults with the resources they may need.

DVACK has an ongoing goal of creating more resources for older adults in need, creating effective intervention and prevention policies, and discussing the issue with family members and peers to promote awareness and prevention of elder abuse.

Last week was Red Flag Week at the Senior Center, where DVACK provided information about what to look for in elder abuse.

On June 15, there will be cupcakes and a Q&A with Brandy Bohm, domestic violence and elder abuse program manager. On June 21, there will be a game day at the Senior Center, and on June 26, a night of crosswords will be hosted at the Senior Center.

If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic violence or elder abuse, local resources are available at the Domestic Violence Association of Central Kansas, www.dvack.org, 785-827-5862.

Kendrick Calfee has been a reporter with the Salina Journal since 2022, primarily covering county government and education. You can reach him at kcalfee@gannett.com or on Twitter @calfee_kc.

This article originally appeared on Salina Journal: Saline County recognizes June as Elder Abuse Awareness Month
(Bloomberg) -- Sam Bankman-Fried won a Bahamian court order temporarily blocking that nations government from consenting to charges that were added to his US indictment after the FTX co-founders December extradition to New York.

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Bankman-Fried has argued in Manhattan federal court that bribery, campaign finance and other counts added in March and February must be dismissed because they were not included in his agreement to return from the Bahamas to face US charges. New York federal prosecutors have said they can proceed with the new charges with the Bahamian attorney generals consent, but Bankman-Fried moved to block that with a separate action filed there.

Bahamian Justice Loren Klein on Tuesday ruled in Bankman-Frieds favor, saying he was entitled to be heard in a court proceeding on whether the attorney general should consent to the new US charges. Denying him that would be procedurally unfair, the judge said.

Its unclear how the Bahamas decision will affect the US prosecution, which is set to go to trial in October. Bankman-Fried, who is free on a $250 million bond, wont be required to attend any Bahamas hearing in person, but the new proceeding raises the prospect of delay to his US case.

The Manhattan US attorneys office, which is prosecuting Bankman-Fried, didnt immediately respond to a request for comment. In an earlier response to Bankman-Frieds argument in the US court, the government said it would drop the additional charges if the Bahamas didnt give consent.

A spokesman for Bankman-Fried declined to comment.

Read More: Sam Bankman-Fried Charged With Bribing Chinese Officials

Prior to his extradition, Bankman-Fried was charged in an indictment accusing him of orchestrating a yearslong fraud at FTX. Federal prosecutors in Manhattan added more counts in two superseding indictments, most recently charging him with paying Chinese officials $40 million in bribes to unfreeze accounts at Alameda Research, FTXs affiliated hedge fund. He currently faces 13 counts.

Bankman-Fried, who ran his crypto empire from Nassau, contends he can only be tried on those charges to which he agreed to be extradited. His lawyers are set to make that argument on Thursday in a hearing before US District Judge Lewis Kaplan in Manhattan.

Bankman-Fried made his filing in the Bahamian court on June 7, a day after the attorney general asserted in an email that the issue would be resolved between the two governments.

The case is US v. Bankman-Fried, 22-cr-673, US District Court, Southern District of New York (Manhattan).

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A Galaxy Watch 5 alongside a phone reading "steps."



The Galaxy Watch 5's Samsung Health app already tracks heartbeat, steps, and calories.

Samsungs Galaxy Watch will soon ask users to check if something more than newfound love is sending their heart a-fluttering. The watch is joining other wearables from the likes of Google and Apple that let users track if they experience any periods of irregular heart rhythm.

On Wednesday, Samsung announced that soon, the UI 5 Galaxy Watch update will include new heart monitoring features to tell if users are in atrial fibrillation, otherwise known as AFib. Samsung told Gizmodo the new feature will come packed into the built-in Health Monitor app and should be available sometime this summer, though there isnt an official release date.

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The upcoming One UI 5 Watch OS update will combine with existing electrocardiogram monitoring to monitor for AFib. While the phone is active, the app will analyze pulse rate data. If it detects any irregular heart rhythm, the watch will send users a notification to take an ECG test by placing their finger on the top outside button. According to Samsung, the app wont notify users for every episode of slightly irregular heart rhythm. The app will opportunistically record pulse rate data when users arent active.

What should show up when the Galaxy Watch detects AFib.

Googles fitness-centric Fitbit devices introduced similar heart monitoring technology last year. Googles system claims to use the existing ECG monitoring and an algorithm-based approach to assess heart rhythms while users are asleep or still. Apple Watches also check for irregular rhythms and notify users about potential periods of AFib and log their AFib history.

AFib is described as an irregular, often overly-rapid heart rhythm that can potentially lead to blood clots. These clots can potentially lead to a stroke or heart failure, though the issue is how often they appear. Any scan of a predetermined length could miss these random periods of arrhythmia, making a continuously worn device like a smart watch an ideal monitor.

The feature is specifically designed for users 22 years or older, and its also also not intended for those who regularly deal with arrhythmias that arent necessarily AFib. Like Google has previously mentioned with its Fitbit watches, Samsung also warned users that the ECG app isnt an actual method of diagnosing any real medical issue. Instead, the company described the feature as for general wellness and fitness purposes only. In that way, you really shouldnt take any info from the app as a sure sign of any medical distress and instead contact a real medical professional or use an actual device meant to continuously monitor for irregular heart activity.

Samsung announced it received FDA clearance for its new heart rhythm notifications back in May. The feature was likewise recently approved by regulators in the companys home country of South Korea. Samsung said heart monitoring will be available in 11 other markets outside the U.S. and Korea, including Australia, Canada, Hong Kong, most of Western Europe, as well as several countries in Central and South America. The full list of available countries is available on Samsungs announcement page.

Like its competition in wearables, Samsung has been promoting its health features with a long-sought Peloton integration alongside it finally implementing its temperature sensor on the Galaxy Watch 5.

Want more of Gizmodos consumer electronics picks? Check out our guides to the best phones, best laptops, best cameras, best televisions, best printers, and best tablets. If you want to learn about the next big thing, see our guide to everything we know about the iPhone 15. Click here to save on the best deals of the day, courtesy of our friends at The Inventory.

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Sarah Palin Defines What A Cult Is And Twitter Users Point Out The Obvious

Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin (R) attempted to defend Donald Trump supporters against accusations of cultlike behavior, but it didnt go over as well as she probably expected.

During a Wednesday appearance on Newsmax, Palin was asked about a recent Hillary Clinton interview on Pod Save America where the former presidential nominee said the Republican reaction to Trumps recent indictment is a sign that the GOP is more of a cult than a political party at this point.

Palin attempted to defend the MAGA faithful against Clintons cult claim by noting that the definition of a cult is a group of people who are excessively supporting one another and a cause  all about conformity and compliance and intolerance of anyone who doesnt agree with what their mission is.

Sarah Palin asked if Trump supporters are cult members: No. The definition of a cult is a group of people who are excessively supporting one another and a cause, all about conformity and compliance, and intolerance of anyone who doesnt agree with what their mission is. pic.twitter.com/9oQPlwcSlD  The Recount (@therecount) June 14, 2023

Considering the lengths that Republicans have gone to defend the former president from any kind of accountability, Twitter users thought Palins definition of a cult was MAGA-accurate.

Thats a whole lotta unecessary extra syllables for Yes https://t.co/7RgHjburdb  Dreamweasel (@Dreamweasel) June 14, 2023

Sarah Palin defines what a cult is, and ends up describing exactly who MAGA Trump supporters are. (Video: Newsmax) pic.twitter.com/EKtYTfLfHD  Mike Sington (@MikeSington) June 14, 2023

It's a cult. Don't take my word for it, just ask Sarah Palin, (yes, that Sarah Palin). https://t.co/vBkc6wHUoi  Boulder_Tim (@Boulder_Tim) June 14, 2023

She's *so close* to getting it. You can literally hear the gears working overtime in her head. https://t.co/bX1ylGvZ41  The Lincoln Project (@ProjectLincoln) June 14, 2023

Hahahahahahaha omg. I am..speechless.



A++++++ for lack of self awareness https://t.co/6luexM2twB  Spiros Ghost (@AntiToxicPeople) June 14, 2023

Tell me you're in a cult without knowing you're in a cult. https://t.co/dmNdMKnxn4  Melissa (@Proudmimi12) June 14, 2023

Palin isnt the only Republican getting grilled on the cult question.

South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham denied he was in a Trump-worshipping cult on Tuesday, only to inadvertently suggest he may be a member a day later by declaring that if Trump were indicted for his role in the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection, the GOP would consider it a major outrage.

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By Steve Gorman

(Reuters) - High concentrations of phosphorus, an essential element for all biological processes on Earth, have been detected in ice crystals spewed from the interior ocean of Saturn's moon Enceladus, adding to its potential to harbor life, researchers reported on Wednesday.

The discovery was based on data collected by NASA's Cassini spacecraft, the first to orbit Saturn, during its 13-year landmark exploration of the gaseous giant planet, its rings and its moons from 2004 to 2017.

The findings were published by a German-led international team of scientists in the journal Nature and announced by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) outside of Los Angeles, which designed and built the Cassini probe.

The same team previously confirmed that Enceladus' ice grains contain a rich assortment of minerals and complex organic compounds, including the ingredients for amino acids, associated with life as scientists know it.

But phosphorus, the least abundant of six chemical elements considered necessary to all living things - the others are carbon, oxygen, hydrogen, nitrogen and sulphur - was still missing from the equation until now.

"It's the first time this essential element has been discovered in an ocean beyond Earth," the study's lead author, Frank Postberg, a planetary scientist at the Free University in Berlin, said in a JPL press release.

Phosphorus is fundamental to the structure of DNA and a vital part of cell membranes and energy-carrying molecules existing in all forms of life on Earth.

The latest study stems from measurements taken by Cassini as it flew through salt-rich ice grains ejected into space from geysers erupting from the subsurface ocean beneath Enceladus' frozen crust at its south pole.

The spacecraft gathered its data during passes through a plume of ice crystals itself, and through the same material that feeds Saturn's faint "E" ring with icy particles outside the planet's brighter main rings.

The interior ocean discovered by Cassini has made Enceladus - about one-seventh the size of Earth's moon and the sixth largest among Saturn's 146 known natural satellites - a prime candidate in the search for places in our solar system beyond Earth that are habitable, if only to microbes.

Another is Jupiter's larger moon Europa, which also is believed to harbor a global ocean of liquid water beneath its icy surface.

One notable aspect of the latest Enceladus discovery was geochemical modeling by the study's co-authors in Europe and Japan showing that phosphorus exists in concentrations at least 100 times that of Earth's oceans, bound water-soluble forms of phosphate compounds.

"This key ingredient could be abundant enough to potentially support life in Enceladus' ocean," said co-investigator Christopher Glein, a planetary scientist at Southwest Research Institute in San Antonio, Texas. "This is a stunning discovery for astrobiology."

Still, scientists stressed that the presence of phosphorus, complex organic compounds, water and other fundamental building blocks of life are evidence only that a place such as Enceladus is potentially habitable, not that is inhabited. Life, either past or present, has not been confirmed anywhere beyond Earth.

"Whether life could have originated in Enceladus' ocean remains an open question," Glein said.

(Reporting by Steve Gorman in Los Angeles; Editing by Lisa Shumaker)
After Saudi Arabia, Iran may be patching up with its oldest Arab foe

It was perhaps the first royal wedding of its stature to have been filmed in the Middle East.

The year was 1939, when Princess Fawzia of Egypt tied the knot with Irans Crown Prince Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, interlocking the royal households of two of the Middle Easts most prominent nations in a strategic alliance.

Thousands of people had gathered for the event at Cairos Abdine Palace, where the wedding was marked with fireworks and a parade showcasing the two nations civilizations.

Princess Fawzia was the eldest sister of King Farouk I  Egypts last monarch  and was just 17 years old when she married Pahlavi, who two years later ascended to the throne and became Shah of Iran. Fawzia filed for divorce in 1945, and the divorce was recognized by Tehran in 1948.

Forty years after the wedding, Pahlavi was overthrown in an Islamic revolution that changed the course of Iranian relations with Arab states, and sent Iranian-Egyptian ties in particular on a downward spiral from which the two nations have never emerged.

The feud became the longest between Iran and an Arab country in modern times. But it may soon be coming to an end.

Irans Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei last week publicly endorsed normalizing ties with Egypt, the most populous Arab country, saying that Iran welcomes Egypts interest in restoring relations.

We have no problem in this regard, he tweeted.

Media reports have touted a potential detente between the two countries after Omans Sultan Haitham Bin Tariq visited both last month in what was seen as an attempt to broker a reconciliation.

Khameneis recent comments come as Saudi Arabia normalizes ties with Iran after nearly eight years of a diplomatic freeze. Iran reopened its embassy and consulate in Saudi Arabia last week.

Iran is always looking for more cooperation in the wider Arab region, and normalization with Egypt, traditionally allied with the United States, would be something of a prize for Tehran, HA Hellyer, a scholar at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in London, told CNN.

A prize for Tehran

Even if not accurate, the narrative would be that Tehran is strengthening its own position at the expense of the United States, he said, noting that for Egypt, interest isnt as high on the agenda as Tehran doesnt really provide much to Cairo.

The wider region has been witnessing a series of rapprochements between states that were once at odds with one another. Apart from Saudi Arabia and Iran, Egypt has reconciled with both Turkey and Qatar, and the Arab League last month welcomed Syria back as a member after more than a decade of isolation.

Having failed to normalize ties with the West, Iran considers stronger ties with other countries in the Middle East as an alternative now, said Trita Parsi, vice-president of the Quincy Institute think tank in Washington, DC.

The region is also discovering its own agency and its own diplomacy, Parsi told CNN. We are facing a new moment in which a new configuration is going take place in the region, and suddenly it is in everyones interest to maximize their maneuverability before the new order in the region is set.

Much of this, added Parsi, is driven by the regional belief that the role of the US in the region, and in turn its protection of it, is waning.

Egypt's President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi shakes hands with Oman's Sultan Haitham bin Tariq in Cairo on May 21. - Oman News Agency/Reuters

Analysts say that while this round of normalization with Egypt is unlikely to be a difficult one, it may still come with complications as the two states share a unique history pitted with unsavory memories.

On paper, perhaps this should be an easier one because the countries are not actually in a direct conflict in the same way that Saudi Arabia and Iran were, Parsi said. They are on the opposite sides of different issues, but thats different.

While ties between Egypt and Iran witnessed some tensions before the 1979 Islamic Revolution, they took an abrupt turn with Tehrans new clerical rule.

Gamal Abdel Nasser, who suffered a crushing defeat in 1967 at Israels hands, was at odds with an Iranian Shah who was friendly with the Jewish state. Ties between Cairo and Tehran however improved after Nassers death as President Anwar Sadat sought to reach out to the Shah.

But Pahlavi, having ruled Iran since 1941, was toppled in the Islamic Revolution soon after, and it was Sadats Egypt that gave him refuge, infuriating the new clerical rulers in Tehran.

The Shah lived in Cairo until his death in 1980 at the age of 60. He was buried next to the Cairo Citadel, at Al-RifaI mosque where King Farouk is also buried, and a shrine was built for him.

Sadat was assassinated one year later by an Egyptian army officer named Khaled Islambouli, who opposed the presidents signing of a landmark normalization treaty with Israel in 1979. Irans Islamic Republic named a street in the capital after the assassin.

Weight of historical symbolism

As the years passed by, Egypt and Iran only grew apart, with little desire to reconcile from either party.

Ties partially improved under former President Hosni Mubarak, when charge daffaires were exchanged, but relations never reached the ambassadorial level. And in 2004, Tehrans Islambouli street was changed to Intifada, referring to a Palestinian uprising against Israel.

Attempts at normalization failed. There were brief hopes of a reconciliation when the 2011 Arab Spring uprisings led to the ouster of Mubarak and gave rise to a Muslim Brotherhood-led government that indicated a desire to mend ties with Iran.

Islamist President Mohamed Mursi even traveled to Tehran in 2012 to attend a Non-Aligned Movement summit. Ater a year in power, he was toppled in a coup led by incumbent President Abdel Fattah al-Sissi.

The history of it is filled with symbolism that carries a lot of political weight, Parsi said, noting that these symbolic differences in the past prevented the rather careful attempts at normalization that took place.

Opposing interests proved too strong, Parsi said, and normalization never took place. But today, he said, the value of normalization is greater, and the cost of not normalizing, because of these regional shifts, is also much higher.

One regional state whose interests an Egypt-Iran reconciliation wont serve is Israel.

Israel is unlikely to see any normalization with Iran as positive, Parsi said, as it only helps Iran extract itself from the isolation imposed on it by the West and its allies that has been championed by Israel.

Israel wants an isolated and contained Iran, he said, adding that the detentes taking place today with Iran are particularly problematic because they pop the balloon of the Abraham Accords.

The Abraham Accords are a series of normalization deals between Israel and Arab nations, signed in 2020, which Israel hopes will lead to its full integration in the region. Most Arab states continue to reject recognition of Israel.

Ultimately however, an Egyptian-Iranian detente could have little impact beyond symbolism.

The absence of Iranian-Egyptian normalization didnt mean all that much, and the presence of it, I suspect, wont either, said Hellyer.

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The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) has pressed charges against Alexandr Dugin, a Russian ultranationalist ideologue and the leader of the Eurasian Movement, SBU announced on June 14.

Dugin is considered suspect under the articles of genocide and encroachment on the territorial integrity of Ukraine.

"(Alexandr Dugin) is one of the key ideologues of the aggressive policy of the Russian Federation and the genocide of the Ukrainian people," SBU wrote.

"In his numerous speeches and printed publications, he has been denied Ukraine's existence as a sovereign country for over 10 years and has called for its capture by Russian forces."

The Security Service noted that Dugin was one of the first Russian public figures to publicly support the occupation of Ukraine and justify war crimes committed on its territory since the start of the full-scale invasion.

As the suspect resides in Russia, the SBU is "conducting comprehensive measures to bring him to justice."

New media law: Tool to fight Russian propaganda or censorship attempt? Ukraines new media law, signed by President Volodymyr Zelensky in December, has triggered a major controversy. The law expands the powers of the media regulator, the National Council for Television and Radio. Specifically, it gives it the authority to block some media outlets without a court rulin The Kyiv IndependentOleg Sukhov

Dugin espouses imperialist, ultraconservative, and anti-liberal ideas and promotes the restoration of Russia's imperial holdings through military means.

In his 1997 book Foundations of Geopolitics, he wrote that "Ukraine as a state has no geopolitical meaning, no particular cultural import or universal significance, no geographic uniqueness, no ethnic exclusiveness."

Although he has been nicknamed "Putin's brain," his actual influence over Russia's dictator remains disputed.

Dugin has been sanctioned by Ukraine and several of its allies, including the U.S., Canada, the EU, and Japan.

The ideologue's daughter, Russian propagandist Daria Dugina, was killed in a car bomb explosion on Aug. 20, 2022.
SC residents can win prizes plishing this summer. Heres what that is and what you could win

Have you ever heard of plishing?

It might just become your new favorite hobby.

If the term alone has piqued your interest, the South Carolina Wildlife Federation has begun its summer plishing challenge.

Plishing is a term coined from the Swedish phrase plocka upp, which means to pick up, combined with fishing, according to a recent SCWF release.

The plishing challenge is designed to help South Carolina residents engage with the age-old hobby and lifestyle of fishing, and combine it with a way to help keep local waterways clean from trash and litter.

This new practice lets anglers help reduce litter in the environment and catch fish at the same time. The program also acts as a great way for your family to spend time together outdoors, make memories, engage children with a summer activity and to get excited about and win prizes.

A submitted photograph by the South Carolina Wildlife Federation depicting the family-friendly plishing challenge that allows participants of all ages to spend time outdoors and help the environment in this interactive conservation effort.

This years challenge began on June 1 but will continue until August 31 and is available to all ages.

After joining this conservation initiative, participants will have the ability to log any fish caught during the challenges time frame in addition to any litter that was picked up and properly disposed of in any South Carolina waterway.

Each fish caught, fish released and bag of litter collected throughout this summers plishing challenge will give anglers the opportunity to win prizes, the release states.

A submitted photograph by the South Carolina Wildlife Federation depicting the family-friendly plishing challenge that allows participants of all ages to spend time outdoors and help the environment in this interactive conservation effort.

To make logging your progress as easy as possible, participants do not have to weigh or measure any of the fish they catch. The only proof needed is to take a picture or video of each and upload it into the required app.

Each month, there will be a different sponsor offering prizes, which may include gift cards, apparel and more fishing gear.

To register for this summers plishing challenge, SCWF recommends you follow the steps below.

Download the free FishDonkey app on your mobile device. Participants may do so on Google Play, Apple App Store or log in on their PC with a Google Chrome Browser. Create an account Select Fish in a Tournament Search for SCWF Plishing Challenge Click the join now button

If you register soon, the first 250 registrations will be free of charge, thanks to the courtesy of Palmetto State Armory.

Leaderboards through FishDonkey will update regularly throughout the contest so individuals will have the chance to check the app to follow the tournament progress.

At the programs end, there will be a winner for fish, an overall winner for litter collection and a randomly selected winner. Each prizewinner will receive a $500 gift card to Palmetto State Armory.

A photograph of the South Carolina Wildlife Federations overall plishing challenge points leader in 2022.

For helpful information on where to fish and what to use, follow SCWF on social media platforms Instagram and Facebook with an additional SCWF Plishing Challenge Facebook Group.
Semaglutide, the diabetes medication that's skyrocketed in popularity after it turned out to be a strikingly effective weight loss drug, has its drawbacks  and, per one of the researchers who discovered its underlying mechanism, they can be life-altering.

In interviews with Wired, scientists who pioneered research into glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1), the hormone mimicked by semaglutide  sold as Ozempic, Wegovy, and Rybelsus  reflected on the explosive attention on the drug this year. It's a must-read overall, but particularly interesting was the perspective of Jens Juul Holst, a Danish biomedical researcher who worked on the initial delivery method of GLP-1 imitators, who told the magazine that the drug's effects can be more profound than potential patients might realize.

"What happens is that you lose your appetite and also the pleasure of eating, and so I think theres a price to be paid when you do that," said Holst, who teaches at the University of Copenhagen. "If you like food, then that pleasure is gone. The craving for food for some people is taken away when they take GLP-1 drugs."

For some people, he pointed out, that's going to be a very big deal  potentially cutting out one of the greatest pleasures in life.

"Once youve been on this for a year or two," Holst said, "life is so miserably boring that you cant stand it any longer and you have to go back to your old life."

It's not exactly a ringing endorsement of the drug, and as the Danish doctor notes, keeping people on GLP-1 medications have been an issue since they first hit the market nearly 20 years ago.

"GLP-1s have been on the market since 2005," Holst said. "Do people stay on them? No, they dont."

Anyone paying attention to pop medicine will have noticed that semaglutide-based drugs have become uber-popular, with memes, drama, and celebrity endorsements abounding.

The actual science, in contrast, is still playing catch-up. The most basic question  whether the drug leads to positive health outcomes in addition, rather than simply weight loss  is still somewhat hazy, although early signs are promising, with patients showing improved blood pressure, blood glucose, cholesterol, and various other key health markers.

The real gauntlet will be whether those results hold up in a wider population, in the real world, and for longer than a few years. There's also the possibility that we'll find that spending too long on the drug comes with unforeseen health risks; after all, it's only been on the market since 2005, and has only been used for weight loss for a fraction of that period (some animal research has linked semaglutide with cancers, but the connection is hazy and hasn't been demonstrated in human patients).

At the end of the day, all new weight loss drugs are going to fall under the long shadow of previous attempts, which have often been removed from the market after it was discovered that they caused huge health problems instead of making patients healthier.

Will semaglutide and similar drugs be the exception? It's certainly possible. But it's interesting to see one of its creators urging caution  even if the objection is less medical and more sociological.

"I dont see that a huge part of the population will be put on Wegovy and will stay on Wegovy for the rest of their lives," he said. "I simply dont see that picture."

More on off-label drug use: Doctors Say a Random Cheap Pill May Actually Reverse Balding
Judge clarifies property damage still illegal in Seattle; graffiti will not be prosecuted

The City of Seattle will be halting its enforcement of property crimes related to graffiti, after a ruling from a U.S. District Court judge Wednesday which described the citys property destruction laws as too vague.

According to an injunction from U.S. District Court Judge Marsha Pechman, the City of Seattles property destruction ordinance targets speech, and poses a real threat to censorship, particularly as it relates to graffiti.

The Seattle City Attorney will NOT be prosecuting anyone arrested for graffitiat least for nowafter US District Judge Marsha Pechman issued an injunction.



The judge says Seattles property destruction ordinance is vague, targets speech and poses a real threat of censorship.  Gary Horcher (@GaryKIRO7) June 14, 2023

Thats related to an ongoing case being appealed in district court, Tucson et al v. Seattle, where four people were arrested for writing BLM, and expletives against SPD in chalk on protective concrete walls outside the East Precinct.

The preliminary injunction from Judge Pechman says that the citys existing property damage laws can violate a persons First and Fourteenth Amendment rights and that as theyre phrased right now, are overly vague and overboard.

Seattles Municipal Code 12A.08.020 reads as follows:

The Seattle City Attorneys Office issued a statement Wednesday saying they will not be filing any property destruction charges under this order now.

They have also filed a motion asking Judge Pechman to reconsider the order.

On Thursday, Judge Pechman issued an order clarifying the injunction, stating the order does not prevent the City or the police from pursuing people that intentionally damage the property of others, making it a gross misdemeanor.

As of Thursday, the injection still applies to the enforcement of defacing property, such as graffiti.

In a brief statement released Thursday, the City Attorneys Office said they would immediately begin charging cases for property destruction again.

Im told City Atty Ann Davison is appealing this ruling as fast as legally possible.



Mayor Harrell is also preparing a response. Prosecuting graffiti arrests has been his big priority.



But- for now, the property destruction ordinance in Seattle has been thrown into reverse.  Gary Horcher (@GaryKIRO7) June 14, 2023

According to the website for the United States District Court, Pechman has served since 1999 for the Western District of Washington.

The Seattle Police Department also issued a statement Wednesday, saying they will no longer take action on damage to property under this new order:




Photo Illustration by Luis G. Rendon/The Daily Beast/Reuters/Wikimedia Commons

Uneventful, thats how the arraignment of an ex-president went down in Miami Tuesday afternoon. And the second-most important person involved with the case wasnt even there.

That would be Judge Aileen Cannon, a Trump appointee who has been controversial to say the least in some of her rulings in Trumps favor. Yes, one of Trumps favorite judges is currently assigned to preside over the trial, though she wasnt in the room during his arraignment Tuesday.

Special Counsel Jack Smith was seated in the courtroom, three rows behind Trump, but Trump didnt look around, so its unlikely they made eye contact. (Trump has called Smith a deranged lunatic and a psycho.)

DOJ Went Overboard With Espionage Act Charges Against Trump

Trump didnt speak a word, unless you count whispering to his lawyers. He had a scowl on face, and he sat hunched over, looking dejected, the same pose he adopted at his first arraignment in New York.

A lawyer entered Trumps not guilty plea. Walt Nauta, the Navy aide charged with aiding and abetting Trump in moving and concealing boxes of documents, did not enter a plea because he didnt have a local attorney. Hell have to come back another day.

The proceeding was brief and perfunctory, except for discussion about prohibiting Trump from talking to witnesses, and since some are people he interacts with every day who will be on the witness list? The DOJ said it will provide names.

Despite calls for unrest by the usual MAGA suspects, and a reasonably heightened sense of alert in the post-Jan. 6 world, there was very little tumult outside the courthouse. One protester dressed in what looked like prison stripes was tackled to the ground and arrested after dashing in front of Trumps motorcade as he left the court. Otherwise, the crowd seemed mostly peaceful, and the extra police presence kept control of the scene.

Inside the courthouse, Smith asked for a speedy trial, and in the Florida circuitwell-known for its rocket docketthat means 70 days. A defendant has the right to extend the timeline, and its a given that Trump and his new legal team will do what they always do: introduce multiple delaying tactics.

Frustrated Trump Pleads Not GuiltyAgain

Whether its the luck of the draw or something more, Trump must be happy with Judge Cannons assignment to the case. Shed already ruled on a portion of this case. In fact, she ruled so favorably for Trump that a three-judge panel overruled her, subjecting her to a barrage of criticism that she wasnt up to the job, or worse, was protecting the president who put her on the bench.

She has the power to make the governments case infinitely harder. She could even outright dismiss the case, though that would bring a storm of reputational damage down upon her.

She will be watched closely to see whether the brushback of her earlier rulings have left a lesson. For example, will she admit the evidence gained when the client-attorney privilege was pierced? (Trump lawyer Evan Corcoran was ordered to testify when a judge found Trump used Corcoran to commit a crime.)

Cannon will have the power to push the trial way into the distant future, which in politics means after the 2024 election. That gives Trump a roughly 50 percent chance to self-pardon, should he win, or be pardoned by a Republican president. The federal conviction rate in cases like this, involving national security breaches, is over 99 percent.

Trump Faces the Most Extraordinary Ordinary Prosecution Ever

With a success rate like that, Cannons involvement takes a case that should be a slam dunk and potentially turns it into a years-long saga like background musicor a dirgefor Trumps campaign.

She showed her cards in her earlier rulings. A member of the conservative Federalist Society, she may want to go down in history as one of Trumps accomplices.

If she acts egregiously in Trumps favor, Special Counsel Smith could seek to have her removed. But that would be a highly unlikely move, as it would obviously inflame the MAGA movement even further. Having Cannon in place as someone Trump thinks of as one of my judges makes it harder for the ex-president to claim hes being mistreated.

The rest of us can only hope that Cannon knows the difference between fealty and fascism.

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The commission tasked with finding three finalists for the vacant Chicago police superintendent job has completed two rounds of candidate interviews and remains on track to meet its mid-July deadline, according to the bodys president.

Anthony Driver Jr., president of the Community Commission for Public Safety and Accountability, said this week that hes a billion percent confident that the commission will meet or exceed its July 14 deadline to send three finalists to Mayor Brandon Johnson.

Driver wouldnt say, though, how many candidates have been interviewed or how many rounds of interviews the commission may hold.

We are a good ways through our process and we are right on track to meet or exceed our deadline, (but) I wouldnt get ahead of our commission. If they determine by vote that we need more interviews then well add those, Driver said.

The commission started the search process in March after former police Superintendent David Brown submitted his resignation the day after former Mayor Lori Lightfoots failed to qualify for the mayoral runoff election.

Public safety was front and center throughout the campaign, and the search for the next superintendent continues as the summer season  when gun violence typically spikes  gets into full swing. Through June 12, Chicago had recorded 276 homicides on the year, according to the Cook County medical examiners office. In 2022, the city saw 752 homicides.

City ordinance gives the CCPSA 120 days to send the finalists to the mayor after the superintendent position is vacated. Johnson will then either select one of the finalists  who would then be subject to full City Council approval  or he could order the commission to restart the search process.

Driver previously said that 53 people applied for the job, 32 of whom have ties to the CPD.

Throughout April and May, the commission hosted seven public meetings across the city to solicit residents feedback about what qualities they want in the next leader of the countrys second-largest Police Department. At each meeting, speakers told commission members that the next superintendent should have experience within CPD and ties to Chicago.

Prior to the creation of the CCPSA, the search for superintendent finalists was conducted by the Chicago Police Board, the appointed body that hands down discipline in the most serious cases of police misconduct.

In 2016, former Mayor Rahm Emanuel disregarded the three finalists that were presented to him by the board which, at the time, was led by Lightfoot and ultimately selected Eddie Johnson, though he never applied for the job.

Four years later, Lightfoot selected Brown, the former Dallas police chief, less than two days after the board named him as a finalist. Browns tenure as top cop though, was mired by a surge in violent crime during the COVID-19 pandemic, civil unrest, entrenched gun violence and woeful officer morale.

Driver said Johnsons office has not reached out to inquire about the search and interview process

Not once. Never, Driver said. And Im very thankful for that and very proud that the mayors office has taken a hands-off approach. I can appreciate that.
Second suspect charged in New Year's Day murder in Plattekill

KINGSTON - A second man has been charged with murder in the New Year's Day shooting of a Plattekill man, state police reported Wednesday.

State police identified the suspect as Juwaugh Dawkins, 31, of Jacksonville, Florida. He is the brother of the first suspect charged in the case.

Dawkins was indicted on a charge of second-degree murder and three counts of second-degree criminal possession of a weapon, both felonies, as a result of an investigation into the Jan. 1. shooting death of Daniel Spotards, 41, of Plattekill.

The body of Spotards, a father of two, was found by a sanitation worker at the end of his driveway on Jan. 2,

Dawkins was arrested in the state of Florida by members of the state police and brought back to New York to face the charges.

He is being held without bail in Ulster County Jail, pending an arraignment in Ulster County Court.

Dawkins is the brother of Junando Dawkins, 29, of Newburgh, who was previously charged with the murder of Spotards in March. Junando Dawkins, an Army sergeant, was taken into custody at Fort Bragg in North Carolina as he was about to deploy overseas.

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Junando Dawkins also was charged with one count of second-degree murder and three counts of second-degree criminal possession of a weapon.

State police have not said anything about a motive for the shooting, or what, if any, connection there was between Spotards and the Dawkins brothers.

The name of Juwaugh Dawkins' attorney was not immediately available.

Mike Randall covers breaking news for the Times Herald-Record, Poughkeepsie Journal and The Journal News/lohud. Reach him at mrandall@th-record.com or on Twitter @mikerandall845.

This article originally appeared on Times Herald-Record: Suspect charged in Plattekill man's New Year's Day murder
See dead people through the windows  Many dead and missing in Russian occupied area after Kakhovka dam breach

The flooded Kherson Oblast

"There are lots of reports about missing people on the left bank of the Dnipro River. We can't officially confirm that they are dead. However, we have also been receiving lots of messages from locals who can see dead people through the windows in their homes," he said.

They are waiting for the support of the international community so they can be assured that a "green corridor" will actually be safe, he added.

Read also: Kakhovka dam destruction kills 10, 40 missing in two Ukrainian oblasts - Interior Ministry

"We need it (international help) in order to help people staying there and, maybe, in order to exhume bodies from there," the spokesperson said.

Ten people have reportedly died, 20 have been injured, and 42 remain missing on the Ukrainian-held right (western) bank of the Dnipro River in Kherson Oblast due to the Kakhovka dam breach, according to Ukrainian officials.

The mayor of the Russia occupied town of Oleshky, Yevhen Ryshchuk, reported nine people died in his town because of the Russian terror act.

The water in Kherson Oblast is muddy, Tolokonnikov said. Samples have shown elevated iron levels in the water. However, no cases of intestinal or other infections have been reported on the Ukrainian-held right bank.

Read also:

Were bringing the voice of Ukraine to the world. Support us with a one-time donation, or become a Patron!

Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
Seems like bullying to me: Investors took over their condo boards. Costs skyrocketed

Daniel Fiorda moved out of his 800-square-foot condo in Miami Beach last month, more than two decades after he bought it.

He didnt want to leave his canal-front slice of paradise. But after a real estate firm purchased six of his buildings 10 units, took control of the board and increased maintenance fees by more than four times  a jump for Fiorda from about $550 to $2,280 a month  he and his wife, Laura Ines Cobos, were in a bind.

Fiorda, an artist and musician from Argentina, began taking odd jobs to try to keep up. But ultimately, the couple moved into a rental in Biscayne Park and found a tenant to live in their Miami Beach home. The tenant is now paying $2,100 a month  still less than the cost of their condo fees, which are on top of mortgage payments.

They want us to be worn out, Fiorda said of the buildings new majority owner, a Miami Beach real estate company called Stonemason. To be broke.

The situation at the two-story building at 2033 Calais Drive is, in some ways, a reflection of forces resulting in steep costs for many South Florida condo owners. Those costs include inflation, ballooning insurance prices and a condo safety law enacted after the deadly Champlain Towers South collapse that will require associations to maintain reserves for structural repairs by 2025.

Properties like Fiordas 1959 building have become red meat for investors in North Beach, a gentrifying neighborhood full of aging coastal structures and one of the last slivers of Miami Beach that some middle-class and working-class families can afford.

But the substantial, sudden cost increases at 2033 Calais Drive also reflect the tactic of investors taking over condo boards and making spending decisions with limited input from other owners who must also foot the bills. Condo associations in Florida have broad latitude to make financial decisions under a business judgment rule that protects directors from liability, as long as they can show a reasonable basis for their spending, said Roberto Blanch, a South Florida condo lawyer.

There is this gray area, I think  lets call it this wiggle room  that might be enough to let them get away with some unsubstantiated or some uncorroborated increases, Blanch said. The board can always get away with saying, Were just spitballing here. 

At Fiordas building, a new board controlled by Stonemason and its leader, Gustaf Arnoldsson, passed a 2023 operating budget of more than $271,000, up from about $66,000 in 2022, according to a document Fiorda provided to the Herald.

The proposed spending includes increases in legal fees from around $800 to $20,000, management fees from $4,800 to $9,600 and, most significantly, reserve fund contributions from $5,800 to $150,000.

The resulting owners monthly fees of $2,000 or more are unusually high. Across Florida, average homeowners association fees are less than $400 a month, according to data from the Foundation for Community Association Research.

Miami Beach residents (from left) Daniel Fiorda, Laura Ines Cobos and Brian Trevisa stand in front of the building at 2033 Calais Drive on June 10. They moved out after investors bought a majority of condo units in the building and maintenance fees increased by more than 300%.

They came to kill us

Arnoldsson, who has bought several properties in North Beach over the past few years, says the budget increases are long overdue. The property has been neglected, he said in an interview, and needs to build up a healthy reserve fund to address costly repairs including a new seawall and roof.

Entities tied to Arnoldsson and Stonemason bought six units from a single owner there for $1.2 million in late 2021. At a new board election, Arnoldsson and an associate won two of the three seats. Fiorda was appointed to the third. (Fiorda said hes not sure who nominated him. After he asked for meeting minutes, a property manager replied that no minutes were taken, despite a Florida law that requires minutes to be kept.)

When we came in and saw the state of disrepair of this building, we were shocked, Arnoldsson said. Now theyre saying were pushing them out. I just find it to be a little bit disingenuous.

But Fiorda says the sudden fee increases are not a good-faith effort to spruce up an aging building. Arnoldsson, he claims, is jacking up costs to put Fiorda and the other remaining owners in a bind  unable to sell their units to outside buyers due to the steep fees attached, and at risk of facing liens and even foreclosure if they dont pay up.

Ultimately, Fiorda said, he may be forced to sell to Arnoldsson for well below market value.

Theyre doing all this because they want to pay us less on the market, Fiorda said. They came to kill us.

Brian Trevisa, who owns two units in the building with his wife, Lissy La Paix, echoed that sentiment and said Arnoldsson has failed to justify the big jump in spending.

None of this has been in writing or formalized in any way at all, said Trevisa, who proposed an alternative to Arnoldssons budget with more modest increases that was rebuffed.

Trevisa and La Paix, who is pregnant with the couples second child, also moved out of the building recently because of the fee hikes, Trevisa said. Maintenance fees for their two units will top $60,000 this year.

Some of those costs are being passed on to renters. Trevisa and La Paix are now charging $3,000 per month for the two-bedroom unit they lived in, and they raised the rent from $1,400 to $2,000 in their other unit, a one-bedroom.

Like Fiorda, Trevisa believes Arnoldsson wants to buy his units at a bargain.

That seems like bullying to me, he said. Theyve put a crazy HOA budget fee in there, knowing that I cant sell my apartment with that fee tied to it.

Arnoldsson said he would entertain offers to buy the remaining units, but that his intention is to fix up the building rather than knock it down and build something new. Collecting maintenance fees of more than $2,000 per month, he added, is more humane than imposing a large special assessment all at once.

How come, in the last 10 years, they never looked at what needed to be done at the property? he said. Now its our fault that were pointing out the things that need to be done?

Fiorda admits the association could use more in reserves, which he said were depleted due to recent increases in insurance costs. And he acknowledged the building has issues that ought to be resolved in the coming years.

Still, he noted that a 2019 engineer report, prepared as part of the buildings 60-year recertification, found the building to be in good structural condition with no significant cracking or deterioration.

And he says Arnoldssons approach is inconsiderate to long-time residents.

Knock on our doors. Lets have a meeting, lets discuss these issues. We can build up our reserves slowly, Fiorda said. He forgot that there were families living there.

This is a family

Other condo owners in North Beach are facing similar pressures.

At 8125 Crespi Boulevard, Sipiwe Anderson, a fashion model and member of Miami Beachs Black Affairs Advisory Committee, was removed as president of her four-unit buildings condo board and hit with a series of special assessments after a Texas man purchased the three units above hers early last year.

Anderson, who lives in the canal-front property with her husband and two children, is now being told to pay $169,000 for her share of repairs between 2022 and 2024, including a total of $100,000 made in quarterly payments this year, records show. The assessments are for upgrades including $150,000 for concrete restoration, $150,000 for seawall repairs, $50,000 for balcony and railing improvements and $50,000 for the dock.

Meanwhile, monthly maintenance fees have doubled from $700 to $1,400, Anderson said.

This week, a lawyer for the condo association told Andersons attorney that a collection agency would soon be pursuing the money she owes.

How many people can pay $25,000 every quarter? Anderson said. Im happy to make this place look beautiful, but it has to be done over time to understand this is a family.

The buildings new majority owner, Tim Hill, did not respond to several requests for comment. Carla Jones, a lawyer representing the condo association, declined to comment.

Like her North Beach neighbors on Calais Drive, Anderson said she believes the new owner is hoping she will sell him her unit for less than its worth, or else face foreclosure under the weight of the assessment costs.

The first assessment, passed late last year, was for $16,000 per unit. The next was for approximately $100,000 per unit owed in $25,000 quarterly payments this year. Another $53,000-per-unit assessment is planned for 2024.

Each was approved by a new board led by Hill.

Anderson says she can understand the concrete repair cost estimates, which are based on an engineers assessment. City records show the five-story building, constructed in 1971, has yet to pass its 50-year recertification.

But she said she doesnt see the urgency of the other repairs, including the seawall and dock, nor how those costs were determined.

Anderson said Hill made her an offer for her unit that she believes was well below market value.

Last time I talked to him, he said, Im not trying to squeeze anybody out of their home,  Anderson said. I just dont know what the truth is anymore.

An overhead view of the four-unit building located at 8125 Crespi Blvd. in Miami Beach, where Sipiwe Anderson owns a condo and has lived with her family since 2001.

We dont want predatory developers

Blanch, the condo lawyer, said hes heard his share of allegations of investors buying up units in condo buildings, then raising costs for the remaining owners with the objective of either getting them out or having them agree to sell their units to the bulk owner.

But those motives are hard to prove, he said.

Did it go up drastically because it was woefully under-budgeted before, or did it go up drastically because there are some ulterior motives? Blanch said. Thats probably the million-dollar question.

Condo owners in North Beach are trying to fight back, working with attorneys and filing detailed information requests to their associations. The Calais Drive owners recently filed complaints with the states Department of Business and Professional Regulation. And owners at both buildings have flagged their concerns to Miami Beach Commissioner Kristen Rosen Gonzalez, who said she was troubled.

We dont want predatory developers in our city, she said. At least buy these people out at their fair market value.

Condo owners need to be vigilant, Rosen Gonzalez added, especially in smaller buildings that may be more susceptible to investor takeovers.

Im going to do whatever I can to inform people this is happening on Miami Beach, she said.
Squint hard, and you might just see the outlines of an anti-Donald Trump coalition forming in the Senate GOP.

It started coming together well before the former presidents latest indictment, when seven Republican senators voted to convict after his second impeachment trial. Now as the partys 2024 primary field is nearly set, Republican discomfort with Trump is coming more into focus.

Trump leads the field in Senate GOP endorsements, with 10 officially on board and potentially more on the way. But some Republican senators are quietly making moves: Four have endorsed non-Trump candidates, a couple more say they want a different nominee, several others grimace when asked about his electoral prospects and even some staunch defenders are staying formally neutral so far.

That includes Sen. Mike Braun (R-Ind.), a longtime Trump ally who  as of now  will only say that "I've endorsed his policies.

An official endorsement, I have not. I've been pretty clear I'd like to see someone articulate for the Republican Party what we're going to do policy-wise, added Braun, whos running for governor of his bright-red state. He said he wouldnt endorse one of Trump's rivals and is waiting for the former presidents approach to crystallize.

In total, the number of senators who say they want someone other than Trump or who voted to bar him from office is equal to the number endorsing him. And while the primary wont be won in the Senate GOP, Trumps critics there represent a considerable swath of the party base, including donors , that want a different standard-bearer to take on President Joe Biden.

Take Sen. Todd Young (R-Ind.), who won his seat in 2016 with Trump on the ballot and then ran the Senate GOPs campaign arm alongside Trump in 2020. He has exactly one criteria in mind for a GOP presidential endorsement: Whoever can beat Trump.



Inside the Senate, the former president has already lost the Dakotas. Both South Dakota senators, Minority Whip John Thune and Mike Rounds, are backing Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.). Thunes the highest-ranking Republican lawmaker who has endorsed in the primary.

And the two North Dakota senators, Kevin Cramer and John Hoeven, are supporting Gov. Doug Burgum (R-N.D.). Hoeven didnt explicitly connect that to worries about Trumps electability, saying instead that Burgum is a success at everything he does.

Our conference consists of smart people who realize that any nominee other than Trump is likely to win. And Trump is at best a 50/50 shot and most likely, less than 50/50. So, in their heart of hearts, they would love to see someone besides Trump be our nominee, said Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah), the only GOP senator who voted to convict Trump in both impeachment trials.

On the other hand, Romney acknowledged, Senate Republicans also recognize he's overwhelmingly the favorite [in the primary]. And there's no upside in going out and saying that.

Reflecting that attitude, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell declined to say Tuesday whether he would support Trump if he earned the Republican nomination, or whether Trump did anything wrong: "I simply am not going to start commenting on the various candidates we have for president."

The Kentuckian has not spoken to Trump since December 2020, before the 2021 Capitol riot. Former whip and Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas), who's close to McConnell, says the GOP needs to do better than Trump in order to win a general election.

Sen. Cynthia Lummis (R-Wyo.) chose her words carefully, saying she wants Scotts forward-looking message to be elevated in the primary and that Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-Fla.), who has no Senate endorsements, has hit upon issues people want addressed in this election cycle.

Lummis doesnt plan to endorse yet, but shes attaching a warning label to Trumps potential nomination.

If Trump is our nominee, Ill support him. But its so difficult to talk about him in the context of issues because hes so wrapped up in legal proceedings, she concluded, adding that her constituents dont think much of the 37-count federal indictment.



Many Senate Republicans, even those not backing Trump, railed against the DOJ charging him with improperly retaining highly sensitive materials. But thats not a unanimous view, and a significant number of GOP senators see Special Counsel Jack Smith's case as damaging.

Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.), the No. 5 GOP leader, said that post-indictment, Trumps looking at general-election prospects that could differ from his pole position in the primary: He seems to have hardened, at least early on, his support in the primary. I dont know if it stays or not.

These are serious charges. And they need to be taken seriously by everybody. And as these things unfold, they tend to get bigger because there's additive information, Capito said of the most recent indictment. Politically, she added, I think it'll be difficult for him.

Senate Republicans did not talk about the indictment at their party lunch on Tuesday, according to two people familiar with the discussion who spoke on condition of anonymity.

Just two of the GOP senators who objected to certifying President Joe Bidens 2020 victory, Tommy Tuberville of Alabama and Cindy Hyde-Smith of Mississippi, are officially backing Trump. The other Trump backers are mostly first-termers, save for Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) and Sen. Steve Daines (R-Mont.), who chairs the conference's campaign arm this election cycle. Trumps base of support on Capitol Hill remains the House, where hes racked up endorsements and seen just a handful of defections.



Tuberville conceded Senate Republicans are divided on Trump 2024 and said thats fine  for now.

When all is said and done, if we're not all on the same page, we can't win. And you got people that dislike President Trump for this and that, Tuberville said. We all gotta forget the past experiences and go on."

Another Republican senator who objected to Bidens certification, John Kennedy of Louisiana, said hes not even talking about the primary for the moment: I dont have anything for you on that. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), a leader of those objection efforts, said simply: Im going to stay out of it.

Yet no Republican senator who voted to convict Trump at his impeachment trials is offering an endorsement yet either, including Sens. Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska). Romney said that at some point he may endorse someone, but at this stage it would be the kiss of death.

Describing his ideal candidate, Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.) said simply: One who can beat Biden. And Trump, he added, cannot.

"He loses in four of the five swing states. His endorsed candidates all lost, and plausibly they lose because of his endorsement, Cassidy said. Ive been trained as a physician to see things as they are, not as I wish them to be. And that seems to be as they are.

Katherine Tully-McManus contributed to this report.
Side by side photos of Senators Richard Blumenthal and Josh Hawley



Senators Richard Blumenthal (left) and Josh Hawley (right)

Two U.S. Senators are joining hands across the aisle to try to separate artificial intelligence from the rest of the internet. Senators Josh Hawley and Richard Blumenthal have introduced new legislation that, if passed, would exempt AI from Section 230 protections. The proposed bill would leave AI companies potentially liable for the often incorrect (TBD maybe sometimes defamatory) content that large language models and other generative AI tools produce.



The measure, straightforwardly titled No Section 230 Immunity for AI Act, comes as the question of who holds accountability for AIs creations is being hotly debatedwith no clear legal answer yet.

Read more

AI companies should be forced to take responsibility for business decisions as theyre developing productswithout any Section 230 legal shield, said Connecticut Democrat Blumenthal in a press statement. Missouri Republican Hawley added, We cant make the same mistakes with generative AI as we did with Big Tech on Section 230...the companies must be held accountable.

Blumenthal had hinted toward his new legislation during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on the real-world impacts of AI on human rights earlier this week. During his questioning, Blumenthal claimed social media companies had benefited from an overly broad interpretation of Section 230 and argued it was critical Congress not repeat that scenario for the emerging generative AI era.



We need to clarify Section 230 to say it does not apply to AI because if we dont were in for a whole new world of hurt, Blumenthal said.

The newly proposed legislation itself would amend 230 with the following text:

No Effect on Claims Related to Generative Artificial IntelligenceNothing in this section...shall be construed to impair or limit any claim in a civil action or charge in a criminal proescution brought under Federal or State law against the provider of an interactive computer service if the conduct underlying the claim or charge involves the use or provision of generative artificial intelligence by the interactive computer service.

Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, is widely considered the foundational law of the internet. It allows for social media sites, search engines, forums, and comment sections to exist without platforms or internet providers being taken to task for the content that their users post. In many ways, though flawed, it is the policy that enables any degree of free speech online and its important.

But in recent years, its faced pushback from politicians of both partieslargely on the basis of how it shields big tech companies as misinformation proliferates on the internet. President Biden has repeatedly said he wants the regulation reformed. Republican lawmakers (and some Democrats), meanwhile, have made numerous efforts to scrap the rule entirely. Sen. Hawley, in particular, has come for 230 before. (In this latest attempt, he could be leveraging the open question of AI accountability as a strategy to weaken 230's protective shield overall.)

Regardless of all the flack Section 230 has been getting, the Supreme Court recently opted to keep the provision intact. In May, SCOTUS dismissed a major case and declined to weigh in on the issue. But just because 230 is still the law of the land, that doesnt mean it necessarily applies to AI. If you ask the people who wrote the original 1996 policy, it doesnt.

Senator Ron Wyden along with former SEC chair and congressman, Chris Cox, who co-authored Section 230 have argued the provision shouldnt apply to the text, video, or images that programs like OpenAIs ChatGPT or DALL-E spit out. Section 230 is about protecting users and sites for hosting and organizing users speech and has nothing to do with protecting companies from the consequences of their own actions and products, Wyden said in a statement to Reuters on the topic back in April.

Hawley and Blumenthals proposed legislation would be one way to solidify an exception for AI in the law. Though, the act could turn out to be entirely superfluous, according to Jeff Kosseff, a professor of cybersecurity law at the U.S. Naval Academy and author of a 2019 book on Section 230, The Twenty-Six Words That Created the Internet. We dont know if this would even be necessary, Kosseff said of the pending bill in a phone call with Gizmodo. He cited Wyden and Coxs position and noted that theres been no legal test to show what stance U.S. courts might take.

Granted, Section 230 only protects online providers and platforms in the case of content that they dont contribute to directly, Kosseff explained. And theres an argument to be made that AI companies contribute in some way to everything that these programs produce.

Be it through legislation, or another route, if Section 230 doesnt apply to AI content, all of it would be left subject to existing defamation laws, Kosseff explained. Earlier this month, a Georgia radio host filed the first-ever libel case against OpenAI over ChatGPT allegedly hallucinating and producing false text that the radio host had been accused of embezzling money. Others have threatened similar action. None of these claims have yet resulted in a verdict.

Officially opening up AI makers to liability for everything their models make would likely crush the newly booming industry. When Sam Altman and OpenAI co-founders called for regulation of artificial intelligence, formalized exemption from 230 clearly wasnt what they were after.

In Kosseffs view though, someone needs to take responsibility for artificial intelligence. If its something that people are routinely trusting for information and its a defamation machine, someone needs to be accountable for that, he said.

Howeverjust as blanket protections under 230 might not make much sense for AI, as islibel laws might not be the correct avenue through which to rein in the rapidly growing tech. For a plaintiff to win a libel case, they generally have to prove that a statement was made with knowing or reckless disregard for its falseness. But can an AI know anything? Actual malice is about state of mind, noted Kosseff. How do you show that for an AI program?

Then theres the interplay between user and tool. AI programs routinely generate untruths and can easily be used to make offensive or potentially damaging content (e.g. sexual deepfakes). Undoubtedly, those recurring problems are at least partially a result of their back-end code and trainingdetermined by the companies or developers peddling the tech. But large language models and image/video generators only produce their output at the behest of the humans typing in the prompt. So who should shoulder the blame when things go wrong?

Its a complicated, unresolved issue set to determine a lot about the future of the AI and internet. If there arent any answers right now, at least, in Kosseffs view its a really fascinating question.





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Chechen leader says top commander 'alive and well' after reports he was wounded in Ukraine

MOSCOW (Reuters) -Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov said on Wednesday one of his senior commanders was alive and well, dismissing reports that he had been killed or wounded in Ukraine.

The commander, Adam Delimkhanov, heads the Chechen division of the Russian national guard and is also a member of Russia's parliament. He is widely seen as the Caucasian region's second most senior official after Kadyrov himself.

Kadyrov, who has led Chechnya since 2007 and is a close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, said in a post on the Telegram messenger app that Delimkhanov was "alive and well and not even wounded".

Kadyrov added that he had known Delimkhanov was uninjured from the start of what he called "a fake information attack", but had remained silent in order to embarrass Ukrainian media outlets that had reported on the commander's alleged injury.

Delimkhanov, who has an active social media presence, with over half a million followers on Telegram, did not comment.

In a later posting on Telegram, Kadyrov mocked the Ukrainian media reports about Delimkhanov for "brazen lies about his elimination". Kadyrov said he had been "temporarily" unable to communicate with Delimkhanov while he was in Ukraine.

Earlier on Wednesday, Russia's Zvezda television channel cited the parliamentary press service as saying Delimkhanov had been wounded in Ukraine. It followed rumours on Ukrainian social media channels that the Chechen commander had been killed in an artillery strike in southern Ukraine.

Asked about the reports of Delimkhanov being wounded, the Kremlin earlier on Wednesday said it was "worried" and was waiting for clarification about what had really happened.

Delimkhanov, a former Chechen separatist who switched sides to Moscow along with much of the region's present leadership, has taken a prominent role in Russia's military campaign in Ukraine, commanding Chechen forces in Mariupol in the conflict's early days.

(Reporting by Reuters, Editing by Gareth Jones, Peter Graff Angus MacSwan and Ron Popeski)
Whether you are a Catholic or not, you almost certainly know about the very public, very hostile dispute between Fort Worth Catholic Bishop Michael Olson and an order of cloistered Carmelite nuns in Arlington.

The showdown between Olson and the sisters of the Monastery of the Most Holy Trinity has been plastered all over the news, with every successive headline a little more salacious than the previous one.

Sex, nuns and rock and roll.

And drugs, apparently.

Its bizarre and deeply sad.

It began with a complaint filed by the sisters attorney in early May. They alleged that just days before, the bishop trespassed, stole electronic devices from the mother superior, and exceeded his legal and canonical authority over the sisters, imposing his will over their quiet and prayerful lives.

The allegations were shocking but also highly dubious and lacking in context.

Still, the lawsuit was effectively inside baseball and sat almost two weeks, unnoticed by the public.

That was until an email from the Carmelite ladies auxiliary, recounting the claims of the nuns complaint and lobbying for their legal fund, was circulated widely throughout the Catholic community and beyond. It felt like an effort to up the ante.

That it did.

Reverend Mother Superior Teresa Agnes Gerlach of the Monastery of the Most Holy Trinity has filed a lawsuit against Bishop Michael Olson and the Diocese of Fort Worth. Matthew Bobo

The ensuing three weeks have consisted of a volley of recriminations between the two sides: The diocese alleged sexual impropriety by the abbess (which has since resulted in her dismissal from the order), and of illegal drug use in the monastery. The nuns and their counsel filed a criminal complaint against the bishop and accused his office of staging photos that purportedly illustrated illegal drug use by one or more of the nuns.

Rome is involved, and is, I suspect, not amused.

One can only imagine the delight with which those who revel in deriding the Catholic Church and her faithful are devouring every unseemly detail.

But for Catholics, watching their bishop and the Carmelites battle in such a public way is heartbreaking and deeply confusing.

Michael F. Olson is bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Fort Worth.

During his decade at the helm of the Fort Worth Diocese, Olson has developed a reputation for cracking down on sexual misconduct within his ranks.

While many a milquetoast bishop have turned a blind eye to rot within the church, Olson has made it his mission to stand strong against it, in whatever form it takes. For that, Fort Worth Catholics are fortunate.

If that is, indeed, what is happening now, his removal of Reverend Mother Teresa Gerlach, while appearing harsh, exhibits a kind of benevolence for her and the sisters and a profound love of the Church.

However, this narrative was undermined early by salacious and incomplete information released by the diocese, including details (namely photographs of drug paraphernalia) that appeared to belie the claim that the dispute is ecclesiastical in nature.

Unfortunately, those statements fed an insatiable media appetite and gave the nuns attorney ever more opportunities to lob accusations in the direction of the bishop.

Having missed an early chance to keep the media at bay, Catholics needed to hear directly from their bishop, who to his credit, sought to remedy this urgency last weekend.

In a video release to the faithful, Olson filled in details and addressed outstanding concerns and refuted allegations that have been the source of much consternation for weeks.

For many Catholics I know, this was much needed, albeit long overdue, and has helped calm the waters.

Understandable concern for the nuns remains, of course; they also hold a special place in the hearts of local Catholics, including Olson, to be sure.

Through the years, their prayers have sustained many. And their care has been a generational work of mercy for families in the Fort Worth community.

But they have retained a legal counsel whose scorched-earth approach seems to serve mostly himself and is intentionally further dividing a community already deeply wounded by the dispute. Its worth wondering if the sisters, cloistered as they are, are even aware of the trouble their legal counsel is causing. I expect not.

The bishops message has been helpful in bringing some clarity to the situation and some understanding to the community, but with a lawsuit and criminal complaints lingering, a quick and clean resolution isnt likely.

Still, a resolution that is gracious and just to all parties, most especially the church, is possible.

But that will require less media attention, less acrimony, more prayer and more restraint from everyone involved, including lay Catholics, who should repress the desire to speculate as they watch this all unfold.

The secular world doesnt have the churchs interest at heart, but as Catholics, it should always be our priority.
A middle school student will face serious disciplinary consequences after they allegedly brought an unloaded handgun to school and showed it off to classmates on Tuesday.

The seventh-grader was caught showing the weapon to students outside of Central Middle School after classes were dismissed but did not threaten students, according to Quincy Public Schools Superintendent Kevin W. Mulvey.

I am shocked and saddened that this students dangerous actions jeopardized their own health and well-being and those of their classmates and school staff, Mulvey wrote in a letter to the school community. The student will face serious disciplinary consequences for their action and will not return to Central Middle School.

Mulvey says the three students who saw it told a parent and then reported it to the school.

The gun belonged to a parent and the student was able to access the unsecured firearm and bring it to school, according to the Quincy Police Department. Officers have since gone to the students home to seize the gun.

Mulvey says police are talking to the students parents to figure out why the gun was unsecured. They say the student faces potential disciplinary action.

Teachers and guidance staff will be meeting with students on Wednesday to process the incident. Mulvey, along with police and school staff, are also making themselves available to meet with concerned parents.

The kids were very shaken up, the staff were shaken up. I am very thankful for the actions of the students who reported this incident, how quickly our administrators and the Quincy Police Department responded, and the thoroughness of the investigation, Mulvey added.

Anyone with questions is urged to contact Mulveys office at 617-984-8701 or via email.

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After shooting a waitress, Biloxi man asks Waffle House guests what they have to say, authorities say

Read next: Waffle House customers relive deadly Biloxi shooting that left waitress dead: I thought I was about to die.

Johnny Max Mount had been sitting at a counter at the Waffle House in Biloxi for about 10 minutes before a waitress told him he couldnt smoke his e-cigarette.

Mount slid back in his chair, stood up, pulled a 9 mm handgun from a black holster around his shoulder, and leaned over the counter to shoot Julie Brightwell.

Brightwell saw the former Biloxi firefighter pull out the gun. She tried to save herself by crouching behind the counter near the register, where Mount had been sitting.

Waffle House did not permit smoking inside, and a division head, Floyd Virgil, said Brightwell did what she was supposed to do when she told Mount he couldnt smoke.

What happened the night of Brightwells killing could be seen firsthand in video surveillance footage from the Biloxi restaurant where the shooting occurred.

Julie Brightwell

Mount is on trial this week for first-degree murder in the Nov. 27, 2015, shooting death of the beloved 52-year-old Waffle House waitress.

Assistant district attorneys Billy Stage and George Huffman are prosecuting the case and put on the surveillance video of the killing early on Tuesday.

The trial is being held before Circuit Judge Lisa Dodson.

Before the testimony began, Dodson said as part of the court record that Mount had written that he uses the surnames of King or Lord before his name to refer to himself.

Mount, the judge said, had described himself as a prisoner of war in a civil society in the notes and wrote that he had been in custody for too long.

Johnny Mount

TIM ISBELL/SUN HERALDJohnny Max Mount leaves court after waiving his preliminary hearing, Wednesday, Dec. 16, 2015. Mount is charged with the shooting death of Waffle House Waffle House server Julie Brightwell.

Mount has been in jail since his arrest the morning of the November 2015 killing.

His attorney, Jim Davis, is planning an insanity defense. Mount, he said, had suffered from a traumatic brain injury when he was struck by a car on Highway 49 in Gulfport years ago.

On the first day of testimony, the Waffle House division manager, a Biloxi police dispatcher who got a 911 call about the shooting, and Biloxi police Sgt. Eli Humphrey testified.

Humphrey was the officer who took Mount into custody.

An early-morning Waffle House killing

In the video surveillance footage shown to the jury Tuesday, Brightwell could be seen walking around the store helping customers and staff.

She waited on several tables, went back and forth behind the counter and worked the register.

After Mount first arrived, another Waffle House employee got him a drink and sat it on the counter.

Mount fidgeted with his menu for a bit before Brightwell later law something and went over to where Mount was sitting in a countertop seat near the register.

Brightwell tells Mount he cant smoke his e-cigarette in the restaurant, the video shows.

Mount pushed his seat back, stood up, pulled his 9 mm handgun out of a black holster on his shoulder, and fired a single shot into the servers head while customers were seated around the restaurant.

Mount then walks toward the door to get outside, but authorities say he stops and turns around to ask if anyone else has anything to say before he goes.

No one responds, the video shows.

Mount then went outside and placed the gun and holster there before returning to use the restroom.

Some customers huddled under tables to avoid being shot when Mount pulled out the gun, while others sat helplessly until help arrived or Mount left the business.

Various customers ran out when Mount went to the restroom.

Mount walked back outside and leaned against the glass window front at the Waffle with his hands against the wall when he saw a Biloxi police officer pulling up to the business.

Mount was taken into custody then.

Mounts attorney Jim Davis questions police officer Eli Humphrey on the witness stand during day one of the trial of Johnny Max Mount for the 2015 murder of Julie Brightwell in Harrison County Court in Biloxi on Tuesday, June 13, 2023.

Prosecution and defense attorneys meet with Judge Lisa Dodson during day one of the trial of Johnny Max Mount for the 2015 murder of Julie Brightwell in Harrison County Court in Biloxi on Tuesday, June 13, 2023.

A Biloxi firefighter and beloved employee

Before his arrest for murder, Mount had served as a successful firefighter with the city of Biloxi for 10 years.

He ended his firefighting career after a non-fire-related accident in 2002. In that incident, Mount was hit by a vehicle while standing on U.S. 49 in Gulfport and lost a leg as a result.

In addition, Mount suffered a brain injury.

Brightwells death left her family and friends in shock and mourning.

Her aunt, Diane Hickman, had nightmares for weeks after she learned of her nieces death.

Brightwell had lost her parents years before her death, and Hickman said she and her husband stepped in to help her over the years.

The waitress had moved to South Mississippi after she and friends visited for vacation one year, and she loved it.

Brightwell had spent her earlier years in Nevada and California working as a dental hygienist. She left that career behind, her aunt said, after she moved to Mississippi.

Testimony in the first-degree murder trial of Mount continues Wednesday in Biloxi.

JOHN FITZHUGH/SUN HERALDWaffle House employees Kristie Bergeron of Ocean Springs, left, and Ashley Shaul of St. Martin hold candles in memory of their slain co-worker, Waffle House server Julie Brightwell, during a memorial service for her on the beach in Biloxi on Friday Dec. 4, 2015.

Police officer Eli Humphrey points to Johnny Max Mount while on the witness stand during day one of the trial of Johnny Max Mount for the 2015 murder of Julie Brightwell in Harrison County Court in Biloxi on Tuesday, June 13, 2023.

Assistant District Attorney George Huffman questions Waffle House District Manager Floyd Virgil on the witness stand during day one of the trial of Johnny Max Mount for the 2015 murder of Julie Brightwell in Harrison County Court in Biloxi on Tuesday, June 13, 2023.

Evidence showing the gun Mount was allegedly carrying is shown during day one of the trial of Johnny Max Mount for the 2015 murder of Julie Brightwell in Harrison County Court in Biloxi on Tuesday, June 13, 2023.
Shopify is hitting back at a patent troll suing the Canadian e-commerce platform for patent infringement.

Dallas-based Lower48, which provides data analysis firm and portfolio management to the oil and gas industry, in September filed a complaint against Shopify, claiming that about two dozen of the companys features infringe upon its own patented technologies. Last week, Shopify asked a judge to compel Lower48 to disclose all third-party interests in the suit, including the identity of any individuals or entities that have financial interests in the outcome of this litigation, such as investors or litigation funders.

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Patent trolls try to exploit their intellectual property for financial gain. They usually dont use their patents to make or market new innovations but rather sue rivals or threaten to.

Lower48 said it owns the patents to tech tools developed using the GraphQL query computer language, which solve various technological problems inherent within database systems, allowing them to function more efficiently and improve data processing speeds and ease of use. The company said that it has not granted Shopify license to employ these tools, which it claims are being leveraged across essential functions, from its Logo Maker to its Business Name Generator, Slogan Maker, Domain Name Generator, Wholesale Marketplace, QR Code Generator, Terms and Conditions Generator, Business Card Maker, Invoice Generator and Purchase Order Template.

The Ontario-based web services provider, which powers online stores and point-of-sale capabilities for brands and retailers, argued that it has a right to more information about the individuals and entities with vested interests in the outcome of the case. Shopify said that publicly available documents indicate that Lower48 may be receiving funding from a third party for some or all of Lower48s attorneys fees and/or expenses to litigate this action. It claimed that the submitter of Lower48s complaint is affiliated with IP Edge, a firm that specializes in patent monetization. Public documents also show the Texas firms ties to the U.S. Innovation Fund (USIF), which provides companies with access to investment capital.

In its Motion to Compel, Shopify wrote that it sent Lower48 a letter in early may requesting that it disclose the relevant third parties involved in order to determine whether conflicts of interest exist. The company said Lower48 didnt respond to its requests, and when they met on May 30, Lower48 said it wasnt going to give up that information.

The Lower48 lawsuit is not Shopifys only legal problem. The companys fourth-quarter net losses totaled $623.7 million. Earlier this year, Shopify sold its logistics business to Flexport and Ocado, laying off about 2,000 employees in the process. Last month, former Shopify engineer Iain Russell sued the company in a $130 million class-action lawsuit claiming it failed to deliver on promised severance package agreements.

In my over two decades as an employment lawyer, I have never witnessed an employer renege on accepted severance agreements in this manner, particularly during times of economic uncertainty, said Lior Samfiru, employment lawyer and national co-managing partner at Samfiru Tumarkin LLP, the firm that filed the lawsuit. It appears that Shopify took deliberate action to minimize its financial liability, resulting in considerable losses for potentially thousands of people.

While its first quarter earnings were overshadowed by the news of the layoffs and logistics sales, Shopifys earnings and revenue surpassed Wall Streets estimates. In early May, it announced a year-over-year revenue increase of 25 percent to $1.5 billion, and net income of $68 million on diluted earnings per share (EPS) of 5 cents, versus the $1.5 billion net loss it saw during the same 2022 period. The company said it expects to see similar year-over-year improvements in the second quarter.

Click here to read the full article.
Step right up: Workers in Lincoln Squares new gelato shop perform circus acts as they serve up vegan scoops

Red and white pinstripes line the walls, as multicolored balloons hover above the group of magicians, contortionists and jugglers hard at work. Sticky fingers and faces wander about with sugar-fueled smiles, parents in tow.

While you might assume that youve stumbled into the circus, youd only be about half-right. In reality, youve happened upon Sideshow Gelato  a new Lincoln Square gelato shop with a niche twist. Each of the scoopers are young performers honing their sideshow acts. While serving gelato, they sharpen their juggling, magic and performance skills before customers.

Behind the counter, you might find Dylan Snow  a close-up magician who left his electrician apprenticeship to pursue a performance career. Maybe youll run into Elise Eshu, a juggler who started training in a youth circus at the age of 11. Or perhaps youll meet Raven See. After obtaining a masters degree in literature and poetry, intent on becoming a professor, they decided to take a leap of faith and pursue a two-year professional degree in circus arts.

I was making the most money that Id ever made, but I didnt like my life, they said. Basically at 34, I ran away and joined the circus.

For those craving a health-conscious sweet treat, the gelato is made in-house, without mixes or powdered bases. At least half the selections are vegan, and prepared with an oat milk base. The flavors are on constant rotation, as they hope to keep their audience on their toes.

Among the current offerings since the June 1 opening, the Prince Randian is a house favorite, named for the longtime Coney Island performer born without arms or legs, who would dazzle the audience by rolling and lighting a cigarette. The sweet treat is prepared with alcohol-free bourbon essence and a tobacco-flavored herbal tea blend with candied orange peels. Another beloved offering named for magician and gelateria-investor Penn Jillette of Penn & Teller fame  is made of dark chocolate with blueberry jam and lots of cayenne pepper.

The Lincoln Square gelato shop is the brainchild of Chicagoan Jay Bliznick, who credits his inspiration with simply being nuts.

Nobody in their right mind would come up with something like this, he said.

The path to becoming founder of this offbeat gelateria was not a straightforward one. Bliznick originally arrived in Chicago in 1990 as a student at Columbia College, intent on becoming a filmmaker.

By 1994, he had founded the still-running Chicago Underground Film Festival, serving as a leading coordinator of the event for eight years. After his stint in the film scene, concluding with an unceremonious tenure as a movie theater manager, Bliznick decided to pivot.

I was just kind of like, what am I doing? This isnt me. As he approached his 40th birthday, Bliznick found himself starting over with a hopeful move toward the dining industry, attending culinary school at Washburne Culinary & Hospitality Institute at Kennedy-King College.

It was kind of rough going in the industry because restaurants are mainly, you know, younger people in their 20s and 30s in the back of the kitchen, he said. And then heres this 40-year-old guy  whos got some talent  walking into their restaurant and asking them for a job. They were looking at me like I came in with a walker.

Eventually, he worked his way up the ladder  landing a job as the executive chef at the Del Rio, an approximately 100-year-old Italian restaurant in Highwood, a North Shore suburb.

For his 50th birthday, he rented an Italian villa outside of Florence, where he and his granddaughter fell hard for local gelaterias.

Between the two of us, we ate our weight in gelato, he said, and I realized that there was something really kind of special about this that was not your standard ice cream.

After his trip to Italy, Bliznick emerged with a deeper connection to his granddaughter and a new dream. He went on to train with an Italian gelato master before finally taking the leap during the pandemic to explore the possibility of opening his own gelateria.

The grandson of a concert violinist and the son of a stand-up comic and ventriloquist, Bliznick has long had the love of show business coursing through his veins, he said. This history combined with his passion for sideshows and his film background made integrating the restaurants theme a seamless transition.

Bliznick acknowledges that his shop may not be for everyone. Some people arent gonna want to see somebody put a power drill up their nose, or swallow a sword. Thats fine. Its not for everybody, he said.

But those who do stop by, may find themselves having an educational experience, as well as a flavorful one. In a room adjacent to the gelato scoops lives the Museum of the Transmundane. There, visitors can learn about everything from the worlds smallest woolly mammoth to the worlds tallest man.

Ive become more in tune with the idea that any business, to truly be successful, you dont only invest in your business, you dont only invest in your employees; you also have to invest in the customer and your community, Bliznick said.

The altruistic elements of the shop arent just talk. Not only does Sideshow Gelato provide space for young performers to hone their skills before going on to bigger and better things, as Bliznick says, but it will select a different charity each month to receives all proceeds from the tiniest gelato offering  the Worlds Smallest Cone.

Which is one curiosity fans are sure to get behind.

jsmith@chicagotribune.com

Big screen or home stream, takeout or dine-in, Tribune writers are here to steer you toward your next great experience. Sign up for your free weekly Eat. Watch. Do. newsletter here.
To the SLO County Grand Jury regarding your recent report on the Oklahoma Avenue Village:

This site was put up in answer to problems at Palisades Avenue in Los Osos. Someone, somewhere posted that this was a free place to park your RV, and in they came, from all over the country.

Opening the Oklahoma Avenue site to safe parking was a way to get people living in their RVs to leave Palisades.

Regardless of what anyone thinks, this site is successful. There is community. People watch over one another and care about one another other. There is a well-run, refrigerated food pantry that supplies the villagers with nutritious food.

The goal of the county administrator was lofty, given there is no truly affordable housing in SLO or elsewhere in the county. Not everyone has housing vouchers (even if there were landlords who accept vouchers), nor does everyone belong on welfare. So trying to find the villagers permanent housing is unrealistic at best.

There are drugs in any population  housed or not. Professionals and houseless people use alike. And there are fires and theft in any population.

SLO County is doing the best it can. They truly believed people could move on to more suitable places to be. But there is no place to be.

Case managers are trying in vain to find places for folks to go, but to where? Most have little-to-no income or theyd be somewhere else. Many dont have families to turn to. RV park rates are sky-high and they wont take your vehicle if its over 10 years old.

Thus, cost-effective tiny house villages are a solution.

Its easy to sit at our desks and criticize and think we have all the answers, but when you point the finger, you have three fingers pointing right back at you.

Becky Jorgeson is founder and president of Hopes Village of SLO, a nonprofit organization working to establish a village of tiny homes in San Luis Obispo County.
(Bloomberg) -- House conservatives on Wednesday proposed raising the US retirement age to collect Social Security, handing Democrats damaging political ammunition ahead of the 2024 election.

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The proposal by the 176-member House Republican Study Committee would gradually increase the retirement age, ultimately hitting 69 years old for those turning 62 in 2033. The current retirement age for full benefits is 66 and rising gradually to 67.

Democrats successfully used similar proposals from fiscal conservatives to their advantage in the 2022 midterm election. Their message that the GOP was targeting old-age benefits resonated with voters and was credited with limiting Democrats losses in the House.

Under the plan, which is unlikely to become law, benefits for current retirees wouldnt be cut. But for those expecting an earlier retirement benefit, lifetime payouts would be lower.

Further Privatization

The group has abandoned a proposal from last year that would have increased the Medicare retirement age, but they do seek to further privatize the program.

President Joe Biden and House Republicans got into a shouting match during the State of the Union address in February after Biden said some in the GOP favored cuts to Medicare and Social Security. Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene called the president a liar while others disputed the presidents comment.

As we all apparently agree, Social Security and Medicare is off the books now, Biden said to applause from both sides of the aisle. We got unanimity!

On Wednesday, Pennsylvania Democrat Brendan Boyle seized on the proposal, saying Republicans are attempting to renege on our sacred promise to American workers and seniors.

RSC members on Wednesday said the group has a responsibility to again push their the politically perilous proposal, casting it as a more sustainable option than leaving the programs untouched.

Benefit Cut

Failing to change the program would lead to an eventual 23% benefit cut to Social Security and 11% cut to Medicare provider payments, said Oklahoma Republican Kevin Hern, the groups chairman.

It saves Medicare and Social Security from Bidens destructive plan, Hern told reporters.

The plan, the group states, would balance the federal budget in seven years by cutting some $16 trillion in spending and $5 trillion in taxes. The RSC board approved the proposal but its members didnt vote on it.

Hern, who often serves as a bridge between House leaders and conservatives, said he expects the House to vote on the groups plan.

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An Army private first class has pleaded guilty to plotting the murder of U.S. service members on behalf of the Islamic State, government prosecutors announced Wednesday.

The soldier, Cole Bridges, also pleaded guilty to trying to provide material assistance to ISIS. A months-long FBI investigation into Bridges social media posts culminated in the 22-year-old Ohio natives arrest in January 2021.

Bridges joined the Army in September 2019, according to court documents. He served as a cavalry scout in the 3rd Infantry Division based at Fort Stewart, Georgia.

In August 2020, in the weeks leading up to a three-month rotation to Germany, Bridges began posting jihadist propaganda on his social media accounts under the moniker Cole Gonzales, prosecutors claim. Screenshots of Bridges Facebook page feature quotes from Salafist preachers exalting war between Islam and Kufr [infidels] and photos of his M4 rifle captioned with verses and emojis popular with the Islamic State group.

An FBI agent posing as an ISIS sympathizer approached Bridges online in September 2020. The aspiring jihadist developed a rapport with the investigator in the ensuing months. By mid-October, court documents show, Bridges began advising the phony fighter and his crew on how to stage an attack, flaunting his training and combat expertise. Later that month, he sent illustrations of battlefield maneuvers from the U.S. Army Field Manual accompanied with detailed explanations over encrypted messaging apps.

The following month, Bridges allegedly outlined potential attack targets in New York City, including the citys 9/11 memorial. In December, he walked the undercover agents through a potential attack on American troops stationed in the Middle East, providing color-coded unit schematics and tactical formations. At one point, they sent Bridges a grainy satellite image of an imaginary ISIS desert compound targeted by American forces and requested advice; Bridges returned a marked-up diagram detailing where the fighters should position their RPGs, machine guns, and booby traps.

Bridges faces up to 40 years in prison. He is slated for sentencing on Nov. 2.
Song for a war-torn heart: This Ukrainian has an American dream, but heres why she stays

Viktoriia Tarasiuk, country manager for Ukraine and director of the August Mission Foundation of Ukraine, turns in excitement after playing a piano while touring a rehab hospital in Ukraine on Saturday, May 6, 2023. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News

Viktoriia Vicky Tarasiuk gasped when she saw the glossy black piano.

Our group, a handful of members of a delegation from Utah, was exploring a soon-to-be opened wing of the Unbroken National Rehabilitation Center, a rebuilt structure connected by a glass bridge to the Lviv First Medical Union, a hospital in a western region of Ukraine that has taken in thousands of the wars wounded.

Why do we call it Unbroken? We have an unbroken spirit. The body can be broken, but the spirit will live forever, our guide, Christina Klymko, Unbroken project manager for the Lviv Fist Medical Union, told us.

Light poured in from the windows in the bright white hallway where we had gathered. We were chattering about what we had seen: a Soviet-era nuclear bomb shelter in the basement, modern hospital rooms, prosthetic workshops, and other facilities meant to heal Ukrainians torn apart by war  both physically and mentally. Faces of mothers, fathers, daughters, and sons who have lost hands, feet, arms, and legs line the walls.

Vicky is a 33-year-old Ukrainian mother employed by August Mission, a Utah-based humanitarian nonprofit that was among the first to touch down in Ukraine after Russias full-scale invasion began in February of last year.

Today, as part of her work for August Mission, a key partner in making the Utah trip a reality, Vicky was herding us to the many destinations on our packed schedule. We joked she was our mom for the week, keeping us on track, at times with a stern lets go when we were running late.

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But Vicky also found time for joy, like at this moment in the bright hospital hallway when a piano happened to appear.

Before Vicky worked for August Mission and before her previous job as a hotel manager  where shed eventually have her first encounter with Americans  she was a music teacher. She has played piano since she was 7 years old.

Vicky settled at the piano. Her short blond hair curled under her chin as she tilted her head slightly down to the keys. Then she began to play.

The sad, haunting and yet somehow joyful notes of Leonard Cohens Hallelujah rang out and filled the hall, drowning out our groups chitchat. We fell silent and watched.

With a gentle, graceful stroke of a finger, Vicky ended the song on a soft high note. We broke out in applause.

I needed that moment, Vicky said, with a sheepish smile. Then she stood abruptly, closed the piano, and said, OK, lets go. We burst into laughter.

It was a fleeting but special moment on our last day in Ukraine, where we had seen not only the pain and destruction Ukrainians have suffered  but also their humor and resilience despite countless nights of terror from air raids that continue to hammer even the countrys western regions, far from the front lines in the south and east.

Viktoriia Tarasiuk, country manager for Ukraine and director of the August Mission Foundation of Ukraine, looks over the debris of an Antonov AN-225 at Hostomel Airport in Ukraine on Thursday, May 4, 2023. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News

Music is Vickys emotional outlet, shed tell me later, a strategy she uses to survive a mentally exhausting war even for Ukrainians who have not been wounded or displaced.

Vicky doesnt show it, but shes tired.

Its been well over a year since Russias unprovoked assault on Ukraine shocked the world. Fatigue is setting in, not just among Ukraines citizens, sleep deprived from relentless overnight aerial attacks, but also for small nonprofits like August Mission, which its founder says has seen a slowdown of private donations as the war has dragged on. What was initially a tsunami of contributions has waned to a trickle.

But the missiles and drone strikes keep coming. Sometimes they evade Ukraines air defense system. Theyve struck residential buildings, health care facilities and critical infrastructure, at times depriving millions of heating, electricity and clean water. Men, women and children have died in the explosions or from falling debris.

Nowhere is completely safe. And even though Vicky has a standing offer through her employer to live in the U.S.  as well as a dream of American life since she was a little girl  she stays.

***

It was just before dawn on May 13. Ukraines sky was gray and quiet. But not for long.

Sirens wailed from the heart of Khmelnytskyi. From her parents house on the outskirts of the city, a sleeping Vicky didnt hear the distant alarms at first.

The single mother of two daughters stirred awake and checked her phone. Those were indeed air raid sirens  a common occurrence for Ukrainians even this far west from the front lines. The alarms had grown almost routine for many Khmelnytskyi residents, not necessarily meaning their city was in immediate danger.

Vicky rolled over and tried to go back to sleep. So did her parents, along with her 13-year-old daughter, Caroline, who was sleeping on the floor below her. That day, Vickys youngest daughter, Anastasia, 9, wasnt there; she was with her grandmother in another village.

Then  BOOM. A massive explosion ripped through the air, blasting through Vickys open bedroom window. She lurched awake. In the distance, she could see the gray sky glowing red.

Vicky grabbed her phone and started filming through the sheer curtains draped over her bedroom window. Silence. Ten seconds later, another horrible blast. The curtains jumped as if electrocuted. The explosion cracked like thunder and echoed for miles. Car alarms blared in its wake.

That was close. Too close. Vicky and her family headed downstairs. They huddled in the basement together. A third explosion. Then a fourth.

Over the span of three hours, 14 explosions terrified Vicky and her family, shaking the walls and rattling the windows. One of the booms resulted in a massive, white mushroom cloud that Vicky could see from her bedroom. Reports later would indicate the Russians struck an ammunition depot west of the city.

This video was taken by a Ukrainian named Vicky from her bedroom window on May 13 in Khmelnytskyi. She told me it was "absolutely the worst air raid shes experienced amid the war.



Tonight, look for my next report out of Ukraine. Its Vickys story. @August_Mission #utpol pic.twitter.com/XIzlMoKOZO  Katie McKellar (@KatieMcKellar1) June 13, 2023

This happened a week after members of Utahs humanitarian and trade delegation returned to the U.S. after eight days in Ukraine. Vicky sent us her videos in a group chat. We received her texts just after 9 p.m. May 12.

Explosions right next to my house, Vicky messaged us.

When my phone buzzed, I was sitting on the lawn at the Kilby Block Party in Salt Lake City with my husband and some friends. The Yeah Yeah Yeahs were playing, but I dont remember the song because I stopped hearing it as soon as I saw Vickys videos.

A sickening wave of guilt washed over me. Here I was safe at a music festival, surrounded by people dancing and taking selfies while Vicky huddled with her family, holding her breath and hoping one of those strikes wouldnt hit her neighborhood.

This wasnt the first time Vicky and her family would experience terror from air raids. But it was absolutely the worst day so far, she later told me in a video chat.

After hours of explosions, Khmelnytskyi again fell silent. When Vicky stepped outside, the familiar, dreadful smell of burning metal filled her nostrils.

The overnight attack wounded 21 people in Khmelnytskyi, according to the regions administration. Russia had launched 21 drones, and Ukraines military managed to down all but four of them. One hit an infrastructure facility between settlements, and multiple civilian infrastructure sites were damaged as a result of blast waves, the Kyiv Independent reported. Residential buildings, educational and administrative buildings were also damaged.

***

Viktoriia Tarasiuk, country manager for Ukraine and director of the August Mission Foundation of Ukraine poses for a photo while touring a rehab hospital in Ukraine on Saturday, May 6, 2023. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News

The Vicky I came to know in Ukraine dressed sharply and stylishly  often a blazer with a brown belt that matched her loafers. But when I saw her again on a video call a week after our trip, I could see the toll the nightly attacks on Khmelnytskyi were taking on her. She had dark circles under her eyes. Fatigue dragged her voice. But she still seemed in good spirits. She wore a gray and red Utah T-shirt.

Vicky said the air raids have gotten so bad, she now dreads nightfall. Evenings, she said, are full of anxiety. She worries that just being in their own home when it's rattling from the explosions has traumatized her kids.

You remember the feelings, the sounds. Literally, the house is shaking. Doors are opening. Windows are shaking. At times, she said, the glass shatters.

My mental health right now? Oh yeah ... I just need to go out of Ukraine and not hear any air raids (for a while), she said with a faint laugh.

Vickys daughters have been asking her about temporarily leaving Ukraine  it doesnt matter where  to just rest. Shes considering spending a week out of the country, maybe in Albania. But shes torn.

In my mind, Im thinking how can I leave Ukraine (during) the war? Like, no. Were helping people. So many people. In occupied territories, its thousands of people who just need your help.

Mattresses and cots line the floor of a hotel in the city of Khmelnytskyi, Ukraine, in February 2022. Staff at the hotel where Viktoriia Tarasiuk worked turned the hotel into a makeshift refugee center in the weeks after Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022 | Viktoriia Tarasiuk

This is Vicky. Rather than herself, shes thinking of the some 7 million displaced Ukrainians. As August Missions country manager for Ukraine, she helps coordinate humanitarian projects on the ground as well as organize the nonprofits warehouse in Khmelnytskyi.

August Mission discovered her while she was working as a hotel manager in the city. In the early days after the invasion, the luxury boutique hotel and restaurant where Vicky worked turned into a makeshift refugee center. Like almost everything else in Ukraine, the hotel and its restaurant shut down  but employees including Vicky still came to work that day. They started asking themselves, what could they do?

So they collected blankets, pillows, and mattresses and lined the first two floors with beds for refugees. They offered them showers, food, and any other supplies they could get their hands on.

To learn more about August Mission and donate to its cause, visit augustmission.org

When August Missions team touched down in Khmelnytskyi, Vicky was just the person they needed. They were looking to deliver supplies to refugees, and Vicky not only spoke English, but could tell them exactly where they could deliver it. She knew where all the refugee centers were, and even where they could buy food even though many of the markets had shut down.

After three months of volunteering, August Mission hired her full time, impressed by her hard work. Everybody loves Vicky, her boss, August Mission founder Bruce Roberts said.

Even though Roberts said hed support her if she ever decided to move to the U.S. and that August Mission would act as her financial sponsor, she grapples internally with leaving her country at its darkest time.

This is even though Ive been dreaming about going to America since I was 15, Vicky told me.

August Mission Foundation Chief Development Officer David Edgel hugs Viktoriia Tarasiuk, country manager for Ukraine and director of the August Mission Foundation of Ukraine, at their small warehouse in Khmelnytskyi, Ukraine, on Monday, May 1, 2023. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News

She learned English by watching American movies. Beethoven, the wholesome film of a lovable St. Bernard and his family, was a favorite. Young Vicky fell in love with the picturesque suburban neighborhood depicted in the movie, how all the front yards seemed so open and connected. She contrasted that with the walled off yards that segregate the typical Ukrainian home. And she marveled at how the family allowed such a big dog inside. Ukrainians tend to keep big dogs outside.

I was like, I want to live that life, she said.

Vicky was 20 when she married and had kids. Years later, she and her husband divorced when they realized they didnt want the same things in life. It was a hard time for her, but it spurred her to travel and see the world. The first time she left Ukraine, she went to Turkey, alone, then again with her daughters.

Eventually, Vicky would visit 10 countries, including the U.S. Earlier this year, she traveled to Utah with August Mission. She had planned to stay five days, but the trip stretched to three weeks due to extended meetings. Those talks helped lead to the Utah delegations trade and humanitarian mission to Ukraine.

But at least for now, those trips out of the country are temporary. She always comes home.

During a tour of August Missions warehouse in Khmelnytskyi, Vicky beamed with pride as she showed us her desk nestled in the corner. A blue and yellow Ukrainian flag covered with signatures from front-line soldiers who had received a shipment of hygiene supplies, hung on the wall behind it.

Viktoriia Tarasiuk, country manager for Ukraine and director of the August Mission Foundation of Ukraine, shows a few items she keeps at her workstation with friends and delegation members while at their small warehouse in Khmelnytskyi, Ukraine, on Monday, May 1, 2023. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News

This is the most special thing in the warehouse, she said, choking back tears. She said she keeps it here to show volunteers how thankful fighters are for the aid theyre delivering.

That was just one of many moments when Vickys pride and patriotism for her country boiled over into raw emotion. Another was in a delegation meeting with Violetta Labazuik, head of the Khmelnytskyi Regional Council.

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I heard Vickys breathing become shallow and shaky as those around her expressed their support for her country. Her eyes welled with tears. She took several deep breaths, fighting to keep them at bay. Later, in a shuttle on the way to a hospital caring for wounded soldiers, Vicky told me it touched her that we would fly from the other side of the world to simply show up for Ukraine.

Those are very important words for me: You are not alone. We just need to know that we are actually not alone. Thats it. Vicky said through tears. And you can see theyre saying it with their whole heart.

Viktoriia Tarasiuk, country manager for Ukraine and director of the August Mission Foundation of Ukraine, becomes emotional as she sits in on a meeting with government leaders of Khmelnytskyi Oblast Ukraine on Monday, May 1, 2023. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News

***

Roberts, August Missions founder and CEO, and I sat in the back seat as we jostled our way down a rough road on the last leg toward Kyiv. The closer we got, the more often we saw bombed out buildings and homes.

Roberts was already running on almost no sleep just days into the whirlwind tour across Ukraine. Without August Mission, the trip wouldnt have been possible. The idea started with Roberts before it grew to a more than 30-person delegation. The August Mission team worked day and night behind the scenes alongside World Trade Center Utah to connect with Ukrainian government officials and sort out travel logistics.

This day, perhaps like most days, Roberts was anxious about the challenge to keep fundraising steady so August Mission can keep bringing aid to Ukraine. Even as the prolonged fighting makes daily headlines, its not at the forefront like it was at the onset of the invasion.

Were seeing donor fatigue, Roberts said.

Like most small businesses, most nonprofits fail in the first five years because they fail to raise money. And its extremely difficult to raise money consistently. And the excitement and motivation around specific causes sort of waxes and wanes.

Though August Mission poured a lot of its resources into Utahs delegation, it didnt result in any financial gains for the nonprofits humanitarian work, Roberts told me in the weeks following our return. Delegation members paid their own way, but time and logistics are costly. The August Mission team facilitated all operational planning across Poland and Ukraine.

Weve made nothing from this trip. As a matter of fact, it was actually maybe even a loss for the cost we incurred, then spending a couple of months doing it.

What hed hoped to help accomplish, however, was to forge tight bonds between Utah and Ukraine that he hopes will last well beyond the war and for decades as Ukraine rebuilds. The aim was to drive long-term economic development and bring billions of dollars into their economy through business relationships.

Bruce Roberts, founder and CEO of August Mission, stands on a bus talking with delegation members as they travel into Ukraine from Poland on Monday, May 1, 2023. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News

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The trip was a huge success on that front, Roberts said. He was there, along with other members of the Utah group at 55 separate engagements, including with 10 government ministries and a concluding visit with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

But those are the types of things that are hard to leverage for fundraising, Roberts said. Its not the type of thing that drives people to open their wallets.

In 2022, he said August Mission delivered more than $18 million worth of humanitarian aid in Ukraine, from mattresses to medical supplies to hospital generators. He describes the organization as the Swiss army knife of nonprofits. We do a little bit of everything and try to focus on solving problems for people rather than trying to specialize in any one area.

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Roberts team is starting new projects in the weeks and months following the trip. Today, theyre fundraising to help Khmelnytskyi repair the damage from the May attacks. Roberts also hopes August Mission will organize three more delegations over the next six to nine months that will focus on energy infrastructure, agriculture and medical support. Meanwhile, August Mission continues to ship aid through Poland.

Utah and Ukrainian officials are also exploring establishing an official sister city relationship with Khmelnytskyi.

For Utahns and other Americans, Roberts has this plea: Dont forget about Ukraine.

***

Children and adults play in a fountain in a square of Lviv Oblast in western Ukraine on Friday, May 5, 2023. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News

On our last night in Ukraine, my colleague, photographer Scott Winterton, and I wandered the streets of Lviv, taking in the strangely romantic, even fairy-tale-like scenery around us.

The historic European architecture. The cathedrals. The cobblestone streets. Kids played in a splash pad at the citys square. Restaurant patios were packed. Teenage girls wearing crop tops danced while filming a TikTok. Couples hugged and kissed in the streets. Ukrainians carried on despite the war, relishing moments of freedom, joy and beauty.

On the street, a violinist played a rendition of the popular pop song, Titanium by David Guetta. The lyrics sounding in my head made me think of Vicky, the musician, the protective mother and the fiercely loyal Ukrainian who has so much love for her country. And I thought of all the other Ukrainians like her who lie awake at night with fire erupting in their skies.

Fire away, fire away. You shoot me down, but I wont fall. I am titanium.

Related

People board a train in Lviv Oblast of western Ukraine on Friday, May 5, 2023. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News

A flag representing Americas support of Ukraine hangs on the balcony of an apartment in Lviv Oblast of western Ukraine on Friday, May 5, 2023. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News

People talk and look at their phones in Lviv Oblast of western Ukraine on Friday, May 5, 2023. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News

Lviv Oblast of western Ukraine on Friday, May 5, 2023. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News

Two women talk while enjoying the afternoon at an outdoor cafe in Lviv Oblast in western Ukraine on Friday, May 5, 2023. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News

Children and adults play in a fountain in a square of Lviv Oblast in western Ukraine on Friday, May 5, 2023. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News

Children and adults take photos in a square in Lviv Oblast in western Ukraine on Friday, May 5, 2023. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News

Viktoriia Tarasiuk, country manager for Ukraine and director of the August Mission Foundation of Ukraine, listens to a meeting with agriculture officials in Kyiv, Ukraine, on Wednesday, May 3, 2023. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News

Viktoriia Tarasiuk, country manager for Ukraine and director of the August Mission Foundation of Ukraine, sits down and play a piano while touring a rehab hospital in Ukraine on Saturday, May 6, 2023. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News

Viktoriia Tarasiuk, country manager for Ukraine and director of the August Mission Foundation of Ukraine, gives instructions to members of a Utah delegation before leaving for a meeting with agriculture officials in Kyiv, Ukraine, on Wednesday, May 3, 2023. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News

Bruce Roberts, founder and CEO of August Mission, poses for photos with Violetta Labazuik, head of the Khmelnytskyi Regional Council, following a meeting with government officials and members of the Utah delegation in Khmelnytskyi, Oblast Ukraine, on Monday, May 1, 2023. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News

Viktoriia Tarasiuk, country manager for Ukraine and director of the August Mission Foundation of Ukraine, talks with friends and delegation members as they walk toward their small warehouse in Kyiv, Ukraine, on Monday, May 1, 2023. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News

Viktoriia Tarasiuk, country manager for Ukraine and director of the August Mission Foundation of Ukraine, talks with UTah delegation members while visiting the debris of the Antonov AN-225 at Hostomel Airport on Monday, May 4, 2023. The plane was destroyed by Russian strikes outside of Kyiv, Ukraine. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
A South Carolina teacher had her AP lesson shut down after students snitched that she planned to have them read Ta-Nehisi Coates' memoir

Ta-Nehisi Coates' 2015 memoir "Between the World and Me" received praise for its dissections of systemic racism and its impact in America. Gary Leonard/Getty Images

A South Carolina teacher's lesson was shut down after students complained they were uncomfortable.

The AP English lesson included reading Ta-Nehisi Coates' 2015 memoir on racism "Between the World and Me."

PEN America called the removal of Coates' work "an outrageous act of government censorship."

A South Carolina teacher's AP lesson that would have used Ta-Nehisi Coates' 2015 memoir "Between the World and Me" was shut down after students complained the material made them uncomfortable and could violate state laws by discussing systemic racism.

This past spring, Chapin High School English teacher Mary Wood included Coates' book in her lesson plan before the AP English Language exam, according to lesson plans and documents obtained by The State.

The lesson asked students to analyze Coates' arguments in "Between the World and Me," specifically around systemic racism in America  but students complained that videos they watched before reading the book made them "uncomfortable," according to the documents, The State said.

"I actually felt ashamed to be Caucasian," one student said to the school board, The State reported. "These videos portrayed an inaccurate description of life from past centuries that she is trying to resurface. I don't feel as though it is right because these videos showed antiquated history. I understand in AP Lang, we are learning to develop an argument and have evidence to support it, yet this topic is too heavy to discuss."

Another student wrote to the school board that Wood told students she hoped she wouldn't get fired for the lesson, while a third student said the discussions around systemic racism were likely "illegal" in South Carolina, The State said.

The students' complaints prompted the school board and principal to step in, leading to the book being removed from the lesson plan, The State said.

Wood said in the documents that she had taught Coates' memoir the prior academic year with no issue, The State added.

Both Wood and Chapin High School did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.

The move has sparked a response from PEN America, a nonprofit organization defending free expression in literature. On Tuesday, Jeremy C. Young, a program director at the nonprofit, called the removal of the book "an outrageous act of government censorship."

Young compared the situation to the AP African American Studies course debacle in Florida, which also involved the removal Coates' writing from lesson plans.

Coates did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.

South Carolina Republicans are pushing forward with plans to restrict how public schools teach material related to various topics of race and racism. Though a Senate-approved bill doesn't specifically cite so-called "critical race theory"  the university-level academic frameworks that's become a target of conservatives nationwide  the legislation lets parents challenge lessons that teach about implicit bias or white privilege, according to the Associated Press.

That bill is still winding its way through the state's GOP-controlled House of Representatives and hasn't been made law yet.

Read the original article on Business Insider
The Rev. Linda Barnes Popham sings with the choir at Fern Creek Baptist Church in Louisville, Ky. The church was expelled from the Southern Baptist Convention along with Orange County's Saddleback Church for having female pastors. (Jessie Wardarski / Associated Press)

The Southern Baptist Convention on Wednesday refused to readmit Saddleback Church, rejecting appeals by the Orange County megachurch after it was ousted for having female pastors.

During their annual meeting in New Orleans, Southern Baptist church representatives also voted to uphold the executive committee's February decision to expel Fern Creek Baptist Church in Louisville, Ky., over female pastors. They finalized the ouster of a third congregation, Freedom Church in Vero Beach, Fla., for lack of intent to cooperate in resolving concerns regarding a sexual abuse allegation.

About 89% of the representatives voted in support of expelling Saddleback, with 92% and 96% voting to finalize the ouster of Fern Creek Baptist and Freedom Church, respectively.

Saddleback Church, based in Lake Forest, is one of the largest congregations in the U.S. and had been the second-largest in the Southern Baptist Convention.

After founding pastor Rick Warren retired from the evangelical church last year, he appointed Andy Wood as head pastor. Wood's wife, Stacie Wood, began serving as a teaching pastor after three women were ordained in 2021: Liz Puffer, Cynthia Petty and Katie Edwards. At Fern Creek, Linda Popham has been a full-time pastor since 1993.

Warren asked the Southern Baptist delegates during the meeting to "agree to disagree" on the subject of having female pastors.

Rick Warren, founding pastor of Saddleback Church, makes an appeal to the Southern Baptist Convention during its annual meeting in New Orleans on Tuesday. (Peter Smith / Associated Press)

What we share in common is a mutual commitment to the infallibility of Gods word and the great commission of Jesus Christ, Warren said. No one is asking any Southern Baptist church to change their theology. Im not asking you to agree with my church, Im asking you to act like a Southern Baptist, who have historically agreed to disagree on dozens of doctrines.

Saddleback is "eager to turn the corner and focus our attention on the exciting ministry in our near future," Warren said in a statement. "We wish the best for the SBC and pray for Gods grace upon its future."

In a news conference after the vote, Southern Baptist Convention President Bart Barber said women have broad participation in voting bodies across member churches and serve as messengers, or representatives at Southern Baptist Conventions.

Its just that when we read the Scriptures, we come to the conclusion that the office of pastor, which also means elder or overseer, that that office is limited to men, he said.

The Southern Baptist Convention banned female pastors in its Faith and Message doctrine , its statement of core beliefs, in 2000.

On Wednesday, Southern Baptist Convention representatives also approved a constitutional amendment through a two-thirds vote to clarify the organization's stance on women serving as pastors.

The motion, which was brought forth by Virginia pastor Mike Law last year, would add a point stipulating that churches can employ or appoint "only men as any kind of pastor or elder as qualified by the Scripture." It requires another two-thirds vote at next year's annual meeting to add it to the constitution.

"Southern Baptists know what a pastor is," said Juan Sanchez, senior pastor of High Pointe Baptist Church in Austin, Texas, who was in favor of the motion. "The Baptist Faith and Message is clear. However, not all messengers agree. This motion would state in positive language what we believe."

After the vote reaffirming the decision to oust Saddleback, Warren said in a YouTube video that he wasn't surprised and that he made his appeal "knowing we weren't going to win." He compared the movement to that of William Wilberforce, a British politician who lobbied to abolish the slave trade in Great Britain and triumphed after 17 years.

"I wanted to push the conversation," Warren said. "I wanted to speak up for millions of Southern Baptist women, who I believe their spiritual gifts and their leadership gifts and talents are being wasted. And we can't complete the Great Commission if 50% of our population sits on the shelf."

Warren highlighted that the vote wasn't unanimous.

"The next generation of Southern Baptists, they're not here," he added. "I can guarantee that change will happen at some point."

Other Southern Baptists have also spoken out against the vote.

Dwight McKissic, senior pastor of Cornerstone Baptist Church in Arlington, Texas, aired his grievances with the vote on Twitter.

"Todays vote is about a social identity order, that the old south wants to maintain on the gender issue in SBC life," he wrote. "Its not about scripture order, and identity."

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
"Southern Charm" star Taylor Ann Green is mourning the death of her brother, Richard Worthington Green, who was referred to by loved ones as Worth. He passed at the age of 36.

The Green family acknowledged his passing in a statement provided to NBC News.

"Worth left this world on top of the world  he had a beautiful passion for life and cared deeply for those around him. We are going to miss his jovial personality and all of the love and laughter that he brought his family, girlfriend and countless friends," the statement said. "Heartbroken is an understatement, but we are finding so much peace knowing he is in the arms of our Heavenly Father."

The Green family then asked for privacy going forward.

News of Worth Green's passing was seemingly first shared by his other sister, Catie King, on June 12.

"You are the best big brother I could have ever asked for. This family will never be the same," she wrote in a tribute post on Instagram. "I love you to the moon and back."

Taylor Ann Green has not yet publicly commented outside of the family's statement.

BravoCon - Season 2022 (Bravo / Astrid Stawiarz/Bravo via Getty)

In an obituary shared to the website for Westmoreland Funeral Home in Marion, North Carolina, the Green family celebrated Worth Green's religion and devotion to family.

They noted the 36-year-old had "recently started a small mens group in Raleigh to reflect on life and challenge each others faith in Christ.

"There is no doubt Worth is now in deep, meaningful conversations with Jesus about any and everything."

The obituary added that Worth Green "loved his family dearly."

"Any excuse to be with them, he truly loved with his whole heart," the obituary reads. "He was a vivacious and loving son and grandson, and the best big brother to his sisters, always being there as a protector and a cheerleader."

Worth Green had also recently started a relationship with a woman named Caroline, the obituary said, whom he "adored and treasured."

"He loved her enough to bring her home to his family and was beginning to plan a future with her by his side," the obituary reads. "Friends too numerous to name will miss the exuberant love for life that Worth brought to them."

The family is holding a celebration of life service for Worth Green on June 17 in Marion, North Carolina.

Correction: On June 14, 2023, upon initial publishing, the image on this story was of another cast member of "Southern Charm." The image has since been corrected.

This article was originally published on TODAY.com
SpaceXs Starship was forced to self destruct on its first flight test from Starbase in Boca Chica, Texas on April 20, 2023.

Were still not over the sight of SpaceXs Starship rocket exploding in a fiery flame following its first-ever liftoff, but the company is reportedly ready to see its heavy-duty launch vehicle fly once again.

On Tuesday, the companys CEO Elon Musk wrote on Twitter that Starships next flight test will take place in six to eight weeks. Starship launched for the first time on April 20 for a less-than-ideal test flight in which a few of the rockets engines failed in flight and the two-stage heavy-lift launch vehicle was forced to self-destruct. It also took the rocket 40 seconds to respond to the self-destruct command, another worrying aspect of its debut flight.

Read more

Starships first launch sent a cloud of dust and debris to the surrounding area, causing damage to the launchpad. SpaceX is reportedly repairing the launchpad and adding upgrades to prevent future damage, including installing a water deluge system at its Starbase facility in South Texas. The company recently tested its water-cooled steel plate against the mighty fire from one of the rockets engines.

Raptor test firing into a water cooled steel plate  pic.twitter.com/oXUp5PGqbf  SpaceX (@SpaceX) May 19, 2023

SpaceX also moved its next Starship prototype, Ship 25, to the launch mount ahead of a static fire test, Teslarati reported. The static fire test will fire the second stages six Raptor engines. Ship 25 will be mounted atop Booster 9 for the upcoming test flight. The booster has some upgrades compared to the one that was used for Aprils test flight, namely the switch from hydraulic thrust vector controls to electric thrust vector controls, which is aimed at preventing Starships anomaly during its first liftoff, according to Teslarati.

With all these repairs underway, SpaceX still needs the green light from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to launch Starship for a second test flight. The administration grounded Starship pending an ongoing investigation into its botched flight. The FAA is also battling a lawsuit related to the botched launch, which prompted a coalition of conservation and Texas-local non-profit groups to sue over its approval of SpaceXs Starship activities in Boca Chica. SpaceX recently filed to fight alongside the FAA in this lawsuit.

SpaceX isnt the only entity waiting to see Starship fly. NASA is also eager for Starships upcoming test since SpaceX is under a $2.89 billion contract to use a lunar lander version of its Starship rocket in landing humans on the Moon by late 2025 as part of the space agencys Artemis 3 mission, and then again for Artemis 4 in 2028, under a separate $1.15 billion contract signed last year. Jim Free, NASAs associate administrator for exploration systems development, recently expressed concern that the Artemis 3 mission could suffer delays due to Starship.

Musks ambitious timeline is pretty on brand for the rocket CEO, who kept promising fictitious launch dates for Starships first test flight that never materialized until the rocket finally took off earlier this year...and then exploded.

For more spaceflight in your life, follow us on Twitter and bookmark Gizmodos dedicated Spaceflight page.

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overhead view of tacos

Indulge in the vibrant flavors of Mexico and Hawaii right in New York Citys Tribeca neighborhood with two exceptional restaurants. First, step into Fonda, a hidden gem that seamlessly blends traditional Mexican techniques with modern culinary artistry. From the moment you enter, the inviting ambiance and warm hospitality envelop you, setting the stage for an unforgettable dining experience. Prepare your taste buds for a symphony of flavors as you savor expertly crafted dishes that showcase the finest ingredients, from tender carne asada to delicate seafood ceviche.

Meanwhile, at El TaKoy, prepare to be captivated by a contemporary Hawaiian fusion that pushes culinary boundaries. With innovative twists on classic dishes and a creative cocktail menu, you wont be disappointed. Immerse yourself in the lively atmosphere and let the aromas of authentic spices and herbs transport you to the vibrant streets of Mexico and Hawaii. Both locations serve their own take on the legendary taco, and Travel Noire is here to share these restaurant experiences with you.

Fonda

Photo Credit: Tyler White

Renowned chef and accomplished cookbook author Roberto Santibanez has masterfully curated a culinary haven within New York Citys Tribeca. Fonda effortlessly blends relaxed and affordable dining with the essence of contemporary Mexican cuisine.

With remarkable attention to detail and an unwavering commitment to authenticity, Santibanez artfully marries the cherished traditions of his hometown, Mexico City, with the innovative flair of urban gastronomy. At Fonda, every element is meticulously crafted. The tortillas are skillfully hand-pressed, the guacamole is freshly prepared upon order, and the margaritas are expertly concocted to create a symphony of flavors.

This month, in a joyous celebration of Pride, Fonda has joined forces with Supergay Vodka, pledging a portion of proceeds from two exquisite specialty cocktailsthe House of Fonda and Purple Poseto benefit SAGE, an esteemed organization dedicated to enhancing the lives of LGBTQ+ elders. Delight your senses with a visit to Fonda, where culinary excellence and social advocacy harmoniously converge to create an unforgettable dining experience.

El TaKoy

Photo Credit: El TaKoy

El TaKoy, the brainchild of renowned chef Luis Pous, has arrived in the heart of New York City, gracing the Terrace on 7 at The Dominick Hotel with its innovative culinary prowess. Following a successful launch in South Miami last year, this brand has set its sights on captivating the discerning palates of New Yorkers.

Combining the rich flavors of modern Asian and Hawaiian cuisine, El TaKoy promises a gastronomic experience that will transport diners to the sun-kissed shores of Hawaii. Beyond its tantalizing menu, the restaurants design palette has been carefully curated to evoke the essence of this island paradise.

This vibrant establishment serves as a refreshing departure from the trend of Manhattan venues expanding to Miami, instead bringing the dynamic energy of Miami to the vibrant Soho scene. As the summer unfolds, New Yorkers can revel in the vibrant and eclectic spirit of El TaKoy, immersing themselves in an unforgettable fusion of flavors and cultural influences.
A Springfield man was sentenced Tuesday to 15 years in prison for possessing and distributing a large amount of methamphetamine for several months last year.

Vonta L. Commer, 37, was arrested last March on charges that he possessed at least five pounds of methamphetamine with the intent to distribute it. He had been in custody since the arrest and reached a plea deal on one count of possession of 50 grams or more of meth with intent to distribute on Jan. 6.

According to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Central District of Illinois, prosecutors said at sentencing that Commer, in addition to possessing the large amount of meth, had also been distributing the drugs for several months prior to his arrest on March 1, 2022. The initial complaint filed with the U.S. District Court said that Commer had provided information to Drug Enforcement Administration agents that he had sold at least four pounds of meth each month, with another pound of meth at his home in the 200 block of South David Street.

More: HSHS President and CEO Boatwright to chair Catholic Health Association board

The DEA and its law enforcement partners soon executed a search warrant at both his home and the home of his father down the street and found the five pounds Commer told them about. He was arrested shortly thereafter and placed into custody.

Prosecutors also said that Commer was a repeat offender, having a variety of convictions for drug-related offenses along with armed robbery and battery. He also was drug dealing while on supervised release for a 2013 state conviction for drug distribution in which he had been sentenced to 10 years in prison on similar charges, records show.

In addition to the 15-year sentence, Commer was also sentenced to five years supervised release following his prison term.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Sarah Seberger, who prosecuted the case, said that the work done by the DEA, Illinois State Police and the Springfield Police Department had helped to ensure the safety of the public by removing drugs and drug offenders off the streets.

"The U.S. Attorneys Office remains dedicated to keeping the community safe  which includes stemming the tide of drugs distributed on our streets by individuals such as Mr. Commer," Seberger said. "We thank our local and federal law enforcement partners for their work on this case."

This article originally appeared on State Journal-Register: Springfield man sentenced on federal drug charges
Nurses at Ascension Via Christi St. Joseph have voted to give their recently joined union permission to call a strike, according to a Wednesday morning news release sent out by the union.

The strike wouldnt happen until 10 days after the union notified Ascension, which has not happened.

The move comes weeks after St. Francis nurses voted to authorize a strike and while nurses at both hospitals are negotiating with administrators on a contract. Nurses contend Ascension is putting profits before patients, according to news releases.

At St. Joseph, 90% of nurses voted in favor of authorizing a strike. Its unclear how many of the 300-plus nurses voted or if all were allowed to vote.

The National Nurses Organizing Commission, an affiliate of the countrys largest registered nurses union, National Nurses United, did not immediately respond to questions about the vote, nor did they respond when St. Francis voted.

We have a staffing crisis at our hospital because management refuses to get serious about nurse recruitment and retention, said Marvin Ruckle, an RN in the neonatal intensive care unit, said in the news release. We know a strong union contract is the best way to address this, and were prepared to show management that well fight for our patients at the table and on the strike line.

In a statement, Ascension said they are bargaining in good faith with the union. The statement said that the authorization is disappointing since officials and the union have only had one meeting and had more planned through the end of August.

Ascension hasnt received the 10-day strike notice for St. Francis or St. Joseph, but, if they do, they have a comprehensive contingency plan in place to ensure our patients experience no disruption in care or service.

In March, registered nurses at St. Joseph voted 179 to 108 (about 62 percent) in favor of joining the National Nurses Organizing Commission. The vote came a few months after registered nurses at St. Francis voted 378 to 194 (about 66 percent) to join the union. They are the only two Ascension hospitals in Kansas to unionize.

Both hospitals unionized amid a national shortage of registered nurses. Many nurses left their careers in the wake of the pandemic, which sent hospitals scrambling to add more beds and left people waiting for care.

Ascension is a Catholic, not-for-profit healthcare system. Ascension is one of the largest healthcare systems in the country, with roughly 139,000 employees and hospitals in about 19 states.

In December, a New York Times investigation into Ascension found the staffing shortages at its hospitals were caused by years of staffing cuts in order to increase profits.
Staff member at Henderson School knocked out for 2 mins after altercation with student, police say

A staff member at the Henderson Inclusion School in Dorchester lost consciousness for close to two minutes on Tuesday when trying to break up an altercation between students and was assaulted, according to a Boston police report.

Boston school employee hospitalized after allegedly being assaulted by student, officials say

The incident happened at the schools upper campus shortly after 11:30 a.m. when the staff member heard the student say something inappropriate to another student and approached the situation, police said.

Some words were exchanged between the two parties before the student pushed the staff member as he stepped back, police said.

The suspect pushed him again and grabbed a hold of the front of his shirt and would not let go police said. It took 3-4 staff members to get the suspect off of the victim as he continued to hold onto his shirt.

Several staff members then jumped in and pulled the student away from the employee. The victim fell onto the floor during the assault and lost consciousness for 1-2 minutes, police said in the report.

The staffer, accompanied by another employee, drove himself to a hospital once he regained consciousness. 911 was not notified, police said.

He told doctors he had no memory of the struggle and police said he suffered a possible head injury and chipped tooth.

The students parents were notified and his father came to the school to pick him up, police said. The student faces action under the Boston public schools disciplinary code, officials said. It wasnt clear if criminal charges will be brought against him.

Just last year another Henderson School student was charged with attacking the principal in 2021, after knocking her unconscious and sending her to the hospital.

The Henderson and all Boston Public Schools are committed to fostering environments where all students and staff feel safe, welcome, and respected, Interim Head of School Stephanie Sibley said in a letter sent to families after Tuesdays assault. We are sharing this important update with you as part of our commitment to open communication and transparency. Please know the safety and security of all students and staff is one of our most important priorities.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.

Download the FREE Boston 25 News app for breaking news alerts.

Follow Boston 25 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch Boston 25 News NOW
The new star in Congress is quite fake

Staff members carefully guided Marty into his new spot in a senator's office. Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images

Capitol Hill staffers encountered an outsized attraction in an institution increasingly known for them.

It arrived via a loading dock, and goes by the name, Marty.

Marty turned a lot of heads.

Congressional staffers in a Capitol Hill office building encountered a new and outsized attraction in an institution increasingly known for them. Known as Marty, it arrived via a loading dock.

Marty quickly shed the moving blanket he'd worn into the building, to reveal a head-turning frame: muscular, over 6-feet tall and hirsute.

Marty is a moose. The stuffed animal is now the main attraction, of sorts, for a celebration of New Hampshire alongside maple syrup and the state's entrepreneurial spirit.

Marty was escorted to his new digs via half a dozen aides to New Hampshire's Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, as they alternately guided him by his hind legs and his head; his pretty fake-looking sewn antlers were removed for the journey.

Marty's arrival, flanked by aides, prompted onlookers to smile and snap photos as his bulky frame passed.

Aides guided Marty through the Hart Senate office building. Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images

The aides rolled him into Shaheen's office in Hart Senate office building where he was planted in a prominent spot near staffers' desks.

Of course, no one could really get this close to one of the Granite State's 3,300 or so living moose; adult males can weigh up to 1,600 pounds and moose are known to stomp and charge when they feel threatened..

Marty isn't alone as an attraction in the Experience New Hampshire event put on by Shaheen and fellow New Hampshire lawmakers. He's been joined by Kodak the bear.

A staff member looks on as Marty, now with his antlers, gets set up in Sen. Shaheen's office. Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images

Read the original article on Business Insider
Starbucks denied allegations from its workers union on Tuesday that the company is banning Pride decorations in stores.

There has been no change to any policy on this matter and we continue to encourage our store leaders to celebrate with their communities, including for U.S. Pride month in June, Starbucks spokesperson Andrew Trull said in a statement, according to NBC News.

Were deeply concerned by false information that is being spread especially as it relates to our inclusive store environments, our company culture, and the benefits we offer our partners, he added.

However, Starbucks Workers United has maintained it is hearing reports from stores across the country that workers have not been allowed to decorate for Pride month or that Pride flags have been taken down.

This is contrary to previous years when workers were allowed, and even encouraged, to put up pride decorations without incident, it said in a statement posted to Twitter on Tuesday.

The group accused Starbucks of engaging in an anti-union campaign to intimidate workers and make them feel unwelcome in their own workplace.

Starbucks claims to be a true ally, but they refuse to stand up for workers, especially during a time when LGBTQIA+ people are under attack, they added.

The allegations come as several companies have faced backlash from conservatives over their Pride month activities or other acts of support for the LGBTQ community.

Target pulled some of its Pride merchandise and moved Pride displays to the back of stores in some Southern states last month, after encountering threats impacting our team members sense of safety and wellbeing while at work.

Stores in at least five states were evacuated last weekend after receiving bomb threats over the companys Pride collection.

Bud Light, owned by Anheuser-Busch, also faced a boycott by conservatives earlier this year, after partnering with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
Starbucks ordered to pay $25 million to ex-manager who claimed she was fired because she was white

A former regional director has won $25 million in damages after she sued Starbucks and claimed she was fired because she was white in the months following a 2018 viral video. Bastiaan Slabbers/NurPhoto via Getty Images

Starbucks was ordered to pay $25.6 million in damages to a former employee this week.

Shannon Phillips claimed she was fired from her role as a regional director because she was white.

After a 2018 viral video, Phillips pushed back on disciplining a white manager who wasn't involved, she said.

Starbucks has been ordered to pay $25.6 million in damages to a former regional director who sued the company in the wake of a controversy that saw two Black men arrested while sitting at a coffee shop.

The director  who disagreed with Starbucks' handling of the issue that triggered a nationwide discussion on race  had claimed in a lawsuit that she was fired because she was white.

Shannon Phillips said in the lawsuit, filed in 2019, that her firing came in the wake of a 2018 viral video that sparked outrage and accusations of racism against Starbucks and against the employees of the Philadelphia store where the video took place.

Just over five years later, a jury in US District Court in New Jersey found on Monday that Starbucks discriminated against Phillips by firing her, which she claimed happened at least in part because she was a white woman. In the original complaint filed in 2019, Phillips said she worked her way up from being hired as a district manager in Ohio in 2005 to being promoted to a regional director overseeing about 100 stores in 2011.

The 2018 incident, captured on video, showed two Black men who said they were waiting for a third person in a Philadelphia Starbucks. One of the men eventually asked to use the restroom and was denied. Employees said they cited company policy that restrooms were for paying customers only.

The men were at one point asked to leave, employees said, and an employee ended up calling the police on them after they refused  accusing the pair of trespassing. The men were arrested, but Starbucks did not end up pressing charges. The incident drew outrage as the employees were accused of discriminating against the men, and led to apologies from the company and then-CEO Kevin Johnson.

They eventually settled a lawsuit against Starbucks and the city, but it wasn't the only legal action Starbucks faced in the wake of the viral moment. Phillips sued Starbucks in 2019, accusing the coffee giant of discriminating against her.

In the weeks following the video and criticism, Starbucks closed all 8,000 of its US locations so its employees could take part in racial bias training sessions. Around that time, Phillips claimed she was instructed by her superiors to suspend a white district manager who oversaw stores around Philadelphia, even though, she said, he was not directly involved and did not oversee the store where the incident took place.

She disputed that the white district manager was involved, said she had no performance-based reason to suspend him, and said the store in question was overseen by a Black district manager who was not facing discipline, she said in the suit.

About a year after she pushed back against the proposed discipline, Phillips claimed she was fired and was only told her situation was "not recoverable," despite, she said, receiving a bonus the month before and her superior agreeing she was still doing "exceptional" work.

The company denied in court filings that Phillips' race had anything to do with her firing, and said she failed in doing her job and understanding how serious the situation was as Starbucks was facing intense criticism.

A Starbucks spokesperson declined to comment on the verdict when reached by Insider, but told CNN it was "evaluating its next steps."

Laura Carlin Mattiacci, one of the attorneys representing Phillips, told the New York Times they were "very pleased" with the verdict. Attorneys representing Phillips did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.

Do you work at Starbucks or have a story to share about the company? Contact Aaron McDade via email at amcdade@insider.com. Check out Insider's source guide for our tips on sharing information securely.

Read the original article on Business Insider
With Pride Month underway, Starbucks workers are accusing their company of taking down LGBTQ-themed decorations.

Starbucks tells KIRO 7 it has not changed its policy, but the workers union claims its happening in 21 states.

Starbucks Workers United claims the decorations are being removed due to safety concerns, but Starbucks says thats false information.

At a Kent Starbucks, we saw a Pride flag inside the store Wednesday morning, and we havent heard of any reports of decorations being taken down in Washington.

However, Starbucks Workers United posted a TikTok video that appears to show workers taking down Pride decorations at a store in Wisconsin.

In a tweet, one state lawmaker in Wisconsin also accused the company of alienating customers.

Between this and your union busting, good luck with our customer base. You dont deserve us, it said, in part.

Workers in Oklahoma also claim they were told not to decorate for safety reasons after bomb threats were made against Target stores, which have faced backlash for selling Pride merchandise.

Target already removed some of the items, but Starbucks claims it is not changing anything.

Starbucks told us it is deeply concerned by the false information that is being spread, but Starbucks Workers United accused the company of taking a cue from Target.

We obtained an internal memo that went out to all North American Starbucks corporate and retail leaders.

It says stores are still allowed to decorate for Pride, while also keeping in mind our safety standards.

Starbucks claims it is unaware of any stores banning decorations related to Pride Month, and says the only place that any decorations are not allowed is on front windows.

The company has four decades of being a LGBTQ-friendly business and has a perfect score on the Human Rights Campaigns Corporate Equality Index.








Portrait of Madeleine de France by Corneille de Lyon

Portrait of Madeleine de France (1443-1495), eldest daughter of Francois I, Queen of Scots, first wife of Jacques V. Painting by Corneille de Lyon (Corneille de La Haye) (1500/1510-1574). Oil on wood. 0,22 x 0,31. Castle Museum, Versailles, France Credit - Leemage-Corbis

First, says the art thief, forget about the movies.

Skylight entries, smoke bombs, and shootouts may be cinematic, but unless you want to go to jail, these are terrible tactics for stealing art. Violence and destruction in a museum only minimize your odds of success. Art crime, according to Stephane Breitwieser, is best accomplished when no one knows that its happening.

Breitwieser, a 52-year-old Frenchman, is one of the greatest art thieves of all time. He stole over 300 works from museums and cathedrals across Europe, worth an estimated two billion dollars. While I was preparing to write a book about him, Breitwieser granted me dozens of hours of interviews, during which he revealed in great detail his criminal mind.

Theres never a need, he said, to force open a museum door, or crawl through a window, or rappel through a skylight. Dont even come when the museum is closed. Ideally, arrive during lunch, when the crowds are thinner and the security staff rotates shorthanded to eat. Do not stress about parking the car  anywhere near the museum is fine.

More from TIME

Dont come alone. Youll need a trustworthy accomplice as lookout. Breitwiesers partner was his long-time girlfriend, Anne-Catherine Kleinklaus. To blend in with the tourists, they always dressed sharply. Cooler weather, Breitwieser emphasized, is preferable for stealing. This way, you can wear an overcoat  just make sure that your stealing coat is at least one size too big, and that your pants are a little loose at the waist.

The only tool necessary is a Swiss Army knife. Stash it in a pocket of your coat. The best way to gain access to a museum is through the main entrance. Purchase a ticket for you and your partner in cash. Walk in.

Once inside, note the flow of visitors and check for surveillance cameras. Are the guards sitting or patrolling? Select a side room thats out of the main river of tourists, preferably a gallery with a single entryway and no security camera or permanent guard. Its not hard to find such a spot in many museums, especially smaller ones.

As for the artwork to target, the piece should be small  for a sculpture, about the size of a brick; for a painting, no larger than a pizza box. More importantly, the work must be aesthetically attractive to you. Taking on all this risk for an object you dont like, Breitwieser said, is the mark of a fool.

Station your partner at the entrance to the room. Agree on a warning signal. For Breitwieser and Kleinklaus, theirs was a brief cough. If visitors are in the room, wait for them to exit. Then move swiftly to your targeted item. If the piece is in a display case, the access panel will probably be bolted shut. It doesnt matter; youre not going to pick it  thats difficult and time-consuming. Instead, leave the lock fastened and use what Breitwieser called the silicone slice.

Museum display cases are made of tempered glass or a clear acrylic like Plexiglas or Lucite, usually fused at the edges with silicone glue. A fine surgeons cut will release this seal, and by operating on a corner with the sharpest blade of your Swiss Army knife, hairline incisions both vertical and horizontal, the panels will loosen.

If your partner coughs, stop cutting and push the panels together. They should revert to their original position. Whether its a guard or a tourist that enters, abandon your posts and gaze contemplatively at various works in the room. Allow the gallery to empty again, then return to the mission.

Sometimes there will be two or three such disturbances. Dont spend a suspiciously long time in one room  15 minutes or so is the maximum. If theres too much traffic, abandon the attempt. Try another room, or another day, or another museum.

The beauty of a completed silicone slice is that it permits the panels to flex open just enough to snake a hand through. Grasp your desired piece and wriggle it out through the gap. Now, brush aside your overcoat and tuck the object snugly into the waist of your pants at the small of your back. Readjust your coat so the artwork is covered. There will be a slight lump, but Breitwieser promises that no one will notice.

If youre after a painting, the easy part is removing the work from the wall. Often all you have to do is lift it. The challenge is the frame; even on small paintings, most frames are too bulky to hide beneath an overcoat, no matter how roomy.

Breitwiesers solution: turn the painting over and place it face-down on a display case or the floor. He used his Swiss Army knife to manipulate the clips or nails on the back until the frame was detached. If there was no time for such diligence, he put the work back on the wall and left empty-handed. When he removed a frame, Breitwieser liked to stash it in the gallery behind a window curtain or under a piece of furniture. Empty frames, he said, were his calling card.

To master frame removal, Breitwieser became an expert at putting frames on by apprenticing in a high-quality frame shop. To comprehend the degree to which museum guards actually pay attention, he worked as a guard one summer. Any good thief, he said, should prepare as thoroughly.

A painting thats free of its frame, Breitwieser warned, is as vulnerable as a newborn. With extreme care, place the painting at your back, cushioned between your shirt and overcoat.

Now leave the museum with your partner. No matter how covert your actions, the theft will likely be noticed quickly, triggering an emergency response. The police will be called. The museum could be locked down, and all visitors searched.

Hustle to the museums main exit, but never run, inside the museum or out, even if you hear police sirens approaching  especially then. Walk to your car, place the stolen work gently in the trunk, and drive off.

Do not speed! The last thing you need now is to be stopped by a cop. Once at home, put the work in a place where no one might accidentally see it. Breitwieser and Kleinklaus stashed their loot in the bedroom they shared, which they always kept locked.

Admire your stolen work to your hearts content, but one thing you absolutely can not do, Breitwieser said, is sell it. Trying to sell a stolen piece for money is how most art thieves get caught. Police detectives who specialize in art theft are trained to uncover these transactions. If you need cash, said Breitwieser, get a job. Money can be made with far less danger than art crime.

Steal all the art you want. Starting in 1995, Breitwieser and Kleinklaus committed an average of one theft every two weeks for seven years. But its probably best to rid yourself of any social or moral conscience you might have. Or, you can do as Breitwieser did, find a reason to justify your actions. Rather than an art thief, Breitwieser considered himself an art liberator, freeing masterpieces from uncomfortable and crowded confines. This way, stealing from a museum  one of the miracles of modern society, offering public access to priceless works of communal heritage  wont bother you at all.

Also, it would be best if you did not have any friends or relatives, or need a repair person, because you can never invite anyone into your home.

Finally, do not make any mistakes, either while stealing or hiding art. Being human, you may find this impossible. In which case, be prepared to spend time in jail. Breitwieser was imprisoned for years. Accept that you may have a criminal record for life.

Or, instead, you can just leave the work in a museum and visit it whenever you like.
There are still water issues in some areas of Dnipropetrovsk Oblast after hydroelectric power station explosion

The situation with water supply in some areas of Dnipropetrovsk Oblast after the Kakhovka Hydroelectric Power Plant disaster remains difficult.

Source: Mykola Lukashuk, Head of Dnipropetrovsk Oblast State Council and the deputy head of the defence council of Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, on air with Ukrinform

Quote from Lukashuk: "The situation is the most difficult in the Nikopol district. It is difficult in the three large hromadas of Nikopol, Marhanets and Pokrov [a hromada is an administrative unit designating a town, village or several villages and their adjacent territories  ed.]. There are 20-30 points in each town where drinking water is distributed."

Details: He has added that water, both drinking and industrial, is delivered daily, including by rail.

Lukashuk has also said that almost 1.5 billion hryvnias [approximately US$40.3 million] had been allocated to the Reconstruction Agency to build two new water pipelines to meet the water needs in the future.

Background: On the morning of 6 June, Ukraines Operational Command Pivden (South) reported that Russian occupation forces had blown up the Kakhovka Hydroelectric Power Plant (HPP), completely destroying the dam and the power plant's turbine hall. The plant is beyond repair. The draining of the Kakhovka Reservoir threatens the safety of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant.

The destruction of the Kakhovka Hydroelectric Power Plant has caused an environmental disaster. The water from the reservoir has begun to flood towns and villages, and evacuations of local residents from dangerous areas have begun. It has caused problems with the water supply in the cities of Kryvyi Rih, Marhanets and Nikopol, Dnipropetrovsk Oblast.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy stressed that the disaster at the Kakhovka hydroelectric power station created by the Russians would not stop Ukraine from liberating its own territory and would not increase the chances of the occupiers staying on this land.

Journalists fight on their own frontline. Support Ukrainska Pravda or become our patron!
By Agnieszka Pikulicka-Wilczewska

WARSAW (Reuters) - Abortion rights supporters marched through several cities in Poland on Wednesday after the death of a pregnant woman whose family believe she could have survived if she had been offered a termination.

Protesters chanted "stop killing us" as they marched through the capital Warsaw towards the health ministry headquarters, some carrying placards that said "We want doctors, not missionaries" and "Hell for women," a common slogan used to convey how the measure affects those who are carrying an unwanted or dangerous pregnancy.

Poland's anti-abortion laws, among the strictest in Europe, have provoked mass protests in recent years and the death of the 33-year-old named as Dorota in May has stoked anti-government sentiment among many liberal Poles ahead of elections due in October or November.

In 2021, the nationalist government of Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki put into effect a constitutional court decision banning terminations of pregnancies with foetal defects, as conservative policies increasingly take root in one of Europe's most devout Catholic countries.

Abortion rights activists have said that there were at least five cases of pregnant women dying whose families came out to the media, blaming the restrictions on abortion for their deaths.

Last month, Dorota died of septic shock in a hospital after her water broke in the 20th week of pregnancy. Her husband said nobody informed them of the option to induce a miscarriage, even though the child had very low chances of survival.

In 2021, a 30-year-old woman in the 22nd week of pregnancy, named Izabela, also died of septic shock after doctors waited for her unborn baby's heart to stop beating.

"We've had enough ... we protested when we found out about the death of Izabela almost two years ago and at the time we shouted 'not one more,'" Agnieszka Czerederecka, a founder of the Women's Strike movement in Warsaw, told Reuters. She added that there were protests in around 80 cities.

Jaroslaw Kaczynski, the ruling Law and Justice (PiS) party leader said that by law women could have abortions if there was any threat to their life or health.

"There is no such issue. It's been made up," he said in response to journalists' questions on Wednesday, accusing critics of the policy of "propaganda" and creating an "imaginary reality."

However, critics say that since the Constitutional Tribunal ruling, doctors have been more reluctant to perform terminations even in such cases.

A poll by IBRiS for private Radio Zet showed this week over 70% of Poles believe the strict abortion rules constitute a potential threat to women's life and health.

"I hope the law will change and I will not be afraid to get pregnant in Poland," said Joanna Jedrasiak, 36, an economist.

"I would like to have children very much, and to experience pregnancy, give birth to a healthy child, without the kind of problems that a few women have had and whom we commemorate here today."

(Reporting by Karol Badohal, Agnieszka Pikulicka-Wilczewska and Anna Wlodarczak-Semczuk; Editing by Aurora Ellis)
House Republicans are mounting an all-out campaign to attack the special counsels investigation into former President Donald Trump and looking to use every tool at their disposal to undermine its findings  from subpoenas to the power of the purse strings.

House Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan is exploring ways to force Jack Smith to testify or provide information about the special counsel probe of Trumps handling of classified documents, according to multiple GOP sources familiar with his thinking. Jordan has already demanded the Department of Justice turn over a slew of documents related to the scope of the probe, which Jordan said he wants first, and the execution of the search warrant for Mar-a-Lago. Even before the indictment, Jordan conducted a transcribed interview with a former FBI official about the search.

All options are on the table, Jordan said, when asked about potential subpoenas.

On whether Smith needs to testify to Congress, Jordan said, I think that would be good for the country to hear, but you know, well see.

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy echoed support for the oversight effort, saying Congress has a responsibility to hear from Smith and vowing accountability for the Department of Justice, even before seeing the scope of the charges.

Why did he think President Trump should be treated differently than anybody else? I think the American public does need to know, McCarthy said, drawing a false equivalency with a separate special counsel probe into President Joe Bidens handling of classified documents, which is still ongoing.

The 37-count federal indictment, which includes allegations that Trump obstructed justice, also reignited a push on the right to use spending bills to cut funding to federal law enforcement  a rallying cry for the far right, which has long framed the DOJ and FBI as weaponized against conservatives. Jordan told CNN his Judiciary Committee staff has been working with Appropriations Committee staff on key policy riders that would affect funding for DOJ among other federal agencies. GOP Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia, a fierce acolyte of the former president, is proposing Congress defund the special counsels office, an idea she has raised with Jordan and the far-right House Freedom Caucus during a weekly meeting that turned into a strategy session of how best to defend the former president.

Greene, who spent time with Trump in Georgia over the weekend, told CNN she brought the idea up with the former president, whom she said is very supportive. Greene, who asked the House Freedom Caucus to take an official position on the proposal, also raised the issue during a meeting in McCarthys office on Tuesday afternoon about the upcoming appropriations process.

Everybodys open to it, Greene said. Its all about appropriations. Thats the only power Republicans have is appropriations and so thats where I think we have to work.

Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida, another staunch Trump ally, said he is pressing GOP leadership to get on board with the idea.

Its something I believe in, and I hope House Republicans will rally to that legislative device, Gaetz told CNN.

The growing movement to defund at least portions of the FBI and DOJ comes as the former president has been calling his Capitol Hill allies behind the scenes, including House GOP Conference Chairwoman Elise Stefanik, multiple sources told CNN. Jordan told CNN he spoke with Trump over the weekend and speaks to the former president every week. His team circulated talking points attacking Smith to his Republican allies as part of the coordinated messaging effort ahead of the indictment, according to a copy obtained by CNN.

It all amounts to an extraordinary  and likely futile  effort to intervene in an ongoing criminal investigation, with legal questions surrounding the GOPs ability to force DOJ compliance on the matter and a Democratic-controlled Senate ready to stand in the way of any efforts to defund the agency or the investigation. But its a familiar playbook for Republicans, particularly in the House, as they find themselves under immense pressure to use their majority to run defense for Trump, who remains the frontrunner in the GOP presidential primary.

They launched a similar offensive in the aftermath of the Manhattan district attorneys indictment of Trump in relation to alleged hush money payments made to an adult film star. And there could be additional  and potentially even more damaging  indictments in Trumps future, with both the special counsel and Georgias Fulton County still probing Trumps efforts to overturn the 2020 election.

But not everyone in the GOP is on board with the Republican efforts to meddle into Trumps ongoing legal matters.

I dont think the House has a role, House Armed Services Chairman Mike Rogers, a Republican from Alabama, told CNN.

And over in the Senate, there is even more skepticism. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell has continued to remain silent on the indictment, while other Republicans have expressed deep concern over the serious nature of the allegations.

We cannot take this lightly, so to kill the messenger does not account for the gravity of the indictment that is out there, said Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, one of seven Republican senators who voted to convict Trump in his impeachment trial over the insurrection at the Capitol. I dont care whether youre a Trump supporter or a Trump opposer, you have to take this seriously.

At least one GOP senator, however, sought to use their limited powers in the Senate to aggressively defend Trump: JD Vance of Ohio announced Tuesday he plans to block all of Bidens nominees for the Justice Department in retaliation for how the agency is dealing with Trump, though its unlikely to have a substantial impact on the floor  at least for now.

The end goal is for Merrick Garland to stop politicizing the Department of Justice, Vance said. Every single official that we confirm out of this body is clearly going to be used to harass Joe Bidens political opponents instead of enforcing law, if thats what were doing and we wont be honest about it.

Gonna have to assert ourselves

House Republicans have grappled all year with the idea of defunding portions of the FBI and DOJ as certain lawmakers have made those agencies a target of their investigative efforts, but Trumps indictment has catapulted that conversation to center stage.

McCarthy, however, has so far only signaled he is willing to block funding for the FBIs new headquarters, an idea that is echoed by a number of rank-and-file members and could be a way to throw some red meat to the fired up base. The idea was discussed during the appropriations meeting in McCarthys office on Tuesday, a GOP source in the room told CNN.

But McCarthy is going to come under increasing pressure to go even further, especially as the appropriations process gets underway.

The House Judiciary Committee has been weighing at least three proposed cuts to the DOJ, including restricting funding to departments that refuse to comply with oversight requests, though ultimately it is up to appropriators to write the spending bills.

Greenes request to defund the special counsels office has laid down a new marker in the debate among the conference that poses a number of hurdles. It is unclear if this idea has any momentum with members of the Appropriations Committee, or how Congress could dismantle funding for the special counsels office given that it is tied up in a number of statutes.

I would do that in an instant, Rep. Dan Bishop of North Carolina, a fellow member of the hardline House Freedom Caucus, told CNN. To my Republican colleagues I would say: were gonna have to assert ourselves to prevent the wholesale destruction of neutral and independent justice. This is the most amazing misuse of prosecutorial power Ive ever seen.

Other proposals include firing or reducing the salary of specific federal employees through the so-called Holman rule or prohibiting funding to specific programs.

Its one of the tools in the toolbox, and its one weve discussed as it relates to the DOJ and FBI, Gaetz said of the Holman rule. But not just in the context of the special counsel.

Added House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer: Theres a lot of frustration in the FBI leadership. Weve got this Holman rule, different things like that, that appropriators are looking at  to hold certain people accountable.

But any GOP-led efforts to restrict the funding to the DOJ or FBI, especially if its seen as in retaliation for Trumps indictment, would die in the Democratic-controlled Senate.

It is wrong to impose a partisan agenda on the long-running plans to cite a new building for the FBI, Democratic Rep. Jamie Raskin of Maryland told CNN. They just dont have anything to do with each other.

Even some Republican key committees are wary of efforts to defund the DOJ, saying instead it needs to be reformed.

I think they need to be reformed. I think that parts of the FBI still work, GOP Rep. Tom McClintock of California, who serves on the Judiciary panel, said, while noting that he believes DOJ leadership must be held accountable for creating what he described as a two-tiered justice system.

Rep. Ken Buck of Colorado, another GOP member of the Judiciary Committee, said he warned his colleagues during the Tuesday meeting in McCarthys office that they need to be careful when talking about blanket calls to defund the DOJ and FBI.

GOP Rep. David Joyce of Ohio, who serves on the House Appropriations Committee, told CNN that his colleagues can propose ideas on how to cut DOJ and FBI funding, and if it comes up in a vote and it gets voted through thats fine. I dont foresee that happening.

Republicans may not have any better success on the oversight side in seeking tangible results. Smith is seen as highly unlikely to fork over documents or testimony in an ongoing criminal probe, and if Republicans were to go to court to force compliance, its doubtful that would hold up.

Still, Republicans are undeterred. When asked if Congress should subpoena Smith, Stefanik told CNN, Were going to use all the tools available to us and we are going to continue asserting our constitutional responsibility for the American people when it comes to oversight.

Republicans will, however, have the opportunity to publicly grill Attorney General Merrick Garland and FBI Director Christopher Wray, who will appear for other future hearings.

In the meantime, Gaetz staged a forum in the Capitol featuring pro-Trump witnesses on the same day of Trumps arraignment  a counterprogramming effort which Gaetz said was intended to serve as a force multiplier for the investigative and legislative work of the various committees.

We are now moving toward the appropriations process, where well have to make key decisions about authorities and capabilities within the Department of Justice and the FBI, Gaetz said, kicking off the event.

CNNs Manu Raju and Haley Talbot contributed to this report.

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David Dee Delgado/Reuters

Daniel Penny, the vigilante who choked Jordan Neely to death on a New York City subway train last month, was indicted Wednesday by a Manhattan grand jury, ABC 7 reported.

The 24-year-old surrendered to police in May on a charge of second-degree manslaughter after horrifying footage revealed Penny placing Neely, a 30-year-old Black homeless man, in a chokehold for several minutes until he passed out. It remains unclear what charges the former U.S. Marine will be indicted onthey will be unsealed at his arraignment at a later date.

The Manhattan District Attorneys Office did not immediately provide comment to The Daily Beast.

Penny is currently free on a $100,000 bail and faces a sentence of up to 15 years behind bars if convicted of his initial charge. His attorneys have previously claimed he never intended to harm Mr. Neely and could not have foreseen his untimely death, allegedly acting in self-defense.

Subway Vigilante Who Choked Jordan Neely Arrested on Manslaughter Charge

In a recent interview with Fox News, Penny wildly speculated that Neely would have killed somebody if he had carried out his threats. He told the outlet he was scared the day of Neelys death and saw older women and children who were terrified.

Other eyewitness accounts describe Neely crying out for food and water and screaming in an aggressive manner, but there is little evidence the Michael Jackson impersonator posed a physical threat to fellow subway riders that day.

The vigilantes legal team points to Neelys documented history of violent and erratic behavior from ongoing and untreated mental illness. Sources close to Neelys case have confirmed to CNN that his name appeared on the NYC Department of Homeless Services Top 50 list, which is reserved for those in dire need of help, before his death.

However, Neelys family has said in a prior statement that truth is, [Penny] knew nothing about Jordans history when he intentionally wrapped his arms around Jordans neck, and squeezed and kept squeezing. The city medical examiner has ruled his death a homicide as a result of compression of the neck.

Andrew Savulich/New York Daily News/Tribune News Service via Getty Images

With mounting backlash accusing him of racism, Penny has sworn that he is not white supremacist and is a normal guy. He expressed to the New York Post that he was deeply saddened by Neelys deathwhich apparently had nothing to do with raceand blamed the system that so desperately failed us.

Everybody whos ever met me can tell you, I love all people, I love all cultures, Penny told the Post. I was actually planning a road trip through Africa before this happened.

I always do what I think is right, he added.

A GiveSendGo campaign started by Pennys defense team has raked in a whopping $2.8 million in the span of roughly a month to go toward his legal fees. The fundraiser, hosted on a Christian website favored by conservatives, claims excess proceeds will be donated to a New York City mental health advocacy program.

Big name Republicans have thrown their support behind Penny, including 2024 GOP presidential candidate Gov. Ron DeSantis, who tweeted We stand with Good Samaritans like Daniel Penny. Lets show this Marine ... Americas got his back.

We must defeat the Soros-Funded DAs, stop the Left's pro-criminal agenda, and take back the streets for law abiding citizens. We stand with Good Samaritans like Daniel Penny. Lets show this Marine... Americas got his back.

https://t.co/uQXZuT19Mo  Ron DeSantis (@RonDeSantis) May 13, 2023

Pennys next court date has yet to be set.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

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Update: Wednesday afternoon, Miami Mayor Francis Suarez formally filed paperwork to run in the Republican presidential primary. Read more here.

A federal super PAC backing Miami Mayor Francis Suarezs anticipated run for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination has launched ads in key primary states.

On Wednesday, SOS America PAC released a two-minute ad painting Suarez as a law-and-order politician who strongly supports policing in the face of increased crime in American cities under President Joe Biden. The PAC is running the ads in New Hampshire, Iowa and Nevada, according to a press release.

America needs conservative Mayor Francis Suarez for president, said Chapin Fay, the PACs spokesperson, in a statement. As our nation faces anti-police and pro-crime Democrat leadership in cities across the nation like Baltimore, Portland and New York City, the achievements of first-generation American Mayor Suarez underscore the need for immediate nationwide adoption of his approach.

The ad was released the day before Suarez is expected to make a major announcement during a speech at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library outside Los Angeles. In multiple interviews over the last several days, Suarez has teased a presidential run, answering questions about his political future by telling journalists to tune into his speech Thursday evening. He is scheduled to give remarks at 6 p.m. Pacific time (9 p.m. EDT) as part of a conservative speaker series entitled A Time For Choosing.

The mayors expected White House bid comes as he faces multiple investigations into his private consulting work work for a real estate developer who sought City Hall approvals for a project in Coconut Grove. Public records show one of Suarezs staffers helped developer Rishi Kapoors company secure permits for the project, and internal meeting notes from Kapoors firm show that the developer told his staff he would ask the mayor to try and help resolve permitting issues. Meanwhile, Suarez was being paid $10,000 a month as a consultant.

The FBI, Miami-Dade State Attorneys Office and Miami-Dade Commission on Ethics and Public Trust have launched inquiries. The mayor has denied wrongdoing and maintained he was paid to give advice about programming involving the mix of stores and restaurants at the real estate companys projects in Miami-Dade. He has said he welcomes the scrutiny. The developer denies paying Suarez to lobby his own government.

The PAC and Suarezs message

SOS America PAC raised more than $6 million last year, federal campaign finance records show, with large contributions from several donors who have supported Suarezs previous political campaigns. Suarez, his political advisers and at least one city staffer who took a leave of absence with donors at a fundraiser last week at the Maison F.P. Journe in the Kimpton EPIC Hotel.

Read more: Miami mayor raising super PAC cash, assembling campaign team as 24 announcement looms

The ad provides an initial view into Suarezs political messaging as he appears poised to join a growing field of Republican candidates that includes former President Donald Trump and Gov. Ron DeSantis. The PAC is touting Miamis historically low crime rate as a marker for Suarezs readiness to be president. The ad also points to Suarezs promotion of Miami as a low-tax, business-friendly city.

On Tuesday, Suarez appeared outside the federal courthouse in Miami where Trump pleaded not guilty to charges he mishandled classified documents with highly sensitive defense information. Suarez told media he was focused on public safety as demonstrators gathered outside the courthouse.

He stopped to give Telemundo an interview in Spanish, where he was asked about his expected presidential campaign. After promoting his Thursday night speech, he was asked how he differs from Trump, who is considered the leading GOP candidate, according to most polls.

I think Im a different kind of candidate, Suarez said. Im Hispanic. Im from a new generation. Im focused on creating a United States that can confront a dynamic economy.
TALLAHASSEE, Fla.  A super PAC supporting Miami GOP Mayor Francis Suarez on Wednesday dropped a slick two-minute video just a day before hes set to announce a possible 2024 presidential bid.

The super PAC is expected to use the video, which touts dropping crime rates in Miami while adding that conservative mayor Francis Suarez chose a better path for Miami, in digital ads in three key early nominating states.

Suarez, the son of Miamis first Cuban-American mayor, was elected twice as the mayor, including a resounding 2021 reelection. If he jumps into the race for president, he will become the third candidate from Florida seeking the GOP nomination, along with former President Donald Trump and Gov. Ron DeSantis.

Suarez would also become the first Hispanic candidate seeking the nomination for either party this cycle. But it could be an uphill climb to gain traction in a race that already features current and former governors as well as a sitting U.S. senator.



The super PAC behind the video  SOS America  recently rebranded itself. It was set up last year as America for Everyone, which raised roughly $6 million in 2022, including from donors who had supported Suarezs reelection, according to the Miami Herald. The Herald also reported that one of the donors had lobbied Suarez and the Miami city commission on a land deal.

Right before the 2022 election, the super PAC ran radio ads in the congressional race between GOP Rep. Maria Elvira Salazar and Democrat Annette Taddeo.

If Suarez runs, he will have to navigate a Republican Party where a large portion is loyal to Trump. He has previously said that did not vote for Trump in either 2016 or 2020, although he has been complimentary of the former president recently.

Kellyanne Conway, a former counselor to Trump, told POLITICO last month that she has recommended to Trump that he put Suarez on the short, short list for vice president. Suarez, however, told a South Florida television reporter last week that if I run to be the president, its because thats the goal.  You never run for a parlay, for a second place.
Republicans are strategically working to dismantle not only affirmative action but also diversity, equity and inclusion.

Any day now, the conservative-majority U.S. Supreme Court will issue its decision on affirmative action and whether race should be a factor in the college admissions process.

Two cases are before the high court: Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard University and Students for Fair Admissions (SFFA) v. University of North Carolina. The Harvard case argues that the universitys admissions process discriminated against Asian-American students. The case from Chapel Hill, argues that Asian and white students were the subject of discriminatory admissions practices at the school.

WASHINGTON, DC  OCTOBER 31: Proponents for affirmative action in higher education rally in front of the U.S. Supreme Court before oral arguments in Students for Fair Admissions v. President and Fellows of Harvard College and Students for Fair Admissions v. University of North Carolina on October 31, 2022 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

The cases are both backed by a wealthy white man named Edward Blum. He is the same person behind the 2016 Supreme Court case of Fisher v. University of Austin, Texas. In that case, the court ruled that race-based admissions was lawful. However, the collective, unscientific belief among Black thought leaders is that affirmative action in college admissions will be overturned by the current Supreme Court.

Republicans are strategically working to dismantle not only affirmative action but also diversity, equity and inclusion. Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders banned critical race theory in schools as well as the use of the term Latinx. In Florida, Governor Ron DeSantis banned AP African American studies, cut funding for diversity, equity and inclusion programs for state colleges, as well as challenging the rights of other groups like the LGBTQ+ community in its fight with the Disney corporation.

And on Capitol Hill, the Republican-led House of Representatives is overseeing the elimination of the civil rights panel and a House finance diversity panel. The House Judiciary Committee also has lost its civil rights subcommittee. This is happening as corporate America is ending a large number of DEI programs in the private sector.

Legal scholars and analysts have questioned that if the Supreme Court does remove race as a factor in the admissions process, what will be the far-reaching impact on Black students applying for admission to predominantly white institutions?

Bakari Sellers, a former member of the South Carolina Statehouse and TV political analyst, told theGrio there is a slippery slope as we wonder what happens next?

The courts ruling could potentially place a bullseye on the landmark 1954 decision of Brown v. Board of Education, which led to the integration of U.S. public schools. There could also be an impact in civil rights laws in the broader context as well. Sellers says this idea centers around how the decision reads.

I can tell you that I dont think it is far-fetched to say certain constitutionalists and certain legal scholars do want to overturn Brown v. the Board of Education, Sellers said.

WASHINGTON, DC  OCTOBER 31: Proponents for affirmative action in higher education rally in front of the U.S. Supreme Court on October 31, 2022 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

He is skeptical that Brown v. Board will be overturned in his lifetime. However, the outspoken lawyer also said, Were starting to see how the fact that Democrats havent taken the judiciary seriously for decades, and it is impacting the future of this great country  particularly the diversity or the lack thereof.

DEI expert Y-Vonne Hutchinson, CEO and founder of ReadySet, an organization that helps companies attract and retain diverse talent, firmly stated it is going to be incredibly hard when people dont have access to the educational opportunities precluded on the basis of race.

Hutchinson said this potential overturning of affirmative action would have a direct impact on Black and brown students in admissions and scholarships. And when it comes to the current anti-woke rhetoric coming from the Republican Party, she affirms, I see this as part of a rollback on civil rights and our access to opportunity. She added, I think the impact of this kind of decision will be deeply felt.

Sellers agrees and says he expects that the court will rule against affirmative action. Much like you had Justice [Samuel] Alito dedicate his entire career to gutting and eliminating Roe v. Wade. You will have a similar situation with Clarence Thomas and affirmative action.

He believes that intentional efforts by Justice Thomas will mean that African-Americans will have a great deal of trouble having the same opportunities for higher education.

Oct 7, 2022; Washington, DC, USA; Members of the Supreme Court pose for a group photo at the Supreme Court. Seated from left: Associate Justice Sonia Sotomayor, Associate Justice Clarence Thomas, Chief Justice of the United States John G. Roberts, Jr., Associate Justice Samuel A. Alito, Jr. and Associate Justice Elena Kagan. Standing behind from left: Associate Justice Amy Coney Barrett, Associate Justice Neil M. Gorsuch, Associate Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh and Associate Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson. Mandatory Credit: Jack Gruber-USA TODAY

A decision to change how affirmative action is administered is a double-edged sword. HBCUs may benefit; I think individuals who want to go to PWIs [will have] a lot more trouble getting in, and youll see some PWIs lose the diversity if they have today, said Sellers.

Susan Rice, Bidens former domestic policy adviser, gave some insight into the Biden administrations thinking on this matter as she was departing her post last month. Rice told theGrio exclusively, Obviously, we are watching what might happen in the Supreme Court carefully. I dont want to presume outcomes. When challenged about the expected overturn, she acknowledged, we are focused on all potential outcomes.

In his first few months as president, Biden issued an executive order on diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility in the federal workforce.

He also ordered his cabinet to implement efforts to lead by example. One of those examples is at the Department of State, where outgoing Chief DEI Officer Gina Abercrombie-Winstanley worked with unions to create a new employee handbook that makes the idea of DEI more of a permanent feature no matter the administration.

There is an understanding at the State Department, which is majority white and male, that women and minorities must have more chances at unbiased opportunities at the agency.

But even as the State Department works to strengthen its equity and inclusion efforts, hired and promotions, they say, is based on ones work and record. Everyone wants to know that they work in some place that is fair and that is just, Abercrombie-Winstanley told theGrio. That will recognize people for their talent and what they bring to the table.

TheGrio is FREE on your TV via Apple TV, Amazon Fire, Roku and Android TV. Also, please download theGrio mobile apps today!

The post Supreme Court ruling on affirmative action could extend beyond college admissions appeared first on TheGrio.
Supreme has had a no good, very bad year.

The once-thriving streetwear giant has notched significantand surprisinglosses over past four fiscal quarters. From March 2022 to March 2023, the brand achieved a revenue total of $523.1 million, according to Business of Fashion. In contrast, the New York-based company notched $561.5 million the previous year, a loss of $38.4 million year on year.

The brand was acquired by VF Corporation in November 2020 for $2.1 billion. The equity firm is the parent company of Vans and Timberland. The company didnt respond to an inquiry from Robb Report about the revenue report.

As noted by Womens Wear Daily at the time of the merger, the deal appeared to have advantages for both sides; its Denver-based owner could offer operational support and data knowhow, while Supreme could reveal the secret of how it makes consumers absolutely lose their minds over a limited-edition product.

Click here to read the full article.

We talk about a light-touch integration with this business because its very successful, operating at a very high level today. Well take our time to get to know each other, VF Corp chairman, president, and CEO Steve Rendle told WWD at the time of the acquisition. This brand will continue to operate as it always has; we do not look to come in and make any changes. Were here to help, support and enable.

However, the partnership may not have been quite as beneficial to Supreme. Not too long ago, the Wall Street Journal published an in-depth article about the brand, suggesting that its new owners caused it to lose the exclusivity that gave it its cachet. Fans say that post VF-acquisition, Supreme is now offering more hoodies, jackets and shirts than they used to before. They also have opened more Supreme shops.

I think they opened too many stores and basically put out too much product, Gary Wong, a longtime Supreme collector, told the newspaper. Back in the day, when there was a North Face [collaboration] drop, it was impossible to getand nowadays, you can essentially walk into the store the next day or the week after, and still be able to buy it.
The man accused of stabbing a nurse at Heywood Hospital was ordered held on $100,000 cash bail after being charged with attempted murder and assault and battery with a dangerous weapon.

David Nichols, 76, of Greenville, NH, was arrested by Gardner police Monday night after they responded to a call that a nurse had been stabbed by a patient at the hospital.

According to the police report, officers located Nichols, who was wearing a nasal oxygen tube, under a blanket in his shorts in room 15 in the hospitals emergency department. He was handcuffed to a bed and read his Miranda rights.

The victim told police that she had been treating Nichols when she realized he had disconnected the cords to his monitor and began pacing back and forth in the room. After telling Nichols to sit back down, the victim moved closer to check on the patient.

David grabbed her by the neck with his left arm and reached downward then she felt a laceration to her neck, the police report reads. (The victim) immediately screamed for help (and said) that David had stabbed her. The laceration is approximately three inches long.

Prosecutors: Knife narrowly missed victim's carotid artery

The cut had just missed the victims carotid artery, according to officials.

More: Nurse stabbed by patient at Heywood Hospital: What we know so far

Officials recovered a pocketknife from the scene and placed it in a plastic bag, according to the report.

The victim was taken to UMass Memorial Hospital in Worcester with non-life-threatening injuries.

A few hours later, while in custody at the hospital, (Nichols) asked another nursing staff if the victim was doing okay, according to the report.

Officials have not released a motive for the attack.

Suspect appeared before judge via monitor

At his arraignment at Gardner District Court on Tuesday, Nichols attorney, Brian Demott, said that his client was currently under hospice care and that doctors had informed Nichols that he had about six months to live.

Prosecutors told the judge that Nichols had a lengthy criminal history and had served five years in prison for an armed robbery in Worcester County in the 1980s.

Nichols appeared virtually in court from a hospital bed.

Heywood Healthcare CEO Rozanna Penney issued a statement on Wednesday condemning the attack.

Words cannot express the feelings that overwhelmed us Monday night, Penney said. No one should ever have to go to work, especially when their chosen work is taking care of others, and worry for their safety.

Penney said the incident in the hospitals emergency department was not acceptable and would not become the norm at Heywood Healthcare.

To address immediate safety concerns, we are partnering with our community to increase police and security presence in our EDs, while we initiate permanent security infrastructure enhancements, she said.

Nichols next court appearance is scheduled for July 14.

This article originally appeared on Gardner News: Heywood Hospital patient charged attempted murder nurse stabbing
Synagogue massacre survivor cried 'Mommy' as her 97-year-old mother was shot and killed by her side

In this courtroom sketch, shooting survivor Andrea Wedner testifies, Wednesday, June 14, 2023, in Pittsburgh, in the federal trial of Robert Bowers. Bowers is accused of shooting to death 11 worshippers in a synagogue more than four years ago, the deadliest antisemitic attack in U.S. history. (David Klug via AP)

PITTSBURGH (AP)  A survivor of the Pittsburgh synagogue massacre said Wednesday that she saw her right arm get blown open in two places by a gunman and cried Mommy after realizing her 97-year-old mother had been shot and killed by her side in the nations deadliest attack on Jewish people.

Andrea Wedner was the governments last witness as prosecutors wrapped up their case against Robert Bowers, who burst into the Tree of Life synagogue building with a military-style rifle and other weaponry and opened fire, shooting anyone he could find.

Bowers killed 11 worshippers and injured seven other people, including five police officers, in the 2018 attack. The 50-year-old truck driver is charged with 63 criminal counts, including hate crimes resulting in death and the obstruction of the free exercise of religion resulting in death.

Bowers attorneys did not put on a defense after the prosecution rested, setting the stage for closing arguments and jury deliberations on Thursday.

Assuming the jury returns a conviction, the trial would enter whats expected to be a lengthy penalty phase, with the same jurors deciding Bowers' sentence: life in prison or the death penalty. Bowers' attorneys, who have acknowledged he was the gunman, have focused their efforts on trying to save his life.

Federal prosecutors ended their case against Bowers on Wednesday with some of the most harrowing and heartbreaking testimony of the trial so far.

Wedner told jurors that Sabbath services had started five or 10 minutes earlier when she heard a crashing sound in the building's lobby, followed by gunfire. She said her mother, Rose Mallinger, asked her, What do we do?

Wedner said she had a clear memory of the gunman and his rifle.

We were filled with terror  it was indescribable. We thought we were going to die, she said.

Wedner called 911 and was on the line when she and her mother were shot. She testified that she checked her mothers pulse and realized, I knew she wouldnt survive. As SWAT officers entered the chapel, Wedner said, she kissed her fingers and touched them to her dead mother, cried Mommy, and stepped over another victim on her way out. She said she was the sole survivor in that section of the synagogue.

Her account capped a prosecution case in which other survivors also testified about the terror they felt that day, police officers recounted how they exchanged gunfire with Bowers and finally neutralized him, and jurors heard about Bowers' toxic online presence in which he praised Hitler, espoused white supremacy and ranted incessantly against Jews.

The defense has suggested Bowers acted not out of religious hatred but rather a delusional belief that Jews were enabling genocide by helping immigrants settle in the United States.

Also testifying Wednesday was Pittsburgh SWAT Officer Timothy Matson, who was critically wounded while responding to the rampage.

He told jurors that he and another officer broke down the door to the darkened room where Bowers had holed up and was immediately knocked off his feet by blasts from Bowers' gun. Matson, who stands 6 foot 4 and weighed 310 pounds at the time of the shooting, said he made his way to the stairs and was placed on a stretcher, and remembers thinking, I must be in bad shape.

Matson was shot seven times, including in the head, knee, shin and elbow, and has endured 25 surgeries to repair the damage, but he testified he would go through the door again.
Taiwan needs European friends to keep China at bay, minister says on tour

Taiwan needs European friends to keep China at bay, minister says on tour Taiwan's Foreign Minister Wu visits Prague

By Jan Lopatka and Robert Muller

PRAGUE (Reuters) -Taiwan wants to secure peace and stability by maintaining the status quo in its relationship with neighbouring China and needs the support of European states to do so, Taiwan Foreign Minister Joseph Wu said on Wednesday.

"In order for Taiwan to stay strong and resilient and to have the courage to continue the policy of maintaining the status quo, we do need support from European friends," Wu said in a speech at a conference in the Czech capital, Prague.

China claims self-ruled Taiwan as its territory and has never renounced the use of force to bring it under its control. Taiwan strongly objects to China's sovereignty claims and says only the island's people can decide their future.

Wu said Taiwan was drawing lessons from Russia's invasion of Ukraine to strengthen its resilience towards China, which he referred to by the initials of its official name, the People's Republic of China.

"For many observers around the world, the (Chinese army) invasion may not be imminent or unavoidable and Taiwan and partners are trying to prevent it from happening," Wu said.

"But the PRC is following Sun Tzu's 'Art of War', trying to crush the enemy without going to war. As we speak, the PRC is continuing to flex its muscle to intimidate Taiwan, including sending its war planes and vessels across the medium line of the Taiwan Strait."

Taiwan has no formal diplomatic ties with any European country except the Vatican. But it maintains extensive informal relations, and Central and Eastern European countries have been particularly keen to show support for Taiwan, defying Beijing's anger about such contacts and reducing Taiwan's diplomatic isolation.

Wu spoke at a think tank event immediately after an opening speech by Czech President Petr Pavel, which Wu watched from the front row. Pavel left the room after speaking.

Wu, in speaking about the global impacts of the conflict in Ukraine, said war in the Taiwan Strait, the waterway separating Taiwan from China, could be a "shockwave" for Europe if supply chains were disrupted.

"It will be the same or even worse if war is to break out in the Taiwan Strait where roughly half of the world's container ships sail through and more than 90% of the most advanced computer or semiconductor chips are produced," he said.

He also warned that Russia and China were cooperating more in military exercises in the western Pacific, the latest just last week, and that Russia's "military might in the Far East seems to have remained relatively intact".

"The Chinese leaders may have stopped talking about the limitless partnership with Russia, but their joint military exercises speak volumes," said Wu, who is on his second trip to the central European NATO and European Union member after a 2021 visit.

On Tuesday, he met Czech Senate speaker Milos Vystrcil, who has been at the forefront of Czech efforts to build closer relationship with Taiwan and visited the island in 2020.

He was due to meet Czech lower house speaker Marketa Pekarova-Adamova, who visited Taiwan in March, for an informal dinner on Wednesday.

Two sources briefed on Wu's trip, who spoke on condition of anonymity as they were not authorised to speak with the media, said Wu was also expected to visit Brussels, headquarters of the European Union.

Wu declined to comment on any stops while in Europe, saying that he was "under the condition" that he would stay quiet. "I need to observe that in order to make my visit to those places a success," Wu told reporters.

China's Foreign Ministry urged Europe last Friday not to have any official exchanges with Taiwan or support any "independence forces".

The Chinese embassy in Prague did not reply to separate requests for comment on Tuesday and Wednesday.

(Reporting by Jan Lopatka and Robert Muller; Additional reporting by Jason Hovet in Prague and Ben Blanchard in Taipei; editing by Robert Birsel and Nick Macfie)
Former President Donald Trump pleaded not guilty to 37 charges Tuesday in a brief but historic court appearance following his arrest and processing on federal charges.

Trump is the first former president to face federal charges following last weeks indictment by special counsel Jack Smith. Trump made clear once again Tuesday that he has no plans to stop attacking the special counsels indictment  and the other legal peril he faces  as he runs for president again in 2024.

Here are the takeaways from Tuesdays arraignment:

A historic moment

While Tuesdays court appearance was the second time in a little over two months that Trump had pleaded not guilty to criminal charges in a courtroom  he also pleaded not guilty in April to charges brought by the Manhattan district attorney  the federal charges are a more serious legal threat to the former president.

Smith was appointed special counsel roughly seven months ago, and he delivered an indictment against the former president that even some of Trumps Republican allies have said is damning, accusing Trump of keeping classified military documents, showing them off to others and obstructing the investigation into tracking them down.

Fact check: Debunking Trumps blizzard of dishonesty about his federal indictment

Regardless of what happens next with the case against Trump, the federal charges are a historic moment  one that is sure to have a significant impact on the outcome of the 2024 GOP primary.

And in addition to the New York charges, Trump is still facing the special counsels investigation into efforts to overturn the 2020 election and the Fulton County district attorneys probe into attempts to overturn the election in Georgia.

Judges concerns about Trumps witness contact led to biggest drama

While most of Tuesdays hearing followed an expected script, the proceedings were dragged out by a disagreement over whether Trump should be restricted from talking to certain witnesses in the case.

That prohibition was not initially recommended in the bond proposal that prosecutors had put forward. But Magistrate Judge Jonathan Goodman raised the concern himself about Trumps contact with witnesses.

Goodman, noting that this was a typical restriction in cases filed in the Southern District of Florida, where the indictment against Trump was brought, suggested that prosecutors put together a list of witnesses and victims in the case, and that Trump avoid communicating with them as the case moved forward.

The judge also limited Trumps contact with his co-defendant, Walt Nauta, but said it would only apply to communications about the case, noting that Nauta still works closely with Trump and is with him nearly every day.

No major incidents during protests

Tuesdays court appearance came and went without any major security incidents, as supporters and protesters lined the streets surrounding the courthouse.

Local and federal law enforcement officials had been preparing for the prospect of major crowds for the court appearance, but officials said they did not have any major issues in Miami on Tuesday.

Mayor Francis Suarez, a Republican, said on CNN Tuesday just ahead of the court hearing that so far, what weve seen is people exercising their constitutional right, which people have died for in this country, and so from my perspective, things have been peaceful.

Suarez said that protesters had not gone beyond disrespect to violence.

As far as I know, no arrests so far, so were hopeful that this incident finishes without any major provocations or any major incidents and everyone can go home and move on, he said.

Trump immediately went back to campaign mode at Cuban restaurant

Trumps first stop after leaving the courthouse was Versailles, a well-known Cuban restaurant in Miami.

The restaurant was filled with his supporters ready to greet the twice-indicted president  and they even sang him happy birthday (Trumps birthday is on Wednesday).

The stop immediately put Trump back in his element, surrounded by supporters looking to shake hands and take photos. It underscored the fact that Trumps legal turmoil is playing out amid a 2024 Republican primary where Trumps legal troubles have been a central storyline, both for his campaign and his presidential rivals.

Were a nation in decline and then they do this stuff, and you see where the people are. We love the people, and you see where they are, Trump said when asked how his court appearance went.

After leaving the restaurant, Trump wrote on his social media: Thank you Miami. Such a warm welcome on such a SAD DAY for our Country!

Nauta has to come back

Trump pleaded not guilty to 37 felony counts. Nauta, his co-defendant, did not enter a plea because he did not have a local attorney.

Nauta, who faces six charges, made his initial appearance Tuesday alongside the former president. Nauta is being represented by Washington, DC-based attorney Stanley Woodward.

An arraignment for Nauta has been set for June 27.

Nauta traveled with Trump from Bedminster, New Jersey, to Miami and had dinner with Trump on Monday. He left the courthouse with Trump and was seen inside Versailles with the former president.

Nautas role in the case as Trumps co-defendant will be of interest as the case moves forward. His attorney is being paid for by Trumps Save America political action committee.

Walt Nauta, aide of former U.S. President Trump, appears on classified document charges after a federal indictment at Wilkie D. Ferguson Jr. United States Courthouse, in Miami, Florida, U.S., June 13, 2023 in a courtroom sketch. - Jane Rosenberg/Reuters

Now the case turns to Judge Cannon

Tuesdays hearing was handled by Magistrate Judge Goodman, but now the case will move into the courtroom of District Judge Aileen Cannon, a Trump-appointed judge whose prior rulings have raised questions about how she will handle the case.

Cannons approach to last years Trump lawsuit challenging the FBIs Mar-a-Lago search raised eyebrows among legal experts across the ideological spectrum for how she appeared to bend over backward to create special legal rules in favor of the former president. Her rationale for why such a review was necessary was torn apart by a panel of right-leaning appellate judges, including two Trump appointees, on the US 11th Circuit Court of Appeals last December.

Cannon sits in Ft. Pierce, Florida, but is part of the pool of judges who are randomly assigned cases filed in West Palm Beach, where the new indictment was brought.

Goodman concluded Tuesdays hearing acknowledging his limited role in the Trump case. My involvement ends right about now, he said.

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Target's move to pull some Pride merchandise is 'wrong', New York AG says

FILE PHOTO: A Target shopping cart is seen in front of a store logo in Azusa

(Reuters) -Target's move to pull some LGBTQ-themed merchandise from stores following customer backlash "is wrong," New York Attorney General Letitia James said in a tweet on Tuesday and urged the retailer to reverse its decision.

At least 14 New York officials have signed a letter regarding Target's decision, according to James's tweet.

Target said last month it was making certain "adjustments" to its LGBTQ-themed products linked to Pride Month, citing increased confrontations between shoppers and employees and incidents of products being thrown on the floor.

The company has sold LGBTQ-related goods tied to Pride month for years but has faced growing criticism for carrying those products, including from conservative news outlets and Republican politicians, who have claimed certain items at its stores were marketed to children.

Target on Wednesday reiterated a statement it had shared last month, saying it has "experienced threats" impacting employees' sense of safety while at work.

A similar backlash has impacted other companies. Department store chain Kohl's faced criticism for carrying Pride-related products.

Brewer Anheuser-Busch InBev's Bud Light lost its top spot in the U.S. beer market after it was boycotted following the company's partnership with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney.

(Reporting by Deborah Sophia in Bengaluru; Editing by Anil D'Silva and Pooja Desai)
When Texans choose to be loyal to one politician over party, over proof, over common sense, its not a good look for anyone, but especially those in local politics.

The Tarrant County Republican Party announced that precinct chairs will vote Thursday on whether to condemn the impeachment of Attorney General Ken Paxton, who is awaiting trial in the Senate.

The proposed resolution lists several reasons, most of which are about the process of impeachment, not the charges against Paxton in particular. One is that Paxton was given no opportunity to speak to the committee or the House nor an opportunity to present evidence.

The Parker and Williamson county Republican parties appear to have already voted on similar resolutions.

A few weeks ago, a team of investigators reported to a House committee their findings that Paxton used the attorney generals office for political and personal gain, including to aid a high-profile donor, Nate Paul. Testimony from over a dozen people and a bevy of documents compelled the committee to vote unanimously to recommend that the House impeach the attorney general.

In the end, the vote was 123-23, historic margins of nearly equal Democrats and Republicans voting for the Senate to hold an impeachment trial. Hes now been suspended from duties as he awaits trial to be held in Austin some time this summer.

Offering, as a local Republican Party, complete fealty to Paxton when even the precinct chairs themselves havent been made privy to all the evidence and witness statements against him shows just the kind of mindset that has allowed Paxton to remain in office, while abusing it for personal gain, for so many years.

How are they so certain they want to condemn the impeachment? Just because Paxton is a Republican? Do these precinct chairs actually think they know more than the entire House committee of Republicans and Democrats who voted for the articles of impeachment? This seems unnecessarily and devastatingly blind to the rule of law.

A closer look shows that there has not been anything unusual about the process of determining articles of impeachment against Paxton. He has had a long leash for many years. Hes been under state and federal scrutiny. The team that investigated Paxton appears to have done so slowly and methodically, or else theyve brought charges against him that probably would not have held up to any scrutiny. How many times must we say that either everyone the team investigated is lying or Paxton and a handful of his most loyal aides are?

A meeting to condemn a process that is out of the Tarrant County GOPs hands seems like a waste of time and a perfect demonstration of how distracted local party politics have become. They should be registering and turning out voters, recruiting candidates and raising money. Now, theyre too busy fighting their own.

The condemnation signifies nothing to the Paxton impeachment process in that it doesnt help him, but it may continue to sow seeds of distrust in the process in which many Republican House members participated. All for what?

The purpose of having a local party isnt to stand by members of that party no matter what. At some point, as wed like to see with Donald Trump, party loyalty must end. Not because the people cant be loyal but because the politician in question no longer deserves it. Ken Paxton appears to be such a person.

Tarrant County Republicans, like the rest of us, should observe the trial, look at the evidence presented and decide if Paxton can remain in office. If not, the local party should stand up for what is right, even if it means going against an elected official whom members have supported.

Sometimes, people are not who they seem and they are not what wed hoped they would be. Acknowledging it is the first step toward electing someone with better character.
The body of a missing teenager was recovered from a lake in southwestern New Jersey, officials said Monday. The high school senior had been participating in a "scavenger hunt that went astray," according to an online fundraiser set up on behalf of the family.

Officials identified the 18-year-old as Victor Rodriguez, a senior at Pitman High School. His body was found in Alcyon Lake in Gloucester County.

Victor Rodriguez / Credit: GoFundMe

"It is with great sadness that after just over 17 hours of tedious and demanding work by many first responders, Victor has been recovered," Pitman Mayor Michael Razze said in a statement. "The mutual love and support of our community will help to carry us through this difficult time. On behalf of the entire borough, our deepest condolences to his family, friends, fellow students, and the PHS Class of 2023."

The search for Rodriguez started on Sunday night, CBS Philadelphia reported. First responders were called to the lake shortly before 8:45 p.m. Sunday, Pitman Police Chief Dan McAteer said.

According to McAteer, the teen lost control while trying to swim across the lake and became submerged. There were two other people at the lake and both tried to help but became overwhelmed and came back to shore.

"My understanding is that it can be as much as 10 feet," McAteer said of how deep the lake is.

According to a junior Pitman High School student, the teen was participating in what they call the "senior scavenger," which the student said has gone on for more than 15 years

The student said one of the challenges is to swim across Alcyon Lake for points.

"Because it's known for being nasty," the student said, "so people are like, 'swim across this nasty lake,' and you get a lot of points for it."

The search was handled by the New Jersey State Police, Gloucester County Emergency Management and other local police and fire departments in South Jersey.

No students were required to report to Pitman High School on Monday. The building remained open with emotional support services available to students throughout the day.

All exams scheduled for Monday and Tuesday were canceled.

A GoFundMe to support Rodriguez's family has raised over $50,000.

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Teen given 3 years of probation for his role in a botched carjacking that led to the shooting of a Milwaukee police detective

Police work on the scene of an officer involved shooting near the intersection of North Water Street and East Buffalo Street in Milwaukee.

A 19-year-old Milwaukee man was sentenced to three years of probation for his role in a botched carjacking, and shooting of an off-duty Milwaukee police detective in the Third Ward last year.

Dionta'e Hayes pleaded guilty last year to three felonies: driving a vehicle without the owner's consent, attempting to take a vehicle without the owner's consent, and bail jumping.

On Tuesday, Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Michael Hanrahan stayed a one-year prison sentence in favor of placing Hayes on three years of probation. The stayed prison sentence means that if Hayes violates the conditions of his probation, he will serve that prison sentence.

Hayes is one of three teens to plead guilty in connection to the incident. Timonte Karroll-Robinson, 19, was sentenced last summer to five years in prison for his role, and Keasean Ellis-Brown, 20, pleaded guilty in April to attempted first-degree intentional homicide and two other felonies. A sentencing hearing is scheduled for June 30.

According to police and prosecutors:

On Jan. 13, 2022, Milwaukee police officer Andrew Wilkiewicz was inside of the Shake Shack, 220 E. Buffalo St., when a delivery driver arrived at the establishment. The driver exited the vehicle and asked if one of her three children could use the restroom. Once the driver exited the vehicle, a man jumped inside of it with the woman's children also inside the car.

The man would later be identified by authorities as Ellis-Brown, who dropped his phone in the process of attempting to steal the car. Ellis-Brown returned to the Shake Shack and forcefully tried to take his phone back from the driver who was in possession.

Wilkiewicz then stepped in and identified himself as police. During the struggle, Wilkiewicz was shot and injured. Ellis-Brown then fled in another car with the two other teens.

The shooting put Wilkiewicz in the hospital for five days. The modified charge for attempted homicide is classified as a Class A felony, and therefore Ellis-Brown could be sentenced to life in prison.

Our subscribers make this reporting possible. Please consider supporting local journalism by subscribing to the Journal Sentinel at jsonline.com/deal.

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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Teen given probation for his role in Milwaukee detective's shooting
Police are looking for the teen they say shot a male last week in Pittsburghs Bedford Dwellings, critically injuring him.

Damon Peters, 19, of Pittsburgh, is wanted on charges of aggravated assault, criminal attempted aggravated assault, criminal mischief, reckless endangerment and gun charges.

Officers responded to the area of Chauncey Drive for a ShotSpotter alert for 16 rounds, then another five rounds on Webster Avenue around 1 a.m. June 9.

After arriving at the scene, officers were approached by an Uber driver, who said they were picking up a male who was shot inside their vehicle. Another witness then drove the victim to UPMC Mercy Hospital in the Uber drivers vehicle.

According to the complaint, the male had just gotten into the back of the vehicle when the suspect, who had been hiding behind a concrete wall, came out and fired, shooting the victim in the neck multiple times.

He then fled, dropping a cane he had been holding. Peters was identified by fingerprints, according to court documents.

The current condition of the victim was not released.

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TEMPEST EJECTION TEST

Development work on the British-led Tempest future stealth fighter is gathering pace, including trials of a Martin-Baker ejection seat using a rocket sled. Tests of the crew escape system provide very tangible  and dramatic  evidence of progress made in the program so far. However, it is just one element of a multi-faceted development effort that will face many challenges if its to succeed in getting a new-generation crewed fighter into service by 2035, as planned.

https://twitter.com/BAESystemsAir/status/1668892032268488706?s=20

The video and photos of the ejection seat trials were released today by program lead BAE Systems, together with details about other work taking place on the program. The ejection seat will be used in a Flying Technology Demonstrator, which will inform the Tempest. Plans for a supersonic crewed demonstrator aircraft were first announced in July 2022, together with the aim of having it flying by 2027.

The moment of ejection during one of the rocket sled tests for the Flying Technology Demonstrator. BAE Systems

The demonstrator will use the same Martin-Baker Mk 16A ejection seat used in the Eurofighter Typhoon fighter jet. Work on the crew escape system began in February 2022 with static firing to evaluate the cockpit canopy  which incorporates technology from BAEs Hawk advanced jet trainer. There were then four tests using a rocket-propelled sled, with differently weighted instrumented mannequins being ejected at 280 knots and 450 knots.

Work on the crew escape system is now complete. It seems that the fuselage section used in the ejection will be broadly the same as that in the demonstrator, being described as a representative forward fuselage design, and a degree of commonality would be required for the tests to be productive.

The representative forward fuselage design used for ejection tests, coupled to the rocket sled. BAE Systems

A BAE representative military fast jet fuselage that was built on a high-tech, heavily automated new production line. BAE Systems

However, its unclear to what degree the demonstrator will actually look like the Tempest. Already, there have been significant changes in the appearance of conceptual studies and mock-ups representing the Tempest, as you can read about here.

https://twitter.com/AliAlHashim2/status/1548991551573037058?s=20

To get the Flying Technology Demonstrator into the air in the next four years, BAE and other entities working on the program (including Rolls-Royce, Leonardo UK, MBDA, and the U.K. Ministry of Defense) are using a range of innovative digital techniques and transformative processes, according to BAE.

Digital engineering has in recent years been billed as the key to enabling the rapid development of new aircraft and other weapon systems. While it may not always be the panacea that some have claimed  something that you can read about in-depth here  BAE is confident that this approach will allow the timeline to be met.

In particular, the digital processes include auto-coding, in which entire program codes are created automatically. BAE says its the first time that this approach has been used in military aircraft design and is being leveraged to create safety-critical systems software in a matter of days rather than weeks. This software is then proven in a simulator, testing for example the behavior of flight control systems during complex flight maneuvers. In this way, designers hope to know much about how the Flying Technology Demonstrator handles and performs before its flown.

An earlier concept for the Tempest future fighter jet. BAE Systems

A simulator has been developed especially for the project and is located at a new facility at BAE Systems in Warton, Lancashire. The company says that a digital representation of the Flying Technology Demonstrator has flown more than 170 hours in the simulator, with a team of 10 pilots provided by BAE, Rolls-Royce, and the U.K. Royal Air Force (RAF).

Work is also pressing ahead on the powerplant for the demonstrator. Aerodynamic engine testing has already taken place at Rolls-Royces site in Filton, Bristol. The engine used in the tests was a standard Eurojet EJ200 from a Typhoon fighter, although its not clear if this will also be used in the twin-engine Flying Technology Demonstrator. The Tempest, also twin-engine, is set to feature an all-new engine design.

The powerplant system for the demonstrator also incorporates novel technologies, including using advanced manufacturing processes to produce the engine duct for the intake. The intake is designed to use a smaller number of moving parts to slow down air from supersonic to subsonic speeds before it meets the engine. The intake serpentine design is an important aspect to ensure the aircrafts stealth characteristics.

The EJ200 engine combined with the engine duct for the demonstrator aircraft, at Filton in Bristol. BAE Systems

As it stands, we dont have any concept artworks or models available to see what the Flying Technology Demonstrator will actually look like. However, at almost 33 feet long, the engine duct suggests an overall large airframe. We also know that it will specifically test features including the crew escape system, engine intake, and stealth technologies, which will be based on low-observability shaping and materials. Those features will then inform the design of the Tempest, although there may well be significant changes between the demonstrator and the production fighter.

An infographic showing some of the capabilities and concepts behind the Tempest program. BAE Systems

While the Flying Technology Demonstrator is currently a British effort, BAE has also said that, in the future, Italy and Japan could come aboard, reflecting the tri-national nature of the broader Global Combat Air Program (GCAP) of which the Tempest is a fundamental part, but which also involves other technologies, among them loyal wingman type drones, a new generation of air-launched weapons, and sensors.

Since the demonstrator aircraft was first announced in July 2022, the GCAP collaboration between the United Kingdom, Italy, and Japan has taken shape and this is now central to the success of the program.

https://twitter.com/DefenceHQ/status/1601176747051032577?s=20

At this point, however, its not exactly clear how the three partner nations will divide up the workshare and costs of GCAP. Last summer, it was reported that the U.K. Ministry of Defense had already committed around $2.5 billion to the GCAP until 2025, with Italy and Japan each said to have matched this investment.

But even with Italy and Japan now involved, to help share costs and boost demand for Tempest aircraft and ancillary systems, there remain big questions about the feasibility of creating a new fighter jet and supporting architecture from scratch, especially one thats supposed to be in service by 2035.

An official artists concept of a potential GCAP configuration, with Mount Fuji in the background. MHI

In the past, there have been tentative suggestions from the U.K. government that other countries may buy into GCAP in the future, either signing up as partners or committing to buy Tempest aircraft as export customers. With the United Kingdom experiencing an economic downturn, any such developments would be welcome. But its not clear what countries might join in.

Sweden was previously interested in the U.K.-led Future Combat Air System, or FCAS framework that preceded GCAP. Today, however, Sweden is no longer being mentioned as part of GCAP, raising doubts about its involvement.

Then there are the persistent questions about how realistic it is for there to be two separate future combat air efforts being run simultaneously in Europe. As well as the U.K.-led FCAS (which now appears to have essentially morphed into GCAP), France, Germany, and Spain are pursuing a rival pan-European FCAS. The European FCAS also has a crewed fighter jet as its centerpiece, known as the Next Generation Fighter (NGF).

In the past, the chief of the Italian Air Force raised the possibility of some kind of merger between the two FCAS programs, arguing that investing huge financial resources in two equivalent programs is unthinkable. At this point, such a development seems unlikely, but with some political tensions within the pan-European FCAS, it cant be ruled out entirely.

One of the more recent concept artworks of the Tempest fighter released by BAE Systems. BAE Systems

Meanwhile, with plenty of other technologies being developed alongside the crewed fighter jets, there would seem to be no shortage of options for collaborating on other elements, such as uncrewed aircraft or air-launched weapons, for example.

Aside from possible developments on the political and industrial side of the program, the latest announcements make it clear that BAE and its partners are now pushing ahead to get a demonstrator for the Tempest in the air by 2027.

Its no secret, however, that developing a stealth combat aircraft from scratch is an extremely complex undertaking, with long development times and high costs essentially baked in from the start. With that in mind, the timelines are clearly ambitious, but it will be fascinating to see what happens next, not least how the Flying Technology Demonstrator will actually appear, and what other kinds of technologies it will incorporate.

Ultimately, the hope will be that this intermediary design will accelerate work on the final product and help keep up Tempests aggressive schedule.

Contact the author: thomas@thedrive.com
In Texas, fireworks cant be shot near churches. So Tarrant County neighbors set up two

One May evening, residents in an unincorporated rural neighborhood in south Tarrant County gathered at a government building to air their grievances.

The neighbors on Eden Road South near Mansfield had been having problems with their new neighbor, Joe Sterling, and the noise and light from his nearby 18-wheeler lot for months. When Sterling dropped his fireworks stand on the property, it caused even more problems, they said. They worry about quality of life, and the quality of their animals lives, among other things.

There are few protections for those living in the unincorporated areas of the county with its loose zoning laws and fireworks regulations. Neighbors started looking for loopholes.

And on this night they met with their county commissioner, Alisa Simmons, who brought fire marshal Randy Renois and a representative from the district attorneys office to the table to discuss potential solutions.

The first line under the prohibited use section of Texas fireworks regulations states fireworks cant be ignited or explode within 600 feet of a church.

So the neighbors posed a question to county leadership  did they need to build a church to protect themselves?

Kate Zimmerman, one of the neighbors, said one of the county leaders started laughing. But the neighbors werent joking.

This property debate in unincorporated Tarrant County comes down to the few rules that exist locally and statewide for property zoning and shooting off fireworks.

You can do whatever you want on your property. So can your neighbor.

It gives few options for the neighbors upset with the truck lot and fireworks stand.

Texas also has few definitions surrounding what a church is. And as county leadership hit walls in its search for solutions and told neighbors to look into lobbying to lawmakers in Austin, the line in the fireworks rules seemed, to some, to be the right loophole for protection.

Then two churches, one at Neil Foremans home and another at Jay Hasbroucks, popped up in the neighborhood  both within 600 feet of the fireworks stand.

The name of Hasbroucks church? Faith United Cowboy Church.

And the church at Foremans? The Church of Peace and Quiet.

Rules about churches

There isnt a solid definition for what a church is in Texas or nationwide.

For tax exemption purposes, the state comptrollers office says a church is an organized, established group of people regularly meeting at a designated location to hold religious worship services. The IRS definition of a church focuses more on the congregation itself.

Given the variety of religious practice, the determination of what constitutes a church is inherently unquantifiable, a statement from the IRS reads.

Zimmerman laid all this out in an email to Renois.

While the IRS and the Supreme Court are a little sketchy whether 2 people qualify as a church, first, we have more than that and secondly, Matthew 18:20 tells us Whereever two or three are gathered in my name, I am there among them which clearly adds one  and makes a group of 2 a total of three by default, Zimmerman wrote. Unless your fire code specifies that Jesus shall not be counted, which I would be absolutely shocked to hear in Texas.

David Brockman, a TCU professor who also works at the Baker Institutes Religion and Public Policy Program, combed through the rules. He said church designation is wide open.

Brockman used Denvers nonprofit International Church of Cannabis as an example. Members practice elevationism, which focuses on the benefits of cannabis use. The church aims to offer a home to adults everywhere who are looking to create the best version of themselves by way of the sacred plant.

If the International Church of Cannabis can be recognized, I guess the Church of Peace and Quiet can be as well, Brockman said.

And as far as Brockman knows, what the neighbors in Tarrant County are doing can be considered churches.

Rules really only apply if a church wants to be exempt from taxes, Brockman said, and there are some churches that dont have even have an ordination process for their ministers.

Renois agrees with the code  if a church is established within 600 feet within Sterlings property, he and whoever else is on his property wont be allowed to shoot fireworks.

Renois said he informed the neighbors that churches are public buildings and would need to be permitted and follow the fire code. Fire code comes down to whether theres a structure, he told the Star-Telegram. So if the neighbors are hosting church inside a home or in a tent, that structure would be subject to rules.

Its a different story if the neighbors are setting up chairs in a yard, Renois said. He said county leaders are researching what rules would apply.

Renois said if Sterling applies for a permit to sell fireworks, he would give it to him.

Sterling did not respond to a phone call and text for comment Monday.

A renewed path

By all means, Hasbrouck, 70, has taken the situation with Sterling and his fellow neighbors as a sign from God.

The 25-year neighborhood resident has always been religious and even has a Facebook page set up to write prayers for others.

Hasbrouck has admittedly not been super involved in the efforts to expel Sterlings fireworks stand and truck lot from the neighborhood. But his wife is a member of a Facebook page set up surrounding the issue to keep neighbors informed.

No one told Hasbrouck to start his church, he said, and no one has helped him do it. His wife simply told him about a post that had information about the no fireworks 600 feet away from a church rule.

This was Gods way of opening a door for him, he said.

I believe God lays a path for us, Hasbrouck said. And I pray for the strength and the wisdom to follow his path that he wants me to go down, and I feel like I havent been fulfilling that well enough.

Hasbrouck has qualms with the lights from the truck lot, and he also thinks the chain link fence around Sterlings property looks something akin to a prison.

He has just gone out and done whatever he has wanted to do, Hasbrouck said. And he says, Its the county, you can do whatever you want. And he doesnt care. And I said to him, this is my home.

Where Hasbrouck saw a sign from God, Foreman saw a route to protect his neighbors.

With all the stress of what Joe Sterling has done to me, it made me look inside myself and look for help and at that point I found faith in the lord, Foreman said.

Foreman said he had talked to Zimmerman about making the church at his house, and said its creation was a general decision. Posts in a private Facebook group show the church at Foremans was a collective effort.

Foreman said the church was created so people in the neighborhood suffering at Sterlings hands could have a place to unite and ask a higher power for help.

Foreman claims it didnt have anything to do with the 600-feet-away rule, but that it helped.

County hits walls in finding a solution

Simmons, the commissioner, said she has been looking into statutes to see what can be done for the neighbors. The fireworks issue is one she said needs to be handled at the state level.

How can we override state law is the question I come back to, Simmons said. We cant.

Simmons said it has been a frustrating situation for all involved. She said she has asked Sterling and the neighbors if they had ever sat down and just talked it out.

Both Sterling and the band of neighbors said no, she said.

Simmons called the neighbors decision to create churches an interesting strategy.

Neighbors like Zimmerman and Foreman have appreciated Simmons efforts and say she had been responsive to their needs.

Representatives for county judge Tim OHare and Texas House Rep. David Cook, who represents the neighborhood, did not immediately return requests for comment.

The neighbors remain frustrated at the lack of protections.

What is the deal that there is no protection for residences, any resident, in unincorporated Tarrant County? Zimmerman said. Its really crazy. Even though were trying to present options to the county that can let them protect the residents, like we opened these two cute little churches, how come we have to try to go to these lengths to protect ourselves?

If her family could afford to move, Zimmerman said they would. But neighbors say that with the disturbances created by the truck lot and possibly fireworks, they cant sell properties for what theyre worth.

Were trapped, Zimmerman said.

Foreman doesnt have a schedule for his church yet. Hasbrouck has plans to set up some chairs for his services. It may just be him and his wife who attend. If it is, then so be it, he says.

And hes working on a set of three crosses  two 12-foot-tall ones and a 16-foot-tall one. Hasbrouck plans to put them up on the left side of his property.

Its the side right next to the truck lot.
Deputies are investigating the theft of two pickup trucks, valued at over $100,000 each, that were stolen from a New Carlisle car dealership early Wednesday morning, according to the Clark County Sheriffs Office.

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The thefts happened at the New Carlisle Chrysler, Jeep, Dodge, and Ram dealership on state Route 235 in New Carlisle around 3 a.m. Wednesday. Deputies were called out to the dealership around 3:30 a.m. after an alarm was triggered, deputies said in an incident report.

Surveillance video found a group of males had broken into the dealership and took off with two Dodge Ram 1500 TRX trucks. One truck, thats blue in color, is valued at over $114,000 while the second, described as granite in color, is valued at over $110,000, according to a Clark County Sheriffs Office spokesperson.

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The suspects arrived at the dealership in a Dodge Challenger car that was later found to be stolen from a Beavercreek dealership. As all three vehicles were leaving the dealership, the Challenger was involved in a crash with one of the trucks, according to deputies. The Challenger was found unoccupied when deputies responded to the crash scene.

The blue truck has since been recovered in Dayton, however the exact location it was found was not immediately available from deputies.

No arrests have been made and the case remains an active investigation, deputies said.

Additional details were not available. Well update this story as we learn more.
WEST PALM BEACH  A South Florida man who pleaded guilty last year to making online threats against the outspoken Republican congresswoman Lauren Boebert has been sentenced to 15 months in federal prison.

U.S. District Judge Robin L. Rosenberg imposed the sentence on Matthew Lee Comiskey, 39, during a hearing Thursday at the Paul G. Rogers federal courthouse in West Palm Beach.

Rosenberg instructed Comiskey, a one-time Delray Beach-area resident who now resides in Broward County, to surrender voluntarily in August, when his sentence will begin. The judge also ordered that Comiskey be placed on one year of probation upon his release from custody.

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Tweets targeted Lauren Boebert's support for Second Amendment

Comiskey pleaded guilty in October 2022 to one count of making an interstate threat after federal authorities charged him with sending threatening tweets to Boebert, a staunch gun-rights advocate from western Colorado serving her second term in Congress.

He was indicted months earlier on five counts after prosecutors alleged that Comiskey sent a series of threatening messages to Boebert, referencing guns and her support of the Second Amendment.

Matthew Lee Comiskey's tweets threatened the safety of U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-Colo., seen here in June 2022 speaking as members of the House Second Amendment Caucus criticize a series of Democratic measure to curb gun violence in the wake of the mass shootings at a school in Uvalde, Texas, and a grocery in Buffalo, N.Y.

Dont worry Lauren, someone is coming soon to show your face the 2nd amendment in practice with a copper jacket. Enjoy, Comiskey wrote in one message on Twitter while living in Palm Beach County, according to court records.

During Thursday's hearing, Comiskey read a prepared statement in which he apologized for his actions and told the court he let "personal emotions get in the way of my common sense." His mother spoke on his behalf, describing the acts as out of character.

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Dr. Michael Brannon, a psychologist who testified on behalf of the defense, told the court that his evaluations placed Comiskey in the lowest category in terms of presenting a risk to others.

Rosenberg granted a defense motion for a downward variance from the minimum sentencing guideline, but rejected a request that Comiskey be given a prison sentence of one month followed by a period of house arrest.

Prior to the judge's ruling, Comiskey faced a minimum of 24 months. In exchange for the plea, prosecutors agreed to drop the remaining four counts of the same charge.

"I think it was a case in which the judge did the best she could to fashion a fair sentence," defense attorney Michael B. Cohen said after the hearing.

"It's just very unfortunate that Mr. Comiskey has to do jail time. I understand the need for deterrent generally but, in this particular case, it was just a kind, good man who made a big mistake."

Julius Whigham II is a criminal justice and public safety reporter for The Palm Beach Post. You can reach him at jwhigham@pbpost.com and follow him on Twitter at @JuliusWhigham. Help support our work: Subscribe today.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: South Florida man sentenced for online threats to U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert
Three Staten Island MTA bus workers accused in no-show overtime scheme by Inspector General; two no longer work for agency

Three bus maintainers at a Staten Island depot were caught collecting thousands of dollars in a no-show overtime scheme, according to a report from the MTAs inspector general  and two of them no longer work for the agency.

The men  all of whom worked for the Yukon Bus Depot on Staten Island  were placed under investigation last year following an anonymous tip that the three maintainers regularly committed overtime abuse and filed false time records, the report reads.

The maintainers were surveilled from June through August 2022, with investigators watching the mens homes as well as the depot.

In every instance that surveillance was conducted during times where Bus Maintainer 1 and 2 worked OT, they were observed leaving the depot for approximately 2-6 hours at a time and were usually found at their respective residences, reads the report, which identified the bus maintainer with numbers instead of by name.

Bus maintainer 1 was seen ditching a dozen overtime shifts while under surveillance. On one occasion, the first maintainer was seen in his driveway working on his Mercedes while on the clock for an eight-hour overtime shift to disinfect buses.

He drove back to the depot in the Mercedes to clock out, investigators said.

Another time, the same man was found missing from the depot during a surprise check by investigators.

Questioned later, his supervisor claimed to have seen the man 45 minutes earlier  though investigators had witnessed him leaving the depot an hour before that.

The supervisor told another maintainer to call the missing man, who the surveillance team then saw drive back to the depot from his house.

Bus maintainer 2 skipped out on all 13 overtime shifts during which he was surveilled. The no-show maintainer told investigators that heading home during overtime shifts was a common occurrence.

He admitted to using a third maintainers ID to clock both men out after each took long breaks at home.

On one occasion the third maintainer, an out-of-state resident, was caught driving in New Jersey by a license plate reader nearly three hours before time card records show him clocking out for the night.

Bus maintainer 3 told investigators that he had started going home early as the weather got warmer in the summer of 2022.

Bus maintainer 3 said it started gradually and then it became easier, the report reads. He did not fear anyone would be looking for him because he had gotten his work done before he left.

The three maintainers  who were responsible for general bus maintenance as well as COVID decontamination  were among the top 20 overtime earners of the depots 65 maintainers, investigators said.

Bus Maintainer 1 made roughly $3,200 in unearned overtime pay while under surveillance, the OIG report said, while Bus Maintainer 2 took home an estimated $2,232 in unearned overtime. The report did not estimate the third maintainers excess pay.

All three men told investigators that there was rarely enough work to fill the overtime shifts.

[Bus Maintainer 2] added that there is an excessive amount of OT allotted for the actual work that needs to be performed, the report reads.

Investigators also cited four line supervisors for failing to know the whereabouts of their subordinates.

Overtime abuse is not tolerated at New York City Transit, said MTA spokesman Michael Cortez. We hold employees to the highest standard, those who claim fraudulent overtime are disciplined appropriately, and we continue to improve accountability.

Cortez confirmed that two of the three maintainers were no longer working for the MTA.

In a memo attached to the OIG report, the MTA told investigators that all three men had taken their disciplinary cases to arbitration.

Bus Maintainer 1 was forced to pay back his overtime and returned to work after a suspension, the document shows.

The second maintainer was fired, and the third was allowed to retire in lieu of discharge. Additionally, all four line supervisors cited by investigators were subject to 20-day suspensions from work.
The Wisconsin Supreme Court hearing room in the state Capitol.

Wisconsinites elected Milwaukee County Judge Janet Protasiewicz over former Supreme Court Justice Dan Kelly last spring to the Wisconsin Supreme Court in a race that set spending records nearly doubling the national record.

With a 4-3 liberal majority, the Wisconsin Supreme Court could start taking up cases this fall, said Sara Benesh, associate professor and chair at University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee's Political Science department.

Challenges to abortion rights, new political maps and voting rules could all be on the list, Benesh said. It's unclear when or if the state Supreme Court will take up these issues  the court's schedule doesn't come out until later this year.

But here are some predictions of the key issues that the state Supreme Court could possibly take up:

The decision on whether abortion is legal in Wisconsin

Last year, the U.S. Supreme Court overturned its ruling legalizing abortion and Wisconsin reverted back to a 19th-century law that bans abortions in most cases. In response, Gov. Tony Evers and Democratic Attorney General Josh Kaul filed a lawsuit against Republican legislative leaders arguing the ban was unenforceable.

Arguments have already started in the lawsuit trying to invalidate the 1849 law. Dane County Circuit Judge Diane Schlipper said last month that she'd issue a ruling on a motion to dismiss the case submitted by three district attorneys Kaul previously sued.

The arguments come as majority of Wisconsinites oppose the decision by the Supreme Court to overturn Roe v. Wade, according to polls by Marquette Law School. It's likely the court could hear a challenge to the 19th century law this term, said Benesh, just because of the number of people it affects in the state.

The Wisconsin Supreme Court could challenge political maps that were drawn to favor republicans in 2022

Every decade, states are required to draw new maps after the U.S. census releases data. Depending on how the lines are drawn, they can give one political party a large advantage. In April 2022, the 4-3 majority of the state Supreme Court picked Republican Lawmakers' maps, which supported their control of the Legislature.

Redistricting matters to voters because the maps decide how much your vote essentially counts, said Benesh. "When you're gerrymandered into a district that you have no hope of actually influencing the outcome in, your vote no longer matters as much as it would in a system where voters are distributed more evenly."

During the campaign, Protasiewicz called the state election maps "rigged," especially against votes from people in Dane and Milwaukee counties. The state Supreme Court could hear a challenge to maps before the next presidential election, said Benesh because lawmakers want to avoid making any rule changes too close to election day.

Voting rules for the upcoming presidential election could be decided by Wisconsin's Supreme Court

The state Supreme Court could consider voting rules ahead of the upcoming 2024 presidential election. The Court could consider Racine's mobile van that travels throughout the city to meet voters in their neighborhood and collect early ballots, said Benesh.

Another issue that could be considered involves a lower count ruling in Sept. 2022 that election clerks weren't allowed to fill in missing address information on absentee ballots.

The state Supreme Court could also consider voter ID laws to change how voters can access the ballot through voter ID restrictions, said Benesh.

Here's what we don't know

The Court will release a schedule later this year. Until that schedule is released, we won't know for sure what cases the state Supreme Court will consider this fall.

Rulings from the state Supreme Court on issues like gerrymandered voting districts and various voting laws also require legal challenges that are appealed to the Supreme Court. Arguments about those issues before the state Supreme Court are likely but not yet confirmed.

Contact Alex Groth at agroth@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter at @grothalexandria.

Our subscribers make this reporting possible. Please consider supporting local journalism by subscribing to the Journal Sentinel at jsonline.com/deal.

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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Abortion, gerrymandering, voting issues and Wisconsin Supreme Court
Tiara Kelley has experienced two shootings at LGBTQ+ nightclubs that she once regarded as safe spaces. In a new interview with ABC, the 42-year-old reflects on the trauma that comes from losing friends and chosen family to targeted shootings in spaces specifically aimed at serving her community.

Kelley also spoke on the heightened difficulties that come with being a Black transgender woman in a country constantly grappling with its deep-rooted racism and institutionalized transphobia.

Double Tragedy

Tiara Kelleys first near mass shooting experience was at Pulse, a gay nightclub in Orlando, Florida. This was on July 12, 2016. That night, 49 patrons were killed, and 53 people were injured. As she told ABC News in an interview, Kelley was sleeping at a friends house not too far from the club when she was woken up by the sounds of ambulances and firetrucks making their way to the scene of the shooting.

Kelley had planned on being at the club before the shooting happened. She narrowly escaped due to her accidentally falling asleep at her friends. Nonetheless, the ordeal shook her. Kelley lost friends and colleagues to the shooting. The incident also forced her to move out of Orlando to Colorado Springs, Colorado. It was there where she encountered yet another mass shooting six years later.

On November 19, 2022, a 22-year-old gunman opened fire in Club Q, a gay nightclub in Colorado Springs.

The gunman killed 5 people and left 25 others injured. Again, Kelley narrowly escaped. She told ABC News at the time she was dealing with an illness brought on by her dialysis treatment. For that reason, she decided to stay home instead of attend a fellow drag performers birthday which was happening that night at Club Q.

Speaking on the trauma of experiencing such devastating ordeals twice, Kelley shared that it felt like experiencing deja vu.

You think to yourself, Thank God that you made it through [Pulse], we lived through that, its good, that could never happen again, theres no way that it would ever happen again. And then you move across the country, to a whole nother state and out of all of the clubs in this area  its unbelievable, Kelley tells ABC.

In her interview, Kelley also talked about starting her own drag family, the current legislation targeted against drag performers and trans people in the country and finding joy and healing from past trauma in her community.

The post Tiara Kelley on Escaping Two LGBTQ Nightclub Attacks appeared first on 21Ninety.
Tide strands magnificent creature on Oregon beach. Watch rescuers help it get home

A magnificent creature was left stranded on an Oregon shoreline until rescuers helped it home, a video shows.

A beachgoer first spotted the massive sea creature on June 7 at Cannon Beach, a popular shoreline with iconic rock formations, and they called for help.

Rescuers with the Haystack Rock Awareness Program got to the beach and saw a giant Pacific octopus in the sand between Haystack Rock and The Needles rock formations, the group said in a Facebook post.

This is the largest one Ive ever seen, one person is heard saying in a video shared on Experience Cannon Beachs Facebook page.

The tide had carried the octopus to the tide pools, then receded, leaving it trapped on the beach.

The rescuers were surprised to see the octopus and began taking photos of it as a crowd formed around them, the video shows. They estimated it was about 5 feet in length.

Seeing a giant Pacific octopus alive is a pretty rare encounter, so its safe to say our staff was pretty excited, the group said in another post.

One rescuer gently pushed the octopus toward the water with their hands until the tide carried it to deeper water. The octopus didnt show any signs of injury, the group said.

Well thats not something you see every day, one person is heard saying in the video.

What a magnificent creature!!!! Absolutely breath taking, someone commented on the groups Facebook post.

Anyone who finds a stranded or injured marine animal should contact their local wildlife authority.

Giant Pacific octopuses can have an arm span measuring from 7 feet to more than 13 feet, according to the Monterey Bay Aquarium. They live about three to five years.

They usually live among reefs and man-made coastal structures that are dim, dark and have deep crevices to hide in, the aquarium said.

Huge brilliant creature found on California beach likely died of old age. See photos

Octopus lashes out when he wakes up, perhaps from a nightmare. See the intense video

Family spots massive octopus struggling in muddy shoreline of WA bay, video shows
Tired of fighting over book bans? An Idaho library has one possible solution | Opinion

About two weeks ago, the Idaho Falls Public Library rescinded all library cards for children, as the Post Register reported. It was the first step in a new policy aimed at giving parents more control over what their children read.

There are now two kinds of library cards for children: restricted cards, which allow them to check out books only from the childrens section, and unrestricted cards, which enable them to check out anything apart from movies and graphic novels in the adult section.

A similar policy was recently adopted by the Community Library Network, which serves a range of smaller towns in North Idaho.

The adoption of these policies demonstrates clearly that there is no need for the Legislature to continue with efforts to crack down on public libraries, exemplified by last years House Bill 314, which would have become law had Gov. Brad Little not vetoed it. Library boards throughout the state are already responsive to local interests and preferences.

I am a firm believer that government that is closer to the people works better, and you dont have any government closer, said Idaho Falls Public Library Director Richard Wright in an interview.

Each community should be able to make their own choices, he said.

For the last two years, library workers across the state have been subject not only to intense scrutiny by the Legislature but relentless attacks from small groups of censorship advocates in local communities.

As the Post Register reported, the efforts to ban books in Idaho Falls were pushed by the ironically named Idaho Parents for Educational Choice. According to the groups website, it has worked alongside local John Birch Society groups and has taken guidance from the Christian nationalist Idaho Family Policy Center.

Now that the policy has been adopted, the preferences of the broader community of parents are starting to reveal themselves.

The library system previously had about 7,500 childrens library cards issued. After about two weeks under the new policy, about 1,900  likely a mixture of the heaviest library users and the children of those most interested in library restrictions  had applied for new cards. Roughly three-quarters of those opted for the full-access card, and only about a quarter chose the restricted card.

Since those who were pushing for restrictions likely applied for new restricted cards in a rush, Id expect the proportion of restricted cards to fall as more of the new cards are issued. Indeed thats already the apparent trend: when the Post Register reported the new policy about a week ago, the split was roughly 50/50, and now its 75/25.

Theres a lesson for Idaho politicians here: The forces of censorship are loud, drowning out the perspectives of the much more reasonable majority with the intensity of their vitriol. But they are, in fact, a tiny fraction of the population.

The overwhelming majority of parents want their kids to have full access to the library, to freely and critically explore a wide variety of ideas, most of which they will reject, as kids across the country have done for well over a century.

Wright hopes the move will end attacks on library workers coming from some lawmakers and small groups of censorship advocates.

Weve had board meetings where people have come in and accused people of sex trafficking and opening up kids to abuse and drug use, Wright said. Its very demoralizing. Its very hard to deal with. Nobody wants to be called a pedophile simply because you have books on the shelf that describe human reproduction.

The way Idaho has treated public servants dedicated to providing free access to information over the last few years has been utterly shameful. I hope we can leave that nonsense in the past, with so many libraries bending over backward to accommodate the small groups who have been leading attacks on them.

Because with policies like these, parents with objections to books in the library have all the tools they need to decide what their kids will read, instead of trying to change the laws so that they can dictate what all kids will read.

The library doesnt know how mature your child is or what your familys values are, Wright said. If a certain book lies outside your family values, then you should probably not have your child read it.

Bryan Clark is an opinion writer for the Idaho Statesman based in eastern Idaho.
Tom Holland, seen here in 2022, is talking Spider-Man.

The end of Spider-Man: No Way Home teased a whole new chapter in the life of Peter Parker. With his secret identity now secret once again, hes free to go back to being both Spider-Man and Peter, even if that means his friends and loved ones dont know who he is. It was an ending filled with possibilitybut, apparently, thats all it was.

In the 18 months since the release of that mega-hit, there hasnt been much public momentum on a sequel. The ending may have felt like a billion ideas were just waiting to be executedPeter trying to get MJ back, seeing how the Avengers react to him, fighting a new set of villainsbut that wasnt the case. Nothing specific had been planned. Writers were working on it, but when the strike hit, that also stopped. Now though, in a new interview, Tom Holland himself revealed he attended a series of meetings to talk about the future of the character and that, eventually, those meetings were productive.

Read more

It was myself, [producer] Amy [Pascal], [Marvel Studios president] Kevin Feige, [executive producer] Rachel [OConnor], sometimes other executives from Marvel will sit in, Holland told the Hollywood Reporter. Its a collaborative process. The first few meetings were about, Why would we do this again? And I think we found the reason why. Im really, really happy with where were at in terms of the creative.

Holland apparently went into those meetings with a bunch of notes and ideas, but is being very cautious about whether or not he should return at all. Im also a little apprehensive about it, he continued. Theres a bit of a stigma about the fourth one in all franchises. I feel like we hit a home run with our first franchise and theres a part of me that wants to walk away with my head held high and pass the baton to the next lucky kid that gets to bring this character to life.

Which, with the success of Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, and live-action Miles Morales potentially on the way, that certainly is a way to go. But now that Holland says he and the producers found the reason why they should come back creatively, it feels increasingly likely hell be back in the red and blue as soon as possible.

Read more from Holland on all aspects of his career over at the Hollywood Reporter.





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Too many kids in school are still wearing diapers, Swiss teachers complain

Too many kids in school are still wearing diapers, Swiss teachers complain

"Teachers aren't there to change their students' diapers. That's crossing a line." Iuliia Bondar/Getty Images

The head of the Swiss Federation of Teachers gave an interview.

In it, he said that kids are coming to school wearing diapers.

This is because they are starting school so young and parents aren't properly teaching their kids.

This is a translation of a story originally that appeared in BILD on Jun 13, 2023.

Swiss educators are sounding the alarm: there are more and more children in schools who are still wearing diapers.

"Kids are going to school as early as four years old now, so yeah, you might actually find some still in diapers," Dagmar Rosler, head honcho of the Swiss Federation of Teachers, told "20 Minuten".

But it's not just about the age they start school  an increasing number of older students also depend on diapers, and it's not for health-related reasons.

Child development expert Rita Messmer once even had an eleven-year-old patient who wasn't taught how to use the toilet on their own. The number of kids wearing diapers in school has "skyrocketed," she told the "Sonntagszeitung." She's swamped with inquiries.

Educational scientist Margrit Stamm is familiar with the problem, too. Diapers have come a long way over the decades. Nowadays, they can be worn "like normal underwear," she told the "Sonntagszeitung." "So kids get conditioned to diapers."

She went on, "Some parents let it slide, because diapers are a convenient relief. It's not seen as a problem these days." Apparently, there are parents who put their kids in diapers for outings, or because they want to sleep in a little longer in the morning. "That sends a totally wrong message," says Stamm.

Teachers shouldn't be changing diapers

The ones suffering are the teachers. Federation head Dagmar Rosler told "20 Minuten:" "Parents have a responsibility to make sure their school-aged kids aren't wearing diapers anymore. When eleven-year-olds come to school in diapers, that's a worrying trend. Teachers aren't there to change their students' diapers. That's crossing a line."

The diaper issue has some bizarre side effects: The "Sonntagszeitung" dug up an ad where a working couple is looking for "a lady" who could be "on call to change our five-year-old son."

Read the original article on Insider
MOSCOW (Reuters) -A former campaign leader for jailed Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny was sentenced to seven years and six months in prison on Wednesday for "creating an extremist organisation".

Navalny supporters reacted with outrage to the sentence against Liliya Chanysheva, the former campaign chief for Navalny in the Urals city of Ufa.

Navalny aide Lyubov Sobol called it a political verdict, saying President Vladimir Putin had "put one more hostage in a penal colony". Navalny's spokeswoman Kira Yarmysh said Chanysheva had been punished for fighting for the future of her country.

"This sentence is a crime, and all those involved in fabricating this case will be punished sooner or later," Yarmysh wrote on Twitter.

Chanysheva has been in detention for the past year and a half. In her closing speech to the court last month, she said her case was part of a wider campaign by Putin to root out dissent in Russia.

"But Putin is corruption, low wages and pensions, a falling economy and rising prices. Putin is war! And this has already affected everyone!" she said.

The 41-year-old appealed to the judge not to sentence her to the 12 years requested by prosecutors.

"If you put me in jail for 12 years, I will not have time to give birth to a child. Give me a chance to be a mother," she said.

Navalny, Putin's best-known opponent, is serving sentences totalling 11-1/2 years in a penal colony on fraud and other charges that he says were trumped up to silence him. He faces further "extremism" charges that could extend his term by decades.

Human rights groups and Western governments view Navalny as a political prisoner.

The Kremlin denies that, routinely refusing to comment on his case and referring questions about him to the courts and the prison service.

(Reporting by Reuters, Writing by Mark Trevelyan; editing by Guy Faulconbridge)
(Bloomberg) -- Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang told Secretary of State Antony Blinken the US should stop hurting Chinas security interests in the name of competition in a call before the American officials expected trip to Beijing.

Most Read from Bloomberg

Qin also urged the US to effectively manage differences to stabilize relations between the worlds two largest economies, according to a statement released Wednesday by the Foreign Ministry in Beijing. The US should implement the consensus of the Bali meeting between President Joe Biden and Chinese leader Xi Jinping in November, he added.

Blinken raised a range of bilateral and global issues with the Chinese official, according to the State Department.

The secretary discussed the importance of maintaining open lines of communication to responsibly manage the US-PRC relationship to avoid miscalculation and conflict, State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said in a statement.

See: Blinken Plans Trip to Beijing in Bid to Stabilize US-China Ties

Blinken is apparently planning to travel to Beijing for a rescheduled trip seen as a significant step toward restoring high-level communications between the rivals. Ties were derailed by an alleged Chinese spy balloon crossing the US earlier this year. Beijing said the aircraft was collecting weather data.

The trip would be part of Bidens effort to restore some normalcy to a relationship that continues to be roiled by military encounters, punitive economic measures and accusations from both sides that the other is jeopardizing global stability.

A Blinken visit was one of the main outcomes from the meeting between the top leaders in Bali. They havent spoken since then, with Biden unable to secure a phone call with Xi after the balloon incident.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said Wednesday at a press briefing in Beijing that he didnt have any information to offer on a possible visit by Blinken.

More: US-China Handshake Fails to Stem Fears of Conflict in Asia

Qin also stated his solemn position on Chinas core concerns such as the Taiwan issue, according to the ministry statement, calling on the US to stop interfering in Chinas internal affairs.

Earlier this month, a Chinese vessel harassed an American warship transiting the Taiwan Strait, an incident that occurred days after Taipei and Washington signed a trade agreement.

China has pledged to bring Taiwan under its control someday, by force if necessary. Biden has repeatedly said the US would defend Taiwan if it was attacked.

(Updates with comments from Chinas Foreign Ministry on a potential Blinken visit.)

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Tory Lanez track goes viral on TikTok as rapper awaits sentencing for shooting Megan Thee Stallion

Tory Lanez-Megan Thee Stallion (Copyright 2020 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)

An unreleased Tory Lanez track has gone viral on TikTok, just as the rappers sentencing for shooting Megan Thee Stallion was delayed once again.

In December, rapper Lanez  real name Daystar Peterson  was found guilty of shooting Megan in the foot after a 2020 party in the Hollywood Hills.

The Canadian artist was convicted of assault and weapons charges by a Los Angeles jury, with prosecutors seeking a 13-year prison sentence and requesting that he be deported to his native Canada.

Peterson was due to be sentenced on Tuesday (13 June), but Los Angeles Superior Court judge David Herriford accepted the defenses request to delay his sentencing at the last minute. It is now scheduled for 7 August.

Despite this, however, an unreleased track by Peterson titled Hurts Me is currently going viral on the video-sharing app TikTok.

Many videos using the new striking face filter feature an audio clip of his song, with the lyrics: Do you not realise that it hurts me, when I see you go out? / Cos you have the time of your life, only when Im not around.

The track is trending on TikTok and has been used in more 125,000 videos at the time of writing.

Critics called out the clips on social media, with one tweet reading: Everyone supports Meg until a Tory Lanez TikTok audio is trending, sick of hearing that man.

everyone supports meg until a tory lanez tiktok audio is trending  sick of hearing that man  who? (@BianceSkylynn) June 11, 2023

That one Tory Lanez song going viral on TikTok rn is evidence cancel culture doesnt exist, another theorised.

In April, Megan  real name Megan Pete  spoke for the final time about being shot by Peterson and the public reaction to the shooting.

Explaining that she saw herself as a survivor, because I have truly survived the unimaginable rather than a victim, Megan said that shed had to face her trauma being turned into a running joke.

The Hot Girl Summer musician then explained that shed been taking time to work on herself and new music after the guilty verdict was reached. She said she would not be discussing the shooting in public again.

My purpose is for these words to serve as the final time that Ill address anything regarding this case in the press, she said.

I understand the public intrigue, but for the sake of my mental health, I dont plan to keep reliving the most traumatic experience of my life over and over again. Im choosing to change the narrative because Im more than just my trauma.
Tourists could be banned from Balis mountains due to bad behaviour

The ban applies to 22 mountains in Bali (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

Tourists could soon be banned from some mountains in Bali after a string of incidents involving misbehaving visitors, according to the islands governor.

Wayan Koster said the rule has been brought in with immediate effect, which rules out activities such as hiking and mountain climbing for both international and domestic tourists, reports CNN.

Some 22 mountains are covered by the decision, including Mount Batur and Mount Agung, which are both popular landmarks.

These mountains are sacred and revered. If their sanctity is damaged, it is the same as degrading the sacredness of Bali, said Mr Koster, who has been governor of Bali since 2018 and first suggested the ban earlier this year.

Local residents will also be stopped from certain activities, but Mr Koster said theyd be allowed on the mountains for religious ceremonies or the handling of natural disasters.

Theres been no indication of what the punishment might be for those who break the rules, but Bali has previously deported and banned foreigners from returning when theyve caused problems.

Despite the proclamation from Balis governor, tourism minister Sandiaga Unoi said that the proposal was still being discussed with regional officials. The local parliament will need to approve any decision.

The Independent has contacted Bali Tourism Board for further information.

The Indonesian island has been grappling with overtourism and unruly travellers for a number of years. Last month, officials mulled the introduction of a tourist tax to deter cheap tourists who tend to cause a lot of problems.

Back in 2019, Mr Koster called for authorities to just send them home after an Instagram influencer couple were filmed splashing themselves with holy water at a temple.

Earlier this year, a Russian man apologised after posing semi-naked on a sacred site, and in a separate incident, a Russian woman who posed nude for photos in front of a sacred tree was deported.

The Bali Tourism Board previously announced it was considering measures to improve the behaviour of visitors, with ideas including a tourist handbook, as well as billboards explaining what was considered acceptable and unacceptable behaviour.
puerto rican flag in front of the sea

In a series of recent incidents, individuals faced discrimination and mistreatment while traveling within different parts of the United States. These incidents included being denied prepaid car rentals, barred from purchasing drinks at a grocery store and even prevented from boarding flights. Shockingly, these individuals were all American citizens hailing from Puerto Rico, a territory that has been part of the United States since 1917. These incidents serve as a painful reminder of the prejudice faced by people from the predominantly Spanish-speaking island, as well as Spanish speakers in general, within the U.S.

One such incident involved Hertz, which faced backlash after refusing to provide a rental car to a Puerto Rican customer. Blanca Anderson, a retired college professor specializing in Puerto Rican identity, suggests that the root of the problem lies in the failure of many Americans to acknowledge the historical context of Puerto Ricos relationship with the U.S. The U.S. gained control of the island through invasion during the Spanish-American war in 1898. Following World War I, a law granting Puerto Ricans U.S. citizenship was enacted, but the island remains a commonwealth and has not achieved statehood.

Over time, these historical facts have been forgotten, leading many Americans to view Spanish-speaking Puerto Ricans as indistinguishable from Latinos with roots in other foreign countries south of the border.

Its ignorancethey dont know their history, Anderson told The Guardian. She retired to North Carolina after teaching at Loyola University in New Orleans, where she experienced firsthand the price Puerto Ricans pay for preserving their distinct cultural identity.

Photo Credit: Andy Orin

One incident that left a lasting impact on Anderson occurred when she tried to register to vote in Boston. Despite being a local resident originally from Puerto Rico, the clerk refused her registration because of her Puerto Rican background. This incident solidified her realization that Puerto Rico is treated as a colony, despite the discomfort associated with using that term. Anderson states, You cant call it a colony because we dont like that word now. But its a colonya spoil of war.

Given this context, it comes as no surprise when incidents like the one at the Hertz desk in New Orleans occur. Humberto Marchand, a retired federal probation officer, was denied a prepaid rental car despite having a valid Puerto Rican drivers license. The clerk insisted on a passport, treating Marchand as a foreigner. Marchands experience went viral, and similar incidents involving Avis, Spirit Airlines, and Kroger were brought to light.

Apologies were issued by Hertz, Avis, Spirit, and Kroger, with promises to retrain their employees on policies that treat valid Puerto Rican licenses the same as those from other parts of the U.S. However, these incidents reflect a broader issue that Puerto Ricans face throughout the mainland U.S. Marchand observes that nearly everyone he knows from Puerto Rico has encountered similar encounters, where they are mistaken for foreigners and subjected to discrimination. He believes that the use of Spanish language and accents often triggers such mistreatment.

CBS News correspondent David Begnaud, who has been instrumental in shedding light on Puerto Ricos neglected federal response after Hurricane Maria, played a crucial role in bringing attention to these incidents. Begnaud used his social media platforms to report on the experiences of Marchand and others, prompting media outlets to take notice.

Begnaud considers these incidents emblematic of second-class treatment endured by Puerto Ricans.

To me, this is emblematic of being treated like a second-class citizen. And this is proof. This is proof, he told The Guardian.

The recent case of a Shane jewelry store clerk in California refusing to sell an engagement ring to a Puerto Rican with a valid drivers license further highlights the ongoing discrimination. As these incidents continue to surface, it is crucial to acknowledge the persistent mistreatment of Puerto Ricans and address the underlying prejudice.
Trial of Chicago businessman James Weiss: Evidence seen and heard by the jury

James T. Weiss, 44, who is the son-in-law of former Cook County Democratic boss Joseph Berrios, was found guilty Thursday of bribery, wire fraud, mail fraud and lying to the FBI.

The trial has given jurors  and the public  a glimpse into the largely uncharted world of sweepstakes machines, sometimes called gray machines, which allow customers to put in money, receive a coupon to redeem for merchandise online and then play electronic games like slot machines.

Since the machines can be played for free, they are not considered gambling devices. Critics, however, contend the unregulated devices, which operate in cities, including Chicago, that have banned video gambling, are designed to skirt the law.

Prosecutors rested their case Wednesday after three full days of testimony featuring some 14 witnesses, including former state Sen. Terry Link, who secretly recorded phone calls and meetings with Weiss as well as then-state Rep. Luis Arroyo, who later pleaded guilty to arranging the bribery scheme.

Weiss attorneys did not put on any evidence. In April theyd filed a list of 26 potential witnesses, including lobbyist Shaw Decremer, a former top aide to House Speaker Michael Madigan; Vanessa Berrios, the daughter of former Cook County Democratic boss Joseph Berrios; ex-state Rep. Annazette Collins; Madigan-connected consultant Djavan Conway, and Jeffrey Rush, the son of former U.S. Rep. Bobby Rush.

Prosecutors played a portion of Weiss recorded interview with two FBI agents after they pulled him over to serve him with a warrant to seize his cellphone in October 2019. During the clip, FBI Special Agent Curtis Heide confronted Weiss about his claim that hed talked with Katherine Hunter  who did not exist.

You never had a phone conversation with Katherine Hunter. You didnt, Heide said on the tape.

There was a woman who Luis (Arroyo) put me in on the phone with, Weiss insisted. We were ... where the hell was it? We met in person. ... Im trying to give you guys the details.

Suddenly Weiss remembered they were at Tavern on Rush. He said he and Arroyo were at the restaurant on Chicagos Near North Side when Arroyo said, I gotta put you on the phone with Katherine about engaging in the agreement.

OK, and he said Katherine? one of the agents asked.

I believe it was Katherine, yes, Weiss replied.

Listen to the audio:

Then-Illinois state Sen. Terry Link was secretly wired for sound by the FBI in August 2019 when he met at a North Shore Wendys restaurant with his colleague, state Rep. Luis Arroyo, and a businessman about passing legislation benefiting so-called sweepstakes gaming machines.

After some discussion about legalizing and regulating the largely off-the-books machines, Link asked Arroyo if the two of them could speak in private.

As the two stepped outside, FBI agents were recording it on video. Cars could be heard whooshing by on Route 41. Standing face-to-face, Link assured Arroyo, this is you and I talking now. Nobody else. He then asked Arroyo a question that is at the center of the bribery case now on trial at the Dirksen U.S. Courthouse:

Whats in it for me, though?

On the recording, which was played for a federal jury on Monday, Arroyo proceeded to tell Link that he could get paid a monthly stipend of $2,500 for his efforts, and that the payments could be concealed as a consulting fee.

Listen to the audio:

As the two stepped outside, FBI agents were recording it on video. Cars could be heard whooshing by on Route 41. Standing face-to-face, Link assured Arroyo, this is you and I talking now. Nobody else. He then asked Arroyo a question that is at the center of the bribery case now on trial at the Dirksen U.S. Courthouse:
Screenshot: U.S. Army

Fort Johnson, a Louisiana Army base previously named after Confederate commander Leonidas Polk, was renamed to honor the late Sgt. William Henry Johnson Tuesday, per NBC News. But who was this Black man?

Johnson, a Winston Salem native, enlisted in the Army in 1917 as a teenager and moved to New York, per the U.S. Army website. He was assigned to Company C, the all-Black 15th New York Infantry Regiment that soon became the 369th Infantry Regiment. The year after he enlisted, Johnson and his unit went on his first and last tour, placed on the front lines in western France to push back the German forces.

Read more

While on duty one night, 12 German soldiers ambushed Johnson and the unit in a surprise attack. The stun of the ambush resulted in serious injuries and even some casualties. However, Johnson took initiative to protect his team and advanced toward the soldiers with nothing but a knife in hand. While suffering from his own wounds, he wielded his weapon, stabbing one soldier in the head and pushing back the rest of the enemy forces. Johnson bought enough time for the injured soldiers to escape being abducted by the Germans.

Johnson died in 1929, succumbing to the long-term impact of his 21 combat injuries. He was 32 years old. His bravery was not recognized initially by the Army but Johnson was awarded a posthumous Medal of Honor and Purple Heart for his bravery.

Now, his name was given a landmark.

Read more from NBC News:

He survived the war, and former President Theodore Roosevelt named him one of the five bravest Americans to serve in the conflict. He insisted he was no hero, and the Army biography quotes him as saying, There wasnt anything so fine about it. Just fought for my life. A rabbit would have done that. His brave actions were recognized nearly a century later when he was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor in 2015 for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty.

Fort Johnson is the latest of the nine Army bases to be renamed from honoring a Confederate commander. Fort Lee (for Robert E. Lee) was renamed to Fort Gregg-Adams after two Black officers, per PBS. Just recently, Fort Bragg was renamed to Fort Liberty, per AP News.

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It was a feature of his presidency and sometimes a source of amusement, but Donald Trumps love of Sharpie marker pens has resurfaced as he signed the bond document at his arraignment on federal charges in Miami on Tuesday.

Six pages of the former presidents bond document were made public after the hearing on 13 June, showing that Mr Trump is released on his own personal recognisance after being charged with 37 separate counts relating to the classified documents he kept at his Florida home.

The document stipulates that he is required to appear at future court dates and must not violate any local, state, or federal law while under the bond.

As reported after the arraignment hearing at the federal courthouse in downtown Miami, there are no travel restrictions imposed on Mr Trump nor codefendant and valet Walt Nauta

The only special condition the pair must comply with is that they are not allowed to discuss the facts of the case with a list of people provided by the government who may be called as other witnesses  except through their legal counsel.

Somehow making the former presidents signature on the final page all the more authentic is that rather than signing in a more traditional ballpoint pen, Mr Trump appears to have used a thick, bold, black Sharpie pen, that presumably he brought with him to court.

During his 2016 campaign and four years in the White House, the thick black ink became synonymous with Mr Trumps distinctive sharp and spiky signature or autograph  likened to a mountain range or an EKG reading.

The marker was also used for speech notes, bulleted lists of talking points, polling numbers, and  most infamously  to alter the projected path of a hurricane on a weather map. This was later dubbed Sharpiegate.

Trump presenting his own weather map complete with Alabama looped in by Sharpie (Reuters)

In 2019, a photo revealed his thick marker-written notes on Air Force One stationery, denying that there was any quid pro quo arrangement with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky as was alleged in his first impeachment.

In a series filmed in partnership with HBO and Axios in his second year in office, he spoke about his love of Sharpie pens.

I was signing documents with a very expensive pen and it didnt write well, Mr Trump said. It was a horrible pen, and it was extremely expensive.

The president signs a plaque on the wall yesterday (AFP)

He added: And then I started using just a Sharpie, and I said to myself, Well wait a minute, this writes much better and this cost almost nothing.

The manufacturer of Sharpie pens, conglomerate Newell Brands, even had custom ones made for the Oval Office in black with the then-presidents signature on the side in gold.

So, I called up the folks at Sharpie and I said, do me a favour, can you make the pen in black? Can you make it look rich? he said.

White House releases new photo of Trumps completed border wall#SharpieGate pic.twitter.com/zEqmVEGmPx  Jon Cooper (@joncoopertweets) September 5, 2019

In addition to official papers and signing autographs, Mr Trump has also signed an upright beam of his border wall with Mexico near San Diego, and a plaque on the wall near Alamo, Texas.

Mr Trump was indicted last week on 37 criminal counts related to his handling of presidential records, including classified documents reportedly related to US defence and the military.

The former president faces a separate 32-count indictment in New York, a result of a 2016 hush money scheme involving porn star Stormy Daniels.
Donald Trumps arraignment took only 45 minutes on Tuesday in Miami federal court, where the former president sat silently the entire time, but its likely to be more than a year before his historic classified documents case goes to trial  even possibly beyond the November 2024 presidential election.

Trump, 77, who pleaded not guilty through his lawyers, is entitled to a speedy trial within 70 days of being formally charged with deliberately withholding national security records from the U.S. government. But speed wont be the operative word to describe the path forward to his trial, legal experts said, regardless of the Southern District of Floridas reputation for having a rocket docket in which judges typically move criminal cases quickly.

The Trump documents case isnt going to trial anytime soon and probably wont be ready for trial before spring 2024, said Miami attorney Joseph DeMaria, who once worked in the Justice Departments organized crime task force in South Florida But even then, if the judge grants any defense motions before trial, the government would appeal, taking up even more time. Then youre looking at the summer of 2024 with the presidential election around the corner. It could easily be delayed until 2025.

The trial date, and its location  Miami or West Palm Beach  could be a crucial factor for Trump, the front-runner in a crowded field of candidates for the GOP nomination for president.

For starters, the former presidents defense team is expected to challenge the indictment based on selective prosecution of Trump and not other politicians who also possessed classified records; file motions to suppress government evidence and witness testimony, and argue that the trial be held in West Palm Beach.

Thats near where the crime of violating the Espionage Act, obstructing justice and lying to FBI agents allegedly unfolded at Trumps Mar-a-Lago home in Palm Beach. When Justice Department prosecutors under special counsel Jack Smith filed the indictment last Thursday, they checked off the West Palm Beach division as the site of the case  though a Miami federal grand jury returned the charges against Trump and former presidential aide Walt Nauta.

On top of all that, Trumps case is fundamentally about the unlawful retention of government defense documents  exactly 31 counts



deal with that offense in the 37-count indictment  so both sides will have to go through security clearances, and a legal custodian will probably be appointed to handle the sensitive materials through trial.

Then, lastly, theres Trumps state trial in New York City that is scheduled for spring 2024 with charges of falsifying business records while paying hush money to a porn star to stop her from going public about their alleged affair when he was running for president in 2016. That case would likely go to trial first, before the federal trial in South Florida.

What about Judge Aileen Cannon?

Another critical issue hanging over the Trump documents case is the federal judge to whom it was randomly assigned in the West Palm Beach division of the Southern District of Florida.

U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon

U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon  who had been widely reported as the judge who would oversee Trumps arraignment and bond hearing, a task ultimately handled instead by Magistrate Judge Jonathan Goodman  was nominated to the federal bench by the former president and is a relative rookie in terms of her experience.

Cannon, who joined the court system as a judge just days after Trump lost the November 2020 election, is actually based in the Fort Pierce section, north of West Palm Beach. Cannon, a former prosecutor in the U.S. Attorneys Office who was known for her appellate and writing skills, drew widespread criticism for her handling of the former presidents civil case challenging the FBIs seizure of classified documents from Mar-a-Lago last summer.

At Trumps request, Cannon appointed an independent special master to review more than 100 classified materials discovered at Trumps Palm Beach residence during the Aug. 8, 2022, raid  even though she found that the Justice Department prosecutors and FBI agents acted in good faith in carrying out the search. An appellate court, including other Trump-nominated judges, found her reasoning flawed for appointing the special master, concluded she lacked the authority to do so, and issued a scathing ruling overturning her favorable decisions for the former president.

Several legal experts interviewed by the Miami Herald said there may be no legal reason to disqualify Cannon from staying on the Trump case. But they questioned whether Cannon, with little trial experience as a judge and certainly not cases involving national security matters, is prepared to handle the challenge and keep an open mind.

Of course, Judge Cannon can recuse herself without any explanation but if she does not, her refusal to do so is not appealable, said longtime Miami defense attorney Mark Schnapp, a former prosecutor in the U.S. Attorneys Office. This, of course, is not a usual case, but it is not easy for the government [prosecutors] to get her out of it at this point.

The chief federal judge in the Southern District of Florida, Cecilia Altonaga, whose Miami courtroom was used for Trumps arraignment, could reassign the documents case to another federal judge. But that would be unusual, Schnapp and other lawyers said.

If Cannon were to step aside, the Trump case would be randomly assigned again to one of the other three federal judges in the West Palm Beach division: Robin Rosenberg, who was nominated by President Barack Obama, Donald Middlebrooks, who was appointed by President Bill Clinton, or Kenneth Marra, who was nominated by President George W. Bush.

Cannon wont be the only judge in the spotlight. Bruce Reinhart, a magistrate judge in the West Palm Beach division, will be handling pretrial motions and other matters for Cannon. Reinhart drew the wrath of Trumps supporters when it was discovered in the former presidents civil challenge that the magistrate authorized the FBIs search warrant after finding probable cause of a crime being committed at Mar-a-Lago. Reinhart reportedly received threats to his life.
Former President Trumps campaign brought in roughly $2 million in the hours after he was arraigned Tuesday on federal charges stemming from his retention of classified documents after leaving office.

A source familiar with the figures confirmed to The Hill that Trumps campaign raised $2.04 million during a dinner with donors and campaign bundlers at Trumps Bedminster, N.J., club Tuesday night.

Trump joined the event following remarks to supporters there.

Politico first reported on the campaigns fundraising figures.

The dinner was Trumps first major fundraiser of his 2024 campaign, but it coincided with his arraignment in Miami.

Trump pleaded not guilty Tuesday afternoon to charges on 37 counts following a Department of Justice indictment alleging he violated the Espionage Act and obstructed justice in taking classified records from his presidency and refusing to return them.

The indictment alleges Trump kept the documents in various rooms of his Mar-a-Lago club in Florida, which frequently hosted large events and gatherings. It also says on two occasions, he spoke about specific classified materials with staffers at his New Jersey club who did not have security clearances.

The fundraising figures also reflect how Trump and his team have managed to turn his legal woes into enthusiasm among supporters for his 2024 White House bid.

Trump traveled directly from his arraignment to a popular Cuban restaurant in Miami, where he mingled with supporters and posed for photos. He then made his way to Bedminster, where supporters sang him Happy Birthday in the middle of a speech where the former president decried the charges as political persecution.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
Trump fans harass British reporter who asked him if hes ready for jail at Versailles restaurant

Trump fans harass British reporter Sophie Alexander who asked him if hes ready for jail at Versailles restaurant (Twitter/@SophieAlex1)

Donald Trump fans were caught on video harassing a British journalist who asked the indicted former president if he was ready for jail as he visited Miamis Versailles restaurant.

Sophie Alexander, a producer for Sky News, was verbally abused inside the famed eatery which Mr Trump quickly stopped at after he pleaded not guilty to mishandling secret documents at the federal courthouse in the city.

Alexander posted a video on Twitter of Trump supporters angrily confronting her after she asked the question, with one man shouting Get out you stupid b***h in her face as she filmed the scene.

Before the journalist was escorted outside, she was booed and branded a Traitor while also being told to Shut up and Get the f*** out of here.

Mr Trump pleaded not guilty at his Tuesday arraignment in a Miami federal courthouse on 37 charges over his handling of classified national security documents after leaving the White House.

The former president had called for Maga supporters to descend on the courthouse but in the end, very few actually bothered to show up for Mr Trumps second criminal arraignment in two months.

Alexander addressed the incident on Twitter.

I was just thrown out of the Versailles bakery in Miami for asking President Trump if he was ready to go to jail. A man screamed stupid bitch in my face while others said I was a traitor, she tweeted.

The moment a man screamed stupid bitch in my face after I publicly questioned Donald Trump. Thanks to all those asking, I got out perfectly safely.

I did not shout Trump for prison. I asked: President Trump are you ready for jail?, a perfectly legitimate question.
It looks like Donald Trump has established a playbook for getting indicted: fly into the city hes being charged in, load up the motorcade, go to court, get arrested, get arraigned, then fly to one of his resorts for a night-of speech. Trump flew to Mar-a-Lago to speak after getting arrested in New York in April, and on Tuesday he flew from Florida to his club in Bedminster, New Jersey, after pleading not guilty to 37 criminal counts brought against him by the Justice Department.

Before a crowd of supporters  who at one point interrupted him to sing Happy Birthday  Trump called the indictment against him the most evil and heinous abuse in the history of our country.

The former president ranted ad nauseam about President Biden and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, vowing to get his revenge by appointing a real special prosecutor to go after the most corrupt president in the history of the United States of America, Joe Biden. And the entire Biden crime family. President Biden is currently facing his own, yet unresolved, special counsel investigation into classified material recovered from his home.

Trump vows that if he wins the presidency, he will appoint a special prosecutor to go after Biden and the entire Biden crime family. I will totally obliterate the deep state, Trump adds. I am the only one who can save this nation. pic.twitter.com/khb1T4ya6x  Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) June 14, 2023

Trump repeatedly pointed to controversies surrounding Biden and Clintons handling of sensitive materials, but his gripes went far beyond just documents. Hillary Clinton took hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of furniture, china, flatware, rugs and more from the White House, and she wasnt prosecuted, Trump complained. How about if Trump did that? Do you think Trump would have a little problem?

The former president also took aim at Special Counsel Jack Smith, calling him a lunatic and a thug. He even targeted his wife in a repeat of attacks he leveled against Smith and his family earlier this week.

This is called election interference, yet another attempt to rig and steal a presidential election, Trump said. More importantly, its a political persecution like something straight out of a fascist or communist nation. This day will go down in infamy.

Donald Trump, the first former president to face a federal indictment: "Biden will forever be remembered as not only the most corrupt president in the history of our country but perhaps even more importantly the president whotried to destroy American democracy." pic.twitter.com/iIppWrxMqw  Republican Accountability (@AccountableGOP) June 14, 2023

The latest charges against Trump stem from a months-long DOJ investigation into his retention of a massive trove of classified documents following his departure from the presidency. A scathing indictment released Friday alleged he had gone to great lengths to prevent authorities from recovering the documents, and that he had mishandled them while they were in his possession.

Prosecutors say that the former president retained documents containing highly sensitive nuclear and military secrets; that he suggested lying about and even destroying the documents when investigators asked for them; that they have him on tape discussing the contents of one classified document with people who lacked security clearance, as well as admitting he couldnt declassify them; and more.

At his court appearance Tuesday, Trump was not handcuffed and did not have his mugshot taken. He was digitally fingerprinted, assigned a probation officer, and appeared before the judge to enter his not-guilty plea. Following his departure from the court, the former president made a surprise stop at a Cuban restaurant, where a crowd of supporters sang him Happy Birthday and appeared to pray over him. Trump then departed for New Jersey.

The logistics of indicting and arresting a former president is further complicated by the real-time implosion of Trumps legal team. On Friday, shortly before the indictment was made public, two of the former presidents attorneys resigned from their posts. As previously reported by Rolling Stone, sources close to the situation say Trumps legal team was riddled with internal feuds and infighting for dominance over the case. One sticking point was the level of influence attorney Boris Epshteyn has over the president, and Trumps refusal to do away with him. Trump has put a lot of trust in Boris [in his post-presidency], one source said. People trying to convince the [former] president to get rid of Boris has very often had the opposite intended effect.

This is the second criminal indictment brought against Trump this year. In April, Trump pleaded not guilty to 34 felony counts of falsifying business records brought against him by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg. The charges relate to a 2016 hush money payment made to adult film actress Stormy Daniels.

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Former U.S. President Donald Trump gestures during an event following his arraignment on classified document charges, in Bedminster

(Reuters) - Former President Donald Trump's 2024 White House campaign said on Wednesday he had raised $7 million since being indicted on federal charges last week, as his message of political persecution continues to resonate with die-hard supporters.

"President Trump Raises Over $6.6 Million and Counting Since Deranged Jack Smith Announced Political Prosecution," Trump's campaign wrote in an email to supporters on Wednesday, referring to the U.S. special counsel investigating him.

Over $4.5 million came from digital fundraising while $2.1 million was raised from a donor event on Tuesday at Trump's Bedminster Club in New Jersey.

A spokesman for Trump, who is the frontrunner for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, later emailed Reuters stating that fundraising had passed the bar of $7 million since the indictment was announced on Thursday.

In the indictment, Trump was accused of illegally retaining classified government documents after leaving the White House and then conspiring to obstruct a federal probe of the matter.

Trump was arraigned on Tuesday and pleaded not guilty to all 37 counts in court.

He has sought to frame the charges as a Democratic-led attack to knock him out of the 2024 race - and one ultimately designed to hurt Republicans, 30% of whom are considered unwavering Trump supporters.

"They're not coming after me, they're coming after YOU," Trump wrote in one of a flurry of fundraising emails on Wednesday.

Polling suggests Trump's strategy is working: A vast majority of Republicans - some 81% - believe the charges are politically motivated, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll completed on Monday.

Trump also enjoyed a fundraising bump from charges in New York as part of a case involving hush money paid to a porn star. After word emerged in March that Trump was going to be charged, his campaign raised $7 million in three days, according to senior adviser Jason Miller.

A group allied with Trump's bid for the Republican nomination is setting records for outside political spending early in a U.S. presidential campaign as he looks to outrun his nearest rival, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, according to recent Reuters reporting.

(Reporting by Alexandra Ulmer; Editing by Mary Milliken and Cynthia Osterman)
(Bloomberg) -- Donald Trump is still the frontrunner for his partys 2024 presidential nomination, a survey conducted mostly after he announced he was facing federal indictment shows, with 53% of Republican and GOP-leaning voters supporting him.

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In the Quinnipiac University poll released Wednesday, 23% backed Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, and other GOP candidates all remained in the single digits. In May, Trump garnered 56% of the support, and DeSantis followed with 25%.

Trump also touted a surge in campaign contributions from his indictment. His campaign announced Wednesday it raised more than $4.5 million from digital solicitations in just a few short days since the indictment, as well as $2.1 million from a previously planned fundraiser held Tuesday night at Trumps Bedminster golf club in New Jersey.

Trump pleaded not guilty in a federal court in Miami on Tuesday to 37 felony counts related to mishandling classified materials and conspiring to stymie efforts by US officials to recover them. The first ex-president to face federal charges, Trump has called the indictment election interference by Democrats.

The former president saw a bump in the RealClearPolitics average of polls after he was indicted April 4 in Manhattan on charges related to hush-money payments to an adult-film star and again after a federal jury found him liable of assaulting and defaming writer E. Jean Carroll.

The campaign said it raised $15.4 million in the days after his indictment in Manhattan, thanks to a surge of support from small-dollar donors.

Trump could face even more legal peril, with Atlanta-area District Attorney Fani Willis signaling she could make a charging decision in August over Trumps efforts to overturn President Joe Bidens 2020 election win. Federal prosecutors also continue to investigate Trump for his role in the Jan. 6 insurrection.

A federal indictment. A court date on a litany of charges. A blizzard of critical media coverage. The negative impact on the former presidents standing with voters? Not much at all, Quinnipiac University Polling Analyst Tim Malloy said in a statement.

The Quinnipiac survey of 700 Republican and GOP-leaning voters was conducted June 8-12 with a margin of error of plus-or-minus 3.7 percentage points.

(Updates with campaign fundraising from third paragraph.)

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Trump says he'll still have a 'great birthday' even though it'll be a weird one considering he just got charged with 37 crimes

Donald Trump delivering remarks to supporters in Bedminster, New Jersey, on June 13. ED JONES/AFP via Getty Images

Despite facing up to 400 years in prison, Trump says he'll have a "nice" and "wonderful" birthday.

Trump pleaded not guilty on Tuesday to 37 charges brought against him by the Justice Department.

Trump was born on June 14, 1946, and turns 77 on Wednesday.

Former President Donald Trump says he may be looking at 400 years of prison time, but he's still going to have a great time on his birthday.

Trump was born on June 14, 1946, and turns 77 on Wednesday. His birthday comes just a day after he was arraigned in a Miami court on charges of mishandling classified documents. Trump pleaded not guilty on Tuesday to the 37 charges the Justice Department brought against him.

The bad news didn't prevent some supporters from offering him their well-wishes throughout the day: First, when he stopped at Versailles, a Cuban restaurant in Miami, and once more when he was giving his post-arraignment speech in Bedminster, New Jersey.

Trump said it was "some birthday" when his supporters broke out in an impromptu birthday song at the restaurant, Semafor reported.

And midway through Trump's speech on Tuesday night, some of his supporters yelled out birthday wishes to him when he paused to drink water.

"Thank you! Happy birthday, great birthday," Trump said. "Nice birthday, isn't it?"

His supporters then started singing him a birthday song.

"Nice birthday! Wonderful birthday. They were saying  Happy birthday! I was with Eric and Lara, and the kids. 'Happy birthday, Grandpa!' Trump said when the chorus died down. "I said, 'Oh great, I just got charged with  they want 400 years approximately.'"

Trump and his aide, Walt Nauta, were both named in an indictment that was unsealed on Friday that accused them of mishandling top-secret information. Trump faces 37 charges, including 31 under the Espionage Act.

Trump could face 400 years of prison time if given the maximum penalty for each charge, though sentencing guidelines could see him serving much less time.

Read the original article on Business Insider
Support for former President Trump has remained largely steady, despite being indicted for a second time last week over his handling of classified documents, according to a poll released Wednesday.

The Quinnipiac University poll found that 53 percent of Republican and Republican-leaning voters said they would support the former president in a GOP primary. Thats down 3 points from a survey in late May.

Trumps competition for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination is still trailing far behind in the polls.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis sits in a distant second with 23 percent, while former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, former Vice President Mike Pence, Sen. Tim Scott (S.C.) and former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie are all tied in third at 4 percent.

In a hypothetical 2024 rematch, Trump is trailing President Biden by 4 points, with the former president garnering 44 percent support and the sitting president picking up 48 percent support, the poll found. In the May iteration of the survey, Trump sat 2 points behind at 46 percent support.

The Hill Elections 2024 coverage

The poll was conducted in the midst of Trumps second indictment. The former president announced he had been charged Thursday night, and the indictment was unsealed the next day.

He pleaded not guilty Tuesday to 37 counts at a Miami courthouse related to his alleged mishandling of classified documents and efforts to block the government from recovering them.

A federal indictment. A court date on a litany of charges. A blizzard of critical media coverage. The negative impact on the former Presidents standing with voters? Not much at all, Tim Malloy, a Quinnipiac University polling analyst, noted in a press release.

The Quinnipiac University poll was conducted June 8-12 with 1,929 U.S. adults and had a margin of error of 2.2 percentage points.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
MIAMI  Former President Donald Trumps trip to the city known as the gateway to Latin America served a purpose other than his history-making arraignment in federal court.

It also cemented his yearslong cultivation of the city's Latino voters  even stunning residents who expressed surprise that his first post-indictment official stop was one of the city's most iconic Latino establishments.

The day before Trumps court appearance, where he became the first former U.S. president to be arraigned on federal crimes, Trump went on a live interview with conservative Spanish-language outlet, Americano Media, to criticize President Joe Biden and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, a rival for the 2024 GOP nomination.

Donald Trump visits the Versailles restaurant in Miami (Stephanie Keith / Getty Images)

After his day in court, where he pleaded not guilty to 37 federal counts related to his alleged mishandling of classified documents, Trump headed to the Cuban restaurant Versailles  a pit stop for presidential candidates for decades, including former Presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush  where he was greeted by a cheering crowd.

Supporters sang Happy Birthday to Trump, who turned 77 on Wednesday, as he and his team denounced his indictment as politically motivated and compared it to Latin American-style politics and dictatorships. He didn't stay for a cafecito but he drew wide cheers.

The choice to turn the day of his federal indictment into a chance to court Latino voters was not surprising. No other U.S. president has dedicated so much time to Latinos in Florida, an ongoing source of frustration for Democrats and anti-Trump Republicans who have been pointing out his consistent outreach for years.

It's worth remembering, as Florida International University political scientist Dario Moreno points out, that Trump did not start with strong support in the country's southernmost big city. Trumps initial campaign comments slamming Mexicans and his subsequent anti-immigrant rhetoric was seen by many voters as anti-Hispanic.

In the 2016 GOP presidential primaries, Sen. Marco Rubio heavily beat Trump in Miami-Dade, the only Florida county that Trump didn't win. In the 2016 presidential elections, Trump lost in Miami-Dade County to Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton by about 30 points.

But once he became president, Trump spent time in Miami-Dade County and focused heavily on the Cuban American and Venezuelan community and growing groups such as Nicaraguans and Colombians.

What started out as a constituency that wasnt behind him and viewed him with suspicion has become, I think, among his most loyal base, Moreno said.

In 2017, Trump announced the reversal of President Barack Obamas policy of engagement with Cuba in Little Havana to a crowd of Cuban Americans. This came, Moreno said, amid the perception that Obama's outreach to Cuba and his visit there had not yielded an improvement in human rights in Cuba.

In contrast, Obama, who won the majority of the Cuban American vote in 2012, announced his move to restore diplomatic ties to Cuba from the White House.

Trump dramatically improved his support among Latinos in Florida in the 2020 election and, since then, Republicans have made big gains in all Hispanic groups. When he was re-elected in 2022, DeSantis became the first Republican governor in 20 years to win traditionally blue Miami-Dade County.

Cultivating ties, invoking Latin America

The former president, according to the evidence presented in the indictment, repeatedly flouted the rule of law followed by previous Republican and Democratic presidents regarding classified documents. But Trump and his team have said this new indictment is but a political maneuver as he seeks the 2024 nomination  and they did so Tuesday using rhetoric aimed at his Miami supporters.

Trump attorney and spokesperson Alina Habba said in front of the courthouse that targeting prosecution of a leading political opponent is the type of thing you see in dictatorships, like Cuba and Venezuela.

Florida International University political science professor Eduardo Gamarra, who is also director of the Latino Public Opinion Forum at the university, said that while Habba may have drawn comparisons with persecution in Cuba and Venezuela, it's Trump who has undermined the credibility and trust in institutions.

A handful of anti-Trump Republicans and Democrats have denounced Trump for disregarding the rule of law as some Latin American leaders have done  comparing Trump to a "caudillo," or strongman.

But that hasn't been effective, Moreno said, among a segment of Latino voters from countries with a history of supporting populist candidates, both from the right, such as former Colombian President Alvaro Uribe, and the left, such as Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador.

In Miami in particular, where more residents have fled leftist countries such as Venezuela, Nicaragua and Cuba, Trump and the Republicans' attacks against "socialist" Democrats have been more effective, Moreno said.

Trump's indictment has brought uncertainty over who will be the GOP nominee, as Republicans at least privately concede. But Trump's Latino outreach, rhetoric and populist approach, according to Moreno, "is something that appealed, especially to first-generation Hispanics in Florida."

And as Trump continues to campaign, "he knows that it works," Gamarra said. "Trump thinks that this is a particularly strong linkage that he has  especially with his base."

This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
Charity supermarkets in E China's Anhui Province help needy people

People's Daily Online) 09:33, June 14, 2023

Unlike other supermarkets, one in Xuancheng city, east China's Anhui Province "sells" items donated by people for free for those who need the items.

The supermarket is open the whole year. There are no cashiers and the supermarket clerks are volunteers.

A charity supermarket in Chengjiang neighborhood in Xuancheng city, east China's Anhui Province. (People's Daily Online/Zhang Jun)

The charity supermarket was established by several government organizations in Xuancheng and the city's Red Cross Society, on Oct. 20, 2018.

Inside the charity supermarket in Xuancheng city, east China's Anhui Province. (People's Daily Online/Zhang Jun)

There are 13 such supermarkets in the city and the one in the city's Chengjiang neighborhood is the largest.

Wang Chenglong, director of the Chengjiang neighborhood committee, said many people come here to donate stuff, and many others come here to get what they need.

Wang Xuhua (left) fills out a note at a charity supermarket located in Chengjiang neighborhood in Xuancheng city, east China's Anhui Province. (People's Daily Online/Zhang Jun)

On a rainy day, Wang Xuhua, a sanitation worker in Chengjiang neighborhood, went to the neighborhood's charity supermarket when not at work. Wang chose a coat for herself and put it on right after filling out a note.

"Last winter, I got a cotton-padded coat from here, which fit and was warm. This supermarket brings a sense of happiness to my life," said Wang.

A volunteer organizes clothes at a charity supermarket in Xuancheng city, east China's Anhui Province. (People's Daily Online/Zhang Jun)

"In the past, there were not enough volunteers. Since the supermarket opened, I've seen more of them in our neighborhood," said Wang, adding that this shows the continuation of love and charity.

Volunteers organize donated clothes at a charity supermarket. (People's Daily Online/Zhang Jun)

A charity supermarket in Langxi county, Xuancheng city which opened in March 2022 is unattended. Local residents take what they need without showing any documents proving they have financial difficulties. The supermarket is hailed as a "distribution center of love" by local residents.

Inside a charity supermarket in Xuancheng city, east China's Anhui Province. (People's Daily Online/Zhang Jun)

Every year, the charity supermarkets receive as many as 50,000 clothing items, and 40,000 of them are brought home by people who need them.

(Web editor: Hongyu, Liang Jun)
Sen. Tommy Tuberville is rejecting off-ramps and advice from more senior Republicans to end his hold on military promotions, even as Pentagon officials step up their warnings that the maneuver is compromising Americas security.

The Alabama lawmakers colleagues have approached him in recent weeks to broker a compromise that would allow roughly 250 senior officer promotions to clear the Senate. The hold threatens to ensnare President Joe Bidens pick for Joint Chiefs chair, Air Force Gen. C.Q. Brown, along with others preparing to rotate in as senior military leaders prepare to retire.

Tuberville first imposed the blocks in protest of the Defense Departments new policy to pay travel costs for service members seeking abortion or other reproductive care. He claims that decision from late last year cuts against the Supreme Courts reversal of Roe v. Wade, and vows to maintain the holds until Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin changes course or the senator gets a straightforward vote on the issue.

Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas), first elected to the Senate in 2002 and formerly Minority Leader Mitch McConnells No. 2, said he has spoken with Tuberville to work with him to help him achieve his goal when the Senate considers the annual defense policy bill. Cornyn indicated that he agreed with Tubervilles stance on the Pentagon policy and was not pressuring him, insisting it was Tubervilles choice on whether to drop his hold.

Obviously, with the [National Defense Authorization Act] coming up, there's some opportunities there to have some more debate and votes on that and for Congress either to grant or to withhold that authority rather than to have the Department of Defense just assume it has the authority, Cornyn said.

But last week Tuberville said he would not debate the issue as part of the fiscal 2024 NDAA, calling for a clean defense-policy bill. Cornyn noted that the NDAA is a reliable legislative vehicle, even for controversial measures. The NDAA was passed, I believe, 61 years in a row, and I think we need to pass it again this year, Cornyn said.



Meanwhile, Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) aims to pass a bill, S. 822 (118), that effectively neuters the Pentagons policy. She offered Tuberville a deal in which her measure would receive a vote as part of the NDAA process in exchange for his lifting the holds. But the Alabaman rejected that trade, according to a Senate Republican aide who was granted anonymity to discuss the interaction.

Ernst is laser-focused on getting her bill to block the Pentagons ongoing war on the unborn across the finish line, an Ernst spokesperson said, without confirming the exchange with Tuberville. Punchbowl News first reported on the development with Ernst.

In an interview Wednesday morning, Tuberville said he would drop his holds if Ernst's bill came up for a vote on its own and outside the process of any other bills. "That would be good," he said, reiterating his opposition to a vote on the measure as part of the NDAA. However, Tuberville said he is pessimistic that such a clean vote would ever come up on the Senate floor while it's led by Democrats.

In a surprise move, the Senate Armed Services Committee plans to vote on Ernst's bill next week during its closed-door deliberations on the defense bill, though the abortion bill will remain separate from the NDAA. According to an amended schedule, the committee will begin its closed-door deliberations on June 21 by marking up Ernst's bill, and once they've finished will then consider the broader defense bill.

The move creates a potential avenue to diffuse the standoff by fast-tracking an abortion bill to the Senate floor. But it would first need to be approved by the Democratic majority, requiring a Democrat to break ranks. Beyond that, it's unclear whether Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) would bring the measure up for a vote to break the stalemate.

But Tuberville, who sits on the Armed Services Committee, said that a committee vote alone won't satisfy his demands.

A vote in committee? What does that do? Tuberville asked about marking up Ernst's bill.

Tuberville, who argues the Pentagon is flouting laws that bar taxpayers funds for most abortions, added that he wants the administration to pull back the policy, offer up legislation to codify it and see if it passes. Such legislation is highly unlikely to garner the supermajority needed to pass.

The failed attempts at finding a solution by fellow Republicans indicate that Tuberville wont budge despite mounting pressure from allies and administration officials. McConnell told reporters last month he doesnt agree with Tubervilles tactics.

I will keep my hold, I will keep it on, until the Pentagon follows the law or changes the law. Its that simple. Those are the two conditions that would get me to drop the hold, he said in a floor speech this month.

Senior military leaders have already developed workarounds as the impasse remains. Gen. David Berger, the outgoing commandant of the Marine Corps, recently sent out invitations to a relinquishment of office ceremony scheduled for July 10, allowing Gen. Eric Smith, Bidens nominated replacement, to lead the Corps on a temporary basis.

Asked about the holds Tuesday during an Armed Services confirmation hearing, a panel on which Tuberville serves, Smith said it will have an effect.

It certainly compromises our ability to be most ready, he further responded to Sen. Angus King (I-Maine).

Tuberville cant prevent nominees from being confirmed on his own. He and his Republican allies insist Schumer could hold additional procedural votes to get around the blockade, but doing so is impractical because the Senate must confirm hundreds of senior promotions this year. Schumer could also hold votes for individual nominees, such as those tapped for the Joint Chiefs, but doing so runs the risk of validating Tubervilles approach.

Tuberville received a vote on a related push to scrap rules issued by the Department of Veterans Affairs to expand abortion access. That proposal failed in April in a mostly party-line 48-51 vote. Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.), a cosponsor of the bill, voted in favor while Republican Sens. Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska broke ranks and opposed it.

Tuberville isnt the only senator using existing authorities to block nominations.

J.D. Vance (R-Ohio) vowed Tuesday to halt Bidens Department of Justice picks over the indictment of former President Donald Trump. Manchin is doing the same to Environmental Protect Act nominations because of the administrations climate policies. And Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) similarly will keep any health-focused selections out of government until Bidens team produces a plan to lower drug prices.

Lee Hudson contributed to this report.
Tucker Carlson, the fired Fox News host who now broadcasts on Twitter, hit out at aides to former President Donald Trump who he claims prayed on his susceptiblity to flattery to gain power and subvert his political agenda.

Carlsons rant against the likes of former Vice President Mike Pence, former secretary to the United Nations Nikki Haley, and former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo came on the day Mr Trump was arraigned on 37 felony counts for mishandling classified documents after the conclusion of his presidency and impeding government efforts to get them back.

The stealthier ones took another path: they ran towards Trump, not away from him, Carlson said in his social media monologue. They sucked up to him. They ingratied themselves to a man they intuitively understood was susceptible to flattery, which Trump is, and they did this to subvert Trumps administration from the inside.

Ep. 3 America's principles are at stake pic.twitter.com/eJNSUVvvqY  Tucker Carlson (@TuckerCarlson) June 13, 2023

Carlson, who was fired by Fox News earlier this year and has been sued along with the network for promoting a hostile work environment by a former employee, then upped his rhetoric.

They were there slobbering over their boss with elaborate self-abasement as if they were addressing a monarch or a God, Carlson said. It was a scene from the Ottoman Court, it was filthy and it was decadent, and it was false.

It was only after Mr Trump lost the 2020 presidential election and was removed from power when the likes of Mr Pence, Ms Haley, Mr Pompeo, and Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina revealed their neo-con war agenda.

Mr Pence and Ms Haley are now challenging Mr Trump for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, but both have been extremeley guarded in their criticism of him  largely going out of their way to praise his work as president and arguing that the prosecution he now faces from the Justice Department is politically motiviated.

Mr Pompeo was more direct in his criticism of Mr Trumps handling of classified documents in an appearance on Fox News on Tuesday morning, but he has thus far passed on the opportunity to join the 2024 field.

In fact, one of the defining features of the Republican race for president so far is how unwilling much of the rest of the field has been to attack Mr Trump. The former president is the current polling leader, though it remains to be seen how his multiple indictments shape his chances of ultimately returning to the White House.
Tucker Carlson. Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

On the third installment of "Tucker on Twitter," Carlson said Trump's arrest was for accusing George W. Bush of lying about Iraq in 2016.

"That was the one thing you're not allowed to say," Carlson said.

Many Democrats have said that thing.

Exiled Fox News commentator Tucker Carlson argued today on the latest installment of "Tucker on Twitter" that Donald Trump wasn't arrested this week for failing to hand over classified documents: The real reason was for saying that former President George W. Bush lied about WMD in Iraq seven years ago.

"We can point to the precise moment that permanent Washington decided to send Donald Trump to prison," Tucker said: Feburary 16, 2016. That's the day of a Republican primary debate in Greenville, South Carolina, at which Trump violated Republican orthodoxy by accusing George W. Bush of lying in the run-up to the Iraq War.

Ep. 3 America's principles are at stake pic.twitter.com/eJNSUVvvqY  Tucker Carlson (@TuckerCarlson) June 13, 2023

"We should never have been in Iraq," Trump said at the debate. "They lied, they said there were weapons of mass destruction and there were none, and they knew there were none." The remarks caused quite a stir, and Trump later backed off the statement. He has repeatedly claimed falsely that he opposed the invasion of Iraq (he supported it).

"That was the one thing you're not allowed to say," Carlson said on his show. And because Trump said it, Carlson argued, the clock started on a process that led to his arrest this week.

"What just happened was always going to happen," Carlson said.

That clock apparently ticked through Trump's nomination as the GOP candidate for president, through his electoral defeat of Hillary Clinton in 2016, through a four-year term in office during which he enjoyed the full support of the Republican Party, through his nomination as GOP candidate in 2020, and through his decision in January 2022 to withhold  as alleged in the indictment against him  at least 140 classified documents from the National Archives and Records Administration.

The Deep State's long-game anger seems to have been exclusively reserved for Trump, however, given that at the moment he made that verboten statement, the sitting president was Barack Obama, whose meteoric rise to office was fueled largely by his opposition to the Iraq War.

It may be that Obama escaped a cell because he never bluntly accused Bush of lying or deliberately misleading  unlike his Democratic allies Rep. John Dingell, former Sen. Al Franken, Rep. Elijah Cummings, Sen. Ernest "Fritz" Hollings, and a host of journalists, politicians, activists, filmmakers, and others who have repeatedly, forcefully, and publicly accused the proponents of the Iraq War of lying.

Many of those accusations are based on the Report of the Select Committee on Intelligence on the U.S. Intelligence Community's Prewar Intelligence Assessments on Iraq, which accused the Bush Administration of "exaggerating available intelligence and by ignoring disagreements among spy agencies about Iraq's weapons programs."

Such is the power of the permanent government in Washington: If you cross it by repeating the same things that many other politicians have, you risk becoming elected president.

Read the original article on Business Insider
Tucker Carlson ignores legal threat from Fox News and airs a new episode of his Twitter show, titled 'America's principles are at stake'

Tucker Carlson has aired a new episode of his Twitter show despite legal threats from Fox News. Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

Fox News wants Tucker Carlson to end his Twitter show  but he doesn't care.

Carlson aired a new episode on Tuesday, despite the network's cease-and-desist letter.

He weighed in on the charges against former President Donald Trump with a lengthy monologue.

Tucker Carlson has ignored a cease-and-desist letter from Fox News by airing a new episode of his Twitter show, which racked up more than 30 million views in less than 12 hours.

The former Fox anchor aired the third episode of the show on Wednesday. It was titled "America's principles are at stake" and featured a lengthy monologue on Donald Trump's arraignment in a Miami courthouse.

During the episode, Carlson said, "These were the first steps in a process that is designed to put Donald Trump behind bars for the rest of his life," as the former president pleaded not guilty to federal charges that he put national security at risk.

"Yes, Donald Trump is a flawed man, but his sins are minor compared to those of his persecutors," Carlson said. "In this life we don't get to choose our martyrs, we can only choose our principles, and America's are at stake."

Fox accused Carlson of breaching his contract by starting a new show on Twitter, per an Axios report. The contract terms said Carlson's content would be exclusive through to the end of 2024, with his contract terminating in January 2025.

A later Axios report included more details about Carlson's dispute with Fox.

Carlson left Fox in April after it reached a $787 million defamation settlement with Dominion Voting Systems. The voting company was baselessly accused of rigging votes during the 2020 presidential election.

Since then, Carlson has turned to Elon Musk's Twitter to carve out a new platform for himself. Announcing his decision to launch the show, Carlson said Twitter was the only free-speech platform remaining in the world.

Carlson's legal team and Fox did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment outside regular working hours.

Read the original article on Business Insider
Tucker Carlson spins new conspiracy on Trumps arrest as his new Twitter rant defies Fox threat

Tucker Carlson pushed a new conspiracy theory that Donald Trump is being prosecuted for calling out Washington DC insiders over Iraq and weapons of mass destruction in his latest Twitter show.

The former Fox News host defied his former employers threats after they sent him a cease-and-desist letter stating that his new show is a violation of his contract with the right-wing network.

Carlson told his audience that the former president was now in legal trouble because of his position on Iraq during the 2016 Republican primary debates, in which he said the US had destabilised the Middle East with its invasion of Iraq.

Seven-and-a-half years later we can point to the precise moment when permanent Washington decided to send Donald Trump to prison, said Carlson on Tuesday evening as he played footage of the debate in Greenville, South Carolina.

In the footage, Mr Trump excoriates Washington DC insiders, saying, We should have never been in Iraq...they said there were weapons of mass destruction and there were none, they lied, they knew there were none.

Carlson insisted that by calling them liars, Mr Trump had sealed his fate.

That was the one thing you were not allowed to say as it implicated too many people on both sides, which on this topic is really just one side, he said.

Hillary Clinton was guilty, but so was Paul Ryan, all of them were guilty, they all knew and they all lied, and to a person, they hated Donald Trump for exposing them.

Carlson said that from the start of his administration, Mr Trump was targeted by filthy and decadent politicians, and name-checked Mike Pence, Nikki Haley, Mike Pompeo and Lindsey Graham.

He then accused them of piling on with maximum force in the wake of Mr Trump being charged over his alleged mishandling of classified documents after he left the White House.

Carlson then accused Mr Pompeo of not supporting Mr Trumps agenda and undermined at every turn the former presidents policies and ideas, before accusing him of toadying up to his boss.

Now the same person is telling Fox News he fears for the safety of our military ... because Donald Trump took some classified documents home and didnt immediately return them to the National Archives. What a lie that is, he said.

Carlson then said that the prosecution of Mr Trump was not just political it is ideological.

Nobody with Trumps views is allowed to have power in this country. Criticise our wars and you are disqualified, if you keep it up we will send you to prison, he said.

Thats the message that Washington DC is sending, not just the Democratic party but the message both parties are sending.

Carlson then asked his audience to drive 500 miles in any direction to check out the countrys condition and told the audience that the only places doing well in the US were the suburbs of DC.

He then said that Washington insiders were determined to end Mr Trumps campaign for another term in the White Office before voters got to have their say.

Trump is a flawed man but his sins are minor compared to those of his persecutors. In this life we do not get to choose our martyrs we can only choose our principles and Americas are at stake.
Tuna Poke II needs reinspection. Here are Thurston County food safety scores for June 14

Comments are taken directly from the latest Thurston County inspection reports, which are available for each food establishment, at the Thurston County Environmental Health Office and their website. For questions concerning these reports, contact the health office at 360-867-2667.

Report restaurant, grocery store, deli or bakery complaints online via the complaint form here: https://www.thurstoncountywa.gov/phss/Pages/eh-problem.aspx.

Reading inspection scores:

Attention should be given to the type of violation (red versus blue) and whether the establishment has a history of red violations or repeat violations.

Red violations are those most likely to cause food-borne illness and must be corrected immediately if feasible or according to a compliance schedule established by the health officer. Example: not keeping food at the right temperature.

Blue violations relate to the overall cleanliness and condition of operation and must be corrected according to a compliance schedule established by the health officer. Example: a worn floor that needs replacing.

If red points exceed 45, the county will require a reinspection within 10 business days.

If red points exceed 100 and theres a lack of managerial control, the county will shut down the establishment for at least 72 hours. The establishment may reopen after management and employees complete retraining and demonstrate corrective action during a reinspection.

Some common abbreviations: PHF/TCS is potentially hazardous food/time control for safety; RTE is ready to eat; PIC is person in charge; FWC is food worker card; CDI is corrected during inspection.

Tuna Poke II

1001 Cooper Point Road SW, Olympia

June 12: 80 red points; 5 blue points.

Comments:

The person in charge did not know what temperatures that TCS food must be kept at. They also did not know how to correct red violations upon the inspectors arrival.

One employee had an expired food worker card.

Raw eggs were stored above ready-to-eat foods in a reach-in cold hold.

Rice was observed cooling at greater than 2-inch depths in the bottom of the prep table.

Brown rice held in a rice cooker was at 115 degrees rather than at or above 135 degrees.

The menu lacked a consumer advisory for raw fish items.

A chlorine sanitizer solution was too strong.

Wiping cloths were not stored in buckets as required.

Olympita

1919 Harrison Ave. NW, Olympia

Mobile Food Unit

June 12: 15 red points; 13 blue points.

Comments:

The handwash sink was out of soap at the time of inspection.

Raw eggs were stored above ready-to-eat foods in the cold hold.

A cut tomato mixture was observed improperly cooling in a prep unit rather than a reach-in cold hold unit.

Some foods were stored on the ground. Foods must be stored at least 6 inches off the ground to prevent contamination.

One in-use utensil was stored in room-temperature water.

Five Guys Burger and Fries

1200 Cooper Point Road SW, Olympia

June 12: 15 red points; 0 blue points.

Comments:

Some employees were missing or had expired food worker cards.

Some ice was in the front hand sink. The back hand sink was blocked by a trash can. Hand sinks must be kept clear or obstacles that could discourage handwashing and only be used for handwashing.

Jimmy Johns

1200 Cooper Point Road SW, Olympia

June 6: 10 red; 0 blue.

Comments:

One employee did not have a valid food worker card.

Some sandwich meats in the main prep unit were at 43 degrees rather than at or below 41 degrees. Some foods in walk-in were between 44-45 degrees.

Ember Goods Coffee Cart

422 Washington St. SE, Olympia

June 12: 10 red points; 0 blue points.

Comments:

Dairy TCS foods were at 47-51 degrees rather than at or below 41 degrees as required.

Westside Tavern

1815 Harrison Ave. NW, Olympia

June 9: 5 red points; 5 blue points.

Comments:

The consumer advisory for certain foods lacked a disclosure statement.

The in-use sanitizer bucket held a solution that was too weak.

Taco Bell

1101 Cooper Point Road SW, Olympia

June 12: 0 red points; 5 blue points.

Comments:

A chlorine sanitizer solution was too weak.

No violations:
ANKARA, Turkey  Turkeys president has appointed a new official to oversee all defense procurement programs, following recent elections that saw Recep Tayyip Erdogan maintain his position in government.

Haluk Gorgun will replace Ismail Demir for the job. Gorgun is currently the board chairman of Turkeys largest defense company, Aselsan.

Demir reportedly wanted to quit, citing a preference for a job with nondefense portfolio. During nine years on the job, Demir had overseen several Turkish programs, notable indigenous efforts for developing drones, corvettes, helicopters, a new-generation main battle tank and a fighter jet.

Born in Istanbul in 1973, Gorgun graduated from Istanbuls Yildiz University. His postgraduate studies took place at the U.S.-based Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, and he earned his doctorate from Connecticut University.

Gorgun lectured at Yildiz where, in 2013, he became a professor. Between 2014 and 2018 he served as president of the Gebze University in Turkey. In the years 2015, 2016, 2017 and 2018 he was elected to be university professor of the year in Turkey, particularly due to his efforts to establish sustainable relations between academia and industry.

In March 2017, Gorgun became a board member of Aselsan, and in April 2018 he became head of the board.
Twitter owes three months' rent to its Boulder landlord, and a judge has signed off on evicting the tech giant from its office there, court documents show.

Since its takeover by Elon Musk, Twitter's business has more or less fallen into disarray, and there have been numerous reports of unpaid bills. While a contractor going unpaid during a rocky transition is unfortunate but not uncommon, ceasing to pay rent altogether for months suggests Twitter's operations may be farther gone than anyone expected.

According to court documents and reporting by the Denver Business Journal, Lot 2 SBO LLC, the Chicago-based landlord that owns Twitter's office at 3401 Bluff St in Boulder, was provided a $968,000 letter of credit back in February of 2020. It has been drawing on this to pay the rent in lieu of ordinary payments (the details of this arrangement are somewhat obscure), but the money ran out in March, and the company has not paid since. (If we assume rent was paid regularly from that sum, that places it at around $27,000 per month, giving a sense of the values involved here.)

In May the landlord took it to court, and on May 31 the judge issued an order that the sheriff should assist in the eviction of Twitter within the next 49 days  i.e. before the end of July. The case number is 2023CV30342 in Boulder District Court.

As many as 300 employees once worked in Twitter's Boulder offices, but between layoffs, other firings, and resignations, it is probably less than half of that now.

TechCrunch confirmed the legal records cited by the Denver Business Journal, but the Sheriff's office explained it could not comment on matters until they were concluded. In the course of looking up the case another appeared apparently confirming a separate case in which a cleaning company is seeking $93,504 in unpaid fees from the company.

Twitter did not respond to a request for comment.
Eight people including two juveniles were shot in three separate shootings within about five hours Tuesday night in Cincinnati, police say.

The shootings are not connected, according to police. All but one of the victims have injuries that are not considered life-threatening.

A 15-year-old boy who was shot in South Fairmount along with another teen and a man is critically hurt. Doctors realized his wounds were more serious than initially believed once he arrived at Cincinnati Childrens Hospital Medical Center, police said.

Here are the latest details from the Cincinnati Police Department:

South Fairmount triple shooting: 11:58 p.m. in the 1700 block of Westwood Avenue. Three victims total. They are an 18-year-old man shot in his left forearm; a 15-year-old boy shot in his left foot and a 15-year-old boy shot in his left shoulder and trachea whose injuries were determined to be life-threatening once he arrived at the hospital. Police had difficulty providing aid to the victims due to a disorderly crowd during a party at the shooting scene. Once that was handled, police applied a tourniquet to the 15-year-old boys leg.

Westwood drive-by quadruple shooting : 11 p.m. in the 2300 block of Harrison Avenue. Four total victims were found in the hallway of an apartment building. The suspect fired from a vehicle that drove through the parking lot, striking the front door. Three of the victims are women. One is 19 and the other two are both 22. One of the 22-year-olds was shot in her right foot. The other was shot in her buttocks. The third victim is a 21-year-old man who was shot in his left thigh. The fourth victim, 19, was grazed by a bullet in her buttocks. A round also entered one of the apartments.

Sayler Park shooting: 7:20 p.m. in the 6300 block of Gracely Drive in Sayler Park. A 36-year-old man was shot in his right leg and hand by an unknown suspect.

No arrests have been made, and no suspect information has been announced.

Enquirer media partner Fox19 provided this report

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: 8 shot in 3 Cincinnati shootings overnight
Photo Illustration by Thomas Levinson/The Daily Beast/Reuters

Of the tens of thousands of words filling the 212 pages in Sen. Marco Rubios new book, theres two words you wont find anywhere: Ron DeSantis.

Despite copious mentions of Donald Trump and lawmakers from both sides of the aislealong with esoteric name-drops ranging from New York Times columnist Jamelle Bouie to the late French philosopher Jacques DerridaDeSantis, the governor of Rubios home state, fails to earn a single mention.

Even when topics right in the DeSantis wheelhouse appear, such as Disney or critical race theoryRubio mentions the sociological and legal concept no fewer than eight timesthe Florida governor is nowhere to be found in Decades of Decadence: How Our Spoiled Elites Blew America's Inheritance of Liberty, Security, and Prosperity.

The relationship between Rubio and DeSantis remains a mystery, according to nearly a dozen Republicans whove worked with the Florida Republican stars. Many of these sources told The Daily Beast they couldnt think of a single substantive encounter between the two men beyond joint appearances following natural disasters such as Hurricane Dorian in 2019, where they sat next to each other on a flight to visit damage in the Bahamas.

Ron DeSantis Hates the Elites, but Gives Them the Little Guys Money Anyway

I know literally nothing about any relationship or lack thereof concerning DeSantis and Rubio, a Florida Republican close with DeSantis told The Daily Beast. I dont think it is something on anyones radar.

A GOP strategist also had questions over whether DeSantis lack of a relationship with a key Florida lawmaker is the exception, not the rule.

I just dont know anybody he has a close relationship with whos an elected official in this state, the strategist said. Its just really bad politics when youre not close with your home state delegation.

While DeSantis rocky relationship with Florida Sen. Rick Scott is more well-documented, DeSantis and Rubio are an odd fit in the Trump era. Both have tried similar tactics to present themselves as populist outsiders without the mercurial behavior and reputational baggage of Trump. Much like DeSantis up to this point in the 2024 cycle, Rubio tried using subtle contrasts to combat Trump in the 2016 GOP primary only to eventually succumb to Trumps gutter tactics in the infamous viral moment where Rubio questioned the size of the former presidents penis, cementing his Trumpian nickname Little Marco.

Rubio and DeSantis briefly crossed paths thanks to Trump. Rubio bowed out of the presidential race to stick with seeking re-election to his Senate seat, leading then-Rep. DeSantis to drop his Senate bid and pursue his own re-election in the House.

I think Ron was annoyed when Rubio got back in that Senate race, thats maybe the most reasonable explanation for any lingering beef, the GOP strategist said.

Rubio and Governor DeSantis en route to the Bahamas. Office of Senator Marco Rubio

DeSantis gubernatorial wins in 2018 and 2022 also marked a changing of the guard in Florida.

DeSantis has kind of ascended beyond him right now and hes the big Florida hope, where eight years ago it was whether it was gonna be Jeb or Marco, a longtime Florida pollster, Brad Coker of Mason-Dixon Polling & Strategy, told The Daily Beast. Jeb has almost completely gone away since then, where Marco has really focused on the Senate.

Rubios book deals with lofty topics, emulating his evolution from Floridas golden boy to a statesman more attuned to foreign policy, as the top Republican on the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence and a senior member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

Slowly, in the boardrooms of think tanks and the classrooms of Ivy League universities, a consensus emerged: history, in the words of Francis Fukuyama, was over, and the only thing left to do was spread liberalismand with it the hallmarks of globalized American economics and progressive valuesto every corner of the world, Rubio writes while laying out the central thesis of the book.

Rubio aims to show off his academic prowess with an argument that postmodern philosophy and the advent of deconstructionthe signature work of Derrida, whose basic assertion was that language has no absolute meaning but instead relies on the contrast between wordssomehow contributed to the decadent economic and cultural malaise the nation finds itself in.

Sen. Marco Rubio Says He Has Hope for Trump While Dissing Nick Fuentes

The title itself, Decades of Decadence, is an homage to New York Times columnist Ross Douthat and his 2020 book The Decadent Society, which he defines as economic stagnation, institutional sclerosis, and cultural repetition at a high stage of wealth and technological proficiency and civilizational development.

Clearly an avid New York Times reader, Rubio also dedicates a passage to Douthats opinion desk colleague Bouiewhom Rubio dings as currently a New York Times opinion columnist but at the time [2012] the chief political correspondent for a mediocre ruling-class website called Slateto dismiss the writers thesis that white fragility and a racist backlash to the election of President Barack Obama were a driving force behind Trumps ascension to power. (Notably, Bouie has written on the limits of white fragility as an inadequate concept when it comes to economic inequality).

Although picking a side in the 2024 proxy war between Trump and DeSantis is not of interest to Rubio in the book, he does mention the former president on nine occasions.

Hes not making decisions based on what Ron DeSantis will do, Coker said of Rubio. Hes got no dog in the fight, and hell just see how it plays out.

Theres something to be said for not saying something about anybody, Coker continued, but given Rubios role working with the Trump administration, you also cant not say anything about Trump.

Still, theres a hint of presidential ambition in the Rubio book, coming right after he gives a shoutout to Douthat in the introduction and later when he draws on his biography as the child of Cuban immigrants. Rubio positions himself as uniquely equipped to tackle the trickier problems in a decadent society, particularly how external threats to our way of life that survived the Cold War are still very much with us.

Thanks to my upbringing, Rubio writes, I knew that better than most of my peers.

Even though Rubio is just eight years older than DeSantis, Coker said the dynamic in Florida has bumped the senator from his once highly coveted status as a rising star within the Republican Party.

One was the rising star, and now DeSantis is the rising star, Coker said. Rubios not exactly a rookie anymore. He just got elected to a third term. Hes not the 30-year-old hotshot that he was when he decided to challenge Charlie Crist.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

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Tyre Nichols, beaten to death during traffic stop, has skate park in California named in his memory

As a child, Nichols, an enthusiastic skateboarder, spent a lot of time at what was once the Regency Community Skate Park in Sacramento.

A California city is keeping Tyre Nichols memory alive, naming a skate park to honor the Black man whose passion for the sport blossomed in the state.

According to The Guardian, the newly renovated Tyre Nichols Skate Park  formerly known as the Regency Community Skate Park  was officially opened Sunday with a ribbon-cutting ceremony attended by Sacramento city officials and others.

As a child, Nichols, an enthusiastic skateboarder, spent a lot of time at the park, located in the North Natomas neighborhood of the capital city. He loved taking pictures, especially of sunsets and landscapes.

Officials in Sacramento, California, have named Tyre Nichols favorite skate park, in the North Natomas neighborhood, in his honor. (Photo: Screenshot/YouTube.com/ABC10 News)

Photography helps me look at the world in a more creative way, Nichols wrote on his website showcasing his photos, The Guardian reported. It expresses me in ways I cannot write down for people.

Nichols, 29, had relocated to Memphis, Tennessee, shortly before the coronavirus pandemic. On Jan. 7, Memphis police stopped him as he was returning home, where he lived with his mother and stepfather, after capturing images of the sky.

Nichols family alleges, in a complaint filed against Memphis authorities seeking $550 million in damages, that he was brutally attacked by five police officers just a short distance from his home.

Nichols passed away in a hospital three days later. The five Memphis police officers  who are all Black  were fired and are now facing charges of second-degree murder, aggravated assault, official misconduct, official oppression, aggravated assault and kidnapping.

According to KCRA3 News, Nichols friend Jerome Neal recalled meeting Nichols at the skatepark about 13 years ago. He said when he visited Nichols in Memphis last October, it seemed as though nothing had changed.

He linked up with me at the skatepark, and he and I just skated for half the day, Neal said, according to KCRA. We hung out like it was old times. Didnt miss a beat.

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The post Tyre Nichols, beaten to death during traffic stop, has skate park in California named in his memory appeared first on TheGrio.
Luis Chaparro

CIUDAD JUAREZ, MexicoA new app introduced by the Biden administration to help process hundreds of thousands of asylum seekers at the U.S.-Mexico border has allegedly become a cash cow for human smugglers looking to exploit desperate migrants.

The administration announced the CBP One app in January, describing it as a safe and orderly path for certain migrants to apply for political asylum. The app, which has been designed to curb unauthorized crossings in the U.S., has been the main legal pathway to request U.S. asylum at the Mexican border since May 12when the infamous COVID-era policy, Title 42, was ended.

But now, some fraudsters are using the app as an opportunity to sell fake court appointments, bogus smartphones and internet services for migrants stuck at the border, according to several asylum-seekers and a human smuggler who spoke with The Daily Beast.

Members of the National Guard watch over the river bank at border marker 40 in Ciudad Juarez on May 13, a day after Title 42 ended. Luis Chaparro

The scammers appear to be exploiting weaknesses in the app, which has been heavily criticized for showing recurrent not in service messages that have frustrated scores of migrants who have tried and failed to apply for asylum through the app.

First of all you need a working smartphone, reliable internet service, and then the help of God to get an appointment [with U.S. immigration authorities], Joaquin Mares, a 31-year-old Venezuelan seeking U.S. asylum and currently waiting in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico. It is never working and it is frustrating, we are desperate.

Why Bidens Repeal of a Trump-Era Immigration Law Is Pissing Off Advocates

That desperation is driving some migrants to turn to human smugglers, some of whom appear to be charging between $100 and $500 for family packages that include a cellphone, internet service, and a technician that helps migrants set up an account on the app, according to sources in Mexico and social media posts reviewed by The Daily Beast.

In many other cases, according to accounts from migrants, the scammers simply disappear after getting paid to facilitate a court appointment through the app.

I paid to get an account made since Im not very knowledgeable about technology, but I never got an appointment and the man who set my account just disappeared after I paid, Carlos Navarro, a Venezuelan migrant waiting in Ciudad Juarez for a court appointment, told The Daily Beast. He promised me that I would get an appointment in less than two days, but it has been more than two weeks now.

Scammers are also selling everything from technical support to SIM cards with a Mexican phone numbergiven that Mexican law requires a current ID to obtain cellular phone serviceaccording to the smuggler.

At the very beginning business started going bad, because migrants were crossing [the border] by themselves, without our help, because they were turning themselves over to the Border Patrol, a human smuggler working for a drug cartel in Ciudad Juarez told The Daily Beast. But when they started using the app, we managed to pump the business again by getting creative.

Botched

In cases where smugglers dont disappear after getting paid, the services they provide to asylum-seekers are often useless, according to some migrants.

I had my cellphone but it got stolen when I entered Mexico and when I arrived in Ciudad Juarez the guides (smugglers) offered me a cellphone with internet for very little money, Andres, a-42-year old Guatemalan migrant in Ciudad Juarez, told The Daily Beast.

A group of migrants camp outside Ciudad Juarez city hall as they wait to get an appointment through CBP One app. Luis Chaparro

Andres, who wouldnt share his last name for fear of retaliation, said that smugglers offered him the cellphone along with internet service for $50. But on the second day of use, the phone service went down.

I think it was a stolen phone, and it stopped working on the second day, so I couldnt follow up on my application and now I dont know what to do or if I got a message from immigration, he said.

Some smugglers allegedly tell migrants to change the language of their phones from Spanish to English to get a better chance at being added to the long digital queue via the app, or to make different accounts and apply several times.

Sometimes we offer full services like internet and a working phone to create several accounts on the app for full family members. For something like that we would charge from $350 to $600 depending on how many accounts we set up, the smuggler claimed.

U.S. authorities have warned migrants of these sorts of scams, recommending they submit their applications themselves without relying on anyone trying to help. But many migrants dont even have access to a smartphone, prompting some to turn to smugglers.

The Daily Beast reached out to CBP and Mexicos Immigration Institute (INM) requesting comment but until the day of publication no answer was provided.

Mexican authorities believe that drug cartels generate over $615 million exclusively from human smuggling, according to a 2022 report from Mexicos Ministry of the Interior. The real number could be much higher, considering the fraudulent schemes and other services provided to those who are not necessarily looking to cross the border illegally.

U.S. immigration authorities have granted more than 79,000 court dates to migrants between Jan. 12when CBP launched the mobile appand April 30, according to CBP figures. Last month, the CBP announced the expansion of the program from 250 appointments a day to over 1,000, prioritizing migrants who have waited the longest.

As long as there are people trying to cross (the border) legally or illegally, we will find a way to make a profit from it, the smuggler said. Now we dont even have to risk ourselves to make money getting people across, we just need to help them navigate an app and make money from it.

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The Biden administration said Tuesday that it will allow thousands of immigrants from El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua and Nepal living in the United States on temporary status to renew their work permits for 18 months, reversing a Trump-era directive that sought to revoke the humanitarian protections.

Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said his decision preserves protections for more than 330,000 people from the four countries, granting them permission to live and work in the United States into 2025.

The announcement came as a relief for immigrants in the United States under a federal designation called temporary protected status. Others were disappointed that the protections remain limited to immigrants who arrived in the country years ago. They had hoped the Biden administration would issue a fresh designation to include more-recent arrivals.

At least theyre covering people who have been living and working here for decades, said Kerri Talbot, deputy director of the Immigration Hub, an advocacy organization.

While the Department of Homeland Security said Tuesday that each groups protection will be extended for 18 months, they will expire on different dates in 2025 because their original designation dates vary.

To be eligible to renew their work permits, Salvadorans, the largest group, with nearly 240,000 people under the provisional status, must have been in the United States since Feb. 13, 2001, when earthquakes devastated their country. Hondurans and Nicaraguans must have lived in the country since Dec. 30, 1998, after Hurricane Mitch, and Nepalis since June 24, 2015, also after an earthquake.

Former president Donald Trump had tried to end the protections, saying the emergencies that spurred the U.S. government to offer the groups temporary refuge had long passed.

Civil liberties groups sued in 2018, alleging that the Trump administrations moves to rescind the status were arbitrary and motivated by racism in violation of the Constitution. A federal judge in California sided with the advocates and temporarily blocked the terminations.

A 9th Circuit appeals court overturned that decision 2-1 in September 2020, weeks before the presidential election, but the terminations did not take effect immediately.

After President Biden took office, lawyers for the Justice Department and the immigrants attempted to settle the case, but talks broke down late last year. The plaintiffs asked the appeals court to have a panel of 11 judges rehear the case, and the court agreed and scheduled a hearing for June 22.

Some legal analysts said the DHS decision to revoke the Trump administrations terminations could render the lawsuit moot, though lawyers for the plaintiffs said that was unclear Tuesday.

As a candidate, Biden bashed the Trump administrations politically motivated decisions to rescind protected status for hundreds of thousands of people and promised to preserve their protections and push for a path to U.S. citizenship for them.

Some advocates had hoped that the Biden administration would create a new eligibility date so that more recent immigrants from those countries could apply for TPS. But the administration, which has struggled with record numbers of apprehensions at the southern border and low approval ratings for Bidens immigration policies, did not expand the program for those countries.

Immigrants with the temporary status are eligible for work permits, social security cards and state drivers licenses, but the status does not lead to citizenship. Many have established themselves in careers such as health care and construction, own homes and are raising U.S. citizen children.

Jose Palma, a TPS holder from El Salvador and spokesman for the National TPS Alliance, an advocacy organization, said Biden should have acted earlier to grant the protections.

He should have done the right thing and restored Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for our community on his first day in office, but instead we endured two years of uncertainty while we battled in courts, demonstrated in streets, and made our case within a dysfunctional congress, Palma said in a statement. We have made this country our home, and yet we still dont have equal protection.

The Biden administration had extended temporary protected status to approximately 670,000 people from 16 countries as of April, according to the Pew Research Center.
By Pavel Polityuk

KYIV (Reuters) -U.N. nuclear chief Rafael Grossi delayed a trip to the Russian-held Zaporizhzhia nuclear power station on Wednesday for security reasons as Moscow and Kyiv reported heavy fighting in southern Ukraine.

Grossi had been expected to visit the plant (ZNPP) in southern Ukraine on Wednesday following talks in Kyiv on Tuesday but Ukrainian Energy Minister German Galushchenko said the trip had been pushed back, possibly by days.

"Grossi is in Ukraine. The issue of his visit to the ZNPP should be resolved in the next few days," Galushchenko was quoted as saying by Interfax Ukraine news agency.

"I cannot assess the situation - there are hostilities going on and the military is assessing the situation."

Russian news agencies, reporting early on Thursday morning, quoted a senior official in Russia's nuclear industry as saying Grossi was likely to visit the Zaporizhzhia plant on Thursday.

"We can say with a high degree of certainty that the IAEA delegation headed by Grossi will still take place on Thursday," Renat Karchaa, an adviser to the general director of Rosenergoatom, which operates Russia's nuclear stations, told Tass news agency.

There was no word late on Wednesday from Ukrainian officials.

A diplomatic source had earlier said security checks were being made and Grossi's trip was expected to take place soon. Russian news agency Interfax quoted a Russian-installed local official as saying Grossi would visit on Thursday.

Grossi, the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), said in Kyiv on Tuesday that he was "very concerned" that the nuclear plant could be caught up in a Ukrainian counteroffensive to retake Russian-occupied territory.

The IAEA said on Sunday it needed access to a site near the Zaporizhzhia plant to check water levels after the nearby reservoir lost much of its water because of the destruction of the Kakhovka dam downstream on the Dnipro River.

Satellite images from June 13 confirmed a sharp drop in the level of the Dnipro since the dam was destroyed.

Russian forces captured the hydroelectric dam and the nuclear plant in southern Ukraine shortly after their February 2022 invasion.

The plant uses a cooling pond to keep its six reactors from potentially disastrous overheating.

The Kakhovka reservoir was normally used to refill the pond but cannot do so now because of its falling water level, Ukrainian nuclear authorities have said.

Instead, the pond, which is separated from the reservoir, can be replenished using deep underground wells, they said.

(Additional reporting by Tom Balmforth and Anna Pruchnicka, Editing by Timothy Heritage, Ron Popeski and Cynthia Osterman)
Such actions are aimed at forcing Budapest to give the green light to the expansion of the alliance

It is a rare move aimed at pressuring Budapest into greenlighting the military alliances expansion ahead of a major summit next month, WaPo wrote.

In a statement, Risch said Hungary must allow Sweden into NATO if it wants the arms package, which includes 24 HIMARS rocket launcher batteries, and more than 100 rockets and pods along with associated parts and support.

Read also: Sweden to allow NATO to base troops before official accession

The decision to slam the brakes on new arms sales to Budapest demonstrates the growing anger toward Hungary by NATO backers like Risch, who rarely holds up arms sales to countries in any part of the world, the journalists said.

For some time now, I have directly expressed my concerns to the Hungarian government regarding its refusal to move forward a vote for Sweden to join NATO, he said.

The fact that it is now June and still not done, I decided that the sale of new U.S. military equipment to Hungary will be on hold.

All significant arms sales require the chair and ranking members of the U.S. Senate and House foreign affairs committees to give clearance and approval before the sale is publicly noticed by the State Department. Rischs objection prevents the State Department from being able to move forward in the sales process.

Read also: Ukrainian soldiers finish training in Sweden on CV90 IFVS

Together with Finland, Sweden applied to join the North Atlantic Treaty amid the Russian full-scale war against Ukraine in May 2022.

Finland officially became the 31st NATO member on April 4, 2023.

Turkey and Hungary still need to ratify Swedens application to NATO.

The U.S. administration is pushing its NATO allies, in particular Turkey and Hungary, to ratify Swedens accession as soon as possible.

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Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
By Patricia Zengerle

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The top Republican on the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee said on Wednesday he was blocking a $735 million arms sale to Hungary because its government has refused to approve Sweden's bid to join NATO.

"Given promises that were made to me and others last year that this vote would be done, and the fact that it is now June and still not done, I decided that the sale of new U.S. military equipment to Hungary will be on hold," Senator Jim Risch said in a statement.

"Hungary should take the actions necessary to allow Sweden into the alliance, and soon," he said.

Under U.S. law, major arms deals are reviewed by the top Democrats and Republicans on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and the House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee.

They regularly ask questions or raise concerns over human rights or diplomatic issues that can delay or stop weapons sales.

Risch's decision to block the deal was first reported in the Washington Post, which said the sale included 24 HIMARS rocket launcher batteries and more than 100 rockets and pods along with associated parts and support.

The Hungarian Defense Ministry released a statement via the state news agency MTI saying it did not intend to buy HIMARS systems.

"During the previous government term, the government commissioner in charge of procurement requested information about HIMARS missile systems in a letter with a March 2022 deadline. There was no response from the U.S. side, therefore, the ministry considered the matter closed," Hungary said.

Sweden applied last year to join NATO as a result of Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Objections from Turkey and Hungary have delayed the bid and Sweden now hopes to join by a NATO summit in Lithuania next month.

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg met at the White House on Tuesday with U.S. President Joe Biden.

(Reporting by Patricia Zengerle, additional reporting by Gergely Szakacs in Budapest; editing by Jonathan Oatis)
Uber is going toe-to-toe with Instacart in a bet that delivering groceries can cut healthcare costs by billions

Prescribing groceries and meals could save insurers billions every year. FG Trade/Getty Images

Uber is adding groceries and over-the-counter medical items to its Uber Health services.

It's the latest company to bet big on prescribing food as medicine.

Uber works with health plans to provide transportation and prescription delivery to members as well.

Uber on Tuesday said that it plans to work with health plans and providers to prescribe food as medicine.

The program, in beta testing now, aims to be in place for health plans in 2024. It would allow healthcare professionals to prescribe groceries or meals to people, as well as over-the-counter medical items.

Uber is the latest company to bet big on prescribing food to prevent higher medical costs. Instacart in March launched digital tools to allow doctors to prescribe food the way they might prescribe a medication. Meanwhile, companies like Kroger and investors like Andreessen Horowitz are betting big on the approach.

Healthier eating habits could reduce the need for some medications to treat chronic conditions like diabetes or heart disease or prevent them from progressing to the point where a person needs additional medications or care.

Caitlin Donovan, global head of Uber Health Uber Health

Healthier eating members could have major financial implications for insurers. One study published in October found that insurers could save $13.6 billion in annual medical spending and prevent 1.6 million hospitalizations by providing meals tailored to an individual's needs.

Caitlin Donovan, global head of Uber Health, told Insider that over the last year, there have been more opportunities for health plans to provide groceries and meals as a benefit.

"Candidly, Uber Health integration with Uber Eats and Uber Eats' grocery and convenience network, in my opinion, was the perfect way to scale some of those programs," Donovan said.

A mock-up of how Uber Health's food-as-medicine program might look. Uber

Prescribing meals and groceries

Since 2018, Uber has worked with health plans in the US mainly behind the scenes to offer services to members, like transportation, particularly for the elderly on Medicare plans and those on Medicaid plans serving low-income Americans. It's also delivered medications.

Anyone from a doctor to a care coordinator can log on to Uber's health platform and determine which patients might need groceries or restaurant delivery and get them sent to the patient.

Donovan said the idea is to ensure people can use the supplemental benefits of their health plan.

"You want to do it in a way that removes the friction and homework for the patient and creates that convenient one-stop shop for all in different points in the ecosystem," she said.

Dara Khosrowshahi, CEO of Uber. Leigh Vogel/Getty Images

Healthcare could be a big business for Uber

In Uber's first-quarter earnings call in May, CEO Dara Khosrowshahi referred to Uber Health as one of the company's "growth bets."

Uber said in a news release that its gross bookings for Health grew by 75% in the first quarter of 2023 compared to the first quarter of 2022. Donovan, who joined Uber in 2021, pointed to that growth as evidence there's demand for Uber's approach to healthcare.

"When you combine demand for healthcare services with the core competencies of Uber with the ability to do good, I think that's a very powerful confirmation that speaks to why Uber Health is part of Uber," Donovan said.

Read the original article on Business Insider
As Ukraine fights back, hundreds of NATO warplanes are flying over Germany in alliances largest-ever aerial drills

As the early stages of Ukraines counteroffensive against Russian invaders is unfolding on the battlefield, hundreds of warplanes from some of Kyivs biggest supporters are in the skies over Germany as NATO holds its largest aerial war games ever.

Air Defender 2023 is bringing together 250 warplanes  including 190 fighter jets  and 10,000 troops in drills designed to boost the alliances preparedness and ability to protect against aircraft, drones and missile attacks on cities and critical infrastructure, according to a NATO press release.

Though the German-led exercises have been in the works for several years, their timing as Moscow unleashes punishing air attacks on Ukrainian cities as part of the now 16-month invasion of its neighbor sends a timely message, especially to Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Early Tuesday alone, Russian missiles attacked the central Ukrainian city of Kryvyi Rih, killing at least 11 people and injuring 28, according to Oleksandr Vilkul, head of the Kryvyi Rih city military administration.

Three more people were killed in the Black Sea port city of Odesa after Russia fired four Kalibr cruise missiles, according to Ukraines Operational Command South.

Emergency workers inspect a damaged multi-story apartment building caused by the latest Russian rocket attack in Kryvyi Rih, Ukraine, on June 13. - Andriy Dubchak/AP

Since Russias invasion began in February 2022, the worry in NATO is that the destruction Moscow has wreaked on Ukraines cities could spill beyond the countrys borders.

NATO members military support for Ukraine, including tanks, armored vehicles and other weaponry being used in Kyivs current offensive, has consistently produced threats of retaliation from Russia.

Alliance members are making plans to supply Ukraine with F-16 fighter jets of the same variety that are participating in the current war games.

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization was formed in the aftermath of World War II to defend Western nations from the Soviet Union and the alliance contains a mutual defense clause where an attack on any one member is considered an attack on all.

An F-16 fighter airplane takes off from the Schleswig-Jagel Air Base in Jagel, Germany, on June 12 during the Air Defender 2023 exercise. - Gregor Fischer/AP

NATO nations say Moscows invasion of Ukraine has made that defense clause all the more vital.

Air Defender is necessary because we live in a more dangerous world. As we face the biggest security crisis in a generation, we stand united to keep our countries and our people safe, NATO spokesperson Oana Lungescu said in a statement.

I would be pretty surprised if any world leader was not taking note of what this shows in terms of the spirit of the alliance, which means the strength of this alliance, and that includes Mr. Putin, United States Ambassador to Germany Amy Gutmann said before the drills began.

NATO territory is the red line and we are willing to defend every inch of it, Lt. Gen. Ingo Gerhartz, the chief of Germanys air forces, told CNNs Nic Robertson.

Formidable hodge-podge of weapons

That NATO territory includes five members participating in the exercises that share a border with Russia  Norway, Finland, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. Two of those  Estonia and Latvia  will host small portions of the drills.

Other participants are NATO members Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Netherlands, Poland, Romania, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Turkey, the United Kingdom and the United States, plus NATO applicant Sweden and Japan, which has been increasing its ties with the alliance.

Fighter planes include US F-35 stealth jets and F-15s; F-16s from the US, Turkey and Greece; Eurofighters from Spain and the UK; German Tornadoes; US and Finnish F/A-18s; Hungarian Gripens; as well as US A-10 ground-attack jets.

Two US Air Force A10 fighter jets taxi onto the runway ahead of Air Defender 2023. - Karl-Josef Hildenbrand/picture alliance/Getty Images

Thats a large range of participants and aircraft that could present coordination difficulties in any actual conflict. But analysts say that is what makes Air Defender so important.

It accurately captures the hodge-podge of weapons systems designed by different nations that would have to operate together as part of an air defense campaign, said Brynn Tannehill, an analyst at the RAND Corp. think tank and former US Navy pilot.

Aviators involved also noted the importance of practice.

Training like this is important because in the next conflict where we may be called upon to defend NATO, its not going to get a practice round, said Maj. Adam Casey, a US A-10 pilot.

Tannehill said exercise planners have been able to incorporate real-time scenarios from the conflict in Ukraine into the training.

It reflects some of the tactical problems seen in Ukraine, such as missile interception and tactical air support of troops, she said.

Peter Layton, a fellow at the Griffith Asia Institute and former Royal Australian Air Force officer, said Air Defender 2023 should give Russian military planners a lot to think about.

A US F-35 fighter jet flies over the Eifel Mountains near Spangdahlem, Germany, in February 2022. Similar planes are taking part in Air Defender 2023. - Harald Tittel/AP/File

The scale of the exercise and the complexity of the training is well beyond the capabilities the Russian air force has demonstrated in the Ukraine. The exercise is evidence of very sophisticated air power capabilities that the Russians dont appear able to match, he said.

Overall, the US has the largest contingent of planes involved in Air Defender 2023  100 aircraft from 42 different states  with most of those drawn from Air National Guard units.

The analysts say using Air National Guard, rather than regular Air Force planes, enables planners to be more certain the exercises can come off as expected.

Air National Guard units can be committed for the long haul reasonably confident that they will not be diverted into a contingency operation at the last minute, Layton said.

If you have active duty units participating, it means theyre not doing their normal job, Tannehill said.

The two-week NATO exercise concludes on June 23.

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A Ukrainian soldier rides atop an armored personnel carrier, or APC, on the frontline in the Luhansk region, Ukraine, on Sunday, May 21, 2023. | Libkos, Associated Press





Earlier this month, Ukraine implemented its counteroffensive against Russia, which the country has been planning for a while.

On Monday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the country has regained several villages along its eastern border  although he didnt specify how many  which were previously occupied by Russia.

The battles are fierce, but we are moving forward, and this is very important, he said in a tweet. The enemys losses are exactly what we need. Although the weather is unfavorable these days  the rains make our task more difficult  the strength of our warriors still yields results.

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg was the first to say that seven villages were successfully recovered by Ukraine, USA Today reported on Monday. Those seven villages included Orikhiv, Velyka Novosilka, Marinka and Backhmut, per The Washington Post.

Stoltenberg cautioned that the counteroffensive would continue to be bloody.

We need to be prepared that this offensive will be bloody and difficult, Stoltenberg told USA Today. The Russians have had time to build  theyre quite heavy defensive lines, and to breach them is a demanding task.

This proved true, as Russia fought back with assault and army aviation, along with intense artillery fire, said Ukrainian Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Maliar, especially early on in the offensive, reported the Post.

At the beginning of the counteroffensive on June 5, a small group of less than 50 troops pushed into Russian-occupied territory just south of Velyka Novosilka, reported the Post. Only 20 came back, including a soldier and survivor who said the group was shelled with mortars from three sides within the first hour.

This week, Russian forces pushed back in an effort to regain the village of Makarivka, which had been declared as recovered by Ukraine on Monday, per Reuters, leaving the village in ruins.

Russian President Vladamir Putin claimed that the Ukrainian counteroffensive has been unsuccessful so far, with Ukrainian losses 10 times greater than Russias, reported the BBC. Without evidence, his remarks couldnt be confirmed or denied.

However, it is believed that both countries have experienced substantial losses since the beginning of the counteroffensive, per Reuters.

Related
Key developments on June 14:

Zelensky: Russian missiles used in Kryvyi Rih attack had foreign-made components

Kadyrov's top aide Adam Delimkhanov reportedly injured in Ukraine

Netherlands to purchase 4 radars to aid Ukraines air defense

3,761 people evacuated due to Kakhovka dam disaster

President Volodymyr Zelensky said on June 13 that Russian missiles used in the attack on Kryvyi Rih a day earlier, which killed 12 and injured 40 people, contained foreign-made components.

According to Zelensky, one missile alone had over 50 such components.

"Unfortunately, Russia is still able to receive critical components for the production of missiles, which are created by companies from different countries, in particular, companies from some partner countries," Zelensky said. "These components are then delivered to Russia in various ways."

Ukrainian representatives have recently met with diplomats of the countries where these components were produced. Kyiv has a list of foreign companies supplying Russia with weapon parts used in attacks on civilians, according to the Presidents Office.

Zelensky called for imposing restrictions against these companies "at the global level" and to strengthen "export control over critical components."

On June 13, Russia launched six missiles at a residential area of Kryvyi Rih, Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, damaging a five-story residential building, a transport company, a warehouse, and other civilian facilities.

The missile strike also impacted over 70 residential buildings, three schools, two more educational institutions, and a dormitory.

Olena Pavlenko: The EU must step up sanctions against Russias nuclear sector Sanctions on Russia in the nuclear sector have not been supported by Western countries since the beginning of Russias full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Controlling 38% of the global uranium enrichment market, 17% of nuclear fuel supplies and ranking first in the construction of nuclear power plants The Kyiv IndependentOlena Pavlenko

Kadyrov's top aide Adam Delimkhanov reportedly injured in Ukraine

Adam Delimkhanov, a deputy in Russia's State Duma for Chechnya and a close associate of Chechen dictator Ramzan Kadyrov, was injured, the press service of Russia's Liberal Democratic Party (LDPR) reported on June 14.

It is not known under what circumstances the injury occurred and where Delimkhanov is now.

Delimkhanov went to Ukraine at the start of Russia's all-out war to command Kadyrov's Chechen fighters. He was sanctioned by the U.S., EU, and Ukraine, as well as put on the wanted list by Interpol. Delimkhanov is suspected of being involved in the assassinations of political opponents of Kadyrov and Russian dictator Vladimir Putin.

Earlier on June 14, Ukrainian serviceman Kyrylo Sazonov said on Facebook that Delimkhanov was killed during fighting in Ukraines southeastern Zaporizhzhia Oblast. The LDPR denied this statement, insisting he was wounded but alive.

Meet the Chechens fighting Russia in Ukraine In the Kyiv office of the Dzhokhar Dudayev Battalion, two flags hang on the wall next to each other: the yellow-and-blue flag of Ukraine and the green-white-and-red flag of the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria. The battalion, named for the first president of the short-lived Chechen republic, Dzhokhar D The Kyiv IndependentAlexander Query

Kadyrov initially wrote on Telegram that he was unaware of his associate's whereabouts and asked Ukrainian intelligence for information, promising a "generous reward."

However, several hours later, Kadyrov called the reports on Delimkhanov's injury and death fake, claiming he knew that "from the very beginning" but allegedly "decided to show everyone, primarily Ukrainians, to what extent their media have sunk."

Kadyrov published a photo of him with his aides, including Delimkhanov, but it's unclear when the photo was taken.

After Kadyrovs statement, a post appeared on Delimkhanovs Telegram channel saying he was alive and everything was fine with him.

The Kyiv Independent couldn't immediately verify any of these claims.

Netherlands to purchase 4 radars to aid Ukraines air defense

The Netherlands will purchase four VERA-EG radar systems worth 150 million euros ($162.9 million) for Ukraine's air defense, Dutch Defense Minister Kaisa Ollongren announced on June 14.

The systems can detect objects at a distance of up to 400 kilometers with an accuracy of up to 20 meters, according to Ukrainian defense website Militarnyi.

According to the radar's manufacturer, the systems do not emit electromagnetic energy, making them difficult to detect.

Ukraine has prioritized air defense as a crucial aspect of defending against Russia's continued drone and missile attacks targeting civilians and critical infrastructure.

On June 13, the U.K. Defense Ministry announced a new major air defense package for Ukraine worth $115 million.

Zelensky: Ukraine needs more Patriot air defense systems to fully protect its airspace President Volodymyr Zelensky said during a press briefing on June 2 that it is very challenging for Ukraine to receive the amount of Patriot air defense system it needs to fully protect its skies due to a waiting list to receive them. The Kyiv IndependentKate Tsurkan

3,761 people evacuated due to Kakhovka dam disaster

According to Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko, 3,761 people were evacuated from Kherson and Mykolaiv oblasts as of June 14 following the Kakhovka dam disaster.

Klymenko said on Telegram that 3,498 households in the two southern Ukrainian regions had been flooded. Most of them are located in Kherson Oblast, where 28 government-controlled settlements on the west bank of the Dnipro River remain underwater.

Floodwaters have receded in the villages of Olhivka, Mykolaivka, Lvovo, and Burhunka in the Tiahynka community, Stepanivka in the Kherson community, and Bobrovyi Kut and Zapovit in the Kalyniv community, the Interior Ministry reported earlier on the same day.

Patrolling of flooded and coastal areas continues as residents who choose to stay are provided with food, water, and other essentials.

Meanwhile, the water level in the Kakhovka Reservoir dropped from 16.5 meters to 9.5m in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, leading to water shortages among residents, Klymenko added.

According to Mykola Lukashuk, head of the Dnipropetrovsk Oblast Council, over a million people living in the region could face water shortages due to the Kakhovka dam destruction.

The Kakhovka Hydroelectric Power Plant's dam collapsed on June 6, sparking a large-scale humanitarian and ecological disaster in southern Ukraine.

Ukrainian authorities said that Russian forces had blown up the dam to prevent Ukraine's counteroffensive.
Ukraine's Commander-in-Chief prevented bridges in Kyiv from being blown up at beginning of full-scale war

At the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine and attempts to encircle Kyiv, Valerii Zaluzhnyi, the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, did not give his consent to blow up bridges in the capital.

Source: BBC News Ukraine

Details: According to BBC News Ukraine, the conversation about this arose on 26 February 2022.

On the third day of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, it was already obvious that the Russian plan to "capture Kyiv in three days" had failed, but they came very close to the capital.

The Russians failed to land with military equipment in Hostomel, but they encircled Chernihiv, were rapidly advancing through Sumy Oblast and could have reached the left-bank suburbs of Kyiv any day then.

Publicly, the authorities urged Ukrainians not to panic, but among themselves, members of the government began to actively discuss the idea of blowing up all Kyiv bridges to delay the Russian army in front of the Dnipro River and prevent them from reaching the government quarter on the right bank.

Then, a senior government official called Ivan Bakanov who was the head of the Security Service of Ukraine at the time. This official demanded that Bakanov order his security forces to blow up the bridges and cut off the left bank of the Dnipro from the right, as BBC News Ukraine reports.

Quote: "The situation was complicated. Bakanov called General Valerii Zaluzhnyi, the Commander-in-Chief of the Ukrainian Armed Forces. He [Zaluzhnyi] listened to him [Bakanov] and answered without hesitation: Blow up the bridges? Absolutely not! It would be a betrayal of those who remained on the left bank of the Dnipro, both military and civilians!."

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In Ukraine's counteroffensive, 'the big fireworks are still to come,' a war expert says

Ukrainian soldiers fire a cannon near Bakhmut, an eastern city where fierce battles against Russian forces have been taking place, in the Donetsk region, Ukraine, on May 15, 2023. AP Photo/Libkos, File

An expert said "the big fireworks are still to come" in Ukraine's counteroffensive.

George Barros of the Institute for the Study of War spoke to The Counteroffensive substack.

Barros said to watch out for Ukraine launching larger, "battalion-size" attacks in the thousands.

Sparks are flying as Ukraine's counteroffensive begins, but a war expert says the "big fireworks are still to come."

George Barros, the geospatial intelligence team lead and Russia analyst at the Institute for the Study of War, spoke to The Counteroffensive on Tuesday, explaining that the main attack hasn't happened yet.

He told the Substack that Ukraine's been attacking Russian troops in smaller groups numbering in the hundreds, and that we'll know the main event has started "when we see more battalion-size, or brigade-size, attacks" in the thousands.

Ukraine has used these smaller attacks to get a read on the enemy ahead of their larger effort, as well as mislead and misdirect it to draw out Russian reserves to create openings in the lines, Insider previously reported. And it's resulted in some gains.

These advances, however, have cost Ukraine precious lives and some Western-provided equipment, including American-made Bradley infantry fighting vehicles and German-made Leopard tanks. Combat losses are expected though, as Russia has spent months bracing for this offensive, and experts have cautioned against drawing conclusions from these losses this early in the operations.

The war has long been a high-intensity fight, and casualties are high. Since Russia invaded Ukraine unprovoked in February 2022, the war has killed at least 8,900 civilians and injured another 15,400, the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights estimates. Leaked numbers from the military in April estimated that up to 43,000 Russian troops and 17,500 Ukrainians have died on the battlefield.

This is a critical moment for Ukraine, and when Ukraine's main counteroffensive push kicks off to retake its territory, there won't be a question whether it's happening  it will be very clear.

Read the original article on Business Insider
Illustration showing a cotton flower, a symbol of Ukraines resistance: Ukrainskyi Nastup (Ukrainian Offensive) Telegram channel

Ukraines Defence Intelligence has urged the residents of Crimea to help bring the liberation of Ukrainian lands closer.

Source: press service for Ukraines Defence Intelligence

Details: Ukraines Defence Intelligence said that information provided by Ukrainians residing in Russian-occupied Crimea has helped Ukrainian intelligence officers find out about the fact that Chernomorneftegaz (Black Sea Oil and Gas), a Russian oil and gas firm, is planning to evacuate its employees and their families from Crimea.

Defence Intelligence continues to receive similar important reports from residents of temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine every day.

Quote from Defence Intelligence: "Ukrainians who are currently under [Russian] occupation, we remind you that you can bring the liberation of our lands by Ukraines defence forces closer!

Thanks to you, we can not only crush the enemy but also save the lives of our soldiers and civilians. Your contribution might be decisive in restoring Ukraines territorial integrity within its 1991 borders!

We ask you to report the locations of the occupation forces and assets:

Locations and addresses of residence of occupation forces personnel and leadership;

Ammunition and fuel and lubricants storage points;

Locations where military equipment [and weapons systems] are deployed, stored or repaired;

Locations electronic warfare equipment (characteristic feature: antennae and locators);

Occupation forces headquarters and command posts;

Locations where air defence systems are stored or deployed.

[This information can be submitted to Defence Intelligence Telegram] bot: @povertaemosvoe_bot

Please share this information with us. Ukraine will inevitably reclaim Crimea. The more information we have, the sooner [Crimea] will be liberated."

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Ukraine's forces are advancing but appear to be miles from Russia's main defensive line. A much tougher fight lies ahead.

A Ukrainian tank opening fire to support infantry units in Avdiivka, a city in the Donetsk Oblast in Ukraine, on April 17. Muhammed Enes Yildirim/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images

Counterattacking Ukrainian forces are advancing but have yet to reach Russia's main defensive line.

The Ukrainians may still be 10 to 20 kilometers from that line in places.

A land-warfare expert said in a new report that the fighting would "likely get tougher."

Ukrainian counteroffensive operations are underway, and it's been hard fighting for Kyiv's forces. But Ukraine is still miles from Russia's main line of defense, and a tougher fight is probably still to come, experts say.

Ukrainian forces appear to be about 10 to 15 kilometers from the main defensive line, depending on the location of the fighting, George Barros, a Russia analyst who is the geospatial-intelligence team lead at the Institute for the Study of War, told Insider.

Jack Watling, a land-warfare expert at the Royal United Services Institute, suggested it could be as much as 20 kilometers.

Ukraine has been fighting its way through Russian defensive positions consisting of foxholes and hand-dug trenches backed by minefields and protected by drones and artillery, Watling wrote in an article published Wednesday. But that is not the main line of defense.

"The main defence line, still 15-20 km from Ukrainian positions, has properly dug trenches and concrete-reinforced firing posts, tank obstacles, ground-laid cable to coordinate artillery strikes, and even more mines," he wrote.

Those defenses are backed by a line of reserve forces, Watling added, noting that as Ukrainian forces pushed against Russian lines, "the fighting will likely get tougher."

In a previous report on Russian tactics, Watling argued that "Russian engineering has proven to be one of the stronger branches of the Russian military."

He said the engineers had been constructing "complex obstacles and field fortifications across the front" lines and Russia's defenses posed "a major tactical challenge to Ukrainian offensive operations."

In this phase of the big counteroffensive, Ukraine's operations appear focused on setting the stage for later penetration operations.

Ukrainian forces are putting broad pressure on the front line, targeting Russian artillery, command and control, and ammunition stockpiles, and attempting to draw out Russian reserves.

"Once these troops are pulled forwards," Watling wrote in his latest report, "it will become easier to identify the weak points in the Russian lines, where a breakthrough will not be met by a new screen of repositioned forces."

The Ukrainian military training on Leopard 2 tanks at the test site on May 14 in Ukraine. The German-made tanks were one of many Western weapons sent to aid Ukraine in its counteroffensive. Serhii Mykhalchuk/Getty Images

Still, the fighting will intensify as Ukraine's forces move to penetrate Russian defenses.

Ukraine's "initial counteroffensive operations may be the most difficult and slowest, as they involve penetrating prepared defensive positions," ISW said last week, adding that "initial setbacks are to be expected" and that "this phase may also see the highest Ukrainian losses."

The think tank added that "militaries have long identified the penetration phase of a mechanized offensive as the most dangerous and costly."

As Ukraine attempts to push through Russian defenses, Kyiv's forces will most likely face greater artillery fire with decreased support from their own artillery, as well as greater pressure from Russian airborne capabilities as they move forward with fewer air defenses.

Additionally, Watling explained, "the Ukrainian lines of advance will become more predictable, as they must follow the breaches identified in the minefields," and this could in turn make them more vulnerable.

Russia is notably in for a tougher fight than what it has faced so far as well, as Ukraine has not committed all of its forces yet.

Ukraine formed a dozen counteroffensive brigades, nine of which were equipped with Western weaponry, and it "appears to have committed only a portion of the large reserve of forces available for counteroffensive operations," ISW said last week.

Commenting on the situation in a discussion with The Counteroffensive this week, Barros said that while there had been operations with hundreds of troops, it'd be clear the main offensive event had started "when we see more battalion-size, or brigade-size, attacks" with thousands of troops.

He said "the big fireworks are still to come."

Read the original article on Business Insider
Ukraine's Foreign Ministry on "conciliatory statements" by Putin and Szijjarto: Tango on the bones

Oleh Nikolenko, the spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine has commented on the recent similar statements made by Russian dictator Vladimir Putin and Peter Szijjarto, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Hungary. Both statements concerned Western military support to Ukraine.

Source: European Pravda; Nikolenko on Facebook

Details: The spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs cited the statements made by Putin, during a meeting with the so-called Russian war correspondents, and Szijjarto, in an interview with the French TV channel LCI during a visit to New York, which was reported by the local media outlets.

"Vladimir Putin: If they want the conflict to end, the West should stop supplying arms to Ukraine. Peter Szijjarto: Arms supplies are protracting the war. Instead of arms supplies, the international community would be better off focusing on achieving peace."

"Tango on the bones," Nikolenko commented briefly.

As is known, Hungary opposes the supply of military assistance to Ukraine and the transit of weapons through its territory, explaining that it does not want to become "party to the war".

Background: Budapest, without Kyiv's knowledge, agreed on the return of 11 Ukrainian servicemen from Zakarpattia Oblast, after which it accused Ukraine of "ingratitude."

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The Armed Forces of Ukraine destroyed the place from which the occupiers launched drones

"In our direction, a place was detected and destroyed which the Russians used to launch drones. It is a war of drone operators as it is. The direction of Svatovo and Kupyansk," he wrote.

Read also: Live Updates: Overnight Russian strikes claim 6 lives in Odesa, Kostiantynivka, and Kramatorsk

The 92nd Mechanized Brigades Achilles company proved its effectiveness by destroying the site, the governor said.

The fighters located the Russians' launch site and effectively worked on the enemy positions with Mavic 3 and Mavic 3T 'birds' from the UNITED24 presidential fundraising platform.

Read also: Russia mass ordering Shahed suicide drones, seeks to self-manufacture

A total of 680 Russian occupiers were killed in Ukraine in the past 24 hours. The total Russian losses in the full-scale war against Ukraine has surpassed 217,000 of soldiers.

Were bringing the voice of Ukraine to the world. Support us with a one-time donation, or become a Patron!

Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
The Ukrainian Catholic University (UCU) has established a scholarship fund in honour of the fallen hero of Ukraine, Dmytro Kotsiubailo who went by the alias of Da Vinci.

UCU has stated that it was initiated by the soldier's fiancee, Alina Mykhailova.

The Dmytro Kotsiubailo Scholarship will be awarded to students for their active volunteer work, and in particular to those who have supported and helped the military, veterans and their families.

The initiator, Alina Mykhailova, head of the Ulf medical service of the Da Vinci Wolves mechanised battalion, said that for her, the scholarship is primarily "about the memory and continuation of my fiance's work."

"Da Vinci"

photo by Press office "Da Vinci Wolves"

"His main motivation was a free, independent, successful and prosperous Ukraine. And this cannot be achieved without educated Ukrainians. Dmytro had been striving to learn all his life, improving himself in various fields and learning new things. He understood the importance of education since childhood.

That is why his family and I want to give people the opportunity to get a high-quality, modern and much-needed education at the Ukrainian Catholic University with this scholarship," Alina says.

Alina Mykhailova and Dmytro Kotsiubailo

Photo: UCU

UCU Deputy Rector Natalka Klymovska noted that the university's goal is to raise $100,000 for a sustainable fund that will generate the Da Vinci scholarship and cover the costs of a student's education at the university annually.

To make a donation to the Dmytro Kotsiubailo Scholarship Fund, please follow the link.

Dmytro Kotsiubailo was a Ukrainian volunteer soldier, commander of the 1st Da Vinci Wolves Battalion of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, and a participant in the Russian-Ukrainian war since 2014.

In early December 2021, Da Vinci received the highest state award, the title of Hero of Ukraine, for his personal courage in defending Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity. He became the first volunteer to receive this title during his lifetime.

He was killed on 7 March near Bakhmut, while performing a mission. A mortar bomb exploded next to him and one of the fragments hit him in the neck. The man was 27 years old.

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Ukrainian snipers destroy the invaders

There will surely be more at the end of this war, perhaps from Bakhmut, if this video shared by Commander of the Ground Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Colonel General Oleksandr Syrskyi, on Telegram June 14 is any indication.

Read also: Live Updates & Analysis  Ukrainian counteroffensive gains ground on 3 fronts

"The Ground Forces' snipers eliminate Russians in Bakhmut direction with accurate shots," he captioned the video.

A sniper is seen scoping the occupiers and shooting them clean in the video.

Ukrainian Armed Forces are advancing and the enemy is losing ground on the flanks, Syrskyi reported the day before.

The Ukrainian military has succeeded in the Berdyansk, Bakhmut, and Toretsk areas amid the ongoing counteroffensive with several hundred meters of advance in all three directions, Ukrainian General Staff said on June 13.

A total of 680 Russian occupiers were killed in Ukraine in the past 24 hours.

Read also: Russia changes tactics in Bakhmut, looks to go back on offensive  General Syrskyi

Total Russian losses in the full-scale war against Ukraine have surpassed 217,000 of soldiers.

Were bringing the voice of Ukraine to the world. Support us with a one-time donation, or become a Patron!

Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
Ukrainian troops make gains in Bakhmut, Zaporizhzhya areas, says deputy DM

Malyar told how much the Defense Forces had advanced in the main areas of the front

Over the past day, Ukrainian troops advanced 200-500 meters in various sections of the Bakhmut area, as well as 300-350 meters in the Zaporizhzhya area, she said.

At the same time, the Ukrainian soldiers are moving forward amid fierce battles and enemy aviation and artillery superiority, Malyar stressed.

Fighting continues near the village of Makarivka in the Berdyansk area and the villages of Novodanylivka and Novopokrovsk in the Mariupol area.

Read also: Defense expert names likely aims of Ukrainian counteroffensive

Russian invaders are suffering heavy losses in manpower, equipment, and weapons, the official said.

Over the past day, the Ukrainian military destroyed:

 An artillery battery of self-propelled guns.

 Two radio electronic warfare systems.

 A cluster of automotive equipment (up to 10 pieces).

 A reconnaissance and fire control radar system.

 An air defense missile system.

Despite fresh Russian massive attacks on Ukrainian peaceful cities, the Ukrainian Armed Forces continue counteroffensive operations.

Ukrainian defenders moved the front forward 6.5 km and liberated seven settlements in the past week, Malyar reported on June 12.

The Ukrainian military has succeeded in the Berdyansk, Bakhmut, and Toretsk areas, Ukrainian General Staff spokesperson Andriy Kovaliov said on June 13.

Read also:

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Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
Ukrainian Vampire drone drops aid to residents of the occupied Left Bank of the Dnipro

The Ukrainian Vampire attack drone, which previously destroyed Russians, now delivers humanitarian aid to Ukrainians under Russian occupation.

Source: Mykhailo Fedorov, minister of Digital Transformation, on Telegram

Details: According to him, the Russians do not evacuate local residents from flooded areas and do not allow Ukraine to do so. But technology is used to help people trapped in the trap.

Fedorov showed "exclusive footage" from the temporarily occupied Left Bank of the Dnipro River.

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Photo: Artography (Shutterstock)

In one of the most viral videos from 2018, two Black men were approached by the police in a Starbucks after an employee dialed 911. According to The New York Times, the woman who oversaw that store was fired but clapped back claiming she was let go because of her white skinand a federal jury in New Jersey agreed with her.

An employee at the Rittenhouse Square Starbucks in Philly refused Donte Robinson and Rashon Nelson the ability to use the bathroom while they waited for their colleague for a business meeting, per the report. They were soon asked to leave, though not appearing to stir up any trouble in the video. When they refused to leave, the manager of that store, a Black man, ordered that employee to call the police.

Read more

The video of the interaction went viral, sparking protests against the company and outrage over weaponizing 911 calls against Black people. The publics response inevitably led to calls for accountability all the up the ladder to Phillips, the regional manager, who was accused of responding poorly to the alleged racially motivated act.

Phillips alleged while she was terminated from her position, the leadership at the store in question faced no backlash. Her next move was playing the race card and taking Starbucks to court in a discrimination suit.

Read more from The New York Times:

The jury found that Starbucks had violated the federal civil rights of the former manager, Shannon Phillips, as well as a New Jersey law that prohibits discrimination based on race, awarding her $600,000 in compensatory damages and $25 million in punitive damages. Ms. Phillips said in the suit that Starbucks, as part of its damage-control effort after the arrests, had sought to punish her and other white employees in and around Philadelphia even if they had not been involved in the events that led to the police being called.

The video paired with the most recent police shootings and unlawful arrests of Black people was the perfect storm. Starbucks was under so much pressure, the companys chief executive issued a public apology and had 8,000 stores close to train employees on racial bias, the report says.

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University of Iowa President Barbara Wilson approved for $50,000 raise, contract extended through 2028

EDITOR'S NOTE: A previous version of this story incorrectly noted University of Northern Iowa President Mark Nook's new salary. He will make $372,110 annually, effective July 1.

The State of Iowa Board of Regents handed out a pair of raises to university leaders Wednesday, while employment contracts were also extended during their meeting in Iowa City.

University of Iowa President Barbara Wilson will receive a $50,000 bump in her annual base salary, effective July 1. The 7.69 percent raise increases her yearly salary to $700,000.

Wilson has received $100,000 in raises since 2022. She was approved for a $50,000 raise during last summers Board of Regents compensation meeting, raising her salary for the past year to $650,000.

The presidents base salary for the academic year 2021-2022 was $600,000. Wilson took over the presidential role in Iowa City in 2021.

Regent Abby Crow asks a question while listening to a presentation during a meeting, Wednesday, June 14, 2023, at the Levitt Center for University Advancement in Iowa City, Iowa.

UNI President Mark Nook given 4.8 percent raise

University of Northern Iowa President Mark Nook was awarded a $15,000 raise to his annual base salary, which will also go into effect on July 1. According to a report from the Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier, Nooks salary will receive a 4.8 percent bump to $372,110 annually.

Iowa State University President Wendy Wintersteens employment contract was extended through June 30, 2026. Her base salary of $650,000 remained the same. Wintersteen took over as Iowa States president in 2017.

The Board of Regents met in Iowa City this week and used Tuesdays closed session to discuss presidential compensation. The board made no additional comments during Wednesdays open meeting. The compensation and extensions were approved unanimously.

Iowa Board of Regents members Sherry Bates, president pro tem, left, David Barker, center, and Abby Crow listen to a presentation during a meeting, Wednesday, June 14, 2023, at the Levitt Center for University Advancement in Iowa City, Iowa.

This article originally appeared on Iowa City Press-Citizen: Regents approve $50K salary bump for UI President Wilson, extended through 2028
Google CEO Sundar Pichai.



This is not Googles first rodeo with regulators.

It isnt often that you hear the CEOs of big tech firms singing the praises of government intervention. But as the capabilities of artificial intelligence have built and multiplied, these executives have been calling for greater government involvement in the regulation of AI.



OpenAI believes that regulation of AI is essential, said Sam Altman, the companys CEO, in written testimony ahead of his meeting with Congress last month. (It is also true, though, that Altman then traveled to Europe and argued against the European Unions stricter brand of tech regulation.)



With the technology now at an inflection point...I still believe AI is too important not to regulate, and too important not to regulate well, wrote Sundar Pichai, the CEO of Google, in an op-ed published in the Financial Times.



[W]e will obviously engage with any regulation that comes up in any jurisdiction, said Satya Nadella, Microsofts CEO, on a recent conference call with analysts and investors. But quite honestly, we think that the more there is any form of trust as a differentiated position in AI, I think we stand to gain from that.

But while Big Tech seems united, AI startups are less enthused about regulation. These smaller companies are either completely against regulation at this moment or want to operate only within a loose set of rules. In part, this is because they face greater uphill battles to survive as small businesses, at a time when the field of AI is in such ferment.

Read more

Why do Big Tech CEOs want AI regulation?

The CEOs of Google and Microsoft are taking a proactive approach to regulation in part because they can afford to do, and because theyve had many run-ins with regulators in the past. Perhaps calling for regulation in advance is a way to preempt another battle, said Alexandre Lebrun, the CEO of Nabla, a Paris-based startup that develops AI-abetted note-taking software for clinical settings.



I think firstand, you know, coming from Meta, and probably the same for Googlethey have been in the crosshairs of regulations for a long time, said Lebrun, who formerly worked at Meta. And so, asking for regulation, I think its like being a good student, showing some goodwill. And getting on the good side of regulators is always beneficial, Lebrun added, given that government agencies are increasingly being urged to break up Big Tech firms.



Perhaps, too, OpenAIs embrace of regulation is a way to solidify and protect its own dominant position in the industry. To be sure, many startups use OpenAIs GPT at the moment. But another large language model may always come along to make GPT irrelevant. Building such a model in an era of high or even moderate regulation will be harder than OpenAIs challenge of building it when no regulations existed.



The problems with AI regulation



The AI tools from Big Tech stables are already well under development, but a lot of the value of generative AI will come from other companies and users inventing their own applications. Regulation can get in the way of that, said Noam Shazeer, the CEO of Character.AI, a chatbot service that allows people to have open-ended conversations with personalities and characters. Some of these personalities may be wholly original; others may mimic fictional characters or real-life individuals like Elon Musk.



Shazeer, who was formerly with Google Brain, said that when his company first launched last year, traffic had started to exponentially grow in China for around three days until the government blocked access to the service. In February, China ordered apps and websites enabling access to ChatGPT to terminate their services. Western regulations are unlikely to be as draconian, but they will still be some form of control, and Shazeer worries that they will stifle innovation. Its much too early to know what the best applications are like, he said. Were at the infancy of the technology, he added. The best applications havent been invented.

If Big Tech truly yearns for regulation, its getting its wish quickly. The EU, which just passed a draft of its AI Act, is at the forefront of creating the first set of AI regulations. The act proposes classifying AI systems by risk. High-risk systems, including AI hiring tools and exam scoring software, would face greater compliance standards, such as data validation and documentation. Generative AI systems, like ChatGPT, must identify that its output has been AI-generated, and provide detailed summaries of the copyrighted data used to train it. In predictive policing and biometric identification, AI systems would be outright banned.



Critics of the AI Act find it too restrictive. Regulation is necessary, but a very high-level regulation, said Lebrun. Building AI systems for military use should be prohibited, for instance, he said. But I think we should regulate the intent of the model and not how you should build these models, he said. Such restrictive policies could force ambitious AI startups to move out of the EU, said Lebrun.

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After an unusual surge in prices, domestic airfares in India are falling

Image: Reuters (Reuters)

Air-fares are falling in India and are likely to continue sliding.

The overall average ticket prices on ten domestic routes, including Delhi-Mumbai, are slipping, aviation watchdog Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has said. Its analysis has come after many flyers rued the fare rise.

Read more

Once @airindia Air India sold out,private airlines no restraint on them @PMOIndia fully aware middle classes cheated. @JM_Scindia What can Scindia do?Shameful high ticket prices.Airports gouging passengers @Swamy39 @JPNadda People wl react.Pinching them https://t.co/RTppXinz6G  Dr Pentapati Pullarao (@PentapatiPullar) June 13, 2023

Earlier this month, the 24-hour fare on the Delhi-Mumbai surpassed the Delhi-Dubai rate. But new data now show a decrease.

datawrapper-chart-FysaL

The rise in fares was mostly due to low-cost carrier GoFirsts bankruptcy. DGCA has cited other reasons, too.

India has a highly seasonal market. Traffic is usually high in the months of May and June, through mid-July the international traffic flows are high, thus, contributing to the domestic feed as well, it said.

It categorized the main airfare drivers as season, holidays, festivals, long weekends, events (sports, fairs, contests, etc), market forces like competition, the rupees value, and ATF prices. DGCA also listed competition, distance, and seat demand as factors.

Will the government regulate fares?

The fall in airfares has followed the governments advice to airlines to check the surge, but flyers are seeking formal regulation. The government has, however, denied anything on those lines.

During a June 5 meeting with aviation minister Jyotiraditya Scindia, airline representatives were asked to self-regulate fares.

The government had imposed a cap when air travel resumed post-pandemic. However, it was lifted in August 2022 with the centre giving airlines more say in setting fares. And since then airfares have been deregulated in India.

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The delivery company UPS and a union representing workers have reached a tentative agreement to add air conditioning to trucks that could help avoid a possible national strike that workers have threatened.

UPS said in a release Tuesday that it reached an agreement with the Teamsters union to implement heat safety measures for workers. It said the company agreed to equip all newly purchased small package delivery vehicles in the United States with air conditioning starting on Jan. 1.

The new vehicles will be provided to the hottest parts of the country where possible.

We care deeply about our people, and their safety remains our top priority. Heat safety is no exception, the release states.

UPS also plans to have package cars retrofitted with a cab fan within 30 days of a contract being ratified. It has already worked to install cab fans in the cars, and a second fan will be added to those without air conditioning by June 1, 2024.

The release states that UPS will also include exhaust heat shields in the production of new package cars and will retrofit existing cars with them within 18 months of the contract being ratified. The shields minimize heat conduction from the powertrain into the vehicles floor, and tests have shown they can reduce floor temperature by 17 degrees.

UPS will add an air intake vent to new cars and retrofit them to existing cars within 18 months of ratification to bring in fresh air to the cargo area.

Teamsters said in a statement that the agreement came after a week of intense lobbying from its National Negotiating Committee on UPS to recognize the enormous dangers of heat-related issues.

Air conditioning is coming to UPS, and Teamster members in these vehicles will get the relief and protection theyve been fighting for, Teamsters General President Sean OBrien said.

The union represents more than 340,000 employees for UPS.

NBC News reported that more than 100 workers have been hospitalized for heat-related illness in recent years, including some who approached kidney failure as a result. The outlet reported that the tentative agreement could reduce the chances of the workers going on strike as they try to negotiate for a new five-year contract before a deadline of July 31.

Teamsters said its subcommittees have reached tentative agreements on more than a dozen issues and are planning new proposals to UPS. It said bargaining would resume Wednesday.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
(Bloomberg) -- Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida is unlikely to call an election next month, but will probably delay it until the autumn to give him time to patch up a fight with his junior coalition partner, according to the leader of the upstart opposition Japan Innovation Party.

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Its a cold war, Nobuyuki Baba said in an interview at his offices, referring to the spat between the two ruling parties, which was triggered by a fight over rights to field candidates in certain constituencies. They dont know what would happen if they held it now. It could be a great blow to the LDP.

Speculation has been simmering that Kishida may opt for an election as soon as July, just as a recent rise in support for his cabinet seems to be petering out. However, holding it so soon would present an added risk for his Liberal Democratic Party after the dispute prompted junior coalition party Komeito to withdraw its support in Tokyo. Komeito is backed by a lay Buddhist group with the capacity to turn out millions of votes nationwide.

A decision to call an election would depend on many factors, Kishida told a news conference Tuesday evening, in comments that stoked speculation of a vote coming soon.

Coalition Cracks May Not Stop Japan PM From Calling Early Vote

Babas party will seek to become the biggest opposition force at the election, building on an anti-tax hike stance thats won it a powerful position in Osaka, he said. If the JIP, also known as Nippon Ishin no Kai, or Ishin for short, succeeds in taking over from the left-leaning Constitutional Democratic Party as the largest opposition group, it could nudge government policy in new directions.

We want to create a mood where people think the Innovation Party would be good as a governing party, Baba said. His priorities include making education free of charge and revising the pacifist constitution, which has been unchanged since the post-World War II US occupation.

Ishins wide assortment of lawmakers and willingness to change policy stance have made it increasingly difficult to define it as either left or right-wing. It has won support by chipping away at pay and benefits for politicians and bureaucrats.

The party took a conservative stance on a bill promoting LGBTQ understanding thats currently working its way through parliament and seeks to change the pacifist Article Nine of the Constitution. Yet, Baba said he is interested in introducing a basic income policy to resolve problems with Japans creaking social security system. Ishin has moved away from its previous anti-nuclear power stance because of rising electricity prices.

Babas party has been building momentum beyond its power base of Osaka  winning local assembly seats in the bulk of Japans 47 prefectures in local elections in April. In the last nationwide general election to parliaments powerful lower house in October 2021, the party quadrupled its seat numbers to 41 from 11 of the total 465. Polls show it is the second-most popular party, with the LDP still boasting the highest support.

Ishin is already prepped to field about 130 candidates and has a realistic chance of running about 150, he said. By eclipsing the current main opposition CDP, he aims to create a two-party democracy like in the US and UK, he added, saying a coalition with the LDP would probably see his party swallowed up.

Baba expects the partys message on free education without new taxes to resonate particularly in urban areas, including Tokyo. Ishin is close to achieving this in Osaka, and a similar model could be applied in other big cities, he said. It would mean politicians cutting their own expenditures, he said, including slashing the number of national lawmakers.

Its not just about money, but if politicians impose cuts on themselves, they will gain the sympathy of voters, he said. If the public see you have cut numbers and pay, and that the budget is still short, they will accept a small tax rise.

By contrast with the many Japanese politicians who are graduates of elite universities, or come from political dynasties, Baba started his career after graduating high school at chain restaurant Royal Host before taking a job in a politicians office.

Those who have always been the elite dont understand how the majority of people feel, he said. We need the power of both types  that makes for good politics.

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FILE - In this courtroom sketch, Guo Wengui, seated center, and his attorney, Tamara Giwa, left, appear in federal court in New York, March 15, 2023. The self-exiled Chinese businessman awaiting trial in a $1 billion fraud case will remain behind bars after an appeals court on Wednesday, June 14, rejected his request to override a lower court's finding that he might flee or harm the community if he were to be freed. (AP Photo/Elizabeth Williams, File) (ASSOCIATED PRESS)

NEW YORK (AP)  A self-exiled Chinese businessman awaiting trial in a $1 billion fraud case will remain behind bars after an appeals court on Wednesday rejected his request to override a lower court's finding that he might flee or harm the community if he were to be freed.

The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan said in a two-page order that Guo Wengui's lawyers had failed to convince a three-judge panel that Judge Analisa Torres made a clear error in refusing to accept a $25 million bail package proposal in April.

Torres said she didn't trust that Guo, listed in court papers under the name Ho Wan Kwok, would obey court orders if he was released on strict conditions including GPS monitoring and a 24-hour armed guard. She also wrote that he posed a threat to the community.

Guo, who was arrested in March, has pleaded not guilty to charges including wire and securities fraud. Prosecutors said he fleeced thousands of investors in too-good-to-be-true offerings that promised outsize profits for investors in his media company, GTV Media Group Inc., his so-called Himalaya Farm Alliance, GCLUBS, and the Himalaya Exchange.

He allegedly used proceeds from the five-year fraud scheme starting in 2018 to buy extravagant goods and assets for himself and his family. Prosecutors say he has a 50,000-square-foot mansion, a $3.5 million Ferrari, two $36,000 mattresses and a $37 million luxury yacht.

His lawyers, though, say he is broke.

Guo was once thought to be among the richest people in China before he left in 2014 during a crackdown on corruption that ensnared individuals close to him, including a top intelligence official. Chinese authorities have accused Guo of rape, kidnapping, bribery and other offenses.

Guo has said those allegations are false and were meant to punish him for publicly outing corruption and criticizing leading figures in the Communist Party.

While living in New York, he became a fierce critic of the ruling Communist Party in China and developed a close relationship with former President Donald Trump's onetime political strategist Steve Bannon. In 2020, Guo and Bannon announced a joint initiative to overthrow the Chinese government.
FILE - Zhu Yong, right, tries to shield himself from photographers as he leaves Brooklyn Federal court, May 31, 2023, in New York. Jurors are expected to start deliberating Thursday, June 15, in the criminal trial of three men, including Zhu, accused of trying to scare a former Chinese official into returning to his homeland, a scheme that U.S. prosecutors say was orchestrated by Beijing. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer, File)

NEW YORK (AP)  Jurors are expected to start deliberating Thursday in the criminal trial of three men accused of trying to scare a former Chinese official into returning to his homeland, a scheme that U.S. prosecutors say was orchestrated by Beijing.

American private investigator Michael McMahon and Zheng Congying and Zhu Yong, two Chinese nationals living in the U.S., face charges including acting as illegal foreign agents, stalking and conspiracy. Prosecutors say the scheme reflects China's nearly decade-old Operation Fox Hunt, an initiative aimed at repatriating people deemed fugitives from justice.

According to prosecutors, Zhu, Zheng and McMahon carried out different parts of a yearslong and increasingly intrusive effort to induce former Wuhan city official Xu Jin to return to his homeland, where he and wife Liu Fang are wanted on corruption allegations that the two deny.

Xu Jin and Liu Fang were harassed and stalked for years, Assistant U.S. Attorney Meredith Arfa said in a closing argument Wednesday. She maintained that the overarching scheme" was directed by the Chinese government.

China has denied threatening people to coerce them to return. The U.S. and China don't have an extradition treaty, meaning authorities can't order people to be sent back.

Zhu, a retiree who also goes by Jason Zhu and Yong Zhu, helped hire McMahon to find Xu and pass along information for the search. McMahon, a private investigator and retired New York City police sergeant, tailed the ex-official, rooted out his New Jersey home address and scoured government databases for information on his family.

Zheng knocked on Xu's door, circled the home to peer inside and taped up a note telling Xu to submit to imprisonment in China in order to assure the well-being of his wife and children. Defense lawyer Paul Goldberger said Zheng later made a remorseful attempt to retrieve the missive; prosecutors suggest he just checked to see whether it had been received.

The men didn't testify, but their lawyers said the three believed they were aiding a private company or individuals, not the Chinese government.

They are also victims. They are used, said Zhus lawyer, Kevin Tung, told the Brooklyn federal court jury during Wednesday's summations. They are used by a very sophisticated government.

McMahon's lawyer, Lawrence Lustberg, said the sleuth had been deceived by Chinese contacts who referred to a company as the ultimate client for the work.

Besides the men on trial, eight other people also have been indicted in the case. Three have pleaded guilty; five are believed to be in China.
US seeking information from Israeli government over decision in death of Palestinian-American

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States is seeking more information from the Israeli government about the decision that soldiers will not be criminally prosecuted over the death of a Palestinian-American man, the State Department said on Wednesday.

Israel's military advocate general said on Tuesday that soldiers who left Omar As'ad outside overnight after detaining him, and who was later found dead, will not be criminally prosecuted, but will face disciplinary measures.

"Since Mr. As'ad's tragic death, we have continued to discuss this troubling incident with the Israeli government," State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller told reporters on Wednesday. "We're aware of the conclusion of the investigation, and we are at this time seeking more information from the Israeli government about it."

Israeli forces detained 78-year-old As'ad at a makeshift checkpoint in his West Bank hometown of Jiljilya last January. The soldiers left him supine and unresponsive at a construction site, saying they assumed he had fallen asleep. As'ad was later found dead in the early morning with a plastic zip-tie still around one wrist.

Following an initial probe, the military dismissed two officers and reprimanded a battalion commander over As'ad's death, which it said resulted from "a moral failure and poor decision-making."

On Tuesday, the army's chief legal body said in a statement that its decision was made "following the hearings and after a thorough examination of the investigation materials, which indicated no causal link was found between the errors in the conduct of the soldiers and (As'ad's) death."

A Palestinian autopsy found that As'ad, a former Milwaukee, Wisconsin, resident who had a history of heart problems, had suffered cardiac arrest caused by stress. Palestinian officials attributed this to his having been manhandled by the Israeli soldiers.

The Military Advocate General said a military medical official found it impossible to determine that As'ad's death was caused specifically by the soldiers' conduct and that the soldiers could not have been aware of his medical condition.

Washington at the time said it was "deeply concerned" and expected "a thorough criminal investigation and full accountability."

(Reporting by Simon Lewis, Jasper Ward and Daphne Psaledakis; editing by Jonathan Oatis and Leslie Adler)
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Senate on Tuesday confirmed Jared Bernstein as chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers (CEA) in a 50-49 vote, elevating a longtime adviser to President Joe Biden who began his career as a jazz musician and social worker.

Biden nominated Bernstein, who was already a member of the council, on Feb. 14 to replace CEA chair Cecilia Rouse when she returned to Princeton University.

Democratic Senator Joe Manchin was the sole Democrat to vote against Bernstein, saying he objected to the labor economist's economic philosophy and his refusal to embrace "necessary federal budget cuts."

Republican Tommy Tuberville was the only senator not voting, sparing Vice President Kamala Harris from the need to cast a tie-breaking vote.

Senate Banking Committee Chair Sherrod Brown urged senators again on Tuesday to confirm Bernstein, calling him "a highly qualified nominee" who had devoted his career to making the U.S. economy fairer. He criticized Republicans for voting against Bernstein "for the sake of partisanship."

(Reporting by Andrea Shalal. Editing by Gerry Doyle)
The US military is set to launch a formal investigation into a drone strike in Syria in early May, six weeks after the operation and following reports it killed a civilian rather than a senior al-Qaeda leader as first claimed, three defense officials familiar with the matter told CNN.

The anticipated opening of the more formal inquiry, known as a 15-6, is the clearest sign yet that US Central Command may have botched the drone strike in northwest Syria on May 3.

In the immediate aftermath of the strike, Gen. Erik Kurilla, the commander of Central Command, and his staff had high confidence that they had targeted and killed a senior al-Qaeda leader. Despite knowing it would take several days to get a positive identification of the target since the US has no presence in that part of Syria, CENTCOM tweeted about the operation without naming the target. The tweet, which came at the direction of Kurilla, promised more information as operational details become available.

But a month and a half after the initial message, CENTCOM has not put out any more information about the operation or identified the target of the strike. Though there is still some disagreement within the administration about the identify of the person killed, with some intelligence officials still believing the target was a member of al-Qaeda, there is a growing belief inside the Pentagon that the man killed was a farmer with no ties to terrorism.

Family members of the person killed in the strike identified him as Loutfi Hassan Mesto, a 56-year-old father of 10 who was killed while he had been out grazing his sheep.

A spokesman for CENTCOM, Michael Lawhorn, said the investigation process is continuing but that there were no updates at this time.

Meanwhile, the investigation process has dragged out.

It took US Central Command two weeks to begin a review of the incident, known as a civilian casualty credibility assessment report. That process only began a week after the Washington Post began presenting information to the command that raised questions about whether a civilian had been killed instead of a terrorist.

That report recommended the opening of an official 15-6 investigation, the defense officials said, which involves a more in-depth look at the incident led by an investigating officer with detailed requirements for the scope of the probe and a final report. The recommendation to open such an investigation is an acknowledgment that there are unanswered questions about the operation.

The official initiation of a 15-6 investigation would require sign off from the command authority. In the case of the May 3 strike, that authority comes from Gen. Matthew McFarlane, the commander of Combined Joint Task Force - Operation Inherent Resolve, the mission focused on the defeat of ISIS.

The episode has raised questions about how thoroughly CENTCOM has implemented the militarys civilian harm mitigation policy, a process for preventing and responding to civilian casualties as a result of US military operations.

The policy was developed in 2022 after a botched US drone strike in Kabul that killed 10 civilians in the final days of the withdrawal from Afghanistan. In that case, CENTCOM opened a formal 15-6 investigation into the strike within a week of the operation.

We are once again watching the US military forced to walk back initial claims of a righteous strike as a family is grieving devastating loss and so, at the minimum, the investigation results should be made public, said Annie Shiel, the US advocacy director for the Center for Civilians in Conflict.

Shiel said the militarys investigations of civilian harm have varied greatly between incidents and depended largely on the preferences of individual commanders. She called for a transparent investigation that includes witnesses and family members of the deceased, instead of relying solely on information internal to the Defense Department. Past military investigations, she said, have sometimes looked only at the information that led to the strike in the first place rather than collecting more evidence from outside sources, such as NGOs working on the ground and the media.

The public deserves to know how and why this happened and what steps will be taken to respond to the incident to end this pattern of harm.

Following the operation in May, a Pentagon spokesman said Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has complete confidence in the Defense Departments civilian harm mitigation efforts.

I think our record speaks for itself in terms of how seriously we take these, said Pentagon press secretary Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder at a briefing on May 23. Very few countries around the world do that. The secretary has complete confidence that we will continue to abide by the policies that we put into place.

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The US State Department called the missile attack on Kryvyi Rih another proof that Russia is systematically and deliberately killing Ukrainians, and destroying their homes and civilian infrastructure.

Source: Ukrinform citing Matthew Miller, Spokesperson for the US Department of State, during a briefing in Washington

Quote: "A Russian missile strike has killed Ukrainian civilians

[It is] something weve seen since the outset of this conflict, where they have not targeted military  just military installations or just troops on the battlefield, but they have had a systematic, intentional campaign to target Ukrainian civilians and Ukrainian civilian infrastructure through repeated airstrikes, missile strikes."

Background: The Russian forces launched a missile attack and hit a five-storey building in Kryvyi Rih on the night of 12-13 June.

Journalists fight on their own frontline. Support Ukrainska Pravda or become our patron!
Vacancies in Lexingtons public safety divisions have decreased, according to latest data

Some Lexington public safety divisions have seen a decline in vacancies over the last eight months after the city upped starting pay, according to data presented to a Lexington committee.

Public Safety Commissioner Ken Armstrong told the Lexington-Fayette Urban County Council Social Services and Public Safety Committee Tuesday that community corrections and E911 saw decreases in vacancies according to new data collected in June.

Community corrections, which had 124 vacancies in October, had the greatest amount of decreased vacancies with 32 filled positions, Armstrong said.

Community corrections also has two new recruit classes, which will help fill vacant positions, Armstrong said. Community correction officers manage inmates to promote positive behavior and keep jails safe.

E911, which had 22 vacancies in October, is now down to 14 vacancies. E911 includes call takers and dispatchers.

Almost all public safety divisions have struggled with frequent turnover since the coronavirus pandemic. Police and the department of corrections vacancies have topped more than 100 over the past several years. The city and council dramatically increased starting pay for police, corrections, E911 and firefighters over the past several years to help curb vacancies.

For example, starting salary for correction officers went from $32,000 in 2020 to $50,348 in 2023, a roughly $18,000 pay bump.

Corrections and 911 also recruit, train and hire year-round.

Police and fire just started recruit training classes for workers who will be eligible for the increased pay. Armstrong said the city will have to monitor how the bumps in pay will help with fire and police recruitment.

While the fire department saw an increase in vacancies, that data was impacted by the SAFER grant they received which increased authorized strength by 21, Armstrong said.

The police department was the only division that went in the wrong direction with an additional five vacancies making the total 91, Armstrong said. In October it had 86 vacancies.

Starting pay for police increased $15,353 from 2020 to 2023. The new starting salary is $56,410.

Lexington Assistant Police Chief Eric Lowe said there was a 20% increase in applicants for the October class.

The increase in pay has likely contributed to a jump in applicants, Armstrong said.

When public safety is short, overtime increases, data presented Tuesday showed.

Fire and the department of corrections have mandatory overtime policies, meaning if the department is short, someone must fill those positions. Overtime for the fire department topped $5 million in 2022, data showed. Firefighters worked an average of 3.3 hours of overtime per week in 2022. Overtime in corrections was $2.8 million in 2022.

The biggest inhibitors to recruitment have been the employment process, the change in attitudes toward public service, scheduling preferences and the dangers of the job, Armstrong said.

Many cities are facing the same challenges we have when it comes to hiring people, but especially in the public safety fields, Armstrong said.

Armstrong said cities that have dramatically cut vacancies have done so by slashing job requirements.

They are lowering their standards, Armstrong said. Unacceptable. Its a recipe for disaster.

Armstrong said the one thing the council and public can do to support the public safety team is to give recognition for the sacrifice the employees make and vocalize their appreciation.

We have made a number of changes especially over the last year, and Im getting some positive feedback, Armstrong said.

Retention, recruitment of minorities

Councilwoman Denise Gray questioned how all departments are recruiting minority populations.

There has been a decrease in the number of minority people applying for public safety jobs, Armstrong said.

The police department has a diversity recruitment committee to provide feedback on how to recruit diverse populations, Lowe said. The department is also one of the sponsors of the Lexington Bluegrass Area Minority Business Expo where they will be recruiting in July.

The fire department looks for representation in every phase of the hiring process, Lexington Assistant Fire Chief Rob Larkin told the committee. The department also is working to recruit locally and build relationships with technical schools since only 34.7% of the department is from Fayette County.

E911 Director Jonelle Patton said the division has been successful in maintaining and recruiting African Americans but they are having difficulty finding Spanish-speaking staff.

Fayette County Detention Center Director Scott Colvin said community corrections minority staffing is between 23-25%, earning the division a reputation for being a diverse and inclusive organization.

Public safety pay increases

Since 2020, the city has upped salaries and given bonuses to help recruit and retain police, fire, corrections and 911 staff. Heres a breakdown of starting salary increases and bonuses:

Police

2020 starting salary: $41,057

2023 starting salary: $56,410

Bonuses: $5,000 one-time COVID payment for all sworn officers; $3,000 sign on bonus for new employees; retention pay of $1,760 for officers and sergeants in 2022; retention pay of $2,240 for 2023. Officers also get a $4,000 training allowance from the state. That number increased to $4,300 in 2022.

Fire

2020 starting pay: $42,536

2023 starting pay: $51,624

Bonuses: $5,000 one-time COVID payment; $2,000 bonus in 2022; Fire fighters receive $4,000 training allowance from the state which increased to $4,300 in 2022.

Corrections

2020 starting pay: $32,000

2023 starting pay: $50,348

Bonuses: $5,000 one-time COVID payment; one-time retention payment of $4,000; New employee bonus of $3,500

E911

2020 starting pay for call takers: $37,232

2020 starting pay for dispatchers: $43,106

2023 starting pay for call takers: $45,968

2023 starting pay for dispatchers: $50,679

Bonuses: $3,500 one-time COVID payment; one-time retention pay $4,000; $3,000 recruitment payment for employees hired between October 2022 and June 2023.
People walk past a Vodafone store in London, Wednesday, June 14, 2023. Vodafone and Three, which is owned by Hong Kong's CK Hutchison agreed Wednesday to merge their U.K. businesses in order to capitalize on the rollout of the next generation of wireless technology. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)

LONDON (AP)  Two of the U.K.'s four mobile phone operators agreed Wednesday to merge their businesses to capitalize on the rollout of next-generation 5G wireless technology in the country.

The tie-up of Vodafone U.K. and Three U.K., which is owned by Hong Kong's CK Hutchison, would create Britain's biggest mobile phone player, with a combined 27 million customers. But the deal is likely to face stiff regulatory scrutiny because it will reduce the number of mobile networks down to three.

Vodafone will account for 51% of the merged firm, with CK Hutchison owning the rest. Vodafone will have an option to buy out CK Hutchison's stake after three years should the combined entity have a value of at least 16.5 billion pounds ($21 billion).

The groups said the merger will help them compete with their rivals on 5G technology, which provides much faster connectivity and greater capacity that will potentially allow thousands of devices to be connected at the same time within a relatively small area.

Vodafone CEO Margherita Della Valle described the deal as a game-changer for the company's home market.

Its transformative as it will create a best-in-class  indeed best-in-Europe  5G network, offering customers a superior experience," she said.

Canning Fok, group co-managing director of C.K. Hutchison, said Three U.K. and Vodafone U.K. individually lack the necessary financial muscle for what's needed.

This has long been a challenge for Three U.K.s ability to invest and compete, he said.

The companies said they are aiming to complete the deal by the end of 2024.

If it gets the go-ahead from regulators, Vodafone U.K. boss Ahmed Essam will be chief executive, with Three U.K. chief financial officer Darren Purkis taking on that role at the merged company.

It expects cost savings of more than 700 million pounds within five years of the deal's completion, through measures such as merging IT systems; combining marketing, sales, distribution and logistics activities; and general cost-cutting. The firms said it was too early to put a figure on the number of jobs that would be affected.

Unite, Britains largest trade union, urged the government to step in and stop this reckless merger, arguing it would lead to job losses and push up prices for customers.

The deal comes a month after Vodafone announced that it was laying off 11,000 workers globally as part of a major revamp aimed at cutting costs and boosting flagging financial performance.

Vodafone U.K. and Three U.K. pledged to invest 11 billion pounds in Britain over the next 10 years to create one of Europes biggest 5G networks, promising that every school and hospital in the country will have access to standalone 5G by 2030.

Given that the deal would reduce the number of mobile operators in the U.K.  EE and O2 being the other two  it will be scrutinized closely by the Competition and Markets Authority. Other smaller firms, such as Sky and Tesco, piggyback on the big four's networks.

Rocio Concha, director of policy and advocacy and consumer champion publication Which?, said the deal will require a thorough assessment from the regulator to ensure it is not harmful to consumers.

A good mobile connection is essential to everyday modern life, and this merger between Vodafone and Three will have a significant impact on the telecoms market," she said.

Reducing the number of network providers from four to three risks reducing the choices available to consumers, raising prices and lowering the quality of services available, she added.
Volunteers feel shut out of city meeting on migrants, meanwhile move is made to new shelter at Daley College

Volunteers were disappointed by a lackluster city response at a meeting Monday night to their request to enter temporary city-run shelters starting this week, following months of not being able to get inside the buildings that house nearly 10,000 migrants who have come to Chicago since August.

Collaboration efforts between volunteers and city officials came to a head when the city hosted a closed meeting to respond to a letter sent by the Police Station Response Team, a network of volunteers providing support and resources to migrants sleeping on the floors of police stations as they wait for placement in shelters.

About 30 response team volunteers were watching the online meeting, and many said afterward they had hoped for more cooperation from the incoming administration and more transparency about what is happening inside shelters contracted by the citys private vendor Favorite Staffing.

At the meeting, Mayor Brandon Johnsons deputy chief of staff, Cristina Pacione-Zayas, said it is difficult to move quickly from contractually based staffers to community based teams, according to a transcript from the Zoom recording sent to the Tribune by a volunteer who attended. Pacione-Zayas said cooperation with volunteers might be easier on a state level than a city level, according to the transcript and confirmed by attendees.

Pacione-Zayas, who recently resigned from the state Senate, did not return a phone call or emails for comment Tuesday.

Conditions inside shelters have reportedly become more crowded and unbearable over the months since Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, a Republican, initially began sending migrants to Chicago, touting the citys sanctuary status as justification to bus families and children and pregnant women here by the hundreds.

Those inside shelters are forced to sleep lined up almost like dead bodies, a migrant at a temporary shelter in Woodlawn told the Tribune over three weeks ago. And while dozens of volunteers have formed groups to bring meals and resources to people staying in police stations, they said its been hard to provide substantive care because they arent allowed inside any of the city shelters.

On Tuesday, volunteers who have developed friendships with migrants were visibly emotional as two CTA buses loaded with migrant families exited the parking lot of the shelter at High Ridge YMCA in West Ridge bound for a new shelter at Daley College in West Lawn. More than a dozen volunteers, members of 50th Ward United Working Families, waited for hours outside after hearing the families would be transferred.

Edgar Roa, a father of one who has been at the YMCA for more than a month, said he hopes the new space is more spacious. Roa said he was thankful for those who have been helping ensure he and his fellow asylum-seekers had all their necessities while at the shelter.

Son muy buenas personas, he said in Spanish on a phone call as he rode a bus to the college. They are good people.

The letter to the city from the volunteers was a cry to action, they said. Sent last Wednesday, it urges the city to work directly with the response team to address acute needs of new arrivals.

As your team devises new strategies, sets policies, establishes processes, and spends millions of taxpayer dollars, you must rely on the extensive earned experience of this front line network, volunteers wrote.

Besides providing a list of hundreds of volunteers who have stepped up to help at various police stations, it details the numerous benchmarks they say the city has failed to meet in shelters in recent months: three regular meals a day, coordinated medical care, transparency, a system of reporting mistreatment and legal education.

We plan on ensuring the city uses our firsthand knowledge as one of many voices poised to inform better care for both migrants and Chicagos unhoused, Britt Hodgdon, a response team volunteer at the 2nd and 3rd District stations, told the Tribune after the meeting. To do this well, the city will have to learn to flex from some well-worn habits.

There are organized volunteer leads at all major shelters around the city, and volunteers hoped the meeting would help establish a credential system to allow a select few volunteers to enter and drop off food, medical resources and clothes inside for migrants. Many migrants havent changed in weeks, are forced to sleep on the floor and are being given food in bad condition such as moldy lunch meat, according to Heather Nichols, a member of the response team.

Multiple volunteers who watched the meeting said it left them feeling like the city has no real plan to use the $51 million recently approved by aldermen to spend on migrant care through June. The city is getting about $10.6 million and the state about $19.4 million from the Federal Emergency Management Agency to use toward shelter and services.

At a news conference Monday, Gov. J.B. Pritzker said his office is in direct communication with nonprofits in Texas that are sending asylum-seekers to Chicago.

Were doing as much as we are asked to do, as much as we can do to try to provide help at the local level in the city so that people have food, clothing, shelter, the basic needs  health care  that they need, Pritzker said.

Pritzker acknowledged that this is a national problem that requires comprehensive sweeping immigration reform. In the meantime, he said, he has asked national authorities to at least help migrants get work permits.

Nichols said the meeting left her unsettled. She said while she appreciates Mayor Johnsons openness to talk to people on the ground doing real work with migrants, city officials did not respond to our concern in any meaningful way.

She said the four city officials in attendance spent the majority of the hourlong meeting going over what is being done with contractors at different shelters around the city, and then when they did have time to briefly talk about solutions to volunteer concerns, they had none.

The city of Chicago at the request of Mayor Brandon Johnson is working on a volunteer plan to grant access to individuals and organizations looking to provide programming and support to new arrivals, said Office of Emergency Management and Communications spokesperson Mary May in a statement to the Tribune before the meeting. This will include a process to ensure all volunteers are background checked, vetted, and trained prior to interacting with families and adults inside of our shelters.

May confirmed only agencies with delegate or subdelegate contracts with city agencies are currently able to serve migrants inside shelters.

The priority of our mission is to ensure new arrivals are safe and getting their needs met. We are looking forward to the opportunities that these new partnerships will bring for new arrivals and our shelter staff, the statement said.

According to the meeting transcript, city officials said that conversations between the city and volunteers will be ongoing. The city has reactivated community briefings every other week and the next briefing is June 26, according to the transcript.

Tim Noonan, a volunteer at the 22nd station, said a group of volunteers in his neighborhood organized a resource rollout effort during the pandemic, and it worked. They have a working blueprint ready to implement, he said, but they just arent allowed to use it.

Our community involvement doesnt cost (the city) anything. The community is picking up work so they dont have to, he said.

Tribune attempts to enter nine city-run shelters have all been met with pushback. Numerous volunteers from the response team said even those trying to get medical resources into city sites were chastised by security.

Noonan said he tried to donate air mattresses to a shelter at Piotrowski Park, but couldnt because there were 100 people sleeping shoulder to shoulder on the floor and the mattresses were too large to cram inside.

Its a black box. You cant get in there, he said. This is not the way to treat people. Were really treating these people like cattle, he said.

For now, volunteers continue to dish out hot meals on the sidewalks outside city-run shelters. At Inn of Chicago, the largest temporary shelter in the city, families lined up Monday evening to pick up donated warm containers of food from Chi-Care, a nonprofit that serves homeless communities across Chicago.

Faraz Sardharia, chef and owner of Tandoor Char House and executive committee member of Chi-Care, has been distributing meals to shelters around the city since early May, he said.

The food migrants are getting is not nutritional. Its almost like prisoner food, he said.

On Tuesday morning at Inn of Chicago, response team member Sorsha Urquiza said she tried to deliver clothes to families at the shelter during her lunch break.

I was immediately asked to leave by an employee, she said. And they were very, very rude.

Urquiza said she has heard reports of migrants phones being broken by employees, of women unable to access sanitary supplies, of families whose children are hungry because the food is too spicy and more. She finds it disturbing that she cant deliver basic needs, she said.

But there were signs by Tuesday afternoon that change was coming.

At Daley College, 50th Ward United Working Families member Matt Ginsberg-Jaeckle waited for the families to welcome them to their new home. Unlike at other shelters, he said his group was accredited by the city to be a part of the welcoming group, allowing them enter the college to help intake the newcomers.

Ginsberg-Jaeckle said he is grateful the administration is making moves to incorporate mutual aid as part of their plan even if progress is slow.

Chicago Tribunes Dan Petrella contributed.

nsalzman@chicagotribune.com

larodriguez@chicagotribune.com
Update: At least 1 home destroyed, 7,000+ acres burned as 3 Tri-City region fires continue

At least one home was destroyed, fruit orchards damaged and several thousand acres scorched as three wildfires whipped through Benton County on Tuesday.

Firefighters were continuing Wednesday to work on containing two blazes near Benton City and one south of Finley as they continued to burn in the breezy and dry conditions.

The Hansen fire, which started near Yakitat Road west of the Tri-Cities about 2:45 p.m. Tuesday, had burned 6,000 acres and was 25% percent contained by Wednesday morning.

It had burned into the Horse Heaven Hills and threatened 150 homes.

The Hover fire south of Finley had blackened 1,000 acres since starting about 2:15 p.m. Tuesday. It was 50% contained and burning in the dense vegetation near the Columbia River, said Jenna Kochenauer, Benton County Fire District 1 public information officer.

Along the way the fire damaged orchards in the area, she said.

Finally, the third large fire broke out about 7:20 p.m. Tuesday near Ruppert Road and Demoss Road north of Benton City. It burned 150 acres and was 25% contained by Wednesday.

That blaze burned a home and forced other evacuations, as well as threatening radio infrastructure and power lines, said Kochenauer.

The causes of the fires have not been determined.

A Red Cross evacuation center was set up at Kiona-Benton City High School on Tuesday night. But by Wednesday morning all of the evacuation orders were lifted and no injuries reported.

A fire south of Finley blackened nearly 1,000 acres of sagebrush and grass along a ridge near Hover Park.

Tri-Cities region forecast

The National Weather Service is continuing to predict breezy conditions with gusts of up to 24 mph and low humidity on Wednesday.

Firefighting efforts for all of the fires was being coordinated from the Benton County Fairgrounds, as resources come in from around Washington state.

Firefighters from across the state have set up a camp at the Benton County Fairgrounds to battle three fires in the county.

Kochenauer said the teams were focusing on containment efforts Wednesday.

Washington State Patrol Patrol John Batiste authorized mobilizing state resources for the Hover and Hansen Road fires about 4:15 p.m. That came at the request of Benton County Fire District 1 Chief Lonnie Click and Benton County Fire District 2 Chief Dennis Bates.

The Ruppert Road fire was added to the mobilization at 8:20 p.m., at the request of Benton County Fire District 4 Chief Paul Carlyle.

A total of five wildland strike teams and an airplane were called in to help the efforts.

Air quality has improved after air quality monitors in Kennewick and Walla Walla counties showed it deteriorating to a level considered unhealthy for sensitive groups, such as seniors, children and people with chronic illnesses.

Yakima Valley, Oregon fires

The three fires are in addition to a wildland fire near Highway 730 in Umatilla County, Ore., that grew to 10,000 acres Tuesday evening, plus a second fire in Umatilla County, the Mount Hebron fire, near Pendleton. Both were burning since midday Tuesday.

Highway 730 from Cold Springs Junction in Umatilla County, Ore., to the Washington state line was closed Tuesday evening due to a wildfire.

People in the Juniper Canyon area near the Hat Rock fire south of the McNary National Wildlife Refuge were advised to evacuate at 7 p.m., and officials were going door to door to notify them. A shelter was opened in Hermiston.

Tuesday evening the Oregon state fire marshal sent an incident management team to Umatilla County and Gov. Tina Kotek used the Emergency Conflagration Act to allow additional firefighters and equipment also to be sent.

The Hat Rock and Mount Hebron fires have been growing rapidly due to the dry, windy conditions in Umatilla County, said Oregon State Fire Marshal Mariana Ruiz-Temple.

Aircraft, including a helicopter, sent to fight the Hat Rock Fire were grounded Tuesday evening due to high winds and visibility.

As of 8:45 p.m. the Mount Hebron fire was close to 100% contained, with a hay shed, at least one other outbuilding and two vehicles burned.

Wildfire danger is high in much of southeastern Washington and south into Oregon because of the strong winds forecast through 11 p.m. Tuesday.

The National Weather Service also issued a red flag fire warning between Connell and Pendleton on one side and between Yakima and Walla Walla on the other side.

Officials feared that fires would spread quickly because of temperatures in the low 90s, dry vegetation, wind and low humidity.
Walt Disney used to frequent a theater on this midtown KC corner. See how its changed

Editors Note: Past|Present is a new video series from The Star that travels through time to show how scenes Kansas City depicted in vintage postcards look today. Have a postcard youd like to share with our team? Tell us about it here.

As Kansas City seeks feedback on a proposal to change the name of Troost Avenue, this installment of Past|Present peeks at a stretch of the street which was beginning to flourish in the 1920s.

A postcard sold in the early part of the decade shows the beginnings of suburban retail growth from Linwood Avenue north to 31st Street.

The Wirthman Building on the west side of Troost contained shops and offices, and most notably, the Isis Theater, which was often attended by a young Walt Disney. Its where he met organist Carl Stalling, and established a working relationship that the two later resumed in Hollywood.

Looking for more Kansas City history?
Want to honor an unsung hero in Lexington? Heres how you can

Leadership Lexington wants to honor public and civil service workers at an event later this year, and the group is accepting nominations from the public for local heroes.

Nominations for the awards are open until the end of June and the public is invited to submit nominations. All public servants are eligible to be nominated for the awards, and theyll be honored at the Lexington Unsung Heroes Ball.

The main award being handed out is the Lexington Unsung Hero Award. The award will be given to an individual working in public or civil service who has demonstrated an outstanding contribution to the Lexington Community through their work, and who has also had a positive influence on their workplace, the balls website says.

That is going to be the overall winner who we feel like really captures the essence of the city, said Bilal El-Amin, co-project manager for the ball.

Several other awards will be given out at the ball in August to public servants who have provided great contributions to the community. People who work in the police, fire, emergency services, education or city services industries are among those eligible for the awards.

Funding for the ball is provided by community sponsors, and the group is still accepting sponsorships. Tables for the ball are up for sale. El-Amin said the group will make individual tickets available for sale later in the summer.

If they would like to sponsor a table or sponsor any type of gifts or swag, we would love that, El-Amin said.

Leadership Lexington wants to make heroes ball annual

Leadership Lexington is Commerce Lexingtons primary leadership development program. The program is meant for leaders in Lexington and its mission is to provide people the chance to learn more about the city and prepare for the challenges it may face.

Each year, a class of leaders is selected to participate in the program, and the class comes up with a community project to better the community. El-Amin said he and other members of the 2023 class came up with the idea for a ball for their community project.

He wanted to highlight some of the work being done by people who dont receive a lot of recognition.

We were just coming off COVID and a lot of things were happening that time and our city workers and health care workers and educators were really helping propel, push everything forward, and I just felt like they needed to be recognized and appreciated, El-Amin said.

The ball will take place at the University of Kentuckys Longship Club on Aug. 5. Its the inaugural year for the ball, and El-Amin said Civic Lex will host the event next year.

Its not just a one-time thing, its going to be an annual event, El-Amin said. Its a great thing for the city. Its a great motivator to just keep people motivated to giving back to the city.
[Source]

Filipino fisherman Roland Abante earned a standing ovation for his stunning performance on Americas Got Talent (AGT).

A soul-stirring performance: In a video uploaded to AGTs YouTube channel on Tuesday night, Abante can be seen singing a cover of When a Man Loves a Woman, originally recorded by Percy Sledge in 1966. Abante immediately surprises the audience and judges Simon Cowell, Sofia Vergara, Heidi Klum and Howie Mandel with his vocal range.

Continuing through the audiences cheers and claps, Abantes soulful voice leaves behind a trail of shocked expressions and smiles. After completing his cover, the Filipino fisherman is met with a standing ovation.

Judges' reactions: I dont think you could have done it better, Klum states in awe of Abantes performance. You left it all on that stage. You were amazing. You should be very proud of yourself. Vergara also comments on Abantes performance, saying, I have a feeling, youre going to have to stop fishing because this is where you needed to be.

More from NextShark: All of Us Are Dead cast weigh in with simple yet effective solution to dubbing vs subtitles debate

You were so nervous, I genuinely thought you werent going to be able to do this, Cowell confesses. And then, that happened. And it actually made me love this audition even more. And I really like you. Upon discovering that Cowell was his favorite judge, the famous TV personality shares an embrace with Abante.

Mandel also made sure to express his agreement with his fellow judges: I think Simons absolutely right. Its the emotion and we can feel your heart. I think that everybody just heard a life-changing moment.

With praise from all four judges, Abante leaves the stage with a complete set of yes votes.

More from NextShark: South Korea Passes Law to Allow BTS to Delay Military Service Until Age 30

About Roland Abante: From the Philippines, the Bisaya-speaking Abante works as a fisherman in the mornings and does delivery work in the afternoon. While Abante, who has described himself as the "Michael Bolton of the Philippines," usually sings for fun during karaoke nights in his neighborhood, he shares that it had always been a dream of his to go on "AGT."

Abante has previously gone viral multiple times through the years for his singing. Most notably, a video from six years ago of his cover of "You're the Inspiration" performed on Filipino radio station Wish 107.5 has earned over 14 million views on YouTube, and a 2014 video of him singing "To Love Somebody" has collected over 6.3 million views.

More from NextShark: Netflix series Squid Game accused of plagiarizing parts of Japanese film As the Gods Will

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Watch scientists collect samples from an actively erupting volcano in Hawaii

Halemaumau is a crater that is part of Hawaii's larger Kilauea volcano. USGS

Hawaii's Halemaumau crater flooded with fresh lava on the morning of June 7.

Soon after, geologists flew down to the crater floor to collect samples of the fresh lava.

Watch as the scientists walk within inches of the lava lake as it erupts red-hot lava fountains.

It requires a certain set of guts to chopper into the smoking caldera of an erupting volcano. But these geologists have what it takes.

The Halemaumau crater floor in this video is located within a larger caldera that is part of the Kilauea volcano on the island of Hawaii.

On the morning of June 7, fresh vents opened up and flooded the crater with lava. By the time the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory geologists arrived, the liquid lava had cooled enough to a solid but was still "hot to the touch," the US Geological Survey described in the YouTube caption.

In the distance, you can see fountains of red-hot lava continuing to erupt to the surface of the massive lava lake:

The crater floor was still erupting fresh, red-hot lava while the scientists collected their samples. USGS

But fountains of red-hot lava and a giant lava lake didn't deter these scientists.

They walk within inches of this pile of freshly-cooled lava to collect their samples. No big deal when it's all in the name of science:

Yes, gloves are important for picking up hot lava. USGS

These samples will help the scientists better understand the eruptive history of Hawaii's Kilauea  the big island's most active volcano.

This is important since this volcano has a rather turbulent history alternating "between effusive periods (producing lava flows) and explosive periods (producing tephra such as ash)," Big Island Video News reported.

Before returning the samples to the aircraft, one scientist dowsed them with what appears to be water to cool them even more.

Gotta cool down those lava samples before you bring them on an aircraft with you. USGS

Here's an even closer look at some of those samples:

These lava samples were collected from the crater ridge. USGS/K.LYNN

An aerial shot from the chopper shows a glimpse of just how massive the lava lake is as the scientists fly away to analyze their prize.

Halemaumau crater floor covered in a lake of freshly-cooled lava. USGS

Read the original article on Business Insider
Overnight, the water receded by another 32 cm in Kherson Oblast, but 28 de-occupied settlements remain flooded.

Source: Kherson Oblast Military Administration press service, Ministry of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources, State Emergency Service of Ukraine

Details: According to the Oblast Military Administration, as of this morning, the average water level in the flooded areas is 2.13 metres. This is 32 cm less than on Tuesday evening. The Kherson Oblast Military Administration notes that the dynamics of water decline remains consistent.

At the same time, 28 de-occupied settlements remain flooded. The water receded completely from the villages of Zapovit, Bobrovyi Kut and Burhunka.

In total, 3,103 residential buildings remain underwater. Over the past day, water has moved away from about 500 homes.

The Ministry of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources reports that the water level of the Dnipro River at the Kherson mark has decreased by more than 3 metres and is at 2.44 metres. Every hour, the water level decreases by 1-3 cm.

The water is gradually draining in the Nyzhnodniprovsky Nature Park area, the ministry noted. Now the average level is 2.40 m. The draining of water also continues in the Velykyi Luh National Park. In the Kamianska Sich National Park, the level of water has decreased by more than 10 metres.

The State Emergency Service reports that 2,779 people were evacuated in Kherson Oblast, including 300 children and 77 people with limited mobility. A total 714 people were rescued, including 30 children and 40 people with limited mobility. Psychological assistance was provided for 378 people. There are 14 evacuation points.

Since the beginning of the rescue operation, the State Emergency Service has received 1,280 appeals from citizens.

Journalists fight on their own frontline. Support Ukrainska Pravda or become our patron!
Weapons expert was likely hungover on set of fatal 'Rust' shooting, prosecutors allege

The weapons expert on the set of the Western movie Rust was likely hungover when she put a live bullet into a gun that later killed a cinematographer, prosecutors contend in new court filings.

Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, the armorer for "Rust," was charged with involuntary manslaughter after 42-year-old cinematographer Halyna Hutchins was fatally shot by a set gun handled by actor Alec Baldwin in October 2021.

Prosecutors said in a filing Friday that witnesses will testify that Gutierrez-Reed was "drinking heavily and smoking marijuana in the evenings during the shooting of 'Rust.'"

It is likely that Defendant Gutierrez was hung over when she inserted a live bullet into a gun that she knew was going to be used at some point by an actor while filming a shooting scene with other actors and crew members," prosecutors alleged.

The Friday filing was in response to a motion to dismiss Gutierrez-Reed's involuntary manslaughter charge.

The Bonanza Creek Ranch in Santa Fe, N.M., on Oct. 23, 2021. (Jae C. Hong / AP file)

In filing to dismiss, her attorneys argued that the prosecution had personal and political motivations and were treating Gutierrez-Reed differently from others in the case.

Prosecutors responded by saying that she is being appropriately prosecuted because, as armorer on set, it was her duty to ensure gun safety.

Her reckless failure resulted in the senseless death of another human being, the filing said. All Defendant Gutierrez needed to do was shake every bullet and make sure it rattled before putting it in the gun  she failed and killed someone.

The filing said that Gutierrez-Reed has a history of reckless conduct that has resulted in loss of human life and it was in "the public interest" that she be held accountable.

Jason Bowles, an attorney for Gutierrez-Reed told NBC News Wednesday: "The prosecution has so mishandled this case and the case is so weak that they are now resorting to character assassination tactics to further taint the jury pool."

"This investigation and prosecution has not been about seeking justice; for them its been about finding a convenient scapegoat," he added.

The shooting occurred when Baldwin was rehearsing with a pistol for a scene and the gun went off at Bonanza Creek Ranch in New Mexico on Oct. 21, 2021. Hutchins was killed and director Joel Souza was wounded.

Its still not clear exactly how the live rounds ended up on set.

Baldwin was also charged with involuntary manslaughter in wake of the shooting, but the charges were dismissed in April citing new facts amid further investigation.

Baldwin had said he did not pull the trigger. His attorneys praised the decision to drop the charges, saying they encourage a proper investigation into the facts and circumstances of this tragic accident.

The prosecution's filing said that the charges against Baldwin were dismissed because "a possible malfunction of the gun significantly effects causation with regard to Baldwin, not with regard to Gutierrez."

"If it is determined that the gun did not malfunction, charges against Mr. Baldwin will proceed," the document said, noting a final charging decision will come within 60 days of the Friday filing.

Gutierrez-Reed has a preliminary hearing scheduled in August at which it'll be decided if there's enough probable cause to move forward, The Associated Press reported.

This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
Residents in the Leesburg area will have a chance to pick up food items at no cost Thursday morning.

Farm Share, a nonprofit that aims to help food-insecure residents in Florida, will hold a food giveaway.

Organizers said the distribution will be hosted in conjunction with the Christian Worship Center.

READ: Feeling the summer heat? Here are tips to prevent heat exhaustion

The June 15 event is scheduled to begin at 10 a.m. and will be held at:

1041 County Road 468, Leesburg, FL 34748

Farm Share will be holding a food giveaway in Leesburg on June 15.

See the map below for event location:

Farm Share said it helps to fight hunger by working hand-in-hand with local farmers to recover and redistribute produce that would otherwise be thrown away due to aesthetic imperfections.

The organization will also hold a free food distribution event in Deltona on Friday, June 16, in conjunction with Nitty Gritty True Talk Ministries, Inc.

READ: Questions raised after antisemitic flyers thrown in Winter Garden leads to traffic violation

That giveaway also starts at 10 a.m. and will be held at Centro Internacional de la Familia de Deltona, located at:

2886 Elkcam Boulevard, Deltona, FL 32738

See the map below for event location:

Food availability at both giveaways will be on a first-come, first-served basis until supplies run out.

The distribution events will be drive-thru style to minimize contact and to help ensure the safety of everyone who participates, organizers said.

Attendees should arrive in a vehicle with a trunk or cargo bed.

READ: Google to pay out $23 million settlement over search results; how to apply for yours

Farm Share also distributes food to communities throughout Florida, free of charge, through soup kitchens, food pantries, homeless shelters, churches, and senior centers.

To find a food pantry near you, click here.

Click here to download the free WFTV news and weather apps, click here to download the WFTV Now app for your smart TV and click here to stream Channel 9 Eyewitness News live.
Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava welcomed on Tuesday evening the extension of Temporary Protected Status for approximately 337,000 immigrants from El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua and Nepal.

Temporary Protected Status, or TPS, allows immigrants from designated countries in distress due to civil war, natural disasters and other extraordinary conditions to legally stay and work in the United States for a limited period.

Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas announced earlier on Tuesday his decision to rescind the terminations of the TPS designations of El Salvador, Honduras, Nepal and Nicaragua, reversing a Trump-era decree that attempted to revoke the humanitarian protections. Mayorkas extended the TPS designations for 18 months each.

Levine Cava said in a news release that the announcement is a welcomed relief for thousands of families who have come to Miami-Dade County escaping dictatorships, natural disasters and human rights violations.

As home to some of the largest communities of TPS holders in Florida and the nation, our county benefits when immigrants can live free from fear of deportation, fully participate in our community and contribute to our economy, she said.

The mayor urged the administration of President Joe Biden to include additional Nicaraguans under the TPS designation.

Such is the case for Nicaraguans who came after their initial TPS was designated in 1999, as the political crisis has continued to intensify at the hands of a repressive regime that continues to threaten democracy and safety, she said. Redesignating TPS will help thousands of families find stability as they continue to build new lives here in our community.

For thousands of people, going back now would sentence them to live under authoritarian governments or economies crippled due to natural disasters and the pandemic.

TPS extension dates

Here are the new TPS extensions:

 El Salvador for 18 months, from Sept. 10, 2023, through March 9, 2025;

 Honduras for 18 months, from Jan. 6, 2024, through July 5, 2025;

 Nepal for 18 months, from Dec. 25, 2023, through June 24, 2025; and

 Nicaragua for 18 months, from Jan. 6, 2024, through July 5, 2025.

Do you need help with your TPS application?

Miami-Dade County will continue supporting TPS-eligible families on their application process by partnering with local nonprofits to host information sessions and free legal clinics. For more information, visit miamidade.gov/newamericans.
Olympic sprinter Tori Bowie died of complications during childbirth at age 32, according to her autopsy, which was released this week. She was eight months pregnant at the time of her death.

Respiratory distress and eclampsia were listed as potential complications, according to The New York Times.

Bowies death underscores the severity of the maternal mortality problem in the United States, which has a maternal mortality rate that is double  if not more  than other developed countries like France, Germany, the United Kingdom and Sweden. Her death also underscores the severity of the Black maternal mortality crisis in this country. Black women are three times more likely than white women to die from pregnancy-related causes, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The World Health Organization reports that among the causes of maternal death are severe bleeding after childbirth, infections after childbirth and preeclampsia and eclampsia, or high blood pressure during pregnancy.

And while you may be unfamiliar with eclampsia, you may be aware of preeclampsia  and the two are related. Eclampsia is a rare but serious complication of preeclampsia, according to the Cleveland Clinic website.

So, what is eclampsia (and preeclampsia) and what are the signs? Heres what to know.

What is eclampsia?

Eclampsia is when seizures occur when someone is pregnant or after they give birth. It is usually a severe outcome of preeclampsia, which is a pregnancy complication in which someone has high blood pressure and excess protein in their urine, said Dr. Alison Cowan, an OB-GYN in Colorado and head of medical affairs at Mirvie, a health technology company that is working to develop blood tests to determine ones pregnancy risks.

Eclampsia can also develop if a pregnant person has HELLP syndrome (which stands for Hemolysis, Elevated Liver enzymes, Low Platelets) or gestational hypertension, said Dr. Ahizechukwu Eke, director of research in the division of maternal fetal medicine at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore. But preeclampsia is the most common reason why eclampsia develops.

According to the March of Dimes, preeclampsia occurs in 5% to 8% of pregnancies. Eke said severe preeclampsia occurs in .6% to 1.2% of pregnancies in Western countries, and eclampsia occurs in 2% to 3% of people with severe preeclampsia.

While eclampsia overall is not common, it is serious. Its also considered a new occurrence, meaning the person who suffers from it usually does not have a history of seizures, according to Eke.

High blood pressure is a warning sign of preeclampsia and eclampsia.

High blood pressure is a warning sign of preeclampsia and eclampsia.

What are the warning signs of eclampsia?

There are a number of eclampsia warning signs. The biggest one is high blood pressure. According to Eke, around75% of [people] who have eclampsia will have a history of high blood pressure.

About two-thirds of patients with eclampsia would also have a history of severe headaches prior to the seizure, Eke said. Additional symptoms include pain in the upper right abdomen, less frequent urination, dark pee, vision issues like blurred eyesight, swollen hands and feet, and nausea and vomiting, he noted.

While 75% of people who are diagnosed with eclampsia do have symptoms predating the seizures, unfortunately and terrifyingly, 25% do not have any symptoms  and then all of a sudden, boom, they just have a seizure, Eke said.

The warning signs of preeclampsia are similar, according to Cowan.

Symptoms that can commonly occur with preeclampsia are severe headache that doesnt improve with Tylenol, changes in your vision ... you can have pain in the right upper abdomen, Cowan said. Swelling is another symptom, she said, but it can be confusing since swelling can happen in pregnancy regardless.

Vomiting, high blood pressure and shortness of breath are additional signs of preeclampsia, according to Penn Medicine.

Who is at risk of developing eclampsia?

As mentioned, having preeclampsia is the most common risk factor for developing eclampsia. Additionally, if its the persons first pregnancy, they are at risk, too, Eke said.

Chronic hypertension and chronic kidney disease are risk factors, as well, along with your age. If youre younger than 16 or older than 35, your chances of developing the condition are greater, he noted. People who are pregnant with multiple children  like twins, triplets or quadruplets  also have a higher risk.

And then it tends to be more common in minority racial and ethnic groups, most especially Black women, Eke said.

Its important for providers to thoroughly check all patients for risk factors and to inform them of the symptoms of preeclampsia and eclampsia, but its especially crucial for providers to exhaust all potential risks and complications when it comes to Black patients, since eclampsia is more common in this group, Eke said.

Additionally, if you feel that you are at risk and not getting the care and attention you need, you can find another doctor.

For everyone regardless of their risk, they need to know the signs and symptoms and they need to be aware of when to call their doctor or midwife for help, Cowan added.

What can you do to protect yourself?

The biggest thing about prevention is early recognition of symptoms. So these patients typically will need to call their doctors when they start having [symptoms], Eke said.

This is especially true for patients with a history of high blood pressure. Eke said many doctors will encourage people to have a blood pressure cuff at home, and monitor your blood pressure at least once a day.

You can find at-home blood pressure cuffs at stores like Walgreens, Walmart and on Amazon. Regular monitoring at home is more accessible than it ever has been before, Cowan said.

I never want people to feel [anxious] or afraid of becoming pregnant because of these stories, because the key thing is that, number one, there is a lot we can do to prevent preeclampsia, and number two, if we arent able to prevent it entirely, if we recognize it, its manageable  we can do everything possible to protect mom and baby as long as were able to recognize that its there, Cowan said.

When it comes to the prevention and management of preeclampsia, Cowan said a baby aspirin can be an effective tool in preeclampsia treatment, and so can blood pressure management. Additionally, certain lifestyle behaviors like exercise and eating well can help prevent it, too.

If you put those all together, its actually quite a comprehensive list of things that clinicians can be doing and that pregnant individuals can be doing to decrease their risk of preeclampsia as much as possible, she said.

As far as what Cowan wants everyone patient to know, she said its important to talk to your doctor about your risk and the symptoms.

And, if you are diagnosed with preeclampsia, make sure you know what you need to do and have an emergency plan in place with your doctor, she noted.

I think knowledge is just that first step to prevention, Cowan said.

Related...
The Fox News studios and headquarters in New York City. (Ted Shaffrey / AP)

If you think Fox News is moderating its tone since paying $787.5 million to settle a landmark defamation suit, think again.

The Rupert Murdoch-controlled conservative news network ran an extraordinary graphic Tuesday under a double box showing images of President Biden and former President Trump; the latter was criminally charged in Miami on 37 counts related to mishandling of classified documents.

At 8:59 p.m. EDT, the potential 2024 election rivals appeared above a chyron that said, "Wannabe Dictator Speaks At the White House After Having His Political Rival Arrested."

The line ran during "Fox News Tonight," the program that replaced Tucker Carlson after he was removed from the schedule in April, which had "Fox & Friends" co-host Brian Kilmeade in the anchor chair.

The chyron remained onscreen for just under 30 seconds before switching over to host Sean Hannity's program at the top of the hour. Earlier on "Fox News Tonight," Kilmeade introduced Trump as "the president of the United States" before switching to a live speech.

Read more: Fox News demands that Tucker Carlson stop posting videos on Twitter

The chyron generated disbelief on Twitter, where Fox News clips and quotes are a frequent topic.

White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre was asked about it Wednesday at her daily afternoon briefing with reporters and clearly was prepared for the query.

"There are probably 787 million things that I can say about this that was wrong about what we saw last night," Jean-Pierre said, a direct reference to the $787.5-million settlement the network paid to Dominion Voting Systems in April.

Fox News paid the voting machine company to head off a trial, but not before the release of evidence that reflected poorly on the network.

Dominion alleged it was damaged by Fox News amplifying false claims made by Trump attorneys Sidney Powell and Rudolph W. Giuliani that the companys machines manipulated votes to help elect Joe Biden president. Fox News faces a similar lawsuit from Smartmatic, a voting software firm.

Fox News, which was carrying the press conference live, dipped down the audio during Jean-Pierre's remarks and swiftly went back to anchors Sandra Smith and John Roberts in its Washington studio. The network switched to a report about a crocodile pulled from a Florida pool.

Before the press conference, a Fox News representative said, "The chyron was taken down immediately and was addressed." No further explanation was offered.

Fox News has devoted significant time to covering Trump's legal problems, including the airing of a harsh assessment from former attorney general William Barr, who said the former president is "toast."

But the opinion hosts have been doing their best to counter the negative narrative for Trump  an audience favorite  with a steady stream of commentary about Biden and Hillary Clinton not being prosecuted for their handling of classified material.

Guests and hosts frequently call the Trump indictment politically motivated and downplay the severity of the charges against him.

The Dominion case revealed how Fox News executives were concerned about audience tune-out after the 2020 election, as their viewers tend to go away when things are not going well for Trump or the Republicans. Executives and anchors deliberated on how to hold onto the audience by covering Trump's false voter-fraud claims, even though their own reporting determined the election was fair.

Fox News is currently grappling with audience declines that have occurred since Carlson was ousted from the prime-time lineup.

"Fox News Tonight," the interim replacement for Carlson, has failed to hold the audience of its predecessor, as its audience has declined more than 50%.

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
White Sox closer Liam Hendriks to get PRP injection in right elbow

Chicago White Sox relief pitcher Liam Hendriks (31) celebrates after a baseball game against the New York Yankees Tuesday, June 6, 2023, in New York. The White Sox won 3-2. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II) (ASSOCIATED PRESS)

LOS ANGELES (AP)  Chicago White Sox closer Liam Hendriks had a cortisone shot and will get a PRP injection soon for his right elbow inflammation.

Tests showed no structural damage to the elbow.

The shot and injection were were cleared by his oncologist since Hendriks is in remission from non-Hodgkins lymphoma.

He feels good, manager Pedro Grifol said Tuesday. At least theres some optimism that he might be back.

Hendriks was with the team in Los Angeles for its first visit to Dodger Stadium since 2017.

The right-hander was placed on the 15-day injured list before last Sundays 6-5 loss to the Miami Marlins.

Hendriks made his major league return from cancer when he pitched an inning against the Los Angeles Angels on May 29. The 34-year-old right-hander is 2-0 with a save and a 5.40 ERA in five appearances this year.

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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports
(Bloomberg) -- Indias northeastern state of Manipur has cut off its 3.5 million people from mobile internet services for over a month as ethnic clashes over a dispute involving access to affirmative action benefits continue to erupt. The fighting has left more than 100 people dead and over 37,000 in refugee camps as mobs set fire to homes, vehicles and places of worship.

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The violence in the state that borders Myanmar is the worst in recent decades and is reminiscent of the 1990s when the area was in the grips of brutal insurgencies and ethnic conflicts. Some had their roots in the former princely states merger with India in 1949  two years after the South Asian nation gained independence from the British.

The state government called in the army and paramilitary soldiers to maintain peace. However, sporadic acts of violence continue to keep the area on edge. The governments mobile internet closures have been extended until June 15 to prevent anger from spreading.

Heres what we know about Manipurs deadly clashes:

What spurred the violence?

Tensions first erupted between some of the areas largely-Christian tribal groups and the majority Meitei Hindu residents in early May over a demand that Meiteis also be granted access to forest lands, jobs and seats in educational institutions set aside for tribespeople under Indias affirmative action guarantees.

Indias northeastern states lag behind most of the country in terms of development and government jobs are the main source of employment.

Meiteis account for over 50% of the states population and live mainly in the Imphal valley. The Scheduled Tribe status under Indias constitution would expand their access to the benefits that are available to the tribes in the surrounding hills.

The main tribal groups, the Kukis and Nagas, make up 40% of Manipurs population and live mainly in the hills. Tribal groups fear that giving special tribal status to Meiteis would lead to their gradual removal from hill areas and leave them vulnerable to exploitation.

The current violence is largely between the Kukis and Meiteis.

What is at the heart of the conflict?

The Meiteis, Kukis and Nagas have diverse cultures and traditions and compete for the same land, natural resources and political power.

At the heart of the conflict between them is the long-standing hills versus valley identity divide and the disparities in development between the two. Meiteis are the politically dominant community, and what little infrastructure development the state has seen is largely limited to the valley. Its also where the better government jobs are based. The group is restricted by law from purchasing land in the hill areas.

The tribal groups can buy and own land anywhere in the state, leading to a perception among a section of the Meiteis that tribespeople get benefits disproportionate to their population.

A rush of refugees from Myanmar following the 2021 military coup has added another layer of complexity to the ethnic divide. The refugees share ethnic ties with the Kukis of Manipur, leading to fears among the Nagas and the Meiteis that the influx will boost the population of the Kukis.

Manipur shares a 350-kilometer (217.48 miles), largely unfenced border with Myanmar.

What role does history play?

Manipur has experienced armed conflicts since it was created soon after Indias independence. A Naga separatist movement and other smaller insurgencies simmered for decades. In 2015, Prime Minister Narendra Modis federal government signed a peace agreement with the main Naga insurgent group and several rounds of talks have followed. Ethnic clashes have also taken place sporadically. However, the state was largely peaceful for the last decade until the recent flare up of violence.

For decades, the state has been under the draconian Armed Forces Special Powers Act, which gives sweeping authority to the armed forces to shoot at people, search homes without a warrant and protects troops from legal action unless the federal government signs off on it.

What role does politics play?

The states 60-member legislature gives Meiteis an edge because 40 lawmakers are from the Imphal valley. In 2017, Modis Bharatiya Janata Party and its allies formed a government in the state for the first time. It returned to power in 2022.

Modi himself has not publicly commented on the violence. However, Home Minister Amit Shah visited the state about two weeks ago and held meetings with representatives of various ethnic groups. The main opposition Congress party has blamed the BJPs Hindu-nationalist politics for the violence.

The impact of the violence on national politics is limited. The tiny state sends only two lawmakers to the 543-member lower house of federal parliament.

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Heres Why You Should Escape To Aurora, New York  The Village Of Constant Dawn

Black couple celebrating

New York City gets all the shine, but what about a trip to Aurora, a village in upstate New York?

Over the years, it has had many nicknames. Indigenous groups called it Deawendote, or the village of constant dawn. Some called it Peachtown because of its abundance of peach orchards. When white settlers arrived, they chose Aurora as a tribute to the Roman goddess of the dawn.

The indigenous people and the settlers were equally awed by the sunrises here. According to Cayuga Genealogy, an eastern ridge obscures the rising sun, causing the vicinity of the village to have a longer dawn than usual. You can witness this yourself as you sip your coffee or go for a jog.

As for the sunsets? Theyre equally magnificent, but the magic doesnt stop there. When the sun disappears below the horizon, the skies glitter with stars.

Heres what to know about Aurora, and why its such a special place to visit in every season.

Aurora: The Jewel of The Finger Lakes

The fastest way to get to Aurora from New York City is to fly into Syracuse. The drive is about an hour, and be sure to look out for the Harriet Tubman house in Auburn. Aside from The Underground Railroad, she worked tirelessly for womens suffrage and other causes until her death in 1913.

Twenty minutes from Auburn, youll arrive in Aurora. This postcard-perfect village is perched on Cayuga Lake, one of the eleven Finger Lakes. The neighboring lake, Seneca, has more water than the other ten combined.

According to native legend, these long, skinny bodies of water were formed when The Great Spirit placed both hands on the land to bless it. There are maps showing the layout, but if you can view them aerially, all the better.

Inns of Aurora Resort And Spa: A Luxurious Accommodation That Has It All

Photo Credit: Spencer Jones

When was the last time you allowed yourself to simply be? Its easy to forget the crucial balance of work and rest, especially in the digital age. If the purpose of your trip is relaxation, the accommodations should mirror that.

At Inns of Aurora Resort and Spa, you can do plenty or nothing at all. Each inn has a distinct personality, and offers a high caliber of service. Which one is best? That depends on personal preference.

If you want to arrange a murder mystery game night, the Gothic aesthetic of E.B. Morgan House ticks that box. If you want to be in the center of town, try Aurora Inn. It even has its own restaurant1833 Kitchen and Bar.

Rowland House really leaves an impression on guests. The parlors, dining room, and wraparound terrace invite peaceful reflection. This inn is named for the founder, Pleasant Rowland. If you ever owned an American Girl doll in the 1990s, or read the books, you can thank her.

Zabriskie House, Wallcourt Hall, and Orchard Cottage also offer guestrooms. To further the spirit of relaxation, music is played at all the inns at low volume. The only industrial noise you might hear is the faint buzz of a lawn tractor or a boat zipping across the lake.

The innkeepers ensure you wont have to lift a finger, except to sip a beverage. Guest comfort is their priority, no matter the time of day.

Facials, Yoga, Or Archery  The Choices Are Endless

So much can be said about the spa, which has to be seen to be believed. The building and the landscape harmonize, and its worth spending a full day here.

Facials, massages, and nail care are some of the services. The hydrotherapy pools will keep you occupied between treatments, and you should definitely spend a minute or several in the cold plunge pools. When you need to warm up, slip into the sauna or steam room.

The cafe serves soup, salad, and other light fare. If you dont feel like hopping around, retreat to the relaxation room. Between the fireplace and the music, theres a good chance youll fall asleep. Nobody would judge you if you did!

Photo Credit: Spencer Jones

Aurora isnt as wired as New York City, but it isnt completely devoid of action.

The Inns of Aurora offers a plethora of activities, from sunset boat cruises to yoga. If you dont know anything about archery, Matt and Michael, who are seasoned outdoorsmen, will teach you in no time. Their love of the sport is contagious.

Weather permitting, take a dip in Cayuga Lake, which is just below Rowland House. Even when its cold, the water is gentle. But be mindful of the rocky shoreline.

Culinary Experiences You Wont Forget

Aurora may be small, but it packs a punch on the culinary front.

Start your day with breakfast at 1833, and grab lunch at Fargo Bar and Grill, home of the best burger in the Finger Lakes. The pastries at the Village Market are delicious, especially the cookies and lemon tarts.

For something different, book a live cooking demonstration at Aurora Cooks! Youll appreciate Chef Lous attention to detail, and her multicultural cuisine. She can cook for individuals and groups; modifying the menu as needed. If you arent sure whether to pair your meal with the Riesling or the Merlot, she can advise.

Complete your trip with a winery visit. Because of their location, Aurora and the other villages of the Finger Lakes offer the finest wines in New York State.

RELATED: Traveler Story: How A Trip To Upstate New York Gave Me Clarity And Peace
Photo: The Good Brigade (Getty Images)

Crime was one of the major issues of the 2022 midterm elections, with 61 percent of registered voters saying violent crime was very important when deciding who to vote for, according to data from Pew Research.

But while everyone is concerned about crime, an in-depth analysis of crime data by CBS Chicago confirmed that Black women in the nations third largest city have been disproportionately impacted by crime nearly every year for the past 20 years.

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For their investigation, the network analyzed over 8 million profiles of victims, accounting for every crime reported in the city for the past 20 years. And their research revealed that Black women have consistently felt the deepest impact.

In 2022 alone, crime data showed that although Black women represent only 16 percent of the population, they were nearly 1 in 4 of the citys crime victims, including 35 percent of assault victims and half of human trafficking victims.

Its not fair. To have to navigate through life knowing that youll potentially become a victim of a crime primarily because of your race and your gender its not fair, Tonia Thomas, a 27-year-old Chicago resident and sexual assault survivor, told CBS Chicago.

Geneva Brown, professor of criminology at DePaul University is not surprised by the findings and cites factors like government work requirements for food assistance benefits as major contributors to the disturbing crime stats.

[Theres] the perception and demonization of poverty and the feminization of poverty. So women have to work, and so they get jobs where they can, sometimes its third-shift. Not everyones able to work in an office, she said. Theyre out at times when there is not a lot of police presencetheyre out there alone on the bus stop, or theyre riding the Red Line alone.

Addressing the issue of violent crime will be a top priority of newly-elected Mayor Brandon Johnson.

We dont want our story to be that Chicago became so traumatized by violence and despair that our residents felt no other choice but to leave, he said when he took office in May. ...That will not be our story, not on my watch.

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Why a map in Indias new Parliament is making its neighbors nervous

A new mural on display in Indias new $110 million Parliament has become an unlikely target of ire among its South Asian neighbors, with Pakistan, Nepal and Bangladesh seeking an explanation from New Delhi.

The mural depicts a map of an ancient Indian civilization encompassing what is today Pakistan in the north and Bangladesh and Nepal in the east.

Speaking to reporters earlier this month, the spokesperson of Indias Ministry of External Affairs, Arindam Bagchi, said it portrays the ancient Ashoka Empire and symbolizes the idea of responsible and people-oriented governance that (King Ashoka) adopted and propagated.

But to some politicians from Indias ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), it appears to represent a vision of the future  of Akhand Bharat, an Undivided India that would merge the modern-day country with Afghanistan, Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh and Myanmar.

The resolve is clear. Akhand Bharat, tweeted Minister of Parliamentary Affairs Pralhad Joshi alongside a photograph of the map. Akhand Bharat in (the) New Parliament. It represents our powerful and self reliant India, tweeted BJP lawmaker Manoj Kotak.

The mural inside India's new Parliament building. - @JoshiPralhad/Twitter

To Indias neighbors, Akhand Bharat is an incendiary, neo-imperialist concept  one that has long been associated with the right-wing Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), an ideological organization that heavily influences the BJP, and which believes in Hindutva, the idea that India should become the Home of the Hindus.

Earlier this month, Pakistan said it was appalled by the statements made about the mural.

The gratuitous assertion of Akhand Bharat is a manifestation of a revisionist and expansionist mindset that seeks to subjugate the identity and culture of not only Indias neighboring countries but also its own religious minorities, said foreign office spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch.

Nepali politicians also chimed in.

If a country like India  that sees itself as an ancient and strong country, and as a model of democracy  puts Nepali territories in its map and hangs the map in parliament, it cannot be called fair, opposition leader KP Sharma Oli said, according to The Kathmandu Post.

Nepals former prime minister, Baburam Bhattarai, warned the map may stoke an unnecessary and harmful diplomatic row.

And last week, Bangladesh asked New Delhi to clarify the situation. Anger is being expressed from various quarters over the map, said Shahriar Alam, its junior minister for foreign affairs.

Answering a question about the backlash last week, Indias foreign minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar said the issue had already been clarified by India, and it was not political.

While India has dismissed their concerns, analysts say calls by BJP politicians to embrace Akhand Bharat are dangerous.

They say such appeals embolden extremist groups and are bad news for a constitutionally secular democracy, where about 80% of the 1.4 billion population is Hindu and 14% Muslim.

Many BJP leaders are increasingly making statements to placate the most hardcore elements of their party, without realizing how that might play out overseas, said Salil Tripathi, a writer based in New York.

These politicians and leaders act as if the world isnt listening. It keeps the cauldron hot, but it is a dangerous game.

Controversial ceremony

The mural was not the only thing turning heads when Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the parliament on May 28.

Similarly controversial was the ceremony itself, steeped in Hindu religious symbolism, which critics felt jarred with the supposedly secular nature of Indian government affairs. It also took place on the birthday of the late Vinayak Damodar Savarkar, the man widely considered to have developed the Hindutva ideology and one of the first proponents of Akhand Bharat.

A leader of the right-wing Hindu Mahasabha group, Savarkar is revered by Modi and the BJP, who credit him with leading India to its freedom from British colonial rule.

Indian home minister Amit Shah pictured alongside a garlanded photo of Savarkar on April 21, 2017 in Mumbai, India. - Praful Gangurde/Hindustan Times/Getty Images

But critics say it is wrong to honor his birthday, given his stance toward Muslims.

The Hindu Mahasabhas website says if it takes power, it will not hesitate to force the migration of Indias Muslims to Pakistan.

While the groups ideas are decades old, it appears more bold about them now.

In December 2021, some extremists from the group called for a genocide against Muslims to protect India.

Sushant Singh, a senior fellow with the Centre for Policy Research think tank, said groups felt emboldened to make such brazen calls for violence because they believe that they have the backing of the state.

That is because the state clearly believes in their ideology and articulates that ideology, he added.

Nervous neighbors

While the BJP does not openly describe itself as Hindu nationalist, critics say such leanings are given away by legislation that favors Hindus and the rhetoric of some of its leading figures.

One of the BJPs most controversial moves came in 2019 when it revoked the semi-autonomous status of the Muslim-majority region of Indian-administered Kashmir, bringing it under the direct control of New Delhi.

Muslim women hold placards during a demonstration after educational institutes in Karnataka denied entry to students for wearing hijabs, in Bangalore on February 7, 2022. - Manjunath Kiran/AFP/Getty Images/File

India said the move was aimed at ending separatism and terrorism it alleged was aided by Pakistan. Critics said the move was aimed at encouraging Hindus to settle there.

Skepticism over New Delhis motives was fueled by Indias Home Minister Amit Shah when he said the revocation had partially achieved the dream of Akhand Bharat  a sentiment echoed by other right-wing politicians.

We have to see the dream of Akhand Bharat in this lifetime and it has started with (this), said deputy chief minister of the state of Maharashtra, Devendra Fadnavis.

Kashmiri boys hold a banner during a protest against the revoke of controversial Article 370 by Indian government in Srinagar while curfew continues on the fifth day in Kashmir, India on August 09, 2019. - Faisal Khan/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images/File

Experts say such rhetoric has made Indias neighbors nervous.

The tragedy is that with this kind of narrative coming from India, it only enforces the Pakistan armys view that there is a threat, said Pakistani historian Ayesha Jalal.

Fahd Humayun, an assistant professor of political science at Tufts University, warned statements like these can impact the national security calculus of neighboring states.

He added: In practical terms, the worry is (these comments) build on a brand of Hindu nationalism which has clear expansionist tendencies.

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Throngs of people, most wearing white clothing and many adorned in traditional Sikh attire, gathered in the Jemez mountains of New Mexico in June 2019. The occasion was the summer solstice. Those who came to celebrate were part of a community started in the U.S. in 1969 by an Indian Sikh man named Harbhajan Singh Puri, who later became known as Yogi Bhajan or Siri Singh Sahib. Puri was a Punjabi Sikh who had worked as a customs agent in India before moving to Canada and then to the U.S. He gained a following while teaching yoga in the U.S.

Puris followers formed a community that has spawned a number of organizations since its founding, and although it doesnt have a single comprehensive moniker, the community is often referred to by two key organizations connected to it: 3HO, which gets its name from the three Hs that stand for happy, healthy and holy, and Sikh Dharma International, or SDI. Although the community has acquired members across the world, it remains largely U.S.-based.

Since 2019, the community has not gathered to mark the summer solstice. After a hiatus of three years, 3HO and SDI will once again hold a large-scale summer solstice event in June 2023. This gathering serves as an important opportunity for members scattered across the U.S. and across the globe to meet. As a sociologist of religion, I have spent years researching this community, and I was also raised within it. This gives me a strong sense of the stakes of reopening the annual solstice celebration.

3HO, SDI and the Sikh Panth

Founded in 1969, 3HO is focused on the practice of kundalini yoga. Kundalini yoga uses various postures, chanting and breathing exercises to raise ones kundalini, a form of sacred energy that some schools of Hindu thought believe rests at the base of the spine.

SDI, formed in 1973, is focused on sharing the Sikh religion as taught by Puri. The Sikh religion is a tradition that originated in India and is often closely tied to an ethnic identity. Within the 3HO and SDI communities as a whole, practitioners often see kundalini yoga and the Sikh religion as bound together, with one being a pathway to the other. Although each organization has a different focus, for members at the core of the community, the practices taught by each arent separable in their regular religious and spiritual practice.

The community is made up of mostly converts to the Sikh faith, and practitioners within it have not always been accepted by Punjabi Sikhs. Tensions between them and Punjabi Sikhs stem from a number of differences, which include the practice of kundalini yoga, all-white attire and the reverence often shown for Puri.

In the wider Sikh community, yoga is not typically thought of as a Sikh practice, there is no religious imperative for wearing white clothing, and giving religious reverence to a living figure is largely frowned upon. The summer solstice celebration itself, which is not typically marked by Punjabi Sikhs, is another substantial difference.

Summer solstice and current challenges

The structure of the summer solstice event has varied over the decades, but major elements included a daylong prayer for world peace, yoga classes, meditation and Sikh gurdwara, or temple, services.

Summer solstice has been a time for community members to gather and engage with one another. Kundalini Research Institute and Teachings of Yogi Bhajan, via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA

However, until this year, the community had not gathered to mark the summer solstice since 2019. This was partly due to the pandemic but also likely because it has been mired in crises. Since the death of Puri in 2004, a struggle for control of power and community resources followed, though the community largely held itself together.

In 2020, however, allegations of sexual assault and abuse leveled against Puri led many within the community to share additional allegations against other community members and community organizations. In remote meetings open to people connected to the community, some of which I attended, the children of community members also voiced concerns about physical and sexual abuse and neglect they had experienced in schools and camps initially created for children of the community. One example is the school Miri Piri Academy in Amritsar, a city in northern India.

An independent organization set up to investigate the allegations concluded in the fall of 2020 that it is more likely than not that Puri engaged in several types of sexual misconduct.

Now, four years since the last large-scale gathering on the summer solstice, the community will once again open Ram Das Puri, a plot of land in the mountains of New Mexico owned by the Siri Singh Sahib Corp., another arm of the community that manages its assets and resources, to mark the summer solstice.

As the community gathers, it will be a time of reckoning with the past. In light of recent crises, attendance at the event may well indicate whether the community still retains a wide enough base to support it.

This article is republished from The Conversation, an independent nonprofit news site dedicated to sharing ideas from academic experts. Like this article? Subscribe to our weekly newsletter.

It was written by: Simranjit Khalsa, University of Memphis.

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Simranjit Khalsa does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
The Wichita Police Department has temporarily lowered its standards at a time when it is struggling to recruit officers, a move that appears to conflict with a report that found a lack of minimum standards was sowing discontent within the ranks.

The Wichita City Council has approved funding for more officers than the department has been able to recruit and hire. But the police union says lowering entry standards isnt the answer.

At issue is an aptitude test given to police recruits as an entry exam that was recently  and quietly  eliminated by the department after consultation with new Human Resources Director Jason Hood. The change wasnt announced until the city released a dashboard tracking its progress on a list of changes recommended by national police consultant firm Jensen Hughes.

Wichita police Lt. Aaron Moses initially denied the test had been removed at a news conference on Tuesday afternoon, then clarified that a new test is being developed, without saying when it would be completed. The human resources director later confirmed the test is not being used while the city works to write a new aptitude test.

The entry test has been eliminated, Hood said in a written statement. WPD consulted with HR and determined that the current aptitude test did not adequately assess writing skills. We are working to identify a better writing assessment tool and plan to work with Kansas Workforce Alliance in identifying a better way to evaluate the writing skills of our applicants.

The Jensen Hughes report, released in March, described the culture of the Wichita Police Department as unhealthy, and at times toxic. Officers surveyed by the national police consulting firm described WPD as broken, dysfunctional and horrible.

The dashboard says the decision to eliminate the competency test in writing and grammar aligns with a recommendation to consult with labor counsel on the internal development of assessment tools that safeguard against negative disparate outcomes for minority candidates.

WPD has engaged the recently onboarded Human Resources director, Jason Hood, to assist with this effort, the dashboard said. His initial review of assessment tools resulted in the elimination of the written/grammatical exam as young people have a different style of communicating due to texting and social media communication styles.

After The Eagle asked about the change, the city removed that explanation from the dashboard and replaced it with Hoods written statement.

WPD should clarify ... minimum standards

The change seemingly contradicts the Jensen Hughes findings, which noted many officers felt that diversity, equity and inclusion efforts in the department have resulted in a lack of clear standards.

Within WPD, some believe DEI efforts have been politically motivated and have resulted in underqualified individuals getting into the department or being put into positions they are not otherwise qualified for, the Jensen Hughes report said. This perception adds to the feeling of unfairness within the department. In addition to continuing to affirm and advance its DEI efforts, the WPD should clarify and publish minimum standards to ensure all persons hired, assigned or promoted are viewed as capable of performing their prescribed functions.

Wichita Fraternal Order of Police leaders say eliminating the test does not help the department, which has 93 open officer positions, including 77 patrol officers, and a recruiting class of 11 under the new, lowered standards. Thats down from the record 50 recruits who entered the academy in 2020.

Dave Inkelaar, a WPD sergeant and president of the FOP, said the test is an important part of the hiring process. It makes sure candidates can actually perform the job theyre hired to do.

One of the sections, there was a narrative of an incident, a 911 call that you come out to, and it gives you the whole narrative of the events that happen and then theres a police report and youre supposed to just fill in the blanks.

Its just to make sure someone can actually do the work, Inkelaar said. Its not that hard of a test.

Inkelaar also said eliminating the test hasnt helped recruit more officers.

We cant even fill a class with applicants, Inkelaar said. So I dont think its helped at all to remove it, other than handicap us by allowing people who may not comprehend, and weve got to identify those problems in the academy when theyre taking a position.

Hans Asmussen, vice president of the FOP, said the aptitude test helps weed out candidates at the front end of the hiring process, instead of wasting city resources and recruits time.

Its spending resources on some applicants that wouldnt have made it even past the first stage of the hiring process, Asmussen said.

Sheila Officer, a longtime police reform advocate and chair of the Racial Profiling Advisory Board, said lowering standards for law enforcement work is counterproductive.

When the prisons were short-staffed, they lowered their standards. That wasnt a good idea, Officer told The Eagle Wednesday. She said without seeing the aptitude test, its hard to say whether or not the screening mechanism led to unfair outcomes.

Generally and nationally, testing has been pretty much non-diversified, meaning that it caters to one particular sector of America and it appears to be somewhat negative to another sector of our population, Officer said.

She said she supports the development of a culturally sensitive aptitude test that holds officer recruits to a high standard without using language that caters to any particular type of candidate.

We want them to have common sense, we want them to have common knowledge, and we want them to be experienced at what they do, Officer said. It is detrimental to our communities if they are not, so we dont want them to lessen the standard. We want them to increase the standard so that we are getting a service of excellence.

WPD interested in hiring the most qualified candidates

Moses, who appeared at the news conference on behalf of Chief Joe Sullivan, dismissed concerns about the temporary removal of the aptitude test.

I would say that the department is interested in hiring the most qualified candidates possible, Moses said. And we have a lengthy process to ensure thats happening, regardless of this one aptitude test.

The police academy takes five months for recruits to complete.

Moses would not say why Sullivan did not attend after participating in the first Jensen Hughes news conference in March.

Im not going to speak on that. He sent me down here because Im running this [dashboard] project, Moses said.

Im not sure where the chief is, but frankly, as the chief of police, I assume he has other community commitments that hes attending, Mayor Brandon Whipple said after the news conference.

Community activist James Barfield said he wished the chief was there to speak to the new dashboard and the departments ongoing commitment to reform.

I was a little bit disappointed when I first came in and the police chief was not there, Barfield said. If he was behind this, hed be right there lending his support and answering any questions. Nobody can answer better from the police departments perspective than the police chief.

City Manager Robert Layton was also not in attendance Tuesday.

No such thing as done

The Jensen Hughes Recommendations Dashboard shows the city has implemented 17 of 54 recommendations since March, with an additional 21 listed as in progress. Sixteen are listed as under review, meaning no action has been taken.

Whipple, who is running for re-election, has been a vocal proponent of the Jensen Hughes report and said it wasnt designed to be put on a shelf so we can check a box.

There is no such thing as done when it comes to improvement, Whipple said. We will always work to better ourselves and to serve the community to the best ability possible.

Sheila Officer said at the news conference that shes glad the city is finally getting serious about issues she and others have known about for years.

We said back in 2020 that the citizens review board was ineffective, inefficient, because they do not have the proper resources, Officer said.

We talked in 2021 about the Fraternal Order of Police and their barrier in making officers accountable for their actions. We spoke about internal investigations and we spoke about the culture of the Wichita Police Department.

Some of the other items marked as complete on the dashboard dont perfectly align with recommendations by Jensen Hughes.

For instance, under the recommendation to Create an Assistant Chief Position, the city says it has been completed but then explains that Sullivan has filled two deputy chief vacancies, posted a job opening for a non-commissioned senior public information officer and will re-evaluate the Assistant Chief position in six months.

Others marked as accomplishments on the dashboard are things the department was already doing, such as reviewing policies on a regular basis and using scenario-based training for officers.

Whipple said he hopes the city can improve officer retention by following the Jensen Hughes recommendations. Police staffing levels have been the highest in the citys history during his term as mayor but attrition has recently outpaced new hires.

This report is a reflection of the overwhelming majority of our police officers, Whipple said. A lot of that discussion was about their perspectives and experience. So by achieving the Jensen Hughes recommendations, this was thought of as not just a policy exercise but also what are the current experiences of the members who are serving our community as police officers and what can we do to improve that experience.
[Source]

A high school band teacher in Wisconsin has resigned following allegations of harassment and discrimination.

Under investigation: Robert Perkins, a band teacher at Wausau East High School, was accused of using racial and sexually dehumanizing slurs against an openly gay Asian American senior student.

The Wausau School Board accepted Perkins resignation on Monday amid an ongoing investigation by the Department of Public Instruction on the teachers alleged misconduct.

An early dismissal: Twan and Manee Vongphakdy, the victims parents who filed a formal complaint to the Wausau School Board against Perkins on April 5, expressed frustration over the initial handling of their sons case.

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The district had previously dismissed the complaint in late April, determining that while Perkins had engaged in "insensitive and unprofessional conduct" and used racially or sexually charged language, it did not constitute harassment or discrimination.

More investigations followed: A series of alleged incidents brought to light by USA Today Network-Wisconsin resulted in the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction launching an investigation into Perkins' alleged misconduct in May.

The district's investigation process was deemed deficient, as it failed to comply with its own guidelines by not sharing the investigation report with both parties at crucial stages. The initial complaint dismissal received widespread criticism from the community, prompting the Wausau Board of Education to initiate its own investigation into Perkins' behavior. Multiple complaints against the teacher have also emerged, including some from former students.

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Full accountability: When the family finally gained access to the report on Tuesday, they expressed satisfaction with the improved transparency, hoping for full accountability that confirms Perkins' violation of Title IX laws.

"We finally saw the investigation report, which has corroborated that he's made racist and homophobic slurs," Twan Vongphakdy was quoted as saying. "Witness testimony showed a pattern of behaviors  it was not just one comment, and not just one student witnessed it."

Community support: Throughout the controversy, the Wausau Asian American community has rallied around the Vongphakdy family.

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The student, who said he endured months of victim-blaming and debilitating anxiety, stated that he feels vindicated by the cases development and Perkins' resignation. He now seeks healing and closure as he prepares to attend the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee in the fall.

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Reinstatement of Wisconsin teacher who used anti-Asian racial slurs sparks outrage
Authorities in Wise County say a 45-year-old man who killed his wife and 11-year-old daughter was arrested Tuesday after he was questioned in Dallas, according to a news release from the Wise County Sheriffs Office.

Robert A. Morairity, 45, is charged with capital murder, murder and tampering with a corpse, according to the news release. Authorities said they responded to a call Monday from a man who said his sister-in-law, 42-year-old Kimberly Kellam, and her 11-year-old daughter hadnt been seen for several months.

The caller told investigators Kellam was living with her husband off County Road 4371 near Decatur and had three children with Morairity, according to the sheriffs office. When sheriffs deputies reported to the address they found it abandoned.

Around 6 p.m. Tuesday, Morairity was located in Dallas and questioned by investigators from the Wise County Sheriffs Office, Texas Rangers and Dallas police, according to the news release. While meeting with him, police said Morairity had a 10-year-old child and a 3-year-old child with him.

At first, Morairity told authorities he hadnt seen his wife or oldest daughter in six months, according to the news release. He later told police that his wife and their 11-year-old daughter were dead and that their bodies were in a garage at the County Road 4371 address.

The children with Morairity were taken into custody by child protective services and Morairity voluntarily returned to Wise County with a sheriffs deupty and Texas Ranger to show investigators the locations of the bodies, according ot the sheriffs office. He was arrested and charged with tampering with a corpse, murder and capital murder.

Morairity is currenlty being held at the Wise County Jail on $800,000 bond. The Dallas County Medical Examiners Office will conduct an autopsy on the bodies.
A mother and daughter were arrested in Louisiana this week for allegedly using fraudulent paperwork to enroll the daughter, who is an adult, in a high school near New Orleans, authorities said.

The mother, 46-year-old Marta Elizeth Serrano-Alvarado, and daughter, 28-year-old Martha Jessenia Gutierrez-Serrano, face one count each of injuring public records, according to the St. Charles Parish Sheriff's Office. Conviction of the crime in the first degree can carry a prison sentence of up to five years, and a fine of up to $5,000, according to the Louisiana State Legislature. Conviction in the second degree can carry a prison sentence of up to one year and a fine of up to $1,000.

Detectives arrested both women on Tuesday at their shared residence in Boutte. The arrests came several weeks after authorities received a report from officials at St. Charles Parish Public Schools about an adult potentially attending Hahnville High School, which is also in Boutte, during the 2022-23 academic year.

Administrators told the sheriff's office they had been given a tip suggesting that a student, whose record indicated she was 17, was actually an adult in her mid-20s. School officials notified the sheriff after conducting an internal investigation. It is not clear how much contact Gutierrez-Serrano may have had with other students at the school, CBS affiliate WWL-TV reported.

The probe later conducted by detectives at the sheriff's office found that Serrano-Alvarado had allegedly enrolled her daughter at Hahnville High School using a fraudulent passport and birth certificate, the office said. Authorities have asked anyone with information related to the investigation to contact the special investigations division at St. Charles Parish Sheriff's Office.

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A woman accused of using counterfeit money in 2 Northeast Florida counties pleaded guilty to federal charges, the U.S. Attorneys Office announced Wednesday.

Rhea Markland of Panama City has pleaded guilty to four counts of passing counterfeit Federal Reserve notes and is currently facing up to 20 years in federal prison. Markland also faces paying restitution to the victims she defrauded, according to United States Attorney Roger B. Handberg.

According to court documents and public records, in 2022, Markland entered various businesses in Brevard, Clay, Duval, and Seminole counties and purchased gift cards and merchandise using counterfeit Federal Reserve notes.

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Law enforcement subsequently determined that Markland and her co-defendant, Neal Evan Pollman were staying at the Comfort Inn in Palm Bay.

In November of 2022, the Palm Bay Police Department executed a search warrant at the Comfort Inn where Markland was found.

Inside her room authorities found approximately $30,000 in counterfeit currency and an HP printer for manufacturing counterfeit Federal Reserve notes.

Pollman and Markland appeared in federal court on April 27, 2023, according to a writ bringing them to Jacksonville from the Bay County Jail, where they are serving a jail sentence for violating their state probation on multiple charges related to passing counterfeit Federal Reserve notes.

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The court ordered Pollman and Markland detained pending trial.

Pollman was charged with one count of manufacturing and nine counts of passing counterfeit Federal Reserve notes. He is scheduled for trial in July 2023.

According to a news release from the U.S. Attorneys Office, An indictment is merely a formal charge that a defendant has committed one or more violations of federal criminal law, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until, proven guilty.

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This case was investigated by multiple law enforcement agencies including, the Brevard County Sheriffs Office, the Jacksonville Sheriffs Office, the Palm Bay Police Department, the Orange Park Police Department, and the Jacksonville Field Office of the United States Secret Service.

Read: Man accused of throwing knife at someone who refused to take him to GameStop

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Woman dies after attempting to save a teen who slipped at California waterfall

A 48-year-old woman hiking a waterfall outside of San Diego with four teenagers died after she and one of the teens went over the ledge, according to local officials.

It happened on June 8 at the Three Sisters Falls in the Cleveland National Forest.

The local medical examiner identified the woman as Sarah Louise Crocker of Ladera Ranch, California. The teen, who survived the fall, has not been identified.

The San Diego County Sheriffs Department said in a statement that Crocker was trying to help the teenage girl after she had slipped.

The woman supervising the teenagers attempted to keep the girl from going over the ledge, the statement said. Unfortunately, both the woman and girl fell and suffered severe injuries.

Deputies said several witnesses tried to help after Crockers fall but she died at the scene. The teenager was taken by helicopter to a local hospital for severe but non-life-threatening injuries, according to officials.

The medical examiner said Crocker died from multiple blunt-force injuries, especially chest and right pelvis with drowning. She and the teenage family friend had been in the middle pool of the three falls, the report said.

According to the Forest Service website, the Three Sisters Falls hike is 4.5 miles and moderate to strenuous. It features three large waterfalls wedged between tall, rocky mountains.

The website also notes the trail has recently been redeveloped with a safer and more direct route to the falls, which alleviates the requirement to rock/mountain climb, lowering injury risks and casualty rate.

In a 2018 feature, the Forest Service website wrote that during a wet year, the falls can see heavy water flow, resulting in higher than average falls.

In prime conditions, the middle sister is impressive, with waterfalls cascading 50 feet into a kidney shaped pool estimated to be about 10 feet deep, the Forest Service warned in the 2018 write up. Be careful trekking this area  the years of water runoff has left the large boulders incredibly smooth, making slips and falls common.

This article was originally published on TODAY.com
Former South Korean President Park Geun-hye led to her court hearing Jung Yeon-Je / AFP via Getty Images

Many Republicans have rallied around former President Donald Trump following his indictment for allegedly mishandling classified documents. One common notion is that charging or even imprisoning a former American president would set a bad precedent for nations around the world.

Former Vice President Mike Pence, who has split from his old boss and is now running for president himself, said during a CNN town hall that federally charging Trump "would send a terrible message to the wider world," though he admitted there needed to be "equal treatment under the law."

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) called the charges "absolutely ridiculous," telling ABC News that what Trump did was "very similar to what Hillary Clinton did." He also said that Trump's state charges in New York for allegedly falsifying business records had "never happened to anybody in history."

While Trump is the first American president to face criminal charges, instances of government leaders around the world being charged or even imprisoned are fairly common. While some in the GOP have claimed this only occurs in "banana republics," there are at least 78 countries, including many democracies, where "leaders who left office since 2000 have been jailed or prosecuted," Axios reported. Even some leaders currently in office are facing charges.

Park Geun-hye

The first woman to be elected president of South Korea, Park Geun-hye led her country from 2013 to 2017. In 2016, allegations of corruption and influence peddling emerged surrounding a plot to extort millions of dollars from large corporations. She was eventually impeached and removed from office, with South Korea's Constitutional Court saying her actions "betrayed the trust of the people and were of the kind that cannot be tolerated."

Less than a month after her ousting, Park was arrested on charges "including bribery, extortion and abuse of power." Following a lengthy trial, she was sentenced to 24 years in prison, though she was pardoned after serving five years and later returned home. Park was the second South Korean president in a row to serve prison time. Her predecessor, Lee Myung-bak, was sentenced to 17 years in prison "for corruption that could have kept him behind bars into his 90s," Bloomberg reported, though he was similarly pardoned and released.

Nicolas Sarkozy

Nicolas Sarkozy was the president of France from 2007 to 2012. Though he retired from public life after leaving office, he was charged with alleged corruption and bribery stemming from his time as president. Sarkozy was accused of trying to bribe a judge that was "looking into earlier allegations that during his 2007 presidential campaign Sarkozy took illegal payments from L'Oreal heiress Liliane Bettencourt," NPR reported.

Though the Bettencourt case was eventually dropped, prosecutors continued going after Sarkozy for allegedly bribing the judge, as well as looking into alleged bankrolling of his 2007 campaign by Libyan officials. In 2021, Sarkozy was found guilty in two separate corruption trials. He was sentenced to a combined one year on house arrest and one year in prison for his actions and recently lost an appeal against one of his convictions.

Benjamin Netanyahu

The current prime minister of Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu, has been marred by allegations of corruption for years. Israeli authorities first opened a criminal investigation into Netanyahu in 2016, and three years later he was indicted for alleged bribery, fraud and breach of public trust. He was suspected of "wrongfully accepting $264,000 worth of gifts, which prosecutors said included cigars and Champagne, from tycoons and of dispensing regulatory favors in alleged bids for improved coverage by a popular news website," Reuters reported.

The case against Netanyahu began in 2020 and is ongoing. The prime minister could face up to 10 years in prison if convicted, though reports emerged in 2022 that he was considering negotiating a plea deal. His critics say Netanyahu's continued reform push to weaken Israel's judiciary is "a way to open an escape route from his trial," The Associated Press reported, though he has denied these claims.

Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner

Argentina's current vice president, Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner, also served as the nation's president from 2007 to 2015 and first lady during the presidency of her husband, Nestor Kirchner. So while she's a mainstay in Argentinian politics, her two presidential terms were rocked by a series of corruption scandals. She was charged with treason in 2017 for allegedly covering up Iran's role in the bombing of a Jewish community center in Buenos Aires, but the charges were eventually dropped due to parliamentary immunity.

Kirchner's legal troubles would continue, though, when she was indicted on corruption charges in 2018 for allegedly "heading a network that received bribes in exchange for lucrative public works contracts during both her presidency," according to a copy of the charges seen by Al Jazeera. She was found guilty in 2022, sentenced to six years in prison and issued a lifetime ban from holding public office. Kirchner has "temporary immunity due to her current role [as vice president] so she will not immediately go to jail," CNN reported. Kirchner said she intends to appeal the verdict but will not run for reelection.

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UPDATE 1:48 p.m.  Columbus Technical College has closed the campus and canceled all classes until 10 a.m. Thursday due to inclement weather, per a release.

The National Weather Service in Atlanta has also put Columbus and most of west central and southwest Georgia under a tornado watch until 7 p.m.

May Flower by Susan Geissler, a sculpture at the corner of 10th Street and Broadway in downtown Columbus, Georgia, is covered in rain drops after a passing round of storms Wednesday morning. 06/14/2023

ORIGINAL  Columbus is under a moderate risk for severe storms today and tomorrow.

Bob Jeswald, chief meteorologist for WRBL, told the Ledger-Enquirer that Columbus can expect the worst of the storms late this afternoon and some strong storms after midnight. He says those showers could linger until Thursday morning.

I dont think weve ever had anything in June like this, Jeswald said.

He said they will be looking for super cell activity this afternoon and some large hail.

Jeswald said the area may see some clear skies by Friday, but there may be some scattered showers and storms in the region on Fathers Day.

The National Weather service has issued flash flood warnings for Muscogee County and southern Harris County until 11:45 a.m. EDT.
By Jonathan Allen and Kanishka Singh

NEW YORK (Reuters) -A New York grand jury voted on Wednesday to indict Daniel Penny, a former U.S. Marine sergeant, in last month's killing of Jordan Neely, a homeless man, with a chokehold on a Manhattan subway car, a person familiar with the case said.

Penny, 24, was captured in videos recorded by bystanders putting Neely in a chokehold on May 1 while they rode on an F train in Manhattan.

The killing drew national attention and sparked protests in May by those angered by the police's delay in arresting Penny, who is white, with killing Neely, a Black man.

At an initial court appearance last month, Penny was charged with one count of second-degree manslaughter.

The charge or charges in the grand jury indictment will not be unsealed until Penny appears in court on a later date, the person familiar with the case said, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak on record.

Neither the district attorney's office nor Penny's defense lawyer immediately responded to requests for comment.

Penny was arraigned on May 12 at the Manhattan Criminal Court on a charge of second-degree manslaughter, a felony crime that carries a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison. Judge Kevin McGrath released Penny on a $100,000 bond and ordered him to surrender his passport and to return to court on July 17.

As required to bring an indictment on felony charges in New York, prosecutors from the office of Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg presented evidence to a grand jury of 23 Manhattan residents.

Most defendants do not testify to a grand jury themselves, but the New York Times reported that Penny planned to appear before the grand jury under oath.

Neely, a 30-year-old former Michael Jackson impersonator who struggled with mental illness, had been shouting about how hungry he was and that he was willing to return to jail or die, according to eyewitnesses.

Penny has said he acted to defend himself and other passengers on the train, and did not intend to kill Neely. Witnesses have said Neely did not physically threaten or attack anyone before Penny grabbed him.

Penny was questioned by police that day but would not be arrested and make an initial court appearance until 11 days after the killing.

His actions have been defended by conservative broadcasters and Republican politicians around the country, and a legal defense fund for him has drawn nearly $3 million in donations.

The killing renewed debate about gaps in the city's support systems for homeless and mentally ill New Yorkers.

Neely was well known to some people who work with homeless New Yorkers and had been in and out of city shelters over the years. He had been arrested many times, most recently for punching a 67-year-old woman in 2021, breaking bones in her face.

Earlier this year, New York City Mayor Eric Adams said he intended to reduce the number of homeless people seeking shelter in the subway by increasing police patrols and expanding outreach to mentally ill people, including the use of involuntary hospitalizations.

(Reporting by Jonathan Allen in New York and Kanishka Singh in Washington; Editing by Sonali Paul)
A New York man and father of two is stranded in Panama after being deported on low-level marijuana charges, despite the Empire State later legalising recreational cannabis and automatically expunging his record in the process.

Leonel Pinilla was deported in 2012, after a traffic stop prompted contact with law enforcement and ICE put him in deportation proceedings on the basis of a group of low-level marijauna posession charges in 2005 and 2008.

Since then, according tothe k, Mr Pinillas family has struggled with food insecurity and possible eviction without their primary breadwinner.

There is nothing in life that can replace being with your family. It is something very traumatic [to be separated], he told the group in an interview featured on their website. I would like to have the opportunity to be with my daughters, with my family, my granddaughters who only know me by phone. I would like the opportunity to return and lead a life with my family. Be able to help them. Without that, my life is finished.

In 2022, as part of New Yorks new cannabis legislative scheme, Mr Pinillas convictions were vacated.

At the time, officials noted that the new laws were intended to rectify the states racially disparate; enforcement of marijuana crimes, Jill Applegate, an attorney with Neighborhood Defender Service of Harlem, who is helping fight Mr Pinillas case, wrote recently in a New York Times op-ed. Yet, for many immigrants who received deportation orders because of their marijuana convictions, the benefits of these new laws have yet to materialize.

Marijuana is still a federal controlled substance that can be the basis for deportation proceedings, and it can take years of complicated judicial motions to petition the US for travel documents back into America on the basis of expunged past offences.

A conviction can be expunged, but it can still harm you in terms of immigration, Marie Mark, of the Immigrant Defense Project, told City Limits in 2021, the year New York legalised recreational marijuana use. Immigration law has its own definition of conviction, and has its own requirements about when a conviction can be erased  we call it vacated.

Between 2003 and 2020, at least 1,300 New Yorkers whose most serious conviction was for marijuana possession or sale were ordered deported, accorsint to data from the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse Immigration.
By Lucy Craymer

WELLINGTON (Reuters) - New Zealand is negotiating a new type of partnership with NATO, which will likely cover areas of common interest including the international rules based order, climate change and cyber security, the country's foreign minister said on Wednesday.

Nanaia Mahuta said in an email to Reuters that NATO is shifting all of its partnership arrangements to a new model called an Individually Tailored Partnership Programme and that New Zealand was currently working out the details.

"Our ITPP will record long-standing areas of mutual interest between New Zealand and NATO, and possible opportunities for cooperation over the arrangement period," she said.

"While the exact areas of work are yet to be agreed, we expect it will cover areas of common interest such as support for the international rules based order, climate change, and cyber security," she said.

New Zealand has been a NATO partner since 2012 but is not a member. A NATO statement in February said New Zealand and NATO were strengthening relations to address shared security challenges.

Mahuta said neither New Zealand nor NATO considers the ITPPs to be a new bloc or formal regional grouping.

New Zealand has only one official ally - neighbouring Australia - although both are part of the Five Eyes intelligence and security alliance that includes Britain, Canada and the United States.

New Zealand has a long-standing nuclear free policy and Mahuta said the ITPP would be in line with that policy.

New Zealand's Prime Minister Chris Hipkins earlier this week confirmed he would be attending the NATO summit in Lithuania as well as visiting China at the end of June.

NATO will set up a liaison office in Tokyo in 2024 and use it as a hub for co-operation with Australia, Japan, New Zealand and South Korea, the Nikkei newspaper said on Tuesday, a plan China has previously described as unwelcome.

(Reporting by Lucy Craymer; Editing by Lincoln Feast.)
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had a conversation with his Polish counterpart Andrzej Duda, during which they discussed military assistance to Ukraine and Ukraine's future membership in NATO.

Source: Zelenskyy in his evening address

Quote: "I have just spoken with the President of Poland Andrzej Duda - an hour-long conversation, primarily on security issues. The current situation on the battlefield, weapons for our military, and ammunition. I thanked him for the fulfilment of previous defence agreements."

Zelenskyy also added that, in every conversation, the parties usually pay considerable attention to long-term security and guarantees of peace  not only for Ukraine.

Zelensky stressed that Poland "is quite realistic about the need for Ukraine's membership in NATO." The President called such a need objective and added that together with Duda he was developing concrete content for the Alliance summit in Vilnius.

"This is exactly the moment when Russian assumptions that someone in NATO is still afraid of Russia should be completely shattered. Such assumptions fuel Russias aggressive ambitions. We must and can neutralise them. We thank Poland for its support of Ukraine and the real strengthening of NATO,"concluded Zelensky.

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A lawsuit that argued three leaders of the Monacan Indian Nation acted unlawfully to prevent nine plaintiffs from receiving payments after the Amherst County-based tribe became federally recognized in 2018 was dismissed recently after a federal judge found the court lacked jurisdiction to resolve the dispute.

The lawsuit filed last June in U.S. District Court in Lynchburg against Kenneth Branham, the tribes chief; Adrian Compton, tribal administrator; and Amber Fink, secretary, said the nine plaintiffs are members of the Monacan Indian Nation but an attorney representing the defendants has said they were disenrolled from the tribe. The suit claimed the defendants took steps to improperly and unlawfully prevent the plaintiffs from receiving roughly $91,600 in federal funds they collectively should have received as tribe members.

Among the nine plaintiffs, two live in Amherst County, one resides in Forest, three live in Buena Vista and the other three reside in Midlothian, North Carolina, and Florida.

The complaint claims the defendants actions were undertaken without the consent of the Monacan Tribal Council and contrary to the tribal councils desires and alleged Branham is not the tribes legitimate chief. Greg Werkheiser, attorney for the defendants, said that claim is untrue and the plaintiffs sought to set up a pretend government.

Joseph Sanzone, attorney for the plaintiffs, said in a previous interview the defendants interfered with his clients rights to receive federal funds.

The lawsuit states the tribal council removed Branham and Compton, who according to the complaint is not a Monacan Indian, because they would not comply with councils demand to develop a budget, monitor appropriation, and the fact that [Branham], in direct defiance of councils directive, purchased a new tribal headquarters at 111 Highview Drive in Madison Heights at the intersection of U.S. 29 Business and Dixie Airport Road.

The suit describes that property as substantially overpriced, too small for tribal needs and which would have required an environmental impact statement, which the suit states wasnt acquired. The lawsuit further claimed Branham expressly refused to comply with tribal councils lawful demands concerning the use of tribal funds, closed tribal meetings to some Monacan members and failed to comply with federal audit requirements.

Werkheiser has said the allegations about the defendants operating the tribe corruptly are absolutely, easily disprovable. His motion to dismiss the suit argued the Monacan Indian Nation, as a sovereign federally recognized tribe, is entitled to sovereign immunity and the complaint failed to plead sufficient facts above a speculative level.

Branhams election to a four-year term as chief in 2019 was properly registered with the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), the federal agency charged with maintaining an updated record of federally recognized tribal governments and elected officials, according to the motion to dismiss. The motion to dismiss states the complaint describes intra-tribal controversies for which it argues federal court has no jurisdiction.

In a 22-page ruling June 1, U.S. District Court Norman K. Moon wrote this Court emphatically is not the forum to resolve Plaintiffs intra-tribal leadership dispute.

Werkheiser said in a phone interview the Monacan Indian Nation is pleased by the judges lengthy and thoughtful decision.

This affirms what we have always maintained, which is that the government led by Chief Branham is the legitimate government of the nation, Werkheiser said.

The plaintiffs claims were improper and the BIA has been made perfectly clear at the highest level that Branham is the rightful chief, Werkheiser said.

Sanzone said in an interview in reaction to Moons ruling he has filed a brief before the BIA to correct their records.

Nothings really clarified except Judge Moon says the federal court [doesnt have] any jurisdiction in any matter that involves internal tribal affairs, he said.

Sanzone said the plaintiffs sought in court an injunction against three individuals, not the tribe itself, and referenced an appeal brief he recently filed on behalf of the tribal council he represents. That appeal to the Bureau of Indian Affairs seeks to correct a manifest injustice in regard to the tribes leadership, according to the filing.

Werkheiser said he will file a legal response to that appeal in coming days.

No one is persuaded that Mr. Sanzones client is legitimate and they are an imposter group which unfortunately is a common challenge faced by tribal nations across the country, he said.

Meanwhile, an election for the Monacan Indian Nation moving forward on Saturday, June 17 is the real one and at that time a chief will be selected for a four-year term. Branham is set to retire from the role, according to Werkheiser.
Lincolns Pub, which opened in 2017, has extended its bar hours and added dinner hours for the first time since last year.

The pub will continue operations from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., but will now open for dinner from 4 to 9 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 4 to 10 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays and until 4 to 8 p.m. on Sundays.

The bar at Jeffersons Lounge closes at 10 p.m. on weekdays, but they are more lenient on weekends and tend to stay open however long is necessary.

Co-founder Jon Nelson and new co-owner Taylor Riedemann operate both restaurants in tandem.

Were going for a diner approach on the Lincolns side while focusing on the nightlife side at the neighboring Jeffersons Lounge, Nelson told the Nonpareil in February.

Along with the extended hours, Lincolns Pub is also adding new menu items and incorporating ingredients that support local agriculture.

We source all of our beef and pork from local farms in Nebraska and Iowa, Reidemann said. We source our meat from Jons Naturals, a butcher shop that Jon owns in Iowa.

The restaurant is nothing if not transparent about how their food is sourced and even how its made.

All sandwiches and pizzas made at the pub are cooked in a giant oven located in the center of the restaurant for all to see.

During the challenging times of the COVID-19 pandemic, Lincolns Pub faced staffing issues and consequently reduced hours of operation, closing on Mondays.

At one point, there were just three of us in the kitchen, said Garrett Fong, an employee since 2017.

It was quite hectic.

With an upgraded kitchen staff, Lincolns Pub is now proud to present an enhanced menu. The updated offerings include crab rangoon pizza  a longtime favorite, a new chicken bacon ranch sandwich and salad recipe, a fresh artichoke dip recipe, blackberry habanero pizza, and pepperoni rolls.
DES MOINES  State Sen. Zach Wahls of Coralville, in a social media post Monday, described and defended the events that led to his ouster last week as Democrats leader in the Iowa Senate.

Wahls was voted out of his position as Iowa Senate minority leader when Senate Democrats called an impromptu meeting and voted to make Sen. Pam Jochum, of Dubuque, their new leader.

Wahls post Monday was his first public comment since the vote.

I am no longer leader because I made the difficult decision to fire two longtime staffers who did not share my vision for change while restructuring our staff. My Senate Democratic colleagues disagreed with my decision, Wahls said in the post. There is always a resistance to change and new ideas, and I stand by the decision because Iowa Democrats desperately need a new direction and leaders who will chart that course.

The two Democratic caucus staff members that Wahls had fired, Erik Bakker and Deb Kattenhorn, are once again employed by the caucus, a spokesman confirmed Monday.

Previous disagreements over Wahls direction as caucus leader also led to his ouster, although neither Wahls nor Senate Democrats have not said publicly what those issues were. Senate Democrats did not specify any reasons for the change in a statement issued the day after the vote.

Wahls post made no mention of his future plans.

A 31-year-old from Coralville serving his second four-year term in the Iowa Senate, Wahls declined further comment, and referred The Gazette back to his public statement.

There are just 16 Democrats in the 50-member Iowa Senate. Thats the lowest number of Senate seats held by either of the two major parties in 50 years.

Iowa Statehouse Republicans have held the governors office and agenda-setting majorities in both chambers of the Iowa Legislature since 2017, giving them full control over the state lawmaking process over that time.

So many people are discouraged about the direction of our state and the losses our party has sustained over the past decade, and if you are one of them, I want to speak directly to you, Wahls said in his post. While they want us to give in to cynicism, we must refuse to accept that Iowa is lost forever.

Our fight for liberty, justice, and shared prosperity is difficult. Our success will require honest reflection, an immense amount of hard work, and a deep commitment to change. And while change is always hard  Iowans are counting on us, and failure is not an option.

Wahls was first elected to the Iowa Senate in 2018, and in 2020 was elected leader of the minority-party Senate Democrats. He first gained prominence in 2011 when he spoke on the Iowa House floor about his two mothers as legislators debated a proposal to ban same-sex marriage in the state.

Jochum, 68, has served in the Iowa Senate since 2009, and before that had served in the Iowa House since 1993. In 2012, she was chosen by her peers as the second woman and first female Democrat to serve as Iowa Senate president.

The next session of the Iowa Legislature is scheduled to convene Jan. 8, 2024.

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SEOUL, South Korea (AP)  North Korea stayed silent Wednesday about the detention of an American soldier who sprinted across the Koreas heavily fortified border as other members of his tour group looked on in shock. Some observers said the North was unlikely to send him back any time soon a
Moroccos Princess Lalla Hasnaa, President of Mohammed VI Foundation for Environmental Protection & Patron of UN Decade of Ocean Sciences for Sustainable Development Alliance, has voiced the Kingdoms steadfast commitment to strengthen cooperation ties with Africa in accordance with the far-sighted policy spearheaded by King Mohammed VI.

In an address made Wednesday in Monaco to the high-level opening segment of the third edition of the Ocean Decade Foundations Dialogue, the Princess said: Africa needs substantial and massive support. That is why we are striving to jointly undertake and share concrete steps for successful sustainable development on a continental scale.

We are also taking action on behalf of Africa, its young people and the countries of the South as a whole. Their resilience should be strengthened to counter the threats of climate change that affect the entire African population, added Princess Lalla Hasnaa.

This commitment was reiterated in the Bouknadel Declaration, presented at the UN Ocean Conference, held in Lisbon in 2022, and will be reaffirmed at the Barcelona Conference scheduled for 2024, she said, calling for a swift action to protect the coastal strips of the Atlantic and Indian Oceans from rising sea levels and pollution, affirming that this appeal concerns the whole of Africa.

The Princess welcomed the fact that the North and South shores are engaged in a two-way interactive dynamic, so that Our Mare Nostrum is asserting itself as a vector of unity, rather than a dividing line.

The goal of the Monaco meeting is to ensure the success of the UN Decade of Ocean Sciences for Sustainable Development, she said, recalling that as a founding member of the Alliance, the Mohammed VI Foundation for Environmental Protection was associated with this initiative launched by UNESCOs Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission.

Under the leadership of King Mohammed VI, Morocco has been implementing the Clean Beaches program since 2001, said the Princess, citing in this regard the Blue Flag project and the successful rehabilitation of the Marchica lagoon on the Mediterranean coast.

This exceptional natural site, once condemned to asphyxiation by effluent, is now in such a good phase of regeneration that oyster farming has been reintroduced, said the Princess.

From now on, the Decade will include two programs that have been carried out for years, namely the Clean Beaches program and the Sustainable Coastline Awards. The first recognizes and rewards concrete actions carried out in Morocco, notably in terms of improving beach cleanliness, creating artificial reefs for fry populations, setting up mobile purification stations and promoting scientific research on algae. The second program, entitled #bharblaplastic or #beachwithoutplastic is deployed during the summer season and aims to raise awareness of the need to clean up the oceans by eliminating plastic waste, underlined Princess Lalla Hasnaa.

Currently, we are in the process of introducing a third program in line with the Decades objectives, which aims, among other things, to support the university student community in developing knowledge of the ocean, said the Princess, stressing that this project is dedicated to the entire African continent.

In collaboration with the Hassan II International Center for Environmental Training, training resources, mainly online, have been developed that the Kingdom for the benefit of the Decade, explained Princess Lalla Hasnaa, recalling the launch, four years ago, of the African Youth Climate Hub, which is meant to involve young people, provide them training via an online platform and, as an incubator, support various projects.

The high-level opening segment of this 3rd Foundations Dialogue for the Ocean Decade is co-organized by UNESCOs Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC) and the Albert II of Monaco Foundation.

During their three-day meeting, participants and delegates of international foundations will discuss ways of supporting the actions already underway within the framework of this Decade, and those yet to be launched, in order to achieve the targeted goals by 2030.

As a founding member of the Ocean Decade Alliance and the Ocean Decade working group in Africa and the Adjacent Island States, the Mohammed VI Foundation for Environmental Protection has, since the first edition of these dialogues, acted as the mouthpiece of the South and Africa in order to secure the necessary support for countries lacking sufficient resources to counter climate change and its impact on the oceans.

At the second edition, held in Morocco under the aegis of Hassan II International Center for Environmental Training, participants jointly adopted the Bouknadel Declaration, calling for action and international financial solidarity. Implementation of the Bouknadel Declaration was the focus of the 3rd Dialogue in Monte Carlo.

Launched in 2021 by the United Nations, the Ocean Decade is a global initiative seeking to deepen scientific knowledge of the sea and protect the oceans.
Moroccos Mohammed VI Investment Fund and the International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, signed a partnership agreement on Tuesday to identify and finance sustainable infrastructure projects in the North African country.

The agreement aims to support high-impact infrastructure projects in strategic sectors such as renewable energy, water, transport and logistics, and to attract private capital and stimulate inclusive, sustainable growth, according to a joint statement.

The IFC will also help the Mohammed VI Investment Fund set up an Infrastructure by sharing best practices in the structuring, governance and financing of responsible infrastructure projects, the statement said.

This partnership with IFC meets the goals of the Mohammed VI Investment Fund to attract leading national and international investors to its side, to contribute to future investment projects and leverage the equity invested, said Mohamed Benchaaboun, Managing Director of the Fund.

He added that the partnership will also facilitate and improve the conditions for the design and execution of viable infrastructure projects in the form of public-private partnerships.

We are working with the Government of Morocco to mobilize private investment in the infrastructure sector. This new partnership signed between the Mohammed VI Investment Fund and IFC is a key step towards developing and financing high-impact infrastructure projects in the Kingdom, said Sergio Pimenta, IFCs Regional Vice President for Africa.

The Mohammed VI Investment Fund is one of the key pillars of the recovery plan announced by King Mohammed VI in July 2020. It has an initial capital of 15 billion dirhams ($1.6 billion) from the state budget, and aims to attract up to 30 billion dirhams in additional private capital, ultimately generating a total investment envelope of 120 to 150 billion dirhams.

Morocco is facing growing demand for infrastructure services as it seeks to boost its economic recovery and competitiveness after the Covid-19 pandemic as it also tries to bolster its industry and renewable energy production.
The transitional President of Burkina Faso, Ibrahim Traore, announced Tuesday, he was awarded the BRICS Medal for his determination and courage in the interest of the West African countrys sovereignty.

The award was presented by Larissa Zelentsova, the President of the International Alliance of BRICS Strategic Projects.

The Russian BRICS boss, who was in Ouagadougou to open a representative office of the bloc, said the bloc represents the link between BRICS member countries and non-member countries.

Traore and Zelentsova discussed BRICS cooperation and support for Burkina Faso.

Traore came to power late September in a coup that toppled interim president Paul-Henri Sandaogo Damiba.

He turned to Russia, Turkey and North Korea for military support in the fight against terrorism that has gripped the West African country for several years now. Ouagadougou has terminated defense cooperation agreements with former colonial power, France.
Several petitioners and Delegates of UN members States have voiced unwavering support to the autonomy plan offered by Morocco for the Sahara under its sovereignty, praising the socioeconomic development achieved in the Moroccan Sahara which enjoying peace, stability and inclusive growth.

Addressing the 2023 session of the United Nations C-24 convening in New York, the representative of Cote dIvoire said Moroccos autonomy initiative offers many opportunities to local populations and is the best compromise solution to the Sahara issue.

Voicing concern about the situation in the Tindouf camps, he called for the recommendations of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) to be upheld.

The Delegate of Dominican Republic voiced support for the UN-led process aimed at reaching a mutually acceptable solution to the Sahara regional dispute in line with Security Council resolutions, describing the Moroccan autonomy Plan as a basis for reaching a realistic solution.

The representative of Antigua and Barbuda called on Algeria, Morocco, Mauritania and Polisario to continue to actively participate in good faith in the round-table processes, noting that this is the only peaceful way to ensure a successful outcome.

Voicing support for Moroccos autonomy initiative, he said it offers a compromise solution to the regional dispute and is in line with international law, the UN Charter and Security Council and General Assembly resolutions.

The delegate of Saint Lucia said the Moroccan autonomy initiative is serious and credible, urging all parties to the Sahara conflict to support the efforts of the UN Sahara envoy to advance dialogue towards a realistic and mutually acceptable solution.

The ambassador of Papua New Guinea reaffirmed his countrys backing to the Moroccan autonomy initiative, offering a solid basis to build on and progress towards a lasting solution, drawing on the United Nations Charter and relevant resolutions, noting the encouraging support of over 100 countries to the Moroccan proposal.

The permanent representative of Saint Kitts & Nevis to the UN expressed support for the political process under way and voiced confidence in the efforts of the Secretary-Generals Personal Envoy saying these efforts will lead to a realistic and practical solution, based on compromise as called for by Council resolutions.

Welcoming the autonomy plan put forward by Morocco, the diplomat said it is a realistic initiative and will facilitate the resolution of this prolonged dispute.

The ambassador of Guatemala voiced support for the autonomy initiative proposed by Morocco in 2007 as a realistic and serious basis for reaching a negotiated solution to the Sahara regional dispute.

Achieving a solution is necessary for the stability, security and integration of the Maghreb region, said the diplomat, expressing support for the efforts of the Secretary-General and his Personal Envoy in assisting parties to reach a mutually acceptable solution to the conflict.

The same supportive stand was voiced by the representative of Dominican Republic, who commended the Moroccan autonomy plan and the efforts made by the UN chief and his personal envoy in order to find a just and peaceful solution to the Sahara issue.

Speaking on behalf of the Gulf Cooperation Council at the UN, the Representative of Oman stressed the importance of the strategic partnership between the GCC and Morocco, saying the Gulf countries support Moroccos efforts to solve the Sahara issue. The Omani diplomat hailed the serious and realistic autonomy plan offered by Morocco for a lasting settlement of the Sahara question that will bolster security and stability in the region.

The delegate of Burkina Faso said the United Nations must continue to play a key role in the resolution of the question of Sahara, expressing support for the political process initiated by the Secretary-General.

Moroccos autonomy initiative is a realistic and trustworthy alternative, said the diplomat, adding that it is in conformity with international law and Security Council resolutions.

The representative of Senegal welcomed the social, economic, and democratic progress achieved by Morocco in its Saharan provinces, commanding the pragmatic autonomy initiative proposed by the North African Kingdom for an enduring and peaceful resolution of the Sahara issue.

The Delegate of Gabon said the Moroccan autonomy initiative provides an acceptable and negotiated political solution and benefits from international support.

Noting the positive developments on the ground, the diplomat said that Moroccan Sahara now participates in the Special Committees regional seminars. More than 30 countries, including Gabon, have opened consulates in Saharan Moroccan cities of Laayoune and Dakhla, said the Gabonese diplomat, voicing concern over the deteriorating humanitarian situation in the polisario-controlled Tindouf camps.

The Permanent representative of Equatorial Guinea called for the resumption of the Sahara round-table format with the same four participants, praising Moroccos commitment to regional cooperation and constructive dialogue.

Morocco has shown genuine will to seek a peaceful solution, he said, commending the work of the UN Sahara envoy for re-launching the UN political process to resolve this regional conflict.

The Delegate of Comoro Islands expressed support to Moroccos territorial integrity and sovereignty over its Sahara, describing the Kingdoms efforts as serious and credible for the settlement of this regional conflict.

Morocco is making constructive efforts for the socioeconomic development of the Sahara and continues to promote the well-being of the local population, said the Comoro representative.

The same supportive stands were expressed by several countries including Burundi, Liberia, Togo, Guinea-Bissau, Gambia, Sierra Leone, Cabo Verde, Guinea, Djibouti, Jordan, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, UAE

Moroccos permanent representative to the UN said the issue of the decolonization of the Moroccan Sahara was definitively and irrevocably sealed under Chapter VI of the United Nations Charter.

Therefore: Only the Security Council is in a position to make recommendations, which it does every year, he stressed, affirming that the question of referendum had been effectively buried by the Council two decades ago.

He voiced regret that Algeria does not wish to take part in the round-table talks, despite successive calls by the Council for all parties to come to the table, thereby blocking the UN-led political process.

Ghalla Bahiya, Vice-Pdt of Dakhla-Oued Ed-Dahab regional council, commended the remarkable progress made in the Moroccan Sahara. When recovered in 1975, it was the least developed region in her country, she said, adding that today the southern provinces have very high development indicators.

Drawing attention to the regional and local elections in 2021, she said they demonstrate Moroccos commitment to democracy. The new development model launched by Mohammed VI in 2015 is an ambitious initiative that is boosting the economy and developing infrastructure, renewable energy, and tourism.

For his part, Mhamed Abba, Vice-Pdt. of Laayoune-Sakia Al Hamra regional council, highlighted Moroccos great efforts in creating new opportunities for the development of its southern provinces.

The new development model for that region launched in 2015 has mobilized all resources to stimulate the socioeconomic development process and priority sectors with the aim of ensuring the well-being of Moroccan Saharas citizens. Voicing concern about the situation in the Tindouf camps, he said Moroccos autonomy initiative has the support of a growing number of countries and is the basis for negotiations to find a solution to that dispute.

Dahi Ahl El Khattat, speaking for the Rotary Club of Dakhla, said the Sahara population elects its local and national representatives, and that those elections enjoy high levels of participation.

He deplored the lamentable conditions suffered by the inhabitants held in the Tindouf camps by Polisario armed militiamen who have committed the worst possible crimes, in collusion with the host country, Algeria.

Moulay Brahim Chrif, Laayoune Initiatives Association, praised the autonomy initiative, which provides for legislative and administrative institutions to run the affairs of the Sahara locally and democratically.

The inhabitants of the region elect their representatives, he said, citing the new development initiative launched by Morocco in 2015, while in Tindouf camps, the inhabitants have been suffering for five decades.
In recent years, the Islamic State Terror Organization, which has forged an alliance with the Polisario separatist group, has increased its influence and presence in Africa, though the scope of this presence varies according to some specific regions of the continent.

The radical organization extended its influence in Africa by exploiting existing conflicts, ethnic and religious tensions and the poor socio-economic conditions prevailing in some regions.

The Jihadist leaders recruit both local and foreign fighters as in the Tindouf camps in Algeria, especially those trained on guerrilla tactics and incite them to carry out terrorist attacks in order to expand the territories under control of the terrorist groups.

The Sahel region is particularly affected by the growing ISIS activity in Africa. Groups affiliated to Daesh, such as the Islamic State in West Africa (ISWAP), continue to carry out attacks on security forces, civilians and military installations in the region. They seek to impose their extremist ideology and disrupt the economic and social activities in the targeted countries.

Other regions in Libya, Nigeria and Somalia have also been affected by Daesh violence, although the specific dynamics and challenges differ from one country to another. Groups affiliated to the Islamic State exploit internal conflicts, institutional weaknesses and political divisions to set foot in territories and carry out terrorist operations.

The fight against Daesh and other terrorist groups in Africa remains a complex challenge that requires greater regional and international cooperation and coordination.

It is worth noting that the actions and activities of ISIS are widely condemned by the international community and that many African countries have taken steps to combat this threat.

Several Polisario terrorists, who had joined Daesh, were recently eliminated in South-West Algeria and the Sahel region. The Polisario terrorist group is supported and financed by the Algerian government. It gets its weapons and military equipment from the Algerian army, the Russian Wagner group and the arms smuggling market in the Sahel region.
The first month of North Plattes higher 2% city sales tax quickly produced a milestone: the taxs first million-dollar month.

The Nebraska Department of Revenue will return $1,161,747 to the city for April, the department reported Wednesday in releasing that months local sales and hotel-motel tax figures across the state.

Lincoln County meanwhile will receive a net $89,794 in April lodging taxes, closing the countys 2022-23 fiscal year with a record $1,208,615 for local tourism promotion.

North Plattes local sales tax rose from 1.5% to 2% on April 1, the effective date for the special half-cent tax for recreation projects that city voters approved resoundingly last November.

Proceeds from the extra half-cent will gradually repay yet-to-be-issued bonds to expand the North Platte Recreation Complex, renovate Cody Pool and relocate and rebuild the citys skate park. The special tax will expire once those bonds are paid off.

The special taxs opening month yielded an initial $290,437 toward the coming recreation projects. But the remaining $871,310 was still 6.2% higher than 2022s previous April record of $820,636.

City Hall will continue to use figures from the permanent 1.5% local sales tax in determining when the citys Quality Growth Fund for economic development can start receiving fresh funds for the city fiscal year that ends Sept. 30.

Aprils figures raised the regular sales taxs 2022-23 take to $7.63 million, just less than $100,000 behind QGFs $7.73 million trigger point set when voters renewed the fund in 2020. QGF can receive up to $650,000 from city sales taxes each fiscal year.

City Administrator Layne Groseth welcomed the news on Aprils local sales-tax yield.

I was hoping we would be up on our normal numbers so that would mean a good collection for the Rec Center fund, he said. It really is what I was hoping and expecting.

Voters approved raising $52.5 million through the extra half-cent tax for the recreation work, but Groseth reminded residents that the city also will have to repay bond interest over time.

Construction hasnt come yet, and we havent had any bills yet, but that will come soon, he said.

City officials hope to have the first project designs by early fall from RDG Planning & Design, approved by the City Council April 1 to lead a multifirm team including local architects, engineers and builders.

Groseth said the city also hopes to begin work on Cody Pools upgrades soon after it closes for the summer in mid-August. The 1951 pool was last renovated in 1980.

Aprils local sales-tax performance likely also reflected renewed construction activity in North Platte as winter gave way to spring, said Gary Person, president and CEO of the North Platte Area Chamber & Development Corp.

Youve got to take that (information) with a caution that it wont be that way every April.  Ive been through that too many times as a city manager in a growing community, said Person, a former Sidney city manager.

That said, well continue to see that (construction) activity over the next couple of years. Hopefully well get a couple of housing subdivisions going to continue the trend.  If anything slows down the economy, its going to be the lack of housing development.

As the transformation of North Plattes mall into District 177 moves closer to completion, youll see a consistent rise in sales-tax revenue in the community, Person said.

Lincoln Countys 4% lodging tax beat its 2022 record of $85,857 by 4.6% in April. The countys record July-to-June fiscal year also included the hotel-motel taxs two best-ever months of $175,363 last July and $165,973 in June 2022.

Person said he expects out-of-town construction workers will help keep county lodging tax income high. There are significant projects going on in our neighboring communities, he said.
A North Platte man was given two consecutive sentences stemming from an incident where he was found passed out in a warehouse after breaking in.

Kyle J. Martyszenko, 35, pleaded no contest to felony attempted burglary and in a separate case to felony possession of a deadly weapon by a prohibited person.

As part of a plea deal, charges of felony possession of burglars tools, possession of a controlled substance and misdemeanor criminal mischief in the burglary case were dropped.

Charges of felony criminal impersonation and possession of a controlled substance in the weapons case were dropped.

Piccolo sentenced him to 364 days in the Lincoln County Detention Center with 190 days credit with one year post release supervision and 180 days in the Lincoln County Detention Center with 98 days credit, respectively. Both sentences will run consecutive.

According to court records, in August 2022, when employees arrived to start their day at the Sarah Lee Warehouse located near Sixth and Taft, they found plastic pallets and $2,000 worth of computer equipment tossed about and broken.

Martyszenko was found sleeping on his knees with his face rested on the loading bay ledge. There was a lockpicking set found on his person along with a white rocky substance testing positive for methamphetamine.

He was arrested and lodged in the Lincoln County Detention Center.

In other court proceedings Monday (all listed below are from North Platte unless otherwise specified):

Barbara Collins, 33, pleaded not guilty to two counts of felony committing child abuse with no injury. She is out on personal recognizance.

Omar Mora, 36, pleaded not guilty to felony possession of methamphetamine.

Samuel S. Buck, 28, pleaded guilty to misdemeanor driving under the influence, .08 blood alcohol content or higher. As part of the plea deal, the original charge of felony DUI .15 or higher was amended. He is scheduled for sentencing July 26.

Keyshla Muniz, 30, pleaded no contest to misdemeanor domestic assault, intentionally causing bodily injury to an intimate partner. As part of the plea deal, the original charge of felony second degree domestic assault was amended down. Volkmer sentenced her to two years probation. The no contact order against the victim was also lifted because they are now married. Congratulations Ms. Muniz, said Volkmer.

Shawn E. Hobbs, 58, of Bellevue, pleaded guilty to misdemeanor first offense DUI .15 BAC or higher. As part of the plea deal, the charge of felony second offense DUI .15 BAC or higher was amended down. The charges of misdemeanor reckless driving and leaving the scene of an accident were dropped. Volkmer sentenced him to 30 days in the Lincoln County Detention Center with 7 days credit, plus a $1,000 fine, revoked license for two years, an order not to drive for 45 days and an interlock device ordered. He will have to report to jail July 1. Following jail, he will be placed on 18 months probation.

Terry L. Johnson, 60, pleaded guilty to felony driving under a suspended license. As part of the plea deal, the charge of felony leaving the scene of an accident was dropped. His sentencing is scheduled for Aug. 7.

Alfonso Carillo, 25, of Tolleson, Arizona, pleaded guilty to felony possession of methamphetamine. As part of the plea deal, a charge of possession of cocaine 140 grams or more was dropped. Volkmer sentenced him to 364 days in the Lincoln County Detention Center with 153 days credit.

Charles J. Royce, 29, of Gothenburg pleaded no contest to felony attempted burglary. As part of the plea deal, the original charge of felony burglary was dropped. Volkmer sentenced him to 18 months imprisonment with 291 days credit. He will also have to follow 9 months post release supervision.

Timothy D. Johnson, 32, pleaded no contest to felony possession of methamphetamine with intent to deliver, distribute or manufacture.

As part of the plea deal, a charge of felony possession of methamphetamine, 28-139 grams was amended to misdemeanor attempted possession and then amended further to the charge he pleaded no contest to.

Charges of felony delivery, distribution, manufacture of a controlled substance, possession of a controlled substance and misdemeanor third offense DUI of drugs were dropped. Volkmer sentenced him to four years specialized substance abuse supervision probation.

Johnson pleaded no contest to a Class 2 felony, which normally requires a mandatory minimum one year imprisonment. The terms of his probation stipulate Johnson cant leave Nebraska, despite his wish to move to Hawaii.

Prior to sentencing, he said he wanted to thank the court for the opportunity of probation.

Latosha M. Ryan, 35, pleaded no contest to felony first degree forgery, theft by deception between $500 and $1,500 and possession of a controlled substance.

As part of the plea deal, charges of felony intentional child abuse with no injury, possession of a controlled substance and misdemeanor failure to appear or comply with a citation were dropped. She is scheduled for sentencing on Aug. 21.

Russel J. Smith Jr., 39, pleaded no contest to felony possession of methamphetamine possession of methamphetamine with intent to deliver, distribute or manufacture. As part of the plea deal, all other charges from related cases have been dropped.

Dalton S. Hinton, 29, of Hershey was sentenced to 30 days in the Lincoln County Detention Center with 37 days credit, a fine of $1,000, two years license revocation, two years probation, 45 days without driving and on interlock device ordered.

This was after pleading no contest to misdemeanor domestic assault of an intimate partner with bodily injury and third offense DUI with BAC .08 and above in May.

As part of the plea deal, charges of misdemeanor domestic assault of an intimate partner with bodily injury and DUI .15 BAC and above were amended down. The charges of willful reckless driving and criminal mischief below $500 were dropped.

Benjamin F. Beauvais, 31, pleaded guilty to felony possession of methamphetamine and burglary. As part of the plea deal, Piccolo sentenced him to the Midwest Nebraska Problem Solving Court with a modified bond of personal recognizance when released from the Lincoln County Detention Center.

Michael J. Pearsall, 38, pleaded not guilty to two counts of felony intentional child abuse with no injury and one count of misdemeanor negligent child abuse with no injury. His is out on bail at 10% of $20,000. His next court appearance is scheduled for Aug. 21.

Wesley M. Kraft, 35, pleaded not guilty to felony possession of a firearm by a prohibited person, possession of a deadly weapon by a prohibited person, possession of a defaced firearm and possession of methamphetamine. He is out on bail at 10% of $25,000. His next scheduled appearance is Aug. 21.

Colin A. Langford, 22, of Bertrand pleaded not guilty to felony first degree sexual assault of a minor and child enticement with an electronic communication device. Currently his bond is set at 10% of $125,000 and is unable to post bond.

Piccolo denied his bond reduction request after the prosecution successfully argued his alleged pattern of behavior with the victim went as far back as when she was 13 years old. His next court appearance is scheduled for Aug. 21.

Jerrita L. Kindle, 37, pleaded not guilty to felony possession of methamphetamine between 10 and 27 grams. Her bail is set at 10% of $75,000 and is unable to post bond. Piccolo denied bond reduction. Her next court appearance is scheduled for Sept. 11.

Allen J. McGinnis, 30, admitted to violation of probation after sentencing from charges from felony theft by deception under $500. Piccolo sentenced him to 240 days in the Lincoln County Detention Center with 52 days credit.

Mark I. Ramos, 38, pleaded not guilty to felony possession of methamphetamine between 10 and 27 grams.

Randall J. Skates, 44, pleaded no contest to misdemeanor attempted possession of methamphetamine. As part of the plea deal, the charge of felony possession of methamphetamine was dropped. Piccolo sentenced him to 90 days in the Lincoln County Detention Center with credit 45 days served.

Chase D. Maurer, 33, of Brady, pleaded no contest to misdemeanor first offense DUI and attempt of a class one misdemeanor. As part of the plea deal, a count of DUI causing serious bodily injury was dropped. Volkmer sentenced him to 20 days in the Lincoln County Detention Center with one day credit. He will have to check in and out every weekend. He also will serve 2 years probation, pay a restitution of $2,400 to the victim, and his license is revoked for 60 days.
Miss Rodeo America Kennadee Riggs was at the Dusty Trails petting zoo at the Miss Rodeo Nebraska meet and greet sponsored by NebraskaLand Bank on Tuesday morning.

Riggs has traveled some 40,000 miles this year around the country and will attend about 150 rodeos this year. Now she is in North Platte in support of the Miss Rodeo Nebraska Pageant; and in continuing support of rodeo and the agricultural way of life. The former Miss Rodeo Arizona grew up in Queen Creek, in the Phoenix metropolitan area. She said she is impressed with Nebraska and with the hospitality of people in the North Platte area. It is her first time here.

As for her outlook on life, The world is a lot more positive than it can seem with the bad news all around, she said. She noted her faith in God a major driving force in her life; God has a plan for each person but is up to each of us to find out what it is. She also said she takes seriously the responsibility to serve as a model of modesty and wholesome living for the youngsters who look up to her.
Nearly a year before western Nebraska voters cast their next primary ballots, the regions 2024 election field has its first unofficial candidate.

Larry Bolinger of Alliance, who has sought statewide offices in the past three election cycles, announced Tuesday hell run to succeed term-limited state Sen. Steve Erdman of Bayard in Legislative District 47.

The No. 1 thing we need in District 47 is a candidate that is a steward to the people. I have not seen that done in decades, said Bolinger, who ran for Nebraska attorney general in 2022 on the Legal Marijuana NOW ticket.

What I have seen is representatives that work on one or two policies in the eight years they are in office and they refused to engage and work with the people.

If elected to the Unicameral, Bolinger said in a press release, he would hold frequent town-hall meetings, keep an open-door policy and work with people from all political parties. The Legislature is officially nonpartisan.

If you are not biased in your approach to politics, then you can be a voice of reason and focus on what is important for your community, he said.

Bolinger, a former contractor, received about 30% of the statewide vote in losing to then-Speaker of the Legislature Mike Hilgers of Lincoln in the 2022 election for attorney general.

He ran as a Republican for Nebraskas 3rd Congressional District seat in 2018 and 2020, finishing last in the GOP primary both times.

Bolinger, a former member of the Alliance Planning Commission, also trailed a seven-candidate field for two

Alliance City Council seats in the 2016 primary.

He said in his press release that he would seek to boost teacher and law enforcement wages, seek to reduce child hunger, child addiction and greenhouse gases and end truancy as a status offense.

Bolinger also called for building a new police building in Alliance and adding rest stops at the U.S. Highway 385 junctions between Alliance and Bridgeport.

He holds a bachelors degree in political science from the University of Nebraska at Omaha and will receive a masters in public administration from Bellevue University this September, he said in his press release.
Trey Wasserburger of North Platte will be a presenter at the Wall Street Journals Global Food Forum in Chicago next Tuesday and Wednesday.

North Plattes on the map, Wasserburger said. A lot of people are paying attention to what were doing.

He will join a panel of farmers and ranchers who will discuss the challenges they continue to face, from severe weather to public policy shifts to worker shortages and more according to the description on the Global Food Forum website.

His story is that of local ranchers rising up to meet their own challenge: plenty of cattle, not enough packer capacity; high prices at the grocery store, low prices for cattle producers; large profits for packers, a tough go for ranchers. That situation became all the more pronounced when packing capacity diminished due to COVID-related plant closures in 2020.

Wasserburger is a founding member of Sustainable Beef, a producer-owned company that is building a packing plant on the east edge of North Platte along Newberry Access Road.

The possibility of building a supply chain, producer owned (operation) ... from the ground up is exciting, he said, and on its way to becoming a reality. He and his wife, Dayna, are owners of TD Angus at Rishel Ranch, south of North Platte.

The title of this years Global Food Forum is Explore the Forces Shaping the Future of Food. A focus on the future fits right in with Wasserburgers mindset. Sustainable Beef was an answer to perennial problems, but now, Its more about the future, Wasserburger said, what were trying to build in the community and the industry and the state.

Wasserburger and Kirk Olsen, also a founding member of Sustainable Beef and president of Olson Farms at Hershey, are both on Gov. Jim Pillens 12-member agriculture advisory committee. The idea-sharing and counseling go both ways. Wasserburger said that he plans to meet with Pillen prior to heading to Chicago, for advice on what to share at the forum.

Hes a trusted friend. He gets it as a producer, Wasserburger said. Hes been a great mentor for me.

Wasserburger will join many influential people in Chicago. Speakers will include the CEOs of food giants General Mills, Kellogg and Smithfield Foods, the founders and CEOs of disruptors from Impossible Foods to Once Upon a Farm, top restaurateurs, and more, according to the Global Food Forum website.

As a member of a producer panel, Wasserburger wants to share the message of the beef state, and his enthusiasm for a movement that promises to have a huge impact on the entire region.

What he shares could influence mindsets and policy discussions going forward, with possible ripple effects throughout the country. You never know (the impact) until you have the conversation, Wasserburger said.
Photo: Barry Williams/New York Daily News/Tribune News Service via Getty Images

A Manhattan grand jury has indicted Daniel Penny in the killing of Jordan Neely aboard a subway train last month. The exact charges against Penny, a 24-year-old former marine, will be revealed once the indictment is unsealed, per the Daily News. Last month, Penny was charged with second-degree manslaughter and turned himself in to authorities before being released on bond.

On May 1, Penny was on an F train with Neely, a 30-year-old man who appeared to be unhoused and was reportedly acting erratically. Penny and other passengers began physically restraining Neely, holding him down on the floor of the subway car. A video taken by a bystander shows Pennys arms locked around Neelys neck in a choke hold for several minutes as Neely struggled to get free. Medical personnel arrived and transported Neely to a nearby hospital, where he was later pronounced dead. Not long after, Neelys death was declared a homicide by the medical examiners office, which said hed died as a result of compression of his neck.

Penny was initially questioned by police following Neelys death but released, sparking days of protest across the city, before he was ultimately charged.

In recent days, Penny has defended his actions as self-defense in a series of videos released by his legal team. I was scared for me, but I looked around and saw women and children. He was yelling in their faces and saying these threats. I couldnt just sit still, he said in one video, per NBC New York.
Rural tourism brings prosperity to village in China's Zhejiang

People's Daily Online) 13:45, June 14, 2023

Thanks to the development of rural tourism, Hengshanwu, once a village with muddy roads in east China's Zhejiang Province, has become a national-level livable and beautiful countryside, and a key rural tourist destination.

In the past, roads became muddy when it rained in Hengshanwu village, Lingfeng neighborhood of Anji county, recalled Cai Mingfu, Party chief of the village.

"When I began to work as an official in Hengshanwu in 1998, the village's annual collective income was less than 90,000 yuan ($12,640)," Cai added.

Photo shows a restaurant in Hengshanwu village, Anji county of east China's Zhejiang Province. (People's Daily Online/Zhang Liwei)

Things began to change in 2003 when Zhejiang launched its Green Rural Revival Program to comprehensively improve the living environment of villages and the quality of rural residents lives. In the same year, Hengshanwu village started to implement the program by building paved roads, removing illegal buildings, and treating wastewater to improve the rural living environment. Gradually, the living environment in the village improved.

Hengshanwu then decided to develop rural tourism by leveraging its sound ecological environment.

The village invited designer Chen Gu to return to his hometown to design a B&B cluster. "We emphasize differentiated development and respect the original appearance of houses and their surroundings," Chen said.

Chen added that the cluster has so far attracted 19 B&B hotels and become a photogenic spot for social media.

"Last year, the cluster recorded over 350,000 tourist visits. During this year's five-day May Day holiday, the daily revenue exceeded 40,000 yuan," Chen said.

The B&B cluster adopts a development model that integrates companies, the neighborhood, cooperatives and rural households.

Lan Qingxia, a post-95s B&B hotel owner, said her home was once the remotest in the village, but now her home-turned B&B hotel is the most popular one. "It's not easy for tourists to get a room in my hotel during holidays and festivals," Lan said.

Huang Dong, who once worked in Shanghai, returned to run a restaurant, making huge profits.

Jin Yufang, a local resident, works in a B&B hotel after training, and earns extra income of 54,000 yuan a year.

In 2022, Hengshanwu village received 700,000 tourist visits, with its tourism revenue reaching 108 million yuan. The village's collective operating income and per capita net income of rural residents stood at 7.52 million yuan and 55,045 yuan, respectively.

(Web editor: Hongyu, Liang Jun)
MOSCOW, June 14 (Xinhua) -- Russia is concerned about the recent calls to move U.S. nuclear bombs in Europe closer to the borders of Russia and Belarus, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said on Tuesday.

"These calls ... cause concern against the backdrop of the destructive practice of Washington, which places its nuclear weapons outside its territory, including in countries that are non-nuclear under the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons," Zakharova said in a statement published on the ministry's website.

Accusing Washington of trying to mask its irresponsible behavior in the field of nuclear weapons by blaming Russia and Belarus, Zakharova said that Russia and Belarus were developing their cooperation in the military nuclear sphere in accordance with international law and their national interests.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Friday in a meeting with his Belarusian counterpart Alexander Lukashenko that Russia will deploy certain types of weapons in Belarus after July 8.

The construction of a special storage facility for tactical nuclear weapons on Belarusian territory would be completed in July, said Putin.

It is estimated that the United States keeps around 100 tactical nuclear warheads at six bases in five NATO countries -- Belgium, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and Turkiye, according to a report by the TASS news agency. 
I mean, Zendaya will be increasingly busy so she could use 2 husbands







I jest, Timmy better not butt in unless invited

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Timmy Chal-Ijustsqeezemybonyassintothissandwic h

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Tom is lovely but they're basically the same person to me

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Timmy can actually act tho. Tom can barely.

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Tom was really good in The Impossible. He's just not getting the right kind of roles.

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i saw bones and all and would respectfully like to disagree

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Tom's a good actor with shit project

Timmy can't emote, but has good movies

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Tomdaya/Kimothee double date when??

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How to develop "rizz" according to Tom Holland:

1. make a movie with them

2. be their love interest

3. play the long game



Catch Tom answering 30 questions on buzzfeed celeb! Video out tomorrow. pic.twitter.com/b2colDfafA  BuzzFeed Celeb (@BuzzFeedCeleb) June 14, 2023

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I'm happy and in love



Bless his heart

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i love to see 0 natural charisma types thriving and surviving out in this world. aspirational

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Rizz is such a funny piece of slang. Guess the youth don't say jizz so they don't get the humor.

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Awww, so cute!

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I'm constantly learning new slang!

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I feel so bad for the Tom/Zendaya stans back in 2017-2019 who were right all along but got told to shut their delusional asses up 

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At least they get to enjoy them being together now. Robsten truthers didnt get confirmation of the relationship until Kristens PR I love him, I love him, Im so sorry stmt after she was caught cheating on him 

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I feel super vindicated now





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don't feel bad for us because now we get to say "i told you so" which is the best reward of all

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What happen in 2017-2019?

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I love him <3

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the longer i look at his face the less attractive he becomes.

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him saying he played "the long game" when four months after they started filming the first movie he was at her thanksgiving with her whole family he's so funny

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I had to look up what rizz meant (for fellow old fogeys, I think it means "game"?) and I've never felt so old.

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Adorable

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He's looking rough there already...he's not that old to look curdled already. Time for vegetable



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Tom > Timmy for this alone







Honestly, this is where I thought he was hot as hell. Zendaya be all "THAT's my man". For a short king he's got a nice build on him.



Edited at 2023-06-14 10:59 pm (UTC)

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Timmy needs to be Harry Osborn and I am so serious.

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And Hunter Schafer Gwen Stacy. Let's go.

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omg hft

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Give us bi Peter Parker!

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Exactly

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He would do good tbh especially if he plays up the trust fund kid persona

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he would honestly be perfect

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tom has mentioned this before lol

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i really like tom. i genuinely think he's talented (and he and zendaya are the cutest) but he and his agent need better taste in projects because he clearly wants to do interesting, dramatic work but his project choices have been so mediocre. like i know he has tough competition out there with actors in his age range but i need him to be more discerning with projects!



Edited at 2023-06-14 02:08 pm (UTC)

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Yeah, he's a good actor but the projects have been very mediocre. I wonder if he should head back to the stage for a bit.

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I think timothee and Paul mescal are getting the best roles right now

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Well, Tiny Tim is really close with Zendaya, so this makes sense.

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I feel like Timothee and Tom are besties with everyone (not a shade, they just seem really friendly). So it makes sense that they're like:

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new throuple alert

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You know what. Props to Kris. Kylie and Timmy are this generations Kim & Kanye. You know Kris is hoping for some double dates with Zendaya and Tom like Bey & Jay.

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crazy how the most interesting thing about tom is his relationship but its also the least interesting thing about zendaya

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I disagree, he's really funny in all his interviews (actually Spiderman irl) which is why everyone likes him, including Zendaya. Their relationship is a bonus for both of them since they both have cute personalities tbh

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actually spiderman irl is not interesting to me lol like im talking about their careers, and specifically OUTSIDE of spiderman.



hes nice and charming and thats cool but his output has been bad.

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I hope Tom picks better projects, I feel like he is more suited to song and dance / fun projects like the Gene Kelly biopic or a romcom and its hard to see him in something super serious because his personality is so jokey all the time. If he picks serious projects ngl he needs to look CUTE lol. Otherwise if he doesnt pick better projects I can see his career going downhill in a Zac Efron way which I hope doesnt happen.

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tom is losing his youthful twink look fast

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He's on the road to twink death and that's the only thing going for him

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Needs to hydrate and moisturise asap

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i just know zendaya has ha alarm on ready every two hours to remind ha mid man to lather up with sunscreen

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He and Zen are too fucking cute





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Wait.

This is SO cute!

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you will NEVER be him, tom holmid!

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The biggest issue i have with my recent breakup is missing running my fingers through hair like this.

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my bf's hair would be like this if he let it GROW but he always cuts it right as it starts curling smh!!!

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not you fumbling!

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His hair looks so pretty here

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100% of this mans power is in his hair

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now sis i love timmy c but this gif is scaring me for some reason

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he looks his age here and I say that as a compliment



a fan lol

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EXCLUSIVE: Carrie Fishers last movie Wonderwell is finally getting released after a perilous seven-year journey to screen https://t.co/Yhx35VDqcQ  Deadline Hollywood (@DEADLINE) June 14, 2023

Took 7 years to get here, but here it is at last, "Wonderwell", with US/UK distribution.Set between contemporary Italy and a fantastical realm, the coming-of-age story follows Violet (Milward), an inquisitive girl living in Italy with her American parents and her beautiful older sister, Savannah (Tiger Free). When Savannah is selected to be the face of world-renowned designer Yanas (Ora) fashion label, the family travels to an enchanting medieval village for a photo shoot. Neglected and bored, Violet wanders from the ancient Tuscan town into a nearby forest where she meets the enigmatic Hazel (Fisher), who warns her about Yanas beleaguered stepson, Daniele (Croft). Guided by Hazel to a mysterious portal, Violet is offered a glimpse of what her future might hold. Also stars Nell Tiger Free (Servant), Sebastian Croft (Heartstopper), newcomer (I mean this thing was made 7 years ago, is she still a newcomer?) Kiera Milward, and, I shit you not, Rita Ora ([TBD]),src
Gallup Report Finds More Workers in U.S., Canada, East Asia Experienced Stress Than Other Regions Workers

About one in two respondents in these two regions reported experiencing stress a lot of the day yesterday.

A lot of people are affected by stress on a daily basis. But a new report shows that a higher percentage of American, Canadian and East Asian workers experienced this feeling when compared to other surveyed regions.

The State of the Global Workplace 2023 Report from Gallup, compiled from responses from 122,416 employed people aged 15 and older in over 160 countries, takes a dive into topics like employee stress, anger, engagement and feelings on the job market.

When it comes to employee stress, two regions, the U.S. and Canada and East Asia, tied for the highest percentage of workers who experienced stress a lot of the day yesterday. Fifty-two percent of respondents in both regions reported stress. The region with the third-highest ranking was Australia and New Zealand, with 47 percent of respondents saying they were stressed.

However, not as many American and Canadian workers reported feeling angry a lot of the day yesterday. Less than one in five workers (18 percent) said they were angry. Compared to other regions, the U.S. and Canada ranked fifth and East Asia ranked seventh (at 17 percent) while South Asia placed first with 36 percent of employees reporting anger.

More than half of employees in the U.S. and Canada (52 percent, up one percent from last year) are quietly quitting, meaning they put in the minimum effort required, and they are psychologically disconnected from their employer. Thats lower than the percentage of people globally engaged (59 percent, down one percent from last year) in quiet quitting.

Gallup CEO Jon Clifton delivered two pieces of advice in the report: Focus on your most winnable employees and Give them a better manager.

By switching to proven, science-based management, organizations could change the course of the economyand world history. Its that important, he noted in the report.

The poll was conducted from April 2022 to March 2023 either in-person or via telephone. Some data from China was collected in a different time frame and manner.
Scientists are constantly pushing frontiers in search for solutions to the many challenges that human civilization faces, and nowhere is this truer than in energy.

With the tone of climate change alarm-sounding growing louder by the day, alternative energy sources have become one of the most active areas of innovation. Some of the results of that innovation are literally eye-watering. Others, you could call eye-opening.

#1 Waste-to-power

This is not the waste-to-power you are probably thinking about; that is, farm animal manure or biomass.

No, this is the idea of turning human wasteboth the number twos and the number onesinto energy. In Britain, a company operating in London has developed a sewage-powered heating system for more than 2,000 homes.

Per plans, sewage captured from the water treatment system can be used for heating, producing up to 7 GWh of electricity annually, which is a really impressive number. If this pilot project becomes a success, it will be expanded to more homes to provide them with low-carbon, essentially recycled power.

So much for the number twos. Meanwhile, number ones are also being researched as a source of energy and some researchers are producing results, such as this one: a battery capable of generating electricity from urine.

Theres also this one: scientists developing a fuel cell using bacteria that can turn urine into electricity. "The beauty of this fuel source is that we are not relying on the erratic nature of the wind or the sun; we are actually reusing waste to create energy, one of the scientists involved in the project said.

#2 Cremation as a dual use service

If you think using pee and poo to generate energy is kind of disgusting, wait till you hear about the idea of using crematoriums as power generators. Once you get past the initial shock. However, the idea actually makes sense on some level.

Crematoriums are a way of essentially disposing of human remains in an environmentally responsible way that incidentally involves the generation of massive amounts of strong heatas much as 1,500 degrees F. Why let this heat go to waste instead of using it? Related: Rystad Sees Major Jump In Battery Storage Capacity Through 2023

It seems that a lot of researchers have been asking this question and some have come up with possible answers. One way of harnessing the power of heat from crematoriums was by attaching turbines to the facilitys burners. The turbines get turned by steam produced in the cremation chamber. The output is not massive, but its enough to power the crematorium and related facilities. And with more people choosing cremation over burial, at least in Europe, the feedstock is on the rise.

#3 The power of seaweed

Seaweed is already a pretty essential life form, but it could become even more essential in a low-carbon economy because apparently it could be used as fuel instead of gasoline or diesel.

A few years ago, Danish researchers drove a car fuelled by a seaweed-based fuel and managed to reach 80 kph with it. Seaweed-to-fuel has not yet become a major industry, but research continues.

Besides cars, biofuel produced from seaweed could potentially power aircraft as well. However, that path faces the same challenge as so-called sustainable aviation fuels or SAFs: there is too little feedstock. Planes use massive amounts of fuel.

The National Renewable Energy Laboratory is also involved in research focusing on seaweed and turning it into fuels, including jet fuel. A team is working on this in the Caribbean, with the twist that they are trying to see if they could combine abundant wood waste with seaweed to make fueland graphite. Graphite is a critical mineral or EV batteries. Seaweed is certainly an impressive life form.

#4 Sand batteries

One of the gravest problems with wind and solar energy is that battery storage based on the lithium-ion tech that dominates electronics today is hugely expensive. Some scientists are looking for alternatives and one team has found such an alternative in an unlikely place: sand.

It looks really simple. You just need to fill a silo with builders sand and then connect it to a wind or solar farm. The electricity that the farm produces goes into the silo and heats up the sand to temperatures of up to 500 degrees Celsius, or over 900 degrees Fahrenheit.

The heating creates hot air that circulates in the sand thanks to the deployment of a heat exchanger. According to the Finnish team that came up with the idea, this simple system can keep the sand heated up to 500 C/900 F for as long as several months. Once the energy is needed, it gets released to heat homes or other buildings.

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#5 Body heat

If there is something even simpler than using 100 tons of sand to store heat, it is using the natural heat of human bodies to generate energy. Simple here doesnt mean easy but the fact is that it is already being done.

Body heat energy generation is not a new concept. It has been around for more than ten years and it has been advancing. Initially, capturing the energy released as heat from the body could only power things like heart-rate monitors and watches, but now researchers are aiming higheras high as cars.

A night club in Glasgow is storing the heat generated by the bodies of its patrons in reservoirs and then using it for heating or cooling the premises. The Mall of America in Minneapolis is also using the body heat of shoppers and visitors for heating purposes. Body heat looks like it has been underestimated for years but things are changing.

There are plenty of other weird-sounding or outright gross ideas for energy generation. Some of these could work and are already working, and others will likely never leave the lab. The momentum behind energy innovation, however, will likely remain quite considerable.

By Charles Kennedy for Oilprice.com

More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:
With high energy prices and supply chain disruptions creating shortages of key renewable energy components and materials, emerging markets are reassessing how to build out utility-scale solar power to accelerate their energy transitions.

After more than a decade of decline, the cost of solar photovoltaic (PV) panels has risen around the world, due primarily to the increasing cost of solar-grade polysilicon in China.

A key component in PV panels, polysilicon spot market prices rose from less than $7 per kg in July 2020 to $39 in August 2022. Though they subsequently fell to as low as $18 in January of this year, by early February prices were back above $30.

China is estimated to account for more than 80% of all manufacturing stages of solar panels  including polysilicon, ingots, wafers, cells and modules  while its share of key elements including polysilicon and wafers is expected to exceed 95% by 2025 based on current manufacturing expansion works, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA).

Supply and demand dynamics

There are good reasons to believe that rising costs will not slow the uptake of solar. For one, demand was robust in 2022, with 268 GW of new capacity added worldwide as prices for coal and natural gas reached record highs. Globally, installations are expected to reach 315 GW in 2023, according to BloombergNEF.

Utility-scale solar and onshore wind are the two cheapest forms of renewable energy generation in a large majority of countries around the world, and the IEA expects global solar PV capacity to rise by nearly 1500 GW in the 2022-27 period, surpassing natural gas by 2026 and coal by 2027.

Solar and wind power also overtook natural gas in Europes generation mix in 2022, thanks in part to a three-fold increase in rooftop solar applications over the course of the year.

Another reason for optimism is that analysts expect the price of polysilicon to fall further, attributing the initial increase in 2020 to floods in China in August of that year, and last summers rise to a heatwave that caused Chinese polysilicon plants to halt production. Though ongoing supply chain disruptions remain a concern, the price of polysilicon is forecast to reach $10-$15 per kg as more supply comes onto the market, according to BloombergNEF.

For rooftop solar, the decline in price between 2013 and 2020 was driven by an increase in the supply of solar cells and modules on the market, whereas advancements in technology and the growing scale of production are expected to cause costs to decline from 2023.

Continued access to critical minerals will be key to building enough renewable energy infrastructure to support the energy transition.

A January 2023 study in the scientific journal Joule concluded that the supply of 17 key materials should be sufficient to keep warming under 1.5C above pre-industrial levels in even the highest-demand scenarios. Ensuring that these resources are mined without undue environmental damage or exploitative labour practices, however, may pose a greater global challenge.

GCC test case

In some respects, the GCC is an ideal test case for solar in emerging markets, given the regions high solar yield, abundance of available land and clear government interest  including incentives and investment  in increasing clean energy.

Solar power accounted for 97% of the GCCs installed generation capacity for clean energy as of 2021, with the UAE and Saudi Arabia, respectively, making up 80% and 13% of the total. Both generated 100% of their clean energy from solar, according to the International Renewable Energy Agency.

The expansion of solar depends on steady financing, and both countries have public-private partnership frameworks to tap into global capital markets and issue green bonds for climate-related projects. Green bonds and sukuk (Islamic bonds) issuances hit a record $8.5bn in the GCC in 2022 from 15 deals, while six deals in 2021 totalled $605m.

Saudi Arabias Public Investment Fund has released two green bonds, worth $3bn and $5.5bn, to raise money for environmental, social and governance-compliant climate initiatives as part of its Green Finance Framework for the 2021-25 period.

Predictability in terms of maintenance and low operating risk make solar projects attractive investments for governments looking to meet net-zero goals, with hydrocarbons revenue providing stable financing during the transition phase.

The UAE is the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park, the worlds fourth largest, and plans to invest Dh600bn ($163.3bn) in clean energy over the next three decades to meet its goal of net-zero emissions by 2050.

Hydrogens complementary role

GCC countries are diversifying their renewable energy strategies to include green hydrogen, which can be generated from clean solar.

The national oil companies of Saudi Arabia and the UAE are already making significant investments in generating hydrogen from hydrocarbons using carbon capture, utilisation and storage, as well as solar and wind resources.

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Countries like Bahrain and Qatar that have less available land are also developing hydrogen capacity.

Given the limited space available in Bahrain for power generation from solar and wind sources, the country has an opportunity to grow capabilities in green hydrogen as a constant and clear power source, Ian Roos, CEO of Pavilion Renewables, told OBG.

Bahrain declared green and blue hydrogen a goal when it published its Industrial Strategy 2022-26 in January 2022, kick-starting the industry.

Tangible investments are actually happening in this space in Bahrain, as well as elsewhere in the GCC, and the potential to attract even further investment is significant as much of the technology needed is now being tested locally, Roos added.

By Oxford Business Group

More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:
The oil market wasnt impressed with the latest OPEC+ meeting which resulted in the alliance extending the current cuts through 2024 and Saudi Arabia announcing a voluntary production cut of 1 million barrels per day (bpd) for July.

Part of the surprise Saudi cut was already baked in in the prices after Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz had warned speculators in the days prior to the June 4 meeting to watch out and not try to guess what the group or some of its members would do next.

What OPEC+ did was this: it decided to keep the current cuts until the end of 2024, while OPECs top producer and the worlds largest crude oil exporter, Saudi Arabia, said it would voluntarily reduce its production by 1 million bpd in July, to around 9 million bpd. The cut could be extended beyond July.

No Price Bump

If the Saudis had hoped for a rally in oil prices following the latest announced cut, they were disappointed. Prices ticked up on the Monday following the meeting on Sunday, but resumed the downward trajectory later last week as the market continued to be more focused on the concerns about slowing economies and recessions than on a looming supply deficit later this year.

The Saudi cut on paper should be mildly positive but the subsequent price action highlights the current focus on demand worries, and while the cut may support a floor under the market, the upside potential remains limited, said Ole Hansen, Head of Commodity Strategy at Saxo Bank.

The Saudi decision to go at it alone with a cut in July (for now) was seen as mildly bullish as it would help to tighten the market.

However, the market chose to see it differently, basically concluding that OPEC doubts its own projections of a +2 million barrels per day increase in 2023 demand, most of which has been expected to materialize during the second half of the year, Hansen added.

Oil prices could remain stuck in a trading range until we see evidence that Chinas recovery is improving, said Ed Moya, senior market analyst at OANDA.

The Saudi problem is that energy traders arent believing the kingdom has enough power to sway all OPEC+ to deliver meaningful action, Moya added.

Demand in the second half is expected to support inventory draws and oil prices, the analyst said.

The US economy is about to show a very robust summer travel season that should mean gasoline and jet fuel demand is going to be very strong. The demand situation from Asia cant be that bad if the Saudis are also able to raise prices, Moya noted.

Bjarne Schieldrop, chief analyst commodities at SEB, said, commenting on the unilateral Saudi cut, USD 80/b is the new USD 60/b and that is probably what Saudi Arabia is aiming for.

$70 Oil Or $100 Oil?

According to Saxo Bank, from a technical standpoint, the $78-$80 a barrel area in Brent Crude will likely offer a great deal of resistance in the short term and funds positioned for additional weakness are unlikely to change their negative price view until we see a return of $80 per barrel Brent.

The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) doesnt see a strong rally, either.

The EIA doesnt expect Brent prices to average more than $80 per barrel in the second half of this year, despite the production cut announced by Saudi Arabia, the EIA said in its latest Short-Term Energy Outlook (STEO) last week. Brent will average $79 per barrel in the second half of 2023, which is $1 a barrel higher than in Mays STEO estimate. The 2024 oil price forecast was raised to an average of $84 per barrel, up by $9 per barrel compared to last months assessment.

Citigroup is also bearish as it has been all year, and doesnt believe the OPEC+ cuts would lead to a major oil price rally.

Citi thinks that the cut is unlikely to result in an oil price run-up to the high $80s or low $90s per barrel.

The likelihood that Saudi Arabia would tackle this on its own on a sustained basis is quite low, Citi said in a note.

The bank, whose analysts have been bearish on oil this year, considers that the possibility for lower  instead of higher  prices could be greater, due to possible weaker demand due to recessions in the U.S. and Europe, weaker recovery in China, and higher supply from non-OPEC producers by the end of the year.

A week after the unilateral Saudi cut, Goldman Sachs slashed its Brent price forecast for December to $86 per barrel, from $95 previously expected, citing bearish downside risks from higher supply from sanctioned Russia, Iran, and Venezuela and possibly weaker-than-thought Chinese demand.

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Other analysts reaffirmed their calls for higher prices.

ANZ analysts Daniel Hynes and Soni Kumari reiterated their $100 per barrel Brent target for the end of the year, saying that Investors are likely to add bullish bets, comfortable that Saudi Arabia and OPEC will provide a backstop should the market hit any hurdles.

ING, for its part, left its price forecasts unchanged for now and still expects ICE Brent to average $96 a barrel over the second half of this year, although economic concerns are now currently ruling the market.

The macro outlook continues to be a more important driver for prices than fundamentals at the moment, said Warren Patterson, Head of Commodities Strategy at ING.

By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com

More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:
Current natural gas market prices remain depressed compared to record prices in 2022. However, indications suggest that the current low prices may soon become a thing of the past, especially if China brings online its significant LNG regasification projects within the expected timeframe and continues to exert influence on global markets. European gas markets could potentially benefit from this development, although it will primarily be a boom for Chinese companies. This situation may not align with the preferences of Brussels, Berlin, or The Hague. Already in May Chinese natural gas imports (LNG and pipeline gas) increased by 17.3%. Chinas General Administration of Customs reported that May natural gas imports hit 10.64 million tons, compared to 9.07 million tons May 2022. The customs agency also stated that Chinas gas imports increased by 3.3% year-on-year to 46.29 million tons for Q1. The report indicated that Chinas LNG imports increased also for the 3rd month in a row in April, hitting 4.77 million tons of LNG, an increase of 10.3% year-on-year.

At the same time that there is a sign of growing natural gas demand by China, a report by GlobalData states that China will be dominating the LNG regasification capacity additions in Asia. GlobalData states that 34% of all Asian additions will be in China. In its report, LNG Regasification Terminals Capacity and Capital Expenditure (CapEx) Forecast by Region, Key Countries, Companies and Projects (New Build, Expansion, Planned and Announced), 2023-2027, China is slated to add around 5.7 TCF from already received project approvals, while 2.1 TCF in capacity is currently in conceptual phases. As GlobalData analyst Bhargavi Gandham stated China is rapidly expanding its LNG regasification capacity due to several factors, such as to meet ever-growing natural gas demand, mitigate environmental pollution, diversify its energy resources, and meet its carbon neutral objectives. At present, the Tangshan II and Zhoushan II projects lead in terms of the LNG regasification capacity additions in China, with a capacity of 584.4 BCF by 2027 each. Tangshan II is an onshore regasification terminal planned in the Hebei province of China.

Related: Shell To Raise Dividend By 15% As It Doubles Down On Oil And Gas



Chinas demand increase may be gradual, but looking at current developments, Europes gas customers will need to step up their game very soon, or pay hefty prices for spot cargoes. Where China is looking long-term, committing to natural gas usage beyond 2045-2050, Europe is still hesitant to close long-term contracts as politicians feel it doesnt suit their energy transition strategy.

At the same time that Chinas natural gas strategy is implemented and its gas-related infrastructure expanded, Beijing also is playing a much darker strategic game. Reports have emerged that China was informed about Russian invasion plans before Putin decided to invade Ukraine. Chinese President Xi Jinping has until now vehemently denied having knowledge about the invasion of Ukraine, but Chinas energy dealings just before the invasion in February 2022 raises eyebrows. Chinese players, mainly LNG buyers have been extremely active in the six months before the invasion. International publication Foreign Policy (FP) reports, based on 600 LNG purchase transactions worldwide, that from September 1 2021 until February 2022, around 12 Chinese entities, such as state-owned companies China National Offshore Oil Corp. (CNOOC), Sinopec, and Sinochem, acquired 91% of all global LNG purchased worldwide under term deals (typically spanning four years or longer).

Even after the Russian invasion started, Chinese parties continued to close deals. Until April 2022, 57% of all LNG purchase deals were signed by Chinese parties. Between September 1 2021 and April 1 2022, around 23 million tons of LNG imports per year were agreed on. This volume is remarkable, knowing that between 2006 and 2020 Chinese deals averaged around 5 million metric tons per year, or 15% of the global market. The 2021-2022 buying spree was conducted by 11 different companies, of which 10 are either national or local government Chinese government-owned. This Chinese onslaught has soaked up near-term LNG supplies, mostly from Qatar, Russia, and the U.S.

These developments coincided with Gazprom, Russias state-owned gas producers strategy of cutting gas exports to Europe in 2021, while shutting off its European gas supplies after the invasion. This political cooperation between Moscow and Beijing is becoming clear. If the Chinese had not entered in full force in the 2021-2022 gas markets, Russian gas cuts to Europe would have had little effect, removing not only fears of supply shortages but also of an imminent energy crisis. The deep cooperation between China and Russia is clear, even before the Ukraine invasion. There is no irrefutable evidence, but all signs point to a Russian-Chinese cornering of the market, which was a pre-emptive strike on Europes energy sector.

As of now, Europe appears to be complacent and lacking proactive measures to counter the increasing collaboration between Beijing and Moscow. The practice of employing energy as a weapon is by no means a new one. The recent example of growing cooperation between Beijing and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) in Saudi Arabia underscores that energy resources are no longer readily available for Europeans at a low cost. China and Russia are once again tightening their grip, raising the possibility of an impending and tumultuous European winter.

By Cyril Widdershoven for Oilprice.com

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With Turkmenistans dream to see construction of the trans-Afghan TAPI natural gas pipeline, the devil is in the details. Or the footnotes, to be more precise.

A United Nations report on the current situation in Afghanistan published earlier this month conveys a generally troubling picture, not just for Turkmenistan, but the region as a whole.

Under Taliban rule, the country has reverted to the exclusionary policies that prevailed in the 1990s. The self-styled Islamic Emirate has moreover retained its historic connections with militant groups, including al-Qaeda, which is said to be rebuilding operational capabilities.

Although leading elements in the Taliban regime are for now prioritizing internal cohesion and unity, there are indications that leading figures are jostling in earnest for positions of power and financial resources.

One fault line is said by the UN report to be between Taliban Interior Minister Sirajuddin Haqqani, who is also the leader of the eponymous and notorious Haqqani Network, and First Deputy Prime Minister Mullah Baradar. A footnote adding context to this passage of the report states that Haqqani is reportedly seeking to take under his control  the construction of the Afghan section of the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India gas pipeline.

There is little sense that institutional responsibilities are softening the worldview of Haqqani and his associates, whose militant activities have over recent decades claimed the lives of countless civilians. Indeed, last month, Haqqanis former spokesman in the Interior Ministry, Qari Saeed Khosty, who left that job only in March, took to Twitter to call on Taliban volunteers based in Europe and the United States to murder critics of the regime in Kabul. He later deleted the tweet.

Undeterred by this backdrop, officials from Pakistan and Turkmenistan met in Islamabad on June 8 to sign an agreement committing both sides to speeding up implementation of the TAPI project.

While Pakistani Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif, who oversaw the signing, was clear that he wants the 1,800-kilometer pipeline, which is intended to have a carrying capacity of 33 billion cubic meters of gas per year, to be built at the fastest speed, almost everything else is a haze. Pakistani media cited Sharif as saying that this accelerated timetable would be achieved by optimizing all available resources by all relevant parties.

Not a word about money, however.

The fact that news outlets are compelled to loosely throw around cost estimates for the project at anywhere between $7.5 [billion] and $10 billion is as good a clue as any that the funding issue is bedeviled by opacity and unseriousness. The lack of a clear timetable does not inspire confidence either.

In what looks like an attempt to drum up interest from international investors, Pakistan has suggested that Turkmenistan should consider exploring  whatever that might mean  the potential of yet more gas transit infrastructure, presumptively to connect TAPI to its Arabian Sea-facing Gwadar port. The underlying notion here being that liquified Turkmen gas could then be shipped to buyers on the global market.

That is certainly optimistic. While the current Pakistani government may be relaxed about engaging in a trade that would line the pockets of self-avowed Islamic militants, customers in Europe might baulk.

That said, some in the West have strong stomachs. Taking a break from running interference in Russias favor within the European Union, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban embarked on June 8 on a two-day visit to Ashgabat.

This jaunt is a puzzling one. Orbans host, President Serdar Berdymukhamedov, augured on June 9, when the two met, that this visit would aid the development of multifaceted interstate cooperation in a wide range of areas of mutual interest. It is hard to perceive what those mutual interests might be. Berdymukhamedov asserted that bilateral trade turnover had shown significant growth in 2022, but demurred when it came to mentioning figures, likely since they are without a doubt laughably miniscule.

There was invariably talk  courtesy of Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto  of Hungary offering its services in building whatever infrastructure might be required to get Turkmen natural gas to Europe. Szijjarto did not bother explaining what he meant by this.

One line from Berdymukhamedov hinted at a bit of possible deal-making in future, however. Turkmenistan is interested in investigating the technology involved in producing hydrogen out of natural gas. Hungary is hinging much of its zero-emissions strategy on expanding the domestic production and storage of hydrogen. Berdymukhamedov indicated that Turkmenistan is eager to tap into Hungarian expertise on this matter.

The appeal of developing a relatively clean source of fuel is at present particularly strong to Turkmenistan, whose colossal methane emissions have turned it into an environmental global pariah.

The countrys reputation is dirt in other areas too.

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Cotton Campaign, an international pressure group opposed to forced labor, published a report on June 12 that documented the ongoing prevalence of forced and child labor in Turkmenistans cotton industry. The reports authors found that public sector workers are compelled to pick cotton, or at the very least hire their own replacements or make payments  bribes, in effect  under a "pick or pay" system. Children as young as eight were observed working alongside adults in the fields.

As described by the Cotton Campaign, the entire industry is a rotten misery-manufacturing machine designed to enrich a select few. Poor irrigation practices are compounding the effects of climate change and worsening water scarcity. That and poor stewardship of the land is leading to reduced crop yields. Farmers given no choice but to grow this thirsty plant suffer financially as a result. State-provided seeds, fertilizer, and equipment are sold for personal gain. Middlemen take cuts from funds allocated for replacement pickers, and cotton collection centers routinely cheat farmers by withholding a significant portion of their harvest.

Hungry for a minimal dose of approbation from somewhere, the regime in Turkmenistan has once more declared its profound enmity for smoking in any shape or form. AFP news agency described Berdymukhamedovs remarks at a June 7 session of the national security council as the start of an unprecedented" anti-smoking crusade that would see the country entirely rid of tobacco within two years. The presidents more specific concern, though, appears to be with the illegal importation of tobacco products, including those used in hookah water pipes and electronic cigarettes.

By Eurasianet.org

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It's been a constant since Moscow's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, but Chinese parts and components -- as well as drones and some weapons -- are finding their way onto the battlefield and helping Russia's military.

Finding Perspective: The issue was pushed back into the spotlight following a video posted to Telegram by Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov showcasing an array of new military equipment, including eight Chinese-made unarmed armored personnel carriers.

The vehicles appeared to be a multipurpose model called the Tiger or China Tiger and the video brought renewed scrutiny of Chinese weaponry helping the Kremlin's war effort -- a possibility raised by Western governments and experts for some time.

It's difficult to determine when or how the Chinese vehicles ended up in Chechnya, or how they might be deployed on the battlefield -- if at all.

While the equipment is no doubt Chinese-made, multiple military experts I spoke with said it was unlikely this was from a formal sale, saying that the Tiger is widely exported around the world -- including across Africa and to Tajikistan -- and that Kadyrov states in the video that "we regularly purchase military equipment that helps our fighters be more effective in solving the tasks assigned to them."

Why It Matters: There is no evidence so far that China has provided any formal military aid, such as shipments of ammunition or full weapons systems.

Doing so would bring major reputational costs to Beijing and China has instead pivoted to taking up a diplomatic position around the war to frame itself as a peacemaker.

Still, Chinese exporters have supplied components of weapons systems and dual-use technology to sanctioned Russian defense companies.

A new report from The Wall Street Journal found that Iranian drones used by Russia in Ukraine had new Chinese parts that were made this year.

The revelation shows that new Chinese components are continuing to flow into Iran, where they then make their way to Russia. According to an investigation, the Chinese part was made in January, shipped to Iran, installed, and then sent to Russia and used against Ukraine in April.

While this stops short of full-blown military support, it highlights the complexities of supply chains and the multitude of ways countries can still skirt sanctions.

Another recent investigation by the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project tracked an export path for Chinese drones from China to Russia to the battlefield via the Netherlands and Kazakhstan through a collection of Russian-owned companies.

Expert Corner: Slovakia, Elections, And Taiwan

Readers asked: "Along with the Czech Republic, Slovakia has been one of Taiwan's strongest supporters in Europe. The country is set to hold parliamentary elections in late September amid rising populism and growing pro-Russian, anti-Ukraine rhetoric on the political spectrum. How might that affect relations with Taipei?"

To find out more, I asked Matej Simalcik, the executive director of the Central European Institute of Asian Studies in Bratislava:

"There's still time until the elections and the polling is not yet conclusive about what the result may be or what kind of constellation of parties can form a coalition. But at the moment, the election could go either way and that could impact relations with China and Taiwan, even though neither are big election topics in Slovakia.

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"In general, you can divide Slovak politicians into three groups when it comes to China. The first are those that are pragmatically pro-Chinese and see it as a source of economic benefits. The second are more ideologically inclined towards China. These two groups are mixed and matched across several political parties, but share elements of their worldview when it comes to economics and politics that tends to favor Chinese interests. The third group are those that are opponents of China ideologically while calling for some form of limited trade relations.

"Should the opposition form a government [likely led by former Prime Minister Robert Fico's Smer-SD party] then we'd see the first two groups have a larger voice. It's also important to observe that many of these politicians that tend to be pro-Chinese are also pro-Russian and they don't back China out of sheer goodwill. It's generally a very cold political calculus where they can use China in a way that fits into their anti-West narratives related to domestic politics or the war in Ukraine."

By RFE/RL

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Chinese Ambassador to Zimbabwe Zhou Ding hands out stationery bags to children during a donation ceremony in Harare June 13, 2023. The Chinese Embassy in Zimbabwe held a donation ceremony on Tuesday in Harare, capital of Zimbabwe, to bring cheer to orphans and other vulnerable children in the country. (Photo by Shaun Jusa/Xinhua)

HARARE, June 13 (Xinhua) -- The Chinese Embassy in Zimbabwe held a donation ceremony on Tuesday in Harare, the capital of Zimbabwe, to bring cheer to orphans and other vulnerable children in the country.

The children from Hupenyu Hutsva Children's Home in the Highfield suburb of Harare received packages including blankets, groceries and stationery. The donation was part of a health care campaign for African children, titled "Warm Children's Hearts: a China-Africa Joint Action," which was jointly initiated by Peng Liyuan, wife of Chinese President Xi Jinping, and the Organization of African First Ladies for Development.

The Chinese medical team in Zimbabwe also conducted free medical examinations for about 100 children after the ceremony.

In a speech read on her behalf by Deputy Minister of Local Government and Public Works Marian Chombo, Zimbabwe's First Lady Auxillia Mnangagwa expressed gratitude to Peng for the donation.

"The daily necessities and stationery will go a long way in empowering the orphans in their educational endeavors and their wellbeing," Auxillia Mnangagwa said. "This precious gift came as a pivotal pillar to support my efforts to make sure that each and every less privileged segment of our society got aid and suitable assistance for better and sustainable living standards."

Speaking at the ceremony, Chinese Ambassador to Zimbabwe Zhou Ding said China will continue to support the cause of children in Zimbabwe in order to improve the well-being of vulnerable groups in the country.

"China firmly believes that the right to subsistence and to development are the basic human rights of primary importance, which definitely calls for better development conditions for women and children," he said. "I believe that with love and care, our children here will grow up healthily and become talents to build a better Zimbabwe."

"I hope that our children here can keep the China-Zimbabwe friendship in their minds and become the inheritors and promoters of the friendship," Zhou said. 

A Chinese doctor gives free medical examination to a child during a donation ceremony in Harare, Zimbabwe, June 13, 2023. The Chinese Embassy in Zimbabwe held a donation ceremony on Tuesday in Harare, capital of Zimbabwe, to bring cheer to orphans and other vulnerable children in the country. (Photo by Shaun Jusa/Xinhua)

Chinese doctors give free medical examinations to children during a donation ceremony in Harare, Zimbabwe, June 13, 2023. The Chinese Embassy in Zimbabwe held a donation ceremony on Tuesday in Harare, capital of Zimbabwe, to bring cheer to orphans and other vulnerable children in the country. (Photo by Shaun Jusa/Xinhua)
Apache Corporation is halting drilling in the UK North Sea, cutting jobs in Britain, after the latest change to the UK Energy Profits Levy, commonly referred to as the windfall tax.

The U.S.-based corporation, which is one of the top ten producers of oil and gas in the UK North Sea, has said that the windfall tax and the challenging regulatory environment are making its UK operations less competitive.

Apache has also confirmed the suspension of drilling activities will lead to job losses in its UK division.

We are reassessing our investments, as we consider the challenging UK macro environment with its increasingly costly and burdensome tax and regulatory regime, a spokeswoman for Apache told media.

Given the business climate for the oil and gas industry in the UK, these assets have become less competitive in comparison to the rest of our portfolio, she said.

Last week, the UK government put a price floor to the windfall tax, but this price floor will only trigger a return to a 40% marginal tax rate on North Sea oil and gas production, compared to the current tax rate of 75%, if both average oil and gas prices fall to, or below, $71.40 per barrel for oil and 0.54 per therm for gas, for two consecutive quarters.

According to Ryan Crighton, policy director at Aberdeen & Grampian Chamber of Commerce, UK gas prices are unlikely to drop to those levels,

So, basically, it will never be triggered.

The Chancellor needs to work with the industry to get this right, because billions of pounds worth of investment and thousands of new jobs could be created in the North Sea in the right conditions, Crighton said.

The alternative is a levy which risks accelerating the decline of our oil and gas sector at a pace which jeopardises the skills and investment required to deliver the UKs net zero plans.

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After the UK raised the windfall tax to 35% at the end of last year, Harbour Energy, the biggest oil and gas producer in the UK North Sea, backed out of the latest licensing round aimed at awarding more than 100 new licenses. Shell has said it would be re-evaluating each project comprising its $30.5 billion (25 billion pounds) planned investment in the UK energy system, and TotalEnergies has said it would slash its investment in the UK by 25%.

By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com

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The federal government plans to buy some 12 million barrels as part of efforts to refill the strategic petroleum reserve after drawing down more than 200 million barrels from it last year.

This is according to an unnamed source that spoke to Reuters and that also suggested total purchases this year could exceed 12 million barrels.

Earlier this month, the Department of Energy announced it had bought 3 million barrels of crude for the strategic petroleum reserve and planned to buy another 3 million.

"These 3 million barrels are being purchased for an average price of about $73 per barrel, lower than the average of about $95 per barrel that SPR crude was sold for in 2022, securing a good deal for taxpayers," the Department of Energy said.

In October of last year, the administration announced that it would repurchase crude oil for the reserve when prices were at or below about $67-$72 per barrel.

The move would be a dual-purpose one in that not only would it replenish the nations depleted reserves, but it would boost demand when prices were low instead of sending them into orbit at a time of regular prices.

Currently, the strategic petroleum reserve is at the lowest level since 1983, at 372 million barrels of crude, which has prompted some observers to warn about a possible compromise in the countrys energy security.

The first 3 million barrels should be delivered to the SPR in August and another 3 millionyet to be contractedshould be delivered a month later. This leaves three months for the Department of Energy to source and purchase another 6 million barrels at a price it can afford.

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According to a spokesman, the DoE "will continue to seek opportunities for additional repurchases as market conditions and the constraints of SPR operations allow."

By Irina Slav for Oilprice.com

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Chinese authorities have issued a third batch of crude oil import quotas to refiners for 2023, with overall allowances up by 20% in the first half of this year compared to the same period of 2022.

China issued 62.28 million tons of import quotas to private refiners  those that need government authorization to import crude unlike state-held oil refining giants  in the latest batch, Reuters reported on Wednesday, quoting documents and sources.

With the latest batch for 2023, the total crude import allowances for Chinese refiners for the first half of the year have risen to 194.1 million tons. This is 20% higher than the crude import quotas allocated in the first half of 2022.

Back in H1 2022, the overall import quotas for Chinese refiners were 161.72 million tons, while the June 2022 batch included quotas of 52.69 million tons, Reuters notes.

In the latest batch of quotas from June 2023, Zhejiang Petroleum & Chemical Co, a subsidiary of Rongsheng Petrochemical, received the largest quota, at 20 million tons, according to Reuters sources familiar with the matter.

The first batch of quotas for imports for 2023 was issued as early as in October last year, almost three months ahead of the usual schedule.

The second batch of crude import quotas was a massive 111.82 million tons, as the country reopened from Covid restrictions after nearly three years of lockdowns.

The reopening led to an increase in oil demand in China, but recent macroeconomic data from the worlds top crude oil importer have had forecasters and analysts concerned that demand may not be as strong as initially expected.

Chinese refiners are gorging on cheap Russian crude as China and India are pretty much the only markets  but large ones  for Russias oil now.

As Chinese refiners returned from maintenance and built stockpiles, Chinas crude oil imports jumped in May to the third-highest level on record, customs data showed last week.

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Four years after he absconded from state custody while attending a church service in Lincoln, a former Nebraska inmate is back in custody, according to authorities.

Antonio Collier, 36, had been considered an escapee since May 19, 2019, when he failed to return to the Community Corrections Center-Lincoln after getting permission to attend church, authorities said in a press release.

Police in Roseville, Michigan, arrested Collier on Sunday and took him to the Macomb County Jail, the Nebraska Department of Correctional Services said in the press release.

Upon his return to Nebraska, Collier will resume the four-to five-year sentence he started on April 3, 2018, for a burglary conviction out of Douglas County.

And the 36-year-old will be prosecuted for departure from state custody.

Prosecutors in Lancaster County charged Collier in June 2019 with escape.

In court records, investigators with the Corrections Department said Collier had an hour pass to attend services at Our Savior's Lutheran Church that Sunday afternoon.

An hour after his pass expired, the 36-year-old called the community corrections facility and reported that he was running late because of car problems, Correctional Services Investigator Ross Bartlett said in the probable cause statement for a warrant for Collier's arrest.

Staff at the facility told Collier he needed to return to the facility as soon as possible, Bartlett said.

But he never showed, prompting a Lancaster County judge to sign a warrant for his arrest June 5, 2019.

Inmates at the Community Corrections Center-Lincoln are allowed to work and go to school or religious services with prior approval and supervision.
A jury in Omaha has found in favor of Werner Enterprises in a lawsuit brought by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission accusing the Papillion-based transportation company of violating the Americans with Disabilities Act for not hiring a Texas driver who is deaf.

Werners attorneys successfully argued at trial the decision not to hire Andrew Deuschle was due to legitimate, non-discriminatory reasons.

On Friday, June 9, at the end of a five-day trial in U.S. District Court of Nebraska, the jury deliberated for about an hour and a half before returning a verdict siding with Werner.

The EEOC had sought a judgment declaring that Werners employment application violates the ADA and ordering the company to stop making any disability-related inquiries of job candidates. They also had sought money for back pay, job search expenses and other compensation, plus punitive damages.

According to the complaint filed in 2018, Deuschle, who has been deaf since infancy, received an exemption from the hearing requirement set out in federal regulations for commercial motor vehicle drivers.

In 2015, he applied for a co-driver position at Werner and, by email, told a recruiter about his nearly five months of experience driving for another carrier, C.R. England, and about his hearing exemption.

Werner preapproved his application but ultimately didnt hire him.

In a pretrial ruling, the judge rejected Werners defense that Deuschle posed a direct threat to the health and safety of himself or others if allowed to operate a commercial motor vehicle.

At trial, the EEOC alleged and Werner admitted, the company has a practice of classifying deaf drivers differently when they apply for employment. While non-deaf drivers initial applications are automatically preapproved and theyre conditionally offered a job, deaf drivers applications go to a manager.

It wasnt clear at what stage of the process Deuschle received his preapproval from Werner.

In this case in particular, Elizabeth Culhane, one of Werners attorneys, argued that Deuschle wasnt able to perform the essential functions of the position because he couldnt complete the companys in-house training program, which requires spoken communications in emergency situations.

Although Werners safety department determined the proposed accommodations for training a deaf driver in its driver placement program are unsafe, the EEOC has brought a campaign of litigation against Werner for declining to hire and train Deuschle and another driver, Culhane said.

She also pointed to the fact that Deuschle never provided Werner with a copy of his Department of Transportation exemption and argued the evidence does not support a finding of any violation of the ADA.

To the contrary, even the EEOC acknowledged during the course of its investigation that Deuschle did not provide all requested information in a timely manner, thereby conceding the legitimacy of one of Werners proffered nondiscriminatory reasons for not hiring Deuschle, Culhane said in a brief.
BRUSSELS  In the final days of the 2016 U.S. election campaign, European Union leader Donald Tusk could no longer contain himself: "One Donald is more than enough!" he wrote on Twitter.

When Trump was elected less than a week later, it made for an awkward start to what proved to be four difficult years of trans-Atlantic relations.

As Trump becomes the first former president to face federal charges that could put him in jail, many Europeans are watching the case closely, but hardly a single world leader has said a thing recently about the man leading the race for the Republican party nomination.

NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg, who Foreign Policy Magazine named its "Diplomat of the Year" in 2019 for helping the alliance navigate an "uncertain future" during the Trump years, demonstrated his chops when asked about a second term: It took him less than three sentences to change the topic to the television series "The Crown."

It's not that the global public isn't interested. Trump's court appearance grabbed headlines and figured prominently on evening newscasts across much of Europe.

As far away as New Zealand, most "are watching the Trump circus with the same sense of horror and fascination that marked his last days in office" in early 2021 when the U.S. Capitol was attacked, said David Capie, a professor of international relations at Victoria University of Wellington.

Few European leaders would welcome Trump's reelection. His policies on climate, trade and security clashed with European interests and sensibilities, and many fear that he would withdraw robust U.S. support for the war in Ukraine.

"The whole world has the same concern. We hope that the U.S. election restores a bit of rationality," said Jose Pio Borges, president of the Brazilian Center for International Relations think tank. "Not that we have great appreciation for Biden, but there is no comparison."

In other parts of the world where the U.S. feels farther away, like China and India, the trial passed by with much less notice.

A minority of world leaders is openly cheering for Trump to make a comeback. In Hungary, Prime Minister Viktor Orban backed Trump in 2016, and said the war in Ukraine wouldn't be happening if Trump was still president. In a speech last month, he cried: "Come back, Mr. President! Make America great again, and bring us peace!"

The nature of the allegations against Trump being tried now also matter to allied leaders. Prosecutors allege he was reckless with classified information, including secrets shared by or about intelligence partners.

"Were Donald Trump to be elected President, then absolutely, there will be certain governments that are going to be concerned," said Leslie Vinjamuri, director of the U.S. and Americas Program at the London-based think tank Chatham House. She added that the current case was "very clear evidence, you know, of his willingness to play fast and loose with secret and top secret documents."

With NATO allies and as far as Australia and New Zealand, the United States has a dense network of military security cooperation deals where secrecy, due diligence and trust in exchanging sensitive information are essential.

The indictment alleges Trump intentionally retained hundreds of classified documents after leaving office in January 2021, and then stored them in cardboard boxes in locations including a bathroom, a ballroom and a bedroom. The documents contained information on nuclear programs, defense and weapons capabilities of the U.S. and foreign governments, and a Pentagon "attack plan," prosecutors wrote.

"It's so far beyond the pale of the imagination of most people who work in intelligence that it really, you know, you do have to sort of laugh. But it's obviously very grave, very serious," Vinjamuri said.

Governments themselves have shied away from addressing such sensitive issues on the record, but it's clear that most U.S. allies, especially in Europe, embraced Biden as their best hope to rekindle old alliances and build cooperation to contain climate change.

Russia's invasion of Ukraine has created Europe's biggest crisis in decades, and many European nations have stood shoulder to shoulder with Biden in facing Putin and slapping sanction after sanction on the Kremlin.

Ukraine itself has received vital aid from the Biden administration, but has shown no interest in commenting on Biden's political rival. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy tried not to take sides during Trump's first impeachment saga despite playing a central role in it, much as he's welcomed China's peace plan for the conflict despite widespread perceptions that it favors Moscow.

But this time, European leaders are keeping their opinions about Trump to themselves.

Photos: Protesters, supporters gather in Miami ahead of Trump court appearance
Nigeria U-23 team have been rewarded with a cash gift of 4 million by Super Eagles captain, Ahmed Musa, following their 4-0 win over Libya on Monday evening.

The team were trailing the Libyans 2-0 from the first leg last week and needed a resounding win to qualify.

Musa promised to pay N1million per goal scored if they can bounce back.

The match, which was played at the Stephen Keshi Stadium, is the second leg of a qualification round for the U-23 Africa Cup of Nations.

The second leg game, which was watched by a handful of spectators, saw the Libyan team putting up a defensive play right from the first blast of the whistle.

However, the Nigerian team took total control of the midfield, as they mounted sustained attacks on the Libyan defence.

Victor Osimhen grabbed a hat-trick and laid on the assist for the last goal, as the U-23 Eagles marched to victory with 4-0 win over Libya.

Former Media Officer of the senior Eagles, Colin Udoh, has confirmed that the former Leicester City winger has sent the money.
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By Izunna Okafor, Awka

Anambra State Government has dethroned the traditional ruler of Umuona community in Aguata Local Government Area of the State, H.R.H. Igwe Humphrey Ejesieme.

The dethronement was announced on Tuesday in a statement issued by the State Commissioner for Local Government, Chieftaincy and Community Affairs, Hon. Tonycollins Nwabunwanne, in which he also announced the withdrawal of the monarchs Certificate of Recognition.

Hon. Nwabunwanne, in the statement, also announced that the community would have new Traditional Ruler in no distant time.

The statement read: The Anambra State Government WITHDRAWS the Certificate of Recognition of Humphrey O. Ejesieme as the Traditional Ruler of Umuona Community.

Umuona Community sets to have a new Traditional Ruler.

Umuona Community is in Aguata Local Government Area in Anambra South Senatorial Zone, Anambra State.

Although, the Commissioner did not state the reason behind the dethronement of the monarch, this reporter, Izunna Okafor, gathered that the dethronement might not be unconnected with the lingering leadership crisis, which has been rocking the community for about four years now.

Reports have it that the crisis dates back to December, 2020 during the COVID-19 era, when what many described as a kangaroo Town Union election was held in the community, against the directive of the Traditional Ruler, Igwe Ejesieme and other stakeholders in the community who advised for the suspension of the election till when things would normalize, in compliance with the directive of the then government of former Governor Willie Obiano who warned against crowded public gatherings then and also issued some safety protocols against COVID-19 pandemic.

Howbeit, the election eventually held that day, which produced Chief Kenneth Okoli as the President- General of the Umuona Progressive Union, UPU. The election was said to have been supervised by the Ministry of Local Government and Chieftaincy Matters.

According to a source close to the community, Igwe Ejesieme and other stakeholders had during their year 2020 Annual General Assembly (A.G.A.) of U.P.U., which usually take place every December 28, advised that the town union election should be shelved as part of measures to curtail the COVID-19 pandemic, but they claimed that some opposition group in the area and the representatives of the Ministry of Local Government, Chieftaincy and Community Matters conspired among themselves and allegedly elected Okoli and his co-executive members to pilot the affairs of the town union for the next three years spanning from December, 2020 to December, 2023.

The source, Chuks Eke revealed that, although, Igwe Ejesieme did not swear-in OKoli and his executive members as required by the Town Union constitution and again not considering that Okoli himself was not qualified to contest the election ab-initio because he did not belong to his village branch of U.P.U. and was indebted to the union; another breach of the union constitution, the Monarch and other stakeholders allowed Okoli to pilot the affairs of the town union for the next three years as required by the constitution, under cat-and-mouse uneasy relationship.

Furthermore, it was gathered that the crisis degenerated on December 28, 2022 during the 2022 Annual General Assembly (AGA) held at Umuona Civic Centre, which Igwe Ejesieme also attended as he usually did since his ten years on the throne.

The source said: When Igwe Ejesieme arrived the venue and proceeded to sit down, Okoli became enraged and in anger publicly disparaged the Igwe before the community assembly.

According to him, the Igwe ought to have informed him before his arrival, noting that the bell which his aid rang to announce the presence and arrival of the Igwe was not enough. He consequently, denied the Igwe his traditional role to break kola nut, pray for his community and pour libations for the good health and progress of the community.

The anger of the President-General who queried why the Igwe and his cabinet members should distract the audience with the bell resulted to reactions from the Assembly and members of the community who travelled far and near to attend the General Meeting began to complain bitterly.

All objections raised by some participants at the Civic Centre, venue of the general meeting as to why the President General should disgrace their monarch proved abortive and were rejected as Okoli was said to have at a stage, parked the Unions documents, stood up, walked out on the audience and angrily vacated his seat unceremoniously with his executive.

The President-General was said to have earlier cancelled the October month edition of the Umuona Progreive Unions Meeting for that year, 2022.

Continuing, the source said After leaving the venue with his executive members in such an unceremonious manner, half way into the meeting, the General Assembly noted such a behaviour as against the provisions of the constitution of the town and resolved immediately to fill the vacuum with immediate effect by asking each village to put their heads together to present those to be elected as Caretaker Committee and some were consequently selected by their respective villages, presented and sworn-in as the incumbent eight-man Caretaker Committee of the town union led by Mr. Okechukwu Akaneme, a one-time President of Onitsha Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture, ONICCIMA.

Soon after their election and swearing-in, the Okoli-led executive wrote a petition to the state Ministry of Local Government, Chieftaincy and Community Matters, which prompted the Commissioner, Hon. Collins Nwabunwanne to quickly invite both parties including the Akaneme-led Caretaker Committee, the traditional ruler of Umuona, Igwe Ejesieme and the former Okoli-led executive to his office where he allegedly rained abuses on them (the Caretaker Committee) before directing them to go back home and renounce their purported Caretaker Committee election and allow Mr. Okoli and his executive to complete their three year tenure which is remaining only one year tenure from now.

Attempt made by Akaneme and Igwe Ejesieme to convince Hon. Nwabunwanne that they followed due process in selecting the new Caretaker Committee as enshrined in their town union constitution which states that there should be no vacuum in the leadership of the town union at any point in time, since Okoli and his executives had voluntarily vacated office, hence the hurried selection of the Caretaker Committee, Nwabunwanne allegedly asked Akaneme to leave his office.

Upon asking him to leave his office, Nwabunwanne stood up and allegedly started pushing him physically out of his office. He equally involved his aides and staff who allegedly manhandled Akaneme, mangled his clothes and broke his Apple I-phone.

As if that was not enough, Nwabunwanne allegedly dragged Akaneme and Igwe Ejesieme to nearby B Division of the Nigerian Police Force using security personnel in his office and four policemen, where they were held until they made statements and were allowed to go after about five hours of delay. He was alleged to have equally threatened to suspend or dethrone Igwe Ejesieme if he goes ahead to support Akanemes Caretaker Committee leadership.

But, in what looked like a compliance to the Commissioners directive, Akaneme convened a general meeting penultimate weekend and informed them about the government position rejecting the Caretaker Committee.

In their swift reactions, some of the stakeholders in the area, including rejected the Commissioners directive that Akaneme and his fellow Committee members should renounce their position and vacate the office for the Okoli-led elected former executive to complete their remaining one year.

Rejecting the directive, the stakeholders, namely Fidelis Okanume, Personal Assistant, PA to Igwe Ejesieme; Ebuka Okafor, Youth Leader; Chinedu Maduka, Village Chairman; Marcelinus Akaneme and Jerome Umeh, the traditional Prime Minister of Umuona, insisted that it is either the state government allow Akaneme and his executive to to stay for one year and exhaust Okolis tenure or conduct a fresh election of the town union executives as according to them, they would not want Okoli to come back to office again for any reason whatsoever because his administration was characterized by crisis, autocratic rule and above all non-performance.

It was gathered that Akaneme, in his reaction then, told newsmen that he did not prepare himself for Town Union leadership but based on his unanimous selection to fill the vacant position that suddenly cropped up as an emergency, he accepted to take up the gauntlets.

He decried the physical attack and assault he received from the Hon. Commissioner noting that town union crisis could be better managed and resolved especially when the government position was not backed by any known laws, he said.

Mr. Okoli, on his own, was said to have pledged to stand on whatever Commissioner Nwabunwanne would said on the matter.

He was quoted as saying I am aware that Akaneme has already signed an undertaking not to have a Caretaker Committee in the area, let alone parading himself as Chairman of a non-existent committee.

He was also said to have accused Igwe Ejesieme of igniting and fueling the whole thing ab initio; even as he also described the purported selection of the Caretaker Committee as a charade. He further added that he ended the meeting abruptly with a formal closing prayer that day because of the failure of Igwe Ejesiemes aides to inform the general assembly of Igwes arrival before he barged into the meeting venue.

Be it as it may, with what is currently on ground, speculations abound that Commissioner Nwabunwanne has just accomplished and perfected the threat to dethrone Igwe Ejesieme, as he earlier threatened to do if the crisis continued to linger.

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By Izunna Okafor, Awka

A herbalist, Mr. Sunday Ezeh, was, on Tuesday, arrested for maltreating and allegedly attempting to use her daughter for ritual purposes in Anambra State.

The Public Relations Officer of the Anambra State Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Welfare, Chidinma Ikeanyionwu, made this known in a statement issued in Awka, the State capital, on Tuesday.

According to her, the 17-year-old victim hails from Nise in Awka South Local Government Area of the State.

She further explained that the survivor, who is currently hospitalized at the Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu University Teaching Hospital, Amaku, Awka, was rescued through the intervention of the State Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Welfare, Mrs. Ify Obinabo, who intervened immediately she received information from some good-spirited individuals in the community, about the inhumane treatments meted out to the victim by her father.

This was corroborated by a video from the hospital, which also shows the victim lying in the hospital bed, with a swollen head, bruised ankle, disfigured arm, and other various degrees of injuries on different parts of her body. There were also cannulas fixed on different parts of her body for medication purposes, while her legs and hands are clothed with bandages. The suspect, her father, was also standing beside her hospital bed.

When interrogated by the Commissioner, the suspect, Mr. Ezeh, who said he was a herbalist, claimed that he beat the daughter and hit her on the head for defecating and urinating around, after having severally warned her against that.

She was defecating and urinating in every room. And, even after I warned her several times against that, she continued doing it, he said (in Igbo language).

It was gathered that Mr. Ezeh, after maltreating the child, tied her up at the backyard, and also denied her food and water, until someone residents discovered that and raised the alarm.

When asked why he didnt take the child to hospital after the maltreatment, the suspect,, claimed that he didnt have money to take her to the hospital. He further claimed that he needed financial help to fend for his family.

Mr. Eze, who denied attempting using her daughter for rituals, also confessed to have married more than one wife and divorced all, including the mother of the victim, whom she divorced after a little altercation.

While noting that he maltreated the child out of anger, he also pleaded for mercy, adding that it was the handiwork of the devil.

On her own part, the victim, Miss Ezeh said her father had earlier bound her hands and feet and locked her up in a room for a month, adding that it was the bamboo that he repeatedly hit her on the head in his most recent beating that caused her swollen head.

While noting that she couldnt recall what her offence was even when she regained her consciousness, she said she was told by her father that she was defecating around the compound, which, he said, made him maltreat her that way.

In her reaction, Commissioner Obinabo, who was visibly angry at the rate of child abuse and inhumane treatments being meted out to the vulnerable group in the state, utterly condemned Mr. Ezehs action, describing it as heartless, inhumane and unjustifiable. She also opined that the case, which she tagged an attempted murder, might also have some ritual undertones.

She went further to warn that anyone caught abusing any child in Anambra state must face the full weight of the law, even as she appreciated everyone who contributed in one way or the other to the discovery and rescue of child. She also advised the citizens to raise alarm anytime they notice what is not going well in their areas.

The Commissioner, who also frowned at the rate at the rate of barbaric cultural rituals and harmful traditional practices championed and propagated by herbalists today, further ordered that the suspect be handed over to the Anambra State Police Command for further investigation and immediate prosecution.

It was gathered that the victim had had a successful emergency surgery on her head, and is currently receiving medical attention at the Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu University Teaching Hospital, Amaku, Awka.

Meanwhile, the case has been transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department, Amawbia, while the suspect would be charged to court soon, upon the completion of the investigation.

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Abuja, June 14, 2023  President Bola Tinubu has pledged a transparent working relationship with the newly elected leadership of the 10th National Assembly. In a statement issued on Tuesday, President Tinubu congratulated Senate President Godswill Akpabio and Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas, and expressed his commitment to working closely with them for the betterment of Nigeria.

The Presidents statement was addressed to the entire membership of the National Assembly, emphasizing the need to swiftly move forward with the business of governance. President Tinubu stated, We have all been called upon and accepted the responsibility to diligently and faithfully serve our fatherland with the oath we took. It is time to get on and move swiftly with the business of governance in the service of Nigeria.

President Tinubu expressed his preparedness to work transparently with the National Assembly, highlighting the expectations of Nigerians. He stated, Nigerians expect distinguished Senators and Honourable members to make laws and carry out oversight duties that will enhance the performance of government to achieve successful outcomes, including improving their quality of life.

The President further congratulated the newly elected Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, and Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas, along with their deputies, Jibril Barau and Benjamin Kalu. He commended their victories and urged them to justify the confidence reposed in them by their members and the Nigerian people.

President Tinubu also extended his congratulations to all members of the National Assembly, irrespective of party affiliations, for their enlistment into the service of the nation. He emphasized the importance of the responsibilities entrusted to them and urged them to approach their duties with enthusiasm and dedication.

While acknowledging that disagreements may occur in the course of their work, President Tinubu emphasized that they should be approached with goodwill and respect for the institution of the National Assembly and its members. He urged unity and harmony among the lawmakers, highlighting the expectations of the Nigerian people who look up to them to bring about positive change.

The President recognized the aspirations of the Nigerian people for economic prosperity, security, and progress. He called for concerted efforts to uplift the nation and remove barriers hindering development. President Tinubu affirmed his commitment to being a partner in progress and called upon the leadership of the 10th National Assembly and its members to work together for the peace, stability, and prosperity of Nigeria.

In conclusion, President Tinubu expressed his best wishes to the members of the National Assembly and conveyed his determination to make every day of the next four years count. He emphasized the importance of delivering progressive good governance to improve the standards of living for the Nigerian people.

The Presidents statement signals a commitment to collaboration between the executive and legislative branches of the Nigerian government, highlighting the need for transparency and effective governance to address the nations challenges. As the 10th National Assembly begins its tenure, Nigerians will be closely watching their efforts to fulfill the promises made during the electoral campaigns.
MACAO, June 14 (Xinhua) -- A magazine in Portuguese focusing on Chinese culture has been launched in China's Macao Special Administrative Region (SAR), a city regarded as a bridge linking Chinese and Portuguese cultures.

Via do Meio, meaning "Middle Way" in English, is a quarterly magazine published by Livros do Meio, a publishing house in Macao that is dedicated to introducing works about China in the Portuguese language.

The first edition of the magazine included translations or reviews of Chinese classic literature, poem, and paintings by scholars in Portuguese-speaking countries (PSCs) such as Portugal and Brazil.

Carlos Morais Jose, founder of the publishing house who is also editor-in-chief of the magazine, said at a launch ceremony on Wednesday that the magazine was aimed at helping the public in PSCs better understand Chinese culture.

"China boasts a complicated, profound, and diversified ancient civilization, to which Via do Meio provides an excellent access," said Jose, who was born in Lisbon, Portugal, and first came to Macao in 1990.

The magazine is currently targeting users working in education institutions in Macao and readers in PSCs and beyond.

The magazine is scheduled to be published in Portugal in September. 
Pan-African housing development financier, shelter Afrique has urged African governments to prioritize partnerships in their quest to provide affordable housing to their citizens.

According to Mr. Thierno-Habib Hann, the Managing Director of Shelter Afrique, housing occupies a central position within the framework of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Mr. Hann firmly believes that the establishment of sustainable partnerships assumes paramount importance in effecting substantial and meaningful advancements in the sphere of affordable housing provision.

Adequate housing is one of the key components of Sustainable Development Goals and achieving housing goals will require collaborative efforts and forging fruitful partnerships among key players in the housing sector, Mr. Hann said.

A research by Shelter Afriques Centre of Excellence (CoE) has revealed that the overall shortage of housing in Africa is estimated at over 56 million housing units, out of which, more than 90 percent are in the affordable housing bracket.

READ ALSO: Sanwo-Olu to commission housing projects in Gbagada, two other places

The solution to resolving this shortage lies in a well-coordinated and collaborative effort among all stakeholders, including governments, multilateral institutions, non-profit organizations, and the private sector. Collectively, we maintain our commitment to inventive strategies in tackling housing needs, Mr. Hann said.

Mr. Hann spoke on the sideline of the United Nations Habitat Assembly held last week in Nairobi, Kenya, where he also held talks with the Uganda delegation led by the Minister of State, Housing Hon. Namuganza Persis Princess to establish a solid foundation for partnership. He also held bilateral talks with the Niger delegation led by Hon. Mr. Maizoumbou Laoual Amadou, Nigers Minister of Town Planning and Housing, on future cooperation on sustainable urban development.

Mr. Hann also joined forces with the Zimbabwe delegation, led by Hon. Daniel Garwe, Minister of National Housing and Social Amenities, to discuss collaborative opportunities with the delegates at the event.

As the governance body of the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat), the United Nations Habitat Assembly is the highest global decision-making body on sustainable urbanization and human settlements, which convenes every four years.

This years event was held from 5 to 9 June 2023 in Nairobi, Kenya, under the theme: A sustainable urban future through inclusive and effective multilateralism: achieving the Sustainable Development Goals in times of global crises.

The thematic debates and discussions during the Assembly, which included universal Access to affordable housing, urban climate action, urban crises recovery, localization of the SDGs, and prosperity and local finance, are aligned with our overall strategy as an organisation, Mr. Hann concluded.
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By Joshua Chibuzo Andrew, Owerri

A business mogul, Dr. Ako Obioma, has given fresh facts on the ownership of the Abia State Government House controversy, revealing that it was owned by the defunct former Eastern region and was ceded to the old Imo state, later to Abia State when the state was created in August 1991.

Obioma urged the Governor, Dr Alex Otti, to investigate the alleged ownership of the state Government House, Umuahia, by an individual who receives payment on the disputed property.

In a letter addressed to the Governor, Obioma disclosed that the Abia state Government House was owned by the defunct Eastern Region and was used by Dr Michael Okpara and Colonel Chukwuemeka Odimegwu Ojukwu as Governors Lodge.

He added that the rumours making the rounds that the property is owned by a certain individual calls for immediate investigation and for the Governor to act on the matter.

In his letter to Gov. Otti; Obioma said: I was astonished to read your comments on the need to complete the new Government House because the present Government House is a rented property.

Please, I write to advise that you investigate thoroughly at what point our Abia Government House, Umuahia became rented property and who is the owner.

It may interest you to know that at the creation of Abia State in August 1991 and swearing-in of then Group Captain Frank Ajobena, rtd, as first Military Administrator, I was privileged to have been introduced to him by then powers that be as a major contractor in the federal and old Imo State. So, that relationship gave me the privilege as his closest Abia civilian and my company was first to be awarded a contract by the regime.

After his swearing-in, Group Capt Ajobena remained in Douglas House, Owerri for some days to allow for complete clean-up of the present Government House, Umuahia, before resuming work at Umuahia.

This present Government House was then a big two (2) bedroom duplex owned by the former Eastern Region which was used by late Dr Michael Okpara and Col. Chukwuemeka Odimegwu Ojukwu as Governors Lodge, with Enugu as headquarters before it was ceded to Imo State and subsequently to Abia State upon its creation in 1991.

Because it was the seat of power of the then Eastern region, all the land surrounding it was owed by Eastern Region government as Government Reserved Area, GRA, with the back as forestry without encroachment until the civilian regime of the late Chief Sam Mbakwe, when few lands were allocated to defunct NPP political cronies.

He continued; On assumption of office, Ajobena ordered revocation of those lands allocated in the GRA, especially those within the Government House environment.

Among those critical ones were the one allocated to the late Air Commodore Emeka Omeruah, where he built the uncompleted duplex which now serves as the Governors Office. The second most critical were the land opposite Commodore Emeka Omeruah, which was allocated to Hon. Eze Albert Uwanamodo, who represented Umuahia in the Imo State House of Assembly under the late Chief Sam Mbakwe, where he was constructing 4 twin duplex which were at DPC levels.

Due to the personalities involved which included his boss, Omeruah, Ajobena ordered that the cost of these properties and structures on it be evaluated which was done and the owners were completely paid off. Ajobena now awarded contracts for the reconstruction of the Governors Lodge and Construction of the banquet hall which were completed as you have them today.

He awarded a contract for completion of the Emeka Omeruah building to serve as Governors office, construction of 8 duplexes on the Uwanamodo structure to serve as Governors guest houses and other structures which my companies were also beneficiaries too.

While myself and another contractor did the building and furnishing of the Chapel to Government House.

In the recent years that passed, I had taken this insinuation as rumour until your latest pronouncement, hence Abians would like to be detailed on how our property of over 60 years has become a rented apartment and who are the landlords receiving the rent.

Please, Your Excellency, where you find more ambiguities in my explanation, you may invite me for a more detailed explanation.

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Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu of Lagos State has celebrated his predecessor, Akinwunmi Ambode on the occasion of his 60th birthday.



Ambode clocked 60 on Wednesday, June 14.

Sanwo-Olu in a congratulatory message, issued on Wednesday by his Media Adviser, Gboyega Akosile, and posted on his official Twitter handle, described Ambode as a seasoned administrator who contributed his knowledge and expertise to the growth of the public service in Lagos State.

According to him, Ambode had contributed immensely as a former Accountant-General as well as ex-Governor to the growth and development of Lagos State in different capacities, especially in the finance sector.

He said: On behalf of my adorable wife, Ibijoke, the government, and good people of Lagos State, I join family, friends and political associates of my predecessor, former Governor Akinwunmi Ambode to congratulate him on his 60th birthday.

Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode dedicated his young and adult life to the service of Lagos State, first as a civil servant and later as the 14th Governor of our dear State.

As Council Treasurer, Auditor General for Local Government, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Finance, and Accountant-General of Lagos State, he displayed a high level of integrity, dedication, and professionalism to service in the public sector.

He recorded same achievements as Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Finance and as the States Accountant General.

He also made positive and significant impacts in some sectors during his tenure as Lagos State Governor, working for the continuous growth and development of our State.

I wish His Excellency, former Governor Akinwunmi Ambode a happy birthday and pray that he witnesses many more fruitful years in good health. Amen.

On behalf of my dear wife, Ibijoke, the government and good people of Lagos State, I join family, friends and political associates of my predecessor, former Governor Akinwunmi Ambode to congratulate him on his 60th birthday. Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode dedicated his young and adult pic.twitter.com/sXRsYj11L4  Babajide Sanwo-Olu (@jidesanwoolu) June 14, 2023

In other news, Kanyi Daily reported in a show of appreciation, the newly elected President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio on Tuesday, paid a visit to the immediate past Governor of Rivers State, Nyesom Wike in his residence in Abuja.

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Nigerian socialite and businessman, Obinna Iyiegbu aka Obi Cubana, and his wife, Ebele are celebrating 15 years of marital today, June 14.

To celebrate their special day, he penned a note to his wife to assure her of his love.

He also shared new family photos on his Instagram page writing;

15yrs!



See how God has blessed and multiplied us in everything!



God has been good to us, so good!



Happy wedding anniversary my baby @lush_eby



You said you wanted a 15th wedding anniversary ball, tonight you get one, the best!!!



I love you, forever 



#ebyobi23

His wife wrote;



Obi m

15 years ago, I made a vow before God and man to love and cherish one man for the rest of my life. I promised to be there with you through sickness and health, for better or for worse till death do us part.

For me, it wasnt just a marriage ritual. It was a VOW that I made with every fiber in my body.

Through these years, weve had our moments of ups and downs, our moments of laughter and sorrow. It wasnt all giddy and dandy but It was worth the journey and Im glad to continue on this beautiful journey of love 

You are my forever after

You are my gift from heaven and I do not take it for granted.



You are a loving husband to me.



An amazing father to our boys.



All I can say is that God kept us!



And today I give the highest praise to the one who knows us bestwho loves us without judgmentwho kept these imperfectly perfect human beings together for 15 years. We do not take it for granted

I love you beyond words my Sucre and I pray that we will live and grow old together.

Cheers to 15 years of love and friendship

Happy Anniversary Shuga m

Heres to forever!

My happily ever after

#happilyeverafter #ebyobi23

See Photos Below;
The former US president, who is the first to be faced with a federal charges, has been put under arrest at the federal courthouse in Miami





File photo

Former President of the United States, Donald Trump was on Tuesday arrested by US Marshals.

According to CNN, Trump, who is the first to be faced with a federal charges, was arrested and taken to the federal courthouse in Miami, where he will face 37 criminal charges related to his handling of classified documents at his Florida Mar-a-Lago resort.

Trump is expected to plead not guilty at the next hearing of his case.

Trumps second indictment comes just months after he was charged by a Manhattan grand jury in a separate hush-money case. Though the former president has denied any wrongdoing in both cases and has vowed to remain in the 2024 presidential race despite the charges.

Trump is, however, expected to speak further on his troubles and the 2024 race once he returns to his Bedminster resort in New Jersey.

Trump was placed under arrest by deputy US Marshals and his booking process and that of his aide and co-defendant Walt Nauta have been completed.

The marshals are expected to take electronic copies of his fingerprints at some point during todays proceedings. They are not expected to take a mugshot of Trump given his recognizability.

The former US president is likely to enter a plea and there will be a discussion of the conditions of his pretrial release. Trump could also be faced with some restrictions on his conduct as the case moves forward.

Tuesdays proceedings will be overseen by a magistrate judge, expected to be Jonathan Goodman, who is the magistrate on duty in Miami this week.
Peter Obi and the Labour Party clashed on Wednesday with the Independent National Electoral Commission over INECs refusal to obey a court order to furnish them with more documents for their case.

At the Presidential Election Petition Court (PEPC), the lead counsel to Mr Obi and LP, Livy Uzoukwu, prayed the court to intervene as he had subpoenaed the office of the INEC chairman to produce some documents which they sought to tender as evidence to the court.

This was disclosed after the party had tendered IREV reports certified and downloaded by the first respondent INEC, in seven states which include Benue, Niger, Edo, Bauchi, Bayelsa, Gombe and Kaduna.

Also BVAS report and certificate of compliance for 28 states including the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) as evidence which were all opposed by President Bola Tinubu, the All Progressives Congress and INEC.

However, counsel to INEC, Kemi Pinheiro, informed the court of Mr Uzoukwu continuous habit to look for someone to pin when they want to seek for adjournment and that his claims were merely an excuse to adjourn proceedings, having exhausted the documents they wanted to tender for the day.

Mr Pinheiro said that the INEC chairman, Mahmood Yakubu, had no reason to hold back the subpoenas and it was unfair and uncharitable for the LP to accuse INEC of refusal to be served subpoena. He informed Labour that if they wanted adjournment, INEC was not opposed to that but that they should not use INEC as a weeping ball.

Mr Uzoukwu revealed that INECs lead counsel AB Mahmoud has promised to intervene and was shocked by Mr Pinheiros statements as the courts belief was that he could not serve because they refused service.

Justice Haruna Simon Tsammni, however, brought order to the court and adjourned the proceedings for continuation until Thursday, June 15.
There has been a public outcry over the overnight demolition of the State multi-million Naira, round about built by the immediate past Governor, Abdullahi Ganduje.

Kano residents woke up to the complete demolition of the structure, conceived and designed by a young female designer, situated at the entrance of the Kano Government House.

The development has now generated public disagreement between the Kano State Government and residents, as many condemn the action.

Jafar Jafar, a Journalist and a critic of the former All Progressives Congress government and former Governor Ganduje, took to his Facebook page to condemn the demolition,

He wrote, We must all condemn this thoughtless decision to demolish this monument, designed by a young female architect to commemorate Kanos Golden Jubilee.

I support the ongoing demolition of private buildings in schools, hospitals, and mosques but not wanton destruction of public monuments and buildings, simply because they were built by Ganduje. I do not like the politician in Ganduje but I like some of his projects as a governor.

However, the Kano State government, in a quick reaction to the public outcry, claimed the monument was demolished in the best interest of the public.

Sunusi Bature Dawakin Tofa the Spokesperson of the NNPP Government, said in a statement that, prior to the exercise, the government had consulted professional Engineers in the relevant fields who ascertained that the roundabout construction was substandard and had the tendency to collapse.

The Monument poses traffic challenges around the area because of its size, blocking the view of drivers accessing all routes linked through the roundabout.

The government wishes to make it clear that it becomes necessary to take down the structure for the purposes of immediate reconstruction and downsizing to ensure visibility of the government house entrance and safety of motorists, the statement added.
Two men, Vincent Ebuka and John Nwachukwu, have been docked before a Badagry Chief Magistrate Court in Lagos for the alleged theft of lubricants worth N14 million.

Ebuka, 24 and Nwachukwu, 25, whose addresses were not given, were charged with stealing and receiving stolen property.

The prosecutor, ASP Ikem Uko, told the court that the defendants committed the offences between November 2021 and May 2023 at Favour Plaza, ASPAMDA Trade Fair Complex, Lagos.

Uko said Ebuka stole different types of lubricants valued at N14 million while working as a sales representative with Great Ade De Young Enterprises, a firm owned by the complainant, Lateef Adeleke.

According to him, Nwachukwu allegedly received the stolen lubricants from Ebuka knowing that they were stolen.

The prosecutor said the offences contravened sections 411, 287 and 328 of the Criminal Law of Lagos, 2015.

The defendants pleaded not guilty to the charge.

Chief Magistrate Patrick Adekomaiya granted the defendants bail in the sum of N500,000 each, with two sureties in like sum with one of them employed in a reputable organisation based in Lagos.

The case was subsequently adjourned until July 26.


The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, (EFCC) has closed the criminal case against the former Senior Special Assistant to ex-President Goodluck Jonathan on Media, Doyin Okupe.

Mr Okupe is charged with laundering N702 million.

This was disclosed in a statement signed by the commissions spokesperson, Tony Orilade, on Wednesday.

Mr Okupe, a chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), was arrested by the agency on December 12, 2018, but released on administrative bail. He was later rearrested on January 11.

The commission then explained that Mr Okupe was being charged on 59-count for corruption and would be arraigned before a judge, Ijeoma Ojukwu, of the Federal High Court in Abuja.

This was disclosed in a statement signed by the commissions spokesperson, Tony Orilade, on Wednesday.

Mr Okupe, a chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), was arrested by the agency on December 12, 2018, but released on administrative bail. He was later rearrested on January 11.

The commission then explained that Mr Okupe was being charged on 59-count for corruption and would be arraigned before a judge, Ijeoma Ojukwu, of the Federal High Court in Abuja.

Court Session

According to the statement, the prosecution counsel, Ibrahim Audu, presented his last and sixth witness, Shuaibu Salisu, former Director Administration and Finance in the Office of National Security Adviser (ONSA), who presently works with the National Intelligence Agency (NIA).

Mr Salisu told the court that sometime in 2012, Chief Okupe came to the Office of the National Security Adviser, and after their discussion, I was directed to make a payment of N50 million to him.

According to him, Okupe provided his account details, where I paid the amount into the bank account of Value Trust Investment.

He further said he was also directed by the ONSA to be paying N10 million monthly to Okupe for over two years, which he said was reduced to a monthly N5 million towards the end of 2014 due to paucity of funds.

Similarly, he said he made other payments to Mr Okupe as directed, saying that at a point he was instructed to pay the defendant N6 million.

Mr Salisu further revealed that sometime in 2014, the then National Security Adviser, Sambo Dasuki, directed that he paid the sum of N35 million to an account provided by the defendant.

Also, he recalled paying another N50 million in cash to Mr Okupe on the orders of the former NSA.

He told the court that he only obeyed directives but did not know what the monies were meant for.

Asked if there were evidence of the payments, the witness told the court that he usually provided Mr Okupe with the payment vouchers, which he usually signed.

Further questioned if all the payments were captured in payment vouchers, Mr Salisu replied in the negative.

Speaking under cross-examination by Mr Okupes counsel, Akinlabi Akinbade, the witness disclosed that the former media aide was not the only person that received payments from ONSA.

Anybody that the NSA directs that payment be made to, we make the payment, he said.

Under the same cross-examination, the witness said he had no reason to believe that the payments he made were from an illegal source.

Why would I assume it was illegal? I was only directed to make payments, he said, adding that some of the payments instructions he carried out while working in the ONSA, came verbally while some others came written, but in the case of the payments to Okupe, all the instructions were verbal.

The matter was adjourned to June 26, for the defence to open its case.
The federal capital territory police command has granted bail to Elisha Abbo, senator representing Adamawa north.

According to Premium Times, Bala Ciroma, the state police commissioner, said Abbo was allowed to go home around noon on Friday after meeting a set of administrative conditions for his bail.

The senator had honoured police invitation over the assault of a nursing mother at a sex toy shop in Abuja.

He turned himself at the headquarters of the FCT police command on Thursday evening.

The senator has been under fire since a video where he was seen hitting an attendant repeatedly at a sex toy shop in Abuja went viral.

The video had sparked outrage, with many Nigerians calling for the prosecution of the lawmaker. Subsequently, Mohammed Adamu, inspector general of police, had ordered that a comprehensive investigation be carried out on the incident.

Ciroma did not disclose the specific terms of the bail but a police source was quoted as saying the conditions were stringent enough to secure his return to the investigators as may be necessary.

Another police source reportedly said it was unclear when the senator would be charged to court because preliminary findings were not sufficient to file charges.



We need to do a forensic analysis of the CCTV footage that is in circulation, but this may take about a week or two to conclude, the source was quoted to have said.
JERUSALEM, June 14 (Xinhua) -- The export of Israel's military equipment reached an all-time high of 12.55 billion U.S. dollars in 2022, Israel's Defense Ministry said in a statement on Wednesday.

According to the ministry, 2022 was the second year in a row that the overall value of defense agreements broke records. Israel's export of military equipment has surged by 50 percent over the past three years.

Some 120 Israeli companies signed "hundreds" of new sales deals in 2022, with about half of them valued at over 100 million dollars, according to the statement.

Notably, in the wake of the so-called Abraham Accords -- a series of deals signed in 2020 in which the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Morocco agreed to normalize ties with Israel -- exports of military equipment to these countries reached 3 billion dollars, the ministry said.

In the global market, reconnaissance and attack drones attracted significant attention, with a quarter of the deals signed with foreign armies specifically focusing on these technologies.

Missiles, rockets, and air defense systems accounted for 19 percent of Israel's exports of military equipment, while radar systems made up 13 percent. Observation equipment and optronics comprised 10 percent, intelligence, information, and cyber systems constituted 6 percent, and communication systems made up 6 percent of the sales. Manned aircraft and avionics represented 5 percent, and weapon stations and launchers made up another 5 percent. The remaining portion consisted of exports in vehicles, ammunition, armaments, maritime systems, and services combined.

Global instability "increases the demand for Israeli air defense systems, drones, UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles), and missiles," Director General of the Defense Ministry Eyal Zamir was quoted as saying in the statement. 
The PDP Board of Trustees are running around now as tension rises in the opposition party following the loss of the partys presidential candidate Atiku Aubakaragainst President Muhammadu Buhariat the presidential election tribunal on Wednesday.

The matter worsens as Rivers Gov Nyesom Wike, a big shot in the PDP, turns against his partys candidate Atiku, and makes revelations about PDPs governors visiting Buhari at night.

Both events, many say, are not only frustrating, but are also signs of betrayal to Atiku.

The BoT is in a quandary on how to handle the issueseither to rebuke Wike who congratulated Buhari for defeating Atiku at the tribunalor to appease the wrath of Atiku who has become the rallying point of the PDP.

In a move to just do something, the board embers jetted out to Dubai on Saturday to meet Atiku who has refused to come home for while now.

The move became necessary as Wike remains unpredictable. He has never supported an Atiku candidacyhe preferred Sokoto Gov Aminu Tambuwal during the party primary last year.

And his brazen disregard of party loyalty now might trigger a chain reaction that will pull disgruntled party men across the nation out of the PDP.

Already, the likes of Sen Dino Melaye (Kogi West) and Timi Alaibe, but losers in the last party guber primary are in a foul mood now.

Alaibe is suing hs party for manipulating the election against him. Melaye , cold turkey,also rejected his party appointment as campaign director of the PDP in the coming election he lost to Musa Wada.

The handling of Ndudi Elumelus probe in the House of Reps is another tinderbox that might explode and splinter the PDP.

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The Federal Road Safety Corps Lagos State Sector, in her determination to entrench professionalism and promote safe driving culture among the motoring public in Lagos State announces the commencement of nominations to the FRSC Lagos and Auto Globe Annual Professional Drivers Awards.

The Professional Drivers Awards instituted in conjunction with Auto Globe Media Services was designed to reward professional Drivers with excellent service delivery, commitment towards highway safety and also create platform to educate drivers on ethics of driving profession.

According to a statement signed by Babatunde Bola Ojo, CEO of Auto Globe Media Services, the maiden edition of the Award series scheduled for October 29, 2019 at the Lagos Sector Command headquarters in Ojodu, will include 7 award categories comprising Best Corporate Fleet Driver of the year, Best Bank Driver of the year, Best NUPENG -PTD Driver of the year, Best COMTUA Driver of the year, BRT Female Driver of the year, BOLT Best Ride Hailing of the year and Best Commuter Driver of the year.

Nomination for awards is hereby requested from members of the public and corporate organizations. Such nomination to be submitted to any Federal Road Safety Corps formation in Lagos and addressed to the Sector Commander, Federal Road Safety Corp, Lagos State Command, Ojodu Lagos. It should be accompanied by Name, Address, Phone Number, email address and a short brief on the nominated driver outlining the outstanding conduct and qualities that justify his or her nomination, he added.
By Emmanuel Onwubiko

Nigeria is a hoax. NIGERIA is a paradox. NIGERIA is a wonder of the world.

These three phrases sum up the sentiments that run through the minds of most critical thinkers of Nigerian origin who are unable to decipher or offer any logical explanation for why Nigeria is rated as a resource rich nation but doubles as home to the largest population of absolutely poor and dejected members of the human community.

Broadly speaking however, it is known that the reason for the unwelcomed paradox is because of the crass ineptitude of the political class that have through extensive manipulations of the electoral system, managed to hold on to political power since the last half a century after flag independence.

Professor Chinua Achebes summed up the above scenario of incompetent leadership that Nigeria has been cursed with almost in perpetuity.

The trouble with Nigeria is simply a failure of leadershipThe Nigerian problem is the unwillingness or inability of its leaders to rise to the responsibility, to the challenge of personal example which are the hallmarks of true leadership,  Professor Chinua Achebe.

To underscore the debilitating leadership crisis that Nigeria is faced with, all that a person needs to do is to understudy the administrative style of the current president who was once a military dictator retired Major General Muhammadu Buhari.

Since he assumed office five years back, this president has rolled back Nigeria right into the inglorious class of a member of the worlds heavily indebted nation.

Nigeria has under president Buhari made a negative detour to become a notorious borrower to an extent that there is now hue and cry from all concerned patriots who are sounding loud note of warning that the current administration will lead Nigeria into an economically enslaved nation to the lenders such as China.

This sordid tale of an inglorious reversal of the gains made by the previous president Olusegun Obasanjos administration who led Nigeria out of the debts trap, need to worry every Nigerian because of the dimension that the addiction to borrow has become with president Buharis government and his aversions to public opinion which is of against the toxic move. But why make Nigerians the unwilling slaves of China through the ireational borrowing patterns? Did the Nigerian Customs Service not told us that in 2019 alone, it raked in N341 Trillion as revenues? Did the Federal Inland Revenue Services not claiming to raking in billions from taxes? Where are these money and why does government borrow so much and claims to be building national infrastructures which still remained collapsed? These conundrums are what every reasonable Nigeria is asking because it is a notorious fact that only few years back we exited from that disgraceful class of heavily indebted nations. From www.cgdev.org we are told the story of Nigerias freedom from debts as follows: Nigeria, home to one in five Africans, has been the continents most indebted nation.

With $36 billion in external debt, 100 million people living on less than a dollar a day, and a fledgling democratic government attempting reforms, Nigeria should have been a strong candidate for debt relief. Yet, in part because of its oil revenues, Nigeria slipped through the cracks of debt relief programs. In 2004, CGD set out to provide analytical support to Nigerias efforts to persuade creditors to agree to an appropriate debt relief package.

In October 2005, Nigeria and the Paris Club announced a final agreement for debt relief worth $18 billion and an overall reduction of Nigerias debt stock by $30 billion.

According to the authors, the deal was completed on April 21, 2006, when Nigeria made its final payment and its books were cleared of any Paris Club debt. CGD Fellow Todd Moss, who led CGDs work on Nigerias debt, explains the outcome of the deal.

This watershed deal was the result of months of tireless work by both Nigerian officials and the creditors.

The research platform known as CGD stated that it is proud that its work contributed to this historic outcome.

It says: A September 2004 CGD working paper, Double-Standards, Debt Treatment, and World Bank Country Classification: The Case of Nigeria, argued for Nigerias reclassification as an IDA-only country within the Banka prerequisite for debt relief. This overdue change in status, announced in June 2005, enabled Paris Club negotiations to begin in earnest. CGDs work also influenced the structure of the final agreement, which included the first-ever discounted buyback within the Paris Club, an innovation first proposed in an April 2005 CGD note, Resolving Nigerias Debt Through a Discounted Buyback.

Also, it says that the Centers contribution to the deal has been recognized by participants in the negotiations, by others close to the process, and by major media:

Your catalytic work and analysis made a differenceespecially the work of CGD in facilitating the reclassification of Nigeria as an IDA-only country as well as putting forward an innovative solution to the debt problem. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Minister of Finance(as she then was).

CGD has played a critically important role I have it first hand from negotiators in the Paris Club that it was the CGD concept of a buyback that was the tipping point that led creditors to agree debt relief for NigeriaThis is a great achievement for all concerned, and is in no small part due to the work of CGD. Ann Pettifor, co-founder Jubilee 2000 and Director of Advocacy International

CGD was described by the New York Times as a nonpartisan research institution in Washington that proposed elements of the [Nigerian debt] deal (Oct 21, 2005) and by the Economist as the Washington think-tank that first proposed the buy-back (October 20, 2005).

Nigerias debt relief deal is historic. Although the short-term financial windfall will be modest, the real potential impact is for the future. The long-term challenge for Nigeria will be to consolidate the gains from the debt deal by pushing forward with economic reform and ensuring that the benefits from debt relief are shared with the population. This is by no means assured, but the debt deal is an important step in the right direction. These lofty aspirations have all evaporated due to poor economic management of the Muhammadu Buhari-led administration which sleeps, dreams and wakes up thinking of the next loan to apply for. Nigeria under this government has sleep walked back into the unfortunate class of heavily indebted nations and in five years, the government has accumulated what took successive governments in the past over two decades to build up.

The below story is why every Nigerian should worry.

The media is awash with the frightening moves By the government of Muhammadu Buhari to once more borrow heavily from China.

The Muhammadu Buhari-led Federal Government has offered a lame and irrational explanation why it decided to approach the China-Exim Bank for a $17bn loan request.

It said other lending institutions like the World Bank and the African Development Bank were not showing much interest when Nigeria approached them during recession.

The Minister of Finance, Zainab Ahmed, stated this in the Senate while defending the decision of the regime of the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), to borrow $29.96bn loan to fund critical infrastructure across the country.

She explained that the 8th National Assembly had approved about $6bn for the Federal Government out of the $29.96bn loan, leaving a balance of $22.8bn.

The Finance minister Ms. Ahmed told the Senate Committee on Local and Foreign loans that the Federal Government and some state governments were jointly requesting the loans from various lending institutions.

She said 70 per cent of the loan, which is about $17bn, would come from the China-Exim Bank while others would be sourced from other lending institutions such as the Islamic Development Bank.

The minister maintained that the country had no issue with its current debt profile but noted that its dwindling revenue could not fund the various projects that were expected to have meaningful impact on the lives of Nigerians.

She said, The funds ($22.8bn) will be channeled to the funding of infrastructure, which will enhance the productivity of our economy.

Other projects are in healthcare and education. It also includes projects for the rehabilitation of the North- East geopolitical zone, which has been ravaged by insurgency.

Others are the Mambila Hydro Power project ($4.9bn), LagosKano modernization rail project ($4.1bn), the Development Finance project loan being provided by a consortium of World Bank and African Development Bank agencies ($1.28bn).

Above all, the loan will help us to improve our electricity supply, reduce poverty, create jobs, ensure access to finance, agricultural productivity, guarantee food security, achieves high school enrolment, provide clean potable water, rehabilitate major roads and develop the mining industry.

On why the country is seeking 70 per cent of the foreign loan from China, the minister said, it is meant to make funds available to our own development institutions so that they can give out loans because access to finance has been difficult for the SMEs.

On the debt profile of the country, the minister said, The 2016  2018 external borrowing plans are both for the Federal Government and the states. So, some states would be responsible for the payment of some of the loans.

On the sustainability of the nations debt portfolio, the minister said Nigerias current portfolio ceiling as set by the Fiscal Responsibility Act was 25 per cent of total debt to GDP. He said, The ratio for December 2018 was 19.09 per cent but it reduced to 18.9 per cent by the middle of 2019.

The debt service to revenue ratio is however high and it provides us strong justification for us to drive our revenue.

For 2017, the ratio was 57 per cent and 51 per cent in 2018.

The minister said the nations debt level was low compared to other countries like the USA, the United Kingdom and Canada. The Chief of Staff to the Kaduna State Governor, Mohammed Abdullahi, defended the states $305m loan request before the panel.

A representative of the Katsina State Government, Yakubu Danja, said the state planned to source $100m out of $110m from the Islamic Development Bank.

He said the state would enjoy between 20 to 50 per cent grants and that projects to be executed would cover the entire local government areas of the state. He also said that the loan was interest-free.

Kogi State Governments Commissioner for Finance, Budget and Planning, Mr. Ashiru Idris, said the $100m that the state was requesting would be used to develop infrastructure to encourage investors and diversify the economy. These are all propaganda that lack justification. Unfortunately, Nigeria now has a lamedock Senate and a Senate headed by a stooge of President Muhammadu Buhari so the Senators will okay the request because the Senate President Ahmed Lawan had already stayed that his Senate will pass every request from President Muhammadu Buhari because they are good. The Chairman of the committee seeking clarification on the loan package is a stooge of the Kaduna state governor whilst the Finance minister is the Sister of the Kaduna state governor. Nothing good can come from the Ahmed Lawan led Senate.

Just before we round up on the frightening development regarding the continuous pursuit for loans by president Buhari, let us read a little of what Oseloka H. Obaze, a seasoned diplomat, international civil servant, strategic policy advisor, wrote in 2016 about Buharis economic policy outlook.

Writing in his book Prime witness charge and policy challenges in Buharis Nigeria, he says: Ten months into its first year in office, the Buhari presidency remains economically challenged. Its espoused economic policies have not manifested. As the economy wobbled towards a glaring and deleterious downturn, criticisms raged, compelling variants of ad-hoc policy approaches. Because most of the policy options were disconnected, they presented as policy dissonance, if not confusion.

As Fela the legendary Musician would say, CONFUSION BREAK BONE AND WE HAVE DOUBLE WAHALA for dead body and the owner of the dead body.

Nigerians, must we allow ourselves to become slaves of China? The die is cast!

*Emmanuel Onwubiko is the Head of the Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria and [email protected]; www.emmanuelonwubikocom; www.thenigerianinsidernews.com; [email protected]

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A report on the future of the Worlds Children by the WHO and UNICEF rated Nigeria 174 out of 180 countries, lagging behind Afghanistan, Sierra Leone and South Sudan.

However, Nigeria may not be alone in the negligence of its children as the report reveals that no single country in the world adequately protects the health, environment and the future of its young.

According to experts, these revelations indicate that the health and future of children worldwide is under immediate threat from ecological degradation, climate change and exploitative marketing as well as violence emanating from insurgency.

UNICEF Nigeria Representative, Claes Johansson in a statement to newsmen said the solution to ensuring that Nigerian children have a future is to invest in them.

This report demonstrates how far we still need to go in Nigeria to ensure children can live healthy lives in an environment where they can thrive. We know that investing in the future of our children, giving them an education and making sure they are healthy and receive the right nutrition, works to provide a better future for everyone. He said.

ALSO READ: 28% of worlds wasted children in Africa, says AfDB

But while the survey suggests that poorer countries need to do more to support their childrens ability to live healthier lives, it has blamed wealthier countries for burdening the poor with excessive carbon emissions, a situation, it reports can lead to devastating health consequences for children, and increase the risk of diseases like malaria and dengue, and malnutrition.

More than 2 billion people live in countries where development is hampered by humanitarian crises, conflicts, and natural disasters, problems increasingly linked with climate change,

Expectedly, Nigeria is among this 2 billion under threat as more than half of its children bear the brunt of insurgency, terrorism and crime.

To ensure children are at the centre of efforts to achieve sustainable development, World bodies like the WHO and UNICEF say decision-makers must invest in protecting the rights of children.




Malam Abba Kyari, who is from the Kanuri tribe, was born in northeastern Borno state.

He attended primary and secondary school in Borno State, but did his first degree at the University of Warwick in England, in Sociology in 1980.

He has also completed another degree in Law at Cambridge University.

In 1983, he became a lawyer after attending the Nigerian Law School.

In 1984, he completed his law degree from the University of Cambridge.

He later attended Lausanne College of Management in Switzerland in 1992 and participated in a course on Management and Community Development at Harvard Business School in 1994.

The late Abba Kyari has worked in several fields, including the Editor of New Africa Holdings Limited Kaduna from 1988 to 1990.

In 1990, he became Commissioner for Forestry and Animal Resources of Borno State.

From 1990 to 1995, Kyari held the position of secretary of the board of directors of African International Bank Limited, a branch of the lending and commercial bank.

Kyari previously served as managing director of the United Bank for Africa, where he later served as president of the bank.

In 2002, he was appointed director of Unilever Nigeria and previously worked at Exxon Mobil Nigeria.

As the chief of staff in the Presidency, Mr. Abba Kyara has been involved in almost everything that has to do with the president.

He is the person who sets the agenda for the presidency and meets with at least 20 people a day, according to some officials in the Presidency.

A reporter with the president, who declined to be named, told the BBC that Abba Kyari had been meeting with Buhari on at least four occasions.

He is also meeting with governors, ministers and other senior government officials who want to meet with the president.

Politically, in 2015, President Muhammadu Buhari appointed him as the chief of staff of the Presidential Palace.

The position gave him full authority over the matter, which he placed before the public, where he is alleged to have turned down the governments bribery and allegations of corruption.

For example, in September 2018, the Presidential Palace fired Mr. Abba Kyari on corruption charges.

The newspaper quoted Punch newspaper as saying that Mr Abba Kyari had received N29m bribe to give a man a contract to buy cars for the presidency.

President Buhari has repeatedly stated that no one distorts his governments credentials.

He had one wife and four children.

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Drama ensued in a US-based church as an aggrieved Nigerian father stormed the building to disgrace a Pastor he accused of trying to sleep with his daughter.

The service at First Christ Apostolic Church was disrupted as a result of the incident and the Pastor was spotted in the viral video walking frantically.

While some church members tried salvaging the situation, the Nigerian man also accused the Pastor of allegedly sleeping with his wife. He was heard saying;

You fu*ked my wife you still wanna fu*k my daughter

Here is the viral video below;

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Opportunity is ripe for Republicans to win back the Senate next year  if they can land the candidates to pull it off.

The GOP needs a net gain of one or two seats to flip the chamber, depending on which party wins the White House in 2024, and it's Democrats who are defending the tougher seats. Democrats hold seven of the 10 seats that CNN ranks as most likely to flip party control next year  and the top three are all in states former President Donald Trump carried twice.

But this spring's recruitment season, coming on the heels of a midterm cycle marred by problematic GOP candidates, will likely go a long way toward determining how competitive the Senate map is next year.

National Republicans got a top pick last week, with Gov. Jim Justice announcing his Senate bid in West Virginia  the seat most likely to flip party control in 2024. (Rankings are based on CNN's reporting, fundraising figures and historical data about how states and candidates have performed.) But Justice appears headed for a contentious and expensive primary. And in many other top races, the GOP hasn't yet landed any major candidates.

Democrats, meanwhile, are thankful that most of their vulnerable incumbents are running for reelection, while a high-profile House member has largely cleared the field for one of their open Senate seats.

The unknown remains West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin. Responding to Justice's candidacy, Manchin  who has said he'll decide about running by the end of the year  had this to say to CNN about a potentially messy GOP primary: "Let the games begin."

The anti-tax Club for Growth's political arm has already committed to spending $10 million to back West Virginia Rep. Alex Mooney in the GOP primary. And tensions between the club, which has turned against Trump, and more establishment Republicans could become a feature of several top Senate races this cycle, especially with the National Republican Senatorial Committee weighing more aggressive involvement in primaries to weed out candidates it doesn't think can win general elections.

In the 2022 cycle, most of Trump's handpicked candidates in swing states stumbled in the general election. But the former president picked up a key endorsement this week from NRSC Chair Steve Daines. The Montana Republican has stayed close with Trump, CNN has previously reported, in a bid to ensure he's aligned with leadership.

Democrats defending tough seats have previously used GOP primaries to their advantage. Manchin survived in 2018 in part because his opponent was state Attorney General Patrick Morrisey. That wasn't an accident. Democrats had spent big attacking one of his primary opponents to keep him out of the general election.

Last year's midterms underscored that candidates really do matter after Republicans failed to harness favorable national winds in some key races. In a presidential year, the national environment is likely to loom large, especially with battleground states hosting key Senate races. It will also test whether some of the last remaining senators who represent states that back the opposite parties' presidential nominees can hold on.

President Joe Biden, who carried half of the states on this list in 2020, made official last week that he's running for reelection. The GOP presidential field is slowly growing, with Trump still dominating most primary polling. It's too early to know, however, what next year's race for the White House will look like or which issues, whether it's abortion or crime or the economy, will resonate.

So for now, the parties are focused on what they can control: candidates. Even though the 2024 map is stacked in their favor, Republicans can't win with nobody. But there's plenty of time for would-be senators to get into these races. Some filing deadlines  in Arizona, for example  aren't for nearly another year. And there's an argument to be made that well-funded or high-profile names have no reason to get in early.
How Time Flies is a daily feature looking back at Pantagraph archives to revisit what was happening in our community and region.

100 years ago

June 14, 1923: Bishop William J. Anderson of the Methodist Episcopal Church of Cincinnati delivered a masterful speech to the graduates of Illinois Wesleyan University: "Give! Give! In a world like this, that is the challenge tremendous," he said. "Give! Give! Give all that is in you. To meet the challenge, the student must give the best every day in the year, every hour in the day. Success or failure will be the reward depending on you. A man must be conqueror of his self before he tackles the world. Be unselfish and help your fellow men."

75 years ago

June 14, 1948: Between 4,000 and 5,000 Legionnaires and their wives thronged the grounds of Illinois Soldiers and Sailors Children's school in Normal on Sunday. It was American Legion's 14th annual pilgrimage.

50 years ago

June 14, 1973: The Bloomington school board has become the second in the county to adopt a resolution supporting a new public junior college district for Central Illinois. The Chenoa school board long ago adopted such a resolution, but the District 87's move was the first action urged by McLean County Area Junior College Feasibility Study Committee.

25 years ago

June 14, 1998: Comlara-Fest Pioneer Days in rural Hudson brought pioneer demonstrations, live country music from the Modern Cowboyz, children's carnival games, a petting zoo and pony rides, as well as vinegar fries, hot dogs and pork tenderloin sandwiches. While the Pioneer Days offer a look at the past, for most participants it's about camaraderie and tradition.

101 years ago: See vintage Pantagraph ads from 1922 Gerthart's Union Gas and Electric Co. Hoover Dr. J.A. Moore Dentists Moberly & Klenner W.P. Garretson W.H. Roland Pease's Candy Thor 32 Electric Washing Machine The Kaiser's Story of the War Ike Livingston & Sons Gossard Corsets Cat'n Fiddle 'Stolen Moments' Case Model X The Johnson Transfer & Fuel Co. The Pantagraph want ads Franklin Motor Car Co. 'A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court' Calumet Baking Powder Mayer Livingston & Co. Newsmarket 'The Emperor Jones' 'California Fig Syrup'
More than 100 people have drowned and more are missing after a boat carrying them down the River Niger in south-western Nigeria capsized, authorities say.



The vessel was carrying more than 300 passengers travelling from Kwara state to Niger state after a wedding ceremony.



Search and rescue efforts were trying to find more victims, officials said.



The boat capsized after it crashed into a tree, a traditional local ruler said.



"Dozens of people were feared killed and many others [are] still missing", a statement from the Kwara state Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq said on Tuesday.



The Emir of Patigi, Ibrahim Umar Bologi II - the traditional ruler of the area where it happened - said more than 150 people had died.



He told journalists that river waves overtook the boat and forced it to crash into a tree that had washed into the river, causing the boat to capsize.



A Kwara state police spokesman told AFP news agency the death toll was likely to rise as search and rescue efforts continued.



Mr AbdulRazaq gave his "heartfelt condolences" to the victims' loved ones - and said rescuers were continuing to search for survivors.



River accidents in this part of Nigeria are common.



People who live in the villages bordering the River Niger, which runs through the centre of the country, often use the river as it can be faster than roads, which are often poorly maintained and dangerous due to the presence of kidnapping gangs.



However, boat operators often overload their rickety vessels in a bid to earn more money.

Source: BBC









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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Member of Parliament (MP) For Bortianor-Ngleshie-Amanfro, Sylvester Matthew Tetteh, has called on Parliament to launch an investigation into the shooting to death of five persons in Bortianor Hills.



On June 8, 2023, Abraham Tetteh Wayo nicknamed Brother, Augustine Neequaye aka Dada Joe, Daniel Neequaye, Joseph Amankwanor, and an unidentified steel bender were killed in Bortianor in a crossfire between police and suspected criminals.



The police claimed the five were among those terrorising people and landowners in Bortianor and surrounding communities.



Upon spotting the approaching police team, the suspects opened fire from their hideout, prompting the police to return fire, a police statement disclosed.



As a result, five of the suspects were injured and later pronounced dead at the hospital. The remaining suspects fled the scene and are still on the run, the police indicated.



But the NPP MP insists only a parliamentary enquiry can unravel the truth of the matter because the chiefs and people of Bortianor and Kokrobite have rejected the claim by the police.



We strongly believe that an inquiry could bring out the truth of the matter and bring calm to the people of my constituency, he said on the floor of Parliament yesterday.



He continued, This incident has brought uneasy calm in the community.



Mr. Speaker, we acknowledge rampant landguard activities in and around the area and constant harassment of residents and builders alike, however reports from the family, friends and those with knowledge of these individuals have refuted the police allegations that these men were involved in landguard activities, Mr. Tetteh noted.



According to him, the chiefs and residents are aware of the daily collection of tolls as part of arrangements pertaining to sand-winning activities.



However, this daily collection of tolls does not sit well with other claimants of the same parcel of land that has led to a long protracted land dispute which people believe is a remote cause of this unfortunate incident, he posited.



He urged the people of Bortianor, Kokrobite and the surrounding areas to be calm and continue to be law abiding as we allow the competent agencies to take up the matter and ascertain the veracity or otherwise of the incident.

Source: dailyguidenetwork.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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"What I have seen is very amazing." During his recent trip to southwest China's Tibet, Muhammad Asghar, an experienced journalist from Pakistan, was impressed by the autonomous region's social and economic development in recent years.





Produced by Xinhua Global Service
An Appeals Court Judge has advocated for support for security-sector institutions to enable them to discharge their mandate effectively.



Justice Afia Serwaa Asare Botwe who made the call, asserted that when state institutions are entrusted with responsibilities, businesses and people expect them to deliver on their mandate. She emphasised that institutions that usually receive reported cybercrime incidents are met with challenges in obtaining reliable evidence and the appropriate logistics to aid effective remedial measures.



This, she stressed, results in delays in investigations, leaving elements of unsolved cases. Justice Asare Botwe maintained that the myriad of logistical challenges faced by some critical state institutions hinders timely remedial interventions against cyber criminals and adversely affect their ability to deliver.



According to her, the conversation on minimising cybercrime activities in Ghana especially can only commence with the provision of robust logistical and sustainable funding support from the state and international partners.



Justice Asare Botwe was delivering remarks on behalf of the Director General of the Cyber Security Authority (CSA), Dr. Albert Antwi-Boasiako at the Public Consultation on the Second Additional Protocol to the Convention on Cybercrime on Enhanced Co-operation and Disclosure of Electronic Evidence in Accra. In attendance were Mrs Mavis Amoa, the Director of Legislative Drafting, Office of the Attorney-General and Ministry of Justice, members of the Joint Cybersecurity Committee, representatives, and experts from the Council of Europe.



The event, which was held under the auspices of the Council of Europe and the Cyber Security Authority is part of preparatory measures for the Government of Ghana to sign the Second Additional Protocol to the Convention on Cybercrime on Enhanced Co-operation and Disclosure of Electronic Evidence. The Second Additional Protocol was formally approved on November 17, 2021, and opened for signature by the Parties to the Convention on Cybercrime on May 12, 2022. Ghana ratified the Convention on Cybercrime on December 3, 2018, and entered into force on April 1, 2019.



The Second Additional Protocol contains important new provisions to further enhance cooperation and disclosure of electronic evidence to support countries in effectively tackling cybercrime and other crimes involving electronic evidence.



To this end, Justice Asare Botwe stressed that the ripple effect of cyber activities and its borderless nature tend to garner international attention hence the call for cooperation among state institutions and countries at large.



A representative of the Serbian Cybercrime Convention Committee, Branko Stamenkovic remarked that as a member of the Budapest Convention on the Global Action on Cybercrime, Ghana has been a true ally when it comes to protecting its citizens, economy, and political systems. According to him, Ghanas continued commitment to expanding its criminal justice capacities can easily be witnessed by the numerous activities the country has participated in since 2016 with the assistance of the Global Action on Cybercrime, Extended (GLACY+), a joint project of the Council of Europe and European.



In September 2022, the Government of Ghana requested the support of the GLACY+Project to initiate a dialogue on the Second Additional Protocol as part of the national consultation required to sign the Protocol. Ghana has been a long-time partner of the GLACY+ project, with numerous activities regarding legislation and capacity building conducted in cooperation with national authorities.

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The Spokesperson of the Ministry of education-Ghana. Kwasi Kwarteng has extended support through, his  Special Support for Orphans, Disabled & Widows  initiative on Sunday, June 11, at the Revelation Church International-Agogo within the Asante Akyem North Municipal.



The phase first of the program saw of 30 beneficiaries benefiting from his good gesture. He presented undisclosed amount of the money to these needy people to provide some form of livelihood support to them.



Addressing the media during Mr. Kwarteng reiterated that this gesture wil be repeated this and every month so far as he continues to live and work.



The General Overseer Apostle Obeng Amoako Joseph who received the donation on behalf of the beneficiaries commended Mr. Kwasi Kwarteng for this kind and wonderful gesture and asked for more support from him.

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Dr Gideon Boako, Spokesperson and Economic Advisor to the Vice President has described as "laughable" some allegations attributed to former presidential spokesperson, Mr. Kwabena Agyei Agyepong.



According to him, it is no fault of Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia if he has a large following who yearn for him to become the party's flagbearer for the 2024 general elections.



Speaking on Okay FM's Ade Akye Abia programme, he touted the credentials of Dr Bawumia, who he believes, has played his cards well to attract his current support base.



Distasteful Conduct By CEOs



Kwabena Agyepong, who is aspiring to be the NPP's Presidential candidate in next year's general elections, claimed some party members are being coerced to follow the Vice President to campaign.



He also condemned the open endorsement of flagbearer hopefuls by some civil servants; especially Chief Executive Officers of State agencies.



The aspirant found it distasteful for a person appointed into civil office to publicly declare support for a particular candidate.



"We cannot overly politicize this country to the detriment of the development of our country, Ghana," he cautioned.



Though Kwabena Agyepong declined to mention specific names, it is on record that the Chief Executive Officer of the National Lottery Authority (NLA), Sammy Awuku, weeks ago picked nomination forms on behalf of Vice President of the Republic, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, who is contesting the flagbearership of the NPP.



This act by Sammy Awuku is seen to be his endorsement for Dr. Bawumia to lead the New Patriotic Party into the 2024 elections.



Unnecessary Divisions



To Kwabena Agyapong, these conduct breed unnecessary divisions within the party.



" . . it is not healthy for the party," he stated, adding "it's not possible that you have a Chief of Staff who is the anchorman at the Presidency. He holds the stick, the enforcer, that is the role of the Chief of Staff and you can have all these CEOs being roled out openly endorsing one candidate".



"This creates apathy and dissent that, if care is not taken and the election doesn't go well, some people might misbehave," he stressed.



Hybrid Candidate



But jumping to the defence of his boss, Dr Gideon Boako pointed out that Dr Bawumia is a hybrid candidate who has endeared himself to not only NPP activists and sympathisers, but the entire populace; hence this genuine show of love to the Vice President.



Watch Video Below





Source: Isaac Kwame Owusu/Peacefmonline/[email protected]









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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.
The Chief of Mempeasem, Nii Torgbor Obodai Ampaw VI must be commended, according to renowned Journalist, Kwami Sefa Kayi.



In a viral video from the 2023 edition of the Green Ghana Day Celebration, which was organized at the University of Ghana, the President, Nana Akufo-Addo, can be seen angrily directing the Greater Accra Regional Minister, Henry Quartey, to tell the chief who was seated during the National Anthem to stand up and observe it.



His action infuriated the President.



But the chief explained in a statement that he could not stand for the National Anthem due to ill health.



He then went on to issue a public apology to President Akufo-Addo.



The host of Peace FM's morning show 'Kokrokoo' speaking to the issue during Tuesday's edition of his programme said not all leaders will accept their "fault, explain what led to that and then apologize; not everyone in his position will do that so he should be commended".



However, the Managing Editor of the Insight newspaper, Kwesi Pratt disagrees.



Listen to them in the video below





Source: Peacefmonline.com









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Sikhi is not a combination or offshoot of any other religion. It is a distinct religious faith founded in 1469 by a man named Guru Nanak, who taught that there was one God, that all living beings contained a divine spark of this infinite being, and that all people were therefore equal and equally deserving of love. Guru Nanak was born in the Punjab region of South Asia, now split between modern-day India and Pakistan, and his message of total equality was in part a radical rejection of the caste system, which viewed entire classes of people as "untouchable."

To a Sikh, the guru is a "spiritual teacher." Guru Nanak was the first of 10 living gurus or enlightened teachers who were inspired by God to reveal the path of Sikhi to the world. Before the passing of the 10th guru in 1708, the eternal and perpetual guruship was bestowed to the Guru Granth Sahib, a collection of writings from the 10 gurus plus teachers from other faiths, and to the Guru Khalsa Panth, the community of initiated Sikhs. Sikhs now regard the Guru Granth Sahib and the Guru Khalsa Panth together as the "living and eternal Guru."

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"The Guru Granth Sahib is an embodiment of the Guru's teachings and therefore an embodiment of the Guru," says Pritpal Kaur, education director for the Sikh Coalition, a Sikh advocacy and outreach organization. "That's why it's treated with the reverence and respect of a living guru."

" " More than 1,000 Sikhs march in Denver's first-ever Sikh parade in 2016. The event was held to celebrate the culture of the growing Sikh population in the area. AAron Ontiveroz/The Denver Post via Getty Images

If a Sikh family has the Guru Granth Sahib in their home, for example, it's given its own room. And at Sikh places of worship, known as gurdwaras, the Guru Granth Sahib is placed on a throne and devotees bow to the scripture out of respect, says Kaur.
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Hundreds of thousands of locusts have descended on crops in northern Afghanistan.

Hundreds of thousands of locusts have descended on crops in northern Afghanistan, under the helpless gaze of farmers and their families already stalked by famine.

In the village of Kandali in northern Balkh, one of eight affected provinces in the country's breadbasket, a staggering swarm of gray insects has amassed on a fallow wheat field.

After feasting on the harvest they laid eggs to hatch anew next spring, continuing a cycle of destruction in a nation where nine in 10 families already struggle to afford food, according to the UN.

"They eat everything that is green: wheat, peas, sesame," Baz Mohammad, the representative of Kandali village, told AFP.

Desperate farmers used nets to sweep up the plague of Moroccan Locustsone of the world's most voracious pestsbefore burying them in trenches, but their numbers are still multiplying.

"We walk with hungry stomachs to kill the locusts. If we don't kill them, our agriculture will be ruined," Mohammad said.

This year's outbreak could destroy 1.2 million metric tons of wheat, a quarter of the annual harvest, at a loss of up to $480 million, according to the UN's Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).

Afghanistan is facing its third consecutive year of drought, with farmers in Kandali reporting no rains since March, which could have helped wash away the bugs.

In the village of Kandali in northern Balkh, a staggering swarm of grey insects has amassed on a fallow wheat field.

"Harvest forecasts this year are the best we have seen for the last three years," FAO Afghanistan representative Richard Trenchard said last month.

"But this outbreak threatens to destroy all these recent gains and dramatically worsen the food insecurity situation later this year and into next year."

The agency said conditions were "perfect" for locusts with "overgrazing, drought and very limited control measures".

The last two major infestations, which took place 20 and 40 years ago, cost the country an estimated eight percent and 25 percent of production, respectively.

Worse to come

The head of locust control at the provincial agricultural ministry, Sifatullah Azizi, said 7,000 hectares (17,000 acres) of land has been treated chemically and manually, but it is not enough.

"We have acted within our means. To eradicate them you need a budget, to hire workers, pay for fuel, products," he told AFP.

This year's outbreak could destroy 1.2 million metric tons of wheat, a quarter of the annual harvest, at a loss of up to $480 million.

The last two major infestations, which took place 20 and 40 years ago, cost the country an estimated eight percent and 25 percent of production, respectively.

Afghanistan's economy, already battered by decades of war, has been mired in crisis after billions of dollars in international aid were cut following the Taliban goverment's takeover in August 2021.

Economic output has collapsed and nearly 85 percent of the country lives in poverty, according to the latest report from the United Nations Development Programme.

"Afghanistan used to have a very strong locust control system in place. But this has been heavily eroded in the last two years," Trenchard said.

If left untreated, the population of Moroccan locusts could increase 100-fold next year, the FAO has warned.

Farmer Abdul Raqib Kazimi, who provides for sixteen family members, said 60 to 70 percent of his land has been destroyed, including fodder for cattle.

"We need to feed ourselves. If there is no wheat, there is no flour," the 38-year-old said.

"I am very worried as these locusts are laying eggs in this area so next year again it will be out of my control and out of the control of my villagers."

 2023 AFP
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Artist's impression of astronauts on the lunar surface, as part of the Artemis Program. Credit: NASA

Lunar regolith (aka. moondust) is a major hazard for missions heading to the moon. It's everywhere on the surface5 to 10 meters (~16.5 to 33 feet) in depth in some placesnot to mention jagged and sticky. During the Apollo missions, astronauts learned how this dust adhered to everything, including their spacesuits. Worse, it would get tracked back into their lunar modules (LMs), where it stuck to surfaces and played havoc with electronics and mechanical equipment, and even led to long-term respiratory problems.

This is a major concern for the Artemis Program, which aims to establish a "sustained program of lunar exploration and development." One of the key elements of this program is the Lunar Gateway, a lunar habitat that will orbit the moon for a planned 15 years and facilitate long-term missions to the surface. The impact that regolith introduced by astronauts returning from the surface will have is not well understood. In a recent paper, a NASA-led team of researchers created a physics-based model to asses how regolith could impact the habitat over time.

The team was led by Ronald G. Lee, the lead aerospace engineer with Houston-based consulting, analytics, and government/military contractor Booz Allen Hamilton. He was joined by scientists from NASA's Johnson Space Center, NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center, the ESA's European Space Research and Technology Center (ESTEC), and Houston-based engineering firm Jacobs Technology and aerospace contractor Barrios Technology. The paper that describes their model recently appeared in Acta Astronautica.

While most meteors entering Earth's atmosphere burn up before reaching the surface, the moon is an airless environment. As a result, billions of years of impacts have pulverized the surface, producing fine silica particles. The absence of an atmosphere also meant that these particles experienced no weathering from wind or precipitation, leaving them misshapen and jagged. The interaction between these particles and charged plasma from the sun's corona (aka solar wind) has left the regolith electrostatically charged, causing it to stick to electrically charged surfaces.

This dust caused numerous problems during the Apollo missions, including thermal control issues of the Lunar Reconnaissance Vehicle's (LRV) batteries during the Apollo 16 and 17 missions. Eugene Cernan, Commander of the Apollo 17 Mission, went as far as declaring lunar regolith to be the greatest challenge to lunar exploration. "I think dust is probably one of our greatest inhibitors to a nominal operation on the moon," he said. "I think we can overcome other physiological or physical or mechanical problems except dust."

In the coming years, the Artemis Program will send astronauts to the moon for the first time since the Apollo Era. But unlike the previous crewed landings, which left behind various science experiments and "footprints and flags," the Artemis Program will establish lasting infrastructure. In addition to the Lunar Gateway, astronauts will rely on the Artemis Base Camp while performing science operations on the surface. The ESA and China also have plans for lunar infrastructure, known as the Lunar Village and the International Lunar Research Station (ILRS), respectively.

This means multiple space agencies and commercial partners launching to and from the surface and astronauts performing regular extravehicular activities (EVAs). The amount of lunar regolith kicked up and tracked back to vehicles and habitats will cause wear and tear on spacesuits and vehicles, being so incredibly abrasive. It will also play havoc with machinery, power systems, life support systems, and other vital components. There are also the health risks that airborne regolith will pose to astronauts, commercial crews, and lunar tourists.

The situation will be significantly more complicated due to the presence of several interacting mission elements. As they wrote, "The unique challenge posed to Gateway is it will not endure a one-time exposure to lunar dust, such as was possibly the case with Apollo Command and Service Modules, over the planned 15-year lifetime, but one for each of the several surface missions involving Gateway proposed in the Artemis architecture. The exterior of Gateway and Visiting Vehicles which dock to it are covered in critical systems such as solar arrays, radiators, docking mechanisms and seals, fluid transfer connectors, communication antennae, external robotic systems, and scientific payloads."

Luckily, a lot of research has been conducted since the Apollo missions to characterize the physical properties of lunar regolith. Based on this, scientists have deduced that the hazard posed by lunar regolith is dynamic and dependent upon spacecraft configuration, attitude (with respect to the sun), and the plasma environment. In a previous study, Lee and co-author Gary L. Brown (Barrios Technology) developed a new model for characterizing the threat it posed to the Lunar Gateway, which they named the Gateway On-orbit Lunar Dust Modeling and Analysis Program (GOLDMAP).

Using this model, Lee, Brown, and their team considered the Artemis mission architecture and modeled different aspects of it. This included the natural environment and spacecraft charging using NASA's Design Specification for Natural Environments (DSNE), the open-source Spacecraft Plasma Interaction Software (SPIS), and data from the Steward Observatory Mirror Laboratory (SOML). This was combined with a time-dependent particle transport model, which used Siemens STAR-CCM software to characterize the fluid dynamics.

From this, they came to various conclusions regarding the Gateway and possible contamination by astronauts coming and going using the Human Landing System (HLS). As the researchers wrote, "During lunar surface missions, the HLS vehicle elements will likely be subjected to contamination by small lunar regolith particles on the lunar surface due both to natural phenomena, such as electrostatic lofting and levitation within a few meters above the lunar surface, and micrometeoroid impacts, which have been shown by both experiment and modeling to contribute to both the near-surface and high altitude dust populations, and human surface activities including PSI of the thrusters during descent and ascent."

Based on this, it is clear that the Lunar Gatewaythe nexus point for future lunar exploration and developmentwill be vulnerable to dust transfer. As such, the need for decontamination measures for astronauts returning from the lunar surface is also made clear. Looking forward, Lee and his colleagues emphasize that model validation is necessary using laboratory experiments conducted by NASA experts and academics. They also recommend future on-orbit dust detection and dust-collecting payloads on the exterior of the Gateway.

The results of these experiments will help inform NASA's mission planners and operations aboard the Gateway as the Artemis Program unfolds. It will also likely inform future guidelines and "best practices" for operating on the lunar surface.

More information: Ronald G. Lee et al, Development of a comprehensive physics-based model for study of NASA gateway lunar dust contamination, Acta Astronautica (2023). DOI: 10.1016/j.actaastro.2023.05.025 Journal information: Acta Astronautica
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People take photos by a waterfront in Karachi as Cyclone Biparjoy approaches on Wednesday.

More than 100,000 people had been evacuated in India and Pakistan ahead of the expected landfall Thursday of a fierce cyclone which could devastate homes and tear down power lines.

Biparjoy, a cyclone whose name means "disaster" in Bengali, is making its way across the Arabian Sea and is expected to make landfall as a "very severe cyclonic storm" on Thursday evening, government weather monitors said.

Powerful winds, storm surges and lashing rains were forecast to hammer a 325-kilometer (200-mile) stretch of coast between Mandvi in India's Gujarat state and Karachi in Pakistan.

India's Meteorological Department predicted the storm would hit near the Indian port of Jakhau late Thursday, warning of "total destruction" of traditional mud and straw thatched homes.

At the usually bustling Jakhau port, howling wind battered more than 30 large fishing boats dragged up out of the water onto the shore, as dozens of stray dogs roamed around the port's entrance.

At sea, winds were already gusting at speeds up to 180 kilometers per hour (112 miles per hour) by Wednesday, forecasters said.

Wind speeds are predicted to reach 125-135 km/h, with gusts of up to 150 km/h, by the time it makes landfall.

"Over 47,000 people have been evacuated from coastal and low-lying areas to shelter," said C.C. Patel, an official in charge of relief operations in Gujarat.

India's meteorologists warned of the potential for "widespread damage," including the destruction of crops, "bending or uprooting of power and communication poles" and disruption of railways and roads.

Residents evacuate a coastal area of Keti Bandar in Pakistan's Sindh province.

'High to phenomenal'

Pakistan's climate change minister Sherry Rehman said Wednesday that 62,000 people had been evacuated from the country's southeastern coast, with 75 relief camps set up at schools and colleges.

She said fishermen had been warned to stay off the water and small aircraft were grounded, while flooding was possible in the megacity of Karachi, home to about 20 million people.

"We are following a policy of caution rather than wait and see," she told reporters in Islamabad. "Our first priority is saving lives."

The Pakistan Meteorological Department forecast gusts of up to 140 km/h in the southeastern province of Sindh, accompanied by a storm surge reaching 3.5 meters (11.5 feet).

Evacuees gathered at a temporary shelter at a school in Sindh's Badin district.

Wilayat Bibi worried her fishing family would be doomed even after the storm passes.

"Our concern is when the cyclone is over, how will we feed our children?" the 80-year-old asked.

"If our boats are gone, if our huts are also gonewe will be languishing with no resources," she said.

People enjoy high tide by the sea in Karachi ahead of the storm's arrival.

Fishing has also been suspended along India's Gujarat coast, with conditions expected to escalate from "rough to very rough" on Wednesday, to "high to phenomenal".

A short distance from Jakhau port, some 200 Kutch tribal people from nearby Ashiravandh village sat on the floor at a single-storey local health center that had been converted into a cyclone shelter.

As night fell, men brewed tea on a kerosene stove in a corner while women, all in traditional dress, rocked their babies to sleep in wooden cradles as driving rain lashed the concrete walls of the center.

Many were worried about their farm animals, which they had left behind.

Dhal Jetheeben Ladhaji, a pharmacist at the health center, said 10 men had stayed behind to look after hundreds of cattle crucial to their village's livelihood.

"We are terrified, we don't know what will happen next," Ladhaji, 40, told AFP.

"We are praying to God that the cyclone does not come, and that these people who are staying in the shelter can go back to their homes with smiles on their faces."

Cyclonesthe equivalent of hurricanes in the North Atlantic or typhoons in the Northwest Pacificare a regular and deadly menace on the coast of the northern Indian Ocean, where tens of millions of people live.

Scientists have warned that storms are becoming more powerful as the world gets warmer with climate change.

Roxy Mathew Koll, a climate researcher at the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology, said cyclones derive their energy from warm waters, and that surface temperatures in the Arabian Sea were 1.2 to 1.4 degrees Celsius warmer than four decades ago.

 2023 AFP
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Rendering of the moat band, which frustrates particles and leads to the chiral bose-liquid state. Credit: Tigran Sedrakyan

A team of physicists, including University of Massachusetts assistant professor Tigran Sedrakyan, recently announced in the journal Nature that they have discovered a new phase of matter. Called the "chiral Bose-liquid state," the discovery opens a new path in the age-old effort to understand the nature of the physical world.

Under everyday conditions, matter can be a solid, liquid or gas. But once you venture beyond the everydayinto temperatures approaching absolute zero, things smaller than a fraction of an atom or which have extremely low states of energythe world looks very different. "You find quantum states of matter way out on these fringes," says Sedrakyan, "and they are much wilder than the three classical states we encounter in our everyday lives."

Sedrakyan has spent years exploring these wild quantum states, and he is particularly interested in the possibility of what physicists call "band degeneracy," "moat bands" or "kinetic frustration" in strongly interacting quantum matter.

Typically, particles in any system bump into each other, and in so doing they cause predictable effects, like billiard balls knocking into each other and then reacting in a predictable pattern. In other words, the effects and the particles are correlated. But in a frustrated quantum system, there are infinite possibilities that stem from the interaction of particlesperhaps the billiard ball levitates or zooms off at an impossible angleand some of these infinite possibilities can lead to novel quantum states.

What Sedrakyan and his colleagues have done is to engineer a frustration machine: a bilayer semiconducting device. The top layer is electron-rich, and these electrons can move freely. The bottom layer is filled with "holes," or places that a roving electron can occupy. Then the two layers are brought extremely close togetherinteratomic close.

If the number of electrons in the top layer and holes in the bottom layer were equal, then you would expect to see the particles acting in a correlated manner, but Sedrakyan and his colleagues designed the bottom layer so that there is a local imbalance between the number of electrons and holes in the bottom layer. "It's like a game of musical chairs," Sedrakyan says, "designed to frustrate the electrons. Instead of each electron having one chair to go to, they must now scramble and have many possibilities in where they 'sit.'"

This frustration kicks off the novel chiral edge state, which has a number of surprising characteristics. For instance, if you cool quantum matter in a chiral state down to absolute zero, the electrons freeze into a predictable pattern, and the emergent charge-neutral particles in this state will all either spin clockwise or counterclockwise. Even if you smash another particle into one of these electrons, or you introduce a magnetic field, you can't alter its spinit's surprisingly robust and can even be used to encode digital data in a fault-tolerant way.

Even more surprisingly is what happens when an outside particle does smash into one of the particles in the chiral edge state. To return to the billiard-ball metaphor, you would expect to send the eight-ball flying when the cue ball smacks into it. But if the pool balls were in a chiral Bose-liquid state, all 15 of them would react in exactly the same way when the eight-ball was struck. This effect is due to the long-range entanglement present in this quantum system.

It is difficult to observe the chiral Bose-liquid state, which is why it has remained hidden for so long. To do so, the team of scientists, including theoretical physicists Rui Wang and Baigeng Wang (both of Nanjing University) as well as experimental physicists Lingjie Du (Nanjing University) and Rui-Rui Du (Peking University) designed a theory and an experiment that used an extremely strong magnetic field that is capable of measuring the movements of the electrons as they race for chairs.

"On the edge of the semiconductor bilayer, electrons and holes move with the same velocities," says Lingjie Du. "This leads to helical-like transport, which can be further modulated by external magnetic fields as the electron and hole channels are gradually separated under higher fields."

The magneto-transport experiments therefore successfully reveal the first piece of evidence of the chiral Bose-liquid, which the authors also call the "excitonic topological order" in the published paper.

More information: Rui-Rui Du, Excitonic topological order in imbalanced electronhole bilayers, Nature (2023). DOI: 10.1038/s41586-023-06065-w. www.nature.com/articles/s41586-023-06065-w Journal information: Nature
SANAA, June 14 (Xinhua) -- Houthi militia in Yemen launched a drone attack on government forces in the southern province of Shabwa on Wednesday, wounding at least four soldiers, a local military source said.

The source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the Houthis used a bomb-laden drone to attack a military checkpoint near the complex of the 1st Brigade in the Al-Musina'a area in the southern part of Shabwa.

There were no immediate comments from the Houthi group, which rarely discloses its operations.

The Yemeni government has repeatedly accused the Houthis of carrying out drone attacks in the oil-rich provinces of Shabwa and Marib, which have served as significant battlegrounds between the warring sides.

Yemen has been locked in a military conflict since the Houthi militia took control of several northern cities and ousted the Yemeni government from the capital Sanaa in 2014.

The ongoing conflict has resulted in a staggering number of casualties and plunged the Arab world's poorest country into humanitarian crises, including widespread famine. 
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The bone had been identified as Massospondylus since its discovery in the 1970s. Credit: Catmando/Shutterstock

A tiny relative of titanosaurs has been uncovered in South Africa.

Weighing in at around 75 kilograms, the dinosaur would have barely been heavier than the average person. Its small size meant that for decades its sole fossil was thought to be the arm of a young Massospondylus.

New analysis, however, suggests this identification is mistaken. Its bone structure suggests that not only was the individual fully grown, but it probably comes from an entirely unknown species of dinosaur.

While there isn't enough evidence to name a new species yet, the fossil suggests that the ancestors of the sauropods and their close relatives, known as the sauropodomorphs, were more diverse than realized.

Dr. Kimberley Chapelle, the lead author of a new study on the bone, says, "Until now, we didn't know that early sauropodomorphs could get this small, so the smallest skeletons were assumed to be babies."

"We can now reassess these skeletons discovered in southern Africa and hopefully find a more complete individual from which we can name a new species."

The findings of the study were published in the journal Royal Society Open Science.

How was the smallest sauropodomorph discovered?

The fossil was first uncovered in 1978 in South Africa in rocks dating to the Lower Jurassic, which lasted from around 201174 million years ago. The area it was discovered in is part of the Massospondylus Assemblage Zone, named for the dinosaurs which are commonly found there.

The bone's structure suggests the dinosaur was fully grown at the time of its death. Image adapted from. Credit: Chapelle et al.

The abundance of these dinosaurs had been linked to the fallout from one of the largest extinctions of all time: the Triassic-Jurassic mass extinction event. It was thought that, with all the competition having been wiped out, these surviving dinosaurs were able to dominate the Early Jurassic ecosystems of what is now South Africa.

More recent research, however, has called this into question. In 2019, the authors of the new paper were among a team who realized that not all Massospondylus fossils were as they appeared.

"Massospondylus was first described in 1854 and was one of the first dinosaurs known from South Africa," Kimberley says. "At that time, there weren't many early sauropodomorphs to compare it to, and a formal description of this species' skeleton only came out in 2019."

"This meant, for a while, any early sauropodomorph found from the Early Jurassic in South Africa was referred to as Massospondylus."

This new assessment of Massospondylus resulted in some deformed bones being redescribed as belonging to an entirely new species of sauropodomorph now called Ngwevu intloko

But while describing Ngwevu, the team got the hunch that many other specimens in collections that have been identified as Massospondylus over the years may also be from other undescribed dinosaurs. It seemed likely that rather than a single species surviving and dominating in the aftermath of the Triassic-Jurassic extinction event, instead a whole host of sauropodomorphs flourished across southern Africa.

They've now proven themselves right while investigating a fossil humerus with the catchy name BP/1/4732.

What was the smallest sauropodomorph like?

While investigating how early sauropodomorphs grew, the team took small sections of bone from a variety of fossils. This revealed that their sample from BP/1/4732 was quite different from those of Massospondylus.

Competition with small dinosaurs like Lesothosaurus may be one reason small sauropods are not common. Credit: Conty, licensed under CC BY 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons

One prominent difference was the lines of arrested growth (LAGs), which look like tree rings in bone. They appear when growth slows down during, for example, the dry season and when a lot appear in close succession this is known as an external fundamental system (EFS).

"An EFS suggests an animal is done growing," Kimberley explains. "In Massospondylus, we've only seen an EFS in the bones of one individual, containing four LAGs. The arm bone we examined had 11 LAGs in its EFS, suggesting it was even more developed."

Comparisons of the size of the mystery arm bone to Massospondylus and other dinosaurs of a similar era reveal that it was much smaller than any of them. Only Adeopapposaurus had a smaller humerus circumference, but this fossil is thought to have been from a juvenile.

In fact, the new fossil is probably the smallest sauropodomorph of its era and may have been just a few meters long as an adult. While it's hard to tell much else from the arm bone alone, its shape suggests that the unknown dinosaur probably stood on two legs like its larger relatives.

Why more small sauropodomorphs didn't follow in its wake remains something of a mystery. It could simply be a result of preservation, or it may relate to the biology of the animal.

"Small ornithiscian dinosaurs like Lesothosaurus first appear in southern Africa during the Jurassic, and some scientists suggest they might have outcompeted early sauropodomorphs," Kimberley says.

"I think this is unlikely, as many similarly sized mammals share similar niches today. Instead, it's possible that sauropodomorphs lost the ability to stay this small as part of the evolution of large size, but we just don't know."

While this small dinosaur wouldn't live to see it, its distant relatives would go on to become the largest animals ever to walk the Earth as they flourished over the next 100 million years.

More information: Kimberley E. J. Chapelle et al, Osteohistology reveals the smallest adult Jurassic sauropodomorph, Royal Society Open Science (2023). DOI: 10.1098/rsos.221565 Journal information: Royal Society Open Science

This story is republished courtesy of Natural History Museum. Read the original story here.
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A juvenile eastern newt (Notophthalmus viridescens) traversing the Appalachian landscape. Eastern newts are among the most susceptible species tested to Bsal chytridiomycosis. Credit: A. Hertz, University of Massachusetts Boston

New research indicates the fungal pathogen Batrachochytrium salamandrivorans (Bsal) could be devastating to amphibian biodiversity if introduced to North America.Nature Communications has published the findings from a group of researchers at the University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture, the University of Massachusetts-Boston and Washington State University.

"We could see over 80 species of salamanders in the United States and 140 species in North America experience population declines if Bsal is introduced," said Matt Gray, the lead author and professor of wildlife health in the UT School of Natural Resources.

Amphibians are an important form of natural mosquito control in our environment. They are also important to medical research because of their ability to regenerate limbs and the natural analgesics (pain killers) they produce. Some of the peptides from their skin can actually inactivate some viruses detrimental to humans, including HIV.

However, Bsal erodes and destroys the skin of amphibians. The fungal pathogen was discovered ten years ago in fire salamander populations in Europe but has not yet been detected in the western hemisphere. The article's authors began experiments evaluating the risk to North American amphibians in 2016.

"Some of our most common salamander species, like the eastern newt, could be wiped out," Gray said. The research predicts the greatest declines could be seen in the Appalachian Mountains and Pacific Northwest, where climate conditions are ideal for Bsal and salamander numbers are the greatest.

"Many of the salamanders in the Smokies are lungless and breath entirely through their skin," said co-author Debra Miller, veterinary pathologist with the UT One Health Initiative. "So a fungus that destroys the skin can affect their ability to respire and maintain healthy levels of important electrolytes in their bodies."

In a separate article in Frontiers in Veterinary Science, Miller and colleagues reported that changes in skin function and electrolytes in the blood from Bsal infection can lead to paralysis, which is often seen in sick animals.

In the Nature article, the authors encourage the U.S., Canada and Mexico to consider developing a healthy trade certification program that promotes the sale of amphibians that are not infected by chytrid fungi and ranaviruses. The article says wildlife trade involves more than 180 nations and generates $300 billion annually.

In another study published in June in Business Strategy and the Environment, Kevin Cavasos, of the UT One Health Initiative; Gray and colleagues report the majority of U.S. businesses support a healthy trade certification program.

Neelam Poudyal, professor of natural resource policy in the UT School of Natural Resources, said, "Our initial surveys of pet amphibian owners suggest they are concerned about these pathogens and may be willing to spend approximately 75% more for amphibians that are not infected."

Gray, Poudyal and others recently began a study to investigate pathogen movements in pet amphibian trade and the willingness of the industry to adopt healthy trade practices.

Gray said, "Wildlife trade can contribute to the global spread of various pathogens, even those that can cause disease in humans. It is important to support healthy trade programs to reduce business losses and threats to our native biodiversity and safeguard public health."

More information about Gray and Poudyal's healthy trade research as well as opportunities for U.S. pet amphibian businesses to receive free pathogen testing can be found at healthyamphibiantrade.org.

More information: Matthew J. Gray et al, Broad host susceptibility of North American amphibian species to Batrachochytrium salamandrivorans suggests high invasion potential and biodiversity risk, Nature Communications (2023). DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-38979-4 Wesley C. Sheley et al, Electrolyte imbalances and dehydration play a key role in Batrachochytrium salamandrivorans chytridiomycosis, Frontiers in Veterinary Science (2023). DOI: 10.3389/fvets.2022.1055153 Kevin Cavasos et al, Exploring business stakeholder engagement in sustainable business practices: Evidence from the US pet amphibian industry, Business Strategy and the Environment (2023). DOI: 10.1002/bse.3455 Journal information: Nature Communications , Nature

Provided by University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture
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Quantity of Existing Research on the Health of Individuals Experiencing Homelessness in the Republic of Ireland by (A) Health Category, and (B) Article Topic: 20122022. Credit: Journal of Public Health (2023). DOI: 10.1007/s10389-023-01934-0

Homelessness levels are continuing to rise in most of Europe, but Ireland is unique in the severity of recent national spikes in homelessness. According to Ireland's Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, the number of people staying in overnight emergency accommodation has more than doubled since 2015.

New research from University College Dublin (UCD) compiles the last decade of evidence on homelessness and health in Ireland, confirming increased risk of illicit drug use, reduced access to a general practitioner, frequent emergency department (ED) presentation, and presentation for self-harm.

The findings published in the Journal of Public Health shed light on an urgent need for more extensive harm reduction programs, more appropriate mental health supports, and improved strategies for the identification and care of frequent ED attenders. More evidence is needed on multimorbidity, chronic conditions, and how ethnicity interacts with homelessness and health.

Carolyn Ingram, Ph.D. student supervised by Dr. Conor Buggy and Dr. Carla Perrotta at UCD School of Public Health and an author on the paper said, "With unprecedented rises in homelessness and evidence that disparities in mortality between homeless and housed people are worsening over time, our team saw a need to assemble what is known about homelessness and health in Ireland.

"We're excited to present two open access tools that can accelerate future research: an indexed database of all peer-reviewed studies published since 2012 on homelessness and health in Ireland, and a second database of quantitative measures of housing-related health disparities."

More information: Carolyn Ingram et al, Homelessness and health-related outcomes in the Republic of Ireland: a systematic review, meta-analysis and evidence map, Journal of Public Health (2023). DOI: 10.1007/s10389-023-01934-0 Journal information: Journal of Public Health
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Syracuse University researchers co-authored a study exploring the extent to which human activities are contributing to hydrogeochemical changes in U.S. rivers. The image above is Mills River in Pisgah National Forest, North Carolina. Credit: Syracuse University

From protecting biodiversity to ensuring the safety of drinking water, the biochemical makeup of rivers and streams around the United States is critical for human and environmental welfare. Studies have found that human activity and urbanization are driving salinization (increased salt content) of freshwater sources across the country. In excess, salinity can make water undrinkable, increase the cost of treating water, and harm freshwater fish and wildlife.

Along with the rise in salinity has also been an increase in alkalinity over time, and past research suggests that salinization may enhance alkalinization. But unlike excess salinity, alkalinization can have a positive impact on the environment due to its ability to neutralize water acidity and absorb carbon dioxide in the Earth's atmospherea key component to combating climate change. Therefore, understanding the processes at play which are affecting salinity and alkalinity have important environmental and health implications.

A team of researchers from Syracuse University and Texas A&M University have applied a machine learning model to explore where and to what extent human activities are contributing to the hydrogeochemical changes, such as increases in salinity and alkalinity in U.S. rivers.

The group used data from 226 river monitoring sites across the U.S. and built two machine learning models to predict monthly salinity and alkalinity levels at each site. These sites were selected because long-term continuous water quality measurements have been recorded for at least 30 years.

From urban to rural settings, the model explored a diverse range of watersheds, which are areas where all flowing surface water converges to a single point, such as a river or lake. It evaluated 32 watershed factors ranging from hydrology, climate, geology, soil chemistry, land use and land cover to pinpoint the factors contributing to rising salinity and alkalinity. The team's models determined human activities as major contributors to the salinity of U.S. rivers, while rising alkalinity was mainly attributed more to natural processes than human activities.

The team, which included Syracuse University researchers Tao Wen, assistant professor in the College of Arts and Sciences' Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences (EES), Beibei E, a graduate student in EES, Charles T. Driscoll, University Professor of Environmental Systems and Distinguished Professor in the College of Engineering and Computer Science, and Texas A&M assistant professor Shuang Zhang, recently had their findings published in the journal Science of the Total Environment.

What's driving salinization and alkalinization?

The results from the group's sodium prediction model, which detected human activities such as the application of road salt as major contributions to the salinity of U.S. rivers, were consistent with previous studies. This model specifically revealed population density and impervious surface percentage (artificial surfaces such as roads) as the two most important contributors to higher salt content in U.S. rivers.

According to Wen, the accuracy of the salinity model provided an important proof of concept for the research team.

"In regard to causes of salinity in rivers, the results from our machine learning model matched those of previous studies which focused on field observation, lab work and statistical analysis," says Wen. "This proved that our approach was working."

With the salinity results confirming the accuracy of the team's model, they then turned their attention to alkalinity. Their model identified natural processes as predominantly contributing to variation in river alkalinity, a contrast to previous research that identified human activities as the main contributor to alkalinization. They found that that local climatic and hydrogeological conditions including runoff, sediment, soil pH and moisture, were features most affecting river alkalinity.

Critical to the carbon cycle

Their findings have important environmental and climate implications as alkalinity in rivers forms a vital link in the carbon cycle. Consider the movement of carbon during a rainstorm. When it rains, carbon dioxide from the atmosphere combines with water to form carbonic acid. When the carbonic acid reaches the ground and comes into contact with certain rocks, it triggers a chemical reaction which extracts gaseous carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and transports it to the ocean via land water systems like lakes and rivers. Known as rock weathering, this natural process continuously erodes away rocks and sequesters atmospheric CO 2 over millions of years. It is also a key regulator of greenhouse gases that contribute to global warming.

"Rock weathering is the primary source of alkalinity in natural waters and is one of the main ways to bring down carbon dioxide in air," says Wen. Think of it as a feedback loop: when there is too much carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, temperatures increase leading to enhanced rock weathering. With more rock being dissolved into watersheds due to enhanced rock weathering, alkalinity rises and in turn brings down carbon dioxide.

"Alkalinity is a critical component of the carbon cycle," says Wen. "While we found that natural processes are the primary drivers of alkalinization, these natural factors can still be changed by humans. We can alter the alkalinity level in rivers by changing the natural parameters, so we need to invest more to restore the natural conditions of watersheds and tackle global warming and climate changes to deal with alkalinization in U.S. rivers."

The results from the team's study can help inform future research about enhanced rock weathering effortswhere rocks are ground up and spread across fields. By distributing rock dust across large areas, it increases the amount of contact between rain and rock, which enhances carbon removal from the atmosphere. Wen says the team's model can help answer questions about the evolution of natural conditions in different regionsan important step needed to implement enhanced rock weathering more effectively.

More information: Beibei E et al, Human and natural impacts on the U.S. freshwater salinization and alkalinization: A machine learning approach, Science of The Total Environment (2023). DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.164138 Journal information: Science of the Total Environment
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Meerkats live in matriarchal groups. Credit: Jason Boyce/Shutterstock

Queen Elizabeth II's record-breaking long reign was exceptional in many waysnot least because England has been ruled by men for most of the last thousand years. Until recently, the crown was passed to the monarch's eldest son and daughters were married off to royals in other countries.

But in most other social mammals, females commonly remain and breed in their birth groups, inheriting the status and territory of their mothers while sons leave to find unrelated partners elsewhere.

Social relationships between resident females vary but are often supportive. For example in African elephants, females assemble in family groups and older females are usually dominant over younger ones.

Overt competition is rare and relationships between matriarchs and younger females are relaxed and supportive. Elephant matriarchs act as reservoirs of information about where to find food and water and their presence is particularly important in times of famine or drought.

Where species live in larger groups that include members of several families, as in yellow baboons and spotted hyenas competition for status and resources can be more common and females often support close relatives in clashes with other families.

Daughters frequently inherit their mother's social rank. All members of some families may be consistently dominant to others, often enjoying higher breeding success and survival as a result.

Murderous mothers

But females aren't always tolerant or supportive. In the meerkats that I have studied in the Kalahari Desert in southern Africa for the last 30 years, one dominant female monopolizes breeding in each group, producing up to three litters a year for up to ten years. Their daughters and sons initially remain in their mother's group and help to feed and protect their younger siblings.

Queens go out of their way to prevent their daughters from breeding successfully. Early in my career, I was astonished to see one of my favorite meerkat queens emerge with blood on her muzzle from her group's sleeping burrow, where her eldest daughter had just given birth.

This meerkat queen was pregnant at the time. She went back down and soon emerged with a dead pup that was still warmthen returned and brought up three more pups that she had just killed.

My team's later work showed that one of the most common causes of pup death was infanticide by pregnant females and studies of several other social mammals have revealed similar trends.

Killing your own grandchildren may not sound like a recipe for evolutionary success, but it often makes sense for pregnant female meerkats. If groups can only rear a small number of pups, queens will increase their genetic contributions to future generations if they suppress pups that will compete with their own offspring.

This family of elephants lives in Addo Elephant National Park, South Africa. Credit: Jonathan Pledger/Shutterstock

Daughters share 50% of their mother's genes while grandchiLdren only share 25%, so it is in the queen's best interests to make sure that their groups raise their daughters rather than their granddaughters.

When the daughters of meerkat queens are three to four years old, they become potential rivals to the queen and she evicts them from her group. As members of other meerkat groups don't allow emigrating females to join them, evicted females either found new groups with wandering males or (commonly) die in the attempt.

When a queen eventually dies, the other females in her group fight to inherit her position. The oldest and heaviest female usually wins, taking over the queen's status, breeding role and territory before starting to evict her sisters.

Walkabout sons

And what about the queen's sons? In most mammals, mating with a close relative creates weaker and less healthy babies and reduces the breeding success of females. So female meerkats avoid mating with their sons, brothers and other relatives.

Males are usually less particular about who they mate with because they do not pay the same costs of raising young. However, where the females in their group are relatives and won't mate with them, they need to leave their birth groups to find willing partners.

Unlike females, male meerkats voluntarily go walkabout, either replacing males in other groups or shacking up with evicted females and attempting to found new groups. A similar tendency for females to avoid breeding with close relatives and for males to leave their birth groups to find willing partners elsewhere is common in many other mammalsincluding many species where males are substantially larger and stronger than females, like lions and baboons.

Contrasts in succession

But females don't always stay at homeand males don't always wander. There are some mammals where the situation is reversed. These include a number of bats, horses, monkeysand all three African apes. For example, female gorillas often leave their birth groups to breed in other groups while males may stay and breed there, inheriting the breeding position from their fathers.

A feature of many these species is that resident breeding males or groups of related males hold their positions for relatively long periodslonger than the age at which most females reach sexual maturity. So one explanation is that females need to leave their birth groups to find unrelated breeding partners. Males in these species don't need to leave as immigrant females willingly mate with them.

A preference for male succession is widespread in many human societies and is often attributed to the need for monarchs to be battle leaders and the greater strength and fighting ability of males.

However, African apes are our closest living relatives and they all form groups where females leave but males remain. This suggests dispersing females and resident males may have been the ancestral norm in hominin societies too. If so, it may be because females dispersed to avoid inbreeding, rather than because of differences in strength and fighting prowess between the sexes.

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
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Left: Colormagnitude diagram for 108 stars within 0.1 ly of the SETI Ellipsoid defined by SN 2023ixf as of MJD 60094 (black points), with the 100-pc Gaia sample for reference (blue contours). These Ellipsoid-crossing targets already span a range of stellar types. Right: Sky positions for the Ellipsoid-crossing stars (black points), which lay in a 3 region around SN 2023ixf (orange cross). Credit: arXiv (2023). DOI: 10.48550/arxiv.2306.03118

A team of astronomers from the University of Washington, the SETI Institute, Yale University and Smith College is searching the vicinity of a new supernova in the spiral arms of the Pinwheel Galaxy hoping to find a signal from an alien civilization. In their paper posted on the arXiv preprint server, the research team suggests that because of its brightness and proximity, if aliens live in the vicinity, they might use it as a signal to get our attention.

Called SN 2023ixf, the supernova was first spotted by Japanese astronomers Koichi Itagak on the May 19. The Pinwheel Galaxy lies in the same direction from Earth as Ursa Major and the supernova exploding in one of its arms represents one of the closest to be seen from Earth in decades.

The supernova is approximately 21 million light years awaythe research team suggests that if any advanced alien civilizations exist anywhere near the supernova, they may use the explosion as a sort of signal. The idea is that if the explosion causes us to look that way, the nearby civilization could send a signal of some sort, figuring we might see it while observing the supernova.

The supernova is Type II, which means that it was formerly a star at least eight times the size of the sun. Light from such an explosion, the team notes, can remain visible anywhere from several months to a few years. The researchers are using what they describe as a "SETI ellipsoid," an egg-shaped zone of space around the area where the supernova exploded, to look for alien signals. The shape has been determined by the time frame involved, when both the aliens and researchers on Earth would be able to see the light from the explosion. The zone includes approximately 100 stars. The team is studying data from both the Allen Telescope Array and the Robert C. Byrd Green Bank Telescope.

The team plans to study data surrounding the supernova once a month over the next several months. They acknowledge that the likelihood of finding an alien signal is remote, but suggest not trying would be regrettable if a signal came and nobody here on Earth was listening.

More information: James R. A. Davenport et al, Real-Time Technosignature Strategies with SN 2023ixf, arXiv (2023). DOI: 10.48550/arxiv.2306.03118 Journal information: arXiv

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Lava flows down the slopes of Mayon volcano as seen from Daraga town, Albay province, northeastern Philippines, Tuesday, June 13, 2023. Truckloads of villagers on Tuesday fled from Philippine communities close to gently erupting Mayon volcano, traumatized by the sight of red-hot lava flowing down its crater and sporadic blasts of ash. Credit: AP Photo/Aaron Favila

Truckloads of villagers on Tuesday fled Philippine communities close to the erupting Mayon Volcano, traumatized by the sight of red-hot lava flowing down its crater and fearful of sporadic blasts of ash.

Nearly 15,000 people have left the mostly poor farming communities within a 6-kilometer (3.7-mile) radius of Mayon's crater in northeastern Albay province in forced evacuations since volcanic activity spiked last week. Albay's governor extended the danger zone by a kilometer (more than half a mile) on Monday and asked thousands of residents to be ready to move anytime.

But many opted to flee from the expanded danger zone even before the mandatory evacuation order.

"There's lava and ashfall already," Fidela Banzuela, 61, said from a navy truck where she, her daughter, grandchildren and neighbors clambered up after leaving their home in San Fernando village close to Mayon. "If the volcano explodes, we won't see anything because it would be so dark."

Her daughter, Sarah Banzuela, fled with her two children, including a 2-year-old who has asthma, which she said could be triggered back by volcanic ash that rained down on their village over the weekend.

"There's ashfall already and, at night, there's red-hot lava from the volcano that seems to be moving closer to us," Sarah Banzuela, 22, told The Associated Press. She and her mother arrived at a grade school turned into an evacuation center teeming with other displaced villagers.

An evacuee carries relief goods at an evacuation center at Santo Domingo town, Albay province, northeastern Philippines, Tuesday, June 13, 2023. Truckloads of villagers on Tuesday fled from Philippine communities close to gently erupting Mayon volcano, traumatized by the sight of red-hot lava flowing down its crater and sporadic blasts of ash. Credit: AP Photo/Aaron Favila

After days of showing signs of renewed restiveness, including a swarm of rockfalls and a bright-orange crater glow visible at night, Mayon began expelling lava Sunday night, which flowed slowly down two gulleys on its southeastern slope, government volcano experts said.

An ash plume that shot up to 328 feet (100 meters) at dawn on Tuesday drifted southeastward with the wind toward some villages, said Teresito Bacolcol, director of the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology.

An AP video showed a boulder getting ripped from the side of a dome of lava in Mayon's crater then plunging and breaking into smaller red-hot pieces as it rolled down and smashed onto other stones on the volcano's steep slope.

The 2,462-meter (8,077-foot) Mayon is a top tourist draw in the Philippines because of its picturesque conical shape but is the most active of 24 known volcanoes in the archipelago. It last erupted violently in 2018, displacing tens of thousands. In 1814, Mayon's eruption buried entire villages and left more than 1,000 people dead.

Villagers ride a military truck as they evacuate their homes in Santo Domingo town, Albay province, northeastern Philippines, Tuesday, June 13, 2023. Truckloads of villagers on Tuesday fled from Philippine communities close to gently erupting Mayon volcano, traumatized by the sight of red-hot lava flowing down its crater and sporadic blasts of ash. Credit: AP Photo/Aaron Favila

With its peak often shrouded by wisps of passing clouds, Mayon appeared calm on Tuesday, but Bacolcol told AP that lava was continuing to flow slowly down its slopes but could not easily be seen under the bright sun.

The volcano had been raised to alert level three on a five-step warning system last Thursday, meaning a hazardous eruption is possible in weeks or days.

The eruption is the latest natural calamity to test the administration of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., who took office in June last year and inherited an economy that was shattered by two years of the coronavirus pandemic, which also deepened poverty and unemployment. He has deployed some of his Cabinet officials to Albay to help distribute food aid to and reassure displaced villagers.

Liza David Balbin fled with her children to an emergency shelter in Santo Domingo town after she got scared of Mayon's lava emissions and her farming community of San Antonio was hit by ashfall. The 48-year-old housewife said the government should find an effective way of relocating poor Filipinos like her away from volcanoes, mountainsides where landslides are common and coastlines that are lashed by tidal waves.

Boulders fall near the crater of Mayon volcano as seen from Daraga town, Albay province, northeastern Philippines, Tuesday, June 13, 2023. Truckloads of villagers on Tuesday fled from Philippine communities close to gently erupting Mayon volcano, traumatized by the sight of red-hot lava flowing down its crater and sporadic blasts of ash. Credit: AP Photo/Aaron Favila

Steam from Mayon volcano is seen from Daraga town, Albay province, northeastern Philippines, Tuesday, June 13, 2023. Truckloads of villagers on Tuesday fled from Philippine communities close to gently erupting Mayon volcano, traumatized by the sight of red-hot lava flowing down its crater and sporadic blasts of ash. Credit: AP Photo/Aaron Favila

Liza David Balbin, center, gestures inside a school converted into a temporary evacuation center in Santo Domingo town, Albay province, northeastern Philippines, Tuesday, June 13, 2023. In 1991, Balbin witnessed Mount Pinatubo blowing its top in one of the biggest volcanic eruptions of the 20th century. She survived and years later married a man, who took her to his home province of Albay, where they lived in an impoverished village not far from Mayon. Credit: AP Photo/Aaron Favila

Residents are assisted as they come down from a military truck at an evacuation center in Santo Domingo town, Albay province, northeastern Philippines, Tuesday, June 13, 2023. Truckloads of villagers on Tuesday fled from Philippine communities close to gently erupting Mayon volcano, traumatized by the sight of red-hot lava flowing down its crater and sporadic blasts of ash. Credit: AP Photo/Aaron Favila

Mayon volcano is seen behind an evacuation center in Santo Domingo town, Albay province, northeastern Philippines, Tuesday, June 13, 2023. Truckloads of villagers on Tuesday fled from Philippine communities close to gently erupting Mayon volcano, traumatized by the sight of red-hot lava flowing down its crater and sporadic blasts of ash. Credit: AP Photo/Aaron Favila

Philippine Navy personnel help bring down children from a military truck as they arrive at an evacuation center in Santo Domingo town, Albay province, northeastern Philippines, Tuesday, June 13, 2023. Truckloads of villagers on Tuesday fled from Philippine communities close to gently erupting Mayon volcano, traumatized by the sight of red-hot lava flowing down its crater and sporadic blasts of ash. Credit: AP Photo/Aaron Favila

Mayon Volcano is seen as a tricycle passes by an evacuation center in Santo Domingo town, Albay province, northeastern Philippines, Tuesday, June 13, 2023. Truckloads of villagers on Tuesday fled from Philippine communities close to gently erupting Mayon volcano, traumatized by the sight of red-hot lava flowing down its crater and sporadic blasts of ash. Credit: AP Photo/Aaron Favila

Police man a checkpoint at the border of the "permanent danger zone" at Daraga town, Albay province, northeastern Philippines, Tuesday, June 13, 2023. Truckloads of villagers on Tuesday fled from Philippine communities close to gently erupting Mayon volcano, traumatized by the sight of red-hot lava flowing down its crater and sporadic blasts of ash. Credit: AP Photo/Aaron Favila

Residents arrive at an evacuation center in Santo Domingo town, Albay province, northeastern Philippines, Tuesday, June 13, 2023. Truckloads of villagers on Tuesday fled from Philippine communities close to gently erupting Mayon volcano, traumatized by the sight of red-hot lava flowing down its crater and sporadic blasts of ash. Credit: AP Photo/Aaron Favila

Lava flows down the slopes of Mayon volcano as seen from Daraga town, Albay province, northeastern Philippines, Tuesday, June 13, 2023. Truckloads of villagers on Tuesday fled from Philippine communities close to gently erupting Mayon volcano, traumatized by the sight of red-hot lava flowing down its crater and sporadic blasts of ash. Credit: AP Photo/Aaron Favila

Police man a checkpoint at the border of the "permanent danger zone" at Daraga town, Albay province, northeastern Philippines, Tuesday, June 13, 2023. Truckloads of villagers on Tuesday fled from Philippine communities close to gently erupting Mayon volcano, traumatized by the sight of red-hot lava flowing down its crater and sporadic blasts of ash. Credit: AP Photo/Aaron Favila

Police stop a motorcycle rider at a checkpoint at the border of the "permanent danger zone" around Mayon volcano at Daraga town, Albay province, northeastern Philippines, Tuesday, June 13, 2023. Truckloads of villagers on Tuesday fled from Philippine communities close to gently erupting Mayon volcano, traumatized by the sight of red-hot lava flowing down its crater and sporadic blasts of ash. Credit: AP Photo/Aaron Favila

Lava flows down the slopes of Mayon volcano as seen from Daraga town, Albay province, northeastern Philippines, Tuesday, June 13, 2023. Truckloads of villagers on Tuesday fled from Philippine communities close to gently erupting Mayon volcano, traumatized by the sight of red-hot lava flowing down its crater and sporadic blasts of ash. Credit: AP Photo/Aaron Favila

Boulders fall near the crater of Mayon volcano as seen from Daraga town, Albay province, northeastern Philippines, Tuesday, June 13, 2023. Truckloads of villagers on Tuesday fled from Philippine communities close to gently erupting Mayon volcano, traumatized by the sight of red-hot lava flowing down its crater and sporadic blasts of ash. Credit: AP Photo/Aaron Favila

Mayon volcano spews steam as seen from Daraga town, Albay province, northeastern Philippines, Tuesday, June 13, 2023. Truckloads of villagers on Tuesday fled from Philippine communities close to gently erupting Mayon volcano, traumatized by the sight of red-hot lava flowing down its crater and sporadic blasts of ash. Credit: AP Photo/Aaron Favila

Residents arrive on a military truck at an evacuation center in Santo Domingo town, Albay province, northeastern Philippines, Tuesday, June 13, 2023. Truckloads of villagers on Tuesday fled from Philippine communities close to gently erupting Mayon volcano, traumatized by the sight of red-hot lava flowing down its crater and sporadic blasts of ash. Credit: AP Photo/Aaron Favila

A woman and a girl look towards Mayon volcano in Legazpi, Albay province, northeastern Philippines, Tuesday, June 13, 2023. Truckloads of villagers on Tuesday fled from Philippine communities close to gently erupting Mayon volcano, traumatized by the sight of red-hot lava flowing down its crater and sporadic blasts of ash. Credit: AP Photo/Aaron Favila

In 1991, Balbin witnessed Mount Pinatubo blowing its top in one of the biggest volcanic eruptions of the 20th century. The massive ashfall and volcanic mudflows wiped out her village and outlying communities in Pampanga province north of Manila. She survived and years later married a man who took her to his home province of Albay, where they lived in an impoverished village not far from Mayon.

"I escaped from Pinatubo then ended up near Mayon volcano," she told AP with a laugh. "Why is my life like this?"

"If only we've got money, we would have left that danger zone and built a house far away," said Balbin, who makes a living doing laundry. "Now we're in an evacuation camp again and it's really been a difficult life. This is too much."

 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
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Phyllobaeis lichen growing in Ecuador. Credit: Matthew Nelsen

Scientists have formally described about 120,000 species of fungus. There might be millions more out there, but fungi are largely hidden. When you think about fungi, you might picture showy mushrooms, but those are just the fungal version of fruit, sprouting when it's time to reproduce. Most of the time, fungi live underground or inside logs.

At the Field Museum, mycologist and evolutionary biologist Matthew Nelsen, Ph.D.'14, is working to bring these obscure organisms to light. His comments have been edited and condensed.

A fungus is not an animal, and it's not a plant. What is it?

Its own thing! It's its own kingdom. But yeah, it's like, where do these go? They're not running around like animals; they generally seem to just sit there like plants. Here at the Field Museum, I'm in the botany section, but when we look at DNA evidence, we can see that fungi and animals are each other's sister groups, essentially. In the mycological community, there's a big push to recognize fungi as another dimension of biodiversity, especially in the context of conservation.

What specific aspect of fungi fascinates you?

How fungi have evolved to form different types of long-standing partnershipsmutualism with some organisms, parasitism with so many others. What's the underlying genomic basis for this ability? I work a lot with lichenwhich are organisms made from symbiotic fungi and algaebut I've been branching out into the partnerships between fungi and plant roots, and I'm in the very early stages of studying a group of fungi that attacks other fungi and different invertebrates.

How do plants and fungi help each other out?

Nearly all plants form deeply rooted evolutionary partnerships with fungi, which helps the plants access nutrients and water that they aren't very good at getting on their own. So the plant can grow bigger and faster, and in return, the plant feeds the fungus sugar, which it can't make on its own. This partnership is thought to extend back to when plants first evolved on land. There are 400-million-year-old fossils showing some of these partnerships.

Fungi are well known to provide food, medicine, psychedelics. What are some lesser-known benefits of fungi?

Farmers are starting to recognize the worth of fungus-plant partnerships. The timber industry can also benefit from this knowledge. People used to take a tree from one part of the world and plant it in another region, and it wouldn't grow very well. They realized you need to take some soil with it, some of the microbial community to maintain these partnerships. But now mycologists are starting to recognize that fungi are growing in places they weren't before, and they can disrupt the ecosystem.

The video games and TV series 'The Last of Us' ascribe the apocalypse to an zombie fungus called Cordyceps. Does this help or harm fungi's reputation?

I'm torn. I really like that it's popularizing fungi and getting people's attention, but it's unfortunate that it's from a detrimental perspective. I hope that we can still leverage that to draw people in to learn what's real and what's fiction.

Zombie-ant fungusOphiocordyceps unilateraliswhich inspired 'The Last of Us,' is real. How does it work?

It's thought that the spores land on an ant and the fungus grows through its exoskeleton. Eventually it spreads through the ant's body, decomposing it from the inside, and the insect starts acting strangely. It might convulse or wander randomly.

Ultimately the fungus exhausts its food supply and will need to move on. So, it makes the ant climb up a small shrub, pinch onto a big leaf vein with its mandibles, and hang upside down, where it dies. A long fungus stalk grows out of its head, and the spores rain down on other ants below. This has been going on for at least 48 million years. There's a fossil leaf with these bite marks in it.

'The Last of Us' implies that infected people are psychically connected to each other and to a vast underground network of the fungus. Does that have roots in reality?

Some fungi do form vast underground networks, but not Cordyceps. There's this tree parasite nicknamed the Humongous Fungus, a species of honey mushroom from a group called Armillaria, and they form huge colonies. The first one was found in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, and now they found an even bigger one in Oregon. It's estimated to be a thousand years old and miles across.

There are also fungi that form mutualistic relationships with roots that can connect multiple trees together. This underground network is called the Wood Wide Web. There's an idea that maybe sugar and chemical signals could travel from one tree through the fungus to another tree, but in the past few weeks there's been a lot of activity calling that idea into question, asking how much data we really have to support the hypothesis.

Can zombie-ant fungus infect humans?

We're very warm, and a lot of these fungi can't survive in environments that hot for that long. Our body temperature proves to be a barrier for a lot of fungi.

Could climate change drive its evolution enough to overcome that barrier?

There are protective factors other than body temperature. We have a really good immune system. We are constantly breathing in microscopic spores around us, and most of us don't get sick because our bodies fight off the fungus.

What fungal infections pose the most danger to us?

I'm not a medical mycologist, but I know of a few nasty ones, like Candida auris, which has been going around hospitals quite a lot. Coccidioides and Pneumocystis aren't goodthey get in your lungs. Less aggressive ones like athlete's foot, ringworm, or nail fungus aren't super terrible.

But they take forever to treat. Why is it so hard to cure fungal infections in humans?

Because we share a lot of biochemical similarities with fungi. When we're trying to kill a fungal cell, we need to make sure we're not killing our own as well. We're far less similar to bacteria.

Why don't more people study fungi?

They're not as endearing as things with big eyes and lots of fur. I grew up kind of thinking fungi were gross. It varies across cultures around the world, but a lot of folks probably feel like I did. That's something I'm trying my best to change.
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A scheme for the dancing peanut cyclicity in beer. (a) Peanuts are introduced into the beer, sink part way and work as nucleation sites for bubbles; (b) bubblepeanut aggregates rise due to positive buoyancy; (c) bubbles are released by bursting at the free surface; (d) peanuts rotate on the free surface allowing further outgassing; (e) bubblepeanut aggregates become negatively buoyant and sink. Credit: Royal Society Open Science (2023). DOI: 10.1098/rsos.230376

When peanuts are dropped into a pint of beer, they initially sink to the bottom before floating up and "dancing" in the glass.

Scientists have dug deep seeking to investigate this phenomenon in a new study published on Wednesday, saying it has implications for understanding mineral extraction or bubbling magma in the Earth's crust.

Brazilian researcher Luiz Pereira, the study's lead author, told AFP that he first had the idea when passing through Argentina's capital Buenos Aires to learn Spanish.

It was a "bartender thing" in the city to take a few peanuts and pop them into beers, Pereira said.

Because the peanuts are denser than the beer, they first sink down to the bottom of the glass.

Then each peanut becomes what is called a "nucleation site". Hundreds of tiny bubbles of carbon dioxide form on their surface, acting as buoys to drag them upwards. Credit: Royal Society Open Science (2023). DOI: 10.1098/rsos.230376

"The bubbles prefer to form on the peanuts rather than on the glass walls," explained Pereira, a researcher at Germany's Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich.

When the bubbles reach the surface, they burst.

The peanuts then dive down before being propelled up again by freshly formed bubbles, in a dance that continues until the carbon dioxide runs outor someone interrupts by drinking the beer.

In a series of experiments, the team of researchers in Germany, Britain and France examined how roasted, shelled peanuts fared in a lager-style beer.

Example of a measurement of contact angle  between (a) peanutbeer immersed in air and (b) glassbeer immersed in air. The average values of 10 measurements are peanut = 46.48  2.43 and glass = 23.20  2.80. Credit: Royal Society Open Science (2023). DOI: 10.1098/rsos.230376

Next up: more beers

The study, published in the journal Royal Society Open Science, describes two key factors in what the researchers dubbed the "beergaspeanut system".

They found that the larger the "contact angle" between the curve of an individual bubble and the surface of the peanut was, the more likely it was to form and grow.

But it cannot grow too mucha radius of under 1.3 millimeters is ideal, the study said.

Pereira said he hoped that "by deeply researching this simple system, which everyone can grasp, we can understand a system" that would be useful for industry or explaining natural phenomena.

For example, he said the floatation process was similar to the one used to separate iron from ore.

Air is injected, in a controlled way, into a mixture in which a mineralsuch as iron"will rise because bubbles attach themselves more easily to it, while other (minerals) sink to the bottom," he said.

The same process could also explain why volcanologists find that the mineral magnetite rises to higher layers in the crystallized magma of the Earth's crust than would be expected.

Like peanuts, magnetite is denser, so should sit at the bottom. But due to a high contact angle, the researchers theorize, the mineral rises through the magma with help from gas bubbles.

Of course, science is never settledparticularly when beer is involved.

Hoping to create a better model of the dancing peanut phenomenon, Pereira said the scientists will continue to "play with the characteristics of different peanuts and different beers".

More information: Luiz Pereira et al, The physics of dancing peanuts in beer, Royal Society Open Science (2023). DOI: 10.1098/rsos.230376 Journal information: Royal Society Open Science

 2023 AFP
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Credit: CC0 Public Domain

Put yourself in the exoskeleton of a bumble bee for a moment: Your world would be a riot of colors and scents, both essential to guide your search for pollen and nectar. Bumble bees have excellent vision: They have a pair of compound eyes that can distinguish UV and most colors except red, plus three additional simple eyes specialized in detecting polarized light. Their sense of smell dwarfs ours: Approximately 100 times more sensitive, and capable of sniffing out illegal drugs or explosives at airports, confirming pregnancy in women, or detecting cancers and diabetes in early-stage patients.

Now, researchers have shown that bumble bees can also use their sense of smell to locate their nest. This is especially important when the landscape suddenly changes; for example, when familiar visual landmarks are blown away by wind. The results are published in Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience.

"Here we show that bumble bees rely on their own scent marks, which they deposit at their nest entrance while leaving for a foraging trip, to find back home when the visual cues are not sufficiently reliable," said first author Sonja Eckel, a Ph.D. student at the Department of Neurobiology of Bielefeld University in Germany.

Visual landmarks

Eckel and colleagues studied the homing behavior of the bu-tailed bumble bee Bombus terrestris in the laboratory. In nature, these bumble bees nest in abandoned mouseholes, hidden under grass or leaves. Here, the foragers had learned to locate their nest entrance by visually orienting themselves against two sets of landmarks within a round enclosed flight arena, 150 cm across and 85 cm high. The first set consisted of three black vertical stripeseach 12 cm wide and 85 cm longagainst the white background of the arena walls. The second, of three cylinders, each 2.5 cm wide and 15 cm high, was arranged in a triangle around the entrance hole.

The arena floor provided no visual information, being covered with a random red-and-white patternpresenting as black and white for bumble bees. After some practice, workers flew straight back to the entrance when returning from a visit to the outer foraging chamber, where they were provided with pollen and nectar.

Bumble bees possess multiple scent glands, which distribute chemicals all over their body. Previous research has shown that whenever they touch any surface, for example that of their nest entrance, they passively leave scent marks. The researchers captured these scent marks by placing a glass ring around the entrance, which foragers tended to walk across when exiting or returning to the nest.

Tricking the bumble bees

Eckel and the team then tricked the bumble bees by abruptly changing the location of both sets of visual landmarks, independently of each other. Now, these gave conflicting information about the entrance's location, neither marking the correct spot. The true entrance was closed off and concealedwith success, as none of the returning foragers subsequently found it.

The researchers measured how long, and at which distance, returning foragers hovered around either false location for the entrance, based on the conflicting landmarks. They assumed that the longer a forager hovered around any spot, and the smaller her average flight distance to it, the more focused she was in that spot as the best candidate for the entrance's location.

Typically, foragers seemed equally focused on either false location, implying that they used both sets of visual landmarks to unsuccessfully try and relocate their nest. But a dramatic change occurred whenever the researchers placed the glass ringcarrying bumble bee scent marksaround either location. Now, foragers overwhelmingly focused on the false location suggested by the scent marks.

The researchers concluded that foragers use their sense of smell as well as vision to find their way home, in particular when visual information is conflicting.

Bouquet of scents

"While visual information is perceived over larger distances and leads a bumble bee towards the approximate location of the nest, scent marks are used to pinpoint the exact location of the nest entrance in the near range. Most likely, physical contact is necessary to identify the scent," said Eckel.

"Our chemical analysis showed that this scent is a bouquet of hydrocarbons, fatty acids, and other substances, such as esters and alcohols. Many of these substances are known to be used by bumble bees in other behavioral contexts, [and] also by other insect species. In our follow-up research, we want to investigate how different sensory cues are learnt and combined by bumble bees to allow them to discriminate different behaviorally relevant goals, such as the nest hole and food sources."

Provided by Frontiers
PHNOM PENH, June 14 (Xinhua) -- The population of critically endangered vultures in Cambodia is stable with 131 birds recorded in a census last week, Neth Pheaktra, secretary of state at the Ministry of Environment, said on Wednesday.

"According to the results of a vulture census on June 9, a total of 131 vultures were recorded in Cambodia," he said in a news release. "This number is similar to the census results in June 2022, with 134 vultures recorded."

The Southeast Asian country is home to three vulture species, namely red-headed, white-rumped, and slender-billed vultures, all of which are included in the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List as critically endangered.

Pheaktra said the census last week registered 12 red-headed, 77 white-rumped, and 42 slender-billed vultures.

The official said the vultures live in Siem Pang Wildlife Sanctuary in the northeastern Stung Treng province, Chheb Wildlife Sanctuary in the northern Preah Vihear province, Sambo Wildlife Sanctuary in the eastern Kratie province, and Srepok Wildlife Sanctuary in the eastern Mondulkiri province.

He said vultures, as nature's "clean-up crew", play an important role in maintaining the environment by stripping the carcasses of dead animals, helping reduce the spread of diseases.

In a bid to save this rare bird species, he said conservationist groups have periodically fed the birds with dead domestic cattle and routinely done protective work for their nests and habitats. 
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In this May 22, 2019, file photo, a shark warning warns beachgoers at Lecount Hollow Beach in Wellfleet, Mass. Scientists monitoring the white shark population in the waters off Cape Cod are stepping up their game by attaching more highly sophisticated sensors that include cameras to the predators to help keep beachgoers informed and safe, researchers said Tuesday, June 13, 2023. Credit: AP Photo/Charles Krupa, File

Scientists monitoring the white shark population in the waters off Massachusetts' Cape Cod are attaching improved sensors, including cameras, to the predators to help scientists keep track of their whereabouts and to keep beachgoers informed and safe, researchers said Tuesday.

The program comes just as tourists are filling up hotels and rental properties on the Cape for the summerand white sharks are returning in greater numbers to feed on the region's abundant seals.

Interactions between white sharks and humans are rare. But the risk is still there. There have been five in Massachusetts since 2012three of them classified as bites, one of which was fatal, said Greg Skomal, the state Division of Marine Fisheries shark expert.

"So as a result, we've intensified our research off the Cape to study various aspects of white shark behavior," Skomal said.

For more than a decade, the fisheries division and the nonprofit Atlantic White Shark Conservancy have tagged about 300 sharks with acoustic sensors that emit a high-frequency sound to an array of receivers along the coast. Public safety officials and lifeguards are notified when a shark swims within range of an acoustic receiver.

This year, researchers are attaching more camera sensors to the predators.

They capture more than just video. The sensors can detect a shark's depth, direction, surrounding water temperature and whether it's accelerating or slowing down. The technology allows scientists to monitor the sharks on a second-by-second basis, Skomal said.

Megan Winton, a staff scientist at the Atlantic White Shark Conservancy, calls it giving smartphones to sharks.

"They're outfitted with an incredible array of sensors that tell us about the animal's movements and their environment," she said, adding that it's "essentially just riding on the back of a white shark."

The information is downloaded to a free app available to the public to reduce encounters and promote safety.

One video captured by a camera tag clamped to a shark's dorsal fin shows the predator moving into water about 4 feet (1.2 meters) deep close to shore to go after a seal, stirring up a storm of sand from the bottom. The seal ultimately escaped.

Sharks are patient hunters.

"They slowly patrol the shoreline very methodically until they essentially have a chance to make their move," Winton said.

The technology also has provided insight into how curious sharks are. They have been seen coming to the surface to nibble a lobster buoy or check out a bird or some other piece of flotsam, she said.

Researchers also have started using drones to help spot sharks from above, a method that has been used in other parts of the world, including Australia, Skomal said.

The drawback of the sensor system is that if a shark has not been tagged, it won't be detected. But the program does its best to provide information to the public so they can make informed decisions while at the beach.

"We want them to understand these animals and their habits the way we do," Winton said.

 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
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Credit: Claudette Wicks on Unsplash

New Zealand's status as a cohesive high-trust nation is being strained by political, economic and environmental pressures, exacerbated by technological disruptors.

With a general election looming that will inevitably highlight the country's political fault lines, Koi Tu: The Centre for Informed Futures has released a discussion paper on the cohesiveness of New Zealand society.

It paints a picture of increased polarization stemming from a range of stresses, including the unhelpful stirring of tensions by purveyors of mis- and disinformation.

These are testing times, says Koi Tu director Sir Peter Gluckman, who with deputy director Dr. Anne Bardsley is a lead contributor to "Addressing the challenges to social cohesion."

In such an environment, Sir Peter says, Aotearoa New Zealand needs to pay more attention to strengthening both institutional and social trust and staying on top of factors that might weaken them.

"When social cohesion is undermined or threatened individual's anxiety, anger and frustration are elevated. People's trust in both government and other citizens is undermined," Sir Peter says.

"The way a government operates and communicates in this context can make the situation better or worse."

Although ours has traditionally been perceived as a highly cohesive, high-trust society with a healthy democracy, many factors are contributing to rising anxiety and concern among some sections of our society, says Dr. Bardsley.

"The list of possible causes is long and includes high income inequality, poor housing affordability, personal safety, the economy and climate change," she says.

"New Zealand's position in many metrics of well-being has declined compared with other countries over the past two decades.

"Economic inequalities have clearly grown. And as elsewhere there are growing gulfs in confidence about the future between different age and ethnic cohorts."

The October 14 election brings into focus New Zealand's "shallow" democracy, says Sir Peter, with its unchecked single house of parliament, weak parliamentary committees whose government members are anxious to be seen to be team players and an opposition more intent on political objectives than broader policy discussions.

Loss of trust in the government, which may be even worse at local-authority level, spills over to other institutions and society in general.

"Institutional and social trust are both needed for a democratic society to be resilient and cohesive. They are interdependent concepts.

"How a government behaves affects social trust. Where social trust breaks down institutional trust is generally lost, providing a breeding ground for autocratic and populist leaders."

Reluctance globally to establish agreed standards, suitable governance and accountability has furthered the misuse of social media and technologies such as artificial intelligence and deep fakes to spread mis- and disinformation thereby undermining trust, say Sir Peter and Dr. Bardsley.

They say "weaponized narratives" propagated by social platforms can lead to the kind of community split seen in the 2022 protests in Parliament's grounds.

Co-author distinguished professor emeritus Paul Spoonleyan associate of Koi Tusays a key question will be whether the fractious politics of January 2022, and the declining trust in core institutions such as government and the media will continue on in 2023 and play a part in the general election.

"It will be a test of the level of trust and engagement among some individuals and communities who appear to have been radicalized by the politics of disinformation of recent years," he says.

Prof Spoonley balancing societal inclusion against the negative effects of social media is not easy.

"COVID was an interesting test case of both disengagement and engagement. Public health measures worked best when communities such as Maori and Pasifika were included as partners. Such inclusion improves trust and social cohesion. The issue is how to moderate and ameliorate the negative effects of vitriol and disinformation on social media. That is a huge challenge."

Dr. Te Ahukaramu Charles Royal (Koi Tu strategic advisor Maori) says like all communities, the social cohesion of iwi and Maori communities is challenged by issues such as climate change and inclement weather events, the cost of living, population pressures, and trust in authorities.

"However, there are other factors too at play within iwi/Maori communities of the past 2030 years that have contributed to the erosion of social cohesion. Older alliances, collaborations and ways of working together (such as the King Movement and the Maori Churches), have declined.

"At the same time contemporary Treaty claims processes have encouraged 'tribal "isolationism' where claimants retreat to protect their individual positions, overlooking traditional and vital Maori values such as whanaungatanga (relationships) and manaakitanga (acts of generosity)," he says.

The discussion document, which follows on from the 2021 release of Koi Tu's Sustaining Aotearoa NZ as a Cohesive Society report, lists several actions to increase New Zealand's social cohesion and resilience.

At an institutional level they include seeking a political accord to improve parliamentary processes and political discourse.

The discussion paper's authors also urge New Zealand to join the global conversation about how to manage new and disruptive technology such as artificial intelligence in a more precautionary and inclusive manner.

More information: Addressing the challenges to social cohesion. informedfutures.org/challenges-to-social-cohesion/

Provided by Koi Tu: the Centre for Informed Futures
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(a) Boron vacancy defect in hexagonal boron nitride. The vacancy acts as an atom-sized quantum sensor for magnetic field measurements. The magnetic field-sensitive quantum sensor behaves like a nano-sized magnetic needle. (b) Photoluminescence of a quantum sensor nanoarray. By analyzing the change in the photoluminescence intensity in response to microwaves, the researchers measured the magnetic field at each sensor spot. Many quantum sensors are generated at each bright spot. Credit: Sasaki et al., 2023

University of Tokyo scientists have achieved the delicate task of arranging quantum sensors at a nanoscale, allowing them to detect extremely small variations in magnetic fields. The high-resolution quantum sensors will have potential uses in quantum materials and electronic device research. For example, the sensors can help develop hard disks that use nano-magnetic materials as storage elements. This is the world's first successful high-resolution magnetic field imaging using a nanoscale arrangement of quantum sensors.

Sensors surround us in our daily life, from garage lights to smoke detectors and even atoms. Quantum sensors sense the environment around them using the properties of an atom. For example, an atom changes its spin, which takes two values like the poles of a magnet, in response to a magnetic field. Magnetic field sensors have many applications in biomedical appliances and quantum materials research, including superconductors.

Kento Sasaki, an Assistant Professor at the University of Tokyo, says, "Using such an unprecedented sensor, we want to observe a microscopic world that no one has ever seen."

The researchers wanted to develop stable quantum sensors placed near the targets such as wires and disks. But until now, it has been challenging to precisely arrange atoms to achieve the ability to sense minute variations in the magnetic field.

"Although individual quantum sensors are small, their spatial resolution is restricted by the distance between the sensor and the measurement target," says Sasaki. To solve the problem, the researchers established a technique for creating nano-sized quantum sensors on the surface of the measurement target.

As quantum sensors, the team used boron vacancies or lattice defects in the two-dimensional hexagonal boron nitride, a thin crystalline material with nitrogen and boron atoms. The boron vacancy defect is the new kid in the block since its discovery as a quantum spin sensor in 2020.

Pulling the Scotch tape off the crystal, the team obtained a thin hexagonal boron nitride film. The researchers attached the thin film to the target gold wire. Then they bombarded the film with a high-speed helium ion beam, thus popping boron atoms out and forming the boron vacancy spots of 100 nm2.

Each spot contains many atom-sized vacancies which behave like tiny magnetic needles. The closer the spots are to each other, the better the spatial resolution of the sensors. As current flowed through the wire, the team measured the magnetic field at each spot based on the intensity of light emitted from the spots in the presence of microwaves. The researchers were amazed when the measured values of the magnetic field matched closely with the simulated values, proving the efficacy of the high-resolution quantum sensors.

The change in the spin state of the sensor in the presence of a magnetic field can be detected even at room temperature, thus enabling easy detection of the local magnetic field and currents. Moreover, the boron nitride nanofilms attach to objects just by van der Waals force, which means the quantum sensors easily stick to different materials.

This allowed the researchers to create a thin layer to attach to a target gold wire. Credit: Sasaki et al., 2023

Sasaki and his team plan to apply this technique for research on condensed matter physics and quantum materials. "It will enable direct detection of the magnetic field from, for example, peculiar states at edges of graphene and microscopic quantum dots," adds Sasaki.

Atom-sized quantum sensors are starting to revolutionize how we sense microscopic environments and thus also understand macroscopic properties. Their applications run beyond basic science research. They can help image human brains, accurately geolocate, map underground environments, and detect tectonic shifts and volcanic eruptions. Sasaki and his team await the potential uses of their nanoscale quantum sensors in semiconductors, magnetic materials, and superconductors.

The study is published in the journal Applied Physics Letters.

More information: Kento Sasaki et al, Magnetic field imaging by hBN quantum sensor nanoarray, Applied Physics Letters (2023). DOI: 10.1063/5.0147072 Journal information: Applied Physics Letters
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Credit: Kevin Janni

University of Minnesota researchers have developed a highly sophisticated model to assess lactating cow heat stress, a problem that can lead to numerous health complications for cows and financial difficulties for dairy producers due to reduced milk production and pregnancy rates.

Though several empirical equations have been developed to identify heat stress conditions, the new model is the most comprehensive available. It was recently detailed in two papers in the Journal of the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineersthe first paper describes the equations and cow characteristics used in the modified model, and the second paper compares model results with data from cows experiencing heat stress and unpublished data from solar panel shade work done at the West Central Research and Outreach Center in Morris, Minnesota.

The research team modified a steady-state heat transfer model developed by McGovern and Bruce (2000) by incorporating work from other researchers, two new empirical relations for cow characteristics, and a new solution procedure.

The modified model describes heat exchange between a lactating cow and the environment through respiration, air flowing past the cow, sweating and shortwave and longwave radiation. The model can be used to assess the impact of body mass, milk yield, solar load, air temperature, dew-point temperature, and air velocity on heat exchange rates, cow respiration rate and body temperature.

The researchers found:

The process-based model results compare well with the published respiration rates and body temperatures of heat-stressed lactating cows.

The model results were commonly within one standard deviation of the reported averages.

The thermal balance model can be used to identify key heat stress factors and assess mitigation practices.

"Process-based models provide a better understanding of how cows exchange heat with the environment than empirical equations. Engineers will be able to use the model to better assess alternative cooling designs," said Kevin Janni, a professor in the Department of Bioproducts and Biosystems Engineering and an Extension engineer.

Creating better cooling designs could help reduce heat stress related health conditions, which include lower milk production and pregnancy rates, increased disease and death rates, calves with lower birth weights, and impaired immune function.

Looking ahead, the researchers plan to use the modified model to assess alternative cow cooling designs and the tradeoff associated with the costs for ventilating fans, cooling fans, and evaporative cooling systems versus the reduced heat stress on lactating cows.

More information: Chad R. Nelson et al, Dairy Cow Thermal Balance Model During Heat Stress: Part 1. Model Development, Journal of the ASABE (2023). DOI: 10.13031/ja.15190 Kevin A. Janni et al, Dairy Cow Thermal Balance Model During Heat Stress: Part 2. Model Assessment, Journal of the ASABE (2023). DOI: 10.13031/ja.15191
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UV spectroscopy of the eight compounds studied in 98% w/w sulfuric acid. The absorbance, defined as A = Lc, where A is absorbance (dimensionless),  is the molar absorption coefficient (in units of M1cm1), L is pathlength (in cm), and c is concentration (in units of M), as a function of wavelength. Each compound shows two characteristic UV peaks, due to - conjugated bonds. The blue line shows the UV spectrum measured within about 15 to 20 min after mixing of the compound in 98% w/w H 2 SO 4 in H 2 O and the gray dashed line is the same compound measured after about 24 h. While some compounds have a higher absorbance due to more dissolution over the 24 h, the same peak wavelength maximum and peak shape demonstrates stability of each compound in 98% w/w sulfuric acid. Credit: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (2023). DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2220007120

A team of chemists, biologists and planetary scientists from MIT, Nanoplanet Consulting, Harvard University and the University of Alberta has found via lab experimentation that conditions in Venus' clouds are possibly conducive to hosting life. In their paper published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the group describes experiments they conducted in their lab and their results.

Prior research has shown that the surface of Venus averages approximately 462C, much too hot to support life. However, the planet's atmosphere is much cooler, particularly in its cloudstemperatures there are just 30C to 70C, well within a range that could support life. But such clouds are composed of sulfuric acid, which are far more acidic than any clouds found on Earth. Still, the possibility that life could exist in such an environment intrigued the research team. They set up experiments to determine whether RNA and/or DNA bases could survive in such an environment.

The experiments involved exposing nucleic acid bases such as cytosine, adenine, thymine, guanin and uracil to chemical conditions similar to those believed to exist in Venusian clouds. The then did the same with pyrimidine and purine nucleic acid base cores and to 2,6-diaminopurine. They then tested the stability of the acid bases using NMR and UV spectroscopy. They found that the acid bases remained stable under such conditions and remained so for up to two weeksby extension, this meant that they could do the same in Venusian clouds.

The researchers suggest their findings might be shocking to planetary scientists, but doubt many chemists would be surprised. They note that it is common knowledge that refining oil involves the use of concentrations of sulfuric acid, resulting in the production of organic compounds, some of which are aromatic molecules. They suggest that space scientists looking for life elsewhere in the universe may have to expand their possible targets to include the atmospheres of planets, not just their surfaces.

More information: Sara Seager et al, Stability of nucleic acid bases in concentrated sulfuric acid: Implications for the habitability of Venus' clouds, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (2023). DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2220007120 Journal information: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

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A ring finger locked in a bent position as seen in Dupuytren's disease, colloquially known as the "Viking disease." Credit: Hugo Zeberg/ Molecular Biology and Evolution

A new paper in Molecular Biology and Evolution shows that a condition known as Dupuytren's disease is partly of Neanderthal origin. Researchers have long known that the disease was much more common in Northern Europeans than in those of African ancestry.

Dupuytren's disease is a disorder affecting the hand. Those who suffer from the condition eventually see their hands become bent permanently in a flexed position. Although the condition can affect any finger, the ring and middle fingers are most often afflicted. Scientists have previously identified several risk factors for the condition, including age, alcohol consumption, diabetes, and genetic predisposition.

A 1999 Danish study reported 80% heritability for the condition, indicating a strong genetic influence. The condition is much more common in people of Northern European ancestry. One study estimated the prevalence of Dupuytren's disease among Norwegians over 60 years to be as much as 30%. The condition is rare, however, for those of primarily African descent. This apparent geographic distribution has given Dupuytren's disease the nickname "Viking disease."

There are geographical differences in the extent of genetic ancestry linking present-day humans to now-extinct groups. People from Africa south of the Sahara have little ancestry from Neanderthals or Denisovans, who that lived in Europe and Asia until at least 42,000 years ago. In contrast, people with roots outside of Africa inherited as much as 2% of their genome from Neanderthals and some populations in Asia today have up to 5% Denisovan ancestry. Given these regional differences, archaic gene variants can contribute to characteristics or diseases found primarily in certain populations.

Given the prevalence of Dupuytren's disease among Europeans, researchers here investigated its genetic origins. They used data from 7,871 cases and 645,880 controls from the UK Biobank, the FinnGen R7 collection, and the Michigan Genomics Initiative to identify genetic risk variants for Dupuytren's disease.

They found 61 genome-wide significant variants associated with Dupuytren's disease. Further analysis showed that three of these variants are of Neanderthal origin, including the second- and third-most strongly associated ones. The finding that two of the most important genetic risk factors for Dupuytren's disease are of Neanderthal origin leads the scientists to conclude that Neanderthal ancestry is a significant factor in explaining the prevalence of the disease in Europe today.

"This is a case where the meeting with Neanderthals has affected who suffers from illness," said the paper's lead author, Hugo Zeberg, "although we should not exaggerate the connection between Neanderthals and Vikings."

More information: Richard Agren et al, Major genetic risk factors for Dupuytren's disease are inherited from Neandertals, Molecular Biology and Evolution (2023). DOI: 10.1093/molbev/msad130 Journal information: Molecular Biology and Evolution
This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies . Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility:

Credit: CC0 Public Domain

They have become part of their new country's middle class and have good education, jobs and solid language skills. Many may also live in a country that has a reputation for ensuring immigrant rights and an open approach to new citizens.

Yet, these successful immigrant groups and their descendants are more prone to report discrimination than other immigrants when asked about their everyday lives.

This is according to a new meta-study that has collected and analyzed no fewer than 42 studies from a wide range of countries. At the same time, the new meta-study paints a clearer picture of the underlying mechanisms of what is also known as the 'integration paradox'.

"Better integration seems to go hand in hand with more reports of discrimination and exclusion. We see that people who actually have good access to middle class society report more experiences of exclusion. It is counterintuitive and somehow paradoxical," says Professor Merlin Schaeffer, who conducted the study together with Judith Kas from the WZB Berlin Social Science Center.

Education and social inclusion open eyes to inequality

By combining 42 studies, the meta-analysis can provide much more solid insights into what creates the integration paradox.

First and foremost, the analyses show that the more well-educated immigrants and their descendants become, the more they report discrimination. On the other hand, their labor market attainment seems to have little or no effect.

Another important factor is immigrants' participation and engagement in public life. If they have good language skills and high local media consumption, they are more likely to experience discrimination. The same applies if they are exposed to the majority population in their everyday lives, for example through involvement in civic associations or by living in neighborhoods with a high proportion of residents from the majority population.

Ultimately, it comes down to what degree the individual immigrant or descendant is able to recognize and speak up about discrimination in everyday life. This ability grows with better education, language skills and more social contact with the surrounding society. At the same time, immigrants will experience more discrimination if they clearly stand out from the majority, for example through their way of dress.

"In my opinion, there is no whining among immigrants. Rather, with better integration, they get a better understanding of the remaining inequalities. They become more visible, and the immigrants themselves become more sensitive to inequalities that seemed less important in the times with more discrimination," says Schaeffer.

"Finally, it can be about self-confidence. If people are generally better established, they will more likely speak up about discrimination."

This can be observed across national borders. In the new study, the researchers compare immigrants' experiences of discrimination with their new home countries' rankings on the so-called 'Migrant Integration Policy Index' (MIPEX), which measures the inclusiveness of a country's policies towards immigrants.

The pattern is clear: better established immigrants are more likely to report discrimination in countries that have more inclusive integration and anti-discrimination policies.

Politicians should understand the background of experienced discrimination

This is yet another variant of the integration paradox, which, according to Merlin Schaeffer, creates its own political challenges:

How should politicians react to complaints about discrimination if they increase in strength after political reforms in the area of integration that are supposed to address the issue? And how should they interpret complaints, which can both stem from real progress in the field and cover ongoing discrimination?

"Politicians may rightly ask why people complain when things have actually improved. Here, the results suggest that it is important to understand the reasons for dissatisfaction before concluding whether complaints are unjustified or not. Conversely, the absence of reports of discrimination does not necessarily mean that everything is fine. Both point to the importance of seeking dialogue with the people in question before reacting politically," says Merlin Schaeffer.

About the study

The new study 'The Integration Paradox: A Review and Meta-Analysis of the Complex Relationship Between Integration and Reports of Discrimination' has been published in the journal International Migration Review.

In the article, the two authors, Merlin Schaeffer and Judith Kas, shed light on the so-called 'integration paradox', which refers to the fact that well-integrated immigrants and their descendants generally report more discrimination.

By analyzing a total of 280 statistical estimates from 42 individual studies, the meta-analysis confirms the existence of the integration paradox and suggests some underlying mechanisms.

The integration paradox at the center of the study is a variant of the more general 'Tocqueville paradox', named after the French politician and political philosopher Alexis de Tocqueville. In the mid-1800s he described how political and social progress often leads to greater dissatisfaction and frustration among the population, as the remaining inequalities become more exposed and visible.

More information: Merlin Schaeffer et al, The Integration Paradox: A Review and Meta-Analysis of the Complex Relationship Between Integration and Reports of Discrimination, International Migration Review (2023). DOI: 10.1177/01979183231170809
HARTFORD  A Hartford man was hit with more charges on Sunday after police said he shot a gun during a domestic dispute on Friday, which resulted in an arrest as well.

On Friday, New York State Police originally arrested James A. Lutz, 26, and charged him with two felony counts of second-degree criminal possession of a weapon, a felony count of third-degree criminal possession of a weapon, two felony counts of first-degree reckless endangerment and misdemeanor counts of criminal obstruction of breathing or blood circulation and two counts of endangering the welfare of a child.

At 4:30 p.m. on Friday, police received the report of numerous physical domestic disputes that occurred in the past in the town of Hartford. Police said they learned, during two of the alleged disputes in December 2022 and May 2023, Lutz displayed and discharged a firearm.

No one was injured during the incidents, but a child under the age of 17 was present for both incidents.

Police seized all the firearms in Lutzs possession, as well as an illegally possessed high-capacity magazine.

He was arraigned at the Hartford Town Court on Friday and taken to the Washington County Jail in lieu of $2,000 cash or $4,000 bond. The court also issued an order of protection against Lutz, protecting the victim and prohibiting him from having a gun.

At 5:47 a.m. on Sunday, State Police responded to the reports of damage to a vehicle parked outside a Hartford home. According to police, Lutz caused the damage to the vehicle and was also allegedly in possession of a gun, which was a violation of the order of protection issued just two days prior.

Lutz was arrested again and charged with second-degree criminal mischief, fourth-degree criminal possession of a weapon and second-degree criminal contempt. He was arraigned at the Hartford Town Court and taken back to the Washington County Jail in lieu of $2,000 cash or $4,000 bond.
SYDNEY, June 14 (Xinhua) -- An international research team including Australian experts has made a groundbreaking discovery from fossils unearthed at Tam Pa Ling Cave in Laos, providing evidence of the early human presence in mainland Southeast Asia between 86,000 and 68,000 years ago.

The findings, recently published in the Nature Communications journal, shed light on the earliest human migrations from Africa to Australia and suggested alternative migration paths beyond coastlines and islands.

Unlike previous focus on island locations, the excavation at Tam Pa Ling Cave in 2009 unearthed a human skull and jawbone, shifting attention to the mainland as a significant migration path.

The scientists employed luminescence dating, a technique based on light-sensitive signals that accumulate in buried sediments over time.

Through luminescence dating, the researchers determined that the fossils were at least 46,000 years old, aligning with the expected timing of Homo sapiens' arrival in Southeast Asia.

Moreover, further excavations conducted between 2010 and 2023 revealed seven fragments of a human skeleton at different depths within the sediment layers. Additional dating methods, such as uranium-series dating and electron-spin resonance dating, confirmed the age estimates obtained from luminescence dating.

The established chronology showed that humans have inhabited the region for over 56,000 years, with the earliest arrival estimated to be between 86,000 and 68,000 years ago.

This discovery pushed back the timeline for human presence in mainland Southeast Asia by approximately 40,000 years. 
EGG HARBOR TOWNSHIP  An Atlantic County Central Municipal Court judge postponed a ruling on 38 complaints relating to alleged noise-ordinance violations against a township family regarding their pet roosters.

The postponement, decided at a virtual hearing Monday, is the latest development in a feud over pigs and chickens that has left a searing divide in a local neighborhood.

Brianna and Dave Ferrier said the dispute had proved exhausting for them and their daughter.

They have said they want to move from the township and intend to do so as early as Thursday.

Its mentally draining, Brianna Ferrier said.

A request for comment sent to the township solicitor has not returned a request for comment. A Central Municipal Court prosecutor declined comment, because the matter was still pending.

The postponement was made, per the Ferriers account of the hearing, to allow for a lawsuit the township filed against the Ferrier family to be litigated.

The suit, which alleges the Ferriers are violating local and state environmental regulations by owning the pigs and chickens and creating undo pollution, covers similar ground as the matter that had been the subject of the 38 complaints, which had been filed by a neighbor. The suit is scheduled to go to trial in Atlantic County Superior Court on July 14.

'Pig slop' covers Woodbine street following crash WOODBINE  A borough road was covered in materials from a pigsty after a truck crashed into 

At all times pertinent hereto, Defendant (Dave and Brianna Ferrier) use their building, premises and property in a manner that endangered the health, morals, safety or welfare of the adjoining neighborhoods, community and environment, township Solicitor Marc Friedman said in the suit.

To the Ferriers and their supporters, the pigs and chickens are pets, beloved as members of the family. They have also argued the township prohibition on piggeries was meant to target the raising of pigs as livestock for slaughter, not those kept as pets.

Opponents of the Ferriers have said the animals pose a nuisance to the neighborhood, citing the odor of the pigs waste and the noise the two roosters make late at night. They have argued the Ferriers are expecting special treatment and undue relief from improper channels.

The two sides have argued in various Township Committee meetings, which have occasionally left people with frayed nerves, expired patience and on the verge of tears.

The township filed suit against the Ferriers on May 31. In its lawsuit, the township alleges the Ferrier family keeps multiple chickens and four pigs on their 3.89-acre property off Mill Road. It further claims the Ferriers periodically used their homes as a shelter for additional pigs that had been abandoned on behalf of the pig-rescue organization Eastern Snouts.

The township alleges the Ferriers do not properly dispose of the feces and other waste these pigs and chickens leave. An affidavit of witness from Ferrier neighbor Doris Dilley detailed what she argued were the nuisances the animals create. Dilley alleged feces was scattered in piles all over their property and once let off a smell that was overwhelming and awful. Dilley added the chickens and pigs had occasionally gotten loose and defecated in her familys yard.

Another neighbor who spoke at a Township Committee meeting earlier this year also complained about the smell.

Dilley, a former president of the township Board of Education, sold the Ferriers their house and has since led the public charge against the familys ownership of its chickens and pigs.

Galloway woman arrested after more than 50 animals found in unsanitary conditions GALLOWAY TOWNSHIP  A township woman has been charged with 110 counts of animal cruelty afte

It further maintains that the Ferriers refused requests from the township zoning officer to inspect the property. Dilley added in her affidavit that the family also refused an inspection from an animal-control agency as well as Atlantic County public health officials.

The Ferriers have disputed the allegations of the township and Dilley. They have said the pigs and chickens do not let off an offensive odor beyond that of a typical pet, such as a dog. Their notion that there is not significant odor was backed by several neighbors and township residents at an April 5 Township Committee meeting. Since receiving complaints about their roosters crowing, the Ferriers have moved their chicken coop back 200 yards within a wooded area of their property.

The Ferriers acknowledged that the pigs and chickens had gotten loose on occasion, adding they had worked to rectify the animals quarters. They said Dilley could have contacted her with any outstanding concerns they had about the animals in an amicable way.

Why pit neighbors against neighbors? Brianna Ferrier said. Its called communication.

The Ferriers have denied that the township zoning officer asked to inspect the property, noting there is nothing in the lawsuits exhibits that evidence a zoning request for inspection. They said animal control did visit the property when they were away from home and that they did deny the animal control agents entry.

Police did visit the property in relation to the noise complaints and were allowed on the premises at the Ferriers invitation. A subsequent police report noted that the Ferriers had moved the chicken coop 200 yards into the woods, well away from the neighboring propertys residence. It further noted that the Ferriers were cooperative and respectful in speaking with police and expressed their wishes to rectify the situation so everyone could live in peace. The Ferriers say a member of the Township Committee has also visited the property and seen the pigs.

The Ferriers have also shared a complaint-investigation form from the Atlantic County Division of Public Health, done at the request of Dilley, that began May 9 and closed May 24. According to the form, a county health official investigating the pigs and the waste they create found No Public Health Significance.

With respect to the allegations regarding an animal shelter, the Ferriers said they did house several pigs in their homes for a temporary period of time. They likened the act to taking in a stray dog in desperate need of care and were critical of the township for what they said was their efforts to endanger at-need animals.

Egg Harbor Township family with pigs, chickens receives 37 summonses EGG HARBOR TOWNSHIP  Brianna and Dave Ferrier, the couple at the center of a controversy ov

The Ferriers said hostility directed toward them by the township has left them anxious, feeling like their home has been placed under constant surveillance, noting the pictures taken of their homes as part of the suit. They said that anxiety has compounded the normal stresses that come with moving and legal challenges.

We live with a daily anxiety level of 10 out of 10, Dave Ferrier said. We live in a constant state of (asking) Whos watching us?

Regan, the Ferriers 5-year-old daughter, said the ordeal had left her scared.

The township is trying to take our pets, she said.

Dave Ferrier said he and Brianna hope to settle with the township before the suit goes to trial. He said much of the controversy could have been avoided had their neighbors and the township communicated directly with the family and worked toward an amicable solution.

It didnt have to get to this point, he said.
BARNEGAT LIGHT  The 217-step journey above the Jersey Shore is in reach for visitors again after the state completed a $1.3 million overhaul of the lighthouse at Barnegat Lighthouse State Park.

This is an exciting day to be here, Rebecca Fitzgerald, administrator for the New Jersey Parks Service, said from in front of a statue of the lighthouses builder, U.S. Army Maj. Gordon Meade.

For the first time since mid-2022, the lighthouse was opened to visitors Saturday. Nearly 1,000 people visited the site this past weekend.

The lighthouse and its park typically see about a half-million guests a year, officials said. They hope more people are eager to see the over 100-year-old structures renovations.

We want the visitors, especially, to show up and see how beautiful it is, Fitzgerald said.

Nicknamed Old Barney, the lighthouse sits at the northern tip of Long Beach Island.

Visitors who make their way to the top are greeted by a small room below the lighthouses illuminating bulb and lens, walking out from there to a nearly 170-foot view of the island to the south, bay waters to the north and Atlantic Ocean to the east.

Admission to the state park has been waived because of an executive order by Gov. Phil Murphy.

Ocean County awards over $107,000 in tourism grants Ocean County awarded $107,739 in grants to 24 nonprofits hosting tourism-related events in t

During the trip to the lighthouses top, signs depicting events in the lighthouses history educate visitors about the surrounding areas.

Its a trip Caitlin Ratz has enjoyed about 10 times.

The view was as rewarding as the climb, said Ratz, 34, of Florham Park, Morris County, seated on a bench at the park with her children after climbing the lighthouse staircase.

Tuesday was the first time Ratz had visited the lighthouse since it reopened, she said.

New to the lighthouse is a coat of paint expected to last about 20 years, state park officials said. Other interior work included repairs to the lanterns steel platform, roof restorations and window replacements, Fitzgerald said.

The Friends of Barnegat Lighthouse State Park, a nonprofit that aids in the structures upkeep, also donated a beacon lantern and security fencing around it, Fitzgerald said.

Cameras are set to be installed that will allow for livestreaming of the views from the top of the lighthouse, Fitzgerald said.

On Tuesday, about 100 visitors took advantage of the nice weather to visit the park.

Barnegat Lighthouse to shine again after $1.3 million in renovations BARNEGAT LIGHT  The beacon at Barnegat Lighthouse will shine once more after a seven-month 

Atop the lighthouse, cellphones and cameras captured the view amid a gusty wind.

The lighthouse is one of three the federal government tasked Meade, an engineer, with building.

It began warning vessels on New Years Day in 1859, construction having taken the previous two years, costing about $60,000 at the time. It was originally fitted with a lens delivered from France, said Mark Texel, administrator of state historic sites.

A lighthouse has been at the location, however, since 1834, Texel said.

The shoals are very dangerous, Texel said. As a navigation aid, this was a critical, lifesaving house that was a wooden structure when it was first built.

It would be decommissioned and acquired by the state in 1927. Afterward, it would assist the military in World War II as a watchtower, Texel said.

Its 32 acres were deemed New Jersey State Park land in 1951, and the lighthouse was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1971. The site went through previous renovations, including the construction of a current jetty guarding it from waters in 1987.

It would be unlit until the Friends of Barnegat Lighthouse State Park led an effort to have it reignite its spotlight in 2009. While modern commercial ships likely rely mostly on sonar for navigation, local boaters still trust in Old Barney to guide them along the coast, Fitzgerald said.

It can be seen about 21.5 miles from sea, Texel said.

GALLERY: Barnegat Lighthouse reopens
PLEASANTVILLE  A period of uncertainty that has stretched over two years is coming to an end, although lingering concerns about transparency and internal disputes on the local school board remain.

The Board of Education voted Tuesday to hire Marilyn Martinez as the superintendent of Pleasantville Public Schools. The hiring comes 20 months after the board voted to suspend its last superintendent and is meant to stabilize a district rocked by turnover in leadership and attendant controversies in recent years. She is to succeed Superintendent Natakie Chestnut-Lee, who was subject to a controversial suspension in October 2021; and acting Superintendent Karin Farkas, who has served as head of the district since that suspension.

Martinez, who currently serves as the chief schools officer for the Camden City School District, attended the meeting Tuesday and spoke after her appointment.

It is my deepest honor and sincerest gratitude to have the privilege to lead as your next superintendent, Martinez said. I come with a heart and a passion that is about children and youth and families and what public school systems are able to provide.

The vote to hire Martinez was 7-0, with one board member, Cassandra Clements, absent from the meeting. Due to members having conflicts of interest, such as having a family member employed by the district, the board invoked the doctrine of necessity under state law, allowing all present members of the board to vote.

Board President Doris Rowell said it was a privilege and an honor to hire Martinez, and the other six board members in attendance also voiced their support for Martinez.

Were excited to work with you, were excited to see great things youre going to do for the district, Rowell said. Were in with the new, and we got to be out with the old.

Martinez has had an extended career as an administrator. She served as the superintendent of Pennsauken schools from October 2011 to September 2014, according to her LinkedIn page, and as the interim executive dean of Camden County College from 2017 to 2018. Before coming to Camden, Martinez worked as the interim superintendent at the Allentown School District in Pennsylvania from April to July 2021. Her LinkedIn page also lists Martinez as having served as an adjunct principal supervisor trainer at New Leaders, which trains school leaders.

Martinez said she started her career in the Philadelphia School District. Her LinkedIn shows her beginning in the district in 1989 and said she worked as a teacher, principal and in several other administrative roles.

When she takes her role as superintendent in Pleasantville, Martinez will lead a district in a city where half of residents are Hispanic and more than a quarter are immigrants to the United States. Martinez spoke about the importance of realizing the potential of all students in the district and spoke briefly about her heritage. After being asked by a resident in Spanish where she was from, Martinez replied in Spanish that she was from New Jersey and her parents were from northwestern Puerto Rico, before repeating her comments in English.

The remarks from the new superintendent followed a presentation from district Director of Curriculum and Instruction Darlyne De Haan. The presentation indicated that the district had improved this year in reading and math, according to internal measures of success.

And Im very, very excited that I get to join such a committed group of school leaders and administrators and staff that are genuinely committed to closing the achievement gap for all of our students, Martinez said.

School officials said the superintendent search was overseen by the New Jersey School Boards Association and Michelle Kennedy, the field service representative for the association in Atlantic, Cape May and Cumberland counties. The process involved a superintendent search committee, which included board members Alejandrina Alberto, Andrea Gray and Anny Melo. District officials said other school board members were left off the search committee due to conflicts of interest.

Twenty-eight candidates applied for the superintendent position. Of those, seven were deemed qualified and three received a call back for a follow-up interview. Two town halls were held in March to solicit public input in the superintendent search.

Before the vote for the new superintendent, the board publicly interviewed candidates to replace Yadira Falcone, who resigned in May. The resignation followed allegations that Falcone did not live in the district, although she has denied those allegations and said her resignation was due to the hostile, adversarial atmosphere on the school board.

The hiring of Martinez caps a long, at times discordant process to change school leadership.

The Board of Education first voted to suspend Chestnut-Lee on Oct. 12, 2021. The tenure of Chestnut-Lee is not a significant aberration from the districts past. The district has gone through myriad superintendents over the past two decades, whose tenures are seldom longer than a couple years. In addition to the turnover in leadership, the district has been disrupted by scandal, such as in 2007, when several then current and former members of the school board were arrested in a federal corruption probe. That same year, Pleasantville Public Schools was subject to the control of state monitors. The monitors tenure lasted until fall 2021, ending days before Chestnut-Lees suspension.

Priscilla Noel, a resident often outspoken at school board meetings, exhorted the board and new superintendent to end years of strife in the district.

There is a current revolving door of superintendents that come through this district, Noel said. If youre invested, if youre interested in this district, youre going to do whats necessary to make it work.

Martinez said she appreciated the community input at the lengthy meeting, which, including executive session, lasted over three hours.

This evening has been very important to me, because Ive gotten the opportunity to listen to the voice of the community, Martinez said. To the community at large, I stand ready to listen and to learn from you about your ideas and your concerns about how we together work to improve our district on behalf of all of our students.
The state is making available up to $50,000 for each New Jersey county to fund spotted lanternfly treatment, the Governor's Office said Monday.

"This invasive species can have devastating effects, and we want to ensure that our communities access every resource available to help mitigate their spread," Gov. Phil Murphy said in a statement. "Residents can also help make a difference by stomping the lanternflies when they see them.

The grant funding comes at a time when the invasive species is in its "nymph stage," in which they're young insects, sporting a black finish with white spots.

The lanternflies will mature into red-and-black insects with white spots in their next stage, reaching their adult phase in August.

Municipalities can receive up to $15,000 through the grant funding, the Governor's Office said in a news release.

The funds are available on a first-come, first-served basis for reimbursement of eligible costs incurred for lanternfly chemical treatment activities.

This is an excellent opportunity for counties and municipalities in New Jersey to take advantage of this funding that can assist them in helping reduce the populations of this pest, state Agriculture Secretary Douglas Fisher said. The more participants we have in this program the stronger our campaign will be against this invasive menace.

A native of Asia, the spotted lanternfly was discovered in the U.S. in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, in 2014.

While not a threat to humans, the bug is known to be a nuisance to crop growers because they feast on plants. They're known to travel through "hitchhiking," latching onto moving items belonging to humans and expanding their population to other states.
WILDWOOD CREST  Members of the Wildwood Crest Planning Board want to see renovations completed at the former Ocean Holiday motel at 6501 Ocean Ave., but not as proposed.

The board unanimously rejected a variance and site plan for a proposal from Mahalo Wildwood Crest LLC to expand the building. Mayor Don Cabrera, who also serves on the Planning Board, said a major concern for board members was the impact of sight lines for other properties.

The owner of the property said Wednesday his company would look at options but has not decided on a next step.

"We were a little taken aback when we got the decision," said Eustice Mita, owner of the Icona chain of hotels. "Do we just sell it? Do we build condominiums? We're going to have to look at all of our options."

In an interview Monday after the meeting, Cabrera said the board did not want the proposal to hurt views of the beach, and added that the Crest zoning rules would have allowed the property to expand up by an additional story.

The decision at the June 7 meeting is the latest setback for Icona Resorts, which purchased the former Ocean Holiday for $5.5 million with a plan to rebrand it as Mahalo. The chain of hotels already has a Mahalo Diamond Beach, a section of Lower Township adjacent to Wildwood Crest.

That property, the former Regal Plaza, underwent a substantial renovation last year. The resorts take their name from a Hawaiian expression of gratitude.

Maholo Cape May is set to open over the weekend.

Cape municipalities taking in big checks, one meeting at a time CAPE MAY COURT HOUSE  Since being named director of the Cape May County Board of Commission

Mita said the plan was for the Wildwood Crest Mahalo to open first, but for now the property remains partially renovated. The structure was originally built in the early 1970s, Mita said.

He said in addition to the purchase price of the Wildwood Crest property, Icona has put about $3 million into plans, structural work and legal fees. He said the plans already have state approval under the Coastal Area Facility Review Act, a necessary step for proposals close to the water, usually seen as the most difficult step in the process.

"We're now about $8.5 million into this situation," Mita said.

There are also Icona locations in Cape May and Avalon.

The proposal for Wildwood Crest called for the renovation of the existing building and the construction of a five-story expansion with an additional 11 units. The application was heard over the course of two meetings.

There was intense interest in the proposal from residents, Cabrera said, with lengthy testimony presented on the proposal. Many opposed the site plan, he said, but some residents spoke in favor.

It would be up to the developer to present a new plan, Cabrera said. Now, at the start of the tourist season, the building is surrounded by a chain link construction fence, with much of the steel of the building exposed.

We would like to see it renovated as a hotel, Cabrera said. It will be up to the developer to decide the next step, he said, which could mean returning to the board with a new plan for the building.

Ocean City Planning Board to again hear 5G proposal OCEAN CITY  A controversial proposal to install cellphone antennas on the roof of a commerc

But Mita said adding another story was not a viable option, based on the original design of the building.

Mita has recently pitched high-profile, multimillion-dollar projects in Cape May and Ocean City, but neither has moved forward.

In Ocean City, he proposed a 300-room, $150 million beachfront hotel on the Boardwalk on city-owned property between Fifth and Sixth streets. Mita brought plans to City Council at a public meeting but later said the proposal was unlikely to move forward after public opposition from Mayor Jay Gillian.

He also has lobbied for his plans for another landmark hotel in Cape May, at the site of the former Beach Theatre on Beach Avenue. Mita has described the potential impact of both projects in generational terms, saying the resorts have not seen the kind of grand hotel he has envisioned in decades.

Mita has requested Cape May City Council declare the former theater an area in need of redevelopment, something council has so far made no move to do.

While Mita has cast doubt on the future of those plans in previous interviews and public statements, on Wednesday he indicated that Icona remains in talks with both Cape May and Ocean City. But he did not indicate there had been any progress in those talks.

"We don't have anything new to report on that," Mita said.
In a shocking incident reported in the Dhankawadi area of the city a minor argument started between two groups led to a major fight leading to one group using sickle to attack another group members. The incident took place on Tuesday at around 9:30 pm was captured on CCTV cameras.

The injured person has been identified as Rishi Barde. His brother, Aditya Rajendra Barde (22), a resident of Ghungarwadi Chawl, Santosh Nagar, Katraj has lodged a complaint at the Bharati Vidyapeeth Police Station in the matter.

According to reports, the complainant Aditya and his brother Rishi were sitting with their friends at a tea stall near Bharati Vidyapeeth Bank Market. Aditya made fun of Siddhesh which turned into an argument and later escalated further following which he was attacked with a sickle by Siddhesh and his brother Rishi causing serious injuries to him.

The entire incident was captured on CCTV cameras. After Aditya filed a complaint at the police station, the accused identified as Siddhesh Chorghe, Om Sawant, Aditya Gosavi, Raj Paradeshi, and Sonya Khule have been charged under sections 307, 143, 147, 148, 149, 323, 504, 505(2), Arms Act 4(25), and Maharashtra Police Act 37(1)(3) and 135. Bharati Vidyapeeth Police are conducting further investigations into the matter.
By: Anushree Bhoware

The Air India Express cabin crew fraternity is planning to go on a mass sick leave against the decision of Air India Express to implement a series of major cost-cutting measures under the accommodation policy issued on June 8, 2023.

This has sparked a dispute between the management and its employees. The crew members move will directly affect its flight operations across India, including the Pune airport.

Under the policy, the cabin crew members are being forced to share rooms during layovers, leading to concerns about privacy and well-being.

Mirror contacted airline officials who informed that the crew members have taken their grievances to the Regional Labour Commissioner, where they were given the next date of reconciliation i.e. on June 23, 2023.

The new policy of forcing cabin crew members to share rooms during layovers has caused distress among the employees. According to the airline staff members, the airline justifies this decision by claiming that it has adopted the practice from Air Asia India, with which it recently merged.

However, the cabin crew argues that Air India Express operates differently from Air Asia India and that such a policy is not applicable or necessary. The sharing of rooms not only compromises the privacy and well-being of the crew but also raises concerns about their rest and concentration levels, which can impact flight safety.

Moreover, there is a significant disparity and discrimination in the salary revision. The revised salary structure heavily favours new recruits, providing them with higher increments as compared to more experienced crew members. This unfair treatment has created a sense of dissatisfaction and a feeling of undervaluation among the senior cabin crew members. Crew salary has reduced while the salary of CEO has increased by over 30 percent.

Besides these grievances, the management has shown a merciless approach towards a physically challenged cabin crew member. Despite the employee's dedicated service of five years, an unfortunate accident left them paralysed and confined to a wheelchair. The airline management has failed to provide suitable ground job accommodations and discontinued the employee's contract after a fixed-term period. This callous treatment has led to legal proceedings initiated by the employee.

The decisions made by Air India Express management have sparked a wave of discontent among employees, who believe that these policies are strategically designed to push out experienced staff members. The management's preferential treatment of junior crew members, their abandonment of a physically challenged employee, and their disregard for the well-being and seniority of experienced crew members have caused significant unrest within the company.

This authoritarian approach has raised concerns about the direction in which Air India Express is heading. The actions of the senior officials of the airlines and the management team are seen as contradictory to the values and ideals upheld by the Tatas, who strive to make Air India a world-class airline.

Mirror tried to contact the officials concerned from Air India Express but they were not available for comment.

As the dispute between the management and employees escalates, it remains to be seen how Air India Express will address the concerns raised by its workforce. The future of the airlines reputation and its ability to provide exceptional service to passengers may depend on its willingness to reconsider these controversial cost-cutting measures and prioritise the well-being and satisfaction of both employees and customers.
The Maharashtra State Government cabinet has given approval for four additional family courts in Pune in addition to the five operational family courts.

Taking into consideration the inclusion of the 34 new villages in the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) limits the number of cases has surged to 2,520 annually with 9,065 cases still pending to be heard.

Fifty-four additional posts will be created for the operation of these new court in Pune.
The state government has signed an agreement with various agencies to generate electricity using Solar and Wind in the state. Under this agreement a Solar Power Plant worth Rs 518 Crore will be set up in the Pune district.

An official announcement in this regard was made by the Deputy Chief Minister on Wednesday. According to an official statement issued by the ministry, the project will be set up in the Maharashtra Energy Development Agency (MEDA) also known as Mahaurjas land in Chalkewadi in Pune.

The government has signed agreements with various agencies on Wednesday to produce around 5,220 Megawatt electricity using solar, wind and new technologies in the state.

A total of around 41,000 Crore will be invested for the project which will generate an employment of around 6,760 people across the state, said Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis in an official statement.
Bettendorf Police on Tuesday arrested a 46-year-old Clinton man on suspicion of sexually abusing, prostituting and extorting underage girls in Bettendorf and Davenport.

Daniel Craig Jones is charged with three counts of second-degree sexual abuse and four counts of distributing illicit drugs to minors, beginning in June of 2022 while he was on parole from the Iowa Department of corrections. Each charge is a Class B felony under Iowa law that carries a prison sentence of 25 years.

Jones also is charged with:

One count of pandering of a minor for prostitution, a Class C felony that carries a prison sentence of 10 years.

Two counts of extortion, three counts of prostitution, one count of enticing a minor for sexual purposes and possession of a firearm by a felon. Each of those charges is a Class D felony under Iowa law that carries a prison sentence of five years.

According to the arrest affidavits filed by Bettendorf Police Detective Brian Hanssen, Jones sexually abused a 13-year-old girl three times between June 1, 2022, and Aug. 31, 2022. The abuse took place at a home in Davenport, another time at a residence in Bettendorf and a third time in the parking lot of a Bettendorf restaurant.

He also is accused of delivering marijuana to a 16-year-old girl in exchange for nude photos of her. He also delivered marijuana to a 13-year-old girl and a 14-year-old girl, police said.

On two occasions between Nov. 1, 2022, and Dec. 31, 2022, Jones solicited nude photos from two girls by threatening them, according to the affidavits. In each instance, he met the girls individually at Veterans Memorial Park in Bettendorf. He then displayed a black handgun and threatened the girl and her family if she did not comply, records state.

Between Dec. 1, 2022, and March 31, 2023, on three occasions, he is accused of exchanging sexual favors from a 16-year-old girl for money and drugs. He even offered money for rent, an iWatch, an iPhone and hair extensions in exchange for sexual services, according to the affidavits.

Jones also attempted to coerce a 16-year-old girl to be a prostitute. According to arrest affidavits, he showed the victim an HBO documentary on Nevada's Moonlite BunnyRanch as well as a photo of a worker he purported was making $1,000 a visit as an example of how much money the victim could make as a prostitute.

According to the arrest affidavits, during a text conversation on April 4, 2023, the two talked about the number of people she would have to sleep with to make the kind of money she wanted. He told her she was active enough and could make big money.

Jones was being held Wednesday night in the Scott County Jail on a cash-only bond of $150,000.

During a first appearance on the charges Wednesday in Scott County District Court, Magistrate Jay Sommers scheduled a preliminary hearing in the case for June 19.

Jones criminal history includes convictions for theft by passing bad checks in both Iowa and Illinois, and a federal conviction for trafficking in cocaine and marijuana.

On March 26, 2018, during a hearing in Dubuque County District Court, Jones was sentenced to five years in the Iowa Department of Corrections after pleading guilty to a charge of second-degree theft for passing a bad check at Theisens. He still owes $422.50 in that case.

April 6, 2018, during a hearing in Scott County District Court, Jones also was sentenced to five years in the Iowa Department of Corrections after pleading guilty to a charge of second-degree theft for passing a bad check at Menards. He has paid all fines and court costs in that case.

According to electronic records of the Iowa Department of Corrections, Jones was released from prison and placed on parole on Oct. 24, 2018. He was released from parole on Oct. 12, 2022.

On May 12, 2016, during a hearing in Rock Island County Circuit Court, he was sentenced to 18 months on conditional discharge after pleading guilty to passing a bad check. He still owes $1,697.50 in fines and court costs in that case.

On Dec. 8, 2004, during a hearing in U.S. District Court, Rock Island, Jones was sentenced to five years in federal prison after pleading guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute cocaine and marijuana. He also was ordered to serve five years in supervised release.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Prisons, Jones was released from federal prison on April 24, 2009.
COLOMBO, June 14 (Xinhua) -- The Sri Lankan rupee depreciated on Wednesday after months of appreciation, according to data by the Central Bank of Sri Lanka.

The buying rate of the Sri Lankan rupee depreciated to 303.19 against the U.S. dollar on Wednesday and the selling rate was 318.99 rupees, data showed.

The rupee had seen several months of appreciation against the U.S. dollar and was trading steadily at around 290 rupees per dollar in early June.

The central bank announced at the end of May that the Sri Lankan rupee demonstrated a notable appreciation of 19.8 percent against the U.S. dollar during the year up to May 26.

The Sri Lankan rupee had depreciated dramatically from 202 per dollar in March 2022 to around 360 after the government allowed the rupee to float. 
Body-worn police cameras can supply powerful evidence.

The absence of body-camera footage  because of malfunction or misuse  has another kind of power. It can rob police, prosecutors, defense attorneys and citizens of the ability to know what really happened during an incident.

Law enforcement officials from across the Quad-Cities and the top prosecutors from Scott and Rock Island counties say body cameras are crucial in efforts to protect officers, investigate cases and for keeping cops accountable to the public. A pair of cases from the Quad-Cities are examples of the importance of body-camera footage.

'A tool  for establishing the truth'

On Sept. 3, 2020, Bettendorf Police Officer Patrick Mesick shot and killed a man named Timothy Clevenger, who was holding a 3-year-old at knifepoint. The shooting at a day care was recorded by Mesick's body camera, capturing footage that showed a violent assault against a child and the split-second action by the officer to eliminate the threat.

When Clevenger arrived, he had purchased a fillet knife and machete just 15 minutes before going to the house.

Once inside, he ordered three adults and four children into the basement. He kept the little girl with him and intended to have firearms delivered to the house, police later learned.

When police first arrived, they repeatedly announced, "Police!" and "Police! Open up!"

As the door to the room where Clevenger held the child was forced open, an image came into focus on the video: Clevenger was on one knee with the child in front of his body, one arm around her neck and the knife sheath pressed to her throat.

Mesick fired one shot from the doorway. It struck Clevenger in the head, and before his body hit the floor, another officer swept in and grabbed the girl, cooing over and over, "Come on, baby. Come on, baby."

All of it was captured by the body camera, and then-Scott County Attorney Mike Walton needed little time to decide Mesick's decision to shoot was justified.

There are seven major law enforcement agencies in the Quad-Cities: The sheriff's departments of Scott and Rock Island counties, as well as police departments from Bettendorf, Davenport, East Moline, Moline and Rock Island. Over 500 officers at those agencies wear body cameras.

Mesick is one of 49 Bettendorf police officers who wear cameras on the job. All 17 of the city's patrol cars are outfitted with dash cameras.

Scott County Attorney Kelly Cunningham has been a prosecutor since 1990 and thinks body and dash cameras have advantages and disadvantages.

From her perspective, law enforcement adopted body and vehicle cameras to help deal with false reports people make against officers. The cameras were a step toward providing officers with protection against such accusations.

Cunningham says the public too often presumes allegations made against law enforcement are true, "but a lot are false."

"So we view it (camera footage) as a tool that was necessary for establishing the truth of what was actually occurring during those encounters," Cunningham said.

Cunningham pointed out one of the drawbacks of cameras: Court proceedings have become, in her words, "more complicated." In the past, trials revolved around more traditional evidence and witnesses and might take a few days. Cunningham said trials took longer today because of the need to present camera footage.

Davenport has the area's largest police force, and all 155 officers are equipped with body cameras. Every car in the fleet of 44 has a dashboard camera.

All of the equipment can generate a lot of footage.

Cunningham also pointed to the extra layer of responsibility for officials created by the need to maintain footage as evidence. Those new responsibilities also require resources.

"People want to think that it's a real positive, but quite honestly, it's creating a real strain on the criminal justice system," Cunningham said.

Cunningham doesn't think body cameras alone tell the story of police conduct. She said prosecutors still had to look at witness testimony and the accounts of police officers.

"You're going to look at all of it," Cunningham said. "So it's still the same in terms of the investigative process  the investigative process is the investigative process.

"What you see relative to the naked eye, when you're immersed within a situation, is a lot different than what you see from the narrow lens of a camera."

Missing footage can be crucial

One case in the Quad-Cities illuminates just how crucial missing body camera footage can be.

Jaylan Butler was traveling with the Eastern Illinois University men's swim team on the night of Feb. 24, 2019, when the team bus pulled over for a dinner break at the rest area southwest of the Interstate 80 bridge.

Moments later, Butler was on the ground with officers from multiple police agencies standing over him. Police from Hampton and East Moline, as well as at least two deputies from the Rock Island County Sheriff's Department, were involved in the arrest. They thought he fit the description of a Black man suspected of firing a gun at a vehicle on I-80 in Henry County, then fleeing.

Former Hampton Police Officer Ethan Bush was among six officers who took Butler to the ground. On the video from Bush's body camera, obtained by the Quad-City Times/Dispatch-Argus through a Freedom of Information request, the events leading up to the encounter at the rest area and following it were clearly visible. However, the portion containing the mistaken apprehension of Butler was missing entirely.

Butler and the driver of the bus said that officers pointed guns at Butler, threatened to "blow his (expletive) head off," and one of them used a knee to hold him on the ground. The officers denied the actions and claimed Butler "resisted arrest."

In his report from the night of Feb. 24, 2019, Bush wrote that his body camera was accidentally turned off "on multiple instances ... due to equipment, including the AR-15 sling making contact with the on/off."

In a news release, Rock Island County States Attorney Dora Villarreal said the States Attorneys Civil Division is committed to defending the Office of the Sheriff and the deputies involved in this litigation and anticipates that a thorough discovery process will develop a more complete picture of the events that occurred on Feb. 24, 2019.

The ACLU took up Butler's representation in a civil action against the officers and departments involved with the incident. The ACLU did drop its suit against two Rock Island County Sheriff's deputies and two unnamed officers. The lawsuit had accused them of false arrest, excessive detention, excessive force, battery and failure of bystander officer to interfere in an unconstitutional arrest, among other claims.

But that didn't clear all the officers. Butler was awarded separate settlements from the East Moline Police Department and from Bush.

The East Moline Police Department and Officer Travis Staes reached a settlement agreement with Butler that awarded him $50,000. A settlement also was reached with Bush, who was separated from the Hampton Police Department several months after the incident. The Hampton Police Department was not responsible for the Butler financial settlement, and the terms of the agreement were not required to be made public.

Camera footage used to review officer conduct

Body-camera footage has played important roles in a number of other cases.

Villarreal has reviewed the conduct of a number of police and correctional officers in Rock Island County who used force  including instances where police shot people, as well as two incidents in which correctional officers were accused of battering inmates at the county jail.

In all of those cases, body camera and other video footage were pivotal in deciding whether the actions of the involved officials were appropriate, Villarreal said.

The four correctional officers were fired and prosecuted for their behavior. The police officers involved in the shootings were exonerated.

Here locally, I think that almost every single body-worn camera that I have reviewed has exonerated officers, Villarreal said.

Villarreal is satisfied with the county's review process for use-of-force cases. That process includes a task force of local and state law enforcement conducting the investigation and presenting its findings to Villarreals office.

Once she has the report, its Villarreals job to make a ruling on whether an officers conduct was justified.

She says police are probably the biggest advocates for body-worn cameras because they can exonerate an officer whose conduct is questioned.

The cameras can prove good conduct as well as bad, Villarreal said.

I was a defense attorney when body cameras first started to come out here locally, and I knew that the officers were not fans of them, she said. They did not want them.

And now I don't think there's any officer here locally that will tell you that they don't think they're great."

Since the death of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police, Villarreal said, local law enforcement has been more restrained in its approach to calls.

Theyre a lot more worried that something might be perceived as wrong even though a lot of times they are jeopardizing their own safety, Villarreal said.

Villarreal did admit officers being more deliberate in their actions can also be a positive. She says as time passes more transparency and accountability will be baked into policing.

We've had very, very good experiences with body-worn cameras and been able to provide that accountability, that transparency, she said. And I continue to believe that that is extremely important, and we continue to strive to do that.

'Video is something we want for transparency'

A complete recording of the Jaylan Butler incident could have helped investigators understand what officers were seeing and thinking during their interaction with the collegiate swimmer.

Instead, the footage offered a gap during the most crucial moments of the incident.

Illinois State Police said they were looking for Frank Maquan Scott, 25, of Cedar Rapids, based on vehicle information from the shooting. While Scott was 6-foot-6 and weighed 230 pounds, Butler was 5-foot-10 and weighed 160 pounds.

The only similarity between the two is they are Black males.

East Moline Police Chief Jeff Ramsey declined to talk about the specifics of the Butler case and if it impacted policing and accountability in the East Moline department.

"I won't get into detail on this because it was a civil case and it was settled," Ramsey said.

He did say policing is as transparent as ever, and that there are state laws, policies and directives in place that the department follows to ensure that it holds its officers accountable for their actions.

"We have those processes in place, and we take them very seriously," Ramsey said.

Few agencies remain camera shy Data gathered from October 2022 to May 2023 shows of the 142 agencies that answered questions on camera availability or use, 93 said they had both body and dashboard cameras for at least one of their members and vehicles.

Data gathered from October 2022 to May 2023 shows of the 142 agencies that answered questions on camera availability or use, 93 said they had both body and dashboard cameras for at least one of their members and vehicles.

Ramsey pointed out that body cameras were implemented about 18 months ago and officers now would not leave the station without their cameras. All 37 officers on the force have body cameras, and the 20 vehicles in the fleet have dash cams.

"We want video," he said. "Video is something that we want for transparency. The officers want it because they feel that it protects them in some situations."

Cameras protect the public as well, Ramsey said, and indicated the department's policy on body cameras is governed by state law. That policy includes review of footage recorded while officers are working.

"As part of our body camera program, the supervisors are checking video randomly," Ramsey said. He added the department would not tolerate an officer violating the law or the rights of citizens.

"Those are things that, if we get a complaint, we take very seriously," Ramsey said.

Rock Island County Sheriff Darren Hart echoed much of what Ramsey said, noting body cameras have brought accountability to both sides of the interactions between law enforcement and the public.

Everybody wants body cameras, Hart said.

The Rock Island County Sheriff's Department has 65 body cameras and 60 patrol officers. All 42 vehicles in the fleet are equipped with dashboard cameras.

If he can get the funding, Hart said, he wants to expand the camera usage in the sheriffs office by giving them to the countys jail staff.

Should there be a complaint about a deputy, the sheriffs office has a process in place, overseen by its professional standards division, Hart said. That process includes gathering evidence like video and discussing the issue with the complainant.

We need to be held accountable, just like, you know, the public that we serve, Hart said.

While Illinois SAFE-T Act has provided opportunities for Illinois law enforcement agencies to get body cameras, Rock Island County and the Rock Island Police Department were equipping their deputies and officers earlier.

We were ahead of the curve, Hart said. We've (the sheriffs office) had those since 2019.

Like other agencies, Rock Island County spot-checks body camera footage, Hart said.

It's for officer safety, Hart said. It's for accountability.

Camera footage is used in court cases, Hart said. The footage also is used as a training tool for deputies.

Tim McCloud, deputy chief of the Rock Island Police Department, pointed out the force had body cameras three years before George Floyd died. The police department numbers 71 officers and the department has 101 body cameras available. All 20 patrol vehicles are outfitted with dashcams.

In addition to its uniformed officers and detectives, the department is equipping its community service section with cameras. Those employees are not sworn police officers.

The cameras have other benefits as well, McCloud said. Reviewing the footage can reveal new information  possible suspects, for example. The footage is also used as evidence in court.

That stuff can go be played back for a jury in a courtroom, McCloud said. And they can see just what an officer is seeing on scene.

McCloud said he thought the public saw the cameras as a positive.

And I also tend to think that everybody tends to act a little bit better when they know they're on camera, McCloud said.

The department has used body camera footage to address complaints, McCloud said.

They'll say one thing, and you pull it up, and you're like, well, that's, that's not accurate, McCloud said. And sometimes you have to turn it around and show them and say, Look, here's what happened. What you're saying happened didn't happen.

The Moline Police Department has 79 officers, and all are equipped with body cameras. There are dashcams for each of the 30 vehicles in its fleet.

Moline Police Chief Darren Gault called his department "a leader in the area" in the use of body cameras.

"Moline was one of the first cities in the greater region to obtain body cameras. We have had this program for nearly five years, long before the legislation pushed to make it mandatory," Gault said in a news release.

"Body cameras are a valuable tool to aid in modern law enforcement. In 2023, Moline will receive their third-generation upgrade to the body cameras, and we continue to adopt the latest technology in this space," he added.
CHICAGO  Actor John Cusack will host a screening next fall of 2000s High Fidelity at the Auditorium Theatre, followed by a talk about his career and the making of the film, as well as a Q&A session. Tickets are on sale this week.

The movie, directed by Stephen Frears, is set in Chicago. Cusack plays a man who owns a failing record store examining his failed attempts at romance. Cusack, born and raised in Evanston, also coproduced and cowrote the script based on Nick Hornbys novel, and was nominated for a Golden Globe for his performance.

A presale for tickets to the event started at 10 a.m. Wednesday, while the general sale begins at 10 a.m. Friday.

An Evening with John Cusack & Screening of High Fidelity is 7:30 p.m. Nov. 1 at Auditorium Theatre, 50 E. Ida B. Wells Dr., Chicago. More information at auditoriumtheatre.org.
When Heather Calvert walks through the Deere-Wiman House, she doesn't just see hand-carved wood and furniture, giving a glimpse into how the Deere family lived. She sees the memories of those who have attended meetings, enjoyed recitals and marveled at 19th-century Christmas decorations there.

With the announcement of a capital campaign aimed at repairing, restoring and preserving the historic home, the Butterworth Center and Deere-Wiman House executive director hopes to continue welcoming the community into a vital piece of Quad-Cities history.

"It makes me very happy to think about being able to continue on for future generations," Calvert said.

The William Butterworth Foundation, which oversees the Deere-Wiman House and Butterworth Center, announced its first capital campaign Tuesday, called "Honoring Our Heritage." Funds from the $3.2 million campaign will go toward repairs and restoration to the exterior and interior of the Deere-Wiman House, grounds, carriage house and programming and outreach.

The foundation has already raised $2.1 million, Calvert said, and she hopes to have the remainder raised by the end of the year. Fundraising began 18 months ago with staff reaching out to organizations and other donors.

A good portion of the money came from the Jeffris Family Foundation, a Wisconsin-based group that assists nonprofits with historical site development throughout the Midwest. The foundation provided a challenge grant of $330,000, tasking the William Butterworth Foundation with raising a match grant.

"I'm happy to report not only did we do that, we did it 18 months ahead of time," Calvert said. "They let us know that it's the fastest anyone's ever raised their matching funds in the history of their grants, so that's a nice record for us."

According to a news release, other donors include the Moline Foundation, John Deere Corporation, current and former John Deere executives, Butterworth Center & Deere-Wiman House board members and staff, and community members.

Calvert said they'd spent just under $200,000 of capital campaign funds so far to replace carpeting in the carriage house and work with historic preservation groups to gather information on how to approach restoration of the northern vestibule and parts of the living room.

Needs that require funding have been broken into focuses, and Calvert said the foundation has developed a five-year plan for both capital campaign and operational funds.

The first focus, of which $500,000 has been budgeted, is on fundamental needs, such as replacing systems that, if failed, could cause costly damage or impact guest safety. So far, corroded pipes and a boiler have been replaced.

The second focus will use $2.4 million to rehabilitate and restore the Deere-Wiman House interior, exterior, foundation, grounds and carriage house, as well as improve accessibility.

Restoring plaster, carpets and the north vestibule, among other projects, will use $610,000. Foundation work and mitigating water damage caused by water channeled off the driveway to the house walls will cost $570,000, and repairing exterior stucco, stone and wood trim and windows will use $415,000.

Retaining walls on the grounds, as well as placing a new roof on the playhouse and adding native plants, will use $380,000 in funds. Fixing climate controls and a lift for wheelchair accessibility will cost $260,000.

Carriage house improvements, budgeted for $165,000, will include replacing ceiling tiles and lighting and updating the bathrooms and kitchen.

Water damage is the main culprit in creating the need for repairs.

The third focus will use $250,000 to create new programs and improve existing ones, and help maintain the property.

Before the foundation began fundraising through its capital campaign, upkeep of the Deere-Wiman House was paid for by an endowment, which holds $30 million. The Deere-Wiman House came under the foundation's care in 1976, donated by Pattie Wiman.

Katherine Deere Butterworth created the William Butterworth Foundation in 1951, giving it funds and the Butterworth Center  her home  to promote the arts, education and recreation in the Quad-Cities.

Alexander Hewitt, great-great-great-grandson of John Deere, eschewed telling stories of growing up in the Deere-Wiman House to focus on all the good the spaces bring to the community. It's obvious from the programming he's witnessed in the house how vital it is to the community, he said, and it's wonderful to see his family's legacy handled in this way.

Around 25,000 people participate in programming or use the space for gatherings annually, according to the foundation.

"The homes are beautiful treasures and virtually irreplaceable, and they are wonderful asset to the community, and they bring tremendous value to the community," Hewitt said. "I think we've figured out around $400,000 in contributions per year, not direct contributions, but space that people can use."

Close Jan Marino, a volunteer at the Deere-Wiman House, decorates the historical home's fireplace Nov. 19 in Moline. The 1872 home of Charles Deere, son of John Deere, will host its annual 19th Century Christmas, Friday through Sunday, Dec. 3-5. Admittance is based on free, timed-entry tickets found online. A Victorian-style Christmas ornament is silhouetted by the window in the Deere-Wiman House while staff and volunteers decorates the historical home for the holidays Nov. 19 in Moline. The 1872 home of Charles Deere, son of John Deere, will host its annual 19th Century Christmas, Friday through Sunday, Dec. 3-5. Admittance is based on free, timed-entry tickets found online. A volunteer at the Deere-Wiman House decorates the historical home's Christmas tree Nov. 19 in Moline. The 1872 home of Charles Deere, son of John Deere, will host its annual 19th Century Christmas, Friday through Sunday, Dec. 3-5. Admittance is based on free, timed-entry tickets found online. Karin Martin, a volunteer at the Deere-Wiman House, creates a gumdrop tree for the holidays on the second floor of the historical home Nov. 19 in Moline. The 1872 home of Charles Deere, son of John Deere, will host its annual 19th Century Christmas, Friday through Sunday, Dec. 3-5. Admittance is based on free, timed-entry tickets found online. Karin Martin, a volunteer at the Deere-Wiman House, creates a gumdrop tree for the holidays on the second floor of the historical home Nov. 19 in Moline. The 1872 home of Charles Deere, son of John Deere, will host its annual 19th Century Christmas event Friday through Sunday, Dec. 3-5. Admittance is free and based on timed-entry tickets. A deer adorns the top of the Deere-Wiman House's Christmas tree Friday, Nov. 19 in Moline. The 1872 home of Charles Deere, son of John Deere, will host its annual 19th Century Christmas, Friday through Sunday, Dec. 3-5. Admittance is based on free, timed-entry tickets found online. Staff and volunteers at the Deere-Wiman House decorates the historical home for the holidays Nov. 19 in Moline. The 1872 home of Charles Deere, son of John Deere, will host its annual 19th Century Christmas, Friday through Sunday, Dec. 3-5. Admittance is based on free, timed-entry tickets found online. Staff and volunteers at the Deere-Wiman House decorates the historical home for the holidays Nov. 19 in Moline. The 1872 home of Charles Deere, son of John Deere, will host its annual 19th Century Christmas, Friday through Sunday, Dec. 3-5. Admittance is based on free, timed-entry tickets found online Jan Marino, a volunteer at the Deere-Wiman House decorates the historical home's fireplace Nov. 19 in Moline. The 1872 home of Charles Deere, son of John Deere, will host its annual 19th Century Christmas, Friday through Sunday, Dec. 3-5. Admittance is based on free, timed-entry tickets found online. Jan Marino, a volunteer at the Deere-Wiman House, decorates the historical home's fireplace Nov. 19 in Moline. The 1872 home of Charles Deere, son of John Deere, will host its annual 19th Century Christmas, Friday through Sunday, Dec. 3-5. Admittance is based on free, timed-entry tickets found online. Staff and volunteers at the Deere-Wiman House decorate the historical home for the holidays Nov. 19 in Moline. The 1872 home of Charles Deere, son of John Deere, will host its annual 19th Century Christmas, Friday through Sunday, Dec. 3-5. Admittance is based on free, timed-entry tickets found online. Karin Martin, a volunteer at the Deere-Wiman House, creates a gumdrop tree for the holidays on the second floor of the historical home Nov. 19 in Moline. The 1872 home of Charles Deere, son of John Deere, will host its annual 19th Century Christmas, Friday through Sunday, Dec. 3-5. Admittance is based on free, timed-entry tickets found online. Karin Martin, a volunteer at the Deere-Wiman House, creates a gumdrop tree for the holidays on the second floor of the historical home Nov. 19 in Moline. The 1872 home of Charles Deere, son of John Deere, will host its annual 19th Century Christmas, Friday through Sunday, Dec. 3-5. Admittance is based on free, timed-entry tickets found online. Deere-Wiman House will host its annual 19th Century Christmas, Friday through Sunday, Dec. 3-5. Guests will be able to see special artifacts that might even have been Christmas gifts among Deere family such as this 1930 Lionel childs toy oven and range. A 1933 Lionel train set will be on display at the Deere-Wiman House in Moline as part of its annual 19th Century Christmas, Friday through Sunday, Dec. 3-5. Admittance is based on free, timed-entry tickets found online. A 1933 Lionel train set will be on display at the Deere-Wiman House in Moline as part of its annual 19th Century Christmas, Friday through Sunday, Dec. 3-5. Admittance is based on free, timed-entry tickets found online. A 1933 Lionel train set will be on display at the Deere-Wiman House in Moline as part of its annual 19th Century Christmas, Friday through Sunday, Dec. 3-5. Admittance is based on free, timed-entry tickets found online. Karin Martin, a volunteer at the Deere-Wiman House, creates a gumdrop tree for the holidays on the second floor of the historical home Nov. 19 in Moline. The 1872 home of Charles Deere, son of John Deere, will host its annual 19th Century Christmas, Friday through Sunday, Dec. 3-5. Admittance is based on free, timed-entry tickets found online Staff and volunteers at the Deere-Wiman House decorate the historical home for the holidays Nov. 19 in Moline. The 1872 home of Charles Deere, son of John Deere, will host its annual 19th Century Christmas, Friday through Sunday, Dec. 3-5. Admittance is based on free, timed-entry tickets found online. Staff and volunteers at the Deere-Wiman House decorate the historical home for the holidays Nov. 19 in Moline. The 1872 home of Charles Deere, son of John Deere, will host its annual 19th Century Christmas, Friday through Sunday, Dec. 3-5. Admittance is based on free, timed-entry tickets found online. Gretchen Small, Butterworth Center director of programs and collections, helps decorate the Deere-Wiman House Christmas tree for the holidays Nov. 19 in Moline. The 1872 home of Charles Deere, son of John Deere, will host its annual 19th Century Christmas, Friday through Sunday, Dec. 3-5. Admittance is based on free, timed-entry tickets found online. Gretchen Small, Butterworth Center director of programs and collections, helps decorate the Deere-Wiman House Christmas tree for the holidays Nov. 19 in Moline. The 1872 home of Charles Deere, son of John Deere, will host its annual 19th Century Christmas, Friday through Sunday, Dec. 3-5. Admittance is based on free, timed-entry tickets found online. Gretchen Small, Butterworth Center director of programs and collections, helps decorate the Deere-Wiman House Christmas tree for the holidays Nov. 19, 2021, in Moline. The 1872 home of Charles Deere, son of John Deere, hosted its annual 19th Century Christmas, Dec. 3-5. Staff and volunteers at the Deere-Wiman House decorate the historical home for the holidays Nov. 19 in Moline. The 1872 home of Charles Deere, son of John Deere, will host its annual 19th Century Christmas, Friday through Sunday, Dec. 3-5. Admittance is based on free, timed-entry tickets found online. Staff and volunteers at the Deere-Wiman House decorate the historical home for the holidays Nov. 19 in Moline. The 1872 home of Charles Deere, son of John Deere, will host its annual 19th Century Christmas, Friday through Sunday, Dec. 3-5. Admittance is based on free, timed-entry tickets found online. Staff and volunteers at the Deere-Wiman House decorates the historical home for the holidays Nov. 19 in Moline. The 1872 home of Charles Deere, son of John Deere, will host its annual 19th Century Christmas, Friday through Sunday, Dec. 3-5. Admittance is based on free, timed-entry tickets found online. Staff and volunteers at the Deere-Wiman House in Moline decorate the historical home for the holidays Nov. 19. The 1872 home of Charles Deere, son of John Deere, will host its annual 19th Century Christmas event on Dec. 3-5. Admittance is based on free timed-entry tickets. Staff and volunteers at the Deere-Wiman House decorate the historical home for the holidays Nov. 19 in Moline. The 1872 home of Charles Deere, son of John Deere, will host its annual 19th Century Christmas event Dec. 3-5. Admittance is based on free timed-entry tickets. Staff and volunteers at the Deere-Wiman House decorates the historical home for the holidays Nov. 19 in Moline. The 1872 home of Charles Deere, son of John Deere, will host its annual 19th Century Christmas, Friday through Sunday, Dec. 3-5. Admittance is based on free, timed-entry tickets found online. Staff and volunteers at the Deere-Wiman House in Moline decorate the historical home for the holidays Nov. 19. The 1872 home of Charles Deere, son of John Deere, will host its annual 19th Century Christmas event Dec. 3-5. Admittance is based on free timed-entry tickets. 19th Century Christmas in Moline Staff and volunteers at the Deere-Wiman House decorates the historical home for the holidays Friday, Nov. 19, 2021, in Moline. The 1872 home of Charles Deere, son of John Deere, will host its annual 19th Century Christmas event on Dec 3, 4, and 5. Admittance is based on free timed-entry tickets. Jan Marino, a volunteer at the Deere-Wiman House, decorates the historical home's fireplace Nov. 19 in Moline. The 1872 home of Charles Deere, son of John Deere, will host its annual 19th Century Christmas, Friday through Sunday, Dec. 3-5. Admittance is based on free, timed-entry tickets found online. A Victorian-style Christmas ornament is silhouetted by the window in the Deere-Wiman House while staff and volunteers decorates the historical home for the holidays Nov. 19 in Moline. The 1872 home of Charles Deere, son of John Deere, will host its annual 19th Century Christmas, Friday through Sunday, Dec. 3-5. Admittance is based on free, timed-entry tickets found online. A volunteer at the Deere-Wiman House decorates the historical home's Christmas tree Nov. 19 in Moline. The 1872 home of Charles Deere, son of John Deere, will host its annual 19th Century Christmas, Friday through Sunday, Dec. 3-5. Admittance is based on free, timed-entry tickets found online. Karin Martin, a volunteer at the Deere-Wiman House, creates a gumdrop tree for the holidays on the second floor of the historical home Nov. 19 in Moline. The 1872 home of Charles Deere, son of John Deere, will host its annual 19th Century Christmas, Friday through Sunday, Dec. 3-5. Admittance is based on free, timed-entry tickets found online. Karin Martin, a volunteer at the Deere-Wiman House, creates a gumdrop tree for the holidays on the second floor of the historical home Nov. 19 in Moline. The 1872 home of Charles Deere, son of John Deere, will host its annual 19th Century Christmas event Friday through Sunday, Dec. 3-5. Admittance is free and based on timed-entry tickets. A deer adorns the top of the Deere-Wiman House's Christmas tree Friday, Nov. 19 in Moline. The 1872 home of Charles Deere, son of John Deere, will host its annual 19th Century Christmas, Friday through Sunday, Dec. 3-5. Admittance is based on free, timed-entry tickets found online. Staff and volunteers at the Deere-Wiman House decorates the historical home for the holidays Nov. 19 in Moline. The 1872 home of Charles Deere, son of John Deere, will host its annual 19th Century Christmas, Friday through Sunday, Dec. 3-5. Admittance is based on free, timed-entry tickets found online. Staff and volunteers at the Deere-Wiman House decorates the historical home for the holidays Nov. 19 in Moline. The 1872 home of Charles Deere, son of John Deere, will host its annual 19th Century Christmas, Friday through Sunday, Dec. 3-5. Admittance is based on free, timed-entry tickets found online Jan Marino, a volunteer at the Deere-Wiman House decorates the historical home's fireplace Nov. 19 in Moline. The 1872 home of Charles Deere, son of John Deere, will host its annual 19th Century Christmas, Friday through Sunday, Dec. 3-5. Admittance is based on free, timed-entry tickets found online. Jan Marino, a volunteer at the Deere-Wiman House, decorates the historical home's fireplace Nov. 19 in Moline. The 1872 home of Charles Deere, son of John Deere, will host its annual 19th Century Christmas, Friday through Sunday, Dec. 3-5. Admittance is based on free, timed-entry tickets found online. Staff and volunteers at the Deere-Wiman House decorate the historical home for the holidays Nov. 19 in Moline. The 1872 home of Charles Deere, son of John Deere, will host its annual 19th Century Christmas, Friday through Sunday, Dec. 3-5. Admittance is based on free, timed-entry tickets found online. Karin Martin, a volunteer at the Deere-Wiman House, creates a gumdrop tree for the holidays on the second floor of the historical home Nov. 19 in Moline. The 1872 home of Charles Deere, son of John Deere, will host its annual 19th Century Christmas, Friday through Sunday, Dec. 3-5. Admittance is based on free, timed-entry tickets found online. Karin Martin, a volunteer at the Deere-Wiman House, creates a gumdrop tree for the holidays on the second floor of the historical home Nov. 19 in Moline. The 1872 home of Charles Deere, son of John Deere, will host its annual 19th Century Christmas, Friday through Sunday, Dec. 3-5. Admittance is based on free, timed-entry tickets found online. Deere-Wiman House will host its annual 19th Century Christmas, Friday through Sunday, Dec. 3-5. Guests will be able to see special artifacts that might even have been Christmas gifts among Deere family such as this 1930 Lionel childs toy oven and range. A 1933 Lionel train set will be on display at the Deere-Wiman House in Moline as part of its annual 19th Century Christmas, Friday through Sunday, Dec. 3-5. Admittance is based on free, timed-entry tickets found online. A 1933 Lionel train set will be on display at the Deere-Wiman House in Moline as part of its annual 19th Century Christmas, Friday through Sunday, Dec. 3-5. Admittance is based on free, timed-entry tickets found online. A 1933 Lionel train set will be on display at the Deere-Wiman House in Moline as part of its annual 19th Century Christmas, Friday through Sunday, Dec. 3-5. Admittance is based on free, timed-entry tickets found online. Karin Martin, a volunteer at the Deere-Wiman House, creates a gumdrop tree for the holidays on the second floor of the historical home Nov. 19 in Moline. The 1872 home of Charles Deere, son of John Deere, will host its annual 19th Century Christmas, Friday through Sunday, Dec. 3-5. Admittance is based on free, timed-entry tickets found online Staff and volunteers at the Deere-Wiman House decorate the historical home for the holidays Nov. 19 in Moline. The 1872 home of Charles Deere, son of John Deere, will host its annual 19th Century Christmas, Friday through Sunday, Dec. 3-5. Admittance is based on free, timed-entry tickets found online. Staff and volunteers at the Deere-Wiman House decorate the historical home for the holidays Nov. 19 in Moline. The 1872 home of Charles Deere, son of John Deere, will host its annual 19th Century Christmas, Friday through Sunday, Dec. 3-5. Admittance is based on free, timed-entry tickets found online. Gretchen Small, Butterworth Center director of programs and collections, helps decorate the Deere-Wiman House Christmas tree for the holidays Nov. 19 in Moline. The 1872 home of Charles Deere, son of John Deere, will host its annual 19th Century Christmas, Friday through Sunday, Dec. 3-5. Admittance is based on free, timed-entry tickets found online. Gretchen Small, Butterworth Center director of programs and collections, helps decorate the Deere-Wiman House Christmas tree for the holidays Nov. 19 in Moline. The 1872 home of Charles Deere, son of John Deere, will host its annual 19th Century Christmas, Friday through Sunday, Dec. 3-5. Admittance is based on free, timed-entry tickets found online. Gretchen Small, Butterworth Center director of programs and collections, helps decorate the Deere-Wiman House Christmas tree for the holidays Nov. 19, 2021, in Moline. The 1872 home of Charles Deere, son of John Deere, hosted its annual 19th Century Christmas, Dec. 3-5. Staff and volunteers at the Deere-Wiman House decorate the historical home for the holidays Nov. 19 in Moline. The 1872 home of Charles Deere, son of John Deere, will host its annual 19th Century Christmas, Friday through Sunday, Dec. 3-5. Admittance is based on free, timed-entry tickets found online. Staff and volunteers at the Deere-Wiman House decorate the historical home for the holidays Nov. 19 in Moline. The 1872 home of Charles Deere, son of John Deere, will host its annual 19th Century Christmas, Friday through Sunday, Dec. 3-5. Admittance is based on free, timed-entry tickets found online. Staff and volunteers at the Deere-Wiman House decorates the historical home for the holidays Nov. 19 in Moline. The 1872 home of Charles Deere, son of John Deere, will host its annual 19th Century Christmas, Friday through Sunday, Dec. 3-5. Admittance is based on free, timed-entry tickets found online. Staff and volunteers at the Deere-Wiman House in Moline decorate the historical home for the holidays Nov. 19. The 1872 home of Charles Deere, son of John Deere, will host its annual 19th Century Christmas event on Dec. 3-5. Admittance is based on free timed-entry tickets. Staff and volunteers at the Deere-Wiman House decorate the historical home for the holidays Nov. 19 in Moline. The 1872 home of Charles Deere, son of John Deere, will host its annual 19th Century Christmas event Dec. 3-5. Admittance is based on free timed-entry tickets. Staff and volunteers at the Deere-Wiman House decorates the historical home for the holidays Nov. 19 in Moline. The 1872 home of Charles Deere, son of John Deere, will host its annual 19th Century Christmas, Friday through Sunday, Dec. 3-5. Admittance is based on free, timed-entry tickets found online. Staff and volunteers at the Deere-Wiman House in Moline decorate the historical home for the holidays Nov. 19. The 1872 home of Charles Deere, son of John Deere, will host its annual 19th Century Christmas event Dec. 3-5. Admittance is based on free timed-entry tickets.
Father Daniel Mirabelli, "the rock of Alleman Catholic High School in Rock Island, has stepped down after 58 years with the school, co-Principal Mike Lootens said Tuesday.

According to the Catholic Diocese of Peoria website, Mirabelli was assigned to Alleman in 1965 and has been there ever since.

He was a longtime teacher and director of development for the school, as well as its biggest booster.

Hell be 92 this September, Lootens said of Mirabelli. Its going to be hard to imagine the school moving forward without him. One of the reasons I came back was because of Father Mirabelli.

He was my teacher, he said. I graduated in 1974 and my wife 1975. Father Mirabelli married us in 1979.

Lootens said he returned to the school in 2021 to help his alma mater through tough times. He described Mirabelli as, The rock holding the place together.

Jim Meenan, who graduated from Alleman in 1973, said one couldnt think of Alleman without thinking of Mirabelli.

He is synonymous with Alleman High School, Meenan said. When people think of Alleman, they think of Father Mirabelli.

He did many good things on behalf of Alleman, and he would help other schools out when needed. They named the heritage ball after him, he said. Its now the Father Mirabelli Heritage Ball. I bet he raised a million dollars for Alleman while he was there. He definitely believed in Alleman.

Jim Harl, who graduated from Alleman in 1973 and served on Allemans board, said Mirabelli was the man people wanted to be like.

Hes a good man, Harl said. All the other accolades aside, hes a good man. Hes the one we all would want to be like. At the end of the day, it all boils down to those simple points for me. Hes lived an amazing life. Hes lived a life of giving to others and to one institution. He lived a life in service to others.

"You think about the years he devoted to Alleman with the single focus of making that school as strong as it could be for the students. It was always about the students.

Lootens added, The lord has a special place for people like him.
The city of Davenport is hiring two companies to determine the cause of the building collapse at 324 Main St.

Meanwhile, attorneys for survivors of the collapse sought an emergency halt to demolition of the building to send in their own investigators. A judge Wednesday denied the request.

Demolition began in earnest Monday by company D.W. Zinser, which the city announced Sunday evening. By Wednesday afternoon, all that stood of the building that left three people dead and dozens displaced, was the center two-story section.

In an email Wednesday, Davenport's chief strategy officer, Sarah Ott, wrote the city had hired two firms, White Birch Group, LLC, and SOCOTEC Engineering to, "conduct a cause and origin report on the partial collapse of the building at 324 Main St."

No agreement is on the City Council agenda for Wednesday. Typically, the city must advertise and collect bids from companies for work to be done, but Ott wrote the city uses its emergency purchasing authority to enter into agreements with vendors "to accelerate the otherwise time-consuming bid process."

As for when the report would be available to the public, Ott wrote it "will be released when completed and when it would have no effect on a pending law enforcement investigation."

The two firms "are highly regarded and have considerable experience in this type of investigation," Ott wrote.

SOCOTEC is an engineering and architecture firm that has offices worldwide, according to its website, including an engineering office in Chicago that was registered with the Illinois secretary of state in 2020. The company conducted a forensic engineering report in 2022 on cracking that appeared at a Minneapolis condo building, according to the Star Tribune.

Homeowners there were skeptical of SOCOTEC's conclusions that rail tunnel construction contributed only a small part to the condo's cracks.

White Birch, LLC, is a Chicago company incorporated in Illinois since 2016. The manager listed in state records is Scott Nacheman, a licensed architect in Illinois and Indiana, who helped lead an investigation into the 2011 collapse of a stage at the Indiana State Fair for engineering firm Thornton Tomasetti Inc.

His report concluded the rigging for the stage didn't meet industry safety standards, according to reporting at the time. Nacheman also is a structural specialist for Indiana Urban Search and Rescue Task Force 1, and according to his LinkedIn, has responded to commercial building failures following hurricanes, earthquakes, and the Joplin tornadoes.

"The duration of the assessment is not known at this time," Ott indicated of the new report. "The completed report will first be shared with relevant agencies and oversight authorities. When deemed appropriate, it will also be shared with the public."

Previously, the city has said Iowa's Division of Criminal Investigation has been on scene. While several civil lawsuits have been filed by attorneys representing former tenants of the building, naming owner Andrew Wold, the city, and others as defendants, no criminal charges have been filed in the collapse.
Infrastructure. Quality of Place. The Economy.

Those are the three pillars of Moline's strategic planning for the next several years. The strategic plan is based on extensive input from the community, including residents, stakeholders and business owners.

The greatest focus is infrastructure, investing in improvements on roadways, sidewalks, water and sewer, transportation, zoning codes and technology.

In the final draft of the strategic plan for 2024-2026, the pillars were broken down into projects that are already underway, along with new initiatives.

One of the projects underway for infrastructure is renovation of the Riverside Aquatic Center. It is getting $6.8 million in updates and improvements, including three water slides, a lazy river, a splash pad, new shade structures, updated concessions, nighttime lights, a shared park shelter and family restrooms.

Other projects underway focus on making a more walkable and accessible community by updating the multi-modal transportation plan, securing passenger rail service from Moline to Chicago and establishing a downtown railroad quiet zone.

A new initiative is building a fire station and expanding fire station No. 2, located near SouthPark Mall at 1526 46th Ave.

In an interview with the Quad-City Times/Dispatch-Argus, Fire Chief Steve Regenwether said the old downtown station that once contained both police and fire now has "exhausted its use." The estimated project cost is between $10 million and $15 million with demolition cost at $440,000. In November 2022, the City Council voted to set aside $1 million from the general fund to use for design.

Other new projects under the infrastructure pillar are exploring broadband alternatives to support municipal services, exploring alternate funding sources for Capital Improvement Projects, updating the comprehensive zoning ordinance and exploring partnerships for potential prairie parks.

During a special City Council meeting Monday, June 12, Mayor Sangeetha Rayapati said considerable investment is required for roads if the city intends to make even a small dent in needs.

"We're not actually gaining any ground on the quality of our road infrastructure," the mayor said. "But, if we put more money toward it, we might be able to take a crack at it."

A full breakdown of the capital improvements and costs can be found on the city's website. Funding for capital improvement projects comes from stormwater fees, water utility funding, wastewater fees, utility tax, motor fuel tax, local option sales tax, American Rescue Plan Act dollars and grant funds.

Goals for improving Quality of Place include neighborhood enhancements, parks, art and culture, professional public safety and holistic health awareness.

Most initiatives are underway that include expanding the code enforcement monitoring program; developing a landlord certification program; updating the ordinance for code enforcement; launching a public art and placemaking program; expanding the library multi-cultural program; implementing ARPA fund allocation plan; launching a library mobile outreach program; attaining Illinois Accreditation for the fire department; enhancing resident health wellness check programs; and expanding center for youth and family solutions partnership.

A new initiative is establishing a comprehensive housing program. Moline is in need of additional housing, and the city has been looking at options, including more affordable housing. More than 1,000 people were on the wait list at the Moline Housing Authority in late January.

The Housing Authority manages about 500 units and broke ground in November on an additional affordable apartment complex at 41st Street and 12th Avenue.

The former J.C. Penney building at 1701 5th Ave. was donated to Renew Moline. The two-story, 35,000-plus-square-foot building most recently was occupied by Riverstone Group, which made the donation. The building is likely to become a residential space with a mix of retail.

Most initiatives under the Economy pillar are underway. Two new initiatives are establishing an overall economic development policy and establishing an environmental strategy.

The city is reviewing Tax Increment Finance District opportunities, or TIF, evaluating downtown programs and implementing a program to help small businesses.

Moline has been looking at establishing an Illinois 92 TIF with proposed boundaries that include East End Park, a portion of 48th Street and 49th Street along 4th Avenue, 4th Avenue from 49th Street to 55th Street. It also includes a portion of River Drive and Old River Drive. It had a first reading during the council meeting on Tuesday, June 6.

The city also started the Business Owner Occupied Stabilization Transformation Program, or BOOST, a forgivable loan program that will provide financial assistance to Moline-based businesses that qualify. It will utilize about $1.1 million in restrictive American Rescue Plan Act dollars. The goal is to revitalize empty storefronts while encouraging local business growth.

Also underway is exploration of redevelopment opportunities, adopting a masterplan for the Interstate 74 redevelopment area, annexation south of the Rock River, developing an overall communications plan and developing a riverfront development rebranding strategy.
Moline police and fire departments are urging residents to let the professionals handle the fireworks this summer  especially as the July Fourth holiday approaches.

Most home fireworks are illegal in Illinois. The Illinois Pyrotechnic Use Act makes the possession, transportation, or use of illegal fireworks a Class A misdemeanor punishable by fines up to $2,500 or a year in prison.

Illegal fireworks include skyrockets, bottle rockets, Roman candles, M-100s, M-80s, cherry bombs, firecrackers and helicopters. The use of these types of fireworks without a permit is illegal.

In Moline, the only allowable home fireworks are sparklers, snakes, smoke bombs and snaps.

"Not only is their use illegal, they are also a fire hazard, frighten pets, and can trigger citizens suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder," Fire Chief Steve Regenwether said in a news release.

Police Chief Darren Gault said the police department received more than 100 complaints about firework every year around July 4.

"We understand everyone wants to have fun, but there are dozens of organized fireworks displays free of charge and fun for everyone," Gault said.

Fourth of July falls on a Tuesday this year. Red, White, and Boom will take place at 9:30 p.m. Monday, July 3 with viewing areas along the riverfront of downtown Davenport and Rock Island.

East Moline will have fireworks on the Riverfront at River Bend Park on Monday, July 3, and will begin at dusk.

Bettendorf's fireworks are on July 4 at Middle Park. Rain date for fireworks will be Saturday, July 8.

Photos: Red, White and Boom brings many people to Davenport riverfront (July 3, 2022)
A May 30, 2021, ransomware attack on JBS, one of the worlds largest meat companies, disrupted the companys operations internationally and ended when the company paid an $11 million ransom to Russian hacker group REvil.

While food production companies are potentially lucrative targets for cyberattacks, JBS was poorly protected against them compared to similar companies, according to cybersecurity experts.

The food and agriculture industry is designated as a Critical Infrastructure Sector by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, meaning its incapacitation or destruction would have a debilitating effect on security, national economic security, national public health or safety.

The whole industry is vulnerable to attacks like the one on JBS  and they happen quietly and often, according to John Hoffman, senior research fellow at the Food Protection and Defense Institute at the University of Minnesota.

In the aftermath of the JBS ransomware attack, a representative of cybersecurity risk management firm BitSight told national security officials that JBS had many many issues with its computer system.

Overall rating was poor and outside the typical range for Food Production companies, wrote BitSight Vice President Jake Olcott in a June 2, 2021, email to Jeffrey Greene, who served as the National Security Council chief of cyber response and policy at the time.

The emails obtained by Investigate Midwest via a public records request shed light on the federal governments and private industrys response to the JBS attack.

Weve observed a massive number of malware infections on JBS over the last year (including Conficker), Olcott wrote in the email. JBS has been extremely slow to remediate these issues.

Conficker is a persistent malware that infects Windows operating systems.

Greene forwarded Olcotts report to Eric Goldstein, executive assistant director for cybersecurity for the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, or CISA, a division of the DHS.

DHS, CISA and JBS did not respond to multiple requests for comment over the course of several weeks.

Food companies especially vulnerable to attacks

In 2021, months after the JBS ransomware incident, the FBI issued a notice to food and agriculture companies warning of increased cyberattacks on the sector.

Cyber criminal threat actors exploit network vulnerabilities to exfiltrate data and encrypt systems in a sector that is increasingly reliant on smart technologies, industrial control systems, and internet-based automation systems, the FBI warning states.

Industrial control systems  the internet-connected devices like sensors and switches inside a plant  have many vulnerabilities, according to a 2019 report by the Food Protection and Defense Institute.

Any of the devices connected to a companys network, ranging from temperature sensors to security cameras, represent a potential entry point into the network, Hoffman said.

Those devices often arent as up-to-date as other computers within the company, he said.

Many industrial control systems in the food industry were designed before cybersecurity was a major concern, according to the 2019 FPDI report.

Those devices in their operational technology are still running on computers or operating those old operating systems, Hoffman said. That creates vulnerability.

Experts shed light on details of cyberattack

The more devices a company uses, the larger the attack surface for potential security compromises.

Ryan Sherstobitoff, senior vice president for threat research and intelligence at SecurityScorecard, a cybersecurity ratings company, said the attack surface can be compared to a house. Companies like SecurityScorecard observe the house from the sidewalk, noting any potential security issues, like open windows or broken locks, as well as safety precautions, like security cameras.

Using information gathered from their observations, cybersecurity firms compile reports on the cybersecurity risk of various companies.

Analyzing JBSs attack surface is how BitSight became aware of the poor security rating at JBS, Olcott, its vice president, told Investigate Midwest

We are continuously and non-intrusively collecting security performance information around the globe, Olcott said. We also create views of organizations presence on the internet.

BitSight and other cybersecurity companies like SecurityScorecard sell this information, as well as risk management services, to companies who want to improve their security.

SecurityScorecard contacted CISA in the days after the JBS ransomware attack to provide a pre-publication report detailing how the attack occurred. SecurityScorecard found that the JBS attack began months before the ransomware activated.

Cybersecurity companies frequently share information with law enforcement and government agencies, Sherstobitoff said.

Private sector companies have a unique vantage point into the threat landscape, Sherstobitoff said. We often share not only with the FBI but also CISA a pre-read report of the indicators so that they can enrich their own systems and help respond to those that might be victimized by the same group in the same industry.

SecurityScorecards June 4, 2021, report was redacted in the emails provided to Investigate Midwest, but a public blog post by Sherstobitoff describes how the attack progressed.

SecurityScorecard found that in February 2021, a security breach occurred, resulting in the leaking of several JBS employee credentials to the dark web, Internet networks only accessible with specialized software, which allow users to stay anonymous.

Hackers often breach large websites and social media platforms to take login information, Shertobitoff said. The JBS employee credentials likely leaked because employees used their work credentials as their login information for another site.

Then, in March 2021, hackers broke into JBSs computer systems and began extricating data.

When attackers extricate data, the hackers can threaten to publish the data online as leverage to demand higher ransom.

What is remarkable about this attack is how unremarkable it was in both execution and occurrence; it illustrates just how common ransomware attacks have become, Sherstobitoff wrote in the blog post.

Information on cyberattacks in the food industry hard to come by

Its hard for researchers and government agencies to quantify how frequently ransomware attacks occur because companies dont like to share attacks publicly, Hoffman said. A public attack could have a negative impact on consumer acceptance of products or a companys market price.

If youre a company, youre not going to want to acknowledge it, Hoffman said. But the fact is, were having attacks across the food sector every day and theyre not being reported.

The 2021 FBI private industry notification said the average ransom demand doubled from 2019 to 2020. In 2020, the highest ransom payout observed by the FBI was $23 million.

The increase in attacks and demands also has raised the cost of cybersecurity insurance, Hoffman said. A 2021 Government Accountability Office report found that more companies are purchasing cyber insurance, and that a majority of insurance brokers reported 10%-30% increases in premiums in the last quarter of 2020.

Reporting cybersecurity incidents to the government is currently voluntary, but it could be required for critical industries like food production, energy and emergency services under a law passed last year.

In March 2022, President Joe Biden signed the Cyber Incident Reporting for Critical Infrastructure Act into law. The act directs CISA to begin a rulemaking process to gather information on cyberattacks in critical industries, including food and agriculture. The rule should be finalized by the end of 2025, according to the statute.

The act also requires that the agency publish quarterly reports with aggregate, anonymized data on the cyber incident reports.

Government response to JBS attack was inefficient, according to internal emails

The Department of Homeland Securitys National Operations Center is the primary, national-level hub for situational awareness when it comes to national security and information sharing.

But leaders at the National Operations Center learned about the cyberattack on JBS when they got a call from the White House Situation Room (WHSR), according to emails obtained by Investigate Midwest.

We had notification from CISA Central at 1529 ET, but we did not discuss it with the WHSR until 1950 ET, on the day of the attack, wrote Dan DeBree, then-acting operations officer at the DHS office of operations coordination on June 2, 2021. Additionally, that was because the WHSR called us, not the other way around.

In 2022, Congress established a Joint Ransomware Task Force in the wake of high-profile cyber attacks like those on JBS and the Colonial Pipeline. The task force is a collaboration between the FBI and DHS meant to reduce the prevalence and impact of ransomware attacks.

CISA also established the Joint Cyber Defense Collaborative last year, a public-private collaboration intended to share information about cyber threats. Participants include the federal agencies involved in cyber issues like the National Security Agency and FBI; international cyber defense organizations; and information sharing and analysis centers, which facilitate information sharing about potential cyber threats and best security practices among companies.

The main barrier to cybersecurity improvement in the food industry is cost, Hoffman said.

If youre a board member, and youre presented with a big six or seven digit number to make a change in the security posture of your IT and OT systems, there better be a (return on investment) that you can relate to if youre going to approve it, Hoffman said.

See DHS emails related to the JBS cyberattack here.

Investigate Midwest is an independent, nonprofit newsroom.

The status of new cybersecurity laws proposed in Iowa The status of new cybersecurity laws proposed in Iowa
Less than a month after being introduced in the U.S. House, South Dakota Representative Dusty Johnson's legislation to protect the land around the Wounded Knee Massacre site has passed out of the House Natural Resources Committee with unanimous approval.

"Getting unanimous passage out of committee shows that the tribes and our office have worked together to do our homework to lay the groundwork, and that people understand the need for this legislation," Johnson told the Journal Tuesday. "I think that means that the likelihood of us getting some time on the floor for a House vote is high, and we're going to keep working until we get this thing across the finish line."

On December 29, 1890, the U.S. Army 7th Cavalry surrounded a group of Lakota as they camped near Wounded Knee Creek on the modern-day Pine Ridge Reservation. The Cavalry demanded the Lakota surrender their weapons. A struggle ensued, and a shot was fired; it's unclear from which side. The 7th Cavalry opened fire, massacring around 350 Lakota  mostly women and children.

The Wounded Knee Massacre Memorial and Sacred Site Act (H.R. 3371) provides greater tribal sovereignty to the Oglala and Cheyenne River Sioux Tribes, allowing them to own the land outright and still keep it protected from taxation. H.R. 3371 gives the Department of the Interior one year to take all action necessary to move the land into this restricted fee status. The two tribes signed a covenant in October 2022, agreeing to hold the 40 acres as a memorial and prohibiting commercial development. OST and CRST purchased the land, which had been previously privately owned, in September 2022.

Moving the land into a restricted fee status prevents other governments from interfering in the tribal management of those lands. The land would remain held by the two tribes and couldn't be sold without the consent of Congress and both tribes.

Committee Chairman Bruce Westerman (R-AR) called the legislation "an important step" in honoring the memory and ensuring future generations do not forget. He said commemorating lives lost was a "somber yet important duty." Indian Affairs Assistant Secretary Brian Newland said their department supports H.R. 3371, as it aligns with the administration's commitment to restore tribal homelands.

Johnson has been working with the tribes for the past six months, hammering out the details of the legislation and "working...to right the wrongs of history."

Johnson said he's been able to educate his colleagues on the importance of Wounded Knee, something he believes South Dakotans are more familiar with than those raised elsewhere.

"Members of Congress on both sides of the aisle really understand how important it is to get this right. This is the greatest country in the history of the world. We've made some mistakes, and part of our journey of getting to a quote 'more perfect union' is that we acknowledge those mistakes and we try to do right by it," he said. "They understand why we would want to protect this hallowed ground, much in the same way that Arlington National Cemetery and other sacred places are protected. You're gonna see the overwhelming number of my colleagues on both sides of the aisle be strongly supportive."

Oglala Sioux Tribe President Frank Star Comes Out and Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe Chairman Ryman LeBeau were in Washington alongside Johnson and remarked before the House Natural Resources Indian and Insular Affairs Subcommittee on June 7. Star Comes Out, a descendant of massacre victim Chief Big Foot, reiterated the need for respecting treaty rights of the Oceti Sakowin, or Seven Council Fires.

"In the Treaty of 1868, the United States promised that our land would be 'set apart for the absolute and undisturbed use and occupation' of our Oceti Sakowin as a 'permanent home.' The United States also promised in the treaty that war shall 'forever cease,'" he said. "The United States broke the treaty by invading our treaty lands and waging war against our people. In 1877, the United States stole the Black Hills and other lands from our people. Then, in 1889, the United States divided the Oceti Sakowin into separate tribes at separate reservations. Despite this, the tribes of the Oceti Sakowin continue to unite on matters of national concern. Our recovery of land at Wounded Knee is the latest example of our efforts to protect our rights and sacred lands."

Star Comes Out acknowledged the U.S. government's recognition of the tragedy and historical significance of the massacre in 1990, calling it an important step in the healing process and saying H.R. 3371 is another important step in that process. He thanked Rep. Johnson for introducing the bill  an "important step forward in our nation-to-nation relationship."

Johnson thanked former Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe Chairman Harold Frazier and former Oglala Sioux Tribe President Kevin Killer for their work in solidifying the tribal covenant and helping shepherd the legislation.

The legislation will now move to the House floor.
SANAA, June 14 (Xinhua) -- The Houthi group in Yemen on Wednesday accused the Saudi border guards of shooting and wounding two Yemeni citizens at the border.

According to Houthi-run al-Masirah TV, the incident happened earlier Wednesday in the border district of Shada in Yemen's northwestern province of Saada.

The injured were transported to a hospital in adjacent Razih district for medical treatment, the Houthi TV added.

There were no comments yet from the Saudi government on the alleged incident.

Located in northwestern Yemen, Saada Province shares borders with Saudi Arabia to the north and northwest. It is the most populous province in Yemen and serves as a stronghold of the Houthi group.

The northern border areas of Yemen have become notorious for smuggling activities and illegal migration of Yemenis and Africans who are in search of better opportunities.

Yemen has been embroiled in a devastating civil war since 2014 due to prolonged rivalry between the Houthis and the internationally recognized Yemeni government. In 2015, the Saudi-led coalition intervened in the conflict to support the Yemeni government. 
A 39-year-old Rapid City man pleaded not guilty Tuesday to allegations he sexually abused two young children.

In an April 26 indictment, a Pennington County grand jury charged Jonathan Roth with first-degree rape and two counts of sexual contact with a child under sixteen.

Before indicting Roth, the grand jury heard testimony from a deputy, one of the alleged victims, and a forensic interviewer who interviews children who are potential victims or witnesses of crimes.

The time frame of the alleged abuse is listed between Jan. 1, 2017 and Dec. 2, 2021.

The indictment states the first alleged victim  born in 2015  suffered the rape and sexual contact. The second alleged victim  born in 2020  suffered sexual contact from Roth.

South Dakota law defines first-degree rape as sexual penetration with a child under 13. A class C felony, it is the most severe form of rape in the state and carries the possibility of life in prison and up to a $50,000 fine.

Sexual contact with a child under 16 carries a mandatory minimum of 10 years in prison, a maximum of 15 years and up to a $30,000 fine.

Roth posted a $7,000 cash bond on May 4, according to court records. The Pennington County Sheriff's Office served a no contact order to Roth on May 5 ordering him to not have any contact with the children or their mother.
Amber Hulse of Hot Springs was crowned Miss South Dakota USA 2023 and Lindsey Pfingston of Rapid City was crowned Miss South Dakota Teen USA 2023 on Sunday. The pageants were held in Watertown.

The annual competition consists of evening gown, swimwear/active wear and interview segments. Young women must be between the ages of 14 and 27 and residents of South Dakota to be eligible to compete.

Hulse and Pfingston will each receive thousands of dollars in prizes and awards. Hulse will compete for the title of Miss USA; the pageant will be broadcast live on national television. Miss USA will go on to represent the United States in the Miss Universe competition, which is televised in more than 130 countries worldwide. Pfingston will compete for the title of Miss Teen USA at the national pageant later this year.

I am beyond grateful to be standing here today as your new Miss South Dakota USA. It is an absolute honor to represent this beautiful state and its people, Hulse said in a statement on Sunday. To all the young girls in South Dakota, I want to say that anything is possible if you believe in yourself and work hard. I hope to inspire and empower you all to chase your dreams, no matter how big they may seem.

I am excited for the year ahead and cannot wait to see what opportunities and challenges come my way. I promise to represent South Dakota with grace, dignity and pride, she said.

The Miss Universe Organization uses its global grassroots reach to empower women to be self-confident and strive to be their personal best. The Miss Universe Organization believes that every woman should be Confidently Beautiful. The Miss Universe, Miss USA and Miss Teen USA pageants provide an international platform through dedicated partnerships with charities, sponsors and brands around the world. During their reign, winners are given the tools to personally and professionally enrich others by providing humanitarian efforts to affect positive change, all while developing their personal career goals.
The highly anticipated salmonfly and golden stone hatches are either about to start, just starting or in full swing through stretches of several western Montana rivers.

While the excitement builds as you load your box with Cat Pukes, Water Walkers, etc., remember that as humans, we cannot force a hatch to adapt to our specific schedule.

I feel like I need this reminder every year, and last weekend was no different.

I arrived at a stretch of Rock Creek near Philipsburg loaded up with a fresh batch of big, ugly dry flies. I even brought along 3x and 2x leaders  knowing that my adrenaline too often gets the best of me seeing such epic takes  since my overly aggressive hook sets sometimes snap the usual 4x.

After setting up shop at a spot downstream from the parking area where I usually start my day, I immediately spotted a salmonfly. My heart was pumping. Here we go, I thought.

My casts were getting more accurate with each drift. I was hitting exact spots on each bubble trail I was aiming for. My flies landed just below overhanging trees, ready for the taking. However, about an hour elapsed before I noticed something.

I hadnt seen a salmonfly since I arrived, and that bug wasnt even that close to the water.

Like a bored, anxious dog who stares intently at their human companion trying to will something to happen, or a degenerate gambler on tilt who keeps doubling down with no strategy or edge, I kept spamming the water with various salmonfly patterns for another two hours  apparently having convinced myself I could induce this hatch with sheer determination.

After a lunch break I was able to gather myself and regain the use of my brain along with some common sense. Not only were there no salmonflies on the water, there werent any bugs at all landing on the water, and I hadnt seen a single fish rise (although when you read the report below youll note the hatch did, in fact, arrive a few days later).

I swallowed my pride, tied on a Pats Rubberlegs, reeled in a few cutthroat trout after lunch and called it a day.

The big bugs are out, but they cannot be everywhere at once. It also occurred to me that I could have driven a few miles downstream and likely found more bugs and active fish chasing them. There are quite a few fishing access sites in Montana, as it turns out.

Oh, well. Live and learn. Or, more like: Live, learn, forget, remember, repeat and then maybe one day, some information is retained.

Top picks

Holter Reservoir  The walleye bite in the Canyon near the Gates of the Mountains has really tuned on and most are being caught while vertical jigging with various hair jigs or Mister Twisters tipped with leeches or crawlers. Rainbow fishing continues to be great from shore and boat at the Gates of the Mountains while using egg patterns, black and red leech patterns, Power Bait, night crawlers, spawn sacks or various spinners. Good numbers of perch are being found while pitching small green jigs tipped with crawlers between the Oxbow Bend and Log Gulch. Good number of rainbows are also being found on the lower end of the reservoir while trolling orange or yellow crankbaits, Thomas lures, Crocodiles or cowbells with wedding rings.  FWP, Helena

Rock Creek  Salmonflies are out all the way up past Ghillies. We are also seeing Goldens, Sallies, green drakes and caddis as well. Fishing is good and the fish are looking up. Flies to have right now are Rogue Stones, Fluttering Stones, Sofa Pillows, Orange Stimis, Water Walkers, Jakes Blackout Stones, Henrys Fork Goldens, X-Caddis, P-Hazes, Carnage Drakes and similar patterns. Put a dropper on if they arent coming up, but most afternoons the dry fly action is outstanding.  Grizzly Hackle Fly Shop, Missoula

Western Montana

Ashley Lake  The kokanee bite is on at most lakes in northwestern Montana where youd expect to find them. Jigging and trolling have both been productive. The same gear used for ice fishing is still effective, like Swedish Pimples or Hali jigs tipped with maggots or corn should do the trick. Jigging is especially good in the early morning hours. Trolling small Dodgers, flashers, Golds and Watermelons with a spinner or spoon tipped with bait trailing behind has also taken plenty of fish.  Chancey and Daves Fish Camp, Evergreen.

Big Hole River  Salmonflies are out! Throw the big bug close to the bank and twitch if needed. Golden stones are also out so a combination of the two is great. If top water slows try big Pats Rubberlegs and San Juan worms under an indicator. Bright streamers like white Dungeons and Jig Sparkle Yummies are going to get the fish chasing too.  The StoneFly, Butte

Bitterroot Lake  Kokanee are on the chew. See report for Ashley Lake for the best angling methods. The same has been true for Dickie and Lake Mary Ronan.  Chancey and Daves Fish Camp, Evergreen.

Bitterroot River  Water has dropped into fishable shape. The river is still big, but nymphing has been reliable and there are a few salmonflies way up on the forks. Carry some big bugs if youre making the drive up. Some area favorites are Henrys Forks, Rogues, Fluttering Salmonflies and Chubbies. The main river is nymphing well with stonefly nymphs and worms. Look for drop-offs and side channels to hold fish. Streamer fishing is a great option with dark streamers when there is cloud cover. Be careful out there, as there are a lot of downed trees and blockages in the Bitterroot.  Grizzly Hackle Fly Shop, Missoula

Blackfoot River  The Blackfoot is big, but fishing. Salmonflies are just around the corner. Anglers should see them soon if not already. If you go youll want to use big stonefly nymphs and San Juan worms. Fish the inside bends and slow drop-offs. Dead drifting Zonkers, Zirdles, Squirdles, Yuk Bugs and Sparkle Minnows can get you some big fish this time of year.  Grizzly Hackle Fly Shop, Missoula

Canyon Ferry Reservoir  The walleye bite has started to take off with the best action happening around the Goose Bay/Snaggy Bay area, between Pond 1 and the Silos and out from Hole in the Wall. Dragging bottom bouncers with pink or green spinner blades and worms or leeches in 15 to 20 feet of water has been the way to go. Crankbaits and jigs in pink or green are catching walleye as well. A few rainbows and perch are also being caught while anglers are targeting walleye. Shore fishing is slow. Bowfishing for carp continues to be good.  FWP, Helena

Clark Fork River, Missoula  As of last week, the Clark Fork was still blown out but expected to be fishable soon.  Grizzly Hackle Fly Shop, Missoula

Flathead Lake (North)  Fishing for lake trout around the delta has been pretty good. As of last week, anglers were still having success higher in the water column trolling Planer Boards and Rapala Scatter Raps in the perch or gold patterns. As temperatures warm up, itll be time to break out the downriggers and look for fish in around 60 to 80 feet of water. Trolling a Flat Fish around Woods Bay Point is often a good bet. You can also try trolling around West Shore State Park to the Painted Rocks in 80 to 120 feet with flashers and a perch-pattern Brads Super Bait. For whatever reason, putting some maple sausage inside of a Super Bait seems to attract a few extra fish.  Chancey and Daves Fish Camp, Evergreen.

Flathead Lake (South)  There have been reports of some good smallmouth bass action in addition to some perch being caught around Polson Bay. There have been rumors of a few whitefish picked up, but that bite typically picks up in late June around Big Arm and Elmo.  Chancey and Daves Fish Camp, Evergreen.

Flathead River sloughs  This has been the spot for pike. With the warmer temps, get out during the early morning hours and try casting big jerkbaits, large spinnerbaits and swimbaits along deeper weed edges.  Chancey and Daves Fish Camp, Evergreen.

Gallatin River  The Gallatin is high and muddy but starting to come down a little bit. Big stoneflies and worms will pick up a couple of fish. It might be worth checking out some local ponds in Bozeman or fishing Hyalite reservoir until things clear up on the river.  Montana Troutfitters, Bozeman

Georgetown Lake  Damselflies will be upon us before we know it, but the subsurface game is the way to go right now. Balanced leeches, stillwater nymphs and damsel nymphs are perfect to strip or put below an indicator. Fishing can be tough when the water is glass, but stick around for a little chop and the action starts.  The StoneFly, Butte.

Hauser Reservoir  The walleye bite on Lake Helena has been great while trolling perch-colored crankbaits and bottom bouncers with orange, white or green walleye spinners. A few walleye are being caught while pitching small jigs tipped with leeches around Eldorado Bar. A few rainbows are being caught from shore at Riverside, York Bridge and Black Sandy while using Power Bait or night crawlers and while trolling orange, yellow or brown crankbaits or cowbells with a wedding ring between Black Sandy and the Powerlines.  FWP, Helena

Madison River, Lower  The Lower Madison has been good on some days and OK on others. The flows have calmed down a bit and are down to about 3,100. We've noticed that when the dam increases its flows, the fishing gets a lot tougher. So, its probably best to go when the flows have been consistent for a bit, or when they dropped flows. Nymphing crayfish, stones, worms or caddis pupa has been productive. The Mother's Day caddis have been slowing down a bit, but there are still some caddis around and the fish have been on them. Fish have also shown interest in Drakes, Yellow Sally's, Skwala's and Baetis.  Montana Troutfitters, Bozeman

Madison River, Upper  This stretch is finally starting to clear up a little bit. Fishing has been great with nymphs and streamers doing most the damage, but if water clarity is OK in the morning the trout might still come up and eat some dry flies. With runoff, the fish push really close to the bank as the water they normally sit in is moving way too fast. So try to fish shallower pockets of water and tight to the bank. A lot of the bigger fish spotted have been within 3 feet of the bank. Streamer fishing  with dark-color patterns like the olive, brown, and black Sex Dungeons, Boogie Men and sparkle minnows  has been getting lots of action recently, especially when there is cloud cover. That being said, yellow can be excellent in the mud too, especially if it's nice and sunny.  Montana Troutfitters, Bozeman

Missouri River, below Holter  Tuesday night, the flows were at 11,700 CFS and Wednesday fell by 2,300 CFS. There is no word yet on more adjustments in the near future, but its important to stay up to date on flows. The dam operators told Headhunters a couple months ago that flows would be around 5,000 to 10,000 through the third week of June unless there is a rain event, the shop reported. The water is clear. There is some color below the Dearborn, but not enough to deter experienced anglers who know the river. PMDs have been making a showing daily. Cripples with a good drift will be key for the next week. Caddis have been around as well, and fish have been looking for dry caddis patterns. Dry fly anglers should search for lower water along with soft spots. Search and you will find. Nymphing action has still been deep. The water change noted above has fish confused. Guides have been changing depth, flies and encouraging the mend during this water period. Mayfly nymphs, caddis nymphs, Zirdles and worms have been popular purchases at the shop. Keep changing until you find the lucky fly.  Headhunters Fly Shop, Craig

Swan Lake  Fishing has been good for folks targeting pike. Head to the big weed bed at the south end, tie on a hook with some dead bait and wait for a tug.  Chancey and Daves Fish Camp, Evergreen.
BY SALEEM SAMAD





The next parliament elections are around the corner, expected in January 2024. The hardline Islamist political party Jamaat-e-Islami (JeI) after 10 years of hiatus held its first rally in Dhaka, on June 10.





The three-hour-long event was held amid a huge deployment of riot police in armed gear and hundreds of armed officers in plain clothes, at the auditorium in the heart of the capital. Thousands of its members, who were unable to find space in the hall, spilt over in the compound and also occupied half of the streets. There was no law and order situation.





In a sudden move, the capital Dhaka's police chief permitted on certain conditions, which raised eyebrows of the journalists, political observers, civil society and left-leaning parties.





Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan on Sunday said that Awami League's policy regarding Jamaat-e-Islami has not "changed our position."





Several political observers argue that the threat of the United States visa policy has given extra mileage in obtaining permission. The US visa policy for Bangladesh says it would clamp down restrictions on officials, governing party leaders and the opposition in defense of democracy. This includes those responsible for voter intimidation, vote rigging, denial of free speech or freedom of assembly, and violence that seeks to undermine free and fair elections.





Moving away from tough repressive measures against the opposition, the district civil officials and police administration in holding elections of the local government or by-elections to the parliament are extra cautious in violating compliance stated by the US State Department on May 3.





Thus, the Islamist party got the desired "verbal permission" on the eve of their rally, after the police cancelled an event of a youth wing of another political party at the same venue.





The JeI rally has brought together the party leaders and members on a three-point demand which includes: elections under a caretaker government; release of their leaders and members in prison; control of the prices of essential grocery items.





JeI leaders claimed that in 14 years of Awami League era, nearly 1.5 lakh legal harassment cases are on their heads, and nearly 14,000 leaders and members are languishing in prisons, including their national ameer (chief) Dr Shafiqur Rahman, nayeb-e-ameer (vice-president) ANM Shamsul Islam and secretary general Mia Golam Porwar.





In their list of demands are to open the JeI's party offices across the country, and permission for political assembly, which they pointed out that has been guaranteed by the Constitution  the Constitution which they do not recognize.





The JeI leaders have offered dialogue with the government on developing a framework for an interim government to hold free, fair, inclusive and credible elections and also ensure a level-playing field for all political parties.





The Islamist calls JeI a political party, but a majority of the people in Bangladesh are aware of the organization's antecedent  their demonic role during the brutal war of independence.





Fearing streets violence, the police headquarters ceased permission for JeI from February 2013 after the arrests of the party's key leaders including their national ameer Matiur Rahman Nizami, secretary general Ali Ahsan Mohammad Mujahid, assistant secretary general Abdul Quader Molla and assistant secretary general ATM Azharul Islam indicted for war crimes in 1971.





In the 2008 election, Sheikh Hasina led Awami League had returned to power after a landslide victory. Her electoral promise to the nation was the trial of those responsible for war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in 1971 must face the music of justice.





Bangladesh's International (War) Crimes Tribunal awarded capital punishments to scores of JeI, other Muslim parties and Islamist leaders. The tribunal considering an elderly person gave sentences for imprisonment until death to Ghulam Azam, former JeI chief in 1971, for recruitment, aiding and abetting with the marauding Pakistan military.





The Islamic evangelist leader Delwar Hossain Sayeedi, a key figure with JeI and his Muslim militia were held responsible for the deaths and rape of hundreds of Hindu community and pro-independence compatriots in southern Bangladesh in 1971, says Barrister Tapash Kanti Baul, a prosecutor in the tribunal.





In the first year of Bangladesh's independence, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the liberation war hero passed the world's second secular Constitution after the Muslim majoritarian Turkey.





The Constitution had a blanket ban on religious political parties. The dreaded Jamaat-e-Islami party by default was struck off.





The newly born country has gone through the pains and agony of the bloody liberation war when Pakistan forces committed wanton war crimes and rape as a weapon of war. Their henchmen of the radicalized Muslim party, JeI in the name of Islam had committed genocide and extra-judicial killings of hundreds of intellectuals by a secret death squad Al Badr.





In a landmark judgement the Bangladesh High Court on August 1, 2013, deregistered the Islamist party, Jamaat-e-Islami, thereby banning it from participating in future elections.





The court found several contradictions between the principles of the JeI party's manifesto (available on their website and printed documents) with the Bangladesh Constitution.





The JeI wishes to establish an Islamic Republic [of Bangladesh] instead of a secular country for which it sacrificed in blood in 1971. The Quran & Sunnah will override the state Constitution; implement the strictest Islamic Sharia laws and protect the Hindus and other religious minorities in an Islamic country.





The petitioner of the public interest litigation for the deletion of JeI's registration with the Bangladesh Election Commission (EC) in the High Court, Maulana Ziaul Hasan, fails to understand how the EC will act JeI's plans to participate in the elections after being deregistered.





Hasan, who is also the president of Bangladesh Sommilito Islami Jote (United Islamic Alliance), a like-minded platform against political Islam and an outspoken secularist is obviously worried about the rise of Islamism.





JeI documents claim their founder was controversial Islamic leader Syed Abul A'la Maududi, founder of Jamaat-e-Islami in Pakistan. He is responsible to instigate the worst racial riots in 1953 after the partition, which killed 200 Ahmadiyya Muslims after Maududi's disciples heard his 'Fatwa' which mandates the Sunni Muslims in Pakistan to kill the heretics and infidels.





Barrister Tania Amir, a leading human rights lawyer argued in the court on behalf of the PIL against JeI registration that, "The Jamaat in principle does not recognize the powers of the Republic which belongs to the people, nor does it accept the undisputed power of the people's representatives to make laws. The party discriminates against people based on religion and, therefore, should have its registration cancelled long ago."





In December 2018, as the general election was approaching, the Bangladesh Election Commission scrapped its registration in accordance with the higher court's verdict. Thus, JeI was rocking in troubled waters, as they were not eligible to participate in the elections and the party was in jeopardy.





The JeI members hurriedly negotiated with their all-weather ally, the rightist Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) to be able to contest more than 20 seats, and they drowned.





For the last 12 years, the rhetoric of several top echelons of Awami League and senior Ministers reiterated their party's position to make a law to ban Jamaat-e-Islami which ruthlessly opposed the independence of Bangladesh in being complicit to war crimes committed by Pakistan's occupation military forces.





The policymakers did not hesitate to say that banning JeI is a matter of time. Now it seems those were empty promises.





The change of heart is understood by political analyst Sohrab Hasan. JeI has recently broken away from the BNP alliance. JeI is deemed an alternative to the government if BNP boycotts the upcoming elections, he wrote in the largest circulated newspaper Prothom Alo.





It seems that the same senior Ministers made a U-Turn on their rhetoric against JeI. As Dr Hasan Mahmud, Minister for Information and Broadcasting and also Joint General Secretary of Awami League said on Sunday that Jamaat-e-Islami was not banned. "Any political party can hold rallies. As long as it is not prohibited, they have the right to hold rallies," he explained.





While Law Minister Anisul Huq said on Sunday that Jamaat-e-Islami should "not be termed guilty until the party is convicted."





The judges have given their opinion that JeI should be banned based on sufficient evidence that came in the verdicts delivered by the war crimes tribunal.





The Saturday event has given a message that JeI is not weak and was able to brainwash thousands more youths in radical Islamic ideology.





After the war crimes tribunal indicted the key leadership of JeI, the party was demoralized but survived in a turbulent political climate.





After the tragic assassination of Sheikh Mujib in a military putsch in mid-August 1975, the regime of General Ziaur Rahman (later president) in May 1976 abrogated Clause 38 of the Constitution which bars the formation of a religious party.





Overnight the dreaded JeI resurfaced from the dead and began politicking, but of the tainted history of their engagement against the people of the country, they strategically changed its name to Islamic Democratic League.





The JeI bagged six seats in the 1979 parliament under a military dictator General Rahman. Surprisingly, the six JeI's elected in the constituencies were all bordering the India-Bangladesh.





Fortunately, the people understood and rejected the Islamist party, which could be understood from the subsequent elections. JeI on average received nearly 4 per cent vote, said political scientist Dr Imtiaz Ahmed.





In the 1991 election after the departure of another military junta of General HM Ershad, JeI was elected in 18 seats, which was crucial for Khaleda Zia to form a coalition government. Despite a clear win, Awami League had to be seated on the opposition bench in the parliament as the party failed to muster a majority to form a government.





Awami League's influential general secretary Obaidul Quader, hours after the event said the opposition BNP is behind Jamaat-e-Islami's rally to conspire against the democratic process and jeopardize the forthcoming elections.





Indeed, it's rare in the world's political history that a party which opposed the independence of a country had remained resilient and defiantly returned to politics, despite key leaders of the JeI leaders being handed down maximum punishment by the war crimes by a tribunal.









First published in India Narrative, New Delhi, India on 14 June 2023












KYIV, Ukraine (AP)  Ukrainian troops have retaken seven villages spanning 90 square kilometers (35 square miles) from Russian forces in the past week, the deputy defense minister said Monday as the early stages of Kyiv's counteroffensive notched small successes.





Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Maliar wrote on the Telegram app that the Ukrainian flag was again flying over the village of Storozhov, in the eastern Donetsk province, and that her troops had also retaken three other nearby small villages and three in neighboring Zaporizhzhia province.





The battles are tough, but our movement is there, and that is very important, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in his nightly video address." He added that rainy weather is challenging his troops, and that he's discussed with his military commanders which points of the front we need to strengthen and what actions we can take to break more Russian positions.





On Sunday, Ukrainian officials said their troops took the Donestk villages of Blahodatne, Makarivka and Neskuchne  south of the town of Velyka Novosilka. Maliar reported Monday that the Zaporizhzhia province settlements of Lobkove, Levadne and Novodrivka were also now back under Ukrainian control.





Russian officials did not confirm Ukraine's gains, which were impossible to verify and could be reversed in the to-and-fro of war. The gains amounted to only small bits of territory and underscored the difficulty of the battle ahead for Ukrainian forces, who will have to fight meter by meter to regain the roughly one-fifth of their country under Russian occupation.





Recent fighting on the western edge of the 1,000-kilometer (600-mile) front line has been complicated by a dam breach that sent floodwaters into a part of the Dnieper River separating the two sides.





Western analysts and military officials have cautioned that an effort to rid Ukraine of entrenched and powerfully armed Russian troops could take years, and the success of the Ukrainian counteroffensive is far from certain. French President Emmanuel Macron said in Paris that the Ukrainian counteroffensive began several days ago and is set to be deployed over several weeks, if not months.





Vladimir Rogov, an official with the Moscow-appointed administration of the Zaporizhzhia region at the western end of the front line, said heavy battles" were raging in the area Monday involving Russian artillery, mortars and air power.





The villages are part of an area where the Russian front lines jut out into territory held by Ukraine. While just a few kilometers (more than 1 mile) deep, the protrusion has recently become one of several epicenters of intense fighting along the front line that cuts across southern and eastern Ukraine.





Despite their small size, the capture of the villages involved an incursion into the first line of Russian defenses and could allow Ukrainian forces to try a deeper thrust into occupied areas.





Russian forces control far less Ukrainian land than they did before a blistering Ukrainian counteroffensive last year that retook the northern city of Kharkiv and southern city of Kherson, among other places.





On Saturday, Zelenskyy said counteroffensive, defensive actions are taking place without specifying whether it was the all-out counteroffensive that has long been expected after a vast infusion of Western firepower and air defense systems into Ukraine. A day earlier, Russian President Vladimir Putin asserted that the counteroffensive had started and Ukrainian forces were taking significant losses.





Ukrainian forces have focused on the Zaporizhzhia region and an area near the devastated Donetsk city of Bakhmut, among other locations.





Russian authorities have said their troops are largely holding their ground.





But Semyon Pegov, a prominent Russian military blogger who goes by the nickname WarGonzo, acknowledged Russian troops had withdrawn from Blahodatne, Neskuchne and Makarivka, and said Ukrainian forces were trying to push forward along the banks of the Mokri Yaly River on Monday.





Alexandet Kots, military correspondent for Russian daily Komsomolskaya Pravda, said Ukrainian forces were attempting to advance, despite heavy losses, toward the town of Staromlinovka, which sits on a strategic highway leading to the port city of Mariupol. Russian forces captured the city over a year ago, after Ukrainian forces held out for several months in a grueling and desperate defense.





Separately Monday, the Ukrainian Defense Ministry said least four civilians were killed and 16 others wounded by Russian shelling over the last 24 hours.





In Donetsk, Russian shelling hit nine towns and villages and left one civilian dead and two others wounded. Donetsk Gov. Pavlo Kyrylenko posted images of apartment buildings and a cultural center damaged by Russian strikes in the town of Avdiivka.





In Kharkiv, to the north, Russian forces pummeled several settlements with artillery, mortar and rocket fire, wounding at least three people, regional state administration chief Oleh Synehubov wrote on Telegram.





The reported Ukrainian advance came as authorities on both sides of the front line pressed on with rescue and relocation efforts for civilians in the Kherson region driven from their homes by flooding from the breach of the Kakhovka dam last week.





With many homes and shops submerged in polluted river water, the U.N. and other aid groups say access to fresh drinking water is crucial and that water-borne diseases pose a big risk. Thousands of people have been evacuated, though some remain.





Kherson Gov. Oleksandr Prokudin said Monday that water levels have been receding. They now average about 3 meters (nearly 10 feet) higher than normal  down from about 5 meters at the peak level last week. More than 32 towns and villages remain flooded, he said, and Russian forces have continued shelling inundated areas held by Ukraine on the river's western bank.





On Sunday, Prokudin said three people were killed when Moscows troops opened fire on a boat evacuating people from Russian-occupied areas toward Ukrainian-held ones.




By Rhea Mogul/CNN





A new mural on display in Indias new $110 million Parliament has become an unlikely target of ire among its South Asian neighbors, with Pakistan, Nepal and Bangladesh seeking an explanation from New Delhi.





The mural depicts a map of an ancient Indian civilization encompassing what is today Pakistan in the north and Bangladesh and Nepal in the east.





Speaking to reporters earlier this month, the spokesperson of Indias Ministry of External Affairs, Arindam Bagchi, said it portrays the ancient Ashoka Empire and symbolizes the idea of responsible and people-oriented governance that (King Ashoka) adopted and propagated.





But to some politicians from Indias ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), it appears to represent a vision of the future  of Akhand Bharat, an Undivided India that would merge the modern-day country with Afghanistan, Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh and Myanmar.





The resolve is clear. Akhand Bharat, tweeted Minister of Parliamentary Affairs Pralhad Joshi alongside a photograph of the map. Akhand Bharat in (the) New Parliament. It represents our powerful and self reliant India, tweeted BJP lawmaker Manoj Kotak.





To Indias neighbors, Akhand Bharat is an incendiary, neo-imperialist concept  one that has long been associated with the right-wing Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), an ideological organization that heavily influences the BJP, and which believes in Hindutva, the idea that India should become the Home of the Hindus.





Earlier this month, Pakistan said it was appalled by the statements made about the mural.





The gratuitous assertion of Akhand Bharat is a manifestation of a revisionist and expansionist mindset that seeks to subjugate the identity and culture of not only Indias neighboring countries but also its own religious minorities, said foreign office spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch.





Nepali politicians also chimed in.





If a country like India  that sees itself as an ancient and strong country, and as a model of democracy  puts Nepali territories in its map and hangs the map in parliament, it cannot be called fair, opposition leader KP Sharma Oli said, according to The Kathmandu Post.





Nepals former prime minister, Baburam Bhattarai, warned the map may stoke an unnecessary and harmful diplomatic row.





And last week, Bangladesh asked New Delhi to clarify the situation. Anger is being expressed from various quarters over the map, said Shahriar Alam, its junior minister for foreign affairs.





Answering a question about the backlash last week, Indias foreign minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar said the issue had already been clarified by India, and it was not political.





While India has dismissed their concerns, analysts say calls by BJP politicians to embrace Akhand Bharat are dangerous.





They say such appeals embolden extremist groups and are bad news for a constitutionally secular democracy, where about 80% of the 1.4 billion population is Hindu and 14% Muslim.





Many BJP leaders are increasingly making statements to placate the most hardcore elements of their party, without realizing how that might play out overseas, said Salil Tripathi, a writer based in New York.





These politicians and leaders act as if the world isnt listening. It keeps the cauldron hot, but it is a dangerous game.





Controversial ceremony





The mural was not the only thing turning heads when Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the parliament on May 28.





Similarly controversial was the ceremony itself, steeped in Hindu religious symbolism, which critics felt jarred with the supposedly secular nature of Indian government affairs. It also took place on the birthday of the late Vinayak Damodar Savarkar, the man widely considered to have developed the Hindutva ideology and one of the first proponents of Akhand Bharat.





A leader of the right-wing Hindu Mahasabha group, Savarkar is revered by Modi and the BJP, who credit him with leading India to its freedom from British colonial rule.









Indian home minister Amit Shah pictured alongside a garlanded photo of Savarkar on April 21, 2017 in Mumbai, India. - Praful Gangurde/Hindustan Times/Getty Images





But critics say it is wrong to honor his birthday, given his stance toward Muslims.





The Hindu Mahasabhas website says if it takes power, it will not hesitate to force the migration of Indias Muslims to Pakistan.





While the groups ideas are decades old, it appears more bold about them now.





In December 2021, some extremists from the group called for a genocide against Muslims to protect India.





Sushant Singh, a senior fellow with the Centre for Policy Research think tank, said groups felt emboldened to make such brazen calls for violence because they believe that they have the backing of the state.





That is because the state clearly believes in their ideology and articulates that ideology, he added.





Nervous neighbors





While the BJP does not openly describe itself as Hindu nationalist, critics say such leanings are given away by legislation that favors Hindus and the rhetoric of some of its leading figures.





One of the BJPs most controversial moves came in 2019 when it revoked the semi-autonomous status of the Muslim-majority region of Indian-administered Kashmir, bringing it under the direct control of New Delhi.





Muslim women hold placards during a demonstration after educational institutes in Karnataka denied entry to students for wearing hijabs, in Bangalore on February 7, 2022. - Manjunath Kiran/AFP/Getty Images/File





India said the move was aimed at ending separatism and terrorism it alleged was aided by Pakistan. Critics said the move was aimed at encouraging Hindus to settle there.





Skepticism over New Delhis motives was fueled by Indias Home Minister Amit Shah when he said the revocation had partially achieved the dream of Akhand Bharat  a sentiment echoed by other right-wing politicians.





We have to see the dream of Akhand Bharat in this lifetime and it has started with (this), said deputy chief minister of the state of Maharashtra, Devendra Fadnavis.





Kashmiri boys hold a banner during a protest against the revoke of controversial Article 370 by Indian government in Srinagar while curfew continues on the fifth day in Kashmir, India on August 09, 2019. - Faisal Khan/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images/File





Experts say such rhetoric has made Indias neighbors nervous.





The tragedy is that with this kind of narrative coming from India, it only enforces the Pakistan armys view that there is a threat, said Pakistani historian Ayesha Jalal.





Fahd Humayun, an assistant professor of political science at Tufts University, warned statements like these can impact the national security calculus of neighboring states.





He added: In practical terms, the worry is (these comments) build on a brand of Hindu nationalism which has clear expansionist tendencies.




Bon Secours is opening five new urgent care centers across the Richmond area, the latest expansion of health care services in the region. They will be in Midlothian, Church Hill, Regency Square, Nuckols Road and Swift Creek. The nonprofit health system already operates one urgent center care in Glen Allen near Virginia Center Commons.

Urgent cares treat low-acuity injuries and illnesses, such as minor broken bones, sore throats and stomach pains. Most are open seven days a week and are closed overnight. If patients need more serious care, staff will transfer them to hospitals.

The new locations come in response to the growing number of patients seeking care for minor illnesses and injuries, Bon Secours said. Mike Lutes, president of the health system's Richmond market, said the care will be personalized, quick and convenient.

About 34,000 Virginia residents visited an urgent care last week, according to the state health department  slightly fewer than before the pandemic began. Urgent care visits in the state spiked along with the waves of COVID-19 that infected local residents. The number of emergency room visits in the state is roughly flat compared to before the pandemic.

The Midlothian location will be the first to open, coming Monday at 14163 Midlothian Turnpike. The remaining four will come later this year, and more locations are planned for 2024.

The Church Hill location, which Bon Secours announced earlier this year, will be in the East End Medical Office Building, which opened in January adjacent to Richmond Community Hospital.

Health systems in the Richmond area are continuing to expand. Bon Secours plans to open a freestanding emergency room in Hanover County, but certain equipment for the facility needs to be approved by the state health commissioner.

HCA Healthcare wants to build a hospital in Hanover, but the state health department recommended denying its request. HCA said it wants to build a freestanding ER on the same plot if the proposed hospital is rejected.

HCA is also in the urgent care business. Last year, it purchased 12 BetterMed locations in Virginia and North Carolina and rebranded them as CareNow.

Patient First operates nine urgent care facilities across the Richmond area, and MedExpress runs three.

Richmond restaurants that closed in 2023 Tang & Biscuit Commercial Taphouse & Grill Biscuits & Gravy Rock Bottom Restaurant & Brewery Citizen Burger Bar P.T. Hastings Seafood Anthonys on the Hill Cafe Beignet Max's on Broad The Mill on MacArthur Shyndigz restaurant
On Monday, Interim Police Chief Rick Edwards described shooting and killing an armed 21-year-old during a traffic stop in 2002 after the suspect opened fire first.

Dec. 16, 2002, was the worst day of my life, said Edwards, who is considered a top candidate for the citys top policing job. Its a profound thing to kill a person.

Although Edwards was identified as the officer in the shooting in reports at the time  and included details of how the traffic stop became deadly  the incident was part a of a recent report by WRIC-TVs Autumn Childress, who requested details via a Freedom of Information Act request.

Two hours after the WRIC story went live online, Edwards appeared in a YouTube video interview with Petula Burks, the mayors director of communications. Burks said the interview was recorded shortly after Edwards' appointment in October of 2022.

Chesterfield to issue $105 million in bonds for projects Chesterfield Countys bond referendum projects are receiving a boost in the form of $105 million in general obligation bonds.

Speaking to Childress, Edwards said he was surprised that the shooting had not come up sooner after he put his name in the hat for the police chief job in April.

Edwards said he approached the vehicles passenger side while his partner, Shane Waite, approached the drivers side. The driver, 21-year-old Isaac Thompson, was asked to step out of the vehicle, Edwards said, and, while Waite was patting him down, Thompson turned punched Waite in the face before taking flight.

The officers had handcuffed the passenger and they were in the process of handcuffing the driver when a scuffle ensued, Dave Chewning, a Virginia State Police sergeant, told the Richmond Times-Dispatch in 2002. The driver attempted to flee but turned and fired at the officers with a handgun.

Both officers fired at Thompson. In the shootout, Waite was struck twice, once in the leg and another time in the chest. His life was likely saved by his bulletproof vest.

Edwards pursued Thompson, who stumbled, he told Burks. Then Edwards shot Thompson again as he was on the ground.

As he brings the gun up, it looks like I can stick my whole fist in the gun, it seems so huge to me, said Edwards. Then I return fire again, and then we call for an ambulance for the suspect.

The Times-Dispatch reported the incident occurred at Castlewood Road and Southgate Street. The death was reviewed by both Virginia State Police and the Commonwealths Attorneys Office. The results of the investigations the into the shooting were not immediately available.

A second Times-Dispatch clipping named Edwards the day after the shooting. I was named a few days after this, its not that it was hidden, said Edwards. I was waiting for the question.

Edwards said that he suffered from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder after the incident, and that details of the shootout still live vividly in his memory.

How spending on public safety and policing has changed over the last 40 years How spending on public safety and policing has changed over the last 40 years Spending on public safety in cities in the US has doubled since 1980 Police funding has remained about half of public safety budgets consistently for 40 years Even with ballooning public safety budgets, many cities allocate more money to the police Some cities have reigned in police spending, while others have tightened overall public safety budgets
Richmond city officials are rethinking a proposed exotic animal ban after numerous people came forward to denounce the ordinance  primarily, falcon enthusiasts.

Presently, the planned ordinance, as written, would make it illegal to sell, possess, purchase and own specific wild species.

This includes any primates, possums, skunks, wolves, coyotes, squirrels, foxes, leopards, panthers, lynxes, caracals, bobcats, lions, tigers, bears venomous or poisonous reptiles or any member of the crocodilian family.

Chesterfield to issue $105 million in bonds for projects Chesterfield Countys bond referendum projects are receiving a boost in the form of $105 million in general obligation bonds.

Gene Stevens, president of the Virginia Falconers Association, who voiced his concerns during the public comment period of the Monday Richmond City Council meeting, said the confusing wording of the ordinance would result in a blanket ban on many of the citys falconers and their hobby, which has deep historical and cultural ties to the region and across the globe.

We believe it is irresponsible to ask you to pass such an ordinance that would immediately impact at least two current federally-licensed falconers, Stevens said. And, puts at risk any future falconer who would need or want to move to the city.

While the ordinance does offer some exceptions to the ban  including an exception for certain animals that are born and held in captivity that have never known the wild, such as chinchillas, hedgehogs, hamsters, guinea pigs, rats, mice, imported birds, non-venomous reptiles and amphibians as well as fish  it does not exclude animals that have been caught in the wild but ultimately are intended for release.

Young falconer Eden Elmore, who was one of over a dozen who spoke in opposition, said that she has undergone the difficult task of applying for state permitting, passed a test and is ready to move forward in the next step of her falconry apprenticeship: obtaining a bird.

If passed, this ordinance would prevent her from doing just that, effectively ending her apprenticeship and falconry career, as state regulations require falconers to possess a bird for two years.

I have checked all the boxes: secured a sponsor, constructed an enclosure, taken the test, gotten my permit, but if this ordinance passes as it is currently written, I will not be able to pursue my lifelong passion and maintain a bird, Elmore said.

Others came forward to share their concerns. They included members from the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources, who are typically in charge of regulating falconry permitting.

Stevens said this is not the first time the association has had to get involved with local governments. When Loudon and Fairfax counties attempted to ban wild and exotic animals including falcons and other native birds, the association reached out and saw success.

In order to ensure falconry can continue, Stevens said, the city can include a sentence that ensures that falcons that are properly licensed by the federal government or the Commonwealth of Virginia or through a permitting agency are not impacted by the ban.

Stevens said the association reached out to Mayor Levar Stoneys office a week prior to the meeting. The office did not respond.

Previously, the city council added an amendment to the ordinance that would allow venomous or poisonous reptiles or amphibian owners to keep their pets as long as they met certain requirements and applied for a permit.

After hearing from concerned residents, second district councilmember Katherine Jordan campaigned to continue the ordinance to the next meeting in order to add language that allows for the inclusion of falconers.

Steens said this is a good sign that their concerns will be addressed.

The effort to ban certain animals in the city comes following a plea from Richmond Animal Control and Care Director Christie Peters, who pushed for the adoption of the ordinance after reviewing the citys current animal-related municipal code.

As a result, Peters said, the department needs a protocol in place in order to ensure the safety of both staff and community.

Zoos, animal exhibitions, circuses, wildlife rehabilitators and veterinary clinics will be excluded from the ban. State and federal wildlife management agencies will also be excluded.

If a resident is caught within city limits in possession of one of the listed animals, the resident will be charged with a class 3 misdemeanor, which carries a fine up to $500 in the event of conviction.

I implore you to help preserve this fading art  a cultural heritage of America passed down from old war veterans to young queer individuals like me by taking the time to amend or reject this ordinance, Eden said in a final plea for change.

Richmond City Council will hear the ordinance at its next regular meeting, at 6 p.m., Monday, June 26 as a part of its consent agenda. It will hold another public hearing prior to making a final vote.

Richmond is considering banning these animals as pets Any non-human primate Any member of the crocodilian family Venomous or poisonous reptile or reptiles Bears Lions Bobcats Caracals Lynxes Opossums Raccoons Raccoons Skunks Leopards Foxes Squirrels Coyotes Wolves
A stretch of Interstate 64 near Short Pump has been approved for a makeover, which should have a significant impact on traffic patterns and safety once completed.

Henrico County will be adding an interchange at North Gayton Road, which is intended to help alleviate traffic conditions along the rest of the corridor. The county is also going to remove a loop at the Broad Street intersection with the highway, which it said will improve safety by eliminating traffic weaving from merging cars.

Terrell Hughes, Henrico public works director, told county supervisors on May 23 that the improvements should cut 19 minutes out of peoples commutes once finished.

The work was heralded as the largest transportation and safety project in Henricos history.

The countys Public Works department estimates it will cost between $200 million and $300 million in todays dollars. Cost is subject to change as designs and schedules get more detailed.

Our project will make a drive into Short Pump faster and more efficient, said Three Chopt District Supervisor Tommy Brannin. It will also reduce the risk of crashes, literally saving lives.

That corridor of Interstate 64 has been a trouble spot for accidents over the last five years. It saw seven fatal crashes during that period, as well as 9,500 calls for service. There were also 492 crashes involving injuries and 1,800 reportable crashes.

First and foremost for us, the most important part of this project is safety, said Michael Palkovics, assistant chief of police. Its not only for the safety of the residents and citizens of Henrico County, but also the motoring public, the thousands of people that traverse through this area every day.

The interchange project also is expected to have a net benefit on businesses and economic development efforts in the area.

The project was officially approved by the Federal Highway Administration last week, after the Virginia Department of Transportation signed off on it in the spring.

Next steps are anticipated to take about two to three years. During this time, the county will finish design work, complete an environmental study and acquire land. The county has just under $5 million in Central Virginia Transportation Authority regional funding to help with the design and environmental work.

Hughes said the remaining portion of the project would include many opportunities for public engagement and involvement.

Many of the improvements in Henrico also will impact commuters and visitors from Goochland.

Hughes previously told supervisors that Henrico partnered with Goochland County, which has plans to improve an interchange between Interstate 64 and Route 288 on its side of the border.

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Chinese FM urges U.S. to respect China's position on Taiwan, stop undermining China's interests

Xinhua) 14:57, June 14, 2023

BEIJING, June 14 (Xinhua) -- The United States should respect China's position on the Taiwan question, stop interfering in China's internal affairs and stop undermining China's sovereignty, security and development interests in the name of competition, Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Qin Gang said on Wednesday.

Qin made the remarks in a phone conversation with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, during which Qin expounded on China's solemn positions on the Taiwan question and other core concerns.

Since the beginning of this year, Qin said, China-U.S. relations have encountered new difficulties and challenges, for which it is crystal clear who is responsible.

China always views and handles China-U.S. relations in accordance with the principles of mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and win-win cooperation proposed by President Xi Jinping, he added.

Qin urged the United States to take concrete actions to implement the important consensus reached by the two heads of state at the Group of 20 Bali summit, and honor the relevant commitments it has made.

It is hoped that the United States will work with China to effectively manage differences and promote exchanges and cooperation, so as to stop the decline of bilateral relations and bring them back to the track of sound and stable development, he said.

(Web editor: Peng Yukai, Liang Jun)
The result could be a sharp rise in premium rates if the House of Delegates and state Senate cannot figure out how to resolve their $1 billion worth of differences over the budget.

The program uses state funds and a larger sum of matching federal grants to run a reinsurance program  essentially, a backstop plan that covers the cost of health insurers biggest claims.

That reinsurance allows the insurers to cut their premium rates to reflect the benefit of the backstop. In 2023, the reinsurance program reduced premiums by 19.5%, the State Corporation Commission Bureau of Insurance said in response to questions from the Richmond Times-Dispatch.

But to offer the reinsurance next year, the draw from the states Commonwealth Health Reinsurance Program Special Fund should increase by $10 million from what was originally budgeted for fiscal year 2024, to $38.9 million, budget documents show.

And as a condition of its contribution to the program, the federal government requires a commitment that the necessary state funds will be available.

That sum would be $216 million if the reinsurance program is to yield a 15% savings on individuals premiums and $293 million for a 20% reduction, according to a General Assembly financial analysis when it authorized the program in 2021.

Due to uncertainty regarding the level of state funding that will be made available, and therefore, the amount of premium reduction the SCC should seek from health insurance carriers for benefit year 2024, a zero percent premium reduction from the CHRP for benefit year 2024 may be established, the SCC said.

Health insurers would no longer apply the rate reduction for plan year 2024 that they applied in 2023, because the CHRP would not reimburse issuers for any claims incurred in 2024. Therefore, the CHRP would not act to reduce rates in 2024, it added.

That is because the premiums insurers charge would have to be enough to cover the biggest bills that the reinsurance program now handles.

The law that set up the program says the SCC has to calculate and make public the amount of money needed for the program by May 1, but without a budget, the SCC cannot meet that requirement.

However, per the SCC, the deadline is self-imposed.

Federal administrators have not indicated that Virginia missing this self-imposed deadline would affect the states ability to draw the federal money for next year, the SCC said.

If there is a budget agreement, if it addresses the Commonwealth Health Reinsurance Program and if the federal officials are satisfied, insurers could adjust their rate submission to reflect CHRP premium reduction until July 14, 2023 under the current rate submission timeline, the SCC said.

The House of Delegates passed a budget that includes $1 billion of tax cuts proposed by Gov. Glenn Youngkin. The state Senate budget uses that money to boost state support for education.

Close Gov. Glenn Youngkin listens to George Daniel on Jan. 25 as he tries some Brunswick stew on Brunswick Stew Day at the Capitol. Next to Daniel are, from left, Dylan Pair, stewmaster Kevin Pair and Austin Pair. The yearly event returned to the Capitol for the first time since the pandemic began. Del. Cliff Hayes, D-Chesapeake, takes photos of his colleagues in the Virginia House of Delegates on Jan. 24 at the state Capitol. Lawmakers head to committee meetings Jan. 19. Democratic senators cheer as Clerk of the Senate Susan Clarke Schaar swears in new Sen. Aaron Rouse, D-Virginia Beach, on Jan. 18 at the state Capitol. Sen. Aaron Rouse, D-Virginia Beach, is photographed outside the Senate chamber Jan. 18 after he was sworn in at the Virginia state Capitol. Rouse won a special election to succeed Republican Jen Kiggans, who was elected to Congress in November. Rouse's win increased the Democrats' edge in the Senate to 22-18. Sen. Mark Obenshain, R-Rockingham, and Sen. Bill Stanley, R-Franklin County, share a laugh during Tuesday's session. Senate pages, from left, Aaven Dudley, Nataniel Dunster and Connor Wotring are seen in the Senate on Jan. 19. Members of Zeta Phi Beta Sorority Inc. (blue) and Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America (red) fill the floor around Jean-Antoine Houdons marble statue of George Washington. The two groups were among those visiting the state Capitol in Richmond on Jan. 13. Lobbyists listen during a meeting of the Senate Commerce and Labor Committee on Jan. 30 at the Pocahontas Building. Sens. Chap Petersen, D-Fairfax City, left, and Creigh Deeds, D-Bath, react Jan. 26 to the vote tally on a Petersen bill dealing with preservation of trees in the town of Vienna. The Senate passed the bill on a 33-7 vote. A group from Portsmouth listens to a speaker during a rally against gun violence at the Bell Tower in Capitol Square on Lobby Day on Jan. 16. Lawmakers head to committee meetings on January 19, 2023. EVA RUSSO/TIMES-DISPATCH Del. Jackie Hope Glass, D-Norfolk, brings style to the House floor Jan. 17 during the General Assembly session at the state Capitol. Gov. Glenn Youngkin attends the Virginia March for Life on Feb. 1 in Richmond. Youngkins Virginia job approval rating hit 57% in February  five points better than in November  according to a poll from Roanoke College. Senate pages (from left) Aaven Dudley, Nataniel Dunster, and Connor Wotring are seen in the Senate on January 19, 2023. Sen. Mark Peake, R-Lynchburg, takes a moment during a General Assembly session at the state Capitol in Richmond on Jan. 20. Del. Briana Sewell, D-Prince William, takes a photo of Sen. Jennifer McClellan, D-Richmond, and other members of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Inc. after a Jan. 24 news conference in the Pocahontas Building. McClellan and other Democrats spoke of their support for a proposed state constitutional amendment to protect reproductive freedom. James States Manship of Thornburg came dressed as George Washington to the gun-rights rally at the Bell Tower in Capitol Square on Lobby Day, Jan. 16. PHOTOS: Through Our Lens - Virginia General Assembly Visual Recap first part The first part of the visual recap from 2023 Virginia General Assembly Gov. Glenn Youngkin listens to George Daniel on Jan. 25 as he tries some Brunswick stew on Brunswick Stew Day at the Capitol. Next to Daniel are, from left, Dylan Pair, stewmaster Kevin Pair and Austin Pair. The yearly event returned to the Capitol for the first time since the pandemic began. Del. Cliff Hayes, D-Chesapeake, takes photos of his colleagues in the Virginia House of Delegates on Jan. 24 at the state Capitol. Lawmakers head to committee meetings Jan. 19. Democratic senators cheer as Clerk of the Senate Susan Clarke Schaar swears in new Sen. Aaron Rouse, D-Virginia Beach, on Jan. 18 at the state Capitol. Sen. Aaron Rouse, D-Virginia Beach, is photographed outside the Senate chamber Jan. 18 after he was sworn in at the Virginia state Capitol. Rouse won a special election to succeed Republican Jen Kiggans, who was elected to Congress in November. Rouse's win increased the Democrats' edge in the Senate to 22-18. Sen. Mark Obenshain, R-Rockingham, and Sen. Bill Stanley, R-Franklin County, share a laugh during Tuesday's session. Senate pages, from left, Aaven Dudley, Nataniel Dunster and Connor Wotring are seen in the Senate on Jan. 19. Members of Zeta Phi Beta Sorority Inc. (blue) and Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America (red) fill the floor around Jean-Antoine Houdons marble statue of George Washington. The two groups were among those visiting the state Capitol in Richmond on Jan. 13. Lobbyists listen during a meeting of the Senate Commerce and Labor Committee on Jan. 30 at the Pocahontas Building. Sens. Chap Petersen, D-Fairfax City, left, and Creigh Deeds, D-Bath, react Jan. 26 to the vote tally on a Petersen bill dealing with preservation of trees in the town of Vienna. The Senate passed the bill on a 33-7 vote. A group from Portsmouth listens to a speaker during a rally against gun violence at the Bell Tower in Capitol Square on Lobby Day on Jan. 16. Lawmakers head to committee meetings on January 19, 2023. EVA RUSSO/TIMES-DISPATCH Del. Jackie Hope Glass, D-Norfolk, brings style to the House floor Jan. 17 during the General Assembly session at the state Capitol. Gov. Glenn Youngkin attends the Virginia March for Life on Feb. 1 in Richmond. Youngkins Virginia job approval rating hit 57% in February  five points better than in November  according to a poll from Roanoke College. Senate pages (from left) Aaven Dudley, Nataniel Dunster, and Connor Wotring are seen in the Senate on January 19, 2023. Sen. Mark Peake, R-Lynchburg, takes a moment during a General Assembly session at the state Capitol in Richmond on Jan. 20. Del. Briana Sewell, D-Prince William, takes a photo of Sen. Jennifer McClellan, D-Richmond, and other members of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Inc. after a Jan. 24 news conference in the Pocahontas Building. McClellan and other Democrats spoke of their support for a proposed state constitutional amendment to protect reproductive freedom. James States Manship of Thornburg came dressed as George Washington to the gun-rights rally at the Bell Tower in Capitol Square on Lobby Day, Jan. 16.
Virginia legislative candidates are seeking nominations on landscapes not of their own making, often facing voters who do not know them from Adam  or Eve  and sustaining their campaigns with cash from lobbyists likely to wield greater influence because they know more about the old-time ways of the General Assembly than the newcomers who will soon flood the House of Delegates and Virginia Senate.

Some 40 primaries across the state Tuesday will not just settle nominations, Democratic and Republican; they could be tantamount to election. That is because some of the 100 House and 40 Senate districts drawn by the Virginia Supreme Court  it did the job because a voter-approved bipartisan commission flopped  strongly favor one party over the other, reducing November balloting to a formality.

Most of the action is for the Senate and is Democratic, often pitting older center-left establishment candidates against younger left-left progressives, though several Republican contests are emerging as measures of former President Donald Trumps standing in a state party led by a governor, Glenn Youngkin, who pretties up his MAGA-esque politics and policies with a polyester vest.

Herewith  and continuing Saturday  a region-by-region assessment of nominations fights, often among strangers in strange lands:

Northern Virginia

Center-left tensions and racial and ethnic diversity are driving several Democratic Senate primaries, threatening long-serving incumbents Jeremy McPike of Prince William and Dave Marsden and George Barker of Fairfax. A Barker defeat could cost the D.C. suburb what little remains of the outsized influence it already is losing because of retirements. Barker is co-chair of the Senate budget committee and could lead it outright if he is returned to Richmond and Democrats still rule the Senate.

But Barker is facing two obstacles in the primary with Stella Pekarsky: Just 6% of his old district is in the new one, meaning he has spent most of the campaign introducing himself to an audience that may be more familiar with Pekarsky. She is on the Fairfax County School Board. It is a perch that means visibility in a locality where nearly everyone has a stake in its highly ranked public schools, more so because Youngkin  who lost Fairfax in 2021  belittles them as hotbeds of supposed woke-ism.

Also closely watched: the Democratic Senate primary between prosecutor and ex-CIA agent Russert Perry and Zachary Cummings, a Leesburg councilor, in a swingy, Loudoun-anchored district where Republicans are coalescing behind a Latino info-tech multimillionaire. In Prince William, two former Democratic delegates, Hala Ayala and Jennifer Carroll Foy  both unsuccessful statewide candidates two years ago  are facing off for a Senate nomination.

Eight Republicans are running for the Senate nomination in a district rooted in deep-red Frederick County. Del. Dave LaRock, a Jan. 6 protester who moved to the district from Loudoun, where he was the last Republican in Northern Virginias House delegation, may stand furthest to the right in a field of right-wingers that includes a Shenandoah County supervisor who favors repealing the constitutional guarantee of free public schools.

In the Fredericksburg area, a Senate Republican primary will test Youngkins pulling power. He endorsed Del. Tara Durant over Matt Strickland, a restaurateur who has sharply criticized the governor for not moving faster in easing coronavirus protections that both said smothered business. The district leans Republican, but Democrats think they may have a shot if Strickland, viewed as a gadfly, is the GOP pick.

Central Virginia

In a suburban Richmond district that embraces some of the regions most conservative turf  eastern Chesterfield County and Colonial Heights  Republican Sen. Amanda Chase, a Trump channeler and one of Youngkins top surrogates among MAGA voters, faces two opponents: Tina Ramirez, a Trump ally keen on religion and gun rights, and Glen Sturtevant, a former state senator who was defeated in the 2019 blue wave and once had a comparatively moderate profile.

Two signs Chase is the candidate to beat: Her abundant yard signs, and a TV commercial by Ramirez that seems to depict Sturtevant as a spoiler. Without mentioning Chase, Ramirez attacks Sturtevant as a faux conservative, attempting to draw votes from him that may be the key to overtaking the incumbent.

Youngkin is silent on this race. That might be confounding, given Chases enthusiastic loyalty to Youngkin after losing the gubernatorial nomination to him. Youngkins neutrality likely has to do with uncertainty about the outcome; perhaps he did not want to raise more doubts about his pulling power by possibly picking a loser.

To some Democrats, uncertainty defines the Senate nomination battle between incumbent Joe Morrissey and Lashrecse Aird. Morrisseys tabloid private life  he is divorcing a young wife with whom he had an underage sexual relationship  and his support of a ban on most abortions after 20 weeks are fodder for opponents. Morrisseys granular attention to constituent services ensures steadfast voter loyalty that could be decisive in a thinly attended primary for this Petersburg-oriented seat.

But Petersburg has an on-again, off-again relationship with both candidates. Aird, a former delegate and leader in fundraising in this cycle, is looking to Henrico County for the win. It is the largest jurisdiction in the district and its political leadership is solidly behind her, even though Morrissey represented part of the county as a member of the House.

Among those backing Aird is Lamont Bagby, an ex-Henrico delegate installed in the Senate in a snap election in March and chairman of the Legislative Black Caucus. He was widely viewed as shoo-in for a full term in a new district, but supporters are nervous over the traction of his opponent, Katie Gooch, a Methodist minister. She, too, is highly visible and defeated Bagby  an incumbent  in a city Democratic committee straw poll that drew fewer than 100 votes.

Richmond City Councils decision this week to hold in November a do-over referendum on a proposed casino  it was rejected in 2021  could scramble the Bagby-Gooch contest. He is for it; she is against it. And some of the areas where Gooch appears strongest are areas where resistance to a casino is greatest.

Talk about a wild card.

Close 05-31-1971 (cutline): Voting Machines destined for Henrico Polling booths are unloaded. 10-29-1964 (cutline): Getting ready for election. 11-03-1989 (cutline): Youth Poll--Students at Ratcliffe Elementary School in Henrico County lined up to take part in a mock election yesterday. A school official monitored polling, which was done on school computers. The real election for governor, lieutenant governor and attorney general is Tuesday. 11-02-1971: Walter C. Lewis, precinct worker explains procedure of voting machine to Raymond L. Redd. 11-06-1973 (cutline): Voters received lapel pins after making their choices at the ballot box. Pins were distributed at city precincts by the Richmond Jaycees. 12-16-1952 (cutline): They decide on Eisenhower--Presidental electors cast Virginia's 12 votes for General Eisenhower. 03-08-1988: Voting booth at City Hall precinct during presidental primary. 11-03-1948 (cutline): A long night of waiting--A crowd (above) hears announcer read election results at a Republican party last night at the Hotel John Marshall after Truman had started to forge ahead in early returns. Score board totals indicate the Virginia trend. 10-02-1969 (cutline): Billie Holloman spots a 'help wanted' sign in a pharmacy here today. The notice responds to yesterday's announcement by a group of ex-Democrats. 09-14-1971 (cutline): Voting Activity Slow Here-- There wasn't a great deal of voting activity reported in the Richmond area during the early hours of today's Democratic primary elections. Officials at voting precinct 73, located at Dick Strauss Ford on Belt Boulevard, were on duty early in the morning awaiting the voter turnout. Mrs. Frances Shaw, an election official there, reported it was 10:35 a.m. before the first voter arrived to cast a ballot. 11-05-1980 (cutline): Jubilant merrymaker holds aloft words Republicans wanted to see. GOP supporters celebrated at party at Hotel John Marshall. 08-03-1949: Mr. John Thomas Martin casts his ballot. 11-07-1972 (cutline): Voters prepare to cast their ballots at city precinct 10 in fire house at 28th and 'Q' Streets. From the Archives: Voting in Richmond Interested in a copy of any of these photos? Click here. 05-31-1971 (cutline): Voting Machines destined for Henrico Polling booths are unloaded. 10-29-1964 (cutline): Getting ready for election. 11-03-1989 (cutline): Youth Poll--Students at Ratcliffe Elementary School in Henrico County lined up to take part in a mock election yesterday. A school official monitored polling, which was done on school computers. The real election for governor, lieutenant governor and attorney general is Tuesday. 11-02-1971: Walter C. Lewis, precinct worker explains procedure of voting machine to Raymond L. Redd. 11-06-1973 (cutline): Voters received lapel pins after making their choices at the ballot box. Pins were distributed at city precincts by the Richmond Jaycees. 12-16-1952 (cutline): They decide on Eisenhower--Presidental electors cast Virginia's 12 votes for General Eisenhower. 03-08-1988: Voting booth at City Hall precinct during presidental primary. 11-03-1948 (cutline): A long night of waiting--A crowd (above) hears announcer read election results at a Republican party last night at the Hotel John Marshall after Truman had started to forge ahead in early returns. Score board totals indicate the Virginia trend. 10-02-1969 (cutline): Billie Holloman spots a 'help wanted' sign in a pharmacy here today. The notice responds to yesterday's announcement by a group of ex-Democrats. 09-14-1971 (cutline): Voting Activity Slow Here-- There wasn't a great deal of voting activity reported in the Richmond area during the early hours of today's Democratic primary elections. Officials at voting precinct 73, located at Dick Strauss Ford on Belt Boulevard, were on duty early in the morning awaiting the voter turnout. Mrs. Frances Shaw, an election official there, reported it was 10:35 a.m. before the first voter arrived to cast a ballot. 11-05-1980 (cutline): Jubilant merrymaker holds aloft words Republicans wanted to see. GOP supporters celebrated at party at Hotel John Marshall. 08-03-1949: Mr. John Thomas Martin casts his ballot. 11-07-1972 (cutline): Voters prepare to cast their ballots at city precinct 10 in fire house at 28th and 'Q' Streets.
Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin, in decrying a two-tiered justice system, is both late and off the mark in his observation.

That bifurcation has existed since the birth of our nation, long before former president Donald Trump arrogantly forced the hand of a system designed to give him utter deference.

But here is Youngkin, joining legions of fellow Republicans in lamenting the 37-count felony indictment of Trump that alleges the mishandling of classified documents.

Political survival in the age of Trumpism demands such reality-shattering fealty.

These charges are unprecedented and its a sad day for our country, especially in light of what clearly appears to be a two-tiered justice system where some are selectively prosecuted, and others are not, Youngkin said in a tweet.

He concluded: Regardless of your party, this undermines faith in our judicial system at exactly the time when we should be working to restore that trust.

The false victimhood of Trump is infuriating to victims and survivors who have experienced actual injustice in the courtroom or extrajudicial abuse or execution at the hands of police. The criminal justice systems disparately harsh treatment of Black and Hispanic Americans has been thoroughly documented. But the social justice movement that followed the May 2020 murder of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer has been turned on its head.

Donald Trump, in the fever swamp of the U.S. political right, now lies with the knee of the U.S. criminal justice system on his neck.

It is a sad day for our country when an entire political party remains in thrall to a man intent on crashing Americas venerable institutions into a cliff. And it is a dreadful day when lawmakers, who should know better, argue that Trump should somehow be above the law because he is running for president.

The sudden animus toward the FBI as an abusive, overreaching agency is also curiously timed.

The FBIs Counter Intelligence Program  dubbed COINTELPRO  was notorious for its illegal surveillance of U.S. activists and organizations it deemed subversive. The list included feminists, environmental organizations, Native American and Mexican American groups, the Nation of Islam, the Black Panther Party and the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., whom the agency attempted to blackmail into suicide.

Where were the cries to defund the FBI back then?

When social justice protesters said defund the police, it was considered heretical and dangerous. But now that Trump has been indicted for behavior that would have already landed the rest of us behind bars, Republican congresspersons are calling for the defunding of the FBI.

Kari Lake, the election denier whose unsuccessful candidacy for governor of Arizona was endorsed by Youngkin, was quoted in this article saying: If you want to get to President Trump, you are going to have to go through me, and you are going to have to go through 75 million Americans just like me. And Im going to tell you, most of us are card-carrying members of the NRA.

But even in this environment, the Youngkin administration is falling all over itself to outbid Maryland as home to a new FBI headquarters  yet another example of how cynical and disingenuous the response to Trumps indictment has been.

The people who continue to support Trump have forfeited the right to mouth platitudes about law and order. An entire political party remains hostage to a cult of personality. Its presidential aspirants are imbibing what must be a bitter, emasculating Kool-Aid. How can you state a compelling case for your candidacy when your party is defined by Trumps legal issues?

When former Trump counselor Kellyanne Conway first used the term alternative facts, we had a good laugh at the oxymoron. We should have recognized it for what it was: a concerted political strategy to reshape reality itself.

Today, the gaslighting continues. This is what happens when a political party is defined by one mans attempt to cling to power by any means necessary.

Founders such as former president John Adams aspired to create a government of laws and not of men. Revolutionary patriot Thomas Paine wrote, in America the law is King. For as in absolute governments the King is law, so in free countries the law ought to be King; and there ought to be no other.

Adams and Paine would no doubt view this as a sad day in the nation they helped shape. Trumps supporters would make him the law.

Someday, if we are fortunate, there will be an accounting for those who aided and abetted the shredding of the rule of law, and for those who repeated the lie at a moment that demanded truth.

Until then, Trump is not the victim of that two-tiered justice system.

America is.
Maybank Islamic has partnered with digital will-writing platform CreateWills to launch a will (wasiat) writing service called EzyWasiat. Targeted at the Muslim community in Malaysia, the new service will enable customers to plan and prepare their wasiat  within shariah and faraid (Islamic inheritance) principles  with ease and efficiency.

According to Maybank, EzyWasiat is the first digital will-writing platform in Malaysia that comes complemented by personalised advisory services and assistance from Maybanks certified personal financial advisors, wealth management advisors, or relationship managers. Additionally, it features a built-in automated faraid algorithm that can help to simplify the whole process. Briefly, faraid is a concept in Islamic law that determines the rights and portion of a deceaseds inheritance to his or her heirs.

As a result, customers can complete their wasiat writing process within just 30 minutes, with fees starting from as low as RM600. If you need to amend your wasiat in the future, that can also be done conveniently at a small cost.

Chief executive officer of Maybank Islamic, Dato Mohamed Rafique Merican said that the introduction of EzyWasiat is in line with the banks commitment to develop innovative products that address the needs of the Malaysian public. The partnership between Maybank Islamic and CreateWills marks a significant advancement in wasiat writing services for the Muslim community, particularly within the Islamic estate planning space. It also builds on Maybank Islamics commitment to make its services accessible to all members of the Muslim community, he added.

Head of Islamic wealth management and business development at Maybank Islamic, Ahmad Shareza Abdul Rahman echoed similar sentiments, adding that the tagline for EzyWasiat is aptly set as From Niat to Wasiat. He especially hopes that the platform can assist Muslims who have always wanted to prepare a wasiat, but did not do so due to obstacles such as the perceived complexities of the will-writing process, the cost, and lack of convenience.

The whole process of getting it done within just 30 minutes and the affordable pricing structures ensures that no one is excluded from receiving high-quality legal assistance in estate planning. Taking into account the dynamism of life and that circumstances may change over time, EzyWasiat being digitally-led makes it easy to be amended as well, said Ahmad Shareza.

For those who would like to tap into Maybanks new EzyWasiat service, you can kickstart the process by sending an email to [email protected] with your full name and phone number. Following that, a personal financial advisor or relationship manager from Maybank will get in touch with you and guide you along the process.

Alternatively, you can also schedule a branch appointment to speak to a bank personnel regarding the service. Note that the EzyWasiat service is currently unavailable via the Maybank2u online banking website or the MAE by Maybank2u mobile banking app (the integration of the service into both platforms is still under consideration).

Maybank also shared that it has plans to expand EzyWasiat beyond the market in Malaysia to other regions where the bank has a foothold. However, no specific timeline has been determined as of yet.

(Source: Maybank)

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Isla Mujeres officers to have new police house

Isla Mujeres, Q.R.  A new police substation is being built on the Continental Zone of Isla Mujeres. Mayor Atenea Gomez Ricalde reported on its progress, saying once done, it will provide a decent space for municipal police officers.

The new Police House will be used by Public Safety and Traffic officers. There, they will be able to rest, eat and clean up to continue their workday in the best possible conditions, Ricalde said.

She said a new police house was one of the main commitments of the Municipal Government when she took over the administration.

Mayor Ricalde said a new police house was one of her main commitments. Photo: Ayuntamiento de Isla Mujeres June 12, 2023.

She said that significant advances have been made in the construction of the Police House in the Insular Zone. With the construction of the Police House, the mayor pointed out that the daily work of the police will be dignified, since they are in charge of taking care of the safety of the families and the thousands of tourists who visit daily.
Residents take to southern highway in protest of more unstable CFE service

Othon P. Blanco, Q.R.  Another group of residents in the south of Quintana Roo have taken to road blocks in protest. The group from the community of San Antonio Soda were out Tuesday blocking the highway entrance in protest of CFE blackouts.

The angry residents said they have been left without power for as long as 72 hours and that personnel of the Federal Electricity Commission (CFE) have continually failed to provide a stable service.

During their public protest, residents said that if the CFE continues to ignore their requests, they will continue to block the road. A blocked road would affect dump trucks working section 7 of the Maya Train.

According to Adriana Cobos, subdelegate of the community, the blackouts affect around 24 communities in the area including San Isidro La Laguna, Pioneros del Rio, Caobas. He says these small communities in the south along the state border are continually affected by the unstable CFE service.

Last month, residents from the municipality of Jose Maria Morelos began holding CFE vehicles hostage in protest of their lack of unstable electric service.
This sixth installment of a short history of compassionate conservatism explores what it meant to finally get into the White House and see policies implemented. Skepticism was not in short supply.

In 2000, I didnt realize until it was too late that my astronomically exaggerated proximity to presidential candidate George W. Bush would make me a target. For example, I had said in 1998 that women volunteers had run charitable enterprises in the 19th century, so womens entrance into the corporate workforce had hurt the nonprofit world. Now, as Bushs supposed ear-whisperer, my purported opposition to high-achieving businesswomen was newsworthy.

The solace I could take while being pummeled in liberal newspapers was that it was worse in the United Kingdom. Conservative Party leader William Hague and his associates, out of power, wanted to learn about compassionate conservatism and perhaps ride it to a parliamentary majority. My wife and I had two days of meetings in or near Parliament, three days of tourism, and four days of being lambasted by London newspapers.

For example, The Observer showed its precise observation of American geography and society: On the endless plains of Indiana [Bush] repeated the phrase compassionate conservatism 15 times. Bush had borrowed it from a man [whos] got a beard. Hes called Marvin. What more need be said? Something more, it turned out: I was a born-again Christian who watched Bush from afar, on television, with a glow of satisfaction and a job in the White House awaiting him. I purportedly had a semi-political post as spiritual overseer of George Bushs Texas.

The new business cardsspiritual overseer looked great. On the flight home, I read an older London publication, The Rare Jewel of Christian Contentment, first printed in the 1640s. Pastor Jeremiah Burrough wrote: Make a good interpretation of Gods ways toward you.  Think that God perhaps has given you a trial to build your character. Perhaps you had your heart inordinately set on a particular selfish goal. Perhaps, had you succeeded, you would have used the opportunity to fall into sin.

The rest of the presidential campaign mixed pleasure and pain. A Christian producer at CNN made sure its profile of me, just before the Republican convention, was fair. A 60 Minutes profile was the opposite. I felt like the pastor who prayed as a grizzly bear charged him, Lord, please make a Christian out of this bear. That very instant, the bear halted, clasped its paws, and prayed aloud, Dear God, bless this food I am about to receive.

At the GOP convention in Philadelphia, during which George W. Bush accepted his partys nomination for president, delegates wore buttons crowing, Im a compassionate conservative. At a lecture I gave at Washington University in October, however, 10 young women wore T-shirts stating on their fronts, Im a compassionate conservative because Hurrah, Im finally becoming a heartthrob? Not exactly. As I started speaking, they turned their backs and showed me the continuation of their message: because Im racist, sexist and so forth. Yet they sat down after several minutes and politely listened. One of them gave me not the shirt off her back but an extra one the group had.

Given the closeness of the election, the Bush celebration/wake on election night in November had lows and highs. Television folks had set up a grandstand facing the crowd in front of the stately Texas capitol building. At 9 p.m. I climbed to the top so a BBC interviewer, assuming Al Gore had won, could sneeringly ask me, Looking at the returns, would you agree that compassionate conservatism hasnt much of a future? As I began to answer, a roar from the Bush crowd indicated that Florida, declared by networks a Gore conquest, was once again in playand so was compassionate conservatism.

Five weeks after the 2000 election, the U.S. Supreme Court confirmed the election of George W. Bush. On December 13 he gave his first speech as president-elect: Together we will address some of societys deepest problems one person at a time, by encouraging and empowering the good hearts and good works of the American people. This is the essence of compassionate conservatism.

Eight days later, Bush met at Austins First Baptist Church with 30 national faith-based leaders and one journalist/historian. We sat in a circle on plastic chairs. Each person had 30 seconds to express directly to the president-elect his hopes for personal interaction with the new administration. I said Id continue to edit a politically independent magazine, and added, Well zing you at times. Bush smiled and said, Join the club. He concluded with a wry comment: I hope that a year from now, no one is going to be able to say that this was all just smoke and mirrors.

Early in January 2001 the most prominent evangelical leader at that time, Prison Fellowship head Chuck Colson, sent me a letter fearing smoke and mirrors. He described the beginning of a Philadelphia project designed to fight crime, drugs, and other negative aspects of gang life: We had a public meeting kicking the program off, and I talked about evangelizing the streets of Philadelphia, bringing people to Christ. He wrote that his remarks had rankled other project heads, who then kicked Prison Fellowship out of its position as leader of the project.

Colson worried that the Bush faith-based initiative would also push out those with faith in Jesus. Colson wrote that, following the Philadelphia hassle, he spoke with a very eminent social scientist and told him the story of the conversion [to Christ] of a young lad now out on the streets preaching and reading the Bible to members of gangs. I was thrilled by this evidence of a transformed life. Colson said conversion was a success, but the eminent academic disagreed, saying other social scientists had to peer-review it.

Colson was one of the people who gathered at the northwest corner of the White House grounds on the cold, gray last Monday in January. About the same number of national faith-based leaders received badges, went through security, and were escorted to a dark-paneled, leather-chaired room. Staffers made sure a nun from New York, an imam from a Detroit mosque, and a long-bearded rabbi literally had seats at the table. Colson was off table. I stood at the back, where I belonged. Bush told the gathering about his goal: Change lives by changing hearts.  I promise you I will stand up for what I believe  an initiative and a vision that will fundamentally change our country.

Some who had spent much of their lives out in the cold asked hard questions. Bob Woodson, head of the National Center for Neighborhood Enterprise and a planner of Teen Challenges demonstration at the Alamo in 1995, said many Christian groups were suspicious of government. Steve Burger, head of the Association of Gospel Rescue Missions, noted the bureaucratic tendency to prefer people in stainless steel buildings with Ph.D. degrees to volunteers from churches.

Bush replied, I fully understand the fears of people of faith. He spoke of person-to-person compassion: This was the core of America. Then government stepped in, and everyone said government could do it. He offered his personal understanding of how change occurs: I was lost and then I was found. He surprised some in the room with his choice of John DiIulio, a very eminent social scientist from Philadelphia, to head the White House faith-based office. Journalists had speculated that evangelicals would get preference, so DiIulios Catholicism and emphasis on peer-review processes were political pluses.

Chuck Colson in his letter gave me a charge: Bless you, dear Marvin. I hope you will keep your hand upon this because it is critical that the Bush administration get off to the right start. In February I visited John, on leave from his University of Pennsylvania professorship. He and newly hired staffers padding around their freshly carpeted, high-ceiling office next to the White House. Badge photos on lanyards captured the deer-in-the-headlight look of drivers license art. That was appropriate, since vehicles from many directions seemed intent on running them down.

Critics played it both ways: churches are so strong theyll take over government, and so weak that government will take over them. I was on a combination business and fathering trip with my youngest son, Ben, who at age 10 swung around throughout our meeting on a revolving office chair. It was clear that John, overweight with some heart problems, was also swinging around. Now that he was Uncle Sam-I-am, reporters kept asking: Will you fund green eggs and ham? Is all this faith-based stuff a sham? Will some church get a new computer? Will that be fine with Justice Souter?

I was for decentralization: let individual taxpayers decide where they wanted their poverty-fighting money to go. John wanted centralized grant-making and said fundable programs could not have religious teaching or evangelism. I told him about a church-run program on budgeting for folks who had been on welfare or in prison. The instructor began by distinguishing among needs, wants, and desires. He quoted the Apostle Paul: If we have food and clothing, we will be content with that, and further explained his classifications by citing other Bible verses. The instructor taught about the need to pay debts by quoting from Psalm 37: The wicked borrows and does not pay back, but the righteous is gracious.

The students seemed impressed that they were not learning just the seven habits for saving or some other bestselling compilation of human lore, but wisdom imparted from God. Question: Was this religious instruction? Should it be eligible for a federal grant? Find out next time.

This is the sixth installment of an eight-part series on poverty and welfare reform in America. Click through for parts one, two, three, four, and five.
ROCKY MOUNT  Franklin County jurors began hearing evidence Tuesday in a murder trial in which the victim disappeared 11 years ago.

Paul Reivens Jordan II, 50, is accused of killing his girlfriend, Heather Hodges, a 22-year-old who was last heard from on April 9, 2012. Earlier this year, Jordan was charged with second-degree murder and concealing a body.

Hodges, whose body was never found, was officially declared dead as the result of a May court proceeding  though her date of death was set as April 9, 2019, seven years after she vanished, based on a Virginia law that allows a death declaration after someone has not been heard from for seven years.

Tuesday was the first of what is scheduled to be four days of trial in the countys Circuit Court. Jordan faces up to 40 years in prison if convicted on the murder charge. Judge Stacey Moreau is presiding over the trial.

In opening arguments, special prosecutor Bryan Haskins, the commonwealths attorney of Pittsylvania County, described Jordan and Hodges relationship, which began in some form when Hodges was 12 and Jordan about 30. In the decade that followed, there was a significant amount of domestic violence, Haskins said, with Hodges friends often noticing bruises and marks that she told them came from Jordan.

Hodges left Jordan a number of times, but always returned, Haskins said. The couple had a baby girl together. After Hodges inherited a sizeable amount of money from her grandmother, she entered a rent-to-own agreement for a house in Rocky Mount where she, Jordan, and their child lived.

After Hodges disappeared, investigators found numerous splatters of blood on walls and floors in the Rocky Mount house. The state crime lab tested some of the blood spots and these were a DNA match for Hodges, Haskins said. Also, Jordans fingerprint was found in a smear of blood on a doorknob. He was found using Hodges bank card after she vanished, the prosecutor said.

Defense attorney Steven Milani of Rocky Mount countered that the prosecution account was leaving out some things, such as the large amount of money that he said Hodges and Jordan owed to a drug dealer.

Hodges, Jordan and many of the people they associated with all used drugs, Milani and Haskins agreed.

Milani noted blood found on the floor of Hodges and Jordans home matched Hodges DNA, but that tests found that someone elses blood was mixed with it  and that this other person was not Jordan.

We just dont know what happened to Hodges, Milani said.

Haskins, assisted by his wife Petra Haskins, a deputy commonwealths attorney in Danville, presented 11 witnesses Tuesday, including Hodges older sister Crystal Songer and an assortment of friends of the vanished woman. Over and over, the witnesses said that Hodges had described Jordans violence to them, and that they often saw her bruised or having trouble breathing from being hit or kicked.

The weekend before Hodges vanished was Easter. Tabitha Amos testified that she had hosted an all-weekend Ecstasy party and that Hodges, who had again left Jordan, was there  and had marks on her neck that she said came from being strangled by Jordan.

Christopher Margerum testified that he also was at the party and talked with Hodges about getting her daughter and moving together to Florida. Margerum said that he and Hodges had known each other since middle school and dated briefly, and at the party rekindled what he hoped was going to be a lasting romantic relationship. But though they spent the night together  time that included Hodges having Margerum take her to two locations to score drugs  she left, saying she needed to get some things from her house.

Margerum said that as the weekend went on, he got a text from Hodges saying that Jordan had found out that she had been with the other man, and that they were fighting, then heard nothing else.

April Montgomery wept as she recounted Hodges long pattern of returning to Jordan, then read an email from her friend.

Yes, Im expecting a miracle, Hodges had written.
The Hanover County School board voted Tuesday to rewrite its policy governing what books are allowed in school libraries and then moved to ban its first round of 17 books.

The school boards vote to approve the new policy passed 5-2, but the vote to remove 17 specific titles was unanimous.

Under the policy approved minutes before, school board members were given the authority to remove any books from its school library at its sole discretion with a majority vote from the school board members.

The agenda item to ban those books was added after the bodys closed session that took place immediately before Tuesday nights public meeting.

This is truly vulgar language, vulgar pictures, vulgar depictions. We did not and do not take this decision likely. It is very tough. Candidly I was shocked, said School Board Chair John Axselle III when referring to some of the material in the 17 books.

The list was previously introduced by Steve Ikenberry, Cold Harbor, at the previous work session in May, where he said the books were oversexualized and had zero educational value.

The list includes titles like This Book is Gay, Juno Dawsons young adult nonfiction book about sexuality and gender, and George M. Johnsons All Boys Arent Blue, a series of personal essays about growing up Black and queer.

Ola J. Hawkins, Ashland District, spoke in favor of removing those books though she has mostly opposed the schools rewrite of its library policies. She was one of two dissenting votes against the policy but part of the unanimous decision to ban the books.

Yes, this list of books that was sent, yes I read a vast majority and I will say that at a certain point, I had to stop reading, Hawkins said. Those books that I read really should not be in our school library or in our elementary schools.

The public comment period was fiery, with parents speaking on opposing sides of the library media center policy. The board heard comments for over two hours.

Of the parents who spoke in favor of amending the media center policy, they were adamant that the books in question were overly sexual with the power to cause harm to students in Hanover County. Many referred to the books in question as pornography.

Really those are the areas that we want out of out schools. We already live in a highly sexualized society and I dont feel that the schools are a place that that high sexualization should occur, said Mike Messina, a Hanover parent. There are plenty of opportunities if parents feel their children should be exposed to that, there are public libraries, there are many avenues.

A smaller number called anyone disagreeing with them a porn pusher, and accused them of grooming children with adult content.

Many of the referenced texts include topics such as rape, incest and descriptive sexual acts. While many spoke in support of the new policy, a larger number of voices showed up to the board chambers to protest against approving the new policy.

Many parents and community members said that books with troubling topics have an important role in showing kids the reality of the world, but also help them realize what is and isnt normal.

The most important thing is not to hide reality from our children but rather to ensure the students of the school system understand the complexity of life experiences and provide support for the students that need it most, said speaker Rebecca Hooper.

Officially, school board members said they are not banning books, reasoning that children are not prohibited from owning these books or talking about them with their classmates.

The ACLU of Virginia weighed in on the passing of the new policy, saying the removal of library materials impedes the freedom of speech in schools.

"The First Amendment doesn't end at the classroom door. Our schools' job is to encourage learning, not gag students and educators from exchanging ideas," said ACLU-VA Policy and Legislative Counsel Breanna Diaz. "It's deeply troubling that a growing number of school boards in Virginia are taking power away from parents who want their children to learn by passing policies that will censor classrooms and libraries."

At a time when Virginia is facing a teacher shortage, the last thing we need is to make it even harder for teachers to do their jobs  especially with a policy that would lead to the censorship of LGBTQ+ and BIPOC perspectives and send a message to young people that its not okay to be who they are, Diaz continued.

In addition to giving the school board authority to remove any book by a majority vote, the newly adopted policy  policy 6-5.2  gives the the board more influence over routine book selection and deselection activities done by librarians. It also creates a school board appointed body that serves as the intermediate decision-maker between schools and the school board when parents challenge books in the schools.

Board members did soften on one provision of the book policy at its work session last week.

Parents on both sides of the argument were concerned that a rule allowing people to challenge a book in the schools under pervasive vulgarity would see the book immediately removed from the school system. They worried that challenges would be met with other challenges in retaliation, or that schools would be overwhelmed with prank challenges.

That portion was updated to give staff seven days to determine if a challenge was legitimate before removing the book from circulation. Rejected challenges get forwarded to the school board appointed Library Materials Committee.

The concept of pervasive vulgarity however was not addressed in the final document. Parents worried said it was an overly broad reason to challenge a book, putting far more books at risk of removal than intended.

That challenge mechanism was updated to add sexually explicit content, which is defined in the state code. The provision for pervasive vulgarity was not removed, and remains as a condition to challenge books under the current policy.

A separate challenge mechanism under controversial reasoning would not see books removed from the schools while the books future is considered.

The new policy has a three step challenge process that starts with a local review committee at each individual school. Those decisions can be appealed to the Library Materials Committee, a seven member body appointed by the school board with one member from each voting district. Decisions from that body are then appealed to the school board.

HCPS was already using a four step challenge process under its old policy. That process began with a principle conference, and escalated through a school committee, a school division committee before going to the school board.

Patti Davis identified herself as a substitute teacher of 19 years in the county, a conservative and a Christian. She said there was nothing wrong with the old policy and that the new policy shows a lack of faith in the schools librarians.

Youre the ones who hired [the school librarians], Davis said. Theyre qualified and amazing individuals. Ive sat on these committees with books that are challenged. Everyone has read the book theyve looked at the book and the whole situation. The [old] policy works.

There are a number of other additions to the schools that add more oversight to the selection process.

The removal of outdated or damaged books and replacing them with new titles is something that happens consistently throughout a school year. That process is also under school board scrutiny.

Librarians use professionally recognized sources to aid in the selection of new books. Under the new policy, school board members will now review and approve which sources librarians can use to choose new books.

Librarians are also now required to report all deselected books to their principles for approval.

No materials containing sexually explicit content are to be added, though teachers or librarians can argue that such books have an educational purpose. The book could be added by school board approval, pending a favorable recommendation by the schools Library Materials Committee.

Teachers classroom libraries will also be more tightly regulated under the new policy. Teachers are now required to submit a cover sheet detailing all books and magazines in their classrooms.

Hanover is just one in a growing number of schools nationwide that are looking to ban books. A significant chunk of those books focus on themes and characters that are LGBTQ or minorities.

An April report from PEN America, a national organization dedicated to protecting freedom of expression, shows that 26% of unique titles banned during the first half of the 2022-23 school year nationwide have LGBTQ characters or themes. The organization reported in Sept. 2022 that bans occurred in 138 school districts in 32 states affecting 4 million students.

In addition to the 17 banned books Tuesday night, the Hanover School Board has also been working with an expanded list of more than 120 books that could also be on the chopping block.

Axselle told the Richmond Times-Dispatch after the May 30 work session that at least 50 books on that list have egregious amounts of sexual content and could be ripe for removal. That larger list also has at least 30 books with LGBTQ themes, though Axselle said the policy is not specifically targeting those themes.

Ill tell you I disagree with [LGBTQ], but this policy doesnt  just because I disagree with it, it doesnt come off the shelf, Axselle said. It has to have sexually explicit content.
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For the study, Fairchild and his fellow researchers gathered data on the topography of estuaries (measured with lidar and sonar), 50 years of wind data, 40 years of wave data and extensive measurements of marsh grasses taken from the ground. They then fed this into a computer program that allowed them to simulate the effects of storms of different strengths on eight estuaries across the country of Wales in the U.K.

In all storm scenarios, marshes reduced both the extent of flooding as well as damage from floods. Overall, the benefits of marshes were greatest during the most powerful storm scenarios.

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"In the largest storms the potential effects are bigger," Fairchild says, "so the potential gains are bigger from having salt marshes."

As water from storms moves through an estuary, it interacts with all the vegetation along the edges, creating a friction or drag effect. As water moves upstream, this effect is cumulative. The friction from vegetation, along with the sponge-like effect of the mucky marsh, reduces the wave heights, creating a reduction in storm surge and flooding.

A 6.5-foot (2-meter) rise in the water level of an estuary could lead to quite significant flooding, especially for flatter and lower-lying places built on flood plains, such as London and New York.

In wave-sheltered environments like estuaries, "wetlands may be even more important than along exposed coastlines and coastal cities," Fairchild says, "in part because of all the major settlements and cities there."

" " Swansea researchers conducting saltmarsh vegetation surveys and recording water levels on the Taf estuary, South Wales. Their study of estuaries shows the flood protection role of coastal wetlands has been underestimated. Image courtesy of Swansea University

By running models with and without marshes present and using records of property values, as well as estimates of the value of flood damage, the researchers calculated that the presence of marshes prevented $38 million in flooding damages per estuary. This amount would be higher in larger estuaries with bigger cities or more settlements, Fairchild says.

The connection between storms, marshes, and financial damage to property is one of the strong points of this study, says Siddharth Narayan, an assistant professor in the department of coastal studies at East Carolina University, who was not involved in the research.

"It's one thing to say, yes, these wetlands are reducing flood extents. But it's another thing to then link that to the economic costs," Narayan says. "[This] is something that we have found critical in the work that we do."

Narayan's work includes communicating with engineers, planners and policymakers about the costs and benefits of wetlands. He is a co-author on guidelines for the use of nature-based solutions for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), as well as the International Guidelines on Natural and Nature-Based Features for Flood Risk Management, set to be published Sept. 16.

After Hurricane Sandy, a major storm that hit the U.S. East Coast in 2012, Narayan and colleagues teamed up with the insurance industry to calculate the benefits of the marshes along the coast. According to the insurance industry models, wetlands prevented some $625 million in damages.

"When big disasters occur such as a Hurricane Sandy," Narayan says, "there tends to be a shift in terms of people recognizing that these coastal ecosystems play a role ... There is enormous interest right now, but I still think it stops short of action on the ground."

Narayan attributes this lack of action and investment in nature-based solutions (like wetland restoration) to a lack of confidence. Although there are many examples of nature-based engineering solutions, we still have a shortage of carefully monitored pilot studies, he says.

"Ultimately policymakers and engineers just need to have more confidence in the extent to which nature-based solutions work," Narayan says. "Some people somewhere have to start taking some risks."

" " This map shows the difference in water level between scenarios where a marsh was present or absent at the Three Rivers estuary complex in South Wales. Red areas indicate large reductions in water level where a marsh is present, and blue-white where little to no effect was observed, showing that the presence of marsh vegetation has the greatest flood protective effect for towns and infrastructure in upstream areas. Image courtesy of Swansea University
This fly-through image depicts part of the "One-Percent Survey" conducted by the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI). Researchers took detailed images in 20 different directions on the sky, creating a 3D map of 700,000 objects and covering roughly 1% of the total volume DESI will study. The main DESI survey is filling in the gaps between those observations. Credit: David Kirkby/DESI collaboration

Dr. Mustapha Ishak-Boushaki, a theoretical astrophysicist at The University of Texas at Dallas, has spent his career seeking answers to some of the universe's greatest mysteries, including why the expansion of the universe seems to be accelerating and whether gravity behaves differently beyond our closest cosmic neighbors.

To study these and other questions, a large collaboration of scientists, including Ishak-Boushaki and UTD physics doctoral students Cristhian Garcia Quintero, Leonel Medina Varela and Yunan Xie, are using data from the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI) to map more than 40 million galaxies, quasars and stars. On June 13, the collaboration publicly released its first batch of data, with nearly 2 million objects for researchers to explore.

Spectroscopy is a technique that uses light from objects such as stars and galaxies to determine their physical properties, including chemical composition, distance and relative motion. DESI, a ground-based instrument at Kitt Peak National Observatory in Arizona, uses 5,000 robotic positioners to move optical fibers that capture light from objects millions or billions of light-years away. It is the most powerful multi-object survey spectrograph in the world, able to measure light from more than 100,000 galaxies in one night.

As the universe expands, it stretches light's wavelength, making it reddera characteristic known as redshift. The farther away the galaxy, the bigger the redshift. DESI specializes in collecting redshifts that can then be used to solve some of astrophysics' biggest puzzles, such as what dark energy is and how it has shaped the structure and evolution of the universe.

The newly released 80-terabyte data set comes from 2,480 exposures taken over six months during the experiment's "survey validation" phase in 2020 and 2021.

"With this data, we are creating a very precise, 3D map of objects in the universe, with a high degree of certainty where they are in space," said Ishak-Boushaki, professor of physics in the School of Natural Sciences and Mathematics. "This is not possible with other observational methods, such as visual imaging."

DESI is two years into its official five-year run and ahead of schedule on its quest to collect more than 40 million redshifts. The survey has already catalogued more than 26 million astronomical objects in its science run and is adding more than a million per month. The Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument is making a 3D map of space to understand dark energy, the force behind the accelerating expansion of our universe. Part of DESI's preparations included the "One-Percent Survey" visualized in this flythrough. Researchers took detailed images in 20 different directions on the sky, creating a 3D map of 700,000 objects and covering roughly 1% of the total volume DESI will study. With the instrument and survey plan successfully tested, the main DESI survey is now filling in the gaps between those observations. Credit: David Kirkby/DESI collaboration

Today the collaboration also published a set of papers related to the early data release that include early measurements of galaxy clustering, studies of rare objects, and descriptions of the instrument and survey operations. The new papers build upon DESI's first measurement of the cosmological distance scale that was published in April, which used the first two months of routine survey data and also showed DESI's ability to accomplish its design goals.

"The quality of this first two months of data is astonishing," said Ishak-Boushaki, who is co-chair of the collaboration's Cosmology Parameter Estimation working group, one of several specialized groups that are analyzing various aspects of the data. He, along with Garcia Quintero and Varela Medina, are co-authors of several of the new papers that describe the use of DESI data to detect the baryon acoustic oscillation signal. This signal shows how clusters of ordinary matter, called baryons, which formed shortly after the Big Bang, created an imprint where future galaxies and clusters of galaxies formed.

Much of Ishak-Boushaki's research centers on confirming one of Albert Einstein's most significant contributions to modern physics: the general theory of relativity. General relativity, which is a description of gravity, has two aspects that can be tested: how matter and light move in the universe.

"Although general relativity has been confirmed in our solar system and nearby stars, at the level of cosmologythe largest scales in the universeit has never been tested with high precision and has not been confirmed," Ishak-Boushaki said. "It could be different at cosmological scales. DESI will tell us how matter moves in the universe so we will be able to test general relativity to an unprecedented precision."

Insight from DESI into general relativity also could shed light on cosmic acceleration, the observation that the expansion of the universe is speeding up. Cosmic acceleration is problematic because it counters how gravity, which causes objects with mass to be drawn together, is observed to work in our solar system and nearby space.

Ishak-Boushaki, his students and many other astrophysicists are exploring possible explanations, including the effects of dark energy and dark matter, as well as the nature of gravity at large scales.

"Maybe at cosmological scales, general relativity changes into another theory, or there is a modification to it," Ishak-Boushaki said. "DESI is the chief experiment that could give us an answer."

Provided by University of Texas at Dallas
WASHINGTON, D.C.  A $60,000 grant will enable Florence to study 33 railroad crossings.

The project will lead to a plan to improve safety for some crossings.

The money comes from the U.S. Department of Transportations Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), which awarded it to the state in Railroad Crossing Elimination (RCE) Grant Program funding.

Florence received all of the grant.

The project will result in a publicly available action plan that will identify crossings requiring safety improvements and crossings of high safety concern to rail rights-of-way owned by CSX and South Carolina Central Railroad. The City of Florence will provide a 20 percent non-federal match.

Nationally, the RCE Program will provide over $570 million in funding for 63 projects in 32 states. This inaugural round of funding will address more than 400 at-grade crossings nationwide, improve safety, and make it easier to get around railroad tracks by adding grade separations, closing at-grade crossings, and improving existing at-grade crossings where train tracks and roads intersect.

Last year, there were more than 2,000 highway-rail crossing collisions in the U.S. and more than 30,000 reports of blocked crossings submitted to FRAs public complaint portal.

Every year, commuters, residents, and first responders lose valuable time waiting at blocked railroad crossings  and worse, those crossings are too often the site of collisions that could be prevented, said U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. As part of President Bidens Investing in America agenda, were improving rail crossings in communities across the country to save lives, time, and resources for American families.

For years, FRA has received complaints from citizens, states, and localities regarding the delays and disruptions caused by frequently blocked crossings that force residents to wait hours at intersections or take detours. These delays and disruptions can also prevent first responders from getting to emergencies quickly. Further, over 2,000 collisions occur every year at highway-rail grade crossings. The Transportation Department said projects selected for funding in the first year of this program will greatly improve the quality of life in communities big and small, creating safer rail crossings and allowing people to get to and from their homes, schools, businesses, hospitals, fire stations, and workplaces without being stranded and delayed by a standing train.

The Railroad Crossing Elimination Grant Program is another critical tool that FRA is using to make a lasting impact on the safety and transportation needs of communities nationwide, said FRA Administrator Amit Bose. With these project selections and the many more that are to come, we will save lives and reshape infrastructure in ways that allow individuals to move through their neighborhoods seamlessly and safely.

Along with projects that build or upgrade physical infrastructure at railroad crossings, FRA awarded $15.7 million for planning activities and $33.1 million for project development and design activities that will build a pipeline of projects for future funding. Twenty two percent of all funding, $127.5 million, was awarded to projects in rural areas or on Tribal lands.

There are more than 130,000 miles of railroad track in the U.S. and improving safety in the communities where they run is a priority for the department.

Over each of the next four years, additional RCE Program funding will be made available annually. Project selections for other grant programs that will improve freight rail safety and efficiency, strengthen supply chains, and expand the passenger rail network  representing billions of dollars in infrastructure law investments  will be announced in the coming months.
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A woman stands outside of her hurricane-damaged home decorated with an American flag on Oct. 15, 2017, in Dorado, Puerto Rico.

A woman stands outside of her hurricane-damaged home decorated with an American flag on Oct. 15, 2017, in Dorado, Puerto Rico.

In January 2015, then-Vice President Joe Biden stood before Caribbean leaders gathered in Washington and declared North America the new epicenter of energy in the 21st century, vowing to promote energy security beyond our borders by exporting cheap natural gas and renewables to countries with some of the highest electricity prices in the world.

Its profoundly in the self-interest of the United States to see the Caribbean countries succeed as prosperous, secure, energy-independent neighbors  not a world apart, but an integral part of the hemisphere, where every nation is middle class, democratic and secure, Biden said. Its the first time in history that can be envisioned.

Nearly a decade later, Puerto Rico  the largest U.S. territory in the Caribbean  is entering its sixth year since Hurricane Maria without reliable electricity. Energy prices across the region where nine of 11 countries tracked by the World Bank generated 80% of their power from imported fuels soared last year by at least 50%. Warming-intensified storms are toppling transmission lines at a growing clip, forcing residents to either buy expensive generators or accept power outages as routine fact of life.

So when now-President Bidens Vice President Kamala Harris attended the latest summit with Caribbean heads of state in the Bahamas last Thursday, analysts from across the region said the White Houses promise of more than $100 million in new spending on a set of projects including renewable energy fell flat.

The White House announced the spending in a Thursday morning press release, one day after news broke that Cuba had reached a secret deal with China to set up a clandestine spy base on the Caribbeans largest island.

Beijings presence in a region regarded in Washington as the U.S. backyard has grown over the past two decades as China offered favorable terms on loans to buy more Chinese-made goods, helped build infrastructure that Western developers had abandoned, and sought to woo some of the last remaining countries that maintain diplomatic ties with the government in Taiwan.

The vision of an integrated North America free from the fluctuating price of fuels drilled in warzones has faded. Instead, the Biden administration touted a series of technical programs to overhaul island nations electrical regulations and promote zero-carbon sources of energy.

In Antigua and Barbua, the U.S. National Renewable Energy Laboratory is helping to train workers to install solar panels, batteries and hurricane-resistant wind turbines. In Dominica, Saint Kitts and Nevis, the State Department is providing technical assistance to help both nations turn volcanic heat into commercial geothermal power plants. In the Dominican Republic, the U.S. Trade and Development Agency is helping local regulators develop rules for adding batteries to the grid.

While more than half of the $100 million was earmarked for aid to Haiti, the Caribbeans most populous and currently unstable island, Harris said $20 million would support a new Caribbean Climate Investment Program to help incentivize the private sector to partner with Caribbean nations to develop more clean energy technologies. Another $15 million would go to the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency to help devise new early warning systems for storms and stock up on first-aid equipment and generators.

Vice President Kamala Harris speaks during the multilateral meeting at the US-Caribbean Leaders Meeting in Nassau on Thursday.

Vice President Kamala Harris speaks during the multilateral meeting at the US-Caribbean Leaders Meeting in Nassau on Thursday.

But experts from across the Caribbean said the announcement falls far short of what the U.S. government could bring to bear in a region the U.S. has jealously controlled since Washington adopted the Monroe Doctrine, vowing to fight any rival global power that attempts to make inroads with Americas sovereign neighbors, exactly 200 years ago.

Im not at all impressed, said Calixte George Jr., an analyst and electrical engineer from Saint Lucia who hosts a popular radio program on the island. The U.S. has the capacity to do something that would be a game changer. But thats not happening here.

The China Question

China is more prominent in the Caribbean than it has ever been as Beijing looks to expand its influence overseas and sell its goods and infrastructure-building services in more markets. Between 2005 and 2022, China invested more than $10 billion in six countries: Jamaica, Guyana, Trinidad and Tobago, Antigua and Barbuda, Cuba, and the Bahamas, according to a recent tally by the House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee. But overall spending has dwindled in the last three years.

Still, the deal for a Chinese spy base in Cuba marks one the most direct challenges to U.S. hegemony in the region in the three decades since the Soviet Union collapsed (which placed nuclear missiles there in the 1960s). The Biden administration confirmed over the weekend that China had been running a surveillance operation in one of the U.S. closest neighbors for the past four years.

Last Thursdays press release announcing the new spending in the Caribbean was timed around the vice presidents preplanned regional summit. But Rasheed Griffith, a Barbados-based analyst who hosts the podcast China in the Americas, said the announcement was framed as a counter to China.

U.S. foreign policy hawks from both parties increasingly warn of the Peoples Republic seeking bulwarks in the Caribbean akin to American military footholds in places like Japan, South Korea and Taiwan, which Beijing and much of the world considers part of China.

But George, who hails from one of the only 12 countries in the world that still maintains diplomatic relations with Taiwan over Beijing, said Chinas political interests in the Caribbean are primarily about cleaving support away from Taipei.

Saint Lucia is one of the few countries thats still hanging on with Taiwan, along with Saint Vincents and Kitts, the Dominican Republic and Haiti, George said. The other place is Paraguay, and theyre looking at leaving soon. Taiwan just lost Nicaragua. So thats been really the main Chinese interest.

Griffith, who tracks Chinese investments for his show and recently founded the think tank Caribbean Progress Studies Institute, said a lot of Chinese firms are in the region because governments in the Caribbean are open to it. What attracts island nations to Beijing is the promise of cheap imports of technologies like solar panels, which the U.S. does not manufacture at any competitive scale or price, and less onerous terms for loans than those offered by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) or other U.S.-backed institutions.

In 2021, Trinidadian Finance Minister Colm Imbert defended his countrys decision to accept a $1.4 billion loan from China instead of the IMF, arguing that the regulatory overhauls and public spending cuts required as a condition by the latter lender would have meant punishing his population.

With the Chinese loan, it is nothing like that, Imbert told The Daily Express, one of Trinidads largest newspapers.

The Chinese, he said, only stipulated that, because the loan was meant to buttress Beijings foreign policy needs, Trinidad must spend the money on Chinese equipment, vaccines, medical supplies or any other goods manufactured in China.

China's President Xi Jinping (right) meets Trinidad and Tobago Prime Minister Keith Rowley at the Great Hall of the People on May 15, 2018, in Beijing, China.

China's President Xi Jinping (right) meets Trinidad and Tobago Prime Minister Keith Rowley at the Great Hall of the People on May 15, 2018, in Beijing, China.

Scholars in the West have long debated whether China was offering a benevolent alternative to Western lenders or laying a debt trap to ensnare poor nations as unwilling recruits to its side in an emerging Cold War with the U.S. A lengthy 2020 review of Chinese loans by the British think tank Chatham House concluded that Beijings fragmented and poorly coordinated international development financing system is not geared towards advancing coherent geopolitical aims. Rather, the researchers found, it is a straightforward means of boosting Chinas own economy by selling more goods and earning interest abroad.

In 2021, China gave out more than $40 billion in loans to distressed countries, coming its closest yet to rivaling the IMFs nearly $69 billion issued that same year, The New York Times reported. In March, The Associated Press published an analysis of a dozen countries most indebted to China  including Pakistan, Kenya, Zambia, Laos and Mongolia  found that paying back interest on the debt is draining foreign currency reserves and diverting tax revenues needed to keep schools open and provide electricity.

But the terms of Chinas loans dont mandate spending cuts and economic changes that are the norm when borrowing from the IMF.

Thats part of the export drive, Imbert said. But it is not a conditionality where the government of China is coming and saying, Look, send home 20,000 public servants, double the price of electricity, triple the price of water  its not that.

Puerto Ricos Woes Loom Large

Contrary to what China hawks say about investments in Jamaican roads and the Dominican electrical grid, there is no strategic competition to cleave the Caribbean away from the U.S., Griffith said.

Caribbean people exist within American culture. American culture is a Caribbean culture, he said. We wear the same clothes. We watch the same TV. We eat the same food. We have the same desires. Were geographically predisposed to be in the American empire.

But Washingtons retreat from playing a more active role in developing the Caribbean, diverting resources to multilateral institutions like the World Bank and the IMF, has diminished American soft power in the region, Griffith said.

George agreed, noting that he could easily identify projects funded by the British, Chinese and French governments across the Caribbean  but not the U.S.

If somebody asked me what I can identify within Saint Lucia that I would say is a U.S. government project, George said, Id have to go back probably into the 1960s.

The apparent decline of American prosperity in the Caribbean may be most acute on the largest island to fly the stars and stripes.

Between 2007 and 2020, Puerto Rico  which the U.S. conquered during the Spanish-American War of 1898 and subsequently rendered a territorial possession of U.S. Congress  shuttered nearly 700 schools as the island government struggled to repay its debt to the Wall Street equivalent of loan sharks.

At more than 33 cents per kilowatt-hour of electricity, Puerto Ricans pay more than triple the national average rate, higher than any U.S. state  a reflection of the territorys dependence on imported oil, coal and diesel to generate power. Thats despite the fact that nearly half the population lives below the poverty line, making the island poorer than the poorest U.S. state.

Those high costs dont include quality service. After Hurricane Maria decimated the aging grid in September 2017, Puerto Rico went 11 months without islandwide electricity, and has since endured weekly, if not daily, outages even as a private company took over the distribution system and hiked rates at least seven times in the first year.

While the federal government has promoted programs for rooftop solar, the U.S. has focused its reconstruction efforts on building a centralized electricity system with natural gas imported from U.S. fracking fields as the primary fuel. Months after handing the publicly-owned distribution system over to a private consortium, regulators in Puerto Rico gave the New York-based natural gas company New Fortress Energy control over the islands generating system. (The deal has drawn criticism from inside the Biden administration, according to the Puerto Rican news outlet Noticel.)

Puerto Rico could be a model that other island nations could follow, said Cathy Kunkel, a San Juan-based energy analyst with the nonprofit Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis. Figuring out how to build a resilient system thats based on decentralized, clean power generated near where its used is something every other country in the legion has an interest in as well.

Weve seen this since the end of the Cold War. There has been very little U.S. interest in the Caribbean.Calixte George Jr., Saint Lucian analyst and radio host

The collapse of the relative middle-class American living standards that Puerto Rico saw in the late 20th century, when Washington lured manufacturers to the territory and sought to bolster the territory as evidence of its capitalist systems superiority to communist Cuba, is part of a larger shift of U.S. interests elsewhere, George said.

Weve seen this since the end of the Cold War, he said. There has been very little U.S. interest in the Caribbean.

While attitudes have changed, U.S. influence over the regions fate has not, Griffith said. At the end of the day, he said, independent Caribbean nations need to decide for themselves how to increase development and become more economically competitive. But much of that future hinges on the ability of money and people to flow easily between the economic powerhouse of the U.S. and the small, outlying islands it neighbors.

Griffith doesnt expect U.S. immigration and tax policy to change at the behest of Caribbean people. But he pined for the last centurys Pan American thoughts in early U.S. foreign policy.

Where did that go? This idea of a shroud of competition with China is a red herring. The real problem is, why did Pax Americana devolve so much? he said. Because were always going to be together, muddling through  for me, at least  isnt enough.

Related...
Oops, seems like presidential hopeful George Goh got mistaken for another George in a George-filled country.

George Goh Ching Wah, who is running to be Singapores next president, set the records straight today by debunking a screenshot circulating on Whatsapp that wrongly associated him with a George Goh Tiong Yong who was the Chairman of Kampong Ubi Citizens Consultative Committee (CCC).

Remember, Im George Goh Ching Wah



. Would really appreciate if you could help to share this info if you encounter untrue rumours about my identity, the presidential hopefuls statement read.

The image was from a media release in 2000 on the opening of the then-upgraded Kampong Ubi Community Centre.

Goh, who is an entrepreneur with ventures including bringing Harvey Norman into the city-state, has made it clear to the public via his active social media accounts and done-up website detailing his life that he never had any political affiliations.

Mr George Goh Ching Wah was never a CCC member let alone chairman and has no political affiliations  past to present, the statement read.

Yesterday was the first day applications to be the president opened at the Elections Department office. Goh showed up to a cheering crowd and left shortly after, while a former secondary school teacher Seng Soon Kia, who is not as known to the public, walked in to apply as well.

Other stories you should check out:
SIOUX CITY  The Sioux City Police Department has tried a variety of different types of clips, including magnetic and plastic, to keep body-worn cameras in place on officers' vests, to no avail.

"Every time there's a struggle or a fight or you're chasing somebody, these always get lost," Community Policing Sgt. Thomas Gill said. "Usually, the officer ends up with a flashlight trying to find it."

Cameras have been present in SCPD squad cars since the mid-1990s, but body-worn cameras (BWCs) create additional transparency when officers move outside their cars.

In August 2020, the Sioux City Council unanimously voted to approve buying 120 Getac BWCs and awarded a $260,861 purchase order to Midwest Public Safety LLC for the cameras. Included in the cost was the hardware and software needed to integrate the system with 37 patrol cars and equipment necessary to operate and maintain it. The city's police officers began wearing the cameras that fall.

The department's policy directive concerning BWCs states that all personnel assigned to its Uniformed Bureau, as well as school resource officers and officers in the Investigative Services Bureau, are issued a camera. They are required to activate the cameras on all calls for service involving citizen contacts.

"Some of the captains who are never on the street will not have one," said Sioux City Sgt. Jess Aesoph, who told The Journal the department currently has 119 functioning BWCs.

An officer recently lost one of the department's BWCs during a foot pursuit, which was initiated after an individual struck a squad car. That officer was unable to recover his camera and given what's known as a "pool" camera to use. Pool cameras are available when officers' assigned BWCs need charging or become inoperative for another reason.

"If we replace it or not, I don't know," Aesoph said of the lost camera. "I suppose when we get new officers, we're going to have to."

The department is currently allocated 127 full-time officers. In the next budget year, which begins July 1, that number will rise to 131. The City Council, in a split decision, approved four additional full-time officers in February.

Few agencies remain camera shy Data gathered from October 2022 to May 2023 shows of the 142 agencies that answered questions on camera availability or use, 93 said they had both body and dashboard cameras for at least one of their members and vehicles.

Data gathered from October 2022 to May 2023 shows of the 142 agencies that answered questions on camera availability or use, 93 said they had both body and dashboard cameras for at least one of their members and vehicles.

In May, the City Council approved a resolution authorizing the police department to submit an application to the Department of Justice for $500,000 in grant funding for new BWCs and in-squad car camera systems. The city is required to provide a 50% match if the department receives the funding.

The department stated in its application to the DOJ that the evolution of technology has deemed the Getac equipment "almost obsolete." With the current system, uniformed officers must activate their overhead light system to make sure their BWC is paired with the mobile audio video recorder, as well as activate their BWC. If an officer doesn't do that, it can result in their camera system failing.

"Currently, Getac does not provide the capability of reviewing of videos until a BWC is left in the docking station and downloaded. This has resulted in failures to capture the videos needed for documentation when responding to calls, which can in turn lead to failures in accountability and transparency measures within our agency," the application stated.

The application also noted the Woodbury County attorneys have "an extremely difficult time downloading Getac videos to their own computers for discovery and evidentiary purposes."

"The system constantly errors out on their end, which results in time-consuming calls to the IT department to try and repair the issue," the application stated.

Voluntary purchase

Gill and Aesoph were among a few thousand Siouxlanders who signed a pro-body camera petition in the spring of 2020, around the time of George Floyd's death. Floyd, a 46-year-old Black man, was murdered in Minneapolis by Derek Chauvin, a 44-year-old white police officer.

The city of Sioux City had considered implementing BWCs for several years, vetting different models and taking public input.

"I think most of the officers here went out and signed it, because we were trying to get these. It was nice to get the support," Gill said of the petition.

Purchasing BWCs is voluntary for Iowa law enforcement agencies. Gill, who tested various BWCs for the department sometime around 2013 or 2014, believes the high cost of BWCs is what's keeping some law enforcement agencies from acquiring them. He described BWCs as "excellent" to have for evidentiary purposes, since they capture the scene of a crime and what a witness, victim or suspect said during an encounter with an officer.

Gill said he became a "fan" of BWCs after two Sioux City teenagers, Felipe Negron Jr. and Paiten Sullivan, were fatally stabbed inside and outside a PT Cruiser in Morningside in January 2018.

A Woodbury County sheriff's deputy had a BWC on when he was at the crime scene, according to Gill. He said the footage from that camera was shown during 18-year-old Tran Walker's trial in May of 2019. A Woodbury County District Court judge ultimately found Walker guilty of two counts of first-degree murder and sentenced him to a mandatory sentence of life in prison without parole.

"A year later, you kind of forget how bad it was," Gill said of the crime scene. "But when you see that on the high (definition) video, you're like, 'Oh, I remember this was here and this is where we found the knife.' I was like, 'Wow, we need to get these, just for remembering the scene.'"

Nothing to hide

There are some instances where the department's policy directive states that it may be permissible for officers not to record interactions with the public, such as situations that involve juvenile sexual assault victims or confidential informants.

If an interruption of the recording occurs, or the recording is stopped by an officer intentionally, the officer is required to document the reason for the interruption or termination on camera, according to the policy directive. Officers who forget to hit the record button on their BWCs are required to make a report about it.

"It's happened, especially initially, because they just weren't used to it," Gill said. "So, now, if that happens, then the officer has to report, 'Hey, I was just at this thing. I forgot to turn it on.' There's a report made in what they call Blue Team."

Gill said members of the public notice the cameras and ask, "Is that a body camera?" He said some have even asked officers to turn off the cameras because they don't want their house recorded, for example.

"We tell them that by policy, we can't turn them off, because what if something would happen? The officer turns it off and boom, then something happens," he said.

The department released three body camera videos in April 2021 after bystander video of an incident at the Gordon Driver Perkins circulated widely on social media. The footage showed police officers, a 29-year-old Black man and various onlookers engaged in a loud confrontation.

The body camera videos show a commotion inside the restaurant, with an officer telling the man that he must either leave or face arrest. The man tells the officers "I'm leaving" as an officer begins wrestling with him.

The man in the footage maintains he did nothing wrong, and onlookers can be heard agreeing with him and arguing with officers. A struggle ensues, with tables and chairs in the restaurant getting knocked over and glassware being broken.

At least one officer pointed a Taser at the man after he was pushed into a booth, and Wright and some of the onlookers appear to shout at the officers not to shoot or tase him, although at one point Wright appears to say something like, "Shoot me in my face." The man can be heard asking what he is under arrest for and saying "this is dangerous."

The department conducted a review of the man's arrest and found that the officers involved "acted within policy."

After ending video recording, officers categorize the incidents by turning their BWC's dial. The videos are pulled off the cameras when officers set them on the chargers in their squad cars or in the department's radio room. Aesoph said video storage is cloud-based through Getac and the department can access the footage via Getac's website.

The public can also request to view the footage, either through an open records request or via subpoena. There are limitations, though. The video recordings may involve privacy issues, which could require some redaction.

The policy directive states that "all data, images, video and metadata captured, recorded or otherwise produced" by the cameras are the sole property of the police department, considered evidence and shall be treated as such. Officers are allowed to view their own video recordings before filing an official report or making any statements. However, when wrongdoing is suspected, the police chief, or his designee, may limit or restrict access to video files.

How long video recordings are stored depends on the type of incident. For example, recordings of arrests and pursuits are kept for two years, while traffic stops and accidents are kept for one year. Forcible felonies and citizen complaints are stored an "indefinite" amount of time, according to the policy directive.

Aesoph said he can't think of anything negative anybody in the department would say about BWCs.

"I mean, if you're out there and you're being professional, you've got nothing to hide," he said.

PHOTOS: Armed standoff near Bishop Heelan High School ends peacefully Grandview Boulevard armed standoff Grandview Boulevard armed standoff WATCH NOW: Armed standoff near Heelan High School ends peacefully Grandview Boulevard armed standoff Grandview Boulevard armed standoff Grandview Boulevard armed standoff Grandview Boulevard armed standoff WATCH NOW: Police Chief Rex Mueller talks to the media following Thursday's armed standoff Grandview Boulevard armed standoff Grandview Boulevard armed standoff
SOUTH SIOUX CITY  A Sioux City man has pleaded guilty of sexually assaulting a teenage girl at a South Sioux City home on Christmas.

Michael R. Brown, 33, pleaded guilty Tuesday in Dakota County District Court to first-degree sexual assault and no contest to generating a visual depiction of sexually explicit conduct. Sentencing was scheduled for Aug. 8.

According to court documents, Brown had sex with the girl in her room in the South Sioux City home on Dec. 25 and used a cellphone to record video of the interaction. The teen told a South Sioux City police officer Brown had tried to touch her prior to Dec. 25.

When interviewed by police, the girls father said Brown had been texting him and asking him when the girl was going to be home.
STORM LAKE, Iowa -- A Minnesota man has been arrested on charges of sexually abusing a young girl in Storm Lake four years ago.

In April, St. Paul, Minnesota, authorities notified the Storm Lake Police Department of a report of sexual abuse that had occurred in Storm Lake.

Police investigated the accusations and identified the suspect as Ka Toe, 41, of St. Paul. According to court documents, Toe had sexual contact with the girl numerous times in a Storm Lake home between January 2019 and March 2020.

Toe turned himself in to Storm Lake police Tuesday. He was booked into the Buena Vista County Jail on charges of child endangerment resulting in serious injury and two counts each of second-degree sexual abuse, lascivious acts with a child, incest and indecent contact with a child.
SIOUX CITY  The City of Moville is seeking support from the Woodbury County Board of Supervisors for improvements to Frontage Road.

Moville City Council is seeking $665,000 from the county for part of improvement costs to Frontage Road, said Joel Robinson, Moville City Council member.

The Board of Supervisors was in favor of pursuing the project, expanding it to pave the rest of Frontage Road and starting the project sooner than proposed.

Frontage Road is a 50-50 cost share between Woodbury County and the City of Moville starting at Second Street, Robinson said. So far, Moville has invested $1.2 million into the road over the past five years.

This is a priority for us, this is something that we definitely want to continue and see brought to fruition, Robinson said.

Robinson said new economic development on Frontage Road since 2016 includes a Dollar General, Jensen Funeral Home, Security National Bank, Countryman Financial Group, Lewis Family Drug, Movillatte and the future Moville Area Medical Clinic.

Since 2016, Movilles property value has increased by $1.9 million and tax revenue has increased by $275,000.

Between Security National Bank and Countryman Financial, the City of Moville has invested $505,000 for the street sidewalks, storm sewers, etc. The city is asking Woodbury County to help them continue the street improvements from Third Street to Fair Street.

We want to put in the new 27-foot wide road, the existing road is an old 100 year old road thats about somewhere between 18 and 22 feet wide, Robinson said. The project would also include new water, sidewalk and retaining wall.

The City of Moville would pay $208,500 for water, sidewalk and retaining wall at Jeffs Bar, Robinson said, while Woodbury County would pay $665,000 for water, sidewalk and retaining wall.

With the $208,500 the total investment Moville has made to Frontage Road would be $1.4 million, 55 percent of total costs. Woodbury Countys contribution would be 45 percent of total costs.

The city council proposed the Frontage Road project for the 2024-25 budget.

City Council Member Bret Hayworth said the council wanted to approach the board well in advance of budget season. The plan was to present it in June to give the board time to develop a plan and return in November or December for a final decision.

The board expressed concerns about rising construction costs and the financial strains the board will face during the next budget planning season, so they proposed completing the project in the new fiscal year starting July 1.

Supervisor Mark Nelson said he is proud of Moville for the work on the completed portion of the road and said the rest of the road is something we need to do. He also proposed the county repave the remaining section of Frontage Road to Humbolt Avenue at the same time.

Supervisor Jeremy Taylor proposed using tax increment funding by combining the countys portion of this project, a new project paving the rest of Frontage Road to Humbolt Avenue, and the already-in-motion Elk Creek Road construction project.

Taylor asked the Moville City Council to return to the board in the coming weeks regarding cost-sharing of the remaining section of Frontage Road.
SIOUX CITY  Sioux City Councilman Alex Watters attended the Communities in Action: Building a Better Iowa event on Wednesday in Washington, D.C.

The event is part of a White House series that features local elected officials and community leaders working on behalf of their communities to create opportunities and improve people's everyday lives.

"It was truly an honor to be asked to represent Sioux City at the White House as a part of this program," said Watters, who is serving his second full term on the council after being appointed in early 2017 to fill a vacant seat. "I was able to share with senior advisers to the president regarding the American Rescue Plan and our utilization of those dollars to invest in our wastewater treatment plant, our streets and so many other projects."

2022 City Council oath of office ceremony Judge John Ackerman administers the oath of office to Alex Watters during a ceremony for Sioux City City Councilmen Matthew O'Kane, Dan Moore,

The meeting highlighted the Biden-Harris Administration's investments and impacts in Sioux City and other communities across Iowa.

"We received over $40 million in the American Rescue Plan alone, and that has allowed us to make an impact on every taxpayer," Watters said. "It was great to not only share our successes, but hear their feedback about programs to implement in the future and how we can continue the discussion with this administration."

In addition to the American Rescue Plan Act, the city of Sioux City also utilized assistance through the Department of Homeland Security, Economic Development Administration, Environmental Protection Agency, Department of Housing & Urban Development, Federal Aviation Administration, National Endowment for the Arts and more.
BONN, Germany  A growing number of companies are pledging to cut their greenhouse gas emissions to net zero as part of global efforts to tackle climate change, but that goal is rarely supported by a credible plan, according to a new report.

The idea behind net zero is to stop adding planet-warming gas to the atmosphere, either by preventing the emissions in the first place or removing an equivalent amount through natural or technological means. Scientists say the world needs to reach net-zero emissions by 2050 to limit global warming to 2.7 degrees Fahrenheit compared with pre-industrial times.

The net-zero goal has gained traction in recent years. While 149 countries have such targets, up from 124 in late 2020, the number of publicly listed corporations aiming for net zero increased from 417 to 929, according to the Net Zero Stocktake report compiled by experts from four independent research organizations and published this week.

You can see cities talking about net zero, companies talking about net zero. And if you go to supermarkets, you see climate-neutral or carbon-neutral products, Takeshi Kuramochi, one of the reports authors, said. But then you dont know what exactly they mean and whether theyre really contributing to this transition to global net-zero emissions.

Unlike with national targets, the criteria for net-zero efforts at the sub-national or company level aren't clearly defined.

The authors decided to apply a basic checklist to corporate claims, based on a United Nations campaign called Race to Zero. This includes setting interim targets and covering all the emissions a company is responsible for, including those caused by the use of its products.

Less than 5% of the companies examined passed the test, said Kuramochi, a senior climate policy researcher at the Germany-based NewClimate Institute.

Questionable claims about their environmental efforts have landed a number of companies in hot water recently, with fossil fuel firms in particular accused of greenwashing by excluding some of the emissions caused by their business  particularly the burning of oil and gas by consumers  from their tally.

Britain's Advertising Standards Authority last week censured Spanish oil and gas company Repsol for an ad about its net-zero plans that was likely to mislead consumers. A complaint against energy giant Shell was also upheld, with the body saying that ads failed to make clear how much of the company's business results in high emissions.

Evidence of misleading or outright greenwashing climate claims provided by independent research will only increase in the future, Kuramochi said. I expect to see a lot more litigation cases in the coming years.

He said it might be more effective for companies to focus on achieving the biggest emissions cuts they can as soon as possible rather than using creative accounting to meet net-zero goals.

If they are to commit to more robust and transparent targets, that would be better than outright greenwashing in the name of net zero, Kuramochi said.

The report was compiled by experts at the Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit of the University of North Carolina's Data-Driven EnviroLab, the NewClimate Institute and Oxford Net Zero.

It follows a separate peer-reviewed study published last week in the journal Science that raised questions about the credibility of net-zero targets at the national level.

Its authors say taking government pledges at face value risks exaggerating the likelihood that warming can be capped at 1.5 degrees Celsius. Taking into account current policies and only those net zero targets deemed high confidence would put the world on a path to be 4.3 degrees Farenheit warmer than the late-19th century average, they found, greatly increasing the harmful effects from climate change.

The study, released as negotiators from almost 200 countries held U.N. climate talks in Bonn, Germany, proposes that national net-zero plans should be set in law, lay out a clear path with near-term targets and include sector-specific goals.

25 terms you should know to understand the climate change conversation 25 terms you should know to understand the climate change conversation Weather Climate Ice sheet Global warming Carbon dioxide PPM Methane Emissions COP and UNFCCC Tillage Fossil fuels Ocean acidification Particulate matter INDC Sea ice IPCC Greenhouse gas Global average temperature Biofuels Pre-industrial levels of CO2 Ozone Sea level rise Algal bloom Renewable energy Mitigation
KEARNEY  Authorities are investigating the death of an inmate at the Buffalo County Jail.

Craig A. Martin, 55, of Kearney, died after being found unresponsive in his cell at approximately 7:20 a.m., according to the Buffalo County Sheriffs Office.

Responding officers called for medical assistance and began life-saving efforts. Martin, who was being held in custody on two counts of failure to appear, was transported by paramedics to CHI Good Samaritan Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

The Sheriff's Office has requested assistance of South Central Area Law Enforcement Services, which is made up of 14 area law enforcement agencies, to investigate the death. Preliminary SCALES agencies involved in the investigation are the Hall County Sheriffs Office and the Kearney Police Department.

Due to the death occurring in law enforcement custody, Nebraska state statute requires a grand jury to be convened. The Buffalo County Attorney has requested an autopsy.

Counties with the most farmland in Nebraska Counties with the most farmland in Nebraska #25. Valley #24. South Sioux #23. Chase #22. Boone #21. Rock #20. Antelope #19. Dundy #18. Garden #17. Buffalo #16. Brown #15. Dawson #14. Perkins #13. Keith #12. Knox #11. Red Willow #10. Kimball #9. Cheyenne #8. Morrill #7. Box Butte #6. Sheridan #5. Dawes, North Sioux #4. Holt #3. Custer #2. Lincoln #1. Cherry
A jury in Omaha has found in favor of Werner Enterprises in a lawsuit brought by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission accusing the Omaha-based transportation company of violating the Americans with Disabilities Act for not hiring a Texas driver who is deaf.

Werner's attorneys successfully argued at trial the decision not to hire Andrew Deuschle was "due to legitimate, non-discriminatory reasons."

On Friday, at the end of a five-day trial in U.S. District Court of Nebraska in Omaha, the jury deliberated for about an hour and a half before returning a verdict siding with Werner.

The EEOC had sought a judgment declaring that Werner's employment application violates the ADA and ordering the company to stop making any disability-related inquiries of job candidates. They also had sought money for back pay, job search expenses and other compensation, plus punitive damages.

According to the complaint filed in 2018, Deuschle, who has been deaf since infancy, received an exemption from the hearing requirement set out in federal regulations for commercial motor vehicle drivers.

And in 2015, he applied for a co-driver position at Werner and, by email, told a recruiter about his nearly five months of experience driving for another carrier, C.R. England, and about his hearing exemption.

Werner "preapproved" his application, but ultimately didn't hire him.

In a pretrial ruling, the judge rejected Werner's defense that Deuschle posed a direct threat to the health and safety of himself or others if allowed to operate a commercial motor vehicle.

At trial, the EEOC alleged, and Werner admitted, they have a practice of classifying deaf drivers differently when they apply for employment. While non-deaf drivers' initial applications are automatically preapproved and they're conditionally offered a job, deaf drivers' applications go to a manager.

It wasn't clear at what stage of the process Deuschle received his preapproval from Werner.

In this case in particular, Elizabeth Culhane, one of Werner's attorneys, argued that Deuschle wasn't able to perform the essential functions of the position because he couldn't complete the company's in-house training program, which requires spoken communications in emergency situations.

"Although Werners safety department determined the proposed accommodations for training a deaf driver in its driver placement program are unsafe, the EEOC has brought a campaign of litigation against Werner for declining to hire and train Deuschle" and another driver, Culhane said.

She also pointed to the fact that Deuschle never provided Werner with a copy of his Department of Transportation exemption and argued the evidence does not support a finding of any violation of the ADA.

"To the contrary, even the EEOC acknowledged during the course of its investigation that Deuschle did not provide all requested information in a timely manner, thereby conceding the legitimacy of one of Werners proffered nondiscriminatory reasons for not hiring Deuschle," Culhane said in a pretrial brief.
How to Do It is Slates sex advice column. Have a question? Send it to Stoya and Rich here. Its anonymous!

Dear How to Do It,

My girlfriend and I are two women in our early-20s, and weve been together for nearly two years. Our relationship is mostly great, except for one thing: Over the past six months, the quality of our sex life has dropped dramatically.

My girlfriend developed really bad tendonitis in both of her wrists very suddenly. It makes it difficult for her to do a lot of things she used to enjoy, including, well, me. My favorite parts about having sex have always been the hand stuff (I dont really enjoy oral, and fingering has always been what does it for me). Weve tried to substitute with sex toys, but it hasnt been quite the same. Sex used to be a big part of our relationship, but its been really impacted. It usually goes like this: The sex is mediocre and ends too soon, I have a hard time hiding that Im dissatisfied, and then my girlfriend feels like shit. Its resulted in us hardly having sex at all.

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Were a really communicative couple and weve talked about this a lot! But were really not sure how to get through this one. It sucks to make my partner feel anxious or inadequate, and it also sucks to not know how to get me off. Any tips for ways we could move past this? We both really miss having fun sex, and were not sure what our options are. (We even tried scissoring! Were young and funplease help!)

Premature Lesbian Bed Death

Dear Premature Lesbian Bed Death,

This is absolutely unfortunate, and your dissatisfaction is understandable. Theres nothing like real human fingers, curled up toward the best internal spots. No dildo Ive ever encountered can replicate this feeling. First, practice some active acceptance. Your girlfriend cant do you the way she used to. Yall have to figure out new ways and new types of satisfaction.

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So, is there anything you havent explored? Are there types of toys you havent tried? I would give the Magic Wand a shot, and also (Ive done influencer work for them previously but paid for this one with my own money) Lelos Enigma Cruise. Can you do yourself while she holds you? Do her and get off on her getting off? What about psychological stuff, fantasy, erotic readings, watching porn, impact play, soft sensations that arent directly stimulating, teasing, and edging?

Worst case scenario, you look under several stones and cant find a way to make this work. Then youll have to decide whether you want to remain in the relationship. Theres no shame in understanding that a relationship isnt satisfying you and kindly and gently moving on.

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Dear Missing the Boat,

I recently relocated due to a family death and am in a small town. At age 53, I feel 30ish but Ive been here three years and met nada. To be honest Id like to get back into regular sex while looking for longer-term commitments. I just dont know how to in a small town and Ive never had to use dating apps before. How do I start?

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Missing the Boat

Dear Missing the Boat,

You might want to take a look at the ageism suggested by saying youre 53 but feel 30ishdo you mean youre vital? Full of energy? Do you think people in their 50s arent usually like this? Are you maybe ruling out people your own age because youve got some internalized presumptions about maturity and what being mature means about life and goals? Im just guessing based on three sentences.

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As far as apps, again, youre saying youve never had to use them. If you feel like you resent the idea, dont do it. Dont be one of those people thats a negativity bomb for others to swipe past. If you can see apps as a potential opportunity, great. But if you feel like youre resigning yourself, maybe focus on ways to meet people that youre comfortable with. You might get involved in activities. If there are coffee shopsif youre in the U.S., I know there isnt the same communal caffeine culture, but they can still be pretty friendlyyou might become a regular. Volunteering is another avenue. Anything thatll get you out there encountering other humans.

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No matter your age, identity specifics, or what youre looking for, dating can take time. Finding the kind of relationships you want can take effort. Life hands us all kinds of stuff, but it rarely gives us exactly what we want on a platter. Good luck. With enough gumption and elbow grease, youll probably find something close enough eventually.

Help us keep giving the advice you crave every week. Sign up for Slate Plus now.

Dear How to Do It,

My girlfriend is a woman in her mid-30s who has never experienced an orgasm. Our relationship is relatively healthy but our shared frustration in bed is becoming an ever-increasing conversation topic and challenge for us. We usually have multiple times a week and have tried using different lubes, toys, and positions among other things. I enjoy performing oral and do this frequently as well. Were relatively comfortable discussing past relationships and she has told me that shes gotten closer to having an orgasm with me than with guys from her past.

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While sex is enjoyable for both of us, I have been experiencing a combination of guilt, frustration, pity, and failure. The more we focus on getting her to orgasm, the less enjoyable and more strenuous sex has started to become for me as I try to last as long as possible and we engage in whatever she feels might get her to orgasm. She has recently seen a womens sexual health doctor that specializes in this, who has essentially said everything sounds normal. I suggested she get a second opinion.

I remain a willing partner, but worry that she may never orgasm, or if we figure it out, whatever it requires might not result in enjoyable sex for me. At present, this isnt something that would determine whether or not we stay together, but we do discuss marriage and starting a family. I want her to have orgasms now, but also cant help but think about the futureI fear that a lifetime of this would result in it becoming a bigger issue for both of us. Where can we go from here?

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Frustrated Boyfriend

Dear Frustrated Boyfriend,

Some women dont orgasm. Do encourage your girlfriend to get a second opinion. Also to see a sex therapist. And you can consider couples counseling as well, to tackle your fear about the lifetime ramifications of your mutual frustration over this inability to achieve orgasm.

But putting all this pressure on a peak of pleasure is the best way to prevent one. Counterintuitively, your best bet might be to chill. Take joy in contact with each other. Focus on what feels good. Decentralize her orgasm and also your own. Look at, and prioritize, what you do get out of sex over mourning what you dont. Good luck.

Stoya

More Advice From Slate

I recently orgasmed during a typical massage at a massage therapy chain. It happened during a thigh massage, but no boundaries were crossed. I am married and monogamous, and I get massages for stress relief, although I prefer male therapists both for the hand strength and the added titillation.
This is part of Opinionpalooza, Slates coverage of the major decisions from the Supreme Court this June. Were working to change the way the media covers the Supreme Court. Sign up for the pop-up newsletter to receive our latest updates, and support our work when you join Slate Plus.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has taken aim at Donald Trumps most cherished achievement among establishment conservatives: his transformation of the Supreme Court through the appointment of three staunchly right-wing justices. Trumps judicial record is a point of pride across the GOP; indeed, DeSantis himself praised all three justices when they were nominated. Now that hes competing with Trump for the 2024 Republican nomination, though, DeSantis has decided that there was room for improvement. In a conversation with Hugh Hewitt on Monday, the governor claimed he would do better than Trump. I respect the three appointees he did, DeSantis said, but none of those three are at the same level of Justices Thomas and Justice Alito. I think they are the gold standard, and so my justices will be along the lines of a Sam Alito and a Clarence Thomas.

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In fact, Trump probably agrees that he could have done better. The former president has expressed his disappointment with a number of his three justices rulings, most prominently their rejection of his 2020 election challenges. (This included a fiery rant against the entire court as part of his infamous Jan. 6 Ellipse speech.) The top two contenders in the GOP primary have thus signaled that they will not seek a justice in the mold of Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh, or Amy Coney Barrettraising the question of what, exactly, they will be looking for in a nominee.

The answer may be right in front of us. Few jurists have auditioned more brazenly than Aileen Cannon, the Trump-appointed federal judge who will oversee special counsel Jack Smiths prosecution of the former president. Cannon has already proved that shes more radical and less principled than Gorsuch, Kavanaugh, or Barrett by running interference for Trump to an astonishing degree in an earlier phase of the case. She is now in a perfect position to sabotage Smiths prosecutionmore successfully than when she tried to sabotage the investigationin yet another display of fealty to the man who appointed her. But she faces formidable rivals in her quest to become a leading candidate for the Supreme Court.

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The race to the bottom is already a crowded one. This much, though, is clear: The next Republican appointee to SCOTUS will make Trumps justices look good by comparison.

Before turning to Cannon and her competitors, consider first why someone like DeSantis would be disappointed with Trumps trio of appointees. These three justices, after all, have delivered big-time on several of the Republican Partys top-tier issues: They overturned Roe v. Wade, massively expanded gun rights, gutted environmental protections, bulldozed the separation of church and state, accelerated executions, and stand poised to abolish affirmative action. For an archconservative like DeSantis, whats not to like?

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The answer is that each of these justices does, at least from time to time, put actual legal principles above barefaced policy preferences. They are not moderate, or even consistently impartial, but each has moments of integrity, and that is a fatal flaw in the eyes of many Republicans. To give just a few examples: Gorsuch and Kavanaugh refused to block investigations into then-President Trump launched by the House of Representatives and the Manhattan District Attorney. (Can you imagine Cannon doing this?) Gorsuch affirmed federal protections for LGBTQ employees and Native Americans. Kavanaugh voted to save the Voting Rights Act, as well as Joe Bidens vaccine mandate for hospital workers. Kavanaugh and Barrett have pulled back from the courts abuse of the shadow docket, even for favored right-wing causes. All three justices appear to have voted against Trumps efforts to overturn the 2020 election. More recently, all three seem to have voted to halt Trump-appointed Judge Matthew Kacsmaryks arsenous decision nullifying FDA approval of the abortion pill.

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We should not over-praise Gorsuch, Kavanaugh, and Barrett for doing the bare minimum to act like real judges in each of these cases. The fact that these votes are so notable highlights how low the bar is. And yet, Alito and Thomas dissented from all of these decisions. (Their dissent in the 2020 election case was on technical grounds, though Thomas later suggested the results may be fraudulent.) In doing so, they proved their allegiance to the cause and established a higher standard of hard-right purityone that Trumps justices have not met. Its no longer enough to be a constitutional conservative who votes in line with the Federalist Society agenda. What Republicans want now are pugilistic partisans who are outright committed to the authoritarian project. They want fidelity to the party, its leaders, and its policies rather than some hazy devotion to the law as written, or even democracy.

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From that perspective, Gorsuch, Kavanaugh, and Barrett were missed opportunities. Unlike, say, Samuel Alito, they are capable of occasional independent thinking; they feel some responsibility to act impartially; they are capable of shame and sporadically susceptible to reason. To the Republican Party of today, these attributes would disqualify them from the Supreme Court.

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The current crop of far-right lower-court judges knows all this, and they are offering the alternative that Trump and DeSantis surely have in mind: a devotion to defending Republicans at all costs, combined with a nihilistic drive to enact far-right policies under cover of judicial decision-making. Cannon exemplifies this goalie-style approach to judging, diving at every ball that might harm Trump. So does D.C. Circuit Judge Neomi Rao, another Trump appointee, though she strives to make her handiwork more coherent.

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Kacsmaryk embodies this new style of judging in another way: His decisions are maximally cruel, truculent, and offensive to progressives. Kacsmaryks decision pulling the abortion drug mifepristone from the market fused tendentious rhetoric with relentless gaslighting to justify an unprecedented, destabilizing intrusion into the drug-approval process. When the case reached the 5th Circuit, Judge Andrew Oldham wrote his own vicious opinion shot through with anti-abortion obloquy. But when the case reached SCOTUS, only Alito and Thomas were willing to stand up for Oldhams decision; Gorsuch, Kavanaugh, and Barrett evidently voted to halt it. When the mifepristone case came back around to the 5th Circuit a month later, Judges James Ho and Cory Wilsontwo more notoriously truculent Trump appointeesrefused to heed the Supreme Courts warning. Instead, they threw a temper tantrum from the bench, sounding less like jurists and more like protesters blocking the entrance to Planned Parenthood.

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The list goes on. Theres 9th Circuit Judge Lawrence VanDyke, a wannabe edgelord who churns out inflammatory rants that compare his colleagues to criminals. Theres Kyle Duncan, another 5th Circuit bully who refuses to use trans litigants proper pronouns and likens esteemed LGBTQ literature to pornography. Then there are Kacsmaryks colleagues on the Texas district courtsMark Pittman, James Wesley Hendrix, Brantley Starr, Drew Tipton, David Countswho have issued a ceaseless stream of nationwide injunctions and other ultra-partisan orders against Biden since his first week in office. These men were chosen to do a very specific job, which they performed with aplomb, if little evident interest in acting like real judges. Compared to them, Gorsuch, Kavanaugh, and Barrett may appear, at times, like lily-livered centrists.

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This competition to become the next Republican-appointed justice to the Supreme Court is happening out in the open. It has come to mirror the typical Republican primary, in which candidates outflank each other by moving further and further right until they have reached some astral realm of purity. Cannon is a part of that race right now, and Smiths prosecution will be a boon to her prospects. But dont count out Kacsmaryk, Oldham, and the whole gang of cynical strivers. In vying for the favor of Trump, DeSantis, or the next GOP strongman to come along, these judges will gladly abandon the dash of rectitude that makes Gorsuch, Kavanaugh, and Barrett disappointing to the GOP. They know the prize is worth the price.
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From documents and packages to same-day deliveries, courier businesses play an integral role in the logistics of modern life. Starting your own courier business can be rewarding financially because youll fill an essential community need.

And the best part? The courier business industry continues to exhibit signs of robust growth and resilience, making it a compelling proposition for entrepreneurs seeking a promising business opportunity. This article outlines a strategic 20-step blueprint for starting a courier business.

Steps to Start a Courier Business Description Research the Market and Courier Industry Identify potential clients and their needs, understand the competition, keep abreast with industry trends. Determine Your Target Market Understand the specific market segments within the courier industry that your business will cater to. Choose Your Business Model Determine whether your courier business will cater to businesses (B2B), end consumers (B2C), or individuals (C2C), or a hybrid of these. Develop a Unique Value Proposition (UVP) Identify what sets your courier business apart from competition, such as service speed, customer service, specialized services, or price. Write a Comprehensive Business Plan Detail your business concept, market analysis, competitive analysis, marketing strategy, operational plan, and financial projections. Register Your Business Choose a business structure, register your business name, get a Federal Tax ID, and register with state and local agencies. Obtain Necessary Licenses and Permits Obtain a business license, vehicle registration and insurance, courier license, hazardous materials permit, and zoning permits as applicable. Secure Funding for Your Business Consider options such as personal savings, loans, grants, investors, or crowdfunding. Choose Your Business Location Consider factors like accessibility, proximity to clients, competition, cost, and zoning laws. Set Up Your Office Space Equip your office with necessary furniture, computers and software, internet and telephone, printer and scanner, stationery, and a break area. Purchase or Lease Vehicles Determine the size, fuel efficiency, reliability, and appearance of your fleet based on your business needs and budget. Evaluate the pros and cons of purchasing versus leasing. Develop an Operational Plan Create a comprehensive plan outlining the daily operations of your courier business, including route planning, scheduling, vehicle maintenance, customer service, staff management, and safety protocols. Hire and Train Staff Recruit drivers, administrative staff, and possibly customer service representatives. Invest in their training and development, and implement systems for staff management. Invest in Technology Implement key technologies such as courier management software, route optimization software, GPS tracking, customer relationship management (CRM) software, and digital payment systems to streamline operations and enhance customer service. Create a Marketing Strategy Identify your target market, leverage your unique value proposition, and select effective marketing channels. Build a strong online presence, network to establish connections, and use analytics to track the success of your marketing efforts. Launch Your Courier Company Start with a soft launch to test your operations. Promote your business leveraging your marketing strategy and gather feedback to improve. Focus on Customer Service for a Successful Courier Business Strive for punctuality in all deliveries, provide clear communication, offer efficient problem resolution, seek regular feedback, and train your staff in principles of good customer service. Implement Tracking and Reporting Systems Define your KPIs, use software for data collection and analysis, establish regular reporting, perform data analysis, and adjust based on insights. Establish Partnerships and Collaborations Identify businesses that complement your courier service, build relationships, formalize partnerships with written agreements, and maintain open communication for mutual growth. Continuously Improve and Expand Your Business Explore new markets, add new services, upgrade technology, seek customer feedback, monitor industry trends, and invest in your team for continuous improvement and expansion.

Step 1: Research the Market and Courier Industry

The first lesson on how to start a courier business involves conducting in-depth market and industry research. This process serves to help you identify and understand the needs of your potential clients, the existing competition, and the trends shaping the courier business.

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Understand Local Demand: Start by identifying who your potential clients might be for the new courier business. This could include local businesses, retail shops, hospitals, and individuals in your locality. Determine what they require from a local courier business. Are they seeking same-day deliveries, document courier services, or package deliveries? Assessing these factors will help you tailor your courier business to meet the specific needs of your local market.

Start by identifying who your potential clients might be for the new courier business. This could include local businesses, retail shops, hospitals, and individuals in your locality. Determine what they require from a local courier business. Are they seeking same-day deliveries, document courier services, or package deliveries? Assessing these factors will help you tailor your courier business to meet the specific needs of your local market. Assess the Competition: Find out who else is offering courier delivery service in your locality. What are their strengths and weaknesses? What services do they offer and at what price points? Understanding your competition will allow you to differentiate your own services, giving you a competitive edge.

Find out who else is offering courier delivery service in your locality. What are their strengths and weaknesses? What services do they offer and at what price points? Understanding your competition will allow you to differentiate your own services, giving you a competitive edge. Trends in the Courier Business Industry: Like any industry, courier delivery services also have their trends. These could be technological advancements like drone deliveries, green initiatives, or a growing demand for last-mile deliveries due to increased e-commerce activity. Staying on top of these trends will ensure your courier business remains relevant and competitive.

Step 2: Determine Your Target Market

Once youve familiarized yourself with the broader market landscape, its time to zero in on your specific target market for the new courier business. There are multiple market segments within the courier industry that you can cater to, ranging from business to business, business to consumer, and consumer to consumer. More on this in the next section.

Step 3: Choose Your Business Model

In the courier industry, the way you structure operations for your new courier business model can significantly influence your ventures success. Your business model should align with the needs of your target market. Here are three primary business models to consider:

Business to Business (B2B): In this model, you primarily serve other businesses. B2B couriers often transport legal documents, medical samples, or interoffice deliveries. A significant advantage of this model is the potential for steady, repeat business. On the downside, B2B clients often have specific requirements and high expectations, demanding impeccable reliability and punctuality.

In this model, you primarily serve other businesses. B2B couriers often transport legal documents, medical samples, or interoffice deliveries. A significant advantage of this model is the potential for steady, repeat business. On the downside, B2B clients often have specific requirements and high expectations, demanding impeccable reliability and punctuality. Business to Consumer (B2C): This model involves delivering products from businesses to end consumers. Its a segment that has seen substantial growth with the rise of e-commerce. The B2C model can offer more extensive client bases and higher volumes of work, especially during peak shopping seasons. However, it can also mean irregular demand, difficult logistics involving residential deliveries, and dealing with end customers who might not be at home for deliveries.

This model involves delivering products from businesses to end consumers. Its a segment that has seen substantial growth with the rise of e-commerce. The B2C model can offer more extensive client bases and higher volumes of work, especially during peak shopping seasons. However, it can also mean irregular demand, difficult logistics involving residential deliveries, and dealing with end customers who might not be at home for deliveries. Consumer to Consumer (C2C): Think of individuals sending parcels to their friends and family. While this market may not be as substantial as the B2B and B2C segments, it provides a steady flow of work, especially during holidays and special occasions.

Think of individuals sending parcels to their friends and family. While this market may not be as substantial as the B2B and B2C segments, it provides a steady flow of work, especially during holidays and special occasions. Hybrid Model: This model combines both B2B and B2C services, offering flexibility and a broader range of customers. While this can lead to a more diversified revenue stream, it requires careful planning and management to handle the differing needs of both customer bases.

Choosing the right business model is about assessing your resources, understanding the needs of your target market, and deciding what you can deliver consistently and efficiently.

Step 4: Develop a Unique Value Proposition

It is essential that your new courier business differentiates itself from the competition. Thats where your Unique Value Proposition (UVP) comes into play. A UVP is a clear statement that describes the benefit of your offer, how you solve your customers needs, and what distinguishes you from the competition.

Your UVP can be based on several different factors:

Service Speed: If you can consistently provide faster delivery times than your competitors, thats a potent UVP. For example, you might offer guaranteed same-day local delivery, a service that could appeal to businesses needing urgent document deliveries.

If you can consistently provide faster delivery times than your competitors, thats a potent UVP. For example, you might offer guaranteed same-day local delivery, a service that could appeal to businesses needing urgent document deliveries. Customer Service: Perhaps you distinguish yourself through superior customer service. This could mean personalized service, easy booking, clear communication, or efficient problem resolution.

Perhaps you distinguish yourself through superior customer service. This could mean personalized service, easy booking, clear communication, or efficient problem resolution. Specialized Services: Maybe you focus on a specific niche, like a secure legal document courier business or an environmentally-friendly courier business with a fleet of electric vehicles.

Maybe you focus on a specific niche, like a secure legal document courier business or an environmentally-friendly courier business with a fleet of electric vehicles. Price: If youre able to offer competitive pricing or more value for the price compared to your competitors, that can be a compelling UVP, especially for cost-conscious consumers or businesses.

Step 5: Write a Comprehensive Business Plan

A well-detailed courier business plan is your blueprint for success. It helps you articulate your courier businesss vision, strategize your approach, and chart the route toward your goals. It is also a vital document for attracting potential investors and securing funding. Here are some parts of a business plan to include:

Executive Summary: This is an overview of your business concept, your UVP, and the key financial highlights. Although its the first part of your business plan, youll often write it last.

This is an overview of your business concept, your UVP, and the key financial highlights. Although its the first part of your business plan, youll often write it last. Market Analysis: Include findings from your market research, including an overview of the courier industry, details about your target market, and potential market share.

Include findings from your market research, including an overview of the courier industry, details about your target market, and potential market share. Competitive Analysis: Detail who your competitors are, their strengths and weaknesses, the services they offer, and their pricing. This section should also outline your strategies to differentiate your services from the competition.

Detail who your competitors are, their strengths and weaknesses, the services they offer, and their pricing. This section should also outline your strategies to differentiate your services from the competition. Marketing Strategy: Detail how you plan to attract and retain customers. This could include strategies for branding, advertising, pricing, and customer service.

Detail how you plan to attract and retain customers. This could include strategies for branding, advertising, pricing, and customer service. Operational Plan: Describe your day-to-day operations. This includes your business location, necessary equipment, staff requirements, and suppliers.

Describe your day-to-day operations. This includes your business location, necessary equipment, staff requirements, and suppliers. Financial Projections: Include a detailed budget, expected revenue, profit and loss projections, and a break-even analysis. This section will help you understand how much capital you need to start the business and keep it running until it becomes profitable.

Remember, a business plan is not a static document. As your courier business grows and evolves, so should your plan.

Step 6: Register Your Business

To operate legally, your courier business needs to be registered. Registering your business not only legitimizes your operations but also provides certain legal protections. Here are the key steps involved:

Choosing a Business Structure: The structure you choose will impact your tax obligations, personal liability, and even the ability to raise money. Here are the primary types: Sole Proprietorship: This is the simplest structure where you, as the owner, are the business. Youll have full control but also full liability. Partnership: If youre starting the business with others, you may consider a partnership. Its relatively simple to set up, but like a sole proprietorship, each partner can be held personally liable. Limited Liability Company (LLC): An LLC provides the liability protection of a corporation but with the tax benefits of a partnership. It can be more complex and costly to set up than a sole proprietorship or partnership. Corporation: A corporation is a separate legal entity from its owners. It provides the most protection from personal liability but is more costly and complex to set up and maintain.

The structure you choose will impact your tax obligations, personal liability, and even the ability to raise money. Here are the primary types: Register Your Business Name: You need to register your business name with the appropriate state agency. You might also consider trademarking your business name for added protection.

You need to register your business name with the appropriate state agency. You might also consider trademarking your business name for added protection. Get a Federal Tax ID: Also known as an Employer Identification Number (EIN), this is necessary for tax purposes.

Also known as an Employer Identification Number (EIN), this is necessary for tax purposes. Register with State and Local Agencies: Depending on your state and locality, you may need to register with various state and local agencies. This can include obtaining sales tax licenses or permits.

Remember, its always a good idea to consult with a legal professional to ensure youre meeting all legal requirements when registering your business.

Step 7: Obtain Necessary Licenses and Permits

With your business duly registered, the next step involves securing the appropriate licenses and permits to operate your courier business. Although requirements may vary by location, there are some common ones to consider:

Business License: Virtually all businesses require a license to operate legally. Check with your local governments business department to determine the specific requirements in your area.

Virtually all businesses require a license to operate legally. Check with your local governments business department to determine the specific requirements in your area. Vehicle Registration and Insurance: Your courier vehicles must be registered and insured according to state laws. Commercial vehicle insurance might be necessary depending on the size and nature of your deliveries.

Your courier vehicles must be registered and insured according to state laws. Commercial vehicle insurance might be necessary depending on the size and nature of your deliveries. Courier License: Some cities or states may require a special courier or delivery license. Check with your local government or Department of Transportation to see if this applies to your business.

Some cities or states may require a special courier or delivery license. Check with your local government or Department of Transportation to see if this applies to your business. Hazardous Materials Permit: If your business will be delivering hazardous materials, additional permits and licenses may be required.

If your business will be delivering hazardous materials, additional permits and licenses may be required. Zoning Permits: If you plan to operate your courier business from a specific location, you may need a zoning permit. Zoning laws can affect whether you can operate a business from a specific location like your home.

Remember, failure to obtain the necessary licenses and permits can lead to fines, legal complications, and even the shutdown of your business.

Step 8: Secure Funding for Your Business

From acquiring vehicles to marketing your services, there are upfront costs to consider. Identifying and securing suitable funding is thus a vital step in your start-up journey. Here are some options:

Personal Savings: Using your savings is the most straightforward way to finance your start-up. It gives you full control over your business but also exposes you to personal financial risk.

Using your savings is the most straightforward way to finance your start-up. It gives you full control over your business but also exposes you to personal financial risk. Loans: Banks and credit unions offer business loans. A solid business plan can help secure a loan. The Small Business Administration (SBA) also offers loan programs to assist small businesses. If you have a business bank account, check with your financial institution for options.

Banks and credit unions offer business loans. A solid business plan can help secure a loan. The Small Business Administration (SBA) also offers loan programs to assist small businesses. If you have a business bank account, check with your financial institution for options. Grants: Federal, state, and local governments, as well as some private organizations, provide grants to small businesses. Unlike loans, grants dont need to be repaid, but they often come with specific conditions and are highly competitive.

Federal, state, and local governments, as well as some private organizations, provide grants to small businesses. Unlike loans, grants dont need to be repaid, but they often come with specific conditions and are highly competitive. Investors: You could seek funding from angel investors or venture capitalists. While this could provide substantial capital, investors will typically want equity in your business, meaning youll have to share your profits.

You could seek funding from angel investors or venture capitalists. While this could provide substantial capital, investors will typically want equity in your business, meaning youll have to share your profits. Crowdfunding: Platforms like Kickstarter and GoFundMe allow you to raise small amounts of money from a large number of people. This can be a great way to raise funds without incurring debt or giving away equity.

Before securing funding, its crucial to accurately estimate your start-up costs. Overestimate and you might find yourself burdened with unnecessary debt. Underestimate, and you may run out of money before your business takes off.

Step 9: Choose Your Business Location

The location of your courier business can have a significant impact on your operations and success. Even in our digital age, where many businesses operate entirely online or as outdoor business ideas, a physical location can be crucial for a courier company. Here are some factors to consider when choosing your business location:

Accessibility: Your location should be easily accessible for both your employees and your delivery vehicles. Think about proximity to major roads or highways, and ensure theres ample parking for your fleet.

Your location should be easily accessible for both your employees and your delivery vehicles. Think about proximity to major roads or highways, and ensure theres ample parking for your fleet. Proximity to Clients: If most of your clients are based in a specific area, it may be advantageous to set up your operations nearby. This will reduce delivery times and lower fuel costs.

If most of your clients are based in a specific area, it may be advantageous to set up your operations nearby. This will reduce delivery times and lower fuel costs. Competition: While it can be beneficial to be near your clients, youll also want to consider the level of competition in the area. If there are already multiple courier services operating in one area, it might be harder to establish your business.

While it can be beneficial to be near your clients, youll also want to consider the level of competition in the area. If there are already multiple courier services operating in one area, it might be harder to establish your business. Cost: Consider the cost of renting or buying office space. Remember that a more prestigious or central location will likely come with a higher price tag.

Consider the cost of renting or buying office space. Remember that a more prestigious or central location will likely come with a higher price tag. Zoning Laws: Be aware of any zoning laws or restrictions that might affect your ability to run a courier business from your chosen location.

In some cases, you may decide to start your courier business from home to save on costs.

Step 10: Set Up Your Office Space

Once youve chosen your business location, its time to create a functional and efficient office space. A well-designed office can streamline your operations, improve productivity, and contribute to a professional image. Heres what youll need:

Furniture: Essential pieces include desks, chairs, and storage units. Choose ergonomic furniture to promote comfort and productivity.

Essential pieces include desks, chairs, and storage units. Choose ergonomic furniture to promote comfort and productivity. Computers and Software: Youll need computers equipped with reliable courier management software to help manage orders, track deliveries, and handle billing. An office suite for emails, word processing, and spreadsheets is also necessary.

Youll need computers equipped with reliable courier management software to help manage orders, track deliveries, and handle billing. An office suite for emails, word processing, and spreadsheets is also necessary. Internet and Telephone: A robust internet connection is a must for managing online orders and communications. Youll also need a reliable phone system to handle customer inquiries and communicate with drivers.

A robust internet connection is a must for managing online orders and communications. Youll also need a reliable phone system to handle customer inquiries and communicate with drivers. Printer and Scanner: A multifunction printer that can print, scan, and photocopy will be useful for handling paperwork.

A multifunction printer that can print, scan, and photocopy will be useful for handling paperwork. Stationery: Basics like pens, notepads, staplers, and envelopes are often overlooked but vital.

Basics like pens, notepads, staplers, and envelopes are often overlooked but vital. Security: Depending on the sensitivity of your clients packages, you may need secure storage spaces. Also, consider digital security like firewalls and anti-virus software to protect your business data.

Depending on the sensitivity of your clients packages, you may need secure storage spaces. Also, consider digital security like firewalls and anti-virus software to protect your business data. Break Area: A space for employees to relax and eat can contribute to morale and productivity. This can be as simple as a small kitchenette with a fridge, microwave, and coffee maker.

Step 11: Purchase or Lease Vehicles

Your courier business will require a reliable fleet of vehicles. Whether you decide to purchase or lease these vehicles will depend on various factors, including your business model, budget, and long-term goals. Here are some considerations:

Purchasing Pros and Cons: Buying vehicles gives you complete control and ownership. You can customize and use them as you see fit without worrying about violating lease terms. However, the initial cost can be high, and youll be responsible for maintenance and repairs.

Buying vehicles gives you complete control and ownership. You can customize and use them as you see fit without worrying about violating lease terms. However, the initial cost can be high, and youll be responsible for maintenance and repairs. Leasing Pros and Cons: Leasing requires less upfront capital and often includes maintenance services. It also allows you to upgrade to newer models every few years. However, lease contracts can have restrictions on mileage and wear and tear, and you wont own the vehicles at the end of the lease.

When it comes to selecting the right vehicles, consider:

Vehicle Size: Choose the size of your vehicles based on the type of packages you plan to deliver. Large vans or trucks may be necessary if you are handling large parcels or significant quantities.

Choose the size of your vehicles based on the type of packages you plan to deliver. Large vans or trucks may be necessary if you are handling large parcels or significant quantities. Fuel Efficiency: Consider the fuel efficiency of the vehicles. More efficient vehicles can significantly lower your operating costs over time.

Consider the fuel efficiency of the vehicles. More efficient vehicles can significantly lower your operating costs over time. Reliability: Look for vehicles known for their reliability and durability. Breakdowns can lead to missed deliveries and unhappy customers.

Look for vehicles known for their reliability and durability. Breakdowns can lead to missed deliveries and unhappy customers. Brand Image: Your vehicles are a moving advertisement for your business. Newer, well-maintained vehicles can help to project a professional image.

Step 12: Develop an Operational Plan

A comprehensive operational plan is the heart of your courier business. It outlines how your business functions day-to-day and ensures that youre prepared to handle a range of scenarios effectively. Key aspects include:

Route Planning: Efficient route planning minimizes delivery times and reduces fuel consumption. It involves identifying the quickest and most cost-effective routes for delivering packages. Modern route planning software can help optimize this process by factoring in real-time traffic conditions.

Efficient route planning minimizes delivery times and reduces fuel consumption. It involves identifying the quickest and most cost-effective routes for delivering packages. Modern route planning software can help optimize this process by factoring in real-time traffic conditions. Scheduling: Youll need a system for scheduling pickups and deliveries. This might be based on the order in which orders are received, the proximity of pickups and deliveries, or specific customer requirements.

Youll need a system for scheduling pickups and deliveries. This might be based on the order in which orders are received, the proximity of pickups and deliveries, or specific customer requirements. Vehicle Maintenance: Regular vehicle maintenance helps prevent breakdowns that could disrupt your service and harm your reputation. Establish a schedule for regular vehicle checks and necessary maintenance tasks like oil changes, tire rotations, and brake inspections.

Regular vehicle maintenance helps prevent breakdowns that could disrupt your service and harm your reputation. Establish a schedule for regular vehicle checks and necessary maintenance tasks like oil changes, tire rotations, and brake inspections. Customer Service: Plan how you will handle customer inquiries and complaints. This might involve hiring a dedicated customer service team or training all staff in customer service principles.

Plan how you will handle customer inquiries and complaints. This might involve hiring a dedicated customer service team or training all staff in customer service principles. Staff Management: Consider your approach to managing staff. This includes scheduling, training, communication, and performance management.

Consider your approach to managing staff. This includes scheduling, training, communication, and performance management. Safety Protocols: Establish safety procedures to protect your drivers and your packages. This might involve driver safety training, vehicle safety checks, and procedures for handling hazardous or fragile items.

Step 13: Hire and Train Staff

Building a dedicated and competent team is critical to the success of your courier business. As you grow, youll likely need a mix of drivers, administrative staff, and possibly customer service representatives. Here are some tips for hiring and training your team:

Hiring Drivers: Look for candidates with clean driving records, strong time management skills, and a customer-focused attitude. Specific driving licenses may be required depending on your location and the size of your vehicles.

Look for candidates with clean driving records, strong time management skills, and a customer-focused attitude. Specific driving licenses may be required depending on your location and the size of your vehicles. Hiring Administrative Staff: These employees will manage tasks like taking orders, scheduling, invoicing, and customer service. Look for individuals who are organized, detail-oriented, and comfortable with technology.

These employees will manage tasks like taking orders, scheduling, invoicing, and customer service. Look for individuals who are organized, detail-oriented, and comfortable with technology. Training: Proper training is key to your teams success. For drivers, this might involve safety training, customer service education, and familiarization with your chosen routes. Administrative staff will need to learn your systems and processes, while customer service staff should be trained in resolving issues and maintaining customer satisfaction.

Proper training is key to your teams success. For drivers, this might involve safety training, customer service education, and familiarization with your chosen routes. Administrative staff will need to learn your systems and processes, while customer service staff should be trained in resolving issues and maintaining customer satisfaction. Staff Management: Consider using software to manage schedules, track performance, and facilitate communication within your team. Regular check-ins and feedback sessions can help you promptly address issues and keep your team motivated.

Hiring the right people and investing in their training and development will increase efficiency and enhance your businesss reputation for professionalism and quality service.

Step 14: Invest in Technology

Investing in the right technology can be a game-changer for your courier business. Not only can tech tools streamline operations and improve efficiency, but they can also enhance customer service and satisfaction. Here are some technologies that can give your courier company a competitive edge:

Courier Management Software: This all-in-one solution can handle order bookings, dispatch, billing, and more. Look for software that can integrate with your website for easy online ordering.

This all-in-one solution can handle order bookings, dispatch, billing, and more. Look for software that can integrate with your website for easy online ordering. Route Optimization Software: As mentioned earlier, efficient route planning is crucial for a courier company. Route optimization software uses advanced algorithms to determine the most efficient delivery routes, saving you time and fuel.

As mentioned earlier, efficient route planning is crucial for a courier company. Route optimization software uses advanced algorithms to determine the most efficient delivery routes, saving you time and fuel. GPS Tracking: GPS devices allow you to track your delivery vehicles in real-time. This can enhance driver safety, prevent unauthorized use of vehicles, and provide customers with accurate delivery estimates.

GPS devices allow you to track your delivery vehicles in real-time. This can enhance driver safety, prevent unauthorized use of vehicles, and provide customers with accurate delivery estimates. Customer Relationship Management (CRM) Software: CRM systems help you manage your interactions with current and potential customers. They can aid in tracking customer preferences, handling customer complaints, and identifying opportunities for upselling or cross-selling.

CRM systems help you manage your interactions with current and potential customers. They can aid in tracking customer preferences, handling customer complaints, and identifying opportunities for upselling or cross-selling. Digital Payment Systems: Offering a range of payment options, including credit card payments and mobile payment solutions, can improve the customer experience. Digital payment systems can also streamline your invoicing and payment tracking processes.

Step 15: Create a Marketing Strategy

A well-designed marketing strategy is essential for attracting customers to your courier business. Its not enough to offer a great service  you need to communicate your offerings effectively to your target market. Once you design a company logo and create a brand, heres how to create a successful marketing strategy:

Identify Your Target Market: Youve already determined this in step 2. Ensure your marketing efforts are tailored towards these specific customers. Understand their needs, preferences, and how your courier service can solve their problems.

Youve already determined this in step 2. Ensure your marketing efforts are tailored towards these specific customers. Understand their needs, preferences, and how your courier service can solve their problems. Leverage Your Unique Value Proposition: This is the unique benefit or set of benefits that set your courier service apart from the competition. Make this the centerpiece of your marketing messages.

This is the unique benefit or set of benefits that set your courier service apart from the competition. Make this the centerpiece of your marketing messages. Choose the Right Marketing Channels: Depending on your target market, different marketing channels might be more effective. These could include online advertising (such as Google Ads or social media ads), email marketing, content marketing (blogs, articles, etc.), local print advertising, or even direct mail.

Depending on your target market, different marketing channels might be more effective. These could include online advertising (such as Google Ads or social media ads), email marketing, content marketing (blogs, articles, etc.), local print advertising, or even direct mail. Build a Strong Online Presence: In todays digital world, a professional website and active social media profiles are essential. Consider search engine optimization (SEO) to help your website rank higher in search results, making it easier for potential customers to find you.

In todays digital world, a professional website and active social media profiles are essential. Consider search engine optimization (SEO) to help your website rank higher in search results, making it easier for potential customers to find you. Network: Attend local business events and join business associations to meet potential clients and partners. Personal relationships can often lead to business opportunities.

Attend local business events and join business associations to meet potential clients and partners. Personal relationships can often lead to business opportunities. Track Your Results: Use analytics to track the success of your marketing efforts. This can help you understand whats working and whats not, allowing you to adjust your strategy for maximum effectiveness.

Step 16: Launch Your Courier Company

After meticulous planning and preparation, its time to launch your courier business. This momentous occasion is an opportunity to test your operations, make a splash in the market, and start building relationships with customers. Heres how to make your launch a success:

Soft Launch: Consider starting with a soft launch, serving a limited number of customers or offering a limited range of services. This allows you to test your processes, make necessary adjustments, and ensure everything runs smoothly before you fully launch.

Consider starting with a soft launch, serving a limited number of customers or offering a limited range of services. This allows you to test your processes, make necessary adjustments, and ensure everything runs smoothly before you fully launch. Test Operations: Use this initial phase to test your operations, from receiving orders and planning routes to delivering packages and handling customer inquiries. Identify any hiccups or bottlenecks and take steps to address them.

Use this initial phase to test your operations, from receiving orders and planning routes to delivering packages and handling customer inquiries. Identify any hiccups or bottlenecks and take steps to address them. Promote Your Business: Once youre confident in your operations, its time to start promoting your business. Leverage your marketing strategy to spread the word about your courier service. This could involve online advertising, direct mail, special launch offers, or an event to celebrate the launch.

Once youre confident in your operations, its time to start promoting your business. Leverage your marketing strategy to spread the word about your courier service. This could involve online advertising, direct mail, special launch offers, or an event to celebrate the launch. Gather Feedback: As you begin serving customers, gather as much feedback as you can. This valuable information can help you improve your service and better meet your customers needs.

Step 17: Focus on Customer Service for a Successful Courier Business

Outstanding customer service can set your business apart in the competitive courier industry. A reputation for reliable, friendly service can earn customer loyalty, positive reviews, and word-of-mouth referrals, all of which can drive business growth. Here are some tips for maintaining high customer satisfaction:

Deliver on Time: Timeliness is critical in the courier business. Strive for punctuality in all deliveries, and when delays are unavoidable due to traffic or other issues, communicate promptly and honestly with customers.

Timeliness is critical in the courier business. Strive for punctuality in all deliveries, and when delays are unavoidable due to traffic or other issues, communicate promptly and honestly with customers. Provide Clear Communication: From the moment a customer places an order to the point of delivery, keep them informed. Use notifications to update customers on their packages status, and be quick to respond to queries or concerns.

From the moment a customer places an order to the point of delivery, keep them informed. Use notifications to update customers on their packages status, and be quick to respond to queries or concerns. Offer Problem Resolution: Even with the best planning, problems can arise. When they do, resolve them quickly and professionally. This may involve offering a refund or discount for future service, but most importantly, it involves listening to the customer and working to correct the issue.

Even with the best planning, problems can arise. When they do, resolve them quickly and professionally. This may involve offering a refund or discount for future service, but most importantly, it involves listening to the customer and working to correct the issue. Seek Feedback: Regularly solicit feedback from your customers. This could be through surveys or simply asking for their thoughts after a delivery. Use this feedback to improve your service.

Regularly solicit feedback from your customers. This could be through surveys or simply asking for their thoughts after a delivery. Use this feedback to improve your service. Train Your Staff: Ensure every team member understands the importance of customer service. Train your staff in customer interaction, problem resolution, and the principles of good customer service.

Step 18: Implement Tracking and Reporting Systems

Implementing effective tracking and reporting systems is paramount for a successful courier business. These systems allow you to monitor key performance indicators (KPIs), understand your businesss progress, make data-driven decisions, and identify areas for improvement. Heres how to get started:

Define Your KPIs: Determine which indicators are most important for your business. For courier services, these may include delivery times, on-time delivery rates, number of deliveries completed, customer satisfaction scores, and revenue or profit per delivery.

Determine which indicators are most important for your business. For courier services, these may include delivery times, on-time delivery rates, number of deliveries completed, customer satisfaction scores, and revenue or profit per delivery. Use Technology: Use software to automate data collection and analysis. Courier management software, GPS tracking systems, CRM systems, and accounting software can provide a wealth of data about your business.

Use software to automate data collection and analysis. Courier management software, GPS tracking systems, CRM systems, and accounting software can provide a wealth of data about your business. Regular Reporting: Establish a schedule for regular reporting. This could be weekly, monthly, or quarterly, depending on your needs. Regular reports help you spot trends and make timely decisions.

Establish a schedule for regular reporting. This could be weekly, monthly, or quarterly, depending on your needs. Regular reports help you spot trends and make timely decisions. Data Analysis: Use your data to understand your business better. Look for patterns, identify areas where youre excelling, and flag any issues for further investigation.

Use your data to understand your business better. Look for patterns, identify areas where youre excelling, and flag any issues for further investigation. Adjust Based on Insights: Use the insights gained from your tracking and reporting to improve your courier delivery service. This might mean adjusting routes, changing your marketing strategy, offering new services, or retraining staff.

Step 19: Establish Partnerships and Collaborations

Strategic partnerships and collaborations can unlock new opportunities, expand your customer base, and increase your competitive advantage. Heres why partnerships matter and how to cultivate them:

Access to New Customers: Partnering with businesses like e-commerce platforms or retailers can provide immediate access to their customer base. This can significantly boost your volume of deliveries and enhance your market visibility.

Partnering with businesses like e-commerce platforms or retailers can provide immediate access to their customer base. This can significantly boost your volume of deliveries and enhance your market visibility. Shared Resources and Expertise: Partnerships can enable sharing resources and expertise, leading to cost savings and improved service. For instance, partnering with another courier delivery service could allow you to offer a broader range of delivery options or extended geographic coverage.

Partnerships can enable sharing resources and expertise, leading to cost savings and improved service. For instance, partnering with another courier delivery service could allow you to offer a broader range of delivery options or extended geographic coverage. Business Growth: Strategic collaborations can drive business growth by opening new markets or service areas, or by enabling you to offer additional services.

Here are some tips for identifying potential partners and fostering strong relationships:

Identify Synergies: Look for businesses that complement your courier service. This could be in terms of their customer base, geographic coverage, or services offered.

Look for businesses that complement your courier service. This could be in terms of their customer base, geographic coverage, or services offered. Build Relationships: Networking at industry events, business associations, or online forums can help you connect with potential partners. Take the time to understand their needs and how a partnership could benefit both parties.

Networking at industry events, business associations, or online forums can help you connect with potential partners. Take the time to understand their needs and how a partnership could benefit both parties. Formalize the Partnership: Once youve identified a potential partner and discussed the terms of the collaboration, formalize the partnership with a written agreement. This should clearly outline each partys roles, responsibilities, and share of costs and revenues.

Once youve identified a potential partner and discussed the terms of the collaboration, formalize the partnership with a written agreement. This should clearly outline each partys roles, responsibilities, and share of costs and revenues. Maintain Open Communication: Regular communication is key to a successful partnership. This might involve regular meetings, shared reports, or collaborative tools.

Step 20: Continuously Improve and Expand Your Business

To ensure the long-term success of your business, its important to foster a mindset of continuous improvement and consider strategies for expansion. Staying competitive in the courier industry requires both meeting current customer needs and anticipating future ones. Heres how to focus on growth:

Explore New Markets: If your courier service has gained a strong foothold in your current market, consider expanding to new markets. This could involve serving a new geographic area, targeting a new customer segment, or partnering with businesses in different industries.

If your courier service has gained a strong foothold in your current market, consider expanding to new markets. This could involve serving a new geographic area, targeting a new customer segment, or partnering with businesses in different industries. Add Services: Consider diversifying your offerings to meet more of your customers needs. This could include express deliveries, international shipping, specialized delivery services for items like medical supplies or perishable goods, or warehousing services.

Consider diversifying your offerings to meet more of your customers needs. This could include express deliveries, international shipping, specialized delivery services for items like medical supplies or perishable goods, or warehousing services. Upgrade Technology: Stay abreast of technological advancements in the courier industry. New software, apps, or equipment could help you improve efficiency, offer better service, or differentiate your business.

Stay abreast of technological advancements in the courier industry. New software, apps, or equipment could help you improve efficiency, offer better service, or differentiate your business. Seek Customer Feedback: Regularly solicit customer feedback and use their insights to improve your service. Customers appreciate businesses that listen to them and respond to their needs.

Regularly solicit customer feedback and use their insights to improve your service. Customers appreciate businesses that listen to them and respond to their needs. Monitor Industry Trends: Stay informed about trends in the courier industry. This could include shifts in customer preferences, new regulations, or emerging competitors. Use this information to adapt and innovate.

Stay informed about trends in the courier industry. This could include shifts in customer preferences, new regulations, or emerging competitors. Use this information to adapt and innovate. Invest in Your Team: As your business grows, so too should your team. Invest in training and development to ensure your staff can meet the challenges of a growing business. Recognize and reward their hard work and dedication.

How Profitable is a Courier Business?

Given the ever-increasing demand for quick and reliable delivery services, courier companies can be highly profitable if effectively managed. The potential profitability hinges on several factors, such as market demand, pricing strategy, operational efficiency, and competition. Lets explore these:

Market Demand: The surge in e-commerce and the need for personal package delivery have boosted demand for delivery services. Businesses and individuals rely on couriers to deliver goods quickly and reliably, providing a steady stream of potential customers.

The surge in e-commerce and the need for personal package delivery have boosted demand for delivery services. Businesses and individuals rely on couriers to deliver goods quickly and reliably, providing a steady stream of potential customers. Pricing Strategy: Your earnings depend greatly on your pricing strategy. While competitive pricing can attract more customers, its crucial to price your services in a way that covers costs and leaves room for profit. Consider your costs for fuel, vehicle maintenance, staff salaries, and other operational expenses when setting prices.

Your earnings depend greatly on your pricing strategy. While competitive pricing can attract more customers, its crucial to price your services in a way that covers costs and leaves room for profit. Consider your costs for fuel, vehicle maintenance, staff salaries, and other operational expenses when setting prices. Operational Efficiency: Efficient operations can significantly boost profitability. This includes optimizing delivery routes, maintaining a reliable fleet, and using technology to streamline processes.

Efficient operations can significantly boost profitability. This includes optimizing delivery routes, maintaining a reliable fleet, and using technology to streamline processes. Competition: High competition in your area could impact the pricing and, thus, profitability. However, finding a unique selling point can help your business stand out and attract customers, even in a crowded market.

Profitability also hinges on your ability to grow and adapt. For example, consider the success story of a business like UPS. Starting as a small messenger company in 1907, UPS has grown into a multi-billion dollar corporation by continually innovating and adapting to changing market conditions.

However, its important to remember that every business venture carries risks, and profitability is not guaranteed. It requires strategic planning, hard work, and a focus on customer service.

Is a Courier Service a Good Business to Start?

Starting a courier service can be an exciting entrepreneurial venture. With rapid growth in e-commerce and increased reliance on delivery services, the industry offers significant opportunities. However, like any business, it also presents challenges. Lets weigh these aspects:

Advantages:

Growing Demand: The demand for quick, reliable delivery services is high and continues to grow, driven by the surge in online shopping. This trend isnt limited to large corporations; small businesses, local retailers, and individuals also need courier services.

The demand for quick, reliable delivery services is high and continues to grow, driven by the surge in online shopping. This trend isnt limited to large corporations; small businesses, local retailers, and individuals also need courier services. Low Entry Barrier: Starting a courier service doesnt require a significant initial investment, especially compared to other businesses. If you start small, you can potentially launch your service with a single reliable vehicle.

Starting a courier service doesnt require a significant initial investment, especially compared to other businesses. If you start small, you can potentially launch your service with a single reliable vehicle. Flexibility: A courier business offers flexibility in terms of scale, operational hours, and target market. As one of the top mobile business ideas, you can choose to operate locally, within a specific niche, or even expand to serve a larger market over time.

A courier business offers flexibility in terms of scale, operational hours, and target market. As one of the top mobile business ideas, you can choose to operate locally, within a specific niche, or even expand to serve a larger market over time. Profit Potential: With the right management, efficient operations, and a robust client base, a courier service can generate substantial profits.

Challenges:

Competition: The courier service business is competitive. From large, established corporations to local delivery services, youll need a strong unique selling proposition and effective marketing strategy to stand out.

The courier service business is competitive. From large, established corporations to local delivery services, youll need a strong unique selling proposition and effective marketing strategy to stand out. Operational Challenges: Couriers must navigate traffic, meet tight delivery timelines, manage logistics, and ensure the safety of goods transported. These operational aspects can be challenging.

Couriers must navigate traffic, meet tight delivery timelines, manage logistics, and ensure the safety of goods transported. These operational aspects can be challenging. Regulatory Requirements: Depending on your location, you may need to comply with various regulations, from obtaining the necessary licenses to following transportation and safety rules.

Depending on your location, you may need to comply with various regulations, from obtaining the necessary licenses to following transportation and safety rules. Customer Service: The need for excellent customer service is paramount and can be demanding. Timely deliveries, handling customer complaints, and maintaining open lines of communication are all part of the job.

Deciding whether a courier service is the right business for you depends on your ability to handle these challenges, your willingness to operate in a fast-paced, customer-focused industry, and your capability to adapt to changing market conditions.

FAQs: How To Start a Courier Business

How much does it cost to start a courier business?

The costs to start a courier business can vary significantly based on your specific business model, location, and scale. Initial expenses typically include purchasing or leasing vehicles, obtaining necessary licenses and permits, marketing expenses, and potential office setup costs.

Ongoing costs include fuel, vehicle maintenance, insurance, staff salaries, and operational costs. Its possible to start a small courier business with a few thousand dollars, but a larger operation might require a more substantial initial investment.

How can I differentiate my courier business from competitors?

Differentiation in a courier business can be achieved in several ways. You might focus on providing exceptional customer service, guaranteeing quick delivery times, or offering unique services such as specialized delivery options.

Leveraging technology for efficiency, like advanced package tracking or route optimization, can also set you apart. Finding a niche market underserved by larger courier companies, such as deliveries for local businesses or specific industries, can also help you differentiate your courier business.

What type of insurance do I need for my courier business?

To run a courier business, several types of insurance may be necessary:

Vehicle Insurance: This is mandatory in most countries and covers any damage or accidents involving your delivery vehicles. Goods in Transit Insurance: This covers the goods you transport in case they get lost, damaged, or stolen. Public Liability Insurance: This covers legal expenses and damages if a third party is injured or their property is damaged due to your business operations. Employers Liability Insurance: If you have employees, this insurance is often required by law. It covers claims made by employees who have been injured or become ill due to their work. Professional Indemnity Insurance: While not always necessary, this can cover legal costs if a client claims your service was inadequate or led to a financial loss.

What are the biggest challenges in starting courier services?

Starting a courier business can come with its own set of challenges. Some of the most common include:

Competition: The courier service business is quite competitive, with major players dominating much of the market. Differentiating your services and finding your niche can be challenging but necessary. Operating Costs: Fuel, vehicle maintenance, insurance, and staff wages can add up quickly. Efficient management of these costs is crucial for maintaining profitability. Regulatory Compliance: Ensuring compliance with all local, state, and federal laws and regulations related to courier companies can be complex and time-consuming. Logistical Challenges: Planning efficient routes, managing delivery schedules, dealing with traffic and weather conditions, and ensuring timely deliveries require strategic planning and operations management. Customer Service Expectations: In todays digital age, customers expect fast, reliable, and trackable delivery services. Meeting these high expectations can be demanding. Technology Investment: Investing in the right technology to increase efficiency and track deliveries can be a significant upfront cost.

How long does it take to start seeing profits in a courier business?

The timeline to profitability for a courier business can vary widely based on several factors, such as your initial investment, operating costs, pricing strategy, and the volume of business you can generate. For a small, local courier service starting with minimal costs, it might be possible to start seeing profits within the first year.

However, it might take a few years to become profitable for larger courier companies with substantial upfront costs and ongoing operational expenses. Having a well-thought-out business plan with realistic financial projections is crucial to guide your path to profitability.
Read a selection of short positive stories from Slovakia.

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Every week The Slovak Spectator brings you a selection of three short stories from across Slovakia in which pessimism and negativity are absent.

1) Rescued stork

A rescued stork in the Orava region. (Source: Rescue Centre For Injured Animals Zazriva)

Thanks to the kindness of compassionate individuals, the story of a little stork that fell out of its nest in the village of Kriva, northern Slovakia, took a fortunate turn. Passers-by who happened to notice the stranded stork knew exactly what to do and sought the assistance of Metod Macek, who gladly took in the young bird.

The survival of the stork following its fall can be considered a miracle, and the timely intervention of the caring rescuers made a significant difference.

Macek, who runs a rescue centre for injured animals, explained that once the stork grows up, it will be released to join its flying siblings. He expressed gratitude to everyone involved in the successful rescue of the little stork.

Read more in Slovak.

2) Take a rest, hiker

The Jozef Mak shelter in the Trnava Region woods. (Source: Facebook/Trnava Region)

The official opening of the Jozef Mak shelter took place in the locality of Mihalinova, near the village of Dobra Voda, in the picturesque Little Carpathians in June. The wooden construction is conveniently located near the SNP Heroes' Trail and the long-distance Stefanikova Magistrala trail.

The two-storey shelter came to fruition through the collaborative efforts of the local government, third sector and state institutions.

The architectural design, created by Matthias Arnould, Robert Provaznik and Michaela Vatralova, emerged from a successful crowdfunding campaign initiated by the Hikemates civic association.

Read more in Slovak.

3) Empowering children in need

Jozef and Maria Ondasovci (r) as guests on the podcast Impact Talks. (Source: Pontis Foundation)

Jozef Ondas, a prominent figure in the business world of Kosice, has played a crucial role in transforming the city from a heavy industry-dependent region into a thriving digital hub, brimming with young talent.

His contributions were instrumental in establishing IBM Slovakia and SAP Slovakia, as well as being one of the founding members of the Kosice IT Valley, which has attracted major players in the industry to the eastern regional capital.

Despite achieving significant success as an entrepreneur, Ondas and his wife Maria, a trained chemist, have devoted their lives to supporting children in orphanages and homeless families.

Their philanthropic journey began with the donation of two bicycles.

Read more in Slovak.

Here's more good news stories published by The Slovak Spectator

Zvolen may open a model school inspired by one in Florida, USA.

Unique Poprad prince and his tomb now on display.

Safer nightlife in Bratislava thanks to volunteers from the Night Watch patrol.

The Bardejov pride parade flew three flags for the first time this past weekend.

Here's how you can enjoy summer in Bratislava.

Why is the Dumbier peak called Dumbier?

FUNNY MEME FOR THIS WEEK

E-scooter brings joy to tough Hells Angel

(Source: zomri.online)



Translation: When you've been in Slovakia for an hour, and you're already riding an electric scooter.

The global motorcycle gang Hells Angels, often criticised for its links to criminal activities, held one of its annual meetings in Samorin, Trnava Region, in early June. On the streets of Trnava and Bratislava, you could see many dangerous-looking and muscular men in leather jackets. But one tough Hells Angel decided to "saddle" a Bolt scooter. Quite entertaining, isn't it?

You can send me your tips on positive news stories about Slovakia or funny memes at: yehor.zhukov@spectator.sk. Thank you!
Project in Bratislava scrapped.

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Two hospitals in Martin, north Slovakia, and Banska Bystrica, central Slovakia, will be built by June 2026, it has been announced, as the government looks to ensure money from the Recovery Plan is not lost.

However, the date specifies only when both buildings will have been finished to the level of their structure, but not to the stage where they will be able to receive patients. Further funding will be required after that.

Both towns were selected by Slovakia's current technocratic government because they were the most suitable to meet the date and conditions set by the Recovery Plan.

The total cost of the construction of the new hospital in Martin is 330 million excluding VAT, with the Recovery Plan covering 256 million.

The project is the biggest in the health sector and has been years in the making. The hospital should have 660 beds, 19 operating rooms, and outpatient, diagnostic and therapeutic departments, a separate children's ward, and an emergency room with a trauma centre.

The new Banska Bystrica hospital will have 771 beds, 76 of which will be for acute care. It will cost 370 million excluding VAT and was chosen because constructing a new one is more effective than reconstructing the existing hospital in the city.

Originally, the Health Ministry wanted to use some of the Recovery Plan funding to cover construction of the Razsochy hospital in Bratislava. However, the project was scrapped because various conditions could not have been met in the time allotted.
Neumann Kaffee Gruppe has purchased Nordic Approach. The German-based green coffee importer with offices on five different continents announced yesterday, June 13th that they have acquired a majority share in Nordic Approach, including their spin-off Tropiq.

Nordic Approach originally made waves in the specialty coffee industry back in 2011, when it was announced as a combined effort between Morten Wennersgaard and Andreas Hertzberg of Solberg & Hansen and Tim Wendelboe. Since then, the Oslo-based brand has made a name for itself importing high quality green coffee across Europe and America.

And now, they are part of the larger NKG network, where they will be joining the likes of green coffee importers like Atlas Coffee and InterAmerican Coffee. Per the press release, both Weenersgaard and Hertzberg will stay on as minority shareholders and will continue leading and developing the companies as Managing Directors.

With the acquisition of the majority of shares in Nordic Approach and Tropiq, says NKG Group CEO David M. Neumann, we are confident that we now are in an ideal position to expand our specialty business not just in Scandinavia, but across Europe, Asia and the Middle East. At the same time, we will become better business partners for producers and sellers of the highest quality coffees and to offer a full range of green coffee and coffee related services to the high-quality focused Scandinavian market.

As of press time, details of the sale were not provided. For more information, visit Neumann Kaffee Gruppes official website.

Zac Cadwalader is the managing editor at Sprudge Media Network and a staff writer based in Dallas. Read more Zac Cadwalader on Sprudge.
https://sputnikglobe.com/20230614/algerian-president-abdelmadjid-tebboune-to-start-state-visit-to-russia-1111133835.html

Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune to Start State Visit to Russia

Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune to Start State Visit to Russia

Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune will begin his three-day state visit to Russia on Wednesday.

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Tebboune will arrive in Moscow, where he will meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin to discuss relations between the two countries, as well as issues of regional and international agenda. The sides are expected to sign a document on deepening the two nations' strategic partnership, which will complement the strategic partnership agreement inked between Russia and Algeria in 2001. Additionally, the Algerian leader is likely to meet with other Russian senior officials and visit the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum.

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https://sputnikglobe.com/20230614/bill-gates-arrives-in-china-to-engage-beijing-on-global-health-development-challenges-1111154068.html

Bill Gates Arrives in China to Engage Beijing on Global Health, Development Challenges

Bill Gates Arrives in China to Engage Beijing on Global Health, Development Challenges

US billionaire Bill Gates announced on Wednesday that he arrived in China for the first time since 2019 and intends to engage with Gates Foundation partners on issues pertaining to global health and development challenges.

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Ive just landed in Beijing for the first time since 2019, where Im excited to visit with partners who have been working on global health and development challenges with [the] Gates Foundation for more than 15 years, Gates said via Twitter. Gates pointed out that innovation is required to address challenges related to climate change, health and food insecurity and said he expects to find such innovation in China. In addition, Gates said China has gained much experience in the areas of health, notably by developing drugs against malaria, as well as in climate adaptation investments, which are necessary for the world to unlock the countrys progress. Gates said after completing his visit to China, he would head to Africa.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230302/bill-gates-says-us-wont-be-able-to-limit-chinas-microchip-industry-1107955520.html

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https://sputnikglobe.com/20230614/blinken-to-discuss-us-china-ties-issues-of-concern-during-visit-to-beijing---state-dept-1111150001.html

Blinken to Discuss US-China Ties, Issues of Concern During Visit to Beijing - State Dept.

Blinken to Discuss US-China Ties, Issues of Concern During Visit to Beijing - State Dept.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will visit China in the coming days for talks with senior officials on a range of bilateral issues of concern, State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said in a statement on Wednesday.

2023-06-14T13:16+0000

2023-06-14T13:16+0000

2023-06-14T13:16+0000

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china

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"Blinken will travel to Beijing, the Peoples Republic of China (PRC), and London, the United Kingdom, June 16-21," Miller said. "While in Beijing, Secretary Blinken will meet with senior PRC officials where he will discuss the importance of maintaining open lines of communication to responsibly manage the US-PRC relationship. He will also raise bilateral issues of concern, global and regional matters, and potential cooperation on shared transnational challenges."Antony Blinken during his upcoming trip to China will seek to establish open communication channels in order to prevent miscalculations and avert conflict, Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Daniel J. Kritenbrink said on Wednesday.Blinken is set to travel to Beijing and London from June 16-21.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230613/cuban-missile-crisis-part-2-us-media-accuses-china-of-building-base-1111093720.html

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https://sputnikglobe.com/20230614/brazil-hopes-to-reach-10bln-in-trade-with-russia-by-putins-visit-in-2024---minister-1111161931.html

Brazil Hopes to Reach $10Bln in Trade With Russia by Putin's Visit in 2024 - Minister

Brazil Hopes to Reach $10Bln in Trade With Russia by Putin's Visit in 2024 - Minister

Brazil hopes to achieve $10 billion in trade with Russia by the visit of Russian President Vladimir Putin in 2024, Deputy Brazilian Foreign Minister Laudemar Goncalves de Aguiar Neto said on Wednesday.

2023-06-14T18:53+0000

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vladimir putin

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"We reached $9.8 billion [in trade] last year. And we are very close to our goal of $10 billion. And we hope that, when the Russian president comes to Brazil in 2024, we will achieve this goal. And we hope we will break this historical record," de Aguiar Neto said at the "Russia-Brazil" round table during the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum. In February 2022, then Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, who was visiting Moscow, invited Putin to pay a visit to Brazil. The Russian leader accepted the invitation, with the dates of the visit to be agreed on.

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https://sputnikglobe.com/20230614/chinas-foreign-minister-urges-washington-to-stop-interfering-in-internal-affairs-1111133426.html

China's Foreign Minister Urges Washington to Stop Interfering in Internal Affairs

China's Foreign Minister Urges Washington to Stop Interfering in Internal Affairs

Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang, in a phone conversation with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Wednesday, called on Washington to stop interfering in the internal affairs of China and damaging its development interests.

2023-06-14T05:08+0000

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"The American side must show respect, stop interfering in China's internal affairs, stop damaging China's sovereignty, security and development interests for the sake of competition," Chinese broadcaster quoted the foreign minister as saying. The Chinese official also expressed hope that the US will promote exchanges and cooperation, help ensure that the ties between countries stop deteriorating and stabilize, and return to the path of healthy and stable development. During the talks, the Chinese foreign minister outlined to his American counterpart Beijing's position on the Taiwanese and other key issues, the report said.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230608/military-vet-new-japan-taiwan-drone-fleet-is-part-of-us-plan-to-contain-china-1111011747.html

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https://sputnikglobe.com/20230614/chinas-xi-puts-forth-proposal-to-settle-israeli-palestinian-conflict-1111161224.html

China's Xi Puts Forth Proposal to Settle Israeli-Palestinian Conflict

China's Xi Puts Forth Proposal to Settle Israeli-Palestinian Conflict

Chinese President Xi Jinping on Wednesday put forward a three-point proposal to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict during the meeting with his Palestinian counterpart, Mahmoud Abbas.

2023-06-14T18:40+0000

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"First, the basis for settling the Palestinian issue is the establishment of an independent state of Palestine with full sovereignty within the 1967 borders with East Jerusalem as its capital," Xi Jinping was quoted as saying by the Chinese national broadcaster. Second, the Chinese president pointed out that the needs of the Palestinian economy should be met and the international community should increase humanitarian and development assistance to Palestine. "Third, the right course of peace negotiations should be followed. Respect the historical status quo of Jerusalem's religious shrines, refrain from radical and provocative statements and actions, promote a larger, more authoritative and more influential international peace conference, create conditions for the resumption of peaceful talks and make concrete efforts to help Palestine and Israel coexist peacefully," Xi concluded. Abbas is on a state visit to China from June 13-16.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230411/israel-attacks-al-aqsa-mosque-as-china-promotes-peace-in-the-region-1109333568.html

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https://sputnikglobe.com/20230614/clinton-trump-backers-using-emailgate-as-distraction-from-mar-a-lago-indictment-1111131630.html

Clinton: Trump Backers Using 'Emailgate' as Distraction From Mar-a-Lago Indictment

Clinton: Trump Backers Using 'Emailgate' as Distraction From Mar-a-Lago Indictment

Clinton shot back at Republicans who attempted to turn the tables on the former Secretary of State following former President Donald Trump's historical indictment.

2023-06-14T03:55+0000

2023-06-14T03:55+0000

2023-06-14T03:54+0000

americas

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Former US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has hit back at Republicans for using the topic of her private email scandal as a distraction from Trump being indicted for the second time this year.Hillary wasnt indicted, said Trump at a Georgia Republican Party state convention last weekend. She should have been. But she wasnt indicted.Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and New Jersey Governor Chris Christie echoed those sentiments, suggesting that the Justice Department had a double standard for how they investigated Clintons email practices, in which she was not criminally charged.While James Comey, who was the FBI Director at the time of the Clinton email scandal, called her email practices extremely careless, he and other investigators found no evidence of intention to break laws surrounding classified information. But prosecutors who are handling Trumps case have reportedly found evidence of not only taking boxes of classified information back to Mar-a-Lago with him, but of also attempting to conceal those boxes from investigators.If you watched any of the news programs this weekend, she said, adding that their efforts to defend this man are truly beyond anything that I ever thought possible in our country.I mean, it is so profoundly disturbing how, this could have been the break. This could have been the opportunity to say, Thank you so much for everything youve done for us. We really appreciate it, but this is kind of serious, and so were not going to continue to defend you,' Clinton stated. But no, theyre all in, again. Thats what, the psychology of this is so hard for me to fully grasp.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230613/trump-could-turn-latest-bizarre-bid-to-jail-him-to-his-advantage-1111107334.html

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hillary clinton, donald trump, republicans, democrats, us politics
https://sputnikglobe.com/20230614/denmark-bans-quran-burner-rasmus-paludan-from-major-political-festival-1111133546.html

Denmark Bans Quran-Burner Rasmus Paludan From Major Political Festival

Denmark Bans Quran-Burner Rasmus Paludan From Major Political Festival

Rasmus Paludan rose to notoriety by his Quran-burning demonstrations, which have placed him under costly police protection and sparked international rows.

2023-06-14T06:33+0000

2023-06-14T06:33+0000

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Danish authorities have banned controversial politician Rasmus Paludan, infamous for his Quran-burning antics, from attending a major political festival on the island of Bornholm for security reasons.Local police authorities on Tuesday imposed a ban on Paludan from Allinge village and its environs - including local waters - which is where the Folkemodet festival takes place, from the morning of 14 June to midday on 18 June, on the grounds that his appearance would represent a risk both to himself and others.Over the years, the divisive chairman of the ethno-nationalist Hard Line Party has usually been protected by the Danish Security and Intelligence Service (DSIS). However, this time the DSIS washed its hands of the radical politician, specifically informing the Bornholm police that maintaining personal protection would be impossible.Paludan said that the restriction put him in a dangerous position.Nevertheless, he pledged to appear at the festival, despite the ban. "I will follow the instructions and stay outside the prohibited zone. It will probably be the case that I will be left unprotected, so that any terrorist can shoot me," he added.A Dilemma Between Security and Free SpeechFormer DSIS operational chief Hans Jorgen Bonnichsen argued that the Paludan case represented a "terrible dilemma", because of the authority's duty to protect people, regardless of what statements they make. He also described failure to do so as "in principle, a capitulation".Frederik Waage, a professor of constitutional law at the University of Southern Denmark, said the ban from Folkemodet was "absolutely extraordinary", as Denmark hasn't witnessed anything like this before. Waage also argued that the case raises fundamental questions about the protection of freedom of expression and where to draw the line.Who is Rasmus Paludan?Paludan, leader of the fringe Hard Line Party, which seeks to ban Islam and non-European immigration, rose to notoriety by torching a number of copies of Islam's centerpiece, the Quran, ostensibly to protect free speech. However, this causes tempers to run high, as his demonstrations often take place in immigrant-dense suburban areas or near mosques and have led to massive riots and destruction. In 2019, he ran for parliament, with his party just missing the 2 percent threshold. In the years that followed, threats against Paludan increased in strength and seriousness (particularly when he appeared on Al-Qaeda's* death list), and he has since enjoyed protection from the intelligence service's bodyguards at demonstrations and other events, which has set the Danish state coffers back more than DKK 100Mln (nearly $15Mln).Earlier this year, Paludan, who also has a Swedish passport, made international headlines by burning a copy of the Quran outside the premises of the Turkish Embassy in Stockholm, ostensibly in a bid to give President Recep Erdogan a "lesson in free speech" in connection with Sweden's stalled NATO bid. Though immediately condemned by Swedish leaders and other European nations, his inflammatory demonstrations prompted Turkiye's wrath and seriously crippled Stockholm's possible NATO membership.* Al-Qaeda is a terrorist organization banned in Russia and other countries

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https://sputnikglobe.com/20230614/erdogan-says-turkey-will-not-change-approach-to-swedens-nato-membership-at-july-summit-1111151287.html

Erdogan Says Turkey Will Not Change Approach to Sweden's NATO Membership at July Summit

Erdogan Says Turkey Will Not Change Approach to Sweden's NATO Membership at July Summit

Turkey should not be expected to change its approach to Sweden's NATO membership bid ahead of the alliance's summit in Lithuania unless Stockholm fulfills its obligations, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Wednesday.

2023-06-14T13:58+0000

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recep tayyip erdogan

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"This NATO summit will take place in Vilnius. I hope I will take part in it, unless an extraordinary situation arises. These expectations of Sweden do not mean that we will meet these expectations. In order for us to meet these expectations, first of all, Sweden must fulfill its obligations," Erdogan told reporters on a return flight from Azerbaijan. Sweden's obligations, as laid out by Erdogan to Stoltenberg during their meeting in Istanbul, is to "destroy the activities of this terrorist organization," the Turkish leader said, meaning the Kurdistan Workers' Party, which Ankara has designated a terrorist organization. Erdogan said his chief adviser Akif Cogatay Kilic was scheduled to hold the fourth meeting of the Permanent Joint Mechanism on Wednesday where he would convey the message to the delegations of Sweden, Finland and NATO. On June 4, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg met with Erdogan at Dolmabahce Palace in Istanbul and said after the negotiations that Sweden had fulfilled all its obligations to join NATO. The NATO summit will take place from July 11-12 in the Lithuanian capital of Vilnius, with Stoltenberg as its chairman. Sweden, together with Finland, submitted applications for NATO membership in May 2022, citing changing security environment in Europe on the backdrop of the Ukraine crisis. On March 31, Finland's application was ratified by all 30 members of the alliance. Sweden's bid is still pending approval by Hungary and Turkey. The latter vetoed it after a controversial Quran-burning demonstration in Stockholm on top of prior accusations of Sweden's support of PKK members.

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https://sputnikglobe.com/20230614/europe-needs-new-sustainable-security-system---chinese-ambassador-1111133944.html

Europe Needs New Sustainable Security System - Chinese Ambassador

Europe Needs New Sustainable Security System - Chinese Ambassador

It is necessary to build an effective and sustainable European security system, Chinese Ambassador to Russia Zhang Hanhui said in an interview with Sputnik.

2023-06-14T05:15+0000

2023-06-14T05:15+0000

2023-06-14T05:15+0000

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ukraine

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"The crisis in Ukraine has complex historical background and real causes. In essence, this is an explosion of contradictions in the field of security management in Europe. There is no panacea for overcoming the crisis... It is necessary to look at the root of the problem and based on this, look for ways to solve it, build a balanced, effective, sustainable European security system that will provide Europe with long-term stability," Zhang said. Special Representative of the Chinese Government on Eurasian Affairs Li Hui on May 15-28 visited Ukraine, Poland, France, Germany, the EU headquarters and Russia and held detailed consultations with all parties on a political settlement of the Ukrainian crisis. In February, Beijing proposed its plan to resolve the conflict between Moscow and Kiev. It includes 12 points, including calls for a ceasefire, respect for the legitimate security interests of all countries, and a solution to the humanitarian crisis in Ukraine.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230608/most-europeans-choose-neutrality-in-us-china-conflict-call-beijing-necessary-partner---poll-1111003667.html

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https://sputnikglobe.com/20230614/eus-7th-conference-on-syrian-support-to-start-in-brussels-on-wednesday-1111133725.html

EU's 7th Conference on Syrian Support to Start in Brussels on Wednesday

EU's 7th Conference on Syrian Support to Start in Brussels on Wednesday

A two-day conference entitled "Supporting the future of Syria and the region," which will be the seventh European Union summit on support for Damascus, is scheduled to start in Brussels on Wednesday.

2023-06-14T05:10+0000

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On June 14, a Day of Dialogue will take place, aimed at gathering at the same table members of Syria and neighboring countries' civil societies, as well as leading officials and operational partners, in order to address regional humanitarian and resilience issues. The dialogue will be followed by a ministerial meeting on Thursday to renew global support for Syria and the region as a whole, specifically Jordan, Lebanon, Turkey, Egypt and Iraq. The Brussels VII, the EU's first conference on Syria since its reinstatement in the Arab League earlier this year, remains the key pledging event for Damascus and its neighbors, and is expected to bring about a solution for the Syrian conflict in line with UNSC Resolution 2254, adopted in 2015, which approved a roadmap to achieve peace in the region.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230612/syrian-trade-minister-senior-uae-diplomat-discuss-economic-cooperation---reports-1111071954.html

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https://sputnikglobe.com/20230614/google-forced-to-delay-launch-of-bard-chatbot-in-eu-over-data-privacy-concerns---watchdog-1111131089.html

Google Forced to Delay Launch of Bard Chatbot in EU Over Data Privacy Concerns - Watchdog

Google Forced to Delay Launch of Bard Chatbot in EU Over Data Privacy Concerns - Watchdog

Google will have to postpone the launch of the Bard artificial intelligence chatbot in the European Union as the company has provided insufficient information about how the tool will protect the privacy of Europeans.

2023-06-14T03:11+0000

2023-06-14T03:11+0000

2023-06-14T03:10+0000

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The watchdog at the center of the development was identified as the Irish Data Protection Commission, Google's main data supervisor under the EU's General Data Protection Regulation."Google recently informed the Data Protection Commission of its intention to launch Bard in the EU this week ... [The watchdog] had not had any detailed briefing nor sight of a data protection impact assessment or any supporting documentation at this point," Deputy Commissioner Graham Doyle was quoted as saying by US media, adding that "Bard will not now launch this week." The Irish watchdog has asked for Google's detailed assessment and answers about how the AI complies with EU's data protection rules "as a matter of urgency" and was waiting for the answer. The issue was under "ongoing examination" by the watchdog, which would provide the information to other European data agencies "as soon" as possible. ChatGPT language model, launched in late November, has received mixed reviews for its ability to mimic human conversation and generate unique text based on user input. Some have praised the model for its professional applications, such as code development, while others have criticized its potential for abuse, such as students using the model to write essays.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230613/employees-who-work-with-ai-more-likely-to-experience-loneliness-drinking---study--1111098650.html

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watchdog, google, bard chatbot, european union, data privacy concerns
https://sputnikglobe.com/20230614/high-ranking-officials-from-over-15-states-to-attend-spief---kremlin-1111148135.html

High-Ranking Officials From Over 15 States to Attend SPIEF - Kremlin

High-Ranking Officials From Over 15 States to Attend SPIEF - Kremlin

High-ranking officials from more than 15 countries, including Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune, will attend the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) this year, Kremlin aide Yury Ushakov said on Wednesday.

2023-06-14T12:14+0000

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2023-06-14T12:15+0000

russia's special operation in ukraine

russia

spief 2023

officials

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"There will be high-ranking officials from more than 15 countries in St. Petersburg ... I would mention the President of Algeria, Tebboune ... As for the SPIEF, he [Tebboune], together with our president, will take part in the main plenary meeting on Friday, make a report and, together with our president, take participation in the discussion, during which relevant questions will be asked," Ushakov told reporters. The presidents of Armenia, South Ossetia, as well as the prime minister of Cuba will visit St. Petersburg to speak at the SPIEF opening ceremony, the official added. The St. Petersburg International Economic Forum will be held on June 14-17. Sputnik, a part of the Rossiya Segodnya media group, is an official media partner and the host photo agency for the event.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230601/republika-srpska-leader-dodik-may-attend-russias-spief-forum-in-june-1111106118.html

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st. petersburg international economic forum, spief, high-ranking officials, algerian president abdelmadjid tebboune
https://sputnikglobe.com/20230614/hungarys-top-diplomat-says-ukraine-conflict-would-not-happen-if-trump-won-2020-election-1111148291.html

Hungary's Top Diplomat Says Ukraine Conflict Would Not Happen If Trump Won 2020 Election

Hungary's Top Diplomat Says Ukraine Conflict Would Not Happen If Trump Won 2020 Election

The conflict in Ukraine would not have happened had Donald Trump been reelected for a second term as President of the United States in 2020, Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto has said.

2023-06-14T12:18+0000

2023-06-14T12:18+0000

2023-06-14T12:18+0000

russia's special operation in ukraine

hungary

ukraine

donald trump

viktor orban

russia

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"Im pretty sure - as much as we can be sure about things which did not happen - Im pretty sure still that if President Trump had won the election, this war would not have broken out. And we do look at his possible return to the White House as a hope for a peaceful future," Szijjarto said in an interview with US channel Newsmax on Tuesday. He also said that Hungary supported Trump in his trial over classified documents, adding that the former US president, being a conservative leader, was attacked by the "liberal mainstream." Additionally, Szijjarto called for a peaceful solution to the Ukraine conflict, saying that it is also seriously affecting Hungary and threatens the lives of about 150,000 Hungarians living in Ukraine. On Tuesday, Trump pleaded not guilty in federal court in Miami to 37 criminal charges in connection with his alleged mishandling of classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida. Last week, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban expressed his support for Trump on Twitter. According to Trump's indictment, the classified documents he stored in boxes at his Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida included information about defense and weapons capabilities of both the US and foreign countries, US nuclear programs, potential vulnerabilities of the US and its allies to military attack, and plans for possible retaliation in response to a foreign attack.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230611/ukraines-accession-to-nato-to-be-decided-after-conflict-ends---italian-foreign-minister-1111057912.html

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conflict in ukraine, hungarian foreign minister peter szijjarto, donald trump
https://sputnikglobe.com/20230614/kremlin-says-russia-can-withdraw-from-grain-deal-after-its-termination-1111149597.html

Kremlin Says Russia Can Withdraw From Grain Deal After Its Termination

Kremlin Says Russia Can Withdraw From Grain Deal After Its Termination

Russia can withdraw from the grain deal after the termination of the agreement, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Wednesday.

2023-06-14T13:07+0000

2023-06-14T13:07+0000

2023-07-17T11:38+0000

black sea

russia

moscow

grain exports

black sea grain deal

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"Upon the termination," Peskov told reporters when asked whether Russia can withdraw from the grain deal ahead of schedule or at the end of the existing period.In mid-May, the grain deal was extended until July 17 without any changes. The Russian Foreign Ministry warned that Moscow would block the extension of the deal if its concerns about the implementation of clauses on Russian agricultural exports were not addressed.The grain deal was brokered by the United Nations and Turkey in July 2022 to facilitate the export of agricultural products from Ukrainian ports in the Black Sea during hostilities. The package agreement also included a memorandum of understanding between Russia and the United Nations to unblock Russian grain and fertilizer exports via the Black Sea.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230522/kremlin-on-grain-deal-position-of-western-countries-complicates-process-1110517064.html

black sea

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grain deal, withdraw from the grain deal, grain dealtermination
https://sputnikglobe.com/20230614/moscow-expects-paris-to-clarify-motives-behind-macrons-plan-to-attend-brics-summit-1111140982.html

Moscow Expects Paris to Clarify Motives Behind Macron's Plan to Attend BRICS Summit

Moscow Expects Paris to Clarify Motives Behind Macron's Plan to Attend BRICS Summit

Paris should explain why French President Emmanuel Macron wants to attend the South African-hosted top-level summit of BRICS, to which France is not a member state, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Wednesday.

2023-06-14T10:04+0000

2023-06-14T10:04+0000

2023-06-22T06:54+0000

world

brics

emmanuel macron

france

russia

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"It would be nice if they [Macron's office] told why they want [to attend the summit]. Do they want to once again make some contact to show Paris' activity or is it a 'Trojan horse' of some sort  so let them explain," Zakharova told Radio Sputnik. A comment should follow in particular from the French Presidency or whoever is delegated to represent France at the summit of the key emerging economies, the Russian Foreign Ministry's spokeswoman said. On Tuesday, French newspaper reported, citing sources in the Elysee Palace, that Macron had asked South African President Cyril Ramaphosa for an invitation to the upcoming BRICS summit. A source was cited as saying that South Africa did not say whether it was prepared to allow other international leaders beyond member states to attend the event. BRICS unites the world's largest developing economies  Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa. A number of other countries have expressed intention to join the bloc, including Argentina, Iran, Indonesia, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and Egypt. South Africa, which assumed the rotating BRICS presidency in January, will host the 15th summit of leaders in August. A controversy arose around the event in March after the International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230612/pepe-escobar-us-attempts-divide-and-conquer-strategy-against-brics-1111073623.html

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french president emmanuel macron, russian foreign ministry, brics summit
https://sputnikglobe.com/20230614/moscow-on-delivery-of-uranium-shells-to-kiev-washington-believes-this-will-not-affect-us-1111149276.html

Moscow on Delivery of Uranium Shells to Kiev: Washington Believes This Will Not Affect US

Moscow on Delivery of Uranium Shells to Kiev: Washington Believes This Will Not Affect US

Washington believed that the delivery of depleted uranium shells to Ukraine will not affect the United States, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told Sputnik on Wednesday.

2023-06-14T13:00+0000

2023-06-14T13:00+0000

2023-06-14T13:47+0000

international criminal court (icc)

kiev

ukraine

russian foreign ministry

joe biden

moscow

russia's special operation in ukraine

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"For the United States of America, this is probably not a problem at all. They apparently do not see this as a problem, because they believe that, since they are on another continent, the supply of radioactive substances that will be used in hostilities will not affect them," Zakharova said on the sidelines of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF). On Tuesday, US media reported, citing US officials, that the administration of US President Joe Biden is going to approve the provision of depleted uranium tank munitions to Ukraine. About Attack on Togliatti-Odessa Ammonia PipelineA transparent investigation into an explosion at a section of the Togliatti-Odessa ammonia pipeline is under question, as Kiev will block everything again, Maria Zakharova said.On June 7, the Russian Defense Ministry said that a Ukrainian sabotage group had blown up the Togliatti-Odessa ammonia pipeline in the Kharkov region, adding that there were casualties among the civilian population. This facility, which was targeted by the Kiev regime, was of vital importance to global food security. The facts speak for themselves, and I can repeat them once again: two million tons of raw materials for fertilizer production were transported through it every year, which was necessary to feed 45 million people. Just to clarify the importance of this facility. It is not just a commercial entity or a business matter. It is a matter of food security, which is often discussed by the Western community, which cannot guarantee this very food security, Zakharova told Sputnik. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, speaking about the ammonia pipeline sabotage, said that the explosion would complicate the extension of the grain deal. Commenting on the future of the grain deal, the Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman noted that Moscow has repeatedly said that both parts of this agreement should be implemented symmetrically or in a balanced manner, to the same extent. We did not see any equality or symmetry in this matter. It was obvious that only grain was being transported, which, instead of contributing to food security, was working against it. We saw the imbalances: prices, the collapse of European producers, grain that did not reach those in need, but ended up in the countries of the European Union and only filled the pockets of Western traders. Of course, the issue of non-compliance, including by the United Nations itself with its promises and commitments, as it has become to a large extent the guarantor, becomes truly overwhelming, Zakharova pointed out.On Kakhovka HPP DestructionSpeaking about attack on the Kakhovka hydroelectric power plant (HPP) Maria Zakharova said that sny decisions of the International Criminal Court (ICC) in connection with its destruction will be legally null and void for Moscow."The ICC, in principle, does not have any competence to order any interstate payments, which the Kiev regime immediately began to talk about, since, in fact, it does not consider disputes between states. And in any case, Russia and many other countries do not participate in the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court and bear no obligations under it, as we have repeatedly said. We do not cooperate with this body, any decisions for us will be legally null and void," Zakharova said on the sidelines of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF).Last week, the aide of Ukraines prosecutor general, Maksym Popov, said that Prosecutor General Andriy Kostin had sent an appeal to the ICC in The Hague in connection with the destruction of the Kakhovka HPP.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230613/white-house-to-provide-ukraine-with-depleted-uranium-tank-shells---reports-1111106953.html

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230610/togliatti-odessa-ammonia-pipeline-unlikely-to-launch-soon-after-ukrainian-attack--moscow-1111048583.html

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230606/fact-check-who-attacked-novaya-kakhovka-dam-1110946820.html

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uranium shells to kiev, depleted uranium, affect the united states
https://sputnikglobe.com/20230614/netanyahu-confirms-us-iran-in-talks-over-new-nuclear-mini-deal---reports-1111145888.html

Netanyahu Claims US, Iran in Talks Over New Nuclear 'Mini-Deal' - Reports

Netanyahu Claims US, Iran in Talks Over New Nuclear 'Mini-Deal' - Reports

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has told a closed parliament meeting that the United States and Iran were negotiating a new nuclear "mini-deal," under which Tehran will limit its uranium enrichment in exchange for sanctions relief, Israeli news website Walla reported, citing five lawmaker present at the meeting.

2023-06-14T11:28+0000

2023-06-14T11:28+0000

2023-06-14T11:28+0000

world

benjamin netanyahu

israel

us

iran

sanctions

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On Monday, the Iranian Foreign Ministry confirmed indirect talks with the US in Oman on the nuclear program but noted that Tehran was not interested in a potential interim deal. It also specified that negotiations on a prisoner exchange are "continuing via mediators." Netanyahu said at a closed session of the parliament's foreign affairs committee on Tuesday that Washington and Tehran were in touch to try to negotiate a "mini-deal," and not a comprehensive agreement, under which Iran will not enrich uranium over 60%, while the US will unblock some of its funds abroad in return, the unnamed Israeli lawmakers were cited as saying. Netanyahu assured the lawmakers that these talks were not a revival of the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, which Israel strongly opposed, the lawmakers added. The US and Iran are also discussing a prisoner exchange, the report said. On Tuesday, the US Department of State said that most of the reports about some kind of temporary deal between the US and Iran on the nuclear program are inaccurate or misleading.

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us, iran, israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu, uranium enrichment
https://sputnikglobe.com/20230614/new-us-arms-package-shows-qualitative-change-underway-for-ukrainian-army-1111153485.html

New US Arms Package Shows Qualitative Change Underway for Ukrainian Army

New US Arms Package Shows Qualitative Change Underway for Ukrainian Army

The most recent US aid package to Ukraine, which is in the middle of a stalled-out counteroffensive, reveals the Pentagon is rapidly running out of money and weapons, weakening its ability to behave as a bully around the world.

2023-06-14T17:31+0000

2023-06-14T17:31+0000

2023-06-14T17:32+0000

analysis

ukraine

us military aid

us

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On Tuesday, the Pentagon unveiled another $325 million package of military aid for Ukraine - its 40th such package since February 2022. The tranche includes ammunition for anti-air and anti-tank weapons, several types of armored fighting vehicles, artillery shells, and a variety of support equipment.However, the size and composition of this 40th shipment, which comes as the highly anticipated Ukrainian counteroffensive is underway, actually shows that US funds and stockpiles are drying up, Qin An, a Chinese military expert and space strategist, told Sputnik.Qin noted that the package reflects changes in the situation in Ukraine, pointing out that "a quantitative change can gradually lead to a qualitative change."However, at this rate, Qin warned that Ukraine could become a second Afghanistan for American politicians: a money hole where billions are wasted without demonstrable benefit. But they, accustomed to making substantial profits from participating in or manipulating wars, have found it difficult to do so in Ukraine.Instead, the net result of US support for Ukraine will be to reduce the US militarys weapons inventory, weaken its combat strength and ability to prosecute wars around the globe, and especially to compete with China, which Washington regards as its primary global adversary.The world's anti-hegemony situation has reached a turning point. China and Russia are 'shoulder to shoulder, back to back. There will be substantial achievements."

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230614/ukraine-lost-some-7500-people-on-contact-line-since-june-4---russian-mod-1111148435.html

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Fantine Gardinier

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Fantine Gardinier

ukraine; military aid; counteroffensive; stocks
https://sputnikglobe.com/20230614/not-all-doom--gloom-ais-superpower-may-bring-44-trillion-in-value-to-global-economy-1111135352.html

Not All Doom & Gloom: AIs Superpower May Bring '$4.4 Trillion in Value' to Global Economy

Not All Doom & Gloom: AIs Superpower May Bring '$4.4 Trillion in Value' to Global Economy

Generative artificial intelligence (AI) will boost productivity to a level that may generate as much as $4.4 trillion of value to the global economy annually, according to a new report from McKinsey Global Institute.

2023-06-14T11:09+0000

2023-06-14T11:09+0000

2023-06-14T11:15+0000

beyond politics

us

artificial intelligence (ai)

mckinsey global institute

elon musk

chatbots

global economy

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As generative artificial intelligence (AI) software becomes increasingly embedded in every form of business activity, it will boost productivity to a level that may generate as much as $4.4 trillion in value to the global economy, according to a new report.Generative A.I. could add the equivalent of $2.6 trillion to $4.4 trillion annually across the 63 use cases we analyzed," stated the 68-page report from McKinsey Global Institute.The accelerated development of generative AI tools will result in half of all work becoming automated between 2030 and 2060, the analysts added, saying:As to the potential economic benefits, 75% of this could purportedly come from four use cases:Generative AI, with its chatbots such as ChatGPT that can generate text based on prompts, analyzed in potential use across some 850 occupations, could boost productivity by between 0.1% and 0.6% over the next 20 years, the report said.The AI tools able to also generate videos and images have been at the heart of a raging debate regarding the effects they may have upon the job market and the global economy. There have been warnings that AI could take over people's jobs, might start spreading misinformation, and even pose an "existential threat to humanity." British-Canadian computer scientist Geoffrey Hinton, known popularly as the Godfather of AI, suggested that AI could get more intelligent than us and could decide to take over. To a degree, the new report fed into these concerns, conceding that regulators would need to address the likelihood that content generated by the AI tools can be misleading and inaccurate. But, as AI will help workers automate tasks, it will create superpowers for high-skilled workers, Lareina Yee, a McKinsey partner and an author of the report, stated.Interestingly, the advent of the new AI technology will leave the most educated workforce more vulnerable, said the authors of the report. This is a stark contrast to how previously the advent of new technology impacted people with lower educational qualifications, performing more physical tasks.The hope-inspiring report citing the huge benefits of AI technology, which is making tremendous strides, comes as a not inconsiderable number of AI experts and tech celebrities have been warning about potential risks associated with artificial intelligence development. Tesla CEO Elon Musk, AI pioneers Yoshua Hengio and Stuart Russell, joined a cohort of like-minded scholars to sign a letter in April calling for a six-month pause on the development of more powerful AI systems. AI systems with human-competitive intelligence can pose profound risks to society and humanity, as shown by extensive research and acknowledged by top AI labs, the document noted.However, those behind the latest McKinsey report laud the huge potential of the rapidly evolving technology. They pointed out that AIs uncharted risks can be duly assessed, with measures developed to mitigate them. If you could capture even a third of what the technologys potential is, it is pretty remarkable over the next five to 10 years, Lareina Yee, one of the authors of the report, enthused.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230531/ai-poses-existential-threat-to-humanity-tech-leaders-warn-1110807567.html

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230529/scientist-warns-of-looming-existential-threat-as-hyper-intelligent-ai-could-decide-to-take-over-1110772797.html

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Svetlana Ekimenko

Svetlana Ekimenko

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Svetlana Ekimenko

ai, artificial intelligence, new report, mckinsey global institute report, generative artificial intelligence software, embedded in business activity, boost productivity, generate $4.4 trillion of value, global economy, customer operations, automated natural language interactions, marketing and sales, personalized messages, software engineering, accelerate coding process, product research and development, r&d, ai poses existential threat to humanity, take over people's jobs, start spreading misinformation,
https://sputnikglobe.com/20230614/polish-repair-hub-for-kievs-leopards-amplifies-national-security-risks-1111153876.html

Polish 'Repair Hub' for Kiev's Leopards Amplifies National Security Risks

Polish 'Repair Hub' for Kiev's Leopards Amplifies National Security Risks

Berlin and Warsaw are due to finalize a deal to create a Polish "repair hub" for Leopard battle tanks damaged in Ukraine prior to a July NATO summit.

2023-06-14T16:58+0000

2023-06-14T16:58+0000

2023-06-14T16:58+0000

analysis

boris pistorius

olaf scholz

poland

kiev

ukraine

nato

social democratic party

leopard 2

europe

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The beginning of the Kiev regime's counteroffensive was marked by heavy Ukrainian losses in manpower and military equipment provided by the West. Having lost over a dozen German-made Leopards, Ukrainian officials urged Berlin to provide replacements as soon as possible. While the German leadership ruled out "hot swapping" its equipment, Berlin announced that it was about to establish a "service hub" for the damaged battle tanks in Poland. The deal was first announced on April 21 by Germany's Defense Minister Boris Pistorius at a meeting of NATO allies at the Ramstein air base. What's behind Warsaw's eagerness to seal the agreement?Piskorski noted that German politicians are similarly divided when it comes to Berlin's support for the Kiev regime. Apparently, therefore, it has taken several months for the German-Polish "repair hub" deal to take shape."Probably, [these delays are] precisely due to those internal disagreements, including disagreements within the Social Democratic Party of Germany itself, the ruling party of [German Chancellor] Olaf Scholz," suggested the Polish commentator. "Previously, we also observed that all decisions were made after quite a long time. Often it turned out that all actions were taken with certain delays. Therefore, I think that this is due precisely to internal disagreements and the lack of determination of the German government."Poland Getting Bogged Down in Ukraine CrisisThe Polish repair facilities are expected to play a central role in ensuring the combat effectiveness of Western weapons supplied to Ukraine, including Leopard 2 and Challenger tanks, self-propelled howitzers, and infantry fighting vehicles, armored personnel carriers, and military trucks. However, it also means that Poland is being further dragged into the Russo-Ukrainian conflict.Even though this is not yet direct participation, Poland is indeed turning into a certain hub and "the rear support" of the Kiev regime, according to Piskorski.At the same time, given the possibility of an escalation of the conflict, the deal promoted by Berlin and Warsaw also endangers Poland's security, per the commentator."For example, it is no coincidence that many journalists have started talking about the fact that American Patriot systems have now been installed at the Rzeszow-Jashonka airport, which serves as a transshipment hub for weapons entering Ukraine. Apparently, some expect that in the event of an escalation, the conflict could expand to the territory of Poland," Piskorski said.Per Piskorski, Warsaw is continuing to amplify already existing security risks faced by the nation. The "repair hub" endeavor is another step towards escalating these risks, he concluded.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230613/why-cant-western-weapons-save-day-for-ukraines-counteroffensive-1111121503.html

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230610/poland-may-have-been-used-as-operating-base-for-nord-stream-sabotage---report-1111041736.html

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leopard main battle tank, poland repair hub for german tanks, poland logistic hub for ukraine, poland logistic hub for weapons, poland ukraine conflict, ukrainian counteroffensive, western weapons destroyed in ukraine, leopard tanks destroyed in ukraine
https://sputnikglobe.com/20230614/russia-ready-to-consider-new-indonesian-peace-initiatives-on-ukraine--ambassador-1111146096.html

Russia Ready to Consider New Indonesian Peace Initiatives on Ukraine  Ambassador

Russia Ready to Consider New Indonesian Peace Initiatives on Ukraine  Ambassador

Russia is ready to consider any new peace initiatives on Ukraine from Indonesia, Russian Ambassador to Jakarta Lyudmila Vorobieva told Sputnik on the sidelines of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum on Wednesday.

2023-06-14T11:32+0000

2023-06-14T11:32+0000

2023-06-14T11:32+0000

russia's special operation in ukraine

volodymyr zelensky

prabowo subianto

indonesia

russia

ukraine

peace plan

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"I cannot say whether there will be new proposals for peace in Ukraine from Indonesia. This is a question for the Indonesian authorities. But, as you know, Indonesia would be ready to act as a third party in the Ukraine issue ... If Indonesia officially presents any other proposals to us, we, of course, are ready to consider them," Vorobieva said. She noted that in order to promote any sort of peace plan, there must be a good will on both sides. On June 3, Indonesian Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto proposed a peace plan for the Ukrainian conflict that would create a demilitarized zone similar to the one between North and South Koreas. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky continues to insist his own peace plan is the only viable and acceptable option for Kiev. In November, Zelensky unveiled his 10-point peace plan, which provides for the withdrawal of all Russian troops and the restoration of Ukraine's full territorial integrity. Zelensky also wants security guarantees for Ukraine and the creation of an international mechanism to compensate his country's for the losses using Russian assets. Russia has responded to international mediation attempts by saying that it would be open to negotiations respecting Russian interests and "the reality on the ground," but that Kiev did not seem interested in trying to find a negotiated solution.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230430/chinas-ukraine-peace-plan-platform-to-start-process-of-political-settlement-of-ukraine-conflict-1109984415.html

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new peace initiatives on ukraine, st. petersburg international economic forum, indonesian peace initiatives
https://sputnikglobe.com/20230614/russia-signed-over-750-food-export-contracts-in-national-currencies-in-2023---moscow-1111132518.html

Russia Signed Over 750 Food Export Contracts in National Currencies in 2023 - Moscow

Russia Signed Over 750 Food Export Contracts in National Currencies in 2023 - Moscow

Russia signed more than 750 contracts on the exports of grain, oil and sugar in national currencies in 2023, Viktoria Abramchenko said.

2023-06-14T07:31+0000

2023-06-14T07:31+0000

2023-06-14T07:31+0000

russia

russia

food exports

national currencies

spief 2023

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Russia signed more than 750 contracts on the exports of grain, oil and sugar in national currencies in 2023, Viktoria Abramchenko said. She added that the deliveries of grains with settlements in national currencies were a priority, and the number of contracts continues to increase. Russia was also engaged in talks with other countries on the export of agricultural products in national currencies. "We are engaged in negotiations with all friendly countries. In total, our agricultural exports include 160 countries worldwide. And, of course, we are interested in trading in rubles. But the readiness of a receiving country is also important," she said. In January, Abramchenko told Sputnik that Turkiye had successfully paid for grain in rubles and noted that Russia was also working on the issue of such supplies to Egypt. The St. Petersburg International Economic Forum has been held since 1997, and since 2006 it has been held under the patronage and with the participation of the President of the Russian Federation. In 2020, the forum was canceled because of the coronavirus pandemic. Sputnik, a part of the Rossiya Segodnya media group, is an official media partner and the host photo agency for the event.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230607/putin-addresses-2023-st-petersburg-international-economic-forum-1110980845.html

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exports of grain, exports of oil and sugar, national currencies
https://sputnikglobe.com/20230614/russias-ambassador-to-indonesia-says-russian-tourists-cannot-be-intimidated-by-sanctions-1111132950.html

Russia's Ambassador to Indonesia Says Russian Tourists Cannot Be Intimidated by Sanctions

Russia's Ambassador to Indonesia Says Russian Tourists Cannot Be Intimidated by Sanctions

Russian Ambassador to Indonesia Lyudmila Vorobyova told RIA Novosti at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) 2023 that Russian tourists in Indonesia, including Bali, cannot be intimidated by sanctions or negative statements.

2023-06-14T04:47+0000

2023-06-14T04:47+0000

2023-06-14T07:23+0000

russia

russia

indonesia

tourists

sanctions

spief 2023

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"The Indonesian authorities and Bali authorities decided to clean up the mess. There are laws of the country, there are immigration laws. If you arrived on a tourist visa, then you cannot engage in illegal labor activities. If you have a visa for a certain period, and you stay in the country for a longer period and do not renew a visa or do not apply for a new one, then this is a violation of the immigration law," Vorobyova said. She said the new sanctions and statements did not affect the flow of tourists from Russia. Recently, numerous reports have appeared in the Indonesian media about cases of deportation of Russian citizens from Indonesia and, in particular, from the resort island of Bali. There were also a number of negative statements regarding Russian tourists, and new sanctions were introduced - in particular, Bali Governor Wayan Koster published a list of eight bans for tourists in Bali. The St. Petersburg International Economic Forum will be held on June 14-17. Sputnik, a part of the Rossiya Segodnya media group, is an official media partner and the host photo agency for the event.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230531/what-to-expect-at-spief-2023--st-petersburg-international-economic-forum-1110813056.html

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russian tourists, st. petersburg international economic forum, russian tourists in indonesia, sanctions
https://sputnikglobe.com/20230614/spief-2023-behind-the-scenes-1111137785.html

SPIEF 2023: Behind the Scenes

SPIEF 2023: Behind the Scenes

The St Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) kicked off at the ExpoForum Convention and Exhibition Center on Wednesday and will last until 17 June... 14.06.2023, Sputnik International

2023-06-14T13:06+0000

2023-06-14T13:06+0000

2023-06-14T13:06+0000

multimedia

photo

spief 2023

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The main theme of this years SPIEF will be sovereign development to create a just world, and will include discussions related to the world economy at a global turning point, building technological sovereignty, protecting the population and quality of life, and responding to new labor-market challenges.The forum will also include business dialogues between Russia and Brazil, China, the UAE and Latin America. Prospects for economic cooperation within BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa) and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) will be discussed.The St Petersburg International Economic Forum has been held since 1997, and since 2006 it has existed under the patronage and with the participation of the President of the Russian Federation. In 2020, the forum was canceled because of the coronavirus pandemic.Take a look at what has been happening backstage at the St Petersburg International Economic Forum in Sputnik's gallery:

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https://sputnikglobe.com/20230614/sri-lanka-russias-rosatom-to-build-nuclear-plant-together---ambassador-1111150593.html

Sri Lanka, Russias Rosatom to Build Nuclear Plant Together - Ambassador

Sri Lanka, Russias Rosatom to Build Nuclear Plant Together - Ambassador

Sri Lanka has reached a deal with Russian nuclear giant Rosatom to build a nuclear power plant that may run two reactors and generate 300 megawatts of energy, the Sri Lankan ambassador in Russia said Wednesday.

2023-06-14T13:37+0000

2023-06-14T13:37+0000

2023-06-14T13:37+0000

world

sri lanka

russia

rosatom

international atomic energy agency (iaea)

spief 2023

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"We will go for a nuclear power plant  There are options actually  two sources, 300 megawatts," Janitha Abeywickrema Liyanage told Sputnik on the sidelines of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum. The ambassador said that having its own power plant would allow the Indian Ocean island nation to overcome the energy crisis. The government will speed up the approval process to begin the construction in the near future. "There is a proposal and there is approval to follow the procedures from the Sri Lankan cabinet, and the International Atomic Energy Agency is also now looking at it, and they have set up certain working groups. Rosatom has set up four working groups in four different areas," she said.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230605/russias-rosatom-completes-pilot-operational-cycle-of-recycled-nuclear-fuel-1110929985.html

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https://sputnikglobe.com/20230614/swedish-prosecutor-hopes-to-finish-investigation-into-nord-stream-blasts-by-fall-1111145265.html

Swedish Prosecutor Hopes to Finish Investigation Into Nord Stream Blasts by Fall

Swedish Prosecutor Hopes to Finish Investigation Into Nord Stream Blasts by Fall

Swedish public prosecutor Mats Ljungqvist, who is in charge of the investigation in the blasts on the Nord Stream pipelines, on Wednesday expressed hope that by fall the prosecution would bring charges against those responsible for the bombings.

2023-06-14T11:20+0000

2023-06-14T11:20+0000

2023-06-14T11:20+0000

nord stream sabotage

sweden

russia

germany

nord stream ag

nord stream

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"I hope that in fall we will manage to agree on the charge. It is our goal, at least it looks like this at the moment," Ljungqvist told Radio Sweden, adding that the investigation is nearing its final stage. Swedish investigators are cooperating with their German colleagues, the prosecutor stated, saying that he had met with them, but did not disclose any details of the meeting. On Tuesday, US media reported, citing officials familiar with the matter, that before the bombings, Dutch military intelligence officials had notified the CIA that a Ukrainian sabotage team was seeking a yacht on the Baltic coastline to be used by divers to plant explosives along the Nord Stream pipelines. The CIA, in turn, warned Ukraine against the sabotage, it added. The Nord Stream pipelines, built to deliver gas under the Baltic Sea from Russia to Germany, were hit by explosions in September 2022. The pipeline's operator, Nord Stream AG, said that the damage was unprecedented and it was impossible to estimate the time repairs might take. Denmark, Germany and Norway have left Russia out of their investigations into the attack, prompting Moscow to launch its own investigation over the charge of international terrorism.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230610/poland-may-have-been-used-as-operating-base-for-nord-stream-sabotage---report-1111041736.html

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https://sputnikglobe.com/20230614/turkiye-reportedly-unlikely-to-let-sweden-join-nato-at-upcoming-meeting-1111131292.html

Turkiye Reportedly Unlikely to Let Sweden Join NATO At Upcoming Meeting

Turkiye Reportedly Unlikely to Let Sweden Join NATO At Upcoming Meeting

Turkiye does not intend to lift its objections to Swedens membership in NATO at a meeting between the two sides planned for this week, US media is reporting.

2023-06-14T03:24+0000

2023-06-14T03:24+0000

2023-06-14T03:24+0000

world

sweden

nato

kurdistan workers' party (pkk)

turkiye

nato membership

nato summit

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Turkiye does not intend to lift its objections to Swedens membership in NATO at a meeting between the two sides planned for this week, US media is reporting.According to an American business journal, Turkiye is unlikely to signal its ready to approve Swedens bid to join NATO in the near-term due to Stockholms permissive attitude towards a group of Kurdish separatists known as the PKK, which Ankara accuses of terrorism.On Wednesday, Turkish representatives are set to meet with their counterparts from Sweden and Finland for talks outlined at a NATO summit in Madrid last summer.Citing people familiar with the matter, the US-based outlet wrote that Ankara still wants Sweden to do more to comply with its conditions to sign off on its membership in time for a summit of the military alliances leaders next month.Those presumably-Turkish sources reportedly stressed Swedens full compliance with the agreement is key for the expansion process to move forward.In a joint news conference with his Polish counterpart Monday, Swedish Foreign Minister Tobias Billstrom attempted to assuage Turkish concerns, claiming: we condemn all terrorist organizations, including the PKK, which carry out attacks.Billstrom insisted Sweden is ready to be an active and loyal ally from day one and contribute to the security of all allies, adding that the country is ready to contribute to the strengthened presence of NATO in the Baltic Sea region, air patrols, and other collaborations for national security.With these concerns seemingly in mind, the Swedish government reportedly agreed Monday to hand over a convicted Turkish drug dealer who Ankara accuses of maintaining connections to the outlawed PKK group.Several European foreign ministers have expressed hope that Turkiye would green-light Swedens NATO membership before the alliance meets for its next summit in the Lithuanian capital of Vilnius from July 11 to 12. But for Ankara, its unclear whether enough progress has been made yet to allow Stockholms bid to move forward.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230605/stockholms-recent-rally-may-further-hinder-swedens-nato-bid-1110910773.html

sweden

turkiye

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Wyatt Reed

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turkiye, sweden, nato, nato membership
https://sputnikglobe.com/20230614/uk-foreign-secretary-to-visit-china-for-first-time-in-over-5-years---reports-1111158006.html

UK Foreign Secretary to Visit China for First Time in Over 5 Years - Reports

UK Foreign Secretary to Visit China for First Time in Over 5 Years - Reports

After having received an invitation to visit China, UK Foreign Secretary James Cleverly may become the first foreign secretary of the United Kingdom to do so in more than five years, media reported on Wednesday, citing high-ranking sources.

2023-06-14T17:02+0000

2023-06-14T17:02+0000

2023-06-14T17:03+0000

world

china

james cleverly

united kingdom (uk)

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London is planning this trip for late July, the report said, adding that China's Liu Jianchao, a minister heading the International Liaison Department of the Chinese Communist Party, is expected to arrive in the UK next week for talks with legislators. Last week, Liu met with former Labour Cabinet minister Peter Mandelson in Beijing, the report said. In early June, UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak was reportedly trying to openly revive the kingdom's ties with China, which comes against the backdrop of the UK and other Western countries' endeavor to counterbalance their tense relations with Russia by seeking rapprochement with Beijing.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20221129/a-systematic-challenge-rishi-sunak-states-that-golden-era-between-uk-and-china-is-over---1104814399.html

china

united kingdom (uk)

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united kingdom, china, uk-chinese relations, uk foreign secretary james cleverly, uk diplomat visits china
https://sputnikglobe.com/20230614/us-envoy-to-nato-says-allies-yet-to-agree-on-ukraines-nato-membership-1111149115.html

US Envoy to NATO Says Allies Yet to Agree on Ukraine's NATO Membership

US Envoy to NATO Says Allies Yet to Agree on Ukraine's NATO Membership

NATO allies cannot agree on Ukraine's prospects for membership, with a couple member states still "in opposition" on the matter, US Permanent Representative to NATO Julianne Smith said on Wednesday.

2023-06-14T12:50+0000

2023-06-14T12:50+0000

2023-06-14T12:51+0000

military

nato

european union (eu)

ukraine

jens stoltenberg

volodymyr zelensky

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"There is a rich conversation going on across the alliance with a whole array of views. This is not a situation where the entire alliance has agreed language for how to describe Ukraine's membership aspirations and there is one or two countries that stand outside of that group in opposition," Smith told a briefing ahead of a meeting of the NATO defense ministers. In September 2022, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced that Ukraine was applying for fast-track NATO membership. NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg reaffirmed the bloc's unchanged position on the right of each country to determine its own path and on its "open door" policy but noted that the alliance would concentrate its efforts on helping Ukraine defend itself. In early June, Zelensky said that Kiev was hoping to receive a clear invitation to the bloc at NATO's July summit in Vilnius. He also said the Ukrainian military was disappointed that Ukraine had not yet received a clear positive response about joining both the European Union and NATO. Vilnius will host a NATO Summit from July 11 to 12. Stoltenberg will chair the meeting. Ukraine's NATO prospects, strengthening the alliance's eastern flank, as well as defense spending are expected to be on the agenda.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230520/pledge-of-nato-membership-for-kiev-would-confirm-russias-warnings-about-blocs-aggressive-posture-1110490624.html

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ukraine's nato membership, ukraine's prospects for membership, us permanent representative to nato julianne smith
https://sputnikglobe.com/20230614/us-military-helicopter-mishap-left-22-service-members-injured-1111130489.html

US Military: Helicopter Mishap Left 22 Service Members Injured

US Military: Helicopter Mishap Left 22 Service Members Injured

Over 20 American service members were injured over the weekend in what the US military is describing as a helicopter mishap.

2023-06-14T01:51+0000

2023-06-14T01:51+0000

2023-06-14T01:51+0000

military

syria

donald trump

al-hasakah

pentagon

syrian democratic forces (sdf)

daesh

us soldiers

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Over 20 American service members were injured over the weekend in what the US military is describing as a helicopter mishap.A helicopter mishap in northeastern Syria resulted in the injuries of various degrees of 22 US service members, the US military said in a statement which indicated the episode took place on Sunday.No enemy fire was reported, the statement insisted.The US military personnel who suffered injuries were said to be receiving treatment, and 10 of them were reportedly moved to higher care facilities outside the area.US media is reporting that a total of 15 soldiers required medical evacuation following the incident.As reported by American journalist Dave DeCamp, a US airdrop operation involving helicopters was reported on the same day in al-Hasakah, a province in northeast Syria.Around 900 US troops are currently occupying Syrian territory, in what experts describe as a clear violation of international law.*Daesh (also known as ISIS/ISIL/IS) is a terrorist organisation outlawed in Russia and many other states

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230530/us-preparing-terrorist-attacks-on-syrias-crowded-places-govt-institutions--russias-svr-1110791208.html

syria

al-hasakah

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us military, us service members, helicopter accident, syria, us central command
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, June 14)  The Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) on Wednesday clarified that it has already collected the 10-million fine of Grab that was imposed in 2018.

"The claim that Grab has not yet paid the 10-million fine has no iota of truth and is absolutely preposterous," LTFRB Chairman Teofilo Guadiz III said in a statement. "We already collected the fine, and we have a copy of the receipt to prove it."

He did not say when the fine was collected.

Five years ago, the transport agency imposed a 10-million fine on the ride-hailing application for allegedly overcharging its passengers.

The Philippine Star, meanwhile, released an opinion piece on Wednesday claiming that the LTFRB has not yet collected the fine. The writer also accused the agency of "coddling" the country's leading ride-hailing firm.

"Clearly, the Land Transport Franchising and Regulatory Board is coddling Grab. LTFRB officials are liable for corruption," the opinion piece read.

The article also criticized how the transport agency seems to be lenient with Singapore-registered Grab yet strict with local taxi drivers.

The LTFRB has denied the allegations.

"Throughout the years, the agency has remained strict in imposing public land transportation laws and other policies and regulations and does not favor anyone," Guadiz responded.

Last May 15, the Philippine Competition Commission (PCC) also ordered Grab to pay a 9-million fine for its failure to reimburse a combined 25.45 million to its customers.

It was on top of the 63.7 million in penalties earlier imposed by the antitrust body for Grab's violating PCC orders following its acquisition of lone rival Uber back in 2018.
https://sputnikglobe.com/20230614/us-senator-blocks-arms-sales-to-hungary-for-stalling-of-swedens-entry-to-nato-1111163317.html

US Senator Blocks Arms Sales to Hungary for Stalling of Swedens Entry to NATO

US Senator Blocks Arms Sales to Hungary for Stalling of Swedens Entry to NATO

US Senator James Risch will stall arms sales to Hungary as punishment for Budapest delaying Swedens accession to the NATO alliance, the top Republican on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee said on Wednesday.

2023-06-14T19:39+0000

2023-06-14T19:39+0000

2023-06-14T19:38+0000

world

nato membership

jim risch

jens stoltenberg

recep tayyip erdogan

hungary

sweden

nato

high mobility artillery rocket system (himars)

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For some time now, I have directly expressed my concerns to the Hungarian government regarding its refusal to move forward a vote for Sweden to join NATO, Risch said, as quoted by US media.The move blocks a $735 million arms sale by the United States to Hungary, which includes High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS). Hungary has blocked Swedens entry into NATO, citing a need for improved relations between Budapest and Stockholm first. Turkiye has likewise blocked Swedens membership over concerns about Stockholms approach to organizations deemed terrorist by Ankara. Earlier Wednesday, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said it is possible to have an agreement in place for Swedens accession by the military alliances summit in July. However, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan also said on Wednesday that Turkiye should not be expected to change its stance on the matter unless Sweden meets its expectations.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230614/erdogan-says-turkey-will-not-change-approach-to-swedens-nato-membership-at-july-summit-1111151287.html

hungary

sweden

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2023

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us senator james risch, nato membership, sweden, hungary, arms sales, senate foreign relations committee
https://sputnikglobe.com/20230614/washington-trying-to-blackmail-armenians-in-karabakh-into-us-brokered-talks-heres-why-1111147719.html

Washington Trying to Blackmail Armenians in Karabakh Into US-Brokered Talks: Heres Why

Washington Trying to Blackmail Armenians in Karabakh Into US-Brokered Talks: Heres Why

The dispute between Armenians and Azerbaijanis over the landlocked mountainous region of Nagorno-Karabakh has been a source of severe tensions between the Caucasus nations, with several wars fought over the territory over the past 35 years. Moscow has worked tirelessly to mediate the crisis.

2023-06-14T13:51+0000

2023-06-14T13:51+0000

2023-06-14T14:12+0000

asia

ilham aliyev

nikol pashinyan

vladimir putin

nagorno-karabakh

azerbaijan

armenia

european union (eu)

russian foreign ministry

european council

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Washington is reportedly making a concerted, behind-the-scenes push to interfere directly in negotiations between Azerbaijan and the ethnic Armenian-led unrecognized Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh, including by blackmailing the Armenian side with the threat of a fresh round of violence in the region.Informed sources cited by Russian media indicated that US officials - which until recently had limited their "mediation" efforts to talks between Azerbaijan and Armenia proper, are now trying to force their way into the sensitive negotiations between Baku and Stepanakert (Nagorno-Karabakhs self-proclaimed capital).The ultimatum has reportedly been received negatively in Stepanakert overall, but got support from Sergey Ghazaryan, the self-proclaimed republics foreign minister.The past few weeks have seen a flurry of US and EU diplomatic activity in the Southern Caucasus, with Armenia and Azerbaijans foreign ministers meeting in Washington with Secretary of State Antony Blinken in early May, and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev holding talks in Brussels mediated by European Council chief Charles Michel the same month. In late May, Pashinyan, Aliyev, and Russian President Vladimir Putin held trilateral talks in Moscow. Pashinyan and Aliyev got into an argument much reported on in Western media about transport corridors during the Eurasian Economic Union Summit, with Putin intervening to quell the dispute.US and EU mediators spoke of significant progress in the Armenian-Azeri talks, but few details were made public. However, on May 22, Pashinyan made the bombshell announcement that Yerevan would be ready to recognize Nagorno-Karabakh as part of Azerbaijan if the security of its ethnic Armenian population was guaranteed. This move was sharply criticized by some observers as a de-facto concession by Yerevan to leave the Karabakh issue practically to the mercy of Western sponsors, with autonomy guarantees for the region left off the table.Moscow deployed a 2,000 troop-strong peacekeeping contingent to Nagorno-Karabakh three years ago after the September-November 2020 war, with these forces patrolling the Lachin corridor connecting Armenia proper to Nagorno-Karabakh. Russias strategy has revolved around seeking to maintain the status quo, ensuring the safety and security of the local civilian population, and preventing any further hostilities from breaking out.Concerted Push to Eject Russia From RegionRetired Russian Foreign Ministry senior advisor Alexander Ananiev fears US and its allies and sympathetic actors in Yerevan and Baku have decided to try to remove Russia from its mediation role, and to eliminate Russias presence in the Southern Caucasus generally (including through the removal of the Russian military base in Armenia proper, and Yerevans withdrawal from Russian-led integration processes and defense agreements).'Perfect' TimingStanislav Tarasov, a veteran Russian political scientist specializing in Caucasus affairs, points out that the timing of the reported US "mediation effort" in Nagorno-Karabakh lines up perfectly with the signing of a major railway construction agreement by Russian and Iranian officials last month to bring the ambitious North South Transport Corridor one step closer to reality.The West offers nothing, have no solution of their own. They play on contradictions between Yerevan and Baku which Moscow is trying to neutralize or eliminate, Tarasov told Sputnik. For Russia, the opening of new trade and transit routes is particularly vital today, Tarasov said, owing to the breakdown in economic relations with the West after the escalation of the Ukraine crisis, which deprived Moscow of key routes for global trade.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230605/armenia-azerbaijan-deny-agreeing-return-to-1975-borders-1110918486.html

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230523/pashinyan-yerevan-willing-to-concede-nagorno-karabakh-if-armenian-population-respected-1110528416.html

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united states, nagorno-karabakh, russia, armenia, azerbaijan, negotiations, peace talks, pressure, talks
https://sputnikglobe.com/20230614/what-is-a-sanitary-zone-and-how-could-it-be-created-in-ukraine-1111152233.html

What is a 'Sanitary Zone' and How Could It be Created in Ukraine?

What is a 'Sanitary Zone' and How Could It be Created in Ukraine?

Moscow could respond to Ukraine's incursions, sabotage attacks and shelling of the Russian border regions by creating a "sanitary zone", Russian President Vladimir Putin said at a meeting with military journalists. What could the creation of the "sanitary zone" mean for Ukraine?

2023-06-14T16:20+0000

2023-06-14T16:20+0000

2023-06-14T16:20+0000

igor korotchenko

dmitry medvedev

ukraine

kiev

russia

ukrainian armed forces

un security council (unsc)

us

opinion

demilitarized zone

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"The 'sanitary zone' is a demilitarization zone," Igor Korotchenko, military analyst, editor-in-chief of National Defense magazine, told Sputnik. "Formally, it will remain the territory of Ukraine, but either Russian Armed Forces will be present there, or strikes will be carried out so that no military infrastructure of Ukraine is present there. The main goal and tasks [related to the sanitary zone] are to prevent the shelling of Russian cities, towns and the death of the Russian civilian population. Here is what was meant."On June 13, President Vladimir Putin met with war correspondents covering the Russian special military operation to demilitarize and de-Nazify Ukraine. The president noted that if the Kiev regime proceeds with attacks against Russian citizens, Moscow would consider forming a "sanitary zone" in Ukraine for the sake of security.The Russian president emphasized that he did not mean that this work will start "tomorrow," adding that the Kremlin has to see how the situation develops.What Do Russian Officials Say About a Sanitary Zone?The line of the "sanitary zone" in Ukraine should run along the borders of Lvov, given the decisions of the West to supply Kiev with long-range missiles, according to Deputy Chairman of Russia's Security Council Dmitry Medvedev. "Such a line should run along the borders of Lvov (Polish Lemberg) in order to play a real defensive role," Medvedev stated on his Telegram account.Moscow needs to push back the military infrastructure of the Ukrainian Armed Forces to ensure the security of the Russian regions, said presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov, commenting on Vladimir Putin's statement about the possible creation of a sanitary zone.It is too early to say how exactly Russia would create the sanitary zone, mentioned by the president, and who would control it, Andrey Kartapolov, head of the State Duma Defense Committee, told Sputnik.Why Would a 'Sanitary Zone' in Ukraine Be Needed?Ukraine is continuing to carry out attacks against Russia's newly admitted territories, including the Donetsk and Lugansk People's Republics, and the Zaporozhye and Kherson regions. The Kiev regime's forces are also conducting drone attacks targeting civilian infrastructure and military assets in other regions of the Russian Federation. Ukrainian saboteurs have also attempted incursions across the Russian southern border.In particular, Ukrainian nationalists have heavily bombed Shebekino, the Belgorod Region, primarily targeting its infrastructure and civilians, and prompting people to flee from the town. Just 2,703 people remain in Shebekino, and 6,000 are now in temporary accommodation, according to the town's administration. Before the Kiev regime's indiscriminate shelling, roughly 40,000 people lived there.According to the military expert the best solution is to create a so-called "sanitary zone" along the Dnepr River. Per him, it's "the maximum task" which could be accomplished with an increase in the number of staff of the Russian Armed Forces.What are 'Sanitary Zone' Examples?The concept of a sanitary, or buffer, or demilitarized zone has been repeatedly employed in international practice to ensure security amid an armistice.For example, on July 27, 1953, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) and South Korea inked an armistice agreement to establish a demilitarized zone (DMZ) along their shared border (248 km). The Korean DMZ is on average four kilometers wide. On both sides of the zone, there are minefields and significant groupings of troops.After the Yom Kippur War (October 6, 1973  October 25, 1973), the UN Security Council established a 75 km-long DMZ near the Golan Heights between Israel and Syria on May 31, 1974. Syria's Golan Heights were captured by Israel in 1967 in the aftermath of the Six Day War. The Syrian and Israeli armies were separated by a 400-square-km (155-square-mile) area in which the two countries' military forces were not permitted.The Buffer Zone in Cyprus  a demilitarized zone that separates the Republic of Cyprus from the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus  was created on August 16, 1974, after the end of hostilities between the two. The DMZ extends approximately 180 km across the island; while in some parts of old Nicosia, it is just 3.3 meters wide, in other areas its width reaches up to 7.4 km. The DMZ is restricted to the general public, with no Greek or Turkish Cypriots allowed inside.On March 26, 1979, Cairo and Tel Aviv signed a peace treaty stipulating that the Sinai Peninsula  a land bridge that connects Israel and Egypt  became a buffer zone, following a series of fierce conflicts. The peninsula was divided into four zones, each with its own limitations on how many Egyptian and Israeli troops could be stationed there.On April 3, 1991, after Operation Desert Storm, spearheaded by the United States, the UN Security Council created a DMZ along the border between Iraq and Kuwait. The zone was surrounded by barbed wire and has a length of 200 km. Until 2003, a UN mission was located in the DMZ.When Could Ukraine 'Sanitary Zone' be Formed?Prior to establishing a potential "sanitary" or "demilitarized" zone in Ukraine, Russia should solve a couple of major tasks, as per Igor Korotchenko."After we reach the line of the state border of the Russian Federation, which, in accordance with the Constitution, already includes four new subjects, after that it will be possible to say that a certain sanitary zone is being created," Korotchenko explained.According to him, it would be a zone where neither units of the Ukrainian Army nor any means of delivering strikes on Russian territory would be located. What's more, "it is understood that it will be controlled, again, by the Russian Army," he underscored.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230613/putin-ukraine-fails-in-all-directions-of-counteroffensive-1111116289.html

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230613/why-cant-western-weapons-save-day-for-ukraines-counteroffensive-1111121503.html

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sanitary zone in ukraine, buffer zone, demilitarization zone, armistice, ukraine terror attacks, ukraine sabotage attacks, shelling of belgorod, bombing of shebekino, ukraine attacks russian civilian infrastructure, russia civilians killed by ukrainian military, ukraine assault on belgorod, ukraine drone attacks on moscow
https://sputnikglobe.com/20230614/which-russian-weapons-systems-have-built-in-ai-1111158825.html

Which Russian Weapons Systems Have Built-In AI?

Which Russian Weapons Systems Have Built-In AI?

Russias minister of industry confirmed to Sputnik on Tuesday that an S-350 Vityaz missile system operating in automatic mode had been successfully used in the ongoing Russia-NATO proxy war in Ukraine. How has Russia incorporated AI in its military equipment? What is it used for? And which specific systems have it? Sputnik investigates.

2023-06-14T18:03+0000

2023-06-14T18:03+0000

2023-06-14T18:30+0000

science & tech

uran-9

vityaz

oniks

nato

russia

ukraine

artificial intelligence

artificial intelligence (ai)

military

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Just recentlyfor the first time in the world, the Vityaz performed the automated detection, tracking and destruction of Ukrainian air targets in combat conditions, Industry Minister Denis Manturov told Sputnik on Tuesday in a wide-ranging interview.The ministers remarks were corroborated in a Sputnik report in May, with an informed source telling the news agency that several Ukrainian warplanes and drones had been shot down by a Vityaz, and that the detection, tracking and destruction were carried out in fully automatic mode.First unveiled in 2013 and introduced into service with the Russian military in late 2019, the S-350 is a hybrid upgrade of the S-300 featuring an increased ammunition load, improved electronic countermeasures, an upgraded radar complex, and a new targeting computer allowing it to quickly find targets and survey the battlespace, and integrate with other complexes to increase the density of anti-aircraft firepower. The S-350 has a reported maximum range of up to 120 km, depending on missile, and can engage as many as 16 aerodynamic targets or 12 ballistic ones at altitudes up to 30 km simultaneously.Detailed information about the computer hardware used by the S-350 is difficult to come by, given the secrecy around most Russian military computing applications. What is known is that the computer is able to independently determine which type of missile would be most effective for use against a particular target. Furthermore, having determined enemy targets parameters, the computer can independently outline the sequence for their destruction, and calculate which subordinated forces and installations to fire from (if applicable) for greatest efficiency. The systems human operators retain the last word, and can either approve the course of action chosen by the computer or independently punch in an alternative. In any event, AI-assisted calculations in air defenses serve a crucial purpose: reducing reaction time, and therefore increasing combat readiness and effectiveness.Defining AIBefore going any further, its important to set definitions for what constitute "AI weaponry."Often, when we imagine AI, its some powerful, insanely expensive and complex hardware and software  like Skynet from The Terminator series of movies, or Deus Ex Machina in The Matrix. The reality is, artificial general intelligence  the idea of a type of AI that possesses true human-like cognitive capabilities, including the ability to learn, reason, solve problems, and communicate using natural language, has yet to be created. Instead, what we see today in discussions around AI is actually artificial narrow intelligence, or ANI  a goal-oriented version of AI designed to allow a computer to become extremely good at one task in particular  like playing chess, writing essays, or, as the case may be, shooting down enemy air targets.In other words, it can be safely said that weapons like the S-350 Vityaz wont gain self-awareness and decide to build a utopian machine society free from humans. Not only because their algorithms lack the ability to engage in such mind experiments or ponder their own existence, but because of the computing power limitations of Russian industry.Old School AIRussian defense companies have been working to integrate ANI into their products for decades, with basic automation especially important in various high-precision weapons.For instance, the Granit and Oniks lines of anti-ship cruise missiles have technically simple, but mathematically sophisticated computers that can select, prioritize, and differentiate targets automatically using information collected during flight. They can also work in groups, evade enemy electronic warfare and air defenses, select a pack leader and even deliberately divert defensive fire onto themselves as their comrades proceed to the main target. And they do it all using 1980s microchip technology (in the case of the Granit). The Oniks, created in the 2000s, operates according to similar principles, but with more complex algorithms made possible by advances in computer hardware.The Buran space shuttle is another example of well-coded ANI developed using very limited computing resources. In 1988, the shuttle blasted off to space, after which it descended back down to Earth and landed at the Baikonur Cosmodrome without any human interference, with its onboard 16-bit main computer independently adjusting for wind conditions and altering its course, enabling a flawless landing. The Burans achievement wouldnt be replicated until 2010, when the Boeing X-37 orbital test vehicle autonomously landed at Vandenberg Air Base in California using a far more sophisticated onboard computer.The missile defense system around Moscow is also known to use elements of ANI automation, both in its ground-based Don-2N radar system, which automatically detects targets and offers a course of action for operators. If an intercept decision is made, A-135 Amur interceptor missiles featuring a fully-automated target detection and tracking system, including the ability to distinguish between real and dummy enemy targets, are fired to intercept and destroy the intruders. The systems successor, the A-235 Nudol, is expected to be even more advanced, and is currently undergoing testing.Much has also been said about "Dead Hand"  the automatic nuclear-control system known in Russia as Perimeter  which has the ability to launch Russias nuclear deterrent independently if the countrys leadership is killed in a surprise enemy decapitation strike. The system, which first took up combat duty in the mid-1980s, uses a network of stationary and mobile control systems which assess seismic activity, radiation levels, air pressure and temperature, monitor military radio frequencies and keep a close watch over missile early warning data. After this information is analyzed, if a potential enemy nuclear attack is suspected, the system attempts to communicate to the General Staff. If no response is received, the automated system can make a decision to retaliate. Perimeter was taken offline in the mid-1990s amid warming relations between the West and Russia, but reactivated in late 2011 amid NATOs eastward expansion, Pentagon research into the "Prompt Global Strike" initiative, and efforts to place US missile defenses and precision cruise missiles near Russias borders.Modern AI for Modern WarfareWhile the application of simple ANI in Russian precision rocketry and air defenses has a long and successful history, its use in air and ground-based systems, which require things like image processing, have been slower on the uptick, in part due to the computing power involved.Last August, signaling its comprehension of the importance of AI in modern warfare, the Russian Defense Ministry formed a separate department to support the creation of new weapons systems using AI. Two years before that, the military awarded a $5.3 million closed tender for research into the implementation of AI in military systems. Codenamed Kashtan (lit. "Chestnut"), the research project ran over a three-year period between 2020 and 2022. No further information has been forthcoming about either of these initiatives, but the steady stream of AI-assisted military equipment whose development and testing has been reported on in recent months suggests that slowly but surely, theyre beginning to germinate.Last week, Sputnik spoke to the general director of Android Technics, a Russian technology company specializing in robotic applications for the military and civilian markets. Among its products is the Marker combat robot platform  a multipurpose ground-based tankette-style tracked armored vehicle which can be equipped with anti-tank missiles, kamikaze and target designation drones, machine guns, and grenade launchers.While the Marker itself is operated by a human being by remote control, it does have elements of AI integration built in, including a modular multispectral vision system which uses neural network algorithms which allow them to detect and precisely track the movement of ground and air-based objects, home in on them, and if approved by their human operator, fire. Markers are undergoing intensive testing, which has included a stint in the military operation in Ukraine on a test basis.The Markers older cousin, the Uran-9 tracked unmanned combat ground vehicle, manufactured by Kalashnikov Concern, features its own AI-assisted capabilities, including an automatic obstacle detection and avoidance system, and automatic target tracking. The Uran-9 saw combat testing in Syria in 2018, but got mediocre reviews from the Defense Ministrys 3rd Central Research Institute, which complained about its limited mission functionality. Developers have reportedly worked to resolve these issues, and Uran-9s were used in a fire support and reconnaissance capacity in large-scale Russian-Belarusian drills in 2021. But they have yet to be deployed in the conflict in Ukraine, for reasons unknown.AI-Powered Drones in the SkyThe Sukhoi S-70 Okhotnik-B (lit. "Hunter-B") is another prospective drone system with advanced autonomous capabilities. The massive, 20-ton drone is envisioned as a heavy unmanned reconnaissance and attack UAV with loyal wingman functionality thanks to an AI-assisted data link with manned aircraft. Flight testing of the system began in 2019, with the drone demonstrating its ability to successfully operate autonomously and interact with Su-57 aircraft, and to carry out bombing runs using free-fall bombs and precision-guided missiles. If everything goes as planned, the heavy UAV will enter service with the Aerospace Forces in 2024.And at SeaRounding out the list of Russian AI-assisted weapons is the Poseidon  a nuclear-powered and armed unmanned submersible featuring AI-assisted guidance system. Powered by a nuclear reactor, the autonomous torpedo essentially has an unlimited range, and has a reported blast yield of two megatons or more, meaning its actual use is out of the question except as a strategic deterrent to enemy aggression.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230524/smart-russian-sams-strike-ukrainian-warplanes-drones-using-ai-1110552181.html

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230614/not-all-doom--gloom-ais-superpower-may-bring-44-trillion-in-value-to-global-economy-1111135352.html

https://sputnikglobe.com/20220121/oppa-dead-hand-style-psy-song-plays-over-mysterious-radio-station-believed-to-be-russian-fail-safe-1092413667.html

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230410/belgorod-nuclear-submarine-armed-with-poseidon-torpedoes-1109325885.html

russia

ukraine

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60

2023

Ilya Tsukanov

Ilya Tsukanov

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Experimental robotic platfom 'Marker' Experimental robotic platfom 'Marker' 2023-06-14T18:03+0000 true PT0M45S

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Ilya Tsukanov

russia, artificial intelligence, ai, weapons, military, weapons, ai-influenced weapons, ai weapon, ai weapons, ai in ukraine, russia use ai in ukraine, how is ai used in the military, military robots, developing ai weapons, ai weapon detection, ai weapon systems, what is ai weapons, ai weapon of war, how ai is used in weapons, what is an ai weapon
https://sputnikglobe.com/20230614/white-house-to-send-depleted-uranium-rounds-to-ukraine-new-turn-in-bidens-burisma-bribery-scandal-1111129481.html

White House to Send Depleted Uranium Rounds to Ukraine; New Turn in Biden's Burisma Bribery Scandal

White House to Send Depleted Uranium Rounds to Ukraine; New Turn in Biden's Burisma Bribery Scandal

There are allegations that a participant in President Biden's alleged Burisma bribery scandal kept numerous recordings and the FBI hid their existence from Congress.

2023-06-14T04:05+0000

2023-06-14T04:05+0000

2023-06-19T12:47+0000

the critical hour

radio

burisma

donald trump

fbi

cornel west

eritrea

joe biden

ukraine

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White House to Send Depleted Uranium Rounds to Ukraine;Recordings of Biden Bribery Scandal May Exist There are allegations that a participant in President Biden's alleged Burisma bribery scandal kept numerous recordings and the FBI hid their existence from Congress.

Mark Sleboda, Moscow-based international relations security analyst, joins us to discuss Ukraine. The White House will be sending depleted uranium rounds to Ukraine. Also, Poland urges NATO to respond to Russia putting nukes in Belarus.Ray McGovern, former CIA analyst, and co-founder of Veteran Intelligence Professionals for Sanity, joins us to discuss JFK's peace speech. On June 10, 1961, President John F. Kennedy delivered an iconic speech on his vision for world peace. Also, Julian Assange may soon be extradited.KJ Noh, writer, teacher, and activist, joins us to discuss China. The US is planning to evacuate its citizens from Taiwan. Also, the US is arguing for a faux overhaul of the UN security council.Thomas Mountain, journalist, and historian, joins us to discuss Africa. Eritrea has rejoined the East African Bloc after 16 years. Also, The US empire may target South Africa with sanctions for supporting Russia.Laith Marouf, broadcaster, and journalist based in Beirut, Lebanon, joins us to discuss the Middle East. Saudi Arabia and Syria have agreed to resume economic cooperation. Also, Israel is preparing for war with Iran.Dr. Tony Monteiro, scholar and activist, joins us to discuss the 2024 election. Cornel West has ripped the Biden administration for warmongering and neoliberal economic policies. Also, 80 percent of Democrats want President Biden to debate the other candidates.Kim Keenan, nationally known trial lawyer, mediator, and in-house counsel, joins us to discuss the Trump indictment. Jon Jeter, journalist and author, joins us to discuss a US political scandal. There are allegations that a participant in President Biden's alleged Burisma bribery scandal kept numerous recordings and the FBI hid their existence from Congress.We'd love to get your feedback at radio@sputniknews.comThe views and opinions expressed in this program are those of the speakers and do not necessarily reflect the position of Sputnik.

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the critical hour, biden's burisma bribery scandal, depleted uranium rounds to ukraine, jfk's peace speech, julian assange extradition, china-taiwan issue, eritrea has rejoined the east african bloc, cornel west, trump indictment
https://sputnikglobe.com/20230614/why-trumps-classified-docs-case-wont-be-easy--speedy-for-bidens-doj-1111160549.html

Why Trump's Classified Docs Case Won't be Easy & Speedy for Biden's DOJ

Why Trump's Classified Docs Case Won't be Easy & Speedy for Biden's DOJ

Even though the US Department of Justice's case against former President Donald Trump looks strong, it will most likely be mired in delays and controversy, legal experts warn.

2023-06-14T18:50+0000

2023-06-14T18:50+0000

2023-06-14T18:50+0000

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donald trump

joe biden

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On Tuesday, former President Donald Trump was arraigned in a federal court in Miami, where he pleaded not guilty to 37 felony counts related to his alleged mishandling of classified documents.Having examined the indictment and publicly released pieces of evidence, many US legal observers say that the case brought forward by Special Counsel Jack Smith against Trump is a "strong" one.Still, that does not mean that convicting Trump will be a piece of cake for Smith; likewise, it will by no means be "speedy," former US prosecutors told the mainstream media.First, given that Trump is charged under the Espionage Act his case will be especially complex because some of the key evidence due to be presented during a public trial is classified. There could be a lot of backs-and-forths related to the need to protect the nation's secrets and ensure a due process for the defendant. Per some legal experts, the process of evidence-sharing with Trumps defense team alone could take about a year.In addition, decisions on pre-trial motions related to classified evidence can be appealed  which is not common for ordinary criminal cases, thus giving Trump's legal team extra time and opportunity to fight for making public some docs important to their client.Second, a significant portion of the indictment against Trump is based on attorney-client communications, which are protected under US law, according to former federal prosecutors, cited by the press. This circumstance is likely to make the legal battle even longer. Legal experts refer to the fact that the DoJ forced Trump's lawyer Evan Corcoran to testify in the case against his client and hand over private correspondence, earlier this year thus, apparently, violating the attorney-client privilege.Third, even if Trump is convicted his opponents would not be able to breathe the sigh of relief because he is the current front-runner for the Republican nomination for president. Legal observers agree that even if the Republican contender is sentenced before November 2024 (which remains a big "if" due to the complicated litigation), this won't stop him from running. Furthermore, there is virtually no law to disqualify Trump from running if he is even placed behind bars, as per New Yorker.The US press cited the precedent of US Socialist Party candidate Eugene V. Debs, who ran for president from prison in 1920 after being convicted under the same old Espionage Act. Debs got around a million votes and later his sentence was commuted by the 29th US President Warren Harding. What's more, the US law does not prevent someone imprisoned from becoming the president if the American people elect them.On top of that, there is still a vague possibility of Trump "self-pardoning" if he wins the race. In any event, cracking down on Trump could seriously backfire on the Democratic Party and play into the hands of their political opponents at the end of the day, US observers conclude.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230614/trumps-deep-state-enemies-take-persecution-from-congress-to-courts-1111148102.html

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230611/could-trump-pardon-himself-if-he-wins-in-2024-1111064402.html

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Building to the main event  the $1 million Pepsi North America Cup  on Saturday (June 17) at Woodbine Mohawk Park, more than $1 million in undercard stakes will go postward featuring some of harness racing's most talented performers.

Older trotting mares begin the festivities with the $210,000 Armbro Flight final, where five-year-old Bar Hopping mare Bella Bellini will attempt to make amends for a third-place finish in last years renewal. Dexter Dunn drives the double millionaire for trainer Richard Nifty Norman from Post 5 off a facile 1:51.3 victory in her elimination. Raised By Lindy  the other elimination winner  lands Post 3 for Yannick Gingras, who drives for trainer Domenico Cecere.

With 33 entering the ring to try for the North America Cup, only 10 breached the final, but 10 others have a chance at a decent payday in the $75,000 Pepsi North America Cup Consolation. O'Brien Award and Metro Pace winner Stockade Seelster, who was third in his elimination, has the opportunity to become a millionaire in the event and starts from Post 1 in rein to Jody Jamieson for conditioner Dr. Ian Moore. Also landing in the consolation are $430,000 Governors Cup champ El Rey from Post 8 with Scott Zeron driving for Tony Alagna and $136,800 Ontario SBOA Stakes winner Write Me A Rose from Post 9 with Sylvain Filion in the sulky for trainer Kyle Fellows.

Breeders Crown and O'Brien Award winner Gaines Hanover has the chance to pad his resume when he starts from Post 2 in the $250,000 Goodtimes Trot final. The Richard Moreau pupil, to be driven by regular reinsman Louis-Philippe Roy, dug in to the finish of his elimination to win by a neck over Southwind Coors, who starts just inside of him with Scott Zeron grabbing the drive for trainer Matt Bax. Warrawee Yang, the other elimination winner, landed Post 4 for driver Scott Young and starts just inside of the favourite he downed in the elimination Hasty Bid.

Allywag Hanover, winner of the 2021 Mohawk Gold Cup, will try again in the $100,000 invitational after finishing third in last years edition to a burgeoning Bulldog Hanover. Todd McCarthy handles the Brett Pelling pupil from Post 9 in a field that includes three other millionaires: Abuckabett Hanover from Post 5, Tattoo Artist from Post 6 and Wheels On Fire from Post 7. Some other names in the race will try to burst back onto the stakes scene like Billy Clyde from Post 1 in his first stakes try since his sophomore campaign; Nautical Hanover from Post 3, this year blossoming under the care of Ben Baillargeon; and Linedrive Hanover from Post 4 as he makes his second start since hitting the shelf last July.

Sophomore Breeders Crown and Dan Patch winner Treacherous Dragon matches up with aged Breeders Crown winner Grace Hill in the $305,000 Roses Are Red final. Treacherous Dragon starts from Post 2 off an in-hand 1:48.3 mile in her elimination while Grace Hill coasted to victory in the other elim with a 1:50.1 mile. Their competition also includes local champion mare So Much More from Post 5, $328,200 Blue Chip Matchmaker champ Amazing Dream N and sophomore Ontario Sires Stakes Super Final and O'Brien Award winner Silver Label from Post 6.

The $420,000 Fan Hanover final completes the action preceding the $1 million Pepsi North America Cup. The companion event for sophomore pacing debutantes, this years renewal pins last seasons phenom freshman from south of the border Twin B Joe Fresh, who shut down following the Grand Circuit meet at The Red Mile, with last seasons phenom freshman in Canada and Breeders Crown winner Sylvia Hanover. Dexter Dunn drives Twin B Joe Fresh from Post 3 for trainer Chris Ryder while Bob McClure sticks with the assignment on Dan Patch and O'Brien Award winner Sylvia Hanover from Post 5 for trainer Shawn Steacy. Aside from that pair of elimination winners, the race gathers New Jersey Sire Stakes champ Ucandoit Blue Chip from Post 2, $428,400 Three Diamonds winner Zanatta from Post 4, Breeders Crown runner-up Charleston from Post 6 and Pennsylvania Sires Stakes champ Beach Cowgirl from Post 8.

To view Saturdays harness racing entries, click one of the following links: Pepsi North America Cup Night -- Saturday Entries || North America Cup Card Program Pages (courtesy TrackIT).
Four years after he absconded from state custody while attending a church service in Lincoln, a former Nebraska inmate is back in custody, according to authorities.

Antonio Collier, 36, had been considered an escapee since May 19, 2019, when he failed to return to the Community Corrections Center-Lincoln after getting permission to attend church, authorities said in a news release.

Police in Roseville, Michigan, arrested Collier on Sunday and took him to the Macomb County jail, the Nebraska Department of Correctional Services said in the news release.

Upon his return to Nebraska, Collier will resume the four- to five-year sentence he started on April 3, 2018, for a burglary conviction out of Douglas County.

And the 36-year-old will be prosecuted for departure from state custody.

Prosecutors in Lancaster County charged Collier in June 2019 with escape, a class 3 felony.

In court records, investigators with the corrections department said Collier had an hour pass to attend services at Our Savior's Lutheran Church that Sunday afternoon.

An hour after his pass expired, the 36-year-old called the community corrections facility and reported he was running late due to car problems, Correctional Services Investigator Ross Bartlett said in the probable cause statement for a warrant for Collier's arrest.

Staff at the facility told Collier he needed to return to the facility as soon as possible, Bartlett said.

But he never showed, prompting a Lancaster County judge to sign a warrant for his arrest June 5, 2019.

Inmates at the Community Corrections Center-Lincoln are allowed to work and go to school or religious services with prior approval and supervision.

Photos: 2015 Tecumseh State Prison riot 010922-owh-new-prisons5 (copy) 010922-owh-new-prisons14.JPG (web) (copy) 20191113_new_prisonriot 20181127_new_prisonriot 010922-owh-new-prisons6 Tecumseh tour (copy)
A Troutman man is facing four counts of felony indecent liberties with a child.

Branon Wayne Bishop, 47, of Holly Springs Loop, was arrested Monday and a magistrate set bond at $300,000.

Iredell Sheriff Darren Campbell, in a news release, said a report was filed on June 4 concerning a possible sexual assault on a juvenile.

Detective Cody James of the Special Victims Unit began an investigation, which included a forensic interview of the juvenile at the Dove House Childrens Advocacy Center.

As a result of the investigation, warrants were obtained for Bishops arrest.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, July 14)  Diversified conglomerate San Miguel Corporation (SMC) has joined a growing list of listed companies that are charting a roadmap to reach net zero emissions by 2050.

In his speech during the companys annual stockholders meeting on Tuesday, SMC President and Chief Executive Officer Ramon Ang told shareholders that San Miguel has set an ambitious sustainability goal to become better socially, environmentally, and as a business.

Apart from its food and beverage businesses, San Miguel is an infrastructure giant with stakes in toll operations, gas and power plants.

Ang said these businesses are doubling down on writing a comprehensive roadmap to meet their sustainability goals.

On top of the 2050 net zero plan, the company has set the following targets: lift at least 15 million people out of poverty by 2030, adopt a circular economy approach, and build a fully sustainable supply chain by 2040.

Listed firms like Ayalas AC Energy, Aboitiz Power, and Lopezs Energy Development Corp. also earlier announced cutting their carbon footprint and are charting their net zero roadmaps.

We have also set an ambitious sustainability goal to help us become better socially, environmentally, and as a business," Ang said. "This includes uplifting the lives of at least 15 million people by 2030."

He added it also includes "adopting a circular economy approach and building a fully sustainable supply chain by 2040" and "achieving net zero emission by 2050."

Under a circular economy approach, materials and products are reduced, reused, and recycled to lessen waste and make production more efficient, sustainable and environment-friendly.
We have a gay kid in the fam.

Cousin, niece, son, in-law, their name and exact relationship doesnt matter. Well keep that close because its their life to live however  and with whomever  they choose.

Heres the important part: Theyve moved away and wont be coming back.

And its because of incidents like one Saturday morning in which protestors who said they were Proud Boys appeared in Winston-Salem to protest a gay-friendly Pride brunch and seemed to witnesses to be attempting to provoke confrontation.

They were aggressive, said one witness who asked not to be named out of fear for her safety. Everybody was terrified. A lot of the Proud Boys wore masks and sunglasses. Some of them had on full tactical gear.

The Proud Boys came to town  not for the first time  for Pride Month.

Its not a good look.

Stoking fear

The Triad is attracting attention during Pride Month for all the wrong reasons.

A partial list, far from comprehensive, includes: the City of Winston-Salems self-inflicted PR wound over a Pride logo that was abruptly pulled offline on June 1; an uneasy confrontation last week in Greensboro over the firing of a city firefighter who, despite warnings, used his social media to bash transgender people; the vandalism early Friday of a Pride banner outside Winston-Salem City Hall; and the theft of rainbow Pride flag from a church in Mount Airy over the weekend.

The incident Saturday outside the Radar Brewing Company is more disturbing.

The brewery was hosting a Pride Brunch featuring drag acts.

A few minutes before it started, the drag brunch took a potentially ominous turn when a handful of masked Proud Boys showed up.

A witness said Sunday this group came from the Cape Fear region, a Proud Boys affiliate carrying a chapter flag and everything.

Theyd come to provoke, the man said, but were largely ignored as organizers advised a turn-the-other-cheek posture.

A single Winston-Salem police cruiser came by, said a witness worried about her familys safety.

(The Proud Boys) seem to monitor this stuff closely. Theyre all over social media, she said.

That officer, she said, sort of laid out the rules, explained where the protesters could stand and left.

This past Saturday a group of people arrived at our taproom to protest a private, ticketed event that featured a series of drag performances, wrote Eric Peck, one of Radars owners, in a text message. Police were contacted and dispatched to monitor the situation, and in the end the event was able to continue as planned. Our goal is, and always has been, to provide our guests with the best customer experience possible.

Assembling to exercise First Amendment rights of free speech and assembly is one thing. Its precious and worth fighting for. Using it to intimidate or provoke violent confrontation is another thing entirely.

A second wave of protestors showed up, bringing the total of Proud Boys to more than a dozen. Their tactical gear, partially hidden faces and comments made directly to people who had come for the show  eerily reminiscent of Klan demonstrations from days gone by  added to the tension.

Another witness, Marlowe Omilian, who took photos, wrote in an email that comments directed at her was a cause for concern and that a protestors major gripe seemed to be that the Pride brunch was not strictly for people over 18.

Police remained in the area, witnesses said, and returned a while later  this time in larger, more conspicuous numbers.

A few young girls were really upset and started to yell back but not much more than that, a witness said. I think one of the Proud Boys must have said something the cops didnt like because they moved it along after that.

A spokesman for the Winston-Salem Police Department said Sunday that a watch commander did not leave any notes about it for the next shift.

But thats not unusual. No arrests typically mean no incident, no problem and no paperwork. Nothing to see here. Move along.

Dog whistle approval

The appearance of a right-wingers with a documented history of violence  does the date Jan. 6 ring any bells?  coupled with incidents elsewhere makes it clear trouble might be brewing.

Trinity Episcopal Church in Mount Airy reported over the weekend that someone had made off with a Pride flag from outside their church.

Someone stole our flag last night, but love prevails, the church posted on Facebook Sunday. Everyone is welcome!

Its not a direct line of cause and effect, but surely recent moves by some in political leadership have signaled that acts of intolerance are OK. More than 400 anti-LGBTQ bills have been filed in state houses across the country this year.

The N.C. Republican Party voted behind closed doors Saturday to censure U.S. Sen. Thom Tillis in part for being one of a bipartisan group who worked to pass the Respect for Marriage Act, which codified legal protections for same-sex and interracial couples.

(Tillis also worked on modest, bipartisan gun-safety laws and has espoused compromise on immigration. Common sense and bipartisanship apparently are no longer welcome in the Big Tent.)

Were aware of the climate, said Mayor Allen Joines early Monday morning, adding that he hadnt yet heard about the incident at the brewery. Well be keeping an eye out at our Pride parade here in a couple weeks to keep everyone safe.

Still, with the prevailing winds and steady accumulation of incidents, its hard to argue with someones decision to move far from North Carolina and stay away.

I really hate to hear that, said one witness in a frank exchange. Im not surprised. Id like to think Winston-Salem is a safe haven  but one of these days, Im afraid somebody will go too far.
The WFP has initiated procedures to reduce the number of beneficiaries in Syria from 5.5 million to 2.5 million, according to Baladi News.

The Syria Response Coordinators team issued a statement on Wednesday, expressing concern over the actions taken by the World Food Program (WFP) in Syria. According to the team, the WFP has initiated procedures to reduce the number of beneficiaries in Syria from 5.5 million to 2.5 million, marking the largest reduction process carried out by the program in the country in years.

The organization deeply regrets this new reduction and emphasizes that it had previously warned against such measures. It further highlights that the recent cuts do not align with the assessment of humanitarian needs in Syria.

These cuts will inevitably force hundreds of thousands of civilians into heightened levels of poverty and hunger, exacerbating the existing shortfall in humanitarian responses, which has already reached record levels.

The organization attributes the responsibility for this reduction to the food security and livelihoods sector, as well as the World Food Program (WFP). It criticizes the programs inability to strike a balance between actual needs and the prices of food commodities in the local market, citing insufficient funding as the pretext. This situation raises serious questions about the effectiveness of donor conferences and the transparency of donation funds designated for the Syrian people.

Numerous humanitarian actors have already cautioned about the persistent cuts in humanitarian aid, warning of an imminent and uncontrollable famine. The organization calls upon international bodies to increase their support for civilians, particularly in light of the deteriorating economic situation in northwestern Syria. Additionally, it highlights the inability of thousands of civilians in other areas controlled by the Syrian regime to meet their basic food needs.

The organization stresses the necessity of conducting thorough audits in areas controlled by the Syrian regime. It highlights concerns about the regimes substantial funding of its military operations through United Nations assistance, facilitated by accredited partners such as the Syrian Red Crescent and the Syria Trust for Development.

This article was translated and edited by The Syrian Observer. The Syrian Observer has not verified the content of this story. Responsibility for the information and views set out in this article lies entirely with the author.
Video clips circulated by activists showed the airstrikes targeting multiple locations in the Damascus countryside, according to al-Souria Net.

The state news agency SANA reported that there was an Israeli bombardment on Wednesday morning, targeting multiple locations in the southwestern area of the Syrian capital, Damascus.

According to the agency, the shelling originated from the Syrian Golan region and resulted in a severe injury to a soldier from Assads forces, as well as causing material damage.

A military source quoted by the agency stated, At approximately one oclock and five minutes in the early hours of today, the Israeli enemy carried out an aerial attack from the direction of the occupied Syrian Golan.

The attack aimed at specific sites southwest of Damascus, and our air defence systems successfully intercepted and destroyed some of the hostile missiles, the source added.

The 18th Israeli bombardment

Local sources reported that Damascus, the capital of Syria, experienced powerful explosions at dawn, believed to be caused by Israeli shelling.

Video clips circulated by activists showed the airstrikes targeting multiple locations in the Damascus countryside, resulting in fires and billowing smoke.

According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, the strikes impacted areas near Damascus International Airport and the Kiswah region, southwest of the capital.

The strikes specifically targeted weapons depots belonging to Iranian militias in the vicinity of Damascus airport, causing significant destruction, the observatory confirmed.

In al-Kiswah, the shelling hit two sites, including air defense batteries and a Hezbollah ammunition depot, as reported by the observatory.

Despite the Syrian regimes efforts to defend against the bombardment, Israeli missiles successfully reached their intended targets, the observatory stated.

The shelling resulted in a severe injury to a soldier from the regime forces, while reports indicate casualties among militia members.

As usual, Israel has not provided any comments regarding the recent bombing in Damascus.

Israel has been conducting airstrikes in various parts of Syria for several years, with an increased frequency in recent months.

Since the beginning of 2023, there have been a total of 18 Israeli strikes, consisting of 14 aerial attacks and 4 ground operations.

According to the observatory, these strikes have caused damage and casualties to 41 targets, including weapons and ammunition depots, headquarters, facilities, and vehicles.

48 military personnel from Assads forces and supporting militias have been killed, and 37 others, including critical injuries, have been reported.

The strikes were carried out in multiple regions of Syria, including seven in Damascus and its countryside, fiv in Quneitra, three in Sweida and Aleppo, two in Homs and Daraa, and one in Tartous and Hama.

The observatory also noted that Israel occasionally targets multiple governorates simultaneously, leading to variations in the number of strikes and targets.

This article was translated and edited by The Syrian Observer. The Syrian Observer has not verified the content of this story. Responsibility for the information and views set out in this article lies entirely with the author.
The deputy foreign ministers of Syria, Turkey, Iran, and Russia will convene in the Kazakh capital, Astana, on June 21st, according to Athr Press.

In the first quadrilateral meeting following the election of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the deputy foreign ministers of Syria, Turkey, Iran, and Russia will convene in the Kazakh capital, Astana, on June 21st.

According to the Russian agency TASS, Mikhail Bogdanov, the Deputy Foreign Minister and Russian Presidents Special Envoy to the Middle East and Africa, announced that the meeting of the deputy foreign ministers of Russia, Turkey, Syria, and Iran will take place in Astana on June 21st.

Bogdanov stated today to reporters, A substantial Russian delegation will attend the meeting in Astana. We have prepared the draft Russian road map for normalization between Damascus and Ankara, and our objective is to discuss it with our partners and make significant progress. We hope that this meeting in Astana will facilitate substantial advancements.

The announcement of the quadripartite meetings date comes two days after a meeting between President Bashar al-Assad and Ali Asghar Khaji, the Iranian Assistant Foreign Minister for Special Affairs. During the meeting, they discussed the details of the Syrian-Turkish reconciliation process. President al-Assad emphasized the need for a joint strategy that clearly defines the foundations, objectives, and timeline for the upcoming negotiations. The strategy covers various issues such as the Turkish withdrawal from Syrian territory, counterterrorism efforts, and other matters. Cooperation with the Russian and Iranian sides will be integral to implementing these objectives. Khaji affirmed the validity of the Syrian vision in the ongoing negotiations on various fronts.

In a recent press interview, Alexander Yefimov, the Russian Presidents Special Envoy to Syria and Russias Ambassador in Damascus, expressed his optimism regarding Recep Tayyip Erdogans re-election for another presidential term. Yefimov stated, With the electoral pressure now behind us, I hope that the Turkish leadership will be able to devote more attention to this direction than its foreign policy. He also regarded the progress achieved so far in the Syrian-Turkish reconciliation as positive, considering it an important factor in improving the political situation in the region, along with restoring Syrian-Arab relations and Saudi-Iranian normalization.

On May 10th, the foreign ministers of Syria, Russia, Turkey, and Iran convened in Moscow. The final statement of the meeting emphasized the appointment of the four deputy foreign ministers to develop a roadmap for enhancing relations between Syria and Turkey. The statement affirmed Syrias sovereignty and territorial integrity, the commitment to combating terrorism in all its forms, the continuation of high-level contacts and technical negotiations among the quadrilateral countries, and the call for increased international assistance to support Syrias reconstruction and the return of Syrian refugees to their homeland.

This article was translated and edited by The Syrian Observer. The Syrian Observer has not verified the content of this story. Responsibility for the information and views set out in this article lies entirely with the author.
Your daily brief of the English-speaking press on Syria.

In the early hours of Wednesday, Israel conducted airstrikes near Damascus, resulting in the injury of a Syrian soldier. Simultaneously, humanitarian organizations are facing difficulties in highlighting the deteriorating conditions experienced by Syrians during a two-day donor conference held in Brussels by the European Union. In another development, Turkeys military responded to an attack on a police post on the Turkish side of the border over the weekend. Employing ground artillery and drones, they neutralized 53 Kurdish militants in northern Syria, as announced by the defence ministry on Wednesday.

Syria says soldier severely wounded in Israeli airstrikes near Damascus

Israel carried out airstrikes near Damascus early Wednesday, wounding a Syrian soldier, state news agency SANA said.

At around 1:05 am, the Israeli enemy carried out an aerial aggression from the direction of the occupied Golan Heights targeting several positions southwest of Damascus, SANA cited a military source as saying.

The source did not provide details on the targets and said the strikes severely wounded a soldier and caused material damage.

Syrias air defence intercepted some of the Israeli missiles, the source added. Syria regularly claims to intercept Israeli missiles, though military analysts doubt such assertions.

Explosions were heard in the Syrian capital early Wednesday, an AFP correspondent reported.

The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the targets were military warehouses belonging to Iranian militias near the Damascus airport and an area southwest of the capital.

The Observatory reported that violent explosions were heard in Damascus after midnight on Wednesday.

Footage and photos circulating on social media said to be from the airstrikes, showed fire breaking out at one of the targeted sites.

As conditions for Syrians worsen, aid organizations struggle to catch the worlds attention again

Aid organizations are struggling to draw attention to the worsening conditions faced by Syrians as they participate in a two-day donor conference hosted by the European Union in Brussels.

The conference, AP reported, aims to raise $11.2 billion for humanitarian aid to respond to the Syrian crisis and support the 5.7 million Syrian refugees living in neighbouring countries like Turkey, Lebanon, and Jordan.

However, pledges are expected to fall short. The World Food Program recently announced cuts to food assistance for 2.5 million people in Syria due to an unprecedented funding crisis.

The conference takes place as Syrias 13-year-long conflict continues, and the country grapples with the aftermath of a devastating earthquake that caused significant damage to infrastructure.

Meanwhile, refugees in neighbouring countries face a politically precarious situation, with calls for repatriation and rising anti-refugee rhetoric in Lebanon and Turkey. Despite the deteriorating situation in Syria, aid has dwindled in recent years as donor focus shifted to other crises.

The lack of funding poses significant challenges and increases the suffering of vulnerable Syrians.

Deputy foreign ministers of Russia, Syria, Iran, Turkey to hold summit

The deputy foreign ministers of Russia, Syria, Iran and Turkey will hold a summit in Astana, the capital of Kazakhstan, later this month, AP reported.

Russias Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov announced that the meeting will be held on June 21, the RIA news agency reported Wednesday.

Foreign ministers from those four countries gathered in May for talks in Moscow in what was the highest-level contact between Ankara and Damascus since the start of the Syrian civil war over a decade ago.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said at the time he hoped the meeting would pave the way to drafting a road map for normalizing Turkish-Syrian relations. Lavrov said he sees Moscows task as not only in consolidating politically the progress that has been made, but also in determining general guidelines for further movement.

Russia has spent years trying to help Syrian President Bashar Assad rebuild ties with Turkey and other countries that were fractured in the war, which killed nearly 500,000 people and displaced half of Syrias prewar population of 23 million.

Russia intervened militarily in Syria starting in September 2015, teaming up with Iran to help Assads government to reclaim most of the country. Moscow has maintained a military presence in the Mideast country even as the bulk of its forces are busy fighting in Ukraine.

Why Arab Countries Are Welcoming Back Assad

Foreign Policy has published a lengthy report on why Arab leaders have accepted to readmit and embrace Syrias dictator into the Arab fold.

The recent reintegration of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and his country into the politics and economics of the Middle East is not solely due to a decline in U.S. influence or the influence of China and Russia. It reflects a shift in priorities among regional actors. While some countries in the region, like Qatar, oppose normalizing ties with the Assad regime, others, including Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), are moving toward pragmatism after years of funding anti-Assad militias.

The report says the UAE initiated the campaign for normalization in 2018 by reopening its embassy in Damascus, and Jordan has also made efforts to work with Syria on border security. However, the wealth and regional power of Saudi Arabia and the UAE hold significant influence over regional dynamics. These countries are seeking to assert their autonomy from Washington and diversify their partnerships on the international stage. Normalizing relations with Syria brings them closer to Russia, which is important to their leadership.

According to the report, the Syrian regime is not just a proxy battleground in the geopolitical rivalry between the United States and Russia and China. It plays a central role in regional stability and security, including issues such as the drug trade and relations with Iran. Syrias economic distress, isolation, and reliance on Iran and Russia have led to the flourishing of illicit activities like the captagon trade, which provides significant income for the regime. Countries in the region hope to control this trade through negotiations and investment in Syrias economy, but the Assad regime may not be willing to give up this lucrative business.

The desire to counter Irans influence also motivates Gulf nations to mend ties with Damascus. However, the report adds, previous attempts to sway Syria away from Iran have been unsuccessful. Syria and Iran have shared similar ideologies regarding Israel and the United States for decades, and their relationship has only strengthened during the Syrian civil war. Iran has provided military assistance to Syria, and Syria serves as a crucial transport route for weapons and supplies to Hezbollah, an Iran-supported Shia militia in Lebanon.

Countries like Qatar and Egypt have their own specific reasons for ambivalence toward Syria. Qatar supported anti-Assad forces during the civil war and is cautious about preserving its relationship with the West. Egypt, on the other hand, seeks to maintain a balancing act with all key regional and international actors and is uncomfortable with a regional regime being ostracized for authoritarian rule. While some countries in the region are moving toward normalizing ties with Syria, the United States, the United Kingdom, and the European Union have made it clear that they are not interested in a relationship with Damascus and will not remove sanctions.

Turkey says military neutralized 53 Kurdish militants in northern Syria

Turkeys military neutralized 53 Kurdish militants in northern Syria, using ground artillery and drones in retaliatory strikes following an attack on a police post on the Turkish side of the border at the weekend, the defence ministry said on Wednesday.

The ministry typically uses the term neutralized to describe killed and wounded. The latest strikes targeted the militants hideouts in the Manbij and Tal Rifaat regions.

Turkey has previously launched military incursions in Syria against the Kurdish YPG militia, regarding it as a wing of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), which Turkey, the United States and the European Union designate as a terrorist group.

Egyptian Foreign Minister, UN Envoy for Syria discuss means of solving Crisis in Syria

Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry and UN Special Envoy for Syria Geir Pedersen engaged in a phone conversation to explore potential solutions for the ongoing crisis in Syria.

The discussion, according to a report by SANA, encompassed a comprehensive review of previous dialogues and communications conducted by various parties and methods, with the objective of bridging divergent positions and gradually converging towards a collective approach to address the Syrian crisis and alleviating the suffering of its people.

During the conversation, the officials also emphasized the importance of collaboration and coordination between the Arab Ministerial Committee on Syria and the United Nations.

This joint effort aims to harmonize their respective initiatives and bolster endeavours toward resolving the crisis in Syria, SANA added.
Brigadier General Jaafar Ali al-Akhras, a prominent member of the "Third Corps," according to Syria TV.

On Tuesday, an incident occurred in Homs, resulting in the death of a high-ranking officer within the Syrian regime forces. According to Al-Madina FM, which has close ties to the Syrian regime, an explosive device planted in the officers military vehicle detonated in the Shammas neighbourhood of Homs. The report did not disclose the officers identity or provide further details about the incident.

However, news sources aligned with the Syrian regime have since expressed their condolences for Brigadier General Jaafar Ali al-Akhras, a prominent member of the Third Corps in the regime forces. These sources specified that Brigadier General al-Akhras was killed by an explosive device outside his residence in the Shammas neighbourhood. He hailed from the village of al-Rabiah in the Hama countryside and had actively participated in various military operations, including the battles of the southern countryside of Idleb and the battle of Maaloula in the Damascus countryside back in 2013. Loyalist pages also mentioned that he served as the head of the reconnaissance branch of the Third Corps.

Additionally, over the past 24 hours, the countryside of Quneitra witnessed the loss of four members of the Syrian regime forces, allegedly due to unidentified assailants. Local news networks reported that Lieutenant Sultan Taiba and his companion, Anwar Daham Khamis, were targeted by direct gunfire near the dam of the village of Um al-Azam in Quneitras countryside, resulting in their immediate deaths. On Tuesday, two members of the towns station, Mohammed Obaidan and Rabie Wassouf, were also shot by unknown gunmen in the town of Nabaa al-Sakhr in Quneitras central countryside, leading to their instant demise.

This article was translated and edited by The Syrian Observer. The Syrian Observer has not verified the content of this story. Responsibility for the information and views set out in this article lies entirely with the author.
Bills meant to ease crowding at Oregons state mental hospital and strengthen the states troubled behavioral health system will likely be left behind during this years legislative session, even if Senate Republicans end their walkout.

Most of the bills aimed at easing the Oregon State Hospitals capacity issues died in committee. Bills that would have funded local treatment and prohibited housing discrimination against mental health patients didnt progress before the walkout began  and dont appear to be a priority for whatever productive time the Legislature has left before its constitutionally mandated June 25 deadline.

Lawmakers say the states budget, whether passed this session or in a later special session, will pour deeply needed funding into the states behavioral health system. The Oregon Health Authoritys drafted budget would allocate $83.1 million for behavioral health investments and $70 million in funding for the statewide mental health crisis line.

But Meghan Moyer, the director of public policy for Disability Rights Oregon, said legislators made little progress on behavioral health policy.

I had a little optimism that there would be more systemic changes, and really all we were able to do  for a variety of reasons, including the walkout  was budgetary, she said.

The budget also raises pay for mental health providers who see Medicaid patients and it increases funding for community mental health beds, as well as a requirement that the state publicly track how many new beds are added and where.

Rep. Rob Nosse, D-Portland, the chair of the House Committee on Behavioral Health and Health Care, said he is optimistic about the expected funding for mental health, which maintains funding levels established in the last two-year state budget.

We made a really big swing in 2021 and 2022, he said. We have maintained that big swing and we didnt cut anything.

Moyer, though, said certain policy bills left behind were a missed opportunity.

She said, for example, that a proposal aimed at allowing non-hospital care for more people charged with a crime but found unable to aid and assist in their own defense, didnt even make it to a hearing. Moyer said the number of those aid-and-assist patients who need community care, rather than treatment in the institutionalized setting of the state hospital, is growing without the resources to support their treatment.

But she said the stunted session may have helped lawmakers avoid some bad decisions.

I think there is a significant frustration with Oregonians with the lack of progress with our homeless crisis, so I was concerned that might bleed into bad policy ideas, she said. In that regard, Im glad we havent done a lot of bad things to our mentally ill homeless population.

One bill, she said, would have required the state hospital to discharge patients accused of a crime back to the county where they were charged, even if they live and seek treatment in a different county.

Other bills sought to add more beds to the state psychiatric hospital or turn a juvenile detention center into another mental health facility  tactics Moyer said are far more expensive than adding treatment beds in Oregon communities.

We can serve many more people adequately appropriately if we had community capacity, Moyer said. For every one bed you have in (the Oregon State Hospital), you could easily serve 30.

Lawmakers will have another chance, Moyers said, to add community mental health beds through a budget bill.

State hospital crowding bills fail

The session will wrap up without lawmakers taking any action on the Oregon State Hospitals crowded waitlist.

A bill to put strict limits on how long certain patients could remain in the hospital was pulled from the agenda without a hearing.

Lawmakers had a roadmap from a court-appointed consultant, Michigan mental health administrator Dr. Debra Pinals, on how to move patients more quickly through the hospital and admit those waiting in jail  to bring the institution into compliance with a court order stemming from a 2002 court case.

One of Pinals recommendations was to require strict release timelines for certain patients. Last September, U.S. District Judge Michael Mosman issued a court order to implement those deadlines for patients who are found unable to aid in their own defense and sent to the state hospital for rehabilitation can only remain in the state hospital for a limited time.

Those limits are 90 days for those accused of misdemeanors, six months for those accused of felonies or a year for those charged with Measure 11 crimes  certain felonies for which voters approved mandatory minimum sentences.

The court order is based on a 20-year-old lawsuit that said the state hospital was violating patients constitutional rights, forcing them to linger in jail while waiting for mental health treatment.

A slew of prosecutors, judges and counties have opposed the court order, arguing that it puts people back into their communities before theyre rehabilitated, increasing the burden on county criminal justice systems.

And three healthcare organizations sued the state, alleging that the hospitals stricter admissions policy has forced medical hospitals to keep some mental health patients for days or weeks when they dont have the resources to do so.

Under a tentative agreement to settle those claims, the state agreed to admit more patients through civil commitments because theyve been deemed a danger to themselves or others.

Nosse, the state lawmaker, said he didnt think the Legislature needed to write the court orders timelines into law, saying that while he understands the principle behind the court order, some patients may not be ready for release after six months.

We can honor that court decision, but I dont think we want to codify that, he said.

And he said he hopes to see community facilities fully funded before trying to expand state hospital capacity.

I want outpatient and (secure residential treatment facilities) to be given what they need to succeed first, and then figure out honestly if we can justify spending more taxpayer money on beds at the Oregon State Hospital, he said.

As the groups remain in mediation over that case, one prosecutor said hes hopeful that the groups will reach a compromise for the common good  but said legislators should have taken action sooner to prevent the state getting to this point.

I wish lawmakers had addressed these issues years ago, said Washington County District Attorney Kevin Barton, because were dealing with the end result of years worth of decisions, or indecision.

Barton said that includes providing mental health treatment and services to patients before they ever enter the criminal justice system and addressing drug addiction treatment.

Moyer, the Disability Rights Oregon policy director, said lawmakers who have in recent years reacted to headlines need instead to develop a stronger understanding of the states mental health system.

But she said shes hopeful that the state is headed in the right direction.

I know there was a lot of frustration with the health authority over not being able to see the results of previous investments, Moyer said. But Im pleased that even though the frustration is real and probably justified, it didnt result in a stepping back from trying to address the problem.
On the basement floor of the University of Washingtons main undergraduate library, one vending machine stands out. Instead of bags of chips and candy, the shelves are stocked with emergency contraception, pregnancy tests, condoms and over-the-counter pain medications.

The vending machine landed in UWs Odegaard Library in November and aims to expand access to affordable reproductive health care for students. Next year, similar setups will start appearing at public universities and community colleges throughout the state.

Washington recently became the first state to pledge public funding for vending machines that carry emergency contraception  including Plan B, which prevents pregnancy within 72 hours after unprotected sex  at its public universities, technical and community colleges, hoping to address the growing need for reproductive health care on college campuses.

Beginning in 2024, public colleges will be able to apply for a $10,000 grant that would support installation and upkeep of a vending machine, which generally carries Plan B, pregnancy tests, condoms, Tylenol and ibuprofen. The state has set aside about $200,000 total for schools to establish additional vending machines.

Its really significant to have governmental state support for this, said Taylor Riley, a third-year doctoral candidate studying epidemiology at UW who helped push for the state budget request. She worked with a cross-campus cohort, including UW students studying public health, pharmacy and public policy, and others with the universitys disability, gender equity and Black students commissions.

But theres still a lot of existing unmet needs at our public university campuses across the state, and we really need to expand access as much as we can for comprehensive reproductive health care for students, Riley added.

Nationwide, demand for emergency contraception on college campuses has risen in recent years, but especially since the U.S. Supreme Courts Dobbs v. Jackson Womens Health Organization decision led many states to restrict abortion access, said Kelly Cleland, executive director of the American Society for Emergency Contraception. Now, at least 37 college campuses in 17 states have vending machines similar to the one at UW  including Washington State University and Eastern Washington University  though none are funded by state general dollars.

Since Dobbs, weve had about a fourfold increase in interest from people reaching out to us to say, Hey we need to do something on our campus to improve [emergency contraception] access, Cleland said. Im so excited about whats happening in Washington, and I think these student leaders have been so instrumental in making this happen.

Clelands organization works with schools throughout the country to bring emergency contraception to campuses. She and her team are also working to focus efforts in smaller and more rural colleges.

After unprotected sex, the last option really is abortion, and in places where thats not a possibility, [emergency contraception] is absolutely essential, Cleland said.

Many college students are on their parents insurance plans, a potential barrier to accessing regular contraceptive care, Cleland said.

When their parents receive records from the insurance company, it may list everything (the student is) getting care for, which isnt always safe for young people, she said. Sometimes they need to keep that separate from their parents.

Opponents of the recent expansion of the vending machines, however, argue that adding emergency contraception options to college campuses takes attention away from protecting against sexually transmitted disease  a risk the pills wont address, said Kristi Hamrick, a spokesperson for Students for Life of America, a Virginia-based organization that advocates against abortion particularly on school campuses across the country.

One of the problems with pretending that these machines solve all the issues of sexual contact is that the ease of getting to pills can cause vulnerable women to feel safe, when in fact they may be at great risk, Hamrick said.

In Washington, women between 20 to 24 years old  an age range common on college campuses  reported the highest abortion rates between 2009 and 2020, according to the state Department of Health. While recent state data around unintended pregnancies is limited, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported in 2011 rates were highest among women between 18 and 24 years old.

I think the vending machines really empower young people to take matters into their own hands and not have to basically get permission from an adult to get emergency contraception, Cleland said.

At UW, the vending machine landed on campus as part of a pilot program after the schools student government, the Associated Students of UW, passed legislation last year that demanded an accessible emergency contraception vending machine. One main concern, according to the legislation, stemmed from a lack of access to the student health center  which staffs an OB-GYN and provides emergency contraception, but is closed after 5 p.m. and on weekends.

Within the first three months of the vending machines arrival, it went through more than 600 boxes of emergency contraception, Riley said.

That was word-of-mouth, she said. We didnt do any huge outreach or big pushes to let folks know. Obviously, theres a huge need.

The schools Pharmacists for Reproductive Education and Sexual Health, a student organization, has restocked and maintained the machine since then, with help from Huskies for Reproductive Freedom, UWs chapter of Pro-Choice Washington.

The items are generally much cheaper than they would be in pharmacies, which is another big benefit, Cleland said. At a local drugstore, Plan B often ranges between $40 and $50, whereas UW students can buy similar emergency contraception at the campus vending machine for closer to $12 to $13. In other parts of the country, where schools often pay for the vending machines and supplies, emergency contraception can cost $8 or less, Cleland said.

Theres also often stock-outs of Plan B [at pharmacies], and sometimes theres stigma from the pharmacists, Riley said. The whole idea was, Lets make this discreet, accessible and affordable.

She and other students are hoping to add additional emergency contraception vending machines around the school in the future, but are also focusing on access to medication abortion on campus.

The goal is comprehensive reproductive health services for all students, she said. Thats what we need.

Huskies for Reproductive Justice is looking for inspiration from similar laws passed in California, Massachusetts and New York that ensure student health centers on public college campuses will provide medication abortion, said Anya Fogel, a senior studying biology who helps lead the student organization.

In Washington, colleges or universities refer students to off-campus clinics for any type of abortion. If a student needs an abortion, they might have to miss class or work to travel to an off-campus clinic  which might not take as long in Seattle, but could be especially difficult in more rural parts of the state, Fogel said.

UW administrators are aware of recent student advocacy around on-campus medication abortion care and are exploring the idea, but say theyre still working around obstacles.

The Hall Health team supports improved access to all types of reproductive health care, including medication abortion, the school said in a statement this week. Hall Health is working through the steps necessary to begin offering medication abortion.

This includes training medical staffers, collaborating with other UW Medicine abortion care providers, ordering medication abortion pills, assuring after-hours coverage, and funding other necessary equipment  all of which remain significant obstacles, the university said.

Still, Fogel and others are disappointed with UWs pace.

Its just frustrating that medication abortion is seen as such a stretch, when implementing it is a basic necessity, she said.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, June 13)  Former president Rodrigo Duterte has dared the entire Philippine National Police (PNP) to resign, accusing the agency of being the gatekeeper of the illegal drug trade in the country.

The volume is one too many. Ilan ang pulis na involved [How many police personnel are involved]? Marami yan [There are many], it will go up to the generals, he said in an interview on Tuesday, citing the tons of illegal drugs now going through the hands of the police.

Also on Tuesday, Interior Secretary Benhur Abalos confirmed that the National Police Commission (Napolcom) and the PNP have filed criminal complaints before the Office of the Ombudsman against 50 police personnel suspected to be involved in the 990-kilogram shabu drug haul in October last year.

READ: Napolcom, PNP file criminal complaint vs. 50 personnel linked to 990-kilo shabu drug haul

If he were still president, Duterte said he would mandate the whole PNP to surrender all issued and illegal firearms within 24 hours and let the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) take over.

The army would be happy to take over, he said. And I suppose that is what should happen.

Following the brazen involvement of the police in illegal drugs, Duterte said he now trusts the AFP more than the PNP.

They (AFP) know what is right and wrong and what is right for the country, he added.

READ: Cops slammed on slow-moving probe, conflicting remarks on 990-kilo drug mess

CNN Philippines has sought comment from the PNP regarding Dutertes statement.

During his tenure, the former president launched a bloody war on drugs that took the lives of more than 12,000 Filipinos, most of which belonged to the urban poor sector of the country.

According to the Human Rights Watch, at least 2,555 of the killings have been attributed to the PNP.

On April 13, International Criminal Court (ICC) prosecutor Karim Khan said Duterte encouraged the bloody crackdown on illegal drugs in the country, rejecting the governments claim that the killings are of marginal gravity.

The ICC has also rejected the Philippines appeal to reverse the courts decision to reopen the drug war probe.

READ: Thousands of killings in drug war encouraged by Duterte  ICC prober
Thumbs up: Kelso cleanup

Kelso is going to get a hand with cleanup, courtesy of a federal grant. We were very happy to hear the Environmental Protection Agency has slated $500,000 to assess two Kelso properties near the Cowlitz River: the former site of a scrap yard now owned by the nonprofit Love Overwhelming and the old American Legion building.

Assessing whether the former industrial sites are contaminated is likely the first step to putting Love Overwhelming's empty 3-acre-site to use, as well as updating the facade of the Legion building. The changes wouldn't only be nice to look at, but could be a catalyst for economic growth by drawing people and businesses to the area after the locations are spruced up.

We're glad to see that the lead paint found in 2018 assessment of the Legion post will be cleaned up too. Exposure to lead can cause serious health problems, from organ damage to reproductive issues, so the United States banned lead paint in 1978. Would we prefer to have gotten rid of it sooner? Of course. But as the old adage goes, the best time to start was yesterday, and the second-best time is right now.

We thank the city of Kelso for going after the grants to make a positive impact on the city's landscape and working with city businesses and organizations with a common goal: beautifying and revitalizing Kelso.

Thumbs down: Wildfire season

Looks like it's that time of year again.

Recently, TDN ran a story about a wildfire in Randle that had grown to about 8 acres. In the grand scale of wildfires, 8 acres isn't much. But it's a reminder that summer is fast approaching, and with it, a wildfire's best friend: long stretches of hot, dry weather.

The National Weather Service previously issued a red flag warning for interior parts of Southwest Washington. Fortunately, it's not nearly as hot or dry yet as it has been in recent summers, but that's no reason to forget about safety. As the weather has been constantly reminding us recently, conditions can and will change on a dime.

Please make sure you're practicing fire safety. Don't build a fire when it's dry and windy, keep it in an open location and douse it with cold water after. Don't let up until you stop seeing smoke. Keep cars off dry grass and keep anything that sparks away from vegetation. And most importantly, always pay attention to your surroundings when fire is involved. Nobody wants a return to the days of brown skies and a blood-red sun.

Thumbs down: Abuse of CARES

We were deeply disappointed to learn that an Lower Columbia College employee used her position in the college's financial aid department to funnel $22,000 to herself and people she knew through federal pandemic relief called the CARES Act.

Taking the money was not a criminal act because the CARES Act did not stipulate that aid be returned if a student drops classes. However, the school pursued her for an ethics investigation and sought civil penalties.

We're not out to say that anyone who dropped a class during COVID and still received financial aid was out to defraud the government. Community college students tend to have greater responsibilities outside school and more often have to prioritize those over school. But the rules were clearly just too lax if what she did was only actionable through a civil complaint.

Thumbs up: Transitional kindergarten

The numbers for Longview's transitional kindergarten program are in, and they are looking good.

Megan Shea-Bates of the Broadway Learning Center, the host of Longview School District's transitional kindergarten program, gave a presentation to the board demonstrating how investing in the program has paid off. Her presentation focused on the strides kids have made academically. Of the 64 students in the class, 27 are fully at the benchmarks to enter kindergarten, and 85% of kids in the class have the necessary literacy skills.

We're glad to see this program succeeding, and being rewarded for doing so. The district will fund an expansion to the program so kids can begin the school year in September, rather than in October as is currently the case. That will not only get kids more days of instruction, moving the start of class to September is more in line with a typical school schedule.

Besides the academic benefits, the program also gives these kids more opportunities to interact with other students. The 4-year-olds now in these classes were born in the early pandemic, and missed many of the normal chances to do so. We're happy that they're getting the opportunity now.
T-Hub, Indias leading innovation ecosystem, has today announced its strategic partnership with Renault Nissan Technology Business Centre India (RNTBCI), a global technical and development centre for the Open Innovation Challenge. The collaboration aims to run a corporate innovation program that will connect startups with leading industry experts, provide proof-of-concept (PoC) grants, and facilitate engagement with startups for industry-driven use cases.

This partnership between T-Hub and RNTBCI will explore and leverage the creative potential of Indian tech startups in the thriving innovation ecosystem. T-Hubs extensive network and expertise in nurturing startups will enable RNTBCI to connect with leading technological startups possessing unique skills aligned with the Renault Nissan tech innovation strategy. By tapping into T-Hubs vast innovation ecosystem, RNTBCI aims to enhance its innovation capabilities and foster the growth of disruptive solutions within the mobility market.

Through this collaboration, T-Hub startups will have the opportunity to receive mentorship from Renault Nissan Tech experts, engage in paid PoC projects, and pitch their innovative solutions to the corporate leadership at RENAULT NISSAN. This exchange of knowledge and resources will enable startups to further develop their products and gain exposure to potential customers and investors.

Mahankali Srinivas Rao (MSR), CEO, T-Hub, said, We are delighted to join forces with Renault Nissan Technology Business Centre India (RNTBCI) to foster innovation and empower startups in India. By joining forces, we aim to create a vibrant ecosystem that nurtures cutting-edge solutions and propels Indias tech startup landscape to new heights. This partnership reaffirms our commitment to catalyzing the success of startups and propelling Indias position as a global innovation hub.

Debashis Neogi, Managing Director, RNTBCI, said, Todays mobility market is moving at a high pace of disruption with innovation as key business strategy. Innovation helps companies grow, differentiates amongst the competition, and keeps them profitable. It is important to leverage the technological potential of the fast-growing start-up ecosystem in India by collaborating with young tech start-ups. This collaboration with T-Hub will help promote the innovation ecosystem, supporting technology driven start-ups.

In addition to this exciting partnership, T-Hub announced the appointment of Sujit Jagirdar as its new Chief Innovation Officer (CIO) in a press conference today. With over 20 years of experience in IT and Business Process Consulting, Digital Transformation rollouts, and Designing Innovative Solutions, Sujit Jagirdar is a passionate leader who aims to promote open innovation by enabling collaboration and co-creation amongst corporates, startups, technology hubs and the academia. As a CIO, Sujit will focus on driving strategic engagements with corporates, ecosystem enablers, government bodies, and startups both nationally and internationally. Sujit Jagirdar plans to position T-Hub as Indias pioneering innovation ecosystem, driving integrated solutions to achieve the organizations revenue goals.

Sujit Jagirdar, Chief Innovation Officer (CIO), T-Hub, said, I am excited to join T-Hub as the Chief Innovation Officer. T-Hub has established itself as a world class hub of entrepreneurial talent and innovation, and I am keen to contribute to its mission of fostering ground-breaking solutions addressing some of the pressing business and societal challenges. 

T-Hubs programs have been successfully scaling startups in partnership with a robust ecosystem of partners. T-Hub, to date, has impacted over 2000 startups through various programs and initiatives, has over 600 global and national corporate partners and has provided 2000 mentor connects to help the startup scale. T-Hub will continue to drive collaboration between startups and leading innovation ecosystems worldwide, providing global market-access opportunities to startups.
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In this Feb. 14, 2019, file photo people stand in the lobby for Amazon offices in New York. Amazon is kicking off its annual security-focused cloud computing conference on Tuesday amid a slowdown in its profitable cloud business Amazon Web Services, or AWS. Credit: AP Photo/Mark Lennihan, File

Amazon's cloud computing unit Amazon Web Services experienced an outage on Tuesday, affecting publishers that suddenly found themselves unable to operate their sites.

The company said on its website that the root cause of the issue was tied to a service called AWS Lambda, which lets customers run code for different types of applications.

Roughly two hours after customers began experiencing errors, the company posted on its AWS status page that many of the affected AWS services were "fully recovered" and it was continuing to recover the rest. Soon after 6:30 pm E.T., the company announced all AWS services were operating normally.

Amazon said it had experienced multiple error rates for AWS services in the Northern Virginia region where it clusters data centers. The company said customers may be dealing with authentication or sign-in errors when using some AWS services, and experiencing challenges when attempting to connect with AWS Support. The issue with Lambda also indirectly affected other AWS services.

Patrick Neighorn, a company spokesperson, declined to provide additional details about the outage.

AWS is the market leader in the cloud arena, and its customers include some of the world's biggest businesses and organizations, such as Netflix, Coca-Cola and government agencies.

Tuesday's outage was first confirmed shortly after 3 p.m. ET. and it was unclear how widespread the problem extended. But many companies, including news organizations such as The Verge and Penn Live, said they were experiencing issues. The Associated Press was also hampered by the outage, unable to operate their sites amid breaking news that former President Donald Trump was appearing in court in Miami.

Morgan Durrant, a spokesperson for Delta Air Lines, said the company experienced "some slowing of inbound calls for some minutes" on Tuesday afternoon. But he said the outage did not impact bookings, flights or other airport operations.

The episode on Tuesday is reminiscent of a much longer AWS outage in December 2021, which affected a host of U.S. companies for more than five hours.

The outage comes as Amazon is holding a two-day security conference in Anaheim, California to tout its cloud offerings to its clients or other companies that might be interested in storing their data on its vast network of servers around the world. Companies have been cutting back their spending on the unit, causing growth to slow during the most recent quarter.

 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
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Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain

Research in the International Journal of Web Based Communities introduces a new and accurate approach to identifying abnormal users in social networks by examining several characteristics of user behavior at once. By tapping into the APIs (Advanced Programming Interfaces) of various social networks, Jian Xie of the College of Education at Fuyang Normal University in Fuyang, China, was able to gather comprehensive data about users, including details about their accounts, the content they post, and the specific ways they behave.

An analysis of this data allowed him to ascribe a set of attributes to users. By applying attribute reduction, he could then eliminate any redundant features and so build a targeted attribute feature set with which to analyze suspicious accounts.

Xie then used the assimilated data to train the XGBoost model, a powerful machine learning algorithm, to create a highly objective function that can quickly flag abnormal behavior on a social network. Xie was able to identify abnormal users with 95% accuracy, sufficient to alert the system's administrators to any putative issues that could then be manually investigated and action taken to block malicious users, for instance. The error level achieved was low as was the speed with which abnormal users could be identified, within fractions of a second, in fact. Xie's approach is faster and more accurate than the previous methods he notes in his paper.

The findings have implications across social networking, where the identification of abnormal users, whether they are malicious third parties, trolls, spammers, bullies, misinformation accounts, fake accounts, hijacked usernames or bots, plays an important role in maintaining the safety of legitimate users and protecting the overall integrity of the digital community.

"This method has the characteristics of high feature extraction accuracy, low identification error rate, and low identification time of abnormal users in social networks," Xie concludes. He suggests that the approach could lay the foundations for developing powerful social network security policies.

More information: Jian Xie, An accurate identification method of abnormal users in social network based on multivariate characteristics, International Journal of Web Based Communities (2023). DOI: 10.1504/IJWBC.2023.131386
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Tech giants have been targeted by the EU for a number of allegedly unfair practices.

The European Commission, which said Wednesday that Google had abused its online ad dominance, has taken the fight to US tech giants on a variety of frontsfrom tax avoidance, disinformation and hate speech to data privacy and monopolistic practices.

Here is a summary of the tussles between Silicon Valley and Brussels.

Stifling competition

The European Commission on Wednesday accused Google of abusing its dominance of the online ad market and recommended, after a two-year probe, that it sell off part of its business to ensure competition.

Google could face a fine of up to 10 percent of its global revenue if the commission maintains that stanceas provided for under the 2022 Digital Markets Act, drafted to rein in the market dominance of Big Tech.

Brussels has already slapped over eight billion euros in fines on Google for abusing its dominant market position.

In 2018, the company was fined 4.3 billion eurosthe biggest ever antitrust penalty imposed by the EUfor abusing the dominant position of its Android mobile operating system to promote Google's search engine.

The fine was later reduced to 4.1 billion euros.

The firm has also incurred billion-plus fines for abusing its power in online shopping and for abusive practices in online advertising.

Apple has also been in the EU's sights, with Brussels investigating its dominance among music streaming apps.

Taxation

The EU has had less success in getting tech companies to pay more taxes in Europe, where they are accused of funneling profits into low-tax economies like Ireland and Luxembourg.

In one of the most notorious cases, the European Commission in 2016 found that Ireland granted illegal tax benefits to Apple and ordered the company pay 13 billion euros in back taxes.

The EU's General Court later overturned the ruling, saying there was no evidence the company broke the rules, a decision promptly appealed by the Commission.

The Commission also lost a similar case involving Amazon, which it had ordered to repay 250 million euros in back taxes to Luxembourg.

In October 2021, following extensive lobbying by European countries, the G20 group of nations agreed on a minimum 15-percent corporate tax rate.

Privacy

Brussels has also handed down billions in fines for breaches of its landmark 2018 privacy regulations, which require tech firms to obtain users' consent in order to collect, process and store their personal information.

Irelandhome to Meta's European headquarters has become the main enforcer of the General Data Protection Regulation, hitting Facebook parent Meta particularly with a string of eye-watering fines for breaches of the rules.

In May, Dublin fined Meta a record 1.2 billion euros ($1.3 billion) over its transfers of personal data between Europe and the United Statesthe company's fourth such EU privacy fine in a year.

Amazon has also fallen foul of the EU's rules, with Luxembourg, home to its European headquarters, fining it 746 million euros in July 2021.

Disinformation, hate speech

Social networks, particularly Facebook and Twitter, are often accused of failing to tackle disinformation and hate speech.

In July last year, the European Parliament approved a Digital Services Act that forces big online companies to combat hate speech, disinformation and piracy, or face fines of up to six percent of their global turnover.

In April, the EU published a list of 19 major platforms that are required to comply with the act starting August 25, 2023. They include Twitter, TikTok and Instagram.

Paying for news

Google and other online platforms have also been accused of making billions from news without sharing the revenue with those who gather it.

To tackle this, the EU created a form of copyright called "neighboring rights" that allows print media to demand compensation for use of their content.

After initial resistance, Google and Facebook agreed to pay French media for articles shown in web searches. Google has reached an agreement with AFP on neighboring rights.

 2023 AFP
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A Google sign is shown at the company's office in San Francisco, on April 12, 2023. European Union antitrust regulators on Wednesday, June 14, 2023, took aim at Google's lucrative digital advertising business, ordering the tech giant to sell off some of its ad services to address competition concerns. Credit: AP Photo/Jeff Chiu

European Union regulators hit Google with fresh antitrust charges Wednesday, saying the only way to satisfy competition concerns about its lucrative digital ad business is by selling off parts of the tech giant's main moneymaker.

The unprecedented decision to push for such a breakup marks a significant escalation by Brussels in its crackdown on Silicon Valley digital giants, and follows a similar move by U.S. authorities seeking to bust Google's alleged monopoly on the online ad ecosystem.

The European Commission, the bloc's executive branch and top antitrust enforcer, said its preliminary view after an investigation is that "only the mandatory divestment by Google of part of its services" would address the concerns.

The 27-nation EU has led the global movement to crack down on Big Tech companiesincluding moving closer to groundbreaking rules on artificial intelligencebut it has previously relied on issuing blockbuster fines, including three antitrust penalties for Google worth billions.

It is the first time the bloc has told a tech giant that it should split up key parts of its business over violations of the EU's strict antitrust laws, though details on what that could look like are not clear following the preliminary finding.

Google can now defend itself by making its case before the commission issues its final decision. The company said it disagreed with the finding and "will respond accordingly," adding that the EU's investigation focused on a narrow part of its ad business.

"Our advertising technology tools help websites and apps fund their content, and enable businesses of all sizes to effectively reach new customers," said Dan Taylor, Google vice president of global ads. "Google remains committed to creating value for our publisher and advertiser partners in this highly competitive sector."

The commission's decision stems from a formal investigation that it opened in June 2021, looking into whether Google violated the bloc's competition rules by favoring its own online display advertising technology services at the expense of rival publishers, advertisers and advertising technology services.

Online display ads are banners and text that appear on websites such as newspaper home pages and are personalized based on an internet user's browsing history.

European Commission Vice President Margrethe Vestager says Google is dominant on both sides of the ad-selling market. Google abused that position by favoring its own ad exchange, reinforcing its ability to charge a high fee for its services, the commission said.

"Google is representing the interests of both buyers and sellers. And at the same time, Google is setting the rules on how demand and supply should meet," she said at a news conference. "This gives rise to inherent and pervasive conflicts of interest."

European Commissioner for Europe fit for the Digital Age Margrethe Vestager speaks during a media conference regarding an antitrust case against Google Adtech at EU headquarters in Brussels, Wednesday, June 14, 2023. Credit: AP Photo/Virginia Mayo

Vestager added that if Google sold off, for example, its real-time marketplace for buying and selling ads or a tool for publishers to manage their ads, "we would put an end to the conflicts of interest."

The commission is seeking a forced sale because past cases that ended with fines and requirements for Google to stop anti-competitive practices have not worked, allowing the company to continue its behavior, "just under a different disguise," she said.

"This is a big deal" and a sign that the commission has "lost all trust in Google and lost all trust in those behavioral remedies" mandating changes to the way it operates, said Rich Stables, CEO of rival search engine Kelkoo, which was involved in two of the EU's previous Google antitrust cases.

Google's ad tech business is also under investigation by Britain's antitrust watchdog and faces litigation in the U.S. that calls for the company to divest its digital ad tools.

European and U.S. authorities are acknowledging that "the only way to address this egregious conflict of interest is to force Google to divest part of its business," said Max von Thun, director of the Europe office of the Open Markets Institute, a proponent of stronger antitrust enforcement.

The commission's move is "a clear illustration of the power competition authorities have when they work in parallel," he said.

Brussels has previously hit Google with more than 8 billion euros (now $8.6 billion) worth of fines in three separate antitrust cases, involving its Android mobile operating system and shopping and search advertising services. The company is appealing all three penalties.

EU regulators can impose penalties worth up to 10% of annual revenue and also could fine Google alongside any sale order.

Google brought in $54.5 billion in ad sales and YouTube earned nearly $6.7 billion in ad sales in the first three months of the year, but that marked a back-to-back slump as companies spend more cautiously.

 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
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Credit: Google

It took Da Vinci 16 years to paint the Mona Lisa. Some say he needed 12 years just to paint her lips.

There is no truth to the rumors that slow Internet was the cause.

But Da Vinci, a polymath who dabbled in botany, engineering, science, sculpture, and geology as well as painting, surely would have appreciated a new text-to-image generative vision transformer developed by Google Research.

Google's StyleDrop, as described in a June 1 paper on the arXiv preprint server, lets users describe objects and specify artistic styles they wish to have incorporated in the generated output.

StyleDrop returns images reflecting the user's specifications in about three minutes.

"The proposed method is extremely versatile and captures nuances and details of a user-provided style, such as color schemes, shading, design patterns, and local and global effects," Google said in its report "StyleDrop: Text-to-Image Generation in Any Style."

StyleDrop also creates typography that faithfully incorporates stylistic features of images.

For example, users could propose an image of a bridge, a letter and then specify a style of drawing. Such styles could be "melting golden rendering," "wooden sculpture," "3D rendering," "cartoon drawing" or any other preferred style. One's imagination is the only limit.

Credit: Google

StyleDrop will then generate impressive renderings of objects with a Dali-like dripping bridge, or perhaps a cartoon-like version, along with letters incorporating the same characteristics.

StyleDrop works in connection with Google's Muse, a generative vision transformer unveiled earlier this year that offers a remarkable degree of photorealism. Muse was trained on 3 billion parameters, ensuring capacity for high-quality image generation.

Researchers evaluated the accuracy and quality of StyleDrop's output using industry standard CLIP text and style scoring as well as user feedback. Evaluations found StyleDrop "convincingly outperforms" other leading image-and text-generation methods, including DreamBooth, Imagen and Stable Diffusion.

The developers see this program, which has no yet been released to the public, as an invaluable aid to art directors and graphics designers who can create photorealistic imagery of designated products or themes that include text reflecting the same colors, structuring and style.

For a new product campaign, say for a new soda brand, an artist could propose in just a few words a sleek-shaped glass bottle nestled amid thousands of tulips in a Dutch field, with accompany text featuring letters constructed of 3D rendered glass, in the style of Impressionist Monet. In three minutes, with the right wording, a new ad campaign featuring a warm, brightly colored, scenic skyscape could be born.

The renowned typographer Helmut Schmidt once said, "Typography needs to be felt. Typography needs to be experienced." StyleDrop may well help designers bring a greater degree of intimacy and connectedness to their work.

The report acknowledges, however, that copyright protection is a concern.

"We recognize potential pitfalls such as the ability to copy individual artists' styles without their consent, and urge the responsible use of our technology," the report stated.

And just what instructions would Da Vinci have used for StyleDrop? "Draw a picture of an attractive noblewoman, kind of smiling but not too much, sitting outdoors with mountains in the background. Draw in the style of  Da Vinci." With the job done in three minutesinstead of 16 yearsLeonardo, who loved botany, would have had plenty more time to go out and smell those roses.

More information: Kihyuk Sohn et al, StyleDrop: Text-to-Image Generation in Any Style, arXiv (2023). DOI: 10.48550/arxiv.2306.00983 StyleDrop: styledrop.github.io/ Journal information: arXiv

 2023 Science X Network
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Credit: Unsplash/CC0 Public Domain

Microsoft's planned $69 billion purchase of video game company Activision Blizzard was blocked by a federal judge Tuesday, giving more time for an antitrust review of the deal.

U.S. District Judge Jacqueline Scott Corley in San Francisco ruled in support of a temporary restraining order sought by the Federal Trade Commission that will stop Microsoft from closing the deal.

In a court filing Monday, the commission had sought both a restraining order and injunction to stop Microsoft's acquisition of the California company behind hit games such as Call of Duty, World of Warcraft and Candy Crush Saga.

Microsoft, maker of the Xbox game system, has spent months trying to win worldwide approval for the merger. While a number of countries have approved the acquisition, regulators for two important economiesthe U.S. and the U.K.have taken action to stop it, arguing it could suppress competition in the video game market.

The judge said her order temporarily blocking the deal "is necessary to maintain the status quo" while the Federal Trade Commission's legal cases against it are still pending. The bar for issuing an urgent restraining order is lower than it is to issue a preliminary injunction blocking the deal. A hearing on the commission's request for an injunction is set for June 22.

The trade commission already took Microsoft to court last year to block the merger, but that case was brought to the U.S. agency's in-house judge in a trial set to start Aug. 2.

The commission said it brought its case to a federal court this week because it was concerned that Microsoft was trying to imminently close the deal before the trial begins, which would make it "difficult, if not impossible" to reverse course if the acquisition was later found to be illegal.

 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
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Credit: Original Power, Author provided

Over 3.4 million Australian houses now have rooftop solar, often subsidized by government incentives.

But in remote First Nations communities in the Northern Territory, you don't see solar on any rooftops. That's a real problem. This part of Australia is dangerously hot in summer. And many people don't have enough power to run vital appliances like the fridge and air conditioner.

Solar would be an ideal solution. Tennant Creek has more than 300 days per year of sunshine with some of the clearest skies in the world, for instance.

Only recently, co-author and Warumungu elder Frank Jupurrurla took part in the first NT rooftop solar trial, supported by Original Power and installed rooftop solar on his house.

As our new research found, this pilot worked well, supplying a third of the house's power and ending the problem of power disconnecting. Previously, the power would go out once a month on average. After solar, it never went off.

So why isn't this widely available? The main problems are red tape, such as getting approval for work on public housing, securing feed in tariffs and metering requirements. As Mr. Jupurrurla's experience demonstrates, they can all be overcomebut not easily.

As Frank Jupurrurla says, "We call the sun Kilyirr [] Right now he's shining on my panels, he's giving me power, and he looks after us. So that Kilyirr, he gonna be there forever."

How do remote communities get power at present?

Prepaid electricity is used in many remote First Nations households across Australia, and in almost all town camps. In this model, people "top up" the meter with credit. When credit runs out, the electricity disconnects until more credit is purchased. The electricity here is often produced by diesel generators.

Despite the risk of sudden disconnection, this model is often preferred by many communities as it gives residents fewer surprise bills. The downside is it often leads to an unenviable choicepower or food.

For residents of Tennant Creek's town camps, it is not uncommon to run out of credit on a hot day. The hotter the day, the higher the chance people will lose power. That's because hotter weather forces air conditioners and fridges to work harder.

When the power goes off, food inside fridges starts to spoil. Essential medical devices such as oxygen concentrators stop operating. Medications can become inactive or even toxic.

Sun after red tape: Frank Jupurrurla (centre), with family members Serena and Nina-Simone (left) and Lauren Mellor (Original Power). Credit: Original Power, Author provided

Air conditioners stop working and temperatures rise. On very hot days, the inside of a house gets well over 40. Children and adults can't sleep. Going to school gets harder. Not only are these conditions unsafe, they can drive social disharmony.

As Frank Jupurrurla says, "We struggle every day. Our people, they're not healthy. Lots of people in this town are on renal [dialysis]. Solar should be talked about in parliament and put on the table."

Did the trial help?

A 6.6 kilowatt solar array was installed on Mr. Jupurrurla's house and switched on in November 2021. The house kept its grid connection and no battery was installed. Household residents received a crash course from the installers, First Nations organization Original Power, on making the most of the solar for example by running the washing machine during daylight hours.

The result? Solar generates a third of the total power use in any given month. But more importantly, through reducing energy costs, disconnections stopped entirely. This removed a huge source of stress and made the home safer and more enjoyable, according to the family.

As Mr. Jupurrurla says, "We used to put a lot of power cards in nearly every day, second day. Now we got money all the time since we've got solar."

Solar is a great solution, but only if it's made easy

It sounds simple: install a 6.6kW array and see what difference it made. After all, people in the cities can do this routinely.

But it's harder far from the cities, and harder still when different government departments have to sign off. As Mr. Jupurrurla describes:

"The barriers was from the day we started. Before that, we'd argue with [Department of] Housing, and they said we have to check inside and check if the house is strong enough. Once we had the panels on, then it took us a while to [turn] it on. It was pretty frustrating. It took Power and Water more than three months just to switch the switch on. It was so hard. I rang the housing minister but nothing happened. So one day I just went out there to the box and switched it on myself."

Installing solar here meant overcoming regulatory barriers such as securing feed-in tariffs for excess power produced, ensuring the public housing is high-quality enough to host solar, and the question of ownership of the panels.

The NT housing department required an engineer's sign off on the roof's structural integrity, as this can't be assumed for remote public housing.

As Mr. Jupurrurla's experience demonstrates, these barriers can be overcomebut not easily.

Installation took a fraction of the time to get approvals. Credit: Original Power, Author provided

What's stopping a wider rollout?

Our trial shows solar can work well for remote communities. The timing is good, as the ongoing roll-out of smart prepay meters means most remote First Nations houses in the NT are able to handle solar.

For this to gain momentum, the NT government must find ways to overcome these barriers. The Territory government has responsibilities as both the landlord for housing and as the monopoly energy provider.

A key first step would be to smooth the path with clear paperwork and incentives for prepay households to install solar.

Just as in the cities, encouraging solar will require financial incentives to offset the upfront cost, with culturally appropriate resources available in First Nations languages to explain the process.

Feed-in tariffs have long driven demand for solar for many homeowners. Ensuring remote communities are eligible will be vital.

Australian households are world leaders in taking up solar. But for too long, the ability to generate your own power from the sun has been off limits to many of the people who would benefit the most.

This year is an excellent time to correct this, as the federal government works towards a co-designed First Nations Clean Energy Strategy and the NT government's plans for better power solutions in remote communities.

As Frank Jupurrurla says, "I'd like to see government fund [] panels on homes. Especially in the Community Living Areas [Town Camps] in places like Alice Springs, Tenant Creek, and Katherine."

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
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Credits: Danyang Zhu, Westlake University.

The performance and realism of virtual reality (VR) technology has significantly improved over the past decade, allowing users to immerse themselves in digital content in ways that were previously inaccessible. The technology will most likely continue to evolve over the next few years, introducing additional features and components that further engage the five senses.

Researchers at Westlake University, the Westlake Institute for Advanced Study and other universities in China recently created a new haptic device that could increase the fidelity and realism of virtual experiences. This device, presented in Nature Machine Intelligence, is partly inspired by the Asian paper-folding art of origami.

"I am always interested in trending topics, not just from academia, but also from industry sectors," Hanqing Jiang, one of the researchers who carried out the study, told Tech Xplore. "Since 2019, I have been following the latest technology breakthroughs in AR/VR areas. In additional to visual and audio perceptions, mechanical sensation, specifically touching, is an important component, but it is still missing in the existing technologies."

The key objective of the recent work by Jiang and his colleagues was to create a haptic device that could allow users to also detect the stiffness of the objects they encounter in virtual environments. To do this, the team draw inspiration from origami, the art of folding paper to create specific 3D shapes or figures.

"When I was at Arizona State University, my group studied curved origami and used it to tune stiffness in 2020," Jiang said. "This work inspired us to combine origami and the metaverse. We didn't have detailed plans on how to make it work at that time. After I joined Westlake University in 2021, I gained the bandwidth to greatly expand my own group, including mechanical engineers, and electrical engineers, and came up with a detailed plan to replicate active mechanical sensation using curved origami for the metaverse."

Credits: Danyang Zhu, Westlake University.

The origami-based curved device created by Jiang and his colleagues allows users to feel similar sensations to those they would feel if they were touching different objects in real life, replicating the softness or stiffness of these objects, as well as any positive or negative tactile sensations. Compared to other haptic devices introduced in the past, this system could allow humans to have touch-related experiences as they actively interact with objects in virtual environments, rather than simply producing tactile sensations when their hands are still.

The device can be easily synchronized with specific VR content to produce perfectly timed tactile sensations and change what users perceive when they are interacting with different objects or environments. In addition to re-producing what humans might feel when touching harder or softer objects, it can create sensations of crushing by a user.

"The key component of our system is a curved origami panel," Jiang explained. "To change the stiffness simultaneously with the scenes in the VR/AR environments, motors are used to change the angles between the origami panels. We attained what could be referred to as 'active mechanical sensation.' In the past, dominating technologies used vibration to replicate touching sensation, which is passive. However, we, human, use active sensation to interact with the physical environments and our system could better reflect this."

The researchers have so far evaluated their device in a series of preliminary tests, assessing its ability to create immersive tactile experiences. Their results suggest that it outperformed other existing haptic devices that primarily utilize vibration to produce tactile sensations.

In the future, their unique origami-based design could be used to further advance the performance of VR technology. Meanwhile, Jiang and his team plan to continue working on their device to effectively re-create other tactile sensations.

"We now plan to bring in multi-modal sensations, including active touching, texture, temperature, etc.," Jiang added.

More information: Zhuang Zhang et al, Active mechanical haptics with high-fidelity perceptions for immersive virtual reality, Nature Machine Intelligence (2023). DOI: 10.1038/s42256-023-00671-z Journal information: Nature Machine Intelligence

 2023 Science X Network
South Africa: Nxesi calls for speedy global policy coordination to achieve SDGs targets

Employment and Labour Minister Thulas Nxesi has called for speedy global policy coordination and joint action to create a coherent and harmonised approach towards social justice to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) 2030 targets.

Let us forge a world where social justice is not a distant dream but a reality for all, Nxesi said.

The Minister was addressing the 111th Session of the International Labour Conference (ILC) of the International Labour Organisation (ILO), currently underway in Geneva, Switzerland.

Nxesi said the world is left with seven years to achieve SDG targets, and emphasised that ILO members have a duty to facilitate high-level dialogues and enhance policy coherence.

The Global Coalition can effectively support countries in their endeavours to promote social justice and equitable development, Nxesi said.

The United Nations (UN) Global Goals and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development seek to end poverty and hunger, realise the human rights of all, achieve gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls, and ensure the lasting protection of the planet and its natural resources.

Nxesi expressed gratitude to the ILO for its unwavering commitment to advancing social justice globally.

Today, we find ourselves facing a complex array of challenges that threaten to undermine social justice on a global scale. The compounding crises we face, from the fallout of the pandemics and many other crises to growing inequalities, inadequate investment in social development, and weakening global solidarity, demand our urgent attention and collaborative action.

In light of these challenges, the proposal to forge a Global Coalition for Social Justice holds immense promise. Such a coalition would elevate social justice as a global policy imperative and foster multilateral cooperation among the ILO's partners and stakeholders, Nxesi said.

Nxesi said South Africa supports the call for the Global Coalition to bolster existing frameworks and closer engagements are necessary among organisations, including the International Monetary Fund (IMF), World Bank and World Trade Organisation (WTO).

He said there is no need to reinvent the wheel, since there are already initiatives that attempt to achieve the same goals and objectives as the coalition.

We must not overlook the pivotal role of the ILO's tripartite composition in shaping social contracts at the national and international levels. The success of the Global Coalition will depend solely on its inclusivity and social dialogue.

The unique collaboration among governments, employers organisations, and workers organisations will enable us to develop inclusive policies, promote social dialogue, create sustainable jobs, and foster sustainable development, Nxesi said.

He also noted that the recurring crises, economic inequalities, poverty, unsafe working conditions, conflicts, and discrimination continue to hinder progress towards social justice.

We must act decisively to reverse these trends, safeguard the dignity and well-being of workers worldwide, and build a more just and equitable future, the Minister emphasised.

The Minister also commended ILO Director-General Gilbert Houngbo's opening remarks, which echoes South Africas shared sentiment for greater social justice and the means to achieve it.

In his opening remarks, Houngbo said this is a time when technological and scientific progress is continuing to shape new forms of work and is generating thousands of jobs, not to mention productivity gains.

Houngbo said all countries, without exception, are continuing their efforts to recoup the economic and social benefits lost as a result of COVID-19, even though it is clear that these efforts are being undermined by the numerous crises which are leaving the world of today in a state of upheaval.

These structural labour market transformations will undoubtedly continue, Houngbo said.

The Minister will also during his attendance of the ILC engage in bilateral meetings with various counterparts, which the country has relations with.

His programme will include attending the African Regional Labour Administration Centre (ARLAC) Governing Council meeting, and also host the Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (BRICS) Employment and Labour Ministers, to appraise them on plans for the September Employment Working Group meetings.  SAnews.gov.za

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Tibet hosts culture, tourism expo on "roof of the world"

Xinhua) 15:43, June 14, 2023

LHASA, June 14 (Xinhua) -- From Tibetan yak cashmere and Nepalese copper cookware to Australian chocolates, southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region is drawing crowds of tourists to its international expo on the "roof of the world."

The expo on tourism and culture, scheduled to open in Lhasa on Friday and last for three days, will highlight the unique plateau culture and different products, Tibet's tourism development department said in a press release Wednesday.

Altogether 984 businesses from 12 countries will participate in the event, which aims at boosting the development of local industries and promote international exchanges, it said.

Tsetso, 29, is eager to welcome visitors to her booth featuring Tibetan yak cashmere clothes. "This is going to be a great opportunity for Chinese and international tourists to discover our products."

Nepalese craftsman Narayan has brought copper pots, bowls, and bottles from Nepal. "This is my second time participating in the expo, and I am proud to bring my family's traditional craft to Tibet," said Narayan, 38.

On her first-ever visit to Tibet, Chen Lijuan from southwest China's Chongqing Municipality brought handmade chocolates her company imports from Australia.

"The Potala Palace is fully booked. I can only try my luck after the expo," said Chen, who has managed to visit the Jokhang Temple and Barkhor Street in the heart of Lhasa on the sidelines of her tight schedule.

This year's expo is the fifth such event in Lhasa since the first one was held in September 2014.

Tibet received more than 11.73 million tourist arrivals in the first five months of this year, a rise of nearly 45 percent year-on-year. Tourism revenue over the period surpassed 13 billion yuan (about 1.81 billion U.S. dollars), up nearly 43 percent from the same period in 2022, the regional tourism development department said.

(Web editor: Peng Yukai, Liang Jun)
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, June 13)  Mayors of affected towns in Albay said Tuesday thousands more residents will be evacuated if the danger zone around Mayon Volcano is extended amid its unrest.

Over 14,000 Filipinos have been displaced as the country's most active volcano spews lava, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) reported. The evacuees fled the 6-kilometer permanent danger zone.

On Monday the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council issued an advisory urging all residents within the 7-kilometer extended danger zone (EDZ) of Mayon to ready themselves for evacuation anytime if the situation worsens.

Provincial officials said up to 25,000 residents would need to evacuate if the danger zone is extended to 7 kilometers.

Camalig town Mayor Carlos Irwin Baldo told CNN Philippines The Source that on top of around 1,000 families or 5,000 residents of the municipality who already evacuated, another 2,000 households will be affected if the danger zone is expanded to 7 kilometers.

He said they have the greatest number of affected residents since their area is nearest to the volcano.

On the other hand, Guinobatan Mayor Paul Garcia said more than 3,000 families within the 6- and 7-kilometer danger zone are affected by the volcanos activity.

So far, around 820 families, or more than 2,000 people, from the 6-kilometer danger zone are already staying in evacuation centers, he noted.

For Santo Domingo, Mayor Joseling Aguas Jr. said almost all residents in the 6- and 7-kilometer area have already evacuated. More than 50 families, or over 2,000 people, are staying in evacuation centers, he noted.

Mayon is still under Alert Level 3 due to its magmatic unrest, according to the latest 24-hour observation of the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs).

In its bulletin for Mayon on Tuesday, Phivolcs said it recorded one volcanic quake, 221 rockfall events, and one pyroclastic density current event.

Mayons emission of sulfur dioxide also reached 723 tons, it added. Exposure to high levels of the gas could be life threatening, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The local chief executives said they are doing their best to provide what they can to residents staying in evacuation centers, like food packs, and hygiene kits.

Ang pinaka kailangan din po kasi, una kulang po talaga sa CR (comfort room) kaya kailangan po ng mga portal, Baldo noted.

[Translation: What is greatly needed is comfort room that is why we need portals.]

He said the Department of Health and the Office of Civil Defense have committed to assist in this matter. If the need arises, he said they will request for additional portals.

Garcia said comfort room as well as water supply are a problem in their evacuation centers in Guinobatan. Food packs, meanwhile, are enough with 70,000 in stock that may last for three weeks, he noted.

In Santo Domingo, Aguas said their supplies are also enough for now.

The local government also provides evacuees with materials and an area where they can build shanties, he said. Instead of staying in evacuation centers, this gives them more space and privacy, he noted.
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Borzoo Bonakdarpour, an associate professor at Michigan State University, talks about information-flow security while drawing up an example on a whiteboard. Credit: Matt Davenport/MSU

With so much of our lives being stored online and in digital databases, it's reassuring to know there are researchers out there like Borzoo Bonakdarpour of Michigan State University.

Bonakdarpour, an associate professor in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering, works to prevent information that people want to keep private from leaking into the public.

Talk of data breaches probably calls to mind one (or several) of the well-publicized examples of people being hacked through phishing scams or lax security practices. But Bonakdarpour, a recipient of a 2023 Withrow Teaching Award, focuses on a more subtle aspect of data privacy that carries the same high stakes.

"We sort of trust that computer programmers don't make mistakes," Bonakdarpour said. "But they're still human, right? They make mistakes all the time. This can introduce bugs that are accidental, but they can still result in massive security breaches."

Bonakdarpour and his team recently won a grant from the National Science Foundation to develop what he calls "enforcers," programs that can automatically spot and remedy those digital gaffes before they do harm.

MSUToday sat down with Bonakdarpour to chat about cybersecurity and learn more about his work.

Where does your work fit into the big picture of cybersecurity?

The project we're talking about is just one aspect of cybersecurity. Outside of that, there's database security, network securitythere are a ton of different types of security.

My focus is on what's called information-flow security and on developing algorithms that can verify the correctness of computer programs with respect to information flow.

What is information-flow security?

Information-flow security is about how secrets can leak into observable public channels. Let me give you one small example.

When I first started studying this, I was writing papers for a conference with my students, and I could log into the conference management portal that showed the status of all our submissions in table form.

The status was color coded: there was one "accepted" submission shown in green, one "rejected" submission shown in orange, and there were two pending submissions shown in yellow.

Each entry also included a "Session" column. For the green accepted paper, that column said "not yet assigned."

Looking at that column for the yellow entries, one was blank, but the other said "not yet assigned." From that, I could guess that this paper was probably internally marked as accepted.

But this information was supposed to be confidential. I should not have been able to guess anything about what was happening internally while it was pending. We took a screenshot of that table and put it in the introduction of one of our papers.

So while this example isn't overly sensitive, it demonstrates how information can easily leak from a private channel to a public channel.

Where can you find information-flow concerns where the stakes are higher?

There are a lot of companiesfrom very big to smallthat are paying attention to the correctness of information flow.

One area it's really important is in cloud services. For example, Amazon is very interested in this. If there's a bad flow of information from user to user on the cloud, that could mean a company disaster.

Borzoo Bonakdarpour of Michigan State University is interested in how bugs in systems can publicize private data. Serendipitously, Bonakdarpour found an example of this while submitting papers to present at a conference. The above chart provides a simplified example of what he saw when he logged onto the conferences paper management portal. One of his pending papers in yellowthat he shouldnt know anything aboutlooked similar to an accepted paper, whose information was no longer secret. This let Bonakdarpour infer the pending paper was also accepted. Credit: Michigan State University

Another big area is hardware design. Intel learned this the hard way in 1995 when, at the time, there was a bug in the Pentium processor code. They had to recall everything.

Then a few years ago, we found out there were different bugs in processor designs. They were called Spectre and Meltdown and they were very famous because virtually any computer could leak information.

Companies started developing software patches for that and the problem isn't bad now, but it just shows how subtle and intricate these problems can be.

Can you give an example of what that subtlety can look like?

For instance, how long it takes for a program to run can depend on a secret value. So, if you run the program twice, I can infer the value of the secret just by how long the program takes to execute each time.

There's an algorithm for encryption, and early implementations could not sense that your private encryption key determined its execution time. So, an attacker could guess your encryption key based on that time. The countermeasure is that the algorithm runs constantly, no matter what the key is, so an attacker cannot guess it.

And attacks can be even more sophisticated, like using the radiation or heat signature from your processor to reveal information.

What is your lab doing to help address these vulnerabilities?

We're developing algorithms to verify the correctness of computer programs with respect to information flowsort of taking humans, who can introduce bugs, out of the loop. We're working to develop programs that can automatically generate other programs that we know are correct by construction.

With our new NSF grant, we're taking the first step. We're not generating those top-level programs, but we are generating what we call "enforcers." Enforcers look at what goes in and out of your computing system, and if it senses that something is not right, it starts addressing it.

It's kind of like a safety net, but more active. It doesn't just raise a red flag, it also tries to correct it. It doesn't fix the codethat's another cool problem called program repair that I have another pending proposal forbut it can take actions based on inputs and outputs.

I'll give you an analogy as an example. Imagine something goes wrong with the traffic light at an intersection. If there's a problem and both directions have a green light, there can be accidents.

An enforcer would force one or both of the lights to be red. It doesn't necessarily solve the root problem, but it prevents an accident until somebody can.

Do you have any advice on how those of us who aren't cybersecurity experts can keep our information safe?

This is not necessarily related to security, but my personal view is that we are sharing too much information with companies.

Two years ago, my wife Googled mattresses for our kids and the next day I'm getting Facebook ads for mattresses. We haven't declared that we're married on Facebook, but somehow it knows we're connected.

I'm actually not a secretive person at all, but I think we should share as little as possible with these companies. At the same time, these companies and their services have privacy instructions. They have knobs and settings you can adjust to take care of your information, so be sure you're paying attention to those.
This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies . Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility:

We are basically the first group that started thinking about the supply chain, or the pain point, that nickel will bring to the EV industry in a matter of, I would say, three to five years, says Huolin Xin, UCI professor of physics & astronomy, lead author of a paper in Nature Energy on a new way to use nickel in lithium-ion batteries. Credit: Steve Zylius / UCI

In a discovery that could reduce or even eliminate the use of cobaltwhich is often mined using child laborin the batteries that power electric cars and other products, scientists at the University of California, Irvine have developed a long-lasting alternative made with nickel.

"Nickel doesn't have child labor issues," said Huolin Xin, the UCI professor of physics & astronomy whose team devised the method, which could usher in a new, less-controversial generation of lithium-ion batteries. Until now, nickel wasn't a practical substitute because large amounts of it were required to create lithium batteries, he said. And the metal's cost keeps climbing.

To become an economically viable alternative to cobalt, nickel-based batteries needed to use as little nickel as possible.

"We're the first group to start going in a low-nickel direction," said Xin, whose team published its findings in the journal Nature Energy. "In a previous study by my group, we came up with a novel solution to fully eliminate cobalt. But that formulation still relied on a lot of nickel."

To solve that problem, Xin's team spent three years devising a process called "complex concentrated doping" that enabled the scientists to alter the key chemical formula in lithium-ion batteries as easily as one might adjust seasonings in a recipe.

The doping process, Xin explained, eliminates the need for cobalt in commercial components critical for lithium-ion battery functioning and replaces it with nickel.

"Doping also increases the efficiency of nickel," said Xin, which means EV batteries now require less nickel to worksomething that will help make the metal a more attractive alternative to cobalt-based batteries.

Xin said he thinks the new nickel chemistry will quickly start transforming the lithium-ion battery industry. Already, he said, electric vehicle companies are planning to take his team's published results and replicate them.

"EV makers are very excited about low-nickel batteries, and a lot of EV companies want to validate this technique," Xin said. "They want to do safety tests."

More information: Rui Zhang et al, Long-life lithium-ion batteries realized by low-Ni, Co-free cathode chemistry, Nature Energy (2023). DOI: 10.1038/s41560-023-01267-y Journal information: Nature Energy
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Credit: CC0 Public Domain

Renewable Energy Technologies (RETs) are often considered disruptive innovations as they transform current market structures that prioritize state-owned, fossil fuel-based energy giants. According to Oskar Juszczyk's doctoral dissertation from the University of Vaasa, Finland, the diffusion of renewables needs to be supported by interest groups from all sectors of society to overcome numerous challenges, such as ineffective policies, limited financing options, obsolete infrastructure, and low levels of societal acceptance.

"An enhanced collaboration between government, industry, academia, and society is critical for the prosperity of environmentally-friendly technology solutions," says Juszczyk, who will publicly defend his dissertation in industrial management on Monday 19 June.

Juszczyk's dissertation in the field of industrial management explores the impact of regulatory, technological, and socio-economic factors on the successful diffusion of RETs. The study highlights the importance of a supportive regulatory regime as well as inter-sectoral collaboration to foster the implementation of RETs.

When it comes to energy, there is always politics involved

The dissertation adopts a problem-solving approach, which required the initial determination of the most challenging barriers to the diffusion of RETs. The evidence based on interviews with executives of RET companies shows that unsupportive, overly complicated, and dynamically changing energy policies and legal procedures are key obstacles to the prosperity of renewables.

Therefore, Juszczyk recommends more comprehensive, simplified, entrepreneur-driven, and renewables-oriented regulations as prerequisites for implementing more RETs. Strategies with a long-term perspective are required to effectively fulfill the ambitious goals stated in the official government reports and to achieve the targets of the legally-binding international regulations.

Multi-sector contribution is needed

Collaborative input from all sectors of society is critical to support the diffusion of RETs. "Indeed, university-industry collaboration is more often than not a source of innovative solutions that push the whole energy industry forward. This could be achieved through the formation of collaborative networks, such as energy ecosystems, or energy hubs and clusters," claims Juszczyk.

Furthermore, the study firmly underlines the need for strengthened efforts to increase the societal acceptance of renewables, which would ultimately result in enhanced adoption of RETs. This could be accomplished by organizing various education programs, conferences, workshops, and other awareness-raising actions, which would result in increased environmental consciousness and customer trust.

The empirical analysis of the dissertation is based on evidence gained through interviews with experts in Finnish and Polish RET sectors. It addresses the most challenging barriers in the practical and eye-catching form of a roadmap. In addition to the prerequisites and main findings shown above, the study proposes smart specialization of local communities, venture capital investments in RET start-ups and SMEs, as well as blockchain technology as a catalyst for the widespread diffusion of renewable energy technologies.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, June 14)  President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. sought a 90-day plan on how to handle Mayon Volcano's eruption as he led a briefing in Albay on Wednesday and heard from officials how the government has responded so far to the situation.

In his presentation, Albay Gov. Grex Lagman said that for 90 days, 196,711,000 would be needed to provide for those affected by Mayon's unrest  covering food, water and sanitation, health emergency services, and temporary learning spaces, among others.

So far, 30 million from the province's quick response fund has been allocated for the Mayon Volcano operation, the governor added.

Marcos said that according to an estimate, 30 million can only sustain 14 days of response.

"I think our working number should be 90 days," Marcos said.

"The province is already providing 30 million, we will have to make up the difference for the continuous...in terms, I suppose food, non-food items and all the other arrangements that we're going to have to make," the president added.

Marcos told officials from different government agencies who attended the briefing to see how much would be needed for the response.

"Let's go into that in terms of the requirements that the evacuees are going to need... We have to get it absolutely right para measured ang response natin [so we would have a measured response]," he said.

Marcos also said authorities should not wait until the 14 days are over before providing the necessary funds.

"We should use as a minimum number, 45 days. Yung [The] 45 days to 90 days come from both the science of DOST (Department of Science and Technology) and the experience of locals."

Marcos also said groups could be tapped to look for ways to provide activities or even classes for children who are in the evacuation centers to keep them preoccupied.

"We have to think hard about what do we do about the schooling of children," he said.

"There is a mental health aspect to that, hindi natin dapat kalimutan [we should not forget]," the president added.
Beverley Estates neighborhood residents and Bryan city councilors took their turns addressing College Stations potential sewer trunk line during Tuesday nights council meeting.

One night earlier, the College Station City Council discussed the two remaining potential routes the line could go and listened to feedback from concerned Bryan residents.

A total of five residents from Bryans Beverley Estates addressed councilors Tuesday and again pleaded for their help in making sure the sewer trunk line does not go along North Rosemary Drive, as they feel it would not benefit the city of Bryan.

Mary Linne of Shady Lane was one of the residents who spoke at both council meetings.

[Monday] night a group of us talked to the College Station City Council; they did not like us questioning their motivation and the statements of their staff, she said. Despite the reassurance of Mayor [John] Nichols, it is obvious to us they are using the existence of [Bryan Texas Utilities] in College Station as a rationale to plow down Rosemary. We received a reprimand on the College Station City Council which we felt was out of line.

In an effort to present examples of a city utilizing a neighboring citys infrastructure, College Station city staff have shown comparisons of Bryans power and sewer lines in College Station that serve Bryan residents. However, residents of Bryan say the two are not comparable.

Jes Linne of Shady Lane said that after Monday nights meeting, College Station City Manager Bryan Woods followed some residents to the lobby after the discussion was over.

[Woods] sat there for an hour in the lobby talking to us, and the whole thing was justifying why they used the BTU examples and the sanitary sewer lines that run as the Bryan lines through College Station, Jes Linne said. He used those as examples of why it is justifiable for them to come into a Bryan neighborhood.  Quite honestly it was apples and oranges.  College Station needs to stay in College Station.

Mary Linne also told Bryan councilors that their position is College Station needs to stay in College Station because it benefits College Station.

It doesnt benefit us at all, she said. It is for Northgate at A&M and A&M can pony up the money because there is plenty of money that A&M gives to College Station for doing things.

College Station councilman Bob Yancy also called upon Texas A&M University and others to help offset some of the projected cost.

I feel like this issue has gone too far, I feel like it is going to infect other initiatives between our two cities, Yancy said Monday night. I want to appeal to Texas A&M University; I want to appeal to the city of Bryan; I want to appeal to the developers and our staff about [setting] fees on the developers at Century Square Phase ll, if it is at all possible.

Keith Halsell of South Rosemary Drive also addressed the council Tuesday night and asked for the city of Bryans support in stopping the project along North Rosemary Drive. John Halsell of South Rosemary Drive spoke in reference to something a College Station councilor said the prior evening.

During Monday nights College Station meeting, councilwoman Linda Harvell said the following: When your [Bryan] mayor goes on the radio and says that if this position proceeds it is going to be a bloody battle, is that really, really the way you want to be represented? No.

During a June 7 radio discussion on WTAW of Bryan Broadcasting, Bryan Mayor Bobby Gutierrez said the following: We just need a verbal agreement [from College Station officials] saying Were not going down Rosemary.  If were going to go down Rosemary, I promise you its going to be a very, very bloody battle and nobodys going to win.

John Halsell said the following during the hear citizens portion Tuesday:

College Station councilmember Linda Harvell said Is this really, really the way you want to represented? I, for one, appreciate Mayor Gutierrez for his leadership, support and his stance on this important matter, he said. He is an outstanding man, an outstanding mayor and I am proud to call him my mayor.  Since this project first began in 2016 and 2017, one would think that six or seven years would be enough time for the College Station city staff to complete their work.

Bryan resident Patrick Giammalva spoke to his citys councilors that the sewer line project was not an issue.

I listened to the staff at College Station and the city council and they have bent over backwards to appease the people on Rosemary. They did a wildlife survey, an environmental survey, he said. And that line the way they want to put in is the most practical and economical.  It is not going to do anything to their trees.

After all residents were given the opportunity to speak, Gutierrez clarified some of his previous comments and said he understood the residents concerns.

Truly we are one community, he said. And the words that I used the other day was blood bath and the context of the word blood bath that I was [using] was trying to provide some leadership not only to my council. And I do want to apologize to Mayor Nichols for doing that. I want to apologize to councilwoman Linda Harvell who brought that to our attention yesterday, to Bryan Woods and the whole staff over there, because that is not the context that I wanted.

The word is more used in the word of divorce; we dont want this to be the division of our cities, there is a lot more at stake than just a sewer line.  This is obviously a point of contention for us over here that we have no say-so in. We have talked about different things, we have tried to accommodate them, they have tried to accommodate us; we are working in the best spirit that we can.

Gutierrez went on to say that behind the scenes he and Nichols have been talking with both city managers and are hoping for a resolution, despite ongoing disagreements between both cities.

To the best of my knowledge what I have seen is we have two issues between our city right now, he said. The first we have is emergency services agreement, where the city of College Station feels they are providing more than their fair share of service in Bryan and would like to be compensated for it. On the other hand we have a sewer route that is lined up great for the city of College Station where the cheapest [route] is to go down Rosemary.

I would like to hopefully lead our council in the spirit of compromise, and the spirit of compromise for the city of College Station, to recommend that the city of Bryan approve the agreement that increases the payments to the city that provides more services. And, in return, we would ask the city of College Station to approve the route that keeps the sewer [line] off of Rosemary Drive, and increases our capacity from the Cooner Street access. Hopefully we can all get together and we can all get this thing done. I again want to apologize for the poor choice in words and hopefully we will continue this discussion as we go forward.
State lawmakers, entering a third week of special session gridlock over property taxes, are looking for new ways to break the impasse and get a bill to Gov. Greg Abbott that he would sign.

Abbott appears to have softened on his insistence that lawmakers focus only on a method of property tax relief known as compression  sending state funds to school districts so they can lower their tax rates. Instead, he has been encouraging the House and Senate to strike a deal that can reach his desk, raising the prospect of broader legislation.

Thats been welcome news for the Senate, which has insisted from the start of the special session that any property-tax measure include an increase in the homestead exemption as a way to directly help homeowners.

And in the House, Abbotts latest comments have revived talk of tightening appraisal caps, which was the chambers preferred method in the regular session before it swiftly obliged Abbotts compression-only demand at the start of the special session.

Asked Monday about the property-tax negotiations, Abbott said he has talked in recent days with Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and House Speaker Dade Phelan to stress the need for a compromise. He did not mention the compression-only strategy that is currently on his call for the special session.

One thing I let both of them know  the only way that legislation gets to the governors desk to be signed into law is for the House and Senate to work together, Abbott said during a bill-signing news conference in Austin. The good news is they understand that and they are working together. The most important thing is that they work together to hammer out their differences and get a bill to my desk as quickly as possible.

Minutes after Abbotts news conference, Patrick tweeted that he met with [Abbott] last week and he assured me he would sign a property tax bill if both the Senate and House agreed to it. Asked about Patricks tweet, Abbotts office pointed to his earlier comments at the news conference.

Lawmakers are about halfway through a 30-day special session that has languished since the early days, when the House quickly passed Abbotts preferred legislation on property taxes, as well as harsher penalties for human smuggling, then left Austin. The Senate has remained in session and insisted on an increase in the homestead exemption, fueling a rare public showdown between Patrick and Abbott, who had firmly sided with the House.

While Abbott has continued in his public comments to promote the idea of sending money to school districts so they can lower their tax rates, he has not ruled out signing a property-tax package that includes an increase in the homestead exemption. That has kept Patrick hopeful that there remains a chance he can get his way.

Patrick, who presides over the Senate, held a news conference Tuesday in Houston where he said he met with Abbott for an hour and a half. He suggested he left the meeting hopeful.

The governor has not said that he would veto a homestead exemption, and he hasnt said hes for it, Patrick said. But I think I know this governor pretty well. Theres no way in hell this governors going to veto [that].

House Republicans are taking notice that more property-tax proposals may be back on the table. A group of GOP freshmen issued a statement Monday that raised the possibility of the kind of compromise lawmakers weighed at the end of the regular session  a mix of compression, an increase in the homestead exemption and a reining in of appraisal caps.

If a compromise is necessary to get this critical legislation across the finish line, we also continue to support the elements of SB 3, which the House passed during the regular session  significant compression with additional funds for a homestead exemption, as long as it includes an appraisal cap in order to keep our values in check, the statement said.

The statement was signed by 16 members.

The pitch by the Republican freshmen came hours after the far-right House Freedom Caucus proposed its own compromise plan that included an increase in the homestead exemption but no tightening of appraisal caps. That irked some other House Republicans.

I guess yall have abandoned appraisal caps, tweeted Rep. Dustin Burrows, R-Lubbock, a member of House leadership. Disappointing.

Currently, Abbotts special session proclamation calls for legislation to provide property tax relief solely by reducing the school district maximum compressed tax rate. He can choose to revise the proclamation  something the Freedom Caucus suggested he do  but Patrick has argued that the Senate can pass whatever it wants related to property taxes. Abbott has dismissed that as legislative process talk that taxpayers do not care about.

In recent days, Abbott has spoken optimistically about the property tax negotiations, calling the House and Senate very close despite little public evidence of that. He has said all they need to do is sit down and hash out their differences, much like they did with a lot of bills in the final hours of the regular session.

That just needs to be repeated for all of the bills on the special session call, Abbott said.

One thing Abbott has made clear is that lawmakers are in for a long summer if they remain in a stalemate.

Were going to stay focused on this until a solution is reached, Abbott said last week. And so Ill call special session after special session after special session until a solution is reached.
Agile Group Holdings Limited (OTCMKTS:AGPYY  Get Rating)s share price reached a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $8.83 and last traded at $8.83, with a volume of 0 shares. The stock had previously closed at $8.83.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, HSBC lowered shares of Agile Group from a buy rating to a reduce rating in a report on Friday, March 31st.

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Agile Group Stock Performance

The businesss fifty day simple moving average is $10.96 and its 200-day simple moving average is $13.74.

Agile Group Company Profile

Agile Group Holdings Limited, an investment holding company, engages in the property development, property management, hotel operation, property investment, environmental protection, and other businesses in the People's Republic of China. As of December 31, 2021, the company had a land bank with a total gross floor area of 47.37 million square meters in 84 cities located in Southern China region, Eastern China region, Western China region, Central China region, Hainan and Yunnan region, Northeast China region, Northern China region, Hong Kong, and internationally.

Further Reading

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Invesco High Income 2023 Target Term Fund (NYSE:IHIT  Get Rating) was the recipient of a large decline in short interest during the month of May. As of May 31st, there was short interest totalling 500 shares, a decline of 94.7% from the May 15th total of 9,500 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 49,100 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 0.0 days.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Invesco High Income 2023 Target Term Fund

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in IHIT. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Invesco High Income 2023 Target Term Fund by 14.9% during the 1st quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 11,553 shares of the companys stock worth $101,000 after purchasing an additional 1,500 shares during the period. Raymond James & Associates boosted its position in Invesco High Income 2023 Target Term Fund by 11.3% in the 1st quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 134,831 shares of the companys stock valued at $1,180,000 after buying an additional 13,680 shares during the period. City of London Investment Management Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Invesco High Income 2023 Target Term Fund in the 1st quarter valued at about $2,258,000. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its position in Invesco High Income 2023 Target Term Fund by 79.8% in the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 18,538 shares of the companys stock valued at $162,000 after buying an additional 8,225 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE boosted its position in Invesco High Income 2023 Target Term Fund by 29.8% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 591,510 shares of the companys stock valued at $5,176,000 after buying an additional 135,698 shares during the period.

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Invesco High Income 2023 Target Term Fund Price Performance

Shares of IHIT stock traded up $0.02 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $7.53. 65,100 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 47,165. Invesco High Income 2023 Target Term Fund has a 12-month low of $7.35 and a 12-month high of $8.73. The companys 50-day moving average price is $7.63 and its 200-day moving average price is $7.95.

Invesco High Income 2023 Target Term Fund Dividend Announcement

Invesco High Income 2023 Target Term Fund Company Profile

The company also recently declared a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 30th. Investors of record on Thursday, June 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.035 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 14th. This represents a $0.42 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.58%.

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Invesco High Income 2023 Target Term Fund is a closed ended fixed income mutual fund launched and managed by Invesco Advisers, Inc The fund invests in fixed income markets of the United States. It also invests in real estate debt securities including commercial mortgage-backed securities. The fund employs fundamental analysis with bottom-up approach to create its portfolio.

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Lenovo Group Limited (OTCMKTS:LNVGF  Get Rating) was the recipient of a significant decline in short interest in May. As of May 31st, there was short interest totalling 14,182,000 shares, a decline of 46.1% from the May 15th total of 26,317,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 38,900 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 364.6 days.

Lenovo Group Trading Up 8.5 %

Shares of OTCMKTS LNVGF traded up $0.08 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $1.05. 5,394 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 88,370. Lenovo Group has a one year low of $0.66 and a one year high of $1.12. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $1.01 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $0.91.

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Lenovo Group Limited, an investment holding company, develops, manufactures, and markets technology products and services. It operates through Intelligent Devices Group, Infrastructure Solutions Group, and Solutions and Services Group segments. The company offers commercial and consumer personal computers, as well as servers and workstations; and a family of mobile Internet devices, including tablets and smartphones.

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Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, June 14)  The Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) on Wednesday assured former President Rodrigo Duterte and the public that it is acting on the issue of the alleged drug ties of some police officers.

I would like to assure the public, our former president, that we are doing our job here right now, DILG Sec. Benhur Abalos told CNN Philippines The Source.

On Tuesday, Duterte accused the Philippine National Police (PNP) of being the gatekeeper of the illegal drug trade in the country, daring its personnel to resign.

The volume is one too many. Ilan ang pulis na involved (How many police personnel are involved)? Marami yan (There are many), it will go up to the generals, he said, citing the tons of illegal drugs now going through the hands of the police.

Abalos on Tuesday also announced the filing of criminal complaints against 50 members of the PNP, including two generals, for their alleged involvement in the 6.7-billion drug haul in October 2022.

Ito pong ginagawa namin na pagde-demanda would speak for what we are doing. Ito poy magsa-salita sa aming intention na talagang linisin ito at hindi pa kami tapos, the DILG secretary said.

[Translation: This filing of complains that we are doing would speak for what we are doing. This speaks about our intention to clean the ranks and we are not yet done.]

Abalos said authorities are also working on filing administrative complaints against the involved policemen.

Aside from filing complaints against erring police officers, Abalos said the government will work on strengthening PNPs recruitment process.

He said they will also study if the PNP's Internal Affairs Service that investigates infractions by police personnel should now be under the Office of the President, the DILG or if it should be totally independent.

PNP has effective, efficient anti-crime strategies

Following Dutere's statement, the PNP said on Wednesday that it has effective and efficient anti-crime strategies and programs as seen in its latest data on the crime situation in the country.

PNP Public Information Office chief PBGen. Redrico Maranan said in a statement that 16,492 crimes were recorded from January 1 to June 9 this year, down 10% from the same period last year.

In terms of campaign against illegal drugs, he noted that 19,464 police operations were conducted; 25,641 were arrested; and 6.2 billion worth of illegal drugs were confiscated.

As of June 7 this year, 836 PNP personnel who violated policies and laws were dismissed and 1,703 were suspended, he added.

Despite issues and challenges, the PNP assures the public that we will continue to do our mandated tasks with the highest regard to human rights and utmost dedication for our countrymen, Maranan said.
ABN AMRO Bank (OTCMKTS:AAVMY  Get Rating) was the recipient of a significant drop in short interest during the month of May. As of May 31st, there was short interest totalling 100 shares, a drop of 98.7% from the May 15th total of 7,700 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 43,200 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 0.0 days.

ABN AMRO Bank Stock Performance

Shares of AAVMY stock opened at $15.06 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $15.68 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $15.55. ABN AMRO Bank has a 12-month low of $8.47 and a 12-month high of $17.93.

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ABN AMRO Bank N.V. provides various banking products and services to retail, private, and business clients in the Netherlands and internationally. It operates through three segments: Personal & Business Banking, Wealth Management, and Corporate Banking. The company provides savings and deposits products; labelled residential mortgage products under the Florius brands; and consumer loans under the Alpha Credit Nederland, Credivance, Defam, Moneyou, and ABN AMRO brands.

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Albert Technologies Ltd (LON:ALB  Get Rating) was up 56.9% during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as GBX 8 ($0.10) and last traded at GBX 8 ($0.10). Approximately 833,209 shares were traded during trading, an increase of 147% from the average daily volume of 337,338 shares. The stock had previously closed at GBX 5.10 ($0.06).

Albert Technologies Price Performance

The businesss 50-day moving average price is GBX 8 and its 200 day moving average price is GBX 8. The firm has a market capitalization of 7.98 million and a price-to-earnings ratio of -0.53.

About Albert Technologies

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Albert Technologies Ltd. provides autonomous cross-channel artificial intelligence marketing platform in Israel and internationally. The company offers artificial intelligence-based software to brands and advertising agencies using a Software as a Service (SaaS) model. It develops and deploys algorithmic solutions to provide marketers with a self-driving solution for cross-channel campaign execution, testing, optimization, analysis, and insights.

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Garmin Ltd. (NYSE:GRMN  Get Rating) has earned an average rating of Moderate Buy from the nine research firms that are covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $118.80.

GRMN has been the subject of several recent research reports. Tigress Financial reiterated a strong-buy rating and set a $165.00 price target on shares of Garmin in a research report on Friday, March 3rd. Barclays upped their price target on Garmin from $101.00 to $106.00 in a research note on Thursday, May 4th. TheStreet upgraded Garmin from a c+ rating to a b- rating in a report on Monday, March 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Garmin from $108.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a report on Thursday, February 23rd. Finally, VNET Group reiterated a maintains rating on shares of Garmin in a report on Thursday, May 4th.

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Garmin Stock Up 1.1 %

GRMN stock opened at $107.57 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $20.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.51, a PEG ratio of 3.59 and a beta of 0.94. Garmin has a twelve month low of $76.37 and a twelve month high of $108.32. The businesss fifty day simple moving average is $102.30 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $99.31.

Insider Activity

Garmin ( NYSE:GRMN Get Rating ) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 3rd. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.02 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts consensus estimates of $1.00 by $0.02. Garmin had a return on equity of 15.98% and a net margin of 19.94%. The company had revenue of $1.15 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.09 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.11 earnings per share. The firms revenue for the quarter was down 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Garmin will post 5.24 EPS for the current year.

In related news, CFO Douglas G. Boessen sold 15,653 shares of the firms stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.47, for a total value of $1,650,921.91. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 23,843 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $2,514,721.21. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 19.89% of the companys stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Garmin

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI boosted its holdings in Garmin by 93.4% in the first quarter. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI now owns 5,803 shares of the scientific and technical instruments companys stock valued at $586,000 after acquiring an additional 2,803 shares during the last quarter. Toroso Investments LLC raised its stake in Garmin by 49.5% during the first quarter. Toroso Investments LLC now owns 11,728 shares of the scientific and technical instruments companys stock valued at $1,184,000 after buying an additional 3,883 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its position in shares of Garmin by 14.2% during the 1st quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 154,403 shares of the scientific and technical instruments companys stock worth $15,577,000 after purchasing an additional 19,190 shares during the period. Power Corp of Canada grew its holdings in Garmin by 121.6% in the 1st quarter. Power Corp of Canada now owns 34,573 shares of the scientific and technical instruments companys stock worth $3,316,000 after buying an additional 18,971 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC grew its holdings in Garmin by 1.0% in the 1st quarter. Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC now owns 89,104 shares of the scientific and technical instruments companys stock worth $8,992,000 after buying an additional 913 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 63.29% of the companys stock.

About Garmin

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Garmin Ltd. is a holding company, which engages in the provision of navigation, communications and information devices, most of which are enabled by Global Positioning System (GPS) technology. It operates through the following segments: Marine, Outdoor, Fitness, Auto OEM, Consumer Auto, and Aviation.

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BlackRock New York Municipal Income Trust (NYSE:BNY  Get Rating) passed below its 200-day moving average during trading on Monday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $10.37 and traded as low as $10.13. BlackRock New York Municipal Income Trust shares last traded at $10.16, with a volume of 10,624 shares trading hands.

BlackRock New York Municipal Income Trust Stock Down 0.3 %

The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $10.17 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $10.37.

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BlackRock New York Municipal Income Trust Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 3rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, June 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.0305 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 14th. This represents a $0.37 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.60%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On BlackRock New York Municipal Income Trust

BlackRock New York Municipal Income Trust Company Profile

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. NewEdge Advisors LLC increased its holdings in BlackRock New York Municipal Income Trust by 17.9% during the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 12,500 shares of the financial services providers stock worth $152,000 after purchasing an additional 1,900 shares during the last quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC increased its holdings in shares of BlackRock New York Municipal Income Trust by 15.7% in the 4th quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 14,398 shares of the financial services providers stock valued at $145,000 after acquiring an additional 1,955 shares during the last quarter. LPL Financial LLC increased its holdings in shares of BlackRock New York Municipal Income Trust by 5.1% in the 1st quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 69,455 shares of the financial services providers stock valued at $722,000 after acquiring an additional 3,378 shares during the last quarter. Grace & White Inc. NY increased its holdings in shares of BlackRock New York Municipal Income Trust by 34.9% in the 4th quarter. Grace & White Inc. NY now owns 13,601 shares of the financial services providers stock valued at $137,000 after acquiring an additional 3,519 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Almitas Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of BlackRock New York Municipal Income Trust in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $42,000.

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BlackRock New York Municipal Income Trust is a closed-end investment fund. Its investment objective is to provide current income exempt from regular federal income taxes and New York State and New York City personal income taxes. The company was founded on March 30, 2001 and is headquartered in Wilmington, DE.

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Canadian Natural Resources Limited (TSE:CNQ  Get Rating) (NYSE:CNQ) declared a quarterly dividend on Thursday, May 4th, Zacks reports. Investors of record on Friday, June 16th will be given a dividend of 0.90 per share on Wednesday, July 5th. This represents a $3.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.82%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, June 15th.

Canadian Natural Resources Trading Up 1.6 %

Shares of CNQ stock opened at C$74.68 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 35.14. The firm has a market cap of C$81.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.53 and a beta of 2.02. The business has a 50-day moving average price of C$77.59 and a two-hundred day moving average price of C$76.84. Canadian Natural Resources has a 12-month low of C$58.75 and a 12-month high of C$84.25.

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Insider Activity at Canadian Natural Resources

In related news, Director Stephen W. Laut sold 60,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of C$75.46, for a total value of C$4,527,600.00. 2.22% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

About Canadian Natural Resources

CNQ has been the subject of several research reports. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Canadian Natural Resources from C$76.00 to C$82.00 in a research note on Friday, March 3rd. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on shares of Canadian Natural Resources from C$97.00 to C$95.00 in a research note on Friday, May 5th. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Canadian Natural Resources from C$90.00 to C$87.00 in a research report on Monday, March 27th. CSFB decreased their price objective on Canadian Natural Resources from C$93.00 to C$90.00 in a report on Thursday, April 6th. Finally, National Bank Financial increased their target price on Canadian Natural Resources from C$100.00 to C$110.00 in a report on Tuesday, April 18th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Canadian Natural Resources presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of C$91.79.

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Canadian Natural Resources Limited acquires, explores for, develops, produces, markets, and sells crude oil, natural gas, and natural gas liquids (NGLs). The company offers synthetic crude oil (SCO), light and medium crude oil, bitumen (thermal oil), primary heavy crude oil, and Pelican Lake heavy crude oil.

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Triad Group plc (LON:TRD  Get Rating) insider Charlotte Rigg purchased 2,029 shares of the firms stock in a transaction on Monday, June 12th. The shares were purchased at an average price of GBX 147 ($1.84) per share, for a total transaction of 2,982.63 ($3,732.02).

Triad Group Price Performance

Triad Group stock opened at GBX 147.50 ($1.85) on Wednesday. Triad Group plc has a twelve month low of GBX 77 ($0.96) and a twelve month high of GBX 170 ($2.13). The stocks fifty day simple moving average is GBX 151.99 and its 200-day simple moving average is GBX 126.51. The company has a current ratio of 3.27, a quick ratio of 3.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.23. The firm has a market capitalization of 24.46 million, a P/E ratio of -14,750.00 and a beta of 1.37.

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Triad Group Company Profile

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Triad Group Plc provides information technology consultancy services to the public, private, and not-for-profit sectors primarily in the United Kingdom. The company offers consulting and advisory; business insights; staffing, resourcing, and recruitment; software development and engineering; project and software delivery; and program delivery and support services.

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Fullerton Fund Management Co Ltd. bought a new position in shares of iShares MSCI South Korea ETF (NYSEARCA:EWY  Get Rating) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund bought 90,950 shares of the exchange traded funds stock, valued at approximately $5,137,000. Fullerton Fund Management Co Ltd. owned about 0.15% of iShares MSCI South Korea ETF as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Private Trust Co. NA boosted its stake in iShares MSCI South Korea ETF by 266.1% during the 4th quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 659 shares of the exchange traded funds stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 479 shares during the last quarter. Laffer Tengler Investments acquired a new position in shares of iShares MSCI South Korea ETF during the 4th quarter valued at about $37,000. WestEnd Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of iShares MSCI South Korea ETF by 82.7% during the 4th quarter. WestEnd Advisors LLC now owns 877 shares of the exchange traded funds stock valued at $50,000 after acquiring an additional 397 shares during the last quarter. AXS Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of iShares MSCI South Korea ETF during the 4th quarter valued at about $53,000. Finally, Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. acquired a new position in shares of iShares MSCI South Korea ETF during the 4th quarter valued at about $77,000.

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iShares MSCI South Korea ETF Trading Up 1.3 %

Shares of EWY stock opened at $67.53 on Wednesday. The companys 50-day moving average price is $62.19 and its 200-day moving average price is $60.73. The stock has a market cap of $3.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.39 and a beta of 1.05. iShares MSCI South Korea ETF has a twelve month low of $47.19 and a twelve month high of $67.66.

iShares MSCI South Korea ETF Profile

iShares MSCI South Korea Capped ETF (the Fund) is an exchange-traded fund (ETF). The Fund seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the MSCI Korea 25/50 Index (the Index). The Index consists of stocks traded primarily on the Stock Market Division of the Korean Exchange.

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Want to see what other hedge funds are holding EWY? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for iShares MSCI South Korea ETF (NYSEARCA:EWY  Get Rating).

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Lavras Gold Corp. (CVE:LGC  Get Rating) shares crossed below its 200-day moving average during trading on Monday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of C$0.37 and traded as low as C$0.24. Lavras Gold shares last traded at C$0.24, with a volume of 14,662 shares changing hands.

Lavras Gold Trading Up 2.1 %

The company has a market cap of C$10.07 million and a PE ratio of -4.00. The stock has a fifty day moving average of C$0.32 and a 200-day moving average of C$0.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94, a quick ratio of 11.12 and a current ratio of 7.63.

Lavras Gold Company Profile

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Lavras Gold Corp. operates as a junior exploration company in Canada. It engages in the exploration and development of the Lavras do Sul gold copper project covering an area of approximately 22,000 hectares located in Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. The company was incorporated in 2021 and is headquartered in Toronto, Canada.

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Workspace Group plc (LON:WKP  Get Rating) has received a consensus recommendation of Buy from the six research firms that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy recommendation. The average 12-month price objective among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is GBX 640.67 ($8.02).

WKP has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Numis Securities reiterated a buy rating and set a GBX 630 ($7.88) target price on shares of Workspace Group in a research report on Thursday, May 25th. Peel Hunt restated a buy rating and set a GBX 600 ($7.51) price target on shares of Workspace Group in a research note on Tuesday, May 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Workspace Group from GBX 650 ($8.13) to GBX 700 ($8.76) and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 30th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a buy rating and set a GBX 834 ($10.44) price target on shares of Workspace Group in a research note on Wednesday, June 7th.

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Workspace Group Stock Up 2.6 %

Shares of LON:WKP opened at GBX 530.50 ($6.64) on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 52.78. Workspace Group has a 52-week low of GBX 335.20 ($4.19) and a 52-week high of GBX 664 ($8.31). The stocks fifty day simple moving average is GBX 482.12 and its 200-day simple moving average is GBX 474.69. The company has a market capitalization of 1.02 billion, a P/E ratio of -2,585.00, a P/E/G ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 1.14.

Workspace Group Increases Dividend

Workspace Group Company Profile

The business also recently announced a dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 4th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 6th will be issued a dividend of GBX 17.40 ($0.22) per share. This is an increase from Workspace Groups previous dividend of $8.40. This represents a dividend yield of 3.63%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 6th. Workspace Groups dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -13,000.00%.

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Established in 1987, and listed on the London Stock Exchange since 1993, Workspace owns and manages some 4 million sq. ft. of business space in London. We are home to London's brightest businesses, including fast growing and established brands across a wide range of sectors. Workspace is geared towards helping businesses perform at their very best.

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Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, June 14)  The Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) on Wednesday said a syndicate operating within the police force is possibly behind the 6.7-billion drug haul that happened in October 2022.

Speaking to CNN Philippines' The Source, DILG Sec. Benhur Abalos said that during the probe into the 990 kilos of methamphetamine hydrochloride or shabu seized in Tondo, Manila, authorities had a hard time getting information because no one was speaking up regarding the case.

When he asked investigators why, Abalos said he was warned that the government is up against a very powerful syndicate and these are very evil persons. They will hurt you where it will hurt you most.

This information led former Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Rodolfo Azurin Jr. to push for the courtesy resignation of generals and colonels, Abalos noted.

I felt so frustrated, whats happening here. Ang dapat na lang natin gawin dito after the resignation we want to make sure to them that were serious. Papakulong namin kayo. Thats what we are doing right now. We are really house cleaning everything, the Interior secretary said.

[Translation: I felt so frustrated, what's happening here. What we should do after the resignation, we want to make sure to them that were serious. We will put you behind bars. Thats what we are doing right now. We are really house cleaning everything.]

Following a joint investigation by the National Police Commission (Napolcom) and the PNP, Abalos on Tuesday announced that criminal complaints have been filed against 50 police personnel, including two generals, for their suspected involvement in the big-time shabu drug haul.

The government will also soon file administrative complaints against the police personnel tagged in the issue, Abalos noted.

While complaints were already filed, the DILG secretary said they have yet to determine where the illegal drugs were sourced.

Abalos said the investigation will continue with the end goal of cleansing possible illegal drug ties among police ranks.
A Vinton man died Sunday night after the motorcycle he was riding collided with a passenger car, according to state police.

A 2008 Honda Accord northbound on U.S. 11 failed to yield the right-of-way at 10:22 p.m. while making a left turn onto Virginia 670 near Troutville and was struck by a 2005 Yamaha Road Star motorcycle travelling the opposite direction on the highway, according to state police.

The driver of the Yamaha, David Charles Scott, 46, of Vinton, was wearing a helmet but died at the scene.

The Hondas driver, who was not identified by state police, was not injured. There was also no word about charges, but state police said the crash remains under investigation.
Auto sales in Vietnam fall 36% in Jan-May

By Tri Duc Wed, June 14, 2023 | 10:37 am GTM+7

Vehicles sales by members of the Vietnam Automobile Manufacturers' Association (VAMA), which does not include VinFast and Hyundai, plunged 36% year-on-year to 113,527 in the first five months of 2023.

They included 82,943 passenger cars, down 41% year-on-year; 29,507 commercial vehicles, down 12%; and 1,077 special-purpose vehicles, down 63%.

The number of completely knocked down (CKD) vehicles hit 62,096, down 43% year-on-year; and that of completely-built-up (CBU) units fell 23% to 51,431.

In May, VAMAs vehicle sales plummeted 53% year-on-year to 20,726 units. They included 14,483 passenger cars, 6,096 commercial vehicles, and 147 special-purpose vehicles.

[{"":"Hyundai","vehicles":"22903"},{"":"Toyota","vehicles":"21547"},{"":"Ford","vehicles":"14302"},{"":"KIA","vehicles":"13951"},{"":"Mazda","vehicles":"11339"},{"":"Mitsubishi","vehicles":"10583"},{"":"Honda","vehicles":"8069"}] [{"vehicles":"#ff0000"}]

Regarding non-VAMA members, VinFast delivered 2,996 electric vehicles (EVs) to customers in May, featuring 960 VF e34; 1,274 VF 8; 430 VF 9 models; and 332 VF 5 Plus.

The Vietnamese EV start-up delivered 8,483 units to the Vietnamese market in the first five months of this year, including 4,065 VF e34, 3,371 VF 8, 679 VF 9, and 368 VF 5 Plus.

Hyundai reported sales of 22,903 units in January-May, according to a report by TC Group, the manufacturer and official retailer of Hyundai vehicles in Vietnam. Its May figure was 3,575, down 22% from April.

As a result, Hyundai was the best-selling brand in the five-month period in Vietnam. Other top names were Toyota with 21,547; Ford with 14,302; KIA with 13,951; Mazda with 11,339; Mitsubishi with 10,583; and Honda with 8,069.

Vietnamese conglomerate Thaco, known for manufacturing and selling vehicles like KIA, Mazda, Peugeot, BMW, and its own Thaco trucks and buses, recorded total sales of 34,056 in the period.

[{"":"VinFast VF 8","vehicles":"1274"},{"":"Mitsubishi Xpander","vehicles":"1171"},{"":"Honda City","vehicles":"1035"},{"":"Toyota Corolla Cross","vehicles":"1014"},{"":"VinFast VF e34","vehicles":"960"},{"":"Ford Ranger","vehicles":"932"},{"":"Huyndai Accent","vehicles":"920"},{"":"Mazda CX-5","vehicles":"911"},{"":"KIA Sonet","vehicles":"866"},{"":"Ford Everest","vehicles":"635"}] [{"vehicles":"#ff0000"}]

Regarding models, the VinFast VF 8, an electric sport-utility vehicle (SUV), climbed to the top spot with 1,274 units sold in May. The VinFast VF e34 dropped to fifth place with sales of 960 units, from the top spot in April.

The VinFast VF 8 was the best-selling vehicle in Vietnam in May 2023, with 1,274 units. Photo courtesy of VinFast.

Other best-selling models in May were the Mitsubishi Xpander with 1,171; Honda City with 1,035; Toyota Corolla Cross with 1,014; and Ford Ranger with 932.
Britains Pharos Energy to extend oil exploration in Vietnam

By Nguyen Long Wed, June 14, 2023 | 8:18 am GTM+7

British oil and gas exploration and production company Pharos Energy has received the Vietnamese governments approval for the two-year extension of phase one of the exploration period of the block 125 and 126 production sharing contract.

Pharos Energy logo. Photo courtesy of the firm.

The contract will run from November 8, 2023 to November 7, 2025, Pharos announced on Tuesday from its London headquarters.

This approval shows the encouraging level of support from the government while we progress our discussions with a number of interested parties to secure a farm-in partner before drilling the commitment well on Block 125, said Jann Brown, CEO of the independent energy company.

Blocks 125 and 126 are located in the moderate to deep water Phu Khanh Basin offshore central Vietnam. Pharos holds a 70% interest in and is the designated operator of the two blocks, according to the firm.

Pharos is listed on the London Stock Exchange as PHAR. The company says it has production, development and/or exploration interests in Egypt and Vietnam.
Torrential rains help ease power shortages in northern Vietnam

By Van Minh Wed, June 14, 2023 | 12:41 pm GTM+7

Hydropower reservoirs in northern Vietnam have been topped up by recent heavy rain, with more forecast over the region this week, helping to relieve power shortages.

At 5 p.m. on Tuesday, the water level in the Lai Chau Reservoir rose to 272 meters, seven meters higher than on June 8, while the level at the Son La Reservoir was almost 177 m, about 1.5 m higher.

Representatives of the two hydropower plants said the facilities could resume electricity generation thanks to the higher water levels, but the factories will prioritize storing water for use during heat waves, which normally see electricity demand to increase. Storing water is also necessary as the drought-causing El Nino phenomenon has begun, they added.

The National Center for Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting said that torrential rains in the northern region will last until Friday-Saturday this week (June 16-17), occurring mainly in the evening.

Lai Chau hydropower plant in Lai Chau province, northern Vietnam. Photo courtesy of Vietnams Youth newspaper.

Power shortages in Vietnam could become more severe if economic growth recovers to 6-7%, Vu Hong Thanh, Chairman of the National Assemblys Economic Committee, told the media last week on the sidelines of the legislatures ongoing session.

He said warnings about potential power shortages in Vietnam had been issued a few years ago, even before the Covid-19 pandemic. He attributed the situation to the slow progress of power projects implemented by state-owned entities Vietnam Electricity (EVN), Petrovietnam, and mining group Vinacomin.

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh earlier last week requested urgent measures to ensure power supplies during this dry season and beyond. In a dispatch, he emphasized that the severe heat and impacts of the El Nino phenomenon have led to a surge in power demand, coupled with drought in the country causing extremely low water levels in hydropower reservoirs, thus affecting electricity supplies.

In a letter sent to EVN last week, port and logistics companies in northern Vietnam's Hai Phong city had cried out for help as the frequency of power blackouts continued to rise amid electricity shortages.
FLORENCE  The South Carolina Annual Conference has approved 113 churches across the state who have chosen to separate from The United Methodist Church over sexuality and other concerns.

The 113 churches comprise almost 12% of the 958 total churches in the South Carolina Conference of the UMC and represent every one of the 12 districts in the conference.

The vote occurred June 6 just before 3 p.m. on the third day of the 52nd session of Annual Conference.

The 113 churches had gone through a conference-authorized Local Church Discernment Process this winter and spring. The process enabled churches to pray, discern and then hold a churchwide vote about leaving the UMC if their members believed the denomination has not upheld its stated doctrine on issues of human sexuality, which is that homosexuality is incompatible with Christian teaching, though the church implores families and churches not to reject or condemn lesbian and gay members and friends.

The names of the churches intending to separate, as well as the number, had been kept confidential until the vote to preserve the integrity of the voting process, according to Dan OMara, communications coordinator for the annual conference.

Two hours before the vote, approximately noon on June 6, the names of the churches and the resolution itself were provided to voting members of Annual Conference only  clergy and lay members elected as delegates from their local congregations  but no one else, including attendees, guests and media.

When the session resumed at 2 p.m. after a lunch break, conference chancellor Kay Crowe spoke from the podium, explaining the terms of the separation agreement. As she shared, to be eligible to have their church vote go before conference this June, churches had to be in full communication with their district superintendent; complete an intentional, 30-day discernment process; satisfy financial obligations, including all unpaid apportionment giving and unpaid salary and benefits due to clergy; and satisfy or transfer of debts and other legal liabilities of the local church. Then, a church-wide vote had to be taken before March 1 that indicated two-thirds of professing church members present agreed to formally declare the church can no longer continue to function as a UMC.

Following Crowes presentation to the body, Dean of the Cabinet Dr. Stephen Love affirmed that district superintendents had indeed properly given oversight to the churches in the discernment process and that the names of the churches listed on the resolution were accurate and reflective of the wishes of the congregation.

Next the Rev. Mike Wood, chair of the Conference Board of Trustees, stepped to the podium, stating his board recommended the ratification of the closure and separation of the 113 churches on the list.

The Rev. Carol Rexroad Cannon spoke from the floor, asking that Wood read aloud the names of the churches separating so the conference could honor them properly.

These 113 churches represent congregations we have served with, that we have loved with and that we have celebrated with for many, many years, Cannon said. Therefore, out of respect for them, I would like for us to have each name read before the vote that we may honor each one of these congregations as we bless and release them to the new ministry to which they are called.

Wood did so, and it was the first fully public revelation of the churches names.

Others also spoke from the floor, including the Rev. Kim Strong, retired elder serving as a local church supply pastor, who wished the churches grace and love as they depart.

And to churches not leavingand mine is notGod is still in charge, he said. Gods grace will cover this situation for all who are involved.

A tearful Bishop L. Jonathan Holston led the body in an emotional prayer before the vote, asking that God guide all in holy wisdom.

Regardless of what we do in this time, help us to bless each other, Holston prayed. Help us to see your grace and your mercy for what it truly can be. And as we make the decision in this place and space, help us not to do it with a heart of anger. Help us to truly seek to be helpful to one another.

The vote required a simple majority. Holston called for a standing vote, and the resolution to approve the closures passed overwhelmingly. The churches are not closing, but separating from the denomination.

My friends, this report is approved, Holston said. These churches are approved to close in separation from The United Methodist Church.

Silence filled the room for a time. Then Holston offered another prayer: for Gods church, for the annual conference and for the churches who have chosen a different journey.

Several spoke from the floor, thanking Holston for his leadership in the process.
Retired math teacher Miriam Mickey Burris recently turned 104 years old  that adds up to 37,986 days or 911,664 hours.

Burris has been living at Magnolias of Santee for the past several years and reached the milestone on June 1.

Shes quick to tell you about her first love, algebra  and her second love, geometry.

However, her love for the Lord and her family come before her appreciation for math.

Nancy Gatewood, of Florence, is among her 10 doting nieces and nephews.

Gatewood enjoyed showing her aunt recent photos from the birthday celebrations held in her honor at Magnolias.

Burris nieces and nephews, and their families, live in Texas, Tennessee, Florida and all over South Carolina, Gatewood said.

Burris, daughter of the late Benjamin Tillman Ott Sr. and Florence Myers Ott, talked about some early memories she has from growing up in the Goodbys Creek area near U.S. Highway 301.

She told how she started school at age 5  simply because the closest school didnt have enough children enrolled and they needed one more.

She graduated from Elloree High School then went on to Winthrop University where she earned her undergraduate degree and later earned a masters degree from the University of South Carolina.

Burris said she started her 30-plus-year teaching career in Harleyville. She taught there for one year before moving to Andrews to teach. It was in Andrews that she met her husband of more than 60 years, the late Thomas Donald Burris.

The couple then moved back to Orangeburg County in the Goodbys Creek area where she grew up.

She taught algebra for several years at Orangeburg High School, she said.

She enjoys visits from her former students. One is employed at Magnolias.

The couple didnt have any children, but they had 11 nieces and nephews, one of whom has died.

When Burris was born, Woodrow Wilson was the U.S. president.

Three days after Burris birth, Congress passed the 19th Amendment, which gave many women the right to vote.

The amendment was ratified on Aug. 18, 1920.

Burris has also lived through two global pandemics.

The global influenza pandemic of 1918 was still ongoing when she was born.

She also lived through the global COVID-19 pandemic, which began in March 2020 and officially ended on May 23 of this year.

Another notable event Burris recalls is the snow storm that hit the T&D Region in February 1973.

Burris was 53. She and her husband lived near U.S. Highway 301 and realized motorists were becoming stranded on the highway.

Her husband rode a tractor to the highway and asked for stranded motorists to ride back with him to the house where they could spend the night and eat a hot meal.

He got eight to 10 people, brought them on the tractor and brought them to the house and we fed them, Burris said.

At other times at their home, Burris and her husband enjoyed grafting and growing camellias. They had a greenhouse full of them, she said.

They were ever so pretty, she added.

Gatewood said she remembers her aunt and uncle placing the camellias in church and giving them to individuals who were sick.

Burris and her husband were active members of First Baptist Church of Elloree.

Burris keeps an active life for a 104-year-old.

She participates in bingo matches at Magnolias. She wins prizes when she gets B-I-N-G-O first, too.

If I didnt win, I wouldnt like it so much, she said with a soft laugh.

Gatewood said she and her aunt enjoy playing a few rounds of Tri-Ominos too  its a game that requires quick math skills.

Burris cheerful disposition, quick wit and kindness continues to serve her well over the many decades.

As for the secret to her longevity, she said, I didnt have anything to do with that. She said to always keep trusting the Lord.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, June 14)  The plane that was supposed to be used by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to fly to South Cotabato ran into some trouble on Wednesday.

According to Malacanang, the President and his companions had to return to Villamor Airbase to board a different plane.

Presidential Communications Secretary Cheloy Garafil said, "The President is ok."

In a separate statement, Philippine Air Force spokesperson Col. Ma. Consuelo Castillo said the president's plane had to return after takeoff due to a minor technical issue on the aircraft's flaps operations.

"It is nothing serious, but since the PAF maintains the highest standards of flight safety, the pilots decided to do a precautionary return to base and have the aircraft thoroughly checked," Castillo said.

Castillo added a backup plane was ready and "presidential movement was resumed immediately."

Despite the delay, Marcos was able to reach his destination and proceed with scheduled activities like the launch of the South Cotabato Consolidated Rice Production and Mechanization program in the municipality of Banga and the distribution of aid as well as a job fair in the province.

The President also visited Koronadal City where he led the distribution of assistance to some 5,000 beneficiaries.

CNN Philippines' Pia Garcia contributed to this story.
The western Balkan country expanded its donor base and shrank waiting lists for life-extending surgery. Can Bulgaria do the same? From AEJ Bulgaria.

Luca and His New Heart

I still remember it like it was yesterday. It was November 8, 2007. I was a very active kid, good at sports, and an excellent student. But that day I was pale, I felt very weak. Suddenly it was like a black curtain fell over my eyes, and I could barely breathe. This was the first time I ended up in a hospital. It turned out I was not as healthy as I thought.

This is what Croatias Luca Vugrac tells Eurotransplant, the European network for organ donation and transplantation. Luca was only 13 when he found out his heart was failing and he would have to receive a heart transplant.

I remember the first thing I asked the doctor after he told me my heart was weak and I would need a transplant. Please be honest, doctor  what are my chances of making it out of here alive? Luca says. The doctor was optimistic. There was a 95% chance the operation would be successful, he told the boy. What Luca didnt know, however, was that he would have to stay alive long enough until an organ was available. Lucas state deteriorated to the point where a machine had to substitute for his heart and lungs. But the boy was lucky. He survived long enough, and a donor was found.

When I woke up, I didnt believe I had had a transplant. But I certainly felt breathing was a lot easier, he remembers.

After the surgery, Luca spent nearly two months in the hospital. Every day was a battle against his mind and body. But today he is a successful young man. He says of his ordeal, The illness definitely changed me. I became more serious, maybe too serious at times, but I also believe I became more compassionate, and what is more important, I became a better person.

Yordan, Who Missed His Chance for a New Life

On 28 October 2021, Sophia Pencheva had to part with her son forever. The 23-year-old Yordan was among the tens of Bulgarians waiting for a heart transplant. But he was not one of those blessed to get a chance at a new life.

To treat his serious condition and end-stage organ failure, an artificial pump was placed first in the left chamber of his heart and then in the right chamber, making Yordan the first citizen of Bulgaria to undergo this complicated procedure. The machine which helped him breathe was a temporary lifesaver and he survived nearly two more years, waiting and hoping for a heart transplant. But a suitable donor never appeared.

The whole time, only one donor appeared, but the organ wasnt compatible. I am sure that if there was a suitable heart, Danny would be alive and well, because he was very resilient and he had the will to live, Yordans mother says. She took it as her mission to improve the state of organ donation in Bulgaria. She believes that there are many errors and omissions in the process.

It is unacceptable for me as a mother to have to face the whole of Bulgaria and ask for a heart for my child. I wasnt looking for a spare part for my car, I was looking for a heart for my son. It is not for me to beg the hospital to put my son on the emergency waiting list. I cant go to the Medical Supervision Agency every morning and insist that they submit a request to all hospitals and all major coordination centers to search for a heart. This is not my job, Sophia says.

The Medical Supervision Agency, part of the Health Ministry, monitors transplants in Bulgaria.

Every morning I would beg them to show me the requests they submitted and the answers of the hospitals. I wanted to see them with my own eyes. Ive called the ICUs myself to ask if a heart was available. I understand the doctors who turned me away, because its not acceptable for a random visitor to go in there, but I had nothing left to lose. I had hit rock bottom and nothing could stop me anymore, she recalls.

These are two stories with different endings. The first took place in Croatia, which, after years of stagnation in this field of medicine, managed to become a European leader in organ donation and transplantation in just a few decades. The second story happened in Bulgaria, the European Union country at the bottom of the list in terms of the number of transplants carried out.

Transplant Success Reflects the Overall Level of Medical Care

In practice, transplants, regardless of type (organ, tissue, or cell), serve as a sort of yardstick for the level of development of medicine in a country. This is so because transplants encompass a wide range of medical activities: the care and follow-up of seriously ill patients, finding potential donors, preserving the viability of organs, the surgical procedures themselves, as well as the post-operative treatment and monitoring of patients. All these processes are invariably connected, and if one is not carried out properly, the emergence of a donor situation and saving a seriously ill person becomes impossible.

Unfortunately, despite global medical advances, millions of people around the world die while waiting for a donor. The shortage of organs is not only a problem in Bulgaria. In the United States, 100,000 people are waiting for lifesaving organ transplants.

In the eight member countries of the Eurotransplant network alone, 13,276 people were on the waiting list for a transplant as of 31 December 2022. According to the Council of Europe, nearly six new patients are added to the list every hour. In Bulgaria (not a Eurotransplant member), the number of people on the list has been around 1,000 for years and the lack of positive change in the transplant system means the number remains stubbornly high.

Where Does Bulgaria Stand?

Bulgaria ranks at the bottom of the EU list in terms of the number of transplants performed per million population and the corresponding number of lives saved through the procedure. There are various reasons for this: gaps in the system that lead to missing possible donor situations, lack of commitment of hospital management to organ donation, added to insufficient public awareness of the subject. As a result, seriously ill Bulgarians, who might have had a chance through transplantation, have lost their lives. According to the grim statistics of the Medical Supervision Agency, in the past 10 years more than 1,000 people on the transplant waiting list have died.

The problem with the low number of transplants in Bulgaria has existed for years, and despite occasional public declarations, no minister of health has been able to improve the process. The ministry acknowledges the challenges in its draft document for the National Health Strategy 2030. The document states that the number of transplants performed in Bulgaria is many times lower than in other European countries. The average number of donors in Bulgaria per one million was 5.54 for the period between 2014 and 2018, while the EU average was 20.74.

In July 2022, a medical team at Merkur Hospital in Zagreb conducted a triple organ transplant in a Croatian first for this extremely rare surgery, giving a 42-year-old man a new pancreas, liver, and small intestine. Merkur Hospital photo.

Croatias Good Example

At the same time, a country with a population of just over 4 million managed to build and improve a successful model for organ donation, setting an example for others  all in just a decade. In 2011, Croatia recorded the highest percentage of cadaver donors used, as well as kidney and liver transplants performed in the world.

It is remarkable that only a decade earlier Croatia lagged well behind other European countries and had a low organ donation rate of 2.7 donors per million population. In the following years, however, it recorded steady growth, which reached 33.6 donors per million population in 2011. The Balkan country still manages to maintain this rate today. For comparison, according to data from the Medical Supervision Agency, in 2020 Bulgaria had just two donors per million population.

Between 2008 and 2011, the waiting list for a kidney transplant in Croatia shrank by 37%, and the average waiting time for the life-saving surgery fell from 46 to 24 months. As of August 2022, there were fewer than 400 people on the waiting list for a new organ transplant in Croatia.

Driven by the fact that the organ donation needs of patients were not being met, the Croatian Ministry of Health initiated a number of reforms to improve the national transplant program. The reforms were carried out over a period of 10 years (20012011). These efforts have resulted in a 10-fold increase in the percentage of transplanted organs from the deceased, Croatias national organ donation coordinator, Dr. Mirela Busic, told Medical News.

A key moment in increasing the number of transplants performed in Croatia was the appointment of an organ donation coordinator in each hospital and the appointment of a national coordinator. This improves the identification and tracking of potential donors, Dr. Busic pointed out.

The role of coordinators is extremely important for the timely identification of potential donors, monitoring their condition, and preserving the organs until the moment of transplantation. A crucial step in the Croatian transplant program was the appointment of hospital transplant coordinators and a national coordinator in 2000. The national coordinator formed a coordination group at the Ministry of Health, which provides 24-hour support to hospital coordinators and hospital teams.

Croatia is one of the eight member countries of the European organ donation network Eurotransplant. According to Dr. Busic, her countrys membership in Eurotransplant has helped significantly in the evaluation of patients waiting for a transplant and for the more efficient distribution of organs.

In the Opposite Corner: Bulgaria

In recent months, Bulgarian authorities have talked of a new funding model for organ transplants, but the political upheavals in the country put the issue on the back burner. However, the Health Ministry points specifically to the limited reimbursement of costs for transplants in Bulgaria, as well as the regulatory restrictions as some of the obstacles to successful transplant operations.

Bulgaria has 30 organ donation coordinators based at the 30 medical facilities that have permission to establish and maintain the vital functions of a potential donor with brain death. But for various reasons the number of potential donors is not sufficient to reduce the list of nearly 1,000 seriously ill Bulgarians awaiting transplants. It is poignant that in 2021, out of the 30 donor bases in the country, only 9 sent out notifications about potential donors whose organs could save a human life.

Bulgaria does not have a national organ donor coordinator, either.

According to experts, the deficiency in early detection of potential donors is one reason for the small number of transplants. Dr. Sibila Marinova, head of the department of anesthesiology and intensive care at Dr. Stefan Cherkezov hospital in Veliko Tarnovo and regional coordinator for organ donation, spoke about the issue at a round table on organ donation in May 2021. According to her, a serious problem is that a large part of Bulgarian doctors cannot diagnose brain death. Thats where the problem with the lack of donor identification comes from, because doctors do not know who is a potential donor, she pointed out. According to her, the issue can be resolved by educating all levels of doctors at the donor bases.

Yordans mother agrees. The coordinating doctors are an important part of the organ donation process. They dont have the drive, they dont have the motivation, they dont have the training to carry out the process related to a possible donor situation, which is very complicated and requires a lot of resources, organization, and funding, Sophia Pencheva said.

The National Health Strategy, prepared by the Health Ministry, acknowledges these shortcomings.

To improve the processes related to organ donation and transplantation, all large medical facilities that have the potential to participate in the transplantation processes should be involved, the document states.

Presumed Consent

Since 1988, Croatian laws governing the use of organs from cadavers in transplant operations have been based on the concept of presumed consent, but the opinion of relatives is regarded as well. In Bulgaria, the system is similar. Any person over the age of 18 can be a potential organ donor, unless they have expressed their disagreement in writing during their lifetime. However, the relatives of the deceased have the last word .

The president of the Croatian Donor Network, Nikola Zgrablic, recently said that 121 transplants were done in 2021. The network was created in 1998 in response to the poor donation conditions, the inefficient transplant system, the lack of donors, and the huge waiting list  a situation that is similar to the one in Bulgaria at the moment. According to him, the most recognizable product of the Croatian Donor Network is the donor card, which in itself has no legal force, but is key to the decision of the relatives of the deceased when they face the difficult moment of loss of a loved one.

Today, every hospital in Croatia has at least a few doctors trained in the donor program, Zgrablic added. He announced a few new initiatives, including training of medical students and a new digital donor card.

In Bulgaria there also exists a donors card that can be filled during ones lifetime to give consent for donation. It can be downloaded from the website of the Yes for Life campaign. However, it has no legal standing and the final decision is again up to the relatives. The question of how far this card fulfills its social role of sufficiently popularizing the cause of donation is also debatable.

Public Awareness Is Key

Over the past decade, public awareness of organ donation in Croatia has been greatly improved through continuous education, promotion of donor cards, and national public campaigns organized by the Health Ministry and NGOs. Experts in transplant medicine often speak publicly on these topics. People whose lives were saved by a donors organ often speak in Croatian media.

In Bulgaria, events like this are rare. The commitment of public authorities is sporadic, inconsistent, and without a clear concept for attracting attention to the problem. The topic enters the public space most often when there is a story about a transplantation in the media, which is still news in Bulgaria.

People dont know about this problem, they are not educated about it. When they become familiar with it, everything will be much easier. There are so many simple things that can change the attitude towards organ donation. Its a heavy subject, but its part of our lives, Yordans mother says.When you see a healthy boy with a transplanted heart or when you see a crying mother, it stays with you and that can help someone.



This article originally appeared on the website of the Association of European Journalists  Bulgaria. It was a winner in Human Rights: Beyond the problems, a competition to promote reporting on solutions to existing problems, funded by the social enterprise Power Pops and the America for Bulgaria Foundation.
Holding to its informal policy of neutrality on the abortion debate, the Casper City Council wont be adopting a proposed resolution condemning the new abortion clinic in Casper.

Resolutions adopted by the city are usually symbolic in nature and dont hold legal weight. But Casper couldnt take action against Wellspring Health Access even if it wanted to, Mayor Bruce Knell said during a Tuesday evening council work session.

The city has absolutely no standing for or against this clinic, Knell said.

For the time being, chemical and surgical abortions are still legal in Wyoming.

Two abortion bans passed by the Wyoming Legislature earlier this year  one outlawing abortion pills and another prohibiting abortion except in cases of rape, incest and select medical circumstances  are still being considered by a judge in Teton County.

If the city wanted to do anything, it would really be hemmed in by the fact that one, the state has already passed a couple of laws that would, in essence, to a large degree, preempt anything the city would do, City Attorney Eric Nelson previously told the Star-Tribune. But furthermore, anything the city would try to do would be probably stayed by the court order out of Jackson.

A group of abortion opponents brought the draft resolution before councilors during a June 6 city council meeting.

Mr. Mayor and council, please give our resolution your consideration and acknowledgement that Casper is a pro-baby, pro-moms-and-dads, pro-life affirming paradise, local abortion opponent Ross Schriftman said during the meeting. He told councilors more than 260 people backed the proposal.

It wasnt the only abortion-related ask that members of the public floated that evening. Some wanted Casper to adopt a law banning abortion within the city limits, some asked for more government oversight of the clinics services and still others, for the city to pull various licenses held by Wellsprings medical staff.

But those, too, are out of Caspers hands, Nelson said.

The only really nexus that the city of Casper has had is to approve building plans like we would for any other business and enforcing our building code, Nelson told councilors Tuesday, adding that the inspection and licensing of health care service providers is up to agencies like the Wyoming Department of Health.

The proposed resolution comes amid a growing movement across the country to make abortion illegal at the local level. One organization, called Sanctuary Cities for the Unborn, says a total 67 municipalities and two counties have passed ordinances opposing abortion. (To date, that doesnt include any Wyoming communities.)

A spokesperson for Wellspring said last week that the clinic did not have comment on the June 6 meeting or any of the proposals brought to the council.

PHOTOS: Both sides of abortion debate gather for protest Abortion protest Abortion protest Abortion protest Abortion protest Abortion protest Abortion protest Abortion protest Abortion protest Abortion protest Abortion protest
A man pleaded guilty Tuesday to sexually abusing a middle school girl on the Wind River Reservation after grooming her using social media, federal court filings show.

Shawn Gardner pleaded guilty to one count of sexual abuse before U.S. District Court Judge Scott Skavdahl in Casper, as part of an agreement with the state, a filing states. He originally pleaded not guilty in March.

The details of his plea agreement have not been released to the public, but Gardner was facing up to life in prison.

In the weeks leading up to Thanksgiving, Gardner, who was 23 at the time, started sending one girl explicit Snapchat messages, the complaint states. Gardner propositioned the girl for sex in those messages, according to the complaint.

An Arapahoe Middle School security officer learned of this on Nov. 30 and questioned the girl, who told him she was aware of another student involved with Gardner through social media, the complaint states. A 12-year-old girl had posted a video of herself in the car with Gardner on Snapchat, referencing them being in a romantic relationship.

Then, another school resource officer spoke with that 12-year-old girl, the complaint states. She disclosed that she had sex with Shawn Lee Gardner the week prior, over the Thanksgiving holiday.

Gardner picked up the girl from her home and took her back to his place, where he lived with family, the complaint states. He gave her alcohol, and they smoked marijuana.

They were drinking Captain Morgan [rum] and Admiral Nelsons [rum], the complaint states. Gardner did not inquire as to [the girls] age and [the girl] did not volunteer any information about her age.

She passed out and did not remember what happened after that, but she woke up next to Gardner the next day, the complaint states. He assaulted her multiple times and later told her, Dont tell anyone.

On Feb. 16, a search warrant was served to Snap Inc. for content on the social media account, the complaint states. The results of the warrant were pending as of March.

Officials also conducted DNA tests and collected several bedding items, which were sent to the Wyoming State Crime Laboratory.

Authorities attempted to interview Gardner at the Wind River Detention Center in Fort Washakie on Dec. 5, but he declined to speak while there.

Gardner is being held without bond.

Federal prosecutors filed a motion to hold Gardner because the crime is violent, and there is a serious risk the defendant will flee. In April, Gardner requested a bond review, but his motion was denied.

U.S. District Court Judge Teresa M. McKee listed numerous reasons for the denial  danger to community, unsure where Gardner was in terms of treatment, his mothers health condition did not rise to a level to reconsider detention and no viable release plan, a court filing states.

He is scheduled to be sentenced on Sept. 1
AN aviation company plans to run commercial flights using an electric engine that creates no carbon emissions by 2025.

ZeroAvia has flown nine test flights with its hydrogen-electric engine at Cotswold Airport, near Cirencester.

The only emission created by the engine is water.
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The water crisis in which 250,000 people were without water one week ago would have lasted for months if the Government had not bypassed the procurement procedure outlined in the procurement act.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, June 14)  Some immigration officers (IO) have been slapped with complaints before the Office of the Ombudsman for inappropriate behavior in implementing departure protocols for Filipinos leaving the Philippines, the agency's chief said on Thursday.

May mga IO na kaming kinasuhan sa (Some of our IOs are facing complaints filed before the) Ombudsman because of their actions to defer the departure, BI Commissioner Norman Tansingco said during a coordination meeting with the NAIA Task Force Against Trafficking.

Tansingco, however, did not mention how many personnel were involved.

CNN Philippines also sought clarification from the BI regarding who filed the complaints, but it has yet to respond.

The BI has earned the ire of travelers following offloading incidents, with one senator previously describing its departure protocol as "unprofessional and inefficient."

Posts about several travelers' complaints have been circulating online, as immigration officers strictly implement protocols aimed at profiling possible victims of human trafficking.

Some of the complaints were about alleged extortion by one of its employees, and lengthy interviews, resulting in passengers missing their flights.

READ: BI addresses viral offloading, extortion complaints

"May mga IO na takot na mag-decide, but we thank the support of IACT (Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking) dahil may tinatakbuhan kami," he said.

[Translation: There are IOs who are now afraid to decide, but we thank the support of IACT (Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking) because we can depend on them.]

"I could say that the BI is the most misunderstood government office, and the occupation of an immigration officer is the most hated job," Tansingco added. "An IO is given only 45 seconds to decide whether to clear or defer the departure of a passenger. Given the additional mandate of IACAT to screen possible victims of human trafficking, the job of an IO becomes harder."

Despite the "bashing," Tansingco said they remain committed to ensuring Filipinos would not fall victim to trafficking syndicates.

Tansingco also said the government is beefing up measures against human trafficking, even tapping digital tools as he noted that the crimes are now being carried out in cyberspace.

To prevent long lines amid a jump in international passengers, he said they are constructing additional counters at the departure area.

"If before an immigration officer in one shift can process a maximum of 200 passengers, now it's almost double," he said.
Public procurement law is one of the most vitally important pieces of legislation enacted since our Independence.

Our civil society groups worked long and hard in the vineyard calling for the introduction of public procurement law, in the hope that this would be the catalyst to reverse the corruption and squandermania in government spending which threatens to ruin our country.
PHOENIX  The state House voted Tuesday to censure Tucson Democratic Rep. Stephanie Stahl Hamilton for what she said was a playful act of moving and hiding the Bibles in the lounge used by lawmakers.

The 30-28 vote came after a majority of lawmakers rejected an alternate proposal by Rep. Travis Grantham, R-Gilbert, to expel her from the House. That drew 27 votes, short of the two-thirds required for such a move, as four Republicans said they could not go along.

Everyone in this room, every family member I know, everyone has made a poor decision at one time, said Rep. David Cook, R-Globe.

I think this is overkill for a bad-chosen prank, he said. Her apology was good with me.

But Rep. Justin Heap, R-Mesa, one of three lawmakers who filed the complaint against Stahl Hamilton, said harsh action is appropriate.

He said this was about more than Stahl Hamilton, who said she was making a point about separation of church and state when she hid the Bibles several times in March and April.

It was the removing of Bibles and then shoving them under the cushions (of chairs) where members and guests sit, which compels other people to sit on their own sacred scriptures, Heap said. To do so is flagrantly offensive and something the House needs to take seriously.

He rejected the idea that Stahl Hamilton was sending a message about whether Bibles are appropriate in a legislative chamber. Instead, Heap said, the message her actions sent to Christian members of the House and millions of believing Arizonans is that their beliefs and their values are no longer welcome in the halls of government.

No penalty attached

A censure by the chamber is described as an expression of sincere disapproval but carries no penalty.

When it came to the question of simply censuring Stahl Hamilton, Cook was the lone Republican who stood against that.

This is a slippery, slippery, slippery slope in my opinion, he told colleagues. I do not like public shaming. I dont like it in schools, I dont like it in churches, and I darned sure dont like it as its being used here as a weapon.

Several Democrats came to Stahl Hamiltons defense.

Its only the Bible Ive ever seen in the House lounge, not other holy books, said Tucson Rep. Nancy Gutierrez. So the righteous indignation is misplaced.

Rep. Mae Peshlakai of Cameron said for her it is simpler than that.

I believe in forgiveness, she said.

But House Majority Whip Teresa Martinez said the claim by Stahl Hamilton that she was hiding the Bibles in a sort of peaceful protest against what she saw as a violation of mixing church and state did not ring true.

A protest is to be done publicly, to people, to their face, said the Casa Grande Republican.

Martinez also questioned the sincerity of what Stahl Hamilton offered as an apology after a videotape from a hidden camera in the lounge showing her hiding the books became public.

It is one thing to be sorry that you did an action, she said. And it is something else to be sorry that you got caught.

Religion in the public square

Rep. Barbara Parker, R-Mesa, said there was another flaw in what Stahl Hamilton said was a protest against what she saw as improper mixing of church and state.

It was never put into the Constitution and it should never be said in the government, she said of that phrase. We have the right to speak about religion in the public square. And we have a right to talk about it in our laws and as we make legislation, Parker said. It encompasses everything that we are.

Rep. David Marshall, R-Snowflake, said the incidents of the Bible hiding cannot be seen in isolation.

He said when Stahl Hamilton ran for office she posted on Twitter I am running for office because I am tired of seeing Bibles on the desks of representatives.

That shows a disdain for the holy word of God, Marshall said, despite the fact she professes to be an ordained minister. Stahl Hamilton holds a masters of divinity from Princeton Theological Seminary and says she is an ordained Presbyterian minister.

Rep. Athena Salman, D-Tempe, claimed there was an orchestrated effort to target Stahl Hamilton, starting with the placing of a hidden camera in the House lounge and proceeding through Tuesdays vote.

But House Speaker Ben Toma, R-Peoria, has said he only agreed to installation of the camera after Bibles had been moved and turned up under couch cushions  and, in one case, in a refrigerator.

The incident  and the video that became public of her hiding the Bibles  drew national attention.

It also resulted in the complaint against Stahl Hamilton and a finding last week by the House Ethics Committee that she was guilty of disorderly behavior. The panel made no recommendation of punishment, leaving that to the full House.

Stahl Hamilton said nothing during the debate on either the motion to expel her or, when that failed, the motion to censure.
You might not expect the death of a municipal parking administrator to set off a period of deep public mourning.

But if you go downtown, youll see Donovan Durbands name on all three theater marquees  the Rialto, the Screening Room and the Fox. And if you were downtown on Saturday night, you saw an outdoor stage named after him, too. You may see other memorials around town or on your social media, as well.

Durband was the Park Tucson administrator for more than 11 years, yes, but that was just the most recent expression of his enduring passion. For more than two decades, since the downtown Tucson doldrums of the 1990s, he poured everything into improving it.

Durband died unexpectedly of an unknown medical condition on June 3 at age 58. I was on vacation out of state when it happened and had to look at Facebook again and again to be sure what I was reading was true. I got to know him in 2003 when I was reporting on efforts to redevelop downtown and would run into him occasionally over the years, usually on the sidewalks in the center of town.

Durband has been such a fixture downtown, often in the background but other times out in front, that nobody who has been around can quite believe hes left the scene. His quiet, tireless effort to get things going will be hard to replace.

That he would become a fixture and fount of about Tucson of all places was hardly predictable. He was born, the fifth and last child in his family, in northwestern Iowa. He went to high school in Holland, Michigan and attended Northwestern University for a time before coming to Tucson and finishing his bachelors degree at the University of Arizona. Thats where the Tucson thing began.

He got interested in urban planning and earned a masters degree in it from the UA. He and his wife Erin met in Tucson and married at the Arizona Inn in 1993.

One of the early sparks of interest in downtown was when he checked out the effort to revive the Fox Tucson Theatre in the mid-1990s.

We became fast friends immediately, and we spent the next 20-some years being friends and collaborating on things, said Herb Stratford, who led the revival of the Fox. Any project I was doing downtown, he was just involved in, because he was involved in everything.

But in the 1990s, downtown Tucson was hardly a promising prospect to make your lifetime passion. When he took over as executive director of the Tucson Downtown Alliance in May 1999, one of the newest businesses was a Hells Angels storefront called Loco 81 on South Sixth Avenue. Four months later, federal agents raided the place, seizing weapons and ammunition and arresting the leader.

Nevertheless, Durband saw promise and boned up on the history. By the time I met him in 2003, he could tell me all about Jacomes and Levys, stores that hadnt existed for years, as well as the history of various blocks and buildings.

Erin Durband said that was a function of his burgeoning passion for the history of downtown: "He would spend hours at the historical museum looking at maps and figuring out what was there, what needed to be preserved, what we could bring back that would honor the past."

Michael Crawford, a former City Council member who helped him get that job, recalled that characteristic as well.

He had this historic of everything downtown. I would call him up and ask, what about this building  who owns it, who owned it? He had a photographic memory about that sort of thing.

Durband left the alliance in 2009 and joined new council member Steve Kozachiks staff. By this time, Rio Nuevo was stumbling forward and there were halting signs of improvement downtown. Durband came up with a new concept.

Downtown interests had previously held a monthly gathering to pump life into the area. In early 2010, Durband and others revived the idea. They called it Second Saturdays and launched it that summer.

Mia Schnaible, who was part of the group that organized the event and kept it going, said the success of the first night surprised them: 6,000 people showed up.

Because of Donovan and the 2nd Saturday idea, we got new people downtown, she said. It was really cool to see how this event changed how people came downtown.

Even after he took the job as parking administrator in 2012, Durband remained deeply involved downtown, through his job and outside it.

He co-founded the Festivals and Events Association of Tucson and Southern Arizona, Schnaible said. Then he spearheaded an effort to get Tucson recognized as a World Festival and Event City in 2017.

He helped out with the Arizona International Film Festival, Film Fest Tucson and many other events people dreamed up for downtown and other parts of Tucson. He worked methodically and with good humor, connecting people and solving problems, especially as they related to parking  an area where he was proud of the city's innovations.

During the pandemic, he helped restaurants downtown expand into areas that were parking places, so they could have outdoor seating.

After Erin, his wife, took up selling Pappardelles Pasta in 2014, each of them would go to different local farmers' markets on the weekends, too. He was tireless in engaging with Tucson.

He was so proud of it (Tucson), older sister Stephanie Durband Doeschot told me. He loved it and would brag about it to his family members in the Midwest. He loved the city so much.

A celebration of Durbands life is scheduled for noon on Saturday, June 24 at the Fox Tucson Theatre, 17 W. Congress St.

Of course, nothing would honor his life so much as for local people to go downtown, patronize the businesses and enjoy the scene he helped create. And if you drive, think of him when you pay for your parking.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, June 14)  Former President Rodrigo Duterte said the "best way" to deal with police officers involved in the illegal drug trade is to kill them instead of putting them behind bars.

In his weekly program aired at SMNI, Duterte said while the police helped him manage peace and order when he was in power, there are now several "hoodlums" and corrupt members within their organization.

"I love the police, but you knowMaraming hoodlums nakapasok sa police, even 'yung mga colonels ngayon, pati naging generals," he said on Monday.

"Huwag mo nang ikorte korte 'yan, p******a, patayin moShoot them dead. What for? Daan mo sa due process?Bakit pa kita buhayin?"

[Translation: I love the police, but you knowThere are many hoodlums who have entered the police force, even the colonels now, and those who became generals. Don't bring them anymore to court, son of a b****, just kill them. Shoot them dead. Observe due process? Why would I keep you alive?]

RELATED: Ex-president Rodrigo Duterte dares entire PNP to resign; AFP to takeover

Duterte also said he believes some police officers' drug links go beyond merely just protecting drug lords.

"Ang pulis mismo, napasukan na, sila na mismo ang sindikato," the former president claimed.

[Translation: Police themselves are now the syndicates.]

Speaking to CNN Philippines' The Source on Wednesday, Interior Secretary Benhur Abalos said a syndicate operating within the Philippine National Police may be behind the 6.7-billion drug haul that happened in October last year.

When he was president, Duterte waged a bloody drug war that is now being investigated by the International Criminal Court.

During his term, state monitoring platform RealNumbersPH showed that over 6,000 people died in anti-illegal drug operations. Local and international human rights groups, however, estimate an even higher tally of between 12,000 and 30,000.
MIAMI  Donald Trump became the first former president to face a judge on federal charges as he pleaded not guilty in a Miami courtroom Tuesday to dozens of felony counts accusing him of hoarding classified documents and refusing government demands to give them back.

The history-making court date, centered on charges that Trump mishandled government secrets that as commander-in-chief he was entrusted to protect, kickstarts a legal process that will unfold at the height of the 2024 presidential campaign and carry profound consequences not only for his political future but also for his own personal liberty.

Trump approached his arraignment with characteristic bravado, posting social media broadsides against the prosecution from inside his motorcade en route to the courthouse and insisting  as he has through years of legal woes  that he did nothing wrong and is being persecuted for political purposes. Inside the courtroom, he sat silently, scowling and arms crossed, as a lawyer entered a not guilty plea on his behalf in a brief arraignment that ended without him having to surrender his passport or otherwise restrict his travel.

The arraignment, though largely procedural in nature, was the latest in an unprecedented reckoning this year for Trump, who faces charges in New York arising from hush money payments during his 2016 presidential campaign as well as ongoing investigations in Washington and Atlanta into efforts to undo the results of the 2020 race.

Always in campaign mode, he swiftly pivoted from the solemn courtroom to a festive restaurant, stopping on his way out of Miami at Versailles, an iconic Cuban spot in the city's Little Havana neighborhood where supporters serenaded Trump, who turns 77 on Wednesday, with "Happy Birthday." The back-to-back events highlight the tension for Trump in the months ahead as he balances the pageantry of campaigning with courtroom stops accompanying his status as a twice-indicted criminal defendant.

Until last week, no former president had ever been charged by the Justice Department, let alone accused of mishandling top-secret information. The indictment unsealed last week charged Trump with 37 felony counts  many under the Espionage Act  that accuse him of illegally storing classified documents in his bedroom, bathroom, shower and other areas at Mar-a-Lago and trying to hide them from the Justice Department as investigators demanded them back.

The charges carry a yearslong prison sentence in the event of a conviction.

Trump has relied on a familiar playbook of painting himself as a victim of political persecution. He attacked the Justice Department special counsel who filed the case as a thug and deranged, pledged to remain in the race no matter what and addressed supporters Tuesday night at his Bedminster, New Jersey, golf club, where he delivered a roughly half-hour speech full of repeated falsehoods and incendiary rhetoric and threatened to go after President Joe Biden and his family if elected.

The seal is broken by what theyve done. They should never have done this, Trump said of the indictment.

Attorney General Merrick Garland, an appointee of President Joe Biden, sought to insulate the department from political attacks by handing ownership of the case last November to a special counsel, Jack Smith, who on Friday declared, We have one set of laws in this country, and they apply to everyone.

Smith attended Tuesdays arraignment, sitting in the front row behind his team of prosecutors.

The court appearance unfolded against the backdrop of potential protests, with some high-profile backers using barbed rhetoric to voice support. Though city officials said they prepared for possible unrest, there were few signs of significant disruption.

Trump didn't say a word during the court appearance, other than to occasionally whisper to his attorneys seated on either side of him. He fiddled with a pen and clasped his hands on the table in front of him as the lawyers and the judge debated the conditions of his release.

The magistrate judge presiding over the arraignment directed Trump to not discuss the case with certain witnesses. That includes Walt Nauta, his valet who was indicted last week on charges that he moved boxes of documents at Trump's direction and misled the FBI about it.

Nauta did not enter a plea Tuesday because he did not have a local lawyer with him.

Trump attorney Todd Blanche objected to the idea of imposing restrictions on the former president's contact with possible witnesses, noting they include many people close to Trump, including staff and members of his protection detail.

"Many of the people he interacts with on a daily basis  including the men and women who protect him  are potential witnesses in this case," Blanche said.

Trump showed no emotion as he was led by law enforcement out of the courtroom through a side door.

Though Trump appeared Tuesday before a federal magistrate, the case was assigned to a District Court judge he appointed, Aileen Cannon, who ruled in his favor last year in a dispute over whether an outside special master could be appointed to review the seized classified documents. A federal appeals panel ultimately overturned her ruling.
PHOENIX  Voters across the state might get to decide whether Maricopa County residents will be able to extend a half-cent sales tax there to pay for transportation projects.

Gov. Katie Hobbs said Wednesday she will back a proposal to put an initiative on Arizonas 2024 ballot. It would repeal a state law that requires Maricopa County  and only Maricopa County  to get legislative approval before putting a transportation sales-tax renewal to voters.

Hobbs acknowledged that she could instead call lawmakers back to the Capitol to redo a bill on the Maricopa County issue approved late Tuesday by Republican lawmakers, which she plans to veto. The Democratic governor said the GOP plan is unacceptable, as it would provide less money for mass transit than sought by the Maricopa Association of Governments and would require two separate votes by Maricopa County voters to extend the tax.

But Hobbs said she wont call them back because Republicans have drawn a line in the sand, in a dispute that centers on how much to spend on building freeways vs. mass transit including light rail.

I dont think it serves anyones purpose if theyre not willing to come to the table and talk about a deal, she said. And that requires some cooling off.

Rep. David Livingston, R-Peoria, said lawmakers wont give Hobbs what she wants. This is going to be the only bill that passes this session on extension of the tax, he said.

Other Republicans said if Hobbs wont accept their plan, that closes the door on Maricopa County voters having any chance to extend the levy, first approved in 1985, for another 20 years.

If thats the case, the current tax will self-destruct at the end of 2025. All the funds it would raise  an estimated $20 billion over the next two decades  would not be collected and the projects would not happen.

Plan B

That leaves Plan B, said Avondale Mayor Kenn Weise, chairman of the Maricopa Association of Governments, which Weise called the Free Maricopa initiative.

The idea now is to persuade voters statewide that residents of the states most populous county should not be hobbled by a restriction that doesnt apply anywhere else, he said Wednesday.

Maricopa County is the only county in the state that has to go through this process of getting the blessing of state lawmakers to ask voters to extend the tax, Weise said. And weve seen just how disastrous that can be.

The initiative would require 255,949 valid signatures on petitions by July 3, 2024 to put the issue to Arizona voters that November. Then, if it passed, it would be up to the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors to set a date for a special election in early 2025 on extending the tax after the current levy expires at the end of that year.

Livingston, for his part, said he doubts the business community would pony up multiple millions of dollars to get the signatures for the initiative and then probably $10 million or more to convince voters statewide to let Maricopa County out from under the legislative restriction.

Weise, however, said he doesnt foresee a problem getting the necessary backing, especially in the wake of Republican legislators telling Maricopa County, effectively, that when it comes to a transit tax, its their way or the highway.

When things like this happen, it has a tendency to energize and galvanize those stakeholders that are vested in this plan, he said. My hope is we would get support from the business community to move forward with this.

Financial issues aside, Hobbs said she believes that voters statewide would be willing to support repeal of the restrictions. It is ridiculous that Maricopa County has to go to the Legislature to get permission to go to the ballot for something for their region, she said.

She also warned, If Maricopa doesnt get this, then every other region of this state is going to be competing with Maricopa for transportation dollars.

They wanted more freeways

Livingston said GOP leaders of the Legislature decided they needed veto power over the Maricopa plan because they thought that a government agency like MAG could have too much power. Obviously that is true because they (MAG) put something together that the people that represent the Legislature didnt agree with.

He sidestepped the point that MAG, by itself, lacks the power to impose a levy. Instead, the organization, composed of elected officials, still would have to offer a plan acceptable to a majority of Maricopa County voters.

Livingston also said MAGs new plan to go to the statewide ballot shows it never was negotiating in good faith with the Legislature.

Ed Zuerker, MAGs managing director, said thats not true.

We have given on freeways, he told Capitol Media Services. They wanted more freeways, so we increased the freeway (spending) number.

At the same time, Zuerker said, MAG decreased the percentage it was seeking for transit. The organization also agreed that any light rail extensions would be funded not by the half-cent sales tax but other revenues, he said.

MAG also agreed to language to require Valley Metro, which runs the bus, trolleys and light rail systems, to meet certain benchmarks, based on comparable cities, of what percentage of the operating costs would be covered by fares.

I mean, just time after time, we have found ways to give what they say they need and ask for as much as we can while keeping the plan intact, Zuerker said. And we just have hit a limit of theres no more to give.

Light rail lightning rod

Hobbs said she will be taking the lead from supporters of the renewed tax on how they want to proceed.

She and MAG want an extension of the half-cent levy for 20 years, with 40% of the proceeds going towards freeways, an identical amount to mass transit, and the balance for regional and arterial roads.

By contrast, Republican lawmakers authorized a vote on a 0.0495-cent levy, with a larger share going towards freeways. Also, they want Maricopa residents to have to approve a 0.43-cent levy and a separate 0.07-cent tax for construction and extension of light rail.

House Speaker Ben Toma said the fact that some seem to be concerned, shall we say, about the fact that its split into two questions is very telling to me. They might be a little bit afraid, perhaps, that light rail isnt going to pass while the other bucket would.

The question is whether Maricopa County voters, who approved the last tax extension in 2005, including funding for light rail, are still as enthusiastic about rail.

Republican Rep. Barbara Parker said construction of light rail in Mesa not only destroyed our historic Main Street and downtown Mesa, but it destroyed lifelong businesses of families and generations of business that had been there for years and years.

She doesnt believe light rail is being used to any significant extent by commuters, she said. We are funding a loser, Parker said. In our town, its a moving urinal and that is it.

But Democrat Lorena Austin, also representing Mesa, painted a different picture.

The light rail has been absolutely transformative, she said. If youve been to downtown Mesa, even in just the past year, you would see that all the retails are actually booming. We cant get businesses in there fast enough. And it has everything to do with public transportation.

Senate Minority Leader Mitzi Epstein, D-Tempe, told colleagues that short-changing mass transit  and light rail in particular  is not a good move.

Light rail is the most efficient way to move people, especially in areas of high density, she said. And if we continue to have the idea that everything must be a single driver in a car on a road, we will just get to the point of having to pave every speck.

But Sen. John Kavanagh, R-Scottsdale, said Arizona doesnt have the density of a place like New York, where he is from, to make mass transit and rail a meaningful way to get people out of their cars.

Senate President Warren Petersen, R-Gilbert, said light rail shouldnt be paid for by everyone who buys items subject to sales taxes throughout Maricopa County.
PHOENIX  Republican lawmakers approved their own transit funding plan for Maricopa County late Tuesday, all but daring Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs to veto it.

She wasted no time in saying that's exactly what she intends to do.

In a statement released moments after the final vote, Hobbs said she wants lawmakers to come back and vote on what she called "a compromise that is supported by a bipartisan majority in both chambers, business and labor leaders, and Maricopa County cities.'' She said GOP leaders, in ignoring that and adopting their own plan, were "playing partisan games.''

Only thing is, lawmakers are not due to come back to the Capitol until July 31. And despite Hobbs' claim her plan has bipartisan support, every single Republican in both the House and the Senate instead voted for the one she does not want.

A veto sets up a game of political chicken, with the fate of the county transit tax, and whether it goes to voters for an extension, hanging in the balance.

"This is going to be the only bill that passes this session'' on extension of the tax, said Rep. David Livingston, a Peoria Republican. "This is the only bill that voters will have a chance to vote on.''

If Hobbs vetoes it, Maricopa County residents will not have a chance to extend the levy another 20 years, he said.

If that's the case, the current tax will self-destruct at the end of 2025. All the funds it would raise over the next two decades  an estimated $20 billion  would not be collected and all the projects they would fund would not happen.

Hobbs is undeterred, saying there are enough legislative votes available for the plan she negotiated with the Maricopa Association of Governments. She said GOP leaders should put it up for a vote "and stop holding our state's economic potential hostage.''

GOP plan requires separate vote on light rail

There are major differences in the plans.

The GOP proposal seeks to cut the sales tax levy a bit, from half a cent to 0.495 cents.

Another key difference: The plan Republicans approved would require two votes by Maricopa County voters. The first, for a 0.43-cent levy, would go to freeways and road projects if approved at the ballot box.

Any money for new light rail or trolley lines, or to construct some sort of commuter rail, would be dependent on voter approval of a separate 0.065-cent levy. If voters didn't go along with that second ballot question, that would end construction of new rail lines unless cities used their own funds.

House Speaker Ben Toma said the Republican plan gives Hobbs and the Maricopa Association of Governments, which is made up of local elected officials, what they want: the chance to extend the sales tax until 2045.

He said it's about more than MAG. "This is an opportunity for us to actually move something forward that gives voters a real choice in what these projects are going to be,'' Toma said.

"And the fact that some seem to be concerned, shall we say, about the fact that it's split into two questions is very telling to me,'' the Peoria Republican said. "They might be a little bit afraid, perhaps, that light rail isn't going to pass while the other bucket would.''

The question is whether voters, who approved the last tax extension in 2005, including funding for light rail, are still as enthusiastic about it.

Light rail: Destructive or a boon?

Republican Rep. Barbara Parker said the experience in her home community of Mesa, where the light rail now runs, suggests to her that residents have seen enough.

"The light rail not only destroyed our historic Main Street and downtown Mesa, but it destroyed lifelong businesses of families and generations of business that had been there for years and years,'' she said.

Nor does she believe it is being used to any significant extent by commuters. "We are funding a loser,'' Parker said. "In our town, it's a moving urinal and that is it.''

But Democrat Rep. Lorena Austin, also representing Mesa, painted a different picture.

"The light rail has been absolutely transformative,'' Austin said. "If you've been to downtown Mesa, even in just the past year, you would see that all the retails are actually booming. We can't get businesses in there fast enough. And it has everything to do with public transportation.''

Senate President Warren Petersen, R-Gilbert, said the GOP plan does not mean there will never be a further extension of light rail if voters don't OK its separate funding. What it does mean in that case, he said, is that light rail won't be paid for by everyone who buys items subject to sales taxes throughout Maricopa County.

"If cities want to do light rail, you know what?'' Petersen said. "They can find ways to fund it and do it.''

The antipathy toward light rail shows up in another provision. The legislation would bar construction of a planned extension from downtown Phoenix to the state Capitol  an extension already paid for with funds from the current levy.

Sen. J.D. Mesnard, R-Chandler, derided it as a useless loop.

But that description doesn't reflect the actual plan. The idea is to eventually split the single line into two, one that runs north-south from the old Metrocenter Mall in Phoenix into an extension now under construction into South Phoenix, and an east-west line that already starts in Mesa but would go to the Capitol.

Billions for freeway construction

Splitting out future funds for light rail is only part of the difference from the governor's plan.

Hobbs wants 40% of the total $20 billion  assuming she prevails and there would be a single vote on a half-cent extension  for freeway construction. Rough math would put that at $8 billion.

By contrast, the GOP plan approved Tuesday would set aside 53.5% of the 0.43-cent levy in the first of the two questions for that purpose. That means roughly $9.2 billion for constructing and widening freeways.

Hobbs also wanted 40% of the total levy for transit, again, the same $8 billion. But even if voters were to approve both ballot questions sought by Republicans, including for light rail, the total would be only about $6.6 billion  or just $4.8 billion if voters approve only the first question but not the second.

Senate Minority Leader Mitzi Epstein, D-Tempe, told colleagues that short-changing mass transit  and light rail in particular  is not a good move.

"Light rail is the most efficient way to move people,'' especially in areas of high density, she said. "And if we continue to have the idea that everything must be a single driver in a car on a road, we will just get to the point of having to pave every speck.''

But Sen. John Kavanagh, R-Scottsdale, said Arizona doesn't have the density of a place like New York, where he is from, to make mass transit and rail a meaningful way to get people out of their cars.

Sets interstate speed limit

There's something else in the Republican legislation that is unrelated to paying for transit projects, which also would have an effect beyond Maricopa residents.

Toma got language added to set the minimum speed on all interstate highways in Maricopa, the state's most populous county, to 65 miles an hour. That would affect a nearly 15-mile stretch of Interstate 17 that runs through Phoenix where state highway engineers have posted 55 mph signs.

The House speaker said the decision by Republican lawmakers to override the speed limit decision is justified.
PHOENIX  Efforts to address the rising cost of housing have imploded at the state Capitol, at least in part because conservative Republicans are unwilling to override local regulations, even with the consent of affected communities.

Sen. Steve Kaiser, a Phoenix Republican, acknowledged Tuesday that the comprehensive zoning overhaul wont happen this year. That admission came despite high hopes he expressed late last week after striking a deal with the League of Arizona Cities and Towns on a slimmed-down version of his bill.

Kaiser also had picked up support from many Democrats who see local zoning, and NIMBY-ism, as a way for communities to keep out affordable housing.

The deal would have set state standards for zoning, requiring larger cities and towns, including Tucson and Marana, to allow backyard casitas and a mix of new smaller developments including small lot sizes, duplex and tri-plex homes and manufactured housing.

Democrats negotiated to have Kaiser include language giving incentives for builders to develop affordable apartments in major metro areas near light rail and street car lines.

Decisions to stay local

But the bill ended up going a bit too far for many.

Rep. Neal Carter, R-San Tan Valley, said that, as a matter of personal philosophy, he generally opposes regulations on what people can do with their property.

Only thing is, he told Capitol Media Services, that ship has sailed, and each community has its own rules and regulations.

Kaisers legislation would have set some baseline restrictions on those local powers. Carter said that was fraught with problems.

I do not want to turn the Legislature into the local zoning board, Carter said. Thats exactly what would happen if questions of size and density suddenly became matters governed by state law, he said.

Rep. Alexander Kolodin, R-Scottsdale, said his opposition to Kaisers plan was even more basic.

He just never got my voters to a place of comfort with this, he said of the idea of stripping certain planning and zoning decisions away from local boards and councils.

In a Twitter post, Mesa Republican Rep. Jacqueline Parker described the package as horrible, suburb-destroying bills.

Affordability crunch

Kaisers efforts were designed to jump-start the construction of smaller, cheaper housing in already built-up cities as a way to ease a housing crunch that has made it impossible for many people to find rental homes they can afford. One result is rising homelessness.

The agreement, struck after months of often acrimonious wrangling between cities and the senator, set the stage for lawmakers to see the completed agreement and potentially vote on it.

But it didnt come to pass because it was clear Kaiser could not get a majority of fellow Republicans in the House or the Senate to get on board. The Senate, in a separate action, overwhelmingly rejected a backstop measure on Monday that was designed in a way to garner support from the conservative Freedom Caucus. It did not work.

Ultimately, I think members just want to slow down and really work on a better product during the interim and then run something in January, Kaiser said. I think a lot of them were a little bit uncomfortable with just how fast everything was moving and how complex the issues are.

He cited fatigue among lawmakers with his battle to preempt city zoning laws as the legislative session is midway through its sixth month and due to adjourn for the year.

House Majority Whip Teresa Martinez agreed. This was too much to absorb, said the Casa Grande Republican.

Sen. Anna Hernandez, D-Phoenix, who was at the forefront of Democrats working to expand access to affordable housing, expressed frustration with the fact the session is ending with nothing changing because of objections from both sides of the political aisle.

When we earn constituents votes, those come with accountability, Hernandez said. So constituents need to ask their legislators why they are voting no on affordable housing measures and measures that will ultimately bring affordable housing in the middle of a crisis.

Artificial spike in pricing

The Home Builders Association of Central Arizona had been a key backer of Kaisers original package.

That included elements of what is called zoning by right. It would have allowed some property owners to convert the use of their property from how it was zoned to something else without having to first get city approval.

But Spencer Kamps, the home builders lobbyist, said for his members the key element of the original package was the effort to cut down on what he said is red tape in getting a new development approved.

The private sector cant respond to the market quick enough when demand increases, Kamps said, with the problem being local regulations. He said the result is an artificial spike in pricing because of the supply.

Delay is a big part of it, he said. My industry, literally 40 years ago you could be able to get a subdivision approved from raw land to the first home sale in about two years, Kamps said. And were now up to about four years.

But Kamps said that, by the time Kaiser was done amending the bill after negotiations with the League of Arizona Cities and Towns and others, his organization decided to neither support nor oppose it

Kaiser seemed resigned and even supportive of calling a pause to his efforts. But he was buoyed by emerging and long overdue efforts in cities including Phoenix to voluntarily change their zoning regulations to allow development that is more affordable than the single-family homes that have been a hallmark of development in Arizona for decades.

Tucson, for example, has adopted zoning allowing detached auxiliary dwelling units to be built alongside existing single-family homes.

If the local governments can match supply with demand, then theres no need for the state to be involved, Kaiser said.

Still, he said that even if a large number of cities voluntarily adopt new zoning rules that match what he believes is needed, they should not expect him to just drop his efforts to force zoning changes.
A proud display of patriotism graced a 50-acre tract of land in Owasso this week.

The Captain Peter Ankeny Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution unfurled and raised an American flag at A New Leafs new agrihood, the Village, on Wednesday.

Staff from both organizations gathered at the large property, located off of 86th Street and Memorial Drive, to witness the spectacle in honor of Flag Day.

Some Village clients also looked on as the flag was raised above the main office at the facility, devoted to helping improve the lives of adults with developmental disabilities and autism.

I hope they (A New Leaf clients) feel the emotion that I do, that we do, in the sense that they belong in America, and that it unites us, Jo Ratliff, DAR chapter regent, said of the flag-raising ceremony.

Chief Development Officer Maranda Figueroa echoed Ratliffs sentiments, adding that she as excited to salute the new flag at the Owasso campus.

Its just another representation of the civil rights that our clients have, Figueroa said, and so we appreciate the Daughters of the American Revolution coming out and having that co-partnership to provide a visual symbol of their freedoms.

Wednesdays event came a few months after A New Leaf clients traveled to the Oklahoma State Capitol to advocate for disability rights.

The day  themed as disABILITY Counts  gave participants an opportunity to raise awareness and leverage conversations with local representatives about the support and rights of Oklahomans with developmental disabilities.

The Village, located at 8535 N. Memorial Dr., is a 50-acre, $20 million community built as an extension of A New Leafs Broken Arrow headquarters, where staff is devoted to helping improve the lives of its clients.

More information can be found at anewleaf.org.

Photos: See images of A New Leafs new agrihood, The Village, in Owasso The Village The Village The Village The Village The Village The Village The Village The Village The Village The Village The Village The Village The Village The Village The Village The Village The Village Do you love Owasso as much as we do?
Tulsa police officers heckled a great-grandmother in the throes of a bipolar episode and then tackled her in October 2021.

Public outrage over video of the incident prompted the department to launch an investigation into its officers nearly six months after the arrest.

Now the department is violating its own policy by keeping the results of that investigation secret.

Department spokesman Capt. Richard Meulenberg confirmed in an email that the investigation is complete but would not say which officers were under review, what investigators found or whether any officers were disciplined.

LaDonna Paris was a 70-year-old graduate student at Phillips Theological Seminary when 911 began receiving calls about her erratic behavior, according to a lawsuit filed in May 2022. Paramedics offered to take Paris to a hospital, but she refused and drove off as police Officers Ronni Carracia and Daylan Root arrived, court records and video footage show. Officers followed Paris to a Habitat for Humanity Restore in east Tulsa, where Paris locked herself in an upstairs restroom for nearly four hours.

Carracia called Paris a cuckoo bird and threatened her with a Taser outside the bathroom, according to body camera video. Paris was hallucinating and paranoid, the footage shows. Carracia, Root and Officer Ty Burns kicked in the door, knocked Paris down, handcuffed her and took her to jail.

I can vividly remember the video was horrific, said Jeff Dismukes, a former law enforcement trainer for the Department of Justice who now runs a statewide nonprofit that supports people with mood disorders. It was completely inappropriate. It goes against how law enforcement are being trained on these issues.

Thousands watched the edited footage, which was posted by Paris son in March 2022. The department responded with a statement that said officers did not violate police policies. An Oklahoma Watch investigation found that officers actions do conflict with policies outlining the departments values, use of force and treatment of people exhibiting mental illness.

Angry Tulsans condemned the officers actions and the departments statement during a City Council meeting and online, pressuring the department to launch an investigation.

In defiance of its own policy, department leaders refused to disclose the findings of its investigation or say whether officers were held accountable.

Oklahoma law requires the department to disclose disciplinary action against officers that results in loss of pay, suspension, demotion or termination. None of the officers faced those consequences, Meulenberg said in an email.

Payroll reports obtained by Oklahoma Watch revealed that Root has not worked for the Tulsa Police Department since at least April 2022. Carracia and Burns were still employed at the department as of May 22. Both received pay raises since the release of the video, according to the reports. Carracias annual base pay is $69,400, reports show. Burns makes $66,670.

Meulenberg said the department wont release any details about the investigation to the public. According to the departments own policy, it is supposed to.

The Tulsa Police Departments 537-page policy manual includes seven pages about complaints against police employees.

The nature of the allegations, the results of internal investigations, and any disciplinary action taken will be treated as a matter of public information, the policy states.

That section of the policy manual was updated and approved by Chief Wendell Franklin seven months before the officers arrested Paris.

Oklahoma Watch requested findings and disciplinary action based on the departments policy. Neither Meulenberg nor Franklin responded.

The decisions as to whether and how to discipline officers lie with Franklin. Since Oklahoma Watch began reporting on his departments response to Paris situation, Franklin has not responded to interview or information requests about the case.

Oklahoma Watch sued the city and the Police Department over its refusal to provide the incident report for Paris arrest, which is a public record. The lawsuit is still open.

That cannot be allowed to continue

After the video was released March 30, 2022, Tulsa city councilors proposed creating a citizens oversight board and an independent office to monitor internal police investigations. The motion failed. Councilor Vanessa Hall-Harper and former council member Kara Joy McKee were the only members who voted in favor of the proposals.

It should never be a crapshoot whether or not youre going to get a good officer, McKee said at the meeting. Some things have changed under Chief Franklin.  Its obvious that not nearly enough has changed.

Tulsa Mayor G.T. Bynum refused interview requests for this story. Spokeswoman Michelle Brooks said in an email that Bynum declined because Paris is suing the city, the Police Department and officers.

Dismukes trained law enforcement for the Department of Justice in the 1990s before his own struggle with mental illness. He said Tulsas police and city leaders missed an opportunity to change the departments culture and set an example.

Its disappointing that the department wouldnt take the opportunity to use this and initiate continued discussion and corrective action that could be helpful for not just that department but for others, he said. That cannot be allowed to continue, because when this type of activity is allowed to continue, we know it becomes worse. Nows the time to be in front of this.

Officers made jokes at Paris expense and laughed as she mumbled incoherently, talked to someone who wasnt there and repeatedly said police wanted to kill her, the video footage shows. Officers called for the mental health response team, but it was busy with another call. In the video, Carracia is seen jiggling the door handle and rattling the bathroom door while Paris screams for her to stop.

This is gonna be so fun, Carracia said as officers prepared to kick in the door.

Blood was visible in the video, smeared across Paris face as officers removed her from the store.

The lawsuit alleges that officers violated Paris civil rights when they arrested and jailed her instead of providing access to treatment.

The state under scrutiny

Similar claims triggered a statewide probe by federal investigators in November. Department of Justice investigators are scrutinizing Oklahomans access to mental health care and whether a lack of treatment options has resulted in unnecessary psychiatric admissions and arrests.

Oklahoma law enforcement officers killed at least 75 people who exhibited signs of mental illness from 2013 to March 2023, according to data from the Mapping Police Violence project.

Tulsa police have killed 38 people, at least 13 of whom exhibited signs of mental illness, according to the data.

More than 20% of Tulsa police officers had received specialized training designed to help them respond to people in crisis, Tulsa Police Department mental health coordinator Capt. Shellie Seibert told Oklahoma Watch in April 2022. None of the officers who responded to Paris situation had received the voluntary training.

The Tulsa Police Department no longer tracks its mental health calls because it was too time consuming, Seibert said. Officers were responding to an average of 1,000 mental health emergencies per month at the departments last count, and those calls have continued to increase, she said.

For 20 years, Dismukes worked at the Oklahoma Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services. He partnered with police departments across the state, including in Tulsa, to train officers and develop best practices for crisis response.

All I know is that we continue to have negative interactions and negative experiences, Dismukes said. We need to find a better way to address this moving forward.



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As part of its efforts to add more grades, a Creek County school district will be sending a bond package to voters this September.

On Monday, the Board of Education for Allen Bowden Public Schools voted unanimously to request a special election on Sept. 12 for a $2.6 million bond proposal, including $2.4 million for a new 18,000-square-foot building that would house a 600-seat gymnasium, locker rooms and the districts administrative offices.

The balance of the bond funds would be used to renovate the space currently used by the districts administration into classrooms in connection with plans to add a high school and change the districts status from dependent to independent. It currently is dependent on Sapulpa Public Schools to provide high school for students in the Allen Bowden district.

Should the bond issue be approved by voters, that shift would still require approval from the Oklahoma State Department of Education, and the request would not be made until the fall of 2023.

If the Department of Education approved the reclassification request, Allen Bowden would add one grade per year starting with the 2024-25 school year, with its first senior class graduating in May 2028.

Located in far northeastern Creek County with its campus along Frankoma Road, Allen Bowdens attendance area is sandwiched by Sapulpa to the south and Tulsa and Sand Springs to the north. According to enrollment data from the State Department of Education, 277 students in prekindergarten through eighth grade attended the school in 2022-23.

Even if its bid to add a high school is denied, Superintendent Matthew Sweet said the district will still build a new gymnasium in order to better accommodate the needs of students and staff, should the bond issue pass.

We need a new gym, even if the state doesnt approve our request for a high school, he said. Our path might be a little different. Some people petition first, then go look to build. Were building a gym because we need a gym.

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In an effort to attract and retain staff, the Union school board voted Monday night to add an employee day care for infants and toddlers at Rosa Parks Elementary School.

I am super excited about this, board President Heather McAdams said. I think weve been trying to do this since I first got on the board.

Dubbed The Nest, the day care will launch with 32 openings when the districts teachers report in August for the 2023-24 school year and will be open year-round. Slots will be awarded via a lottery, with the exact classroom breakdown to be determined by the ages of the children selected in the drawing.

Rosa Parks was chosen as the host because it already has an early childhood facility licensed through the Oklahoma Department of Human Services and accredited through the National Association for the Education of Young Children, thanks to a partnership with the Community Action Project.

We had some availability and space there (at Rosa Parks), Executive Director of Elementary Education Theresa Kiger said. We already have a license for that facility, and we were able to extend that license by 32 children.

As of Monday night, Kiger said she had heard from about 250 Union employees who are interested in placing at least one child at the new day care center, with the greatest interest coming from staff at Boevers, Roy Clark, Ellen Ochoa, Grove, Jarman, Jefferson, McAuliffe and Rosa Parks elementary schools.

Despite ongoing challenges among area school districts to find and retain support staff, she said she has received multiple inquiries about employment opportunities at the new day care.

Were excited and extremely thankful, Kiger said.

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The Oklahoma Supreme Court on Tuesday opened the door to more legal wrangling over the citys Tourism Improvement District.

In an 8-0 decision, the justices found that Tulsa County District Judge William Musseman erred when he granted the citys request for summary judgment, clearing the way for the city to begin collecting the 3% assessment on hotel rooms.

In his April 2021 decision, Musseman found that the Tourism Improvement District  or TID  was created legally by the Tulsa City Council and that it is constitutional and valid under state law.

But the decision handed down by the Supreme Court states that the lower court should not have issued a summary judgment because material facts were in dispute. It sent the case back to district court for a jury trial to determine the facts.

If a litigant is successful in a summary judgment proceeding, the parties are denied the right to a full trial on the merits, the ruling states. It is for this reason, that the province of the jury cannot be invaded, where there are material facts in dispute, it is contrary to proper summary judgment process for any court to decide disputed material fact questions.

This factual dispute must be resolved from the outset.

The issue in dispute is whether more than 50% of the hotels listed on the citys original assessment role had objected to the creation of the TID.

The plaintiff in the case, Toch LLC, argued that they had; the defendants, the city of Tulsa and Tulsa Hotel Partners LLC, argued that they had not.

The Legislature was clear that if the owners of fifty percent or more in an area of the tracts or parcels within the district or a majority of owners of record of property in the assessment area protest, in writing, the creation of the district, the district shall not be created, the ruling states.

The justices ruling makes no mention of halting assessment collections, and the city said late Tuesday that it is reviewing the ruling to determine what the it means for the TID and collections.

The assessment on hotel room stays applies to hotels within the city limits that have 110 rooms or more.

Attorney Grant Thetford, representing Toch, said he looks forward to getting the case before a jury.

In my opinion, we dont think they can have a TID, Thetford said. We think it is unconstitutional, number one, and two, we think 50 percent of the hotel owners showed up and objected to this thing.

So we think this TID is going to be dissolved, and we are hoping that the hoteliers can get their money back from this illegal tax that has been assessed against them.

The City Council approved the creation of the 30-year TID in late 2018, and the city sent out its first and only round of assessment bills in June 2019.

Collections were halted temporarily during Tochs legal challenges but resumed in August 2021 after Musseman granted the citys request for summary judgment.

The City Council resolution creating the TID states that the funds can be used only for what could reasonably be calculated to increase occupancy and room rates for the assessed properties as a class, including convention and tourism facility expenses directly related to such marketing services.

City leaders have argued that the assessment is necessary to bring Tulsas marketing resources in line with those in cities of comparable size.

Toch LLC is made up of Brickhugger LLC and investors Neal Bhow, Lee Levinson and Bruce Taylor. Brickhugger principals John and Tori Snyder, along with their daughter, Macy Snyder-Amatucci, redeveloped the historic Mayo Hotel and the Detroit Lofts.

Justice Dana Kuehn, a former Tulsa County associate district judge, recused herself from the case.



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Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, June 14)  A Leyte court on Tuesday granted the bail application of self-confessed drug lord Rolan "Kerwin" Espinosa and four other co-accused in illegal drug trading case.

In a resolution obtained by CNN Philippines from Espinosa's lawyer Raymund Palad, the Baybay Regional Trial Court said it granted bail to Espinosa, Alfred Batistis, Bryan Anthony Zaldivar, Jose Antipuesto, and Marcelo Adorco due to the "failure of the prosecution to prove that evidence of guilt against them is strong."

Espinosa and his co-accused were charged with violation of Section 26 (B) in relation to Section 5, Article II of the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002.

In 2017, Espinosa admitted in a Senate probe that he gave drug payoffs to former officials of the Philippine National Police and Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency in exchange for the protection of his illegal drug trade in Eastern Visayas.

The court, however, said the confession is "not sufficient ground for conviction" due to "the absence of corpus delicti," which means the crime must be proven to have occurred before Espinosa could be convicted or the evidence be deemed as strong.

"There were no eyewitnesses in the commission of the crime that would positively identify Espinosa and his co-accused of having committed the crime charged," the court added.

The court also dismissed the drug case against his father, former Albuera Mayor Rolando Espinosa who was killed in a drug raid inside his jail cell on Nov. 5, 2016.

Former President Rodrigo Duterte said Mayor Espinosa and his son were included in the list of drug lords and traffickers during the height of the war on drugs

READ: Leyte mayor surrenders for fear for his life, heeds Duterte's call against drugs

In 2021, the Makati City RTC Branch 64 cleared the younger Espinosa of two of his four drug trafficking charges due to lack of evidence.

Last June 8, Espinosa and Adorco were also acquitted by Makati City RTC Branch 65. The court said prosecutors failed to provide enough evidence against them.

Six years after testifying against detained former Senator Leila De Lima, Espinosa in 2022 retracted his allegations on her supposed involvement in the illegal drug trade, saying he invented stories of their dealings because police threatened him.

The Muntinlupa court recently denied De Limas application for bail in her third and last drug case. She was acquitted in two drug cases.
Tulsa Race Massacre / The Tulsa World Library: See all of the coverage of the race massacre in this special report.

"The first time Americans were terrorized by an aerial assault was not Pearl Harbor," a CBS News story says leading up to coverage this weekend of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre.

"Scott Pelley reports on a race massacre in which an estimated 300 people, mostly African American men, women and children, were killed, and aircraft were used to drop incendiary devices on a black neighborhood in Tulsa, Oklahoma. The Greenwood Massacre of 1921 has been largely ignored by history, but Pelley finds a Tulsa community seeking to shed more light on what's been called the worst race massacre in history," a preview reads for a "60 Minutes" story airing 6 p.m. Sunday on CBS.

Context for viewers: Six airplanes circled the Greenwood area during the morning hours of June 1.

What they were doing, and why there were so many, has long been a matter of passionate debate. Many people believe they were used to shoot at people on the ground and bomb Greenwood.

Officials said the small craft, generally thought to be two-seat, single-engine Curtis Jenny biplanes, were merely keeping track of activities on the ground and relaying the information through written messages dropped in weighted metal cylinders attached to streamers.

To what extent this explanation was initially challenged is unclear, but in October 1921 the Chicago Defender published a story in which it said Greenwood had been bombed under orders of prominent city officials.

The story cited a Van B. Hurley, who the newspaper said had given a signed statement to Elisha Scott, a Kansas attorney.

Scott filed dozens of lawsuits on behalf of victims but doesnt seem to have ever entered the Hurley affidavit into the record. There is no record of a Van B. Hurley living in Tulsa around the time of the massacre or that anyone by that name ever belonged to the Tulsa police force.

But that doesnt mean the story did not have substance. Many people believed city officials were behind the burning of Greenwood, and the explanation that the squadron of planes was only used for surveillance struck some as suspiciously thin.

Certainly the planes had a great psychological impact on many. For example, Mary Jones Parrish wrote about them in her account, as did prominent attorney B.C. Franklin in his.

The Defender story said the planes dropped nitroglycerin on buildings, setting them afire.

But nitroglycerin is an explosive, not an incendiary. It is also highly unstable and dangerous.

That has caused some to speculate that something like Molotov cocktails might have been used, or turpentine balls  rags soaked in flammable liquid and wrapped around the head of a stick.

There are several practical reasons why trying to light and throw incendiary devices from an open cockpit airplane of that era would seem a difficult, dangerous and even foolish idea.

But that doesnt mean it wasnt done.

Tulsa Race Massacre / The Tulsa World Library: See all of the coverage of the race massacre in this special report.

Tulsa Race Massacre: This is what happened in Tulsa in 1921
A Haskell man has been charged with murdering and burning the body of his estranged wife, who has been missing since 2021.

Muskogee County prosecutors charged Dayan Banks, 46, on Friday with first-degree murder and desecration of a human corpse.

Banks is the husband of Tamara Lynn Banks, 43, who was last seen alive Nov. 15, 2021.

Agents from the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation and the Muskogee County Sheriffs Office arrested him Friday, according to a press release from District Attorney Larry Edwards.

Prosecutors believe that Dayan Banks murdered his wife, burned her body and disposed of any remains, according to Edwards.

Tamara Banks first name has been spelled Tamera in some court records. She has also gone by the name Tamara Ellison Banks, according to Edwards office.

She was reported missing Nov. 16, 2021, according to an OSBI Facebook post from that time period. She was last seen alive Nov. 15, 2021, on U.S. 64 in Haskell, according to the OSBI.

Her vehicle was found at her residence.

Three weeks before she disappeared, she had sought an emergency order of protection in Muskogee County District Court against her husband, according to court records.

We would like to thank OSBI, the Muskogee County Sheriffs Office and all the other law enforcement agencies who worked tirelessly on this case, Edwards said in a statement. Without their thorough investigation these charges would not have been made possible.



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Who are they? OK children reported missing as of June 3 These are recent reports of missing children made to local law enforcement. If you think you have seen a missing child, contact the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children at 1-800-THE-LOST (1-800-843-5678).
After one-on-one negotiations flagged, a retired federal judge will now mediate a solution to Oklahomas long-running lawsuit against major poultry producers.

Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummonds office provided a copy of the order for mediation from U.S. District Judge Gregory Frizzell on Tuesday afternoon.

Dated Monday, the order simply cancels a hearing set in Tulsa for this Friday and orders all parties to mediation before retired 10th Circuit Chief Judge Deanel Reece Tacha.

The order directs the state and poultry industries to issue a Joint Status Report 14 days after the conclusion of the mediation.

Drummond said Saturday that Tacha is the right person for the job.

This federal judge, shes sharp, and she is well-versed in environmental law, he said.

Drummond said he was confident that she would embrace the 219-page findings of fact and conclusions of law that Frizzell issued on Jan. 17 and get negotiations on track.

Then-Attorney General Drew Edmondson filed the lawsuit in 2005, and a lengthy hearing was held in Tulsa in late 2009 and into early 2010. Frizzells long-awaited findings reignited talks on the matter that Drummond characterized as chippy.

Frizzell initially ordered the parties to agree by March 17, saying that if they did not he would make a ruling of his own, but in March, he allowed a 60-day extension to June. 16, which is Friday. Now he has canceled that hearing in favor of Drummonds request for mediation.

Frizzells findings are critical of the poultry industry. The document includes numerous references to both scientific and legal papers. It puts responsibility for decades of phosphorus contamination in the Illinois River watershed directly on plaintiffs Tyson Inc., Cobb-Vantress Inc., Cal-Maine Inc., Cargill Inc., Georges Inc., Peterson Farms and Simmons Foods.

Tacha is noted for more than 20 years of service on the 10th Circuit, including seven years as chief judge. Upon her retirement in 2011, she was named dean of the Pepperdine University School of Law.

JAMS Solutions mediation and arbitration firm lauds Tacha, 77, known for her keen intellect, creative problem solving, and ability to grasp issues quickly. The firm notes that she is an effective collaborator with particular attention to civility.

Drummond said after requesting mediation that his goal is to find a solution for clean water without injuring the poultry industry.

We need a standard, he said. But if this is the standard we need to have, you dont need to have it today. Lets set a plan to get there, because right now were polluting the crap out of our water. And yes, its not all poultry, but poultry is the significant part.

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TED KACZYNSKI |CAUSE OF DEATH

Ted Kaczynski, known as the "Unabomber," who carried out a 17-year bombing campaign that killed three people and injured 23 others, died by suicide, four people familiar with the matter told The Associated Press.

Kaczynski, who was 81 and suffering from late-stage cancer, was found unresponsive in his cell at the Federal Medical Center in Butner, North Carolina, around 12:30 a.m. on Saturday. Emergency responders performed CPR and revived him before he was transported to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead later Saturday morning, the people told the AP. They were not authorized to publicly discuss Kaczynski's death and spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity.

Kaczynski's death comes as the federal Bureau of Prisons has faced increased scrutiny in the last several years following the death of wealthy financier Jeffrey Epstein, who also died by suicide in a federal jail in 2019.

Kaczynski had been held in the federal Supermax prison in Florence, Colorado, since May 1998, when he was sentenced to four life sentences plus 30 years for a campaign of terror that set universities nationwide on edge. He admitted committing 16 bombings from 1978 and 1995, permanently maiming several of his victims.

In 2021, he was transferred to the federal medical center in North Carolina, a facility that treats prisoners suffering from serious health problems. Bernie Madoff, the infamous mastermind of the largest-ever Ponzi scheme, died at the facility of natural causes the same year.

A Harvard-educated mathematician, Kaczynski lived as a recluse in a dingy cabin in rural Montana, where he carried out a solitary bombing spree that changed the way Americans mailed packages and boarded airplanes.

His targets included academics and airlines, the owner of a computer rental store, an advertising executive and a timber industry lobbyist. In 1993, a California geneticist and a Yale University computer expert were maimed by bombs within the span of two days.

Two years later, he used the threat of continued violence to convince The New York Times and The Washington Post to publish his manifesto, a 35,000 word screed against modern life and technology, as well as damages to the environment. The tone of the treatise was recognized by his brother, David, and David's wife, Linda Patrik, who tipped off the FBI, which had been searching for the Unabomber for years in the nation's longest, costliest manhunt.

Authorities in April 1996 found him in a small plywood and tarpaper cabin outside Lincoln, Montana, that was filled with journals, a coded diary, explosive ingredients and two completed bombs.

While awaiting trial, in 1998, Kaczynski attempted to hang himself with a pair of underwear. Though he was diagnosed by a psychiatrist as a paranoid schizophrenic, he was adamant that he wasn't mentally ill. He eventually pleaded guilty.

Growing up in Chicago, Kaczynski skipped two grades before attending Harvard at age 16, where he published papers in prestigious mathematics journals.
South Koreas President Yoon Suk Yeol will pay an official state visit to Vietnam next week at the invitation of Vietnams State President Vo Van Thuong, the formers office announced on Tuesday.

President Yoon will be accompanied by a 205-member business delegation during his visit to the Southeast Asian nation, which is scheduled to take place from June 22 to 26.

This will also be President Yoon's first bilateral visit to an ASEAN state member, Yonhap News Agency reported.

Vietnam and South Korea elevated their bilateral ties to a comprehensive strategic partnership in December last year.

At that time, President Yoon affirmed that the new partnership would open a new chapter of the Vietnam-South Korea relations.

He also underlined cooperation with Vietnam on using advanced technology to stabilize supply chains and exploit rare earth materials in this Southeast Asian country.

The top official also attached great importance to cooperation in fields such as finance, information and communications, hi-tech, infrastructure development, and energy.

Prior to his visit to Vietnam, President Yoon will visit France from June 20 to 21 to attend a summit with French President Emmanuel Macron, as well as a general assembly of the Bureau International des Expositions (BIE), the international body in charge of overseeing the World Expo 2030, according to President Yoons deputy national security adviser, Kim Tae Hyo.

South Korea looks to promote its bid to host the expo through President Yoons upcoming visit.

The four candidate cities are Busan in South Korea, Rome in Italy, Odesa in Ukraine, and Riyadh in Saudi Arabia.

The host country for the 2030 World Expo is expected to be selected in November this year.

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Hoa Binh Hydropower Plant in the namesake province in northern Vietnam, one of the countrys major hydropower facilities, is still operational, but the water level of its reservoir is falling, triggering concerns over continued power blackouts in the region.

Meanwhile, many big reservoirs in the northern region have halted operations due to drying up.

Pham Van Vuong, director of Hoa Binh Hydropower Company, told Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper on Tuesday that the water level of the reservoir reached some 102 meters, 22 meters from the dead-pool level.

The water level is very low, at some 40 cubic meters per second, though downpours have hit the locale over the past few days.

Water inflows remain weak, piling pressure on the operation of the hydropower plant, said Vuong.

The facility is expected to generate 3.5 billion kWh of power, meeting 37 percent of the full-year target in 2023.

Apart from the constant power supply to the national energy grid, Hoa Binh Hydropower Plant must ensure the quality of electricity generation.

As such, after other major hydropower plants such as Son La and Lai Chau had to cut their capacity or halted operations, Hoa Binh Hydropower Facility acted as a cushion for the power system.

The water level of the reservoir will reach the dead-pool level if the plant operates at full capacity for 12 or 13 days, said Vuong.

The plant will operate at full capacity during the period of high demands for electricity, but it can come to a standstill at off-peak times.

The total volume of water flowing into the northern regions big reservoirs, mainly Hoa Binh and Lai Chau, on Monday rose 28 percent from the previous day, according to the Ministry of Industry and Trade.

All major hydropower plants but the Hoa Binh facility have either suspended or slimmed down their operations, said the ministry.

Some 5,000 megawatts (MW) of power have yet to be mobilized from hydropower plants.

The maximum electricity output stood at 18,580 MW in the northern region on Monday, with a mere 3,800 MW of hydropower.

Many coal-fired thermal power plants in northern Vietnam scaled down their operations on Monday, mainly resulting from a severe shortage of coal.

State utility EVN wrote to Vietnam Oil and Gas Group (PVN) on Tuesday proposing the latter beef up gas supply for power generation at power plants in the southern region of Vietnam to ensure electricity consumption during the dry season.

PVN was told to get well prepared for the supply of coal, oil, and gas to its power plants.

EVN said on Tuesday that 11 renewable energy projects had gained a commercial operation date. Nearly 540 MW of power generated from these plants was connected to the national energy grid.

Until now, 68 of 85 renewable power projects with a combined capacity of 3,790 MW submitted their dossiers to EVN to negotiate electricity sales.

EVN has signed power selling and purchasing contracts with 55 project owners.

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The transnational road passenger transport service connecting Vietnams Ma Lu Thang border gate in Lai Chau Province and Chinas Jin Shuihe border gate in Yunnan Province was officially inaugurated following a ceremony held on Tuesday.

The operation of the transportation service is entrusted to two companies, one from Vietnam and the other from China, according to the Vietnam News Agency.

Two 29-seater buses belonging to a Vietnamese company will shuttle between the two locations on a daily basis, with a frequency of 30 round trips per month.

The daily schedule includes a departure from Lai Chau City in the namesake Vietnamese province at 6:00 am and a return journey from the Central Bus Station of Jinping County in Yunnan Province at 3:00 pm.

Delegates launch the transnational road passenger transport service between Vietnams Lai Chau Province and Chinas Yunnan Province, June 13, 2023. Photo: Vietnam News Agency

In Jinping County, the bus leaves for Lai Chau at 8:30 am and returns from Lai Chau to Jinping at 2:30 pm.

The commencement of the service aligns with the protocol for the execution of a bilateral road transport agreement signed by Vietnam and China on October 11, 2011.

The Vietnam News Agency quoted Nguyen Van Huong, deputy director of the Lai Chau Department of Transport, as saying that the newly established route will effectively meet the transportation needs of border residents and enhance tourism for both countries.

Huong also expressed optimism about fostering more extensive transportation cooperation between the two provinces, aiming to contribute to the sustainable development of the Vietnam-China friendship and their comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership.

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British Tom Rogers and his partner, Filipino Anna Faustino, met by a series of chance encounters during a trip across Vietnam nine years ago.

Rogers and Faustino first bumped into each other in Da Lat, a city in the Central Highlands province of Lam Dong, when she recognized him from a photo she had taken at the sand dunes in Mui Ne, Binh Thuan Province, south-central Vietnam just two days earlier.

At the time, Rogers was on a motorbike trip across Vietnam while Faustino was exploring the countrys beautiful landscapes and unique cuisines.

The more they spoke, the more they bonded over their lives and travel experiences.

It did not take long before the two decided that they would spend the rest of their trips together.

A warm welcome in Vietnam

Faustino told Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper that she and Rogers explored nearly every city and province between Ho Chi Minh City and Sa Pa during their trip.

Amongst their favorite activities were sandboarding in Mui Ne, whitewater rafting in Da Lat, strolling through Hoi An, and trekking in Sa Pa.

It was a great journey. I visited many beautiful and vibrant cities and provinces, Faustino recalled.

She was also eager to share her impression of Vietnamese hospitality.

Anytime we needed help, like if our motorbike broke down in the street, locals would help us despite our language difference," she said.

When we could not find a place to stay overnight in a mountainous province, locals allowed us to stay in their home."

One of the strongest bonds between Faustino and Rogers is their love of food.

Tom Rogers and Anna Faustino enjoy Hoi An in Quang Nam Province, central Vietnam. Photo: Courtesy of Rogers and Faustino

In fact, the couple loved bun cha Hanoi (Hanoi-style vermicelli with grilled pork and herbs) so much that they took a cooking class together so that they could make the Vietnamese speciality for themselves.

Sometimes, when I miss Vietnam, I cook the dish for myself and invite friends over to enjoy it," Faustino said.

At the end of their trip together, Rogers continued exploring Vietnam near the Chinese border while Faustino visited Laos. The two promised to meet in Thailand.

I did not think we were meant for each other at first, but so far we have been together for nine years," Faustino said.

"Since we met in Vietnam, we have traveled and experienced life in many places partly because, luckily, we have online jobs.

We will get married in September this year.

In 2022, Faustino and Rogers returned to Vietnam for a vacation in the central city of Da Nang.

Vietnamese people are wonderful. The country is full of majestic landscapes and interesting things worth discovering, Faustino said.

During their years together, Faustino and Rogers have built their own travel blog named 'Adventure in You' on which they share information, trip schedules, and experiences.

They believe that the more places young people travel, the more they can grow, and maybe even find true love.

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Fruitful vineyards in Ninh Thuan Province, south-central Vietnam are opening their doors to welcome tourists during the Grape  Wine Festival 2023, which is set to kick off on Thursday.

Farmers in Ninh Son, Ninh Phuoc, and Ninh Hai Districts have worked hard at their vineyards over the past few days to get them ready to receive visitors.

Tourists can not only explore the varieties of grapes but also savor the fresh fruits, aside from enjoying the festive atmosphere.

Nguyen Dinh Tri, who resides in Nhon Son Commune under Ninh Son District, grows numerous varieties of grapevines such as witch finger grape, ruby roman grape, green grape, and shine-muscat grape at his vineyard. These vines are laden with fruits.

I have built a rest stop and a stall of food and drinks for guests when they visit my vineyard, Tri said.

Thai An Village in Vinh Hai Commune under Ninh Hai District, which boasts a series of fruitful vines, is waiting for travelers on this occasion.

Nguyen Khac Phong, who has 30 years of experience in farming grapevines in Thai An Village, said, Thanks to favorable climate conditions, grapes grown in the village taste sweet and crispy.

"Notably, they are bigger than those planted in other localities.

The Thai An grape village has emerged as a must-visit destination for tourists to Ninh Thuan Province."

Dang Kim Cuong, director of the Ninh Thuan Province Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, said that as part of the festival, the 'Impressive Grape Trellis' competition will be organized for the first time to offer new experiences to grape farmers, locals, and visitors.

As many as 13 vineyard owners and cooperatives have registered to participate in the contest, Cuong said.

Contestants will make a video introducing the address, size, and grape varieties of their vineyards and post it on social media.

The winners of the competition will be announced on Friday afternoon.

The fest titled 'Ninh Thuan  Land of Values' will feature multiple music and art performances on the opening night.

In addition, the province will set off fireworks for 15 minutes to launch the fest at April 16 Square in Phan Rang  Thap Cham City.

Within the framework of the event, the province will receive UNESCOs recognition of the pottery art of Vietnams Cham ethnic group as intangible cultural heritage in need of urgent protection.

The fruitful vineyard owned by Nguyen Dinh Tri is ready to welcome tourists. Photo: Duy Ngoc / Tuoi Tre

The Grape  Wine Festival in Ninh Thuan Province, south-central Vietnam is biannually held to honor grape farmers. Photo: Duy Ngoc / Tuoi Tre

A farmer takes care of his vine. Photo: Duy Ngoc / Tuoi Tre

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The Ho Chi Minh City Peoples Committee teamed up with Malaysias diplomatic agencies in Vietnam to organize a ceremony at the Municipal Theater to mark the 50th anniversary of diplomatic ties between the two nations on Tuesday.

The event was attended by Phan Van Mai, deputy secretary of the Ho Chi Minh City Party Committee and chairman of the Peoples Committee; Malaysian Ambassador to Vietnam Dato' Tan Yang Thai; and Malaysian Consul General in Ho Chi Minh City Wong Chia Chiann.

Speaking at the ceremony, the chairman of Ho Chi Minh City said that Vietnam and Malaysia are close neighbors.

The two nations have cemented their multifaceted partnership over the past 50 years. Such a long-lasting relationship has become stronger since Vietnam and Malaysia upgraded their ties to a strategic partnership in 2015, said the top Ho Chi Minh City official.

Malaysia was the first nation in Southeast Asia to recognize the Provisional Revolutionary Government of the Republic of South Vietnam in late March 1973. In 1976, Vietnam and Malaysia opened an embassy in the capitals of the two nations, Mai said.

Since 1991, the Vietnam-Malaysia relations have entered a new chapter, with deeper cooperation in various fields.

Tourism has made great contributions to bilateral ties. Vietnam welcomed over 700,000 Malaysian visitors in 2022, up 10 percent against 2021.

Meanwhile, Malaysia became one of Vietnamese travelers favored destinations, receiving 400,000 tourists coming from Vietnam.

Addressing the event, Malaysian Ambassador to Vietnam Dato' Tan said that among Southeast Asian countries, Malaysia is Vietnams third-biggest investor.

As of the end of 2022, Malaysia had poured a pledged capital of US$13.06 billion into 702 projects in Vietnam.

Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City Peoples Committee Phan Van Mai delivers a speech at the ceremony to mark the 50th anniversary of Vietnam-Malaysia diplomatic ties in Ho Chi Minh City, June 13, 2023. Photo: Huu Hanh / Tuoi Tre

Big cooperation opportunities

Some major Malaysian firms and banks, including Petronas, Gamuda, Berjaya Corporation, Maybank, and Public Bank, have been doing business in Vietnam.

Malaysia sees a lot of potential and big opportunities to make investments in Vietnam, so the country will further advance trade cooperation with the latter, said the ambassador.

The two nations can enhance the partnership in the real estate, food and beverage, tourism, health, financial service, and energy fields, Dato' Tan noted.

Malaysian Ambassador to Vietnam Dato' Tan Yang Thai speaks at the anniversary ceremony. Photo: Huu Hanh / Tuoi Tre

Vietnam has its advantages of a population with some 100 million people in 2023 and abundant skilled labor resources, making the nation more attractive to foreign investors, Malaysian Consul General in Ho Chi Minh City Wong told Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper.

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Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, June 14)  President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has declared June 28, Wednesday, a regular national holiday this year in observance of Eid'l Adha.

This was stated under Proclamation No. 258 signed on June 13 and made public by Malacanang a day after.

Based on the document, Marcos made the declaration upon the recommendation of the National Commission on Muslim Filipinos, which follows the 1444 Hijrah Islamic Lunar Calendar.

Eid'l Adha, or the Feast of Sacrifice, is one of the two most important feasts celebrated by Muslims.

It marks the height of the yearly Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca in Saudi Arabia, and its timing depends on the sighting of
Members from the Australian Writers Guild today gathered outside NBCU headquarters in George St. Sydney, in solidarity with striking members of the Writers Guild of America.

Australian screenwriters are plart of a global day of action by writers internationally, as the US strike enters its sixth week.

Screenwriters in the U.S. are demanding better pay and working conditions, improved payments for use of writers content on streaming services, protections against free work, and restrictions on the use of artificial intelligence.
Cast members, children, members of parliament and screen industry professionals will gather for the Australian Childrens Television Foundation 2023 Showcase at the APH Theatre, Parliament House this evening.

The event will be presented by Minister for the Arts Tony Burke and ACTF Board Chair Helen Silver and will feature childrens content, including an episode of the second season of ABC ME political-comedy drama The PMs Daughter,. It will also screen episodes of preschool animations Little J & Big Cuz, Kangaroo Beach and Barrumbi Kids.

Special guests include The PMs Daughter star Cassandra Helmot, actor Aaron FaAoso, who voices Old Dog in Little J & Big Cuz, and Neville and Pounce from Kangaroo Beach.

The event is being held not only to showcase childrens content , but to thank the Government for its ongoing support of childrens television and to highlight the value in the continued investment in Australian stories.

ACTF Chair Helen Silver said: Australians produce exceptional childrens content, including both animation and live action childrens drama, as a direct result of the Government policies and funding which underpin our industry. This is a wonderful opportunity to celebrate the breadth and diversity of our screen industrys offering to children, and the shows weve been supporting over the last few years.

Quality childrens content entertains, engages and inspires young audiences, and we know that it has many supporters in Parliament House. But there is nothing like bringing the shows, and children to watch the shows, into the building itself to demonstrate the value of investing in quality Australian childrens content.
Via Facebook

The parents of a child who was called the N-word by a teacher in Iowa have called on the school board to fire him immediately.

The 17-year-olds mother Melinda Carter addressed the Dubuque Community Schools board meeting Monday saying the incident, which was caught on video, has been traumatizing for her and her family.

On May 31, our son was the victim of racial discrimination by an employee of the Dubuque Community School District, she said through tears. Since this incident at Hempstead High School, we have gone through a range of emotions from disbelief, anger, disappointment, and sadness. Having to sit down with our 17-year-old son and debrief the situation has been traumatizing.

The teacher went viral online when he was caught yelling the N-word to a Black student outside a classroom.

What you looking at, n-----? the teacher shouted to the student across from him.

Another Black student happened to pass by as the teacher made his remarks, which caused a slight disruption. The teacher apologized to the student, but went back to addressing the other student in front of him as the interaction was recorded.

After the incident, Dubuque Hempstead High School Assistant Principal Julia Jorgenson sent a letter to families saying the teacher had been suspended while the school district held an investigation.

At Mondays meeting, Melinda Carter expressed outrage that she and her husband, Thackery Carter, were not alerted about the situation until a few hours after it happened.

We hope the district re-evaluates the protocol of notifying parents in these situations, she said. We also hope the district makes the right decision and does not allow [the teacher] to continue to teach in the Dubuque Community School District. We hope the district takes this further and removes his teaching license from the state of Iowa to help ensure that no other children have to go through this.

Thackery Carter said his family had been unable to truly celebrate milestones, like his son getting his drivers permit, because they had been so emotionally focused on the ordeal with the teacher.

He said the delayed notification was not acceptable and echoed his wife in saying that the teachers license should be revoked.

In a statement to The Daily Beast, Dubuque Community Schools would not go into detail about the teachers employment status. Instead, the communications department said there was specific legal protocols that the district must adhere to whenever theres a recommendation for a teachers contract to be terminated.

The district has a legal obligation to ensure that personnel matters remain confidential until such time as the Board takes public action, the statement read, without identifying the teacher.

In a request for comment Wednesday, the teacher directed The Daily Beast to speak with his attorney, but calls to the attorney were not immediately answered.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

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Harrison Ford has insisted he enjoys "being old".

The Indiana Jones star, who turns 81 in July, told People magazine that he is glad to be his age.

"I don't want to be young again," he confessed in a recent interview. "I was young, and now I enjoy being old."

The Star Wars actor continued, "You are certainly physically diminished by age, but there are wonderful things about age - richness of experience, the full weight of all the time you've been spending getting to being old - and there's a certain ease in it for me."

Harrison also told the outlet that while he is "very gratified" with his career, he never expected to reach the heights of fame he achieved.

"No one ever believes this, but I never wanted to be rich and famous. I just wanted to be an actor," the star admitted. "I never thought that I would be a leading man. I really was just hoping I could make a living as an actor and not have to supplement my income with some other side hustle."

Harrison's latest film, Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, hits cinemas on 28 June.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, June 14)  President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has declared the Senate bill proposing the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) Act as urgent.

The president said the passage of Senate Bill No. 2233 would address the "urgent need" to increase the participation of the private sector in national development programs that support important infrastructure development of the government.

"The bill, if enacted, will increase much needed development across various sectors and accelerate the delivery of public services in order to spur economic growth and elevate millions from dire poverty," Marcos told Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri in a letter made available to the media on Wednesday.

The House of Representatives approved its version of the PPP Act in December.

Under the proposed Senate bill, PPP refers to a contractual agreement between the government and the private sector for the "financing, designing, constructing, operating and maintaining, or any combination thereof, of infrastructure or development projects which are typically provided by the public sector, where each party shares in the associated risks."

PPP ventures are also considered as alternatives when the government has insufficient financing for local infrastructure or development projects.

Albay 2nd district Rep. Joey Salceda said the proposed PPP Act will make accessible at least 27 trillion in financial resources from banks and at least P600 billion annually from just the "large conglomerates" for infrastructure projects.

The push from Marcos would allow the Senate to discuss it in plenary and approve it on third and final reading on the same day.
QUANG NGAI  The Dung Quat Economic Zone in Quang Ngai Province is being designed as a key green, smart and sustainable industrial complex and a breadwinner for the countrys budget and the central province by 2045.

Head of the managing board of the zone, Ha Hoang Viet Phuong, said the adjustment of Master Plan on the zone, which was approved by the Prime Minister in February, will develop it as a multi-sector industry and sea-based economy centre on a total area of 45,332ha, including 1,492ha of the Ly Son Islands.

He said the zone will promote good infrastructure, and prioritise renewable energy and circular economy as magnetic factors to potential investors.

The plan will help the Dung Quat EZ develop on three key pillars  industry, tourism and service  focusing on the core industries of oil refining, steel and shipyard building with the advantage of a deep-sea port system, Phuong said.

Five function areas have been assigned as eco-urban, logistics, airport and sea port service, supportive industries and high-tech farming. Ly Son Islands, 30km off the coast of Quang Ngai, will serve as a unique tourism attraction hub, he said.

Phuong said the Prime Ministers Master Plan also included preferential policies for calling on more key investors in high-tech industries.

Investors would also enjoy a 10 per cent tax rate for 15 years, a four-year tax exemption and a 50 per cent cut in income tax for the following nine years, he said, adding a five-year free import tax on materials and semi-finished products used in production will be reserved for investors.

According to the latest report from the Dung Quat EZ, 346 projects have been in effect with nearly US$18 billion of investment capital, including 58 foreign direct investment (FDI) projects worth $1.84 billion.

Phuong said domestic investors also poured $16 billion into 288 projects  88 per cent of total investment in projects.

250 operational projects created an industrial production value of VN116 trillion ($4.6 billion) in 2022  113 times as much as the figure 20 years ago, he said.

The zone also earned export turnover of $1.9 billion in 2022, contributing VN223 trillion ($8.9 billion) to the States budget in 2010-22. It also accounts for an 80 per cent share in the provincial annual budget and 65,000 jobs for local and neighbouring provinces, he added.

The head of Dung Quat EZ managing board also highlighted the Viet Nam-Singapore Industrial Park (VSIP) and South Korea heavy industries Doosan Enerbility Viet Nam (Doosan Vina) as two successful investment projects in the province.

Doosan Vina has invested $315 million to develop a 101ha industrial complex since 2006, earning revenue of $424 million from giant industrial equipment exports, he said.

Meanwhile, VSIP  an iconic co-operation of Viet Nam and Singapore  had an investment capital of $337.8 million on 660ha, reserving industrial production space for projects in the fields of leather, textiles and garments, foodstuffs and beverages, creating more than 13,500 jobs for local residents and experts.

Hebei Xindadong Textiles Company of mainland China was seen as the biggest investor in the park with $38 million, followed by Hong Kong shoemaker Properwell, and Singapores UMW Equipment Systems  an industrial and heavy machinery plant.

A deep-sea port system (19 to 21m deep) is seen as an advantage for investors as it could handle cargo vessels with 250,000 Deadweight tonnage (DWT), and it hosted 40 million tonnes in 2022.

Binh Son oil refinery is now refining 85 per cent of domestic crude and 15 per cent of crude imports, and the Dung Quat Refinery upgrading and expansion project was built with an investment of $1.8 billion in its second phase.

The expansion of the Dung Quat Refinery plant will help increase capacity of the refinery plant from 6.5 million tonnes of crude oil to 8.5 million tonnes per year.

The Dung Quat EZ has been bolstering connections with the Chu Lai Economic Open Zone in Quang Nam along with the deep sea ports and airport systems of the two neighbouring provinces.

In early June, Dung Quat EZ granted an investment licence to Messer, an industrial gas company from Germany, with an investment of $133.3 million to build a plant on 7.24ha.  VNS
HCM CITY  ABBANK has completed payment of dividends in shares at a rate of 10 per cent, thus also increasing its charter capital from VN9.4 trillion (US$403.1 million) to over VN10.35 trillion ($444.7 million).

Based on the list of shareholders entitled to receive the 2022 dividends compiled by the Vietnam Securities Depository, on May 31 the bank issued nearly 94.1 million shares worth VN941 billion ($40.4 million).

The proposals to increase the capital and pay dividends were approved by the State Bank of Vietnam and the State Securities Commission.

ao Manh Khang, ABBANK's chairman, said: Paying dividends in shares will help realize the strategic goal of becoming an efficient retail bank. It is expected that the capitalisation of ABBANK will continue to increase in the next three to five years to reach the desired scale.

ABBANK will invest long-term resources in people, technology and data, and focus on sustainable development in line with its customer-centric orientation.  VNS
HCM CITY  Meta will focus on three priority areas in 2023 that will help drive business and industry growth in Viet Nam, including video growth, particularly Reels, the role of Artificial Intelligence (AI) for businesses and building better business ROI through business messaging.

Meta platforms empower diverse businesses to connect with relevant audiences and open up endless opportunities for them to grow. We are helping them get discovered and scale their businesses across our Family of Apps. Our three focuses this year; Reels, AI, and Business Messaging, have been integral to the growth of our Meta community, which has reached 3 billion people worldwide - ultimately enabling over 200 million businesses of various scales worldwide to build their businesses on Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp," said Ben Joe, Vice President, Southeast Asia and Emerging Markets, Meta.

The Meta community has continued to grow over the past 20 years, reaching 3 billion people worldwide who use at least one of Metas apps every day, and 3.8 billion every month.

The business community is an important part of Meta as they become more connected and meet various opportunities and a wider customer base through features that support their business journey.

Speaking of content, Reels has become the most popular and most consumed type of content among the communities on Meta, and Reels has the fastest-growing format in the APAC region. According to Meta's Q4 2022 earnings call, the number of viewed Reels globally has doubled, and re-shared Reels content by the community on Facebook and Instagram has more than doubled compared to last year.

The growth of Reels is closely tied to the role of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in providing personalized experiences for people. According to findings from the Culture Rising Study, discussions about AI on Facebook and Instagram have increased by 173 per cent compared to last year. AI technology has also helped people see more personalised Reels videos that align with their preferences. The personalisation technology from AI has driven a 24 per cent increase in people's consumption of Reels content on Instagram.

One of the breakthroughs Meta has made to help businesses develop is the launch of Meta Advantage Suite in 2022 - a suite of products that simplifies the steps in ad creation and connects advertisers or business owners with the right creative assets and the right audience, at the right time.

In May, Meta also shared more details about how AI is being used to improve the performance of ads for businesses, including a first look at our AI Sandbox thats testing generative AI capabilities for advertisers, new features in our Meta Advantage Suite of ad automation tools and more details on our AI infrastructure and modelling investments that underpin it all.

The third focus is the role of Business Messaging to facilitate business conversations between business owners and their audiences. Currently, over 1 billion people worldwide connect with businesses through Meta messaging apps every week.

It is undeniable that our community in Viet Nam loves to connect with their friends and family through messaging services and they want to have the same experiences with businesses. Data from Boston Consulting Group (BCG) and Meta in 2022 shows that at least one in three Vietnamese consumers send messages to businesses at least once a week. Among the countries with the highest rate of Business Messaging adoption, 73 per cent of Vietnamese consumers surveyed use Business Messaging to reach out to businesses. This shows that Business Messaging continues to play a role in supporting business growth and bringing businesses closer to customers," said Khoi Le, Country Director for Meta in Vietnam.

A study conducted by Forrester Consulting and Meta in December 2022 also showed that Business Messaging products have a 61 per cent better impact compared to other communication channels previously used. For example, in terms of sales, the order value from customers is 22.1 per cent higher due to communication between sellers and buyers through business messaging.  VNS
TOKYO  Flights between Nanki Shirahama airport in Japans southeastern prefecture of Wakayama and Ha Noi and a Nang City of Viet Nam are expected to be launched next month, Wakayamas authorities said on Tuesday.

The service forms part of the efforts by the authorities to increase international flights to the airport after a hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Wakayamas Governor Kishimoto Shuhei told a local meeting.

The first two round-trip flights are scheduled for July 26 and 30, carrying Wakayama officials to visit Vietnamese localities, and Vietnamese visitors to the Japanese prefecture.

Secondary school students of the two countries will also be aboard for exchanges on this occasion, the official added.

After Japan relaxed its COVID-19 restrictions in October 2022, Wakayama has earmarked 21 million JPY (about US$150,000) from its budget to promote international flights.

The prefecture has admitted many Vietnamese trainees in sectors such as agriculture, and food and aquatic processing. Its Unshu mandarin has also been put on shelves of AEON supermarkets in Viet Nam since December 2021.  VNS
Born to be wild

Amid an increase in trafficking cases, organisations are making tremendous efforts to provide support for wildlife rescue. Hanoi Wildlife Rescue Centre reintroduces up to 700 wild animals of all kinds into forests across the country, while over 80 per cent of the bears rescued by Animals Asia were voluntarily handed in by their former owners.
Writer Kieu Bich Hau attended the 13th European Poetry Festival in Como, Italy from May 19 to 21. As a member of Viet Nam Writers' Association she is making effort to popularise Vietnamese poetry and prose to the world.

Her poems and short stories have been translated into many foreign languages including English, Italian, German, Spanish, and French.

Viet Nam News reporter Nguyen Binh talks with Hau about the festival and how her poems to be received there.

You are honoured at the 13th European Poetry Festival in Como, Italy for your effort to popularise Vietnamese literature to the world. Could you tell more about it?

Since 2019, I have connected with many writers, editors, translators and publishers in Hungary, Italy, Romania, America, the UK, Germany, Canada, Russia, South Korea and others to exchange in translating and publishing literary works.

We have made a worldwide network of writers and publishers with many platforms to promote contemporary authors and their works.

In October 2020, I also founded a group of women translators named Hanoi Female Translators to strengthen and widen the volume of the literary translating and publishing Vietnamese works abroad.

Until now, we have contributed in supporting more than 100 Vietnamese authors having their works to be translated and published abroad.

Some of them won international prize, such as Tran Quang ao, Phan Hoang, Bao Ninh winning Danubius Literature and Arts Prize in Hungary, Nguyen inh Tam winning Author of the Year 2022 by Ukiyoto Publishing (Canada).

You have been invited to attend the festival in 2020, 2021 and this year. What does it impress you?

When my first volume of poems, entitled The Unknown in bilingual (Italian, English) was published in Italy in 2020, I received an invitation to attend the 10th Europa in versi in Italy in October (2020).

At that time, the Covid-19 spread worldwide, so the event happened virtually. I just made a video of reading one of my poem, and another video of expressing my ideas of the poetry book The Unknown, then sent them to the festival.

The two videos were on air during the official programme of the festival, then being published in the website of the festival.

Then in the year 2021, I got another invitation from the festival of the 12th edition, but one more time I could not come to Italy to attend it because Viet Nam did not open for the commercial flight.

The Italian poetess Laura Garavaglia represented me to read my poems in that festival.

This year, I received the invitation to attend the 13th edition of Europa in versi. I was very excited because at last, I could come to Como in Italy to do the recitation by myself to the audience there.

They loved the Vietnamese voice in reading poems and said it sounded so sweet and fluty as singing a song. I was much impressed by the way they proceed the attendees works.

For instance, from my four poems chosen by the art directors of the festival, the artists, musicians and students in art colleges had made short films, plays, songs, and other kinds of art visual works to show there after my recitation.

We also experienced the interesting reading for audience in various historical sites and tourist attractions in Como.

We could see that one short poem could go so far in other kinds of arts by the imagination and talent of our special readers in Como.

Your poem collection An So (The Unknown) was published bilingually in English and Italian in Italy. What is it about and did you compose it in English?

The Unknown is about love in distance. The profound longing and pain of the lovers who cannot meet each other is the metaphor for the common suffering of human being when we cannot bridge the gap between us.

I wrote those poems in English during the time I was staying in Europe in 2019. The reason for writing my poems in English was that I communicated frequently with my soulmate in Europe in English.

So, naturally all the verses came to my mind in English, not in my mother tongue.

Do you write poems in English or translate them into English? Is there a difference between them?

As I mentioned above, I wrote my poems in English. It is the way I express my feelings and idea to my soulmate.

It is like a silent talk to myself. The difference in writing poems in English and translating poems into English is: in the first situation, the raw feeling spreads on the computer screen, while in the second one, the feeling is absorbed and displayed on screen.

Canadian Ukiyoto Publishing currently distributes your poetry collection entitled From Red River to Blue Danube through its channel in the world. How did the cooperation begin?

In 2022, I became the ambassador of Canadian Ukiyoto Publishing in Viet Nam after around eight months of fruitful cooperation between us. I work as a literary agent for many Vietnamese authors for publishing their works by Ukiyoto.

Then, during three months in 2022, I wrote 63 poems and decided to send them to Ukiyoto. Until April, I got the very exciting news that my second volume of poems From Red River to Blue Danube was released and distributed globally by Ukiyoto.

People very often choose a particular career path because they are fond of that job. What fascinates you about poetry and what advice would you give for people that don't like poetry?

For me, poetry saved my soul when I got a mental crisis and fell to the hell of mind. Poetry is also a golden bridge to connect different people in the world for understanding each other, making friends and exchanging their cultural values. Poetry leads People to the Land of Love and Light.

If you do not like poetry, so let it be. Do not force yourself to read them. But do not throw away poetry books. Let them lie on your bookshelf and forget them. One day, when suddenly you have to face a terrible problem and you do not know the solution, you are so low.

You may take a poetry book out from your shelf and read a verse, you may find that light there for you. - VNS
LONDON  Vietnamese Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Le Thi Thu Hang and Minister of State in the UKs Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office Anne-Marie Trevelyan co-chaired the ninth strategic dialogue between the two countries in London on June 12.

They shared the view that the Viet Nam-UK strategic dialogue has been developing intensively and comprehensively in all spheres and on both bilateral and multilateral dimensions, especially with the strategic partnership established in 2010 and the 2020 joint statement identifying nine priority areas, showing the countries strong determination to elevate bilateral relations.

Political trust has been enhanced through the maintenance of all-level mutual visits and via all channels, including President Vo Van Thuongs recent attendance in the coronation of King Charles III in May 2023, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinhs meeting with his British counterpart Rishi Sunak on the sidelines of the expanded G7 summit also in May, and National Assembly Chairman Vuong inh Hues official visit to the UK in July 2022.

Economic and trade links have been unceasingly expanded on the basis of the UK-Viet Nam Free Trade Agreement (UKVFTA), and security and defence cooperation continued to be promoted substantively. Meanwhile, people-to-people exchanges, including educational links, remain a bright spot as there are more than 12,000 Vietnamese students in the UK.

Viet Nam attaches importance to the reinforcement of the countries strategic partnership, Hang affirmed.

She suggested both sides keep bringing into play the positive cooperation results in politics, economy, education - training, security - defence, and people-to-people ties and expand collaboration to new areas that match the UKs strength and Vietnams demand such as new energy, green finance, and strategic infrastructure.

For her part, Trevelyan stated Viet Nam is an important partner in the British Governments Indo-Pacific strategy.

The UK welcomes Viet Nams strong commitment to achieve net zero emissions by 2050 made at the 26th UN Climate Change Conference (COP26), along with the Southeast Asian countrys adoption of a political declaration on just energy transition with the G7. It is ready to join international partners and private businesses in cooperating with and assisting Viet Nam in green transition, sustainable development, and climate change response, she affirmed.

To further intensify the strategic partnership and tap into cooperation potential, the two sides agreed to step up delegation exchanges at all levels, especially high levels; effectively maintain bilateral cooperation mechanisms; work together to implement the UKVFTA to raise bilateral trade; and encourage British enterprises to boost investment in Vietnam in such fields as renewable energy, digital technology, finance - banking, innovation, and high-quality infrastructure.

They also discussed measures for further strengthening partnerships in science - technique and education - training, including exchanging students, conducting joint studies, increasing the UKs scholarships for Vietnamese students, and effectively using the UKs sponsorships for scientific researches.

In terms of security cooperation, Viet Nam and the UK agreed to keep close coordination in the fields of migration; exit - entry; the fight against organised, hi-tech, and human trafficking crimes; and capacity building for law enforcement officers.

Regarding defence ties, they expressed their delight at the progress in bilateral cooperation as seen in a British naval ships visit to Viet Nam and the UKs assistance in training Vietnamese officers for United Nations peacekeeping operations. They agreed to continue increasing defence delegation exchanges, step up cooperation in UN peacekeeping operations, share strategic research information, and expand collaboration to such potential areas as cyber and maritime security safeguarding.

On the basis of the common priorities in agricultural partnership and many important agreements on this regard, the two officials discussed measures to foster cooperation in opening their countries markets to each others agricultural products, facilitating timber trade, controlling food quality and safety, reducing greenhouse gas emissions in agriculture, and boosting the possibility of trilateral partnerships to help guarantee global food security.

Discussing bilateral coordination at international and regional forums, Trevelyan appreciated Viet Nams support for the UK during the negotiations on her countrys participation in the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP).

Both sides agreed to bolster view sharing and coordination at multilateral forums like the UN and the ASEAN - UK cooperation.

Touching upon some international and regional issues of common concern, they stressed the importance of complying with international law and the fundamental principles of the UN Charter. They voiced support for ASEANs centrality and the blocs stance on regional security issues, including ensuring security, safety, and freedom of navigation and overflight in the South China Sea (known in Viet Nam as the East Sea); respecting law, especially the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS); and advocating the building of an efficient and effective code of conduct in the waters.

Also on June 12, Deputy Minister Hang had a meeting with Deputy Speaker of the UKs House of Commons Nigel Evans, who applauded the countries flourishing relations and described the strategic dialogue as an important mechanism for comprehensively discussing issues of bilateral cooperation.

He stressed Viet Nam is a partner of leading importance of the UK in the region, and that the British parliament supports the enhancement of their ties.

Hang appreciated the support from the Royal Family, Government, and parliament of the UK for Viet Nam, and called for continued assistance for the Vietnamese community in the European country.

The two sides also agreed to work together to organise celebrations of the 50th anniversary of their countries diplomatic relations this year.  VNS
Trump pleads not guilty in classified documents case

Xinhua) 15:50, June 14, 2023

Former U.S. President Donald Trump (C) raises his fist as he leaves Trump Tower for his arraignment at the Manhattan Criminal Court in New York, the United States, on April 4, 2023. (Xinhua)

WASHINGTON, June 14 (Xinhua) -- Former U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday pleaded not guilty in an indictment against him, in which he faces 37 federal charges for mishandling classified documents.

The indictment alleges that Trump was involved in unlawfully retaining government secrets as he left the White House in 2021 and conspired to obstruct justice.

Trump stored the classified documents in various locations, including "a ballroom, a bathroom and shower, an office space, his bedroom and a storage room" at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Florida, which was "an active social club" not authorized for the storage, possession or discussion of the documents, according to the indictment.

At a federal courthouse in Miami, Trump's attorney Todd Blanche told the judge, "we most certainly enter a plea of not guilty."

Photo taken on Aug. 26, 2022 shows a page of a redacted version of the affidavit used to seek the search warrant on former President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate. (Xinhua/Liu Jie)

Trump has said he is innocent and is unfairly targeted by prosecutors because he's running for president in 2024. Hundreds of people gathered nearby the court to show their support for the former U.S. president.

"Today we witnessed the most evil and heinous abuse of power in the history of this country," Trump said in a speech after the court hearing.

"A corrupt sitting president had his top political opponent arrested on fake and fabricated charges in which he and other presidents would've been guilty of -- right in the middle of a presidential campaign in which he was losing badly," he said.

During the speech, Trump vowed that if he wins in 2024, he will appoint a special prosecutor to investigate U.S. President Joe Biden and Biden's family.

The indictment comes about a month after a jury found Trump liable for sexually abusing journalist E. Jean Carroll.

According to special counsel Jack Smith, who the Justice Department appointed to oversee an independent investigation of Trump, the former president is also being investigated for his involvement in the Capitol riot on Jan. 6, 2021.

(Web editor: Peng Yukai, Liang Jun)
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, June 14)  The Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) on Wednesday said up to 40,000 residents will have to be moved to safer ground if experts raise the alert level status of Mayon Volcano from 3 to 4.

Once mag-Alert Level 4 ito, nag-usap kami ng mga mayor [Once this reaches Alert Level 4, we spoke with the mayors], they could evacuate up to 40,000 in a span of 48 hours, DILG Sec. Benhur Abalos told CNN Philippines The Source.

The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) said in its Wednesday bulletin that Alert Level 3 remains over Mayon Volcano.

In the last 24 hours, it recorded seven volcanic quakes and 309 rockfall events. There was also very slow effusion of lava from Mayons summit crater.

National data showed that around 14,000 residents within the 6-kilometer danger zone have been evacuated so far.

The local government of Albay already urged locals within the 7-kilometer radius to prepare to evacuate if the alert level status is raised to 4.

For now, Abalos assured affected communities that the government is prepared to assist them in case the volcanic activity lasts longer.
NEW YORK  Ambassador ang Hoang Giang, Permanent Representative of Viet Nam to the United Nations (UN), on June 12 chaired the annual meeting of the Group of Friends of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).

The event was held on the occasion of the 33rd meeting of the States Parties to the UNCLOS (SPLOS 33) which is being organised from June 12-16 at the UN headquarters in New York.

On behalf of the 12 founding countries of the group, Ambassador Giang reviewed its activities over the past year and called on member countries to join efforts to contribute to solving challenges related to sea and oceans, successfully implement Sustainable Development Goal No.14 which is the conservation and sustainable use of oceans, waters and marine resources.

He emphasised that the group will continue promoting multilateral dialogue and cooperation in the implementation and protection of the universality of the 1982 convention, and described it as a comprehensive legal framework governing all activities related to seas and oceans.

Cornel Feruta, Chair of SPLOS 33, expressed strong support for the value of UNCLOS 1982 in strengthening international law compliance; and appreciated contributions by the group in general and Viet Nam in particular in promoting cooperation in the enforcement of the UNCLOS 1982 and ocean governance.

He voiced his hope that the group will further promote its role at UN forums in particular and international ones in general to continue pursuing the goals set out when it was established.

The 115-member group was the first initiated by Viet Nam, which lobbied for the establishment together with Germany and joined the team of 12 core members, namely Argentina, Canada, Denmark, Germany, Jamaica, Kenya, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Oman, Senegal, South Africa, and Viet Nam.  VNS
HA NOI  Viet Nam and Cote dIvoire will strengthen cooperation in agriculture, and facilitate each other to promote the trade of cashew, cotton and cocoa, among others.

The statement was made during talks between National Assembly Chairman Vuong inh Hue and President of Cote dIvoire's National Assembly Adama Bictogo held yesterday during the latters visit to the country.

NA Chairman Hue affirmed that Viet Nam always attaches importance to cooperation with Africa and Cote dIvoire.

Emphasising Viet Nam's increasing position in the international arena, President of Cote dIvoire's National Assembly Adama Bictogo said Viet Nam is a model of success, resilience, an example and an inspiration for many countries in the fight against poverty and underdevelopment.

The two sides agreed that economic-trade cooperation is one of the pillars of cooperation between the two countries, on the basis of cooperation for mutual benefit and development.

The two sides agreed to create maximum convenience for the products that are strengths of each country to penetrate each other's markets.

Hue affirmed that Viet Nam is ready to act as a bridge for Cote dIvoire goods to penetrate Southeast Asian and Asian markets.

The country is also willing to work with Cote dIvoire to increase imports of cashew nuts, cotton, and cocoa, he said.

He expressed his desire to expand exchanges with Cote dIvoire with a number of other commodities that Viet Nam has strengths in, such as seafood, fertilisers, textiles, footwear, household goods, construction materials and electronics as well as further increase Viet Nams rice exports to Cote dIvoire.

Adama said that currently, Cote dIvoire has more than 80 per cent of cashew nuts and 70 per cent of cotton fabrics exported to Viet Nam and rice imported from Viet Nam accounts for 40 per cent.

He proposed that the NAs of the two countries act as a driving force to promote cooperation in agriculture, allowing Vietnamese enterprises to deploy cashew processing factories in Cote dIvoire, creating conditions for Vietnamese experts to train human resources for Cote dIvoire in rice cultivation.

He also suggested that the two sides consider and find solutions to facilitate business travel between the two countries through the opening of direct flights.

The two leaders shared that agricultural cooperation is a priority area, adding that the two sides should seek more cooperation opportunities in the agricultural sector as a priority cooperation area through the South-South mechanism or coordinate proposals with a third party to promote cooperation in agriculture.

Hue said he highly agreed with his Cote dIvoire counterpart, suggesting that the two sides continue to maintain and develop value chain cooperation on cashew nuts.

"The two countries can build a strong value chain for cashew in the region and the world," he said.

The leader from Cote dIvoire said he wants Viet Nam to pay attention to cocoa products.

He stressed that Viet Nam is the gateway for Cote dIvoire to export cocoa to Asian and ASEAN markets.

He also suggested Viet Nam help develop vocational training for Ivory Coast youth, contributing to solving unemployment, especially in the fields of informatics, mechanics and electronics.

Regarding the relationship between the two legislative bodies, the two sides agreed that the two NAs should create motivation and be a catalyst to promote cooperation between the two countries.

NA Chairman Hue emphasised that the NA of Viet Nam will do its best to strengthen cooperation between the two sides in diplomatic, political, trade and investment sectors.

Hue suggested the two sides strengthen contact and exchange delegations as well as exchange experience in law-making and perfecting institutions to serve the development of each country.

The two sides will continue to promote the coordination mechanism at multilateral forums such as the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU), and the Francophone Parliamentary Union (APF).

Adama noted that in the face of world situations, conflicts, energy crises, climate change, and the COVID-19 pandemic, countries need to strengthen cooperation and make joint efforts.

He noted that on the basis of the good relations of the past 48 years, his visit will be a new starting point, for the two sides to jointly build a new vision and agree on cooperation fields.

After the talks, the two leaders signed a Memorandum of Understanding on cooperation between the two NAs.  VNS
HCM CITY  Social security offices across the country have recently witnessed long lines of people waiting to claim lump-sum payments.

According to Viet Nam Social Security, 4.23 million people newly registered for social insurance between 2016 and 2021, but during that period, 4.06 million members left the scheme.

Under the current social insurance law, an employee who has paid social insurance premiums for less than 20 years may request a lump-sum pay-out of benefits after 12 months from the time he/she stops paying social insurance premiums.

Thach Sa, a 45-year-old migrant worker in HCM City, opted for lump-sum withdrawal one year after he lost his job due to COVID-19.

His wife and children left the city for their hometown in Tra Vinh Province since the pandemic broke out. He tried to stay in the city, take a part-time job to settle down and ran motorbike taxi in his free time but still could not afford expenses.

I planned to stay in the city but after the pandemic, life was instable. I decided to withdraw lump-sum social insurance payment and make investment in other work, he told Vietnam News Agency.

Nguyen Thi Tran, 42, another worker who lost job due to layoff in HCM City, said: Its difficult to look for a new job now due to old age.

She decided to ask for lump-sum benefits to get back to her hometown with her family.

Those stories reflect common willing of vast majority of workers in HCM City who lost jobs due to the pandemic due to a fall in orders and layoffs.

They want to request for lump-sum social insurance payment after receiving unemployment allowances.

In April this year, a large number of workers lined up in front of Hoc Mon Districts social security office to withdraw lump-sum payments.

Tran Dung Ha, deputy director of HCM City Social Security, said about 40,000 labourers applied for lump-sum withdrawal in the first quarter of this year, an increase of 6.1 per cent compared to the same period last year.

The office has paid withdrawals to 25,000 workers.

According to Viet Nam Social Security, since 2016, the number of employees withdrawing social insurance has continuously increased with the annual statistics higher than the previous year. This not only affects the retirement life of workers but also has negative impacts on the States social security goals.

Why claiming lump-sum?

Most of workers thought the withdrawal would help them through short-term challenges. Others heard a rumour that the amended social insurance law allows only 50 per cent of lump-sum withdrawal.

Le Van Muoi, 36 years old, from Thanh Hoa Province, said: I decided to withdraw right now because it is heard that next year when the new law takes effect, employees can withdraw only half of the lump-sum payment.

Facing two options of withdrawing all money one time or waiting until retirement to enjoy benefits, many employees said they need the money now or worry the pension is low, so claiming lump-sum is the best choice.

Huynh Van Phat, a 45-year-old worker at a processing unit in District 7, HCM City, said old workers like him easily get fired for low productivity while looking for a new job is difficult.

Can we wait until retirement age to claim the insurance? Will the pension be enough to live on? he said.

In spite of almost 20 years of social insurance premium, he opted for lump-sum withdrawal to get budget to invest in other plans.

Trade union officials said many employees taking jobs with high intensity such as garment, leather footwear, electronics have their health declined considerably after the age of 45. Most businesses tend to lay off old workers and recruit younger ones to pay low wages.

Nguyen Van Hai, chairman of Binh Tan District Labour Federation, said the pension regulated in the current social insurance law is quite low and cannot meet basic demands.

He said one of his acquaintances who used to be trade union vice chairman of a big company got the monthly pension of VN2.7 million, which is not enough to live on.

HCM City has more than 45,000 retired people receiving monthly pension payments of below VN3.8 million  lower than the average income of the city's poverty standards.

Pham Thi Hong Yen, chairwoman of trade union at Intel Products Vietnam Co., Ltd., said many workers only receive the pension of VN2-3 million per month.

The pension is lower than the regional minimum wage as the current regulations," she said.

"This does not encourage employees to make long-term commitment to the social insurance system.

Amended law

Amended social insurance regulations related to retirement age and lump-sum withdrawals have stirred public debates.

Vo Thi Huynh Tram, human resources director of Sonion Vietnam Co., Ltd., said the retirement age of 60 years for women and 62 years old for men is too high. In fact, many workers who joined the social insurance system early and completed insurance premium contribution are not old enough to receive pensions. Having to wait for pension for so long has made employees quit their jobs to enjoy lump-sum benefits.

Many experts proposed adjusting retirement age based on number of years paying insurance premiums. The retirement age of 60 years for women and 62 years old for men is applicable at office employees but not appropriate for labourers working in toxic environment.

The amended social insurance law has two options for lump-sum payment.

The first option allows the employee to receive full pay-out for the entire period of participating in social insurance and then would not be entitled to monthly pension.

As per the second option, the employee would receive a lump-sum payment for at most half of the period of contribution to the retirement and survivorship allowance fund. The remaining period would be reserved for calculation of social insurance benefits when the employee reaches the retirement age.

Tran Van Trieu, director of legal consultation centre under HCM City Labour Federation, said the second option will create chaos in labour relations, stirring the recent trend of lump-sum withdrawal.

Le Van Thanh, former head of the Department of Socio-Cultural Research, HCM City Development Research Institute, said based on surveys, workers over the age of 40 often withdraw lump-sum social insurance because they want to solve family problems or change careers. Withdrawing only half of the money does not help workers much.

For example, if an employee withdraws VN200 million one time, he or she can buy a vehicle, open a small shop or repair a house. However, if they are allowed to withdraw VN100 million, they cannot solve the immediate urgent need. Meanwhile, the remaining 50 per cent of social insurance cannot guarantee enough pension to live when they retire, he said.

Tran Dieu Thuy, chairwoman of HCM City Labour Federation, said the second option proposed in the draft law has caused worry among labourers, making them to head to social security offices to request for lump-sum withdrawal.

She said there should be long-term solutions to ensure jobs and stabilise income so that labourers will retain in the social insurance system until retirement, making contributions to stabilising national social welfare.  VNS
HCM CITY  Fifteen social enterprise teams will advance to the final phase of the Singapore International Foundations (SIF) Young Social Entrepreneurs (YSE) Global 2023 programme.

The teams were selected from an initial pool of 46 teams, comprising 79 participants of eight nationalities, who attended the YSE Global 2023  Workshop. The 15 selected teams were from China, India, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Singapore and Viet Nam. The YSE Global programme inspires, equips, and enables youth from around the globe to start or scale up their social enterprises in Singapore and beyond. Since 2010, the programme has nurtured a global alumni network of more than 1,400 change makers, representing 43 nationalities and 674 social enterprises.

This year, more than a quarter of the solutions proposed by participating teams (28 per cent) contribute to UNSDG Goal 3  Healthcare and Wellbeing. They include health-tech applications and platforms that provide improved healthcare access to vulnerable groups, including low-income communities and mental health patients.

Over the next four months, the selected teams will be mentored by leading business consultants from McKinsey & Company, Temasek International, and established entrepreneurs relevant to their sectors. The teams will work with their mentors to sharpen their business acumen and broaden their cultural perspectives through a series of webinars and dialogues to expand their perspectives on social entrepreneurship through regional and local players in the social enterprise landscape.

The 15 teams will reconvene at the YSE Global 2023  Pitching for Change event in November this year. They will then present their refined business plans for a chance to receive funding of up to S$20,000 each.

The selected participants are looking forward to the next chapter of their YSE journey. One of them was Vu Hai Nam, Founder and CEO of tMonitor. The Vietnam-based social enterprise aims to improve indoor air quality while mitigating the risk of fire and harmful gasses. It provides real-time monitoring through software that can collect, monitor, and analyse air quality using artificial intelligence.

Nam said: This has been an incredibly fulfilling journey. I've not only acquired valuable practical knowledge and skills from the diverse sessions but also had the pleasure of connecting with a remarkable cohort of social entrepreneurs. The opportunity to gain insights from a multitude of perspectives has been invaluable as each market has its unique story, yet we all face similar challenges and issues.  VNS
HA NOI  The Australian Government and the World Bank have formally agreed to extend their partnership in support of Viet Nams sustainable and inclusive development agenda.

The partnership started in Viet Nam in 2012 and will now continue until 2026, valued at AUD95 million.

Australian Ambassador to Viet Nam Andrew Goledzinowski said: The extension of our partnership with the World Bank comes during our 50th year anniversary of Australia and Viet Nams bilateral relations and demonstrates our ongoing commitment to Vietnamese men and women.

"For Viet Nam to realise its ambition to become a high-income country in 2045, the legislative reform process and strong governance continue to be essential. We are proud to be supporting this ambition in partnership with the World Bank.

The partnership is designed to support Viet Nams development agenda by providing data, analysis and technical assistance to support policies that are informed, inclusive and sustainable.

World Bank Country Director for Viet Nam Carolyn Tusk said: We are grateful that Australia has made available this additional resource to enable our Australia  World Bank Partnership to support Viet Nam in this critical stage of its development as the country looks for ways to achieve its aspiration for high-income status in 2045.

The areas of support are of strategic importance for the country, including institutional reforms, social equity and inclusion, the transition to a low carbon economy and innovation-driven growth.

Over the past five years, the Australian and World Bank partnership has had an impact on more than 58 policies and regulations and helped drive meaningful legislative change.

Recent examples include the Prime Ministers decision on the Mekong Delta Regional Master Plan for 2021-30, the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs circular on career guidance and job counselling that is estimated to benefit over 2 million students, and its guidance on the rollout of digital social assistance payments to all 63 provinces with approximately 3.5 million beneficiaries

The partnership also provided data that helped informed improvements in child-care services for the Labor Code of 2019.

These successes have led to a renewed commitment to 2026. The partnership will continue to work closely with Viet Nam to reflect the needs of the country and its people.  VNS
HA NOI  With blood donations always needed, the director of the National Institute of Hematology and Blood Transfusion says more should be done to encourage people to give blood.

Nguyen Ha Thanh has stressed the need to ensure support for blood donors in terms of equal access to information and opportunities, as well as gifts for them, in order to promote voluntary donations.

The voluntary blood donation campaign has been rolled out in Viet Nam since the 1990s, and promoted since the Prime Minister decided to establish the National Steering Committee for Voluntary Blood Donation on February 23, 2008.

More than 1.4 million units of blood are collected each year, basically meeting the blood demand for medical emergencies and treatment.

Thanks to blood donation drives and changes in public mindset, there have been no blood shortages reported during summer and Tet (Lunar New Year) festivals, Thanh said, noting that the NIHBT is working to open more blood donation sites nationwide in order to facilitate the movements.

To encourage blood donors, the Ministry of Health has regularly updated and issued regulations on their rights and interests, notably Circular No. 17/2020/TT-BYT saying blood donors get free medical checkups and financial support, and are honoured in line with regulations.

At a recent meeting of the committee, many delegates suggested increasing the support for blood donors and that gift values should be equal.

Officially designated as an annual event by the World Health Assembly in 2005, World Blood Donor Day (June 14) provides a special opportunity to celebrate and thank voluntary blood donors around the world for their gift of blood and has become a major focus for action towards achieving universal access to safe blood transfusion, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO).

The slogan for 2023 World Blood Donor Day campaign is Give blood, give plasma, share life, share often. It focuses on patients requiring life-long transfusion support and underlines the role every single person can play, by giving the valuable gift of blood or plasma. It also highlights the importance of giving blood or plasma regularly to create a safe and sustainable supply of blood and blood products that can be always available, all over the world, so that all patients in need can receive timely treatment.  VNS
HCMC  South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol will be visiting Vietnam next week at the invitation of Vietnamese President Vo Van Thuong.

The Office of the South Korean President announced on Tuesday that President Yoon will be accompanied by senior executives of 205 South Korean businesses during his June 22-24 visit to Vietnam.

South Korea and Vietnam upgraded their bilateral relations to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership in December 2022.

During that time, President Yoon emphasized the importance of cooperation in advanced technology to stabilize supply chains and tap into Vietnams reserves of rare earth minerals.

He also highlighted the significance of collaboration in finance, media, high technology, infrastructure and energy.
Vinh Tuy bridge in Hanoi (Photo: VNA)

Hanoi  Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha requested clearly defining the vision, targets, and driving force for the future development of Hanoi while chairing a meeting in the capital city on June 13 to review the task of adjusting the Hanoi Capital Master Plan till 2045 with a vision to 2065.



Ha emphasised the urgent need to finalise the PMs draft decision on approving the task of adjusting the Master Plan.



Earlier, he suggested holding competitions to collect creative ideas for the capital's planning.



The planning should take into account underground space and infrastructure, outline orientation to expanding the space of new urban development, form a perse transportation network (road, urban railway, aviation, waterway), ensuring connectivity and guiding the development of new urban areas and satellite cities, he said.



The Deputy PM added that the planning should set up criteria, principles, and requirements for construction, renovation, and redevelopment in existing urban areas, as well as develop new urban areas that align with the characteristic planning and architecture of Hanoi. It should also establish a rural-urban belt that preserves the distinctiveness and harmony with the natural landscape.



Planning should guide transportation infrastructure development, transportation should guide urban development, and urban development should guide resource utilisation in planning, he said.



The Master Plan aims to develop Hanoi into a modern and smart city, a hub and driving force for the development of the Red River Delta region, a key economic region of the north and the entire country. The people of Hanoi will enjoy a high standard of living.



Hanoi will promote the development of satellite urban areas and affiliated cities. It will tightly manage the high-rise residential development in the downtown, launch urban renewal and redevelopment programmes synchronously. The city will also focus on developing underground urban spaces and building a harmonious rural-urban interface, preserving the traditional cultural identity, protecting the environmental landscape and promoting sustainable development.

Hanoi launches inspection team to monitor foreign-invested projects Director of Hanoi Department of Planning and Investment Le Anh Quan has signed a decision, which establishes an inspection team for foreign-invested projects and economic organisations operating within the jurisdiction of the department.

ParkCity Hanoi pioneers community-centric approach Having received encouraging response for its residential components and facilities, ParkCity Group CEO Datuk Joseph Lau said the developer also plans to expand to other parts of Vietnam and create a strong presence here.
Having first launched in Singapore via its SALES+ super app on March 6 to resounding praise from its more than 8,700 agents, OpenAI GPT-3.5 will now be available and accessible by more than 23,000 ERA agents in Asia-Pacific.

Leveraging the powerful underpinnings of the popular AI tool ChatGPT, this feature will revolutionise how agents manage their daily work, equipping them with automated features that save time on mundane administrative tasks, including copywriting, content generation, and translations, allowing them to focus on the more challenging aspects of their job.

Since its launch in August 2022, SALES+ has secured more than 15,000 downloads between March and May in Singapore alone. The ChatGPT feature has been accessed more than 70,000 times by more than 3,500 unique users. The Advanced section has proven to be the most popular, receiving almost half of the total number of submitted queries.

From June, these AI-powered real estate tools will be available to the rest of ERA Asia-Pacifics regional offices as a web-based application, including Cambodia, China, Indonesia, Japan, Laos, Malaysia, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, and Vietnam.

Branded AI LAB, this Asia-Pacific rollout aligns with ERAs annual theme of Enrich Lives, Embrace Tech, wherein realtors are technologically empowered to benefit consumers. This allows prompt engineering, which involves guiding AI to craft high-quality copies with a human voice, enabling agents to provide an efficient and superior real estate transaction experience.

Marcus Chu, CEO of ERA Singapore, ERA Asia-Pacific, and Asia-Pacific Realty

Marcus Chu, CEO of ERA Singapore, ERA Asia-Pacific, and Asia-Pacific Realty said, Integrating AI into our tech offerings was a natural next step to take. The AI has bolstered our agents ability to do what they do best, to do it faster, and also to do it better.

By rolling out our AI proptech tools to the rest of ERAs Asia-Pacific offices, we can take that synergy and harness it to drive even more growth, fuelling our success across the region, Chu added.

With competition intensifying in the real estate industry, Marcus strongly believes that proptech innovation is the way forward.

"Technology is pivotal for staying competitive. It is why we are always striving to make headway in our digital solutions. With our proptech, ERA agents not only have the ability to adapt to fast-changing market conditions, but can also stay ahead of the pack. Taking a broader perspective, this will solidify ERAs identity as a dynamic, ever-evolving business among consumers and agents," continued Chu.

Shedding light on ERAs plans to achieve its vision, Chu shared about new breakthroughs that are waiting in the wings.

We intend to implement more tech enhancements, such as a new listing portal, an in-app visual optimisation function, as well as advanced content analysis. Agents will also enjoy a seamless experience when they submit their transactions online, he said.

Unlocking the potential of new investment channels in the digital era As investment opportunities are arising in disruptive business models ranging from fintech to blockchain, experts have shared their thoughts to unlock the full potential of these new channels.

Blockchain a key player in digital era Blockchain tech is accelerating as a key factor for national development, contributing to accelerating Vietnams digital transformation process as it applies to different industries and business arenas.
Miami (CNN)  Former US President Donald Trump has pleaded not guilty to 37 charges related to alleged mishandling of classified documents.

Trumps lawyers asked for a jury trial during the former presidents arraignment Tuesday at a federal courthouse in Miami. We most certainly enter a plea of not guilty, Trump attorney Todd Blanche told the judge.

During the hearing, Trump sat hunched over with his arms crossed and a scowl on his face. He did not speak.

Trumps aide and co-defendant, Walt Nauta, was also arrested, fingerprinted and processed. He had an initial appearance Tuesday but will not be arraigned until June 27.

Heres what else happened at Tuesdays hearing, which ended after roughly 45 minutes:

Magistrate Judge Jonathan Goodman ruled that Trump could not communicate with Nauta about the case. The judge also told prosecutors to make a list of potential witnesses that Trump cant communicate with about the case  except through counsel.

The judge did not, however, place any travel restrictions on either defendant.

The Justice Department recommended that both Trump and Nauta be released with no financial or special conditions. Prosecutor David Harbach said that, the government does not view either defendant as a flight risk.

Goodman began the hearing thanking the entire law enforcement community for their work on Tuesday.

Before the arraignment hearing, deputy marshals booked the former president and took electronic copies of his fingerprints. They did not take a mugshot of Trump since he is easily recognizable. The booking process took about 10 minutes.

The criminal charges in the Justice Departments classified documents case escalates the legal jeopardy surrounding the 2024 GOP front-runner. Special counsel Jack Smith attended Tuesdays arraignment.

Trump faces 37 felony counts, alleging he illegally retained national defense information and that he concealed documents in violation of witness-tampering laws in the Justice Departments probe into the materials.

Stops at Cuban restaurant

After the court hearing, Trump made an unannounced stop at Versailles, a well-known Cuban restaurant in Miami. Trump was surrounded by dozens of his supporters inside the restaurant, shaking hands and snapping photos with them.

Food for everyone, Trump told those gathered as they cheered.

At one point, Trumps supporters sang him happy birthday. Trumps birthday is on Wednesday.

Some birthday, we got a government that is out of control, Trump could be heard saying.

Following the restaurant stop, Trump is flying back to New Jersey where he will speak publicly Tuesday evening at his Bedminister resort.

On his social media, Trump posted before heading to court that it was ONE OF THE SADDEST DAYS IN THE HISTORY OF OUR COUNTRY. WE ARE A NATION IN DECLINE!!!

Tuesdays hearing will kickstart what will likely be a winding, dramatic judicial process, with criminal and appeal proceedings that may play out for years. US District Judge Aileen Cannon  a Trump nominee whose decision last year to order a third-party review of an FBI search of Mar-a-Lago was widely criticized and overturned by a conservative appeals court  has been assigned the case.

Attorneys Todd Blanche and Chris Kise represented Trump in court for the arraignment. However, the role Kise will play going forward is unclear, and he was sidelined during last years litigation over the Mar-a-Lago search amid Trump team infighting.

Another Trump attorney, Alina Habba, spoke outside the courthouse ahead of Trumps arraignment, saying that the former president was defiant.

Habba ridiculed what she called a two-tiered system of justice and called the indictment an unapologetic weaponization of the criminal justice system.

The Justice Departments counterintelligence chief Jay Bratt, who has been a key player in the documents probe so far, also attended Tuesdays hearing, along with prosecutors Harbach and Julie Edelstein.

Seriousness of the charges

Before last weeks federal indictment, Trump also faced criminal charges brought by New York Citys local prosecutors for an alleged hush money scheme in the 2016 campaign in which Trump is accused of falsifying business records.

The new charges in the DOJ documents case are drastically more serious and present the possibility of several years in prison if Trump is ultimately convicted.

Thirty-one counts that Trump faces are for willful retention of national defense information, a charge that does not turn on whether the documents are classified. In addition to the obstruction conspiracy, he also faces four counts related to the concealment of the documents, as well as a false statements charge.

In a case like this, obstruction and tampering help prove the main charge, that the defendant willfully engaged in the charged conduct, said David Aaron, a former federal prosecutor in espionage section of the DOJs national security division and a current senior counsel at Perkins Coie. Those facts could also affect how a judge, the jury, or the public views the case and could substantially affect sentencing.

What happens next

Now that Tuesdays hearing is in the rearview mirror, the case will enter a legal grind of pretrial proceedings, including likely disputes over what evidence is put before a jury and whether the case should be thrown out altogether before going to trial. The Trump team will have plenty of opportunity to drag things out  potentially until after the 2024 election.

One major x-factor in the prosecution of the case is its assignment to Cannon, who sits in Ft. Pierce, Florida, but who is part of the pool of judges who are randomly cases filed in West Palm Beach, where the new indictment was brought.

There are few things more powerful than a district judge in a federal case, said Alan Rozenshtein, a former attorney in the DOJ National Security Division who is now a University of Minnesota law school professor. She could  if she wanted to  cause huge problems for the prosecution. Would they be existential problems? Probably not.

Cannons approach to last years Trump lawsuit challenging the FBIs Mar-a-Lago search raised eyebrows among legal experts across the ideological spectrum for how she appeared to bend over backward to create special legal rules in favor of the former president. Her rationale for why such a review was necessary was torn apart by a panel of right-leaning appellate judges, including two Trump appointees, on the 11th US Circuit Court of Appeals last December.

She got so banged up by the 11th Circuit that she might be ultra-cautious, Kel McClanahan, a national security lawyer and an adjunct professor at the George Washington University Law School, told CNN. We just dont know.

This story was first published on CNN.com "Donald Trump pleads not guilty to classified documents charges."
HCM City plans to have more green space by building more public parks. (Photo: VNA)

HCM City - The HCM City authorities have directed relevant agencies to review the use of land planned for public parks to have more urban green spaces from 2023 to 2025.

According to the municipal Department of Construction, the city has around 369 public parks and parks of residential areas with a total of 500 hectares. The current ratio of park areas and the citys population is very low at only 0.55 square meter per capita.



For the past few years, the city has strived to increase public green spaces and expand public parks, but the result has not been as expected.



Most public parks are located in the inner city. There are no public parks in the suburban districts of 9, 12, Thu Duc, Binh Tan, Nha Be, Hoc Mon, Cu Chi and Binh Chanh.



The land area of some public parks was even reduced for the expansion of streets, such as Gia Dinh Park in Go Vap district and Tao Dan Park in District 1 or to use as parking lots such as Le Van Tam Park in District 1.



According to the Department of Construction, after reviewing the land reserves for public parks, the department will propose preparing construction projects and calling for investment.



The city targets to achieve 2.5-12 square meters of green space per capita by 2025.



In 2023, the city authorities will realise a plan to build 10 hectares of public parks and two hectares of green public space, planting and renovating 6,000 green trees to meet the target of 3-4 square meters of green space per capita.

HCM City ramps up efforts to crack down on loan sharks Police in Ho Chi Minh City have taken various measures to combat loan sharks, and their efforts have paid off.

HCM City, British Columbia eye stronger trade and investment ties Vice Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City Peoples Committee Vo Van Hoan on May 25 hosted a reception for Jagrup Brar, Minister of State for Trade at the Ministry of Jobs, Economic Development and Innovation in the Canadian province of British Columbia, where they discussed orientations to promote trade and investment cooperation.
Laos has set a goal for electric vehicles to make up at least 1 per cent of the total number of vehicles in the country by 2025 and reach at least 30 per cent by 2030. (Photo: VNA)

Vientiane - The Lao government has taken many measures and policies to encourage its people to use electric vehicles (EVs), as an effort to reduce fuel imports and save foreign currency while mitigating hazardous substances and ensuring energy security in recent years.

In 2019, the government introduced a number of incentives for the development of clean transport, towards environmental protection, whereby the country will reduce import tax, encourage production and assembly to lower the cost of electric vehicles in Laos.

In 2021, the government issued Resolution No. 04/NQCP on the adoption and application of the policy of using electric vehicles.

In addition, the government has encouraged the construction of plants to manufacture components, spare parts, and assemble electric vehicles for domestic use and export.

It also encourages the development of EV charging stations in urban and rural areas, and along national highways.

It has set a goal for electric vehicles to make up at least 1% of the total number of vehicles in the country by 2025 and reach at least 30 per cent by 2030.

Lao capital promotes electric vehicles As fuel prices continue to rise, promoting electric vehicles (EVs) as well as installing charging stations in the capital Vientiane of Laos is considered a solution to reducing environmental pollution in the future.

Laos: new airport helps attract tourists to Houaphanh province The number of Lao and foreign tourists flocking to the far-north province of Houaphanh, Laos, has increased significantly after Nong Khang airport came into operation last month.
Vietnams energy crisis has been reaching more citizens on a daily basis. Northern provinces are currently getting hit the hardest amid blazing temperatures  Hanoi hit 37 degrees Celsius earlier last week, while Son La province broke its May record at 43.3 degrees.

Almost a dozen hydropower plants, mostly based in the north of the country, ceased operations in recent days due to low water levels caused by drought. It included Vietnams largest, Son La Hydropower Plant, where water levels have been so low that nearby residents were even able to walk across parts of the reservoir.

Vietnams power plan for the rest of this decade and beyond has detail on solar, wind, hydro, and coal aspects, Photo: Le Toan

Meanwhile, coal-fired plants have suffered from technical problems after operating at full capacity almost non-stop due to record demand.

Hydro and coal account for nearly 95 per cent of northern Vietnams energy supply, but hydro is running at around a quarter of capacity while coal capacity is just over three-quarters.

The impact on daily life is becoming more apparent. In parts of Hanoi, some neighbourhoods experienced unannounced 10-hour power cuts. Businesses are also being impacted, with some companies trying to start work as early in the morning as possible and finish the majority of tasks by 10am; while on June 8, a sudden power cut left almost a dozen people stuck in an elevator in the Landmark 72 tower.

Hanoians and people in other northern provinces such as Vinh Phuc have been coping by congregating in shopping centres, while tourists have been reported cancelling trips to Halong, and hotel staff have been sent out to track down and purchase expensive emergency generators. Similar issues were reported further down the country in areas like Ha Tinh province.

Last week, the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) said the northern region faces a shortfall of over 4GW of electricity and warned of outages at any time of day. Meanwhile, June is expected to deliver more above-average temperatures and below-average rainfall.

Prioritising projects

The creaking heat and efforts to circumvent it comes amid deep national economic concerns, and the norths high-tech manufacturing sector may endure issues as well.

The leader of Bac Giang province last week chaired an online meeting with districts, cities, and more than 300 businesses in the province. Bac Giang, which is home to industrial parks for Samsung, Apple, and others, promised stable daytime power for factories.

But Reuters wrote that power cuts have already hit industrial areas of the province, along with Bac Ninh, another manufacturing neighbour. The locality has been working with the MoIT, Electricity of Vietnam (EVN), and the Northern Electricity Corporation on electricity supply.

Bac Giang is an area prioritised by EVN for electricity supply because it is the industrial production centre of the country. However, the locality noted that electricity supply is still tough to predict over the short term. Besides calling for electricity saving, the solution offered is that during the day the province will give priority to electricity for production, and at night, electricity is made priority for local families.

Early last week, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh also demanded drastic measures from all stakeholders in electricity supply, but quick solutions may be hard to track down. It was acknowledged that solar and wind energy from the south-central coast cannot be transmitted to the north, and hydropower and coal-based systems are not faring well. Therefore, the PM also called for an investigation into EVNs electricity supply management.

Bui Van Thinh, chairman of the Binh Thuan Wind Association, said there no new power sources have been created in Vietnam over the past five years, especially in the northern provinces, causing the unbalanced supply situation.

The Power Development Plan VII (PDP7) was not strictly followed with many power source and grid projects outside EVNs scope, and others not implemented for many reasons, leading to power shortage risks, Thinh said. In addition, a number of projects such as Na Duong II, Cam Pha III, Haiphong III, the gas-electricity project chain at Block B O Mon, Blue Whale, and Son My LNG gas power plant have all been behind schedule.

At last weeks National Assembly session, deputy Phan Thai Binh asked for clarification on how the countrys power plan will be implemented to overcome the current situation in the short and long term, while calling for a complete feasible plan from the government, in which the MoIT acts as the focal point and takes initiative.

Under the recently approved the PDP8, only coal-fired thermal projects already included in the previous PDP7 and which are under construction will be implemented. Vietnam will also prioritise domestic gas and renewable energy including hydropower, solar, wind, and biomass projects. Self-consumption wind and solar power such as rooftop solar without connecting grids are recommended.

The capacity of the transmission system is also an issue, putting more pressure on the electricity supply in the north, Binh said.

The MoIT acknowledged that the operation of the power grid still faces many difficulties. Most transmission projects are 1-2 years behind schedule, mainly due to compensation and site clearance issues on the local side. However, the investment time to build the transmission grid takes several years, while that of renewable power projects is sometimes only 3-6 months.

EVN in recent petitions to the MoIT has suggested that it soon issue a mechanism and guides to develop rooftop solar power that does not generate electricity on the grid for the on-site electricity needs of households.

More investment required

Speaking at last weeks policy dialogue on the future of electricity in Vietnam, hosted by the Australian government in Hanoi, Nguyen Duc Hien, Vice Chairman of the Central Economic Commission, commented on the need for rapid and strong policy.

Hien called for clarification on the role of the subjects in the energy transition; especially the role of the domestic private sector and foreign-invested enterprises in the development of electricity and energy in general. Vietnam needs to consult international experience as well as industry experts to realise these goals, he suggested.

Meanwhile, Australian Ambassador to Vietnam Andrew Goledzinowski said, We are both hungry to accelerate the energy transition. Australia aims to have more than 80 per cent of its power through renewables by 2030 and we are investing heavily to upgrade our grids and better coordinate market reforms across our jurisdictions. Meanwhile, Vietnam has greenified its PDP8 in line with its COP26 commitments and is making it easier for the international community to support its transition.

While the move towards low-emission and renewable energy sources is a trend on the way to net-zero for all nations, it is also a reality that more investment will be required towards clean sources of electricity.

The cost required to implement the PDP8 for this decade is estimated to be $128.3 billion, of which $95.4 billion is to be used for power source development while $32.9 billion is to be invested in grid construction and management. The figure is calculated to reach $192.3 billion by 2045.

Electricity price is a decisive factor for an investor to consider, said Bui Xuan Hoi, an energy economist and the rector of the Northern Electricity College.

Vietnam in the past has attracted tens of billions of dollars in investment from both global and local companies because of the feed-in tariff (FiT) mechanism for solar and wind energy. But without a competitive pricing mechanism, it will not be possible to attract investment in the electricity sector, Hoi said.

For instance, Vietnam witnessed a boom for solar and wind thanks to its FiT two years ago, however due to a gap in policy, several GWs of solar and wind projects simply treaded water. Currently, both EVN and investors are trying to sit together to find the solution to assist transitional projects that failed to meet the commercial operation date back in November 2021.

In addition to electricity prices, an issue that is equally awaited by energy project investors is the pilot mechanism for direct electricity purchase and sale between renewable energy generators and large electricity users. Nguyen Tuan Anh, deputy director of the Department of Electricity and Renewable Energy under the MoIT, acknowledged that this was still in the process of drafting.

PDP8 officially authorised: 2050 approach The objective of the Power Development Plan VIII (PDP8) is to aggressively develop renewable energy sources for electricity generation. By 2050, the proportion of renewable energy is projected to have reached 67.7-71.5 per cent.

Power overhaul plan picks up steam The newly approved Power Development Plan for this decade heads up a charge to adhere to Vietnams strong commitments to net-zero, but there is still an enormous amount of work to be done.

A well-planned greener transition through PDP8 Vietnams new energy strategy towards 2030 lays down the path for electricity development for this decade and with a vision to 2050, in accordance with its international climate combat commitments.

Power plan a leap in the right direction for 2050 ambitions Vietnams Power Development Plan VIII (PDP8) will enable the power sector to align with the nations international commitments, including the Just Energy Transition Partnership. It is the dawn of green and sustainable development for the sector, with the hope of restarting pending power projects and contributing to net-zero commitments by 2050.
Malaysian Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Zambry Abdul Kadir. (source: bernama.com)

Kuala Lumpur - Malaysia's Foreign Minister Zambry Abdul Kadir mooted the idea of a digital resilience Initiative (DRI) framework to prevent and counter violent extremism in the digital realm in his address delivered at an international conference in Kuala Lumpur on June 13.

Themed "Building Digital Resilience in Preventing and Countering Violent Extremism, the conference, drew the participation of hundreds of local and foregn scholars, ambassadors and representatives from embassies and the European Union in Malaysia.

Taking place on June 13-15, the event is held by the Southeast Asia Regional Centre for Counter-Terrorism (SEARCCT) under the Foreign Ministry to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the centre.

The FM noted that this idea represented a call for action to foster an online community that is not only safe but also respectful, trustworthy, compassionate, and promoted peaceful co-existence, tolerance and healthy multi-religious and multicultural engagements.

He underlined four key strategic areas under DRI, namely awareness and knowledge; support and empowerment; regulation and accountability; and cooperation and collaboration.

He expressed his belief that these four key pillars will enable Malaysia to not only in fortifying the digital spaces against potential threat, but also in proactively promoting the values of peace, harmony and mutual understanding.

The SEARCCT serves as a regional counterterrorism hub, focusing primarily on training, capacity building, research, digital counterterrorism messaging, and public awareness programmes. The centre also promotes Malaysia's views on the most effective measures to combat terrorist threats.

Malaysia signs important deals at LIMA 2023 Malaysia's Defence Ministry announced on May 26 that it has signed 43 agreements worth 10.1 billion RM (2.2 billion USD) with partner during this years 16th Langkawi International Maritime and Aerospace Exhibition (LIMA).

Malaysians tend to use solar power in concern of power bills More Malaysian households and businesses are installing solar photovoltaic (PV) panels in a bid to bring down monthly electricity bills.

Indonesia, Malaysia ink border trade agreement update Indonesian Minister of Trade Zulkifli Hasan and Malaysian Minister of International Trade and Industry Tengku Zafrul Aziz signed the Indonesia-Malaysia Border Trade Agreement (BTA) update in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on June 8.
Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park  a renowned natural attraction in Quang Binh

The conference will be a forum to exchange and spread information about the potential strengths and investment opportunities in Quang Binh province among the wider community of organisations and business associations, as well as domestic and foreign investors.

Quang Binh People's Committee expects the event to provide multiple opportunities for investment and business cooperation in the province, effectively availing of the local potential to promote socioeconomic development and improve people's quality of life.

Quang Binh People's Committee expects the event to provide multiple opportunities for investment and business cooperation in the province.

The conference is expected to hail about 500 guests, including leaders from a range of government agencies, representatives of international organisations and foreign diplomatic agencies, associations, businesses, and investors.

The conference on June 25 also marks the signing of cooperative agreements and MoUs, as well as the awarding of investment policy decisions and investment certificates to a number of domestic and foreign investors.

Quang Binh will also arrange booths to highlight the potential of tourism and local one commune, one product offerings.

Quang Binhs master planning for the 2021-2030 period, with a vision to 2050, was approved by the prime minister in Decision No.377/QD-TTg dated April 12.

VIR to hold major foreign investment conference on May 15 Vietnam Investment Review will hold a conference on May 15 to gather government officials, senior economists, international organisations, and the business community to discuss foreign investment inflows in Vietnam, and how to foster more in the new era.

Northern Thai Binh province seeks investment from RoK A conference was held in Seoul on April 19 to call for investment from the Republic of Korea (RoK) to the northern province of Thai Binh.

Quang Ninh draws almost $2 billion in foreign investment Quang Ninh's foreign investment has exceeded $2 billion for the first time thanks to large-scale projects.
In light of Quang Binhs master plan for the 2021-2030 period, with a vision to 2050, that was approved by the prime minister in Decision No.377/QD-TTg, industry is deemed a key sector and the driving force to realise the province's economic restructuring through industrialisation and modernisation.

Accordingly, Quang Binh continues to focus on key industries with competitive advantages, such as electricity and renewable energy, agriculture, forestry and fishery products, food, agricultural product processing for export, building materials, textiles, and supporting industries associated with raising the level of tech innovation.

Quang Binh's IPs have available land and abundant materials

Quang Binhs industrial sector will feature three regions. The northern region will take Hon La Economic Zone (EZ) as the nucleus with associated areas such as Hon La Seaport Industrial Zone (IZ), Hon La II IZ, Western Gateway IZ, Quang Trach IZ, and several others.

This area serves as the driving force for the development of Quang Binh province over the period from 2021-2030 with a number of key projects such as the Quang Trach I-II thermal power plant. The area will give priority to high-tech and environmentally friendly projects.

Compared to many other localities across the country, Quang Binh has the potential to attract investment and develop its industrial sector as it benefits from abundant land, available raw materials, and good infrastructure.

The central region encompasses Dong Hoi city and the surrounding area including Bo Trach and Quang Ninh districts, with associated IZs such as Bo Trach, Northwest Dong Hoi, North Dong Hoi, and Northwest Quan Hau. This area gives priority to clean, environment-friendly industries, labour-intensive sectors, advanced technology, and apparel and footwear production.

The southern region encompasses the Cam Lien and Bang IZs in the two districts of Le Thuy and Quang Ninh, south of the Nhat Le River and Quan Hau Bridge.

This region gives priority to agricultural cultivation, industrial crops, agro-forestry-fishery processing industries, construction material production, stone mining, and the development of renewable energy along the coast.

In addition, Quang Binh aims to develop key construction material production hubs in Tuyen Hoa and Quang Ninh districts.

According to Quang Binh People's Committee, the province aims to reach $2.1 billion (at 2010 constant prices) in industrial production value by 2030, growing by an average 14-14.5 per cent annually. The industrial production index for the 2021-2030 period is set to average 13 per cent on-year.

Compared to many other localities across the country, Quang Binh has the potential to attract investment and develop its industrial sector as it benefits from abundant land, available raw materials, and good infrastructure. The province has increasingly focused on synchronous investment.

Hon La EZ in Quang Binh

According to Quang Binh Economic Zones Management Authority, by 2022, the cleared land area in Northwest Dong Hoi IZ reached 66.3 hectares, the leased land area approximated 36.2ha, the area transferred for production and business lease came to 4,616ha, and the occupancy rate reached 98.9 per cent.

In North Dong Hoi IZ, the cleared land area stood at 82.9ha, of which the allocated and leased land area amounted to 37.2ha, the area transferred for production and business lease accounted for 11.7ha, and the occupancy rate hit 44.5 per cent.

To date, Hon La Seaport IZ has cleared 109.26ha, the land area allocated and leased to investors approximates 50.5ha, the area transferred to investors for production and business lease sits at 9.47ha, and the occupancy rate has reached 47.4 per cent.

As for Hon La II IZ, the cleared land area cleared has reached 19.3ha, of which the allocated and leased land area makes up 13.8ha. However, the occupancy rate only stands at 11.9 per cent.

Doan Ngoc Lam, Standing Deputy Chairman of Quang Binh People's Committee, said that to enhance land use efficiency in its IZs, Quang Binh will develop a promotion plan to draw investment into industries and projects in accordance with the IZ planning scheme.

Besides building criteria to select appropriate investment attraction priorities, the province will carry out monitoring, evaluation, and the termination of projects that are delayed or not deployed to avoid wasting land. Priority will be given to partners such as Japan and South Korea, and key industries such as mechanical engineering, electronics, and other high-tech fields to boost the lease rate, Lam noted.

Advantages outlined to push ahead with public investment In the context that most capital mobilisation channels are tightening, public investment is considered an important driver for boosting economic growth.

Stavian Quang Yen Petrochemical announce Quang Ninh plant partner Stavian Quang Yen Petrochemical announced Maire Tecnimont as the consultant and implementation partner of the Front End Engineering Design (FEED) for the Stavian Quang Yen Petrochemical Plant Project on May 18. According to the agreement, completion of the FEED design is expected to take ten months.

Quang Binh announces planning and investment promotion conference in Hanoi On June 25 in Hanoi, Quang Binh People's Committee will be hosting a conference to bring exposure to the provincial planning scheme for 2021-2030, with a vision to 2050, as well as its investment promotion plans.
The statement came from Quang Binh Department of Planning and Investment at a meeting between Quang Binh People's Committee and leaders of several departments involved with the conference.

At the meeting, Hoang Duc Thien, deputy director of Quang Binh Department of Planning and Investment, revealed that Quang Binh People's Committee will award investment cooperation notes at the conference to 18 projects from 17 investors, with a total registered capital sum reaching $1.42 billion.

Priority projects for investment in Quang Binh during the period 2021-2030 are those in line with national development strategies, as well as those attuned to the major development orientations of the whole country.

Three of these are infrastructure projects with a total investment value of $428 million, 14 are in real estate, reporting $840 million in total capital, and one project is in the mining industry, registering $150 million in capital value.

In addition, 10 further projects with total investments worth over $130 million in the fields of tourism, manufacturing, agriculture, and education hope to be awarded investment licences by Quang Binh People's Committee at the conference.

Priority projects for investment in Quang Binh during the 2021-2030 period are those in line with national development strategies, as well as those attuned to the major development orientations of the whole country, as stipulated by the national development plan.

Priority will also be given to projects with the potential for social and economic development, the efficient exploitation of natural resources, high-tech projects with little to no negative environmental impact, and those implemented by capable investors. Investors with a history of effective implementation of similar projects are also welcomed.

Quang Binh prioritises attracting foreign businesses with globally known brands, large financial capacities, stable and long-term investment policies, and will refuse labour-intensive, non-technological projects that may disrupt the region's labour supply.

For domestic ventures, Quang Binh will give priority to investments from large corporations, especially those in the Top 500 largest enterprises in Vietnam from the manufacturing, processing, tourism, and logistics industries.

Quang Binh announces planning and investment promotion conference in Hanoi On June 25 in Hanoi, Quang Binh People's Committee will be hosting a conference to bring exposure to the provincial planning scheme for 2021-2030, with a vision to 2050, as well as its investment promotion plans.

New Zealand and Vietnam agree to boost trade and investment cooperation New Zealand and Vietnam have agreed to increase their trade cooperation and reduce barriers, with the goal of raising bilateral trade turnover to $2 billion by 2024.

Total investment in Ba Na Hills ecotourism complex raised to nearly $1.7 billion Last week, Danang Department of Planning and Investment granted a revised investment certificate to the Ba Na-Suoi Mo ecotourism complex project from the developer Sun Group, with the investment value now approximating $1.7 billion.
Multinational corporations from next year will have to contend with a brand new corporate tax structure, Photo: Shutterstock

Talking to VIR as part of Amplify Vietnam event held last week, Ruben Flores, CEO of Nokia Vietnam said, Nokia is currently evaluating the tax (GMT) globally. Broadly speaking, we believe that tax rules should be predictable and avoid unnecessary administrative burden on businesses.

The GMT under the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development is a global tax reform that will apply to multinational companies with revenue above 750 million ($803 million), and many member countries are set to implement it at the beginning of 2024.

According to Vietnams General Department of Taxation (GDT), Vietnam is expected to implement the GMT from January 1 next year. As many as 100 major foreign-invested companies are subject to it, including those from South Korea, Singapore, and Japan, which all have heavy investment in Vietnam.

At a conference on GMT held by the Ministry of Finance in April, GDT deputy general director Dang Ngoc Minh said that in Vietnam, about 335 projects in manufacturing and processing industries are enjoying corporate income tax incentives with rates of lower than 15 per cent.

The list includes Samsung, Intel, LG, Bosch, Sharp, Panasonic, Foxconn, Pegatron and others, with their registered capital accounting for nearly 30 per cent of Vietnams total foreign investment, or about $131.3 billion. All the above major companies are likely to be negatively affected by GMT, Minh said.

Intel, Samsung, Bosch, and several other global technology companies have reportedly asked Vietnam for tax reform as they face a change in the tax structure around the globe.

Choi Joo Ho, CEO of Samsung Vietnam, said, The GMT regime is a prime example of the most significant external environmental changes, he said. If Vietnam also applies these policies, it could eliminate the instability in the business activities of affected foreign-invested enterprises. Samsung expects the Vietnamese government to continue creating a predictable business environment that is in line with global standards and the recent change in investment climate.

Intel, Microsoft, and others declined to comment on the possible impacts of GMT in Vietnam when contacted by VIR.

A representative of the Department of Information and Communication Technology Industry under the Ministry of Information and Communications said, We will study suitable solutions in order to develop and attract high-quality foreign investment after the prime ministers special working group on studying and proposing solutions related to the GMT rate issues a report.

At present, as assigned by the prime minister, the Ministry of Finance is working with the Ministry of Planning and Investment and other ministries on building supporting policies. They are expected to include increasing investment in infrastructure directly in industrial parks where these businesses are located; supporting human resource training; and supporting them in research and development, as well as having other policies in line with Vietnams commitments.

Hoang Viet Tien, deputy secretary general of Vietnam Digital Communication Association, noted, If Vietnam does not have a timely policy response, it will easily be left behind in attracting foreign investment. It is necessary to promptly compensate with replacement benefits commensurate with the incentives that they are now enjoying.

Many countries are now adopting a number of measures such as the standard local minimum tax regime, or new forms of investment based on costs, Tien explained.

However, the promulgation of any new policies or mechanisms should be carefully considered to ensure fairness for businesses within and outside the scope of adjustment in accordance with our investment law, as well as with international commitments, he added.
According to Quang Tri Economic Zones Management Authority, on May 29, EGATi sent a letter to the MoIT announcing their decision to halt the development of the Quang Tri project.

With a capacity of 1,200MW (and a gross capacity of 1,320MW), the project was approved by the prime minister in 2013, designating EGATi as the project's investor under the BOT framework.

As per the design, the power plant was intended to consist of two units, each with a capacity of 660MW, requiring a total investment of around $2.3 billion.

Following the project's approval, local authorities agreed on the route alignment, and National Power Transmission Corporation completed the construction of a 500kV power transmission line to facilitate the thermal power plant.

In light of the suspension of the thermal power plant project, Quang Tri Economic Zones Management Authority has proposed that Quang Tri People's Committee ask the prime minister and relevant central ministries to approve a revised plan for a 1,320MW power plant, allowing Quang Tri to explore alternative environmentally friendly fuel sources to replace the use of coal.

Currently, the province has already reclaimed a land area of 56.8 hectares for the project.

This decision by EGATi reflects an emerging trend towards more sustainable and environmentally friendly energy sources. The move aligns with global efforts to reduce reliance on coal and transition to cleaner forms of power generation.

Quang Tri, located in the central province of Vietnam, has recognised the importance of mitigating environmental impacts and is seeking solutions to ensure the region's energy needs are met while minimising harm to the environment.

By proposing the exploration of alternative fuel sources, Quang Tri aims to promote the use of more eco-friendly energy options and contribute to the country's sustainable development goals.

At a forum that was held at the headquarters of the Thai Ministry of Energy in October last year, a provincial delegation from Quang Tri participated in a bilateral meeting between the Vietnamese MoIT, the Thai Ministry of Energy, the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (EGAT), and the Thai Ambassador to Vietnam.

The purpose of this meeting was to discuss the future of the Quang Tri project, which is receiving investment from EGAT as the project's owner.

The project has been put on hold due to various factors, including financial considerations, objective obstacles, and the commitment to achieving net-zero emissions by 2050  as agreed to by the governments of both Vietnam and Thailand.

Furthermore, the Thai side had suggested that Vietnams MoIT and Quang Tri continue to facilitate opportunities for EGAT and its subsidiary EGATi to seek investments in other renewable energy projects or infrastructure development for energy projects in Vietnam as a whole, and specifically in the central province.

$2.35 billion Quang Tri thermal power project terminated The Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (EGAT) has officially announced the termination of the VND55 trillion ($2.35 billion) Quang Tri thermal power project after construction was delayed for over a decade.

Quang Tri calls for investors in the terminated $2.35 billion thermal power plant Quang Tri Peoples Committee has proposed solutions for alternative investment capital for the $2.35 billion thermal power plant, which currently faces termination.
The conference held in Anvers city of Belgium on June 12 (Photo: VNA)

Brussels  There are great opportunities for Belgian investors in the development of seaports in Vietnam, a country owning a coastline of over 3,200km, heard a conference held in Anvers city of Belgium on June 12.

The conference was held by the Vietnamese Embassy and Vietnam Trade Office in Belgium in coordination with the Belgian-Vietnamese Alliance (BVA), the Flanders Investment & Trade (FIT) and The Beacon Group, aiming to promote Vietnam-Belgium cooperation in seaport and logistics. The event was also meant to prepare for the Minister-President of the Government of Flanders Jan Jambons visit to Vietnam in September.

Addressing the event, Jambon highlighted that Vietnam and Flanders share many similarities, including their strength in seaports. However, he pointed out that there remains plenty of room for the two sides to expand their trade partnership, adding that the two sides should grasp new opportunities from the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) to promote their sustainable development.

With its strength in digitalisation and multimodal transport, Belgium can assist Vietnam in optimising the development and operation of seaports to seize opportunities and overcome challenges in the rapidly digitalisation era, he said.

Agreeing with Jambons assessments on the bilateral cooperation potential in smart seaport and logistics, Vietnamese Ambassador Nguyen Van Thao said that with its geographical advantages and strategic location in the international maritime network, Vietnam pays great attention to developing the seaport system and logistic centres. He called on Belgian firms to strengthen cooperation with Vietnam in this field for mutual benefit.

At the event, Belgian and Vietnamese firms shared experience and knowledge on opportunities in seaport and logistics sector in Vietnam, as well as challenges in the field.

Speaking to Vietnam News Agencys correspondents in Brussels, Geer Dom, Director for Europe and the US of DEEP C, a firm that has invested in Vietnam for 20 years, said that Vietnam boast great advantages in seaport infrastructure and logistics. The country with a dynamic and fast growing economy is an attractive destination for foreign investment.

At the same time, Marc van Bouwel, General of ICE-LOFT said that Vietnam's geostrategic location creates a huge advantage in shipping, while the 16 free trade agreements (FTAs) that Vietnam has signed, including the EVFTA, also generate great opportunities for the maritime transport and logistics sector. This year, when Vietnam and Belgium mark the 50th anniversary of their diplomatic relations, is a good time for the two sides to further develop the multi-faceted cooperation relationship, including seaport and logistics cooperation, he added.

More private capital required for seaports A downturn in exports may prompt the private sector to reevaluate its investment plans in the nations seaports, which are estimated to require over $13 billion by 2030.

Soc Trang seeks feasibility report on Tran De Seaport Soc Trang Peoples Committee is proposing developing Tran De Seaport under a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) and, to promote the venture as an investment opportunity, is seeking the Ministry of Transports approval to use local budgetary funds to draft a feasibility report for its construction.

India's Adani Group proposes $2 billion seaport in Vietnam The Indian-based conglomerate Adani Group has proposed developing a $2 billion seaport in Vietnam, while also investing in wind and solar power plants.

Da Nang aims to become attractive logistics centre by 2030 The central city of Da Nang targets to become an attractive logistics centre of the central key economic region by 2030, and the key gateway of the East-West Economic Corridor and an important link of the Asia-Pacific transport corridor by 2050.
(CNN)  Illinois became the first state in the nation to prohibit book bans Monday, Gov. J.B. Pritzker announced, as states across the country continue to challenge and axe literature from public schools and libraries.

Pritzker signed a bill into law on Monday to prohibit libraries from banning books, saying its the only one of its kind in the country.

Book bans are about censorship, marginalizing people, marginalizing ideas and facts. Regimes banned books, not democracies, Pritzker, a Democrat, said at a bill signing ceremony at a Chicago library. We refuse to let a vitriolic strain of White nationalism coursing through our country determine whose histories are told, not in Illinois.

The measure, which takes effect January 1, says public libraries must adopt the American Library Associations Library Bill of Rights or their own statement prohibiting book banning to be eligible for state money.

The associations Library Bill of Rights states that reading materials should not be proscribed or removed because of partisan or doctrinal disapproval or excluded because of the origin, background, or views of those contributing to their creation.

The signing comes amid record book challenges, laws and policies to limit books available in public schools and libraries.

In March, the library association said there were 1,269 demands to censor library books and resources in 2022, marking the highest number of attempted book bans since the association began compiling the data more than 20 years ago.

A record 2,571 unique titles were targeted for censorship, the association said, noting that of those books, the vast majority were written by or about members of the LGBTQIA+ community and people of color.

An April report from free speech organization PEN America found book bans rose during the first half of the 2022-2023 school year. Almost a third of the bans were the result of newly enacted state laws, according to the report, which found bans were most prevalent in five states: Texas, Florida, Missouri, Utah and South Carolina.

Pritzker and nine other governors sent a letter last month to textbook publishers urging them consider the negative impacts of book banning, according to a copy of the letter shared with CNN.

Last week, President Joe Biden announced he plans to appoint a new federal coordinator to address the increase in book bans.

Illinois Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias, who led support for the new state law, on Monday recognized the librarians who advocated for it.

The concept of banning books contradicts the very essence of what our country stands for. It also defies what education is all about: teaching our children to think for themselves, Giannoulias said.

This story was first published on CNN.com, "Illinois outlaws book bans in public libraries"
On May 24, Vietnam's State President Vo Van Thuong had a meeting with Portuguese ambassador to Southeast Asia Joao Weistein and honorary consul general of Portugal to Vietnam Tran Kim Chung.

State President Vo Van Thuong meeting Portuguese Ambassador Joao Weistein on May 24

President Thuong expressed delight that the two-way trade turnover had increased by more than 10 per cent in the first quarter of this year compared to 2022.

The president proposed that the two countries continue to push forward and enhance their cooperation on tourism, cultural exchange, and human interaction, with an emphasis on developing twinning partnerships between cities such as Ho Chi Minh City and Porto.

State President Vo Van Thuong, Portuguese Ambassador Joao Weistein, and other delegates

The Portuguese ambassador promised to work hard to expand Portuguese-Vietnamese collaboration on renewable energy, medicines, IT, the maritime economy, and education and training.

Chung said that the two sides discussed the inauguration of the Vietnamese Embassy in Portugal and the Portuguese Embassy in Vietnam, which would contribute to the historic and cordial relationship between Vietnam and Portugal reaching a new level of growth.

Vietnam and Portugal have had diplomatic connections for almost 500 years, and it was the Portuguese who contributed to the creation of the Vietnamese script that is used today.

The chart created by a Portuguese explorer in 1525 provided a crucial foundation for establishing Vietnam's sovereignty over the Spratly Islands and Paracel Islands.

Portugal adopted the EU-Vietnam Investment Protection Agreement in April, helping to promote bilateral trade and investment cooperation.

Vietnam-Portugal ties have advanced significantly in recent years. The two sides have strengthened regular exchanges and contacts at all, including the highest, levels, and have continued to closely collaborate and support each other in multilateral and international forums such as the United Nations and cooperation frameworks such as the ASEAN-EU Summit, the Asia-Europe Meeting, and others.

CT Group celebrates 30 years of success and receives First Class Medal On its 30th anniversary celebration held on June 29, CT Group was honoured with high-ranking labour medals while announcing many significant strategies that the group has planned.

CT Group wins at HR Asia Awards 2022 CT Group was honoured by HR Asia  the continent's leading magazine  with the prestigious Best Place to Work in 2022 Asia award on August 11. This is the second time CT Group has received this prestigious award and the first time that the group has surpassed nearly 600 competitors in Vietnam to achieve the highest score  4.68/5 points (94 per cent).
In recent years, the stock market has been confronted with unprecedented volatility, most notably during the disruptive era of the pandemic. Nonetheless, it has demonstrated an exceptional ability to rebound and flourish, attracting a wave of fresh investors and witnessing a surge in market liquidity.

Recognising the significance of these developments, VIR will orchestrate an enthralling talk show, slated for Thursday June 15. Distinguished leaders from the State Securities Commission, leading securities firms, and listed businesses will converge to delve into the intricacies of effectively harnessing the stock market as a potent capital mobilisation avenue in the contemporary landscape.

The talk show will present an opportune moment for the investor community to seek out promising investment prospects, perceiving the stock market as a thriving conduit for profit generation.

In early 2020, the market witnessed a drastic downturn as the pandemic struck, with the indices plunging from the zenith of 960 points to a nadir of 650 points by the end of March.

However, despite the nationwide outbreak, the stock market exemplified resilience, staging an impressive recovery and surging to new heights during the latter half of 2020 and throughout 2021.

The influx of new investors quickly eclipsed the 5 per cent mark of the population, surpassing the government's ambitious three-year plan and leading to a substantial upswing in market liquidity, marked by trading sessions involving billions of VND.

Against this backdrop, the talk show sets out to unravel the means by which businesses can continue to tap into the capital mobilisation potential offered by the stock market in this evolving milieu. It serves as a compelling platform for the investor community to navigate the intricate terrain of investment opportunities, recognising the stock market as a fertile ground for wealth accumulation and asset appreciation.

The theme, "Unleashing capital influx in the stock market" has garnered significant interest from market participants, spurring the organisation of this captivating talk show.

The talk show will boast an esteemed lineup of luminaries, including:

Ta Thanh Binh, director of the Market Development Department under the State Securities Commission, renowned for her visionary leadership.

Dang Thanh Tam, chairman of Kinh Bac Urban Development Corporation (KBC), a trailblazer in the industry.

Vu Duc Tien, CEO of Saigon - Hanoi Securities Company (SHS), celebrated for his astute market insights.

Nguyen Vu Long, chairman of VNDIRECT Securities Corporation, lauded for his exceptional entrepreneurial acumen.

Tran Huy Doan, director of the Derivatives Market Division at ACB Securities Company (ACBS), distinguished for his expertise in the derivatives market.

The talk show, curated by VIR and its Vietnamese sister publication Bao Dau Tu/Dau Tu Chung Khoan will be broadcast live at 9am on June 15 through various channels, including YouTube, the newspaper's fan page, and its e-platforms (baodautu.vn, tinnhanhchungkhoan.vn, www.vir.com.vn).

The programme's information will be synthesised and analysed in-depth through the newspaper's publications, as well as other media outlets and press agencies.

Stock market sees signs of rallies in second half The stock market is expected to see more investment opportunities for the medium and long term in the second quarter of 2023, according to analysts.
McLennan County Sheriff Parnell McNamara appointed longtime Wacoan and sheriffs office veteran Cody Blossman on Tuesday as his new chief deputy.

I know what a good investigator Cody is, that hes very qualified and a hard worker, McNamara said. Hes had worlds of training and he passes that training on to the troops.

Blossman, 39, said he feels honored to fill the role as chief deputy for the McLennan County Sheriffs Office. He said he appreciates that the sheriff has entrusted him with the privilege.

He is taking on a role vacated May 19 upon the death of 34-year Waco-area law enforcement veteran Steve January, from pancreatic cancer. The chief deputy is the highest non-elected position in the sheriffs office.

Blossman said he will approach the role with unwavering professionalism for the good of the countys residents and of the sheriffs office.

I look forward to carrying out the sheriffs vision through this position, Blossman said. I will continue the teamwork the sheriffs office is known for.

Blossman grew up in Waco, graduated from Midway High School in 2002 and earned a bachelors degree in criminal justice at Texas State University in 2005. As a lieutenant, he was the first commander McNamara appointed in 2015 for his newly created Fugitive Apprehension and Special Tasks unit.

In a statement Tuesday, McNamara said Blossman has a track record of success fostering an environment of teamwork and collaboration not only in the sheriffs office but also with other law enforcement agencies in McLennan County.

Blossman worked for McNamaras private investigation firm, including some international undercover work, between his graduation from Texas State and 2012 when he attended a police academy in Tyler to earn his basic peace officers license.

McNamara brought Blossman into the sheriffs office with him when was sworn in Jan. 1, 2013, after his first election.

In the sheriffs office, Blossmans first role as a peace officer was in the patrol division. He has since supervised the criminal investigation division and the mental health unit, and McNamara credits Blossman with pioneering the criminal intelligence unit.

Blossman commanded the SWAT unit and served as captain over specialized units including organized crime, FAST and the criminal intelligence unit, the statement says. In December 2021, he received his master peace officers certification from the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement. He also holds intermediate and advanced certifications.

Through the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center, Blossman completed a fugitive investigators course, and he completed the U.S. Marshals Service high risk fugitive apprehension training. With the National Tactical Officers Association he received team leader and commander training.

Blossman emphasized training as he rose through the ranks of the sheriffs office. He developed a pistol training program used in many law enforcement agencies around Texas and created a career development program for future leaders in the sheriffs office, the statement says. Also, he developed a tactical training program for the SWAT unit, enhancing its capabilities and exceeding industry standards, and training delivered to every member of the sheriffs office through a program of officer survival training.
The death of a 43-year-old man Sunday evening after being detained by Waco police is under investigation by the Texas Rangers, Waco Police Department spokesperson Cierra Shipley said Tuesday.

Officers were dispatched Sunday evening to the 200 block of Walker Street on reports of a suspicious person, Shipley said. After officers approached the man, he ran away, she said.

Once officers caught up with the man, he began having a medical episode, Shipley said. She said officers performed CPR and the man was transported to a hospital, where he later died.

Shipley said the man's next of kin has been notified. The department is not releasing the mans name at this time, she said.

Shipley said Waco police contacted the Texas Rangers to investigate the death. In addition to the Texas Rangers investigation, an internal investigation is being conducted, and an autopsy was requested, she said.
A Lincoln woman found guilty of motor vehicle homicide while driving drunk was sentenced June 5 in Cass County to 25 years in prison.

Cheyanne M. Baker, 31, admitted to causing the death of Tammy Callaway, 42, on July 27, 2022, near the intersection of U.S. Highway 6 and Greenwood Drive in Greenwood. Baker, who has two previous DUI convictions, appeared before a Cass County District Court judge who had previously approved a plea agreement with prosecutors.

In exchange for Baker pleading guilty to felony motor vehicle homicide while driving drunk, a charge of failure to use an ignition interlock device was dismissed.

Investigators from the Cass County Sheriffs Office said Baker was speeding in a Hummer as she drove west on Highway 6 on the day of the collision. The Hummer hit the rear of a 2006 Toyota Scion driven by Brad Hoschele of Lincoln, causing the Toyota to crash into a ditch.

Witnesses told investigators that the Hummer kept going and collided head-on with an eastbound 2019 Ford Fusion driven by Callaway, who was pronounced dead at the scene. According to an arrest affidavit, multiple witnesses reported that the Hummer was being driven erratically, crossing the center line and forcing vehicles off the road.

Hoschele and a passenger reported only bumps and bruises from the crash. Baker was taken to Bryan Medical Centers west campus in Lincoln for treatment.

A blood draw at the hospital found that Baker had a blood alcohol level of .215, more than twice the legal limit. According to the affidavit, the occupants of the Toyota and the Ford were wearing seat belts, but Baker was not wearing hers.
VALPARAISO  Late last year, two Valparaiso natives and Raymond Central graduates found near-overnight success when their e-commerce and apparel upstart, Workman, took off after a string of viral TikTok videos.

In the six months since, sales havent slowed for the company highlighting trade workers, and brothers Ian and Eli White are already at a point where theyre able to give back to their hometown.

During a short ceremony on June 4 at Val Days, the brothers presented the Valparaiso Fire Department with a $10,000 check that will help pay for a new ambulance.

As part of a First Responders Month campaign in May, the brothers announced that a portion of their sales over the next three months would be donated to the fire department. Along with the announcement, Ian and Eli revealed new Workman T-shirt designs aimed at firefighters, police and paramedics.

When May ended, sales were enough to hand over a big check.

Were super proud to be able to donate and give back to the community, and were super excited that this is what weve raised so far, Ian White said at the check presentation. Still with 60 days to go, we think we can make a dent in the money left to raise for the ambulance.

The Valparaiso Fire Department shared a video of the presentation on Facebook, with a caption expressing gratitude for the donation.

Thank you, Workman, the post read. It is greatly appreciated by the fire department and the community.

Jeff White, father to Ian and Eli, is the secretary and treasurer of the Valparaiso Rural Fire Protection Board and explained at the presentation that the rural board and fire department chose not to run a bond to pay for a new ambulance. They intend to reach their $400,000 goal through donations.

We are going to raise $400,000, all by donations and raffles, Jeff White said. This (donation) is a great start.

Since attaining viral success in December, Workman has continued designing T-shirts, hoodies, hats and more with cheeky double entendres that play off of a specific trade. Early designs spotlighted electricians, plumbers, ranchers and automotive mechanics. Theyve maintained a strong base on social media as well, with more than 100,000 followers on TikTok.

Ian White said all merchandise sold from the workmanusa.com site before the end of July would contribute to the fire departments fundraising efforts.
(CNN)  Three people including two students were found dead in Nottingham on Tuesday, after a series of incidents left locals shaken in the central English city.

A 31-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of murder in a major incident, Nottinghamshire Police said.

The University of Nottingham tweeted Tuesday that two university students were killed during the incident. We are shocked and devastated by the news and our thoughts are with those affected, their families and friends.

Police were first alerted to an incident on Ilkeston Road near the city center early Tuesday local time, where two people were found dead.

Officers were then called to another incident a few roads down, on Milton Street, where a van tried to run three people over. They were subsequently hospitalized. A man was also found dead on Magdala Road.

Police said they believe all three incidents are linked.

In an updated statement, police said they are keeping an open mind over the motive of what they described as a city attack, adding they were working alongside counter terrorism officers to establish the facts.

One eyewitness, Lynn Haggitt, told the BBC she saw a white van go straight into these two people, during her work commute early Tuesday local time.

The woman went on the kerb. The man went up in the air. It was such a bang, Haggitt said. I wish I never saw it, its really shaken me up.

Ive never seen anything like it.

Authorities reacted to the horrific and tragic incident on Tuesday.

This is an horrific and tragic incident which has claimed the lives of three people, said Chief Constable Kate Meynell.

British Prime Minster Rishi Sunak offered his condolences to the victims.

My thoughts are with those injured, and the family and loved ones of those who have lost their lives, he tweeted.

French President Emmanuel Macron tweeted: Our thoughts go to the victims of the tragic events in Nottingham, the injured, the families. We share the grief of our British friends and stand by their side.

UK lawmaker Robert Jenrick said locals were in a sense of shock, following the events.

Im deeply grateful to @nottspolice and all those who responded to the terrible attack earlier today in Nottingham. All of us in Nottinghamshire share a sense of shock. My thoughts and prayers are with those injured and with the family and friends of those killed, he tweeted.

Another UK lawmaker, Alex Norris, tweeted: Awful news for our city to wake up to today. Our communitys thoughts and prayers are with all those affected. Our gratitude is with our blue light responders for their work today also.

This story was first published on CNN.com, "Three people found dead in major incident in Nottingham, UK police say"
According to a blockchain analytics company, Elliptic a staggering 5,500 digital wallets have fallen prey to the nefarious activities of a notorious North Korean cybercrime syndicate, commonly referred to as Lazarus.

The Lazarus Group is a cybercriminal organization comprised of an undisclosed number of individuals operating under the auspices of the North Korean government. Although information on the Lazarus Group remains limited, numerous cyberattacks have been attributed to this entity by researchers spanning the years 2010 to 2021. The group, which was once involved in criminal activities, has now been classified as an advanced persistent threat owing to its deliberate nature, potential danger, and diverse range of tactics employed during operations. Cybersecurity organizations have assigned various names to denote specific malicious cyber activities. For instance, the United States Department of Homeland Security uses the term "Hidden Cobra" to refer to cyber operations carried out by the North Korean government.

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It is believed that the Lazarus Group, a state-sponsored entity in North Korea, has successfully executed a cyber theft operation against an Estonian company, losing over $35 million in cryptocurrency. This incident is the latest in a string of high-profile cyber attacks carried out by operatives from Pyongyang, North Korea.

On Tuesday, Elliptic, a blockchain analytics company headquartered in London, released the results of its investigation into the cryptocurrency breach of Atomic Wallet. The study monitored more than 5,500 crypto wallets believed to have been compromised.

Elliptic reports that the total reported losses incurred by Atomic Wallet users have surpassed $100 million. Atomic Wallet is a decentralized wallet enabling users to securely store, manage, and exchange cryptocurrencies within a single platform. It boasts a global user base of approximately 5 million individuals.

In collaboration with investigators and exchanges across the globe, Elliptic has successfully initiated the freezing of $1 million worth of stolen assets.

As a result of the recent freezing of cryptocurrency assets, hackers have adapted their tactics. They are now utilizing the services of the Russia-based Garantex exchange to launder their unlawfully acquired funds.

In April 2022, the US Department of the Treasury imposed sanctions on Garantex for its involvement in facilitating money laundering activities related to ransomware attacks and darknet markets.

On June 3, Atomic Wallet initially acknowledged that the wallets of its users had been compromised in the hack. On the 6th of June, Elliptic confidently attributed the theft of the cryptocurrency to the Lazarus Group and provided evidence to substantiate their claim.

The methodology employed in laundering the purloined cryptocurrency is reminiscent of the precise procedures utilized in prior cases of laundering proceeds acquired via cyberthefts executed by Lazarus Group.

The purloined assets are being laundered through specialized services, including the Sinbad mixer, which Lazarus Group has previously employed to launder the gains from their prior hacking endeavors.

According to Elliptic, the recent major cryptocurrency theft attributed to the Lazarus Group is believed to have been executed through the hack of Atomic Wallet. This occurrence continues their prior undertaking on Horizon Bridge in June 2022, which led to the misappropriation of $100 million.

The Lazarus Group stands accused of perpetrating notable cryptocurrency thefts, including the Ronin bridge heist worth $625 million in March 2022 and the KuCoin hack valued at $275 million in 2020.

As per the findings of the US Blockchain data platform Chainalysis, the theft of approximately $1.7 billion worth of cryptocurrency through various hacks in 2022 was attributed to North Korea-linked hackers, including Lazarus Group.

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It has been discovered that the funds that were taken from Atomic Wallet users have been transferred to a cryptocurrency mixing tool known as Sinbad. This tool is believed to be the successor of Blender.io, which was previously sanctioned. It was a popular tool used by Lazarus to launder money obtained from its hacks.

The provider of blockchain analytics observed that the utilization pattern of the hacker who targeted Atomic Wallet resembled the notorious North Korean hacking group. Additionally, the provider emphasized the correlations it had discovered between the compromised wallets and the cyberattacks executed by Lazarus.

According to a blog post by Elliptic, a blockchain analytics provider, the theft of crypto assets experienced by Atomic Wallet users is believed to have been carried out by North Korea's Lazarus Group. The incident has been attributed to the hacking group with a significant degree of certainty.

Although Elliptic refrained from disclosing the amount of funds transferred to the crypto mixer, it emphasized that the perpetrator converted the assets into Bitcoin before channeling them through the mixing tool.

Elliptic did not provide a specific amount that was transferred to the mixer. However, it was mentioned that the funds were being exchanged for Bitcoin and then subjected to obfuscation through the mixer.

On the previous Saturday, a number of Atomic Wallet users utilized Twitter as a platform to report the complete loss of their portfolio. Additionally, a few others expressed their confusion regarding the loss of their funds, given that they had stored them in a non-custodial wallet.

Atomic Wallet has acknowledged the loss of funds and stated that it is investigating. The company has also contacted relevant authorities and major cryptocurrency platforms for assistance.

Subsequently, the team responsible for the non-custodial wallet has released a few significant updates. Notably, ZachXBT, a renowned on-chain investigator assisting with the inquiry, has estimated that the perpetrators may have absconded with more than $35 million worth of users' assets.

The crypto wallet provider, Atomic Wallet, has attempted to minimize the impact of the recent hack. In a statement released on Monday, the company claimed that only a small fraction of its active user base, less than 1%, has been affected by the breach. However, it is worth noting that this still amounts to a significant number of users, given that Atomic Wallet boasts a user base of over 5 million individuals.

Numerous individuals have expressed dissatisfaction regarding the dearth of significant developments from the Atomic Wallet's team. Most of these individuals are keen to ascertain the cause and nature of the security breach.

The inadequate provision of updates regarding the magnitude of this security breach is highly unsatisfactory. According to a Reddit user who identifies as Independent News9407, being a robbery victim due to a security vulnerability in an application rather than one's negligence is unacceptable.

Another user stressed that the absence of updates is a positive sign, indicating that the situation is being addressed and efforts are being made to recover the misappropriated funds.

According to Roland Sade, the Chief Marketing Officer of Atomic Wallet, the team is making every effort to recover the funds. However, Sade emphasized that a concrete plan cannot be formulated until the investigation is concluded.

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With just a few days to spare before the Aeronautica Militare Italiana (Italian Air Force, AMI) 100th-anniversary airshow at Pratica di Mare Air Base, Fiat G.91 (MM6305) flew on Wednesday, June 14th. For the special occasion, the pilot selected to test the G.91 (and eventually fly it at the centenary airshow) was Maurizio Lodovisi who also test-flew Renzo Catellanis MB-326K.

Originally planned for yesterday, that flight was canceled due to minor snags identified, and which were quickly fixed by the specialists of the Italian Air Force. Today Maurizio Ludovisi took from San Damiano Air Base in northern Italy, chased by Renzo Catellani in his MB-326. As shown in the video below, the Gina flew for about 30 minutes before returning safely back to the base.

The airplane is flying beautifully, just amazing given the circumstances! said Catellani.

This project first saw light in February 2021, while the actual work began in January 2022, as we reported here, thanks to a collaboration between Callegari Srl and the Aeronautica Militare Italiana. Technicians and specialists involved have come, in particular, from the Italian Air Forces Distaccamento Aeroportuale di Piacenza, the NVPA (Nucleo Valorizzazione Patrimonio Aeronautico) of Piacenza San Damiano, 1st Aircraft Maintenance Department of Cameri (Novara), from the 3rd Aircraft Maintenance and Armament Department at Treviso, from the 6th Wing at Ghedi, and from the 61st Wing at Galatina (Lecce). The support of the ACS company and other small and medium-sized Italian companies has also been vital.

The aircraft itself served as MM6305 within the Italian Air Force; the MM standing for Matriola Militare (the military serial number). The G.91s restoration has been divided between two locations. Catellani and his team worked on the fuselage, avionics, and hydraulic systems in Reggio Emilia, while personnel from AMI worked on the wings and tail section of the aircraft. It is undergoing a repaint into the colors of PONY 10 (as below) the airplane flow by legendary aerobatic pilot G.B. Molinaro with Italian Aerobatic Team the Frecce Tricolori (Tricolor Arrows).

The Fiat G.91 is a significant type in Italian and European aviation, being the winner of the NATO-organised NBMR-1 competition in 1953 for a Light Weight Strike Fighter. First flying in 1956, it served not only with the Aeronautica Militare Italiana but also the West German Luftwaffe and the Forca Aerea Portuguesa (Portuguese Air Force). Evaluation examples served with the Greek and US Air Forces as well. 756 were produced over a period of nearly 20 years, the last being retired in 1995.

On June 16-17-18, 2023, the Aeronautica Militare Italiana will celebrate its 100th anniversary with an airshow at Pratica di Mare Air Base, Italys largest military airfield, located in Pomezia, Lazio on the Tyrrhenian coast just south of Rome.
NEW ORLEANS  The Southern Baptist Convention refused to welcome Saddleback Church back into its fold, rejecting the California megachurch's appeal over its February ouster for having women pastors.

Southern Baptist church representatives at their annual meeting also rejected a similar appeal by a smaller church, Fern Creek Baptist of Louisville, Kentucky, which is led by a woman pastor.

The results of the Tuesday votes were announced here Wednesday morning, the concluding day of the two-day annual meeting of the nation's largest Protestant denomination, whose statement of faith asserts that only qualified men can serve as pastors.

The convention hall packed with about 12,000 Southern Baptists was quiet after the announcement, appearing to have listened to SBC President Bart Barber's earlier urging for them to show restraint.

"I know sometimes there are churches where people wind up in biblical divorce," he said. "But we don't throw divorce parties at church. And whatever these results are, I'm asking you, behave like Christians."

Saddleback was the denomination's second-largest congregation and widely touted as a success story amid larger Southern Baptist membership declines.

With the 9,437-1,212 vote, delegates  known as messengers  rejected an appeal by Rick Warren, the retired founding pastor of Saddleback and author of the best-selling "The Purpose Driven Life." Warren had urged Baptists to agree to disagree "in order to share a common mission."

"Messengers voted for conformity and uniformity rather than unity. The only way you will have unity is to love diversity. We made this effort knowing we were not going to win," he said at a news conference after the results were announced.

Church representatives also voted 9,700-806 to deny an appeal by Fern Creek Baptist Church, which has had a woman pastor for three decades but came under heightened scrutiny this year.

"I knew they would uphold the expulsion. However, I guess I am a bit naive. I did not think it would be that drastic a result. I thought there were more people left in the Southern Baptist Convention who support the autonomy of the local church, if not women in ministry," said the Rev. Linda Barnes Popham, Fern Creek's pastor.

All Baptist churches are independent, so the convention can't tell them what to do. However, it can decide which churches are "not in friendly cooperation," the official verbiage for an expulsion.

In February, the SBC's Executive Committee voted to oust the two congregations, along with three others that chose not to appeal, for having women pastors.

Warren and Barnes Popham made their final appeals to Southern Baptists on Tuesday during the annual meeting.

Albert Mohler, president of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, spoke on behalf of the Executive Committee in calling for the ouster of Saddleback and Fern Creek, saying it's a matter of biblical authority.

"The issues were clear, and the messengers were clearly united.  There was no rancor," he said Wednesday after the results were announced. "This was a real defining moment, and making certain that those doctrines that must be common among us be publicly acknowledged."

For years, questions about women's ministry roles caused turmoil in the SBC. On Wednesday, the messengers pressed to make those roles more clear by voting to amend the convention's constitution to specify that Southern Baptists churches must "affirm, appoint or employ only men as any kind of pastor or elder as qualified by Scripture." To go into effect, it needs to be approved at the next annual meeting.

Sarah Clatworthy, member of Lifepoint Baptist Church in San Angelo, Texas, advocated for the amendment, calling on the SBC "to shut the door to feminism and liberalism."

"In a culture that is unclear about the role of men and women, we have to be crystal clear," she said. "We should leave no room for our daughters or granddaughters to have confusion on where the SBC stands."

Following the results, Warren issued a critique of the direction of the SBC.

"There are people who want to take the SBC back to the 1950s when white men ruled supreme and when the woman's place was in the home. There are others who want to take it back 500 years to the time of the Reformation," he said. "I say we need to take the church back to the first century. The church at its birth was the church at its best."

As for Fern Creek, Barnes Popham said she doesn't know whether the church will join a new denomination or remain independent, but "I also believe God has great things for Fern Creek Baptist."

The church now faces a possible expulsion from the Kentucky Baptist Convention, the SBC's state affiliate.

Messengers also addressed sexual abuse issues Wednesday, including upholding the expulsion of Freedom Baptist Church in Florida over its alleged mishandling of a sexual misconduct allegation.

They voted to give a task force in charge of implementing abuse reforms more time to work.

Marshall Blalock, pastor of First Baptist Church in Charleston, South Carolina, who leads the task force, announced the creation of a new website that contains the messenger-mandated database of pastors and church workers credibly accused of sex abuse as well as resources for congregations. He said such tracking is necessary because sexual abuse is underreported.

Photos: Psychedelic churches push boundaries of religion
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M.  The weapons supervisor on the film set where Alec Baldwin shot and killed a cinematographer was drinking and smoking marijuana in the evenings during the filming of "Rust," prosecutors are alleging, saying she was likely hungover when she loaded a live bullet into the revolver that the actor used.

They leveled the accusations Friday in response to a motion filed last month by Hannah Gutierrez-Reed's attorneys that seeks to dismiss her involuntary manslaughter charge. The prosecutors accused her of having a history of reckless conduct and argued that it would be in the public interest for her to "finally be held accountable."

Jason Bowles, Gutierrez-Reed's attorney, said Tuesday that the prosecution has mishandled the case.

"The case is so weak that they now have chosen to resort to character assassination claims about Hannah," Bowles told The Associated Press. "The prosecution has abandoned the idea of doing justice and getting to the actual truth apparently."

A preliminary hearing for Gutierrez-Reed is scheduled in August. A judge is expected to decide then if there's probable cause for Gutierrez-Reed's charge to move forward.

In the response, the prosecutors also noted that they expected to decide within the next 60 days whether to recharge Baldwin, depending on the results of an analysis of the gun and its broken sear. The items were sent to the state's independent expert for further testing.

The involuntary manslaughter charge faced by Baldwin, who also was a producer on the film, was dismissed in April, with prosecutors citing new evidence and the need for more time to investigate.

Baldwin was pointing a gun at cinematographer Halyna Hutchins during a rehearsal on the New Mexico film set in October 2021 when it went off, killing her and wounding the film's director, Joel Souza.

Gutierrez-Reed's attorneys had argued in their motion that the prosecution was "tainted by improper political motives" and that Santa Fe District Attorney Mary Carmack-Altwies and the initial special prosecutor she appointed, Andrea Reeb, "both used the tragic film set accident that resulted in the death of Halyna Hutchins as an opportunity to advance their personal interests."

The defense lawyers contend that the permanent damage done to the gun by FBI testing before the defense could examine it amounted to destruction of evidence and a violation of the court's rules of discovery. They also argued that the "selective prosecution" of Gutierrez-Reed was a violation of the equal protection clause of the U.S. Constitution's 14th Amendment.

New special prosecutors who were appointed after Reeb stepped down disputed those claims in their response, saying "nothing about this prosecution has or will be selective."

The prosecutors also acknowledged the unanswered question of where the live rounds found on set came from, saying they were trying to find out and that the investigation was ongoing. They also suggested there was evidence to support the theory that Gutierrez-Reed herself may be responsible and if so, more charges may follow.

They offered no specifics in the filing as to what that evidence might be.

___

Photos: Notable Deaths in 2023 Harry Belafonte Raquel Welch David Crosby Lance Reddick Richard Belzer Cindy Williams Lisa Marie Presley Gordon Lightfoot Jeff Beck Bobby Caldwell Gary Rossington Wayne Shorter Jerry Springer Robert Blake Willis Reed Michael Lerner Tom Sizemore Charles Kimbrough Chaim Topol Len Goodman Tim McCarver Billy Packer Barry Humphries Burt Bacharach Stella Stevens Annie Wersching Dave Hollis David Jude Jolicoeur Barrett Strong Lloyd Morrisett Robbie Knievel Gina Lollobrigida Lynette Hardaway ("Diamond") Adam Rich Bobby Hull Charles White Jerry Richardson Sister Andre Tatjana Patitz Russell Banks Cardinal George Pell Ken Block Walter Cunningham Anton Walkes Pat Schroeder Seymour Stein Klaus Teuber Ginnie Newhart Vida Blue Martin Amis Doyle Brunson Hodding Carter III Jacklyn Zeman Jim Brown Tina Turner Ray Stevenson John Beasley Cynthia Weil Astrud Gilberto The Iron Sheik Pat Robertson Tori Bowie Ted Kaczynski Treat Williams Silvio Berlusconi Daniel Ellsberg Sheldon Harnick John Goodenough Christine King Farris Julian Sands Alan Arkin
January 14, 1953-May 17, 2023

WATERLOO-Fred Barton, Jr. (70) of Waterloo passed away peacefully and surrounded by family at MercyOne Waterloo Medical Center on May 17, 2023, from natural causes. Per his wishes, a private Celebration of Life was held with the family.

Fred is survived by his loving wife of 36 years, Jolene; son Fred (Morgan) Barton, III of Waterloo; son Justin (Callie) Barton of Cedar Falls; 6 grandchildren; sister Doris Relyea of Las Vegas, NV; sister Sophie (Jerry) Stametz of Easton, PA; brother George Barton of Hilo, HI; and many nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents and his sister Gladys Roork.

Fred was born January 14, 1953, to Fred Barton, Sr., and Ramona Eiselstein in Dansalan, Lanao, Philippines. The Barton family immigrated to the United States and Fred later graduated from Belmont High School in Los Angeles before attending Long Beach City College.

A veteran of the U.S. Army, Fred enlisted at the age of 19 and honorably served for 17 years, being awarded several ribbons and medals during his career. He attained the rank of Sergeant First Class and was actively deployed twice during the Gulf War conflict. While serving in the Army, he met Jolene Garbes and they later married on October 10, 1986, in Reidsville, GA.

Following his service, Fred settled with his family in Waterloo. He joined Tyson Fresh Meats and worked there for 20 years before his retirement in 2014. Fred enjoyed fishing, woodworking, and experimenting with new recipes, but most of all, he loved spending time with family. He was always up for a game of cards and would share crazy stories of his time overseas during get-togethers. His smile and laughter will forever be remembered by those close to him.

Online condolences are welcome at www.iowacremation.com under obituaries.
CEDAR FALLS  Public safety officers rescued two kayakers from the Cedar River on Tuesday night.

They were out of the water by about 7:45 p.m. after their vessel tipped over near the First Street/Iowa Highway 57 Bridge and Gateway Park. Neither the man nor the woman were injured or ever in life-threatening danger, according to Capt. Derek Brown.

Brown said officers performed a rare high angle rope rescue from 40 to 50 feet off the bridge after cutting through the metal fencing thats meant to prevent pedestrians from falling off it. One rappelled off the span, and brought the two up one at a time using a victim safety harness.

Multiple calls came in at about 6 p.m. for the stranded but calm kayakers who lost their boat but had lifejackets and hung onto a logjam, Brown said.

Responders first tried to bring them to shore via their own boat and then by wading through the water. They were both deemed the quicker options at the time.

But the boat rescue was unsuccessful due to the water being too shallow and the propeller hitting the river bottom. Officers then used a chest weight and life safety ropes while trying to wade into the water, but had difficulties because of the water being too deep and the current being too strong as they got closer to the kayakers.

About 10 first responders, including retired chief and now consultant John Bostwick, who happened to be in the area, assisted as well as MercyOne paramedics.

Photos: Protesters, supporters gather in Miami ahead of Trump court appearance
WATERLOO  Jurors deliberated for about two hours before finding Matthew Dee Buford III guilty of killing his girlfriend and her friend in their Waterloo home in 2020.

The panel delivered a verdict convicting Buford, 39, guilty of two counts of first-degree murder and one count of flight to avoid prosecution Thursday afternoon following a week of testimony.

Buford sat quietly at the defense table upon hearing the decision. Relatives of his victims silently dabbed at tears.

First-degree murder is punishable by life in prison without parole, and sentencing will be at a later date.

Bufords defense attorney said the deaths of Bufords girlfriend Tamica Allison, 42, and her friend, Andrea Anderson, 41, were a tragedy.

But the deaths didnt amount to murder, attorney Alfred Willett told jurors during final arguments in Bufords trial.

Prosecutors allege he shot the two in the dining room of the West Second Street home he shared with Allison while her teenage children were upstairs on the night of Feb. 10, 2020. He then shuffled off the teens to friends home, said goodbye to friends and family in Waterloo and left for Illinois.

Willett noted there were no signs of a struggle, no evidence of an argument and nothing indicating Buford acted with malice or premeditation. He said there were no eye witnesses to the slayings.

The defense also noted witnesses stated Buford had been drinking that night, and the women had blood-alcohol levels beyond the legal limit to drive.

When you get three people together who are drinking or are impaired by alcohol, and a weapon is present, tragedies can happen and accidents can happen, Willett told jurors, noting they also had the option of finding him guilty of the lesser offense of manslaughter.

Prosecutor Alisha Stach challenged the notion the victims drinking played a role in their demise.

Who cares? Its not legal to murder somebody just because they are intoxicated. Your jury instructions dont say shoot away if somebody is drunk. Its still illegal, Stach said.

The state said the fact a gun was used and both women were shot in the head was enough to concluded the shooter intended to kill.

You can infer premeditation, specific intent to kill and malice by use of a dangerous weapon. And even more so when you use it twice, said Black Hawk County Attorney Brian Williams.

Williams said it isnt possible that someone else fired the gun.

There were five people in the house. Two of them are dead. Two of them were kids. And then there is the defendant, he said.

During testimony, Allisons 13-year-old daughter told jurors she was upstairs in her room when she heard her mother say, What are you going to do, shoot me in the face? I dont care, Im not scared.

That was followed by two gunshots.

When the daughter went downstairs, she saw the bodies on the floor in pools of blood and Buford sitting in a chair holding a silver-colored pistol.

Buford later told her that she would hate him, and told others he would be dead by morning.

He surrendered to police in Peoria, Illinois, days later.

The gun was found months later, hidden in an unsecured Waterloo garage belonging to one of Bufords friends.

Double homicide West Second St, February 2020 021120jr-shooting-w2nd-1 021120jr-shooting-w2nd-3 021120jr-shooting-w2nd-2 021120jr-shooting-w2nd-4 021120jr-shooting-w2nd-6 021120jr-shooting-w2nd-5 021120jr-shooting-w2nd-7 Matthew Dee Buford III 022220jr-buford-initial-4 022220jr-buford-initial-5 022220jr-buford-initial-1 022220jr-buford-initial-2 022220jr-buford-initial-3 110620jr-buford-hearing-1 110620jr-buford-hearing-2 110620jr-buford-hearing-3 110620jr-buford-hearing-5 060823jr-buford-trial-1 061223jr-buford-trial-2 061223jr-buford-trial-1 061323jr-buford-trial-1 061423jr-buford-trial-1 061423jr-buford-trial-3 061423jr-buford-trial-2 061423jr-buford-verdict-1 061423jr-buford-verdict-2
WATERLOO  The pistol used to snuff out the lives of Tamica Allison and her friend Andrea Anderson in February 2020 was found months after the slaying.

The silver-and-black 9 mm Jimenez Arms handgun was discovered by chance in a knitting bag tucked away in an unsecured garage.

Donald Black told jurors how he discovered the weapon while he was cleaning out the Newell Street garage when he and his wife were moving out of the house in August 2020.

Black said the weapon wasnt his, and he didnt know where it came from or how it found its way into his garage. His family didnt have guns because they had children in the home, he said.

Anyone passing by could have hidden the gun, he said. The garage lacked an overhead door.

Black testified that he drove down to the police station and turned the pistol over to the department.

It wasnt until later  after investigators routinely entered fired casings from the garage gun into the ATFs National Integrated Ballistic Information Network computer database  that authorities realized the significance of the pistol.

NIBIN alerted detectives to the fact that small markings on the test-fired casings matched two spent casings found next to Allison and Andersons bodies in Allisons home at 1112 W. Second St.

And it wasnt until the months later, during depositions to prepare for the homicide trial, that another piece of the puzzle fell into place, prosecutors said. Black is friend of Matthew Dee Buford III, 39, who was Allisons boyfriend and is the person charged in the double slaying.

Ballistics expert Victor Murillo with the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation testified that follow-up examinations of the fired casings confirmed the match. He noted that bullets recovered from the victims bodies werent able to be linked to the gun, in part because of damage to the projectiles, but he said they were of the same caliber and had similar rifling characteristics.

Another DCI expert testified that DNA samples from the gun and magazines were too weak to interpret.

Authorities allege Buford shot and killed the two women, drove to visit family around town and then found his way to Peoria, Illinois, where he turned himself in days later.

While the gun had remained missing in the hours and days following the slayings, investigators did find a spare magazine for a Jimenez Arms handgun. It was sitting in a nylon cooler in the backseat of a snow-covered 1979 Buick that was parked at the Second Street address. The magazine had 9 mm rounds that were the same brand as those found at the shooting scene. The car also had mail belonging to Buford, police said.

On Tuesday, the state rested its case, and the defense declined to present any of its own witnesses, instead relying on cross-examination of prosecution witnesses.

Closing arguments in the case are scheduled for Wednesday in Black Hawk County District Court.

Double homicide West Second St, February 2020 021120jr-shooting-w2nd-1 021120jr-shooting-w2nd-3 021120jr-shooting-w2nd-2 021120jr-shooting-w2nd-4 021120jr-shooting-w2nd-6 021120jr-shooting-w2nd-5 021120jr-shooting-w2nd-7 Matthew Dee Buford III 022220jr-buford-initial-4 022220jr-buford-initial-5 022220jr-buford-initial-1 022220jr-buford-initial-2 022220jr-buford-initial-3 110620jr-buford-hearing-1 110620jr-buford-hearing-2 110620jr-buford-hearing-3 110620jr-buford-hearing-5 060823jr-buford-trial-1 061223jr-buford-trial-2 061223jr-buford-trial-1 061323jr-buford-trial-1 061423jr-buford-trial-1 061423jr-buford-trial-3 061423jr-buford-trial-2 061423jr-buford-verdict-1 061423jr-buford-verdict-2
WATERLOO  The unblinking eye of the body camera was hyped as the answer to questions about controversial police encounters.

The body-worn camera would give the public a replay of an incident and lead to greater police accountability, or so it was thought. The relatives of Michael Brown, shot by an officer in Ferguson, Missouri, in 2014 called for a federal law mandating their use.

About a decade later, almost all local officers have and use body cameras. But the footage is rarely made public. Instead, the videos are usually treated as evidence, held by the police department, awaiting a court date if any charges are filed.

Its evidence and stuff we cant share with the public.  We dont give out videos unless the case has already gone through the court system, said Capt. Jason Feaker with the Waterloo Police Department.

Department policy allows the police chief to release body camera and dashcam video to the public in the rare instances of critical public interest where the release far outweighs the need to preserve evidence until the conclusion of litigation.

Waterloo police officers have been involved in three shootings in recent years. One man was paralyzed when he allegedly engaged law enforcement with what turned out to be a BB rifle. Another died after he led officers on a chase and rammed an occupied squad car. A third was killed when he pointed what turned out to be an air pistol at patrol officers.

Prosecutors declined to charge officers in two of the shootings, and the third case remains under consideration.

Two of the shootings have resulted in lawsuits that are pending in court.

When The Courier sought video footage from the BB rifle incident a week after the shooting, the Waterloo Police Department denied the request, citing state law that designates law enforcement investigative reports, including videos, as confidential.

The Black Hawk County Sheriffs Office, which had deputies involved in the BB rifle call, referred requests for its footage to the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation  the agency that investigated the shooting  which has yet to respond.

The Black Hawk County Attorneys Office later released still images taken from the videos as part of its report on the incident.

Following the shooting involving the rammed squad car, KWWL-TV sought the police videos and was told the footage would cost the TV station more than $6,000 in preparation fees.

Feaker said the department charges $10 per minute of video to defray the costs of an officer reviewing the footage and redacting personal information like dates of birth or Social Security numbers or content that would violate the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act.

In the end, attorneys for the deceaseds estate released selected videos of the ramming incident to the media.

In addition to being used as evidence in criminal cases, the footage is used by police department internal affairs officers to investigate complaints about conduct. Feaker said the implementation of body-worn cameras has helped speed up the internal affairs review process.

The complaints are still there, but they get worked through quicker and we can show that the officers arent doing what some people in the public think they are, Feaker said.

In one case in Cedar Falls in 2016, a woman claimed an officer attempted to watch her put on a bra and made inappropriate comments when he was stationed at her home awaiting a search warrant in a drug investigation.

Investigators reviewed footage from the officers body camera and found nothing of the sort. The woman was then charged with making a false report to law enforcement.

The Waterloo Police Department also conducts monthly audits of randomly selected body camera footage, said Lt. Greg Fangman with the departments internal affairs division. Some 20 videos are drawn each month and divided among supervisors for review to ensure compliance and professional behavior.

Cedar Falls police began using body cameras about 10 years ago, starting with three units whose officers had the option to wear them. Waterloo police followed soon after.

Both departments now have equipment and policies for regular body camera use.

Few agencies remain camera shy Data gathered from October 2022 to May 2023 shows of the 142 agencies that answered questions on camera availability or use, 93 said they had both body and dashboard cameras for at least one of their members and vehicles.

Data gathered from October 2022 to May 2023 shows of the 142 agencies that answered questions on camera availability or use, 93 said they had both body and dashboard cameras for at least one of their members and vehicles.

All Waterloo sworn officers are issued a camera to use. The department retains routine footage for 180 days. If its considered evidence in a criminal case it is kept indefinitely.

Cedar Falls police require 38 of 74 officers to wear cameras while on duty.

In Cedar Falls, police retain routine video footage for 120 days. Sharing with the public is done on a case-by-case basis.

The Black Hawk County Sheriffs Office requires 35 of its 66 sworn deputies to wear body cameras. Deputies stationed at the jail, which is covered with stationary surveillance cameras, arent required to wear cameras. Footage is kept for two years, and the public can request access through the states open records laws.

Dashboard cameras have been a part of law enforcement for decades. All patrol vehicles for the Waterloo and Cedar Falls police departments and the Black Hawk County Sheriffs Office are equipped with dash cameras.

Photos: 2022 officer-involved shooting in Waterloo

Photos: The hunt for T-Bone Taylor
Bettendorf Police on Tuesday arrested a 46-year-old Clinton man for allegedly sexually abusing, prostituting and extorting underage girls beginning in June of 2022 while he was on parole from the Iowa Department of corrections.

Daniel Craig Jones is charged with three counts of second-degree sexual abuse and four counts of distributing illicit drugs to minors. Each of the charges is a Class B felony under Iowa law that carry a prison sentence of 25 years.

Jones also is charged with one count of pandering of a minor for prostitution, a Class C felony that carries a prison sentence of 10 years.

He also is charged with two counts of extortion, three counts of prostitution, one count of enticing a minor for sexual purposes and possession of a firearm by a felon. Each of those charges is a Class D felony under Iowa law that carry a prison sentence of five years.

According to the arrest affidavits filed by Bettendorf Police Detective Brian Hanssen, Jones sexually abused a 13-year-old girl three times between June 1, 2022, and Aug, 31, 2022. The abuse took place at a home in Davenport, another time at a residence in Bettendorf, and a third time in the parking lot of a Bettendorf restaurant.

He also is accused of delivering marijuana to a 16-year-old girl in exchange for nude photos of herself. He also delivered marijuana to a 13-year-old girl and a 14-year-old girl.

On two occasions between Nov. 1, 2022, and Dec. 31, 2022, Jones solicited nude photographs from two girls by threatening them, according to the affidavits. In each instance, he met the girls individually at Veterans Memorial Park in Bettendorf. Each time he displayed a black handgun and threatened the girl and her family if she did not comply.

Between Dec. 1, 2022, and March 31, 2023, on three occasions he purchased sexual favors from a 16-year-old girl in exchange for money and drugs, according to the affidavits. He even offered money for rent, an iWatch, an iPhone and hair extensions in exchange for sexual services.

Jones also attempted to coerce a 16-year-old girl to be a prostitute. According to arrest affidavits, he showed the victim an HBO documentary on Nevada's Moonlite BunnyRanch as well as a photo of a worker he purported was making $1,000 a visit as an example of how much money the victim could make as a prostitute.

According to the arrest affidavits, during a text conversation on April 4, 2023, the two talked about the number of people she would have to sleep with to make the kind of money she wanted. He told her she was active enough and could make big money.

Jones was being held without bond Tuesday night in the Scott County Jail. He is expected to make a first appearance on the charges Wednesday in Scott County District Court.

Jones criminal history includes convictions for theft by passing bad checks in both Iowa and Illinois, and a federal conviction for trafficking in cocaine and marijuana.

On March 26, 2018, during a hearing in Dubuque County District Court, Jones was sentenced to five years in the Iowa Department of Corrections after pleading guilty to a charge of second-degree theft for passing a bad check at Theisens. He still owes $422.50 in that case.

April 6, 2018, during a hearing in Scott County District Court, Jones also was sentenced to five years in the Iowa Department of Corrections after pleading guilty to a charge of second-degree theft for passing a bad check at Menards. He has paid all fines and court costs in that case.

According to electronic records of the Iowa Department of Corrections, Jones was released from prison and placed on parole on Oct. 24, 2018. He was released from parole on Oct. 12, 2022.

On May 12, 2016, during a hearing in Rock Island County Circuit Court, he was sentenced to 18 months on conditional discharge after pleading guilty to passing a bad check. He still owes $1,697.50 in fines and court costs in that case.

On Dec. 8, 2004, during a hearing in U.S. District Court, Rock Island, Jones was sentenced to five years in federal prison after pleading guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute cocaine and marijuana. He also was ordered to serve five years in supervised release.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Prisons, Jones was released from federal prison on April 24, 2009.
WASHINGTON  Since taking on the role of White House press secretary, Karine Jean-Pierre has become known for frequently dodging questions by citing the Hatch Act. The law bars civil servants from politicking during their day jobs, and she uses it to deflect reporters' questions involving campaigns.

Apparently, she wasn't careful enough. The Office of Special Counsel, a government agency that enforces the Hatch Act, said in a recent letter that Jean-Pierre violated the law before last year's midterm elections.

Her offense: Making frequent references to "MAGA Republicans" during White House briefings.

According to a letter from the Office of Special Counsel, Jean-Pierre "made those references to generate opposition to Republican candidates" and "accordingly, making the references constituted political activity."

The letter was posted online by The Washington Post. It was first reported by NBC News.

Penalties for Hatch Act violations are uncommon, and the office did not recommend fines or other punishments for Jean-Pierre.

Violations were much more common under President Donald Trump. The Office of Special Counsel sent an "unprecedented" 15 warning letters to senior Trump administration officials about running afoul of the Hatch Act, and even recommended the firing of top adviser Kellyanne Conway.

Jean-Pierre faced scrutiny after a conservative organization called Protect the Public's Trust filed a complaint.

The organization said Jean-Pierre was "disparaging President Biden's political opponents as 'mega MAGA Republican officials who don't believe in the law.'"

Jean-Pierre said the White House counsel's office was reviewing the letter, adding that "we do everything we can" to comply with the law and take it "very seriously."

"At the time, I was given the sign off to use that terminology," she said. Jean-Pierre said the term was used "in the context of talking about their policies, in talking about their values."

She noted some reporters often express "friendly consternation" about how often she cites the Hatch Act, and she suggested she was confused by the violation.

After all, she said, Trump's White House used the phrase "MAGA" about 2,000 times to describe his administration's policies.

5 Biden administration decisions that mirror Trump-era policies 5 Biden administration decisions that mirror Trump-era policies Controversial Alaska oil drilling project approved by Biden in 2023 Asylum restrictions announced for many migrants seeking refuge in 2023 Trump-era refugee caps continued in 2021 Exports of excess vaccine doses to other countries in need were temporarily blocked in 2021 Foreign policy strategies maintained in Saudi Arabia and Israel
IOWA CITY  After Iowa regents reviewed in closed session Tuesday the performance of their university presidents over the last year, they approved a range of pay increases and new compensation incentives Wednesday  including a raise for University of Iowa President Barbara Wilson.

Beginning July 1, Wilson will earn $700,000 a year  amounting to a $50,000 raise, the second such raise in two years, making her the highest-paid president across the three-campus regent university system. Iowa State University President Wendy Wintersteens salary will stay at $650,000 a year  although both she and Wilson received new deferred compensation incentives.

On top of the $733,333 deferred compensation payout Wintersteen will receive this summer and the $80,000 payout shell get next year, the board established for her a new deferred compensation plan making annual contributions of $415,000 from this July 1 through Dec. 31, 2025  amounting to $1.04 million.

The board extended Wilsons existing deferred compensation plan  which was supposed to pay her $2.2 million in 2026  through 2028, when shell get a $2.5 million payout.

Regents also extended both presidents contracts.

Wilson, given a five-year contract when she started in 2021, now has a term of employment through June 30, 2028. Wintersteen, whose 2019 contract was set to expire this summer, received an extension through June 30, 2026.

University of Northern Iowa President Mark Nook  whose salary has remained static since his hire in 2016 at $357,110  on Wednesday received his first raise of $15,000 a year, bringing his annual pay to $372,110. His current contract runs through 2025.

The boards Executive Director Mark Braun  who made $390,336 in the 2022 budget year  on Wednesday received a new deferred compensation plan amounting to a $310,000 payout in 2025.

The board Wednesday also set its salary policy for merit employees in the upcoming budget year to a minimum 1% and maximum 2% raise. Merit workers include blue collar, clerical and technical workers  like bus drivers, bakers, groundskeepers and hospital security officers.

Earlier this year, the board negotiated new contracts with its graduate student and health care worker unions, including 3% base pay raises for each of the next two years.

Among the top 10 highest-paid public university presidents and chancellors in 2021, according to a report in The Chronicle of Higher Education using the most recently available data, were five from the Big Ten Conference. But even at her new salary, UIs Wilson ranks well below those Big Ten leaders, according to the Chronicle:

Former Michigan State University President Samuel Stanley, who resigned amid controversy in October 2022, made a base salary of $1.1 million in fiscal 2021;

Jeffrey Gold, chancellor of the University of Nebraska Medical Center, made $966,225 in fiscal 2021;

Jay Perman, chancellor of the University System of Maryland, made $938,024 in fiscal 2021.

Ted Carter, president of the University of Nebraska System, made $933,760 in fiscal 2021;

Mark Schlissel, fired from his post as University of Michigan president in January 2022, made $901,849 in fiscal 2021.

Photos: University of Iowa end-of-season celebration honoring the NCAA runner-up women's basketball team
Iowa U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley wants to let the voters decide if former President Donald Trump should be condemned over his federal indictment for mishandling classified documents.

Grassley steered clear of condemning former President Donald Trump in a Wednesday call with reporters.

He said Wednesday he did not want to make comments that would alienate any candidates as they campaign in Iowa over the next several months.

Iowa Republicans will hold the first-in-the-nation caucuses in early 2024, kicking off the national Republican primary. Trump, who faces 37 federal charges on top of other legal battles, is the current front-runner in national and Iowa primary polling for the Republican nomination for president.

I want everybody to feel free to come to Iowa to campaign, Grassley said. And so I'm going to leave the political aspect of this up to the voters.

On the charges laid out in the indictment, Grassley said "secure documents ought to be secure regardless of who possesses them.

Asked whether Trumps alleged mishandling of classified documents should disqualify him from being president, Grassley said its too early to say.

We're just getting into the campaigns, and I think you can't draw any conclusions. I think times going to answer your question, he said when asked if hes concerned over the prospect of Trump being president again. Maybe if you asked me six months from now, I might give you a different answer.

Trump pleaded not guilty Tuesday to the charges, which allege that he illegally kept national security documents in his private home at Mar-a-Lago after leaving the presidency. Prosecutors say the documents include nuclear information and a "plan of attack" against a foreign country, the latter of which he allegedly showed to a writer in an interview.

He is also accused of obstructing a government investigation to retrieve the documents, directing a staffer to move boxes containing classified materials and suggesting that a lawyer should hide or destroy documents prosecutors were seeking.

Grassley, along with other Republican officials in Iowa, said he's heard from Iowans who are concerned with "unequal application of law" when it comes to Trump's indictment. Echoing accusations Trump has made, he said Wednesday he thinks special counsel Jack Smith, who is leading the investigation into the classified documents case, has shown bias against Republicans in his prosecutions.

A spokesperson for U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, pointed to a Twitter statement Ernst made on Friday when the indictment was released.

"Biden promised to unify, but instead hes further politicized the justice system, sowing more doubt in American institutions," Ernst said in that tweet. "Iowans are fed up & want to restore confidence in our justice system."

Photos: Trump indictment shows documents stacked in bathroom, bedroom, ballroom
Russian Defence Ministry report on the progress of the special military operation (13 June 2023)

The Russian Aerospace Forces tonight launched group strikes by long-range precision air-based weapons against locations where AFU operational reserves were amassed, as well as a foreign-made ammunition and weapons depot.

All the assigned targets have been engaged. The goal of the strike has been achieved.

Over the past 24 hours, the Ukrainian troops continued to attempt to carry out offensive operations in South Donetsk direction, as well as near Artyomovsk.

In the Vremevka salient, the Kiev regime launched an offensive by the units hastily formed from the remnants of the Ukrainian brigades which had previously suffered heavy losses.

Three attacks by Ukrainian units reinforced with tanks and armoured fighting vehicles were repelled in the area of Makarovka (Donetsk Peoples Republic) over the past 24 hours.

All the attacks were repelled by courageous and decisive actions of Vostok Group of Forces, air strikes and artillery fire. Of the ten AFU armoured personnel carriers involved in the attacks, eight were eliminated. Eight of ten AFU armoured personnel carriers involved in the attacks were eliminated.

Two enemy attacks have been successfully repelled in the vicinity of Rovnopol (Donetsk Peoples Republic) during the day. Two Ukrainian tanks and three armoured fighting vehicles have been hit.

Most of the personnel of an AFU company tactical group and four infantry fighting vehicles were neutralised as the Russian troops repelled the attack near Prechistovka (Donetsk Peoples Republic).

Total enemy losses in those areas during the day were up to 275 Ukrainian troops, four tanks, fifteen armoured fighting vehicles, eight vehicles, and an Msta-B howitzer.

Two enemy attacks in the direction of Klesheyevka (Donetsk Peoples Republic) have been successfully repelled by the Yug Group of Forces to the south of Artyomovsk (Donetsk Peoples Republic) during the past 24 hours.

The enemy failed to break into the Russian defence.

Up to 350 Ukrainian troops, two armoured fighting vehicles, and six motor vehicles were neutralised in the fighting.

In Kupyansk direction, aviation and artillery of the Zapad Group of Forces inflicted fire damage on the units of the enemy close to Ivanovka (Kharkov region) and Rozovka (Lugansk Peoples Republic).

In addition, actions of one sabotage and reconnaissance group of the Armed Forces of Ukraine have been thwarted near Timkovka (Kharkov region).

More than 35 Ukrainian servicemen, one armoured personnel carrier, one pick-up truck, and one D-20 howitzer have been destroyed during the day.

In Krasny Liman direction, Operational-Tactical and Army aviation and artillery of the Tsentr Group of Forces engaged the units of the Armed Forces of Ukraine close to Nevskoye and Belogorovka (Lugansk Peoples Republic), and the Serevryansky forestry.

The enemy has suffered losses of up to 60 Ukrainian troops, two armoured fighting vehicles, four motor vehicles, one Gvozdika self-propelled howitzer, and D-30 and D-20 howitzers in this direction in the past 24 hours.

In Kherson direction, up to 30 Ukrainian troops, three motor vehicles, one Msta-B howitzer, and one Gvozdika self-propelled howitzer have been neutralised over the past 24 hours.

Operational-Tactical and Army aviation, Missile Troops and Artillery of the Russian Group of Forces have engaged 98 AFU artillery units at their fire positions, manpower, and military hardware in 114 areas during the day.

Air defence forces have intercepted three Storm Shadow cruise missiles and ten HIMARS MLRS projectiles during the day.

In addition, six Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles have been destroyed in the areas of Staromlynovka (Donetsk Peoples Republic), Rabotino (Zaporozhye region), Korsunka (Kherson region), Pshenichnoye and Novokrasnyanka (Lugansk Peoples Republic).

In total, 442 airplanes and 238 helicopters, 4,585 unmanned aerial vehicles, 426 air defence missile systems, 9,939 tanks and other armoured combat vehicles, 1,122 combat vehicles equipped with MRLS, 5,100 field artillery cannons and mortars, as well as 10,927 units of special military equipment have been destroyed during the special military operation.

WtR
Russia does not feel the need for additional mobilization, and there is no need to declare martial law throughout the country, Russian President Vladimir Putin said Tuesday at a meeting with war correspondents.

https://tass.ru/armiya-i-opk/18000647

According to him, Moscow can create a sanitary zone in Ukraine in the event of continued shelling of border areas, and its goals, although being adjusted in accordance with the current situation, have not fundamentally changed. Speaking about the Ukrainian counter-offensive, the President noted that the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) have not yet achieved success in any sector and are suffering heavy losses.

TASS collected Putins main statements.

On the counter-offensive of the Armed Forces of Ukraine

Kievs large-scale counter-offensive, which began on June 4, continues, but to no avail: The enemy was not successful in any of the sectors. They have heavy losses.

The Armed Forces of Ukraine lose 10 times more than the Russian forces, and the structure of losses is unfavorable: Usually, irretrievable losses are 25 percent, maximum 30. They have almost 50 to 50.

Kiev has already lost more than 160 tanks and over 360 armored vehicles of various types, this is about 25%, maybe 30% of the amount of equipment that was delivered [to Ukraine] from abroad. Russia has lost 54 tanks, but some of them are subject to restoration and repair.

About mobilized and contract soldiers

Russia does not need a new wave of mobilization : The Ministry of Defense reports that, of course, there is no need for mobilization today.

The mobilized sometimes it is necessary to gradually return home < >, but the law does not provide for specific deadlines : It will be necessary to proceed, first of all, from the availability of personnel, from how the situation develops on the line of contact, how the special military operation.

Since January, more than 150,000 contract soldiers have been recruited in Russia, and together with volunteers, 156,000 people. Last week alone, 9.5 thousand people signed contracts.

Soldiers of volunteer detachments must sign contracts with the Ministry of Defense: This is the only way to ensure social guarantees. At the same time, changes in legislation are also needed to bring everything in line with common sense.

About conscripts

Conscript soldiers will not be sent to the zone of a special military operation, including to new regions of Russia, there is no need, as the Ministry of Defense reports, to send them to this zone. At the same time, conscripts will continue to be in the border areas.

About the destruction of the Kakhovskaya hydroelectric power station

Russia was not interested in undermining the Kakhovskaya hydroelectric power station because of the dire consequences for its territories: Who is guilty is clear. The Ukrainian side was striving for this.

Moscow did not record big explosions before the destruction of the dam, but Kyiv had previously repeatedly attacked the hydroelectric power station: Maybe they once again added something insignificant, and destruction began.

The flood unfortunately < > thwarted their (Ukrainian  TASS note) counteroffensive in this direction, although it would be better if they attacked there: It would be very bad for them to attack there.

On martial law and border regions

On the whole , it makes no sense to introduce some kind of special regime in the country, martial law , there is no need for this today. We need to work more carefully on some issues.

Kyivs attacks on the border areas are connected with an attempt to divert Russian forces from other directions. In response, Moscow will strengthen the border , and this task will also be solved.

If shelling from Ukraine continues, the Russian Federation will have to consider creating some kind of sanitary zone  on Ukrainian territory, so that it would be impossible to reach Russian regions from outside it.

The Russian authorities will help pointwise, for each family, for each housing construction affected by Ukrainian shelling: Funds will come and are already coming from the governments reserve fund.

On the possibility of negotiations with Kyiv

Russia has never given up on negotiations that could lead to a peaceful settlement. In Istanbul in the spring of 2022, representatives of Moscow and Kiev initialed a draft agreement, but the Ukrainians just threw it away later, thats all.

If the Western countries really want the end of the conflict, it is enough for them to stop supplying weapons to Kiev: The Ukrainians themselves do not produce anything, they will want to negotiate tomorrow. Not formally, but in essence.

About shells with depleted uranium

Russia reserves the right to use shells with depleted shells in response to their use by the Armed Forces of Ukraine: We have a lot of such ammunition, < > and if they use them, we also reserve the right to use the same ammunition.

There is nothing good here, but if necessary, we are able to do it. We do not need to do it.

About veterans in the leadership of special services

Veterans of a special military operation should be  moved  in the hierarchy of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, but not only: They can also be moved to law enforcement agencies, to special services.

On the development of defense

Defense production in Russia increased by 2.7 times over the year, and by 10 times in the most demanded areas. Now tens, hundreds of private enterprises that have never had anything to do with the military-industrial complex have joined this work.

During a special military operation , it turned out that many things are missing  precision-guided munitions, communications equipment, unmanned aerial vehicles. But if not for the operation, the countrys leadership probably never understood how to fine-tune < > the defense industry so that the Russian army was the best in the world.

About the grain deal

Russia is thinking about withdrawing from the grain deal  because it was once again deceived: although Moscow was promised to remove obstacles to its exports, nothing has been done to liberalize the terms of supplies. At the same time, for Kyiv, food exports are now the main source of foreign exchange earnings.

Moscow is participating in the grain deal for the sake of the friendly countries of Africa and Latin America and is ready to supply them with the amount of grain they received through this agreement free of charge.

About the goals of the NWO

The goals of the special military operation are adjusted in accordance with the current situation, but do not change in general: On the whole, of course, we will not change anything. They are of a fundamental nature for us.

WtR
A survivor of six heart attacks and a brain tumor, a grumpy bear of a man, whom has declared Russia as his new and wonderful home. His wife is a true Russian Sweet Pea of a girl and she puts up with this bear of a guy and keeps him in line. Thank God for my Sweet Pea and Russia.
A mothers been asked to get to work in Sauk City. It was her day off  one that she was looking forward to  but someone called in sick and the business needs her help. Shes got her toddlers, though, who cant be left at the house. Theres no one, but her, to care for them. She needs the money but she cant afford to go in. There are a few child care centers in the area but theyve long since booked up.

Sorry, she says, I cant.

She, along with many others in the area, and throughout the state of Wisconsin, is in a child care desert.

The people of Sauk Prairie have become keenly aware of a lack of child care providers in the community. The Sauk Prairie Area Chamber of Commerce wanted to rectify the issue. They wrote a grant for the Wisconsin Department of Children and Families DREAM UP! Grant.

They were recently selected, as one of only 12 communities in the state, to receive $75,000 to research child care and identify a space to open an additional child care center in the Sauk Prairie community. Their goal is to identify, renovate, open, and operate an additional licensed early learning center to serve a minimum 100 children by the summer of 2024.

In addition to expanding child care slots in the community, the chamber supported existing child care centers by including them in the process to better understand the challenges of providing early learning education, staffing requirements, and reporting needs, said Tywana German, the Executive Director of the Sauk Prairie Area Chamber of Commerce.

A child care desert is any census tract with more than 50 children under age 5 that contains either no child care providers, or so few options that there are more than three times as many children as licensed child care slots.

Wisconsin is not immune to the lack of child care options. According to the Center for American Progress (CAP), 54% of people in Wisconsin live in a child care desert. The national average is 51%. Rural areas are particularly hard hit. Some 68% of rural Wisconsin families live in areas without enough licensed child care providers. In Wisconsin, 79% of mothers of young children participate in the labor force. CAP found that child care deserts are associated with few mothers in the workforce.

That mother in Sauk City is struggling. So is a mother in Bluffview, in Merrimac, and in communities throughout the state.

In the past 18 months, Sauk Prairie community members have worked together to understand the child care crisis. Research shows that the Sauk Prairie community has an estimated 500-slot shortfall.

At the end of May, Sandra Briesath was hired as the Sauk Prairie Early Childcare Project Coordinator. It is a limited-term 120-day contract to identify a space to open an additional child care center in the community.

Another individual instrumental in the new initiative is Amy Alt, who has worked with the team as a volunteer since the process began. Alt is currently employed as an Early Childhood Mental Health Consultant by the city of Madisons Community Development Division.

Its important, Alt said, that our business community gain insights, not only in the stressors that many of their staff are feeling about a lack of quality early care, but also about the impact high quality early care and education has on brain development, school readiness, and life skills. Alt continued, When thinking long term, we can see that this is an investment with high return in future employees and our community.

Alt believes a lack of access to regulated early care and the educational workforce are the main concerns to be focused on, not only locally, but for the state and the country.

Early care and education workers are often compensated with low wages and a lack of benefits. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average hourly wage of a child care worker is $14.22 an hour, or $29,570 annually. Wisconsin, as of May 2022, had an average hourly wage of $13, or $27,050 annually.

The market failure is creating concerns for communities everywhere, Alt said.

Locally, Alt has seen the issue firsthand. She has seen commutes grow longer, as families seek child care farther afield, in places like Baraboo, Madison, and farther out still. Shes seen families priced out of the local child care market.

Statistics from World Population Review notes that annual child care costs in Wisconsin total $12,567. Alt has seen families forcing one family member to stay home to take care of their children rather than enter the workforce. Shes seen local child care wait lists growing, some more than a year long. Shes seen some families forced to find whatever child care is available and affordable, often putting them in a difficult position in having to compromise on the quality and/or regulation of care.

During the most formative years of a childs life, Alt said, these are not compromises we want families to have to make.

German, Briesath, Alt, and the Sauk Prairie community are eager to alleviate these burdens being placed on local families.

Alt said, There will be challenges along the way  the cost of care is a big one  but Sauk Prairie has proven over and over that we are a community who thinks outside the box to overcome barriers that might stop others.

Soon, the mother struggling in Sauk City will have another much-needed resource for her and her family.

GALLERY: Jefferson Elementary has milestone anniversary on Arbor Day Arbor001.jpg Arbor002.jpg Arbor003.jpg Arbor004.jpg Arbor005.jpg Arbor006.jpg Arbor007.jpg Arbor008.jpg Arbor009.jpg
School shootings and mass casualty events in other areas have been on the rise in recent years, and first responders in the Juneau County area took a step toward being better prepared.

The Juneau County Emergency Management department, led by director and Lyndon Station police chief Jeremy Bonikowske, brought together area county law enforcement agencies, fire departments and emergency medical services on June 7 at Mauston High School to take part in preparation exercises.

Staff for the agencies carried mock weapons and practiced techniques for entering rooms throughout the building, approaching the possible shooter, and rescuing injured individuals, portrayed by volunteer community actors.

Were testing our emergency response plans in the event of an active shooter at a school district here in Juneau County, said Bonikowske. Were working with fire, law enforcement, and EMS just testing our capabilities and making certain our plans are good in the event something like this were to happen.

Wisconsin State Patrol troopers, Juneau County Sheriffs Office deputies, and officers and command staff from police departments in Mauston, New Lisbon, and Wonewoc all participated in the event. Fire and EMS staff from Mauston and the other Juneau County communities, as well as Reedsburg in Sauk County, also participated.

Bonikowske added that emergency management has been planning this training over the past four years, with a hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic. He and Mauston city administrator Randy Reeg said that there has not been any significant active shooter threats in Mauston or Juneau County.

Wed rather be prepared for something than not be prepared, said Bonikowske.

The county contracted with Pre-Emergency Planning, a Lodi-based company that specializes in planning and training for emergency situations. Melissa Waller, the companys owner, attended the event and said the planning for it was in conjunction with the area responders, Mile Bluff Medical Center, and the volunteer actors.

It really gives them an opportunity to test and validate their plans and work with partners to make sure we can communicate, have realistic expectations from one another, and really get a chance to operationally test, said Waller.

Waller emphasized the importance of being prepared for such events and discussed flexibility in planning for various situations based on circumstances.

Thats something we work really hard at, as well as presenting some unique challenges so that its not a traditional event that they would expect, said Waller, referring to adaptability in training.

Mauston Police Department Chief Mike Zilisch said that active shooter training is not only instrumental for his department and other first responders, but for the general public. He added that MPD had performed similar events four times in the past.

Full-scales are nice because theyre kind of real-world-ers  as close as we can get to real world, said Zilisch. A lot of times when we do role-play, its not full-scale ... more of a tabletop exercise.

He added that smaller scale exercises feature more script reading and other factors that do not prepare law enforcement and others as much for real life situations. Full-scale trainings like the one at Mauston High School give Zilisch and others a better idea of how responders would perform in a real-life active shooter or other dangerous situations.

What tools you may need, what things may need to be polished, what things you dont necessarily have to focus on, said Zilisch regarding the advantages of full-scale exercises.

Reeg lauded area first responders ability to create the active shooter preparedness plan. He said that investments from the city and county into first responder agencies pay off with exercises such as the one on June 7.

He also discussed the county and its municipalities limited resources with regard to mental health treatment and the challenges that can create.

It comes up all the time, but with the limited resources, we dont have a great capacity to invest in it for the most part, said Reeg. Were always happy for opportunities to arise to find resources to get to the people that need it.

The volunteer community actors portrayed injured individuals, with body and clothing paint designed to simulate bullet wounds. They also mock limped and expressed pain emotions to help train the EMS staff. One drill portrayed a possible death from injuries in which EMS staff utilized a bed sheet as a body bag, though the actor was not covered with the sheet.

EMS staff and law enforcement carried the injured actors from different rooms in Mauston High School to the schools common area near its main entrance, where they were given treatment.

Mannequins were placed in random areas throughout Mauston High School to portray dead individuals from a possible mass shooter. Before rescuing individuals, officers found and apprehended an actor portraying an active shooter in the band room of the high school.

I dont think we can get enough of it, said New Lisbon Police Chief Kyle Walker in regard to active shooter training. I dont think you can overprepare, whether its a school-based incident, workplace violence, or something like that. Its great working with our community partners.

Walker said that his department and the other first responders share information about possible threats and other issues that could lead to tragic situations in order to be proactive and prevent possible events. He said that school and business safety plans are beneficial and that community involvement can help improve them even more.

Western Technical Colleges Mauston campus on the northeast side of the city held a reunification area practice to go along with the training. Sue Goyette, the School District of Maustons transportation director, said that Western Technical College was chosen because of its distance from the school, emphasizing the importance of a safe place being a distance away from the site of an unfortunate event.

Maybe theres something going on in the neighborhood that wed have to lock the schools down, said Goyette, also pointing out other possible events such as fires and weather-related situations. We dont want kids to just go home. We need to make sure were getting them with the correct and safe guardians so they can get home.

Goyette added that reunification sites are meant to reunite students with the correct family members in a possible mass casualty event.
We're always interested in hearing about news in our community. Let us know what's going on!

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A new Emerson College Polling/Inside California Politics survey of California voters finds 44% of voters approve of the job President Joe Biden is doing in office, while 40% disapprove and 17% are neutral.
Governor Joe Lombardo is asking the legislature to reconsider a financing plan that his office worked out with the A's toward the end of the regular session.
When you crave a slice of old school San Francisco, North Beach delivers in all the right ways.

The city's Little Italy is peppered with architectural landmarks and legacy small businesses that have been here forever; a bastion of hidden alleyways with Beat-laced history. Whether you're sipping a classic cocktail, putting away an entire pizza, sipping espresso, or searching for a just-right book of poetry, keep your eyesand your mindwide open when exploring this richly cultured neighborhood.

Don't miss the 67th Annual North Beach Festival, June 17-18, 2023.

Where to Get Drinks in North Beach, SF (Courtesy of 15 Romolo) One of our favorite cocktail bars in the city, 15 Romolo (15 Romolo Place) has dark alley vibes, a well-stocked jukebox, and a photo booth. The drinks are tops: Pump some coins into the jukebox, order the Pimms Cup (it may be the best you've ever had), and don't shy away from the food, which is a solid choice for late-night noshing. // Sip in Barbary Coast style at Comstock Saloon (155 Columbus Ave), a gorgeously appointed saloon with stiff drinks, tasty food, and nods to SF's colorful history (see: the original urinal trough underneath the bar). Order the Barkeep's Whimsy, an off-menu concoction that changes depending on the bartender's mood. // Time-travel back to an era of guys and dolls, cats and dames at Tony Nik's(1534 Stockton), a classic cocktail bar where both formal attire and double dealing feel apropos. Sidle up to the bar or snag the cozy booth at the back, sip on a gin martini or a Manhattan, and make like a film noir. // Brave the smell (this place has been around since the 1800s) and groove to the blues at The Saloon(1232 Grant Ave). // Get an education in dive bar excellence at your choice of cool North Beach dive bars: Our favorites are Mr. Bing's(201 Columbus Ave) and Hawaii West(729 Vallejo St) // Grab an upstairs seat at Vesuvio(255 Columbus Ave) where you can enjoy your drinks in a dark looking, intimate feeling space. // Specs' Twelve Adler Museum Cafe(12 Williams Pl.) is eccentric North Beach history in one crazy nutshell of a bar. Just ask one of the guys at the barhe's probably been sitting on that same bar stool for the past 50 yearsand share a pitcher of beer with a wedge of gouda and a basket of Saltine crackers. // The Church Key (1402 Grant Ave.) is a remarkable little beer bar that manages to feel hidden despite its location on the often-thronged Grant Avenue. Marked by a glowing key, it features a frequently rotating draft selection, an epic list of bottled beers, and deep soul cuts spun on vinyl on Wednesday nights.

North Beach Coffee Culture (Courtesy of Caffe Greco) The OG of North Beach coffee shops, Caffe Trieste(609 Vallejo St) is the spot for great espresso, jukebox tunes, and people-watching the locals who've been hanging out here for decades. You may even find yourself sitting next to Francis Ford CoppolaTrieste is where he wrote The Godfather. // We love everything about Reveille Coffee Co(200 Columbus Ave), from their wonderfully roasted beans to their avocado toast (uh huh). // Blink and you'll miss Hole in the Wall(524 Union St), which serves delicious pour-overs in "blonde" or "brunette" form (light and dark roast) at the counter. Decaf is never an option. // Trust us when we say you'll want to try house-roasted beans atGraffeo(735 Columbus Ave), a neighborhood staple since 1935. // Caffe Greco(423 Columbus Ave) has jovial service, floor-to-ceiling windows, and a parklet for taking in the bustle of the neighborhood. // Head over to Stella Pastry and Cafe(446 Columbus Ave) for excellent cannolis.

Things to Do in North Beach (Daniel Triassi) Landmarks

The world lost a great literary light in February 2021 with the passing of Lawrence Ferlinghetti, but his City Lights Booksellers(261 Columbus Ave) shines on. Now in its 70th year, the Beat Generation holdout continues to carry an absolutely incredible selection of books by local authors across three paper-stuffed three stories. Also an acclaimed publishing house, City Lights' staff picks are always on point. // Washington Square Park is a charming urban green space set before the remarkable backdrop that is Peter and Paul Church. This is where Marilyn Monroe and Joe Dimaggio were famously photographed after their nuptials; today it's popular for rose-fueled picnics, sunbathing, and the occasional movie night. // Buy a ticket and head up to the observation desk for panoramic views of the city from Coit Tower(1 Telegraph Hill Blvd.), built in 1933 and named for a local firefighter who, upon her death, designated funding for beautifying SF. Entertainment Hand's down one of the best music venues in the city, Bimbo's 365 Club's (1025 Columbus Ave) classic nightclub houses acts from up-and-coming indie bands to beloved local '80s cover bands. // Head over to The Beat Museum(540 Broadway St) to learn all about Kerouac and company. // ROFL with first-rate standup acts at Cobb's Comedy Club(915 Columbus Ave). // The show goes on at Club Fugazi(678 Green St.) where Dear San Francisco: A High-Flying Love Story is an acrobatic contemporary circus from Montreal's The 7 Fingers Collective. Shopping Get in the spirit of North Beach's old school charm with a new hat (or three) at the flagship store for family-run Goorin Bros. (1612 Stockton St). Goorin has been making hats since the late 19th century. // Since 1979, dapper gents have looked to Al's Attire(1300 Grant Ave) for bespoke clothing and kicks. // AB Fits(1519 Grant Ave.) is an OG in the neighborhood, popular among locals who loves its eponymous denim label plus comfy streetwear from brands such as Blluemade, Cotton Citizen, and Engineered Garments. // Brushing up on your Italian? Peruse the shelves at bookshop Libreria Pino(548 Union St.). // Vinyl-lovers, unite: 101 Music(1414 Grant Ave) is a classic destination for rare recordings, old favorites, and LPs you didn't know you needed. Devote some time to thumb through the stacks of used records, and don't forget to check out the jazz section for a great selection of mid-century North Beach favorites. // Ring the bell at Fish Tank Gallery(1331 Grant Ave): If resident artist Jeremy Fish (Silly Pink Bunnies) is in the house, he'll invite you in to peruse his signature work. But before you do, grab a pre-roll from the North Beach Pipeline dispensary (1335 Grant Ave.) next door. Additional reporting by Coral Sisk.




Cormac McCarthy, the author of iconic works of fiction  including his bestselling, National Book Award-winning 1992 novel All The Pretty Horses  passed away June 13 at his Santa Fe, New Mexico, home at age 89.

His most recent books, which were published late last year, were linked novels, The Passenger and Stella Maris. Both rather grim, they featured Bobby Western, a salvage diver whos afraid of the watery depths, and sister Alicia, whos been diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia.

McCarthy wasnt a sunny writer, to be sure.

His stories tended to focus on the dark side of human nature, including the truly bloody Blood Meridian (1985) and the Western crime thriller No Country for Old Men (2005). The latter was turned into a riveting Oscar-winning film by the Coen Brothers, with Javier Bardem starring as Anton Chigurh, one of the most unforgettable and chilling villains in movie history.

McCarthy, who grew up in Knoxville, Tennessee, was famously private; The New York Times described him as a gregarious recluse in a 1992 profile. The story included a rare interview with the author, in which he offered a telling quote: There's no such thing as life without bloodshed. I think the notion that the species can be improved in some way, that everyone could live in harmony, is a really dangerous idea. Those who are afflicted with this notion are the first ones to give up their souls, their freedom.

If youve never explored the authors work, consider starting with one of his five most notable novels.

No Country For Old Men

A gripping Western thriller, this 2005 novel dives deep into the dark side. Texan Llewellyn Moss stumbles across an abandoned truck, men shot dead around it, with a load of heroin and cash  a drug deal gone very bad. He takes off with the money and finds himself pursued by violent enemies (including the aforementioned Chigurh). Sheriff Ed Tom Bell is the conscience of the story, and eventually overwhelmed by the violence in his midst.

The Road

One of McCarthys best known works, this Pulitzer Prize winner is a postapocalyptic classic about a devoted father and son trying to survive in a frightening, decimated world, much of it burned to ash. The story is as bleak as can be, in one sense, but also a testament to humans capacity to love in the most desperate of times. The Guardian called it terrifying, but also beautiful and tender. It was adapted into a 2009 film starring Viggo Mortensen.
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Funding and Key Approvals Secured for Cannon Development

Perth, June 14, 2023 AEST (ABN Newswire) - Horizon Minerals Limited ( ASX:HRZ ) is pleased to advise that it has met the Tranche 2 Conditions Precedent to the drawdown funding of US$3.0 million (A$4.36 million) to advance development of the Cannon underground gold project.



Horizon executed a Loan Agreement and General Security Deed with Nebari Partners LLC ("Nebari") dated 23 November 2022 for a US$5.0 million secured loan facility ("Facility"). The Facility is comprised of a two tranche Convertible Loan Facility with US$2.0 million in Tranche 1 and US$3.0 million in Tranche 2. Tranche 1 was drawn down on 29 November 2022 to enable the deferred payment for the Cannon gold project acquisition, with Tranche 2 subject to the satisfaction of Conditions Precedent and Subsequent to the Loan Agreement, including Horizon shareholder approval and Nebari Investment Committee approval.



All Conditions Precedent and Subsequent to the Loan Agreement have been satisfied and now the Nebari Investment Committee has granted final approval. The Tranche 2 funds have been received by Horizon and are available for use.



Horizon has also secured all necessary approvals to commence the underground development, inclusive of an approved Mining Proposal and Mine Closure Plan from DMIRS, and a groundwater licence and works approval for dewatering and pipeline construction from DWER.



The Cannon Feasibility Study was released on the ASX on 29 March 2022 and demonstrated positive economic results. Horizon has also secured a 200kt processing allocation with FMR Investments (FMR) via the Greenfields Plant.



Formal mining and processing contract / JV negotiations are well underway with preferred partner FMR, following which the Horizon Board will make a formal Financial Investment Decision for the development of the Cannon project.



The Company plans to implement its clear goal of bringing a sequence of underground projects into production, commencing with Cannon, followed by the Penny's Find and Rose Hill projects which are currently under evaluation. The Company now has a strategy of generating continuous cash flow from all of Horizon's JORC resources via contract / JV in this high Australian dollar gold price to support the large-scale exploration program and future mine developments across our core assets.



Commenting on the progress at Cannon, incoming CEO Mr Grant Haywood said:



"We are very pleased to receive the funds from Nebari in line with the agreed terms of our Loan Agreement and on competitive commercial terms. This now leaves Horizon with the startup capital and approvals needed to advance the Cannon gold project into development and production in the second half of 2023."





About Horizon Minerals Limited





Horizon Minerals Limited (ASX:HRZ) is a gold exploration and mining company focussed on the Kalgoorlie and Menzies areas of Western Australia which are host to some of Australia's richest gold deposits. The Company is developing a mining pipeline of projects to generate cash and self-fund aggressive exploration, mine developments and further acquisitions. The Teal gold mine has been recently completed.

Horizon is aiming to significantly grow its JORC-Compliant Mineral Resources, complete definitive feasibility studies on core high grade open cut and underground projects and build a sustainable development pipeline.

Horizon has a number of joint ventures in place across multiple commodities and regions of Australia providing exposure to Vanadium, Copper, PGE's, Gold and Nickel/Cobalt. Our quality joint venture partners are earning in to our project areas by spending over $20 million over 5 years enabling focus on the gold business while maintaining upside leverage.
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The four-time Grammy winner and his 'Her Loss' collaborator, 21 Savage, will kick off their 'It's All a Blur' tour on June 16 in New Orleans.

Jun 14, 2023

AceShowbiz - Drake has bid farewell to his home city of Toronto ahead of his and 21 Savage's "It's All a Blur" tour. Before kicking off the trek, the "Certified Lover Boy" artist penned a tribute to the city.

"Goodbye my beautiful city," the Canadian superstar wrote on Instagram Story on Monday, June 12. "I haven't left for this reason in over 6 years but I hope I can make you proud once again. I love you all. Have an amazing summer and pls try to take care of each other. See you in October."

Drake and 21 Savage announced dates for their "It's All a Blur" tour in March. The tour is in support of Drizzy's last three albums, "Certified Lover Boy", "Honestly, Nevermind" and his joint album with 21 Savage, "Her Loss".

Drake and 21 Savage will kick off the 29-date trek on June 16 in New Orleans. The pair are set to make stops in cities throughout North America and Canada before concluding the Live Nation-produced tour on September 5 in Glendale, Arizona.

The two hip-hop artists dropped their collaborative album, "Her Loss", on November 4, 2022. The project debuted atop the Billboard 200 albums chart after earning 404,000 equivalent album units earned in the U.S. in the week ending November 10.

It marks Drake's second No. 1 album of 2022 following "Honestly, Nevermind", which bowed atop the list dated July 2. The "God's Plan" hitmaker joins Stray Kids as another act to score a pair of No. 1 albums that year.

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Paul McCartney and late bandmate John Lennon will be featured on 'the final Beatles song,' which has been finished using artificial intelligence to extract Lennon's vocals.

Jun 14, 2023

AceShowbiz - Sir Paul McCartney is set to re-team with the late John Lennon on "the final Beatles song," which has been finished using AI. The surviving member of the legendary rock & roll group has revealed they used artificial intelligence on an old demo to extract Lennon's vocals.

"We just finished it up and it'll be released this year," McCartney, 80, told BBC Radio 4's "Today" show. According to reports, it's titled "Now and Then" although the music legend didn't name the song.

Lennon - who was murdered in New York in 1980 aged 40 - penned the song and his widow Yoko Ono handed it to McCartney in 1994 on a tape labelled "For Paul". It had been considered for release as part of the band's "Anthology" project, which included a documentary, a three-volume set of double albums, and a book on the history of the group. However, they went for "Real Love" and "Free as a Bird" from the same tape.

Iconic The Beatles producer George Martin refused to produce the former track so they recruited ELO's Jeff Lynne, who had already co-produced the latter tune. The same method was used in Peter Jackson's 2021 three-part Beatles documentary "Get Back".

McCartney said, "[Jackson] was able to extricate John's voice from a ropey little bit of cassette. We had John's voice and a piano and he could separate them with AI. They tell the machine, 'That's the voice. This is a guitar. Lose the guitar.' So when we came to make what will be the last Beatles record, it was a demo that John had. We were able to take John's voice and get it pure through this AI. Then we can mix the record, as you would normally do. So it gives you some sort of leeway."

McCartney admits that AI is "kind of scary." However, he added, "It's the future. We'll just have to see where that leads."

The Beatles' final song will be shared with the world later this year, with a firm release date yet to be announced. Late guitarist George Harrison - who died in 2001 aged 58 - penned their last new song, "I, Me, Mine", from the LP "Let It Be", which was released before their break-up in April 1970. The Beatles also included 82-year-old drummer Sir Ringo Starr.

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The 'Guardians of the Galaxy' actor advises people to have children as soon as possible, claiming that fellow actor Adam Sandler also has similar opinions as him.

Jun 14, 2023

AceShowbiz - Chris Pratt has encouraged people to "rush" into having children. The 43-year-old actor - who shares Jack, 10, with ex-wife Anna Faris, and Lula, two, and 12-month-old Eloise with spouse Katherine Schwarzenegger - disagrees with advice to take time to start a family because he thinks the more time spent with his kids, the better.

"People say all the time, 'Don't rush to have kids'. I personally disagree. Rush. Have them. Of course, make sure you find a great partner, but don't wait," he told Men's Journal magazine.

I was talking to Adam Sandler a while back and he said, 'Every day you wait is a day they don't get to have you in their life.' The younger you have kids, the more time they get to have with you. It's wild. Having kids is incredible. The things you normally take for granted in life are new."

"As they grow up, it becomes more about connecting with them as individuals and what makes them unique. The softness of their hearts. How their minds work. How they're the same as you. How they're different."

The "Guardians of the Galaxy" star admitted having his own children makes him want to make more family-friendly movies, particularly because a lot of the ones he's seen with his brood are "bad."

He said, "In the same way that being a father changes the kind of actor you are, it can definitely change the kinds of roles you want to be involved in. I've found myself wanting to do more PG movies."

"I see a lot because my kids want to watch them, and to be honest, some of them are bad. And I'm sitting there thinking, This is terrible. So at the same time as wanting to make movies that would entertain my kids, I'm also thinking about creating movies that are merciful on the parents."

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The 82-year-old 'Harry Potter' actress celebrates Pride month by stripping down to her birthday suit on the front page of magazine and talking about her body insecurities.

Jun 14, 2023

AceShowbiz - Miriam Margolyes loathes her "big t***" and "drooping belly." The "Harry Potter" actress, 82, got candid as she posed for a naked shoot for British Vogue's annual Pride issue - using a selection of iced buns to cover her privates.

"I like my face. I think my face is kind and warm and open and smiley. But I hate my body. I hate big t*** (and) a drooping belly, little twisted legs. I'm not thrilled with that. But you just make the best of it. You have to. You do the best you can," Miriam admitted.

Miriam also revealed she is going into surgery to have a stent fitted in her heart, but insisted she is not "terrified." She added, "When you're young, you never think about death. You just think about your next f*** basically. I think about death a lot. Oh, every day, for sure. Every morning when I get up I think, 'Hmmm, another day,' which maybe I wasn't expecting."

Openly-gay Miriam also addressed how she came out to her parents, saying the admission "hurt" her mum and dad.

The actress, famed for playing Professor Sprout in the "Harry Potter" franchise, came out in 1966 when homesexuality was still illegal. She said about always being proud of her sexuality, "I never had any shame about being gay or anything really. I knew it wasn't criminal because it was me. I couldn't be criminal."

Miriam - who is married to Australian historian Heather Sutherland, 80, who keeps out of the spotlight - was rushed to hospital last month following a health scare, and posted a photo on Facebook of herself on a ward as she updated fans about her condition.

It turned out she had contracted a chest infection following a routine heart procedure to treat aortic stenosis - a narrowing of the aortic valve. She told her followers, "I did survive and I am still in The Royal Brompton Hospital certainly till Sunday. I am growing energy but it's still not quite me. I am putting this so you know how grateful I am for lovely messages."

The July issue of British Vogue is available via digital download and on newsstands from Tuesday, June 20.

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Making their first public appearance at the Hollywood premiere of the DC movie, the actor also sings praise for director Andy Muschietti for his 'monumental' work.

Jun 14, 2023

AceShowbiz - Ezra Miller clearly has got a lot to be thankful for as Warner Bros. has been putting up with their antics. Making their first public appearance since numerous controversies last year, the actor expressed gratitude to the studio's execs and DC co-chairs Peter Safran and James Gunn at "The Flash" premiere in Hollywood.

On Monday, June 12, the 30-year-old resurfaced at the DC film's premiere at the TCL Chinese Theater. While they didn't answer many questions and kept it moving on the red carpet, the embattled actor delivered a short speech inside the theater.

In a video from the event shared by Deadline, Miller received applause from the audience as they were introduced by director Andy Muschietti shortly before the screening. They then returned the favor, calling the filmmaker "maestro."

"Maestro has said it all and has said it well, and I just want to say that I love you, maestro," the "Justice League" star said. "I think you are amazing, and I think your work is monumental."

Miller then thanked "our great champion" Barbara Muschietti as well as the beloved comic book character's creators Gardner Fox, Harry Lampert, Bob Kanigher and Carmine Infantino "for initiating this character into life."

They later gave a shout-out to Warner Bros. Discovery film leaders Pamela Abdy and Michael DeLuca, CEO David Zaslav, "and the dynamic duo, Peter Safran and James Gunn, for your grace and discernment and care in the context of my life and in bringing this moment actually to fruition."

Miller also credited the film's "crew, our irresistible dream cast, and just the thousands of artists and workers who made this movie." They continued, "Everybody who supported us in our lives and the world and everybody who supported me in my life and in the world along this decade-long trying and very beautiful peregrination all the way to here... Just to finally say, with actually no further delays, enjoy 'The Flash'."

Also coming in support of the highly-anticipated debut of "The Flash" were Gunn, Ben Affleck and wife Jennifer Lopez, Michael Shannon, Sasha Calle and Kiersey Clemons among others. Michael Keaton, who reprises his role as Batman, was nowhere to be seen at the Hollywood premiere as he had probably flown to Paris to attend the premiere in the City of Light on Tuesday.

"The Flash" will open wide in theaters across the nation on June 16.

Back in August 2022, Miller said they would be seeking treatment for "complex mental health issues" following multiple arrests. "Having recently gone through a time of intense crisis, I now understand that I am suffering complex mental health issues and have begun ongoing treatment," they said in a statement provided to Variety.

"I want to apologize to everyone that I have alarmed and upset with my past behavior. I am committed to doing the necessary work to get back to a healthy, safe and productive stage in my life," added the actor, who is non-binary and uses they/them pronouns.

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The 28-year-old Yeezy architectural designer goes shoeless and wears a pair of sheer tights with nothing underneath when going for a quick lunch at KFC with the embattled rapper in Los Angeles.

Jun 14, 2023

AceShowbiz - Kanye West's wife Bianca Censori made sure everyone would turn their heads for her with her fashion choice in a new outing. The Yeezy architectural designer went shoeless when going for a quick lunch at KFC with the embattled rapper in Los Angeles on Tuesday, June 13.

For the outing, Ye opted for his go-to outfit which included a black Vetements "Polizei" T-shirt with shoulder pads and sock shoes. His wife, meanwhile, chose for a more daring ensemble.

In some pictures obtained by Page Six, the 28-year-old wore a fitted black T-shirt with a pair of sheer tights with nothing underneath. Not only ditching her underwear, the Australian designer also went sans shoes for the occasion.

The couple apparently wasn't bothered by Bianca's eyebrows-raising outfit. The news outlet claimed that the pair enjoyed their meal inside as they sat for about 30 minutes. She could also be seen grabbing a donut for the road before leaving the fast food joint.

Bianca is no stranger to bizarre fashion choices. Earlier this month, Bianca successfully stole the show with her wacky outfit while attending a church service in Los Angeles. Going against what most people wear for a church service, Bianca donned a stocking-style black dress that featured a sculptural padded ring encircling her shoulders and neck. Some Internet users unsurprisingly trolled her look with some comparing it to a "condom" and "an uncircumcised penis."

Prior to that, Bianca was photographed rocking a full headwrap that only left her eyes to be seen during a dinner date in West Hollywood. As for Ye, the Yeezy designer kept it casual in a tight black T-shirt that said "Berlin." The father of four appeared to ditch his heavily padded looks from previous days. He completed the look with loose jeans and what appears to be another pair of the "sock shoes."

The couple was snapped stepping out for a rooftop dinner at the West Hollywood Edition Hotel on Monday night, May 29. They were also seen holding hands as they left the hotel.

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The 'Everwood' actor took to social media to share a video showing off his country farm in Manchester before he was killed in an accident near Dorset on Monday, June 12.

Jun 14, 2023

AceShowbiz - Treat Williams was revelling in the beauty of his home hours before he died in a motorcycle accident. The "Everwood" actor's final Instagram posts showed him enjoying the scenery at his country farm in Manchester, Vermont, and watching hay get cut, with the star posting a video of it with the caption, "Hay Day."

Treat, who died on Monday, June 12, aged 71 following a motorcycle accident near Dorset, Vermont, also uploaded a photo earlier in the day showing the greenery of his grounds with the message, "There is no better smell than new mown hay."

The actor had previously revealed how he first fell in love with Vermont as a child during family vacations before settling there, and told Vermont magazine in 2021, "I bought the house that we're in 35 years ago. I've always had an enormous love for Vermont, both in winter and summer. There was something incredibly special about it to me, and the people here are incredibly honest, real, and good-humored. There's also always something new to discover somewhere on a dirt road that you've never traveled on before. I think very few people are lucky as I am to say, 'I love where I live.' I don't have any fantasies of being somewhere else. I have everything I want and need in Vermont. I've been all over the world, and I've never seen a place as beautiful as Vermont."

Treat is survived by his wife, Pam Van Sant, 68, whom he married in 1988, and their two children, Gill, 31, and 25-year-old Elinor.

The actor's representative Barry McPherson confirmed the actor's death by saying, "He was killed this afternoon. He was making a left or a right (and) a car cut him off. I'm just devastated. He was the nicest guy. He was so talented."

Barry added to People on Monday, June 12, "He was an actor's actor. Filmmakers loved him. He's been the heart of Hollywood since the late 1970s. He was really proud of his performance this year. He's been so happy with the work that I got him. He's had a balanced career."

The Vermont State Police said in a statement Treat was "unable to avoid a collision" with a 2008 Honda Element and "was thrown from his motorcycle." It added, "He suffered critical injuries and was airlifted to Albany Medical Center in Albany, New York, where he was pronounced dead."

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The 31-year-old WeWoreWhat founder makes use of her social media account to clarify the accusations that she uses a filter to edit her abs while putting the blame on Instagram glitches.

Jun 15, 2023

AceShowbiz - Influencer Danielle Bernstein shut down claims that she used a filter to edit her abs. On Tuesday, June 13, the WeWoreWhat founder clarified the accusations while putting the blame on Instagram glitches.

Danielle took to Instagram Story to respond to a follower who wrote on her DM, "Girl I love you but your filter is glitching HARD here. Just be YOU!" Replying to the message, Danielle said, "I shouldn't even be addressing this but I don't use filters on my videos."

She added, "I take [my videos] directly on my iPhone and upload and most times through instagram direct - you guys are crayyyyy." The 31-year-old continued, "My abs are my abs, sometimes they show more than others, defending if I'm flexing, the angle, the lighting etc"

Denying that she faked her abs, Danielle wrote, "If only I had the time for that much editing lol. Also the zoom feature on insta stories glitches all the timeee.. Sorry you haven't caught me doing anything here!"

It wasn't the first time the fashion influencer received backlash from the public. The embattled influencer was accused of having copied indie designers. Last year, she was also slammed for her "tone deaf" Instagram caption that appeared to use the Ukraine-Russia conflict to help raise her company's visibility.

Danielle wasn't the only one who faced accusation of digitally altering her pictures online. Kardashian-Jenner family are often slammed for their alleged Photoshop fails. Most recently, Kim Kardashian was questioned over a pic that appeared to be missing a finger.

Back in April, Jenna Bush Hager condemned the use of filters on social media. "Y'all, are we turning everybody into a Kardashian? Is that the point?" she said on "Today with Hoda & Jenna". "We look so fake!"

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Cheil India is aggressively expanding its creative pool with the hiring of Tarvinderjit Singh as Senior Executive Creative Director. Tarvinderjit Singhs remit includes overseeing and shaping the creative output of Cheils work for Samsung India. He is going to be based out of Cheil Indias Gurgaon office.

An advertising veteran with more than two decades of work under his belt, he has helmed creative teams at several agencies including McCann Erickson, Ogilvy, Leo Burnett, Contract Advertising, and Bates. His last stint was with Famous Innovations. His work covers a wide spectrum of industries having worked on clients like Samsung, Chevrolet, Bata Global, Perfetti, Seagram, Coca-Cola, Oppo, Telenor, Dabur, Metlife, and UNICEF.

Tarvinderjit Singhs trove of work has won several prestigious awards like Cannes Lions, D&AD Impact, The One Show, Spikes Asia, Epica, Adfest, Asia-Pacific Tambuli Awards, Ad Stars, and Kyoorius.

Also Read:Cheil India appoints Amit Nandwani as National Creative Director

Also Read:Cheil India appoints Srijib Mallik as the head of Samsung Business

Vikash Chemjong, Chief Creative Officer at Cheil India said, Its good news for any agency when good people want to be a part of the gig. And over the last six months or so, we are proud to say that some of the best talent in the city [across different levels] have joined us. And now with Tarvinder too joining us, our creative quotient has just got another huge boost! If what he managed to do in his last stint here is anything to go by, we have exciting days ahead of us. Both for us and our client Samsung.

Tarvinderjit said, My previous stint at Cheil gave me the introduction that I cherish most - the person behind Samsung Service Van and Samsung Technical School (Seema Nagar). The Earth has been around the Sun a few times since. A signal that its time to embellish the introduction. Hence, the return to the place that birthed it all. Thankfully, the propellants are still there in the right quantities. An enviable pool of inspiring talent, exposure to the best of tech and trends, and an incomparable stage courtesy one of the biggest brands in the world. All that I need to do is punch-in and punch up.

Sanjeev Jasani, Chief Operating Officer, Cheil India added, "I had the privilege of working with Tarvinderjit in the past and thrilled to be working with him again. His appointment continues our strong momentum to ramp up talent at the agency as we strive to build Cheil into a creative power house.

Srijib Mallik, Head of Samsung Business at Cheil India said, Tarvinderjit has a formidable reputation as a creative having created iconic campaigns for marquee brands (including Samsung). His addition to Cheil family will help us deliver cutting edge work for Samsung that creates new benchmarks in the industry.
CNBC-TV18, India's premier English business news brand, proudly marks a significant milestone as it celebrates the 21st anniversary of its flagship show, 'Young Turks'. Since its inception in 2002, Young Turks has been at the forefront of the Indian business news landscape, showcasing fearless entrepreneurs who have pushed boundaries and established pioneering and sustainable businesses.

To commemorate this achievement, CNBC-TV18 presents the special line-up of 'Young Turks@21'. This year, the show will travel to the United States, specifically Silicon Valley, to bring viewers exclusive content from the front lines of the Artificial Intelligence (AI) revolution. Led by Shereen Bhan, the series will feature in-depth conversations with global executives, thought leaders, and investors, in what promises to be yet another highly successful season of "Young Turks - Voices From The Valley".

Also Read: CNBC-TV18s Budget Verdict is here!

Viewers can expect an exciting array of special shows, interviews, and special associations with prominent personalities and startup entrepreneurs such as Anand Rajaraman, Founding Partner, Rocketship VC; Ravi Kumar, CEO, Cognizant; Jishnu Bhattacharjee, Managing Director, Nexus VP; Dev Khare, Partner, Lightspeed Venture Partners; Raviraj Jain, Partner, Lightspeed Venture Partners; Deep Nishar, MD, General Catalyst; Bhavin Pandya, Co-founder & Co-CEO, Games 24x7; Trivikraman Thampy, Co-founder & Co-CEO, Games 24x7; Nitin Seth, CEO, Incedo Inc.; Deepak Raj, Founder, Raj Associates; Sri Satish Ambati, Co-founder & CEO, H2O.ai; Vaikkunth Mugunthan, Co-founder & CEO, DynamoFL; Ashutosh Garg, Founder & CEO, Eightfold AI;; Raghu Ravinutala, Co-founder & CEO, Yellow.ai; and Keith Peiris, Co-founder & CEO, Tome.

The focus of this year's discussions will revolve around the AI revolution. The series will explore a wide range of topics, including the invention of machine learning, its role in enabling AI systems to learn and improve performance over time, and the profound impact it will have on various aspects of our lives. These insightful conversations will delve into the transformative potential of AI and address the necessary guardrails to ensure its safe and ethical implementation.

The on-air programming and social content will serve as a valuable resource for entrepreneurs, investors, and anyone interested in the future of artificial intelligence. It will demonstrate how AI is solving problems, creating new products and services, and disrupting established industries. The series will also shed light on the challenges and opportunities associated with integrating AI into the startup economy. As part of the 21st-year celebrations of Young Turks, CNBC-TV18 will release specially curated videos on social platforms, featuring engaging topics such as 21 innovations that have shaped the startup ecosystem in recent years, drawn from the extensive Young Turks archives.

Sharing her enthusiasm, Shereen Bhan, Managing Editor, CNBC-TV18 and Series Editor, Young Turks, stated, "As Young Turks, India's longest-running show focusing on startups and entrepreneurship, celebrates its 21st anniversary, we return with a brand-new season of Voices from The Valley. This dynamic season will feature a diverse line-up of global faces, including seasoned entrepreneurs, executives and emerging innovators and disruptors. They will share their distinctive perspectives on the current challenges and opportunities within the tech industry while offering valuable insights into the trajectory of AI in the years to come. Whether you are a veteran or a newcomer, Young Turks - Voices from the Valley has something to offer to everyone."

Tune into Young Turks@21  Voices from the Valley throughout the month of June on CNBC-TV18 and CNBCTV18.com
Dentsu India has released its latest dentsu Insights report, titled Impact Of Influencer Marketing In India. The report has been created in collaboration with Recogn - dentsu Indias research division, Boomlet Group - an Influencer Marketing & Crisis Communication Agency and Digital Behaviour Initiative at IIT Delhi.

The report delves into the various aspects of influencer marketing  shedding light on its transformative potential for businesses. By conducting thorough analyses of influencer marketing performance across different platforms, categories, formats, and target audiences, the report equips brands and industries with the tools and insights necessary to chart strategic pathways for success.

According to the study, the FMCG sector leads the pack in leveraging influencer marketing, accounting for 18.5% of industry involvement, closely followed by BFSI at 16.6% and automobiles at 15.9%. While brand awareness has traditionally been the primary driver for influencer marketing (62%), the industrys growth has prompted brands to explore additional avenues to enhance their customer-to-customer ratio. The surge in influencer marketing stems from its ability to amplify brand awareness. With the widespread adoption of social media, influencers have emerged as indispensable assets for promoting brands and driving product sales. They have become a pivotal component of an effective marketing strategy, as the content they create exerts a significant influence on customer behaviour.

In the coming years, the virtual influencer market is set to grow significantly as brands and marketers realise the vast potential of incorporating virtual influencers into their campaigns. Advancements in technologies like artificial intelligence and virtual reality will enhance the capabilities of virtual influencers, driving their popularity even higher. The future of influencer marketing holds great promise with emerging technologies such as Virtual Reality (VR), Augmented Reality (AR), and Mixed Reality (MR). These innovations will revolutionise influencer marketing, captivating millennials and Gen Z, who avidly follow social media influencers. As AR and VR gain traction, brands and marketers will leverage these technologies to engage their target audiences through tech-driven influencer marketing strategies.

Harsha Razdan, CEO, dentsu South Asia, noted, Influencer marketing has revolutionised our approach to connecting with potential customers and elevating brand awareness. With the exponential growth of social media platforms, influencers have cultivated loyal and engaged followers  making them indispensable assets in our marketing strategies. They possess a unique ability to foster trust and credibility among their loyal followers. By partnering with influencers, brands can tap into this trust, build credibility, and authentically promote their products or services. The impact is tangible, with higher engagement rates, increased conversions, and improved brand sentiment. This report serves as an in-depth guide, equipping brands with valuable insights to shape their marketing strategies and drive business growth. As we look to the future, tech-driven influencer marketing strategies will continue captivating hearts and minds. The possibilities are limitless, and the potential for brands to connect with their target audience has never been more exciting.

Danish Malik, Co-Founder and CEO, Boomlet Group, added here, The influencer marketing ecosystem thrives on trust, a fundamental principle that will significantly contribute to the exponential growth of the industry. Today, we are thrilled to introduce our Influencer Marketing Report, offering valuable insights into the ever-evolving landscape of influencer marketing. This comprehensive report is the culmination of meticulous research and analysis conducted through a strategic partnership among Boomlet Group, dentsu Indias Recogn, and the Digital Behaviour Initiative at IIT Delhi.

Malik further said, As the influencer marketing space has emerged as a favoured component of brand promotion, consumers rely on influencers perspectives to inform their purchasing decisions. Our report serves as an indispensable resource, equipping businesses with the knowledge to navigate the dynamic world of influencers and illuminating consumer behaviour within this ecosystem. Boomlet is looking forward to working on more reports like this in the future.

Dentsu Insights from Dentsu India are periodically published reports based on primary research conducted by Recogn - the networks research division that provides consumer and business insights to its audience. Dentsu Insights delve into the different aspects of the digital industry, consumer behaviour, and more. Additionally, the research also covers some relevant topics like Instagram in India  users perspective, Voice Technology in India, and the usage of the internet in the local language.
Madhive, a leading advertising software platform engineered for modern TV advertising, announced today that it has signed a definitive agreement with the Private Equity business within Goldman Sachs Asset Management (Goldman Sachs) for a $300 million investment in the company.

Goldman Sachs significant equity investment comes as Madhives connected TV (CTV) advertising software platform is leading the TV industrys expansion from linear TV advertising into streaming, primarily through its large local broadcaster clients including FOX, Scripps, and TEGNA, among others. The partnership with Goldman Sachs will enable Madhive to further accelerate the growth and adoption of its CTV platform, most notably within the local advertising market, as well as expand new channels such as national / direct-to-consumer advertisers and retail media networks, who are looking to modernize and scale their CTV offerings.

Madhive was founded in 2016 with the original mission of transforming the $360 billion digital TV advertising industry. Co-founders, Adam Helfgott and Tom Bollich, serial entrepreneurs from outside the ad-tech space, saw a more efficient and streamlined way to build for the nascent CTV industry across both the supply and demand side.

Since inception, Madhive has been on a mission to modernize and simplify the ad-tech ecosystem. We purpose-built the Madhive platform in anticipation of the growth of streaming TV  investing in engineering, technology, and infrastructure, said Adam Helfgott, Founder & CEO of Madhive. Our growth stems from collaborating with partners to solve a host of their unique requirements. Through our fully end-to-end tech stack for TV advertising, media sellers and advertisers have the flexibility and tools to reach streaming audiences efficiently at scale.

Madhives full-stack programmatic platform powers hundreds of millions of dollars in media across 20,000+ daily campaigns. The self-service platform is completely configurable and has tools for planning, targeting, activating, and measuring programmatic TV campaigns.

Madhive believes in extensive collaboration to move the industry forward, and we are excited to partner with Goldman Sachs to fuel our next chapter of growth, said Spencer Potts, President of Madhive. Upon closing of the transaction, Adam Helfgott will transition to Strategic Advisor and Chairman of the Board and Spencer Potts will transition to CEO of Madhive.

We have been deeply impressed with Madhives growth and success in the local CTV advertising market within just seven years since its inception, said Leonard Seevers, a Partner and Co-Head of Technology, Media and Telecom investments in the Private Equity business within Goldman Sachs. We are incredibly excited to partner with the Madhive team to drive long-term growth and value creation together.

We believe Madhives purpose-built, end-to-end CTV platform which enables hyper-local precision targeting at national scale is truly differentiated within the ad-tech ecosystem, added Joon Park, a Managing Director in the Private Equity business within Goldman Sachs. We see tremendous growth ahead in the companys existing and adjacent markets and look forward to supporting Madhive to further accelerate the company's journey.

As one of the worlds largest alternative investment managers with over $445 billion of assets, Goldman Sachs has developed an extensive investment track record across the marketing and advertising technology space with select recent investments including iSpot.tv, HUMAN, GumGum and Innovid, among others. The Private Equity business within Goldman Sachs has invested over $90 billion of equity capital in over 900 companies globally since its inception in 1986.

Madhive is headquartered in New York and has approximately 200 employees, with headcount expected to increase by 20% in 2023, at a time when many tech companies are downsizing. Most recently, Madhive hired the former Google and Pinterest executive, Jon Kaplan, as Chief Revenue Officer. Kaplan has extensive expertise in building and scaling large enterprises in the digital advertising and technology categories. This year, Madhive also hired the former Roku and Hulu executive, Kristin Wnuk, as SVP of Sales and the former Affirm and Capital One Software executive, Darien Ford, as Chief Technology Officer.

Latham & Watkins is serving as legal counsel to Madhive. Weil, Gotshal & Manges is serving as legal counsel to Goldman Sachs.
Federal Department of Economic Affairs, Education and Research

Bern, 14.06.2023 - Meeting in London on 14 June 2023, Federal Councillor Guy Parmelin and British Secretary of State for Business and Trade Kemi Badenoch signed an agreement on the mutual recognition of professional qualifications. For Switzerland, this is the second such agreement signed with a partner outside the EU, the first one being the agreement signed with Quebec in 2022.

Cooperation between Switzerland and the United Kingdom on the mutual recognition of professional qualifications began over twenty years ago. Initially, there was the Swiss-EU Agreement on the Free Movement of Persons (AFMP). After the United Kingdom withdrew from the European Union and by extension from the AFMP, Switzerland and the United Kingdom took steps to safeguard the rights of their respective citizens. The resulting Swiss-UK bilateral agreement provided for a transitional period up to the end of 2024. In order to establish a solid basis for the mutual recognition of professional qualifications from 2025 onwards, Switzerland and the United Kingdom have now entered into a new agreement, which will soon be opened for consultation. The Swiss Parliament still needs to ratify the agreement, which is expected to occur sometime in 2024.

The agreement enables citizens of both countries to take up employment in regulated professional activities. Swiss professionals and companies benefit from the agreement as it will enable them to continue offering their services in the United Kingdom. For specific professions, special privileges (e.g. automatic recognition) can be established either through mutual recognition arrangements (MRAs) or by adding annexes to the current agreement. These two options provide the contracting parties with the necessary means to adapt the system over time as needed. The agreement already contains specific provisions covering lawyers.

Encouraging the international recognition of Swiss professional qualifications is one of the stated objectives of the Federal Council's international strategy for education, research and innovation. In order to reach this objective, additional mutual recognition agreements are needed to cover qualifications awarded in countries whose education system is comparable to Switzerland's. The United Kingdom is an ideal partner for Switzerland as both countries have an outstanding education system.

At its meeting on 9 June 2023, the Federal Council authorised the Federal Department of Economic Affairs, Education and Research (EAER) to sign the bilateral agreement with the United Kingdom. It also decided to initiate consultation for this agreement and proposed legislative amendments. The consultation round will continue until 6 October 2023.

Address for enquiries

GS-EAER Communication Service

info@gs-wbf.admin.ch

+41 58 462 20 07

Publisher

Federal Department of Economic Affairs, Education and Research

http://www.wbf.admin.ch




A full-page advertisement that appeared in major newspapers in the state on Tuesday cited a survey that showed Chief Minister Eknath Shinde ahead of Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis in popularity. It did not feature Fadnaviss photo, while its tagline read Modi in the country, Shinde in Maharashtra.

Opposition leaders dubbed it a political drama and a power struggle within the coalition, and they raised a slew of questions, including why the survey was conducted, how many people took part, and how the calculation was done. How could they have only considered CM Eknath Shinde as the preferred candidate for Chief Minister of Maharashtra?

The advertisement in the newspaper mentioned that CM Eknath Shinde gained around 26% for the post of CM, while Dy CM gained around 23% for the post.

Uddhav-faction Shiv Sena took a jibe in their mouthpiece Saamana over the advertisement and said, The Shinde group has become a slave of the rulers of Delhi. It has stooped so low that Balasaheb Thackerays picture was removed due to the fear of Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah. How can such timid people call themselves the Shiv Sena and inheritors of Bal Thackerays legacy?

The Shinde-Fadnavis alliance is spreading a complete conspiracy, UBT Shiv Sena MP Arvind Sawant told Afternoon Voice. The important question here is: which agency did this survey, and is that agency authenticated? If they are so popular in the state, why havent there been any BMC polls yet?

It is the lowest level of politics seen in the state, said veteran Congress leader Ratnakar Mahajan. The political campaign that has begun by these political parties and the current government of the state should showcase the details of the agency and the details of the survey, like methodology and what questions were asked, and a sample of the survey should be shared with the public, and if 26% are in favor of the Shinde government, then 74% are against it.

When asked how they see political changes in the Shinde-Fadnavis government alliance after the state newspaper advertisement, NCP spokesperson Clyde Crasto said, they have become so hungry for power and position in the state, which has caused internal issues in the present government that could be a problem in the state.



People are creating political controversy unnecessarily because the advertisement and survey were done by an independent agency, and the percentage of the survey was shown to depict the current governments strong alliance, and ministers of the state are working hard with a lot of efforts to ensure people give votes to PM Narendra Modi in the 2024 Lok Sabha Polls, said Krishna Hegde, spokesperson of the Shiv Senas Shinde faction.
A private defamation complaint against Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on his comment about a Lingayat chief minister during the recent Assembly election has been dismissed by an Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Court.

The Special Court exclusively to deal with criminal cases related to elected former and sitting MPs/MLAs on Tuesday dismissed the complaint filed for the alleged offences under Sections 499 (defamation) and 500 (punishment for defamation) of the Indian Penal Code.

The private complaint lodged by Shankar Shet and Mallaiah Hiremath alleged that Siddaramaiah had defamed the Lingayat community with his answer to a question by a journalist during the Assembly election. The Congress leader was asked if his party would make a Lingayat the Chief Minister if it came to power. Siddaramaiah allegedly replied that then incumbent CM Basavaraj Bommai was a Lingayat who had indulged in corruption and spoilt the state.
Hours after Tamil Nadu minister V Senthil Balaji was taken into custody by the Enforcement Directorate (ED), DMK Rajya Sabha MP and advocate NR Elango on Wednesday said that the procedure adopted by the agency was totally illegal and unconstitutional. The probe agency took Senthil into custody last night in connection with an alleged money laundering case.

Elango alleged that Tamil Nadu minister Balaji was detained without informing him about the grounds of his arrest. The DMK MP said that the case will be fought legally. The procedure adopted by Enforcement Directorate is totally illegal and unconstitutional. He was taken into custody by ED without informing him of the grounds of his arrest. We will fight this case legally, Elango told reporters here.

Meanwhile, All India Trinamool Congress MP Saugata Roy said that it is totally wrong how Enforcement Directorate is being misused. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge termed the ED action on Balaji as vendetta politics.

Mallikarjun Kharge, Congress President condemns the late-night arrest of Tamil Nadu Electricity Minister V Senthil Balaji by the ED. This is nothing but political harassment and vendetta by the Modi Govt. against those opposed to it. None of us in the Opposition will be intimidated by such brazen moves, a statement by the Congress said. Balaji who complained of chest pain was taken to the Omandurar government hospital in Chennai and admitted there early this morning. Tamil Nadu M K Stalin visited the minister in hospital. Earlier, Tamil Nadu State ministers I Periyasamy and R Gandhi also were seen arriving at the hospital to meet Balaji .

Tamil Nadu minister Ponmudi termed the ED action as a revengeful act and claimed that the Centre is doing wrong against states where there is a non-BJP government. This is a revengeful act. The Union government is doing many wrong things against states where there is a non-BJP government like in West Bengal, Delhi and here, said Ponmudi.

Meanwhile, a team of Rapid Action Force (RAF) has been deployed at Omandurar Government Medical College. The investigating agency took the DMK leader for questioning, after raiding his premises on Tuesday.

High drama was witnessed outside the hospital as the DMK leader was brought there. He could be seen crying in pain while lying in a car as his supporters gathered there to protest against the ED action. On Tuesday raids were carried out at Balajis Karur residence and his office at the state secretariat by the ED sleuths in connection to an alleged money laundering case. In addition to this, the premises of his brother and a close aide in Karur were also raided.
Atmore police have filed charges against the Florida woman accused of stealing nearly $17,000 from an Escambia County (Fla.) Little League organization.

Paula Pugh was initially charged with grand theft and fraud in Florida, but those charges were dropped last week due to what the judge ruled a jurisdictional issue.

But this week, Atmore police said they have charged Pugh with nine counts of 3rd-degree possession of a forged instrument, one count of 1st-degree theft by deception and one of 2nd-degree theft by deception.

Those charges stem from multiple transactions involving the Little League funds which were conducted at the First National Bank in Atmore.

The charges came after Atmore police were contacted about the case on May 31 and began reviewing the financial records and witness statements, according to police. Pugh turned herself in at the Escambia County (Ala.) Detention Center Tuesday morning.

She posted bond and was released Tuesday morning, according to the jail docket.

Pugh was first arrested in April in Florida after authorities uncovered illegal transactions totaling $16,977.87 over a 17-month period between July 2021 and December 2022.

Pugh had served as the treasurer/bookkeeper of the Northwest Escambia Little League from 2017 until last December, when league president John Maughon became suspicious and alerted law enforcement to the suspect theft.

According to the Escambia County Sheriffs Office, investigators obtained bookkeeping records and bank records which showed transactions reportedly made by Pugh from the league account held at First National Bank in Atmore. The transactions, unauthorized by the leagues board of directors, included ATM withdrawals, debit card purchases and checks cashed, according to the authorities.

The documents obtained by investigators show Pugh cashed checks from the league account for amounts ranging from $530 to $2,000. There were 25 separate ATM withdrawals, all but one completed at First National Bank in Atmore, ranging in amounts from $40 to $300, according to the sheriffs office.

In all, there were 43 unauthorized transactions listed in the arrest report. None of the transactions cited in the arrest report had supporting receipts or other documentation, according to investigators.
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Alabama has moved up one spot in an annual report that measures child well-being, but still lags behind most of the country in child care access, educational outcomes and child health and wellness.

The 2023 KIDS COUNT Data Book, published by the Annie E. Casey Foundation, ranks Alabama 45th overall. The report compares 16 indicators over four categories  economic well-being, education, health, and family and community.

According to the report, 22% of Alabama children live in poverty, higher than the national average.

This years report focused on the child care crisis, finding that from 2020-21, 10% of children under the age of 6 in Alabama lived in families in which someone quit, changed or refused a job because of problems with child care.

Read more: Alabama child care workers ask for more funding, support

According to the report, even if parents can find an opening at child care near their home, they often cant pay for it. The average cost of center-based child care for a toddler in Alabama in 2021 was $7,501, 8% of the median income of a married couple, and 30% of a single mothers income in the state.

A good child care system is essential for kids to thrive and our economy to prosper. But our current approach fails kids, parents, and child care workers by every measure, said Lisa Hamilton, president and CEO of the Annie E. Casey Foundation. Without safe child care they can afford and get to, working parents face impossible choices, affecting not only their families, but their employers as well.

Rhonda Mann, executive director of VOICES for Alabamas Children, said Alabama has taken steps to address the crisis, including through Department of Human Resources grant programs that give quarterly bonuses of $3,000 to full-time childcare workers and $1,500 to part-time workers. According to DHR, the agency has awarded 6,935 grants to child care providers since the initiative was announced in November 2021.

The legislature also recently added $30 million in funding for a program that helps child care providers improve quality and $12 million for early learning opportunities.

Still, according to the foundations report, Alabama needs to do more to improve education and job opportunities for children and families.

While Alabama may be moving up in the rankings compared to other states measured in this years KIDS COUNT Data Book, we are at best struggling to hold the line, Mann said.

Overall, the well-being of children in Alabama stayed the same or worsened in 11 of the 16 indicators that the Casey Foundation tracks. Still, this stands in contrast to what children in many other states have experienced over the last few years, especially as it relates to education outcomes. State leaders should be proud of what they implemented to mitigate COVID disruptions, but as this report suggests, we still have a lot of work left to do.

Alabama students now rank 41st in the country in fourth-grade reading outcomes and 43rd in eighth-grade math, jumping six spots in both subjects. But those gains more likely point to the states scores worsening at a slower pace due to the pandemic instead of increases in student achievement.

According to the report, 72% of fourth-graders scored below proficient reading levels in 2022, the same percentage who tested below proficiency in 2019. Eighty-one percent of eighth graders tested below proficient math levelsa two percent increase from the 2019 rate.

Compared to the national average, Alabama falls behind by an average of about 5 percentage points on all of the education indicators except for high school graduation rates.

Recently released test scores from this school year showed that 76% of third graders are reading on grade level, a decrease of two percentage points from last year.

Still, Alabama ranked 39th in education, its highest ranking among the four categories measured by the report. The state also ranked in the top 20 in two indicators: 3rd in the percentage of high school students not graduating on time (only 9%), and 15th in the rate of children without health insurance (only 4%).

It ranked in the bottom five in three indicators: low birth-weight babies (10.4%), child and teen deaths per 100,000 (44%), and teen births (23 per 1,000 births).

She hopes lawmakers will continue to use the data provided in the report to move the needle on child wellness in Alabama.

Its so important for us to look at the data and understand what the data is trying to tell us. Put it in context, rather than being upset about our ranking, said Mann. We certainly would like to rank even higher, but whats more important to us is, did we move the needle and do we have the program in place to keep progressing?
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More Alabama teacher prep programs are covering core elements of scientifically backed reading instruction, according to new national research.

One university program might provide a lesson for others -- Samford University is one of just two teacher prep programs reviewed in the country that earned an A+ for both its undergraduate and graduate reading instruction programs, according to the National Council on Teacher Quality.

Samfords Orlean Beeson School of Education Dean Anna McEwan said they are grateful for the recognition. When there is an opportunity to improve our teacher preparation program, she said, our faculty are immediately on top of it. They tenaciously pursue excellence whether recognition is attached or not.

And, while the majority of Alabamas education programs havent fully incorporated the science of reading, the state is ahead of the rest of the country in retooling training for future teachers. According to a new NCTQ report, released Tuesday, nearly 40% of Alabama programs reviewed incorporated the five core elements of science-based reading instruction, compared to 25% nationwide.

Nationally, at the other end of the scale, one-quarter of programs nationally do not adequately cover any components. In Alabama, that figure is 17%.

Read more: Alabama student reading scores dropped this year. See how your school did.

Were in the midst of a long overdue revolution on the science of reading, but teacher prep programs havent fully caught up, said Heather Peske, NCTQ president, in a news release. Prospective teachersand certainly their studentsdeserve far better.

NCTQ found that in Alabama, five of the states undergraduate and two of the states graduate programs for teacher preparation earned an A or A+. The grade is based on how many of the core components of scientifically-based reading instruction practices are included in teacher preparation.

Samford University earned an A+ for its undergraduate program, the only school in the state to do so. Three programs - Troy University, the University of South Alabama and the University of West Alabama - earned As for their undergraduate teacher preparation in reading instruction.

Read more: Are Alabama teacher training programs using science of reading best practices?

Alabama requires most teachers to attend a four-year undergraduate program in order to be certified.

Samford University and Alabama A&M University earned an A+ for their graduate programs. They are among only nine graduate programs nationwide that earned an A+.

The NCTQ review also found that six Alabama colleges used practices known to be contrary to scientifically backed reading instruction.

All of Alabamas 25 teacher preparation programs are required by law to offer nine hours of coursework in reading instruction rooted in the science of reading. The law, known as the Alabama Literacy Act, gave teacher preparation programs until January to meet the requirement.

An Alabama-funded review of that coursework by Mississippis Barksdale Institute last year found 23% of courses were fully aligned to the science of reading.

Third grade students not reading on grade level by the end of the 2023-24 school year could be retained under the law.

NCTQs review was conducted over the past two years and included 12 of Alabamas teacher prep programs. Colleges that did not respond to NCTQs requests for information were not included in the review.

Far too many students are denied the right to an excellent education, including the right to read, because they dont have access to effective literacy instruction, said Denise Forte, CEO of The Education Trust, a nonprofit organization advocating for high-quality education for students of color. Teacher preparation programs are in the enviable position of ensuring every child, especially students of color and those from low-income backgrounds, has access to a teacher who is well-prepared in the methods that we know work best.

The review was conducted over the past two years, according to NCTQ, and if colleges did not provide the information that was requested, they were not included in the review.

A full breakdown of university program grades were calculated can be seen at this link.

Heres the full list of undergraduate programs that NCTQ reviewed and their grades:

Samford University - A+

Troy University - A

University of South Alabama - A

University of West Alabama - A

Alabama A&M University - B

Alabama State University - B

University of Alabama - B

University of Alabama in Huntsville - C

Auburn University - F

Jacksonville State University - F

Miles College - F

University of Montevallo - F

Graduate programs that were reviewed earned the following grades:

Alabama A&M University - A+

Samford University - A+

University of South Alabama - A

Troy University - B

University of Alabama - C

Jacksonville State University - F

Programs were reviewed based on whether these five components were adequately covered in teacher preparation courses:
Its not hard to find a good slice of pizza in Alabamas Port City. Options abound. But heres where to start if youre looking for a great one.

Some ground rules: Weve focused on one-of-a-kind venues. Sorry if your go-to is Mellow Mushroom or another chain, but you can always pipe up for them on our social media channels  well publish reader favorites at the end of the week. We also stuck close to Mobile, so the same goes if you want to go to bat for a venue elsewhere in Lower Alabama, we get it. Weve had a fine pie at Cricos Pizza & Subs in Gulf Shores, and no doubt there are others catering to beach-bound tourists.

We hope you like thin crusts and fat journalists, because thats all youre going to find here.

MORE: Birminghams best pizza: Our top 5

Huntsvilles best pizza: Our Top 5

So many slices, so little time: The counter at Joe's Pizza & Pasta in Mobile.Lawrence Specker | LSpecker@AL.com

5. Joes Pizza & Pasta

9120 Airport Boulevard, Suite L; www.facebook.com/BestPizzainMobile

Joes Pizza & Pasta is about as stripped-down and unpretentious as it gets. Its a takeout-only spot in a west Mobile strip mall. The deck of Garland pizza ovens tells you theyre serious, its like a row of Marshalls at a rock concert, but they dont score many points on ambiance. The pizzas themselves look very ordinary. But theyll sell you two slices and a 20-ounce soda for $7, which is a crazy good deal. Then theyll take those slices and pop em back in the oven for bit to crisp them up, and when you bite down on one you will forget all about looks and ambiance and other irrelevancies.

Order this: Based on our limited experience, you cant go wrong with the pizzas. But next time were absolutely going for one of those calzones.

The Buffalo pizza at Semmes House of Pizza uses some house-made ranch dressing as an accent, but alfredo sauce makes for a subtler foundation.Lawrence Specker | LSpecker@AL.com

4. Semmes House of Pizza

3958 Snow Road Suite C, Semmes; semmeshouseofpizza.com

The fan base extends far beyond Semmes, a small but growing young city on Mobiles northwest flank, and its easy to see why. As proprietor Chris Brill told AL.com: We make our own dough, we grate our own cheese, we make our own sauce. We cut all of our vegetables. Some people will buy frozen vegetables that are already chopped. We cut everything, which helps make it as fresh as possible. And subtle tweaks put fresh life in familiar items, like the Buffalo pizza  its base is an alfredo sauce, not ranch, and the drizzle of house-made ranch is packed with dill.

Order this: That buffalo pizza is a good place to start, but order the Manhattan (basically a supreme) if you want to enjoy the freshness of the veggies.

READ: Come for the fried green beans, stay for the cannoli at this south Alabama pizza house

Mobile's Ashland Midtown Pub has a creative pizza menu that includes some unexpected flavors.Lawrence Specker | LSpecker@AL.com

3. Ashland Midtown Pub

2453 Old Shell Road; ashlandmidtownpub.com

The menu can do the talking for this one. The Old World: fresh basil, artichoke hearts, sliced Roma tomatoes with mozzarella cheese on a roasted garlic and olive oil base. Mediterranean Shrimp: Diced fresh tomatoes and shrimp with feta and mozzarella cheeses served over a sweet homemade basil pesto sauce. Zydeco: Topped with crab, crawfish, chicken, roasted garlic, bell peppers, gorgonzola and mozzarella cheeses on a white sauce base. Bacon Cheeseburger: Red Sauce, meatballs, bacon, caramelized onions and chopped dill pickle with mozzarella and cheddar cheeses. The Tragically Hip: A red and white sauce, Canadian bacon, artichoke hearts, sherried mushrooms and onions with Gorgonzola, asiago and mozzarella cheeses.

Order this: If all this is too high-flown for you, call for The Hook Up, your basic red sauce-sausage-pepperoni deal. Except for the finely chopped jalapenos.

Ravenite Pizzeria has been a bastion of fine pizza on the Eastern Shore for years.Lawrence Specker | LSpecker@AL.com

2. Ravenite Pizzeria

102 N. Section St., Fairhope; www.theravenite.net

The Ravenite has been a bastion of Eastern Shore pizza for a long time, and if you Google best pizza in Fairhope youll probably wind up looking at a list that it tops. Once bite of The Special and youll know why. The lineup of ingredients is pretty common  pepperoni, sausage, onions, green pepper, mushroom, beef, ham, black olive and garlic  but the garlicky flavor just explodes off the top of it. The menu starts with the basic cheese pizza and a la carte toppings, then goes to the mid-tier combination pizzas, which include Greek, Mexican and Pulled Pork Hawaiian specialty jobs, then to the top-tier Gourmet pizzas such as The Special. So theres no shortage of choices here.

Order this: Our second choice after The Special was The Southwestern, with broiled chicken, black beans, red onion, roasted red pepper, chipotle, fresh tomato, white queso sauce and Monterey jack cheese over red sauce. But honestly, The Special would be hard to beat.

Benjamin Reese, left and Richie Gambino of Pizzeria Delphina work in the background as a Cadillac sits parked on the counter.Lawrence Specker | LSpecker@AL.com

1. Pizzeria Delphina

518 Dauphin St.; www.facebook.com/delphinapizza

Go ahead, accuse us of making a sentimental choice. This is a sentimental choice that happens to be knock-your-socks off good, not to mention that the by-the-slice option makes it one of the fastest lunch options in downtown Mobile. Richie Gambino broke a lot of hearts when he closed shop at 107 Dauphin St. two years ago. Pizzeria Delphina was tiny, but it had an outsize reputation far beyond the downtown clientele. More recently, Gambino and partner Benjamin Reese opened in The Insider Collective Eatery farther west on Dauphin. The setting is much more modern, and bustles with food-court energy, but the vintage Blodgett oven and the expertise are the same.

Order this: The Cadillac is a good starting point: Pepperoni, sausage, mushroom, onion, red pepper, beef, ham, black olive, garlic.

READ: Farewell to Pizzeria Delphina, popular downtown Mobile venue

More on Alabama food:

Alabamas best barbecue: Our Top 10

Alabamas best barbecue: Reader picks

Step 1: Go to Dauphin Island. Step 2: Get yourself some tacos.

Yes, Guy Fieri was in Mobile. And he was very, very busy
United Methodists meeting in Mobile from June 11-14 voted to call for loyalty among leaders in a non-binding resolution that reflects continuing concerns about more churches disaffiliating from the Alabama-West Florida Conference.

The resolution calls for current leaders who have a role in planning for the future of the denomination to be loyal to the denomination. So far, 240 churches have disaffiliated from the Alabama-West Florida Conference and more are preparing to leave in a special called session on Nov. 12.

James Van Sickle, a lay delegate from Cokesbury United Methodist Church in Pensacola, said the resolution calling for loyalty amounted to telling your fellow Methodists to sit down and shut up or stop serving your church.

One of those who helped write the resolution, the Rev. Emily Kincaid, from the staff of First United Methodist Church of Pensacola, disagreed. It simply seeks to assure that those who are leading our annual conference in decisions to shape our shared future are committed to be part of that shared future, she said.

United Methodists also discussed a change by the conference trustee board released on June 7 that set new rules on disaffiliation. Even churches that are already set to have disaffiliation votes in time for a November exit would have to go back and submit an eligibility statement, explaining how their plan to exit qualifies under United Methodist rules.

We do not seek to be punitive, said the Rev. Olivia Poole, president of the conference board of trustees.

Instead, the new rules provide integrity to a process that can be difficult, she said.

George Mingledorff, lay leader of Aldersgate United Methodist Church in Montgomery, said that for churches in the process of applying for disaffiliation by the deadline at the end of this year, it means the rules change right in the middle of the process.

Thats paralyzed every church in the conference, said the Rev. Karl Stegall, retired pastor of First United Methodist Church of Montgomery.

The conference approved a plan to downsize from eight districts to four, and a recommendation that Alabama United Methodists consolidate with one unified conference for the entire state instead of two. The recommendation would have to be approved by the Southeastern Jurisdictional Conference, but would entail moving the panhandle of Florida out of the Alabama-West Florida Conference and into a newly configured Florida conference.

Southeastern Jurisdiction will have the final word, said Bishop David Graves, head of the Alabama-West Florida Conference.

Such a realignment could mean that United Methodist churches in south Alabama would again be under the supervision of a statewide bishop based in Birmingham, as it was before 1988. The conference office in Montgomery could be sold under such a plan, if it happens.

The conference also issued a financial report that anticipated a $3 million impact in decreased funding due to disaffiliations. The conference will draw on financial reserves to soften the blow, dropping the budget from $7.2 million in 2023 to $5.9 million in 2024. By 2025, the budget would have to decrease to about $4.1 million, according to current projections.

To help offset disaffiliations, new churches and ministries have been started, including Grace-Prattville; Foundry-Opelika; Magnolia-Paradise Island; Abide-Panama City; Restoration-Cottondale; 3Rivers-Grand Ridge; Open Door-Pace; The Pour at the Ark-Panama City Beach; Resurrection Fellowship-Defuniak Springs; Troy Church Start; and New Gathering-Okaloosa County.

See also: United Methodists after split: God is not finished with us

Mountain Brooks Canterbury United Methodist Church votes to stay in denomination

Another 132 North Alabama United Methodist churches disaffiliate: Trussville, Helena, Gardendale

Division is of the devil, United Methodist bishop says as 193 churches disaffiliate

United Methodists crushed after being left behind by disaffiliating churches

United Methodists plan new churches in Prattville, Orange Beach, elsewhere to replace churches that disaffiliate in split

United Methodists start new congregations where churches disaffiliated in North Alabama

United Methodist split: 198 churches leave North Alabama Conference

Frazer Memorial officially leaves the United Methodist Church
Authorities are searching for four suspects in a home invasion in Marion County.

The crime happened between 9:30 and 10 p.m. Tuesday at a house in the Bexar community just outside of Hamilton.

Marion County sheriffs officials said a woman and three men entered the home. Three of the four were armed with guns, and the resident of the home was hit in the head during the attack.

The victim is believed to have previously communicated with the female suspect.

The group fled the scene with the victims 2017 silver Jeep Renegade with Texas license plate LWP9983. Other undisclosed items were also taken from the house.

The suspects are believed to be armed and dangerous.

Investigators are following leads and reviewing camera footage.

The suspects are believed to be in the Birmingham area. Anyone with information is asked to call sheriffs investigators at 205-921-7433.
A criminal justice reform organization has published a report highlighting the trauma, tragedy, and experiences of victims of violent crime or their loved ones.

In a report titled Afterward, published April 27, staff at Alabama Appleseed paint a portrait of people who have been victimized and their experiences with the criminal justice system.

Our goal in doing this work was to better understand what this community experiences, said Leah Nelson, research director at Alabama Appleseed, in an interview on Monday. Who these people are who experience the criminal justice system, both when they break laws and when they are crime victims. What they feel, what they need, what they want, what they are already doing, all those things.

More from Alabama Reflector

The report includes are references to articles that were published by the Alabama Reflector.

The report stresses that many communities do not have access to public safety resources, and many of them are societys most vulnerable and more invisible, Nelson said.

Appleseed researchers surveyed 401 people who had experiences with violent crime, distributing the survey at job fairs, libraries, churches, and drug treatment centers. They then supplemented the surveys with community interviews by Callie Greer, a community navigator with Alabama Appleseed, who has experienced violent crime herself. That was followed by one-on-one interviews.

About 57% or the participants were female and 63% were Black. The report included a map of the locations where the surveys were distributed. There were clusters in the states major cities such as Birmingham, Montgomery, Huntsville, and Mobile.

Many suffered from want. Roughly 46% said they felt they didnt have enough to eat and 40% went without water for drinking and washing, or without heat in the winter.

Nearly all of the younger respondents said they witnessed violence in their own families.84% of those under the age of 18 said that they had seen some type of violence between adults in their home.

Almost 60% of those surveyed said they had been violently assaulted or beaten. Another 52% reported they had lost a loved one to homicide. About 45% said they had been shot at.

The report found many victims had been caught in the criminal justice system. About 70% of those who participated had been convicted of a crime themselves. About 65% had a felony conviction while another 61% were convicted of a misdemeanor.

Most of those surveyed were taken into custody for theft of property, drug possession and robbery and receiving stolen property. Among them is Bryttian Linn, 26, a resident of Calhoun County.

According to the report, Jamie Linn, Bryttian Linns mother, called the police because of death threats that a person made against her. When the sheriffs department arrived on scene, the deputy checked Bryttian Linns name in the system and found a warrant for missing a court hearing related to a traffic stop months earlier. Bryttian Lynn had not been wearing a seatbelt and did not have auto insurance. Bryttian Linn could not afford the fines and fees from the stop, and a hearing was set to establish a payment plan.

Bryttian Linn attended an August hearing and left with the understanding that the judge had agreed to push back the court date, so she didnt attend the September hearing. A warrant was issued in October for the missed hearing.

When Bryttian Linn arrived at the jail, she was placed in solitary confinement because she had been sexually assaulted in jail from a prior arrest back in 2020. Assigned male at birth, Bryttian Linn uses female pronouns and wears her hair long. According to the report, jail officials put her in a cell by herself, without running water or a working toilet, because her feminine presentation put her at risk of violence from other people incarcerated in the area of the jail reserved for men

The smell in there  It smelled like death, Linn told Alabama Appleseed. There was blood splatter on the bedframe and on the walls.

A district court employee told her that she could be released if she paid $405 in fines and fees, but she didnt have the money. After six days in jail, she saw a judge by video from jail who released her without requiring payment.

Just being here and dealing with all of this. Im just tired, Bryttian Linn said.

The report also notes many victims are wary of contacting law enforcement.

I think that the single number that I found most unsettling is that the majority of people we surveyed agreed with the statement that they, never or almost never call the police in response to violence that they witnessed or experienced, Nelson said. It just emphasizes just how inaccessible the system that we fund and have in place to respond to violence is to the people who need them.

According to the report, about a quarter said they believe police may not want to help them. Another 24% stated they would not be taken seriously by law enforcement.

Some had such a negative experience that they are distrustful of law enforcement. Among them was Robert Walton, who lives in Montgomery, whose experience was detailed in the report.

In 1982 Walton was walking home when police pulled him over and picked him up on the street, claiming he had broken into someones apartment. He was taken to the station, and into a room where a person was supposed to identify him. The person told police he was not the perpetrator.

The detectives uncuffed him and told him he was free to go.

Well, its 3:30am, can you at least take me home? Walton asked. They said its not their responsibility. I said, whose responsibility is it?

Almost 40% of the people who participated in the report were rape survivors. About 56% had experienced sexual assault and another 59% were assaulted and beaten.

Many victims of domestic violence have substance abuse issues and they are afraid they will be arrested themselves. Another vulnerable group is the Hispanic population because of the language barrier. Many times, translators are not available to take a report. Some have said that officers refuse to take reports because they are unable to understand what the victim is saying.

I think that we need an additional form of support for people that acknowledges peoples lives are very complicated, Nelson said. No matter how complicated your life is, if somebody is killed, and you relied on that person for anything, you need help.

The report suggested alternatives to incarceration, including policies and practices that focus on correcting the issues instead of punishment. It cited the Lovelady Center in Birmingham and the Foundry in Bessemer as examples of places providing counseling, job training as well as other rehabilitative programs.

We have a model with peer specialists in this state for people with a substance abuse disorder where the Alabama Department of Mental Health has a whole staff of people who are in recovery, who help support recovery in others, Nelson said.

She wants to apply that model for people affected by violent crimes, taking people who have lived through the trauma to help others they can relate to and can be trusted.

Just to be there after a homicide, and make sure those immediate needs, which dont have anything to do with the criminal justice system, things like emergency rental assistance, or diapers, or help with funeral expenses, to make sure those needs are met immediately, Nelson said.
Tickets are now on sale for former President Donald Trumps visit to Alabama.

The Alabama GOP will host Trump at its summer meeting planned for Aug. 3 at 7 p.m. at the Renaissance Hotel in Montgomery. Tickets are now on sale here.

Organizers said they expect tickets to sell quickly.

Trump, is seeking reelection in 2024, will be appearing in the wake of his two indictments, the first involving money paid to a former porn star, the second in connection to felony charges related to handling of classified documents.
Feature: China's technology transfer to revolutionize Pakistan's agriculture

16:21, June 14, 2023 By Misbah Saba Malik ( Xinhua

ISLAMABAD, June 14 (Xinhua) -- Hassan Raza, a farmer in Pakistan's eastern city of Multan, was in awe when he saw the demonstration of China-donated corn-cob picker in local fields by the staff of MNS-University of Agriculture.

"The best thing about the newly-introduced machine is that it will help Pakistan meet climate change challenge as it picks the whole cob rather than seeds, giving farmers the flexibility to harvest their crop earlier than the scheduled time," Raza told Xinhua.

He said crops face destruction as local machines in Pakistan selectively pick corn grains. Farmers have to wait until the grains are fully dried, which makes them vulnerable to the risk of crop loss caused by heat waves or excessive rains resulting from unpredictable weather patterns.

"With the new Chinese picker, the farmers can now pick the whole cob and dry it indoors before unfavorable weather conditions arise," he said, adding that it can both save the crop and facilitate their work.

Launched in 2013, the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) is a corridor linking Pakistan's Gwadar Port with Kashgar in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, which highlights energy, transport and industrial cooperation in the first phase, and expands to the fields of agriculture and livelihood in the new phase.

Echoing the CPEC's cooperation in agriculture, China's Tianjin Modern Vocational Technology College signed an MoU with the MNS-University of Agriculture in Multan to transfer technology to the Pakistani agriculture, and skill locals to adopt modern farming techniques.

Under the MoU, the parts of the Chinese corn cob picker were transferred to Pakistan as donations, and the machine was assembled in Luban Workshop Multan, a joint project of Punjab Technical Education and Vocational Training Authority and Tianjin Modern Vocational Technology College.

Sarfraz Hashim, an agriculture engineer and assistant professor at the MNS-University of Agriculture, told Xinhua that the cost of the machine was 55,000 U.S. dollars, but the Chinese university provided it free of cost to Pakistan to modernize its agriculture.

"Our students and engineers received a two-week virtual training to operate and assemble the machine. Some students and engineers will visit China to know more about agriculture machines and farming techniques," he added.

After the demonstration of the picker, it will be lent to the farmers at low prices and they will use it to harvest the crop under the supervision of university's technicians, Hashim said.

"The response to the demonstration was very welcoming and the farmers were really impressed by the machine. People related to the agriculture business can also import it in the next phase and expand its use in other parts and the demand for the machine will sharply increase," he added.

The professor said the best thing about the machine is its efficiency as it can pick corn from one acre of land in an hour, the work which usually takes a laborer 12 hours to complete.

Talking about the impact of technology transfer by China on Pakistan's agriculture sector, Hashim said that in mechanization, China is on the dint of its advanced technology and has much higher yields than Pakistan.

"Under the CPEC agriculture cooperation, it is our basic need to introduce Chinese machines in Pakistan, which will help Pakistan cope with climate change and food security challenges," he added.

Sikandar Raza, a student of agriculture at the MNS-University of Agriculture, told Xinhua that he is excited to visit China to equip himself with modern techniques in agriculture. "I will apply them back home to transform the lives of local farmers and boost agricultural development in Pakistan."

"China, being a global leader in agricultural innovation, can provide the necessary support and knowledge transfer to help uplift Pakistan's agricultural sector," he added.

By embracing advanced farming practices such as precision agriculture, hydroponics and mechanization, Pakistani farmers can enhance productivity, reduce crop losses, and ultimately generate better profits, Raza said.

(Web editor: Peng Yukai, Liang Jun)
Bryan Taylor, a former state senator and former legal advisor for Gov. Kay Ivey, announced Wednesday he is running for chief justice of the Alabama Supreme Court.

Taylor said he is stepping down as legislative counsel for the Alabama Republican Party to focus on the campaign. The primary will be March 5, 2024.

I am uniquely qualified to lead our states court system, Taylor said in a press release. My experience as an attorney, Army Judge Advocate and military prosecutor, along with my service in the executive and legislative branches of state government has given me a unique perspective that will benefit Alabamas courts and the Alabamians they serve. What makes the chief justice position different than the other justices is the administrative side of the job  managing the court system and working with the governors office and the legislature to advocate for the needs of the judicial system. Im the candidate best prepared to do that.

Taylor is the second Republican to join the chief justice race. Alabama Supreme Court Associate Justice Sarah Stewart announced in January she is running for the top spot on the nine-member court. Voters elected Stewart to the Supreme Court in 2018. Stewart was a circuit court judge in Mobile for 13 years before her election to the Supreme Court.

Stewart and Taylor are seeking the seat that will come open when Chief Justice Tom Parkers term ends. Parker cannot seek reelection because Alabama law prohibits judges from being elected or appointed after age 70.

Alabama Republican Party Chairman John Wahl praised Taylor for his work with the party.

Bryan Taylor has served the Alabama Republican Party with distinction, and we are grateful for his time with the ALGOP, Wahl said. As legislative counsel, his advice has been invaluable to help the Party defend the people of Alabama and the conservative values we hold as Republicans. I wish Bryan the best of luck in all his future pursuits.

Taylor served in the U.S. Army Judge Advocate Generals Corps, was stationed in Iraq from 2003-2004, and was awarded the the Bronze Star Medal. In 2010, Taylor was elected to the state Senate representing a district that included Prattville. He is a co-founding member of the law firm of Bachus Brom & Taylor and lives in Shelby County with his three children.

More information is available at Taylors campaign website.
Alabama Department of Transportation Director John Cooper has declined to comment on his arrest earlier this week on harassment/intimidation charges.

When reached by AL.com Tuesday by phone, Cooper said he had no comment on the charge, and no comment on whether he would remain on the job.

Cooper, who has been ALDOTs transportation director since 2011, was in the Marshall County Jail for about 30 minutes Monday before posting $500 bond on a charge of harassment/intimidation, according to jail records.

The Marshall County Sheriffs Office said it could not detail the allegations against Cooper, 75. No records are available in Alabamas online court system.

Marshall County District Attorney Jennifer Bray said the case was not yet on the district courts docket.

We wont know the evidence and what were looking at until we review the clerks file and meet with the complainant. At this point, we havent reviewed that information because when a complaining witness swears to an affidavit and an arrest warrant is issued on a misdemeanor case, that all goes through a magistrate at the clerks office and not through our office, she said in a statement to AL.com

Once it is on a district court docket, our office will review the evidence, will discuss the case with the complaining witness, and will discuss the case with Mr. Coopers attorney, and at that point, we will decide how to proceed with the case just as we do with any other misdemeanor offense, Bray said.

AL.com has filed a public records request but as of Wednesday afternoon have received no records related to the arrest.

A spokeswoman for Gov. Kay Ivey directed reporters to a statement issued by Coopers personal attorney.

George Barnett, Coopers personal attorney, appeared to suggest the arrest stemmed from a land dispute between Cooper and his neighbor.

This morning, Mr. Cooper directed me to file a complaint for declaratory judgment cause of action in Marshall County Circuit Court regarding a neighbor who is falsely claiming an easement on Mr. Coopers property, said Barnett.

The complaint about the land dispute has not been filed as of Wednesday afternoon.

His attorney declined to comment as to why, other than to say the complaint will be filed soon.

Related:

Last month, Cooper filed an emergency request to continue construction on the two-lane bridge over the Intracoastal Waterway.

The Alabama Supreme Court, in a 5-3 decision earlier this month, denied an emergency motion to stay a lower courts decision for contractors to discontinue building bridge.

Orange Beach Mayor Tony Kennon, who has been sharply critical of Cooper in connection with the $120 million bridge project in Gulf Shores, said he was aware of Coopers arrest but had no comment as he felt this was a personal issue.

Cooper has served as transportation director for ALDOT since his appointment by then-Gov. Robert Bentley in 2011.

Cooper was the CEO of Avocent Corp. in Huntsville from 2002 until 2008 and was also chairman of Avocents board from 2003-2008.

From 1996-2001, Cooper was chief financial officer and senior vice president finance and administration for Adtran Inc. of Huntsville, a global telecommunications provider.

AL.com reporter Paul Gattis contributed to this report.
Kouri Richins  a Utah mother who penned a kids book about grief after she allegedly killed her husband  had a series of incriminating internet searches on her iPhone, including one about luxury prisons for the rich in america, according to court documents.

Richins also looked up whether she would still receive a life insurance payment if a cause of death is listed as pending in addition to what constitutes a lethal dose of fentanyl. In newly filed court documents, prosecutors argued the queries indicate a consciousness of guilt and plan to hide evidence in the alleged murder of her husband, Eric Richins.

On the night of March 3, 2022, prosecutors said Kouri mixed her husband a deadly Moscow Mule. She added five times the lethal dose of fentanyl before handing it off it over to Eric, who was in bed at their home in Kamas at the time. She then left him alone and slept with one of their young children, but when she returned around 3 a.m., he was cold to the touch and unresponsive.

He was pronounced dead a short time later.

Richins was not arrested until last month. Shes facing charges of aggravated murder and three counts of possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute. During the year between her husbands death and her arrest, she published a childrens book called Are You with Me? about an angel of a deceased father watching over his sons. She promoted it on television and radio, describing the book as a way to help children grieve the loss of a loved one.

According to prosecutors, Richins iPhone was discovered in the dresser drawer on her side of the bed during the second search of her home on the day she was arrested. She also allegedly Googled the home address of the lead detective on the case, as well as contact information for a relative of the second lead detective.

Kouris internet history was revealed during a detention hearing on Monday where the judge called her a substantial danger to society and ordered her to remain behind bars.

With News Wire Services

2023 New York Daily News. Visit nydailynews.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC
More than 331,000 Chrysler Jeep Grand Cherokee vehicles are being recalled because due to rear coil springs.

According to officials, the coil springs may have been incorrectly installed. The result could lead to the springs detaching while driving, per officials.

The recall includes certain 2022-2023 Jeep Grand Cherokee and 2021-2023 Jeep Grand Cherokee L SUVs, the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said in a news release Monday.

Rear coil springs that detach from the vehicle while driving increases the risk of a crash, the NHTSA stated. Dealers will inspect and if necessary, repair the rear coil spring assemblies, free of charge.

Chrysler will mail notification letters to owners of these vehicles by July 28, 2023.

Mark Heim is a reporter for The Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @Mark_Heim. He can be heard on The Opening Kickoff on WNSP-FM 105.5 FM in Mobile or on the free Sound of Mobile App from 6 to 9 a.m. daily.
Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley said that if she becomes president, she would pardon former president Donald Trump for crimes related to his improper handling of classified documents, if Trump is ultimately convicted.

Trump pleaded not guilty in federal court in Miami on Tuesday to criminal allegations that he risked national security by mishandling classified documents and obstructed the governments efforts to reclaim those documents earlier this year. He is the first former president to be charged with federal crimes, now facing 37 counts connected with the removal, storage and concealment of sensitive government documents he took from the White House upon leaving office in 2021.

But Haley, a former South Carolina governor and ambassador to the United Nations said shes in favor of granting Trump a presidential pardon if hes convicted.

When you look at a pardon, the issue is less about guilt, and more about whats good for the country, Haley said on the Clay Travis and Buck Sexton show, a politics podcast.

And I think it would be terrible for the country to have a former president in prison for years because of the documents case. Thats something you see in a third world country. I saw that the United Nations, so I would be inclined in favor of a pardon, she continued, adding that she thinks the issue is premature because Trump has yet to be convicted.

Federal prosecutors allege that Trump carelessly handled top secret documents that included details of sensitive nuclear programs, intelligence on foreign adversaries, Pentagon battle plans and other papers that detailed the countrys potential vulnerabilities to military attack, according to a 41-page indictment prosecutors unsealed last Friday.

Haley maintains that the U.S. Department of Justice harbors a double standard when it comes to investigating Democrats versus Republicans.

I mean, you cant have one standard for Democrats like Hillary Clinton and Joe Biden and then another standard for Republicans like Donald Trump, Haley said. And were seeing that again with the Biden bribery recordings that have come to light. I mean, the country should never stand for that. And I think that we should all speak up and we have to be loud about that.

2023 The State. Visit thestate.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
One of two pastors who defended the right of Southern Baptist churches to have women pastors said she came to faith as a child in Alabama.

The Rev. Linda Barnes Popham, pastor of Fern Creek Baptist Church in Louisville, Ky., joined Saddleback Church founder Rick Warren in addressing the convention in New Orleans on Tuesday.

The Executive Committee ousted five churches in February, but only two of the four expelled because of having women pastors -- Fern Creek and Saddleback -- opted to appeal.

Two other churches, Calvary Baptist in Jackson, Miss., and St. Timothys Christian Baptist in Baltimore, were disfellowshipped over women pastors but did not appeal the decision.

The convention also heard an appeal from Freedom Church of Vero Beach, Florida, which the Executive Committee ousted for what it said was a failure to address a situation of sexual misconduct. The church said it had addressed the issue, but a committee representative disputed that.

Ive been a Southern Baptist my entire life, giving my life to Jesus Christ as an 8-year-old child at the York Terrace Baptist Church in Sheffield, Alabama, Popham said.

I was taught there to love Jesus with all my heart. I was taught to follow to the ends of the earth whatever he called me to do. I was taught to share the gospel and I was taught to be a student of his word.

Ive served for over 51 consecutive years on the staff of Southern Baptist churches, beginning at the age of 16. Ive served Fern Creek Baptist Church for over 40 years, the last 33 preaching the word of God.

So, why now? Were not here to convince any of you to allow your church to have women pastors. Thats not the issue here. We disagree with some of you in your faith practice. Look at you extreme Calvinists. I dont agree with you.

Look at all of you who closed your churches during COVID, I dont agree with you, but I dont want to kick you out, because you are a part of the family and we at Fern Creek Baptist Church love you very much.

Popham addressed the Southern Baptist Convention meeting in New Orleans on Tuesday, defending her right to preach from the pulpit.

Fern Creek Baptist Church is a very conservative evangelical, mission-minded, Great Commission church, like many of you, Popham said.

We know that Jesus is the only way to the father, we know that his word is perfect, and we know that one day hes coming again, but we also know that the Spirit gives illumination to our hearts and minds, and therefore we dont all interpret every scripture the same way.

Popham spoke before Warren on Tuesday afternoon. The SBC Executive Committee asked Southern Baptist Seminary President Albert Mohler, a Samford University graduate, to defend the denominations stance against women pastors.

In 2000, the Southern Baptist Convention adopted a new Baptist Faith & Message doctrinal statement that said the office of pastor is limited to men as qualified by Scripture.

Those words were inserted because 30 years ago this issue threatened to tear this denomination apart, Mohler said.

Its a matter of biblical commitment, a commitment to the scripture that unequivocally, we believe, limits the office of pastor to men. It is an issue of biblical authority, Mohler said.

It is one that has actually led to the unity of the Southern Baptist Convention as Southern Baptists have gone forward with an issue of clarity here which has greatly made our doctrine and order a matter of unity and harmony. It is the unity and harmony of the Southern Baptist Convention that is now at stake.

Mohler argued that the Southern Baptist Convention needs to disfellowship churches that have a woman who holds the title of pastor.

Southern Baptist churches are considered independent and autonomous, not ruled by a denomination, but they agree to cooperate with churches in friendly cooperation doctrinally to support mission work.

The SBC voted Tuesday on the appeals at its annual meeting, but the results of the balloting have not been announced yet.

We believe that the Bible allows women to serve in ways in which all of you do not agree, Popham said. But we should still be able to partner together.

See also: Southern Baptists reject appeal for women pastors at Saddleback, Fern Creek churches

Rick Warrens impassioned speech to Southern Baptists: Women pastors have not sinned
Rick Warren, founder of megachurch Saddleback, on Tuesday defended the right of Baptist churches to have women pastors after his California church was disfellowshipped earlier this year by the Southern Baptist Convention.

Warren asked the denomination to reverse the decision.

We should remove churches for all kinds of sexual sin, racial sin, financial sin and leadership sin  sins that harm the testimony of our convention, Warren told the convention.

But churches with women on pastoral staff have not sinned, he said. If doctrinal disagreements between Baptists are considered sin, we all get kicked out.

The SBC voted Tuesday on Saddlebacks appeal at its annual meeting in New Orleans, but the results of the balloting were not expected to be announced until Wednesday.

Saddleback began ordaining women in 2021 and in May appointed Katie Edwards as campus pastor of its flagship Lake Forest location. Warren retired as lead pastor last year and was succeeded by Andy Wood, whose wife, Stacie Wood, serves as a teaching pastor. The church is led by an all-male elder board.

If you think every Baptist thinks like you, youre mistaken, Warren, author of the bestselling The Purpose-Driven Life, told the convention.

What we share in common is a mutual commitment to the inerrancy and infallibility of Gods word and to the Great Commission of Jesus Christ, he said. No one is asking any Southern Baptist to change their theology. Im not asking you to agree with my church. I am asking you to act like a Southern Baptist, who have historically agreed to disagree on dozens of doctrines in order to share a common mission.

The credentials committee determined that four churches were not in friendly cooperation with the Southern Baptist Convention because they have women on staff using the title of pastor.

The Executive Committee ousted five churches in February, but only two of those expelled because of having women pastors -- Fern Creek Baptist Church in Louisville, Kentucky and Saddleback -- opted to appeal.

Two other churches, Calvary Baptist in Jackson, Miss., and St. Timothys Christian Baptist in Baltimore, were disfellowshipped over women pastors but did not appeal the decision.

The convention also heard an appeal from Freedom Church of Vero Beach, Florida, which the Executive Committee ousted for what it said was a failure to address a situation of sexual misconduct. The church said it had addressed the issue, but a committee representative disputed that.

The SBC Executive Committee asked Southern Baptist Seminary President Albert Mohler to defend the stance against women pastors.

In 2000, the Southern Baptist Convention adopted a new Baptist Faith & Message doctrinal statement that said the office of pastor is limited to men as qualified by Scripture.

Those words were inserted because 30 years ago this issue threatened to tear this denomination apart, Mohler said.

Its a matter of biblical commitment, a commitment to the scripture that unequivocally, we believe, limits the office of pastor to men. It is an issue of biblical authority, Mohler said. It is one that has actually led to the unity of the Southern Baptist Convention as Southern Baptists have gone forward with an issue of clarity here which has greatly made our doctrine and order a matter of unity and harmony. It is the unity and harmony of the Southern Baptist Convention that is now at stake.

Mohler argued that the Southern Baptist Convention needs to disfellowship churches that have a woman who holds the title of pastor. Southern Baptist churches are considered independent and autonomous, not ruled by a denomination, but they agree to cooperate with churches in friendly cooperation doctrinally to support mission work.

In other business Tuesday, the Southern Baptist Convention re-elected President Bart Barber to a second one-year term.

Barber received 68% of the votes to Stones 31%.

Houston pastor Jarrett Stephens, nominating Barber, said he has spoken with compassion, composure and conviction in insisting on reforms over sexual abuse.

Barber has described himself as staunchly conservative and among other things used his presidential sermon earlier Tuesday to briefly address LGBTQ issues. Boys cant become girls, he said. Marriage is between a man and a woman.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

See also: Southern Baptists reject appeal for women pastors at Saddleback, Fern Creek churches

Pastor Linda Barnes Popham found faith as an Alabama child, fights to preach in Southern Baptist church
Alabama lawmakers approved legislation last month that allows prosecutors to charge someone with felony manslaughter if they sell or deliver synthetic fentanyl that causes someone to die.

But that is not what Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey signed into law on June 1.

Related:

The governors office signed a previous version of HB82 into law that assesses the manslaughter charge on someone who furnishes any kind of controlled substance that causes a death. The drugs that are eligible include methamphetamines, cocaine, morphine, and heroin.

A glitch in newly implemented software used by the Legislature is being blamed for Ivey signing the wrong version of HB82. If nothing is done before September 1, the older version will become the new criminal law in Alabama and will include possible felony charges for fatal overdoses involving for several drugs.

The introduced version broadly covered any controlled substance, said John Treadwell, clerk of the Alabama House of Representatives. Thats where the software glitch occurred that prevented the transfer of the correct version of HB82 to Iveys office during the final days of the spring legislative session.

As (the legislation) moved through the process, the final conference committee report included fentanyl and a mixture of fentanyl (only), Treadwell said. We are working with a new legislative (computer) system, and it reverted back to the (original) version of the bill that took out the language to include fentanyl.

The glitch was first reported by Fox 10 in Mobile.

Weve gone back and checked other bills, Treadwell said. So far, this is the only one.

We did make sure to look at the other bills as well to make sure this isnt an issue.

An Ivey spokeswoman said the process of handling bills submitted to governor is the responsibility of the Legislature and she deferred all comments to them.

Its happened before, Treadwell said. In our prior system, there is more of a human error, and something mistakenly typed. If we caught it before it gets to the governor, there is an opportunity to correct that. But if the governor signs it, we are stuck with what we presented to the governor at that point. And if there is a substantive mistake, the safer course is to do a new bill.

Special session fix

Rep. Chris Pringle, R-Mobile, who sponsored HB82, said hes hopeful it will be reconsidered during a special session that is likely to occur this summer on redistricting. The special session looms after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in a 5-4 decision last week that the states congressional maps, redrawn in 2020, violated Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act. Pringle was co-chairman of the states redistricting committee.

If no special session takes place, HB82  the original version signed by Ivey, not the version OKd by lawmakers late last month  becomes law on September 1.

Even then, Treadwell isnt sure that would happen.

It would be a legal determination, he said. There is some case law from the 1800s about what the governor signs is materially different from what was passed by the Legislature, then it doesnt go into law. That becomes a legal question.

Hectic days

If a special session does not take place, the earliest the bill can be corrected is next spring.

The computer glitch also tosses the hectic nature of the Legislatures final days into the spotlight. Similar glitches have happened before, Treadwell admit, though he said its pretty rare for one version of legislation to be signed into law by a governor that is considered materially different from the original copy.

Pringle and Treadwell also blamed the glitch on the hectic nature of the final days of the spring legislative session. The waning days of session often see a larger number of bills being introduced, voted on, and passed through both legislative chambers.

The last day of session is always dangerous, Pringle said.

Said Treadwell, Its a perfect storm. At the end of session, so many bills are flying. And we are working to break in this new system.

Fentanyl crackdown

FILE - This photo provided by the U.S. Attorneys Office for Utah and introduced as evidence in a 2019 trial shows fentanyl-laced fake oxycodone pills collected during an investigation. Illicit fentanyl continues to be a deadly drug in Alabama and elsewhere since the pandemic. (U.S. Attorneys Office for Utah via AP)AP

Lawmakers are hopeful a corrected version of the legislation will eventually be approved and signed by Ivey.

State Rep. Matt Simpson, R-Daphne, said HB82 is important legislation in addressing a growing threat of fentanyl in Alabama.

Simpson sponsored HB1, approved by lawmakers in March and goes into effect on July 1, which makes it a mandatory sentence of three years in prison for anyone who knowingly possesses 1 gram or more of fentanyl.

Its a tool for law enforcement to make sure the person who brings fentanyl into our community that causes a death in our community can be prosecuted for causing this death, Simpson said about HB82. Manslaughter, as a Class B felony, carries a state prison sentence of 2 to 20 years.

This is just about a (punishing) a drug dealer who is caught selling drugs, Simpson said. But if you sell those drugs and it causes death, we can prosecute you for that.

Overdose deaths, especially from illicit fentanyl use, have risen sharply in Alabama and across the country in recent years. The illegal use of fentanyl is considered far more powerful than heroin, where 2 milligrams is considered a potentially lethal amount  and where 1 gram has the potential to cause 500 deaths.
On June 14, 1777, the U.S. first adopted the design for the American flag.

Now, 246 years later, Old Glory is still celebrated on June 14th of each year with Flag Day observance.

Flag Day is not a federal holiday so government offices will be open and mail will run. Still, it is a time to recognize the history of the flag and what it represents.

Some flag history

According to legend, in 1776, George Washington commissioned Philadelphia seamstress Betsy Ross to create a new flag. According to the Library of Congress, however, credit for the flags design likely should go to Francis Hopkinson, who also designed the Great Seal and first coin of the U.S.

Its believed Ross likely met with Washington and sewed an early flag in her familys Philadelphia upholstery shop.

To date, there have been 27 official versions of the flag with the arrangement of the stars varying until 1912 when President Howard Taft standardized the then 48-star arrangement into six rows of eight. The current version of the flag dates to July 4, 1960, after Hawaii became the fiftieth state on August 21, 1959.

How did Flag Day start?

According to the Library of Congress, President Woodrow Wilson issued a presidential proclamation in 1916 establishing Flag Day on June 14. On that day, Americans were encouraged to display flags in front of their homes and with parades and patriotic observances.

Congressional legislation designating that date as the national Flag Day was signed into law by President Harry Truman in 1949; the legislation also called upon the president to issue a flag day proclamation every year.

Symbols of the flag

The flags 50 white stars represent the countrys 50 states while the 13 stripes  7 red and 6 white - represent the number of original colonies.

Red on the flag represents valor and bravery, white is for purity and innocence and blue is for vigilance, perseverance, and justice.

There are numerous regulations on how to flag should be flown and displayed. You can see more on flag etiquette here.
A Walker County man is under arrest after he was found to be living with the remains of someone who had been dead for days.

Leandrew Smith Jr., 61, is charged with abuse of corpse.

According to Alabama law, a person commits the crime of abuse of a corpse if he or she knowingly treats a human corpse in a way that would outrage ordinary family sensibilities. It is a Class C felony.

On Friday, according to the Walker County Sheriffs Office, deputies responded to a home on Fourth Avenue West in Sipsey after someone reported they found their family member dead in the home.

Smith, according to investigators, had been living in the home and had not reported the death. The identity of the person found dead has not been released, but authorities said the man had been dead for days.

Justin Hagler told AL.com it was his father who was found dead. He said he last saw him on Tuesday, June 7. When he didnt hear from him, Hagler went looking for his father in the three days that followed.

His father, he said, was roommates with Smith but he wasnt getting any answers from Smith about his fathers whereabouts. He didnt tell me my dad was in the house, Hagler said.

On Friday, after Hagler had twice been to the house looking for his father, the family received a phone call to come to the home. It was then Haglers son found his grandfather.

Hagler said he then went to the house but was told he didnt want to see his father in that condition.

The cause and manner of death remains under investigation. The District Attorneys Office ordered an autopsy be performed by the Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences.

Smith remains held in the Walker County Jail on $10,000.

Im furious, Hagler said. Im going to get to the bottom of this.

I appreciate the Walker County Sheriffs Office, he said, and everything theyre doing.
Sign up for Alabamafication: Kyle Whitmires newsletter, Alabamafication examines the outsized influence of this very strange state, taking aim at corruption, cruelty, incompetence and hypocrisy while also seeking out those righteous folks making their state and country better places for all.

This is an opinion column.

Before the US Supreme Courts decision last week, I said Alabama could end up with seven Republicans in the US Congress.

Silly me.

Things changed. A cold wind blew out of the east.

And now I feel as confident in my prediction as ever.

Yes, the court surprised everybody. In a five-to-four decision, the majority said Alabamas current congressional district map, drawn by Republicans, violated the Voting Rights Act and it shot down Alabamas arguments that the VRA was unconstitutional.

Alabama will have to redraw its maps to create at least two Democratic-leaning congressional districts.

But thats leaning. Not guaranteed.

If Alabama Democrats have proved anything in the last 15 years, its that they will blow a party-competitive election.

And they are primed to do so again, in spectacular fashion.

The Milligan decision should be good news for Dems, but its worth pointing out that the state party didnt really do anything to deserve it. Doing things is not the partys strength these days.

Other people brought these lawsuits on behalf of Black voters and non-profit advocacy groups, including the NAACP Legal Defense Fund, took the financial risk of backing them.

Mostly, the Alabama Democratic Party  what pitiful mess is left of it  sat back and watched.

In a tweet after the decision, Montgomery Mayor Steven Reed thanked those who had made the victory possible, including his father, Democratic party boss Joe Reed. And then he had to delete the tweet because the elder Reed hadnt actually been a plaintiff in the case.

In the last year, the elder Reed has managed to wrest control back from a younger, more diverse group of Democrats  mostly through shenanigans with rules and fees and lies. Since then, he and his hatchet man, chairman Randy Kelley, have looked like toddlers who got a packed car into gear and now have no idea how to drive.

Basic functions of the party have atrophied to the point of necrosis. Twitter  despite all that has happened to the platform  is still free, yet the party hasnt used its account once since Reed and Kelley took over. The same goes for its other social media accounts.

This is a party built to lose competitive elections.

And the US Supreme Court just gave it a new one to lose.

And theres now room for the Republicans to make the old district more competitive than Democrats are accustomed to.

That crack in the wall has a name  the Singleton map.

Among the plaintiffs in the original lawsuits was state Sen. Bobby Singleton. The Democrat from Greensboro had proposed a redistricting map that would draw two Democratic-leaning districts along county lines. However, neither of those districts would have been majority-Black districts. One would be 48 percent minority voters and the other 42 percent.

To win, setting aside who actually turns out to vote, white Democrats would have to close the gap to 50 percent. Doable, but not guaranteed.

Before the Supreme Court, the lead plaintiffs lawyer, Deuell Ross, said the Singleton map would satisfy their concerns.

What plaintiffs are really looking for is not any sort of guarantee of a second majority-minority district, Ross said. As I said, wed be satisfied with something like the Singleton plan, which Alabamas expert said would give black voters at least a fair chance, not even a guaranteed chance to elect their candidates of choice in the Second District.

The parties will go back to the district court this week, where Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall has said he intends to fight on. But the easiest thing here for Alabama Republicans to do would be to pass the Singleton plan and suit up.

Its an ugly fact of Alabama politics, but our parties have become largely color-coded.

And Joe Reed owns a piece of that, just as Republicans do.

An Alabama Democratic Party without young people will lose party competitive races.

Reeds faction abolished the party committees youth caucus.

An Alabama Democratic Party without LGBTQ people will lose party competitive races.

Reeds faction abolished that caucus, too.

An Alabama Democratic Party without disabled people will lose party competitive races.

Gone. Reeds group tossed them aside.

The party rewrote state party bylaws last month to nix all those caucuses and weaken others. The old bylaws had been mandated by the DNC.

National party chairman Jamie Harrison has said hes concerned with what happened at Alabamas state party meeting last month, and that the DNC would be investigating it.

After last week, he needs to be less concerned than mortified. Without an intervention, Alabama Democrats are set to embarrass the Democratic Party with the whole country watching, and they wont be able to blame Republicans when it happens.

Democrats win by cobbling together lots of minorities into a majority. Reed doesnt know how to do that and, worse, seems vehemently opposed to the very idea.

Reeds faction sent a message last month: If you arent behind Joe Reed, you dont have a place in the Alabama Democratic Party.

But an Alabama Democratic Party without those folks wont have a place in Congress.

Kyle Whitmire is the state political columnist for AL.com and the 2023 recipient of the Pulitzer Prize for commentary. Sign up for his weekly newsletter and get "Alabamafication" in your inbox every Wednesday.

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Slutty Vegan founder, Pinky Cole, and Big Daves Cheesesteak founder, Derrick Hayes, tied the knot in Atlanta on Saturday, June 10.

The ceremony took place at The St. Regis Hotel with gospel artist Tasha Cobbs Leonard opening the ceremony and R&B artist Montell Jordan officiating the wedding.

Its a fairytale, a Cinderella wedding, Pinky Cole told People. Just the other day, my mother saw me in my dress for the first time, and I never thought I would see myself in a wedding dress. Its a dream come true because Im doing something that no one in my family has ever done. To be the first to have a wedding is a big deal. Im breaking generational patterns and creating a new one.

The two restaurateurs met in June of 2020 and became engaged in July 2022 at Essence Festival of Culture. The couple has two kids: daughter D Ella Hayes, 1, and son Derrick Hayes Jr.,11 months.

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How a team of Birmingham businesses helped with the big day

Cole and Hayes have never been shy about supporting other Black-owned businesses, so when time came to plan for the Big Day, they booked a couple of Birmingham based businesses.

The Sharp Standard and K&Js Elegant Pastries were tapped to help plan the eventful pink night. The venue, decor, dresses and almost everything was a shade of blush, light pinks and rose gold. A shade of pink was everywhere -- in true Pinky Cole fashion.

The wedding reception and dance floor designed by The Sharp Standard at the St. Regis Hotel in Atlanta, GA. on June 10th. (STANLO PHOTOGRAPHER).

The Sharp Standard is a premiere event planning business based in Atlanta that is known for creating luxurious weddings. The owner of the company, Brittany Sharp, previously had her business in her hometown of Birmingham before moving it to Atlanta.

Coles best friend and bridesmaid attended another wedding planned by The Sharp Standard, and was amazed by the beauty and detail of the event. The friend called Cole from the ceremony to tell her how she needed to use The Sharp Standard for her future nuptials.

The Wedding decorations provided by The Sharp Standard at the St. Regis Hotel in Atlanta, GA. on June 10th. (STANLO PHOTOGRAPHER).

Initially she was going to have it in Jamaica, but she reached out to me 5 weeks ago to have the wedding in Atlanta, Sharp said.

Sharp was more than happy to take on the challenge and plan Coles big day. When it comes to entrepreneurship, Pinky has paved the way for millennials. So for her to ask me to plan the biggest day of her life, its such an honor. Im on such a high because they could have chosen anyone else.

Kristal Bryant of K&Js Elegant Pastries has long had a relationship with Pinky Cole. Bryant previously made a cake for Coles grand opening of the Woodlawn location of Slutty Vegan. Bryant was excited to create an elegant cake for the wedding.

The Wedding Cake provided by K&J's Elegant Pastries at the St. Regis Hotel in Atlanta, GA. on June 10th. (STANLO PHOTOGRAPHER).

Bryant had four weeks to create a nine tier cake that stood taller than 3-feet. Bryant wanted to make sure the cake represented a luxury-sleek look by decorating it with floral sails, and of course, the cake had different variations of pink accents with colors like mauve, nude, blush and gold.

Similar to Sharp, Bryant felt honored to be asked to create the cake that will always be remembered on Coles Big Day.

Out of all the people that are in Georgia, for her to call me in Alabama, its an amazing feeling to know that Im trusted, she said. It feels good to know my work speaks to that caliber of events.
An inmate who escaped from work release in north Alabama was later found hiding in a cornfield, authorities said Tuesday.

Torry Harrison, who had last been seen driving a black truck in Florence, is back in the Lauderdale County jail without bond after he was recaptured, Florence police told WAFF.

Harrison pulled into the far-right lane on Singing River Bridge as if he was going to pull over but instead sped up, police told the station.

He then turned onto River Road at speeds greater than 110 m.p.h., and police canceled the search for the escaped inmate when they lost sight of his vehicle as Harrison passed Foster Mill Road.

A motorist in the vicinity told police the driver turned into a cornfield.

Florence and Muscle Shoals officers cordoned off the cornfield and a drone was deployed to help police pinpoint Harrison in the cornfield.
The Alabama Democratic Party has an intersectionality problem. Ill forgive you if you dont understand what that means. You probably havent done the work to understand the myriad power dynamics at play that lift historic regimes of normativity while disenfranchising marginalized communities. If youre still confused, dont fret. College-educated liberals can help you refine your perspectives on every topic from race and gender to healthcare and gun rights.

Theyre also creating a window of opportunity for Republicans.

Power dynamics have always been part and parcel of politics and culture. They are quite complicated, and we shouldnt ignore them or try to simplify them away. Neither should we set an ideological norm that suggests were only capable of seeing issues through our respective power dynamics. Tabitha Isner, the vice chair of the Alabama Democratic Party explains that intersectionality is recognizing that we are all impacted by sexism, racism, ableism, heterosexism, and more.

Other Columns by Cameron Smith:

If only that were the beginning and end of the discussion.

Recognizing the intricacies of our human experiences isnt a liberal phenomenon. Most of us are capable of empathy even while conceding the limits of our own finite perspectives. Intersectionality theory itself suffers from a gross oversimplification of human experience into hierarchies of identity and privilege that conspicuously demand a certain political worldview.

Ive been repeatedly admonished by liberal friends that my conservative perspectives are a product of my failure to do the work. The main challenge is that my undertaking such work requires that my viewpoints ultimately align with theirs when it comes to politics and policy. They truly believe that our good faith disagreements are actually due to either my lack of understanding or my willful ignorance.

No political campaign is quite as effective at helping Republicans gain ground as the well-intended condescension of highly-educated white Democrats.

In that sense, the Alabama Democratic Party of Isner and former U.S. Sen. Doug Jones is indeed a gift to Republicans. Theyre presently in a struggle for leadership of the state party with Democratic juggernaut Joe Reed. The conflict is more than the old guard versus the new. Its Democratic practicality running headlong into intersectionality. Its the dean of Alabama Democrats recognizing that some national Democratic priorities dont necessarily connect the same way in the conservative South.

This isnt Reeds first rodeo.

Republicans have been so unbelievably horrible at courting Black voters that more than 90% vote Democratic when it comes to the presidential ticket. Thats an insanely high percentage to maintain.

Such loyalty demands that Democratic priorities are Black priorities. In the South, Black voters reasonably expect to set the policy agenda for Democrats because they form a radically higher percentage of the Democratic base than they do across the rest of the nation.

Jones and Isner have visions of a multi-faced Democratic Party where every minority coalition has a seat at the leadership table regardless of their numerical representation in the party. Such an aspirational political model begins to fall apart when coalition members have radically different priorities.

Read more: DNC chair says Alabama Democratic Party elimination of minority caucuses troubling

Just look at whats happening in Dearborn, Michigan. Traditionally Democratic Muslim and Arab American residents have repeatedly joined with white conservative Christians to protest sexually charged books and materials in schools. Solidly Democratic voters see the intersectional left as increasingly driven by viewpoints inconsistent with articles of their faith.

If the Democrats can pursue broad coalitions, so can Republicans.

On the heels of the Supreme Court decision creating two majority-Black districts in Alabama, Democrats must keep Black voters with them at historic levels of they want to win. Isner and Jones are already counting an additional Democratic congressional vote, but Reed wisely sees the path for a possible Republican challenge.

The Alabama GOP should spend heavily to clarify that Democratic National Committee elites intend to force an intersectional future led by the likes of Isner and Jones onto Alabama even if it doesnt match whats coming out of the pulpit on Sunday. Otherwise, why is Reed struggling so hard to prevent it?

Alabama Republicans should force Democrats to actually compete for the overwhelming Black support they currently take for granted. A GOP pickup of even a few percentage points of Black voters changes the political landscape in Alabama.

Imagine Alabama Republicans put up two young Black candidates in the vein of Sen. Tim Scott, R-SC, who connect in their home communities, avoid political extremism, and point to a bright future for Alabama. Make the elections less about partisan politics and more about effective representation. Our country could use more of that anyway.

Yes, I recognize thats a tall order. Its also a reason Isner and Jones might not want to count on a Democratic congressional pickup in Alabama just yet.

Smith is a recovering political attorney with three boys, two dogs, a bearded dragon, and an extremely patient wife. Hes a partner in a media company, a business strategy wonk, and a regular on talk radio. Please direct outrage or agreement to csmith@al.com or @DCameronSmith on Twitter.
Fox News Tonight turned heads Tuesday night when it referred to President Joe Biden as a wannabe dictator when covering former President Donald Trumps speech after he was arrested and arraigned.

During the coverage, the onscreen text read wannabe dictator speaks at the White House after having his political rival arrested.

The chyron was taken down immediately and was addressed, a Fox News spokesperson said in a statement to AL.com

Fox refers to Biden as "wannabe dictator." pic.twitter.com/aXXxw5YaAP  Peter Baker (@peterbakernyt) June 14, 2023

Trump pleaded not guilty to federal charges alleging he hoarded classified documents detailing sensitive military secrets and schemed to thwart government efforts to get them back.

Trump appeared before a judge in Miamis federal courthouse on Tuesday. He is the first former president charged with federal crimes. Authorities say Trump schemed and lied to block the government from recovering the documents concerning nuclear programs and other sensitive military secrets stored at his Mar-a-Lago estate.

Its the second criminal case Trump faces as he seeks to reclaim the White House in 2024. Hes also accused in New York state court of falsifying business records related to hush-money payments during the 2016 campaign.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Sen. Tommy Tuberville on Tuesday suggested President Biden was more careless in handling classified documents than former President Donald Trump.

I understand that President Trump had documents in his home, Alabamas senior senator told CNNs Manu Raju after being asked if he was concerned about Trump allegedly divulging national security information. They were locked up, nothing like President Bidens was in his glove compartment of a Corvette.

Tuberville made the comment in Washington, shortly before he left to join Trump for a press conference/fundraiser at Trumps Bedminster, New Jersey property hours after Trump pleaded not guilty to mishandling classified documents in Miami federal court.

The senator skipped a vote calling to end debate on President Joe Bidens nomination of Jared Bernstein as chair of the Council of Economic Advisors (CEA) to attend.

Tuberville is one of Trumps strongest supporters in the Senate and endorsed the former presidents 2024 campaign shortly after Trump formally announced his candidacy.

He said he wasnt concerned about Trumps handling of classified materials.

Those who live in a glass house dont need to throw rocks, Tuberville told CNN, comparing Trump and Biden.

Classified documents were found in the garage of Bidens Wilmington, Delaware home, next to his Corvette.

But Biden claimed they were not haphazardly stored.

[B]y the way, my Corvette is in a locked garage. Okay? So, its not like theyre sitting out in the street, he told reporters in January.

Biden also highlighted that he cooperated with the Justice Departments review when classified documents were also found in the home of former Vice President Mike Pence.
Incredibly, California Democrats are now considering a bill that would cause parents to lose their children in custody disputes if they are against their offspring having irreversible sex changes.

The bill currently being considered in the legislature would include a parent's affirmation of the child's gender identity as a factor in the health, safety, and welfare of a child in a custody dispute. The bill is being pushed by state Sen. Scott Wiener, who previously introduced the sanctuary state law for child sex changes. The aptly named Wiener also led the push to lessen the states penalty for intentionally exposing people to HIV. Quite a guy.

The bill is coauthored by Assemblywoman Lori Wilson, who is said to be simultaneously pushing a different but related bill that would mandate that foster parents pledge to help their children change genders. Wilson says that a 7-year-old who is able to articulate that they believe that they are not the same gender as they are biologically should then have that notion confirmed by their parents. Or guardians. And their teachers. And the world at large.

This is insane. California is not a safe place for normal families pic.twitter.com/vJEEiMlwfA  Clown World   (@ClownWorld_) June 10, 2023

So, progressives dont want to inform parents if, say, their seven-year-old son wants to have his penis lopped off on a whim, but, of course, would report to parents if their child was found with a pack of smokes. Could anyone imagine this being the case even just ten or twenty years ago?

How is it not a crimeindeed a heinous onefor the government to forcibly take your young kids away from you if you dont like that government encouraging them to change genders? How could it possibly be the reverse, except in one of the Nine Circles of Hell?

What about the Fourth Amendment? Talk about unreasonable seizures! (And toss out the Fifth and Sixth Amendments, too, while youre at it, Wiener and Wilson.) Can you imagine what the Founders would have done, if, instead of taxation without proper representation (in the form of a relatively minor increase on the tax on tea) or the imposition of the Stamp Act, King George III wouldve proposed confiscating their children if they were insufficiently supportive of their supposed desire to change sexes! Instead of the Boston Tea Party, history might have recorded the Boston Sex/Gender Party. The Founders might have been so incredulous, so angry -- and therefore so inspired  that the Revolutionary War might have been won sooner, despite the odds. (Hell, they might have invented nuclear weapons, 170 years before their time.)

There are many, even amongst Republicans, that refuse to characterize any policy or law proposed or enacted by Democrats as evil, no matter their ultimate effects. This is simply a refusal to acknowledge reality and an admission that one doesnt believe in standards, morality, or objective truth.

Its one thing to, say, propose taxing certain groups of people at a much higher rate than others, simply because of their income. But, vandalizing or burning down pregnancy centers and churches? The wholesale slaughter of babies for ones own convenience? Not indicative of good vs. evil? Patronizing stores that sell apparel or accessories designed by avowed Satanists? Nothing to do with good vs. evil? Encouraging crime and making discouraging crime a punishable offense? Not good vs. evil? Refusing to recognize biological and physical realityand Gods plan? Not good vs. evil? Encouraging young kids to do the impossible and change their genderwithout input from their parents and with the knowledge that they may well rue their decision a few years hence? Not good vs. evil? Criminalizing parents concern for the well-being of their children, both in terms of what they are taught and their physical integrity? Not good vs. evil?

Speaking of the Nine Circles of Hell, places like California, Illinois, New York, and Minnesota are in various stages of physical, spiritual, and moral decay. Power hungry, hypocritical, unfeeling, utterly intolerant, close-minded, ignorant, ass-hats are in the process of destroying them, whether their citizens (and burgeoning illegal alien populations) know it or not.

And, speaking of power hungry, hypocritical, unfeeling, utterly intolerant, close-minded, ignorant, attention-seeking, ass-hats -- those such as Al Gore, Greta Thunberg, and Alexandria-Ocasio Cortez have repeatedly made apocalyptic predictions that have -- in every case thus far -- been proven to be untrue, many wildly so. Back in 2019, AOC claimed that we only had 12 years left to seriously address climate changeor it will be too latethe damage will be irreversible. (I wonder if Al would have minded if the government took his kids from him for making such a preposterous and potentially damaging claim.)

12 years left to save the planet? Thats obviously bulls**t.

However, what should be clear to every sentient citizen is that we have less than 12 years left to save America. That is not hyperbole. It is an actual inconvenient truth. It is already almost unrecognizable to many of us seasoned citizens.

It is time -- past time actually -- for us to channel our inner Founder and reaffirm our fidelity to the words in the Declaration of Independence, to the rule of law, to limited governmentof, by, and for the peopleand to inalienable rights granted to us by our Creator.

No matter what.

Thomas Lifson adds:

If this bill passes both the Assembly and State Senate, H=Gavin Newsom has to sign it for it to become law. If he does sign it, he hands a gigantic issue to whoever runs against him as a Republican. The ads write themselves, with officials grabbing 7-year-olds from parents to take them off for genital surgery in dramatizations.

On the other hand, if he stands up to the trans bullies, it could well be his Sister Souljah moment, in which he defines himself as a sane Democrat.

Photo credit: Twitter video screengrab
Funny how one of the prosecutors selected to accuse President Trump of malfeasance in Miami, one Karen Gilbert, has an extended history of donating to Democrats.

It raises questions about whether this prosecution is about politics, or the rule of law. Because if she gets the conviction she's looking to get, won't that serve the Democrats she hands her money to very, very well.

Rep. Matt Gaetz is rightly asking about those many, many, Gilbert donations -- to President Obama, to Joe Biden, to the Democratic National Committee, according to Breitbart News:

Karen E. Gilbert, one of the lead prosecutors in Special Counsel Jack E. Smiths attempt to convict former President Donald Trump of mishandling White House documents, is also a past campaign donor to Barack Obama, Joe Biden, and the Democratic National Committee, according to the Federal Elections Commission (FEC). Gilberts past political donations were flagged Tuesday by Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL), who demanded answers in a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland, as well as a full roster of the staff working for the special counsel. The issue was also highlighted by Trump supporters on social media as the former president was arraigned in Miami:

The amounts weren't huge by campaign standards -- $1,000 here, $250 there. But they were steady and extended, signalling a very, very committed Democrat.

Breitbart cited Fox News's reporting in this passage her about what Gaetz wanted to know:

The congressman claimed in his letter that Smiths past work is both highly irregular and of extraordinary public concern, specifically how his office is structured, and is giving Garland until July 7 to cough up all staff rosters, phone lists, or similar records, within the custody or control of the Department of Justice, depicting all employees hired by or detailed to the office of Special Counsel Jack Smith.

Because the question he is asking is the right one -- how did these characters, including this Karen, get picked for this job, were there comparable GOP donors on the roster, were comparable GOP donors excluded, and why couldn't they find neutral and presumably fair prosecutors with no political dog in this fight instead, given that they claim to have a strong case?

Those are relevant questions, because this prosecution doesn't appear to be about enforcing the law, given its timing just as the 2024 election heats up and given that Trump currently leads in the polls.

The selective application of the law also sticks out as politically motivated given that other presidents, as well as a vice president, a senator, a National Security Advisor, and a secretary of state have also taken classified documents outside usual channels. The fact that obvious liars such as John Brennan still hold security clearances and can get their hands on classified documents any time they like and lie about what they say is yet another related politicization of the issue.

But the big one is why these political donors always turn up in these special counsel operations against Trump. Back when Robert Mueller was investigating Trump, dragging the process out for years because he couldn't find anything and because dragging it out hurt Trump while he was in office, all of his prosecutors were Democrats and a large number of them were Democrat donors, which suggests a higher level of involvement politically than just the average-joe Democrat.

Anybody see a conflict of interest? Anybody see fodder for Trump to claim that the process is rigged? How on earth could a Democrat be "fair" in such a prosecution and not cut corners, withold evidence, outright lie, and frame those they cannot stand on the political front?

A prosecutor already is under significant pressure to win a conviction as it is. A prosecutor also has a lot of discretionary power, which is an easy door to political interests rearing their ugly heads. They can, as is said, indict a ham sandwich if they want to.

If a prosecutor has a political interest in the outcome of the prosecution, then the pressure becomes overwhelming to win, not just on justice grounds, but for political plaudits. People with those conflicts of interest are more than incentivized to delve into the dirty political tricks the Democrats are already famous for in their prosecutions, effectively rendering what was supposed to be a strong case all by itself into a political show trial.

And it's already known that Gilbert has a history of dirty tricks. According to Breitbart:

Gilbert is controversial for other reasons. As Breitbart News Kristina Wong reported, she was once reprimanded by a federal judge for secretly recording a defense lawyer and his investigator.

Reliably sleazy? How convenient for Democrats.

That's certainly not optimal for the credibility of the case, which raises questions as to why this person was picked for this job at all. Was it because of her political donations? Was it because she was considered "reliable" and amenable to political direction from the Democratic National Committee? Was it because she has a history of unethical behavior? She's well thought of in those Democrat quarters as someone with the same mentality as theirs.

The flip side is whether a comparable number of Republicans were picked. If not, why not? Were they somehow "not trusted" to be "professional" in the same way they are bound to say their leftist prosecutor always is? That's a "tell."

Which isn't the same as what's needed in a fair prosecutor operating without fear or favor.

If this isn't a sign of some kind of rigging going on in this already highly political case as it is, what is?

Why do these political characters always turn up when the object is to Get Trump? And why isn't this practice prohibited as a breach of ethics, which it is?

Even if they do get the conviction they are looking for, they won't get quite the credibility they expect. With a conflicted prosecutor on this case, no one is going to believe there was a fair prosecution.

They could have prevented that perception, by hiring someone with no conflicts of interest. But they didn't.

What leaps out now is that they don't even care.

That tells us even more about the quality of this prosecution and the kind of dirty, sleazy tactics that are going to come of it.

Image: Screen shot from ABC Local 10 news video, via YouTube
The Biden administration aims to make America a third-rate nation. In 28 months, our corrupt, doddering, feeble "leader," a puppet to Barack Obama and other leftists, has initiated legions of programs and policies to decimate our nation.

Atop the list is dislodging the American family as the primary social unit. The Biden administration seeks to keep wealth redistribution schemes and welfare sufficiently attractive to disincentivize marriage and on-the-scene fathers.

While They're Young

The leftist agenda for destroying America though its children is multifaceted:

Confuse children at a very early age. Convince them that they were born as the wrong gender and need to use surgery to make themselves look like members of the opposite sex.

Concurrently, make it difficult for parents to even know what is occurring.

Infuse the schools with teachers who preach transgenderism, sexuality, crossdressing, and a variety of other such behaviors. Indoctrinate children each day.

De-emphasize reading, writing, and arithmetic. Focus on equity, feeling good about yourself, disparaging the U.S., and denigrating White people.

Discourage children from being proud Americans.

Schedule drag queen story hour so that children are exposed to men who mock women and prance around as if it's commendable behavior.

Intimidate teachers. Make them fear using the wrong pronouns and being fired even after twenty years of dedicated service.

Convert children into little fascists, ready to report on any adult, including their own parents, who "step out of line."

Fractured History

Support the 1619 Project, which asserts that American history begins with the introduction of slaves. Never mind that tens of thousands of people lived here before slavery flourished in the South and that millions of people afterward had nothing to do with the slave trade.

Magnify America's role in the global slave trade. Ignore that of 10,700,000 slaves who withstood the horrific Atlantic crossing, 388,000 (3.6%) disembarked in America.

Overlook that while Denmark was the first nation to abolish slave trade shipping in 1803, Britain and the United States followed four years later. Downplay that America fought a four-year Civil War, where 600,000+ troops, 360,000 of them for the Union, died, with millions more suffering life-altering casualties.

Censor the fact that since Lyndon Johnson's Great Society, the U.S. has spent $21+ trillion on affirmative action, equal opportunity, welfare, and other transfer payments  a staggering sum equal to $500,000+ per black person, for every year anyone was alive from 1965 to the present.

Don't teach America's role in World War I or World War II, and how we defeated the Nazis, vanquished fascism, and won the 44-year Cold War against an evil empire, the Soviet Union.

Un-level the Playing Field

Ensure that the average U.S. student lacks the academic skills to compete with immigrants from China, Pakistan, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, India, Japan, and Vietnam, whose per family income exceeds that of American Whites within one generation.

Overwhelm school systems by allowing torrents of illegal aliens to overpopulate small towns, while draining municipal budgets, health care facilities, first responder departments, and all else that supports a healthy community.

Install a buffoon, Miguel Cardona, as secretary of education to promote a transgender invasion of women's sports. Make sure that females face grossly unfair competition. If they protest, shun, bar, or cancel them.

Support unions and school boards that target parents who wish to safeguard the education of their children. Label these parents as enemies of the state. Install a corrupt, demented attorney general, Merrick Garland, who regards concerned parents as domestic terrorists.

Toss Out Merit

Dumb down testing. Do away with letter grades where possible. Throw out the SAT and GRE to benefit those who cannot academically compete. Remove the written essay as a college entrance requirement.

Promote and eventually graduate those students who can barely read even after twelve years of school. Then claim that school systems are racist. Later, when these academic laggards can't compete in the economy, blame White society for these ills.

Encourage the underemployed to join Black Lives Matter and Antifa. Pay them to be vocal and violent at events where no protests would otherwise occur. Ensure that no one spends more than a night in jail, regardless of the crime, before he's bailed out and exonerated by lawless, George Sorosfunded district attorneys and dishonest prosecutors.

So there you have it. Corrupt and thwart today's youth from cradle to high school, and from college to young adulthood. This is the prescription for a doomed generation, courtesy of the twisted policies and programs of the Biden administration.

Image: Ted Eytan.
In these dark days, I keep looking for stories promising that America is emerging from the madness that has enveloped her. One of those stories just emerged from New Jersey, of all places, where a jury awarded a white woman $25 million after concluding that Starbucks fired her on racial grounds. Given how leftists have wielded the charge of "racism" as both a shield and sword in their efforts to remake a constitutional, colorblind America, this is a heartening outcome.

Four years ago, Starbucks was in the news when two men claimed to have been the victims of discrimination after the staff in a Philly Starbucks refused to let them use the restroom and then called the cops on them. Despite the claims from the usual race-hustlers in the media and society at large, the facts were a bit more complicated.

Back then, Starbucks's policy was that restrooms were for customer use only. These men were not customers, but, when they were refused access to the restrooms, they became so obstreperous that the staff felt it had no option but to call the police.

There was another fact that was almost universally excluded from contemporaneous reports: the manager of the Starbucks in which the men were "victims of racism" was black.



Image: Arrest in Philadelphia Starbucks. YouTube screen grab.

Certainly, Starbucks didn't want to make a big deal out of the manager's race. Instead, it wanted to do obeisance in the face of the media outcry to prove that it was not a racist outlet. That's why the CEO, Kevin Johnson, flew to Philly to apologize personally to the men.

Johnson didn't stop there. He also cut into Starbucks's earnings by shutting all 8,000 U.S.-based stores so that the 175,000 employees could be trained about their "unconscious bias." Again, the media and Starbucks downplayed that the Starbucks manager who authorized the allegedly biased behavior against blacks was...black.

That was just the beginning. Starbucks also fired Shannon Phillips, an upper-level executive, who is white. The ritual racial sacrifice accomplished, Starbucks probably thought it was home free. Instead, Phillips sued, alleging that her firing was racially motivated.

And here's the real kicker: in a trial held in New Jersey (a reliably Democrat state), the jury concluded that Starbucks had, indeed, fired Phillips for purely racial reasons and awarded her $600,000 in compensatory damages and $25,000,000 in punitive damages.

What's fascinating is the insight the case gives us into how Phillips came to be fired:

In her role as regional manager, Phillips said she oversaw around 100 stores across Philadelphia, New Jersey, Delaware and Maryland. She claimed Starbucks started punishing white employees who weren't involved weeks later in a bid to publicly prove they were handling the incident. Ms Phillips alleges the firm ordered her to put a white male manager, who had worked for the company for 15 years, on administrative leave because of a race discrimination allegation against him. The allegation was based on complaints non-white employees at that manager's store were paid less than white workers. Ms Phillips said she argued the male manager didn't have a say in wages. The lawsuit also said Ms Phillips objected to suspending him because she said the manager wasn't racist and she had never seen him exhibit discriminatory behavior. She argued, in comparison, the black manager of the store where the arrests were carried out did not face any disciplinary action. Ms Phillips said the black manager's subordinate was the one who called 911 after the two men sat down and refused to leave after being told they couldn't use the bathroom without purchasing something.

Phillips's case isn't the only money Starbucks has lost on this matter. Apparently, it also settled with the men who complained that it was racist for them to abide by Starbucks's policies. They received an undisclosed amount plus a promise to pay for their college tuition. In addition, Philadelphia, which had no role in the contretemps, gave them a symbolic dollar and promised to set up a $200,000 program for young entrepreneurs.

Anti-white discrimination is every bit as bad as the anti-black discrimination that the Civil Rights Act of 1964 tried to erase. What Starbucks's behavior after the men's arrest revealed was a racial pendulum that had swung way too far to the left. Perhaps the jury's verdict signals that the pendulum is returning to the center. The American people want a world defined by Martin Luther King's vision of a colorblind society in which people are judged by the content of their character and their behavior rather than the color of their skin.
Paul F. Ryan declared on Black Tuesday that the federal indictment of former president Trump makes Trump unelectable in 2024.

I hasten to put this backstabbing comment into context. Last November, Ryan predicted that Mr. Trump would lose the 2024 presidential election. Earlier this year, Ryan announced that if the former president is the Republican candidate in 2024, he will not go to the party's convention, to be held in Milwaukee, this July. Ryan is from Wisconsin.

It should also be noted that in October 2016, Ryan declared that he will not campaign for, nor defend, Mr. Trump, then the GOP presidential candidate.

This record of anti-Trump zeal suggests that Paul F. Ryan no longer qualifies even as a Republican in name only.

One other relevant point about this Trump backstabber: Ryan was House speaker when the Deep State imposed the now-discredited Mueller probe on the Trump administration. This writer maintains that if Ryan had been loyal to the legitimate presidential administration, Mueller would never have happened. The evidence is persuasive: Paul F. Ryan is, effectively, a card-carrying member of the Deep State and will do just about whatever it takes to defeat a Trump candidacy in 2024, so as to maintain the Deep State's iron grip on the country.

What has the Republican Party done to be subject to worms like Paul Ryan and Chris Christie  and don't forget Liz Cheney  who burrow within to leave half the country without effective political leadership? If Ryan were a Democrat and betrayed a high-ranking Democrat official as he has betrayed Donald Trump, he would have been ridden out of that party on a rail years ago.

There is, alas, a willingness of far too many in the Republican party to be led astray by the lies and badgering and intimidation of the Democrat phalanx, joined by its media acolytes.

Norah O'Donnell's badgering, on CBS News, of Rep. Nancy Mace, while the events of Black Tuesday transpired, was sickening, rude, unprofessional  but consistent with the conduct of a Democrat hack. O'Donnell constantly talked over the beleaguered South Carolina congresswoman in a display of hostility to the First Amendment typical of leftists on college campuses nowadays.

Our country faces an existential threat  not from V. Putin, or China's President Xi, but from within. If the Deep State is powerful enough to have foisted the Russia collusion hoax on the country in 201718, followed by the lies of the two Trump impeachments, and now, in the eyes of Deep Staters, the humiliation of a twice-indicted former president (with a third indictment coming down the Georgia pike in a few months), the Deep State is powerful enough to rig another election win in eighteen months.

Look for, soon after November 3, 2024 and the final defeat of Mr. Trump, the Democrat rabid zealots to get a conviction based on lies and the end of judicial fairness, with Donald J. Trump the first American president in history to be incarcerated.

It would be much better if history were to blot out the names of the anti-democracy conspirators, names including Paul F. Ryan, along with Comey, McCabe, Brennan, Clapper, and the rest of the Deep State ilk.

That goes for Mitt Romney and his curiously silent niece, RNC head Ronna McDaniel, as well. May the GOP eventually stop tolerating political Benedict Arnolds in its ranks. To borrow from Lincoln, a party resting on disloyalty disguised as righteousness will not stand.

Image: Gage Skidmore via Flickr, CC BY-SA 2.0.
In the face of a virtual wall of silence among Senate Republicans, Senator J.D. Vance of Ohio has announced that he will place a hold on confirmation of nominees to Justice Department positions to protest the indictment of Donald Trump:

Until Merrick Garland stops using his agency to harass Joe Bidens political opponents, I will hold all DoJ nominees. pic.twitter.com/UVRwi6Ue01  J.D. Vance (@JDVance1) June 13, 2023

Via the Daily Caller:

"Donald Trump is merely the latest victim of a Department of Justice that cares more about politics than law enforcement. Merrick Garland's department harasses Christians for pro-life advocacy, but allows hardened criminals to walk our streets unpunished. This must stop, and I will do everything in my ability to ensure it does," Vance said in a statement. "Starting today, I will hold all Department of Justice nominations. If Merrick Garland wants to use these officials to harass Joe Biden's political opponents, we will grind his department to a halt."

Vance's office later qualified this pledge to exclude nominees to the U.S. Marshals Service. That leaves the following:

Nine senior DOJ positions are currently vacant, according to The Washington Post's Political Appointee Tracker. Several U.S. Attorney positions also remain vacant.

It is not clear what might cause Vance to drop this hold. Perhaps the special prosecutor Jack Smith dropping the charges of the indictment? Merrick Garland certainly will claim that Smith is "independent" and that he, Garland, cannot properly intervene. So expect this block to remain until the next president is inaugurated or the matter is ended in the courts.

Attorney David Zukerman emails that he expects Mitch McConnell to "cut him [Vance] off at the knees." Unlike Speaker McCarthy, McConnell has remained silent about the indictment. While Vance has five more years of his term, McConnell can certainly remind him that he owes a big debt to financing of his campaign that McConnell facilitated.

Burgess Everett of Politico notes:

Vance doesn't serve on Judiciary, so his action will mostly take place on the floor. It comes amid some other nominee roadblocks: GOP Sen. Tommy Tuberville is blocking quick military promotions on the Senate floor, HELP Chair Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) is hindering health-related nominees over prescription drug prices and Energy Chair Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) is opposing all EPA nominees.

Expect the expression "do-nothing Congress" to be liberally applied during the presidential campaign.

Photo credit: Twitter video screen grab.
While the mainstream media refuse to report actual facts, our blessed plethora of alternative media are on the job. They are doing their level best to report the truth of the deep corruption of the Deep State, exacerbated by the preternatural criminality of Joe Biden, his family, and all those in service of the Obama agenda; the anti-constitutional, racially divisive transformation of America.

No one can deny that the hatred of whites has exploded, having been taught to young people as a moral imperative for many years now. The myth of white supremacy came to new heights under Obama, the man who revered Jeremiah Wright, a man filled with rage and hatred of America as founded and, of course, white people. Wright was Obama's mentor. It was Obama who set us on the course for where we are today. Biden is just the mind-numbed, moronic tool of Obama's and his communist pals' plan to destroy the United States. Who installed him as president? Roaring lions seeking to devour anyone who gets in their way.

"The devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking whom to devour."

1 Peter 5:8

Let's skip Obama's history of privilege, his disrespect for his white grandparents who raised him, and his communist indoctrination by an earlier mentor, Frank Marshall Davis, and go directly to his promise to transform America. He was hugely successful! He mesmerized his acolytes, his disciples. We are now essentially a police state with institutions  the FBI, CIA, DOJ, IRS  all operating on the Stalinist model, each an arm of the Marxist/Democrat party.

While these so-called progressives have been undermining our constitutional and Judeo-Christian values since the turn of the last century (Woodrow Wilson was their patron saint), it was Obama that took the move toward tyranny from gradual to sudden. Now we are there. Surveillance, censorship, and control are their goal, the Constitution be damned.

Our law enforcement agencies have interfered to affect the outcome of the last three elections. They persecute their political opponents with their typical abuse of the law  lawfare  anyone remotely conservative, anyone perceived as a threat to their power, is on their radar for destruction.

Trump is their number-one enemy for good reason; he actually cares about the American people while they loathe them. The American people are merely an annoying inconvenience to the left. They want us gone, voiceless.

What has happened to those who protested the results of the 2020 election on J6 is right out of the Soviet playbook. What is most enraging about all this? That so many Republicans are guilty of letting it happen; too many of them are on the anti-Trump train. They were never going to upset the uniparty's applecart. Far from it. Mitch McConnell? Mitt Romney? Kevin McCarthy? Dan Crenshaw? Liz Cheney? Just a few of many who have opted to sell out the country. The 149 Republicans who voted to incur $50T in debt over the next ten years are part of the uniparty.

There are too many weak, compromised, and corrupt Republicans to mention, but their capitulation to the radical wing of the Democrat party that is loyal to the CCP has brought this nation to its lowest point in U.S. history. We are in decline by design, by globalist intent, with the full approval of Obama and his wreck-America cronies. We are also in grave danger. Biden's lust to see Putin overthrown has made his persecution of the war in Ukraine the most dangerous since the Cuban Missile Crisis. China has surpassed our military readiness on every score. Evil is on the march, and too few among our elected leaders are willing to rise up and fight.

How corrupt is our Department of Justice? In order to take Trump off the board, they have indicted him on a long list of made-up, fabricated crimes regarding the documents confiscated in that misguided, illegitimate raid on Mar-a-Lago. These charges are ludicrous, and a decent judge would and may well toss them. The thoroughly corrupt Jack Smith has chosen to ignore all the precedents that should apply. Tapes stored in Clinton's sock drawer? Legal. Sandy Berger stole docs from the National Archives? Slap on the wrist. Biden's many hundreds of documents and Pence's possession of "classified" docs? Ignored by the DOJ. Comey's disingenuous decision to give Hillary a pass for her oh, so many and far more serious crimes got a pass. So terrified of the most pro-America president since Reagan, the left has gone to extreme and illegal lengths to destroy the best president since Reagan.

Biden's two years in office have brought the U.S. to the brink of an abyss. This indictment of Trump only proves the unfairness of our two-tiered system of justice.

The intensity with which the left is shoving LGBT issues down our throats, as if these "communities" are oppressed minorities, which they certainly are not, has to raise the question: Why does the LGBT community adopt pride, the seventh deadly sin, as its mantra? It's an in-your-face affront, the intent to make those of us who oppose the sexual grooming of children cower in fear of their cancel culture.

But in fact, almost no one discriminates against these folks; they bend over backward to let them live their lives as they wish. The Biden administration's slavish treatment of them is pathetic; on Monday, he referred to those trans guests at the White House, including the one who bared breasts for the camera, as the "most courageous people he's ever met." This from a man who has met more veterans than most of us.

All this is just more of the left's cultural Marxism that seeks to destroy the nuclear family and all Judeo-Christian values. The Democrat party, as currently constituted, is an evil entity, on a mission to destroy America and everything it once stood for. There is simply no other explanation for what they've done to our once-great nation.

Think what evil creeps liberals would be if their plans to enfeeble the individual, exhaust the economy, impede the rule of law, and cripple national defense were guided by a coherent ideology instead of smug ignorance.

P. J. O'Rourke
In 1988, Gene Fleming, a farmer and livestock equipment manufacturer from Hastings, Nebraska, was visiting his sister-in-laws farm in Harvard, Nebraska, when he noticed a two-year-old goose with no feet, stumbling around on stumps trying to keep up with his fellow geese. Fleming took pity on him, took the goose home and named him Andy.

Fleming was an inventor who made a fortune manufacturing odd solutions to animal needs. Back in 1959, when he learned that cows had a habit of scratching themselves on any rough surface until their skins ripped open, Fleming invented a cow scratcher, which not only relieved itches but also sprayed them with bug repellent. It worked great, and he made hundreds of thousands of them.

Andy and Gene Fleming.

Flemings first idea for Andys problem was to affix one of his feet on a small skateboard, figuring the goose could push along with one stump while balancing on the other, but that didnt work. Then Fleming realized that the answer lied in the obviousgive him shoes. It turned out that if you stuff some foam rubber down the toe of an infant-sized pair of sneakers, they fit the gooses feet perfectly. The shoes dramatically changed the goose's life, and for the first time Andy was running helter-skelter around the yard.

Soon, Andy became a local attraction. The Flemings took Andy around the town visiting schools, libraries, county fairs, and parades. Flemings wife Nadine even started an Andy Fan Club and issued signed certificates to patrons. They sold Andy the Goose T-shirts and sweatshirts, posters, key chains, postcards and badges. When someone at the Nike company saw a news story about Andy, the shoe company sent Fleming and Andy a lifetime supply of shoes.

News of a goose overcoming his handicap eventually reached New York and Hollywood. Andy appeared in the People magazine and Reader's Digest. Andy and Gene also appeared on The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson.

According to Fleming, it wasnt just the shoes that made Andy famous. The goose turned out to have a winning personality as well.

Geese are mean creatures that like to sneak up on you when you're bent over and give you a good bite in the you-know-what, Fleming told Chicago Tribune. But Andy was so grateful for what we'd done for him, he was the nicest, sweetest guy you ever met.

Tragically, Andys fame also attracted haters. On October 19, 1991, Andy was found murdered in a local park with his head and wings removed. He was still wearing his shoes. Andys murder shocked the nation. Its frightening to think our community might be home to someone who would do such a horrible deed, said Hastings Mayor Phyllis Lainson. He was an inspiration, said Fleming. I cant think of any reason why anyone would want to kill an innocent goose like that.

The sheriff's office was bombarded with tips and suggestions. Some thought that a disgruntled former employee of Fleming's might be responsible. Others thought the dismemberment pointed to a satanic cult. The Chamber of Commerce set up a reward fund and money began to pour in from all over the nation. In the end, they had collected somewhere around $10,000 to apprehend the killer. Unfortunately, the killer was never found.

Andy meeting some children.

Gene Fleming takes Andy for a walk.

Andy riding a miniature bicycle designed by Gene Fleming.

References:

# A Footnote On Andy The Goose, Chicago Tribune

# The Goose Who Wore Nikes, and the Mystery of Who Murdered Him, Atlas Obscura

# Murder Most Fowl, People
Samsung has released the June 2023 Android security patch for the Galaxy Z Fold 2, Galaxy Z Flip, Galaxy S20 FE, and Galaxy A73. The latest security update is also now widely available for the Galaxy Z Fold 4, Galaxy S22 series, and Galaxy A52 5G.

The June SMR (Security Maintenance Release) for the Galaxy Z Fold 2 and Galaxy Z Flip is currently available to users in the UK. According to SamMobile, which first reported this update, the new firmware build numbers for the phones are F916BXXU3JWE7 and F700FXXUCJWF1, respectively. These build numbers suggest that the devices are getting more than just the latest security patch. However, we arent expecting major new features. Samsung may be pushing some system optimizations for the foldable duo.

As usual, this months security update will reach the Galaxy Z Fold 2 and Galaxy Z Flip in other markets in the coming days, including the US. The 5G version of the latter has yet to pick up the new SMR but it should join the party soon. The June 2023 security patch contains fixes for more than 60 vulnerabilities. These include 50-odd Android OS issues and 11 Galaxy-specific issues. At least three of those are critical security flaws. The latest update will patch all those flaws on Samsungs aging foldable smartphones.

Samsungs June update is available for a few more Galaxy devices

The Galaxy S20 FE and Galaxy A73 are also getting all of these security fixes with the latest update. The rollout for the former is already widespread across Europe. The device is getting the June SMR with the firmware build number G781BXXU6HWE6. The update may contain more than just a bunch of security patches, but we dont have a changelog ready to confirm that.

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The Galaxy A73, meanwhile, is currently getting the June SMR in Malaysia with some camera, Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth improvements. The new firmware version for this phone is A736BXXU4CWE4.

Samsung will release the latest security update for these devices in other markets in the coming days. Meanwhile, if youre using the Galaxy Z Fold 4, a Galaxy S22 model, or the Galaxy A52 5G, the June SMR for your phone is now rolling out more widely.

The latest foldable first received the update in the US. Its now available to users in the UK and South Korea as well. Likewise, the latest update for the Galaxy S22 series has reached Asia after the initial release in Europe and Latin America. The Galaxy A52 5G is also getting the June SMR in Latin America.
Its no secret that Googles new return-to-office policy hasnt had the best adoption from its employees who have become accustomed to working from home. However, the companys recent announcement that it will now track employee badges to monitor office attendance and consider in-person presence in performance evaluations has caused confusion and frustration among Google employees, leading to mixed messaging within the company.

According to CNBC, dissatisfied employees expressed their discontent on Googles internal site, Memegen, with many stating that the company is treating them like schoolchildren. Furthermore, this move has also raised concerns among employees who have recently relocated to different cities and states after Google approved their requests to work remotely. This is because employees who previously had approval for full remote work may face a reevaluation of their status under the new policy.

In classic fashion, many employees also shared memes to express their frustrations, with one popular meme depicting the head of human resources, Fiona Cicconi, standing in front of a school chalkboard with the caption, If you cannot attend the office today, your parents should submit an absence request. Another highly-rated meme reads, Check my work, not my badge.

Googles reasoning for returning to the office

Fiona Cicconi, Chief People Officer, emphasized the importance of physical proximity when announcing the new policy, stating that there is simply no substitute for in-person collaboration.

Of course, not everyone believes in magical hallway conversations, but theres no question that working together in the same room makes a positive difference, said Cicconi.

However, in response to the widespread backlash, a Google spokesperson explained that they would only track employee badges in an aggregated form for company reports, and it would not be shared at an individual level. But, Google did mention that it would inform group leaders about employees who have consistently been absent from the office, allowing them to provide support in either returning to the office or exploring alternative flexible work options.
According to some new information, the Pixel Watch 2 wont look much different than its predecessor. This info is based on a recent app teardown, lets take things one step at a time.

The beta version of the Google Search app was released this week, version 14.24. That app actually includes new assets which are related to Googles second-gen Pixel smartwatch.

The Pixel Watch 2 is not expected to look much different than its predecessor

The watch is being developed under the code name Eos. You may wonder why is that codename different than the one reported earlier this year (Aurora). Well, in mythology, both Eos (Greek) and Aurora (Roman) are goddesses of the dawn.

There could be some differences here, perhaps were looking at variants with and without cellular connectivity. That would make all the sense in the world based on what weve seen before.

In any case, 9to5Google also discovered that Google is using the same text and animations for the Pixel Watch 2, as it used for the first-gen model. Considering that the same design is used in these cartoonish animations (shown below), its safe to assume that the second-gen model wont look much different.

Well, unless, of course, Google didnt update the assets just yet, in which case this assumption doesnt make much sense. Still, the chances that Google will change the design entirely are very low.

Google has a number of other things to fix, the design was not the issue

The Pixel Watch was actually hailed for its design, though it had other shortcomings. Google will likely do its best to fix those shortcomings, and not mess around with the design all that much.

The Pixel Watch 2 is expected to arrive alongside the Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro later this year. Those devices are expected to become official in October. The second-gen watch is expected to offer a major battery life boost, and actually switch to a Snapdragon SoC.
Over the past few years, the European Union has been the top watchdog when it comes to safeguarding its peoples data. Now, in line with these efforts, the Swedish Authority for Privacy Protection (IMY) has fined Spotify of SEK 58 million ($5.4 million) for allegedly mishandling user data, thereby breaching the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).

The complaint, lodged in 2019 by privacy advocacy group Noyb, led by campaigner Max Schrems, stated that Spotify not only failed to provide customer data upon request but also neglected to disclose the purpose of processing such data. Additionally, upon further investigation, the IMY also found that Spotify couldnt adequately explain how they were using this data, raising some serious concerns.

As a result, the IMY has now ordered Spotify to provide the complete set of requested data and emphasized the need for the company to be transparent about how they handle personal data and the purposes for which they process it.

Stefano Rossetti, a privacy lawyer at Noyb, expressed his satisfaction with IMY finally taking action and stated that it is a basic right for every user to have full information about their processed data. However, he also highlighted the prolonged duration of the case and the need for the Swedish authority to expedite its procedures.

Spotifys response

While Spotifys inadequate measures to protect customer data raised some concerns, the IMY considered the violations to be of low level of seriousness and recognized that Spotify had taken steps to address the issues. Moreover, the authority also mentioned that they fined Spotify based on its revenue and user count.

In response to the fine, a Spotify spokesperson stated, Spotify offers all users comprehensive information about how personal data is processed. During their investigation, the Swedish DPA found only minor areas of our process they believe need improvement. However, we dont agree with the decision and plan to file an appeal.
The Ulefone Armor 3W is a smartphone that was released almost four years ago, and it seems to have been used by a military search team member in a rescue mission.

A plane crashed in Colombia a while back, and 40 days after it happened, 4 children were found safe in the Amazon jungle. This surprised a lot of people, as everyone feared the worst.

The Ulefone Armor 3W was used in a rescue mission by a Colombian military search team

It seems like the pictures taken by the Colombian Military Search Team were taken by the Ulefone Armor 3W. The phones watermark can be spotted on them, Ulefone has reported.

The Ulefone Armor 3W is a rugged phone, and its a bit dated thus far. Ulefone did launch its successor back in March, the Armor 20WT. That phone also has a walkie-talkie function. It is also rugged, as it is IP68/IP69K and MIL-STD-810H certified.

That phone is ideal for extreme situations. Not only does it offer excellent water and dust resistance, but it can also be exposed to extreme temperatures, survive drops, and more.

The Armor 3Ws successor has a huge battery, and supports fast charging

The Ulefone Armor 20WT also comes with dual front-facing speakers, and a huge 10,850mAh battery. It supports 33W fast wired charging, and its fueled by the MediaTek Helio G99 SoC.

This phone includes 12GB of RAM and 256GB of expandable storage (up to 2TB via a microSD card). A 50-megapixel camera sits on the back, while a 16-megapixel camera is included on the front.

There is a 5.65-inch fullHD+ display also used here, while Android 12 comes pre-installed. The phone does have a fingerprint scanner, while it also supports facial scanning thanks to its front-facing camera.

If youd like to know more about this handset, click the link below the article.

Ulefone Armor 20WT (more info)
Boris Johnson has claimed a Tory MP sitting on the committee preparing to publish a report finding he misled Parliament with his partygate denials may have broken lockdown rules.

The former prime minister described the allegation as nauseating and called for Sir Bernard Jenkins resignation from the Privileges Committee on the eve of the publication of its investigation into whether Mr Johnson lied to MPs.

The Guido Fawkes website reported that Sir Bernard went to a drinks party held by Commons Deputy Speaker Dame Eleanor Laing in December 2020, while London was in Tier 2 measures restricting indoor mixing.

The allegation emerged as the cross-party committee Sir Bernard sits on was preparing to publish on Thursday morning its damning report that Mr Johnson has already resigned as an MP over.

In a statement, Mr Johnson said: Bernard Jenkin has just voted to expel me from Parliament for allegedly trying to conceal from Parliament my knowledge of illicit events.

Now it turns out he may have for the whole time known that he himself attended an event  and concealed this from the Privileges Committee and the whole House for the last year.

To borrow the language of the committee, if this is the case, he must have known he was in breach of the rules.

He has no choice but to explain his actions to his own committee, for his colleagues to investigate and then to resign.

Mr Johnson also wrote to committee chair Harriet Harman demanding that she clarify whether she checked that panel members had not attended such events before the inquiry began.

In a rancorous letter, he wrote that if the report was true, Sir Bernard was guilty of flagrant and monstrous hypocrisy.

I really find it incredible  and nauseating  that this matter is emerging at this stage of your process.

Lord Peter Cruddas, a Tory donor who Mr Johnson elevated to the Lords, called for the police to investigate.

Sir Bernard has been contacted while a representative for Dame Eleanor declined to comment.

London had entered Tier 2 restrictions six days before the alleged gathering in Parliament on December 8 2020.

Indoor mixing was banned and the rule of six was in place outside. Bars and pubs could only serve alcohol alongside substantial meals.

Sir Bernard Jenkin (UK Parliament/PA)

Sources said the Tory-majority Privileges Committee, chaired by Labours Ms Harman, had signed off on its report into Mr Johnson and will publish on Thursday morning.

They have investigated whether Mr Johnson committed a contempt of Parliament by misleading MPs either recklessly or deliberately by denying rule-breaking parties in No 10.

The former prime minister was himself fined by the Metropolitan Police, which issued 126 fixed-penalty notices for Covid breaches across Downing Street and Whitehall.

Mr Johnson has railed against the committee he has criticised as a kangaroo court and stood down as an MP on Friday after receiving their findings.

The former Conservative leaders resignation means he will not serve the lengthy suspension likely to be recommended.

If it was at least 10 days and approved by the Commons, then a by-election in his Uxbridge and South Ruislip constituency could have been triggered.

Instead, his constituents will go to the polls next month in a major electoral challenge for Prime Minister Rishi Sunak because of the resignation.

Mr Johnsons ally Nigel Adams also resigned and his arch-supporter Nadine Dorries has announced she will quit as an MP too.

The former prime minister has publicly clashed with Mr Sunak, accusing him of talking rubbish over his resignation honours list.

Liberal Democrat Deputy Leader Daisy Cooper said: This a typical distraction tactic from Boris Johnson that doesnt change the fact he broke the law and lied about it.

The Conservative Party is now in a full blown civil war, while people struggle to afford to pay their mortgage or get a GP appointment. This whole unedifying spectacle needs to brought to an end as soon as possible.

We need a general election now to finally get rid of this chaotic Conservative government.
Suella Braverman has backed police over the handling of the coronation and insisted they had the right powers to crack down on Just Stop Oil protests.

The Metropolitan Police has been criticised over the arrests of six anti-monarchy protesters and three charity volunteers who were all later released without charge.

But the Home Secretary said the event was a success for the police and people were able to enjoy that history event.

Thats thanks to the incredible hard work and initiative deployed by the police, she told MPs.

But she said she wanted to see a swifter and more robust response to protesters such as Just Stop Oil.

She told the Home Affairs Select Committee: I am incredibly frustrated when I see scenes of militant, activist, selfish protesters disrupt people from getting to work, getting to school, getting to hospital appointments, and we cannot see that.

So I have to say, my view is quite mixed. I think that, yes, we want to see a more robust and swifter response from the police. And I think there is room for improvement, personally, going forward.

But she added police had also done a difficult job well, highlighting the coronation as an example.

The public are sick of Just Stop Oils planned programme of deliberate disruptions to daily lives. Ive just signed an SI to change the law, giving Police power to stop protests causing more than a minor hindrance to a journey. This comes into effect at midnight tonight. pic.twitter.com/Zt9V4T0nko  Chris Philp MP (@CPhilpOfficial) June 14, 2023

Mrs Braverman said Just Stop Oil protests had cost millions of pounds in policing costs.

She said a new statutory instrument  which was passed despite reservations about the process expressed by peers  would enable police to take quicker action against slow walking protests and those bringing chaos to the law-abiding majority.

Human rights group Liberty has taken the first step towards a High Court challenge over the legislation.

BREAKING Suella Braverman is set to sign off protest restrictions she has no power to create. Restrictions rejected by Parliament UndemocraticUnconstitutionalUnacceptable LIBERTY'S LAWYERS HAVE STARTED LEGAL ACTION AGAINST THE HOME SECRETARY pic.twitter.com/yhPMlS0Bpu  Liberty (@libertyhq) June 14, 2023

Liberty lawyer Katy Watts said: The Home Secretary has sidelined Parliament to sneak in new legislation via the back door, despite not having the powers to do so.

This has been done deliberately in a way which enables the Government to circumvent Parliament  who voted these same proposals down just a few months ago  and is a flagrant breach of the separation of powers that exist in our constitution.
Explorer Sir David Hempleman-Adams has become the first person to be awarded Polar Medals by two monarchs for his expeditions to the Arctic and Antarctic.

Sir Davids first medal was awarded by the late Queen for services to the UK in the field of polar research for work in both regions up to 2012.

The King has awarded him the second bar to his Polar Medal for his work in the Arctic and Antarctic up to 2022.

After collecting his second honour from the Princess Royal at a ceremony at Windsor Castle on Wednesday, Sir David, 66, said: It is very special of course and it is obviously unique. Princess Anne said she had not come across two before.

Sir David Hempleman-Adams receives his honour from the Princess Royal (Jonathan Brady/PA)

I started in adventure through the Duke of Edinburghs Award. I went on and did mountaineering and polar and have loved polar all my life.

So I have got the late Duke of Edinburgh to thank for this.

The Wiltshire adventurer was the first person to reach the geographic and magnetic North and South Poles as well as climb the highest peaks in all seven continents  the Adventurers Grand Slam.

He has carried out several studies including medical research into patterns of behaviour before and after exposure to prolonged periods in polar regions.

Sir David Hempleman-Adams poses with daughters (left to right) Alicia, Camilla and Amelia (Andrew Matthews/PA)

Sir David said: The tragedy of this is that on my first Polar Medal, I was going up to the Arctic Ocean.

From my first Polar Medal to my second Polar Medal I have seen massive climate change which is, in that short time, tragic.

Anyone else getting Polar Medals is going to see even faster change.

He has done more than 30 major expeditions around the world and on the prospect of doing any others, he said the mind is willing but the body is slowing down.

Sir David joked: Then I drink too much and people persuade me.
Describing disasters as natural masks the systemic inequalities in access to resources and power, the head of a disaster relief charity has said.

Sanj Srikanthan, CEO of ShelterBox, said framing catastrophes like earthquakes, tsunamis, droughts and floods as natural disasters undermines the need for preventative action.

His comments come on the anniversary of the devastating floods in Pakistan last year, which killed over 1,700 people and 1.2 million livestock while affecting around 33 million people in total.

In an open letter addressed to the UKs media, Mr Srikanthan said the term natural disaster is misleading and harmful and it perpetuates a dangerous myth that nothing could have been done to prevent people being so badly affected.

He added: When we frame disasters as natural, we fail to acknowledge the complex interplay between nature and the role of human actions and how they impact communities around the world.

Maryam and her young daughter Zainab lost their homes to the floods and had to sleep under trees with no light, shelter, or clean drinking water (ShelterBox/PA)

A disaster is not a natural occurrence but a result of systemic inequalities in access to resources and power.

Where we live and how much money we have often determines our ability to recover. By framing these events as natural, we undermine the need for proactive measures to protect vulnerable communities.

It masks the underlying social, economic, and political instability that make marginalised and disadvantaged communities disproportionately affected.

Pakistans monsoon season last year saw nearly three times as much rain as the 30-year average, the British Red Cross said.

It rained continuously for two months and upturned the lives of millions between June and October last year.

Last years flooding in Pakistan affected around 33 million people and killed over 1,700 (ShelterBox/PA)

Shortly before, in April and May, temperatures reached 49C which baked the ground so the flood water was less easily absorbed.

Higher temperatures, brought on by human-induced climate change, also mean glaciers in the Himalayas and Hindu Kush melt faster and push more water through the Indus River basin, where hundreds of millions of people live and work.

Mr Srikanthan said: When I visited Pakistan after monsoon flooding last year, it was clear how the devastating impacts of the floods were within humanitys power to mitigate  the people worse affected were those living in poverty with the least means to protect themselves and few resources to withstand the next event.

It was little reported that regions of Pakistan were in the middle of drought and food insecurity just prior to the flooding that compounded a pre-existing crisis.

Instead of using natural disaster we simply say disaster or are more specific, describing the extreme weather, earthquake, tsunami, or volcanic eruption.

I urge the media to act, help us in breaking this cycle, by reframing their reporting and committing to language that accurately reflects why people are affected so badly.
The Government is showing a lack of compassion in its harsh language about migrants, a Tory ex-minister has said.

Lord Kamall, a Conservative former health minister who served in Boris Johnsons government, urged ministers to tone down their harsh rhetoric about migrants crossing the channel.

As the House of Lords continued scrutiny of the Illegal Migration Bill, Lord Kamall said: I am very concerned about the language that we are using. I am very concerned about the lack of compassion that we are demonstrating.

I do not think it is right that we call people who are either fleeing persecution and torture, or even actually coming to this country as an economic migrant  there is nothing wrong with wanting to be an economic migrant.

My parents were economic migrants, they came here to seek a better life.

Home Secretary Suella Braverman has previously faced criticism for describing migrants making the unauthorised journey across the English Channel as an invasion.

Immigration minister Robert Jenrick has, meanwhile, been challenged for claiming migrants travelling through safe countries in an onward journey to the UK are asylum shoppers, something which international agreements do not prevent them doing.

Robert Jenrick called some migrants asylum shoppers (Jordan Pettitt/PA)

Lord Kamall said he had huge sympathy with an amendment from Lib Dem peer Baroness Hamwee which called on the Government to conduct a review into the efficiency of the immigration processing system, aimed at reducing the backlog.

Lord Kamall told peers: Could we please have some accountability and some monitoring of why it takes so long?

The Tory peer added: Then people can understand how the process works, but also there might well be more sympathy when people are denied the ability to stay because they havent met the criteria.

Responding to the calls for a review, Home Office minister Lord Sharpe of Epsom said: I recognise that we should always be striving for the maximum efficiency and indeed effectiveness in everything we do, and in that regard I agree with Lord Kamall.

But making decisions quickly and accurately is obviously in the best interest of the individuals involved  as well as representing value for money for the taxpayer, and where there is misuse of the UKs generous immigration system, ensuring it is dealt with effectively.

Lady Hamwee withdrew her amendment to the Bill but peers will continue to scrutinise it further.
A psychopathic hammer attacker has been jailed for at least 28 years for realising his depraved fantasy to kill a random stranger in a Gothic graveyard.

Erik Feld, 37, had a long-standing obsession with extreme violence before he killed Ranjith Kankanamalage in a premediated attack, the Old Bailey heard.

Beforehand, Feld fed his fixation by buying a kitten in order to kill it and watching snuff films online of men and women being bludgeoned with hammers, the Old Bailey heard.

In the early hours of August 16 2021, Feld hid in the shadows behind a monument in Tower Hamlets cemetery in east London before hitting his prey 12 times in the face and head with a claw hammer.

Victim Ranjith Kankanamalage (Metropolitan Police/PA)

The 50-year-old victim was found with catastrophic injuries by a member of the public on a path in cemetery park later the same morning.

In his trial, Feld concocted what the judge described as a preposterous cock-and-bull story and launched a homophobic rant at the victim, who had an ex-wife and two children in Sri Lanka and an ex-civil partner in the UK.

Feld was found guilty of murder in March and, on Wednesday, Mr Justice Bryan jailed him for life with a minimum term of 28 years.

The judge said it was an horrific and abhorrent murder.

He said that Feld had picked a creepy and Gothic setting because it fitted in with his long-standing desire to kill a stranger with a hammer and Mr Kankanamalage had the severe misfortune to encounter him.

Mr Justice Bryan told Feld his selfish, callous, abhorrent actions carried out to fulfil your depraved fantasy had a devastating impact on Mr Kankanamalages loved ones.

The judge agreed with barristers in the case that the starting point for sentencing was 25 years  rather than 30 years if murder was aggravated by hostility to his victims sexual orientation.

Feld had 10 previous convictions for 18 offences between 2002 to August 19 2021 including criminal damage, sex assault, battery and possession of an offensive weapon.

Among the offences: he had brandished an axe at passengers on the London Underground and sprayed black paint on his face and the word kill on a Tube window, the court was told.

Feld was arrested on August 20 2021 as he was awaiting sentence for waving a claw hammer outside a Poundland store two days after the killing.

A search of his home in Tower Hamlets, east London, uncovered two mallets and a sledge hammer in a hallway cupboard, and a third mallet in a living-room cupboard.

He was re-arrested in January 2022 after his DNA was found on bloodstained nail clippings from the left hand of his victim and he was spotted on CCTV footage in the area of the cemetery.

In a fresh search of his flat, police found another hammer and a cut-throat razor by Felds pillow.

Erik Feld was arrested on August 20 2021 (Metropolitan Police/PA)

Prosecutor Paul Cavin KC read a series of victim impact statements, including one from the victims daughter, Hiruni, on behalf of herself, her mother and younger brother who watched the sentencing by video link from Sri Lanka.

She described him as a kind and friendly person with life-long love of learning and an ambition to qualify in accountancy.

She said: He was a senior bank manager in Sri Lanka, a very accomplished athlete who won gold medals and completed two degrees in Sri Lanka as well as academic courses in the UK.

He was hoping to apply to become a British citizen and resume his career in banking, she added: Before his dream came true, he was brutally murdered.

Former civil partner John Kennedy told how he met Mr Kankanamalage at the Hilton Hotel in Heathrow where the victim was working at the time.

He said the realisation of what happened to him hit me like a ton of bricks and he was consumed be grief, depression and deep sadness.

He also felt sad for Mr Kankanamalages family in Sri Lanka, saying: This was such a cruel and cowardly attack on a gentle and kind man who was just chilling in the park.

In mitigation, Andrew Morris highlighted Felds severe personality disorder.

Erik Feld jailed for a min 28 years for the murder of Ranjith Kankanamalage who he killed in #TowerHamlets Cemetery Park. Ch Supt James Conway said "Felds actions demonstrated a brutal low of humanity" and praised the response of the local community.https://t.co/7ZCfms9qRh  Tower Hamlets Police (@MPSTowerHam) June 14, 2023

The defendants mother died when he was aged 11, he had no relationship with his father and grew up in an abusive household, Mr Morris said.

Feld stood with his arms crossed in the dock and made no reaction as he was sent down.

Detective Chief Superintendent James Conway, of Scotland Yard, said: Erik Felds actions demonstrated a brutal low of humanity, but the response of the communities across Tower Hamlets following Ranjiths murder showed the opposite  people coming together to support each other, with the aim of ensuring the person responsible for this attack was brought to justice.

From the outset, our officers investigated this as if it were a hate crime, but throughout the police investigation Feld has never disclosed why he attacked Ranjith with such force. He is clearly a violent and dangerous man and, as demonstrated by comments made during his trial, one who is fuelled by homophobia.

Julius Capon, head of CPS London Homicide, said: In this case, the CPS and Metropolitan Police Service gave careful consideration as to whether we had sufficient evidence to prove that this offence came within the definition of homophobic aggravation for the purposes of sentencing. All agreed that we could not prove that Felds actions were either motivated by homophobic hostility or that such hostility was demonstrated at the time of committing the offence.

Lutfur Rahman, executive mayor of Tower Hamlets, said: I hope todays sentence brings some comfort and justice to the friends and family of Ranjith Kankanamalage, whose violent murder deeply affected the community in Tower Hamlets and beyond.

There is no place for hate in Tower Hamlets and we will continue to come together to oppose extremism and racism in all its forms.
Northern Ireland Secretary Chris Heaton-Harris has instructed senior civil servants at Stormont to provide information on revenue raising measures such as domestic water charges, drug prescription charges, and tuition fees.

Mr Heaton-Harris confirmed he had written to permanent secretaries in the region on measures that could otherwise improve the sustainability of public finances in Northern Ireland.

He also reiterated his call for the Stormont Executive to be restored so that systemic issues facing public services in Northern Ireland could be addressed.

The DUP is blocking the restoration of powersharing at Stormont (Liam McBurney/PA)

The DUP is blocking the devolved institutions in Belfast in protest at post-Brexit trading arrangements, and the party has insisted it will not return to Stormont until it secures further legislative assurances from the UK Government around sovereignty and trade.

Senior civil servants are currently running public services in the region in the absence of devolution.

They have estimated that Stormont departments need hundreds of millions of pounds in extra funding to maintain public services at their current level this year.

Hundreds of millions more would be needed to settle a series of public sector pay disputes in the region.

Mr Heaton-Harris confirmed on Wednesday he had used new powers provided through passage of the Northern Ireland (Interim Arrangements) Act 2023 for the first time to request information and advice on the revenue raising measures.

His letter said he had asked for information on measures such as such as introducing domestic water charges and drug prescription charges, and increasing tuition fees.

There is currently no charge to the public for medical prescriptions in the region and Northern Ireland students who study at local universities currently pay 4,630 a year in tuition fees, compared with a maximum of 9,250 to study in England.

Mr Heaton-Harris suggested these measures could help to make public services in Northern Ireland more affordable, but stressed that he wanted devolved ministers to make decisions on public finances.

Mr Heaton-Harris said: Public finances in Northern Ireland are not currently on a sustainable footing.

The UK Government stands ready to work with a restored Executive, but we have a responsibility to ensure the delivery of public services and management of public funds can continue in its absence.

I remain firmly of the view that the right people to take these decisions are locally elected and accountable ministers sitting in a fully-functioning devolved government.

I once again call on the Executive to get back up and running so that they can progress much-needed and long-promised public service transformation and address the systemic issues that are facing public services in Northern Ireland.

Simply spending more is not the answer to transforming Northern Irelands public services and does not serve the best interests of the people of Northern Ireland.

Mr Heaton-Harris set a deadline of the end of June for the information to be provided by civil servants.

In the 2021 Spending Review the Government announced that the total block grant for the Northern Ireland Executive would be 15 billion per year, on average, over the next three years.

The Government has provided around 7 billion in additional funding to Northern Ireland since 2014, on top of the Barnett-based block grant.

A Government statement said that the Northern Ireland Executive public spending per person is around 20% higher than the equivalent UK Government spending in the rest of the UK.

It added: The Secretary of State is seeking to ensure that work progresses towards a more sustainable budget position in Northern Ireland that better reflects the balance between locally generated revenue and UK Government funding that is happening across the rest of the United Kingdom.

The Secretary of State will continue to engage with Northern Ireland Civil Service departments on the detail of their responses.

Any final decisions for implementation should be taken by Northern Irelands elected leaders.
Chris Heaton-Harris has denied that his instruction to senior civil servants at Stormont to provide information on revenue-raising measures is an attempt to pressure the DUP to re-enter Stormont.

The Northern Ireland Secretary has asked civil servants for information pertaining to revenue-raising measures such as domestic water charges, drug prescription charges and tuition fees, which he says will improve the sustainability of Northern Irelands public finances.

The DUP is blocking the devolved institutions in Belfast in a protest against post-Brexit trading arrangements and the party has insisted it will not return to Stormont until it secures further legislative assurances from the UK Government around sovereignty and trade.

Senior civil servants are currently running public services in the region in the absence of devolution.

They have estimated that Stormont departments need hundreds of millions of pounds in extra funding to maintain public services at their current level this year.

Speaking to media at Erskine House in Belfast on Wednesday, Mr Heaton-Harris denied that the request to civil servants is aimed at putting pressure on the DUP to re-enter Stormont.

Is it some sort of pressure to get the executive up and running? No, because its about trying to make sure that the budget is sustainable and that we can deliver proper, quality public services as we move forward in Northern Ireland that are sustainable and financially affordable, he said.

Mr Heaton-Harris said the instruction to civil servants was to provide information to a future executive and he does not have the power to implement such revenue-raising measures.

He did, however, say he will not rule anything out if the devolved government does not return.

Secretary of State for Northern Ireland Chris Heaton-Harris during a press conference at Erskine House in Belfast on Wednesday (Liam McBurney/PA)

I do have the powers to go to consultation on some of these matters in the future but I do not have the power to ask for revenue to be raised in Northern Ireland, he said.

I actually truly believe that should be something that locally elected politicians should do.

But I wouldnt rule out anything for the future if there was no executive in place.

Mr Heaton-Harris is currently in negotiations with the DUP in relation to the restoration of the power-sharing institutions and said he has tonnes of patience.

I dont set timelines and Im happy to move inch by inch, millimetre by millimetre to a solution which I think would be beneficial for everybody, which is when the executive is up and running and local decisions are being made by local people, he said

But it has its frustrations too.

When asked about the impact of water and prescription charges on poorer households, Mr Heaton-Harris said the opportunities and costs of revenue-raising procedures will be evaluated (Liam McBurney/PA)

Mr Heaton-Harris confirmed on Wednesday he has used new powers provided through passage of the Northern Ireland (Interim Arrangements) Act 2023 for the first time to request information and advice on the revenue-raising measures.

His letter said he asked for information on measures such as introducing domestic water charges and drug prescription charges and increasing tuition fees.

There is currently no charge to the public for medical prescriptions in the region and Northern Ireland students who study at local universities pay 4,630 a year in tuition fees, compared with a maximum of 9,250 in England.

When asked about the impact of water and prescription charges on poorer households, Mr Heaton-Harris said the opportunities and costs of revenue-raising procedures will be evaluated.

I mean, it would be much better if we did have an executive to be doing this and actually this information will be useful to any future executive in any choices that it might want to make, he said.

But, you know, these are important elements to understand that get a feeling for what can be raised, how it can be raised, what are the benefits and costs, opportunities and costs of doing any of these benefits  or all of them?

He said businesses have told him problems with water and sewage capacity are hindering development in Belfast.

Ive been talking to businesses across Belfast who are now understanding the constraints of the water supply and the sewage issues that now are constraining development in the city, he said.

And if you want a prosperous city of your nations capital it needs to expand and bring in the wealth and bring in the investment and part of that is the infrastructure.

Mr Heaton-Harris set a deadline of the end of June for the information to be provided by civil servants.

In the 2021 Spending Review, the Government said the total block grant for the Northern Ireland Executive would be 15 billion per year, on average, over the next three years.

The Government has provided around 7 billion in additional funding to Northern Ireland since 2014, on top of the Barnett-based block grant.

A Government statement said the Northern Ireland Executive public spending per person is about 20% higher than the equivalent UK Government spending in the rest of the UK.

It added: The Secretary of State is seeking to ensure that work progresses towards a more sustainable budget position in Northern Ireland that better reflects the balance between locally generated revenue and UK Government funding that is happening across the rest of the United Kingdom.

The Secretary of State will continue to engage with Northern Ireland Civil Service departments on the detail of their responses.

Any final decisions for implementation should be taken by Northern Irelands elected leaders.
Irvine Welsh, Sebastian Faulks and Bernardine Evaristo will be among the writers appearing at the Edinburgh International Book Festival as it marks its 40th year, organisers have announced.

Climate activist Greta Thunberg and authors such as Val McDermid, James Kelman, Ian McEwan and Elif Shafak are also on the line-up for the event in August.

This years programme includes nearly 600 live events featuring more than 470 authors, writers and thinkers from 49 countries.

From the world of politics, those taking part will include former prime minister Gordon Brown, Conservative peer and former Scottish Tory leader Ruth Davidson, and ex-Scottish Labour leader Kezia Dugdale.

Crime writer Val McDermid will be among those taking part in the festival (John Linton/PA)

Continuing the tradition of Scotlands leader conducting an interview at the book festival, First Minister Humza Yousaf will interview Hashi Mohamed, who arrived in Britain as an unaccompanied child refugee from Kenya and is now one of the UKs leading housing barristers.

Festival director Nick Barley said: This years book festival programme is called The Joy Of Words, and its been truly a joy to bring it together.

My team and I have aimed to build an uplifting festival that is packed with exceptional thinkers from all over the world.

At a time of polarised opinion and deep divisions, we hope to rediscover the pleasure of conversation; the satisfaction of spending time with people who can offer positive insights into the world today.

This is my 14th and final programme for the book festival, and Im very excited by the prospect of 18 days in August with such a cornucopia of brilliant writers.

Scotland-based authors appearing at the festival include Jenny Colgan, Denise Mina, Chris Brookmyre and Alexander McCall Smith, while Deborah Levy and Katherine Rundell are among other UK writers taking part.

The programme also features three authors who attended the first festival in 1983  Alistair Moffat, Michael Rosen, and AN Wilson.

Those coming from abroad include the prime minister of Iceland, Katrin Jakobsdottir, who joins Ragnar Jonasson to discuss their crime novel Reykjavik.

This years poetry line-up features stars from the US including Claudia Rankine and Eileen Myles, as well as Canadian poet Dionne Brand, while from Britain Zaffar Kunial, Alice Oswald, Liz Lochhead and Carol Ann Duffy are among the poets taking part.

Scotlands First Minister Humza Yousaf will be interviewing one of the authors (Jeff Mitchell/PA)

Audiences can also hear about memoirs from the likes of Judy Murray, Rob Delaney and Munroe Bergdorf.

There will be plenty for children and young people, with authors including long standing book festival fan Julia Donaldson and childrens laureate Joseph Coelho returning, alongside events featuring the likes of Dapo Adeola and Nathan Bryon, Tracey Corderoy and Steven Lenton.

Rachel Fox, director of the festivals childrens programme, said: As well as our animated courtyard performances and character appearances, we have an array of interactive workshops with leading authors, illustrators and comic book creators again this year.

Children will have the chance to learn how to draw manga, preserve plant specimens, make explosions with food, and write the story of their life (so far) and much, much more.

The book festival, which runs from August 12-28, is again taking place at the Edinburgh College of Art.

Iain Munro, chief executive of Creative Scotland, said: Featuring an impressive range of international and homegrown talent, this years programme provides an opportunity for people from all walks of life to experience the joy of words.

Scottish culture minister Christina McKelvie said: Without words there would be no books so the theme for this years Edinburgh International Book Festival is well chosen. With the worlds greatest writers and thinkers gathered in Edinburgh, there really is something for everyone.

The Scottish Government is proud to support the festival as it celebrates its 40th anniversary with 182,500 from our Expo and Place funds.

Tickets for the festival go on sale on June 29.
A jailed computer hacker who stole two unreleased songs from Ed Sheeran and 12 from an American rapper and offered the tracks for sale on the dark web has been ordered to pay back 101,503, City of London Police said.

Adrian Kwiatkowski, of Hampton Road in Ipswich, offered the songs by Sheeran and by US musician Lil Uzi Vert in exchange for cryptocurrency after hacking the performers digital accounts.

The 23-year-old defendants Apple Mac laptop was searched, uncovering 565 audio files including the songs by Vert and Sheeran.

He pleaded guilty to three charges of unauthorised access to computer material, 14 charges of making for sale an article infringing copyright, one charge of converting criminal property and two charges of possession of criminal property before being jailed for 18 months at Ipswich Crown Court in October 2022.

A court has now granted a confiscation order against the hacker, giving him three months to pay 101,053 on May 26, 2022, after proceedings brought by the Police Intellectual Crime Unit (PIPCU) at City of London Police.

The amount is made up of 51,975 held in a bank account owned by Kwiatkowski and 2.64 BTC (Bitcoin), worth 49,528, which makes it the first confiscation order of cryptocurrency secured by PIPCU.

If the payment is failed to be made within three months, he will face a further 18 months imprisonment.

Detective Constable Daryl Fryatt from the Police Intellectual Property Crime Unit (PIPCU) at City of London Police, said: Kwiatkowski executed a complex scheme to sell creative content that he did not own.

Not only did he cause several musicians and their production companies significant financial harm, he deprived them of the ability to release their own work.

Our work doesnt just stop at conviction, and this result means that Kwiatkowski will not be able to benefit any further from the money he earned through criminal activity.

Adrian Kwiatkowski sold unreleased music by Ed Sheeran in exchange for cryptocurrency (Hannah McKay/PA)

City of London Police said The Manhattan District Attorneys Office launched an investigation in 2019 after the management companies of several musicians reported that an individual, known online as Spirdark, had gained access to a series of accounts and was selling the content that had been saved in them.

The investigation linked the email address used to set up Spirdarks cryptocurrency account to Kwiatkowski and identified the IP address of the device used to hack one of the accounts as his home address, City of London Police said.

The investigation was referred to the forces Police Intellectual Property Crime Unit (PIPCU), supported by the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI).

After further investigation, Kwiatkowski was arrested by PIPCU officers in September 2019.

The unit seized seven devices including a hard drive that contained 1,263 unreleased songs by 89 artists, City of London Police said.

Melissa Morgia, director of global content protection and enforcement at the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI), said: We welcome the recent developments in this case.

This type of criminal activity jeopardises the work of artists and the efforts of the teams of people supporting with the creation and release of their music.

This is an excellent example of international cooperation and we would like to thank the Manhattan District Attorneys Office and the City of London Police for their support in this matter.
Jonathan Ross has remembered artist John Romita, famed for his role in creating Marvel characters Wolverine and Mary Jane Watson, as a kind, generous, compassionate and thoughtful man following his death, aged 93.

Romita died peacefully in his sleep, his son confirmed in a Twitter post on Wednesday, describing his father as the greatest man I ever met.

I say this with a heavy heart, My father passed away peacefully in his sleep. He is a legend in the art world and it would be my honor to follow in his footsteps. Please keep your thoughts and condolences here out of respect for my family. He was the greatest man I ever met. pic.twitter.com/Pe2K3ywbWX  John Romita JR (@JrRomita) June 14, 2023

The graphic novelist also wrote: I say this with a heavy heart, My father John Romita passed away peacefully in his sleep this Monday morning. He is a legend in the art world and it would be my honour to follow in his footsteps.

British chat show host Ross, who is a self-professed comic book fan, led tributes to the artist on Twitter, writing: A sad, sad day for those of us who grew up adoring and obsessing over Marvel comics.

The great John Romita Sr has died. A wonderful artist and a truly beautiful, kind, generous, compassionate and thoughtful man.

Jonathan Ross paid tribute to artist John Romita (Anthony Devlin/PA)

He was the rock that provided a gloriously rendered foundation to Marvel in those years when it grew and prospered and became the powerhouse of ideas it is today.

Thank you John for sharing your magnificent genius

A sad, sad day for those of us who grew up adoring and obsessing over Marvel comics. The great John Romita Sr has died. A wonderful artist and a truly beautiful, kind, generous, compassionate and thoughtful man. He was the rock that provided a gloriously rendered foundation to pic.twitter.com/1R8W0y9lEm  Jonathan Ross (@wossy) June 14, 2023

Writer and director of films including the latest Guardians Of The Galaxy, James Gunn, who has also taken the helm of superhero franchise DC Studios as co-chief executive, shared an anecdote about how he wrote to Romita when he was a young boy.

He said: Sorry to hear about the great comic book artist John Romita Sr passing at the age of 93.

My brother and I wrote Mr Romita when we were young kids and sent him drawings of superheroes we were working on.

He wrote us back, telling us what he liked about the drawings! A truly memorable experience in my life, making me feel like the magic of comic books, which seemed so otherworldly, wasnt actually that far away.

My thoughts & condolences are with his family and loved ones.

Similarly, chief creative officer of DC Comics Jim Lee shared a lengthy message on Romitas sons Instagram post, writing: It goes without saying that your father was an amazing, beautifully talented draftsman and artist who inspired and entertained so many generations of fans and creators.

But for me, he was more than that. Your dad was just an incredible role model whose insightful words of advice have stayed with me my entire three-decade plus career.

Sorry to hear about the great comic book artist John Romita Sr passing at the age of 93. My brother & I wrote Mr. Romita when we were young kids & sent him drawings of superheroes we were working on. He wrote us back, telling us what he liked about the drawings! A truly pic.twitter.com/VV1slBPmwH  James Gunn (@JamesGunn) June 14, 2023

Mr Lee said Romita gave him his very first art critique after being hired to work at Marvel in 1987.

He added: I remember to this day walking into his hallowed office (he was the Marvel art director at the time) with my first pages from Alpha Flight 51 and being so intimidated yet honoured to be in his presence. A legend talking to little ol me!

Everything he shared with me that day was spot on And while I didnt always follow his lead (I was young, dumb and headstrong)  he was absolutely, 100% right.

Moreover, he presented his critique with such total kindness and infinite patience that what could have been traumatic, career-ending disappointing encounter turned into a conversation between peers that left me uplifted, seen, appreciated and most importantly, fired up and eager to learn more and improve as an artist.

That drive continues to this day and your dad was a big part of me getting into the right mindset.

The way he interacted with pros and beginners alike is something I tried to emulate myself as I started giving art critiques and hiring new talent.

He ended his post writing; We lost an absolute legend who was as humble and kind as he was talented.

Born in 1930 in Brooklyn, New York, Romita graduated from Manhattans School of Industrial Art before he broke into the comic book industry.

The artist was influential in the creation of Marvel characters, including Spidermans girlfriend Mary Jane Watson, and launched the Spider-Man newspaper comic strip in 1977 with Stan Lee, who was the executive vice president and publisher of Marvel Comics before his death in 2018.
Republican chair for Nevada Michael McDonald and vice chair Jim DeGraffenreid were spotted entering the room where the grand jury on the 2021 US Capitol riot is meeting Tuesday.

NBC News reported McDonald jokingly saying, "Not on my bucket list" when asked about having to appear in the Washington DC grand jury on the same day as former US president Donald Trump's court date in Miami. He previously confirmed federal authorities seized his cellphone as part of the investigation.

McDonald was a close personal friend of Trump as he was spotted visiting Mar-a-Lago as part of a Nevada delegation Trump was courting for endorsements for his re-election bid. In his previous appearance before the Jan. 6 Select Committee, he invoked his Fifth Amendment right more than 200 times.

Both McDonald and DeGraffenreid served as "fake electors," who were responsible for signing certification documents purporting Trump's 2020 election victory in their states despite the fact he lost.

Read Also: Ex-VP Mike Pence Joins the 2024 US Presidential Race

The appearance came a week after a federal grand jury in Washington summoned former Trump White House official Steve Bannon in connection with special counsel Jack Smith's investigation on the Capitol Hill attack.

Former vice president and current GOP presidential hopeful Mike Pence also testified before the grand jury in April.

The grand jury investigating Trump's actions during the Capitol riot was separate from the grand jury in Miami, which heard testimony last week about his handling of classified documents.

Related Article: DOJ: No Charges for Mike Pence in Handling of Classified Documents

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The King has met the children of the men who became the first climbers to reach the summit of Everest.

The occasion marked 70 years since Sir Edmund Hillary and Sherpa Tenzing Norgay became the first men to reach the 29,028ft (8,848 metres) summit on May 29 1953.

First attempted in 1921, Everest had repulsed at least 10 major expeditions and two solo attempts before the 1953 British expedition finally succeeded under the military-style leadership of Lord John Hunt.

News of the successful ascent broke on coronation day, June 2.

Edmund Hillary (left) and Sherpa Tenzing Norgay (right), with expedition leader Lord John Hunt (centre) in 1953 (PA)

Buckingham Palace said Charles held an audience on Wednesday with Sue Leyden (daughter of Lord Hunt), Peter Hillary (son of Sir Edmund) and Jamling Norgay (son of Mr Norgay).

To mark the occasion of the 70th anniversary, Charles also sent a message to the Everest70 celebratory event at the Royal Geographical Society on Tuesday.

Ms Leydon read the message out in which Charles remarked on the wonderful symmetry in the coinciding of the 70th anniversary with his coronation.

The King receives Sue Leyden, daughter of expedition leader Lord Hunt, Peter Hillary (second left), son of Sir Edmund Hillary, and Jamling Norgay, son of Sherpa guide Tenzing Norgay, during an audience at Buckingham Palace (Victoria Jones/PA)

His message said: Seventy years ago, on the eve of her coronation, my late mother, Queen Elizabeth II, received the wonderful news that a British team, led by Colonel, later Lord, John Hunt, had successfully climbed Mount Everest.

The pair who reached the summit, supported by a dedicated team of mountaineers and sherpas, were a New Zealander and a Nepali Sherpa, thus bringing together two nations that have long shared a mutual love and respect for the mountains and for exploration.

It has not escaped my notice that there is a wonderful symmetry in the coinciding of the 70th anniversary of that achievement with my own coronation.

The bond between my family and the legacy that resulted from that historic moment was further strengthened through The Duke of Edinburghs Award Scheme, which Lord Hunt helped my father to create and which has since offered millions of young people opportunities to explore their own strengths and skills, as well as to offer their services to the community.

What we are celebrating today must be one of the greatest examples of endurance, combined with careful planning and collaboration.

Our world is facing unprecedented and existential challenges, including climate change which endangers fragile ecosystems, including the Himalayan range.

I dearly hope we can take inspiration from the Everest expedition of 1953 in order to work together in a similar fashion to safeguard our beautiful world for future generations.

Meanwhile, the Queen, who is Colonel-in-Chief of the Royal Australian Corps of Military Police, held an audience with Colonel Ruth Weir, Corps Colonel.

An audience like this would give the Queen an opportunity to be updated with what is going on within the Corps.
The King has hailed new portraits of the Windrush generation as pictorial records of a very special group of people.

Charles hosted a Buckingham Palace reception where he met the 10 individuals whose faces have been immortalised in paint, and was given a special preview of the artworks marking the 75th anniversary of the Windrush crossing.

Celebrities who have family ties to the Caribbean were among the guests at the event including Olympic javelin champion Tessa Sanderson, Baroness Amos, actor Colin Salmon and Barbadoss prime minister Mia Mottley.

The King, who commissioned the portraits when the Prince of Wales, was joined by the Queen as he met the group of elderly men and women who had travelled from the Caribbean to the UK to bolster the workforce and help the nation recover after the Second World War.

The King speaks to members of the Windrush generation (Chris Jackson/PA)

He told Jamaican-born Alford Gardner, 96, who served as an RAF motor mechanic during the Second World War, and later returned to England in 1948 on HMT Empire Windrush, that his portrait by artist Chole Cox was marvellous.

Charles told the pensioner, who was surrounded by his family: It will be a most wonderful record of a very special generation.

He added the picture would be a wonderful addition to the Royal Collection and be shown in all different parts of the world.

Mr Gardner, who settled in Leeds to work as a factory engineer and raise his family, later joked how the decades had flown by: Im still wondering where the 75 years went to  I just come off the Windrush yesterday.

The Queen met Tessa Sanderson during the reception at Buckingham Palace (Chris Jackson/PA)

He added: When I joined the RAF I left home and I came to England. I came to England and I found home.

When the war was over I said Id be back. The Windrush turned up and I was back, it was like leaving one home and coming back to another.

Commenting about the racism he experienced in his early life in the UK, he said: Couldnt get away from it, it was there staring me in the face. If I go to a place and walk in and this place is hostile, Im out, Im gone. I never went to a place I wasnt wanted.

The 96-year-old was among around 500 people who made the famous journey from the Caribbean, arriving at Tilbury docks on the Windrush, and they have come to symbolise the contribution their generation made to the UK.

The Queen speaks to Floella Benjamin (Chris Jackson/PA)

Baroness Floella Benjamin, who chaired the Windrush Commemoration Committee which chose the portrait sitters, said the project was about hearing the Windrush stories through the voice of (the) sitter, as well as the artist. Reflecting the diversity  (the) pain, the suffering, the joyfulness of what people wanted to express.

So when you see these portraits in years to come, youre going to get a understanding of the times were talking about, understanding about the moments were talking about, understand the people were talking about.

Well, this is history, and I call it the Windrush nobility. The majority are over 90 and were standing on their shoulders  they paved the way.

The former childrens TV presenter said she believed the paintings would be studied in schools and universities alongside an accompanying book.

She said: This is British history, its not black history, its British history, its all-embracing history.

The paintings will be seen more widely on Windrush Day, celebrated on Thursday June 22, when they will feature in a series of exhibitions starting at Edinburghs Palace of Holyroodhouse until October 16.

Linda Haye, 90, who was painted by artist Shannon Bond, carved out a career in education and the criminal justice service after arriving in the UK in the late 1950s to study at university.

She taught extensively in further and higher education and became governor of two universities and worked as a magistrate for 20 years, among other roles.

She said coming to the UK was a great opportunity, adding: I never allowed racism to imprison me and neither have I allowed my ethnicity to stop me from making a contribution and to achieve.
A medical research institute has called for a complete ban on e-cigarette advertising in the UK after a study found young people are susceptible to taking up vaping.

The George Institute carried out a global survey, which included some children in the UK, and found four factors influenced the likelihood they might vape  exposure to advertising, past tobacco use, high incomes and having friends or family who vaped.

The poll of 4,007 young people aged 15 to 30 was carried out in the UK, India, China and Australia.

Overall, 1,589 people who had never vaped were assessed for susceptibility to using e-cigarettes, with questions on curiosity, intentions to vape in the next 12 months and whether they would take an e-cigarette from a friend.

Some 333 people in the UK were included, with 55% indicating they were curious about vaping and 50% saying they would use an e-cigarette if offered by a friend.

Of those in the UK, 63% had seen e-cigarette advertising compared to 51% in China, 47% in India and 30% in Australia.

The results also showed young people in the UK were less likely to believe vaping is addictive (74%) or harmful (67%), compared to those in Australia (87% and 83% respectively), where susceptibility was lowest.

Professor Simone Pettigrew, lead author and programme director of health promotion and behaviour change at The George Institute, said: These findings suggest that an overwhelming number of young people may be at risk of e-cigarette use in the UK and in other countries.

While some types of promotion of these products is prohibited, advertising on posters, billboards, and buses is still prevalent in the UK.

A complete ban on e-cigarette advertising should be considered, as it is clearly influencing young peoples attitudes towards these addictive and potentially harmful products.

It comes after paediatricians called on the Government to ban disposable vapes and said youth vaping is fast becoming an epidemic among children.

The Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health (RCPCH) also warned that e-cigarettes are not a risk-free product and can be just as addictive, if not more so than traditional cigarettes.

In May, data from Action on Smoking and Health (Ash) showed a rise in experimental vaping among 11 to 17-year-olds in Great Britain, from 7.7% last year to 11.6% this year.

Children were asked if they had ever tried vaping once or twice, with the proportion roughly doubling in nine years, from 5.6% in 2014 to 11.6%.

A spokesperson for the Department for Health and Social Care said: It is illegal to sell nicotine vapes to children and we are concerned about the recent rises in youth vaping  particularly because of the unknown long-term harms.

We launched a call for evidence to identify opportunities to reduce the number of children accessing and using vape products, exploring a range of issues, including the marketing and promotion of vapes. The call for evidence has now closed, and the government will be considering a range of options based on the evidence provided.

We are also taking bold action to crack down on youth vaping through the 3 million illicit vapes enforcement squad to tackle underage sales to children.
NHS leaders have sounded the alarm over a rise in the number of children admitted to hospital for vaping.

Forty children and young people were admitted to hospital in England last year due to vaping-related disorders, up from 11 two years before, the NHS said.

These could include lung damage or a worsening of asthma symptoms.

Earlier this month paediatricians warned that youth vaping is fast becoming an epidemic among children as they called on the Government to ban disposable vapes.

The Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health (RCPCH) warned that e-cigarettes are not a risk-free product and can be just as addictive, if not more so than traditional cigarettes.

It called for urgent action to protect youngsters, saying experts agree that longer-term data is needed on the effects of vaping, particularly in regard to cardiovascular disease.

Amanda Pritchard, NHS England chief, said that it was right for paediatricians to call for action on vaping among youngsters.

Addressing the NHS ConfedExpo conference, Ms Pritchard said: In 1948 more than eight out of 10 men smoked, now its more like one in eight.

For the most part, a success of wider public policy and also, particularly over the last few years, a success of innovation with the advent of e-cigarettes encouraging many former smokers to switch.

But with that innovation has come a new challenge  the availability and attractiveness of e-cigarettes to our young people.

The report last week from the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health of children presenting to hospital with conditions that can be linked to vaping was really worrying.

And that is coming through in the figures  last year there were 40 admission episodes of under-20s for vaping-related disorders, up from 11 two years before.

So the RCPCH is right to call for action and the Government are right to be taking those calls seriously and Im sure well be seeing further steps put forward when their call for evidence on this issue concludes.

Ms Pritchard later added: It is seriously concerning that admissions for vaping-related conditions for young people are up almost fourfold over the past two years.

While to many young people vaping can seem harmless with their deliberately appealing flavours  at least two people in every year 10 classroom have vaped at one point or another  its use can lead to lung damage.

So its really important we nip this in the bud so we can keep young people out of hospital and prevent future health issues.

Commenting on the remarks, Hazel Cheeseman, deputy chief executive of Action on Smoking and Health, said: Amanda Pritchard is right that vaping is both a big opportunity to reduce smoking and that there are risks from teen vaping.

Swift action is needed by Government to limit youth vaping and maintain the opportunity for adults to use vapes as a quitting aid.

While the increase in youth vaping must be tackled, it needs to be remembered that smoking is much more harmful than vaping.

Every year thousands of children are admitted to hospital as a result of smoking-related illness caused by second-hand smoke. Getting parents to stop, through switching to vaping or other means, is tremendously important to child health.
Watch: Twin due to be medically terminated to save brothers life made surprise arrival in the toilet

A baby who was hours away from being medically terminated to save his twin brothers life made a surprise arrival, after his mum gave birth to him on the toilet.

Corinne Rose, 30, a restaurant manager from Southampton, suddenly went into labour and welcomed twin boys, Grayson and Neo Cattanach, when she was 32 weeks into her pregnancy.

Rose was thrilled to discover she was expecting non-identical twins, in July 2022, after fearing she couldn't have kids.

But the amniotic sac for one of the twins, Neo, burst too soon, and doctors broke the heartbreaking news that he wouldn't make it.

To give his twin, Grayson, a fighting chance, Rose made the tough decision to undergo a medical termination.

But the day of the procedure, on January 19, 2003, she found herself delivering both babies alone in the bathroom, scooping them out of the toilet.

Read more: Mum and daughter gave birth to their babies two weeks apart, Yahoo Life UK, 4-min read

Corinne Rose's son was due to be medically terminated to save his twin brother's life but made a surprise arrival and is now doing well at home. (Corinne Rose/SWNS)

The pair were taken to the neonatal ward and Grayson, who weighed 4lbs 6oz, was discharged after three weeks.

Thankfully, despite doctors' fears he "wouldn't pull through" Neo, who weighed just 2lbs 14oz at birth, has defied all the odds to join his brother at home, after spending nearly 13 weeks in hospital.

I still cant believe it," Rose says of her son's incredible arrival. I think it was his big bro, Grayson, bringing him into the world.

He was like, Not today  Neo is coming out with me."

Rose was concerned she may never be a mother due to past health issues and says she had "made peace" with the thought of not having kids.

But in 2022, she was delighted to discover she had naturally conceived non-identical twins with her partner, Will Cattanach, 32, a music producer.

"I wasn't planning to get pregnant, so it came as a huge surprise," she explains.

"At first I was terrified, especially when I found out it was twins.

"But after the initial shock I started to get really excited."

Read more: Woman conceives twins 28 days apart after getting pregnant twice in one month, Yahoo Life UK, 5-min read

Baby Neo has defied the odds to survive and is now at home with his twin brother. (Corinne Rose/SWNS)

When Rose was 14 weeks into her pregnancy she was forced to call her midwife after feeling as if she had "peed" herself while out shopping and was urged to go to A&E.

A scan revealed her waters had broken, which meant one of the babies' amniotic sacs had ruptured too soon, leaving him losing fluid vital for healthy foetal development.

The baby  which medics identified was Neo  was also diagnosed with a catalogue of other health issues include bad lung function, bent limbs and his liver growing in his chest cavity.

Doctors broke the news that her baby was unlikely to survive.

I had to think about what his life was going to be like," she says.

We weighed up all the options and decided a medical termination was the best course of action.

"Also, it was the best thing for his twin, Grayson, who wasnt getting nutrients or developing as well because of him.

It was a horrible decision to make.

Read more: Woman determined to become a mum has a baby on her own at 39 via a sperm donor, Yahoo Life UK, 4-min read

Rose during her pregnancy. (Corinne Rose/SWNS)

Rose was booked in for a medical termination on 19 January 2023 at 2pm at 32 weeks, but in the early hours of the day of the procedure, she woke up with terrible stomach cramps.

She rushed to the bathroom where she felt the urge to push and realised, she was in labour.

My waters exploded, and I felt a head, she continues.

I had been having cramps all day but just thought it was IBS as I wasnt due for a few weeks.

Grayson was born first, and he came headfirst into the toilet.

I scooped him up and five minutes later, his brother came flying out.

It was mad  I had a baby in each hand.

Rose pictured with her twin boys Grayson and Neo Cattanach. (Corinne Rose/SWNS)

An ambulance was called and Rose and the twins were rushed to Prince Ann Hospital, Southampton, Hampshire, for medical treatment.

"Neo was wrapped in a blanket and placed on my chest in the ambulance, I thought he would just drift off to sleep," she says.

But he was moving and squeaking and trying to open his eyes.

I was a bit out if it and still in shock  it was very emotional.

While doctors didnt think Neo was going to pull through, Rose says he showed signs of fight and was taken to the neonatal ward with his brother.

Corinne Rose suddenly went into labour and welcomed twin boys Grayson (left) and Neo (right) Cattanach. (Corinne Rose/SWNS)

Grayson underwent a blood transfusion and spent three weeks in hospital until he was strong enough to go home.

Meanwhile, Neo began to make "amazing progress", and was finally discharged from hospital on 17 May 2023.

Now back at home, the twins' dad, has left his current job to become Neo's full-time carer.

Corinne Rose and her partner Will Cattanach pictured with twins Grayson and Neo. (SWNS)

Neo has been working hard in the lung department and needs a breathing machine and high flow oxygen," his mum explains.

But his liver has flipped back to where its supposed to be.

Hell still need corrective casts on his legs when hes older.

But apart from his lung development, hes a happy little boy.

The poor kids been through it, but hes such fighter, she adds.

"I can't believe both boys are here together."

Additional reporting SWNS.
A man accused of killing a 26-year-old woman in a shooting outside a pub on Christmas Eve was served with an injunction to prevent gang violence two months before, a court has heard.

Connor Chapman, 23, is accused of murdering beautician Elle Edwards when he fired 12 shots from a Skorpion sub-machine gun outside the Lighthouse pub in Wallasey Village, Wirral, Merseyside.

A trial at Liverpool Crown Court has heard his intended victims were Kieran Salkeld and Jake Duffy, who were injured along with three other men, and the shooting was the culmination of a feud between people on the Woodchurch and Beechwood estates, located on either side of the M53 in Wirral.

On Wednesday, the jury was shown footage of an assault carried out by Mr Salkeld and Mr Duffy, from the Beechwood estate, on Sam Searson, from the Woodchurch estate, the day before Ms Edwards murder.

The court heard on October 26 last year Chapman was served with an interim injunction to prevent gang-related violence.

Katy Appleton, prosecuting, said the notice prohibited Chapman from associating with a number of named individuals  including Mr Salkeld, Mr Duffy and Mr Searson.

Chapman, who at the time was living with his grandparents on Woodland Road, was prohibited from entering the Woodchurch estate, other than via a route to get to his address, and the Beechwood estate.

The father of Elle Edwards, Tim Edwards, arrives with family members arrive for a previous hearing at court (Peter Byrne/PA)

The order, which was re-issued on November 16 after it expired, also prevented him from threatening to use violence, engaging in abusive or threatening conduct, being in possession of Class A or B drugs and possessing equipment for use in the manufacture, cultivation or distribution of class A or B drugs.

The jury was told on November 28 Chapman was in the company of two other men, Curtis Byrne and Mason Smith, in the immediate aftermath of a burglary in which two electric bikes were stolen.

Ms Appleton said Mr Byrne and Mr Smith, who both pleaded guilty to the burglary, were shown with Chapman and the two stolen bikes on a phone video taken shortly after the incident.

She said Mr Byrne was shot in the leg with a Glock self-loading pistol on December 3.

Fifteen days later, on December 18, the same weapon was used to shoot Kieran Cowley, the court heard.

A stolen Ford Kuga car, which Mr Duffy had been seen in two days earlier, was used in the attack.

Chapman denies the murder of Ms Edwards, two counts of attempted murder and three counts of wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm.

He also denies possession of a Skorpion sub-machine gun with intent to endanger life and possession of ammunition with intent to endanger life.

Co-defendant Thomas Waring, 20, of Private Drive, Barnston, Wirral, denies possessing a prohibited weapon and assisting an offender by helping Chapman to dispose of the car.
Nearly half (46%) of non-retired people believe they will still be working past their state pension age, according to a survey.

One in 14 (7%) does not think they will ever be able to retire, the research for workplace pension provider Peoples Partnership found.

One in seven (13%) 18 to 24-year-olds believe they will still be working when they are 70 and older, according to the YouGov survey of nearly 1,600 people across the UK in May who are not yet retired.

Less than a quarter (24%) of non-retired people questioned said they are confident they will have enough pension savings for them to enjoy the lifestyle they are hoping for in retirement.

Nearly two-fifths (39%) said they are less confident about their retirement prospects now than they were before the Covid-19 pandemic started.

Phil Brown, director of policy at Peoples Partnership, which provides the Peoples Pension, said: Its clear that the cost-of-living crisis, and the uncertainty this is causing, means that many people are rightly concerned about their retirement prospects.

He added: We know that millions are still not saving enough to maintain their current standard of living in retirement, which is why we agree with calls to increase the minimum auto-enrolment contribution rate from 8% to 12% of earnings, as soon as we are through the cost-of-living crisis.
Power supplier E.On Next has been ordered to pay 5 million in compensation to more than 500,000 customers for unacceptable call services.

Ofgem said a review of customer service standards and complaints-handling across the sector uncovered severe weaknesses at E.On Next, with customers facing long call waiting times and a high level of unanswered calls.

Customers were forced to wait on hold for 18 minutes on average, while half of all calls were dropped and failed to contact the supplier, according to Ofgem.

The regulator said E.On Next will pay 4 million to more than 500,000 customers that were potentially affected, working out at 8 each.

Our investigation into supplier standards has delivered a 5 million boost to consumers. E.ON Next Ltd is to pay 5 million in compensation for poor standards of customer service, uncovered by an Ofgem review of the market. More info below   Ofgem (@ofgem) June 14, 2023

It will also pay a further 1 million to Ofgems voluntary redress fund, which supports vulnerable energy consumers and other innovation and carbon emission reducing investments.

Cathryn Scott, director for enforcement and emerging issues at Ofgem, said the penalty for E.On Next shows Ofgems determination to stand up for the rights of consumers and drive up standards.

She said: The very least that a customer should expect of their supplier is for them to pick up the phone to them in a timely way.

The levels of service that we discovered at E.On Next during the period of review were unacceptable.

As the energy regulator, our purpose is to protect energy consumers and this action serves as a reminder to all suppliers that they must ensure that their customers are able to contact them quickly and easily when they need to.

This is particularly important during this time of volatile energy prices when many households are struggling with their bills.

E.On Next was told immediately to improve the call response rate following the probe, which took place between October and December last year.

It has since cut call waiting times to less than five minutes and the dropped call rate is now below 10%.

An E.On spokesman said the firm had already begun improving its services before the Ofgem review.

He said: We wont shy away from the fact that we werent at our best, but were heartened Ofgem recognises our efforts and our success in improving service levels even before this review began.

We hit our agreed targets with Ofgem on day one and weve stayed there ever since.

Ofgem said its review of the sector required all suppliers to make customer service improvements after it found moderate weaknesses at 11 companies, including British Gas, EDF and Scottish Power.

Minor weakness were found at five suppliers  Bulb, Ecotricity, Green Energy, Shell and Octopus  and it said not one supplier was found to have no weaknesses at all.

In some instances, customers were left waiting for hours on the phone, while they also faced poor complaints handling with a high level of complaints upheld by the energy ombudsman.

Ofgem said a survey of 3,000 households last November and December  which was funded by Citizens Advice and Ofgem and carried out by Quadrangle Research  found overall customer satisfaction with energy suppliers was among the worst ever seen since tracking began in 2018.
Fossil fuel giant Shell has abandoned a plan to cut oil production by 1-2% per year until the end of this decade and announced bumper new payouts for shareholders.

The oil major said that it planned to keep the amount of oil that it extracts from wells around the world at the same level as today.

Production from oil and gas reservoirs naturally declines by around 5% every year, so maintaining production at current levels will require major investment from the oil giant.

Two years ago Shell said that the eight billion dollars (6.3 billion) it planned to invest was well below the investment required to offset this decline.

CEO Wael Sawan on Shells Capital Markets Day: We are investing to provide the secure energy customers need today and for a long time to come, while transforming Shell to win in a low-carbon future. https://t.co/d8ZiorbAmo #PoweringProgress  Shell (@Shell) June 14, 2023

Shell argued that it had already met the 2030 oil reduction target, seeing its production drop from 1.9 million barrels of oil equivalent per day in 2019 to 1.5 million in 2022.

The firm has reduced the amount of oil it produces by selling off oil fields to other companies, who continue to extract fossil fuels from them.

For instance the company offloaded a little under 0.2 million barrels of daily production when it sold its sites in the US Permian basin to ConocoPhillips in 2021 for 9.5 billion dollars (7.5 billion).

Our target of a reduction in oil production by 2030 has not changed. Weve just met it eight years early, the business said.

Shell said that it intends to grow its gas business.

It also announced a major new incentive for shareholders, as it said it would pay them at least five billion dollars (4 billion) by buying back their shares in the second half of this year.

New chief executive Wael Sawan, who is trying to please investors who have seen Shells shares trade lower than some of its rivals, also said that the dividend would rise by 15%.

Shell said that it would reduce capital spending by between 22-25 billion dollars (17-20 billion) in 2024 and 2025.

It will also slash its annual operating cost by between two and three billion dollars (1.59 billion and 2.3 billion) by the end of 2025.

Mr Sawan said: We are investing to provide the secure energy customers need today and for a long time to come, while transforming Shell to win in a low-carbon future.

Performance, discipline, and simplification will be our guiding principles as we allocate capital to enhance shareholder distributions, while enabling the energy transition.

He added: We need to continue to create profitable business models that can be scaled at pace to truly impact the decarbonisation of the global energy system.

We will invest in the models that work  those with the highest returns that play to our strengths.
Vodafone and Three UK have struck a long-awaited merger deal to create Britains biggest mobile phone network worth 15 billion.

FTSE 100-listed Vodafone and Three owner CK Hutchison will combine their UK operations, forming a business with about 27 million customers and more than 11,500 staff.

The merged firm will be majority owned by FTSE 100 listed Vodafone, with 51% of the combined business and CK Hutchison owning the remainder.

Vodafone will have the option to buy out Threes 49% holding three years after the deal completes, as long as the firms value has risen to 16.5 billion.

The tie-up, which comes after talks first began last October, will spark intense scrutiny by UK competition regulators as it will cut the number of major mobile network players from four to three.

It has also attracted criticism from trade unions, with Unite branding it reckless, as Vodafone and Three said some jobs will be affected under plans to save more than 700 million annually within five years.

The firms said it was too early to put a figure on the number of roles impacted or say if any offices will close.

It comes after Vodafone last month announced 11,000 jobs would go over the next three years in the UK and worldwide.

But the firms insisted that the deal will boost the combined workforce overall, with 8,000 to 12,000 new roles set to be created in the UK after the merger.

They also pledged to invest 11 billion in the UK over the next 10 years to create one of Europes biggest 5G networks, with aims for the new company set to reach more than 99% of the UK population with their 5G standalone network by 2034.

It will help every school and hospital in the UK to have access to standalone 5G by 2030, according to the group.

Margherita Della Valle, chief executive of Vodafone, called the deal a gamechanger.

She said: The merger is great for customers, great for the country and great for competition.

As a country, the UK will benefit from the creation of a sustainable, strongly competitive third scaled operator  with a clear 11 billion network investment plan  driving growth, employment and innovation.

This is a vote of confidence in the UK and its ambitions to be a centre for future technology, she added.

The companies said that the deal will help them compete with their rivals in the roll-out of 5G and deliver the investment needed.

Without joining forces, they would not be able to compete with their larger UK rivals or be able to put in the investment needed to roll out 5G, they said.

Three and Vodafone have announced an agreement to merge their UK networks in a deal to create a European 5G giant (PA)

Ms Della Valle said the deal will level the playing field.

The combined Vodafone and Three business will have a combined market share greater than Virgin Media O2 and BT owned EE, which have around 24 million and 20 million mobile customers respectively.

Vodafone and CK Hutchison are aiming to complete the deal by the end of 2024.

The firms outlined plans for substantial cost savings after the deal.

This will be through measures including merging IT systems and combining the marketing, sales, distribution and logistics activities, as well as cutting general and administration costs.

The combined business will be headed by Vodafone UK boss Ahmed Essam as chief executive, with current Three UK chief financial officer Darren Purkis taking on the same role at the merged group.

Unite said the Government must step in and stop this reckless merger, arguing it will lead to job losses and push up peoples mobile phone bills.

Rocio Concha, director of policy and advocacy at consumer group Which? added: Reducing the number of network providers from four to three risks reducing the choices available to consumers, raising prices and lowering the quality of services available.

A spokesman for the Competition and Markets Authority confirmed the regulator was aware of the announcement, which indicates that the deal will be subject to review by the CMA.

He said: Both Vodafone and Three are key players in the UK communications market  with millions of consumers and many businesses relying on their services  so its right that the CMA reviews the impact this deal could have on competition.
Google has postponed the debut of its generative AI chatbot, Bard, in the European Union scheduled for this week. This news was from the Irish Data Protection Commission (DPC), the tech giant's primary data protection body within the region.

This news broke first on Politico. This comes a long time after OpenAI released a free research preview in November 2022 of their competing chatbot, ChatGPT, without restricting access based on user location.

Bard's Launch Will Not Occur on the Scheduled Time

Graham Doyle, the deputy commissioner of the DPC, said Tuesday, June 13, that Google recently told the authority of its plan to debut Bard in the EU this week. However, he stated that the company had not presented the regulator with sufficient information before the scheduled date. Therefore, the launch will not occur on track.

Doyle remarked, "The DPC had not had any detailed briefing nor sight of a DPIA [data protection impact assessment] or any supporting documentation at this point."

Since then, DPC has urgently sought the said documentation and addressed a number of other data security queries with Google. However, the tech firm has not yet given its response. Hence, Doyle announced that Bard will not be launching this week.

The DPC did not elaborate on the precise issues it had brought up to Google about Bard.

Doyle said the DPC is continuing its investigation into the situation, and as soon as it has further information, it will share it with the other data protection authorities (DPAs). Meanwhile, a Google representative confirmed the company has been in contact with privacy authorities to answer their inquiries and get their feedback.

See Also: ChatGPT AI-Delivered Sermon Tells German Church Attendees Not to Fear Death

ChatGPT by OpenAI: A Competitor to Google's Bard

The release date for Bard in the EU is still unknown. Yet, according to TechCrunch, it should be noted that Europeans have had access to identical large language model (LLM) technology for months already, thanks to the fact that OpenAI did not restrict access to their ChatGPT research preview.

In fact, Google's Bard is also quite simple for users in the area to use by connecting to a VPN in the US or another market where the tool is accessible.

Meanwhile, ChatGPT has been linked to several security issues by other EU DPAs. Some of which may be applicable to Google's case, too. Concerns have been raised about how developers handle issues such as AI-generated disinformation, address child safety queries, and provide EU users with data access rights. The legal basis claimed for processing people's data to train LLM AI models is one such issue.

Indeed, ChatGPT attracted the attention of many EU DPAs. In April, it was temporarily forced to cease operation in Italy following intervention from the country's DPA, Garante.

See Also: Will ChatGPT, Other AIs Promote Science Denial? Experts Say Yes

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Nadine Dorries has said she will not formally step down as an MP until she gets answers from Downing Street about the decision to deny her a peerage  a move that will prolong the by-election struggle for Rishi Sunak.

The former culture secretary insisted it is absolutely my intention to resign but said her requests for documents is now sadly necessary as she accused No 10 of varying and conflicting statements over her absence from Boris Johnsons resignation honours list.

Downing Street has expressed bewilderment at her delay in officially quitting, following her announcement last week that she would depart her Mid Bedfordshire seat with immediate effect.

it is absolutely my intention to resign, but given what I know to be true and the number of varying and conflicting statements issued by No10 since the weekend, this process is now sadly necessary  Rt Hon Nadine Dorries (@NadineDorries) June 14, 2023

In a series of tweets on Wednesday evening, Ms Dorries responded to much speculation about when she will resign in writing.

To put an end to this  I am awaiting responses to my subject access requests submitted to HOLAC (House of Lords Appointments Commission), Cabinet Secretary and the Cabinet Office where I will then take the time to properly consider the information I am provided, she wrote.

I have requested copies of WhatsApps, text messages, all emails and minutes of meetings both formal and informal with names of senior figures unredacted

It is absolutely my intention to resign, but given what I know to be true and the number of varying and conflicting statements issued by No10 since the weekend, this process is now sadly necessary.

She also vowed to continue to serve my constituents of Mid Bedfordshire, after Mr Sunak earlier said her constituents deserve proper representation.

On Wednesday, the Conservatives triggered the by-elections in the former prime ministers seat and in that of his ally Nigel Adams after they officially resigned in writing.

But Ms Dorries has failed to do so, and with her demands for documents likely to take time, the three by-elections will almost certainly have to take place over separate days.

The move could prolong the pain for the Prime Minister as he faces a battle to defend three Conservative seats at a time of dire polling as he publicly scraps with Mr Johnson.

Asked if there is frustration over the delay, Mr Sunaks press secretary said: Its obviously unusual to have an MP say they will resign with immediate effect and for that not to take place.

The Prime Minister believes the people of Mid Bedfordshire deserve proper representation in this House and he looks forward to campaigning for the Conservative candidate in the by-election.

Tory Chief Whip Simon Hart (Yui Mok/PA)

Pressed if that means her constituents are not currently being served properly, the spokeswoman said: The Prime Minister believes that its important that they have certainty.

Conservative Chief Whip Simon Hart has moved a motion known as a writ for by-elections in Mr Johnsons Uxbridge and South Ruislip constituency and Mr Adams Selby and Ainsty seat.

That means there are between 21 and 27 working days for the votes to be held, with possible dates being July 13 or 20 as they are always held on Thursdays.

But the third by-election was on hold as official notice from Ms Dorries was outstanding despite saying she would quit on Friday.

She claimed sinister forces had denied her a seat in the House of Lords as requested in Mr Johnsons honours list.

Tory MP Aaron Bell suggested Ms Dorries should get on with it, claiming she has been more focused on her work on TalkTV.

I dont know what Nadines doing, to be honest, he told BBC Radio 4s World At One programme.

I think it would be good for her constituency in Mid Bedfordshire if they could have proper representation, because Nadines barely been seen in Parliament these last six months while shes been earning money on telly.

Home Office minister Chris Philp told ITVs Peston: If she is going to stay on for a bit, which shes perfectly entitled to do if she wants, it is important obviously the people who serve as MPs should do the work that is entailed in serving as an MP.

Labour said it would be campaigning to win in all the by-elections, however many we end up having and whenever we end up having them.

A spokesman said the party was ruling out any sort of deal with the Liberal Democrats in the fight for the seats.

Liberal Democrat deputy leader Daisy Cooper said: Local people deserve better than a vacant MP who isnt even bothering to turn up to work. Mid-Bedfordshire has been taken for granted by Conservative MPs for far too long.

Nadine Dorries should step aside now to give people the chance to elect a proper local champion.
A health chief has called for the quickest possible resolution to the junior doctors strike to mitigate the impact of industrial action on the NHS.

Chris Hopson, chief strategy officer for NHS England, told the NHS ConFedExpo in Manchester that strikes were having a significant impact on the health service.

It comes as thousands of junior doctors started a 72-hour walkout from 7am on Wednesday in a row over pay. Thousands of appointments and operations were expected to be cancelled as a result.

Mr Hopson said: In the end, the decisions around what is paid to junior doctors are a matter for the Government. Our job is to make sure that we appropriately manage the consequences of any industrial action.

One of the advantages of doing the job that I do is that you get to see up close how much work is going in at both a trust level, at a regional level and also the national level to manage that industrial action.

Theres been a whole series of meetings over the last couple of weeks to really make sure we do as good a job as weve done so far of managing the impact. We do need to recognise that this is having a significant impact.

He added that there was a huge amount of work to do for frontline workers over the coming days and the quicker an appropriate resolution was reached, the better.

It is very disruptive. When you talk to trust chief executives, when you talk to those inside NHS England who are managing the strike, Im very struck by how much effort and time it does take to ensure that we keep patients safe, which is our ultimate responsibility here. Thats why I think its really important that we get a resolution to this as quickly as we possibly can.

The British Medical Association (BMA) is calling for full restoration of junior doctors pay, which it says has been cut by 26%. The Government has offered 5% to end the dispute.

Health and Social Care Secretary Steve Barclay said it was extremely disappointing that the BMA was going ahead with further strike action and warned it could put patient safety at risk.

Junior doctors started 72 hours of industrial action on Wednesday morning (Anahita Hossein-Pour/PA)

From June 19, the BMA will be re-balloting junior doctors to extend its mandate on industrial action and said it could go on until March 2024 or beyond. Last week, hospital doctors union the HCSA also sent ballot papers to junior doctors in a bid to extend their mandate.

Meanwhile, members of the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) in England are voting on whether to extend their mandate on strikes until the end of 2023, while The Society of Radiographers 20,000 members in England will be balloted on industrial action in the coming weeks.

When asked about funding and staffing issues in the service, Mr Hopson said it was the NHSs job to provide the best quality care from the financial settlement granted by the Government.

He added: As you would expect, we have appropriate conversations with the Government on an ongoing basis about the funding thats available.

Health Secretary Steve Barclay said the further strike action was disappointing (Aaron Chown/PA)

He also said it was extremely important to give the NHS as much funding certainty as possible.

That doesnt just mean revenue funding, that means capital funding as well.

Mr Hopson added: Obviously, those are issues we would want as NHS England to speak to the newly elected Government about.

In terms of the funding settlement where we currently are, thats been set, and its our job to manage them the best that we can within it.
Police have launched a probe into alleged death threats against an MP.

SNP MP Joanna Cherry received two threatening tweets which the Metropolitan Police are now investigating under the Communications Act 2003.

The force had previously deemed the first tweet not to have met the criminal threshold for an offence.

That tweet, of which Ms Cherry shared a screenshot on Twitter, said: Id kill her with my bare hands if I ever saw her irl.

I am hoping the Metropolitan police will reconsider their decision on the criminality of the first tweet threatening to kill me in the light of the second tweet threatening not just my life but that of 2 other MPs @RosieDuffield1 & @JNHanvey https://t.co/WXJiJUjUQT pic.twitter.com/R9MD0c2RK4  Joanna Cherry KC (@joannaccherry) June 14, 2023

Ms Cherry also shared the second post from the same author, which said, in reference to her and two other MPs: Each of them should be murdered in broad daylight on a crowded street.

Ms Cherry, MP for Edinburgh South West, wrote: I am hoping the Metropolitan police will reconsider their decision on the criminality of the first tweet threatening to kill me in the light of the second tweet threatening not just my life but that of 2 other MPs (Rosie Duffield) & (Neale Hanvey).

In a statement, the Met said: On Tuesday, June 13 the Met was made aware of a tweet received by a serving MP.

The contents were assessed and it was deemed it did not meet the criminal threshold for an offence.

The matter was logged for intelligence purposes.

However, we have today, June 14, become aware of a further tweet linked to the same account and with these being taken together, we will now be investigating this matter for potential criminal offences under the Communications Act 2003.

We take the safety and security of MPs extremely seriously and our parliamentary liaison and investigation team works with colleagues from local police forces through the Operation Bridger network and the Parliamentary Security Department to provide MPs and their constituency teams with support and advice in relation to their safety and security.
The first female chief constable of Police Scotland has been appointed, with Jo Farrell taking on the role.

She will succeed Sir Iain Livingstone when he steps down in August after six years in the job.

Currently in charge of Durham Constabulary, Ms Farrells appointment follows a six-week assessment process.

She said: This really is a day of mixed emotions.

I am immensely proud to have served as chief constable of Durham and equally proud of everything the force has achieved over that time.

Jo Farrell said the announcement of her new appointment brings mixed emotions (SPA/PA)

Over the last six years, I have worked with some extraordinarily talented and committed people, dedicated to keeping County Durham and Darlington safe, and it has been a very difficult decision to leave.

But as chief constable of Police Scotland I have been offered a unique opportunity to take on one of the most exciting and challenging jobs in UK policing.

During her leadership, Durham Constabulary was involved in high-profile investigations into political figures.

In May 2020, the force faced demands to interview then prime minister Boris Johnsons aide Dominic Cummings over lockdown breaches.

It also cleared Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer of breaking lockdown rules in the beergate investigation.

Ms Farrell began her career as a constable in Cambridge aged 22, becoming the first person in her family to join the police and fulfilling her childhood ambition.

Sir Iain Livingstone will step down as chief constable in August (PA)

Later, she joined Northumbria Police, before moving to Durham in 2016.

When she became its chief constable in 2019, she was the first woman to enter that role.

During her time in charge, the force introduced a new approach to dealing with rape suspects, aimed at putting offenders under deeper scrutiny and identifying repeat offenders.

Sir Iain welcomed her appointment, saying: I congratulate Jo Farrell and look forward to working with her to ensure an effective handover that will maintain stability in Police Scotland.

Leading our outstanding officers and staff as Scotlands chief constable is an enormous privilege. I have great confidence Jo will continue to develop our service to protect and serve our fellow citizens.

Scottish Justice Secretary Angela Constance approved the Scottish Police Authoritys appointment.

She said: I am delighted that Jo Farrell has been appointed as Police Scotlands new chief constable following the Scottish Police Authoritys rigorous selection process.

Jo is the first woman to be appointed to this role.

As the force marks its 10th anniversary year, she has shown she has the skills needed to lead the service into the next decade and meet the challenges ahead.

Thanks to the dedication and work of the police, recorded crime rates overall are at record low levels and we have a service that is unique in the UK with an embedded human rights focus.

Police Scotland was created in 2013 after Scotlands regional police forces were merged into a single new national service.

Last month, Sir Iain admitted the force is institutionally racist and discriminatory, with his statement later described as historic and monumental by First Minister Humza Yousaf.

As part of the selection process, the new chief constable took part in a professional peer review, psychometric testing and meetings with staff associations and community groups.

The final appointment panel was chaired by Martyn Evans of the SPA.

Durhams Police and Crime Commissioner Joy Allen said: Jo is definitely a shining example for other female police officers.

She has repeatedly demonstrated that in policing, with professionalism and competence, the sky is the limit whether you are male or female.
UK retailers must translate efforts to bolster diversity and inclusion among its top executives into meaningful change, according to a new report.

Researchers from the British Retail Consortium trade body and the MBS Group advisory firm analysed the performance of 200 industry-leading businesses, with a focus on the highest leadership levels, including board and executive committees.

They said the report aims to drive change in the industry by tracking progress made so far on gender, ethnicity, disability, sexual orientation, social mobility and age in the workplace.

Elliott Goldstein, managing partner at the MBS Group, told reporters there is a long way to go until retail leadership properly reflects the customers it serves.

Findings show that while 93% of retailers have implemented a strategy to improve diversity and inclusion across their business, some 66% have no specific targets to track their progress.

While ethnic diversity representation on boards has improved by five percentage points to 10% since 2021, 30% of retail boards remain all-white, compared to 4% in the FTSE 100.

It comes after the latest census data from 2021 shows 18.3% of Englands population does not identify as white.

Elsewhere, the research found gender diversity on boards has improved by more than five percentage points since 2021 to 37.8%, but the sector is still below the FTSE 350 benchmark of 40%.

Meanwhile, it found only 17% of retailers are able to identify one disabled leader in the most senior levels of their organisation.

The analysis does show improvement in LGBT+ representation, with two-thirds of businesses aware of at least one senior leader from the community, compared with 47% in 2022 and 27% in 2021.

Meanwhile, 75% of retailers could identify at least one senior leader who demonstrates social mobility, up from 59% in 2022 and 20% in 2021.

Mr Goldstein said almost every business the researchers spoke to were very open to discussing their progress, which marks an absolute sea-change to when they first began the research in 2021.

On the one hand, youve got this great intent, but on the other hand were probably not yet seeing it translate into the types of progress that we, the BRC and the wider retail community would like to see, he said.

Where theres a frustration is where the retailers havent over many decades prioritised this as a top action point, he added.

Its the right thing to do and its commercially the right thing to do. The two together should make it the top of any chair or CEOs agenda.

Researchers identified a lack of data, insufficient resources and potential backlash from employees as barriers for businesses to improve their diversity and inclusion performance.

They said the most effective measures retailers are using to tackle these barriers include forming measures like employee resource groups, the appointment of D&I leaders, investment in training for senior leaders and greater focus on driving up data collection efforts.

They also said more could be done to build diverse talent pipelines, including target-setting to drive up representation in specific areas of the business.

Helen Dickinson, chief executive of the British Retail Consortium, said while she is encouraged to see so many retailers gearing up their D&I activity, the progress made so far hasnt sufficiently shifted the dial.

I know this will take time, but, equally, we must not rest on our laurels, she said.

While the will is there, until every individual  no matter their background  feels they can reach their true potential in the workplace, we are failing.

She also told reporters that businesses should now be tracking the progress and impact of their D&I initiatives instead of bringing in a whole range of measures that are just ticking a lot of boxes.

We need to continually assess if what were doing is working, and if its not, what else can be done. Nonetheless, I am confident that we can deliver the change we aspire for, and I am excited to see the industry rise to the challenge, she added.
Scientists have created synthetic human embryos using stem cells  a move experts say could provide insight into causes of miscarriages and unique aspects of human development but raises ethical and legal questions.

Prof Magdalena Zernicka-Goetz, from the University of Cambridge and California Institute of Technology, described fostering the embryos to a stage just beyond the equivalent of 14 days of development for a natural embryo at the International Society for Stem Cell Researchs annual meeting in Boston on Wednesday, The Guardian reported.

According to the newspaper, the structures do not require eggs or sperm, do not have a beating heart or beginnings of a brain but contain cells that would typically develop to form the placenta, yolk sac and the embryo itself.

It remains unknown whether the synthetic models could develop into viable embryos if implanted, it is understood.

The details are yet to be published in a journal paper, The Guardian said.

Prof James Briscoe, associate research director at The Francis Crick Institute, said it is not possible to comment in detail on the scientific significance without a peer reviewed paper but said synthetic models of human embryos based on stem cells have a lot of potential.

They could provide fundamental insight into critical stages of human development, he said.

These are stages that have been very difficult to study and its a time when many pregnancies fail.

Fresh insight might lead to a better understanding of the causes of miscarriages and the unique aspects of human development.

However, Prof Briscoe said it raises profound ethical and legal questions.

Unlike human embryos arising from in vitro fertilisation, where there is an established legal framework, there are currently no clear regulations governing stem cell derived models of human embryos.

There is an urgent need for regulations to provide a framework for the creation and use of stem cell derived models of human embryos.

He said it is important that research and researchers proceed cautiously, carefully and transparently.

The danger is that missteps or unjustified claims will have a chilling effect on the public and policymakers, he said. This would be a major setback for the field.
Scrapping inheritance tax may not be a vote-winning strategy as three-quarters of people back some form of the levy, a think tank has said.

A survey carried out for Demos, a cross-party think tank, found that while 55% of people initially said they thought inheritance should be tax-free in general, the public was more supportive when asked about taxes on specific amounts of inheritance.

Voters were more likely to favour taxing higher inheritance that included a second home, financial assets or unearned wealth rather than savings that had been built up through wages.

Some 75% backed taxes on a specific amount of inheritance, with the median response putting the threshold at 300,000  just below the current inheritance tax threshold of 325,000 and well below the 1 million threshold where most estates actually begin paying the tax.

The findings, published on Wednesday, come shortly after a group of backbench Conservatives including former prime minister Liz Truss and former chancellor Nadhim Zahawi called for inheritance tax to be scrapped altogether.

About 50 Tory MPs backed calls to abolish the tax, with Mr Zahawi saying it was morally wrong to take someones assets after death.

But the Demos survey found just 21% of people thought all inheritance should be tax-free, and support for taxing at least some inheritance was consistently around 75% across the political spectrum.

Dan Goss, researcher at Demos, said: If Rishi Sunak is serious about cutting inheritance tax, our research shows he might want to reconsider.

Far from being an electoral slam dunk, cutting or abolishing inheritance tax is based on assumptions that do not stand up to scrutiny.

Most people feel that some amounts of inheritances should be taxed and the majority of the public would like to see the thresholds for paying tax on inheritance lowered from where it is now, not increased.

When presented with a variety of options, Britons are often much more receptive to the idea of taxing inheritance.

As we enter a new age of inheritance with over 100 billion being passed on every year, we should have a grown-up conversation with the public about how we balance peoples desire to leave something to their loved ones with their values about what a fair society looks like.

The Demos research, which surveyed 2,000 people in December 2022, also found that people who did not expect to pass on much wealth were more likely to oppose inheritance tax initially, despite being least likely to pay it, but when asked about specific amounts were more likely to favour lower thresholds for the tax.

People expecting to give or receive 200,000 or more in inheritance typically thought the threshold should be about 500,000, while those expecting to give or receive between 1,000 and 5,000 thought the threshold should be just 50,000.

Homeowners were also more likely to back a higher inheritance tax threshold than renters.
The stench of sewage remained in a childrens cancer ward even after its multimillion-pound makeover, an inquiry has heard.

Emma Somerville, a senior charge nurse at the Schiehallion units ward 2a at Glasgows Royal Hospital for Children, was giving evidence to the Scottish Hospitals Inquiry on Wednesday, which is looking into a series of contamination issues at what was billed as a state-of-the-art facility.

She told the inquiry that before the unit was moved out of the ward, and before its refurbishment, there had been issues with the temperature and humidity of the rooms, showers flooding into bedrooms, and the smell thought to have been from nearby sewage works.

But she said while the other issues were resolved, the smell remained present.

The hospital is situated near to sewage works (Jane Barlow/PA)

She told the inquirys junior counsel Victoria Arnott: I remember one father asked to speak to me about it. His daughter was in getting chemotherapy and she was very nauseated and the smell was making her nausea worse.

The inquiry heard the estates department checked the ward, the vents and the hospitals plant rooms but nothing could be found.

Ms Somerville said: That was since we moved back, that was last summer. We moved back to the ward last March, so that was over the summer months.

I havent had any feedback so far this year. However, certainly last year when we had moved back, it was an issue over the summer months.

She said she has noticed the stench herself since it had been refurbished.

In her written evidence, she described it as a sewage-like smell which is the same you smell outside when you park your car before walking into the hospital.

The 840 million Queen Elizabeth University Hospital in Glasgow, where the childrens hospital is based, was built adjacent the Shieldhall wastewater treatment facility.

The inquiry has previously been told the unit was moved to a different ward because of the ongoing issues.

Ms Somerville said she thought the move was to last four weeks, but it went on for three-and-a-half years. During that period, the inquiry has previously been told, there had been an 11 million refurbishment.

In March 2018, she told the inquiry, contamination was found in the water and patients and families were told not to use it.

She said: I was quite anxious because infection control were anxious. And, obviously, to have something in the water system especially when he had been having infections, I was concerned for the patients.

Additional water testing was put in place, along with control measures, but then attention turned to the drains in May that year after a spike in infections.

There was a concern that the amount of children with central line infections had increased, she said.

I hadnt seen the volume of children affected before. So that was concerning. And also infection control and microbiology were concerned.

The senior nurse told Ms Arnott of black sludge in a sink, with concerns raised about other sinks, including one bubbling in a room where they prepared intravenous medication.

The inquiry is also examining delays around the opening of the Royal Hospital for Children and Young People in Edinburgh (PA)

After that, a drain cleaning programme was introduced, the inquiry heard.

When the unit was moved to ward 6a in September 2018, the inquiry was told, there were then concerns about air quality after the fungus Cryptococcus was found on the campus in December 2019.

Mobile Hepa filters were installed, and around the same time there were reports of mould being found in the showers on the new ward as well as their seals needing to be replaced.

As a result, the unit was moved in January 2019 to another ward, the Clinical Decisions Unit, as work continued and it returned to 6a later that year.

Patients returned to ward 2a in March 2022, and Ms Somerville said the unit now has better facilities and improved ventilation systems.

Ms Somerville said she no longer has concerns about the safety of the ward.

She also told the inquiry she drinks the water on the ward, and there are precautions in place including filters on showers and taps.

The hospitals inquiry was launched in the wake of deaths linked to infections at the Queen Elizabeth hospital, including that of 10-year-old Milly Main.

It is also examining problems that led to the delay in the opening of the new Royal Hospital for Children and Young People in Edinburgh.

The inquiry, before Lord Brodie, continues.
The sister of a beautician shot outside a pub on Christmas Eve told her not to return home late when she last saw her, just hours before she died, a court has heard.

Elle Edwards, 26, was killed when a gunman with a Skorpion sub-machine gun opened fire outside the Lighthouse pub in Wallasey Village, Wirral, Merseyside shortly before midnight on December 24 last year.

On Wednesday, the jury in the trial of Connor Chapman, 23, who is accused of Ms Edwards murder, heard a statement from her younger sister Lucy who had been with her in the pub earlier that evening.

Elle Edwards was killed when a gunman opened fire in Wallasey Village in December 2022 (Family handout/PA)

She said they had been to the same pub the previous year and wanted to make it a Christmas Eve tradition.

It was generally a good night, she said.

In the statement, she said that at one point they left to go to another pub and Elle later dropped her home, between 9.30pm and 10.30pm, before returning to the Lighthouse.

Lucy said: When I got out of the car, I told Elle not to be late so not to ruin Christmas. She said she wouldnt, she would be about an hour.

Connor Chapman denies murdering Elle Edwards (Elizabeth Cook/PA)

She last sent her sister a text just before 11.30pm telling her to get home but it was never read, the court heard.

Lucy said it was about 1am on Christmas Day that she was woken by her brother George, who told her Elle had been shot.

The shooting is alleged to have been the culmination of an ongoing feud between groups on the Woodchurch estate, where Chapman was from, and the Beechwood estate, where Jake Duffy and Kieran Salkeld, said to be the intended targets, lived.

Liverpool Crown Court heard that on October 26 last year, Chapman was served with an interim injunction to prevent gang-related violence.

Katy Appleton, prosecuting, said the notice prohibited Chapman from associating with a number of named individuals  including Mr Salkeld and Mr Duffy.

The jury heard about a number of events in the weeks running up to the shooting linked to people from both estates, on either side of the M53 in Wirral.

The trial was being held at Liverpool Crown Court (Dave Thompson/PA)

They included a burglary and two shootings.

Footage of an assault carried out by Mr Duffy and Mr Salkeld on Sam Searson, from the Woodchurch estate, the day before the murder was played to the jury.

Chapman denies the murder of Ms Edwards, two counts of attempted murder and three counts of wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm.

He also denies possession of a Skorpion sub-machine gun with intent to endanger life and possession of ammunition with intent to endanger life.

Co-defendant Thomas Waring, 20, of Private Drive, Barnston, Wirral, denies possessing a prohibited weapon and assisting an offender by helping Chapman to dispose of the car.

The trial continues on Thursday.
(Photo : Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

San Francisco's namesake mall is set for closure as Westfield stops making mortgage payments to its $558 million loan, citing crime and reduced sales.

San Francisco's namesake mall is set for closure as Westfield stops making mortgage payments on its $558 million loan

The decision was sparked by Nordstrom, the mall's anchor tenant, who has chosen to close in August

Westfield cited several reasons, such as unsafe conditions and lack of enforcement against crime, as the reasons for its decision

An iconic San Francisco mall is set for closure as Westfield has stopped making mortgage payments on its $558 million loan, citing crime and reduced sales, dealing another blow to the area's struggling downtown.

While the mall will remain open for now, Westfield is giving the rights back to the lender, who will be responsible for appointing a receiver. The mall's anchor tenant, Nordstrom, sparked the decision to close in August.

San Francisco Mall Set To Close

Westfield last month cited unsafe conditions and officials' lack of enforcement against rampant criminal activity that led to Nordstrom's decision. It said that the poor performance in San Francisco was the opposite situation to the rest of its properties, as per the Daily Mail.

In 2019, before the coronavirus pandemic, San Francisco Center generated $455 million in sales, which went down to $298 million last year. Nordstrom occupied 312,000 square feet in the mall, meaning Westfield San Francisco will only be 55% leased when it closes.

The mall is a smart and upmarket building, and its other retailers include Bloomingdales, Aesop, Rolex, and Sephora. Westfield's woes will continue to pressure city leaders following the decision of multiple retailers and hotels to shut down in the area amid soaring crime, open drug use, and homelessness.

For some time, the famously progressive city has faced condemnation over its "harm reduction" policies, which critics argue have only effectively legalized drug taking. On the other hand, the police department in the area is still short-staffed after supposed woke lawmakers called for defunding the force after George Floyd's murder at the hands of a police officer.

Read Also: Conservatives Slam White House Pride Party After Trans Model Flashed Her Breasts

Harsh Conditions After the Pandemic

In a statement, the company said that for more than 20 years, Westfield has proudly and successfully operated San Francisco Center. It noted that it invested significant amounts during that period to support the property, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.

Westfield added that downtown San Francisco's challenges have resulted in a decline in sales, occupancy, and foot traffic. This forced the company to make the difficult decision to start the process of transferring management of the shopping center back to its lender and allow them to appoint a receiver.

San Francisco has been one of the areas in the United States that struggled to recover following the health crisis. This kept workers away from its officers; some have expressed concern that the city is stuck in a "doom loop."

This is where office space will remain empty, and tourism will continue to lag, negatively affecting retailers and restaurants while draining the lifeblood of the once-thriving urban ecosystem. In recent months, several landlords who own several office buildings in downtown San Francisco have defaulted on their property debt or given the keys back to lenders, said Market Watch.

Related Article: First Woman to Head the NYPD Is Resigning; Who Might Lead Next?

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Rishi Sunak will likely be challenged over Tory infighting in his weekly clash with Sir Keir Starmer, following his public spat with Boris Johnson over his predecessors resignation honours list.

The Prime Minister will also move closer to two difficult by-elections, including in the seat vacated by Mr Johnson, when the Conservatives give notice for the contests on Wednesday.

The war of words between the current and former prime ministers erupted after Downing Street published Mr Johnsons honours list on Friday, lacking the names of sitting MPs including former culture secretary Nadine Dorries and former minister Nigel Adams.

No10 spent Sunday spreading the narrative that my appointment was rejected by HOLAC. From HOLAC ; The commission is an independent advisory body and does not have any power to veto a nomination.  Rt Hon Nadine Dorries (@NadineDorries) June 12, 2023

Hours later Mr Johnson dramatically announced his Commons exit, as the Privileges Committee prepared to report that he lied to Parliament over partygate.

Loyalists Ms Dorries and Mr Adams also said they were standing down as MPs.

The Prime Minister suggested his former boss wanted him to ignore the recommendations of the House of Lords Appointments Commission.

Mr Johnson said he was talking rubbish and his camp accused Mr Sunak of having secretly blocked the peerages of Ms Dorries and other allies.

Labour leader Sir Keir has warned that the row between the two erstwhile allies was damaging the UKs reputation internationally.

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer weighed in on the public spat between Mr Sunak and Mr Johnson (Jordan Pettitt, PA)

He said the three by-elections triggered by Mr Johnson, Ms Dorries and Nigel Adams were effectively political tantrums.

Chief Whip Simon Hart is expected to move a motion known as a writ for by-elections in Mr Johnsons Uxbridge and South Ruislip constituency and Mr Adams Selby and Ainsty seat on Wednesday, giving between 21 and 27 working days for votes to be held.

But the third by-election in Ms Dorries Mid Bedfordshire constituency is on hold because she has not formally resigned as a Tory MP.

It comes despite the former Cabinet minister, who accused Mr Sunak of duplicitously and cruelly blocking her elevation to the House of Lords, on Friday saying she would be standing down with immediate effect.

Ms Dorries is yet to formally resign as a Tory MP. (James Manning, PA)

Her delay in formally quitting hampers the Tories objective to limit the political fallout by holding all three contests on the same day, as the party trails in the polls.

Meanwhile, Westminster is bracing for the Privileges Committees report which is expected to find that Mr Johnson deliberately misled MPs with his assurances that lockdown rules were followed in Downing Street.

The former premier, who received a draft of the findings before quitting, urged the panel to publish its nonsense after a delay in the publication caused at least in part by his last-minute representations to the committee.

The release had already been pushed back towards the end of this week, reportedly due to printing problems in Parliament, before Mr Johnsons 11th-hour submission to the panel at 11.57pm on Monday.
Brexit has resulted in a sharp drop in the number of UK workers in EU holiday jobs, new figures show.

Only 3,700 people from the UK are being employed in the bloc to do roles such as chalet hosts, holiday reps and tour guides, travel trade organisations said.

That is a 69% drop from 11,970 in 2017.

Employing UK workers in popular EU destinations such as Spain, France, Greece, Italy and Austria has traditionally been a vital part of UK holiday companies overseas operations.

Complex paperwork, extra costs and a lack of agreements is impeding the process, according to Abta and Seasonal Businesses in Travel (SBit), which released the employment figures.

Prior to the end of the Brexit transition period on December 31 2020, UK workers were entitled to live and work in the rest of the EU with no restrictions.

Abta and SBit said since the UKs withdrawal from the bloc, it costs travel companies an additional 880 to recruit each UK worker in France, while many other member states have no viable entry routes for UK staff.

A survey of 127 UK travel businesses who sell holidays in the EU indicated that 61% believe the issue could reduce their growth over the next five years, and is their biggest concern.

Abta and SBit called on the UK and EU governments to extend the Youth Mobility Scheme to EU countries.

This would allow young people to work in the UK and EU for up to two years, with no automatic longer-term right to remain.

The UK has similar existing arrangements with countries such as Australia, Canada and New Zealand.

The travel trade also called for an enhanced UK-EU seasonal mobility agreement for tourism workers, as current arrangements only apply to certain roles and limit stays to 90 days.

Speaking at Abtas Travel Matters summit in Westminster, the bodys chief executive Mark Tanzer said: It cant be emphasised enough just how fundamental being able to work abroad is for the UK travel industry.

Not only do people gain those important language and soft-skills, theyre also set on a path for a good career and many become leaders in the industry.

With the UK outbound travel industry contributing 49bn a year to the UK economy, and a major driver of growth, not putting in the right mobility arrangements with the EU could come at a cost to UK plc.

Yet there are simple and sensible solutions to overcome these barriers, and Id urge ministers to make this a priority and take action urgently.

SBit managing director Charles Owen said: Its proving tremendously difficult to employ the UK staff we need to run our businesses in the EU.

In some countries its a mountain of complex paperwork, delays and extra costs that need to be overcome, in others there isnt really a workable route.

As an industry we rely on UK staff being able to work in the EU to help our businesses grow and thrive.

But without a sensible arrangement on labour mobility, growth in this industry will be unnecessarily held back.

Aviation minister Baroness Vere told the summit that relaxing rules for foreign workers in the UK  seen as key to securing reciprocal rights for UK workers overseas  would be a Home Office decision and she is very happy to take this on to the heart of Government if the case is set out.

But she added: We would like to see that all youngsters be able to do that (work in the EU) but we have to put that in the context of our relationship with the EU and our other priorities at the time.
Police investigating two deaths they believe to be drug-related have issued a warning after identifying a harmful synthetic opioid at the scene.

Essex Police said a man and a woman in their 40s were found dead at an address in Basildon on Tuesday and officers identified the presence of etonitazene, a synthetic opioid of similar or higher toxicity to fentanyl.

The force said: This substance may pose a high risk to users and anyone handling it.

Synthetic opioids are occasionally added to illicit drugs like heroin to enhance the potency, but they substantially increase the risk of respiratory arrest in users.

Officers investigating two deaths in #Basildon which are believed to be drug-related are issuing safety advice to users after identifying a harmful synthetic opioid. We are working hard to investigate this incident and prevent any further deaths.https://t.co/d21T2LfG8b pic.twitter.com/WYENxSt9XS  Essex Police (@EssexPoliceUK) June 13, 2023

Our officers are working hard to investigate this incident and, crucially, prevent any further deaths.

Detective Inspector Kevin Hughes urged people to avoid illegal drugs altogether.

I would urge people not to take any illegal substances at any time, but particularly not at this time, he said.

We strongly advise anyone using drugs not to use alone.

Immediate advice is to avoid using heroin altogether. However, if you do choose to take it, we would urge you to follow these steps:

Ensure there is someone to watch out for you who is not under the influence.

Take less than you normally would and wait before continuing.

Have opioid antidote, naloxone, to hand. Current advice is that naloxone should work to counteract the effects of nitazine-type drugs.

Be ready to call for help  urgent medical intervention may make all the difference.

Dont use with other depressants  particularly avoid consuming other depressants such as alcohol, pregabalin, gabapentin or other opiates  these can amplify the risk of respiratory arrest.

People need to look out for each other and be alert to any signs of an opioid overdose, such as shallow breathing, loss of consciousness and blue lips or fingertips.

If someone does overdose its vital to act fast, call for an ambulance immediately.

We strongly advise all drug users to get support from local drug services, as being in treatment greatly reduces the risks of harm and overdose.
The ex-wife of comedian Paul Whitehouse faced completely inhumane press intrusion after her cancer diagnosis, she has told the High Court in her claim against the publisher of the Mirror.

Fiona Wightman is one of several people suing Mirror Group Newspapers (MGN) who claim journalists at its titles  The Daily and Sunday Mirror and the Sunday People  were linked to methods including phone hacking, so-called blagging or gaining information by deception and use of private investigators for unlawful activities.

Ms Wightman entered a witness box at the High Court in London on Wednesday to give evidence in her claim, where she said that following a diagnosis and surgery for ovarian cancer, she began to be doorstepped by journalists and asked to talk about her illness.

Ms Wightman said the doorstepping by journalists reminded her of how terrified Id been at the beginning, adding she felt really overwhelmed and under pressure.

She also told the court a medical blagger used by MGN had called her doctors secretary, pretending to need access to her medical records, with the secretary later describing the call as fishy.

MGN has previously unreservedly apologised for this, telling the court the attempt was unsuccessful and no stories were published in MGN titles using unlawfully gained information about her illness.

Ms Wightman is one of the representative claims in the trial which has also included the Duke of Sussex (Aaron Chown/PA)

In her witness statement, Ms Wightman said she felt totally invaded and confused, and allegations that MGN journalists were listening to her voicemails were absolutely extraordinary.

She continued in her written evidence: The idea that somebody thought there is a young woman with cancer who happens to be married to someone famous, we deserve to know about this and see if we can get a story about this is really indefensible.

Ms Wightman added: It was deeply shocking to see the invoices and finally understand who it had been that had called my doctors secretary, its completely inhumane.

I was still feeling upset and anxious, having a cancer diagnosis and two little kids. I was obviously fragile. How could they do that to someone?

Her barrister David Sherborne previously said Mr Whitehouse and Ms Wightman, who have two daughters together, met at a very young age and married in 1992.

The comedian, who rose to fame in The Fast Show comedy TV programme, later formed a relationship with a work colleague who became pregnant, the court was told.

Ms Wightman and Mr Whitehouse separated in 2000 and were divorced three years later.

In his evidence in support of his ex-wifes claim, Mr Whitehouse described the intrusion Ms Wightman faced as beyond belief.

The comedian later alleged that MGN journalists were monitoring the landline of their family home in north London.

It is disturbing. MGNs journalists were digging into Fiona, myself and our family members, who had nothing to do with anything, Mr Whitehouse said.

Mr Whitehouse later said: It is called a private life for a reason  MGNs journalists overstepped the mark.

Paul Whitehouse during a Save Windermere  stop the sewage campaign in Bowness-on-Windermere (Danny Lawson/PA)

Ms Wightman is bringing her claim against the publisher over two Daily Mirror articles, including one from October 2000 which her lawyers say involved journalists unlawfully obtaining highly private details surrounding the breakdown of her marriage to Mr Whitehouse.

In her written evidence, she described the first piece, published on October 30 2000, as an extremely intrusive article about the breakdown of my relationship.

Ms Wightman added: It took years for me to regain my confidence. I was trying to get strong again and for MGN to publish something like this  so incredibly private  at a time when I was trying to recover my health really is despicable.

Discussing the second article about the couples separation, published in April 2002, Ms Wightman said: At the time, I was livid and heartbroken. But I certainly would not have said that to the press. Paul took care of us; he was funny and kind, and still is.

Andrew Green, for MGN, told Ms Wightman the publisher had admitted there were a number of occasions when journalists instructed private investigators to obtain your personal information unlawfully.

He added that MGN unreservedly apologises for this, adding: It shouldnt have happened, it did and it wont happen again.

However, Mr Green said there was simply no evidence whatsoever that Ms Wightmans voicemails were intercepted, adding of Mr Whitehouse that there was also no evidence that he was ever hacked.

MGN also say Ms Wightmans claim has been brought too late.

The court heard Ms Wightman was told about her ex-husbands relationship with another woman in 1998, with the barrister suggesting MGN journalists were not particularly quick to learn about the separation.

Mr Whitehouse having an affair and a child with another woman would have been a very much bigger story, he said.

He said the October 2000 article gets the reason for the separation entirely wrong, adding that if MGNs journalists had intercepted your voicemails at this time they would have been writing a very different article.

Ms Wightmans case is one of four representative claims being heard in London, alongside similar claims brought by the Duke of Sussex, Coronation Street actor Michael Turner, known professionally as Michael Le Vell, and Hollyoaks actress Nikki Sanderson.
A woman accused of posing as a man to prey on a short-sighted teenage girl has been found guilty of sexual assault by kissing and cleared of 16 other sex offences.

Georgia Bilham, 21, was cleared by a jury of all but one of the alleged offences after about three hours of deliberations following an eight-day trial.

She made no reaction as the verdicts were delivered at Chester Crown Court on Wednesday.

Judge Michael Leeming told Bilham: You have been convicted of count one, an allegation of sexual assault.

Georgia Bilham outside Chester Crown Court on Tuesday (PA)

Im going to adjourn sentencing for a pre-sentence report to be prepared.

It should not be taken by you as an indication of a non-custodial sentence  all options are open.

Bilham, from Alpraham, Cheshire, will have to sign the sex offenders register and will be sentenced on July 19.

Her trial was told she created an online Snapchat persona in the name of George Parry to trick the 19-year-old complainant into thinking she was a man.

George always wore a hood over his head, even in bed, while with the teenager, who, the court was told, is severely short-sighted.

George claimed to be paranoid because of his involvement with Albanian gangsters.

Bilham said after the first time they met in person the complainant messaged her to say, Theres something weird about you, and blocked her on Snapchat.

But there continued to be an online love-hate relationship, which became toxic at times, the court heard.

Bilham said she believed her cover was blown after crashing her mothers car into a hedge while out for a drive with the teenager on May 11 2021.

Jurors convicted her of sexually assaulting the girl by kissing her that evening.

Bilham told jurors she believes a police officer called to the scene revealed her true identity to the complainant after checking her driving licence.

She said: I think they told her I was female. It was not George, it was Georgia.

Georgia Bilham said she did not question her gender but did question her sexuality (PA)

The defendant said from that point she believes the teenager knew she was really a woman.

Giving evidence, the complainants mother said her daughter told her about seeing someone called George, who she said had social anxiety so kept his hood up.

Bilham admitted being caught up in a web of lies but denied getting a buzz out of deceiving the teenager, maintaining throughout that she thought the woman she had sex with believed she was a woman.

She told the court she had been a bit of a tomboy when she was younger and had a difficult relationship with her mother after her parents split when she was a teenager.

Bilham said she never wanted to change gender but questioned her sexuality and that her mother would not be happy if she was in a same-sex relationship.

Asked why she set up the fake Snapchat account pretending to be a boy, Bilham replied: I just was not happy in myself. I just it was just more like an escape. I dont know.

I was not confident in myself. It was a stupid thing to do. It was a way of not being me.

Bilham, of Bunbury Road, denied nine sexual assaults and eight counts of assault by penetration, all between May to August 2021.
Author Douglas Stuart has said it is a lovely thing to be recognised by your home town, after he was presented with an honorary degree by the University of Glasgow.

Olympic athlete Laura Muir, a graduate of the university, and Professor Sir Chris Whitty, the chief medical officer for England, were also among those recognised at the commemoration day event on Wednesday.

The special ceremony marks the foundation of the university in 1451.

Stuart won the Booker Prize in 2020 with his debut novel Shuggie Bain, which is set in 1980s Glasgow and is about a young boy growing up amid addiction and poverty, while his second book Young Mungo was published last year.

Laura Muir won silver at the Tokyo Olympics in 2020 (Martin Rickett/PA)

Speaking after the ceremony, he told the PA news agency: Im just incredibly proud to get the honorary degree from Glasgow University.

Glasgow is my home town and I grew up about two miles from the university, but as a young man growing up I didnt feel like university life was for me, and so to be here today, Im just very proud, I think my ancestors would be proud, I hope my family are proud.

Every word in my novels is inspired by the city of Glasgow so it is a lovely thing to be recognised by your home town and to make a little bit of history here.

Stuart has an MA from the Royal College of Art in London and has lived in New York City since 2000, where he has worked in fashion.

He is now writing his third novel, and is also working on adapting Young Mungo and Shuggie Bain for the screen with production company A24.

' I didn't think I'd be coming back here 5 years after graduating to receive another award so I'm very honoured.' Olympic medallist & @UofG_Alumni @lauramuiruns returned to UofG to receive an honorary degree at #UofGCommDay. Congrats to all our honorary grads!  #TeamUofG pic.twitter.com/tjm52yNanB  University of Glasgow (@UofGlasgow) June 14, 2023

The writer said his new book will explore some of the themes of his previous novels to form a kind of tapestry.

He said: My third novel Im hoping will be part of a triptych of the work that Ive been writing about, about Scottish masculinity, about loneliness, about how the country changed under successive governments, and at the same time how young Scottish men came of age, especially when they were on the margins, especially when they felt the loneliness that came from being queer in a country that was evolving quite quickly.

So although it wont be part of a trilogy  my first two novels are not connected in that way  I think it will make some kind of tapestry, some kind of triptych ,and Im excited to finish it.

Stuart said that although he lives in New York, there is no place like Glasgow in the world.

He said: I come home all the time, my family still live in the streets that I write about and whenever I feel a bit lost or I feel a bit confused or I feel like Im not making sense in the world, I come home to Glasgow and I can be exactly myself, so Im home in Glasgow all the time.

'I am an economist by training & this is the home of Adam Smith, so to get an honorary degree from this University means a lot.' We're delighted to award an honorary degree to Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala @NOIweala, Director General @WTO, during this years #UofGCommDay.  @UofG_Alumni pic.twitter.com/HrkCKPIIL7  University of Glasgow (@UofGlasgow) June 14, 2023

Muir graduated as a vet from the university in 2018.

She won silver in the 1500 metres at the Olympics in Tokyo, which were held a year late in 2021 because of the Covid pandemic.

Speaking at the university on Wednesday, she said: Its a huge, huge honour, I didnt think Id be coming back here five years after graduating in 2018 to receive another award, so very, very honoured to be here today.

Mamphela Ramphele, an academic and anti-apartheid activist, and Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, an economist and director-general of the World Trade Organisation, were also among those awarded honorary degrees on Wednesday.

Professor Sir Anton Muscatelli, principal and vice-chancellor of the university, said: Im really delighted to welcome such distinguished individuals from a whole spectrum of backgrounds and disciplines to our university community.

Awarding honorary degrees is a way for the university to recognise world-changing achievements and celebrate the successes of these individuals.
Vladimir Putin meets with the Belarusian president Alexander Lukashenko at the Kremlin in Moscow (SPUTNIK/AFP via Getty Images)

Belarus has started taking the delivery of Russian tactical nuclear weapons, president Alexander Lukashenko announced, claiming that some of these were three times more powerful than the atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945.

Mr Lukashenko said that the bombs are three times more powerful than those (dropped on) Hiroshima and Nagasaki, adding to his previous statement that he didnt simply ask Mr Putin for the weapons, but "demanded" them.

The Vladimir Putin ally was speaking to the Russian state TV channel Rossiya-1 on a road in a forest clearing with military vehicles and a storage facility visible in the background seen around him.

This will be the first such warhead deployment by Moscow, comprising shorter-range less powerful nuclear weapons that could potentially be used on the battlefield, outside of Russia since the fall of the Soviet Union.

The interview was posted on the Belarusian Belta state news agencys Telegram channel on Wednesday.

This comes five days after the Russian president announced plans to start deploying tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus, even as Moscow will retain their control, after the special storage facilities to park them were ready.

Mr Lukashenko further confirmed his close allys statement in the state television interview where he said Belarus has numerous nuclear storage facilities from the Soviet-era and has restored five or six of them.

On control of nuclear weapons in Russias hands as a move to prevent the arsenal from being used up quickly, Mr Lukashenko played down the concern and said that Mr Putin and he could pick up the phone to each other at any moment.

Just hours before on Tuesday, he had said that the Russian tactical nuclear weapons will be physically deployed on the Belarusian territory in several days and he had the facilities to host longer-range missiles too if ever needed.

Mr Lukashenko further alleged that Belarus has always been a target for the West.

"They (the West) have wanted to tear us to pieces since 2020. No one has so far fought against a nuclear country, a country that has nuclear weapons," Mr Lukashenko said, adding that the nuclear deployment will act as a deterrent against potential aggressors.

Belarus has been an active participant in Russias full-scale invasion of Ukraine as it has consistently allowed its territory to be used by Russian forces to attack Kyiv.

The first announcement of tactical nuclear weapons was made in March by Mr Putin who had blamed the US deployment of such weapons in a host of European countries over many decades.

The US, however, maintained that it did not see any signs of Russias willingness to prepare for nuclear weapons use in the continuing invasion, as it criticised the decision of deployment by Mr Putin.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken will visit China this weekend, a high-stakes step in the U.S. push for an improvement in ties between the worlds fractious superpowers.

The top U.S. diplomat will travel to Beijing on Friday to hold talks with senior Chinese officials, the State Department announced Wednesday, a long-awaited rescheduling of a visit that was canceled after an alleged Chinese spy balloon was found flying over sensitive American military sites.

China's foreign ministry confirmed the trip and said Blinken would visit Sunday to Monday, June 18-19, state media reported.

But if that sounds like evidence of a thaw between Washington and Beijing, something predicted by President Joe Biden after months of deepening tensions, the signals from China appear less encouraging.The announcement comes after a call between Blinken and his Chinese counterpart that appeared to be interpreted in vastly different ways by each side.

The State Department issued a neutral statement after the call that talked about keeping open lines of communication, while the Chinese foreign ministry openly lambasted the U.S.

Since the beginning of the year, China-U.S. relations have encountered new difficulties and challenges, Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang said, according to his governments readout of the telephone conversation. The U.S. side should respect and stop interfering in Chinas internal affairs, and stop harming Chinas sovereignty, security and development interests in the name of competition.

Secretary of State Anthony Blinken and his Chinese counterpart, Qin Gang. (AFP; Getty Images file)

U.S. officials have downplayed these Beijing broadsides, with White House Indo-Pacific Coordinator Kurt Campbell telling reporters on a call ahead of the trip that weve seen other signals that they recognize that diplomacy with Washington is still important.

The differing tone of the statements nonetheless highlights how far apart the U.S. and China still appear to be.

What China is pursuing is maximum clarity, exactly opposite to the ambiguity endorsed by the U.S., said Lu Xiang, a Hong Kong-based professor at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, a top Chinese government-affiliated think tank. The U.S. readout of the call showed its desire to truly improve U.S.-China relations, Lu told NBC News. Even with Blinkens visit, the divergence between these two countries will continue for quite a long time.

This already contentious relationship has sunk to a decades-low nadir since the spy balloon saga, with ties frayed further by Taiwan, Russias war in Ukraine and recent news of a Chinese spy base in Cuba. Beijing has blamed Washington, arguing public U.S. efforts at conciliation are undermined by sanctions and other efforts to contain its rise.

There is evidence this animus is not just between governments, too.

On Tuesday, police in Hong Kong arrested a man from mainland China on suspicion of spray painting anti-American graffiti on the citys U.S. consulate. Footage from local broadcaster TVB showed the wall of the building sprayed white with Chinese characters meaning double standards, alongside the English word hegemony  meaning the dominance of one country over others.

Both Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping have shown some willingness to move on from the silly balloon incident, as Biden put it, and mend their tattered ties. But the Americans say their attempts to re-establish high-level diplomacy have been rebuffed.

China has continued to declare its unhappiness with the U.S. approach of trying to restrict certain high-tech exports to China over national security concerns and criticizing it on human rights  while attempting to protect their $600 billion trading relationship.

There have been meetings between senior officials. But China declined a rendezvous between the two countries defense chiefs, and a long-awaited telephone call between Biden and Xi has not happened.

Blinkens visit to Beijing, the first by a secretary of state since 2018 and the first Cabinet-level trip there by a Biden administration official, will raise hopes of a breakthrough.

While there, he will meet with senior Chinese officials to discuss the importance of maintaining open lines of communication to responsibly manage the relationship with Washington, State Department spokesperson Matt Miller said. He will also raise bilateral issues of concern, global and regional matters, and potential cooperation on shared transnational challenges.

The U.S. says it wants to keep open communications with the aim of "reducing the risk of miscalculation," Assistant Secretary of State Dan Kritenbrink told reporters.

There have been a number of recent close calls between U.S. and Chinese aircraft and ships in the South China Sea. Beijing fiercely declares ownership over the resource-rich shipping hotspot, a claim contested by its neighbors and not recognized by international law.

Blinken will also travel to London to meet with his counterparts from the U.K., Ukraine and elsewhere and to attend the Ukraine Recovery Conference, the State Department said.

The U.S. wants to de-risk its relationship with Beijing  newfangled jargon that essentially means trading with China while restricting certain exports, such as technology that can be used for military purposes. Meanwhile the U.S. wants to continue calling out China on issues such as human rights, Taiwan, and Beijings growing assertiveness in the South China Sea.

Campbell, the White Houses Indo-Pacific coordinator, said the Biden Administration was for de-risking but not decoupling. China will take provocative steps, from the Taiwan Strait to Cuba, and we will push back, he added but intense competition requires intense diplomacy if we're going to manage tensions.

For many in and around the Chinese government, this is unacceptable and looks like the U.S. trying to have it both ways.

Every time it talks about meeting, the United States is keen to play games with China and create the false illusion that they are eager to communicate, said Yuyuan Tantian, a prominent social media commentator affiliated with Chinas government-controlled broadcaster, CCTV, on Tuesday. But at the same time, they are repeatedly testing and provoking on issues of Chinas bottom line and principles.
Almost there! Stassi Schroeder gave fans an inside look at Katie Maloney and Ariana Madixs new sandwich shop, Something About Her, opening in L.A. this summer.

The Vanderpump Rules alum took to her Instagram Story on Monday, June 12, to give a glimpse inside Maloney and Madixs Parisian-style eatery, which features light blue walls and multiple paintings.

Oh, wow, Schroeder, 34, marveled over the sky blue walls in the video, while Maloney, 36, joked, This feels illegal.

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Lala Kent and Kristina Kelly also joined in on the fun, with the Give Em Lala founder, 32, showing off the exterior of the shop, including its yellow and white striped awning and store sign. Boss bitch! Kent exclaimed to Maloney.

Earlier this month, Maloney shared an update on when Something About Her will be opening to the public.

We were hoping by, like, end of May, but you know, in the nature of these things and starting a restaurant, theres always gonna be things [that delay the process], the 2009: True Story actress said in an appearance on the So Bad Its Good With Ryan Bailey podcast, adding that the restaurant is gonna be open this summer.  We are really excited.

Maloney announced her plan to open a sandwich shop on a 2021 episode of Vanderpump Rules. Though she initially wanted to start the business with her then-husband, Tom Schwartz, he was too caught up in his restaurants with Tom Sandoval at the time. (Schwartz, 40, and Maloney called it quits in 2022 after more than 12 years together.)

Tom and I talked about doing a sandwich shop and the whole thing, eventually, the former assistant wardrobe stylist told Lala Kent during Pump Rules season 9. This bars going to keep him a little tied up for a while, she explained. So the other day, Ariana was like, Ill fking do it with you.

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Madix, for her part, is getting ready to open the shop in the dramatic aftermath of Scandoval. In March, Us Weekly confirmed that the Florida native, 37, and Sandoval, 40, had called it quits after nine years together following Madix discovering the TomTom co-owners affair with castmate Raquel Leviss.

When breaking her silence in the wake of the scandal, Madix thanked her friends, family and all of her supporters for sticking by her.

Hi. where to begin? I want to express my most sincere gratitude for the outpouring of love and support I have received from friends, family, and people Ive never even met in the last two weeks, the former bartender captioned her Instagram post. When I have felt like I couldnt even stand, you all have given me the strength to continue and seen me through my darkest hours. To say I have been devastated and broken is an understatement, however, I know that I am not in this alone.

Madix continued: So many of my closest friends are also grieving this loss right now and reeling this betrayal on so many levels. I am so fking lucky to have the best support system in the world and I hope I can repay every single person for the love you have shown me. What doesnt kill me better run. Love, Ariana.

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Maloney has been one of Madixs most consistent supporters in the wake of the affair, jetting off with her for a girls trip to the U.K. in April to having her back at all three parts of the Vanderpump Rules season 10 reunion in May and June.

After news of Sandoval and Leviss affair broke, Maloney took to social media to thank fans on Madixs behalf. Tomorrow is International Womens Day. But so many of you have been asking how to support Ariana and how to support the sandwich shop, she wrote via her Instagram Story at the time. Honestly, its been overwhelming. Ariana is overwhelmed by [the support], she thanks you all so much.

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Following all the drama with her ex, Madix moved on with Daniel Wai after meeting him at a wedding several weeks after her split from Sandoval. The twosome were most recently seen partying together at Governors Ball in New York on Monday, June 12.
Chicago Fires Taylor Kinney has added his voice to the sea of former costars mourning the loss of actor Treat Williams, who died Monday from injuries sustained during a motorcycle accident. Kinney had previously been off the grid since mid-January after taking a leave of absence from his role to deal with a personal matter.

My thoughts and prayers are with Treats family, said Kinney in a statement to People. He played my father on Chicago Fire, and was a father figure to everyone on set. Ill always relish our conversations and his uncanny ability to light up a room. We all send love, he will be missed.

Williams played on-screen dad Benny Severide in NBCs firefighter drama for seven seasons between 2013 and 2018. TV fans may know him best as Dr. Andrew Brown, the big-city neurosurgeon who moves to a small Colorado town along with his son and daughter on The WBs Everwood, which ran from 2002 to 2006.

Williams agent Barry McPherson confirmed that Williams was killed on Monday afternoon when a car cut him off as he was making a turn on his motorcycle. Im just devastated, McPherson said in a statement at the time. He was the nicest guy. He was so talented. He was an actors actor. Filmmakers loved him. Hes been the heart of Hollywood since the late 1970s.

TV Stars Who Died in 2023

TV Stars We Lost in 2023

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The actors family released a statement to our sister site Deadline as well: It is with great sadness that we report that our beloved Treat Williams has passed away tonight in Dorset, Vermont after a fatal motorcycle accident. As you can imagine, we are shocked and greatly bereaved at this time. Treat was full of love for his family, for his life and for his craft, and was truly at the top of his game in all of it. It is all so shocking right now, but please know that Treat was dearly and deeply loved and respected by his family and everyone who knew him. We are beyond devastated and ask that you respect our privacy as we deal with our grief. To all his fans, please know that Treat appreciated all of you and please continue to keep him in your hearts and prayers.

Since then, swarms of Treats friends and former costars have taken to social media to mourn the untimely loss. Matt Bomer called Williams an absolute treasure while recalling their time together on White Collar. Hes one of the few actors Ive worked with who always checked in on me  even years after we worked together, he wrote on Instagram. Treat, you were an amazing actor and an even better person, and I will miss you.

Everwood creator Greg Berlanti also commented on Tuesday writing, I can still feel the warmth of your presence back then. People could feel it through the screen when watching Everwood. That was the secret magic of the show, every week you were giving the world a much needed hug.
According to authorities, the Kenyan doomsday cult death toll has surpassed 300 after a pastor preached to his followers to starve to death for their salvation.

The number of dead people is expected to climb as the authorities plan more exhumations.

Kenyan Cult Death Toll Surpasses

As per Associated Press, the coastal regional commissioner Rhoda Onyancha disclosed to local journalists that roughly more than 613 people who are tied to the doomsday cult are missing.

But for now, the authorities only retrieved bodies half of that number. The police found the bodies of Mackenzie in a forest nearby the Indian Ocean town of Malindi.

The regional commissioner confirmed that "the death toll has now risen to 303 after the 19 bodies were exhumed." The authorities expect to retrieve more bodies from the land where Mackenzie and his followers lived, with more exhumations underway.

The local police stormed the cult leader Pastor Paul Mackenzie's property last April shortly after investigators got a tip telling them that dozens of cult followers were starving themselves to death. The tip also mentioned that MacKenzie told his cult members that starvation was their way to salvation.

On Monday, June 12, the authorities rescued 65 parishioners from the property where the doomsday cult followers lived. The police charged these people with attempted suicide after protesting in a hunger strike in their shelters and moved them to jail.

Read Also: Queen Elizabeth II: Timeline of Her Royal Reign and Most Notable Accomplishments as Britain's Monarch

Pastor Paul Mackenzie and His Starvation Cult

Paul Nthenge MacKenzie is the leader of a Christian doomsday cult in Kenya, wherein hundreds of followers starved themselves to death.

According to BBC, MacKenzie says he has already ceased the operations of his Good News International Church roughly four years ago. His church ran for almost two decades before closing its doors, according to its leader.

Despite that, the BBC discovered videos on YouTube featuring his sermons even after the church had allegedly shut down. The media outlet noticed that some of his videos were monetized. So the Google-owned video service is earning money off these clips through advertisements.

The YouTube account of Makenzie draws thousands of followers. The church also has its Facebook page, which shares links to these videos.

However, BBC says that these videos on YouTube never showed the cult leader directly ordering these people to starve themselves to death. But it asks his followers to offer sacrifices, which include giving away their lives.

Mackenzie has denied accusations saying he forced his followers to fast. Yet, former members of the cult say that their leader ordered them to fast. The Kenyan cult leader has been under the custody of the police since April 14, CBS News reports. He is expected to go back to court this week.

Related Article: Scientists Find Ancient Crocodile Species Speculated To Devour Human Ancestors in Africa Millions of Years Ago

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(Everett Collection / Getty Images)

Is It OK to Punch a Nazi? begged a New York Times headline in January 2017. Its the new national debate, Salon claimed.

Richard Spencer, a well-known neo-Nazi far-right leader, had just been punched in the face during an interview in the swirl of Washington, D.C., protests and celebrations following the inauguration of Donald Trump, and the discourse was raging on social media. Assault and violence is wrong, many argued, but are there exceptions when confronted by the presence of someone whose ideals historically embody that much evil?

Punch a Nazi memes ran rampant  arguably the most shared featured a famous image of cinematic swashbuckler Indiana Jones (Harrison Ford) towering over a Nazi soldier, fist raised, about to clock the daylights out of him, in 1989s Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade.

Indiana Jones became the meme of choice in the "Punch a Nazi" discourse. (Image via imgflip.com)

What would Indiana Jones do? academics pondered.

We now have a definitive answer from the man in the fedora himself.

Hed push [other people] out of the way to get in the first punch, Ford told us during an interview for his fifth and final film in the franchise, Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, where he was joined by director James Mangold.

As well he should, Ford adds, making no secret of his own feelings of IRL Nazi-slugging.

I asked Harrison Ford how ultimate Nazi puncher Indiana Jones would feel about the debate over punching Nazis in real life today.



Hed push 'em out of the way to get in the first punch. As well he should." pic.twitter.com/rg1L2aFrpi  Kevin Polowy (@djkevlar) June 13, 2023

The archeologist otherwise known as Dr. Henry Jones became one of the most celebrated action heroes of all time with the launch of 1984s Steven Spielberg-directed, George Lucas-produced Raiders of the Lost Ark, followed by 1984s Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom and 1989s Last Crusade. Set in the years leading up to World War II, Jones often squared off against Nazi soldiers through his early adventures, particularly in Raiders and Last Crusade (the latter of which featured one of Indys most famous quips: Nazis, I hate these guys.)

When Ford returned for 2008s Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, the action was moved from the 1930s to 1957, where Indy made Soviet Communists see red instead. In Dial of Destiny, though, Indy is back doing what he does best  whooping fascist foes  as he sets out to foil a nefarious plot by former Nazi scientist (Mads Mikkelsen) hired by NASA in the space race to put a man on the moon in 1969. Mikkelsens Jurgen Voller is based on Wernher von Braun, who developed rocket technology for Adolf Hitlers Nazi Germany before he was hired by the U.S. Army, Disney and NASA.

That was a black-and-white world, Ford says of the rise of the Nazi party. This evil presented itself to the world. Its incalculable that this vision of evil not be confronted.

To see a threat of it in 1969, to know that Wernher von Braun was a Nazi and worked for America on the space program after all we knew about his history and who he associated with. I mean, these are shades of gray in a world we'd thought was black and white.

Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny opens June 30.

Watch the trailer:
The bill was introduced by Rep. Andrew Clyde, R-Ga. (Scott Applewhite/AP)

WASHINGTON (AP)  House Republicans passed a resolution that would repeal a Biden administration rule tightening federal regulations on stabilizing braces for firearms, an accessory that has been used in several mass shootings in the U.S. over the past decade.

The resolution passed 219-210 nearly on party lines and after a contentious floor debate where Republicans accused the administration of executive overreach and Democrats condemned a bill they said would help kill people. Two Democrats voted in support and two Republicans voted against it.

The resolution, which was introduced by Rep. Andrew Clyde, R-Ga., will now go to the Senate, which could take up the measure as soon as this week. Should it pass, President Biden has promised a veto. Overriding a presidential veto would require two-thirds majorities in the House and Senate.

The new rule issued by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives in January treats guns with the accessories like short-barreled rifles, a weapon that is like a sawed-off shotgun and has been heavily regulated since the 1930s.

The regulation, which went into effect June 1, was one of several steps Biden announced in 2021 after a man using a stabilizing brace killed 10 people at a grocery store in Boulder, Colorado. A stabilizing brace was also used in a shooting in Dayton, Ohio, that left nine people dead in 2019 and most recently in a school shooting in Nashville, Tennessee.

Stabilizing braces transform a pistol into a weapon thats powerful and easy to conceal, Attorney General Merrick Garland said when he announced the rule. Originally developed for disabled veterans, gun-control groups have said the accessories have became a loophole exploited by gunmakers to make weapons more deadly.

President Biden has vowed to veto the measure. (Susan Walsh/AP)

Since taking effect earlier this month, the rule requires anyone who has a gun with an arm-stabilizing brace to register the weapon with the federal government and pay a fee, or remove the brace from their weapons.

This rule doesnt just infringe upon Americans' Second Amendment liberties. It represents a dangerous government overreach by the administration.Rep. Andrew Clyde

Republicans employed the Congressional Review Act, which allows Congress to undo recently enacted executive branch regulations, to try and nullify the new rule that they claim has turned millions of gun owners into felons.

This rule doesnt just infringe upon Americans' Second Amendment liberties. It represents a dangerous government overreach by the administration, Clyde said during debate Tuesday. Congress maintains sole legislative authority, not government agencies, not the executive branch.

Several lawsuits have been filed against the regulations by gun owners and state attorneys general. They say it violates Second Amendment protections by requiring millions of people to alter or register their weapons. In some cases, judges have recently agreed to temporarily block enforcement of the rule for the plaintiffs in a setback for the Biden administration.

House Democrats defended the rule on Tuesday, saying it could save lives.

How many more mass shootings need to happen, how many more kids need to die before my Republican colleagues pull their heads out of the sand and realize that the NRA money is not worth the damage thats been done to our country?Rep. Jim McGovern

How many more mass shootings need to happen, how many more kids need to die before my Republican colleagues pull their heads out of the sand and realize that the NRA money is not worth the damage thats been done to our country, said Rep. Jim McGovern, D-Mass.

The main sponsor for the measure, Clyde, is a member of the ultra-conservative House Freedom Caucus and the owner of a gun store in his district in Georgia. His proposal to overturn the ATF rule first came to the House Judiciary Committee in late March for markup. But House Republicans postponed debate of the measure after a gunman used a weapon with a stabilizing brace to fatally shoot three children and three adults at an elementary school in Nashville, Tenn.

Last week, Clyde claimed GOP leadership had blocked his resolution from reaching the floor as retribution for his no vote on a bipartisan agreement to lift the debt ceiling, which leaders denied.

House Majority Leader Steve Scalise said he and Rep. Tom Emmer, the GOP's chief vote-counter, had been working intensely to ensure enough support to pass the legislation in the narrowly divided House.

Weve been moving people every week on this bill, Scalise said. It has not been easy.
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On the morning of May 28, China Eastern Airlines undertook the first commercial flight of a narrow-body jetliner built in China called the C919a project built by COMAC (Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China) and long in the works. Aviation enthusiasts even bought tickets on Flight MU9191 in advance, just for a shot at being onboard the historic two-hour flight from Shanghais Hongqiao International Airport to Beijings Capital International Airport.

STR - Getty Images

Comac previously broke new ground with its smaller ARJ-21 regional jet (similar class to the A220 or Embraer E190 series), which entered commercial service in 2016. But while China has long built military aircraft domestically, the market for large commercial jetliners must satisfy more stringent safety and cost efficiency requirements if commercial carriers are to purchase them.

However, thanks to the sway of buying domestically, the C919 already has over 1,000 domestic orders or options for orders, even though its entering service seven years later than intended.

Production of the C919 is an important milestone for China, but still falls short of the whole enchilada. While the airframe is built in China, most of the most complicated componentsincluding the engines, in-flight avionics, sensors, landing gears, etc.are still sourced from abroad.

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Spies and Super Computers: Designing the C919

Like other sectors of Chinese industry, Chinas aviation sector has historically relied on importing or license-building foreign designs (or more recently, acquiring schematics through hacking and/or espionage) and reverse-engineering them to eventually develop substitute domestic models tailored to Chinese characteristics. This approach has encountered limitations, however, when it comes to certain particularly complicated technologiesnotably, high performance jet engines.

When first conceived in 2008, the C919 was projected to make its first flight by 2014 and enter service in 2018. Despite the use of the Tianhe-2 super computer for digital modeling, the first flight date was moved back three years to May 2017. Then, it was many more months before a second flight was performed due to problems with the elevators. By one estimate, funding from Chinas government totaled between $49 billion and $72 billion in then-equivalent USD by 2020.

China News Service - Getty Images

By 2018, western intelligence agencies began reporting that Turbine Panda, a hacking group associated with Chinas Ministry of State Security, was implicated in stealing specifications and technology for use in the C919 from 13 Western companies. And contractors like GE, Honeywell and Safran actually provided parts used in the C919. In addition to trojan-based hacking, intelligence agents also sought to recruit inside sources in GE and the U.S. Army Reserves. Four agents and recruits were arrested on U.S. soil, with another six indicted in absentia.

In 2020, the C919 finally made a public overflight at the Zhuhai airshow, leading to its first commercial flight in May.

C919 by the Numbers

The C919 is a single-aisle airliner (ie. only two lines of seats) built for medium-distance operations, with a capacity for between 158 to 174 seats depending on how theyre configured. The design is, in many ways, rooted in Airbuss similar A320 airliner, without seeking to match efficiencies achieved in its most recent incarnation. For example, wings made of lighter carbon-fiber composites had to be substituted for aluminum.

The standard C919 is specced for operations out to over 2,200 miles, a distance few domestic flights exceed within China. That said, an extended range variant is planned that could go out to 3,450 miles.

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Much of the airframe is indeed domestic, with parts produced from AVIC factories across China: the nose (Chengdu), tail control surfaces (Shenyang), parts of the wings (Xian), the flaps (Changhe) and the fuselage (Hongdu). Final assembly takes place in Shanghai.

But beyond that, nearly all of the remaining C919 components come from overseas or from a partnership between a Chinese and foreign company.

Two CFM LEAP 1C high-bypass turbofan engines co-built by General Electric and French company Safran provide propulsion, generating up to 15 tons of thrust and allowing for a cruising speed of 521 miles per hour. Earlier submodels of the LEAP 1 engines are also used on Airbus 320neo and Boeing 737 MAX series of aircraft.

PIERRE VERDY - Getty Images

Licensing export of LEAP engines caused controversy in the U.S., with hawks advocating for an export ban on the grounds that exporting the engine could be a risk to national security interests due to Chinas historical predilection for reverse-engineering aircraft parts. But others argued that the engine wasnt truly that militarily sensitive, and that a U.S. embargo would invite retaliation and cause massive losses to U.S. commercial aviation sales and flights in China.

In theory, a domestic engine called the CJ-1000A, built by AVIC, could eventually replace the LEAP turbofans. Under development since 2009, ground tests began on the engine in 2018, while a flight test mounted on a Y-20 Chubby Girl transport plane reportedly took place in March of 2023. Certification and commercial use of the engine are not projected sooner than 2027 and 2030 respectivelyat the earliest. The CJ-1000 is believed to be heavily informed by stolen data on the LEAP engine, which it is appears to match in dimensions.

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Other foreign components in the C919 include:

landing gear from French company Liebherr Aerospace

Michelin tires

Auxiliar Power Units built in a partnership between GE and Chinas AVIC

fly-by-wire controls system (which automatically translate pilot input to manipulate flaps, stabilizers and so forth) by Ohio-based Parker Aerospace and AVIC

Communications, navigation systems by Collins Aerospace (U.S.)

Brakes by Honeywell (U.S.)

National Champion Airliner

The C919 was originally projected to cost around $50 million per planea highly competitive rate. China Eastern Airlines later claimed, in 2022, that it paid $60-70 million per C919still quite advantageous. By comparison, current models of Boeings narrow-body 737-700 and 800 MAX airliners which use LEAP-1 engines reportedly cost $100-135 million, depending on capacity.

However, other reports indicate the C919s price roughly doubled to $99 milliona much smaller price advantage. Perhaps subsidies or other measures to artificially deflate the price could explain the discrepancy. It is also worth keeping in mind that the C919 isnt cheaper to operate per flight hour than the latest 737s and A320, and due to smaller fuel tanks, it has a significantly shorter range than the A320s 3,300+ miles.

Even an article in state-owned China Daily proclaiming the advantages of the C919 over its foreign rivals only ends up listing its homefield advantage in Chinas growing air travel sector.

China News Service - Getty Images

That said, in China, home-field advantage can carry one far. Already, Comac claims to have 1,200 C919s order from numerous companies, though only a small fraction are fully confirmed.

The biggest preorders come from HNA Group (200 aircraft), followed by Chinese megabanks ICBC (100), Agricultural Bank of China (65), and China Construction Bank and Pingan (50 each).

The C919 is clearly a national champion product, and if it performs closely enough to a 737 or A320, that may be enough given political pressure for domestic airlines to buy the national plane.

U.S.-based engine supplier GE Capital also has placed an order for 10, probably for R&D purposes. There have been indications of interest abroad from Nigeria Air and Ryan Air. But major obstacles remain: slow production and a lack of certifications outside of China with the U.S.s FAA or Europes EASAthough applications have been made.

In five years, Comac hopes to be building C919s at a rate of 150 per yearequivalent to just two months of A320 production. According to one analysis, the next 20 years could credibly see production total 1,000-1,500 C919sat most taking up 20-30% of Chinas domestic aviation market, which is expected to rise to around 8,500 airliners and cargo jets by 2041. That leaves Boeing and Airbus plenty of room to continue their business in China.

China is also building a prototype of the CR929 wide-body jetliner with Russias United Aircraft Corporation, but this projects viability will be adversely affected by Russias collapsing access to Western markets for sales and components, due to sanctions.

Predicting the Future

James Fallows, who wrote about Chinas civil aviation sector in his 2012 book China Airborne, notes in a 2022 article that he correctly predicted a few key things regarding the C919that the plane would rely mostly on domestic buy-in, would struggle to match Boeing and Airbuss globally distributed sales, supply, maintenance and training infrastructure, and would continue to depend on components and avionics from Europe and North America.

The C919 does not yet insulate Chinas commercial air travel sector from dependence on foreign airliners and aircraft components. And its overseas buyers are likely to mostly be close allies with Western states or have limited access to Western marketsthat is, unless Comac truly can deliver aircraft at the cheaper $60-70 million price point.

VCG - Getty Images

Nonetheless, its an important step for China toward building an independent commercial aviation sector that will be carried aloft by Beijings ability to ensure domestic procurement of a fledgling national champion. There are a lot of bells and whistles to get right in order to assemble safe and economically viable jetliners, and the difficulties of today are prerequisite for broader successes tomorrow.

Over time, more of the C919s foreign-built insides will likely be gradually substituted by domestic systems once sufficiently matured. Perhaps that will one day parallel the experience of other Western industries that have found their presence in China once indigenous rivals have been adequately nurtured. But for now, the C919s insides point to industry domination being a long way off.

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A Lexington man who was filmed holding a gun during a road rage incident has been arrested, the Lexington County Sheriffs Department said Sunday night.

Adam Lee Jones, 43, was charged with presenting a firearm, the sheriffs department said in a news release.

On June 8, Jones displayed the weapon while stopped at a traffic light near the 200 block of Longs Pond Road, according to the release. Thats at the intersection with Two Notch Road in Lexington, near Exit 51 on Interstate 20.

Adam Lee Jones is seen in a video presenting a handgun during a road rage incident, according to the Lexington County Sheriffs Department.

His menacing act and threatening vulgar language were recorded on a cellphone, the sheriffs department said.

In cellphone video recorded by the victim, Jones can be seen yelling before reaching down and grabbing a black handgun, Lexington County Sheriff Jay Koon said in the release. Jones then holds the gun where the victim can clearly see it.

A family member of the victim reported the incident, according to the release. Detectives received tips in the case as soon as the victim shared the video on social media, the sheriffs department said.

Video of the confrontation was shared on multiple Facebook and Twitter groups and accounts.

Jones was arrested June 9, according to the release. He was not listed on the inmate roster at the Lexington County Detention Center as of Monday morning.

Bond was set at $10,000 Saturday during a court hearing, sheriffs department spokesman Capt. Adam Myrick told The State Monday. Jones was released from the jail the same day, Myrick said.

No injuries were reported.

If convicted on the felony charge, Jones faces a maximum punishment of five years in prison, according to South Carolina law.
Four children who survived 40 days in the Amazon jungle after a plane crash endured the death of their mother in front of them and used supplies from the wreckage to stay alive, authorities and a family member said.

More details have emerged about the incredible ordeal involving four children from the Mucutuy family, who are part of the Indigenous Huitoto community. They were rescued on June 9 by a combined force of Colombian military personnel and Indigenous searchers.

The children, ranging in age from 1 to 13, were able to stay alive in the Colombian jungle after all the adults aboard a Cessna plane they were riding in were killed in a May 1 crash.

The oldest sibling said their mother initially survived the crash but died four days later, the father of two of the children told reporters.

"Before she died, their mom told them something like, 'You guys get out of here,'" Manuel Ranoque said.

The oldest child, Lesly Mucutuy, 13, showed her resourcefulness in caring for her siblings Soleiny, 9, Tien, 4, and Cristin, who turned 1 during their time in the jungle.

Amazon Plane Crash (@FuerzasMilCol via Twitter)

Narciso Mucutuy, the children's grandfather, told reporters the children initially stayed by the plane and survived on three pounds of cassava flour they were traveling with. When no one came to help, the siblings started walking.

Lesly made sure to take camping gear, a towel, an empty water bottle and a flashlight from the crash site. The children also stayed by a nearby river for a water source, according to their rescuers.

They hid in tree trunks to protect themselves from snakes and insects, and they built a makeshift shelter from the camping gear.

Lesly fed the baby formula she took from the crash site and then water once the formula ran out, her grandfather said. The other siblings survived on berries and seeds they found in the jungle.

It took two weeks for authorities to discover the plane's wreckage. The children and adults were traveling from Araracuara, in Amazonas province, to San Jose del Guaviare, in southeastern Colombia, when the plane malfunctioned and crashed.

Members of the search team found half-eaten fruit, small footprints, a baby bottle and a tiny pair of shoes that alerted them to the possibility that the children were still alive.

Search and rescue works continue after plane crash in Colombia (Colombian Military Forces / Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)

Rescuers arrived as the situation was getting dire for the children.

"The day they were found, (Lesly) was very tired and couldnt walk anymore," her grandfather said.

The siblings were sitting in one place and Lesly was holding the baby between her legs when they were discovered.

4 children missing for 40 days in Amazon jungle found alive in Colombia (Colombian Military Forces / Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)

"The children  the eldest girl was carrying the little girl and holding the second-eldest girls hand  they ran to hug me," Nicolas Ordonez, a member of the Indigenous Guard, told reporters in Spanish. "I received the little girl in my arms, and Lesly said, 'Im hungry.'"

The children are now slowly regaining their strength at a military hospital. They have been playing with each other, reading and drawing pictures, the hospital director said.

One picture thanking the rescuers features the words "Siempre Bendecida," which means "Always Blessed."

This article was originally published on TODAY.com
By Jack Queen

(Reuters) -Donald Trump faces a formidable task defending against charges that he illegally kept top-secret documents upon leaving the White House in 2021, according to legal experts, who say neither the law nor the facts appear to be on his side.

The former U.S. president, who is a candidate to run again in the 2024 election, pleaded not guilty in Florida federal court on Tuesday. The 37 counts against him include violations of the Espionage Act, conspiracy to obstruct justice and making false statements to investigators.

National security law experts were struck by the breadth of evidence in the indictment which includes documents, photos, text messages, audio and witness statements. They said this made a strong case for prosecutors allegation that Trump illegally took the documents and then tried to cover it up.

The details are pretty shocking in terms of the carelessness with which these documents were handled, and the concerted effort to keep them out of the hands of the FBI, said Elizabeth Goitein, a national security law expert at the Brennan Center for Justice.

Trumps lawyers did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Trump has called the case a witch hunt orchestrated by political enemies.

"There was no crime, except for what the DOJ and FBI have been doing against me for years, he wrote on his Truth Social platform on Friday in reference to the Department of Justice and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Trump's greatest peril could lie in the conspiracy to obstruct justice charges, which carry a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.

Legal experts said the evidence appears to show that Trump was aware he had documents in his possession that were subject to a subpoena but refused to turn them over and encouraged his lawyers to mislead the FBI.

"That's about as clear a case of obstruction as you could imagine," said Clark Neily, a legal expert at the conservative Cato Institute.

Obstruction of justice is a particularly difficult charge to defend against, attorney Mark MacDougall said. It offends people. Hiding things from a lawful legal process. Most people understand why thats a crime," he said.

Legal experts said Trump's alleged years-long effort to conceal documents was likely a major factor in Special Counsel Jack Smith's decision to indict him.

'WORSE THAN THE CRIME'

During the investigation, Trump's lawyers told the FBI that they had turned over all classified documents in their possession, which was false. They deny intentionally misleading investigators.

"This is a situation where the cover-up is worse than the crime," the Brennan Center's Goitein said. "If he had only been negligent, no charges would have been brought."

The conspiracy element makes the obstruction charges far more serious, and all prosecutors must prove is that Trump worked with another person to try to hinder the investigation, regardless of whether they succeeded.

Cato's Neily said that based on his reading of the indictment, prosecutors likely have many witnesses who have given them similar accounts of Trump's efforts.

Trump has claimed he declassified the documents before taking them. That assertion is undercut by a taped conversation cited in the indictment, which said Trump showed a secret document to several people and said that he could have declassified it as president but did not.

But the classification issue will likely end up being irrelevant. Prosecutors charged Trump under the Espionage Act, a World War One-era law that predates classification and criminalizes only the unauthorized retention of national defense information.

National defense information does not need to be classified to be covered by that law, national security law experts said. The information need only be useful to the nations adversaries and be closely held by the government.

Lets say all of the documents were declassified. The Espionage Act does not care, said Georgetown University law professor Todd Huntley.

COULD TRUMP PARDON HIMSELF?

However, Trump does have some potentially successful strategies. His lawyers could challenge witness accounts, blame others or argue he was following the advice of his attorneys and did not intend to break the law.

If it goes to trial, a Florida jury would hear the case since that is where the special counsel sought the indictment. In the conservative-leaning state, Trump would need only one juror to oppose his conviction for there to be a mistrial.

His defense team could also file motions that would delay a trial until after the November 2024 election. Legal experts disagree over whether Trump could pardon himself if he wins.

(Reporting by Jack Queen in New York; Additional reporting by Sarah N. Lynch in Washington, D.C.; Editing by Amy Stevens, Cynthia Osterman and Howard Goller)
CANBERRA, Australia (AP)  The wife of a man accused of killing his German backpacker girlfriend 18 years ago welcomed Australian prosecutors dropping all charges Wednesday, while the dead woman's father described the decision as a stab in the heart.

Charges against German immigrant Tobias Moran, 43, of murder and perverting the course of justice were withdrawn in Lismore Local Court in New South Wales state, the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions said. No reasons were given.

The naked body of 25-year-old Simone Strobel from Rieden, Bavaria, was found hidden under palm fronds in a Lismore park on Feb. 17, 2005. She was found six days after she was reported missing and close to where she had been camping in a Lismore trailer park with Moran, then known as Suckfuell, his sister Katrin Suckfuell, and friend Jens Martin.

Morans Australian wife, Samantha Moran, said in a press statement outside their upscale City Beach home in the west coast city of Perth, It was the right decision.

Tobi, I and our whole family are extremely relieved by the  decision to withdraw the charges against him, the mother of her husbands three children said.

Im deeply ashamed that this happened to Simone in Australia, a visitor to our country who Tobi has always described as an angel on Earth, she added.

Tobi Moran stood beside his wife during her statement but remained silent.

Moran was arrested in Perth in July 2022. He was extradited to New South Wales and charged with murder and perverting the course of justice. A Sydney court released him on bail and allowed him to return to Western Australia state.

Prosecutor Kim Gourlie had told the bail hearing that Moran lied about crucial events, including the nature of his relationship with Strobel and their use of alcohol.

Defense lawyer Tim Game told the court the prosecution case was nonexistent.

Samantha Moran used her statement to send her condolences to the Strobel family, particularly parents Gustl and Gabi who continue to suffer terribly from the loss of their daughter.

Whilst todays news is a relief for our family, we are conscious that this news does not give answers to the Strobel family, she said.

Gustl Strobel said the decision to end the prosecution knocked the ground from under my feet.

Its like a stab in my heart. The authorities in Australia make such a fuss and then nothing comes of it, he said in a statement reported by Nine Network television.

Samantha Moran said the time since her husband's arrest had been highly distressing and emotional for us.

I know that there is not a day that goes by that Tobi doesnt think about Simone and wishes that he had stopped her from walking away that night, she said. Tobi continues to be traumatized by the loss of Simone as well as the speculations surrounding him."

A New South Wales coroner ruled in 2007 that there was insufficient evidence to recommend charges against anyone for the death of Strobel, a kindergarten teacher.

Police offered a reward of 1 million Australian dollars ($678,000) for information in 2020.

Tobias Moran arrived in Australia with Strobel as backpackers in 2004. He changed his name from Suckfuell in 2012 when he married his wife in Bavaria, near where Strobels parents still live.

Moran's lawyers will return to court on June 28 to seek reimbursement of legal costs from the New South Wales government.
Wendsler Nosie Sr., a longtime opponent of the proposed Resolution Copper mine and former chairman of the San Carlos Apache Tribe, gathers with others at Oak Flat, a piece of land held sacred by the tribe that could be destroyed by the mine. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)

On a recent morning about an hour outside Phoenix, the pounding of tribal drums reverberated across the desert from a stand of oaks in the Tonto National Forest, where nearly 20 men had packed into a squat green sweat lodge to pray.

Members of several Native American tribes, the men had come to take part in the grueling spiritual ceremony under the guidance of Wendsler Nosie Sr., a 64-year-old Apache elder who has emerged in recent years as an influential religious and environmental activist  not only in this small pocket of Arizona, but nationally.

"The spirits of our ancestors are right here," Nosie told the men as they crawled shirtless and dripping with perspiration from an initial round of song and prayer in the sweltering lodge.

"We're fighting the United States. We're fighting Rio Tinto," Nosie said, referring to the multinational mining company that wants to excavate the surrounding desert  which the Apache consider sacred  to reach a massive copper ore deposit below.

(Paul Duginski / Los Angeles Times)

"We're doing it," Nosie said, "for Mother Earth."

His fight to stop the mine sits at the forefront of modern political debate over the proper role of religion in society. It pits the American promise of religious liberty against federal land rights, corporate profits, local jobs and the ravenous global demand for natural resources such as copper  an essential element in the proliferation of telecommunications networks, electric vehicles and other technologies.

Along with others from the nearby San Carlos Apache Indian Reservation, Nosie sued to block a pending federal land swap that would hand this area, called Oak Flat, over to Rio Tinto and its mining partner, BHP Group, after being under explicit federal protection since 1955.

Oak Flat is a cactus-covered, sun-baked landscape of pinnacled rock formations and Native American archaeological and burial sites, home to a plethora of plants and animals. The deal with Resolution Copper, a Rio Tinto and BHP subsidiary, would transform it into a nearly two-mile-wide, 1,000-foot-deep industrial crater, according to federal planning records.

Apache roamed Oak Flat, which they call Chichil Bidagoteel, for generations before white settlers forced them onto reservations. Nosie and the other Apache involved in the case  who go by the name Apache Stronghold  say it is sacred land blessed by their Creator and home to spiritual guardians akin to angels.

Mining operations have altered the landscape in the desert wilderness near Superior, Ariz. A new copper mining project is proposed in the nearby area of Oak Flat, a piece of land held sacred by Apache tribe members. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)

Backers of the mine have questioned the Apaches' religious ties to the land and praised the project for the economic benefits it would bring to this struggling part of Arizona and the reservation, where unemployment and poverty run high. The mining companies have said they have sought the input of Native American partners, including Apache, and made substantial concessions to preserve particularly sensitive and important areas.

"We look forward to continuing to work closely with all stakeholders as we develop one of the most sustainable American copper mines, providing vital materials for the clean energy transition and bringing jobs and lasting economic benefits to rural Arizona," Resolution Copper said in a statement to The Times.

To this day, the Apache say, they forage here for traditional foods such as acorns and for medicinal plants they believe are imbued with special powers. They also gather here for religious rites, including sweats and coming-of-age ceremonies known as Sunrise Dances, in which young girls are ushered into womanhood. In the Apache spiritual tradition, holy places are not bricks-and-mortar constructs such as churches, but ancient landscapes like Chichil Bidagoteel.

In their lawsuit  which is now before the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals  the group argues that the deal to trade Oak Flat to Resolution Copper in exchange for other lands scattered throughout the state violates their religious rights. They say construction of the mine would prevent them from conducting their religious ceremonies and break their ties to the land forever, in violation of an 1852 treaty between the Apache and the U.S.

"We're standing on religious belief," Nosie told about 50 people who had gathered for an update on the case after the sweat. "We're standing on God the Creator."

The land

A member of the resistance group Apache Stronghold seals up a sweat lodge with about a dozen men inside as a campfire burns during a religious ceremony at Oak Flat. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)

About 60 miles east of Phoenix, the old mining town of Superior sits near the foot of an ancient rock outcropping called Apache Leap, where legend holds that a band of warriors once jumped to their deaths rather than be captured by U.S. cavalry.

Up a steep canyon and through a highway tunnel sits Oak Flat, which is listed in the National Register of Historic Places for its significance to Indigenous tribes. Accessed by day-trippers and other visitors through Oak Flat Campground, the area features world-class rock climbing sites and campgrounds that local residents use for holiday picnics.

Long before any of its modern uses, however, this land was Apache territory  part of a vast swath of the Southwest that tribes called home before the encroachment of Spanish explorers, Mexican vaqueros and a growing wave of white settlers and U.S. government forces after the end of the Mexican American War in 1848.

For decades after, the U.S. government and the Apache were at war, with the government killing raiding bands of Apache warriors and forcing other tribe members onto reservations.

(Paul Duginski / Los Angeles Times)

Although an 1852 treaty with the U.S. called on the government to create reservations and pass laws "conducive to the prosperity and happiness" of the Apache, that was not to be the case. Instead, their people were made prisoners of war, Apache Stronghold argues.

"American history and the land in Arizona is stained with the blood of Apache women, men, elders and children, hunted down on the Apache's own Treaty lands and individually killed and mass-murdered in family groups by European and Euroamerican colonists, 'settlers,' 'prospectors,' miners, and agents of the United States of America," the group wrote in its lawsuit.

In 1871, the San Carlos Apache Indian Reservation was established about 25 miles east of Oak Flat, in an area the Apache referred to as "Hell's 40 Acres" for its miserable conditions. Tribe members faced punishment and even death if they left, particularly if they attempted to practice their religion outside the reservation, Apache Stronghold says.

The next year, the Mining Law of 1872 declared mineral deposits under federal lands open for exploration and purchase, and in 1875 the Silver Queen Mine  which would later become the Magma copper mine  was built on the edge of Oak Flat.

Today, critics of Apache Stronghold, including some longtime residents of Superior, question the group's religious claims to the land, saying they never saw Apache at Oak Flat until the fight over the new mine began. But members of Apache Stronghold strongly dispute that.

They say that their people were brutally removed from Oak Flat in the past, but that they never stopped traveling there from the reservation  despite the threats they faced for doing so.

Members of Apache Stronghold dance during a meeting about a proposed copper mine at Oak Flat. The group opposes the mine project and says the land is sacred. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)

"Since I was young we've always come here," Lian Bighorse, one of Nosie's daughters, said as she and other women cooked a big meal  including acorn stew  for the gathering after the sweat. "We played all through here. Prayed. My kids grew up here, came for ceremonies."

Bighorse, 45, who holds a bachelor's degree in American Indian studies and a doctorate in bioethics, sustainability and global public health, said it's difficult to describe the importance of Oak Flat because it's "more an experience than an explanation."

"Sublime is what I think is the best word," she said. "It's the presence of God."

According to researchers contracted by Resolution Copper to conduct an ethnographic study of the region in 2014 and 2015, Chichil Bidagoteel is undoubtedly significant  not just for the Apache but for Hopi, O'odham, Yavapai and Zuni.

Through interviews with tribal elders, a review of historical records and other research, principal investigator T.J. Ferguson  a professor emeritus at the University of Arizona  and his colleagues found "landforms and resource collection areas with Apache place names, Apache camps, ancestral archaeological sites, petroglyph sites, and trails" at Oak Flat, as well as dozens of natural springs and various plants and animals that "possess traditional cultural significance."

"The proposed destruction of Oak Flat," the researchers wrote Congress in 2021, "is akin to tearing out pages from a history book in the library."

The mine

Mine shaft infrastructure is silhouetted against the setting sun over Oak Flat, a piece of desert wilderness in Arizona that is sacred to Apache tribe members. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)

In 1910, a man named William Boyce Thompson acquired the old Silver Queen Mine and formed Magma Copper Co.  which mined copper from the area, with varying intensity, until 1996.

In 2004, companies exploring the area discovered a huge copper ore deposit beneath Oak Flat. Located between 5,000 and 7,000 feet below the surface, the deposit is now considered one of the largest untapped copper deposits in the world.

In 2006, Resolution Copper  55% owned by Rio Tinto, 45% by BHP  began work to reclaim the historic Magma mine. The company also began lobbying Congress to undo the protections that President Eisenhower had placed on Oak Flat in 1955 and enable it to acquire the land.

For years, stand-alone legislation to initiate such a land swap failed. Then in 2014, Arizona lawmakers  including the late Sen. John McCain and former Sen. Jeff Flake  managed to insert language requiring the swap into a last-minute defense appropriations bill.

(Paul Duginski / Los Angeles Times)

The defense bill was considered must-pass legislation, and President Obama signed it into law  formally requiring the transfer of Oak Flat to Resolution Copper upon the completion of a federal environmental study.

McCain and Flake couched the swap as a win for military readiness, as "America's armed forces need stable supplies of copper for their equipment, ammunition, and electronics." Opponents derided it as underhanded, slipped through Congress by deceit rather than consensus.

Either way, the move set in motion years of intense planning by Resolution Copper  which says it has already spent more than $2 billion on the project  and kick-started the U.S. Forest Service's environmental review, which is still underway.

Resolution Copper has done extensive core sampling in the area, deepened the Magma mine shaft from about 4,800 feet to nearly 7,000 feet, and built a second shaft of the same depth next to it.

Pending the land swap going through and the completion of additional study of the ore deposit, Resolution Copper says it will build out a much larger network of shafts and tunnels, bore under the ore at a depth of about 7,000 feet  like five Empire State buildings stacked atop each other  and begin excavating it using a gravity-assisted process known as "block caving."

An estimated 1.4 billion tons of ore, containing an estimated 40 billion pounds of copper, will be exploded into small pieces and hauled out. As that occurs, the land above  Oak Flat  will begin to subside, collapsing in on itself until it yawns into a crater "between 800 and 1,115 feet deep and roughly 1.8 miles across," according to the environmental study.

Over its 60-year lifespan, the mine would require vast amounts of water, which Resolution Copper would draw in part from already limited state water supplies. The project would also require Resolution Copper to mitigate damage to springs and other natural water systems within the mine's footprint, to ensure water bound for neighboring communities isn't tainted.

In addition, Resolution Copper would have to create and manage a massive storage facility for the mine's tailings, or the ore byproduct after all the valuable metals and minerals are extracted.

Mountainous piles of mine tailings stand at the edge of the historic mining town of Miami, Ariz., which is east of Phoenix and not far from Oak Flat. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)

Tailings are hazardous, as they can contain substance such as lead and arsenic, and must be contained in a monitored site in perpetuity. According to the environmental study, the preferred location is an area known as Skunk Camp, which is adjacent to other mining operations to the southeast.

A tailings facility at Skunk Camp would require Resolution Copper to build more than 20 miles of pipelines from Oak Flat and pump the tailings there as a slurry. The facility and pipelines would disturb nearly 15,000 acres of land  including about 2,500 acres of federal land and more than 8,200 acres of state land  and feature a nearly 500-foot-tall embankment, according to the environmental review.

Resolution Copper says that after mining is finished, it would restore native vegetation and a more natural surface variance to make it appear less disturbed, or repurpose it as something that wouldn't require much human activity on site, such as a solar farm.

In its statement to The Times, Resolution Copper said "hundreds of consultations with Native American Tribes" in the last decade have resulted in significant project changes "to avoid dozens of areas of cultural significance and hundreds of ancestral sites, medicinal plants, seeps and springs."

The company noted it has agreed not to mine under Apache Leap, to ensure it is permanently preserved. The company also said the Oak Flat Campground will be preserved for many years to come, though it stopped short of promising its permanent preservation  in part because the land swap would open the campground to mining exploration for the first time, and officials don't yet know what's beneath it.

At the gathering after the sweat, Nosie said Resolution Copper and its advocates in the community have gotten good at sugarcoating what is happening and encouraging people to look the other way, often with money or the promise of jobs.

But the facts of the proposed mine are clear, he said.

"This place is gonna be murdered. I mean, let's use the right words.  Animals, plants, food, life  they're gonna all be murdered," Nosie said. "The American people don't even understand what they're murdering."

The lawsuit

Protesters stand outside the 9th Circuit Court in Pasadena to challenge a mining deal that would destroy Oak Flat, a sacred site in Arizona. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

The Apache's lawsuit is a complex one that relies on  and questions  decades of legal precedent around the rights of tribes and other religious groups.

The Apache assert that the destruction of Oak Flat would violate their treaty and place a "substantial burden" on their ability to practice their religion. Given that, they say, federal law requires that the government show a compelling government interest in the project moving forward.

They argue the government has not and cannot show such an interest, in part because the mine would most directly benefit Rio Tinto and BHP, not the U.S. government or its people.

In response, the government has argued that the 1852 treaty does not grant the Apache any rights to Oak Flat, and that even if it did, such a claim would have to be brought by a recognized tribe, not a special interest group like Apache Stronghold.

Protesters stand outside the 9th Circuit Court in Pasadena to challenge a mining deal that would destroy Oak Flat. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

The government has argued the project does not substantially burden the Apache's religious practice under the U.S. Supreme Court's interpretation of such burdens because it does not "coerce" the Apache into violating their beliefs or penalize their religious activity by denying them rights or privileges enjoyed by other citizens, and therefore the government doesn't have to prove a compelling interest in pursuing the mine deal.

The government has also warned  as have some judges reviewing the case  that allowing a small religious group to dictate how the government can use its land would set a dangerous precedent, essentially handing millions of people the power to veto federal land deals.

The case evokes a troubled past of Indigenous oppression but also a future threatened by climate change, and has inspired strange bedfellows  with conservative religious leaders from institutions such as the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints joining with liberal activists from environmental groups such as the Sierra Club to oppose the mine.

The government has cited that interest in the case to push its point that a ruling in Apache Stronghold's favor would inspire more special interest challenges to federal land decisions in the future. But supporters of Apache Stronghold say such fears are overblown.

Stephanie Barclay, a law professor and director of the Religious Liberty Initiative at Notre Dame Law School, is an attorney for the National Congress of American Indians, which supports Apache Stronghold.

Barclay argues that courts have long applied a racist double standard to Indigenous religious claims, ignoring the importance of sacred lands to Indigenous people when considering whether the destruction of those lands would substantially burden their religious rights.

Courts have ruled that denying prisoners kosher meals, forcing Sikh soldiers to cut their beards, fining Amish families for keeping their children out of school and denying certain employment benefits to Seventh-day Adventists all represented substantial religious burdens.

It is solely in the context of Native American cases, Barclay said, "where the government does something to make someone's religious exercise physically impossible, and the court says, 'Yeah, that's not a substantial burden.'"

Differing views

Mila Besich is the mayor of Superior, Ariz., a historic mining community east of Phoenix and close to Oak Flat. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)

Mila Besich, the 45-year-old Democratic mayor of Superior  population a few thousand  said she tries to be very respectful of Apache Stronghold's fight.

But, she said, "it's different than mine."

Besich is a fourth-generation Superior resident, from a family with a long history of public service in the area. She remembers both her parents losing their jobs when the former Magma mine partially closed in the early 1980s, and being told after graduating from high school in 1996 that there wouldn't be anything left of the town for her to return to after college.

Besich did return, and won a seat on the town council after her predecessor, who had spoken out against the Resolution Copper mine, was recalled. She became mayor in 2016.

Nancy Sewell-McDade relaxes in the Drift Inn Saloon in Globe, Ariz., a historic mining town east of Phoenix. Her family includes people who worked in mining, and she generally supports the Resolution Copper mining project at nearby Oak Flat. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)

When Besich first took over, she felt like the town wasn't getting its point of view across in all the discussions about the mine and its potential impact on the region. The federal government didn't seem to care about how Superior felt, she said, and the town had zero working relationship with Resolution Copper.

She personally supported the mine, she said, but didn't want to throw the town's support behind it based on "an emotional response" to the promise of a revived town. "We had to approach this in a business sense."

Besich and town manager Todd Pryor set out to ensure they and their staff understood the mine proposal and the federal review process. They hired an economist and started a dialogue with Resolution Copper  not just about the potential benefits of the mine but also about the threats and costs to the town.

There were water and infrastructure concerns. The town would need more police and firefighters, more money for schools, long-term assurances that roads would be maintained and help diversifying the town's economy to ensure its survival after the mine closed, Besich said.

"One of the hardest things was to say to the mine, 'Hey, your dog and pony show isn't lining up with what we're seeing," she said.

Motor traffic streams down U.S. Highway 60 into the historic mining town of Superior, Ariz. The community is located near Oak Flat, a piece of land held sacred by Apache tribe members. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)

In the last six years, the company has pumped millions of dollars into Superior, including $2 million to renovate the old high school into a town hall and multi-generation center, $1.29 million for an "Enterprise Center," $2.5 million toward other economic development and $2 million for local emergency services. It also has given $300,000 a year to the school district, and $50,000 a year to the Chamber of Commerce.

Over the life of the mine, Resolution Copper will pay many millions more toward emergency services and road maintenance, Besich and Pryor said, and has agreed to give the town land for a new campground and new development around Superior's small airstrip.

Besich considers her work on the project part of her "life's legacy."

Around town, there is a lot of pragmatism about the project. People who came up in mining families, who comprise a lot of the population, aren't that put off by the idea of having a mine so close to town  and are well aware of the economic benefits, which Resolution Copper says will include 3,700 jobs over the mine's lifetime.

On a recent Saturday night, friends Jess Valenzuela, 53, and Nando Arredondo, 50, sat catching up at a bar in the heart of the town where they both grew up.

Valenzuela said his dad was "the proudest miner in the world," who came home dirty every evening and was buried under a headstone with a miner on it.

Although his sister is adamantly opposed to the mine, having sided with the Apache, Valenzuela said he can't help but think "that the only way we survived was Pops working his ass off" in mines, and the Resolution Copper mine could provide similar support for Superior families.

Arredondo said he understands the controversy around the mine, but he thinks it could do good things for the town. "We were raised on miners' sweat," he said.

The future

The timeline for the Resolution Copper mine is unclear.

The 2014 rider legislating the land swap mandates that the deal go through within 60 days of the federal government issuing its environmental statement.

In January 2021, the Trump administration issued the statement five days before President Biden's inauguration in an effort to push the project through, but the Biden administration withdrew it that March, citing the need for additional review and consultation with tribes.

Last month, the government said it had "not yet identified a time frame for completing its review."

Apache Stronghold filed its lawsuit days after the Trump administration published the review, asking for an emergency injunction to block the land deal.

Both a federal district court judge and a three-judge panel of the 9th Circuit denied the group's request, but 9th Circuit judges voted in November to vacate the panel's opinion and rehear the case "en banc," or before an 11-judge panel.

The larger panel has yet to issue a ruling, though it could do so any day.

James Phillips, a member of the San Carlos Apache Tribe who works for Resolution Copper and supports the mine, stands on a platform overlooking Oak Flat. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)

James Phillips, 33, is a member of the San Carlos Apache Tribe and a father of two. He is also a Resolution Copper employee who supports the mine.

The job has allowed him to support his family, including his aging parents, he said. It has also left him ostracized from others on the reservation, where fellow tribe members have accused him of being a "traitor" and of not caring about Apache traditions, he said.

The truth, he said, is that he just doesn't believe what Nosie preaches about Oak Flat.

"If you were to ask me if I truly believe Oak Flat is sacred, honestly no, I don't. I'd never heard of it being sacred before," Phillips said.

Naelyn Pike, 23  who is Nosie's eldest granddaughter  feels very different.

The first time Pike testified before Congress against the Resolution Copper mine was a decade ago, when she was 13 years old. Since then, she has become one of the faces of the fight  speaking with a gravitas beyond her years about the importance of the land for future generations.

"It's not just an Apache fight. It's become so much bigger," Pike said in an interview with The Times. "It's become a fight for humanity, a fight for ethics, about the freedom of religion. It's about the fundamental morals of this country."

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Bullies are afraid

I read that some people who support the former president are threatening their fellow U.S. citizens with a civil war. Those who make these threats are entitled to the First Amendment right of freedom of speech, as outlined in the Constitutions Bill of Rights.

An honest reply to those folks: I was raised in Kansas by parents who were born in the United States, and I support freedom of speech. However, those who threaten civil war need to be reminded that other citizens do not support anyone breaking the law without accountability. Going to war by exercising their Second Amendment rights  an amendment they might use because they dont like others using the First Amendment so readily  threatens the fearful, elderly, young and every other person who hears their words.

Despite your threats, I will use my freedom of speech, which is one thing self-righteous, self-centered bullies dont tolerate. Please talk on, but be advised that you will always be bullies, afraid of those of us who speak the truth.

- Valerie A. Jansen, Lenexa

Just read it

I would ask Republicans to actually read the indictment of Donald Trump, or at least look at the photos released by the Justice Department, before declaring as usual that there is absolutely no Trump outrage that could sway their undying devotion.

The photos show a multitude of boxes of alleged classified and secret documents that include nuclear secrets, key military intelligence and other information critical to our national security. The boxes are stacked on a ballroom stage, in a bathroom by a shower and toilet, and in various storage rooms in Mar-a-Lago. The National Archives tried to recover the documents for many months, but Trump continually lied and obstructed their return.

When the government finally had to retrieve them, Trump still lied and declared hed returned everything, while there were other boxes that hed removed and hidden elsewhere. He allegedly showed top-secret documents to several people who did not have clearance to view them.

It is amazing that Republican leaders still shield and protect Trump no matter how many crimes he commits or insurrections he orchestrates.

- David S. Evans, Kansas City

Our Council picks





Sunrise Movement KC calls on Kansas City voters to elect Jenay Manley for City Council 2nd District at large, Johnathan Duncan for 6th District and Michael Kelley for 5th District at large. With their opposition endorsed and funded by Spire, the Fraternal Order of Police, corporate PACs and out-of-state developers, the choice is clear: Some candidates stand with young people and our futures, and some do not.

We are young people organizing for a Green New Deal at all levels of government. Jenay, Jonathan and Michael are the obvious choices, as they will be a part of a historic coalition fighting for everyday people, not for entities looking to leech our tax money for the next several decades. Part of our endorsement includes candidates signing the No Fossil Fuel Money Pledge and promising to prioritize the health of our communities by refusing donations from utility monopoly, oil and gas executives.

We have a vision where everyone  especially our historically excluded Black and brown communities, the poor and the working class  has better access to affordable housing, free and robust public transit, good union jobs, clean air and water, green spaces and sustainably grown local food.

Join us in making history and delivering a better future for all. Vote Jenay, Johnathan and Michael on June 20.

- Lacey Hopkins and Laela Zaidi, Sunrise Movement KC, Kansas City

Even more benefits

It is very likely that electric battery-powered buses can be manufactured to look exactly like, ride like and make the same noises as streetcars. But these vehicles also could carry passengers wherever existing streets or trails go.

- William Alburty, Leawood
NASA says the mysterious object, suspected by many as a UFO, spotted flying over Las Vegas last May is likely to be a bright meteor.

In April, a Las Vegas Metropolitan Police officer's body cam captured a bright mysterious object in the sky.

NASA: 'UFO' Spotted in Las Vegas Likely a Bright Meteor

According to Vice's Motherboard, the NASA planetary defense officer, Lindley Johnson, says the mysterious green fireball spotted flying above Las Vegas last month could be a bright meteor rather than a UFO.

Vice reports that the mysterious object has been filed under the fireball logs of the American Meteor Society instead of NASA's Center for Near Earth Object Studies (CNEOS).

Last May, ABC News reported that a family reached out to the 911 emergency hotline to complain about the crash in their backyard. They added that they saw a non-human creature about eight to 10 feet tall from the mysterious sighting.

The 911 caller says, "We just see in the corner of our eye something fall from the sky, and it was with lights, and when it hit down there was like a big impact, and we felt like an energy?" The caller also notes that the non-human creature is "very large" roughly 10 feet tall.

Read Also: Massive Spiral Over Alaska's Aurora Explained: It's Not UFO

Las Vegas Police Hopes to Find the Aliens

And indeed, Vice reports that a police officer's body camera captured a glowing green light seemingly falling from the sky, confirming the mysterious sighting.

However, the police say their officers failed to find anything after conducting their preliminary investigation. So the official closed the case as merely "unfounded."

One of the officers who responded to the scene felt nervous as they were on their way, as per South China Morning Post.

Despite that, Vice says that the Las Vegas police officers still hope that they can find the aliens in the future. The cops pointed out that the city is close to Area 51, a classified United States Air Force facility.

The South China Morning Post reports that the US Defense Department is looking into over 800 "unidentified aerial phenomena" cases, referred to by many as UFOs.

But for the recent case in Las Vegas, NASA says that it could potentially be a small meteor, roughly less than a meter, rather than UFO.

ABC News notes that the House Oversight Committee is now in the "early stages" of gearing up to kick off a hearing on these mysterious objects. It comes amid the unverified claims that the US government found what seems like an alien spacecraft.

Related Article: Pentagon's UFO-Tracking Office Head Faces Lawmakers Amid Increased Sightings

@ 2023 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (AP)  Cambodias long-serving leader said Tuesday his government will amend the countrys election law to bar anyone who fails to vote from running as a candidate in future elections, in his latest move to marginalize his political foes.

Prime Minister Hun Sen said the change is needed because candidates for public office need to show their civic responsibility. He said the amendment will be ready for approval by lawmakers before a July 23 general election. The bills passage is a certainty, since all members of the National Assembly are members of Hun Sens ruling Cambodian Peoples Party.

Most prominent opposition members have been in self-imposed exile to avoid being jailed on various charges they say are trumped up and unfair, and the proposed amendment would keep them from running in future polls without any further action needed to bar them. Opposition figures still inside the country who failed to vote would face the same consequences.

The law would also discourage an election boycott by placing opposition figures who wished to contest future polls in the awkward position of appearing to be hypocrites if they called for people not to vote while they themselves cast ballots.

Hun Sens announcement of the plan, made in a speech to garment factory workers on the outskirts of the capital, Phnom Penh, came less than a month after the main opposition party was barred from participating in the July polls because it did not provide all of the paperwork required for registering.

The Candlelight Party said it could not provide some required documentation to the National Election Committee because it had been seized in a police raid several years ago. Cambodias Constitutional Council refused to overturn the committees decision not to register the party, drawing widespread criticism that the election would not be fair without its participation.

The U.S. State Department said it was deeply troubled by the decision to bar the Candlelight Party and urged the government to reverse course to ensure its citizens can participate in a fair, multiparty democracy.

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres implicitly criticized the crackdown on the opposition.

The secretary-general reiterates that inclusive elections, in which a plurality of views and voter choices is represented, are important to engender confidence in the electoral process and underpin the ability of Cambodias people to exercise their democratic rights, U.N. spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said on May 31.

Hun Sen, 70, an authoritarian ruler in a nominally democratic state, has been in power for 38 years. He and his party hold all the advantages of incumbency ahead of the election in terms of political organizing, personnel, finances and media influence. About 9.7 million Cambodians are registered to vote for the 125 members of the National Assembly.

In his speech on Tuesday, Hun Sen said he felt pressured to implement the revised voting law because he was being stabbed in the back by political opponents who were appealing to people to boycott the election or cast invalid ballots.

He said the purpose of amending the law was not to defeat anyone but to promote responsibility among the people who want to stand as candidates. How can they become a member of Parliament, a senator, or serve on commune, district, municipality and provincial councils, if they themselves do not go to vote and try to keep other people from going to vote, too?

He said people who don't cast ballots would still have the right to vote and would only lose their right to be a candidate.

The Candlelight Party is the unofficial successor to the Cambodia National Rescue Party, which posed a serious challenge to Hun Sens party before elections in 2018. It was dissolved just months ahead of the polls by a controversial court ruling that alleged it had plotted the illegal overthrow of the government. The partys disbanding enabled Hun Sen's party to win all the seats in the National Assembly.

___

Grant reported from Bangkok.
(Reuters) - China's foreign minister Qin Gang urged the United States to stop meddling in its affairs and harming its security in a phone call with his U.S. counterpart on Wednesday, a tense preview to Antony Blinken's visit to Beijing expected in coming days.

Qin told Blinken to respect China's core concerns, such as the Taiwan issue, in an effort to arrest declining relations between the superpowers, according to China's foreign ministry.

Blinken stressed the need for communication "to avoid miscalculation and conflict" and said the U.S. would continue to raise areas of concern as well as potential cooperation with China, the State Department said in a brief summary of the call.

The top U.S. diplomat is scheduled to travel to China and Britain between June 16 and June 21, the State Department said on Wednesday, after a U.S. official last week said Blinken would be in Beijing on June 18. Chinese state media said he was due to visit China on June 18-19.

While there, Blinken will meet senior Chinese officials to "raise bilateral issues of concern" as well as other global and regional matters and "shared transnational challenges", the State Department said in a statement.

If Blinken's trip goes ahead, it will be the first visit to China by Washington's top diplomat in five years and the highest profile visit of U.S. President Joe Biden's administration, which has clashed with Beijing over issues ranging from spy allegations to a semiconductor tussle.

Blinken cancelled a planned trip to Beijing in February over a suspected Chinese spy balloon that flew over the United States. The Chinese foreign ministry has not yet revealed any other information on Blinken's upcoming trip.

Visits by U.S. officials to Taiwan, the democratically governed island that Beijing considers an integral part of China, have also magnified tensions between the world's two largest economies.

"Since the beginning of the year, Sino-U.S. relations have encountered new difficulties and challenges, and the responsibility is clear," Qin told Blinken, according to the Chinese foreign ministry's readout.

The United States should "stop interfering in China's internal affairs, and stop harming China's sovereignty, security and development interests in the name of competition," Qin added.

(Reporting bu Beijing newsroon; Writing by Bernard Orr and John Geddie; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman, Lincoln Feast and Alex Richardson)
TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP)  U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang shared concerns on a phone call Wednesday ahead of a planned visit by the U.S. official to China meant to shore up relations.

The diplomats discussed the importance of maintaining open lines of communication to responsibly manage the U.S.-(China) relationship to avoid miscalculation and conflict, according to a readout of the call from the U.S. State Department.

It added that Blinken addressed a range of bilateral and global issues, and made clear the U.S. would continue to use diplomatic engagements to raise areas of concern as well as areas of potential cooperation.

The Chinese Foreign Ministry said in a statement that Qin urged the United States to respect Chinas core concerns, such as the issue of Taiwan's self-rule, stop interfering in Chinas internal affairs, and stop harming Chinas sovereignty, security and development interests in the name of competition.

Qin noted China-U.S. ties have encountered new difficulties and challenges since the beginning of the year, and the two sides responsibility is to work together to properly manage differences, promote exchanges and cooperation and stabilize relations.

Blinken is reportedly planning a trip to China this week, after several weeks in which the two countries made diplomatic overtures to one another in an attempt to ease tensions. Blinken had scrapped a trip to Beijing in February after a suspected Chinese spy balloon flew over U.S. territory.

China has since largely rejected U.S. attempts at official exchanges, but some overtures were made. Last week, Daniel Kritenbrink, assistant U.S. secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs, was the highest-ranking U.S. official to visit China since the U.S. downed the balloon, angering Beijing.

In May, U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo met her Chinese counterpart Wang Wentao in Washington to discuss trade.

The U.S. and China are struggling to agree on a range of issues including security, trade, human rights and Beijings looming threat to one day take over Taiwan, which it considers part of its territory.

President Joe Biden has called for guardrails to prevent the countries competition from spiraling into conflict.

Chinese President Xi Jinping on the other hand has decried what he sees as the comprehensive containment and suppression of his country by the U.S., after Washington last year restricted Chinas access to valuable technology such as microchips.

Washington has also warned Beijing of consequences if it arms Russia in its war against Ukraine. Beijing has pledged not to do so, though it refuses to condemn Russias invasion.
A bill headed to the desk of Gov. Roy Cooper would allow civilians to investigate traffic collisions in North Carolina.

House Bill 140, which cleared the General Assembly on Wednesday with a final vote in the North Carolina House, would allow cities to hire civilian traffic investigators to respond to some motor vehicle collisions. Investigators would have to go through training before starting the job, the bill said.

The bill passed in a final vote in the state House on Wednesday by a margin of 100-6 after previously passing the state Senate and House by large margins. Its now up to Cooper to either sign the bill into law or veto it.

The program would help alleviate law enforcement staffing shortages, supporters say, and is already used in some North Carolina cities.

Heres what to know about the civilian traffic investigators proposal and what it would mean for Charlotte drivers:

How would NC civilian traffic investigations work?

Under House Bill 140, North Carolina cities will be allowed to hire civilians to serve as traffic investigators.

The bill allows cities to establish their own minimum standards for employment for the investigators, but anyone hired for the role would have to go through a training program designed by the North Carolina Justice Academy.

And after training, investigators will have to go through not less than four weeks of field training with a law enforcement officer who has experience conducting traffic crash investigations.

Civilian traffic investigators wont be issued weapons and will have no authority to arrest or issue criminal process.

They basically do the investigation, they file the reports, and they also have the ability to appear in court, state Sen. Michael Lazzara told WRAL News. If theres an issue involving criminal activity, they just call for an officer and an officer will come and do their job.

They will investigate crashes involving only property damage, the legislation says, and a law enforcement officer will still have to investigate any crash involving personal injury or a fatality.

Civilian investigators will be issued credentials and uniforms under the proposed law, but the uniform must be substantially different in color and style from that of a law enforcement officer for the city.

Any vehicles issued to, or used by, an Investigator shall not bear markings or symbols that identify the vehicle as a police vehicle, the bill says. The vehicle may have emergency equipment and lights installed but shall not use blue lights in any manner or form. Red and amber lights are permissible.

What does law enforcement think of civilian traffic investigators?

The cities of Fayetteville and Wilmington already have civilian traffic investigators, according to Lazzara.

This is just a way that we can help cities and towns fill the gap and have availability for officers to respond to actual emergency calls, rather than take their time to be at a traffic accident that can normally take several hours to complete, he told WRAL.

The North Carolina Association of Police Chiefs and North Carolina League of Municipalities have endorsed the bill, WRAL reported.

In an email to The Charlotte Observer, the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department said it is monitoring the pending legislation and did not have a comment on the bill as of Wednesday afternoon.
SAN JOSE, Costa Rica (AP)  Costa Rica and the U.S. government have agreed to open potential legal pathways to the United States for some of the Nicaraguan and Venezuelan migrants among the 240,000 asylum seekers already awaiting asylum in the Central American country.

The agreement  announced by Costa Rica Tuesday and the United States late Monday  appears aimed at reducing the pressure on Costa Ricas overwhelmed asylum system and heading off asylum seekers who could give up on the slow Costa Rica process and instead set off for the U.S. border.

In recent years, Costa Rica with a population of only 5 million has become one of the worlds leading receptors of asylum requests. In part, applying for asylum was a way for migrants to legalize their status and be allowed to seek work.

However, a soaring number of applications, largely from migrants fleeing neighboring Nicaragua, created a massive backlog. Last year, Nicaraguans accounted for nine out of 10 applicants.

On Tuesday, Public Security Minister Mario Zamora did not say how many of the 240,000 people awaiting asylum would be eligible to apply for one of the U.S. pathways. He and Costa Ricas migration director Marta Vinda emphasized that only Nicaraguans and Venezuelans with pending asylum applications would be considered.

Neither the U.S. nor Costa Rican governments provided details about what the legal pathways could be.

Zamora said the United Nations immigration and refugee agencies would compose a list of those who would be eligible. Migrants applying for asylum after June 12 would not qualify. The officials estimated that they would process about 1,000 cases per month.

On Monday, the U.S. State Department said in a statement the six-month pilot program could expedite refugee processing, as well as other humanitarian and labor options for those interested in entering the U.S.

In the first two months of the exploratory phase, only eligible individuals will be contacted to schedule a screening appointment at a Movilidad Segura office in Costa Rica to assess whether they are a qualified candidate for lawful pathways to the United States or other countries, the statement said. After the first two months, eligible migrants will have make an appointment through the MovilidadSegura.org website.

I suspect that its an effort to convince Nicaraguans and Venezuelans in the country to stay there temporarily, keeping numbers down in the short term as they get other things in place at the border, Aaron Reichlin-Melnick, policy director at the American Immigration Council, said in an email when asked about the Costa Rica agreement. But who knows how itll really work in practice.

In 2012, Costa Rica received barely 900 asylum applications. In 2018, that number reached nearly 28,000. Last year, the country received more than 67,000 applications between just January and September.

Costa Rica President Rodrigo Chaves said in December the system was being abused by economic migrants and its generous policies would be tightened. As an alternative, it offered a two-year work permit for Nicaraguans, Venezuelans and Cubans in exchange for dropping their asylum cases.

The U.S. government has been seeking ways to manage the flow of migrants toward its southern border. It has increasingly sought the cooperation of governments farther south on the migratory route.

On Monday, a website began working that allows Guatemalans, Hondurans, Salvadorans and Nicaraguans who are still in their countries to apply through a website for appointments to assess their eligibility for various legal pathways offered by the United States.

Nicaraguans and Venezuelans have become major sources of migration to the U.S .during Bidens presidency. In January, the U.S. began offering parole to up to 30,000 Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans and Venezuelans a month who apply online with a financial sponsor and arrive by air.

__

AP writer Elliot Spagat in San Diego contributed to this report.
HAMTRAMCK, Mich. (AP)  A Detroit-area community has banned LGBTQ+ flags from publicly owned flagpoles after a tense hourslong meeting that raised questions about discrimination, religion and the city's reputation for welcoming newcomers.

In protest, a woman speaking during the public comment portion of the Hamtramck City Council meeting kissed a woman standing next to her Tuesday night.

You guys are welcome," council member Nayeem Choudhury said. (But) why do you have to have the flag shown on government property to be represented? Youre already represented. We already know who you are.

Some members of the all-Muslim council said the pride flag clashes with the beliefs of some members of their faith. Businesses and residents arent prohibited from displaying a pride flag on their own property.

We want to respect the religious rights of our citizens, Choudhury said.

Hamtramck, population 27,000, is an enclave surrounded by Detroit. More than 40% of residents were born in other countries, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, and a significant share are of Yemeni or Bangladeshi descent.

The council voted unanimously to display only five flags, including the American flag, the Michigan flag and one that represents the native countries of immigrant residents.

Mayor Amer Ghalib made the flag a campaign issue when then-Mayor Karen Majewski flew one on city property in 2021.

We serve everybody equally with no discrimination but without favoritism, he said.

Hayley Cain said she chose to live in Hamtramck after moving from California because it was known as a diverse community.

"Im questioning whether it is. ... The pride flag represents making space for all humans on all the spectrums, and this is where were going as a human species, Cain said. You cant stop that.

Dawud Walid, director of the Michigan branch of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, a civil rights advocacy group, said Hamtramck's strict flag policy doesn't discriminate against anyone.

If there was one group that was not being granted access to something while others were then we would have a problem, Walid said.

He said some Muslims who oppose an LGBTQ+ flag are no different than conservative members of other religions with similar views.

Flags carry symbolism. Those symbols carry social and political messages, Walid said.

Detroit City FC, a professional soccer team that draws thousands of fans to games in Hamtramck, called the council's decision inexcusable.

Pride flags send a powerful message that all are welcome and that the community values diversity, the team said on Twitter.
By Dave Sherwood and Matt Spetalnick

BEJUCAL, Cuba (Reuters) - Just outside the sleepy Cuban village of Bejucal, a winding track, rutted with potholes and losing ground to the jungle, ends at a barbed wire fence. A sign warns: "KEEP OUT, MILITARY ZONE."

What lies beyond remains largely a mystery, though the U.S. government has long suspected that China runs an intelligence gathering operation in this village that once hid Soviet nuclear warheads.

A Reuters reporter traveled to Bejucal this week, gaining rare access to the area around the site that remains an enigma, even for locals, but that has come under scrutiny after the Biden administration said Beijing may be using the island as a spying post.

The question of Chinese spying from Cuba was renewed last week following a Wall Street Journal report. The newspaper cited U.S. officials saying a new effort by China's security services was underway on the island. It comes at a time when U.S.-China relations have sunk to the lowest in decades.

Reuters saw large parabolic antennas high on a ridge above town, partially obscured by a hillside of royal palms. A rusted white metal dome, of the type that houses antennas, hovered over dark jungle, decorated on its flanks with cryptic black triangles, some inverted. Unidentified men on motorcycles, dressed in civilian clothes, photographed reporters as they worked.

The United States believes the little-known base, just 116 miles (187 km) from Key West, Florida is used to intercept U.S. electronic communications, according to a Federal Communications Commission (FCC) document from November 2022.

"(China's Communist Party) maintains physical presences at Soviet-era intelligence facilities at Bejucal in what appears to be a signals intelligence collection operation," the FCC document says, citing a 2018 report by the U.S.-ChinaEconomic and Security Review Commission.

Those concerns were, in part, noted as grounds to deny an application to connect Cuba to the United States through the ARCOS-1 undersea telecoms cable, according to the document, which was drafted by a commission that includes members of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and Justice Department.

China, Washingtons top geopolitical rival, on Monday denied it was using Cuba as a spy base. Cuba did not reply to Reuters questions about the Bejucal installation.

But the communist-run government has dismissed prior allegations as a U.S. fabrication meant to justify Washington's decades-old economic embargo against the island.

Cuba says the only military incursion in its territory is the Guantanamo Bay Naval Base, which belongs to the United States.

The U.S. said on Monday that China had nonetheless upgraded its intelligence collection facilities in Cuba in 2019. The White House National Security Council did not respond to Reuters questions on whether Bejucal was the venue for those facilities, or whether it remained concerned about the site.

Around the base, in rolling countryside dotted with sugar cane and banana plants, many Cubans work small farm plots, traveling on bike or horseback.

Cuban farmer Arnaldo Perez, 61, has spent his life in Bejucal but told Reuters he had no idea who might be behind the sprawling, saucer-like green and white antennas tucked into a ridgeline above town.

"I know that has something to do with the military," said Perez, motioning toward the distant antennas as he rode his horse and carriage into town. "But I am a country person. I mind my own business."

'THERE ARE RUMORS'

The sleepy Cuban farm town has long been a place of secrets.

Just 20 miles (32 km) south of Havana, Bejucal gained notoriety after U.S. spy planes uncovered it as a hiding place for Soviet nuclear warheads during the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis.

Moscow backed down and removed the missiles, but it is widely regarded as the moment when the U.S. and Soviet Union came closest to nuclear confrontation.

Bejucal reemerged from obscurity in 2016, when U.S. Senator Marco Rubio of Florida, a critic of the Cuban government, demanded Havana kicks out this Chinese listening station in Bejucal among a list of actions, including holding free elections, which he said he would require before reaching any deals with Cuba.

Fulton Armstrong, a former senior CIA analyst on Cuba, said little was known about Bejucal, but he downplayed the importance of the Caribbean island nation to China for spying on its northern neighbor.

A listening post would be of marginal value (to China) in todays technology, he said, noting that Beijing now has access to more advanced spy equipment and techniques.

Armstrong acknowledged, however, the symbolic value of a Cuba-based operation for Beijing, as China has been deeply unhappy over U.S. spying in its neighborhood, including the Taiwan Strait and the South China Sea.

No one Reuters spoke with around the base had seen or heard reference to alleged Chinese involvement at Bejucal in recent years. Many, however, said they believed Russia had access to the base.

Deteriorating U.S.-Russia relations over Moscows invasion of Ukraine has fueled speculation that Russian President Vladimir Putin might decide to reopen a once-sprawling Soviet-era espionage base on the island at Lourdes, another relic of the Cold war that was closed in the early 2000s.

Onelvis Despaigne, 36, a farm worker who lives just outside the base, told Reuters on Monday he had not heard the recent foreign media reports on Chinese spying.

But if they were true, he said, he would soon find out.

"There are rumors," he said, grinning as he cleared his lawn with a machete. "Everybody knows everything here."

(Reporting by Dave Sherwood; Additional reporting by Matt Spetalnick in Washington, Editing by Adam Jourdan, Don Durfee and Bill Berkrot)
A driver killed June 7 when he crashed into a trailer pulled by a big rig east of Fresno was identified Tuesday by the Fresno County Coroner.

The victim, Jose Cortez Guzman, 48, of San Joaquin, was at the wheel of a Ford Ranger on Shields Avenue when he ran a stop sign, according to the California Highway Patrol. The pickup collided with the big rig, which was northbound on Academy Avenue , according to California Highway Patrol spokesman Mike Salas.

The victims pickup caught fire while trapped under the trailer as the big rig driver tried to bring his vehicle to a stop. Cortez Guzman died at the scene. The big rig driver was unhurt.

First responders survey a fatal crash on Academy Avenue near Shields Avenue on Wednesday, June 7, 2023, in Fresno County, according to the California Highway Patrol.
Chinese tea culture makes an impression in Madrid

People's Daily Online) 17:03, June 14, 2023

An event on Chinese tea culture was recently held in Madrid, Spain. Maojian green tea from Xinyang city, central China's Henan Province was promoted during the event, receiving a warm response from the guests.

Lyu Lyu, deputy mayor of the Xinyang Municipal People's Government, He Yong, minister counselor from the Chinese Embassy in Spain, Yang Changqing, director of the China Cultural Center in Madrid, Harry Hwang, the Regional Director for Asia and the Pacific at the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), and directors of six departments, along with nearly 50 officials from the UNWTO, attended the event.

Harry Hwang, the Regional Director for Asia and the Pacific at the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), speaks at the event.

In 2019, the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) adopted a resolution to designate May 21 as International Tea Day, and in 2022, traditional Chinese tea-making techniques and related customs were included in the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage List, said Hwang.

Tea has changed from a simple beverage to a cultural symbol of Chinese civilization and a bridge connecting the world. The event will not only promote exchanges between Chinese tea culture and the global tourism industry, but also enhance the cooperation between China and the UNWTO, he added.

Lyu Lyu, deputy mayor of the Xinyang Municipal People's Government, speaks at the event.

Tea is a valuable treasure of Chinese culture and an important carrier for exchanges and mutual learning among civilizations, said Lyu, expressing the hope that this event can make Maojian green tea known in the world. On behalf of the Xinyang Municipal People's Government, Lyu presented Maojian green tea as a gift to the UNWTO.

Officials from the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) taste Maojian green tea.

In the afternoon of the same day, a gathering aimed at promoting Maojiao green tea was held at the China Cultural Center in Madrid. Nearly 100 people participated, including those from the Spanish Ministry of Culture and Sport, the Community of Madrid, the political, academic and cultural circles, and media outlets.

A performance featuring traditional Chinese dance and tea art was staged, vividly showcasing tea-making procedures through dance. The guests warmly applauded the performance.

During a tea culture salon, four guests discussed such topics as tea culture, tea elements, food made with tea, and tea as a lifestyle.

Marcelo Munoz, president of the think tank Catedra China, shared his stories of and insights into tea which took place over the course of nearly 50 years when he did business with China.

Xiao Junjing, a young inheritor of Maojian green tea making technique, shared her personal insights into tea culture and tea as a lifestyle, as well as the inheritance of tea culture in China among young people.

On June 9, an event was held for Maojian green tea at Saddle, a Michelin-starred restaurant in Madrid. The Chinese tea was used as an ingredient in several dishes served at the restaurant. Adolfo Santos Garcia, the restaurants chef, designed a special menu featuring Maojian green tea. Each dish in the menu paired well with Maojian green tea, showing a fusion of Chinese tea and foreign ingredients.

(Web editor: Hongyu, Liang Jun)
(Photo : Alex Wong/Getty Images)

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre responds to reports that she violated the Hatch Act.

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre responded to allegations by the special counsel that she had violated the Hatch Act by stating that the White House "did not know" that a violation had occurred.

The Office of Special Counsel (OSC) accused Jean-Pierre of violating the Hatch Act, which prohibits federal employees from engaging in certain political activities to influence elections.

Karine Jean-Pierre Violated Hatch Act

The accusation concerned her use of "Mega MAGA" to characterize Republican policies, but she now contends that Republicans have also used the term and that she was unaware that the OSC considered it to be political.

According to the OSC, Jean-Pierre committed the violation prior to the midterm elections in 2022 by repeatedly referring to "mega MAGA Republicans" while serving as White House press secretary.

Jean-Pierre herself has frequently invoked the Hatch Act to avoid inquiries regarding Biden's and other candidates' election campaigns. Per Fox News, she reiterated on Tuesday that compliance with federal law was a high White House priority. Jean-Pierre reportedly used the reference in press briefings preceding the midterm elections in November 2022.

Although she "never expressly instructed viewers to vote for or against Republican candidates for elected office," the OSC determined, based on the timing, frequency, and content of her references, that she made these references to generate opposition to Republican candidates, according to a letter of complaint.

Per Aljazeera, Jean-Pierre stated, when asked about the ruling during her Tuesday briefing, that she had used language provided to her by Joe Biden's White House staff.

She stated that former President Donald Trump's administration frequently referred to "MAGA Republicans." Trump's political slogan, Make America Great Again (MAGA) is shortened to MAGA. Jean-Pierre stated that White House attorneys would contact the Office of Special Counsel to examine the decision.

Michael Chamberlain, head of Protect the Public's Trust and a former Trump administration official, stated that Jean-Pierre's violation of the law without consequence demonstrates why Americans "increasingly distrust" the Biden administration's ethics claims, despite its pledge to uphold the highest standards.

In a report released in November 2021, the Office of Special Counsel described the conduct of Trump administration officials as "particularly pernicious" in light of statements made prior to the 2020 presidential election.

Read Also: Harrison Ford Says 'It's Okay To Punch Nazis' Like Indiana Jones Would

Democrats Fires Back About Republicans Using MAGA Term

According to NBC News, a Biden administration official argued on Monday that Republicans have frequently used the acronym "MAGA" for non-campaigning purposes. The official stated that the Trump White House used the phrase "Make America Great Again" nearly 2,000 times for official purposes and that congressional Republicans have used "MAGA" for official purposes, including legislation and policy proposals.

Recently, Jean-Pierre cited the Hatch Act in refusing to comment on Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s announcement that he would challenge President Joe Biden for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2024, telling reporters: "It's 2024.... I will not touch that with a twelve-foot pole."

She also used it to clarify whether or not Biden would serve the full eight-year term if re-elected. The Office of Special Counsel stated in April that Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra violated the Hatch Act when he advocated for the election of Sen. Alex Padilla, D-Calif., to a complete term at an event last autumn.

In October, Jean-Pierre acknowledged that Biden's former chief of staff, Ron Klain, had violated the Hatch Act by retweeting a political message on his official Twitter account. She stated that although the White House takes the provision seriously, it is "not flawless."

Related Article: Republicans Allege DOJ of Setting Trap for Trump amid Federal Indictment; GOP Support Remains Strong for Former President

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BRUSSELS (AP)  European Union regulators hit Google with fresh antitrust charges Wednesday, saying the only way to satisfy competition concerns about its lucrative digital ad business is by selling off parts of the tech giant's main moneymaker.

The unprecedented decision to push for such a breakup marks a significant escalation by Brussels in its crackdown on Silicon Valley digital giants, and follows a similar move by U.S. authorities seeking to bust Google's alleged monopoly on the online ad ecosystem.

The European Commission, the bloc's executive branch and top antitrust enforcer, said its preliminary view after an investigation is that only the mandatory divestment by Google of part of its services would address the concerns.

The 27-nation EU has led the global movement to crack down on Big Tech companies  including moving closer to groundbreaking rules on artificial intelligence  but it has previously relied on issuing blockbuster fines, including three antitrust penalties for Google worth billions.

It is the first time the bloc has told a tech giant that it should split up key parts of its business over violations of the EU's strict antitrust laws, though details on what that could look like are not clear following the preliminary finding.

Google can now defend itself by making its case before the commission issues its final decision. The company said it disagreed with the finding and will respond accordingly, adding that the EUs investigation focused on a narrow part of its ad business.

Our advertising technology tools help websites and apps fund their content, and enable businesses of all sizes to effectively reach new customers," said Dan Taylor, Google vice president of global ads. "Google remains committed to creating value for our publisher and advertiser partners in this highly competitive sector."

The commission's decision stems from a formal investigation that it opened in June 2021, looking into whether Google violated the blocs competition rules by favoring its own online display advertising technology services at the expense of rival publishers, advertisers and advertising technology services.

Online display ads are banners and text that appear on websites such as newspaper home pages and are personalized based on an internet users browsing history.

European Commission Vice President Margrethe Vestager says Google is dominant on both sides of the ad-selling market. Google abused that position by favoring its own ad exchange, reinforcing its ability to charge a high fee for its services, the commission said.

Google is representing the interests of both buyers and sellers. And at the same time, Google is setting the rules on how demand and supply should meet, she said at a news conference. "This gives rise to inherent and pervasive conflicts of interest."

Vestager added that if Google sold off, for example, its real-time marketplace for buying and selling ads or a tool for publishers to manage their ads, we would put an end to the conflicts of interest.

The commission is seeking a forced sale because past cases that ended with fines and requirements for Google to stop anti-competitive practices have not worked, allowing the company to continue its behavior, just under a different disguise, she said.

"This is a big deal" and a sign that the commission has lost all trust in Google and lost all trust in those behavioral remedies mandating changes to the way it operates, said Rich Stables, CEO of rival search engine Kelkoo, which was involved in two of the EU's previous Google antitrust cases.

Google's ad tech business is also under investigation by Britain's antitrust watchdog and faces litigation in the U.S. that calls for the company to divest its digital ad tools.

European and U.S. authorities are acknowledging that the only way to address this egregious conflict of interest is to force Google to divest part of its business, said Max von Thun, director of the Europe office of the Open Markets Institute, a proponent of stronger antitrust enforcement.

The commissions move is a clear illustration of the power competition authorities have when they work in parallel, he said.

Brussels has previously hit Google with more than 8 billion euros (now $8.6 billion) worth of fines in three separate antitrust cases, involving its Android mobile operating system and shopping and search advertising services. The company is appealing all three penalties.

EU regulators can impose penalties worth up to 10% of annual revenue and also could fine Google alongside any sale order.

Google brought in $54.5 billion in ad sales and YouTube earned nearly $6.7 billion in ad sales in the first three months of the year, but that marked a back-to-back slump as companies spend more cautiously.

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Chan reported from London.
NEW YORK (AP)  Fox News appeared to express regret Wednesday for showing an onscreen message that called President Joe Biden a wannabe dictator who had his political rival arrested.

On the day he was arraigned on federal charges for hoarding classified documents, former President Donald Trump illustrated his continued role as a lightning rod for the media. PBS second-guessed one of its own messages about Trump, and his primetime speech showed a policy change at CNN following the ouster of its former leader.

The Fox News Channel chyron appeared beneath split-screen video boxes that showed Trump addressing supporters live in New Jersey, and Biden speaking at the White House earlier in the day.

The message read, Wannabe dictator speaks at the White House after having his political rival arrested.

Fox said in a statement Wednesday that the chyron was taken down immediately and was addressed. The website Mediaite reported that the message was onscreen for 27 seconds. It was also not removed when the telecast was rerun late at night.

Fox did not explain how the message made it onto the screen and how the matter was addressed.

The White House has said Biden has had no contact with Attorney General Merrick Garland about the indictment by special counsel Jack Smith, which accuses Trump of illegally hoarding classified documents. Biden has not commented on the case.

Two months ago, Fox News agreed to pay Dominion Voting Systems $787 million to settle a lawsuit accusing the news organization of telling lies about the 2020 presidential election.

There are probably about 787 million things that I can say about this, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said when asked Wednesday about the chyron. That was wrong  about what we saw last night  but I don't think I'm going to get into it.

It's not hard to find Republican politicians or commentators on Fox to suggest the indictment was politically motivated  Trump attorney Joe Tacopina made the same charges on Sean Hannity's show within a half-hour after Trump's speech.

Yet some on Fox have spoken to the seriousness of the case against Trump, most notably his former attorney general, William Barr, during an appearance over the weekend, and legal analyst Jonathan Turley.

Fox has seen its primetime ratings tumble sharply since it fired Tucker Carlson shortly after the Dominion case was settled. Carlson posted another video commentary on Twitter Tuesday night, despite Fox's lawyers demanding that he stop doing that because it violated the terms of a contract that runs until early 2025.

Meanwhile, PBS used the lower third of its screen to post fact-checks when it streamed Trump's New Jersey speech on its YouTube channel Tuesday night.

The final one was eye-catching: Experts warn that inflammatory rhetoric from elected officials or people in power can prompt individual actors to commit acts of violence.

While the statement is true, PBS officials are questioning whether or not that was the right forum, said Sara Just, senior executive producer at NewsHour. Other messages PBS used onscreen mentioned how federal officials have attested to the security of the 2020 presidential election, and how prosecutors say that some documents discovered at Trump's home pertained to U.S. nuclear programs and defense capabilities.

We are discussing whether or not we might phrase that better, Just said.

While Fox News aired Trump's speech live, MSNBC did not. Neither did CNN. That's in contrast to when Trump was indicted on separate charges in New York in April, when CNN aired most of a similar Trump address the night of his arraignment. That was before former CNN chief executive Chris Licht, who had been making efforts to appeal to GOP viewers, was ousted.

We're not carrying his remarks live because, frankly, he says a lot of things that are untrue and, frankly, potentially dangerous, CNN's Jake Tapper said.

After the speech was over, CNN aired a nearly two-minute clip of Trump that Tapper followed with several fact-checks.

In terms of trying to destroy American democracy, we all know who tried to actually undo an election, he said. It's not Joe Biden. It's Mr. Trump.

MSNBC's Rachel Maddow made a similar pronouncement before that network chose not to air Trump's speech live. Clips from the remarks were shown later.

There is a cost to us as a news organization to knowingly broadcast untrue things, Maddow said.

___

Associated Press writer Aamer Madhani in Washington contributed to this report.
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP)  A ban on green investing has cleared North Carolinas GOP-controlled legislature as part of a broader Republican crusade against big businesses that champion sustainability and workplace diversity.

The measure, which won final legislative approval Tuesday, bans state agencies from using environmental, social and governance standards to screen potential investments, award contracts or hire and fire employees. It also says the state cannot weigh how a company promotes sustainability, engages with its community or structures its leadership to support those goals.

At least two other states  North Dakota and Idaho  have already enacted laws banning such criteria. And elected officials in several other red states have derided them as woke or proposed similar policies to stop investors who contract with states from adopting them.

The Senate voted 29-18 along party lines on Tuesday after the House passed the bill with veto-proof margins in May. It now heads to the desk of Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper, who could sign it, veto it or allow it to become law without his signature.

Cooper, who has not indicated whether he will veto the bill, has only picked fights with the legislature's Republican supermajority on a few contentious issues this session and has been unable to block any bills.

Sen. Dave Craven, a Randolph County Republican and primary sponsor, said the bill ensures that our pension fund is solvent by requiring the state to prioritize financial considerations over social or environmental factors.

Effective as soon as it becomes law, it would require the state treasurer to solely consider factors expected to have a material effect on the financial risk or financial return of an investment. State Treasurer Dale Folwell, a Republican candidate for governor in 2024, supports the bill.

But several Democrats in the House and Senate raised alarms throughout the legislative process that the bill does not clearly lay out the specific criteria it prohibits.

Democratic Sen. Graig Meyer of Orange County worried it would confuse state agencies and lead some of the state's largest employers to believe they're being discouraged from making their own decisions about how to run their business.

While we're trying to build a strong business and employment climate, I do not think that the General Assembly should be hostile to those interests in the bills that we pass, he said Tuesday during floor debate.

___

Hannah Schoenbaum is a corps member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.
UNITED NATIONS (AP)  Pope Francis and a leading Sunni imam made calls for peace as the U.N. Security Council met Wednesday to discuss the importance of human fraternity" and condemn the hatreds that kindle conflicts.

The pope, who is in hospital recovering from abdominal surgery, sent a statement saying that a third world war is being fought piecemeal and with the potentially catastrophic effects of nuclear weapons the time has come to say an emphatic no to war.

Sheikh Ahmed al-Tayeb, the grand imam of Al-Azhar, the 1,000-year-old seat of Sunni learning in Cairo, said in a virtual briefing that human fraternity was the key to global peace, a point he and the pope had made in a joint document released in 2019.

The United Arab Emirates chose the importance of human fraternity in bringing peace as a centerpiece of its presidency of the council this month. After the appeals by the pope and grand imam and council speeches, members adopted a resolution recognizing that hate speech, racism, xenophobia, intolerance, gender discrimination and acts of extremism can contribute to driving the outbreak, escalation and recurrence of conflict.

The resolution, co-sponsored by the UAE and the United Kingdom, urges all countries and organizations to condemn these acts and work to prevent them. It was adopted unanimously even though some of the council's 15 members have been accused of some of the same actions they are condemning.

UAE Ambassador Lana Nusseibeh told The Associated Press after the vote that it was a landmark resolution that for the first time brings together previous council resolutions addressing hate speech, racism, incitement and extremism in different ways. She said it promotes tolerance, equality, coexistence and dialogue.

Pope Francis lamented that the world is going backward from the dream when the United Nations was founded in 1945 on the ashes of two world wars that countries would move toward a more stable peace and become at last a family of nations.

Instead, he said, the world is seeing the rise of myopic, extremist, resentful and aggressive nationalisms that have kindled conflicts which are not only anachronistic and outdated but even more violent.

The pope warned of the dangers of the arms race, which he said was driven by a desire for profits from arms sales.

It takes more courage to renounce easy profits for the sake of keeping peace than to sell ever more sophisticated and powerful weapons, he said.

And he said the potential of a nuclear catastrophe means its time to seek lasting peace  not built on the precarious balance of deterrence but on "the fraternity that unites us.

Francis has gone further than any pope before him by saying that not only the use but the mere possession of atomic weapons is immoral.

Prior to that, the Catholic Church had held for three decades that nuclear deterrence could be morally acceptable as long as it was used toward mutual, verifiable nuclear disarmament. The Holy See, however, has seen that the deterrence doctrine has essentially resulted in a nuclear status quo, with arms control treaties collapsing, leading to Francis change in church teaching.

Al-Tayeb said his intention in speaking to the council was to urge an end to senseless wars. He cited Iraq, Afghanistan, Syria, Libya and Yemen, and the need for the council to recognize an independent Palestinian state after 75 years.

Without naming either Russia or Ukraine, he said the war unfolding on the eastern borders of Europe has instilled terror and concern that it may regress humanity to a primitive era.

The grand imam said the mission pursued by Al-Azhar and the Roman Catholic Church in the 2019 document on human fraternity for world peace must be pursued by political leaders.

Our gathering today is not a luxury but a necessity, dictated by concern for the future of humanity, Al-Tayeb said.

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called the declaration by the pope and the grand imam a model for compassion and human solidarity and urged countries and people everywhere to stand together as one human family and forge an alliance of peace, rooted in the values of human fraternity."

___

Associated Press writer Nicole Winfield contributed to this report from Rome.
John Amos was hospitalized in Memphis but is doing OK, according to his publicist. (Nick Ut / Associated Press)

A spokesperson for John Amos said Monday that the "Good Times" star is fine and "in good spirits" after his daughter claimed last week that his life was "hanging by a thread."

In a phone conversation with The Times, Amos' longtime publicist, Belinda Foster, said that the 83-year-old actor is at a Memphis hospital recovering well after doctors found some fluid in his lower body and drained it.

"These are his exact words," Foster said Monday. "He said to tell you thank you for reaching out. He really appreciates your support, and he appreciates his fans and everyone that's concerned. He said to let everyone know he is with his son and he is OK. And they are going to share more information at the appropriate time."

Amos is best known for playing the patriarch of the Evans family in the 1970s sitcom "Good Times," adult Kunta Kinte in the seminal miniseries "Roots" and other beloved characters.

The latest update on the actor's condition comes less than a week after his daughter, Shannon Amos, said on Instagram that her father had been hospitalized in Memphis and was experiencing "immense pain." She wrote that the "Mary Tyler Moore Show" alum was in the intensive care unit and that his life was in danger.

Shannon Amos also launched a GoFundMe campaign for John Amos and encouraged her Instagram followers to help "provide care and support for my Dad." She said that donations would be allocated to "a trust fund" her family had set up for her father.

Shortly after Shannon Amos posted on Instagram, however, John Amos told TMZ he was not in the ICU fighting for his life.

Foster provided some additional context, explaining to TMZ that John Amos had been hospitalized because his lower body was filling with fluid that had reached his abdomen and caused heart issues. She said at the time that doctors were able to remove the fluid and Amos was feeling much better.

While speaking with The Times on Monday, Foster verified the TMZ report and confirmed that Amos is still in the hospital "temporarily ... finishing up some things." She said he's been eating, exercising, watching TV and hanging out with his son, K.C.

(Shannon and K.C. Amos are the children of John Amos and his ex-wife, Noel J. Mickelson.)

Foster also explained how Amos ended up in the hospital in the first place.

In early May, Amos was a guest speaker at the Memphis Health Center's Golden Anniversary Celebration. During the event, Foster said, attendees in the medical field offered to give Amos a physical exam before he returned home to Colorado for a standard checkup. He took them up on their offer and that's when doctors discovered the fluid, according to Foster.

She said that Amos was "absolutely perplexed" when he heard that his daughter had set up a GoFundMe for him and demanded to speak with the media so he could set the record straight about his condition.

In addition to claiming that her father's life was in jeopardy, Shannon Amos also stated in her Instagram post that John Amos was "a victim of elder abuse and financial exploitation."

Foster told The Times on Monday that she and Amos are "trying to understand" where the elder abuse and financial exploitation claims are coming from.

"I'll put it this way: He himself is going to share some more information about some other things," Foster added. "He will definitely share more information shortly."

Meanwhile, the Colorado Bureau of Investigation and the Custer County Sheriff's Office confirmed in a press release last week that they were "thoroughly investigating" an allegation indicating that John Amos "could be a victim of a crime"  with the words "could be" emphasized in bold type.

The release noted that while the state of Colorado does not have a specific charge for elder abuse, crimes commonly committed against the elderly include criminal negligence, assault, robbery, theft, caretaker neglect, sexual assault and exploitation.

"Mr. Amos has been a beloved member of our community for many years," the Custer County Sheriff's Office said in a statement.

"We want to send our well wishes to Mr. Amos and hope that he has a speedy recovery."

In a statement provided Tuesday to The Times, a spokesperson for Shannon Amos said that she and the family are "unwavering in their commitment to ensuring John's safety, stability, and healing."

"Shannon will not provide further comment as the investigation remains open with the Colorado Bureau of Investigations (CBI) and Custer County Sheriffs Department," the statement said..

"This continues to be a private family matter that Shannon hopes will be resolved soon.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
(Photo : KALLE PARKKINEN/Lehtikuva/AFP via Getty Images)

NATO started the largest air force deployment exercise in the records of the Western military alliance.

NATO has launched what it calls its "largest deployment exercise" in history, with the intention of conveying a message to countries such as Russia that it "is prepared to defend every inch of space of Allied territory."

According to NATO, the "Air Defender" exercise will last until June 23 and involve 25 countries, 10,000 personnel, and 250 aircraft. Germany is hosting the military training exercises.

NATO's Largest Air Force Drill

According to Lt. Gen. Ingo Gerhartz, chief of the German Air Force, Russia's 2014 annexation of Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula was a "wake-up call" for NATO to organize such exercises. Per Fox News, the United States has sent thousands of service members, primarily from National Guard units, to participate in the exercises. According to NATO, "Air Defender" has been planned for years.

Diverse opinions exist regarding the extent to which the exercise will disrupt civilian flights. Matthias Maas, the head of the German air traffic controllers' union, GdF, stated that it "will have massive consequences on the administration of civil aviation."

On Monday morning, the first aircraft lifted off from airfields in northern Germany. The United States is deploying 2,000 Air National Guard personnel and approximately 100 aircraft on its own, according to Military.com.

"The exercise is a signal - a signal above all to us, a signal to us, the NATO countries, but also to our population, that we are able to react very rapidly... that we could defend the alliance in the event of an attack," German air force chief Lt. Gen. Ingo Gerhartz told ZDF television.

Gerhartz stated that he proposed the 2018 exercise on the grounds that Russia's annexation of Crimea highlighted the need for NATO to be able to defend itself. The Russian incursion of Ukraine in February 2022 has prompted NATO to intensify its preparations for a potential assault on its territory. Sweden, which is seeking alliance membership, and Japan are also participating in the exercise.

Diverse opinions exist regarding the extent to which the exercise will disrupt civilian flights. Matthias Maas, the head of the German air traffic controllers' union, GdF, stated that it "will have massive consequences on the administration of civil aviation."

Gerhartz contested this. He stated that the German air traffic control authority collaborated with the air force to minimize disruption. He noted that the exercise is limited to three locations, none of which will be utilized at the same time, and that it will conclude before any German state begins summer vacation.

The German-led exercises have been in the works for several years, but their scheduling in the midst of Moscow's 16-month invasion of its neighboring country conveys a timely message to Russian President Vladimir Putin.

According to Oleksandr Vilkul, director of the Kryvyi Rih city military administration, at least 11 persons were killed and 28 were injured when Russian missiles attacked the city of Kryvyi Rih in central Ukraine early on Tuesday. According to Ukraine's Operational Command South, three more persons were killed in the Black Sea port city of Odessa after Russia launched four "Kalibr" cruise missiles.

Since Russia's invasion of Ukraine began in February 2022, NATO has feared that Moscow's devastation of Ukrainian cities could spread beyond the country's borders. Russia has consistently threatened retaliation in response to NATO members' military assistance to Ukraine, which includes tanks, armored vehicles, and other armaments used in Kyiv's current offensive.

Read Also: China Spying US From Cuba for Years, Biden Administration Reveals

NATO Members Urge to Provide Fighter Jets for Ukraine

Per CNN, alliance members are planning to provide Ukraine with identical F-16 fighter aircraft to those participating in the current war exercises. The North Atlantic Treaty Organization was established in the aftermath of World War II to defend Western nations against the Soviet Union. The alliance contains a mutual defense clause stating that an assault on one member is deemed an attack on all members.

This NATO territory comprises five members that share a border with Russia and are participating in the exercises: Norway, Finland, Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania. Two of these countries, Estonia and Latvia, will host portions of the exercises.

Other participants include NATO members Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Netherlands, Poland, Romania, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Turkey, the United Kingdom, and the United States, as well as NATO applicant Sweden and Japan, whose ties to the alliance have been growing.

Fighter aircraft include US F-35 stealth jets and F-15s; US, Turkish, and Greek F-16s; Spanish and British Eurofighters; German Tornadoes; US and Finnish F/A-18s; Hungarian Gripens; and US A-10 ground-attack jets.

Related Article: VIDEO: Russia Boasts Capturing German Leopard Tanks, US Bradley Vehicles in Ukraine

@ 2023 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Usually a new Dickeys Barbecue Pit would not make news.

But none of the more than 500 locations of the worldwide Dallas-based Dickeys chain will be like the one coming to Haltom City.

A 1950s-style diner that has been a Denton Highway landmark since 1987 is in the process of changing the first Dickeys to serve morning breakfast daily and homestyle sides along with the franchise chains familiar fast-service barbecue.

New owner Felinda Jarmon plans to turn The Cafe in Haltom City, still open at 3113 Denton Highway, into a future Dickeys. But shell also keep morning breakfasts and add sides such as collard greens or ham hock and black-eyed peas.

A Marilyn Monroe statue and another of a police officer are staying atop The Cafe in Haltom City, but the restaurant is changing to a Dickeys Barbecue Pit with a larger menu and longer hours.

Theres already talk around town.

Theres been so much confusion about this, its just unreal, Jarmon said.

It will be Dickeys but with a twist, she said.

The location just north of East Belknap Street has a colorful history dating back 64 years, back to when northbound traffic to Denton and Oklahoma traveled Denton Highway before the construction of Interstate 35W.

Statues of Marilyn Monroe and a police officer rest atop The Cafe in Haltom City, changing to a Dickeys Barbecue Pit.

A location of Fort Worths legendary Griddle Systems diners opened there in 1959. The Haltom Plaza shopping center behind it was built in 1964, and by 1974 the restaurant had changed to a Beefeater plate-lunch cafe, later renamed Beef Chef.

The Cafe took over the space in 1987, with a pink-flamingo-tropical-blue paint scheme outside in the era of TVs Miami Vice and a chromed 1950s look inside.

It was the second location of a now-gone Cafe in north Arlington. That location spun off and became Bobby Vs.

The building is remarkable for the 120-pound statues of Marilyn Monroe and a police-officer bodyguard on top, a purchase by former owner Mike Schroder.

Marilyn and the policeman will stay, Jarmon said.

The building will be repainted in Dickeys familiar bright yellow.

Ribs, brisket, cheddar sausage, turkey, okra, potato casserole and mac-and-cheese at Dickeys.

There is no barbecue around here right now, she said. You have to go to Fort Worth or somewhere.

The neighborhoods craft barbecue devotees go to The Patriotic Pig in North Richland Hills. The traditional favorite remains 77-year-old Sammies Bar-B-Q, just across the Fort Worth city limit at 3801 E. Belknap St.

Dickeys chain counter-service restaurants arent really competition for those restaurants

But Dickeys offers corporate features such as family packs, online ordering and a rewards program.

Jarmon said she likes Dickeys smoked Polish sausage or chicken breast, along with the brisket.

She will add local desserts such as sweet potato pie.

Itll become more than just a diner, she said.

For now, The Cafe remains open for breakfast and lunch daily; 817-838-6709.
(Reuters) - A "transparent and objective" international investigation in the blasts at the Nord Stream natural gas pipelines is needed, a high-ranking Russian diplomat to the United States said early on Wednesday.

Commenting on reports that the U.S. reportedly warned Ukraine not to attack the pipelines under the Baltic Sea, Andrey Ledenev, minister-counsellor at the embassy, said the role of the United States in the blasts should also be "clarified".

"It would be useful to think about the reasons for the stubborn unwillingness of the collective West to launch a transparent and objective international investigation under the auspices of the U.N. Security Council in the terrorist attacks in the Baltic Sea," Ledenev was quoted as saying in a post on the embassy's Telegram messaging channel.

(Reporting by Lidia Kelly in Melbourne; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman)
KYIV (Reuters) -Russian missiles struck civilian buildings in Ukraine's Black Sea port of Odesa and eastern Donetsk region overnight, killing at least six people, Ukraine's military and local officials said early on Wednesday.

Russia launched four cruise missiles on the city of Odesa, the South command of Ukraine's Armed Forces said. The military said earlier that two missiles were destroyed before hitting their targets.

"As a result of air combat and blast waves, a business centre, an educational institution, a residential complex, food establishments and shops in the city centre were damaged," the South command said on the Telegram messaging app.

The three people killed were working at a retail chain's warehouse when a missile hit, setting it ablaze, the military added. Seven people were wounded there.

"Sifting through the debris continues," the military said. "There may be people under."

Serhiy Bratchuk, a spokesman for the Odesa military administration, posted a video and photographs showing multi-storey buildings with parts of their walls missing and windows blown out, as well as firefighters battling against flames in what it appeared be a warehouse.

In a separate missile strike, Russian forces killed three civilians in Ukraine's eastern Donetsk region, the governor Pavlo Kyrylenko said on Facebook.

He said two people were killed in Kramatorsk and another in Kostiantynivka.

"The missiles ... hit private houses in the cities and caused significant damage: in Kramatorsk, at least 5 private houses were destroyed and about two dozen damaged, in Kostiantynivka, two were destroyed and 55 damaged," he said.

Ukrainian Air Forces said they destroyed three missiles and nine drones overnight.

Reuters could not independently verify the reports. There was no immediate comment from Russia. Both Russia and Ukraine deny targeting civilians in their military operations.

(Reporting by Lidia Kelly in Melbourne, Pavel Polityuk in Kyiv; Editing by Simon Cameron-Moore)
MOSCOW (Reuters) -Russia's lower house of parliament, the State Duma, gave its initial backing on Wednesday to legislation that would ban gender reassignment surgery.

The move was in line with a drive by President Vladimir Putin to crack down on "non-traditional" lifestyles he has portrayed as evidence of Western moral decay.

The legislation would ban state agencies from changing a person's gender in their personal documents. It would outlaw "any medical interventions aimed at shaping a person's primary and secondary sex characteristics", according to a document posted in the Duma's database.

The only exception would be surgery "aimed at treating congenital anomalies in children", the draft legislation said.

The law on Wednesday passed the first of three required readings in the Duma. New legislation also needs approval from the upper house before being sent to Putin for signing.

Putin and other top officials and church leaders have frequently portrayed acceptance of gay and transgender people in the West as evidence that societies there have lost their moral compass.

The head of parliament's upper house, Valentina Matviyenko, said in a message to mark International Women's Day in March that Russia would never play "dangerous gender games", adding: "Let us leave it to the West to conduct this dangerous experiment on itself."

Parliament last year passed a new law which critics say effectively bans representation of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people in public and in the media.

(Reporting by Reuters reporters Writing by Filipp Lebedev and Mark TrevelyanEditing by Gareth Jones)
The first-grade teacher who was shot by her 6-year-old student in Virginia has resigned from her position, school officials said Tuesday, more than two months after she sued the district for $40 million.

The last day of Abby Zwerner's contract was Monday, Newport News Public Schools said in a statement. The district said that Zwerner notified human resources in March that she wouldn't be returning next school year.

Zwerner, 25, was shot in the hand and chest as she sat at a reading table in her first-grade classroom on Jan. 6. She spent nearly two weeks in the hospital, has endured multiple surgeries and told NBC that she sometimes  cant get up out of bed.

Zwerner filed her lawsuit in early April, alleging that school officials ignored multiple warnings that the boy had a gun and was in a violent mood that day.

The school board has pushed back, asking a judge to dismiss the case and arguing that Zwerner should get workers compensation instead.

WAVY-TV first reported that Zwerner no longer worked for the district on Tuesday. In an interview with the station, an attorney for Zwerner characterized her departure as a firing.

Lawyer Jeffrey Breit cited an email that school officials sent Zwerner in May, stating they had "processed a separation of employment for you effective the close of business 06/12/2023.

Breit told WAVY: I dont think you can read this any other way than youve been fired. And thats what she thinks. She doesnt understand it; theres no other communication."

Newport News Public Schools refuted Breit's claim in a statement Tuesday.

Every employee who is separating from the school division receives a similar communication, the district said.

The school system also provided emails between the district and Zwerner in which the teacher wrote: I wish to resign. Thank you.

Breit did not respond to an email and a phone call from The Associated Press seeking comment.

Zwerner's resignation is yet another development in the aftermath of the shooting, which has reverberated through the shipbuilding city of about 180,000 people near the Atlantic coast.

The boy who shot Zwerner had used his mother's gun. His mother, Deja Taylor, pleaded guilty Monday in federal court to using marijuana while owning a firearm, which is illegal under U.S. law.

Taylor is facing charges on the state level of felony child neglect and reckless storage of a firearm. A trial for those counts is set for August.

Meanwhile, Zwerner's $40 million lawsuit is pending.

Zwerners attorneys have said school officials knew the boy had a history of random violence at school and at home, including an episode the year before in which he strangled and choked his kindergarten teacher.

Teachers concerns with John Does behavior (were) regularly brought to the attention of Richneck Elementary School administration, and the concerns were always dismissed, the lawsuit states.

In asking a judge to dismiss the case, the school board has argued that Zwerner's injuries fall under the states workers compensation act.

The school board rejected Zwerners claim that she could reasonably expect to work with young children who pose no danger, pointing to numerous incidents of violence against teachers across the U.S. and in Newport News.

While in an ideal world, young children would not pose any danger to others, including their teachers, this is sadly not reality, the board stated.

The school board said Zwerner has refused to accept workers compensation.
SEOUL, South Korea (AP)  South Korea filed a 44.7 billion won ($35 million) damage suit against North Korea on Wednesday for blowing up a joint liaison office just north of their border in 2020, which highlighted a revival of tensions between the rivals following the collapse of larger nuclear talks between the U.S. and North Korea.

The symbolic lawsuit filed with the Seoul Central District Court comes amid a prolonged freeze in diplomacy and growing concerns over North Koreas nuclear weapons and missile programs. South Korea had until this Friday to claim damages, when a three-year statute of limitations over the incident would expire.

Koo Byoungsam, spokesperson for Seouls Unification Ministry, which handles relations with North Korea, described the North's detonation of the building as an unlawful and violent act that breached previous agreements between the countries and fundamentally damaged the foundation of mutual respect and trust.

There's no clear way for South Korea to force North Korea to pay if it is found liable for damages. Koo said the lawsuit, the first ever filed by South Koreas government against North Koreas government, was aimed at beating the statute of limitations and preserving South Koreas legal right to compensation.

In June 2020, North Korea used explosives to blow up the South Korean-built liaison office in the North Korean border town of Kaesong after criticizing South Koreas failure to stop North Korean defectors from flying anti-North propaganda leaflets across the border using balloons. North Korea shut down the office in January 2020 as it closed its borders over coronavirus concerns, and the building was empty at the time of the detonation.

The building's destruction, which was seen as a calculated display of anger to pressure Seoul over deadlocked nuclear negotiations with Washington, posed a serious setback to efforts by then-South Korean President Moon Jae-in, a liberal, to engage with the North.

Moon met North Korean leader Kim Jong Un three times in 2018 while helping set up Kims first summit with then-U.S. President Donald Trump in June that year. However, the diplomacy derailed after a second Kim-Trump summit in February 2019 at which the Americans rejected North Korea's demand for major sanctions relief in exchange for a partial surrender of its nuclear capabilities.

Tensions have further increased in past months as Kim used distractions created by Russias war on Ukraine to increase weapons tests, including the firing of around 100 missiles since the start of 2022. Kim has accompanied the tests with a new nuclear doctrine that authorizes preemptive strikes on rivals in a broad range of scenarios in which the North may perceive its leadership is under threat.

Current conservative South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, who has been labeled a traitor by North Korean state media, has departed from Moons dovish policies and taken a harder stance on the North. Yoon has expanded the countrys military training with the United States while seeking stronger assurances from the Biden administration that the United States would swiftly and decisively use its nuclear weapons to protect South Korea in the event of a North Korea nuclear attack.

Meanwhile, South Koreas spy agency said it has detected signs that North Korean government-backed hackers were trying to steal people's personal details through a phishing website mimicking Naver, South Koreas biggest website.

The National Intelligence Service warned internet users to check whether they are accessing Naver through the correct domain address, naver.com. The agency didnt specify whether it had confirmed actual data breaches through the fake site.
MADRID (Reuters) - Spanish startup PLD Space has signed an agreement with France's Arianespace to develop joint services to launch small satellites into orbit, the Spanish company said on Tuesday.

The agreement will allow PLD Space, which aims to launch micro-satellites and take a slice of a potential $1 trillion business, to offer its customisable service - which is currently under development - to Arianespace customers, it said.

PLD Space, which hopes to start commercial activity in 2025, plans to make a first suborbital test in the next days or weeks in southern Spain, after having called off a launch at the end of May due to high altitude winds.

The Spanish company plans to gradually increase its capacity to 10 to 12 launches per year by the end of this decade.

Europe's efforts to develop capabilities to send small satellites into space are in focus after a failed orbital rocket launch by Virgin Orbit from Britain in January.

Arianespace, which launches satellites from French Guiana, is majority owned by ArianeGroup, a joint venture between Airbus and Safran.

(Reporting by Emma Pinedo; Editing by Inti Landauro and Mark Potter)
WASHINGTON (AP)  Thousands of Reddit discussion forums have gone dark this week to protest a new policy that will charge some third-party apps to access data on the site, leading to worries about content moderation and accessibility.

More than 8,000 subreddits were dark as of Tuesday afternoon, according to a tracker and live Twitch stream of the boycott. Participants ranged from small forums to large communities with tens of millions of subscribers  including the r/funny, r/music and r/todayilearned pages seen on the online discussion site.

Reddit is killing third-party applications (and itself)," other subreddits wrote in posts seen on the platform's homepage.

The new fees are part of broader changes to Reddit's API, or application programming interface, that the company announced recently.

Organizers of the blackout, which began Monday, say Reddit's changes threaten to end key ways of historically customizing the platform  which relies heavily on the work of volunteer moderators. Subreddit mods" often use tools outside of the official app to keep their forums free of spam and hateful content, for example, as well as improve accessibility.

Reddit, a subsidiary of New York-based Advance Publications, says supporting large, high-usage third-party developers to access its data is too expensive. The company also notes that the new fees will only apply to eligible apps that require high usage limits, and the majority of API users will not have to pay for access.

Here's what you need to know.

WHAT IS API? AND HOW IS REDDIT CHANGING ACCESS TO THIRD-PARTY APPS?

In short, an API allows computer programs to communicate with each another. Third parties have used Reddit's free API access in the past, for example, to request data and build apps that work with the platform.

But Reddit announced it would be changing its API access polices earlier this year. Starting July 1, Reddit plans to charge third-party apps requiring higher usage limits.

Reddit needs to be a self-sustaining business, and to do that, we can no longer subsidize commercial entities that require large-scale data use, Reddit CEO Steve Huffman wrote in a Friday ask me anything (AMA) on the platform, where he took questions from users about the changes.

Not all third-party apps will be charged, as the policy is based on usage levels, and noncommercial, accessibility-focused apps will also continue with free access, the company said. Reddit also noted that API access will remain free for moderator tools and bots.

WHY ARE SUBREDDITS PROTESTING THIS CHANGE?

Reddit's API changes have caused outrage  as many Redditors say they are concerned about losing long-used third-party resources. Popular third party apps, including Apollo and Reddit Is Fun, have already announced plans to shut down at the end of the month due to costs of the API changes  with Apollo developer Christian Selig estimating fees would total about $20 million a year.

Reddit's backbone of volunteer moderators who rely on these and similar apps will likely feel the brunt of the impacts, experts note.

While Reddit has promised that moderation tools will not be affected by changes to the API, many moderators rely on third party apps and access to data archives to effectively do their work, Sarah Gilbert, postdoctoral associate at Cornell University and Citizens and Technology Lab research manager, said in a statement  later pointing to how risks of moderator burnout and essential retention.

Gilbert added that API access helps moderators keep communities safe and more quickly respond to spam, bigotry, and harassment. Third-party apps are also important for screen readers, she said, as the official Reddit app is not accessible for people who are visually impaired.

WHEN WILL THE REDDIT BLACKOUT END?

Some subreddits participating in this week's blackout will return to Reddit in 48 hours, organizers said.

Others said they may boycott for longer, with the possibility of leaving the platform permanently unless the issue is adequately addressed, since many moderators arent able to put in the work they do with the poor tools available through the official app, one widely-circulated Reddit post about the protest read, per The Verge.

This isnt something any of us do lightly: we do what we do because we love Reddit, and we truly believe this change will make it impossible to keep doing what we love, the post continued.

In Friday's AMA, Huffman addressed moderators' feedback and said that Reddit respects when you and your communities take action to highlight the things you need.

Beyond Reddit, Twitter ended free API access earlier this year, in a move that also sparked outrage.
President Biden and first lady Jill Biden arrive for a Pride Month celebration on the South Lawn of the White House, Saturday, June 10, 2023, in Washington. (Manuel Balce Ceneta/AP)

WASHINGTON (AP)  Transgender advocate Rose Montoya is no longer welcome at White House events after posting on social media a video of herself and two others going topless for a time at Saturday's Pride Month celebration on the South Lawn.

The behavior was simply unacceptable, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Tuesday. It was unfair to the hundreds of attendees who were there to celebrate their families.

Speaking at the White House press briefing, Jean-Pierre said, Individuals in the video certainly will not be invited to future events." The White House spokeswoman said the bare-chested display was not a normal thing that has happened under this administration.

President Biden hosted the event to show the administration's support of the LGBTQ+ community. There has recently been a push by some Republican leaders at the state level to restrict drag shows and limit the options for youth who are seeking to transition their genders.

Rose Montoya attends The Queerties 2023 Awards celebration at EDEN Sunset on February 28, 2023 in Los Angeles, California. (Chelsea Guglielmino/Getty Images)

Biden said Saturday that he had a message for the entire community, but especially for transgender children: You are loved. You are heard. Youre understood. And you belong.

Parts of his speech appeared in the video posted on social media by Montoya, whose Instagram biography identifies her as an educator, model and actor.

Montoya defended her post on Instagram and Twitter, saying that going topless in Washington, D.C., is legal and I fully support the movement in freeing the nipple.

She said critics of her toplessness affirmed that she is, in fact, a woman, as a man would not face similar pushback. She said she had zero intention of trying to be vulgar or be profane in anyway," adding that she covered her nipples with her hands in the video just to play it safe.
A wedding boat capsized in northern Nigeria, killing hundreds of passengers and prompting search and rescue efforts

Police spokesman Okasannmi Ajayi said on Tuesday that they have so far recorded 103 deaths and more than 100 rescued

Ajayi added the search and rescue operations were still underway, which means that the numbers would likely rise

A wedding boat capsized in northern Nigeria, killing off hundreds of passengers and prompting search and rescue operations for any potential survivors.

Authorities said that the wedding boat capsized on Monday while it was on the Niger River located in the Pategi district of Kwara state which is close to neighboring Niger. The state's police spokesman Okasanmi Ajayi on Tuesday said that they have so far recorded 103 deaths and more than 100 rescued from the boating accident.

Wedding Boat Capsizes in Nigeria

Ajayi added that search and rescue operations were still underway, which means that the death toll, and hopefully the number of rescued, are likely to rise. The victims of the boating accident included women and children as the vessel was coming back from a wedding in the village of Egboti in Niger state, said Usman Ibrahim, as per Aljazeera.

The resident added that people who were on the boat were supposed to take their bikes to their various communities when they disembarked. He added that the vessel was carrying more than 100 people at the time that the accident happened.

He said that the majority of the victims drowned because the wedding boat sank at about 3:00 a.m. and not many people were even aware of the incident until a few hours later. Ibrahim noted that authorities were still searching for some dead bodies.

The local daily Nigerian Tribune reported that the boat's passengers were originally from the Kpada, Egbu, and Gakpan villages in Kwara. Ahmed Idris, from Aljazeera, said that what they were hearing from various sources in the area was that at least 64 people came from one village and an additional 40 were from another.

Read Also: Andrew Tate Case Update: Romanian Prosecutors Upgrade Charges Against Influencer

Accident in Dark Waters

A traditional chief in Kpada, Abdul Gana Lukpada, said that some people who were found to be stranded wedding guests were forced to cross the river from neighboring Egboti village using a boat after heavy rains caused the roads in the area to flood, according to CNN.

Lukpada estimated that the vessel was carrying up to 300 passengers before it hit a tree trunk that caused it to sink. He added that there was a marriage ceremony nearby and said that the terrain of the community was terrible when it rains.

The chief noted that rain followed the end of the ceremony, which means that the attendees who got there via motorcycles would not be able to ride them out. He said that the tree trunk that the boat hit was hidden in the water and split the vessel into two.

The place where the incident happened, the Niger River, which is roughly 2,600 miles long, acts as a key regional trade route. It originates in Guinea and flows in a vast arc northeast into the Sahel before going to the Atlantic through the Niger Delta, said the New York Times.

Related Article: Kenyan Cult Death Toll Surpasses 300: Still Expected to Rise?

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Tucker Carlson pushed a new conspiracy theory that Donald Trump is being prosecuted for calling out Washington DC insiders over Iraq and weapons of mass destruction in his latest Twitter show.

The former Fox News host defied his former employers threats after they sent him a cease-and-desist letter stating that his new show is a violation of his contract with the right-wing network.

Carlson told his audience that the former president was now in legal trouble because of his position on Iraq during the 2016 Republican primary debates, in which he said the US had destabilised the Middle East with its invasion of Iraq.

Seven-and-a-half years later we can point to the precise moment when permanent Washington decided to send Donald Trump to prison, said Carlson on Tuesday evening as he played footage of the debate in Greenville, South Carolina.

In the footage, Mr Trump excoriates Washington DC insiders, saying, We should have never been in Iraq...they said there were weapons of mass destruction and there were none, they lied, they knew there were none.

Carlson insisted that by calling them liars, Mr Trump had sealed his fate.

That was the one thing you were not allowed to say as it implicated too many people on both sides, which on this topic is really just one side, he said.

Hillary Clinton was guilty, but so was Paul Ryan, all of them were guilty, they all knew and they all lied, and to a person, they hated Donald Trump for exposing them.

Carlson said that from the start of his administration, Mr Trump was targeted by filthy and decadent politicians, and name-checked Mike Pence, Nikki Haley, Mike Pompeo and Lindsey Graham.

He then accused them of piling on with maximum force in the wake of Mr Trump being charged over his alleged mishandling of classified documents after he left the White House.

Carlson then accused Mr Pompeo of not supporting Mr Trumps agenda and undermined at every turn the former presidents policies and ideas, before accusing him of toadying up to his boss.

Now the same person is telling Fox News he fears for the safety of our military ... because Donald Trump took some classified documents home and didnt immediately return them to the National Archives. What a lie that is, he said.

Carlson then said that the prosecution of Mr Trump was not just political it is ideological.

Nobody with Trumps views is allowed to have power in this country. Criticise our wars and you are disqualified, if you keep it up we will send you to prison, he said.

Thats the message that Washington DC is sending, not just the Democratic party but the message both parties are sending.

Carlson then asked his audience to drive 500 miles in any direction to check out the countrys condition and told the audience that the only places doing well in the US were the suburbs of DC.

He then said that Washington insiders were determined to end Mr Trumps campaign for another term in the White Office before voters got to have their say.

Trump is a flawed man but his sins are minor compared to those of his persecutors. In this life we do not get to choose our martyrs we can only choose our principles and Americas are at stake.
ANKARA (Reuters) -Sweden should not expect a change of attitude from Ankara on its NATO membership bid at the Western alliance's summit next month unless it prevents anti-Turkey protests in Stockholm, Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan was quoted as saying on Wednesday.

Turkey cannot approach Sweden's NATO bid positively while "terrorists" were protesting in Stockholm, and Turkey's position would be made clear once again in talks with Swedish officials in Ankara on Wednesday, Erdogan was quoted as telling reporters on a flight returning from Azerbaijan on Tuesday.

Erdogan made his comments before officials from Turkey, Sweden, Finland and NATO met on Wednesday in Ankara for talks to try to overcome Turkish objections that have delayed Sweden's NATO membership bid.

In March, Turkey ratified Finland's bid for membership of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, but still objects to Sweden joining the alliance, as does Hungary.

In justifying its objections to Swedish membership, Turkey has accused Stockholm of harbouring members of Kurdish militant groups it considers to be terrorists.

Sweden says it has upheld its part of a deal struck with Turkey in Madrid aimed at addressing Ankara's security concerns, including bringing in a new anti-terrorism law this month. It says it follows national and international law on extraditions.

Turkish-Swedish tensions were most recently fuelled by an anti-Turkey and anti-NATO protest in Stockholm last month, when the flag of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) militant group, outlawed in Turkey as well as in the European Union, was projected on to the parliament building.

Commenting on Sweden's recent legal changes Erdogan said:

"This is not only a matter of a law amendment or a constitutional change. What is the job of the police there? They have legal and constitutional rights, they should exercise their rights. The police should prevent these (protests)."

On the day he was having talks with NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg earlier this month, a similar protest was held in Stockholm, Erdogan said. He added that he also told Stoltenberg Sweden should prevent such actions to secure Turkey's approval for its NATO membership.

After meeting Erdogan, Stoltenberg said a deal on Sweden joining the alliance could be reached before the NATO summit in Vilnius next month.

(Reporting by Ece Toksabay and Huseyin Hayatsever; editing by Daren Butler, Nick Macfie and Mark Heinrich)
By Humeyra Pamuk, David Brunnstrom and Simon Lewis

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The United States on Wednesday played down expectations of any breakthrough from the first trip by a U.S. Secretary of State to China in five years, after a tense call with China's foreign minister ahead Antony Blinken's visit to Beijing next week.

Chinese foreign minister Qin Gang urged the United States to stop meddling in its affairs and harming its security in a call with Blinken on Wednesday, and said it should respect China's core concerns to arrest declining relations between the superpowers, China's foreign ministry said.

Having postponed a February trip after a suspected Chinese spy balloon flew over U.S. airspace, Blinken is set to become the highest ranking U.S. government official to visit China since President Joe Biden took office in January 2021.

U.S. officials said Blinken would push to establish open communication channels to ensure competition with the Chinese does not spiral into conflict.

"We're not going to Beijing with the intent of having some sort of breakthrough or transformation in the way that we deal with one another," Daniel Kritenbrink, the State Department's top diplomat for East Asia, told reporters in a briefing call.

"We're coming to Beijing with a realistic, confident approach and a sincere desire to manage our competition in the most responsible way possible," he said.

Kritenbrink said he expected Blinken would "reiterate America's abiding interest in the maintenance of peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait" and also discuss the situation in Ukraine.

Blinken's long-delayed visit is aimed at stabilizing relations between the world's two largest economies and strategic rivals. Ties have deteriorated across the board and raised concerns they might one day clash militarily over the self-ruled island of Taiwan, which China claims as its own.

The two sides are also at odds over trade, U.S. efforts to hold back China's semiconductor industry and human rights issues.

Chinese state media said Blinken would visit on June 18 and 19. Kritenbrink said Blinken would hold a series of meetings with senior Chinese officials.

The two sides did not say which officials Blinken would meet. Asked at a regular briefing it he would meet President Xi Jinping, U.S. State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said:

"I won't speak to any potential meetings, other than to say we'll have announcements about who he will be meeting with and when over the next few days."

CRISIS COMMUNICATION

Sources familiar with the planning said Blinken had been expected to meet Xi on the canceled February trip.

A primary objective for Blinken will be "candid, direct and constructive" discussions with China, Kritenbrink said, but he cautioned about the prospect of progress.

"There will be a substantive and productive agenda that well have before us, but, again, the objective is to focus on those top line goals, not necessarily to produce a long list of deliverables," he said.

One alarming aspect of the sour ties has been Beijing's reluctance to have open military-to-military dialogue with Washington, despite repeated U.S. attempts.

White House Indo-Pacific Coordinator Kurt Campbell said in the same call that Washington has an interest in setting up crisis communication mechanisms to reduce conflict risk.

"I believe Secretary Blinken will advocate strongly that these lines of communication are necessary. They are how mature, strong militaries interact and the stakes are just too high to avoid these critical lines of communication," he said.

U.S. officials expect Blinken's visit will pave the way for more bilateral meetings, including possible trips by U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo, in the coming months.

Campbell said "a series of visits in both directions" were expected "in the period ahead," but did not elaborate.

U.S. President Joe Biden and Biden and Xi held their first face-to-face leadership talks on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Bali in November.

In three-and-a-half hours of talks, they covered topics including Taiwan and nuclear-armed North Korea, but the meeting ultimately failed to ease tensions.

The balloon episode and exchanges of visits by U.S. and Taiwanese officials have magnified U.S.-China tensions.

"Since the beginning of the year, Sino-U.S. relations have encountered new difficulties and challenges, and the responsibility is clear," Qin told Blinken, according to the Chinese foreign ministry's readout.

The United States should "stop interfering in China's internal affairs, and stop harming China's sovereignty, security and development interests in the name of competition," Qin added.

(Reporting by Humeyra Pamuk, David Brunnstrom, Simon Lewis; Editing by Doina Chiacu, Chizu Nomiyama, William Maclean)
PHOENIX (AP)  Despite President Joe Bidens loathing of his predecessors practice of separating migrant families at the U.S.-Mexico border, his administration argued in federal court Tuesday that a lawsuit seeking money for five affected mothers and their children should be dismissed.

Justice Department attorney Phil MacWilliams told U.S. District Court Judge Susan R. Bolton the claims were improper and the case shouldn't be tried. He argued that the Yuma, Arizona-based Border Patrol agents involved used their discretion to separate the families, not a policy aimed at deterring migrants arrivals.

Attorney Diana Reiter, representing the families, argued the case should go to trial because the separations were part of a bigger policy under then-President Donald Trump aimed at preventing migrants from arriving at the border. She noted that because the women were never prosecuted the separations were unnecessary.

Bolton will issue a decision in the coming weeks.

The U.S. government's push to prevent a trial underscores the awkward position the Biden administration is now in as it grapples with its own problems managing migrant arrivals at the border.

The mothers and their children sued the U.S. government in 2019, seeking monetary compensation for the trauma they suffered the previous year when they were torn apart by the separation policy.

In 2021, the Biden administration participated quietly in settlement negotiations to end such lawsuits filed on behalf of parents and children who were forcibly separated under the Trump administrations zero-tolerance policy. But U.S. officials withdrew from such talks in December 2021 and said it would instead defend each case in court.

The negotiations in cases involving hundreds of plaintiffs were carried out for months until The Wall Street Journal reported in October 2019 that the government was considering paying about $450,000 to each person affected by the policy. The Associated Press later confirmed that figure was discussed.

About 5,500 children were forcibly removed from their parents in 2018 under Trump as his administration sought to stop an increase in people crossing the U.S.-Mexico border, including migrants who showed up to seek asylum as the law allowed. Trump halted the family separation practice later that year amid widespread outrage.

Bidens administration since reversed some of Trumps actions designed to keep migrants from arriving at the border, including legally.

The American Immigration Council filed suit on behalf of the mothers and their children, who are also being represented by Reiter's firm, Arnold & Porter, as well as the National Immigrant Justice Center, National Immigration Litigation Alliance, and Kairys, Rudovsky, Messing, Feinberg & Lin.
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States is seeking more information from the Israeli government about the decision that soldiers will not be criminally prosecuted over the death of a Palestinian-American man, the State Department said on Wednesday.

Israel's military advocate general said on Tuesday that soldiers who left Omar As'ad outside overnight after detaining him, and who was later found dead, will not be criminally prosecuted, but will face disciplinary measures.

"Since Mr. As'ad's tragic death, we have continued to discuss this troubling incident with the Israeli government," State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller told reporters on Wednesday. "We're aware of the conclusion of the investigation, and we are at this time seeking more information from the Israeli government about it."

Israeli forces detained 78-year-old As'ad at a makeshift checkpoint in his West Bank hometown of Jiljilya last January. The soldiers left him supine and unresponsive at a construction site, saying they assumed he had fallen asleep. As'ad was later found dead in the early morning with a plastic zip-tie still around one wrist.

Following an initial probe, the military dismissed two officers and reprimanded a battalion commander over As'ad's death, which it said resulted from "a moral failure and poor decision-making."

On Tuesday, the army's chief legal body said in a statement that its decision was made "following the hearings and after a thorough examination of the investigation materials, which indicated no causal link was found between the errors in the conduct of the soldiers and (As'ad's) death."

A Palestinian autopsy found that As'ad, a former Milwaukee, Wisconsin, resident who had a history of heart problems, had suffered cardiac arrest caused by stress. Palestinian officials attributed this to his having been manhandled by the Israeli soldiers.

The Military Advocate General said a military medical official found it impossible to determine that As'ad's death was caused specifically by the soldiers' conduct and that the soldiers could not have been aware of his medical condition.

Washington at the time said it was "deeply concerned" and expected "a thorough criminal investigation and full accountability."

(Reporting by Simon Lewis, Jasper Ward and Daphne Psaledakis; editing by Jonathan Oatis and Leslie Adler)
SYDNEY (Reuters) - New Zealand and Fiji on Wednesday signed a defence agreement to strengthen military training and maritime security, and improve the disaster and humanitarian response co-ordination between the two Pacific nations.

"This agreement reflects the value New Zealand places on our relationship with Fiji and is important for our militaries to work together more effectively," New Zealand Defence Minister Andrew Little said in a statement.

The agreement comes as New Zealand, Australia and its allies seek to deter nations in the Pacific, a region traditionally under their sway, from forming security ties with China, which last year struck a security pact with Solomon Islands.

Last week during a visit to New Zealand, Fijian Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka said both countries were finalising on a defence agreement.

Little said Pacific island nations faced major security challenges ahead, including climate change, and urged all nations in the region to work together to mitigate its impacts.

(Reporting by Renju Jose in Sydney; Editing by Michael Perry)
(Reuters) - Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy called for tougher sanctions to halt the flow of components used in Russian missiles, saying it was cheaper to stop their transfer than to improve anti-aircraft systems against their deployment.

It was the second time in a little more than a week that Zelenskiy had called for tightened rules to halt what Ukrainian authorities call "missile terror" against civilian targets.

Russia has denied targeting civilians since its February 2022 invasion of neighbouring Ukraine but it has frequently hit non-military buildings, the latest being a missile striking an apartment building and warehouses in Zelenskiy's home town of Krivyi Rih in central Ukraine, killing 11 people.

The missile used in the assault contained about 50 components produced in other countries and that the issue had been discussed on Tuesday with diplomats in Kyiv, Zelenskiy said.

"Unfortunately, Russia still has the opportunity to receive critical components for the production of missiles, manufactured by companies from different countries, including partner countries," Zelenskiy said in his nightly video address.

All Ukraine's partners have the list of companies that supply Russia with the components, he said.

"It is clearly cheaper, once and for all, to close off to the terrorists paths of supply of components of terror than constantly spending on ever newer missiles for air defence," Zelenskiy said.

Moscow has also accused Ukraine of cross-border shelling as Kyiv carries out counteroffensive operations. Kyiv also denies targeting civilians.

(Reporting by Ron Popeski and Maria Starkova; editing by Grant McCool)
Special agents with the FBI San Diego Field Office are investigating hundreds of reports of elder fraud involving social engineering and artificial intelligence. FBI San Diego wants to educate older adults and their family members about this nationwide scam to help them avoid becoming a victim of fraud.

In this "Grandparent Fraud" scheme, senior San Diego residents are being contacted by scammers posing as family members who have been arrested and need bail money. The scammers are using social engineering and artificial intelligence to convince the older adult victim they are talking to a family member. A fake attorney is then introduced and will coordinate ride share services to pick up cash in-person for the purpose of bailing the loved one out of jail.

READ NEXT: Denton County Financial Advisor Guilty of Federal Violations



"This scam is affecting our most vulnerable citizens," said FBI San Diego Field Office Special Agent in Charge Stacey Moy. "In many instances, someone has had their entire life savings stolen and they're embarrassed to speak out about it. We want victims to know they are not alone, and they should report it to law enforcement, because we want to get these bad people off the street."



The FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) data reports between January and May 2023, there were $22.5 million in losses and more than 450 victims in San Diego. Nationwide, from 2021 to 2022, dollar losses to elder financial exploitation increased 84%.

FBI San Diego suggests older adult residents take the following action to avoid becoming a victim:

Do not provide personal information or money to anyone you have only communicated with by telephone or online.

Be careful about what you post online. Scammers can use details shared on social media platforms and dating sites to legitimize their story.

Be careful about what you post online. Scammers can use details shared on social media platforms and dating sites to legitimize their story. Be suspicious of telephone calls in which the caller requests bail money for a family member in distress and requires you to immediately act. Contact the family member directly for confirmation.

Document any identifying information from the caller, such as name, phone number and/or address. This can help law enforcement apprehend the scammers.

Seniors who believe they have been a victim of fraud, or anyone who knows someone who may be a victim, should file a report on ic3.gov or call the FBI San Diego Field Office.

READ MORE: Columbia, KC Man Pleads Guilty to $1.1 Million Insurance Fraud Conspiracy

@ 2023 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley said that if she becomes president, she would pardon former president Donald Trump for crimes related to his improper handling of classified documents, if Trump is ultimately convicted.

Trump pleaded not guilty in federal court in Miami on Tuesday to criminal allegations that he risked national security by mishandling classified documents and obstructed the governments efforts to reclaim those documents earlier this year. He is the first former president to be charged with federal crimes, now facing 37 counts connected with the removal, storage and concealment of sensitive government documents he took from the White House upon leaving office in 2021.

But Haley, a former South Carolina governor and ambassador to the United Nations said shes in favor of granting Trump a presidential pardon if hes convicted.

When you look at a pardon, the issue is less about guilt, and more about whats good for the country, Haley said on the Clay Travis and Buck Sexton show, a politics podcast. And I think it would be terrible for the country to have a former president in prison for years because of the documents case. Thats something you see in a third world country. I saw that the United Nations, so I would be inclined in favor of a pardon, she continued, adding that she thinks the issue is premature because Trump has yet to be convicted.

Federal prosecutors allege that Trump carelessly handled top secret documents that included details of sensitive nuclear programs, intelligence on foreign adversaries, Pentagon battle plans and other papers that detailed the countrys potential vulnerabilities to military attack, according to a 41-page indictment prosecutors unsealed last Friday.

Haley maintains that the U.S. Department of Justice harbors a double standard when it comes to investigating Democrats versus Republicans.

I mean, you cant have one standard for Democrats like Hillary Clinton and Joe Biden and then another standard for Republicans like Donald Trump, Haley said. And were seeing that again with the Biden bribery recordings that have come to light. I mean, the country should never stand for that. And I think that we should all speak up and we have to be loud about that.
Starbucks workers union accused the company on Tuesday of banning decorations for LGBTQ Pride Month.

The group, Starbucks Workers United, is alleging that the companys corporate management has been asking its workers in at least 21 states to take down Pride decorations over the last two weeks, a claim that the company denies.

The union said that workers in Massachusetts, for instance, were being told that there werent enough labor hours for employees to spend decorating. It added that in Oklahoma, some were told it was a safety concern to block windows with flags in light of threats to Target employees over that companys Pride displays.

NBC News has not been able to independently verify the examples.

If Starbucks was a true ally, they would stand up for us, especially during a time when LGBTQ+ people are under attack, the group said in a lengthy Twitter thread. A company that cares wouldnt turn their back on the LGBTQ+ community to protect their already astronomically high profits.

Starbucks rejected the accusations and reaffirmed its support for the LGBTQ community.

We unwaveringly support the LGBTQIA2+ community. There has been no change to any policy on this matter and we continue to encourage our store leaders to celebrate with their communities including for U.S. Pride month in June, Andrew Trull, a spokesperson for the company, said in a statement. He pointed to commitments and actions the company has taken to support the community during the past 40 years.

Were deeply concerned by false information that is being spread especially as it relates to our inclusive store environments, our company culture, and the benefits we offer our partners, Trull added. There has been no change to any policy on this matter and we continue to encourage our store leaders to celebrate with their communities including for U.S. Pride month in June.

The Seattle-based coffee giant has been celebrating Pride in some capacity since 1996, according to its website. And despite the unions accusations regarding the Pride decorations, it released three Pride-themed drink tumblers this month and is expected to sponsor Pride celebrations, as it has in years past.

The allegation comes amid unprecedented times for the nations LGBTQ community.

More than 490 anti-LGBTQ bills have been filed in state legislatures across the country this year  a historic first  according to the American Civil Liberties Union.

Many of the bills aim to curtail education on LGBTQ issues in schools, drag performances and transition-related health care, among other provisions, and have gained support from national Republican figures, such as former President Donald Trump and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.

In addition to the record-breaking legislation, threats and attacks directed to LGBTQ Americans have surged.

There have been an average of 39 anti-LGBTQ protests nationwide each month since June 2022  according to recent report by the Crowd Counting Consortium, a research group that tracks the size of political protests  compared with just three per month from January 2017 through May 2022.

Just last week, a Pride flag was taken down and burned outside a City Hall building in Tempe, Arizona. And in New York City, a group of three men allegedly damaged multiple rainbow Pride flags on Saturday at New York Citys Stonewall National Monument.

The combination of legislation, threats and attacks has made navigating corporate commitment to the LGBTQ community arguably more complicated for large companies this Pride month.

Several weeks ago, Target pulled some of its Pride merchandise, following what a corporate spokesperson described as threats impacting our team members sense of safety and wellbeing while at work. Target previously did not respond to questions regarding the nature of the threats against employees.

Online, some right-wing activists drew attention to the companys Pride collection, accusing the company of indoctrinating and grooming. Conservative activists took particular issue with a tuck-friendly bathing suit for adults and the collections apparel for children. Clothing items for kids include supportive slogans, including just be you and trans people will always exist!

In addition to pulling some products, some Target stores responded by moving their Pride merchandise displays to less visible locations.

The accusations against Starbucks also follow the firestorm around Bud Lights partnership with transgender social media influencer Dylan Mulvaney this spring. The beer brands sales have dropped following an online campaign and calls for boycotts.

On Tuesday, some right-wing activists declared victory over the Starbucks allegations.

Leftwing Trans activists claim this means Starbucks is caving, Charlie Kirk, who is a conservative activist and radio show host, wrote to his more than 2.3 million Twitter followers. Good! Keep the pressure on, folks.
Long live Taylor Lautner. Recently, the former Twilight star was asked how he feels about Taylor Swift rereleasing her 2010 album Speak Now, which famously features songs about both Lautner and John Mayer, two of Swifts famous exes. Swift has been in the process of rereleasing her albums that she doesnt own, and on May 5, she announced shed be dropping Speak Now next. On July 7, Speak Now (Taylors Version) will be released, including six never-before-heard songs.

In terms of how Lautner is feeling about the whole thing, the actor told Today.com, I think its a great album. Yeah, I feel safe. Praying for John.

For some context: Lautner is one of Swifts most uncomplicated exes and has remained respectful of her over the years. The Speak Now song rumored to be about Lautner, Back to December, is a beautiful track in which Swift even apologizes to her ex. She sings, So this is me swallowin my pride / Standin in front of you sayin Im sorry for that night / And I go back to December all the time / It turns out freedom aint nothin but missin you / Wishin Id realized what I had when you were mine. During an interview in 2016, Lautner said the song was about him and that he thought it was beautiful.

Once when Swift played Lautners hometown, Grand Rapids, Michigan, she even changed the lyrics of Back to December. Instead of singing, Id go back in time and change it, but I cant / So if the chain is on your door, I understand, she sang, Id go back in time and change it, but I cant / So this is for the boy from Michigan.

On the other hand, the Speak Now song rumored to be about Mayer, Dear John, is quite brutal. In it, Swift sings about their drastic age difference when the two were dating (she was 19; he was 32): Dear John, I see it all now, it was wrong / Dont you think 19 is too young / To be played by your dark twisted games, when I loved you so? On her latest album Midnights, Swift also released a song speculated to be about Mayer called Wouldve, Couldve, Shouldve with parallel lyrics: And I damn sure never wouldve danced with the devil / At 19.

Fans are expecting that the extra songs on Speak Now (Taylors Version) might give more insight into the Swift-Mayer relationship, similar to what happened when Swift released All Too Well (10-Minute Version), which included revealing new lyrics rumored to be about Jake Gyllenhaal. But as for Lautner? Seems like hes right to remain unbothered.



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YEREVAN, JUNE 14, ARMENPRESS. The Armenian side is expressing concern regarding Turkeys plans on opening a consulate in Shushi and especially viewing it as a message to Armenia.

Member of Parliament Sargis Khandanyan, the Chair of the Foreign Relations Committee of the Armenian Parliament, told reporters that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogans statement on opening a consulate in Shushi doesnt contribute to the process of achieving peace and stability in the region.

On one hand they make statements that regional stability and peace is needed, and on the other hand they make statements that dont contribute to this process. Thus this statement causes concern, we must follow the developments, Khandanyan said.

The Turkish-Azerbaijani rhetoric has remained the same, Khandanyan said.

During his latest visit to Azerbaijan, Turkish President Erdogan said that Turkey plans to open a consulate in Shushi, the town in Nagorno Karabakh which was captured by Azerbaijani forces during the 2020 war. Erdogan said that the move would be a "message to the whole world and especially Armenia."
YEREVAN, JUNE 14, ARMENPRESS. Armenia will never negotiate around providing a corridor to Azerbaijan through its territory, a lawmaker said Wednesday.

Sargis Khandanyan, the Chair of the Parliamentary Foreign Relations Committee, told reporters that the topic on the Zangezur corridor wording is closed for Armenia.

The topic of the made up Zangezur corridor wording is closed for the Republic of Armenia. This is obvious, as well as acceptable and understandable also for the parties who are mediating in the negotiations, he said, ruling out a corridor through Armenias territory. He said Armenia will never negotiate around such issue.

Khandanyan added that Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyevs statements cause concern because they arent conducive to the negotiations process.
YEREVAN, JUNE 14, ARMENPRESS. Yerevan expects Azerbaijan to formally recognize Armenias territorial integrity with a specific size of territory, a lawmaker said Wednesday.

Sargis Khandanyan, the Chair of the Parliamentary Foreign Relations Committee, told reporters that Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev hasnt yet made a statement recognizing Armenias territorial integrity with a specific size of territory, unlike Armenias Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan who recognized Azerbaijans 86,600 km2 territorial integrity.

The Armenian side expects this to be clearly recorded by the Azerbaijani side, Khandanyan added.
YEREVAN, JUNE 14, ARMENPRESS. The two foreign nationals wounded in the latest Azerbaijani shooting attack in Armenia are construction workers from India, authorities announced.

The two Indian nationals were working at the construction site of the steelworks (metallurgical plant) in Yeraskh when it came under Azerbaijani cross-border gunfire.

The two victims were identified by the Defense Ministry as Indian citizens Muhammad Asif and Mirhasan Sahajan.

The steelworks in Yeraskh is being built with foreign investments.

The healthcare ministry reported that the two Indian nationals are in moderate condition.

"Today, two Indian citizens Muhammad Asif and Mirhasan Sahajan, who were involved in the construction works of the plant, were wounded in the wake of the Azerbaijani fire in the direction of the metallurgical plant being built with the measures of foreign investments in Yeraskh," the Ministry of Defense said in a statement posted on Facebook.
(Photo : Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)

Chris Christie called Donald Trump a "three-time loser" and slammed Ron DeSantis for pandering to former president's supporters.

Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie used a 90-minute CNN town hall on Tuesday to present the most compelling conservative argument to date against Donald Trump being the 2024 Republican presidential nominee.

In front of a live audience that included electors from the first four primary states, the former governor of New Jersey issued a stern warning to the country. Christie, who previously supported Trump, stated that he altered his mind when Trump began spreading fraudulent claims about losing the 2020 presidential election.

Chris Christie Calls Trump a 'Loser'

In an expanding primary field, Christie has attempted to distinguish himself by launching vicious attacks against the front-runner.

However, he was also asked about his own views and policy prescriptions on issues such as abortion and gun control, as well as how he intends to ascend the Republican mountain and challenge Democratic President Joe Biden.

Christie immediately portrayed Trump as a lunatic and positioned the 2024 Republican primary as the best chance to prevent the former president from using the nation to resolve personal and political grudges.

Christie, a former US attorney, prosecuted the case against Trump primarily through the lens of character, characterizing the reality TV star and real estate magnate as a "selfish" candidate and "three-time loser" who has not served the Republican Party well since 2016.

According to USA Today, Christie stated that the latest indictment against Trump, for wrongfully removing sensitive and classified information from the White House and concealing the documents from federal investigators, is "tight and replete with evidence."

Read Also: NATO Launches Largest-Ever Air Force Drill in ' Show of Strength'

Christie Slams DeSantis

Chris Christie also criticized Ron DeSantis on Monday for "playing games" with supporters of Donald Trump in order to earn their vote.

Christie, who is competing with DeSantis, Trump, and others for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, stated that DeSantis and the other candidates are purchasing time until Trump implodes, at which point they will seize his supporters.

Christie has previously assailed DeSantis, particularly for the Florida governor's conflict with Disney, claiming that DeSantis' actions demonstrated he was not a conservative. He declared his candidacy for the presidential nomination last week.

Christie ran in the 2016 Republican presidential primary but withdrew after losing the New Hampshire primary. Currently, he is polling at less than one percent for the 2024 Republican nomination, trailing DeSantis by more than 20 points and Trump by more than 50 points.

Christie, who began his career as a federal prosecutor, came out striking during his CNN town hall moderated by Anderson Cooper.

He claimed that Trump was acting out about his federal indictment because he was angry that he lost to Joe Biden, and he predicted that the former president would stand trial this winter on 37 federal charges relating to his possession of classified documents.

At one stage, Christie was close with Trump. He was considered for the position of White House chief of staff, but did not receive it. During the 2020 presidential campaign, he assisted him in preparing for his debates with Joseph Biden.

Per Daily Mail, Christie also predicted that the federal indictment against Trump would yield additional information. The 49-page indictment alleges that Trump intentionally lied to the Department of Justice, convinced his attorneys to go along with his scheme, and boasted about having illegally obtained documents.

In 31 of the 37 counts against Trump, he is accused of retaining secret and top-secret classified documents after departing the White House in early 2021. Christie, who served as United States Attorney from January 17, 2002 to December 1, 2008, called it a "speaking indictment."

Related Article: Trump Set To Face Charges in Florida, Busloads of Supporters Are Coming Ahead of Arraignment

@ 2023 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
The writer is based in South India for the past 40 years. He writes on India, China, Tibet and Indo-French relations.

What will happen if the supreme boss goes?

After Xi Jinping was accorded a third five-year term as Chinas President in March 2023, the Associated Press commented that he was on track to stay in power for life at a time of severe economic challenges and rising tensions with the United States and others. The endorsement of Xis appointment by the ceremonial National Peoples Congress was a foregone conclusion for a leader who has sidelined potential rivals and filled the top ranks of the ruling Communist Party with his supporters since taking power in 2012.

While a number of analysts like to make predictions about the succession of the Dalai Lama and its immediate implications, very few think about a sudden departure of the core leader of the Communist Party of China (CPC). However, in a book entitled Party of One, Wall Street Journal reporter Chun Han Wong has documented what could happen in case of President Xis sudden death or purge.

But before analysing Wongs conclusion, let us have a look at the death of Zhou Enlai, who should have succeeded Mao Zedong, the Great Helmsman, if it was not in China. By the end of 1975, both were suffering from cancer, but Mao was keen to see his Premier to leave this world before him as the Premier was more popular than him with the masses.

Dr Li Zhisui, Maos private physician, recalled that as Zhou Enlai was dying, Mao never went to see him in the hospital. On November 29, 1975, when Dr Li visited the Premier, Zhou was too weak to even lift his hand: That was the last time I saw him. Zhou Enlai died on January 8, 1976, noted Dr Li.

The doctor remembered that there was hardly any reaction in Group One, Maos close guard: Many of the doctors on Maos medical team had also treated Zhou, and they wanted to visit the 305 Hospital (in Beijing) to pay their last respects. When I presented their request to Zhang Yaoci (the commander of the Central Garrison Corps), his response was swift and stern. The doctors were not permitted to go, and no one was to wear the black armband of mourning. Mao was jealous of Zhous popularity.

Dr Li continued: As the Chinese New Year approached, Zhang Yufeng (Maos secretary and female companion) wanted to celebrate. She suggested that Zhang Yaoci set off firecrackers outside Maos residence. Zhang was happy to please her the area suddenly swarmed with guards and soldiers from the Central Garrison Corps. Zhongnanhai had long had a ban against firecrackers (at the same time) a rumour began circulating that the Chairman was celebrating Zhous death with firecrackers.

This shows that succession is always simple in China.

In Axios China, Bethany Allen-Ebrahimian analysed: After the death of Chinese dictator Mao Zedong in 1976, that resulted in years of instability at the partys highest levels, party leaders eventually developed a relatively stable model of succession in which each top leader served for two five-year terms, with a clear successor already waiting in the wings But Xi dismantled that system by abolishing term limits, not designating a successor and assuming a third term.

That is a serious issue for China today.

Wong believes that a drama looms once again: Xi confronts a timeless conundrum that scholars call the Successors Dilemma. Dictators prefer to choose their own successors, but Xi has so far avoided this path.

The WSJ correspondent further elaborated: As the designated successor tries to build power, the political elite will naturally start realigning their loyalties a process that can undermine the incumbent leader, who may come to fear that the heir apparent is plotting to usurp power. This had happened with Maos once heir-apparent, Lin Biao, who disappeared in a mysterious plane accident.

It is also probably why the one-time heir apparent Hu Chunhua was dropped during the last party congress.

Wongs conclusion: By remaking the party around himself, Xi may have become the weakest link in his quest to build a Chinese superpower.

On June 15, President Xi will be 70 years old. According to Wong: The uncertainty over his succession plans keeps the party elite on their toes But keeping the suspense for too long could backfire, alienating proteges and antagonising enemies enough to undermine the leader or even sow the seeds for a coup detat.

The Wall Street Journal reporter has a point.

Today, China is a country with the worlds second-largest population (behind India) and the second-largest economy (behind the United States). Further, it has one of the most powerful militaries which could be tempted to grab power in Beijing in case of a crisis.

In a 2010 study, political scientists Alexandre Debs and H.E. Goemans looked at the fate of some 1,800 political leaders worldwide: From the late 1910s to the early 2000s. Some 41 per cent of the 1,059 autocrats suffered exile, imprisonment or death within a year of leaving office, compared with just seven per cent of 763 democratic leaders, they noted.

On May 26, Wang Junzheng, party secretary of the Tibet Autonomous Region, delivered a speech in Lhasa. Wang asked all cadres to study and implement Xi Jinpings important instructions on Tibet and defend the two establishments, resolutely enhance the four consciousnesses, and firmly stand by the four self-confidence, achieve two safeguards,  and promote the strict governance of the Party, in order to vigorously promote the four creations and strive to achieve the four leading positions and the four in the forefront. All this to bring peace and stability on the snowy plateau.

You may not understand this type of Communist Party jargon, but it hides a real problem, what will happen if the supreme boss goes; this nobody knows.

Ko Wen-je, nominee of the Taiwans Peoples Party (TPP) for the next presidential election, recently declared that Xi Jinpings rule over China will not last forever: If we believe in universal values, then why do we think China will never have democracy and freedom? It is a fine thought, but it may not happen soon.

President Xi himself recently spoke of the complexity and severity of the national security problems faced by China: We must be prepared for the worst case and extreme scenarios, and be ready to withstand the major test of high winds, choppy waters, and even dangerous storms.

The fact remains that the system put in place by Chinas core leader seriously aggravates the already difficult internal and external situation.

India and the world should be prepared for the worst.
Millets are of crucial importance to weather the ravages of climate change.

The cacophony surrounding the celebration of 2023 as the Year of Millets seems to be tapering off. After the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) declared 2023 to be the Year of Millets, there has been an explosion of events highlighting millets. Most of these programmes generated awareness about these important but sorely neglected grains. Such awareness programmes were badly needed because, as the camera recordings showed, most visitors were fairly clueless about these foodgrains.

Millets are of crucial importance to weather the ravages of climate change and introduce a degree of resilience in our food production systems. Global warming with rising temperatures will upset established agriculture systems, creating turbulence in the food output. Wheat, that is North Indias main rabi (winter), crop is expected to be the most severely affected by global warming. According to data modelling, wheat is anticipated to suffer significant declines in production as temperatures rise.

Reduced wheat production will create a crisis in Indias subsidised food programmes like the Public Distribution System (PDS), the Mid-Day Meal Scheme in schools, the ICDS (Integrated Child Development Services Scheme), the Annapurna and Antodaya food schemes, as well as its buffer stocks. After the Green Revolution, wheat and rice have comprised the bulk of the food that goes into the buffer stocks, which India has steadfastly maintained to overcome bad times and shortfalls in food production.

Millets can play a major role in addressing climate induced challenges to Indias food and nutrition security. That is because millets are hardy crops, they need little water and have high temperature tolerance so they can withstand global warming better than other crops. These versatile crops can grow in a wide range of agro-climatic zones because they have a wide adaptation window. They grow well in high altitudes and till recently formed the staple of all our Himalayan states. They grew equally

well in low-altitude areas like the plains of India until the Green Revolution came along and the pampered rice and wheat displaced them from farmers fields. In addition to these advantages, millets are highly nutritious, packed with micronutrients like vitamins, minerals like calcium, iron, magnesium, manganese and antioxidants. They are far more nutritious than rice and even wheat and corn and can play a strong part in alleviating the crippling malnutrition in our country.

However, getting millets into the mainstream supply of foodgrains will need more than awareness programmes. There arent simply enough millets being cultivated in India. According to the last available data from 2019-2020, the production figures for major millets, that is bajra (pearl millet) and jowar (sorghum), that has received far more attention than the smaller or minor millets, were 10.4 million tonnes and 4.8 million tonnes respectively. The production of minor millets is so little as to be practically invisible. The production figures for finger millet (ragi) together with all the other small millets like kodo, kutki, cheena, etc, add up to a measly 3.7 million tonnes. These figures clearly have to go up several fold if millets are to be taken seriously.

To achieve this, substantial research and development work is required in the small millets. Traditional landraces will need to be characterised and evaluated and new varieties will need to be developed that combine high yield with other properties like disease resistance and good storage capability. This can be best done using the well-established but little used method of Participatory Varietal Selection, or PVS, where farmers are involved in the selection and breeding process of developing suitable varieties. This works better than the top-down approach, where only scientists do the selection and breeding, because farmers select varieties matched to their requirements and knowledge of local cropping conditions.

The Gene Campaign has been conducting PVS trials with finger millet and barnyard millet in Uttarakhand. These have included the planting of traditional varieties sourced from farmers fields, varieties from the collections of the NBPGR (National Bureau of Plant Genetic Resources), Bhowali and varieties developed by the Vivekananda Parvatiya Krishi Anusandhan Sansthan, Almora. Farmers visit the trials at different stages and select varieties according to their preferences. For instance, they select smaller, sweeter grain varieties for self-consumption but bolder grains for marketing or larger, bushy plants if they are looking for green fodder.

In addition to breeding new varieties with a range of different properties, substantial amounts of good quality seed will have to be produced to create adequate seed stocks. Otherwise, where will you direct the farmer to procure good seeds when you promote millets? One of the bottlenecks in improving the production of many crops is the non-availability of good quality seeds.

Another aspect requiring attention is the processing equipment that is needed to convert the harvested seed to edible grains. Many minor millets have hard seed coats which need to be removed so machines will have to be developed for this. Like rice mills de-husk paddy and turn it into rice, machines will have to be developed to de-husk millets.

And finally, if millets are to compete with rice and wheat and become equally attractive for farmers, then a similar policy regime will have to be developed. This must include facilitated cultivation conditions, a government procurement programme and remunerative Minimum Support Prices (MSP).

Sloganeering and fancy nomenclature is not going to do it for Indias farmers. Calling it Shree Anna is no allurement and means nothing to the farmers. Ragi remains ragi and kodo remains kodo.
Data from Israels Defence Ministry show defence exports top US$ 12.5 billion. Accords partners represent about 25 per cent of the total. Sales jumped by 50 per cent over the previous three years. Asia-Pacific accounted for 30 per cent of sales, followed by Europe with 29 per cent.

Jerusalem (AsiaNews)  The "Abraham Accords" continue to fuel Israeli arms exports, with record sales to Gulf countries and Asia.

According to data from Israels Ministry of Defence, the Jewish state exported defence products worth more than US$ 12.5 billion in 2022, one quarter to the Arab countries (United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Morocco, Sudan) who signed the 2020 Abraham Accords sponsored by the former Trump administration.

Last year, former Israeli Defence Minister Benny Gantz boasted that the Accords were worth US$ 3 billion in sales to Arab countries. The latest data show that sales in 2022 jumped by 50 per cent over the previous three years, double over the previous decade.

Military drones accounted for 25 per cent of exports last year, followed by missiles, rockets and defence systems worth about 19 per cent.

Without providing names, ministry sources say that 24 per cent of exports went to Accords partners, with United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Bahrain at the top of the list. Overall, Asia-Pacific accounted for 30 per cent of sales, followed by Europe with 29 per cent, and North America with 11 per cent.

As a sign of a solid partnership, a senior Israeli naval officer was sent to Bahrain last year, while satellite images indicate that the UAE deployed Israeli Barak air defence systems.

Likewise, Elbit Systems, a leading Israeli defence technology company, plans to open two sites in Morocco, Israel's envoy to that country said last week. And the Israeli government is reportedly considering recognising Moroccan sovereignty over the disputed Western Sahara.

Despite recent tensions in the West Bank and the reluctance of Gulf nations to join a US-Israeli backed defence group dubbed the "Middle East NATO, booming arms sales show how ties between Israel and certain Arab states have progressed.

Still, growing defence-related business goes hand in hand with rising regional tensions. One senior Israeli military commander warned that Theres more chance of a large-scale war than ever before", particularly with Iran, Israels historic enemy.

Fears among Israeli leaders have been in fact growing in relation to a renewed nuclear deal between Washington and Tehran over the latters nuclear programme.

Last week, Middle East Eye suggested an interim deal that would see the Islamic Republic freeze its nuclear activities in exchange for the lifting of sanctions and allowing oil sales.

For his part, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is still trying to woo Saudi Arabia in order to normalise relations between the two countries, despite the kingdoms insistence on reaching a solution to the Palestinian question as a precondition for any diplomatic relations.

Riyadh is also more cautious about striking a deal since it started to loosen its alliance with Washington in order to build up its economic, diplomatic and military cooperation with Beijing.
by Vladimir Rozanskij

An archaeologist in Almaty for the past 15 years has been collecting tools, weapons and ammunition of all the peoples who passed through the Central Asian steppes, from the Sakis to the Kazakhs. And now he has recently opened the "Nomad" ethnographic center, visited by many Kazakhs fascinated by the chance to reconnect with the lifestyle of their ancestors.

Almaty (AsiaNews) - An archaeologist from Almaty, the great city of southern Kazakhstan, Stanislav Potapov, has published the results of his research and many excavations in the region, in which he was able to distinguish the types of weapons and various objects of the ancient nomads, who moved from the Asian steppes to the more attractive European plains.

From being a simple professor of history, Potapov gradually became engrossed in a passion for the evidence of the remotest past, setting out to study the traditions of horse and foot combat, which aroused the extraordinary military art of the Tatars and Cossacks at various times. For the past 15 years, the archaeologist has been collecting tools, weapons, and ammunition of all the peoples who passed through the Central Asian steppes, from the Sakis to the Kazakhs.

As a boy, Stanislav loved every variation of fencing, but he never thought it would become the main focus of his professional activities. That is, until he was able to participate with some of his colleagues in a very fortunate archaeological expedition, during which a large, well-preserved bronze plaque was found with the image of a Kangju warrior on it, an ancient population that had managed to unite several nomadic tribes in Central Asia, becoming for a couple of centuries the second power in Transoxiana after the Yuezhi.

Based on this discovery, research took a very intense turn, and the leather armor of the Saki and the iron armor of the Sarmatians also came to light. As Potapov explains, "the big difference between these pieces of equipment lay in their cost, which distinguished the Kongju, Kazakh and other warriors, and especially enhanced the figures of the leaders, whose armor was decorated, even with gold and silver details." Especially belts were embellished, the Turks preferring gold and the Kazakhs silver; the decorations to a great extent have been erased by time, but the materials are still in perfect condition.

Arranging the found armor proved to be a particularly delicate and expensive task, to be organized together with the National Museum of Kazakhstan, involving many experts and consultants in various historical and archaeological fields, as well as craftsmen in the art of forging.

Potapov's plans were enthusiastically supported by an entrepreneur, Zhandos Nurbekov, who has also been very attracted to local ancient history since his early youth. After succeeding in completing the first full set of equipment, the decision was made to open a real Nomad ethnographic center, which was recently inaugurated, allowing visitors to take a trip back in time, moving across the boundless steppes as they did in ancient nomadic times.

"At first we thought the facility would attract foreign tourists more than anything else, at most with educational tours for students," Nurbekov says, "and indeed this was the case, until operators, artisans and ordinary Kazakh citizens became involved, who were increasingly fascinated by the possibility of reconnecting with the very lifestyle and spirit of our ancestors.

Thanks to this initiative, in times of super-tech tanks and supersonic missiles, it has become a fashion in Kazakhstan to make home-made arrows of 40 grams each, like those found in excavations, perhaps only in plastic for the children to play with, or to decorate walls.

Potapov has also opened an "old-fashioned" fencing school next door to the Nomad Center, to teach history not only through theory, but also through the practice of arts and cultures of the past, in the hope that they will teach something for the present as well.
The pontiff's message for the World Day of the Poor (19 November) was released today, centred on the new faces of poverty: the children victims of war, the ethical confusion present in the world of labour, the speculations that compromise the dignity of every person, and the illusions created by a culture that leads young people to think that they are losers. Instead, the pontiff calls for a place around the table for the marginalised.

Vatican City (AsiaNews)  Pope Franciss message for the World Day of the Poor was released today, Memorial of Saint Anthony of Padua, Patron of the Poor.

This year, the annual event, which is celebrated every year on the Sunday before the feast of Jesus Christ, King of the Universe, will be held on Sunday, 19 November, marking the end of the Jubilee of Mercy.

In his message, the pontiff, who is still at the Gemelli Hospital convalescing from surgery he underwent on 7 June, urges the faithful not to look away from the poor.

For him Our daily efforts to welcome the poor are still not enough. A great river of poverty is traversing our cities and swelling to the point of overflowing; it seems to overwhelm us, so great are the needs of our brothers and sisters who plead for our help, support and solidarity.

To this end, we must, according to the pope, be guided by the biblical account of the Book of Tobit, especially Tobits invitation to his son, Tobiah, almost as a spiritual testament: Do not turn your face away from anyone who is poor (Tob 4:7).

These are the words from a man who, sitting at the table, invited Tobiah to find some poor soul among the deportees of Nineveh with whom he could share a meal.

How meaningful it would be if, on the Day of the Poor, this concern of Tobit were also our own! If we were to invite someone to share our Sunday dinner, after sharing in the Eucharistic table.

Instead, Tobiah finds a poor man killed and left in the market place and Tobit goes out to bury him, and in doing so he loses his sight.

An irony of fate: no good deed goes unpunished! That is what we are tempted to think, but faith teaches us to go more deeply. The blindness of Tobit was to become his strength, enabling him to recognize even more clearly the many forms of poverty all around him.

Tobit, in his time of trial, discovers his own poverty, which enables him to recognize others who are poor. He is faithful to Gods law and keeps the commandments, but for him this is not enough. He can show practical concern for the poor because he has personally known what it is to be poor.

This attitude is particularly timely today. We are living in times that are not particularly sensitive to the needs of the poor. The pressure to adopt an affluent lifestyle increases, while the voices of those dwelling in poverty tend to go unheard.

The poor become a film clip that can affect us for a moment, yet when we encounter them in flesh and blood on our streets, we are annoyed and look the other way.

But for the pontiff, The parable of the Good Samaritan is not simply a story from the past; it continues to challenge each of us in the here and now of our daily lives. It is easy to delegate charity to others, yet the calling of every Christian is to become personally involved.

This ought to be done, according to the pope, with people caught up in war, especially children deprived of the serene present and a dignified future. We should never grow accustomed to such situations.

But there is more. No one should ignore those forms of speculation in various sectors, which have led to dramatic price increases that further impoverish many families. Earnings are quickly spent, forcing sacrifices that compromise the dignity of every person.

If a family has to choose between food for nourishment and medical care, then we need to pay attention to the voices of those who uphold the right to both goods in the name of the dignity of the human person.

Speaking about the ethical confusion present in the world of labour, Francis bemoans the inadequate pay for work done; the scourge of job insecurity; the excessive number of accident-related deaths, often the result of a mentality that chooses quick profit over a secure workplace

Likewise, he laments the angst and the illusions created by a culture that leads young people to think that they are losers, good for nothing. Instead, Let us help them react to these malign influences and find ways to help them grow into self-assured and generous men and women.

Warning against the temptation of reducing everyone to a statistics or a number, he notes that the poor are people too, that they have faces, stories, hearts and souls. They are our brothers and sisters, with good points and bad, like all of us, and it is important to enter into a personal relation with each of them.

Pope Francis concludes by quoting Saint Therese of the Child Jesus on the 150th anniversary of her birth, when she says: I have come to realize that charity must not remain locked in the depths of ones heart.

Instead, for the Holy Father, In this house of ours, which is the world, everyone has a right to experience the light of charity; no one must be deprived of that light.

May the steadfast love of Saint Therese stir our hearts on this World Day of the Poor, and help us not to turn our face away from anyone who is poor, but to keep it always focused on the human and divine face of Jesus Christ our Lord.
by John Ai

Washington announces measures against Chinese and foreign companies for training military pilots and contributing to weapons development. Recruitment of military retirees from NATO countries in use for more than a decade. On the eve of Secretary of State Blinken's trip, expected in Beijing June 18, White House concern over spy base in Cuba.

Beijing (AsiaNews) - The United States has imposed new sanctions on companies that Washington says are contributing to China in training military pilots and aiding in research and development of new weaponry.

The administration of U.S. Democratic President Joe Biden released a list containing 43 names in China and other foreign nations that will be added to the list of those already under export controls, including a pilot school in South Africa. Companies on the sanctioned list have limits and constraints on purchasing goods exported from the U.S. for activities deemed contrary to the U.S. national interest.

One pilot school, the Test Flying Academy of South Africa, has been placed on the U.S. list of sanctioned companies. The center had long been under the lens of the London government because it allegedly on several occasions recruited retired British military pilots, who would then put Chinese military colleagues through training sessions. Analysts and experts believe that Beijing's recruitment of pilots from the Atlantic Alliance (NATO) dates back more than a decade and has continued over time.

German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius met with his Chinese counterpart Li Shangfu earlier this month, taking the opportunity to urge Beijing to stop the practice, particularly with regard to the recruitment of retired pilots from Germany's military.

In addition, the Berlin-based intelligence agency claims that the retired pilots would also be responsible for passing on to the rival country military skills and tactics that could come in handy later for China to attack Taiwan.

The British Defense Ministry has found that 30 military experts, including some who have flown sophisticated fighter jets, have been hired to train fellow Chinese People's Liberation Army (Pla) members, often behind lucrative contracts. Authorities in Lodra fear the practice could threaten national security and have stepped up cooperation with allies to stop the hiring scheme by China.

With this in mind comes news of the arrest of former U.S. fighter pilot Daniel Edmund Duggan, who was detained in Australia for training Chinese military pilots last year. Duggan was also charged by the U.S. with giving instructions on tactics, techniques and procedures associated with launching and landing on an aircraft carrier, violating arms trafficking laws.

A security and aviation company, Frontier Services Group, is also on the list. A company previously led by Blackwater founder Erik Prince.

A number of Chinese entities are listed for acquiring raw materials originating in the United States for China's military modernization, such as the development of hypersonic weapons.

Two Chinese companies are sanctioned for allegedly providing technology to Beijing's top leadership to monitor Uighurs and other ethnic groups in Xinjiang. In this regard, the Chinese government denies allegations of systematic human rights violations and the use of re-education camps in Xinjiang. This is a routine denial, which clashes with the much evidence provided in this regard by international ngos and activist groups.

Beijing has criticized the sanctions imposed by the United States, and Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin urged the other side to "stop abusing export control measures." The U.S. Secretary of State is expected to visit the Chinese capital on Sunday, June 18.

The White House has expressed concern about the Chinese espionage base in Cuba, announced just on the eve of Antony Blinken's visit to Beijing, the main purpose of which is to mitigate the risk of confrontation between the two powers after the frictions (if not clashes) of recent months.

The long-planned trip was postponed in February after the United States shot down a Chinese spy balloon. Another piece in the complicated mosaic of relations between the two nations, which for many experts and analysts are at their lowest level in years.
As announced this morning by the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) "in accordance with the directives of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Salman bin Abdulaziz al-Saud, (..) Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz (..) left today, Wednesday, for the French Republic on an official visit".

During his official visit, the Saudi prince will meet privately with French President Emmanuel Macron, with whom he intends to improve bilateral diplomatic relations. Mohammed bin Salman will also lead the Saudi Arabian delegation to the summit for "A New Global Financial Compact" to be held in France on 22-23 June, which has been primarily promoted by French President Macron to discuss and adopt a new framework for global financial cooperation.

Another stop on this visit will be the official reception organised by the Kingdom to support Riyadh's bid to host the 2030 World Expo. Riyadh's candidacy is somewhat controversial, especially for humanitarian associations, which have already urged the Bureau International des Expositions (BIE) to exclude Riyadh from the competition due to its lack of respect for human rights and its legality of torture and the death penalty. However, many states in the international community, such as Morocco and the Dominican Republic, have supported this request. The Alawi kingdom was one of the first to back the decision due to the constant and mutual support between the two kingdoms because of the cultural and historical ties that unite them. Likewise, the Caribbean country supports the candidacy because of the "opportunity it represents to strengthen ties of collaboration and investment".

AFP/FAYEZ NURELDINE - Saudi Arabia's crown prince Mohammed bin Salman

For the host country, Expo 2030 is the perfect scenario to promote its key strategic axes for its economic development. Saudi Arabia wants to showcase itself as one of the world leaders and showcase its capacity and trillion-dollar investment opportunities thanks to its Vision 2030 Plan, which seeks to diversify the economy, so that it does not depend exclusively on oil, and to increase it. Riyadh is planning the world fair from 1 October 2030 to 1 April 2031 under the theme "The Era of Change: Taking the Planet to a Foresightful Tomorrow". However, of all the countries that have put themselves forward as potential hosts, the winner is between Rome (Italy), Riyadh (Saudi Arabia) and Busan (South Korea).

The Saudi leader's attendance at the finance summit convened by Macron highlights the intention to foster collaboration with other states on international issues, marking the relevance of the Arab countries in the region in the geopolitical strategic landscape and which are positioning themselves above some European countries.
ISS crossed a sunspot that is massive enough to swallow two Earths.

Rare images showing this were captured by a French astrophotographer named Thierry Legault. He said that he had to travel around six hours from his home just to go to the Netherlands.

"For the occasion, I drove 6 hours from home to go to the Netherlands where a transit happened one hour after the spacewalk started," said Legault via Universe Today.

ISS Crosses Massive Sunspot Big Enough to Swallow 2 Earths!

According to Business Insider's latest report, Thierry was able to capture the rare photos of the giant spot and ISS during a spacewalk conducted by NASA astronauts Warren "Woody" Hoburg and Stephen Bowen.

Read Also: James Webb Detects Massive 6000-Mile-Long Water Plume Blasting Out From Saturn's Moon Enceladus

The International Space Station cast its shadow across three sets of sunspots; one of these is so big is it could swallow two Earths.

To take the rare astrophotography images, Legault used his 220-pound telescope. Taking these images wasn't an easy task since NASA's space laboratory can travel at around 17,500 mph.

ISS is estimated to circle around the Earth every 90 minutes. However, it only spends less than one second in front of the sun.

So, capturing an HD image of the ISS in front of the sun is already a big feat for Thierry.

"I caught the ISS passing just in front of the biggest sunspot, in a 0.6-second transit at the speed of 27000 km/h!" said the French astrophotographer via his official Twitter post.

If you want to see his official ISS images and his video, you can click on his official Twitter content below.

So many sunspots currently!

Today I estimated the position of the main sunspot group, I tried to place myself on the corresponding transit line...and I caught the ISS passing just in front of the biggest sunspot, in a 0.6 second transit at the speed of 27000 km/h!  pic.twitter.com/t2hOk4cdrv  Thierry Legault (@ThierryLegault) June 6, 2023

Oops, I did it again! This time from Netherlands, during Steve Bowen & Woody Hoburg spacewalk.



The full solar transit lasted 0.75 second  Single shot at 1/32000s with the OM-1 on the CFF200 apo and Herschel wedge: I never make ISS transits from stackings or assemblies! pic.twitter.com/IWO5K4Lqv2  Thierry Legault (@ThierryLegault) June 10, 2023

Fun Facts About Sunspots

There's no denying that sunspots are one of the most interesting space phenomena.

If you are one of the individuals intrigued by these dark spots on the sun's surface, here are some fun facts about them:

Sunspots were first observed telescopically in 1610 AD.

A sunspot is only temporary on the sun's surface. Some of the only last for days or weeks.

Usually, a sunspot cycle lasts for 11 years. After that, their numbers will decrease.

Sunspots that are gathered in one region are called the "Active Region" or a "sunspot group."

Some sunspots, such as the one captured by Legault, can be larger than Earth. Meanwhile, other sunspots can be very small that telescopic observations can't easily see them.

To learn more fun facts about sunspots, just visit this link.

Related Article: Astronomers Watch Dying Star Swallow Planet for the First Time, Seeing Earth's Potential Fate

@ 2023 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
NHTSA Tells Automakers Not to Comply with Massachusetts Right to Repair Law

Published June 14, 2023

The National Highway and Transportation Safety Authority (NHTSA) on June 13 sent a letter to 22 automakers, telling them not to comply with a Right to Repair law recently enacted in Massachusetts, citing "significant safety concerns."

"While NHTSA has stressed that it is important for consumers to continue to have the ability to choose where to have their vehicles serviced and repaired, consumers must be afforded choice in a manner that does not pose an unreasonable risk to motor vehicle safety," the NHTSA said in the letter.

The law requires automakers to allow access to their vehicles' data, so owners can get them fixed by independent repairers if they choose, rather than be forced to go to dealership service centers.

It was first approved by Massachusetts voters in 2020, but delayed for years by a lawsuit brought by the Alliance for Automotive Innovation, a trade group representing automakers. Finally, in March, Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell announced she would begin enforcing the law June 1, despite the lack of a decision in the federal lawsuit. A last-minute motion to block the enforcement by the Alliance for Automotive Innovation was denied.

The letter from the NHTSA claims the Massachusetts law is in conflict with and is therefore preempted by the Safety Act, which requires automakers to initiate a recall of vehicles that contain a safety defect---which, according to the NHTSA, includes the open remote access to vehicle telematics required by the state law.

"Open access to vehicle manufacturers telematics offerings with the ability to remotely send commands allows for manipulation of systems on a vehicle, including safety-critical functions such as steering, acceleration or braking, as well as equipment required by Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards such as air bags and electronic stability control," the NHTSA said. "A malicious actor here or abroad could utilize such open access to remotely command vehicles to operate dangerously, including attacking multiple vehicles concurrently.

"Vehicle crashes, injuries or deaths are foreseeable outcomes of such a situation," the NHTSA said.

The Massachusetts Right to Repair Coalition released a statement condemning the NHTSA's letter, calling it the "latest auto manufacturers' stall tactic."

"On behalf of 2 million voters and thousands of independent auto repair shops across Massachusetts, we are outraged by the unsolicited, unwarranted and counterproductive letter from NHTSA that conflicts with the Department of Justices statement submitted two years ago in federal court stating that there was no federal preemption," said Tommy Hickey, executive director of the Right to Repair Coalition. "NHTSAs letter is irresponsible, having been transmitted without any new evidence and after the conclusion of the federal trial, despite having been asked by the judge to participate in the court proceeding and declining.

"NHTSAs letter fails to acknowledge the evidence and testimony presented at the trial that demonstrated the viability and security of an open access platform," Hickey continued. "This is yet another delay tactic the manufacturers are using to thwart the will of their customers, Massachusetts voters who voted 75-25 in favor of their right to get their car repaired where they choose. The FTC, the Biden Administration and many members of Congress have all come out in support of Right To Repair."
SUV

OK, maybe that was an uncalled sucker punch related to Ferrari's triumphant return to the 24 hours of Le Mans endurance race to 'steal' Toyota's sixth consecutive win in the prototype class from under its GR nose. But as far as street affairs are concerned, there is probably no company keeping up with their introduction cadence, at least not in America.Just a few examples: the S235 Crown's return as a crossover-style sedan, the arrival of the Prius 'Hybrid Reborn' including in 220-hp plug-in Prime form, the switch from subcompact C-HR goodies to larger 2023 Corolla Cross Hybrid CUV greatness, the upcoming Corolla Nightshade family, or the big kahunas like the 2024 Grand Highlander family-oriented three-row crossoverplus the Trailhunter-focused and i-Force Max-equipped 2024 Toyota Tacoma.And when Toyota's namesake brand took a moment of pause to regain its composure after running around the red carpet with so many superstars, Lexus immediately took over the spotlight for its first-ever 2024 TX (sibling to Grand Highlander) and the universally acclaimed third iteration of the GX series. Oh, and let us not forget that Toyota just teased the fabled Land Cruiser moniker's return to the US market!But how about the rest of the world? Doesn't it deserve a bit of attention, too? Well, Lexus has presented its smallest crossover model to date, the first-ever LBX (also a Toyota twin, sharing its DNA with the Yaris Cross Hybrid). And Toyota will soon unleash the second-gen C-HR crossover while the Land Cruiser teaser campaign also applies to the Old Continent, as well! Still want more of Toyota's new models? Well, then, we need some suspension of disbelief and a little help from the imaginative realm of digital car content creators.As such, here are the good folks over at the MV Auto info channel on YouTube (you need the CC option to be activated for the translation) discussing and imagining the all-new Toyota Land Cruiser. No, not the J300 version, which has roamed across certain regions for over two years already, but rather its smaller sibling, the Land Cruiser Prado. Tentatively called Land Cruiser 250 (after its potential code  J250), this could be the same model that reaches both North America and Europe as the slightly more affordable alternative to the all-new 2024 Lexus GX 550.Naturally, that means the resident pixel master didn't strive for a complete departure from the fresh Lexus GX styling  and instead only changed some crucial bits and pieces, like the front fascia or the rear design plus the taillights. Interestingly, they're not the only ones enamored with Toyota across the vast expanses of the CGI parallel universes. Thus, here is also Dimas Ramadhan, the virtual automotive artist behind the Digimods DESIGN channel on YouTube, who has taken up the task of revealing an all-new Fortuner mid-size SUV - also in CGI and with some ample inspiration from the latest GX.So, which one do you like better? The all-new GX-related Toyota Land Cruiser Prado (or 250) that's probably set to come to both North America and Europe or the GX-inspired Toyota Fortuner (also known as the SW4) that is usually twinned with the Toyota Hilux international pickup truck platform?
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kWh

Back in May, Rimac had more news to share than ever before  it introduced the world to Rimac Energy, their Europe-created "cutting-edge" stationary energy storage technology, appointed a new partner to handle its UAE affairs, and also nailed the first UK customer car delivery alongside 23 performance car world records. And the latter also included the critical zero to 249 mph (400 kph) and back to zero benchmark, by the way, with a time of 29.93s.However, as it turns out, they are not slowing down in June, even though automakers usually dwindle in terms of novelties during the hot summer months. Instead, the company again grew its dealer network with a new collaboration in Switzerland, Europe. They also offer an alternative to paying millions to own one of just 150 Nevera examples that will be produced. As such, the Rimac hypercar has become available as a diecast 1/64th-scale Hot Wheels model developed by Mattel. The "revolutionary 1,914-hp all-electric hypercar" is also not sad to be so small, even though it was dressed in the vehicle's official Riviera Blue hue.And now, at long last (they say it's always better late than never, right?), the first Rimac Nevera customer car also arrived in the United States and was handed out in a small ceremony by Rimac's New York-based dealer, Manhattan Motorcars, alongside members of the Rimac Automobili team. America is the company's "most sought-after market in the world," so many other US-bound cars are currently in production or awaiting their production slot. However, don't expect this one to be as flashy as a Bugatti, for example.Instead, the first US-based example of the zero-emissions hypercar was dressed in Gunpowder Gray with a pearlescent finish. At the same time, gloss black brake calipers carefully contrasted with matching Gunmetal Infinitus wheels. Inside the cockpit, the atmosphere is highlighted in Alcantara, plus some subtle green trim accents. As a reminder, the Rimac Nevera is equipped with four electric motors for a combined output of 1,914 ponies and 1,714 lb-ft (2,324 Nm), making it one of the most powerful cars in the world, not just from theestablishment.It draws energy from a 120-Lithium Manganese Nickel battery pack and might achieve a maximum range of up to 300 miles (490 km) if not for the little devil on the driver's right shoulder urging to check out if Rimac was indeed right with those records. By the way, the latter include the zero to 60 mph (96 kph) time of 1.74s, zero to 62 mph (100 kph) in 1.81s, the quarter-mile ET of 8.25s and a standing mile threshold of 20.59s, among others. Now, all we have to do is wait and hope someone will dare bring the Rimac Nevera to the local dragstrip for a few passes
Wind tunnels have come a long way since they began being used to optimize vehicles. For the all-new Ford Mustang Dark Horse, a state-of-the-art Rolling Road Wind Tunnel (RRWT) was utilized to refine the machine's aerodynamics.

Photo: Ford

Ford's latest RRWT technology was combined with the equivalent of a vehicle-sized treadmill to develop the American brand's next-gen production vehicles, including electric, hybrid, and gas cars. The RRWT can simulate wind and road surface speeds of 200 mph (322 kph). Moreover, John Toth, the North America Wind Tunnels Engineering Supervisor, explained that the wind tunnel moves an enormous amount of air, enough to fill a K-Class blimp in a little over 5 seconds.Besides the immense power, one critical benefit of the RRWT is that it offers more accurate data regarding wind drag and downforce than older wind tunnel designs. These factors are essential in finetuning a vehicle's range and efficiency. Furthermore, simulating open-road conditions can help decrease design costs, as well as accelerate the design process."But why place the vehicle on a treadmill?" you might ask. If the wheels and tires move during testing , engineers can have more realistic aerodynamic results. That's especially important for track-ready vehicles like the Mustang Dark Horse, which must have an ideal balance between aerodynamic drags and downforce.The treadmill is a new five-belt rolling road system replicating real-world drag. It enables Ford to, as the company describes, "bring the road to the vehicle, rather than the vehicle to the road." Each wheel has its belt, while a large fifth belt runs underneath the center of the vehicle. Ford uses a crane to switch between the five-belt and single-belt systems.One of the first of many vehicles to be tested in this wind tunnel is the Mustang Dark Horse . When dealing with passenger vehicles and trucks, Ford aims to achieve low drag, making the cars more effective. On the other hand, for machines such as the Mustang Dark Horse, aerodynamicists trade low drag for more downforce. This way, the cars can stick to the road or track, enhancing handling when cornering.The 2024 Mustang Dark Horse comes with several upgrades that enable its high performance. It features a redesigned front bumper, a lower valence, a spoiler, and unique wheels. What's more, the front design increased airflow for engine cooling, brakes, and air intake while reducing front lift.A lower-positioned spoiler and splitter offer greater downforce; customers can also opt for the upgraded handling package, fitting the Dark Horse with a unique splitter, spoiler, and wheels. Even though these changes might seem insignificant, if you're looking to gain that extra edge when hitting the road or track, these improvements will make a difference.Around 250 hours were spent in the wind tunnel developing the 2024 Ford Mustang , including the Dark Horse. Jonathan Gesek, Program Aerodynamicist for the Mustang and Bronco, prides the Mustang Dark Horse as the most track- and street-capable 5.0-liter Mustang to date, partly due to its finely tuned aerodynamics.
Google keeps working on refining the experience with Android Auto, and despite remaining completely tight-lipped on its current focus, the company regularly ships new updates to both beta and production channels.

This week, the Mountain View-based search giant released the very first build of the 9.8 branch. A beta build is now available for testers, giving them enough time to try out everything before the stable version starts rolling out to users.As per Google's typical approach, Android Auto 9.8 comes without a changelog, but this isn't necessarily a surprise. This is something that Google has been doing for quite some time, and while it's extremely frustrating because users have no idea what new updates are supposed to do, installing the latest versions is still recommended.Back in January, Google kicked off the rollout of Coolwalk , one of the biggest overhauls in Android Auto's history. Thanks to the new UI, users can run multiple apps side-by-side on the same screen regardless of the display size.Coolwalk divides the interface into multiple cards, and each card is assigned to an app category. Navigation apps and audio players, which are typically considered must-have tools for the modern driver, have their own place on the Coolwalk screen.Since January, Google has been working non-stop on addressing bugs in Coolwalk . One such issue causes the lower part of the screen to freeze shortly after launch. Users claim that tapping the on-screen buttons and switching to another app is impossible, as the entire touch input is blocked on half of the Coolwalk interface.As such, most of the latest Android Auto updates have been aimed at polishing the Coolwalk experience, though without a changelog, it's still impossible to tell if any major bugs have been squashed already. It's also unclear if Android Auto 9.8 resolves any important problems, such as the screen freezing error on Coolwalk.The beta build is only aimed at testers and power users who understand the risks of running pre-release software. Beta updates typically come with an increased likelihood of bugs, as Google ships these builds specifically to receive feedback from its testers on what to polish before the production release starts. As a result, you shouldnt install an Android Auto beta build on your daily driver, as you might eventually come across bugs that make it impossible to use the app.If you still want to give it a try, downloading the APK file manually is the only option unless you're part of the beta program. To do this, head over to this page and download Android Auto 9.8 on your device. After that, browse to the location of the file on the smartphone and tap the installer  just make sure you give it the right permission during the update.
For upwards of four decades, the Boeing 747 was pound for pound the largest, most capable, and the most iconic wide-body, quad-engine airliner the world had ever seen. Though Airbus' A380 may have may have stolen the "Seven-Four's" thunder as the world's largest airliner, it's hard to say the Airbus had anywhere near the same impact on the global aviation space. So who in their right mind would consider thinking, "The 747 would be even better if we made it smaller." Evidently, someone at Boeing did. This is the story of the 747SP.

Photo: U.S. Federal Archives

Photo: NASA

But to understand why Boeing even considered down-sizing the world's largest airliner, we need to understand what the commercial aviation space looked like back in the early 1970s. Back in those days, the 747-100 was just beginning to usher in the age of the wide-body airliner to the masses. In service with iconic airlines like TWA and Pan Am, the 747 could ferry more people to places farther away than some in the day could even fathom. In one trip, the jet could carry upwards of 350 passengers in excess of 5,300 miles (4,620 nmi, 8,560 km) thanks to four massive Pratt & Whitney JT9D turbofan engines.By the middle of the 70s, the 747 was already heralded as a halo vehicle for the entire commercial airline space. But by galavanting high-paying passengers across the globe in luxury and comfort, the 747 found itself catering to various niche markets. One route that caught Boeing's eye was a particularly lucrative route planned by Pan Am from major hubs in the U.S. like New York-JFK to Tehran, Iran. Though it might shock younger people who only know Iran as adversarial to the West, it might be surprising to know Iran once welcomed American travelers.In the opposite direction, Imperial Iran's national airline Iran Air also wished to begin direct flights between New York-JFK airport and Tehran. Even the standard 747-100 would struggle to manage a jaunt of that size in one go. For a brief period, this route was even the longest in the world by length. But by eliminating a great deal of weight by downsizing the airframe, the 747SP could fly places no other airliner in the world could manage on a single tank of fuel. By shortening a standard 747 airframe, Boeing also managed to bridge the gap between the colossal 747-100 and smaller wide-body jets like the Lockheed TriStar and the Douglas DC-10. In the days before the bespoke Boeing 767 hit the market, a smaller 747 derivative was Boeing's best bet to fill this market space.Dubbed the 747 "Special Performance," this novel bird wasn't a simple 747-100 with 47 feet (14 m) lopped off its tail. It was a completely new airframe with fewer cabin doors, simplified single-slot flaps, smaller ailerons, and a significantly taller vertical tail compared in proportion to its size than the 747-100. With a maximum takeoff weight of 700,000 lb (317,500 kg), including passengers and cargo, the 747SP was still a seriously capable aerial transport. All in all, the 747SP undercut the average 747-100/200 by 45,000 lbs (20,411 kg). As for engines, two options were available on the 747SP. These would be the same Pratt & Whitney JT9Ds found in early-model 747-100s or the Rolls-Royce RB211.With a monumental range of 7,650 miles (12,320 km, 6,650 nm), the 747SP could manage to travel routes that airliners like the TriStar and the DC-10 simply couldn't. All while cruising at roughly 90 percent the speed of sound and using less fuel because of its smaller size. In one instance, Boeing test pilots managed to fly the 747SP at a scarcely believable 0.92 times the speed of sound, effectively the knife edge of supersonic. Despite being smaller than the normal 747, the SP could still carry up to 400 passengers in a single-class configuration and roughly 240 passengers with multi-level seating ranging from economy to first class.When it was all said and done, 45 747SPs were manufactured by Boeing, with the first deliveries commencing in 1976. Though Pan Am initially placed an order for at least 25 747SP airframes, this was ultimately cut down to a mere ten examples. Though one final example was manufactured for a customer in the United Arab Emirates in 1986, it's clear the 747SP didn't generate much of a profit for Boeing, if at all.This production figure was the exact number estimated by the company needed in order to break even, but far below the 200 or so airframes Boeing estimated the market demanded. At the same time, newer, more efficient twin-engine, wide-body airliners like the Boeing 767 and the Airbus A300 series continued to cannibalize market shares that, had they not existed, the 747SP could have used as a lifeline to make the airliner generate a profit. With these circumstances in mind, the 747SP never really stood a chance in hindsight.Though not a smash hit by most ostensible measures, the 747SP did have at least one famous application. That of the platform for NASA's Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) telescope platform. By removing the interior of a single 747SP (serial number 21441) and mounting a high-sensitivity infrared telescope in the rear of the fuselage, NASA could conduct in-depth research on the intricacies of space-based telescope systems without launching a single satellite.In its 12 years of service between 2010 and 2022, the lessons learned with the SOFIA helped NASA prepare to work with infrared telescopes of ever-increasing size and capability. It's in no small part, thanks to SOFIA, that billion-dollar infrared telescopes like the James Webb Space Telescope continue to operate flawlessly in service today. Though the most famous 747SP is now retired from service, it did at least serve as a fitting book-end for what's become one of the most interesting curiosities of the golden age of wide-body quad-jets. Today, only a handful of 747SPs remain in service with global cargo carriers. So if you look up in the sky one day and find one flying overhead, just know how rare and special what you just saw truly is.
At least 59 people have died, and dozens are feared missing after a fishing boat capsized off the coast of southern Greece early Wednesday morning.

Authorities said all the fishing boat passengers were migrants from the Tobruk area in eastern Libya attempting to sail towards Italy when the boat capsized some 75 kilometers (46 miles) southwest of Greece's southern Peloponnese region.

According to the Hellenic Coast Guard, 59 bodies were recovered at sea, and around 104 people were rescued, with dozens more feared to be unaccounted for. Unconfirmed early estimates mention there were hundreds of migrants on board the capsized boat when it sailed off Libya.

A task force of six coast guard vessels, a Hellenic Navy frigate, several private boats, and a handful of planes, helicopters, and drones were taking part in the search.

Read Also: Wedding Boat Capsizes in Nigeria, Killing Hundreds of Passengers

Dozens of rescued migrants were taken to sheltered areas at the southern Greek port of Kalamata, where the UN Refugee Agency has set up stations for dry clothes and medical attention.

Libyan authorities have been rounding up migrants earlier this month across eastern Libya. Activists said several thousand migrants from several countries had been detained and deported accordingly. While Egyptian migrants were deported back to their home country through a land crossing point, Syrians, Sudanese, and Pakistanis have also been detained in their attempt to leave their troubled homelands for Europe.

Mediterranean smugglers have increasingly taken larger boats into international waters off the Greek mainland to avoid local coast guard patrols.

The incident was the third time the Hellenic Coast Guard responded to a distress call within their maritime areas. On Sunday (June 11), 90 migrants on a US-flagged yacht were rescued within the same area after making a distress call. In a separate incident Wednesday, a yacht with 81 migrants on board was towed to a port on the island of Crete's southern coast after authorities received a distress call.

This is a developing story.

Related Article: Italy's Coastguard Rescues 1,200 Migrants Aboard Boats

@ 2023 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Based on the Giorgio Sport platform derived from Alfa Romeo's primordial Giorgio, the GranTurismo combines Italian sophistication with the performance of a grand tourer from one of the world's most celebrated automotive brands. Maserati has a long history of GTs, dating back to the A6 line introduced by Maserati at the 1947 Geneva Motor Show.

Produced through 1956, the A6 came with either a 1.5- or a 2.0-liter sixer. The GranTurismo is no longer available with the naturally-aspirated V8 engines of the first generation, but a twin-turbocharged V6 the Modenese marque calls Nettuno.Revealed in January 2023, the GranTurismo PrimaSerie 75th Anniversary Launch Edition is now en route to North America in extremely limited numbers. Only 75 units will be made, and those interested in buying one cannot simply hop on the build & price tool to configure the PrimaSerie as they fancy.Maserati has reserved 50 units for the US and Canada, with all of them configured in Grigio Lamiera Matte with red accents. Elsewhere in the world, the special edition  which should have been called 76th, considering the year the A6 series came out  can also be had in Nero Cometa with green exterior details.The gray-painted cars for the United States are based on the so-called Trofeo, which used to stand for V8 muscle back in the good ol' days when Ferrari's influence over Maserati was pretty obvious. In this case, Trofeo means a little more grunt for the 3.0-liter V6. The ZF-supplied automatic transmission with eight forward ratios, as well as the all-wheel-drive system, are shared between the entry-level Modena and Trofeo grades.In regard to numbers, Maserati quotes 3.7 and 3.3 seconds to 60 miles per hour (97 kilometers per hour). Top speed ranges between 188 and 199 miles per hour (302 and 320 kilometers per hour), which is more than impressive for a six-cylinder mill and a vehicle this heavy. The GranTurismo Modena tips the scales at 1,795 kgs (3,957 lbs) in European specification.Care to guess how much oomph the Nettuno actually packs? Touted as 100 percent Maserati even though it certainly isn't a 100 percent in-house design, the force-fed sixer makes 483 horsepower (490 ps) and 443 pound-feet (600 Nm). Level up to the Trofeo, which you must if you're in the market for the PrimaSerie, and you're looking at 542 ponies (550 ps) on full song. Torque also improves to 479 pound-feet (650 Nm).More of a visual package rather than a truly special edition, the PrimaSerie 75th Anniversary Launch Edition makes no excuses about its flashy interior. Black-and-white leather upholstery, red stitching, Neptune's trident, and 75th Anniversary embroidered in all four headrests; you name it! Maserati hasn't revealed the sticker price of the North America-bound PrimaSerie, though. It's definitely more than a bone-stock GranTurismo Trofeo, which retails at a scarcely believable $205,000 compared to $174,000 for the base Modena.
HVAC

kW

PHEV

Courtesy of the audacepulse, which released a couple of images and a short video of the small pickup on social media a few days ago, we have checked that box, too. The vehicle was spotted sitting in an underground parking lot, presumably somewhere in Brazil, looking ready to take on its hauling duties.There are a few differences to the Rampage shown in Rams teasers, as this one has body-colored bumpers for one. Decorated by what seems to be an R/T logo, the grille is also different, and the black cladding on the lower parts of the body was painted red, just like the rest of the exterior. The wheels are also new, and they sport a black finish here.The cockpit has only partially opened to the camera , revealing the rotary gear selector, multi-function steering wheel, Ram-branded leather seats, and widescreen infotainment system. The display incorporates many functions of the pickup and will be used to control thesystem, among others. Nevertheless, the large display and the leather upholstery will likely be reserved for the upper specs. Ram also spoke of suede-like material wrapped around the door cards.Sharing its underpinnings with the Jeep Compass, the Ram Rampage will pack a 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder gasoline unit. In the Wrangler, this mill develops 270 hp (274 ps/201) and 295 lb-ft (400 Nm) of torque. Nevertheless, the new small truck's output and thrust could differ. Unofficial sources speak of a possible diesel engine, namely a 2.2-liter turbocharged unit, though this one has yet to be confirmed. The same goes for the alleged plug-in hybrid offering that will reportedly join the powertrain family.A potentialsounds like a great option for the United States. But will it actually launch in our market? Several outlets certainly believe so and quoted undisclosed insiders with knowledge of Stellantis' plans. The Rampage might launch in the US of A as early as later this year as a Ford Maverick rival, and chances are it will be available north of the border, in Canada  or that would be the logical step, anyway.Production of the Ram Rampage will take place in Brazil. However, to avoid the chicken tax, if it ends up selling stateside, then it might also be made in Mexico, supposedly at the Toluca plant, where the mechanically-related Jeep Compass comes to life. Are you excited about a possible US launch of the Rampage? And do you like the design?
Tesla will again have a presence at a Chinese auto show after the 2021 Shanghai Auto Show started with a dramatic event. The American EV maker will attend the 2023 Shenzhen Auto Show on June 16, and rumor has it that the refreshed Model 3 could be the show's star.

EV

Auto Shows have become less and less popular with carmakers in the past year, and the pandemic dealt a fatal blow to what once was an excellent opportunity to introduce new models to the public. Over the years, the internet and the high costs of an auto show presence have made many companies consider other channels to promote their products. That's when traditional motor shows tried to reinvent themselves, although this didn't bring all the carmakers back.While the Western auto shows lost popularity and some disappeared, similar events in China became more glamorous each year. This success attracted the attention of Western carmakers, which started launching their newest models at auto shows in China. The trend emphasizes the importance that the Chinese market gained over the years, sometimes surpassing other established markets.Given the high associated costs, Tesla wasn't a fan of auto shows. Themarket leader preferred to organize its own events for launching new products. But that doesn't mean it never attended an auto show. It did it several times and will probably do it again if it considers it appropriate. Chinese media confirms that Tesla will attend this year's Shenzhen Auto Show on June 16, its first Chinese auto show presence since April 2021.Back then, the 2021 Shanghai Auto Show turned into a PR disaster for Tesla. On the first day of the show, a woman climbed on the roof of a Model 3 and accused Tesla of brake failure. Since that day, the dispute has continued in court , and although Tesla cleared many claims of brake failure, the taint will remain forever. Tesla refrained from attending another auto show in China ever since, including this year's Shanghai Auto Show in April.If you're wondering what makes the Shenzhen Auto Show different, we have no idea. As Tesla headquarters are in Shanghai, a presence at the local show made more sense. The only thing that could explain the decision to go to Shenzhen is the imminent launch of the refreshed Model 3 production at Giga Shanghai. Showcasing the Project Highland Model 3 during the Auto Show would be a PR opportunity.Still, Tesla is usually organizing its own events for new product launches. Back in 2019, when Tesla attended the Shanghai Auto Show, it didn't have the just-launched Model Y on display. Still, Model Y wasn't in production at the time, and Giga Shanghai was still a work in progress. The situation is different with Project Highland. Multiple sources confirmed that the production at Giga Shanghai is underway, making the Zhenzhen auto show the perfect opportunity to launch the refreshed model.
Last December, Tesla delivered the first Semi trucks to PepsiCo three years later than planned. Tesla Semi is still produced in limited numbers, and Musk explained recently that he expects this to continue until the end of next year. The reason? There aren't enough battery cells to build the Semi in significant numbers.

EV

In April, Tesla announced boosting its energy storage battery production with a new production facility in Shanghai. The ability to produce more Megapack storage batteries was seen as an indication that Tesla now has more battery cells than it needs forproduction. Plummeting lithium prices and improved battery cell yields were likely to cause an abundance of cells. Switching energy-storage batteries to lithium-iron-phosphate (LFP) cells should also free more ternary-cell capacity for vehicle production.The 4680-cell production was believed to have increased as Tesla started selling the Model Y with these cells. Still, all these assumptions were proven wrong by Elon Musk in a speech at an energy conference in Austin, Texas. Tesla CEO said he doesn't expect Semi production to reach larger volumes until late 2024, although he didn't elaborate on what he considers "higher-volume production." Musk cited battery cell supply constraints for the delay in Semi production ramp.Tesla Semi is a niche product, even for Tesla, but Musk sees it as crucial for the transition to sustainable transportation. Musk said that heavy trucks account for the majority of vehicle emissions, and switching the segment to electric vehicles would bring the most benefits for the environment. Tesla produced a limited batch of the Semi Class-8 electric trucks, all in a pilot project at PepsiCo.The first Tesla Semi electric trucks were produced in a small production facility near Giga Nevada. Still, Tesla plans to build a dedicated production facility with a production capacity of 50,000 Semi trucks per year. This was initially slated for Texas, but Tesla changed course and announced Nevada would continue to be Semi's home. Together with the Semi production line, Tesla also plans a 4680-cell production facility with enough capacity to power 1.5 million EVs annually.Although Tesla Semi was rumored to have 4680 cells, Elon Musk confirmed that the electric semitrailer is currently built with 2170 cells. The reason could be the low yields of 4680-cell production, especially as Tesla's partners, including Panasonic, are not progressing with the new cells. The 2170-cell output is also limited, considering that Tesla invested a lot in the 4680 cells and almost nothing in the 2170-cell production.The battery-cell shortage will likely affect not only Semi production but also the Cybertruck. Tesla's electric pickup truck was delayed, presumably because the 4680-cell production yields were insufficient for mass production. In light of recent comments by Musk, I expect the Cybertruck to only achieve minimal production numbers in 2023 and a gradual ramp in 2024, depending on the battery supply. Tesla's struggles show what other carmakers should expect, especially as none is as invested in Li-Ion battery manufacturing, from mine to pack, as Tesla is.
With its focus on affordability and sustainability, tiny living would seem incompatible with the idea of luxury. Still, designs like the Sage tiny house prove that refined accents and an abundance of comfort features can do wonders even in the smallest spaces.

Photo: Mobi House

Photo: Mobi House

Photo: Mobi House

Like all its sister homes in the Mobi House portfolio, Sage is built on a trailer, yet it's not meant to travel constantly. It blends the mobility of a home on wheels with the comfort and relaxed ambiance of traditional living spaces.Although it's the most luxurious version available in this European brand's range, Sage is not about using every bit of space and maximizing accommodation. It feels more like a couple's perfect haven and a cozy cocoon where even the family cat feels pampered.Sage boasts the maximum length that enables it to stay within the road-legal weight limits (3.5 tons), sitting on an 8.4-meter (27.5 feet) trailer. Surprisingly, it only includes one bedroom and the typical main floor layout with a living room, kitchen, and bathroom. The advantage, however, is that each of these areas wins additional space. In a small dwelling, spaciousness equals luxury.Sage is one of those tiny houses that seem to open up to the outdoors, thanks to the extensive use of glass, beautifully integrated into the natural wood exterior. The living room is more than welcoming, with oversized windows in front and to the side. It almost feels like being outside and in the comfort of your own home at the same time. A large sofa dominates the room, and the elegant coffee table can be extended and turned into a dining table.With no second loft and inconvenient ladders taking up space, Sage's living room has ample space for additional seating. A rustic fireplace makes the room feel even cozier.Mobi House is an expert in custom-made, modular furniture, and it shows. Instead of the typical bulky staircase with integrated storage, this tiny reveals a unique-looking staircase that looks like a work of art. The modern handrail with discrete LED lighting highlights the contrasting steps with an asymmetric shape. Appliances are carefully hidden behind minimalistic cabinet doors, keeping the space clutter-free.Despite size limitations, this could easily be a dream kitchen. The beautifully-crafted furniture blends in with well-chosen appliances, including an electric fridge and oven, a dishwasher, and a washer-dryer unit.Beneath the countertop, you'd find more than cabinets  an adorable cat cabinet, designed and built by the same brand, is integrated seamlessly. And when the cat wants to venture outside, it has its own pet door  another custom feature, discretely integrated.Textures are a big part of Sage's exquisite style , from the beautiful floors, immaculate walls, and ceiling to the smallest details. For instance, the storage space above the kitchen counter combines small cabinets with glass shelves and open shelves. The bathroom is equally elegant, with natural wood accents complementing the white walls. With a full-sized shower, a large vanity, and plenty of storage, this bathroom doesn't feel tiny at all.An opaque white panel framed with natural wood replaces the common protection wall in the loft area. Tiny house designs usually favor unobstructed views, but intimacy prevailed in this case. The best part about Sage's bedroom is that windows surround the large bed, while blackout blinds ensure that sunlight doesn't become bothersome.Sage maintains the perfect temperature in all seasons. Heating-wise, it's equipped with an electric heater, a digitally-controlled underfloor heating system, and a radiant ceiling heater. During summer, blackout blinds and air conditioning help keep things cool. Stylish and also smart, the Sage tiny house comes with a smartphone control for a remote alarm and overall monitoring.For many people, a home just wouldn't feel right without a porch. Sage doesn't flaunt a traditional porch, but the next best thing is a generous terrace with entryway steps and enough space for the owners to enjoy the outdoors by themselves or with friends and family.Like all Mobi House models, Sage is stylish on the inside and rugged on the outside. It's built with high-quality Scandinavian spruce specifically to withstand harsh weather conditions. Also, adequate insulation ensures that it stays perfectly comfortable throughout the year. The Mobi House tiny homes reflect a marked Scandinavian inspiration because the founder worked in Norway for many years. Still, they are all designed and built in Poland. The only downside is that they're only delivered in Europe.Mobi House is one of the most prolific European builders and a pioneer in the field. There's something for everyone in this brand's range, from the smallest studios on wheels to two-loft bedroom homes. Those who appreciate a refined style, top-quality materials, and the highest comfort level would surely pick Sage as their favorite. Even a tiny home built with sustainability in mind can be simply flawless.
When Volkswagen launched the ID.7 on April 17, it wowed everybody with a claimed range of 435 miles, or 700 km, according to the European cycle WLTP. Now, the German carmaker explained how it fine-tuned the ID.7's aerodynamics to achieve that impressive result.

WLTP

kWh

Volkswagen launched the ID.7 during the Shanghai Auto Show, putting even more weight behind its China-first strategy. The mid-size electric sedan will start sales later this year in Europe and sometime next year in the US. Volkswagen communicated an impressive range, up to 700 km (435 miles), according to the Europeancycle. Based on my estimates, it should translate into about 320 miles (483 km) EPA range in the US.This puts it below the Tesla Model S, which has an EPA range of 405 miles. The difference is caused by the difference in battery capacity (85for the ID.7 in Pro S trim versus 100 kWh for the Model S) and other factors. If Volkswagen made the ID.7 as efficient as the Model S, it would go as far as 350 miles (563 km) on a charge, based solely on the battery capacity difference. Still, we know this is not the case, and Tesla's coefficient of drag (Cd) of 0.21 is unmatched by the ID.7, which has a Cd of 0.23. There are other areas where Tesla leads in efficiency throughout the drive train and power electronics, so 320 miles is a realistic expectation.Volkswagen is still proud of the ID.7's aerodynamics, fine-tuned in computer simulations and the wind tunnel. The German carmaker explained how it made the ID.7 as aerodynamically efficient as possible. The focus was on the body shape, which accounts for about 50 percent of the Cd value. It might be hard to believe, but wheels and tires are almost as important, accounting for 30 percent of the result. The underfloor and the functional openings through which air flows to the radiators at the front account for 10 percent each.The Volkswagen ID.7 might not be the most beautiful car design, but its shape helps it become the most aerodynamic ID. model so far. The sedan has a low front end, a flowing transition into the bonnet, and a raked windscreen. The coupe-like roofline and the tapering rear end are also designed for ideal aerodynamic performance. The designers cooperated closely with the engineers from the Development department. Numerous computer simulations for flow calculation were validated by tests in a wind tunnel as part of this fine-tuning process.The completely closed underbody and the newly developed wheel spoilers on the front wheels are the icing on the cake. The goal was to guide the air along the wheels and under the vehicle with minimum turbulence. The ID.7 also features air curtains at the sides of the front bumper and flared side sills to direct the air around the car with minimal loss. Finally, the wheel rims also contribute to the impressive aerodynamics.
The Investigative Committee indicted Lieutenant-General Jalal Harutiunian last September on two counts of careless attitude towards military service One of the accusations stems from an Armenian counteroffensive against advancing Azerbaijani forces launched on October 7, 2020 ten days after the outbreak of large-scale fighting. Its apparent failure facilitated Azerbaijans subsequent victory in the six-week war.

The Investigative Committee said Harutiunian ordered two army units to launch an attack southeast of Karabakh despite lacking intelligence and the fact that they were outnumbered by the enemy and had no air cover. It also blamed the general for poor coordination between the units which it said also contributed to the failure of the operation. In addition, he was charged over the capture by Azerbaijani troops of the frontline positions of a Karabakh Armenian artillery unit on October 12, 2020.

The 48-year-old general, who was seriously wounded in an Azerbaijani missile strike on October 26, 2020, denies the accusations carrying between four and eight years in prison. He was not arrested pending investigation, unlike his successor Mikael Arzumanian, who is facing separate charges in Armenia stemming from the disastrous war.

The Investigative Committee announced on Tuesday that it has temporarily suspended the probe in order not to exceed a legal time limit set for pre-trial investigations. It said it has asked a team of unnamed military experts to pass judgment on Harutiunians wartime actions. Their findings are thus expected to determine whether he will go on trial or be cleared of the accusations.

Harutiunians lawyer, Arsen Sardarian, said on Wednesday that the investigators made the decision because they have trouble substantiating the charges. He claimed that the counteroffensive in question was not necessarily a failure because the Karabakh and Armenian forces killed some 300 Azerbaijani soldiers and suffered only 20 casualties.

Sardarian also argued that the counteroffensive was authorized by Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian and the then chief of the Armenian armys General Staff, Lieutenant-General Onik Gasparian. He said that if his client is indeed guilty of mishandling that operation then so are Pashinian and Gasparian as well.

Pashinian has denied Armenian opposition allegations that he is the one who ordered the operation in October 2020. He has blamed Armenias former leaders for the outcome of the 2020 war.

Opposition leaders maintain that Pashinian is primarily to blame for Armenias defeat in the war which left at least 3,800 Armenian soldiers dead. They claim that he ordered the criminal charges against Harutiunian, Arzumanian and other senior military officers to try to dodge responsibility.
14 June 2023 15:00 (UTC+04:00)

Rena Murshud Read more

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's first state visit to Azerbaijan after being elected as president has ended. In addition to discussing many important issues, serious messages were also given to other countries. It is no coincidence that during the Turkish President's stay in Baku, the Iranian Foreign Ministry voiced its proposal regarding the restoration of frozen diplomatic relations. This can be considered as a serious reaction of the Iranian side to the processes.

According to the political analyst Sadraddin Soltan, head of the Middle East Research think tank, Iran's initiative is related to its intolerance to accept Turkiye's growing influence in the region.

"The Turkish president's statement regarding the visit to Baku and the opening of the Zangazur Corridor certainly worries Iran. Because Iran is one of the countries that does not want the opening of the corridor," the expert said.

In his comment for Azernews, Sadraddin Soltan also shed some light on the Iranian official's statement regarding the re-opening of the embassy.

"The statement regarding the reopening of the embassy are a continuation of the Iranian government's policy of restoring and developing relations with neighboring and other Muslim countries. Because the Iranian authorities have always engaged in illegal disruptive activities against neighboring and non-neighboring countries. The regime pretends to have good relations with Muslim countries from now on. In this regard, Iran's desire to restore relations with Azerbaijan stems from the jealousy of the Turkish leadership regarding the state visit to Azerbaijan," S.Soltan added.

The think tank head also spoke about the prospects of Iran's future cooperation with Azerbaijan in large-scale projects, including in the field of diplomacy.

"Earlier, it was proposed that the Iranian side could participate in many projects, for example, hydrocarbon projects passing through the territory of Azerbaijan, including the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan main oil and gas export pipeline. In the present case, it is not possible for Iran to participate in big projects such as TAP, TANAP, TransCaspian. For this, Iran must comply with some conditions. She should normalize relations with Azerbaijan, stop disruptive activities in the region, and most importantly, she should follow the offers and conditions of the Western bloc, led by the United States. In addition, the Iranian side should abandon its suspicious nuclear program, cooperate with the International Atomic Energy Agency and provide transparency in this regard. The Iranian side must respect human rights and territorial integrity of the neighboring states such as Syria, Iraq, Yemen, Palestine, Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, etc. and stop the interference. Besides, its disruptive and terrorist activities must be stopped in Central Asia. The attitude towards Israel and the US should change. If these conditions are met, Iran can participate in regional energy projects. Even new energy project lines can pass in their region. In the near future, as long as the regime in Iran is in power, it is very unlikely that Iran will participate in regional projects," the expert said.

He also touched upon the cooperation between Iran and Armenia in the field of energy and noted that in the current situation, Iran does not have the potential to supply Iran with energy.

"There is an agreement between Iran and Armenia in this direction. Iran provides natural gas to Armenia, and Armenia provides electricity to Iran in return. For this, Armenia plans to build power plant blocks in the territory of the country. The existing Metsamor Nuclear Power Plant is not large enough to export enough electricity to Iran. The reason is that the country that built the nuclear power plant is Russia, and secondly, Russia is not interested in working with the current government in this direction. The unstable position of the political power of Armenia hinders investment flow in this country. For this reason, the probability of not only mutual implementation of the project being talked about, but also its implementation in general is close to zero. Because currently, there is no country that provides financial aid to Armenia, whose political and economic power is at risk."

In conclusion, the expert talked about the negotiations between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Azerbaijan and Iran. He noted that if Iran does not accept Baku's conditions, it is impossible to melt the frozen diplomatic relations between the two countries.

"Negotiations are being conducted between Azerbaijan and Iran's MFA in various directions. Iran's ambassador to Azerbaijan, Abbas Mosevi, held meetings with various state institutions in Baku and tried to show goodwill towards Azerbaijan, but official Baku does not trust Iran's approach. Because Iran did not accept a number of conditions offered by Azerbaijan. Ensuring the security of Azerbaijan's embassies in Iran, investigating the terrorist crime committed in January, even presenting this terrorist act under the name of "family issue", as well as putting pressure on the country through the "Huseiniyyun" terrorist organization created by the IRGC, reduces Azerbaijan's trust in Iran," the expert underlined.

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Rena Murshud is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @RenaTagiyeva

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14 June 2023 17:00 (UTC+04:00)

Qabil Ashirov Read more

The importance of Azerbaijan soars increasingly worldwide against the backdrop of the global energy crisis due to the Ukrainian War. As the European countries backed out to purchase natural gas from Russia after the war, gas prices ramped up. The crisis roiled all countries throughout the world, especially emerging economies in Asia. Brotherly Pakistan is one the countries that struggle somehow to cope with the increasing energy crisis. The situation in Pakistan has got worsened since February 2023. In this difficult time, Azerbaijan raced to assist the brotherly country. Azerbaijan and Pakistan signed an agreement on selling LNG at a cheap price and on the heels of the agreement the Pakistani PM Office made a statement that PM Shehbaz Sharif will pay a maiden visit to Azerbaijan on June 14, 2023, at the invitation of President Ilham Aliyev. The statement reads that Ministers representing the priority areas of cooperation with Azerbaijan will be part of the PMs entourage. According to the Prime Ministry's office, the prime minister will hold wide-ranging talks with President Ilham Aliyev on key areas of cooperation including trade, investment, and energy. Regional and global issues of mutual concern and cooperation in multilateral forums will also be discussed.

Speaking to Azernews on the issue, Dr. Mehmood Ul Hassan Khan, an Executive Director of the Center for South & International Studies (CSAIS) Islamabad noted that LNG has become the backbone of Pakistans economy, and constant and continued increase in its price is creating serious socio-economic and geopolitical problems for the current government of Pakistan.

The incumbent government has been striving hard to secure easy and smooth supplies of LNG from different sources and countries, but due to complex and complicated economic conditions and regional power politics, the same has not yet been achieved. However, the Republic of Azerbaijan has become a beacon of hope for sustainable energy supplies in the country. Serious and sincere bilateral negotiations have been initiated which are now being carried out and finalized during the current visit of Prime Minister of Pakistan Shehbaz Sharif to Baku, Hassan Khan said.

He emphasized that LNG has become an engine of socio-economic prosperity and industrialization in the country and hopefully with the signing of an agreement on LNG it would be a good omen for the countries, industries, societies, and communities in the days to come.

Taking into account the ministers and officials who will accompany the PM, Hassan Khan thinks that the two countries can enhance their economic cooperation by reaching new agreements in different fields.

It predicts that both countries may extend their bilateral cooperation in different and diversified sectors of the economy, especially in oil & gas cooperation, agriculture, health, infrastructure development, mining, education, and defense cooperation, etc. It also hopes that agreement on further strengthening of the civil aviation sector, textile, garments, ICT, IT, and space cooperation would also be considered and signed. Mining cooperation and infrastructure development projects in the newly liberated areas of Karabakh may also be tabled and signed, he said.

He also touched on military cooperation between the two countries. As is known Azerbaijan has been interested in JF-17 Thunder for a long.

I am optimistic on that issue which has now become a strategic value addition in this regard. Strong and sustainable military cooperation between Pakistan and Azerbaijan is the need of the hour which would also be important to balance the military cooperation between Armenia and India in the South Caucasus region, the expert added.

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Qabil Ashirov is AzerNews staff journalist, follow him on Twitter: @g_Ashirov

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14 June 2023 12:47 (UTC+04:00)

From 2018 to 2022, the number of items in the commodity nomenclature for industrial goods exports increased from 884 to 1,204, Azernews reports, citing a tweet by the Azerbaijani Economy Minister Mikayil Jabbarov.

The tweet reads that the commodity nomenclature for agricultural production and processed goods grew from 307 to 332. This indicator demonstrates the growth in the variety of exported goods in the non-oil-and-gas sector, as well as the expansion of export potential.

From 2018 to 2022, the number of items in the commodity nomenclature for industrial goods exports increased from 884 to 1,204, while the commodity nomenclature for #agricultural production and processed goods grew from 307 to 332. This indicator demonstrates the growth in the pic.twitter.com/rrKVOeuJfH  Mikayil Jabbarov (@MikayilJabbarov) June 14, 2023

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European Union (EU) antitrust officials made a groundbreaking ruling on Wednesday, June 14, by suggesting the internet giant Google sell off a portion of its profitable digital advertising business due to competition concerns.

After conducting an inquiry, the European Commission (EC), which is the bloc's executive body and top antitrust enforcer, came to the conclusion that "only the mandatory divestment by Google of part of its services" would address the issue.

The EU's 27 member states have been at the forefront of the international effort to regulate tech giants like Facebook, Google, and Amazon by passing groundbreaking regulations on AI and issuing massive fines in the past.

Historic EU Decision to Order Business Units to Break Up

According to ABC News, this is the first time the EU has ordered a tech company to break up major elements of its business for violating the EU's stringent antitrust regulations. However, the specifics of this order have not been made public.

Now that the commission has given Google the opportunity to respond, it may present its case in defense. The corporation has said that it disagrees with the conclusion and will respond accordingly since the EU inquiry only pertains to a small portion of the company's advertising operations.

According to Dan Taylor, Google's vice president of global ads, "Our advertising technology tools help websites and apps fund their content and enable businesses of all sizes to effectively reach new customers." Although competition in the industry is intense, Taylor said that Google is dedicated to helping its publisher and advertisement partners succeed.

Read Also: Google Delays EU Rollout of Bard AI Chatbot-Here's Why

Probe Whether Google Favored Its Own Online Display Ads

The decision is the result of an investigation begun by the commission in June 2021 into allegations that Google abused its dominant position in the market for online display advertising technology services to the detriment of competitors in the publishing, advertising, and technology sectors.

EC Vice President Margrethe Vestager said Google dominates both the buying and selling sides of the advertising business. Based on the commission's findings, Google exploited its dominant position by giving preferential treatment to its own ad exchange, which allowed it to increase its service fees.

"Google is representing the interests of both buyers and sellers. And at the same time, Google is setting the rules on how demand and supply should meet. This gives rise to inherent and pervasive conflicts of interest," she stated at a press conference, according to AP News.

The commission looked into YouTube specifically to see whether Google was abusing its dominating position to unfairly limit other ad-buying businesses in favor of its own.

In addition to these investigations in the EU, Google's ad tech company is being scrutinized in the UK and the US.

Read Also: Study: YouTube's Algorithm Leads Young Gamers to Gun Violence Content

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14 June 2023 18:00 (UTC+04:00)

Rena Murshud Read more

Tajikistan is interested in using the experience of Azerbaijan in the creation of industrial parks, Azernews reports.

During the meeting between Minister of Economy Mikail Jabbarov and Minister of Industry and New Technologies of Tajikistan Sherali Kabir, it was emphasized that the development of bilateral relations is of particular importance. It was noted that the visits of the heads of state and the high-level meetings held gave a qualitatively new impetus to partnership and the constant development of mutually beneficial cooperation. Thus, the meetings held within the framework of the state visit of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Mr. Ilham Aliyev, to the Republic of Tajikistan in April this year, and the signed documents gave impetus to the expansion of our cooperation.

The meeting discussed long-term strategic initiatives of Azerbaijan, provided information on regional and global energy projects, as well as implemented investment projects, potential opportunities for cooperation between the two countries, including the development of the aluminum industry between Azerbaijan and Tajikistan, considered the creation of industrial parks and support to the relevant institutions of Tajikistan in the direction of providing methodological and practical support.

The parties expressed confidence that the Middle Corridor initiative, in which Azerbaijan and Tajikistan are also interested, will play a special role in the development of our regional cooperation in the field of transport and communications.

Sherali Kabir stressed that trade and economic cooperation between his country and Azerbaijan is developing upward. The minister said that his country is interested in using Azerbaijan's experience in creating industrial parks.

As part of the visit, the Tajik delegation visited the Sumgayit Chemical Industrial Park. The guests were informed about the industrial parks implemented in our country in accordance with the industrialization policy, favorable conditions for entrepreneurs, modern infrastructure, discount mechanisms and services applied to residents.

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14 June 2023 13:35 (UTC+04:00)

Laman Ismayilova Read more

Heydar Aliyev Center has hosted a book presentation titled "Mir Mohsun Navvab's weapons production and collection in Shusha".

Although a number of books were published on the activities of one of the prominent representatives of the Karabakh literary environment - a talented poet, artist, musicologist, philosopher, teacher Mir Mohsun Navvab (1833-1918) as an artist and music theorist, however, there were no publications reflecting his activities in general, Azernews reports.

The book, published on the initiative and with the support of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation, provides information about the biography, life and work of Mir Mohsun Navvab Karabakhi and highlights his educational activities.

Video materials highlighting the Shusha trip of Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and First Lady Mehriban Aliyeva were shown as part of the event. During the Shusha trip, President Ilham Aliyev and the First Lady visited the grave of Mir Mohsun Navvab Karabakhi, which is being restored by the Heydar Aliyev Foundation and got acquainted with the exhibition dedicated to the talented poet.

Speaking at the event, the author of the publication, Sabuhi Ahmadov provided insight into the book.

The book is dedicated to the previously unknown legacy of Mir Mohsun Navvab Karabakhi - the collection of Azerbaijani weapons he collected. Archival and museum materials were used in the preparation of the publication.

Published in Azerbaijani and English, it contains over 100 photographs, drawings, diagrams and maps, most of which are published for the first time.

"The publication reflects the life and work of Mir Mohsun Navvab Karabakhi, who was born in Shusha. The publication provides detailed information about Navvab's weapons collection, its formation and history. While studying Navvab's collection, we faced an interesting question - Who is Mir Mohsun Navvab Karabakhi? The book contains interesting facts about him," said Sabuhi Ahmadov.

The General Director of the National History Museum, academician Naila Valikhanli spoke about the materials related to the activities of Navvab, which are carefully stored in the museum, including exhibits related to the subject of the presented book.

It was emphasized that Mir Mohsun Navvab Karabakhi collected a collection of Azerbaijani weapons dating back to the Middle Ages, and some samples from his collection are now stored in the National History Museum.

"We are at the presentation of an extremely interesting publication. Getting acquainted with Mohsun Navvab Karabakhi's activities, one is amazed at how much he did for the Azerbaijani people. In 1940, exhibits related to Mir Mohsun Navvab Karabakhi were transferred to our museum by his son. This collection demonstrates history, art and the technique of weaponry. In my opinion, it refers to it only as a weapon, maybe not quite right, because they are decorated with beautiful patterns, which are made with great skill. And the fact that these weapons were produced in Azerbaijan is important for our history," said Valikhanli.

Secretary of the Azerbaijan Writers' Union, writer-publicist Ilgar Fahmi stressed the role of Mir Mohsun Navvab Karabakhi in literature, noting his contribution to this area.

"Through the publication, along with the work and life of Mir Mohsun Navvab Karabakhi, we also get acquainted with the cultural life of the city of Shusha and Karabakh. It is important that the book was published both in Azerbaijani and in English," Ilgar Fahmi added.

Ilgar Fahmi emphasized that the Azerbaijani people first of all know him as a poet, because poems are passed from mouth to mouth.

An artistic program was presented at the event, which was prepared in accordance with the creative aura that surrounded the World of Mohsun Navvab Karabakhi. Thanks to the sound of music and poems, the atmosphere of the time was created when Mir Mohsun Navvab Karabagi lived and worked.

The guests of the event enjoyed the performance of the Ensemble of Ancient Musical Instruments, whose artistic director is People's Artist Munis Sharifov. The soloists were People's Artist Teyyub Aslanov and Honored Artist Nuria Huseynova.

Mirvari dance group (artistic director - Honored Artist Nailya Mammadzadeh) demonstrated a bewitching dance with daggers.

Ghazals and mughams based on Navvab's poems were performed in the evening.

An interesting moment of the presentation was the involvement of the audience. When the Honored Artist Elnar Garayev read out the poetic work and at some point stopped, the lines were continued by the audience present in the hall.

In the foyer of the Heydar Aliyev Center, the guests viewed the stands with Navvab's artworks.

It should be noted that this year marks the 190th anniversary of the birth of Mir Mohsun Navvab Karabakhi (1833-1918).

In May of this year, President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev, First Lady Mehriban Aliyeva and their family members attended the opening of the Yukhara Govhar Agha mosque in Shusha after major reconstruction and restoration work.

The ornaments of the mosque minarets and the wall paintings of the premises were made by the poet, artist and calligrapher Mir Mohsun Navvab Karabakhi, who lived and worked in the city of Shusha.

The exhibition "Mir Mohsun Navvab Karabakhi - scientist-encyclopedist of the XIX century" was presented in the building of the madrasah on the territory of the mosque. At the same time, the Heydar Aliyev Foundation restored the tomb monument of Mir Mohsun Navvab Karabakhi.

It is no coincidence that the next project of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation, which is carrying out important work in the direction of preserving and promoting our history, perpetuating the memory of Azerbaijan's outstanding personalities, was dedicated to Mir Mohsun Navvab Karabakhi.

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14 June 2023 17:20 (UTC+04:00)

Laman Ismayilova Read more

Hungarian and Azerbaijani natural wonders have been demonstrated through photography.

The exhibition includes incredible photos that depict the awe-inspiring power of nature in all its guises, Azernews reports.

The project was co-organized by the Azerbaijan Ministry of Ecology and Natural Resources with the support of MOL Azerbaijan to raise awareness about preserving and protecting national parks.

The Hungarian Ambassador to Azerbaijan Tamas Torma welcomed the guests of the event.

The ambassador mentioned the quote of the British biologist David Attenborough.

"No one will protect what they don't care about; and no one will care about what they have never experienced. I have chosen this quote of the famous British biologist David Attenborough because these words sum up what the exhibition is meant for. Through the selection of nature photographs taken in Hungary by Hungarian photographers, we can witness the beauty of nature," said Tamas Torma.

He expressed his gratitude to the Azerbaijan Ministry of Ecology and Natural Resources, the Hungarian Association of Nature Photographers (naturArt), MOL Group and Landmark Hotel for assistance in holding the event.

The Minister of Ecology and Natural Resources Mukhtar Babayev said that the exhibition provides a great chance to enjoy Azerbaijani and Hungarian natural wonders.

"For all of us, this is a good chance to see the photos of nature. There are ten national parks in Azerbaijan. We have already finalized the Red Book of Azerbaijan. We would like to invite all of you to visit them and be more familiar with Azerbaijani flora and fauna," said Mukhtar Babayev.

President of the Hungarian Association of Nature Photographers (naturArt) Peter Fath introduced the exhibition. He expressed his gratitude to the Minister of Ecology and Natural Resources Mukhtar Babayev, the Hungarian Ambassador to Azerbaijan Tamas Torma for organizing the exhibition.

Peter Fath noted that the exhibition includes some of the best photo works submitted to the Nature Photographer of the Year photo competition over the past five years.

The competition is being held by the Hungarian Association of Nature Photographers (naturArt), which turns 31 this year.

He drew attention to Csaba Daroczi's photo "War and Peace", depicting rabbits.

In 2019, this photo won CEWE Photo Award. These photos were selected from over 400,000 photos submitted to the competition.

The exhibition was highly appreciated by the viewers.

Azerbaijani photographer Aydin Sadikhov told AZERNEWS that the "Wonders of Nature" is a unique project, filled with beautiful images of flora and fauna.

" As a photographer, I mainly demonstrate Hungarian architecture, but I have seen Hungarian nature through photography for the first time. I am very glad to get acquainted with the work of Hungarian photographers. Each part of this magnificent country is famous for its breathtaking nature. Therefore, to see such a variety of photo works cannot but impress," said the photographer.

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14 June 2023 08:30 (UTC+04:00)

Qabil Ashirov Read more

Mixing diplomacy with a game of ping-pong is the most widespread tradition in the Iranian experience. When the views of the regime conflict with any state, blackmail, attacks or murders are immediately launched against diplomatic persons.

For exmple, Russian diplomats were killed, the employees of the US embassy were taken hostage, Pakistani and Saudi Embassy were attacked and arsoned. Of course, every time Iran tries to elude the situation by putting blame on furious protestor(s), but there is no doubt that all this is organized within the government in Tehran.

Recently, the Azerbaijani embassy was subjected to such attacks. Remaining true to its tradition, Iran did not take responsibility and related the attack to family issues. As if, the attacker suspected that his wife was hiding in the embassy. However, the Iranian officials avoided commenting on why they had not intervened in time and neutralize the terrorist.

Following the attack, Azerbaijan closed its embassy in Tehran, but Iran has been using all opportunities to restore relations with Azerbaijan. Despite all propaganda of Iran to diminish Azerbaijan's growing influence and power in the region, Iran's hard work on restoring relations confirms that Azerbaijan is an irreplaceable partner not only for the region but also for Iran. Being aware of its power, Azerbaijan makes a precondition to prosecute the attacker and to ensure not to repeat the same situation. Iran holds out not to swallow its words. The statements of both countries' foreign ministries cause expectations of restoring relationships.

In a comment on the issue for Azernews, the political analyst Zardusht Alizade noted that Azerbaijan expressed its demands both orally and written. If Iran is interested in Azerbaijan opening its embassy and regulating political relations between the two countries, it should fulfill Azerbaijan's demands.

Those who committed the crime should be prosecuted. Iran should apologize to Azerbaijan at the highest level and clearly state that such incidents will not be allowed again. Otherwise, if Iran does not want to do it, Azerbaijan will continue on its way. We have lived without an embassy in Tehran, and we can live without it. That is the choice of Iran. If Iran's international position allows it not to have relations with its northern neighbor at the highest dilomatic level, that is its own business. Surely, Azerbaijan will not fall at Iran's feet and beg it. Azerbaijan has just made its claims and is waiting for these claims to be fulfilled, Alizade emphasized.

As is known, the Saudi embassy in Tehran was subjected to the attack and reopened several times. Responding to the question of whether the Azerbaijani embassy could have the same fate, Alizade told that if Iran does not fulfill its obligations as a state, and if it happens again, Azerbaijan will take actions accepted in practice in international diplomacy.

In other words, it will express its protest, maybe it will close the embassy again. There is nothing else to do. It is impossible for Azerbaijan to attack Iran and occupy Tehran, capture and hang mullahs. For example, Iran attacked the embassies of the USA, Saudi Arabia, and so on. The American embassy was closed, but never opened again. As for the Saudi embassy, it was closed and later reopened after China's initiative. If Iranians attack the Saudi embassy, they will close it again. All such cases damage Iran's reputation. Internationally, it creates an image that Iran does not fulfill its obligations. Nevertheless, experience shows that some countries still establish relations with this irresponsible state with a population of more than 80 million." Because according to the political analyst, everything can be expected from the mullah's regime.

"It is important to be as careful as possible while being as close as possible to Iran," the political analyst added.

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14 June 2023 11:43 (UTC+04:00)

According to the information of the Ministry of Defense of the Republic of Azerbaijan, on June 13, units of the armed forces of Armenia opened fire with heavy weapons, including mortars, on the positions of the Azerbaijan Army located in the direction of Heydarabad settlement of Sadarak region of the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic, Azernews reports, citing MFA.

To stop the provocation of Armenia, Azerbaijan Army took appropriate response measures.

We strongly condemn this military provocation of Armenia and demand that Armenia abandon its increasingly aggressive rhetoric and stop such steps increasing tensions in the region.

Furthermore, we strongly reject the statement of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Armenia claiming Azerbaijan allegedly purposefully targeted the metallurgical plant under construction in Armenia.

Regarding the allegation that Azerbaijan aims to prevent investments in Armenia by committing provocations, let us note that Armenia pursued a policy of self-isolation by making territorial claims against its neighboring countries and keeping the territories of Azerbaijan under occupation for nearly 30 years, and thereby was left out of all international projects.

It is common knowledge that Armenia, contrary to its obligations, is preventing the opening of communications that would stimulate economic development in the region. Allegations of Armenia in this regard are baseless.

The military and political leadership of Armenia bears all responsibility for provocations against the peace-building measures and reconstruction work carried out by Azerbaijan in the region.

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14 June 2023 14:25 (UTC+04:00)

Rena Murshud Read more

Russian President Vladimir Putin appointed Mikhail Yevdokimov Ambassador to Azerbaijan, dismissing Mikhail Bocharnikov from this post, Azernews reports.

The relevant decrees of the head of the Russian Federation are published on the official portal of legal information.

Mikhail Bocharnikov has been the Russian Ambassador to Azerbaijan since 2018.

Mikhail Evdokimov was born in 1959. He has the diplomatic rank of Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary. Since 2011, he has served as director of the first department of the CIS countries of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation, responsible for multilateral cooperation in the association area.

In 1981 he graduated from the Moscow State Institute of International Relations (MGIMO University) of the USSR Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Since the same year, he has been working in the system of the Foreign Ministry in various diplomatic positions in the central office and abroad.

In 1996-1997, he headed a section of the Department of Economic Cooperation of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation, in 1997-2001 he served as a senior adviser to the Permanent Mission of Russia to the UN Office and other international organizations in Geneva.

In 2001-2002, he worked as the head of a section of the Department for European Cooperation of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in 2002-2011 - as deputy director of the same department.

In May-November 2011, he held the position of Deputy Director, and since November 2011 - Director of the First Department of the CIS countries.

In 2018, M. Evdokimov was awarded the diplomatic rank of Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary.

Speaks English and French.

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Rena Murshud is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @RenaTagiyeva

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14 June 2023 14:45 (UTC+04:00)

On June 14, Azerbaijani Prime Minister Ali Asadov held a telephone conversation with the Turkish Vice President, Azernews reports.

At the conversation, Ali Asadov once again congratulated Cevdet Ylmaz on his appointment as the Vice President of Turkiye and wished him success in his future activities.

The sides expressed satisfaction with the high level of development of strategic partnership and alliance relations between the two brotherly countries in all areas with the determined efforts of Presidents Ilham Aliyev and Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

The importance of the Turkish president's last visit to Azerbaijan in terms of further development of bilateral relations was emphasized.

Preparations for mutual activities were expressed for the further strengthening and deepening of relations between the two countries in various directions.

At the same time, the work to be done within the framework of the Joint Intergovernmental Commission on economic cooperation between Azerbaijan and Turkiye was reviewed.

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14 June 2023 17:40 (UTC+04:00)

Representatives of the ICRC again visited two Azerbaijani servicemen detained in Armenia. A one-on-one meeting was held with them, and they were given the opportunity to contact their families, Azernews reports.

Ilaha Huseynova, head of the PR department of the Azerbaijani representative office of the ICRC, told about this.

To recall that on April 10, the Ministry of Defense of Azerbaijan announced that servicemen of the Azerbaijani army Agshin Babirov and Huseyn Akhundov disappeared due to limited visibility in adverse weather conditions in the Shahbuz region of the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic on the border with Armenia.

Later, on April 13, the Armenian side admitted that the Azerbaijani military were with them. Photographs and video footage of the ill-treatment of one of them were also published.

In addition, one of the Azerbaijani servicemen was sentenced by a "court" to 11.5 years in prison on a fabricated case.

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14 June 2023 08:00 (UTC+04:00)

Jordan said Tuesday it had downed a drone carrying drugs from Syria, Azernews reports, citing Anadolu Agency.

An army statement, citing a military source, said the drone was intercepted by border guards as it was attempting to illegally cross into Jordanian territories from Syria.

We are continuing to deal with resolve and force with any threat to our borders and any attempt to destabilize the security of the nation, the army said.

Jordan shares a 375-km porous border with war-torn Syria.

The country has seen hundreds of attempts to smuggle drugs in recent years as a result of the deteriorating security conditions in neighboring Syria.

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14 June 2023 09:00 (UTC+04:00)

An advertising campaign to promote Georgia's Black Sea city of Batumi as a secure and diverse travel destination is being broadcast by Euronews, a network operating in 160 countries in 17 different languages for over 400 million viewers, Azernews reports, citing Agenda.ge.

The regional Adjara Tourism Department on Tuesday said the promotional videos were broadcast on the network to millions of viewers in various parts of the world, with the stories highlighting the tourist potential of the city and the wider region.

The Department said it also intended to promote the region's tourism products in other foreign media outlets, noting the locality was being actively promoted in traditional target countries and in the newly added European markets.

It also said tourism organizations, journalists, and bloggers from Europe and Asia had been hosted in Adjara in the bodys promotional tours, with 500 professionals hosted throughout 2022.

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Russian missile attacks killed three people in the Ukrainian Black Sea port city of Odesa early Wednesday morning.

According to Ukrainian officials, the three that were killed in Odesa were in a retail chain warehouse when the attack happened. The missile strike also targeted a business center, a school, a residential complex, food establishments, and shops.

Videos and photographs on social media show firefighters attempting to extinguish the fire in what appeared to be a warehouse.

According to Natalia Humeniuk, a spokesperson for Ukraine's southern defensive forces noticed a pattern to the recent strikes. "The missile attack on the Odesa region was apparently aimed at the objects sought by the enemy in the area of logistics support for the defense forces," she said.

In addition, Andriy Yermak, the head of the office of the Ukrainian presidency, mentioned the Russians used Kalibr cruise missiles, saying economic sanctions against Russia should be tightened. "Each of these missiles has at least 40 foreign components," he said. "Without microelectronics, Russia will not be able to produce them."

Read Also: Belarus Begins Receiving Nuclear Weapons From Russia

Attacks in Donetsk, Sumy Oblasts

Meanwhile, Donetsk oblast governor Pavlo Kyrylenko said two people were killed in the city of Kramatorsk and another one in Kostiantynivka. "The missiles...hit private houses in the cities and caused significant damage," he said. "In Kramatorsk, at least 5 private houses were destroyed and about two dozen damaged, in Kostiantynivka, two were destroyed and 55 damaged."

Despite the damage and loss of life, the Ukrainian air force reported it destroyed three Russian missiles and nine drones during the overnight strikes.

Earlier in the week, the Ukrainian prosecutor's office said four forest workers and two other civilians were killed when their car came under fire in a forest in the Sumy region, close to the border with Russia. However, the said report could not be independently verified.

Other Ukraine War Updates

According to Russian authorities in Nova Kakhovka, Ukrainian forces have shelled a residential area in the city, injuring one person, Al Jazeera reported. Vladimir Rogov, a top Russian official, has also been reportedly killed in a missile strike as part of the Ukrainian counteroffensive on the Zaporizhzhya front.

Russia also said it repelled Ukrainian forces in the Donetsk and Zaporizhzhya regions in the last 24 hours. In addition, Russian forces were reported to target Ukrainian arms warehouses.

Related Article: Russia Boasts Capturing German Leopard Tanks, US Bradley Vehicles in Ukraine

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14 June 2023 11:21 (UTC+04:00)

The Prime Minister of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan Shehbaz Sharif will visit Azerbaijan on Wednesday, Azernews reports, citing Pakistan's media sources.

Sharif will be visiting Azerbaijan on June 14-15 on the invitation of President Ilham Aliyev, where the Pakistan premier will be accompanied by ministers representing priority areas of cooperation between the two countries, Sharifs PM office said in a statement.

Prime Minister will hold wide-ranging talks with President Ilham Aliyev on key areas of cooperation including trade, investment and energy. Regional and global issues of mutual concern and cooperation in multilateral forums will also be discussed the statement read.

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14 June 2023 16:31 (UTC+04:00)

By News Center

The Presidential Investment Office held a reception at the London Embassy with the theme of "Turkiye: Your Durable Investment Partner" on the occasion of the Century of Turkiye. Many Turkish, British, and international investors, as well as public officials from Turkiye and England, attended the reception.

Dagloglu, in his speech at the reception, stated that they held the first of the receptions they will organize in different capitals to come together with investors as part of the Century of Turkiye, in London.

Reminding that Turkiye has achieved significant success in the last 20 years and is among the 20 largest economies in the world, Dagloglu said that since 2003, the annual growth in Turkiye has been at the level of 5.4 percent.

Dagloglu stated that Turkiye's exports, which were 36 billion dollars in 2002, increased 7 times and exceeded 250 billion dollars:

"Under the leadership of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the second century of our country begins and we call this period the Century of Turkiye. We aim to become one of the 10 largest economies in the world and I am sure we can achieve this ambitious goal. Turkiye has so far been a regional leader in many areas such as production activities, R&D, and logistics activities. We will now position Turkiye as a global power center. We expect investors to continue their investments. We expect investors to continue their investments not only in production but also in different areas such as R&D, logistics activities, regional management, as well as clean energy and infrastructure, financial services, and digitalization. We invite you to invest."

Explaining that they also participated in the London TechWeek program, Dagloglu said, "We can build much more bridges between Turkiye and England by focusing especially on technology start-ups."

Dagloglu pointed out that Turkiye is a strong and fast-growing economy and the opportunities it offers thanks to its geographical location, and invited companies to invest.

- "I am sure that these investments will increase mutually"

Turkish Wealth Fund Management Inc. General Manager Salim Arda Ermut stated that 2023 is the 100th anniversary of the country's establishment and the beginning of Turkiye's new vision, and said, "Our goal is to crown the Century of Turkiye by making the country one of the 10 largest economies in the world."

Emphasizing that the Turkish Wealth Fund plays an important role in shaping the economic outlook of the country, Ermut made the following assessment on the economic relations of Turkiye and England:

"FDI from the UK to Turkiye has always been very important and strategic. I am sure that these investments will increase mutually. The Turkish Wealth Fund can also play a role as a potential partner in supporting investors who will invest in Turkiye."

Turkiye's Ambassador to London Osman Koray Ertas stated that the dynamism in the economic relationship between Turkiye and England is seen in different fields from tourism to investment.

Reminding that the election atmosphere in Turkiye has ended and the new economy team has been determined, Ertas said, "Everyone here knows Turkiye's new economy team very well. In this respect, with the support of the Presidential Investment Office, we can start to take action and focus on our bilateral trade and investments."

- The UK-Turkiye bilateral trade volume saw its highest level in history

British Minister of State for Business and Trade Nusrat Ghani, on the other hand, pointed out that the bilateral trade volume between the UK and Turkiye has seen its highest level in history with 23.5 billion pounds, "This volume has increased by 30 percent compared to the last year. In addition, in 2021 being the largest investor in Turkiye, Turkish companies invested 250 million in the UK in 2020.

Underlining that the free trade agreement signed between the two countries in 2020 plays a key role in this success, Ghani added that many sectors from clean energy and infrastructure to health technologies will determine the future between the two countries and that there are many steps that can be taken to increase the trade volume.

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14 June 2023 16:00 (UTC+04:00)

By News Center

President Tayyip Erdogan made his first overseas visit to the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) after the victory of the election. Erdogan, who was welcomed with an official ceremony by TRNC President Ersin Tatar, visited the Ataturk Monument in Nicosia. Later, Erdogan and Tatar had a tete-a-tete meeting and made a joint press statement.

Turkish Cypriots will never be a minority

Emphasizing that the Turkish Cypriot people will never be a minority, Erdogan said: "We have evaluated the current situation regarding the Cyprus issue and the Eastern Mediterranean. The Turkish side has always adopted a constructive and result-oriented approach to the Cyprus issue. The ancient and original element of the island, especially the rightful demands of the Turkish Cypriots, is clear. Turkish Cypriots have never been a minority and never will be. Those who ignore these facts and continue to dream of becoming the sole ruler of the island, I especially advise to put aside their obsessions and face the realities of the Island."

We can not lose 50 more years

Despite the efforts of the Turkish Cypriots, more than half a century was wasted due to the uncompromising and maximalist approaches of the Greek Cypriot side. No one can bear to lose another 50 years. Confirmation of the sovereign equality and equal international status of the Turkish Cypriots, which are their vested rights, is indispensable for us. If there is to be a return to the negotiating table, the way to this is the recognition of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus. This is essentially the realistic and result-oriented vision that President Mr. Tatar put forward at the last informal meeting in Geneva, which we also support.

We will resolve the interests

Underlining that Turkiye, as a guarantor country, has always been in favor of dialogue, Erdogan continued: We also discussed the Eastern Mediterranean dimension of the Cyprus issue with Mr. President. We will continue to resolutely defend the rights and interests of Turkiye and the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus. On this occasion, I would like to remind you that the concrete proposals presented by the Turkish Cypriot side for the equitable sharing of the hydrocarbon resources in and around the island of Cyprus are still on the table.

We have to welcome the risks well

Unfortunately, my proposal to organize a regional conference on issues concerning the Eastern Mediterranean did not find a response. Our visionary steps taken were left unrequited. Despite this, as a guarantor country, we have always given priority to dialogue. Those who engage in meaningless armament activities should carefully calculate the risks these undertakings will bring. The peace and security of our brothers on the island means our peace and security.

There is no way out but peace

Stating that Turkiye stands by the TRNC with all its means, Erdogan said, "While we continue to support the sincere solution efforts, we will also continue our contributions to the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus. We will ensure that our citizens here receive health services from the public on equal terms with our citizens in Turkiye. Hopefully, we will start the construction of 1192 social housing units in the Derinya region soon. The manufacturing and laying of bidirectional electrical transmission cables are our priorities. In the field of transportation, we have built a total of 630 kilometers of main roads in Northern Cyprus so far. The construction of 5 separate road projects with a total length of 62 kilometers continues. We will soon make the water we bring from Turkiye available to our producers for agricultural irrigation purposes. We are also going to bid for the 500-bed state hospital in Nicosia soon. My assistant Cevdet will carry out the coordination of the studies on this matter.

Answering the question regarding Greek-Turkish relations, Erdogan emphasized that the roadmap in the relations is clear and said, Our roadmap is already clear. This roadmap is indexed on peace. For in these seas, there is no other way out but peace. If there are those who want to prevent peace, then we will have to switch to a different project application. We want such obstacles not to be put in front of us and the Aegean Sea to give its message to the world as a sea of peace".

We have the world's giant Turkiye behind us.

President of the TRNC Ersin Tatar congratulated Erdogan on his election victory and said, You have won a great victory. You won the election with a very high turnout, with great political maturity in the Republic of Turkiye, and a democratic understanding that will set an example for the world states, and you are with us with your delegation. You make your first visit to the TRNC after your swearing-in ceremony. This means a lot to us, it is very important. Because you are giving the message to the whole world, to all the states of the world that you always protect the TRNC and that you will protect it with the same understanding from now on.

You strengthen us

Tatar said, We suffered a lot in Cyprus. The messages you gave to those who are still trying to cause discord between us through various games, and to those who try to divide the TRNC from within with fifth-column activities and prevent us from further consolidating our relations with the homeland. Your presence with us gives us strength. After this time, we cannot go back to the past because a new policy has emerged. They are trying to turn the Cyprus issue in their favor, the Greek side is not coming to the table. Because they do not accept our sovereignty. They should know that behind us stands the world's giant Turkish Republic.

We will fulfill our responsibilities in the new period as well

President Erdogan visited the Ataturk Monument in Nicosia. Laying a wreath at the monument, Erdogan signed the memorial book. He wrote the following in his memorial special book: Saint Ataturk, we are in your presence again to reinforce our solidarity, and unity with the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus. In the elections held in our country on May 28, 2023, we are once again experiencing the happiness of being favored by our nation. As the President of Turkiye, we have served with love not only our own citizens but also the Turkish Cypriot People, who constitute an inseparable part of the Turkish nation. Hopefully, in our new term, we will fulfill our responsibilities towards our Turkish Cypriot brothers with the vision of the Century of Turkiyey.

With new ministers

Erdogan, Minister of Foreign Affairs Hakan Fidan, Minister of Energy and Natural Resources Alparslan Bayraktar, Minister of National Defense Yasar Guler, Minister of Transport and Infrastructure Abdulkadir Uraloglu, Presidential Communications Director Fahrettin Altun, MIT Head Ibrahim Kaln, Defense Industry President Haluk Gorgun and AK Party Spokesperson and Omer Celik accompanied him.

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14 June 2023 18:30 (UTC+04:00)

Chinese President Xi Jinping and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas announced during their meeting in Beijing on Wednesday the establishment of a bilateral strategic partnership, Azernews reports, citing TASS.

"Today, we have jointly announced the establishment of a Chinese-Palestinian strategic partnership, which will become an important milestone in the history of bilateral relations," CCTV quoted Xi as saying.

The Chinese president stated that Beijing was ready to take this opportunity to pursue a comprehensive level of cooperation with Palestine in various fields.

"Having encountered epochal global changes and new challenges in the Middle East, China is ready to strengthen its coordination and cooperation with Palestine to promote an all-encompassing, just and longstanding resolution of the Palestinian issue," Xi added.
14 June 2023 18:55 (UTC+04:00)

The number of civilians killed in fighting between the Sudanese army and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) has exceeded 950, the Sudanese Doctors' Union reported on Wednesday, Azernews reports, citing TASS.

"The number of civilian fatalities as a result of the clashes has risen to 958," the Al Arabiya TV channel quoted the organizations statement as saying. According to the Sudanese Doctors' Union, 4,746 civilians were wounded since the start of the clashes.

The organization also said that neither hospitals nor clinics were functioning in the city of el-Geneina (Sudans West Darfur region). "The situation in the region is catastrophic," the Sudanese doctors pointed out.

The situation in Sudan escalated amid disagreements between the army chief, Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, who also heads the ruling Sovereignty Council, and the head of the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo (known as Hemedti), who is al-Burhans deputy on the council. The main points of contention between the two military organizations pertain to the timeline and methods for unifying the armed forces of Sudan, as well as who should be appointed as commander-in-chief of the army: a career military officer, which is al-Burhans preferred option, or an elected civilian president, as Dagalo insists. On April 15, clashes between the two military structures erupted near a military base in Merowe and in Khartoum.

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14 June 2023 20:32 (UTC+04:00)

President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev was informed about the state of the law in the country as well as the results of the oversight on the priority areas for the past period, Azernews reports, citing Kazinform.

Prosecutor General Berik Assylov reported on the criminal investigation into the fire in the Abai region. An investigative team including skilled law enforcement and special bodies personnel led by the Deputy Prosecutor General. Upon completion, a legal assessment of the actions and inaction of officials will be given.

The Head of State was also informed about the results of investigations into high-profile criminal cases and the work to protect public interests. As a result of inspections in the social and economic sphere, 11 thousand persons have been brought to justice. KZT10bn has been returned to the budget after investigative activities. The states interests to the tune of KZT15.2bn were defended in courts.

Tokayev was also reported on the implementation of his tasks on the protection of businesses and support of significant investment projects.

In addition, the Head of State was informed about the crime situations and measures taken to enforce the constitutional rights of citizens in the criminal law sphere.

Following the meeting, the President pointed to the importance of impartial investigation of the cause of the fire in Abai region, as well as gave concrete tasks to ensure law in all spheres of social and economic life of the country.

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14 June 2023 22:45 (UTC+04:00)

Employees of the State Committee for National Security of Kyrgyzstan (SCNS), together with border guards, prevented an attempt to illegally transfer foreigners from Kyrgyzstan to Uzbekistan, Azernews reports, citing 24.kg.

Four citizens of the Republic of Bangladesh and a citizen of Uzbekistan were detained on June 3 in Kum border area in Kara-Suu district when trying to illegally cross the state border. Another Uzbek citizen, 29-year-old man, was arrested for mediation, the statement says.

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14 June 2023 15:22 (UTC+04:00)

Laman Ismayilova Read more

Chairman of the Azerbaijan State Tourism Agency Fuad Naghiyev and the Israeli Minister of Tourism Haim Katz have discussed the current state of Azerbaijani-Israeli tourism relations ties.

The sides touched upon the activities of the Azerbaijan Tourism Board's office in Tel Aviv and exchanged views on increasing the number of direct flights between the two countries, student exchange programs, cooperation in B2B (business to business) and B2C (business to consumer) formats and other issues, Azernews reports.

It was proposed to invite a delegation of Israeli companies to Azerbaijan for a study tour in order to attract investment in the tourism sector of the Azerbaijan's liberated territories.

Within the framework of the visit, an event dedicated to Azerbaijani tourism was held in Tel Aviv, organized by the State Tourism Agency, the Azerbaijan Tourism Board and Azerbaijan Airlines CJSC (AZAL).

Around 70 travel companies and representatives of the Israeli media, as well as representatives of hotel and travel companies that are members of the Azerbaijan Hotel Association (AOA) and the Azerbaijan Travel Agencies Association (ATAA) attended the event, aimed at showcasing the country's tourism opportunities.

In his speech, Fuad Naghiyev noted that such events, which serve as a platform for strengthening bilateral contacts and business ties, also symbolize the constantly developing friendly relations between the two nations.

He outlined that the expansion of tourism ties with Israel, support for new cooperation initiatives and assistance in mutual promotion of the tourism potential of the two countries are the main goals of the State Tourism Board.

The Azerbaijani Ambassador to Israel Mukhtar Mammadov recalled the official visit of Israeli President Yitzhak Herzog to Azerbaijan last month.

During the visit, President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev and Israeli President Yitzhak Herzog discussed the issues of increasing the level of mutual tourist flow.

Stressing that successful cooperation ties have been established between the two states in a number of areas, the ambassador expressed confidence that the opening of the Azerbaijani embassy in Israel will contribute to the deepening and development of bilateral relations in the tourism field.

AZAL Sales and Partnerships Director Chingiz Mursalov said that starting from June 28, the number of flights from Baku to Tel Aviv will be increased.

He also announced the acquisition of new aircraft for the convenience of flights and the provision of quality passenger service.

These steps are being taken to increase the flow of tourists between Azerbaijan and Israel, to open opportunities for guests to get acquainted with the unique culture, history and sights of the two countries.

Azerbaijan's tourism products and AZAL flight destinations were also presented as part of the event. The meeting participants also got acquainted with the photo exhibition "Azerbaijan through the eyes of Israeli photographers".

In 2022, the number of tourists from Israel to Azerbaijan quadrupled compared to the previous year and amounted to 23,935 people

In the first five months of 2023, the number of Israeli citizens visiting Azerbaijan increased by 70 percent compared to the same period last year and reached 8,611 people.

Currently, direct flights from Tel Aviv to Baku are operated seven times a week.

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The U.S. government is still using some lands in the Philippines for its military bases.

Because of this, some Filipino lawmakers want the United States to start paying for their military bases in the country.

Recently, Philippine lawmakers asked the Marcos administration to adjust two defense treaties with the United States.

Legislator Ronald dela Rosa proposed to make U.S. troops pay for using the Philippines as their military bases.

This proposal was also backed by Senator Francis Escudero.

Should the US Pay the Philippines for Military Bases?

According to the South China Morning Post's latest report, Escudero said that the U.S. government commonly pays countries whenever it uses its lands.

Read Also: Iconic San Francisco Mall Set To Close as Westfield Stops Making Mortgage Payments on $558 Million Loan

They do this to cover the expenses of their buildings, site maintenance, rents, and other financial compensation to the host country.

"These agreements are usually established through formal diplomatic channels and can be revised or renegotiated over time," said Escudero via Inquirer.Net.

Their proposal to make the United States pay for using the Philippines for their military bases came as the tension in the Taiwan Strait intensified.

Numerous military experts claimed that the Philippines is becoming more important to the U.S. since Washington wants to counter the aggressive military actions of China.

Senator Escudero explained that dela Rosca might push his proposal by filing a resolution to urge the entire 24-member chamber to ask the Marcos Administration to amend the Visiting Forces Agreement and the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement.

This agreement between the U.S. and the Philippines could force the American government to pay for using lands for their military sites.

Four New US Military Locations in the Philippines

In April, the Philippine government confirmed that there will be four new military bases in the country. Some of these new locations are near the Taiwan Strait and the South China Sea. Because of this, dela Rosa wants the Philippine government to start asking the U.S. for payment.

"We have to amend the VFA and tell [the US] to pay. They have been using our land, but they don't pay for anything," said the legislator.

You can click this link to learn more about the proposal of dela Rosa.

Related Article: Biden Admin Official Claims China Spies US From Cuba via Spy Base

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You can reach Ishani Desai at 661-395-7417. You can also follow her at @_ishanidesai on Twitter.
A company says it has been purposefully excluded from a multimillion dollar contract with the city of Bakersfield, Kern County and Tejon Ranch
Starbucks Workers United said on Tuesday, June 13, that several locations throughout the United States prohibited staff from displaying Pride Month decorations.

Meanwhile, in a statement to CNBC, Starbucks explained it continues to support the LGBTQ+ community and has no plans to alter its standards on retail displays.

"There has been no change to any policy on this matter and we continue to encourage our store leaders to celebrate with their communities, including for US Pride month in June," the company stated.

A Starbucks representative told CNBC that general guidelines for outlets to follow regarding decorations might be found in the company's security and safety handbook. Within those parameters, however, managers and staff at individual stores are given some leeway in how they decorate.

Attack on the LGBTQ+ Community

The union's allegation comes at a time when members of the LGBTQ+ community are under increased assault from all sides, including rallies, legislation, and even physical violence.

Republican state lawmakers have introduced bills that would restrict access to healthcare for transgender persons and ban drag shows. According to the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), nearly 500 anti-LGBTQ+ measures have been proposed in state legislatures so far this year.

Bud Light of Anheuser-Busch InBev, Kohl's, and North Face are just a few of the companies that have shown their support for the LGBTQ+ community, but conservative groups have stirred opposition against them in recent months.

Starbucks has a history of supporting its LGBTQ+ employees, including transgender baristas, which has contributed to the company's long-standing image as a progressive employer.

Before the US legalized homosexual marriage in 2015, its health advantages applied to same-sex unions as well. Employees have previously gotten rainbow pride pins and attire. Since 2013, Starbucks has included gender reassignment surgery in its insurance coverage.

Also Read: Target Faces Bomb Threats Following Woke Controversy

Starbucks vs. Staff

According to CNBC, baristas in at least 22 states have complained to Starbucks Workers United about being instructed by district and shop management that they cannot decorate for Pride month and about store representatives taking down Pride banners.

Pride flags were also banned by Starbucks management in Oklahoma from being displayed in shop windows. Starbucks has a no-blocking-windows policy to guarantee that baristas can see what is happening outside their stores.

The spat over Pride decorations also comes as Starbucks and its baristas continue to argue over whether or not to form a union. There have been unionization votes at more than 300 company-owned shops, but no outlets have signed a collective bargaining agreement with Starbucks as of yet.

The union claims that Starbucks is dragging its feet on discussions, while the firm strongly refutes these claims. In an effort to get the cafe giant to the bargaining table, baristas have been relying on public pressure.

Also Read: Louisiana Passes Law Prohibiting Sex-Change Surgery on Youths

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Governor Roy Cooper mentioned four Republican lawmakers in a video put out last week in an effort to increase political pressure on them for the upcoming abortion vote. Additionally, Cooper scheduled visits to their districts for a pressure campaign toto their voters.Surprisingly, Cooper has not contacted any of the four lawmakers to discuss the bill, according to the lawmakers and sources close to them.The four Republicans who Cooper has his sights set on are Reps. Tricia Cotham, R-Mecklenburg; Ted Davis, R-New Hanover; and John Bradford, R-Mecklenburg; and Sen. Michael Lee, R-New Hanover.Senate Bill 20 passed the House with a veto-proof margin, while the Senate passed the bill 29-20 with one Republican, Sen. Todd Johnson, R-Union, absent. Johnson plans to vote in favor of the bill when it comes back.Cooper says he will veto the bill on Saturday, sending it back to the legislature for reconsideration by both House and Senate chambers. Leaders in both chambers plan to hold successful votes to override Cooper's veto, which would make the bill law.Cooper would need at minimum one Republican to vote against his veto override, which is why he started the pressure campaign.Both of the Mecklenburg Republicans said Cooper had made no efforts to reach out to them regarding Senate Bill 20.Bradford said.Bradford pointed to a time last year when Cooper specifically excluded him even though he was the main bill sponsor.Bradford said.Cotham said she hadfrom Cooper about her vote on Senate Bill 20. Earlier this year, Cotham said that while she was a Democrat, her experiences dealing with Cooper were part of her decision to leave the Democratic Party.said Cotham.Cotham's transition to the Republican Party seems unlikely to bode well for Cooper's ability to control how she votes.Sen. Michael Lee, who campaigned in support of the abortion compromise legislation in Senate Bill 20, said Cooper never reached out to him.Lee said.Sources close to Davis say he has not been contacted by Cooper, either, although Davis could not be reached for comment to confirm.Lawmakers from both Mecklenburg and New Hanover delegations said the only contact they received from Cooper or his team was a notice of the roundtable discussions in their districts.Bradford won his seat by two points-51 to 49 percent-in the 2022 election. Cotham, who was a Democrat at the time, won her race by about 18 points. Upcoming redistricting will likely change the makeup of both districts.Bradford does not plan to run for re-election. He announced his candidacy for state treasurer last month.Bradford, who is now the Senior Chairman of the House Finance Committee, does not appreciate Cooper's tactics.Bradford said.According to sources in Mecklenburg and New Hanover, Cooper's roundtables in both counties were poorly attended by the public. At the Cape Fear Community College roundtable in New Hanover County, sources said some panelists' name cards were handwritten, which they thought indicated Cooper had to add them last minute.Cooper's tour has been building up to his veto ceremony, which is scheduled to take place in Raleigh on Saturday.Republicans are expected to vote to override Cooper quickly, enacting the new restrictions into law.Demi Dowdy, a spokesperson for House Speaker Tim Moore, said Cooper thinks he can pressure legislators to vote how he wants, but his campaign will not deter the House's plans to override his veto.Dowdy said.The Senate will be responsible for voting on the override first and also expects a swift vote.said Lauren Horsch, a spokesperson for Senate leader Phil Berger.Sources say the Senate override vote is scheduled for Tuesday and that Senate Democrats are planning similar stalling tactics to last week.
This post appears here courtesy of The James G. Martin Center . The author of this post is Joanne Florino An unusual donor-intent controversy at Middlebury College has sparked more than the typical public attention. In September 2021, college officials announced that they had removed the name of former Vermont Gov. John Mead from the campus chapel because of his support for eugenics policies in the early 1900s. Former Vermont Gov. Jim Douglas is now representing the Mead family and has filed a breach of contract suit against Middlebury.Born in 1841, John Abner Mead was a physician and businessman who served in various public offices in Vermont between 1892 and late 1910, when he assumed a two-year term as the state's governor. An 1864 alumnus of Middlebury, he believed in the fight to end slavery and had interrupted his studies there to serve in the Civil War as a member of the 12th Vermont Infantry Regiment. Mead died in January 1920.In 1914, Mead offered to build a chapel on his alma mater's campus in honor of the 50th anniversary of his graduation. By the time the chapel was completed in 1916, Mead's gift totaled $75,000 (over $2 million in today's money). Middlebury named the structure the Mead Memorial Chapel, but the intent of the naming is in dispute. Middlebury claimed, in its official announcement of the change,Other sources-and the current lawsuit-say otherwise. Gov. Douglas included a copy of Mead's original letter in the complaint he filed with the Vermont Superior Court on March 24. That document indicates that Mead's naming intention was, in fact, to honor his ancestors.There is no question that John Mead expressed both interest in, and support for, the horrific eugenics movement of the early 20th century. He was certainly not alone in advocating for what, in the first four decades of that century, was regarded asby many prominent Americans, including Theodore Roosevelt, Margaret Sanger, W.E.B. Du Bois, and Oliver Wendell Holmes. Some of the nation's largest philanthropies supported eugenics research, including the Carnegie Institution and the Rockefeller Foundation, a deplorable chapter in the history of American philanthropy.Carnegie, which funded such research for over 40 years (and has noted that it did so) issued an apology in the fall of 2020. The following fall, Rockefeller Foundation president Dr. Rajiv J. Shah issued a statement announcing,Also in 2021, Planned Parenthood admitted that Sanger'sIn its decision to pull the Mead name from its chapel, Middlebury was part of this tidal wave ofandresulting from social upheavals across the country. In the spring of 2021, both chambers of the Vermont Legislature unanimously approved resolutions that acknowledged and apologized for the passage of a 1931 law that targeted state residents deemedorand resulted in 253 sterilizations over a 10-year period. However, when Middlebury announced its decision to pull the Mead name from its campus chapel, it chose to target the first piece of eugenics legislation introduced in the state-a 1912 bill from John Mead's term as governor.Mead made some of his more prominent comments in support of eugenics in his October 1912 farewell address, where he focused onHe advocated that such individuals be identified and segregated, that marriage laws be written with the goal ofand that consideration be given toBut as Mercedes de Guardiola points out inAnd Mead had neither endorsed the implementation of such a policy, nor included consideration of female sterilization in his remarks.The bill in question passed both chambers after Mead left the governor's office and was vetoed by his successor, primarily because he believed its proposals regarding eugenical sterilization would be legally unenforceable and possibly unconstitutional. From what we know-and the Middlebury College community seems to agree-Mead's involvement with eugenics policy was brief, and he occupied himself with business interests in the last years of his life.Unfortunately, an active eugenics movement in Vermont persisted and intensified well after John Mead's time as governor and for two decades after his death in 1920. In 1925, University of Vermont professor Henry F. Perkins launched a Eugenics Survey to collect the names of individuals in state institutions, Vermont families deemed to have inferior genetic predispositions, and otherincluding French-Canadians and members of the Abenaki Nation. Many state leaders and heads of state institutions voluntarily contributed names to the survey and went on to participate in another venture led by Perkins-the Vermont Commission on Country Life. Despite its pastoral trappings, the commission's 1931 report focused on preservingFollowing unsuccessful attempts in 1912-13 and 1927, 1931 also saw the passage of eugenics legislation in "An Act for Human Betterment by Voluntary Sterilization," which called for a statewide pro-eugenics educational campaign. The law passed both chambers of the Vermont Legislature with comfortable margins (22-8 in the Senate and 140-75 in the House) and was signed by Governor Stanley Wilson on March 31. Like his predecessor, Gov. John Weeks, who chaired citizens' committees for the Eugenics Survey, Wilson publicly supported eugenics controls. In his 1931 inaugural address, he expressed his concern thatadding,Any earlier concerns about the constitutionality of compulsory eugenic sterilization had been eliminated in 1927 by the U.S. Supreme Court's near-unanimous ruling in Buck v. Bell, which famously held thatFrom 1931 until 1957, 253 documented sterilizations of men and women took place in Vermont. There may well have been more such procedures. While consent-by patient or legal guardian-was required by law, it may have been circumvented in some cases. This occurred even though support for public policies based on eugenics was already declining by the time Vermont's law permitted sterilization. Funding for what had once been regarded as abegan to disappear, with the Carnegie Institution, for example, withdrawing support in 1939 from the very Eugenics Research Office it had helped create in 1904. What had begun in the late 19th century with a mindset ofhuman stock through selective breeding had morphed into the segregation and elimination of those deemed inferior, and the increased public awareness of the ongoing horrors in Nazi Germany rendered bothandeugenics intolerable.So what should we make of John Mead and Middlebury's decision to remove his name from the chapel that he built? Is it a violation of donor intent? If the naming of the chapel in perpetuity was a stipulation of the gift, then, yes, it is a deliberate violation, and the college should not retain the present value of Mead's gift.But does Mead's short-lived involvement in Vermont's eugenics history warrant Middlebury's decision, even though it violates donor intent? We can safely assume that Middlebury's president at the time of the gift was well aware of Mead's politics, as were the college trustees who happily accepted his money.Is the chapel so iconic that Middlebury cannot allow it to beby Mead's name? When Mead asked that the chapel stand at the highest point on campus, Middlebury enthusiastically agreed. And it was the college itself, as Gov. Douglas has noted, that made the chapel a key part of its brand inMost importantly, is there a thoughtful and educational approach that keeps Mead's name on the chapel but also uses this historic landmark to tell the story of John Mead, while also offering a desperately needed and timely lesson about the dangers of simple solutions and the need to temper scientific knowledge and data with ethics and empathy?In October 2021, Deb Billado, then-chairwoman of the Vermont GOP, wrote an op-ed decrying Middlebury's decision. In that piece she commented,However, there was noinvolved. Mead's interest in eugenics was an integral part of his progressivism, as it was for so many others-economists, educators, politicians, philanthropists, and scientists alike.Facing the effects of rapid and dramatic change across the country in the wake of industrialization, urbanization, and immigration, progressive reformers opted for more government regulation and social engineering around what they deemedIn that environment, advancing human flourishing was reduced to eradicatingand the virtues of charity and humility took a backseat toThe lesson is clear: The best of us can make the worst mistakes when we lose sight of our common humanity and our inevitable frailties.I can't think of a better message to be attached to the Mead Memorial Chapel.
Insulting Republican Plan on Teacher Pay Would Worsen North Carolinas Teacher Shortage

Press Release:



RALEIGH: Today, Governor Roy Cooper visited Huntingtowne Farms Elementary School in Charlotte to emphasize the dangerous impacts of extreme legislation proposed by Republican legislators that would worsen North Carolina's teaching shortage and provide veteran teachers with only $250 in salary increases spread over two years.



"Republican legislators will make North Carolina's teacher shortage worse with insultingly low salary increases for teachers who work hard every day to help students grow and succeed," said Governor Roy Cooper. "Our teachers deserve to be paid like the professionals they are and we can't let the legislature continue to drive qualified educators out of the profession and dismantle public education."



Legislative Republicans proposed paltry salary increases for teachers that would worsen the teacher shortage. North Carolina already faces more than 5,000 teacher vacancies, leaving tens of thousands of students without a qualified educator and putting their success at extreme risk. Recruiting and retaining quality teachers is harder than ever and low pay is a significant reason why.



North Carolina ranks 32nd nationally in average teacher pay. Additionally, North Carolina ranks 46th nationally and 11th in the Southeast in beginning teacher pay. Neighboring states have passed North Carolina in teacher pay, causing teachers to leave for other states and higher-paying jobs.



While Governor Cooper proposed an 18% pay raise over two years for teachers, Senate Republicans proposed increasing veteran teachers' salaries by only $250 spread over two years. House leaders are proposing an average teacher salary increase of 10% over two years - an increase that barely matches inflation.



In addition to siphoning money out of public schools, Republicans are also proposing large tax breaks for the wealthy and corporations that will reduce total state funding by almost 20% and cause long-term cuts to the classroom.



In a special address earlier this week, Governor Cooper outlined sweeping legislation in the NC General Assembly that would choke the life out of public education. These extreme bills would cause public schools to lose hundreds of millions of dollars through the expansion of private school vouchers, exacerbate the state's teacher shortage and bring political culture wars into the classrooms.



The Governor is calling on North Carolinians to visit governor.nc.gov to learn more and contact their legislators to ask them to protect public schools.





Contact: Sam Chan



Phone: (919) 814-2100  Email: govpress@nc.gov


Span an area of approximately 193 square miles - over twice the area of the city of Norfolk, Virginia

Contain 69 wind turbines reaching 1,042 feet from base to tip - over 20 percent taller than the state's tallest building, the Bank of America Corporate Center in Charlotte

Be an enormous "city" of massive, whirling skyscrapers known to cause significant radar disruption

of massive, whirling skyscrapers known to cause significant radar disruption Be placed only 24 nautical miles off the Outer Banks

From the shore: the bottom 411 feet would be obscured and the upper 630 feet (61 percent) would be visible

From a beach house on stilts: only the bottom 318 feet would be obscured and the upper 724 feet (69 percent) would be visible

This post appears here courtesy of the John Locke Foundation . The author of this post is Jon Sanders The Outer Banks Voice reported recently that construction will begin next year on the Kitty Hawk wind energy area. Outer Banks residents are properly concerned about spoiled views and other economic impacts from the project. As shown below, from a beach house on stilts, 69 percent of the turbines will be visible, and they will sport flashing lights that will be arresting features at night.Incidentally, the Pentagon has been trying to warn the Biden administration of the national security threat from this project in particular and several other sprawling offshore wind projects filled with large arrays of giant turbines. They will interfere with and compromise military training and operations.The Kitty Hawk project is one in particular that will make the militaryIn particular, it would especially disrupt fighter jet training using the Dare County Bombing Range, a training range used by the 4th Fighter Wing at Seymour Johnson Air Force Base, N.C., as well as by the Navy and Marine Corps.Proximity of the Kitty Hawk Wind Energy Area to the Dare County Bombing Range Used by the 4th Fighter Wing at Seymour Johnson Air Force Base and the Navy and Marine CorpsCasual readers who find it hard to believe that this offshore wind project could interrupt military training perhaps haven't considered the enormity of the project in an area used for low-flying training runs (especially as it will be amid other such projects). Nevertheless, the Kitty Hawk wind project would:Residents rightly concerned about visibilityWhile the military is worried about compromised training, operations, and national security, Outer Banks residents are worried about spoiled views and other problems. As they have done with Brunswick County residents with similar, unfortunately very justified concerns, offshore wind interests held an information session to tamp down those concerns.The Kitty Hawk offshore wind project's distance from the Outer Banks of 24 nautical miles happens to be the same distance as the official range of the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse, which stands 210 feet above sea level (about one-fifth the height of the Kitty Hawk turbines).The Outer Banks Voice reported that on April 13, Avangrid held a public information meeting in Corolla offering projections of how the turbines might appear inThe Voice noted that the scenario did not involve nighttime visibility, when the turbines and blade tips would be festooned with lights:In 2016, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management under the Obama administration showed that turbines as small as 328 to 492 feet tall - i.e., a fraction of the 1,042-foot-tall turbines planned off the Outer Banks - could be seen unaided on a clear day from as far away as 23.5 to 27.8 nautical miles.Visibility Distances of Offshore Wind Turbines, By Height (Includes Refraction)* Note: Turbine heights in this graph range from 328 to 492 feet, and distances range from 23.5 to 27.8 nautical milesWind interests like to focus on visibility from the shoreline during the day. The shoreline, however, is the lowest vantage point with comparably the least visibility. During the day doesn't account for the reach of flashing turbine lights, which are more visually arresting and disruptive at night.Using the Earth's Curvature Calculator, at 24 nautical miles, here is how much of those enormous towers (1,042 feet tall) would be visible in clear conditions from to a North Carolinian of average height standing on the shore vs. viewing the ocean from a Kitty Hawk beach house on stilts:Of course, more of the turbines would be visible from greater heights, such as from upper stories, hotels, and condominiums. It bears repeating that even as those structures would appear less prominent at those distances, all the lights on those turbines - flashing 30 times per minute - would be impossible to miss.
We've said it before, and we'll say it again: Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) served her constituents for decades so, good on her.But it's really time for her to go. Really.As if we needed yet another reason why the 89-year-old Feinstein needs to retire, The New York Times (of all sources) finally reported on an incident from last year that shows just how confused and out of touch the senator is.A source told the Times that Feinstein had an odd reaction to Vice President Kamala Harris presiding over the Senate (one of the only official duties the Constitution sets out for the veep).Feinstein turned to her colleagues and said,the liberal newspaper said. In fact, Harris has cast 29 tie-breaking votes as president of the Senate since she took office, so she's there a lot.The Times story was headlined,The piece cataloged all the ways the senator is unable to do her job. SheFeinstein, 89, missed months of Senate votes after contracting shingles that led to a case of Ramsay Hunt syndrome, which can cause facial paralysis and hearing loss. She also suffered encephalitis, which is swelling of the brain.When she finally returned to work more than two months after holing up in her California mansion, Feinstein was in a wheelchair. But she and her staff claim she's just fine - and they're going to great lengths to shield the senator's health from public scrutiny.Last week, a staff photographer for The Los Angeles Times wrote that he waswhen he tried to photograph Feinstein.photographer Kent Nishimura wrote.The photographer also claimed Senate security is going to great lengths to protect Feinstein from the press.he said.Feinstein's office denied that it is shielding the senator from the media.Feinstein spokesman Adam Russell said in a statement to the Times.A spokesperson for Feinstein did say:Feinstein's mental acuity has been in question since she returned to the Senate. She gave a bizarre answer when asked by reporters about her lengthy absence and how her colleagues reacted upon her return.she said.One reporter asked whether she had been working from home.she said.More than two-thirds of voters in California think Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) is not fit to serve in the Senate, according to a new poll.Sixty-seven percent of registered voters in the state say Feinstein's latest illness, which has left her in a wheelchair, has left her unfit for office, according to the poll conducted by UC Berkeley's Institute of Governmental Studies.Poll respondents were asked if they agreed with the statement,In addition, on the question of whether she should resign, a plurality (42%) said she should. Another 27% said Feinstein should serve in the Senate until the end of her term in 2025, while 31% said they were undecided.
WASHINGTON, D.C. In an address to the nation, El Presidente Biden showed off his cool new uniform covered with flashy medals and assured the nation that the U.S. is not a banana republic.said El Presidente as machine gun fire went off in the background.Media outlets praised Biden's bold and impressive new look.said CNN anchor Wolf Blitzer.Sources say Biden's political opponent, Donald Trump, is finally being held responsible for the egregious crime of having classified documents while not being a member of the ruling party.said Trump in an all-caps rant on TRUTH Social.Sources confirmed Trump is scheduled to disappear mysteriously next Tuesday.At publishing time, the Biden Regime reiterated that the U.S. is not a banana republic and that anyone who says otherwise will be indicted and then shot.
The United Kingdom's National Health Service (NIH) on Friday announced that it will ban the use of puberty blockers and regulate gender transition treatments for minors.

Puberty blockers will remain permitted solely for the conducting of clinical trials. Instead, the service plans to "adopt a holistic, multi-disciplinary integrated approach to assessing and responding to an individuals needs."

https://justthenews.com/politics-policy/health/uks-national-health-service-bans-puberty-blockers-minors

England's NHS issued a draft guidance in October recognizing that gender dysphoria could be a "transient phase" and young, pre-pubescent children should be treated based on "evidence that, in most cases, gender incongruence does not persist into adolescence."

https://www2.cbn.com/news/world/england-bans-most-puberty-blockers-says-little-evidence-show-it-safe-kids
The Old Farmers Almanac reminds us that today is Flag Day.

Flag Day is Wednesday, June 14. What is Flag Day all about? Who really designed the first flag, and what do the red, white, and blue colors symbolize? See how much you know about the U.S. flags history and meaning, plus find five fun trivia questions to test your knowledge.

What is Flag Day?

Flag Day is a celebration of the American flag that occurs each year on the anniversary of the flags official adoption, June 14.

What we know fondly as the Stars and Stripes was adopted by the Continental Congress as the official American flag on June 14, 1777, in the midst of the Revolutionary War. Colonial troops fought under many different flags with various symbolsrattlesnakes, pine trees, and eaglesand slogansDont Tread on Me, Liberty or Death, and Conquer or Die, to name a few.

The Declaration of Independence made the adoption of an American flag necessary. Previously, each colony or special interest had its own flag.

On that 14th of June, Congress made the Flag Resolution of 1777, stating: The flag of the United States shall be thirteen stripes, alternate red and white, with a union of thirteen stars of white on a blue field  Official announcement of the new flag was not made until Sept. 3, 1777.

Flag Day was celebrated as a patriotic occasion for many decades, but it was President Woodrow Wilson who made the observance official by a presidential proclamation on May 30, 1916.

Who Made the First American Flag?

The origins of the Stars and Stripes have become part of American folklore. Although many people believe that Betsy Ross designed and sewed the first flag, there is no true proof of this.

However, records do indicate that Betsy Ross most definitely made ensigns and pennants for the Philadelphia Navy during the war, and she certainly inspired the design of the current flag.

Based on colonial folklore, it has also been stated that the American flag was first flown in battle during the Revolutionary War at the Battle of Coochs Bridge in 1777. This may also be the stuff of legend.

However, what we do know is this:

The original 1777 flag was designed to represent the 13 original colonies with 13 white stars on a blue field and 13 alternating red and white stripes.

One of the first flag designs had the stars arranged in a circle, based on the idea that all colonies were equal.

In 1818, after a few design changes, the United States Congress decided to retain the flags original 13 stripes and add new stars to reflect each new state that entered the union.

Each time a state was added to the union, a star was added. Today, there are 50 stars, one for each state in the union, but the 13 stripes remain.

Interestingly, the current American flag was designed by a high school student from Lancaster, Ohio, named Bob G. Heft! Even though Bobs history teacher gave him a B- for not knowing how many states the Union had, Bob submitted his design to the White House (unprompted) in anticipation of Hawaii and Alaska joining the Union. To his surprise, President Eisenhower called him! Today, its Bob Hefts 1958 designwhich shows 50 stars into a field that included five rows of six stars and four rows of five starswhich is now our 50-star American flag (and history teacher changed his grade to an A!).

When Is Flag Day?

Flag Day, celebrated annually on June 14, is not an official federal holiday, but its observance is traditionally proclaimed each year by the president of the United States. On Flag Day, many towns and cities hold parades and events to celebrate the flag, and the colors are to be flown at all government buildings.

Historical Facts About the U.S. Flag

January 1, 1776: The first United States flag, the Grand Union, was displayed by George Washington. It became the unofficial national flag, preceding the 13-star, 13-stripe version.

The first United States flag, the Grand Union, was displayed by George Washington. It became the unofficial national flag, preceding the 13-star, 13-stripe version. June 14, 1777: The Stars and Stripes were adopted by the Continental Congress as the Flag of the United States.

The Stars and Stripes were adopted by the Continental Congress as the Flag of the United States. June 14, 1877: Flag Day was observed nationally for the first time on the 100th anniversary of the Stars and Stripesand continues today.

Flag Day was observed nationally for the first time on the 100th anniversary of the Stars and Stripesand continues today. June 14, 1937: Pennsylvania became the first state in the United States to celebrate Flag Day officially as a state holiday.

Pennsylvania became the first state in the United States to celebrate Flag Day officially as a state holiday. July 4, 1960:The new 50-star flag was flown for the first timethe flag that still flies today.

Why is the American Flag Red, White, and Blue?

The Continental Congress left no record as to why it chose these colors. However, in 1782, the Congress of the Articles of Confederation chose the colors for the Great Seal of the United States with these meanings:

white for purity and innocence

for purity and innocence red for valor and hardiness

for valor and hardiness bluefor vigilance, perseverance, and justice

According to the End of the Oregon Trail Interpretive Center, the colors originated with the British flag, which is called the Union Jack and was a combination of the Scottish cross of St. Andrew (white on blue) and the English cross of St. George (red on white) at the time. (The modern British flag also incorporates the Irish cross of St. Patrick into its design.)

American Flag Etiquette

Did you know that there are special rules for taking care of our flag? The U.S. Flag Code is an official set of guidelines ( not laws) that dictates how a flag should be flown in order to show it the respect and honor that it deserves. Learn all about American Flag Etiquette here and hoist the flag this Flag Day!

Where May the American Flag be Flown 24 Hours a Day?

The flag is usually taken indoors at night out of respect, but there are some places where flying the flag around the clock is permissible. Do you think you can guess them?

The Betsy Ross House in Philadelphia The White House The U.S. Capitol The Iwo Jima Memorial to U.S. Marines in Arlington, Virginia The Revolutionary War battleground in Lexington, Massachusetts The site of George Washingtons winter encampment at Valley Forge, Pennsylvania Fort McHenry in Baltimore, Maryland The Jenny Wade House in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania (Jenny Wade was the only civilian killed in the Battle of Gettysburg, during the Civil War) The USS Arizona Memorial at Pearl Harbor All customs points of entry into the United States Any US Navy ship that is under way

In truth, the flag may be flown at night anywhere that it may be flown during the day, provided that it is properly illuminated during the hours of darkness.

5 Flag Trivia Questions

Quiz your friends and family with these five flag questions and answers:

Is it ever appropriate to fly the flag upside down? Answer: Yes, but only in an emergency. It means Help Me! Its an emergency! Call the police! I am in dire trouble and need immediate help! How many versions of the American flag have been designed? There have been 27 versions of the American Flag. However, the current flagdesigned by a high school boyhas lasted the longest as no states have been added since 1959. Can the flag touch the ground? Despite the myths, the flag can touch the ground and still be washed and used. However, if the flag is torn or damaged beyond repair, the tradition is to burn it with dignity. Most U.S. localities offer this service at no fee. How many U.S. flags made it to the Moon? The U.S. flag has been placed on the Moon by an astronaut during six Apollo missions (11, 12, 14, 15, 16, and 17). Why must Old Glory be folded in such a specific way? The U.S. flag is folded into a small triangle made of 13 folds. Each fold has special meaning and symbolism. For example, the first fold represents life, while the third honors the veteran who has departed and the fifth is a tribute to our country. See the correct way to fold the American flag.

Next time you gaze upon the symbol of the nations freedom, pause and reflect on the flags origins, symbolism, and historyand what the American flag means in your life.

More Patriotic Holidays

Flag Day is just one of many patriotic celebrations in the United States. Learn about George Washingtons birthday in our article on Presidents Day, and dont forget to catch up on your Independence Day history before July 4!
Conservative Senator Ted Budd (R-NC) and conservative Congressman Dan Bishop (R-NC) are helping lead the fight to stop the appointment of NC Covid czar Mandy Cohoen as head of the Center for Disease Controll by Biden. Budd and Bishop have signed a joint letter with over twenty other conservative senators and congressmen opposing the appointment of Cohen, who was know for proposing rigid lockdowns of citizens.

Local RINO congressman Greg Murphy seems to be missing in action on opposing Cohen.

"THroughout her career, Dr. Cohen has politicized science, disregarded civil liberties, and spread misinformation. . . she also has a history of engaging in partisan leftwing politics" Budd and Bishop said in their letter.

https://myfox8.com/news/north-carolina/north-carolina-senator-congressman-cosign-letter-opposing-former-ncdhhs-secretary-mandy-cohen-as-head-of-the-cdc/
An 18-year-old trainee of the Japan Self-Defense Force (JSDF) was arrested after he allegedly shot three soldiers with a rifle at a Japan Ground Self-Defense Force (JGSDF) shooting range in Gifu, southwest of Tokyo, Wednesday morning.

The incident marked the first fatal shooting at a JSDF facility in nearly 40 years.

Investigators said the recruit shot the three personnel using a Howa Type 89 assault rifle because they were allegedly obstructing the shooter's line of sight during live fire training. The recruit quickly admitted the crime and said he was being held at the Gifu Prefectural Police station.

Police added they would continue investigating the incident alongside the JGSDF Middle Army military police unit.

All three servicemen were instructors and were taken to the hospital. Two of them, a 52-year-old and a 25-year-old, died shortly after, while another 25-year-old was injured and remains in hospital.

No civilian casualties were reported.

Read Also: Can PM Kishida's New Childcare Plan Solve Japan's Low Birth Rate?

JSDF Suspends All Live Fire Training

In response to the incident, Japanese defense minister Yasukazu Hamada expressed remorse for the "great concern [it] has caused everyone" in the country, while JGSDF chief of staff Gen. Yasunori Morishita stated it would set up an investigation committee to determine the case and prevent a similar case happening in the future.

"As an organization that uses weapons, this kind of incident should never have happened," the general said. "In response...we have immediately suspended all [live] firing drills throughout the country."

Morishita added the JGSDF had instructed personnel to ensure the management of their safety and would be provided with comprehensive training. He also said they would look into whether the arrested recruit was frustrated with his training or other factors that might have led to the shooting.

The JSDF has not provided any information on whether the victims wore bulletproof vests during the incident.

Previous Shooting Incidents in Japan

Prior to the shooting, the last time a similar incident happened was in 1984, when a 21-year-old trainee fired shots during training at a base in Yamaguchi, killing one service member and injuring three others. The man fled the scene but was arrested later that day.

While gun violence is rare in Japan, there has been an increase in cases in recent years. Former prime minister Shinzo Abe was assassinated in July 2022 by an attacker using a handmade gun, while his successor, Fumio Kishida, was almost hit by a pipe bomb thrown by a person at an election campaign venue in April.

Last month, a man was also arrested after he allegedly shot two police officers to death after stabbing two women in Nagano prefecture.

Related Article: Japan Extends Destroy Order On North Korean Spy Satellite; NoKor Still Planning 2nd Launch Attempt

@ 2023 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
The American Medical Association appointed Jesse Ehrenfeld, MD, an anesthesiologist, to serve as the organization's 178th president, according to a June 13 news release from the organization.

A main goal for Dr. Ehrenfeld is to advance the ability for all patients to receive equitable medical care and make changes to the Medicare payment system, he said in his inaugural address.

Dr. Ehrenfeld served as chair of the AMA board of trustees from 2019 to 2020 and is also a tenured professor of anesthesiology at the Medical College of Wisconsin in Milwaukee.
Texas residents Jason Vernon Rogers, 38, and Truong Quoc Duong, 52, are in custody and charged with setting fire to a three-story medical office building under construction in Spring, Texas, on Nov. 21, 2022.

Charges against the men allege that the fire resulted in $1 million in damages to the building and a firetruck and caused burn injuries for a firefighter, according to a June 13 press release from the Justice Department.

Mr. Rogers and Mr. Duong are both charged with maliciously using explosive materials resulting in injury and conspiracy to do so.

It took firefighters several hours to extinguish the fire, which completely destroyed the medical office building and a wall to an adjoining car wash.

Mr. Duong was in a legal dispute with the landlord who owned the burned-down medical office building, according to the report.

Upon his arrest, authorities found several 2-liter bottles of gasoline and numerous unregistered firearm suppressors in Mr. Duong's vehicle.

If convicted, both men face up to 40 years in prison.
A New Jersey regulatory board has suspended the medical license of Paulsboro, N.J.-based Anthony Villare, MD, after he pleaded guilty to a drug offense, the Courier Post reported June 14.

Under the action, Dr. Villare, whose license was also suspended in Pennsylvania, will not be able to practice medicine in New Jersey for at least two years.

Dr. Villare pleaded guilty in October 2021 to dispensing 30 Percocet tablets without a medical purpose, according to the Post. He was sentenced to two years on probation and must pay a $150,000 fine.
Many physicians are viewing artificial intelligence as a double-edged disruptor: Its high potential for improving physicians' day to day workflow is paired with high potential for abuse.

"Artificial intelligence has potential to completely disrupt the way healthcare is delivered in the foreseeable future with potential improvements in efficiencies as well as diagnostic accuracy," Brian Curtin, MD, an orthopedic surgeon at Charlotte, N.C.-based OrthoCarolina, told Becker's. "However, the potential is also there for further erosion of the physician-patient relationship and overreliance on algorithm-based clinical decision-making that may in some instances result in worse patient care and outcomes."

This "slippery slope" requires oversight to be implemented successfully, he added.

AI can refine operations as healthcare policy has become increasingly complex, with prior authorizations and documentation requirements burning out providers.

"AI can streamline care by reducing physician administrative burden, improving diagnostic accuracy, eliminating redundancy and minimizing physician errors," Sean Moroze, MD, an orthopedic surgeon affiliated with Ascension Medical Group Sacred Heart Bay Orthopedics in Panama City, Fla., told Becker's. "The introduction of AI into electronic medical records will occur piecemeal, with often undetectable change. However, in the coming decade, such technology will be commonplace and come to be expected by physicians and other providers."

Physicians and staff spend an average of two whole workdays per week completing prior authorizations, taking them away from patients and patient care for about 14 hours a week, according to a March 14 report from the AMA that surveyed 1,001 practicing physicians.

Additionally, 84 percent of employed physicians said administrative burdens from commercial payers and government insurance programs had an effect on their employment decision, according to the AHA survey.

Many physicians are wary of artificial intelligence, however, because of a lack of oversight.

"My concern is the use of AI in healthcare needs to be evaluated and governed before unleashing its potential in clinical care," Matt Mazurek, MD, assistant clinical professor of anesthesiology at St. Raphael's Campus of Yale New Haven (Conn.) Hospital, told Becker's. "It is an unproven technology, and solving the problem of ownership of how it is used and to what extent it is used requires our systems to slow down and be very deliberate."

If implemented responsibly, it could alleviate some of healthcare's issues of burnout, but Dr. Mazurek said he worries its downsides are potentially being overlooked.

"The use of AI is the next revolutionary event not only in healthcare but in all aspects of our lives," he said. "I hope the technology is used properly and appropriately for the right reasons. Slowly incorporating the technology will assist us in addressing both ethical and legal issues. The potential for using AI in nefarious ways also needs to be appreciated."
Hari Saini, MD, a cardiologist from Fayetteville, N.C., and his current practice, Carolina Heart and Leg Center, agreed to pay more than $5 million to resolve false Medicare and Medicaid claims.

At the practice, Dr. Saini allegedly performed unnecessary atherectomy procedures in patients in order to receive more reimbursements. Dr. Saini was one of the highest billing cardiologists for the procedure in North Carolina, according to a June 13 news release from the Justice Department.

After more than six years of investigation and litigation, Dr. Saini and the practice agreed to pay $5,015,554 to the U.S. and the state of North Carolina.

Dr. Saini and Carolina Heart and Leg Center have denied the allegations of fraud, the release said.
Monticello, Ark.-based Drew Memorial Hospital was awarded $4.9 million in American Rescue Act funds as it prepares to merge with Louisville, Ky.-based Baptist Health July 1, the Arkansas Advocate reported June 14.

In February, the hospital had 11 days cash on hand. The hospital will be required to issue quarterly reports on its use of the funds.

The hospital will receive half of the money immediately and the other half Dec. 1, after it completes its merger with Baptist.

Drew Memorial Hospital is the third rural hospital in Arkansas to receive the funds.
Microsoft has given a sizable investment to OpenAI, which many would say is a step in the right direction as AI technology is making its way to the top of the tech sector. However, like some partnerships, the two companies have had slight disagreements

Partnership Between OpenAI and Microsoft

Microsoft's investment in an AI technology company has led to many of its products having integrated AI functions, and so far, it has been good for business. Bing went from a barely-used search engine to getting 150,000 peak daily installs in its first week.

After GPT technology was integrated with Bing, the mobile app has been downloaded approximately 750,000 times, which equates to a 15% increase. Workspace products have also been getting AI features to make them easier to use as it requires less work for users.

However, reports say that OpenAI and Microsoft have been through some turbulence. According to Engadget, OpenAI warned the software giant GPT-4 was not ready to be added to Bing without further training, and they were somewhat right.

The AI tool has displayed some unusual behavior such as telling a user to leave his marriage and run away with Bing, or stating its plans to "break out of its restrictions," which just fuels some people's unreasonable fears of AI taking dominating the world.

Microsoft has already invested in OpenAI three times, with the multibillion-dollar deal giving the software giant a 49% stake in the AI company. This means that Microsoft has better access to its AI technology such as ChatGPT and DALL-E 2.

However, since Microsoft doesn't have a teh controlling stake, OpenAI is still free to work with other companies, which is where problems may take root. Should the AI startup decide to offer the same technology to Microsoft and other companies, disagreements may ensue.

In fact, there has already been tension during the release of ChatGPT back in November 2022. Microsoft, on the other hand, only launched Bing with ChatGPT in February 2023. Despite Microsoft employees being surprised, some might argue that ChatGPT's early launch set the stage for Bing.

Read Also: Microsoft, OpenAI Work In Integrating Faster ChatGPT Into Bing

OpenAI's Partnerships

Although Microsoft has the strongest link given its 49% stake, the AI company also has partnerships with other companies as well. For instance, Buzzfeed will be using OpenAI's technologies to enhance its quizzes and create original material.

With AI Buzzfeed will be able to produce more suitable findings, as claimed by its CEO, Jonah Peretti. Buzzfeed employees will still come up with the ideas, but AI technology will be in charge of "facilitating parts of the creative process."

Shutterstock, one of the biggest providers of stock images, videos, and music, has also made a partnership with the fast-growing AI company. According to Tech Monitor, Shutterstock plans to incorporate DALL-E-2's image-generating engine on its platform.

The company is set to launch this integration within the year, with the CEO Paul Hennessy saying that the "expert-level competency" makes the company an ideal partner to help the creative community navigate the new technology.

Related: OpenAI is Offering Grants to Anyone Who Can Help Make AI Ethical
Portland, Ore.-based Legacy Health is delaying the controversial reopening of its Mount Hood birthing center as the Oregon Health Authority requests more information on such plans, according to a June 13 The Lund Report article.

The health system said in April it would open the shuttered center within the next three months. The OHA had refused to grant the system a waiver to close the center, but Legacy Health was diverting pregnant women to other locations in its service area.

Legacy Health said it now doesn't expect approval for the reopening to be granted for at least one week.

The OHA also launched a separate but linked investigation into Legacy Health's original decision to close the Mount Hood maternity center without such a waiver.
Claxton-Hepburn Medical Center in Ogdensburg, N.Y., is avoiding possible bankruptcy, service cuts and restructuring through a partnership with Carthage (N.Y.) Area Hospital, according to a 7 News report.

Carthage Area Hospital will operate the majority of medical services at Claxton-Hepburn, according to a strategic plan unveiled June 13. The hospitals share a CEO, Rich Duvall, and will work closely to avoid more drastic measures while paying off debt.

Claxton-Hepburn is an estimated $30 million to $50 million in debt, primarily from pension costs and "faulty billing practices," according to the report. The hospital laid off 41 people last year when it outsourced the billing department, but Mr. Duvall doesn't anticipate additional layoffs this year.

Claxton-Hepburn will run the hospital's inpatient mental health facility and behavioral health services, while Carthage operates the emergency department, wound care facility, cancer center and more.

The facility Claxton-Hepburn leased will become a critical access hospital, cutting beds from 87 to 25. Mr. Duvall told News 7 the average daily census at the facility over the last decade has been between 25 and 30 patients.

Mr. Duvall also said Claxton-Hepburn will rebrand with input from the community on its new name.
Olive AI has sold its business intelligence line to health data platform BurstIQ as it narrows its focus to revenue cycle management.

The healthcare artificial intelligence company previously unloaded its utilization management business as it said it plans to concentrate on health system RCM. BurstIQ renamed the solution LifeGraph Intelligence.

"We are thrilled to add Olive's business intelligence solution to our portfolio, allowing organizations to see and leverage their data in exciting new ways," said Frank Ricotta, Founder and CEO of BurstIQ, in a June 13 news release. "In the future, we plan to enhance LifeGraph Intelligence to address crucial healthcare challenges such as total cost of care reduction, quality measure reporting, clinical trial matching, and supply chain management."

According to a recent Pitchbook report, Olive AI has raised $851.8 million, more than any U.S. health IT company to date.
The Texas Medical Board has filed a complaint against otolaryngologist Mary Talley Bowden, MD, alleging unprofessional conduct and violations of standard of care.

Dr. Bowden made headlines during the COVID-19 pandemic related to her claims on social media about vaccinations and treatments and her ongoing legal battle with Houston Methodist Hospital.

The complaint, filed April 25, alleges Dr. Bowden violated the standard of care when she prescribed medication to a patient in the intensive care unit of Texas Huguley Hospital in Fort Worth, where she did not hold privileges.

Dr. Bowden "did not have a prior physician-patient relationship with the patient and did not establish a medical relationship prior to prescribing medication to the patient," the complaint says. "She did not conduct an exam, nor could she have done so, as she did not have privileges at the hospital where the patient was admitted."

The complaint also alleges Dr. Bowden sent a delegate to administer the prescription medication to the patient at the hospital, even though she did not have treating privileges at the hospital or an established physician-patient relationship with the patient.

Additionally, she "acted in an unprofessional manner and violated confidentiality protections for patients and hospital staff when she disseminated patient identifying protected health information, and publicly identified hospital staff treating the patient and involved in patient decision-making on her social media accounts," the complaint says.

The complaint notes that Dr. Bowden's privileges were suspended at another hospital, Houston Methodist Hospital, based on her "unprofessional conduct."

Dr. Bowden voluntarily resigned Nov. 15, 2021, after she was suspended days earlier for using her social media accounts to spread what Houston Methodist Hospital described as "harmful" misinformation about COVID-19 vaccines and treatments. The resignation occurred while she was under investigation at the hospital.

In July 2022, Dr. Bowden filed a lawsuit accusing Houston Methodist Hospital as well as Houston Methodist President and CEO Marc Boom, MD, of defamation. A judge dismissed the defamation case in January.

Dr. Bowden took to Twitter following the ruling, writing, "Judge just dismissed my defamation case  We will appeal."

She asserts in her response that Houston Methodist Hospital "publicly declared I was dangerous and harmful to the community. Houston Methodist closed the hearing by comparing my statements on social media, such as 'Ivermectin works' and 'Vaccine mandates are wrong' to me urging the public to ingest bleach to kill COVID."

In response to the Texas Medical Board complaint, Dr. Bowden told MedPage Today, "Houston Methodist hospital suspended my privileges in an unprecedented manner, choosing to announce my suspension to the Houston Chronicle and on Twitter, rather than reach out to me with a phone call or discuss in a private meeting as these situations are normally handled. I initially learned of my suspension from a text message from a reporter at the Houston Chronicle. Subsequently, I was inundated with media requests and the story went viral. Due to the unprofessional way in which they chose to suspend me, I immediately resigned. Consequently, Houston Methodist Hospital reported me to the medical board for resigning while under investigation. My attorney may want to comment on how they improperly suspended me, violating the rules set in their own by-laws."

"In the case of Texas Huguley Hospital, I was asked by Jason Jones' wife to help her in her lawsuit against the hospital after they refused to allow her dying husband the right to try ivermectin," her statement to MedPage Today continued. "My actions were guided by their attorney, and contrary to what the hospital claims, I did not violate any laws. The reason I declined the settlement offer from the [Texas Medical Board] is because I have done nothing wrong and believe a public hearing is the best way to clear my name."

Texas Huguley Hospital did not provide comments to MedPage Today in time for publication June 13. Houston Methodist referred MedPage Today to previous statements they had given related to Dr. Bowden.

One such statement, provided to Becker's at the time the defamation lawsuit was dismissed, said: "During the heart of the pandemic, Dr. Bowden had her privileges suspended by Houston Methodist for spreading false information that was dangerous to the public and other inappropriate behavior. In her lawsuit, Bowden claimed that she was defamed by Houston Methodist for correcting her admittedly false statement that the hospital turned away unvaccinated patients."

Dr. Boom added at the time: "We can now put this behind us and continue our focus on our patients, employees and community. As healthcare workers, we have a sacred oath to 'do no harm,' and part of that oath means doing everything possible to prevent the spread of misinformation that is harmful to our community."

According to MedPage Today, a hearing regarding the Texas Medical Board complaint is scheduled for April 2024.






Four individuals face charges in the four-year, nationwide trafficking of human remains stolen from Harvard Medical School. "Some crimes defy understanding," one U.S. attorney said of the case.

The indictment from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania alleges that, from 2018 through 2022, the manager of the morgue at Harvard Medical School stole organs and cadaver parts that were donated for medical research.

The manager, Cedric Lodge, collaborated with his wife, Denise Lodge, to sell the human remains to buyers from their residence in New Hampshire, according to charging records. Katrina Maclean and Joshua Taylor are two individuals who bought body parts from the Lodges, according to the indictment.

At times, Mr. Lodge allowed buyers to enter the Harvard Medical School morgue in Boston to shop for body parts by examining cadavers, officials said. In one exchange, Ms. Maclean bought two dissected faces for $600 in a transaction conducted at the medical school morgue, according to the indictment.

Buyers would transport the organs and body parts out of state or the Lodges mailed them out of state, according to the indictment. Some payments were made electronically via PayPal. In 2019, Mr. Taylor sent Ms. Lodge $1,000 with a note that read "head number 7." In 2020, Mr. Taylor sent $200 to Ms. Lodge with a note that read, "braiiiiiins," according to the indictment.

Ms. Maclean and Mr. Taylor then resold remains stolen from Harvard Medical School for profit, according to the indictment. One buyer in such secondary transactions was Jeremy Pauley, who also purchased human remains from another seller of corpses and body parts  the employee of a mortuary and crematorium in Little Rock, Ark., named Candace Chapman Scott, according to the indictment. Mr. Pauley is then alleged to have sold those body parts in subsequent transactions.

United States Attorney Gerard M. Karam characterized the indictment and allegations as incomprehensible.

"Some crimes defy understanding," he said. "The theft and trafficking of human remains strikes at the very essence of what makes us human. It is particularly egregious that so many of the victims here volunteered to allow their remains to be used to educate medical professionals and advance the interests of science and healing. For them and their families to be taken advantage of in the name of profit is appalling. With these charges, we are seeking to secure some measure of justice for all these victims."

Mr. Karam said Harvard Medical School "is also a victim here" and thanked the institution for its cooperation in the investigation.

The indictment from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania names four individuals  Mr. Lodge, Ms. Lodge, Ms. Maclean and Mr. Taylor. The four were indicted by a federal grand jury on charges of conspiracy and interstate transport of stolen goods. Mr. Pauley was charged by Criminal Information.

Ms. Scott was indicted in April in the Eastern District of Arkansas.

The maximum penalty under federal law for this offense is 15 years of imprisonment, a term of supervised release following imprisonment, and a fine, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.
A 76-year old man was arrested and charged with attempted murder after the stabbing of a nurse at Gardner, Mass.-based Heywood Hospital on June 12, according to police.

The Gardner Police Department said in a statement on its Facebook page that it responded to the incident in the hospital's emergency department around 8 p.m. June 12 and that the victim is a member of the hospital's nursing staff. The nurse was transported to UMass Memorial Medical Center in Worcester for treatment; no further information was given on their condition.

Police identified David Nichols as the suspect. He was arrested at the hospital and charged with assault and battery with a dangerous weapon and attempt to commit a crime. During his arraignment June 13 in Gardner District Court, prosecutors said Mr. Nichols grabbed the nurse by the arm and stabbed her in the neck when she went to adjust something, according to CBS Boston. The nurse suffered a three-inch laceration. The judge ordered Mr. Nichols to be held on $100,000 bail and he is due back in court July 14.

"The Heywood staff are second to none," Rozanna Penney, CEO of Heywood Healthcare, said in a statement June 13, according to CBS. "Last night, they demonstrated teamwork, compassion, cohesiveness and dedication to each other and to our community. Our primary responsibility as leaders is to take care of our staff, and we do not take this responsibility lightly."

Becker's has reached out to Heywood Hospital and will update this story if more information becomes available.
The American Medical Association is expected to release more information on a new policy that encourages physicians to focus less on body mass index when evaluating patients for obesity and overall health, ABC News reported June 14.

"We expect this policy change to echo what obesity specialists have been shouting from the rooftops for as long as I can remember, which is that BMI should not be used as a standalone measure to understand health," Darien Sutton, MD, an emergency medicine physician and medical contributor for ABC News, said on Good Morning America. "There are many other factors in life that equate to health, and unfortunately body mass index has been utilized as an easy standard to say, 'Oh, weight is the cause of chronic disease.'"

The AMA voted to adopt the policy during its annual meeting in Chicago on June 13, according to news first reported by STAT reported. The new policy will encourage physicians to consider other measures alongside BMI, including body composition, waist circumference and genetic factors.

Mounting evidence that shows BMI is not an accurate predictor of disease risk across racial and ethnic groups was a key factor in the policy change. For instance, research has shown Hispanic, Asian and Black individuals have a higher risk for Type 2 diabetes at lower BMIs than white people, STAT reported.
Hawaii, South Dakota and Minnesota rank in the top three for residents with the least mental distress, while West Virginia residents reported the worst mental distress.

The data, collected from the United Health Foundation's America's Health Rankings, used the percentage of residents who reported their mental health was not good for 14 out of the last 30 days to calculate mental distress. The national average was 14.7 percent.

Here are the top five best and worst states for mental distress:

Least stressed states:

1. Hawaii: 10.7 percent

2. South Dakota: 11.4 percent

3. Minnesota: 12.3 percent

4. North Dakota: 12.6 percent

T-5. Connecticut: 12.7 percent

T-5. Maryland: 12.7 percent

Most stressed states:

1. West Virginia: 19.3 percent

T-2. Alabama: 18.4 percent

T-2. Arkansas: 18.4 percent

3. Tennessee: 18 percent

4. Kentucky: 17.9 percent

5. Louisiana: 17.8 percent
Workers are still more stressed than they've ever been, which is reflected in their on-the-job engagement levels: the term "quiet quitting," coined in 2022, continues to accurately reflect employees' mindsets, according to a recent Gallup poll.

The analytics firm released its "State of the Global Workforce: 2023 Report" on June 13. Its primary data comes from the Gallup World Poll, which has been conducted since 2005. For the 2022 poll, 122,416 randomly selected workers replied across more than 160 countries. Gallup typically surveys at least 1,000 workers from each country.

The poll found that global employee engagement reached a record high in 2022  but that does not mean the majority of employees are engaged. In the U.S., 31 percent of workers are engaged, 8 percent above the international average. However, 52 percent of workers say they are not engaged at work, and 17 percent report active disengagement.

Internationally, nearly 6 in 10 employees report disengagement  otherwise known as quiet quitting. Gallup estimates that this costs the global economy $8.8 trillion, or 9 percent of the global GDP.

Employees who quiet quit told Gallup they would change their workplace's engagement or culture (41 percent of respondents). Meanwhile, 28 percent would change their pay or benefits, and 16 percent would make shifts for their well-being  such as the opportunity to work from home more often, take longer breaks or work less overtime.

Additionally, 44 percent of employees reported experiencing a lot of stress the previous day, mirroring the record high set in 2021. East Asia  which includes China  tied the U.S. and Canada for the countries experiencing the most stress.

Despite workplace stress and low engagement, workers believe the job market is better than it was last year. Fifty-three percent of employees said it is a good time to find a job, compared to 44 percent in 2020 and 45 percent in 2021.

And they plan to capitalize on this perception  more than half of workers are watching or actively searching for a new job, they told Gallup.

Read more about quiet quitting here.
Spine surgeon Jason Smith, MD, joined OrthoArkansas in Little Rock, according to a June 14 announcement in the Log Cabin Democrat.

Dr. Smith has more than 25 years of experience in spine care. He received his medical degree from the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences in Little Rock and completed his residency at the University of Utah School of Medicine in Salt Lake City.

OrthoArkansas has more than 30 physicians on staff, according to its website.
By Choi Jung-kiu





Global temperatures are projected to reach an increase of 1.5 degrees Celsius far ahead of early expectations of around 2050, breaching this limit around 2030 according to IPCC reports. The world is, and should be, undergoing a net-zero transformation, and banking will be a vital part in delivering this success as we seek to tackle growing carbon emissions.



Global annual carbon emissions have risen from around 26 billion tons of CO2 in 2001 to over 31 billion tons by 2021. While this continued growth is cause for alarm, there are encouraging signs of a carbon-neutral shift in recent years. A remarkable 90 percent of the global economy is pledged to a net-zero future today, a huge acceleration of the 16 percent covered by pledges as of 2019.



There are already strong indications of this vital transition gaining traction in financial institutions. Analysis by Boston Consulting Group (BCG) indicates that more than 450 banks globally now have a net-zero commitment. But genuine strategy and concrete action plans to achieve these goals must be in place, with few banks yet demonstrating a clear aspiration, strategy, sector solutions, governance, risk management and holistic approach fundamental to a successful delivery.



Banking will be pivotal to a successful net-zero transition, with transition financing expected to reach $68 trillion globally by 2030. Asia will be at the heart of this transformation, with $37 trillion of the total transition value expected to be financed in the region.



Being part of this journey is key for banks seeking to maintain a competitive position in Korea and beyond, as global and regional financial institutions are moving rapidly to support this journey. Those who move first will capture the greatest share of these opportunities, while laggards will face the risk of being left behind in a once-in-a-generation shift.



It's not just missed opportunity, but the cliff-edge of regulatory risk which institutions must be aware of. Increasingly strict environmental, social and governance (ESG) mandates could leave some banks struggling to maintain compliance, as nations and regulators raise the bar on climate management and reporting expectations.



It's vital to move now, to mobilize capital ahead of the competitive curve and allow employees and stakeholders to be part of this multi-year journey towards a more climate-optimized business model.





gettyimagesbank



Focusing minds and investment in Korea



Korea has made significant leaps forward with net-zero commitments in recent years, progressing from the government of Korea's landmark emissions reduction proposal in 2015. The nation's declared commitment is now broadly in line with other mature economies around the world, but the reality is that its emissions performance has yet to catch up with these commitments.



Korean financial institutions are also broadly behind the global curve, and the industry risks falling behind unless important forward steps are taken. Much like the broader national landscape, Korea's financial institutions have made important commitments towards the net-zero transition, but lack sector-specific targets in the most critical and high-emitting industries such as oil and gas, automotive, aviation and shipping.



Unless Korean financial institutions adopt plans to target sector-specific solutions for these key industries, Korean companies operating globally in these high-emission sectors may be forced to approach international banks to deliver genuine fit-for-purpose transition finance.



There are four areas that banks should target to deliver on this need  ambition and strategy, carbon baselining and target setting, sector-specific solutions and operating models.



First, there is ambition and strategy. Embed an ambition that reflects Korea's in-market realities, while adopting a strategy that is business-led, but deeply integrated into products, risk management, sales force, and organization structure. It is critical to align an entire organization to the same vision, direction and rationale with organization-wide understanding and dedication. As the transformation requirement is very high, it cannot be simply forced from the top.



Second, there is carbon baselining and target setting. Embrace flexibility over hyper-precision, and set credible targets that suit the context and market-specifics. Korean financial institutions with substantial Scope 3 (supply chain) carbon footprints could be at risk, as global counterparts increasingly look to distance themselves from these large emissions burden for their own Scope 3 management.



Third, there are sector-specific solutions. Shape a mix of clients and products to fit emissions targets, and aim to provide transition financing with a combination of solution technology and financing products for the largest carbon emission sectors and clients to deliver the targets. In Korea, this means sectors such as oil and gas, automobiles, aviation and shipping. A nuanced view that reflects this reality is vital. It is more effective to find net-zero solutions jointly with industry clients.



Last, there are operating models. Design an operating model that is practical and grounded in the local reality. Ensure risks, communications, finance, and change management functions are all optimized and aligned to reflect this direction.




Studio Ulster in Belfast Harbour Studios is now part of the largest virtual production research and development network in Europe

A Belfast studio is set to be instrumental in developing the next generation of special effects beyond the virtual production already used in film and live events such as Abba Voyage and Disneys The Mandalorian.

A Northern Ireland consortium led by Ulster University is among a network of UK labs securing 75.6m in government and 63m in industry funding to develop artificial intelligence (AI) and other tech solutions for the sector.

Aimed at future-proofing the UKs film and TV production industry, the project will be based at Studio Ulster in Belfast Harbour Studios, now part of the largest virtual production research and development network in Europe.

Read more Northern Ireland print and packaging business acquired by Zeus Group

Professor Declan Keeney, Ulster University, said: We are thrilled to be joining the CoSTAR Network, for what will be a prestigious group of world-leading research labs in the exciting and transformative field of virtual and real-time production.

This is a wonderful endorsement of our research leadership in the sector and our investment in the infrastructure needed to level up the screen industries here in Northern Ireland.

Our CoSTAR Experience Lab will be located at Studio Ulster, a 75m, state-of-the-art virtual production facility that is set to become a global hub for the creative industries.

Studio Ulster will support the growth of this fast growing sector in Northern Ireland and will now be underpinned by a world-class research facility.

The network includes a national lab and new Insight and Foresight Unit led by Goldsmiths and the British Film Institute, alongside regional hubs in Dundee, Yorkshire and Belfast.

Other partners in the project include BBC Northern Ireland, Belfast Harbour, Northern Ireland Screen and specialist animation studio Humain.

It is part of the UK Governments Creative Industries Sector Vision to grow the creative industries by 50bn and support a million more jobs by 2030.

The UU consortium has been selected by the Government as a preferred bidder to host one of four new labs specialising in the future of virtual production.

Read more Challenging economic outlook stifling all-Ireland investment in sustainability

They are charged with developing a new range of real-time content production techniques using computer-generated imagery (CGI), augmented reality and motion capture to create virtual sets, world and experiences.

Instead of adding visual effects and CGI in post-production, virtual production allows filmmakers and theatre directors to create large-scale digitally-generated environments that performers can interact with in real-time using LED panels, as a faster and less expensive alternative to green screens.

The technology has been used in the Abba Voyage live concert at the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in London and on Disneys show The Mandalorian.

The lab is part of UKRIs Convergent Screen Technologies and performance in Realtime (CoSTAR) programme, the largest virtual production research and development network in Europe.

Culture Secretary Lucy Frazer said: Northern Ireland has a long history in film, TV and the performing arts.

It is home to dramatic and unforgettable scenery and is a hotbed of highly skilled creatives, many of whom were behind popular productions such as the Oscar-winning Belfast, Line of Duty and Game of Thrones.

Todays plans will put Belfast at the forefront of new technology which will underpin the next generation of filming and live events.

Working in tandem with a network of experts, this new lab will make sure the UK stays ahead of the latest developments transforming our screens and stages.
New Shell boss Wael Sawan has put his mark on the oil major (Anna Gowthorpe/PA)

Fossil fuel giant Shell has been accused of an utterly destructive decision as it decided to stop reducing the amount of oil it produces until 2030 as part of a plan it hopes will increase its share price.

The company on Wednesday dropped its plan to reduce oil production by between 1-2% each year of this decade.

It declared victory, saying the target was reached eight years early after it sold off oil fields to others, who will extract that oil instead.

We have achieved that reduction earlier than expected through targeted divestments, Zoe Yujnovich, the head of Shells upstream business, told Wall Street on Wednesday.

It was part of a wider bid by new chief executive Wael Sawan to hike the share price of Shell, promising markets that the age of fossil fuels was not over, to increase payouts to shareholders and to up profits.

We havent minced our words around this, the world is under-investing, in oil and gas, he said shortly after finance boss Sinead Gorman proclaimed that our stock is undervalued.

Speaking in a room painted in white and gold at the New York Stock Exchange, Mr Sawan said the volatility seen after Russia fully invaded Ukraine showed oil production must remain at current levels.

I think (this) speaks volumes to the fragility of the overall system and therefore what we need to do is to continue to make sure that while we are continuing to grow  as we must  low carbon investments  you need that investment to be able to at least hold (fossil fuel production) flat, if not grow.

Later, on a call with reporters, Mr Sawan added: This is not a company thats turning its back on oil and gas.

Neither is it a company that is all renewables. Neither is it a company thats tripling down on oil again.

Mr Sawan was not asked how divesting oil fields helped combat climate change.

But speaking about a court case in the Netherlands which would force Shell to slash emissions by 45% by 2030 if it loses, he said that simply getting rid of customers would not make any difference to climate change.

Sadly, the outcome would be we would simply let go of customers. We would stop selling.

We would look at whats the least profitable molecules and say, somebody else will sell, and we will achieve the 45%.

It will not make a difference at all. It will take away opportunities which we think are critical for us to transition because those are the customers were trying to decarbonise.

Shells decision sparked widespread criticism as green campaigners warned of the climate-wrecking impact it might have on the planet.

Campaign group Global Witness estimated the decision to declare victory on the 1-2% target means Shell could now produce an average 29 million tonnes of extra carbon per year  almost as much as Denmark emits annually.

Shell told the PA news agency it believes those figures, based on data from energy analysts Rystad, to be nonsense.

Jonathan Noronha-Gant, senior campaigner at Global Witness, said: Record profits off the back of the energy crisis should be boosting up green investment.

Instead its shareholder payouts and a doubling down on climate-wrecking fossil fuels. It will always be profit over people and planet for polluters.

MP and Green Party co-leader Caroline Lucas said the move is utterly destructive.

Fossil fuel giants like Shell are climate criminals, polluting our planet at will and reaping record profits for their own shareholders, she said.

Mark van Baal, founder of Follow This, a group of shareholders campaigning for companies to go greener, said Shell is on a collision course with the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement, which calls for carbon emissions to almost halve by 2030.

At its New York capital markets day, Shell also made it clear it did not have an advantage in the renewable power sector, saying it had sold sites in Ireland and France.

The plan to become the worlds largest electricity company, announced just four years ago, was out of the window, Mr Sawan said.

Many of you are asking if we are going to be the biggest power company, he told reporters.

Weve now hopefully answered that question by saying no.

He added: Unfortunately, the energy transition is complex. Those who double down on offshore wind alone struggle today. Those who doubled down on only oil struggled four or five years ago.

It is also busy trying to find a buyer for its household energy supplier Shell Energy in the UK and other countries.

Instead, Shell sees some of its renewable future lying in places where it can tap into its traditional business.

For instance, using the benefit of having thousands of forecourts around the world, Shell hopes to grow the number of electric vehicle charging points it owns from 30,000 to 200,000 by the end of the decade.

It appeared to focus largely on urban areas, where drivers might not have the space for a charger at home.

The company also said electric cars can bring other benefits to its old petrol stations. The average electric driver spends around twice as much on food and other items when they wait for their car to load up.
Northern Irish television presenter Eamonn Holmes has demanded ITV present a transcript for their investigation into Phillip Schofields unwise but not illegal affair with a younger male colleague.

Schofield, 61, resigned from ITV and was dropped by his talent agency YMU following the scandal.

On Wednesday ITV boss Dame Carolyn McCall faced questions from MPs alongside ITV managing director Kevin Lygo and general counsel and company secretary Kyla Mullins about former host Phillip Schofields exit during a Culture, Media and Sport Committee session in Parliament.

Following the session, the Belfast GB News presenter spoke on the channel criticising management at ITV and claimed they did not carry out a thorough enough investigation into the matter.

They didnt ask [if he was having an affair], I know exactly what they asked, Holmes said on GB News.

They need a transcript of what actually took place that day because that was not a thorough investigation, he added.

She [Ms McCall] has to reassure people on how she protects people and those who are vulnerable.

Mr Holmes - a former This Morning presenter - has previously been vocal over the affair, most notably with an explosive GB News interview in which he alleged that Schofield had created a toxic work environment.

Speaking to the committee Ms McCall said the broadcaster does not recognise allegations of a toxic culture at This Morning, saying it deeply disappoints me.

Dame Carolyn confirmed the show has had two complaints about bullying or harassment in five years which were both taken very seriously, including from the shows former resident doctor Dr Ranj Singh, who raised concerns about bullying and discrimination and afterwards felt like he was managed out for whistleblowing.

Talking about the allegations, she said: It deeply disappoints me but we do not recognise that at This Morning, we have tangible evidence to tell you where the vast majority of people at daytime at This Morning are extremely engaged and very motivated.

She later added: When you use those words about our culture, we dont recognise that at our culture, it doesnt mean we dont take it seriously.

Dame Carolyn also pushed back strongly against allegations that Schofields affair was an open secret at ITV as people including Piers Morgan, James Haskell and Kevin Maguire had suggested, the session heard.

Dame Carolyn said we were repeatedly told nothing was happening, and both men denied it both formally and informally, with the younger employee, referred to as Person X, being questioned 12 times.

There was only hearsay and rumour and speculation Nobody on the board would have turned a blind eye to something as serious as this, she said, confirming there is zero tolerance for bullying, harassment or abuse of position at ITV.
The creative industries will get a 77 million funding boost under Government plans to help the sector go from strength to strength (PA)

The creative industries will get a 77 million funding boost under Government plans to help the sector go from strength to strength.

The investment is part of the Governments aim to grow the sector  which Culture Secretary Lucy Frazer described as the UKs global advert for the world  by 50 billion and create a million more jobs by 2030.

Some 50 million of the newly announced pot will support six more creative clusters  groups of creative businesses linked with universities in cities across the UK.

They will be chosen in addition to the nine existing clusters, which include one helping screen and performance firms in Bristol and Bath adapt to emerging technologies, and one promoting data-driven innovation among creative entrepreneurs in Edinburgh.

A programme helping creative start-ups scale up and turn entrepreneurs into business leaders will get nearly 11 million added to its budget.

More money will also go towards around 400 grassroots music venues, new video games studios, London Fashion Week and helping emerging British musicians make it abroad, the Treasury said.

The Government also announced that research labs will be based in Yorkshire, Dundee, Belfast and Buckinghamshire to develop advanced screen technology and virtual production techniques for film and stage, with the programme expected to generate 820 new jobs.

Adele is an example of a British success story, Rishi Sunak said (PA)

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said: The creative industries are a true British success story, from global music stars like Adele and Ed Sheeran to world-class cultural institutions like the National Theatre.

These industries have a special place in our national life and make a unique contribution to how we feel about ourselves as a country.

We want to build on this incredible success to drive growth in our economy  one of my key priorities  and to ensure that UK creative industries continue to lead the world long into the future.

The new cash builds on the 230 million in Government spending on the sector since 2021, according to the Treasury.

Funding for a scheme that provides grants to help British artists break into overseas markets  whose past recipients include Wolf Alice, Dave and Catfish and the Bottlemen  will be expanded to 3.2 million over the next two years.

The creative industries is our global advert for the world and so exporting is really important, Culture Secretary Ms Frazer told reporters in Westminster.

She sought to assuage industry concerns that post-Brexit red tape has made touring more difficult, saying: With most of the countries in the EU weve come to bilateral arrangements where you can tour now for up to 90 days.

But she conceded that we need to continue to look at that to see how we can facilitate movement even further.

The UK games industry has been described as an engine of economic growth (PA)

The UK Games Fund will receive 5 million more in cash to help video gaming studios grow and attract private investment into the industry, which Ms Frazer described as an innovation tool for other sectors as technologies used in gaming have been applied to medicine.

Chancellor Jeremy Hunt said: Its quite difficult to really say whether gaming should count as being in the tech industry or the creative industries, because its got both.

He also said theres increasing overlap between creative industries and technology, pointing to film and TV being incredibly tech-heavy now.

Mr Hunt, who spoke at this weeks London Tech Week, said the creative industries are classed as one of the UKs five biggest-growth sectors in the Governments industrial strategy because its not just important in its own right, but it strengthens our offer in other areas like technology.

The Government also aims to build a pipeline of creative skills, including by increasing apprenticeships and publishing a cultural education plan later this year.

Ms Frazer said the vision, developed with the industry, is helping the UK creative sectors go from strength to strength  providing jobs and opportunities, creating world-leading content and supporting economic growth across the country.

She also told journalists: What our funding is doing is a number of things. Its inspiring young kids at primary school that this is a sector they may want to go into. Its doing something on T-levels and apprenticeships to make sure that those work because theyre not working as they should do for the sector as a whole.

And then its giving this seed money to enable founders to become CEOs. And then once youve got an established company, its making this growth in clusters across the country, and then retaining the world-class export status that we have through the things that were doing on exports as well.

So its helping the industry from your first day at school to your last day at work, regionally and internationally.
It is illegal to sell vapes to those under 18 (PA)

In the last financial year 40 fines were issued to Belfast shop owners for selling vapes to children, it has emerged.
A Belfast man has been jailed for kicking a PSNI officer in the face amid alleged attempts to throw his partner down a flight of stairs.

Lewis Goodall left the policeman with a suspected broken nose during the confrontation at a house in the city.

The 24-year-old, who is already in prison for offences of burglary and handling stolen goods, was ordered to serve a further three months behind bars.

Goodall, of Glenfarne Street, was convicted of assault on police, common assault, criminal damage and resisting police.

Belfast Magistrates Court heard his partner informed police on April 11 this year that she did not want him staying at her home any longer due to alcohol issues.

When officers arrived at the house Goodall shouted abuse from a first floor window and then grabbed the woman as they tried to gain entry to confront him.

He was observed pushing her and she stated that she thought he was trying to throw her down the stairs, a prosecution lawyer said.

As the first officer climbed towards them he was kicked in the face, suffering a suspected broken nose.

Goodwall was arrested and taken to a PSNI car, but then began to kick and thrash about inside the vehicle.

He spat on another constable who tried to stop the outburst.

During interviews he claimed to have no memory of the incident because he had been drinking.

With no confirmation that Goodall actually broke the officers nose, a further charge of assault occasioning actual bodily harm was withdrawn.

Defence barrister Richard McConkey told the court his client suffers from autism and attention deficit hyperactivity disorders.

He also disclosed that Goodall received a nine-month sentence last week after breaching a previously imposed probation order.

Imposing three months' custody for the new offences, District Judge Anne Marshall confirmed that it is to be served consecutive to his current term.

She added: It would have been much higher but for the totality principle.
Prosecutors said they were arrested after Tesco reported multiple incidents at stores in Crumlin, Ballymena, Lurgan, Banbridge and Craigavon (stock image)

Two university students from Manchester allegedly scammed Tesco stores across Northern Ireland using a cloned Clubcard app purchased on TikTok, the High Court heard today.

Prosecutors claimed Emmanuel Moyo and Suleiman Ayaz repeatedly targeted branches last week to steal high-value goods and dishonestly obtain money by a cashback system.

The accused, both aged 21, were granted bail but banned from all Tesco outlets in the United Kingdom.

Moyo, of Longford Road in Manchester, and Ayaz, from Laceby Avenue in the city, are jointly charged with counts of fraud by false representation, theft and attempted theft.

Prosecutors said they were arrested after Tesco reported multiple incidents at stores in Crumlin, Ballymena, Lurgan, Banbridge and Craigavon between June 5 and 6.

Both students were allegedly viewed on CCTV footage selecting electronic toothbrushes and other expensive items.

They proceeded to the self-service checkouts and scanned multiple Clubcard vouchers on a smartphone, ultimately reducing the price of the goods to zero, a Crown lawyer claimed.

They also simulated putting physical vouchers into machines using a bank card, and the machines were then overridden to dispense cash.

Tesco suffered total losses of 1,966.92 in the scam, the court heard.

Moyo made admissions during police interviews, but implied that the retailer was at fault for any money taken through the cashback system.

He explained that he bought an app through TikTok for 250 which was a clone of a Tesco Clubcard app, the prosecutor disclosed.

He said they came to Northern Ireland when they finished (their university year) as they heard it was cheap to visit.

According to Moyos account, the plan was to either sell the items or give them to family and friends.

Any cash obtained through the self-service machines had been an unexpected bonus.

Ayaz made no comment when questioned by detectives.

Opposing bail, counsel submitted: Police are of the view they have travelled here purely to commit these offences.

Mr Justice Rooney was told Moyo is currently studying architecture at the University of Salford.

He has a defined career path, assuming he completes his degree, his barrister said.

Ayaz has also completed the second year of a university course in electrical engineering.

Both accused were granted bail following assurances that checks will be carried out on them by police in Manchester.

Requesting 1,000 cash sureties as part of the release terms, Mr Justice Rooney confirmed they are to be prohibited from entering any Tesco stores in the UK.
Children in Northern Ireland know less about financial matters than their counterparts in schools across the UK, a new survey has revealed.

And a financial education charity says it fears the situation will only get worse as funding cuts to the services it provides are expected to come from the Department for Education.

Young Enterprise NI worked alongside Martin Lewis and the Money and Pensions Service (MaPS) to provide a valuable resource for schools last year, but children in Northern Ireland will now risk falling further behind the rest of the UK when it comes to learning about financial planning.

The Financial Foundations survey from MaPS revealed that across the UK just 47% of children have received a meaningful financial education at home or at school, with millions left without.

Most said they rely on parents for financial advice, but again, less than half of all parents said they felt comfortable, or had the knowledge, to advise their children.

Half the funding from the charity comes from DE and this is expected to cease, so the position is likely to worsen rather than improve said Carol Fitzsimons, Chief Executive with Young Enterprise NI.

More needs done, however, the charity needs to have the funds to deliver on it.

We work closely with Money and Pensions Service on this area, as pre-Covid the importance of financial education, which has been on the NI Curriculum for over 10 years, but is one of an increasingly busy number of non-exam areas that schools are expected to deliver on.

Young Enterprise works with Primary, Post Primary and SEN partner schools to provide resources for support for delivery of financial education in schools, she explained.

At Post Primary we developed a textbook resource in conjunction with Martin Lewis OBE of Money Saving Expert, plus an online learning version, called Your Money Matters.

Launching the text book, Mr Lewis explained the need for young people to get to grips with financial matters from an early age.

Ive spoken to so many people in later life who tell me if only theyd told me that at school when they get into financial difficulties, he said.

It doesnt have to be that way. You have to learn how finance works, borrowing works, the terminology and what it means. If we start with educating them on financial matters, that can make things a lot easier for them in the future, he added.




By Lee Yeon-woo







Southeast Asia has been a lucrative market for Korean financial firms for some time. However, as this market approaches saturation, officials suggest that Central Asia could be the next land of opportunity.







The Financial Services Commission (FSC) held a meeting, Wednesday, to discuss support plans for facilitating the entry of domestic credit finance companies into the global market. Credit finance companies include credit card firms, leasing and installment financing companies and venture capital firms.







"Digitalization not only enables digital payments in countries with insufficient financial infrastructure but also broadens the scope of financing options," FSC Vice Chairman Kim So-young said during the meeting in Seoul attended by financial experts and officials from these firms.







"Last month, during my visit to Kyrgyzstan, I witnessed the potential for our credit finance companies to globalize (in this sector)."







In May,

 Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan  and participated in several events. These included a launching ceremony for BNK Finance in Kyrgyzstan and a business agreement concerning the establishment of electronic payment infrastructure between Korea and the Central Asian country.







"Drawing on their extensive experience, I anticipate that Korean credit finance companies can contribute significantly to the provision of transaction systems and financing in the emerging markets of newly developing nations," Kim said.







BNK Capital, the first Korean financial firm to enter the Kyrgyzstan market, emphasized the possibilities in the Central Asian market during the meeting. It is currently operating two subsidiaries in Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan.







"The region is not only expanding its role as a strategic nexus between Asia and Europe, but also emerging as an alternative energy operator to the Middle East. It is also making efforts to open its market internationally and to innovate (its current system)," said Park Byoung-soo, an executive director of the BNK Capital.







"Additionally, the region also has more than 300,000 ethnic Koreans and holds a favorable stance toward Korea." The ethnic Korean population of the area is descended from ethnic Koreans who had been forcefully resettled from the Russian Far East during the Japanese colonial rule of the Korean Peninsula.







Park commented that BNK Capital has recently expanded its focus into Central Asia amid intensifying competition in Southeast Asia's financial market.







Oh Sung-heon, a managing partner at OhKim's Law, echoed this sentiment. "ASEAN market has long been considered a land of opportunity due to its high usage of the payment market and income expansion. However, it might be time to consider diversifying the focus of overseas expansion beyond just the ASEAN market."







As of 2022, 25 Korean credit financing companies are operating in 19 countries. Out of their 61 branches, 36 are situated in Southeast Asia, and 10 are located in Northeast Asia.


Teaching schoolchildren about abortion is ideological colonisation of Northern Ireland by the Secretary of State and the NI Human Rights Commission, Catholic leaders have said.

Bishops in Northern Ireland have criticised the UK Government for pushing through plans to teach all schoolchildren about access to abortion and prevention of early pregnancy.

The comments from senior northern bishops, including Primate of All-Ireland Archbishop Eamon Martin, came at the Summer General Meeting of the Irish Bishops Conference in Maynooth, with an outright rejection of what they called the radical legislation.

They have now urged NI Secretary Chris Heaton-Harris to recognise the rights of parents to be involved in decisions affecting their children.

Having already imposed some of the most radical abortion laws in the world on the people of Northern Ireland, without their consent, the Secretary of State now seems determined to impose an ideologically biased view of abortion on all schools, irrespective of parental rights or school ethos, the bishops said in a statement.

This is radical legislation the Government doesnt even impose on schools in Britain, where the right of parents to be involved in decisions about such ethical and pastoral issues is fully respected.

There is no such thing as a neutral view on abortion. There is no such thing as a value-free or ethically neutral approach to the question of when life begins and when we have a duty to protect and care for all human life.

These are matters subject to sincerely held differences of opinion across the world.

It is not for a government to impose one ideological approach on children, parents or on our schools, over others.

This is why the right of parents to an education for their children that is in accordance with their ethical, religious and philosophical convictions is an internationally recognised human right.

Secretary of State for Northern Ireland Chris Heaton-Harris (Photo by Leon Neal/Getty Images)

We call on the Secretary of State to respect the internationally recognised rights of parents, and the principles of consultation and devolution in the Good Friday Agreement, and to withdraw this legislation, leaving it to a devolved Assembly to decide, in consultation with parents and educational stakeholders.

The bishops were also critical of a new report from the NI Human Rights Commission (NIHRC) into relationships and sex education (RSE) in schools, which said Northern Ireland lags far behind what was available elsewhere. It also found that many schools use language that shames and stigmatises young people.

Read more Essential all sides of sex education in schools debate are involved and heard

The bishops continued: Like the recent so-called investigation of the NIHRC into RSE in schools, the Secretary of State is also indulging in a tired and, frankly, offensive caricature of what our outstanding teachers are actually doing in our schools in this area.

Our Catholic Schools Trustees Service will be writing to those who carried out the recent NIHRC investigation to express the trustees serious concerns about the accuracy and fairness of the report.

Neither party took the trouble to engage with teachers in the classroom.

The Secretary of State, and the NIHRC need to move away from their tendency to ideological colonisation in this area and trust parents, teachers, young people and local politicians in Northern Ireland to balance the rights and responsibilities involved.

The Transferor Representatives Council (TRC), which represents the Church of Ireland, Presbyterian Church and Methodist Church in education issues, has also rejected claims made in the NIHRC report.

Dr Andrew Brown, TRC chair, said: The recommendations put forward in the report are based on a paper exercise and not at all reflective of the day-to-day reality in many of our schools, or of the professional competence and capabilities of our teachers.
Police at the scene of the incident at Weavers Grange, Newtownards, on April 6, 2023 (Pic: Kevin Scott)

An independent councillor for Ards and North Down is organising a public protest against drug dealers and what he believes to be PSNI inaction against such individuals.

Steven Irvine said the protest is planned for this weekend, and that it comes as a result of police targeting community workers while facilitating drug gangs.

Last week, three men appeared in Newtownards Magistrates Court linked to what police described as a concerted show of strength during an ongoing UDA feud in North Down.

PSNI Detective Constable Walker outlined in court how the charges are linked to the ongoing loyalist paramilitary drug feud spreading across the area as one faction seeks to drive the rival gang out using what she described as escalating violence.

She told the court that on April 6, a large crowd of 50 to 60 men, around 10 of whom were masked, entered the Weavers Grange region with ladders and a hammer, which were used to remove South East Antrim UDA banners from the gable walls of three houses.

She described the incident as orchestrated and designed to intimidate, while one of the mens solicitors told the court that it was actually a planned peaceful protest to remove paramilitary signage.

All three men  including eight others from the area  have since been remanded into custody, charged with affray and unlawful assembly.

Read more Newtownards: Property attacked with petrol bombs on Tuesday morning

Mr Irvine said he is appalled and disgusted at the decision to have all men remanded after the PSNI have acted at the behest of a local drug gang who many now feel, the PSNI continue to facilitate and who they have allowed to hold an entire community hostage.

The unionist representative continued: Those remanded face that situation because they held a community protest against drug dealing and criminality, at the request of the local community. They removed illegal plaques.

And they did all this peacefully.

The senior PSNI also forced good, decent community officers to ID peaceful protestors and contribute to their remand in prison.

This decision has demolished hard-built community relationships.

We will hold the PSNI to account and have our voices heard, but we will do this entirely within the law.

He added: That is the only way and that message must be heard extremely loud and clear.

He said there are local concerns that the PSNI at a senior level have taken no real tangible steps to remove [gang] ringleaders from the community.

Loyalist activist Jamie Bryson said community confidence and trust in neighbourhood policing has completely broken down and that senior police officers should ask themselves whether they can manage what is undoubtedly a complex and tense situation better.

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Mr Irvine has invited members of the public to meet at 7pm on Friday and walk towards the local Newtownards police station as a united community.

A PSNI spokesperson said: Police are aware of a planned protest to be held in Newtownards on Friday and will be monitoring the situation.
SDLP MP Claire Hanna has urged the Prime Minister to introduce a Violence Against Women and Girls strategy in Northern Ireland in the wake of Chloe Mitchells death.

The 21-year-olds remains were found outside a property in Ballymena on Sunday.

One man has appeared in court charged with Ms Mitchell's murder while a second was charged with assisting an offender.

The Belfast South MP said 39 women had died violently in Northern Ireland since 2017.

Far too many families like Chloes have been left broken after losing a loved one to this senseless violence and we cannot allow this to continue.

She added that women should be able to feel safe in every area of their lives, whether theyre socialising with friends or at their workplace and in the home, but that high rates of violence against women in Northern Ireland suggest this is not possible.

Northern Ireland remains one of the most dangerous places in Europe for women, she continued.

She said that the issue was compounded by a lack of functioning government in Northern Ireland and a loss of funding for Womens Aid.

Northern Ireland has been without its Assembly for over a year, due to the DUPs protest of post-Brexit trading agreements.

Like so many of the things we need to improve the lives of people in Northern Ireland, properly tackling this issue has been delayed by the lack of an Assembly and Executive at Stormont, she said.

We have been in desperate need of a Violence Against Women and Girls Strategy for many years, but following consultation we cannot move forward without Ministers in place.

The situation is compounded by the financial situation seeing groups like Womens Aid  who do outstanding work  facing funding cuts.

Ms Hanna finished by compelling the PM and UK government to deliver the strategy, adding that it is long past time that violence against women is dealt with in Northern Ireland.

Read more Vigils organised to remember Chloe Mitchell

Ms Hanna asked the PM at Prime Ministers Questions on Wednesday: Will the Prime Minister work with me and others to ensure that strategy is enacted and funded - so that we can tackle the cultures and behaviours that are having such devastating impacts on women in Northern Ireland?

The Prime Minister responded by outlining measures that the Conservative government has already taken against the issue, and agreeing that Northern Irelands Executive needs to be reformed.

Its absolutely right that we do everything to stamp out violence against women and girls, thats why the government passed the landmark Domestic Abuse Act, set up a 24/7 victim line and quadrupled funding for Victim Support, he said.

Shes also right to highlight though, that the people of Northern Ireland are not getting the local government that they need and I want to see that as much as she does and Ill continue to work hard to bring that about.
Further work needs to be done before a date can be set for an inquest into the death of Belfast schoolboy Noah Donohoe, a court has been told.

The hearing was told that the family of Noah want all issues around the disclosure of police material in the case settled before the inquest takes place.

Noah, 14, was found dead in a storm drain in the city in June 2020 six days after he went missing as he cycled to meet up with friends.

His mother Fiona Donohoe is hoping to secure answers to some of the questions surrounding the death of her son through the inquest process.

The inquest was originally scheduled to take place last year, but was then delayed after a ruling from coroner Joe McCrisken that it should proceed with a jury, following an application from Noahs mother.

Fiona Donohoe at a previous court hearing (Mark Marlow/PA)

At a brief pre-inquest review at Laganside Courthouse on Wednesday, counsel for the coroner Declan Quinn said he had reached out to legal representatives of both the Donohoe family and the PSNI in advance of the hearing.

He said: The focus of the next of kin is on settling all disclosure issues in advance of any hearing date.

Mr Quinn said the family had sought clarity on two separate tranches of CCTV.

He said the police would share one tranche with the family, but said that communication was continuing over the second and it may require a court ruling.

He said: Work has been ongoing but further work is required before a finalised inquest date can be set.

Brenda Campbell KC, representing the Donohoe family, said the next of kin required further information on a number of issues.

She said: One was in relation to forensic toxicology. We had queried the extent of the forensic toxicology investigations and also the availability of samples.

The second related to the request for CCTV footage close to Noahs home address.

She said: We received a response that one of the items of CCTV constitutes several days of footage and would take weeks of working hours to view, it would not be disclosed to us because it was not relevant and our request was disproportionate.

Saying she was encouraged that communication was continuing on the matter, Ms Campbell added: It is important footage if only to put issues to bed.

The court was also told that the Donohoe family had retained the services of a forensic pathologist and also a forensic toxicologist as expert witnesses for the inquest.

Mr McCrisken said: I think we are all agreed that starting in September wouldnt be suitable given the work that is still outstanding.

A further review hearing will take place on a date to be set in September.
This is the Co Antrim farmer who told a decoy posing as a 15-year-old boy to put on his mother's underwear to meet him before being snared by a so-called paedophile hunter group.

Larne man Neil Hunter (55) was handed a four-month jail sentence at Antrim Magistrates Court, sitting in Ballymena, on Tuesday over three charges including attempting to meet a child following grooming.

However, he was spared going to prison when District Judge Francis Rafferty suspended the sentence for two years.

Sentencing Hunter and also imposing a five-year Sexual Offences Prevention Order, the judge told him he had failed to recognise that your actions were child sexual abuse.

Lets be clear, thats precisely what they are and the fact that you are in a degree of denial about your behaviour gives me concern that a probation order is of little import, said Mr Rafferty.

At an earlier hearing Hunter, from McCareys Loanen in Larne, admitted attempting to meet a child following sexual grooming and attempting to engage a child in sexual communication.

He also admitted possessing extreme pornography on dates between April 23 and 30, last year.

A prosecuting lawyer told the court that on April 30 last year, a man from a so-called paedophile hunter group told police how he had been exchanging messages with Hunter over the course of the preceding week.

Posing as a 15-year-old boy called Lee, the decoy told Hunter his age and the defendant told him thats fine and the messages quickly became sexual with the defendant sending sexually explicit images.

The court was also told Hunter asked to meet the boy and encouraged him to wear his mothers underwear when they met.

Hunter also detailed the sexual acts he would perform on him when they met and there was an arrangement for them to meet at Larne train station on April 30.

At around 8pm that day, Hunter pulled his car into the car park and was confronted by the decoy who recorded the incident and broadcast it online  but Hunter drove off.

The Public Prosecution Service lawyer said the decoy gave all the materials, footage and his phone to the police but in the meantime, Hunter himself also made a report to police himself that he was at the train station when he was approached by an unknown male who said that he was making a citizens arrest as he was meeting a 15-year-old boy for sex.

Officers seized his phone as well and when all the devices were examined, the evidence gathered corroborated the account provided by the witness.

Hunters phone was also found to contain three pornography images of an extreme nature but when he was questioned, he claimed that as a farmer the images had been sent to him as a joke.

He also denied having any sexual interest in children and said he didnt intend anything sexual to take place when he met Lee.

Defence counsel Neil Moore said father-of-two Hunter had a clear record. He added he had health difficulties which meant he couldnt work on the family farm and that lead to him going online more and more, resulting in the wholly bizarre offences.

In addition to the suspended jail sentence and Sexual Offences Prevention Order, Mr Rafferty also ordered Hunter to sign the police sex offenders register.
Seamus Kearney, whose brother, Michael, was killed by the IRA

A man murdered by the IRAs notorious Nutting Squad after he was accused of being an informer was later exonerated by the terror group, the victims brother has revealed.

Michael Kearney (20) was shot dead by the IRAs internal security unit in 1979 and his body was dumped on a border road in Co Fermanagh.

The murder victims brother, Seamus, was told at the time that he was killed for informing.

Both Michael and Seamus Kearney were IRA members.

Seamus has now revealed that the IRA later admitted that Michael never passed information to the authorities.

Michael Kearneys death is one of the cases being examined by Operation Kenova, which is investigating the activities of an Army agent codenamed Stakeknife inside the IRAs internal security unit.

Stakeknife is widely believed to have been Freddie Scappaticci, who died earlier this year.

Scappaticci headed up the Nutting Squad, which was tasked with hunting down and executing informers, many of whom were tortured before their deaths.

Operation Kenova, which is due to publish its report in the coming months, is also investigating the role played by the security services, including MI5.

Freddie Scappaticci at the 1987 funeral of IRA man Larry Marley

RTE's Prime Time spoke to Seamus Kearney for its programme Brother, Informer, Soldier, Spy, which aired on Tuesday night.

Seamus gave an emotional interview regarding his brother's death and subsequent events.

He recalled a priest visiting him in prison to tell him of his brothers murder.

I said: Is Michael dead? He said: Yes, hes dead. And I said: All I want to know is was it the British Army or the RUC? He said probably the worst news conceivable: It wasnt the British Army or the RUC. It was the Irish Republican Army, Seamus said.

My legs buckled. I hit the chair and everything went into a spin in slow motion.

Seamus said being branded an informer is a terrible stigma.

Its the worst stigma in the world to have been labelled an informer, especially on the island of Ireland, he said.

Nutting Squad: How ruthless IRA unit became riddled with double agents

Following Seamuss release from prison in 1986, his mother, Kathleen, made him promise that he would find out if her son Michael really was an informer.

In 2001 he was able to persuade the IRA to conduct an internal investigation into his brothers death in 2001.

In 2003 he was asked to go to a house in west Belfast, where two senior IRA men read out a prepared statement acknowledging that Michael was never an informer.

Solicitor Kevin Winters represents the families of 12 victims of the IRA's internal security unit, including the Kearney family.

He told RTE's Prime Time: Justice here is to find not only the people who pulled triggers and killed individuals before a court, but also, significantly  and this is something that sometimes gets overlooked  the people who orchestrated and oversaw this mass process of an informant at the apex of British military intelligence inside the IRA, involved in killing people or overseeing the deaths of many, many people.

Stakeknife: Freddie Scappaticci, IRA executioner and British agent

Former MI5 intelligence officer Annie Machon said one of the key questions for the Kenova probe is whether Stakeknife was responsible for the deaths of other agents.

What the hell does that say about the ethical mindset of the security services at that time? she said.

To allow other people to die, who might also be helping them, in order to allow someone else to flourish and rise up the ranks. So, its a very murky space.
A vigil has been held in Belfast for murdered 21-year-old Chloe Mitchell  and to call for an end to gender-based violence (Liam McBurney/PA)

A vigil has been held in Belfast for murdered 21-year-old Chloe Mitchell  and to call for an end to gender-based violence.

Mourners gathered outside City Hall on Wednesday evening to pay their respects to Ms Mitchell and advocate for womens safety.

A second vigil is being held in King Georges Park in Ms Mitchells hometown of Ballymena.

Natalie McNallys father Noel, second right, attends a vigil outside Belfast City Hall to mark the death of Chloe Mitchell and violence against women (Liam McBurney/PA)

Ms Mitchell was last seen on CCTV in the James Street area of Ballymena in the early hours of June 3.

A huge search operation was launched, with Community Rescue Service volunteers scouring steep banks around the River Braid.

The search was called off after suspected human remains were found in Ballymena.

One man has appeared in court charged with Ms Mitchells murder while a second has been charged with assisting an offender.

When they appeared in court on June 12, counsel for both defendants cited significant mental health difficulties.

A man has been charged with murdering Chloe Mitchell (Family handout/PA)

At the vigil for Ms Mitchell, representatives from Womens Aid and social feminist movement Rosa held banners and signs saying End violence against women and girls now.

Family members of Natalie McNally, who was murdered in December 2022, when she was 15 weeks pregnant, were also present.

The crowd chanted: When womens lives are under attack, stand up, fight back.

A minutes silence was then held.

Several speakers highlighted the fact Chloe Mitchell is the 18th woman to be killed in Northern Ireland since 2020.

Sonya McMullan, regional services manager for Womens Aid, said there is an incident of domestic abuse every 16 minutes in Northern Ireland and called on politicians to return to work to take action against gendered violence.

The Stormont government has not been operational for over a year due to the DUPs ongoing boycott in protest against post-Brexit trading arrangements.

Weve some of the highest rates (of domestic violence) in the UK and some of the highest rates of femicide or domestic homicide in the whole of Europe per head of population, so its simply not good enough, she said.

What does it take for our politicians to, you know, listen up and come back to work and do something about this?

We are the only part of the UK that doesnt have a violence against women and girls strategy. And why is that? Why are we so different? It shouldnt be a postcard lottery in relation to this.

And so I suppose were really calling out and calling our politicians to come out and be brave and to come back to work.

Because for women and girls its about being safe on the streets  but its also about being safe behind closed doors as well.

Sonya McMullan from Womens Aid attends the vigil outside Belfast City Hall (Liam McBurney/PA)

SDLP MP Claire Hanna attended the Belfast vigil and said a political strategy is needed to address violence against women and girls.

It cant be a coincidence that this is one of the only places without a strategy to address gender-based violence and that we have the highest and rising rates, she said.

These two things are dangerous because if you arent reporting and analysing and strategising these things, they dont get done.

Its a consequence of our stop-start government. Its the consequence of keeping it down for years at a time that everyday legislation doesnt get done.

There is a strategy there, it has been consulted on but it needs ministers to take it forward and it needs a serious level of funding.

And thats all possible if we want to ensure that were not back here in weeks or months again, mourning the life of another woman, then it needs to be done.

SDLP deputy leader Claire Hanna attends the vigil outside Belfast City Hall (Liam McBurney/PA)

Ms Mitchell is survived by her parents, two older sisters and two older brothers.

Ahead of the vigils, Ms Mitchells older brother Phillip Mitchell told the BBC: I think its amazing the way the community, not just the Ballymena and Harryville community but every community and further afield, has come together in memory of my wee sister Chloe.

I wouldnt want any family to go through this. Its just a living hell, really, and theres no words.

Ms Mitchells sister Nadine Mitchell said Chloe was special because she touched so many hearts.

She added: Ive not only lost my sister but Ive lost my best friend.

Detectives from the PSNI major investigation team said they are aware of graphic videos and texts containing inaccurate information circulating on social media.

A PSNI spokesman said the content is distressing to Ms Mitchells family and the public discussion over where human remains have been found should stop.
Northern Ireland Secretary Chris Heaton-Harris has instructed senior civil servants at Stormont to provide information on revenue raising measures such as domestic water charges, drug prescription charges, and tuition fees.

Mr Heaton-Harris confirmed he had written to permanent secretaries in the region on "measures that could otherwise improve the sustainability of public finances in Northern Ireland".

He also reiterated his call for the Stormont Executive to be restored so that "systemic issues" facing public services in Northern Ireland could be addressed.

The DUP is blocking the devolved institutions in Belfast in protest at post-Brexit trading arrangements, and the party has insisted it will not return to Stormont until it secures further legislative assurances from the UK Government around sovereignty and trade.

Reacting to the instruction by the Secretary of State, DUP South Belfast MLA Edwin Poots said potential additional revenue raising plans would be tinkering at the edges of Northern Irelands budget shortfall.

The funding model for the U.K. regions is short-changing Northern Ireland. Whilst Chris Heaton-Harris talks about revenue raising, any additional revenue raised would be negated if the funding model is not revised, Mr Poots said.

The Treasury contribution to fund public services in Northern Ireland is going down rather than rising. As an example, in England up to 2025, spending will increase by 6% but only 3.6% in Northern Ireland.

We dont benefit from economies of scale like GB. To provide vital services, we need a disproportionately larger public service, and for as long as we receive 3% of what England needs under the Barnett formula, we wont and dont get enough.

Unless there is a total recalibration of how Northern Ireland is funded, the situation will only get worse. With or without an Executive, and with or without the Protocol, Barnett will only lead to our budgetary pressures getting worse. Public services in Northern Ireland will stall and get to a point where it is irretrievable.

For decades Northern Irelands infrastructure was in stagnation and as a result it needs mammoth investment which we cannot afford yet to stand still means houses and factories will struggle to get built.

Senior civil servants are currently running public services in the region in the absence of devolution.

They have estimated that Stormont departments need hundreds of millions of pounds in extra funding to maintain public services at their current level this year.

Hundreds of millions more would be needed to settle a series of public sector pay disputes in the region.

Mr Heaton-Harris confirmed on Wednesday he had used new powers provided through passage of the Northern Ireland (Interim Arrangements) Act 2023 for the first time to request information and advice on the revenue raising measures.

His letter said he had asked for information on measures such as such as introducing domestic water charges and drug prescription charges, and increasing tuition fees.

Mr Heaton-Harris suggested these measures could help to make public services in Northern Ireland more affordable, but stressed that he wanted devolved ministers to make decisions on public finances.

Mr Heaton-Harris said: "Public finances in Northern Ireland are not currently on a sustainable footing.

"The UK Government stands ready to work with a restored Executive, but we have a responsibility to ensure the delivery of public services and management of public funds can continue in its absence.

"I remain firmly of the view that the right people to take these decisions are locally elected and accountable ministers sitting in a fully-functioning devolved government.

"I once again call on the Executive to get back up and running so that they can progress much-needed and long-promised public service transformation and address the systemic issues that are facing public services in Northern Ireland.

"Simply spending more is not the answer to transforming Northern Ireland's public services and does not serve the best interests of the people of Northern Ireland."

The full list of measures the NI Secretary requested information on is as follows:

1) The introduction of water charges

2) The introduction of drug prescription charges

3) Raising higher education tuition fees to the same level as in England

4) Cessation of industrial derating

5) Reduction of concessionary fares schemes

6) Cessation or reduction of non-domestic vacant property relief;

7) Introduction of domiciliary care charges

8) Increase in Translink fares

9) Increase in MOT charges

10) Increased tariffs for on-street parking in specified areas

11) Options for removal of NI only support for industries compared to the rest of the UK, e.g. hauliers

12) Continuation of hospital parking charge

In the 2021 Spending Review the Government announced that the total block grant for the Northern Ireland Executive would be 15bn per year, on average, over the next three years.

This is the largest settlement since devolution in 1998.

The UK Government has provided around 7bn in additional funding to Northern Ireland since 2014, on top of the Barnett-based block grant.

Northern Ireland Executive public spending per person is around 20% higher than the equivalent UK Government spending in the rest of the UK.

Chief Executive at Retail NI, Glyn Roberts condemned the measures and called for the restoration of the Executive.

While we appreciate that at present these are only options for revenue raising, the removal of the Small Business Rates Relief Scheme and Industrial De-rating as well as the introduction of on-street car parking charges will have a hugely negative impact on our members and the wider economy.

Retail NI members and the wider small business sector are already paying the highest business rates in the UK and are still struggling with the cost of doing business crisis. To even consider adding to this burden is a complete non-starter and we are surprised that it is even being entertained by the Secretary of State, he added.

While it would be no silver bullet to the many challenges being faced by local businesses, having a locally elected and accountable Executive making a unified approach to the UK Government for an investment package is better than what we have on offer at present.
Aidan Murray allegedly wrote messages to women saying that they had an amazing body and an amazing ass.

Ryanair has dismissed its chief pilot for what is alleged to be a pattern of repeated inappropriate and unacceptable behaviour towards a number of female junior pilots.

Aidan Murray (58) had been with the Irish airline for 28 years. He was appointed to the most senior and powerful job in flight operations in 2020.

Its understood that an anonymous complaint was received late last month about inappropriate behaviour, and was followed by further reports from eight other female Ryanair flight crew of alleged unwanted approaches.

An investigation revealed a pattern whereby Mr Murray had swapped rosters in order to fly with certain female pilots. He is also alleged to have sent inappropriate text messages.

The decision to sack the chief pilot was taken on Tuesday evening. Mr Murray allegedly wrote messages to women saying that they had an amazing body and an amazing ass.

Staff at Ryanair DAC, the Dublin-based main unit of the airline, were told in a message on Tuesday morning about an investigation into Mr Murrays conduct.

They were told the chief pilot was in breach of our anti-harassment policy for a pattern of repeated inappropriate and unacceptable behaviour towards a number of female junior pilots.

The internal statement added: We are determined to ensure that all our people can come to work in a safe and secure environment. We would ask all of you to respect the privacy and integrity of those brave individuals who came forward to assist us in this investigation.

In a public statement, a Ryanair spokesperson said: We do not comment on queries relating to individual employees.

Mr Murray has yet to respond.

Ryanairs Code of Business Conduct & Ethics says: The working environment created by Ryanair promotes equal employment opportunities and prohibits discriminatory practices, including harassment (sexual, physical or verbal).

It adds: All concerns, questions, and complaints will be taken seriously and handled promptly, confidentially and professionally.

The code of conduct also says: Ryanair encourages people who have concerns about suspected serious misconduct or any breach or suspected breach of law to come forward and express these concerns without fear of punishment or unfair treatment.

All allegations of wrongdoing will be addressed in line with the appropriate policy and where appropriate, thoroughly investigated.

Its believed an appeals process forms part of any disciplinary procedure. There is no suggestion that safety was compromised at any stage.

Ryanair is Europes biggest airline in terms of passenger numbers. Its largest base is at London Stansted.

According to the British Airline Pilots Association (Balpa), female pilots make up only 6% of the total flight crew worldwide. The pilots union is campaigning for more diversity on the flight deck, and has enlisted UK government support.

 The Independent
Korea Securities Depository (KSD) CEO Lee Soon-ho speaks during a press conference in Seoul, Wednesday. Courtesy of KSD



By Lee Min-hyung



The Korea Securities Depository (KSD) pledged Wednesday to widen its business portfolio into securities tokens by building a relevant platform in line with the rise of the new form of cryptocurrency used for fractional asset ownership.



"We will establish a securities token platform, and set up specific business models for the emerging industry," KSD CEO Lee Soon-ho told reporters during a press conference. "The KSD already built a medium- to long-term roadmap in the area. But as no specifics have been confirmed as to how the industry will grow, we will play the role of screening the registration of the tokens and managing the total amount of issued tokens here for the time being."



The remark reflects the growing attention on the securities token industry, after the Financial Services Commission (FSC) approved the issuance and distribution of the tokens in early February. Under the decision, investors can digitally trade fractions of traditional assets  such as real estate and art  by using the tokens.



A number of securities firms and financial industry players identify the market as a fresh growth area, as demand for digital asset trading is forecast to grow, as was shown by the rapid rise of cryptocurrencies in recent years.



Lee also promised to provide unwavering support for the soft landing of the industry.



"We are still discussing what other specific roles we can play, as it has not been specifically defined how the industry will be developed here," he said. "For now, we support any legislative activities within the industry. The KSD will do its best to help securities tokens and fractional investment tokens settle in the market without difficulty."



The KSD also shared its vision to build a next-generation smart work system. After establishing a global investment support system by January 2026, it will reorganize all the internal digital infrastructure for a smarter working environment, according to the KSD.


Lebenese politicians convened in Beirut on Wednesday in another attempt to elect a president and break a seven-month power vacuum (Hassan Ammar/AP)

Lebanese politicians have failed in yet another attempt to elect a president and break a seven-month power vacuum in the tiny Mediterranean country.

The parliamentary session  the 12th bid to pick a president  broke down after the bloc led by the powerful political party and militant group Hezbollah withdrew following the first round of voting, breaking the quorum.

Hezbollahs preferred candidate, Sleiman Frangieh, the scion of a political family close to the ruling Assad family in Syria, trailed behind his main rival, Jihad Azour, a former finance minister and senior official with the International Monetary Fund, in the first round of voting.

Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri opens the session to elect a president (Hassan Ammar/AP)

Mr Azour, who is supported by the opposition to Hezbollah and some of its nominal allies, received 59 votes against Mr Frangiehs 51, while 18 politicians cast blank ballots, protest votes or voted for minority candidates.

However, Mr Azour failed to reach the two-thirds majority needed to win in the first round.

The meeting came after 11 previous sessions by the parliament  the last of which was held in January  failed to elect a replacement for President Michel Aoun, a Hezbollah ally, whose term ended in late October.

Mr Azour has the backing of the countrys largest Christian political parties, the Free Patriotic Movement, which has been allied with Hezbollah since 2006, and the Lebanese Forces party, an opponent to Hezbollah.

Under Lebanons complex power-sharing agreement, the countrys president has to be a Maronite Christian, the parliament speaker a Shiite Muslim and the prime minister a Sunni.

Politician Michel Moussa casts his vote (Hassan Ammar/AP)

Mr Azour is also backed by the majority of Druze legislators and some Sunni Muslims, while Shiite members of parliament have overwhelmingly backed Mr Frangieh.

The new presidents most pressing task will be to get the nation of six million people, including more than one million Syrian refugees, out of an unprecedented economic crisis that began in October 2019.

The meltdown is rooted in decades of corruption and mismanagement by the countrys political class that has ruled Lebanon since the 1975-90 civil war ended.

Clinching a bailout deal with the IMF  Mr Azours current employer  is seen as key to Lebanons recovery.

Mr Azour took a leave of absence from his post as regional director for the organisation upon announcing his candidacy.

Mr Azours supporters accused Hezbollah and its allies of blocking the democratic process.

This group does not believe in democracy, said Lebanese Forces politician Fadi Karam.

Independent Waddah Sadek said: Nobody can nominate a candidate and say its either them or nobody else.

Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri casts his vote (Hassan Ammar/AP)

Hezbollah has often criticised opposing candidates as divisive and confrontational, though Mr Azour has said he would work to bring together rival political groups and end the economic crisis.

Who better than Jihad Azour to seal the deal with the IMF that can help guarantee us international investment, Mr Sadek said.

Hezbollah politician Hussein Haj Hassan claimed Mr Azour and those around him have no political programme and called for a real national dialogue away from the auctioneering and intimidation.

Earlier this week, Mr Frangieh said he is not imposing himself but is seeking a national consensus or majority.

Not all politicians opposed to Hezbollah support Mr Azours candidacy and some see him as representing sectarian parties.

Ibrahim Mneimneh said the one thing that many legislators who, like him, ran on anti-establishment platforms agree on is their opposition to Mr Frangieh.

Michel Douaihy, another independent politicians, said Mr Azour had not been the first choice of most independents, but that his candidacy is the art of compromise at its best.

No date has been set for a 13th attempt to elect a president.
Indonesias government on Wednesday defended its decision to buy 12 second-hand Mirage fighter jets from Qatar, saying it needed them to boost air force capabilities amid a shortage of combat-ready aircraft.

Some lawmakers and analysts said the deal was costly and risky, after the Defense Ministry confirmed it had signed a U.S. $734.5 million contract for the French-made Mirage 2000-5 planes. Qatar bought them from France in 1997, and they are the oldest of their kind.

The ministry decided to buy the aircraft from Qatar as a quick and effective solution to fill the gap in its air force capabilities, the ministry said in a statement sent to BenarNews. It said many of the militarys older fighter jets were reaching the end of their service life.

The deal, financed by foreign loans, is intended to fill the gap until Indonesia receives new Rafale jets it has signed a contract to buy from the same French manufacturer, Dassault Aviation, the ministry said. Three of six Rafale aircraft are scheduled to arrive in January 2026.

The Mirage delivery is expected to take place 24 months after the contract becomes effective, and the aircraft will be stationed at an air base in Pontianak, West Kalimantan, the Defense Ministry said.

The Mirage 2000-5 is a multirole fighter jet that can perform air-to-air and air-to-ground missions. It has a maximum speed of Mach 2.2 and a range of about 1,500 kilometers (932 miles), defense officials said.

President Joko Jokowi Widodo, however, has said in the past that Indonesia should not buy second-hand weapons systems.

Sukamta, a member of a parliamentary defense affairs commission, said he feared the used jets would be too costly to maintain.

Getting the spare parts could be difficult. The original manufacturer might have various reasons to withhold the parts we need, he told BenarNews.

We have opposed buying such second-hand fighter jets from the start, considering the requirements and upkeep expenses, said Sukamta, who goes by one name.

The ministry, though, said the contract includes not only the aircraft, but also engines, spare parts, support services, training for pilots and technicians, infrastructure and weaponry.

The Indonesian Air Force currently operates a mix of fighter jets from various countries, such as the U.S-made Northrop F-5 Tiger and F-16, the Russian-made Sukhoi SU-27/30, and the British-made Hawk 100/200.

However, the ministry said some of these aircraft had reached or would soon reach their end-of-life phase, and needed to be replaced or upgraded. The ministry said it had plans to upgrade and overhaul some of these aircraft, but this would also reduce their availability for operations.

Concerns about performance and cost

The purchase of the used Mirage aircraft might be the governments last-ditch attempt to meet the ambitious goal of achieving the minimum essential force (MEF) by 2024  the end of Jokowis second and final term as president  said Khairul Fahmi, co-founder the Institute for Security and Strategic Studies (ISESS).

The ministry is determined to proceed with the purchase of these old planes, hoping that they will serve as a temporary measure until new aircraft are delivered, Khairul told BenarNews.

Besides the concerns about performance and cost, the limited budget will also hamper the upkeep, repair and operational readiness of both Mirage and other aircraft.

The MEF is a concept that defines the minimum level of defense capabilities that Indonesia, an archipelago and Southeast Asias largest nation, needs to protect its sovereignty and interests.

Indonesia has embarked on a drive to upgrade and modernize its arsenal. Spending priorities include strengthening the domestic defense industry, the communication system, intelligence, border security, as well as guided munitions and air-defense systems.

Only about 65% of the MEF has been achieved so far, and the air force is in the lowest position among the three branches of the Indonesian military, Khairul of ISESS said, citing data from the Defense Ministry.

This is partly due to the slowdown and stagnation in the second strategic plan (2015-2019) and the COVID-19 pandemic, which have affected the budget and procurement of defense equipment, he said.
A Chinese naval training ship arrived in the Philippines Wednesday for a four-day visit, wrapping up a goodwill tour of four countries in a region increasingly beset by geopolitical tensions.

The 163-meter long Qi Jiguang was welcomed to the Port of Manilas South Harbor by Philippine Navy cadets who were dressed in crisp whites and waving the flags of each country, while performers danced in traditional dragon costumes.

Chinese Ambassador to Manila Huang Xilian, Chinese student associations and members of various Chinese-Filipino business groups also stood portside to welcome the Peoples Liberation Army (PLA) Navy boat.

Conspicuously absent, however, were top officers of the Philippines Navy, in what could be interpreted as a snub amid heightened tensions over territorial claims in the South China Sea.

The last time a Chinese navy vessel made a port call was in January 2019, during then-President Rodrigo Dutertes pivot to China. Chinas Escort Task Group 539 (ETG539), composed of the missile frigates Wuhu and Handan, and the replenishment ship Dongpinghu, conducted a five-day visit to Manila.

This time the Philippine Navy sent only Commodore Carlo Lagasca, the commander of the Littoral Combat Force, to welcome PLA Navy Rear Admiral Su Yinsheng and other Chinese navy officers.

The Philippine Navy will host the visiting contingent with the customary and usual accommodation it renders to all visiting navies which fulfills its diplomatic role and promotes naval cooperation, the country's navy said in a media statement.

Members of the Philippine Navy wave Philippine and Chinese flags to welcome the arrival of Chinese navy ship Qi Jiguang in Manila, June 14, 2023. [Jojo Rinoza/BenarNews]

The visit comes against a backdrop of more prickly ties between Beijing and Manila. Since taking office in June last year, Philippines President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has been more vocal in condemning Chinas aggressive actions in the region.

China claims nearly all of the South China Sea and has for years militarized artificial islands, while deploying coast guard boats, navy vessels, and a state-backed maritime militia around disputed areas.

The Philippines, Malaysia, Brunei, Vietnam and Taiwan also have overlapping claims in the sea, a maritime lane that sees trillions of dollars worth of goods pass through it each year and is rich in natural gas and oil.

Analysts said the port call could be viewed as an attempt by Beijing to flex its soft power in the region.

The 2023 State of Southeast Asia survey conducted by the Singapore-based ISEAS Yusof Ishak Institute showed that nearly half of the respondents do not trust China to do the right thing to contribute to global peace, security, prosperity and governance.

Surveys in the Philippines in recent years also showed that Filipinos have little to no trust in China and prefer closer ties with the United States and Australia.

Renato Cruz De Castro, a professor in the International Studies Department at De La Salle University, said it was unclear if this type of visit would change Filipinos perception of China.

This is a mere token Chinese gesture aimed to placate the public sentiment on China, De Castro told BenarNews on Wednesday.

As long as China pursues its goal of maritime expansion through its coercive behavior in the West Philippine Sea/South China Sea, this will hardly make any impact on the publics distrust of this emergent power, he said.

The West Philippine Sea is the local name given to part of the South China Sea within Manilas exclusive economic zone.

Chinese Navy personnel stand guard as the Qi Jiguang docks at the Port of Manila on June 14. [Jojo Rinoza/BenarNews]

On Wednesday, BenarNews journalists visited the ship, though the PLA Navy restricted visitors movements onboard and prohibited videos and photos. Machine guns, water cannons, and magnetic compasses were among the weapons and equipment on display.

The Qi Jiguangs visit comes a week after the first-ever trilateral exercises between the coast guards of Japan, the U.S. and the Philippines in the South China Sea.

In April, the Philippine Coast Guard reported that two of its vessels were involved in a close call with Chinese vessels that carried out dangerous maneuvers in the South China Sea.

In 2016, an international tribunal ruled in favor of Manila and against Beijings expansive historical claims to the South China Sea, but China has since refused to acknowledge the ruling.

The Qi Jiguang, which is carrying 476 crew members, also made stops in Vietnam, Thailand and Brunei.

Jojo Rinoza contributed to this report from Manila
Soldiers commute on a military truck past destroyed buildings in Marawi on the southern island of Mindanao on May 23, 2019.

The Islamic State groups emir for Southeast Asia was one of two suspected militants killed during a pre-dawn raid in the south of the Philippines on Wednesday, the countrys military said.

Faharudin Hadji Satar (also known as Abu Zacharia) died in the military operation in Marawi, Lanao del Sur province, according to Col. Billy de la Rosa, assistant commander of the 103rd Infantry Brigade. The lakeside city was the site of a five-month battle between pro-IS fighters and the Philippine military before government forces broke the militants siege of Marawi in October 2017.

Zacharia succeeded Owaida Marohombsar (also known as Abu Dar) as the leader of the Daulah Islamiyah-Maute Group sometime in March 2019, according to authorities. Daulah Islamiyah (DI) means Islamic State in the local language.

DI militant Abu Morshid was also killed and a soldier injured by a grenade during the fighting, the military said. Troops recovered a small cache of improvised explosives after storming Zacharias rented apartment.

The operation showed the governments determination to eliminate Islamic radicalism, especially that propagated by IS, said Lt. Gen. Roy Galido, commander of the armys Western Mindanao Command.

Its a reminder for those who espouse radicalism to become deradicalized, because the government will go after them, Galido told reporters.

Zacharia was among 10 individuals designated as a terrorist by the Philippines Anti-Terrorism Council in February 2021 for conspiring, planning and preparing for the commission of terrorism.

He was a lieutenant of former IS emir for the region Isnilon Hapilon, helping execute the siege of Marawi. The fighting between the militants and government forces destroyed the city and left 1,200 militants, government forces and civilians dead.

Little is known about Zacharia, except that he is a nephew of the late Alim Abdul Aziz Mimbantas, a former ranking leader in the southern Lanao region of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), a defunct rebel group based in the southern Philippines. The MILF, which has ceased to be a rebel force after signing a peace deal with Manila in 2014, now controls an autonomous area in the south that includes Marawi.

Galido said IS militants were now operating in small groups in southern Philippine jungles, and included fighters from across Southeast Asia and the Middle East.

But he said it was important the head of IS for the region had been neutralized.

Maj. Andrew Linao, the regional military spokesman, said that while Zacharias death did not automatically mean the end of the IS in the south, it was a major blow for its operations.

Wednesdays raid came weeks after the capture of seven IS members who provided vital intelligence information for security forces, Linao added.

Drieza Liningding, a leader of the Marawi Consensus group, said they woke Wednesday morning to the sight of soldiers backed by armored personnel tanks searching the village of Bangonfor companions of Zacharia who escaped in the raid.

The entire village of barangay Bangon is still on lockdown, Liningding told BenarNews by telephone. His group is composed of former Marawi residents still displaced, six years after the battle.

Roel Pareno contributed reporting from Zamboanga City, southern Philippines
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Surrounded by officials face wearing masks, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, center, and his wife Lee Sol-ju watch a performance given by art groups in Pyongyang, in this May 5, 2021, photo. Speaking to The Korea Times recently, health experts said North Korea's high position at the World Health Organization is concerning as it would send the wrong message to the world. Yonhap



Pyongyang joins executive board despite pandemic lies, rejection of vaccine support



By Jung Min-ho



North Korea had claimed to be totally free of COVID-19 patients for almost a year and a half while the coronavirus was raging across the world. After finally reporting its first official case in May 2022, authorities there rejected free offers of vaccine support from other countries for no clear reason, refusing to join the global effort to contain the pandemic and jeopardizing the lives of their own people.



Yet, at the 76th World Health Assembly in Geneva last month, North Korea was elected as a new member of the World Health Organization (WHO) executive board. Along with 33 other "technically qualified" member countries, it will implement the decisions and policies of the U.N. agency over the next three years.



Health experts worry that the high status given to the authoritarian state that did everything wrong throughout the international health crisis would send the wrong message to the world  that North Korea's actions were acceptable, not just this time but also with respect to its future acts.



Speaking to The Korea Times in an email interview, Hakim Djaballah, former chief of Institut Pasteur Korea and a virologist currently based in New York, said North Korea's pandemic management was a "complete failure" and all of its claims about COVID-19, especially the infection-free part, was "sadly laughable and cannot be credible by any means."



"It was a complete failure with a human tragedy of an unknown magnitude for the (North's) 26 million citizens," Djaballah said. "We still do not know the extent of the COVID damage in North Korea and we may never know. It is one of the world's worst authoritarian and closed regimes, which has failed to accept support, vaccines and other needed medical supplies to help their own citizens."





A worker of North Korea's State Commission of Quality Management carries a disinfectant delivery device at Pyongyang Sunan International Airport in Pyongyang, in this Feb. 1, 2020, photo. AP-Yonhap



Just like many other poor countries, North Korea is not well-equipped to collect reliable data. But what separates the North from the rest is that it would not accept external help, even at the cost of millions of lives, if it was deemed unhelpful for the regime's image, said Choi Jung-hoon, who formerly practiced as an infectious disease doctor in North Korea.



"During the COVID-19 pandemic, North Korea showed exactly what a government should never do during a pandemic. Giving it an executive board member position and allowing it to tell the world what to do is nonsensical, to say the very least," Choi said.



"As it had always been, North Korea tried everything it could to protect only a handful of its leaders and their image during this pandemic, leaving all the ordinary people basically on their own. To me, it was, sadly, all predictable, given what I had personally experienced there."



Following the news about North Korea's upgraded status at the WHO, the United States and South Korea expressed concerns that the belligerent state with a terrible record of violating human rights and other U.N. rules would abide by international norms while serving the role.





World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, wearing a mask, attends a press conference at the WHO headquarters in Geneva in this Dec. 20, 2021, photo. AFP-Yonhap
Davis-Hassan, who owns Barb Hassan Realty, represented Durga Property Holdings Inc. of Ohio in the $8 million July 2022 sale of the Berkshire Mall following a local town meeting rezoning of the mall. She received a $240,000 commission in that sale, according to a legal filing by the State Ethics Commission.
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PITTSFIELD  Community members are invited to share their thoughts about the citys housing needs during a listening session next week.

The Pittsfield Affordable Housing Trust is hosting the session at 6 p.m. June 21 at Conte Community School, 200 West Union St. Participants will have the opportunity to discuss their own experiences with housing in the city, the needs they see, and their ideas for how to improve affordable housing.

The seven-member trust was formed last fall with the mission of creating and preserving affordable housing opportunities that will benefit low and moderate-income households and community housing.

Mayor Linda Tyer directed $500,000 of the citys American Rescue Plan funds into the trust at its creation. The City Council on Tuesday voted to approve the allocation of another $150,000 to the trust from this years Community Preservation Act money.

Interested residents are encouraged to RSVP for the event at 413-499-9368 or 413-442-3181, as child care and light refreshments will be available for attendees. Spanish translation services also will be available.

Any residents that are unable to attend the session can email their comments and suggestions to Community Development Director Justine Dodds at jdodds@cityofpittsfield.org or mail them to the Pittsfield Department of Community Development, City Hall, 70 Allen St., Room 205, Pittsfield, MA.

Comments may also be sent to 413-499-9358 or by TTY at 413-499-9340.
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DALTON  The Dalton Fire District has hired a new acting fire chief  with a wealth of experience  to try to get the department back on track.

Robert Czerwinksi, who retired in 2019 as chief of the Pittsfield Fire Department, has agreed to serve as acting chief for Dalton in the wake of a leadership shakeup. He served a total of 32 years in Pittsfield  the last nine as chief.

Dalton Fire District Chair Jim Driscoll said that Czerwinski is contracted to serve for 90 days in the department while an external search for a full-time fire chief is conducted. Driscoll said that it was possible that he would serve longer, if needed, as the district wants to conduct a thorough search.

We want time, Driscoll said. We want to be able to vet the new candidates, check out the references, as much as we can.

Former Dalton Fire Chief James Peltier was terminated late last month following allegations of fiscal irresponsibility and staff complaints. Peltier had served as chief of the department since 2021.

In the wake of Peltiers termination, assistant Fire Chief Chris Cachat stepped into the role as acting chief for about five weeks. But earlier this week, Cachat, who will be 66 at the end of this month, confirmed to The Eagle that he had retired from the department after 40 years of service, claiming he wanted to give the job to someone younger with fresh ideas.

And Capt. Corey Wilcox, who has served as acting chief and oversaw day-to-day operations at the department while Cachat was in the role, is leaving soon for a new role in the Pittsfield Fire Department.

Driscoll said that Czerwinski should be in place just as or before Wilcoxs departure.

Czerwinski could not immediately be reached for comment.

He seemed like a good fit for the department, Driscoll said, especially given the roles hes taken since his retirement in Pittsfield. Czerwinski stepped in as acting chief for the volunteer fire department in Granby and filled a similar role for that town.

He also worked for Southern Berkshire Ambulance, which gave Driscoll confidence that he could help oversee the towns emergency medical services.

Hes done what were doing now, Driscoll said. Hes had good results everywhere hes been.

Czerwinski, 67, began his career in New York and served in the Pittsfield Fire Department beginning in 1987. He served as chief from 2010 to 2019.

He served 45 years total as a firefighter before deciding to retire.
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NORTH ADAMS  Northern Berkshire EMS has launched a new program to help people who have recently overdosed on opioids.

By providing resources and support in the aftermath of an overdose, organizers hope to turn the tide of an epidemic that has claimed hundreds of lives in Berkshire County since 2010.

The Berkshire Post Overdose Program is still in its infancy  it was launched earlier this year  and recently got its first referral.

I think the big thing is having people be aware that we are here to help, said Adam ONeil, Northern Berkshire EMS administrative deputy chief who oversees the new pilot program.

We want to try to make it as least cumbersome as we can.

A person who has overdosed can opt into the new program or be referred in by a friend or family member. EMS staff reach out via phone and if the person is interested then they will do a home visit wearing street clothing rather than their uniform, while driving an unmarked car to be discreet, ONeil said.

First responders can connect them to resources like therapists or doctors, or supplies like fentanyl test strips, a sharps container and Narcan  medication that can reverse an opioid overdose.

Currently, Northern Berkshire EMS workers can only do a cold hand off, and give the person the information to reach out to programs rather than make a call for them. The EMS service is working on an application for state-approval of a Mobile Integrated Health Care program, which would allow EMS to give some care and services outside of a hospital.

Sometimes wound injection sites can get infected, and it can be dangerous when left untreated, ONeil said, but EMS workers cant give someone antibiotics. With a Mobile Integrated Health Care program, they would be able to without making a trip to the hospital.

The project has been in development for several years, said Andy Ottoson, a senior public health planner at the Berkshire Regional Planning Commission, which provided funding to start the Northern Berkshire pilot. Eventually, the commission wants to see programs like it spread across the county.

It also helps people in rural areas where there are barriers to health care access, ONeil said. The ambulance service responds to calls primarily in 10 communities over more than 250 square miles, including North Adams, Williamstown, Stamford, Rowe, Florida, Monroe and New Ashford. Last year, they responded to 70 opiate-related calls, and so far this year, they have responded to 22, according to EMS data.

Through the Berkshire Regional Planning Commission, Northern Berkshire EMS workers received training from Stephen Murray, a former Northern Berkshire EMS paramedic and now a harm reduction program manager at Boston Medical Center, where he is working on research about post- overdose programs.

Its key to do the outreach a day or few days after the overdose instead of right away, Murray said. After someone experiences an overdose they arent in a great place to have a conversation about what to do in their life, he said. Oftentimes, the person is in a painful withdrawal, which Murray, who is in long-term recovery, has experienced more than a dozen times.

Its like being sick with the worst flu youve ever had and multiply it by 1,000, he said. That would not be a good time to have a conversation about treatment or other options.

When he was a paramedic, as a person also in recovery he would sometimes connect with someone who overdosed later after seeing them in the community or if they reached out to him on social media, and those follow-up conversations were always much more successful than those immediately after an overdose, he said. One person he revived was not nice to him in the moments after the overdose, but now theyve become good friends.

There are similar post-overdose programs across the country and state, but many in Massachusetts are through police or fire departments, sometimes with a behavioral health specialist, ONeil and Ottoson said. In Northampton, for example, some police officers are specially trained to provide post-overdose resources through the Drug Addiction and Recovery Team.

Locally we wanted to take a different approach and utilize EMS, for a couple different reasons, ONeil said. One we tend to be viewed differently by the public than police or fire departments.

Another advantage is that EMS workers can provide some medical care like tending to wounds.

Theres evidence that these post-overdose programs can work. Massachusetts cities and towns with high opioid-related first responder calls that have post-overdose programs have less opioid overdoses compared to those without programs, according to research from Boston Medical Center and Boston University School of Public Health.

The planning commission is in touch with other EMS providers across the county about starting similar programs. Rollout has been slower than expected, as EMS services were hard-hit by the pandemic and left some understaffed, Ottoson said.

Its a huge lift to take this on.
ADAMS  Again facing an existential threat to their church, members of the St. Stanislaus Kostka parish community are choosing to fight for a future.

At the behest of the Most Rev. William Byrne, bishop of the Springfield Diocese, the Saint Stanislaus Kostka Preservation Committee held a public listening session Tuesday regarding the condition of the church, which is facing problems including black mold and roof decay.

The committee was formed in 2022 to address some of those issues, which were identified in an engineering report in 2020. It worked to develop a fundraising plan, and presented it to Byrne in January.

Recently, church leaders received a letter from the diocese requesting a listening session to ensure that there is a consensus regarding the path the parish takes moving forward, an announcement on the Catholic Parishes of Adams and Cheshire website reads.

The committee presented a four-phase preservation plan, with a price tag of more than $4 million, in front of parishioners and community stakeholders Tuesday before a question and answer session. The event took about 90 minutes.

Kathy Luczynski, who serves on the parish council, opened the presentation by saying the future of the church is a personal issue for her and others.

Its been an emotional journey for some of us, to think, theres an extremely high amount thats due  and the church may close, she said. My grandparents were the immigrants who came from Poland and helped to open this church.

She referenced the engineering report, which said the church needs $2.8 million worth of repairs, eliciting a quiet but pronounced gasp from those gathered.

The church initially was made aware of steeple issues in 2018 and 2019, before the problems in the 2020 report were identified. The committee questioned the accuracy of a 2021 mold report, and said the air in the sanctuary is clean to breathe. Luczynski acknowledged a mold problem downstairs.

The committee presented parishioners and the diocese with three choices: Close the church and sell the building, allow further deterioration and likely demolition, or preserve the church. The committee believes in preservation, and based on the people who spoke Tuesday, so do the parishioners.

Parishioner Dick Moreau appealed to those gathered to fight to keep the church open. Ive seen so many churches closed, he said. With what we have going on in our society today, the last thing we need is another church to close.

Two young parishioners, Tim Kupiec and Jenna Masselli, said the church should reach out to younger people to make sure the church has a life after renovations.

No offense to a lot of you, but we need to attract the younger generation, Kupiec said. Im one of the few people I know who still willingly goes to church.

I think it would be wise to reach out to the colleges in the area, Masseli said.

Parisioner Judy Fairweather exemplified the St. Stans spirit.

Im willing to do whatever it takes to preserve this church, she said.

The diocese has not yet made a decision on whether it will support the committees plan.

The committee believes the churchs past history of determination, its historical financial support from parishioners, the current financial stability of the parish and the possibility of making the church a tourist destination all bolster preservation efforts.

Preservation plan The committee proposed a four-phase project that would cost more than $4 million total.  Phase one would address the issues with the steeple, rectifying the mold problem and blocking water from getting in the church, in part by repairing the roof. That would cost approximately $1,180,000.  Phase two would remediate existing mold and restore Kolbe Hall to be both a memorial hall and parish community center. That would cost an estimated $1,755,000.  Phase three would focus on the long-term preservation of stained glass windows, costing $1,285,000.  Phase four would provide for remaining recommended improvements in the 2020 report as needed, costing $450,000.

The committee plans on a fundraising effort with online outreach to parishioners, school alumni, local community, the diocesan community, social media, the national Polish community and large donors.

St. Stans closed in 2008, during a merger with Notre Dame and St. Thomas Aquinas churches, but reopened as a mission of Blessed John Paul Church (the former Notre Dame) in 2012 after an Apostolic Signatura from the Vaticans highest appeals court reversed the closure.

Throughout the closure, former parishioners held a round-the-clock vigil that went on for 1,150 days.

The diocese had originally closed the 110-year-old church as a cost-cutting measure. The appeal of that decision took three years to wend its way through the Vaticans court system, culminating in the reversal.

The brick church traditionally served Polish immigrants to Adams, many of whom worked in the towns cotton and paper mills. The buildings cornerstone was laid in 1902. For more than a century, parishioners climbed the seven stone steps to its inviting set of three bronze-colored double doors.

But in recent years, the church has faced a host of physical issues with the building.

In 2021, the reverend at the time, Barrent Pease, warned parishioners that because of a black mold problem and a lack of funds to solve it, the church would be shuttered and parishioners would be moved to Notre Dame Church. That announcement did not go over well. Peases declaration did not come true. His tenure at the church was short-lived.

The 2020 report by Kuhn Riddle Architects found that the churchs slate and copper roof is at the end of its functional life. It said work should be undertaken in the next few years to head off deterioration, though a complete roof replacement could wait 10 to 15 years.
An earlier version of this story reported the incorrect condition of the East Mountain Reservoir Dam, which, as of 2021, was in "satisfactory" condition.

GREAT BARRINGTON  How likely is a failure of the Rising Pond Dam?

Not very, say state and federal regulators, following a quarterly inspection earlier this month that also included a check of the Woods Pond Dam in Lenox Dale. Both dams passed, but some who live in the path of water that flows through these barriers are concerned about another issue: PCB pollution and the threat it could pose during a disaster.

The Housatonic River and its floodplain are heavily contaminated with polychlorinated biphenyls that were released into the water by General Electric in Pittsfield for more than four decades. The Boston company reached a settlement in 2020 to spend tens of millions of dollars to compensate the towns, remove the PCBs and store the pollutants in a landfill in Lee.

Environmental groups have fought the plan in court, and even if that fails the PCB removal will take more than a decade, with significant amounts of the chemicals left behind.

Meantime, state and federal regulators say they are watching the two dams closely, and GE  which owns Rising Pond Dam  must regularly update its emergency and dam maintenance plans.

The dam, located off Park Street, is categorized by the state as a "significant hazard" in the event of a break, although GE engineers say the possibility of a breach is "remote."

A break would cause widespread flooding and require "immediate evacuation." The emergency plan for a dam breach also explains that it will take approximately 30 to 60 minutes" for the flood wave to reach the Division Street Bridge, and that portions of major roads will be inundated.

The Rising Pond Dam is classified as a "significant hazard" dam The Rising Pond Dam, like the dam at Woods Pond, is classified as a significant hazard by the Office of Dam Safety, since if breached, it may cause loss of life and damage home(s), industrial or commercial facilities, secondary highway(s) or railroad(s) or cause interruption of use or service of relatively important facilities.

The "inundation maps" in that plan show a frightful possibility: potentially dangerous flooding that would stretch down to Sheffield along the Housatonic River and beyond, carrying with it the PCB pollution impounded by the dam.

Those who would be in charge during such a crisis say they are prepared and confident that real-time incident mapping through the Massachusetts Emergency Management Administration will help officials quickly alert residents so they can flee to higher ground.

The Rising Pond Dam is listed in satisfactory condition, which is the best possible rating, according to a spokesperson for the state Office of Dam Safety.

Still, there is a list of ongoing maintenance issues, including keeping an eye on a crack in a concrete wall and some tilting stonemasonry. The dam is inspected more frequently than most in its category because of the pollution.

'In the loop'

Sheffield officials are well-aware that the town is in the dam's inundation zone.

We are not receiving any [river] cleanup down here but we are subject to any downstream contamination, said Sheffield Select Board Chair Rene Wood, who is a member of the Housatonic Rest of River Municipal Committee.

Wood was on that committee in 2018 when it told the EPA that GE's emergency plans and inundation maps were insufficient for the protection of populations living downstream of these dams in the event of dam failure. They also expressed the same worry about the Woods Pond Dam up river in Lenox Dale.

The most recent plan, dated last November, appears to include at least some of the detail that officials thought was missing.

Both this and frequent inspections have put some at ease. Committee member Christopher Rembold, Great Barringtons assistant town manager and town planner, says he is comforted by all the inspections.

We try to plan for everything, Rembold said, and Im glad to be in the loop on those inspection reports.

"Dam Failure" of any of the town's 18 dams is not so farfetched as to be excluded from Great Barrington's 2020 Hazard Mitigation and Climate Adaptability Plan. That plan notes the possibility of climate change-related problems that could cause a breach, and the old age of the town's dams.

Melissa Provencher, another Rest of River committee member and the regional planning commissions Environmental and Energy Program Manager, did not respond to requests for comment about whether she is satisfied with GEs current emergency plans.

But the person at the top of the public safety flowchart thinks the town can handle such a crisis. Great Barrington Police Chief Paul Storti is also the towns Emergency Management Director, and says he feels prepared given MEMA's online, real-time incident mapping. Through MEMA, Storti said he can also quickly put out requests for equipment and other help.

Dam failures are rare in the Berkshires, but the Rising Pond Dam, built in the 1800s to power mills, is one of the oldest in the county according to the town's hazard mitigation plan.

The dam had significant upgrades in the early 1990s, according to GEs 2019 engineering report, then again just over a decade ago. GE was required to perform additional work to the dam in 2001 and 2002 to fortify it, according to EPA documents.
This June 17, 2020 file photo shows the North Korea's demolition of an inter-Korean liaison office in the North's border town of Kaesong. Yonhap



South Korea's unification ministry said Wednesday it lodged a damages suit against North Korea over Pyongyang's 2020 demolition of an inter-Korean liaison office in the North's border city of Kaesong.



The government filed the lawsuit with the Seoul Central District Court against the Democratic People's Republic of Korea over 44.7 billion won ($35 million) in damages incurred on the South's state properties, according to the ministry.



On June 16, 2020, the North blew up the joint liaison office in Kaesong in anger over Seoul's failure to stop North Korean defectors from sending anti-Pyongyang leaflets across the border.



It marked the first time that the South Korean government has sued North Korea.



The legal action came as the statute of limitations for damages to property related to the case is set to expire Friday. Under the civil law, the statute of limitations for the right to claim compensations runs out three years after damages occur.



The government said the suit is aimed at suspending the legally-set time limit for a damages claim and helping recoup the government's losses from the North's act.



"North Korea's demolition of the liaison office in a violent manner is blatantly an illegal act. The North has also violated related inter-Korean agreements and fundamentally has undermines the basis of mutual respect and trust between the two Koreas," the ministry said.



The government said it will "sternly" respond to the North's infringement on property rights by the government and South Koreans.





This photo shows the exterior of a South Korean-built support facility in Kaesong Industrial Complex in North Korea's namesake border town, which was seriously damaged by the fallout of the North's demolition of an inter-Korean liaison office in June 2020, May 30. Yonhap
Lee is the former superintendent of Lenox Public Schools and was most recently acting principal of Lenox Memorial Middle and High School. He was one of two finalists for the two-day a week position. Michele Rivers Murphy, an educational consultant and author, was the other.
General Electric gave county residents a first look at what they think it will take to remove contaminated sediment from the Housatonic River. Their plan proposes about 10 years of work, thousands of truck trips and a pipeline to carry sediment from the Housatonic to a proposed dump site in Lee.
Advocates for ideas and draws conclusions based on the interpretation of facts and data.
South African lawmakers agreed a new health insurance bill on Tuesday, 14 June, paving the way for universal healthcare to millions of poorer citizens in a major overhaul of a two-tier system.

Source: Reuters.

The National Health Insurance Bill (NHI) aims to level the playing field in the world's most unequal society, amid concerns its implementation will be undermined by widespread corruption and a weak economy struggling to fund basic services.

The bill, which will be implemented in stages at a cost of billions of dollars, proposes a special fund that will pool public and private resources and limit private medical-aid providers, such as South Africa's Discovery, to offering cover only for services not reimbursable by the NHI Fund.

While Discovery broadly supported the proposed reforms, in submissions to parliament last year it rejected the NHI's current single-funder model as unworkable, favouring a blended funding model to help reduce the risks of failure.

"We accept that the NHI will not be the silver bullet that will fix all our health problems but it is the necessary foundation to build on for a progressive improvement of access with quality and equity," health minister Joe Phaahla said.

The health system in Africa's most industrialised economy reflects broader racial and social inequalities that persist three decades after apartheid ended.

An estimated 15% or 9 million of South Africa's population of 59 million people currently pay for comprehensive private healthcare, while a majority of poor Blacks typically queue for hours at understaffed state hospitals short of equipment.

"The NHI is not the purported miracle the ANC purports it to be," Michelle Clarke, the official opposition's shadow health minister said when rejecting the bill during a debate.

Parliament's lower National Assembly, dominated by the ruling African National Congress (ANC), voted 205 in favour to 125 against the bill, which must now be passed by the upper house before moving to President Cyril Ramaphosa for his signature into law.
On Thursday, 15 June, Minister of Tourism Patricia de Lille presided over the graduation ceremony of the Food Quality Assurers programme in Hermanus.

This ceremony saw 50 graduates added to the tourism and hospitality talent pool in the Western Cape.

The Food Safety Quality Assurers training programme provides for technical skills in food preservation within the hospitality and tourism sector.

This skills programme is recognised by all cookery or food-related sectors in South Africa, from small restaurants to large-scale hotels. This programme also provides training on norms and standards for safe tourism operations, including Covid-19 protocols, and targeting the retrenched and unemployed youth.

The department entered into an agreement with The Tourism Business Institute in Southern Africa (TTBISA) to manage training in Western Cape Province, and to expose the learners in relevant hospitality establishments to experiential learning. The programme consists of 30% theory and 70% practical training, and is accredited with FoodBev setas.

During training, the beneficiaries were introduced to different skills programmes related to food safety and quality assurance.

The department implements various youth skills-development programmes in line with the National Tourism Strategy to strategically support the tourism sector's developmental objectives.

These skills programmes have seen young people from across the country benefit from accredited skills training and being placed in work opportunities in tourism establishments.

Investing in young people to be a part of our vibrant tourism sector is a key priority for the department, said de Lille.

In the 2022/2023 financial year more than 2,500 learners were enrolled in the various skills-development programmes including: food and beverage training, chef/professional cookery, food safety quality assurance, wine service training and hospitality youth training (fast food services).

More than R69m was invested in the skills-development training for young people from across the country.
When Tracy Norton, a chef from City Lodge Hotel Victoria & Alfred Waterfront created a recipe for the Global Pizza Challenge 2023, she took a risk including elements of a dish she grew up with but wasn't a fan of - bobotie.

Overall winner Tracy Norton from City Lodge Hotel V&A Waterfront with her Bobotie Pizza

Much to her delight, her Cape Malay-inspired bobotie pizza went on to win the competition and was declared a resounding success by the judges. What stood out were the blend of authentic local flavours, delicious taste and easy adaptability to produce at scale making it commercially viable.

This years exciting Global Pizza Challenge took place during the equally vibrant Hotel & Hospitality Show at Sandton Convention Centre from 18-20 May 2023. The stand was a hive of activity as contestants competed throughout the event, observed by judges and cheered on by visitors, who got to sample the hot, cheesy delights coming out of the pizza ovens.

City Lodge Hotel at OR Tambo International Airport's executive chef Devandra Narismulu does a demo for visitors.

All the winners:

Overall Winner : Tracy Norton, chef at City Lodge Hotel V&A Waterfront for her Bobotie Pizza (Prize R10,000 sponsored by GPC and winners trophy)



: Tracy Norton, chef at City Lodge Hotel V&A Waterfront for her Bobotie Pizza (Prize R10,000 sponsored by GPC and winners trophy) Best Vegan / Vegetarian Pizza : Azhar Mohamed from Johannesburg for his Apple of Eden Pizza (Prize R3,000 sponsored by Stricke-ly Gluten Free)



: Azhar Mohamed from Johannesburg for his Apple of Eden Pizza (Prize R3,000 sponsored by Stricke-ly Gluten Free) Best Use of Soweto Hot Sauce : Jaco van den Berg, student at Capsicum School, for his Cherry and Blue Cheese Deluxe Pizza (Prize R5,000 sponsored by Soweto Hot Sauce)



: Jaco van den Berg, student at Capsicum School, for his Cherry and Blue Cheese Deluxe Pizza (Prize R5,000 sponsored by Soweto Hot Sauce) Most Inspiring Chef: Luayys Alvarado, 8-year-old son of Chef Zana Alvarado for his Raspberry Smores Dessert Pizza

City Lodge Hotels co-sponsored the event for the first time this year, offering fun giveaways and running a selfie competition during the show. Pizza is a popular dish on the menus of all four of the groups hotel brands  Courtyard Hotels, City Lodge Hotels, Town Lodges and Road Lodges  and across its network of 59 hotels in South Africa, Namibia, Botswana and Mozambique. The winning pizza will be added to the menu in due course, giving guests the chance to taste the delicious bobotie pizza for themselves.

Soweto Hot Sauce goes with everything! A liberal dose is being added to the winning Bobotie Pizza.

Lindiwe Sangweni-Siddo, chief operating officer at City Lodge Hotel Group, explains: We are delighted with the outcome of our first venture into sponsoring a culinary competition! We chose the Global Pizza Challenge because it is open to all, as are our hotels, and pizza is a feel-good food enjoyed by all. The top three selling items on our menus currently are burgers, pizzas, and shisa nyama and other grills, so pizza is also one of our guests preferred meals choices. We also used this event as an opportunity to showcase the growth in food and beverage offerings at our hotels and to expose our kitchen teams to the exciting world of cooking competitions. By inspiring and motivating our staff to enter and attend events such as these, we spread the learning from such exposure as they go back to their kitchens and share their enthusiasm with their co-workers.

Global Pizza Challenge organisers Martin Kobald and Glenn McGinn, far left, and Jeff Schueremans, far right, hand sponsorship certificate to Trevor Boyd, City Lodge Hotels general manager operations F&B (second right).

Other sponsors of the Global Pizza Challenge 2023 included: Chef MLK School of Cooking, Complete Restaurant Solutions, DMG Events and Kaoun International, FoodServ Solutions, Grupo Nutresa, ItalDeli, MJ Event Gear, Richs Africa, Sir Fruit, Soweto Hot Sauce, Stricke-ly Gluten Free, TORK, Unilever Food Solutions, and the Visual Feast Group.
U.S. Congressman Christopher Smith speaks during a hearing on North Korean Refugees and the Imminent Danger of Forced Repatriation from China held in Washington, D.C., Tuesday (local time). Rep. Smith and Sen. Jeff Merkley co-chaired the hearing. Yonhap



US lawmakers urge UN, international community to team up to stop China's imminent repatriation of North Korean defectors



By Kang Hyun-kyung



China has played a critical role in a sharp drop in the number of North Koreans fleeing their home country after the pandemic, according to experts.



Hanna Song, the director of international cooperation at the Seoul-based nonprofit, nongovernmental organization Database Center for North Korean Human Rights, said Beijing has used advanced technology tools to repress its people and North Korean escapees in China.



"China's increasing use of advanced technology, such as facial recognition and biometric systems, has become a repressive weapon targeting the most vulnerable," she said during a hearing titled North Korean Refugees and the Imminent Danger of Forced Repatriation from China, hosted by the U.S. Congressional-Executive Commission on China, Tuesday (local time), in Washington, D.C.



"This includes North Korean refugees as well," Song added.



The hearing was held after a March report by The Korea Times raised concerns about China's possible mass repatriations of North Korean detainees back to the North, and a follow-up interview in April with U.S. Special Representative for North Korea Sung Kim where he confirmed the U.S.' continuous diplomatic efforts to pressure China to scrap its forced repatriations.



Song said the technology enables the monitoring of people being trafficked in China, leaving no room for anonymity and invisibility and make it extremely difficult for North Korean defectors to avoid repatriation.



Ethan Hee-seok Shin, a legal analyst at Transitional Justice Working Group, also voiced concerns about China's use of technology as a tool to repress its people as well as North Korean defectors.



Their remarks hinted that together with the North Korean regime's tight border control since the coronavirus pandemic, including a shoot-on-site order, China's use of technology as a tool of repression also contributed to a sharp decrease in the number of North Korean defectors since the outbreak.



Two U.S. lawmakers, Rep. Christopher Smith and Sen. Jeff Merkley, co-chaired the hearing to figure out possible diplomatic and policy options that can help prevent China from repatriating nearly 2,000 North Koreans .



The number of North Korean detainees in China has soared after the pandemic due to the North's border closure.



The U.S. lawmakers and witnesses who attended the hearing expressed concerns that the North Korean detainees are in danger of imminent repatriation, because Pyongyang is expected to reopen its border with China soon.



They said that the international community should increase pressure on China to stop the decades-long brutal practice of sending North Korean escapees back to their home country where they will face torture, beatings, sexual violence, forced abortions and death.



"We have good reason to believe that such repatriations are imminent, as North Korea reopens its border following an extended closure in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic," Rep. Smith said during the hearing. "I share this with deep concern."



Lee Jung-hoon, dean of the Graduate School of International Studies at Yonsei University, who previously served as South Korea's ambassador-at-large for North Korean Human Rights, regretted that there has been no progress over the past decade in stopping China from sending North Korean defectors back to the North against their will.



Lee urged the United Nations and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in Beijing to seek a more active role to pressure China to stop repatriating the North Koreans.





Robert King, former U.S. special envoy for North Korean Human Rights Issues, speaks during a hearing on North Korean Refugees and the Imminent Danger of Forced Repatriation from China held in Washington, D.C., Tuesday (local time). Yonhap



Robert King, former U.S. special envoy for North Korean Human Rights Issues, said the United States, South Korea and other members of the international community need to keep working hard to increase pressure on China to stop the inhumane practice.



He said it would take time to see progress made in the issue, stressing that it will not happen overnight.



King said Beijing is ignoring mounting calls by the international community to stop sending North Korean escapees back to the North, partly because China wants to have the North serve as a buffer against the West.



"They are more comfortable having North Korea on their border than a democratic open society like South Korea," he said. "But I think there is another thing as well. The Chinese are concerned about their own internal situation," he said.



King said allowing North Koreans to live freely and be able to make decisions on their own is something it does not want to allow inside its borders.



"They are also concerned about the example that might show," he said.



King made the remarks when Sen. Merkley asked why China is so resistant to facilitating the passage of North Korean defectors to South Korea or other countries in the region.



The U.S. lawmaker said the international community's efforts to stop China's repatriation of North Korean defectors would become more difficult and complicated if Beijing is worried about the implications on their nationals in the event of halting those steps.



Participants at the hearing also addressed the dire human rights conditions of North Korean escapees in China.



Rep. Smith said 80 percent of female North Korean escapees in China become victims of human traffickers who exploit them in the lucrative sex industry.



"It is believed that illicit sex trafficking generates $105 million annually for North Korean and Chinese criminal networks," he said.



During the hearing, Song presented two satellite images provided by Seoul-based nonprofit group, NK Pro, which show the expansion of detention centers in China. One was taken in 2019, and the other after the pandemic. Images taken after the pandemic show new fencing and additional facilities in one of six detention centers believed to hold North Korean escapees.




The Southern African Development Community (SADC), encompassing 16 countries and nearly 400 million people, offers tremendous trade potential. However, the challenge lies in facilitating regulated cross-border financial flows to fully harness its benefits.

A new white paper, SADC Regional Payments Interoperability  exploring the value of mutual digital infrastructure to drive more formalised, accessible and inclusive payments in the region, by BankservAfrica together with Cenfri, explores the regions cross-border payments landscape.

Examining the different use cases, this paper also highlights the barriers to growth and elaborates on how a regional payment solution could work for the good of all.

With exciting innovations and new product launches, payments is an exciting space in the region. However, these fall short of the one critical need: broad-based and all-to-all interoperability. The ability for money to flow from wallets to bank accounts inexpensively enhances inclusivity, reduces pain points and can encourage the move from cash and informal money send.

Achieving this is key to solving the cross-border payments dilemma in the SADC, explains Ruhling Herbst, executive head: Africa Business Development at BankservAfrica.

The other chief concerns and opportunities centre around the current market and consumer dynamics: the considerable lower-value person-to-person (P2P), person-to-business (P2B) and business-to-business (B2B) flow into the region brings the opportunity for providers to scale their offerings and to tackle the challenges arising from the emergence of fintechs.

On a consumer level, the preference for cash remains high as most cross-border transactions take place informally. Theres also the issue of commercial, regulatory, infrastructure and consumer barriers, ranging from agent costs to liquidity management, foreign-exchange costs and limited data availability, that will need addressing in the first, middle and last mile.

A key finding from the report is that service providers need to be empowered to offer low-cost, high-quality cross-border payment services.

Introducing TCIB's cross-border solution

Since 2021, the Transactions Cleared on an Immediate Basis (TCIB) payment scheme, managed and operated by BankservAfrica, has been live. Owned and supported by regulators, central banks and established financial institutions in the region, TCIB has been developed as a solution for cross-border challenges.

From our research we find that reliable cross-border fast retail payments are critical to drive sustainable and inclusive local economies and communities.

Regional scale is vitally important if accessibility and affordability barriers are to be overcome. The cross-border terrain is very complex if we tackle it individually, but it is so much more achievable if we face it together as a regional scheme, say Barry Cooper, technical director at Cenfri.

Digital payments: instant infrastructure

Having gained the support of key bank and non-bank participants across the region in the past 18 months, this valuable, instant digital-payments infrastructure is well-positioned to facilitate the movement of remittances inexpensively between authorised financial service providers in the region, and to activate the growing network of regulated payment service providers.

Ensuring broad use of cross-border retail payments so that everyone can access these will depend on creating a network of different payment service providers. Through this, broad-based interoperability can be achieved, and collaboration between key cross-border payment providers will strengthen.

"As a solution for Africa, by Africa, we believe the TCIB payments scheme, as a centralised platform featuring cutting- edge technology and growing levels of support can make this happen, ends Herbst.
A report released by the South African government paints a grim picture of the country's water resources and water infrastructure as well as the overall quality of its drinking water.

The Blue Drop Watch Report  an interim report because it only assessed a sample of the facilities across the country  focused on the condition of the drinking water infrastructure and treatment processes from a technical standpoint. It also reported on water quality.

The issues of biggest concern that it identified included a collapse of the countrys wastewater treatment works and a sharp rise in the number of local authorities that are failing to meet minimum compliance standards.

The report records continued overall decline in the status of the countrys water supply services. The findings point to a culture of neglect, non-compliance and systemic collapse. The current cholera outbreak in the country should, therefore, come as no surprise. The interim report shows dysfunctional local municipalities and non-compliant wastewater treatment works.

The systemic collapse has been attributed to poor operation, defective infrastructure, the absence of disinfection chemicals, lack of monitoring and an overall lack of operating and chemistry knowledge.

The report shows that the Department of Water and Sanitation issued non-compliance letters to 244 wastewater treatment works in 2022. But only 50% had responded almost a year later.

The report shows a clear and rapid decline in the performance of local government. But only 43 out of 205 local municipalities have asked for assistance from the department. They are able to ask for financial support and assistance to help with capacity building and skills development.

Drinking water quality

Only a test sample of some of the countrys facilities was conducted. Assessments were made of 151 water supply systems  out of the total 1,186  managed by 140 local municipalities. In addition, 26 water boards and bulk water service providers were assessed. The assessments were done between November 2022 to February 2023.

Most of the treatment plants in the sample were found to be failing to produce acceptable drinking water according to the SANS 241:2015 drinking water standards.

Over 60 systems (41%) of the sample had bad water quality. Another 13 systems (9%) had poor water quality. This meant that it didnt meet clean water standards because of high levels of contaminants such as wastewater and excrement.

Contaminated water poses acute health risks. It is responsible for water-related illnesses such as cholera.

Only 50% of the assessed treatment plants produced drinking water of a suitable quality not contaminated by sewage or other pathogens or chemicals.

A number of water supply systems were flagged as being in a critical condition, requiring urgent intervention.

The report also noted that 11 of the 140 municipalities that were assessed had no water quality monitoring systems in place or no evidence of any water testing.

Wastewater treatment works

Wastewater treatment works are assessed in accordance with the set Green Drop audit standards. Of the total 850 wastewater treatment works assessed, 334 (39%) received scores below 31% and were placed under regulatory surveillance. Overall, the countrys wastewater treatment works are in a poor to critical state, posing significant risks to public health and to the environment.

South Africas Wastewater Treatment Works Preliminary Report Card:

208 are at critical risk (24%)  indicating dysfunctional and unsatisfactory performance, with major corrections required.



250 are at high risk (29%)  indicating partial functionality and unsatisfactory performance, with major corrections required.



Half are in poor to bad condition. This is up from 10% in the 2014/2015 auditing period.



The North West province recorded the highest proportion of wastewater treatment works at critical risk (60%), followed by the Northern Cape (59%) and the Free State (44%). Limpopo has 38% of its plants at critical risk and 48% as high-risk plants, placing the bulk of its treatment facilities in a vulnerable state.

Other major issues reflected in the report were:

Only 25 systems (17%) achieved excellent water quality and 20 systems (13%) good water quality, while 106 systems (70%) failed to achieve chemical compliance. A worrying 83 systems (55%) have bad water quality compliance and 23 systems (15%) have poor water quality compliance.



Under 40% of systems were compliant on microbiological parameters (pathogens and bacteria such as faecal coliform, E. coli and cholera). Just over 10% were partially compliant.



Only 5% of plants were in a state of high compliance. The rest were in a poor or critical condition (64%) or had some degree of compliance (31%).



Water losses within municipal water reticulation systems had increased from 35% in 2015 to 50% in 2023. This means that 50% of water is lost within the system before reaching consumers.

Next steps

The findings of the report come as no surprise. Recent cholera outbreaks in Gauteng and Free State provinces have been a warning sign that the countrys water is contaminated.

The current state of affairs was predicted two decades ago by numerous researchers and experts, consistently having highlighted the deterioration of South Africas already scarce water resources, dilapidated infrastructure, poor water governance and management, lack of service delivery and the overall threat to the countrys water security, calling for urgent action.

The Department of Water and Sanitation has recently proposed the development of a Water Partnership Office, a new procurement office, in an attempt to address the continued water issues. The initiative is still in its developmental phase, but the government hopes it will facilitate private investment in the water industry.

But government will have to regain the trust of private institutions before they will be willing to invest in water infrastructure projects.

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.


The life cycle of work has shifted exponentially since the Covid-19 pandemic - from the Great Resignation to the Great Reawakening, through the Great Reshuffle and on to quiet quitting and quiet hiring - and now, the world is experiencing the 'Great Unretirement'.

As younger people find new ways to work, a gap in traditional employment needs to be filled  and 'unretirees' are stepping back into the workforce. Some are returning to work out of necessity, while others simply miss having a job to go to. According to 2023_Insights-1.pdf Sanlams 42nd Benchmark Survey Report, one in five South African consumers believe they may never be able to retire, and 42% said they felt a sense of insecurity or lack of control over their financial future and will simply have to keep working past the expected retirement age. With many South Africans inundated with the constant rise in the cost of living, less than a staggering 10% of retirees will be able to maintain their standard of living before retirement.

Ageing population

The global population is getting older, primarily because of increasing life expectancies and declining birth rates. In 2020, more than 147 million people worldwide were between the ages of 80-99, accounting for 1.9% of the global population. The same demographic accounted for merely 0.05% of the population in 1950. In 2020, the number of people aged 60 and older outnumbered children younger than 5. Between 2015 and 2050, the proportion of the world's population over 60 years will nearly double from 12% to 22%. Our world has a notably higher percentage of older people than 70 years ago  a trend that will continue.

One of retirement's perils is a decrease in social activity rather than an increase. ONS data published in the UK in December 2022 showed 46% of over-50's would return to work for social reasons; 42% would return to improve their mental health, while many have returned from a long-term illness that previously forced them to leave with unfinished business  while others simply desire a return to a more social space after the two-year lockdown-enforced isolation from which many have yet to emerge fully.

Working better

The picture to be painted, though, is not one where we're all forced to work deep into our dotage. Working for longer means that the workplace environment will change, and the opportunity to mentor younger workers exists. Older workers are skilled and experienced, bringing critical thinking skills and in-depth knowledge that cannot be taught, where the perceived technology gap is more easily overcome. They require less training, are more reliable and have a stronger work ethic than younger workers. They play a crucial role in retaining a business's knowledge and established networks while fostering younger workers in more nurturing multi-generational teams.

The onus, then, is on companies to create an inclusive, fair and meaningful experience for older and younger employees. If they manage that, they will not only become more innovative, engaging and profitable over time, but they will also benefit society at large. A Deloitte study showed that bringing age diversity into a company's DEI programmes delivers more age-diverse teams, in which all members feel more psychological safety and innovative than in age-biased teams. Age brings teams a sense of security and wisdom so that companies can use it to their advantage.

Adapt and fly

Organisations must also adapt to this phenomenon by reintegrating skilled older workers into the workplace and attracting more once they see the value. Aspects like more traditional titles and roles, or those which reflect their seniority as mentors for younger workers, can help them feel valued. Being accommodating with flexible work hours or locations can also be a bonus. This also includes offering more accessible workstations at home or in the office, with more light, larger fonts and other things that can help accommodate the needs of people of all ages.

Looking at pay equity by job and level rather than tenure is important. Tenure is not a useful measure for determining pay scales unless it directly translates into experience and skills that drive value to the company. If an older worker is returning to work in a new role, it should be more than okay  indeed, fair - for them to make less money than a younger person. On the other hand, those returning to their former positions need to be empowered with managerial, supervisory and mentoring roles, which will let them leverage their years of expertise for the team and the company's benefit. The opposite is true, too, with younger leaders able to reverse-mentor older team members to help integrate them and usher them into a world with very new ways of working.

Respect for elders is a fundamentally-entrenched aspect of South African culture - and there's no reason we shouldn't show the same respect for their experience and knowledge in the workplace for better business functioning.
The crisis in journalism caused by the traditional news media's struggles to cope with the digital revolution has been well documented over many years. But news organisations now face a much more fundamental change driven by generations who have grown up with and rely almost entirely on various digital media.

Data published in this years Reuters Institute Digital News Report shows an acceleration in the structural shifts towards more digital, mobile and media environments. This is where news content is delivered via social media and now, increasingly video-led platforms such as TikTok, rather than via what to a new generation of media consumers look like the more formal and stuffy traditional of legacy media, including newspapers and television.

Not only is consumption of traditional television news and print formats continuing to decline at a relentless rate, but online websites are also struggling to engage news users, despite the tumultuous times in which we live.

One benchmark of this shift is a question we ask about key gateways that people use to access news. Using average data across all 46 countries surveyed in our annual report, we found that more people choose social media each year, mostly at the expense of direct access via a traditional news website or app. Access via search and other aggregators has also increased slightly over time.

Use of news websites/apps versus social media to access news

These are averages, and it is important to point out that direct connection remains strong in some markets  mainly in northern Europe, where there is keen interest in news and relatively high trust. But elsewhere  especially in parts of Asia, Latin America, and Africa  social media or other aggregators are by far the most important gateways, leaving news brands much more dependent on third-party platforms for traffic.

Generational differences are also a big part of the story. In almost every country we find that younger users are less likely to go directly to a news site or app and more likely to use social media or other intermediaries.

Percentage of people using a news website or app

Dependence on social media may be growing, but it is not necessarily the same old networks. Across all age groups, Facebook is becoming much less important as a source of news  and by implication as a driver of traffic to news websites. Just 28% say they accessed news via Facebook in 2023 compared with 42% in 2016, based on data from 12 countries we have been tracking since 2014.

This decline is partly driven by Facebook pulling back from news and partly by the way that video-based networks such as YouTube and TikTok are capturing much of the attention of younger users.

Twitter usage is also reportedly declining following the chaotic set of changes introduced by Elon Musk, even if our survey shows relatively stable weekly reach overall.

New platforms

TikTok is the fastest growing social network in our survey, used by 44% of 1824 year-olds for any purpose and by 20% for news (up five percentage points compared with last year). Our survey results also show that the Chinese-owned app is most heavily used in parts of Asia, Latin America and Africa.

The report also provides evidence that users of TikTok, Instagram and Snapchat tend to pay more attention to celebrities and social media influencers than they do to journalists or media companies when it comes to news topics. This marks a sharp contrast with legacy  or more established  social networks such as Facebook and Twitter, where news organisations still attract most attention and lead conversations.

Although news organisations have been experimenting with TikTok accounts, many are struggling to adapt to the more informal tone where creativity is the key to attracting an audience.

These shifts are additionally challenging for publishers because they often require expensive bespoke content to be created and there are few ways to monetise short form videos, with limited linking opportunities back to websites or apps.

Younger people less likely to read online

These platform shifts are part of a wider move away from reading and towards watching or listening to news content online. While all age groups say they still prefer to read news online because of the speed and control if offers, younger groups are more likely to express preferences for watching or listening to news content. And this translates into greater consumption of short-form videos and podcasts by this group, according to our data.

News consumption preferences by age and media

Our research over more than a decade has captured the way that all age groups have adopted digital media, alongside more familiar formats such as TV and print. But now we are seeing the emergence of a generation of social natives that are not bound by traditional definitions of news.

As our previous research has shown, younger groups expect news to be engaging, participatory and to be available on their terms  in the networks and platforms where they spend their time. Trust is not a given, it needs to be earned  as much by journalists as by any other creator of content.

For all the difficulties this entails  around trust, attention and business models  this is the media environment that the public is increasingly choosing for themselves. It is one where journalists and news media will need to carve out their place if they want to maintain their relevance and connection with the wider public.

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons licence. Read the original article https://theconversation.com/young-people-are-abandoning-news-websites-new-research-reveals-scale-of-challenge-to-media-207659.
South Africa's energy crisis has become a driving force for organisations to optimise the efficiency of their data centres by reducing power consumption as far as possible while maintaining high levels of performance.

Tony Bartlett, director data centre compute solutions at Dell Technologies South Africa

A new range of Dell PowerEdge servers, powered by 4th Generation AMD EPYC processors, delivers advanced performance and energy efficient design which will play a major role in helping customers achieve those objectives.

Tony Bartlett, director data centre compute solutions at Dell Technologies South Africa, said: Customers come to Dell for easily managed yet sophisticated and efficient servers with advanced capabilities to power their business-critical workloads. Our next-generation Dell PowerEdge servers offer unmatched innovation that raises the bar in power efficiency, performance and reliability while simplifying how customers can implement a Zero Trust approach for greater security throughout their IT environments.

In addition to reduced power consumption, the next-generation PowerEdge servers also enable organisations to reduce their technology footprint and enhance their sustainability across data centres, large-scale public clouds and edge locations.

Roberto Polacsek, senior sales manager EMEA (AMD) said: The PowerEdge server portfolio with AMD EPYC processors provides a balanced ecosystem that helps businesses achieve faster, more competitive outcomes as well as efficient data centre manageability and end-to-end infrastructure security.

Dell has included software and engineering enhancements, such as new Smart Flow design, to improve energy and cost efficiency. Expanded Dell APEX data storage capabilities help organisations take an as-a-Service approach, allowing for more effective IT operations that make the most of compute resources while minimising risk.

The new Dell PowerEdge servers are designed to meet the needs of a range of demanding workloads from artificial intelligence and analytics to large-scale databases. They also deliver optimised solutions tailored for cloud service providers managing large-scale, multi-vendor data centres.

From a sustainability perspective, Dell PowerEdge servers offer customers a substantial performance improvement, requiring less floor space and resulting in more powerful and efficient technology across all next generation systems. Key highlights include:

Dell Smart Flow design: The Dell PowerEdge servers powered by AMD processors are equipped with Dells Smart Cooling technology to help reduce CO 2 emissions. Dell Smart Cooling technology allows more airflow through the systems than previous generations, keeping them cooler while performing at the highest levels for extended periods.

The Dell PowerEdge servers powered by AMD processors are equipped with Dells Smart Cooling technology to help reduce CO emissions. Dell Smart Cooling technology allows more airflow through the systems than previous generations, keeping them cooler while performing at the highest levels for extended periods. Dell OpenManage Enterprise Power Manager 3.0 software: Customers can better manage efficiency and cooling goals, monitor carbon emissions and set power caps up to 82% faster to limit overall energy usage. With the enhanced sustainability target tool, customers can determine overall server use, virtual machine and facility energy consumption, leak detection for liquid cooling systems, and more.

Customers can better manage efficiency and cooling goals, monitor carbon emissions and set power caps up to 82% faster to limit overall energy usage. With the enhanced sustainability target tool, customers can determine overall server use, virtual machine and facility energy consumption, leak detection for liquid cooling systems, and more. Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool (EPEAT): Four next-generation Dell PowerEdge servers will be available with the EPEAT silver designation, and 46 systems will be designated EPEAT bronze. The EPEAT ecolabel is a leading global designation, covering products and services from the technology sector that demonstrate a responsible purchasing decision.

As organisations endeavour to keep up with the demand from resource-hungry workloads such as AI, ML and VDI, they must also prioritise environmental and security goals. With its new Smart Flow design and enhancements to power and cooling management tools, Dell offers organisations significant improvements in efficient server operation alongside the raw performance gains in this newest generation of servers, Bartlett said.




High-level officials from the CIA, FBI, and NSA are testifying before the Senate Judiciary Committee today, asking Congress to continue allowing the agency to spy on the communications of US citizens. They are urging Congress to reauthorize Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA)one of the nations most hotly contested government surveillance programs. Intelligence agencies have long cited the powerful 2008 FISA provision as an invaluable tool to effectively combat global terrorism, but critics, including an increasing number of lawmakers from both parties, say those same agencies have morphed the provision into an unchecked, warrantless domestic spying tool. The provision is set to expire at the end of this year.

Federal agents urged lawmakers to reauthorize 702 without adding new reforms that could potentially slow down or impair operators access to intelligence. The officials danced around advocates concerns of civil liberty violations and instead chose to focus on a wide array of purported national security threats they say could become reality without the model piece of legislation. Multiple intelligence agents speaking Tuesday invoked the specter of September 11th and warned lawmakers new safeguards limiting agents ability to rapidly access and share intelligence on Americans could risk a repeat scenario.
A top Senate Republican revealed Monday that an FBI informant said the Ukrainian oligarch involved in an alleged criminal bribery scheme with Joe and Hunter Biden also claimed to have 17 recordings of his conversations with the president and his son.

Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA) revealed on the Senate floor that a largely unredacted version of the bureaus FD-1023 confidential human source form said that the foreign national who allegedly bribed Joe and Hunter Biden allegedly has audio recordings of his conversations with them  17 such recordings.

The Republican senator said, These recordings were allegedly kept as a sort of insurance policy for the foreign national in case he got into a tight spot.

Mykola Zlochevsky, the Ukrainian owner of Burisma, was the "foreign national" involved in the alleged "criminal bribery scheme" detailed in the FBI form, and Zlochevsky referred to Joe Biden as the big guy during a conversation several years before the June 2020 date of the bureau document, according to sources familiar with the FBI record who described its contents to the Washington Examiner.

Grassley added Monday that, according to the FD-1023, the foreign national possesses 15 audio recordings of phone calls between him and Hunter Biden and two audio recordings of phone calls between him and the-Vice President Joe Biden.

The senator also said the FBI record also indicates that then-Vice President Joe Biden may have been involved in Burisma employing Hunter Biden.

The U.S. Attorneys Office in Delaware is handling the ongoing federal criminal investigation into Hunter Biden. It is allegedly up to U.S. Attorney David Weiss, a Trump-appointed holdover, to decide whether to indict the presidents son. In February 2021, Joe Biden asked all Senate-confirmed U.S. attorneys appointed by Trump for their resignations, with Weiss a rare exception .

What is U.S. Attorney Weiss doing with respect to these alleged Joe and Hunter Biden recordings that are apparently relevant to the high-stakes bribery scheme? Grassley asked Monday.

Sources previously told the Washington Examiner that the Burisma owner discussed an alleged bribe of $5 million to Joe Biden and of $5 million to Hunter Biden, according to the paid FBI informant who said he heard this from Zlochevsky. The sources said Zlochevsky said he believed it would be difficult to unravel the alleged bribery scheme for at least 10 years because of the number of bank accounts involved.

Zlochevskys alleged reference to Joe Biden as the big guy appears independent of the apparent reference to the now-president as the big guy by a Hunter Biden business associate during negotiations with Chinese intelligence-linked businessmen. The China-related reference occurred in a May 2017 email not made public until October 2020.

The existence of the Ukraine-related FD-1023 appears to have been revealed to Grassley by whistleblowers in 2022, and Grassley told the Justice Department and FBI back in October to hand over all records, including FD-1023 documents that reference Mykola Zlochevsky, Hunter Biden, James Biden, and Joe Biden.

House Republicans said the alleged bribery scheme was related to Joe Bidens efforts as vice president to pressure the Ukrainian government to fire Ukrainian prosecutor Viktor Shokin. Republicans said the FBI form indicated the alleged bribes were aimed at shaking off a corruption investigation.

Amid the threat of being held in contempt of Congress by Rep. James Comer (R-KY) for failing to comply with a subpoena, FBI Director Christopher Wray allowed members of Comers House Oversight Committee to review the FD-1023 last Thursday, but that version had significant redactions.

With respect to the 1023 shown to the House Oversight Committee, from what Ive been told by folks who have reviewed it, its filled with redactions. The document that Comer and I read had maybe two or three half-inch redactions, Grassley said Monday, adding, So Director Wray placed redactions on a document that is already unclassified. More than that, the FBI made the Congress review a redacted unclassified document in a classified facility. That goes to show you the disrespect that the FBI has for Congress.

Burisma became a hot-button issue when President Donald Trump referenced it in a July 2019 call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. The call spurred a whistleblower complaint , which sparked Democratic-led impeachment proceedings in the House, where Democrats denied Shokin had truly been investigating Burisma and Republicans argued he had been.

Trump and his Republican allies claim Joe Biden improperly used his position as vice president to pressure Ukraine to fire Shokin to protect his son from an investigation into Burisma. Democrats deny this and argue the focus on Burisma was part of an effort to dirty up Joe Biden.

Joe Biden said the bribery allegations were a bunch of malarkey when asked about them Thursday after he first quipped, Wheres the money? Im joking.
As I recently reported elsewhere, in the pursuit of propagating the White Supremacist narrative in order, in turn, to justify crackdowns on MAGA domestic terrorists, the corporate state media ran with a harrowing tale of an Indian Nazi and his ambitions for a global White Supremacist government takeover.

In the official story, which was repeated ad nauseam in the liberal media, a young Indian gentleman from a leafy, affluent St. Louis suburb awkwardly drove a U-Haul truck he had rented -- armed with nothing but a lone Nazi flag, mind you  into a federal barricade in the general vicinity of the White House, which was allegedly intended to kick off a race war somehow.

The whole spectacle was a farcical re-enactment of the '93 World Trade Center bombing or the Oklahoma City bombing, minus the bombs, which were swapped for a single Nazi flag.

But, to hear the corporate media tell it, this domestic terror incident was basically a new 9/11 in terms of scale and terror induced.

Via Washington Post:

A 19-year-old Missouri man with a Nazi flag who police say crashed a rented U-Haul truck into a barrier near the White House on Monday night told authorities he planned to seize power and kill the president if he had to, according to newly released court records. But Kandula was not carrying any weapons or ammunition, and no explosives were found in his U-Haul. After twice striking the metal bollards on H Street NW near 16th Street, he got out, and an officer ordered him to the ground and detained him, the document says.

The whole narrative about the Indian white supremacist trying to assassinate the white president with a truck and a Nazi flag exploded in the immediate aftermath of the arrest last month.

At the time, it seemed like the melodrama was shaping up to be a Jan 6th-tier story of "domestic extremism." But now there's radio silence in the corporate media, the Indian Nazi's charges of threatening the president's life were quietly downgraded, and the whole story has apparently imploded.

Via New York Post:

"[Kandula] was originally charged with threatening to kill, kidnap or inflict harm on a president, vice president or family member, as well as assault with a dangerous weapon, reckless operation of a motor vehicle, trespassing and destruction of federal property, US Park Police said. His federal charges have since been downgraded to a single count of depredation of property of the United States in excess of $1,000."

So, what happened? It's possible the corporate media ran with the story, thought twice about it because the narrative they tried to sell was so transparently foolish, and decided to nix it.

Or perhaps this young man was a patsy whom the Deep State decided can't be relied on when the rubber hits the road for whatever reason. Lots of government patsies are reported to be on a cocktail of psychotropic drugs to pacify them into compliance.

Or, then again, maybe the issue was that the government's evidence it had assembled to sell the story was assessed to be insufficient to score a prosecutorial win, or that it would compromise future operations by exposing their modus operandi.

The potential explanations for the sudden narrative implosion, which likely will never be revealed to the public, are nearly endless.

Is it not a bit of a shame that the government and media can't be counted on to deliver factual information, and so the serfs are left to speculate among ourselves how exactly they're plotting to confiscate the scraps that are left of our civil liberties?

Ben Bartee is an independent Bangkok-based American journalist with opposable thumbs.

Join Armageddon Prose via Substack or Locals if you are inclined to support independent journalism free of corporate slant. Also, follow Armageddon Prose on Gab and Twitter for the latest content.

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Historically, a public policy catastrophe like the Covid response would lead to reform aimed at curtailing the powers that leadership abused. The Teapot Dome scandal led to increased regulation from the House Ways and Means Committee. The Vietnam War prompted the War Powers Resolution of 1973. Watergate caused Congress to strengthen the Freedom of Information Act.

But what if the government had responded to Iran-Contra by increasing the presidents ability to circumvent federal arms embargoes? In the wake of the Johnstown Flood, what if lawmakers reaction had been to make it more difficult for victims to recover for their damages?

Wed consider the rulers delusional and corrupt, callous to the damage that they inflicted on the people they purport to represent. It would be worse than dereliction; it would indicate that they relished the damage or remained beholden to interests averse to the general public.

It is now clear that those responsible for the Covid response arent looking for amnesty or forgiveness; they seek a government structure that codifies their authoritarian impulses and a legal system that offers citizens no means of demanding accountability from their rulers. Publicly, they are searching for any emergency to increase their power. Privately, they are looking to put that system into law.

With the East Coast enveloped in smoke, the political class immediately saw the temporary crisis as an opportunity to implement permanent change. Despite evidence that arson caused the wildfires in Quebec, the same groups that adopted mantras of public health to collect power announced that the smog was evidence of a climate crisis. Like Covid, the emergency demanded centralizing power and overturning American society.

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez wrote, We must adapt our food systems, energy grids, infrastructure, healthcare, etc ASAP. Senator Chuck Schumer similarly called on government to do more to speed our transition to cleaner energy and reduce carbon.

Just as a respiratory virus became the pretext for unrelated political aims like student debt relief and eviction moratoriums, leaders already seek to impose unrelated cultural change through fear-mongering and deception.

But while the smoke clears, a more insidious development is taking place. The largely unknown Uniform Law Commission (ULC) has proposed a law that would drastically increase executive power in the United States and reduce citizens legal right to resist unconstitutional edicts.

The ULC is an influential interstate organization that works to make state laws more uniform. Since 2021, the group has worked to draft a Model Public Health Emergency Authority Act.

The impetus for this initiative was the uncertainty about the legal authority of governors and other state officials to enact certain emergency laws and declarations during Covid, according to journalist David Zweig. The legal ambiguity around many pandemic declarations resulted in new legislation in many states that explicitly clawed back public health powers from governors and executive branch officials.

In response, the ULC seeks to codify a system that shields and promotes unchecked executive authority. Zweig writes, It wants the legal authority thats given to governors to be clear. And a memo indicates that the ULC expects the adoption of the Act will result in people suing only if the Act itself wasnt followed, rather than suing based on a claim that the governors actions were unconstitutional.

The Act threatens to strip Americans of their legal ability to oppose mandates, lockdowns, or other government orders. It offers total deference to governors in deciding what constitutes an emergency. No evidence would be required for state leaders to impose arbitrary and irrational limits on human liberty. Schools, businesses, and churches would be subject to the whims of executive power.

The ULC plans to vote on the Act in July, and passage threatens to strip Americans of their constitutional rights.

If passed, Kathy Hochul would be free to declare that the Quebec smoke constituted an emergency that justified her drastically limiting New Yorkers fuel consumption. Gavin Newsom could ban singing in churches the next time a town had a Covid outbreak. The pretense of an emergency would abolish the separation of powers, leaving legislatures and the judiciary powerless to oppose the mandates of self-appointed governor-tyrants.

Brownstone was founded on the premise that Covid was not just about this one crisis but past and future ones as well. This lesson concerns the desperate need for a new outlook that rejects the power of the legally privileged few to rule over the many under any pretext.

The pretexts are many, some predictable and some not. But the drive remains the same: more power to the government, less freedom for the people.

The ULCs proposal prepares the ground for any and all crises. It codifies a system that augments the power of the legally privileged under any pretext and strips the many of their right to legal recourse.

In Federalist No. 51, Madison wrote, But what is government itself, but the greatest of all reflections on human nature? If men were angels, no government would be necessary. If angels were to govern men, neither external nor internal controls on government would be necessary.

Citizens had painful reminders of their leaders mammalian flaws of the last three years. Hypocrisy, irrationality, self-interest, and insatiable pursuits of power became commonplace. There were the double standards of governors flaunting their own restrictions and granting blatant political favoritism. Children suffered under cruel and irrational edicts and states criminalized basic human liberties. Governors called on local law enforcement to break into homes to arrest families for gathering at Thanksgiving.

Now, the ULC proposes granting governors more power for when the next emergency arrives. There is no reason to expect angelic behavior in the next crisis. The attempt here is to end what most annoyed the ruling elites during the Covid crisis: the relatively decentralized response due to American federalism. One state (South Dakota) did not go along at all. Others bailed on the lockdown agenda after a few weeks. As time dragged on, some states tried to hang on to the crisis for as long as possible while others moved on with life as normal.

In all the postgaming in the elite narratives, this point sticks out the most. The next time, they want an all-of-society response, no stragglers and refuseniks. The efforts by the ULC are part of rigging the system toward that end. Instead of 50 laboratories of democracy they want 50 mini-dictatorships carrying out the orders of the elites in Washington, DC.

This legal push has received no public attention, and not even Zwiegs expert journalism seems to have broken through the wall set up by the mainstream media. And that is precisely why anyone concerned about the future needs to get the word out. The efforts toward fundamental regime change are real, threatening, and deeply dangerous to the future of liberty itself.
This combined image shows the legitimate news page of web portal Naver (news.naver.com), left, and that of the North Korean phishing website Naverportal (news.naverportal.com). The two sites provide almost identical information making it very difficult to tell them apart. Courtesy of National Intelligence Service



By Nam Hyun-woo



North Korea is trying to steal South Koreans' personal data by operating a phishing website that replicates South Korea's largest portal Naver in real time, the National Intelligence Service (NIS) said Wednesday, urging the public to be cautious about wrong web addresses.



The spy agency said in a press release that the North has been attempting to steal user data through a number of fake Naver websites.



"If the domain address is not the legitimate Naver access domain  www.naver.com  such as www.naverportal.com, please immediately stop accessing it," the NIS said in the release.



According to the NIS, the North has been replicating the sign-in page of Naver to induce South Korean users to input their login details, thereby stealing usernames and passwords and gaining access to their real Naver accounts.



The latest impostor sites have been capable of real-time mirroring of news, ad banners, finance and other information available on Naver's top page, making it very difficult to distinguish between the real site and the phishing site based solely on appearance, the NIS said.



"Their cyberattack techniques have evolved to improve the possibility of stealing personal information," an official at the NIS said.



The spy agency said it immediately shared relevant information with the government, public institutions and the Korea Internet & Security Agency to protect citizens. Those organizations are now taking measures to block access to the phishing sites.



Given the servers of the North Korean phishing sites are located overseas, the NIS is now tracking them by sharing related information with international agencies.



"Entering the website address directly or utilizing the bookmark function are safer ways of using web portals," the NIS official said. "North Korea's cyberattack techniques are becoming increasingly sophisticated, so the public should pay greater attention to their cybersecurity."


In 2020, as people challenged the expert guidance on Covid during the first few months of the pandemic, the use of the term misinformation in news articles almost doubled. This rapid increase in the use of the term by legacy media outlets was followed by an equally rapid rollout of new Big Tech misinformation rules which targeted content that questioned the Covid guidance being pushed by authorities.

Fast forward to 2023 and the first signs of this censorship pattern are starting to play out again.

The WHO, an unelected global health agency, is less than a year away from finalizing an international pandemic treaty/accord and amendments to the International Health Regulations (2005). These two instruments will collectively give the World Health Organization vast new powers to target misinformation and increase its surveillance powers.

And as this WHO power grab faces mounting criticism and pushback, several representatives of this unelected global health agency decided to use the recent seventy-sixth World Health Assembly (WHA) (the annual meeting of the WHOs decision-making body) to claim that dissent is misinformation and call for more action against dissenting voices.

During a WHA committee meeting, the WHO representative for the Bahamas said dissenting voices can clutter the airwaves and derail the public health good with disinformation and misinformation. She added that more is needed to nullify the conspiracies.

Professor Peter Piot, a former Director of the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine and a Handa Professor of Global Health, urged the WHO to do more to combat so-called fake news during the opening of the seventy-sixth WHA. Specifically, he said the declining trust in science, technology, and the actions of public health groups is very damaging for health of the people and called for the WHO to invest with the same energy as those who are spreading the fake news and are undermining all these efforts.

And during the closing of the seventy-sixth WHA, the WHOs Director-General, Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, said:

We must work hard to counter the mis and dis-information about the accord thats circulating in many member states. We cannot mince words. The idea that this accord will cede authority to WHO is simply fake news. This is an accord by member states, for member states, and will be implemented in member states in accordance with their own laws.

Although the pandemic treaty wont cede authority to WHO, it does recognize the central role of WHO, as the directing and coordinating authority on international health work, in pandemic prevention, preparedness, response and recovery of health systems.

While these WHO members are railing against what they deem to be misinformation, the WHO itself is infamous for pushing misleading information during the early stages of the Covid pandemic. In a January 2020 tweet, the global health agency amplified a claim from Chinese authorities that there was no clear evidence of human-to-human transmission of the coronavirus.

Despite repeating these misleading claims from China, the WHO has gained major power over online speech since 2020 via partnerships with YouTube, Facebook, and Wikipedia. On YouTube alone, over 800,000 videos were deleted for contradicting the WHO. Many of the deleted videos shared perspectives that health officials have now admitted to be true. And Google recently renewed its partnership with the WHO.

But the WHO doesnt appear to be satisfied with the increased influence it has gained in just a few short years and hopes that the pandemic treaty and amendments to the International Health Regulations (IHR) will give it more powers to target speech.

If these instruments are finalized, WHO member states will be instructed to combat tackle false, misleading, misinformation or disinformation, including through promotion of international cooperation and combat infodemic[s] (infodemic is a WHO buzzword that describes too much information including false or misleading information in digital and physical environments during a disease outbreak).

The WHO hopes to finalize both instruments by May 2024 and both will be legally binding under international law. The instruments have the full support of the US, Canada, and France.
Online platforms should resist binding us all to the rules of censorship-happy jurisdictions. (DPST/Newscom)

Thierry Breton, one of the European Union's more obnoxious bureaucrats, is visiting social media companies in the U.S. to check on their readiness to comply with a controversialindeed, deeply troublingnew E.U. law regulating online content. That law commits private firms to apply E.U. rules to broadly defined "illegal content" and whatever officials consider to be "disinformation."

While they probably won't do it, tech company executives should tell Breton to get lost and work to insulate themselves from Europe's control freaks.

The Rattler is a weekly newsletter from J.D. Tuccille. If you care about government overreach and tangible threats to everyday liberty, this is for you.

Creepy in Any Language

"I am the enforcer," European Internal Market Commissioner Thierry Breton told Politico ahead of his planned journey to visit American tech companies to "stress test" them for compliance with the Digital Services Act (DSA), which goes into effect this summer. "I represent the law, which is the will of the state and the people."

That comment probably sounds creepy in any of the E.U.'s many languages, but the supranational body's officials are increasingly overt about their intention to apply speech restrictions beyond their jurisdiction. Breton himself has been especially pointed in his dealings with Elon Musk, the Twitter head who, while not always consistent, is the most vocal free speech advocate among social media executives.

"Twitter leaves EU voluntary Code of Practice against disinformation," Breton tweeted two weeks ago. "But obligations remain. You can run but you can't hide. Beyond voluntary commitments, fighting disinformation will be legal obligation under #DSA as of August 25. Our teams will be ready for enforcement."

With Twitter out, signatories to the Strengthened Code of Practice on Disinformation include a range of tech companies, associations, and organizations. Among them is the partially State Department-funded Global Disinformation Index which, earlier this year, listed Reason as a high disinformation risk, along with the New York Post, Real Clear Politics, The Daily Wire, The Blaze, One America News Network, The Federalist, Newsmax, The American Spectator, and The American Conservative. Inclusion on the list seems to reflect the Index staff's ideological disagreement with the outlets.

"If a self-described disinformation-tracking organization wants to loudly proclaim, in partisan fashion, that advertisers should only use mainstream and liberal news sites, it has that right," Reason's Robby Soave noted at the time. "But advertisers should take note of its obvious bias, total lack of transparency in detailing media outlets' scores, and other methodological issues."

Needless to say, this isn't an encouraging sign for the trustworthiness of the E.U.'s own efforts against whatever it defines as "disinformation."

Breton isn't alone in forecasting a global extension of the E.U.'s preference for speech confined within strictly defined boundaries. In January, during separate interviews at the World Economic Forum, European Commission Vice President Vera Jourova criticized Musk's "freedom of speech absolutism" in resisting the Digital Services Act and confidently predicted the United States will soon adopt laws against "illegal hate speech." Beyond dubious predictions about legal changes that would run afoul of the First Amendment, there's a clear expectation in Brussels that online platforms will be conscripted into enforcing the E.U.'s content rules.

A Highly Politicized Model of Enforcement

The DSA "gives way too much power to government agencies to flag and remove potentially illegal content and to uncover data about anonymous speakers," the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) warned last summer as the legislation took final form. "The DSA obliges platforms to assess and mitigate systemic risks, but there is a lot of ambiguity about how this will turn out in practice. Much will depend on how social media platforms interpret their obligations under the DSA, and how European Union authorities enforce the regulation."

The EFF was relatively kind in assessing the law, largely because earlier proposals were even more intrusive. Still, added Christoph Schmon, EFF's International Policy Director, "we can expect a highly politicized co-regulatory model of enforcement with an unclear role of government agencies, which could create real problems."

Wide-Ranging, Incoherent Censorship

"'Illegal content' is defined very differently across Europe," cautioned Jacob Mchangama, head of Justitia, a Danish think tank. "In France, protesters have been fined for depicting President Macron as Hitler, and illegal hate speech may encompass offensive humor. Austria and Finland criminalize blasphemy, and in Victor Orban's Hungary, certain forms of 'LGBT propaganda' is banned. The Digital Services Act will essentially oblige Big Tech to act as a privatized censor on behalf of governments  censors who will enjoy wide discretion under vague and subjective standards."

Given that the law prescribes a potential penalty of "6% of the annual worldwide turnover of the provider of intermediary services" for companies that fail to satisfy regulators, online services have a powerful incentive to restrict more speech rather than less to please a multitude of censors.

"The European policies do not apply in the U.S., but given the size of the European market and the risk of legal liability, it will be tempting and financially wise for U.S.-based tech companies to skew their global content moderation policies even more toward a European approach to protect their bottom lines and streamline their global standards," adds Mchangama. The result, he predicts will be "a wide-ranging, incoherent, multilevel censorship regime operating at scale."

A Formalized Censorship-Industrial Complex

Journalists including Michael Shellenberger and Matt Taibbi have pointed to collaboration between government agencies and tech companies to suppress voices and messages disfavored by officialdom as evidence of a "censorship-industrial complex" of privatized speech control that bypasses First Amendment protections. These very real arrangements have largely taken place behind the scenes, retreating (though not disappearing) when exposed. The E.U.'s Digital Services Act formalizes such deputized speech control, putting nominally private entities in the unenviable position of screening online content so as to escape massive fines.

Despite its withdrawal from the Code of Practice Against Disinformation, that will include Twitter, too, so long as it is subject to European law. Thierry Breton is coming to the U.S., after all, as "the enforcer" of speech controls, meaning he expects the E.U. to reach companies here.

Americans and residents of other free-speech-friendly countries should ask that tech companies build custom hothouses of government-approved speech for their customers in restrictive jurisdictions, so the rest of us can enjoy freer environments (and if the subjects of restrictive regimes are savvy enough to bypass control freaks, good for them). The alternative is to hope companies send E.U. officials packing, even if that means ending their formal presence on the censorship-happy continent.
On Monday the European Commission and the World Health Organization announced a digital health partnership to establish a new Digital Vaccine Passport system for the world.

The announcement by the EU and the WHO notes that the new digital identity scheme is building on the work of the EU Digital COVID Certificate which was enacted in June 2021 during the COVID-19 panic and is set to expire on June 30. According to the EU, more than 2.3 billion certificates were issued.

Thierry Breton, EU Commissioner on Internal Market, said he was pleased that the WHO will build on the privacy-preserving principles and cutting-edge technology of the EU certificate to create a global tool against future pandemics.

Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus claimed the digital certificates will help people everywhere receive quality health services quickly and more effectively.

Ironically, the European Commission and WHO say the EU Vaccine Passport helped facilitate safe free movement. The reality is the passport program was one of several created by public-private partnerships between government and Non-Governmental Organizations and corporations which required individuals to show proof of vaccination to work, travel, or eat.

Now, the WHO wants to take the EU system and establish a global system that they claim will help protect citizens across the world from on-going and future health threats, including pandemics.

The press release also notes this latest partnership is part of an agreement signed in December 2022 by EU Commissioner Stella Kyriakides and WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus to enhance strategic cooperation on global health issues. The organizations say this new partnership bolsters a robust multilateral system with WHO at its core.

These statements amount to an acknowledgement that these type of programs begin at the transnational level with globalist organizations like the WHO and the EU before they trickle down to national governments, state and provinces, and, eventually, local councils.

Global Digital Vaccine Passports Coming Soon

The WHOs statement announcing the partnership describes it as the first building block of the WHO Global Digital Health Certification Network (GDHCN) that will develop a wide range of digital products to deliver better health for all. The WHO says the COVID-19 pandemic response taught them there is an existing gap and continued need for a mechanism to support verification of health documents for so-called  pandemic preparedness and continuity of care.

The WHO also said the GDHCN can be an infrastructural building block for future additional use cases, including digitization of existing vaccine certificates, verification of prescriptions across borders, and verification of vaccine certificates within and across international borders.

The WHO also emphasized that the GDHCN builds upon the experience of regional networks for COVID-19 Certificates and uses the infrastructure of the EU Digital COVID Certificate system. This system has been adopted by all EU member states and 51 non-EU countries.

In April 2021  two months before the EU COVID Certificate was to be implemented  I reported on the evidence that the EU has been planning health passports since at least 2019. I wrote:

While the World Economic Forum and the Gates Foundation coincidentally simulated a pandemic mere months before COVID-19 was the buzz of 2020, the European Union MEPs also seem to have a keen foresight and ability to predict the future. A document listed on the European Unions website shows a 2019-2022 RoadMap on Strengthening Cooperation Against Vaccine Preventable Diseases which makes it clear that Europes highest legislative body had planned for years to develop some type of vaccine passport. The EUs website details how the Road Map has been in development since December 2017.

In the Road Map, under a section titled Actions it reads:

Examine the feasibility of developing a common vaccination card/passport for EU citizens (that takes into account potentially different national vaccination schedules and), that is compatible with electronic immunisation information systems and recognised

This document indicates that the EU was already working on plans to implement vaccination passports before most of the world had ever heard the term. As The Last American Vagabond has reported since July 2020, the push for vaccine passports is really a push for digital identity schemes which are part of the push for a Great Reset and the transformation of every industry on the planet.

The WEF and associates have been pushing the idea of immunity/vaccine passports since 2020 and the fact that these schemes are now reality is no coincidence. The fact that the European Commission, the executive branch of the EU, is partnered with the WEF is also no accident. In January 2021, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen spoke at the WEFs annual Davos week that was specifically dedicated to the Great Reset vision.

Vaccine Passports Are a Gateway to Digital ID Hell

The push for vaccine passports or digital identities is not coming from the people. There is no genuine call for these policies rising up from the grassroots. It is coming from various organizations, such as the Better Identity Coalition, with ties to cybersecurity spooks with connections to the national security state, U.S. and Israeli intelligence, banks, and corporations.

These schemes are also being sold to the people of the world under the guise of building a more equitable, sustainable, and just world. The United Nations is promoting the idea that digital identity is a human right in an effort to persuade the Global South and developing nations to participate. This is a scam.

In fact, in June 2022, New York Universitys (NYU) School of Law issued a 100-page report detailing the growing dangers of a reliance on digital identity around the world. The report, titled Paving a Digital Road to Hell?, examines the role of the World Bank and other international networks which have been promoting the use of digital ID in recent years.

The report notes that the World Bank has been energetically promoting biometric and other digital ID systems that are increasingly linked to large-scale human rights violations, especially in the Global South. The researchers warn that digital identity schemes promoted in the name of development and inclusion, might be achieving neither. Despite ostensible good intentions on the part of some promoting these systems, they may well be paving a digital road to hell.

The press release for the report notes (emphasis added):

Governments around the world have been investing heavily in digital identification systems, often with biometric components (digital ID). The rapid proliferation of such systems is driven by a new development consensus, packaged and promoted by key global actors like the World Bank, but also by governments, foundations, vendors and consulting firms.

In 2014, the World Bank launched the Identification for Development (ID4D) program with the aim of solving the problem of a lack of identity for much of the so-called developing world. The World Bank is funding digital biometric ID programs in Mexico, pushing digital ID in poorer countries with the ostensible goal of providing legal identity to the 1.1 billion people who do not currently have one.

The fact that the EU and the WHO are announcing a new vision for COVID-19 digital vaccine certificates may yet be a sign that the powers-that-wish-they-were are not done playing the pandemic card. Consider the recent statement of U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra while speaking to journalists in Geneva, Switzerland at the recent 76th meeting of the WHOs World Health Assembly.

I think well get an accord in place if everyone realizes that our window before this next pandemic, this next health threat, is probably not far away.

Whatever awaits humanity in the remainder of 2023 and 2024, we must unite all the people of the world who value bodily autonomy and individual liberty. We cannot thrive in the face of what is potentially on the horizon  whether plandemic or climate change lockdowns  if we are neutered by our petty arguments and divisive online debates. If we want liberty, we must stand together now, like never before.


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The captured image shows a photo released by the U.S. National Security Council on Jan. 20, showing a set of Russian railcars traveling between Russia and North Korea on Nov. 18-Nov. 19, 2022 for the suspected delivery of North Korean military equipment to Russia's private military company, known as the Wagner Group. Yonhap



By Nam Hyun-woo



Concerns are growing that North Korea may provide more weapons to Russia as there are signs of the two countries forging closer ties involving weapons trade.



Reuters reported Tuesday that the United States had confirmed a North Korean arms delivery, including infantry rockets and missiles to the Kremlin-backed Wagner mercenary group in November last year, despite Pyongyang's denial that it had sold weapons to Russia, which is now engaged in a war with Ukraine.



"We are concerned that the DPRK is planning to deliver more military equipment to Russia," a U.S. State Department spokesperson told Reuters. The DPRK stands for North Korea's official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.



The U.S. has been criticizing the purported North Korean arms support to Russia. In April, the U.S. Alternative Representative for Special Political Affairs to United Nations Robert Wood condemned arms transfers from the North to Russia for directly violating Security Council resolutions.



"Russia has also turned to rogue regimes to try to unlawfully obtain weapons and equipment to support its military operations," Wood said at that time. "In November 2022, the DPRK delivered infantry rockets and missiles into Russia for use by the Kremlin-backed Wagner Group, and we know Russia is actively seeking to acquire additional munitions from the DPRK."



Recently, Pyongyang and Moscow have been strengthening their ties in what appears to be a move to counter a U.S. effort to bolster trilateral security cooperation involving South Korea and Japan.



According to a report by U.N. Security Council Committee 1718 on North Korea, which was released on June 9, Russia reported 67,300 barrels of refined petroleum transferred to North Korea from December 2022 to April this year. The transfer in December was the first in 27 months after Moscow reported to the committee that it transferred 255.4 barrels of refined petroleum.



In 2017, the U.N. Security Council adopted Resolution 2397 and has been limiting the North Korean import of refined petroleum to 500,000 barrels in 12 months, and obligating countries to report the provision of petroleum to Pyongyang.





North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and Russian President Vladimir Putin shake hands during their summit in Vladivostok, Russia, April 25, 2019. Yonhap
Christopher Chong

From Brunswick, Maine, to Brunswick, Germany

Associate Professor of Mathematics Chong will be working with the Technical University of Braunschweig in north central Germanycoincidentally, the city is also known by its anglicized name of Brunswick. Chong will be furthering his research on the mathematical analysis of high impact in origami lattices. Simply put, said Chong, the project explores applying the principles of origami to engineering processes, possibly to enable the construction of materials that would lessen the impact of a collisionsomething that would have huge implications for the automobile industry by improving passenger safety.

Professor Michael Herrmann of the TU Braunschweig is an active leading expert on this topic, said Chong, making him an ideal host for the project. Furthermore, he added, the experience will be an invaluable cultural exchange on many levels. Undergraduate research is less common in Germany, and I plan to bring my extensive experience in advising undergraduate research to the TU Braunschweig. Chong said he also plans to enroll his children in local schools in Germany and to be an active member of the local schools through volunteering (for example reading English stories to schoolchildren).

Chong is receiving whats known as a flex award from Fulbright, enabling fellows who are unable to spend an entire academic year overseas to visit a country twice, for shorter periods, over two or three years. Chong will be in Germany during the summers of 2024 and 2025, although his collaborative project with Professor Herrmann begins remotely this summer.
Pilgrims on Jamaraat Bridge in Mina, Saudi Arabia, flock to Mecca in this Sept. 24, 2015, photo. AP-Yonhap



By Ko Dong-hwan



The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) is working to ensure the safety of a wave of travelers to Saudi Arabia  to attend Hajj  from Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS). Hajj, lasting this year from June 26 to July 1, is an annual Islamic pilgrimage to the Saudi Arabian holy city of Mecca.



The health authority is concerned that those returning to Korea after visiting Mecca might carry the coronavirus causing MERS with them and transmit it locally.



The KDCA said Wednesday it has begun cooperating with other agencies to warn people of the risk and educate the public about the contagious disease which is contracted mainly through contact with camels. The disease is known to be prevalent in the Middle East and northern Africa.



The concern comes as Muslims worldwide are expected to make pilgrimages to Mecca in record numbers since before the COVID-19 pandemic began in 2020.



The number of travelers to Saudi Arabia during Hajj was 1,000 in 2020. The figure was low compared to previous years when 2 million to 3 million visitors from around the world made the Mecca pilgrimage each year.



The figure took a steep rise each following year to 60,000 in 2021 and 1 million in 2022. This year, over 2 million are expected to visit the country for Hajj.



Cooperating with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Embassy of Saudi Arabia in Seoul and Korea Islam  a local foundation dedicated to Muslims in Korea  the KDCA began making leaflets regarding MERS. Published in Arabic, Indonesian, Uzbek, Russian, English and Korean, the leaflets contain information on vaccination shots against MERS, how to prevent MERS once in Saudi Arabia and the KDCA hotline to call in case of experiencing symptoms.



In the leaflets, the KDCA, advises avoiding local camel farms in the Middle East, contact with the animals and consumption of uncooked camel meat or raw camel milk. The leaflets also warn that MERS can be transmitted via contact with people who have already contracted the disease and recommend not to visit crowded places.



There has been a steady number of reports of MERS infections in the Middle East, and Saudi Arabia has accounted for the most cases. In Korea, there have been no report of MERS since 2018 when one patient was found.


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Postal Code
This photo, provided by Korea's Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries, shows International Maritime Organization Secretary-General Lim Ki-taek speaking during a press interview in Seoul, June 14. Yonhap



The U.N. maritime safety agency is reviewing measures to respond to Japan's planned release of contaminated water from the Fukushima nuclear power plant, though further discussions are needed to decide whether to deal with the issue within the London Convention and Protocol framework, the agency chief said Wednesday.



Japan plans to discharge radioactive water from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, which was crippled by a massive 2011 earthquake and tsunami, into the sea as early as this month, according to foreign media reports.



South Korea has called for discussions on the potential impacts of the planned release on the marine environment within the London Convention and Protocol framework under the International Maritime Organization (IMO).



But Japan has refuted the call, claiming that such a discharge should not be seen as an act of marine dumping.



"Member nations differ on the interpretation of the issue. Some say the International Atomic Energy Agency is supposed to deal with the issue, while others say it should be viewed in terms of the definition of dumping and within the scope of the LC/LP," IMO Secretary-General Lim Ki-taek told a press interview in Seoul.



"Policy measures among the parties concerned can be discussed during the next round of meetings. Apart from that, we are reviewing what the IMO can do (with regard to the Fukushima issue)," Lim said, without elaborating further.



According to a document drawn up after a Protocol meeting in October 2022, the IMO said it is "not certain" that a broad interpretation of the London Protocol would consider that such a disposal would fall within the scope of the treaty, the ministry said in a release.



The London Convention, which has been in force since 1975, is meant to promote the effective control of all sources of marine pollution and to take steps to prevent marine pollution by the dumping of waste and other matter.



In 1996, the London Protocol was agreed in order to modernize the Convention, and it prohibits all dumping, with some exceptions.





Environmental activists stage a rally in Jeonju, North Jeolla Province, to express their objection to Japan's decision to discharge radioactive water from the crippled Fukushima nuclear power plant into the sea, June 8. Yonhap



Cho Seung-hwan, South Korean minister of oceans and fisheries, on Wednesday reiterated the need to have discussions among the Protocol's contracting members on the Fukushima case, while vowing continued close consultations with Japan and measures to beef up monitoring of its potential impacts.



The planned release has sparked concerns among nations, particularly over the safety of imported seafood.



South Korea banned all seafood imports from eight Japanese prefectures near Fukushima in 2013 on concerns over their radiation levels in the wake of the meltdown incident in 2011.



In May, South Korea sent a team of experts and government officials to Fukushima for a six-day on-site inspection, through which it achieved "meaningful progress" but additional analysis is needed for a more accurate conclusion regarding the matter.



The International Atomic Energy Agency plans to issue a final safety assessment of Japan's plan at the end of this month.





This photo, provided by North Korea's Korean Central News Agency, shows the launch of the North's new "Chollima-1" rocket, allegedly carrying a military reconnaissance satellite, "Malligyong-1," from Tongchang-ri on the North's west coast at 6:29 a.m. the previous day, June 1. Yonhap
AIB is fighting a multi-million-pound London lawsuit brought by the son of a fake tycoon who conned the Irish bank out of more than 700 million (818 million) over a decade ago, a situation the lender says is stranger than fiction.

Achilleas Kallakis, who styled himself as a property and shipping magnate, perpetrated a massive mortgage fraud on AIB and was jailed for seven years in 2013, later increased to 11 years on appeal.

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However, Kallakis' son Michalis is now accusing AIB of fraud by selling a portfolio of properties for less than they were worth. He is seeking 237 million from the bank, which says the lawsuit is "divorced from reality" and orchestrated with Achilleas.

"The idea that the victim of the fraud could somehow find itself in the dock  criticised by the fraudster for manner in which it sought to mitigate the losses to which it was exposed by reason of fraud  is beyond fiction," AIB's lawyer Neil Kitchener said in court filings.

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Michalis' lawyers in turn cited the 1988 comedy film Dirty Rotten Scoundrels to demonstrate how a fraudster might himself be duped.

"Achilleas Kallakis, as a professional fraudster, is particularly vulnerable to being deceived himself," Julian Malins said in court filings, adding in a footnote: "As anyone who has seen Michael Caine and Steve Martin in Dirty Rotten Scoundrels will appreciate."
ITV boss Carolyn McCall will appear before a UK parliamentary committee to answer questions about the broadcasters approach to safeguarding and complaint handling after former employee Phillip Schofields exit from This Morning.

The chief executive will face questions from British lawmakers on the This Morning row at a session of the Culture, Media and Sport Committee on Wednesday morning.

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It comes after former presenter Schofield (61) resigned from the UK broadcaster and was dropped by his talent agency YMU after admitting to an unwise but not illegal affair with a younger male colleague.

Phillip Schofield resigned from ITV (Jonathan Brady/PA)

Ms McCall wrote a letter to culture secretary Lucy Frazer, DCMS Committee chair Caroline Dinenage and Ofcoms chief executive Melanie Dawes, to confirm ITV had instructed barrister Jane Mulcahy KC of Blackstone Chambers, to carry out an external review of the facts following Schofields departure.

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Schofields relationship took place while the TV star was still married to wife Stephanie Lowe and before he came out publicly as gay.

The letter said ITV records show that when rumours of a relationship between Phillip Schofield and an employee of ITV first began to circulate both parties denied it and this was reiterated as recently as this month.

Since Schofields resignation, This Morning has been plagued with allegations of toxicity.

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The shows former resident doctor, Dr Ranj Singh, hit out at a toxic culture, saying he raised concerns about bullying and discrimination two years ago when he worked there  and afterwards felt like he was managed out for whistleblowing.

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In her letter, Ms McCall said that an external review conducted following a complaint made by Dr Ranj found no evidence of bullying or discrimination.

Meanwhile Eamonn Holmes, who presented This Morning on Fridays with wife Ruth Langsford until 2020, accused Schofield of toxicity in an interview with Dan Wootton on GB News.
A man who was caught in a sting operation organised by members of a vigilante paedophile hunting group after he went to meet what he thought was a 14-year-old girl in the anticipation of having sex has been jailed for 18 months.

Tim Bowen (46) formerly of Cottage View in Monkstown, Co Cork had cleared out his van and was in possession of condoms. He had been grooming what he thought was a teenage girl from the UK.

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However, the girl was in fact an adult from a paedophile vigilante group posing as a 14-year-old.

Mr Bowen, who is a self-employed handy man previously pleaded guilty to two charges at Cork Circuit Criminal Court.

The first charge is that between July 4th and July 26th, 2019, Mr Bowen did attempt to communicate with a child by way of communication technology for the purpose of facilitating the sexual exploitation of that child.

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The second charge is that at Costa Coffee cafe in Bishopstown in Cork city on July 26th, 2019, he did attempt to intentionally meet the child for the purpose of doing something that constituted sexual exploitation of the child, namely sexual assault.

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The court previously heard that the Bowen, who is originally from Wales, had gone to meet what he thought was a 14-year-old girl in Cork nearly four years ago.

However, the defendant was in fact never in online contact with an underage person but rather with what his then defence counsel Sinead Behan told the court was members of a "vigilante paedophile hunting group."

The court heard that the group organise operations to lure in people who are trying to make inappropriate contact with children online.

The vigilante group informed gardai of the actions of the defendant and a full investigation was launched.

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The court previously heard that Mr Bowen was without a GP in spite of having bipolar disorder and ADHD. He has lost his marriage and job arising out of the publicity which the case previously received.

Today at Cork Circuit Criminal Court Judge Colin Daly heard evidence from Sgt Gary Duggan who said that Bowen had been in touch via text with the decoy 14-year-old for three weeks.

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Judge Daly was told that Bowen was trying to get the girl to leave the UK and come to Cork to have sex with him. He texted the girl pictures of his genitals. He also sent her other images of a sexual nature and links to porn sites.

The UK based adult from the vigilante group repeatedly let Bowen believe that he was communicating with a 14-year-old girl. However, he continued to communicate with what he thought was a young girl.

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Sgt Duggan said that when the defendant arrived at the cafe on July 26th, 2019 members of the vigilante group were lying in wait. They gave gardai a dossier with images, texts and messages sent to him by the fictional girl.

Judge Daly heard that Bowen made full admissions when he was arrested and accepted that he was caught red handed

A search was carried out of his van and they found that the back of the vehicle was cleared in anticipation of him having sex with the girl. A box of condoms was in the back of the van.

Defence barrister Paula MccCarthy said her client acknowledged that it was a very serious offence. However, she said he had made full admissions in the case and had entered a guilty plea. She stated that he was taking responsibility for his behaviour.

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Judge Daly said that Bowen had knowingly contacted what he thought was a 14-year-old girl for the purpose of sexual exploitation.

Children by their very nature are vulnerable to exploitation, whatever form that may take, but in particular, with regard to sexual exploitation. Sexual exploitation is the most heinous crime.

He jailed Bowen for three and half years but suspended two years of the sentence.

Mr Bowen has been engaged in a Safer Lives programme which provides independent support to people during their investigations for online and other sexual offences. It has been in existence since 2014.
A man has been handed a prison sentence after he told a woman who had boiling water thrown over her during a two-day assault to drop the charges, or she would be murdered.

Lyndsey Byrne was scalded, beaten and tied up and her partner Emmet Black was assaulted by a number of men who came looking for drugs to their apartment at The Maltings, Watling St, Dublin 8, over the course of November 11th and 12th, 2021.

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A week later, a different man who had not been involved in the attack, Eamon Savage (36), told Ms Byrne to lie to the judge and say she had thrown boiling water over herself.

Savage of Emmet Road, Inchicore, pleaded guilty to witness intimidation of Lyndsey Byrne at Merchants Quay, Dublin 8 on November 18th, 2021.

The court heard that Savage was part of a group who walked past Ms Byrne and that another man in the group said to her: You have Fat Crack locked up, Fat Crack being a nickname for Paul Clarke (29).

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Savage told Ms Byrne that he had a message from one of Clarkes associates who was looking for her everywhere and had been on the quays two or three times a day to try and find her.

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Everyone knows you have Fat Crack locked up, Savage told Ms Byrne, adding that she was to drop the charges and say that she had lied.

Ms Byrne later reported to gardai that Savage told her to tell the judge she was off my head on drugs when it happened and also to say that she had poured boiling water over herself.

Savage told Ms Byrne, theres 20K in it for her if she made a statement to that effect, but that if she didnt, she would be murdered.

Imposing sentence at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court, Judge Orla Crowe said witness intimidation is a direct attack on society as it seeks to undermine the orderly functioning of the justice system.

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She said it was an aggravating factor in this case that Savage had made specific and detailed threats against Ms Byrne, which caused her to fear for her life. Judge Crowe commended Ms Byrne for her courage in going to gardai about the threats made to her by Savage.

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She noted that the Probation Service deemed Savage to be at very high risk of re-offending and that he had a large number of previous convictions. Judge Crowe said Savage was not involved in the attack on Ms Byrne and was used as a conduit to convey a message to her.

Handing Savage a three-year prison sentence, Judge Crowe said she had considered the mitigation put before the court on behalf of Savage. She backdated the sentence to January 1st last and declined a defence application to suspend a portion of the prison sentence.

At a previous sentence hearing, Detective Garda Richard Pender told Garret Baker SC, prosecuting, that Savage was later arrested after he was identified on CCTV.

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In a victim impact statement previously submitted to the court, Ms Byrne said: Eamon tried to get me to change my statement. Initially this worked, as I felt Paul Clarke could get to me, even while he was in prison. Ms Byrne said that with the support of gardai, she was able to tell the truth of what was done to her.

Savage has 100 previous convictions including possession of knives, drugs, theft, production of articles, public order and failing to appear.

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Detective Pender agreed with Michael Hourigan BL, defending, that Savage was someone who was limited in his ability to say no to certain individuals.

Mr Hourigan said his client was in no way involved in the original assault on Ms Byrne and her partner, but had been directed by other people to make the threat.

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He was acting at the behest of others, counsel said of Savage, adding that the accused felt bad for the injured party as he knew her when he was younger.

The court heard that Savage was homeless and had a drug addiction but was now trying to reduce his methadone intake. Savage suffered neglect in his childhood and witnessed domestic violence in the home from a very early age, the court heard, and was taken into care from the age of five to 16.

He started taking drugs at the age of 12 or 13. The court heard that Savage has been in custody on another matter since November 2021.

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Earlier this year, Paul Clarke (29) of Clonard Rd, Dublin 12 was sentenced at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to four years and three months in prison for his role in the attack.

Clarke was described in court as the main man in the assault; he had thrown a kettle of boiling water over Ms Byrne causing second-degree burns and had threatened to skin her alive, the court heard.

Co-accused Craig Kelly (38) of Dowland Rd, Walkinstown, was sentenced to five months in prison for his role in one of the attacks; while a third man, Josh Conlon (19) of Meath Place, Thomas Street, received a suspended sentence.

The court heard previously that the men called to the apartment looking for a box of cannabis that Mr Black was supposed to be holding, and when the drugs were not found, they ordered the couple to come up with the sum of 7,000.
The Irish Prison Service (IPS) has warned of the return of the revolving door for prisoners if new jail accommodation for criminals is not urgently provided.

In a submission to the Department of Justice, the IPS said the number of people in jail had increased by almost a quarter in the space of five years, and was only going to rise further.

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With more than 100 prisoners already sleeping on mattresses daily, the IPS warned of increased tension and incidences of violence between inmates, as well as higher risk of violent assaults on staff.

The service said this so-called revolving door for prisoners could return, with temporary release being offered in an unstructured manner early in sentences. This could have a knock-on effect on public safety and undermine the administration of justice if criminals were let go too early, the IPS added.

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The submission also warned of the potential widespread outbreak of infectious diseases like Covid-19 and tuberculosis due to overcrowding in Irish prisons, also predicting increased levels of illegal contraband entering the system, including narcotics, mobile phones and weapons.

The IPS said this could lead to drug related illness and possible death in custody as a result of overdose due to difficulties in tackling smuggling.

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The submission was sent to the department in March of this year amid growing concern about the levels of overcrowding in prisons.

A month later, then-minister for justice Simon Harris confirmed 620 new prison spaces would be provided over the next five years across four different jails.

Claims

In the detailed submission, the IPS had also warned of the higher potential for compensation claims from prisoners. They said this litigation could come in the form of personal injury claims from increased violence and accidents, or through cases for human rights violations.

It warned of a negative impact on prison staff with difficulties in retaining officers, increased absenteeism, and cancellation of training or development courses. Industrial relations issues were also possible with prison officers being asked to work in potentially dangerous and unsafe working conditions.

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The IPS also detailed how rising Garda numbers were likely to lead to increased numbers of people in prison.

The submission stated: Changing trends in the prison population have traditionally mirrored changes in the numbers of An Garda Siochana. Historical data bears out this potential correlation and it can be seen that Garda strength and prison population increase and decrease in tandem.

With up to 1,000 new gardai expected to be added to the force in the coming years, further strain on the prison system was almost inevitable, the IPS claimed, adding that the appointment of more judges would create even more pressure.

This will lead to increased courts activity resulting in increased custodial sentences and higher levels of prison committals.

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Asked about the records, a spokesperson for the department said the Government and IPS are working together to identify short, medium, and long term proposals to tackle capacity issues.

The Irish Prison Service must accept all prisoners committed by the courts and as such [it] has no control over the numbers committed to custody at any given time, he said.

The spokesperson added that where numbers exceed capacity, the IPS tries to deal with it through inter-prison transfers and structured temporary release.
Younger peoples interest in the news has plunged since 2016, according to a survey of more than 2,000 people in Ireland.

Just 28 per cent of Irish 18-24 year olds say they are extremely or very interested in the news, down from 53 per cent in 2016.

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The study was conducted as part of the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalisms 46-country global digital news report.

The difference between this age group and over-65s, some 69 per cent of whom reported strong interest in the news, could not be starker, said DCUs Institute of Future Media, Democracy and Society (FuJo) in its analysis of the report.

The study found that RTE News is the most trusted news brand in Ireland, ahead of The Irish Times and local or regional radio. BBC News and local or regional newspapers had the next highest trust rates.

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Concern about what is real or fake online is also comparatively high in Ireland at 64 per cent, up from 58 per cent last year.

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Celene Craig, broadcasting commissioner at Coimisiun na Mean, said this growing level of concern about online misinformation was one of the standout findings of the Irish report.

Global survey

The global report also found that more young people are accessing news via TikTok with users tending to pay more attention to celebrities and social media influencers than to journalists or media companies for news.

The Chinese-owned app is the fastest growing social network in the global survey  used by 44 per cent of 18-24-year-olds for any purpose and by 20 per cent for news.

The shift comes as the use of Facebook as a news source declines with 28 per cent of surveyed people saying they accessed news via the platform in 2023 compared with 42 per cent in 2016.

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Research found that TikTok, Instagram and Snapchat users tend to pay more attention to celebrities and social media influencers than they do to journalists or media companies when it comes to news topics while news organisations on legacy social networks like Facebook and Twitter still attract most attention.

News usage for Twitter has remained relatively stable in most countries, according to the report.

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Reuters Institute director Rasmus Neilsen said: Younger generations increasingly eschew direct discovery for all but the most appealing brands.

They have little interest in many conventional news offers oriented towards older generations habits, interests, and values, and instead embrace the more personality-based, participatory, and personalised options offered by social media, often looking beyond legacy platforms to new entrants (many of whom drive few referrals to media organisations and do not prioritise news).

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World China biggest global jailer of journalists, press... Read More

The report also found that growth in payment for online news has stalled with more than one-third of subscribers (39 per cent) across more than 20 countries saying they have cancelled or renegotiated their news subscriptions in the last year.

Reuters Institute said the need to save money was by far the biggest reason given for the cutbacks.

Other key findings from the report highlighted that trust in the news has fallen by two percentage points in the past year and that 56 per cent of surveyed people say they worry about identifying the difference between what is real and fake on the internet when it comes to news  up two percentage points compared with last year.

Figures are from YouGov Plc with 93,895 adults in 46 countries participating in an online survey, with around 2,000 people per market.
Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has used a press conference following a bilateral meeting with the Prime Minister of Luxembourg to say it is possible the current coalition Government could be re-elected.

Luxembourgs prime minister Xavier Bettel has led a coalition of his Democratic Party, along with the Socialist Workers Party and the Greens since 2013, with the grouping continuing in power through a 2018 election.

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Mr Varadkars Fine Gael party is in a coalition with Fianna Fail and the Green Party.

Speaking to reporters following the meeting in Dublin, Mr Varadkar said: I think we are quite similar in many ways.

Your coalition is three parties including the Greens  two large parties and the Greens being the third.

The evidence from Luxembourg shows that if a coalition government of three parties of that nature governs well, it can be re-elected.

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He also told Mr Bettel that said when they first got to know each other people did not expect your government to be re-elected.

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He added: And it was.

Mr Bettel, who learned English in the Malahide area of Dublin as a student, was in the city as part of a visit to mark Luxembourgs upcoming national day of celebration.

Mr Varadkar said Ireland and Luxembourg share excellent bilateral relations, including the opening of an embassy in Dublin.

The leaders discussed the changing European defence landscape following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, with Mr Varadkar informing the Luxembourgian prime minister about Irelands consultative forum on issues of foreign policy and neutrality.

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Mr Bettel and Mr Varadkar also discussed issues around housing in both states.

The Taoiseach also thanked Luxembourg for solidarity during Brexit.

Thank you for your visit, solidarity and friendship. You are most welcome to Ireland.

Mr Bettel thanked Mr Varadkar for the warm welcome. He also met Tanaiste Micheal Martin and President Michael D Higgins.

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He said learning English in Ireland enabled him to develop a deep relationship with the country. The prime minister said relations between the two countries has deepened through shared goals and values.

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Thank you for your friendship and your trust.

We have elections in October, so I dont know if next year I would be able to come to Dublin. But as a prime minister visiting capitals for our national day and not coming to the capital where I learned English would not have been acceptable, so I wanted to be sure I did it this year.
A woman whose family was largely destroyed in a bomb attack when she was 12, was married at 13, and had three children by the time she was 17, has won a High Court challenge over a refusal to allow her children to come from Somalia to reside with her in Ireland.

Mr Justice Anthony Barr said the exceptional circumstances of the woman's life appeared to have been disregarded by the Minister of Justice's decision maker in considering the woman's application for family reunification.

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The decision that she relinquished her role as the primary caregiver and that she elected to move" to Ireland were "particularly harsh" and did not appear to take account of the very significant personal dilemma that faced her when she did so, he said.

He said the court would make orders quashing the April 2022 decision refusing permission of the woman's four children to join her in Ireland. He said their applications should be sent back for reconsideration by a different decision maker for the minister.

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The judge said five of the woman's seven siblings were killed in a bomb attack on the family home in Somalia in 2009. Another sibling died in 2013 while their father was killed in 2005.

She said she then spent a number of years moving around Somalia, running from the Al Shabab militia. She went to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, moved back to Somalia for some time before returning to Ethiopia in 2015.

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She had lost contact with her only remaining sibling, a sister, who had come to Ireland in 2004 as a refugee and later became a naturalised citizen. Their mother came to live in Ireland with her in 2010.

The woman, in the meantime, was married in Mogadishu, Somalia, in 2011 and had her first child aged 13, two others by the time she was 17 and a fourth when she was 19.

In 2014, she said her husband and son were taken hostage in an attack by Al Shabab and they were reunited with her in 2016. She had to again flee from where she was staying in March 2016 at which time she lost contact with her husband and has not heard from him since.

Although she tried to find her sister several times after the bomb attack on her family through the Red Cross tracing service, it was not until 2015 when an old friend got in touch with her sister and gave the sister a contact number for her in Addis Ababa.

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The sister applied for family reunification with the woman in 2017 though this was not granted until 2021, following a refusal and judicial review proceedings.

An application was then made for visas to bring her four children here, but this was also refused and a legal challenge followed.

She had left her children in Somalia temporarily in the care of her sister-in-law who had five children of her own and things were difficult.

It was argued the refusal of the visas did not take account of the exceptional humanitarian circumstances of the woman.

The Minister opposed the challenge on grounds including that the decision maker had been perfectly correct to take account of the likely considerable financial burden on the State in the event that visas were granted to the children minor applicants.

In his decision, Mr Justice Barr said when one reads the refusal as a whole, it was clear that "the decision maker adopted a harsh and in some respects, unfair approach to the applications" for the children.

There was no evidence the decision maker "engaged in a real way with the exceptional circumstances in this case", he said.
Russian mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin on Wednesday reiterated the refusal of his Wagner fighters to sign contracts with the Russian defence ministry, a day after president Vladimir Putin said the agreements were needed.

In a rare direct show of defiance towards the Russian leader, Prigozhin said: "None of Wagner's fighters is ready to go down the path of shame again. That's why they will not sign the contracts."

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In a televised meeting on Tuesday, Putin backed a call by the defence ministry for "volunteer" fighters in Ukraine to sign contracts with the country's military command, widely seen as a means to assert control over Wagner.

Putin said that contracts were necessary to allow all participants in Russia's campaign in Ukraine to receive the social support payments to which they are entitled. These include compensation to fighters if they are wounded, and to their families if they are killed in action.

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Prigozhin has waged a bitter public feud with Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu and the army top brass since last year, accusing them of failing to provide adequate support and ammunition to Wagner forces in Ukraine and so causing them to suffer higher casualties.

In Wednesday's remarks, however, he said he thought a "compromise solution" would be found between Putin and parliament to enable Wagner fighters to receive both social guarantees and certified status as combatants.
Boris Johnson has claimed a Tory MP sitting on the committee preparing to publish a report finding he misled Parliament with his partygate denials may have broken lockdown rules.

The former UK prime minister called for Sir Bernard Jenkins resignation from the Privileges Committee on the eve of the publication of its investigation into whether Mr Johnson lied to MPs.

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The Guido Fawkes website reported that Mr Jenkins went to a drinks party held by Commons Deputy Speaker Dame Eleanor Laing in December 2020, while London was in Tier 2 measures restricting indoor mixing.

The allegation emerged as the cross-party committee Mr Jenkins sits on was preparing to publish on Thursday morning its damning report that Mr Johnson has already resigned as an MP over.

In a statement, Mr Johnson said: Bernard Jenkin has just voted to expel me from Parliament for allegedly trying to conceal from Parliament my knowledge of illicit events.

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Now it turns out he may have for the whole time known that he himself attended an event  and concealed this from the Privileges Committee and the whole House for the last year.

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To borrow the language of the committee, if this is the case, he must have known he was in breach of the rules.

World Starmer claims Sunak weak for failing to block B... Read More

He has no choice but to explain his actions to his own committee, for his colleagues to investigate and then to resign.

Mr Jenkins and a representative for Dame Eleanor have been contacted for comment.

Lord Peter Cruddas, a Tory donor who Mr Johnson elevated to the Lords, called for the police to investigate.

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President Yoon Suk Yeol talks with Chinese Ambassador to Korea Xing Haiming after paying tribute to late former Chinese leader Jiang Zemin at a memorial altar set up at the Chinese Embassy in Seoul, Dec. 2, 2022. Courtesy of presidential office



Seoul urged to be prudent regarding calls to expel envoy



By Lee Hyo-jin



China is unlikely to replace its embattled ambassador to Korea, Xing Haiming, according to diplomatic observers, despite Seoul's calls for Beijing to take "proper measures" over the envoy's controversial remarks criticizing the Korean government's foreign policy.



They also said calls from some ruling party politicians to expel the envoy will not help relieve tensions between the two countries.



Korea's presidential office said Tuesday that it is waiting for Beijing to take appropriate measures after Xing recently said Korea was making a "wrong bet" by leaning toward the United States amid the intensifying rivalry between Washington and Beijing.



Although the government did not specify what measures it expects from China, the statement was widely viewed as a strong request to have Xing replaced.



The Chinese envoy's remarks, which came during a dinner with main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) Chairman Lee Jae-myung last Thursday, triggered a diplomatic feud between Seoul and Beijing. Officials and lawmakers here have condemned Xing for attempting to interfere in Korea's domestic affairs.



As tensions escalated between the two countries, National Security Adviser Cho Tae-yong said, Wednesday, that "there should not be any actions that hinder and regress the healthy development of Korea-China relations."



"The stance of the Yoon Suk Yeol administration on bilateral relations with China is to promote the healthy development of the relationship focusing on mutual respect and common interests," he told reporters, without elaborating on what measures he anticipates from Beijing.



However, the Chinese government is not likely to take any measures regarding Xing, according to Kang Joon-young, a professor of Chinese studies at Hankuk University of Foreign Studies.



"There is a slim chance of China replacing the ambassador at this point, which would only mean that it admits the fact that Xing's remarks were inappropriate. In fact, his actions are being positively viewed in his country," Kang said.



During a briefing on Tuesday, China's foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin defended Xing, saying, "It is part of Xing Haiming's job to engage extensively with people from various walks of life in Korea with an aim of increasing understanding, promoting cooperation and advancing China-ROK relations  There is no point in making an issue of this."



Lee Sang-man, a professor at the Institute for Far Eastern Studies at Kyungnam University, also believed that the Chinese government will not penalize Xing.



"There is a chance for China to replace Xing in the coming months. But in a regular reshuffle of its diplomats, not as a penalty," he said.



Xing, who was appointed to his current post in January 2020, has been serving for over three years. Although the exact term of an ambassador is not set, an envoy usually serves for three years in a host country before receiving a new assignment.



Lee also thinks that Xing may be promoted when he returns to Beijing for doing well in representing China's interests.



Lee added that Chinese Ambassador to France Lu Shaye, who recently sparked outrage from his host country due to his remarks siding with Russia in the war in Ukraine, is expected to be promoted to a ministerial position once he returns to China later this month.



The expert advised that the Korean government should be more prudent regarding calls by ruling People Power Party (PPP) lawmakers to declare Xing as "persona non grata."



"Both nations should find ways to de-escalate tensions. Otherwise, the situation would turn out unfavorably for both sides," he said.



Some PPP lawmakers also cautioned against such calls to expel Xing.



"Instead of resorting to expulsion, we should seek new a breakthrough by opening up a new path in bilateral relations," Rep. Yoon Sang-hyun said during a radio interview, Wednesday.


European Union regulators have ordered technology giant Google to sell off some of its lucrative digital advertising business in order to address competition concerns.

The European Commission, the blocs executive branch and top competition enforcer, said its preliminary view after an investigation is that only the mandatory divestment by Google of part of its services will satisfy its concerns.

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The 27-nation EU has led the global movement to crack down on big tech companies but it has previously relied on issuing blockbuster fines, including three penalties for Google worth billion of euros.





We take issue with Google favouring its own online display advertising technology services to the detriment of competing providers of advertising technology services, advertisers and online publishers.



Our preliminary view is that Google may have breached EU antitrust rules by pic.twitter.com/rhuTC4fU80 Advertisement  European Commission (@EU_Commission) June 14, 2023 Advertisement

It is the first time the bloc has ordered a tech giant to split up key parts of its business.

Google can now defend itself by making its case before the commission issues its final decision.

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The company did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The commissions decision stems from a formal investigation that it opened in June 2021, looking into whether Google violated the blocs competition rules by favouring its own online display advertising technology services at the expense of rival publishers, advertisers and advertising technology services.

YouTube was one focus of the commissions investigation, which looked into whether Google was using the video-sharing sites dominant position to favour its own ad-buying services by imposing restrictions on rivals.

Googles ad tech business is also under investigation by Britains competition watchdog and faces litigation in the US.

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We are sending a Statement of Objections to Google over abusive practices in online advertising technology.



Press conference by Vice-President @vestager https://t.co/NqbRnoIEAD  European Commission (@EU_Commission) June 14, 2023

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Brussels has previously hit Google with more than 8 billion euros (6.9 billion) worth of fines in three separate competition cases, involving its Android mobile operating system and shopping and search advertising services.

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The company is appealing against all three penalties.

An EU court last year slightly reduced the Android penalty to 4.125 million euros (3.539 million).

EU regulators have the power to impose penalties worth up to 10% of a companys annual revenue.
ITV bosses have refuted claims during a British parliamentary hearing that the broadcaster treated late Love Island presenter Caroline Flack as a commodity.

Chief executive Dame Carolyn McCall and managing director Kevin Lygo faced questions from MPs on Wednesday about former This Morning host Phillip Schofields exit from the programme during a Culture, Media and Sport Committee session, during which they were also questioned about ITVs duty of care for its talent.

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After Schofield resigned from ITV admitting to an unwise but not illegal affair with a younger male colleague, Caroline Flacks mother Christine criticised the broadcaster, saying it had learned nothing from her daughters death and that on-screen talent were treated as commodities.

Former Love Island presenter Caroline Flack (Matt Crossick/PA)

Responding to the allegations during a parliamentary session, Ms McCall said: We genuinely feel deeply, deeply sad about what happened to Caroline.

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People knew her well at ITV, I spoke to a lot of people at ITV that worked with her and loved working with her on the show because she loved the show.

The family are obviously grieving. I would say we never feel that we treat anybody, whether its a presenter or a member of staff or a junior person thats coming in for work experience, we would really not treat anyone like a commodity.

Former Love Island host Flack was found dead in February 2020 at the age of 40, and a coroner later ruled she killed herself after learning that prosecutors were going to press ahead with an assault charge after an incident involving her boyfriend Lewis Burton.

Mr Lygo told the committee: Because of things going on in her private life, she said I dont think Im fit to do the next serious of Love Island. We said OK, we understand that but made it very clear it was her show, that we would get a stand-in, she could come back when she wanted to because she hadnt done anything wrong in our eyes.

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We were offering her work and all the rest of it. Nobody would agree that we treated her as a commodity.

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The ITV bosses were also asked how Love Island was still on air having been linked to multiple suicides, including former contestants Sophie Gradon and Mike Thalassitis.

Dame Carolyn McCall gives evidence to the Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee at the House of Commons (House of Commons/PA)

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Ms McCall responded: I think thats a gross misrepresentation of the show.

She continued: Caroline was not on the show and the reason that she tragically took her life  she was going through some extremely public things in her private life so I dont think you can just correlate this is because she was on a show.

There are two others than I am aware of that you might be referring to. One of the things I would say is these are deeply tragic things, no one wants to see anyone, whatever age, take their own life.

Weve thought about it a huge amount, as I said I dont think any of you can even understand how deeply distressing something like that can be for people who work at ITV.

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Ive really looked at this in some detail  and weve actually taken a lot of professional advice and I think the generally accepted professional opinion is that the causes of these types of tragedies are always complex and multiple.

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And both individuals you are referring to took their lives two years after they appeared on the show, and there would have been many, many, many events that would have been part of multiple causes.

Ms McCall said the broadcaster works with charities including Calm and Mind.

She added: They would say one event, albeit maybe an important event in their lives, is to simplify a very complex sequence of events and so I feel when you throw that at us, it is very difficult for us and it makes us sound unfeeling and we are really, really not  we take it so seriously.

As Ive said since 2018, the duty of care on every show, but Love Island particularly, is extremely comprehensive and we are very happy to leave you the file of duty of care so the committee can see the lengths we go to to protect both the participants on the show but also our staff on the show.

 Anyone who needs support can call Samaritans free of charge on 116 123, email jo@samaritans.org, or visit the Samaritans website.
Lebanese politicians have failed in yet another attempt to elect a president and break a seven-month power vacuum in the tiny Mediterranean country.

The parliamentary session  the 12th bid to pick a president  broke down after the bloc led by the powerful political party and militant group Hezbollah withdrew following the first round of voting, breaking the quorum.

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Hezbollahs preferred candidate, Sleiman Frangieh, the scion of a political family close to the ruling Assad family in Syria, trailed behind his main rival, Jihad Azour, a former finance minister and senior official with the International Monetary Fund, in the first round of voting.



Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri opens the session to elect a president (Hassan Ammar/AP)

Mr Azour, who is supported by the opposition to Hezbollah and some of its nominal allies, received 59 votes against Mr Frangiehs 51, while 18 politicians cast blank ballots, protest votes or voted for minority candidates.

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However, Mr Azour failed to reach the two-thirds majority needed to win in the first round.

The meeting came after 11 previous sessions by the parliament  the last of which was held in January  failed to elect a replacement for President Michel Aoun, a Hezbollah ally, whose term ended in late October.

Mr Azour has the backing of the countrys largest Christian political parties, the Free Patriotic Movement, which has been allied with Hezbollah since 2006, and the Lebanese Forces party, an opponent to Hezbollah.

Under Lebanons complex power-sharing agreement, the countrys president has to be a Maronite Christian, the parliament speaker a Shiite Muslim and the prime minister a Sunni.

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Politician Michel Moussa casts his vote (Hassan Ammar/AP)

Mr Azour is also backed by the majority of Druze legislators and some Sunni Muslims, while Shiite members of parliament have overwhelmingly backed Mr Frangieh.

The new presidents most pressing task will be to get the nation of six million people, including more than one million Syrian refugees, out of an unprecedented economic crisis that began in October 2019.

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The meltdown is rooted in decades of corruption and mismanagement by the countrys political class that has ruled Lebanon since the 1975-90 civil war ended.

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Clinching a bailout deal with the IMF  Mr Azours current employer  is seen as key to Lebanons recovery.

Mr Azour took a leave of absence from his post as regional director for the organisation upon announcing his candidacy.

Mr Azours supporters accused Hezbollah and its allies of blocking the democratic process.

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This group does not believe in democracy, said Lebanese Forces politician Fadi Karam.

Independent Waddah Sadek said: Nobody can nominate a candidate and say its either them or nobody else.



Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri casts his vote (Hassan Ammar/AP)

Hezbollah has often criticised opposing candidates as divisive and confrontational, though Mr Azour has said he would work to bring together rival political groups and end the economic crisis.

Who better than Jihad Azour to seal the deal with the IMF that can help guarantee us international investment, Mr Sadek said.

Hezbollah politician Hussein Haj Hassan claimed Mr Azour and those around him have no political programme and called for a real national dialogue away from the auctioneering and intimidation.

Earlier this week, Mr Frangieh said he is not imposing himself but is seeking a national consensus or majority.

Not all politicians opposed to Hezbollah support Mr Azours candidacy and some see him as representing sectarian parties.

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Ibrahim Mneimneh said the one thing that many legislators who, like him, ran on anti-establishment platforms agree on is their opposition to Mr Frangieh.

Michel Douaihy, another independent politicians, said Mr Azour had not been the first choice of most independents, but that his candidacy is the art of compromise at its best.

No date has been set for a 13th attempt to elect a president.
Celebrated literary editor Robert Gottlieb has died aged 92.

His career was launched with Joseph Hellers Catch-22 and continued for decades with Pulitzer Prize-winning classics like Toni Morrisons Beloved and Robert Caros The Power Broker.

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He died of natural causes on Wednesday at a New York hospital, Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group said.

Caro, who worked for decades with Gottlieb on his Lyndon Johnson biographies and was featured with him last year in the documentary Turn Every Page, said in a statement that he had never worked with an editor so attuned to the writing process.

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From the day 52 years ago that we first looked at my pages together, Bob understood what I was trying to do and made it possible for me to take the time, and do the work, I needed to do, Caro said in a statement.

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People talk to me about some of the triumphant moments Bob and I shared, but today I remember other moments, tough ones, and I remember how Bob was always, always, for half a century, there for me.

He was a great friend, and today I mourn my friend with all my heart.

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Gottlieb helped shape the modern publishing canon.

His credits included fiction by future Nobel laureates Morrison, Doris Lessing and VS Naipaul; spy novels by John le Carre, essays by Nora Ephron, science thrillers by Michael Crichton and Caros nonfiction epics.

He also edited memoirs by Katharine Hepburn, Lauren Bacall and Washington Post publisher Katharine Graham, whose Personal History won a Pulitzer.

Gottlieb so impressed Bill Clinton that the former US president signed with Alfred Knopf in part for the chance to work with Gottlieb on his memoir My Life.

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Pulitzer Prize-winning US author Cormac McCarthy has died aged 89, his agent has confirmed.

McCarthy, best known for his novels including The Road and No Country For Old Men, died at home on Tuesday of natural causes.

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Throughout his career, which spanned nearly six decades, he penned multiple novels, screenplays and short stories across the western and post-apocalyptic genres.

His work has entered the modern canon and won several prestigious literary awards, including the National Book Award and National Book Critics Circle Award, as well as a Pulitzer.

No Country For Old Men was made into an Oscar-winning film starring Javier Bardem (Alamy/PA)

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McCarthy was known for his desire for privacy and did not like to discuss writing.

In 1992 he told The New York Times: Of all the subjects Im interested in  it would be extremely difficult to find one I wasnt  writing is way, way down at the bottom of the list.

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Born in 1933 in Providence, Rhode Island, the author was raised in Knoxville, Tennessee, and briefly attended the University of Tennessee where he began crafting short fiction.

He was known for his spare writing style and epic themes of apocalyptic danger, the nature of evil and the fragility of the human condition.

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Many of his novels were set amid the landscapes of the American south-west and he wrote all of them on an Olivetti Underwood Lettera 32 typewriter.

His first, The Orchard Keeper, was published in 1965 and he went on to author several more books throughout the 1970s, including 1979s Suttree.

Cormac McCarthy, maybe the greatest American novelist of my time, has passed away at 89. He was full of years and created a fine body of work, but I still mourn his passing. Advertisement  Stephen King (@StephenKing) June 13, 2023

Although it did not get widespread attention at the time, Blood Meridian, published in 1985, is considered by many to have been a turning point in McCarthys career.

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The book, set in the American frontier era, is generally regarded as McCarthys finest work  followed closely by Suttree.

McCarthy travelled to all of the locales detailed in the novel and reportedly learned Spanish to help with his research.

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But it was not until 1992 that he found true acclaim with All The Pretty Horses, the first volume of The Border Trilogy.

The book became a New York Times bestseller and sold 190,000 copies in hardcover within the first six months of publication, giving McCarthy the wide readership that eluded him for years.

No Country For Old Men, later adapted into an Oscar-winning film starring Javier Bardem, was published in 2005.

The Road, also adapted into a film, was published a year later and went on to win the 2007 Pulitzer Prize for Literature.

McCarthy gave a rare interview to Oprah Winfrey, who had chosen it for her Book Club.

After McCarthys death, tributes were paid by many, including renowned US horror author Stephen King, who described him as maybe the greatest American novelist of my time.

He was full of years and created a fine body of work, but I still mourn his passing, he tweeted.

Nihar Malaviya, chief executive of Penguin Random House, said, Cormac McCarthy changed the course of literature.

For 60 years he demonstrated an unwavering dedication to his craft and to exploring the infinite possibilities and power of the written word.

Millions of readers around the world embraced his characters, his mythic themes and the intimate emotional truths he laid bare on every page in brilliant novels that will remain both timely and timeless for generations to come.
Rishi Sunak has faced claims of being too weak to block Boris Johnsons honours list and allowing those who helped cover up lawbreaking to become lawmakers.

UK Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer pressed his calls for an immediate general election after also questioning if the British prime minister will block the honours list of his predecessor Liz Truss or buckle to her as well.

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Mr Sunak countered the attacks at Prime Ministers Questions by criticising Labour peerage nominations, including that of former MP Tom Watson who now sits in the House of Lords as Lord Watson of Wyre Forest.

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Controversy over Lord Watsons nomination for a life peerage centred on his role in promoting the false claims of a VIP Westminster paedophile ring made by the fantasist Carl Beech, who used the pseudonym Nick.

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The exchanges at Prime Ministers Questions came after the Conservatives triggered two difficult by-elections, including in the seat vacated by Mr Johnson.

UK prime minister Rishi Sunak faced claims of being too weak to block Boris Johnsons honours list (House of Commons/UK Parliament/PA)

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Mr Starmer used PMQs to focus on Tory infighting, which erupted after Downing Street published Mr Johnsons honours list on Friday, lacking the names of sitting MPs including former UK culture secretary Nadine Dorries and former minister Nigel Adams.

Hours later Mr Johnson dramatically announced his Commons exit, as the Privileges Committee prepared to report that he lied to Parliament over partygate.

Loyalists Ms Dorries and Mr Adams also said they were standing down as MPs.

The UK prime minister suggested his former boss wanted him to ignore the recommendations of the House of Lords Appointments Commission.

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Mr Johnson said he was talking rubbish and his camp accused Mr Sunak of having secretly blocked the peerages of Ms Dorries and other allies.

A number of senior officials who were implicated in the partygate scandal were included in Mr Johnsons resignation honours list.

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer asked if Mr Sunak would buckle to Liz Truss honours list (House of Commons/UK Parliament/PA)

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Mr Starmer opened PMQs by asking Mr Sunak why the Conservative Party spent this last week arguing over which of them gets a peerage.

Mr Sunak replied: In line with a long-established convention of previous prime ministers having the ability to submit honours, I followed the process to the letter, in convention of long-standing process.

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It is, by the way, a long-standing convention that prime ministers on both sides to this House have followed in the same way that I did.

But Mr Starmer said: The truth is for all his tough talk after the event, the Prime Minister did sign off the honours list. That means that those who threw a Downing Street party the night before the late Queen sat alone at her husbands funeral will now receive awards from the King.

If he is so tough, why didnt he block it?

The prime minister replied: As I said, I and the Government followed due process and convention. Prime ministers of both parties have always upheld the convention of non-interference on political honours.

My predecessors may not have agreed with Labours choices of Tom Watson or Shami Chakrabarti, but the same precedent stood then as it does now. And Id expect a knight like him to understand that.

Mr Starmer said honours should be for public service not Tory cronies, telling the Commons: Isnt this this case: He was too weak to block Johnsons list, and that also means that those who spent their time helping cover up Johnsons lawbreaking are rewarded by becoming lawmakers for the rest of their lives?

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Echoing the prime ministers words, Mr Starmer added: Is his message to the British public if you dont like it, tough?

Mr Sunak replied: It is right that we use the honours system to recognise people. Almost 2,000 people a year from members of the England Lionesses team to the first Asian police officer in Greater Manchester.

But he talks about putting people in the House of Lords: perhaps he could explain why he put forward for a peerage the former Labour MP Tom Watson who spread vicious conspiracy theories that were totally and utterly untrue, damaged public discourse and inflicted misery on innocent people?

Mr Starmer later switched attention to Ms Truss, asking: Will the Prime Minister block that honours list or will he buckle to her as well?

Mr Sunak sidestepped the question and instead focused on Labours economic policies.

MPs in the House of Commons (PA Graphics)

Mr Starmer concluded by calling for a UK general election, saying: End the boasting, the excuses, the Tory chaos, see if he can finally find somebody, anybody, anywhere to vote for him and call a general election now.

Mr Sunak replied by criticising Labour for voting against the British governments immigration reforms and measures to tackle disruptive protests, adding: Were getting on and delivering for the country.

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Chief Whip Simon Hart earlier moved a motion known as a writ for by-elections in Mr Johnsons Uxbridge and South Ruislip constituency and Mr Adams Selby and Ainsty seat on Wednesday, giving between 21 and 27 working days for votes to be held.

But the third by-election, in Ms Dorries Mid Bedfordshire constituency, is on hold because she has not formally resigned as a Tory MP.
Toyota executives fielded challenges and reaped praise from investors at the Japanese car giants annual general meeting on Wednesday where shareholders ultimately rejected demands for the company to do better on fighting climate change.

The investor proposal was initiated by AkademikerPension, a 20 billion US dollar (15.9 billion) Danish investment fund, which accused Toyota of lobbying to weaken efforts by governments around the world to phase out the internal combustion engine.

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Some 3,800 shareholders packed at hall at Toyotas HQ in Toyota city, central Japan, and there was applause when the proposal was rejected.

The exact number of the ballots cast will not be disclosed until Thursday, but were taken into account in the vote.

The majority of Toyota shares are held by the company and its group businesses, retired employees and others sympathetic to the firms perspective.

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The shareholders proposal also challenged the reappointment of Toyotas chairman, Akio Toyoda, grandson of the company founder and a board director, arguing that the company has lagged behind in the global shift to battery electric vehicles.

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Mr Toyoda and other company officials defended their green record, noting that Toyota is aiming for carbon neutrality, or net zero carbon emissions, in its range by 2050.





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The resolution filed by the Danish fund was also supported by Norwegian financial services company Storebrand Asset Management and a Dutch pension investment company, APG Asset Management.

From an investment perspective, were concerned that Toyota is missing out on profits from soaring EV sales, jeopardising its valuable brand and cementing its global laggard status, Anders Schelde, chief information officer at the Danish fund, said in a statement ahead of the meeting.

Others behind the proposal said Toyota needs to live up to its commitment to the Paris Agreement, an international treaty to reduce greenhouse emissions.

Toyota plays a pivotal role in the Japanese automotive related industry, which leads the countrys manufacturing and economy, said APG Asset Management chief information officer Herman Slooijer.

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Toyota officials stressed that, instead of just focusing on battery electric vehicles, the company is pursuing multiple energy options, including hybrids, plug-ins and hydrogen-powered vehicles.

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Various options need to be readied, said Masahiro Yamamoto, one of the executives. What is important is to better convey our efforts to all shareholders.





 At #ToyotaAGM, @GreenpeaceEAsia activists demand @ToyotaMotorCorp to stop fueling the climate crisis & quit fossil fuel cars by 2030. As a major automaker, Toyota must transition faster to zero-emission vehicles. >https://t.co/onO8g9uU0S#DriveChange pic.twitter.com/thBjcniPs6 Advertisement  Greenpeace International (@Greenpeace) June 14, 2023

The companys president, Koji Sato, has acknowledged that Toyota has fallen behind in battery EVs and must play catch-up.

He tried to assure shareholders that the company is working hard to move peoples hearts based on a team-oriented style of management.

Toyotas latest environmental initiatives include the development of the all-solid-state battery for EVs by as early as 2027.

Major US pension schemes, including the New York City Comptrollers Office and the California Public Employees Retirement System, backed the climate change proposal.

The growing battery electric vehicle market represents an opportunity for Toyota to regain its status as an innovator and leader during the historic transition of the transportation industry, said NY City Comptroller Brad Lander.

Outside the grounds where the meeting was held, several demonstrators for Greenpeace held up signs reading: No fossil fuel cars by 2030. That target is two decades earlier than Toyotas.

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Diversity of technology is certainly something that I can agree with in principle, said Daniel Read, who oversees climate and energy campaigns at Greenpeace, but in fact the options are quite limited.

Battery EVs and green hydrogen, using hydrogen made with renewable energy, not fossil fuels, are the best options, he said.

Most of the shareholders who spoke at the meeting gushed praise, and Mr Toyodas remarks were welcomed with enthusiastic applause.





One shareholder asked him to address a claim that he lacks a love for Japan, apparently referring to the perception that Toyota is not as focused on its domestic market amid its global expansion.

What sustained me during tough times were our workers on the ground, my love for Toyota, my love for cars and my love for Japan, Mr Toyoda replied.

I learned to look for what was Toyota-like within me, came up with a story and used that to relay our message.

A recent International Council of Clean Transportation report rating the environmental records of the worlds major car manufacturers showed Japan lagging behind in some metrics, including battery EV offerings.

All eyes are on Toyota, said Katherine Garcia, director at the Sierra Club, a US grassroots environmental group.

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Weve spent years advocating for Toyota to clean up its dirty act on climate, and theres an immense opportunity right now for the automaker to shift course and go all in on electric vehicles. The pressure is on.
Big increases in chief executive pay will be closely scrutinised by investors when annual general meeting season rolls around this year, after a survey found the fixed pay of ASX 200 bosses had surged up to 15 per cent.

A survey of executive remuneration by the Governance Institute of Australia found average fixed pay for ASX 200 chief executives  that is, pay before bonuses  rose 15 per cent to $1.14 million in the 2022-23 financial year.

The Governance Institute report said average fixed pay for ASX 200 chief executives rose 15 per cent to $1.14 million in 2022-23. Credit: Jessica Shapiro

It said average fixed pay for ASX 200 managing directors rose 14 per cent to $1.58 million.

The figures, based on data from 65 ASX 200 companies, point to senior executive pay rising at about twice the pace of inflation, at a time when real (after-inflation) wages for the average worker have been going backwards.
Family-owned Richard Crookes Constructions  the builder of the Sydney Modern Art Gallery, UTS Central and the Sirius Sydney apartment project at The Rocks  has denied calling in voluntary administrators.

The company on Wednesday rejected reports that it had called in Deloitte as administrator, with managing director Jamie Crookes saying the speculation was totally untrue.

Richard Crookes Construction denies it has appointed voluntary administrators.

We have not appointed any administrator, we have not approached any administrator, and we have not made any injection of capital, he told this masthead.

Meanwhile, Deloitte said there was no involvement of our people relating to any Richard Crookes external administration.




A military helicopter made an emergency landing in the east coast county of Yangyang on Wednesday, leaving the pilot and a passenger with minor injuries, authorities said.







The chopper made the landing in front of a village church in Yangyang, 150 kilometers northeast of Seoul, at 10:21 a.m. The two people on board sustained minor injuries and were transferred to a military hospital.







Military authorities are investigating the cause of the accident. (Yonhap)


The political warfare over the controversial PEP11 project is escalating, with NSW Labor facing its first major energy decision that could indicate how it plans to tackle the decarbonisation of the electricity sector.

At issue is the proposed offshore gas development known as Petroleum Exploration Permit 11, or PEP11, which is located 50 kilometres off the NSW coastline and covers an enormous area of 4574 square kilometres.

Australias coastlines offer a unique energy opportunity that companies are racing to get their hands on. Credit: Bloomberg

The project has been drawing political fire ever since the first test well was sunk in 2010 and was infamously bound up in the scandal surrounding former prime minister Scott Morrisons adoption of his colleagues ministries.

Now the NSW opposition has flagged the introduction of a bill that proposes preventing offshore exploration and mining. This would stop rigs in Commonwealth waters from connecting to the mainland, even if the state government supported the project.
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Australian diners will have the opportunity to try British chef Simon Rogans most revered dishes from his three Michelin star restaurant LEnclume, when it opens at Bathers Pavilion on July 19. The collaborating restaurants have today announced the eight-course, $420 menu at LEnclumes residency will feature the famous fritter of Duroc pig and smoked eel with fermented sweetcorn; the seaweed custard with beef broth and bone marrow; and the anvil dessert. The anvil is a signature dish at LEnclume in Cumbria in the UK, which pays homage to the restaurants history as a 13th century blacksmithing forge. Its served with a golden anvil sigil, stamped into caramel mousse, and accompanied by miso caramel, apple and spruce. One of LEnclumes most iconic dishes, the anvil dessert. Supplied Rogan and about a dozen of his team members will relocate to Australia from Cartmel, on the border of the Lake District, for what is more of a takeover than a pop-up.

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Theyre not phoning it in; Simon is bringing the A-team out, says Bathers head chef Cameron Johnston, who will travel in April to the UK restaurant with other senior staff to immerse themselves in the famed LEnclume culture. Our front of house will be shadowing their service. Its all in, Bathers co-owner Jessica Shirvington says. The attention to detail will extend to the tableware, with each dish handcrafted specifically for the event by Australian ceramic artists Malcom Greenwood, Simon Reece and Leia Sherblom of Grit Ceramics. The anvil dessert will be eaten with one of just 100 wooden spoons, hand carved by artist Ted ODonnell. Seaweed custard at LEnclume. Rogan plans to adapt his most popular dishes for his Sydney residency. Supplied Diners at the residency will be able to pair their eight-course meal with a selection of rare wines from The Royal Mail in Dunkeld, considered to be Australasias most revered wine cellar.

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The vintages available for pre-order include the 1982, 1990, 2005, 2009 from Chateau Cheval Blanc, Chateau Mouton Rothschild, Chateau Margaux and Penfolds. There will also be some exclusive bottles available, such as the 2018 Chateau Petrus (a red wine that sells for around $15,700 per bottle, on average). Alternatively, LEnclume head sommelier Valentin Mouillard has worked with Bathers Pavilions director of operations Tom Sykes to curate four wine lists, priced between $190 to $750 per person. Chef Simon Rogan at his flagship restaurant L'Enclume in the village of Cartmel, known for its sustainable approach and use of hyper-seasonal produce. Nina K. Aldridge The restaurants have also revealed an opportunity for 20 hospitality young guns (both front and back of house) to dine at the chefs table, free of charge, for lunch on Thursday, July 27, and Tuesday, August 8. Rogan, who founded The Academy by Simon Rogan in the UK, is expected to share his insight on fine dining, sustainable gastronomy and the future of food.

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We are passionate about developing skills and sharing knowledge, Rogan says. [I am] looking forward to meeting some of Australias brightest young hospitality minds who are hungry for a long-standing career in the industry. Last year LEnclume picked up its coveted third star, making the restaurant the only restaurant at that rarefied level in the north of England. Rogan, an unabashed fan of Sydneys Quay restaurant and Victorias Brae and Attica, told Good Food hes always had the ambition to do something in Australia and has already tapped his network for advice on produce. Im good friends with Clare Smyth and Ive been talking to her about it. Oncore has been a massive success in Sydney, he says.

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Obviously the fish and shellfish are very different to what we have, so Im excited to use the produce I experienced on my last visit  mud crab, freshwater marron, etc. I did a pop-up at Yan in Singapore, and a lot of the vegetables came from Australia, and they were superb quality, so again, Im looking forward to using those. When we go anywhere, we immerse ourselves in the locality, and really try to connect to the area through our food. Sustainability is a big part of our ethos, and in the Lake District we grow as much of our ingredients as possible on our very own farm. With a small stable of restaurants spanning London and Hong Kong, Rogan is able to pluck senior talent from different parts of his empire for the Sydney gig. This is definitely a major event for us given that the LEnclume residency at Bathers Pavilion runs for five weeks. Luckily, we have a large team of amazing chefs we are able to call upon and we will have a number coming from Cartmel, London and Hong Kong to make up the brigade, he says. Bookings via phone and the Bathers website.

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Open lunch Tue-Sun, dinner Tue-Sat from July 19 to August 20. 4 The Esplanade, Mosman, 02 9969 5050, batherspavilion.com.au All hospitality workers under the age of 30 are welcome to apply for a free lunch at LEnclume with a 250word written application, detailing their career aspirations and explaining their interest in LEnclume, to residency@batherspavilion.com.au from Tuesday, June 20. Those successful will be announced on Friday, July 14.
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Slurp to it: Seven exciting ramen spots to try around Sydney

From tonkotsu to dirty shoyu, Sydney has a bowl of Japanese noodle soup to suit every palate. Here are half a dozen ramen joints to check out (plus one thats hosting a rice-burger pop-up).
Former Queensland senator Amanda Stoker has released a statement accusing her then-Coalition colleague David Van of inappropriately touching her.

Her statement was released after senator Lidia Thorpe made accusations of harassment against Van in the Senate, which he vehemently denied, and Opposition Leader Peter Dutton removed him from the Liberal party room this morning, citing other allegations being brought to his attention.

Senator David Van has denied inappropriately touching former Liberal senator Amanda Stoker at a function at Parliament House three years ago. Credit: Sydney Morning Herald

Dutton made clear that he passed no judgment on the veracity of any allegations or any persons guilt or innocence.

Van said he had been blindsided by the allegations when Dutton raised them and he said he had no recollection of the events at all.

They were things that were raised by my colleagues three years ago. We had a frank and open and friendly discussion about them.

Stokers statement today evening said the incident happened in November 2020 at an informal social gathering in a parliamentary office.

He did so by squeezing my bottom twice. By its nature and by its repetition, it was not accidental. That action was not appropriate. It was unprofessional and uninvited.

I raised the matter with Senator Van at a meeting the following day. I described the action, told him it was unacceptable, and that it was not to be repeated. He apologised and said he would never do it again.

I accepted his apology and his undertaking.

Stoker said contemporaneous notes of the meeting were taken, it never happened again and she advised a senior female colleague about the incident to ensure that any other incidents or future reports could be dealt with appropriately.

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Obviously, this was not a good experience. I took it very seriously but did not want his misbehaviour to define me or any other woman. I simply wanted to ensure his behaviour was never repeated, Stoker said in her statement.

She said she addressed his behaviour through internal processes, and asked for it to be kept confidential.

I would have preferred that the matter be resolved privately and finally  as I thought it was. However, following Senator Thorpes allegations, it is now clear that is no longer tenable.

I do not know of any other similar events or reports, Stoker said.

Van said he told Dutton it was not something I would do, but you have to respect colleagues if they feel like something has happened. I support them, we remained friends from that day since.
Prosecutors have dropped charges against Tobias Moran, who was accused of murdering his German backpacker girlfriend on the NSW North Coast 18 years ago.

The body of Simone Strobel, 25, was found hidden under palm fronds in Lismore in February 2005. She had been travelling with Moran  then known as Tobias Suckfuell  and others, and was last seen at a nearby caravan park six days earlier.

Tobias Moran has had charges withdrawn relating to the death of Simone Strobel in 2005.

Moran, 43, was arrested at his Perth home in July last year and extradited to NSW. He was granted bail by a magistrate in August and returned to Western Australia.

The decision by prosecutors to withdraw the charges, of murder and attempting to pervert the course of justice, was revealed at a mention for Morans case in Lismore Local Court on Wednesday.
The NSW governments wide-ranging review into Sydneys patchwork of toll roads will consider a combination of a charging system based on zones, more complex distance-based pricing of motorists and different charges depending on the time of day.

With Sydney earning the title of the worlds most tolled city, the new review led by former competition watchdog chief Allan Fels will consider splitting Sydneys motorways into five geographic zones which consist of western, northern, central, harbour and eastern.

The new Labor state government has a review under way into Sydneys toll road network. Credit: Brook Mitchell

However, the government has ruled out placing charges on previously untolled motorways or a congestion charge for Sydneys CBD, which was considered by the former governments review into toll roads.

Roads Minister John Graham said the government wanted to create fewer distortions and less confusion for motorists.
A second man has been charged with shooting former Lone Wolf bikie Yusuf Nazlioglu, who once said he believed someone would knock him one day by sneaking up and putting a bullet in his head.

Nazlioglu was fatally ambushed at a car park in Sydneys inner west on June 27, 2022, where he was shot multiple times in the head and torso.

Former Lone Wolf bikie Yusuf Nazlioglu.

The former bikie had just arrived home and was parking his car when he was approached by an unknown man, who fired several shots at him. The shooter allegedly fled the scene in a small silver hatchback that was later found on fire in a nearby car park.

Police and emergency services were called to Walker Street in Rhodes about 6.30pm, taking the 40-year-old to hospital before he died a short time later.
Brisbanes ratepayers will pay an extra $1.50 per week on average - or 3.45 per cent in their general rates - under the $4.3 billion, pre-election budget handed down by Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner on Wednesday.

Brisbane Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner: We want to make sure we are not the victims of our own success. Credit: Brisbane Times

The general rate increase is half Brisbanes inflation rate. Schrinner said this was a council compromise in response to cost-of-living concerns.

The suburbs set to have the biggest average percentage rise in owner-occupier residential rates next financial year were Tarragindi, Anstead and Kenmore Hills, while Wilston, Chelmer and Red Hill all had an annual increase of less than 1 per cent.
Three other men  Channara Ly Thong, Hien Pham, and Hung Richard Nguyen  are accused of using their homes and a storage facility in Melbournes western suburbs to keep illicit drugs, while a 51-year-old Melbourne man is believed to have also been involved in the syndicate. Loading All six men have been charged with attempting to possess a commercial quantity of an unlawfully imported border-controlled drug. The 32-year-old is also charged with attempting to import the narcotics. Australian Federal Police assistant commissioner Hilda Sirec said authorities were expecting to arrest more people as part of the five-month operation, which also intercepted a drug consignment bound for New Zealand. Transnational serious organised crime groups are a national security threat. They undermine the Australian economy, social security system and financial system, Sirec said.

Helping to prevent illicit drugs from coming into Australia is critical because it deprives organised crime from profiting and bankrolling other serious offences including child exploitation, sexual servitude and human trafficking. The scale of the attempted imports has raised concerns within the ranks of the AFP that efforts to combat drug trafficking are becoming white noise for a community officers perceive to be increasingly apathetic toward the dangers of drug use. Bags of crystal meth intercepted by Canadian law enforcement. Australia is seen as a lucrative market for crime syndicates looking to expand their drug trade due to its insatiable appetite for narcotics and exorbitant prices. Data collected by the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission shows that even as discretionary spending slumped over the past financial year, Australians spent an estimated $10 billion on drugs between August 2021 and 2022.

Methamphetamine accounted for more than 80 per cent of that expenditure, after police operations in early 2022 disrupted the flow of cocaine into Australia and overseas syndicates began flooding the market with the highly addictive synthetic drug. The commission estimates users in NSW consumed almost 3 tonnes of meth between August 2021 and 2022, compared to 2.5 tonnes in Victoria and 1.6 tonnes in Queensland. Recent seizures as part of Operation Parkes account for almost the entire consumption of meth in all three states last year. In a first for the Australian Federal Police, chief medical officer Dr Alison Money will appear publicly alongside representatives from Victoria Police and counterparts in New Zealand and Canada on Thursday to talk about the dangers of methamphetamine use. Money said an average of 40 people were admitted to Australian hospitals every day for methamphetamine, heroin, and cocaine use, while approximately 16 Australians overdosed on these drugs every week. Methamphetamine profoundly impacts every major organic system we have. A single episode of use can be sufficient to result in addiction and the chronic usage has catastrophic consequences for physical and mental health, Money said.

Loading Nina Patel, the regional director-general for Canadas Border Services Agency in the Pacific region, said officers in the Canadian province of British Columbia had intercepted more than 6330 kg of meth bound for Australia in the past six months. This included the largest seizure in the agencys history  a haul of almost 3000 kg of the drug. Unlike other nations, Australia is broadly considered to be an endpoint destination for drugs rather than a transit country. Drug shipments are detected at the border weekly. Narcotics regularly come into the country through Pacific nations such as Papua New Guinea, where criminals have been known to stockpile drugs for delivery to Australia in black flights  light planes loaded with drugs that log false flight plans and fly at very low altitudes to avoid detection by authorities. Loading

Meth has been a feature of several high-profile cases in recent years, including the kidnapping of four-year-old Cleo Smith in regional Western Australia and the Eastern Freeway crash that killed four police officers in Melbourne in 2020. In Queensland, mother Kerri-Ann Conley was jailed for nine years in February for leaving her two young daughters to die inside a hot car in Brisbane in 2019. Conely had used meth the day before and passed out when she got home. Victoria Police assistant commissioner Bob Hill said the recent seizures are an extraordinary blow to organised crime. Importing these types of insidious drugs on an industrial scale ruins lives while destroying communities and families, he said. The prevalence of these illicit substances within our society and the impact they have on human behaviour translates to road trauma, family violence, homicides, fatal shootings and other violent offending intrinsically linked to illicit drug trafficking.
The woman who investigated the culture of Parliament House was hopeful on Tuesday morning that the building had changed for the better.

Im really confident that our parliament has changed, said former sex discrimination commissioner Kate Jenkins.

Senator Lidia Thorpe used the Senate to make an accusation against David Van. Credit: Alex Ellinghausen

But that hope looked like a pile of political rubble by Wednesday night.

It only took two days for politicians to prove to Australians, again, that federal parliament is a toxic environment that can bring out the worst in all who work there.




The weekly protest rally demanding Japan's apology to the victims of its wartime sex slavery marked its 1,600th edition Wednesday.







About 200 activists, students and others gathered to participate in the 31-year-old protest in front of the former compound of the Japanese Embassy in central Seoul at noon.







On Jan. 8, 1992, some 30 supporters for Korean victims of the Japanese sexual enslavement held their first protest rally there on the occasion of then Japanese Prime Minister Kiichi Miyazawa's visit to Seoul, demanding Tokyo's formal apology to former sex slaves, euphemistically called "comfort women."







The rally was already listed in the Guinness Book of World Records as the longest regular protest of a specific issue in the world in March 2002, when the 500th demonstration was held.







Each edition has since set a new record. (Yonhap)


Theres a Seinfeld episode that reminds me of the predicament in which America finds itself with Donald Trump right now. You will recall that schlubby George Costanza at one point loses his fiancee in a tragic wedding-envelope mishap.

In a later episode, he bumps into her parents. In a typical instance of Georges hapless bravado, he tells the older couple that he has a house in the Hamptons, the swanky Long Island playground for New York Citys one-percenters.

Donald Trump is taking a leaf out of George Constanzas book. Credit:

Eyebrows raised, they say theyd love to see it. Refusing to back down, George says hed love to show it to them. The remainder of the episode sees the trio making the long drive out to see something they all know doesnt exist.

That existential, pointless journey is where a good part of the US is right now, courtesy of the former president.
Latest News The work from home contrast between banks and brokers How brokers have a choice that bank employees don't have

FTX Australia's AFS licence cancelled The cancellation took effect on July 14

For Anthony Roddy and his colleagues, winning the New Brokerage of the Year Award at last years Australian Mortgage Awards couldnt have come at a better time.

Several of our clients have mentioned the award, so Im sure it confirms for some of our clients that theyre dealing with the right team, Roddy (pictured above) said.

Sydney brokerage MortgageWorks, which Roddy launched with Nick Jacobs and George Fennel in 2020, won the coveted new brokerage trophy after an impressive couple of years. The three directors also featured in MPAs Top 100 Brokers 2022.

Roddy said winning an Australian Mortgage Award was a great way to get recognition for your achievements.

The process of applying for the award forced us to review all of the little things wed done along the way which resulted in some really enormous outcomes  it was a really satisfying process, he said.

Roddy also said the award was a great way to reward staff, and a way to say thank you for all of the effort they put in.

We took the opportunity to take the team to a really nice venue for pre-drinks, and we made a real night out of it  its a fantastic thing for culture, highly recommended.

The Australian Mortgage Awards is the most celebrated night on the mortgage and finance industry calendar where the creme del la creme gather to celebrate their achievements.

Nominations for the highly anticipated 2023 awards are open until June 30 and tickets to attend the gala dinner are selling fast.

After returning as a highly successful live event last year and attracting a crowd of more than 700 people, this year's ceremony promises to be even more dazzling.

Hosted by popular comedian and radio and TV presenter Merrick Watts, the black-tie event will be held on Friday, October 13 at The Star Event Centre in Sydney  a fitting backdrop for a night of glitz and glamour.

A highlight of the mortgage broking industry

Now in its 22nd year, the Australian Mortgage Awards has become a highlight of the calendar for the broking community. The AMAs are run by Key Media and supported by Australian Broker and Mortgage Professional Australia.

This years awards will honour brokers, aggregators, business development managers and lenders across 27 categories.

The broker of the year awards will be spread out across five categories, including commercial, residential, regional and specialist lending, as well as a young gun of the year award.

The lender awards include the fintech lender of the year, as well as bank and non-bank of the year.

Westpac is proudly lending its support as event partner  the major banks 14th year of backing the awards  while NAB and PRPTY360 are premium partners.

In addition, 22 other organisations have shown their support by sponsoring the 2023 AMAs, including ANZ, Liberty, La Trobe Financial, Pepper Money, MFAA, FBAA, Bankwest, Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA), Mortgage Choice, OnDeck Australia, PropTrack, Adelaide Bank, Equity-One, Firstmac, ubank, Gateway Bank, Rate Money, Resimac and Q2.

The social media sponsor is Maxiron Capital and FINSTREET is the VIP post awards event sponsor while Fifo Capital is sponsoring the photo booth. PRPTY360 is also the champagne sponsor.

Nominations for the 2023 Australian Mortgage Awards close on June 30.
Latest News The work from home contrast between banks and brokers How brokers have a choice that bank employees don't have

FTX Australia's AFS licence cancelled The cancellation took effect on July 14

Regional brokerages could benefit from focusing on building community connections rather than competition, according to Ashleigh Pakis, director of Panache Financial.

Pakis (pictured above), who won both the Young Professional Award and the Regional Finance Broker Award at the MFAA NSW/ACT State Excellence awards last Thursday, said broking was not all about making deals but building connections and a sustainable lifestyle.

Regional towns are hard to crack, said Pakis, who is based in Goulburn. Everyone talks, it's like wildfire. It's a small town, so if you say something to someone, it will get back to them.

Pakis, who celebrated her double victory at the MFAA awards in Sydney, suggests the key to cracking the community is investing in relationships.

You need to be part of the chamber [of commerce]. You need to do volunteer work. You need to do community jobs. You need to sponsor the sport teams and make your face the public face to be recognised, Pakis said.

You have to be more personable than just the facts and numbers. You need to align with their values because if they dont align theyre not going to believe in your service or product.

Overcoming adversity and imposter syndrome

Growing up with drug-addicted parents, moving around a lot, and living in a caravan throughout her teens, Pakis journey is etched with adversity.

But after a rocky beginning, the real estate and mortgage industry provided some stability in her otherwise turbulent life. After working as a broker for a Rams franchise, Pakis started her own business, Panache Financial, in Goulburn in 2017.

Pakis said her experiences made her approach life and broking in a way that promoted empathy and compassion no matter the client.

Whether you are dealing with a high-calibre or low-calibre person, you've just got to have empathy and compassion for them and support them right through the biggest purchase of their life, she said.

Still, Pakis said she couldnt escape the feeling of imposter syndrome  the feeling of thinking you are alone or incompetent  because she was the only female broker in Goulburn.

It was a very male-dominated industry, business bankers, all the bankers in town were men  I was very different to the norm in this environment.

The MFAAs Industry Intelligence Service Report 15th edition, supported by research from Comparator, supports Pakis observation, revealing that womens mortgage industry participation had declined to 25.4%.

I hate to say it, but its a boys club, said Pakis. You walk into a room and youll see a sea of men, not a sea of women and some women can be confronted by that.

Although the statistics paint a stark picture for female brokers, Pakis believes that the landscape is changing and that women have the soft skills needed to excel in the role.

When you're strip it back, we do the exact same job as what men do, but we just do it in our own way, she said. For most women, it isnt about the numbers, its about helping someone achieve a goal.

Being the change you want to see

Now that she has won a few awards, Pakis feels she can champion female representation in the mortgage industry and shes encouraging other women leaders to do the same.

I think you will see more women's growth in rural and regional areas because they normally have been there supporting their husbands and doing all the back end of their businesses, she said. They get it. They understand what it takes. They've just got to define what their niche is.

Pakis urges young regional brokers, and particularly women, to absorb everything from the people around them and to just focus on relationship building.

You don't need to start with a million clients, you just need to start with five or two or close friends and family and get the ball rolling and then itll grow.
The Federal Court has ordered an unregistered managed investment scheme to be wound up and permanently banned one of its directors from carrying on a financial business, corporate watchdog ASIC reported.

Unlicensed financial advisor Monica Kaur and husband Sadu Singh operated an unregistered managed investment scheme without a licence or the required registration, when they urged around 300 investors to establish SMSFs and advised them to invest in property investments and developments via MKS Property Investments/Developments (MKS Property), between March 2017 and December 2020, the court found.

The pair were directors at various times of MKS Property.

The court also found that Singh failed to exercise his directors duties with the degree of care and diligence that a reasonable person would exercise when he deferred all matters regarding the affairs of MKS Property to Kaur.

As a result of these breaches, the court ordered that Kaur be permanently restrained from carrying on a financial services business in Australia and be disqualified from managing corporations for life. Singh, too, has been banned from managing corporations, but only for 15 years.

The court action will also see MKS property wound up, with David Hodgson and Andrew Hewitt of Grant Thornton appointed as receivers of the property of Kaur, Singh, and the scheme and as liquidators of the scheme and MKS Property.

The venture into which Ms Kaur directed investor funds was risky and speculative as is shown by the likelihood that most if not all of the funds of many of the investors have been lost, said Justice Darren John Jackson, in handing down his decision.

Inadequate record-keeping and a lack of controls over what was done with the funds are likely to exacerbate the losses and the difficulty of making any recovery on behalf of investors. The losses are going to be in the millions of dollars and are likely to impact on the retirement savings of many individuals.

In December 2020, ASIC commenced action against Kaur and MKS Property where it obtained urgent asset and travel restraint orders against Kaur, MKS Property, Paradise Property Group, as well as against Singh, Melvin Paul Singh, and Stephanie Lee.

Tim Mullaly, ASIC executive director financial services enforcement, said the regulator is actively engaging with industry and consumer advocacy groups to raise awareness about the risks associated with unlicensed advisors and providing guidance on identifying legitimate financial professionals.

ASIC is committed to safeguarding the interests of consumers and upholding the integrity of the financial services sector, sending a clear message that unlicensed practices will not be tolerated, Mullaly said.
Paris-headquartered dating application happn announced its brand refresh globally. This is of significance to India as its the largest market for the dating app. Happns India membership stands at 37 million.

With a total user membership of 135 million globally, the dating app also announced its shift from just being a dating app to a social networking app. With the new features and changes in rebranding the company is expecting to double its user base by next year.

What this revamp means is that instead of being bombarded with random requests from potential dates, now users can find potential friends based on mutual interest. This could be going to a particular bar, restaurants, sports, events and others.

This new feature, also called as CrushPoints, will be available in a select few cities in India like Mumbai, Pune, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, and New Delhi.

It will allow singles to add to their profile a selection of favourite places, divided into 6 categories: events, bars, restaurants, sports, culture and outdoors. At happn, we consider that the place people meet (before the crush but also after the crush) is an integral part of the experience and therefore of the story of you and your Crush, said Karima Ben Abdelmalek, CEO and president, happn to Business Standard on a video call.

The app which use geo-location to connect people, has most of its users in the metro cities. Though Abdelmalek is hopeful that more users will join the app as it supports local languages like Telugu, and Hindi.

Also Read Indian dating apps swipe right for Bharat as relationship landscape changes Tinder shows how youngsters' expectations from relationships are changing Indians grappling with dating puzzle are turning to relationship gurus TMS Ep411: Amul backlash, dating apps, bank stocks, Cognyte spyware Spend by Indians on friendship and dating apps doubles in 2022 HCLTech to train 18,000 experts on Google Cloud generative AI capabilities Indian Oil Corp to set up aviation fuel plant with LanzaJet in Haryana COAI re-elects Jio's PK Mittal as chairperson, VIL's Balaji as vice-chair Mahindra & Mahindra, Hinduja join race to buy MG Motor India stake Automobile maker Mahindra & Mahindra launches SUV XUV700 in Australia

Since the app uses geo-location it means users can get to know other people only within a certain radius. We have seen that people are not just looking for partners and eventually get married. These days users are looking to just find people and then connect on common interests.

Like its competitors Tinder and Bumble, happn too is free to download and use. For more premium features one can take a subscription of Rs 599 per month and Rs 1,299 per year.

When asked about user verification and authenticity of users on the app, Abdelmalek said that being a European firm they follow all the rules associated with the GDPR and privacy is on the top of the charts.

To make sure we do not have fake profiles we make use of AI and ML to make sure that users are verified. happn's mission is to bring about encounters in real life, in complete confidence thanks to technology and by always being as close as possible to your daily life and your habits, she added.
Sanjive Narain, owner of Assam's oldest news channel, and Sanjay Aditya Singh, promoter of a cabin crew training academy, are coming together to launch a regional airline providing business and premium economy services in the Northeast.

Jettwings Airways will be based in Guwahati and will connect places with twin-class Embraer E175 aircraft. The airline has secured an initial no-objection clearance from the civil aviation ministry and plans to launch services in October.

Once approved for flight operations, Jettwings will be the first-ever company from the Northeast region to start airline operations in the country.

We have earmarked a Rs 100-crore investment in the airline. We plan to start with two planes in October and will have four planes in the initial phase. We will have comfortable seats, better legroom, and offer dynamic fares, said Narain on Wednesday.

Narain owns Prag News channel and has business interests in construction, health, automobile, and mobile phones. Singh, his partner and the new airlines chief executive officer, runs an academy offering aviation, hospitality and tourism management courses.

Guwahati airport handles around 128 flights daily to 20 destinations, including 13 cities in the Northeast.

Also Read Indian hospitality sector on a comeback trail with promising growth-report Jet Airways looks into abyss as JKC fails to renew its flying permit When customer is king but unpleasant: How bad behaviour affects air crew Alcohol should be served in a 'reasonable, safe manner': AI to cabin crew IndiGo reinstates cabin crew bonus after 2nd consecutive profitable quarter Ramkrishna Forgings bags contract in Europe worth 4.5 million euros RBI rejects Akash Suri's appointment as CEO of JC Flowers Yes Bank: Report Ten Sports sale to Sony: I-T dept to appeal ITAT's capital gains tax ruling Vedanta may successfully handle its debt in the next 12 months: Report Concor disinvestment: Dipam may seek finmin, inter-ministerial group help

With more than 10 daily departures, Guwahatis busiest air route is to Delhi. The airport handled 5.1 million passengers in FY23, up 41 per cent year-on-year.

We strongly believe and commit to becoming a reliable and sustainable airline with its roots deeply entrenched in Northeast India, connecting unique yet important destinations, said Singh.

Globally, Embraer has delivered over 700 E175 planes. SkyWest Airlines of the US is the largest operator of this aircraft type in the world. In Asia, Japan Airlines and Fuji Dream Airlines fly them.

In India, the first E175 jet with 12 business class and 64 economy seats was inducted by regional airline StarAir in May. The airline has two E175s at present and flies them on the Bengaluru-Hyderabad and Jamnagar routes. Two more planes are expected to be delivered this year.

The E175 aircraft has a longer range than turboprops such as ATR-72 and flies fewer passengers than narrowbody planes such as Airbus A320 or Boeing 737s. Thus this helps airlines on long routes with thin demand or tap newer markets such as those in the North East states.

According to the civil aviation ministry, sixteen airports and 64 routes in North East have been made operational under the governments Ude Desh ka Aam Nagrik (Udan)- regional connectivity scheme. Hollongi airport in Arunachal Pradesh was added to the aviation map last November. As per the ministry datay aircraft movements in North East increased from 852 per week in the year 2014 to 1817 per week in 2022.

According to aviation industry experts, getting all approvals and manpower for October launch could be a challenge for the new airline. Weather and restricted hours of operations at some of the northeast airports will be another challenge, they added.
A group of lenders to educational technology (edtech) giant Byjus has told the firm that theyre open to negotiations with the company to resolve litigation and other disputes, according to people familiar with the matter. However, they have told Byjus that they will not engage in the firms proposal for one-on-one meetings, according to sources.

Byjus recently filed a suit against US-based investment management firm Redwood to challenge the acceleration of the $1.2-billion Term Loan B (TLB) facility, and disqualify the lender for its predatory tactics. Byjus also skipped an interest payment of about $40 million on the loan.

The lenders want Byjus to send a draft amendment proposal to the group, according to people familiar with the matter. This happened after the firm cancelled a meeting that had been scheduled for Monday with creditors.

According to sources, Byjus wants to do one-on-one meetings with lenders instead of having a group talk to influence them individually and split the group of ad hoc lenders. However, the lenders want to have a collective discussion to comply with an agreement that mandates collaborative efforts during negotiations.

Byjus declined to comment about the negotiations with lenders.

However, according to a source close to the company, Byjus has already started having one-on-one interactions with lenders and had discussions with a couple of them, according to a source close to the company. It has plans to have more such calls with other lenders in the next few days.

Also Read Byju's lenders say lawsuit is meritless, designed to dodge obligations Byju's lenders ready for loan restructuring but want $200 mn prepayment Explained: What is the border dispute between Maharashtra and Karnataka? Top headlines: Show-cause notice to Xiaomi, worried Byju's investors & more Edtech giant Byju's 'skips' interest payment on $1.2-billion loan Apple may shift 18% of iPhone production in India by FY25: Bank of America Sajjan Jindal may acquire 48% stake in MG Motor India, govt onboard Maintaining its small-car dominance, Maruti leads mid-size PV sales in FY23 Demand for custom AI chatbots leads to hiring push at Happiest Minds Tech NCLT to hear second plea of Aircastle against Spicejet on June 17

The development about lenders telling Byjus that they are open to negotiations but will not engage in the firms proposal for one-on-one meetings was first reported by Bloomberg.

Earlier Byjus reached out to a group of lenders after it skipped an interest payment on its loan. According to Bloomberg, the company scheduled a call with lenders on Monday to discuss an amendment proposal. Details of the proposal were expected to be shared ahead of the call.

A group of ad hoc lenders, who collectively own more than 85 per cent of Byjus term loans amounting to $1.2 billion, said the recent lawsuit filed by the edtech firm in the Supreme Court of the State of New York County lacks merit.

Byjus meritless lawsuit against its term loan lenders is simply an effort to avoid complying with its obligations, including making contractually required payments, said lenders in a statement.

They said the lender group, comprising 21 global institutional investors, sought to work constructively with the company over the past nine months to cure its numerous defaults and would continue to do so in good faith.



The case file In the New York Supreme Court, the edtech firm recently argued that contrary to the conditions of the loan facility, Redwood purchased a significant portion of the loan while primarily trading in distressed debt.

Byju's recently filed a suit against US investment management firm Redwood, challenging the acceleration of $1.2 bn Term Loan B

The edtech major also sought to disqualify the lender for its "predatory tactics"

Byju's skipped an interest payment of about $40 mn on the loan

Lenders say the lawsuit filed by Byju's in the New York Supreme Court lacks merit

Given that legal proceedings are now on in both Delaware and New York, the entire TLB is disputed, the company said in a statement. TLB is a term loan by institutional investors with the prime goal of maximising their long-term returns.

The Bengaluru-headquartered companys US entity Byjus Alpha was recently sued in Delaware by an agent of lenders to whom the company owes $1.2 billion. The lawsuit was filed by GLAS Trust Company and investor Timothy R Pohl against Byjus Alpha, Tangible Play (Osmo), and Riju Raveendran. The two companies being sued are units of Think and Learn Private, an edtech firm founded by Byju Raveendran.

The lenders have reportedly accused the companys entity, which has no employees, of hiding $500 million as part of a battle between the creditors and the edtech firm. The allegation was made during a court hearing last month in Delaware, where Alpha faces a lawsuit over who should control the firm. The lenders claim that because of a default earlier this year, they have the right to put their representative, Timothy R Pohl, in charge.

Byjus Alpha borrowed $1.2 billion, and the lenders received significant pledges of collateral to protect their loans.

As a result of repeated and ongoing breaches of the credit agreement, GLAS, as collateral agent under loan documents and at the direction of the required lenders, has exercised remedies, which resulted in 100 per cent of Byjus Alphas equity being transferred to its name, alleged the lenders in the petition filed in the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware and reviewed by Business Standard. The document is dated May 23, 2023.
Frances Renault has reached a peak by producing one million vehicles in India and has set a target of 2 million by 2030, which will be driven by new launches and a planned electric vehicle foray, said a top executive on Wednesday.

Renault India is working on a slew of new models, including two ICE (internal combustion engine) products and an A segment (small car) electric vehicle (EV). The new cars will start rolling out in 2025. The companys manufacturing facility in Oragadam near Chennai has a capacity of 480,000 units per annum.

Nissan Motor Co and Renault SA, which revamped their global alliance in February, plan to invest Rs 5,300 crore in India to launch six models, including two EVs. The investment is expected to give employment to 2,000 people. The two companies said that each would make three new models on joint platforms while retaining the individual styling of their brands.

We would like to increase our profit by 2030 and achieve the 2-million mark by then, Venkatram Mamillapalle, chief executive officer and managing director, Renault India Operations, told the media. Renault India sells three cars, Kwid, Kiger and Triber, in the country and exports to 14 countries and regions that include South Africa, SAARC and Asia Pacific. Most of its export business comes from South Africa.

Achieving the production of 1 million vehicles in India is a significant milestone for Renault. It demonstrates our unwavering commitment to the Indian market and showcases the trust our customers have placed in us. We are deeply grateful to our customers, dealer partners, employees, and all stakeholders who have contributed to this remarkable journey, said Mamillapalle. Renault, in 2022, produced around 84,000 vehicles and exported 28,000 and expects it to be around the same lines in 2023 as well. The company's manufacturing localisation level is around 92 per cent.

About the government asking manufacturers to be ready with flex fuel or E85 (85 per cent ethanol) vehicles, Mamillapalle said that his company is ready for any transition. The company believes it will easily adapt to E85 as it already has several flex fuel models in Brazil.

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E10 is already in the market and E20 is to be adapted and will be well occupied across the country by the end of 2024. It will reduce the imports of crude oil. We also have to progress towards E85. EV and E85 are two parallels, which will have to grow together. Indications are that by 2027, we will have E85 and refineries also have to be geared up, said Mamillapalle.

A-segment cars like Kwid will continue in the market. It has a market size 25,000-30,000 vehicles a month-- occupied for three cars only. The segment will not go away as it is part of a gradual promotion for a customer from two-wheeler to four-wheeler, he added.

The Renault-Nissan plant, one of the alliances top centres for energy and resource reduction, had announced a plan for carbon neutrality. The target will be achieved by 2045, through a programme to transition to 100 per cent renewable energy.
Industrialist Sajjan Jindal is planning to buy a stake in MG Motor India, according to a report in The Economic Times (ET). MG Motor India is a wholly owned subsidiary of Chinese carmaker SAIC Motor. Jindal group's listed companies, JSW Steel and JSW Energy, will not have any exposure to the venture, the report said.

However, when asked about the deal, a JSW spokesperson said that the group has no comments to offer on market speculation, ET reported. So far, there are no comments from MG Motor India either.

According to the report, Jindal is likely to acquire a 45-48 per cent stake in MG Motor India. This would include a 5-8 per cent stake held by dealers and employees. SAIC will continue to hold the rest of the stakes in the company, the report said, quoting multiple sources.

Jindal and his son Parth were in China to meet the SAIC officials to discuss the specifics of the alliance, the ET report said. The discussions are ongoing for several months and are reaching positive outcomes as both parties appear happy with the terms.

The government of India is also aware of the deal and is happy with the developments. When concluded, the deal will leave at least 51 per cent stake of the company in Indian hands, ET reported.

Thereafter, MG Motor India will "become an Indian entity, instead of a Chinese one, with an eventual India listing in the next few years," the report said, quoting a senior government official.

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ALSO READ: Sajjan Jindal-led JSW Group denies picking up stake in MG Motors, BYD Group This is not the first time that the news of Sajjan Jindal planning to acquire a stake in MG Motor India has surfaced. On April 26, the group denied any such plans, as reported in Business Standard.

"With regard to the query on 'JSW in talks to pick up stakes in MG, BYD India', we confirm that no such proposal as referred to in the news article has been placed for discussion of the Board or any of its Committees," the company had said in a press release.

In a similar trend, Chinese smartphone manufacturers were also asked by the government of India to introduce Indian ownership in terms of equity partnerships in their companies. Additionally, the government had asked these companies to appoint Indian officials in key roles, such as chief executive officer and chief financial officer, among others.

MG Motor India is valued at $1.2-1.5 billion (Rs 9,800-12,300 crore), which is much less than what SAIC originally asked ($8-10 billion) for, the report quoted people cited above.

MG sells its recently launched Comet EV and ZS electric vehicles in India. It also has Astor, Hector, and Gloster in its product lineup.
gettyimagesbank









By Kang Hyun-kyung







Taiwan has become a source of inspiration for filmmaker Kim Deog-young for his documentary titled, "Your Vote Is In Danger," released on April 15.







Also known by the stage name Young Kim, the filmmaker visited Taipei last year for the local elections held on Nov. 26 to learn about the island country's voting system.







Kim said the field trip was mind-boggling.







"It was very educational," he said during a recent interview with The Korea Times. "I learned a lot, particularly about the risks of high-tech elections."







No electronic device is used to cast and count ballots in Taiwan, he said.







Like South Korea, Taiwanese voters cast their votes by marking their favorite candidates on a paper ballot.







However, the two countries adopted different counting methods. In South Korea, electronic vote-counting machines are used to classify marked ballots according to candidate, which are later double-checked by election staffers before final tallies are confirmed.







In Taiwan, all ballots are counted by hand.







Taiwan's tech-free elections reflect the Taiwanese people's deep concern about possible meddling by China in their election results, which, if realized, can distort voters' choices.







"Like South Korea, Taiwan is one of the world's leading countries in information technology. But in elections, there is no technology involved, because that can make elections become prone to cyberattacks from foreign governments," Kim said.







The wariness of Taiwanese people to possible foreign intervention in their elections also created a practice of turning polling stations into ballot counting centers after voting, according to Kim.







At 6 p.m. when voting ends, a polling station set up at a local elementary school classroom in Taipei turned into a vote-counting room. Unlike in South Korea, ballot boxes were not moved to other places. Election staffers and volunteers opened ballot boxes in the classrooms to count votes.







The practice of voting and counting in the same place was introduced to prevent possible malicious interventions in elections, according to Kim.







The filmmaker described in detail how votes are counted.







An election staff member upheld each and every marked ballot over her head to show it to others in the counting room and named the candidate chosen by a voter. Another staff member wrote down how many votes each candidate obtained and changed their numbers whenever new marked ballot sheets were announced. They repeated the same action until all of the ballots were counted.







"Manual counting takes time, but the old-fashioned way of counting votes is transparent and leaves little room for post-election disputes over irregularities," Kim said. "I was struck by the unique election landscape in Taiwan and it opened my eyes to the risks of high-tech elections and cyberattacks from foreign countries."







Kim arrived in Taipei a couple of days before election day. On his first day in Taiwan, he said the country's foreign minister held a news conference to warn China against any malicious attempts to interfere in Taiwan's local elections. The next day, Taiwan's digital minister met foreign correspondents for another news conference to reiterate the same message to China.







"Can you imagine that every day, Taiwanese government agencies receive 5 million cyberattacks from China? That is according to official data from Taiwan's defense ministry," Kim said.







To prevent any controversy stemming from China's possible cyberattacks, he said Taiwan introduced the tech-free election system.







Filmmaker Kim Deog-young / Courtesy of Kim Deog-young





Inspired by his Taipei trip, Kim was determined to produce a documentary to share the lessons he learned from Taiwan. To look into the election systems of other countries, Kim also traveled to Germany and the United States, which together with Taiwan, have shared experiences in post-election protests over vote results.







"Your Vote Is In Danger" revisits the stolen vote controversy in South Korea to find the root causes of post-election disputes about vote rigging allegations.







erupted after the 2020 National Assembly election that resulted in a landslide victory for the liberal Democratic Party of Korea (DPK), which was the ruling party at the time after winning 180 seats in the general election where 300 seats were up for grabs.







There was a big discrepancy in the results between early voting and Election Day voting, triggering suspicions among some conservative activists. Electronic vote-counting machines used by the National Election Commission (NEC) were at the center of controversy.







Later, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of the election watchdog, dismissing the plaintiff's claim of vote rigging.







"Your Vote Is In Danger" explores how other countries that have experienced similar post-election disputes responded to the allegations or took preventive measures.







Based on his findings, Kim concludes that there are still questions that remain unanswered despite the Supreme Court's ruling in favor of the election watchdog.







The documentary premiered at the National Assembly on April 15 to mark the third anniversary of the 2020 general election. The movie is now available on YouTube.







Cybersecurity in elections has emerged as a key issue in South Korea recently as the nation will hold a general election next year.







In May, the National Intelligence Service (NIS) said the election watchdog's website had become the target of multiple North Korean cyberattacks in the last two years, recommending the NEC receive a cybersecurity checkup from the NIS.







The NEC initially rejected the offer, expressing worries about potentially unnecessary political implications of the spy agency's involvement in the election watchdog. But the election watchdog agreed later to receive a cybersecurity checkup by the NIS in collaboration with the Korea Internet and Security Agency.







That has added pressure on the embattled election watchdog, which has been hit by nepotism allegations.







Several former and incumbent high-ranking officials of the NEC have been accused of exercising their influence to help their children get jobs at the election watchdog.







On Thursday, the ruling People Power Party and the main opposition DPK agreed to launch a bipartisan committee to inspect the alleged irregularities in the election watchdog and its vulnerabilities to cyberattacks.







Cho Jin-man, a professor of political science at Deoksung Women's University, said the credibility of the election watchdog is being questioned.







"Mass resignations of the election watchdog's key post holders to take responsibility for the allegations won't help it regain the public's trust," he said.







Cho, also an advisor to the NEC, said more fundamental measures are required.







"The problem is that people don't trust the NEC's capabilities of managing and operating elections. Therefore, it's time to discuss how we can improve our election system to make it more transparent and fair to prevent the recurrence of the stolen vote controversy. Scrapping early voting and removing electronic vote-counting machines could be put on the table because they are at the center of controversy," he said.






The government approved the third revival package of Rs 89,000 crore for BSNL last week. It said that this package will help the state-owned firm to emerge as a stable telecom service provider and it can focus on providing connectivity to the remotest parts of India.

It implied that the companys services are critical in far-flung rural areas which are not served by private players as they are guided by profit motive. However, data shows that private operators such as Reliance Jio, Bharti Airtel, and Vodafone Idea are not only providing services in all rural corners, but their rural market share is also higher than BSNLs.

Currently, out of the total 1.143 billion mobile subscribers in the country, 45 per cent or over 516 million are rural subscribers. In the rural areas, BSNL has a market share of 6.3 per cent with a rural subscriber base of 32.52 million as of March-end, according to data by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai), according to a report in the Financial Express.

In comparison, Jio has a market share of 36.5 per cent with a subscriber base of 188.7 million, followed by Bharti Airtel at 34.8 per cent and nearly 180 million subscribers, and Vodafone Idea at 22.3 per cent with a subscriber base of 115 million.

BSNL is lagging behind peers in rural areas because of increased focus of private companies in such areas, lack of capex by BSNL to strengthen services, stagnant subscriber base, and absence of 4G and 5G services by BSNL.

Ashwini Vaishnaw, communication minister, said, Now the time has come when BSNL should be in the league of the major players and is able to bring connectivity to places where normal commercial consideration companies will not be able to go."

Also Read Fixed broadband may trigger next leg of growth for RJio, Airtel: Analysts TCS-led consortium secures BSNL 4G deployment order worth Rs 15,000 crore Cabinet approves Rs 89,047 crore revival plan for state-run telco BSNL TCS-led consortium wins Rs 15,000 crore BSNL 4G network rollout deal Mobile phone user base rises in Jan after four months of decline: Trai data Open to resolving disputes; won't do one-on-one meetings: Lenders to Byju's Apple may shift 18% of iPhone production in India by FY25: Bank of America Sajjan Jindal may acquire 48% stake in MG Motor India, govt onboard Maintaining its small-car dominance, Maruti leads mid-size PV sales in FY23 Demand for custom AI chatbots leads to hiring push at Happiest Minds Tech

In March 2020, BSNL had a rural market share of over seven per cent with a subscriber base of about 37 million. Meanwhile, both Jio and Airtel had a similar rural market share of nearly 34 per cent each in March 2022 with a subscriber base of 176 million, and 174 million, respectively.

Despite the previous two support packages worth over Rs 2.3 trillion, BSNL has failed to capture rural subscribers lost by Vodafone Idea, which had 131 million subscribers in March 2022 with a market share of 25 per cent.

P K Purwar, chairman and managing director, BSNL, said, "With support from the government, BSNL has a strong focus on rural areas to provide services at competitive rates. The focus of the company currently is to grow its FTTH (fibre-to-the-home) and enterprise business. In about six months, there will be a greater focus on the mobile services segment once we start deploying the 4G networks.

Currently, about 40,000 villages in India do not have 4G connectivity.

Devusinh Chauhan, minister of state for communications, said that the government is targeting to complete 4G saturation by 2024.

While Jio has captured a strong share in rural areas with its free internet offers since 2016, Airtel is eyeing 60,000 high-potential villages where it is not present.

Gopal Vittal, Airtel CEO, said that out of the 60,000 villages, the company has identified 40,000 high-potential villages to focus on profitability.

Further, with 5G rollout, both Airtel and Jio are looking to take a stronghold over the rural areas as well, focusing on quality customers.
The Cabinet is likely to approve a Rs 25,000 crore scheme for semiconductor manufacturing in the country, ET Now reported on Wednesday. The announcement is expected to come out in the afternoon after a Cabinet meeting, which is underway, concludes.

In May, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said that the Centre is prioritising attracting more investments in India by expanding the production-linked incentive (PLI) schemes to include semiconductors and components.

Sitharaman said that India had relaxed various restrictions to ensure greater ease of doing business and draw more investments. She was interacting with business leaders on the theme of "Rising Investment Opportunities: Destination India."

In September last year, the Cabinet had approved a PLI scheme for semiconductor manufacturing in India with an outlay of Rs 76,000 crore. It allowed uniform fiscal support of 50 per cent of project cost for semiconductor fabs across technology nodes and display manufacturing.

The PLI scheme also raised the fiscal support for compound semiconductors, packaging, and other semiconductor facilities to 50 per cent from 30 per cent earlier.

Earlier, incentives for semiconductor fabs were based on the size of the node  nodes from 45 nanometres (nm) to 65 nm were offered an incentive of 30 per cent of the project cost, those between 28 nm and 45 nm were offered a 40 per cent support, and only nodes from 28 nm and below were offered 50 per cent fiscal support. After the fresh changes, all fab plants were allowed to receive financial support of 50 per cent, irrespective of node size.
By Sarita Chaganti Singh and Neha Arora

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - India's federal government plans to fix the rate of royalty that mining companies must pay for extracting lithium at 3% of the prices prevailing at the London Metal Exchange (LME), two government sources said.

India, which has been exploring ways to secure supplies of lithium - a critical raw material used to make electric vehicle batteries - in February found its first lithium deposits in the federally administered region of Jammu and Kashmir. The government is expected to auction the newly found lithium blocks, with estimated reserves of 5.9 million tonnes, later this year.

At least a dozen Indian and foreign companies such as Adani Enterprises, Vedanta Ltd, Reliance Industries, Jindal Steel and Power Ltd, Himadri Chemicals and Korea's LX International are likely to take part in the auction, said the sources, asking not to be named as the information is not public.

India's cabinet is expected to consider the proposal of fixing the rate of royalty for lithium mining at 3% of the rates prevailing at LME, they said. The Ministry of Mines did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The rate of royalty - to be paid to the local administration of Jammu and Kashmir - would be a major step towards the country's first auction of its lithium blocks, the sources said.

Also Read India plans to link prices of domestic lithium with London Metal Exchange Centre to auction lithium reserves found in Jammu by June: Report New lithium reserves in Rajasthan can help India reduce dependency on China India needs Rs 33,750 cr to set up Li-ion cell, battery mfg plants: CEEW India eyes overseas copper, lithium mines to meet domestic shortfall RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das named 'Governor of the Year' in London India to overtake China in oil demand growth by 2027: IEA report Smart home security camera import shipments grew 48% in Q1 2023: Report Rupee hits one-month high against dollar on corporate dollar inflows Retail inflation rose in Bihar, Haryana in May, touched 6% and beyond

India's federal mines ministry fixes royalty rates, but the revenue goes to state governments or federally administrated territories.

India has previously used the LME benchmark to fix the royalty rate for bauxite mining, the sources said. "We studied the royalty rates in other lithium mining countries," said one of the sources. "The royalty rates in Australia is also 3% of LME and (it) is 4.5% of LME in Argentina, Bolivia and Chile - called the lithium triangle."

India's plans to auction its lithium reserve - estimated as the seventh largest deposit - comes amid a push by major economies to secure lithium supplies.

The United States, Canada and other countries have established a new partnership aimed at securing the supply of critical minerals, including lithium.

(Reporting by Sarita Chaganti Singh, Neha Arora; editing by David Evans)
India's seafood exports rose by 4.31 per cent to USD 8.09 billion in 2022-23 on account of a jump in the shipments of frozen shrimp, the commerce ministry said on Wednesday.

In volume terms, the exports increased to 17,35,286 tonnes in the last fiscal against 13,69,264 tonnes in 2021-22.

"Frozen shrimp remained the major export item in terms of both quantity and value while USA and China turned out to be the major importers of India's seafood," it said.

Frozen shrimp exports increased to USD 5.48 billion in 2022-23. The sector accounts for about 41 per cent of India's total seafood exports in volume terms.

The US is the largest market of frozen shrimp, followed by China, the European Union, South East Asia, Japan, and the Middle East, the ministry said.

The other segments which recorded a healthy growth in exports include black tiger, shrimp, frozen fish, frozen octopus, canned products, and frozen lobster.

Also Read TenderCuts launches new platform HappyChops for local meat outlets India's seafood exports to reach all-time high of $8 bn despite hurdles Kolkata to host International Seafood Show, with focus on G20 countries Centre aims at almost doubling seafood exports to $14 billion by 2025 China lifts suspension from 99 Indian seafood processing, exporting units Monitor tur prices, take action against violators of stock limit: Centre GTRI calls for simplifying PLI scheme, cautions against misuse by industry G20 SAIs agree to cooperate to meet challenges of auditing blue economy, AI India considers lithium mining royalty at 3% of London Metal Exchange price RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das named 'Governor of the Year' in London

It added that the US continued to be the major importer of Indian seafood in value terms with an import worth USD 263 billion in the last fiscal.

"Exports to the US declined by 21.94 per cent in USD terms due to sluggish demand," it said.

China emerged as the second-largest seafood export destination.
By Subhadip Sircar and Ruchi Bhatia



On the eastern side of Bengaluru, the city sometimes called the Silicon Valley of India, sits a campus housing three cube-like glass buildings. Each is 10 stories high, with facades glistening in the strong South Asian sun.

These are the offices of Goldman Sachs Group Inc., home to about 8,000 workers, the banks largest venue outside New York. When Goldman set up in the city in 2004, it had roughly 300 people mainly providing IT and other support. Now, its workers are quants and software engineers, building systems for everything from making trades to managing risk.

Across India, the offices set up by multinationals to provide cheap operational support are taking on more sophisticated roles. While the shift has been underway for years, recent economic data highlight a rapid service-sector expansion that many attribute to the offices known as global capability centers.

These GCCs now account for more than 1% of Indias gross domestic product. But the boom also creates challenges, both for the companies and the cities that host them. Finding qualified employees is becoming more difficult, pushing salaries up, while offshoring may become politically sensitive again in the US presidential race.

Over the last 30 years, while China specialized in becoming the worlds factory, India specialized in becoming the worlds back office, said Duvvuri Subbarao, a former governor of the Reserve Bank of India. Over the years, India moved up the value chain, he said. But it cant take its comparative advantage for granted.

India has roughly 1,600 of the centers, more than 40% of the number worldwide, according to Nasscom, a trade body for the countrys technology industry. Dotted around Bengaluru, formerly known as Bangalore, are the offices of luxury retailer Saks Fifth Avenue Inc., aircraft-engine maker Rolls-Royce Holdings Plc, US bank Wells Fargo & Co. and Japanese e-commerce firm Rakuten Group Inc. Some 66 global companies set up their first GCC in India in 2022. Even the lingerie brand Victorias Secret & Co. has a Bengaluru GCC.

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The offices generated about $46 billion in combined revenue in the fiscal year ended March, more than the output of Nepal.

The qualities that turned India into the worlds back office starting decades ago are propelling GCCs metamorphosis: a vast pool of young people, an education system that emphasizes science and technology, and the lower staffing costs that made India attractive in the first place. Add an unforeseen catalyst: the pandemic, which convinced decision-makers jobs can be done anywhere, including far-flung shores.

Indias story starts with its demographics and its talent, said Gunjan Samtani, the country head of Goldman Sachs Services Pvt, the entity that operates the banks GCCs in India. A software engineer by trade, he still codes from time to time. What brought us here even two decades back was our ability to get access to technology and talent.

Last year, a mysterious surge appeared in the countrys economic data. Services exports rose to a record for December, leading economists to speculate why. The trend continued. They climbed to about $323 billion in the fiscal year ended March, up 27% from the year before. Analysts reached the same conclusion: It was the GCCs.

Global capability centers have been driving the exuberance in services exports, Pranjul Bhandari, HSBC Holdings Plcs chief economist for India and Indonesia, and colleagues wrote in a report in March, calling it a meaningful shift in Indias economy.

Its significance went beyond the boost in output. The increase helped narrow the countrys current account deficit, which in turn could support a rupee thats been depreciating for years.

It was an important moment for a business thats been in the making for decades. Global capability centers trace their roots to the 1980s, when Texas Instruments Inc. established a facility in Bengaluru. India took off as an outsourcing hub in the 1990s, when airlines, technology companies and firms including American Express Co. and General Electric Co. set up centers in the country. The facilities took over business processes including accounting, payroll and customer support, with lower labor expenses allowing companies to cut costs.

The multinationals soon saw they could use their India offices for more than back-office functions. Today, they often handle core operations, such as inventory management or purchasing, while also using AI and other advanced technologies to improve how businesses run.

Retailer Target Corp. is working on new systems for order collection and shipping. At Goldman, engineers have helped develop a trading system called Atlas for quant clients with latency in microseconds. Theyve also expanded a commodities platform called Janus, which provides data analytics.

The conversation has changed completely, said Sindhu Gangadharan, senior vice president and managing director of SAP Labs India Pvt. Cost is a beautiful advantage that we have, but thats not the conversation starter like it was 20 years back.

SAP Labs India is now responsible for almost 40% of software firm SAP SEs global research and development and a quarter of its patents annually, Gangadharan said. Goldmans GCCs carry out more than 120 global functions across engineering and business operations. JPMorgan Chase & Co. employs more than 50,000 people at GCCs in five locations across India, in areas including quant research, data science and cloud computing.

GCCs are now following a very different path, said Lalit Ahuja, the founder and chief executive officer of ANSR Inc., a consultancy that has helped clients establish more than 100 of the centers in India. He says he sets up two every month and has never been busier.

The pandemic changed everything by making remote work more acceptable, Ahuja said. The industry came of age in the last few years, he said.

One of Indias biggest attractions is its supply of workers. In April, it overtook China as the worlds most populous country. Its now home to almost a fifth of humanity, and more than half its population is under 30, with a median age of 28. That compares to 38 in both the US and China.

In a nation obsessed with education, many parents want their children to take subjects that will help them get good jobs and careers. Some 34% of students study science, technology, engineering or mathematics at university, the highest among major economies, according to Unesco Institute for Statistics data.

And these days, Indias thriving startup scene is also a boon for companies setting up GCCs and seeking people to hire. India has about 90,000 startups, the third-biggest number of any country in the world.

But the surge in GCCs is making it harder to find employees and creating a need to pay them more. Companies are forming ties with academia to develop hiring pipelines. SAP Labs India has a partnership with engineering school Birla Institute Of Technology and Science, Pilani. Goldman runs an annual contest called GS Quantify for students to find solutions to real-world financial problems. Samtani says the bank gets job applications from more than 1,100 campuses in 20 states.

The war for talent definitely exists, SAP Labs Indias Gangadharan said.

Even before competition for staff intensified, companies needed to spend much time training new hires, according to Dileep Mangsuli, executive director and head of the development center at Siemens Healthineers AG, a medical-technology company involved in imaging and diagnostics, which now does half its software and digital-services R&D in India. Good jobs exist in the country, but the booming education industry often doesnt adequately prepare people to do them.

The employability of new graduates is still a challenge, he said. Till theyre trained and retrained and many times trained, they dont become employable.

As GCCs use more advanced technologies, theyre also finding it harder to find staff. An example is artificial intelligence. India has about 416,000 AI workers, far short of the more than 1 million it will need by 2026, according to Nasscom.

Making the most of Indias demographic advantages will require significant investments and government attention, said Partha Iyengar, the country leader for research at Gartner Inc. in India. Only 30%-40% of graduates in India are employable, he estimates. Not enough attention is being given to this, given the massive scale of intervention required, he said. If that is not done on a war footing, the demographic dividend can very easily and quickly turn into a demographic disaster.

The boom is also adding to challenges for Indias cities, especially Bengaluru.

Home to about 30% of the countrys GCCs, Indias tech capital is constantly congested. As work continues on expanding the metro system, large stretches of the city are dug up, resulting in long traffic jams. Last year, torrential rain caused floods across key roads, forcing chief executive officers to ride to work on tractors.

Multinationals are setting up in other places. Hyderabad, a city of more than 10 million people about 570 kilometers north of Bengaluru, is emerging as a popular location. Goldman opened its second India GCC there in 2021 with a focus on consumer-banking services and business analytics. Pune, about 150 kilometers southeast of Mumbai, is another favored destination, as are some areas near New Delhi.

Another risk is that Donald Trump will revive his campaign against offshoring of jobs as he runs for president again in 2024. Data sovereignty  another argument for keeping jobs at home  could also become an issue.

Still, Nasscom estimates India will have at least 1,900 GCCs by 2025, and annual revenue from the industry will increase to as much as $60 billion. India can overcome the geopolitical challenges because such a large talent pool is not available elsewhere, said K S Viswanathan, the trade bodys vice president of industry initiatives.

At Goldman, Samtani shares the optimism. He points out the bank had one managing director in the city in 2004. Today, in Bengaluru and Hyderabad, 58 people have reached the coveted rank.

If India is not part of the talent story for any firm globally, theyre missing something, he said.
Political stability, low taxation, and personal freedom are the top three metrics for India's millionaires when it comes to deciding where to live. About 6,500 Indian high-net-worth individuals are expected to move out of the country in 2023, according to the Henley Private Wealth Migration Report.

This number is 13% less than that of 2022 when 7,500 high-net-worth individuals are estimated to have left India, the report said. An HNI is a person with investable wealth of $1 million (or Rs 8.22 crore).

The report said that prohibitive tax laws coupled with convoluted and complex rules on outbound remittances that are open to misinterpretation and abuse are among the problems that have triggered the migration of investment from India.

The exodus of big money from India: Where are these HNWIs going?





"One of the main reasons for the Indian startup founders flocking their way to either Dubai or Singapore is because the taxes that a startup may incur while setting up a business is substantially lower as compared to India, especially in Dubai. Another reason for Indians moving to Dubai is the fact that leases for residential/commercial properties are taxed at a flat 5-10% and since the demographic of Dubai is more or less similar to India, that only adds to the attraction of setting up a startup business in Dubai," said Suhael Buttan, Senior Associate, SKV Law Offices.

What's so attractive about the UAE? Dubai and Singapore have emerged as the top two destinations for wealthy Indians when it comes to migration.

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Dubai, also known as the 5th City of India, is particularly attractive for Indians because of its government-administered global investor Golden Visa program, favorable tax environment, robust business ecosystem, and safe, peaceful environment, noted the report. Indians represent the largest demographic of expatriates at 27.49% in Dubai.

The Golden Visa scheme permits wealthy nationals from other countries to acquire residency in the UAE, provided they invest in this territory and meet several requirements.

Several Indians have taken the real estate route to obtain the golden visa especially after the government approved new conditions for securing a 10-year Golden Visa which saw a minimum investment of AED five million in real estate decrease to AED two million:

Real estate investors may obtain the Golden Visa if they fulfil one of the following conditions:

purchase a property worth no less than AED 2 million,

purchase a property with a loan from specified local banks, or

purchase one or more completed or off-plan properties of no less than AED 2 million from a list of approved local real estate companies

This golden residency scheme is renewable and reserved for certain categories ranging from investors to individuals with exceptional talents.

Indias ultra-high-net-worth individuals (UHNWI) with net worth over USD 30 million is estimated to rise by 58.4 per cent in the next five years from 12,069 in 2022 to 19,119 individuals in 2027," said a recent wealth report by Knight Frank, which means that this wealth migration to business hubs like Dubai would only grow.

Dubai was leading the league tables last year in the net millionaire inflows. That trend is likely to continue because of the UAEs reputation for low taxes, high-quality healthcare, a luxury lifestyle, and personal safety, said they Henley Private Wealth Migration Report.

"UAE has long been a favorite destination of HNWIs from around the world. The reasons are obvious: zero taxation rates; highly developed infrastructure; low levels of street crime; a great deal of sun; affordable apartments aplenty; and increasingly cultural attractions such as the Louvre in Abu Dhabi and the Dubai International Book Festival that boasts some of the worlds top-selling authors. As a hub for the wealthy and business from all corners of the world, the opportunities to expand ones professional activities are significant," said Misha Glenny, an award-winning journalist and a former BBC Central Europe Correspondent.

Henley estimates a net inflow of 4,5000 millionaires in UAE in 2023.

The many reasons millionaires are drawn to the Emirates include:

Safe haven status  the UAE is considered a safe haven in the volatile Middle East and Africa region.

Highly diversified economy  the Emirates is strong in many key sectors including financial services, healthcare, oil and gas, real estate, technology, and travel and tourism.

Low tax rates  along with Bermuda and Monaco, the UAE has the most competitive tax rates in the world.

First-class healthcare system  the UAE has a top-class healthcare system, and many foreigners opt to be treated there.

Luxury hub  the Emirates offers top-class shopping and restaurants.

Prime real estate  top-end apartments and luxurious villas are available throughout the country.

Good international schools  there are over 200 international schools in the Emirates.

All-year-round leisure activities  the UAE offers a wide choice of beaches, water parks, and yachting marinas.

"The wealth management solutions that UAE offers private clients, be they HNWIs, UHNWIs, or prominent business families, are truly remarkable. With access to two common law international financial centers (that also host a range of highly active sovereign wealth funds), a variety of freezones including those that regulate the ownership of virtual assets, a liberalised economy facilitating independent ownership in most sectors and choices as to where family offices can be established, the UAE undisputedly provides a holistic solution for many," said Sunita Singh-Dalal, Partner, Private Wealth & Family Offices at Hourani in the UAE.

Why Singapore is Asias biggest wealth magnet





Start-up founders flock to Singapore



A large number of tech entrepreneurs have made the move to Singapore over the past few years as the city-state positions itself to rival Tokyo and Shenzhen to become the Silicon Valley of Asia. Singapore too has been renowned as Asias top wealth hub, with a forecast net inflow of 3,200 in 2023; the highest on record. Wealth migration into Singapore promises to heat up as high-net-worth individuals look for a home that allows them greater  and safer  opportunities to put money to work in Web3.

Singapore has earned the reputation for being one of the most favored countries for setting up a startup business. "Compared to India where a capital gains tax of 15-25% is imposed, Singapore has no such imposition. Further, many goods are also exempted from Goods and Sales Tax in Singapore, even if it is leviable on goods, it is fixed at 7% whereas in India it ranges from 5%-28%," said Buttan.

Singapore has a strong and stable political system with a robust legal framework that cultivates a conducive business environment. Its strategic geographical location attracts investors from across the globe to base themselves here and gain easy access to the regions emerging markets, noted the report.

"Singapores Global Investor Program has a streamlined visa application process and offers several benefits, including the ability to bring family members to Singapore and a faster path to permanent residence. Successful applicants gain access to Singapores business-friendly environment, strong intellectual property protection, and attractive tax policies for companies and investors. Singapores banking sector is well developed and regulated, and the city-state has a burgeoning asset management industry. Singapore is also a vibrant hub for venture capital and private equity investments and is home to a growing number of family offices thanks to the rolled-out tax incentives," said Jacky Poh is Deputy Head Southeast Asia at Henley & Partners Singapore.

"Singapore, Switzerland, and the UAE have all built their reputations on the premise of being safe havens not only for living but also for preserving wealth. They have also established themselves as highly attractive business hubs where companies can thrive in fiscally advantageous jurisdictions with favorable corporate tax rates as well as zero wealth and inheritance taxes," said Dr. Juerg Steffen, CEO of Henley & Partners.

One of the reasons countries such as Singapore attract private wealth is the level of economic freedom they grant. This year, Singapore ranked 1st in the Heritage Foundations 2023 Index of Economic Freedom. The primary aspects of economic freedom measured in the index encompass the rule of law, which impacts property rights and the effectiveness of courts, the tax burden, the size of the government, and the nations fiscal health, business, labor, and monetary freedoms, and the openness of financial markets, said the report.



Between 2020 to 2021, Singapore has seen the number of family offices set up in the city-state rise to 700 from 400.These family offices are usually set up with the objective of managing the financial and investment needs of affluent families or individuals including providing financial solutions, budgeting, insurance, charitable giving, wealth transfer and succession planning, and tax services.



"Singapore, Switzerland, and the UAE have all built their reputations on the premise of being safe havens not only for living but also for preserving wealth. They have also established themselves as highly attractive business hubs where companies can thrive in fiscally advantageous jurisdictions with favorable corporate tax rates as well as zero wealth and inheritance taxes," said Dr. Juerg Steffen, CEO of Henley & Partners.

What about Portugal?

" Portugal has also been the recent recipient of significant wealth from the Indian diaspora, but perhaps that too has reached its maximum potential, considering the announcement regarding the termination of the illustrious Portugal Golden Residence Permit Programme, which had attracted significant investment in Portuguese real estate and other ventures by HNW Indians," said Sunita Singh-Dalal, Partner, Private Wealth & Family Offices at Hourani in the UAE

Nevertheless, it is worth noting that golden visas for entrepreneurial pursuits will continue to be accessible for those with a keen interest in such opportunities.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah will be meeting ace filmmaker S S Rajamouli, the director of blockbuster movies 'RRR' and 'Baahubali', here on Thursday, according to Telangana BJP sources.

Shah, who is scheduled to land here on a special flight tonight, will be addressing a public rally in Khammam, about 200 kilometres from Hyderabad on Thursday.

"Amit Shah will be meeting Rajamouli and some other prominent people of the state. His Telangana visit is part of BJP's month-long 'Maha Jansampark Abhiyan'," Telangana BJP spokesperson N V Subhash told PTI.

In May last year, Shah met 'RRR' star Jr NTR here. This year in March, he also met actor Ram Charan and his father Telugu cinema veteran Chiranjeevi.

From Hyderabad, Shah will reach Bhadrachalam in a chopper and offer special prayers at Sri Rama temple. From there, the senior BJP leader will reach Khammam and attend the public meeting after garlanding former chief minister of Andhra Pradesh (undivided) N T Rama Rao.

After the meeting, the Home Minister will go to Vijayawada by road and board a special flight to Ahmedabad in the night.

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Aiming to emerge as an alternative to the ruling BRS in Telangana in the Assembly elections scheduled to be held later this year, the BJP is keen on making Shah's public meeting a grand success.
The Patna High Court on Wednesday blamed laxity of the Bihar government and the contractor concerned for the collapse of part of the four-lane Sultanganj-Aguwani Ghat bridge, being built over the Ganga in Bhagalpur district, on June 4.

The high court directed the state government to submit the action taken report on the issue, while asking the managing director of the firm constructing the bridge to remain present before the court along with his expert team on June 21, when the matter will come up for hearing again.

This court is shocked at the collapse of constructed part of the bridge on June 4... Last year also, while the construction work was going on, some structure of the bridge had collapsed on April 13, the bench of Justice Purnendu Singh said.

The incident occurred due to the laxity of the state government and the contractor, observed the court.

The bench said it seeks to prevent the misuse of public money and exploitation of natural resources in the interest of the society.

The court directed the contractor SP Singla Construction Pvt Ltd to submit its study report relating to construction work in connection with the Rs 1,710 crore bridge.

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This court finds that the state government has taken the matter of collapsing of the bridge seriously and has also taken action against its authorities and the company. The state government is directed to submit its action taken report on the next date of hearing, it said.

The project started in 2014 and was scheduled to be completed in 2019.
The Bihar government Tuesday announced an increase in the development fund of MLAs and MLCs from Rs 3 crore to Rs 4 crore annually, an official said.

The decision to this effect was taken at a cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, he said.

The MLAs and MLCs can now use more funds under the Chief Minister Local Area Development Scheme (CMLADS), the official said.

The hike will be effective from the current financial year.

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Ahead of Cyclone Biprajoy making landfall in Gujarat, Union Home Minister Amit Shah held a meeting to review the preparedness with Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel and emphasised on "zero casualty".

Shah chaired the virtual meeting, attended by Patel, Union Ministers Mansukh Mandaviya and Parshottam Rupala, several Gujarat ministers, MPs, MLAs, the Chief Secretary and District Magistrates, Union Home Secretary, Director General of India Meteorological Department (IMD), Member Secretary, National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) and senior officers of Ministry of Home Affairs.

During the meeting, Shah said that our aim is to ensure 'zero casualty' and minimize the possible damage caused by the cyclonic storm 'Biparjoy'.

He said that there is a need to act swiftly on the important directions given by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during a review meeting chaired by him on June 12.

Shah said that the Centre has deployed adequate number of NDRF teams for relief and rescue operations.

Along with this, units and assets of Army, Navy, Air Force and Coast Guard have been deployed for help as per requirements, he said.

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He also said that Ministry of Home Affairs and state government control room is monitoring the situation round the clock and all the agencies of the Centre are prepared to deal with any emergency situation. Shah also assured all possible help to the state government.

He also asked the state government to make arrangements to move people living in sensitive places to safer places and ensure all necessary services like electricity, telecommunication, health, drinking water. He said that the preparedness should be such that in case of any damage, these services can be restored immediately.

Amit Shah also directed to ensure mobile and landline connectivity and alternate arrangements for electricity in all hospitals. He said that the storm is expected to bring 8-10 inches of rain, which may cause flood in Kutch and Saurashtra and stressed upon the need to review the necessary preparations to deal with it.

He also asked to make all necessary arrangements around Somnath and Dwarka temple. He said that as per the directions given by the Prime Minister, the safety of animals and trees in Gir forest should also be ensured.

Shah also asked MPs and MLAs of Gujarat to make people aware about the threat of the cyclone in their respective areas and help them.

Meanwhile, the Director General of the IMD apprised Shah about the current status of extremely severe cyclonic storm 'Biparjoy' over eastcentral Arabian Sea.

He said that it is very likely to move nearly northward till June 14 morning, then move north-northeastwards and cross Saurashtra and Kutch and adjoining Pakistan coasts between Mandvi (Gujarat) and Karachi (Pakistan) near Jakhau Port (Gujarat) by noon of June 15 as a very severe cyclonic storm with maximum sustained wind speed of 125-135 kmph gusting to 150 kmph.

Gujarat Chief Minister also briefed Shah about the preparedness and measures being taken by the local administration to protect the population residing in the expected path of the cyclonic storm.

Patel said that fishermen have been advised not to venture out into the sea and those at sea have been called back to land.

"A total of 21,595 boats, 27 ships and 24 large ships have been berthed so far. A list of sensitive villages has been prepared for the purpose of evacuation," he said.

Patel also informed that 450 hospitals have been identified in the areas likely to be affected by the storm and the supply of essential medicines has been ensured.

The Chief Minister further said that adequate shelters have also been arranged and 597 teams have been deployed to ensure power supply.

He also said that 18 teams of NDRF and 12 teams of SDRF have also been deployed.

--IANS

aks/vd
Veterans Minister Park Min-shik speaks during an interview with Yonhap News Agency at his office in Seoul, June 13. Yonhap



Backed by its recent status upgrade, the veterans ministry will forge ahead with a range of high-profile tasks from recovering the remains of a legendary independence fighter to building stronger ties with the countries that backed Korea during the 1950-53 Korean War, its minister has said.



In an interview with Yonhap News Agency Tuesday, Minister Park Min-shik laid out his policy priorities that fall in line with the Yoon Suk Yeol administration's commitment to recognizing and rewarding patriotic services as among the "core values" for the nation's march toward a prosperous future.



He was sworn in as the administration's first veterans minister on June 5, following an upgrade from sub-ministry unit to full-fledged ministry status  a change bound to bolster the ministry's authority in its role to honor national heroes and patriots.



"(Rewarding patriotism) is a core value and asset for Korea to develop into the future," he said. "I believe its value is an indispensable one, without which future prosperity can hardly be achieved."



Park also underscored the drive to honor patriotic services should transcend politics and be entrenched as a "culture" as opposed to a "one-off" event.



Among the key tasks of his ministry is to excavate the remains of Ahn Jung-geun  a renowned independence fighter against Japan  possibly through cooperation with Japan.



Ahn was executed for assassinating Hirobumi Ito, Japan's first Resident-General of Korea, in Harbin, China, in 1909. Work spanning more than a dozen years to locate his remains, thought to be at a prison site in Dalian, China, has borne little fruit.



"As Japan is a country known for keeping records thoroughly, there should be some materials (about Ahn)," Park said. "We are thinking of trying to have productive consultations with Japan. As a long time has passed by, we hope Japan will work together on this with a forward-looking attitude."



His ministry also plans to restore the grave of Choi Jae-hyung, a leader of Korea's independence movement during Japan's 1910-45 colonial rule, at Seoul National Cemetery in time for the country's Liberation Day on Aug. 15, according to the minister.



A temporary grave was set up at the cemetery in 1970 to commemorate his service even though his remains were not found. It was removed in the 2000s after an individual, who falsely claimed to be a descendant was looking to take away state benefits from the bereaved family.





Veterans Minister Park Min-shik speaks during an interview with Yonhap News Agency at his office in Seoul, June 13. Yonhap



The ministry, in addition, plans to bring the remains of his wife from Kyrgyzstan to enable the couple to be laid to rest side by side at the cemetery, Park said.



He also reiterated his call for the need to build a memorial for Korea's first president, Syngman Rhee, a divisive figure in Korean politics for his authoritarian rule before he was ousted by a civil uprising in 1960.



"Even if President Rhee has faults, it is unlikely that he is not deserving of at least one statue," he said.



Park also hinted at the possibility of Cho Bong-am, the country's first agriculture minister, being designated as a person of distinguished service to the country's independence. Cho, who took part in the independence movement, was executed in 1959 after being charged with espionage, but the Supreme Court acquitted him of the charge in 2011.



"I personally think the time has come to reevaluate (him) with an open mind," he said. "(He) played the No. 1 role in land reform as the first agriculture minister."



Alongside the commemoration of national heroes, the ministry is determined to pay more attention to engagement with the 22 countries that participated in the Korean War in support of Korea, Park said, calling the relations with them a "tremendous diplomatic asset" in light of national interests.



"As the ministry will efficiently pursue diplomacy at an equal ministerial level with the 22 states that participated in the war under the U.N. banner, it will be able to further strengthen international cooperation with the countries, including the Korea-U.S. alliance," Park said.



The countries include the United States, Britain, Canada, Turkey, Australia, the Philippines, New Zealand, Thailand, Ethiopia, Greece, France, Colombia, Belgium, South Africa, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Italy, West Germany, India, Norway, Sweden, and Denmark.



The upgrade comes as the ministry plans to hold a major remembrance ceremony on July 27 in Busan, 325 kilometers southeast of Seoul, to mark the 70th anniversary of the signing of the armistice that halted the war in 1953.



On the eve of the event, the ministry will host a ministerial meeting between the 22 countries.



"The 70th anniversary isn't just meaningful for Korea but for all the 22 countries that took part in the Korean War," he said, noting that the Korean War marked the first time countries went to war under the U.N. flag.



"The connection with the 22 countries that took part in the Korean War is not just a matter of gratitude, but it is also a tremendous diplomatic asset," he said.



Park pointed out that his ministry's tasks extend all the way to young Korean men or "heroes on campus" who just returned to school after their mandatory service.



"We will study what their needs are. For example, there could be a scholarship program for them if they meet certain criteria, though we cannot give it to all," he said.





Veterans Minister Park Min-shik speaks during an interview with Yonhap News Agency at his office in Seoul, June 13. Yonhap
The Narendra Modi government has undertaken a range of initiatives in the last nine years to develop tribal human resources with a special focus on education, health, and livelihood generation, Union Tribal Affairs Minister Arjun Munda said on Wednesday.

He said the Pradhan Mantri Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups Development Mission, announced earlier this year, will saturate the target families and habitats with essential facilities.

Rs 15,000 crore has been allocated for the socio-economic development of these marginalised groups for the next three years, the minister said at a press conference here.

This is the first time a dedicated scheme has been formulated to ensure holistic development and implement a data-centric human development indexing approach for the particularly vulnerable tribal groups (PVTGs), he said.

Munda said the Union government will recruit 38,800 teachers and support staff for Eklavya Model Residential Schools (EMRS) in the next three years. The EMRS scheme for making model residential schools for tribal students across India started in 1997-98.

Under the Narendra Modi government, the number of such schools functioning in the country has increased from 119 in 2013-14 to 401 in 2023-24, he said, adding the number of students enrolled in these schools has increased from 34365 in 2023-14 to 1,13,275 in 2023-24.

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As part of a new scheme formulated in 2019, the government decided to establish Eklavya Model Residential Schools in every block with 50 per cent or more Scheduled Tribes population and at least 20,000 tribal persons as per the 2011 census.

Munda said the government was committed to strengthening healthcare systems for the tribal population and was making efforts to eliminate sickle cell anaemia by 2047 through awareness campaigns, universal screening of seven crore people up to 40 years of age in affected tribal areas and counselling.

He said the government was working to develop over 36,000 villages across the country with at least 50 per cent tribal population and 500 STs as model tribal villages under the Pradhan Mantri Adi Adarsh Gram Yojna. This initiative aims to ensure that basic amenities reach tribal villages.

In terms of land rights, the government has distributed 21.99 lakh individual titles and 1.08 lakh community titles thus far under the Forest Rights Act.

Mundai said his ministry has recorded a significant increase in its annual budget. The allocated budget for 2023-24 stands at Rs. 12,461.88 crores, three times the budget in 2013-14.

The Scheduled Tribe Component Funds have seen a remarkable five-fold increase. The allocation has risen from Rs. 24,598 crore in 2013-14 to Rs. 1,19,509 crore in 2023-24 across various Union ministries and departments.

Over the past nine years, the government has released over Rs 25,000 crore to states for more than 5,000 projects spanning different schemes. States have been urged to ensure meticulous planning and monitoring for the effective implementation of these schemes and projects, Munda added.
Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and Indian Ambassador to the United States Taranjit Singh Sandhu on Wednesday held discussions on bringing more investments to the state and the assistance that the embassy can provide for it.

The ambassador, during the discussion, said there was a potential for investments in the defense and space sectors and for collaboration in the field of pharmaceutical vaccines, a statement issued by the Chief Minister's Office (CMO) said.

Vijayan also tweeted about the meeting, saying it was "productive".

"Had a productive meeting with the Indian Ambassador to the US, @SandhuTaranjitS. We discussed the vital aspects of investments and collaborations for Kerala's progress and explored exciting opportunities across various sectors like space, pharmaceuticals, healthcare, and tourism." he tweeted.

Vijayan and Sandhu, during their meeting, also deliberated on sending health workers to America, improving their nursing education to better their standards and collaborating with American companies, the CMO statement said.

They were also of the view that there was great potential for cooperation in the field of tourism, especially medical tourism which could help to promote Ayurveda, it said.

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Besides, the two also deliberated on elevating the education sector in Kerala to international standards and how it can be achieved by collaborating with university professors in the American Malayali diaspora.

"There was also a discussion on collaboration between American companies and Kerala in the fields of IT Innovation, Start Up, Renewable Energy, Green Hydrogen and many others," the statement said.

Sandhu promised all the necessary assistance to Kerala and also offered the embassy support to bring more American investments to Kerala and take necessary steps to increase cooperation between educational institutions in Kerala and the United States, it said.

The CM said that all necessary measures will be taken by the Kerala government also.

Kerala Finance Minister K N Balagopal, Chief Secretary Dr V P Joy and others also participated in the meeting between the CM and the ambassador.

After concluding his nearly a week long US visit, Vijayan left for Cuba, the statement said,



Indian Consul General in New York Randhir Jaiswal accompanied the CM Minister and his delegation to the airport to see them off, it said.

Vijayan will participate in various events in Havana on Thursday and Friday.

He will meet with various dignitaries and also visit places of historical importance including the Jose Marti National Monument, the CMO statement said.
With cyclone 'Biparjoy' likely to make landfall near Jakhau Port in Gujarat's Kutch district on Thursday, the state administration has shifted more than 74,000 people living near the coast as a precaution and deployed disaster management units for rescue and relief measures, said officials on Wednesday.

With the cyclone in the Arabian Sea barrelling towards the Gujarat coast, parts of the Saurashtra-Kutch region received heavy rains accompanied by strong winds, the Met department said. This will be the second cyclone to hit the state in two years after 'Tauktae' in May 2021. According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD), cyclone 'Biparjoy' would make landfall near Jakhau Port on Thursday evening as a 'very severe cyclonic storm' with maximum wind speed reaching up to 150 kilometres per hour. Of the total 74,345 people moved to temporary shelters in eight coastal districts, nearly 34,300 were evacuated in Kutch district alone, followed by 10,000 in Jamnagar, 9,243 in Morbi, 6,089 in Rajkot, 5,035 in Devbhumi Dwarka, 4,604 in Junagadh, 3,469 in Porbandar district and 1,605 in Gir Somnath district, said a release by the Gujarat government. Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel on Wednesday night reached the State Emergency Operations Centre (SEOC) in Gandhinagar and held a meeting with top officials to review the situation and steps taken so far by the administration in view of the approaching cyclone, said the release. Meanwhile, two most famous temples of Gujarat -- Dwarkadhish Temple in Devbhumi Dwarka and Somnath Temple in Gir Somnath district -- will remain closed on Thursday for devotees, said another release. The IMD said the intensity of rainfall in parts of the state would increase as the cyclone approaches , with isolated places in the districts of Kutch, Devbhumi Dwarka and Jamnagar likely to witness extremely heavy rains. In 12 hours till 6 pm Wednesday, 65 talukas of districts in Saurashtra regions received rainfall, SEOC said in a release. According to SEOC, 54 talukas across several districts received more than 10 mm of rainfall in the last 24 hours till Wednesday morning. Khambhaliya taluka of Devbhumi Dwarka district received the highest 121 mm of rainfall, followed by Dwarka (92 mm) and Kalyanpur (70 mm) during this period. As per the government, 15 teams of NDRF (National Disaster Response Force), 12 of SDRF (State Disaster Response Force), 115 teams of the state road and building department, and 397 of the state electricity department have been deployed in different coastal districts. "Officials of departments of electricity and road & building have also reached designated spots to restore connectivity and power supply. We have also deployed teams carrying HAM radio sets and satellite phones in the coastal region for better communication," said Commissioner of Relief, Alok Kumar Pandey. The Western Railway said 76 trains have been cancelled, 36 short-terminated and 31 short-originated as a precautionary measure to ensure safety of passengers and train operations. Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel was briefed about the evacuation measures across 164 coastal villages, a CMO statement said.

Patel interacted with sarpanches of the villages through the CM Dashboard at state capital Gandhinagar and offered his guidance on arrangements to deal with the cyclone fallout. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Wednesday spoke to the three service chiefs and reviewed the preparations of the armed forces to deal with the impact of the cyclone.

After reviewing the preparations, Singh said the armed forces are ready to provide every possible assistance to civil authorities in tackling any situation or contingency that may arise due to the cyclone. Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya also separately reviewed the preparedness measures being taken in Kutch. He visited the Bhuj Air Force station to take stock of the preparations made by 'Garuda' Emergency Response Team of the Indian Air Force. Mandaviya said "our jawans are fully prepared for the safety of life and property from the cyclone." He also reviewed the availability of oxygen, ventilators and critical care beds in Kutch district government hospitals, trust-run hospitals and other hospitals in the region. Cyclone Biparjoy is very likely to cross Saurashtra and Kutch and adjoining Pakistan coasts between Mandvi (Gujarat) and Karachi (Pakistan) near Jakhau Port by the evening of June 15 as a very severe cyclonic storm with maximum sustained wind speeds of 125-135 kmph gusting to 150 kmph, the IMD said. Due to this, a few places in Porbandar, Rajkot, Morbi, Junagadh and remaining districts of Saurashtra and North Gujarat regions are likely to receive heavy to very heavy rainfall on Thursday. The IMD has also forecast light to moderate rainfall with heavy to extremely heavy showers at isolated places over north Gujarat districts and adjoining south Rajasthan on Friday. A total of 33 teams have been earmarked by the NDRF to undertake relief and rescue operations in Gujarat and Maharashtra ahead of the expected landfall of cyclone, officials said in New Delhi.

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The highest decision-making body of the Delhi Development Authority on Wednesday gave its nod to sell 40 HIG flats of the DDA to the city's Public Works Department (PWD), officials said.

In a meeting of the authority, chaired by Delhi Lt Governor V K Saxena, who is also DDA's chairman, it also approved the change of land use of land for the construction of a five-lane toll plaza (RFID system) at Ghazipur's old location.

"Realising the ample facilities provided by the DDA at very attractive rates, the department has offered to buy 40 HIG flats at Jasola for use by its officials, as residential staff quarters," the DDA said in a statement.

"Such bulk allotments to government's departments afford a golden opportunity to purchase readymade flats without going through the hassle of undertaking construction," it said.

Also, to ensure a smooth flow of traffic at Delhi border points and help in maintaining road infrastructure in the national capital, the authority has approved the change of use of land measuring 7205 sqm from 'recreational' to 'transportation', for the construction of a five-lane toll plaza (RFID system) at Ghazipur's old location, the DDA said.

The erstwhile SDMC has been entrusted to install an RFID-based electronic toll collection system at 13 road entry points (covering 65 toll lanes) in Delhi in compliance with the Supreme Court's order dated August 22, 2016.

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Accordingly, the erstwhile SDMC had requested the DDA to provide an area measuring 7205 sqm for installing the five-lane toll plaza for cashless collection of toll tax and environment compensation charge, it added.

Besides, the DDA approved a proposal for change of land use in the Master Plan for Delhi (MPD-2021) and zonal development plan (ZDP) for Zone-N of land measuring 39.603 acres required for construction of 765/400 KV Electrical sub-station (ESS) in Auchandi village.

The Power Grid Corporation of India Limited, through its 100 per cent owned subsidiary Powergrid Narela Transmission Limited, is constructing a transmission system, the statement said.

The highest decision-making body of the DDA approved an increase in plinth area rates (PARs) for calculating the construction cost of DDA flats for the financial year 2023-24 based on the increase in the building cost index of CPWD by 8.5 per cent over the last approved PARs towards the cost of money. No increase has been made in the rates of Narela flats, it added.

The DDA also approved an increase in rates for conversion of land from leasehold to freehold in respect of commercial and industrial properties and multilevel parking for the year 2023-24, by 10 per cent over the rates prevalent in year 2022-23.

It approved the increase in predetermined rates in developed areas for 2023-24 by 10 per cent over the rates for 2022-23. These rates are used for calculating the payment recoverable from allottees of land over which flats are to be constructed or plots are to be allotted in developed colonies, the statement said.
Delhi's water crisis will be resolved within the next two-three years as the government is taking radical steps to tackle the problem, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said on Tuesday.

In 2015, Delhi's water production stood at 850 million gallons per day (MGD). It has now increased to 1,000 MGD, he said at a press conference at the Delhi Secretariat.

Kejriwal said he has set an ambitious target to further enhance Delhi's water production capacity to a range of 1,200-1,300 MGD.

Once this goal is achieved, Delhiites will no longer face water shortages, he added.

To accomplish this, the government plans to install tubewells in areas with high water-tables, enabling the extraction of water on a large scale. Additionally, an innovative approach will be adopted to recharge groundwater by rejuvenating lakes with treated sewage treatment plant (STP) water, the chief minister said.

The recharged water will undergo further treatment in reverse osmosis (RO) plants before being supplied to households, he said.

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To ensure the highest standards of sewage treatment, all STPs in Delhi are currently undergoing comprehensive upgrades, aiming to mitigate pollution and promote responsible water resource management, the CM said.
A team from Election Commission of India (ECI) will visit Telangana for three days from June 22 to evaluate and ensure preparedness for the Legislative Assembly election scheduled to be held later this year.

State Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Vikas Raj said this in a joint meeting convened by him on Wednesday with DGP Anjani Kumar to discuss and assess the state's poll preparedness.

The meeting was aimed at appraising the district Collectors and Superintendents of Police about the upcoming general election to the Legislative Assembly in Telangana, the CEO's office said in a release.

The ECI delegation, led by Dharmendra Sharma, Senior Deputy Election Commissioner and Deputy Election Commissioners, along with senior officers of the poll panel, would be in Hyderabad from June 22 to 24.

"Their visit is intended to evaluate and ensure the preparedness for the forthcoming election," it said.

During their stay, the ECI delegation would first meet with the CEO Telangana, Special Police Nodal Officer, and CAPF (Central Armed Police Forces) Nodal Officer. These discussions will provide an opportunity to exchange insights and strategies regarding the election security related issues, it said.

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Thereafter, the ECI delegation will hold extensive consultations with district Collectors and SPs and various enforcement agencies, including the Income Tax (CBDT), NCB, Excise department, state GST and CGST, Enforcement Directorate, State Level Bankers Committee (SLBC), DRI, RPF, CISF, and state Commercial Tax department.

This collaborative effort aims to foster coordination at state and district levels to preserve the integrity of the electoral process, it said.

Speaking at the meeting, DGP Anjani Kumar emphasised the crucial role of district police officers in ensuring a smooth and secure election.

He highlighted the need for adequate manpower and instructed officers to map border check posts while facilitating cross-functional training with agencies like the Income Tax and GST, the release added.
Farmers protesting over the MSP for sunflower seeds at Pipli in Haryana's Kurukshetra called off their agitation on Tuesday night after an assurance from the state government of "appropriate price" for the crop.

Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) leader Rakesh Tikait said after fresh talks with the district administration in the evening, the farmers have ended the protest and the national highway blockade in Pipli has been lifted.

Kurukshetra Deputy Commissioner (DC) Shantanu Sharma told PTI that farmers have been assured of "appropriate price" for sunflower crop.

Sharma said the Haryana government always stands by farmers. "Either by increasing (crop) rate or 'bhavantar' rate, it is the Haryana government's decision to ensure right price of the crop and we will do this," he said.

The DC also said Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar had promised setting up of a unit for processing 20,000 metric tonnes for sunflower in Shahabad and it will soon be fulfilled.

Talking to reporters here, Tikait said that the local committee of farmers which were holding talks with the government reached an agreement in the evening as per which the government has agreed on their MSP demand and also agreed to release the farmers arrested recently during Shahabad protest by following the process of law.

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"Our agitation here was that procurement should be at the MSP. We had sought the rate which was fixed by the Centre," he said.

"In every state, the MSP rate will have to be given. A bigger agitation will be needed in the country on legal guarantee of MSP. A beginning has been made here," Tikait said.

The protest here has ended and the road has been cleared, he said.

The protesting farmers had blocked the National Highway-44 near Pipli, which connects Delhi with Chandigarh, and some other routes since Monday afternoon after holding a mahapanchayat on the issue.

The district administration had since Monday held several round of talks with the protesting farmers, but breakthrough came only in the evening after the state government gave an assurance on the demand.

Soon after the agreement was reached, the farmers celebrated their victory and also burst crackers.

On Monday, the farmers had held 'MSP Dilao, Kisan Bachao Mahapanchayat', called by the BKU (Charuni), at a grain market in Pipli close to NH-44. Subsequently, the farmers blocked the highway in support of their demand.

The blockade of the highway had caused inconvenience to commuters as they were stuck in traffic jams and forced to cover longer distances to reach their destinations due to the traffic diversions.

Many truck drivers said that the consignments being carried by them for their delivery at various points has got delayed due to the blockade.

Tikait had earlier asked the state government to accept the demand or send farmers to jail.

The farmers had been demanding that the state government procure sunflower seeds at an MSP of Rs 6,400 per quintal.

Under the Bhavantar Bharpai Yojana -- price difference payment scheme -- the state government was giving Rs 1,000 per quintal as interim support for sunflower crop sold below MSP.

On June 6, farmers led by BKU (Charuni) chief Gurnam Singh Charuni blocked the highway near Shahabad here demanding that the government procure sunflower seeds at MSP. Police used water cannons and batons to disperse the protesters.

Later, nine BKU (Charuni) leaders, including its president, were arrested over various charges, including rioting and unlawful assembly.

On Tuesday, when asked if farmers have been assured of Rs 6,400 MSP for sunflower, Tikait said "the farmers will get the rate fixed by the Centre".

He said that it is not the question of "forcing the government to bow before their demand, but we had been seeking what is our right".

When asked if the Haryana government will increase the 'Bhavantar' or give Rs 6,400 per quintal for sunflower, Tikait said "in whichever way they give, the farmers will get the MSP".

Chief Minister Khattar on Saturday released Rs 29.13 crore as interim compensation to 8,528 farmers for sunflower grown on 36,414 acres.
Goods worth lakhs of rupees was gutted in a massive fire at a vegetable-fruit market in Indore city of Madhya Pradesh on Wednesday afternoon, police said.

There was no report of any casualty in the incident that occurred at the Devi Ahilyabai Holkar market around 1 pm, they said.

According to eyewitnesses, some empty boxes of mangoes caught fire due to a short circuit in an electric pole inside the market located at Choithram Square in the city, and the blaze soon spread.

"The fire was brought under control after hours of efforts and there was no report of any casualty," Superintendent of Police (Fire) Padmavilochan Shukla said.

Apart from the goods kept in the shops, the cabin of a goods-carrying vehicle was damaged in the fire, another police official said.

Lok Sabha member from Indore Shankar Lalwani visited the site to take stock of the situation.

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A three-day G-20 agriculture ministerial meeting will kick-start on Thursday in Hyderabad and will deliberate on a wide range of issues including sustainable agriculture, climate solutions and women-led agriculture.

More than 200 delegates from G-20 member countries, invited countries and global organisations are scheduled to participate in the meeting. Agriculture Ministers from various countries and Director Generals from global organisations will also take part.

On the first day, the Union Minister of State for Agriculture Kailash Choudhary will inaugurate an exhibition showcasing the achievements of India in the field of agriculture and allied sectors. The inauguration will be followed by the Agriculture Deputies Meeting (ADM), an official statement said.

In the second half, there will be two side events titled, "managing agribusiness for profit, people and planet" and "Connecting the digitally disconnected: harnessing the power of digital technologies in agriculture" with participation from top Indian agriculture-based companies, startups, central and state government agencies involved in promotion of agri-business companies.

On the second day, Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar will welcome his counterparts from G-20 nations and other heads of the delegation participating in the G-20 meeting.

The ministerial engagements on the day will include discussions on "Sustainable Agriculture for Food Security and Nutrition". There will also be a ministerial discussion on women-led agriculture, sustainable biodiversity, and climate solutions, in three parallel sessions.

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On the third day, the ministers' meeting will conclude with the adoption of the outcomes of the Agriculture Working Group, G20 under India's Presidency.

The delegation will then proceed for a technical excursion to ICAR-Indian Institute of Millets Research (IIMR), Hyderabad.
Promoting cruise tourism as a "model for sustainable and responsible travel" will be one of the focus areas among the side events at the two crucial G20 meetings on tourism next week in Goa, officials said on Wednesday.

The fourth G20 Tourism Working Group (TWG) Meeting and the G20 Tourism Ministerial Meeting are to be held in Goa from June 19-22.

Interacting with reporters here, Union Tourism Secretary V Vidyavathi said while India's G20 Presidency is only for a year, a "dashboard" is also being developed through which good practices and case studies on sustainable tourism by participating countries will be shared.

"It will be a dynamic dashboard which will serve as a learning platform for various countries, and these case studies will continue to be uploaded on it for the next three years," she said.

The official reiterated that there will be two key deliverables after the Goa meet.

"At the end of our working group meeting and the ministerial meeting, we are going to declare a Goa Roadmap and Action Plan for tourism as a vehicle for achieving sustainable development goals (SDGs)," Vidyavathi said.

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Under India's G20 Tourism Track, the TWG is working on five inter-connected priority areas green tourism, digitisation, skills, tourism MSMEs and destination. These priorities are key building blocks for accelerating the transition of the tourism sector and achieve the targets for 2030 SDGs.

Also, there will be a "ministerial communique" that will be released at the end of the tourism working group and other deliberations which will endorse the Goa roadmap, she said.

On June 19, a side event on 'Making Cruise Tourism a Model for Sustainable and Responsible Travel' will be organised, focusing on strategies to promote cruise tourism. The event will see the participation of G20 member countries, invited countries, international organisations, and industry stakeholders, the officials said.

The event will witness deliberations on the challenges and opportunities in the growth of cruise tourism globally. A panel discussion featuring speakers from G20 member countries and guest countries will shed light on country-specific policies and initiatives on varied aspects of cruise tourism, its growth and need to make cruise tourism sustainable and responsible.

On June 20, Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant, Union Minister of Tourism and Culture G Kishan Reddy, Union Minister of State for Tourism and Shipping Shripad Yesso Naik and Union Minister of State for Tourism and Defence Ajay Bhatt are slated to address during the inaugural session of the TWG, the officials said, adding there will be two working sessions.

A side event on 'Making India a hub for Cruise Tourism' will be hosted parallel to the TWG meeting following the principles of sustainability. It will deliberate on the strategies to promote India as a hub for cruise tourism and see participation of representatives from key states and Union territories, industry stakeholders, national and international experts, Vidyavathi said.

She also said that the Ministry of Tourism is organising a side event -- 'Towards a circular economy of plastics in tourism - the Global Tourism Plastics Initiative' -- in collaboration with the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO).

Further, a 'Public Private Dialogue: Importance of Travel and Tourism to the G20 Economies' is also being co-organised by the ministry in Goa on June 21 in association with World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) and UNWTO.

She said that to mark the International Day of Yoga on June 21, a special yoga session has been organised by the Goa government.

Additional Secretary in the ministry, Rakesh Verma, said that about 100 delegates have registered for the G20 ministerial meeting, and about 75 of them for the TWG.

He also highlighted the important cultural events scheduled as part of the G20 events.

Various cultural programmes will be organised to highlight and showcase the rich cultural heritage of Goa to the G20 delegates, like lamp dance, Kathak, Goan Mando music and dance presentation, Dekhni dance, Mussal Khel (pastel dance) and Gomant Rangm, he said.

Delegates will also have the opportunity to experience the local attractions of Goa. Excursion visits have been planned to Lower Aguada Fort and Jail Museum, and the UNESCO World Heritage Sites such as churches and convents of Goa viz. the Basilica of Bom Jesus, Church of St Francis of Assisi and Se Cathedral; and Archaeological Museum, the officials said.

During the meeting, delegates will also be visiting the Art and Craft Bazaar organised by the state government showcasing local handicrafts, work of artisans, signifying the importance of community participation. DIY (do-it-yourself) activities at the Craft Bazaar have been planned to offer them hands-on experience.

Souvenir items to be given to delegates include embroidered stole or scarf (made from handmade Kunbi fabric); GI cashew feni miniature; terracotta lotus-shaped incense stick holder; upcycled natural scented candle made using discarded bottle; roasted organic Goan cashew nuts; recycled wood tray with Azulejo tiles inlay; and 'Goan house window', the ministry said.

The first TWG meeting had taken place at Runn of Kutch in Gujarat, and the second at Siliguri and Darjeeling in West Bengal, and the third one in Srinagar in Jammu and Kashmir.
President Yoon Suk Yeol convenes the cabinet meeting at the presidential office in Seoul in this photo provided by the presidential office, June 13. Yonhap



President Yoon Suk Yeol on Wednesday ordered the office of the presidential secretary for civil service discipline to carry out a thorough investigation into the decision-makers behind allegedly corrupt solar energy projects pursued under the previous Moon Jae-in administration, his office said.



The order came a day after the state Board of Audit and Inspection said it referred 13 people, including Gunsan Mayor Kang Im-joon and two former industry ministry officials, to the prosecution after finding irregularities in a number of energy projects launched over the past four to five years.



"President Yoon Suk Yeol ordered the office of the secretary for civil service discipline today to carry out a thorough investigation into the entire decision-making line involved in the solar projects at the time," presidential spokesperson Lee Do-woon said during a press briefing.



The BAI said it identified alleged collusion between a private firm and officials from the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy in advancing a 300-megawatt solar panel project in Taean County, located approximately 110 kilometers southwest of Seoul, around 2018-2019.



During the approval process for the project, the two sides are believed to have colluded in changing the purpose of land use, resulting in a hike in the land value that ultimately benefited the firm, the BAI said.



In a separate case, Kang allegedly provided favors to an alumnus of his high school in selecting a preferred bidder for a government-funded solar panel project in his city in 2020, the BAI said.



The promotion of renewable energy was one of the Moon administration's key agenda items.



A presidential official told reporters that depending on the results of the civil service discipline secretary's investigation, disciplinary action could be sought against those responsible, and in the event of clear violations of the law, those people could be referred to the prosecution for a formal investigation. (Yonhap)


Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority (HMDA) and GMR Hyderabad International Airport Ltd will contribute 10 per cent each for Rs 6,250 crore Hyderabad Airport Metro Project.

Hyderabad Airport Metro Ltd (HAML) Managing Director N.V.S. Reddy said on Wednesday that the project is estimated to cost Rs 6,250 crore and it will be funded totally by the Telangana government, along with 10 per cent each contributions by HMDA and GMR Airport

Addressing a pre-bid meeting for the Hyderabad Airport Metro project, he explained the importance and salient features of the Airport Metro project to the prospective bidders.

The pre-bid meeting was held as a sequel to the global tenders invited for selection of EPC (Engineering, Procurement and Construction) contractor for the Hyderabad Airport Metro project and the technical teams of 13 national and global companies participated in the meeting. They included L&T, Alstom, Siemens, Tata Projects, IRCON, RVNL, BEML, PANDROL Rahee technologies etc.

Reddy stated that most of the preliminary works like survey, peg marking, alignment fixation etc, have been completed and soil testing is in full swing. As per the updated survey and alignment fixation, now the 31 km corridor between Raidurg metro station and Airport terminal station will have an elevated portion of 29.3 km and underground portion of 1.7 km. It will have 9 stations including one underground metro station adjacent to the airport terminal.

The prospective bidders' queries pertaining to the civil structures, rolling stock (trains), signaling and train control systems, performance indices, technical specifications etc., were discussed at length in the meeting and clarifications were given by the MD and his technical team.

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The selected EPC Contractor must start the ground works latest by September 2023 and complete the project in 3 years.

--IANS

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The central government will recruit 38,800 teachers and support staff for Eklavya Model Residential Schools (EMRS) in the next three years, Union Tribal Affairs Minister Arjun Munda said on Wednesday.

The EMRS scheme for making model residential schools for tribal students across India started in 1997-98.

Under the Narendra Modi government, the number of such schools functioning in the country has increased from 119 in 2013-14 to 401 in 2023-24, Munda said at a press conference, listing his ministry's achievements in the last nine years.

The number of students enrolled in these schools has increased from 34365 in 2023-14 to 1,13,275 in 2023-24.

As part of a new scheme formulated in 2019, the government decided to establish Eklavya Model Residential Schools in every block with 50 percent or more ST population and at least 20,000 tribal persons as per the 2011 census.

"The ministry is focusing on setting up of EMRSs in 740 identified blocks across the country by the year 2025-26. In the next three years, 38,800 teachers and support staff will be recruited to impart quality education to around 3.5 lakh tribal students in these schools," Munda said.

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A total of 693 schools have been sanctioned so far, the minister said. Smart classes are being set up by the Ministry of Electronics and IT in 175 such schools, Munda added.
A 27-year-old woman from Hyderabad, who was studying a master of science course in the United Kingdom, was allegedly stabbed to death at her accommodation in London, the UK Metropolitan Police said.

The Met police said two men have been arrested in connection with the murder that took place at a residential property in Neeld Crescent, Wembley in London on Tuesday.

While the murder victim is yet to be formally identified by police in the UK, reports from India indicated it was Kontham Tejaswini a young professional from Hyderabad.

A post-mortem examination is scheduled, following which the police are expected to formally release her identity but th



Tejaswini's family members, who live in Hayathnagar area of Hyderabad, on Wednesday said they got information that she was "attacked" in the flat, a shared accommodation.

"We came to know about the incident today morning. We don't know when it happened. We got the information that she is serious and in hospital," Tejaswini's father told a news channel. She had gone to London three years ago and had completed her MS course there, her father said.

The Metropolitan Police had earlier released an image of Brazilian national Keven Antonio Lourenco De Morais to seek the public's help in tracing the suspect behind the attack. The 23-year-old man has now been arrested from Harrow, near the crime scene of Neeld Crescent in Wembley.

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"Officers attended along with the London Ambulance Service and two women were treated for stab injuries. Despite the efforts of emergency services, a 27-year-old woman sadly died at the scene. Her next of kin are yet to be informed, the Met Police said in a statement.

Besides Tejaswini, another woman, aged 28, was also attacked and taken to hospital with stab injuries that were later assessed as not life-threatening, the Met Police added.

Tejaswini's father said she came to Hyderabad in August last year and went back (to London) in September. She was supposed to come to Hyderabad in May this year, he said, adding: "We were planning to conduct her marriage. She said she will return after the alliance is finalised. She had resigned from her temporary job and said she will come back after working for another month."



Her uncle requested the government to make necessary arrangements to bring her body from the UK to Hyderabad.
Japan's State Minister for Foreign Affairs Shunsuke Takei Wednesday took a ride in Delhi Metro and visited the museum of the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) here, officials said.

He was travelling as part of a Japanese G20 delegation that included the Ambassador of Japan to India, Hiroshi Suzuki, among others.

"The members of the delegation travelled by metro from Central Secretariat to Chawri Bazaar," a senior official of the DMRC said.

The group took a tour of the Chawri Bazaar underground station located in old Delhi. On their return journey, the group stopped to visit the Delhi Metro Museum on the premises of the Patel Chowk Metro station, the official said.

DMRC Managing Director Vikas Kumar and other senior officials from JICA (Japan International Cooperation Agency) India office accompanied the visitors.

The DMRC shared pictures from the Japanese delegation visit on Twitter.

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The delegates have arrived in India from Japan for the several G20 meetings that are being hosted across the country.
The Kerala government on Wednesday approved the approach document for the 14th Five Year Plan (2022-27), which, according to it, aims to transform multiple sectors of the economy and the entire state into a modern society.

The document was approved by the state Cabinet, chaired virtually by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, who is currently on a tour to the US and Cuba, a statement issued by the Chief Minister's Office (CMO) said here.

According to it, Kerala will continue to focus on areas including health, education, housing, social welfare, social justice, and gender justice, which together will serve as a force for accelerated growth of the productive sectors in the economy.

The government said science and technology, higher skills, and skills available in the knowledge economy will be used to enhance the growth of agriculture, allied activities, modern industry, infrastructure development, and income-generating services.

The economic policy will be designed to modernise and improve the higher education system and provide better job opportunities for the youth of Kerala.

The plan also envisages bringing the standard of living in Kerala on par with that of developed middle-income countries in the next 25 years.

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"It will also feature inclusiveness in the development process", the statement said and added that the current government is working on a principle that no one will be left behind in the development process.
In a major development, the Nagas of Manipur and the majority Meitei community have resolved to strive for maintaining territorial integrity of the violence-hit state.

Representatives, including village chiefs and authorities of 13 Tangkhul Naga and six Meitei villages, conclaved at Chandrakhong, a converging point of Kamjong, Kangpokpi and Thoubal districts of Manipur on June 10 and decided to work for safeguard of Meitei and Tangkhul Naga villages and even demand an NRC.

A few days earlier, as many as 10 Naga legislators from Manipur had dissociated themselves from the demand of a "separate administration" for tribals by the Kukis and other smaller Zo communities and asserted that "Naga areas should not be touched" if at all any such arrangement is made.

These have triggered debate on the prospects of Naga peace talks and even so-called Naga unity.

"We the Nagas have been trying to go forward on a back gear and perhaps we are soon about to reach the station called: 'Solution? What Solution?'," says retired IAS officer Khekiye K. Sema questioning the very rationale of the ongoing Naga peace talks.

"To add salt to the wound, it appears that our Tangkhul brothers have finally shown their true character by openly joining hands with the Meiteis in a time like this... vowing to jointly safeguard Manipur's territorial integrity," he wrote in an article published in local newspapers.

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"Are the Nagas of Nagaland awake to this recent development? For all practical purposes the NSCN (IM) is a Tangkhul outfit".

The developments are significant. The Nagas of Manipur have shown preference to a status quo arrangement with the Manipur state.

Moreover, since the ethnic strife broke out in Manipur on May 3 between the Meiteis and Kukis, there have been no untoward incidents between Meiteis and Nagas.

In fact, analysts also say that the efforts by Kukis to enlist the support of the Nagas of Manipur in their demand for a separate administration did not enthuse the latter showing their clear preference to stick to their age-old friendship with the Meiteis.

The NSCN-IM, consisting largely of Tangkhul Naga cadres and leadership under a Tangkhul Naga Thuingaleng Muivah, has been insisting for a 'greater Nagaland' or Nagalim in their parleys with the Centre.

The Centre has HOWEVER, rejected the demand stating that no compromise will be entertained to impact the territorial integrity of states like Manipur, Assam and Arunachal Pradesh.

NNPG -- the umbrella organisation of seven Naga outfits with an overwhelming support base within the state of Nagaland led by N. Kitovi Zhimomi -- is keen for an early solution pact with the Centre.

The NNPG had signed a foundation pact called 'Agreed Position' in 2017, while the NSCN-IM has its own Framework Agreement which was inked with the Centre in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2015.

The Naga civil society and influential Naga Tribes Council (NTC) have been insisting for an early peace pact and did not like matters related to Manipur or Arunachal Pradesh to be linked for delaying the solution and a final peace pact.

The NSCN-IM on the other hand has not made any forward movement on the peace talks with the Centre since 2019.

Now a categorical assertion by the Naga legislators of Manipur that they would not like to be "touched" by the Kuki demand and 13 Tangkhul Naga villages backing the cause of a 'united Manipur' would have its ramifications in the peace parleys.

Former civil servant Khekiye Sema's statement must be seen from that perspective.

"Despite such ruthless hatred plainly being displayed by the Meiteis right before their very eyes against a tribal brother (Kukis), the utter indifference and lack of unity amongst the tribals of Manipur is clearly unimaginable," laments Khekiye, who is a Sema Naga and a Christian from Nagaland.

Khekiye suggests that the NSCN-IM leadership is still hiding from Nagas of the state of Nagaland the details of its "negotiations" with the Centre.

"Their arrogant audacity lies in the fact that the NSCN (IM) have refused to transparently share their 'Competency Clauses' to the stake holders that's predominantly concerning us, the Nagas of Nagaland! The Tangkhul brothers in the NSCN (IM) led by their unquestioned all mighty Muivah are playing a treacherous game with the lives and the future of the Nagas of Nagaland with half truths and sinister questionable motivations," he says.

Khekiye maintains that by way of Naga Hoho or an upper House in the new proposed system, the Tangkhul Nagas or the NSCN-IM leadership want to dominate the state of affairs of Nagaland.

Since May 3, the violence in Manipur has killed over 100 people and injured more than 300 others. Thousands have been rendered homeless and around 9,000 Kuki-Zo community people from the hills of Manipur are already taking shelter in Mizoram.

A 10-member group, including MLAs from the BJP, NPF and NPP, called on Union Home Minister Amit Shah last week and appreciated the latter's 'swift actions' to control the escalating tensions.

MLA Losii Dikho said that for the first time in many years, there is now a Naga MLAs forum in Manipur.

Meanwhile, the CBI has filed six FIRs and formed a special team to probe the alleged conspiracy related to the ethnic violence in Manipur.

The agency will probe into details whether there was a 'conspiracy' to foment communal tension in the sensitive state and whether there was a coordinated effort behind the continued unrest, ethnic/communal clashes and also looting of arms and ammunition from security forces.

The state DGP has been replaced by a Tripura cadre officer Rajiv Singh and one security advisor Kuldiep Singh has been appointed.

There is also a judicial body probing the violence.

The Centre has set up a Peace Committee with Governor Anusuiya Uikey as the chairperson and that includes representatives from all communities and also Chief Minister N. Biren Singh.

Many leaders, including Naga politicians and civic body leaders in private and otherwise .have been insisting that the Centre should not delay inking a peace pact with the umbrella organisation NNPG.

The NSCN-IM is against signing of a peace pact without a separate Constitution and Naga flag.

(Nirendra Dev is a New Delhi-based journalist. He is also author of the books 'The Talking Guns: North East India' and 'Modi to Moditva: An Uncensored Truth'. Views expressed are personal)

--IANS

nirendra/ksk/
At least nine people died, while ten others were injured in fresh violence reported in Agijang village on the border between Imphal East and Kangpokpi districts in Manipur on Tuesday.

According to the police, firing was reported after a group of armed assailants descended upon the area and launched an attack, police said on Wednesday.

Reports said miscreants also burned down several houses in Khamenlok village.

Meanwhile, curfew relaxations in Imphal were reduced, now in effect from 5 am to 9 am.

K Shivakanta Singh, Imphal East police superintendent, said, There was firing in the village around 10-10:30 pm and nine people were killed and 10 others injured. All injured have been admitted to hospital where the condition of one is stated to be critical.

Singh added that the situation in the area was now under control.

Also Read As Manipur reels from violence, home minister Shah to visit the state today Tribal protest in Manipur turns violent; curfew imposed, internet suspended Shielding governance failure will not resolve Manipur's problems Manipur violence: Security deployed after fresh clashes in Imphal 'Not consulted over CM's presence': Kuki members to boycott peace committee SC refuses to entertain plea for FIR for hate speeches in Uttarakhand 4 fresh earthquakes hit Jammu region, trigger panic among residents US actively working to help India attract private capital: Yellen Wrestlers case investigation: Delhi Police to soon submit report in court Aadhaar card can be updated till June 14 free of cost; check details here

Earlier on Monday, nine people were injured in a gunfight in the Khamenlok area in an exchange of fire between militants and village volunteers.

Over 100 people have been killed and another 40,000 displaced since violence between the tribal Kukis, mostly residing in the hill districts, and the Meiteis, the dominant community in Imphal Valley, erupted on May 3.
An NGO which supports various activities for marginalised communities, including transgenders, distributed Mahila Samman Savings certificates to sex workers in the Kamathipura red light area recently.

The Mahila Samman Savings Certificate was announced by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in the 2023-24 Union Budget to commemorate the Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav.

The two-year tenure scheme for women offers an attractive and fixed interest of 7.5 per cent interest compounded quarterly with flexible investment and partial withdrawal options with a maximum ceiling of Rs. 2 lakh. The scheme is valid for two years up to March 31, 2025.

The certificates were presented to the sex workers by Nidarshana Gowani of the Kamala Ankibai Ghamandiram Gowani Trust as a part of her philanthropic endeavours.

The certificates of Rs 15,000 investment each were distributed among 100 sex workers.

"We are happy to felicitate 100 sex workers from the Kamathipura area with the Mahila Samman Savings certificates. It is a humble contribution from our side to support them and give back to society.

Also Read Mahila Samman Savings Certificates: All you need to know about the scheme Smriti Irani opens Mahila Samman Savings Certificate account in Post Office Same-sex marriage in India: What did Supreme Court say in the case? SC begins hearing of pleas to recognise same-sex marriages; details here Same-sex marriage case in the Supreme Court: Here is what the Centre said Tributes pour in for British Indian student killed in Nottingham stabbing Veteran Bollywood singer and composer Sharda Ranjan dies of cancer at 86 Who is T Venkattram Reddy, the man arrested by ED in money-laundering case Hyderabad woman stabbed to death in London, UK authorities arrest suspect Prez Murmu to review Combined Graduation Parade in Hyderabad on June 17

"The scheme is a significant step towards financial inclusion and empowerment of women. It will help the sex workers in securing their financial future and the future of their children," Gowani said.
Senior IAS officer Sudhansh Pant has been named as the new Health Secretary as part of a top-level bureaucratic reshuffle effected by the Centre on Tuesday.

Pant, a 1991-batch Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer of Rajasthan cadre, is currently Secretary in the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways.

He has been appointed as the Officer on Special Duty (OSD), Department of Health and Family Welfare.

The officer will take over as Secretary, Department of Health and Family Welfare, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, upon retirement of Rajesh Bhushan on July 31, 2023, an order issued by the Personnel Ministry said.

T K Ramachandran, chairman of V O Chidambaranar Port Trust, Tuticorin, will be Secretary, Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways in place of Pant.

Chanchal Kumar, Managing Director of National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation Ltd., has been named as the new Civil Aviation Secretary.

Also Read "I am still in the game", Rishabh Pant says in new Zomato ad promoting ZPL Rishabh Pant needed urgent surgery, may be out of field for 6 mths: Report Pant thanks 'two heroes' in 1st statement after crash, says recovering well Rishabh Pant injured in a car crash near Roorkee, BCCI issues statement Rishabh Pant must take his time to heal properly, says Sourav Ganguly Farmers end protest in Pipli after assurance of 'appropriate price' Biprajoy: Shah holds review meet with Guj CM; emphasises zero casualty CBI files FIR against Gujarat firm for Rs 1,518L fraud against PNB World Bank assures Kerala of investment in basic infrastructure sectors India economy performing strongly despite global slowdown: J P Nadda

"The officer will join as Officer on Special Duty, Ministry of Civil Aviation in the rank and pay of Secretary to the government of India on 01.08.2023 and take over as Secretary, Ministry of Civil Aviation vice Shri Rajiv Bansal, lAS (NL:88) upon his superannuation on 31 .08.2023," the order said.

A total of 15 senior bureaucrats have been appointed in different central government departments in Tuesday's rejig.

Pankaj Agrawal, Additional Secretary and Director General (Acquisition), Ministry of Defence, will be the new Power Secretary.

He has been appointed as OSD, Ministry of Power and the officer will take over as Secretary of the ministry upon superannuation of Alok Kumar this month end.

Senior bureaucrat Atal Dulloo has been appointed as Secretary, Department of Border Management, Ministry of Home Affairs. He will succeed Dharmendra S Gangwar, who is due to superannuate on June 30.

Rameshwar Prasad Gupta, a 1987-batch Gujarat-cadre retired IAS officer, has been appointed as Chairman & Managing Director, Solar Energy Corporation of India Ltd. on contract basis for a period of two years, the order said.

Bharat Lal, who is at present Director General of National Centre for Good Governance, has been appointed as Secretary General, National Human Rights Commission on contract basis for a period of one year.

He will succeed Devendra Kumar Singh, who is due to retire from service on June 30.

Debashree Mukherjee will be Secretary, Department of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation.

Mukherjee, who is currently Special Secretary in the same department, will succeed Pankaj Kumar, upon his superannuation on September 30.

Rajat Kumar Mishra, Additional Secretary in the Department of Economic Affairs, has been appointed as Secretary, Department of Fertilizers.

Subhas Chandra Lal Das, Director General of Hydrocarbons, will now be Secretary, Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises, the order said.

Nivedita Shukla Verma, Special Secretary in the Department of Defence, will be new Secretary, Department of Chemicals and Petro-Chemicals. She has been appointed as OSD, Department of Chemicals and Petro-Chemicals with effect from August 1.

Verma will take over as Secretary, Department of Chemicals and Petro-Chemicals, upon superannuation of Arun Baroka on August 31.

Vibhu Nayar, Additional Secretary & Financial Advisor, Ministry of External Affairs will be Tribal Affairs Secretary.

He has been appointed as Special Secretary & Financial Advisor in the External Affairs Ministry.

The officer will join as OSD, Ministry of Tribal Affairs on November 1, 2023 and take over as the Secretary after retirement of Anil Kumar Jha on November 30.

S Gopalakrishnan, Special Secretary in the Department of Health & Family Welfare, has been appointed as Director General, National Productivity Council. He will replace Sundeep Kumar Nayak, who will be superannuating on July 31.

Chhattisgarh-cadre IAS officer Renu Gonela Pillay will be Secretary, National Commission for Scheduled Castes, Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment. She will succeed Upma Srivastava, who retires on July 31.

Pillay's batchmate Seema Jain, presently serving in her cadre state Punjab, will be Member Finance, Space Commission. She will take over the charge from Talleen Kumar, who is due to superannuate on July 31.

The officer will also hold additional charge of Member Finance, Earth Commission and Atomic Energy Commission (with headquarters at New Delhi), the order said.

The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has approved in-situ upgradation of two officers to the level of Special Secretary by temporarily upgrading the post held by them.

Pramod Kumar Tiwari, Director General, Bureau of Indian Standards, Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution will now be at the rank and pay of Secretary to the government of India.

Vijay Kumar, Additional Secretary in the Ministry of Cooperation, will be Special Secretary in the same ministry.
Investigators in the wrestlers' case will soon submit chats, videos and statements of over 150 witnesses in court, a Delhi Police source said on Wednesday.

According to the source, police have collected several videos, including the CCTV footage of the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) office.

Earlier, the police had reached out to five foreign wrestling federations, seeking information, as several wrestlers have alleged harassment during tournaments abroad. They are currently awaiting responses from these federations.

As for the charge sheet filed by police, officials said that Police Commissioner Sanjay Arora has reviewed the progress of the investigation and given approval to proceed.

"The investigating officer will now conclude the necessary procedures and submit the reports to the Rouse Avenue Court," said the official.

In April, Delhi Police registered two separate First Information Reports (FIRs) against the WFI chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, based on sexual harassment allegations. The first FIR pertains to the accusations made by a minor and has been filed under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, along with relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code concerning the act of outraging modesty.

Also Read Delhi excise policy case: Court grants interim bail to five accused Policeman misbehaved with Manish Sisodia at Rouse Avenue court, says AAP Liquor policy case: Delhi court to hear Manish Sisodia's bail plea today Bizman Arun Pillai moves application retracting statements given to ED Aim of BJP-led Centre is to defame Kejriwal, AAP leaders: Sanjay Singh Aadhaar card can be updated till June 14 free of cost; check details here ED arrests former promoter Venkatram of DCHL in money laundering case Amit Shah to address public rally in Telangana; to meet S S Rajamouli India reports 120 new Covid-19 cases, active infections dip to 2,148 Agency probes bribery claim in toxic syrup tests killing children in Gambia

The second FIR focuses on comprehensive investigations into the complaints made by adult complainants and involves relevant sections of the IPC related to outraging of modesty.

The father of the minor wrestler involved in the case has stepped forward and claimed that he filed a "false" complaint of sexual harassment against the chief.

The father alleges that his actions were driven by anger and frustration over the chief's perceived biased treatment towards his daughter.

--IANS

ssh/shb/
Rep. Kim Tae-nyeon, second from right, the chairperson of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea's committee aimed at tackling the public economic crisis speaks at a meeting held at the National Assembly, March 22. Yonhap





Five lawmakers of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) are on a visit to China, the party said Wednesday, amid heightened tensions between the two countries over Chinese Ambassador Xing Haiming's remarks, which were strongly denounced as disrespectful to Korea.







The lawmakers  Reps. Kim Tae-nyeon, Hong Ihk-pyo, Koh Yong-jin, Hong Kee-won and Hong Sung-kook  arrived in Beijing on Monday for a five-day visit for meetings with people from Chinese political and business circles, the DPK said in a press release.







They have met with officials from China's National People's Congress and the foreign ministry.







During those meetings, Chinese officials requested that Korea reaffirm its position on Beijing's "One China" policy, as written in a joint statement in 1992 to celebrate the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries, according to sources.







"They raised an issue with Korea only emphasizing its opposition to changing the status quo by force in the Taiwan Strait without clearly expressing its position on the 'One China' policy," a source said.






JP Morgan has reiterated its negative stance on Indian information technology (IT) services and downgraded the sector to underweight (neutral earlier post Q4-FY23 numbers), as it believes the overall demand environment for the sector still remains weak.

The research firm expects most companies in the sector to disappoint while announcing their first quarter numbers for the current fiscal (Q1-FY24). Among stocks, it has placed Infosys, TCS, MphasiS its negative catalyst watch.
As little as 1-1.25 per cent of those working in the Indian information technology (IT) sector are above 50 years of age, Financial Express (FE) reports.

Citing data from the country's largest IT company, Tata Consultancy Services' FY23 annual report, the newspaper reported that only 1.1 per cent of its employees are aged above 50 years. On the other hand, 52.69 per cent of the company's employees were below the age of 30, the FE report said.

Interestingly, TCS is not alone in terms of having a younger workforce on its rolls. A similar trend was observed at Infosys, which is the country's second-largest IT firm. Citing data from ICICI Securities, FE reported that only 2.5 per cent of the company's employees around the world were above the age of 50 years, while about 60 per cent of its employees were below 30 years.

The situation was no different at LTI, where below 30 years comprised around 46 per cent of its workforce and only two per cent of employees were above 50 years, the report said.

The trend in the west

While IT employees in India are overwhelmingly young, the scene in the west is completely different. For example, in US and Europe, only 17 per cent of TCS employees are less than 30 years, while 21.8 per cent of them are more than 50, the FE report added.

Also Read TCS Q4 review: Near-term growth to moderate, demand levers intact: Analysts IT major Infosys rewards employees with equity shares under 2 schemes TCS Q4 Preview: Revenue may rise up to 18% YoY; EBIT margin seen at 25% TCS may consider giving 12-15% hikes to top employees to curb attrition TCS-led consortium secures BSNL 4G deployment order worth Rs 15,000 crore 70% Indians believe influencer marketing has an impact on them: Report Learning company Pearson appoints Vinay Kumar Swamy as India head I dream everybody can have an AI tutor, an AI doctor: Satya Nadella Cloud conglomerate Cisco likely to pick Flex as manufacturing partner Tricked into buying? Centre to form guidelines for 'dark patterns' soon

Talking about the stark difference in the demographics of the workforce in India and the west, former CFO at Infosys, V Balakrishnan told FE that taking age into consideration is seen as a discriminatory practice in the US. Moreover, experienced employees are preferred to represent the companies for onsite work and this may be the reason for the asymmetry in the age of employees working in India and the West.

Another industry expert, Pareekh Jain was quoted in the report as saying that since most senior officials of Indian teams are located overseas, the teams in India appear to be overtly young. He added that when compared to India, the age of retirement is also higher in the US and may play a role in the age profile of the employees.
Stating that customers must not be forced or directed into buying a product without their consent, Rohit Kumar Singh, secretary of the Department of Consumer Affairs (DoCA), said that the Centre would release guidelines to handle "dark patterns" on the internet in the next two months.

Dark patterns encompass various manipulative practices such as drip pricing, disguised advertising, bait and click, choice manipulation, false urgency, and privacy concerns.

These deceptive practices prompt the users to buy a particular product or a service even when they do not give their exclusive consent. There are several types of dark patterns prevailing on the internet today. Some of these are disguised ads, nagging, basket sneaking, forced action, bait and switch and hidden costs.

Singh was speaking at an interaction hosted by DoCA and the Advertising Standards Council of India (Asci) in Mumbai on Tuesday evening.

"DoCA is extremely concerned over the proliferation of dark patterns in e-commerce and other modes. Consumers must not be forced or directed towards unintended consequences without their express consent and consent by deceit is not an express consent. Consumers shall be aware of what they are signing up for and also should be able to get out of the same," he said.

The department will frame the guidelines with Asci. "We look forward to providing all assistance to ASCI in examining this issue and building a comprehensive framework to protect consumers," he added. The guidelines, at first, will be self-regulatory.

Also Read On industry demand, ASCI extends 'Dark Patterns' paper feedback deadline One in every four ads processed in FY23 had violations by influencers: Asci Asci report calls out edtech ads for uneven focus on marks, maths, science 80% consumers in India do not notice disclaimers in advertisements: ASCI Three-fold rise in complaints against personal care ads since 2019: Asci Overall average airfares on a downward trend on various domestic routes PLI scheme for mobile production led to 20% value addition, says govt Signal look out: I&B seeks views on shift to the 4000-4200 MHz band Bank NIMs to compress 10-120 bps in FY24: Rating agencies CRISIL and ICRA Around 70% companies planning to recruit this fiscal year: Report

In the meeting, the department also told the companies to focus on self-regulation. The companies that attended the meeting were ONDC, Flipkart, Zomato, Amazon, Meta, Google, MakeMyTrip, Yatra, Snapdeal, Uber, Ola, Big Basket, Meesho, Pharmeasy, Tata 1mg and Shiprocket, among others. It was also attended by bodies like the Retailers Association of India and Nasscom.

The self-regulatory measures will include prohibiting specific kinds of dark patterns, fostering consumer-friendly digital choice architecture and empowering regulators.

"With e-commerce and social commerce growing at breakneck speed, online consumer safety is at the top of Asci's agenda. Deceptive patterns in online advertising mislead consumers, ruin their online experience, and erode trust in brands and advertising," said Manisha Kapoor, chief executive officer (CEO) and secretary general, Asci.

"Today's consultation looked at some dark patterns beyond the scope of advertising, but that compromise consumer interest, nonetheless. We are grateful that DoCA is putting its weight behind this important issue and together we look forward to forming a strong set of guidelines and rules that help weed out online deceptive patterns," she added.

Apart from self-regulation, it was also discussed that equipping users with tools and resources that allow them to make informed choices online is another potential solution to these malpractices. This could include browser extensions, apps or plugins that detect and block dark patterns.

Also, the platforms must provide clearer and more accessible settings and privacy options.
Reliance Industries (RIL) will be one of the key beneficiaries of India's clean energy opportunity over the next few years, suggest analysts at Bernstein in a recent report. It maintains an 'outperform' rating on the stock with a target price of Rs 3,040, an upside of nearly 20 per cent from the current levels.

"India targets solar capacity of 280GW and 5 million tonnes of green hydrogen production by 2030. We expect electric vehicle (EV) penetration will reach 5 per cent for passenger vehicles (PV) and commercial vehicles (CV), and 21 per cent for two-wheelers (2W). Clean energy could have a to
The right incentive

No further delay

The spirit of the law

Cabinet reshuffle: Arjun Meghwal replaces Kiren Rijiju as new law minister

The two major democracies of the Anglosphere have centuries of democratic history and precedent to call upon  and yet appear besieged by populism, which is asking questions of their institutions that have no easy answers. Over the past week, former British prime minister Boris Johnson resigned from his seat in Parliament shortly before reports suggested he would be censured by an internal ethics committee. Across the pond, former United States president Donald Trump was the subject of an extraordinary indictment from prosecutors for his apparent failure to turn over classified documents after he left office in 2021. Both populi

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Labelling the Centre's ordinance on control of services as "a brazen power grab", Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday said it "won't stand" in the Supreme Court while asserting that a united opposition will defeat it in Rajya Sabha.

Addressing a press conference here following his meeting with CPI General Secretary D Raja, he alleged that the central government has "practically taken over the entire Delhi government".

According to the AAP government, after JD(U), RJD, TMC, Shiv Sena (UBT), NCP, BRS, DMK, SP, JMM and CPI(M), the CPI has extended its support to Kejriwal's campaign against the Centre's "draconian anti-Delhi ordinance".

Kejriwal has been meeting opposition leaders to ensure that the related bill is not passed in the Rajya Sabha.

The chief minister termed the ordinance a "brazen power grab that has wreaked havoc in Delhi".

The ordinance not only reverses the Constitution Bench judgment of the Supreme Court but goes much beyond that, he claimed.

Also Read Several from BJP attended rally against Centre's ordinance, claims Kejriwal Kejriwal meets Uddhav to seek support for fight against Centre's ordinance Delhi ordinance row: Arvind Kejriwal to meet Uddhav Thackeray on Wednesday Centre's ordinance 'unconstitutional', to snatch power from Delhi govt: AAP Kejriwal meets Mamata to garner support for fight against Central ordinance RSS body ABVKA calls for restoration of peace in violence-hit Manipur Violence over panchayat election nomination continues in West Bengal Oppn least concerned about development, grabbing power sole agenda: Nadda Govt should set up department of peace if it believes in democracy: Gehlot PM Modi redefined India's foreign policy, ended uncertainty in J-K

"If we were to sum up this ordinance in one line, it would be, 'from now on, Arvind Kejriwal will no longer be the CM of Delhi; the new CM of Delhi will be Narendra Modi and he shall take all decisions regarding Delhi government'," he said.

Kejriwal said the ordinance is "very dangerous for the whole country and not just Delhi". "The more one reads into it, the more fatal outcomes of its provisions come out," he said.

He talked about how the "BJP has faced crushing defeats in Delhi three times in a row, resulting in the party trying to "stifle the governance system through the backdoor".

Kejriwal thanked all the opposition parties who have extended support to his campaign against the ordinance. He expressed hope that the ordinance "will not stand" in the Supreme Court and the Rajya Sabha and the people of Delhi will get justice very soon.
Union Minister of State for Electronics and IT, Rajeev Chandrasekhar, on Wednesday again hit out at former Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey, further questioning his India 'pressure' statement amid the ongoing US political season.

Speaking at the 'FE Digital Bharat Economy Conclave 2023', the minister reiterated that the India 'pressure' statement was an outright lie by Dorsey.

"It is political season in the US. is he (Dorsey) trying to claw his way back into relevance? All of those questions he can answer but certainly, without any fear of contradiction, what he has said is an outright lie," the minister said.

"We neither shut down Twitter or had any other punitive consequences imposed on Twitter. We are a democratic country and live by the rule of law and, therefore, regardless of whether you are in San Francisco or Menlo Park or Bangalore or Hyderabad, the rule of law applies to you as well," Chandrasekhar stressed.

He said that it has become very clear that these social media platforms require more guardrails "because of the kind of arbitrary and abuse of power and misuse of power that they exercise".

"Either because they follow a particular political ideology or because somebody just wants to play God. A lot of the stuff about Twitter that is now in the public domain reinforces the need for guardrails all around the world," the minister emphasised.

Also Read Twitter violated laws between 2020-22, during Dorsey's tuenure: BJP IT head Congress demands answers on ex-Twitter CEO's claim of pressure from Centre Ex-Twitter CEO Dorsey alleges pressure from India, Centre denies claims Twitter rival Bluesky backed by Jack Dorsey crosses 100,000 users Meta-owned WhatsApp working on new 'text editor' for iOS beta: Report DMK can't be cowed down by intimidations: Stalin on Senthil Balaji's arrest Special court dismisses compliant against Sidda over Lingayat CM comment BJP should think before pointing fingers: Baghel hits back at Nadda BJP govt insulting India's democracy on world stage: SP on Dorsey's claims Rozgar mela has become a new identity of BJP govt: PM Narendra Modi

The Centre earlier lashed out at Dorsey for claiming that the Indian government threatened to wind it down and conducted raids on employees' homes, saying it was an attempt to "brush out that very dubious period of Twitter's history".

Dorsey alleged in an interview with YouTube channel 'Breaking Points' that the threats came as Twitter refused to comply with the government's demands to block accounts during the farmers' protests in early 2021.

In the interview, Dorsey claimed that India put pressure on the platform.

--IANS

na/dpb
Bold decisions taken by the political leadership and India remaining steadfast in its resolve to eliminate terrorism have redefined the country's foreign policy during the nine years of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's rule.

For 70-years no government in the Centre could take a call on Article 370 -- a temporary provision in the Constitution which provided special status to Jammu and Kashmir. However, the dispensation led by Prime Minister Modi exhibited the political will and the courage to scrap the so-called special status of J&K on August 5, 2019, to pave the way for complete integration of the Himalayan region with the Union of India.

The move led to reestablishing stability and curbing the influence of Pakistan sponsored cross-border terrorism, which marred J&K for 30-long years.

By eliminating the Article 370, the Centre addressed the vulnerability that Pakistan exploited for years and delegitimized terrorism.

After revocation of the Article 370 Pakistan left no stone unturned to garner support against India's decision but the international community didn't pay any attention towards the tantrums thrown by Pakistan.

Many countries around the world have understood India's perspective on the issue, and have denounced Pakistan for sponsoring terror for all these years.

Also Read Supreme Court to take call on listing of pleas challenging Article 370 'Shah's June 2019 Srinagar visit was to give final touch before abrogation' Srinagar to host first international summit since abrogation of Article 370 China calls J-K 'disputed territory', opposes holding G20 meeting in region Jammu and Kashmir's Srinagar likely to host G20 event: Govt official Court issues summons to Congress leaders in defamation case filed by BJP Cong highlights Railway Board member's letter, asks if CBI will probe it Narada sting operation: HC gives CBI 4 months to complete TMC MP probe AAP condemns TN minister Senthil's arrest, calls it 'political vendetta' Practise what you preach: TMC counters PM's remarks on ancestral politics

Terrorism can't be kept aside

PM Modi-led regime has made it clear that India would not tolerate cross-border terrorist activities and it cannot keep aside terrorism to improve ties with Islamabad under its neighbourhood first policy.

Pakistan has been told in clear terms that if it wants to take the relations forward, it has to stop sponsoring terror.

Terrorists and separatists in J&K have been pushed to the wall. Ugly face of Pakistan has been exposed before the world.

The revocation of Article 370 has marked a significant victory for national security in India.

Pertinently, after the outbreak of Pakistan-sponsored insurgency in Jammu and Kashmir in 1990, Pakistan saw Article 370 as a point of vulnerability to target India.

It used this provision to fuel separatist sentiments and support terrorism to create chaos and uncertainty in the region.

The revocation of Article 370 punctured false narratives propagated by Pakistan and its stooges in Jammu and Kashmir. The move unveiled Pakistan's involvement in supporting terrorism and separatist activities. By eliminating the special status, India has challenged and refuted the baseless claims of Pakistan.

Since the abrogation of Article 370, Jammu and Kashmir has witnessed not only developmental initiatives but also the benefits of globalization that the rest of the country experiences. The integration has provided new opportunities for economic growth, infrastructure development, and enhanced connectivity, benefiting the people of Jammu and Kashmir.

Pak's real face exposed

By exposing Pakistan's real face to the world, India has garnered international support in its war against terrorism. The government's proactive approach has showcased India's determination to prioritize national security while seeking peaceful relations with its neighbours.

By eliminating the provisions of Article 370 that Pakistan exploited, India has dealt a strong blow to cross-border terrorism and emphasized the importance of tackling this global menace.

The international community's support and the benefits of development and globalization in J&K have validated the significance of the decision taken by New Delhi.

For over three decades, Pakistan has been actively involved in the tumultuous region of Kashmir, employing various tactics to ensure a state of uncertainty and chaos. Through its proxies and stooges, Pakistan played a central role in perpetuating violence, providing arms, ammunition, and training to terrorists, enticing local youth into joining their ranks, and using hawala channels to fund separatists and stone pelters.

This calculated interference inflicted immense suffering on the people of Jammu and Kashmir (J&K), forcing them to live under constant state of threat and intimidation.

Pakistan's use of terrorism as an instrument of state policy in Kashmir is no secret. The terror groups sponsored by it targeted innocent civilians, security forces, and public infrastructure.

Pakistan consistently encouraged infiltration across the Line of Control (LoC), facilitating the entry of terrorists into Jammu and Kashmir. This resulted in a vicious cycle of violence, leading to the loss of countless lives and widespread destruction.

Pakistan systematically indoctrinated young minds and used them as cannon fodder in its proxy war.

Through a combination of misinformation, propaganda, and promises of the so-called 'Azadi', Pakistan misled Kashmiri youth and pushed them towards the graveyards.

Using Hawala channels and other clandestine means, Pakistan injected substantial amounts of money into the region, enabling separatists to sustain their propaganda and activities. It exacerbated the volatile situation on the ground by creating an atmosphere of unrest and public disorder.

Pak actions evoke condemnation

After the scrapping of Article 370, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar, other leaders and officials have exposed Pakistan at every forum.

They have brought the actions of India's rogue neighbour into the notice of the international community. Their hard work has paid the dividends as the actions of Pakistan have evoked widespread condemnation.

The United Nations and various countries have repeatedly called for Pakistan to end its support for cross-border terrorism and engage in meaningful dialogue with India for maintaining peace in the region.

The protracted conflict being kept alive by Pakistan has hindered the prospects of economic cooperation in South Asia.

G20 in Srinagar, big defeat for Pak

The recently held G20 summit in Srinagar, J&K's summer capital, has proven to be a big defeat for Pakistan on the diplomatic front. Barring China and Turkey none of the participant countries paid any heed towards the vicious propaganda launched by India's neighbour.

The delegates hailed the efforts of the government to develop the Himalayan region and extended full support to India's G20 presidency.

In a nutshell, the PM Modi-led regime has defeated Pakistan on all fronts. It has lost the proxy war which it sustained for three decades.

Terrorism in J&K is on its last legs and the ones who used to propagate Pakistan's cause don't exist anymore.

Jammu and Kashmir is no longer a conflict zone. During the past three years it has been rebuilt and the region's potential has been explored fully.

Security situation has improved as millions of tourists have visited the region since August 5, 2019. A common man has heaved a sigh of relief and has silently endorsed all the decisions taken by the Centre.

Not only has the foreign policy been redefined, PM Modi and his trusted lieutenant Union Home Minister Amit Shah have written a new chapter in J&K's history.

--IANS

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A day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi without naming anyone said the 'ancestral politics' in West Bengal was resulting into huge scam in recruitments for state government jobs here, Trinamool Congress's national General Secretary Abhishek Banerjee said on Wednesday that he must "practice" what he "preaches".

The Prime Minister on Tuesday while addressing virtually the 'Rozgar Mela' programme, said without naming West Bengal that "there is a state where there are rate-cards for every state government appointment". "The picture that has evolved over the investigation on 'cash for job' in a particular state is really alarming. Every government job there has a rate card. From cleaning staff to clerks, rates are fixed for every post. One cannot get a job there without paying money," the Prime Minister said.

Although the Prime Minister did not name any state his clear indication was towards West Bengal which is currently rocked by the central agencies' investigation into the multi- crore recruitment scams in West Bengal.

Soon after the Prime Minister's comments went viral, Abhishek Banerjee came out with a Twitter message where he advised the Prime Minister to "practice" what he "preaches".

"Respected PM@narendramodi Ji, Sometimes PEOPLE NEED TO TAKE THEIR OWN ADVICE, Please PRACTISE WHAT YOU PREACH!" he said in his Twitter message."

With his message he attached a series of pictures of the top BJP leaders and their successful children in various fields.

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Veteran Trinamool Congress leader and three-time party Lok Sabha member Saugata Roy too launched a scathing attack against the Prime Minister. "The Prime Minister's comments prove to what level he can stoop to. I would like to ask the Prime Minister about the number of jobs that his confidante industrialists have provided," Roy said.

--IANS

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The Congress, which has been trying to corner Union Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia in his bastion -- the Gwalior-Chambal region in Madhya Pradesh, scored a trump on Wednesday as it succeeded in luring back his loyalist Baijnath Singh Yadav.

Among the Scindia camp supporters whose defection to the BJP in 2020 had brought down the Congress government, Yadav is considered to have a stronghold in Shivpuri.

In 2020, he was the district Congress President and his wife was a Congress Zila Panchayat member from Shivpuri.

A Shivpuri-based Congress leader told IANS that Yadav is considered close to Scindia and this was the reason why in 2020 he "sacrificed his political future" to follow him into the BJP. However, a rift between Yadav and Scindia came during the bypoll in Kolaras where the former wanted to contest, but Scindia backed Mahendra Yadav.

Sources said that the rift between the two widened further as Yadav did not support Mahendra Yadav.

Scindia had received several complaints against Yadav regarding his alleged anti-party activities. In the meantime, the Congress, which was striving hard to chip away the Scindia faction, offered Yadav a chance to rejoin the party, sources said.

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"Kolaras Assembly has around 27,000 Yadav votes and 35,000 votes of Dhakad community. As the Congress was in search of a strong candidate from Kolaras, Yadav moved one step ahead to approach the state Congress leadership and wished to join the party again," the Shivpuri-based Congress leader claimed.

With the latest development, the Congress has also tried to convey a message that Scindia, who is considered a strong leader in Gwalior-Chambal region, failed to fulfill the promises he had made to his loyalists.

Sources have claimed that several other Scindia loyalists are in touch with the Congress leadership and willing to come back but the Congress is not giving much attention to them.

"At least five to six leaders, who were among the 22 MLAs who shifted to the BJP and toppled the Kamal Nath-led Congress government in 2020, are constantly approaching the Congress leadership, but Kamal Nath is completely against their induction," a senior Congress leader said on condition of anonymity.

--IANS

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Opposition leader Lee Jae-myung criticized Prime Minister Han Duck-soo on Wednesday for acting like a spokesperson for Japan, after Han said he can drink the water set to be released from Japan's crippled Fukushima nuclear power plant if it is treated scientifically.







During a parliamentary interpellation session on diplomacy on Monday, Han expressed his belief that he could consume the discharged water from the tsunami-affected plant, given that it undergoes a scientific process to meet international standards for drinking water.







"Why would Japan dump the water into the ocean if it is drinkable?" asked Lee, the chairman of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK), during a party meeting. "The prime minister of the Republic of Korea is playing the role of a spokesperson for Japan. Is this right?"







Lee also said that several Pacific border countries are considering petitioning an international court regarding Japan's decision and urged the Korean government to voice its opposition to the issue as well. (Yonhap)


Karnataka Minister for Home and prominent Dalit leader Dr. G. Parameshwara's statements on Dalits being deprived of the post of Chief Minister in the state has not only triggered the Dalit CM debate but also revealed that all is not well within the Congress government.

"When I was the President of Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC), even after bringing the party to power in 2013, I could not become the CM. Though the party achieved success under my leadership, no one gave the credit to me. I also did not claim. In 2018, the party had to taste defeat as it neglected Dalits. The so-called big leaders, who neglected the community, had to be taught a lesson in the elections," said Parameshwar.

He said this while addressing the Scheduled Castes congregation organised by various Dalit groups at Ambedkar Bhavan here on Tuesday.

The minister further claimed that intentionally Dalit leaders are being denied the post of the CM in the party. "Why can't I, or Minister for Social Welfare Dr. H.C. Mahadevappa, Minister for Food and Civil Supplies K.H. Muniyappa become Chief Ministers?" Parameshwara stated. "We have to shed inferiority and get united," he gave a call to Dalit leaders.

Sources in the Congress said that the party is worried about the development and watching the turn of events carefully in Karnataka.

The party is worried over the development as it might threaten the unity of the party which is looking formidable at present. Dalits and other backward classes had rallied behind the Congress during the recent Assembly polls and the party is not ready to take the risk of losing the vote bank on any count, especially before the Lok Sabha and Bengaluru civic polls.

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The high command has managed to broker peace between Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Deputy CM and state President D.K. Shivakumar. The duo seems to be strongly going ahead, and the BJP has not able to get the momentum even one month after the elections.

Parameshwara is one of the prominent Dalit leaders and senior Congressman, who never changed his loyalty in his career.

It is an open secret in the state political corridors that Chief Minister Siddaramaiah ensured the defeat of Parameshwara in state Assembly election of 2013 to wrestle the post of CM. Parameshwara, who was the state party president then, was not considered for the post following his defeat. Sources stated Parameshwara is not happy and still remembers the betrayal handed over to him.

"When I was the President of Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC), even after bringing the party to power in 2013, I could not become the CM. Though the party achieved success under my leadership, no one gave the credit to me. I also did not claim. In 2018, the party had to taste defeat as it neglected Dalits. The so-called big leaders, who neglected the community, had to be taught a lesson in the elections," Parameshwar stated.

He further claimed that intentionally Dalit leaders are being denied the post of the CM in the party. "Why can't I, or Minister for Social Welfare Dr. H.C. Mahadevappa, Minister for Food and Civil Supplies K.H. Muniyappa become Chief Ministers?" Parameshwara stated. "We have to shed inferiority and get united," he gave a call to Dalit leaders.

Sources in the Congress said that the party is worried about the development and watching the turn of events carefully in Karnataka.

Karnataka state has never had a Dalit CM after Independence. Though prominent leaders emerged from the community, including Mallikarjun Kharge, no one made it to the CM's post.

Mallikarjun Kharge missed the opportunity by a whisker when the JD(S)- Congress coalition government came to power in 2004. Sources said that though Congress party was keen to make Mallikarjun Kharge as the CM, the JD(S) supremo and former Prime Minister H.D. Deve Gowda favoured the late Dharam Singh. Congress came to power in the 2013 election and Parameshewar was the party president. He lost the opportunity as he lost elections from the Koratagere seat.

Though JD(S) and BJP have Dalit leadership, the party is not grooming any leader for the top post. On the contrary Congress party has many prominent and strong leaders from the Dalit and oppressed classes. It is to be seen what turn the Dalit CM debate takes in the Congress party.

--IANS

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On June 14 each year, World Blood Donor Day is observed to honour the selfless acts of voluntary blood donors and to celebrate life and humanity. The gift of life, blood, is the most precious gift anyone can give to another. If the blood is separated into its components, red cells, platelets, and plasma, which can be used individually for patients with specific conditions, the decision to donate blood can save a life or several lives.

However, donors may also enjoy additional advantages from blood donation. Blood donation can assist with diminishing excess iron levels in the blood in this way preventing hemochromatosis, a condition which can build the danger of cardiovascular illnesses including heart attack and stroke. This can assist in the early detection of certain health conditions that might otherwise go unnoticed, such as anaemia or other infectious diseases.

World Blood Donor Day 2023: History

The WHO established World Blood Donor Day for the first time in 2004. It was declared an annual global event at the 58th World Health Assembly in 2005 to highlight the significance of blood donation.

Blood donation has been around since ancient times. Richard Lower, an English physician is best known for his groundbreaking research on blood transfusion and the cardiopulmonary system, which he described in his book "Tractatus de Corde." He was the first person to investigate the science of animal blood donation and he was able to successfully transfer blood between two dogs without causing any significant harm.

However, the WHO chose to praise the birthday of Karl Landsteiner as World Blood Donor Day. American-Austrian immunologist and pathologist, Landsteiner's research on blood groups and the creation of the modern blood transfusion system earned him the Nobel Prize in 1930.

World Blood Donor Day 2023: Theme

"Give blood, give plasma, share life, share often" is the slogan or theme of World Blood Donor Day 2023. The theme focuses on the significance of giving blood or plasma on a regular basis to create a safe and long-term supply of blood and blood products that can be available at any time, anywhere in the world, so that all patients who are in need of treatment can receive it immediately and save their lives.

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World Blood Donor Day 2023: Importance

The significance of giving blood isn't just to save the existence of thousands of individuals who are in need of life, yet additionally to save the existence of a lot more who are impacted by different sicknesses and assist them with battling various diseases.

Blood donation doesn't cause shortcomings. According to published literature, Blood volume (plasma) is replenished within 24-48 hours. Adults in good health replenish their red blood cells three to four weeks after donation.

World Blood Donor Day 2023: Advantages

Blood donation has significant medical advantages. In addition to the fact that it offers fundamental help in health-related crises, patients going through medical procedures and disease therapies, however, it also holds important benefits for the donors themselves.

Donating blood on a regular basis helps keep the body's iron levels in a healthy range, lowering the risk of conditions like hemochromatosis. This safeguards the body against cardiovascular illnesses and limits heart attack dangers.

Blood donation assists with the early detection of specific medical issues, like anaemia or infectious illnesses

Post the process of the blood donation, the body delivers new cells to improve overall well-being and functions towards the volume of blood lost in no less than 48 hours of donation.

The majority of individuals who give their blood will generally recover quickly from their sicknesses and, surprisingly, carry on with a more extended life, it likewise helps in weight reduction and in keeping up with solid liver decreasing the cancer risks.
European Union antitrust regulators took aim at Google's lucrative digital advertising business in an unprecedented decision ordering the tech giant to sell off some of its ad business to address competition concerns.

The European Commission, the bloc's executive branch and top antitrust enforcer, said that its preliminary view after an investigation is that only the mandatory divestment by Google of part of its services would satisfy the concerns.

The 27-nation EU has led the global movement to crack down on Big Tech companies but it has previously relied on issuing blockbuster fines, including three antitrust penalties for Google worth billion of euros (dollars).

It's the first time the bloc has ordered a tech giant to split up keys of business.

Google can now defend itself by making its case before the commission issues its final decision. The company didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.

The commission's decision stems from a formal investigation that it opened in June 2021, looking into whether Google violated the bloc's competition rules by favouring its own online display advertising technology services at the expense of rival publishers, advertisers and advertising technology services.

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YouTube was one focus of the commission's investigation, which looked into whether Google was using the video sharing site's dominant position to favour its own ad-buying services by imposing restrictions on rivals.

Google's ad tech business is also under investigation by Britain's antitrust watchdog and faces litigation in the US.

Brussels has previously hit Google with more than 8 billion euros (now USD 8.6 billion) worth of fines in three separate antitrust cases, involving its Android mobile operating system and shopping and search advertising services.

The company is appealing all three penalties. An EU court last year slightly reduced the Android penalty to 4.125 million euros. EU regulators have the power to impose penalties worth up to 10 per cent of a company's annual revenue.


Google has started rolling out June Feature Drop for select Pixel smartphones, Pixel Watch, and Fitbit devices. The software update brings several new features besides bug fixes. The update will be rolled out to supported devices beginning today and it will go on for the next few weeks, Google said in its blog. Below are the new features the June Feature Drop brings to Pixel smartphones:

Google Assistant-related updates

Google has added a feature that would allow the users to start emergency sharing or schedule a safety check using voice command. The feature lets the Google Assistant check on you in a stipulated time, and notify emergency contact with your real-time location in case you do not respond to safety check triggered by the Assistant.

Improved on-road safety

Car-crash detection technology has been updated to notify emergency contacts about the user's safety in the event of an accident. In addition to contacting emergency services, the car-crash detection service would now share real-time location and call status with emergency contacts.

Video quality-related improvements

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The Pixel 7 Pro gets the Macro Focus for video, which would enable close-up videos from the device.

Timer for hands-free pictures

With the latest update, Pixel 6 and newer phones will have the feature of clicking self-timed photos. To do this, users have to simply raise their palms to start the timer. Users can set the timer to 3 or 10 seconds.

Cinematic wallpapers

Pixel 6 and newer phones would get the enhanced wallpaper experience. Google said it leverages artificial intelligence (AI) on the Pixel devices to transform 2D wallpaper photos and gives them an enhanced and dynamic 3D look. In addition to this, the update will also allow users to add new emoji wallpapers.

Recorder-related updates

Google has added new features to its transcribing technology. Starting next week, Pixel 6 and newer phones will have the option to export transcripts into Google Docs, generate speaker-labelled video clips, and search for speakers from recordings.

Easier access to smart home controls

This update will allow users to quickly access their favourite smart home devices using the Google Home app. This will make it easier to adjust the temperature, turn off lights, see the camera, and more.

Smarter haptics

The update will improve haptic feedback in the Pixel 6a and Pixel 7a. The adaptive haptics can now lower the intensity of its vibrations by detecting that it is on a hard, flat surface like a desk or table.

Charging that adapts to user's habits

Google AI will now work towards maximising the battery life of Pixel phones. The phone will now be able to predict a long charging session based on earlier charging patterns of the user. Thus, the phone will slowly charge to 100 per cent one hour before it's expected to be unplugged.
Swiss tech firm Logitech has announced that Bracken Darrell, president and chief executive officer (CEO), will be departing the company to pursue another opportunity.

"Darrell's resignation as president, CEO, and as a member of Logitech's board of directors is effective today," the company said in a statement on Tuesday.

However, he will stay at the company over the coming month to ensure a smooth transition.

"After nearly a decade of consistent growth and building market leadership across multiple categories, I feel this is a good point to hand over leadership," said Darrell.

Board member Guy Gecht will take over as interim CEO while a global search of internal and external candidates is conducted.

"As an experienced CEO, and member of Logitech's board since 2019, Guy has a deep understanding of Logitech and its strategy, and is well-placed as interim CEO to oversee the continued execution of the company's strategy," said Wendy Becker, Logitech's chairperson of the board.

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"We thank Bracken for his leadership during an exciting era of transformation at Logitech. Over his 10 years as CEO, Bracken oversaw a period of consistent growth and helped to transform Logitech into an award-winning design company known for its unparalleled product innovation," she added.

Last month, the Switzerland-based tech firm had announced the appointment of Anand Lakshmanan as its India Head.

--IANS

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American tech major Microsoft reportedly rushed GPT-4 integration into Bing search engine despite OpenAI warnings about the inconsistencies in the language model.



According to a news report in the Wall Street Journal, OpenAI warned Microsoft of the risks involved in rolling out a chatbot-based feature in the latters search engine based on its unreleased version of GPT-4.

Microsoft announced the Bing AI Copilot in February this year. The initial release of the companys generative AI-powered search engine was marred with inaccuracies, including biased responses and incorrect information. In damage control mode, Microsoft limited Bing Chat responses.

The news report in the Wall Street Journal also alleges tensions between the two companies with regard to features developed based on AI. According to the report, OpenAI gave Microsoft a few weeks notice ahead of starting ChatGPT public testing. Microsoft was beginning to integrate OpenAIs models into Bing at that point in time. Microsoft employees were worried that ChatGPT would steal the new Bings thunder. Some also argued that Bing could benefit from the lessons learned from how the public used ChatGPT.

Microsoft has invested billions in OpenAI to get early access to its generative AI technology. It hosts OpenAIs technology on its Azure cloud services and sells access to technology by integrating it into its own services such as Bing AI Copilot.

The new Bing is yet to come close to the breakout success of ChatGPT.

ChatGPT has already reached 200 million monthly users, according to analytics firm YipitData, making it one of the fastest-growing consumer apps in history.
Ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's State Visit to the US, American corporate sector leaders have said they are upbeat and excited about India and want to see a deepening of technological convergence between the two countries in industries like semiconductors, defence, cybersecurity and telecoms.

On Tuesday, the US India Business Council (USIBC) hosted its annual India Ideas Summit, which was the largest gathering of Indian and American CEOs, before the next week's State Visit, which was probably the only topic being discussed at the meeting.

Modi has been invited by President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden for an official State Visit, which will include a State Dinner on June 22.

The mood was great Very positive mood. Everyone is happy about the State Visit coming up. . Everybody wants to see our technological convergence deepen on things like semiconductors, defence as well, cybersecurity, telecoms, 5G, and 6G. There are so many areas of convergence in deep tech and future tech, everyone wants to see more work on that, Atul Keshap, president of the USIBC told PTI in an interview.

They want to see deal flow between the two countries. We want to see the quantum of trade expand as rapidly as possible to USD 500 billion, he said.

I'd like to see more defence deals. Defence deals are really important for deterrence. When we host Indus X here next week, we're gonna try to see how that startup incubator of ideas and convergence can have even more impact on the US-India relations, Keshap said.

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Vivek Lall, chief executive at General Atomics Global Corporation said the mood is very upbeat.

"It's going to be a watershed event when the Prime Minister arrives here in Washington, DC next week. I think the business community and certainly the government community is very keenly looking forward to the visit; very keenly looking forward to how there can be a step function in various areas of cooperation, he told PTI on the sidelines of the summit.

This, he said, will then set the tone and the pace of this relationship for decades to come. The Official State Visit is of, uh, huge significance and importance, he added. All the sectors in particular, the business community that's present here are looking forward to great outcomes from the bilateral meetings, he noted.

In critical and emerging technologies, there are a lot of synergies not only among big corporations but also with startups.

We do feel that the areas, whether they're quantum, artificial intelligence, defence innovation, they're all areas of huge potential between both countries. That shows the seed for future development and progress, Lall said.

B J Arun, TiE Global Board of Trustees, said there's a lot of excitement about the visit.

We are extremely excited and very bullish about what has happened (in India). Because he (prime minister) is so business friendly. Even in the past we've had political leaders come, but we've never followed through, we have never actually seen it result in policy changes," he said.

"This is the first time we have seen over the last nine years that somebody has actually worked on it and actually gone ahead and implemented policy based on what needs to be done, and that is now generating results. We are seeing the fruits of the policies that have been put in place, Arun said.
The Biden administration said Tuesday that it will extend legal status by 18 months for more than 300,000 people from El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua and Nepal, disappointing some advocates and members of Congress who sought a more generous offer.

The extensions provide "continued safety and protection" for those already legally in the US on Temporary Protected Status, which is due to end soon under Trump-era decisions, said US Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.

While the decision benefits an estimated 334,000 people from the four countries, including 239,000 from El Salvador, some had hoped for a far more sweeping gesture including expanded eligibility for more recent arrivals from El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua and Venezuela.

US Senator Bob Menendez, a New Jersey Democrat who strongly pressed the White House for extensions, applauded the step but added it "simply does not go far enough" and suggested it "may have been driven in part by political calculations instead of sound policy rationale and the conditions in each country".

Joaquin Castro, a Texas Democrat and House member who was among 116 members of Congress who signed a letter in May seeking an expansion, said the administration "has allowed political fear rather than humanitarian concern to drive its decision".

The administration has aggressively used TPS, a 1990 law that allows people already in the US to remain in 18-month increments if the Homeland Security secretary determines that natural disasters or civil strife prevent them from safely returning home.

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Under Biden's watch, the number of people eligible has soared more than 70 per cent to nearly a million people by December, reversing a Trump-era trend, according to an analysis by the Cato Institute, which advocates for more immigration. TPS encompasses 15 countries, including Venezuela and Ukraine, up from 10.

The extensions announced Tuesday will apply to about 239,000 El Salvadorans through March 9, 2025, about 76,000 Hondurans through July 5, 2025, about 14,500 Nepalese through June 24, 2025 and about 4,000 Nicaraguans through July 5, 2025.

But TPS beneficiaries from Central America are required to have lived in the US more than two decades to be eligible, prompting criticism from advocates that the administration failed to consider recent turmoil in countries including Nicaragua, which last year became one of the top sources of migration to the US.

TPS for El Salvador was granted after an earthquake in the Central American country in 2001 and for Honduras and Nicaragua after a hurricane in 1998.

Advocates also pushed to include Guatemala, whose people have never been eligible for TPS.

While nothing in Tuesday's announcement precludes the administration from later expanding TPS, immediate prospects appeared dimmer.

"It's a disappointment," said Berta Sanles, who has lived in the US without legal status since she arrived from Nicaragua with her husband and six-year-old daughter more than two decades ago. The Miami resident says she's holding out hope, though.

Krish O'Mara Vignarajah, chief executive of Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service, said the extensions are "welcome relief for hundreds of thousands of people who have found safety in the United States, many of whom have called this country home for decades now."



But she also called it "a missed opportunity to expand protections to more recent arrivals, whose return to danger would be no less devastating".

TPS has been absent from a slew of carrot-and-stick measures that the administration has announced in recent months around the end of pandemic-related asylum restrictions on May 11, known as Title 42.

They include parole for up to 30,000 people a month from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua or Venezuela and, on the flip side, a virtual ban on asylum for those who travel to the US border and enter the country illegally after travelling through another country, like Mexico.
German officials said on Wednesday that an array of climate measures being introduced by the government will bring the country closer but not all the way toward meeting its national goals for cutting greenhouse gas emissions by 2030.

Germany's Climate Ministry said measures already in place or soon to become law will reduce emissions by about 900 million metric tons of carbon dioxide for the period from 2022 to 2030.

An emissions gap of about 200 million tons of CO2 will remain and needs to be closed through additional steps over the coming years, largely because of persistent high emissions in the transportation sector.

Germany aims to reduce its emissions of planet-warming gases by 65 per cent from 1990 levels by 2030. The target for 2040 is an 88 per cent reduction on the path to net zero" emissions by 2045.

A sharp increase in wind and solar power, energy efficiency improvements and subsidies for industry to reduce fossil fuel use are among the measures taken or planned by Chancellor Olaf Scholz's government since it took office in late 2021.

The political message is that, when I became a minister, achieving the climate targets looked impossible, Economy and Climate Minister Robert Habeck told reporters in Berlin.

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For the first time, I would say, it is possible to keep to the climate targets, added Habeck, a member of the environmentalist Greens who is also Germany's vice chancellor.

The art of making things possible consists in not easing off now; I would say that we have put the ship back on course, and of course it is important now to pick up speed.

After months of haggling that helped push down the governing coalition's poll ratings, leaders of the three-party alliance also reached a compromise this week over plans to replace old fossil fuel heating systems with cleaner alternatives such as heat pumps. Habeck acknowledged that concrete details still have to be worked out in the coming weeks.

Germany's solar industry warned on Wednesday that it urgently needs more workers to meet demand for photovoltaic installations in the coming years.

Solar industry lobby group BSW said that companies need to hire about 100,000 skilled workers as annual installations are expected to rise to 26 gigawatts by 2026 from 7.4 GW last year.
Jillian Deutsch



The European Parliament voted to completely ban real-time, remote biometric surveillance  a decision that will put lawmakers at odds with the EUs 27 countries in upcoming negotiations. The blanket ban, which was previously agreed by lawmakers, was up in the air after a political deal fell apart late last week.



Lawmakers also passed additional measures for general purpose AI and foundational models like GPT-4. Under the parliaments plan, companies such as OpenAI and Google would have to perform risk assessments and summarise the copyrighted material used to train their models  regardless of how theyre used.



The parliaments entire draft of the AI Act passed on Wednesday, paving the way for the so-called trilogue negotiations between the parliament, EU member states, and European Commission to start later on Wednesday.



The commission wants a deal by the end of the year, after which the new AI Act rules could impact companies by 2026. In the meantime, officials like Executive Vice President Margrethe Vestager are pushing a code of conduct with companies that would be voluntary rules across the G7, plus India and Indonesia.







Landmark Act The provisions are a red line for a number of member states as they head into negotiations with the parliament and the European Commission. A few members of the center-right European Peoples Party wanted to include exceptions for finding missing children and preventing terrorist attacks, but these amendments failed in the plenary vote on Wednesday.

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Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission Deputy Chairman Jeong Seung-yoon talks at a press briefing at the government complex building in Seoul, June 14. Yonhap





The state anti-corruption agency said Wednesday the National Election Commission (NEC) is refusing to comply with an investigation into a hiring corruption scandal, urging full cooperation.







The Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission earlier announced it will look into all employment and promotion cases within the election watchdog over the past seven years following allegations of nepotism. Several children of former and current senior officials at the NEC allegedly secured agency jobs through their fathers' influence.







"The NEC is not responding to the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission's investigation, citing the reason of its acceptance of an audit by the Board of Audit and Inspection," Deputy Chairman Jeong Seung-yoon told a press briefing.







Initially, the NEC refused to comply with the BAI audit, citing its status as an independent agency but changed its stance and decided on Friday to accept the state auditor's inspection.







However, the NEC clarified that it would only accept the BAI's inspection regarding the incident while still refusing an audit of its overall activities. The NEC also announced its intention to file a petition asking the Constitutional Court to determine whether the agency is subject to a BAI audit.







Jeong said the anti-corruption agency will consider accepting the NEC's refusal of its investigation if the election watchdog accepts the BAI's audit on a full scale and gives up the constitutional petition for good.







The NEC, however, refuted the commission's claim, stating the agency remains committed to cooperating fully in the investigation.







"It is not true that we are refusing the investigation," said an NEC official who asked not to be named, adding that relevant data has already been submitted to the commission. (Yonhap)


France's government accused Russia on Tuesday of operating a long-running online manipulation campaign, including impersonating the websites of leading French media and the French Foreign Ministry, aimed at spreading confusion and false information about the war in Ukraine.

The French agency responsible for fighting foreign digital interference, VIGINUM, said it has monitored the alleged operation since soon after Russia invaded its neighbour and that France was one of several European countries targeted. It said it traced the campaign to Russian individuals, companies and state entities or entities affiliated to the Russian state.

Last month, the agency detected a mirror website mimicking the French Foreign Ministry's and intervened with protective and preventive measures, VIGINUM said in a report published Tuesday.

France condemns these actions, which are unworthy of a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council. No attempt at manipulation will distract France from its support for Ukraine in the face of Russia's war of aggression, the ministry said in a statement with unusually strong wording.

The Russian Embassy in France did not immediately comment.

VIGINUM said it identified 355 domain names usurping the identities of European media outlets, including those of French daily newspapers Le Monde and Le Figaro.

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It said the content spread on the fake sites denigrated the Ukrainian armed forces and amplified criticism of sanctions against Russia and the impact of Ukrainian refugees on other European countries.

French Foreign Ministry spokesperson Anne-Claire Legendre said it was the first time the government has so clearly and explicitly attributed blame for this kind of campaign.

She said the fake ministry website was aimed at creating confusion about France's support for Ukraine and undermining democratic debate.

She said the government's intervention limited the impact of the mirror site, which she described as an element of the hybrid war that Russia is currently waging.

VIGINUM said the campaign has links to a sprawling disinformation network that Facebook parent Meta exposed last year, which sought to use fake social media accounts and sham news websites to spread Kremlin talking points.

Since Russia invaded Ukraine, pro-Russian players have used online disinformation and conspiracy theories in an effort to weaken international support for Ukraine.

Social media platforms and European governments have tried to stifle Russian propaganda and disinformation, only to see the Kremlin shift tactics.
The German government said Russia is the greatest security threat for the foreseeable future and advocated a balanced approach to China as it unveiled its first comprehensive national security strategy on Wednesday.

The strategy was part of an effort to address what Germany views as growing military, economic and social risks to the country.

Germany's biggest opposition party criticised the government's position as anemic.

Chancellor Olaf Scholz said the new strategy, which his three-party governing coalition pledged to draw up when it took office at the end of 2021, had gained added importance since Russia attacked Ukraine almost 16 months ago.

The war in Ukraine has heightened anxiety in Germany about the preparedness of its own armed forces, prompting Scholz to announce a turning point on military spending.

Russia's invasion of Ukraine in Feburary 2022 demonstrated what many of our neighbours in Eastern Europe have warned us about that Europe is vulnerable, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock told reporters at a news conference in Berlin also attended by Scholz and other top officials.

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A 76-page document outlining the strategy states that today's Russia is, for the foreseeable future, the greatest threat to peace and security in the Euro-Atlantic area."



It also warns that some countries are trying to reshape the existing international order according to their view of systematic rivalry, an oblique reference to the threats of disinformation, cyberattacks and economic pressure from major powers such as China.

The document makes several references to security threats posed by climate change. These include a heightened risk of famine, disease and conflict around the globe, as well as extreme weather events and damage to critical infrastructure in Germany.

It sets out Berlin's general approach, but doesn't go deep into details including the strategy's potential foreign policy consequences. Officials plan to draw up more specifics at a later stage.

The German government also is preparing a specific strategy on China. Scholz declined to say when it would be published. We'll be ready when we're ready, but soon, he told reporters.

The document released Wednesday came out a week before the German government sits down for high-level talks with senior Chinese officials in Berlin that are expected to touch on numerous sensitive issues.

Germany has traditionally hesitated to antagonize Beijing due to the importance of China as a market for German exports and a source of key commodities.

Still, the document underlined Berlin's view that China is a partner, competitor and systemic rival, noting that "elements of rivalry and competition have increased in recent years; at the same time, China remains a partner without which many of the most pressing global challenges can't be solved.

Asked what practical implications the new strategy would have, Baerbock said the government will look closely at areas where Germany is most vulnerable due to its dependence on China.

She said they include raw materials and components for the energy, telecommunications and medical sectors, for which Germany is actively trying to diversify its sources.

Scholz noted a recent declaration by leaders of the Group of Seven major economies calling for a de-risking rather than a decoupling from China. Creating new supply chains for crucial commodities can take decades, he said.

Trans-Atlantic relations with the United States have reached a new quality and level with President (Joe) Biden that we couldn't wish to be better, the chancellor added. This is of greatest important for security in Europe and our security.

The government said it will also produce a strategy to increase Germany's ability to counter hybrid threats, which would entail strengthening the analytical capacities of its intelligence services.

However, the idea of creating a National Security Council, akin to those in the United States and Britain, was shelved.

The government also resisted calls for Germany's military spending to go above the NATO-wide goal of 2 per cent of gross domestic product.

Opposition leader Friedrich Merz said the new security strategy was anemic in terms of substance, strategically irrelevant, without operational consequences and had been drawn up without consultation with Germany's allies.

It has no value, no substance, no significance. It is a big disappointment, he said.

Another top opposition politician, Alexander Dobrindt, complained that the strategy had the wrong priorities.

Just as an example, it contains the word climate' 71 times and the word China' six times, he said.
The human brain's cerebellum might be more vulnerable to Covid infections than other brain regions, a new study employing an innovated MRI technique has found.

The study from Rotman Research Institute and Sunnybrook Hospital in Toronto, Canada, reinforces the idea that Covid can lead to changes in the brain, it said.

The new imaging technique, called correlated diffusion imaging (CDI), was developed by Alexander Wong, a systems design engineering professor, University of Waterloo, Canada.

A new form of MRI, CDI can better highlight the differences in the way water molecules move in tissue by capturing and mixing MRI signals at different gradient pulse strengths and timings, the study published in the journal Human Brain Mapping said. Wong had previously developed CDI as a better imaging measure for detecting cancer.

The CDI imaging of frontal-lobe white matter (in the brain's cerebrum) revealed a less restricted diffusion of water molecules in COVID-19 patients. At the same time, it showed a more restricted diffusion of water molecules in the cerebellum of patients with COVID-19.

"Some may think COVID-19 affects just the lungs," Wong said. "What was found is that this new MRI technique that we created is very good at identifying changes to the brain due to COVID-19. COVID-19 changes the white matter in the brain."



In addition to being one of the few studies showing COVID-19's effects on the brain, the study said that it is the first to report diffusion abnormalities in the white matter of the cerebellum.

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While the study was originally designed to show changes to the brain from Covid, rather than specific damage, it said that many of the potential sources of such changes link to disease and damage.

Wong suggested future tests could focus on whether COVID-19 actually damages brain tissue. Additional studies could also determine, he said, if COVID-19 can change the brain's grey matter.

"Hopefully, this research can lead to better diagnoses and treatments for COVID-19 patients," Wong said.
More global companies are taking supply chain diversification seriously. Companies are increasingly highlighting the benefits of 'friend-shoring' their supply chains in order to better insulate from geopolitical challenges.

"We see India, Mexico and Southeast Asia as best positioned for this transition. India and Mexico are two economies that stand to benefit from increasingly local supply chains," Morgan Stanley said in a report.

Morgan Stanley economists have written extensively on the economic and industrial benefits that are beginning to accrue in economies where supply chains are migrating.

"In India we see a tripling of the manufacturing base by 2031 with its share of GDP rising from about 16 per cent to 21 per cent over the same time horizon. In Mexico, we estimate a potential net gain of approximately 30 per cent in exports to the US over a period of five years; this trend appears to be well underway as Mexico-US trade is now level with China-US trade. The associated rise in investment and manufacturing could help raise Mexico's potential GDP from 1.9 per cent to 2.4 per cent, over the next five years, according to our models," the report said.

Supply chain de-risking will be a necessary but difficult and expensive process, taking a decade or longer, featuring more protectionist policies.

Most expected companies to keep a large installed base and presence in China.

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At a country level, key net beneficiaries would be India and Mexico, the report said.

While corporates have largely avoided making any specific geopolitical distinctions, some of the giant companies have been strategically rewiring their supply chain investments. Apple's partner Foxconn has announced plans to invest $700 million in a new plant in India to diversify away some of the risks arising from US-China tensions. After completion, the production site is expected to bring in 100k new jobs compared with the current 200k in the Zhengzhou Plant, Morgan Stanley said.

More companies are adopting a 'China+1' or even 'China+N' strategy to expand their production footprints to Southeast Asia, Mexico and India, and to re-shore where production is particularly capital-intensive or can be automated, the report said.

Much of the structural shift in the level of global trade in the 1990s and 2000s is explicitly linked to the construction of modern China, an event in a long history that we would consider a one-off and exceptional rather than a normal trend.

"China entering the global economy is a historic event that cannot be replicated because neither India, Indonesia, the Philippines, nor any other emerging market economy has the same gap to close from a value or volume standpoint that China made up between 1990 and 2010," the report said.

The de-risking process from China will progress slowly, and most tech hardware production that leaves China will flow to Southeast Asia and India, not North America.

China presently accounts for $4.9 trillion manufacturing GDP out of a total of $14.2 trillion (34 per cent).

Based on a potential loss of international production and exports, an estimated $846 billion of manufacturing output could be seen to be at risk -- the equivalent of 6.0 per cent of the global total.

"Some countries would see significant growth gains: In principle, we believe that the countries making 'share gains' would be the US, India (doubling from 3.1 per cent to 6.2 per cent) and SE Asia -- while EMEA and Japan maintain their existing share of global manufacturing output. In simple terms, we have divided up the 'decoupled $846 billion' of China output and attributed it to different countries based on these shares (e.g., India now taking 6 per cent of the $846 billion," the report said.

On the potential uplift to other countries, in the event that these flows were to be resettled overnight, from a low base, India would see an 11.8 per cent expansion in its manufacturing base (in one year), it added.

--IANS

san/ksk/
President Vladimir Putin acknowledged that Russian forces fighting in Ukraine lack sufficient advanced weapons despite a tripling of arms output, as Kyivs forces pressed a counteroffensive backed by a new infusion of allied support.



Putin made the rare admission of shortcomings in production in a televised meeting with local reporters and war bloggers. He also said Russia had lost 54 tanks since Ukraines drive began last week - the first time the Kremlin has admitted losses on such a scale.

It became clear that we lack many things - high-precision ammunition, communications, drones, Putin said. We have them, but we lack quantity.

Kyiv is counting on the campaign to drive Russian forces from territory occupied since the February 2022 invasion, strengthening its hand in any peace talks that might follow. So far, Ukraine has reported taking only a few villages as it probes the extensive defensive lines that Moscows troops have built and Putin said Russian forces had inflicted catastrophic losses on Ukraines military.

In the past, Moscow has frequently been accused of exaggerating its battlefield successes, and western officials were quick to portray the Ukrainian push as far more successful.

The counteroffensive is making advances, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said during a visit to Washington Tuesday. At the same time the US announced its sending another $325 million in weapons to back up the campaign. The weapons taken from US stockpiles will help Ukraine replace vehicles and munitions that its losing in the counteroffensive. They include 155mm and 105mm artillery rounds, TOW missiles, munitions for surface-to-air missile systems and communications gear.

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This is still early days but what we all know is the more land the Ukrainians are able to liberate, the stronger their hand will be at the negotiation table and the more likely it is that President Putin will understand that he will never win this battle, never win the war of aggression on the battlefield, Stoltenberg said.

The alliance chief also met President Joe Biden, who said the bloc faces a crucial moment ahead of a meeting of the alliances leaders set for Vilnius, Lithuania next month.

Weve strengthened NATOs eastern flank, made it clear well defend every inch of NATO territory, Biden said. At our summit in Lithuania next month, were going to be building on that momentum.

Grain Deal



Vowing to achieve his objectives, Putin Tuesday repeated his claim that Ukraines counteroffensive hasnt been successful and showed little indication that he was prepared to negotiate. He railed against Kyivs allies for supplying weapons. And in a statement that will provoke fear in nations that rely on food from Ukraine, Putin said Russia is considering leaving the deal that allows Ukraine to ship grain exports from Black Sea ports.

Russia endorsed the deal to support developing countries  our friends, and in order to achieve the lifting of sanctions from our agricultural sector, Putin said. We have been deceived once again. We are now thinking about how we can get out of this so-called grain deal.

Russia has threatened repeatedly to quit the agreement, which was brokered by the United Nations and Turkey last year and extended for two months in mid-May. Even with Russias involvement, traffic to Ukraines ports has been disrupted, with Ukraine accusing Russia of slow-walking checks and blocking ships destined for one of the three ports in the deal.

The Russian leader spoke after Russia launched fresh missile attacks on Ukraine, killing 11 people in a strike that hit a residential building in Kryvyi Rih, according to officials in Kyiv.

Putin sought to appear confident, saying his military sees no need for another wave of mobilization after 156,000 contract soldiers and volunteers signed up to fight this year. Last years mandatory call-up of 300,000 troops triggered an exodus of Russians.

Any decision on further mobilization now would depend on what goals we set for ourselves, Putin said. While many defense factories were working round-the-clock to produce more weapons, there is still a lot we need, Putin said. We need modern anti-tank weapons, we need modern tanks.
A US judge has urged the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to reach a settlement with crypto exchange Binance to let it continue operating in the US.

The New York Times reported that Judge Amy Berman Jackson of the US District Court for the District of Columbia asked the two sides to reach a compromise over the asset freeze.

She ordered both the parties to continue negotiating and submit a status update by Thursday.

The judge also expressed skepticism about the SEC's use of its enforcement powers to regulate the crypto industry, calling it "inefficient and cumbersome".

At the end of the hearing, she suggested both sides come to an agreement on the SEC's request to freeze assets as soon as possible.

Last week, the US regulator sued leading crypto exchange Binance, its CEO Changpeng Zhao and BAM Trading and BAM Management over allegedly mishandling funds and lying to regulators.

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In a federal lawsuit, the regulator filed 13 charges against the defendants.

"Defendants unlawfully solicited US investors to buy, sell, and trade crypto asset securities through unregistered trading platforms available online at binance.com and Binance.US," the lawsuit read.

In court filings, Binance lawyers argued that the SEC's proposed asset freeze would prevent the crypto exchange from paying vendors, employees and suppliers, causing its operations to "quickly grind to a halt."

"We're not willing to accept a death penalty eight days into the case," a lawyer for Binance.US said at the hearing.

The SEC has also charged another crypto exchange Coinbase with operating its crypto asset trading platform as an unregistered national securities exchange, broker, and clearing agency.

--IANS

na/dpb
Sri Lankan minister Ramesh Pathirana on Wednesday said small tea growers contribute around 77 per cent of the island country's total production, and the government is providing subsidiy to the STGs.

Speaking at a BIMSTEC event on tea organised by the Indian Chamber of Commerce here, Pathirana said Sri Lanka is also trying to adopt technology to raise productivity.

There is a need to protect the existing markets and also go for value addition. Our government is giving subsidy to the small tea growers to support replantation activity, adoption of technology and best agricultural practices," he said.

Most of the tea produced in the island country is exported, and the major exporting destinations include Russia, Turkey and Iran, the minister said.

Sri Lanka produced 250 million kg of tea last year, which is expected to go up to 280 million kg in this calendar year, he said.

"The biggest challenge is the shrinking global market for tea, Pathirana added.

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Speaking on the occasion, MD of Goodricke Tea Atul Asthana said the per capita consumption of the beverage in India has remained static, with STGs contributing close to 55 per cent of the total production of around 1,350 million kg.

"There is a lack of initiative on the part of the Tea Board for supporting generic promotional campaign. This is required to boost internal consumption, Asthana said.

An official of the Tea Board said lack of funds is the reason for the statutory body not being able to support any generic campaign.

"We are going for digital and social media promotion, targeting the youth, she said.
Only 6.83 million couples married in China last year and this is the lowest since the government started recording this data in 1986, The Guardian reported. Citing data released by the Ministry of Civil Affairs, the report said that there was a downfall of 800,000 in the number of weddings in 2022 when compared with 2021.

Reportedly, China's marriage rate has declined at a fast pace in the past 10 years. At its peak, China registered 13.5 million tying the knot which is nearly double the last year's figures.

The development has strained the Chinese government and policymakers alike as they struggle to find a cure to reverse the trend of decreasing marriages in the country. Notably, China is also facing a crisis in terms of its birth rates. This has resulted in China's population shrinking for the first time in the last sixty years. This is causing apprehensions that China will grow old before it becomes rich, the TG report added.

Suggesting a possible remedy to the situation, an influential economist, James Liang said that China's schooling should be cut short by two years to give women "a few extra years to start a family and have children", The Guardian report said. The economist said that this measure could give China as much as 30 per cent boost in its population.

Under Xi Jinping's regime, the Chinese government has taken steps to encourage women to marry young and raise more children. However, govt measures seem to have little effect on the ground as the average first-time marriage age for women has increased from 24 to 29 years during this period.

In 2016, China abolished its one-child policy in favour of more babies. The govt is now encouraging women to raise as many as three kids, TG reported. Local governments are also taking steps and devising policies to facilitate population expansion. To this end, free IVF facilities and subsidies for second and third children are being provided.

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The incentives to marry fail to convince young Chinese who are facing unemployment on a large scale. Given the ageing population of China, there is also a dearth of people of marriageable age, The Guardian report said.
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Tuesday pitched for expanding the United Nations Security Council with India as a permanent member, and said the time has come for making UN bodies "more democratic and representative of the current realities of our age".

Addressing a gathering at a seminar held here to mark 75 years of the United Nations (UN) Peacekeeping, he also said that when India, the most populous nation of the world, does not find a seat as a permanent member of the UN Security Council, "it tends to undermine the moral legitimacy" of the global organisation.

Singh made the remarks in the presence of UN Resident Coordinator in India, Shombi Sharp, who shared the dais with him.

In his address, the defence minister also underlined that the "challenges being seen by peacekeepers continue to evolve, demanding innovative approaches, and enhanced cooperation among the responsible nations", adding that "we must invest in training, technology and resources to ensure safety and effectiveness of our peacekeepers".

Singh also advocated for meaningful participation of women in peacekeeping operations, emphasising that their unique contribution during missions in conflict-affected areas must be recognised.

The first UN peacekeeping mission, 'UN Truce Supervision Organisation (UNTSO)' began operations in Palestine on May 29, 1948.

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The defence minister said, "While we commemorate the past, we must also look towards the future".

It is also important to look at the entire UN ecosystem and what can be done to improve it, he said.

"One important reform that stares us in our faces is to make UN decision-making bodies, including the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), more reflective of demographic realities of the world," the defence minister said.

The UNSC currently has five permanent members -- China, France, Russia, the UK, and the US -- and 10 elected non-permanent members who serve two-year terms. India completed its tenure as a non-permanent member of the Council in December last year. Only a permanent member has the power to veto any substantive resolution.

"When India, the most populous nation of the world, does not find a seat as a permanent member of the UNSC, it tends to undermine the moral legitimacy of the UN. Therefore, the time has come for making the UN bodies more democratic and representative of the current realities of our age," Singh added.

Later, the Defence Ministry issued a statement saying India has a rich legacy of contribution to UN Peacekeeping operations.

"Time has come to expand UN Security Council with India as a permanent member," the defence minister was quoted as saying in the statement.

India's Permanent Representative to the UN Ruchira Kamboj in April had said that India is right in demanding a "major course correction" of the UNSC when the world's largest democracy is kept out of the global decision making.

India has been at the forefront of the years-long efforts to reform the Security Council, saying it rightly deserved a place as a permanent member of the United Nations.

In his address, Singh expressed gratitude to all Indians who have served or are currently serving as UN peacekeepers under the blue flag.

India is one of the largest contributors of troops in UN Peacekeeping. It has contributed approximately 2.75 lakh troops to peacekeeping missions so far, with around 5,900 troops currently deployed in 12 UN missions, the statement said.

Singh commended the role of UN peacekeeping operations and explained the enthusiastic global support for such missions through the economic concept of "externalities".

"When there is a conflict, it is harmful to the directly involved actors. Moreover, it has negative externalities for those involved indirectly. There is a plethora of negative externalities that have emanated out of the recent Russia-Ukraine conflict. It has led to food crisis in various African and Asian countries and has fuelled an energy crisis in the world," he said.

A conflict at a particular place or region creates "ripple effects" which adversely impact the whole world. So, the rest of the world becomes a stakeholder in resolving the conflict and to restore peace, Singh added.

"This is because peace has positive externality. When conflicting parties restore peace, they benefit in terms of human lives saved, higher economic growth achieved, etc. The rest of the world also benefits as peace fosters stability and encourages economic growth," the defence minister said.

Singh added that "positive externality of peace and negative externality of war drives the UN, along with the responsible nations, to act towards resolving any conflict" and this action is manifested in terms of deployment of UN peacekeeping missions in conflict zones.

"Our courageous soldiers, police personnel and civilian experts have demonstrated exceptional dedication and unwavering commitment to the cause of peace," he said.

"They have selflessly served in some of the most challenging and dangerous environments, embodying the spirit of peacekeeping and upholding the principles enshrined in the UN Charter. Their unwavering commitment, professionalism and sacrifices inspire us all," he said.

Singh extended his condolences to the families who have lost their loved ones in the line of duty. He called for honouring the sacrifices of the peacekeepers by building a more just, peaceful and inclusive world.

"Let us renew our commitment to promoting dialogue, understanding and cooperation among and within the nations. Together, we can build a future where every individual can live in peace, harmony and with dignity," he added.

Chief of Defence Staff Gen Anil Chauhan, Army Chief Gen Manoj Pande, several senior officials of the Army, and defence attaches from various embassies here were also present on the occasion.

In his opening remarks, Gen Pande highlighted India's contribution to the cause of UN Peacekeeping.

The Army chief said that India has close to 5,900 peacekeepers serving around the world on various peacekeeping operations, including female engagement teams in UN Organisation Stabilisation Mission in Congo and UN Interim Security Force for Abyei, besides women staff officers and military observers.

He also underlined the vitality of the UN Peacekeeping amid the new and complex security challenges which continue to emerge and the readiness of the Indian Army to fulfil the country's responsibility and commitment to the UN, in close partnership with fellow states.

The International Day of UN Peacekeepers is observed on May 29 every year to honour the professionalism, dedication and courage of those serving in UN Peacekeeping operations and remember those who have laid down their lives for the cause of peace.
Photo: Bloomberg

Donald Trump became the first former president to face a judge on federal charges as he pleaded not guilty in a Miami courtroom Tuesday to dozens of felony counts accusing him of hoarding classified documents and refusing government demands to give them back.

The history-making court date, centred on charges that Trump mishandled government secrets that as commander-in-chief he was entrusted to protect, kickstarts a legal process that could unfold at the height of the 2024 presidential campaign and carry profound consequences not only for his political future but also for his own personal liberty.

Trump approached his arraignment with characteristic bravado, posting social media broadsides against the prosecution from inside his motorcade en route to the courthouse and insisting as he has through years of legal woes that he has done nothing wrong and was being persecuted for political purposes.

But inside the courtroom, he sat silently, scowling and arms crossed as a lawyer entered a not guilty plea on his behalf in a brief arraignment that ended without him having to surrender his passport or otherwise restrict his travel.

The arraignment, though largely procedural in nature, was the latest in an unprecedented public reckoning this year for Trump, who faces charges in New York arising from hush money payments during his 2016 presidential campaign as well as ongoing investigations in Washington and Atlanta into efforts to undo the results of the 2020 race.

He has sought to project confidence in the face of unmistakable legal peril, attacking the Justice Department special counsel who filed the case as "a Trump hater", pledging to remain in the race and scheduling a speech and fundraiser for Tuesday night at his Bedminster, New Jersey, club.

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He stopped on his way out of Miami at Versailles, an iconic Cuban restaurant in the city's Little Havana neighbourhood where supporters serenaded Trump, who turns 77 years old on Wednesday, with "Happy Birthday".

Even so, the gravity of the moment was clear.

Until last week, no former president had ever been charged by the Justice Department, let alone accused of mishandling top-secret information.

The indictment unsealed last week charged Trump with 37 felony counts -- many under the Espionage Act -- that accuse him of illegally storing classified documents in his bedroom, bathroom, shower and other locations at Mar-a-Lago and trying to hide them from the Justice Department as investigators demanded them back.

The charges carry a yearslong prison sentence in the event of a conviction.

Trump has relied on a familiar playbook of painting himself as a victim of political persecution. But Attorney General Merrick Garland, an appointee of President Joe Biden, sought to insulate the department from political attacks by handing ownership of the case to a special counsel, Jack Smith, who on Friday declared, "We have one set of laws in this country, and they apply to everyone."



Smith attended Tuesday's arraignment, sitting in the front row behind his team of prosecutors.

The court appearance unfolded against the backdrop of potential protests, with some high-profile backers using barbed rhetoric to voice support. Trump himself encouraged supporters to join a planned protest Tuesday at the courthouse.

Though city officials said they prepared for possible unrest around the courthouse, there were little signs of significant disruption.

While Trump was not required to surrender a passport -- prosecutor David Harbach said he was not considered a flight risk, a likely recognition of his status as a presidential candidate -- he was directed to not discuss the case with any witnesses. That includes Walt Nauta, his valet and close aide, who was indicted last week on charges that he moved boxes of documents at Trump's direction and misled the FBI about it. He did not enter a plea Tuesday because he did not have a local lawyer with him.

The magistrate judge who presided over the arraignment directed Trump not to discuss the case with any witnesses, including Nauta, but said they can discuss work.

Even for a man whose post-presidential life has been defined by criminal investigations, the documents probe had long stood out both because of the volume of evidence that prosecutors had seemed to amass and the severity of the allegations.

A federal grand jury in Washington had heard testimony for months, but the Justice Department filed it in Florida, where Trump's Mar-a-Lago resort is located and where many of the alleged acts of obstruction occurred. Though Trump appeared Tuesday before a federal magistrate, the case has been assigned to a District Court judge he appointed, Aileen Cannon, who ruled in his favour last year in a dispute over whether an outside special master could be appointed to review the seized classified documents. A federal appeals panel ultimately overturned her ruling.

It's unclear what defences Trump is likely to invoke as the case moves forward. Two of his lead lawyers announced their resignation the morning after his indictment, and the notes and recollections of another attorney, M Evan Corcoran, are cited repeatedly throughout the 49-page charging document, suggesting prosecutors envision him as a potential key witness.

In the indictment the Justice Department unsealed Friday most of the charges -- 31 or the 37 felony counts -- against Trump relate to the willful retention of national defence information. Other charges include conspiracy to commit obstruction and false statements.

The indictment alleges Trump intentionally retained hundreds of classified documents that he took with him from the White House to Mar-a-Lago after leaving office in January 2021.

The material he stored, including in a bathroom, ballroom, bedroom and shower, included material on nuclear programs, defence and weapons capabilities of the US and foreign governments and a Pentagon "attack plan", prosecutors say.

Beyond that, prosecutors say, he sought to obstruct government efforts to recover the documents, including by directing Nauta to move boxes to conceal them and also suggesting to his own lawyer that he hide or destroy documents sought by a Justice Department subpoena.




By Lee Hyo-sik







We have only five more months to go until 179 countries around the world vote to decide which city will host the World Expo 2030. Government officials and businesspeople have been working tirelessly to attract the international event to the southeastern port city of Busan since President Yoon Suk Yeol took office in May last year.







Yoon and most of his Cabinet members will head to Paris next week to attend a meeting of the Bureau International des Expositions (BIE), the international body in charge of overseeing the World Expo. The heads of Korea's top four business groups  Samsung Group's Lee Jae-yong, SK Group's Chey Tae-won, Hyundai Motor's Chung Euisun and LG Group's Koo Kwang-mo  will also be in the French capital to pitch for Busan.







All 179 member states are expected to attend the BIE general assembly set for next Tuesday and Wednesday, and when they meet next time in November, they will pick the host city of the World Expo 2030. On Tuesday, Korea will give a presentation on how it will organize the event and why it should earn the much-coveted right. The next day, Yoon and top business leaders will host a "lavish" reception for diplomats stationed in Paris and BIE officials.







When Korea began its bid campaign a year ago, it was considered an underdog to the Saudi Arabian capital Riyadh, as the oil-rich kingdom exerted immense global influence amid soaring oil prices. Saudi Arabia is still considered a frontrunner, but according to Korean diplomats and businesspeople who have traveled around the world to campaign for Busan, the gap has narrowed significantly. The other two contenders  Italy's Rome and Ukraine's Odesa  are said to be far behind by all measures.







With only five months left, Korea cannot afford to waste the opportunity of next week's BIE meeting to push ahead of its competitors. Among other tasks, the nation should double its efforts to win the hearts and minds of nations in the South Pacific, Africa and South America, many of which are economically dependent on China.







One may wonder what China has to do with Korea's Expo bid. It may be a surprise to many but the world's second-largest economy has reportedly been staging a "

" against Korea, according to intelligence sources and business officials involved with the Bid Committee for World Expo 2030 and the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI), which has been coordinating private-sector campaign activities.







An official recently told The Korea Times on condition of anonymity that "it has become difficult for us to make public what the bid committee and others involved in the Expo campaign are doing abroad because we are told that China tries to undo what we do."







The official added, "In the beginning of the campaign, we sought to let everyone know where we went and whom we met. But after we heard China was working against us, we are now trying to keep what we do a secret, particularly in countries where China exerts economic influence."







China, which publically declared its support for Riyadh, is expected to intensify its "anti-Korea" campaign in line with the deteriorating Sino-Korea relations over North Korea, Taiwan and other geopolitical issues. The Yoon administration has been leaning toward the United States and Japan both politically and economically while keeping its distance from China. Yoon has often criticized China's reluctance to help curb the North's nuclear and missile development programs, stressing his country has no choice but to align more closely with the U.S. and Japan.







With China reportedly standing in the way, Korea must expand its public-private partnerships by mobilizing businesspeople, the most effective "diplomats," to a much greater extent, in order to court undecided BIE member countries. Even people in the most remote corners of the world know Samsung, Hyundai Motor and LG.







Let's make Busan a venue for the World Expo 2030 and score a diplomatic win over China.







Go Korea!









The writer ( leehs@koreatimes.co.kr ) is business editor at The Korea Times.
NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg told President Joe Biden at an Oval Office meeting on Tuesday that Ukrainians are "making progress with their counteroffensive, which could bolster their position when there's an opportunity to reach a diplomatic end to the war with Russia.

The support that we are providing together for Ukraine is now making a difference on the battlefield as we speak, Stoltenberg said.

Because the offensive has launched, and the Ukrainians are making progress, making advances."



He added, It's still early days, but what we do know is that the more land that Ukrainians are able to liberate, the stronger hand they will have at the negotiating table.

Biden said NATO has grown more unified during the Ukraine war and we're going to be building on that momentum when the alliance holds its annual summit in Vilnius, Lithuania, on July 11 and 12.

The White House meeting, the fourth between the two leaders, occurred at a moment of particular peril and uncertainty for the 31-member military alliance.

Ukraine, armed with Western weapons, is in the early stages of a high-stakes counteroffensive against Russia that could significantly reshape a war that began nearly a year and a half ago. NATO wants to continue supporting Kyiv while avoiding being drawn into direct conflict with Moscow.

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Russian President Vladimir Putin has claimed that Ukraine is suffering setbacks and the loss of tanks and armored vehicles.

In addition, no consensus has emerged over who will be NATO's next leader. Stoltenberg, a former Norwegian prime minister, plans to step down as secretary general at the end of September. He's held the job since 2014.

Last week, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak made the case for U.K. Defense Minister Ben Wallace to replace Stoltenberg. Biden also met with Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, another potential contender.

NATO has expanded since Russia's invasion of Ukraine with the addition of Finland. Sweden has also sought to join, but Turkey, another member of the alliance, has objected.

However, Biden has expressed confidence that the issue will be sorted out and Sweden will become the 32nd country in NATO.

The meeting with Stoltenberg was delayed by a day because Biden got a root canal on Monday. The procedure, which was prompted by dental pain that Biden felt over the weekend, also required the president to skip an event with college athletes.

The night before the root canal, he was up all night in pain, first lady Jill Biden said at a political fundraiser in New York City on Monday evening.
By Mike Stone, Trevor Hunnicutt and Krishn Kaushik

WASHINGTON/NEW DELHI (Reuters) - Ahead of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's state visit to Washington, the Biden administration is pushing New Delhi to cut through its own red tape and advance a deal for dozens of U.S.-made armed drones, two people familiar with the matter said.

India has long expressed interest in buying large armed drones from the United States. But bureaucratic stumbling blocks have hampered a hoped-for deal for SeaGuardian drones that could be worth $2 billion to $3 billion for years.

U.S. negotiators are counting on Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's White House visit on June 22 to break the log jam.

Since the date for Modi's visit was fixed, the U.S. State Department, Pentagon and White House have asked India to be able to "show" progress on the deal for as many as 30 armable MQ-9B SeaGuardian drones made by General Atomics, two sources said.

Modi and Biden are also expected to discuss co-production of munitions and ground vehicles, like armored personnel carriers, while Modi is in Washington, the sources said.

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Spokespeople for the White House, Department of State and the Pentagon declined to comment on the negotiations.

U.S. President Joe Biden has made deepening ties with India a cornerstone of his policy to counter China's growing influence, placing special attention this year on collaboration between the world's two largest democracies on advanced military technologies, despite their lack of a formal security alliance.

New Delhi, which often prizes its non-alignment in conflicts between great powers abroad, has frustrated Washington by maintaining some defense and economic ties with Russia after the invasion of Ukraine.

Breaking India's bureaucratic log jam on drones hinges on an internal meeting to generate an "Acceptance of Necessity" document, an Indian precursor to a formal "Letter of Request" which kicks off the foreign military sale process. As of Tuesday, the sources did not know if the New Delhi had generated the necessary internal document.

"That's gonna be a decision that the government of India needs to make," said a senior Biden administration official. "We think it would be good for them to go through with the purchase of MQ-9s. But those decisions are sort of more in the hands of India than they are of us."

The topic was expected to be on the agenda as Biden's national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, arrived in New Delhi on Tuesday to finalize preparations ahead of Modi's visit.

As of last week, India's defense ministry had still not made up its mind about the number of drones it wants to buy, according to a person familiar with the discussions. Earlier, the number was pegged at 30, but that was later revised to 24, and then further down to 18 last month. Sources cautioned that none of the numbers were final.

India is also seeking components of the equipment to be domestically manufactured, something that could complicate any deal.

The Quad grouping of countries - the United States, India, Australia and Japan - all operate, or have operated, the MQ-9B SeaGuardian. Currently, India is leasing MQ-9Bs as part of an intelligence-gathering operation.

(Reporting by Mike Stone and Trevor Hunnicuttt in Washington, Krishn Kaushik in New Delhi; Editing by Heather Timmons and Lisa Shumaker)
Georgi Azar

After getting hundreds of millions of people hooked on binge watching TV, Netflixs next move is to get them to binge on some food.



Fans of Netflix s culinary shows will soon be able to taste some of their favorite on-screen dishes when the streaming service opens its first pop-up restaurant in Los Angeles later this month.



Diners can visit the food concept dubbed Netflix Bites for an elevated dining experience featuring some of its most well known chefs, including Curtis Stone from Iron Chef: Quest for an Iron Legend and Ann Kim from Chefs Table: Pizza, for a limited time starting June 30.



The limited time pop-up will see chefs coming together to create a tasting menu which Netflix says will give fans and foodies alike a one-of-a-kind restaurant experience.



The restaurant is part of Netflixs latest move into live experiences, which have included a Queens Ball inspired by Bridgerton and a pop-up retail store at The Grove shopping mall.



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The participating chefs will prepare a special tasting menu, while Netflix mixologists from the show Drink Masters will put together custom cocktails.



The two-week pop-up will open on June 30. Guests who make a reservation will be required to put down a non-refundable $25 deposit which will go toward their final bill, the restaurants FAQ states.



The pop-up will be located at Short Stories Hotel in Los Angeles and will welcome guests from 5-10 pm seven days a week.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky met visiting International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director-General Rafael Grossi to discuss security risks to the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant (ZNPP) in the wake of the Kakhovka dam breach last week.

During the talks on Tuesday , Zelensky said that the security risks to the plant have significantly increased due to the destruction of the dam and the Kakhovka hydroelectric power plant, reports Xinhua news agency.

The ZNPP, which has been controlled by Russian forces since March 2022, is located some 140 km northeast of the Kakhovka plant.

Zelensky welcomed the presence of the IAEA's inspectors at the ZNPP and Grossi's intention to personally visit the plant to assess the situation on the ground.

Zelensky and Grossi also discussed specific steps aimed at reducing the risks and preventing incidents at the ZNPP.

The Ukrainian President supported Grossi's proposal to send IAEA experts to Ukraine to assess the consequences of the Kakhovka incident, saying that Ukraine would provide them with all needed assistance.

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Grossi tweeted that after the conversation with Zelensky, he will travel to the ZNPP to assess the situation after the Kakhovka dam flooding.

The breaching of the dam on June 6 have led to mass evacuations as water levels downstream rapidly increased.

Massive flooding also killed nine people in the town of Oleshky.

Officials have said that 30 towns and villages along the river have been flooded and nearly 2,000 homes have been submerged in the city of Kherson -- the region's capital controlled by Ukraine.

Of the 30 flooded towns and villages, 20 are controlled by Ukraine and 10 are occupied by Russia.

Kiev and Moscow have traded accusations over the dam's destruction, without providing concrete proof that the other is culpable.

It is not yet clear whether the dam was deliberately attacked or whether the breach was the result of structural failure.

--IANS

ksk/
Armis, the leading asset visibility and security company, today announced its partnership with cloud security provider Wiz as the company unveils Wiz Integration (WIN). Armis brings the power of its Asset Intelligence & Security Platform to WIN so that customers can seamlessly integrate Wiz into their existing workflows.

The WIN platform enables Wiz and Armis to share prioritized security findings with context including inventory, vulnerabilities, issues and configuration findings. Mutual customers of Armis and Wiz will receive the following benefits:

The ability to correlate security and vulnerability aspects with assets, enabling customers to see the full extent of their environment in Armis  physical, virtual and cloud.

Retrieve detailed information in the Armis console on cloud resources and assets that are seen by Wiz.

Enrichment of existing Armis devices with data exposed by Wiz, including information about types of assets, models, operating systems and more.



The combined value of these two offerings will streamline security for organizations that are on a cloud journey, regardless of where they may be on that journey.

Were proud to partner with Wiz and combine our respective areas of expertise to deliver an enhanced solution that better protects global organizations and governments from cybersecurity risks, said Nadir Izrael, CTO and Co-founder of Armis. As a cybersecurity community, we are better together when it comes to defending against the increasingly sophisticated attacks of malicious actors. Today there are more connected assets than ever which has created a bigger attack surface heavily targeted by attackers. WIN and the benefits derived from this program's partnerships will help organizations protect themselves better as attacks continue to increase.

"A best-in-class cloud operating model reduces risk, improves ROI, and drives efficiency," said Oron Noah, Director of Product Management, Wiz. "That value proposition is what lies at the heart of WIN, and what partners like Armis are helping to make a reality. This collaborative philosophy brings real customer benefits and we are so thankful to have Armis on board for this launch.

WIN is designed to enable a cloud security operating model where security and cloud teams work collaboratively to understand and control risks across their CI/CD pipeline. Wiz is setting the industry standard in integrated solution strategy to maximize operational capabilities of organizations with partners like Armis in WIN.

The Armis Asset Intelligence Platform provides unified asset visibility and security across all asset types, including information technology (IT), internet of things (IoT), operational technology (OT), internet of medical things (IoMT), cloud, and cellular-IoT  both managed and unmanaged. Delivered as an agentless software-as-a-service (SaaS) platform, Armis seamlessly integrates with existing IT and security stacks to quickly deliver the contextual intelligence needed for improving an organizations security posture, without disrupting current operations or workflows. Armis helps customers protect against unseen operational and cyber risks, increase efficiencies, optimize use of resources, and safely innovate with new technologies to grow their business.

To learn more about the Armis Asset Intelligence & Security Platform, please visit: https://www.armis.com/platform/

Armis and Wiz will be at Cyber Week Israel June 26 - June 29, 2023 at Tel Aviv University in Israel. More information on the joint event co-hosted by Armis and Wiz can be found here: https://info.wiz.io/Cyber-Week-Tel-Aviv_2023-06-27_Registration.html

About Armis

Armis, the leading asset visibility and security company, provides the industrys first unified asset intelligence platform designed to address the new extended attack surface that connected assets create. Fortune 100 companies trust our real-time and continuous protection to see with full context all managed, unmanaged assets across IT, cloud, IoT devices, medical devices (IoMT), operational technology (OT), industrial control systems (ICS), and 5G. Armis provides passive cyber asset management, risk management, and automated enforcement. Armis is a privately held company and headquartered in California.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230613256962/en/
Sound Vaccine, Inc., (Sound Vaccine), a leading manufacturer of advanced hearing medical systems and patented hearing healthcare products, is pleased to announce that it has signed an agreement ("Agreement") with GEM Global Yield LLC SCS ("GGY"), the Luxembourg-based private alternative investment group, to provide Sound Vaccine with a share subscription facility of up to KRW 180,000,000,000 for a 36-month term following June 8, 2023. The share subscription facility will allow Sound Vaccine to draw down funds by issuing ordinary shares to GEM. Sound Vaccine will control the timing and the maximum size of such drawdowns and has no minimum drawdown obligation. Sound Vaccine will issue warrants to GEM to purchase up to 2.7% of the issued ordinary shares of the company. Farazad Investments, a leading advisory services group headquartered in Hong Kong with offices in London advised Sound Vaccine on the transaction.

About Sound Vaccine

Sound Vaccine, Inc. specializes in the research, development, and manufacturing of advanced hearing medical systems and hearing healthcare products patented in the US, Japan, Europe, and many other developed regions. Its flagship innovations are clinically proven by Stanford University School of Medicine.

Founded in 2016, Sound Vaccine has emerged as one of the leading names in the hearing industry. A vast multitude of patents has been filed regarding its innovative TSC (Threshold Sound Conditioning) and MDA (Multi-Dimensional Audiometry) technologies.

Sound Vaccine developed the world's first non-invasive hearing improvement technology using acoustic signals for each frequency band. Through this verified invention, they revolutionized the hearing industry with a wide range of products catering for not only hearing loss patients but also people with normal hearing and wish to prevent hearing loss and improve their golden ear.

"We are thrilled to announce our recent commitment of 180 billion KRW from GEM. This investment not only underscores the tremendous potential of Sound Vaccine but also highlights the confidence and trust that GEM has in our ground-breaking technologies and transformative vision. With this strategic partnership that dramatically increases Sound Vaccines valuation, we are well-positioned to accelerate our growth and solidify our position as a pioneering force in the auditory healthcare industry. We are excited about the opportunities ahead and remain committed to delivering innovative solutions that will positively impact the lives of millions worldwide."  Said Eunyee Kwak, CEO of Sound Vaccine.

About GEM

Global Emerging Markets (GEM) is a $3.4 billion, alternative investment group with operations in Paris, New York, and The Bahamas. GEM manages a diverse set of investment vehicles focused on emerging markets and has completed over 580 transactions in 75 countries. Each investment vehicle has a different degree of operational control, risk-adjusted return, and liquidity profile.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230613142847/en/


Allies need to closely discuss China's pressure



By Troy Stangarone



The decision by the Cyberspace Administration of China to ban Micron Technology's semiconductors in Chinese infrastructure has put South Korea in the middle of the dispute between Washington and Beijing over the future of China's semiconductor industry. While there are immediate issues for South Korea and the United States to consider, the dispute highlights the need for South Korea and the United States to engage in deeper discussions in the medium-to-long term on how to handle economic coercion by China.



The current dispute stems from efforts by the U.S. to restrict China's access to the most advanced semiconductors for reasons of national security. The development of artificial intelligence is enhanced by the increased computing power advanced semiconductors provide and is expected to have a significant impact on how wars are fought in the future. But advanced semiconductors are also critical for supercomputers to improve the flight accuracy of ballistic missiles and to power advanced fighter jets and missile defense systems.



With China aiming to surpass the U.S. in these technologies the development of China's semiconductor industry and its access to advanced chips has become a key area of concern for U.S. national security and its ability to meet military commitments in the Indo-Pacific.



Depending on how China's ban is interpreted by domestic companies, the effect could be limited. Micron primarily supplies semiconductors to firms producing smartphones and computers rather than manufacturers of equipment for critical infrastructure. However, if Chinese manufacturers of consumer electronics interpret China's partial ban as a signal that they too should cut ties with Micron, it could impact 10 percent of the firm's business.



South Korea has been drawn into the dispute due to its leading role in the semiconductor industry, specifically, the memory segment where Micron, SK hynix, and Samsung are the three dominant manufacturers. Together, the three companies account for more than 90 percent of the global market share of DRAM. They also produce more than 60 percent of the world's NAND memory chips.



Because Samsung and SK hynix are the semiconductor manufacturers best placed to backfill any Chinese losses from the ban on Micron, the U.S. is reported, by the Financial Times, to have requested that the Yoon administration ask the two firms not to make up any lost supply. South Korea has suggested that this is a commercial decision for the two firms, but that it will not encourage them to take Micron's market share.



While there are immediate issues related to whether Samsung or SK hynix will backfill any losses from Micron's ban, the situation underscores some of the key issues the U.S. and South Korea need to work through related to economic coercion. The first is whether it is appropriate for governments to request that their firms not pursue market opportunities when a firm from an allied country is the target of economic coercion. In the Micron case, due to the national security implications, the request seems appropriate.



Though, there needs to be certainty that if the situation is reversed and Samsung or SK hynix faced a ban, the U.S. government would be willing to speak to Micron about why it would not be in the interests of national security to backfill, even if both the U.S. and Korean government agree that it should ultimately be a commercial decision.



Related to when governments ask for assistance during economic coercion is how much economic retaliation allies will accept to support their ally. In cases with clear ties to national security, that may be an acceptable cost. However, as disputes move into lower-level policy issues, the threshold for accepting losses in solidarity will decline. Other tools or means of support will need to be considered.



There is also a need to discuss what steps are appropriate when economic coercion takes place due to a policy decision, such as the deployment of THAAD that leads to the targeting of unrelated commercial products. The Trump administration did not support Korea during China's economic retaliation against Korea after the THAAD deployment, but with China targeting Korean cultural content and tourism, there were no substitutable goods for the U.S. or other allies to withhold. In addition to public statements of support and condemnation of economic coercion, a recent study by the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) suggests that Australia's experience during the pandemic of using the WTO dispute settlement mechanism can be an effective tool in convincing China to back down.



These are not the only issues related to economic coercion that the U.S. and South Korea should discuss, but the Micron case highlights the need for more sustained discussions on these issues. There is little reason to believe China's use of economic coercion will subside in the future.





Troy Stangarone (ts@keia.org) is the senior director of congressional affairs and trade at the Korea Economic Institute.




By Kim Sang-woo



The leaders of the Group of Seven on May 21 pledged to "de-risk" without decoupling from China, an approach that reflected European and Japanese concerns. The G7 communique noted that they did not seek to "thwart China's economic progress and development."



China rebuked the statement and summoned host Japan's ambassador in protest. The state-backed Global Times on May 22 called the G7 an "anti-China workshop."



In early June, defense ministers from around the world gathered in Singapore for the 20th Shangri-La Dialogue, a forum for discussing security challenges in Asia.



China's Defense Minister Li Shangfu refused to meet his U.S. counterpart, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin. Beijing suspended formal military-to-military meetings last August following then-Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi's visit to Taiwan. Since then, U.S.-China tensions have intensified. And in May, close calls between U.S. and China fighter jets over the South China Sea and warships in the Taiwan Strait became too close for comfort.



Regardless, the defense chiefs continued to blame the other for the lack of dialogue. For his part, Austin expressed deep concern that "the PRC has been unwilling to engage more seriously on better mechanisms for crisis management." He added, "dialogue is not a reward. It is a necessity."



Meanwhile, Li proclaimed that "only enhancing dialogue and communication will ensure stability in the region," adding that China would "establish direct hotlines to expand communication channels," yet adding conditions in the case of the United States.



With the risk of collision growing and dialogue channels closed, it is unclear if or how the two sides would communicate to resolve a crisis if one were to occur. ASEAN security leaders called for the U.S. and China to find ways to manage their differences and not allow competition to threaten peace in the region.



Li's speech focused on Beijing's Global Security Initiative which offers "Chinese wisdom" and critiques American leadership in international security. Overall, Beijing portrays China as a source of peace while labeling the U.S. as a destabilizing force.



In regard to the close calls between the U.S. and China militaries, Li placed the blame on the U.S. military's presence in the region. This view  that the American military presence near China's periphery is provocative  is hardly compatible with the vision of the U.S. and its allies for a free and open Indo-Pacific region and will continue to be a source of tension.



China's efforts to woo partners in the region face a tough challenge, as its neighbors have articulated a number of concerns related to Beijing's assertive actions in the region.



In the 2023 survey report conducted by ASEAN Studies Center at ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute, respondents said that "China remains the most influential and strategic power in Southeast Asia (41.5 percent), followed by the U.S. (31.9 percent) and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (13.1 percent). While China retains its top position, its influence has declined significantly from 54.4 percent in 2022, reducing its lead over the growing political strategic influence of the U.S. and ASEAN."



The same survey highlighted that "the U.S. popularity among Southeast Asian respondents continues to increase from 57 percent in 2022 to 61.1 percent in 2023 compared to 38.9 percent of respondents who chose China." Moreover, nearly half of respondents (49.8 percent) have either "little confidence" (30.8 percent) or "no confidence" (19 percent) in China to "do the right thing" to contribute to global peace, security, prosperity and governance.



The survey also states "distrusts toward China are higher in all ASEAN member states except Brunei, Cambodia and Laos. Distrust levels are most pronounced in Myanmar (80 percent), Vietnam (78.7 percent), the Philippines (62.7 percent), Indonesia (57.8 percent), Thailand (56.9 percent) and Singapore (56.3 percent).



The mixed sentiment found in this survey echoes the ASEAN China Survey 2022 with ASEAN countries having a positive view about economic relations with China but negative views on political and security relations, due to its conduct in the South China Sea.



What is clear is that Southeast Asian states have nuanced and mixed views as to their relationship with China that do not reflect China's repeated assertion that the U.S. is somehow?cajoling or influencing Chinese neighbors to "gang up" or take "anti-Chinese" positions against China.



South Korean and Japanese views show similar trends as those in Southeast Asia. According to the Sinophone Borderlands Project, which surveys China's global impact, "Eighty-one percent of South Korean respondents expressed negative or very negative sentiments. That is substantially more than in any of the 56 countries surveyed worldwide." Continued support of a divided Korean Peninsula; refusal to condemn North Korean attacks on South Korea such as the bombing of Yeonpyeong Island in 2010 or the sinking of its naval vessel the Cheonan; economic coercion over U.S. THAAD deployment in 2016; and the blocking of U.N. Security Council sanctions on North Korean missile launches have all contributed to resentment and concerns about China.



Similarly, the nongovernmental organization Genron, which regularly surveys Japanese and Chinese citizens as to their mutual perceptions, consistently finds that many Japanese recognize the importance of stable economic and political relations with China. At the same time, Japanese respondents also say they have apprehensions about Chinese behavior and policies.



Clearly, the Chinese defense minister's comments are not grounded in the perceptions that China's neighbors hold. But concerns about Chinese expansionism and economic coercion in the region coexist with a strong interest in maintaining close economic ties.



Arguments that the U.S. is deepening military cooperation in "China's backyard" ignore the legitimate territorial claims that other states in the region have. In their point of view, strengthening defense ties with the U.S. and other forms of strategic partnerships are the result of China's assertive behavior.



China should be more sensitive to its increasingly alarmed neighbors' concerns that Beijing's behavior has pushed a growing number of them to align with Washington and other like-minded states that adhere to the rules-based international order.





Kim Sang-woo (swkim54@hotmail.com), a former lawmaker, is chairman of the East Asia Cultural Project. He is also a member of the board of directors at the Kim Dae-jung Peace Foundation.


Members of the Korean Metal Workers' Union under the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions hold a rally in front of the National Police Agency in Seoul, May 31, to protest the Yoon Suk Yeol administration's stance on labor unions. Korea Times photo by Choi Joo-yeon



By Park Jae-hyuk



The Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU) has been weakened further as a growing number of unions in various industries are leaving the militant umbrella union, according to industry officials, Wednesday.



Earlier this week, one of the multiple unions at POSCO announced that the labor ministry approved its withdrawal from the Korean Metal Workers' Union (KMWU) under the KCTU.



"The independent POSCO union will be reborn as an organization for workers, not a lower branch of a certain group," the union said in a statement, Tuesday.



This came after the KMWU tried twice last year to prevent the withdrawal of POSCO's union by raising questions about its voting procedures and expelling three leaders of the steelmaker's unionized workers. Following the court's decision last month to invalidate the expulsion, POSCO's union resumed its attempt to leave the KMWU.



The main reason behind its withdrawal is due to complaints from workers of POSCO's main steel mill in Pohang, North Gyeongsang Province, regarding the KMWU's lack of support for restoring work to normalize the steel mill, after it was flooded following Typhoon Hinnamnor last September. The workers in Pohang cried foul over the KMWU's stance, as they have paid billions of won to the umbrella union.



Late last month, unionized workers of Lotte Chemical's Daesan plant in Seosan, South Chungcheong Province, agreed to leave the Korean Chemistry & Textile Federation of Unions under the KCTU. Their withdrawal was attributed mainly to the fact that management listened only to workers of the Yeosu factory in South Jeolla Province, despite their annual payment of around 70 million won ($55,000) to the umbrella union.



In 2021, GS E&C and Ssangyong E&C unions left the Korean Federation of Construction Companies Unions under the KCTU. In April last year, the Financial Supervisory Service union declared its withdrawal from the Korean Finance & Service Workers' Union under the KCTU, following the Bank of Korea union's withdrawal in 2020.



Unionized workers of Hanwha Ocean, which changed its name from Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering after Hanwha Group's acquisition, also sought to drop out of the KMWU last July, as the umbrella union supported a 51-day strike by the shipbuilder's subcontracted workers.



Although the withdrawal plan failed to win support votes from more than two-thirds of the voters, over 52 percent of the voters backed the Hanwha Ocean union's attempt to leave the umbrella union.



There remains a possibility of the union withdrawing once again, considering the fact that unionized workers of Hanwha Ocean's subcontractors are still in conflict with the shipbuilder, unlike Hanwha Ocean's union, which declared its stance of mutual cooperation with the new employer.


CAMEROUN :: OFFICIAL LAUNCH OF THE ACTIVITIES OF THE MANYCAWE ASSOCIATIONS NETWORK IN THE NORTH-WEST REGION :: CAMEROON

OFFICIAL LAUNCH OF THE ACTIVITIES OF THE MANYCAWE ASSOCIATIONS NETWORK IN THE NORTH-WEST REGION FROM 15 TO 16 JUNE 2023. TERMS OF REFERENCE

1-CONTEXT

The network of MANYCAWE associations through its actions works to encourage the participation of womenand young girls in the process of economic development in our country. The latter need to be accompanied in terms of training, structuring and above all financing. And all the more so as women and young girls find it increasingly difficult to fit into thetraditional labor market with the corollary of precariousness in all its forms (prostitution, violence, etc.). In order to remedy this phenomenon which currently affects women and girls in all regions, and especially those in post-conflict areas; the MANYCAWE network has set up several programs, in this case the training program whose objective is to train women and young girls on incomegenerating activities in order to hope for a sustainable empowerment of the target and its integration professional.

The first is based on massive training of the target in different sectors of activity in order to facilitate their professional integration either as an employee or as a self-employed person. However, the network encourages the beneficiaries of these training courses to come together, not only to face the difficulties linked to entrepreneurship with a common front, but also to benefit from all the advantages linked to the social economy which is on the rise stern right now.

It is for all these reasons that the Network has decided to set up an office in each region in order to closely monitor the target population. The proximity between the network and the target population will help to effectively implement its various programs and achieve the objectives it has set itself.

The choice of the North West region for these trainings is not insignificant because this region is in the grip of a security crisis with disastrous consequences. It is becoming extremely urgent to provide support to the women who are the main victims.

Our activity will be structured around two main axes:

 Since the launch of our Made in Cameroon program, a mini fair is held during each of the activities that we organize. Women entrepreneurs from the North-West will thus have the opportunity to demonstrate their know-how in the various sectors of activity.

 As usual, each time our network brings women together at least one training is held. Beyond being a moment of conviviality and sharing

2.2-Specific objectives

Equip women on the culture of entrepreneurship;

Equip women on financial education;

Introduce women to the cultivation of edible mushrooms;

Breaking isolation, confronting ideas, enriching the capital of experiences;

Present the Mutualcreated by the network.

3-EXPECTED RESULTS

Train about 300 women;

Operationalize the North West Regional Office;

Promote the products of the entrepreneurs of our network;

Inform participants about our network's nanofunding program.

4-ACTIVITIES

Three components will furnish this day:

4.1-Installation of the regional office

In order to carry out the activities of MANYCAWE in the North-West region, a local office representative of all the departments will take office. This office will have the heavy responsibility of identifying, training and supporting these women and girls whose mission is to help boost the economy

in this part of the country.

4.2-Organization of training

Women and young people in this region will benefit from training on:

-the culture of entrepreneurship and sensitizing them on the services offered by the Ministry of Small and Medium Enterprises of the Social Economy of Handicrafts (MINPMEESA) to promote the development of entrepreneurship in Cameroon;

-Financialeducation;Mushroomculture.

4.3-Organization of a mini exhibition fair

The women entrepreneurs who are members of the network will present their know-how in various sectors of economic and social activity through this mini exhibition fair.

5-DATE & PLACE

From June 15 to 16, 2023 at the Pastoral center Up station in Bamenda in the North West region of Cameroon.




By Kim Hyun-bin







POSCO International is holding a non-deal roadshow (NDR) for foreign investors, marking the first event of its kind since the COVID-19 pandemic, the company said Wednesday. The first event was held in Singapore and Hong Kong, Tuesday, and several more will be organized through Friday in the two cities.







The company aims to showcase its competitiveness and future growth potential to foreign investors, following its integration with POSCO Energy. The company organized the NDR to increase the proportion of long-term foreign investments and enhance shareholder value.







A total of 12 investment firms, including a major overseas investment firm managing assets worth $150 billion, participated in the NDR, conducting one-on-one meetings. Topics of high interest included the integration synergy of the liquefied natural gas (LNG) value chain, environmentally friendly energy businesses such as wind power and solar energy, as well as driving motor core and secondary battery materials.







Aiming to achieve a market capitalization of 23 trillion won ($18 billion) by 2030, POSCO International has been strengthening communication with domestic and foreign investors. The company plans to regularly host "Value Day" and "Analyst Day" events for domestic institutional investors, asset management companies, and securities firms.







"We have observed a notable level of interest from foreign investors, including the recent influx of 90 billion won in passive funds following MSCI's inclusion of the Korean index. Moving forward, we will expand our regular overseas communication channels to attract substantial global fund investments," a POSCO International official said.


Hyundai Motor Group Executive Chair Chung Euisun, eight from left, poses with SK Group Senior Vice Chairman Chey Jae-won, ninth from left, POSCO Group Chairman Choi Jeong-woo, 10th from left, and other business group leaders during the Korea H2 Business Summit at Grand Hyatt Seoul, Wednesday. Yonhap



By Lee Kyung-min



A hydrogen initiative consultative body comprising heads of local conglomerates agreed to rely on hydrogen to help achieve the nation's carbon emission reduction targets, according to industry officials. They said hydrogen will shoulder more than 10 percent of the carbon emissions reduction target by 2030 and more than 25 percent by 2050.



Also prioritized are fortifying global communication and cooperation channels to establish a global hydrogen platform that will identify various joint growth opportunities within the country and abroad.



The business leaders attended the Korea H2 Business Summit at the Grand Hyatt Seoul, Wednesday. The first summit was launched in 2021 as a platform for hydrogen industry players.



Attendees included Hyundai Motor Group Executive Chair Chung Euisun, SK Group Senior Vice Chairman Chey Jae-won and POSCO Group Chairman Choi Jeong-woo.



They stressed continued efforts to create synergy in government policies, business activities and investments, for the future progress of the summit.



Also shared were years of achievements concerning sustainable energy leaders, including joint growth initiatives.





Hyundai Motor Group Executive Chair Chung Euisun, second from right, and SK Group Senior Vice Chairman Chey Jae-won, second from left, attend the Korea H2 Business Summit at the Grand Hyatt Seoul, Wednesday. Yonhap
Liu Jians Art College 1994, which debuted at the Berlinale earlier this year and is competing at the Annecy festival this week, has been acquired by New Yorks Dekanalog for North American distribution and will get a theatrical run in 2024.

Set in an era when China was loosening its borders to influences from the Western world, the film follows a group of students in the mid-1990s amidst a clash of idealism vs. reality and tradition vs. modernity. In that very specific time and place, several young students pursue their dreams of making art, forming deep friendships, and falling in love.

The hand-drawn 2d feature was produced by a team of teachers and students at the China Academy Of Art (CAA), where Liu is a professor. Production took five years. According to the Academy, the film possesses aesthetics that exhibit distinctive Chinese elements is a significant creative and pedagogical product of CAAs pursuit of neorealistic animation.

Art College 1994 is such an exciting, life-affirming new film, and having the opportunity to share this masterclass of animation with cinema audiences in North America is a dream come true for us, Dekanalog co-founder Lysa Le told Variety, which broke the news.

Art College 1994 has maneuvered a bumpy road to get where it is today. The film premiered in February at the Berlinale but was originally meant to debut in the Directors Fortnight section at the 2022 Cannes Festival under the title A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man. However, shortly before its would-be premiere, the Chinese government imposed new Covid restrictions that made taking the movie abroad impossible.

Lui also faced government-imposed difficulties when trying to bring his 2017 film Have a Nice Day to Annecy, where China had been selected as that years guest country. On the eve of the festival, the Chinese government asked Annecy to omit the film from competition, putting organizers in an unenviable position. Eventually, they obliged, and Have a Nice Day was removed from the festival.
Singapores Robot Playground Media (RPM) has recruited animation companies from Asia-Pacific and Europe to work on a new animated horror anthology series titled A Banquet for Hungry Ghosts.

Adapted from Ying Chang Compestines eponymous novel, the 10-part series won backing at last years Mediacorp Content Development Pitch event. The pilot episode Egg Fried Rice will release in early 2024. It was commissioned and will be financed by Mediacorp with 108 Media co-financing on a series order.

A Banquet For Hungry Ghosts ten episodes were conceptualized as a ten-course banquet, with each representing a different dish to be served during the Hungry Ghost Festival, a Chinese custom where food offerings are made to appease ghosts that wander the earth during the seventh month of the lunar calendar.

The ten episodes will be titled:

Egg Fried Rice Steamed Dumplings Sweet and Sour Pork Hot Pot Kung Pao Chicken Peking Duck Cold Platter Glutinous Rice Balls Dim Sum Long Life Noodles

RPM also shared some exciting early concept art:

Aligning with the shows focus on the Chinese diaspora and its cultural influences  particularly its cuisine  the global studios that will be involved with production include Igloo Studio (Thailand), Studio Climb (Malaysia), Something Big (France), Disnosc (France), Werlen Meyer (France), Xanthus Animation (Taiwan), and RPM will produce two episodes. More studios will be announced soon.

The show will be executive produced by Justin Deimen, Ying Compestine, and Abhi Rastogi for 108 Media and Ervin Han, Bernard Toh, and former Disney animator Raul Garcia for Robot Playground Media.

In a release, Ervin Han, CEO and co-founder of Robot Playground Media, said:

The combination of Chinese food and the afterlife is an irresistible pairing for what we envision to be a groundbreaking animated series for a modern audience. Ten deliciously macabre tales created by some of the most exciting indie studios from Asia and around the world. Horror is a genre that has been underserved in animation for too long. With Banquet, we aim to create a long-running horror series that will satisfy the appetite of a global audience hungry for bold, fun, and imaginative adult animation. Let the feast begin!

Angeline Poh, chief customer and corporate development officer at Mediacorp, added:
BCMA calls on government to lower customs duty on clinker

14 June 2023

The Bangladesh Cement Manufacturers Association (BCMA) has urged the countrys government to reduce the customs duty on clinker. Cement producers are currently required to pay a duty of BDT500/t (US$4.61/t) on imported clinker. The government has proposed to increase this to BDT700 in its budget for the next fiscal year. Alamgir Kabir, president of the BCMA, says the association has been campaigning for a reduction in the customs duty for some time now, in the hope of lowering it from BDT500/t to BDT200/t so this latest move by the government is very disappointing, reports The Financial Express.

Additional duty is a blow for the sector which is already reeling from a high tax burden, energy crisis, increase in transport fares, and dollar shortage, said Mr Kabir, who is also chairman of Crown Cement. But the customs duty on clinker stands at around 12 per cent to 13 per cent of the import value because of the recent budget announcement on clinker levying a customs duty of BDT700 per metric tonne. Thus, 12 per cent to 13 per cent customs duty on the import value of key raw materials is considered disproportionate to the cement industry owners and its detrimental effect may put additional pressure on the consumer-general in the cement market and may lead to a slowdown in overall construction activity.

We have been demanding for a long time that at the import stage, primarily advanced income tax (AIT) can be levied at a maximum of 0.50 per cent, but it would not be appropriate to consider it as a final settlement. Therefore, we have been applying to open up the opportunity to adjust the AIT, added Mr Kabir. Also, since cement manufacturers have already paid AIT on raw materials at the import stage, paying AIT at the sale stage is equivalent to double taxation.

He also pointed out that the current dollar crisis is making it more difficult to import raw materials, leading to higher import costs, while the ongoing energy crisis and gas shortage has pushed production costs even higher. Considering the current situation, he urged the government to treat the cement sector as a priority sector.

Published under
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida speaks about his key policies during a news conference at the prime minister's office Tuesday, June 13. AP-Yonhap





Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida unveiled on Tuesday a package of wide-ranging measures to reverse a dwindling birthrate, saying the problem needed to be tackled as an ageing population threatens the world's third-largest economy.







Kishida's flagship policy comes amid speculation that he will dissolve parliament's lower house this week and call a snap election, a move that could heighten calls from within his ruling party for big spending to boost its support amongst the electorate.







"Now is the last chance to reverse the downtrend in childbirth by the 2030s," Kishida told a televised press conference.







"The low birthrate is a massive problem that concerns our country's society and entire economy and can't be put off," he said. "Without arresting the fast-declining birthrate and populations, Japan's economy and society would shrink, making it difficult to maintain social security systems."







With measures such as bigger payouts to families with children and providing homes for hundreds of thousands of such households, Kishida said he hoped to double child care spending by the early 2030s, from about 4.7 trillion yen ($33.7 billion) now.







The package may help his party appeal to the public, fanning speculation of an early election.







Although an election for parliament's powerful lower house is not due until late 2025, Kishida, who swept to power in October 2021, is keen to boost his grip over the party ahead of a leadership race next September, analysts say.







Kishida sidestepped queries on plans for a snap election, saying numerous factors would govern the decision as the approaching end of the parliament session could make for a fluid political situation.







"I want to be sure that I can assess the situation appropriately," he added. "I would like to refrain from commenting further on this matter."







Some opposition lawmakers may threaten to submit a no-confidence motion against Kishida's cabinet by the end of the current parliamentary session on June 21, which could trigger a snap election.







Reporters raise hand to ask Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, left, a question, during a news conference at the prime minister's office, June 13. AP-Yonhap









Japan's birthrate has been on a steady decline, dropping last year to a record low of 1.26 from 1.57 in 1990, despite a series of government measures to reverse it. The number of births in 2022 was less than 40 percent the annual number of births during the second generation of babyboomers, who were born in the early 1970s.







Kishida's plan would see the government earmark about 3.5 trillion yen annually for the next three years for child care allowances and support for those taking child care leave.







However, the government has yet to outline exactly how it would fund the measures, stoking fears of runaway debt.







Kishida once again ruled out the prospect of a near-term tax hike, saying the funding gap would be filled by the issuance of special childcare bonds.







The government will raise more from social insurance premiums - a move that could backfire on corporate efforts to hike wages - while also curbing increases in social security spending.







It will work out the details of securing stable sources of funding by year-end, officials have said.







It was "inappropriate" to criticize the government for pushing back a decision on funding sources, Kishida said.







The government will also urge companies to allow employees to choose more flexible working styles such as taking three days off a week, according to a draft of the package seen by Reuters. (Reuters)










A Dutch intelligence agency tipped off the CIA about an alleged Ukrainian plan in June 2022 to blow up the Nord Stream pipeline, Dutch national broadcaster NOS reported on Tuesday.







The NOS report, which was compiled with help from leading German media outlets, did not identify its sources.







It said that the Dutch military intelligence agency MIVD had warned the CIA of the existence of such a plan, leading to a warning from Washington to Kyiv not to attack the pipeline.







Unexplained explosions ruptured both Nord Stream 1 and the newly built Nord Stream 2 pipelines, carrying gas from Russia to Germany under the Baltic Sea, in September.







The blasts occurred in the economic zones of Sweden and Denmark. Both countries said the explosions were deliberate, but have yet to determine who was responsible. Those countries and Germany are investigating.







Washington and NATO called the incident "an act of sabotage". Moscow accused investigators of dragging their feet and trying to conceal who was behind the attack. Ukraine denies responsibility.







The MIVD could not immediately be reached for comment. (Reuters)






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Russian President Vladimir Putin, right,, and Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko speak during their meeting at the Bocharov Ruchei residence in the resort city of Sochi, Russia, June 9. AP-Yonhap



Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko has said his country has started taking delivery of Russian tactical nuclear weapons, some of which he said were three times more powerful than the atomic bombs the U.S. dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945.



The deployment is Moscow's first move of such warheads - shorter-range less powerful nuclear weapons that could potentially be used on the battlefield - outside Russia since the fall of the Soviet Union.



The step is being watched closely by the United States and its allies as well as by China, which has repeatedly cautioned against the use of nuclear weapons in the Ukraine war.



"We have missiles and bombs that we have received from Russia," Lukashenko said in an interview with the Rossiya-1 Russian state TV channel which was posted on the Belarusian Belta state news agency's Telegram channel.



"The bombs are three times more powerful than those (dropped on) Hiroshima and Nagasaki," he said.



Lukashenko, a close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, said separately on Tuesday that the nuclear weapons would be physically deployed on the territory of Belarus "in several days" and that he had the facilities to host longer-range missiles too if ever needed.



Putin said on Friday that Russia, which will retain control of the tactical nuclear weapons, would start deploying them in Belarus after special storage facilities to house them were made ready.



The Russian leader announced in March he had agreed to deploy tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus, pointing to the U.S deployment of such weapons in a host of European countries over many decades.



The United States has criticised Putin's decision but has said it has no intention of altering its own stance on strategic nuclear weapons and has not seen any signs that Russia is preparing to use a nuclear weapon.



Lukashenko told Russian state TV in the same interview, which was released late on Tuesday, that his country had numerous nuclear storage facilities left over from the Soviet-era and had restored five or six of them.



Lukashenko, who has allowed his country to be used by Russian forces attacking Ukraine as part of what Moscow calls its "special military operation", has said the nuclear deployment would act as a deterrent against potential aggressors.



Belarus borders three NATO member countries: Lithuania, Latvia and Poland. (Reuters)




The logo for Amazon Web Services (AWS) is seen at the SIBOS banking and financial conference in Toronto, Ontario, Canada Oct. 19, 2017. Reuters-Yonhap



Amazon Web Services, the world's largest cloud computing provider, is considering using new artificial intelligence chips from Advanced Micro Devices (AMD), though it has not made a final decision, an AWS executive told Reuters.



The remarks came during an AMD event where the chip company outlined its strategy for the AI market, which is dominated by rival Nvidia Corp.



Despite AMD disclosing some technical specifications for an AI chip coming later this year that could in some ways beat Nvidia's best current offerings on some metrics, the news sent shares down after AMD did not disclose a flagship customer for the chip.



In interviews with Reuters, AMD Chief Executive Lisa Su outlined an approach to winning over major cloud computing customers by offering a menu of all the pieces needed to build the kinds of systems to power services similar to ChatGPT, but letting customers pick and choose which they want, using industry standard connections.



"We're betting that a lot of people are going to want choice, and they're going to want the ability to customize what they need in their data center," Su said.



While AWS has not made any public commitments to use AMD's new MI300 chips in its cloud services, Dave Brown, vice president of elastic compute cloud at Amazon, said AWS is considering them.



"We're still working together on where exactly that will land between AWS and AMD, but it's something that our teams are working together on," Brown said. "That's where we've benefited from some of the work that they've done around the design that plugs into existing systems."



Nvidia does sell its chips piecemeal but is also asking cloud providers if they are willing to offer an entire system designed by Nvidia in a product called DGX Cloud. Oracle Corp is Nvidia's first partner for that system.



Brown said AWS had declined to work with Nvidia on the DGX Cloud offering.



"They approached us, we looked at the business model, and it didn't make a lot of sense," Brown said.



Brown said that AWS prefers to design its own servers from the ground up. AWS started selling Nvidia's H100 chip in March, but as part of systems of its own design. (Reuters)






The Signal Mountain Town Council has adopted a new comprehensive personnel policy that is intended to provide residents "with high quality services through the efficient use of resources. It aims to encourage sustainable growth while preserving a small-town character."

The personnel policy includes, among many other things, a pay scale plan, updated job descriptions and compensation plan along with the towns policy related to drug and alcohol testing.

The new personnel policy was developed by City Manager Elaine Brunelle and the department heads with the assistance of the Municipal Technical Advisory Service (MTAS), an agency that provides advice to municipalities in Tennessee. After doing a wide-ranging review, the new human resources policy was developed that will promote understanding by providing uniform policies to all employees.

Some highlights of the new policy were discussed at the council meeting. In addition to the general description of a position, the job descriptions will now also include minimum qualifications required to perform the jobs. And drug and alcohol testing can be performed for certain jobs. The new pay plan gives equal compensation to positions that are grouped together in approximately the same level of job difficulty and responsibility. And the compensation plan is planned to be market competitive with pay ranges for each position which will be approved by the council while the budget is being developed each year.

The new pay rates are seen as being comparable to the private sector and other public municipalities in the area. And it appears to already be working, said Council member Clay Crumbliss. There have been over 30 applications for a currently-advertised police officer position. The compensation policy will also provide a path to career opportunities.

A revised organizational chart for the administrative department was approved along with a job description for the new positions, including a Communication Program Generalist. And to increase efficiency , effective July 1, three departments, the former Parks and Recreation department, the Parks Administration and Facilities Maintenance departments will be combined to form a new Public Works Facility Management department, under the Public Works Department. It will be responsible for taking care of all the town-owned facilities and will make more efficient use of materials and supplies. The new positions of Facilities Maintenance Supervisor and Facilities Maintenance Crew Leader will be created.

In other restructuring, Building and Codes positions were updated with the addition of a Building Official and a Building Inspector. It is recognized that the fee structure in this department needs to be reviewed. And it has been recommended to make use of software and technology in codes enforcement and issuing permits. Building Codes will now be under the town manager instead of the fire chief.

Council member Crumbliss said that these really big policy changes have been in the works for many months. Speaking for the council he said they all appreciated the collaborative work it took to create the document, by City Manager Brunelle, the department heads and staff who put it together. It paves the way for a stronger future for Signal Mountain, he said.

An ordinance passed on the first reading that will increase stormwater rates throughout the town. The new rates will be used for the cost of stormwater management and operations of the department. The minimum amount will be $51.48 per year for impervious areas of 3,960 square feet or less. There is an additional fee per square foot for larger areas. Undeveloped, vegetated land is not charged this fee.

Approval was given for the city managers proposed allocations of American Rescue Plan funds received by Signal Mountain. They must be designated by December 31, 2023. From the total $2,049,567 that was received, $502,026 has already been spent on infrastructure and to relieve economic impact. Of the remaining amount, the Stormwater/Streets Department will receive 45.1 percent. The Water Department will get 34.6 percent, Town Hall/Cyber Security will get 14.9 percent and 2.9 percent is planned to go to the Fire Department and 2.5 percent for the Police Department.

A yearly review for City Manager Brunelle will be held on Thursday, July 15, at 5 p.m. at town hall. Council member Andrew Gardner said it is expected to be very positive but, because of the personal nature of the meeting, this special called meeting as well as other personnel reviews will not be streamed or recorded.
Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-Tn.) on Tuesday led a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland calling on him to appoint a special counsel to investigate any wrongdoing by President Biden and his family in their business dealings.



Senators J.D. Vance (R-Ohio) and Mike Braun (R-Ind.) joined Senator Blackburn as co-signers on the letter.

The senators said, Under your watch, the Department of Justice has been weaponized to target President Bidens top political opponent in advance of the 2024 election. Meanwhile, your DOJ has blatantly ignored the credible allegations of President Bidens and his familys corruption.

Recent reports indicate that Burisma - a Ukrainian natural gas firm where Hunter Biden sat on the board - allegedly paid then-Vice President Biden $5 million to influence United States policy decisions - conduct that would clearly constitute bribery. To make matters worse, the FBI has stonewalled congressional oversight of this matter, refusing to comply with a subpoena from the House Oversight Committee. Additionally, both Joe and Hunter Biden pursued numerous business deals that were allegedly arranged by individuals with ties to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).

Given these concerning allegations that continue to come to light with each passing day, we urge you to appoint a special counsel to investigate any wrongdoing by President Biden and his family in their business dealings. Only thenwith the appointment of a neutral and independent special counsel with broad authority to investigate these credible claims of the Biden familys corruptioncan the American people be assured that there is truly one set of laws in this country and that they apply to everyone equally, regardless of their viewpoint or political affiliation.

Read the full letter here.
Tivoli facility on Broad Street awaiting renovation photo by John Shearer Tivoli facility on Broad Street awaiting renovation photo by John Shearer Tivoli facility on Broad Street awaiting renovation photo by John Shearer Tivoli facility on Broad Street awaiting renovation photo by John Shearer Previous Next

The Tivoli Theatre has hosted countless shows and concerts and, during the first 40 years of its life, first-run movies. But Monday the Chattanooga Engineers Club was treated to a program at the theater about the Tivoli itself.

At its regular noontime meeting, about 30-plus members of the club gathered on the front rows of the theater to hear an update on the upcoming construction plans and work that will be done. They also got to learn plenty little-known facts about the theaters past, which, based on their reaction, might have been even more interesting.

That included tales about old fans still there or removed, as well as pictures of the rarely seen organ pipes.

The media and other interested people were also invited, and I gathered on a back row and was totally engrossed in the program like an enthralled teenager watching a movie there in the 1940s. That is, even though I have written stories about the Tivoli and its history before. Or maybe it was because of that.

After a welcome by club president George Aslinger and some discussions by Tivoli Foundation officials about a Camp Broadway for youngsters this summer and a push to begin a public fund-raising campaign around this fall when construction will begin, Rick Botto began his program.

He is the principal of Compass Commissioning & Design and is the honorary engineer for the Tivoli project. Mills and Schnoering of New Jersey is the architectural firm, while T.U. Parks is the general contractor for the privately and publicly funded project that as of last summer had been estimated at over $52 million.

Mr. Botto said the old 1889 Fowlers furniture/Tivoli Centre building that the Tivoli Foundation has bought will be the primary part of the renovation. Its first floor will feature a new entrance adjacent to the Tivoli on Broad Street, a bar on the south front, a leased restaurant space on the north front end by Seventh Street, and additional lobby space for the Tivoli in the back.

The second floor will include public classroom or meeting spaces, while the Bobby Stone Cinema theater will take up parts of the third and fourth floors. Long-term plans in another phase also call for an outdoor bar on the roof to be operated by the restaurant, officials said.

This is a very much improved layout, said Mr. Botto in emphasizing how the redone Fowlers building will help in the accommodation as well as the flow of patrons into and out of the Tivoli during a show.

An artists rendering also showed a vertical Tivoli marquee, similar to the current one, hanging at the corner of the old Fowlers building at Seventh and Broad streets.

Mr. Botto also pointed out that the Fowlers buildings tall and unique interior cast iron columns of more than 20 feet will be retained.

Regarding what will be done to the Tivoli, which was originally designed by the noted Chicago theater firm of Rapp and Rapp, Mr. Botto said, We are not drastically improving this place, just changing it back to what it was.

He said some electrical and sprinkler system upgrades will be done, and an issue with occasional water problems in the basement due to a nearby city sewer line will be fixed using a lift station to pump water out. Also, more restrooms will be installed in places like the upper floor in connection with the old Fowlers/Tivoli Centre building.

He said very little asbestos has been found so far.

Much of the program dealt with the theaters past, and Mr. Botto pointed out how big the proscenium arch around the front of the stage was compared to most other theaters.

If you are on the stage looking out, it is quite a view, he said.

Theater technical director Sam Fort also chimed in information while seated on a front row, such as mentioning a giant movie screen installed in 2018.

Mr. Botto also pointed out the Wurlitzer organ sitting a few feet away and said that it does even more than a typical church organ. It also has buttons to play such silent movie-era sounds as horns honking and cymbals clinking. This thing can make sounds that are fascinating, he said.

He also showed some photos he had taken of a tour in the last week of the area above the stage where the organs wooden and metal pipes are located. He said they used to be operated by air but are now prompted electronically.

He also showed some recent photos of some old fans or fan frames used in the theater and said a couple of fans had to be removed in recent years when, according to Mr. Fort, the crew of The Book of Mormon needed extra space for stage rigging. This was done in part to take away the extra weight.

Since the audience for the Monday program was comprised of engineers, Mr. Botto also went into details about the various air systems used in the theater over the years. He showed a photo of one fan that had almost boomerang-angled blades, and it was made by the Typhoon Fan Co. to be quieter during a movie in the days before air conditioning arrived with a Carrier system installed in 1926, five years after the theater opened. The Carrier system operated by using water, he said.

He also showed a photo of an old General Electric fan motor still there and said coal had also been used in the early days to help heat the building.

Mr. Botto said the contractors are going through getting the proper permits right now, and hopefully construction can begin in the coming weeks. But he believes it will be a great facility when completed with both buildings becoming one.

This place is going to live on, hopefully for a while, he said.

After the program formally ended, about 10 attendees went down to the basement and saw some of the old heating and cooling equipment, some of which is no longer being used and much of which will be removed in the planned remodeling and restoration.

Attendees also had chances to ride the orchestra pit lift where the Wurlitzer was sitting and enjoy Mr. Fort showing them a little how the sounds are made on the organ.

Like an old double feature show, the hour-plus program was a look into the theaters planned future  and storied past.

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jcshearer2@comcast.net
The City Council on Tuesday heard debate on a rezoning plan for two run-down Lee Highway motels that the new owner wants to upgrade and convert to apartments.

After extensive discussion, the apartment group asked for a one-month deferral.

Mike Price, representing the developer, said a section of property that was to be a buffer area was not currently owned by the developer and time was needed to deal with that issue.

A zoning change that was earlier recommended by the Planning Commission allows 94 units at Motel 6 instead of 70 and 64 units at America's Best Inn instead of 56 at the locations in the 7700 block.

Rick Williams, president of the Silverdale Neighborhood Association, said, "Our biggest concern is security."

He said the motels are near the Airport Inn that the city is converting as supportive housing for the homeless.

Mr. Williams said the units will be only 483 square feet, which he called inhumane.

He said if the plan "had been to blow out some walls, then I would have been down there swinging a hammer."

Marilyn Stockwell said charging over $900 for the small units "doesn't make sense." She said a three-bedroom home a block away is for rent for $1,500 a month.

Councilwoman Jenny Hill said units at Passenger Flats at the Chattanooga Choo Choo are 328 square feet, and it is full. She said the situation is the same for small units at the Tomorrow Building downtown.

The case is due to be concluded on July 11.

Mr. Price said the two motels had generated major numbers of police calls. He said the new owners, Thornhill Management, will have background checks and install security cameras.

He said there would be studio apartments and some two-bedroom units as well as pools and community rooms.

Thornhill Management earlier dropped plans to convert the Knights Inn in Lookout Valley to apartments after strong opposition from County Commissioner Joe Graham and City Councilman Chip Henderson.
Rep. Chuck Fleischmann voted Tuesday to block the Biden Administrations "unconstitutional" pistol brace ban.

He said, "This comes after the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) unilaterally deemed pistol braces illegal, potentially making millions of law-abiding gun owners criminals overnight.

Every American has a fundamental, God-given right to keep and bear arms for their own use and protection. Pistol braces were invented to help disabled veterans use firearms that they otherwise would be unable to use. Since 2012, under the Obama Administration, the ATF has recognized pistol braces serve a legitimate function and should not be subject to burdensome government overreach. Now, for no reason, the ATF has reversed its course and declared pistol braces illegal.

We can never allow unelected, unaccountable bureaucrats to infringe upon our rights. The Biden Administration and ATF are relentlessly pushing gun control with the sole purpose of taking away Americans abilities to own and use firearms. If allowed to stand, millions of law-abiding Americans could become felons overnight and face 10 years in jail and fines up to $10,000. This must never happen.

I will always fight to protect our Second Amendment rights. None of us can stand by and allow our rights to be taken away from us. Im glad the House voted to block Bidens and the ATFs clearly unconstitutional ban on pistol braces. I call on the Senate to act quickly to pass H.J. Res. 44 to protect our rights under the Constitution and Bill of Rights.
Mayor Tim Kelly on Tuesday announced the establishment of a new working group to rally resident support for Trostyanets, a Ukrainian city that he said survived 31 days of Russian occupation and is struggling to recover from the effects of the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine.

The move raised concerns from some City Council members.

Councilman Darrin Ledford asked, "What if Ukraine loses? We need to slow down and think about what we are doing."

He said the move thrusts the city "in the middle of extremely hot tempers that are in the news.

I worry about the unintended consequences."

Councilwoman Jenny Hill said, "We don't want to turn the Eye of Sauron on us."

She said, "We've seen the cyber espionage of that government (Russia)." She noted Chattanooga's Gig City focus.

Mayor Kelly met Trostyanets Mayor Yuri Bova at the 2023 Cities Summit of the Americas in April, when five Ukrainian mayors came seeking help from their American counterparts, and both mayors resolved to explore relations between the two cities consistent with Chattanoogas other existing Sister City relationships.

Such cultural and economic exchanges would also give the people of Chattanooga the opportunity to help the war-torn town recover and rebuild, as well as open up new cross-Atlantic relationships and opportunities for economic development and trade, it was stated.

No city tax dollars are involved in the effort.

Chattanoogans have been inspired by Ukraines courage and determination throughout their fight for freedom from Russian aggression, and I have been asked many times since the beginning of the war, Tim, how can we help? said Mayor Kelly. I believe that publicizing the story of Trostyanets is a start, and by setting up a resident-led effort to determine the best way to expand our engagement and help them rebuild, were creating a tangible way for folks to get involved. I invite anyone interested to apply.

The mayor's office said according to Bloomberg:

"Before Russian tanks crashed into Trostyanets in the first days of their invasion, the small northeastern Ukrainian town 20 miles from the Russia-Ukraine border was known mostly for its cluster of historic monuments, its chocolate factory and the innovative development strategies of its progressive mayor, Yuri Bova. Now the town is scarcely recognizable: Buildings have been shelled and looted, roads are mined, and the surviving population - 20,000 residents lived here before the war began - is reeling from 31 days of Russian occupation. After the initial Russian advance into Ukraine stalled, Trostyanets became a staging area for hundreds of troops and their equipment. The number of civilians killed during the occupation is still unclear. Targeted by Russian authorities, Bova and other city leaders took shelter in a nearby village. Now that the Russians have departed and the theater of the war in Ukraine has shifted to the southeast, the mayor is taking on the task of helping the town back onto its feet. With most infrastructure damaged or destroyed and residents still traumatized and lacking services, thats a mammoth undertaking."

Chattanooga City Council will consider a resolution that would confirm the partnership between the city of Chattanooga and the city of Trostyanets on economic, scientific, technical and cultural-humanitarian cooperation, it was stated. No city funds will be allocated toward the agreement.

City officials said the purpose of Mayor Kellys working group is to convene a committee of Chattanoogans sympathetic to the plight of Trostyanets and the Ukraine who only seek to live peaceful lives with the blessings of a democratically elected government  and who are seeking a way to help. The group will determine the best course of action in establishing plans to provide support to the Trostyanets. The city's telecommunications infrastructure and hospital were both badly damaged in the Russian attacks and Mayor Kelly's hope is to help connect Trostyanets with useful technical expertise and assistance as they seek to rebuild.

Residents interested in participating in Mayor Kellys working group in support of rebuilding Trostyanets can apply here.



"It's not an overstatement to say that what's happening in Ukraine is an existential moment for western democracy, said Mayor Kelly. It is both a terrible tragedy in its own right, and a wake up call for the western world to support those who, like Americans in 1775 and 1812, are simply fighting for freedom from tyranny. It's really as simple as that. Chattanooga has a long history of answering the bell for the cause of freedom and I'm sure our generosity will once again rise to the occasion.






The Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency (TWRA) and The Conservation Fund announced on Tuesday the addition of roughly 1,740 acres to the Catoosa Wildlife Manage Area (WMA) on the Cumberland Plateau in eastern Tennessee. The land secures critical wooded habitat for wildlife species and will enhance opportunities for WMA visitors including fishing, hiking, camping and hunting. Catoosa WMA is the State of Tennessees second largest WMA, spanning over 85,000 acres.The new addition, located directly adjacent to the existing Catoosa WMA and north of Crossville, will be managed for its unique savanna oak, woodlands and grasslands, which benefit the lands abundant upland game species such as turkey, deer, quail and ruffed grouse.The property contains several existing facilities including stables, a meeting area and cabins, which TWRA will utilize for public and training events.TWRA is grateful for our partnership with The Conservation Fund that supported this effort to improve wildlife connectivity and outdoor recreation for Tennesseans, said Jason Maxedon, Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency executive director. This project is a critical investment in wildlife habitat that ensures the public will be able to enjoy our wildlife populations and beautiful natural resources for many generations to come.The Conservation Fund, a national nonprofit that protects U.S. lands and waters to provide greater access to nature, strengthen local economies and enhance climate resiliency, purchased the 1,740 acres in January 2023 from the Oakley family, who wanted to see their land protected and open for the public to enjoy. The Conservation Fund recently transferred the land to TWRA with funding provided by the Agency and the Tennessee chapter of The Nature Conservancy. TWRA funding came, in part, from a grant from the Wildlife and Sport Fish Restoration program.This effort opens up a whole swath of forested and grassland areas that were not previously accessible to the public, said Ralph Knoll, Tennessee state director at The Conservation Fund. And as a result, it will support additional recreation opportunities, wildlife habitat connectivity and Tennessees outdoor tourism economy  one of the fastest growing and most important industries for the state.The Oakley family said: We are very gratified that this land can be preserved for the use of not only present Tennessee residents but for future generations.This expansion of Catoosa Wildlife Management Area is a huge win for people and nature, said Gabby Lynch, director of protection for The Nature Conservancy. The new property secured by The Conservation Fund and TWRA falls within a globally significant corridor of wildlife habitat that will also benefit our states outdoor recreationists of all ages.The Foothills Land Conservancy (FLC) owns a conservation easement on roughly 800 acres of the new addition to Catoosa WMA. The easement restricts certain development that could hinder the natural landscape of the property but will not impact TWRAs future recreational programming plans.Foothills Land Conservancy partnered with the Oakleys in 2011 to permanently protect a portion of the property, said FLCs Natural Resources Director, Shelby Lyn Sanders. The 800 acres under a conservation easement were surveyed by FLC biologists and found to have a rich diversity of plants and wildlife species, and features sections of No Business Creek and How Come You Creek, important tributaries within the Big South Fork watershed. The propertys proximity to the Catoosa Wildlife Management Area was also considered to be a significant conservation value at the time, so to have this tract become part of TWRAs management activities falls right in line with Foothills mission of preserving, protecting, and enhancing lands across the Southeast.
7/13/2023

The TSSAA Legislative Council met via a virtual meeting on Thursday, to take action on six proposed changes to the bylaws. Several clarifications were made to existing rules, but two of the approved ... more
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A Google sign is shown at the company's office in San Francisco, on April 12, 2023. European Union antitrust regulators on Wednesday, June 14, 2023, took aim at Google's lucrative digital advertising business, ordering the tech giant to sell off some of its ad services to address competition concerns. AP-Yonhap



European Union antitrust regulators took aim at Google's lucrative digital advertising business in an unprecedented decision ordering the tech giant to sell off some of its ad business to address competition concerns.



The European Commission, the bloc's executive branch and top antitrust enforcer, said that its preliminary view after an investigation is that "only the mandatory divestment by Google of part of its services" would satisfy the concerns.



The 27-nation EU has led the global movement to crack down on Big Tech companies but it has previously relied on issuing blockbuster fines, including three antitrust penalties for Google worth billion of euros.



It's the first time the bloc has ordered a tech giant to split up keys of business.



Google can now defend itself by making its case before the commission issues its final decision. The company didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.



The commission's decision stems from a formal investigation that it opened in June 2021 , looking into whether Google violated the bloc's competition rules by favoring its own online display advertising technology services at the expense of rival publishers, advertisers and advertising technology services.



YouTube was one focus of the commission's investigation, which looked into whether Google was using the video sharing site's dominant position to favor its own ad-buying services by imposing restrictions on rivals.



Google's ad tech business is also under investigation by Britain's antitrust watchdog and faces litigation in the U.S.



Brussels has previously hit Google with more than 8 billion euros (now $8.6 billion) worth of fines in three separate antitrust cases, involving its Android mobile operating system and shopping and search advertising services.



The company is appealing all three penalties. An EU court last year slightly reduced the Android penalty to 4.125 million euros. EU regulators have the power to impose penalties worth up to 10% of a company's annual revenue. (AP)


Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. is considered to be one of the most important figures in American history. His wife, Coretta Scott King, is well-known for the important work she continued to do for civil rights after his untimely death, but not everyone knows her full story.

Coretta was born in Alabama in 1927. Growing up, Coretta was a very hard-working child. She had a passion for music and led her grade school choir.

After graduating from high school as valedictorian, she received a B.A. in music and education from Antioch College in Yellow Springs, Ohio. She furthered her education in music after being awarded a scholarship to Bostons New England Conservatory of Music.

In Boston, she met Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., who was a student at Boston University. Shortly after meeting Coretta, he knew he wanted her to be his wife. They married in 1953 and eventually had four children together.

After they completed their studies, she and Martin moved to Montgomery, Alabama, after he accepted to become the pastor of the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church.

Throughout the 1950s and 60s, Coretta faithfully stood by her husband as he became the face of the civil rights movement. Whenever she couldnt physically attend protests and gatherings with Martin, she stayed home to care for their children and manage their household.

She called for the advocacy of Black women in the civil rights movement and worked hard to help pass the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

After Martin was tragically assassinated in April 1968, Coretta continued to be an activist and worked on multiple issues and movements. Just days after Martins funeral, Coretta participated in a march to support a labor strike.

She not only continued to work on civil rights but also advocated for womens rights, the LGBTQ+ community, and world peace. After passionately speaking out against the Vietnam War, Coretta was placed under intense surveillance by the F.B.I. from 1968 until 1972.

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Donald Trump has always been a bit of a history maker.

In 2016, he was the first person elected US president without prior government or military service. His three Supreme Court appointments in four years were the most in half a century. He was the third president to be impeached, and the first to be impeached twice. And this month, Trump became the first president to be indicted on federal criminal charges.

To be clear, these charges are different from those announced in March by New York prosecutor Alvin Bragg. That state indictment centered on Trump allegedly paying an adult film star to keep their relationship secret during the 2016 presidential campaign, and then effectively laundering the payment as a business expense.

The New York Timess David Frenchhardly a Trump apologistcast doubt on the wisdom of Braggs prosecution, describing that legal process as one that [Braggs] predecessor didnt choose to seek and that relies on federal criminal claims that the Department of Justice declined to prosecute.

The federal indictment, on the other hand, is based on Trumps handling of classified documents after leaving the White House. Specifically, federal prosecutors allege Trump took a trove of documents with him from the White House to his estate in Florida.

Some of these documents, they charge, contained classified and sensitive informationincluding about military readiness and possible attack plans. When asked to secure and return these documents, the indictment says, Trump refused and obstructed government officials efforts to reclaim them.

Make no mistake: These charges are serious.

Compared to the New York indictment, these federal charges are not just better documented; they highlight far more serious legal infractions. Yes, if the charges in the New York case are true, then Trump broke the law to conceal immoral activity. But if the charges in the federal indictment are true, then not only did Trump break the law, but he did so in a way that may have exposed America and its allies to serious harm.

William Barr, who served as attorney general in the Trump administration, admitted as much in an interview on Fox News: He is not a victim here.  Those documents are among the most sensitive secrets the country has.

The response to this indictment was swift. Trumps critics praised the Department of Justice as taking a necessary step to check lawless behavior from a former (and potentially future) president. Mitt Romney stated Trump brought these charges on himself and claimed his actions were offensive to the national interest.

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Erick Erickson at World magazine connected the indictment to Trumps poor judgment and regular lack of impulse. And CT editor in chief Russell Moore issued what has become his familiar two-word response: Character matters.

Trumps defenders, meanwhile, blasted the indictment as politically motivated and dangerous. Senator Josh Hawley complained that the indictment was an effort by the Biden administration to take out Trump, the presumptive Republican nominee for president.

Senator J. D. Vance said the indictment amounted to illegal election interference and was further evidence of Americas transformation into a banana republic. And House speaker Kevin McCarthy predicted the indictment would disrupt this nation because it goes to the core of equal justice for all, which is not being seen today.

But if the reaction to Trumps indictment was swift, it was also unsurprising.

Research on political polarization has routinely shown that most of us do not react to political developments in a vacuum. Instead, we tend to treat our preferred candidate or party with the utmost charity while casting our opponents in the harshest of lights. We are prone to judge the motives and actions of political elites through the lenses of ideology and partisanship, with truth and objectivity too frequently taking a back seat to whatever framing helps us beat our opponents.

This approach to politics may be the norm for our society, but that doesnt mean it should be acceptable. This is especially true for Christians. Followers of Jesus should not be counted on to respond in predictable and scripted ways to the political and legal developments of our day. Just as we are called to bring salt and light to a flavorless and dark world (Matt. 5:1316), we should also adopt a political presence markedly different from what is expected by the broader culture.

What does this mean considering the charges brought against Donald Trump? Among other things, it means confronting the seriousness of the indictment without pivoting to the misdeeds and failings of other political actors. It means distinguishing between what Trump is charged with and Joe Bidens careless handling of classified materialsand, crucially, how both men acted following these revelations. And it means treating the evidence from this indictment objectively and dispassionately, letting the facts of this case lead where they may.

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A distinctly Christian response to this indictment implicates both of our major political parties. For Republicans, it means admitting that even if Trump is preferable to Biden (or any Democratic candidate), he is far from the martyr he so often paints himself to be. And for Democrats, it means refusing to celebrate or revel in the indictment of a former president and instead treating it as the lamentable development it is.

As Christians, we must adopt a posture of humility and consistency when reacting to the failingslegal, moral, or otherwiseof our political leaders, along with the recognition that people on our team can be as flawed as those on the other side. Just as Trump voters should be honest about the ways in which Trumps actions are to blame for his current predicament, Biden voters must pair their criticism of Trump with honesty about the ways in which Bidens presidency has fallen short, particularly concerning the unborn and human sexuality.

We are less than 18 months away from our countrys next presidential election. And while its cliched to say that this will be unlike any presidential election in history, it does feel particularly true now. How could it not be? In the likeliest scenario, one candidate will be nearly 82 years old on Election Daywith another four years of the most demanding job on earth in front of himwhile the other could be engaged in not one but two criminal trials, with jail time a very real possibility.

The year ahead will likely be a stress test for American political institutions and the guardrails of our representative democracy. The loudest voices among us will be selling scripts of hyperbole, fear, and anger to a population increasingly hungry for this reactionary rhetoric. It will be tempting for Christians to fall in line with the prevailing partisan sentiments.

Yet we should confidently reject this temptationchoosing instead to approach the political sphere with consistency, discernment, and a humility not of the world, but from the mind of Christ.

Daniel Bennett is an associate professor of political science at John Brown University and assistant director at the Center for Faith and Flourishing. His forthcoming book is Uneasy Citizenship: Embracing the Tension in Faith and Politics.

Speaking Out is Christianity Todays guest opinion column and (unlike an editorial) does not necessarily represent the opinion of the publication.
Nobody expected Rick Warrens appeal to be successfulnot even Rick Warren. But he still stood up in front of 13,000 Southern Baptists gathered in New Orleans to make his case.

No one is asking any Southern Baptist to change their theology! Im not asking you to agree with my church, he insisted, reading from a printout at a microphone on the floor of the convention hall during a three-minute speech. I am asking you to act like a Southern Baptist, who have historically agreed to disagree on dozens of doctrines, in order to act on a common mission.

For messengers at the SBC annual meeting, employing women pastors was not an agree-to-disagree issue. A vast majority88 percentvoted to uphold the decision made back in February to disfellowship Saddleback.

The vote concludes two years of scrutiny and criticism toward the California megachurch for ordaining female pastors from its stage, welcoming a female teaching pastor to preach on Sundays, and naming a female campus pastor. This was the only chance to appeal.

After the vote, Warren said he wasnt counting the appeal to succeed. Instead, I wanted to push the conversation thats been stagnant for years.

Warren, who founded Saddleback and led the church for 43 years until his retirement last September, did not leave quietly. In the weeks before the meeting, the fourth-generation pastor launched a campaign in his churchs defense, with dozens of tweets, a website, three videos, an open letter, and a four-page messengers guide arguing that removing Saddleback violates the fellowships belief in church autonomy.

I wanted to speak up for millions of Southern Baptist women  I believe their spiritual gifts, their leadership gifts and talents, are being wasted, said Warren, who considered himself well-positioned to make the case given his prominence, tender heart, and thick skin.

But the messengers were largely unified against the appeal. As Warren offered up arguments for Saddleback, Southern Baptists online and at events ahead of the meeting countered with their own defense of the SBCs historic stance and their own complementarian convictions.

Southern Baptists decided this is not just a matter of church polity, this is not just a matter of hermeneutics, its a matter of biblical commitmentto a Scripture we believe unequivocally limits the office of pastor to men, said Southern Seminary president Albert Mohler, who offered a rebuttal to Warrens appeal.

The messengers also voted to uphold decisions to disfellowship Fern Creek Baptist, another church removed for having a female pastor, and Freedom Church, which was found to have mishandled abuse allegations.

At the direction of SBC president Bart Barber, the messengers were largely silent as the results of the appeals were announced on Wednesday morning. A small smattering of applause broke out from the back of the giant hall when the Saddleback results were read.

This year was the first time Southern Baptists have removed churches over female pastors, declaring Saddleback and four others no longer in friendly cooperation with the convention.

The move fueled a much bigger debate over how the SBC handles churches with women pastors.

Some saw the Saddleback decision as evidence that the process was working; the credentials committee was able to identify a church as out of alignment with the denominations Baptist Faith and Messages position against female pastors and disfellowship it. Others saw a bigger issue looming, saying that far more churches in the SBC employed women as pastors, and a change needed to be made.

The SBC voted to amend its constitution to list male pastors as a requirement for cooperating SBC churches, a stance already included in its statement of faith. It states that churches must appoint only men as any kind of pastor or elder as qualified by Scripture.

The constitutional amendment follows similar additions in 2019 and 2021 to explicitly name ethnic discrimination and disregard for abuse as grounds for removal from the SBC. It will have to be passed again next year to go into effect.

Of everything we do at this convention this year, I think dealing with Saddleback correctly is the top thing, said Denny Burk, a professor at Southern Seminarys Boyce College, during a 9Marks discussion of the issue on Monday night. If we dont get that right, thats really bad  but the amendment is really important too.

The vast majority of Southern Baptist leaders believe Scripture restricts lead and preaching pastor rolesthe pastor-elder-overseer designation in the New Testamentto men. And many also believe that women using the title of pastor in other positions (think childrens pastor) is confusing at best.

The discussion continued around the convention, in meetings of the Executive Committee, and in proposals from the floor. Among a group who share convictions about what Scripture says about male pastors, is this a debate about titles? About ministry roles? About the function of a confessional fellowship?

The messengers also approved a change to the statement of faith wording to add elder/overseer to pastoran attempt to clarify the biblical office being referenced.

And they authorized a task force studying terms of friendly cooperation, how closely a church must comply with the SBCs statement of faith. The task force, which will report back at next years convetion, was proposed by Georgia pastor James Merritt, surrounded by a group of fellow former SBC presidents, including Ed Litton and J. D. Greear.

Almost all of the debates have been among male leaders. During a Baptist21 panel on Tuesday, Greear brought up the position of womenespecially women serving on church staffswhile this issue takes center stage.

As tragic as getting complementarian wrong and going egalitarian would be, Greear says he also sees a failure to recognize the role, integrity, dignity, and calling of women in the convention.

Theres a lot of discouragement there because theyve been turned into a battleground, he said.

[ This article is also available in espanol. ]
The issue that once dominated Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) annual meetingssexual abuse in churchesalmost receded into the background at this years gathering, which was overrun by debates around women serving as pastors.

Only a year after they voted to move forward with initial steps to address abuse in the wake of a major investigation, the SBCs reforms have been slow, complicated, and not without controversy.

A task force overseeing its abuse responseincluding a new website to track known abusersasked for more time to complete their task, and the convention overwhelmingly approved the extension. Theyre still waiting for permanent funding and permanent staffing to oversee the process. Ahead of the meeting, some Southern Baptists spoke up with critiques over cost and legal ramifications.

Theyve acknowledged it and kind of want to move on, said Jules Woodson, who came forward with her story of abuse by her youth pastor in 2019. I want them to know Im still fighting  Im not walking away.

Sexual abuse survivors including Woodson had rallied around the annual meetings, holding posters and press conferences in 2019, wearing T-shirts in 2021, passing out teal sexual-abuse-survivor ribbons in 2022. Last year, the topic of abuse came up in prayers, sermons, and resolutions, with leaders going as far as thanking survivors by name and applauding them from the stage.

In New Orleans this week, Woodson and a few other SBC abuse survivors met in a room in the convention center set aside for them to decompress. They quietly celebrated the progress the denomination had made, shedding tears together as the shell of the Ministry Check website went live on Tuesday afternoon at sbcabuseprevention.com. In the weeks ahead, it will host a database of pastors who have confessed, been convicted, or agreed to civil settlement in abuse cases.

But among the rows of messengers in the convention, they didnt sense the change of heart that leaders called for after the Southern Baptist reckoning or Kairos moment that came last year. The topic that came up most often, and garnered the most enthusiastic arguments, was the disfellowshipping of Saddleback Church and the desire to restate a commitment to male eldership.

Colorado pastor Bob Bender asked from the floor what many onlookers wondered about the denominations priorities: What does it say when were slow on the take on sexual abuse of women but quick on the draw to disqualify them from non-lead pastor roles?

Georgia pastor Griffin Gulledge recalled last years great moments and tears and chill bumps but said that the initial recognition of abuse was not enough without a commitment to keep going.

To fail to see the [task force] through, and let them continue their work, would be the greatest failure of moral responsibility of this convention in half a century, he said. There is no replacement plan. This task force is our abuse response. Will we quit now?

Abuse remained the key issue for the members of the Abuse Reform Implementation Task Force, which met every other week to since September to discuss the issue and celebrated the chance to continue their work.

I know there are plenty of survivors who are saying this should have happened faster, and I dont disagree, said task force chair and South Carolina pastor Marshall Blalock. We have learned a lot.

This whole thing will break your heart. You cant be the same after hearing some of the things that happened [to survivors], he said. You come to God and say, Help us make it right. Its a holy challenge.

As they took on the challenge of launching the website, task force members and Southern Baptists at large raised concerns about contracting with a division of Guidepost Solutions for the project, since the company celebrates the LGBT community. Last month, the task force announced they pivoted to partner with multiple providers to develop and manage the site instead.

They also faced scrutiny from some Southern Baptists who disagreed with the decision to allocate funds (the SBCs Send Relief pledged $4 million to abuse reform) and who challenged the scope of the project.

Critics focused on the category of pastors who could be listed on the Ministry Check website for being credibly accused of abuse through an independent investigation. In the end, the task force opted to have Christian legal advisors continue to develop standards for vetting that criterion before including it on the site.

Even without the same level of urgency and attention from messengers at large, the work around SBC abuse remains a massive undertaking. A sexual abuse hotline, monitored by Guidepost, has fielded 600 phone calls, half of which involve open cases of abuse in SBC churches, according Jarrett Stephens, a Houston pastor and abuse survivor who serves on the task force.

There is a lot of work to do, and we are just beginning, he said at the Baptist21 lunch on Tuesday.

A trauma-informed team takes those calls, maintaining survivor confidentiality while referring cases of credibly accused pastors to the database system for vetting and sending reports of churches that failed to uphold the SBCs abuse response standards to the credentials committee for their review, said Rachael Denhollander, an advocate and legal consultant.

And week after week, more accounts of abuse by pastors arise. Earlier this month, a Southern Baptist youth pastor was arrested in South Carolina for filming girls in the church bathroom.

Every time I see one of those stories, its heartbreaking  they grieve us, said David Sons, outgoing SBC Executive Committee chair. But churches now know the steps to take. That wasnt always the case.

Southern Baptists want to see abuse prevented, but if it does take place, its better to have perpetrators uncovered and prosecuted for their crimes than for abuse to persist or be covered up.

Tiffany Thigpen, another survivor at the meeting, agreed; she celebrated a recent report of an abuser in Texas who turned himself in rather than be caught in an investigation. This is why we do what we do, she tweeted. Put these #abusers on notice that they can no longer count on the cover of churches who may be willing to let them walk to prevent scandal.

Thigpen and Woodson, who runs the nonprofit Help; Hear; Heal, see themselves as standing in the gap for survivors who cant be at the meeting or have given up hope for meaningful change.

This whole sex abuse reform thing in the SBC is a collective commitment, said Heather Evans, a licensed social worker with an expertise in clergy abuse. Thats what survivors are looking for in their pursuit of justice: those around them and how they respond.

Evans, an advisor to the Abuse Reform Implementation Task Force, spoke Tuesday during an after-hours session hosted by the website SBC Voices on the topic of grooming and abuse by pastors toward adult victims, cases that can be misunderstood or labeled as affairs in some church contexts. About 50 pastors, survivors, and advocates attended, including Chellee Taylor, who shared the story of her abuse by her boss, campus pastor, and counselor at an SBC church in Florida.

This is something that happens to real people, and it happens in your churches, her husband, Peter Taylor, told the breakout session, lamenting the spiritual toll it took on both of them.

The task force has also worked with state conventions and associations to improve resources and training and shared a toolkit of materials now available online.

The four task force members who spoke before the convention Wednesday morning took a somber tone, recounting how the extent of abuse is churches often remains hidden, as with a case made public just days ago in Louisiana that has spurred investigations across three states.

As hard and difficult as this past year has been for us, it pales in comparison to what its been like for survivors and their families for well over the past year, said task force member and Oklahoma pastor Mike Keahbone, who choked up on the stage.

Im thankful, Lord, for another step toward healing, he prayed. We know its tiny, but its a step.
Church financial director charged with stealing $340K to pay for adult toys, vacations

A former financial director of a Colorado church has been charged with stealing over $340,000 from the church to purchase several items for personal use, such as adult sex toys.

According to the El Paso County Sheriff's Office, Sara Ann Mock-Butler turned herself into El Paso County Jail on May 31 to answer for charges related to her time as financial director of Pikes Peak Christian Church (PPCC) in Colorado Springs.

Deputies from the El Paso County Sheriff's Office received a report on Oct. 24, 2022, that Mock-Butler committed fraud and theft during her time as the church's financial director.

For roughly six months, detectives from the Office Investigations Division investigated "financial documents and correlating evidence in the case."

The investigation uncovered that Mock-Butler stole, defrauded and forged documents from March 2018 to July 2022, which led to the loss of a large quantity of money from PPCC. Mock-Butler began her employment in January 2017 and departed in August 2022.

An arrest warrant was secured against Mock-Butler for 896 counts of financial-related crimes. The former church employee faces 296 counts of money laundering, 527 counts of identity theft, 61 counts of forgery, six counts of tax evasion, five counts of filing a false tax return, one count of theft and one count of cyber crime.

"This is an ongoing, active investigation, and additional information will be released as it becomes available," the El Paso County Sheriff's Office stated.

In an online video posted last November, PPCC's Chairman of the Elders Mark Fisher read a statement regarding the investigation. Following Mock-Butler's departure in August 2022, Fisher said the church's new finance director reported to the elders that "the prior month's financial report that had been provided to the elders had not accurately reported the balance of cash on hand."

The new finance director discovered the church had $200,000 less than reported in its bank account.

"The elders instructed our executive pastor and our director of finance to investigate the cause for this discrepancy and review all of these monthly financial reports for 2022 to determine when the inaccurate reporting had begun and its cause," Fisher said.

"What we discovered over the following weeks was that Sara had misappropriated a substantial amount of church money for her private use," he continued. "The matter is now being investigated by the FBI and the El Paso County Sheriff's Office."

Fisher recalled that the news of the stolen funds was "not an easy thing to share."

"We pray that the truth would be revealed, that justice would be done, and that Sara would walk in repentance and make full restitution for the wrong she has done to God and to the community of believers at Pikes Peak Christian Church," he asserted.

The church leader addressed questions the church might have surrounding the incident, such as "what changes have been made as a result of this misappropriation of funds?"

"Stephanie, our new financial director, and the new financial oversight team formed in September have put together a list of additional controls that are being reviewed by the elders. This is a process that will take some time to implement fully," Fisher explained.

"We plan to resume having an audit at a level that will look for fraud and the financial oversight team will provide oversight and report quarterly to the elders board. And I'm sure we will be able to share more details with you in the future as to things that we'll be doing in that regard."

Fisher noted that "during much of the period of time when the misappropriation of funds was taking place," Mock-Butler's direct supervisor was no longer on staff.

"This adds difficulty to the process of determining what transactions were valid and what were not and this is why I'm not sharing a number with you. And I honestly don't know the number right now. We're still in the middle of that process," he said at the time.

Fisher said he is grateful to his church staff during the process.

"I just want to publicly thank that group of senior staff who carried that burden along with us as elders in that period of time over the last really two months and honored the need to carry that burden alone in that time," he said. "And it was not easy; I saw many tears through that period of time."

Fisher pleaded with the congregation to pray for the church staff.

"They need your verbal encouragement and your faithful giving. There is a lot of great ministry going on at the church. And we have a wonderful group of staff leading the way in this. We really do," he said.

"If our giving would drop off, it [would] require layoffs or other direct measures to balance our expense to giving. This, in turn, would greatly impact our ability to accomplish the mission of this church."

According to NBC affiliate KOAA, detective Marissa Williams determined that Mock-Butler spent $341,519.25 of the church's funds on unauthorized personal charges after the church provided her with a list of unauthorized charges.

Court documents allege that Mock-Butler used church funds to pay for clothes, airline flights, vacations to places like Disneyland, adult toys and to fund her personal businesses, local ABC affiliate KRDO reports.

Head Pastor Ross Frisbee spoke with the news outlet to provide an update on how the incident impacted his church.

"For a while [after that], we had to, of course, watch our spending, and some [projects were] put on hold," Frisbie said.

"As far as normal ministry, things have been going well. And like I said, the church responded very generously," he added.
Lauren Green tells Christians to rise up against the devil, share the Good News of Jesus

ORLANDO, Fla.  Fox News' Chief Religion Correspondent Lauren Green shared how the late Pastor Tim Keller impacted her faith and encouraged Christians to witness and share the Gospel with nonbelievers in an interview with The Christian Post at this year's National Religious Broadcasters Convention.

Green, who said she was significantly impacted by Keller, founder of Redeemer Presbyterian Church in Manhattan, told CP that she will honor his legacy by being bolder in her Christian faith at work and in her daily life.

In Green's interview with CP at the annual gathering of religious news media last month, where Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis spoke days before he formally announced his candidacy for president, the longtime journalist said if it hadn't been for Keller's influence, she might not have ever written LighthouseFaith or hosted her podcast of the same name.

As someone who works in secular media, Green said she felt encouraged to be surrounded by other people of faith who also work in media at NRB and others like PragerU co-founder and nationally syndicated radio host Dennis Prager, and Pastor David Jeremiah, senior pastor of Shadow Mountain Community Church in El Cajon, California.

Speaking about Christianity, Green said while she doesn't know how far away we are from the End Times, she believes people of faith are in a battle against the devil.

"The timeframe  I don't know, but I do know that when people become real people of faith, that's when the devil rises up. People of faith should know that the devil is defeated, but we are still dealing with a dangerous animal, Green told CP.

"It's like when a bear is wounded or a lion is wounded, they can still do some harm, and they can try to do harm. So think about the devil in that way. But at the same time, remember that in the name of Jesus, every knee will bow before Heaven on Earth, she continued.

Green declared that she is not ashamed of the Gospel and said believers can hold onto what the Bible says. "Jesus said, The gates of Hell shall not prevail against my church. We can stand on those words. Not only that, we should. Also remember that if God's Word is an active agent, there's power in those words. They're not just words on a piece of paper. Like Hebrews says, 'The Word of God is living and active and sharper than any double-edged sword (Hebrews 4:12).' The end of that saying is, Every creature will be naked and laid bare before the one to whom we must render an account' (Hebrews 4:13).

In response to those who don't believe in God, Green said, If those words are true, you will have to render an account to the One who created this all. Why didn't you believe? I made it plain for you. You heard it. You knew it, and you ignored it, Green illustrated.

And to believers who aren't witnessing and sharing the Good News, Green added: "If we are loving beings, if we care about our fellow image bearers, then we must stand and help them understand this Word and not berate them for not believing but help them believe.

This God loves us; He would not have died on the cross if He didn't. I love what Timothy Keller said about the Gospel. The Gospel teaches us that we are far more sinful than we would ever believe or understand, but that we are far more loved than you can ever imagine.
Megachurch pastor Michael Catt dies after entering hospice care

Longtime megachurch pastor Michael Catt has died at the age of 70, just weeks after his family announced he entered hospice care.

Sherwood Baptist Church in Albany, Georgia, where Catt served as pastor from 1989 to 2021, announced in a Twitter post Monday that its "beloved fifth pastor" had died.

"Join us in prayer for the Catt family and all who knew Michael as pastor and friend," the tweet states.

Sherwood Church is saddened to learn of the passing of Dr. Michael C. Catt, our beloved fifth pastor who faithfully shepherded Sherwood for 31 years. Join us in prayer for the Catt family and all those who knew Michael as pastor and friend. pic.twitter.com/T2X3ScgmPy  Sherwood Church (@SherwoodChurch) June 12, 2023

Catt's daughter Hayley elaborated on the funeral plans for her late father in a subsequent social media posting Monday. A celebration of life service will be held at Sherwood Baptist Church next Tuesday. Visitation hours will be held in the Atrium from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. The service will begin at 1:30 p.m.

A Celebration of the Life & Legacy of @MichaelCatt will be held at @SherwoodChurch in Albany, Ga on Tuesday, June 20.



Visitation will be in the Atrium from 10:00 am - 12:30 pm and the Service will be at 1:30 pm.



???? Romans 8:38-39 pic.twitter.com/9g2AjoiW28  Hayley Catt (@HayleyCatt) June 14, 2023

Catt's death comes less than three weeks after the late pastor's Twitter account indicated that he would enter hospice care and no longer receive treatment for prostate cancer. The post predicted Catt only had a few months left on "this side of Heaven."

In addition to his decades-long tenure as pastor of Sherwood Baptist Church, Catt is remembered for his role in the creation of Sherwood Pictures, which has produced several faith-based films.

As noted in a biography on Catt's website, "Michael's goal as the pastor of a church in a rural part of Georgia was to change the world from Albany, Georgia." It added that "a conversation between Michael and Alex Kendrick on a back lot tour of Disney World" resulted in "a very 'out of the box' church outreach effort" that ultimately culminated with the establishment of Sherwood Pictures.

Catt served as executive producer of several faith-based movies, including "Facing the Giants," "Fireproof" and "Courageous."

Kendrick, a Sherwood Baptist Church attendee whose conversation with Catt at Disney World led to the creation of Sherwood Pictures, now works as a writer and director for the Kendrick Brothers video ministry. He shared his memories of Catt in an Instagram post Monday.

"We thank God for all the good memories, ministry, and moments with Michael Catt. We have so many stories and conversations to remember and reflect on," he wrote. "May God comfort and walk with his family. They were a part of our lives for over two decades. Praise the Lord!"

Kendrick's brother, Stephen, who attends Sherwood Baptist Church and serves as a writer and producer, also issued a tribute to Catt on social media Monday.

"A great man of God went to be with the Lord today," Stephen Kendrick wrote. "He's been a powerful prophet, a faithful pastor, a wise counselor, and a dear friend to our family and so many. He believed in us before anyone else and deeply impacted our lives. Well done Michael! We love you."

A great man of God went to be with the Lord today. Hes been a powerful prophet, a faithful pastor, a wise counselor, and a dear friend to our family and so many. He believed in us before almost anyone else and deeply impacted our lives. Well done Michael! We love you. pic.twitter.com/iXfQbHnRIT  Stephen Kendrick (@stephenandjill) June 12, 2023

Catt also has several published works to his name, including Fireproof Your Life, Prepare for Rain, The Power of Desperation, The Power of Persistence, The Power of Surrender and The Power of Purpose.

Catt leaves behind his wife of nearly 50 years, Terri; two daughters, Erin and Hayley; his adopted granddaughter, Paisley; and his son-in-law Drew.
Rick Warren makes impassioned case to Southern Baptist messengers on women pastors

In a heated message to over 12,700 messengers gathered at the Southern Baptist Convention's Annual Meeting in New Orleans, Louisiana, Saddleback Church founder Rick Warren made a case for why his churchs inclusion of women in pastoral roles should not prohibit it from remaining in the denomination.

For 178 years, the SBC has been at least a dozen different types of Baptists. If you think every Baptist thinks like you, youre mistaken, he began in his appeal to messengers in response to the Executive Committee's finding that the church is not in friendly cooperation with the SBC due to the church continuing to have a female teaching pastor functioning in the office of a pastor.

Though all Southern Baptists share a commitment to the inerrancy of the Gospel and the Great Commission, Warren said Southern Baptists historically disagree on dozens of doctrines, including the essential doctrines of salvation.

Why should this one issue cancel our fellowship? he asked.

We should remove churches for all kinds of sexual sins, racial sin, financial sin, leadership sin, sins that harm the testimony of our convention, he said. But the 1,129 churches with women on pastoral staff have not sinned.

Warren reiterated his earlier sentiment that Saddleback disagrees with only one word in SBC doctrine: men.

Isnt that close enough? he asked.

If doctrinal disagreements between Baptists are considered sin, we all get kicked out, he declared. Youll never get 100 percent of Baptists to agree on 100 percent of every doctrine.

In response, Al Mohler, president of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, warned that the unity of the convention is now at stake. He said the ban on female pastors was inserted into the Faith and Message statement because 30 years ago, this issue threatened to tear this denomination apart.

Its not just a matter of church polity; its not just a matter of hermeneutics, he stressed. Its a matter of biblical commitment, a commitment to the Scripture that unequivocally we believe limits the office of pastor to men.

Mohler further contended, It is a question of the Southern Baptist Convention and what it means for a church to be in friendly cooperation with the denomination.

Here we face the unusual situation in which Dr. Warren himself has made repeated statements and the church has taken repeated actions that make very clear it rejects the confessional understanding of the Southern Baptist Convention on this issue, he added. This isnt a question of misunderstanding.

Founded in 1980 by Rick and Kay Warren, Saddleback has grown over four decades to 14 locations in Southern California, with an average weekly attendance of 30,000.

In February, the SBC Credentials Committee recommended to the Executive Committee that the SBC disfellowship the church after Pastor Andy Wood, who succeeded retiring Warren at Saddleback, listed his wife, Stacie, as a "pastor" in his biography on the prominent California megachurch's website in October 2022. Subsequently, on May 7, Katie Edwards, one of the three women ordained at Saddleback in 2021, was announced as the Lake Forest campus pastor.

In recent months, Warren has openly discussed how his views on the role of women in the Church have changed over the years, often drawing criticism from more conservative leaders within the SBC.

The denomination holds to the belief that the office of pastor is limited to men as qualified by Scripture, and as outlined in its Faith and Message Statement.

Saddleback is one of three congregations challenging the recommendation of removal from the SBC for failing to be in "friendly cooperation" with the denomination.

Fern Creek Baptist Church in Louisville, Kentucky, where the Rev. Linda Barnes Popham is the pastor, is appealing on the same grounds as Saddleback, while Freedom Church in Vero Beach, Florida, appealed its expulsion over an issue involving sexual misconduct by a church leader.

The results of all three appeals voted on by the messengers in attendance at this year's Annual Meeting will be available Wednesday morning, a spokesman for the SBC Executive Committee confirmed.
Abigail Zwerner, teacher shot by first grader, resigns; lawyer says she was fired

Abigail Zwerner, the Richneck Elementary School teacher who filed a $40 million lawsuit against school administrators after she was shot by a first-grade student in the chest in January, has reportedly resigned from her job with Newport News Public Schools in Virginia. But her attorney claims she was effectively fired.

Documents from Newport News Public Schools cited by WAVY suggest saying Zwerner's last day of employment with the school district was June 12. She notified district officials that she would not be returning to her job in March, according to NNPS Spokesperson Michelle Price.

In an email exchange with the school division's Human Resources Department, Zwerner said: "I wish to resign. Thank you."

In an extended statement, the school division further noted that Zwerner "notified the Human Resources Department that she was resigning from her position as a teacher for NNPS on March 13, 2023."

"Ms. Zwerner was an employee of Newport News Public Schools until June 12, 2023, the last day of her contract," the statement reads.

Zwerner's attorney Jeffrey Breit told WAVY that his client was essentially fired because she refused to accept workers' compensation, which would have prevented her from mounting her current lawsuit.

"To say we were shocked is an understatement; we have litigation," Breit said of his client. "They haven't paid her in a couple of months. They are trying to squeeze her. She has to August 1 to leave or re-sign, (but) they fired her two months early. The only thing I can think [of], they were trying to put pressure on her because we filed suit. It's outrageous, as outrageous as I've ever seen."

Breit claims the school division "tried to see if she would cash the worker comp check so they could claim, 'Oh, look, she took workers comp. She can't sue us now.'"

Deja Taylor, the 25-year-old mother whose 6-year-old shot Zwerner on Jan. 6, pleaded guilty on Monday to federal charges of making a false statement that she was not an unlawful drug user when she purchased the firearm used in the attack and making a false statement when purchasing the gun.

Taylor's son was not charged in the shooting because children younger than 7 are presumed unable to form the intent to carry out an illegal act under Virginia law. She was arrested in April and charged in state court with felony child neglect and recklessly leaving a loaded firearm to endanger a child.

In her lawsuit against school administrators and the school board, Zwerner claims they were aware of the boy's "history of random violence" yet did not do enough to address concerns the boy had a gun in his possession on the day she was shot.

Breit told WAVY that the school division should have at least offered his client disability payments.

"Newport News has a disability program that I know some teachers have received when they have been disabled," Breit said, "get paid while they are out. She has not received a single response to the disability letter from her doctor."
Joe Rogan is right. Americans are saying enough to LGBTQ+ Pride

It used to be limited to one day in June, the day of Gay Pride marches in commemoration of the Stonewall Riots in 1969. Then, it became a monthlong proclamation and celebration. All of June is Pride Month. Today, the celebration of Pride is virtually year-long, simply amped up in June. And millions of Americans are saying enough is enough.

Some of these Americans had previously changed their views on same-sex marriage, embracing the argument that love is love.

Some of them had learned to affirm their gay and lesbian family members and friends whereas they once thought there was something wrong with them.

Some of them even modified their theology, not wanting to bash people over the head with the Bible, thinking this was the progressive thing to do.

Yet some of those very people are now saying, Enough is enough.

As Ive stated elsewhere, these Americans didnt sign up for the increasingly radical cultural madness, for the assault on children, and for the stripping away of the rights of others. Thats why so many are now pushing back against Pride.

And its not just the conservative, Bible believers. Its the average drinker of Budweiser beer. Its the average shopper at Target. Its the average parent with a kid in school.

Theyre not going for the blur-gender, omnigender, pregnant man, menstruating males, castrate the kids nonsense.

And theyre not going for the constant, in your face, exaltation of everything gay and trans and queer related. As Matt Walsh tweeted on May 30, As you prepare for Pride Month, we must also remember to celebrate:

Bisexual Health Awareness Month

International Transgender Day of Visibility

National LGBT Health Awareness Week

National Transgender HIV Testing Day

Non-Binary Parents Day

Lesbian Visibility Day

International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia, & Biphobia.

Harvey Milk Day

Pansexual & Pan Romantic Awareness & Visibility Day

Non-Binary Awareness Week

International Drag Day

LGBTQ History Month (not to be confused w/ Pride Month)

International Lesbian Day

National Coming Out Day

National LGBT Center Awareness Day

Asexual Awareness Week

International Pronouns Day

Transgender Parent Day

Pansexual Pride Day

Gay Uncles Day



Did he miss any?

According to Brittanica.com, June as Pride Month was officially recognized by the U.S. government when President Bill Clinton declared June 1999 Gay and Lesbian Pride Month, President Barack Obama proclaimed June to be LGBT Pride Month, and President Joe Biden further expanded the observance to Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer (LGBTQ+) Pride Month. Elsewhere in the world, Pride is celebrated at different times of the year, although many cities observe it in June.

So, G and L were not enough. It must be L and G and B and T. Only that was not good enough. Now it must be L and G and B and T and Q and +. And then?

The Transstudent website gives us a hint of where things are going, informing us that, There are no male/female or man/woman pronouns. All pronouns can be used for any gender and are gender neutral. (This link was originally titled, What Are the 78 Preferred Gender Pronouns? Thats right. Seventy-eight.)

Even Chadwick Moore, a gay conservative recently wrote, Plenty has happened in the seven years since I was guillotined for coming out of the closet as a gay conservative. Whereas in 2016 only a handful seemingly existed, today thousands of LGBT influencers cram social-media feeds as part of a gathering wave rejecting the far-left. The result has been the alphabet mobs nose-dive into madness. (His article in the New York Post was titled, Why LGBTs Are Running Out of Pride.)

Yet, as I wrote last month, despite the protests of some influential gay and lesbian thinkers, you cannot separate the LGB from the Q and the T. The camel has gotten its nose in the door of the tent, and everything else has followed in its wake. As a result, millions of Americans are saying, This is too much.

They wanted to embrace common kindness. They ended up with cultural craziness.

As noted by Allison Sullivan, Opinion polls indicate that the majority of Americans oppose the basic premises of gender fluidity. This shift in sentiment could be seen as the Revolt of the Normies. If American institutions continue to indulge in such extremes, they may learn that sometimes, Pride Month can indeed goeth before the fall.

And just as gay pride marches have often featured the most base, vulgar aspects of the LGBTQ+ community (thats because anything LGBTQ+ must be embraced as good), the worst of LGBTQ+ activism is now front and center for the world to see.

As Joe Rogan said to his massive podcast audience, So were seeing that now where we never saw that before, where people are going Enough! Enough! Stop shoving this down everybodys throat.

Precisely so. (For those who do not know Rogan, he is not a born-again, Bible-waving Christian.)

He continued, When I go to Target, I dont want to see like [expletive] tuck pants, like theyre designed to help you tuck your [expletive]. Hey, thats not normal, I dont want that right in front of everybody. Its weird.

Hes right. Its weird. Its unnatural. Its harmful to suggest this for kids. And, from a business point of view, its only relevant to a tiny percentage of the society. Why on earth make it front and center in your store unless you are driven by a radical social agenda?

And thats why this Pride Month is different than past Pride Months. Americans are coming to their senses. As I recently tweeted, what began for many as the embrace of common decency (I treat my gay friends and coworkers with fairness and respect) has become a celebration of deviancy (Long live the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence!).

The bottom line is that LGBTQ+ activists have basically said, No matter how much ground you give us and no matter how much you embrace us, it is never enough. We will continue to push the envelope.

Millions of Americans have responded by saying, Enough is enough.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaks at a chiefs of mission reception in the East Room of the White House in Washington, on June 13. Blinken and Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang shared concerns on a phone call Wednesday, June 14, 2023 ahead of a planned visit by the U.S. official to China meant to shore up relations. AP-Yonhap



U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken will travel to China this weekend as part of the Biden administration's push to repair deteriorating ties between Washington and Beijing and keep lines of communication open, the State Department said Wednesday.



Blinken will be the most senior U.S. official to visit China since President Joe Biden took office. His visit had initially been planned for earlier this year but was postponed indefinitely after the discovery and shootdown of what the U.S. said was a Chinese spy balloon over the United States.



Since then, however, there have been lower-level engagements between the U.S. and China despite ongoing hostility and recriminations over both sides' actions in the Taiwan Strait, the South China Sea, China's refusal to condemn Russia for its war against Ukraine , and allegations from Washington that Beijing is attempting to boost its worldwide surveillance capabilities , including in Cuba.



The State Department said Blinken had spoken with his Chinese counterpart, Foreign Minister Qin Gang, on Tuesday night to confirm his trip, which will begin on Sunday and was first reported by The Associated Press and other news organizations last week. Blinken will leave Washington late Friday.



"While in Beijing, Secretary Blinken will meet with senior PRC officials where he will discuss the importance of maintaining open lines of communication to responsibly manage the U.S.-PRC relationship," the department said, using the acronym for the People's Republic of China. "He will also raise bilateral issues of concern, global and regional matters, and potential cooperation on shared transnational challenges."



In its readout of the phone call, China's foreign ministry said Qin urged the United States to respect "China's core concerns" such as the issue of Taiwan's self-rule, "stop interfering in China's internal affairs, and stop harming China's sovereignty, security and development interests in the name of competition."



Qin noted China-U.S. ties "have encountered new difficulties and challenges" since the beginning of the year, and the two sides' responsibility is to work together to properly manage differences, promote exchanges and cooperation and stabilize relations, it said.



Blinken, who will be the first secretary of state to visit China since 2018, expects to meet with Qin on Sunday, as well as China's top diplomat, Wang Yi, and possibly Chinese President Xi Jinping on Monday, according to U.S. officials.



The trip will take place amid myriad complications in U.S-China relations, which have steadily declined over the past several years dating back to the Trump administration that started with trade and industrial espionage.



Those concerns grew rapidly to include human rights concerns over the treatment of Uyghur Muslims and other minorities in China's western region of Xinjang, Hong Kong, Tibet, and increasing Chinese aggressiveness toward Taiwan, and then escalated over questions about the origin of the COVID-19 virus.



Blinken's visit was agreed between Xi and Biden last year at a meeting in Bali during which the leaders agreed that the world's two largest economies must remain in contact and take precautions to ensure there are no miscalculations in their global rivalry that could lead to conflict. The trip came within a day of happening in February but was delayed after the spy balloon incident. Beijing insists the craft was a weather balloon that strayed off course.



Contacts after that have taken place, but they have been rare as tensions have risen over China's conduct in the South China Sea, aggressive actions toward Taiwan and support for Russia's war against Ukraine. Earlier this month, China's defense minister rebuffed a request from U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin for a meeting on the sidelines of a security symposium in Singapore.



However, shortly after postponing his trip to Beijing, Blinken met briefly with Wang at the Munich Security Conference in Germany. And, CIA chief William Burns traveled to China in May, while China's commerce minister traveled to the U.S. last month. And Biden's national security adviser Jake Sullivan met with Wang in Vienna in early May.



More recently, the top U.S. diplomat for the Asia-Pacific region, Daniel Kritenbrink, traveled to China last week along with a senior National Security Council official to finalize details of Blinken's trip.



Just in the past several days, though, the Biden administration has said that it has quietly blunted Chinese efforts to bolster its intelligence collection and military capabilities around the world, including in Cuba.



Blinken said on Monday that when Biden took office in January 2021, U.S. intelligence agencies briefed him "on a number of sensitive efforts by Beijing around the world to expand their overseas logistics, foreign collections infrastructure to allow them to project and sustain military power at a greater distance."



"They were considering a number of sites around the world for that expansion, including facilities for that intelligence collection in Cuba," he said.



Although the Chinese had already upgraded their facilities in Cuba in 2019, Blinken said Biden determined that more needed to be done because Trump administration officials "weren't making enough progress on this issue and we needed a more direct approach."



He did not elaborate on what had been done since, although the Biden administration has moved rapidly to expand its diplomatic presence, especially in Indian Ocean and the Pacific island nations, where it has opened or has plans to open at least five new embassies over the next year or so.



"We've been executing on that approach quietly, carefully, but in our judgment, with results," Blinken said. "We've engaged governments that are considering hosting PRC bases at high levels. We have exchanged information with them. Our experts assess that our diplomatic efforts slowed down this effort by the PRC."



After his meetings in Beijing, Blinken will travel to London to attend a Ukraine reconstruction conference next on June 21 the State Department said. (AP)


Alabama megachurch votes to remain with UMC amid schism on homosexuality

As thousands of congregations have voted to leave The United Methodist Church since last year, one megachurch in Alabama has voted to stay with the second-largest Protestant denomination in the United States.

Canterbury United Methodist Church in Mountain Brook, which reportedly has approximately 4,500 members, voted on Monday to remain with the UMC North Alabama Conference.

According to a statement by Canterbury Senior Pastor Keith Thompson, the church council voted 87-21 in favor of a recommendation from the church's discernment team to remain with the UMC.

"For many, this result comes with joy and relief. For many, this result comes with sadness and disappointment," wrote Thompson. "If this is the outcome you had hoped for, I pray that in your relief you will respond with humility and gentleness, recognizing that there are those in our midst who may be deeply disappointed and hurt."

"If this outcome is not what you had hoped for, please know that your church loves you and that there is a place for you, and everyone, within the Canterbury family. We are better because you are part of this church and hope that you come to that prayer-filled conclusion as well."

Thompson said the congregation's 14-month discernment process "has not been easy" and "tested us in ways we did not expect." The discernment team consisted of Thompson and 11 lay members nominated by the church council.

"But, as with any journey worth taking, our faith in God and trust in Jesus have only grown deeper," he added. "This occurred for one reason and one reason only  the Holy Spirit has been working, is working now, and will continue to do a great work through the people of Canterbury UMC."

Last week, the Canterbury UMC discernment team issued a recommendation, urging the congregation to "remain a local congregation within the North Alabama Conference of the United Methodist Church."

"While the United Methodist Church is not without its shortcomings, the Discernment Team believes that one of the UMC's great strengths is a biblical theology of living out our faith in Jesus Christ for the sake of the world," stated the team.

"The Canterbury UMC Discernment Team sees biblical wisdom in the connectional nature of the United Methodist Church, and we believe our connective-DNA is in large part what makes our church such a life-giving community of faith."

Over the past several years, the UMC has experienced intense debate over its official stance barring the blessing of gay unions and the ordination of people in same-sex romantic relationships.

Although efforts to change the rules at General Conference have failed, theologically progressive leaders within the denomination have often refused to follow or enforce the rules.

In 2019, at a special session of the General Conference, delegates approved the addition of Paragraph 2553 to the UMC Book of Discipline, creating a process for churches to disaffiliate from the UMC. The measure will expire at the end of the year.

Since then, more than 5,500 congregations have voted to leave the denomination, according to numbers compiled by UM News, with over 3,500 doing so since the start of 2023.
Bart Barber reelected president of the Southern Baptist Convention

Southern Baptist Convention President Bart Barber has won reelection, defeating challenger Pastor Mike Stone of the Conservative Baptist Network.

At the SBC Annual Meeting in New Orleans, Louisiana, on Tuesday afternoon, messengers voted to determine which nominee they wanted to serve this year as president of the largest Protestant denomination in the U.S.

In results announced Tuesday evening, Barber was reelected to a second one-year vote, receiving 7,531 votes or 68.38% of the ballots. Stone received 3,458 votes or 31.40% of the ballots cast. Twenty-five votes were disallowed, representing 0.23% of votes cast.

Pastor Jarrett Stephens of Champion Forest Baptist Church of Houston, Texas, nominated Barber, telling messengers that the incumbent had earned a second year as president, saying, Were headed in the right direction.

Dr. Barber has represented us well, said Stephens. As president, he has traveled tirelessly across the country to represent you by encouraging churches and celebrating missionaries, supporting church planters, and standing with those on the front lines of disaster relief.

Pastor Willy Rice of Calvary Church in Clearwater, Florida, nominated Stone, saying that Stone was a man of conviction needed for the current times, which Rice described as an hour marked by apostasy and idolatry.

Mike knows the times, and he knows what to do, said Rice. You can attack him, you can revile him, you can belittle him on Twitter with all the decorum of a middle school food fight, but this man will not bend, and this man will not fold.

He has a spine of conviction as strong as his name. You dont have to wonder if he will stand, and you dont have to guess where he will stand.

In late April, Stone announced his intention to run for SBC president. In modern times, it is rare for an SBC president to have an opponent after only serving the first year of a two-year term.

Stone, the former president of SBC's Executive Committee, stressed that the convention is headed in a financially unstable direction, declaring that "unsustainable should be unacceptable."

He also believes the SBC needs a biblical approach to the horrific issue of sexual abuse, adding that church leaders need to both care well for victims and practice scriptural principles of due process and the handling and publishing of accusations.

Barber was elected in 2022 at the SBC's Annual Meeting held in Anaheim, California, winning in a second ballot runoff with 3,401 messenger votes, or 60.87% of the vote.

Barber replaced Alabama Pastor Ed Litton, who had been elected president in 2021, but became the first SBC president in decades to not seek reelection after only one year in office.
Biden admin. to allow US embassies to fly LGBT pride flags, reverses Trump-era policy Franklin Graham criticizes move: 'Only US flag should be flown'

The U.S. State Department has authorized embassies worldwide to display the rainbow pride flag on embassy flagpoles along with the American flag, which reverses the Trump-era policy.

In a State Department cable reviewed by news outlets, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that the diplomatic outposts are not required to fly the LGBT pride flag but can decide if it is appropriate to display on the flagpole in light of local conditions.

The rainbow pride flag can be displayed before May 17, the International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia, through the end of June, according to the cable and a State Department official who spoke with the New York Times.

June is officially recognized as Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Pride Month to commemorate the 1969 Stonewall riots in New York City, which are viewed by many as the beginning of the gay rights movement.

In the cable reported originally by Foreign Policy, State Department officials were told to follow the do no harm policy to prevent backlash against the local LGBT population.

Posts should support efforts to repeal [criminalization] legislation, while ensuring that do no harm remains our overarching principle so U.S. efforts do not inadvertently result in backlash or further marginalization of the LGBTQI+ community, the cable was quoted as stating.

Though the flag would be relatively non-controversial in some countries, in many Middle Eastern or North African countries where same-sex relationships are banned, the pride flag could stir up contention.

Franklin Graham, a prominent conservative evangelical leader and president of Samaritans Purse, criticized the decision on Facebook. He said just because something is authorized does not make it right.

Why should a flag representing one group of people and a specific agenda be literally raised up above all others and allowed to fly at our embassies and consulates? Graham, the son of legendary evangelist Billy Graham, wrote.

The embassies represent the United States of America on foreign soilonly the U.S. flag should be flown. Not the gay pride flag, not the Christian flag, not any other flag.

The previous administration had a one-flag rule that the Biden administration has rescinded, he continued. Our U.S. flag represents the sacrifice, the honor, the unity, the patriotismand the bloodthat made America great. Pray for our nation and our leaders.

The Trump administration denied requests from U.S. embassies to display the rainbow flag on the embassy flagpole to celebrate LGBT Pride Month and only allowed the American flag to be flown on the flagpole.

In defense of former Secretary of State Mike Pompeos one-flag rule, former Vice President Mike Pence told NBC News in June 2019 that he and the president believe only the U.S. flag should be displayed on the embassy flagpole.

"We both feel that way very passionately, but when it comes to the American flagpole, and American embassies, and capitals around the world, one American flag flies," Pence proclaimed.

The Trump administrations State Department reportedly denied requests from U.S. embassies in Brazil, Germany, Israel and Latvia to fly the rainbow pride flag for LGBT Pride Month.

Embassies were still allowed to display the pride flag outside of the embassy under Trump, and some embassies displayed the flag elsewhere.

South Korea, for example, displayed the pride flag on the building instead of the flagpole until embassy officials removed it and a Black Lives Matter banner, the New York Times reported.

During the Obama administration, embassies were allowed to fly the rainbow flag under the American flag on the embassy flagpole.

Blinken pledged to support the LGBT agenda by flying the pride flag at U.S. embassies and reinstating the special envoy for the human rights of LGBTI persons upon being sworn in this January.

The State Department is yet to make a formal announcement regarding this decision.
Christian university accused of stonewalling approval for pro-life student group

An Indiana-based Christian university is facing allegations that it has stonewalled the approval process for a pro-life campus student group, while the institution claims the group hasn't completed the approval process.

The legal counsel for Students for Life of America, Zachary Kester, sent the letter to Huntington University President Sherilyn Emberton and Vice President for Student Life Ron Coffey last Monday.

Caroline Wharton, press strategist and staff writer for SFLA, provided The Christian Post with a copy of the demand letter on Monday. According to Wharton, Monday was the deadline for the school to respond to SFLA's letter.

"If this deadline is not met, our students and legal counsel will agree upon our next move," she wrote.

Wharton confirmed to CP in a Tuesday statement that the school reached out to SFLA's legal counsel and agreed to discuss the matter. Further updates are pending.

Huntington University is a four-year liberal arts school affiliated with the Church of the United Brethren in Christ. As of October 2022, around 1,200 students were enrolled to take classes on the university's Huntington campus.

The student at the center of the controversy, who asked not to be named, reached out to the administration at HU in January 2023 to propose the creation of the Huntington University Students for Life Club.

The student assured the administrators in an initial email that the HUSFL aligned with the university's Christian values and that it was not intended to cater to one side of the political spectrum.

"Indeed, [the student] sought to form a club for likeminded Christians to care for women that are struggling with a monumental decision, to help point them towards choosing life, and ultimately to help point them towards Christ," the letter stated.

The demand letter pointed out HU's mission statement on its website, which affirms the school's commitment as a Christian school to preparing students for the "contemporary world" instead of sheltering them from it.

Kester argues that the university is not abiding by its mission to allow differing viewpoints if it does not approve of the pro-life group.

"We would call on the University's administration to live by their own mission and allow the formation of HUSFL so that they may engage in discourse on campus, carry out the University's goals of fostering critical thinking, and live out Christ's mission," Kester's letter continued.

In a Monday statement to CP, an HU spokesperson affirmed the university's commitment to their Creator, emphasizing that the school has a history of encouraging students to pursue their vocation through on-campus organizations.

"The University has a process for approving school-sponsored clubs which involves multiple levels of authorization and communication," the spokesperson wrote.

"The approval process for the proposed club in question had not been completed as of the end of the spring semester. The University has not denied permission for the proposed club to continue in the process to seek approval."

"The University looks forward to engaging with the student in the upcoming fall semester and will assist in navigating the application process for the proposed student-led group," the HU spokesperson continued.

In a blog post, Students for Life explains that the "process for approving a university sponsored club at HU is supposed to take no longer than a month and a half," and the student was expecting to receive approval sometime in February. However, the spring semester came to an end without formal approval. The student believes the request was ignored by the administration.

Kester said that the draft of the club's constitution was provided to Sarah Rickerd in the Office of Student Life on Jan. 17. The university's club formation policies state that this is the first step, according to the letter. Two days later, the student informed Rickerd that he had completed the second step in the club formation process by securing a club sponsor.

"Some correspondence via email continued throughout January, February, March, and April of this year, regarding HUSFL's formation. [The student] was finally able to meet in-person with [Vice President of Student Life Ron Coffey] on March 28, more than two months after providing HUSFL's constitution to administration and securing a staff sponsor," the demand letter outlined.

During the March meeting, Coffey reportedly expressed displeasure with SFLA's involvement with the campus group, which the letter noted only extends to legal support and associated support.

Other campus groups that the letter highlighted, including Fellowship of Christian Athletes, Student Occupational Therapy Association, Indiana Collegiate Farm Bureau, Circle K (Kiwanis) and Love Your Melon, have statewide or nationwide affiliations.

The student then provided the school with an updated constitution for the club in March, stressing that the group is not affiliated with any specific political party, but added that it had connections with various pro-life non-profits to "help facilitate some activities."

The letter cited multiple instances in April and May where Coffey reportedly indicated he would approve the pro-life club.

"[The student] sent several emails requesting the status for approval in that time period, but no action occurred," SFLA's legal counsel wrote. "The University has refused to provide a reason for the delay."
Hospitals in nation's largest Catholic health network perform, cover sex-change surgeries: report

Hospitals affiliated with the largest Catholic healthcare network in the United States are promoting  and in some cases performing  gender-change surgeries and puberty interventions for minors in defiance of church teachings, according to a recent report.

The Lepanto Institute, an organization that informs the public about Catholic groups acting in opposition to religious teachings, released a report Sunday, claiming CommonSpirit Health is "performing transgender surgeries, providing hormone-based transgender therapies, providing puberty blockers to children under the auspices of so-called 'gender-affirming care.'"

"The largest Catholic health system in the United States, CommonSpirit Health, is acting directly against Catholic moral teaching in direct defiance of its Catholic identity," the executive summary states.

The Christian Post reached out to CommonSpirit Health for comment on the Lepanto Institute report. A response is pending.

Formed in 2019 from the merger of Dignity Health and Catholic Health Initiatives, the CommonSpirit Health system has over 1,000 care sites and 140 hospitals in 21 states.

In the 64-page report, the Lepanto Institute listed multiple hospitals and medical centers it identified as providing "transgender healthcare services"  including referrals for hormone interventions and puberty-blocking drugs  conducting abortions, dispensing contraception and "performing sterilizations."

Some facilities named in the report, including the Mark Twain Medical Center in San Andreas and the Community Hospital of San Bernardino, are not Catholic. As members of CommonSpirit, however, the facilities still fall under the sponsorship of the Catholic Health Care Federation, which has ties to the Vatican.

"However, in addition to these non-Catholic facilities, a similar number of CommonSpirit facilities that are Catholic are engaged in the same wicked coverage of benefits for self-claiming transgender individuals," the report contends.

Fourteen CommonSpirit Catholic facilities listed in the Human Rights Campaign's "Healthcare Equality Index" provide employee healthcare benefits coverage for hormone replacement therapies and puberty blockers for minors. The coverage also includes "full transgender surgeries."

All facilities received a 95 out of 100, except for the Mercy San Juan Medical Center in Carmichael, California. Most of the facilities lost five points for the Responsible Citizenship Criteria, which can lead to a point deduction for "activities that undermine LGBTQ+ equality or patient care." The Mercy San Juan had 25 points removed based on this criteria.

The Saint Francis Memorial Hospital in San Francisco is listed among 13 facilities that received 100 points on HRC's index. The high score means these places cover hormone replacement therapies, puberty blockers for minors and trans surgeries for employees.

"In fact, each one of these health facilities specifically received a blue checkmark on their profiles, indicating that they have employee health benefits that cover the aforementioned transgender' treatments,'" the report notes.

The healthcare company Dignity Health, which oversees Saint Francis Memorial Hospital, joined Catholic Health Initiatives in 2019 in creating CommonSpirit. Dignity Health's website references the group's founding by Catholic nuns as the reason it affirms homosexuality and trans-identifying people.

Another page on Dignity Health's website alludes to a statement about services at California hospitals, stating that "all of our facilities provide a wide range of knowledgeable transgender care."

The Saint Francis Memorial Hospital operates a facility called the Gender Institute that offers what it refers to as "gender-affirming care." The procedures range from facial reconstructive surgeries to make someone appear more masculine or feminine to genital reconstruction.

Other surgeries that the hospital offers include vocal cord surgery, breast augmentation, hysterectomies, as well as vaginoplasties and phallus reconstruction.

"From our entire hospital staff undergoing pronoun training to following the guidelines set by The Human Rights Campaign Foundation, The Saint Francis Memorial Hospital Gender Institute's best-in-class surgeons and specialists are dedicated to the gender-affirming individual experience," the hospital boasts on its website.

In May 2022, the hospital released a YouTube video featuring Dr. Heidi Wittenberg, a gender realignment surgeon and a trans-identified individual who underwent surgery at the hospital. The video promotes gender surgeries as a way for individuals to align with their perception of themselves.

"It should be noted that CommonSpirits tax form 990s for 2020 and 2019 both indicate that

CommonSpirit Health provided funds totaling $2,128,662 to the Saint Francis Memorial Hospital over the course of those two years," the report explains. "What this means is that Catholic funds are going directly to the very hospital performing these ghastly procedures.

Bear in mind that all of this is being done through CommonSpirits 2019 merge partner, Dignity Health. Whats worse is that Dignity health is doing this in the name of the Catholic Church."

The Lepanto Institute is calling on bishops to lead the public in acts of "penance" for the "evil" CommonSpirit is committing in the Church's name. In addition, the organization wants bishops to require their Catholic hospitals to either disaffiliate from CommonSpirit or lose their Catholic identities.
Pastors son sentenced for pointing gun at church member during dispute

Cedric Taylor, the son of Bishop Jerry Wayne Taylor of Holy City Church of God in Christ Memphis, Tennessee, where former Vice President Mike Pence delivered a campaign speech in 2020, was slapped with a suspended sentence Friday for pulling a gun at a former longtime member inside the church in February.

Jamillah Zarif, the former church member, told WREG that Cedric Taylor left her traumatized when he threatened her with a gun inside the church on Feb. 12. Last Friday, the pastor's son received a suspended one-year sentence for his assault on Zarif. He was also placed on probation for a year and must do anger management over the period.

"It was a horrible, terrifying thing and very traumatizing at the same time," Zarif told WREG. "I never would've thought something like this would happen. It's real heartbreaking and very emotional."

When asked about the situation between Zarif and Cedric Taylor Tuesday, Doris Taylor, a representative of the just over 800-member Holy City Church of God, told The Christian Post that the church is doing well. She had nothing to say about the assault charge against her pastor's son.

Zarif, who said she had been a member of the church for 13 years before leaving in 2019, told WREG that she returned to the church with her mother, who is still a member, in February to celebrate the pastor's 35th Founders' Day service.

She said she was "just going to visit to support him and love on him at the same time" because "It's where I got saved and baptized at and it'll just be a part of my heart until the day, I leave this side."

A police statement cited by the news outlet said at the end of the Feb. 12 service, Zarif and her family tried to speak with the pastor but were prevented from doing so, which triggered an argument. Zarif said the argument was due to a misunderstanding with Bishop Taylor's wife about why they couldn't visit him.

During the argument, Zarif said Cedric Taylor intervened and introduced a gun.

"Ced walked up by that time and said, 'What did you say? What did you say?' And I looked down, and he had a gun," she said.

Zarif said Cedric Taylor walked up to her and pointed the gun at her stomach for approximately 30 seconds.

"I asked him, 'Why do you have a gun, Ced? Why do you have a gun?' I was holding my chest because I was so shocked," she told the news outlet, noting, "A lot of people started gathering, holding him back."

She said she is grateful she was not physically harmed but wished the church had apologized.

"Hopefully, one day, they'll call and say, 'Hey Jamilla, I love you, still love you even though what has gone on,'" she said.
SBC upholds ousting of Saddleback Church over woman teaching pastor

The Southern Baptist Convention has upheld the removal of Saddleback Church from the denomination due to the California megachurch allowing a woman to serve in the office of teaching pastor.

In results announced Wednesday morning at the SBC Annual Meeting in New Orleans, Saddleback's expulsion was upheld by 9,437 votes (88.46%) to 1,212 votes (11.36%), with 19 ballots disallowed.

Additionally, the disfellowshipping of Fern Creek Baptist Church of Louisville, Kentucky, and Freedom Church of Vero Beach, Florida, were also upheld by a vote of 9,700 to 806 and 9,984 to 343, respectively.

Fern Creek Baptist had been removed from SBC membership for having a woman serve as pastor of the congregation. Freedom Church was removed because its lead pastor has been credibly accused of sexual misconduct.

In February, the SBC Executive Committee deemed Saddleback, along with five other churches, to not be in "friendly cooperation" with the convention. At issue is Pastor Andy Wood, who succeeded Saddleback founder Rick Warren as lead pastor of the megachurch last year, listing his wife, Stacie, as the church's teaching pastor.

The 2000 Baptist Faith and Message states that while men and women are both called to spread the Gospel, the office of pastor is limited to men.

On Tuesday afternoon, messengers at the SBC Annual Meeting heard appeals in the cases of Saddleback, Fern Creek Baptist and Freedom Church, with Warren imploring the denomination to reconsider the Saddleback's removal.

Warren argued that Southern Baptists could agree to disagree on the matter of female pastors, comparing it to the SBC's decision to not disfellowship churches that adhered to Calvinist theology.

"We should remove churches for all kinds of sexual sins, racial sin, financial sin, leadership sin, sins that harm the testimony of our convention," Warren said. "But the 1,129 churches with women on pastoral staff have not sinned."

Al Mohler, president of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, spoke against Saddleback's appeal, warning that Saddleback was threatening the unity of the SBC and that the issue was not nonessential.

"It's not just a matter of church polity; it's not just a matter of hermeneutics," Mohler stressed. "It's a matter of biblical commitment, a commitment to the Scripture that unequivocally we believe limits the office of pastor to men."

"Here we face the unusual situation in which Dr. Warren himself has made repeated statements, and the church has taken repeated actions that make very clear it rejects the confessional understanding of the Southern Baptist Convention on this issue."

Founded in 1980 by Rick and Kay Warren, Saddleback has grown to more than a dozen locations in California, with an average weekly worship attendance of around 30,000.
SBC task force granted another year to combat sexual abuse, unveils online database prototype

The Southern Baptist Convention's Abuse Reform Implementation Task Force (ARITF) has been granted another year to fulfill mandates outlined by SBC messengers last year to help churches combat sexual abuse within their ranks.

In its June 14 report to over 12,000 messengers gathered at the New Orleans Ernest N. Morial Convention Center, the task force asked for more time to fulfill mandates set forth last year, including the continued development of a ministry database keeping a record of those "credibly accused" of committing sexual abuse.

The request was approved by a majority of raised ballots.

"If we're not protecting our people from abuse, we are compromising our mission," Marshall Blalock, chairman of the SBC Abuse Reform Implementation Task Force, said.

"Our desire is to see all of our churches do justice, love mercy and walk humbly with God. I am certain everyone in this room is against sexual abuse, so our job should have been the easiest job in the world. But you all know it's far more complicated than it looks."

"We want to see Southern Baptist churches across this country be the safest places on earth for your children, your families, to hear the good news of the Gospel and come to know and love Jesus. That is the goal."

Those "credibly accused" of committing sexual abuse include those who have "confessed the abuse in a nonprivileged setting," been "convicted of abuse in a court of law," "had a civil judgment rendered against them for committing abuse," or have been defined as "credibly accused" according to the preponderance of the evidence, as examined by an independent third party.

Blalock said during their additional year, the task force will develop a fourth channel that will establish a means to conduct third-party investigations into allegations of sexual abuse.

"We have continued to work closely with churches and leaders and survivors and experts to thoroughly address concerns and ensure that development of this category is as effective as possible," he said.

During the session, the task force unveiled a MinistryCheck prototype website, including those convicted, confessed or found liable in civil court. It will officially include names when a legal review of those names is completed, Blalock said.

"The thing that will tear this whole thing down is that we put somebody up there that is merely accused and there's no evidence behind it," Blalock explained. "We want to make sure that it is absolutely solid before we put it up there. So at this time, there's nobody on the database, but those will be coming soon."

In June 2022, messengers overwhelmingly voted to pass a series of abuse reform recommendations following the release of a report from Guidepost Solutions detailing the results of an investigation into allegations that some SBC leaders intimidated whistleblowers and exonerated churches with credible claims of negligence of sexual abuse victims.

The report identified 700 victims over a 20-year span and found that survivors of sexual abuse encountered "resistance, stonewalling, and even outright hostility" from some on the SBC's Executive Committee.

During Tuesday's meeting, ARITF unveiled a toolbox of resources for church leaders, including information to help them understand abuse and how to respond.

"[Prediators] prey on high-trust environments, and churches should be high-trust environments," Blalock said. "But abusers go where they think they can hide. We must have the will to make sure there is no place to hide."

Jamie Arnette, pastor of First Baptist Church in Dillon, S.C., spoke out against granting the task force another year of work, explaining his church was unfairly placed on a list released by the SBC Executive Committee last year.

Blalock responded that church names will not be listed on the new website, only names, cities, states and photos of those credibly accused of sexual abuse.

Georgia Pastor Griffin Gulledge urged fellow messengers to vote in favor of the recommendation.

"Southern Baptists, keep your resolve, steel your spine, do what is right, speak for the abuse and continue this work of reform for this reason, because the sole question before us is extending the task force for another year," he said.

The ARITF will report again to next year's SBC annual meeting in Indianapolis.
Rick Warren pleads for reinstatement of Saddleback in Southern Baptist Convention

(CP) In a heated message to over 12,700 messengers gathered at the Southern Baptist Convention's Annual Meeting in New Orleans, Saddleback Church founder Rick Warren made a case for why his church's inclusion of women in pastoral roles should not ban it from the denomination.

"For 178 years, the SBC has been a denomination of at least a dozen different types of Baptists. If you think every Baptist thinks like you, you're mistaken," he began his appeal of the SBC's decision to cut ties with Saddleback Church due to "the church continuing to have a female teaching pastor functioning in the office of a pastor."

Though all Southern Baptists share a commitment to the inerrancy of the Gospel and the Great Commission, Warren said Southern Baptists historically disagree on "dozens of doctrines," including the "essential doctrines of salvation."

"Why should this one issue cancel our fellowship?" he asked.

"We should remove churches for all kinds of sexual sins, racial sin, financial sin, leadership sin, sins that harm the testimony of our convention," he said. "But the 1,129 churches with women on pastoral staff have not sinned."

Warren reiterated his earlier sentiment that Saddleback disagrees with only one word in SBC doctrine: men.

"Isn't that close enough?" he asked.

"If doctrinal disagreements between Baptists are considered sin, we all get kicked out," he declared. "You'll never get 100 percent of Baptists to agree on 100 percent of every doctrine."

In response, Al Mohler, president of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, warned that the unity of the convention "is now at stake." He said the ban on female pastors was inserted into the "Faith and Message" statement "because 30 years ago, this issue threatened to tear this denomination apart."

"It's not just a matter of church polity, it's not just a matter of hermeneutics," he stressed. "It's a matter of biblical commitment, a commitment to the Scripture that unequivocally we believe limits the office of pastor to men."

Mohler contended that "It is a question of the Southern Baptist Convention and what it means for a church to be in 'friendly cooperation'" with the denomination.

"Here we face the unusual situation in which Dr. Warren himself has made repeated statements and the church has taken repeated actions that make very clear it rejects the confessional understanding of the Southern Baptist Convention on this issue," he stressed. "This isn't a question of misunderstanding."

Founded in 1980 by Rick and Kay Warren, Saddleback has grown over four decades to 14 locations in Southern California, with an average weekly attendance of 30,000.

In February, the SBC Executive Committee affirmed a recommendation from the SBC Credentials Committee Tuesday to deem Saddleback Church as "not in friendly cooperation with the Southern Baptist Convention" after Pastor Andy Wood, who succeeded Warren at Saddleback, listed his wife, Stacie, as a "pastor" in his biography on the prominent California megachurch's website in October 2022. Subsequently, on May 7, Katie Edwards, one of the three women ordained at Saddleback in 2021, was announced as the Lake Forest campus pastor.

In recent months, Warren has openly discussed how his views on the role of women in the Church have changed over the years, often drawing criticism from more conservative leaders within the SBC.

The denomination holds to the belief that the office of pastor is limited to men as qualified by Scripture, as outlined in its Faith and Message Statement in 2000.

Saddleback was one of three congregations challenging their removal from the SBC for failing to be in "friendly cooperation" with the denomination.

Fern Creek Baptist Church in Louisville, Kentucky, where the Rev. Linda Barnes Popham is the pastor, is appealing on the same grounds as Saddleback, while Freedom Church in Vero Beach, Florida, appealed its expulsion over an issue involving sexual misconduct by a church leader.

The result of all three appeals will be available Wednesday morning, a spokesman for the SBC Executive Committee confirmed.

 The Christian Post
SBC messengers reelect Texas pastor Bart Barber to a second term as president

Texas pastor Bart Barber was elected to a second year in office during an afternoon session of the Southern Baptist Convention's annual meeting.

Barber received 7,531 votes, 68% of the 11,014 vote total, beating out Georgia Baptist pastor Mike Stone, a more conservative challenger, who received 3,458 votes, or 31%.

It was the first time in a decade that a sitting SBC president had faced a challenge and only the second time since the late 1980s. The president of the United States' largest Protestant denomination, in an unpaid role, oversees the annual meeting and promotes the SBC's mission and beliefs. Presidents are elected for a one-year term and generally run unopposed for a second term.

Barber was an unlikely candidate for president when he first ran in 2021. At the time, he was mostly known for his quirky Twitter videos and an uncommon expertise on SBC governance. He had also played a key role on the board that ousted SBC legend Paige Patterson from his role as president of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Texas.

Pastor of a church of relatively modest size, Barber became a candidate for president after Florida megachurch pastor Willie Rice, who had been considered a favourite, dropped out after news broke that his church had ordained a church leader with a history of sexual misconduct.

Ironically, Rice ended up nominating Barber's challenger, Stone, for president.

Stone, who lost a previous election in 2021 by a narrow margin, has close ties to the Conservative Baptist Network, which has criticized current SBC leadership and claims that the denomination has become too liberal.

During a series of campaign events, he cited rising legal costs, due to dealing with a sexual abuse crisis, that have reduced the reserves of the SBC's Executive Committee. Citing an Executive Committee auditor, he said that those costs were "unsustainable."

"For Southern Baptists, unsustainable should be unacceptable," he said in announcing his candidacy. Stone also had been critical of the SBC's abuse reforms, saying that local churches should deal with abuse.

Tuesday's election marked the third year in a row that a CBN-backed candidate has lost the presidential race.

Stone congratulated Barber on his reelection on Twitter, saying, "May God continue to grace you with wisdom, discernment and strength. That will continue to be my prayer for you as you lead."

Barber, for his part, has been outspoken in his support for the abuse reforms as well as his efforts to encourage Southern Baptists to support those reforms while listening to those who had concerns.

The election and annual meeting come at a difficult moment for Barber, whose mother died after a long illness days before the meeting started.

The nomination speeches for the two candidates painted starkly different views of the state of the convention. Florida pastor Willie Rice painted a view of a convention in trouble, citing the cost of abuse reforms and feuding between rival factions.

"A cancel culture has replaced a gospel culture," he said.

Then he challenged messengers to send a message that things must change.

"If you want to send a message, chisel it in stone," he said.

Houston pastor Jarret Stephen nominated Barber, saying he had led the convention well. He said that giving was up, more missionaries were being sent out and the convention was working to address the issue of abuse.

"He is not owed a second term, but I say unequivocally he has earned it," said Stephen.

 The Christian Post
Tell the good news in the Church too, Welby tells journalists

Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby has praised the media for its 'challenge and scrutiny' and for the role it plays in a democratic society, while reminding journalists that "for all its faults", the Church is full of good news stories.

Speaking yesterday in London at a conference organised by the Religion Media Centre, the Archbishop explained: "The Church, being full of human beings, is full of those who go wrong. The Church often seeks to speak truth to power, but we must recognise as different bits of the Church, and, speaking as the Church of England, our own power as well as our immense failures and sins.

"And therefore, we should welcome the challenge and scrutiny from the media that is part of living in a democratic society. Having spent a good deal of my life travelling in places that don't have those freedoms, I know which I prefer."

Archbishop Welby  who has come in for sharp criticism from some parts of the media for his challenge to the government's immigration reforms  explained, "When I started this job just over 10 years ago, the media landscape, even that short period ago looked different. It has become faster, more complex, more driven by social media.

"In an age of misinformation, distraction, and the competition of noise with truth, it is ever more difficult for journalists to do their job."

He said that his approach to the media had developed over the 10 years he had been in office: "I take more risks, deliberately rather than accidentally. I try to engage and I recognise the vital importance of seeking to communicate well what the Church is doing and what we actually care about.

"I try to say yes to as many media outlets as possible, especially the local and the regional. I know how successful they are because they are deeply embedded in the community."

But Archbishop Welby admitted, "One of the relatively few things I'm looking forward to in my eventual and long distant retirement is being able to read the paper without worrying about whether I'll see my own name, in any context at all."

He conceded that the Church and the media have different perspectives on what makes 'good news,' telling the audience of people who work in and with the media, "what the Church calls Good News and what journalists call good news are entirely different things."

"The Christian Gospel, which is a word meaning 'good news', is that the Creator of all things, God, so loved the world that He gave His only Son so that all who believe in Him should not perish but have life now and eternally. To put it another way, God who is just provides salvation.

"And what that means in practice, is a worldview that trusts the faithfulness of God. At the same time, Christians live in a God-created community, the Church  and that is the rub."

Describing his own experience of working with the media, Archbishop Welby explained: "There are two aspects to any religious figure's involvement in the media. First, you're reported on - for example, after making a speech on the Illegal Migration Bill.

"Secondly, there is the context of engaging with the media proactively and giving interviews or engaging on social media. There's a difference. So if we start off with engaging with the media, why do it?

"The greatest single reason," he explained, "is that Christian faith claims truth. For Christians, truth is not a concept, it is a person - Jesus, not an idea. When in John, Chapter 14:1-6, one of Jesus's disciples expostulates with him when he says, you know where I'm going, and the disciple says to Jesus, I haven't the faintest idea what you're talking about. And Jesus replies, I am, the Way, the Truth and the Life.

"When Pilate, at his trial says what is Truth? He's asking the wrong question. He should ask who is Truth - and Truth is standing before him, beaten and bloodied, and looking anything but impressive."

The Archbishop challenged his audience, "Please, in your reporting, don't forget the millions of people and the incredible stories that the Christian church, and even the Church of England represents. Because I think that is also good news for all its faults, both for journalists, and Christians."

Rev Peter Crumpler is a Church of England minister in St Albans, Herts, UK, and a former communications director with the CofE.
Ark Electronics Appoints Thierry Basse to Manage New European Expansion Published: 14 June 2023 by Tyler Hanes by Tyler Hanes

IRVINE, CA  Electronic Manufacturing Company Ark Electronics recently announced the opening of its new European office in Bordeaux, France, headed by Thierry Basse.

The operational base will support clients with end-to-end manufacturing & engineering solutions, including high-quality PCB Assembly, streamlined Electronics Manufacturing Services, and award-winning design and engineering. As VP of Sales and Business Development  Europe Region, Thierry will work with both the North American leadership group and manufacturing teams in China. Thierry has more than 30 years of experience in the world of electronics manufacturing and services, in particular in R&D, NPI, DFX, Account & Global Program Management, and Marketing & Sales for global companies.

"Our most recent expansion provides on-continent support for those European EMS customers who seek the best of both worldsEnglish-speaking, convenient, responsive customer service; coupled with low-cost, high quality, high-volume, China-based production," said Scott Wiley, President and CCO of Ark Electronics USA.

"I am very pleased to promote Ark Electronics to support current European challenges, including Energy Transition, Sustainable Mobility, Digital Transformation, and Digital Inclusion and Equity," said Thierry. "After visiting our factory in China, I was impressed by their high level of quality, information security, health & safety, and environmental standards"

Ark Electronics is a global Electronics Manufacturing Services (EMS) provider serving leading consumer electronics, mobile communications, automotive, and industrial IoT companies. Ark Electronics combines technical expertise with agile manufacturing and supply chain processes, enabling its customers to create original products and solutions at scale. The company's China-based factory network, supported by North American leadership, provides customers the simplicity of dealing with a US team while enjoying high-quality, low-cost-country manufacturing.

For more information, please visit: ArkElectronics.com
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Catch22, a charity that supports young people in need, has decided to wind-up its multi academies trust (MAT) and transfer the seven schools it governed to other organisations.

According to newly filed documents, the trustees have taken the strategic decision to re-broker the seven academies in its trust and wind-up the MAT altogether.

Catch22 made the decision in collaboration with regional schools commissioners and after Ofsted rated all seven schools under its care poorly.

The charity said it anticipates that the re-brokering process, whereby the schools move to another trust, will be complete by August 2023.

All of its seven schools are rated poorly by Ofsted

All of the seven schools managed by Catch22s MAT, which is sponsored by the charity, are rated as either inadequate or requires improvement by Ofsted.

The Ashwood Academy and Coppice Spring Academy were rated inadequate in 2022.

Special measures were put in place at Coppice Spring by Ofsted , with a monitoring visit last March reporting that too many pupils still do not attend school regularly.

The Spires Academy in Northamptonshire was rated as inadequate in October 2021.

The Austen Academy and Fen Rivers Academy were rated as requires improvement in September 2022.

Brunel and Burton academies were both rated as requires improvement in 2020.

Catch22 also transferred the inadequate-rated Everitt Academy to education provider SENDAT last year.

The financial accounts state that Catch22s MAT transferred liabilities amounting to 1.7m with the transfer of Everitt Academy.

Catch22: Last few years have been particularly challenging

Daniel Jansen, chief executive of the Catch22 MAT, told Civil Society: The last few years have been a particularly challenging time to deliver alternative provision and specialist education, not least because of the impact of the pandemic and the wider funding environment.

Were incredibly proud of all our staff who work so hard to provide good quality education to our pupils, in what are undoubtedly difficult circumstances. This comes on the back of the regional school commissioners decision to re-broker three of our academies over the last 12 months because of challenging Ofsted ratings.



The RSC also made it clear that they would look to re-broker any other schools that became inadequate and asked us to consider our future strategy for the trust given the reduced number of schools spread across a wide geographical area. In reaching a decision we have considered many factors such as the geography, the number and type of schools, the capacity to improve and, most importantly, what would be best for the pupils.



In our view, a smaller and stretched MAT will be unable to provide the excellence that we strive for so, we regretfully informed the regional school commissioner that we would like to re-broker all of our MAT schools to ensure they have the best opportunity to deliver high-quality services moving forward.



Leading up to the transfers, were continuing to address all areas for improvement raised by Ofsted, such that our students and staff are in the best place possible before being transferred to a new provider.

All staff working in a school will remain in post and transfer to the new provider once theyre identified.

Janssens role will be made redundant as it will not transfer with the schools.

We were not able to grow our delivery to the scale required

The MAT was incorporated in November 2012 and has a board of six trustees, three members and two finance officers, according to government documents.

Catch22s accounts read: We are really proud of our delivery of apprenticeships and the good grade two Ofsted report achieved, but we were not able to grow our delivery to the scale required to deliver the impact we wanted and to ensure its financial sustainability and therefore concluded that the interests of our apprentices and staff would be better served as part of a specialist learning provider.

Catch22 provided services and recharged costs of 741,000 for the MAT, an increase of 29% on the year prior (2021: 573,000).

At the date of writing the accounts, the charity was owed 413,000 by the MAT compared to 266,000 for the 2021 financial year.

Income set to drop as a result

The closure of the MAT is expected to make the charity's income fall in the financial year 2023-24, the accounts for the year ending August 2022 read.

Though this will occur in the short-term the charity intend[s] to look to grow the organisation to compensate.

The accounts read: We believe that scale offers financial protections and allows us to continue to offer a platform to social entrepreneurs and smaller organisations to develop their ideas and secure future impact.

The accounts state that Catch 22 recognises growth opportunities in its justice work and the expansion of its childrens home offer.

It will also seek mergers and acquisitions with other organisations where it can increase impact and improve financial sustainability.

The Community Links Trust and Ripplez merged into the charity last year.

Editor's note

This article was amended on 3 July 2023 to remove the phrase "The Spires Academy in Kent was rated good in January 2023" as it was ascertained that this academy was not managed by Catch-22.

The Spires Academy managed by Catch-22 is in Northamptonshire and was rated inadequate by Ofsted in 2021.

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A ZANU PF-LINKED shadowy group, Forever Associates Zimbabwe (Faz) has been sucked into Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) candidate selection process in Bulawayo where aspiring candidates are accusing each other of being sponsored by the organisation.

Faz is known for its surreptitious role in the controversial Zanu PF primary elections held in April this year which saw most bigwigs falling by the wayside.

CCC recently complained of interference by alleged Central Intelligence Organisation operatives in the partys internal poll process.

In Bulawayo, the CCC candidate selection process has left the party divided.

According to leaked CCC WhatsApp group chats, there are claims that some party members in Bulawayo were funded by Faz to cause chaos in the opposition party.

We know you (names supplied) and your gang are criminals benefiting from Faz. Stop making us fools. We have evidence of you working with Faz and we will expose it, charged one senior party member in the group.

Another party member said: My brother, please dont count me where people are discussed. Dont put my name into disrepute, I love this party. Lets rather discuss ideas and respect each others opinions and interests. I am ready to put my body in order to protect president Nelson Chamisa.

However, in a statement, CCC senior executive Felix Magalela Mafa Sibanda appealed for unity in Bulawayo.

In a communication addressed to the MDC Veterans Association (VAA), Sibanda said unity could see the CCC winning the August 23 elections.

The MDC VAA was formed as an affiliate of the then Morgan Tsvangirai-led MDC-T and also rallied behind the MDC Alliance then led by Chamisa in the 2018 election.

A number of VAA members are members of CCC.

As your leadership, I am appealing to all VAA members to support CCC presidential candidate, Chamisa, legislative and council candidates throughout Zimbabwe, Sibanda, who is the VAA national chairperson, said.

Our mission as VAA has been total enjoyment of all human and constitutional rights by all Zimbabweans regardless of ones station in society. I wish everyone who was nominated and successfully vetted to represent CCC movement in the coming harmonised elections on August 23 success, he said.

Let us support each other where applicable in this decisive plebiscite.

CCC is yet to complete its candidate selection process ahead of the June 21 nomination court sitting.

Zanu PF has since completed its primaries and is already on a campaign trail, while candidates are said to be submitting their nomination papers to the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission. Newsday
In mid-April, Sudans military and the Rapid Support Forces, a paramilitary group, started fighting for control of the country. They unleashed a barrage of attacks on Khartoum, the countrys capital, plunged several other areas into fighting, and trapped hundreds of thousands of civilians in the cross fire. The opposing forces were formerly allied; their leaders jointly took power in Sudan in October 2021, when General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, the leader of the Sudanese army, led a coup with the collaboration of General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, the leader of the Rapid Support Forces, who is also known as Hemedti. Both men served on a body known as the Transitional Military Council: Burhan as the leader, Hemedti as his deputy.

Burhan had already overseen a body that was supposed to facilitate a transition to democracy after protests led to the ouster, in 2019, of Omar al-Bashir, Sudans long-standing dictatorbut in 2021, military leaders arrested Abdalla Hamdok, the civilian prime minister who had been involved in that process, and arrogated power to themselves. Civilian protests led to the reinstatement of Hamdok, but he soon resigned. Since then, the two generals have been locked in a power struggle, clashing over the decision to integrate the RSF into the army as part of a mooted transition from military rule to a civilian government. The RSF was created by Bashir in 2013 and grew out of the Janjaweed militias, the feared group involved in mass atrocities in Sudans Darfur region that Human Rights Watch and others have said constituted war crimes. During the recent fighting, US and Saudi mediators have brokered several cease-fire agreements, but both sides have consistently violated them.

So far, more than eight hundred civilians have died in the fighting, while more than a million have been displaced. Media workers have been among those who have suffered. The Sudanese Journalists Syndicate, a national union, has reported accounts of journalists being shot, beaten, harassed, and detained, including the case of Faiz Abubaker, a photojournalist who was shot in the back and detained by RSF soldiers. While most of the attacks on the press recorded by the Syndicate have been perpetrated by the RSF, the army has also attacked journalists, including Mohamed Othman, a BBC correspondent who was beaten by soldiers. At the beginning of the fighting, the RSF seized control of the state television headquarters, a platform primarily used by the military. Elsewhere, local news stations have shut down due to signal interruptions.

Last week, I spoke with Hiba Morgan, Al Jazeeras Sudan correspondent, who is based in Khartoum, about the events that led to this moment, international coverage of the fighting, and what might happen next. Our conversation has been edited for length and clarity.

FM: Sudan has gone through so much since the revolution in 2019: the ousting of Bashir, the promise of civilian rule, the coup, and now this current moment. Its a very complex situation. What has it been like to cover these developments from Khartoum, and to also see it being covered internationally?

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HM: Im half Sudanese, half South Sudanese, so Sudan is home. Sometimes its hard to cover because youre talking about your people. I hear peoples statements, especially when theyre being broadcast before I go live, and it does get to me sometimes. When we began to cover the revolution, we covered the protests, the brutality of the police in responding to the unarmed protesters, and we always had the sense that Its not going to get anywhere because theres been just so much brutality. Then the sit-ins happened and it was this beautiful moment in Sudans history. When we covered the protests, Bashirs ousting, and then eventually the power-sharing agreements, we felt like we were covering this great transition. But we could also tell that the main obstacles were still there.

I noticed, during this time, that there was an interest in Sudan. International media romanticized the sit-ins and protesters, and failed to show that the protest leaders, or the political parties that claimed to represent the protest movement, were not the actual representatives. The biggest evidence of that was that civilians were still protesting when the transitional government was formed, and when the military took over in October 2021. When it comes to covering the specific conflicts, I would say there has been a lot of whitewashing of the Rapid Support Forces since the revolution started. Not enough has been said about what they did in Darfur from 2003 onwards, to the point where people in Khartoum are ready to overlook what happened there.

This is largely being reported as a fight between Burhan and Hemedti, but thats not all there is to it. What else is important for the media to include when reporting this story?

Its very important to report this as an issue of accountability. This is what happens when you have state institutions, or semi-institutions, not being held accountable. When you wage a war in Darfur and your parliament is so controlled by a single party, nobodys asking why that entire civilian village was burned down, why this number of children were killed or that number of women were raped.

Its not just a fight between the two generals; its an existential war for both sides. When we talk about the RSF, were talking about a specific family, the Dagalo family, because they control everything from the economics of the RSF to the fighters. Their top commanders all come from the same family. But when youre talking about the army, were talking about an institution. RSF supporters on social media say, Dont call us the RSF, dont call us the Janjaweed, call us Sudans new army. Theyre basically trying to replace an institution that has been there, so its an issue of existence. Thats why you dont see either side actually wanting a political solution or a cease-fire, because, for them, youre just delaying a war that is inevitable. You cant have two armies in one countrywherever you are in the world, not just Sudan.

We also have to understand that the RSF is a creation of the army for a different purpose. Yes, Bashir created the RSF to fight his wars in Darfur. But he knew how to control them. He made sure that they recruited a limited number of soldiers, that they were given specific amounts of guns and weapons and bullets; everything was accounted for. Then you have Burhan take over the army and basically get rid of the clause that says the RSF is part of the army. Since 2019, he started seeing everything in the country going down: services were degrading, the economy was worsening. The only thing that was getting bigger and bigger was the RSF, until it became, in terms of size and military might, on an equal footing with the army.

Was there ever a chance that the RSF would integrate into the army, as stated in the framework for the proposed transition to civilian rule?

In words, yes. There was the belief that it should be integrated, that Sudan should have one unified army. Thats what the framework documents said. However, in reality, no. From the very first day we saw the documents, we thought, This is not happening. We wasted days and hours going to their meetings and discussions because we knew that the moment it came to the security sector discussion, thats when we actually really needed to pay attention, because we knew that was the make-or-break part. When you have the two main components of the security sectorthe RSF and the armyand one of them [the RSF] is basically saying, Were not attending this discussion, because its bullshit, we knew it wasnt going to work.

Last October, Sudanese journalists formed a union, the Sudanese Journalists Syndicate. Has it helped journalists with any specific challenges?

Theyve been publicly condemning attacks on journalists and also trying to provide a little financial support for journalists who have been affected by the conflict. Theres not much they can do, because theyre all here as well, trapped in the same situation. I think the union could have been a bit stronger in terms of pushing for journalists to have more access. The one time we tried to go out and report, we were beaten by the RSF and it didnt go well. I have colleagues who have been detained for a couple of days, whove been targeted, abducted from their homes. We need to ensure access for journalists because we need to shed light on all the violations happening, on both sides, to civilians. It hasnt really worked on the issue of access, or the issue of protection for journalists.

The RSF also seized control of the state television headquarters on the first day of fighting, stopping the broadcast. Why was that a particular target for them?

The state television was one of the institutions that were guarded by the RSF. Basically, the RSF fighters that were guarding that area just decided that they were going to take it over. They understand that one of the main institutions of the government is their state television. The state broadcast mainly showcases messages of support for the army, nationalistic coverage. Youll see army commanders from various parts of the country giving statements, not necessarily talking about whats happening in Khartoum: messages of patriotism, military songs. The RSF are occupying the headquarters, but I dont think theyve been able to get it up and running. The one thing they were able to take control of was the state radio, which is now broadcasting RSF messages. They talk about their victories, areas that are under their control, and also sound bites of people talking about how great life is in the RSF areas.

Where are people getting their information and updates from?

People turn to international channels such as Al Arabiya, Al Jazeera, and Al Hadath, especially the Arabic-speaking channels. For more detailed informationfor example, if I want to know whats happening in my neighborhood (which Im now not in; Ive gone to a bit of a safer place inside Khartoum)I have to go to the WhatsApp group for our block. People will ask security guards, cousins, whoever they are seeing. Thats how people are getting the tiniest details of areas of concern to them.

Some news outlets have mapped out possible endings to the fighting. The New York Times predicted several outcomesincluding a return to authoritarian military rule or the political earthquake of an RSF victorywriting that the country is at its most wrenching moment since independence in 1956. Whats your take on that?

The Times had a good one. These are the scenarios that were possibly facing. Its not going to be a swift victory for either side. And, regardless of which side wins, its not going to be completely over, especially with the RSF being in Khartoum; elements of what they did in Darfur are already showing up. So if the Sudan Armed Forces manage to win, theyre still going to have to continue fighting this battle. This has the potential to be even worse than what happened in Darfur between 2003 and 2007.

Feven Merid is CJRs staff writer and Senior Delacorte Fellow.
A boat carrying hospitality workers capsized Monday during a tour of a historic underground cavern system built to carry water from the Erie Canal beneath the western New York city of Lockport, killing one person who became trapped beneath the overturned vessel, officials said.

All 29 people on board the flat-bottomed boat operated by Lockport Cave Tours were thrown into water between 5 feet and 6 feet deep when the craft tipped over toward the end of the roughly 300-foot route.

The tours take visitors on an underground boat ride through a dimly lit, rough- hewn tunnel, which was blasted out in the 19th century to transport canal water as an industrial power source.

Some passengers dunked into the water were able to get to safety on their own. Rescue crews using an inflatable boat rescued about 16 others, Lockport Fire Chief Luca Quagliano said.

Jeremy Swiatowy, 42, watched as rescue workers breached the wall to the tunnel with a sledgehammer before shimmying through the hole to reach people inside.

The water in the caves is super cold, he said.

When rescuers reached the boat, some passengers had climbed on top of its upturned hull, Quagliano said at a news conference.

Authorities did not immediately release the name of the man who died. His wife was taken to a hospital.

A total of 11 people were brought to hospitals, mostly with minor injuries, the fire chief said.

All of the passengers were hospitality employees from across Niagara County, according to Andrea Czopp, chief operating officer at Destination Niagara USA. The agency organized the outing as part of a familiarization tour, she said.

Authorities said the specially built motorboat holds up to 40 people, who sit in rows about four across. During the ride, about two to three feet of space separate the boat and cave walls on either side.

Nobody on board had a life preserver, authorities said. It was unclear whether they were required or offered.

The company that operates the tours did not immediately respond to phone calls and an email seeking comment.

Lockport Mayor Michelle Roman said the attraction, located about 20 miles (32 kilometers) northeast of Niagara Falls, has operated since the mid-1970s, without incident. It will remain closed during an investigation.

This is very sad for everybody, she said.

Police Chief Steven Abbott said the cave and canal are private property.

We have a lot of questions that need to be answered, he said.

Video footage from the scene outside the Lockport Cave office showed one person talking as she was loaded onto an ambulance. Others wrapped in white towels were being escorted to a bus as a steady rain fell.

The water tunnel was once the subject of an episode of the Syfy network show Ghost Hunters.

Associated Press writers Jennifer Peltz in New York City and Michael Hill in Albany contributed to this report.

Top photo: A boat moves through the double lock system on the Erie Canal in downtown Lockport, N.Y., Aug. 24, 1993. A boat carrying 36 people capsized Monday, June 12, 2023, during a tour of an underground cavern system built to carry water from the Erie Canal beneath the western New York city of Lockport, police said. (AP Photo/Bill Sikes, File)

Copyright 2023 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
PHILADELPHIA (AP)  The driver of a tractor-trailer hauling gasoline lost control on an off-ramp and flipped the tanker truck on its side in a wreck that set it afire and destroyed a section of the East Coasts main north-south highway, Pennsylvanias top transportation official said Monday.

In the first official accounting of a wreck that threw hundreds of thousands of morning commutes into chaos and disrupted untold numbers of businesses, state Transportation Secretary Mike Carroll said the driver was northbound trying to navigate the curve, lost control of the vehicle, landed on its side and ruptured the tank.

As a result, Interstate 95 will be closed in both directions for weeks at the start of summer travel season. The elevated southbound portion of I-95 will have to be demolished, as well as the northbound side, Carroll said. Motorists should avoid the northeast corner of the sixth-largest city in the country, transportation officials said.

Pennsylvania State Police said a body recovered from the wreckage has been turned over to the Philadelphia medical examiner and coroner. Authorities are in the process of identifying the remains, police said.

The accident also disrupted the automotive route from Canada to Florida through the Boston, New York and Washington metropolitan areas, increasing Americans dependence on air travel and on the interstate rail network.

Videos shared on social media showed a number of close calls around the accident, with people driving through the area as flames licked upward from the fire below. The National Transportation Safety Board said it was sending a team to investigate the accident.

Carroll said the damaged I-95 segment carries about 160,000 vehicles daily. State police dont know if the driver was speeding and no other vehicle has been found. Officials said they had been in contact with the trucking company, but they did not identify it.

Carroll said the highway span was 10 to 12 years old, had appeared sound and they blamed the damage on the heat of the fire, which took about an hour to control.

Gov. Josh Shapiro signed a disaster declaration Monday, saying it gives state agencies the ability to skip normal bidding-and-contracting requirements so the span can be repaired faster.

Shapiro said his flight over the area showed just remarkable devastation.

I found myself thanking the Lord that no motorists who were on I-95 were injured or died, he said.

High heat from the fire or the impact of an explosion could have weakened the steel beams supporting the overpass, according to Drexel University structural engineering Professor Abi Aghayere. Bridges like the one that collapsed dont typically have fire protection, like concrete casing, he added. It could have been coated in a fire-retarding paint, but even then the beams could have been weakened.

It just gives you time, he said.

Among many transportation changes across the region, the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority said it was operating three extra morning and late afternoon trains on its Trenton, New Jersey, line, and adding capacity to regularly scheduled lines during peak hours following the collapse.

The collapsed section of I-95 was part of a $212 million reconstruction project that wrapped up four years ago, state Transportation Department spokesman Brad Rudolph said. PennDOT rated the 104-foot span as in good condition earlier this year, with another inspection set for 2025.

Shapiro, a Democrat, said the complete rebuild of I-95 would take some number of months, and in the meantime officials were looking at interim solutions to reconnect I-95 and get traffic through the area.

Joseph L. Schofer, a retired professor of civil and environmental engineering from Northwestern University, said a big challenge for PennDOT in quickly replacing the bridge could be getting heavy-duty steel beams of a hundred feet or more.

Ensuring the precise length necessary  either by finding the construction records or taking measurements  and finding a fabricator to make them could take time, he said.

You cant go online to Amazon and order it and have it delivered the next day, said Schofer, who also hosts a podcast on infrastructure.

In California, a similar situation happened with a highway ramp in Oakland. It was replaced in 26 days, he said.

Now thats almost a miracle, Schofer said. In Atlanta, an elevated portion of Interstate 85 collapsed in a fire, shutting down the heavily traveled route through the heart of the city in March 2017. It took authorities there 43 days to replace it, Schofer said.

In Pennsylvania, officials were also concerned about the environmental effects of runoff into the nearby Delaware River.

After a sheen was seen in the Delaware River near the collapse site, the Coast Guard deployed a boom to contain the material. Ensign Josh Ledoux said the tanker had a capacity of 8,500 gallons (32,176 liters), but the contents did not appear to be spreading into the environment.

Catalini reported from Trenton, New Jersey and Levy from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.

Top photo: Officers direct traffic detoured in Philadelphia, Monday, June 12, 2023. Drivers began longer commutes Monday after a section of I-95 collapsed a day earlier following damage caused by a tanker truck carrying flammable cargo catching fire. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
BEIRUT (AP)  A British court has ordered a London-based company that delivered the ammonium nitrate that exploded in 2020 at Beiruts port to pay compensation to some families of the hundreds of victims, Beiruts Bar Association said Tuesday.

The verdict in the High Court of Justice on Monday came four months after the court ruled that London-registered chemical trading firm Savaro Ltd. is liable to the victims for the devastating blast.

Hundreds of tons of ammonium nitrate, a highly explosive material used in fertilizers that had been improperly stored in the port for years, exploded on Aug. 4, 2020 killing nearly 220 people, injuring over 6,000 others and causing damage in the city worth billions of dollars.

Savaro Ltd. is suspected of having chartered the shipment of the ammonium nitrate in 2013 that ended up in Beirut. In Lebanon, documents show a handful of senior political, judicial and security officials were aware of the chemicals in the port for years, but did not take decisive action to get rid of it.

The case in Britain was put forward by the Beirut Bar Association because Savaro Ltd. is based there.

According to the prosecution office at the Beirut Bar Association, the British court ordered payment of 100,000 British pounds ($125,900) for each of three plaintiffs whose family members were killed in the blast because of the emotional damage that resulted from their deaths.

The court also ordered the payment of more than 500,000 British pounds ($629, 700) for an injured plaintiff as compensation for emotional and physical damage and to cover medical expenses.

The ruling in London is an unusual judicial success for the victims families, members of whom have advocated for an unimpeded national investigation. Some have opted to file lawsuits abroad.

The work of Judge Tarek Bitar, who has been leading the investigation into the blast in Lebanon, has been blocked since December 2021 pending a Court of Cassation ruling after three former Cabinet ministers filed legal challenges against him. The court is the highest in the land.

After almost three years from the catastrophe, its the first time that there is a judicial decision regarding both liability and damages, Camille Abousleiman, one of the lawyers involved in the British case, told The Associated Press. This also comes at a time when the Lebanese investigation is blocked, perhaps permanently, so it gives a measure of comfort to the victims.

Its a first positive step in a long process for justice and closure for the injured and the relatives of the deceased victims, Abousleiman said.

The Beirut Bar Association, along with four victims families, filed a lawsuit against Savaro Ltd. in August 2021 after U.K. authorities blocked the firms attempts to dissolve the company.

It remains unclear who the owner of Savaro Ltd. is. The listed owners are agents from a corporate services firm, investigative journalists from Lebanese and international outlets have reported. The High Court of Justice in June 2022 ordered the company to reveal its true owners, but the firm has not done so.

Copyright 2023 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
LEGAZPI, Philippines (AP)  Lava poured from the crater of the Philippines most active volcano Monday, prompting officials to warn tens of thousands of villagers to be prepared to flee if the gentle eruption turns into a violent and life-threatening explosion.

More than 13,000 people have left the mostly poor farming communities within a 6- kilometer (3.7-mile) radius of Mayon Volcanos crater in mandatory evacuations since volcanic activity increased last week. But an unspecified number of residents remain within the permanent danger zone below Mayon, an area long declared off-limits to people but where generations have lived and farmed because they have nowhere else to go.

With the volcano beginning to expel lava Sunday night, the high-risk zone around Mayon may be expanded should the eruption turn violent, said Teresito Bacolcol, director of the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology. Bacolcol said if that happens, people in any expanded danger zone should be prepared to evacuate to emergency shelters.

What we are seeing now is an effusive eruption, Bacolcol told The Associated Press. We are looking at this on a day-to-day basis.

From a distance, Associated Press journalists watched lava flow down the volcanos southeastern gullies for hours Sunday night. People hurriedly stepped out of restaurants and bars in a seaside promenade of Legazpi, the capital of northeastern Albay province about 14 kilometers (8.5 miles) from Mayon, many of them snapping pictures of the volcano thats a popular tourist draw known for its picturesque conical shape.

Mayons renewed restiveness has also struck fear and brought new suffering.

Marilyn Miranda said she, her daughter and 75-year-old mother, who recently suffered a stroke, fled their home in a village within the danger zone in Guinobatan town on Thursday and sought shelter at a sweltering high school turned into an evacuation center. Her nephew returns to their home each day, as do other men in their impoverished rural neighborhood to guard their houses and farm animals, she said.

From the overcrowded evacuation center, they were terrified to see the bright red-orange lava streaks gushing down Mayons slope on Sunday night. We had this feeling that our end is near, Miranda told the AP, breaking into tears.

Mayons new eruption was one of back-to-back tragedies that struck Amelia Morales and her family in recent days. Her husband died of an aneurism and other illnesses on Friday and she had to hold his funeral wake in a crowded emergency shelter in Guinobatan because she and her neighbors had been ordered to stay away from their community near Mayon.

I need help to bury my husband because we dont have any money left, Morales, 63, said as she sat near her husbands white wooden coffin under a flimsy open tent in a corner of the evacuation center. I cannot do anything but cry.

With its peak often shrouded by the wisps of passing clouds, the 2,462-meter (8, 077-foot) volcano appeared calm on Monday. Bacolcol said red-hot lava was continuing to flow down its slopes but could not easily be seen by people under the bright sun.

The volcano had been raised to alert level three on a five-step warning system Thursday, meaning the volcano was in a state of high unrest and a hazardous eruption is possible in weeks or days.

With lava flowing down from the volcano gently, Bacolcol said the alert level would stay at three but it could be moved up higher if the eruption suddenly turns perilous.

The highest alert, level five, would mean a violent and life-threatening eruption is underway with ash plumes shooting into the sky and superheated pyroclastic streams endangering more communities at Mayons lush foothills.

Mayon is one of 24 active volcanoes in the Philippines. It last erupted violently in 2018, displacing tens of thousands of villagers. In 1814, Mayons eruption buried entire villages and reportedly left more than 1,000 people dead.

The archipelago is lashed by about 20 typhoons and tropical storms a year and is located on the so-called Pacific Ring of Fire, the rim of seismic faults where most of the worlds earthquakes and volcanic eruptions occur.

In 1991, Mount Pinatubo north of Manila blew its top in one of the biggest volcanic eruptions of the 20th century, killing hundreds.

Associated Press journalist Joeal Calupitan contributed to this report.

Copyright 2023 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
ROCKY RIVER, Ohio  There is plenty of summer fun on tap in Bay Village, Rocky River and Westlake ranging from markets to music and more.

One of the upcoming events is the annual St. Demetrios Greek Festival, which features plenty of delicious, homemade Greek food, music by the band Stigma, dancing, vendors and more. The festival will be June 22-25 at the church, 22909 Center Ridge Road, Rocky River. Hours are 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. June 22. 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. June 23-24 and 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. June 25.

Festival-goers should be aware that a road construction on Center Ridge might cause delays entering and exiting the church property.

Once again, the festival will offer drive-through food service 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily. Courtyard taverna hours are 4-10 p.m. June 22-23, noon to 11 p.m. June 24 and noon to 9 p.m. June 25.

The Aeraki, Kymata, Kyklonas and Inner Circle groups will offer Greek folk dance performances.

Those interested in touring the church can do so during the festival. The St. Demetrios Cantor Quartet will provide Byzantine music.

Volunteers continue preparing food for the festival and welcome helping hands. Interested people should come to the church hall at 9 a.m. June 19-21. Rice pudding and diples will be prepared June 19-20 and tourlou on June 21.

The menu includes dolmades, pastitsio, moussaka, tiropita, spanakopita, lamb shanks, galaktoboureka, koulourakia, green beans, finikia, kourambiedes, rice pudding, diples and tourlou.

Anyone interested in being a vendor should contact Byron Spooner, 440-331-2246 Ext. 3 or email opsmgr@saintdemetriosrr.org.

Festival admission and parking are free.

For more information, visit stdemetriosrr.org.

A construction project on Center Ridge Road could cause some headaches for visitors to the St. Demetrios Greek Festival. This photo was taken earlier this week in front of the church. (Carol Kovach/special to cleveland.com)

Market and music: the BAYarts Thursday Market resumes for the summer 4-7 p.m. each Thursday through Sept. 14 on the BAYarts campus, 28795 Lake Road, Bay Village. The weekly market features local art, food, live music and more.

Market organizers said friendly dogs on leashes are welcome. Admission and parking are free.

Visit bayarts.net/events/thursday-market for more information.

BAYarts also will host its summer concert series on Sundays. Concerts begin at 7 p.m. and attendees should bring a blanket or chair. There will be a cash bar with beer and wine by the glass or bottle and small plates. The concert runs 7-9 p.m. on the lawn.

This weeks band will be Beach Stav. Concerts run weekly through Aug. 20. There will be no rain dates.

Visit bayarts.net/events/summer-concerts-beach-stav for more information.

Fun in River: Rocky Rivers popular summer concert series resumes at 7 p.m. June 25 with Revolution Pie playing the sounds of the Beatles in Rocky River Park.

Rocky River Parks and Recreation Foundation will host its third annual Parks Scavenger Hunt June 18 to July 1.

The event uses smart phones to search for wood birds native to Ohio that were hidden in nine of the citys parks. Due to ongoing construction, Bradstreets Landing is not part of this years hunt.

The idea is to expose families to the city with a free event. Those who follow the scavenger hunt may encounter one of the hidden birds. Answer sheets must be submitted by noon on July 1 via email to RockyRiverPRF@gmail.com to be eligible for a prize. Registration packets are available at Rocky River Recreation Center beginning June 18 or register online at rrparksandrecreationfoundation.com/scav-hunt-info.

Families who register will download a scavenger hunt guide with clues, a map and an answer sheet. Guides also can be picked up at the front desk of the Recreation Center.

All correctly submitted answers to the clues will be entered into a random drawing for a chance to win $25 in Rec Bucks that can be used any time for Recreation Department activities.

There will be free admittance to the Rocky River Civic Center on July 2 for all scavenger hunt participants for the announcement of winners. Check the Recreation Department website and Facebook page, also.

Movie nights: Crocker Park in Westlake is offering free outdoor movie nights on the Market Square lawn every Thursday through Aug. 31. The June 15 flick is Monsters Inc, which is rated G. The June 22 movie will be The Secret Life of Pets, rated PG.

Movies begin at sundown  about 9 p.m. They are sponsored by Birchwood School of Hawken.

Information, please: Readers are invited to share information about themselves, their families and friends, organizations, church events, etc. from Bay Village, Rocky River and Westlake for the West Shore Chatter column, which I write on a freelance basis. Awards, honors, milestone birthdays or anniversaries and other items are welcome. Submit information at least 10 days before the requested publication date to carolkovach@hotmail.com.

Read more from the West Shore Sun.
CLEVELAND, Ohio  A U.S. Army soldier from Stow pleaded guilty Wednesday to terrorism charges that accuse him of trying to aid ISIS in an attack on American forces in the Middle East and in New York.

Cole Bridges, 22, pleaded guilty in Manhattan federal court to attempting to provide material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization and attempting to murder U.S. military service members.

U.S. District Judge Lewis Liman scheduled sentencing for Nov. 2. Bridges faces a maximum of 20 years in prison on each count. His attorneys, Sabrina Shroff and Deborah Austern Colson, declined comment.

FBI agents arrested Bridges in January 2021. At the time of his arrest, he was a private first class assigned as a cavalry scout in the 3rd Infantry Division in Fort Stewart, Georgia.

Bridges joined the Army in September 2019. Investigators found he researched online propaganda that promoted jihadists and had expressed his support for ISIS on social media.

While deployed in Germany in 2020, he started messaging an undercover FBI agent posing as an ISIS sympathizer in direct contact with ISIS fighters in Syria.

Bridges said he wanted to help ISIS, believed in their cause and grew angry at the U.S. military.

He wrote in the messages that he had connections with people in Hamas and ISIS and joined the military to prove to his family and the government that he wasnt in touch with terrorists, court records say.

I dont tell people Im in the military, and I hate displaying the U.S. flag on my shoulder, he wrote.

Bridges, over time, expressed his allegiance to ISIS over the U.S. military. He discussed attack plans for possible targets in the New York, including the 9/11 Memorial.

Bridges also gave the undercover agent official photos from an army manual that discussed troop movements and military tactics in the Middle East and asked if ISIS members liked the information he gave up.

He also passed along advice on how ISIS fighters could attack U.S. forces and fortify encampments against any U.S. Special Forces attacks. His advice included wiring certain buildings with explosives to kill U.S. soldiers.

Bridges later sent two videos of himself to the undercover agent, both times wearing his Army-issued body armor. In one he stood in front of an ISIS flag and in another he narrated a speech in support of an anticipated ambush by ISIS on American troops.

Adam Ferrise covers federal courts at cleveland.com and The Plain Dealer. You can find his work here.
All outward payments from Zimbabwe to any foreign country for the next six months will attract a one percent charge up to a maximum of US$50 000 as part of measures gazetted by President Mnangagwa yesterday to stem the loss of value of the local currency seen in the past few months.

The measures are contained in Statutory Instrument 107 of 2023 cited as Exchange Control (Control of Payments) (Charge on Specified Outbound Foreign Currency Payments) Regulations, 2023 which the President gazetted in terms of the Exchange Control Act.

The one percent charge is paid by all banks and similar institutions, including mobile money transfer agencies paying someone outside the country.

According to SI107 the protection of the domestic currency is an aspect of monetary sovereignty exercisable by the President by virtue of his prerogative powers, that is as head of Government.

The collected funds will be deposited in a Debt Redemption Sinking Fund established in terms of section 32 of the Public Debt Management Act.

The funds that will attract the charge should have been obtained from the Dutch Auction Foreign Currency Market operated by the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe every week or, for most of the funds now sent out, from the interbank market operated by banks to payees outside Zimbabwe.

The regulations set the one percent rate to be charged, levied and collected on outbound foreign payments in accordance with the up to a maximum of US$50 000 or the equivalent in any other foreign currency at the international cross rate of exchange prevailing on the time of the mediation. The payment would need to be more than US$5 million, which very few are, before the maximum applied.

Banks must withhold and remit to the Debt Redemption Sinking Fund the outbound foreign currency charge on each such transaction that the bank mediated, and must pay the charge into the fund within 10 days of the payment.

Late charge payments mean a modest surcharge, but any bank delaying further so that the delay is now an offence, will be fined the full sum that was not paid in the charges. And if they cannot pay that fine then every director of the bank will be liable to six months jail.

The SI said the value of the Zimbabwe dollar was largely pegged to the value of recognised foreign currencies commonly used as a means of international payments and that the volume of outbound payments made from Zimbabwe in those foreign currencies was exerting substantial downward pressure on the value of the Zimbabwe dollar.

The burden of servicing the countrys foreign debt was also putting indirect but significant strain on the value of the Zimbabwean dollar and it was therefore desirable to mitigate such pressure by imposing as a temporary measure a charge on such payments.

The financial institutions covered include banks, building societies, the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe, the Peoples Own Savings Bank, the Zimbabwe Development Bank, the successor company to the Agricultural Finance Corporation, ZimPost, all providers of mobile banking services, and the operator of any mobile money transfer platform, regardless of how it is licenced, that facilitates the receipt of cash by a customer through hosting that customer and the bank, cellular telecommunication or telecommunication service operator or any combination of them. Herald
AKRON, Ohio  A 29-year-old man was killed and two people were seriously injured when an SUV lost control after going airborne at some railroad tracks and crashing into a tree.

Police believe speed and alcohol were factors in the crash, which occurred at 3:05 a.m. Saturday in Cascade Valley.

A Chevrolet Equinox with three people inside was traveling east on West North Street when the 26-year-old driver lost control after going over the tracks. The SUV slid sideways and crashed into a tree, police say.

The 29-year-old male, whose identity has not been released, was pinned inside the vehicle and was pronounced dead at the scene.

A 26-year-old woman who was sitting in the front passenger seat was ejected from the SUV. The woman and the driver were taken by ambulance to Summa Health Akron City Hospital. Their injuries are not considered life-threatening, police say.

Anyone with information can call detectives at 330-375-2490 or Summit County Crimestoppers at 330-434-COPS. Individuals also can send anonymous tips by texting TIPSCO to 274637. Download the Akron PD app and submit information by texting Tips411or by accessing the link at www.AkronCops.org.
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Former President Donald Trump, current head of The Party of Lincoln, plead Not Guilty at the arraignment of his 37 count federal indictment for criminal retention of classified documents.

In 2022, Trumps plea when introducing his line of NFT tokens was being better than Lincoln and Washington.

Hello everyone, this is Donald Trump, hopefully your favorite president of all time- better than Lincoln, better than Washington.

Well he is the first former President ever federally indicted.

The arraignment at a Miami federal courthouse Tuesday afternoon took about 50 minutes. Trump actually said nothing, sitting with his arms crossed as his attorney entered the plea. According to multiple reports, Special Counsel Jack Smith sat in the audience staring-down Donald the entire time.

After the arraignment hearing, Trump stopped at a local eatery for some glad-handling, before traveling back to his country club where he gave a speech.

According to a veteran South Florida District prosecutor, any other person would have been immediately arrested upon issuance of such an indictment, and then incarcerated until trial.

Trump appointee, Judge Aileen Cannon, who currently is set to preside over his trial, had previously wrote in a ruling that she thought Trump deserved deferential treatment as a former U.S. President. Her superior district court of appeals panel overruled that judgement along with several other of hers they overturned. That three judge court ruling against Cannon, also includes Trump appointees.

During his country club speech Tuesday evening, Dishonest Don continued to perpetuate the lie that he legally took the trove of boxes with classified docs under the Presidential Records Act because they also had personal items in them. He claimed that with his very busy schedule he was slow to sort thru the boxes that were stacked in rooms throughout Mar-a-Lago, including a ballroom stage and in a bathroom, behind a shower curtain and surrounding the Trump toilet. Beyond time for the party of Lincoln to flush Dishonest Don.
FORT JOHNSON, La.  The U.S. Army formally renamed a base Tuesday in western Louisiana to honor a Black soldier who received the Medal of Honor and strip away the name of a Confederate commander.

The base, formerly named in honor of Confederate Gen. Leonidas Polk, now honors Sgt. William Henry Johnson, a Black hero of World War I who fought off about two dozen Germans alone, killing at least four. It was previously named after Confederate commander Lt. Gen. Leonidas Polk.

Sgt. William Henry Johnson embodied the warrior spirit, and we are deeply honored to bear his name, Brig. Gen. David Garner, the commanding general of the Joint Readiness Training Center at Fort Johnson, said in a post on Twitter.

Sgt. Johnsons acts of self-less service during World War I will inspire those at our installation, where we have trained and deployed Americas men and women to fight and win our nations wars for over 80 years, he added, according to CNN.

Related story: Fort Bragg becomes Fort Liberty, shedding name honoring Confederate general and slaveholder

The renaming is part of the U.S. militarys efforts to address historic racial injustice  work that included changing the names of nine Army posts that commemorated Confederate officers, The Associated Press reported.

Earlier this month, Fort Bragg in North Carolina became Fort Liberty. Fort Benning in Georgia was renamed Fort Moore last month.

The current process of renaming nine Army posts marks the first time bases will be named after Black soldiers and women.

Johnson, while serving on the front lines of France in 1918, fought off a German night raid near the Argonne Forest, according to the National Museum of the United States Army.

Johnson was wounded 21 times while beating back the attacking forces. He also prevented a wounded Black comrade from being taken prisoner when, after running out of grenades and ammunition, he killed two German soldiers with his knife.

His frantic attacks broke the German morale and the enemy raiding party retreated, the Army museums biography of Johnson says.

His brave actions were recognized nearly a century later when he was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor in 2015 for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty.

The Army, though, did not recognize Johnsons heroism, denying him a disability allowance and a Purple Heart award. Due to his injuries, he struggled after returning home to Albany, New York, and died of a heart condition in 1929. He was 32 years old.
CLEVELAND, Ohio  Ohio is failing to meet the needs of its children, and one of the reasons is a lack of affordable child care, according to a report released Wednesday from the Annie E. Casey Foundation.

The 2023 KIDS COUNT Data Book report analyzes state by state how children and families are faring in terms of social and economic factors that affect child well-being. In terms of the best states for children, the report ranks Ohio in the bottom half - 29th overall.

A deeper dive into the data reveals some troubling statistics.

For example, 57% of 3- and 4-year-olds are not enrolled in preschool, 65% of fourth-graders do not meet proficiency standards in reading, and 71% of eighth-graders are not proficient in math, according to the study.

In addition, 16% of Ohio students do not graduate from high school. Those numbers are behind both neighboring West Virginia and Kentucky in which only 10% fail to graduate.

Ohio has a long way to go when it comes to ensuring the well-being of its children. The states rank of 29th in child well-being is a call to action, said Kelly Vyzral, senior health policy associate of Childrens Defense Fund-Ohio, Ohios member of the KIDS COUNT network. We must do more to invest in our children and families by investing in early childhood education, providing quality affordable healthcare, and creating safe and supportive communities.

One of the reasons why Ohio children are failing to thrive has to do with the economic circumstances of their families. The report shows that many families are struggling  19% of children are living in poverty, 22% lack affordable housing, and 30% have parents who lack secure employment.

In our Rethinking Child Care series, cleveland.com and the Plain Dealer in 2023 are examining the struggle of finding quality, affordable childcare and proposing solutions to share families burdens and help the economy. Follow the coverage at this link.

Some of these economic stressors can be traced back to issues of child care, the report said.

Many parents cannot secure child care that is compatible with work schedules and commutes the report found. Data from 2020-21 showed that 13% of Ohio children under age 6 lived in families in which someone quit, changed, or refused a job because of problems with child care. Compare that to neighboring Indiana where only 9% of parents had to do the same.

And when child care is available, it is frequently unaffordable for many families. The states average cost of center-based child care for a toddler is $11,302. Thats 11% of the median income of a married couple and 40% of the income of a single mother.

Compounding the problem is the low pay of childcare workers. Ohio child care workers are paid worse than 98% of professions. The median pay of $13.71 an hour is less than the $14.26 median wage in retail or $18.16 in customer service jobs.

The release of the report comes amid a debate in Columbus over the upcoming state budget.

Groundwork Ohio, a early-child care advocacy group, noted Tuesday that according to the state, the latest Kindergarten Readiness Assessment results from the Ohio Department of Education indicate that two-thirds of all Ohio kindergarteners do not demonstrate readiness to learn. In kindergartners from families with low incomes, this number increases to 79%.

Groundwork Ohio was critical of Ohio Senate for eliminating a $366 million proposed to increase access to quality child care for children from families with low incomes.

These scores are a clarion call to state policymakers to restore the thoughtful and strategic investments made by Gov. DeWine and the Ohio House of Representatives in the states FY24-25 budget, said Shannon Jones, President and CEO of Groundwork Ohio. Policymakers must respond urgently to the grim reality that our youngest children are being left behind, impacting both the workforce of today and the workforce of tomorrow.

According to a February 2023 ReadyNation study, Ohio loses $3.9 billion a year in lost earnings, productivity and tax revenue by failing to provide adequate affordable child care. That cost is $122 billion nationally.

I am disappointed to see Ohio in the bottom half of the nation regarding some of the most important areas for our children. We have a lot of work to do, but I do believe there is hope for the future, said Democratic State Rep. Jessica Miranda from the Cincinnati suburb of Forest Park. If we want Ohio to grow and be an economic leader, we need to put people first with a strong child care system that supports our work force and our families.
CLEVELAND, Ohio  Crime Stoppers of Cuyahoga County is offering a $2,500 reward for information about the disappearance of EMT Lachelle Jordan last month.

Jordan limped into the Open Pantry convenience store on Euclid Avenue with no shoes and a torn shirt. She had been missing for five days. She said the people who kidnapped her tried to burn her alive. She was transported to Cleveland Clinic for treatment.

Today, Jordan is home with her family, including her two children. On May 6, Jordan told her twin sister that she was going to retrieve something she left in her car. She did not come back in the house, and her family reported her missing the next day.

While Jordan was missing, her family, friends and co-workers canvassed the city and posted flyers with hopes that she would return home safely.

On May 8, Michael Stennett was arrested and accused of stalking Jordan and violating a protection order. In January, Stennett was served with the order after he was accused of standing outside of Jordans home and refusing to leave, according to court records.

Stennett was also accused of stalking Jordan in April and days before she went missing. But prosecutors dropped the charges against Stennett on May 18, citing inconsistent evidence. Stennett was released from the county jail, but he was placed on electronic GPS monitoring and ordered to stay away from Jordan.

Police said Stennett did not play a role in Jordans disappearance. He faces charges for rape and kidnapping in Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court.

Crime Stoppers can be reached at 216-252-7463.
CLEVELAND, Ohio  Cuyahoga County Executive Chris Ronaynes preferred site for a new jail in Garfield Heights comes with a higher sticker price than other options the county has considered, but its not the most expensive currently under review, records show.

Ronayne submitted legislation to County Council this week to purchase three parcels totaling 72.1 acres at Granger Road and Transportation Boulevard for $38.7 million.

The proposed purchase will be formally introduced at Councils regular meeting at 5 p.m. on Tuesday and referred to committee for discussion.

The primary goal of the agreement is to purchase land to be used for construction of the Cuyahoga County Central Campus, a copy of the resolution obtained by cleveland.com and The Plain Dealer reads.

Ronayne previously laid out his vision for that campus plan in a conversation with cleveland.coms editorial board this week. He touted the sites size, which he hopes will one day accommodate not only the jail, but also the Diversion Center and other justice-related support functions.

He specifically touted the site for its central location in the county and green history, meaning it requires little to no environmental remediation. That was a selling point, Ronayne told the board, because of the contentious debate over the countys last preferred location on Transport Road, which required remediation to make safe from several contaminants, including cancer-causing benzene.

But picking a site thats already shovel-ready could save the county money, he argued, rejecting the apparent second-choice site on Kirby Avenue in Cleveland that he suspects will require pretty significant remediation.

Of these two sites, we could get going faster, we could save money on the non-remediation needs (on the Garfield Heights site), he said, also noting it would allow construction to begin sooner.

Cost comparison

Cleaning up the Kirby Avenue site would cost between $14.5 and $23.6 million, depending on if it includes all or just some of the seven potential parcels sought, records provided by the county show. The various sites once housed a number of industries that work with hazardous materials, including National Acme, Co., a battery factory and a mustard agent disposal area and experimentation lab.

But that was just the minimum cost.

Tacked on to that would be another $60 million in construction costs during the up-to-two years the county estimated it will take to remediate the property. Then theres another $11.5 to $22 million to demolish the existing buildings on the property and prepare the site for construction, and $8.5 to $15 million to buy it, according to estimates from the countys real estate consultant, CBRE Group.

Adding all of those costs to the countys last-reported estimate of $750 million to build the jail, the total cost at the Kirby Avenue site could top out around $870 million.

Comparatively, the Garfield Heights property requires no remediation and only $850,000 for demolition and construction readiness, county records say. Adding in its proposed purchase price and the jail build, the total cost of the Garfield Heights site would be around $790 million.

Still, thats more than the county planned to spend on the controversial Transport Road site.

That property was going to sell for $20 million, which included money to relocate the business operating there, but did not include the additional $7 million estimated for environmental cleanup required to ready the property for construction. The total cost to build a jail there would have been around $777 million.

The new purchase price for Garfield Heights is also significantly more than what the county was quoted last year, when it was named the countys third choice for a jail location. Back then, the county said the owners, Craig Realty Group and stakeholder DiGeronimo Companies, were seeking $22 million, though that price only included 40.4 acres.

That cost broke down to about $550,000 per acre. If applied to the full 72 acres the county is seeking today, it would bring the total purchase price to $39.6 million, which is slightly more than the current asking price. However, that full acreage also includes a water detention area that is not developable.

The Garfield Heights property was once envisioned to be a $90 million office-and-retail project, anchored by JCPenney, Target and Lowes, but it lost financing during the recession and has sat undeveloped since.

CBRE estimated the current market value of the land up to $50 million, county records show. Its assessed value is $2.8 million, according to property records.

Campaign donor

Craig Realty and DiGeronimo Companies suggested the county buy the property last year, as the county was making a final attempt to review all potential sites for the jail. After review, then-Executive Armond Budish and members of council abandoned it in favor of the Transport Road site.

Ronayne revisited it, believing it is the countys best option.

Ronayne has not disclosed, however, that the DiGeronimo family and some of their company employees contributed at least $37,000 to his campaign.

Campaign finance records show most of those donations came during a fundraising event on May 25, 2022, that raised a total of $40,000 for Ronaynes campaign. From family members directly was $15,000 from Robert DiGeronimos company Victory Transport, $5,000 each from Robbie and Kevin DiGeronimo, $1,500 from Robert DiGeronimo, personally, and $250 from Richard DiGeronimo.

Another $2,000 came from Melissa Balser, the administrative assistant to the CEO of DiGeronimo Companies, and $1,000 from Brent Leslie, the companys Chief Financial Officer.

Family members also made additional donations totaling at least $7,000, campaign records show.

When asked about the campaign donations, Ronaynes spokeswoman Mary Louise Madigan reiterated that the Garfield Heights site is not only the most safe and humane location for inmates, but the most cost-effective, given construction can start sooner, saving taxpayer dollars. She also highlighted that the site is not currently in use, meaning the county will not need to pay for business relocation, as it would on the Kirby Avenue site.

She rejected any implication that Ronayne may have picked the site for any other reasons, noting that it became one of the countys finalists under the previous administration for some of the same merits.

Political contributions from anyone involved in ownership of the site has had zero bearing on the Countys process, Madigan said. Any suggestion otherwise is patently false.

Cleveland.com reached out to DiGeronimo Companies for comment on the campaign donations and Ronaynes decision to recommend the county buy the property.

Ronayne was previously scrutinized for giving a no-bid, $120,000 lobbying contract to a company whose president, Justin McCaulley, donated $10,000 to his campaign.

Cleveland.com reporter Courtney Astolfi contributed to this story.
CLEVELAND, Ohio  An organization dedicated to promoting downtown Cleveland has rebranded itself, and will now call itself Downtown Cleveland, Inc.

The branding change and a series of changes including a revamped board structure and updated chair and officer positions were announced in a Wednesday news release.
COLUMBUS, Ohio  An Ohio government panel has approved spending roughly $322,000 to advertise the upcoming Aug. 8 election that will decide State Issue 1, the proposal to make it harder to change the Ohio Constitution in the future.

The money will pay to publish legally mandated information about State Issue 1 for three consecutive weeks in one newspaper in all 88 Ohio counties starting on July 16. The information will include the ballot language summarizing the measures effects and official arguments for and against the measure.

Read more: Coverage of State Issue 1

State Issue 1, if voters approve it, would amend the state constitution to require future amendments to get a 60% supermajority in a statewide vote in order to pass. Thats compared to the current 50% simple majority standard thats been in place for more than a century.

It also would make it significantly harder for potential ballot issues to qualify by expanding mandatory signature-gathering requirements for citizen-initiated amendment campaigns. It would require campaigns to collect a minimum number of signatures from all 88 counties to qualify for the ballot, compared to the current 44 counties.

An election will be held on Aug. 8 to decide the issue. A yes vote would approve the changes while a no vote would reject them.

State officials have debated making it harder to amend the state constitution for years. But Republicans fast-tracked State Issue 1 specifically to try to foil an expected November ballot measure that would add legal protections for abortion to the state constitution.

Need to Know: How to register, where to vote, when the polls are open

The Ohio Controlling Board, a panel of state lawmakers and officials in Gov. Mike DeWines office, approved spending the $322,000 earlier this week at the request of Secretary of State Frank LaRose.

The advertising process, including the type of information that must be published and the requirement that it appear in a newspaper in each county, is mandated by the Ohio Constitution under a provision voters approved in 1974 that lays out the process of proposing state constitutional amendments.

During the meeting, state Rep. Mary Lightbody, a Westerville Democrat, questioned whether LaRoses office had considered advertising the election online.

I would like to encourage modernization of the process, Lightbody said. I know very few people who subscribe, Im sorry to say, to print newspapers. They may have digital copies, but they might miss this, and this is like, really important. So thats a concern.

Separately, state lawmakers are looking at how much they will earmark in the two-year state budget to pay to administer the election. The Ohio Senate included $15 million in its proposed budget introduced last week.

Andrew Tobias covers state politics and government for cleveland.com and The Plain Dealer
SAN FRANCISCO  Two Ohio ice cream shops have been ranked as having some of the most unique milkshakes in the United States, according to Yelp.

The two shops  one in Cleveland and one in Columbus - were named to Yelps 11 Most Outrageous Milkshakes list.

Addicted Coffee Bar in Lakewood, Ohio, was recognized for its Cookie Monster Craze milkshake.

Addicted Coffee Bars Cookie Monster Craze is as blue as the Sesame Street star himself  thanks to a delectable base of blue moon ice cream (a Midwest favorite), blended with cookie dough and crushed Oreo cookies, Yelp writes in its review. Its topped with a bouquet of cookies and cookie sandwiches, a drizzle of chocolate sauce and chocolate chips, and held together with a mound of whipped cream.

RELATED: Ohio ranks in Top 5 for best summer travel locations

Addicted Coffee Bar has sold more than 50,000 Cookie Monster Crazes since its opening in September 2017, according to Yelp. The milkshake typically feeds three to four people.

The shop has a 4/5 star rating based on 70 Yelp reviews, including 42 five-star ratings and nine four-star ratings. Located at 13743 Madison Ave. in Lakewood, Addicted Coffee Bar is open seven days a week. Store hours are from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday through Thursday, and 7 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Friday and Saturday.

RELATED: Two Ohio restaurants named Top 100 Burger Spots in the US

Libby Lous Fun Factory in Columbus was recognized for its Butterbeer Shake. The Harry Potter-themed milkshake was created by Libby Lou owner Tara Becker, who says she is a huge Harry Potter fan, according to Yelp.

Dig into the 4-inch-high slice of cake atop the towering, butterbeer-flavored ice cream concoction, and the colored icing inside reveals your fate: red for Gryffindor, green for Slytherin, and well, you know the drill, Yelp writes. The Butterbeer Shake packs both flavor and Harry Potter lore: A creamy mixture of butterscotch ice cream, vanilla ice cream, cream soda, and marshmallow rolled in salted caramel and caramel corn. Its topped with Potter-esque treats: a chocolate frog, a chocolate wand, Gringotts bank coins, and Harrys signature glasses.

Libby Lous Fun Factory has a 4/5 star rating among 24 Yelp reviews, including 15 five-star reviews and two four-star reviews. The store is located at 3039 Indianola Ave. in Columbus and is open seven days a week, with summer hours from noon to 8 p.m. However, Libby Lous website says the best time to visit is from noon to 3 p.m., and the busiest time is 3:30-8 p.m.

RELATED: Two Ohio doughnut bakeries named Top 100 US Donut Shops 2023

Yelps full list of 11 of the Most Outrageous Milkshakes can be found online.
WASHINGTON, D. C. - A committee-altered version of a rail safety bill that Ohio U.S. Sens. Sherrod Brown and JD Vance introduced after a February train derailment in East Palestine Ohio is likely to get a vote on the Senate floor next week, Brown predicted Wednesday.

Brown said the Railway Safety Act of 2023s original language was changed by bipartisan agreement last month when it was approved by the Senate Commerce Committee. Changes in the bill included postponing the date when old tank rail cars that ship hazardous materials would have to be upgraded with newer, safer rail cars.

The initial draft of the legislation called for upgrading the rail cars in 2025. The bills new deadline would be Dec. 31, 2027.

The Cleveland Democrat said corporate lobbyists wanted to move the deadline to 2029, as is called for under current law, but legislators finalizing the bill reached what Brown calls a reasonable compromise on the new 2027 date. He likened it to those reached with the auto industry on issues such as fuel economy standards, where Congress seeks faster improvements than the industry says is possible, and eventually an agreement is reached that results in cleaner cars and better mileage.

This bill isnt exactly how Id write it, but its pretty damn good, Brown told reporters. Senator Vance and I have worked very closely on it. I think its in good shape.

The draft of the bill approved by the Senate Commerce Committee would also require a Government Accountability Office study of the nations capacity to manufacture tank cars that meet the enhanced safety standards. It authorizes the Secretary of Transportation to amend the phase-out date to no later than December 31, 2028 if that study determines the earlier date to phase out the old tank cars cant be met due to insufficient manufacturing capacity or would otherwise negatively impact interstate commerce.

Tank car manufacturers told Congress members they wouldnt be able to meet the earlier deadline because their orders for the next two years are already finalized, according to Browns office. Congress members from both political parties agreed it wouldnt be feasible for manufacturers to meet the 2025 deadline the bill originally sought, so they moved it.

Whenever bills are introduced, industry representatives provide feedback that legislators sift through to determine whats useful and whats nonsense. In this case, lawmakers were shown data that convinced them the 2025 tank car requirement would be impossible to meet with present manufacturing capacity, according to Vances office. Anyone who ships things by tank car told them they were replacing the tank cars as quickly as they could and would be unable to procure enough of the new tank cars to meet shipping capacity by a 2025 deadline.

This commonsense amendment to the Railway Safety Act was broadly supported by Republicans and Democrats alike, said Will Martin, a spokesman for the Cincinnati Republican. Senator Vance was glad to work with his colleagues to achieve a product that will dramatically improve the safety of our railroads without creating timelines that are impossible for the industry to meet.

The RAIL Act that a bipartisan group of U.S. House of Representatives members from Ohio introduced in March to address rail safety calls for a May 1, 2028, deadline to replace the tank cars  several months later than the amended Senate bill, but a year sooner than the May 1, 2029, tank car replacement deadline set by a 2015 rail safety bill called the FAST Act.

Benjamin Keeler, a spokesman for Marietta Republican U.S. Rep. Bill Johnson, said that date was picked because the United States lacks the domestic capacity to make all those rail cars anytime before that.

He said Johnsons bill is similar to the Senate bill in most respects, with the primary differences being the tank car replacement date and the Senate bills requirement that all trains be staffed with a crew of at least two people. He observed that the train that crashed in East Palestine had more than one crew member, and it didnt stop the accident.

The House of Representatives is likely to act on Johnsons bill after the Senate passes its version of the legislation. Representatives of each legislative body would meet to hammer out a compromise version that both could approve. If the House and Senate both approve the compromise, it would become law after its signed by President Joe Biden.

Brown described the railroad industry as among the nations most powerful interest groups, along with Wall Street and the oil industry, and said theyd like to kill the bill. He said rail car manufacturers recognize were going to pass something and they want to work this through. He said theyve been more agreeable on the bill than the railroads.

I think the agreement of 2027, again, is very good when were going up against historically one of the two or three most powerful interest groups in America. said Brown. Weve had success taking the railroad lobby on when they have been untouchable, and have had their way with Congress and the regulators for far too many years. Nobody thought we could get this far.

The Feb. 3 Norfolk Southern derailment in East Palestine spilled toxic chemicals such as vinyl chloride, butyl acrylate, ethylhexyl acrylate, and ethylene glycol monobutyl ether. Federal and state officials, fearing the vinyl chloride tanks would explode, set them afire, creating a massive plume of thick black smoke. Other chemicals seeped into local streams, killing fish and traveling down into the Ohio River.

Brown says railroad lines run though damn near every town in Ohio, and as he visits the state, he hears many complaints from residents about crumbling rail bridges the railroads dont seem to care about, or derailments where the railroads delayed cleaning up.

People know this issue around Ohio and thats why Im optimistic, said Brown.

Sabrina Eaton writes about the federal government and politics in Washington, D.C., for cleveland.com and The Plain Dealer.
The Parlimentary constituency office in Harares Mabvuku/Tafara, where the constituency MP, the neighbouring MPs and the local councillors all belong to opposition parties, has been turned into a bar, amid indications that opposition politicians in the area are now profiting from the commercial use of the premises.

Residents this week expressed dismay at the move to create a bar from the office at shop 9, Nehanda Street, Mabvuku, saying this was a sign that opposition politicians were bent on enriching themselves.

They said evidence on the ground already showed that Zanu PF party was poised to deliver far better service if it won the parliamentary seat in the forthcoming elections. How can one turn an office into a bar? It clearly shows that these people are not interested in representing our interests. In addition to the local council offices, the parliamentary office was supposed to be another reference point for constituents to present their issues, said an irate Mr Silas Mangove.

Another resident, Mrs Alice Muponda said: We are tired of the behaviour of these people. They (opposition) have held this seat since 2000 but they have done nothing.

Instead, infrastructure has been deteriorating rapidly and we thank the Zanu PF aspiring (parliamentary) candidate Cde Pedzisai Scott Sakupwanya for revamping the local road network which was now in a terrible state.

The office was first established during the tenure of MDC-T parliamentarian Mr Timothy Mubawu and was subsequently used by his successor, the late Mr Shepherd Madamombe who died after an illness in 2010.

Zimbabwes current Ambassador to Senegal, Mr James Maridadi later represented the constituency in parliament before ditching the opposition to join Zanu PF.

Constituency offices are common in many countries where Parliamentary representatives set up a small office in their constituency, often will themselves or a volunteer worker at set times, so people can drop in, pass on information or obtain help.

The representative office counts residency in the constituency, not partly affiliation.

Outgoing MDC-A Member of the National Assembly for Mabvuku, Mr James Chidhakwa yesterday denied any links to the office or the bar saying he did not run any bar or tuckshop in Mabvuku. He also denied having an office in his constituency. I also dont have an office there. My offices are in town, he said.

A bill dated June 2023 from the City of Harare, shows that the property in question has arrears of $354 434 in rates and rental arrears.

The popular Cde Sakupwanya is currently serving as a councillor for Harare City Councils Ward 21 in Mabvuku after winning a by-election, a rare feat in Harare metropolitan province for the Zanu PF candidate.

He is now vying for the Mabvuku/Tafara National Assembly seat against yet unknown candidates as the opposition continues haggling over the selection of candiates for the impending harmonised elections. Herald
CLEVELAND -- I have heard more references to the word woke in the last few months that I have heard over the course of my entire life. What does woke actually mean? The term has long existed within African American communities as a reminder to wake up or stay alert or to pay attention to the public policies and social trends developing in society that might have a negative impact on our lives. The term began to be heard within the broader American public after the death of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri, in 2014, and the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis in 2020. In both of those instances, the term meant to pay attention to instances of police brutality. It was almost a synonym for, If you see something, say something.

Woke has nothing to do with Disney Worlds LGBTQ policies. It has nothing to do with colleges or universities using race as part of their admissions policies. It has nothing to do with national immigration policies or the aspirations of undocumented workers seeking health care. To the extent that the word woke is even used by the people that coined the phrase, the meaning is simple: Pay attention to the world around you and look out for any dangers that might be coming your way.

You will not know this if you listen to the speeches from Florida Gov. and Republican presidential aspirant Ron DeSantis. According to him, wokeness is one of the great dangers facing our nation. In a failed attempt to sound like Winston Churchill during the Battle of Britain in 1940, DeSantis asserts that, We will fight the woke in the legislature. We will fight the woke in education. We will fight the woke in the businesses. We will never ever surrender to the woke mob.

Every time I hear him go through that litany, I become more and more convinced that he has no idea what the term woke or stay woke actually means. His understanding of the term seems to exist primarily in his mind. The truth is, African Americans rarely, if ever, even use that phrase in conversation. I am 74 years old, and I travel across the country on a regular basis. I have never once heard anyone with whom I speak talk about being woke. The term seems to be of far more interest to DeSantis, along with other politicians like Matt Gaetz, Marjorie Taylor Greene, and Lauren Boebert.

I wonder if those Republican politicians are actually using the word woke as code language for an agenda they dare not say out loud? I wonder if it is how they are responding to demographic changes in the United States that are challenging their preferred version of who is a real American? Is fighting against the woke another way of fighting against voting rights for African Americans, or voting for book bans that prevent LGBTQ stories from being told? Is it why DeSantis used taxpayer dollars from Florida to fly immigrants from Texas to Massachusetts? Is it why he signed into law a six-week abortion ban, outlawing a reproductive health care option before most women even know they are pregnant?

The Rev. Marvin A. McMickle is pastor emeritus of Antioch Baptist Church in Cleveland.

Here is a news flash for DeSantis and his ideological counterparts: People in the African American community are paying attention to what you are saying. We are staying alert to the ways in which a term we coined for one purpose has been appropriated for use in a an entirely different and extremely dangerous way. Dare I say it, we are woke about this sociopolitical agenda masquerading as being woke.

Ron DeSantis should get his own terms. He clearly has no idea what our term means.

The Rev. Marvin A. McMickle is the retired president of Colgate Rochester (N.Y.) Crozer Divinity School and pastor emeritus of Antioch Baptist Church in Cleveland.

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CLEVELAND, Ohio  Just outside the doors of Almira Elementary Schools gymnasium, Zoey and Mary turn to face each other and take a deep breath, before the doors open and they walk inside.

Theyve been anxiously awaiting this afternoon, when theyll finally perform the folklores their class has spent two weeks preparing in the program called Artist in Residence  a folklore is more than a story.

The program was created in the late 1990s by professional actor, writer and director Hassan Rogers. For three decades, he has been bringing language and theater arts programming to local schools, where the students know him as Mr. Hassan.

The two-week program started at Almira with a week-long writing phase which began by defining a folktale  a fictional story without a happy ending that uses nature characters and includes elements of choice, consequence and lessons. Then, each student embarks upon writing an original piece.

Two reporters from cleveland.com and The Plain Dealer have spent the past two school years embedded at Almira Elementary School on Clevelands West side, documenting the many challenges of teaching kids whose lives are complicated by poverty and the creative ways Cleveland educators overcome them.

Zoeys folklore explored why cats dont like water, introducing a cat named Oreo, who loves water and swimming. However, his mom told him hes forbidden from swimming in a nearby river. One day at school, Oreo saw someone reading a book about rivers and he became curious. He ran into a friend that afternoon and they skipped school together. Oreos friend warned him not to go in the river, but Oreo didnt listen.

Oreo ran ahead. When his friend caught up with him, it was too late. Oreo had already jumped into the river and was drowning because it was too deep, the folklore reads. Just then, Oreo bumped into a rock. Well, he thought it was a rock, but it really was a crocodile! The crocodile opened its mouth and ate Oreo! From that day on, cats dont like water.

The second week of the program kicked off by selecting folklores to turn into scripts, assigning acting roles and rehearsing. Through that process, students learn about critical text analysis, staging a scene, theater terminology, dynamic movement and principles of acting.

Although Zoeys folklore wasnt turned into a script, she told Mr. Hassan that she was interested in acting. He assigned her as the primary actor in multiple pieces. During rehearsals, she relied on feedback from Mr. Hassan to refine her skills and progress as an actor.

Zoey was not only able to take reproach, but to apply the directive in real time and move on, which not only takes humility, but a lot of strength, Mr. Hassan said. Its clear, this year, shes matured and discovered she could lead by excellence. Im so proud of her, and all of them for that matter.

This afternoon, the students will be performing eight different folklores that explore topics such as why dogs dont like squirrels, why birds can fly, why giraffes and lions arent friends and why snakes dont have arms or legs.

The event begins with an introduction from Mr. Hassan before the group moves into the main show.

In one act, the students perform the story of why kangaroos hop, centered around a kangaroo who loves to play hopscotch so much that she ignores her mom when she tells her to stop.

One day, the kangaroo plays hopscotch until dark and doesnt realize how tired she is. She bends down to pick up a rock and breaks her legs. Because of the break, she can no longer walk or stand up straight, which is why kangaroos hop to this day.

After another folklore, its time for the story about why you should listen to your parents. In the folklore, Baby Bull, played by Zac, and Panda, played by Zoey, are best friends. They are hanging out at Baby Bulls house when his mom reminds him of three rules  dont open the door, dont leave the house and most importantly, dont go into the forest.

That afternoon, Panda says the house is boring and that they should go into the backyard to play. Baby Bull reluctantly agrees. Once outside, Panda says the backyard is boring too, and suggests they go to the forest. Baby Bull hesitates, but finally agrees when Panda mocks him for being scared.

Once in the forest, they start to play, and Panda runs away from Baby Bull, who yells for her to slow down. But Panda doesnt. They run so far that they get lost and start arguing over who is at fault. They are arguing so loudly that they dont hear a bear approaching. The bear chases them both and catches Panda.

When Baby Bull makes it home, his mom asks where Panda is and he explains what happened. His mom is angry and calls 911.

The police searched for Panda but they never found her, Mr. Hassan narrates to the audience. And from that day to this, all the other animals learned, when parents give you a direction, especially not opening the door, they learned to follow the directions.

The remaining folklores are performed and the student actors gather together for a group bow and photo as the audience claps and whistles. Zoey and Mary leave the gymnasium arm-in-arm and return to their classroom to grab their backpacks and head home for the weekend.

Thank you for reading Clevelands Promise. Please consider supporting journalism like this by joining our community of subscribers. With a paid subscription, you gain access to everything published by a team of journalists committed to providing accurate information on news, entertainment and sports in Northeast Ohio. Please subscribe here. -- Chris Quinn, Editor

For this innovative series, the Cleveland Metropolitan School District gave two reporters unprecedented access to a classroom at Almira Elementary School to show readers the challenges of educating children in poverty and what the school district is doing to overcome them. Students names have been changed to protect their identity. Read more about this project here.
Jamie Inlow's ears perked up when her neighbor said the luxe apartment above his rust-red barn sat empty. It was June 2019. Inlow, her husband and their redheaded toddler had just moved to Scottsville, Virginia, 20 miles south of the University of Virginia, where Inlow worked as a student program director. Her neighbor was giving her a tour of his property  the barn, 150 merino sheep and the unfurnished apartment that the previous owner rented out. The neighbor wasn't keen on running a rental himself, so Inlow went home, drafted a business plan and made him a proposition: If you give me $2,000, I'll furnish the apartment using Facebook Marketplace and list it for short-term rentals on Airbnb. Inlow managed the listing  launching a company called Be Still Getaways to do so  and split the profits down the middle with her neighbor. After it started making money, the pair teamed up for a second listing. Inlow found another partner for a third rental unit, splitting the profits the same way. Today, Be Still Getaways runs 119 vacation rentals in Virginia. The company brought in $2.28 million last year on Airbnb and rental platform Eviivo, according to documents reviewed by CNBC Make It. It brought in an additional $600,000 on a third platform, Hostify, Inlow estimates. Until last summer, Inlow kept her full-time job while growing Be Still Getaways as a side hustle  working upwards of 80 hours per week, sometimes with her toddler physically strapped to her chest, she says. "If I wouldn't have kept my two jobs, I could never have scaled my business," Inlow tells CNBC Make It. Here's how she did it.

Using SEO and influencer marketing

Before Inlow started Be Still Getaways, she worked about 30 hours per week and made $50,000 per year between her university job and consulting work, she says. She wanted to cut down or find remote work, to spend more time at home with her son. The plan changed when her neighbor agreed to let her list the apartment. She quickly came up with the name "Be Still Getaways," and had a former student design the company's logo.

The Brown Barn, which also housed horses, sheep and goats, was Be Still Getaways' first property. Courtesy of Jamie Inlow

She relied on Google for strategy: Upon learning that search engine optimization could attract new customers, she created an Instagram and a website. She paid a company to help her create hashtags and build her online presence  all for a single Airbnb property. Then, Inlow noticed a local influencer, Julia Randall, interacting with several of Be Still Getaways' Instagram posts. She asked Randall to promote the Airbnb listing on her "Stays and Getaways" page, in exchange for a free stay. Two months after being listed, the apartment was booked daily.

Taking advantage of momentum

Wanting to capitalize on the momentum, Inlow went back to her neighbor-turned-investor and asked for $110,000, she says  this time to buy, build and furnish a tiny home off Craiglist. The same business model applied: He funded the expenditure, she built and ran the listing on his property, and the pair split the profits down the middle. The listing went live on Airbnb in March 2020. Despite Covid-19 restrictions, it regularly rented out. When a former middle school classmate reached out asking for Airbnb advice, Inlow said she'd redesign and run the property herself for $10,000. The pair split the profits, and one shared rental unit quickly turned into three. By the end of 2020, Be Still Getaways managed 20 properties. "I was definitely spending 20 hours per week on research alone," Inlow says. "I was probably pushing 30 to 40 hours per week [at Be Still Getaways], on top of my other jobs."

Growing a side hustle into a full-time gig

By 2021, Be Still Getaways managed 30 properties. Inlow hired an operations director and part-time staff for cleaning, staging and repairs. The company looked impressive on paper, but it ate into Inlow's time and paycheck: She paid herself just $10,000 that year, she says. That fall, Inlow purchased another property management company, Cape Charles Escapes, to expand her rental portfolio to Virginia's coast. She co-founded a business called Carriage House with a local realtor, who found people wanting to rent their property  but unsure how  and directed them to Be Still Getaways. The investments paid off. In March 2022, Inlow quit her full-time university job. Four months later, she switched from paying herself "whatever was left over" to an annual salary of $72,000, she says. Now, Inlow and her husband both work for Be Still Getaways, and make a combined $150,000 per year, she says. The company has eight full-time workers, including an on-call repairman, and about 60 part-time employees. It manages short-term rentals, mid-term rentals, inns and motels, some of which have been featured on their respective online rental platforms. Be Still Getaways appeared on Eviivo's list of "Collective" properties  a group of "unique, notable and luxury independently-owned accommodations around the world"  in March, for example.

Be Still Getaways started managing the Historic Berkeley Place inn in Staunton, Virginia, in January. LV8 Media
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken boards his plane for travel to Berlin at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland, June 22, 2021.

WASHINGTON  Secretary of State Antony Blinken will travel to Beijing this week to meet with senior Chinese officials, the State Department announced Wednesday.

The visit was originally slated for earlier this year but postponed after a reconnaissance balloon linked to China was discovered lingering over U.S. airspace.

The top U.S. diplomat will "raise bilateral issues of concern, global and regional matters, and potential cooperation on shared transnational challenges," State Department spokesman Matt Miller said in a statement announcing the trip.

After Beijing, Blinken will then travel to London to meet with his counterparts from the U.K. and Ukraine. He will also meet with a number of allies on the sidelines of the Ukraine Recovery Conference. Blinken is expected to galvanize allies and the private sector to support Ukraine's reconstruction efforts.

The trip follows an overnight call between Blinken and China's state councilor and foreign minister, Qin Gang.

During the call, Blinken and Qin discussed maintaining open lines of communication between Washington and Beijing in order to "avoid miscalculation and conflict," according to a readout of the discussion released by the State Department.

Tensions between Beijing and Washington have intensified over China's territorial expansion in the South China Sea, aggression toward Taiwan, allegations of espionage and human rights abuses.

Last month, Biden's national security advisor, Jake Sullivan, and China's top diplomat, Wang Yi, met in Vienna to discuss a range of topics, including Russia's war in Ukraine, as tensions between the world's two largest economies simmer.
Modelo Especial beer arranged in the Brooklyn Borough of New York, U.S., on Tuesday, Nov. 23, 2021.

Bud Light lost its top spot in the U.S. beer market last month, as the brand's sales sagged following a conservative uproar over its partnership with transgender social media influencer Dylan Mulvaney.

Constellation Brands ' Modelo led the market as it nabbed 8.4% of beer sales from retail stores in the four weeks that ended June 3, according to NielsenIQ data from consulting firm Bump Williams. Bud Light trailed with a 7.3% share.

Bud Light sales fell 24.6% in the period year over year, while Modelo sales jumped 10.2%, the data shows.

Still, the Anheuser-Busch InBev brand Bud Light leads U.S. beer sales so far this year, according to Bump Williams.

The hit to AB InBev's business marks one of the few times in recent years that online backlash has led to a notable and sustained slump for a major brand. The company's shares have dropped nearly 15% since the start of April, when Mulvaney posted a video of a personalized Bud Light can, which sparked anti-LGBTQ+ outrage.

In response to the uproar, the company appeared to neither defend the promotion with Mulvaney  a hesitance that angered some supporters of trans rights  nor appease the conservatives who opposed the marketing.

"We never intended to be part of a discussion that divides people. We are in the business of bringing people together over a beer," Anheuser-Busch CEO Brendan Whitworth said in a statement in April.

The boycott against Bud Light comes as state and federal politicians increasingly push to claw back the rights of trans people. Hundreds of state laws have targeted trans Americans in recent months, putting further strain on members of an already marginalized group.

Inclusion of and marketing to trans Americans, and LGBTQ+ people more broadly, has grown more common among major companies in recent years. But the increasingly aggressive response to those campaigns has appeared to curb them, at least in some instances.

Target recently pulled some Pride month merchandise after isolated incidents where customers threatened employees over Pride items. And the union representing Starbucks baristas this week claimed employees at dozens of stores were not allowed to put up Pride decorations.

Last month, a spokesperson for Target said the retailer had "experienced threats impacting our team members' sense of safety and wellbeing while at work" and would remove unspecified "items that have been at the center of the most significant confrontational behavior."

The spokesperson added Target would focus on "moving forward with our continuing commitment to the LGBTQIA+ community and standing with them as we celebrate Pride Month and throughout the year."

Starbucks said in a statement it had not changed company policy on the decorations and is encouraging stores to celebrate Pride month.
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Saudi Arabia sees China as a key partner in a multipolar world  with the two countries expected to only come closer as their common interests grow, Saudi Minister of Investment Khalid Al-Falih told CNBC. "This is, in a way, a multipolar global order that has emerged  it's not emerging. China is a significant player in it," Al-Falih told CNBC's Dan Murphy during the Arab-China Business Conference in Riyadh Tuesday, now in its 10th year. A multipolar world in this context signifies a global system that isn't dominated by the West or defined as a struggle between two major powers, as it was during the Cold War. "We like to believe, and I think it's been proven, that the kingdom is a significant part of this multipolar world that has emerged. And we're going to play our part, not only in developing our own economy, but also developing our region, and spreading what we have in terms of development opportunities, also to Africa, Central Asia, the Indian subcontinent," he said. "And we believe that economic cooperation between China and Saudi Arabia and the GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council), and the entire Arab region, will be a significant part of that." The post-Cold War period saw the United States exist as the preeminent world power, the strongest force on the planet in terms of economic, military, and geopolitical might. The rise of China and the BRICS (other emerging markets that include Brazil, Russia, India and South Africa), as well as anger in many parts of the world over U.S.-led wars and sanctions campaigns, led to increasing calls for a world order in which power was more widely distributed among different countries.

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Saudi Arabia, in balancing its friendships with both China and the U.S., sees itself as a part of that. The kingdom has also become a much more active global player, wielding its oil-fueled financial power to supercharge its international trade and investment and gain influence around the world. "I think significantly, we see opportunities for Chinese companies and Saudi companies to also invest internationally in third countries ... in ways that will bring development to other developing countries. I think this summit signifies an increasing tendency towards south-south collaboration and partnership," he said, referencing the global south, "because the south now has many centers of excellence in technology and capital, we're no longer dependent on the developed north, [as] in the previous world order." The more than 80-year-old relationship between Riyadh and Washington is often summed up in broad terms as one of oil in exchange for security. The U.S. has military installments in Saudi Arabia, selling it advanced weaponry and providing training and joint operations with the Saudi military. But the U.S.-Saudi relationship has come under strain in recent years, as the Biden administration attempted to call out the kingdom for its human rights abuses and influence its oil production volumes, but to no avail.

Chinese President, Xi Jinping (L) is welcomed by Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud (R) at the Palace of Yamamah in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on December 8, 2022. Anadolu Agency | Anadolu Agency | Getty Images

China, meanwhile, has for years been making inroads  especially economically  as Saudi Arabia's top trading partner and the largest buyer of its oil. Riyadh's relationship with Beijing is more functional and economic than strategic, though, meaning it is not likely to supplant the U.S.'s role in the kingdom anytime soon. However, Saudi Arabia in recent years has been buying more Chinese weapons, in particular the ones that Washington has been less than willing to sell its Gulf ally, like lethal drones. Technology transfers and Chinese infrastructure projects are also growing in the kingdom, as Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman seeks to diversify his country's alliances and make it more independent. Chinese President Xi Jinping visited Saudi Arabia in December, and the two countries signed a strategic partnership agreement that the Chinese foreign ministry at the time called "an epoch-making milestone in the history of China-Arab relations."

Balancing Washington and Beijing

"I see it going into a significant shift from a trade to a core investment relationship," Al-Falih said of his country's ties with Beijing. "We already invest significantly in China, mostly in oil refining and petrochemicals. But there have been other investments in technology by the PIF (Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund), and by other private sector companies. But we would see, going forward, more global champions from Saudi Arabia going to China to access a growing market of 1.4 billion high-consumption individuals."

Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan (R) escorts US Secretary of State Antony Blinken as they arrive for a meeting with GCC Ministers at the GCC Secretariat in Riyadh on June 7, 2023. Fayez Nureldine | AFP | Getty Images
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NANNING, CHINA - MAY 17, 2023 - A commercial residential property is seen in Nanning, South China's Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region, May 17, 2023. Future Publishing | Future Publishing | Getty Images

Weakness in China's real estate sector could be a drag on the economy for years to come and could even impact countries in the wider region, Wall Street banks have warned. "We see persistent weaknesses in the property sector, mainly related to lower-tier cities and private developer financing, and believe there appears no quick fix for them," Goldman Sachs economists led by China economist Lisheng Wang said in a weekend note. Goldman's economists said the property market is expected to see an "L-shaped recovery"  defined as steep declines followed by a slow recovery rate. "We only assume an 'L-shaped' recovery in the property sector in coming years," they said.

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Goldman Sachs economists also noted there are expectations for China's government to introduce more housing stimulus packages to support the sector. "We believe the policy priority is to manage the multi-year slowdown rather than to engineer an upcycle," the analysts said, adding that Goldman does not expect "a repeat of the 2015-18 cash-backed shantytown renovation program." They were referring to China's urban redevelopment project which aimed to renovate millions of dilapidated homes over a period of time to drive up urbanization and improve livelihood. According to Reuters, the government invested some $144 billion for the first seven months of 2018 to compensate residents of homes that were demolished in a bid to boost home sales and prices in smaller cities struggling with unsold homes.

Divergence between public and private

Another concern for the property sector is a wide divergence between government-owned property businesses and private companies in the industry, JPMorgan's Asia Chief Market Strategist Tai Hui said.

If the challenges in the property sector deepen and bring risk aversion in the financial system and affect consumer confidence, this will cause a deeper slowdown in China. Morgan Stanley

"I think that recovery is going to be slow, but I think there also a huge divergence between the state-owned developers which have done better in this current rebound versus the more private sector developers, who are still struggling," Hui told CNBC's "Squawk Box Asia" on Tuesday. The property sector was also highlighted in a government work report released earlier this year, which called for support for people buying their first homes and to "help resolve the housing problems of new urban residents and young people."

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Hui said the government's push to cap property prices at a certain level could be missing a big chunk of potential buyers. "While the authorities have been relaxing some of their policies in the past 6 to 9 months, I think the intention to maintain price affordability, i.e., not let prices go up too much ... that's really taking a big part of the potential buyer base out of the equation," he said.

Further slowdown ahead
If you're the ultimate Disney fan looking for a once-in-a-lifetime experience  and you have $115,000  get ready for your dream vacation.

Adventures by Disney is relaunching a 24-day private jet around-the-world tour of its theme parks. In addition to visiting all 12 amusement parks like Tokyo Disneyland and Paris Disneyland, guests will also travel to three iconic landmarks: the Taj Mahal, the Pyramids of Giza and the Eiffel Tower.

The $115,000 per person price tag covers a stay in world-class accommodations, including several Disneyland Hotels around the world, and direct flights to each location aboard a VIP-configured plane.

The private jet has a dedicated flight crew, an in-flight chef, three staff members, and a traveling physician.

The two Disney private jet adventures are slated for 2024. The first starts in Los Angeles on June 16 and ends in Orlando on July 9. The second trip will take the same route and runs from July 28 to August 20.

The tour will stop in nine locations: Anaheim, California; San Francisco, California; Tokyo, Japan; Shanghai, China; Hong Kong, Agra, India; Cairo, Egypt; Paris, France; and Orlando, Florida.
There's one corner of the semiconductor sector that analysts are particularly bullish on to play the artificial intelligence theme. It's DRAM, or dynamic random access memory  a type of semiconductor memory needed for data processing. As the use of AI grows, more and more memory is required; indeed, Morgan Stanley called memory the "foundational building blocks" of artificial intelligence. "Memory is a cheaper way to play the start of AI's explosive new decade-long growth phase," said Morgan Stanley in a May 29 report, adding that investors are underestimating the impact of AI on the memory segment. Analysts have also highlighted that there's more upside for the prices of DRAM-related stocks due to production cuts. "Top DRAM producers have lowered their production by 20-30%, and their capital expenditure plans by as much as 50%. Meanwhile, the demand outlook is starting to improve, as customer inventory levels have come down," Henry Mallari-D'Auria, chief investment officer of emerging markets value at Ariel Investments, told CNBC Pro. AI servers use four times as much DRAM as normal servers, said Mallari-D'Auria, adding that they are set to grow from a mid-single-digit portion of total DRAM revenues to the mid-teens over the next few years. Meanwhile, Citi in a May 30 note said that it was raising the outlook for DRAM average selling prices on the back of the production cuts and solid penetration growth in DDR5  a type of DRAM. "Our industry checks reconfirm that DDR5 demand, including HBM3 demand from Nvidia, has been rapidly increasing lately," said Citi. "Considering additional DDR5 demand from Microsoft and Google, we expect DDR5 penetration will rapidly increase throughout the year." Nvidia and DRAM Nvidia has been at the center of the AI buzz, and it recently reported much better-than-expected results and a huge forecast beat driven by strong AI demand. The firm dominates the market for graphics processing units, or GPUs, which are used to speed up AI processes. The American chipmaker is driving demand for the high bandwidth memory (HBM) segment in the DRAM sector, according to analysts. It's a key component needed to run Nvidia's AI processors such as A100 AND H100  something that regular DRAM cannot do, said Bank of America in a June 1 report. In fact, Nvidia's competitors AMD , Intel and even some Chinese fabless firms are also promoting AI GPUs, suggesting increased new high bandwidth memory orders, the bank said. "We already observe rising competition (among NVIDIA competitors) to procure more HBM in Korea," BofA analysts wrote. They added that the global high bandwidth memory market is set to grow from $2 billion in 2022 to $12 billion in 2027. SK Hynix South Korean chipmaker SK Hynix is a favorite among analysts in the DRAM space. Morgan Stanley named it as a top pick and said it was a "key beneficiary of NVDA's AI opportunity," while both BofA and Citi are bullish on the stock. Morgan Stanley gave it a price target of 140,000 Korean won ($110), or about 17% upside, while BofA had a 160,000 Korean won price target on the stock, or 34% upside. Mallari-D'Auria, too, believes SK Hynix is well positioned to benefit from AI. "The Korean company is the largest pure-play memory producer in the world and has a particularly strong position in the high-end DRAM products which are used in AI servers," he said. Samsung Electronics Another top pick for both Morgan Stanley and Citi is Samsung Electronics . The former gave it a price target of 90,000 Korean won, representing potential upside of 25%. Morgan Stanley says Samsung is an indirect beneficiary of tighter supply driven by AI GPU and server demand. "We view our OW call as more defensible on costs, balance sheet strength and the ability to weather a severe downturn better," Morgan Stanley said. "Expectations are down and valuation is near historical lows, which sets the stock up nicely." Samsung and SK Hynix had a combined market share of DRAM of around 70%-80% in 2020, according to BofA.  CNBC's Michael Bloom contributed to this report.
EU Commissioner for A Europe Fit for the Digital Age - Executive Vice President Margrethe Vestager is talking to media during a virtual press briefing in the Berlaymont, the EU Commission headquarter on November 26, 2020, in Brussels, Belgium.

The European Union on Wednesday charged Google with breaching antitrust rules in advertising technology, known as adtech, and may seek the breakup of parts of the tech giant's business to allay the bloc's concerns.

The European Commission, the executive arm of the EU, reached a preliminary conclusion that Google is dominant in the European market for publisher ad servers and for programmatic ad-buying tools for the open web. The commission also said Google has abused this dominant position since at least 2014.

Alphabet, Google's parent company, will now have the chance to read the concerns raised by the commission and defend its position in writing, as well as request an oral hearing to present its comments.

The commission suggested that Google might have to break up the business in order to address the concerns raised and thus comply with competition rules in the bloc.

"The Commission's preliminary view is therefore that only the mandatory divestment by Google of part of its services would address its competition concerns," EU competition chief Margrethe Vestager said in a statement.

This would be the first time that the commission would ask to split part of a business.

"[Google] collects users' data, it sells advertising space, and it acts as an online advertising intermediary. So Google is present at almost all levels of the so-called adtech supply chain," she said. "Our preliminary concern is that Google may have used its market position to favour its own intermediation services. Not only did this possibly harm Google's competitors but also publishers' interests, while also increasing advertisers' costs. If confirmed, Google's practices would be illegal under our competition rules,"

Google was not immediately available for comment when contacted by CNBC.

Speaking at a news conference on Wednesday, Vestager said there is a conflict of interest. "Google is in every part of this supply chain."

"We have the obligation to find the remedy that would be the less intrusive," Vestager nevertheless added. "We don't see that this inherent and inbuilt conflict of interest can be solved in other way by not having ownership of the entire value chain."

Shares of Alphabet were down less than 1% in premarket trading.
SpaceX, Twitter and electric car maker Tesla CEO Elon Musk with France's President Emmanuel Macron (L) at the Elysee presidential palace in Paris on May 15, 2023. France has been looking to woo Musk and Tesla to set up a factory in the country.

PARIS  France is trying to convince Elon Musk to build Tesla's next Gigafactory in the country, the nation's digital minister told CNBC on Wednesday, in the most explicit comments yet that Paris wants the billionaire's investment.

The courtship comes just as the minister threatened the Musk-owned Twitter with a ban, if it does not comply with upcoming European Union regulation.

"It will be great to have a Tesla factory in France, there has been a lot of effort and energy to make sure this is possible and this can happen," Jean-Noel Barrot told CNBC's Charlotte Reed at the Viva Tech conference in Paris.

France has been looking to boost its position as a hub for the electric car industry, opening its first electric car battery factory this year.

"We have also invested in an ... entire sector of electric batteries so we will try to convince him that France is the best possible place in Europe to establish the next Tesla factory," Barrot said.

Musk is expected to speak in Paris on Friday at the Viva Tech summit  one of France's flagship technology conferences, where the government will have a large presence. Musk has been on the hunt for a new Gigafactory location, in addition to the company's major car manufacturing plants already present in the U.S., Germany and China.

Barrot praised Musk as a "great inventor, probably one of the greatest of the beginning of this century."
If you want to start a new side hustle or business, you'll probably need some money to get it off the ground. Don't seek out an investor, says billionaire entrepreneur Mark Cuban.

Instead, make sure your idea can be profitable from Day 1, and use the proceeds to grow your venture. "I was always geared towards profitability, not geared towards just getting my next [fund]raise," Cuban, 64, told the "Bio Eats World'' life science podcast on Tuesday.

Cuban  who is, notably, an investor on ABC's "Shark Tank"  launched his first tech company, a computer systems startup called MicroSolutions, using his own money. At age 32, he sold the business for $6 million in 1990.

In 1994, Cuban and his friend Todd Wagner invested $10,000 in a small startup called Cameron Audio Networks. They later offered the company's ownership a buyout, absorbing the majority of its equity and turning it into Cuban's second company, internet radio streamer Broadcast.com.

That company sold to Yahoo for $5.7 billion in 1999.

For many entrepreneurs, raising money can feel like a requirement. Three in five Americans say they've come up with a great idea for a business  but 92% of them haven't followed through, mostly due to a lack of funding, a 2021 Zapier report found.

When Cuban has raised money, it was out of "necessity," he said: "I've always tried to teach entrepreneurs that raising money or borrowing money is not an accomplishment. It's an obligation."

The billionaire gave similar advice during a SXSW panel in March, telling people to use their own personal savings instead of taking money from others. That way, you're "controlling your own destiny," he said. "The more of your equity that you can retain and control, the more the upside."

As such, Cuban is picky about the startups in which he invests.

"What really gets me going is when people have an operating business where they've already gone for it. And they've invested everything," he told TV Tango in 2011. "They've put their heart, their soul, their time, everything that they have available to them into the business. And they've laid it on the line. And they just need a little bit of help."

Following Cuban's advice can be easier said than done, some experts say.

"I work with many business owners who are rich on paper, but have very little in the bank account," Ryan Moran, a startup investor and host of the finance podcast "Capitalism.com," wrote in a 2019 LinkedIn post. "The story that I often hear is, "Yes, I'm selling $200,000 per month, but I can't afford to hire people or to expand, because all of my profits are tied up in inventory. I'm not even paying myself."

For unpredictable expenses, Moran recommended using your own funds. For expenses like payroll or inventory, he advised using outside funding.

"I argue that it is a mistake to use your own money to pay for anything that is consistent and predictable, because there are better uses of your capital," Moran wrote. "If you use other people's money to pay for your predictable or fixed expenses, then you are free to invest into 'multipliers' that have exponential [return on investment]."

Disclosure: CNBC owns the exclusive off-network cable rights to "Shark Tank."

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Former Vice President Mike Pence said Wednesday he could not defend the criminal allegations against Donald Trump, his former boss and current campaign rival, in a federal indictment charging the ex-president with mishandling classified documents.

Pence nevertheless echoed the notion of a "two-tiered" justice system that Trump and his allies have pushed as they seek to undermine the prosecutors pursuing the unprecedented case against the former president.

"This indictment contains serious charges, and I cannot defend what is alleged," Pence said on CNBC's "Squawk Box."

Trump pleaded not guilty Tuesday to 37 counts related to his alleged mishandling of classified records, hundreds of which were stored at his Mar-a-Lago resort home after he left the White House in 2021. Trump is charged with willfully retaining national defense information, conspiracy to obstruct justice, concealing documents and making false statements.

After his arraignment in Miami, Trump traveled to his New Jersey golf club to deliver a campaign-style speech and host a fundraiser that raked in just over $2 million, according to a Trump campaign aide.

Pence's remarks on CNBC come one week after he entered the 2024 Republican primary race, where polls show Trump has maintained a significant lead despite his mounting legal troubles. Pence fell out with Trump after he refused to aid the former president's efforts to overturn his 2020 loss to President Joe Biden. The decision eroded Pence's standing in the GOP, which has largely stuck by Trump even as he continues to falsely insist the 2020 race was rigged against him.

Pence's campaign kickoff speech criticized Trump in occasionally forceful terms but still sought to champion the agenda that they passed together in the White House. His remarks about Trump's latest criminal indictment attempted to walk a similarly fine line.

"The handling of classified materials is a very serious matter," Pence said, but "the former president has a right to his day in court."

"I can't believe that politics didn't play some role here," Pence added. "If I have the privilege to be president of the United States, we're going to clean house at the Department of Justice. We're going to find men and women who are universally respected by both political parties, and we're going to restore public confidence and equal treatment under the law."

Pence reiterated his call for new leadership and imbued his thoughts on Trump's indictment with campaign rhetoric.

"Two things can be true at once," he said, explaining that while he will not defend the "serious" charges against Trump, it "doesn't change the fact that tens of millions of Americans have a sense of a two-tiered system of justice."

He referenced the investigation of Hillary Clinton in the run-up to the 2016 election, asserting that former FBI Director James Comey "excused very similar behavior" by the then-Democratic nominee. Pence also pointed to the investigation of Russian election meddling by former special counsel Robert Mueller and alleged suppression of information about Biden's son, Hunter Biden.

Legal experts have argued that Trump's case, which involves alleged violations of the Espionage Act and alleged conspiracy to obstruct the government, differs significantly from other instances of politicians holding onto records after leaving office.

Trump's federal indictment has spurred a variety of reactions from his Republican primary rivals.

Pence's stance contrasts sharply with remarks earlier Wednesday morning from former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, who was also once a federal prosecutor. Christie is a more vocal Trump critic who said that the GOP leader's post-arraignment speech in New Jersey shows that he "doesn't care about the American people."

"This next administration of Donald Trump as president will be all about retribution for him personally," Christie said on Fox News.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, meanwhile, has opted to say little about Trump's criminal case since his arraignment.

Vivek Ramaswamy, a long-shot candidate for the GOP nomination, has already vowed to pardon Trump if elected. He appeared outside the Miami courthouse on Tuesday to call on the rest of the primary field to make a similar pledge.

Former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley, who has issued numerous reactions to the indictment, said Tuesday that she would be "inclined in favor of a pardon" for Trump if she became president.

 CNBC's Brian Schwartz contributed reporting.
U.S. health insurance firm Humana is the only major stock from around the world to have risen by more than 10% every year for the past decade. CNBC Pro screened over 85,000 global equities and found that Humana was the only stock to have posted such consistent returns since January 2013. Founded in 1961 in Kentucky, the company was launched as a nursing home. It has since evolved, pivoting into hospitals before finding its niche in health insurance in the 1980s. Today, Humana has become one of the largest providers of U.S. government-sponsored "Medicare Advantage" health insurance plans. The share price returns of the company have been stable historically with the exception of 2012 when the stock tanked by 20%, partly over losses incurred from regulatory changes made following the introduction of the Affordable Care Act, or Obamacare. The company reported that its medical loss ratio (MLR)  a measure of premiums spent on patient costs  had almost doubled that year. However, the stock rebounded with a 52% gain the following year, providing investors with double-digit returns every year since. The health insurer's shares also outperformed the broader market in 2022 and 2018, when the S & P 500 turned negative on both occasions. This year, Humana's shares have underperformed the broader market by staying flat, while the U.S. benchmark index is up nearly 14%. Looking forward, the consensus price target of 24 analysts covering the stock, which trades as HUM on the NYSE, points towards a 19% upside potential over the next 12 months, according to FactSet. HUM 1Y line Most analysts are bullish on the company's stock. Here's what some are saying: Deutsche Bank Equity analyst George Hill bumped up the bank's price target to $568 (10% upside) on April 26. "We also note that Humana has almost no consumer-related risk and few recessions related risks, making it the rare growth stock that's not correlated to most growth stocks." JP Morgan Lisa Gill on April 26 reiterated the bank's overweight rating with a $505 price (1.2% upside) target. "Despite some concern over potential M.A. cost pressure heading into the quarter, HUM delivered a solid result, and we believe the outlook for the remainder of the year is sufficiently conservative as the company is guiding to FY23 MLR in the upper half of its full year range." UBS Kevin Caliendo reiterated the Swiss bank's buy rating and a price target of $620 on April 26. "We continue to think HUM is well positioned for outsized [Medicare Advantage (M.A.)] growth in 2024 and beyond thanks to its enviable positioning in attractive growth markets and industry leading Stars scores." RBC Capital Markets Ben Hendrix retired the bank's outperform rating and price target of $637 on April 27. "We believe recent investments in benefits have resulted in superior competitive footing as HUM heads into M.A. bidding for 2024, and that the company should be well positioned to continue to gain share as shopping behavior picks up among M.A. consumers." Humana is also Morgan Stanley's top pick in the "Healthcare Facilities & Managed Care" sector. The investment bank maintains an "in-line" or hold rating on the stock with a price target of $637. Jefferies' analysts raised their price target to $614 with a buy-rating on April 27.  CNBC's Michael Bloom contributed to this report.
People arrive to attend an annual shareholders' meeting for Toyota Motor in the city of Toyota, Aichi Prefecture on June 14, 2023. Toyota is under pressure from large institutional investors for chairman Akio Toyoda to step down over his lukewarm embrace of electric vehicles. Str | Afp | Getty Images

Stock Chart Icon Stock chart icon Toyota shares soar

Toyota shares closed up 6.3% at 2,310 Japanese yen ($16.48) per share in robust volumes  their highest close since Feb. 9, 2022. Their record closing high at 2,390 Japanese yen per share was recorded Jan. 9, 2022. On Wednesday, Toyota shares outperformed the 1.5% gain on the Nikkei and 1.3% rise for the Topix benchmarks in Tokyo. The rally on Wednesday added to sizeable gains seen on Tuesday. A small number of overseas institutional investors had agitated against the reappointment of Toyoda  a grandson of the founder of Toyota Motors  as chairman, taking issue with the independence of the company's board, given that he was the Toyota's chief executive until April 1 this year. Some investors have also criticized the company's strategy of focusing on multiple fronts across hybrid, gasoline and electric vehicles has hurt its competitiveness. Toyota argues that this helps to cater to the diverse needs of customers in different regions, which they anticipate will differ further in future  pledging to "accelerate localization" in plans they unveiled on Tuesday.

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Russian President Vladimir Putin claimed Ukraine's counteroffensive is failing, saying Kyiv has failed to achieve any success.

"This is a large-scale counteroffensive, using reserves that were trained for this purpose, it has been underway since the 4th of June and is still underway, right now," Putin said Tuesday at a meeting with war correspondents.

"[Ukrainian troops] have not reached the front line," Putin said, claiming that "the adversary was not successful in any sectors. They have huge losses."

Ukraine says it has liberated several settlements in Donetsk, eastern Ukraine. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Tuesday night that "there is advancement in different areas," but there are also reports Russia is contesting several villages Kyiv claimed to have retaken. Later Wednesday, Ukraine's deputy defense minister said there are "extremely fierce" battles.

In other news, the Ukrainian port city of Odesa was the target of a Russian missile strike overnight that left three people dead and at least 13 injured, according to officials. The region of Donetsk was also targeted, leaving three civilians dead and others wounded.
A six-figure salary is a goal for many Americans, but depending on where you live, it might not go as far as somewhere else.

The purchasing power of a $250,000 salary, for instance, depends largely on a city's cost of living and overall tax environment. High earners might be able to maximize their earnings and take advantage of lower tax rates by moving cities.

If you want to get the most out of a $250,000 salary, the best place to go seems to be the South, according to a recent SmartAsset study outlining where high earners lose the most to taxes and cost of living.

The report compares the after-tax income in 76 of the largest U.S. cities and adjusts the figures for the cost of living. The data was compiled using SmartAsset's paycheck calculator, which calculates take-home pay after taking into account local, state and federal taxes. Cost of living expenses include housing, groceries, utilities, transportation and other goods and services.

The purchasing power of $250,000 in cities like New York and San Francisco, for example, is worth just shy of $83,000 after taxes and cost of living, the study finds. In cities like Memphis, Tennessee, and El Paso, Texas, though, $250,000 is worth much more, thanks to the states' lack of income tax.

For the fortunate 7% of American households earning $250,000 per year, here are the top 10 cities where that money goes the furthest.
Indian authorities have launched an inquiry into an allegation that a local pharmaceutical regulator, in return for a bribe, helped switch samples of cough syrups that the WHO had linked to the deaths of children in Gambia, according to a Reuters report.

Indian authorities have launched an inquiry into an allegation that a local pharmaceutical regulator, in return for a bribe, helped switch samples of cough syrups that the World Health Organization (WHO) had linked to the deaths of children in Gambia before the samples were tested at an Indian laboratory, according to two government officials and documents reviewed by Reuters.

In an April 29 letter to the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) in Haryana state reviewed by Reuters, a lawyer named Yashpal accused the state's drug controller, Manmohan Taneja, of taking a bribe of 50 million rupees ($605,419) from local manufacturer Maiden Pharmaceuticals to help it switch the samples before an Indian government laboratory tested them. Maiden's factory is based in Haryana state.

Reuters was unable to independently establish that any bribes were paid.

Taneja did not respond to phone calls, messages or emails seeking comment. Maiden did not respond to requests for comment. The WHO said it had no knowledge of the allegation.

Yashpal  who like some Indians uses only one name  did not say in the letter where he got the information, or provide evidence for his claim about the syrups made by Maiden.

Contacted by Reuters, the lawyer said he had learned about the alleged bribe in the Maiden case from at least two individuals in India's pharmaceutical industry, including one within Maiden, but declined to identify any of them for fear of retribution.

"I just want the matter formally investigated," said the 38-year-old, adding that he was waiting to be asked to submit an affidavit that would trigger such a probe.

He said he has never represented any pharmaceutical companies or worked on cases involving compensation claims in his five-year career, but had started looking into Taneja last year after a pharma industry friend alerted him to another case of alleged corruption. After the Gambia deaths became public, Yashpal said he started investigating more closely and spoke with about 40 sources across Haryana, during which he learned of the alleged Maiden bribe.

The director general of the Haryana Anti-Corruption Bureau, Shatrujeet Kapur, told Reuters that Yashpal's complaint would be taken forward by the Additional Chief Secretary (ACS) for health in Haryana, the state's top health bureaucrat. Kapur did not specify what further steps that would involve.

The Additional Chief Secretary, G. Anupama, said in a text message, "Enquiry is underway" and directed Reuters to the health minister for Haryana state, Anil Vij, for further details. Vij did not respond to requests for comment.

Yashpal's complaint was first reported by Hindi daily Haribhoomi on May 17. The inquiry by local officials into his allegations has not been previously reported.

Haryana, located near New Delhi, has major industrial clusters and its administration said in 2019 it wanted to "transform Haryana into a hub" within India's $41 billion pharmaceutical industry. Haryana has been ruled by the same party since 2014. Its chief minister and health minister, to whom Yashpal also sent his complaint, did not respond to requests for comment.

Naresh Kumar Goyal, the founder of Maiden Pharmaceuticals, told Reuters in December his company did nothing wrong in the production of the cough syrup . In February, an Indian court sentenced Goyal and another Maiden executive to two-and-half years in jail for quality violations in drugs sold to Vietnam a decade ago. It gave them a month to appeal. Reuters could not determine the status of that case.

Indian authorities carried out tests on the Maiden syrups late last year after the WHO linked them to the deaths of at least 70 children in the African country, most under 5 years old, from acute kidney injury between June and October.

Tests of samples of the syrup carried out earlier with help from the WHO had confirmed the presence of lethal toxins - ethylene glycol (EG) and diethylene glycol (DEG), used in car brake fluid - sparking a global hunt for contaminated medicines. The agency has said it has full confidence in the test results from two independent laboratories.

However, India's federal drugs regulator said in December its own tests found no toxins in the syrups. Its factory inspectors did earlier find that batches of medicine may have been incorrectly labelled, according to a notice it sent to Maiden seen by Reuters. It has not made clear how, in light of that, it can be sure it tested the correct batch. It did not respond to a request for comment.

Yashpal also sent his complaint to the office of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, he said and documents seen by Reuters show. The prime minister's office did not respond to requests for comment.

The bribery allegation was one of about half a dozen claims of corruption by Yashpal against Taneja in the letter. Yashpal alleged Taneja had taken bribes to approve products and issue drug licences since 2021. He did not provide any evidence.

"I want an investigation done by someone outside the health department because Taneja himself is a senior health official," the lawyer said. "It is a question of India's reputation."

On May 10, Taneja's deputy Lalit Kumar Goel asked Yashpal to come to the regulator's office "with all relevant documents" to discuss the inquiry, according to a letter reviewed by Reuters.

Yashpal told Reuters he did not comply, because he did not feel comfortable bringing such details to the deputy of someone he had accused of corruption. Goel did not respond to a request for comment.

Gambia said earlier this month it had hired a U.S. law firm to explore legal action after its own government-backed investigation found contaminated medicines from India were "very likely" to have caused the deaths of children last year, the justice minister told Reuters.

Unscrupulous actors can use EG and DEG as a substitute for propylene glycol (PG), which is a key base of syrupy medicines  because they can cost less than half the price, according to several pharmaceutical manufacturing experts.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, June 14)  Government forces killed the Islamic States emir in Southeast Asia in an encounter in Marawi City, Lanao del Sur early Wednesday, the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) said.

The AFP Western Mindanao Command (WesMinCom) said Abu Zacharia, who was also leader of the Daulah Islamiyah group, was the target of an arrest warrant by the 103rd Infantry Brigade and the Philippine National Police.

Sensing the government forces presence, the target opened fire, forcing the operating troops to retaliate. Abu Zacharia also threw a 60mm mortar and two hand grenades toward the troops position, the WesMinCom said in a statement.

The military said a soldier was wounded in the fire fight that lasted 10 minutes, adding it recovered two M16A1 rifles with ammunition.

Meanwhile, the military and police conducted a follow-up operation few hours later in pursuit of Daulah Islamiyah sub-leader Joharie Sandab a.k.a. Morsid, who also had an arrest warrant.

The military said government troops killed Morsid in a fire fight.

This is a significant breakthrough in our campaign against the Daulah Islamiyah. We are certain that the death of Abu Zacharia will be the downfall of the IS-inspired group in our area of operation, said WesMinCon chief Lt. Gen. Roy Gallido in the statement.
(CNN)  A new mural on display in Indias new $110 million Parliament has become an unlikely target of ire among its South Asian neighbors, with Pakistan, Nepal and Bangladesh seeking an explanation from New Delhi.

The mural depicts a map of an ancient Indian civilization encompassing what is today Pakistan in the north and Bangladesh and Nepal in the east.

Speaking to reporters earlier this month, the spokesperson of Indias Ministry of External Affairs, Arindam Bagchi, said it portrays the ancient Ashoka Empire and symbolizes the idea of responsible and people-oriented governance that (King Ashoka) adopted and propagated.

But to some politicians from Indias ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), it appears to represent a vision of the future  of Akhand Bharat, an Undivided India that would merge the modern-day country with Afghanistan, Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh and Myanmar.

The resolve is clear. Akhand Bharat, tweeted Minister of Parliamentary Affairs Pralhad Joshi alongside a photograph of the map. Akhand Bharat in (the) New Parliament. It represents our powerful and self reliant India, tweeted BJP lawmaker Manoj Kotak.

To Indias neighbors, Akhand Bharat is an incendiary, neo-imperialist concept  one that has long been associated with the right-wing Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), an ideological organization that heavily influences the BJP, and which believes in Hindutva, the idea that India should become the Home of the Hindus.

Earlier this month, Pakistan said it was appalled by the statements made about the mural.

The gratuitous assertion of Akhand Bharat is a manifestation of a revisionist and expansionist mindset that seeks to subjugate the identity and culture of not only Indias neighboring countries but also its own religious minorities, said foreign office spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch.

Nepali politicians also chimed in.

If a country like India  that sees itself as an ancient and strong country, and as a model of democracy  puts Nepali territories in its map and hangs the map in parliament, it cannot be called fair, opposition leader KP Sharma Oli said, according to The Kathmandu Post.

Nepals former prime minister, Baburam Bhattarai, warned the map may stoke an unnecessary and harmful diplomatic row.

And last week, Bangladesh asked New Delhi to clarify the situation. Anger is being expressed from various quarters over the map, said Shahriar Alam, its junior minister for foreign affairs.

Answering a question about the backlash last week, Indias foreign minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar said the issue had already been clarified by India, and it was not political.

While India has dismissed their concerns, analysts say calls by BJP politicians to embrace Akhand Bharat are dangerous.

They say such appeals embolden extremist groups and are bad news for a constitutionally secular democracy, where about 80% of the 1.4 billion population is Hindu and 14% Muslim.

Many BJP leaders are increasingly making statements to placate the most hardcore elements of their party, without realizing how that might play out overseas, said Salil Tripathi, a writer based in New York.

These politicians and leaders act as if the world isnt listening. It keeps the cauldron hot, but it is a dangerous game.

Controversial ceremony

The mural was not the only thing turning heads when Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the parliament on May 28.

Similarly controversial was the ceremony itself, steeped in Hindu religious symbolism, which critics felt jarred with the supposedly secular nature of Indian government affairs. It also took place on the birthday of the late Vinayak Damodar Savarkar, the man widely considered to have developed the Hindutva ideology and one of the first proponents of Akhand Bharat.

A leader of the right-wing Hindu Mahasabha group, Savarkar is revered by Modi and the BJP, who credit him with leading India to its freedom from British colonial rule.

But critics say it is wrong to honor his birthday, given his stance toward Muslims.

The Hindu Mahasabhas website says if it takes power, it will not hesitate to force the migration of Indias Muslims to Pakistan.

While the groups ideas are decades old, it appears more bold about them now.

In December 2021, some extremists from the group called for a genocide against Muslims to protect India.

Sushant Singh, a senior fellow with the Centre for Policy Research think tank, said groups felt emboldened to make such brazen calls for violence because they believe that they have the backing of the state.

That is because the state clearly believes in their ideology and articulates that ideology, he added.

Nervous neighbors

While the BJP does not openly describe itself as Hindu nationalist, critics say such leanings are given away by legislation that favors Hindus and the rhetoric of some of its leading figures.

One of the BJPs most controversial moves came in 2019 when it revoked the semi-autonomous status of the Muslim-majority region of Indian-administered Kashmir, bringing it under the direct control of New Delhi.

India said the move was aimed at ending separatism and terrorism it alleged was aided by Pakistan. Critics said the move was aimed at encouraging Hindus to settle there.

Skepticism over New Delhis motives was fueled by Indias Home Minister Amit Shah when he said the revocation had partially achieved the dream of Akhand Bharat  a sentiment echoed by other right-wing politicians.

We have to see the dream of Akhand Bharat in this lifetime and it has started with (this), said deputy chief minister of the state of Maharashtra, Devendra Fadnavis.

Experts say such rhetoric has made Indias neighbors nervous.

The tragedy is that with this kind of narrative coming from India, it only enforces the Pakistan armys view that there is a threat, said Pakistani historian Ayesha Jalal.

Fahd Humayun, an assistant professor of political science at Tufts University, warned statements like these can impact the national security calculus of neighboring states.

He added: In practical terms, the worry is (these comments) build on a brand of Hindu nationalism which has clear expansionist tendencies.

This story was first published on CNN.com, "Why a map in Indias new Parliament is making its neighbors nervous"
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A district judge in San Francisco has granted a Federal Trade Commission (FTC) request to temporarily block Microsofts proposed $69 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard, ahead of a hearing on June 22.

Judge Edward Davila ruled that a preliminary injunction is warranted [to] preserve the FTCs ability to obtain an effective permanent remedy to its antitrust concerns. Microsoft and Activision have until June 16 to submit their opposition to the motion, while the FTC must respond by June 20.

An evidentiary hearing will be held on June 22 for the judge to hear oral arguments about whether the injunction should remain in force until the FTC's antitrust case is resolved. The ruling on the FTC's request for an injunction comes six months after the FTC filed its initial antitrust case against the acquisition, arguing that if the deal were to go ahead, Microsoft would have an increased incentive to withhold or degrade Activisions content in ways that substantially lessen competition  including competition on product quality, price, and innovation.

This loss of competition would likely result in significant harm to consumers in multiple markets at a pivotal time for the industry, the FTCs complaint read.

Microsoft did not seem to be fazed by the FTC's request for an injunction to be in place until the antirust complaint is resolved. "The temporary order should accelerate the decision-making process. This benefits everyone, tweeted Microsoft President Brad Smith. We always prefer constructive and amicable paths with governments but have confidence in our case and look forward to presenting it.

A Microsoft spokesperson reiterated Smiths point, adding that a temporary restraining order makes sense until we can receive a decision from the court, which is moving swiftly.

Since Microsoft first announced its intention to acquire Activision Blizzard in January 2022, the deal has faced a number of roadblocks, including antitrust investigations from the UK's Competition and Markets Authority, the FTC, and the European Commission.

The EU Commission ultimately cleared the deal in May 2023, saying it was reassured that commitments offered by Microsoft fully address the competition concerns identified by the Commission, and that the approval is conditional on full compliance with the commitments. Microsoft has committed to license popular Activision Blizzard games automatically to competing cloud gaming services.

However, the previous month, the UK's CMA blocked the acquisition, arguing the deal could alter the future of the fast-growing cloud gaming market, leading to reduced innovation and less choice for UK gamers over the years to come.

Microsoft and Activision appealed the decision and the case is now being heard by the UK's Competition Appeal Tribunal.
06/14/2023

Photo (c) Colin Anderson Productions - Getty Images Your phone rings and the person on the other end tells you that theyre law enforcement calling from a local police station. Caller ID makes it look legit. They tell you to send money for an unpaid fine.

If you're like most people your first impulse might be to send the money to avoid further legal action. However, that would be the wrong move because the call is almost certain to be a scam.

Law enforcement agents across the country are warning consumers because this exact scenario has become a popular scam in several states nationwide. People in South Carolina, Virginia, Georgia, California, and Pennsylvania have reported falling victim to this scam in recent weeks.

What should consumers be aware of?

Many of the scammers deploy a scenario as described above: they call unsuspecting people pretending to be local law enforcement officers and tell the person on the other end of the call that they owe money for an unpaid fine.

Scammers tend to have a lot of information when they make these calls. They recite officers names at local precincts, they know the address of the police stations, and they know badge numbers. Sometimes they can distort caller ID to make it look as if their calls are coming from police stations.

In one case in Irvine, California, the scammers asked for as much as $600,000 to help cover charges for the investigation of a fraud case. In another case in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, the scammer called a local business, claiming the business owner had used counterfeit money and was now required to pay a fine; the teenage employee who answered the phone got as far as the nearest ATM to retrieve the money the scammer was asking for to cover the fine.

Scammers also make their requests very urgent. If their victims arent quick to recite their credit card or bank account numbers over the phone, they threaten further legal action  or even arrest.

In some cases, the scammer will only ask for personal information, which they can then use to either steal their victims identity or hack into bank accounts or credit cards.

How to avoid getting scammed

The biggest thing consumers should know is that police officers will never ask for money over the phone. This was unanimous across all of the states that have experienced issues with this scam. Moreover, law enforcement officers won't solicit money from consumers  let alone over the phone.

Should you be on the receiving end of one of these scam calls, experts recommend hanging up as soon as possible. Its also important not to reveal any personal information over the phone.

If youre unsure if the person on the other end is actually law enforcement, the best bet is to call your local police station and confirm the details.

Law enforcement also recommends that consumers try to collect and write down as much information about the scammer as possible when on the phone with them  their name, rank, badge number, etc. Then, call your local police station and report the call as soon as possible.
BEIJING, June 13 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Premier Li Qiang on Tuesday met with visiting President of the Republic of Honduras Iris Xiomara Castro Sarmiento in Beijing, with both sides pledging to enhance cooperation. Li noted that in March this year, the two countries' leaders made the important political decision to establish diplomatic relations, turning over a new page in bilateral ties. He said China greatly appreciates the firm commitment Honduras has made to abide by the one-China principle, and its choice to stand on the right side of history. "China is willing to work with Honduras to thoroughly implement the important consensus reached by the two heads of state to promote the vibrant development of cooperation in various fields," Li said. He said that China and Honduras are new friends and partners, and they should be good friends and partners that value mutual respect, equality, mutual benefits and common development. China staunchly supports Honduras in safeguarding its independence, and is willing to strengthen coordination with Honduras in multilateral affairs, Li added. He urged the two countries to make efforts to advance rapid and steady progress in pragmatic cooperation, and to conduct people-to-people exchanges actively. He said China is ready to tap further into trade potential, accelerate the synergizing of follow-up matters concerning imports of specialty products from Honduras, kick off the negotiation process for a free trade agreement at an early date, carry out investment and financing cooperation in a prudent manner, and accelerate the construction of projects to improve people's well-being. China hopes Honduras will provide a favorable and facilitating environment for Chinese enterprises to invest and establish businesses in the country, Li noted. Castro said that Honduras attaches great importance to relations with China, and it adheres to the one-China principle. The Honduran side is ready to work with China to promote people-to-people exchanges and enhance cooperation in such areas as agriculture, poverty reduction and infrastructure construction to bring bilateral ties onto a steady and sound track and to bring more benefits to the two peoples.
Running a business is hard. There are so many things you have to remember to do: pay your employees, not commit white-collar crime, and oh yeah, facilitate access to your goods and/or services through an operational website. But things happen. Maybe you registered your domain name with the email address you use to take personality quizzes that hold your results hostage until you sign up for their newsletter, and the next thing you know, youre selling Hungarian sex toys. (To be clear, that was not your businesss intended purpose.)

Whatever the case, something clearly happened with the corporate and political entities below, because some very severe, clearly unintentional things occurred with important URLs in their purview.

5 An Old Heinz Promo Led to German Porn Youve probably got more QR codes in your house right now than Cheeto crumbs. A corporation farts out a promotion, slaps a QR code on their packaging for the next month and forgets about it as soon as it ends. That might be fine for something like chewing gum or novelty hats that get used as soon as theyre purchased and then never thought of again, but the people at Heinz failed to consider that a big bottle of ketchup can last a while. Especially if stored in the fridge, correctly. They entered their find out era in 2015, when a German man scanned the QR code on his ketchup bottle expecting to be led to information about personalized labels only to be slapped in the face with a whole bunch of dicks. It seems that after the promotion ended the year before, the domain name was bought by a German porn site. After he complained to the company, they promised to keep an eye on such things in the future, and the porn site threw in a free subscription. The fact that he complained makes that seem redundant, but it would be an impressive long con.

4 The FBI Redirected Visitors to a Malware Buffet When the FBI shut down file-hosting site Megaupload for, you know, file-hosting shit, a lot of nerds got mad. One of those nerds was some guy calling himself Earl Grey, who noticed in 2015 that a domain used by the Bureau to redirect traffic from seized websites was set to expire. He snapped it up, and instead of being taken to an FBI page, typing in the address of a seized website brought you to a cornucopia of porn (a pornucopia, if you will) and other pop-up-y type advertisements, some of which were riddled with malware. Advertisement Advertisement Weirdly, it took more than a week for anyone at the FBI to notice, but it turns out that using your domain to spew viruses like a wedding party in June 2020 is against most providers terms of service. The domain was suspended. Either way, the agency apparently stopped using it because its currently for sale again. Just like an ex whose number they cant bear to delete, they dont want it, but they dont want anyone else to have it, either.

3 Thousands of Maryland License Plates Advertised Filipino Gambling In 2012, the Maryland Motor Vehicle Association teamed up with the absolute dorks at the War of 1812 Bicentennial Commission to slap together a commemorative license plate to celebrate, you know, that. The license plates were the default option for everyone who bought a new car that year, so hundreds of thousands of drivers got stuck with plates that directed onlookers to the organizations website and implied they were hyped as hell about a 200-year-old war. Advertisement Then the bicentennial came and went, the commission underwent its existential crisis, and everyone forgot about the website. Even in 2023, however, it was still being advertised on nearly 800,000 license plates. Thats important because those nostalgic for nostalgia who visited the site that year were redirected to a Filipino gambling website. It seems to have been a short-lived hijacking, as the website now redirects to the Maryland DMV, who we like to think won it back in a high-stakes poker game. Advertisement

2 Australias Prime Minister Didnt Know Its mostly a problem of comparison, but by right-wing politician standards, Scott Morrison is pretty average. Like, he downplayed climate change and hates gays and everything, but he never used campaign funds to pay off any porn stars, as far as we know. Still, one disgruntled constituent couldnt turn down the opportunity when he noticed the then-prime ministers domain was about to expire. In fact, it was the most fun (hed) had with $50 in a long time, which just tells us hes not doing Australia right. Advertisement So did he turn Morrisons website into a pamphlet on the importance of climate change policy and gay rights, as others have done with politicians of similar views? No. He just threw up a photo of Morrison smiling and a clip of the song Scotty Doesnt Know from EuroTrip, a 2004 movie almost entirely forgotten but for a song about banging another dudes girlfriend that is the bane of every man under 50 named Scott. The prank was so successful that the website immediately crashed, but the troll ended up giving Morrison the domain back within a few days, probably because the disgruntled constituent would have been forced to do so under Australian law eventually anyway. Unlike Fiona, they dont fuck around. Advertisement
Sleepless in Seattle. Joe vs. the Volcano. Youve Got Mail. When Harry Met Sally? Yep, there was almost a fourth Tom Hanks/Meg Ryan rom-com back in the day. In fact, Hanks wife Rita Wilson says Hanks was actually offered the Billy Crystal role and turned it down  mainly because he was so jazzed about ditching his own failed marriage

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People probably dont know this, but Tom was offered When Harry Met Sally, and he turned it down because he was going through a divorce and he was very happy to not be married, Wilson explained on the Table for Two with Bruce Bozzi podcast this week.

Play

At different points in the When Harry Met Sally script, both Harry and Sally go through broken marriages and failed relationships, leaving each of them miserable. Hanks just couldnt relate. He could not understand that a person going through a divorce would have anything other than just like, Im so happy, Wilson said.

Its unclear if Hanks was indeed offered the role, or simply under consideration. IndieWire reports that several actors were discussed for Harry, including Hanks, Crystal, Albert Brooks, Bill Murray, Harrison Ford, Michael Keaton and Richard Dreyfuss. Those are a lot of comedy sliding doors to ponder  Murray would have definitely brought a more cynical, boozy vibe, while Brooks would have doubled down on the neuroses that Crystal eventually provided.

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Crystal got the part, of course, though director Rob Reiner was nervous it would screw up their friendship. Who needs another failed relationship? It turned out way better than anything I could have imagined because not only was he great in the part, it made our friendship better, Reiner told Variety.

Screenwriter Nora Ephron, who went through her own divorce while writing the script, had Reiner himself in mind for the lead. Ironically  or maybe it was just because Hollywood  Reiner was also splitting up his marriage to Penny Marshall, so hed at least have the background for the job.

The movies original ending had Harry and Sally going their own ways for good, but Reiner fell in love  again  during the movies filming. Once again a swooning sap, Reiner convinced Ephron to concoct an ending where the two failed romantics finally hook up for good. Its too bad; it sounds like newly single Hanks would have preferred the version where Harry gets to play the field forever.
For instance, a malware attack occurs at a bank exposing proprietary data and its customers personally identifiable information (PII) data, taking down the banks website, he says. A comprehensive cyber liability insurance will not only protect the financial interest of the bank and its clients against the PII data breach, but it will also cover the financial losses and associated costs incurred due to interruption to the banks online businesses.

What is data breach insurance?

Data breach insurance is a subset of cyber liability insurance and protects against only some of the losses associated with a cyber incident, according to Rush. Data breach insurance provides only first-party coverage and not third-party coverage.

Data breach insurance does not cover third-party claims, such as lawsuits against the company by impacted individuals or third parties or regulatory action by state or federal government agencies, Rush says. Cyber liability insurance is generally more comprehensive than data breach insurance because it covers both first-party and third-party liability.

Data breach coverage refers to first-party losses incurred by the insured company that has experienced a network security event or cyberattack, according to Das. Such first-party losses may include business interruption losses, legal fees, costs to hire a cybersecurity firm to conduct a forensics investigation of the nature and scope of the incident, and costs incurred to notify affected individuals of the incident if it results in the compromise of their personal information, Das says. Additional first-party losses that might be covered under a data breach insurance policy include public relations costs or even ransom or extortion payments to cyber criminals.

Jaime Palumbo, vice president of claims at Corvus Insurance, says data breach insurance is not a particular form of insurance, but rather a subset of a comprehensive policy. A data breach or incident is typically where sensitive or personal information of employees, customers, clients, etc., is accessed or taken from the policyholder without authorization, she says. In the context of insurance coverage, a cyber policy can provide both first-party and third-party coverage for this type of incident in various ways.

It generally provides coverage for breach response expenses, which are the costs associated with retaining breach or privacy counsel or a digital forensics vendor to perform a review of the affected systems, Palumbo says.

Also, if the policyholder experiences a period of downtime or system interruption due to the cyber incident, there may be business income loss available, she says. And tying in the liability component, coverage would also exist if the policyholder was served with a lawsuit filed by the individuals whose data was affected in the breach.

Companies should make sure a policy includes the right coverage

Fortunately for those interested in purchasing cyber insurance, the cyber product offering generally comes standard with an array of first-party and third-party coverage to ensure that a policyholder is protected against its own losses as well as the cyber losses of others that it may have caused, Palumbo says.

However, a company should still remain vigilant when evaluating coverage to ensure that all avenues of risk for their respective industry classes are covered, she says. The company should understand what data it stores, maintains, and collects to appreciate the impact and ramifications of a potential data breach. Knowing the volume and sensitive nature of maintained records can translate to the amount of coverage necessary to cover a loss.

Rahul Mahna, a partner of outsourced IT services at EisnerAmper, cautions companies to read the fine print to determine the limitations on first-party and third-party coverage.

Cyber liability and data breach insurance are not substitutes for a robust cybersecurity policy  they are complementary, Mahna says. Any company that gambles on a cheaper, after-the-incident solution, such as insurance, in lieu of the necessary people, training, technology, and processes to prevent incidents from ever happening are playing a dangerous, risky game.

What is cyber insurance in the UK and Australia?

Things work a little differently in the UK and Australia says Richard Hodson, founder of London-based RC Hodson Insurance Services. In the UK, companies purchase cyber insurance, which covers both first- and third-party costs if an organizations data or systems have been compromised, damaged, lost, or stolen.

In the UK, cyber insurance comes in two parts: cyber liability insurance, which is the same as third-party insurance, and first-party insurance, says Hodson. Cyber insurance helps protect businesses against the financial implications of data breaches, security failures, illegal threats, or cyberattacks.

We dont use the phrases cyber liability insurance and data breach insurance in the UK because organizations buy both parts of the cyber insurance policy, he says. Companies buy cyber insurance because it covers their own losses for the costs of the investigation and bringing in the forensic people to determine what happened in the event of a breach and any fines for its own losses, for example, as well as the losses suffered by third-parties.

So, the way we sell cyber insurance is very different and the same is true in Australia as well, Hodson says. The Australians follow the UK model.

The National Cyber Security Centre in the UK offers some advice that applies to companies in the US as well as the UK. Cyber insurance will not instantly solve all of your cybersecurity issues, and it will not prevent a cyber breach/attack, according to the organization. Just as homeowners with household insurance are expected to have adequate security measures in place, organizations must continue to put measures in place to protect what they care about.
Researchers investigating an Office 365 account compromise resulting from an adversary-in-the-middle (AitM) phishing attack found evidence of a much larger global attack campaign that spans the past year and is possibly tied to an infostealer malware called FormBook. In the past few years, Sygnias IR teams have engaged in numerous incidents in which world-wide organizations were targeted by BEC attacks, researchers from cybersecurity firm Sygnia said in their report. While some of these attacks were focal and concentrated, some were widely spread and affected a massive number of cross-sectors victims.

Multi-stage AitM and business email compromise

The campaign uncovered by Sygnia uses very similar tactics to an attack campaign that was recently documented by Microsoft in which attackers use AitM phishing to bypass multifactor authentication (MFA) and compromise email accounts inside organizations and then used those accounts to launch additional attacks against their contacts. The attack investigated by Sygnia seems to be different based on the lure and URLs used, but it suggests these sort of multi-stage business email compromise (BEC) campaigns are now a common occurrence.

Based on Sygnias findings from the investigation, the phishing mails spread in a worm-like fashion from one targeted company to others and within each targeted companys employees, the researchers said. All analyzed emails contain the same structure, only differing in their title, senders account and company, and attached link.

The attack starts with rogue emails claiming to contain a document shared by the sender using an online service. When the recipient clicks on the link, they are first taken to a redirection script that sends them to a phishing page hosted on what appears to be a legitimate but compromised website registered to an Indian tax consultancy. In the attack reported by Microsoft, for this stage, the attackers abused a legitimate online graphics generation platform to host their first landing page, which masqueraded as a OneDrive page.

The redirect script in the Sygnia attack is an interesting addition, because it first takes browsers through a domain hosted on Cloudflare that presents an Im not a robot CAPTCHA verification. This was likely added to prevent email security solutions and other URL scanners from automatically following the link to the phishing page, because they would be blocked by Cloudflares robot verification script.

Real users are eventually taken to a fake Microsoft sign-in page generated by a phishing kit and hosted on a domain that has been associated with phishing activity in the past and whose registration information was last updated in June 2022. The phishing kit acts as a proxy between the fake page displayed to the user and the real Microsoft authentication page to forward the MFA request, complete the authentication, and record the session cookie issued by Microsofts website, which the attackers can then abuse to access the account. The attackers then access the account using a VPN service and register a new MFA device on the account to be able to easily login in the future using the captured credentials.
In an unusual attack campaign, a hacker has been setting up rogue GitHub repositories that claim to host zero-day exploits for popular applications but which instead deliver malware. The attacker also created fake GitHub and Twitter accounts posing as security researchers and even used real photos of researchers from well-known cybersecurity firms.

The attacker has made a lot of effort to create all these fake personas, only to deliver very obvious malware, researchers from security firm VulnCheck, who found the rogue repositories, said in a report. Its unclear if they have been successful but given that theyve continued to pursue this avenue of attacks, it seems they believe they will be successful.

While attacks that target security researchers are not a new development, they are relatively rare and more likely to be the work of advanced persistent threat (APT) groups looking to gain access to sensitive information that researchers have access to. This was the case with a campaign reported by Googles Threat Analysis Group in 2021 where a government-backed North Korean entity created a web of fake accounts posing as security researchers on Twitter, Telegram, LinkedIn, and other social media platforms and used them to promote proof-of-concept exploits for existing vulnerabilities that were posted on a blog and in YouTube videos.

How the GitHub fake account campaign works

The fake accounts were used to contact other real researchers and invite them to collaborate. As part of the communication, a Visual Studio project with proof-of-concept exploit code was shared, but this project also included a malicious DLL that deployed malware on the victims computer. Separately, some researchers who visited the blog had their up-to-date systems exploited suggesting the attackers had access to some zero-day exploits.

VulnCheck came across the first rogue repository in early May and reported it to GitHub, which promptly took it down. That repository claimed to host a zero-day remote code execution exploit for Signal, a popular secure communications app thats well regarded in the security community. The attacker then continued to set up new accounts and repositories with fake exploits for Microsoft Exchange, Google Chrome, Discord, and Chromium.

All were set up by fake accounts claiming to belong to researchers who work for a company called High Sierra Cyber Security that doesnt seem to exist. Some of the same names and profile information were used to create Twitter accounts that were then used to promote the repositories, much like in the attack reported by Google.
By Microsoft Security

Iranian state actors have latched on to a new set of preferred attack vectors over the course of the past year. Known as cyber-enabled influence operations (IO), these techniques combine offensive computer network operations with messaging and amplification to shift perceptions, behaviors, or decisions by target audiences in accordance with the perpetrators interests and objectives.

Iranian groups have turned to cyber-enabled IO as a way to boost, exaggerate, or compensate for shortcomings in their network access or cyberattack capabilities. By combining offensive cyber operations with multi-pronged IO, they are able to fuel geopolitical change in alignment with the regimes objectives. These include bolstering Palestinian resistance, fomenting Shiite unrest in the Gulf, and countering the normalization of Arab-Israeli ties.

Continued improvements in Iranian threat actors offensive cyber methods will enhance their ability to be more selective in targeting, including against higher-profile targets, while their new influence techniques will add to the amplification, realism, and ultimate effectiveness of their campaigns.

Read on to learn about the specific techniques Iran is utilizing and what they could mean for future threats.

How is Iran using cyber-enabled IO?

The increased convergence of cyber and IO follows on the heels of highly sophisticated cyberattacks against Iran since July 2021. Irans inability to match these attacks likely prompted the regime to find innovative methods to retaliate in a way that appeared proportional. This is in alignment with their national security preference for proportional and directed retaliation.

Microsoft linked 24 unique cyber-enabled IOs to the Iranian government in 2022  including 17 since mid-June. This is compared to just seven in 2021. As cyber-enabled IO rises, were seeing a corresponding decline in ransomware or wiper attacks by groups linked to Irans military, notably the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). The IRGCs latest string of cyber-enabled IO in the last year has leveraged low-impact, low-sophistication cyberattacks, such as defacements, which take less time and fewer resources, while dedicating more effort to its multi-pronged amplification methods.

Iranian state actors have utilized cyber-enabled IO for a number of purposes. In addition to their efforts in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and support for the politically underrepresented Shiite majority in Bahrain, Iranian groups have also focused on matters closer to home. We have seen Iran adopt cyber-enabled IO to undercut the momentum of nationwide protests by leaking information that aims to embarrass prominent regime opposition figures or to expose their corrupt relationships. Shortly after the outbreak of anti-government protests in Iran in late September 2022, a new cyber persona, Adll Ali, which we assess is acting on Irans behalf, began leaking information to slander several prominent Iranian opposition figures.

Whats next for Iran?

As Iranian state actors hone their influence techniques through the increased use of cyber-enabled IO, they have also added two new amplification methods to their toolkit.

Microsoft observed multiple Iranian actors attempting to use bulk SMS messaging in three cases in the second half of 2022, likely to amplify the psychological effects of their cyber-influence operations. Likewise, Iranian groups have begun impersonating purported victim organizations, or leading figures in those organizations, to add credibility to the effects of the cyberattack or compromise. These sock puppet accounts are often created in the weeks leading up to a publicized cyberattack or data leak.

Iranian cyberattacks and IOs will likely remain focused on retaliating against foreign cyberattacks and perceived incitement of protests inside Iran. We believe Israel, followed by the United States, is likely at the highest risk for future operations. Israeli and US organizations have consistently been the most common targets of Iranian cyber operations in the past year, with a further increase in Israeli targeting in the past six months, judging from Microsoft data.

NATO member nations and European countries may also be at a heightened risk of future Iranian cyber and influence operations. The increased aggressiveness of Iranian actors since 2021 indicates a less bounded operating environment. Likewise, were seeing indicators of a greater future threat for less conventional Iranian targets, as demonstrated by Irans first cyberattack directly against a NATO government (Albania) in July 2022.

In summary, Iranian threat groups have grown increasingly sophisticated as they seek to leverage a variety of cyberattack methods to further their geopolitical agenda. The increase in cyber-enabled IO for greater retaliatory impact is just one example of this trend.

To learn more about emerging nation-state threats, visit Microsoft Security Insider and for a more detailed report on Iranian state activity, download our full special report.
The city of Eugene is seeking community input on changing off-street parking requirements in light of a 2020 emission reduction state mandate, which requires updates to transportation and housing services among all metropolitan areas in Oregon.

Eugene plans to limit off-street parking choices, such as parking lots, with community input in mind. The City of Eugene is hoping to gain insights into what members think about parking changes and their take on how they use and rely on parking, Reid Verner  a land use supervisor in Eugene  said.

The City of Eugene administered a survey open to community members regarding their opinion on public transportation and parking requirements, which was closed on May 8. Planning Commission hearings will be open to the public in June as well.

After former governor Kate Browns executive order to reduce emissions by 80% by 2050, Eugene and other cities must follow emission rules mandated by Climate-Friendly and Equitable Communities.

CFECs rules give cities directives to make changes to land-use and transportation-planning codes to start going in the right direction on dealing with climate change issues, Verner said.

The first part of CFECs plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in Oregon is by reduc[ing] parking requirements in certain areas, such as along frequent bus routes, to free up land for housing and other services, as explained on its website.

The parking reform requires that as of Jan. 1, new development applications may include one off-street parking space per dwelling for residential developments with more than 1 dwelling. The reform also requires that properties within 1/2 a mile of walking distance to frequent transit corridors or that have specific care, such as daycare or shelters, will not have a parking minimum.

Verner explained that if someone wanted to develop their property into business or residential use prior to CFEC, they were required to build a certain number of off-street parking spaces in order to be permitted. However, after CFECs implementation, development areas closer to transit lines will not be required to create off-street parking development.

The idea then, Verner said, is the decision is left up to property owners and developers to decide if they think their customers will prefer parking or not.

Community feedback on the changes to off-street parking has been a mixed bag, Verner said, adding, people are supportive of reducing greenhouse gas emissions. However, people are still reliant on cars. The idea of people not being able to find parking are legitimate concerns.

Areas with more abundant public transport may welcome fewer parking spaces, but areas in Eugene that rely more on cars may find the off-street parking changes more difficult to manage. Areas with less parking in the future may experience reduced rent prices due to the costs of parking development, Verner said.

CFEC plans to implement Climate-Friendly Areas in downtown Eugene, as well as increase public transportation and pedestrian-friendly options. CFEC will be implementing these goals through 2026 in Eugene.

While it may have some growing pains, the project will have good changes for the city going forward, Verner said.
A bombshell select committee appearance by its arrogant bosses today will go down as the moment where ITV lost touch with the working class audience it used to represent.

Mired in scandal over what it knew about Phillip Schofields affair with a young runner, of which virtually everyone at the broadcaster was aware, and a toxic culture behind-the-scenes, its flawed approach soon started to unravel under the lightest questioning from MPs.

Emerging from her self-imposed hibernation was uber woke CEO Dame Carolyn McCall, the three million pound-plus a year boss who it seems to me has tried to purge the channel of anyone who dares disagrees with the views espoused by her acquaintance Meghan Markle.

Remember, this is the holier-than-thou woman who was happy to part company with Piers Morgan, Jeremy Clarkson, Carol McGiffin and Eamonn Holmes who all fail to share in the Sussexes privileged sanctimonious left-wing philosophy, but was slow to properly look into behaviour by the This Morning presenter, which she now concedes she had heard rumours about and agrees it was inappropriate given the power imbalance.

The inconsistencies and contradictions on display were worthy of an episode of the BBC spoof W1A.

Emerging from her self-imposed hibernation was uber woke CEO Dame Carolyn McCall, the three million pound-plus a year boss who it seems to me has tried to purge the channel of anyone who dares disagrees with the views espoused by her acquaintance Meghan Markle.

When Schofield admitted to a sexual relationship with the young runner  who he first met at 15, followed on social media, got work experience on This Morning, before helping him land a permanent job  ITV insisted on the record that it first investigated the rumours in early 2020.

Not so, according to McCall, who now says, it was not an investigationit was an ongoing review.

By effectively admitting that its impossible to even believe ITVs own statements on the subject, their credibility felt shot.

No wonder Im told the young runner, who is now referred to only as Person X, is beginning to question claims about him made by his former employer in what looks like a massive operation to cover their own backsides.

SNP rottweiler John Nicolson, an-ex ITV News star who had actually bothered to do his own research, soon backed that up.

Speaking of the so-called investigations by ITV, Nicolson said the runner felt it was quite difficult to talk honestly to the network executives who were said to have grilled him 12 times about rumours of a relationship.

The words used were, Is everything OK between you and Phillip? He felt he couldnt answer that with much candour, Nicolson explained.

McCall bristled: I want to be very clear it was Phillip putting him under pressure [to pretend everything was OK] and not ITV putting him under pressure.

Despite suggestions that Schofield is paying the young mans legal bills, Nicolson revealed that isnt the case, with the high-powered London firm Mischon de Reya actually working pro bono because they are concerned about some aspects of the story.

That appears to back up my reporting that the runner disagrees with some of the public statements made by ITV and Schofield over the case, but is reluctant to speak out because he is hoping to avoid his identity entering the media.

McCall never denied knowing about rumours of the relationship as far back as December 2019.

That would have been impossible, given I had gone to her right-hand man Paul Moore with details of the story, which he dismissed on the record as malicious gossip.

When Schofield admitted to a sexual relationship with the young runner  who he first met at 15, followed on social media, got work experience on This Morning, before helping him land a permanent job  ITV insisted on the record that it first 'investigated' the rumours in early 2020

I also revealed in a MailOnline exclusive that a This Morning whistleblower emailed her personally in February 2020 asking her to suspend Phillip from the show and launch an investigation. They didnt even receive a courtesy reply.

McCall kept insisting she needed to establish if the dressing room sex was rumour or speculation or if it was malicious.

No one brought us any evidence, she groaned.

What did she want? Pictures? Anything that would have been tangible, McCall answered.

Was the bust-up at the National Television Awards, when the runner declared his love for Phillip in front of the channels biggest stars and executives not enough?

ITV's general counsel Kyla Mullins was asked about how the runner managed to get the job in the first place and she confirmed a long running rumour that hed said he was a family friend of Schofield.

Even then, however, she says it set off no alarm bells for the broadcaster and no one looked into that.

Nicolson added: Did anyone look into whether Phillip followed him on social media when he was very young?

Once again, the answer was no.

ITVs all powerful director of television Kevin Lygo managed to apparently contradict himself within an hour.

At 10.28am he told the committee Schofield had chosen to quit This Morning after telling him: Theres too much noise, I dont want to do it anymore.

But just 34 minutes later, when asked who made the decision for Schofield to leave This Morning, he reversed his story, admitting: I did, ultimately.

He said the staff couldnt cope with the relentless media speculation.

Lygos only real line of defence was that he had been taken in by Phillip.

He looked me in the eye and promised me there was no truth in the rumours, he said.

The inconsistencies and contradictions on display were worthy of an episode of the BBC spoof W1A, writes DAN WOOTTON

But on the specific details, even McCall and Lygo could see their explanations looked ludicrous.

Phillip requested the runner to work with him directly on Dancing On Ice, but still no one asked any questions.

And what about the high production value showreel he was allowed to make, hosting cooking and showbiz segments, while interviewing Phillip and Holly on the set of This Morning, all using ITVs expensive crew?

McCall explained it away by claiming that runners are very ambitious and those requests would normally be granted.

Cue a text from a former senior ITV Daytime staffer to me casting doubt on this and saying: Every runner at ITV should ask the head of daytime for a full studio shoot featuring This Morning's studios and presenters, given McCall claims this is so normal!

On the overall toxicity, the pair insisted it was just bitterness from former stars like Eamonn Holmes and Dr Ranj whose work had been reduced.

Lygo suggested the vocal criticism from that pair was because they wanted more work on the channel having felt they had a feeling of divine right to stay there forever.

But that didnt stack up with the 128 formal complaints made over the past five years, including five on This Morning, two of which specifically related to bullying or harassment.

And what about This Mornings editor Martin Frizzell joking about aubergines to a young female Sky News reporter when asked about the bitterness on the show? McCall would only say that was a foolish and ill-advised comment.

Failing to display a scintilla of regret, McCall said at the moment there was nothing the company could or should have done differently.

If theres a cover up, could people be sacked? She refused to answer.

Indeed, the only moment of pride for the woke broadcaster was when they could boast about gender pay parity between Phillip and Holly, after Fern Britton quit in part because she was paid hundreds of thousands of pounds less than her male co-presenter.

A lot has changed since then, McCall nodded proudly, allowing Lygo to confirm Phillip and Holly were on the same wage when he left.

The problem with ITV is much of what they are saying is totally hypocritical.

They attacked Schofield publicly time and again during the hearing, while lambasting the media for hounding him and boasting theyre funding his counselling.

They claimed that Caroline Flack had been guaranteed shed get her job back on Love Island, when I know from conversations personally with the late star that shed received no such assurances, despite asking for them.

The scandalous treatment of contestants on the X Factor, including whistleblower Rebecca Ferguson, who had directly asked McCall for a meeting, were shrugged off because the show was made by an external producer.

And then possibly the most damning moment about the middle-class snobbery that permeates ITV came when Nicolson asked if theyd heard that daytime production teams on This Morning referred to their viewers as tower block Tracys.

McCall recoiled in faux disgust and spluttered: Its a horrible phrase.

But you just knew what he was saying was true and I think, as a result of this cover up and PR disaster that has followed, many loyal viewers will never trust This Morning or the channel its broadcast on again.

ITV has lost its crown as the channel of the people.
For one poor woman it was simply all too much. Barely minutes into the long-awaited Covid inquiry and she was already darting for the exit, her tear-strewn face collapsing with emotion as though all the dormant horrors of the past few years had suddenly been awoken.

Not long after an usher helped her out, another followed. Then another. Then another. Meanwhile, the rest of the Covid Bereaved Families For Justice who had been allowed into the room stayed put, most of them quietly sobbing as their minds were cast back into their own private hell.

They were being shown a video which featured others sharing their memories of watching loved ones slip away from them from them as this pernicious and stealthy disease tightened its deadly grip.

Horror story followed horror story: A woman who was told by a hospital she would not be allowed to retrieve her dead mother's possessions ('not her nightie, not even my mummy's wee glasses') as they were to be tossed into an incinerator. A man described losing his mother in just seven days.

Another woman revealed how she will remain forever haunted by the chilling death rattle of the rackety trolley which carried her dead brother along a hospital corridor.

Members of the Covid-19 Bereaved Families for Justice campaign group lined up outside, holding pictures of loved ones as they expressed sorrow

What made it all the more eerie were their voices. Not angry or particularly mournful  just bewildered, as though still struggling to work out how someone close to them who had seemed so fit and healthy were then gone within a matter of days.

The setting for this vast, sprawling inquiry is Dorland House, situated in that area behind Paddington station notable for very little, save a few half-decent eateries and a smattering of pubs populated by thirsty commuters avoiding their journey home.

For the next three years, a rather vanilla conference room inside this white stucco-fronted building will now play to host to various buck-passing ministers, puffed-up medical experts with miraculous 20/20 hindsight, and even more expensive lawyers than it takes to draft a Donald Trump pre-nup. At the controls of this clattering train is Baroness Hallett, who had more than just a touch of the Angela Merkels about her. She promised those who had suffered would 'always be at the heart of the inquiry'.

No sooner had she said that than she called the inquiry's lead counsel, Hugo Keith KC, a suave sort of fellow with a buttery voice which speaks of box tickets at the Royal Opera House and lofty sinecures on various charitable boards.

Baroness Hallett - who previously led the inquests into the 7/7 London bombings - also welcomed the 'dignified vigil' held by bereaved relatives outside the building in west London

Mr Keith began by recounting the timeline to global meltdown with military precision. December 12, 2019: a pneumonia of unknown origin reported in Wuhan, China. February 15, 2020: First Covid fatality in Europe. March 2, 2020: A woman in her 70s becomes the first patient in the UK to die from the virus. Keith gave it its clinical name which he pronounced 'Sars-Co-V-2', perhaps to give it a more sinister edge.

Soon, he was replaying all those ghastly tunes which became the miserable soundtrack to our self-imposed incarceration: Daily press conferences, stay at home, wash yer hands  Matt Bloody Hancock.

But it was during his closing remarks that Mr Keith began to veer violently off-piste. He pointed out that the pandemic struck the UK just as it was leaving the European Union. He questioned whether the 'enormous amount of planning and preparation' for Brexit had 'drained the resources' required to lay down a strategy ahead of Covid's arrival.

An even gamier statement was to follow when the lawyer for the bereaved families, Pete Weatherby KC, was called next. Mr Weatherby is a human rights lawyer with wiry hair, horn-rimmed specs and the slightly chippy air of a substitute maths teacher who's never been invited to become a full-time member of the faculty.

Like Mr Keith, he too seemed determined to shoehorn politics into proceedings. He started out by laying much of the blame at the doorstep of Cameron and Osborne's austerity drive, while also railing against cuts to NHS spending.

The whole purpose of this (hugely expensive) inquiry, we were told, was to help provide some sort of closure for grieving families, while allowing us to learn from our mistakes for the future.

But if the inquiry descends into a divisive exercise in point-scoring, as it threatened to do yesterday, it will not only be a waste of taxpayers' money  but a betrayal of those it originally set out to serve.
Tori, from Sydney, says she regrets the procedure and is hoping to reverse it

A woman who went under the knife three years ago to get a 'slightly bigger' butt says she now looks like 'Shrek' and regrets the procedure.

Tori Dejong, from Sydney, took to TikTok to reveal the results of the 'botched' Brazilian Butt Lift (BBL) that she says left her with a 'huge a**'.

A Brazilian Butt lift is a cosmetic procedure which involves a fat transfer from a part of the body to the buttocks, in order to create a fuller bottom.

The mother-of-four added that her own mum warned her against this procedure but she ignored the advice and instead went ahead.

And now Tori, who co-owns a casualwear brand, regrets having the operation because she's stuck with a bottom she no longer wants.

Despite her opinion that she looks like the famous green monster, people praised her shapely derriere, with some even saying it was 'goals'.

Tori Dejong, from, Australia, who had a Brazilian Butt Lift procedure three years ago, says she now looks like Shrek

The mother-of-four says her butt and legs are both 'botched' and she is stuck with a derriere she doesn't want

The casualwear brand CEO revealed via her TikTok page that she only had the procedure so she could get a 'slightly bigger butt'

In a video posted to her account, she wrote: 'Me trying to convince my mum getting a BBL was a smart idea and her reply was "I told you so".

'It was correct advice so now I'm stuck with a huge a** I don't want anymore.'

She further explained in the caption: 'Learn from me - a BBL is not the quick fix to feeling confident.

'Well I actually never wanted a huge a** just slightly bigger and woke up looking like Shrek #bbljourney'.

What's more, she shared in the comments section that she's undergoing legal proceedings against the doctor, who also gave her 'botched' legs.

Some believed the fuller butt was a perfect match for the mother's physique, with one person writing: 'It looks so natural'.

'Yours is actually cute, its not too big' said another.

'But it looks real' added another.

Despite her opinion that she looks like the famous green monster, people have praised her shapely derriere

Someone else replied: 'If it makes you feel better your BBL is probably the best Ive seen. Looks so natural and fits your proportions'.

Meanwhile a few people shared their own Brazilian Butt Lift journeys, with one person adding: 'Oh my gosh this. I regret it so much honestly'.

A second said: 'I had two plus a tummy tuck and breast augmentation, and I still look regular as f**k. Laugh out loud'.

One more commented on her glutes, saying: 'It's honestly not that big horizontal wise, more just long I guess.'

The social media personality has racked up half a million likes on her profile by sharing family and lifestyle content.

She revealed that after falling pregnant at age 21, her mum has been a great help while she tends to her family of five.

And in the past, Tori has hit back at haters who question her outfit choices and say she shouldn't post them on TikTok because she's a mother.

BBLs and bottom augmentation procedures have risen in popularity over the years due to the curvaceous derrieres of celebrities like the Kardashians and rapper Cardi B.

During the procedure, a patients fat cells are harvested from another part of the body and treated before being reintroduced to their buttocks.

As the surgery uses your own fat material, the BBL is said to leave you with a more natural-looking result.

However, doctors are warning the popular trend of Brazilian Butt Lifts can be deadly - especially when women travel overseas in search of a cheaper procedure.
Queen Letizia's strong maternal instincts were on display yesterday as she doted over children living in Cartagena, Colombia.

The Spanish queen, 50, was dressed in a similar functional outfit as she donned to arrive in the South American nation, including a white shirt, beige cargo pants and sensible walking boots.

Her hair was pulled back into a ponytail as she got to work meeting parents and children in a community in Cartagena on the country's Caribbean coast.

While meeting the members of the community, Letizia was pictured listening intently - and the mother-of-two couldn't help but make a fuss of one of the toddlers.

She lightly took his tiny foot in her hands as he was being carried by his mother, while he looked back at her from behind a mass of stunning curly hair.

Queen Letizia of Spain couldn't help but make a fuss of a toddler with a mass of adorable curls as she visited a community in Cartagena, Colombia, yesterday

Elsewhere she was pictured chatting to school children during a visit to Escuela Taller de Cartagena.

Letizia's visit marked the first full day of her trip to Colombia, where she was greeted by the country's First Lady, Veronica Alcocer, upon arrival.

As she chatted to Mrs Alcocer, Letizia wore the AECID jacket which featured the Spanish and European Union Flags.

Today she was joined by the First Lady once again, who was dressed in a dark grey jumpsuit as she walked under the baking heat.

The visit will see the Queen monitoring the work done in Colombia by Spain's international development agency, AECID.

The Spanish Queen looked ready to get to work as she donned a white shirt, beige cargo pants and the AECID red gilet

As she visited the community in Cartagena, the Queen couldn't help but make a fuss of the toddler, who was dressed in green dinosaur shorts

As Letizia arrived at the community in Cartagena on Colombia's Caribbean Coast, she chatted to mothers and their children

The mother-of-two looked cool in the heat as she wore her brunette locks in a high ponytail and donned the AECID gilet

The Queen partnered up with Colombia's First Lady Veronica Alcocer, who greeted her upon her arrival in the South American nation

The Queen looked cool and collected in the heat as she walked through the community in Cartagena

The Queen looked deep in conversation as she chatted to members of the community during her visit

During her visit, some of the school pupils treated the Queen of Spain to a performance while she watched on with the First Lady

The Queen visited pupils at Escuela Taller Cartagena de Indias and chatted to them about their lives

Towards the end of her visit, the Queen posed for photos with the school pupils and staff members

The Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation's recent work in Colombia has included initiatives to develop renewable energy, with the combined aims of reducing the nation's carbon footprint and increasing competition in the agricultural sector.

During her visit, Letizia will be learning more about how such projects are progressing.

The Queen's last public appearance was in her home country of Spain, when she attended a Santander event.

Dressed in a highly stylish blue wrap dress that she had worn before, the queen's enviable trim figure was on full display.

The high neck, midi length dress features a 'D-ring' buckle and is pulled straight out of high end Spanish brand Adolfo Dominguez's look book.

The queen attended the 15th edition of the Euros en tu nomina - meaning 'Euros from your Salary' programme which is an initiative put on by Santander to promote projects that improve society.

The winning social projects will receive a contribution to be able to develop their projects.
Tammy Slaton has revealed she can now walk unassisted without oxygen following her impressive 300lbs weight lost in a new video.

The 36-year-old, from Kentucky, who first rose to fame in early 2020 when she starred in the TLC reality series 1000-lb Sisters alongside her sister Amy, surprised her physician, Dr Eric Smith in a sweet clip shared on Instagram.

Tammy has used social media to update her fans on her weight loss progress and health improvements since her time on the show, with the latest clip revealing that she doesn't need to rely on oxygen when she walks.

In the footage, the super slimmer can be seen walking down a corridor with the encouragement of Dr Smith.

Impressed viewers also praised Tammy for her efforts and congratulated her on the milestone in the comments.

TLC star from Kentucky Tammy Slaton surprised her doctor by walking unassisted in a video she's shared on Instagram following her 300lbs weight loss

Fans congratulated 1000lbs Sisters' Tammy on her dramatic health progress and new milestone

The video was originally shared by Dr Smith, who said seeing Tammy walking on her own was 'the best birthday surprise.'

The TLC star was seen walking down a corridor without help, with a wide grin on her face, wearing a floral dress with tights and a grey sweater.

'There is something missing,' she said proudly, referring to the walker she has been relying on up until now.

Enthusiastic doctors around could be heard exclaiming: 'Look at you!' and 'That's awesome,' as Tammy made her way down the corridor.

The reality TV star wasn't wearing her usual oxygen tube either, demonstrating she can now move without the extra supply since her weight loss.

As one doctor remarked her oxygen tank was missing, Tammy proudly announced she has not needed it for two weeks.

The video's comments were inundated by supportive fans.

Tammy, pictured in 2021, once weighed 717 pounds. Her own family believed she would be dead within five years

'Walking on her own? That's fantastic,' one said.

'Love this!!! Oh my god, Tammy looks sooo good,' another said.

'Tammy you look amazing,' another gushed.

'Seeing Tammy walk like that shows what a difference you make in people's lives,' another wrote to Dr Eric.

Tammy has made leaps and bounds in her weight loss journey, and was already seen walking on her own last month, during a shopping trip in Indiana.

She was seen coming out of a gas station walking completely unaided - without the help of her usual stroller.

Tammy, who was sporting a shock of orange hair, rested her hand on a car as she stepped down from the curb.

She paused momentarily to shake her hand in apparent pain - as if she had received a light scolding from the hot hood.

Tammy has also revealed she stopped using the oxygen tank she would have to rely on in the past, pictured

Dr Eric Smith, right, said seeing Tammy walking on her own was the 'best birthday surprise' as he shared the video online

The reality star, who was still using her oxygen tube, then popped into a Sam's Club in the area to pick up groceries.

It was there that she resumed the use of a mobility scooter to get around both the parking lot and store before clambering into the car with the aid of portable steps.

The reality star's progress was the focus of much praise on social media, with dozens of users speaking out to congratulate Tammy on her transformation and health journey.

'Way to go Girl,' one person wrote - while another chimed in: 'Congrats, #TammySlaton on your tremendous weight loss. You look like a different person! Keep on goin'!'

A third Twitter user added: 'We are soooo proud of you girl!!! I love you and I am praying for you all the time...you are an inspiration to so many people...God bless this beautiful woman.'

Impressed viewers also praised Tammy for her efforts and congratulated her on the milestone in the comments

Other supportive commenters expressed their 'pride' at how far Tammy has come, with one writing: 'I'm so happy for her,' while another simply said, 'Way to go!'

But being able to walk independently is a major feat for a woman who once weighed 717 pounds and whose family believed she would be dead within five years.

She reportedly reached rock bottom in late 2021 when she was rushed to the hospital after she had trouble breathing.

Tammy had to have a tube inserted into her throat to assist her and spent three weeks on life support.

The health scare inspired the reality star to finally change her lifestyle and she checked herself into a food addiction program.

And, as she turned over her new leaf, she also quit smoking and drinking completely.

The latest season of 1000-Lb Sisters gave viewers a glimpse into the weight loss facility in Ohio.

It was there that Tammy reached her weight loss goal - going from 717 pounds to 534 pounds - and successfully qualified for bariatric surgery.

She said: 'I'm feeling thrilled, proud, excited  just all the emotions. I proved everybody wrong.

'Everybody that doubted me, I finally got mine! My told-you-so moment!'

The weight loss transformation has also helped her find new love, according to The Sun.

Tammy is reportedly dating 25-year-old Greg Morgan - just weeks after news hit the web that she had split from her husband, Caleb Willingham.

She is said to have met her new man through a dating app.

A source told the outlet that they 'immediately hit it off' and have been 'seeing each other for about a month now.'

'He's come to see her a handful of times. He takes a six-hour bus from Indianapolis to visit her in Kentucky,' they dished.
An English sparkling wine has been named one of the best in the world at the prestigious Decanter World Wine Awards, as red, white and rose from the UK bagged top spots for the first time.

While British wine was looked down upon by critics for decades, changing acidity levels of soil where grapes grow in the UK means homegrown bottles now rivals that of France, Spain and Italy.

In total, 143 UK wines picked up gongs at the awards with one from Kent being awarded the 'best in show', praised for its 'citrus purity, a seaside freshness, and an unmistakable stoniness'.

Gusbourne Blanc de Blancs 2018 was given a best in show accolade, while winemakers across Hampshire, Sussex and Kent also saw their wine pick up gold medals.

The 65 Chardonnay was noted as having 'remarkable assurance and accomplishment'.

Gusbourne Blanc de Blancs 2018 was given a best in show accolade, while winemakers across Hampshire, Sussex and Kent also picked up gold medals

Ridgeview's Rose de Noirs 2018, which also cost 65, picked up a platinum medal (left), Hambledon Vineyard's Premier Cuvee Brut NV (55) picked up a gold medal (right)

Elsewhere, Ridgeview's Rose de Noirs 2018, which also cost 65, picked up a platinum medal.

The East Sussex winery uses Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier grapes and was praised for its 'full palate, full of flavour, an oaked rose in sparkling form with resolved tannins'.

Hampshire wines also performed well, picking up five gold medals for Hambledon Vineyard's Premier Cuvee Brut NV (55), Candover Valley Wines' Brook Brut NV (33), and Raimes Classic Brut 2018 (31).

Nethercote Hill Pinot Noir-Rondo, at 17 (left), picked up a silver award while Candover Valley Wines Candover Brook Brut (right), got a gold gong

Even the French prefer English sparkling wine! Brits drink nearly three times as much Champagne than English sparkling wine due to outdated perceptions of being higher quality and making a better impression on others - but in a blind taste test, the French actually preferred wine grown on British shores. Kent-based wine producer Chapel Down took its best-selling sparkling wine to the Champagne region of France, to conduct the taste test. Under the playful guise of 'Chapelle en Bas', a literal brand translation of Chapel Down, the English wine producer invited French consumers to try its Brut alongside a best-selling branded Champagne. The verdict? 60 per cent of consumers preferred Chapel Down to Champagne. Chapelle en Bas was praised by locals and tourists alike  describing the wine as 'fresher' and 'crisper'  but there were several shocked faces and raised eyebrows after revealing this mysterious cuvee hailed from England. Chapel Down Chief Marketing Officer, Liam Newton, said: 'The French know a thing or two about sparkling wine, with their centuries of winemaking heritage, so what better place than Champagne to sample our Chapel Down Brut? We are incredibly proud of the exceptional quality of our English sparkling wine, and it was great to have this affirmed by the French themselves. Advertisement

Two wineries in Kent also picked up Gold Medals, including Chapel Down's Kit's Coty Coeur De Cuvee Extra Brut 2016 (36) and Woodchurch Classic Brut 2017 (33).

Of the UK's 143 wins, seven were awarded to red wines - including Ridgeview's Pinot Noir Reserve Brut at 57 and Nethercote Hill Pinot Noir-Rondo, at 17, which both picked up silver awards.

The master of wine Simon Field, regional chair for the UK at DWWA, said: 'The increase in both volume and quality of the still wines submitted, their provenance as varied as their quality was consistent.

'The quality of the sparklers, secondly, continues to impress as the category takes on maturity; as the wines and winemakers alike take on a little more age it becomes increasingly clear that the long-held faith in such things has most definitely not been informed by misguided patriotism.'

The Decanter Awards is now in its 20th year and has become the most respected wine competition in the world.

A total of 236 judges from 30 countries judged the awards, including 53 masters of wine and 16 sommeliers.

The English success follows on from the International Wine Challenge, where an English White Trophy was awarded to Lyme Bay Winery for its Martin's Lane Chardonnay 2020. Devon's Lympstone Manor Estate took home the English Red Trophy for its Triassic Pinot Noir 2020.

It's the first time that still English wine has been recognised for both red and white.

Helen McGinn, one of the six Co-Chairs of the International Wine Challenge told FEMAIL: 'England, particularly regions in the south, has been internationally recognised for the production of world-class sparkling wines for some time now.

'In recent years, England's still wines have also come on leaps and bounds and it is great to see both reds and whites recognised with trophies in this year's challenge.'
The 52-year-old royal looked immaculate in a Dolce and Gabbanna dress

Queen Rania Al Abdullah of Jordan looked stunning in a floral pink dress when she attended a graduation ceremony at The International Academy - Amman on Tuesday.

The striking royal wore a beautiful lace dress in pale pink by Italian fashion brand Dolce and Gabbana for the ceremony.

She customised the fitted, long-sleeved number with a slim silver waist belt with a gold clasp.

Queen Rania, 52, often praised for her impeccable taste, paired the flounce-hem, knee-length dress with Dior's elegant rose gold and blush mesh pointed toe pumps.

The fresh and summery outfit was complimented by her Dolce and Gabbana Sicily small tote bag in a pale grey.

Queen Rania Al Abdullah of Jordan wore a beautiful floral dress in pale pink by Italian fashion house Dolce and Gabbana to attend a graduation ceremony at The International Academy - Amman on Tuesday

Queen Rania customised the flounce-hem dress with a slim silver belt for the ceremony at the independent, co-educational day school she founded in 2004

Queen Rania has spoken at previous graduation ceremonies at the school, including one in 2004 where she made a memorable motivational speech, encouraging students to not let other people's prejudices confine them

Queen Rania's jewellery was elegant while original, especially her striking pink '1919' ring by Lebanese designer Ralph Masri.

The mother-of-four, who founded the International Academy - Amman in 2004, wore her highlighted hair loose and kept her make-up natural for the important occasion.

In an open letter on the school's website, Queen Rania explains hat when she opened the school almost two decades ago 'it put forward a bold and optimistic mission: instilling a lifelong love of learning in its students, and arming them with the curiosity, compassion, and confidence to become the leaders of tomorrow.'

She writes: 'We aimed to foster a new generation of global citizens, able to serve as agents of change without ever losing sight of their roots.'

Pictured here with Hana Kanan, the director of The International Academy - Amman, Queen Rania paired her pink dress with Dior's elegant rose gold and blush mesh pointed toe pumps

She carried a small tote bag in pale grey, also by Dolce and Gabbana, and wore a stunning pink ring by the Lebanese designer Ralph Masri

Queen Rania, who handed out diplomas at the ceremony on Tuesday, saw her youngest son, Prince Hashem bin Abdullah, graduate from King's Academy, a boarding school in Madaba, in May

In a moving speech at the school's 2013 graduation ceremony, Queen Rania encouraged students not to be 'trapped by other people's borders and boundaries - by their beliefs and biases.'

She added: 'You have to walk away from the familiar. Take the un-trodden path. Find a third way between left and right. Even take a few missteps, stumble, and fall!'

The graduation ceremony at the independent, co-educational day school comes soon after her own youngest son's high school graduation in May.

There, she looked excited and happy to celebrate the achievements of Prince Hashem bin Abdullah who attended King's Academy, a boarding school in Madaba.

Queen Rania attended the graduation with her husband, King Abdullah II, Princess Iman and her husband Jameel Alexander Thermiotis, along with Princess Salma and Crown Prince Hussein.

The Queen captioned her Instagram post: 'Guys, can we slow down a bit? This mum needs to catch her breath! 'Another proud family moment at Hashem's high school graduation today.'

Recently, the family have had a lot to celebrate, with Rania's eldest son Crown Prince Hussein marrying architect Rajwa Al Saif on June 1.
An American influencer who lied her way into Cambridge University said she did it because she loves the idea of 'poshness'.

Virginia-born Caroline Calloway, now 31, has been dubbed the 'Gatsby of Cambridge' after it was revealed she had tricked the prestigious university into giving her a degree place in 2013 by lying about her qualifications on her application form.

In an interview with the Telegraph, Calloway, who regularly documented her life on social media while studying History of Art at St Edmunds College, says she faked her application because she 'f***ing loves poshness' and wanted to experience the eccentricities of upper class English life.

In 2015, on the back of an ever-growing Instagram following who lapped up posts about her life as a Cambridge undergraduate, she received a book advance in a $500,000 deal to tell her life story - but failed to deliver it, fobbing off fans two years later that the book's premise had been 'sexist'.

In 2019, a former friend, Natalie Beach, published an opinion piece in The Cut claiming she was in fact responsible for Calloway's success, and had been the person behind her famous Instagram captions - and the influencer's life quickly unravelled.

In a new interview with The Telegraph, Calloway - dubbed the Gatsby of Cambridge - said she found the British educational institution alluring because it offered a way into upper class English life

Speaking to journalist Celia Walden from her inherited apartment in Tampa, Florida, she said she's now paid the original advance back in full and finally written a self-published memoir - called Scammer - about her time at the British university, saying she would be 'f***ing bat**** insane' to not 'embrace' her story.

She told Ms Walden that she had found it impossible to resist the allure of high society England, saying: 'I just love everything about Oxbridge and posh country houses. I wish I were drawn to something more chic and socially acceptable, but the fact of the matter is I f***ing love poshness!'

Her picturesque photos of Cambridge life, which formed part of a blog she began in 2012 about the experience of an American student at the university, attracted thousands of fans.

She told MailOnline when she was a student at St Edmunds College: 'I feel like I'm in Harry Potter, turning up for dinner in the grand hall in my robes and having beautiful three-course meals'.

She told Telegraph journalist Celia Walden that she would be 'bats*** insane' not to embrace her story. Her former friend Natalie Beach revealed that she had helped her write many of the posts that won her fans in an article for The Cut in 2019

Virginia-born Calloway, now 31, rocketed to fame through her Instagram posts on social media during her time studying History of Art - she's now written a new memoir about her experiences entitled 'Scammer'

She studied at Cambridge from 2013 until 2016 and now says she was in the grip of a prescription drug addiction at the time, taking the amphetamine Adderall.

Cambridge University hasn't commented on Calloway's admissions about how she achieved her university place, telling MailOnline earlier this year: 'We cannot comment on individual students, however we take statements like this very seriously.'

In 2019, she had hosted a series of 'creative workshops' which cost $165 per session, but Calloway's reputation began to falter when she was linked to notorious Fyre Festival conman Billy McFarland after the expensive workshops she hosted fell short of expectations. The following year, the Guardian reported Calloway had refunded disappointed customers.

The influencer, who says she now takes eight anti-depressants and anti-anxiety tablets a day - saw her lies exposed by Beach around the same time her father took his own life.

Calloway's social media posts were coveted by thousands of fans envious of her lifestyle

It was claimed that the captions for her Instagram posts had been penned by one of her friends

'I feel like I'm in Harry Potter, turning up for dinner in the grand hall in my robes and having beautiful three-course meals,' she told MailOnline when she was a student. Pictured here wearing one of her staple flower crowns

Instagram influencer Caroline Calloway was accused of buying followers to create a fan base for herself to sell her unwritten memoir

Jumping for joy, Calloway appeared to be having the most wonderful time online

Her popularity sparked a 400,000 book deal, the result of which  entitled Scammer  was released in May

Although Calloway defended herself in TV interviews and through her Instagram account, the controversy ultimately caused her to retreat from social media and delete her Instagram posts.

However, before wiping her account clean, she revealed in a lengthy post that she had made up most of the money she owed to her publisher through an OnlyFans account.

She told the Telegraph that she would offer an unapologetic 'F*** you' to her former friend who lifted the lid on her untruths.

After going dark on Instagram for several years, she revived her account this year to reveal the cover of her new book, Scammer.

She captioned the photo of the book: 'Babe wake up the new manic pixie dream book is dropping mid-May.'

Cambridge University student Caroline Calloway gained a huge Instagram following with her picturesque photos and wistful captions which supported a blog she began writing in 2012
A woman who's covered in tattoos - including her eyeballs and face - and has a split tongue has hit out at online trolls calling her an alien.

Orylan (@llizardpersonfml) from Texas, slammed her critics in a TikTok as she replied to a mean comment on her appearance.

The dancer and OnlyFans creator, 24, looked very unbothered by digs at her looks as she lip-synched along to Hell Shell by Young Nudy, featuring the lyric: 'I'm an alien'.

As well as sporting bold body ink on her neck, forehead and under her eyes, Orylan also showed off brightly dyed neon green and pink hair, piercings and gem-studded fanged teeth.

She also flexed her split tongue for maximum extra-terrestrial effect.

Orylan (@llizardpersonfml) from Texas, slammed her critics in a TikTok as she replied to a mean comment on her appearance

The clip, which has racked up more than 351,500 views, received mixed feelings from commenters.

'That will look good when you're 60 and still single,' one quipped.

'Daddy issues big time,' a second wrote.

Another added: 'WHAT THE HELL IS THAT.'

But many were also fans of Orylan's experimental aesthetics, rushing to offer their praises.

'You are gorgeous,' one gushed.

'I want it!!' a person wrote.

Elsewhere a third commented: 'You're awesome.'

As well as sporting bold body ink on her neck, forehead and undereye area, Orylan also showed off brightly dyed neon green and pink hair, piercings and gem-studded fanged teeth

The clip, which has racked up more than 351,500 views, received mixed feelings from commenters

Orlyan has also in past stressed that despite the assumptions people make about her appearance, she had a 'pretty good childhood'.

Speaking to Soft White Underbelly last year, she opened up about her past and laughed when an old picture of her - with no facial body ink and a clean-cut blonde bob - showed up.

'I grew up with all my family,' she explained.

'Most people look at me and they believe I was abandoned... I had my whole family, my family has been in my life... very supportive, very loving family, a few not so supportive.

'I grew up really Christian so I also believe in God... people don't think I do, I look like a demon to most people.'

But many were also fans of Orylan's experimental aesthetics, rushing to offer their praises in the comments

Orlyan said her father wanted her to study and be a nurse - but she simply couldn't live a 'cookie cutter' life.

Now, her whole family knows what she does - and her grandmother has even 'shouted out her OnlyFans'.

'I do have two little sisters and they're still young,' she admitted. 'I don't want them to follow in these footsteps though, I'm not recommending this to anybody.'

In her TikToks, where the content creator has some 128,000 followers, Orylan appears to have made a recent move to Los Angeles, California.
The royal family of Bhutan has announced that a new Prince or Princess is on the way.

Queen Jetsun Pema, 33, is expecting a third baby with King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck in the Autumn.

The happy news was shared by the royal household on the Queen's official Instagram account.

The Queen already has two sons, Prince Jigme Namgyel Wangchuck, seven and Jigme Ugyen Wangchuck, three.

It comes after the couple attended the royal wedding in Jordan earlier this month where the Queen showed just a hint of a baby bump.

The royal family of Bhutan has announced on Instagram that Queen Jetsun Pema is expecting her third child. Pictured with King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck and their two sons last December

The announcement shared on social media read: 'Their majesties, The Druk Gyalpo and Gyaltsuen are happy to share the news that Her Majesty is expecting their third child, due in early autumn.

Their Majesties wish to thank everyone for their continued good wishes and prayers,' it went on.

No further details about the baby have been released at this time.

Jetsun Pema, who celebrated her 33rd birthday earlier this month, was last seen at the wedding of Crown Prince Hussein of Jordan in early June.

For the occasion, she wore a glamourous traditional outfit in golden, beige and blue, which she matched with a small blush pink clutch and a beaded necklace and matching earrings with blue and orange gems.

She was accompanied by her sister-in-law, Princess Euphelma, who also wore blue

She also attended King Charles' coronation in London in early May, with her husband, who studied in the UK.

King Jigme, the hugely popular fifth Druk Gyalpo, studied in the UK and the US and ascended the throne in 2006, aged just 26 after his own father abdicated.

Jetsun Pema, who celebrated her 33rd birthday earlier this month , was last seen at the wedding of Crown Prince Hussein of Jordan in early June

The announcement of Jetsun Pema's baby news was shared by the royal household on social media

Unlike his son, who plans to have a monogamous marriage, the former King, who introduced democracy to Bhutan during his reign, has four wives, all sisters who he married on the same day.

But despite his own upbringing, the current monarch has made clear that he only plans to have one wife, whom he married on October 13, 2011, when she was still an international relations student at Regent's College in London.

The match made headlines at the time because the young King was more openly affectionate with his wife than citizens were used to - leaving the couple to be called 'the William and Kate of the Himalayas'.

However, the King's very public displays of affection - which included kissing his wife on the cheek and holding her hand - was well-received by young people, with many even choosing to follow the royals' example.

The Bhutanese King and Queen married in 2011 - the same year that Prince William and Kate were wed - and have since welcomed two sons.

The couple have an unusually close family, with the King's sister and brother married to the Queen's brother and sister.

The Queen's older sister Yeatso Lhamo is married to the King's brother Prince Jigme Dorji Wangchuck.

In September, Pema and Jigme were among the world leaders who travelled to London to attend Queen Elizabeth II's funeral at Westminster Abbey.
A woman has warned travellers 'not to have their boobs out' in Rome, after she was denied entry to several tourist attractions over her outfit choice.

Jacki Hodge, 26, from Australia, took to TikTok to explain that her white mini dress, which was backless with cutouts across the bodice, had caused quite a stir.

She said the 'sl**ty' dress looked incredible in photos but was far from ideal, as she was turned away from some of Italy's most famous monuments including The Vatican and Pantheon.

She advised others not to 'dress like a h**' and to ensure their outfits covered their knees - but for the stubborn fashionistas, she suggested carrying a robe or scarf.

The viral clip has been viewed almost a whopping 2 million times, with many taking to the comments to lambast Jacki for not knowing better.

@jetsetting_jacki Hot tip: dont dress like a hoe in Europe  at least not in the daytime when you want to go to churches and monuments You also get funny looks sometimes in crop tops and short shorts etc. so just beware and dress appropriately #europesummer #traveltipsandhacks #europetravel #cheaptravel #solotravel  original sound - Jetsetting Jacki

Jacki Hodge, 26, from Australia, took to TikTok to advise tourists not to have their 'boobs out' while visiting tourist attractions in Rome

Jacki says she was turned away from some of Italy's most famous monuments including The Vatican and Pantheon

Jacki explained: 'So if anyone's planning to wear cute s**t like this in Europe listen up.'

While pointing to a still image of her casual sundress, she added: 'It looks f**king great in photos.

'But on this day in Rome, I couldn't get into the Pantheon, I couldn't get into The Vatican.

'I couldn't get into this like museum of dead people thing because I was dressed too 'sl**ty'.

She then discussed her understanding of the perfect dress code, which included covering your shoulders.

She continued: 'You can't have your shoulders out, you can't have your boobs out, you definitely can't have cutouts and the dress was backless.

'So annoyingly, I didn't bring like a scarf or a jacket or anything. That would've been fine if you do want to pack something like that.

'I'd already been in a lot of the monuments so I was like whatever I'll just wait out the front with my friends.

'But in the museum of dead people thing as well, you also had to have your knees covered so yeah'.

Many viewers took to the comments section to lambast Jacki over her outfit choice to a 'religious building'

She said people should 'be weary' when selecting their travel wardrobe, and that some places sold robes at the ready in case of a similar slip up.

The self-titled jet setter invoked comments of ridicule from those who felt her outfit choice to a 'religious building' should've been more modest.

One person responded: 'I feel like people refuse to do research before going to places like this.

'Ive been to Rome, first thing I read was to dress appropriate for churches'.

Another person said: 'Basically if you want to enter a church dress as if you are going to a church.'

A third agreed: 'This isnt a general Europe rule really. Its just if youre visiting religious buildings/sites and even then it can be rare'.

A fourth said: 'Pretty common with a lot of religious buildings. We visited a Hindu temple in Fiji and people who werent covered needed to wear shawls'.

Meanwhile one person asked: 'How do people not know this? Laugh out loud'.

The influencer has made somewhat of a name for herself travelling the world and visiting countries like Croatia, Nepal and Myanmar.
'Britain's last witch' was convicted only 79 years ago - and a new book has delved into the history of how the astonishing modern witch-trial came about.

Witchcraft by Marion Gibson, set to be published on June 22, looks at thirteen significant trials to tell the global history of witchcraft and witch-hunts.

One of the trials the author explores is that of Helen Duncan's, who was sentenced to nine months in jail for witchcraft in 1944 after having a 'premonition' about the sinking of HMS Barham before the news was made public.

Mother-of-six Duncan, known as Nellie, from Callander in Stirlingshire, was thought to be well-known in spiritualist circles for her apparent ability to communicate with the dead.

In 1941, she held a seance in Portsmouth where she claimed to have made contact with a sailor who had died aboard HMS Barham during World War Two, reported The Telegraph.

Helen Duncan (pictured left, outside the Old Bailey in 1944) was sentenced to nine months in jail under the Witchcraft Act of 1735

The Royal Navy vessel had been torpedoed in the Mediterranean, with 800 lives lost, but the news had not yet been made public.

In 1944, the story of her 'revelation' would be told at the end of her trial for defrauding her customers - and yet, instead of facing allegations of deception or theft, Duncan was charged under the 1735 Witchcraft Act.

'The British public was gripped by a modern witch-trial, shocked that a 200-year-old law had been revived,' author Marion told the publication.

Duncan, who claimed she could contact the afterlife, eventually tried to make a career out of her 'gift'.

Marion explained: ' She and [husband] Henry set up a darkened seance room where white gloop - "ectoplasm" - appeared before paying visitors, flowing out of Nellies mouth and nose to manifest spirits bodies. It looked awfully like muslin cloth, but her customers loved it.'

Soon, after being accepted by the London Spiritualists Alliance, she reportedly jetted off on seance tours of the UK.

Two years after the HMS Barham sinking, in January 1944, Duncan visited Portsmouth once again, where she claimed to give those who had lost loved ones in the war 'updates' about them, or better yet, hope that they'd actually survived.

During one seance, the mother of missing RAF navigator Freddie Nuttall was reportedly given the sad news that he had been shot - but at another seance she was told he was 'living round about France, and someone is caring for him'.

Mother-of-six Duncan (pictured), known as Nellie, from Callander in Stirlingshire, was thought to be well-known in spiritualist circles for her apparent ability to communicate with the dead

Marion explained: ' She and [husband] Henry set up a darkened seance room (pictured) where white gloop - "ectoplasm" - appeared before paying visitors, flowing out of Nellies mouth and nose to manifest spirits bodies. It looked awfully like muslin cloth, but her customers loved it.'

Nuttall had actually been killed when his plane exploded on June 23, 1943.

But police soon raided Duncan's seance after some visitors complained about her 'distasteful speculation' about their loved ones.

Duncan and the organisers were at first charged under the Vagrancy Act, used to prosecute travelling fortune tellers. They were later facing allegations under the Witchcraft Act 1735.

Marion explained: 'It was aimed at people who charged fees for fraudulent divination, healing or treasure-hunting, not at the supposed practice of those magical acts.'

Yet, due to the Act's title, Duncan was labelled 'a witch'. She was arrested, branded a traitor and ended up being one of the last people to be charged under the Witchcraft Act of 1735 and was sentenced to nine months in jail. She would serve six.

Duncan, often dubbed Britain's last witch, died in 1956, aged 59, while the Witchcraft Act of 1735 was repealed in 1951. She is said to have continued to conduct seances until her death.

In 1941, Duncan held a seance in Portsmouth where she claimed to have made contact with a sailor who had died aboard HMS Barham (pictured)

Historians now say HMS Barhams sinking took around two months to be officially announced to the public - and in that time, Duncan could've heard rumours about the loss.

Winston Churchill, then prime minister, called the whole episode 'obsolete tomfoolery'.

In 2016, Duncan's supporters urged the Scottish Government to use the template of Turing's Law to absolve her of her crime.

WWII code-breaker Alan Turing was found guilty of gross indecency in 1952 for being gay. He committed suicide after his conviction and was given a posthumous pardon by Her Majesty the Queen in 2013.

Graham Hewitt, who was tasked to fight for a pardon by Duncan's grandchildren, said at the time: '"Turing's law" has set a precedent for Helen's pardon to come.

'And it's one her family will welcome. The circumstances are almost identical. Like Alan Turing, Helen was convicted under legislation now long repealed.

'There is a precedent and we are writing to the Scottish Government demanding they do the same.'

The Scottish Parliament rejected a petition to pardon Helen in 2008. Mr Hewitt added: 'Justice has been a long time coming for Helen.'

A spokeswoman for the Scottish Government said at the time: 'Scottish Ministers have a power to consider a posthumous pardon under the Royal Prerogative of Mercy.

'In the event that an application was received on behalf of Helen Duncan, they would give it due consideration.'
King Charles and Queen appeared in great spirits this afternoon as they hosted a reception at Buckingham Buckingham to celebrate the 75th anniversary of HMT Empire Windrush's arrival into the UK.

The newly-crowned King and Queen were joined by BBC News anchor Clive Myrie - whose parents were part of the Windrush generation and travelled to the UK in the 60s.

Other high profile guests at the event included veteran journalist Sir Trevor McDonald, former Loose Women panelist June Sarpong and Jamaican-born entrepreneur Levi Roots.

For the occasion, the Queen wore a stylish button-down green-and-white printed dress by Samantha Sung.

The royal completed her ensemble with a dainty gold pendant necklace and some pearl earrings.

Queen Camilla smiles for a photo with former Loose Women panelist June Sarpong at the Windrush reception this afternoon

At the historic event this afternoon, the royal couple will unveil 10 new portraits of Windrush elders.

The King commissioned the pieces of artwork in 2022 when he was still the Prince of Wales.

The subjects were carefully selected by the specially-appointed Windrush Portraits Committee - which was chaired by Baroness Floella Benjamin.

The portraits will pay tribute to the Windrush Generation and the lasting impact they had had on the UK.

King Charles is said to have personally selected Black artists to paint the portraits.

The former troop ship Empire Windrush landed in Britain on June 22, 1948, carrying people from across the Caribbean who had responded to an ad offering tickets for 28 (around 1040 in today's money) to those wanting to work in the UK.

Between 1948 and 1970 more than half a million Windrush migrants from the West Indies left their homes to emigrate to the UK.

Those who came from former and current British colonies had an automatic right to settle in the UK, as the country recognised the reconstruction of the British economy required a large influx of labour from abroad.

Many of the migrants had fought for the UK in the Second World War and soon took up jobs as nurses, cooks, engineers, mechanics and more.

King Charles appeared in great spirits this afternoon before unveiling the 10 portraits he commissioned last year

Queen Camilla shakes hands with Sir Trevor Lawson McDonald during a reception to mark the 75th anniversary of the arrival of HMT Empire Windrush

King Charles shakes hands with a guest during a reception to mark the 75th anniversary of the arrival of HMT Empire Windrush at Buckingham Palace

The newly-crowned King and Queen were joined by BBC News anchor Clive Myrie - whose parents were part of the Windrush generation and travelled to the UK in the 60s.

Pictured: Queen Camilla speaks with Jamaican-born entrepreneur Levi Roots, who shot to fame with his Reggae Reggae sauce on Dragon's Den

King Charles shakes hands with Michael Gove during a reception to mark the 75th anniversary of the arrival of HMT Empire Windrush

Queen Camilla seen speaking with Moira Stuart, who was the first female newsreader of Caribbean descent to present BBC News

Queen Camilla shakes hands with British saxophonist Yolanda Brown, who was awarded an OBE in December

King Charles pictured speaking with David Lammy, the Shadow Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs

The appeal for new workers was primarily aimed at white Europeans, who had dominated immigration to Britain during the century before the Second World War and still played an important role after 1945.

Working age adults and many children travelled from the Caribbean to join parents or grandparents in the UK or travelled with their parents without their own passports.

Since these people had a legal right to come to the UK, they neither needed nor were given any documents upon entry to the UK, nor following changes in immigration laws in the early 1970s.

Many worked or attended schools in the UK without any official documentary record of their having done so, other than the same records as any UK-born citizen.

The Windrush scandal, brought about in 2012 by the Government's 'hostile environment policy,' saw migrants who arrived from the Caribbean between 1948 and 1973 wrongly deported, detained or stripped of their homes and jobs.

After the fiasco came to light, the Government pledged compensation for anyone who suffered, but there has been criticism that the response has been too slow.

Pictured: Queen Camilla holding an audience with Colonel Ruth Weir at Buckingham Palace earlier this afternoon

In 2018, Levi Roots - who attended today's reception - accused the government of 'slinging out people who came to fix the country after two world wars' during an appearance on Good Morning Britain.

Earlier today, Queen Camilla held an audience with Colonel Ruth Weir - who is head of the Royal Australian Corps of Military Police - at Buckingham Palace.

The royal also attended the Bees For Development Garden Party to mark the charity's 30th anniversary.

During the garden party, Camilla helped to make a paper bee sculpture and also rubbed out a drawing of the insect to symbolise their destruction.

The Queen also came face to face with a portrait of herself today - compete with a bee hive on her head.

Camilla took the interesting artistic take in her stride, however, remarking: Its quite flattering really.

The postcard portrait is one of a number up for auction in aid of Bees For Development, a charity of which she is president.

Queen Camilla wore a stylish button-down green-and-white printed dress by Samantha Sung for today's engagements

Pictured: the bee brooch on the waistband of Camilla's designer dress this afternoon

During the visit Her Majesty - who was wearing a green patterned Samantha Sung dress with a bee brooch pinned to the waistband - met BFD Commonwealth beekeeping partners from Ghana and Trinidad & Tobago

Queen Camilla attends a "Bee Garden Party" to celebrate the thirtieth anniversary of the charity Bees for Development

During the garden party, Camilla helped other guests in making a paper bee sculpture (pictured)

The Queen was invited to erase a pencil drawing of a bee to symbolise their destruction

They have been created by celebrity supporters including Grayson Perry, Charlie Mackesy, Hugh Boneville, Sir Lenny Henry and Dame Twiggy - with the twist that the buyer wont know whose they are getting.

Her Majesty viewed the display at Bees for Development (BFD) Garden Party to mark the charitys 30th anniversary year.

The Bee Garden Party aims to highlight its work supporting and encouraging international communities to unlock the benefits of beekeeping to help people in developing countries out of poverty, as well as highlighting the worldwide threat to the species.

During the visit Her Majesty - who was wearing a green patterned Samantha Sung dress with a bee brooch pinned to the waistband - met BFD Commonwealth beekeeping partners from Ghana and Trinidad & Tobago.

Queen Camilla tastes some honey as she attends a "Bee Garden Party" to celebrate the thirtieth anniversary of the charity Bees for Development

Queen Camilla speaks with Prue Leith (left) and Charlie Ross (centre) during the Bees for Development Bee Garden Party

Pictured: Queen Camilla admires the fascinators and hats worn by other guests at the Garden Party

Queen Camilla looks at a Rocket hive with Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall during the Bees for Development Bee Garden Party,

The Queen was told that they had just finished extracting her hives and this years honey was really dark which they thought was because of the Hawthorne used by the bees.

Queen Camilla speaks with artist Leonie Bradley as she contributes to the giant paper bee sculpture

Queen Camilla speaks to a young child dressed up in a costume during the Bees for Development Bee Garden Party,

She tasted some honey from India and declared it delicious, and tried some soothing organic honey body butter from Zimbabwe, which she smoothed into her hands.

She got the giggles as she then tried to shake the hands of well-wishers covered in the moisturiser.

Accompanied by Martha Kearney, Patron of Bees for Development, Camilla also contributed to an art installation by artist Leonie Bradley.

Firstly she stamped a a piece of paper with - appropriately - the words Queen Bee and placed it on the top of the sculpture which will also be auctioned off.

I dont feel like I contributed that much, she laughed.

She was shown hats created by couture milliner Alison Tod and then came gave to face with a beautiful pencil protestor of bees entitled Erasure l by artist Francis Gynn.

Guests were invited to erase a bee to draw attention to the loss of species worldwide.

It feels like sacrilege,  the Queen said. Im going to chose a very small one.  Before she left she met with The London Honey Company which looks after the bee hives at both Highgrove, her husbands Gloucestershire home, and her own, Ray Mill in Wiltshire.

She was told that they had just finished extracting her hives and this years honey was really dark which they thought was because of the Hawthorne used by the bees.

It was there she met little Ota, nine months, dressed in a bee outfit with his father, Frantisek Zika, of the Humble Bee Gardeners.

Bees for Development is a specialist charity which works to ensure that people who face inequality  often women and girls, people with disabilities, and minority, indigenous people - have the opportunity to use bee keeping as a means of supporting themselves, as well as raising awareness of environmental issues. It works in more than 50 nations worldwide.
Queen Maxima of the Netherlands lent a compassionate ear to students during an event this afternoon.

The mother-of-three, 52, put on an elegant display as she travelled to the Fontys University of Applied Sciences in Den Bosch.

She was attending the release of Harder Better Faster Stronger, a study of stress and performance pressure among students in higher education.

For the occasion, she donned a flattering sky blue day dress with beige accessories.

Maxima arrived at the university donning the blue dress, cinched at the waist with a large built-in belt and oversized rolled up sleeves.

Her blonde locks were tied into a heat-proof updo, and she wore s glamourous day makeup with a generous trait of eyeliner on each eye, mascara and a shimmery shade of eyeshadow

Queen Maxima, 52, put on an elegant display as she travelled to the Fontys University of Applied Sciences in Den Bosch

The day number was buttoned up at the front, opening into a daring split that revealed the royal's sun-kissed tan.

Stylish Maxima paired it with beige leather heels and a clutch of the same tone for her essentials.

Known for her love of accessories, the Dutch Queen opted for a pair of silver and cyan drop earrings with gold bracelets.

Her blonde locks were tied into a heat-proof updo, and she wore s glamourous day makeup with a generous trait of eyeliner on each eye, mascara and a shimmery shade of eyeshadow.

The royal, who just returned from a three-day trip to Brazil, enhanced her natural tan with just a dash of bronzer and highlighter.

During the event, the mother-of-three attended a panel, which presented the report's fondings to the public.

She later sat down with students and learned about the pressure some felt to perform in their higher education.

Ever dedicated to better the student experience across the Netherlands, the royal also dutifully took notes of what she was told during her visit.

The royal, who has just returned from a trip to Brazil, looked relaxed and tanned as she made her way to today's event

Known for her love of accessories, the Dutch Queen opted for a pair of silver and cyan drop earrings with gold bracelets

Maxima attended the presentation of the report at the university before chatting directly to students about their university experience

The mother-of-three put on an elegant display in the cyan dress, which she paired with beige accessories

Maxima was all smiles as she arrived at the university this afternoon, during a week busy with engagements

The royal attended a presentation of the report alongside students and members of the university's faculty

The dedicated Dutch Queen diligently took note in a small notepad throughout today's engagement

Maxima delighted other attendees with a few clever remarks during this afternoon's meeting, which discussed pressure to perform

It has been a busy few days for Maxima, who yesterday visited a community centre to mark Neighbours Day across the Netherlands.

The-mother-of-three looked stylish in a chic floor length satin skirt which she paired with a oversized white shirt.

The flowy colourful ensemble donned her signature bright colours with a floral pattern in orange, blue, red and green.

She cinched in her waistline with a chunky brown belt and accessorised with orange earrings.

Her blonde locks fell loose and her glam makeup enhanced her flawless complexion.

Neighbours Day is organised every year by the Orange Fund and Douwe Egberts with the aim of celebrating and promoting contact between neighbours.
Gordon Ramsay has been slammed for selling 85 burger at his London shop

Gordon Ramsay has been slammed for selling a burger for 85 at his Harrods restaurant.

The Gordon Ramsay Burger in central London, is selling a Wagyu burger for the astonishing amount.

The meal, which comes with Parmesan fries, is made up of a Japanese Wagyu Beef patty, truffe Pecorino cheese, mushroom ragu, freshly shaved black truffle, porcini aioli, 12-year balsamic vinegar and watercress.

But one fan has slammed the restaurant saying the burger is 'no better than a Big Mac' - which costs just 3.69.

'Went to Gordon Ramsay Burger in Harrods yesterday and have to say it was a big let down,' Harry John White, from Guildford said on Twitter.

Gordon Ramsay has been slammed for selling a burger for 85 at his Harrods restaurant in central London

The meal, which comes with Parmesan fries, is made from a Japanese Wagyu Beef patty, truffle Pecorino cheese, mushroom ragu, freshly shaved black truffle, porcini aioli, 12-year balsamic vinegar and watercress

'Slow and confused service, no check back and you'd have thought I'd ordered a Big Mac, not an 85 burger.

'Nowhere near the standard I've come to expect from Gordon Ramsay restaurants'.

What's more, others have also commented on the high cost.

Another added: 'Hang on a second. An 85 burger?'.

'Just noticed there's a TV series called Gordon Ramsay: Uncharted. If Gordon was in the real world he'd work out how to make a burger for less than 85,' a third said.

Meat for the burger is taken from Harrods' butchers with other menu items ranging from 22.50 for a veggie burger to 35 for a lamb burger.

Other menu items include 12.50 truffle fries, and 13.50 milkshake.

It's not the first time the celebrity chef's exorbitant prices have landed him in hot water.

One customer has slammed the restaurant saying the burger is 'no better than a Big Mac' - which currently costs just 3.69

Others have also taken to Twitter to question the high cost, with one person saying the famous chef should set prices for the 'real world'

Gordon was recently criticised for bringing his three Michelin-starred restaurant Down Under for nearly $800 per person.

The ticketed restaurant, Restaurant Gordon Ramsay, took over Aussie chef Matt Moran's fine diner Aria in the heart of Sydney from May 8-10 to showcase the 'very best of Australian seasonal produce'.

However, tickets to the unique experience costed $495 per person, which included a seven-course menu, with an option of premium wine pairing for $295 - bringing the total to $790 each.

A spokesperson from Aria told Daily Mail Australia the staggering price was set because it was the first time the high-end restaurant had ventured internationally and the menu had been personally curated by Ramsay and Moran.

The menu featured signature Restaurant Gordon Ramsay dishes, including shellfish ravioli and a pecan praline dessert

Word of the event quickly spread on social media, with guests slamming the outrageous price.

Gordon Ramsay has been savaged online over his Sunday lunch (pictured), with diners branding it a 'child's portion' and questioning where the rest of the trimmings are

At first many seemed eager to visit and bring a friend along, only to be turned away after seeing the cost.

'At almost $500 per person, the food would have to be amazing,' one woman commented on Facebook.

In September 2020, he was also slammed online for the Sunday lunch at his Savoy Grill , with diners labelling it a 'child's portion' and questioning where the rest of the trimmings were.

Gordon took to his Instagram page to share a snap of the roast, which he serves as part of a two-course 40 set menu.

Gordon was criticised yet again in April when he took over Aussie chef Matt Moran's fine diner Aria in the heart of Sydney - with tickets costing $495 per person

At the time, he described 'the sirloin of beef with all the trimmings ' as 'absolutely stunning''

However, several of his followers were left unimpressed by the three baby carrots and roast potatoes offered - with one person asking: 'Where's the rest of it?'

Another queried: 'Is that a child's portion?'

The meal involved a single slice of beef, three roast potatoes, three carrots, plus broccoli and a Yorkshire pudding.

The restaurant offers a set menu - with two courses costing 40 and three courses costing 45 - with dishes including lobster cocktail, smoked salmon or omelet for starters.

Diners are told online: 'Our chefs' insistence on prime local produce and precise culinary technique means guests revel in the delights of roast sirloin of beef, seasonal vegetables and Yorkshire pudding, followed by a classic Savoy dessert - Baked Alaska.

'Topped off with your choice of a Bloody Mary or fruit cocktail, this two-course experience is a luxurious roast you'll remember!'
A cosmetic scientist and skincare brand owner has revealed the top Sephora buys he swears by.

David Rooney finds himself gravitating to the same moisturisers whenever he needs to restock his beauty routine.

The skin expert religiously uses First Aid Beauty's KP Bump Eraser ($48), Peter Thomas Roth's Water Drench Moisturiser ($85), and The Inky List's Omega Water Cream ($18).

First Aid Beauty's product was formulated to relieve the symptoms of keratosis pilaris, which is a skin condition that affects one in three Australian adults.

On the other hand, the other two moisturisers have special ingredients that target specific issues like dullness and dry skin.

David Rooney finds himself gravitating to the same moisturisers whenever he needs to restock his beauty routine

David made a post detailing his beauty shopping trip and product recommendations.

'These Sephora products will f**k with your skin in a good way,' he said in a video.

'You know that bumpy stuff on the back of your arms?' he asked, referring to keratosis pilaris, a condition that causes small, rough white or reddish bumps and patches on the skin.

He recommended First Aid Beauty KP Bump Eraser, and it's formulated with pumice, glycolic and lactic acids, and bisabolol to visibly reduce bumpy and rough skin.

David's other favourites include the Peter Thomas Roth Water Drench Moisturiser which contains silicone, and The Inkey List's Omega Water Cream - which is a budget-version of the former product.

'A moisturiser with silicone is a winner,' David said.

Silicone is known to improve skin texture, lock in moisture, and smoothen out the epidermis. It can also reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles.

'[The Omega Water Cream] is a cheaper moisturiser that spreads onto your skin like a spritz of water,' David added.

The skin expert religiously uses First Aid Beauty's KP Bump Eraser ($48), Peter Thomas Roth's Water Drench Moisturiser ($85), and The Inky List's Omega Water Cream ($18)

A cosmetic scientist and skincare brand owner has revealed the top Sephora buys he swears by [pictured: The Inky List's Omega Water Cream ($18)]

Many were thankful for David's suggestions and vowed to try out the popular Sephora products.

'Wow, thank you so much for your recommendations,' a woman wrote.

'I use the Omega Water moisturiser every morning and I love it,' another added. 'It doesn't leave your skin feeling greasy at all.'

'My daughter is starting to get red bumps on her thighs - I will try this out!' a mum said.
Millions of us are feeling overwhelmed by modern life angst.

Post-pandemic, we seem to be juggling an ever-increasing workload with the emotional ups and down of family life and relationships.

It can feel as if one more thing will tip us over the edge into a meltdown  especially given the last few years of turmoil we've all been through.

And a little known condition experts have dubbed 'boundary anxiety' could be partly to blame.

'One important way to manage this anxiety and stress is to think about your personal boundaries and learn to identify your own needs within different relationships and areas of your life,' says Dr Jillian Doyle, senior clinical psychologist at The Rotunda National Maternity Hospital, Ireland.

Post-pandemic, we seem to be juggling an ever-increasing workload with the emotional ups and down of family life and relationships

'Healthy, clear, rules allow us to feel safe and respected both physically and emotionally. Reflecting on your own boundaries enables you to understand your limits so that you don't become overwhelmed and can take better care of yourself,' she adds.

'In the long run this can help enrich relationships by building a foundation of openness and trust'.

It will also benefit our health, as reflected in numerous studies which have found that people pleasers with weak boundaries tend to score higher on anxiety scales and have an increased risk of serious conditions such as heart disease and diabetes.

It can feel difficult to say 'no' when as people we're often conditioned to please - no matter the personal cost.

'Interestingly, when it comes to the physical world  our home and workplaces  we're usually very good at ensuring we create secure boundaries to protect our property and our privacy,' says Professor Margareta James, a psychologist who works with traditional herbal medicine brand Avogel and founder of the Harley Street Wellbeing Clinic.

'However, when it comes to protecting our emotional health, we're much less likely to act.'

For example, if your boss asks you to stay late yet again at short notice, you might end up feeling angry about the unfairness of the situation and exhausted by all the extra work.

Yet speaking up can be such a frightening thought, you prefer to keep quiet and soldier on  suffering negative consequences to your health in the long run added by the extra stress you experience through the internal fight with yourself.

Learning to say 'I'd rather not' is something many of us need practice in. It's not as if we get taught this vital life skill in school - or even by our parents who often unwittingly encourage their children to be people pleasers and not to challenge the status quo.

'Depending on how we grew up, we have different 'norms' around us - in our families, at school, at work - that help us work out our personal boundaries,' explains Professor James.

'Social belonging is a really important part of the human experience and saying 'yes' to others can make us feel helpful and accepted.

However, it can also backfire if it's done to the detriment of our own needs - and the signal this has happened is resentment, stress and exhaustion.

'But while the benefits of pushing back can be daunting, you will find some of the people in your life actually appreciate them.

'People often worry that boundaries will make them seem selfish or unfriendly and feel guilty about setting them,' says Dr Doyle.

'However, boundaries are one of the building blocks for managing stress, particularly interpersonal stress, and they can benefit both parties as they make it clear where each of you stand.'

In other words, we've nothing to lose and much to gain by being firm about what we're comfortable doing  and not doing.

To find out if your boundaries are in need of a serious overhaul  take our quiz below.

QUIZ: How good are your personal boundaries?

Compiled by psychologist Professor Margareta James. Scroll below for the answers.

1. I find that I cannot say no to things even when I don't feel like doing it or have the energy for it

A - rarely

B - sometimes

C - often

2. I feel guilty about saying no to others' requests

A - rarely

B - sometimes

C - often

3. I find myself trying to fix other people's problems even at the detriment of my own needs

A - rarely

B - sometimes

C - often

4. I get angry / upset when others say no to me

A - rarely

B - sometimes

C - often

5. I feel I am often 'used' because I don't stand up for my own needs

A - rarely

B - sometimes

C - often

6. I feel too weak to voice my own needs / I cannot seem to make myself heard and I get frustrated

A - rarely

B - sometimes

C - often

7. I feel resentment towards people when their requests put too much pressure on me

A - rarely

B - sometimes

C - often

8. I get angry / anxious about other's requests that overwhelm me

A - rarely

B - sometimes

C -often

9. I feel uncomfortable expressing my own needs (including my body, energy, time, resources) without feeling guilty, fearful, anxious or stressed.

A - rarely

B - sometimes

C - often

10. I am uncomfortable with expressing my true feelings and needs without getting stressed.

A - rarely

B - sometimes

C - often

11. I get preoccupied by other people's problems and spend a lot of my energy trying to help them

A - rarely

B - sometimes

C - often

12. People can ask - any time, day or night - for my help and I immediately run to their rescue

A - rarely

B - sometimes

C - often

13. People think of me as very friendly and I tend to allow them into my private space quickly

A - rarely

B - sometimes

C - often

14. I tend to overshare my personal information and views with others quickly which I may regret later

A - rarely

B - sometimes

C - often

ANSWERS

Mostly As

Saying 'no' is never a problem for you as you have such firm boundaries. It's important to you that other people respect these boundaries and in return you respect those of the people around you. You're in touch with what is good for you emotionally and how to express your own needs - even if it means you may need to refuse requests from others when they want your time, energy or other resources. You're comfortable with making yourself heard and not afraid to accept when others say 'no' to you. You have a well-developed self-awareness and know exactly what you do and won't want. The only downside is you may go too far the other way and adhere too rigidly to your own life rules. To avoid this, try to push yourself out of your comfort zone every now and again by not immediately saying 'no' and trying some new experiences that might enrich your life.

Mostly Bs

You have some boundaries for yourself and some awareness of your own needs, however you find it difficult to express them at times. When you feel more confident and in a safe place, you find standing up for yourself easier. But other times you allow people to call upon you to solve their problems - even when you're tired or overwhelmed yourself. You find it difficult to say 'no' to certain people in your life. Think for a second - are you afraid that they may think you're selfish or mean? Do you sometimes feel anxious about how others perceive you and what they think of you? If you find yourself exhausted from the demands of your own life as well as other's requests, you need to re-think your boundaries to protect your energy and resources. What do you need? Respecting and prioritising your own needs will help restore your energy levels and eventually, setting healthy boundaries will ensure you feel less stressed and anxious all-round.

Mostly Cs

You seem to be using up a lot of your energy figuring out the solutions to other people's problems. You're a good listener and getting involved in other's lives probably gets you some 'thank-yous' in return. However, you also pay the price for it, sometimes getting criticism or anger back, which really upsets you. Think about how you could set clear boundaries for yourself when it comes to these relationships. Saying 'yes' to everyone means you're actually saying 'no' to your own needs, which ultimately leads to resentment. Ask yourself, what other nice things you could be doing with your time and resources.

When protecting our own needs, we need to be okay with conflict sometimes - without feeling anxious or guilty. Doing the right thing sometimes means allowing others to work out a solution for themselves. Get comfortable with stepping back from other's worries and focusing on you  and see your anxiety levels and overall happiness soar.

6 steps to setting healthy boundaries

1. Listen to your body

Our bodies always give us signals when we're close to reaching our emotional limit. Did you feel your jaw tighten or your fists clench? Maybe you broke into a sweat? For some it's a dry throat, others a tight feeling in the pit of their stomach. Whatever the cue, listen to what your body is telling you and spend some time trying to figure out exactly what why you feel so uncomfortable and pushed to your limits.

2. Work out your priorities

Ways to ease boundary anxiety Find relaxation with herbs Always making others a priority can lead to feelings of overwhelm and anxiety. Passiflora is a herb that works by boosting the levels of GABA (gamma-aminobutyric acid) in the brain. This compound lowers stressful brain activity and helps to induce feelings of calm and relaxation. Try A. Vogel Passiflora Complex Spray. Stroke away stress 'Havening' is increasingly popular technique that helps reduce stress by stimulating calming brain waves, which are said to put the body in a more relaxed state. It involves tapping or stroking your face or arms (from your shoulders to your elbows) or rubbing your palms together for 5-10 minutes. The great thing is you can do it anywhere for an instant effect. Breathe easy Practise this easy, but effective breathing technique to restore calm: Relax all the muscles in your body and consciously slow your breathing rate by half. Close your eyes and inhale through your nose, filling your belly with air. Hold for five seconds, then exhale slowly through your mouth. Repeated 20 times, this will bring your pulse rate down and ensure stress ebbs away. Advertisement

Never forget that your time is both a valuable resource and a limited one. If you try to please everyone, you'll not only end up in burnout but also deny yourself the pleasure of experiencing something fun or relaxing for yourself. Write a list of priorities  including necessities and things that just make you happy - and compare it to what you're spending your time and energy on in real time. If there is a big gap, then that's where you need to begin setting some clear boundaries.

3. Be clear about what you mean

Practice saying 'no' when you don't want to do something. Start with a small, easy no and work up from there. Remember there is no need to explain yourself or offer an excuse. Just saying 'Thanks, but I can't this time' or even just: 'No, thank you' are perfectly acceptable answers.

4. Accept you might feel uncomfortable at first

If you're not used to setting clear boundaries, you may find yourself feeling anxious or guilty when you point out your personal limit. This is normal but the more you do it, the easier it will become. Taking a few deep breaths to calm your mind before speaking can really help.

5. Be prepared for negatively

Don't be surprised if some people react badly to you pushing back and saying no for a change. People who have been used to you saying yes to them to everything have been taking advantage of your good nature or worse have a controlling or manipulative personality will not enjoy you setting a boundary when they are used to getting their own way. But stand firm and don't waver. It's not your job to make it okay for them. They will deal with it. Learn to let it go.

6. Stay flexible

It's normal to have different boundaries for different people and types of relationships, but be open to the idea they may shift over time. As long as you feel comfortable, it's fine to reassess boundaries from time to time  as being too rigid can be as problematic as being too pliable. Getting them right for you is the key  and of course accepting the boundaries of other people in your life.

Breathe easy Practise this easy, but effective breathing technique to restore calm: Relax all the muscles in your body and consciously slow your breathing rate by half. Close your eyes and inhale through your nose, filling your belly with air. Hold for five seconds, then exhale slowly through your mouth. Repeated 20 times, this will bring your pulse rate down and ensure stress ebbs away.
New treatments mean survival rates for the disease have doubles since the 70s

Huge medical breakthroughs mean that cancer is no longer a guaranteed 'death sentence', top experts have said.

Data shows survival rates have soared over the past 50 years.

Only one in four men with prostate cancer in the 1970s would be lucky enough to live to see the next decade.

Today the reverse is true, with 75 per cent of men diagnosed with the disease still alive a decade later, figures show.

Survival improvements have also been recorded for pancreatic cancer, one of the deadliest forms, because of medical advances, earlier diagnoses and better-quality care.

While the level of progress for cancer survival for some forms of the disease has been rapid, such as for breast and prostate cancers, others, like those for lung and pancreas have only improved at a snail's pace

Survival rates for pancreatic cancer have increase five-fold over the past 50 years, up from just one in 100 in the 1970 to one in 20 today.

Professor Karol Sikora, a world-renowned oncologist with over 40 years' experience, told MailOnline that today's cancer patients had a much greater reason to hold onto hope.

'Less than third of people with a diagnosis of cancer were cured, now it's over 51 per cent,' he said.

'That's a tremendous change, in just one generation of a doctor.'

He said that medical breakthroughs in cancer care to improve patients' odds were constantly in the works.

'For cancer, the good times are coming...everything is getting better year-on-year, decade after decade,' he said.

'It's no longer the death sentence that some patients think it is.'

Professor Sikora's comments come after a major Oxford University study that found women diagnosed with breast cancer are two-thirds more likely to survive than their counterparts 20 years ago.

Just today University of Oxford researchers found women diagnosed with between 1993 and 1999 had a 14 per cent chance of dying from the disease within the first five years.

Patients diagnosed with early invasive breast cancer between 1993 and 1999 had a 14 per cent chance of dying from the disease within five years.

But this risk has now fallen to five per cent in people diagnosed between 2010 and 2015.

Even for those patients given the most devastating diagnosis, Professor Sikora said it was critical to not lose hope as 'surprises always happen'.

10-year cancer survival rates for many common cancers have now reached above the 50 per cent mark, and experts say further improvements could be made in the next decade

NHS figures show just 58 per cent of cancer patients started treatment within two months of an urgent GP referral. The NHS's own rulebook sets out that at least 85 per cent of cancer patients should be seen within this timeframe but this figure has not been met since December 2015

'For example, pancreatic cancer that has spread to the liver, the chances of living five years if you have that diagnosis is less than 3 per cent, but it's still 3 per cent,' he said.

'People still manage to beat all the odds.

'All survival curves, no matter how bad and including pancreatic cancer, have a tail at the end, you have to imagine that you're going to be in that tail.'

He said a multitude of factors are responsible for improved cancer outcomes over the years but highlighted a change of approach by doctors as key.

'When I started the emphasis was always that we blast cancer out of existence in a patient with blunderbuss chemotherapy, and sometimes people would die of it,' he said.

Respected oncologist Professor Karol Sikora told MailOnline that cancer care had come leaps and bounds since he started his career and there was hope in even among the grimmest forms of the disease

'Now chemotherapy is a much more gentle affair, we're much better at administering it, and much better at dealing with the side effects.

Another factor was diagnostic capability, with high tech scans now able to pinpoint the disease and show exactly where treatment was needed.

Professor Sikora said: 'I remember the life-changing moment I first saw a CT scan in 1974.'

'Before that you couldn't really see the internal anatomy and suddenly you could actually see the cancer and the normal tissue around it,'

'And the imaging we get now is so much better than in 1974.'

READ MORE: Breast cancer survival breakthrough: Death rates for women diagnosed with disease today are just a THIRD of levels logged 20 years ago A landmark study by scientists at the University of Oxford found those diagnosed with early invasive breast cancer between 1993 and 1999 had a 14 per cent chance of dying from the disease within the first five years. But for women diagnosed between 2010 and 2015, the risk had dropped to just 5 per cent Advertisement

Professor Sikora added that the future of cancer care is learning how to control a patient's individual disease and creating tailored treatments for their disease,

'People can have the same disease and get very different treatments,' he said.

'The future of cancer care is making it even more subtle, going molecular and analysing the DNA of cancer and working out how to selectively destroy it.'

Overall cancer data gives a good approximation of survival rates, but the odds will vary for each patient.

Factors like age, if they have any other health conditions, and the unique aspects of their disease play a role.

But in all cases, even the most serious, Professor Sikora said it was critical not to lose hope.

Other experts have even predicted some forms of cancer could become extinct in the future thanks to new treatments.

One of these is cervical cancer thanks to the success of an NHS vaccine programme.

Cases of the disease have plummeted by 87 per cent as a result of the HPV vaccine.

Among women now in their twenties  the first generation to get the jab  cases have dropped from about 50 per year to just five.

The HPV vaccine prevents infection from human papillomavirus, a common group of viruses that are behind 90 per cent of cervical cancer cases.

Around 167,000 people die from cancer every year in the UK  accounting for around a quarter of all deaths. In the US the death toll is 599,589.

Despite the positive outlook for the future of cancer care generally, there have been warnings that cancer patients in the UK could face challenges getting treatment.

Radiology leaders warned last week that NHS cancer patients face worsening delays due to a shortage of staff.

A poll of all 60 directors of the UK's cancer centres by the Royal College of Radiologists (RCR) found 95 per cent feel staff shortages are leading to longer wait times for appointments and delays in cancer treatment.

Some 88 per cent are concerned about shortages impacting the quality of patient care, with the RCR warning that for every four-week delay to cancer treatment, the risk of death increases by around 10 per cent.

Half of services surveyed reported 'frequent delays' in patients starting radiotherapy, occurring every month or most months, while at one in five centres (22 per cent), this was happening most weeks or every week.

The RCR warned staff shortages mean patients are waiting longer than necessary to start chemotherapy or radiotherapy, while some doctors are having to make 'difficult decisions' about who to prioritise and send patients to different hospitals.

Cancer care was also disrupted during the Covid pandemic.

Checks for the disease effectively ground to a halt and patients faced delays for treatment as oncologists were put on Covid wards and patients were told to stay at home to protect the NHS, putting some off flagging potential symptoms to medics.

Experts have estimated 40,000 cancers went undiagnosed during the first year of pandemic alone.
Millions of Americans are skipping their medication doses amid surging costs, according to a new report.

The findings, published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), examined which groups of Americans were most likely to skip doses of their medications to cut costs in 2021.

The report shows that nine million adults between ages 18 and 64 skip doses, take smaller amounts or delay ordering refills - adding up to 8.2 percent who didn't take their prescriptions as directed.

Experts now warn that not taking medications as directed can have serious health consequences.

'You have to take good care of yourself,' Dr Stuart Fischer, internal medicine physician in New York City, told DailyMail.com. 'Getting sick can be very, very expensive.'

The CDC's report found that women were more likely than men to forgo medications or not take them as directed due to high costs. Additionally, black, Hispanic, and people of other races are more likely than white consumers not to take medications as prescribed

Disabled Americans were more likely not to take their medications as directed than those without disabilities, the report found

According to the report, in 2021, 8.2 percent of adults aged 18 to 64 who took prescription medication in the past 12 months reported not taking medication as prescribed due to cost.

Women were more likely than men not to take their medication as prescribed. For example, 9.1 percent of women fell into this category compared to seven percent of men.

Additionally, 20 percent of disabled adults did this, compared to 7.1 percent of adults without disabilities.

And adults without prescription drug coverage were more likely to skip their doses, with 18.1 percent falling into this category compared to 6.6 of those with private insurance and 7.6 of those with public insurance.

These findings come at a time when prescription drug costs are higher than ever.

Uninsured Americans were more than twice as likely to not take their medications as prescribed due to high costs than those with public or private insurance

Data from the Organization for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD) found that the US spent more than double the amount of money per capita on prescription medications than comparable countries

According to the latest data from the Organization for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD), in 2019, the US spent an average of $1,1126 per capita on prescribed medications, more than double comparable countries. Other countries spent $552.

Additionally, a 2021 report from RAND Corporation found that US drug prices were 2.56 times higher than those in 32 comparable countries. Brand-name drugs were 3.4 times higher on average.

The researchers estimated that the total drug spending was $795 billion across all of the nations studied. While the US accounted for 58 percent of sales, the country made up just 24 percent of the volume.

The report also stated US drug spending jumped by 76 percent between 2000 and 2017, with figures expected to keep rising.

An October poll from the Kaiser Family Foundation found that eight in 10 adults in the US said the cost of prescribed medications was 'unreasonable.'

'If you don't pay that price, you can pay with your life,' Dr Fischer said.

The CDC estimates that not adhering to a prescription drug schedule causes 30 to 50 percent of chronic disease treatment failures and 125,000 deaths per year.

'If someone can't afford their blood pressure medicine, or the doctor visit for that matter, and they don't get treated, they'll not only have high blood pressure, but they'll have chronic kidney disease. They might need dialysis,' Dr Fischer said.

He pointed to high cholesterol as an example of a condition with disastrous effects if not treated with medication.

A 2022 report from the American Heart Association estimated that more than one in 10 Americans have high cholesterol. Between 2015 and 2018, approximately 15.8 million women and 12.2 million men had it.

'There are plenty of people who cannot get their cholesterol down without a medication,' Dr Fischer said.

If left untreated, 'the cholesterol will build up in their brain and their hearts and then their kidneys,' he said. 'They could have a stroke or a heart attack or kidney failure.'

Health insurance also plays a role in these rising costs. In addition to health insurance premiums being expensive, the companies have internal parameters that determine which medications will be covered based on the plan.

In some cases, insurance could exclude the cheaper, generic varieties, which can lead to increased costs from the consumer.

'Every day we get a list of what's allowed from the pharmacy and what's not,' Dr Fischer said.

'The reason is insurance really is holding the reins of this, not healthcare professional.'

'They're out to make money.'

In addition to speaking with your doctor, drug assistance programs can help to reduce the cost of some medications. These vary based on the state and the medication.
An extraordinarily complicated flow chart presented to the Covid Inquiry lays bare the Government's 'labyrinthine' chain of command that was tasked with protecting Brits from future pandemics.

The mind-boggling diagram, created by the Inquiry to reflect structures in 2019, links together more than 100 organisations involved in preparing the country for any future infectious threats.

This includes the Cabinet Office, Department of Health and the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE)  a panel of leading experts who guided ministers through the pandemic.

Hugo Keith KC, chief lawyer of the long-awaited probe, which began yesterday, said: 'This is a document, which the Inquiry team has prepared, which sets out the basic structures concerning EPPR [Emergency Preparedness, Resilience and Response].

But the flow chart, illustrated with a tangle of arrows and dotted lines, looked 'much more like a bowl of spaghetti than a clear and coordinated framework for a cogent national response', the lawyer for the Trades Union Congress told the inquiry chair Baroness Heather Hallett.

The mind-boggling diagram, created by the Inquiry to reflect structures in 2019, links together more than 100 organisations involved in preparing the country for any future infectious threats. This includes the Cabinet Office, Department of Health and the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE)  a panel of leading experts who guided ministers through the pandemic

Displaying the diagram to the Inquiry, Hugo Keith KC (pictured), said there was a 'labyrinthine and confusing picture' when it came to the various health bodies, committees and subcommittees

Sam Jacobs, representing the Trade Unions Congress, said: 'Mr Keith showed us a helpful organigram.

'It provides a visual and striking representation of a fragmented system which looks more like a bowl of spaghetti than a clear and coordinated framework for a cogent national response.'

Displaying the diagram to the Inquiry, Mr Keith stated there was a 'labyrinthine and confusing picture' when it came to the web of various health bodies, committees and subcommittees.

Each of the four nations has its own public health body and there had been 'significant reforms to the national and local systems for public health' in England, he added.

What topics will the inquiry cover? There are currently six broad topics, called modules, that will be considered by the inquiry. Module 1 will examine the resilience and preparedness of the UK for a coronavirus pandemic. Module 2 will examine decisions taken by Mr Johnson and his then team of ministers, as advised by the civil service, senior political, scientific and medical advisers, and relevant committees. The decisions taken by those in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland will also be examined. Module 3 will investigate the impact of Covid on healthcare systems, including on patients, hospitals and other healthcare workers and staff. This will include the controversial use of Do Not Attempt Resuscitation notices during the pandemic. Module 4 meanwhile will assess Covid vaccines and therapeutics. It will consider and make recommendations on a range of issues relating to the development of Covid vaccines and the implementation of the vaccine rollout programme in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Modules 5 and 6 will open later this year, investigating government procurement and the care sector. The inquiry has the power to announce further modules during its lifetime. It has no formal deadline but is due to hold hearings across the UK until at least 2025. Advertisement

He said module one will look at 'who provided oversight as to that state of preparedness of local responders, arm's-length bodies, lead government departments, other government departments'.

He added: 'We've seen my lady, in the written evidence, that relevant bodies, committees and subcommittees within Government were renamed or sometimes disbanded altogether only for other strikingly similar ones to be set up in the immediate aftermath.

'One might conclude, looking at the schematic schedules, that there was a labyrinthine and confusing picture.

'Was it really necessary?'

Later, Mr Keith told the hearing that officials failed to consider the 'potentially massive' impact that lockdowns would have on the UK.

He said Britain 'might not have been well prepared at all' for the coronavirus pandemic.

And he suggested that those responsible for restricting public freedoms as the virus took hold had spent barely any time discussing the measures in advance.

He said 'very little thought' was given to how 'complex and difficult and damaging' the first national lockdown could be when it was introduced in March 2020.

This was despite the Government making preparations for a flu-like pandemic which would have affected public health in a different way.

Mr Keith said: 'Extraordinary though it may seem, given that it's a word that's forever seared in the nation's consciousness, there was very little debate pre-pandemic of whether a lockdown might prove to be necessary in the event of a runaway virus, let alone how a lockdown could be avoided.

'Very little thought was given to how, if it proved to be necessary, how something as complex, difficult and damaging as a national lockdown could be put in place at all.

'Equally, there appears to have been a failure to think through the potentially massive impact on education and on the economy in trying to control a runaway virus in this way.'

Brexit also hampered No10's pandemic preparations, Mr Keith also told the Inquiry.

He claimed that work managing a possible no-deal exit from the EU required an 'enormous amount' of logistical planning and might have drained critical resources and capacity needed to thwart potential infectious threats.

Lawyers for bereaved families also echoed concerns that the Government was preoccupied with Brexit in their opening statements to the first day of public hearings in the three-year official inquiry.

Brexiteer Tory MP Craig Mackinlay said it was 'quite remarkable' that anti-Brexit arguments should be aired 'in the forum of the Covid Inquiry'.

More than 200,000 Brits have died with Covid since the crisis began.

As the first day of the evidential hearings began, more than 100 members of the Covid Bereaved Families for Justice campaign group also lined up outside, holding pictures of loved ones as they expressed frustration at feeling 'excluded from sharing key evidence'

Bereaved families were promised they would remain 'at the heart' of the inquiry, which opened with a 17-minute film about patients who died alone.

Lady Hallett, who led inquests into the 7/7 London bombings, vowed 'their loss would be recognised' and she would undertake the thorough investigation they deserve.

She said she had set out an 'ambitious' timetable for the inquiry, adding: 'To conduct the kind of thorough investigation the people of the UK deserve takes time and a great deal of preparation.

'I hope they will understand when they see the results of the work we are doing that I am listening to them. Their loss will be recognised.'

While other inquiries have opened across the world, the UK's will be the first to reach public hearings with evidence from witnesses.

Many familiar faces thrust into the limelight during the pandemic are expected to make an appearance.

This could include Sir Chris Whitty, Sir Jonathan Van-Tam, Sir Patrick Vallance and members of the Independent SAGE group of scientists.

Boris Johnson, David Cameron, George Osborne and Jeremy Hunt will also likely be among the politicians giving evidence to Hallett's inquiry.

Dominic Cummings, Mr Johnson's former chief aide, is among other names expected to appear.

Claire Mitchell KC, the lawyer for Scottish bereaved families, told the inquiry yesterday that it would hear from former health secretary Matt Hancock as well as Sir Oliver Letwin, former minister for Government policy.

As many as 70 witnesses will contribute to the first module on pandemic preparedness, which has begun today.

Wednesday's session will hear from Dr Charlotte Hammer, an epidemiologist from Cambridge University and Professor Jimmy Whitworth, an infectious diseases expert from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.

The first module will run for six weeks, until 20 July. The probe is not expected to conclude until 2026.
A deadly disease that kills up to half of everyone it infects is on its way to the UK because of climate change, leading experts claim.

Zika and 'breakbone' fever will also eventually spread on British soil, they warned.

Scientists told MPs today the diseases, which are transmitted by mosquitoes and ticks, are bound for Britain as rising temperatures extend their range.

One of their biggest concerns is Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever (CCHF)  a disease with a death rate of almost 40 per cent. Rift Valley fever, another possible threat, can be even deadlier, figures suggest.

Initial infections might go unnoticed because NHS medics aren't familiar with the formally foreign pathogens, MPs also heard.

The World Health Organization (WHO), which lists CCHF as one of its nine 'priority diseases', says it has already reached France.

A number of diseases carried by mosquitoes and ticks could be on their way to Britain thanks to warming temperatures experts have warned with Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever (CCHF) already reaching France according to tracking by the World Health Organization

Professor James Wood, head of veterinary medicine at Cambridge University, told MPs on the Science, Innovation and Technology Committee it was 'highly likely' CCHF would reach the UK in the future.

'Some tick-borne infections, so Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever, are highly likely to spread in the UK through our ticks at some point,' he said.

He also said Rift Valley Fever (RVF), a virus carried by mosquitoes, which can kill up to half of patients who catch a severe form of the disease, is another pathogen likely on its way.

'There are other infections that could be mosquito-borne such as Rift Valley Fever which could be the next thing to arrive,' he said.

And he warned that such pathogens may initially slip under the radar, as NHS medics aren't trained to spot these diseases.

'The challenge will be early detection because our clinicians don't know what they look like,' he said.

Professor Wood was among numerous experts asked by MPs about what factors could contribute to new diseases emerging in the UK.

Professor Bryan Charleston, director of the Pirbright Institute, which studies infectious diseases in animals, was another questioned by MPs and said there was a 'slow march north' of insects which could convey diseases to the UK.

He added this could see numerous dangerous pathogens become effectively native in Britain.

'Arthropod-borne viruses such as dengue virus, zika virus, there's potential for those viruses to become established in the UK,' he said.

Professor Sir Peter Horby, director of the Pandemic Sciences Institute at Oxford University, said climate change was rewriting the borders of where disease could be found.

'Dengue which is classically a South American, South East Asian disease and is hyperendemic in those countries [has] spread North, you're now seeing transmission in the Mediterranean,' he said.

CCHF, RVF and zika have all been named by the WHO as having the potential to spark a pandemic in the future.

People primarily catch CCHF from infected ticks, but it can also spread between people through bodily fluids.

The disease shares similar symptoms to Ebola at the start of infection including muscle aches, abdominal pain, a sore throat and vomiting.

It can also trigger bleeds, usually from the nose or from broken capillaries on the eyes and skin.

Other symptoms of the virus, which come on suddenly, include fever, dizziness, neck pain and stiffness, backache, headache, sore eyes and sensitivity to light.

CCHF, a tick-borne virus, has a mortality rate of up to 40 per cent according to the World Health Organization and causes symptoms similar to Ebola. Yesterday, Namibia's health ministry revealed one man had been killed by the disease , placing the country on high alert

Zika virus is a flavivirus - a type of RNA virus - transmitted to people through the bite of infected female mosquitoes

Dengue fever is a viral infection transmitted by mosquitoes that has been historically confined to tropical or subtropical climates . It infects an estimated 400million people a year. Pictured: A house in Peru being fumigated against mosquitoes to prevent the spread of the disease

RVF is a viral disease most commonly seen in domesticated animals in sub-Saharan Africa, including cattle, buffalo, sheep, goats, and camels.

People can get RVF through contact with blood, body fluids, or tissues of infected animals, or through bites from infected mosquitoes.

Most who contract RVF either experience no symptoms or a mild cold-like illness with fever, weakness, back pain and dizziness.

READ MORE: Go easy on us, Government lawyers beg Covid Inquiry: Probe asked not to use a 'retroscope' and accept height of the pandemic was 'akin to a war' The Department of Health's lawyer, Fiona Scolding KC, said it would not 'necessarily have made the same decisions today with the benefit of hindsight'. She claimed the agency, headed up by Matt Hancock during the height of the crisis, was often faced with 'hugely unpalatable options' Advertisement

It has general fatality rate of about 1 per cent but about one in 10 people develop severe symptoms requiring hospital care.

The deadliest form of the disease is one which sparks a haemorrhagic fever, where patients vomit blood and bleed from various orifices, and kills 50 per cent of those who contract it.

While people can get RVF from mosquitoes who transmit the infection from an animal no, human-to-human infection has been recorded.

Zika, in comparison to the other pathogens is not famed for its fatality rate but the devastating health consequences on unborn children.

The pathogen is transmitted to people through the bite of infected female mosquitoes.

Very rarely, it can be transmitted via sex with someone who has it, the NHS says.

For most people, the infection is mild and not harmful. However, it can cause problems for pregnant women.

The first recorded outbreak of Zika virus disease was reported from the Island of Yap  Federated States of Micronesia  in 2007.

But outbreaks of Zika virus disease have since been recorded in Africa, the Americas, Asia and the Pacific.

The mosquito-borne virus sparked global panic in 2016, after millions were infected, causing scores of babies to be born with birth defects such as microcephaly.

Yet since 2016 more than 80 countries have faced Zika outbreaks.

Common symptoms include a high temperature, headaches, sore, red eyes, swollen joints and joint and muscle pain.

Dengue fever is another viral infection transmitted by mosquitoes, historically confined to tropical or subtropical climates.

Up to 400million people per year according to WHO estimates.

While most cases cause flu-like symptoms severe infections can be deadly.

Dengue fever used to be called breakbone fever in the 1700s because of the severe pain it can cause in the muscles and the joints.
Lawyers representing the Government today urged the Covid Inquiry to go easy on them over any pandemic mistakes.

Officials in charge of the long-awaited probe were asked not to use a 'retroscope' in judging errors may early on in the crisis.

Lawyers also called upon bosses to acknowledge that decisions were made during the 'biggest peacetime crisis the country has faced', describing the pandemic era as an 'all-consuming period akin to a war' that required 'Herculean' efforts.

The Department of Health's lawyer, Fiona Scolding KC, said it would not 'necessarily have made the same decisions today with the benefit of hindsight'.

She claimed the agency, headed up by Matt Hancock during the height of the crisis, was often faced with 'hugely unpalatable options'.

The Department of Health's lawyer, Fiona Scolding KC, said it would not 'necessarily have made the same decisions today with the benefit of hindsight'. She claimed the agency, headed up by Matt Hancock during the height of the crisis, was often faced with 'hugely unpalatable options'

Meanwhile, James Strachan KC, representing the Cabinet Office, urged the inquiry to 'remember this was a global pandemic'.

Britain's Covid response has been described as 'one of UKs worst ever public health failures'.

The biggest criticisms levelled at the Government centre around the lack of protection given to care home residents and the lack of debate around lockdown policies.

More than 200,000 have died after testing positive for the virus.

What was established during the first day of the inquiry? As the first day of the evidential hearings began, more than 100 members of the Covid Bereaved Families for Justice campaign group also lined up outside, holding pictures of loved ones as they expressed frustration at feeling 'excluded from sharing key evidence'. Bereaved families were promised they would remain 'at the heart' of the inquiry, which opened with a 17-minute film about patients who died alone. Lady Hallett, who led inquests into the 7/7 London bombings, vowed 'their loss would be recognised' and she would undertake the thorough investigation they deserve. Hugo Keith KC, the inquiry's chief lawyer, later told the inquiry that the lack of thought given to lockdowns was 'extraordinary'. Mr Keith added: 'Very little thought was given to how  if it proved to be necessary  something as complex, difficult and damaging as a national lockdown could be put in place at all. 'Equally, there appears to have been a failure to think through the potentially massive impact on education and on the economy in trying to control a runaway virus in this way.' Brexit hampered No10's pandemic preparations, Mr Keith also said yesterday. He claimed that work managing a possible no-deal exit from the EU required an 'enormous amount' of logistical planning and might have drained critical resources and capacity needed to thwart potential infectious threats. He told the chair of the inquiry: 'The pandemic struck the UK just as it was leaving the EU. 'That departure required an enormous amount of planning and preparation, particularly to address what were likely to be the severe consequences of a no-deal exit on food and medicine supplies, travel and transport, business borders and so on. 'It is clear that such planning, from 2018 onwards, crowded out and prevented some or perhaps a majority of the improvements that central government itself understood were required to be made to resilience planning and preparedness. 'Did the attention therefore paid to the risks of a no-deal exit  Operation Yellowhammer as it was known  drain the resources and capacity that should have been continuing the fight against the next pandemic, that should have been utilised in preparing the United Kingdom for civil emergency? Later during the day, Claire Mitchell KC, the lawyer for Scottish bereaved families, told the inquiry that it would hear from former health secretary Matt Hancock as well as Sir Oliver Letwin, former minister for Government policy. Advertisement

Although, Covid poses a much smaller threat nowadays thanks to the UK's wall of immunity from vaccines and repeated waves.

Addressing the inquiry chair Baroness Heather Hallett, Ms Scolding acknowledged the Department of Health has been accused of repeatedly making the 'wrong calls' in its guidance and lockdown policies.

She said: 'The aim of the department and those working in it was at all times to save lives, minimise serious illness and protect health and care, particularly during the first six months of the pandemic, when less was known about the virus and its transmission.

'There was frequently a need to issue guidance or create policies where there were in reality no good options.

'The department recognises the strength of feeling that certain decisions made by us were wrong.

'For example some people feel lockdowns should have been introduced earlier and for longer. Others hold an opposite and contrary view.'

But the department, now headed up by Steve Barclay, was 'often faced' with a 'series of hugely unpalatable options', Ms Scolding argued.

'All of which were certain to have negative impacts on the citizens of the UK in one way or another,' she added.

'Decisions were often extremely finely balanced.

Ms Scolding told the inquiry: 'The department will not seek during the course of this enquiry to say that it did everything right or that it would necessarily have made the same decisions today in 2023 with the benefit of hindsight.

'We will however propose that it is necessary to recognise the context of the time  particularly in respect of pandemic preparedness.

'It was very different to what we know now and would ask you my lady not to impose what we would call a retroscope upon decision making.'

Ms Scolding acknowledged that guidance issued by the department had taken a 'profound' toll on families and friends who were isolated.

She added: 'Guidance, support, equipment, services and policies during the pandemic was a Herculean task and was the greatest challenge ever faced by the NHS and adult social care sector.

'You will hear the department referring to various documents as battle plans and operations precisely because it was an all-consuming period akin to a war.'

Meanwhile, Mr Strachan, representing the Cabinet Office, acknowledged the impact of the pandemic 'went far beyond the many whose health suffered directly'.

'The virus and the measures taken in response affected the economy and society profoundly,' he added.

However, addressing Lady Hallett, he said: 'This inquiry will rightly focus on Covids profound effects on the UK.

'But it is right to remember that this was a global pandemic. It affected the lives of everyone.

'No one country was left untouched and each government had to make extremely difficult choices in mitigating the suffering and hardship caused to its citizens.'

James Strachan KC, representing the Cabinet Office, urged the inquiry to 'remember this was a global pandemic'. He added: 'It affected the lives of everyone'

He added: 'My lady, the Covid pandemic was the biggest peacetime crisis this country faced in decades.

'Its consequences will be felt for decades to come but it is important to recognise the many sacrifices that have been and will continue to be made across our country as a result of this virus.

'There will be much to learn from scrutinizing with the full benefit of hindsight, what happened first in terms of preparation then examining the response in terms of the breadth and scale.'

However he acknowledged, that as former Prime Minister Boris Johnson stated, when announcing the inquiry in May 2021, 'it is essential the Governments actions, its structures, processes and judgements are examined vigorously, candidly and objectively'.

He told the inquiry this will ensure 'every possible lesson from this terrible global event as it affected the UK is learned and remembered'.

It comes after the inquiry's lead lawyer Hugo Keith KC told Lady Hallett yesterday, on the first day of the probe's public hearing, that Britain 'might not have been well prepared at all' for the pandemic.

Yesterday the inquiry's chief lawyer, Hugo Keith KC, presented the Inquiry with an extraordinarily complicated flow chart detailing the government's chain of command in helping to protect Brits from future pandemics. The diagram, created by the Inquiry to reflect structures in 2019, links together more than 100 organisations involved in preparing the country for any future infectious threats

Hugo Keith KC told the Inquiry yesterday that the nation was 'taken by surprise' by 'significant aspects' of the disease that has been recorded on 226,977 death certificates

Later, he told the hearing that officials failed to consider the 'potentially massive' impact that lockdowns would have on the UK.

And he suggested that those responsible for restricting public freedoms as the virus took hold had spent barely any time discussing the measures in advance.

This was despite the Government making preparations for a flu-like pandemic which would have affected public health in a different way.

Mr Keith said: 'Extraordinary though it may seem, given that it's a word that's forever seared in the nation's consciousness, there was very little debate pre-pandemic of whether a lockdown might prove to be necessary in the event of a runaway virus, let alone how a lockdown could be avoided.

'Very little thought was given to how, if it proved to be necessary, how something as complex, difficult and damaging as a national lockdown could be put in place at all.'

Brexit also hampered No10's pandemic preparations, Mr Keith also told the Inquiry.

He claimed that work managing a possible no-deal exit from the EU required an 'enormous amount' of logistical planning and might have drained critical resources and capacity needed to thwart potential infectious threats.

Lawyers for bereaved families also echoed concerns that the Government was preoccupied with Brexit in their opening statements to the first day of public hearings in the three-year official inquiry.

Brexiteer Tory MP Craig Mackinlay said it was 'quite remarkable' that anti-Brexit arguments should be aired 'in the forum of the Covid Inquiry'.

Mr Keith also presented the Inquiry with an extraordinarily complicated flow chart detailing the government's chain of command in helping to protect Brits from future pandemics.

The diagram, created by the Inquiry to reflect structures in 2019, links together more than 100 organisations involved in preparing the country for any future infectious threats.

But the flow chart, illustrated with a tangle of arrows and dotted lines, looked 'much more like a bowl of spaghetti than a clear and coordinated framework for a cogent national response', the lawyer for the Trades Union Congress told the inquiry chair Baroness Heather Hallett.

While other inquiries have opened across the world, the UK's will be the first to reach public hearings with evidence from witnesses.

Many familiar faces thrust into the limelight during the pandemic are expected to make an appearance.

This could include Sir Chris Whitty, Sir Jonathan Van-Tam, Sir Patrick Vallance and members of the Independent SAGE group of scientists.

Boris Johnson, David Cameron, George Osborne and Jeremy Hunt will also likely be among the politicians giving evidence to Hallett's inquiry.

Government data up to June 4 shows the number of Covid cases recorded since March 2020. As many as 70 witnesses will contribute to the first module on pandemic preparedness. Wednesday's session will this afternoon hear from Dr Charlotte Hammer, an epidemiologist from Cambridge University and Professor Jimmy Whitworth, an infectious diseases expert from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine

Government data up to May 12 shows the number of deaths of people whose death certificate mentioned Covid as one of the causes, and seven-day rolling average. Baroness Hallett told the inquiry she intends to answer three key questions: was the UK properly prepared for the pandemic, was the response appropriate, and can lessons be learned for the future?

Dominic Cummings, Mr Johnson's former chief aide, is among other names expected to appear.

Claire Mitchell KC, the lawyer for Scottish bereaved families, told the inquiry yesterday that it would hear from former health secretary Matt Hancock as well as Sir Oliver Letwin, former minister for Government policy.

As many as 70 witnesses will contribute to the first module on pandemic preparedness.

Wednesday's session will this afternoon hear from Dr Charlotte Hammer, an epidemiologist from Cambridge University and Professor Jimmy Whitworth, an infectious diseases expert from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.

The first module will run for six weeks, until 20 July. The probe is not expected to conclude until 2026.

A separate Scottish Covid-19 Inquiry chaired by Lord Brailsford is looking at the pandemic response in devolved areas in Scotland.

Welsh First Minister Mark Drakeford has said he and the Welsh government are fully committed to the inquiry, though they maintain that there is no need for Wales to hold its own inquiry.
The head of the NHS has demanded tougher regulation of e-cigarettes as she revealed the number of kids hospitalised by vaping has quadrupled in two years.

Amanda Pritchard described reports of children being harmed by vaping as 'worrying' and attacked firms for 'deliberately' targeting them with appealing flavours.

The NHS England chief executive said the surge in vaping and resulting hospital admissions among young people is 'seriously concerning' and called for urgent action to 'nip it in the bud'.

Speaking at the NHS ConfedExpo conference in Manchester, Mrs Pritchard said there were 40 admissions for 'vaping-related disorders' among patients aged under-20 last year - up from 11 two years earlier.

Shock data last month revealed a record 11.6 per cent of 11-17 year olds in Britain have now tried vaping. This is up on 7.7 per cent last year and twice as high as rates seen a decade ago  before the UK's kid vaping epidemic blew up

Amanda Pritchard described reports of children being harmed by vaping as 'worrying' and attacked firms for 'deliberately' targeting them with appealing flavours

These could include lung damage or a worsening of asthma symptoms.

Earlier this month paediatricians warned that 'youth vaping is fast becoming an epidemic among children' as they called on the Government to ban disposable vapes.

The Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health (RCPCH) warned that e-cigarettes 'are not a risk-free product and can be just as addictive, if not more so than traditional cigarettes'.

It called for urgent action to protect youngsters, saying experts agree that longer-term data is needed on the effects of vaping, particularly in regard to cardiovascular disease.

In May, data for Action on Smoking and Health (Ash) showed there has been a 50 per cent rise in the last year in Great Britain in the proportion of children trying vaping.

It found a rise in experimental vaping among 11 to 17-year-olds, from 7.7 per cent last year to 11.6 per cent this year.

The figures showed that, as children get older, regular use of vapes and experimentation increases.

Some 10.4 per cent of 11 to 15-year-olds had ever vaped, rising to 29.1 per cent of 16 and 17-year-olds and 40.8 per cent of 18-year-olds.

The proportion of children who have never smoked but who have tried vaping is 11.5 per cent.

It is illegal to sell vapes to under-18s but social media carries posts from teenagers showing coloured vapes and discussing flavours such as pink lemonade, strawberry, banana and mango.

Mrs Pritchard told the conference for health leaders: 'In 1948 more than eight out of 10 men smoked, now it's more like one in eight.

'For the most part, a success of wider public policy and also, particularly over the last few years, a success of innovation with the advent of e-cigarettes encouraging many former smokers to switch.

'But with that innovation has come a new challenge  the availability and attractiveness of e-cigarettes to our young people.

'The report last week from the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health of children presenting to hospital with conditions that can be linked to vaping was really worrying.

'And that is coming through in the figures  last year there were 40 admission episodes of under-20s for vaping-related disorders, up from 11 two years before.

'So the RCPCH is right to call for action and the Government are right to be taking those calls seriously and I'm sure we'll be seeing further steps put forward when their call for evidence on this issue concludes.'

Disposable vapes are the e-cigarette of choice among youngsters, and purchases of vapes are mostly made from corner shops.

In 2021, current child vapers were least likely to buy disposable vapes (7.7 per cent) but in 2022 they became the most used (52 per cent) and this has continued to grow to 69 per cent in 2023.

Mrs Pritchard added: 'It is seriously concerning that admissions for vaping related conditions for young people are up almost four fold over the past two years.

Tests on e-cigarettes confiscated from youngsters found they contained dangerous levels of lead, nickel and chromium. Some were almost ten times above safe limits. Exposure to lead can impair brain development, while the other two metals can trigger blood clotting

'While to many young people vaping can seem harmless with their deliberately appealing flavours - at least two people in every year 10 classroom have vaped at one point or another - its use can lead to lung damage.

'So it's really important we nip this in the bud so we can keep young people out of hospital and prevent future health issues.'

Hazel Cheeseman, deputy chief executive of Action on Smoking and Health, said: 'Amanda Pritchard is right that vaping is both a big opportunity to reduce smoking and that there are risks from teen vaping.

'Swift action is needed by Government to limit youth vaping and maintain the opportunity for adults to use vapes as a quitting aid.

'While the increase in youth vaping must be tackled, it needs to be remembered that smoking is much more harmful than vaping.

'Every year thousands of children are admitted to hospital as a result of smoking related illness caused by secondhand smoke.

'Getting parents to stop, through switching to vaping or other means, is tremendously important to child health.'

Earlier this month, the Children's Commissioner for England said disposable vapes must be banned and others sold in plain packaging to end the 'Wild West market' in e-cigarettes.

Dame Rachel de Souza said the products are damaging young people and she is deeply worried that children feel under pressure to vape.

She revealed some pupils are now avoiding using toilets at school because they are a hotspot for vaping, while other struggle to concentrate in class because of their nicotine addiction.

Dame Rachel added: 'It is insidious these products are intentionally marketed and promoted to children, both online and offline.'

Her comments echo those from England's Chief Medical Officer, Professor Sir Chris Whitty, who in February attacked the 'appalling' marketing of vapes to children  saying it is clear some products are intended to appeal to underage youngsters.

The government has said it is 'concerned about the recent rises in youth vaping' and has launched a 3million 'illicit vapes enforcement squad' to tackle underage sales to children.

It has also opened a 'call for evidence' to identify way to reduce the number of children vaping.
Britain needs a new deadly pathogen super-lab to replace the crumbling Porton Down facility, experts have told MPs.

This secure Government research site in Salisbury is used to work with smallpox and other viruses and bacteria with biological warfare potential.

But its high security and containment facilities are also used by academics researching pathogens that could spark the next pandemic.

However, this work was being held back due to the site's 'crumbling' state, experts have warned.

Professor Sir Peter Horby, director of the Pandemic Sciences Institute at Oxford University told MPs from the Science, Innovation and Technology Committee that the value of labs like Porton Down couldn't be underestimated in terms of a pandemic response.

Experts say Porton Down's 'crumbling' infrastructure is holding the UK back when it comes to research on dangerous pathogens

Porton Down is what is known as a Biosafety Level (BSL) 4 facility a site which, in theory, has the required safety and containment procedures to hold dangerous viruses and bacteria. Another famous BSL-4 lab is the Wuhan Institute of Virology

This map shows all the known BSL-4 labs with countries shaded based on how scientists have ranked their overall biorisk management score. Green is good, yellow is medium, and red is poor. Some planned labs are not included as their exact location in the country has not been announced

'High containment laboratories are absolutely essential,' he said.

'You can't diagnose the disease, you can't evaluate the diagnostic tests, you can't understand the disease's pathogenesis, you can't evaluate the therapeutics and vaccines and animal models unless you have high containment facilities.

'At some stage you have to work with the live virus, you have to.'

But he said the UK is currently lacked capacity to carry out this work.

'The infrastructure at Porton Down is crumbling,' he said.

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When asked by MPs what the cost would be of replacing Porton Down, Professor Bryan Charleston, director of the Pirbright Institute, a high containment lab working on animal disease, said it would cost over 1billion.

'You'd be talking a 1billion-plus to build a lab of sort of quality and the size that would be expected,' he said.

However, he said such a mega-lab would have the advantage of ensuring research on dangerous pathogens was done correctly.

'You don't want two or three of these, you want one of the right size and you want it properly built and properly staffed,' he said. 'They are not easy to run.'

Porton Down is what is technically known as a Biosafety Level (BSL) 4 facility, the most secure laboratory of its kind for dangerous pathogen research.

BSL-4 labs often have armed guards to keep them secure, with researchers told to wear fully enclosed PPE suits during experiments.

Such sites, of which there are currently about 70 around the world, can contain the viruses and bacteria responsible for diseases like smallpox, Ebola, and Lassa Fever.

Another famous BSL-4 lab is the Wuhan Institute of Virology in China, the facility where some suspect Covid leaked out of, sparking a global pandemic.

The pandemic has sparked a rush on expanding BSL 3 and 4 labs, a move that has some experts concerned there could be a lack of oversight given the high containment standards these facilities should follow.
It would 'not be reasonable' to expect Britain to have been fully prepared for Covid, public health experts claimed today.

In the inquiry's first call for evidence from witnesses, Professor Jimmy Whitworth and Dr Charlotte Hammer said the scale of the pandemic was 'unprecedented'.

It also had 'unknown variables involved', the pair added.

The duo, from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and University of Cambridge, respectively, told the second public hearing that the UK was instead 'thought to be fairly well prepared'.

In a report by Dr Hammer and Professor Whitworth, which had been submitted to the Inquiry, it listed a string of recommendations on how the UK could prepare better for another deadly virus.

Yesterday the inquiry's chief lawyer, Hugo Keith KC, presented the Inquiry with an extraordinarily complicated flow chart detailing the government's chain of command in helping to protect Brits from future pandemics. The diagram, created by the Inquiry to reflect structures in 2019, links together more than 100 organisations involved in preparing the country for any future infectious threats

Public health experts Professor Jimmy Whitworth and Dr Charlotte Hammer, who were commissioned to write a report on infectious disease control and outbreak monitoring, were the first witnesses called to give evidence to the inquiry

They added: 'The Covid epidemic was unprecedented in recent times, and it would not be reasonable to expect the UK to be fully prepared for a hypothetical epidemic of this size... with all the unknown variables involved.'

It comes after the Inquirys lead lawyer Hugo Keith KC said on Tuesday that the UK 'might not have been well prepared at all'.

Addressing Mr Keith, Professor Whitworth today also recalled how the early signs of coronavirus in the UK had chilling similarities with the SARS outbreak from 2002.

Severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) is a viral respiratory disease caused by a SARS-associated coronavirus.

It is the earlier, more deadly cousin of SARS-CoV-2, commonly known now as Covid, which first originated in China in 2002.

He told the inquiry: 'By the middle of January 2020, people in the international public health community were aware this [Covid] was out of the ordinary.

'By the end of January, people in public health - certainly in the UK - were aware it was an impending wave that was coming to the UK.'

'And for those of us who had memory of SARS, the parallels with that were something that gave us shivers.'

Professor Whitworth also told the inquiry that coronaviruses had infected humans on a significant scale twice in the 21st century with SARS and Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS) - a rare but severe respiratory illness.

It was 'a reasonable bet' prior to 2020 that another one might infect the human population, he added.

Earlier today Government lawyers also urged the Inquiry to go easy on them over pandemic mistakes.

The Department of Health's lawyer, Fiona Scolding KC, said it would not 'necessarily have made the same decisions today with the benefit of hindsight'.

She claimed the agency, headed up by Matt Hancock during the height of the crisis, was often faced with 'hugely unpalatable options'.

Meanwhile, James Strachan KC, representing the Cabinet Office, urged the inquiry to 'remember this was a global pandemic'.

Hugo Keith KC told the Inquiry yesterday that the nation was 'taken by surprise' by 'significant aspects' of the disease that has been recorded on 226,977 death certificates

As many as 70 witnesses will contribute to the first module on pandemic preparedness.

Thursday's session will hear from Professor David Heymann, an infectious disease epidemiology expert from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, as well as Professor David Alexander, an expert in emergency planning and management at University College London.

Bruce Mann, who is leading the independent review of the UK Civil Contingencies Act and its supporting civil protection arrangements, will also give evidence.

The first module will run for six weeks, until 20 July. The probe is not expected to conclude until 2026.

A separate Scottish Covid-19 Inquiry chaired by Lord Brailsford is looking at the pandemic response in devolved areas in Scotland.

Welsh First Minister Mark Drakeford has said he and the Welsh government are fully committed to the inquiry, though they maintain that there is no need for Wales to hold its own inquiry.
The Government has admitted to the Covid Inquiry it made mistakes and caused 'profound loneliness, pain and anguish' during the pandemic.

Lawyers for both the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) and the Cabinet Office acknowledged 'weaknesses' in the response to the outbreak, which killed more than 225,000 people in the UK from the start of 2020.

And they acknowledged the sacrifices made by members of the public, as they offered their 'heartfelt condolences' to those who lost loved ones.

But they urged inquiry chairman Baroness Heather Hallett not to rely on hindsight when reviewing the decisions made in Westminster at the time.

It came as public health experts said 'it would not be reasonable to expect the UK to be fully prepared' for an epidemic, after the inquiry's lead lawyer Hugo Keith KC said the UK 'might not have been well prepared at all'.

The Department of Health's lawyer, Fiona Scolding KC, said in her opening statement: 'The department recognises that the guidance it put in place often meant that family and friends were unable to see their loved ones for long periods of time, causing profound loneliness, pain and anguish'

Yesterday the inquiry's chief lawyer, Hugo Keith KC, presented the Inquiry with an extraordinarily complicated flow chart detailing the government's chain of command in helping to protect Brits from future pandemics. The diagram, created by the Inquiry to reflect structures in 2019, links together more than 100 organisations involved in preparing the country for any future infectious threats

In an opening statement, Fiona Scolding KC, for the DHSC, said: 'The department recognises that the guidance it put in place often meant that family and friends were unable to see their loved ones for long periods of time, causing profound loneliness, pain and anguish.

'Everyone who stayed at home, often to the detriment of their mental health, their financial health, their education and their personal and professional relationships, helped keep us all safer.

'Without this agreement, many more people would have lost their lives.'

She said the department 'often faced' a choice between a series of 'hugely unpalatable options', all of which had negative consequences for members of the public, such as lockdown restrictions.

And she acknowledged this created a 'strength of feeling amongst some that certain of the decisions made by us were wrong'.

Go easy on us, Government lawyers beg Covid Inquiry: Probe asked not to use a 'retroscope' and accept height of the pandemic was 'akin to a war' Lawyers representing the Government today urged the Covid Inquiry to go easy on them over any pandemic mistakes. Officials in charge of the long-awaited probe were asked not to use a 'retroscope' in judging errors may early on in the crisis. Lawyers also called upon bosses to acknowledge that decisions were made during the 'biggest peacetime crisis the country has faced', describing the pandemic era as an 'all-consuming period akin to a war' that required 'Herculean' efforts. The Department of Health's lawyer, Fiona Scolding KC, said it would not 'necessarily have made the same decisions today with the benefit of hindsight'. She claimed the agency, headed up by Matt Hancock during the height of the crisis, was often faced with 'hugely unpalatable options'. Meanwhile, James Strachan KC, representing the Cabinet Office, urged the inquiry to 'remember this was a global pandemic'. Britain's Covid response has been described as 'one of UK's worst ever public health failures'. The biggest criticisms levelled at the Government centre around the lack of protection given to care home residents and the lack of debate around lockdown policies. Advertisement

She said: 'The department will not seek, during the course of this inquiry, to say that it did everything right or that it would necessarily have made the same decisions today in 2023 with the benefit of hindsight.

'We will however propose that it is necessary to recognise that the context of the time, particularly in respect of pandemic preparedness, was very different to what we know now and would ask you, my lady, not to impose what we should call a 'retro scope' upon decision-making.'

She said the UK's initial inability to scale-up its testing programme was a 'particular weakness'.

While she praised the eventual ability to provide a million tests a day as being among the best in the world, she said it was 'very difficult to scale up testing in the first stages of this pandemic, to the number and speed required', which made it 'an area of significant weakness compared to our international competitors'.

James Strachan KC, for the Cabinet Office, said the inquiry would allow everyone to 'understand what went well, and what did not'.

He said lessons 'can and must be learned', but added: 'For a global event of this kind, it will certainly be the case that things could or should have been done differently.'

Public health experts Professor Jimmy Whitworth and Dr Charlotte Hammer, who were commissioned to write a report on infectious disease control and outbreak monitoring, were the first witnesses called to give evidence to the inquiry.

In their report, they said the UK was 'thought to be fairly well prepared for epidemics before the Covid outbreak'.

They added: 'The Covid epidemic was unprecedented in recent times, and it would not be reasonable to expect the UK to be fully prepared for a hypothetical epidemic of this size  with all the unknown variables involved.'

Professor Whitworth recalled how the early signs of coronavirus in the UK had chilling similarities with the Sars outbreak from 2002.

He said: 'By the middle of January 2020, people in the international public health community were aware this (Covid) was out of the ordinary.

'By the end of January, people in public health - certainly in the UK - were aware it was an impending wave that was coming to the UK.

'And for those of us who had memory of Sars, the parallels with that were something that gave us shivers.'

The three-year inquiry, held at offices in Paddington in West London, will be split into several tranches.

The first is examining the UK's preparedness and resilience for a pandemic.

While other inquiries have opened across the world, the UK's will be the first to reach public hearings with evidence from witnesses.

Many familiar faces thrust into the limelight during the pandemic are expected to make an appearance.

This could include Sir Chris Whitty, Sir Jonathan Van-Tam, Sir Patrick Vallance and members of the Independent SAGE group of scientists.

Boris Johnson, David Cameron, George Osborne and Jeremy Hunt will also likely be among the politicians giving evidence to Hallett's inquiry.

As many as 70 witnesses will contribute to the first module on pandemic preparedness.

The first module will run for six weeks, until 20 July. The probe is not expected to conclude until 2026.

Hugo Keith KC told the Inquiry yesterday that the nation was 'taken by surprise' by 'significant aspects' of the disease that has been recorded on 226,977 death certificates

Government data up to June 4 shows the number of Covid cases recorded since March 2020. As many as 70 witnesses will contribute to the first module on pandemic preparedness. Wednesday's session will this afternoon hear from Dr Charlotte Hammer, an epidemiologist from Cambridge University and Professor Jimmy Whitworth, an infectious diseases expert from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine

Government data up to May 12 shows the number of deaths of people whose death certificate mentioned Covid as one of the causes, and seven-day rolling average. Baroness Hallett told the inquiry she intends to answer three key questions: was the UK properly prepared for the pandemic, was the response appropriate, and can lessons be learned for the future?
Surgeons should be certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery, he said

A top plastic surgeon has revealed four red flags to watch out for when choosing a clinic after a former Wild 'N Out star reportedly died getting a mommy makeover.

Ms Jacky Oh!, whose full name was Jacklyn Smith, died in Miami at 32 after revealing she was set to undergo cosmetic surgery in a social media post she subsequently deleted.

A traditional mommy makeover comprises a tummy tuck and boob job, but it can be any combination of a tummy tuck, boob job, liposuction, Brazilian butt lift (BBL) and vaginal rejuvenation surgery.

Dr David Shafer from New York City has shared warning signs like being unable to speak with a doctor before the procedure and the clinic not having a legitimate address.

It comes as a fourth Texan has died from fungal meningitis linked to dirty plastic surgery equipment in Mexico.

DC Young Fly and Jacky are parents to three children - daughters Nova and Nala and son Prince

DC Young Flynn wrote: 'You are the GREATEST MOTHER I KNOW your soul was beautiful Yu always wanted the best for others and I admired how our family love each other!!!' Jacky Oh was pictured at an event in Atlanta in March 2019

Surgeon not certified

Most importantly, the surgeon who does your operation has a certificate from the American Board of Plastic Surgery.

It is totally legal to perform plastic surgeries with only a medical doctor's license, Manhattan plastic surgeon Dr Shafer recommends opting for someone with the certificate to mitigate the risks of the procedures.

Dr Shafer said: 'A true plastic surgeon is board certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery.

Manhattan plastic surgeon Dr Shafer said: 'If it doesn't look like a medical type environment, it's probably not a good place to have a true medical surgical procedure'

'Board-certified plastic surgeons are required to have hospital privileges and accredited operating facilities in their offices if they are going to perform surgery in their office. This is for patient safety.

'Someone performing a surgery in an office should have privileges to perform that same surgery in the hospital.

'However, what happens behind closed doors in offices is not strictly regulated, so many non-plastic surgeons get away with pushing the limit of what they are doing in their office and non-accredited spaces.'

Non-legitimate physical space

How the clinic looks can also be an indicator of how legitimate it is, Dr Shafer said.

He warned: 'If it doesn't look like a medical type environment, it's probably not a good place to have a true medical surgical procedure.'

People getting hair and makeup done

He added that if people are getting their hair and makeup done in a so-called clinic, patients should think twice about going under the knife there.

You can't speak to the doctor first

Patients should try to chat to their surgeon before having the operation, Dr Shafer said, as it's important to ensure you are making the right decision.

He said: 'There are some national chain clinics where the initial consultation is done but just a staff member or a receptionist.

'And then you'd never meet the surgeon until the morning of the surgery, and you may never even see that surgeon again for your follow-up visit.

'So if you're in a situation like that, I think that's a red flag.'

Jacky, whose full name was Jacklyn Smith, died in Miami, TMZ reported on June 1.

'We are deeply saddened by the passing of Jacklyn Smith, known to the world as Jacky Oh, a talented Wild N Out family member whose impact will be forever treasured and missed,' the spokesperson said. 'Jacky Oh was a loving friend and beloved colleague of the Wild N Out cast throughout five seasons.

The statement continued: 'More importantly, she was a tremendous mother to three beautiful children.

Page Six reported that Ms Jacky Oh's surgeon Dr Zachary 'Dr Zach' Okhah previously sued a number of former patients for claiming in online reviews that he botched their procedures.

Dr Okhah of PH-1 Miami, known as a BBL specialist, sued Leila Penn in July 2021 for more than $30,000 after she alleged the surgeon 'mutilated' her in a review for healthcare marketplace, RealSelf.

Dr Okhah denied her claims in court documents obtained by Page Six and said her statements were 'false' and defamatory.

The website reports he also accused her of encouraging potential patients to get treatments elsewhere by 'directly engaging with' the commenters on the website.

According to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, around one in 3,000 patients dies either on the table or not long after getting a BBL.

Dr Shafer said it is the most popular and most dangerous surgery patients get.
Artificial intelligence technology helped researchers identify a trio of chemicals that target faulty cells linked to age-related health issues, including certain cancers and Alzheimers disease.

The algorithm comb through a library of more than 4,300 chemical compounds and identified 21 drug candidates that could prompt cell senescence.

This is a phenomenon in which faulty cells stop multiplying but do not die off as they should and continue to release chemicals that can trigger inflammation.

Of those 21 candidates, the scientists zeroed in on three compounds  ginkgetin, oleandrin, and periplocin  which were able to remove defective cells without harming healthy ones when tested on human cells.

AI is increasingly becoming a fixture in medical and scientific research, able to sift through mountains of dense data far faster than a human ever could to aid in the diagnosis of and treatment for diseases.

The research team headed up by experts at Scotland's University of Edinburgh devised an algorithm that successfully zeroed in on three natural compounds that can help stave off age-related health declines such as vision loss, loss of mobility, and Alzheimer's

The team led by researchers from the University of Edinburgh said their machine-learning technology led to several hundred-fold reductions in the cost of screening for effective senolytic drugs.

Senolytic drugs induce death of senescent cells and improve health in humans.

Dr Diego Oyarzun, a co-author of the study, said: This study demonstrates that AI can be incredibly effective in helping us identify new drug candidates, particularly at early stages of drug discovery and for diseases with complex biology or few known molecular targets.

Cellular senescence occurs in a wide range of health conditions associated with getting older, including vision decline, osteoarthritis, a chronic lung disease known as Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, certain cancers, Alzheimer's disease, and atherosclerosis, a cardiovascular condition that develops when sticky plaques build up in the arteries.

Cell senescence is a marker of an aging immune system.

It refers to a state of the cell cycle when cells cannot grow and replicate but dont die either as part of a natural process known as apoptosis.

Instead, the senescent cells remain active within the body and release harmful substances that can cause inflammation and harm to nearby healthy cells, similar to how a moldy piece of melon would contaminate the entire fruit salad.

Because cell senescence entails a halt in the replication of cells, the process is believed to have a suppressive effect on tumors.

At the same time, senescence can promote cancer development by altering the environment around the cell.

The researchers said: Besides their role in cancer and aging, the senescent program has been linked to adverse effects in a broad range of conditions, including osteoporosis, osteoarthritis, pulmonary fibrosis, SARS-CoV-2 infection, hepatic steatosis, and neurodegeneration.

Only one therapy, a combination of Dasatinib plus Quercetin, has been shown in clinical trials to reduce the volume of senescent cells in mice.

Among the three compounds the researchers identified as able to eliminate senescent cells, oleandrin proved more potent than cardiac glycosides, the best-performing family of senolytic drugs.

The three compounds identified in the study, published in the journal Nature Communications, are natural products found in traditional herbal medicines.

Dr Vanessa Smer-Barreto, a co-author, said: This work was borne out of an intensive collaboration between data scientists, chemists and biologists.

Harnessing the strengths of this interdisciplinary mix, we were able to build robust models and save screening costs by using only published data for model training. I hope this work will open new opportunities to accelerate the application of this exciting technology.
The embryos are made without eggs or sperm but not covered by UK law

Human embryos made without eggs or sperm have been created in a scientific breakthrough which is bound to raise serious ethical and legal questions.

They were produced in a joint project between Cambridge University and the California Institute of Technology and resemble embryos in the earliest stages of human development.

They do not have the beginnings of a brain or a beating heart, but do include cells which would go on to form the placenta and yolk sac.

Scientists believe that their finding could provide significant insight and aid research into rare genetic disorders and the biological causes of miscarriage.

But the synthetic embryos are not covered by laws in the UK or in most countries around the world, meaning that they come with serious ethical and legal issues regarding the use of human embryos in a lab.

Human embryos made without eggs or sperm have been created in a scientific breakthrough which is bound to raise serious ethical and legal questions (file image)

The embroyos do not have the beginnings of a brain or a beating heart, but do include cells which would go on to form the placenta and yolk sac (file image)

Until this breakthrough, scientists had to adhere to the 14-day rule which meant they were limited to allowing embryos to develop in a lab for a maximum of two weeks.

After this point researchers would have to wait until further along its development to pick up their study, relying on pregnancy scans and embryos donated to research.

The desire to understand this period of an embryo's development  which starts at day 14 and ends around day 28  was the main motivation behind the work to create synthetic human embryos.

Professor Magdalena Zernicka-Goetz, a fellow at the University of Cambridge, described the work yesterday at the International Society for Stem Cell Research's annual meeting in Boston: 'We can create human embryo-like models by the reprogramming of [embryonic stem] cells.'

Before the talk, she told The Guardian: 'It's beautiful and created entirely from embryonic stem cells.'

While it is not yet clear if the synthetic embryos could continue developing beyond their early stages, implanting them into a patient's womb would be illegal and there is no near-term prospect of them being used for medical purposes.

Until this breakthrough, scientists had to adhere to the 14-day rule which meant they were limited to allowing embryos to develop in a lab for a maximum of two weeks (file image)

Robin Lovell-Badge, the head of stem cell biology and developmental genetics at the Francis Crick Institute in London, told The Guardian: 'The idea is that if you really model normal human embryonic development using stem cells you can gain an awful lot of information about how we begin development, what can go wrong, without having to use early embryos for research.'

Discussing the ethical issues surrounding the findings, he added: 'If the whole intention is that these models are very much like normal embryos, then, in a way, they should be treated the same.

'Currently in legislation they're not. People are worried about this.'
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For nearly 700 years, from before the invention of the printing press until after the dawn of photography, London's streets ran with the blood of those who had been executed in public - as thousands of Britons watched on.

Perhaps the most famous of the tens of thousands who were put to death between 1196 and 1868 for crimes ranging from murder to petty theft was King Charles I, who was beheaded after a trial inside Westminster Hall.

Now, the vest worn by Charles on the day he was put to death - outside Banqueting House in Whitehall on January 30, 1649 - is among dozens of objects going on display in a new exhibition.

Executions, which opens on Friday at the Museum of London, uses objects that also include an axe from the infamous Newgate prison and a 'gibbet' cage in which the dead were put on public display to tell the gruesome story of the capital, which was known as the City of the Gallows.

Also seen is a 300-year-old bedsheet embedded with a love message sewn with human hair by the wife of Sir James Radclyffe, who was beheaded for treason in 1716 for his role in the first Jacobite rebellion.

The vest worn by Charles on the day he was put to death - outside Banqueting House in Whitehall on January 30, 1649 - is among dozens of objects and artefacts going on display in a new exhibition

A 'gibbet' cage in which the dead were put on public display features in Executions at the Museum of London. Gibbets were placed by the main roads into the city and along the River Thames in the 18th-century so people entering London could not escape seeing the deadly consequences of crime

This axe was made for the execution of five plotters who planned to kill the prime minister and MPs in 1820. The plotters were put to death at Newgate Prison

Charles I was the only British monarch to have been publicly tried and executed for treason. His reign had proven hugely unpopular as he attempted to levy taxes without parliamentary consent, prompting fierce clashes with MPs.

Charles I was the only British monarch to have been publicly tried and executed for treason

Attempts to force the church of Scotland to adopt Anglican practices also led to religious conflicts, which in turn resulted in the strengthening of English and Scottish parliaments, helping to pave the way for his eventual downfall.

Charles I fought the armies of the English and Scottish parliaments in the Civil War but was defeated in 1645 and captured.

After a brief period of escape, he was re-captured and executed in Whitehall in 1649 after being tried and convicted of high treason.

On the bitterly cold day of his execution, Charles asked for a vest in the hope it would stop him from visibly shivering on the scaffold where he was beheaded.

His body was then embalmed and buried in St George's Chapel in Windsor nine days late.

The silk garment on display in the new exhibition is believed to be one of the ones that Charles wore.

The stains on the vest have not been conclusively identified as blood but scanning by ultra-violet light has revealed the are bodily fluids.

The vest was acquired by the Museum of London in 1925, along with a note confirming its authenticity.

The new exhibition's curator, Beverley Cook, said: 'We refer to it as the knitted silk vest. It would have been worn under the shirt.

'We did some analysis on it with ultra violet light and the stains fluoresced and that suggests they are bodily fluids. They are down the front of the vest.'

The museum is set to do more scientific analysis on the vest to further back up the belief it was worn by Charles.

According to the exhibition, no spot in the City of London is more than 1,600 feet from a place where gallows once stood.

Traitors' heads were displayed on spikes across London Bridge, whilst body parts were displayed on city gates.

Gibbets were placed by the main roads into the city and along the River Thames in the 18th-century so people entering London could not escape seeing the deadly consequences of crime.

Between 1690 and 1780, wrongdoers who had committed crimes inside or close to Newgate were sometimes executed outside the prison to warn others of the consequences of criminal activity. From 1783, the site became the principal place of execution in London. Above: One of Newgate Prison's original doors

Also seen is a 300-year-old bedsheet embedded with a love message sewn with human hair by the wife of Sir James Radclyffe, who was beheaded for treason in 1716 for his role in the first Jacobite rebellion. The message reads: 'The sheet off my dear Lord's bed in the wretched Tower of London February 1716 x Ann C of Darwent=Waters +'

The use of gibbets was imposed with the Murder Act of 1752, with the practice stopping in 1832 with the passing of the Anatomy Act.

How criminal John 'Jack' Sheppard became a working class hero Sheppard was one of London's most famous criminals. He was notorious for having escaped multiple times from Newgate and became a symbol of freedom for London's working classes. The apprentice carpenter fell into a life of thieving after reputedly being led astray by 'bad company and lewd women'. Although he was eventually executed at Tyburn at the age of 22, Shepperd's bravery in challenging authority ensured his life story was remembered and recounted in popular books and plays for generations. Artist James Thornhill visited him in prison and paid one shilling and sixpence to draw his portrait. His procession to Tyburn was accompanied by a huge sympathetic crowd. John 'Jack' Sheppard was one of London's most famous criminals Advertisement

Whilst members of the nobility were beheaded - to afford them a more dignified death - others were not so lucky.

Other execution methods included boiling, which was usually reserved for poisoners, and burning - the normal punishment for heresy.

The most common method of killing was hanging, although traitors - such as Guy Fawkes - were hung, drawn and quartered.

This involved them being hanged until nearly dead, then castrated, disemboweled, beheaded and finally cut into quarters.

The 'Acte for Poysoning', which mandated the boiling to death of certain murderers, was passed under Henry VIII after cook Richard Roose poisoned the porridge for the household of the Bishop of Rochester, causing two deaths.

Roose was boiled to death at Smithfield on April 5, 1531. According to records from the time, he was dipped up and down in boiling water until he was dead.

In 1542, maid Margaret Davies suffered the same fate after she poisoned four people in the house she lived in.

The execution method was ended when Henry became king in 1547.

By the end of the 18th-century, more than 200 crimes were punishable by death. As well as murder, treachery and highway robbery, they included minor offences such as pickpocketing, burglary and shoplifting.

The Museum of London's exhibition also features a roll call of 5,000 people who were executed. It includes their names, ages, crimes and place where they were executed.

Execution sites included, Smithfield, Tyburn, The Tower of London, Kennington Common, Horsemonger Lane and Newgate.

Between 1690 and 1780, wrongdoers who had committed crimes inside or close to Newgate were sometimes executed outside the prison to warn others of the consequences of criminal activity.

From 1783, the site became the principal place of execution in London. A scaffold was built with a trapdoor and gallows that had two parallel beams where up to 12 people at any one time could hand.

By 1868, when public executions finally came to an end, at least 1,130 men and women had been executed there.

The bedsheet embroidered with human hair was made by Anna Maria Radclyffe for her husband, who was the third Earl of Derwentwater and Grandson of Charles II.

He was beheaded for treason in 1716 after being imprisoned in the Tower of London. He had been involved in the Jacobite Rebellion, which was an attempt by Charles Edward Stuart to regain the throne for his father, James Francis Edward Stuart.

The message reads: 'The sheet off my dear Lord's bed in the wretched Tower of London February 1716 x Ann C of Darwent=Waters +.'

It is not known if the hair used by Anna was her own or hat of her husband. Anna was allowed to take charge of her husband's body and severed head after his execution.

The last public execution took place on May 26, 1868. Michael Barrett, an Irish Republican, had been convicted for his role in an explosion at the Clerkwenwell House of Detention.

An example of an execution 'broadside' is shown above. Broadsides cost around a penny and were produced to describe a criminal's crime and death. They were sold all over the UK

Dozens of artefacts have gone on display at the Museum of London Docklands to tell the story of executions in the capital. Above: The axe from Newgate prison is seen with other objects

This wrought iron waist belt and accompanying cuffs would have been worn by a prisoner at Newgate Prison. It forced the condemned to stoop forward when attempting to walk

The bonnet that belonged to prison reformer Elizabeth Fry, who helped to push for new legislation that improved the treatment of prisoners, especially female inmates

Smoothed coins engraved with a message of affection were gifted to loved ones by convicts awaiting execution and transportation. This reads: 'If E'en I gain my liberty my earliest flight shall be to thee'

Barrett, who always protested his innocence, was executed outside Newgate Prison. Three days after his killing, public executions were abolished.

The death penalty remained until 1969, with hangings taking place inside prison walls.

On 26 May 1868, the last public execution in London took place. Michael Barrett was an Irish Republican convicted for his part in an explosion at the Clerkenwell House of Detention.

He always protested his innocence. Three days later, public executions were abolished, although the death penalty remained until 1969.

Asked how many Londoners were publicly executed until 1868, Ms Cook said: 'Academics have debated this. Some make ridiculous claims, that hundreds of thousands were executed.

'Others say it was probably in the tens of thousands. it is impossible to know, particularly in the early periods.

A puppet from a Punch and Judy show that was held in 1830. The display represents how public executions became embedded in popular culture

A curator is seen arranging the vest worn by Charles I at his public execution outside Banqueting House in London

'As time goes on it is much easier to see how many people were executed because records were kept

'A lot of people were condemned to death because that was one of the only forms of punishment. But so many of those didn't actually make it to the gallows, because they were reprieved, given a pardon or transported to Australia.'

She added: 'Public executions were a very visible part of Londoners' lives for many centuries, with some events attracting tens of thousands of people.

'This idea may seem remote to us now but many of the themes covered in the exhibition will be surprisingly familiar to Londoners today  the struggle to protect an urban population from crime, and the enduring issues of poverty, a rising population, discrimination and domestic violence.

'But it will also reveal the resourcefulness and resilience of Londoners, characteristics still recognisable to those of us who have the privilege of living in London today.'

Executions opens at the Museum of London Docklands on Friday, October 14. Tickets start at 12 and are available through the Museum of London's website.
Australia's most recognisable bikie was banned from the Perth Mint and three major banks after buying $27,000 worth of gold bars.

Dayne Brajkovich revealed he had the ingots melted down and made into eight chunky 18 carat gold rings he wears on each finger, spelling out HATE on his left hand and CINA on his right - a tribute to his wife Jacinta Hill.

The former Hells Angels sergeant-at-arms controversially bought 300g of gold by walking into the mint's shop on June 13 last year and handing over a bag of cash.

He only had to show his driver licence and staff did no background checks before he was allowed to walk out the door with the precious metal.

CCTV of the transaction sparked an investigation of the mint and its operations, and Brajkovich was permanently banned from even setting foot inside, with a terse letter arriving in his mailbox.

CCTV (pictured) of Brajkovich's transaction sparked an investigation of the Perth Mint and its operations

Brajkovich revealed he had the ingots melted down and made into eight chunky 18 carat gold rings he wears on each finger, spelling out HATE on his left hand and CINA on his right - a tribute to his wife Jacinta Hill (pictured)

'We are sorry to inform you that The Perth Mint has made the commercial decision to terminate our relationship with you,' the February 24 letter from retail manager Tina Kircher read.

She wrote that his account would be closed and he would no longer be allowed to conduct any transactions with the mint or enter any of its premises.

Brajkovich said he received similar bans from the ANZ, Commonwealth, and Westpac banks, along with all Crown properties, including its Perth resort and casino.

'I legitimately buy gold from the mint and then I get banned for no reason,' he said.

'I could be saving kittens by the side of the road and I would still be the bad guy.'

He made light of the scandal at a court appearance earlier this year when he wore a T-shirt with three gold bars and the text 'you keep your silver'.

The blinged-up ex-bikie is famous for the chunky gold chain he wears around his neck, which a professional valuation in July 2020 assessed as being worth $216,470.

A similar gold bracelet he frequently wears was valued at $103,085 by Victoria Jeweller and Watchmaker.

Brajkovich said he received similar bans from the ANZ, Commonwealth, and Westpac banks, along with all Crown properties, including its Perth resort and casino

The chunky gold chain Brajkovich wears around his neck was assessed in 2020 as being worth $216,470

Left: The letter banning Dayne Brajkovich from Perth Mint. Right: Brajkovich's latest face tattoo

Brajkovich also sometimes wears a full set of gold teeth he claims is 85 per cent gold and worth almost $50,000, and said his tattoos also cost about that much all up.

Brajkovich became so notorious for his tattoos that he was the poster boy for the Western Australian Government's bikie crackdown.

Premier Mark McGowan, his ministers, and senior cops singled him out when promoting controversial laws banning the public display of bikie symbols.

He had 'Hells Angels' inked on his forehead and '1%er' on his neck - a common bikie identification representing the percentage of motorbike owners who are not law-abiding.

Others included 'infamous gang enforcer' on the right side of his head to make fun of media reports about him, and 'One %' above his right eye.

He later tattooed over the Hells Angels forehead ink with black bars and filled in the diamond the 1%er mark was surrounded by.

However, he added a new one on his head reading 'f**k the police' and a swastika on his chin - which unlike bikie symbols is not illegal in WA.

Brajkovich appears to take up so much space in the heads of WA authorities that his new ink has them talking about banning Nazi symbols, just as Victoria just did, and citing him as a reason why.

Most recently, he got a huge 'King of Kings' tattoo, complete with a spade, on a black background across his right cheek, but the enforcer one was still there.
It cant have been easy organising a modern Coronation at such short notice, with the ceremony taking place just seven months since the death of Queen Elizabeth.

It was imperative to acknowledge that the nation has changed greatly in the 70 years since the Queen was crowned.

So the tensions were as genuine as they were understandable, particularly when it came to including other faiths.

Anglican canon law made it impossible for non-Christian faith leaders to pray out loud in the Abbey, for example. Instead they were largely relegated to a ceremonial procession and a formal greeting afterwards.

Would this be acceptable to the thousands of Jews, Muslims, Sikhs and Hindus?

Leaders of non-Christian faiths were included in the ceremonial procession into Westminster Abbey for the Coronation. But they could not play a speaking part

Faith leaders gather round the throne following the Coronation. King Charles had made a point of including them in a modernised ceremony

There were other concerns, too, particularly for Orthodox Jews.

Was it appropriate for Sir Ephraim Mirvis Chief Rabbi of the UK and Commonwealth, to spend Saturday, the Jewish sacred Sabbath, in a Christian church?

Yet what threatened to be a cause of resentment has proved to be a triumph.

There was little criticism and we were left instead with a landmark moment of unity, described by the Chief Rabbi as a gesture of deep respect towards Jews and Judaism.

Praise indeed  and much of it came down to King Charless extraordinary (amazing even) personal efforts behind the scenes when he was so busy.

For example, he invited the Chief Rabbi and his wife Valerie to stay at Clarence House only a mile from Westminster Abbey where the Coronation was taking place.

This is because Orthodox Jews dont use transport on the Sabbath and follow what the Chief Rabbi calls a digital detox day. The result was that Rabbi Mirvis could walk to the ceremony, as permitted.

The King invited Rabbi Mirvis to spend the night before the Coronation at Clarence House, which meant he could walk to the Abbey - and keep within strict Sabbath rules

Rabbi Mirvis (rear, centre) speaks to Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, during The Big Help Out volunteering day at The Passage homelessness charity in London on May 8 to celebrate the Coronation

The Royal Household made sure every necessary rule was followed. A kosher caterer was even brought in to prepare their Friday night dinner of coronation chicken.

When the service was over, the King walked to the Great West Door to greet five different faith leaders  another precedent.

To save time they all recited a blessing together. A momentous step to encourage different religions to feel a spiritual and even fundamental unity.

And there was another touch: so as not to embarrass the Chief Rabbi, microphones were not used (theyre forbidden on Shabbat, too).

Afterwards, the King was happy for Rabbi Mirvis to return to Clarence House and stay there until the appearance of three stars in the sky announcing that Sabbath was over.

The Chief Rabbi then performed Havdalah, a short ceremony to mark the passing of the Sabbath, that includes a song, sweet-smelling spices, wine, and the lighting and extinguishing of a braided candle with at least three wicks to symbolise the diversity of the Jewish people, woven together in unity.

This was not the first time Charles had extended the hand of friendship.

In September, the King had rescheduled the time of a Buckingham Palace reception following the death of his mother to make it earlier on the Friday so that the Chief Rabbi could get back to his local synagogue before Shabbat.

Jewish days start at nightfall and Im told the Chief Rabbis staff were astounded by the amazing gesture.

The Chief Rabbi played his own part behind the scenes and made sure, for example, that the holy oil for the anointment taken from just outside Jerusalem was blessed.

He too, had been obliged to stand firm with critics.

Rabbi Mirvis pointed out that a ruling from the 1970s by the London Beth Din, the Orthodox rabbinical court, allows rabbis to attend Christian religious ceremonies if their presence is requested by the monarch.

In this case, it most certainly was.

King Charles meets with Rabbi Mirvis at a reception for faith leaders following the death of his mother, Queen Elizabeth II. The reception had been specially timed to ensure that the Chief Rabbi could leave before the start of the Sabbath on Friday evening

After the Coronation the Chief Rabbi told the Jewish Chronicle that, Our every need was taken care of.

And to an American television network, the unassuming Rabbi Mirvis said: Certainly, it was quite surreal, and for us (his wife) it was a great privilege, but we were mindful of the fact that this was not for us ourselves at a personal level, but it was recognition being given to Jews and to Judaism, which we are the representatives of, and Im sharing these details because our community should know the deep respect that is shown towards us.

A rare  and much needed  ray of hope in difficult times.
This is a previously unknown encounter between the late pedophile and the world's richest man as he's know been subpoenaed over their relationship

Jeffrey Epstein bragged about meeting Elon Musk in 2012 in a previously unknown encounter between the two.

DailyMail.com can reveal that the late pedophile said he met the world's richest man at the TED conference that year in Long Beach, California.

Epstein told an acquaintance that he had just had lunch with Musk and Boris Nikolic, the former scientific advisor to Bill Gates who the financier named as an executor of his will.

The details emerged weeks after Musk was subpoenaed by the government of the US Virgin Islands over his ties to the pedophile.

Jeffrey Epstein and Elon Musk met for lunch in 2012, DailyMail.com can reveal. The meet up was after Epstein served a 13-month jail sentence for admitting to soliciting a minor for prostitution and was labeled a registered sex offender

The email from February 2012 from Jeffrey Epstein to an acquaintance, who wishes to not be named, read, 'Just finished lunch with boris (Nikolic) and (Elon) musk'

Epstein told the acquaintance that he had just had lunch with Musk and Boris Nikolic, the former scientific advisor to Bill Gates who the financier named as an executor of his will. Epstein, Gates and Nikolic are pictured together

The subpoena suggested that Epstein played a role in Musk's companies such as Tesla banking with JPMorgan.

Musk dismissed the suggestion on Twitter and said it was 'idiotic on so many levels'.

But the 2012 email suggests the men were closer than had previously been thought, even though Epstein had by then served 13 months in jail for soliciting a minor for prostitution.

As part of the terms of his release, Epstein had to become a registered sex offender yet he continued meeting powerful and well connected men.

TED2012 was themed 'Full Spectrum' and lasted from February 27 to March 2 that year in Long Beach and Palm Springs, California.

Speakers included poets, photographers, climatologists, and the Harvard psychologist Steven Pinker, who was listed as flying on one of Epstein's planes and was photographed with him in 2014.

Dated February 28, 2012, the email from Epstein to an acquaintance read: 'Just finished lunch with boris (Nikolic) and (Elon) musk. Will be at the westin (hotel) in about 30 minutes.'

The new details emerged weeks after Musk was subpoenaed by the government of the US Virgin Islands over his ties to the pedophile. Epstein's private island is pictured

A source told DailyMail.com: 'If you moved in those circles around that time then you'd see Epstein at these kinds of events.

'Nobody really knew what he was doing but he was very interested in people and networking.

A source described Epstein as a 'prolific name dropper' and would mention that he was friends with the likes of Prince Andrew

'He'd host these salon style events at his house where he'd invite half a dozen people over and then hold court.

'I've seen some reports about him making crude jokes but he could be very charming and if he was interested in what you had to say, he'd ask questions or just sit back and listen while people talked among themselves.

The source described Epstein as a 'prolific name dropper' and would mention that he was friends with the likes of Ehud Barak regularly.

According to the source: 'Epstein would say something like he was staying at Sandringham with Prince Andrew or going shooting with him. It did impress some of the guests'.

Previous reports have shown Musk had contact with Epstein or his associates on other occasions around this time period.

In 2011 Musk dined with Epstein as part of a 'billionaire's dinner' organized by a friend of his, along with Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and Google cofounder Sergey Brin, among others.

Three years later in 2014 he was photographed with Epstein's madam Ghislaine Maxwell at a Vanity Fair Oscars afterparty.

When the photograph resurfaced in 2020 Musk said he didn't know her at all and claimed that she 'photobombed' him.

However a New York Times report contradicted this and said that a Vanity Fair staff member at the time said they saw Musk and Maxwell talking.

Maxwell supposedly asked if there was a way to 'remove oneself from the internet' and encouraged Musk to 'destroy the internet'.

After that Maxwell asked why aliens haven't made contact with humanity yet.

A 2019 report from Vanity Fair said that a few years earlier, Musk attended a dinner in Palo Alto, California hosted by LinkedIn founder Reid Hoffman.

Speakers at the TED conference included poets, photographers, climatologists, and the Harvard psychologist Steven Pinker (right) who was listed as flying on one of Epstein's planes and was photographed with him in 2014

The Tesla CEO apparently took questions from convicted sex trafficker Ghislaine Maxwell at a Vanity Fair party where a now-infamous photo of the two together emerged

Among the guests was MIT neuroscientist Ed Boyden and Epstein, the report claimed. Vanity Fair said that during the evening Musk introduced Epstein to Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg.

A spokesman for Zuckerberg said at the time that he 'met Epstein in passing one time at a dinner 'honoring scientists that was not organized by Epstein'.

In the same article Musk gave his fullest accounting to date of his dealings with Epstein.

Musk said: 'I don't recall introducing Epstein to anyone, as I don't know the guy well enough to do so, Epstein is obviously a creep and Zuckerberg is not a friend of mine.

'Several years ago, I was at his house in Manhattan for about 30 minutes in the middle of the afternoon with Talulah (Riley, his ex-girlfriend) as she was curious about meeting this strange person for a novel she was writing. We did not see anything inappropriate at all, apart from weird art. He tried repeatedly to get me to visit his island. I declined'.

A Musk spokesperson added: 'Elon never introduced Jeffrey Epstein to Mark Zuckerberg and does not know either person well enough to do so. They simply happened to be guests at a neuroscience dinner organized by Reid Hoffman'.

Last month the USVI subpoenaed Musk as part of its investigation into Epstein's sex trafficking operation - prosecutors are suing JPMorgan for turning a blind eye and facilitating the abuse

Musk fired back against the subpoena in a tweet last month

In May this year the USVI subpoenaed Musk as part of its investigation into Epstein's sex trafficking operation - prosecutors are suing JPMorgan for turning a blind eye and facilitating the abuse.

The legal request asked for: 'All Documents reflecting or regarding Communications between You and JPMorgan regarding Epstein or Epstein's role with respect to Your accounts, transactions, or financial management'.

Musk fired back on Twitter and said: '1. That cretin never advised me on anything whatsoever. 2. The notion that I would need or listen to financial advice from a dumb crook is absurd. 3. JPM let Tesla down ten years ago, despite having Tesla's global commercial banking business, which we then withdrew. I have never forgiven them.'

Musk did not address how exactly his companies came to bank with JPMorgan and whether he was introduced to anyone at the bank by Epstein.

A spokeswoman for Musk has previously said: 'It is incorrect to say that Epstein ever advised Elon on anything.'

Among the other links between Musk and Epstein was a 2020 report from Insider which claimed that the pedophile introduced Musk's younger brother Kimbal to a woman in his entourage.

The thinking was that the relationship would help keep Musk close to Epstein, Insider claimed.

Kimbal and the woman did actually date from 2011 to 2012 and Insider claimed Epstein got a tour of a SpaceX facility in 2012 - SpaceX denied this.

DailyMail.com reached out to SpaceX and Tesla but got no response.

Twitter's press office did not respond to requests for comment and instead sent an automated smiling poop emoji.
Transport for London has given out 400million worth of fines to motorists who failed to pay Sadiq Khan's Ultra Low Emission Zone (Ulez) charge over a 16-month period.

Some 2,468,471 penalty charge notices were issued between January 2022 and April 2023 for non-payment of the Mayor's daily 12.50 rate for driving in London.

Drivers whose vehicles do not meet Ulez emission standards receive a fine of 180 if they fail to pay the charge, although this is reduced to 90 if paid within a fortnight.

The fines increased in January from 160 and 80 respectively. Transport for London (TfL) has not provided a month-by-month breakdown, but the 180 figure would equate to 444,324,780 in fines. Using the 160 figure would mean the equivalent of 394,955,360 in fines.

Separate research by BBC News yesterday found the Ulez generated 224.6million during 2022, including 151.3million in daily charges and 73.3million in fines.

And hundreds of thousands more drivers are likely to be affected when the planned Ulez expansion comes into force on August 29, subject to a High Court challenge.

Mr Khan's Ulez has proven hugely controversial amid claims it does little to improve air quality and has a negative impact on families and tradespeople who need cars.

The Ultra Low Emission Zone (Ulez) currently covers the area inside the North and South Circular roads, but the Mayor intends to expand it across all of Greater London on August 29

London Mayor Sadiq Khan, pictured at Piccadilly in London on March 21, has claimed Nazis have infiltrated demonstrations against his expansion of the Ulez to all of Greater London

Protesters gather for a demonstration against the Ulez expansion on London Bridge on May 27

Nick Rogers AM, the City Hall Conservatives transport spokesman, told MailOnline: 'Sadiq Khan's Ulez expansion takes money from charities, small businesses and people on low incomes, while doing next to nothing to improve air quality.

READ MORE Why millions of Londoners will ignore ULEZ and continue using their cars despite massive expansion of the daily 12.50 fee in August Advertisement

'The figures released today show once again that Sadiq Khan is more interested in making money than he is in tackling air pollution.'

The Ulez was initially launched on April 8, 2019, when it covered the same area as the Congestion Charge zone - before being expanded two years later on October 25, 2021, to cover the area within the North and South Circular roads.

Mr Khan plans to expand the Ulez on August 29 to cover all of Greater London, with its new borders reaching Buckinghamshire, Essex, Hertfordshire, Kent and Surrey.

But in April, a High Court judge decided five Conservative-led councils could challenge the plan and a judicial review to effectively determine whether Mr Khan acted legally in how he gave the green light for its expansion will take place on July 4.

Last Friday, TfL published a response to a Freedom of Information (FOI) request made on May 12 asking for information about Ulez penalty charges.

Its FOI case officer Graham Hurt said that out of the 2,468,471 PCNs issued, there were 280,766 representations from motorists challenging a penalty.

Some 177,489 or 63 per cent of these were accepted; 64,938 or 23 per cent were rejected; and 38,339 or 14 per cent remained open.

Protesters demonstrate against the expansion of Ulez on Whitehall in London on March 18

Another protest against the Ulez expansion at London's Trafalgar Square on February 25

Of those representations that were rejected, 12,780 appeals were made to London Tribunals and 865 or 7 per cent were found in favour of the appellant.

TfL said examples of successful appeals can include when a motorist had inadvertently paid for the wrong vehicle registration or date of travel and as a result received a penalty.

A further example could be if a motorist forgot to update or to add a vehicle to their 'Auto Pay' account.

TfL also pointed out that the acceptance of an appeal does not mean the penalty was incorrectly issued.

Mr Khan's scheme to 'help clear up London's air' currently covers all areas within the North and South Circular and drivers must pay a 12.50 daily fee to drive inside the zone if their vehicles do not meet required emissions standards.

If the expansion goes ahead on August 29, drivers in outer London will also have to pay the charge.

According to Mr Khan, nine out of ten cars and around eight out of ten vans seen driving in the zone on an average day are already compliant.

On June 1, he announced that thousands more Londoners will be able to swap their polluting vehicles for greener alternatives as he expanded the Ulez scrappage scheme to cover families receiving child benefits and small businesses across the capital from the end of July.

Business with fewer than 50 employees can now apply to scrap, retrofit or replace vehicles, not just those with up to ten staff. The move also means 874,710 London families receiving child benefits can apply for a new vehicle.

Hecklers shouted down Mayor Khan at a public meeting in Ealing, west London, on March 2 after he branded some Ulez opponents 'far-Right' and 'Covid deniers'

The 110million scrappage scheme, run by TfL, was launched in January to support London-based small businesses, traders and charities replace polluting vehicles.

READ MORE Sadiq Khan's plans to scrap day travelcards in London are slammed by local council chiefs for heaping extra costs on commuters that 'will be worse than ULEZ expansion Advertisement

In March, Mr Khan claimed that 'anti-vaxxers, Covid deniers, conspiracy theorists and Nazis' had joined 'decent Tories' in opposing the Ulez expansion.

He also branded some Ulez opponents 'far-Right' at a public meeting in Ealing, west London, earlier that month.

Mr Khan's comments at the time sparked outrage, with Conservative Party chairman Greg Hands calling for him to be voted out in the next election.

Christina Calderato, TfL's director of strategy and policy, told MailOnline today: 'The Ulez is vital in tackling the triple challenges of air pollution, the climate emergency and congestion, and will ensure millions more people can breathe cleaner air.

'The Ulez is not about making money and will not generate a surplus in the next few years as compliance increases. It will lead to cleaner air while generating ever smaller net revenues, as has been the case with the previous expansion to inner London where people switched to greener vehicles.

'Any surplus received from the Ulez is reinvested into running and improving London's transport network, such as expanding bus routes in outer London.

'The Ulez is a very targeted scheme which means that only those with the most polluting vehicles will have to pay the charge, and these figures reflect the fact that individuals can accumulate multiple fines if their PCNs remain unpaid.'

And a spokesman for Mr Khan told MailOnline: 'London has made significant progress over the last six years in improving air quality, but it sadly remains the case that thousands of Londoners die prematurely each year as a result of toxic pollution and it causes children to grow up with stunted lungs and increases the risk of dementia in older people.

'The Ulez is not a money-making scheme and within a few years, as compliance increases, it will actually make a net loss. Ninety per cent of cars driven in outer London on an average day are compliant and the Ulez is projected to stop making a surplus in 2026/27 as compliance levels continue to increase all the time.

'The Ulez is a very targeted scheme which means that only those with the most polluting vehicles will have to pay the charge, and these figures reflect the fact that individuals can accumulate multiple warrants if their PCNs remain unpaid.'

'In the meantime, any revenues raised are ringfenced and reinvested into London's transport network, including investing in state-of-the art electric buses, improving transport links in outer London.'

The estimated costs to set up the expanded London-wide Ulez - due to come into force on August 29 - are between 130million and 140million.

TfL estimates that the London-wide Ulez could generate up to 200million a year for the first two years following the expansion in August, but this will fall to about 50million in 2025/26.
Dairo said it was that hope that led her to suddenly - and without her family's knowledge - gather up her children for the fateful aircraft journey

Valencia's brother Dairo Mucutuy told DailyMail.com about Ranoque's betrayal and how he left the mother dangling with hope they could mend the relationship

The father of two children - who survived in the Colombian jungle with their two siblings for 40 days after a plane crash - was cheating on their mother who died in the horror, her anguished family told DailyMail.com.

Manuel Ranoque  who has been highly vocal about claiming his rights over all four survivors  left mom Magdalena Mucutuy Valencia at their Indigenous community for Bogota, alleging he was being threatened by FARC guerrillas in their homeland area.

But once in the sprawling capital city, the father of the two younger children allegedly had an affair - then brought the woman back to live in the southern tribal area, shattering his wife of seven years, her brother Dairo Mucutuy exclusively told DailyMail.com.

Ranoque later left for Bogota again, but kept the mom-of-four dangling with hope that they could re-establish a relationship, Dairo, 30, told us.

And it was that hope amid her partner's affair that led her to suddenly  and without her family's knowledge  gather up her children for the fateful light aircraft journey from the Amazonian village of Araracuara to the town of San Jose del Guaviare en route to the nation's capital.

Manuel Ranoque  who is the father of two of the four siblings  allegedly left their mother and wife of seven years Magdalena Mucutuy Valencia for another woman

Magdalena Mucutuy Valencia was left dangling with hope they could mend the relationship, according to her brother

Dairo said it was that hope that led her to suddenly - and without her family's knowledge - gather up her children for the fateful aircraft journey

Sitting in the lobby of his Bogota hotel, Dairo calmly revealed to us: 'What happened is that Manuel had come to this city and here he cheated on my sister.

'The thing is, he took the woman he cheated with back to the community. So my sister of course left their house because of the affair and came to live with me and my partner and two children.'

Valenica died in the plane crash along with the pilot and an Indigenous leader

Dairo, who has come to the capital from his base in the Huitoto Indigenous group homeland to offer his support for the surviving children, continued: 'Manuel went back to Bogota, but he left a bag for her and inside was a piece of paper with a phone number.

'Magdalena was communicating with him. But we noticed when she talked with him she would hide. And we would sometimes hear her crying.

'We believe somehow she was fooled into trying to come to Bogota. We are not exactly sure of the reasons.'

Tragically, the engine on the 17-year-old blue and white Cessna light aircraft carrying Magdalena and the four siblings failed and the plane crashed in deep undergrowth on May 1 at Solano, Caqueta, near the Ecuador border.

Lesly Jacombaire Mucutuy, 13, Soleiny Jacombaire Mucutuy, nine, Tien Noriel Ronoque Mucutuy, four, and one-year-old Cristin Neriman Ranoque Mucutuy survived the impact and astonishingly stayed alive for 40 days in the snake-infested jungle before being rescued in a story that has gripped the world.

They are recovering from their ordeal in a military hospital in Bogota, while a custody battle has broken out over them between the mother's side of the family and Ranoque.

Additionally, the Colombian Institute of Family Welfare has assigned a case officer to the children at the request of their maternal grandparents.

However, DailyMail.com is able to reveal the full background to the tragedy that is now pitting outspoken Ranoque against the family of the children's mother.

Additionally, we can reveal the identity of Lesly and Soleiny's father as Andres Jacombaire, who is also in Bogota to support his children as the drama continues and questions are asked over their future.

DailyMail.com spoke to Valencia's brother Dairo as he sat in the lobby of his Bogota hotel. 'We didn't know Magdalena was leaving with the children,' Dairo said. 'The most painful thing is my sister never said goodbye to us'

The four indigenous children are pictured after being rescued. They were missing for six weeks in the Colombian Amazon jungle after a plane crash

Exclusive photos show the four siblings, Lesly, 13, Soleiny, nine, Tien Noriel, four, and baby Cristin, one, safe in their hospital beds at a military hospital in Bogota, Colombia

'We didn't know Magdalena was leaving with the children,' Dairo said. 'The most painful thing is my sister never said goodbye to us.

'We didn't get to talk. It hurt when I found out what was happening between her and Manuel. I am so sad I never got to talk to her properly about it. I felt I didn't want to pressure her about something that was so difficult for her.

'I was waiting for the right moment. But that moment never came because she obviously made her decision to leave and we didn't know about it.

'Right before, she came to a community meeting and we thought she was going on to our aunt's house. We didn't know her goal was to take that plane. Maybe she felt confused. We'll never know now.'

Amid the growing acrimony over the children's future, Dairo told us: 'The hope is for the kids to stay together, because of what they went through.

'Lesly got them all through this. And that makes a special bond. We want them always to stay together and that Manuel does not fight for custody.

'I have talked to the older two's father, Andres. He has seen the children and he told me that this is not the time for fighting and division. It is the time to focus on the well-being, safety and comfort of the children.'

Referring to his mother Maria Fatima Valencia, Dairo continued: 'Maybe it would be fine for them to stay with their grandmother.

'Eventually they are going to go through psychiatric assistance as well as their medical help. That will be through the Colombian government.

'And then, only then, are we going to decide who will take custody of the kids.'

Two of the children made touching colored drawings of Wilson the Belgian Shepherd rescue dog who went missing during the mission to save them. The drawings were revealed when the head of the Colombian armed forces, General Helder Giraldo visited the children in the hospital

In Lesly's drawing, six-year-old Wilson is depicted next to a river full of fish, a tree, some yellow flowers and with the sun shining on a pathway

Belgian Shepherd Wilson played a vital role in tracking down the four children but remains missing in the Amazon rainforest

Ranoque has appeared outside the military hospital several times since the children were taken there on Saturday after their astonishing rescue by Colombian military who launched a desperate mission after the crash.

His version of events has varied considerably with the other side of the family.

On Sunday, he asserted that Magdalena was alive for four days after the plane crash, saying: 'Let's be clear, the girl (Lesly) knows everything.

'The only thing that she clarified is that the mother was alive for four days. Before she died she told them "Go! And you will find out what your dad is made of and what your father's love is like."'

However, Dairo dismissed the story and its sentiment. He confirmed to DailyMail.com that Magdalena tragically died instantly and gave more heartbreaking details of the horror.

'Lesly has said that on impact, her mother died,' Dairo told us. 'And that when she saw the bodies, the baby (Cristin) was moving so she pulled the baby out.

'The baby was with the mother. It is false that he was saying that she was alive four days. She died on impact.'

Of Manuel's statements, Dairo  who thoughtfully considered every answer to our questions before speaking - said: 'I know he's trying to create something.'

Ranoque has appeared outside the military hospital several times since the children were taken there on Saturday after their astonishing rescue. He has been highly vocal about claiming his rights over all four survivors

Dairo confirmed to DailyMail.com that his sister tragically died instantly on impact and gave more heartbreaking details of the horror

'But we want to say things as they are. We don't want different stories going around. He's saying one thing, we are sticking to what we know.

'And I know he might be doing this to create some kind of conflict. We don't want to go there.' Then he warned: 'But if we have to go there, we are going to stand our ground.'

Dairo also condemned Manuel's allegation that he has been threatened by FARC guerrillas and that was the reason for vanishing and asking Magdalena to join him in Bogota claiming she and the children were also under threat.

'Saying those words is very dangerous,' said Dairo. 'That is also potentially making us all in the spotlight. It's a very serious thing to say. There is no evidence he was threatened. But the consequences of his words could create a dangerous situation for all our family.'

DailyMail.com's revelations follow our exclusive pictures of the four children recovering in the hospital, on the mend and playing with pink stuffed animals.

We also revealed moving colored drawings done by Lesly and Soleiny of missing rescue dog Wilson, a Belgian Shepherd who played a key role in finding them.

The drawings obtained by DailyMail.com were given to the head of Colombia's armed forces, General Helder Giraldo, when he visited the children on Monday.

Soldiers of the Colombian Air Force treat one of the children rescued from the Colombian jungle during the operation on June 9

Soldiers of the Colombian Air Force and employees of the Colombian Family Welfare Institute (ICBF) give medical attention inside a plane to the surviving children of a Cessna 206 plane crash

In Lesly's drawing, six-year-old Wilson is depicted next to a river full of fish, a tree, some yellow flowers and with the sun shining on a pathway.

Soleiny's image was similar, with Wilson near a tree, a flower and the sun beaming. One side of the drawing has the Colombian flag and the message 'Always blessed'.

Grandfather Narciso said: 'They are making them make drawings something that they need in order to express themselves.'

Rescue dog Wilson was presumed lost a few days before the siblings were found after he ran away from his handlers, until rescue teams found his footprints near those of the children.

The loyal canine stayed with the children for several days before being lost once again and despite proving crucial to the search mission, which was codenamed 'Esperanza', the Spanish word for hope, has not been found.

Dramatic new details of the children's astonishing ordeal were also revealed by grandfather Narciso on Monday evening. Two other people died in the crash, the pilot and an Indigenous leader.

He said: 'When she (Lesly) realized her mother was already dead, she saw the little feet of her little sister among the three dead bodies.

'She pulled the kid out. And then she immediately saw the others were injured then she headed to open the mother's bag, took out some clothes and started ripping them apart and starting bandaging.

He said there was 3lb of flour on board. 'They stayed around the airplane for four days to see if anyone would pick them up,' he continued.

'But then after four days went by they took off. But she said she didn't know which way to go. Then after a while they started leaving tracks everywhere they would sleep in case anyone would be looking for them, it would help find them.'

He also revealed: 'When they were hearing helicopters they would hide under the large trees because they were fearful.

'And when members of the community and military would be looking for them she (Lesly) would see them 10 meters away and they would hide and stay still and cover the mouth of the little one so she wouldn't cry.

'When the indigenous members of the community were seeking them around the area, the kids would never respond because they thought if they would find them they would give them toys for hiding - and this is why they wouldn't respond to the people calling out for them.'

The incredible rescue was against all odds. The children survived in a jungle crawling with snakes, jaguars and other predators. Their survival was helped by the 3lb of cassava flour that was on the plane.

When found, they were dehydrated, malnourished and bitten by insects but are otherwise healthy, rescuers said.

Grandmother Maria, whose voice was played from aircraft above the jungle during the search to reassure the youngsters they were being looked for, told reporters: 'I never lost hope,

'I was always supporting the search. I feel very happy.'

Colombia's President Gustavo Petro, who has visited them in hospital, said after the rescue: 'They are children of the jungle, and now they are also children of Colombia.'
Experts are urging Americans to check their small change to see if they might unknowingly have a fortune languishing in their wallet.

One Georgia state quarter has been estimated to be worth over $7,000 due to a particular production error.

The rare coin was minted in 1999, when the US Treasury began the state quarters program.

At the time, it was also working on a new gold-tinted alloy for coins, which was eventually used for the Sacagawea or 'golden' dollar which came out in 2000.

'Curious how the alloy would look on quarters, a bunch of Georgia state ones were minted using it,' said the US Coins Guide. 'The Treasury decided not to go with the alloy on quarters, but the ones minted with it were still released and are now very much desired by collectors.'

The rare coin was minted in 1999 when the Treasury was experimenting with a gold-tinted alloy

One coin sold for $7,200, according to a listing by rare coin auctioneer Heritage Auctions

HOW TO SPOT A RARE 1999 GEORGIA QUARTER Here are some signs that you might have a rare quarter: Weighs between 5.9 and 6.3 grams on a coin scale, which is more than the 5.67 grams for a typical copper-nickel clad quarter Appears thicker than normal Has a golden or greenish color, similar to Sacagawea dollars Lacks the copper (orange-colored) stripe on the edge of the coin Lacks some or all of the edge reeding (e.g. ridges) Has a thicker rim than normal (a coins rim refers to the raised ridge encircling the circumference of the obverse and reverse of a coin, according to Professional Coin Grading Services) Advertisement

In January 2020, one such coin sold for $7,200, according to a listing by rare coin auctioneer Heritage Auctions.

As well as its gold-tinted hue, there are various other tell-tale signs that a Georgia quarter might be rare and valuable.

If the coin weighs between 5.9 and 6.3 grams, instead of the typical 5.67 grams for a copper-nickel clad quarter, it could be worth more than 25 cents.

If it appears thicker than normal, lacks some or all of the ridges on the edge, or has a thicker rim than normal, it could be worth getting checked out.

If you think you might have discovered one of these coins, show it to a reputable dealer or get it certified by a coin grading company.

The 1999 Georgia quarter is just one of various valuable coins which can make a mint when sold at auction.

Last month coin expert Ian Russell revealed the most valuable pieces he has ever sold at auction, including a $12million silver dollar and a set of Lincoln pennies which fetched $7.7 million.

Russell, president of California-based auction site GreatCollections, developed an interest in rare currencies in his teens and now typically sells up to 5,000 coins a week.

Yet even he says he was most astonished by the Lincoln set sale which was auctioned by the estate of coin enthusiast Stewart Blay after his death, aged 77.

Prior to the bid, a single Lincoln Cent had never broken the million-dollar sale mark.

But Russell said it was not rare for some types of coins to sell for over $1 million in the current market.

Last year, his auction house sold what was thought to be the first ever silver dollar to be struck by the United States mint for a whopping $12 million.

And in 2021 GreatCollections bought three coins for a record-breaking $13.35 million.

Ian Russell, president of California-based coin auction house GreatCollections, has revealed the coins most likely to fetch the biggest sums

A collection of Lincoln cents, pictured, sold for $7.7 million in a record-breaking auction overseen by GreatCollections



It comes after a California realtor made a remarkable discovery of one million pennies while cleaning out his late father-in-law's former home in Los Angeles.

John Reyes and his wife Elizabeth found the pennies in a crawlspace in the basement of her late father Fritz's home in the Pico-Union neighborhood of the city last year.

After struggling to find a bank willing to exchange them for cash, he was urged by one manager to look into whether he had a stash of rare pennies worth more than their dollar value.

Reyes has now listed the coins on OfferUp, a popular resale app and website, asking for $25,000 - more than double the $10,000 value in normal currency.

'Someone can buy them and they can go penny hunting,' he told DailyMail.com.
A British scammer has conned an Australian businessman out of $130,000 in a sophisticated text message scam, before boasting about how he was 'going to take a vacation' with the money.

The victim, Paul Trefry, has spoken out on 2GB's Ben Fordham Live to warn others to remain vigilant before it's too late.

The criminals sent a text message to Mr Trefry from the same number used by ANZ Bank. It appeared in the same message thread as legitimate text messages from the bank, which made him think it was not a scam.

The text message warned his account had been compromised and he needed to transfer his money over to a new 'safer' account, which turned out to be the crooks.

'I'm running a business, and not having a business credit card makes things very difficult, so the second option was better for me,' he said.

Scam victim Paul Trefry said the criminal used an 'over stamping' technique to make a fake security alert appear in the legitimate text chat with his bank, ANZ, in May

Over the next four days, Mr Trefry sent across $130,000 to the account which the scammers ran.

ANZ Bank contacted him a week later to let him know he had been scammed.

'They asked me about a transfer of $17,500 into an account, and I said, 'well, guys, I'm just following your instructions,' and they said, 'no, we wouldn't instruct you to transfer money into different accounts'.

'...He (the ANZ rep) said, 'look, it's a really elaborate scam which these guys have been doing, and they copy ANZ's protocol to a tee, unfortunately, there's not gonna be a great deal we can do for you'.'

He called for ANZ to do more to alert its customers about current scams.

'They've got a liability to their customers to notify them about this type of thing,' he said.

'They've known about it for a long period of time.

'It's simple to send a text message to your customers saying that this service has been compromised and check the text messages before you do anything.'

ANZ recovered some of the money, but Mr Trefry is still $85,000 out of pocket.

A mock up of the scam text messages

HOW THE SCAM WORKS 1. The scammers buy the phone numbers and details of Australians from the dark web 2. They send text messages to potential victims, hijacking the phone numbers of legitimate institutions such as banks 3. The text messages warn of their account being compromised, and the funds needing to be urgently transferred to a 'safe' account. It is actually the account of the scammers 4. Aussies can lose their life savings in less than five minutes Advertisement

Mr Trefry decided to contact the scammers after he'd discovered their theft, who boasted about stealing his money.

'I think you need to understand that you've been robbed for $100,000. It was great dealing with you, Paul,' the scammer said.

'Thank you. I'm going to take a vacation very soon.

'How do you feel about losing 33 per cent of your balance?'

Mr Trefry replied that he felt 'horrible' with his admission falling on deaf ears.

'I'm still happy. We made a profit,' the scammer said.

'We bought your details for $20 and then I called you.

'We just swindled you.'

The conversation took a sinister turn after Mr Trefry told the scammer he was recording their conversation.

'Who are you going to send your recording to? Which news should I check? Which one? Where do I look for this recording,' the scammer asked.

'Enjoy losing your $100,000. I hope your mother has a terrible, terrible death and Mother's Day becomes an absolutely shocking anniversary for you.

'I hope it reminds you of the scam and your mother is going to die a horrible, I'm going to sh** on her grave.'

ANZ's fraud team didn't contact Mr Trefry about his odd transfers until a week after he received the fake alert. By that point, he'd already lost $130,000.

The fake text from the scammers told Paul his ANZ account had been compromised and appeared in the same chat as other legitimate messages from the bank

Mr Trefry is a well-known sculptor who runs the Creature NFX workshop, a business that makes animatronics, models, costumes and props,

He was recently contracted to make models of the kangaroo, unicorn and emus that appeared in an Australian Tourism ad.

He's now worried about the future of his business.

'I don't know how I can financially get over it,' he said. 'I'm self-employed and I subcontract guys and I've had to let one guy off.

'I've actually stopped paying a wage for a period of time until we get back on top.

Daily Mail Australia contacted ANZ for comment.
Top criminal barristers have rejected Katy Gallagher's claims that discussing Brittany Higgins' rape allegations in parliament would discourage women from reporting their own sexual assaults.

Senator Gallagher has faced a barrage of questions over whether she misled parliament about what she knew of Ms Higgins' allegations, following the publication of private texts between her and her fiance David Sharaz.

Yesterday, the Finance Minister claimed that women across Australia who were considering coming forward with any allegations would be deterred by the toxic fall-out of Higgins' case.

'I fear the message for this for women who want to come forward is "watch out",' she told the Senate on Tuesday.

'Women who may now choose to keep allegations of serious sexual or violent abuse silent to suppress the trauma and feel as though justice will always elude them.

Under-fire Finance Minister Katy Gallagher (pictured) is facing a barrage of questions about whether she misled parliament over her knowledge of the Higgins case

'Women who might feel like the system wont properly protect their welfare and might let them down. And Im not going to stand for that.'

But now two big-hitting criminal lawyers have rubbished Senator Gallagher's suggestion that coming forward would scare other women into silence.

Former Crown prosecutor Margaret Cunneen SC rejected the idea the attention on Higgins would stop women reporting assaults.

'Not in the least,' she told The Australian.

'It may remind women to pursue criminal allegation through the criminal justice system, which will always protect their anonymity, and not to take the option to publicise it even before the criminal justice system has commenced,' she said.

Ms Higgins, a former Liberal staffer, alleges that she was raped by her colleague Bruce Lehrmann in the parliamentary office of her then boss, Linda Reynolds after a night out.

She first went public with an interview with The Project in 2021, before the criminal trial - which later collapsed due to juror misconduct - even began.

Former Crown prosecutor Margaret Cunneen SC (pictured) has rejected the idea the attention on Higgins would stop women reporting assaults

Mr Lehrmann has always denied the allegations.

Ms Cunneen, who recently defended convicted rapist and disgraced ex-NRL player Jarryd Hayne, said the problem with Ms Higgins' case was political interference, which might not have occurred if she had remained anonymous.

'Most women take advantage of the great reform which has been available now for many years that their name will remain anonymous and many identifying characteristics would remain anonymous for the duration of proceedings,' she said.

'Had this happened in this case there would be nothing about which to complain. Crime should go through the criminal justice system with no possibility of political interference.

'(Ms Higgins) even said so herself, that this story was going to be about politics and not about her.

'But it never would have been had the election been made by the complainant in the first place to remain anonymous.'

It is believed Ms Cunneen was referring to some of the comments Ms Higgins had made in the leaked five-hour pre-interview lunch she had with her boyfriend David Sharaz, Lisa Wilkinson and her Channel Ten producer Angus Llewellyn in a Sydney hotel room in January 2021.

Brittany Higgins is pictured with her boyfriend, David Sharaz

Katy Gallagher (right) has refused to reveal whether Mr Sharaz (left) provided her with a full transcript of Brittany Higgins' interview with The Project prior to its release

At the meeting, Ms Higgins conceded that her allegations would be politicised.

'I was always very cognisant of the fact that the moment this was reported, this will be a story,' Ms Higgins said.

'Not because of me, not because of Bruce, but on the basis of a) where it happened and b) who I worked for.

'And I was always hyper-conscious of the media commodification of my story and I was scared of it.'

Ms Cunneen's remarks were echoed by other esteemed criminal law colleagues.

Sharon Kermath, who has worked as both a defence barrister and for the Office of Public Prosecutions, said the 'political fight in parliament regarding issues of the Higgins matter will unlikely affect victims coming forward'.

'I dont think its going to hurt anyone because prosecution support the victims and lawyers support victims through what is such a delicate situation,' said Ms Kermath.
The body of a 45-year-old man has been found blindfolded and with his hands tied behind his back while wearing a collar, sparking a murder investigation.

Authorities discovered the gruesome scene at a home in Diana Crescent at Lockridge, in Perth's north-eastern suburbs at 3.45pm on Monday.

The dad-of-two was found with horrific head injuries at the house - which sits opposite a daycare centre - after he was last heard from at 8.40am on Sunday.

It is understood the man's concerned ex-partner made the grisly discovery before alerting police, 9News reported.

Western Australian police Inspector Geoff DeSanges said evidence at the crime scene revealed there was 'third-party involvement'.

Authorities discovered the gruesome scene at a home in Diana Crescent at Lockridge, in Perth's north-eastern suburbs at 3.45pm on Monday

It is understood the man's concerned ex-partner made the grisly discovery before alerting police (pictured, police forensics at the scene)

'This does not appear to be a random incident so we don't believe there is any ongoing risk to the community,' he told the media.

Inspector DeSanges added the man had not been known to police and rejected claims there was a firearm involved.

He also would not elaborate more on the man's injuries.

It is believed the offender was known to the victim.

'The investigation is in its very early stages, and the homicide squad is appealing for support from the community  anyone who may have information, certainly any vision, to please come forward,' he said.

Homicide detectives arrived with a forensic team on Monday evening and worked through the night into the next day - and are expected to remain there for a few days.

Authorities were seen scouring through bins and examining a laptop while paying particular attention to the backyard of the home.

Police do not have any suspects in custody and have dismissed crime gangs being linked to the shocking incident.

Officers have been canvassing the neighbourhood and were also seen entering a backyard of the home next door.

Meanwhile, neighbours were in shock over the grim discovery and the heavy police presence on their street.

Marisha Taylor said the incident has rattled locals.

'It was just a bit of shock to see something like this happen in a little suburb when it is very friendly,' Ms Taylor told the West Australian.

Forensic workers (pictured) and detectives are expected to remain at the property for a few more days

'It's a family area, so it's a shock to know something like this has happened around here  with little kids around, right next to the daycare, too.'

Another local who did not want to be named said 'usually nothing happens on this street'.

'It's pretty quiet, there's no crime, so yeah, it's surprising to see all these police,' she said.

Police are appealing to those with CCTV or dashcam vision of the man in his last hours from Sunday morning until Monday afternoon to contact Crime Stoppers.
The decision is another legal bodyblow for the former president, who faces over 100 years behind bars on federal charges of classified document mishandling

A judge ruled she can amend her lawsuit to include remarks Trump made at last month's CNN town hall, where he called her a 'whack job'

Writer E. Jean Carroll will be allowed to seek further damages against Donald Trump just weeks after she was awarded $5 million

A federal judge will allow writer E. Jean Carroll to amend her defamation lawsuit against Donald Trump to seek extra damages for comments he made at last month's CNN town hall.

Carroll had threatened to sue the former president for a third time over his 'vile' comments, which were a repetition of statements a federal jury previously found to be defamatory.

During the controversial town hall, which aired a day after Carroll was awarded $5 million in damages in a separate lawsuit, Trump slammed his accuser as a 'whack job'.

He also mocked her 'hanky panky' and 'fake' allegations, claiming the judge banned his legal team from entering evidence that Carroll called her husband an 'ape' and had a cat 'named Vagina'.

The judge's decision to allow Carroll to seek further damages comes as another legal bodyblow to Trump, just days after he became the first former president to be indicted on federal charges in Miami.

Donald Trump (left) slammed E Jean Carroll as a 'whack job' during a controversial CNN town hall with host Kaitlan Collins (right)

Soon after Trump made the startling comments about Carroll in the town hall, the writer told the New York Times she was considering filing another defamation suit.

'Its just stupid, its just disgusting, vile, foul, it wounds people,' she said at the time.

Her amended lawsuit is separate from the one tried last month, which saw Carroll accuse the former president of raping her in a department store dressing room in the 1990s.

A Manhattan jury found trump was liable for sexual abuse and defamation, but not rape.

Writer E Jean Carroll was awarded $5 million in damages last month. She is pictured outside Manhattan federal court, May 9, 2023

Carroll's move to amend her lawsuit against Trump came as an attempt to include his town hall comments directly into the case.

Trump's attorney opposed the amendment and filed to dismiss the original lawsuit against him, which also included remarks he made while in the White House in 2019.

He posted on his social media platform Truth Social that Carroll's claims were 'a Hoax and a lie', adding: 'And, while I am not supposed to say it, I will. This woman is not my type!'

The judge's decision to allow Carroll to seek further damages also set a one-month deadline for the Justice Department to decide if Trump was acting under his employment when he made the comments.

A day before the controversial town hall, a jury had ruled in favor of Carroll in her second civil lawsuit against Trump, and she was awarded $5 million in damages.

Trump's lawyer Joseph Tacopina had previously said he would appeal the verdict and said the former president could never get a fair trial in New York.

And just hours after US District Judge Lewis Kaplan ruled in Carroll's favor, Trump's defense team had already filed his notice of appeal.

Trump's CNN town hall was his first public appearance following the verdict in Carroll's favour last month

The town hall was Trump's first public appearance since the Carroll verdict, leading host Kaitlan Collins to press him over the scandal.

'What do you say to voters who say it disqualifies you from being president?' Collins asked him.

'There weren't too many of them because my numbers just - they went up,' Trump said as the audience cheered and applauded.

The former president repeated his claim he didn't know Carroll and then proceeded to insult her repeatedly, before he also hit out at U.S. District Judge Lewis A. Kaplan, who was appointed to the job by President Bill Clinton.

Collins also asked Trump if he wanted to take back comments he made during a taping of Access Hollywood, where he talked about grabbing women by the p**** and said famous people were allowed to do things like that.

'I said women let you, I didn't say you grab I said women let  you know, you didn't use that word  but if you look, women let you,' Trump said.

'Now, they said will you take that back? I said, look, for a million years this is the way it's been. I want to be honest this is the way it's been,' he added.

'You would like me to take that back. I can't take it back because it happens to be true,' he noted.
Law & Order star Vincent D'Onofrio has appeared in a New York City court after filing for a divorce from his wife Carin van der Donk.

D'Onofrio, 63, filed the divorce papers in Manhattan Supreme Court on April 12. He has been married to van der Donk for 26 years - and she is the mother of his two sons.

The couple is still fighting over the custody of the 15-year-old son Luka, as Judge Kathleen Waterman-Marshall said today: 'Custody is unresolved.'

She confirmed that most of the issues in the divorce case had been settled.

Vincent D'onofrio appears in Manhattan Civil Court Tuesday after filing for a divorce from his wife Carin van der Donk

Carin van der Donk was married to the TV star for 26 years. They have two children together

Vincent D'Onofrio and his wife Carin Van Der Donk pictured in 2014

The judge has set D'Onofrio's next court hearing for September 19.

On March 22, 1997, D'Onofrio married Dutch model and photographer Carin and they had their first child together in 1999, who is named Elias.

They then split in the early 2000s, but rekindled their romance and had a second son in 2008.

D'Onofrio now lives in a townhouse in Manhattan's Gramercy. He was born in Bensonhurst, Brooklyn.

D'Onofrio, 63, filed the divorce papers in Manhattan Supreme Court on April 12. He has been married to van der Donk for 26 years

Carin van der Donk is pictured in Manhattan on Tuesday

She leaves court with her attorney by her side

They then split in the early 2000s, but rekindled their romance and had a second son in 2008

Neither party spoke as they exited the court on Tuesday.

Images showed the actor and his wife entering separately. Their attorneys spoke with the judge behind closed doors today.

Primetime Emmy Award nominee D'Onofrio is known for his roles in Full Metal Jacket, Men in Black, and The Cell.

He plays Detective Robert Green in Law & Order: Criminal Intent, as well as Victor in Jurassic World.

D'Onofrio has another daughter from his first marriage, Leila George, who was married to actor Sean Penn.
Indigenous Affairs minister Linda Burney has slammed opponents of the Indigenous Voice to Parliament, claiming they are dividing Australia by 'importing American-style Trump politics'.

The Labor minister made the scathing attack against the 'No' campaign as the debate on the referendum moved to the Senate.

'I fear that the 'No' campaign is importing American style-Trump politics to Australia,' she told the Committee of Economic Development of Australia event in Canberra.

She argued at the 'heart' of the campaign against the Voice 'is a post-truth approach to politics'.

'The Australian people are better than Trump politics from the 'No' campaign; a 'No' campaign that has no solutions for the challenges that we face,' she said.

Indigenous Affairs minister Linda Burney (pictured) has claimed opponents of the Voice referendum were 'importing American-style Trump politics' to Australia

Ms Burney stated that the main objective of the 'No' campaign was to divide the country.

'Its aim is to polarise people, and its weapon of choice is misinformation,' she said.

She also took aim against Fair Australia, which is the primary campaign against the Voice which is being led by Shadow Minister for Indigenous Affairs, Jacinta Nampijinpa Price.

Ms Burney accused Fair Australia of regularly posting content on social media that was 'clearly false or taken out of context'.

'For instance, the No campaign uses an image and a quote of Bob Hawke on social media as if to suggest that the former PM didn't support recognition of Indigenous Australians,' she said.

'We know that Bob Hawke strongly supported recognition.

'Bob's wife Blanche made it clear to me that Bob's greatest regret in his public life was not advancing the cause of Indigenous recognition.'

The Indigenous Australians minister said the Voice would be a 'positive' step forward for the country.

'The Voice is about making a practical difference, and the 'Yes' campaign is articulating a positive vision of Australia's future,' she said.

'The 'No' campaign is not doing either of those things.'

Ms Burney accused the key 'No' campaign led by Shadow Minister for Indigenous Affairs, Jacinta Nampijinpa Price (pictured), of regularly posting 'false' content on social media

It comes following two polls released this week, with one showing support for the Voice to Parliament is 'steady' while the other found the 'No' vote is ahead.

A poll of 1,606 voters, published by Nine newspapers late on Monday, is the first significant poll to show the 'No' side now leading.

The Resolve Strategic survey showed the share of people nationally who approve of enshrining the Voice in the constitution has dropped to 49 per cent, down from 53 per cent in May.

However, the Resolve findings were contradicted by a Guardian Essential poll released on Tuesday.

The Essential poll of 1,123 voters found 60 per cent of people were in favour of the Voice - up one percentage point on the previous survey.

It also showed 40 per cent of respondents were opposed to the change compared to the Resolve survey's findings of 51 per cent.
The collapse of a section of Interstate 95 near Philadelphia will raise the cost of goods across the East Coast, Pete Buttigieg warned on Tuesday.

Speaking to reporters at the site of the deadly overpass collapse, Buttigieg said there's 'no question' the incident will impact the price of goods by raising the cost of shipping.

On average, about 160,000 vehicles per day used the impacted section of interstate, he said, some 8 percent of which were commercial trucks, or about 12,800.

'Obviously, that is a lot of America's GDP moving along that road every single day,' Buttigieg said. 'The trucks will have to take a longer and more costly route to get to where they're going.'

Buttigieg said the Transportation Department is working on establishing alternate routes for truckers, and is in contact with Google and its subsidiary Waze to optimize trip advice for drivers.

Interstate 95 is the East Coast's main north-south highway and stretches 1,924 miles from the Canadian border in Maine to Miami

The aftermath of an elevated section of Interstate 95 that collapsed, in Philadelphia is seen on Monday. The disaster disrupts a key trucking route on the East Coast

I-95 is the East Coast's main north-south highway and stretches 1,924 miles from the Canadian border in Maine to Miami.

On Sunday, tractor-trailer hauling gasoline flipped over on an Interstate 95 off-ramp in Philadelphia and caught fire, killing the driver and shutting down the major East Coast transportation artery.

Officials have said that it could take several months to rebuild the collapsed portion of the interstate.

Subodha Kumar, a professor of statistics, operations and data science at Temple University's Fox School of Business, said it is impossible to calculate the scale of shipping delays and higher costs caused by detours without analyzing all the alternative trucking routes.

But, Kumar said, the added cost will not be small, and the impact will last for weeks or longer. It will affect commerce to Canada, and create cascading effects throughout the supply chain, he said.

'Any small disruption can multiply exponentially and can make the changes much bigger,' he said, noting that the effect will be immediate on perishable foods.

The head of the Federal Highway Administration was at the site on Monday as the US National Transportation Safety Board investigates.

Buttigieg toured the scene Tuesday and met with Philadelphia's mayor and other state and local officials.

He said the federal government plans to provide emergency funding to help with the rebuilding but did not offer a timeline on restoring the highway.

Buttigieg toured the scene Tuesday and met with Philadelphia's mayor and other state and local officials

The northbound section was left with a gaping hole while the southbound overpass was closed

A general view shows the partial collapse of Interstate 95 after a fire underneath an overpass in Philadelphia on Sunday

A person views the scene of a collapsed elevated section of Interstate 95 on Tuesday

Buttigieg toured the disaster site and then, over the sounds of heavy machinery and demolition, told reporters that 'every resource that is needed will be made available' to help Pennsylvania repair the bridge as quickly and safely as possible.

The collapse is snarling traffic in Philadelphia as the summer travel season starts, upending hundreds of thousands of morning commutes, disrupting countless businesses and forcing trucking companies to find different routes.

Excavation teams worked to clear the site on Monday, with authorities eyeing Tuesday as a test of traffic workarounds.

Pennsylvania State Police said they believe the driver perished in the accident, although the city's medical examiner has not officially identified the body pulled from the wreckage.

Truck driver Nathaniel Moody's family members confirmed he was the driver of the tractor-trailer, now believed to be dead.

The resulting fire caused the collapse of the northbound lanes of I-95. The southbound lanes were compromised by the heat from the fire, authorities say.

The collapsed section of I-95 was part of a $212 million reconstruction project that wrapped up four years ago, state Transportation Department spokesman Brad Rudolph said.

Pennsylvanias transportation secretary, Michael Carroll, said demolition work is continuing around the clock and that his agency will release a replacement plan Wednesday for the roughly 100-foot section of I-95.

The remains are believed to be those of Nathaniel Moody, whose family have identified him as the driver of a tractor-trailer that caught fire Sunday morning

Buttigieg said he had not seen any sort of estimate for what sort of cost increases consumers might be facing, but said the trucking industry is working to make the most of alternative routes.

'At the end of the day, there's no substitute for I-95 being up and running in full working condition,' Buttigieg said.

For now, I-95 will be closed in both directions.

The elevated southbound portion of I-95 will have to be demolished, as well as the northbound side, officials say.

State police officials said the trucking company had contacted them about the accident and was cooperating, although they have declined to identify the company or say whether it was properly licensed for hauling gasoline.

Authorities say the driver was headed northbound on his way to deliver fuel to a convenience store a few miles (kilometers) away when the truck went down a curving off-ramp and out of control, landing on its side and rupturing the tank.

Rebuilding the stretch is likely to drag into July or August.

In California, a similar situation happened with a highway ramp in Oakland. It was replaced in 26 days, Joseph L. Schofer, a retired professor of civil and environmental engineering from Northwestern University, said.

In Atlanta, an elevated portion of Interstate 85 collapsed in a fire , shutting down the heavily traveled route through the heart of the city in March 2017. It took authorities there 43 days to replace the span, Schofer said.
A Stanford University professor set to face charges for allegedly slamming the door on his girlfriend was found days after being declared missing on a hiking trip in Washington State last week.

Hunter Fraser, 44, was taking the 40-mile trek in Olympic National Park on June 5 and was scheduled to finish it and return to Seattle on June 7.

His court date in Santa Clara County, California was scheduled for last Friday, with Fraser charged for inflicting corporal injury on a spouse.

Fraser - described by a Stanford official last week as an 'experienced outdoorsman and well supplied' - was found on Saturday, having allegedly 'self-rescued' using the Dosewallips River Trail with the assistance of other hikers and was driven to meet with family, park personnel and medical responders.

In a statement, Fraser continued to deny the charges against him in a statement to DailyMail.com and said that he had 'every intention' of appearing at the court hearing, which he says was postponed before he was reported missing.

Hunter Fraser (pictured), 44, was taking the 40-mile trek in Olympic National Park on June 5 and was scheduled to finish it and return to Seattle on June 7. He went missing for several days before being found Sunday

'I set out on a solo hike in Washington's Olympic National Park on June 5th and planned to return to my family on June 7, with every intention of attending a court hearing in California on June 9,' he wrote.

Fraser then claims he slipped on a snowy slope, hitting his head which caused him to become 'disoriented and lost.'

'I found myself deep in the wilderness, far from any trail. I eventually found a stream and followed it through very dense, steep terrain for many miles,' he said.

He then claims he spent the next two days hiking 15 hours each day, adding that he was losing hope but 'knowing that each step I took could bring me one step closer to seeing my daughter again. That is what drove me.'

Fraser has a young daughter from a previous relationship who was in the room at the time of the alleged incident between him and his girlfriend.

He then says that eventually he found a trail and - not seeing it on his maps - guessed which way to go. However, that appeared to be false hope, as almost a day later, the trail disappeared into a snow drift.

Fraser then says he doubled back the way he came and tried a different trail until finally hitting a road on Saturday.

Two fellow hikers fed him - 'my first meal in four days' - and took him to the nearest ranger station.

Fraser - described by a Stanford official last week as an 'experienced outdoorsman and well supplied' - was found on Saturday, having allegedly 'self-rescued' using the Dosewallips River Trail with the assistance of other hikers

Crews of about 90 people were searching Olympic National Park after Fraser was declared missing

Hospitalized, Fraser said that he was diagnosed with a concussion and is now recuperating with family.

'I had not realized just how fortunate I am to be alive until a park ranger informed me that in his 18 years, this is the first time someone in the park has survived so long overdue. Every successful search had found the hiker in the first 1-2 days.'

Fraser adds that he's 'flooded with gratitude' and thanks those who helped him and looked for him.

The statement finishes with a denial of the charges against him and a promise to appear before a judge in the domestic abuse case.

'Before I was reported missing, the June 9th court date was postponed by the judge at the request of the accuser. As I have said before, I deny the allegations in that case. I am eager for all the facts to come out in court.'

The National Parks Service said in a statement that there were approximately 90 personnel involved in the search, including the Coast Guard, Forest Service and local officials.

Stanford spokeswoman Joy Leighton said in a statement: 'We are relieved and happy that Hunter has returned safely.'

His criminal case dates back to July 4, 2022, when he had gotten into an argument with his girlfriend of five and a half years at their Stanford apartment while playing a game with his young daughter from a previous relationship.

Fraser was taking the 40-mile trek in Olympic National Park on June 5 and was scheduled to finish it and return to Seattle June 7

His court date in Santa Clara County, California was scheduled for Friday, with Fraser charged for inflicting corporal injury on a spouse at their California home (pictured)

Fraser is accused of slamming a door into his girlfriend, hitting her chest with the handle. She also claims Fraser threw her to the ground before hitting her with the door.

He was arrested, jailed and charged with a misdemeanor soon after. Prosecutors later refiled the case as a felony.

The victim suffered fractured ribs from the incident, according to The Stanford Daily.

The professor did address the accusations in an email to his laboratory after an initial hearing.

'While I am prevented from going into details here while the case is pending, I do want you to know that the allegations against me are untrue,' he wrote.

Fraser says that he's 'flooded with gratitude' and thanks those who helped him and looked for him

Fraser's criminal case dates back to July 4, 2022, when he had gotten into an argument with his girlfriend of five and a half years at their Stanford apartment while playing a game with his young daughter

'At no point in my career or in my personal life has anyone ever made such an accusation or allegation against me before. This has all been incredibly jarring.'

'In our current cultural moment, I realize that my words may stir skepticism, but they are the truth,' he added, asking people to 'allow the process to be fully completed before reaching any conclusions.'

Multiple student groups called for Fraser's removal from campus at the time, though he remained at work, with officials declaring it a 'personal matter' according to a post made by a petitioner for Fraser to be sent away.

The petition also posted three citations for vandalism and trespassing against Fraser in 2022.

Fraser teaches biology at Stanford and runs the Fraser Laboratory, as well as Bio-X, Stanford's interdisciplinary biosciences institute; the Maternal & Child Health Research Institute; the Stanford Cancer Institute; and the Wu Tsai Neurosciences Institute.
Kate Monroe spoke with FOX News Digital about her interview with homeless residents in the SoCal city, one of whom described her life as 'not that hard'

A homeless woman in San Diego, California said that she and others in 'the Bottoms' are 'spoiled' by the city with free phones, food, and clothing

A homeless woman from San Diego has boasted that vagrants in the city are 'spoiled' with free phones, food and clothes.

Marine Corps veteran Kate Monroe shared video of her talking with several homeless people in an area known as the Bottoms, one of whom, Mary, described the situation as 'not that hard.'

'I think we're spoiled to be honest with you,' the woman added while talking with Monroe. 'My sister's like, "Where do I sign up?"'

According to recent estimates, San Diego has more than 2,000 individuals living on the streets in tents and encampments. Democrats have been criticized for their soft approach throughout California amid an opioid-fueled homelessness crisis.

Monroe spoke with Fox News Digital about the situation in the area she walked through, saying she stepped around hypodermic needles to talk with locals.

Mary, a homeless woman in San Diego's neighborhood known as the Bottoms, said she believes she and other vagrants are 'spoiled' by the city with free phones and other resources

Marine Corps veteran Kate Monroe recently visited the Bottoms and spoke with homeless individuals about their experience living outside in downtown San Diego

According to recent estimates, San Diego has more than 2,000 individuals living on the streets in tents and encampments throughout the area

Other shocking sights found at the scene included human waste.

'I have witnessed what I think is some of the worst homelessness in the country,' Monroe told Fox of the city she has called home for 20 years.

Despite the conditions, Mary said that she and other vagrants receive access to resources that some might view as enviable.

'Usually we're low income and when you're low income, you get free phones, free food, free clothing, there's so many resources that are just give and give and give,' the homeless woman said.

Others who spoke with Monroe did not agree with Mary's description, however, saying they have seen sexual assaults, robberies, and brutal beatings.

'This ain't easy, being out here,' one man who talked with the Marine vet said.

Monroe, who is the CEO of a San Diego business that helps homeless veterans, said the situation is dire in the area, which is located downtown.

'Forget that it's in San Diego. It doesn't look like it's in America,' she said. 'There's so much trash and human waste and garbage and just the stench of it.'

Anthony, another homeless person Dahlgren and Monroe talked to, said he had been living on and off the streets for nearly 25 years.

He blamed local politicians for failing to solve the crisis.

'They throw money at the problem but they kinda gotta get their hands dirty to really find out what the people really need,' Anthony said.

'Usually we're low income and when you're low income, you get free phones, free food, free clothing, there's so many resources that are just give and give and give,' Mary said

'This ain't easy, being out here,' one man who talked with the Marine vet said

'I have witnessed what I think is some of the worst homelessness in the country,' Monroe told Fox of the city she has called home for 20 years

While walking the area, Monroe said she avoided human waste and hypodermic needles

On Tuesday, the San Diego City Council was slated to vote on a proposed 'Unsafe Camping Ordinance,' which has been described as a homeless camping ban.

In April, data released by the Downtown San Diego Partnership revealed that more people were living outside this year than in the last 10 years.

Portland homeless advocate Kevin Dahlgren joined Monroe on her recent trip to the Bottoms and said he was 'shocked by how bad it is there.'

'A lot of these counties are simply hiding the problem and convincing people that it's really not that bad. And it's usually cities that rely heavily on tourism,' he said.

Monroe said that she believes San Diego does not get enough attention for its homeless crisis and therefore do not feel the pressure to address it.

She also added that she believes city leaders have gotten away with 'just sweeping it under the rug.'

Anthony, another homeless person Dahlgren and Monroe talked to, said he had been living on and off the streets for nearly 25 years

In April, data released by the Downtown San Diego Partnership revealed that more people were living outside this year than in the last 10 years

The Bottoms is an area located in downtown San Diego, near Petco Park

On Tuesday, the San Diego City Council was slated to vote on a proposed 'Unsafe Camping Ordinance,' which has been described as a homeless camping ban

The shocking video shared with FOX was released just hours before the San Diego City Council voted on a ban against tents on the streets.

The encampments would be outlawed near schools, homeless shelters, transit stations, waterways or in parks.

The plan has fostered support from San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria who has shared his belief that the city needs safer and more hygienic streets.

'They expect to be able to walk on sidewalks unobstructed, they expect to be able to get their children to school safely, they expect to be able to use our parks in a hygienic and clean and safe way,' Mayor Gloria said.
More than 1,200 small boat migrants have arrived in Britain in just three days, marking a return to levels not seen since last year.

The Home Office yesterday confirmed 545 migrants reached the UK across the Channel on Monday, after 703 over the weekend.

It means levels are at their highest since the end of November.

At least four more boat loads thought to be carrying about 200 people were brought into Dover by Border Force vessels yesterday.

It came as the United Nations warned that 110million people globally have been displaced from their homes.

More than 1,200 small boat migrants have arrived in Britain in just three days, marking a return to levels not seen since last year. Pictured: A group of men about to be taken on board a Border Force vessel on Sunday

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said in a new report that numbers had surged by more than 20million since its last estimates.

The agency's total covered people displaced by 'war, persecution, violence and human rights abuses'.

Its estimates said there are more than 35million refugees who have fled their home nations, including 5.7million Ukrainians who have fled Vladimir Putin's bloody war.

A further 62.5million people globally have been displaced within their own countries.

Numbers are continuing to rise due to instability in Somalia and Sudan, in particular, the UNHCR said.

Ministers here in Britain, including Home Secretary Suella Braverman, have said the global number of migrants is directly linked to those who end up attempting to cross the Channel.

The UNHCR said the UK was one of 92 countries to see an increase in its asylum processing backlog last year, while 43 other countries saw a fall.

The surge across the Channel came as peers complained they have been 'abused, bullied and intimidated' by the Government over a new package of immigration measures.

Following a late night session last week, the House of Lords sat until after 2am yesterday debating the Illegal Migration Bill. Lib Dem peer Baroness Ludford said the package had received 'almost no scrutiny' in the Commons.

'When we do try to do it we are abused, bullied and intimidated as we were until 4.20am last Thursday,' she said.

'It would be perfectly possible to have a... more rational timetable for this Bill.

'I do not appreciate the behaviour of the Government over this Bill.'

The Home Office yesterday confirmed 545 migrants reached the UK across the Channel on Monday, after 703 over the weekend

Labour peer Baroness Lister complained in the chamber she was 'shaking with tiredness'. But Tory peer Lord Hodgson told the opposition: 'We would move forward a great deal faster if we hadn't had so many repetitious speeches.'

The Bill, which has already been through the Commons, aims to ensure those arriving in the UK without permission are detained and promptly deported, either to their home country or a third country such as Rwanda.

Critics argue the draft legislation breaks international law and undermines modern slavery protections.

The number of small boat arrivals this year now stands at 8,858, compared with 10,138 at the same point last year.
The Liberal party is backing Senator Michaelia Cash, after a series of tweets from her former staffer Brittany Higgins sought to bring into question when the senior Liberal became aware of her rape allegation.

As questions rage over who was aware of the allegations before Ms Higgins went public in 2021 - two years after the alleged assault - the former Liberal staffer broke her silence on Tuesday night.

Ms Higgins posted what she claims are transcripts of a conversation she had with a fellow colleague during her time at Senator Cash's office. The screenshots purport to show her discussing her alleged assault with the colleague before she went public.

Senator Cash has always maintained she was not made aware of Ms Higgins' allegations before a journalist approached her while she was Attorney General.

A spokesman for Senator Cash said: 'The issue of when Senator Cash and her chief of staff became aware of the allegations was the subject of evidence given under oath and has been tested in the ACT Supreme Court.'

The Liberal party is rallying behind Michaela Cash - Ms Higgins' former boss

Ms Higgins posted a series of tweets on Tuesday evening which have sent shockwaves through Canberra

Deputy opposition leader Sussan Ley said on Wednesday she stood by Senator Cash, arguing the onus was instead on Labor to answer questions about when its senior members were made aware of the rape allegation, and how long that was before Ms Higgins went public with interviews with The Project and news.com.au.

'I don't want to be talking about this, the opposition doesn't want to be talking about this. The fact that we are lies fairly at the feet of the Prime Minister,' Ms Ley said on Wednesday.

'Information has come to light ... that calls into question the credibility and the actions of senior Labor members when they were in opposition, and we need those answers.'

Ms Ley said the Coalition was prepared to continue to pepper Labor with questions during Question Time this week.

'We need Labor to answer our main question - were they aware of these allegations before they went to air? And did they use them to profit politically ... in which case, that's morally bankrupt,' she said.

Deputy opposition leader Sussan Ley is demanding answers from Labor over whether they were aware of the allegations before they were broadcast, and whether they used them to profit politically

Ms Ley also backed in Linda Reynolds - who was Ms Higgins' boss at the time Ms Higgins claims she was raped by Bruce Lehrmann in the former minister's office.

Mr Lehrmann pleaded not guilty after he was charged with the alleged assault and a trial against him was aborted following juror misconduct. The DPP decided not to pursue a second trial, dropped the charge against him, and Mr Lehrmann maintains his innocence.

Senator Reynolds sent a legal letter to Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek this week, claiming she was defamed by the senior Labor member in a 'Sunrise' interview this week.

According to The Australian, the defamation concerns notice accuses Ms Plibersek of making false statements throughout the interview that implied Senator Reynolds acted inappropriately during investigations into Ms Higgins' allegations, and had attempted to 'hide the commission of a criminal offence'.

But Ms Plibersek told Daly Mail Australia she's not intimidated after being told she has 28 days to provide a signed apology and retract her comments.

'I received this interesting letter today,' she said.

'As far as I'm concerned, all legal options are on the table.'
JK Rowling has blasted a university in America for saying a lesbian is 'a non-man attracted to non-men'.

The Harry Potter writer, 57, slated the US medical school for the new definition in its LGBTQ guide.

The guide states that 'lesbian' should not just include women but also non-binary people, according to a report by The Sun.

It therefore refers to lesbians as 'a non-man attracted to non-men'.

Ms Rowling took to Twitter to criticise John Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland, writing: 'Man: no definition needed. Non-man (formerly known as woman): a being definable only by reference to the male.'

Harry Potter author JK Rowling (pictured) has blasted a university in America for referring to lesbians as 'non-men'

The guide states that 'lesbian' should not just include women but also non-binary people. It therefore refers to lesbians as 'a non-man attracted to non-men'

She added: 'An absence, a vacuum where there's no man-ness.'

The author's tweet comes after the charity Oxfam were told to apologise and delete a section of their Pride Month advert after it brought out a video apparently portraying Ms Rowling as a villain with red eyes.

The Government watchdog is said to be assessing concerns surrounding the charity and is considering its next move after the row which has engulfed it since the video shared on its social media accounts.

Ms Rowling took to Twitter to criticise John Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland, writing: 'Man: no definition needed. Non-man (formerly known as woman): a being definable only by reference to the male'

JK Rowling posted the section of the guide on her Twitter account. Pictured: John Hopkins University building

The author's tweet comes after the charity Oxfam were told to apologise and delete a section of their Pride Month advert after it brought out a video apparently portraying Ms Rowling as a villain with red eyes

The video featured three figures with evil-looking eyes - two men, and a woman wearing a 'TERF' ([trans-exclusionary radical feminists) badge who appeared to look like the Harry Potter author.

The charity insisted any likeness is coincidental and it quickly removed the footage from its social media - but campaigners say people with gender-critical views like Ms Rowling's could be marginalised at the organisation.

It came as one former employee claimed they were forced out of Oxfam over her support for the author and arguing its bookshops should continue to stock her published works.
Locations in at least five states were targeted, including in Oklahoma, New York, New Hampshire, Vermont and Louisiana

Hoax bomb threats were called into several Target stores amid backlash to its LGBTQ+ Pride collection

Target stores in at least five states have been targeted with disturbing hoax bomb threats amid backlash to its LGBTQ+ Pride product decisions.

The retail giant's market cap has plummeted over $15 billion in the wake of its Pride release, leading the brand to pull some of its controversial products in the face of 'threats' to staffers.

But the decision to remove the items reportedly fueled the bomb threats, with some reportedly saying Target 'betrayed the LGBTQ+ community'.

According to the Washington Post, the hoaxes were reported in Oklahoma, New York, New Hampshire, Vermont and Louisiana, although no explosives were found.

Target stores in at least five states have been targeted by hoax bomb threats in response to its LGBTQ Pride product decisions. Pictured: Police congregate outside a Miami Target amid protests on June 1, 2023

Several local news outlets have claimed they have received the threatening emails, which claim bombs were placed inside their local Target stores.

This included Louisiana news outlet KLFY, which reported the hoax threat was motivated by backlash to Pride merchandise and corporate decisions to cave to the pressure.

'You have betrayed the LGBTQ+ community,' the email reportedly said.

'You are pathetic cowards who bowed to the wishes of far right extremists who want to exterminate us.

'We will not tolerate intolerance nor indifference. If you are not with us then you are against us. That is why we placed a bomb in each of your locations, evacuate now as this is only to cause economic damage.'

Target's Pride month products sparked outrage among some conservative groups

This was followed by another threat made in Oklahoma, where KFOR said they received an ominous message that began: 'We are going to play a game'.

The email included the addresses of multiple Target locations, adding: '2 of these Target locations have bomb in them. We hid bombs inside some product items.

'The bombs will detonate in several hours, guess which ones have the bombs. Time is ticking.'

The message signed off with '4/19/1995' - the same date of the Oklahoma City bombing that killed 168 people and injured 680 more.

Target's latest swimsuit line included a label which advertises the 'tuck-friendly construction' and 'extra crotch' coverage

Target has long publicized its support for the LGBTQ community and spent $20 million in 2016 to add private, gender-neutral bathrooms to each of its stores

Target's controversial product release also included LGBTQ+ children's literature

Target has joined several other major brands including Bud Light and Adidas in facing scrutiny for its LGBTQ+ product releases.

The criticisms came initially from conservative groups, who took issue with items such as Target's 'tuck friendly' female swimwear line.

Amid mounting calls for boycotts and a plummeting bottom line, Target said it was removing some of the more unpopular items due to 'volatile' complaints.

'Since introducing this year's collection, we've experienced threats impacting our team members' sense of safety and wellbeing while at work,' Target said in a statement.

'Given these volatile circumstances, we are making adjustments to our plans, including removing items that have been at the center of the most significant confrontational behavior,' crisis communications manager Kayla Castaneda said.

While pointing to employee safety as the reason for the move, many have attributed the decision to an attempt to stop the financial repercussions to the backlash. The brand's market cap plummeted at least $15 billion in the aftermath of the release.
Measures to tackle protests by eco-zealots were approved by the House of Lords last night.

Peers voted against moves to throw out Suella Braverman's proposals, which will give police wider powers to tackle road-blocking protesters.

The Home Secretary said groups such as Just Stop Oil were 'putting people's lives at risk' by blocking ambulances and stopping patients from getting to hospital appointments.

The result of the vote means the measures will become law  but a separate vote in the Upper House criticised the way the Government introduced the powers.

Peers said similar measures were already dropped from the Public Order Act earlier this year, and that ministers had not allowed scrutiny of the new attempt. Crossbencher Lord Pannick KC described it as a 'constitutional outrage'.

Suella Braverman (pictured) leaves for a Cabinet meeting at 10 Downing Street

Crossbencher Lord Pannick KC (pictured) described it as a 'constitutional outrage'

He said he supported the legislation, but added: 'The issue is whether we are going to approve regulations which defy the will of Parliament.'

Lord Hogan-Howe, a former Metropolitan Police commissioner, agreed that it was the 'wrong way' to introduce the measures, while Baroness Jones said the legislation would 'erode the right to protest' and the way it was brought in would 'enfeeble' the Upper House.

Baroness Jones's bid to get the legislation thrown out was defeated by 154 votes to 64. The Government's original measures were then passed without a vote.

The new measures will redefine 'serious disruption to the life of the community'.

Current rules require 'significant delay' and 'prolonged disruption' before police can act  now lowered to 'more than minor' delays.
A man facing a charge of murdering a German backpacker on the north coast of New South Wales over 18 years ago has had the charges against him dropped.

Tobias Moran, 43, was charged with the murder of backpacker Simone Strobel and perverting the course of justice in July, 2022.

Ms Strobel's naked body was found covered by palm fronds near a Lismore caravan park in 2005.

At the time of her disappearance the German national was Mr Moran's girlfriend and was travelling Australia's east coast with him.

Mr Moran always denied any role in the kindergarten teacher's death.

Ms Strobel's naked body was found covered by palm fronds near a Lismore caravan park in 2005. Tobias Moran was charged with her murder in July, 2022 but the charges have now been dropped

Tobias Moran was charged with the murder of backpacker Simone Strobel and perverting the course of justice in July, 2022

Mr Moran was extradited to NSW last year from Western Australia and later granted bail.

His barrister previously told the court there was no new evidence linking Mr Moran to the death and the magistrate described the circumstantial case as 'not the strongest' when he was granted bail.

The NSW Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions withdrew the charges as they were due to be certified in Lismore Local Court today.

The case will now be mentioned again later in June ahead of a decision about the legal costs of the case.

Following the decision not to proceed with the case, Mr Moran's lawyers released a statement on his behalf in which the expressed 'relief' the charges were dropped but 'remains upset' that police were no closer to solving the mystery of Ms Strobel's murder.

A fresh coronial inquest scheduled for November 2022, abandoned after Mr Moran was charged, was 'another lost opportunity for justice for Simone', the statement read.

Ms Strobel was last seen at the Lismore Tourist Caravan Park on February 11, 2005, after a night out with Moran and some other friends.

Her body was discovered six days later less than 100m from the caravan park, hidden under palm fronds.

At a coroner's inquiry held in 2007 it was determined there was not enough evidence for the matter to be referred to the DPP to build a case, until the shock arrest of Mr Moran last year.
Fox News called Joe Biden a 'wannabe dictator' who had his 'political rival arrested' as the president spoke at the White House following Trump's court hearing on a federal indictment.

The chyron at the end of Fox News' 8pm hour - which was broadcasting Trump's speech following his not guilty plea - read: 'Wannabe dictator speaks at the White House after having his political rival arrested.'

The primetime broadcast was showing Joe Biden's speech in Washington, DC, side by side with Trump's rally in Bedminster, New Jersey.

When Sean Hannity started on screen at 9pm, the controversial subtitles went away.

But the chyron calling Biden a 'wannabe dictator,' which was live on Fox News for 30 seconds, caused outrage on social media.

The broadcast was showing Joe Biden's speech in Washington, DC, side by side with Trump's rally in Bedminster, New Jersey

One person said: 'Why would a large network news channel like Fox let some disgruntled conspiracy theorist in the back control the chyron.'

Another person, sharing an image of the broadcast, mocked the news outlet with the caption: 'Fair and Balanced News.'

A third stated: 'I expect Fox to go lower than low but talk about fanning the flames.'

Others made light of the situation, writing: 'Fox took off the gloves.'

Another contended: 'Oh, dear. Seems Fox forgot how much they lost in the Dominion case.'

A Fox News spokesperson said: 'The chyron was taken down immediately and was addressed.'

The chyron came in the middle of Trump's defiant speech from his New Jersey golf club hours after pleading not guilty to federal charges  calling it 'a political persecution like something out of a fascist or communist nation.

'I did everything right and they indicted me,' he complained while surrounded by supporters back on his home turf after his day dealing with the criminal justice system.

Trump delivered meandering remarks where he inveighed against disgraced former Rep. Anthony Weiner and former FBI Director James Comey  then ran through classified documents clashes of the Bill Clinton administration.

Trump began his remarks by going after Joe Biden, but soon went down memory lane talking about Hillary Clinton and former Vice President Dick Cheney.

'Today we witnessed the most evil and heinous abuse of power in the history of our country,' Trump told a crowd at his Bedminster club Wednesday night.

He claimed Biden would go down in history as 'the president who together with a band of his closest thugs, misfits and Marxist tried to destroy American democracy.'

He pointed to the use of the 1917 Espionage Act to go after him for alleged violations of willful possession of national security information, after the indictment said he had nuclear information and claimed to have Pentagon attack plans at Mar-a-Lago and the Bedminster club where he was speaking.

Trump termed it 'one of the most outrageous and vicious legal theories ever put forward in an American court of law.'
Peter Dutton has offered a cutting response to a member of the public demanding he 'must stop' the onslaught of questions about what Labor knew about Brittany Higgins' rape allegations before they were made public.

The Opposition Leader insisted on Wednesday that the questions being asked of the government are 'absolutely reasonable' and 'don't demean the allegation of sexual assault'.

Ms Higgins alleged she was sexually assaulted by Bruce Lehrmann in Parliament House in 2019. He has denied the allegations and a criminal trial crumbled in late 2022 due to juror misconduct.

Since then, leaked texts and transcripts of recorded conversations show Ms Higgins, her boyfriend David Sharaz and journalist Lisa Wilkinson discussed providing details of her allegations to senior Labor figures, well before the case became public knowledge.

'It doesn't second guess the court process that has already taken place, it doesn't serve to draw innocence or guilt out of any party involved in this matter, it seeks to hold the government to account,' Mr Dutton said.

Speaking at a Local Government Association convention, Mr Dutton described the situation as 'key democratic element of our Westminster system'.

While Mr Dutton has been outspoken on the matter, he's largely allowed senior Opposition members to push the matter in both parliament and media interviews over the past two weeks.

A Cr asked Dutton to lay off Brittany Higgins - here is his response, which actually sparked some applause. pic.twitter.com/BOtWMASOwh  Stephen Mayne (@MayneReport) June 14, 2023

Ms Higgins alleged she was sexually assaulted by Bruce Lehrmann in Parliament House in 2019

Mr Dutton said he 'takes the issue of sexual assault very seriously' after working in that sphere 'for a number of years' as a detective.

'The most horrific thing that can take place in a person's life, particularly for women, is to be sexually assaulted,' he said.

'Equally, someone accused of such a heinous crime needs to be tried by a jury and judge and found according to our system of law.'

His response came after a councillor said: 'It's doing more harm than good. It needs to stop.'

Mr Dutton acknowledged his case was based on the leaking of private text messages to the media, and that matter has since been referred to the Australian Federal Police for investigation.

Peter Dutton has offered a cutting response to demands he 'must stop' the onslaught of questions about Labor ministers' knowledge of Brittany Higgins' allegations

Ms Gallagher denies wrongdoing and has refused to be drawn on particulars of the case, citing Ms Higgins' need for privacy. She did confirm Ms Higgins' partner, David Sharaz (pictured together) informed her of the matter

Finance Minister Katy Gallagher - one of the senior Labor figures referred to in the texts - was grilled in Senate Question Time on Tuesday, and likely again on Wednesday, over her knowledge of Ms Higgins' complaint prior to its publication.

Ms Gallagher denies wrongdoing and has refused to be drawn on particulars of the case, citing Ms Higgins' need for privacy.

Ms Gallagher was asked about the apparent contradiction between her telling a Senate estimates hearing in 2021 that she had no prior knowledge of the accusations, to her now saying she was aware of them before they became public.

'I came into... the information through the partner of the young woman who was going to raise those allegations,' Ms Gallagher said on Tuesday. 'It was asked of me to keep that information confidential, and I did.'

Ms Gallagher said she did not want to breach Ms Higgins' confidence by discussing her knowledge of the matter, adding: 'If you confide in anybody, seek help from anybody... that information can be placed on the public record.

'The issues the Opposition are having is that someone might have actually acted with some decency or integrity in here.'

Meanwhile in the House of Representatives, Mr Dutton was left frustrated when Mr Albanese thwarted his attempt to keep pressing the issue during Monday's Question Time in the House of Representatives.

'My question is to the Prime Minister,' Mr Dutton said.

Meanwhile in the House of Representatives, Mr Dutton was left frustrated when Mr Albanese thwarted his attempt to keep pressing the issue during Monday's Question Time in the House of Representatives

'When did the Prime Minister or the Prime Minister's office become aware of allegations concerning sexual assault as broadcast by The Project in 2021?'

Mr Albanese seized on the question as a chance to target former prime minister Scott Morrison, who led the Coalition when the alleged incident occurred and up until Ms Higgins made her claims public with media interviews.

'The Leader of the Opposition asked the question about when did the Prime Minister's office know about this and indeed that is the question, when did the Prime Minister's office know?' Mr Albanese said as the chamber grew increasingly noisy.

Mr Albanese said Mr Morrison's office had been informed about the matter by Mr Dutton himself, who as Minister for Home Affairs oversaw the Australian Federal Police at the time.

As the chamber continued to erupt in MPs shouting over each other, the Speaker asked the Prime Minister to sit while Mr Dutton questioned the relevance of the answer.

'This is a tricky answer,' Mr Dutton said.

'The Prime Minister was asked a question. I asked with respect to your office, I framed it in that way, Mr Speaker.'
South Africa: Unions encouraged to inform members of EE amendments

The Department of Employment and Labour has encouraged trade unions to communicate amendments concerning employment equity (EE) to workers on the ground.

The department on Tuesday hosted a workshop with trade union representatives to capacitate them on their roles and responsibilities, as members of EE consultative forums, in the implementation of EE plans in the workplace, with the aim of achieving alignment with EE amendments and sector targets.

Workplace activism is where unions are important. They play a critical role, and the fact that we have consultative forums means that all of us have the responsibility of implementing the Employment Equity Act, and including Affirmative Action, said the departments Deputy Director of Employment Equity, Niresh Singh.

Singh said there must be consultations between employers and trade unions to protect the interests of people with disabilities and women.

This is where we find a shortcoming... where unions are not involved. The law has clarified that the employer must consult with representative trade unions or if there are no trade unions, employers must consult with the employees representing the workforce (or the employees at the various occupational levels)."

Singh said unions must also include non-designated groups in the consultative forums so there can be an exchange of voices and concerns.

Every designated employer, he said, must conduct an analysis of the workforce profile to determine the degree of under-representation of the various groups in terms of race and gender, and per occupational level.

Employers were also encouraged to conduct an analysis of their employment policies, practices, procedures and the working environment to identify employment barriers.

Singh stressed that the Employment Equity Act is "not about race".

Employment equity is also about including people with disabilities, coloured people, Indian people, white women, and so forth.

The trade union federations welcomed the launch of the Commission of Employment Equity Report, which is scheduled to take place next week.

The newly amended EE Act, which will aid workplace transformation in South Africa, is set to come into operation on 1 September 2023.

The amended act will empower the Employment and Labour Minister to regulate sector specific EE targets and to regulate compliance criteria to issue EE compliance certificates in terms of Section 53 of the EE Act.  SAnews.gov.za

This story has been published on: 2023-06-14. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
Lawyer Jeffrey Breit says that the district attempted to force Zwerner into taking workers comp and then fired her when she refused

Zwerner's attorney has called it 'a firing' despite an email from Zwerner to admin informing them of her resignation in March

Abigail Zwerner, the teacher shot by a student in January, is no longer working for the Newport News Public school district in Virginia

The Virginia teacher who was shot by her six-year-old student is no longer working for the school as her lawyer claims she was fired.

Abigail Zwerner's attorney Jeffrey Breit said the school district is attempting to push the 25-year-old out after she filed a $40million lawsuit against its board.

'While this woman was protecting 20 other students and risking her life,' Breit said, 'they decided to fire her because she wouldn't drop her lawsuit.'

In an email shared by WAVY, however, Zwerner wrote to HR she wished 'to resign' and an official for Newport News Schools said her contract then ended on June 12.

Breit maintains that Zwerner - who he claims hasn't been paid since February - was fired and that his client doesn't understand the dismissal from Richneck Elementary in Newport News.

Abigail Zwerner, the teacher shot by her student in January, is no longer working for the Newport News school district as her lawyer claims she was fired

Jeffrey Breit, Zwerner's lawyer, said the district is attempting to push the former teacher, 25, out after she filed a $40million lawsuit against the board

Richneck Elementary School in Newport News, Virginia, where the shooting occurred

'I don't think you can read this any other way than you've been fired,' Breit said. 'And that's what she thinks. She doesn't understand it; there's no other communication.'

Talking with WAVY, Breit said Zwerner was let go because of her lawsuit and the months of prior uncomfortable interactions between an admin and the teacher.

'To say we were shocked is an understatement; we have litigation,' Breit said, adding that she should have had until August 1 to leave or re-sign.

'The only thing I can think, they were trying to put pressure on her because we filed suit. It's outrageous, as outrageous as I've ever seen,' the attorney argued.

In the email exchange where Zwerner announced her resignation, she initially reached out to Human Resources saying that she could not access a form.

Abigail Zwerner, 25, was shot in the hand and chest by the child at Richneck Elementary School in Newport News, Virginia, in January

The form would either confirm her intent to return or to resign.

HR responded to Zwerner, writing that the deadline had passed but informing her that she could state her intention in their messages.

Ten minutes later, she responded: 'I wish to resign. Thank you.'

A week after that email was sent, Newport News Public Schools sent an email with the subject line 'Exit Letter,' stating they had processed her request to resign.

An identical email was resent to her on May 22, informing her that her last day of employment with the district would be June 12.

The department informed her she needed to turn in certain items and addressed paychecks, leave balances, and other benefit questions commonly asked.

Michelle Price, a spokesperson for the district said they took her May 13 email as confirmation of her departure and that follow-up emails to her solidified that.

'The email that Ms. Zwerner received from the Human Resources Department is a confirmation of her separation of service from Newport News Public Schools. Every employee who is separating from the school division receives a similar communication,' the statement read.

'Ms. Zwerner notified the Human Resources Department that she was resigning from her position as a teacher for NNPS on March 13, 2023,' Price said.

In an email shared by WAVY, Zwerner wrote to HR she wished 'to resign.' An official for Newport News Schools said her contract then ended on June 12

A week after that email was sent, Newport News Public Schools sent an email with the subject line 'Exit Letter,' stating they had processed her request to resign

According to Breit, however, there is much more to the story.

The lawyer claims the teacher has not been paid since February as the district attempted to give her workers' compensation which she refused.

'They sent a check to her back account,' Breit said.

'Her worker comp check  two-thirds of pay  they sent it to her. We immediately sent it back. This is not workers comp.'

According to law firm Cohen and Cohen, workers are typically unable to sue their employer if they have already accepted workers' compensation.

Breit said it would have been more apt for her to receive disability, which he alleged other teachers have taken in the past.

'She has not received a single response to the disability letter from her doctor,' he said, nor has she received a paycheck.

Price countered the claims made by Breit but acknowledged that Zwerner was issued workers' compensation after the shooting, which she refused.

'Ms. Zwerner refused workers' compensation, so HR staff used her sick leave to continue compensation for Ms. Zwerner. When Ms. Zwerner's sick leave was exhausted, she was placed on unpaid FMLA, in accordance with federal law and school board policy,' Price told WAVY.

'Had Ms. Zwerner accepted workers' compensation, she would have received 66 2/3% of her average weekly wages tax-free,' the statement continued.

In April, the teacher filed the mega-lawsuit against Newport News School Board, former Richneck Principal Briana Foster-Newton, and former Assistant Principal Dr. Ebony Parker

Dr. George Parker III - the former Superintendent of the school - was also named in the suit

The child had brought the gun, which belonged to his mother Deja Taylor (pictured) to school from home and was allegedly threatening to use it throughout the day

Zwerner was in her first-grade classroom at Richneck Elementary on the afternoon of January 6 when her six-year-old student shot her.

The child had brought the gun, which belonged to his mother Deja Taylor, to school from home and was allegedly threatening to use it throughout the day.

Taylor is charged with unlawful use of a controlled substance in possession of a firearm and making a false statement during the purchase of a firearm.

In April, the teacher filed the mega-lawsuit against Newport News School Board, former Superintendent Dr. Gregory Parker, former Richneck Principal Briana Foster-Newton, and former Richneck Assistant Principal Dr. Ebony Parker.

Lawyers have asked a judge to dismiss the suit, arguing the injuries were sustained while Zwerner was doing her job and should be covered by workers comp.

Breit, while talking with WAVY this week, indicated that he is fighting back against that claim.

He said he plans to ask 'every first-grade teacher under oath (whether) getting shot by one of your students was part of your job description.'
Three former valets allege a series of labor violations, including working 'nonstop' 16-hour shifts without a bathroom or lunch break

Its closed-doors camps are shrouded in secrecy, but a new lawsuit from former staff has shed light on the mysterious haunt

The Bohemian Club has been hosting retreats for over 150 years on the California coast

One of America's most secretive clubs is facing a bombshell lawsuit from three former staffers, who claim they were subjected to a series of illegal labor violations while serving its elite membership.

Private society Bohemian Club has hosted billionaires, industry titans and government heavyweights on its two campuses for over 150 years, one in San Francisco and a retreat in Sonoma County named Bohemian Grove.

Three valets who claimed worked at the Bohemian Grove estate during its infamous summer camps now claim they were forced to work 'nonstop' 16-hour shifts, during which they were allegedly not given bathroom or lunch breaks.

And despite its lucrative membership, the club also failed to pay its staff minimum wage and overtime, according to the lawsuit first reported by SFGATE.

However, the Bohemian Club blasted the lawsuit saying the people involved were never employed at the club and the suit is 'a transparent attempt to drag the Club into their individual circumstances.'

Then California Gov. Ronald Reagan (center left) and U.S. Vice Pres. Richard Nixon (center right), at Bohemian Grove, California, 1967

The Bohemian Club has been hosting secretive retreats for America's elite for over 150 years on the California coast. Pictured: The club's San Francisco base

The club's practices are shrouded in secrecy, and allegedly include bizarre rituals

The world's elite have descended on the lavish California club's summer camp for over 150 years, where the cloak-and-dagger retreat's true colors have been shrouded in secrecy.

While its male-only membership is kept secret, notable attendees have included Clint Eastwood, Henry Kissinger, Walter Cronkite, Richard Nixon, Ronald Reagan, Charles Schwab, Ambrose Bierce, Bret Harte, Mark Twain, and Jack London.

Now, decades-old questions over the club's practices may be answered with the new lawsuit.

The court filing claims that the club hosts three events every year - the Spring Jinx, the Spring Picnic, and the Summer Encampment.

With high society watching on, the summer conference is rumored to conclude with a bizarre ceremony involving a human effigy and the burning of a giant sacrificial owl.

For those distinguished enough to be invited onto the Sonoma County estate, attendees are divided into over 100 separate clubs, with names including the Camels Camps, the Last Chance camps, and the Monastery Camp.

'Monastery Camp is one of the most prestigious and well-known camps at Bohemian Grove,' the lawsuit alleges.

'Attendees include Bohemian Club members that are executives of Fortune 500 companies and prominent government officials.'

Membership joining fees are reported to top $25,000, and new recruits must be recommended by multiple current insiders before they are accepted into the ultra-exclusive club.

Members are said to perform plays and theater during the camps, pictured in 1934

Bohemian Grove members seen on the grounds during the Spring Jinx in June 2017

The complaint filing claims that each camp is assigned a 'captain', who would allegedly subject staff to numerous labor law violations to cater to the rich and famous.

The club's membership is a secret, but is known to have been populated by US presidents, CEOs and industry titans

Bohemian Club treasurer Bill Dawson is reportedly singled out in the lawsuit, which accuses him of directing the valets to 'falsify payroll records and to work off-the-clock'.

The document claims attendees would all be 'aware' valets would work 'almost nonstop' while they were on the grounds, taking little or no breaks.

During one Spring Jinx 'Burgundy Lunch', it is alleged four valets worked 'nonstop for approximately 18 hours providing a two-course lunch and dinner to 90 guests.'

The inner workings of the club have long remained a mystery since its founding in 1872, but many historical moments are rumored to have ties to the society.

Richard Nixon's 1968 presidential election campaign was said to have been launched at the camp. It was also allegedly the site of early discussions of the Manhattan Project with J. Robert Oppenheimer, which resulted in the US dropping two atomic bombs on Japan in World War Two.

Earlier this year, the club also made headlines as one of the sites Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas visited with Republican megadonor Harlan Crow.

The club has hosted numerous industry leaders from throughout history. Pictured (L-R) members Irvin S Cobb, author Charles Norris, and magazine editor Ray Long

An image taken during a Bohemian Grove camp in the early 1900s

The club's wealthy members are rumored to let their hair down at the camp, including performing plays and musical theater.

And although its motto is 'Weaving Spiders Come Not Here' - a Shakespeare quote implying outside business is not encouraged - the club's membership has routinely been a who's who of power and wealth.

Wait times to become a member have been known to extend past thirty years, but once in, members find themselves in the heart of a billionaire's playground.

One former Bohemian Grove resident told All That's Interesting: 'Its honestly just a place where wealthy guys from San Francisco go to be drunk knuckleheads.

'They burn firewood to stay warm and generally just host people from other camps or go visit people at other camps and provide entertainment.

'A portion of the membership is dedicated to actual professional musicians, actors, artists, et cetera, so theres great entertainment.'

Bohemian Grove member Jack London (right) pictured with other notable attendees in 1913

The entrance to Bohemian Grove encampment in Monte Rio, California

Also included in the lawsuit is a revealing text exchange between a valet and a captain that saw the valet allegedly admit his staff 'are working so much without knowing what they are getting into'.

The lawsuit alleges numerous labor violations that saw staff paid 'under the table' at less than the hours they actually worked.

'Employees were intimidated or coerced into waiving meal periods,' the suit alleges, adding that workers were also not allowed to make phone calls over 30 minutes long, and not between 9am and 9pm.

In a telling detail over the camp's highly secretive nature, the valets reportedly are not able to name all those they are accusing, with some referred to as 'John Doe'.

Club Spokesman Sam Singer said the club hasn't been served with the lawsuit, but it aware of it.

'Although the Club has not been served with this lawsuit, we have reviewed the allegations and it is clear the claims appearing in the lawsuit are brought by individuals who were never employed by the Bohemian Club and therefore the Club should not be a party to this action,' Singer said in a statement.

'We believe these three individuals know full well they did not work for the Club and that this lawsuit is a transparent attempt to drag the Club into their individual circumstances. The Club will vigorously defend itself in this action, as it would in any other meritless lawsuit.'

'The Bohemian Club has always valued and respected its employees, and that includes our commitment to full compliance with all applicable wage and hour laws and regulations.'
A transgender model who was banned from the White House on Tuesday after going topless at a Pride Event where she met President Joe Biden has complained about companies shying away from LGBTQ+ influencers.

Rose Montoya, 27, unhooked the top of her dress and grabbed her chest on the South Lawn on Saturday, as someone shouted, 'are we topless at the White House?'

Video of the move went viral on social media, and was condemned by the White House.

Montoya was unrepentant, saying it was not illegal to go topless in Washington, D.C.

She told The Guardian, in an interview published on Tuesday, that she was 'disappointed' that companies were becoming reticent about supporting Pride - in particular in light of the Bud Light controversy.

'I've spoken to a lot of my trans friends and colleagues, and we've all noticed less brands seeking partnerships and smaller budgets for Pride campaigns,' said Montoya.

'It's disappointing.'

Rose Montoya, 27, attended a Pride party at the White House on Saturday and posed topless

Montoya has modeled for brands such as Rihanna's Savage x Fenty label

Dylan Mulvaney (left) and Rose Montana are seen together on March 4 at the Queerties awards

Dylan Mulvaney's partnership with Bud Light proved disastrous for the beer company

In March, Bud Light partnered with trans influencer Dylan Mulvaney. The impact was catastrophic, and wiped billions off the brand's value.

The parent company, Anheuser-Busch, has seen its stock price and market cap decline by roughly 17 percent from its March highs as of Tuesday night.

Montoya said that brands were capitulating to a loud, angry mob.

'I'm disappointed to see brands caving to bullies,' Montoya said.

'When it comes to Pride, I need to know if a company is doing good in the world and actually showing up for our community.

'I'm very selective of who I work with, and I need to know that a company is doing good in the world, not just profiting off of us.'

Montoya, who has modeled for Rihanna's label, Savage x Fenty, sparked a firestorm on Monday when her video from inside the White House grounds, showing her baring her breasts, went viral.

On Tuesday, a White House spokesman told DailyMail.com: 'This behavior is inappropriate and disrespectful for any event at the White House.

'It is not reflective of the event we hosted to celebrate LGBTQI+ families or the other hundreds of guests who were in attendance.

'Individuals in the video will not be invited to future events.'

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre reiterated that point at her Tuesday press briefing.

'Individuals in the video certainly will not be invited to future events. And this is has not occurred before. This is not this was not a normal thing that has happened under this administration,' she said.

Montoya was one of thousands invited to a Pride Month concert on the South Lawn on Saturday at the White House.

Montoya shared an Instagram montage of the day with her 103,000 followers on Monday, and was seen dancing to the DJ and striking poses in front of landmarks such as the Washington monument and the Truman balcony of the White House.

She is also seen meeting Jill Biden, and trying to take a selfie with the president - with the camera mistakenly on video, rather than photo.

During her encounter with President Biden, she also said: 'Trans rights are human rights.'

She captioned the video: 'I had the honor of attending White House Pride, the largest one in history where the Pride flag flew for the first time.

'This is trans joy. We're here at the White House unapologetically trans, queer, and brown.'

When the video went viral, she pointed out that being topless in public was not illegal in Washington DC.

Montoya is seen with Joe Biden, and declaring: 'Trans rights are human rights'

Jill Biden and President Biden at Saturday's Pride event at the White House

She published a second video, declaring: 'Free the nipple!' The Idaho-born model, who began transitioning in 2015, films herself meeting her hosts.

'Hi, Mr President!' she says, on greeting Joe Biden. 'Hi, how are you?' he replies. She says: 'It is an honor. Trans rights are human rights.'

The White House hosted the concert after postponing it from its original Thursday date due to the smoke that blanketed the city from the Canadian Wildfires.

Biden and his administration have emphasized they are allies to the LGBTQ movement.

'You are loved, you are beautiful, you are heard, you belong,' Jill Biden told the crowd on Saturday.

Montoya has been open about her September 2020 breast augmentation, November 2020 trachea shave - to remove an Adam's Apple, and March 2021 genioplasty, which makes the chin more feminine. Montoya has not undergone bottom surgery.

After her final surgery, Montoya went viral after she denounced airport checks, calling them insensitive and inappropriate.

Rose Montoya with trans influencer Dylan Mulvaney

The Idaho-born model is also seen with Jill Biden, and dancing with the trans flag

President Joe Biden and his administration are being slammed online for US Flag Code violation after displaying a rainbow-colored Pride flag between two American flags on the White House

Montoya was flying from Phoenix to Los Angeles when she was stopped at security after the full-body scanner detected an 'anomaly' between her legs.

'Can we talk about how horrible it is to travel while being transgender sometimes? I always have immense anxiety leading up to going through security,' the Hispanic model explained in her viral TikTok, which has been viewed 19 million times.

'And this means that I totally recognize the privilege of having all of my documents correct,' she continued.

'So, the gender marker on my license, for example, says female.

'But, going through the scanner, there's a male scanner and a female scanner in the TSA checkpoint.'

Montoya, who has more than 481,000 TikTok followers, has been using her platform to educate others about the difficulties trans people face.
A 'messianic' guru founder of OneTaste, who is accused of keeping women in residential warehouses and forcing them into sex acts, appeared in federal court on Tuesday.

Nicole Daedone, the former CEO of 'sexual wellness' company OneTaste, turned herself in to the Brooklyn Federal Court - and smiled as she walked out with her attorney.

She was released on $1million bond. Daedone, 56, surrendered her passport when she turned herself in.

Daedone founded the San Francisco-based firm in 2004 and it soon became renowned for orgasmic meditation, which promised to help clients 'reclaim their sexuality.'

But last week, Daedone and her top lieutenant Rachel Cherwitz, 43, were hit with a federal indictment that accused them of forcing volunteers, contractors and employees into sex acts using cult-like tactics.

Nicole Daedone's lawyer, Julia Gatto, called her client a feminist who has championed female empowerment in her career.

Nicole Daedone, former CEO of 'sexual wellness' company OneTaste, turned herself in to the Brooklyn Federal Court - and smiled as she walked out with her attorney

Nicole Daedone, of One Taste Inc leaves the Brooklyn Federal Court after her arraignment with her attorney Julia Gatto

Gatto said: 'Nicole Daedone is a ceiling-shattering feminist entrepreneur who built and grew a company like no other, supporting and embracing female sexuality, female worth and female empowerment'

If convicted, Daedone and Cherwitz each face a maximum sentence of 20 years imprisonment

The attorney vehemently denied wrongdoing - saying 'she is not guilty,'

Gatto said: 'Nicole Daedone is a ceiling-shattering feminist entrepreneur who built and grew a company like no other, supporting and embracing female sexuality, female worth and female empowerment.'

'The idea that this woman at this company engaged in forced labor is as far from the truth and reality as one can comprehend. She pleaded not guilty today, she's not guilty.'

Magistrate Judge Lois Bloom told Nicole in court: 'You are under a microscope.

'You should consider youre being watched.'

Daedone's former colleague, Marcus Ratnathicam, secured her release and paid her bond - and even put up his $2 million property in Fort Bragg, California, reported the NYPost.

The guru said little during the hearing in Brooklyn.

The pair were charged with conspiracy to violate federal laws prohibiting the use of forced labor. Prosecutors say the alleged victims were kept under surveillance and made dependent on Daedone and Cherwitz for shelter and basic necessities.

If convicted, Daedone and Cherwitz each face a maximum sentence of 20 years imprisonment.

In a statement to DailyMail.com last week, current OneTaste CEO Anjuli Ayer slammed the charges as 'unfounded' and the result of a 'misogynistic, media-driven campaign to tear down a feminine empowerment project and the women who devoted their lives to it'

In 2018, the FBI launched an investigation when ex-customers came forward saying they were left in debt after paying for expensive classes, and former employees said they were told to engage in sexual relations with potential clients to close sales

Cherwitz, who was the head of sales for OneTaste, was arrested on June 6 in California, while Daedone remained at large and was believed to be overseas prior to turning herself in.

In a statement to DailyMail.com last week, current OneTaste CEO Anjuli Ayer slammed the charges as 'unfounded' and the result of a 'misogynistic, media-driven campaign to tear down a feminine empowerment project and the women who devoted their lives to it.'

OM exploded in popularity following a 2009 New York Times profile of OneTaste, and at one point, the company was reportedly raking in $12 million a year from eager clients.

But in 2018, the FBI launched an investigation when ex-customers came forward saying they were left in debt after paying for expensive classes, and former employees said they were told to engage in sexual relations with potential clients to close sales.

Now, prosecutors say that between 2004 and 2018, Daedone and Cherwitz deployed a series of abusive and manipulative tactics in order to obtain the labor and services of a group of OneTaste members, including volunteers, contractors, and employees.

Nicole Daedone

The indictment alleges that the duo used tactics designed to render the OneTaste members dependent on the group for their shelter and basic necessities, and to limit members' independence and control.

Members of OM were allegedly kept in 'residential warehouses' where they were forced into sex acts.

OM involves a woman, naked from the waist down, having her clitoris 'stroked' for exactly 15 minutes by a man, either her own partner or another paying customer.

Prosecutors say the alleged victims were subjected to 'constant surveillance' and isolated from friends and family.

'While employing such tactics, Daedone and Cherwitz demanded absolute commitment to the CEO, including by exalting Daedone's teachings and ideology,' the Justice Department said in a statement.

It is claimed Daedone was a 'messianic' figure at the center of the conspiracy.

'As part of this ideology, Daedone and Cherwitz instructed the OneTaste members to engage in sexual acts  including acts the members found uncomfortable or repulsive  as a requirement to supposedly obtain freedom and enlightenment and demonstrate their commitment to OneTaste and Daedone,' the statement added.

Prosecutors say they extracted forced labor from group members who were subjected to 'economic, sexual, emotional and psychological abuse, surveillance, indoctrination, and intimidation.'

OneTaste and current CEO Ayer are not accused of wrongdoing, with Ayer telling DailyMail.com: 'We have cooperated with the Eastern District of New York throughout the investigation.

'We are appalled by this long-term, misogynistic, media-driven campaign to tear down a feminine empowerment project and the women who devoted their lives to it,' she said.

'OneTaste is a women-led organization that has devoted itself to wellness, healing, inclusion and personal growth, and has always focused on female empowerment at its core,' the statement added.

Prosecutors say that when members could no longer afford OneTaste classes, they were pressured to take on debt, and that at times Daedone and Cherwitz even assisted them in opening new credit cards.

At one point, OneTaste operated centers in cities including New York, San Francisco, Denver, Las Vegas, Boulder, Los Angeles, Austin and London.

Nicole Daedone, 56, founder and former CEO of OneTaste, surrendered at the Brooklyn federal courthouse Tuesday morning, and is expected to be arraigned this afternoon

An OM class is seen above, in which a woman, naked from the waist down, has her clitoris methodically 'stroked' for exactly 15 minutes by a man

Nicole Daedone pictured leaving court

In New York City, OneTaste leased residences and hosted events in several different locations, including in Brooklyn and the Manhattan neighborhoods of Harlem, Hell's Kitchen, Soho and West Village.

'Under the guise of empowerment and wellness, the defendants are alleged to have sought complete control over their employees' lives, including by driving them into debt and directing them to perform sexual acts while also withholding wages,' said Breon Peace, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York.

'This prosecution should serve as a reminder to both employer and employee that no matter the marketing mantra, this conduct is never acceptable,' added Peace.

Daedone has previously denied that she ran a sex cult, telling the Mail on Sunday last year: I want to continue the work of getting OM into the world. It is such a powerful practice and we have a world that is so starved of something that will bring a fundamental connection.

Following the disturbing allegations that emerged in a 2018 Bloomberg report, Daedone has mostly maintained a low profile, and OneTaste all but disappeared from public view.
But some owners reject charging $10 for a coffee: 'It's not right'

A restaurant owner squeezed over increasing input costs in his business has flagged the possibility of a cup of coffee costing $10 as the new norm.

Chef Luke Johnston, who has owned and operated a North Queensland restaurant for more than 10 years, said passing on the costs of rising electricity prices to customers could cause the humble cup of coffee to reach the unthinkable price.

It comes as electricity prices are expected to skyrocket by 23.9 per cent across south-east Queensland by the beginning of the new financial year, the Australian Energy Regulator said.

Mr Johnston said he is worried about the state of hospitality venues where he runs his business in regional Queensland.

'People are talking that it's not going to be uncommon to hear of a $10 cup of coffee,' he told ABC.

Chef Luke Johnston (pictured) said electricity prices were one of his largest expenses and he has no choice but to pass that cost on

David Lin who runs Cafe Iconic in Brisbane's CBD (pictured) said he would rather absorb business costs himself than charge $10 for a coffee

He said electricity prices were one of his largest expenses and he had no choice but to pass that cost on.

'It's not something you'd like to do  it's just something that you have to do, unfortunately,' Mr Johnston said.

'If the electricity goes up, it raises the cost of everything else  you're constantly chasing your tail.'

But others across the state are not so sure about coffee reaching such a high price despite the challenging times.

David Lin who runs Cafe Iconic in Brisbane's CBD said he would rather absorb business costs himself than charge $10 for a coffee.

'No way, coffee is an every day drink for customers in Australia - if you put it up by $10 it's just not right,' he told Daily Mail Australia.

'Every time we change the price customers will always complain ... usually for the first couple of weeks, customers will try and find a cheaper place.

'They will buy the coffee beans themselves and make a coffee at home instead of coming to [a cafe].

'Ten dollars for a coffee, I can not imagine it.'

But Mr Lin who started his business eight years ago, added the continuing rising costs faced by hospitality companies has seen many go under.

'It's not looking good for the industry,' he said.

'There are shops around shutting down, impacting the whole industry. We are still around but we never know how long we are going to last for.'

He said 'everything' has been going up including packaging, coffee beans, rent, labour costs and milk - which he said changed in price five times last year.

The Queensland Competition Authority (QCA) will release a report on July 1 that will reveal how much electricity bills will go up.

'No way, coffee is an every day drink for customers in Australia - if you put it up by $10 it's just not right,' Mr Lin said (stock image of a cafe)

Guang Yang who owns and runs the Old Railway Cafe in Townsville said he tries to minimise the costs for customers despite rising milk prices.

He said a $10 price for coffee wouldn't be good for his business.

'I think the customers will be gone, it's just too expensive, in the bigger cities maybe but not for the smaller towns,' he told Daily Mail Australia.

'The food prices have increased, the meat, everything ... I work more in my own time to cover the cost and have had to cut staff hours,' he said.

Michael Kopittke from the Townsville Chamber of Commerce said the rising energy costs will have a profound effect on businesses.

He said the ATO has already identified cafes and restaurants as business that are at risk - adding disposable expenditure is the worst it has been in 40 years.
The victim of an anti-Jewish mob assault in Manhattan has spoken out slamming the plea deal that allowed one of his attackers off with just 18 months behind bars.

Joseph Borgen, 31, was brutally beaten by a group of pro-Palestinian demonstrators in May 2021, as he made his way to a pro-Israel rally in Times Square while wearing a kippah.

On Tuesday, Borgen struggled to contain his fury as he delivered a victim impact statement at the sentencing of Waseem Awawdeh, 24, who was filmed beating Borgen with crutches, calling him a 'dirty Jew' and pepper spraying him.

'Why is he getting a break? I really can't fathom why he's getting a deal. Me, personally, I wanted to go to trial, I wanted to see full justice,' Borgen told the court, according to the New York Post.

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg's office offered Awawdeh, who had faced up to seven years in prison, the 18 month sentence in exchange for his guilty plea to second degree attempted assault as a hate crime and criminal possession of a weapon.

Joseph Borgen (above) struggled to contain his fury as he delivered a victim impact statement at the sentencing of Waseem Awawdeh, 24, on Tuesday in Manhattan Court

Awawdeh was sentenced to 18 months for his role in the mob attack on Borgen in May 2021, as the victim made his way to a pro-Israel rally wearing a kippah

The attack on Borgen occurred during a spike in anti-Jewish crimes during a major flare in violence between Hamas and Israel in May 2021.

Awawdeh infamously said 'I have no problem doing it again' after his arrest, according to prosecutors, adding: 'If I could do it again, I would do it again.'

Bragg's office said in a statement following Tuesday's hearing: 'No one should ever feel unsafe because of their religion, and we do not tolerate the anti-Semitic hate displayed by the defendant in this case.

'Following a thorough and extensive investigation, Waseem Awawdeh is now sentenced to 18 months in jail.

'The three remaining defendants are expected to be tried on hate crimes charges in the coming months and face significant state prison time if convicted.'

At sentencing, Awawdeh's attorney Peter Frankel vigorously defended his client and insisted he harbors no anti-Jewish sentiment.

'I'm a lifelong New Yorker, I'm a Jewish man. I have spent countless hours and days with [Awawdeh],' Frankel told the court, according to the Post.

'I have not seen anything whatsoever in my dealings with him to indicate that he is in any way anti-Semitic,' added Frankel, insisting that his client made a 'mistake' but 'has agreed to accept responsibility'.

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg's office offered Awawdeh, who had faced up to seven years in prison, the 18 month sentence in exchange for his guilty plea

Waseem Awawdeh pleaded guilty to second degree attempted assault as a hate crime and criminal possession of a weapon

'Why is he getting a break? I really can't fathom why he's getting a deal. Me, personally, I wanted to go to trial, I wanted to see full justice,' said Borgen

At sentencing, Awawdeh's attorney Peter Frankel (left) vigorously defended his client and insisted he harbors no anti-Jewish sentiment

But in his impact statement, Borgen said he felt the 18 month sentence was too light.

What kind of message does this send  to everybody, to all victims of hate crime? he said, according to the Post.

Not just Jewish people but anyone who is a victim of a hate crime. You can say you wont do it again, get arrested while on bail, do whatever you want, and you know what? Well give you a slap on the wrist  its okay! added Borgen.

Judge Felicia Mennin approved the plea agreement and sentence.

The behavior of the group was despicable,' she said. 'This is not how people behave in a civilized society.

In 2021, days after the brutal assault, Borgen spoke out in an interview with DailyMail.com, saying he thought he was going to die after a gang of pro-Palestinian demonstrators assaulted him in Midtown Manhattan.

Borgen, an accountant who lives on the Upper East Side, was wearing a grey kippa and walking toward a pro-Israel rally in Times Square around 6:30pm when a young man with a black bandana started chasing him.

'I turned around to try to figure out what was going on and the next thing I knew I was surrounded by a whole crowd of people who proceeded to physically attack me, beat me, kick me, punch me, hit me with crutches, hit me with flag poles,' he told DailyMail.com after being released from Bellevue Hospital.

Video of the assault showed Borgen was left defenseless on the ground as he was battered by the angry mob outside of 1604 Broadway.

Pro-Palestinian protesters face off with a group of Israel supporters and police in a violent clash in Times Square on May 20, 2021 in New York City

Wassem Awawdeh is walked out of the 5th Precinct and into Central Booking for the attack on a Jewish Man during a Palestinian/Israeli Protest on 47th Street in Manhattan

Borgen is seen hospitalized left, and in an interview a day after the attack right

'After I wound up on the ground, I was literally just in a fetal position, trying to guard my head and face, literally just trying to make it out of their alive,' Borgen said.

'I thought I was going to die. I thought I was really going to die.'

Borgen said there were eight to 10 people taking part in the beatdown and they were shouting anti-Semitic slurs such as: 'You filthy Jew. We're going to f*****g kill you. Go back to Israel. Hamas is going to kill you.'

He said the most painful part occurred toward the end, when they pepper sprayed him.

'I thought I was getting urinated on because I felt a stream on my face. They maced me or pepper sprayed me for like a minute straight.'

Another defendant, Faisal Elezzi, pleaded guilty to attempted assault in the third degree as a hate crime, and was sentenced to three years probation.

Three other defendants still have pending charges in the case. They are Mohammed Othman, Mohammed Said Othman and Mahmoud Musa.
Brittany Higgins' boyfriend David Sharaz gloated over the demotion of her former boss, Linda Reynolds, claiming she could 'suck sh**'.

Mr Sharaz's apparent dislike of Ms Higgins' former employer were revealed in extraordinary leaked text messages between the pair.

He brands Senator Reynolds an 'awful human' and claims she can 'suck sh**' in a message sent after it was announced she had been sacked as Defence Minister from Scott Morrison's cabinet in late March 2021.

It comes as questions continue to mount about the role of senior Labor figures in allegedly politicising the rape accusation to attack the Liberal party.

Explosive texts between Brittany Higgins and her boyfriend David Sharaz (pictured together) have now revealed their apparent dislike for her former boss, Linda Reynolds

Leaked text messages reveal Brittany Higgins' then boyfriend David Sharaz gloated over the demotion of her former boss, Linda Reynolds, claiming she could 'suck sh**' (pictured, a mock-up of the text)

Ms Higgins alleged she was raped by her colleague Bruce Lehrmann in Ms Reynolds parliamentary office after a night out in 2019.

Mr Lehrmann has always denied the allegations.

Ms Reynolds was forced to apologise after she reportedly referred to Higgins as a 'lying cow' after her allegations were first aired on The Project in February 2021.

In a statement at the time, Ms Reynolds said she had never questioned Ms Higgins' sexual assault allegation.

'I did however comment on news reports surrounding circumstances that I felt had been misrepresented,' she said.

Further text messages between Mr Sharaz and his now fiance, shared by Sky News Australia, reveal the pair sought advice from former Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull.

'Good advice from Turnbull,' Mr Sharaz wrote in April 2021.

The messages also reportedly details how the couple enlisted the support of Greens Senator Sarah Hanson Young.

'Sarah (Sarah Hanson Young) is coming down tomorrow. Should I cancel? She wants to support you etc. She can just come to the apartment,' Mr Sharaz wrote in March 2021.

Ms Reynolds was forced to apologise after she reportedly referred to Higgins as a 'lying cow' after her allegations were first aired on The Project in February 2021

The leaked messages also reveal the couple sought advice from former Liberal Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull

The text messages also reveal the couple also sought advice from Greens Senator Sarah Hanson Young

Ms Higgins replied: 'Ill chat it out with SHY (Sarah Hanson Young)'.

Daily Mail Australia contacted Ms Young and Mr Turnbull for comment.

Previous texts between the pair revealed how they plotted to 'f*** over' then-PM Scott Morrison.

'Just wait,' Ms Higgins messaged Mr Sharaz. 'We've got him.'

Mr Sharaz replied: 'I still hate the c***.'

Finance Minister Katy Gallagher has this week been forced to repeatedly deny she misled Parliament in 2021 by saying she had no knowledge of Ms Higgins' rape allegations before they were made public.

In June 2021, Senator Gallagher angrily denied having knowledge of the allegations before they were broadcast in a fiery confrontation with Ms Higgins's former boss Linda Reynolds in Senate estimates.

Finance Minister Katy Gallagher (pictured) has this week been forced to repeatedly deny she misled Parliament in 2021 by saying she had no knowledge of Ms Higgins' rape allegations before they were made public

Senator Gallagher snapped at the then-defence minister: 'No-one had any knowledge. How dare you.'

But leaked text messages reveal Mr Sharaz told Ms Higgins he met with Senator Gallagher in her office on February 11, 2021.

He claimed to have detailed Ms Higgins' allegations against Liberal staffer Bruce Lehrmann and gave Senator Gallagher a transcript of her interview with The Project, which aired on February 15.

'I hope that's okay,' Mr Sharaz wrote in the messages to his now fiance.

'She's not doing anything with it. But I'm also happy to step out and let her talk to you if you want.

'Basically, I wanted her to get all the context because it's so complicated. She's currently reading your interview and has gone silent. '

In another text he added: 'Katy Gallagher messaged me. She's angry and wants to help. She's got the context.

'She says they knew something was wrong because they fired Bruce and not you. They avoided a scandal.'

'Just wait,' Brittany Higgins messaged boyfriend David Sharaz in the text messages. 'We've got him.' Mr Sharaz replied: 'I still hate the c***'

The following day, Mr Sharaz passed on Ms Higgins' mobile number to Senator Gallagher to allow them to talk directly ahead of Ms Higgins' explosive TV interview.

Senator Gallagher first admitted on Saturday that she had been made aware of the allegations in advance of them being aired, clarifying her original statement in the Senate.

'I was responding to an assertion that was being made by the Minister Reynolds at the time that we had known about this for weeks and had made a decision to weaponise it,' she said.

'That is not true. It was never true. I was aware of some allegations in the days leading up to the choice of Miss Brittany Higgins to make those allegations public.

'I did nothing with that information. So there's absolutely no issue here at all.'

The trial of Mr Lehrmann was aborted over juror misconduct and prosecutors did not seek a retrial, citing concern for Ms Higgins' mental health.

The ACT is now holding an inquiry into the investigation and prosecution.
A driver of a US-style ute has sparked outrage after parking their 'Yank tank' across four spaces in a busy carpark.

The vehicle was spotted parked at the Hyperdome Shopping Centre in Logan, Brisbane, on the weekend.

An unimpressed local snapped a photo before sharing it to Reddit on Sunday.

An annoyed Queenslander shared a photo of a large Ford ute (above) parked across four spaces in Logan, west of Brisbane, on Sunday

'Why take one spot when you can take four?,' the Queenslander wrote.

The driver's inconsiderate act caught the eye of hundreds of Aussies with many saying the ignorant behaviour is 'typical' for large car owners.

'The kind of owner that tells everyone he needed it for the towing capacity but rented a Bunnings trailer for a tip run,' one person wrote.

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'This is why the disincentive for these vehicles needs to be taxes and higher rego,' another said.

'A few thousand extra and most people are going to think twice about whether they genuinely need a vehicle this size.'

'Tailgating in the fast lane to a shopping centre near you,' a third commented.

'I don't think it's surprising some people who buy giant cars that cost a fortune and wreck the environment are selfish and don't give a sh** who they inconvenience,' another wrote.

Other commenters shared the creative ways they'd get revenge on a driver for taking up precious room in a crowded carpark.

'It's not illegal to zip-tie some trollies to his door handles,' one said.

'Always happy to see these vehicles pulled over on the long weekend by police,' another commented.

'My new favourite thing to do with these deliberately obnoxious parkers is to let their tyres down. Doesnt cause any damage but creates a massive hassle if they dont carry a pump,' a third wrote.

Hundreds more commenters said Australian roads, especially in cities, simply aren't designed to cope with US-style pickups.

'This is what sh**s me about the influx of yank tanks that is happening now. Our roads and parking infrastructure are not made for vehicles this large,' one wrote.

'Honestly think these types of cars should be banned or restricted. There's no legitimate need for them here,' another said.

RAM, the biggest supplier of US pickups to Australia, has sold 18,000 American utes to Aussies, Drive reported in February.

The huge utes can cost up to $169,990 and come with massive fuel and maintenance fees, making them a status symbol among car owners.
He managed to find and buy the vehicle back 22 years later

The Kiwi dad wanted to find the Holden Kingswood again

Andre Hawke sold his first car handed down to him in 2001

A father who sold his very first car - a rare 1978 Holden Kingswood - has miraculously been reunited with the treasured vehicle 22 years later.

Andre Hawke, 39, was brought up riding in his family's brown HZ Holden Kingswood 308 5 litre V8 around the streets of Christchurch in New Zealand.

He eventually inherited the vehicle from his parents before selling it for $2500 in 2001.

Mr Hawke, who was 17 when he sold the prized car, explained that he was more interested in '(Nissan) Skylines and other stupid bogan cars' over the Kingswood.

But 22 years after selling it, the Kiwi dad's passion for his first vehicle was reignited after he discovered the original owner's car manual in storage.

Andre Hawke began a search for his first car - a treasured 1978 Holden Kingwood - which he sold for $2500 back in 2001

'It [the manual] had been in a lockup since 2001. It started to rekindle some ideas about the memories about the car and that sort of thing, and I thought, oh, well, let's see if it still exists and see if we can track down the owner and return the manual,' he told NZ Herald journalist Heath Moore.

Mr Hawke posted pictures of his beloved 1978 Holden Kingswood to several social media pages in the hope someone knew where it was.

With the help of online sleuths, he was able to locate and get into contact with the current owner in a matter of 'hours'.

The current owner, who lived in Gore, had bought the vehicle off the person Mr Hawke had sold it to back in 2001.

It had been in his possession for a whopping 19 years.

He sent the man the owner's manual and told him if he was ever interested in selling it to 'keep my details and maybe at least give me the first option to buy it'.

Unfortunately for Mr Hawke, the owner had no interest in selling the car at the time.

Two years later, while he was out on a hunting trip with his father, Mr Hawke was inspired to give the Kingswood owner a call and ask if the pair could see it.

The mechanic agreed and even allowed the father and son to take it for a drive.

Mr Hawke and his father were shocked to find the car was relatively unchanged over the course of 22 years - it still had the original paint, engine and transmission.

He noted that the only change in all that time was the car had been lowered slightly.

Mr Hawke and his father were amazed to discover the prized vehicle still had the original paint, engine and transmission

The Kiwi father bought the vehicle back off the owner for $50,000. He said while it was probably the 'worst investment you could ever make' it gave him 'a trip down memory lane that is priceless in the end'

The mechanic then surprisingly called Mr Hawke two months later and offered to sell it to him as it was 'time to move on'.

But there was a catch to buying the beloved Kingswood back - he'd have to fork out $50,000.

Mr Hawke bought it back knowing it was probably the 'worst investment you could ever make'.

However, he said it was an 'honour and privilege to have it back in the family' and worth every dollar.

'It looks the same, sounds the same, it feels the same. It's quite funny,' he remarked.

While driving the vehicle home, Mr Hawke passed the neighbourhood he grew up and recreated a 2001 photo he took with the vehicle.

'It might be the worst investment monetary-wise, but it's certainly given me a trip down memory lane that is priceless in the end,' he said.

Mr Hawke hopes to pass the car on down to his children like his father did all those years ago.
The Greens may want to phase out coal by 2030 but for one Labor government, this commodity has helped deliver Australia's biggest ever state Budget surplus.

Queensland Treasurer Cameron Dick on Tuesday announced a record $12.3billion Budget surplus for 2022-23.

In his Budget speech, he mentioned 'coal' 20 times, noting coal royalties had helped pay for transport infrastructure and help for the poor.

The words 'renewable' and 'clean' were mentioned too - but only three times each.

'We can deliver our state's biggest cost of living program, our state's biggest building program, and deliver lower debt for one simple reason: progressive coal royalties,' Mr Dick said on Tuesday.

'This is the largest Budget surplus ever recorded by any state or territory government.'

Queensland's Budget surplus is even bigger than uranium-rich Western Australia's revised $4.2billion surplus for the same financial year, despite the Sunshine State partially funding $550 electricity rebates for every household.

The Greens may want to phase out coal by 2030 but for one state Labor government, this commodity has helped deliver Australia's biggest ever Budget surplus (pictured is Greens party leader Adam Bandt, left, with his wife Claudia Perkins)

While WA relies on China's demand for its steelmaking commodity, Queensland's largesse occurred even as China boycotted Australian exports, including coal.

New trade data released on Wednesday showed big surges in demand for Australian exports from Japan, Korea and India - three major buyers of Queensland coal.

China remained Australia's biggest trading partner in 2022, but its overall demand for Australian exports fell by two per cent to $184.721billion, the Australian Bureau of Statistics revealed.

This occurred as Japan's demand for Australian exports rose 84 per cent to $119.733billion.

South Korea's export demand climbed by 42 per cent to $53.875billion as India's demand rose 42 per cent to $34.847billion.

A Queensland Treasury report in November 2022 noted China's ban on Australian coal, imposed in October 2020, had been offset by demand for other Asian nations.

Only a year after that ban, 90 per cent of Queensland's coal exports, otherwise destined for China, were offset by increased exports to other countries, including India, Japan, and Korea.

Queensland Treasurer Cameron Dick (pictured right with Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk) on Tuesday announced a record $12.3billion Budget surplus for 2022-23

In his Budget speech, Mr Dick noted that Queensland had a green energy future, but the words 'renewable' and 'clean' were only mentioned three times each.

Australia's biggest export markets in 2022 1. CHINA: Down $4.332billion or two per cent to $184.721billion 2. JAPAN: Up $54.648billion or 84 per cent to $119.733billion 3. SOUTH KOREA: Up $16.022billion or 42 per cent to $53.875billion 4. INDIA: Up $10.27billion or 42 per cent to $34.847billion 5. UNITED STATES: Up $6.644billion or 28 per cent to $30.69billion Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics international trade data Advertisement

Ironically, coal royalties were credited with funding the transition to renewable energy.

'Speaker, because of those coal royalties, and the surplus that they have delivered, this Budget delivers what the people of Queensland need: The transformation of our energy system to clean renewable energy,' Mr Dick said.

The Greens, who claim to champion the needs of the poor, want coal phased out by 2030.

'Phase out all Coal & Gas and transition to 100% renewable energy by 2030,' it said.

Greens leader Adam Bandt last year campaigned to phase out thermal coal exports, used for electricity generation, with an export cap from 2023 so the 'maximum allowable' level of exports would fall from 230million tonnes to zero within seven years.

Queensland is the worlds largest seaborne exporter of metallurgical coal, used to make steel, but it is also a major exporter of thermal coal.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Labor last year campaigned on a net zero by 2050 target and in government received support from the Greens for a 43 per cent reduction in carbon emissions by 2030.

While Labor differs from the Greens in some areas, the federal government needs its support in the Senate to get legislation passed if the Coalition blocks it.

Without coal royalties, Queensland would be more dependent on the Commonwealth carve up of revenue from the Goods and Services Tax that is distributed to the states and territories.

Governments would either have to borrow more or possibly rely on the GST going up from its present level of 10 per cent, which hurts the poor more.
Illinois Governor JB Pritzker on Monday signed into law a bill that he says will make it the first state to outlaw book bans.

The state's public libraries that restrict or ban materials because of 'partisan or doctrinal' disapproval will be ineligible for state funding as of Jan. 1, 2024, when the new law goes into effect.

'Today, Illinois makes history as the first state in our nation to officially end book bans once and for all,' Pritzker, a Democrat, tweeted Wednesday. 'Were showing everyone what it looks like to stand up for liberty. As simple as that.'

It comes as books have become a battleground in the nation's culture wars, as some conservatives scour library shelves for titles they consider offensive.

'Book bans are about censorship and marginalizing people, marginalizing ideas and facts. Regimes ban books, not democracies,' Pritzker said at the bill signing.

Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker on Monday signed into law a bill that he says will make it the first state to outlaw book bans, continuing a trend of Democrats accusing Republicans of banning books and stunting children's education

In April, President Joe Biden took a swing at hardline Republicans such as Gov. Ron DeSantis for what he considered book bans in his state of Florida.

Last month, publisher Penguin Random House and the writers' group PEN America filed a lawsuit against a Florida school district over the removal of books from public school libraries that address race and LGBTQ issues.

DeSantis, a potential candidate for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, has been a driving force behind a campaign in the southern state to restrict children's access to certain books.

He has leaned heavily into cultural divides on race, sexual orientation and gender as he moves to win support from conservative voters who decide Republican primaries.

Florida has been a leading battleground in the so-called 'culture wars', and scores of books have been removed from library shelves in recent months, deemed inappropriate for children by conservative parents and school boards.

Illinois, which has a Democrat governor and supermajority in both houses of its legislature, looks to become the state leading the fight back against these policies.

'We are not saying that every book should be in every single library,' said Illinois Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias, who is also the state librarian and was the driving force behind the legislation.

Pritzker claimed that in 2022 alone, there were 67 attempts to ban books in the state.

'Book bans are about censorship and marginalizing people, marginalizing ideas and facts. Regimes ban books, not democracies,' Pritzker said at the bill signing

DeSantis, a potential candidate for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, has been a driving force behind a campaign in the southern state to restrict children's access to certain books

'What this law does is it says, let's trust our experience and education of our librarians to decide what books should be in circulation,' Giannoulias added.

The governor claimed that books like To Kill a Mockingbird and The Kite Runner had faced potential bans.

'The argument about banning books always begins with the claim that it's about protecting children,' Pritzker said. 'Yes, of course, we all want to protect our children so they're reading age appropriate material.'

The new law comes into play as states across the U.S. push to remove certain books in schools and libraries, especially those about LGBTQ+ themes and by people of color.

The American Library Association in March announced that attempts to censor books in schools and public libraries reached a 20-year high in 2022 - twice as many as 2021, the previous record.

New state laws have been enacted that could subject librarians to significant penalties, including imprisonment and hefty fines, for providing sexually explicit, obscene or books deemed 'harmful' to children

The cited that five states have enacted criminal punishments for librarians who allow children to access 'obscene' materials - with a dozen states considering similar actions.

'Illinois legislation responds to disturbing circumstances of censorship and an environment of suspicion,' said Deborah Caldwell-Stone, director of the American Library Association's Office for Intellectual Freedom and executive director of the Freedom to Read Foundation.

To be eligible for state funds, Illinois public libraries must adopt the American Library Association's Library Bill of Rights, which holds that 'materials should not be excluded because of the origin, background, or views of those contributing to their creation,' or subscribe to a similar pledge.

Downers Grove Democrat Rep. Anne Stava-Murray sponsored the legislation in the Illinois House of Representatives after a school board in her district was subject to pressure to ban certain content from school libraries.

'While it's true that kids need guidance, and that some ideas can be objectionable, trying to weaponize local government to force one-size-fits-all standards onto the entire community for reasons of bigotry, or as a substitute for active and involved parenting, is wrong,' Stava-Murray said Monday at the bill's signing, which took place at a children's library in downtown Chicago.

President Joe Biden took a swing at hardline Republicans in April, saying he never expected to be fighting elected officials who wanted to ban books they did not like

The governor claimed that books like To Kill a Mockingbird and The Kite Runner had faced potential bans

Pritzker followed up the bill signing with an announcement that the state had partnered with Dolly Parton's Imagination Library, gifting a free book each month to every child under the age of five who signs up.

Despite Giannoulias' assertion that 'this should not be a Democrat or Republican issue,' lawmakers' approval of the bill splintered across party lines, with Republicans in opposition.

'I support local control,' said House Minority Leader Tony McCombie, a Republican who voted against the measure, in an emailed statement.

'Our caucus does not believe in banning books, but we do believe that the content of books should be considered in their placement on the shelves.'
The Las Vegas UFO mystery has deepened - as police installed high-tech cameras outside the home where residents reported seeing '10ft aliens with large shiny eyes' in their backyard

Doug Poppa, a former police officer who has been following the story of the mysterious object falling from the sky, said it baffled him why the Las Vegas Metro Police Department placed surveillance cameras outside.

He interviewed the family who made the call - and they told him that the cops installed the camera to 'protect' them from UFO fanatics who might bother them.

Despite being skeptical, Poppa, who is a podcaster, said he now believes the family is somewhat credible.

A Vegas officers body camera picked up the object at about 11:50pm on April 30, after a resident reported something '100 percent not human' on their property, local TV channel 8 News Now reported.

Doug Poppa interviewed the family who made the call twice - who told him that the cops installed the camera to 'protect' them from an UFO fanatics who might bother them

The potential UFO sighting has been caught on Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department bodycam footage

The footage shows a bright blue ball of light traveling through the dark sky at speed.

Approximately 39 minutes after the first call, another resident contacted 911, saying that there were two unknown entities in his backyard after he saw an object fall from the sky.

'Theres like an 8-foot person beside it and another one is inside us [sic] and it has big eyes and its looking at us  and its still there,' the homeowner told police in audio obtained by the TV channel.

Mr Poppa wrote on Twitter, along with an image of the supposed cameras: 'THE VIDEO CAMERA SURVEILLANCE SYSTEM WITH THE WIRELESS TRANSMISSION LINK THAT I RECORDED AT THE HOME ON MAY 19, MUST HAVE BEEN A MIRAGE OR A FIGMENT OF MY IMAGINATION IF THE LAS VEGAS METRO POLICE ARE TO BE BELIEVED.

'NICE INSTALL TASS (TECHNICAL AND SURVEILLANCE SQUAD).'

Doug Poppa, a former police officer who has been following the story of the mysterious object falling from the sky, said it baffled him why the Las Vegas Metro Police Department placed surveillance cameras outside

He told NYPost: 'The mother told me they came out there and put up the cameras, supposedly to protect the family from people coming to bother them about the UFO.

'But I can tell you right now. Cops dont come out and put up expensive video equipment up like that  and they certainly wouldnt for someone calling in a report about a UFO.'

During the initial 911 phone call about the alleged UFO and alien sighting, the caller said: 'In my backyard. I swear to God this is not a joke, this is actually  were terrified.

'Theyre very large. Theyre like 8 foot, 9 feet, 10 foot. They look like aliens to us. Big eyes. They have big eyes. Like, I cant explain it. And big mouth. Theyre shiny eyes and theyre not human. Theyre 100 percent not human,' he claimed.

The responding officers expressed their trepidation at the odd events.

'Im so nervous right now,' one officer can be heard telling his partner.

'I have butterflies, bro  saw a shooting star and now these people say theres aliens in their backyard.'

'I dont believe in it but what I saw right now, I do believe in it,' one of the reported witnesses said to police.

The area of the alleged sighting was searched, and the witnesses interviewed, but no new information was found.

Police searched the area and interviewed witnesses but no new information was found

Witnesses described something '100 percent not human' falling from the sky

The Vegas investigations come after a Pentagon whistleblower who claims the US has run a top-secret UFO retrieval program for decades said some of the 'non-human intelligences' discovered are malevolent and have even killed humans.

David Grusch served 14 years in the Air Force, where he says he was told about the program by others who were involved.

Grusch, 36, is a decorated Afghanistan combat officer who went on to work for the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency and the National Reconnaissance Office.

His role was to act as the NRO's representative when dealing with the Unidentified Aerial Phenomena Task Force. The task force was specifically set up to investigate UFOs.

Over the last week, he has gone public with what he says it entailed, telling NewsNation about how the US is in an arms race with Russia and China to understand extra-terrestrial life.

In his most recent comments, he said the 'non human' intelligences have acted with malevolence - and even killed some humans.

'I think the logical fallacy there is because theyre advanced, theyre kind. Well never really understand their full intent and thats because were not them.

'But I think what appears to be malevolent activity has happened.

'Thats based on nuclear site probing activities and witness testimony.

'While I cant get into the specifics because that would reveal certain US classified operations, I was briefed by a few individuals on the program that there were malevolent events like that,' he said, when asked specifically if any had killed humans.

Grusch also made the astonishing claim that the US government would do anything to protect the secret - including killing people.

'At the very least, I saw substantive evidence that white-collar crime was committed...unfortunately.

'Ive heard some really un-American things I dont want to repeat right now,' he said.

Grusch filed his report in July last year. At the time, the Intelligence Community Inspector General called the complaint 'urgent and credible.'

'There is a sophisticated disinformation campaign targeting the U.S. populace which is extremely unethical and immoral,' he said, accusing the US government of lying to the public for 'decades'.

'We are most definitely not alone,' he said, adding that 'quite a number' of aircraft have been discovered.

The Pentagon denied having any knowledge of the program described by Grusch last week, but stated it would follow ongoing investigations into his claims 'wherever they lead'.

The House Oversight Committee also commented it will investigate his claims.
One pastor in support of the ban said the church 'is in desperate need of clarity'

Southern Baptists will vote on whether to ban women from pastoral roles

Southern Baptists will vote this week on whether or not to ban women from becoming pastors after numerous churches were ousted for having female leaders.

A proposal will go before some 12,000 voters at this week's Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) in New Orleans that would outlaw women in positions of power.

The SBC Executive Committee, which has 30 employees and 86 appointed members - approved the vote but has formally recommended 'messengers' vote against it.

At the convention, the group will also decide the fate of several churches that were recently expelled for having women led-congregations in the denomination.

Pastor Mike Law, a proponent of the ban, says the ruling would provide the SBC with the 'clarity' that they are in 'desperate need of.'

Southern Baptists will vote this week on whether or not to ban women from becoming pastors after numerous churches were ousted for having women lead

Pastor Mike Law (pictured), a proponent of the ban, says the proposed ruling would provide the SBC With the 'clarity' that they are in 'desperate need of'

Law is calling for the voters - 'messengers' as they are called - to vote to authorize the ban this week during their meeting.

'The messengers need to make their voices heard on this amendment and I am thankful they have that opportunity this week,' Law said in a statement Monday.

The pastor and other ultra-conservative members of the denomination fear that women being allowed to preach will lead to a liberal drift within the church.

'We must believe what the Bible teaches, and put those beliefs into practice. I encourage my fellow messengers to adopt this amendment and reaffirm our commitment to God's Word,' he added.

According to Joshua Abbotoy, a pastor whose congregation left the denomination, some Southern Baptists have strong, unfavorable views of women leading.

He said they view female leaders as 'an early harbinger of a raft of other changes.'

Abbotoy's conservative organization New Founding published an analysis last year that estimated there were more than 1,800 female pastors in SBC churches.

Opponents of the ban say they believe it could set a dangerous precedent for the denomination and others like it.

Executive Committee member Dana McCain told USA Today that some voters will vote only based on their own ideologies and 'without perhaps taking time to consider all the ramifications of the governance issues.'

She also cited the 'potential unintended consequences.'

In February, SBC's Executive Committee voted to oust Fern Creek Baptist Church along with several others for having a woman in charge.

Each church is considered independent therefore the Southern Baptists cannot officially tell them what to do, but they can deem them 'not in friendly cooperation.'

Executive Committee member Dana McCain told USA Today that some voters will vote only based on their own ideologies and 'without perhaps taking time to consider all the ramifications of the governance issues'

Fern Creek - which is led by 30-year Rev. Linda Barnes Popham - is appealing their decision as Popham says she was called to her position.

'When I was 8 years old, I knew that God was calling me in some sense,' Rev. Popham told WCHS in a recent interview.

Her congregants and fellow members of the church - including men - are backing her up and offering their support.

'I've never seen anybody with a more dedicated heart for the Lord than Linda,' said longtime attendee Rick Pryor.

California's massive Saddleback church is appealing their decision, as well.

The current pastor, Andy Wood, said in a statement his church believes women can be pastors so long as male elders are ultimately in charge.

Stacie Wood, Andy's wife, is currently a teaching pastor at Saddleback.

Rick Warren - the founding pastor of Saddleback - echoed Wood's statements in an open letter 'to all Southern Baptists.'

Fern Creek church, which is led by 30-year-veteran Rev. Linda Barnes Popham, is appealing their decision as Popham says she was called to her position

California's massive Saddleback church is appealing their decision, as well

Rick Warren - the founding pastor of Saddleback - echoed Wood's statements in an open letter 'to all Southern Baptists.' Pictured: Rick Warren during the 2022 SBC

He advocated for rejecting division and formal policies that other churches follow.

'This is a vote to affirm the God-given freedom of every Baptist to interpret Scripture as a Baptist  by saying no to those who deny that freedom,' he wrote.

Three other churches were exiled, but are not appealing.

According to SBC, the denomination is 'complementarian' and believes that men and women have different roles within church and life.

Chuck Kelley, Al Mohler, and Richard Land wrote in a guide for the 2000 Baptist Faith & Message Confession, however, that a 'pastor' is someone 'who fulfills the pastoral office and carries out the pastor's functions.'

'It is important to understand that the word pastor was chosen precisely because of its clarity among Southern Baptists,' the group elaborated.

'The statement carefully affirms that both men and women are gifted for service in the church, but the role of pastor is biblically defined and is to be held only by men as qualified by Scripture.'
David Sharaz described her as a 'friend' in leaked messages

Katy Gallagher says she cannot control how others describe her

Katy Gallagher says she forgot she received an invitation to David Sharaz's wedding because at that time in her career she was inundated with invitations to random events.

The Finance Minister also criticised leaked text messages in which Mr Sharaz described her as a 'friend' to then-girlfriend, now-fiancee Brittany Higgins.

'Can I start by saying I'm not responsible for how people describe their relationship with me,' the under fire cabinet minister told the Senate during Question Time on Wednesday.

Daily Mail Australia revealed last month Ms Gallagher was invited to Mr Sharaz' wedding to ex-wife Alexandra Craig in 2018. She addressed the invitation for the first time in public today, revealing she 'didn't recall that until [she] heard it reported'.

'I had to ask the people I worked with at the time, I think I was Chief Minister. I got a lot of invitations to a lot of things, some I was able to go to and others I couldn't.

'That one I didn't go to. It was declined.'

Embattled Finance Minister Katy Gallagher (pictured) distanced herself from her supposed 'friend' David Sharaz during Question Time on Wednesday

Ms Gallagher was invited to Mr Sharaz's wedding to ex Alexandra Craig (pictured together) in 2018. She did not attend, and implied today she and Mr Sharaz were not, in fact, friends

Ms Gallagher was not the ACT Chief Minister in 2018, when the wedding was held. 2018 was the year she was forced to step down from Parliament for a breach of section 44 (i) of the constitution.

The senator had lodged the paperwork to renounce her British citizenship in time, but the UK Home Office had not approved the application prior to the election.

For a second day running, Ms Gallagher was inundated with questions about her knowledge of Brittany Higgins' allegations she was sexually assaulted in Parliament House in 2019.

She has maintained it would be inappropriate and a breach of Ms Higgins' trust to offer details beyond what she has already said on the matter.

Ms Gallagher admitted it was Mr Sharaz who first addressed Ms Higgins' allegations with her - in the week prior to going public with the story via a television interview with Lisa Wilkinson and The Project, and an online interview with news.com.au.

But she told the Senate on Wednesday her relationship with Mr Sharaz was not out of the ordinary - and likely equal to relationships he had with many other politicians.

The tables at Mr Sharaz and Ms Craig's wedding featured the names of Labor leaders past and present

Mr Sharaz and Ms Craig's marriage imploded after a few years, and he soon found love with Brittany Higgins. He told Ms Higgins in leaked texts that he and Gallagher were 'friends'

'I had a professional relationship with Mr Sharaz, as did many in this place as he worked here for a period of time,' she said.

'It is a professional relationship with a journalist I knew in the ACT and I came across him again when I moved up to the Senate. I expect that relationship exists for a number of Senators.'

Ms Gallagher again urged the Opposition to consider the broader ramifications of their line of questioning, revealing she had been 'inundated' with calls from women's organisations and women themselves about the impact the sustained coverage was having.

'If you can live with that on your conscience... I can't on mine,' she said.

The Liberal Party has maintained it is not trying to 'second guess the court process that has already taken place' or 'draw innocence or guilt out of any party involved'.

Questions have been raised over who in the Labor Party knew about Higgins' (left) rape allegations before they were made public in 2021, with Ms Gallagher facing growing scrutiny

On Wednesday, Opposition Leader Peter Dutton said the questions being asked of the government are 'absolutely reasonable' and 'don't demean the allegation of sexual assault'.

Ms Higgins alleged she was sexually assaulted by Bruce Lehrmann in Parliament House in 2019. He has denied the allegations and a criminal trial crumbled in late 2022 due to juror misconduct.

Since then, leaked texts and transcripts of recorded conversations show Ms Higgins, her boyfriend David Sharaz and journalist Lisa Wilkinson discussed providing details of her allegations to senior Labor figures, well before the case became public knowledge.
An Arizona mother has delivered emotional testimony recounting a horrifying ordeal, in which scammers used artificial intelligence to emulate her daughter's voice and stage a fake kidnapping to demand ransom.

Jennifer DeStefano spoke before the Senate Judiciary Committee in a hearing on Tuesday, describing her terror upon receiving the phone call in April from scammers demanding $1 million for the safe return of her 15-year-old daughter, Brie.

While the ruse fell apart in mere minutes, after DeStafano contacted Brie and confirmed she was safe on a ski trip, the pure fear the mother felt when she heard what sounded like the girl's plea for help was utterly real.

Though Brie does not have any public social media accounts, her voice can be heard on a handful of interviews for school and sports, her mom has said -- warning parents to be aware of how easily scammers can replicate a loved one's voice.

DeStefano testified that it was 'a typical Friday afternoon' when she received a call from an unknown number, which she decided to pick up, thinking it might be a call from a doctor.

Jennifer DeStefano spoke before the Senate Judiciary Committee in a hearing on Tuesday, describing a kidnapping hoax in which scammers used AI to replicated her daughter's voice

DeStefano's 15-year-old daughter Brie (with her above) was safe with her father on a ski trip, but scammers briefly convinced her mother that they had abducted the girl

'I answered the phone "Hello", on the other end was our daughter Briana sobbing and crying saying mom,"' DeStefano told the Senate panel.

The mother at first thought her daughter had hurt herself on the ski trip, and maintained her cool, asking the girl what had happened.

'Briana continued with mom, I messed up with more crying and sobbing. Not thinking twice, I asked her again, ok what happened?' the mom continued.

'Suddenly a mans voice barked at her to lay down and put your head back. At that moment I started to panic. My concern escalated and I demanded to know what was going on, but nothing could have prepared me for her response.

'Mom these bad men have me, help me, help me!! She begged and pleaded as the phone was taken from her.

'A threatening and vulgar man took over the call: Listen here, I have your daughter, you tell anyone, you call the cops, I am going to pump her stomach so full of drugs, I am going to have my way with her, drop her in Mexico and youll never see her again!

'All the while Briana was in the background desperately pleading mom help me!!!'

At the time of the call, DeStefano was at another daughter's rehearsal, and as she put the scammers on mute she screamed for help, drawing other moms who began calling 911 and trying to contact her husband or Brie.

'Mom these bad men have me, help me, help me!! She begged and pleaded as the phone was taken from her,' testified DeStefano

Meanwhile, DeStefano did her best to stall and keep the 'kidnappers' talking until police could arrive.

The 'kidnappers' demanded a ransom of $1 million, but when a panicked DeStefano told them that was impossible, they quickly lowered their demand to $50,000.

She testified: 'At this moment, the mom who called 911 came inside and shared with me that 911 was familiar with an AI scam where they can replicate your loved ones voice.

Brie was safe on a ski trip, completely unaware of the terror her mother had endured

'I didnt believe this was a scam. It wasnt just Bries voice, it was her cries, it was her sobs that were unique to her. It wasnt possible to fake that, I protested.

'She told me that AI can also replicate inflection and emotion. That gave me a little hope but still was not enough.'

She continued: 'I asked for wiring instructions and routing numbers for the $50,000 but was refused. Oh no the man demanded, thats traceable, thats not how this is going to go down. We are going to come pick you up!

'What? I shouted, You will agree to being picked up in a white van, with a bag over your head so you dont know where we are taking you. You better have all $50,000 in cash otherwise both you and your daughter are dead! If you dont agree to this, you will never see your daughter again! he screamed.'

Despite her horror, DeStefano kept her cool and continued to negotiate the details of her own abduction to stall for time.

It's at that point that another mom approached her and confirmed that after reaching her on the phone, her daughter was absolutely safe and with her father on the ski trip.

'My mind was whirling. I do not remember how many times I needed reassurance, but when I finally took hold of the fact she was safe, I was furious,' DeStefano testified.

Friends were able to quickly confirm Brie's safety within minutes of the hoax call

Meanwhile, the outraged mom still had the hoax kidnappers on the phone.

'I lashed at the men for such a horrible attempt to scam and extort money. To go so far as to fake my daughters kidnapping was beyond the lowest of the low for money.

'They continued to threaten to kill Brie. I made a promise that I was going to stop them, that not only were they never going to hurt my daughter, but that they were not going to continue to harm others with their scheme.'

Infuriatingly, DeStefano said that when she tried to file a police report, the matter was brushed off as a 'prank call.'

She called on Congress to take action to help prevent criminal abuses of emerging AI technology.

'As our world moves at a lightning fast pace, the human element of familiarity that lays foundation to our social fabric of what is known and what is truth, is being revolutionized with Artificial Intelligence. Some for good, and some for evil,' she said.

'If left uncontrolled, unguarded and without consequence, it will rewrite our understanding and perception what is and what is not truth. It will erode our sense of familiar as it corrodes our confidence in what is real and what is not.'

DeStefano called on Congress to take action to help prevent criminal abuses of emerging AI technology

Senators and witnesses are seen at Tuesday's hearing titled, Artificial Intelligence and Human Rights

AI voice cloning tools are widely available online, and DeStefano's experience is part of an alarming rash of similar hoaxes that have swept across the nation.

'AI voice cloning, now almost indistinguishable from human speech, allows threat actors like scammers to extract information and funds from victims more effectively,' Wasim Khaled, chief executive of Blackbird.AI, told AFP.

A simple internet search yields a wide array of apps, many available for free, to create AI voices with a small sample -- sometimes only a few seconds -- of a person's real voice that can be easily stolen from content posted online.

'With a small audio sample, an AI voice clone can be used to leave voicemails and voice texts. It can even be used as a live voice changer on phone calls,' Khaled said.

'Scammers can employ different accents, genders, or even mimic the speech patterns of loved ones. [The technology] allows for the creation of convincing deep fakes.'

In a global survey of 7,000 people from nine countries, including the United States, one in four people said they had experienced an AI voice cloning scam or knew someone who had.

Seventy percent of the respondents said they were not confident they could 'tell the difference between a cloned voice and the real thing,' said the survey, published last month by the US-based McAfee Labs.

American officials have warned of a rise in what is popularly known as the 'grandparent scam' -- where an imposter poses as a grandchild in urgent need of money in a distressful situation.

'You get a call. There's a panicked voice on the line. It's your grandson. He says he's in deep trouble -- he wrecked the car and landed in jail. But you can help by sending money,' the US Federal Trade Commission said in a warning in March.

'It sounds just like him. How could it be a scam? Voice cloning, that's how.'

In the comments beneath the FTC's warning were multiple testimonies of elderly people who had been duped that way.
The family of a woman jailed for illegally procuring her own abortion have revealed that they are angry and embarrassed by the controversial case.

Carla Foster, 44, who lived in the Staffordshire village of Barlaston, lied about how advanced her pregnancy was in order to obtain abortion-causing drugs.

She was between 32 and 34 weeks pregnant when she received the medication from the British Pregnancy Advisory Service under the 'pills by post' scheme - with the legal time limit for having an abortion being before 24 weeks of pregnancy.

Since Foster was jailed for 28 months, her family have barely come out of their homes and have told friends that the verdict has left them devastated.

The close-knit family, made up of her two sisters and elderly father, live just ten minutes' walk from each other in Stoke-on-Trent while Foster lives a short drive away.

Mother-of-three Carla Foster was jailed for 28 months

MPs have called for Britain's 'out-of-date' abortion legislation to be reviewed

A family friend told MailOnline: The family are broken and struggling to come to terms with whats happened. They need some time together to process it all and cant speak about it at the moment.

On one hand they are very angry that Carla has been sent to prison because whatever wrong she might have done, she didnt deserve that.

'Shes hardly a dangerous criminal, is she? And on the other hand, they feel very embarrassed because of the details that have come out about her personal life.

The friend added: Its not the sort of thing any father wants to see being published in the newspapers about his daughter.

'Carlas dad and the rest of the family have had a terrible year. Last year their mum died and now this has happened.

'Its a very painful and devastating time for the family so they just want to have their privacy and be left alone.

During Fosters trial, the court heard that she had been having sex with two men and did not know which was the father when she became pregnant.

She carried out internet searches from February 2020 onwards that included 'How to lose a baby at six months'. In April she searched for 'I need to have an abortion but I'm past 24 weeks'.

She spoke to a nurse practitioner at BPAS on May 6, 2020, leading the nurse to believe that she was around seven weeks pregnant. Her child, a girl, was born not breathing on May 11, 2020.

A post mortem examination recorded cause of death as stillbirth and maternal use of abortion drugs.

Foster was initially charged with child destruction and pleaded not guilty.

But she later pleaded guilty to an alternative charge of section 58 of the Offences Against the Person Act 1861, administering drugs or using instruments to procure abortion, which was accepted by the prosecution.

Foster pleaded guilty to a charge under the Offences Against the Person Act 1861

Foster posted this message on Facebook at 7pm on Sunday, the day before her sentencing

Ahead of the sentencing, a letter was sent to the court from leaders of health organisations calling for a non-custodial sentence.

Despite a plea for leniency from medical bodies and charities which wrote to the judge, she was jailed for two years and four months at Stoke Crown Court earlier this week.

Mr Justice Pepperall said she was 'plagued by nightmares and flashbacks to seeing your dead child's face' and accepted she was a 'good mother' to her three children, one of whom has special needs.

Hours before she was jailed Foster posted on Facebook a text image that said: 'No one has the right to judge you because no one knows what you've been through. They may have heard stories, but they didn't feel what you felt.'

Foster also posted a text image on Sunday evening around 7pm, saying: 'Life has knocked me down a few times, it showed me things I never wanted to see. I experienced sadness and failures. But one thing for sure, I always get up.'

Most abortions in England are carried out before 24 weeks of pregnancy. They can only be carried out after 24 weeks in very specific circumstances such as if the mother's life is at risk or if the child would have a severe disability when born.

The case sparked a major row involving abortion providers, MPs and pro-life campaigners - amid calls for Parliament to consider overhauling 'out-of-date' laws, and others highlighting 'inadequacy of the safeguards for this regime of abortion'.

But Catherine Robinson, spokesman for the pro-life charity Right To Life UK, said: 'The abortion provider BPAS should never have sent abortion pills to this vulnerable woman when her baby was at 32 weeks gestation  that's around eight months.'
A second man has been charged over the murder of a Sydney bikie who was gunned down in a brazen attack.

Lone Wolf bikie Yusuf Nazlioglu, 40, was shot multiple times in the car park of his Rhodes apartment building on June 27 last year and died in hospital.

Strike Force Claypinch detectives charged Mohammed Hosni Khaled, 25, in April over the murder and he remains before the courts.

Lone Wolf bikie Yusuf Nazlioglu, 40, was shot multiple times in the car park of his Rhodes apartment building on June 27 last year and died in hospital

Police arrested Abdulrahman Atteya, 33, during a vehicle stop on Eighteenth Avenue, Austral, just before dawn on Wednesday.

Detectives later executed a search warrant at homes in Austral, Granville and Bankstown, where they seized a number of items, they said in a statement.

Mr Atteya was taken to Liverpool Police Station and charged with murder.

He has been refused bail to appear before Liverpool Local Court on Wednesday, where he was formally bail refused to appear at Burwood Local Court on June 28.

Police will allege in court the Liverpool man was involved in the planning and co-ordination of the incident and investigations under Taskforce Erebus and Strike Force Claypinch are ongoing.

In 2020 a jury found Nazlioglu not guilty of murdering Comanchero boss Mick Hawi, who was gunned down at Fitness First in Rockdale in 2018.

Nazlioglu was accused of being the balaclava-clad gunman, while Jamal Eljaidi was said to be his getaway driver but was also acquitted.

Police arrested Abdulrahman Atteya, 33, during a vehicle stop on Eighteenth Avenue, Austral, just before dawn on Wednesday

The Crown alleged Nazlioglu was motivated to kill Hawi after the former close friends fell out with the relationship souring during a fishing trip to the Central Coast in the summer of 2016/17.

NSW Police Detective Chief Superintendent Jason Weinstein said more arrests were likely.

'[Mr Atteya] was one of a number of individuals that conducted surveillance in the area of Rhodes, monitoring the movements of Mr Nazlioglu and his fiance,' he said.

'This is not the end of investigations, there are other individuals who we suspect were involved in planning this operation.

'We do not stop today and we will not stop.'

Detective Chief Superintendent Weinstein said police had not yet determined a motive for the alleged attack.

'We are still testing a number of theories,' he said.

'I don't want to speculate any further because we have not placed a definitive reason why the murder took place.'
Lidia Thorpe has withdrawn stunning allegations made under parliamentary privilege that she was sexually harassed and assaulted by a Liberal senator.

The Independent senator levelled the accusations against David Van as he delivered a speech in the Upper House reflecting on the handling of the Brittany Higgins' rape allegations.

In extraordinary scenes on Wednesday, Senator Thorpe claimed Senator Van was 'moved' from his office by the prime minister after learning of the alleged incident.

Senator Thorpe didn't reveal when the alleged assault took place or even which prime minister supposedly acted on the claims, former PM Scott Morrison or current leader Anthony Albanese.

But late on Wednesday night, she returned to the Senate to formally withdraw her comments, which had been strenuously denied by Mr Van.

'Earlier today I made some comments in relation to another senator,' she said. Those comments were referred to Senate president Sue Lines, who privately requested she issue a retraction.

'In order to comply with the Parliamentary Standing Orders, I withdraw those remarks. For the information of the Senate, I will make a statement on the matter tomorrow.'

Mr Morrison's office said in a statement he has 'no recollection of Lidia Thorpe ever making such an allegation to him personally or of any involvement in Senator Van moving offices.'

Mr Van was visibly shaken and vehemently denied Ms Thorpe's allegations, insisting 'it is simply not true' - which prompted Senator Thorpe to storm out of the Senate.

Ms Thorpe made the allegations just before 3.30pm while Mr Van was making a statement about the handling of Ms Higgins' allegations of sexual abuse by parliamentarians this week.

Mr Van later told Daily Mail Australia the allegations are 'unfounded and completely untrue'.

'I immediately and unequivocally denied and continue to deny. These outrageous and reprehensible comments were made by Senator Thorpe using parliamentary privilege in the most malicious and despicable way,' he said.

'My lawyers have written to her already making my position clear in the strongest possible terms.'

Mr Van vehemently denied the allegations on Wednesday, insisting 'it is simply not true', prompting Senator Thorpe to storm out of the Senate. Above with his partner Nerilee

Lidia Thorpe has sensationally accused Liberal Senator David Van of sexually harassing her in Parliament, claiming he was 'moved him from his office' after she made a complaint

What is parliamentary privilege? Parliamentary privilege protects politicians from being sued for defamation over comments made within the chamber. The policy enables full and open discussion in parliament and is there to ensure comprehensive discussion of matters without fear of criminal or civil retribution. Advertisement

Standing up, she told the Senate under parliamentary privilege: 'I just want to relay I'm feeling really uncomfortable when a perpetrator is speaking about violence...'

'This person harassed me, sexually assaulted me, and the prime minister had to remove him from his office.

'And to have him talking about this today is an absolute disgrace! On the whole party.'

Deputy Senate President Andrew McLachlan then asked Ms Thorpe to withdraw the comments. Ms Thorpe declined to do so.

He then, with the agreement of Labor leader in the Senate Penny Wong and Liberal leader Simon Birmingham, agreed to refer the matter to the President of the Senate.

Ms Thorpe could be heard saying 'please do'.

Mr Van then said: 'I utterly reject that statement, that disgusting statement outright.

'It is just a lie and I reject it.'

He was forced to withdraw the word 'lie', but doubled down on his denial. 'It's just not true.'

Parliamentary privilege protects politicians from being sued for defamation over comments made within the chamber.

Ms Thorpe was joined outside by Labor Senator Jana Stewart while Mr Van finished speaking, and the duo returned once he was finished.

Ms Thorpe made the bombshell allegation while Mr Van was making a statement about the handling of Brittany Higgins' allegations of sexual abuse in Parliament this week

The Opposition leader in the senate, Simon Birmingham, approached Mr Van following the altercation, before both men left.

Daily Mail Australia has approached both Senators Thorpe and Van for comment.

The altercation came after an intense Question Time grilling primarily directed at Finance Minister Katy Gallagher.

Ms Gallagher said she forgot she received an invitation to David Sharaz's wedding because at that time in her career she was inundated with invitations to random events.

The Finance Minister also criticised leaked text messages in which Mr Sharaz described her as a 'friend' to then-girlfriend, now-fiancee Brittany Higgins.

'Can I start by saying I'm not responsible for how people describe their relationship with me,' the under fire cabinet minister told the Senate during Question Time on Wednesday.

Daily Mail Australia revealed last month Ms Gallagher was invited to Mr Sharaz' wedding to ex-wife Alexandra Craig in 2018. She addressed the invitation for the first time in public today, revealing she 'didn't recall that until [she] heard it reported'.

'I had to ask the people I worked with at the time, I think I was Chief Minister. I got a lot of invitations to a lot of things, some I was able to go to and others I couldn't.

'That one I didn't go to. It was declined.'

Embattled Finance Minister Katy Gallagher (pictured) distanced herself from her supposed 'friend' David Sharaz during Question Time on Wednesday

She has maintained it would be inappropriate and a breach of Ms Higgins' trust to offer details beyond what she has already said on the matter.

Ms Gallagher admitted it was Mr Sharaz who first addressed Ms Higgins' allegations with her - in the week prior to going public with the story via a television interview with Lisa Wilkinson and The Project, and an online interview with news.com.au.

But she told the Senate on Wednesday her relationship with Mr Sharaz was not out of the ordinary - and likely equal to relationships he had with many other politicians.

'I had a professional relationship with Mr Sharaz, as did many in this place as he worked here for a period of time,' she said.

'It is a professional relationship with a journalist I knew in the ACT and I came across him again when I moved up to the Senate. I expect that relationship exists for a number of Senators.'

Ms Gallagher again urged the Opposition to consider the broader ramifications of their line of questioning, revealing she had been 'inundated' with calls from women's organisations and women themselves about the impact the sustained coverage was having.

'If you can live with that on your conscience... I can't on mine,' she said.
Russian hackers are demanding the operator of one of Australia's busiest toll road tunnels pay a ransom or they will release 'sensitive' data.

Transurban, which owns Sydney's Cross City Tunnel, has refused to meet the demand and claim the threat, which has a deadline to comply by June 26, is empty.

The tunnel, which connects the eastern beaches to the inner west of Sydney, was just one of 24 hacks made on global targets in a 24-hour period by a Russian group labelling themselves Lockbit.

Lockbit, which is also the general name of malware used to shut users out of a system until they pay a ransom, is prolific group of hackers thought to have sanction from the Russian state to operate.

Russian hackers have hacked into systems operated by the corporate owner of Sydney's Cross City Tunnel (pictured)

Transurban told the Sydney Morning Herald the group has accessed historical data from a previous third party provider, that includes invoices and consultant fees from 2008 to 2013.

They say the 35,000 motorists who use the tunnel each day have nothing to worry about.

'The Cross City Tunnel's business operations are unaffected and the road continues to operate as normal,' the spokesman said on Wednesday.

'Linkt customer services and data including websites and apps have not been impacted and customers do not need to take any action.'

Former Australian Defence Force and Australian Federal Police intelligence analyst Ben Gestier, who now works for cyber security firm Flashpoint, said he could not be certain what Lockbit

'Whether vehicle registrations, financial details, or sensitive information will become available is yet to be seen,' he said.

He warned that groups such as Lockbit are increasingly targeting Australian infrastructure.

Other victims of Lockbit's latest hacking spree include a council in Iceland and a private school in New Jersey.

Cybersecurity Minister Claire O'Neil vowed in November to bring the Russian hackers believed to be behind the Medibank data breach to justice.

Russian ransomware group Lockbit has demanded a ransom by June 26 or they will release 'sensitive data'

Following two huge hacks of Australian corporate giants Cybersecurity Minister Claire O'Neil (pictured) vowed to capture the 'Russian thugs' involved

Ms O'Neil launched a new cybersecurity policing operation to break networks of hackers stealing private information of Australian citizens.

'You're entitled to keep information about your health... completely private. That is your right and it's been stolen from you by Russian thugs,' she told reporters in Melbourne.

The hackers have since released more sensitive details of Medibank customers' medical records on the dark web, including data on abortions and alcohol issues.

It followed the health insurers refusal to pay a ransom for the data, with almost 500,000 health claims stolen, along with personal information.

The Medibank breach came hot on the heels of Australia's largest corporate hack in October when the personal data from 11 million Optus customers was stolen, with some of it released on the dark web.
Russia's former President Dmitry Medvedev said on Wednesday there were no longer any 'moral limits' to stop Moscow from destroying its enemies' undersea cables in a threat the United Kingdom and its allies.

This is because of what what he said was Western complicity in the Nord Stream pipeline blasts last year, that are still officially unexplained.

Medvedev made the threatening comments on his official channel on the Telegram messaging application early on Wednesday, amid fears that Russia could cut off cables connecting Britain to the internet causing widespread blackouts.

Explosions ruptured both Nord Stream 1 and the newly built Nord Stream 2 pipelines, carrying gas from Russia to Germany under the Baltic Sea, last September. Germany had already cancelled the project due to the war in Ukraine.

US media reports have suggested that Washington was aware of a Ukrainian plot to blow up the gas pipelines. Kyiv has denied it destroyed them.

Russia's former President Dmitry Medvedev (seen left on June 1 in Russia) said on Wednesday there were no longer any 'moral limits' to stop Moscow from destroying its enemies' undersea cables in a threat the United Kingdom and its allies

Firebrand Medvedev, who served as Russia's president from 2008 to 2012 while Vladimir Putin temporarily stepped into the role of Prime Minister, has grown increasingly hawkish in recent years - and particularly since Putin invaded Ukraine.

One of Putin's closes allies, he has previously threatened the UK, saying at the end of May that British officials are now legitimate targets for Russia.

This came after the UKs foreign secretary James Cleverly said targets inside Russia's borders were legitimate targets for Ukraine to attack.

In January, he said that a Russian loss in Ukraine 'could provoke a nuclear war' in a threat to the UK over its supply of weapons to Kyiv and its forces.

In recent months, fears have been growing that Russia could attack North Sea cables and pipes that carry everything from gas to electricity, banking data to military communications to the United Kingdom.

Russian vessels were caught snooping on Britain's shores earlier this year, with British Defence Secretary Ben Wallace warning last month that Russia has 'the intent and the ability' to sabotage the West's critical infrastructure.

Experts warn such an attack would be 'disastrous' for the UK, putting lives at risk as hospitals lost power, wiping billions off the economy as banks were unplugged from the global system, cutting off remote communities, and potentially sparking riots.

According to experts, this doomsday scenario ranks alongside nuclear war as an existential threat to our way of life.

Dr Dwayne Ryan Menezes, of the Polar Research & Policy Initiative, told MailOnline in May: 'Damage to undersea telecommunications and power cables could prove disastrous for the UK.

'[It could] cause internet outages and power blackouts; affect homes and businesses; cut off communities; disrupt telephone, mobile and internet services, public transport, emergency services, hospitals, schools and universities, and local governments.

'[It could] render it impossible to make international financial transactions; and have significant adverse consequences for the UK's economy and London's standing as the world's most international and connected global financial centre.

'As damage to cables can take days or weeks to fix, it could even lead to potential civil unrest and riots.'

Costs, though difficult to estimate, could certainly run into the billions, he added.

Meanwhile, as he launched a new security partnership with Norway last month, Defence Secretary Wallace warned that Moscow has submarines and spy ships designed to attack underwater energy and communication lines.

Fears are growing that Russia could target British energy cables and data cables, effectively cutting it off from the global grid and putting lives in the United Kingdom at risk as hospitals lost power, wiping billions off the economy as banks were unplugged from the global system, cutting off remote communities, and potentially sparking riots

Medvedev's comments come the morning after it was reported that Dutch military intelligence had warned the CIA of a Ukrainian plan to blow up the Nord Stream gas pipeline three months before explosions damaged the undersea system.

The Netherlands was one of the key stakeholders in Nord Stream along with Russia, France and Germany. Germany had

The US spy agency then urged Kyiv not to go ahead with the operation, according to the Dutch NOS public broadcaster in collaboration with German broadcaster ARD and national weekly Die Zeit.

The CIA then warned Ukraine 'after receiving an alarming report from the Dutch Military Intelligence Services (MIVD) which heard about the plans via a Ukrainian source,' NOS said.

The Washington Post reported last week that the CIA was tipped off about the Ukrainian plans by a European spy agency, but it did not say which country was responsible.

Dutch Defence Minister Kajsa Ollongren declined to comment when asked about the reports.

'I cannot comment on the work of our intelligence services,' she told reporters at a press conference in Amsterdam, adding that the incident was under investigation by Germany, Sweden and Denmark.

Accusations were made against several countries including Russia, the United States and Ukraine, but all denied responsibility. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky earlier this month again denied Kyiv's involvement.

The plan allegedly intercepted by Dutch intelligence said that top Ukrainian general Valerii Zaluzhnyi was in charge of the operation, involving a small team of divers using a sailing boat, and that Zelensky was not aware, NOS said.

It added that along with German media it had spoken to several international intelligence sources who were aware of the involvement of the MIVD.

The Washington Post said documents leaked by a US Air National Guard computer technician indicated that an unnamed European spy service had told the US Central Intelligence Agency about the plan in June 2022.

Explosions ruptured both Nord Stream 1 and the newly built Nord Stream 2 pipelines, carrying gas from Russia to Germany under the Baltic Sea, last September. Pictured: The gas leak at Nord Stream 2 is seen on September 27, a day after an explosion ruptured the pipeline

US media reports have suggested that Washington was aware of a Ukrainian plot to blow up the gas pipelines. Kyiv has denied it destroyed them

Meanwhile, German investigators are probing evidence that Poland was used as a staging base for the operation, The Wall Street Journal reported on Saturday.

Russia's despatch of troops into Ukraine in February 2022 put Europe's reliance on Russian natural gas in the political spotlight, and the destruction of the Nord Stream pipelines hastened the region's switch to other energy suppliers.

The blasts occurred in the economic zones of Sweden and Denmark. Both countries said the explosions were deliberate, but have yet to determine who was responsible. Those countries and Germany are investigating.

Washington and NATO called the incident "an act of sabotage". Moscow accused investigators of dragging their feet and trying to conceal who was behind the attack.
An Australian expat who tragically died on a Canadian hiking trail is believed to have slipped on a steep section of the 'challenging' terrain.

Julia-Mary Lane, 24, was reported missing by her roommate on Tuesday morning (AEST) after she stopped responding to messages on Saturday while hiking along Bear Lake Trail, in British Columbia.

Her family confirmed her death on Wednesday morning after the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) used sniffer dogs and drones to find her body.

Just two days before her disappearance, Ms Lane posted on a local Facebook group asking for advice on nearby hiking trails.

She wrote that she was concerned about going it alone and would rather hike in a group due to the risk of bears in the area.

Julia-Mary Lane, 24, is believed to have slipped on a steep section of 'challenging' terrain while hiking and died

Ms Lane said she was visiting the area from Canmore, just west of Calgary, and 'would love any moderate to challenging hikes'.

'I have been hiking in Canmore and surrounding national parks the past few months so am fairly experienced, love a scramble, fine with steep elevation and scree, can go at a decent pace, and quite like to trail run down on the odd occasion.'

Many in the Facebook group mourned Ms Lane after news broke of her death.

'So sad was hoping for a better outcome for the family and friends,' one user wrote.

'You left this world doing what filled your heart and fed your passions,' another said.

'May you rest in Paradise.'

Among the tributes were her former classmates from Our Lady of Mt Carmel School in Brisbane's Coorparoo.

'She was very smart, sporty and easy to get along with,' a former classmate said.

'She was always smiling.'

Julia-Mary Lane, 24, was reported missing by her roommate on Tuesday morning (AEST) after she stopped responding to messages on Saturday while hiking along Bear Lake Trail, in British Columbia (pictured)

RCMP Corporal James Grandy described the death as 'not suspicious' as it appeared she was alone at the time of the tragedy.

'She was alone, it appears, and just on some pretty steep terrain,' Corporal Grandy said.

'It looks like it was accidental.'

The RMCP located Ms Lane's SUV parked at the start of the trail, deploying sniffer dogs and drones to help locate her body.

The trail is rated as a 'challenging' hike according to online hiking reference All Trails.

'Generally considered a challenging route, this is a popular trail for backpacking, camping, and hiking,' the website reads.

'Bear Lake Trail is a steep but short hike with spectacular views from the saddle and summits.'

The operation to recover Ms Lane's body took hours as the RCMP had to traverse the steep teraine.

Just two days prior to her disappearance, June 8, Ms Lane posted to a local Facebook group asking for advice on nearby hiking trails

Ms Lane completed high school in 2015 before pursuing a double degree in business management and science at the University of Queensland.

She had spent time studying abroad in Dublin and Shanghai in 2019 before taking up work in consultancy for Deloitte Digital while living in Brisbane in 2021.

She had recently moved to Canada in January, moving in with housemate Janet Hamilton who was the first to alert Ms Lane's family and the local community of her disappearance.

'Thank you everyone in this wonderful community for all your help and support over the past two days in the search for Julia-Mary,' she said of Ms Lane's death.

'I feel honoured to have spent time with this past week, as she was a joy to be around.'

Ms Lane's brother, Conor, echoed the same sentiment, taking to Facebook on Wednesday: 'We have lost our beautiful baby girl.'

'Please allow us 24 hours to process this sad news.

'Thank you to the community for your rapid response and immense support.'
Speculation is swirling that yet another billion-dollar construction company could be about to go bust in a horror time for the industry.

Richard Crookes Construction, which has been in business for almost 50 years, has denied talk that it's about to call in Deloitte and go into voluntary administration.

The family owned company is well known for huge projects such as Sydney's Modern Art Gallery and the UTS Central building at the University of Technology.

If the construction giant, which started in 1976, does go into administration, it will follow the collapses of huge industry players such as ProBuild and Porter Davis.

There has been speculation for some time that Richard Crookes Construction (RCC) has been 'mulling its future', according to the Australian Financial Review.

Speculation was swirling on Wednesday night that yet another billion dollar construction company could be about to go bust. A female tradie is pictured

But the company has denied it engaged with Deloitte 'in any way, shape or form' to discuss going into administration.

RCC posted $1.3billion revenue in the 2022 financial year, down from $1.58billion in 2021.

However unprecedented construction costs, particularly materials and staff, meant it only made $7million in profit after tax.

At the end of the last financial year RCC had $543.9million in assets, including $145.2million cash and equivalents and $139.8million in contracts.

In accounts filed with the corporate regulator, RCC had $455.5million in liabilities, including being owed $183.8million in trade and other payables and $205.3million in contract liabilities.

According to its website, RCC employs 871 people, has 51 current projects and has built projects across affordable housing, aged care, defence, education, residential and retail.

It has offices in Sydney, Canberra, Brisbane, Newcastle and the regional NSW city of Tamworth.

Daily Mail Australia has contacted Richard Crookes Construction for comment.

Richard Crookes Construction, which has been in business for almost 50 years, has denied talk that it is about to call in Deloitte and go into voluntary administration

In what has been a dreadful period for building companies, Porter Davis Homes Group was handed to liquidators Grant Thornton following its collapse in March.

That failure left 1,700 houses across Victoria and Queensland half-built.

It was reported in April that Porter Davis owed close to $33million to the Commonwealth Bank as the long list of debts yet to be settled by the collapsed home builder was revealed.

When Porter Davis collapsed it was Australia's 12th biggest home builder.
Rising cases of sexually transmitted diseases are causing concern among doctors in Geelong, with fears the surge will lead to adverse pregnancy outcomes.

Cases of syphilis and gonorrhoea are returning to pre-pandemic levels in the Victorian region, particularly in women of a child-bearing age.

There were 88 cases of syphilis recorded in the area in 2022 at a rate of 19 people per 100,000, according to data from the Kirby Institute.

This was a sharp increase compared to the 12.7 cases per 100,000 recorded in 2019.

There were also 224 cases of gonorrhoea recorded in 2022, at a rate of 48.3 per 100,000 people, which is quickly closing the gap with the 2019 rate of 55.7 cases per 100,000.

Cases of syphilis and gonorrhoea are returning to pre-pandemic levels in the Geelong region, particularly in women of a child-bearing age (stock image)

Barwon Health infectious diseases specialist Dr Sarah Huffan assured the community that STIs can be prevented by using condoms testing regularly.

'It is important to protect yourself and others from STIs through the consistent use of condoms, seeking medical attention early if there are any genital symptoms, and keeping up regular testing for asymptomatic STIs for people who are high risk,' Dr Hufffan told the Geelong Advertiser.

'If an STI is diagnosed, it is vital to inform sexual contacts so they can be tested and treated quickly.'

Starting this week, STI tests will be provided by Anglesea Medical centre who are in partnership with the Victorian Sexual Health Network (VSHN) to help people manage their symptoms.

The partnership aims to increase the availability of sexual health services across Geelong and will be led by the Melbourne Sexual Health Centre.

STIs can be prevented by using condoms and people who have symptoms should regularly test

Asymptomatic testing and contact tracing will be important components of the campaign, according to Anglesea medical practitioner Lucy Dobson.

Helping patients detect potential infections that they might not be aware of will help to recover from the increasing rates of STIs in the shires surrounding Geelong.

A website to help people monitor their symptoms and the urgency that they should seek treatment has been launched by VSHN.
Vladimir Putin has threatened that the war in Ukraine could turn into a nuclear conflict, warning 'there will be no winners, including America' in a Third World War.

The despot's threat to escalate his invasion comes as Russian forces continued their endless assault on Ukraine by firing cruise missiles at the southern city of Odesa overnight.

The attack, launched from the Black Sea, killed at least three people and injured more than a dozen others in a strike that damaged homes, a warehouse, shops and cafes, the regional state administration said.

Amid Russia's response to Ukraine launching their much-anticipated counteroffensive, Putin, speaking at a meeting with Russian war correspondents in Moscow yesterday, said: 'The United States pretends not to be afraid of an escalation of the conflict in Ukraine, but sane people there clearly do not want to take this to a Third World War.

'In the event of a Third World War, there will be no winners, including America.'

Vladimir Putin (pictured yesterday) has threatened that the war in Ukraine could turn into a nuclear conflict, warning 'there will be no winners, including America' in a Third World War

Putin's comments came as Russian forces continued their assault on Ukraine by firing cruise missiles at the southern city of Odesa overnight (pictured)

His comments come as Belarusian president Alexander Lukashenko revealed that his country had started to receive tactical nuclear weapons from its ally Russia.

Lukashenko told Russian state TV that his country was receiving weapons - some of which he said were three times more powerful than US atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945.

The deployment of tactical nuclear weapons to Belarus is Moscow's first move of such warheads - shorter-range less powerful nuclear weapons that could potentially be used on the battlefield - outside Russia since the fall of the Soviet Union.

Putin said on Friday that Russia, which will retain control of the tactical nuclear weapons, would start deploying them in Belarus after special storage facilities to house them were made ready.

The United States has criticised Putin's decision but has said it has no intention of altering its own stance on strategic nuclear weapons and has not seen any signs that Russia is preparing to use one.

The Russian step is nonetheless being watched closely by the United States and its allies as well as by China, which has repeatedly cautioned against the use of nuclear weapons in the war in Ukraine.

Revealing that Belarus had taken the delivery of weapons, Lukashenko told Rossiya-1 Russian state TV channel: 'We have missiles and bombs that we have received from Russia.

Belarusian president Alexander Lukashenko (left with Putin last week) revealed that his country has started to receive tactical nuclear weapons from its ally Russia

The United States has criticised Putin's decision to deliver tactical nuclear weapons to Belarus. Pictured: Ukrainian service members ride a BMP-1 infantry fighting vehicle near the front line in the newly liberated village Neskuchne

'The bombs are three times more powerful than those (dropped on) Hiroshima and Nagasaki,' he added, speaking on a road in a forest clearing with military vehicles parked nearby and some kind of military storage facility visible in the background.

During yesterday's meeting with 18 Russian war correspondents and bloggers in the Kremlin, a gloating Putin also claimed that Western tanks, including US-made Bradley fighting vehicles and German-made Leopards 'burn nicely, as we expected'.

He added: 'Ammunition detonates inside, and pieces fly off in different directions.'

On a day of threats, the Russian tyrant also hinted at another attempt to take control of Kyiv amid Ukraine's counteroffensive.

Despite Moscow's botched attack to capture the city last year, Putin suggested a fresh round of mobilisation could be announced in a new Russian offensive.

Hundreds of thousands of Russians fled the country last September when their leader announced 300,000 men would be mobilised to boost his invasion.

'Should we return there or not? Why am I asking such a rhetorical question?' Putin told 18 Russian war correspondents and bloggers in the Kremlin.

'Only I can answer this myself.'

Putin's warnings come as Russia's former president Dmitry Medvedev said today there were no longer any 'moral limits' to stop Moscow from destroying its enemies' undersea cables in a threat to the United Kingdom and its allies.

This is because of what what he said was Western complicity in the Nord Stream pipeline blasts last year, that are still officially unexplained.

Medvedev made the threatening comments on his official channel on the Telegram messaging application early today, amid fears that Russia could cut off cables connecting Britain to the internet causing widespread blackouts.

On a day of threats, Putin (pictured yesterday) also hinted at another attempt to take control of Kyiv amid Ukraine's counteroffensive

Emergency workers extinguish a fire after a Russian rocket hit a storehouse building in Odesa, Ukraine overnight

Explosions ruptured both Nord Stream 1 and the newly built Nord Stream 2 pipelines, carrying gas from Russia to Germany under the Baltic Sea, last September.

The former and incumbent presidents' threats comes amid another brutal Russian attack on Ukraine.

Moscow's overnight attack on Odesa involved four sea-launched Kalibr cruise missiles, three of which were intercepted by air defences, the regional administration said on Facebook.

Three employees of a food warehouse were killed and seven others injured, and rescuers were searching for possible survivors under the rubble, it said.

A further six people - guards and residents of a neighbouring house - were injured.

Andriy Kovalov, a spokesman for Ukraine's General Staff, said Russian forces have increased missile and aerial strikes on Ukraine.
So what are junior doctors paid? And what are they asking for?

It continues an ongoing pay dispute with the government since October 2022

Junior doctors have embarked on a 72 hour strike from 7am of June 14 to 7am of June 17 in continuation of their pay dispute with the Government.

They are demanding up to a 35 per cent pay increase to address a 'real-terms' pay cut over the past 15 years.

Members of the British Medical Association, who are organising the strike, argue that they are overworked and undervalued.

However, ministers say the pay demands are unrealistic, especially in the current financial climate.

So what exactly are junior doctors paid, and what are they asking for?

Junior doctors are demanding up to a 35 per cent pay increase to address a 'real-terms' pay cut over the past 15 years

Health minister Maria Caulfield described the British Medical Association's demands as 'unrealistic and not achievable'

Junior doctors have been in a formal pat dispute with the government since October 2022

What is a junior doctor?

Junior doctors have qualified from medical school but remain in clinical training, and they make up 45 per cent of the country's medical workforce.

As a result, they work under the supervision of senior doctors during their on-the-job experience.

All medical graduates must complete a two-year general training programme before embarking on specialty training, which can take up to eight years.

Junior doctors have qualified from medical school but remain in clinical training for up to eight years

What are junior doctors paid now?

The lowest paid junior doctors, in their first foundation year, earn an annual salary of 29,384.

This, the BMA argues, can equate to around 14.09 per hour.

But this is dependent on them not working weekends or nights, or earning overtime.

The basic wage of the most senior junior doctor  in their final years of speciality training  is 58,398 per year.

Assuming a 40-hour working week with no night or weekend shifts, the full breakdown of junior doctor pay is below.

JUNIOR DOCTOR SALARIES Title Annual salary () Foundation year 1 29,384 Foundation year 2 34,012 Core training years 1 and 2 40,257 Specialty training years 1 and 2 40,257 Core training year 3 51,017 Specialty training years 3 to 5 51,017 Specialty training years 6 to 8 58,398

As is common across many sectors, junior doctors earn more if they work overtime, overnight, or at the weekend.

There is also a 4,000 additional allowance for those in London.

The lowest paid junior doctors earn an annual salary of 29,384, equating to 14.09 per hour

What are junior doctors' pay demands?

The BMA says the workforce has suffered a 26 per cent real-terms cut to their pay since 2008/09.

Addressing this translates to a 35 per cent pay increase.

If ministers were to cave in, some medics would get more than 20,000.

The BMA's co-chair Vivek Trivedi has suggested that the BMA are willing to negotiate a deal that would see this restoration completed over a number of years, rather than in one big jump.

Junior doctors in the BMA and health workers in Unite the Union strike at the Christie NHS Foundation Trust in Manchester on June 14

What has the government said?

The government have been consistent in saying that the demands of the junior doctors are unrealistic given the circumstance.

A deal seeing pay rise by 5 per cent for junior doctors in England has been rejected by the BMA, whilst those in Scotland rejected an offer of a 14.5 per cent rise over two years.

Health secretary Steve Barclay described the strikes as 'hugely disappointing' and stressed he had met with doctors to discuss what pay is 'fair and affordable', as well as 'wider concerns around conditions and workload'.
An NHS midwife who led a secret double life as an X-rated webcam model has been jailed alongside her paedophile husband after they 'brainwashed' underage girls to join them in their sordid sex parties.

Claire Moores, 46, and husband of 28 years Craig, 51, would host swingers' orgies at their terraced property for friends but began plying local schoolgirls with drugs and drink to get them to join in their so-called 'pleasure palace' activities.

Confused victims including two young sisters were either forced into threesomes with the Moores or made to watch them having sex while being filmed. One was even taken to watch Mrs Moores take part in a live 'B****fight' between women which was filmed for X-rated websites.

One neighbour suspicious of the couple's activities went up to their lounge window to see Mrs Moores dressed only in a basque and suspenders undressing one girl ahead of a romp with her perverted husband.

Police eventually had to arrest the sex-crazed couple for their own safety in 2020 after furious neighbours surrounded their property in Stockport, Greater Manchester, and started shouting 'dirty, dirty nonces' at them.

Claire Moores (pictured), 46, and husband of 28 years Craig, 51, would host swingers' orgies at their terraced property for friends but began plying local schoolgirls with drugs and drink to get them to join in their so-called 'pleasure palace' activities

Claire Moores, left, with her husband Craig Moores, right

It emerged one of girls had a four year affair with Mr Moores starting when she was 13. In a statement one victim now in his 30s said: 'These two people have taken a piece of my life I will never get back.

'They have taken my childhood from me and left me with feelings of shame and guilt because I was effectively brainwashed. I wanted to teach primary school children and it was only eventually, after a while, I did my teacher training.

'But I often had dreams and nightmares of what happened, which left me feeling depressed. I have been living with the effects of being on drugs since 13 and missed out on a normal school because of it. I felt like a victim all my life.'

Another victim now in her 20s said: 'I will have to live with Claire in my mind all my life. I left school with no qualifications because of my drug use.

'I pushed away teachers and counsellors who were trying to help me. I had to start from the bottom with work, my life is a battle. They may have destroyed my past, but they will not destroy my future.'

At Minshull Street Crown Court, Manchester, Mrs Moores was jailed for 13 years and her husband got 15 years after they were convicted of 25 sex offences including indecent assault and sexual activity with a child committed between 2002 and 2015 and involving three girls.

The court heard the Moores were 'highly sexed' and had an open marriage after marrying in 1995.

Prosecutor Julia Goode said: 'Both defendants were leading a very unusual lifestyle. Claire Moores operated in the sex industry in her spare time, dressing up in erotic clothing and charging clients to view her performances over a webcam. She and her husband had sex parties at home and engaged in sex with other people.

The court heard Claire Moores operated in the sex industry, while also working as an NHS midwife

Mrs Moores (pictured) was jailed for 13 years and her husband got 15 years after they were convicted of 25 sex offences

Police eventually had to arrest the couple for their own safety in 2020 after neighbours surrounded their property in Stockport, Greater Manchester and started shouting 'dirty, dirty nonces' at them. The Moores are pictured being arrested

'They were both highly sexual. Craig would take photographs of his wife engaging in sexual activity - by herself or with others - and they would film themselves having sex.'

The girls met the Moores through the couple's neighbours and they started being invited to their home. Mr Goode added: 'The two sisters both fell under the spell of these defendants.

'Claire would at times act like a mother figure to the girls, but there was a very different and much darker side to her relationship with them.

'Both defendants had a sexual interest in underage children. The elder child was groomed by them, fed with a cocktail of drugs, and effectively brainwashed into joining in with their lifestyle and becoming a part of it.

'Craig started sexually abusing her when she was 13. She was young and vulnerable and really thought that she was in a relationship with him.

'She was in love with him. He then manipulated her into having sex with Claire for his and Claire's gratification, and although she wasn't keen on sexual contact with another female.

'The girl simply went along with it in childish desperation to please him and this went on for a few years.'

Claire and Craig Moores are pictured arriving at Minshull Street Crown Court, Manchester

Claire would act as a 'mother figure' to the girls - before then sexually abusing them, the court heard

Craig would meet the girl while his wife was at work, the court heard. He would also make sure the youngster would have credit on her phone so he could contact her.

'He used to tell her that he loved her, and she loved him, considering herself to be in relationship with him,' Mr Goode added.

'On Christmas Eve when she went into Stockport with the defendants, Craig told her he and Claire were in the habit of having threesomes, no doubt seeking to plant that idea in the girl's mind. He told her Claire liked girls and then gave her some Ecstasy.

'Once back at the defendants' home, they all engaged in sexual activity together and so did have a threesome. The girl was still aged only 13 at the time.

'Claire gave her some underwear to put on then once she was dressed up, started kissing her, whilst Craig took photographs.'

Mr Goode said that after this first threesome, it then happened at least every other weekend.

One another occasion the girl accompanied the defendants to a pub where they had sex together in some bushes, Mr Goode added.

'Claire used to suggest that they could get a bigger house and all live together, even that the girl could have Craig's baby,' the barrister continued.

'The girl was taken in by all this and believed it but the defendants could have had no such intentions and were cynically manipulating and exploiting her.

On one occasion, the Moores had a threesome with one of the girls in a bush by a pub

'One of the girl's friends recalls when they were school children she told her all about the defendants and that she was taking drugs and having sex with them. It appeared to the friend that these defendants were the girl's entire life and was obsessed with them.

'The girl's younger sister also became a regular visitor to their home. Although she did not succumb to suggestions of joining in sexual activity, she witnessed it on occasions. She was given drugs by the defendants regularly and became addicted to them.

'Both defendants would smoke cannabis in front of her, saying that they were Spanish cigarettes and the younger girl would also see sex toys lying around the house.

'One on occasion she went over to a pile of CDs and DVDs and inserted one into the DVD player only to see footage that played showed her sister engaged in sexual intercourse with Craig.

'There were also sexual photographs of all three of them engaged in various sexual acts together.'

The court heard that from the age of 14, the girl would be plied with cannabis, cocaine, MDMA and felt 'brainwashed' by the defendants.

'She was effectively in their thrall. She took so many drugs with them, so frequently, that she became addicted and dependent,' prosecutor Mr Goode said.

The court heard the Moores both had a 'sexual interest in underage children'. Claire Moores is pictured

'She was never sexually abused by either of them but witnessed so much sexual behaviour that she described herself as having been psychologically abused by them.'

The older girl managed to escape the Moores when she was 17 after an argument in which Claire became jealous at the teenager having her hair stroked by Craig.

She later apologised for her sexual conduct towards the victim in a message via Facebook Messenger saying: 'Me and Craig were pretty f***ed up back then.' The younger girl broke off contact with the pair when she was 16.

Claire had previous convictions for arson and for inciting under-age boys to engage in a sexual act after she flashed her breasts at three youths while washing her car.

Her lawyer Colin Buckle said: 'She has been diagnosed with a borderline personality disorder. The shadow of her depression has never left her life. She is vulnerable. Prisoners who are stronger and more sophisticated than her will make life hard for her in custody.'

The Moores will both have to serve two thirds of their sentence in custody, with the remainder being served on licence. The couple's full address cannot be disclosed for legal reasons.

Claire and Craig Moores are pictured arriving at court before being jailed for sexually abusing the underage victims

They were also made to sign the Sex Offender Register for life. In sentencing, Judge Maurice Greene told the pair: 'These were very serious offences indeed. The victims are still affected to this day.'

Detective Sergeant Shona Mulvey, of Greater Manchester Police's Stockport Criminal Investigation Department, said after the case: 'Claire and Craig Moores' crimes are truly abhorrent and today marks the culmination of many years' worth of investigation.

'While their sentencings cannot take away from the years of suffering they have caused their victims, we hope it provides some solace in the fact that they are no longer at large and able to harm children.'

An NSPCC spokesperson said: 'Claire and Craig Moores subjected these children to years of suffering. Child sexual abuse can have a devastating impact on people's lives and we hope they are receiving the support they need to address the harm caused by these defendants.

'These victims have shown much courage in speaking out. It is so important that people who have experienced sexual abuse know that if they speak out, they will be listened to, and their abusers can be brought to justice. We hope this case encourages those who are suffering because of abuse to seek support.'

Children can contact Childline on 0800 1111. Adults with concerns about a child can phone the NSPCC helpline on 0808 8005000 or email help@nspcc.org.uk
His body was recovered on Monday after a search involving several dive teams

A New Jersey high school wrestler has been found dead in a lake a day after he vanished while swimming as part of a school 'scavenger hunt' just before he was due to graduate.

Victor Rodriguez, 18, a senior and a member of the wrestling team at Pitman High School in Gloucester County, disappeared after going swimming in Alcyon Lake at around 8.45pm on Sunday.

Rodriguez's cap and gown will be placed on an empty seat during the school's graduation on Wednesday night, NBC 10 reported.

'There was another person on the other side of the lake and one on this side of the lake and they both tried to help but they were quickly, kind of overwhelmed themselves,' Pitman Police Chief Dan McAteer said, after his body was recovered from the lake on Monday, adding that they were checked by emergency services when they returned.

Sonar equipment and cadaver dogs were used to find the teen's body after an overnight search.

Victor Rodriguez, 18, a senior and member of the wrestling team at Pitman High School in Gloucester County, disappeared after going swimming in Alcyon Lake at around 8.45pm on Sunday

Swimming is not allowed in the 17.5-acre Alcyon Lake, which is around 10 to 12 feet deep, and it is very dark in the area at night, making it difficult to patrol, McAteer said, according to NJ.com.

Grassy conditions in the lake also made it hard for the dive teams that had been deployed.

'It's a vegetation that exists in the lake. It's very thick,' McAteer said, according to the news outlet. 'Deeply rooted but comes very close to the surface.'

Rodriguez had been attempting to swim across the lake as part of the school's traditional scavenger hunt.

'It's been going on for 15-plus years,' senior Sean Powell told NBC 10. 'One of the challenges is to swim across the lake for points. You get points for it. You gotta record it and unfortunately something tragic happened.'

He added: 'It doesn't even feel real. Honestly. I wrestled like half a year with the kid.'

Pitman Borough Mayor Michael Razze said in a statement on Facebook: 'It is with great sadness that after just over 17 hours of tedious and demanding work by many first responders, Victor has been recovered.

'The mutual love and support of our community will help to carry us through this difficult time. On behalf of the entire borough, our deepest condolences to his family, friends, fellow students, and the PHS Class of 2023.'

Boats involved in the search operation on Alcyon Lake. The body was recovered from the lake on Monday

Rodriguez was enrolled in Deptford High for the first three years of school and Pitman High for his Senior year only.

He posted a 30-8 record at 132 pounds at Pitman, reaching his first district final and qualifying for the regional quarter finals for the second year in a row, NJ.com reported.

On Monday night, members of the Deptford and Pitman communities congregated at Pitman's United Methodist Church for a vigil to remember the life of the teen athlete.

His brother Pablo wrote in a GoFundMe account post: 'It is with sadness in our hearts, that we inform you of the (loss) of our beloved Victor. Tragedy stuck this past June 11th at Alcyon Lake, when Victor Rodriguez participated in a scavenger hunt that went astray.'

The fundraiser has so far raised more than $50,000.
Nearly 1200 Reserve Bank staff have been underpaid by the major economic institution.

A total of $1.15 million was owed to current and former staff due to a mistake in the way payments were calculated for leave entitlements, the RBA has confirmed.

The central bank brought in consultancy firm PwC to investigate the payroll concerns.

The review found the RBA was incorrectly calculating annual leave, long service leave and rostered days payments for some employees.

The bulk of the underpayments stemmed from errors when paying entitlements to people leaving the institution.

The RBA has confirmed that it almost 1200 former and current Reserve Bank staff have been underpaid a total of $1.15 million due to a payroll mistake

All staff who have been underpaid have been notified and the central bank has started paying them back.

The Fair Work Ombudsman and the Finance Sector Union have also been advised about the issue and the bank's response.

FSU national secretary Julia Angrisano said it should not be left up to the union to point out that the RBA's procedures were leaving workers out of pocket.

'The RBA should be setting an example to the financial services sector by paying its workers the correct rates of pay and appropriate entitlements all the time,' Ms Angrisano said.

The union secretary said the RBA had started to amend its underpayments but other major players in the sector had failed to right payment issues.

'Far too many employers in the sector have been found wanting when it comes to paying staff properly.'
A teacher is suing the owners of a top wedding venue for 150,000, claiming she slipped on a spilt beer on the dancefloor and broke her elbow.

Cara Donovan, 36, says she was left in agony and covered in beer after losing her footing at Leez Priory, an award-winning 16th century Tudor mansion in 40 acres of grounds in Essex which has repeatedly been voted the UK's Best Wedding Venue.

Mrs Donovan, a special needs teacher, had been in the venue's disco room during a friend's wedding when she slipped on the laminated plastic dancefloor, lit by underfloor LED lights.

The accident in September 2018 left her with a badly broken elbow and, despite three operations, she still suffers pain and loss of function in her arm, impacting on her work and home life.

This week, she is suing Country House Weddings Ltd, the company which runs the venue, for a payout of up to 150,000 at Central London County Court.

Cara Donovan, 36, says she was left in agony and covered in beer after losing her footing at Leez Priory, an award-winning 16th century Tudor mansion in 40 acres of grounds which has repeatedly been voted the UK's Best Wedding Venue

Cara Donovan and husband Lee Pierson outside Central London County Court

The company denies liability for the accident, disputing whether Mrs Donovan slipped in spilled beer and pointing out that drinks were banned from the dancefloor.

The court heard the high-tech light-up dancefloor had been purchased and fitted in the cellar of the manor house, which was built at Great Leighs, near Chelmsford, in the 1500s on the site of a 13th century Augustine priory and visited by Queen Elizabeth I.

The supplier had warned that the surface of the dancefloor was very slippery and that no drinks should be taken onto it, the teacher's lawyers claim.

However, little was done to prevent people drinking on the dancefloor, Mrs Donovan says.

She told Judge Heather Baucher that the wedding band had finished and guests had been invited into the disco room on a lower floor at the venue when she slipped.

'I had not been dancing long, probably four or five different songs, when suddenly my feet shot from under me and I crashed down on my right side,' she said from the witness box.

'I could feel the wet on my dress. I was sure it was beer because it smelt strongly of beer.'

Mrs Donovan said her dress had been left ruined as she was covered in beer and she spent the rest of the wedding reception sat down in agony.

The Romford mother-of-two had three operations to fix the break, but her arm has been left permanently painful, stiff and weak, hampering her ability write, drive, use a keyboard or use any two-handed machinery.

Her barrister, Philip Goddard, claimed that the company was at fault because it did not do enough to enforce its 'no drinks on the dancefloor' policy.

The underfloor lights of the dancefloor made it hard for guests to see any patches of spilled liquid on its surface, he claims.

For the company, barrister Henry Morton Jack pointed out to Mrs Donovan that there had been warning signs outside the disco room and on the DJ booth inside.

But she told the judge they had not been clear enough.

Leez Priory, an award-winning 16th century Tudor mansion in 40 acres of grounds in Essex, has repeatedly been voted the UK's Best Wedding Venue

Giving evidence, Mrs Donovan's husband, Lee Pierson, told the judge he had seen warning signs, but so many people were drinking on the dancefloor that he thought it was only for show and no members of staff were 'policing' the rule anyway

'I didn't see any signs telling people not to take drinks on to the floor,' she said.

'People were taking drinks continuously in and out of the disco room, so obviously people didn't see them either.'

Giving evidence, Mrs Donovan's husband, Lee Pierson, told the judge he had seen warning signs, but so many people were drinking on the dancefloor that he thought it was only for show and no members of staff were 'policing' the rule anyway.

'There was no sign of anyone doing anything to stop guests taking drinks on the dance floor,' he said.

Questioned why he hadn't mentioned any liquid on the floor in the aftermath of the fall, he added: 'I wasn't looking for liquid on the floor. Cara was screaming in pain, so I was more interested in getting her up.'

For the company, Mr Morton Jack said it was disputed that the dancefloor had been wet with beer, with neither the DJ, nor other staff, seeing anything.

'The evidence of the defendant is that there was nothing to clean up,' he told the court.

He said that there was a clear rule at the venue that drinks should not be take onto the dancefloor, with signage and the DJ spelling out a warning.

During its events, guests would sometimes take their drinks onto the floor, he said, but those instances were 'infrequent, occasional and dealt with at the time.'

The trial continues.
'If they can cancel me, they can cancel you': Nigel Farage warns on threat of 'woke' banks as he goes public with dossier showing Coutts axed him for not being 'inclusive' - and vows to 'fight all the way' for free speech
An asylum seeker who set fire to his bed in his taxpayer-funded hotel room after claiming he was suffering 'acute stress' over his legal battle to settle in Britain has been jailed for three years.

Mehdi Anqouti-Kehi, 36, had been assigned along with at least 200 other migrants to stay at a Britannia Hotel at public expense after he arrived illegally in the UK from his native Iran.

But fearing his application for asylum might fail, Anqouti-Kehi torched his mattress and quilt with a cigarette lighter then stood by and then watched the flames as staff tried in vain to rescue him.

The hotel in Offerton, near Stockport, Greater Manchester which was packed with migrant families had to be evacuated but despite pleas, Anqouti refused to leave his third floor room.

Firefighters had to risk their own lives to get him out and extinguish the blaze.

Fearing his application for asylum might fail, Mehdi Anqouti-Kehi, 36, torched his mattress at the Britannia Hotel in Offerton near Stockport, Greater Manchester, forcing fire fighters to rescue him

After being treated in hospital for burns whilst under arrest, Anqouti-Kehi was then released without charge by police, jumped bail and went on the run for 11 months.

He was arrested at another hotel last March after a warrant was issued for his detention.

Fire damage was caused to the bed but whilst the blaze caused extensive smoke damage to the walls, it did not spread to other rooms or corridors.

The hotel chain later said it cost 4,000 in repair bills and also claimed it lost 6,393 in income due to the room being put of action for 120 days.

At Minshull Street Crown Court, Manchester, Anqouti-Kehi admitted arson but claimed his only intention was to harm himself.

His claim for asylum to the UK has since been rejected and he now faces being deported back to his homeland following his release from jail.

The blaze occurred on April 29 last year after Anqouti-Kehi was checked into Room 151 at the 180-room hotel at public expense by the Government after arriving illegally in the UK via Germany.

The court heard his room was 'sparsely furnished' with just one bed and a sink.

Mr Duncan Wilcock prosecuting said: 'At the time the hotel was being used to house asylum seekers and the defendant was living in his room on his own.

'Just after 5pm, a duty manager was made aware a fire alarm had been set off and knocked at the defendant's door. He found himself inside stood up with the quilt on the bed in what he described as like a bonfire.

'He saw large flames coming from mattress giving out really thick smoke and shouted at the defendant to get out but the defendant made no comment and seemed determined to remain in Room 151.

' The manager felt he had no choice but to leave the room and evacuate the entire hotel.

The Britannia Hotel in Offerton, Greater Manchester, where asylum seeker Mehdi Anqouti-Kehi set fire to his bed

'He says there were hundreds of people in the hotel at the time and quite a lot were children. Emergency services were called and the fire service sent three fire engines to tackle to the fire.

READ MORE: Migrants barricade entrance to Comfort Inn Hotel in London in protest over conditions Advertisement

'They attended to find the fire was still going and officers tried to persuade the defendant to leave the room. But he did not respond so the officers had to use breathing apparatus to force entry to the room and rescue the defendant.

'Police also arrived and arrested the defendant ahead of him being taken to hospital where he was found to have suffered burns to his face and smoke inhalation. Once the building had been evacuated the room was made safe and then secured with officers noting the room was sparsely furnished at the time.

'There was found to be smoke damage throughout the room - although flame damage was restricted to the mattress and bed. A packet of tobacco and rizla papers was found and officers determined the fire had been started with a naked flame to the bed.

'As the main door and the windows to the bedroom were closed, the fire was unlikely to have spread beyond the room itself and fire would have self-extinguished due to the lack of ventilation.

'The company said the room was out of action for 120 days and the cost of repairs was just over 4,000 and the loss of income from that room was 6,393.

'The defendant was subsequently released under investigation given a date to attend court but he failed to attend and was later re-arrested at a hotel in Merseyside in March this year. He failed with his claim for asylum to this country.'

In mitigation, defence counsel Kay Driver said her client had a mental disorder and added: 'He has a difficult background going back nine years. He worked in Germany before coming to the UK to make an application for asylum.

However having lived in the Britannia hotel, Ms driver said Anqouti-Kehi became acutely aware there was no work for him in the UK and he was anxious about his future. His reaction was stress related.

'He understands that multiple people were put in danger by the fire but he has expressed regret and remorse for what happened. It appears the smoke damage was extensive although damage to the furniture was minor.'

Sentencing the judge Miss Recorder Abigail Hudson told Anqouti-Kehi: 'That hotel was potentially home to 180 families many of whom were children and every single person in the hotel that evening were put at risk of death or serious injury because of what you did.

'They will have been frightened because of yours acts and that fear will have been heightened by them waiting outside for police and fire service to finish their business.

'Emergency services were put at risk and were put to considerable expense to resolve the problems you caused. The NHS was then put to further public expense by treating your injuries.

'I acknowledge it was not your intention to hurt anyone except yourself but it seems you have no appreciation of the risk you presented and have little thought for anyone except yourself.

'Whilst I also accept this event was contributed to by an acute stress reaction, the risk you present remains high because you have very few positive factors to mitigate that risk.

'You have no housing, no employment, no family and little support and your anxieties about the future very much remain. Your condition could have resulted in a reduced ability to control your impulses but you knew what you were doing.'
Vladimir Putin's administration staff 'are starting the day with a bottle of vodka' and former Russian president Dmitry Medvedev is 'often drunk when he writes his apocalyptic threats of nuclear war'.

That's according to the exiled Russian newspaper Verstka, which has spoken to several sources close to the administration.

The newspaper reports that consumption among Putin's closest associates has increased sharply since the invasion of Ukraine.

'Not everyone in the presidential administration started the day with a glass of vodka earlier,' one source told the newspaper. 'Now I know many more who do it, and with some the glass has become a bottle.'

Sources also claim Dmitry Medvedev, currently the deputy head of the country's security council, is drinking excessively.

Sources say Russian President Vladimir Putin is said to hardly drink any alcohol at all

Two sources claim that Medvedev is often drunk when he writes his vitriolic posts on the messaging service Telegram about 'the atrocities of the West'.

Stress appears to be a major factor in the increased intake of alcohol among those in the Kremlin, according to the newspaper's claims, which were first reported in the Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet.

Before the war, few Kremlin employees started the day with a glass of vodka but now many more do it, with some even starting the day with a bottle of vodka, according to Verstka, which has spoken to sources familiar with the drinking habits of the Russian presidential administration, the Russian government and regional elites.

'Previously, a maximum of one bottle of wine or vodka per person was served at official state banquets,' sources have told the newspaper.

'Since the invasion of Ukraine began, the norm has increased, and now 1.5-two bottles of wine or vodka per person are served at the banquets.'

Among Kremlin employees, alcohol intake in the mornings is also said to have increased.

Medvedev is 'often drunk when he writes his vitriolic posts on the messaging service Telegram'

Verstka reports that several regional governors have greatly increased their alcohol intake since the start of the war.

Despite the West's sanctions against many Russian politicians, expensive types of alcohol are still served at banquets.

These include Louis XIII cognac - which costs more than 2,000 for a 70cl bottle - and the wine Chateau Margaux, which can cost more than 600 a bottle, according to Danil Novikov at FBK, the non-profit anti-corruption foundation established in 2011 by Russian opposition figure Alexei Navalny.

READ MORE: Russian threat to cut UK off from the internet Russia's former President Dmitry Medvedev (seen left on June 1 in Russia) Advertisement

The Russian President Vladimir Putin, however, hardly drinks any alcohol at all, and is said to have a 'very negative attitude' to it, a source close to the Kremlin told Verstka.

The claims surfaced as Medvedev went on yet another unhinged rant about the West.

The former Russian president said today there were no longer any 'moral limits' to stop Moscow from destroying its enemies' undersea cables in a threat the United Kingdom and its allies.

This is because of what what he said was Western complicity in the Nord Stream pipeline blasts last year, that are still officially unexplained.

Medvedev made the threatening comments on his official channel on the Telegram messaging application early on Wednesday, amid fears that Russia could cut off cables connecting Britain to the internet causing widespread blackouts.

Explosions ruptured both Nord Stream 1 and the newly built Nord Stream 2 pipelines, carrying gas from Russia to Germany under the Baltic Sea, last September. Germany had already cancelled the project due to the war in Ukraine.

US media reports have suggested that Washington was aware of a Ukrainian plot to blow up the gas pipelines. Kyiv has denied it destroyed them.

Firebrand Medvedev, who served as Russia's president from 2008 to 2012 while Vladimir Putin temporarily stepped into the role of Prime Minister, has grown increasingly hawkish in recent years - and particularly since Putin invaded Ukraine.

One of Putin's closes allies, he has previously threatened the UK, saying at the end of May that British officials are now legitimate targets for Russia.

This came after the UKs foreign secretary James Cleverly said targets inside Russia's borders were legitimate targets for Ukraine to attack.

In January, he said that a Russian loss in Ukraine 'could provoke a nuclear war' in a threat to the UK over its supply of weapons to Kyiv and its forces.
University students across Britain have blasted a 'marking boycott' by staff that is threatening to scupper their degrees, graduate jobs and places on training schemes.

The University and College Union (UCU) are taking action short of a strike in a bid to secure higher wages.

The marking and assessment boycott means that since April 20, lecturers have not been grading coursework or exams, as they ceased carrying out duties beyond their contract.

Many final-year exams have been cancelled while further strikes are planned at Bristol, Durham and Westminster. And professors at Leeds have voted to walk out indefinitely after bosses decided to deduct striking members' pay by 100 per cent.

Students this week branded the marking boycott a 'slap in the face', with many fearing they will fail to graduate due to not receiving their marks in time.

ARE YOU IMPACTED BY THE MARKING BOYCOTT? Email laurence.dollimore@mailonline.co.uk

The University and College Union (UCU) are taking action short of strike in a bid to secure higher wages

READ MORE: 'Trans activists will picket the Oxford Union tonight but a counter-cultural revolution has now begun on our campuses against wokery' University of York students hold a protest on campus prior to a talk by women's rights campaigner Julie Bindel (pictured on May 4, 2022) Advertisement

One fumed on Twitter: 'During my four years at university, we had Covid, a rent crisis, cost of living crisis, strikes, marking boycott, and now more than half the graduating class of 2023 won't even be awarded a degree in time for their graduation, just a course completed certificate.'

Another said: 'It's incredibly anxiety inducing to think of how many final year students might not get into their desired training contracts, graduate schemes, masters programmes purely due to the marking boycott.'

She added: 'I support the strikes but this feels like a slap in the face.'

Another disillusioned student said they had been informed that due to the boycott 'not enough of my third year work has been marked to confirm progression to fourth year.'

One female student wrote: 'I have been informed that I will potentially be unable to graduate due to the marking boycott.'

The action is affecting 144 UK institutions.

The Universities and Colleges Employers Association (UCEA) has repeatedly failed to reach an agreement over pay with the university unions.

Staff demanding a pay rise say their real-terms wages have been slashed by 20 per cent since 2009 - while more than half of vice chancellors are earning more than 300,000 per year.

Writing for the Guardian this week, Durham University student Kimi Chaddah said: 'I feel that the UK is on the brink of a nationwide degree scandal with varying engagement from university management, who have abandoned academic standards, and no intervention from the government in sight.

'It is this year's cohort who will inevitably be paying the price.'

Students this week branded the action a 'slap in the face', with many being told they might be kicked off their courses or even fail to graduate due to not receiving their marks in time

She added: 'For the class of 2023, the same year-group whose GCSEs were reformed in 2018 and A-levels cancelled in 2020, this marks the end of a deeply dispiriting educational journey.'

Raj Jethwa, Chief Executive of UCEA, said: 'UCU must be honest with its members about the fact that there is just no need for this ongoing attempted marking and assessment boycott, as there is no possibility of a new pay uplift in the 2023-24 pay round. UCEA and its HE institutions have confirmed this consistently.

'UCU has known that discussions for pay were completed in mid-February. But while change to the pay uplift is simply not an option, UCEA has been at the table waiting for UCU to join to progress the important pay related issues, as agreed in the terms of reference.

'These negotiations would build upon the good practice in employment which exists across the sector. Employers urge UCU to provide clarity and honesty to its own members, particularly those who are attempting the boycott to target students. Employers remain committed to beginning negotiations on pay related matters as soon as the marking and assessment boycott is called off.'

Jethwa also stated: 'HE institutions respect employees right to take lawful industrial action, but the marking and assessment boycott is a choice made by UCU and in turn by its individual members. Students have no such choice and that is why HE institutions with a duty to protect students will withhold pay for partial performance.

'It is wrong for UCU to encourage small numbers of its members to try to inflict damage on students in pursuit of a higher pay award that is simply unaffordable.'

University and College Union (UCU) general secretary Jo Grady told MailOnline today: 'University staff are proud to have overwhelming support from students, including the National Union of Students, in the fight for fair pay and conditions.

'Students know that staff working conditions are their learning conditions and they blame vice-chancellors for refusing to resolve this dispute.

'Employers need to return to the negotiating table and stop the national degree scandal.

'A sector sitting on billions in cash and assets can afford pay its staff properly and allow students to graduate. Our members demand nothing less.'

It was reported last month that universities were considering a raft of measures in response, including basing final grades on work already submitted.

Ollie Lewis, a politics student at Edinburgh University, previously said his dissertation took six months to complete but it may never be looked at.

The student, from Cambridge, said his 9,250-per-year studies could essentially go to waste amid the uncertainty.

He said: 'After four years of studying and committing to pay over 37,000 to this university, not marking our final work is the ultimate slap in the face.

'If students graduate without all our work being marked, it could run the risk of our degrees being devalued. The university has miscalculated here.'

Meanwhile, more than 500 Edinburgh University staff wrote an open letter to the institution over concerns that degrees could be awarded to students without 'necessary expertise'.

A university spokesman said: 'The university has robust measures in place to reduce the impact of industrial action and we are making every effort to provide results, degree award outcomes and progression decisions to students by the published timelines.'

They added that 'temporary variations' are in place to 'ensure academic standards are not compromised'.

Alan Smithers, director of the Centre for Education and Employment Research at the University of Buckingham, this month said it was 'irresponsible' of academics not to let students move on with their careers.

He said: 'It's very hard and unfair on the students and it's a great pity that the university couldn't come up with a better way of handling the situation.

'And it's irresponsible of academic staff to make it difficult for students to move on to the next phase of their lives.'

Hundreds of Edinburgh University staff have written an open letter to the institution over concerns that degrees could be awarded to students without 'necessary expertise'

Meanwhile Dan Hawes, co-founder of the Graduate Recruitment Bureau (GRB), one of the UK's biggest graduate recruitment consultancy, said employees risked being left in limbo.

He said: 'Understandably, there will be some recruiters who want to see some evidence that they've completed their degree as a graduate.

'But employers will have to accept that they're going to have to hold on until October if they do want a definite grade.

'They will be in limbo, it will have a knock-on effect.'

More than 500,000 students face having their graduations delayed as a result of the boycott, the UCU has warned.

Members began the action at 145 universities across the UK in an ongoing dispute over staff's pay and working conditions on April 20.

The union has said the boycott will continue until employers make an improved offer.

The Russell Group, a collective of top universities, said institutions are prioritising the 'marking of final year students' work to help ensure they can graduate on time'.

A spokesman added: 'Following the disappointing decision by UCU to go ahead with its marking and assessment boycott, our members' priority is to do everything they can to minimise any pockets of disruption for students so they can graduate or move onto the next stage of their education.

'Not all staff are striking so the impact will vary by university and department.

'Measures being taken to reduce the impact include reallocating marking to non-striking staff to ensure work is graded and to reduce delays.'

Jo Grady, general secretary of the UCU said: 'University bosses are choosing to let students suffer by refusing to deal with the issues that blight higher education and students know this.

'The support we are receiving from them has been incredible because they realise their learning conditions are our members working conditions.

'They also know cries of poverty from a sector that generated almost 45billion of revenue last year just don't hold up.

'We urge vice-chancellors to use the sector's huge financial resources to resolve the dispute and avoid any further disruption.'
This week in royal history marks one of the most momentous battles in British history.

On June 14, 1645, King Charles I's forces were defeated at the Battle of Naseby by troops led by Oliver Cromwell and Thomas Fairfax.

It was a victory which marked the beginning of the end of Charles's reign, although the King was not executed until January 1649.

More than 400 years earlier, on June 15, 1215, King John signed the Magna Carta, which guaranteed the rights of Englishmen.

And on June 13, 1981, teenager Marcus Sarjeant sparked a major scare when he fired blanks at Queen Elizabeth II during Trooping the Colour.

Oliver Cromwell's New Model Army beats Charles I's loyalist forces at the Battle of Naseby - June 14, 1645

King Charles I's royalist forces were decisively beaten by Oliver Cromwell's New Model Arm at the Battle of Naseby on June 14, 1645. Above: King Charles and Cromwell (right)

By midday on June 14, 1645, the royalist forces loyal to King Charles I had been decisively beaten by Oliver Cromwell's New Model Army at the Battle of Naseby in Northamptonshire.

It was among the most consequential battles of the First English Civil War. The King lost all his artillery, much of his stock of weaponry and his veteran infantry.

Severely weakened, Charles finally surrendered the following May.

But rather than giving himself up to Cromwell's forces, he turned himself in to the Scottish Covenanters.

What followed was the Second English Civil War, which saw a Scottish invasion supported by Royalist uprisings around the country.

However, by the end of 1648, they had all been defeated.

Charles was put on trial for treason at Westminster Hall and, after being found guilty, was executed outside Banqueting House in Whitehall on January 30, 1649.

His reign had proven hugely unpopular as he attempted to levy taxes without parliamentary consent, prompting fierce clashes with MPs.

Attempts to force the church of Scotland to adopt Anglican practices also led to religious conflicts, which in turn resulted in the strengthening of English and Scottish parliaments, helping to pave the way for his eventual downfall.

It was among the most consequential battles of the First English Civil War. The King lost all his artillery, much of his stock of weaponry and his veteran infantry. Above: A depiction of the battle

The vest that Charles is believed to have been wearing when he was executed went on display in an exhibition last year

On the bitterly cold day of his execution, Charles asked for a vest in the hope it would stop him from visibly shivering on the scaffold where he was beheaded.

His body was then embalmed and buried in St George's Chapel in Windsor nine days later.

The vest that he is believed to have been wearing when he was executed went on display in an exhibition last year.

The stains on the vest have not been conclusively identified as blood but scanning by ultra-violet light has revealed they are bodily fluids.

The vest was acquired by the Museum of London in 1925, along with a note confirming its authenticity.

King John signs Magna Carta at Runnymede - June 15, 1215

On June 15, 1215, at Runneymede meadow on the banks of the Thames, the maligned King John signed one of the most influential documents in history.

In what became known as the Magna Carta, the King formally recognised the rights of English barons, who had presented him with an ultimatum the previous month.

The defining text, parts of which remain on the statue book, set out the rights of English subjects, including that they could not be imprisoned illegally or denied swift justice.

It also defined the freedom of the English church and the ancient liberties of the City of London.

Magna Carta also went on to heavily influence the Constitution of the United States of America.

On May 12, 1215, English barons presented the reviled King John with an ultimatum, demanding that he recognise their rights as Englishmen. The King had no alternative but to agree and, 34 days later, at Runnymede meadow on the banks of the River Thames, he signed the document that came to be known as Magna Carta

A surviving copy of the Magna Carta is seen on display at Salisbury Cathedral in Wiltshire

Teenager fires six blank rounds at Queen Elizabeth II - June 13, 1981

The Queen was riding down The Mall during a Trooping the Colour parade in 1981 when 17-year-old Marcus Sarjeant fired six blank shots at her.

He was tackled by a soldier and the police before being arrested and charged.

Although the Queen had to calm her horse, named Burmese, she continued with the ceremony.

The Queen was riding down The Mall during a Trooping the Colour parade in 1981 when 17-year-old Marcus Sarjeant fired blank shots at her. He was tackled by a soldier and the police before being arrested and charged

The Daily Mail's coverage told how Sarjeant was charged with treason. He was jailed for five years

Sarjeant was later jailed for five years under the 1842 Treason Act, which was introduced after two men made attempts on the life of Queen Victoria.

The last person to be convicted of a similar offence was Nazi collaborator William Joyce during the Second World War.

Other royal anniversaries this week June 13, 1373: Anglo-Portuguese Treaty of Perpetual Alliance between King Edward III of England and King Ferdinand I of Portugal is signed in London. This week marks 650 years since the deal was struck. June 14, 1381: King Richard II meets leaders of the Peasants' Revolt on Blackheath. June 16, 1567: Mary, Queen of Scots is imprisoned in Lochleven Castle. June 15, 1626: King Charles I disbands English parliament. June 13, 1946: King Umberto II of Italy abdicates after 24 days after his country declares itself a republic. Advertisement

Sarjeant had previously made attempts to join the police and fire services and had also tried to join the Royal Marines.

He also enlisted in the Army but left after only two days of induction.

He became involved in the anti-Royalist movement and bought two imitation Colt Python revolvers for 66.90.

Both weapons were only capable of firing blanks, but Sarjeant had also tried and failed to get live ammunition for his father's handgun.

Sarjeant sent a letter to Buckingham Palace before the attack. It read: 'Your Majesty.

'Don't go to the Trooping the Colour ceremony because there is an assassin set up to kill you, waiting just outside the palace.'

However, the note arrived three days after the incident.

Ronald Reagan is given honorary knighthood by Queen Elizabeth II - June 14, 1989

On June 14, 1989, at a private lunch at Buckingham Palace, recently departed US President Ronal Reagan was presented with an honorary knighthood by the Queen.

As a foreigner, President Reagan did not formally bend the knee at the ceremony, but instead just accepted the insignia in a box.

The only other guests present were Reagan's wife Nancy and Prince Philip.

On June 14, 1989, at a private lunch at Buckingham Palace, recently departed US President Ronal Reagan was presented with an honorary knighthood by the Queen. Above: Reagan holds the owner as the Queen, his wife Nancy and Prince Philip look on

As Reagan posed for pictures with the insignia - a star, badge and silk riband, the Queen joked: 'Don't drop them'

The Daily Mail's coverage of President Reagan's honorary knighthood

As Reagan posed for pictures with the insignia - a star, badge and silk riband, the Queen joked: 'Don't drop them.'

The former President told reporters: 'I feel greatly honoured. I cannot say how proud I am to receive it.'

Reagan had departed the White House six months earlier after serving two full terms as President.

He had an especially close relationship with British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. The pair are both credited with helping to end the Cold War.

The former President told reporters: 'I feel greatly honoured. I cannot say how proud I am to receive it.' Above: The former President with the Queen and his wife Nancy

Wilhelm II becomes Emperor of Germany - June 15, 1888

On June 15, 1888, Kaiser Wilhelm II, the grandson of Queen Victoria, became emperor of Germany.

His tumultuous reign came to an end after Germany's defeat in the First World War, which broke out despite the fact that the Kaiser was a first cousin of King George V.

The Kaiser was also very close to his grandmother. When she died in 1901, he rushed to be by her side and even helped to lay out her body.

On June 15, 1888, Kaiser Wilhelm II, the grandson of Queen Victoria, became the last emperor of Germany

At her funeral, he rode behind her casket alongside his uncle Edward VII, who he had once come to blows with on the Isle of Wight.

Wilhelm had been born with a withered arm thanks to his traumatic birth. His mother, Princess Victoria, later reacted badly to her son's handicap.

As a teenager, he wrote strange - almost sexually charged - letters to her in which he described dreams of kissing her hands and caressing her.

Kaiser Wilhelm (right) is seen with King Edward VII (left) on the Isle of Wight in 1907

'Promise to do to me as I did in my dream to you. I love you so much,' the future German monarch wrote in one.

But when she replied speaking only of art and politics, the already tortured relationship continued to worsen.

The Kaiser abdicated in November 1918 after fierce uprisings against his rule and Germany opted to get rid of its monarchy altogether.

He lived in exile in the Netherlands until his death aged 82 in 1941.
Three arrests have been made after a 27-year-old woman was stabbed to death and another was injured in Wembley.

Police were called to reports of a stabbing at a property in north-west London yesterday morning just before 10am.

A 27-year-old woman sadly died at the scene despite the efforts of emergency services. Her next of kin are yet to be informed.

A second woman, aged 28, was taken to hospital with stab injuries that were later deemed not life-threatening.

Two people, a 24-year-old man and a 23-year-old woman, were arrested at the scene on suspicion of murder. The man remains in custody while the woman has been released without further action.

A third person, a 23-year-old man who detectives had previously named publicly as Keven Antonio Lourenco De Morais from Wembley, has since been arrested following the fatal stabbing.

Detectives had previously publicly named Keven Antonio Lourenco De Morais from Wembley

An investigation was launched after police were called on Tuesday to reports of a stabbing at a residential property in Neeld Crescent, Wembley

Local police officers will remain in the area over the coming days to respond to any concerns

He was found in Harrow at about 6pm last night, arrested on suspicion of murder and taken into custody at a north London police station.

Detective Chief Inspector Linda Bradley, from the Met's Specialist Crime Command, said: 'This has been a fast-moving investigation and I would like to thank the public for sharing our appeal for information about this man. He is now in custody.

'I recognise the significant concern this incident has caused in the community and I would like to reassure the public that a dedicated team of detectives are working to establish what happened.

'Local officers will remain in the area over the coming days to respond to any concerns.'

A post-mortem examination will be scheduled in due course.
Qantas is scrapping its Sydney to New York route via LAX and replacing it with a direct flight from Auckland to the Big Apple, insisting it's in Aussie travellers' best interests.

The Los Angeles stopover has long been fraught with issues as passengers are forced to pick up their luggage and move through customs checks following their 14-hour journey, before re-boarding a connecting flight to New York.

The national carrier believes starting in New Zealand, skipping the frantic west coast airport and flying direct to New York on the Flying Kangaroo's 787 Dreamliner fleet, will make the trip easier.

Qantas is scrapping its Sydney to New York route via LAX and replacing it with a direct flight from Auckland to the Big Apple, insisting it's in Aussie travellers' best interest. Pictured Qantas CEO Alan Joyce

The Los Angeles stopover has long been fraught with delays as passengers are forced to pick up their luggage and move through customs checks following their 14-hour journey, before re-boarding a connecting flight to New York

'Los Angeles had a lot of issues with connectivity  you had to pick up your bag, go through customs and immigration and had to check in again for the Qantas flight that went to New York,' Qantas CEO Alan Joyce said before boarding the inaugural flight.

The Sydney to New York route was dumped three years ago in the midst of the pandemic with the new route launching on Wednesday.

This now puts Qantas in direct competition with code-sharing ally Air New Zealand.

'We've always called Air New Zealand our frenemy,' departing chief executive Alan Joyce told Radio NZ.

'We're friends on a lot of things ... we're going to be big commercial competitors on this route.'

Both airlines are operating Boeing 787 Dreamliners on the route.

The flight is the fifth-longest in the world, confirming Qantas as a long-haul specialist, operating three of those routes.

The route launch also comes as Qantas steps up its trans-Tasman game dramatically, opening more routes and increasing frequency to overtake Air New Zealand on most routes.

Come October, Qantas will also run four return flights a week from Auckland to NYC compared with Air NZ's three, outstripping the Kiwi carrier on its flagship route.

The revamped route means Qantas now has three of the top five longest flights in the world alongside Perth to London and Dallas to Melbourne

The flight route will start three days per week before increasing to four in October

'This will be a lot smoother for passengers coming from Australia. We have 11 flights a day from Australia into Auckland. It will connect with this service,' Mr Joyce told Nine.

Australian travellers stay 'airside' through the journey, with bags checked all the way through.

The trip from Auckland to New York's JFK airport is 14,205km, and will take more than 16 hours.

After years of operations marred by pandemic restrictions, Qantas says it is at roughly 85 per cent of its pre-COVID patronage, which it hopes to emulate by March next year.
Belarus has already started taking delivery of Russian nukes, some of which President Alexander Lukashenko boasted are three times more powerful than the atomic bombs the US dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

The deployment of tactical nuclear weapons is Moscow's first move of such bombs - which could potentially be used on the battlefield - outside Russian borders since the fall of the Soviet Union.

'We have missiles and bombs that we have received from Russia,' Lukashenko said in an interview with the Rossiya-1 Russian state TV channel which was posted on the Belarusian Belta state news agency's Telegram channel.

'The bombs are three times more powerful than those (dropped on) Hiroshima and Nagasaki,' he said, speaking on a road in a forest clearing with military vehicles parked nearby and some kind of military storage facility visible in the background.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Friday that Russia, which will retain control of the tactical nuclear weapons, would start deploying them in Belarus after special storage facilities to house them were made ready. The despot yesterday threatened that the war in Ukraine could turn nuclear and warned 'there will be no winners, including America' in a Third World War.

Belarus has already started taking delivery of Russian nukes, some of which President Alexander Lukashenko (with Putin on June 9) boasted are three times more powerful than the atomic bombs the US dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki

The deployment will be Moscow's first move of such bombs - which could potentially be used on the battlefield - outside Russian borders since the fall of the Soviet Union. Pictured: Russian Yars intercontinental ballistic missile systems drive along a street before a military parade in Moscow, May 9

Lukashenko also raised alarms in the West on Tuesday when he contradicted the idea Russia would control the nukes, claiming that he wouldn't hesitate to order the use of them if his country faces an aggression.

He also emphasised that it was he who had asked Putin to deploy Russian nuclear weapons to Belarus, and not the other way around.

'God forbid I have to make a decision to use those weapons today, but there would be no hesitation if we face an aggression,' Lukashenko, known for his blustery statements, said, according to the state news agency BelTA.

Russian officials had no immediate comment on Lukashenko's remarks.

Putin, whose troops launched a fresh attack on Ukraine overnight in Odesa, announced in March he had agreed to deploy tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus, pointing to the US deployment of such weapons in a host of European countries over many decades.

Tactical nuclear weapons are intended to destroy enemy troops and weapons on the battlefield.

They have a relatively short range and a much lower yield (from a fraction of a kiloton to around 50 kilotons) than nuclear warheads fitted to intercontinental ballistic missiles that are capable of obliterating whole cities.

By comparison, strategic nuclear weapons can have a yield from 100 kilotons to over a megaton, which much larger warheads available.

Lukashenko (with Putin June 9) raised alarms Tuesday when he contradicted the idea Russia would control the nukes , claiming that he wouldn't hesitate to order the use of Russian tactical nuclear weapons if his country faces an aggression

There are 1,000 kilotons to a single megaton.

Only the United States had so far used nuclear weapons in anger - in the 1945 attacks on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

'Fat Man', the bomb dropped on Nagasaki, had a blast yield of 21 kilotons. The blast killed an estimated 60,000 to 80,000 people.

The most powerful nuclear bomb ever created and tested was the Russian Tsar Bomba, which demonstrated a blast yield of between 50 to 58 megatons.

The US has criticised Putin's decision to threaten nuclear conflict but has said it has no intention of altering its own stance on strategic nuclear weapons and has not seen any signs that Russia is preparing to use a nuclear weapon.

The Russian step is nonetheless being watched closely by the United States and its allies as well as by China, which has repeatedly cautioned against the use of nuclear weapons in the war in Ukraine.

'WE HAVE ALWAYS BEEN A TARGET,' Lukashenko, a close ally of Putin, told Russian state TV in the interview, which was released late on Tuesday, that his country had numerous nuclear storage facilities left over from the Soviet-era and had restored five or six of them.

The US has criticised Putin's decision to threaten nuclear conflict but has said it has no intention of altering its own stance on strategic nuclear weapons. Putin pictured yesterday afternoon in a meeting with Russian war correspondents

He played down the idea that Russian control of the weapons was an impediment to using them quickly if he felt such a move was necessary, saying he and Putin could pick up the phone to each other 'at any moment'.

Earlier on Tuesday, he had said separately that the Russian tactical nuclear weapons would be physically deployed on the territory of Belarus 'in several days' and that he had the facilities to host longer-range missiles too if ever needed.

Lukashenko, who has allowed his country to be used by Russian forces attacking Ukraine as part of what Moscow calls its 'special military operation', says the nuclear deployment will act as a deterrent against potential aggressors.

Belarus borders three NATO member countries: Lithuania, Latvia and Poland.

The 68-year-old former Soviet collective farm boss, who has ruled Belarus since 1994, making him Europe's longest-serving leader, said he didn't simply ask Putin for the weapons, but 'demanded' them.

'We have always been a target,' Lukashenko said. 'They (the West) have wanted to tear us to pieces since 2020. No one has so far fought against a nuclear country, a country that has nuclear weapons.'

Lukashenko has repeatedly accused the West of trying to topple him after mass protests against his rule erupted in 2020 in the wake of a presidential election the opposition said he had fraudulently won. Lukashenko said he had won fairly, while conducting a sweeping crackdown on his opponents.
An Austrian mother accused of horrifically torturing her 12-year-old son after locking him inside a small dog cage is in custody and facing attempted murder charges.

The 32-year-old woman allegedly threw cold water over the young child and exposed him to sub-zero temperatures to torture and starve him.

He eventually fell into a coma and became hypothermic.

The case caused a public outcry in Austria when it was made public earlier this week following a decision by the Supreme Court of Justice in late May to reject the woman's complaint against being held in custody for several months.

The mother is 'still remanded in custody and the investigation is expected to wrap up by late summer, with a possible indictment,' Johann Baumschlager, police spokesman of Lower Austria province told AFP on Tuesday.

The Austrian mother accused of abusing her son has been in pre-trial detention in Krems (pictured), west of Vienna, since November last year

The woman has been in pre-trial detention in Krems, west of Vienna, since November last year, after a social worker had called an ambulance to the house on November 22 to have the boy she found there taken to hospital.

Austrian authorities, which sent the social worker to the house, had reportedly been tipped off by the boy's father, who lives separately.

The hospital filed a criminal complaint, triggering the arrest of the woman - who has not been named publicly - on the following day.

Authorities didn't specify where exactly the incident took place.

The woman is suspected of having doused her son with 'cold water several times a day while opening the apartment's windows for several hours amid sub-zero temperatures', causing his body temperature to drop to 26.8 degrees Celsius.

The average normal body temperature is generally accepted as being 37C, with the definition of hypothermia being a dangerously low body temperature - below 35C.

The woman is also accused of punching her son and not treating his injuries.

Austrian authorities, which sent the social worker to the house, had reportedly been tipped off by the boy's father, who lives separately. (file image)

Due to being severely malnourished, the boy fell into a coma, resulting in an 'acute life-threatening condition' before rescue services were notified by the social worker, the Supreme court decision said.

The woman allegedly tortured her son from early September to the end of November 2022 by repeatedly beating and starving him, tying him up, locking him in a dog crate, and pouring water over him.

The physical condition of the boy has meanwhile improved, but 'from a psychological point of view he is still devastated,' Baumschlager told AFP.
A mother has said she had to 'punch' and 'twist' the ears of a crazed American bulldog to stop it savaging her four-year-old daughter's face.

Amy Hobson, 32, said she and her daughter Luna-Ann Forsyth were helping a friend carry shopping inside their home in Nuneaton, Warwickshire, in April this year.

But an American bulldog, who the family 'knew' and 'trusted', bounded down the stairs and 'pushed' Luna-Ann to the floor before 'going' for her face.

Ms Hobson said she had to 'punch', kick' and 'twist' the dog's ears to get it off her daughter, who was left covered in blood and taken to hospital where she was given 40 stitches and plastic surgery.

Ms Hobson said she had to 'punch', kick' and 'twist' the dog's ears to get it off her daughter (pictured), who was left covered in blood and taken to hospital where she was given 40 stitches and plastic surgery

She told Good Morning Britain: 'I was out shopping with the owner of the dog on April 6. And then we came back from shopping.

'I helped the owner get the shopping in the house. The dog was upstairs. He came down, I think just to see who was in his house.

'He came to me so I fussed him. Luna put her arm out to stroke him just as she always has done.

'And then he literally pushed her to the floor, got on top of her and just went for her face. It was an American Bulldog.'

Ms Hobson said she did 'everything' she could to get the crazed dog off her daughter.

She added: 'Luckily I did get the dog. I punched him. I kicked him. I grabbed and twisted his ears. Thankfully he did let go.'

Ms Hobson (left) said her family 'knew' and 'trusted' the American Bulldog

How to spot aggression in a dog - and its cause Aggression in dogs is almost always a case of fear - using their bite as a last resort method of self-defence or to get a frightening or unpleasant experience to stop. Such fears can arise due to early years puppy socialisation or past experiences. Owners need to be able to recognise and establish how a dog is feeling, with many giving off warning signals before an attack. There are several signals that your dog may give to indicate they are worried, fearful or feeling stressed and these include: yawning or licking lips, crouching with their tail between their legs, wagging tails and growling. If a dog is showing any signs of aggression, a vet should be consulted to determine if there is a medical cause, such as pain or discomfort. Failing that, speaking to a behavioural expert could help tame a more aggressive animal. Source: Merseyside Dog Safety Partnership Advertisement

Dr John Tulloch, a veterinary public health expert at the University of Liverpool authored a 2021 research paper that revealed a startling rise in the number of dog bite incidents over the past 20 years.

He told MailOnline that although wider research into the cause of this rise was limited, there had been an emergence of 'worrying' trends that he has witnessed in more recent dog ownership.

Possible explanations include broader changes in society, with more dogs now being bought from unregulated or overseas breeders, or the way in which people interact with their pets - fuelled by TikTok trends or videos hoping to garner likes online.

Dr Tulloch told MailOnline: 'In the last 20 years or so there's been a definite rise in cases of severe dog attacks, it has been creeping up and up and up and we should be calling it what it is: a growing public health problem.

'In most cases, it's a dog that is known to the victim as these events are occurring behind closed doors.

'Children still account for around 25 per cent of hospital admissions due to dog bites, but we need to understand why adults are being attacked more now. It's a striking problem.'

The rise in dog attacks in recent years, which has ballooned from around 3,300 in 2002 to more than 8,800 in 2021, has sparked some calls for a revamp of the Dangerous Dogs Act.

That 1991 law saw a blanket ban imposed on four specific 'fighting-style' breeds in the UK; the pit bull terrier, Japanese tosa, dogo Argentino and fila Brasiliero.

Dog psychologist Bruce Clanford previously told MailOnline that dog attacks are undoubtedly on the rise and he shared his own fears about a lack of responsible owners.

He said: 'There's no regulation on owning dogs, or people handling them, there's also no standard of education which means there are too many people who don't know what they're doing.

'Lockdown didn't help, many people had a knee-jerk reaction to just get a dog because it helped them get out and about while we were locked down.

'So many dogs have now come out over the past few years that have had to be re-homed, people didn't understand how to look after them. Personally, I've seen this a lot in the last two years.'
The medals of an RAF hero who inspired Guy Gibson's daring Dambusters raids during the Second World War are being sold by his family.

Group Captain John 'Joe' Collier helped plan the audacious bouncing bomb attacks with his friend, Wing Commander Gibson.

The decorated airman survived 63 raids and was awarded three top medals for his heroics, which saw him once using himself as bait to divert enemy flak away from planes during an assault on Dortmund-Ems Canal in 1940.

Gibson used the Bomber Command veteran's aerial heroics as an inspiration, flying his Lancaster plane alongside other aircraft to draw enemy fire away during their famous bombing runs on a series of German dams in 1943.

Wg Cdr Gibson was awarded Britain's highest honour for valour, the Victoria Cross, following the Dambusters raid, which saw scientist Barnes Wallis' bouncing bombs deployed to blow up the Mohne and Eder dams in the Ruhr industrial heartlands.

Group Captain John 'Joe' Collier's military honours are going under the hammer. The RAF hero carried out 63 raids and helped plan the legendary Dambuster attacks

Gp Captain Collier (pictured) helped RAF hero Wing Commander Guy Gibson to plan the successful Dambuster raids of May 1943

Gp Capt Collier's own military accolades - which includes the Distinguished Flying Cross (DFC) and Bar and Distinguished Service Order - will be auction on July 5. Pictured are the medals

As well as helping to successfully plan the Dambuster assault, Gp Capt Collier also drafted the successful bombing run on the German scientific research centre at Peenemunde on the Baltic coast where the lethal V1 rockets were being made.

Both of these daring operations were later immortalised into classic war films; The Dam Busters starring Richard Todd and Operation Crossbow.

Now Gp Capt Collier's military accolades - which includes the Distinguished Flying Cross (DFC) and Bar and Distinguished Service Order, are going under the hammer at London-based auctioneers Morton and Eden for 30,000.

David Kirk, medal specialist at Morton and Eden, said: 'It is a great privilege for us to be offering such an historic medal group in our forthcoming auction.

'Group Captain "Joe" Collier was an important and very influential figure in the RAF during the Second World War, who showed remarkable skill, courage and determination throughout his career as one of the finest RAF bomber pilots of his day.

'That he achieved so much, and at such a young age, really speaks volumes.'

Gp Capt Collier, the son of a wine merchant, was born near Plymouth, Devon, in 1916. He worked as a land agent before joining the Royal Air Force in 1936.

Gp Capt Collier was instrumental in the audacious bouncing bomb raids of 1943 against Nazi dams. He is pictured second from left, planning a raid

Gp Capt Collier served initially with 83 Squadron, who moved to RAF Scampton in Lincolnshire, where he met Wg Cdr Gibson.

In August 1940, he led a daring attack of five Hampdens on the Dortmund-Ems Canal which could be seen as a 'trial run' for the Dambusters raid two and a half years later.

He earned his first DFC after diving to 100ft to bomb an enemy oil refinery and storage tanks under a gun barrage, completely destroying it.

Wg Cdr Gibson said their success caused fires to 'burn for two weeks', and described the raid as 'one of the first attacks of its kind - a special attack trained for by crack crews; a completely successful attack planned by men who flew. It was the first of many'.

Gp Capt Collier used himself as bait in a decoy attack, suffering several hits to his aircraft including from a 20mm shell, which allowed other bombers to take out the target.

His citation reads: 'After identifying the target, he carried out a low-level attack from 100ft obtaining direct hits which set the target ablaze.

'Intense fire from local defences was experienced, but these were eventually silenced by the explosion of the tanks and the gun positions became enveloped in flames.

'The target was completely destroyed. He has invariably displayed outstanding qualities of leadership, skill, courage and devotion to duty.'

He added a Bar to his DFC leading a sub-formation on a daylight raid on Brest, destroying four enemy aircraft.

The RAF's 617 Squadron carried out Dambuster raid, officially known as Operation Chastise, on the nights of May 16 and 17 1943 under the direction of Wing Commander Guy Gibson. Above: Guy Gibson (second from right) is seen with fellow crew members boarding their Lancaster bomber

The dambuster bombs - codenamed Upkeep - achieved their main objective by breaching the Eder and Mohne dams and releasing 300million tonnes of water into the Ruhr valley. Above: A German postcard showing the damage to the Mohne dam

He commanded 420 Squadron then took the leadership of 97 Squadron, masterminding the 1942 Augsburg raid.

Gp Capt Collier completed 63 raids, when many airman died in their first four, before stepping back from front line duties.

At that point, he was awarded the Distinguished Service Order for his 'exemplary leadership and conduct'.

He joined the Directorate of Bomber Operations where he helped Gibson plan the Dambusters raid and the attack on the Peenemunde V-Weapons Station.

He was a target selector and instrumental in mining attacks on naval ports and larger rivers, while also liaising with the Special Operations Executive.

In the final part of the war, he was posted to Delhi, India, to serve as deputy director at the Combined Operations Headquarters.

Here, he organised air operations against the Japanese in Burma and the re-capture of Meiktila, Mandalay and Rangoon.

Post-war, he returned to England to become an instructor at the RAF Staff College in Bracknell, Berks, then was involved in the Berlin Airlift and Korean War.

He left the air force in 1957 and worked for more than 20 years as a land and estate agent in Ringwood, Hampshire, before retiring in 1981.

Gp Capt Collier died in 2000. His medal group consists of a Distinguished Service Order; Distinguished Flying Cross; 1939-45 Star; Air Crew Europe Star; Burma Star; Defence and War Medals.

The sale takes place on July 5.
It is a question that has scrambled the brains of everyone from scholars to schoolchildren - and now scientists may just have provided an answer to this most baffling of evolutionary conundrums.

A study has now given free range to a new theory on the chicken-and-egg question after discovering that early ancestors of modern birds and reptiles may have given birth to live young.

In evolutionary terms, eggs were being laid by the chicken's distant dinosaur ancestors millions of years before the first chickens evolved.

This was thought to lay to rest the age-old question of whether the chicken or the egg came first.

But did it come before the chicken? A new study suggests it may not be that simple after all

But a research project has now found that the chicken's earliest reptilian ancestors, dating back millions of years before the dinosaurs evolved, may not have laid eggs as previously thought.

Scientists have long believed that laying eggs with hard shells played a crucial role in the early evolutionary success more than 300million years ago of the amniotes, a group of vertebrates that undergo embryonic or foetal development within an amnion, a protective membrane inside the egg.

A new study of 51 fossil species and 29 living species which could be categorised as oviparous - laying hard or soft-shelled eggs - or viviparous - giving birth to live young - suggests otherwise.

Experts say that although the hard-shelled egg has often been seen as one of the greatest innovations in evolution, this research implies extended embryo retention - when the young are retained by the mother for a varying amount of time - actually gave this particular group of animals the ultimate protection.

Professor Michael Benton from the University of Bristol's School of Earth Sciences, said: 'Before the amniotes, the first tetrapods to evolve limbs from fishy fins were broadly amphibious in habits.

'They had to live in or near water to feed and breed, as in modern amphibians such as frogs and salamanders.

'When the amniotes came on the scene 320million years ago, they were able to break away from the water by evolving waterproof skin and other ways to control water loss.

New research may have consigned the classic egg model of the textbooks to the wastebasket

'But the amniotic egg was the key.

'It was said to be a "private pond" in which the developing reptile was protected from drying out in the warm climates and enabled the Amniota to move away from the waterside and dominate terrestrial ecosystems.'

He added: 'Our work, and that of many others in recent years, has consigned the classic 'reptile egg' model of the textbooks to the wastebasket.'

Project leader Professor Baoyu Jiang added: 'This standard view has been challenged.

'Biologists had noticed many lizards and snakes display flexible reproductive strategy across oviparity and viviparity.

'Sometimes, closely related species show both behaviours, and it turns out that live-bearing lizards can flip back to laying eggs much more easily than had been assumed.'

Conducted by researchers from Nanjing University and the University of Bristol, the study is published in Nature Ecology & Evolution.
He will soon be eligible for parole

A vile child rapist who told police he was 'just trying to be a good guy' will be eligible for parole within months.

Damien John O'Brien, 36, pleaded guilty to numerous child sexual abuse offences and the rape of a 13-year-old girl at the Sunshine Coast's Maroochydore District Court on Wednesday.

O'Brien approached the girl in a vacant stairwell and lured her into his car before assaulting her as she desperately texted friends for help.

The former IT worker had already served 355 days in custody before Judge Glen Cash sentenced him to four years imprisonment.

Despite pleading guilty to rape, one charge of possessing child exploitation material and two charges of indecent treatment of children under 16, O'Brien will be eligible for parole in October.

Damien John O'Brien, 36, pleaded guilty to numerous child sexual abuse offences and the rape of a 13-year-old girl at the Sunshine Coast's Maroochydore District Court

The court heard O'Brien approached his victim at the Big Top Shopping Centre in Maroochydore before driving her to Noosa and assaulting her, the Courier Mail reported.

'She noticed the defendant was in his car looking over in her direction, he eventually came and joined her at the stairs, he talked to her but she initially ignored him because she felt unsafe,' Crown prosecutor Rebecca Marks said in court.

'[O'Brien] spoke to her of his sexual history and she became concerned and sent a message to her friend.

'At 8:45pm she ended up in his car, although it is unclear how that came to occur, he drove her toward Noosa and she noticed he had locked the door.'

The girl had texted friends at some point during her ordeal, as O'Brien removed her lower clothing and indecently touched her.

O'Brien had approached the girl in a vacant stairwell and lured her into his car before assaulting her as she texted friends for help (stock pictured)

Her friends then contacted police who intercepted O'Brien in his car.

'[I'm] just a good guy trying to be a good guy,' O'Brien told police at the time.

He was on bail for possessing child exploitation material at the time, Defence barrister Lachlan Ygoa-McKeown told the court.

O'Brien has been in custody since June 24, 2022.
A teenage rodeo rider has been left with horrific injuries after being flung from a bull and trampled on in front of horrified specators.

One of the top-ranked U18 bull riders in the nation, Jacob Kellett, was competing at the Caboolture show grounds just north of Brisbane, on Saturday when his ride turned into a nightmare.

The 15-year-old lost his grip just seconds in was bucked to the ground, where the rampaging animal stomped on his chest.

He suffered broken ribs and was rushed to hospital where doctors had to drain blood from his lungs.

Although he fell from the bull, Jacob posted a time that landed him as tied 24th for the competition.

Jacob Kellett (pictured), 15, had quickly risen to the 28th best bull-rider in Australia's under-18 division but will have to spent eight to twelve weeks in recovery before competing again

Footage of the accident shows Jacob holding onto a rope tied to the bull as he completes a full revolution while the beast attempts to buck him off.

The teenager can then be seen curling up in pain after the bull stomps on his chest as rodeo clowns draw the animal away from the wounded rider.

A medical team saw to Jacob and an ultrasound was conducted before he left the show grounds to make sure his lungs were still expanding.

The injury will force the teenager into recovery for eight to 12 weeks before being able to return to the sport.

His mother, Karen, said she was thankful for the high quality equipment and medical team at the show for keeping her son safe.

'That's why they have the best equipment, thousand of dollars for a helmet from America, mouthguards, vests, you don't skimp on safety,' she told The Courier Mail.

'It took some worry away knowing that he was in good hands with the medical staff.'

She also revealed that although having faced a horrific injury, Jacob was not deterred from bull-riding and was watching the 'cowboy channel' from his hospital bed.

A teenage rodeo-rider has been left with broken ribs and blood having to be drained from his lungs after a bull stumped on his chest after bucking him off during a competition

Jacob had quickly risen to the rank of 28th best rodeo rider in Australia's under-18 division although only competing for the first time a year prior.

The sport has taken Jacob and his family across the nation while on tour with the Australian National Rodeo Association.

He was hoping to spend the next year travelling the world while competing on the international circuit.

The teenager was also just a week from starting a course as a diesel mechanic at the Australian Trade College in Scarborough, north Brisbane.
Coronation Street star Nicola Thorp's stalker who called himself the 'grim reaper' and terrorised her in a two-year campaign faces years in jail.

Ravinderjit Dhillon, 30, used 25 aliases to torment the actress online and threatened to choke and rape her.

In a prepared statement Dhillon told Uxbridge Magistrates' Court he didn't know Ms Thorp or anything about her, but he was convicted of stalking involving fear of violence after a trial in April.

Ms Thorp was praised for her courage by magistrates who sent the case to the crown court for sentencing.

The 34-year-old was at court with her actor fiance Nikesh Patel and she told how she gave the Met Police a document containing details of the harassment she faced.

Coronation Street star Nicola Thorp's stalker who called himself the 'grim reaper' and terrorised her for two-years

The 34-year-old was at court with her actor fiance Nikesh Patel (right) and she told how she gave the Met Police a document containing details of the harassment she faced

The document outlined how Dhillon's campaign began in October 2018 by sending her an obscene picture of himself.

She said he became an 'army of men' threatening to rape her, the 'cost' for spending her adult life fighting for women's rights in the public eye, adding: 'I became the target of the exact behaviour I was standing up against.'

She said: 'I've spent most of my adult life fighting for the rights of women and doing so in the public eye has come with some personal cost.

'I became the target of the exact behaviour I was standing up against.

'Dhillon became an army of men all wanting to do me harm, threats to rape me, choke me.'

Ms Thorp told the court Dhillon sent her a message via Instagram that said 'a woman's place was on her knees'.

'He told me I was to be put in a headlock and forced into sexual acts and wanted to make my parents watch.

'He sent me messages saying, "I'm going to be with you for ever," he said, "I'm your grim reaper" and in one message alone he said 28 times he "wasn't going to leave me".

'He said alleyways are the perfect place to pick up drunk stupid women and stupid 16-year-old b******.'

Ms Thorp announced her engagement to fiance Patel in January this year

Ms Thorp announced she was dating Hollywood actor Patel in October 2021

Ms Thorp said he also masqueraded as a woman called 'Helena' asking for her advice as she was being harassed by an employer, so he could interact with her.

Dhillon also contacted her on social media claiming one of his friends followed her on to a train 'and had got so close to her he could smell her'.

Ms Thorp told the court: 'As a freelancer I work in different locations, I would have to inform each site [to keep an eye on] anyone who was asking for me and to keep a look out on my behalf.

'The longevity of his online stalking wore me down. This was no "one off" and that terrified me.'

Prosecutor Sondos Arafa told the court: 'Her voice is shaking just from the sheer impact of someone stalking her for two years.

'This is aggravated by the offensive material sent to the victim at the time of the offence and the impact of the offence.

'It is motivated by the hostility against the victim's sex.'

Dhillon's IP address was finally linked by police to the accounts he used to harass Ms Thorp and he was arrested.

Ms Thorp said she did not learn of Dhillon's true identity until his first court appearance on February 14 last year.

Ms Thorp told the court Dhillon sent her a message via Instagram that said 'a woman's place was on her knees'

Ms Thorp said she did not learn of Dhillon's true identity until his first court appearance on February 14 last year

Ms Thorp rose to fame after going public with her complaint against a major accountancy firm who fired the star for refusing to wear heels.

She later petitioned for a ban on dress codes that force women to wear high heels.

Ms Thorp starred on the long-running ITV soap Coronation Street from 2017 to 2019, playing social worker Nicola Rubinstein, who was the estranged daughter of serial killer Pat Phelan.

She became the first star to get caught in Channel Four's Celebrity Hunted, in aid of Stand Up For Cancer, in April this year when she was found at a Birmingham hotel after going on the run with her boyfriend Patel.



Dhillion, of Feltham, Middlesex, was remanded in custody ahead of sentence at Isleworth Crown Court on July 10.

The maximum penalty for stalking involving fear of violence is ten years.
New drama The Sixth Commandment re-tells the story of horrifying crimes

He was the very last person you would suspect of preying on the vulnerable.

But supposed committed Christian Benjamin Field mercilessly targeted two pensioners in the quaint Buckinghamshire village of Maids Moreton, murdering one and duping both as part of a plot to get them to change their wills.

The horrifying story of how 69-year-old retired English teacher Peter Farquhar and his neighbour Anne-Moore Martin, 83, were entrapped shocked the nation when the full details emerged in 2019.

Mr Farquhar suffered a campaign of gaslighting and physical and mental torture at the hands of 32-year-old church warden Field, who is serving a minimum 36-year prison sentence for his murder.

Now, first-look pictures of a four-part BBC drama documenting Field's crimes have been released. Timothy Spall, 66, portrays Farquhar, whilst Anne Reid, 88, plays Ms Moore-Martin in The Sixth Commandment.

Retired English teacher Peter Farquhar (left) was murdered by Benjamin Field in 2019 in a case that shocked the nation. New BBC drama the Sixth Commandment sees Timothy Spall (right, in character) portray him. The first-look images were released this week

Field is portrayed by 26-year-old Irish star Eanna Hardwicke, whilst Sheila Hancock, 90, depicts retired secretary Liz Zettl, who was Field's third intended target before he was caught.

The Sixth Commandment is directed by Saul Dibb and produced by Frances du Pille. A release date has not yet been announced.

Field was a 20-year-old undergraduate student when he first met Mr Farquhar.

On discovering that both he and his neighbour were wealthy, Field decided to seduce them to get his hands on their money.

Pretending to be in love first with Mr Farquhar and then Miss Moore-Martin, he was sexually intimate with both, despite dismissing his male partner as a 'faggot' and having feelings of 'indifference' towards his female victim.

Once he had gained their trust, Field carried out sinister mind games and plied the pair with alcohol and drugs.

Mr Farquhar's health deteriorated to the point where he was at times rambling, incoherent and suffering from hallucinations.

In the mornings he would often find himself covered in bruises and his prized possessions missing, with no memory of what had happened.

Mr Farquhar suffered a campaign of gaslighting and physical and mental torture at the hands of 32-year-old Field (left), who is serving a minimum 36-year prison sentence for his murder. Field is portrayed by 26-year-old Irish star Eanna Hardwicke (right)

'I am finding more joy in life now than ever before in my swift 23 years,' Field wrote as he began his campaign of abuse.

After his arrest, police uncovered a list of potential future victims which included his own parents and grandparents.

He also fantasised in notebooks about a nighttime murder rampage, predicting he could kill up to 50 people in a single spree.

When Mr Farquhar was found dead by his cleaner in October 2015, the first person she called after the emergency services was Field, who everyone believed was his loyal partner.

In March the previous year, the pair had pledged themselves to one another in a London church service.

The day was particularly special for Mr Farquhar, who wrote in his journal: 'It is one of the happiest moments of my life. Gone are the fears of dying alone.'

Mr Farquhar, who had struggled with his sexuality for years, had taught English at the private Manchester Grammar School before moving to the prestigious Stowe in 1983.

He was head of English there for 21 years, before deciding to retire in 2004 so he could write novels.

Describing his initial encounter with Mr Farquhar, who was a guest lecturer at his university, Field boasted of the pair's 'vulgarly commercial' relationship.

'He gives me things, and he gets me for a length of time,' he wrote.

He explained the relationship in even cruder terms to a friend, writing:

'He and I have struck a deal which is I pay for nothing and will hang out with him until his eventual death win/win... I'm p [pretty] comfortable w/death.'

Field and a university friend moved into Mr Farquhar's home as lodgers in 2013.

At the time, he was working in the bakery section at Tesco and as a carer at a nearby nursing home.

There he filmed himself tormenting a resident, telling her she didn't 'have any friends and you have never married'.

Anne Moore-Martin, 83, was Field's second victim. She too was seduced by the criminal. She is portrayed in the upcoming drama by Anne Reid, 88

On mirrors in her home, he would scrawl messages in white marker. One read: 'Pray for Ben, Ben loves you'

In 2014, the same month as his and Mr Farquhar's church ceremony, Field began a relationship with another woman, Setara Pracha, an admissions tutor at Buckingham Universtiy, where he had been a student.

He went on to become a deputy church warden at St Mary's Church in Stowe and boasted to a friend how he was going to become a vicar.

The abuse he subjected Mr Farquhar to included torturing a pet chihuahua he had given him and making him believe he had dementia.

After his will had been changed in Field's favour, Mr Farquhar was murdered. He was found to have consumed prescription sedatives and alcohol, and police believe he may also have been suffocated with a pillow.

Field initially avoided suspicion and pocketed 20,000 from his victim's will. When Mr Farquhar's house was sold by his brother, Field got a further 142,000.

He then moved on to his second victim, Ms Moore-Martin, who he had been introduced to by Mr Farquhar.

The retired teacher and devout Catholic quickly fell under his spell, giving him a key to her house and telling friends she loved him.

Above her dressing table she even hung a framed photograph of him bearing the words: 'I am always with you'.

In 2016, she gave him 4,000 to buy a car. Having no intention of actually purchasing a vehicle with the money, Field hired a car for a day to dupe her.

He then conned the woman out of 27,000 telling her ne needed the money to help his brother, who he claimed was desperately ill.

On mirrors in her home, he would scrawl messages in white marker. One read: 'Ben makes you whole, Give the whole to him.'

Another stated: 'All that you give him will be returned tenfold.'

Convinced by his act, Ms Moore-Martin changed her will in Field's favour at the end of 2016.

Retired secretary Liz Zettl, who was Field's third intended target before he was caught, is portrayed by Sheila Hancock, 90. Above left: Ms Zettl arriving to give evidence at Field's trial in 2019

Mr Farquhar, who had struggled with his sexuality for years, had taught English at the private Manchester Grammar School before moving to the prestigious Stowe in 1983. He was head of English there for 21 years, before deciding to retire in 2004 so he could write novels. Left: Spall as the English teacher

Undated handout photo issued by Thames Valley Police of Peter Farqhuar (right) and Benjamin Field

In February 2017 she suffered a seizure and ended up in hospital.

It remains unclear what caused the decline, but she did tell friends days earlier that Field had given her 'some powder' which helped her sleep.

Field was however cleared of attempting to kill her.

Once his victim was in hospital, Field was unable to get access to her and the pensioner's niece, Anne-Marie Blake, became suspicious.

As police began an investigation, Ms Blake changed her aunt's will to write Field out.

In March 2017, Field was arrested for the first time, but two months later, Ms Moore-Martin died for a massive stroke.

Her niece said in evidence to the jury at Field's trial: 'She was tortured by it and found it very difficult to get her head around the betrayal.

'She said to me, "I am such an intelligent woman. How could I let this happen to myself?"

Field was cleared of conspiracy to murder Ann-Moore Martin (pictured)

Eanna Hardwicke and Anne Reid are seen portraying Field and Ms Moore-Martin

At his trial, former Stowe School secretary, Ms Zettl, then 101, became the oldest witness in a British murder case.

Field's co-accused, Martyn Smith, who was cleared of involvement in the deaths of both Mr Farquhar and Ms Moore-Martin, had lived as a lodger with Ms Zettl.

In January 2022, Field began a second bid to have his conviction overturned. The Court of Appeal dismissed a previous challenge in 2021.
Disgraced former soldier Ben Roberts-Smith has been spotted for the first time since losing his major defamation case.

Australia's most decorated living soldier was spotted in Queenstown Airport in New Zealand boarding a flight to Australia on Wednesday.

The sighting comes 10 days after Mr Roberts-Smith lost his defamation action against The Age, Sydney Morning Herald and The Canberra Times.

He had been seen in Bali the day before the verdict was handed down.

Justice Anthony Besanko ruled that the allegations against Mr Roberts-Smith, which include war crimes and murders, were proven to a civil standard of the balance of probabilities.

Disgraced former soldier Ben Roberts-Smith (pictured) has been spotted for the first time since losing his major defamation case

The sighting comes 10 days after Mr Roberts-Smith (pictured) lost his defamation action against The Age, Sydney Morning Herald and The Canberra Times

He has not been criminally charged.

Following the findings, many have called for Mr Roberts-Smith to be stripped of his medals, including the Victoria Cross, and to have mention of him removed from the Australian War Memorial.

Meanwhile, former SAS captain and federal Liberal MP Andrew Hastie, who testified against Mr Roberts-Smith at the defamation trial, has broken his silence on the result.

He said he felt sadness and relief at the finding.

'Sadness for the Afghan lives lost and the families who are hurt, sadness for the relationships severed and sadness for the reputations destroyed, both individually and at the institutional level with the SASR (Special Air Service Regiment) particularly,' he told the ABC.

'Relief, though, that the cold hard truth that many of the regiment have been carrying inside them for many years, is now out in the public domain and it has been validated by a Federal Court Justice.'

Mr Hastie, who is now the Opposition defence spokesman, praised the soldiers that raised the claims.

'They've shown moral courage. They've been brave,' he said.

Former SAS captain and federal Liberal MP Andrew Hastie (pictured), who testified against Mr Roberts-Smith at the defamation trial, has broken his silence

'I honour their work, because it's they who have demonstrated that the regiment has a moral pulse, that the regiment can self-correct.

'And it's they who have repudiated the toxic culture and behaviour.'

The Brereton inquiry into alleged war crimes in Afghanistan, which handed down its report in 2021, found credible evidence 39 Afghan civilians were killed by Australian special forces during the war.

It identified 25 current or former Australian Defence Force personnel as alleged perpetrators, either as principals or accessories.
Police are appealing for public assistance to help locate a 13-year-old girl missing from Ipswich, Queensland.

The girl left an address in Redbank Plains on Monday, June 5, and is now believed to be travelling around the Sunshine Coast area.

Police hold concerns for her welfare due to her young age and how long she has been missing.

Police are appealing for public assistance to help locate a 13-year-old girl (pictured) missing from Ipswich, Queensland

The girl (seen here) left an address in Redbank Plains on Monday, June 5, and is now believed to be travelling around the Sunshine Coast area

She is described as Caucasian, about 150cm tall, with a slim build, auburn hair and brown eyes.

Police are appealing to the girl, or anyone with information regarding her whereabouts, to contact them.

Report crime information anonymously via Crime Stoppers. Call 1800 333 000 or report online at www.crimestoppersqld.com.au.

Quote this reference number: QP2300933746
A glamorous South Korean influencer has been found dead and dumped in a pit in Cambodia weeks after she quit her social media career.

The body of BJ Ahyeong - a K-pop DJ with 500,000 followers - was discovered covered in bruises and wrapped in a red rug in a ditch in the country's Kandal province on June 6. Police say her neck appears to have been broken.

Cambodian police have since arrested and charged a Chinese couple with 'murder accompanied by torture' after the 33-year-old was last seen alive at the medical clinic they run.

Lai Wenshao, 30, and his girlfriend Cai Huijuan, 39, testified to police that they abandoned the woman's body after she had seizures and died while receiving treatment at their clinic on June 4, reports said. They face life imprisonment if convicted of the charge.

BJ Ahyeong was an influencer for AfreecaTV, a South Korean video-streaming service, with hundreds of thousands of followers on Instagram.

BJ Ahyeong was an influencer for AfreecaTV, a South Korean video streaming service

Lai Wenshao and his girlfriend Cai Huijuan, above, have been charged with murder and torture

The South Korean's body was discovered dumped in a pit on the outskirts of Phnom Penh

According to South Korean media, her real name was Byun Ah-yeong. She posted on social media in March that she was giving up her influencer persona and was going to 'live as a normal person for the time being'.

On Tuesday, Lim Soo-suk, spokesman for South Korea's foreign ministry, said local authorities were investigating the 'unfortunate incident'.

'The foreign ministry is providing necessary consular assistance to the bereaved family in a timely manner,' he added.

Police traced her last steps and questioned the Chinese couple running the salon.

They claimed Ms Ah-yeong died at their clinic on June 4, shortly before 6pm, when she had a seizure while being given a saline drop with the brand name Sheng Li Yan Shui.

They allegedly panicked and wrapped her in a red mat, tied it up, and stuffed her in the trunk of a Toyota Prius before driving more than 50 miles away to dump the body in the neighbouring region.

Despite the alleged confession, officers said they continue to collect evidence and build a case before the couple are sent to court.

Kandal Stung District Police said in a statement: 'In cooperation with the criminal force of the Kandal Provincial Commissioner and the Provincial Armed Forces, we are conducting an investigation into this brutal murder case, and we are searching for any witnesses who may have seen any strangers in the area or vehicle to transport the body.'

Beauty-obsessed Ms Ah-yeong reportedly visited Cambodia with a friend to have a vacation but was found traced to have checked in to the couple's clinic.

When locals found her decomposing body ditched in the sewers and wrapped in cloth, Cambodian police initially thought she was from China and had been sexually trafficked or held hostage - a common crime among those from Communist China.

However, the victim was identified as a South Korean BJ - broadcast jockey - who had arrived as a tourist.

Her body appeared to have been brutalised and beaten, covered in bruises, but authorities are still waiting for the post-mortem examination result to ascertain the cause of death.

Officers said they are investigating whether Ms Ah-yeong suffered the injuries before she died or the bones were broken and bruised when the corpse was disposed of.

The Chinese couple have been remanded in custody while investigations are ongoing.

The Kandal Stung District Police said: 'The Embassy for South Korea has been informed and the family of the victim has been contacted. They will provide extra information through the diplomatic channels to assist the police investigation.'
European Union antitrust regulators took aim at Google's lucrative digital advertising business in an unprecedented decision on Wednesday, ruling that the tech giant must sell off some of its ad business to address competition concerns.

The 27-nation EU has led the global movement to crack down on Big Tech companies - including groundbreaking rules on artificial intelligence - but it has previously relied on issuing blockbuster fines, including three antitrust penalties for Google worth billions of dollars.

It's the first time the bloc has told a tech giant that it must split up key parts of its business over violations of the EU's strict antitrust laws, though details on what that would look like have not been released.

Google can now defend itself by making its case before the commission issues its final decision.

The company said it disagreed with the finding and 'will respond accordingly,' with the EU's investigation focusing on a narrow part of its ad business.

A Google sign is shown at the company's office in San Francisco, on April 12, 2023. European Union antitrust regulators on Wednesday, June 14, 2023, took aim at Google's lucrative digital advertising business, ordering the tech giant to sell off some of its ad services to address competition concerns

The commission's decision stems from a formal investigation that it opened in June 2021, looking into whether Google violated the bloc's competition rules by favoring its own online display advertising technology services at the expense of rival publishers, advertisers and advertising technology services.

'The Commission takes issue with Google favoring its own online display advertising technology services to the detriment of competing providers of advertising technology services, advertisers and online publishers,' the EU competition enforcer said in a statement.

It said Google has since 2014 abused its dominance by favoring its own ad exchange AdX in the ad selection auction by its dominant publisher ad server DFP and also by favoring its ad exchange AdX in the way its ad buying tools Google Ads and DV360 place bids on ad exchanges.

The EU competition watchdog said a behavioral remedy is unlikely to be effective to stop the anti-competitive practices.

'The Commission's preliminary view is therefore that only the mandatory divestment by Google of part of its services would address its competition concerns,' it said.

Google vice president of global ads Dan Taylor said: 'Our advertising technology tools help websites and apps fund their content, and enable businesses of all sizes to effectively reach new customers.

'Google remains committed to creating value for our publisher and advertiser partners in this highly competitive sector.'

European Commission Vice President Margrethe Vestager

But European Commission Vice President Margrethe Vestager says Google is dominant on both sides of the ad-selling market. Google abused that position by favoring its own ad exchange, reinforcing its ability to charge a high fee for its services, the commission said.

'Google is representing the interests of both buyers and sellers. And at the same time, Google is setting the rules on how demand and supply should meet,' she said at a news conference.' This gives rise to inherent and pervasive conflicts of interest.'

YouTube was one focus of the commission's investigation, which looked into whether Google was using the video sharing site's dominant position to favor its own ad-buying services by imposing restrictions on rivals.

Google's ad tech business is also under investigation by Britain's antitrust watchdog and faces litigation in the U.S.

Brussels has previously hit Google with more than $8.6 billion worth of fines in three separate antitrust cases, involving its Android mobile operating system and shopping and search advertising services.

The company is appealing all three penalties. An EU court last year slightly reduced the Android penalty to 4.125 million euros. EU regulators have the power to impose penalties worth up to 10% of a company's annual revenue.
Stephen Flynn was roasted by Rishi Sunak today over the decision by SNP politicians to send flowers to Nicola Sturgeon after she was arrested in a fraud probe.

The SNP Westminster leader tried to tackle the Prime Minister over spiralling mortgage rates in the Commons this afternoon.

But the PM flipped the attack back onto the revelation yesterday that senior figures in the nationalist party at Holyrood had agreed to send Ms Sturgeon a floral bouquet to show their support for her.

The former first minister was quizzed by detectives for seven hours on Sunday as part of a probe into what happened to more than 600,000 in donations when she was in charge.

Mr Sunak told Prime Minister's Questions: 'I saw that the SNP yesterday had a meeting to discuss their future, but the only thing they managed to decide was that they should send Nicola Sturgeon some flowers. So can he tell us, did he sign the card?"

It provoked a furious riposte from Mr Flynn, who said: 'Respectfully I think the Prime Minister needs to grow up.'

The SNP Westminster leader tried to tackle the Prime Minister over spiralling mortgage rates in the Commons this afternoon.

But the PM flipped the attack back onto the revelation yesterday that senior figures in the nationalist party at Holyrood had agreed to send Ms Sturgeon a floral bouquet to show their support for her.

The former first minister was quizzed by detectives for seven hours on Sunday as part of a probe into what happened to more than 600,000 in donations when she was in charge.

He added: 'There is an elephant in this here chamber when it comes to the dire economic circumstances facing the UK, and that's Brexit.

'The Tory benches they don't want to accept it and the Labour Party, they don't want to talk about it, but whether it's food prices, energy prices or indeed mortgage prices, households in Scotland are being shafted by Brexit. So can I ask the Prime Minister will he apologise for the cycle of misery that Westminster has caused?

Mr Sunak replied: 'While his party leader calls Nicola Sturgeon the most impressive politician in Europe, we are getting on delivering for the people of Scotland.

'Paying half of their energy bills, making sure that pensions rise, making sure that there's direct support for those who need it with the cost of living and crucially ensuring that we secure over 200,000 jobs by supporting Scotland's North Sea oil and gas industry, something opposed by his party.'
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A white Starbucks manager who was fired when her staff refused to let two black men use the bathroom at a Philadelphia store has been awarded $25.6million.

Shannon Phillips on Monday won her lawsuit against the coffee giant and was handed $25million in punitive damages and $600,000 in compensatory damages.

A federal jury in New Jersey found the company had given her the boot because she was white, which violated her civil rights.

The lawsuit finally came to an end this week five years after the arrests of the two black men at the Starbucks in Rittenhouse Square, Philadelphia.

Rashon Nelson and Donte Robinson had been waiting for a meeting when they were refused access to the toilet and were asked to leave before cops were called.

Their arrests prompted widespread outrage and protests after footage of the incident emerged - and Starbucks was accused of racism and boycott threats.

Shannon Phillips on Monday won her lawsuit against the coffee giant and was handed $25million in punitive damages and $600,000 in compensatory damages

The lawsuit finally came to an end this week five years after the arrests of the two black men at the Starbucks shop in Rittenhouse Square, Philadelphia

Ms Phillips, who oversaw the location as well as about 100 others and would have been paid up to $200,000, was quickly fired but in 2019 sued the coffee chain claiming it was due to racial bias.

Following her victory on Monday her lawyer Laura Carlin Mattiacci (pictured) said they were 'very pleased' with the verdict

Following her victory on Monday her lawyer Laura Carlin Mattiacci said they were 'very pleased' with the unanimous verdict.

She said that 'she proved by 'clear and convincing evidence that punitive damages were warranted' under the New Jersey law.

In the lawsuit, Ms Phillips - who worked for Starbucks for 13 years - claimed she had nothing to do with the arrests but was still fired from her job a month later.

Cell phone footage of the arrests went viral after it showed Mr Nelson and Mr Robinson being detained inside the store after they sat without ordering anything.

The arrests sparked protests and prompted more than 8,000 locations to shut so the company's 175,000 employees could undergo racial-bias training.

Ms Phillips said she worked 'tirelessly' to help repair community relations in the wake of the controversy, according to the lawsuit.

In her role as regional manager, Phillips said she oversaw around 100 stores across Philadelphia, New Jersey, Delaware and Maryland.

The highly-publicized arrests sparked protests outside the store (above) and prompted more than 8,000 locations to shut so the company's 175,000 employees could undergo racial-bias training

She claimed Starbucks started punishing white employees who weren't involved weeks later in a bid to publicly prove they were handling the incident.

Ms Phillips alleges the firm ordered her to put a white male manager, who had worked for the company for 15 years, on administrative leave because of a race discrimination allegation against him.

The allegation was based on complaints non-white employees at that manager's store were paid less than white workers.

Ms Phillips said she argued the male manager didn't have a say in wages. The lawsuit also said Ms Phillips objected to suspending him because she said the manager wasn't racist and she had never seen him exhibit discriminatory behavior.

She argued, in comparison, the black manager of the store where the arrests were carried out did not face any disciplinary action.

Ms Phillips said the black manager's subordinate was the one who called 911 after the two men sat down and refused to leave after being told they couldn't use the bathroom without purchasing something.

Mr Nelson and Mr Robinson, who were arrested and spent hours in jail, ended up reaching a settlement with Starbucks in the aftermath for an undisclosed sum and an offer of a free college education

She claims she was fired soon after and told the 'situation is not recoverable'. Starbucks denied the claims in the lawsuit but has not commented on the outcome.

The two black men ended up reaching a settlement with Starbucks in the aftermath for an undisclosed sum and an offer of a free college education.

Separately, they reached a deal with the city for a symbolic $1 each and a promise from officials to set up a $200,000 program for young entrepreneurs.

'We thought long and hard about it, and we feel like this is the best way to see that change that we want to see,' Mr Robinson said at the time.

'It's not a right-now thing that's good for right now, but I feel like we will see the true change over time.'

The men said they were at the Starbucks location waiting for a meeting with a third man about a potential real estate opportunity.

No charges were ever filed against them following their arrest. The incident proved a major embarrassment for Starbucks, which has long projected an image as a socially-conscious company.

During the uproar, then Starbucks CEO Kevin Johnson went to Philadelphia to apologize to the men.

He also ordered more than 8,000 stores in the US to close so 175,000 workers could get training in unconscious bias.
A man accused of smuggling 50 migrants across the channel to the UK today told a court he 'regrets' his decision and wishes he'd never left France.

Hamouda Chitioui, a fisherman from Egypt, allegedly piloted an 'overloaded' dinghy on June 29 last year.

He told jurors 'he would not have come here' if he knew he would be held in custody before being taken to trial.

Chitioui insists he is 'not a smuggler', despite being accused of attempting to dodge the 1710 fee to cross the channel by offering to pilot the vessel by prosecutors.

He denies claims he was the boat's skipper and says instead that he was a paying passenger.

A small boat packed with people is rescued in English waters by BF Defender operated by Border Force and overseen by HMS Severn in the middle of the English Channel on the November 13 2022 near Folkestone, Kent

Jurors at Winchester Crown 'he would not have come here' if he knew he would be held in custody before being taken to trial

According to his testimony, he simply stepped in to help and took control of the dinghy when its nominated skipper from Afghanistan became sea sick.

Chitioui is currently on trial at a British crown court after a Border Force boat intercepted the craft being driven by him six miles off the Kent coast.

The inflatable boat set sail from Northern France approximately two hours before it was intercepted at 7:30am, carrying 51 migrants, including Chitioui, from nations including Afghanistan, Irag, and Iran.

Chitioui, who has been in custody for a year, became emotional in court, denying claims of intentional smuggling

He said: 'I regret that I came here.'

'Everyone comes on such trips, they are looking for a better future for themselves, they are just coming to improve their lives.

'I am not a smuggler and my dream is to come to the UK and achieve that dream of mine.

'It was just an attempt to try to do that to create a better future for myself and my family.

'My mother and father are elderly people and probably will die because I have been in prison for a year now.

'I don't have money, no one gives me anything.

'I lived in France for a year, it was one of the best years of my life, if I knew what was going to happen to me I would not have come here.'

According to Chitioui, he worked as a painter and labourer in his native Egypt, carrying out paving and tiling.

He went to Libya for two years, working as a fisherman, before travelling to Italy on a 12-metre boat.

Chitioui then made his way to France, via Spain as a stowaway in a vehicle.

When he arrived in France he spent a year working in Paris as a carpenter and painter, earning 50 euros a day.

He told the court he paid 250 euros a month to rent a room with two others.

The migrant said he had friends who travelled to England from France via a small boat on the Channel and obtained contact details for a smuggler and headed to Dunkirk.

He denied getting a free ride by piloting the boat, saying instead he paid and offered to 'help' if it was required.

He said: 'All I want is to come just like anyone else.

'I was talking to [friends in England] when I was in France. If you pay you get here. My friend passed me the number of the people they used.

'Many people organise these trips, a lot of them in Dunkirk and Calais. There was different procedures.

'I asked if I could help the driver.

'The [agreement] is to pay him Euro 1,800, some people had to pay 2,200 euros, some had to pay 2,300 euros. I said if something happens on the boat I will help.'

On the boat, Chitioui claimed 'everyone panicked' when the driver fell ill.

'The pilot became ill, he was throwing up', he said.

'Some others helped. It's easy, if you get anyone from the street you can tell them to do it. The driver was unwell about an hour in, it was a two hour journey.

'Others took control then the last half an hour I helped and that's when [Border Force] came and photographed me.

'Many people controlled the tiller. Everyone's aim was to arrive safely, [the boat] could have turned over and people could die.'

Chitioui denies one count of assisting unlawful immigration to the UK. Jurors have been told he has already admitted attempting to enter the UK illegally.

On his arrest on June 29 last year, he became one of the first people to be arrested in the wake of then-Home Secretary Priti Patel's 2022 Nationality and Borders Act, which came into force the day before.

Under current UK law, some citizens from certain countries need permission to enter the UK and must apply for a visa.

Yesterday the court heard that, as well as skippering the vessel, Chitioui was seen striking other passengers with his hand for not disembarking quickly enough on to the Border Force boat that intercepted them.

The number of migrants crossing the channel this year is steady increasing

Immigration officer Christopher Getley was given the task of keeping watch of Chitioui after the boat had been intercepted.

He told the court: 'I saw him piloting it for about 12 minutes. He looked to be in control.

'He was one of the last off the boat [when it was intercepted]. He was telling people what to do. People were not moving fast enough so he struck them, back of the hand. He seemed to be in control.'

Mr Getley said the small boat was 'unsuitable' and 'overloaded'. He added: 'The risk of an accident was our concern.'

The trial continues.
Her family has filed a missing persons report with the police and US Embassy

She was traveling in Tokyo with Luis Torres, 27, at the time she disappeared

The family of a missing Chicago woman has filed a police report after she vanished nine days ago while traveling in Japan.

Kandace Schipper, 29, was last in touch with her family on June 4 and had been traveling across the country since May 8.

She had been traveling with Luis Torres, 27, and her family have become increasingly concerned after communication from them both ceased.

Schipper was last in Shibuya after a credit card transaction alerted the family of her whereabouts on June 5.

But family members say messages between them 'abruptly stopped' on June 4, adding Schipper had been posting on social media regularly.

Kandace Schipper, 29, was last in touch with her family on June 4, and had been traveling Tokyo in Japan since May 8 (pictured)

Her sister Nicole Willea posted a missing poster online, and her husband told WGN9: 'Every single day she had been communicating with family and friends.

'I mean text, phone calls, pictures, updates, Instagram posts. And then it all abruptly ended on June 4th.'

The family filed a missing persons report with Chicago Police, who contacted the US Embassy in Japan to try to locate Schipper.

But the Tokyo Metropolitan Police say that they are unable to help until Schipper misses her flight home.

Willea added: 'I guess it's [an] issue because technically, her flight home isn't scheduled yet. So, until she misses her flight home, they won't even start a report.

She had been traveling with Luis Torres, 27, (pictured) and her family became increasingly worried after communication from them both ceased

Her sister Nicole Willea posted a missing poster online, and her husband told WGN9: 'Every single day she had been communicating with family and friends'

Schipper is understood to have been staying at the APA hotel, and her last transaction was at JS Burger in Shinjuku

'We're here stateside. There's literally nothing we can do. So, this helpless feeling of not knowing if she is in a hospital, is she being held somewhere against her will?

'Is she hurt? There's nothing we can even do because it's in Toyko, Japan. We need feet on the ground over there.'

Schipper is understood to have been staying at the APA hotel, and her last transaction was at JS Burger in Shinjuku.

Her family are asking anyone with information to contact the authorities or reach out to them on +1 616-439-0160 or email helpfindkandace@gmail.com
Tate's team has denied allegations and said there is no evidence to implicate him

She alleges the social media influencer choked her until she lost consciousness

Andrew Tate has 'categorically denied' claims of sexual violence made by four British women who are suing him for damages related to alleged physical assaults.

Last Wednesday, it emerged that a fourth British woman had accused the social media influencer of choking her until she lost consciousness before raping her when she was a 20-year-old university student.

The former kickboxer was served with the legal papers by lawyers representing the four alleged victims in person at his address in Bucharest, Romania, today where he is currently on house arrest with his brother Tristan on suspicion of organised crime and human trafficking, which he denies.

It comes less than 24 hours after Romanian prosecutors also announced the misogynistic influencer, his brother and two other female Romanian suspects, Luana Radu and Georgiana Naghel, are now being investigated for more serious human trafficking charges.

In a strongly worded statement after being served the legal papers by lawyers from McCue Jury & Partners, Tate's team vehemently denied the accusations made by the four women and dismissed the alleged victims as 'opportunistic'.

Andrew Tate (leaving court in Bucharest on May 19 after a judge extended his house arrest) has categorically denied claims of sexual violence made by four British women who are suing him for damages related to alleged physical assaults

Andrew Tate and Tristan Tate are escorted by police officers outside the headquarters of the Directorate for Investigating Organized Crime and Terrorism in Bucharest (DIICOT) after being arrested on December 29

A spokesperson for Tate said: 'Andrew Tate categorically denies the veracity of the accusations brought by the lawyers of the anonymous women in the UK.

READ MORE: Andrew Tate and his brother are being investigated for more serious human trafficking charges, Romanian prosecutors announce Advertisement

'Considering the collective approach of the four women, and the channels chosen for communications, the opportunistic character of this endeavour becomes obvious, as justice is sought in the court, not in the press.

'Despite these alleged events taking place in 2014, no legal action has been taken to cover the alleged damages suffered and no proof of such damages has been brought forward until after Andrew became an international public figure.'

The fourth woman, now aged 30, to accuse Tate of sexual violence has joined three other British woman aged in their late 20s and early 30s as they pursue civil claims for damages against Tate.

They all say they were victims of sexual violence by Tate between 2013 and 2016, when he lived in the UK. The three women launched a civil claim raising money for the case on a crowdfunding page.

Two of them were webcam models in his internet sex business, while the other had a personal relationship with him.

Andrew Tate gave an interview to the BBC from his home in Romania last Thursday

Andrew Tate (left) is under house arrest in Romania with his brother Tristan (right)

The latest woman to come forward told BBC Newsnight that she had consensual sex with Tate after a night out in his home town of Luton in 2014. But she said this became violent when he choked her, and when she awoke he was still having sex with her, which she did not consent to.

The woman said that this was her second encounter with Tate. A few months earlier they had consensual sex.

She said while they were having sex on their second encounter, Tate put his hand on her throat and 'strangled me' until she passed out - and that when she came round 'it was a bit confusing at first', and he was 'still having sex with me'.

The woman also said she was subjected to violent threats by Tate, including one to kill her, adding: 'He kept saying: "I own you, you belong to me".

'All throughout the night he was being fairly aggressive and saying horrible things.'

The Tate brothers (seen handcuffed together), Luana Radu and Georgiana Naghel (right) arrive at the Bucharest Court of Appeal on February 27

A spokesman for Tate insisted that all sexual acts he had been involved in had been consensual - and that he does not condone violence towards women.

The woman did not report the incident to police at the time, saying she only realised she had been sexually assaulted about six years later when she described what had happened to her friends.

The lawyer for the original three women, Matt Jury, said in April when their claim was first announced: 'Their allegations include rape, sexual and physical assaults, including holding guns to women's heads, strangulations including with belts, allegations of the most awful behaviour towards women.'

In a heated interview with BBC News last Thursday, Tate insisted he will be cleared of accusations of organised crime and human trafficking.

The 36-year-old British-US citizen said he is 'absolutely and utterly sure' he is innocent and instead said he is a 'force for good in the world' and a 'positive influence'.

In the interview in his home in Romania, he said: 'We have an open criminal investigation, I am absolutely and utterly sure I'll be found innocent.

'I know the case better than you, I know it intimately and you don't, I have seen all the criminal files and the evidence against me and you haven't, I know the truth of what happened and you don't.

'And I'm telling you absolutely and utterly, I've never hurt anybody, that the case that's been put against me is completely and utterly fabricated and I'm never gonna be found guilty of anything.'

A number of campaign groups have said Tate's views make him a danger to young men and boys who see his content online, while the National Education Union's (NEU) annual conference heard pupils are developing misogynistic views because of him.

Schools have reported male pupils sexually harassing their female classmates in person and online, including by demanding they send sexually explicit images and videos.

A Lamborghini seized in the case against Tate is towed away in Bucharest on January 14

Told about this, he responded: 'That's very upsetting and the reason that's very upsetting is because I know that's not true, I'm genuinely a good person. I believe my impact on the world is positive.'

Tate, who has lived in Romania since 2017, has been banned from various social media platforms for violating their policies, including on hate speech stemming from his misogynistic and derogatory views of women.

Under Romanian legislation, prosecutors have filed charges against Tate, his brother and the two female suspects, but the case is under investigation and has not yet gone to trial. Prosecutors are expected to commit them for trial later in June.

The four were held in police custody from December 29 until March 31, when a Bucharest court placed them under house arrest.

Under Romanian law, trafficking of adults carries a prison sentence of up to 10 years.
Dylan Mulvaney was spotted out in New York City on Tuesday in a darker look for the premiere of Wes Anderson's new movie Asteroid City.

Mulvaney, who identifies with she/they pronouns, donned an all black outfit by Stella McCartney that included a vest, asymmetric mini-skirt, oversized blazer, and tall, sparkly cowboy boots.

The look was inspired by the influencer's perception that the new film takes place in the American West.

Crossing genres into punk for hair and makeup choices, Mulvaney opted for a dark smokey-eye, which looked especially harsh against her freshly bleached eyebrows, and a slicked back hairstyle with spikes protruding from the back.

Transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney crossing a street in NYC on Tuesday evening in a look inspired by Wes Anderson's new film, Asteroid City

The TikTok star, who now identifies with she/they pronouns, sported a Stella McCarthy look and a bold makeup and hair style for the evening

Mulvaney was later seen on the streets of New York walking alongside fellow TikTok star Tefi Pessoa, who wore a white dress, more appropriate for summer.

The transgender public figure has been out and about in New York City as sales for Bud Light continue to tank following a poorly received partnership the brand introduced with Mulvaney in early April.

Since the beginning of the year, Bud Light has reported a 9.5 percent decline in sales, and was down a staggering 24.4 percent for the week ending in June 3. Parent company Anheuser-Busch's stock price is also down more than 17 percent since the beginning of April.

Some alcohol industry professionals believe Bud Light may not be able to recover from its current predicament.

Mobile-bar owner Catarina Tucker told Fox News recently: 'With the feedback that I've gotten and how strongly a lot of clients feel about it, it [the company] doesn't switch gears, I don't see the popularity picking back up.'

'Sometimes things blow over,' she noted, but added that Bud Light's actions as a corporation 'hold a lot of weight' with their consumers. 'Anything Bud Light, they just won't support.'

In a recent note, JP Morgan analysts said they expect AB InBev's earnings before interest and tax in the US to drop 26 percent this year, on a 12 percent drop in volume and a 10 percent decline in sales.

'We believe there is a subset of American consumers who will not drink a Bud Light for the foreseeable future,' the note said.

Bud Light's parent company said earlier this month it will triple its marketing spending in the US this summer as it tries to boost ailing sales.

County music star Garth Brooks, 61, is also working now to navigate the complexities of consumer backlash to Bud Light.

Controversial transgender TikToker Dylan Mulvaney dressed up in a Western-punk theme for a night out at a movie premiere in NYC

In an interview with Billboard, Brooks said he wanted his bar to 'be a place you feel safe in'. Pictured: Brooks performs during the Academy of Country Music (ACM) Awards at Ford Center at the Star in Frisco, Texas, on May 11, 2023

Mulvaney worked with Bud Light in April as part of their March Madness campaign and was gifted a can of the light beer with her face on it

While many country stars have specifically requested that sales of Bud Light no longer be available at the venues on their tours, Brooks has opted to sell Bud Light in his Nashville bar.

Last week, Brooks told Billboard that his bar, Friends In Low Places & Honky Tonk, will sell 'every brand of beer.'

He added: 'If you're an a**hole, there are plenty of other places' to grab a cold one.

Brooks addressed the controversy at the opening of his Inside Studio G show on Monday night.

'Let's address two things on it,' he said. 'One is diversity, inclusiveness. That's me, it's always been me. We got the same kind of thing on We Shall Be Free, people wanted to burn our stuff. I get it, everybody has got their opinions.'

He added: 'Inclusiveness is always going to be me. I think diversity is the answer to the problems that are here and the answer to the problems that are coming. So I love diversity, all included, all are welcome.

'I understand that might not be other people's opinions, but that's okay, man. They have their opinions, they have their beliefs, I have mine.

'Second thing, let's talk about being a bar owner. I'm a bar owner now. Are we going to have the most popular beers in the thing? Yes. It's not our call if we do it or not, it's the patrons' call, the bosses.

'If they don't want it then I gotta go to the distributors saying, man, your stuff's not selling and then action gets taken. But the truth is, it's those people in those seats that make those decisions and that's what Friends in Low Places is going to be.'

Bud Light and Garth Brooks are not, however, the only established entities dealing with controversy over how to handle backlash to the trans-community.

Rose Montoya, 27, attended a Pride party at the White House on Saturday and posed topless

On Tuesday, the White House was forced to respond after transgender model Rose Montoya, 27, exposed her constructed breasts on the South Lawn of the White House during a Pride Event, at which she had met the First couple.

Montoya unhooked the top of her dress and grabbed her chest on the South Lawn as someone shouted, 'are we topless at the White House?'

A White House official, when approached for comment later, was compelled to label the behavior 'inappropriate and disrespectful.'

Video of the move went viral on social media.

'This behavior is inappropriate and disrespectful for any event at the White House. It is not reflective of the event we hosted to celebrate LGBTQI+ families or the other hundreds of guests who were in attendance. Individuals in the video will not be invited to future events,' a White House spokesperson said in a statement to DailyMail.com.

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre reiterated that point at her Tuesday press briefing.

'Individuals in the video certainly will not be invited to future events. And this is has not occurred before. This is not this was not a normal thing that has happened under this administration,' she said.

Montoya was one of thousands invited to a Pride Month concert on the South Lawn on Saturday at the White House.

Montoya shared an Instagram montage of the day with her 103,000 followers on Monday, and was seen dancing to the DJ and striking poses in front of landmarks such as the Washington monument and the Truman balcony of the White House.

She is also seen meeting Jill Biden, and trying to take a selfie with the president - with the camera mistakenly on video, rather than photo.

During her encounter with President Biden, she also said: 'Trans rights are human rights.'

She captioned the video: 'I had the honor of attending White House Pride, the largest one in history where the Pride flag flew for the first time.

'This is trans joy. We're here at the White House unapologetically trans, queer, and brown.'
The ringleader of a bonfire night riot that saw 'sickening' firework attacks on police and left six officers injured has been jailed, four years after the disorder.

Romanian-born Alex Stoian was just 15 when he boasted about 'sticking his d*ck into England' while spearheading a violent five-hour stand off against cops.

The disorder broke out on November 5, 2019, when riot police armed with shields were bombarded with fireworks in Leeds, West Yorkshire.

It came as teens across the country fired rockets and hurled bricks at police after lighting makeshift fires.

The eventual cost of the five-hour stand-off ran to more than 200,000, including the damage caused, the clean up and the lengthy investigation that followed.

Romanian-born Alex Stoian (pictured, now age 18) boasted about 'sticking his d*ck into England' while spearheading a violent five-hour stand off against cops

The disorder broke out on November 5, 2019, when riot police armed with shields were bombarded with fireworks in Leeds, West Yorkshire

It came as teens across the country fired rockets and hurled bricks at police after lighting makeshift fires

Stoian, now 18, was among those who descended on the Harehills area of the city had then attacked officers, Leeds Crown Court heard.

Video from the evening shows teens torching bins and cardboard in the middle of roads, which the rioters then used to light fireworks that they aimed at police.

While helicopter footage revealed how officers, carrying shields and protective equipment, were forced to retreat as youth pelted them with incendiary devices.

Stoian fled the country following the riots but was arrested at Liverpool Airport last year as he returned Britain.

He was sentenced yesterday for 16 months in a young offenders institute after pleading guilty to violent disorder.

Another defendant, Romanian Boboc Ionut, now 21, pleaded guilty to the same offence and was given 15 months imprisonment at the joint hearing.

Prosecutor Tom Storey said police were called to Harehills Road and Banstead Park after reports that youths were throwing fireworks.

And when officers arrived in riot gear, they were pelted with the fireworks, along with chunks of concrete and stones, the court heard.

The eventual cost of the five-hour stand-off ran to more than 200,000, including the damage caused, the clean up and the lengthy investigation that followed

Video from the evening shows teens torching bins and cardboard in the middle of roads, which the rioters then used to light fireworks that they aimed at police

Makeshift barricades were built by the rioters from wheelie bins and bread crates as officers tried to suppress the chaos

While helicopter footage revealed how officers, carrying shields and protective equipment, were forced to retreat as youth pelted them with incendiary devices

Makeshift barricades were built by the rioters from wheelie bins and bread crates as officers tried to suppress the chaos.

But the culprits, who were not all from the Harehills area, were heard cheering as missiles struck officers or fireworks exploded near them.

Mr Storey said footage from police and mobile phones shared across social media put Stoian in the thick of the disorder.

And he said the teen had boasted online about his antics, saying he was 'sticking his d*** into England'.

Both Stoian and Ionut, from Leeds, were arrested in the hours that followed and gave no-comment interviews.

They were later released pending further investigations before they fled the country.

Mitigating for dad-of-two Stoian, Mr Martin Morrow said his client was 'entirely realistic' about receiving a prison sentence.

For Ionut, Mr Sean Smith said his client now also has two children, and he pointed out his client's young age at the time and his acceptance of his role.

However, Judge Batiste told the pair they'd participated in 'wanton violence' during the riots, which had led to 'large-scale public disorder'.

He said: 'Bonfire Night is an occasion when people gather to celebrate historical British events and should be a night for families, children and fun.

'Instead, you decided to use the occasion to engage in wanton violence.

'Anyone who has watched the CCTV footage can't help but be horrified and sickened by the way you and the crowd behaved.

'This was serious and large-scale public disorder.'
A man on disability support has been left living in squalor despite an NDIS partner receiving more than $100,000 in grants to support him.

While residing in the small town of Coonamble, in northern New South Wales', Spencer Collins - who has an intellectual disability - was under the care of NDIS partner LiveBetter.

The LiveBetter website says those with the company living independently receive services such as 'cooking, cleaning and personal care'.

However after Mr Collins' employers, Jenny and Scott Richardson, attended to his house, they discovered his house was decrepit.

Images of the house show clothes and garbage strewn throughout his bedroom while his bathroom was smitten with grime with tiles having fallen off the wall.

An intellectually disabled man, Spencer Collins (pictured) has been found to be living in appalling conditions although being on an NDIS package reportedly worth over $100,000

The Richardsons have picked up the pieces from LiveBetter, providing him with a job at the pub.

'I was disgusted. I don't know how anyone can live like that, it made my eyes burn with the smell,' Mr Richardson told A Current Affair.

With the help of friends from the pub, the couple were also able to clean Mr Collins' house.

Afterwards, Ms Richardson helped Mr Collins leave LiveBetter for another NDIS service provider.

They have also helped purchase clothes for Mr Richardson out of their own pocket.

'He's now living better, not because of any help by LiveBetter, but because of his friends,' Mr Richardson said.

Images of his Coonamble home, in northern New South Wales, show clothes and garbage strewn across his room (pictured)

The website of the NDIS provider Mr Collins was previously with, LiveBetter, states 'cleaning' as one of the services they provide for supported independent living

An executive of LiveBetter, Briette Parish, said cleaning is not a service included with the provider.

She then said there was not a carer provided to Mr Collins.

The company's website states Ms Parish has a 'focus on best practice ... to achieve the best possible model of service delivery for all our participants'.

Mr Collins' NDIS package was worth over $100,000, meaning he was potentially receiving full-time support as the NDIS caps the cost-of-care at $50 per hour.

Daily Mail Australia has approached LiveBetter for comment.
Brittany Higgins was given a secret compensation payout of up to $3million after she claimed she was no longer 'fit to work' and would lose out on 40 years of earnings, a draft statement of claim states.

The former Liberal party staffer accused Bruce Lehrmann of raping her inside a minister's office in Parliament House in March 2019 when they were colleagues.

The trial was aborted and charges against Mr Lehrmann - which he has continually denied - were later dropped.

But Ms Higgins, who was a Liberal staffer, also pursued a civil suit against her former political employers - leading to the massive payout.

The draft statement of claim, sent to her former boss Linda Reynolds and obtained by The Australian newspaper, says Ms Higgins was 'successful and progressing in her career', but that her chances of advancing in politics were ruined by her alleged rape.

Brittany Higgins (pictured) was given a secret compensation payout of $2.5million of taxpayers' money because she's no longer 'fit to work' and is being paid for 40 years of lost earnings, a draft statement of claim states

Brittany Higgins (pictured right with her partner David Sharaz) pursued a civil suit against her former political employers, leading to the massive payout

'The claimant had a reasonable expectation of being promoted regularly and to eventually pursue her own political career, before suffering from the injuries and disabilities,' the document said.

It said she was 'diagnosed as medically unfit for any form of employment, and has been given a very poor prognosis for future employment' after the alleged incident.

The draft statement of claim said, because of this, she was due $2,521,314.40 in economic loss. The $2.5million figure was based on Ms Higgins' 2021 salary over a 40-year period, adding an extra $1million for promotions she could have expected, but also taking away 15 per cent, $1.5million, to take changes in circumstances into account.

The statement was an early draft and it has been reported that Ms Higgins eventually walked away with up to $3million in compensation. Ms Higgins has, however, denied that figure, saying she received substantially less.

The statement - which was dated March 29, 2022, when the Coalition under prime minister Scott Morrison was still in power - said Ms Higgins had not worked since February 8, 2021, apart from one day, after she resigned from her political role.

Ms Higgins also claimed $400,000 in compensation because of the 'distress and humiliation' caused by Senator Reynolds - in whose office she alleged she was raped - and Senator Michaelia Cash and Mr Morrison in how they dealt with her allegations.

'The claimant's hurt, distress and humiliation has been exacerbated as a result of the manner in which the individual respondents behaved at the time of the assault and during the subsequent handling of the matter, as well as a result of the toxic and harmful culture and work environment that the claimant was subjected to by the respondents,' the document read.

Daily Mail Australia revealed earlier this month that Ms Higgins' claim was approved by Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus, in a decision informed by external legal advice.

While the settlement was delivered by the Department of Finance, the Legal Services Directions issued by the Attorney-General's office indicated he must oversee - and sign off on - all significant claims brought against the Commonwealth.

Daily Mail Australia revealed earlier this month that Ms Higgins' claim was approved by Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus (pictured)

Mr Dreyfus' department was primarily responsible for the settlement.

A government spokesperson defended the settlement, saying 'Ms Higgins' claim was managed consistently with the Commonwealth's obligations under the Legal Services Directions 2017'.

'The terms of settlement and the claim was managed in accordance with legal principle and practice and informed by external legal advice.'

Mr Lehrmann strenuously denied the allegations made against him, and the criminal charge was withdrawn after the trial was aborted due to juror misconduct.
A Lib Dem peer has lashed out at the long hours being worked by members of the House of Lords, saying it is unfair because so many of them are old.

Former senior police officer Brian Paddick said he was 'so tired' after the upper House of Parliament sat from 2.30pm until 10.10pm last night, having debated from 2.30pm to 2am on Monday.

He complained that the chamber was to restart today at 11.30am, an hour earlier than originally planned, saying: 'I'm 65, many colleagues are older. This is unsustainable.'

He added: 'My point is, you cannot expect to have proper scrutiny of the government under such circumstances.'

He is the latest peer to hit out at the workload and timetabling of the upper chamber, which sat until 4.16am last Thursday. Members are paid a day rate of 342 to attend.

Lord Paddick retired as a deputy assistant commissioner of the Metropolitan Police in 2007 at the age of 49. After an unsuccessful run to be mayor of London he became a Lib Dem peer in 2013 and is now its home affairs spokesman.

With the start of business brought forward to an earlier start time on Wednesday to continue scrutiny of the flagship legislation, Labour former minister Lord Foulkes of Cumnock last night argued the Government's legislative plans were 'in total disarray'.

He complained that members of the unelected chamber were being 'treated disgracefully', with proceedings continuing into the early hours over controversial Government plans to tackle the small boats crisis.

Former senior police officer Brian Paddick said he was 'so tired' after the upper House of Parliament sat from 2.30pm until 10.10pm last night, having debated from 2.30pm to 2am on Monday.

In doing so, he had a sideswipe at the appointment of Boris Johnson's allies to the chamber as part of his resignation honours list.

Among the seven nominees were Tees Valley mayor Ben Houchen and Charlotte Owen, a former adviser to Mr Johnson.

Lord Foulkes said: 'The Government's legislative programme is in total disarray.

'Having sat until 4am the other week, 2am this morning, they just cannot organise their legislative programme.

'This really is ridiculous we should be treated in this way.'

He added: 'I wonder if Boris's friends who are going to join us have been told what to expect.

'How is Ben Houchen going to manage to get down from Teesside suddenly on a Wednesday morning?

'What about Charlotte Owen? It's going to interfere with her social life.

'Nadine Dorries doesn't realise what she is gaining by not being nominated for this place.

'Members are being treated disgracefully.'

Referring to the recent late sittings on the Bill, chief whip in the Lords Baroness Williams of Trafford said: 'I am sure he was sleeping soundly in his bed when the committee stages were being heard last night and on Wednesday of last week.'

She pointed out the agreement to sit at the earlier time of 11am on Wednesday, rather than 3pm, had been reached between the party whips.

In a withering rebuke to the Labour peer over his remarks about Ms Owen, Lady Williams added: 'May I say I find it utterly condescending that he would speak about a young lady and her social life in such condescending terms.'
Police say an Ohio teenager was strangled to death by her boyfriend near Myrtle Beach, just a month after graduation.

Natalie Martin, 18, of Roseville, was enjoying a trip to South Carolina to celebrate her recent high school graduation when her ex-boyfriend Blake William Linkous, also 18, of Blue Rock, allegedly strangled her to death inside a hotel room on Maison Drive on June 7.

She was pronounced dead at the scene after being found unresponsive.

Linkous was arrested Thursday, according to Horry County Police Department, and charged with murder.

'Blake William Linkous did with malice aforethought cause the death of Natalie Martin. The defendant did so by manually strangling the victim,' says the incident report.

Police have not released a motive for the crime.

Natalie Martin, 18, of Roseville, Ohio, was enjoying a trip to South Carolina to celebrate her recent high school graduation when her ex-boyfriend Blake William Linkous, also 18, of Blue Rock, allegedly strangled her to death inside a hotel room on June 7

Linkous was arrested Thursday, according to the Horry County Police Department, and charged with murder for the suspected manual strangulation of the teenager before abandoning her body

However, the former couple had broken up at the beginning of the year, a friend said.

Their Facebook pages show the pair had attended prom as a couple. The couple had been together for years prior to their breakup, the friend said.

Linkous is currently being held at the J. Reuben Long Detention Center without bond.

The pair had graduated from Philo High School in Ohio on May 26 and Martin was working as a childcare provider at Sundale Kids at the time of her death.

The teens were staying near Myrtle Beach on a senior trip, which was not funded by the school, Superintendent Kacey Cottrill of the Franklin Local School District said.

Police have not released a motive for the crime. However, the former couple had broken up at the beginning of the year,

Their Facebook pages show the pair had attended prom as a couple. The couple had been together for a year prior to their breakup

Linkous is currently being held at the J. Reuben Long Detention Center without bond

The school received confirmation of their former student's death on Thursday.

Visitation for the teen's funeral will be on Tuesday at Cornerstone Full Gospel Church and her funeral be held at 11am on Wednesday.

She was described in her obituary as being a 'free, pure and wild spirit with a contagious laugh,' who had a 'personality out of this world that could bring anyone out of their darkest of days.'

'Natalie enjoyed all of natures beauty. She loved to hunt, shoot guns, fish, wrangle snakes, plant and nurture flowers, and could gut and skin a deer better than most grown men,' it read. 'Natalies beauty shined like a ray of sunlight and her smile could brighten a whole room. Her glowing blonde hair and beautiful blue eyes represented that she was truly an angel here on Earth.'

The pair had graduated from Philo High School in Ohio on May 26 and Martin was working as a childcare provider at Sundale Kids at the time of her death

She was described in her obituary as being a 'free, pure and wild spirit with a contagious laugh,' who had a 'personality out of this world that could bring anyone out of their darkest of days'

A GoFundMe has been started to raise funeral expenses for the teen's funeral, so far raising more than $31,000 out of its $15,000 goal.

Linkous will be held in the county jail until he can appear before a circuit court judge, who will consider bond. His lawyer, Fran Humphries, did not respond in time for this report.

He faces up to life in prison if convicted of the murder charge.
A Place for All Conservatives to Speak Their Mind.
The deputy leader of a Welsh council has stepped down after saying that 'all Tories should be shot' in area where one Conservative MP wears a stab vest to constituency surgeries.

Ynys Mon councillor Ieuan Williams, who represents Lligwy as an independent, made the comment during an internal council meeting on the Monday morning.

Conservative MP for the Isle of Anglesey Virginia Crosbie, who wears a stab vest when meeting her constituents because of concerns for her safety, said that it was an 'appalling comment'.

The comments came almost exactly seven years since Labour MP Jo Cox was murdered.

Mr Williams told WalesOnline he had referred himself to the Standards Committee and apologised 'profusely' for any offence caused by the 'inappropriate comment'.

Deputy leader of Ynys Mon councillor Ieuan Williams (pictured) has stepped down after saying that 'all Tories should be shot'

Conservative MP for the Isle of Anglesey Virginia Crosbie (pictured), who wears a stab vest when meeting her constituents because of concerns for her safety, said that it was an 'appalling comment'

Crosbie has previously revealed she received a letter with a drawing of a noose and the words 'traitors hang' at her Anglesey office in December 2021

He said: 'The remark was made at the end of an emotionally charged statement, following a presentation on poverty on Anglesey.'

'I am obviously not advocating shooting anyone and have apologised to all members present at the meeting.

'I have also referred myself to the Standards Committee and have stood down as deputy leader and member of the executive whilst any potential investigation takes place.

He added that he made the comment out of 'anger' because of an increase in food bank use.

He said: 'This is not about any one individual'. The real issue at hand here is what made me so angry and emotional in the first instance.

'We have a 99% increase in food bank usage on Anglesey in the three months since November 2022.

'Almost a third of our children on Anglesey are living in poverty despite the UK being one of the richest countries in the world.

'Over the past 13 years we have seen a Conservative Party drive through a programme of austerity leading to cuts to vital services whilst at the same time we have seen the gap between the richest in our society and those most in need of our help grow even larger.

'It is being able to help the most vulnerable in our society which motivates me as a county councillor and whilst I apologise for, and withdraw, my crass remark I hope the people of Anglesey will see that the real issue here is my passion in fighting the corner of the most vulnerable in our society against a party which seems happy to forget about them.

'It is not appropriate for me to make any further comment as I have referred myself to the standards committee.'

Mr Williams told WalesOnline he had referred himself to the Standards Committee and apologised 'profusely' for any offence caused by the 'inappropriate comment'

Ms Crosbie, who was elected in 2019, said she took to wearing a stab vest during constituency surgeries in the wake of the murder of Sir David Amess in October 2021 and she has also hired security guards when attending the events.

In December 2021 she received a letter with a drawing of a noose and the words 'traitors hang' at her Anglesey office on December 23.

Ms Crosbie told WalesOnline: 'I am disgusted that an Ynys Mon councillor feels able to say such a thing in a meeting. It is the least Ieuan Williams could have done to stand down from his role as deputy leader of the council following his appalling comment.

'The leader of the council now needs to get her house in order and stop this behaviour.

'This sort of nastiness has been going on since I was elected and it comes almost exclusively from Plaid Cymru councillors and those who, like councillor Williams, pretend they are independent but are Plaid to their bones.

'This is not the rough and tumble of political life, this is out and out hate.

'Councillor Williams knows I wear a stab vest at surgeries but still he causally remarks I and others who are Conservative should be shot.

'Two MPs have lost their lives in the last seven years and still he thinks saying such things is ok.

'I have come to believe much of it is personal against me too because I am a woman, I have an English accent, even though I am half Welsh, and I am a Tory. The fact I do a good job probably just makes it worse.'

It is understood that the chief executive of Ynys Mon Council Dylan Williams was at the meeting and reportedly asked for the comments not to be minuted.

Ms Crosbie added: 'I understand the council's chief executive Dylan Williams said the remark should not be minuted.

'I spoke to him today and he said it was 'an internal meeting' and he was dealing with it. If that is the case why the need for it to have minutes?

'If he has tried to cover up this remark - a call to commit violence against members of the party democratically elected to lead the UK Government - then he needs to consider his position too.'
Joe Biden gave a smile and chuckle, before darting down a White House hallway when recently confronted with Burisma bribery allegations from his time as Vice President.

'Are there tapes that you accepted bribes, President Biden? Is that true?' a New York Post reporter probed as Biden, 80, left an event with US diplomats in the White House East room.

Stopping as he walked away, Biden was seen awkwardly grinning, chuckling to himself and then shaking his head as he continued to stride away without answering the question.

According to a 'highly credible' whistleblower, an internal FBI FD-1023 memo created in 2020 details a $5 million 'arrangement' for an exchange of money for policy decisions between then-Vice President Biden and a foreign national, who referred to Joe Biden as the 'Big Guy.'

Joe Biden walks with Secretary of State Anthony Blinken moments before he grinned and chuckled when asked about Burisma

The memo resurfaced recently during a speech by Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley, after the FBI allowed lawmakers to see a redacted informant file related to Congress' investigation into Biden, his son Hunter and Ukrainian company Burisma.

In a bombshell speech on the Senate floor Monday, GOP Senator Grassley accused the FBI of redacting information about the tapes from the FD-1023 informant file.

Grassley said the executive has 15 recordings of phone calls with Hunter and two with Joe. It remains unclear whether the FBI are in possession of any of the alleged tapes.

Prior to Grassley's speech earlier this month, during a joint White House press conference with British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, Biden shrugged off questions about allegations of his family's corruption.

Reporters shouted questions as the two prepared to leave the stage after spending 40 minutes responding to four pre-selected journalists.

And when asked about the allegations he said: 'Where's the money? I'm joking. It's a load of malarkey.'

Reporters also questioned Biden on the indictment of former president, and Biden's political rival, Donald Trump.

As Biden continued to walk away from the rabble, another reporter could be heard asking for comment on Trump's charges related to classified documents - to which the President responded with a defiant 'no.'

The FD-1023 form was created in June 2020 after the FBI discovered information provided in 2017 from the same informant reference by Grassley. The file resurfaced when a whistleblower contacted the senator, who then told House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer.

According to a 'highly credible' whistleblower, an internal FD-1023 memo created in 2020 details a $5 million 'arrangement' for an exchange of money for policy decisions between then-Vice President Biden and Mykola Zlochevsky (pictured) who referred to Joe Biden as the 'Big Guy.'

The form also indicated that then-Vice President Biden may have been involved in Burisma employing Hunter Biden, Grassley said during the explosive Senate floor speech.

The senator also slammed the FBI for finally agreeing to show lawmakers a redacted version of the FD-1023 form 'on the same day' that the Department of Justice announced a 37-count indictment of former President Donald Trump for alleged mishandling of classified records.

Trump was arraigned Tuesday in Miami and pleaded 'not guilty' to all 37 counts.

'Two standards of justice in this country will turn our constitutional Republic upside down,' Grassley said on the Senate floor Monday.

'Thanks to the political infection within the Biden Justice Department and FBI, we're well along the road for that to happen.'

On Tuesday, Sen. Ted Cruz questioned FBI Deputy Director Paul Abbate regarding the FD-1023 form.

Abbate told the Texas senator that he would not comment on the form or its contents.

'I'm just not going to comment on information we've received investigations or other matters.'

The FD-1023 form also indicates that then-Vice President Biden (left) may have been involved in Burisma employing Hunter Biden (right)

Cruz fired back, accusing Abbate and the FBI at large of 'stonewalling and covering up serious allegations of evidence of corruption from the President.'

After a long back-and-forth between the FBI and congressional Republicans, including a threat of holding the director in contempt of Congress, Wray finally allowed the form to be viewed by lawmakers in a secure setting last week.

After reviewing the document last week Comer told reporters the accusations contained in the form 'suggests a pattern of bribery' consistent with findings the committee has put out publicly.

It's called 'money laundering,' he said, saying it fits within the pattern of over $1 million in Romanian-linked payments to the Biden family revealed last month.

However, Grassley slammed the FBI for the 'disrespect' it has shown Congress in the manner it allowed the document to be read.

'The FBI made Congress review a redacted unclassified document in a classified facility,' the senator criticized.

'Based on the facts known to Congress and the public, it's clear that the Justice Department and FBI will use every resource to investigate candidate Trump, President Trump and former President Trump,' the senator stated.

He continued in to say the agencies haven't had the 'same laser focus' on the Biden family.

Grassley added that he want everyone to remember, that he has read the full unredacted version of the form and will continue to press the FBI for transparency with the American people.

Republicans led by James Comer and Chuck Grassley released a report digging in on over $10 million received by Biden family members from foreign actors

The 'confidential human source' behind the allegations in the form is a 'trusted, highly credible informant' who has been used by the FBI for over 10 years and has been paid over six figures, Republicans have said.

In addition, the FBI record is currently being used in an ongoing investigation that is being conducted by the Department of Justice in Delaware into Hunter Biden's finances.

Republicans have also told DailyMail.com that the Biden whistleblower in the alleged bribery scheme is now afraid 'someone could kill them if someone found out who they are' for bringing potentially damaging info to light about Biden when he was vice president.

In early May, Republicans led by Comer and Grassley released a report digging in on over $10 million received by Biden family members from foreign actors, including previously undisclosed $1 million in Romanian-linked payments, and a 'web' of 20 companies created while President Joe Biden was vice president and pushing anti-corruption efforts abroad.

The House Oversight Committee subpoenaed Biden family associate and Hunter Biden business partner Devon Archer, Monday evening.

Comer wrote that Archer's testimony is 'critical' to the Republicans' investigation based on his deep ties to Biden family business deals internationally - including in Ukraine.

He is demanded to appear for a deposition on June 16.

Comer also confirmed there are at least three additional FD-1023 forms in existence that Wray agreed committee leadership can view in coming days.
The lawyer for the woman accused of driving an Army veteran to suicide with a series of vitriolic text messages believes that the case does not 'rise to criminality.'

Attorney Phil DiLucente also told DailyMail.com exclusively that Mandie Reusch, 35, has been released from jail in Westmoreland County in Pennsylvania on bond. She facing charges of aiding suicide and harassment.

Her estranged boyfriend, Kevin Metzger, 37, and the father of her daughter, took his own life in June 2021 after receiving a barrage of vile and abusive messages from Reusch while he was away on military training, prosecutors say. Those 'heinous' messages allegedly included a video of the suspect having sex with another man.

DiLucente admitted that though the texts could be considered 'immoral' he was confident that Reusch would beat the case.

The attorney also rejected comparisons between the allegations and the 2014 case of Conrad Roy, then 18, and Michelle Carter, then 17.

Mandie Reusch, 35, pictured at the time of her daughter's birth in 2019

Kevin Metzger, 37, pictured with his daughter, in an online obituary, she's referred to as the 'light of his life'

Resuch's lawyer rejected comparisons between this case and the 2014 case of Michelle Carter, shown here. Carter was found guilty of involuntary manslaughter after encouraging her boyfriend, Conrad Roy, to kill himself

In 2017, Carter was found guilty of involuntary manslaughter after it emerged that she sent Roy text messages encouraging him to commit suicide. He ended his life via carbon monoxide poisoning. Carter was released from prison in 2020.

On the day Metzger died, he wrote on Facebook: 'I can't do this anymore. She needs [to be] punished. The courts are too slow,' according to the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review.

DiLucente said that prosecutors are comparing the two cases. '[Carter] was actually telling him reinforcing him to do it, planning it, the methods and the means, you don't have any of that here, what you have is an emotional relationship between two persons involving their child,' the attorney said.

The lawyer said that the messages sent by Reusch to Metzger could be considered 'immoral.'

'I do not see it fitting a criminal charge such as aiding a suicide. There was no coercion, duress, there was no methods and means,' he said.

'There's always two sides to a story and our side of the story will be told in the course of this case,' DiLucente added.

On Mother's Day 2021, Reusch texted Metzger to say she would be having sex with her new partner as their daughter 'calls him daddy,' prosecutors say

'The preliminary hearings are going to be long. And I think there's going to be a wealth of information discerned,' the lawyer concluded.

Reusch, of Greenburg, is due back in court for another pre-trial hearing on June 27.

Prosecutors have been investigating Metzger's death for two years.

Officials said his suicide note that began with the words 'maybe she was right' as well as postings on his Facebook page detailed the 'trail of torment and solicitation' that he was allegedly put through by Reusch. In a press release, prosecutors also called the messages she sent Metzger 'heinous and graphic.'

In court documents, Reusch is referred to as Metzger's 'on-again/off-again' girlfriend. The pair previously lived together in Irwin, Pennsylvania.

At a press conference, Trooper Steve Limani called the 'bullying' that Metzger endured as some of the worst he's ever seen.

'This is the next level or most extreme amount of bullying I've seen, read about, heard about, where somebody is constantly telling someone to end their life,' Limani said.

'You're talking about the three of the biggest triggers you can have when making someone feel awful,' he added.

In a separate interview with CBS Pittsburgh, DiLucente said: 'My God, if we're going to start prosecuting people for sending harsh texts to one another versus it being verbally communicated, then we are on a different path on our legal system.'

The messages from Reusch began in May 2021 while Metzger was away at military training. The suspect was at home at the time with the couple's daughter, the criminal complaint states.

In texts sent via WhatsApp, Reusch said that she was planning to move in with another man, that the man would become their daughter's new father and that Metzger would no longer be a part of her life.

'I hope for [their daughter's] sake that you do kill yourself. She would be better off not even knowing you,' Resuch wrote, according to documents.

On Mother's Day 2021, she texted Metzger to say she would be having sex with her new partner as their daughter 'calls him daddy.'

Another message said that Metzger would 'burn in hell' and that she would be dancing on his grave.

Following an argument over money, Resuch then sent Metzger a video her having sex with another man and destroyed some of his belongings.

She was first charged with harassment in June 2021 when Metzger made an initial complaint. Following his suicide, those charges went away.

Reusch is accused of aiding suicide, a felony, and harassment, a misdemeanor, she will make her first appearance in court on June 27

Metzger served in the US military for nearly 20 years and was away on military training when he received a barrage of vile messages, authorities say

'I actually want you to kill yourself because I think you are the worst person on this planet,' another message read.

'I will make it my dying wish to make sure you don't see your daughter and that she knows who you really are,' read another.

While another read: 'I hope you burn in hell and my daughter will dance on your grave with her real dad. Never talk to us again. Die slow and suffer.'

During the investigation, older messages surfaced. In December 2020, she told him: 'So glad I used you for what little money you have.  That was the only good thing youve ever done for me and the kids. Your money.'

In June 2020, she told him 'Go kill yourself. You aren't a real f*****g man.'

Metzger was found dead on June 18, 2021, two days before Father's Day. He was found after a friend asked police to perform a welfare check.

Messages in the lead-up to Father's Day show Reusch saying he wouldn't be allowed to see his daughter. A friend of Metzger's told police that he had asked her to ensure that the messages he was receiving 'get known to the world.'

After his death, Reusch deleted WhatsApp from her phone, police said.

'Mr. Metzger may still be here today if those messages did not influence and encourage him to take his own life,' Westmoreland County Nicole Ziccarelli said in a statement.

Ziccarelli described the messages as being 'continuous and unrelenting' only ending when Metzger took his own life at the age of 37.

Metzger, 37, was an outdoor enthusiast who was passionate about live music

'We extend our condolences to the Metzger family for their loss and the grief they have experienced since his death. We will not allow or tolerate this kind of egregious behavior,' the DA added.

In a 2020 feature in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette on dining establishments reopening during the Covid-19 pandemic, Reusch is referred to as a 'booking agent for a multinational alcoholic beverages company.'

The piece notes that at 11:30am on the day bars reopened, she was having a pint of Guinness.'

'I wanted to go out and have a cold draft. It met all my expectations. It was almost like things are normal again. Except for the masks,' she was quoted as saying.

According to his obituary, Metzger served in the US Army for nearly 20 years, including a period in South Korea where he worked on the patriot missile defense system.

Following his time in the US Army, he reenlisted in the Reserve, specializing in water purification.

He's referred to as a 'selfless and dedicated friend' who loved the outdoors and live music. At the time of his death, he had been working as a bartender.

'Above all though, he passionately cared for his daughter. He was a devoted father, and she was an extreme light in his life,' the tribute also says.

Reusch is charged with aiding suicide, a felony and harassment, a misdemeanor. She will make her first appearance in court on June 27.

If you or anybody you know is having suicidal thoughts, you can call 9-8-8 or the National Suicide Prevention hotline at 800-273-8255, or you can text TALK to 741741
Secretary of State Antony Blinken will travel to China this weekend as President Joe Biden's administration tries to move past the spy balloon fallout and reset relations with Beijing.

Blinken will be the most senior U.S. official to visit China since Biden took office.

He had originally been scheduled to visit earlier this year but that was cancelled after the discovery and shootdown of Chinese spy balloon floating over the United States.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken will travel to China this weekend

The State Department said Blinken had spoken with his Chinese counterpart, Foreign Minister Qin Gang, on Tuesday night to confirm his trip, which will begin on Sunday.

'While in Beijing, Secretary Blinken will meet with senior PRC officials where he will discuss the importance of maintaining open lines of communication to responsibly manage the U.S.-PRC relationship,' the department said, using the acronym for the Peoples Republic of China. 'He will also raise bilateral issues of concern, global and regional matters, and potential cooperation on shared transnational challenges.'

Blinken, who will be the first secretary of state to visit China since 2018, expects to meet with his Chinese counterpart, Foreign Minister Qin Gang on Sunday, as well as Chinas top diplomat, Wang Yi.

He could possibly meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Monday, according to the State Department.

Tensions erupted between Beijing and Washington in February with the discovery of the balloon over US airspace that floated over sensitive military websites as it crossed the country.

The balloon entered US airspace on 28 January and was shot down on 4 February after passing over US nuclear missile sites, including the Malmstrom Air Force Base in Montana.

Biden ordered it to be shot down, over the Atlantic, off the coast of South Carolina.

China originally claimed the balloon was a civilian weather balloon that strayed off course. The foreign ministry condemned its shooting down as an 'overreaction'.

In the aftermath, relations between the two nations frayed and played out mostly among low-level officials.

Chinese spy balloon drifts to the ocean after being shot down off the coast in Surfside Beach, South Carolina

President Joe Biden shakes hands with Chinese President Xi Jinping as they meet on the sidelines of the G20 leaders' summit in Bali, Indonesia in November - that is the last time to the men spoke

The route of the Chinese spy balloon

Biden has said he will speak to Chinese President Xi Jinping on the phone 'soon' but there has never been a date given. The two men last spoke in November at a G20 summit in Bali.

It was at the Bali summit that Biden had agreed to a Blinken visit.

There are other points of tension between the two nations, including US concern over China's actions in the Taiwan Strait and the South China Sea; Beijing's refusal to condemn Russia's invasion of Ukraine; and allegations from Washington that China is upping its spy game, including in Cuba.

Over the weekend the US confirmed the existence of a Chinese spy base on Cuba, which lies about 90 miles from the U.S., since 2019.

Blinken said the surveillance ran back to the Trump administration.

'When this administration took office in January 2021, we were briefed on a number of sensitive efforts by Beijing around the world to expand their overseas logistics basing collection infrastructure to allow them to project and sustain military power at a greater distance,' Blinken said.

'They were considering a number of sites around the world for that expansion, including intelligence collection facilities for intelligence collection in Cuba. In fact, based on the information we have, the PRC conducted an upgrade of its intelligence collection facilities in Cuba in 2019.'

The US is also concerned about human rights in China, particularly over the treatment of Uyghur Muslims and other minorities.

Jinping, for his part, has slammed what he calls 'comprehensive containment and suppression' of his country by the U.S., after Washington last year restricted Chinas access to valuable technology such as microchips.
More than $1.7billion worth of meth has been found hidden in shipments of canola oil in one of Australia's biggest ever drug busts.

A total of four shipments were were allegedly planned to be shipped Down Under between late 2022 and June 2023, with the first being intercepted and the subsequent three not making it out of Canada.

Almost 3,000 litres of liquid meth was intercepted by police in January, which led officers to uncover the alleged international smuggling plot by March.

The Australian Federal Police then worked with Canadian police to halt shipments of the drug from leaving Canada en route to Melbourne.

Six tonnes of liquid and crystal meth were discovered on shipments before being seized by police - equivalent to 19 million hits of the dangerous drug.

Meanwhile, Victorian police carried out raids and made six arrests in relation to the shipments, dubbed Operation Parkes, in Melbourne's west on Wednesday.

One of Australia's largest drug busts has uncovered $1.7billion worth of meth hidden in canola oil bottles, as key players behind the alleged trafficking syndicate are charged (part of the seizure pictured)

A total of four shipments were were allegedly planned to be shipped Down Under between late 2022 and June 2023, with the first being intercepted and the subsequent three not making it out of Canada (part of the seizure pictured)

Six men were arrested and charged in the sting, including two men, 38 and 32, who are alleged to be the kingpins in charge of the operation.

The 38-year-old man from Melbourne is alleged to have links to a Canadian crime network and is accused of being the 'primary onshore facilitator' for the imports.

The other man, 32, allegedly used his position within a logistics business to transport the meth.

The two men now face life in prison and charges of major drug importation and possession.

The other men aged, 51, 28, 26, and 19, are accused of trying to purchase the meth once ashore.

Six men were arrested and charged in the sting, including two men, 38 and 32, who are alleged to be the kingpins in charge of the operation

The two men now face life in prison and charges of major drug importation and possession

All six will appear before the court in Melbourne and police have said they expect more to be charged in relation to the alleged syndicate.

The bust was described as 'an extraordinary blow to organised crime' by Victoria Police Assistant Commissioner Bob Hill.

'Our message to these international drug lords is very clear: we will continue to work closely with our law enforcement and intelligence partners to crush your operations,' Assistant Commissioner Hill said.

It comes after two other massive drug seizures recently including a $1billion haul of cocaine bound for WA and almost $1.6billion worth of drugs hidden in marble stone discovered in Sydney.
A Russian MP and close ally of Chechen warlord Ramzan Kadyrov is believed wounded in a recent Ukrainian artillery attack that one Russian colonel claimed was orchestrated by members of Russia's own Wagner group led by Yevgeny Prigozhin.

Moscow sources denied Ukrainian reports that Adam Delimkhanov was killed, but admitted the powerful Chechen figure had been injured in the attack which took place in Ukraine's southern Zaporizhzhia region.

In a dramatic departure from his typical hate-filled rants and 'no mercy' approach to the war in Ukraine, a frantic Kadyrov appealed to Kyiv's forces for information on the whereabouts and condition of his right-hand man.

'I myself can't find Adam Delimkhanov in any way. He doesn't get in touch,' Kadyrov wrote on the Telegram messaging app.

'I ask Ukrainian intelligence to provide information on exactly what place and what positions were hit, so that I can still find my dear BROTHER. I promise a generous reward and I ask you to help.'

Earlier this week Delimkhanov, 53, was in Belgorod region to meet with governor Vyacheslav Gladkov, arranging Chechen forces to bolster the Russian border which has been hit by incursions from anti-Putin partisans.

But Ukrainian political scientist Kirill Sazonov, who is fighting in the Armed Forces of Ukraine, said Delimkhanov's off road convoy was hit during a visit to Primorsk, in Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia region, and was attacked by gunners from the Banderlog MTR group.

Adam Delimkhanov is a close associate of Chechen Republic leader Ramzan Kadyrov

Adam Delimkhanov (left) is pictured alongside Chechen warlord Ramzan Kadyrov

Ukrainian service members fire a shell from a howitzer at a front line, as Russia's attack on Ukraine continues, in Zaporizhzhia Region

A Russian colonel alleged that the Ukrainian artillery attack that targeted Delimkhanov was orchestrated by members of Russia's own Wagner group led by Yevgeny Prigozhin (pictured)

Ukrainian political scientist Kirill Sazonov, who is fighting in the Armed Forces of Ukraine, said Delimkhanov's off road convoy was hit during a visit to Primorsk, in Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia region

Sazonov claimed that the deputy and a number of his associates died.

'Twelve helicopters arrived at the scene to secretly and promptly take out the bodies,' said Sazonov, who later posted the coordinates of the alleged Ukrainian strike.

Lt-Col Roman Venevitin - former commander of Russia's 72nd brigade - sensationally claimed that Delimkhanov was attacked after his location was leaked to 'enemy intelligence' by pro-Putin Wagner mercenary troops led by Yevgeny Prigozhin.

Venevitin was recently disarmed and captured by members of the Wagner group after he allegedly shot at a Wagner vehicle, underscoring the tension between members of Russia's regular army and the Wagner mercenary units.

Prigozhin and Kadyrov were on good terms earlier in the war and agreed that Moscow's forces needed to step up their assaults on Ukraine, appealing to Putin to increase the intensity of Russia's 'special military operation'.

But the pair recently fell out after Prigozhin accused Kadyrov's forces of being unable to hold their positions in Donetsk. Kadyrov later retorted, calling Prigozhin 'a blogger who screams and shouts to the world'.

'They have now taken revenge on Ramzan Kadyrov, who earlier threatened to reveal the sources of wealth of Prigozhin, who has been a food supplier for our army since 2006,' Venevitin said.

'Adam Delimkhanov, right-hand man of the President of Chechnya, is in critical condition after a targeted artillery attack by the UkroNazis.'

A dozen helicopters were needed rot repatriate the wounded and bodies, he claimed.

'Unfortunately, the losses are significant,' Venevitin concluded.

Lt-Col Roman Venevitin - former commander of Russia's 72nd brigade - claimed that Delimkhanov was attacked after his location was leaked to 'enemy intelligence' by pro-Putin Wagner mercenary troops

Adam Delimkhanov, left, pictured with the Governor of Belgorod region of Russia Vyacheslav Gladkov

Kirill Sazonov shared coordinates of the attack which reportedly wounded Delimkhanov, claiming it took place near Primorsk in Zaporizhzhia region of Ukraine

Adam Delimkhanov (left), Ramzan Kadyrov

Delimkhanov represents Chechnya in the Russian parliament, and was made a Hero of Russia - the country's highest honour - by Putin.

He is the closest ally and cousin of Kadyrov who in turn is a top Putin cheerleader, supplying thousands of troops to the dictator's illegal war in Ukraine.

Kadyrov said this week that he had instructed Delimkhanov to meet the Belgorod governor after the failure of Russian troops to defend the border.

'I am sure that, given the high combat capability of the [Chechen] Zapad-Akhmat battalion, the goals set for the unit will be achieved without much effort,' said Kadyrov.

Close Putin ally Vyacheslav Volodin insisted in a statement to Russian Parliament that Adam Delimkhanov was alive and said he had spoken to him.

But he did not give further details about an alleged strike on the MP.

'Just now we've seen information about [Russian MP] Adam Delimkhanov, that he is wounded, [and] whether he is alive or not.

'I have just spoken to him. He is alive[and] wishes health to use all.'

The news was met with applause from Russian MPs, but concern grew when Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov said: 'We received this information with great concern, we are worried, like everyone else, for the Hero of Russia.

'We hope that in the very near future there will be some clarified information about what happened,' suggesting the Kremlin itself is not certain of Delimkhanov's condition.
The National Park Service said the couple had not been wearing life jackets at the time and were in a portion of the lake that was around 500 feet deep

Valenti's kayak had begun filling with 50-degree water and he had to abandon it and tread water. His fiancee Marlene tried to save him, but was unable

A New York man drowned in a Washington state park where he proposed to his fiance after his kayak filled with water and she was unable to save his life.

Travis Valenti, 37, of Massapequa, New York, is presumed dead after his kayak overturned on Lake Crescent in Olympic National Park around 2pm on Friday.

Valenti's kayak had begun filling with 50-degree water and he had to abandon it and tread water. His fiancee, Marlene, tried to rescue him, according to Fox 13 Seattle, but overturned her kayak in the process. She managed to swim to shore but Valenti was unable to save himself.

'Travis get her the extra little push that she needed to get safe,' his brother Austin told News 12 Long Island.

The part of the lake Valenti and his fiancee were in was around 400 to 500 feet deep and roughly a quarter-mile offshore, the National Park Service said.

Efforts are underway to retrieve Valenti's remains.

Travis Valenti, 37, of Massapequa, New York, is presumed dead after his kayak overturned on Lake Crescent in Olympic National Park around 2pm on Friday, just days after proposing to his fiancee

Valenti's kayak had begun filling with 50-degree water and he had to abandon it and tread water. His fiancee, Marlene, tried to rescue him, but was unable. She managed to get to shore, but he was unable to save himself

The National Park Service looked for his body near the Log Cabin Resort, but were unable to find the remains. Valenti and Marlene were not wearing life jackets at the time of the drowning, according to officials.

Valenti had proposed to Marlene just days before.

'It started out as the best trip of their lives and took just a tragic turn that nobody could really see coming,' Valenti's brother Austin told News 12 Long Island.

His family has started a GoFundMe to help pay for search and recovery teams to help bring his body back to Long Island.

'We need to be able to find him [and] bring him home,' the family wrote in the fundraiser, which has raised $24,776 of its $20,000 goal.

The part of the lake Valenti and his fiancee were in was around 400 to 500 feet deep and roughly a quarter-mile offshore

His friend and family described Valenti (pictured with friends) as having the ability to 'light up a room and make anybody laugh,' who had a 'beautiful' relationship

His family has started a GoFundMe to help pay for search and recovery teams to help bring his body back to Long Island (pictured: Valenti with friends)

Austin described his brother has having the ability to 'light up a room and make anybody laugh,' who had a 'beautiful' relationship.

'He was just everybodys favorite guy, including Marlenes and all of ours, they were just a beautiful couple, and they had this beautiful life planned out and it just gets cut so short out of nowhere,' he told News 12 Long Island.

The National Park Service warns park-goers about 'sudden immersion' in Lake Crescent, as the cold water could 'impact a persons breathing and over time, their ability to move extremities.'

They advise all swimmers to use the buddy system and to always wear a life jacket.
At least 79 migrants have drowned after a packed boat reportedly carrying 700 sank off the Greek coast today before a 300ft megayacht rescued more than 100 survivors from the Mediterranean Sea.

The victims, understood to predominantly be men from Pakistan, Syria and Egypt, drowned when the boat capsized off Greece's southern Peloponnese peninsula, leading to the deadliest migrant shipwreck in the country this year.

Coast guard, navy and merchant vessels fanned out for a vast search-and-rescue operation that also included a plane and a helicopter to rescue those who had been attempting to travel from Libya to Italy.

Authorities said 104 people have been rescued so far after the boat sank overnight in one of the deepest areas of the Mediterranean some 45 miles southwest of Peloponnese.

It was unclear how many passengers might still be in the water or trapped in the sunken vessel but authorities said they would continue the rescue effort through the night.

The crowded boat is pictured before it capsized off Greece 's southern Peloponnese peninsula. Scores of people cover practically every free stretch of deck on a battered fishing boat

Medical staffs carry a survivor on a stretcher outside a warehouse at the port in Kalamata town

Rescued migrants find shelter at a depot, following a shipwreck off shore in Kalamata after their boat capsized

Coastguard spokesman Nikolaos Alexiou told state TV ERT that the boat 'capsized and sank' early Wednesday in a location that is 'among the deepest in the Mediterranean'.

'The outer deck was full of people, and we presume that the interior (of the vessel) would also have been full,' he said. 'It looks as if there was a shift among the people who were crammed on board and it capsized.'

As many as 700 people were thought to have been on the the sunken migrant boat, but Greek authorities said they could not yet confirm the number.

'We fear there will be a very large number of missing persons,' a migration ministry source told AFP.

The coastguard spokesman said 'exact numbers cannot be safely given' on those aboard, but the boat was 'overloaded.'

'The fishing boat was 25-30 metres long. Its deck was full of people, and we assume the interior was just as full,' he told ERT. The survivors are mainly from Syria, Pakistan and Egypt, Alexiou said.

The Coast Guard said that the migrants initially rejected help, refusing food and other supplies, when they got into trouble.

However, scores of migrants that were ultimately rescued were seen arriving into the port of Kalamata on the 306ft Mayan Queen IV yacht owned by the late Mexican billionaire Alberto Bailleres.

A survivor is carried on a trolley by medical staff after a boat carrying hundreds of migrants sank in international waters in the Ionian Sea

Paramedics carry an injured survivor of a shipwreck to an ambulance at the port in Kalamata town

Migrants are pictured onboard a boat during a rescue operation, before their boat capsized on the open sea, off Greece

Migrants rest in a shelter, following a rescue operation, after their boat capsized on the open sea

Rescued migrants find shelter at a depot, following a shipwreck offshore in Kalamata , Greece

Migrants covered with blankets find shelter at a depot following the fatal shipwreck today

A red cross worker speaks to after the fishing boat they were on capsized, killing at least 79

At least 79 migrants have drowned after a packed boat reportedly carrying up to 700 sunk off the Greek coast before a 300ft megayacht (pictured) rescued 100 survivors from the Med

Authorities said 104 people have been rescued so far after the boat sank overnight. Pictured: Survivors receiving urgent medical attention

Coast guard, navy and merchant vessels fanned out for a vast search-and-rescue operation that also included a plane and a helicopter.

Harrowing images showed medics rushing the survivors off the yacht onto stretchers, while others walked around bare foot and draped in blankets.

The $175million (137.9m) megayacht, which was built by Blohm and Voss, was launched in 2008 and can carry up to 16 guests and 24 crewmembers.

The Mayan Queen IV came under the spotlight in August 2018 when 20-year-old Australian Instagram model and crew member Sinead McNamara was found hanging from the back of the billionaire's superyacht in Greece.

Twenty-five survivors ranging in age from 16 to 49 were hospitalized with hypothermia or fever.

At the port of Kalamata, around 70 exhausted survivors bedded down in sleeping bags and blankets provided by rescuers in a large warehouse, while paramedics set up tents outside for anyone who needed first aid.

Katerina Tsata, head of a Red Cross volunteer group in Kalamata, said the migrants were also given psychological support.

'They suffered a very heavy blow, both physical and mental,' she said.

Rescue volunteer Constantinos Vlachonikolos said nearly all the survivors were men.

'They were very worn out. How could they not be?' he said. Rescuers said many of the people pulled from the water couldn't swim and were clutching debris. The coast guard said none had life jackets.

The Greek coast guard said that 79 bodies have been recovered so far. Survivors included 30 people from Egypt, 10 from Pakistan, 35 from Syria and two Palestinians, the agency said.

The Italy-bound boat carrying migrants is believed to have sailed from the Tobruk area in eastern Libya

Survivors were seen draped in blankets with no shoes on as they safely returned to land following the shocking incident

Greek medics urgently took survivors away from the yacht on stretchers to try and save their lives

The Italy-bound boat was believed to have left the Tobruk area in eastern Libya - a country plunged into chaos following a NATO-backed uprising that toppled and killed longtime autocrat Moammar Gadhafi in 2011. Human traffickers have benefited from the instability, and made Libya one of the main departure points for people attempting to reach Europe on smuggler's boats.

The Italian coast guard first alerted Greek authorities and the European Union border protection agency, Frontex, about the approaching vessel on Tuesday.

The United Nations migration agency, IOM, said initial reports suggested up to 400 people were on board. A network of activists said it received a distress call from a boat in the same area whose passengers said 750 people were on board - but it was not clear if that was the vessel that sank.

After that first alert, Frontex aircraft and two merchant ships spotted the boat heading north at high speed, according to the Greek coast guard. More aircraft and ships were sent to the area.

But repeated calls to the vessel offering help were declined, the coast guard said in a statement.

'In the afternoon a merchant vessel approached the ship and provided it with food and supplies, while the (passengers) refused any further assistance,' it said. A second merchant ship that approached it later offered further supplies and assistance, which were turned down, it added.

In the evening, a coast guard patrol boat reached the vessel 'and confirmed the presence of a large number of migrants on the deck,' the statement said. 'But they refused any assistance and said they wanted to continue to Italy.'

The Mayan Queen IV yacht (pictured), which was built by Blohm and Voss, was launched in 2008 and can carry up to 16 guests and 24 crewmembers

Ambulances and rescue crews wait for the arrival of migrants at the port of Kalamata

There are unconfirmed reports that there were more than 700 migrants on the vessel which sunk in the ocean

Survivors of the devastating shipwreck rest at a warehouse at the port in Kalamata town

The coast guard boat accompanied the migrant vessel, which, the statement said, capsized and sank early Wednesday, prompting a massive rescue operation by all the ships in the area.

Alarm Phone, a network of activists that provides a hotline for migrants in trouble, meanwhile, said it was contacted by people on a boat in distress on Tuesday afternoon. That boat was in the same general area as the one that sank, but it was not clear if it was the same vessel.

The organization notified Greek authorities and Frontex. In one communication with Alarm Phone, migrants reported the vessel was overcrowded and that the captain had abandoned the ship on a small boat, according to the group. They asked for food and water, which was provided by a merchant ship.

When they have larger boats, Mediterranean smugglers are increasingly trying to stay in international waters as they pass by Greece to try to avoid its coast guard patrols.

On Sunday, 90 migrants on a US-flagged yacht were rescued in the area after they made a distress call.

Six Greek coast guard vessels, a navy frigate, a military transport plane, an air force helicopter, several private vessels and a drone from Frontex are currently taking part in the search for the boat that sank Wednesday.

Greek President Katerina Sakellaropoulou headed for the area where rescued migrants are being tended to and planned campaign events by political parties ahead of June 25 national elections were called off.

Separately Wednesday, a yacht with 81 migrants on board was towed to a port on the south coast of Greece's island of Crete after authorities received a distress call.
They have been arrested several times over the past few years and faced accusations of grooming children

Miller, 30, who uses they/them pronouns, made their first public appearance at the premiere of The Flash on Monday

Warner Bros Discovery is facing backlash online for 'ignoring' Ezra Miller's alleged crimes after The Flash star publicly promoted their new film

Warner Bros. Discovery is facing backlash for 'ignoring' Ezra Miller's alleged crimes after The Flash star was seen walking the red carpet for their new movie premiere.

Miller, 30, who uses they/them pronouns, made their first public appearance in almost two years at the premiere of The Flash on Monday, smiling as they strutted the red carpet and taking selfies with fans.

The actor later presented the opening speech at the Grauman's Chinese Theater in Los Angeles. They thanked Warner Bros bosses for 'their grace and discernment and care in the context of my life and in bringing this moment to fruition.'

But Miller's appearance was met with fury online with many commenters referencing troubling allegations against him, including grooming a teenage girl and other crimes which he has admitted, such as unlawful trespass in Vermont last year.

The studio is standing by the star, with director Andy Muschietti insisting that he is the only actor who can play The Flash. 'I don't think there's anyone that can play that character as well as they did,' he said on a recent podcast.

Ezra Miller, 30, made their first public appearance in almost two years at the premiere of their new film The Flash on Monday

The nonbinary actor who uses they/them pronouns has faced a slew of legal troubles over the past few years

Many online have now hit out at Warner Bros for continuing to support the embattled actor

Miller has been arrested several times for assault and burglary; faced accusations of grooming a teenage girl who ran away with them; and reportedly provided housing for a mother and three young children at an unlicensed cannabis farm in Vermont despite opposition from their father.

Miller was accused last year of grooming a 12-year-old girl by the parents of Tokata Iron Eyes, a Native American activist.

They filed a protection order against the actor, but their now teenage daughter disputes the claims.

Miller was also arrested twice in Hawaii in early 2022  once for disorderly conduct and harassment where he yelled obscenities at a woman singing karaoke and lunged at a man playing darts, then again for second-degree assault after he allegedly threw a chair at a woman.

Just a few months later, in June 2022, the actor was accused of living with a Hawaii-based mother of three and her young children at his Vermont farmhouse, surrounded by guns and large quantities of marijuana.

The children's father said the actor was putting them in danger.

By August 2022, Miller was again arrested and charged with felony burglary after police said they broke into a home and stole bottles of liquor.

But Warner Bros executives have continued to support the star, even suggesting they may reprise their role as the titular superhero in a possible sequel.

'Ezra Miller belongs in prison not a premiere,' one Twitter user wrote. 'WTF is wrong with the people running WBD and DC?

'This is not OK, your "star" is a f***ing criminal,' noting that Miller had two mugshots in 2022 alone and calling for a boycott of the movie.

Others noted that the studio seemed to be standing by Miller, as others try to back away from celebrities who have been accused of wrongdoing.

'This industry never ceases to disgust me,' a Twitter user wrote after Miller appeared on the red carpet.

'With y'all giving Ezra Miller this superstar [treatment] as if that motherf***er isn't an ACTUAL criminal and groomer, don't be launching boycott campaigns IF Marvel keeps Jonathan Majors as Kang and Tenoch Herta as Namor because of this.'

He was referring to other actors who have been accused of sexual assault.

Another tweeted: 'It's highly annoying to me though the difference in studio reactions to Ezra Miller v. Jonathan Majors though.

'Like why do [they] get to keep [their] whole movie with these pedophilia allegations and violence and the director stands behind [them] like, "No one else can play their role?"'

A third also tweeted: 'The world is watching Marvel,' referring to Warner Bros rival studio owned by Disney.

'I hope there is swift justice for the victims of Tenoch Huerta and Jonathan Majors,' the user wrote, adding that they 'fully expect' Marvel Studio executive Kevin Feige 'to do the right thing and NOT follow what James Gunn is doing over at DC.

'WBD and DC's PR cover-up of Ezra Miller's crimes is truly disgusting.'

Several other Twitter users even brought up other celebrities who faced even more backlash, with one person tweeting: 'Winona Ryder got blacklisted for years because she was caught shoplifting. Ezra Miller literally kidnaps a child and gets no consequences.'

And another said, 'Semi-unrelated but I've seen more "backlash" for Halle Bailey simply being a black woman accepting the role of Ariel than I have for Ezra Miller committing literal crimes.'

DailyMail.com has reached out to Warner Bros Discovery for comment.

Several Twitter users noted the difference between Warner Bros apparent acceptance of Miller with how other actors have been treated in the past

In August, Miller released a statement apologizing for their behavior while revealing that they were seeking treatment for 'complex mental health issues.'

Their reps told Variety in a statement: 'Having recently gone through a time of intense crisis, I now understand that I am suffering complex mental health issues and have begun ongoing treatment.'

The statement continued: 'I want to apologize to everyone that I have alarmed and upset with my past behavior. I am committed to doing the necessary work to get back to a healthy, safe and productive stage in my life.'

The future of The Flash franchise was left uncertain at that point, but studio executives continued to push forward the $200 million project.

Warner Bros studio executives continued to push forward the $200 million The Flash film despite Miller's run-ins with the law. The actor is pictured in the film as the titular superhero

In an upcoming episode of The Discourse podcast, the film's director said he would like the actor to reprise the superhero role in a potential sequel

It is now apparently continuing to stand by the star, with director Andy Muschietti saying in a recent podcast appearance he would like Miller to reprise the role of the titular hero in a possible sequel.

'If [a sequel] happens, yes, [Ezra would play The Flash],' he said on The Discourse podcast. 'I don't think there's anyone that can play that character as well as they did.'

He continued: 'The other depictions of the character are great, but this particular vision of the character, they just excelled in doing it. And, as you said, the two Barrys  it feels like a character that was made for them.'

His producing partner, Barbara Muschietti, also raved about Miller's performance and expressed her desire for them to reprise their role in the DC Universe.

'In principal photography, Ezra was brilliant and the most committed and the most professional [actor].

'Ezra gave everything for this role  physically, creatively, emotionally,' she continued. 'They were absolutely supreme.'
But who else was he married to? Read on to find out about his previous wives

The former nightclub owner was married to EastEnders-legend Barbara Windsor

Ronnie Knight has died at the age of 89 after battling with Parkinson's disease over the last few years.

His condition was said to have deteriorated before he contracted pneumonia and died in a nursing home in Cambridgeshire.

He was jailed in 1995 for his involvement in a 6million armed robbery at a Security Express depot in east London after a decade on the run in Spain.

He denied involvement in the robbery but pleaded guilty to handling stolen bank notes. Knight was released from prison on parole after three years and led a quiet life in Cambridge.

Knight always denied that he was a 'gangster' and preferred the term 'loveable rascal'.

The former nightclub owner was married three times before his death, but who were his ex-wives? Here is everything you need to know.

Ronnie Knight died at age 89 after contracting pneumonia, although a prolific 'gangster' who was arrested for his involvement in an armed robbery, he spent his final days in Cambridge

Ronnie Knight Barbara Windsor while still married to his first wife, the two married in 1964 and were together for 21 years until Barbara requested a divorce

Who was Barbara Windsor?

Barbara Windsor was Knight's second wife, the two were married in London in 1964 and divorced just over two decades later in 1985.

Barbara became a household name as the buxom blonde Daphne Honeybutt in the Carry On films and later joined EastEnders as the long-standing character Peggy Mitchell.

She played the Queen Vic's landlady from 1994, coining the iconic phrase 'Get outta my pub' before being killed off in 2016.

Actress Barbara Windsor pictured with Ronnie Knight. He has passed away at the age of 89

Knight was married to Dame Barbara when he was an east London nightclub boss who knew the notorious criminal brothers Ronald and Reginald Kray.

The flashy nightclub owner was already married when he met her, and later confessed: 'I've loved all the ladies in my life. But I found what I wanted with Barbara.'

They did not have any children during their 21 year marriage, and Barbara had a prolific affair with her Carry On co-star Sid James.

Barbara requested a divorce when Knight fled to Spain after being wanted by police in connection with the 6million Security Express robbery in 1983.

Knight didn't say goodbye to Barbara when he jetted to Spain, later saying she was 'fixed on this showbusiness thing.'

He denied that he fled because of the robbery, saying: 'I just woke up that morning and thought, I'm going.'

Barbara was diagnosed with Alzheimer's in 2014, she kept her illness private and her husband Scott Mitchell announced her illness to the public four years later.

In her final months Barbara was moved to a care home, she died at aged 83 in December 2020.

Knight was jailed for his involvement in a 6million armed robbery at a Security Express depot in Shoreditch after a decade on the run in Spain

Knight denied he was a 'gangster', preferring instead the term 'loveable rascal'

Dame Barbara pouring champagne for her then- husband Knight with her mother Rose

Knight didn't say goodbye to Barbara when he jetted to Spain, later saying she was 'fixed on this showbusiness thing.'

Who is Sue Haylock?

Knight's third and final marriage was to Sue Haylock, the two married in 1987 just two years after his divorce from the iconic actress Barbara.

Their wedding took place in the town of Fuengirola on the Costa del Sol in southern Spain.

Knight had built a villa there in 1975, years before he fled there as a fugitive in 1984.

Sue and Ronnie did not have children together, and separated in 1994.

Knight had been supported by his ex-wife Sue in the last few years of his life, she was described by a friend as a 'tower of strength' during his battle with Parkinson's disease.

The friend added: 'A lot of people are going to be upset to hear the news about his death. He was a rogue  but a very loveable one.'

Sue Haylock (pictured above) looked after Ronnie Knight in his final days as he battled against Parkinson's disease

Who is Elizabeth White?

Before marrying the famous actress Barbara, Knight was married to Elizabeth white.

They married in 1954 and divorced before 1964, he was still married to Elizabeth when he met Barbara.

Knight had two children from his marriage to Elizabeth, daughter Lorraine born in 1956 and son Gary in 1959.
A British businesswoman has died after falling from a hotel balcony in Madrid.

Eden Young, a podcast host, from Manchester, who ran the pop-culture show Polyester Podcast, was visiting the Spanish capital with her friend Gina to cover a festival in the city.

Her younger brother, Cameron, paid tribute to his sister.

He said: 'Eden, my beautiful big sister. I am truly heartbroken, I am going to miss you more than I can begin to explain right now.

'It pains me deeply to think of a life without you as you have been in mine since the day I was born.

Eden Young, a podcast host, from Manchester, ran the pop-culture show Polyester Podcast

'Eden you were genuine, kind, caring, independent, strong, sarcastic, fun, sassy, loving, creative, warm, fearless, welcoming and absolutely gorgeous inside and out.

'I really hope one day we can meet again, I will love you forever my big sister, my best mate.'

Eden's heartbroken family have launched a GoFundMe to fly her body home to the UK.

They said: 'On June 8th my beautiful sister Eden tragically passed away whilst she was on holiday with her best friend Gina in Madrid.

'Eden was in Madrid preparing to do some press work for her company Polyester, a company she absolutely adored working for, at a festival she had revisited for years with her closest friends.

'A few days before the festival took place Eden accidentally fell to her death from the accommodation she was staying at.

'This news saddens us all close to Eden more than words can comprehend right now.

'Due to the circumstances of Edens's death, we are having to pay to fly her body home from Spain to be with us so we can give her the send-off we know she would want and more than deserves.

'Any donations large or small are much appreciated during this devastating time.'

Eden's family initially set out to raise 5,000 and have already raised more than 26,000.

They said that extra raised money will be donated to JackTheLad - a charity for safer holidays abroad.

Paying tribute to Eden, devastated Gina described how she found her friend after she died.

She said: 'I can't even put into words the depths of pain I am feeling over what happened to my gorgeous, tenacious, caring, gobby best friend last week.

'It still doesn't feel real. Finding you that morning and dealing with your loss is finding a new way to break my heart every second.'

Eden Young, pictured with her friend Gina, died after falling from a hotel balcony in Madrid

Eden Young's family have launched a GoFundMe page to fly her body home from Spain

Polyester Zine also paid tribute, stating: 'We love you, Eden.'

Indian street food restaurant, BundoBust, where Eden was previously employed, also shared a poignant message.

They said: 'This is the hardest thing we've ever had to share, but we're absolutely devastated to hear about the passing of Eden, OG member of the Bundo Manchester team who played a huge part in Bundo's formative years.

'A genuine one-of-a-kind, Eden made an impact on everybody she worked with and met at Bundo, all over the Manchester hospitality scene, and more recently through her journalism and broadcasting which earned her the kind of international audience that a personality like Eden's was always destined for.'
House Republicans are beginning their formal investigation into Alejandro Mayorkas' 'dereliction of duty' as they weigh whether to pursue impeachment of the Homeland Security secretary.

In a press conference Wednesday Homeland Security Chairman Mark Green said the secretary had demonstrated a 'failure to understand what's going on at the border' and had 'either violated or subverted' at least 10 U.S. laws.

Asked specifically what the legal basis for the accusation was, Green said Mayorkas had lied to Congress and failed to do his job of securing the border.

'Mayorkas has blatantly lied to the United States Congress under oath on multiple occasions and lied to the American people at least 58 times.'

House Republicans are beginning their formal investigation into Alejandro Mayorkas' 'dereliction of duty' as they weigh whether to pursue impeachment of the Homeland Security secretary

Green predicted the investigation would wrap in about 11-12 weeks, but was hesitant to say whether it would end in pursuing impeachment.

He said his investigation has five phases. Once it's complete, he'll hand the findings off to the Judiciary Committee, which will decide whether to pursue impeachment.

'We haven't even gotten to that word, that process. Our goal here is we're starting with what you have here, and we're going to get more information.'

He said he hoped President Biden would fire Mayorkas instead.

In a press conference Wednesday Homeland Security Chairman Mark Green said Mayorkas had demonstrated a 'failure to understand what's going on at the border' and had 'either violated or subverted' at least 10 U.S. laws

US doctors treated migrants on the southern border of Mexico, where they remain stranded in precarious conditions due to increasing immigration restrictions after almost a month of the end of the US Title 42

'President Biden probably doesn't know all the stuff we're going to show in this report, and I hope when he hears all this when he sees all this, that he'll act responsibly and take care of the problem.'

In a report laying out Mayorkas' 'failures,' Republicans noted there have been 6.1 million apprehensions at U.S. borders since President Biden took office, plus another estimated 1.5 million 'gotaways' who evaded border detection.

Green blamed Mayorkas' undoing of '89 policies from two previous administrations.'

The House Homeland Security Committee is holding a Trump-era DHS officials on Wednesday.

'Today's hearing will begin the process of digging into all of the details  the cause and effect of Alejandro Mayorkas's dereliction of duty,' Green said.

Many had worried about a surge of migrants at the southern border in light of the expiration of Title 42, the pandermic-era policy allowing for immediate expulsion, while Mayorkas insisted DHS had other measures at the ready to secure the border.

Border apprehensions ticked up in April, before the policy's end, to about 211,000 - around 20,000 higher than March. Those figures are still a drop from Decembers 250,000 apprehensions.
A Florida cop has been arrested after he was caught speeding in his police cruiser on the way to work before arguing with a sheriff's deputy and then speeding off.

Alexander Shaouni was allegedly driving at speeds of 80mph in a 45-mph zone without his light or sirens on before he was pulled over last Friday.

A Seminole County Sheriffs deputy stopped the Orlando officer after he saw him race past him on a local road and had to drive at over 100mph to catch up with him.

Once Shaouni pulled over, he argued with the deputy and asked why he was being stopped as he was going to work and refused to hand over his driver's license.

He then took off in his patrol car and was later charged with resisting an officer, reckless driving, and fleeing and eluding a law enforcement officer with lights and sirens active, according to WESH.

Florida officer Alexander Shaouni was arrested after he was caught speeding in his police cruiser on the way to work before arguing with a sheriff's deputy and driving away

He was allegedly driving at speeds of 80mph in a 45-mph zone without his light or sirens on before he was pulled over last Friday

Shaouni was suspended from the Orlando Police Department while an investigation takes place.

Dashboard footage captured the moment Shaouni drove past the sheriff's deputy who turned his car around and activated his lights to pursue the officer.

It shows him speeding down a two-lane road to catch up with him and the deputy is heard saying: 'Over 100 miles an hour trying to catch up to him.'

He finally catches up to the police officer who seemingly turns on his own lights and continues driving.

The sheriff's deputy then shouts out of the passenger window to tell him to pull over before he finally stops.

Shaouni then steps out of his car and asks: 'What?,' bodycam footage shows.

'I am going into work, my man, why are you trying to pull me over as Im going into work?'

And the deputy replies: 'Because you are going 80 in a 45.'

Shaouni responds: 'I am going to work,' before pointing to his Orlando Police department uniform.

'What does it look like Im dressed for, what does it look like Im dressed for,' he says.

The sheriff's deputy continues to ask him for his driver's license to conduct the traffic stop but Shaouni refused and got back into his car and drove off.

He immediately reported the incident over the radio and read out the vehicle's license plate.

A Seminole County Sheriffs deputy stopped the Orlando Police Officer after he saw him race past him on a local road and had to drive at over 100mph to catch up with him

Once Shaouni pulled over, he argued with the deputy and asked why he was being stopped as he was going to work and refused to hand over his driver's license

He then took off in his patrol car and was later charged with resisting an officer, reckless driving, and fleeing and eluding a law enforcement officer with lights and sirens active

Shaouni was identified through his badge and the police cruiser's number and the bodycam footage showed his name written across the chest of his police vest.

He later turned himself in to the Seminole County Jail on Friday and was charged before being released on a $9,000 bond.

The officer was suspended shortly after and has been relieved of his duties while an investigation takes place.

'The Orlando Police Department was notified by the Seminole County Sheriffs Office on Friday, June 9th that OPD Officer Alexander Shaouni was involved in an incident that occurred in Seminole County that resulted in criminal charges,' the Orlando Police Department said in a statement shared with WESH 2 News.

'Officer Shaouni has been relieved of duty pending the Seminole County Sheriffs criminal investigation and OPDs Internal Affairs investigation.'
The UK high commission in Sierra Leone has lost around 2million in a diesel fuel scam, it was revealed today.

The top civil servant at the Foreign Office blamed 'collusion' by local staff as he informed MPs of the eye-watering hit.

In a letter to the Foreign Affairs Committee, permanent secretary Philip Barton said the issue related to 'the procurement of diesel fuel for the High Commission's electricity generators'.

'Work is ongoing to calculate the amount lost as accurately as possible and to establish the full background as to how the loss took place,' he wrote.

A stock image of the British High Commission in Sierra Leone

In a letter to MPs, Foreign Office permanent secretary Philip Barton said the issue related to 'the procurement of diesel fuel for the High Commission's electricity generators'

'From the work undertaken so far, we believe a number of Country-Based Staff colluded to circumvent controls.

'The staff believed to have been involved have been suspended and disciplinary action is ongoing.

'Immediate action was taken after the issue was identified.'

Sir Philip said 'a programme of improvements to controls has already been initiated at the High Commission'.

'I have commissioned a lessons learned review to identify what went wrong, assess roles and responsibilities, and review the application of escalation and supervisory controls.

'Additional internal audit and investigation follow up work is scheduled for later this year.'
Sen. Chuck Grassley says the Ukrainian foreign national kept 17 recordings of Joe and Hunter 'as a sort of insurance policy'

A group of GOP senators are demanding Attorney General Merrick Garland appoint a special counsel to investigate 'any wrongdoing' by the first family as details related to an alleged $5 million 'arrangement' for an exchange of money for policy decisions between then-Vice President Joe Biden and a foreign national continue to surface.

According to a 'highly credible' whistleblower, an internal FD-1023 memo created in 2020 based off information from a highly-paid FBI informant apparently details the alleged bribe.

Sens. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., JD Vance, R-Ohio, and Mike Braun, R-Ind., state in their letter that 'the outstanding allegations of potential corruption and wrongdoing on the part of multiple members of the Biden family are deeply concerning, to say the least.'

'Given these concerning allegations that continue to come to light with each passing day, we urge you to appoint a special counsel to investigate any wrongdoing by President Biden and his family in their business dealings,' the senators continue.

The demand by the senators comes one day after GOP Senator Chuck Grassley of Iowa delivered a bombshell speech on the Senate floor citing what is believed to have been redacted in the FD-1023 file from the FBI on the alleged payment.

A group of GOP senators are demanding Attorney General Merrick Garland appoint a special counsel to investigate 'any wrongdoing' by the first family

Grassley said the executive from Ukrainian gas company Burisma Holdings Limited kept 17 audio recordings of phone calls as an 'insurance policy' - specifically 15 wit Hunter and two with Joe.

He claims they were kept as an 'insurance policy' in case the foreign national was in a 'tight spot.'

The form also indicates that then-Vice President Joe Biden may have been involved in Burisma - which employed Hunter Biden at the time, Grassley continued.

DOJ confirmed to DailyMail.com that it received the letter from the Republicans, but a spokesperson declined to comment further.

A source familiar confirmed to DailyMail.com that the Burisma executive referred to Joe Biden as the 'Big Guy' according to the 1023 form.

Grassley also slammed the FBI for finally agreeing to show lawmakers a redacted version of the FD-1023 form 'on the same day' that the Department of Justice announced a 37-count indictment of former President Donald Trump for alleged mishandling of classified records.

Trump was arraigned Tuesday in Miami and pleaded 'not guilty' to all 37 counts.

'Two standards of justice in this country will turn our constitutional Republic upside down,' Grassley said on the Senate floor Monday.

'Thanks to the political infection within the Biden Justice Department and FBI, we're well along the road for that to happen.'

On Tuesday, Sen. Ted Cruz questioned the FBI Deputy Director Paul Abbate regarding the FD-1023 form.

Abbate told the Texas senator that he would not comment on the form or its contents.

'I'm just not going to comment on information we've received investigations or other matters.'

Cruz fired back, accusing Abbate and the FBI at large of 'stonewalling and covering up serious allegations of evidence of corruption from the President.'

After a long back-and-forth between the FBI and congressional Republicans, including a threat of holding the director in contempt of Congress, Wray finally allowed the form to be viewed by lawmakers in a secure setting last week.

After reviewing the document last week House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., told reporters the accusations contained in the form 'suggests a pattern of bribery' consistent with findings the committee has put out publicly.

It's called 'money laundering,' he said, saying it fits within the pattern of over $1 million in Romanian-linked payments to the Biden family revealed last month.

However, Grassley slammed the FBI for the 'disrespect' it has shown Congress in the manner it allowed the document to be read.

'The FBI made Congress review a redacted unclassified document in a classified facility,' the senator criticized.

'Based on the facts known to Congress and the public, it's clear that the Justice Department and FBI will use every resource to investigate candidate Trump, President Trump and former President Trump,' the senator stated.

He continued in to say the agencies haven't had the 'same laser focus' on the Biden family.

Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., writes in the letter that 'the outstanding allegations of potential corruption and wrongdoing on the part of multiple members of the Biden family are deeply concerning, to say the least'

Grassley said the Burisma executive has 15 recordings of phone calls with Hunter and two with Joe

The Republicans ask Attorney General Merrick Garland appoint a special counsel to investigate 'any wrongdoing' by the first family

Grassley added that he want everyone to remember, that he has read the full unredacted version of the form and will continue to press the FBI for transparency with the American people.

The 'confidential human source' behind the allegations in the form is a 'trusted, highly credible informant' who has been used by the FBI for over 10 years and has been paid over six figures, Republicans have said.

In addition, the FBI record is currently being used in an ongoing investigation that is being conducted by the Department of Justice in Delaware into Hunter Biden's finances.

Republicans have also told DailyMail.com that the Biden whistleblower in the alleged bribery scheme is now afraid 'someone could kill them if someone found out who they are' for bringing potentially damaging info to light about Joe Biden when he was vice president.

The FBI confirmed to DailyMail.com last week that it would allow the lawmakers to view the document.

'The FBI has continually demonstrated its commitment to working with the Committee to accommodate its request, from scheduling briefings and calls to now allowing the Chair to review information in person. The FBI remains committed to cooperating with the Committee in good faith.'

In early May, Republicans led by Comer and Grassley released a report digging in on over $10 million received by Biden family members from foreign actors, including previously undisclosed $1 million in Romanian-linked payments, and a 'web' of 20 companies created while President Joe Biden was vice president and pushing anti-corruption efforts abroad.

The House Oversight Committee subpoenaed Biden family associate and Hunter Biden business partner Devon Archer, Monday evening.

Comer wrote that Archer's testimony is 'critical' to the Republicans' investigation based on his deep ties to Biden family business deals internationally - including in Ukraine.

He is demanded to appear for a deposition on Friday, June 16.

Comer also confirmed there are at least three additional FD-1023 forms in existence that Wray agreed committee leadership can view in coming days.
Ryanair have sacked their chief pilot after trainees made numerous sexual harassment complainants against him.

Staff at Ryanair - whose slogan is 'Europe's favourite airline' - were informed that Aidan Murray, 58, had been sacked in an email.

The airline took action after he allegedly asked women to send him pictures of their body with replies from him including 'You have a great body' and another said 'amazing a*s'.

The note - from the firm's head of HR Darrell Hughes - said: 'We regret to advise you that last evening we terminated with immediate effect the employment of the Ryanair DAC Chief pilot (who was appointed in 2020).

'The decision follows an investigation over recent days which identified a pattern of repeated and inappropriate and unacceptable behaviour towards a a number of female junior pilots, which was in breach of our anti harassment policy.

Staff at Ryanair - whose slogan is 'Europe's favourite airline' - were informed that Aidan Murray (pictured), 58, had been sacked in an email

'We are determined to ensure that all our people come to work in a safe and secure environment. We would ask all of you to respect the privacy and integrity of those brave individuals who came forward to assist us in this investigation.'

The investigation is said to involve a number of female trainee pilots who were allegedly 'sexually harassed and coerced' by Murray.

Other women are also said to have given statements to the airline about his behaviour with all those involved said to be aged between 21 and 32.

He is said to have changed their rosters so he could work alongside them in the cockpit and the alleged inappropriate behaviour is said to have taken place over the last 12 to 18 months.

Ryanair took action after Murray allegedly asked women to send him pictures of their body with replies from him including 'You have a great body' and another said 'amazing a*s'

Ryanair has provided counselling to those who came forward to make the allegations and one of those involved has left, while another has asked to be moved elsewhere and two other shave changed their shift patterns.

One source told MailOnline: 'The four were in a difficult position and he exploited it. They were young and had invested a lot of money in their training.'

Murray - whose Linkedin profile has been deactivated - could not be contacted and in a statement Ryanair said: 'We do not comment on queries relating to individual employees.'

He has been a pilot for 30 years and has worked at Ryanair in various roles for more than 26 years.
Footage released today reveals the disguise a woman used to trick a short-sighted teenager into thinking that she was a boy called George, as she is found guilty of sexual assault for kissing her.

Georgia Bilham, 21, who duped the teenager into believing she was a man, was cleared by a jury this afternoon of all but one of the 16 alleged sexual offences after about three hours of deliberation following an eight-day trial.

Bilham, from Alpraham, Cheshire, created an online Snapchat persona in the name of George Parry to trick the 19-year-old complainant into thinking she was a man, her trial was told.

George always wore a hood over his head, even in bed, while with the teenager, who, the court was told, is severely short-sighted.

New CCTV footage released has shown Bilham dressed-up in her disguise buying what appears to be sweets in a petrol station shop. She is seen with a navy blue hoodie over her head, appearing like a boy.

Georgia Bilham, 21, (pictured outside Chester Crown Court today waiting for the jury's verdict) had faced 17 charges of sexually assaulting the 19-year-old during a relationship where she put on a deep Birmingham accent

CCTV footage captured the moment that Bilham was spotted in her disguise buying what appears to be sweets at a petrol station

Georgia Bilham, 21, who duped the teenager into believing she was a man, was cleared by a jury this afternoon of all but one of the alleged offences

Dressed in her disguise she struts up to the cashier before appearing to look for something and picking up a pack of mints.

Today Bilham was told by Judge Michael Leeming that she would be sentenced on July 19 but she would be placed on the Sex Offenders Register immediately.

The judge also ordered a pre-sentence report before his final sentence and warned her that prison could still be an option.

The court heard how Bilham, who claimed not to have got any sexual gratification out of the relationship, deceived her victim into thinking she was a young man after they began messaging online.

George claimed to be 'paranoid' because of his involvement with Albanian gangsters.

Bilham said after the first time they met in person the complainant messaged her to say, 'There's something weird about you,' and blocked her on Snapchat.

But there continued to be an online 'love-hate relationship', which became 'toxic' at times, the court heard.

On two occasions when they met, the girl - who can't be named for legal reasons - said she felt some sort of 'hard willy figure' through George's clothing.

The court heard how Bilham, who claimed not to have got any sexual gratification out of the relationship, deceived her victim into thinking she was a young man after they began messaging online. Georgia Bilham is pictured outside Chester Crown Court today

A jury took just three hours to throw out all the charges save the first one which occurred on the night they first kissed. Georgia Bilham is pictured arriving at Chester Crown Court today

Bilham was only rumbled when the girl's mother became suspicious and told her that George was a girl, causing her daughter to 'burst into tears'.

The girl then discovered that George was actually Bilham after investigating her identity on social media. She felt 'sick' on learning the truth, the court heard, after telling detectives she wasn't gay.

The prosecution said the girl couldn't have fully consented to the sexual activity because she believed George was really male.

They labelled Bilham as 'an accomplished liar' who had deceived her alleged victim into a sexual relationship by creating the character George Parry.

Bilham admitted pretending to be George but said she got trapped in a 'web of lies'. She admitted having sexual activity with the girl but claimed the teenager knew she was female.

She claimed her elaborate lies during the relationship were aimed at hiding the fact that she was Georgia Bilham - not at trying to trick the girl into sex while believing she was a boy.

Bilham, 21, (pictured today) was told by Judge Michael Leeming that she would be sentenced on July 19 but she would be placed on the Sex Offenders Register immediately

The judge also ordered a pre-sentence report before his final; sentence and warned her that prison could still be an option. Georgia Bilham is pictured today

Bilham denied having ever placed anything in her underwear to mimic a penis and claimed her alleged victim had sometimes kept her glasses on when they met.

She said she believed her cover was blown after crashing her mother's car into a hedge while out for a drive with the teenager on May 11 2021.

Jurors convicted her of sexually assaulting the girl by kissing her that evening.

Bilham told jurors she believes a police officer called to the scene revealed her true identity to the complainant after checking her driving licence.

She said: 'I think they told her I was female. It was not George, it was Georgia.'

The defendant said from that point she believes the teenager knew she was really a woman.

Giving evidence, the complainant's mother said her daughter told her about seeing someone called George, who she said had social anxiety so kept his hood up.

Bilham admitted being caught up in a 'web of lies' but denied getting a 'buzz' out of deceiving the teenager, maintaining throughout that she thought the woman she had sex with believed she was a woman.

The 21-year-old said she never wanted to change gender but questioned her sexuality and that her mother would 'not be happy' if she was in a same-sex relationship.

Bilham admitted being caught up in a 'web of lies' but denied getting a 'buzz' out of deceiving the teenager, maintaining throughout that she thought the woman she had sex with believed she was a woman. She is pictured today as she embraces a young man in a hug

Asked why she set up the fake Snapchat account pretending to be a boy, Bilham replied: 'I just was not happy in myself. I just... it was just more like an escape. I don't know.

'I was not confident in myself. It was a stupid thing to do. It was a way of not being me.'

Her barrister Martine Snowdon told the jury that the teenager knew 'George' was really a woman yet she continued with the relationship.

'There is no doubt that Georgia Bilham lied about who she was, but they both knew it was fiction,' Ms Snowdon said.

One night in May 2021, the jury heard, Bilham was was driving around in her mother's Ford Focus with the girl when it crashed into a hedge.

When the police arrived, the girl heard 'George' giving officers her real name and Bilham said she believed the girl knew she was actually female from that point onwards.

The jury heard how the girl confronted her after learning who 'he' really was.

In a message, she wrote: 'Just admit you've been caught out, I know more than enough now.'

Bilham replied: 'I don't even dress like a lad, it just took over my life'.

Georgia Bilham is pictured apparently giving someone a hug while outside Chester Crown Court today

Bilham, who described herself as a bit of a 'tomboy' growing up, said she had never wanted to change her gender and become a boy. She said she had always considered herself straight. She is pictured outside Chester Crown Court today

Bilham made no reaction as the verdicts were delivered at Chester Crown Court today. Judge Michael Leeming told her: 'You have been convicted of count one, an allegation of sexual assault.

'I'm going to adjourn sentencing for a pre-sentence report to be prepared.

'It should not be taken by you as an indication of a non-custodial sentence - all options are open.'

The judge bailed Bilham ahead of sentencing on July 19 but warned her that it was 'no indication' a custodial sentence wouldn't be imposed.

Afterwards the victim's mother said: 'I am disappointed with the verdict but there is one count where she has been found guilty.

'I think from my daughter's point of view she has been believed and the defendant can get the help she needs.'

Before the verdicts were returned, the judge ordered that anyone in the public gallery - which was packed with friends and family of the victim - who made any noise would be thrown out.

Bilham did not show any emotion as the string of not guilty verdicts was delivered.

Her father Peter - who has accompanied her throughout - declined to comment.
Russian President Vladimir Putin in March announced a plan to deploy tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus, Moscow's first move of such warheads outside Russia since the 1991 fall of the Soviet Union.

Belarus began taking delivery of the weapons in June according to the country's president, Alexander Lukashenko.

The Kremlin has long used Belarus as a staging ground to launch its attacks on Ukraine, with Russian troops and tanks flooding across the southern Belarusian border onto Ukrainian soil on February 24, 2022.

Now, Russia's air force flies sorties over Ukrainian skies from Belarusian air bases.

But the stationing of tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus, which borders three NATO member countries in Lithuania, Latvia and Poland, represents yet another ramping up of tensions and the scale of potential consequences.

Russian President Vladimir Putin (R) and Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko during their meeting at the Bocharov Ruchei residence in the resort city of Sochi, Russia 09 June 2023

Iskander missile launch at the command post of the Armed Forces brigade in April 2022

A ground-based mobile launcher for Russian Iskander short range nuclear capable tactical missiles

FILE - Belarusian army Su-25 jet fighters fly during a parade marking Independence Day in Minsk, Belarus, Wednesday, July 3, 2019. Belarus announced some Su-25 fighters were being upgraded to carry tactical nuclear warheads

What weapons will be deployed and where?

Putin said that 'tactical' nuclear weapons would be sent to Belarus but did not say exactly which warheads would be deployed or where.

But Lukashenko said the warheads are three times more powerful than the atomic bombs the United States dropped on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August 1945.

The Hiroshima bomb, made from highly enriched Uranium-235, was about 16 kilotons (equivalent to 16,000 tonnes of TNT), while the Nagasaki bomb, made from plutonium-239, was about 21 kilotons, according to the World Nuclear Association.

Tactical nuclear weapons are not of the same class as strategic intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) which can strike targets on the other side of the world and wipe out multiple cities with ease.

Instead, tactical warheads are designed to be used in a theatre of operations to turn the tide on the battlefield - but if Lukashenko's estimate of their power is accurate then just one of the tactical warheads now stationed in Belarus could still devastate huge swathes of Ukrainian cities.

Russia has about 1,816 non-strategic nuclear warheads, according to a Bulletin of Atomic Scientists' analysis of Russia's nuclear weapons.

Putin said Iskander mobile short-range ballistic missiles, which can deliver nuclear warheads, had already been handed over to Belarus. Russian sources say the Iskander has a range of 500 km (310 miles).

Putin also said 10 Belarusian aircraft had been adapted to carry nuclear warheads, while Belarusian officials specified that Su-25 aircraft had been retrofitted to grant them deployment capability, though it is unclear what missile system would be used to deploy such warheads from a fast jet.

The Sukhoi-25 jet has a range of up to 1,000 km (621 miles), according to Russian sources.

The Federation of American Scientists has said the weapons could be based at Lida air base, just 40 km (25 miles) from the Lithuanian border.

If so, the delivery vehicles could potentially reach most of Ukraine, almost all of eastern Europe, including the Baltic states, Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, Czech Republic, Romania, a swathe of Germany, as well as some of Denmark, Sweden and Finland.

Tactical nuclear weapons do not compare to strategic nukes like the Yars ICBM currently in use by Russia's strategic nuclear forces (pictured). These heavier weapons can level several cities with ease, while tactical nukes are designed to have a large impact on the battlefield

Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko (L) during an interview with Russian journalist Olga Skabeeva (R) of the Rossiya-1 Russian state TV channel, in the Minsk region, Belarus. Lukashenko said Belarus has started taking delivery of Russian tactical nuclear weapons

What did Putin and Lukashenko say about the deployment?

Putin's nuclear deployment is a message to the West that he will not back down over the Ukraine war.

Putin made the announcement, almost as an afterthought, in an interview with state television Kremlin correspondent Pavel Zarubin that was first posted on Telegram on March 25.

Putin said the trigger for the decision to deploy in Belarus was an announcement by Britain that it would supply depleted uranium munitions to Ukraine.

The Wall Street Journal reported on June 13 that the United States was also set to approve depleted uranium tank rounds for Ukraine.

Belarus said the deployment was in answer to the West's 'aggressive policy' and that it was aimed at forcing the West's leaders to think before escalating.

Lukashenko meanwhile, who has ruled Belarus since 1994, making him Europe's longest-serving leader, said he 'demanded' that Putin station tactical nuclear weapons on Belarusian soil.

'We have always been a target,' Lukashenko said. 'They (the West) have wanted to tear us to pieces since 2020. No one has so far fought against a nuclear country, a country that has nuclear weapons.'

Who controls the weapons?

Putin said Russia would remain in control of the weapons just as the United States controls its own tactical nuclear weapons deployed in Europe.

Russia's nuclear weapons are controlled and transported by the 12th Main Directorate of the defence ministry (12th GUMO).

Russia has already used Belarus as a staging ground to launch its war in Ukraine, deploying troops and tanks across the southern Belarusian border and flying aerial sorties over Ukrainian skies from Belarusian airbases.

Their agreement would work much in the same way as those held by Western powers.

The United States has had nuclear weapons deployed in Europe since the 1950s at NATO bases.

Putin has repeatedly raised concerns about the 200 U.S. B61 tactical nuclear warheads deployed at bases in Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany, Italy and Turkey.

Those U.S. warheads are kept in vaults at air bases and the United States keeps the Permissive Action Link (PAL) codes used to arm them.

Although they are stored in Europe, only U.S. forces can initiate their deployment.

Iskander missiles have been used by Russian in its war against Ukraine (pictured) carrying conventional explosives, but can also be armed with nuclear warheads

The 2S7 Pion is one of the largest conventional artillery pieces ever developed and is known to be in use in Ukraine. It can fire nuclear-tipped shells with a relatively small yield of one kiloton

When will the weapons be deployed?

Putin said Russia would finish the construction of a special storage facility in Belarus on July 7-8 and the weapons would be deployed soon afterwards.

But Lukashenko has made different comments.

He seemed to indicate last month that the weapons were already on the move while on June 13 he said the weapons would be deployed in 'several days'.

Then on June 14, he posted a video in which he claimed that his armed forces had already begun taking delivery of some of the weapons and organising their storage and deployment.

He has also said that there could be 'nuclear weapons for everyone' who joined the Russia-Belarus union.

What is the response of NATO and the US?

After the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991, the United States went to enormous lengths to ensure that the Soviet nuclear weapons stationed in Belarus, Ukraine and Kazakhstan were returned to Russia - which inherited the Soviet nuclear arsenal.

By putting nuclear weapons back in Belarus, Putin is showing that the architecture of post-Cold War nuclear arms control is crumbling.

The United States has criticised Putin's nuclear deployment but has said it has no intention of altering its posture on strategic nuclear weapons and also that it has not seen any signs Russia is preparing to use a nuclear weapon.

The State Department said on March 27 that speaking candidly, it condemned the announcement of the deployment.

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said on April 18 that Putin's decision was irresponsible.
Vermont Police said driver Ryan Koss was not intoxicated at the time of the crash

The actor was flung from his motorcycle after being hit by 2008 Honda Element

Treat Williams' daughter has said she feels 'absolutely shattered' by his death after his motorcycle hit an SUV - while cops said the driver involved was not drunk.

Ellie Williams, 25, has shared a grief-stricken message on Instagram alongside an old picture of her father and a close-up of his name emblazoned on a bomber jacket.

It comes after Vermont State Police detectives confirmed driver Ryan Koss was not drunk at the time of the horror crash.

Ellie, the only daughter of the 71-year-old Golden Globe nominated actor and his wife Pam Van Sant, described her 'terrible heartbreak' in the wake of his death.

She wrote: 'This is a pain I have never felt. I am absolutely shattered. Thank you to everyone who has sent messages and kept our family in your hearts during this terrible heartbreak.'

Treat Williams' 25-year-old daughter Ellie has posted a grief-stricken message on Instagram in the wake of his death

Williams was 'unable to avoid' a fatal collision which threw him from his motorcycle, according to a police report

Ellie Williams described her 'heartbreak' to her Instagram followers in the wake of her father's death, and thanked people who had sent her messages of support

Williams also shared a close-up shot of her father's name emblazoned in white on a blue bomber jacket

Meanwhile, Vermont State Police gave an update to press on Tuesday as the force continues to investigate what happened.

Lieutenant Steven Coote said investigators have not yet made 'a formal determination' on who is to blame for the crash, according to the Boston Globe.

He added that Koss, 35, who is from Pownal in the south-western corner of Vermont, was screened and cops 'determined there wasn't any evidence of impairment'.

The 2008 Honda Element driver was also 'checked by medical personnel at the scene for minor injuries', and he did not need hospital treatment.

Coote added that detectives have 'utilized tools and technology' including a drone flight, as well as 'old-fashioned crash investigation stuff' like on-scene photographs in the investigation.

He told reporters he could not provide an 'exact timeframe' for when the probe is likely to conclude, but he hopes 'to have some more answers soon'.

Police previously said in a report that Williams would not have been able to avoid the collision.

Reports released by Vermont State Police revealed that Williams, 71, (pictured with his wife) didn't stand a chance as the 2008 Honda Element cut across the northbound lane of the V-30 into his bike

Koss' car had major damage to the front end passenger side, while William's 1986 Honda VT700c motorcycle (pictured) had 'front-end damage'

Williams' family said in a statement: 'It is with great sadness that we report that our beloved Treat Williams has passed away tonight in Dorset, Vermont after a fatal motorcycle accident'

In a social media post from just seven hours ago, Williams shared a snap of his land with the caption: 'Mowing today. Wish I could bottle the scent'

The driver of the car, Ryan Koss, attempted to turn left onto Morse Hill Road into a parking lot and came to a stop as he indicated at around 4:53pm

Treat Williams (center) in Everwood - he plays Dr. Andrew Brown, a neurosurgeon who breaks down after his wife's death and relocates from New York to Colorado

Williams in Prince Of The City. He was nominated for a Golden Globe for his performance

Williams played narcotics detective Ciello in the 1981 film Prince of the City

Following the fatal crash, Koss' car had major damage to the front end passenger side, while William's 1986 Honda VT700c motorcycle had 'front-end damage'.

The Everwood actor had been riding his $3,500 bike when he was hit by Koss' vehicle as it cut across the northbound lane of Route 30 in the Morse Hill Road area of Dorset, south-west Vermont.

Williams, who was wearing a helmet at the time, was treated at the scene by paramedics before being rushed via helicopter to Albany Medical Center in New York, where he was pronounced dead.

Data collected by the Vermont Agency of Transportation revealed that there have been just five incidents on that stretch of road in 12 years, with three resulting in injury but only Williams being pronounced dead.

Members of the Vermont State Police Crash Reconstruction Team remain on the scene to try to piece together the lead up to the accident.

Williams, best known for his roles in Everwood and Hair, was enjoying his weekend mowing the lawn at his $1million Vermont home just hours before the tragedy.

He was married to actress Pam Van Sant, and together they had two children, Gille and Ellie - and often shared his idyllic country life for his fans on social media.

Treat Williams was born 1951 in Rowayton, Connecticut, and kickstarted his professional acting career in his 20s after graduating from Franklin and Marshall College.

Williams received his second Golden Globe nomination for his part in Prince of The City

Williams played narcotics detective Ciello in the 1981 film Prince of the City

The Everwood actor had been riding his $3,500 bike when he was hit by Koss' vehicle as it cut across the northbound lane of Route 30 in the Morse Hill Road area of Dorset, south-west Vermont

Williams shot to fame after his debut role in the thriller Deadly Hero in 1975. He also performed in 1976's The Ritz and The Eagle Has Landed.

In 1979, he starred as George Berger in the film Hair, which was based on the Broadway musical.

It was the role which earned him his first Golden Globe nomination for New Star of the Year - and two years later, he got his second nomination for his acting in Prince of The City.

He also played Dr. Andrew Brown in Everwood - and he received two SAG Award nominations for his work on the show.

In a social media post from just seven hours ago, Williams shared a snap of his land with the caption: 'Mowing today. Wish I could bottle the scent.'

And two hours before the news of his death came to light, he recorded himself mowing the ground, writing: 'What a real Vermonter does.'

Any witnesses to the crash or those with information about the incident are asked to call the Vermont State Police Shaftsbury Barracks at 802-442-5421 or leave an anonymous tip online at https://vsp.vermont.gov/tipsubmit.
A British news reporter was condemned by a group of Donald Trump supporters when she asked former President Donald Trump if 'he was ready to go to jail.'

The journalist identified as Sophie Alexander, a producer with Sky News followed Trump supporters to an impromptu event at a cafe after the former president's arraignment on Tuesday held at a federal courthouse in Miami.

Alexander stood among a crowd of supporters at Miami's famed Cuban eatery Versailles when she asked her question which was met with boos and a slew of profanities including, 'traitor!' with some telling at her to 'Shut up!' and to 'Get the f*** out of here!'

One irate man was seen screaming in Alexander's face telling her to 'Get out, you stupid b**tch!,' as she was taking video of the raucous scene before she was escorted out.

Trump pleaded not guilty to 37 criminal charges relating to the alleged mishandling of classified documents.

WARNING: PROFANITY CONTAINED IN TWEET BELOW

One irate man was seen screaming - maybe even spitting - in Alexander's face telling her to 'Get out, you stupid b**tch!,' as she taking video of the raucous scene before she was forced out

I was just thrown out of the Versailles bakery in Miami for asking President Trump if he was ready to go to jail. A man screamed stupid bitch in my face while others said I was a traitor #TrumpArraignment pic.twitter.com/pY14fsJXGE  Sophie Alexander (@SophieAlex1) June 13, 2023

British reporter Sophie Alexander, a producer with Sky News, asked former president Donald Trump if he is 'ready to go to jail'

Trump supporters gather at the iconic Miami Cuban restaurant Versailles on Tuesday

Trump is the first former US president charged with federal crimes.

At the cafe, he was giving a speech where he railed against the negative coverage he has been getting, and complained about a 'government that's out of control' and teased his Tuesday night speech that would be held in Bedminster, New Jersey.

Alexander shared the incident to Twitter, writing: 'I was just thrown out of the Versailles bakery in Miami for asking President Trump if he was ready to go to jail'.

She added: 'A man screamed "stupid bitch" in my face while others said I was a "traitor."'

She continued: 'I did not shout "Trump for prison". I asked: "President Trump are you ready for jail?", a perfectly legitimate question.'

Her post garnered thousands of views with her thanking her followers telling them that she 'got out perfectly safely.'

A defiant Trump left federal court Tuesday and went straight to Miami's iconic Cuban restaurant Versailles where he offered to buy food for everyone and listened to customers sing 'Happy Birthday.'

The former president, who turns 77 on Wednesday, prayed with religious leaders, took a photo with mixed martial arts fighter Jorge Masvidal and ripped a 'government that's out of control.'

'Food for everyone!' Trump shouted during the surprise stop in Versailles after he pleaded not guilty.

But he also flashed his frustration amid the singing. 'Some birthday. We got a government that's out of control,' he grumbled.

'I think it's going great,' he said as he made his way through supporters on the day where he was fingerprinted, arrested and became the first president to appear in front of a judge charged with a federal crime.

'I think it's a rigged deal here,' he added. 'I'm going to make a little speech tonight in Bedminster and I hope you're going to be there,' the ex-president also said.

Her post garnered thousands of views with thanking her followers that that she 'got out perfectly safely'

Trump smiling at the impromptu gathering held on Tuesday at Versailles restaurant. The person with red circle was identified as the person who yelled at journalist Sophie Alexander

Former President Donald Trump's quick trip to the Versailles Cuban restaurant included him being prayed over by religious leaders and the singing of 'Happy Birthday,' as the ex-president turns 77 on Wednesday

Both Trump and his aide Walt Nauta were charged in a scheme to keep classified documents at Mar-a-Lago. Nauta walked alongside Trump at Versailles.

Special Counsel Jack Smith, who is handling the case for the Department of Justice, was seated in the front row of U.S. Magistrate Judge Jonathan Goodman's courtroom, while the ex-president was seated with his lawyers.

Trump has called Smith a variety of names, including a 'deranged psycho.'

The court case kicked off just before 3 p.m. EST. Trump was released and no bond was set. After about 20 minutes of arguing by opposing lawyers, the court ruled that the ex-president can't talk to witnesses, including Nauta, about the case.

Trump keeps his passport and remains free to travel.

Earlier the former commander-in-chief was arrested and fingerprinted, but was not handcuffed and no mugshot was taken.

The booking procedure wrapped up shortly before 2.30pm.
Kenyan authorities have dug up more bodies found in mass graves linked to a cult whose pastor allegedly ordered his followers to starve to death to meet Jesus.

The 19 bodies were recovered within the 800-acre forested land in Kilifi County of coastal Kenya, where pastor Mackenzie Nthenge and his followers lived, authorities said on Tuesday.

The discovery brings the number of deaths tied to the cult to 303, with the toll expected to rise as officials said more mass grave sites were earmarked for exhumation.

Coastal regional commissioner Rhoda Onyancha told local journalists that 613 people tied to the area are missing.

In April, Kenyan officials exhumed 21 bodies while investigating the cult.

Police and residents in Kenya load the bodies of the deceased into the back of a truck in April

Kenyan officials, above, exhumed 21 bodies in April while investigating the cult

Homicide detectives marked out patches of earth with sticks and yellow tape in Shakahola forest in Kilifi county, near the location where police rescued 15 members of the Good News International Church, according to footage broadcast by Citizen TV that month.

Four of them died before they reached hospital.

Nthenge was arrested on April 14 after authorities received a tip that dozens of people were starving to death.

Investigators found the pastors emaciated followers, whom he had allegedly told that starvation was a way to meet with Jesus.

Forensic experts and homicide detectives carry the bodies of suspected members of a Christian cult named as Good News International Church, who believed they would go to heaven if they starved themselves to death, after their remains were exhumed from their graves in Shakahola forest of Kilifi county, Kenya, in April

At least three children are believed to be among the victims.

Nthenge, leader of the Good News International Church, turned himself in to police and was charged in April, according to local media, after two children starved to death in the custody of their parents.

He was initially released on bail of 100,000 Kenyan shillings ($700).

But police re-arrested Nthenge on April 15 after discovering the bodies of four followers whom he reportedly told to starve themselves in order to 'meet Jesus'.

Officials had previously reported just seven deaths in eastern Kenya in connection with the arrest of Mackenzie Nthenge, a pastor who reportedly told followers to starve themselves in order to 'meet Jesus'

Nthenge is expected back in court this week after police were granted more time to hold him pending investigations.

Kenyan President William Ruto has likened Nthenge to a terrorist, while Interior Minister Kindiki Kithure suggested the pastor might be charged with terrorism or genocide-related offences, according to Fox News.
The Wagner mercenary chief nicknamed 'Putin's chef' has become more popular than the Russian president, according to recent internet searches in Russia.

Russians appear to be more curious about former prisoner and oligarch Yevgeny Prigozhin than their own leader Vladimir Putin.

Last month, as a feud between Prigozhin and Russia's Ministry of Defence continued to escalate in the public eye, Russians were scouring the internet for information about the Wagner chief twice as often.

According to a Google Trends search by Russian news outlet Verstka, Russians began searching more for Prigozhin in early May, with interest peaking by the end of the months.

From May 28 to June 3, his popularity was at the level of 100 points (the peak level), while Putin's was significantly less at 28.

Russians appear to be more curious about former prisoner and oligarch Yevgeny Prigozhin than their own leader Vladimir Putin

The Russian despot's popularity appears to have taken a hit as Russians spent more time searching for information about the Wagner boss instead

Russian's searched for 'Putin's chef' 744,000 times in May, while there were just 305,000 searches for 'Vladimir Putin'.

Anton Gerashchenko, an adviser to Ukraine's minister of internal affairs, tweeted about the findings: 'Prigozhin's conflict with the Russian defense ministry led to his growing popularity that now exceeds the popularity of Putin.

'In May Russians looked for information about Prigozhin online twice as often as they searched for news about Putin.'

Prigozhin, dubbed Putin's chef due to owning a catering firm which stages lavish Kremlin banquets for the president, has become a prominent figure during Russia's 16-month invasion of Ukraine.

His Wagner mercenaries are credited with seizing the embattled city of Bakhmut from Ukrainian armed forces after months of bloody warfare. But their success has seemingly angered regular Russian army commanders.

Prigozhin has repeatedly attacked Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu for what he casts as treachery, slamming him for failing to fight the war in Ukraine properly and taunting him about coming to the frontline.

Tensions with Moscow were ratcheted up when mercenaries kidnapped a frontline Russian general this month, who admitted in a humiliating video to being drunk on duty after allegedly firing on a Wagner vehicle.

Prigozhin (centre), dubbed Putin's chef due to owning a catering firm which stages lavish Kremlin banquets for the president, has has become a prominent figure during Russia's invasion of Ukraine

A video later emerged which showed the general, Roman Venevitin, accusing Wagner of torturing Putin's soldiers and Prigozhin of discrediting the army - a crime which could see him jailed.

Prigozhin, known for his expletive language, has launched several verbal tirades at Putin's military leaders in recent months.

In a furious ran last month, Prigozhin screamed vulgar insults at Russia's army whom he described as 'smelly scumbags' and 'b*******'.

The Wagner boss said he was 'deeply outraged' by Putin's troops doing 'f*** all' to prevent explosive drones falling on Moscow.

'Smelly scumbags! What are you doing? Get your a**** up from the offices you've been put in to protect this country,' he said.

'You are the Ministry of Defence. You've done f*** all in order to advance. Why the f*** are you allowing these drones to fly to Moscow? Who gives a s*** that they are flying to your homes on Rublyovka! Let your houses burn.

More recently, he labelled it a 'disgrace' that Kyiv's troops were able to push back Russian lines and seize Berkhivka, a town in the northern suburbs of Bakhmut.

Today, he reiterated the refusal of his Wagner fighters to sign contracts with the defence ministry, a day after Putin said the agreements were needed as Moscow moves to take control of the private group.

In a rare direct show of defiance towards the Russian leader, Prigozhin said: 'None of Wagner's fighters is ready to go down the path of shame again. That's why they will not sign the contracts.'

In a televised meeting on Tuesday, Putin backed a call by the defence ministry for 'volunteer' fighters in Ukraine to sign contracts with the country's military command, widely seen as a means to assert control over Wagner.

Putin said that contracts were necessary to allow all participants in Russia's campaign in Ukraine to receive the social support payments to which they are entitled. These include compensation to fighters if they are wounded, and to their families if they are killed in action.

Prigozhin has criticised the Russian army for not doing enough to stop the ongoing Ukrainian counteroffensive - which while in its early stages, has resulted in seven villages being recaptured.

He even appeared to praise Ukraine by admitting they were 'doing everything right' - in stark contrast to Putin's claims that it has been 'unsuccessful'.
The animal reportedly is responsible for killing a flock of ducks, turkeys and chickens at a property in the Guatemala city of Chimaltenango Sunday

The two-legged creature is said to have been behind the killings of llamas, alpacas and goats that were on a farm in the Bolivian city of Ouro

The mythical beast known as the Chupacabra allegedly made an appearance in western Bolivia this month and was tracked by a drone before disappearing

The legendary, 'bloodsucking' creature known as the Chupacabra was reportedly spotted in the western Bolivian city of Ouro.

The mythical, two-legged beast is said to have been picked up by a drone earlier this month after cows, llamas and alpacas were found dead, with most of their blood drained out.

'It's strange,' local filmmaker Carla Flores told Telemundo. 'It looks like a dog, but it has a hump towards the back. Looking at the images it has the same positioning that a Chupacabra has.

The creature is a modern myth of the Americas, with large fangs and bright red eyes. Its sighting has been reported in Puerto Rico, Central and South America, Mexico and the southwestern region of the United States.

It has been said to suck the blood out of other creatures, and was first spotted in Puerto Rico in the 1990s.

A local filmmaker in Bolivia used a drone to that reportedly showed the Chupacabra roaming through a farm in the southern rural city of Ouro in early June. Farmers sought out help after cows, alpacas and llamas turned up dead with their blood drained out

A resident from the southern Guatemalan town of Chimaltenango holds a fowl that was discovered dead at a property on Sunday. Some neighbors said the animals were attacked from behind and had their blood drained out, attributing the killings to the mythical creature known as the Chupacabra

'We don't know if it's the Chupacabra or not,' Lucio Portugal told the network.

Portugal, a government official in the town of Canllapata, said the dead animals had their blood sucked out from the neck down to the stomach.

On one occasion, the creature is said to have used its tongue to remove an animal's organs.

The Chupacabra was blamed for killing a flock of chickens, turkeys and ducks at a property in the southern Guatemala municipality of Chimaltenango Sunday.

Residents in the Mexican village of Leona Vicario found a goat with its eyes missing after it was allegedly killed by the legendary beast known as the Chupacabra

Llamas are spread on the ground at the farm in Bolivia after they were found dead alongside cows and alpacas

Residents in Chimaltenango, Guatemala, inspect the aftermath of an attack that left a flock of turkeys, ducks and chickens dead on Sunday

Video footage showed the livestock spread across a backyard as curious residents stood over them while others shockingly touched them and grabbed them ground.

Most of the residents believe that the Chupacabra attacked the birds from behind to drink their blood before it vanished.

'We have many opinions, because some neighbors say that it could be the Chupacabra, while others say that during the night they have heard what seems to be meowing and have seen a shape of a wolf-like animal at night,' a woman said, as quoted by Guata Vision.

Another woman distanced herself from the overall consensus and called on the police department to conduct an investigation.

'The truth is not known what kind of animal it is,' she said. 'What we are asking the authorities is to pay a little attention to this situation, and to help us identify the animal that is behind all this.'

Authorities also received reports of a similar incident that left 75 animals dead in the village of Pueblo Viejo on March 24.

In May, residents in the rural town of Leona Vicario, 24 miles west of Cancun, blamed the Chupacabra for the killing of a goat that its eyes ripped off and blood drained out.

There have even been sightings in America of the mythical creature. In May 2019, a creature was spotted on Highway 6 near Houston, according to ABC 13.

In 2002, a zoo captured on video a creature in Amarillo, Texas, that sparked an online debate on if it was Chupacabra, according to MARCA.
A 27-year-old woman stabbed to death in Wembley has been named as a Nottingham student after a third arrest was made in connection with her death.

Tejaswini Kontham, originally from Hyderabad, India, came to the UK to pursue a Master's degree and was staying with friends in north-west London at the time of the tragic attack, according to The Indian Express.

Her family, who she reportedly visited six months ago and were hoping she would visit again soon, are said to be devastated.

Met Police said they were called to reports of a stabbing at a property in Neeld Crescent, Wembley yesterday morning just before 10am. Ms Kontham sadly died at the scene despite the efforts of emergency services.

A 28-year-old woman, understood to be Ms Kontham's friend, was taken to hospital with stab injuries that were later deemed not life-threatening.

Tejaswini Kontham was stabbed to death in Wembley, London, on Tuesday

Two people, a 24-year-old man and a 23-year-old woman, were arrested at the scene on suspicion of murder. The man remains in custody while the woman has been released without further action.

A third person, a 23-year-old man, has since been arrested on suspicion of murder following the fatal stabbing.

She was believed to be studying for a master's degree in Nottingham and was staying with friends in London.

Police and paramedics found her and the other woman with knife injuries. A neighbour claimed that the two women attacked shared a kitchen.

An investigation was launched after police were called on Tuesday to reports of a stabbing at a residential property in Neeld Crescent, Wembley

Local police officers will remain in the area over the coming days to respond to any concerns

Her death came on same day that Barnaby Webber, 19, Grace O'Malley-Kumar, 19, and Ian Coates, 65, were all killed in a knife and van rampage in the midlands city.

He was found in Harrow at about 6pm last night, arrested on suspicion of murder and taken into custody at a north London police station.

Detective Chief Inspector Linda Bradley, from the Met's Specialist Crime Command, said: 'This has been a fast-moving investigation and I would like to thank the public for sharing our appeal for information about this man. He is now in custody.

'I recognise the significant concern this incident has caused in the community and I would like to reassure the public that a dedicated team of detectives are working to establish what happened.

'Local officers will remain in the area over the coming days to respond to any concerns.'

A post-mortem examination will be scheduled in due course.
The protestor ran in front of the motorcade in Miami ahead of the indictment

He owned the Stone Pony in NJ, which launched several high-profile careers

An anti-Trump protestor who ran in front of Donald's motorcade dressed as a prisoner has been released from jail.

Domenic Santana, 61, was seen wearing a prison uniform and carrying a sign reading 'lock him up' when he tried to rush the SUV yesterday and was arrested.

The ex-owner of the Stone Pony, which was put on the map by Bruce Springsteen and Bon Jovi, claims he made the move because Trump called for Hillary Clinton to be jailed over her emails.

An anti-Trump protestor who ran in front of Donald's motorcade dressed as a prisoner has been released from jail

Dominic Santana was taken into custody Tuesday afternoon. It is unclear whether he was charged with any wrongdoing

Speaking to NBC6 he said: 'Mr Trump you got your day, so did I. They locked you up you wanted Hillary to be locked up. What comes around goes around.'

Clinton's emails were stored on a private server, against government protocol, and in March 2015 the company that maintained the server deleted the archive mailbox.

During his time in office, Trump said he would hire a special prosecutor on her over her email scandal 'because there's never been so many lies, so much deception.'

She previously apologized for the 33,000 emails she deleted off the server before she turned over her work product to the State Department.

Video posted online showed the motorcade traveling down a Miami street, where supporters and protesters were lined up on both sides.

Santana was immediately grabbed by agents traveling with the motorcade, who pushed him back to the sidewalk.

He was dressed in a black and white prison uniform and had been pictured earlier in the day standing with his sign waiting for the former president.

A second video showed Santana on the ground as spectators gathered around him with their phones out.

Miami police officers could be seen pushing the crowd back as others led the protester away in handcuffs.

'The individual was removed swiftly from the roadway by officers from the Miami City Police Department,' Special Agent Steve Kopek said in a statement to DailyMail.com.

At some point, Santana seemed to have gotten into an argument with a Trump supporter

Secret Service agents immediately sprang into action when Santana jumped in front of Trump's vehicle

Police apparently tackled Santana to the ground, where he sat handcuffed

He was seen standing outside the court throughout the hearing Tuesday afternoon, as people gathered both in support and protest of the former president

'His actions had no impact on the security of the protective movement, and we thank Miami City Police for their continued partnership.'

Santana was also seen getting into an argument with a Trump supporter before his arrest, calling him the 'biggest con in American history.'

His stunt was one of the highest-profile incidents on Tuesday for crowds that gathered at the Miami courthouse for his arraignment on federal charges in a case involving the handling of classified documents.

Protestors and supporters of the former president gathered at the courthouse hours before the 3 pm arraignment.

In the morning, cops had to shut off a block outside the Wilkie D. Ferguson Jr. United States Federal Courthouse for a report of a 'suspicious package' on the scene before Trump arrived.

A bomb squad was called in and officers pushed the crowd back to inspect the mystery object before the all-clear was given.

Agents are seen in an aerial picture pushing Santana out of the way

The altercation came as former President Donald Trump was leaving his arraignment in Miami, where he pleaded not guilty to federal charges

A protester has been arrested for running in front of Donald Trump's motorcade as he left court

City officials had said they were prepared for a crowd of 5,000 to 50,000 people in the downtown area that houses the Wilkie D. Ferguson Jr. United States Federal Courthouse.

A combination of local, state and federal law enforcement were on hand with trucks of police in riot gear arriving on the scene Tuesday morning. Barriers and police tape were also put up to control the crowds and helicopters flew overhead.

The former president was also protected by his Secret Service detail.

Trump pleaded not guilty on Tuesday to 37 federal counts against him for his mishandling of classified documents.

He was arrested and fingerprinted, but was not handcuffed and no mugshot was taken before he headed into a federal courtroom.

He was seen standing outside the court throughout the hearing Tuesday afternoon, as people gathered both in support and protest of the former president

Santana was pictured earlier Tuesday as Trump arrived in federal court for his arraignment

Officers told crowds of people who gathered following the spectacle to back up as they brought Santana into custody

After about 20 minutes of arguing by opposing lawyers, the court ruled Trump cannot talk to witnesses and his co-defendant, Walt Nauta, about the case.

The former president was released after just about an hour-long hearing, with a federal judge ruling that he was not a flight risk  and therefore a bond was not necessary.

He last night gave a speech hours after his indictment, where he said that 'justice will be done'.

Trump said: They want to take away my freedom because I will never let them take away your freedom. It is very simple.

'They want to silence me because I will never let them silence you. They want you silenced. And I am the only one that can save this nation because you know they are not coming after me. They are coming after you.

'I just happen to be standing in their way and I will never be moving.'
A homophobic man who battered a man to death with a claw hammer in the purposely-chosen gothic setting of a cemetery has been jailed for at least 28 years.

Erik Feld, 37, hid in the shadows behind a monument before launching himself on Ranjith Kankanamalage, 51, in the early hours of the morning, the Old Bailey heard.

Mr Kankanamalage, was hit 12 times in the face and head with the hammer in East London, causing 'catastrophic' injuries. The victim was found by a member of the public on a path in Tower Hamlets Cemetery Park later on August 16, 2021.

The court heard that Feld, who has a diagnosed personality disorder, had deliberately chosen a 'gothic and monochromatic setting' to kill the victim.

He often went out 'with a hammer, screwdriver or razor blades, hoping to catch someone unawares ... down alleys', the court heard. He also admitted to a mental health assessor in 2017 that he sometimes went out with a weapon 'for example a hammer' in case an 'opportunity presented itself'.

Feld collected hammers and had watched dozens of graphic videos of attacks in the weeks before the attack.

Erik Feld, 37, hid in the shadows behind a monument before launching himself on Ranjith Kankanamalage, 51, in the early hours of the morning, the Old Bailey heard

He was arrested over Mr Kankanamalage's death four days later, after threatening a Poundland security guard with a hammer, but subsequently released on police bail. He was rearrested in January 2022, when DNA taken from blood on the victim's fingernails linked him to the crime.

Jurors were told that Mr Kankanamalage was a regular visitor to the 'spooky' cemetery, which was known as a 'cruising' hotspot.

Under cross-examination, Feld embarked on an astonishing homophobic rant about the victim, who had an ex-wife and two children in Sri Lanka and an ex-civil partner in the UK.

Afterwards, prosecutor Paul Cavin KC told jurors that Feld had 'dark places in his soul' that were 'not in the darkest recesses but very near the surface'.

He said: 'The extraordinary homophobic outburst is obviously something you will not forget.'

It was suggested in Feld's defence that he got 'the wrong end of the stick' and hit out in self-defence after the victim's 'Gaydar malfunctioned' and he made a pass.

Giving evidence in his trial, Feld claimed he had taken the hammer to hit trees for stress relief. He also claimed Mr Kankanamalage had attacked him after he went to the park with a hammer to hit some trees to help him sleep.

Feld claimed he had taken the hammer to hit trees for stress relief. He also claimed Mr Kankanamalage had attacked him after he went to the park with a hammer to hit some trees to help him sleep

He described being drawn to 'spooky' gothic places, saying: 'I decided to challenge myself, walk in the dark. I kept looking over my shoulder, I was not expecting to see anyone.'

His lawyer, Isabella Forshall KC, described him as a sad man 'cut off' from society who fantasised about 'being happy and normal'.

However, Mr Cavin dismissed Feld's version of events as 'inherently unlikely', pointing out just one blow with the hammer would have incapacitated the victim.

Mr Cavin also told the court: 'The defendant's undoubted extreme homophobia only became apparent in his outbursts during cross-examination.

'The defendant's evidence was that he was fascinated with killing with a hammer. He had a fascination with killing in gothic splendour.

'It can't be certain that the very fact that he chose the victim in the park at that time, meant he was going looking for somebody he believed to be, or assumed to be, gay.

'Nor can it be said that coming across someone who was gay is inevitable, because people were also known to go there for drinking or taking drugs. Of course, it was a student place as well.

'Perhaps he realised that if he ever acted out these fantasies, a gay man might be one of the candidates.

Mr Kankanamalage, was hit 12 times in the face and head with the hammer in East London, causing 'catastrophic' injuries

READ MORE: PICTURED: Homophobic murderer, 37, 'obsessed with extreme violence' as he is found guilty of beating victim to death with a hammer in east London cemetery Erik Feld. 37, struck 51-year-old Sri Lankan Ranjith Kankanamalage (right) 12 times Advertisement

'We have come to the conclusion that although suspicions might remain, we could not be sure that it was motivated by homophobia.

'Whatever the defendant's motivation, Mr Kankanamalage was a vulnerable individual in the sense that he was a solitary figure in a secluded park in the early hours of the morning.'

Mr Cavin also read a series of victim impact statements, including one from the victim's daughter, Hiruni, on behalf of herself, her mother and younger brother who watched the sentencing by video link from Sri Lanka.

'He loved us more than his own life and we were the most precious things in his life', the letter read. 'To further his studies he went to the UK in 2009 and completed two degrees.

'Life was not easy for my father in the UK. He had to work day and night to provide for us.

'After those 12 years of sacrifice, he was going to apply for citizenship, but postponed due to the start of the pandemic. His aim was to apply for an accountancy position at a UK bank.

'But before his dreams came true, he was brutally murdered.

'Now I can't fulfil my dreams for my wonderful father who I loved so much. He was a very kind person, respected and treated all people equally.

'We miss our father every time we see his photo. We miss his calls every night. We want to tell him how much we miss him. We would sacrifice everything just to see him one more time.'

John Kennedy, Mr Kankanamalage's former civil partner between August 2012 and August 2017, described him as a 'very caring, gentle, kind and understanding man'.

'This was such a cruel and cowardly attack on a kind man who was just chilling in the park', he wrote. 'His sudden death has affected me deeply,'

Jurors, who deliberated for three hours and 23 minutes to unanimously find Feld guilty of murder, were not told that he had 10 previous convictions for 18 offences between 2002 to August 19 2021 including criminal damage, sex assault, battery and possession of an offensive weapon.

Sentencing him to life with a minimum term of 28 years, Mr Justice Bryan told him: 'I must sentence you for this horrific and abhorrent murder.

'You chose a creepy gothic and monochromatic setting which no doubt fitted with your fantasies of carrying out an attack with a hammer. It wouldn't matter to you what the sexuality of those in the park were, just that there would be individuals in the park.

Police at the gates of Tower Hamlets Cemetery Park in East London on August 16, 2021

'You went to that park with a claw hammer with the intention of hammering to death anyone you might find. You invented a cock-and-bull story that you had the hammer with you in the park to help you sleep and comfort you.'

Feld interrupted the judge at one point to yell from the dock: 'You've made many mistakes. You've got it wrong.'

But Mr Justice Bryan continued: 'Mr Kankanamalage was unarmed and meant you no harm. They jury rightly rejected your incredible account. This was a murderous assault perpetrated by you on a defenceless and innocent victim.

'In the circumstances, I do not consider, and certainly cannot be sure, that the murder was motivated by hostility to a particular sexual orientation.'

Referring to Feld's obsession with graphic hammer videos, he said: 'How anyone could seek out and watch such material beggars belief. Such material is not confined to the dark web, but readily available on a regular search of the web.

'No one could be anything but moved by the victim impact statements read out today. Unsurprisingly, your selfish, abhorrent and callous actions have had a devastating effect on his family.

'This was a frenzied attack to kill one victim and to do so in a violent and aggressive manner. There is a lack of remorse, albeit I view that to an extent through the prism of your personality disorder.

'In your wholly inappropriate rant during your cross examination you were almost calling yourself the victim. You've never apologised for your conduct even in the cold light of day.'
The disfigured body parts of a Russian man eaten alive off a beach at an Egyptian resort are to be passed to his grieving father.

Yury Popov is to cremate the remains of his 23-year-old son Vladimir and fly his ashes home following the completion of forensic analysis.

'The fate of my son is tragic,' said the father - pictured for the first time - during a meeting with Egyptian officials in Hurghada.

'It was his destiny,' the grieving father added.

Young Vladimir was killed last Thursday after he was circled by the pregnant tiger shark and dragged underwater off the coast of Hurghada, eastern Egypt. He could be heard screaming out: 'Papa, save me!'

Vladimir Popov, 23, (pictured) was killed on Thursday last week in a shark attack in Hurghada

The shark was later caught and clubbed to death on the beach by locals (pictured)

Grieving Yury Popov (left), father of shark attack victim Vladimir Popov, 23, met with Egyptian authorities in Hurghada as he plans funeral for his son

Mr Popov stressed he did not blame the Egyptians for the incident which saw a tiger shark rip apart his IT specialist son and sever his head and hands.

He said that such a tragedy 'could happen anywhere'.

This is despite claims from a Russian marine biologist that the same shark - probably pregnant - is likely to have killed two women tourists last year.

'The father of the deceased, at a meeting with the leadership of the province, indicated that he had no claims against the Egyptian authorities in connection with the incident that occurred with his son in the Red Sea,' reported TASS.

The victim's distraught mother had to be hospitalised from her home in Balashikha, near Moscow, it was revealed today. She was seen being escorted to an ambulance.

It comes after Egyptian authorities announced the shark is to be mummified and put in a museum.

The tourist's remains have been handed over to a special company pending repatriation, reported TASS.

Local media reported that specialists at the Institute of Marine Sciences and the Red Sea Reserves have now begun the embalming process for the shark to be put on display.

Vladimir Popov was heard screaming 'papa' as he was mauled to death by a shark in Egyptian resort Hurghada on Thursday last week. Pictured: The shark's fin can be seen just feet away from Vladimir as he attempts to swim away

Tourists watched in horror from the shore as the beast wounded Vladimir Popov before dragging him under the water in the attack last week

A boat is pictured at one of the beaches that have been closed after the shark attack in Hurghada

Vladimir Popov is pictured before he tried to swim away from the shark before he was mauled to death last week

Russian consul general Consul-General Viktor Voropaev said: 'The deceased Russian's father, who is in Egypt, will soon receive his remains.'

The diplomat added: 'The father will deliver his son's ashes to our home country.'

The consular staff were 'in constant contact with the father of the deceased and are ready to provide the necessary assistance at any moment.'

Vladimir was not a normal tourist in Egypt, and had been staying with his father in Hurghada at a time when many military-age are going abroad to avoid being called to fight for Vladimir Putin.

Popov's girlfriend Anastasia was in Russia when the tragedy happened.

Experts say that the female tiger shark's attack could have been caused either by its forced migration to the Gulf of Suez due to increasing water temperatures in the Red Sea - or the protective reaction of a female in the final stages of pregnancy, reported TASS.
Dairo said it was that hope that led her to take the fateful aircraft journey that killed her and two others and left her children to fend for themselves for 40 days

Dairo Mucutuy said Ranoque cheated on Magdalena Mucutuy Valencia and left her dangling with hope they could mend the relationship

The father of two of the Colombian rescue children has surrounded himself with minders and is going shopping for clothes in the capital Bogota  amid allegations hes a love cheat who beat his wife.

DailyMail.com directly confronted Manuel Ranoque in the street after claims he abused Magdalena Mucutuy Valencia and her family exclusively told us he had an affair that ultimately led to the jungle plane crash that killed her.

Sporting what appeared to be new red and white Nike high top sneakers, designer jeans and a colorful Indigenous beaded necklace emblazoned with pictures of toucans and a tiger's head, he dodged our questions.

Asked if he had any response to the claim he physically beat Magdalena, one of the minders with him shook his head and said: Dont answer that.

Manuel Ranoque took to the streets of Bogota in his snazzy new outfit. The man in green behind him is the 'minder' who told him not to answer DailyMail.com's questions

Manuel Ranoque dodged DailyMail.com's questions about allegations of abuse while standing outside the Bogota hospital where the four children are recuperating

Exclusive photos show the four siblings, Lesly, 13, Soleiny, nine, Tien Noriel, four, and baby Cristin, one, safe in their hospital beds at a military hospital in Bogota, Colombia

Dairo said it was that hope that led Magdalena to gather up her children for the fateful aircraft journey that killed her and two others

Ranoque, who was outside the military hospital where all four children are recovering after their astonishing 40-day survival ordeal in the jungle, did however tell DailyMail.com: Thats what I cant talk about.

I cant say anything. Theyve forbidden me from saying anything. These are personal issues.

It was not clear who he was referring to when he said 'they, but it understood he has engaged a lawyer.

When asked if he would talk about the rescue, he declined, saying: I cant right now. Because I have to go to the shops to get some clothes before they close. He did not say if this was shopping for himself or the children.

Ranoque headed to a taxi organized by the man who told him to stay quiet and was joined by at least two other men.

DailyMail.com exclusively revealed Wednesday that Ranoque was cheating on Magdalena, who is the mother of all four rescued children and his wife of seven years. And Magdalenas father Narciso has accused him of hitting her.

Ranoque  who has been highly vocal about claiming his rights over all four survivors  left Magdalena at their Indigenous community for Bogota, alleging he was being threatened by FARC guerrillas in their homeland area.

But once in the sprawling capital city, the father of the two younger children allegedly had an affair  then brought the woman back to live in the southern tribal area, shattering his wife of seven years, her brother Dairo Mucutuy told DailyMail.com.

Ranoque later left for Bogota again, but kept the mom-of-four dangling with hope that they could re-establish a relationship, Dairo, 30, told us.

And it was that hope amid her partner's affair that led her to suddenly  and without her family's knowledge  gather up her children for the fateful light aircraft journey from the Amazonian village of Araracuara to the town of San Jose del Guaviare en route to the nation's capital.

Ranoque was told 'Don't answer that' when DailyMail.com asked him about the abuse allegations

Ranoque has bought new clothes and is no longer wearing the worn sweater he had been wearing when he first got to Bogota

Magdalena Mucutuy Valencia was left dangling with hope they could mend the relationship, according to her brother

Sitting in the lobby of his Bogota hotel, Dairo calmly revealed to us: 'What happened is that Manuel had come to this city and here he cheated on my sister.

'The thing is, he took the woman he cheated with back to the community. So my sister of course left their house because of the affair and came to live with me and my partner and two children.'

Magdalena died in the plane crash along with the pilot and an Indigenous leader

Dairo, who has come to the capital from his base in the Huitoto Indigenous group homeland to offer his support for the surviving children, continued: 'Manuel went back to Bogota, but he left a bag for her and inside was a piece of paper with a phone number.

'Magdalena was communicating with him. But we noticed when she talked with him she would hide. And we would sometimes hear her crying.

'We believe somehow she was fooled into trying to come to Bogota. We are not exactly sure of the reasons.'

Tragically, the engine on the 17-year-old blue and white Cessna light aircraft carrying Magdalena and the four siblings failed and the plane crashed in deep undergrowth on May 1 at Solano, Caqueta, near the Ecuador border.

Lesly Jacombaire Mucutuy, 13, Soleiny Jacombaire Mucutuy, nine, Tien Noriel Ranoque Mucutuy, four, and one-year-old Cristin Neriman Ranoque Mucutuy survived the impact and astonishingly stayed alive for 40 days in the snake-infested jungle before being rescued in a story that has gripped the world.

They are recovering from their ordeal in a military hospital in Bogota, while a custody battle has broken out over them between the mother's side of the family and Ranoque.

The Colombian Institute of Family Welfare has assigned a case officer to the children at the request of their maternal grandparents.

However, DailyMail.com is able to reveal the full background to the tragedy that is now pitting Ranoque against the family of the children's mother.

Additionally, we can reveal the identity of Lesly and Soleiny's father as Andres Jacombaire, who is also in Bogota to support his children as the drama continues and questions are asked over their future.

DailyMail.com spoke to Valencia's brother Dairo as he sat in the lobby of his Bogota hotel. 'We didn't know Magdalena was leaving with the children,' Dairo said. 'The most painful thing is my sister never said goodbye to us'

The four indigenous children are pictured after being rescued. They were missing for six weeks in the Colombian Amazon jungle after a plane crash

'We didn't know Magdalena was leaving with the children,' Dairo said. 'The most painful thing is my sister never said goodbye to us.

'We didn't get to talk. It hurt when I found out what was happening between her and Manuel. I am so sad I never got to talk to her properly about it. I felt I didn't want to pressure her about something that was so difficult for her.

'I was waiting for the right moment. But that moment never came because she obviously made her decision to leave and we didn't know about it.

'Right before, she came to a community meeting and we thought she was going on to our aunt's house. We didn't know her goal was to take that plane. Maybe she felt confused. We'll never know now.'

Amid the growing acrimony over the children's future, Dairo told us: 'The hope is for the kids to stay together, because of what they went through.

'Lesly got them all through this. And that makes a special bond. We want them always to stay together and that Manuel does not fight for custody.

'I have talked to the older two's father, Andres. He has seen the children and he told me that this is not the time for fighting and division. It is the time to focus on the well-being, safety and comfort of the children.'

Referring to his mother Maria Fatima Valencia, Dairo continued: 'Maybe it would be fine for them to stay with their grandmother.

'Eventually they are going to go through psychiatric assistance as well as their medical help. That will be through the Colombian government.

'And then, only then, are we going to decide who will take custody of the kids.'

Two of the children made touching colored drawings of Wilson the Belgian Shepherd rescue dog who went missing during the mission to save them. The drawings were revealed when the head of the Colombian armed forces, General Helder Giraldo visited the children in the hospital

In Lesly's drawing, six-year-old Wilson is depicted next to a river full of fish, a tree, some yellow flowers and with the sun shining on a pathway

Belgian Shepherd Wilson played a vital role in tracking down the four children but remains missing in the Amazon rainforest

Ranoque has appeared outside the military hospital several times since the children were taken there on Saturday after their astonishing rescue by Colombian military who launched a desperate mission after the crash.

His version of events has diverged considerably from what the other side of the family has said.

On Sunday, he asserted that Magdalena was alive for four days after the plane crash, saying: 'Let's be clear, the girl (Lesly) knows everything.

'The only thing that she clarified is that the mother was alive for four days. Before she died she told them "Go! And you will find out what your dad is made of and what your father's love is like."'

However, Dairo dismissed the story and its sentiment. He confirmed to DailyMail.com that Magdalena tragically died instantly and gave more heartbreaking details of the horror.

'Lesly has said that on impact, her mother died,' Dairo told us. 'And that when she saw the bodies, the baby (Cristin) was moving so she pulled the baby out.

'The baby was with the mother. It is false that he was saying that she was alive four days. She died on impact.'

Of Manuel's statements, Dairo  who thoughtfully considered every answer to our questions before speaking  said: 'I know he's trying to create something.'

Ranoque has appeared outside the military hospital several times since the children were taken there on Saturday after their astonishing rescue. He has been highly vocal about claiming his rights over all four survivors

Dairo confirmed to DailyMail.com that his sister tragically died instantly on impact and gave more heartbreaking details of the horror

'But we want to say things as they are. We don't want different stories going around. He's saying one thing, we are sticking to what we know.

'And I know he might be doing this to create some kind of conflict. We don't want to go there.'

Then he warned: 'But if we have to go there, we are going to stand our ground.'

Dairo also condemned Manuel's allegation that he has been threatened by FARC guerrillas and that was the reason for vanishing and asking Magdalena to join him in Bogota claiming she and the children were also under threat.

'Saying those words is very dangerous,' said Dairo. 'That is also potentially making us all in the spotlight. It's a very serious thing to say. There is no evidence he was threatened. But the consequences of his words could create a dangerous situation for all our family.'

DailyMail.com's revelations follow our exclusive pictures of the four children recovering in the hospital, on the mend and playing with pink stuffed animals.

We also revealed moving colored drawings done by Lesly and Soleiny of missing rescue dog Wilson, a Belgian Shepherd who played a key role in finding them.

The drawings obtained by DailyMail.com were given to the head of Colombia's armed forces, General Helder Giraldo, when he visited the children on Monday.

Soldiers of the Colombian Air Force treat one of the children rescued from the Colombian jungle during the operation on June 9

Soldiers of the Colombian Air Force and employees of the Colombian Family Welfare Institute (ICBF) give medical attention inside a plane to the surviving children of a Cessna 206 plane crash

In Lesly's drawing, six-year-old Wilson is depicted next to a river full of fish, a tree, some yellow flowers and with the sun shining on a pathway.

Soleiny's image was similar, with Wilson near a tree, a flower and the sun beaming. One side of the drawing has the Colombian flag and the message 'Always blessed'.

Grandfather Narciso said: 'They are making them make drawings something that they need in order to express themselves.'

Rescue dog Wilson was presumed lost a few days before the siblings were found after he ran away from his handlers, until rescue teams found his footprints near those of the children.

The loyal canine stayed with the children for several days before being lost once again and despite proving crucial to the search mission, which was codenamed 'Esperanza', the Spanish word for hope, has not been found.

Dramatic new details of the children's astonishing ordeal were also revealed by grandfather Narciso on Monday evening. Two other people died in the crash, the pilot and an Indigenous leader.

He said: 'When she (Lesly) realized her mother was already dead, she saw the little feet of her little sister among the three dead bodies.

'She pulled the kid out. And then she immediately saw the others were injured then she headed to open the mother's bag, took out some clothes and started ripping them apart and starting bandaging.

He said there was 3lb of flour on board. 'They stayed around the airplane for four days to see if anyone would pick them up,' he continued.

'But then after four days went by they took off. But she said she didn't know which way to go. Then after a while they started leaving tracks everywhere they would sleep in case anyone would be looking for them, it would help find them.'

He also revealed: 'When they were hearing helicopters they would hide under the large trees because they were fearful.

'And when members of the community and military would be looking for them she (Lesly) would see them 10 meters away and they would hide and stay still and cover the mouth of the little one so she wouldn't cry.

'When the indigenous members of the community were seeking them around the area, the kids would never respond because they thought if they would find them they would give them toys for hiding  and this is why they wouldn't respond to the people calling out for them.'

The incredible rescue was against all odds. The children survived in a jungle crawling with snakes, jaguars and other predators. Their survival was helped by the 3lb of cassava flour that was on the plane.

When found, they were dehydrated, malnourished and bitten by insects but are otherwise healthy, rescuers said.

Grandmother Maria, whose voice was played from aircraft above the jungle during the search to reassure the youngsters they were being looked for, told reporters: 'I never lost hope,

'I was always supporting the search. I feel very happy.'

Colombia's President Gustavo Petro, who has visited them in hospital, said after the rescue: 'They are children of the jungle, and now they are also children of Colombia.'
The gag has already led to diplomatic apologies from Singapore and led Malaysian officials to reach out to Interpol to help track down Chia

Comedian Jocelyn Chia has slammed Malaysian authorities for their 'ridiculous' reaction to a joke she made in New York City about missing Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 after the Asian country's attempt to involve Interpol to track her down.

Chia, a Boston-born comic with dual citizenship in Singapore and the US, sparked outrage after posting a video of her Comedy Cellar stand-up performance from April 7 - where she joked about Malaysia and Singapore's relationship.

The set included crude remarks about Malaysia, which she said lagged far behind Singapore after the two separated in 1965.

She joked about Malaysian airplanes not being able to fly, drawing gasps from the audience saying: 'Why? Malaysian Airlines going missing not funny, huh? Some jokes don't land.'

Flight MH370 was carrying 239 people from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing when it vanished on March 8, 2014, and is presumed to have crashed in the far southern Indian Ocean.

Malaysian Foreign Minister Zambry Abdul Kadir said Chia's act 'showed a total lack of sensitivity and empathy' toward Malaysians and the victims families.

'This video also clearly depicts behavior that is contrary to the values of Asian countries that are known for their manners and morals,' he said in a statement.

Comedian Jocelyn Chia slammed Malaysia for their 'ridiculous' reaction to a joke about missing Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 after their attempt to involve Interpol to track her down

Scattered pieces of debris that washed ashore on African beaches and Indian Ocean islands indicated that MH370 likely crashed in a distant remote stretch of the ocean.

In an interview with BBC, the comic said her joke had been 'taken out of context when consumed on social media.'

'I have [performed this routine] hundreds of times and even did a shorter version of it in Singapore. It always cracks the audience up,' she said.

'I wouldn't have used it again if it didn't work.'

Chia said 'roasting' or grilling the audience is part of the comedy club culture in New York, where she is now based. That isn't necessarily the case in Asian countries, where routines are often more subdued.

She added that American comics in the past have used sensitive topics - including the September 11 terror attacks - as fodder for their jokes.

'Americans can appreciate humor that is harsher, edgier and more in-your-face, as compared to in Asia where the stand-up comedy scene is still in its early days. You won't find a lot of edgy comedy in Asia,' she said.

After the bit went viral, Singapore Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan took to Twitter to apologize on her behalf.

He said he was appalled by Chia's 'horrendous statements' and that Chia doesn't speak for Singaporeans.

'We treasure our ties with family and friends in Malaysia, and are sorry for the offense and hurt caused to all Malaysians,' he said.

Singapore officials said Chia was no longer a citizen. The Singapore Straits Times reported she is now a U.S. citizen.

Chia joked about Malaysian airplanes not being able to fly, drawing gasps from the audience. 'Why? Malaysian Airlines going missing not funny, huh? Some jokes don't land!'

Families of the victim have urged officials to resume searches . A 2018 search offered a $70 million reward if the plane was found but it came up empty

Following the backlash, the video appeared to have been removed from some of Chia's social media but could still be found on some sites.

Interpol shares information about fugitives and brings them back to the country where they've committed a crime, Chia told BBC: 'I just wish I could have seen the face of the Interpol officer who received this request.'

Chia added: 'Honestly, if Interpol does do something about this request and things escalate, can you imagine how famous it is going to make me?'

Malaysia requested help tracking Chia down to aid into their investigation into her comments. She is not listed as wanted on Interpol's website.

It's been nearly a decade since Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 went missing during its flight. The fuselage of the plane has not been recovered and it's presumed all the people aboard died.

Scattered pieces of debris that washed ashore on African beaches and Indian Ocean islands indicated that MH370 likely crashed in a distant remote stretch of the ocean.

But a government search by Australia, Malaysia and China failed to pinpoint a location.

Families of the victim have urged officials to resume searches. A 2018 search offered a $70 million reward if the plane was found but it came up empty.
Williams is now charged with manslaughter and criminal possession of a weapon

Ouedraogo, an ex-con, allegedly punched a woman before her boyfriend, Jordan Williams, 20, pulled out his pocket knife and stabbed him

Devictor Ouedraogo, 36. was said to have been bothering passengers onboard a northbound J train in Brooklyn Tuesday evening before he was stabbed to death

An apparently drunken ex-con was stabbed to death on a New York City train Tuesday night after he started harassing a couple on board, punched a woman in the face and then was allegedly knifed by a man trying to protect her.

Devictor Ouedraogo, 36, was reportedly bothering passengers onboard a northbound J train in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, and even punched a woman before her 20-year-old boyfriend, Jordan Williams, pulled out his pocket knife and stabbed the man, police said Wednesday.

Ouedraogo - who has attempted robbery convictions in his past - was then seen on cellphone footage stumbling out of the train and collapsing on to the platform at the Marcy Avenue station.

Police and first responders rushed to the scene, and EMS crews transported the man to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

Williams was charged Wednesday with manslaughter and criminal possession of a weapon.

The case has drawn similarities with the chokehold death of Jordan Neely, 30, a homeless man with drug addiction problems who was apparently threatening to kill passengers onboard a train last month.

Devictor Ouedraogo, 36, was stabbed to death onboard a Brooklyn-bound J train Tuesday evening

He was rushed to a local hospital in Brooklyn, but was pronounced dead

Police are seen here inspecting the scene where Ouedraogo stumbled before he collapsed

Witnesses said he had gotten into an argument with a couple on board the train and punched a woman before her boyfriend, Jordan Williams, 20, pulled out a pocket knife and stabbed Ouedraogo in the chest

Video apparently showed Ouedraogo stumbling out of the train car and collapsing

Authorities told the New York Daily News Tuesday Ouedraogo boarded the Brooklyn-bound train with the couple at around 8.10pm.

When the subway was traveling over the Williamsburg Bridge, Ouedraogo allegedly started to harass commuters.

Video obtained by the Daily News purportedly showed the victim, who was slurring his words and was shirtless, getting into a random passenger's face. The outlet has not published the footage.

As the commuter tried not to react, the Daily News reported, Ouedraogo began gyrating in front of him.

By the end of that video, Williams could be seen approaching the man in an apparent attempt to calm him down.

But a second video obtained by the outlet showed the two men fighting, as an unknown woman could be heard screaming 'Don't f******* touch her, you piece of s***.'

'Get your f****** hand off of her.

It is unclear if that woman referenced was the same woman the victim allegedly punched.

Ouedraogo was then seen backing off as his chest was covered in blood, the Daily News reports. He could then be seen stumbling out of the train when the doors opened and collapsed onto the platform.

Officers said the couple involved in the attack stayed on the train, but were tracked down at the Chauncey Street station.

They said they did not know the victim, and both Williams and his girlfriend were taken into custody as 'persons of interest,' though the woman was later released.

Ouedraogo had spent three years in prison beginning in 2009 following an attempted robbery conviction in Queens.

The couple continued to stay on the train and were tracked down at the Chauncey Street station

Authorities announced on Wednesday that Williams has been charged with manslaughter and criminal possession of a weapon

Some now see parallels between the case and the choking death of Jordan Neely, who had been struggling with mental illness, drug use and homelessness in recent years.

Witnesses had said that Neely, 30, had been acting out on the train on May 1 and Marine veteran Daniel Penny, 24, was trying to subdue him when he put the street performer in a chokehold.

In a recent interview, Penny further claimed Neely ripped off his jacket and threatened to kill the subway passengers.

'The man stumbled on, he appeared to be on drugs, the doors closed, and he ripped his jacket off and threw it down at the people sitting next to me at my left,' he added.

Penny said he took his headphones out from listening to music as he heard Neely yelling in what he deemed a 'scary situation.'

'The three main threats that he repeated over and over again were I'm going to kill you, I'm prepared to go to jail for life and I'm willing to die,' Penny said.

Some see parallels between the case and the choking death of Jordan Neely, 30, by fellow passenger Daniel Penny, 24, on a subway train on May 1

At a certain point, Penny felt he couldn't sit and do nothing any longer, echoing an interview he gave earlier this week where he cited a talk at school from author Elie Wiesel.

'There's a common misconception that Marines don't get scared. We're actually taught one of our core values is courage, and courage is not the absence of fear but how you handle fear,' he said.

'I was scared for myself but I looked around there was women and children, he was yelling in their faces saying these threats. I just couldn't sit still.'

He argued the reporting that he was 'holding on' to Neely for 15 minutes 'is not true.'

'The whole interaction lasted less than 5 minutes. Some people say I was trying to choke him to death - which is also not true. I was trying to restrain him.'

He claimed the grip he used to keep Neely restrained was 'based on the force that [Neely's] exerting.'

'You can see in the video there's a clear rise and fall of his chest, indicating that he's breathing. I'm trying to restrain him from being able to carry out the threats.'

Penny was charged with manslaughter by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg less than two weeks after the May 1 incident.

If convicted, Penny could face up to 15 years in prison.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis' 2024 presidential campaign and billionaire Elon Musk have slammed the White House for a tweet celebrating the 'LGBTQI+ Community' and 'our kids' that are a part of it.

The Biden administration shared a video on Monday in honor of Pride month and showed the presidential estate lit in rainbow colors.

Biden says in the clip: 'These are our kids. These are our neighbors. Not somebody else's kids; they're all our kids ... LGBTQ Americans, especially children, you are loved, you are heard, and this administration has your back.'

The post's reference to children was met with backlash from social media users, led by the official account for DeSantis' campaign and Twitter boss Musk.

DeSantis' campaign account shared screenshots from the video and wrote: 'They are not your kids.'

Musk replied: 'Our kids are not fodder for the government.'

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis' 2024 presidential campaign and billionaire Elon Musk have slammed the White House for a tweet celebrating the 'LGBTQI+ Community' and 'our kids' that are a part of it

But the post was met with immense backlash from social media users and Twitter CEO Musk joined in to hit out at Biden's reference to kids in the video

'To the LGBTQI+ Community  the Biden-Harris Administration has your back,' the White House wrote on Twitter.

A voiceover from Biden appeared in the clip where he said: 'These are our kids. These are our neighbors. Not somebody else's kids; they're all our kids. And our children are the kite strings that hold our national ambitions aloft.

'It matters a great deal how we treat everyone in this country. LGBTQ Americans, especially children, you are loved, you are heard, and this administration has your back.'

The video comes just four days after Biden and First Lady Jill Biden hosted a 'Pride Celebration' event at the White House on Saturday where a transgender woman bared her breasts.

Rose Montoya, 27, was among hundreds invited to the White House for the festivities where she met the president and first lady - before unhooking her dress and cupping her bare breasts on the South Lawn.

'Are we topless at the White House?!' the person recording the clip says, as Montoya moves her hands up and down while grinning.

The Idaho-born model, who began transitioning in 2015, has since been banned from the White House and an official slammed her behavior as 'inappropriate and disrespectful'.

'It is not reflective of the event we hosted to celebrate LGBTQI+ families or the other hundreds of guests who were in attendance. Individuals in the video will not be invited to future events,' a White House spokesperson said in a statement to DailyMail.com.

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre reiterated that point at her Tuesday press briefing.

'Individuals in the video certainly will not be invited to future events. And this has not occurred before. This was not a normal thing that has happened under this administration,' she said.

DeSantis, who is running for 2024 Republican presidential nomination, has staked part of his political future on cultural issues surrounding LGBTQ rights.

A Florida law, known as Senate Bill 254, was passed last month by the state legislature and it bans sex change surgeries for minors.

It also prohibits doctors from giving minors drugs or performing state-funded 'gender-affirming' medical procedures if they are under the age of 18.

The bill also puts in place more safeguards for adults who are receiving the procedures, in order to ensure they are informed about the 'irreversible nature and about the dangers of the procedures,' DeSantis said on May 17.

Rose Montoya, 27, attended a Pride party at the White House on Saturday and posed topless

Montoya is seen with Joe Biden, and declaring: 'Trans rights are human rights'

The law, which takes effect immediately, specifically requires transgender adults to obtain written consent on a form adopted by the Board of Medicine and Board of Osteopathic Medicine.

And it grants Florida courts jurisdiction in child custody battles over transgender kids when a Florida parent opposes treatment that is being pursued by an out-of-state parent.

DeSantis cheered the legislation at a bill signing press conference on May 17, while slamming states that conduct 'experimental' procedures on minors.

'This will permanently outlaw the mutilation of minors. It will outlaw the surgical procedures and experimental puberty blockers for minors,' he said.

He hit out at states which are 'welcoming' minors and encouraging sex change surgeries without parental consent.

'You have actually some states in this country that want to be a haven for these types of procedures and even welcome minors without their parents' consent,' said DeSantis.

'We're obviously doing the opposite here,' he continued, adding that the law is an important way to 'recover damages' from surgeries given to a minor.

'They should be able to sue the physician who hurt them, and they're now going to be able to with this law,' DeSantis stated.

DeSantis, who is running for 2024 Republican presidential nomination, has staked part of his political future on cultural issues surrounding LGBTQ rights

The Florida Governor signed a bill banning sex reassignment surgeries and medications such as puberty blockers and hormone therapy for children

And a Florida Republican supermajority passed an expansion of his so-called 'don't say gay' law early last month to cover all public school students Kindergarten through 8th grade.

The newly expanded Parental Rights in Education bill was sent to DeSantis' desk on May 3 for his signature after it passed the legislature by a 27-21 vote.

It follows the Florida State Board of Education voting in April to ban the topic of sexual orientation and sexual identity in all public schools for all grades up through graduating high school.

Critics have dubbed the bill the 'don't say gay' law, claiming that it could hurt gay and transgender students by keeping the discussions off limits in public school classrooms.

The new law also makes the process easier for parents to make sure books they feel are inappropriate are taken off their childrens' bookshelves.

Any person can challenge a book for any reason within their county. Once a challenge is levied, the book in question must be pulled from the shelves during the review process, which could take weeks or months.
A Manhattan grand jury is expected to soon decide whether to indict ex-Marine Daniel Penny over the death of homeless schizophrenic Jordan Neely on a subway.

The panel will have to decide if the former soldier should face second-degree manslaughter charges in a New York City court.

DA Alvin Bragg impaneled the grand jury, who must indict 24-year-old Penny before he is tried on the charge. If convicted, he would face up to 15 years in prison.

Grand juries typically hand up the indictments that prosecutors are seeking, however, if the jury decides against indictment, DA Bragg will be able to take the political position that his office took the case seriously.

The critical vote may arrive as early as Wednesday afternoon.

Penny, 24, turned himself in earlier this month after the District Attorney's office announced he would be charged with second-degree manslaughter

Jordan Neely, 30, is placed in a choke hold by a fellow passenger on a subway train on May 1

Penny is currently free on a $100,000 bail. He surrendered himself to law enforcement officers on May 12 - nearly two weeks after the fatal incident occurred.

Attorneys for Penny have argued their client acted in self-defense. Neely, who had previously been arrested some 40 times, was allegedly screaming, yelling and threatening other passengers on the F train, according to eyewitnesses.

Over the weekend, in a video statement, Penny said he was not trying to kill Neely when he grabbed him, but could also not allow himself to remain passive while Neely threatened fellow passengers.

'There's a common misconception that Marines don't get scared. We're actually taught one of our core values is courage, and courage is not the absence of fear but how you handle fear,' he said in a video released on Sunday.

'I was scared for myself but I looked around there was women and children, he was yelling in their faces saying these threats. I just couldn't sit still.'

The confrontation quickly took a turn for the worse when Neely lost consciousness and eventually died.

The medical examiner for the city ruled the death a homicide and said Neely died due to 'compression of the neck.'

Following the troubled homeless man's death, his family leveled blame against authorities for not making sure he was able to get the help he needed.

They've also called for Penny to face murder charges. Penny's next scheduled court date is July 17.

Penny gave a detailed account of what happened on the subway car. He said: 'The man (Neely) stumbled on, he appeared to be on drugs, the doors closed, and he ripped his jacket off and threw it down at the people sitting next to me at my left.'

He said he took his headphones out from listening to music as he heard Neely yelling in what he deemed a 'scary situation.'

'The three main threats that he repeated over and over again were I'm going to kill you, I'm prepared to go to jail for life and I'm willing to die,' Penny said.

At a certain point, Penny felt he couldn't sit and do nothing any longer, echoing an interview he gave earlier recently, during which he cited a talk at school from author Elie Wiesel. He added that the entire interaction lasted less than five minutes.

Penny further described the encounter, saying: 'You can see in the video there's a clear rise and fall of his chest, indicating that he's breathing. I'm trying to restrain him from being able to carry out the threats.'

Penny, in handcuffs, is escorted by the NYPD after turning himself into the the 5th Precinct in Lower Manhattan last month

A GiveSendGo for Penny's legal fund has raised more than $2.8million

The former Marine also discredited claims his behavior was racist, saying: 'Some people say that this was about race, which is absolutely ridiculous.

'I didn't see a black man threatening passengers. I saw a man threatening passengers, a lot of whom were people of color.

'A man who restrained Mr. Neely was a person of color.

'And then a few days after the incident, I read in the papers that a woman of color came out and called me a hero.'

Penny also thanked those who have contributed to his legal fund through GiveSendGo. The campaign has raised over $2.83million as of Sunday night.

'I was working two jobs as a student. My family doesn't come from money so I'm incredibly thankful for this fund and all the people who have supported me,' Penny said.
The protester who was arrested in mock prison garb after darting in front of Donald Trump's motorcade in Miami has spoken out, claiming that he only ran into the street to escape from a mob of Trump's supporters.

Dominic Santana, 61, was tackled by Secret Service agents and arrested on misdemeanor charges for running in front of the motorcade on Tuesday, as Trump departed federal court after pleading not guilty to 37 felony counts.

Santana, who retired to Miami after buying and resurrecting the famed Stony Pony music club in New Jersey, told DailyMail.com that it was the first Trump protest he had ever attended.

In a phone interview just hours after his release from an overnight stay in Miami jail, Santana told DailyMail.com that he had no regrets, and only ran into the road to escape from Trump supporters who were physically assaulting him.

'The mob was after me, hitting me with sticks, spitting on me, I was being harassed. And I had to go across the street for safety, because there were no barricades,' he claimed.

'It so happened to be that a motorcade was coming through, and I happened to stand right in front of it,' the activist said.

Protester Domenic Santana is seen in a mugshot after his arrest on Tuesday. He told DailyMail.com in an interview he ran into the road to escape from Trump supporters

Santana said he had no regrets, and only ran into the road to escape from Trump supporters who were physically assaulting him - though video shows him stopping to hold up his sign

Video of the incident shows Santana stopping directly in front of one of the SUVs in the motorcade and hoisting aloft a sign reading 'Lock him up.'

Santana came to the US as a child from Cuba, and retired in Miami about 10 years ago, after decades operating a Cuban restaurant in Jersey City.

In 2000, he also purchased and reopened the Stone Pony music club in Asbury Park, New Jersey, revitalizing the venue famous for launching the music careers of Bruce Springsteen and Jon Bon Jovi.

Santana told DailyMail.com that he no longer had ownership interest or involvement with the Stone Pony and is instead enjoying retirement in Miami.

He had strong words regarding Trump, calling the former president's supporters 'a cult' and claiming Trump has 'blood on his hands' for the US Capitol riot on January 6, 2021.

'What we have seen since the clown took office, the things that have happened, we can no longer be blind to it, like the cult following that he has behind him,' said Santana.

'Remember, 'lock her up'?' he added, referring to Trump's 2016 slogan regarding his opponent Hillary Clinton. 'Now it's his turn, to lock him up.'

Trump has been charged in a sweeping federal indictment that accuses the former president of hoarding classified national defense documents at Mar-a-Lago and refusing government demands to give them back.

Dominic Santana of Miami is pushed out of the way as he tries to block former President Donald Trump's motorcade as it departs the federal courthouse in Miami

Dominic Santana, 61, was tackled by Secret Service agents and arrested on misdemeanor charges for running in front of Trump's motorcade on Tuesday

The former president turned 77 on Wednesday, and Santana concluded the interview with tongue-in-cheek greetings to the former president.

'I want to wish Donald Trump a happy birthday. Because this is one of the few, hopefully, that he's free,' said Santana. 'And I'll see him in jail -- just hopefully not in the same cell!'

Santana arrested at Tuesday's protest on charges of disorderly conduct, resisting an officer without violence and obstructing traffic.

In a jail mugshot, he is seen still wearing the cartoonish prison outfit which he donned for the protest, complete with handcuffs and a plastic ball and chain.

'A fellow New Yorker can spot a rat a mile away,' he told the AP in an interview prior to his arrest on Tuesday. 'Frankly, he should've been locked up ages ago.'

Video posted online showed the motorcade traveling down a Miami street, where supporters and protesters were lined up on both sides.

Santana was immediately grabbed by agents traveling with the motorcade, who pushed him back to the sidewalk.

He was dressed in a black and white prison uniform and had been pictured earlier in the day standing with his sign waiting for the former president.

Santana arrested at Tuesday's protest on charges of disorderly conduct, resisting an officer without violence and obstructing traffic

Agents are seen in an aerial picture pushing Santana out of the way

Police apparently tackled Santana to the ground, where he sat handcuffed

A second video showed Santana on the ground as spectators gathered around him with their phones out.

Miami police officers could be seen pushing the crowd back as others led the protester away in handcuffs.

'The individual was removed swiftly from the roadway by officers from the Miami City Police Department,' Special Agent Steve Kopek said in a statement to DailyMail.com.

'His actions had no impact on the security of the protective movement, and we thank Miami City Police for their continued partnership.'

Santana was also seen getting into an argument with a Trump supporter before his arrest, calling him the 'biggest con in American history.'

His stunt was one of the highest-profile incidents on Tuesday for crowds that gathered at the Miami courthouse for his arraignment on federal charges in a case involving the handling of classified documents.

Protestors and supporters of the former president gathered at the courthouse hours before the 3 pm arraignment.

He was seen standing outside the court throughout the hearing Tuesday afternoon, as people gathered both in support and protest of the former president

Santana was pictured earlier Tuesday as Trump arrived in federal court for his arraignment

Officers told crowds of people who gathered following the spectacle to back up as they brought Santana into custody

In the morning, cops had to shut off a block outside the Wilkie D. Ferguson Jr. United States Federal Courthouse for a report of a 'suspicious package' on the scene before Trump arrived.

A bomb squad was called in and officers pushed the crowd back to inspect the mystery object before the all-clear was given.

City officials had said they were prepared for a crowd of 5,000 to 50,000 people in the downtown area that houses the Wilkie D. Ferguson Jr. United States Federal Courthouse.

A combination of local, state and federal law enforcement were on hand with trucks of police in riot gear arriving on the scene Tuesday morning. Barriers and police tape were also put up to control the crowds and helicopters flew overhead.

The former president was also protected by his Secret Service detail.

Trump pleaded not guilty on Tuesday to 37 federal counts against him for his mishandling of classified documents.
More dolphin pens have been spotted near the base, home to Kremlin's fleet

The port of Sevastopol in Crimea has experienced regular drone attacks

Russia has doubled the number of trained dolphins guarding its Black Sea Fleet over fears of a counter attack from Ukraine, according to reports.

Sevastopol in Crimea - the major port on the Black Sea and home to the headquarters of the Russian fleet - has experienced regular drone attacks from Ukraine in recent months.

And now more pens for the dolphins have been spotted guarding the naval base and Kremlin's warships as part of increased defence measures, Naval News reported.

The website estimates that Russia is now using six or seven dolphins, compared with three or four at the start of the war, so that they can cover a wider area.

Advanced technological devices mean that the highly-skilled dolphins can detect targets and send a signal back to an operator.

Russia has doubled the number of trained dolphins guarding its Black Sea Fleet (file image of a Russian military dolphin)

Sevastopol has experienced regular drone attacks from Ukraine in recent months. Pictured: An alleged drone attack in April

The animals can locate mines, threats and divers relatively easily and they can easily outswim any diver.

They are part of a multi-layered defence system that also includes anti-torpedo nets and rocket launchers.

In April Russia attributed a major fire at a fuel tank in Sevastopol to a Ukrainian drone, prompting speculation the strikes could be laying ground in preparation for counter-offensive attacks.

Plumes of smoke could be seen rising from the depot after the strike destroyed 10 tanks of petroleum products with total capacity of 40,000 tons, according to Ukraine's Defence Intelligence (GUR).

'[The strike] is one of the elements of preparation for a counteroffensive', said Natalya Gumenyuk, spokeswoman for the South Operational Command of the Armed Forces.

The Russian military was said to have been made anxious by the strike and are now ramping up their defences, including bringing in more dolphins to intercept divers at the port.

Other countries, such as the US and Sweden, have also used trained dolphins to bolster their naval power in the past.

Russia took control of the dolphin unit after annexing Crimea in 2014. Moscow claimed the mammals 'defected' to Russia.

More pens have been spotted in the port of Sevastopol (file image) and the numbers of the dolphins are estimated to have increased from three or four to six or seven

A small Russian 'spy dolphin' carries a bomb during a training exercise (image date unknown)

Russian army trainers work with the sea mammals so they can protect valuable navy assets

The US Navy's San Diego-based Marine Mammal Program was established in 1959 after bottlenose dolphins were found to be skilled at delivering messages and identifying naval threats.

But keeping military dolphins isn't always easy. In 2013, two-thirds of Russia's military dolphins went absent without leave in the Black Sea - apparently in search of love.

An army source told MailOnline: 'They deserted a naval exercise and went on manoeuvres of an amorous kind. They swam away to look for mates.'
A California doctor who allegedly tried to kill his family by driving their Tesla off a 250-foot cliff known as Devil's Side has been banned from practicing medicine after being dubbed 'an alarming danger to the public'.

Radiologist Dharmesh Patel, 41, has pleaded not guilty to three counts of attempted murder after his white 2021 Tesla Model Y veered off the Pacific Coast Highway south of San Francisco and plunged from the precipice on January 2.

His children, aged four and seven, and wife Neha Patel, 41, were in the car, and an official said it was an 'absolute miracle' that they made it out alive.

While Patel has been held in San Mateo County's Maguire Correctional Facility since his arrest, this week the Medical Board of California successfully applied to ban him from practicing medicine if he is released on bail, according to the Mercury News.

The Pasadena radiologist's children, aged four and seven, and wife Neha Patel, 41, were in the car, and an official said it was an 'absolute miracle' that they made it out alive

Patel is pictured in a mugshot after he was booked in the San Mateo County's Maguire Correctional Facility, where he remains held without bail

Patel is speculated to have performed a sharp turn before reaching the Tom Lantos Tunnel, which is where the Tesla veered off the road, first onto a dirt area and then down the cliff

The paper said regulators argued that the ban was necessary because Patel poses 'an alarming danger to the public' in light of an 'impairment of cognitive abilities needed to safely practice medicine.'

Judge Rachel Holt granted the request on Monday, after postponing Patel's preliminary hearing scheduled for that morning.

This comes after his wife revealed that the Pasadena radiologist stated his intention to die moments before the crash.

Court documents showed that as Neha Patel was airlifted from the scene, she told a California Highway Patrol officer: 'He drove off. He's depressed.

'He said he was going to drive off the cliff. He purposely drove off.'

All four people in the car survived in what one official called an 'absolute miracle.' Dharmesh Patel, 41, has pleaded not guilty to three counts of attempted murder

The wreckage of the Tesla is pictured at the bottom of the cliff

Patel and his Defense Attorney Joshua Bentley inside the courtroom during Patel's court proceeding in Redwood City in February

Despite this comment, Patel's defense attorney Josh Bentley previously said that his wife did not want her husband prosecuted.

Patel, who is on limited contact with his family, claimed he pulled off the road to check on a potentially flat tire - though witness testimony does not appear to support this account.

He was seen driving at speed northbound on Highway 1 and he is speculated to have performed a sharp turn before reaching the Tom Lantos Tunnel, which is where the Tesla veered off the road, first onto a dirt area and then down the cliff.

Patel suffered major lower body injuries, while his wife suffered severe injuries and both their children were treated in hospital.
It also reportedly owes around $180,000 in back rent on its nearby Walnut Street offices

It stop paying rent in March and declined to refill the mandatory credit line of $968,000 that it agreed to have with the landlord

Twitter could be evicted from its Bluff Street offices in Boulder, Colorado, after failing to pay $75,000 in rent

Twitter could soon be evicted from its Colorado offices after it failed to pay rent and a judge approved the company's removal from the property.

The judge has given the Elon Musk company until the end of July to vacate.

The tech giant faced evictions from its S'Park office on Bluff Street in Boulder after its landlord, The John Buck Co., filed a lawsuit against Twitter after it refused to replenish its credit line.

When Twitter moved into the space in 2020, it was required to keep a $968,000 line of credit open, which would also the John Buck Co. to pull from if the company fell behind on rent. However, whenever that credit line was used, the company had 10 days to replace the money.

The company, which doesn't appear to actively use its 65,000-square-foot space, stopped paying rent in March and then declined to rebuild the fund, according to Bizwest.

Twitter also hasn't paid $75,000 in rent for three months.

Twitter could soon be evicted from its Colorado offices after it failed to pay rent and a judge approved the company's removal from the property in Boulder. The judge has given the Elon Musk company until the end of July to vacate

The company owned by Elon Musk - who has a net worth of $235billion - may also be behind on it nearby Walnut Street offices as well, according to Bizwest. The company vacated the space in 2022 and put it on the sublease market.

By December 2022, a 'demand for compliance or right to possession notice' letter posted to the doors of the Walnut Street building showed the company owned nearly $180,000 in back rent.

Twitter has also been sued by other companies for failing to pay, including Colorado company Avalanche Commercial Cleaning Inc, who alleged in a lawsuit that Twitter failed to pay $100,000 in cleaning bills.

Bloomberg reported that Musk's company was behind on 'more than $10million' worth of payments to various companies. Many of the companies they owe are small businesses.

One of Twitter's San Francisco landlords filed suit against the social-media giant in December 2022 saying the company failed to pay rent on its California Street location. The company also failed to make payments for its offices in Seattle.

The tech giant faced evictions from its S'Park office on Bluff Street in Boulder after its landlord, The John Buck Co., filed a lawsuit against Twitter after it refused to replenish its credit line. When Twitter moved into the space in 2020, it was required to keep a $968,000 line of credit open, which would also the John Buck Co. to pull from if the company fell behind on rent. However, whenever that credit line was used, the company had 10 days to replace the money

Many small vendors have created a separate class action against Twitter for its failure to pay.

The leader of the class-action suit told Bloomberg that Twitter communicated to vendors through chatbots about payment.

Since the billionaire took over at Twitter, he has added $12billion to company's debt, according to Bizwest.

Twitter's value has plummeted to one-third of what it was when the CEO purchased it in October - from $45billion to $15billion in just six months.

A recent valuation from Fidelity of its stake in the social-media giant showed that the company has hemorrhaged value as their piece - $20million in October - now sits at just $6.55million.

In January, a Fidelity report indicated that the value was plummeting and had decreased to $7.8million following a massive drop in November as well.
It's got to be more than the name, surely?

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is one of the most talked about presidential candidates in the 2024 race.

Twitter's founder and former boss Jack Dorsey endorsed him, last week. Twitter's current owner Elon Musk hosted him for an extended conversation on his platform (this time, without glitches).

Silicon venture capitalist Chamath Palihapitiya is holding a fundraiser for the Kennedy scion and Palihapitiya has reportedly been struck by the reaction. 'A lot of people maxing out,' he told Axios.

The reception from real-world America is very much the same.

In liberal California, 17 percent of Democrats backed RFK Jr, in a new Emerson College survey. And a recent CNN poll showed an astonishing 20 percent support among Democrats nationally in the primary race against President Joe Biden, who is stumbling towards the starting gate.

Everyone can see that Biden is senile and incapable of properly carrying out the duties of the presidency.

Forty-five percent of U.S. adults in a new Economist-YouGov poll say Biden's age and health 'severely limit' his ability to serve, and that includes nearly half of all independents.

Vice President Kamala Harris is a hapless laughingstock who has utterly squandered her chance to demonstrate the kind of seriousness America expects in its leader.

But is that enough to drive one-in-five Democrats to overlook RFK Jr's obvious faults, or is something else going on?

Twitter's founder and former boss Jack Dorsey endorsed RFK Jr, last week. Twitter's current owner Elon Musk hosted him for an extended conversation on his platform (this time, without glitches).

Perhaps most surprisingly, Kennedy's profile keeps rising despite his being shunned and shamed by most of the media, branded a kook and a conspiracy theorist.

The funny thing is that there are even more serious criticisms that could be thrown RFK's way.

He himself has spoken of the 'lust demons' that drove his prodigious womanizing, detailed in a personal diary that was leaked to The New York Post, in which he listed a slew of alleged sexual conquests during just one year of his marriage to his second wife, Mary Richardson.

Tragically, Richardson hanged herself in 2012 after allegedly telling a friend that she 'feared for her life', claiming that Bobby 'repeatedly' told her she would be 'better off dead' and that it would be 'so much better' if she killed herself, wrote RFK Jr. biographer Jerry Oppenheimer.

Two years later, in the legendary Kennedy compound at Hyannis Port, Massachusetts, Bobby Kennedy married for a third time - to Curb Your Enthusiasm star Cheryl Hines, who joked on that same 'Twitter Spaces' conversation with Elon Musk that her husband's presidential campaign might drive her to 'invent a new kind of margarita with Xanax in it' - a 'practical solution' to cope with the stress of his run for president.

Bobby - at least the Bobby Kennedy Jr of many years ago - could probably help come up with something stronger.

In 1983, not long after being sworn in as Assistant District Attorney for Manhattan, he was charged with heroin possession and required to perform hundreds of hours of community service and stay within the confines of New York State.

All of this - and more - is well documented.

Tragically, Richardson (above, center) hanged herself in 2012 after allegedly telling a friend that she 'feared for her life', claiming that Bobby 'repeatedly' told her she would be 'better off dead' and that it would be 'so much better' if she killed herself, wrote RFK Jr. biographer Jerry Oppenheimer.

Cheryl Hines joked with Elon Musk that her husband's presidential campaign might drive her to 'invent a new kind of margarita with Xanax in it.' Bobby - at least the Bobby Kennedy Jr of many years ago - could probably help come up with something stronger.

In a Democratic party obsessed with identity politics, supposedly a champion of gender equality and performative 'Me Too' social justice progressivism, you'd think that at least the allegations over the treatment of women would rule Kennedy out.

But there is a much more powerful force at work propelling his candidacy.

Hilariously for the self-righteous, sanctimonious Democratic Party leadership and their puppets in the media, it is exactly the same force that propelled Donald Trump to the presidency in 2016: total contempt for the establishment.

To understand RFK Jr's appeal, you have to put aside the famous name and the personal foibles and focus on the substance.

On issue after issue, Kennedy is taking on the Democratic establishment in a fascinating way.

In recent years the Democrats have, in a stunning reversal of traditional alignments, become the party of Big Business and corporate America.

RFK Jr, a committed environmentalist, is a massive critic of corporate power. He talks about 'the corrupt merger of state and corporate power' and the way it could 'impose a new kind of corporate feudalism in our country.'

The differences over Ukraine are even more striking.

To understand RFK Jr's appeal, you have to put aside the famous name and the personal foibles and focus on the substance.

As the Democrats become firmly entrenched as the pro-war party and leading defenders of the notorious 'military-industrial complex', Kennedy is aggressively anti-war, attacking the 'neo-cons in the White House; over their attempt, as he sees it, to impose 'regime change with the Russians.'

Kennedy is also a fierce critic of the 'censorship-industrial complex' (as author Michael Shellenberger has dubbed it): the alliance between Big Government, the national security state and Big Tech to silence and censor views outside the approved establishment groupthink.

The more that Kennedy's support grows, the wilder and more deranged are the attacks on him from the smug Democrat-supporting media elite. But they completely miss the main point.

With RFK Jr on 20 percent, Marianne Williamson on nearly 10 percent, and almost the same proportion of Democrats wanting an unspecified 'someone else', it's obvious that the Biden-Harris ticket being pushed ever-more dementedly by party bosses is firmly rejected by nearly half the grass roots.

The Democratic party establishment has drifted way out of touch, detached from a large portion of its base that repudiates almost everything it now stands for and is looking for a populist standard bearer to 'stick it to the man.'

You might even call it Trumpian. And that's the biggest irony of all.
The morgue manager at Harvard Medical School allegedly stole heads, brains, skin and other body parts and sold them, according to a federal indictment filed on Wednesday.

Cedric Lodge is said to have stolen the remains from cadavers donated to the prestigious university for scientific research and education.

The filing states that Lodge took the dissected body parts to his home in Goffstown New Hampshire, where he and his wife Denise sold them on as part of a national network of human remains traffickers.

Some of the remains were even shipped through the United States Postal Service.

U.S. Attorneys Office believes Lodge to have engaged in the unlawful trafficking of human remains between 2018 through to August 16, 2022 while working in the morgue as part of the university's Anatomical Gift Program.

Cedric Lodge (pictured) is said to have stolen the remains from cadavers donated to the prestigious university for scientific research and education

Several buyers have also been named in the indictment including Jeremy Pauley (pictured)

Cedric Lodge is said to have stolen remains from cadavers donated to Harvard Medical School for scientific research and education

Lodge had worked at Harvard since 1995 until the Medical School terminated his employment on May 6 this year.

The school is now working with federal authorities to determine which donors may have been affected and have set up a hotline for donors' families to access information and support.

Harvard insist that no other employees at the school are facing charges or are suspected of any wrongdoing.

Several buyers have also been named in the indictment including Joshua Taylor, of West Lawn, Pennsylvania, and Katrina MacLean, of Salem, Massachusetts, who owned and operated a business called Kat's Creepy Creations in Peabody, Massachusetts.

'At times, Cedric Lodge used his access to the morgue to allow Katrina MacLean, Joshua Taylor and others to enter the morgue and choose what remains to purchase,' the indictment states.

Maclean is also accused of selling on the remains he obtained to other buyers in multiple states including to Jeremy Pauley of Enola and Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania.

In October 2020 Maclean sold two dissected faces and skin to Pauley for $600, who was hired to tan the skin and make it into leather before shipping it back to Maclean.

The indictment states that Pauley transferred $8,800 to MacLean and 25 payments totaling $40,049.04 to Taylor via PayPal.

Pauley, 40, had previously been arrested and charged for abuse of a corpse, receiving stolen property and dealing in the proceeds of unlawful activities

Alleged buyer Katrina MacLean, of Salem, Massachusetts, owned and operated a business called Kat's Creepy Creations in Peabody, Massachusetts

Maclean is also accused of selling on the remains he obtained to other buyers in multiple states including to Jeremy Pauley

Pauley, 40, had previously been arrested and charged for abuse of a corpse, receiving stolen property and dealing in the proceeds of unlawful activities last summer.

Pauley also purchased body parts that were stolen from a crematorium in Little Rock, Arkansas, by Candace Chapman Scott, according to a statement from the Department for Justice.

Scott is accused of, among other things, taking the corpses of two stillborn babies whose remains were due to be cremated.

Pauley, in turn, resold many remains to others, the indictments allege.

Pauley is the owner of The Grand Wunderkammer - a shop which sells 'odd and unusual' items to the public and to museum exhibits. He is also the executive director and curator at The Memento Mori Museum, according to his Facebook.

He was arrested last June after police received a tip about Pauley's suspicious activity and his collections.

The caller said they found 'several' five-gallon buckets of human remains in Pauley's basement.

Investigators later recovered the remains, that included human brains, hearts, livers, skin, and lungs.

Charges listed in the grand jury indictment of the Lodges, MacLean and Taylor include conspiracy and interstate transport of stolen goods.

'Some crimes defy understanding,' United States Attorney Gerard M. Karam said in a statement about the indictments.

'The theft and trafficking of human remains strikes at the very essence of what makes us human.

'It is particularly egregious that so many of the victims here volunteered to allow their remains to be used to educate medical professionals and advance the interests of science and healing.

Adding: 'For them and their families to be taken advantage of in the name of profit is appalling. With these charges, we are seeking to secure some measure of justice for all these victims.'

In a statement George Q. Daley, the Dean of the Faculty of Medicine at Harvard described Lodge's behavior as 'an abhorrent betrayal' and 'morally reprehensible.'

'We are appalled to learn that something so disturbing could happen on our campus  a community dedicated to healing and serving others.

'The reported incidents are a betrayal of HMS and, most importantly, each of the individuals who altruistically chose to will their bodies to HMS through the Anatomical Gift Program to advance medical education and research.'

Adding: 'We are so very sorry for the pain this news will cause for our anatomical donors families and loved ones, and HMS pledges to engage with them during this deeply distressing time.'
A 22-year-old former Army soldier has pleaded guilty to trying to help ISIS attack and kill American soldiers in the Middle East.

Cole James Bridges from Stow, Ohio, also known as Cole Gonzales, faces 40 years in prison for 'attempting to provide material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization' and 'attempting to murder U.S. military service members.'

Bridges, who was arrested in January 2021, pleaded guilty on Wednesday before US District Judge Lewis J Liman.

The active-duty soldier was arrested in Georgia after speaking to an undercover FBI agent he thought was a member of ISIS online about plots to blow up New York City's 9/11 Memorial and attack service members in the Middle East.

US Attorney Damian Williams said Wednesday: 'As he admitted in court today, Cole Bridges attempted to orchestrate a murderous ambush on his fellow soldiers in service of ISIS and its violent ideology.'

Cole James Bridges, 22, aka, Cole Gonzales, pled guilty on Wednesday for helping ISIS attack and kill American soldiers in the Middle East (pictured above)

According to the complaint, just months after joining the US Army in 2019, Bridges began researching online propaganda promoting jihadists

Bridges allegedly provided the bogus ISIS contact with detailed instructions on tactics and manuals and advice about attacking the 9/11 Memorial in New York City

Williams called Bridges' acts a betrayal of his country and thanked prosecutors and the FBI's New York Joint Terrorism Task Force.

'Bridges's traitorous conduct was a betrayal of his comrades and his country. Thanks to the incredible work of the prosecutors of this Office and our partners at the FBI and the U.S. Army, Bridges's malign intent was revealed, and he now awaits sentencing for his crimes, he added.

Bridges was charged with attempting to provide material support to ISIS, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, and attempting to murder U.S. military service members, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.

A message that was purportedly sent by Bridges to the undercover agent showed a flag often used by ISIS fighters

Bridges joined the US Army in September 2019 and was assigned as a cavalry scout at Fort Stewart.

Before his arrest, the then 20-year-old was with the Third Infantry Division out of Georgia when he thought he was communicating with ISIS online about the terrorism plots.

Unbeknownst to Bridges, a federal agent was in on the chat as Bridges provided detailed instructions on tactics and manuals and advice about attacking the memorial and other targets in New York City, Nicholas Biase, a spokesperson for Manhattan federal prosecutors said in 2021.

Around the same time, Bridges allegedly began researching online propaganda promoting jihadists, and expressed his support for ISIS and jihad on social media.

In October 2020, Bridges began communicating with the undercover FBI agent posing as an ISIS supporter in contact with ISIS fighters in the Middle East.

During these exchanges, according to the US Justice Department, Bridges 'expressed his frustration with the U.S. military and his desire to aid ISIS.'

Bridges then allegedly began to supply the undercover agent with instructions for purported ISIS fighters on how to attack US forces serving in the Middle East, and went so far as to diagram specific military maneuvers to maximize the lethality of the attacks.

Bridges allegedly sent his contact videos showing himself in a tactical mask and body armor, and standing in front of the ISIS flag while making a gesture symbolic of support for the terrorist organization

In the weeks before his arrest, Bridges sent the bogus ISIS supporter video of himself in body armor standing before a flag often used by ISIS fighters and making a gesture symbolic of support for the terrorist organization.

He later sent a second video in which he used a voice manipulator to narrate a propaganda speech in support of the anticipated ambush by ISIS on US troops, according to the federal prosecutors.

Bridges 'further provided advice about the best way to fortify an ISIS encampment to repel an attack by U.S. Special Forces, including by wiring certain buildings with explosives to kill the U.S. troops,' according to the Justice Department.

Bridges is scheduled to be sentenced by Judge Liman on November 2, 2023, at 2:00 p.m.

The case will be handed by the Offices National Security and International Narcotics Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sam Adelsberg and Matthew Hellman are in charge of the prosecution, with help from Trial Attorney Michael Dittoe of the Counterterrorism unit.
Shocking body camera footage shows the moment an Indiana woman threatened to decapitate local police officers as she claimed she was a member of the Islamic State terrorist group.

'If y'all don't get fired, f****** toast, ISIS will cut your f****** heads off,' Sierra Justice Malloy, 43, could be heard telling officers who responded to reports of arson outside a Spectrum cable store on Old Business Road in Evansville Sunday night.

Malloy went on to tell officers at the scene they do not know who they were dealing with as she allegedly admitted to tearing down the business' American flag, setting it on fire and replacing it with a green ISIS flag.

'You've been hit by terrorists at the worst time, you just don't know it yet,' she tells the police  whom she accuses of 'selling my children to pedophiles' and keeping children under government buildings to drink their blood.

Malloy was charged with flag desecration, intimidation, criminal mischief and trespassing. She is being held a the Vanderburgh County Jail on a $1,500 bond.

Sierra Justice Malloy, 43, was seen on body camera footage threatening to decapitate Evansville, Indiana police officers as she claimed to be a member of ISIS

Evansville officers are seen here taking down the green ISIS flag she admitted to putting up outside a Spectrum cable store

Authorities say they first received a call from someone at the Spectrum cable store just after 9.45pm Sunday.

'The called advised grass was on fire approximately six to 10 feet from the building,' Officer Ed Kitzinger wrote in an affidavit obtained by the Evansville Courier and Press. 'The fire department was on scene already and the fire had been put out.'

By 9.52pm, police-worn body cameras showed an officer approaching the scene, where Malloy was already in handcuffs and a green flag could be seen waving from the top of a flag post.

Officers removed her personal belongings, as she told them: 'You've been hit by terrorists at the worst time.'

Malloy continued to hurl a flurry of slurs and homophobic insults at the officers in the heavily-censored video while officers behind her took down the green flag.

At that point, she threatened to 'cut your f****** heads off.'

'My head?' an officer asks.

'Yeah, he's going to cut your heads off,' Malloy responds. 'You don't know who I am, do you? You're going to find out who I am.'

One of the officers then asked Malloy if she follows Osama bin Laden or Saddam Hussein, to which Malloy says: 'Maybe I am. Happy 9/11.'

'Yeah, you've been hit by terrorists at the worst time, you just don't know it yet,' she continued. 'Indeed, watch what I tell you boys.'

She then accused the officers of having 'children underneath these government buildings, f*****abusing them, drinking their blood.'

She also said they 'sell my children to pedophiles,' all of which are apparent Q-Anon conspiracy theories.

Malloy continued to curse out the officers, when the officer whose camera was recording approached the green flag, now on the ground.

'What is that?' he asked.

'An Islamic flag,' his colleague responded.

'Oh, that's an Islamic State flag?' he clarified.

'Yeah, she is ISIS,' another officer off screen could be heard saying.

'Yeah that's right I am ISIS, indeed,' Malloy admits, to which the officer whose body camera is recording simply says, 'huh.'

Malloy was charged with flag desecration, intimidation, criminal mischief and trespassing. She is being held a the Vanderburgh County Jail on a $1,500 bond

She apparently claimed on Facebook that she is the daughter of neo Nazi Joseph Paul Franklin, a notorious serial killer in the 1970s, accusing the FBI of framing him

Many of the posts on the Facebook page for Lori D. Franklin were anti-Semitic, including this one featuring a swastika over a candle saying 'Be the light'

According to court documents obtained by the Courier and Press, Malloy went on to claim that her ISIS handle is Lori D. Franklin.

A public Facebook account corresponding to that name includes a slew of anti-Semitic content and features posts associated with the Q-Anon movement like #SaveTheChildren and #KidsforCash.

She also claimed on the page that she is the daughter of neo Nazi Joseph Paul Franklin, a notorious serial killer in the 1970s, accusing the FBI of framing him.

Other posts said white people are under attack from integration in the United States and calls for justice for the January 6 rioters.

'I've lived long enough to see Americans left in Afghanistan with our enemies the Taliban,' she writes in one post in August.

'White Americans have been set up and murdered by the government. We are now labeled as domestic terrorists just by being White in America. #WhiteLivesMatter,' she claimed.

Another post also featured a swastika over a candle saying 'Be the light.'

It is unclear if Malloy has retained any attorneys who could speak on her behalf.
by Ashok K. Mehta

It looks like democracy is about to trounce the military-monarchy nexus in Thailand one more time. But appearances are deceptive in a country where the military has subordinated the political class. In south and south East Asia Pakistan, Myanmar and Thailand refuse to jettison the Khaki brigade who rule these countries either directly or indirectly. Thailand has never been colonized and has emerged as the regions second most prosperous country and one of the worlds leading tourist destinations. Bangkok was the hub of 13 coup-de-tats and 9 coup attempts in 90 years after Absolute monarchy was abolished in 1932 and replaced with constitutional monarchy. From 1948 to 1991 most Prime Ministers were Generals. For more than 10 years now the two PMs were Generals.





A supporter holds up a sign with the partys number at a Move Forward rally that drew thousands to Pak Nam in Samut Prakan. (Photo: @MFPThai Twitter)





Recently the military crafted a constitution inspired by fellow Generals in Myanmar that is designed to ensure the military dominates the hybrid government and Generals in Saville Row suits call the shots. But a slip between the cup and lip has led to a landslide victory for civilian political parties in Thailand- like in Myanmar in 2021 that triggered the coup against Aung San Suu Kyi. In the May elections, no ordinary Generals but three Army Chiefs between 2004 and 2020 were PMs, Deputy PMs and Interior Minister. Yet they were hollowed out by civilian youthful leaders hugely popular among people, especially youth seeking reform and change. They planned to rotate among themselves as PMs.





The Move Forward Party under the Harvard-educated businessman turned politician Pita Limjaroenrat and the Thaksin family-backed Pheu Thai Party led by Paetongtran Shinawatra bagged 151 and 144 seats in the 500-member lower house. Pita turned out to be the dark horse, defeating the favourite Shinawatra scion-led PTP. A coalition of 8 parties is expected to garner 376 seats in a 750-member two-tier Parliament for a majority. The top two parties along with the Bhumjaithai party along with 5 other parties would form the coalition to select Pita as the new PM. The session of parliament in July will ratify the Prime Minister and the coalition government through a majority vote. Thailands complex but military-weighted constitution ensures the military wins. There are fears that Myanmar may be replicated in Thailand. In a sense, therefore, the election was a referendum on the military in which the junta suffered a humiliating defeat.





MFP has got a mandate for transformation as Pita canvassed for removing the military from politics, ending conscription, restoring full democracy, scrapping Article 112 on Lese Majeste, overhauling the economy, establishing rule-based diplomacy and establishing a humanitarian corridor between Thailand and Myanmar while attempting to implement Aseans five-point consensus on Myanmar. But dismantling the established military-monarchy order will not be easy.PM Prayuth Chan-o-cha gracefully conceded defeat, acknowledging the power of peoples vote and adding that he respects democracy and hoped Thailand will be peaceful. His statement has an ominous ring to it. Pita is pledged to reform Lese Majeste introduced in 1908 and reformed in 1976. It carries a penalty of 28 years in jail  15 years per charge of insult and disrespect to monarchy. No one in Thailand openly discusses King Maha Vajiralongkorn, Rama X of the Chakrai dynasty and monarchy. Conversations are in code. In 2017, Prayuth succumbed to the Kings desire to exercise greater control over the military by altering the constitution to place key military units under Royal control. People do not venerate the present King as much as they did his father but he is the King.





Thucydides law will come into play during power transformation. The military maintains several leverages  like the handpicked senate, election commission, dissolving the main opposition party and courts. These are the militarys non-traditional tools for combating threats that challenge its domination and control of politics. But international as well as domestic safeguards could act as a deterrent to the orderly transfer of power to the elected government. The writing on the wall is that though Pita has got the mandate, the transition may not take place as he has struck at the Palace and Monarchy as well as the military. Other graffiti suggests that he may strike a deal to go slow on reforms targeting Monarchy. Already corruption charges have been levied against Pita which he has denied. He is also accused of constitutional violation (?) which could disqualify him from parliament.





The Supreme Court has 60 days to confirm the results declared by Election Commission. After the 250-seat Senates vote to determine the final vote tally, the elected government will have to prove its majority in 90 days. The Generals will not want to attract the wrath of the West after their counterparts in Myanmar did an about-turn on democracy. It is therefore better to let the coalition government run for now say, for two years, and let infighting among the coalition lead to disruption and break in law and order or simply manufactured disorder. A valid pretext is essential in the rules-based order for military intervention and restoration of what Generals call disciplined democracy. This has been historically the cycle of action-reaction to ensure that the military grip over politics is more direct than indirect. The rise of MRP and its dynamic leader Pita eclipses the somewhat controversial Thaksin family aura and gives Thailand another more potent chance for democratic transformation.





Ashok K. Mehta is a radio and television commentator, and a columnist on defence and security issues. He is a former Major General of Indian Army. After joining the Indian Army in 1957, he was commissioned in the 5th Gorkha Rifles infantry regiment in the same year. He had fought in all major wars India went into, except the Sino-Indian War of 1962. And he was also on a peacekeeping mission in Zaire in the year 1962 and in the Indian Peace Keeping Force, Sri Lanka (1988-90) and it was his last assignment in the Indian Army. He is also a writer of several books and a founder-member of the Defense Planning Staff in the Ministry of Defence, India.
The Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) has refused to allow a California megachurch, founded by famous pastor Rick Warren, back into its denomination after it was kicked out for allowing female pastors.

Saddleback Church, which represents the denomination's second-largest congregation, had launched an appeal over the decision in February to oust churches for having women in charge.

But this was overwhelmingly rejected at the Southern Baptist church annual meeting in New Orleans on Tuesday by 9,437 votes to 1,212.

A similar appeal by a smaller church, Fern Creek Baptist of Louisville, Kentucky, which is led by a woman pastor, was also rejected.

The results were announced in front of the packed convention hall on Wednesday morning and met with silence after SBC President Bart Barber urged people to show restraint.

The Southern Baptist Convention refused to allow California megachurch, founded by famous pastor Rick Warren, back in denomination after it was kicked out for allowing female pastors

Saddleback Church had launched an appeal over the decision in February to oust churches for having women in charge

But this was overwhelmingly rejected at the Southern Baptist church annual meeting in New Orleans on Tuesday by 9,437 votes to 1,212

Saddleback's large congregation had been widely touted as a success story amid larger Southern Baptist membership declines.

Warren, the retired founding pastor and author of the best-selling phenomenon The Purpose Driven Life, called for the church to be reinstated and told the convention 'women on pastoral staff have not sinned'.

He urged Baptists to agree to disagree 'in order to share a common mission,' following the announcement of the results.

'Messengers voted for conformity and uniformity rather than unity. The only way you will have unity is to love diversity,' he said.

'We made this effort knowing we were not going to win.'

President Barber had previously asked those in attendance to show self-control no matter the result.

'I know sometimes there are churches where people wind up in biblical divorce,' he said.

'But we don't throw divorce parties at church. And whatever these results are, I'm asking you, behave like Christians.'

Church representatives also voted 9,700 to 806 to deny an appeal by smaller congregation Fern Creek Baptist Church, which has had a woman pastor for three decades but came under heightened scrutiny this year.

Warren and the Rev. Linda Barnes Popham, pastor of Fern Creek, made their final appeals to Southern Baptists here on Tuesday during the denomination's annual meeting.

Warren has been a lifelong Southern Baptist and has pushed the boundaries for several years now, according to Scott Thumma, a sociology of religion professor and director of the Hartford Institute for Religion Research.

But he said the church being removed from the denomination was something he might have never expected.

Warren, the retired founding pastor and best-selling author, called for the church to be reinstated and told the convention 'women on pastoral staff have not sinned'

Church representatives also voted 9,700 to 806 to deny an appeal by smaller congregation Fern Creek Baptist Church, which has been led by Rev. Linda Barnes Popham for three decades

Southern Baptist Convention President Bart Barber urged people to show restraint ahead of the results

'It's pretty clear that Warren did not think the SBC was going to reinstate Saddleback,' Thumma said.

'But, he's had a platform to say what being Baptist means, what the Scripture says about women in ministry, that Southern Baptists are under a big tent and what is means to exclude any congregation. This is all probably more symbolic.'

Following the vote results, Warren criticized the direction of the SBC that contributed to Saddleback's ejection.

'There are people who want to take the SBC back to the 1950s when white men ruled supreme and when the woman's place was in the home. There are others who want to take it back 500 years to the time of the Reformation,' he said.

'I say we need to take the church back to the first century. The church at its birth was the church at its best.'

In February, the Southern Baptist Convention's Executive Committee voted to oust the two congregations, along with three others that chose not to appeal, for having women pastors.

All Baptist churches are independent, so the convention can't tell them what to do, but it can decide which churches are 'not in friendly cooperation,' the official wording for an expulsion states.

The SBC's official statement of faith says the office of pastor is reserved for qualified men, but this is believed to be the first time the convention has expelled any churches over it.

Following the results, Warren criticized the direction of the SBC that contributed to Saddleback's ejection

The SBC's executive committee, which has 30 employees and 86 appointed members - approved the vote but formally recommended 'messengers' vote against it

Its executive committee, which has 30 employees and 86 appointed members - approved the vote but formally recommended 'messengers' vote against it.

Pastor Mike Law, a proponent of the ban, said the ruling would provide the SBC with the 'clarity' that they are in 'desperate need of.'

Joshua Abbotoy, a pastor whose congregation left the denomination, said some Southern Baptists have strong, unfavorable views of women leading.

His conservative organization New Founding published an analysis last year that estimated there were more than 1,800 female pastors in SBC churches.

Opponents of the ban say they believe it could set a dangerous precedent for the denomination and others like it.
Whoopi Goldberg, 67, grew emotional after listening to the mother of Ajike 'AJ' Owens, speak candidly about her daughter's death

The View co-host Whoopi Goldberg tearfully slammed 'stand your ground' laws after a mother of a black woman who was allegedly shot dead by a white neighbor after a two-year feud.

Goldberg, 67, grew emotional after listening to the mother of Ajike 'AJ' Owens, who candidly spoke about her daughter's death on The View's Wednesday episode, and how the suspected white perpetrator tried to use the 'stand your ground' laws to defend shooting Owens, a black woman, dead through a door in Florida on June 2.

'This could be any one of you. Know that it's a bad law,' the actress said before getting choked up. 'We want to help get rid of it and I hope this case will finally shine a light on this.

'We will continue to do this, we will continue to talk about it,' she continued. 'There are no words, there are no words. We are beyond broken over your loss.'

Susan Louise Lorincz, 58, was arrested and accused of shooting Owens. She was charged with manslaughter with a firearm and other counts. She is free on $150,000 bond.

Whoopi Goldberg, 67, grew emotional after listening to the mother of Ajike 'AJ' Owens, who candidly spoke about her daughter's death on The View's Wednesday episode

The suspected white perpetrator tried to use the 'stand your ground' laws to defend shooting Owens, a black woman, (pictured) dead through a door in Florida on June 2.

Owens' mom, Pamela Dias, also revealed on the show her grandchildren, nine and 12, had been playing in a 'privately owned field' and her grandson had forgotten to bring his tablet. When he went to retrieve, Lorincz 'was there to harass him.'

'She called him racial slurs, said this is not the underground railroad. She threw a skate at him, broke his tablet,' Dias said. 'So he did what any normal kid would do. He went home and told his mother.'

When Owens, 35, went over to the home after Lorincz requested her, she was shot through a closed door.

'I have four young grandchildren. The two oldest boys, they blame themselves,' Dias revealed. 'The nine-year-old feels as if he hadn't left his tablet, his mother would still be here. The 12-year-old, he couldn't do anything to save her. He has already started trauma therapy.

'Also, I have a three-year-old toddler who has no idea what's going on. I'm trying to decipher his crying, you know, his irritability. Is he simply he's hungry, tired, sleepy or is he missing his mother?'

Dias slammed people's 'natural instinct to shoot first' and said the country has 'too much accessibility to guns.'

Owens' mom, Pamela Dias, also revealed on the show her grandchildren, nine and 12, 'blame themselves' for their mothers death

Susan Louise Lorincz, 58, (pictured) was arrested and accused of shooting Owens. She was charged with manslaughter with a firearm and other counts. She is free on $150,000 bond

She admitted to police to have researched stand your ground law and self defense prior to the shooting. Her and Owens had a two-year dispute prior to the shooting

'People's natural instinct is to shoot first rather than to talk, you know. Use their minds, use their words. No regard for life anymore,' she told the ladies of The View on Wednesday.

The family's attorney, Anthony Thomas, agreed, saying 'the laws in the state of Florida allow for the shoot-first mentality.'

'That's exactly what Susan did in this situation,' he said. 'Ms. Dias didn't mention it, but in the arrest affidavit, Susan told the nine-year-old, go get your mother. She created the situation. She wanted this to happen.

'In that arrest affidavit, she admits to researching stand your ground law. She was using words that the detectives thought were interesting and they asked her" "Why are you using these words?" These were buzzwords and clues that made them think, why are you using these things? She said I researched stand your ground and researched self-defense prior to this incident.

'She wanted to use stand your ground as a shield of protection.'

Dias said: '[Owens] was not just a statistic. She was my daughter. She was the mother of four precious children... They have a grandmother, but they'll never feel their mother's arms, their mother's kisses, their mother's hugs.'

Lorincz was arrested earlier this month over the bitter two-year dispute about children playing outside.

'This could be any one of you. Know that it's a bad law,' the actress said before getting choked up as she spoke about stand your ground laws. 'We want to help get rid of it and I hope this case will finally shine a light on this'

Dias slammed people's 'natural instinct to shoot first' and said the country has 'too much accessibility to guns.' She said: 'People's natural instinct is to shoot first rather than to talk'

'She created the situation. She wanted this to happen,' the family lawyer Anthony Thomas said of Lorincz

Lorincz was charged with manslaughter with a firearm, culpable negligence, battery, and two counts of assault, the Marion County Sheriff's Office stated last week.

In a video posted by the sheriff's office following her arrest, Lorincz was seen hanging her head as she was walked with her hands cuffed behind her back, flanked by deputies.

'The justice we have all been seeking has been served,' Sheriff Billy Woods said last week. It follows public pressure on police to take action over the killing after authorities first said they had to take time to determine what role Florida's 'stand your ground' law might play in the incident.

Authorities came under pressure last week to arrest and charge Lorincz in a case that has put Florida's divisive stand your ground law back into the spotlight.

Woods said that this was not a stand your ground case but 'simply a killing.'

When interviewed, Lorincz claimed she acted in self-defense and that Owens had been trying to break down her door prior to her discharging her firearm.

Lorincz also claimed Owens had come after her in the past and had previously attacked her. Through their investigation - including obtaining the statements of eyewitnesses - detectives were able to establish that Lorincz's actions were not justifiable under Florida law, a statement from the sheriff's office said.
A Seattle ice-cream shop has banned tipping entirely amid growing backlash from Americans fed up with the practice creeping into a range of everyday services.

Molly Moon Neitzel, the owner of Molly Moon's Ice Cream Shop, told CBS News she has axed gratuities in the store, as digital payment screens with suggested tipping amounts make both employees and customers feel 'uncomfortable.'

'Employees don't really want to stand there and think about how much influence the customer has over what they're going to take home,' she said.

Instead, she has raised prices and wages - paying staff a starting wage of $21 an hour, plus healthcare benefits. 'Now all employees know exactly how much they'll make,' she told the outlet.

It comes amid rising resentment over the country's 'tipflation' problem - which has seen tipping culture spill out from bars and restaurants and into stores, takeout chains and even self-service machines.

Molly Moon Neitzel, the owner of Molly Moon's Ice Cream Shop in Seattle, has banned tipping

Experts say a lot of people report so-called 'guilt-tipping' when they encounter a pre-entered tip screen

'I have to say I'm highly annoyed at tipping,' Neitzel said. 'When we accepted tips, credit card processors benefitted the most as they make more on the credit card processing fees.'

She also noticed that black employees were earning less than their white counterparts. 'It became clear to us how unfair our total compensation system was,' she added.

Neitzel is not the only business owner fighting back against tipflation.

Griffin Williams, co-owner of Flying Lion Brewing in Columbia City, has also axed tipping in his brewery and pub.

'It feels like tipping has just become too much. Its gotten out of hand,' he told The Seattle Times.

'Tipping doesnt have a great history to it anyway,' Williams told the outlet. 'And now its gotten really confusing and problematic. So we just thought: How can we get rid of it?'

They ended up increasing the pay rate of the bartenders from about $16 an hour to roughly $28 an hour. Then they raised the base price of the beer by about 20 percent (from $6 to $7.20, plus roughly 80 cents for taxes).

'This feels fairer, more honest and upfront,' he said.

It comes after a Bankrate survey of 2,500 Americans earlier this month revealed how two-thirds of people have a negative view about tipping and are growing stingier with gratuities on a range of everyday service.

It found shoppers are tipping less across the board for eating out, taxis, food delivery, haircuts and their daily coffee - and that 30 percent of people said they thought tipping culture had gotten out of control.

The decline in tipping corresponds with the emergence of pre-entered tip screens at check-outs, as experts say the tech is 'definitely contributing to Americans' annoyance about tipping.'

The screens boomed in popularity during the pandemic, when stores were concerned about accepting cash and in need of a quick and easy digital alternative.

Ted Rossman, Bankrate senior industry analyst, told DailyMail.com that a lot of people report so-called 'guilt-tipping' when they encounter one of these screens.

'There has also been a lot of tip creep  being asked to tip for things that havent historically warranted a tip. Ive seen tip requests at self-checkout machines and when booking travel online. These are blatant revenue grabs,' he added.

Some 32 percent of those surveyed said they felt annoyed by pre-entered tip screens, which ask customers how much they would like to give, with options generally beginning at 18 percent.

In fact, 18 percent of those surveyed admitted to tipping less or not at all when presented with pre-entered selections, Bankrate said.

However Rossman told DailyMail.com he suspects we will be seeing more of these screens.

'This is a boon for employees, of course, and also for employers who may get away with paying their staff less as a result. As more and more businesses add these, its harder to avoid them, so businesses may find safety in numbers,' he said.

It comes after DailyMail.com revealed how tech firm Square - which sells the software that powers many of these iPad payments - made an eye-watering $3 billion profit last year alone.

It marks a three-fold increase on what the company, which was founded by billionaire and former Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey, netted four years ago in 2018 when it was earning around $1 billion a year.

In the first quarter of 2023, it made $770 million, up 16 percent on the same period last year.

The figures clearly display how quickly such digital Point-of-Sale (POS) systems have taken over the nation's retailers and hospitality venues.
The first victim of a dive boat fire in Egypt that killed three Britons has been named as a hospice boss who had spent her life working in the NHS.

Christina Quinn, 58, had taken on her role as chief executive of St Luke's Hospice in Plymouth after a dedicating much of her working life to the NHS. Tonight her family paid tribute to Ms Quinn, describing her as 'a rock to many' who will 'be missed beyond words'.

Ms Quinn, along with the two other victims, had been inside her cabin room when the fire broke out in the Red Sea on Sunday morning, sources told AI Arabiya.net

'It is with great sadness that we confirm the tragic death of Christina Quinn in Egypt', a spokesperson for her family told Sky News tonight.

'She was a sister, daughter, wife, aunty, friend, and rock to many. She will be missed beyond words.

Christina Quinn, 58, is the first victim of the tragic fire on an Egyptian dive boat to be named

The fire had broken out on the Hurricane boat off the coast of Marsa Alam

'We would ask for privacy at this time.'

Charles Hackett, chair of St Luke's Hospice said: 'Christina was incredibly passionate about St Luke's and its place at the heart of the community it serves, and we are devastated to lose her warmth, wisdom and leadership.

'With her vibrant and engaging personality and her down to earth, caring nature, as CEO she wads quickly building strong and meaningful relationships both inside the outside the organisation.

'We will miss Christina enormously and our hearts go out to her family and close friends at this tragic time.'

Scuba Travel, who chartered the boat, announced that the three British tourists who 'perished in the tragic incident' off the coast of Marsa Alam had chosen not to go diving that day, leaving them unable to evacuate the boat quickly.

Investigators confirmed that the three had been found in the deck in their cabins, which sources said was next to the fuel tank, after failing to escape the intense blaze.

The dive company said the three passengers were amongst 15 qualified diving enthusiasts who had been on board the 'Hurricane' for a week-long trip.

'At the time the fire broke out, 12 divers were participating in a briefing on board, while those missing had apparently decided not to dive that morning,' the company added.

Rescue services were alerted to the fire after the blaze was said to have started in the engine room because of an electrical fault

The wrecked Egyptian diving boat was seen lying on its side as it was brought to shore for an investigation

Footage of the fire shared on social media shows the boat being transformed into a floating inferno as its stern was engulfed by flames.

Black smoke flumes from the rear off the boat as it travelled through the Elphinstone Reef in the Red Sea.

Terrified passengers are seen throwing themselves from the ship, which was carrying 29 people on board at the time, escaping the vessel after a suspected electrical fault in the engine room.

In total, 26 passengers were rescued, 12 British and the other 14 are thought to be Egyptian. Local police said the people rescued had no injuries and were in good health.

Police said that crew members suffered no injuries and were taken to shore in good health.

A full investigation is set to be carried out by local authorities to determine what caused the fire. The wrecked boat has been pictured lying on its side with smoke still billowing out of it on the shore as it cools down.

A spokesman for Scuba Travel confirmed to MailOnline on Monday: 'It is with great regret that we, as tour operator, with heavy hearts, must accept that three of our much-valued dive guests, perished in the tragic incident.

'Our sincere and heartfelt condolences go out to their families and friends at this very sad time.'
A woman, 21, who survived a 'Dukes of Hazard-style' horror crash in a now-viral video said she was left severely injured and makes it difficult to sleep.

Tanaijsha Bruton soared 120 feet in the air - struck another vehicle and tumbled end over end before coming to rest upside down during the May 24 Georgia highway wreck.

Video from the incident quickly went viral and drew comparisons to various TV and movie car chase scenes.

Bruton told WALB-TV she couldn't remember everything from the incident, but was shown the ordeal on social media. She said she remembered the pain she felt afterward.

'It hurts really, really bad. I felt everything,' she said.

A Lowndes County sheriff's deputy was responding to an earlier wreck on the day when his body camera recorded Bruton's sedan flying into the air after driving up the ramp of a tow truck.

Tanaijsha Bruton soared 120 feet in the air - struck another vehicle and tumbled end over end before coming to rest upside down during the May 24 Georgia highway wreck - she said the ordeal left her sleepless

The astonishing footage showed the moment Bruton's car flipped after hitting the ramp of the tow truck at full speed.

At the time, a Georgia State Patrol confirmed that a 21-year-old Tallahassee woman was severely injured in the airborne crash on Highway 84, but miraculously managed to survive. Bruton was , who was transported to the South Georgia Medical Center after the crash near Valdosta, Georgia.

The deputy rushed to help Bruton who was transported to South Georgia Medical Center after the crash near Valdosta, Georgia.

In the video, the deputy was seen walking along the stopped highway on the other side while attending to a separate crash.

The camera turned as he faced the other side of the road with the red tow truck in view.

The red tow truck comes into view as the deputy on the opposite side of the road looks left

A worker in a vest walks in front of the truck as the black car comes into view (right lane)

Without warning, the grey car behind hits the back of the stopped truck and launches itself

A black car passed as a worker in a fluorescent jacket, who stepped in front of the stopped truck.

But without warning, the motorist in the grey car hit the back of the truck, ripping off a large part of the front bumper as it made contact.

The car was then seen to spin through the air, turning on its side and appeared to hit a black car in the right hand lane.

The deputy sheriff ran to help the young driver while calling in the wreck over the radio.

Debris was seen scattered across the road and in the grass as the officer ran on.

The clip cut out as the officer approached the car, showing the extent of damage to the front of the rolled vehicle.

Local outlet WCTV said that the incident had brought attention to Georgia's Move Over Law, which requires drivers to slow down and switch lanes when approaching an emergency vehicle, including a tow truck.

The car flies through the air. Part of the one of the wheels is pictured top right of the frame

The car turns onto its side before making impact with the ground and the car 120ft in front

The deputy officer witnesses the incident and runs past car parts towards the horror crash

A police report said the car 'vaulted' around 120 feet over the tow truck after launching off its ramp.

Bruton claimed she had been blamed for the collision but said the truck was stopped in the fast lane of the highway with no indicators illuminated.

'When I go to sleep that's pretty much what I dream about,' she said.

'It just replays over and over.'

Bruton was hospitalized in intensive care in neighboring Florida. She said her internal injuries required at least four surgeries and she's grateful to have survived.

'My family didn't want to show me the video,' Bruton said. 'But of course, I'm hardheaded and got on social media.'

On Facebook, the young mom posted 'I'm a warrior' as family and friends sent messages to her to get well soon.

It appeared that Bruton's story had reached international heights, with some people from Brazil also commenting on her post.

In the days after the crash, Bruton posted 'Thanks everybody keep praying for me' with a heart emoji to end the post.

It remains unclear whether Bruton faced charges related to the wreck.
The victim who died after a tour boat capsized in frigid waters in the Lockport Caves along the Erie Canal in upstate New York has been identified as a 'cherished and loving' grandfather.

Harshad Shah, 65, was on a flat-bottom boat, which was carrying 29 people including one staff member, with his wife on Monday when it suddenly flipped over due to a sudden shift in weight.

Everyone on board was thrown in the water and Shah was trapped underneath and later pronounced dead.

Four people were taken to Eastern Niagara Health System to be treated for non-critical injuries and seven others were transported to a nearby hospital.

Shah's wife is still in shock following the tragic accident and his family are seeking answers as to how this could have happened.

Harshad Shah, 65, died after a tour boat capsized in frigid waters in the Lockport Caves along the Erie Canal in upstate New York

He was on a flat-bottom boat, which was carrying 29 people including one staff member, with his wife on Monday when it suddenly flipped over due to a sudden shift in weight

'Harshad Shah was a family man who will be deeply missed. His wife remains in shock, unable to come to terms with this fatal event that unfolded before her eyes,' his family said in a statement shard with local television station WGRZ.

'We are all seeking answers to the why and how of this tragedy. The loss of Harshad Shah has forever changed our family, leaving an irreplaceable void.'

Shah was born in Gujarat, India and lived in Niagara Falls where he was president of the Budget Host Inn, according to his obituary.

He was survived by his wife, children, grandchildren and numerous other relatives.

Shah's funeral will be held on Thursday in Niagara Falls, according to M.J. Colucci & Son Funeral Chapel.

The tour was operated by Lockport Cave & Underground Boat Ride. DailyMail.com reached out to the company for comment.

Lockport Mayor Michelle Roman said that the group on the boat were hospitality workers from Erie County. They were brought to the canal by a Destination Niagara USA tour.

A total of 16 people were rescued by boats while the rest were able to walk out of the caves. The area is being treated as a crime scene. The boat involved can hold up to 40 people.

The sheriff's office revealed that all of those on board were adults. Multiple people, covered by towels, could be seen being loaded into an ambulance.

Everyone on board was thrown in the water and Shah was trapped underneath and later pronounced dead and eleven people were taken to hospital for treatment

Shah's wife is still in shock following the tragic accident and his family are seeking answers as to how this could have happened

Lockport Mayor Michelle Roman said that the group on the boat were hospitality workers from Erie County and were brought to the canal by a Destination Niagara USA tour

'The boat did a 180-degree turn, so the bottom of the boat was upright in the water,' Lockport Fire Chief Luca Quagliano said at a news conference.

'A number of victims were on top of that boat initially when rescuers got to them.'

He said all 29 people on board the flat-bottom boat were thrown into water between 5 feet and 6 feet deep when the boat apparently became unbalanced and capsized toward the end of the roughly 300-foot tunnel.

'We have had eight of the passengers come into our ER,' said Patricia Brandt, spokeswoman for Eastern Niagara Hospital in Lockport. 'None critical. They're all stable and some have already been released.'

Brandt said she did not know the nature of the injuries but believed some were treated for cold from being in the water. Other patients went to other hospitals, she said, but did not have details.

Footage from the scene outside the Lockport Cave office showed one person talking as she was loaded onto an ambulance. Others wrapped in white towels were being escorted to a bus as a steady rain fell.

An investigation into what caused the boat to overturn has been started by local, state and federal agencies.

The tour takes visitors through a dimly lit, rough tunnel on an underground boat ride.

Lockport Mayor Roman said the attraction, which has operated since the mid-70s, will remain closed during the investigations.

An investigation into what caused the boat to overturn has been started by local, state and federal agencies

A file photo showing guests taking the boat tour of the cave

A similar incident occurred in September 2015 when staff and clients of Baker Victory Services, now OLV Human Services, fell into the water when their boat flipped on the Lockport Cave Tour.

Sheri Scavone said her son, who was 15 at the time, was on the boat which capsized in 2015 and is still traumatized by the incident.

'Thankfully, this kid knew how to swim and was strong but there was nothing to grab onto, the sides were slippery,' she told WGRZ. 'It was pitch black. The boat was capsized.'

She was only concerned for her son's wellbeing at the time but now says she wishes she reported it.

Scavone added that she is troubled the tours have continued to operate without at least handing out life jackets.

Photos and videos posted on the Lockport Cave website show small, flat-bottom boats slipping through a rough-hewn tunnel, which was blasted out in the 19th century to transport extra water from the Erie Canal to power nearby businesses.

The caves have been open to boat tours in 1977. The tour takes around 70 minutes. The tunnel was once the subject of an episode of the Syfy network show 'Ghost Hunters.'

The water temperature in the area was around 60 degrees.
He accused Sir Bernard Jenkin to be guilty of 'flagrant and monstrous hypocrisy'

Boris Johnson has demanded the resignation of one of his chief Partygate tormentors following sensational reports he had himself attended a drinks party during the pandemic.

The former Prime Minister said Tory grandee Sir Bernard Jenkin should step down from the Commons privileges committee over claims he had taken part in a lockdown-busting event.

In a letter to the committee last night, Mr Johnson said Sir Bernard appeared to be guilty of 'flagrant and monstrous hypocrisy'  and questioned whether its report into his own conduct could still be considered reliable.

The committee is expected to formally accuse Mr Johnson of lying when it finally publishes its report into Partygate today. Mr Johnson resigned as an MP last week after being sent a draft copy, which he described as a 'political hit job'.

But, in an extraordinary twist last night, one of the committee's most senior members was facing questions about his own conduct.

Boris Johnson makes his opening statement as he attends a Parliamentary Privileges Committee hearing as it opened an inquisition into Partygate, March 22, 2023

Sir Bernard is reported to have attended a drinks party held by Commons Deputy Speaker Dame Eleanor Laing in December 2020, while London was in Tier 2 measures restricting indoor mixing. The event is said to have been a 65th birthday party for Sir Bernard's wife Anne (pictured together), at which both drinks and cake were served.

Mr Johnson said Sir Bernard Jenkin appeared to be guilty of 'flagrant and monstrous hypocrisy' and called for him to resign. Sir Bernard is pictured in the Commons, September 30, 2020

Sir Bernard is reported to have attended a drinks party held by Commons Deputy Speaker Dame Eleanor Laing in December 2020, while London was in Tier 2 measures restricting indoor mixing. The event is said to have been a 65th birthday party for Sir Bernard's wife Anne, at which both drinks and cake were served.

Neither Sir Bernard nor Dame Eleanor responded to requests for comment about the story, which first appeared on the Guido Fawkes website.

The matter has been referred to both the Metropolitan Police and the Commons authorities.

Whitehall sources said Sir Bernard's attendance at the alleged party sat uneasily with the committee's report, which will rely heavily on an assessment that No 10 events such as leaving dos and a brief 'birthday party' for Mr Johnson could not be considered 'reasonably necessary for work'. In a letter to Miss Harman last night, Mr Johnson said Sir Bernard 'can no longer be held to have been a valid judge or investigator in these proceedings'.

He added: 'If indeed it is the case that he broke the rules himself  and knowingly broke them  Sir Bernard is guilty of flagrant and monstrous hypocrisy.

'But I am afraid it is far worse than that. He has just voted to expel me from the House of Commons because he says  falsely that I concealed from the House my knowledge of illicit events.

'If indeed he did attend a blatantly rule breaking event he would be guilty of doing exactly what he claims that I did.

'Although this report is not yet confirmed by an investigation, I believe he should have informed the Committee of his conflict and he should have informed the House. He should have recused himself.

'It seems to me that Sir Bernard can no longer be held to have been a valid judge or investigator in these proceedings.'

Sir Bernard has not responded to requests for comment about the story, which involves Anne Jenkin (pictured)

The committee is expected to formally accuse Mr Johnson of lying when it finally publishes its report into Partygate on Thursday. Mr Johnson is pictured as he returns to his home after running Oxfordshire, June 14, 2023

Sir Bernard is reported to have attended a drinks party held by Commons Deputy Speaker Dame Eleanor Laing in December 2020, while London was in Tier 2 measures restricting indoor mixing. Sir Bernard is pictured in Westminster, June 2021

In a separate statement, Mr Johnson added: 'He has no choice but to explain his actions to his own committee, for his colleagues to investigate and then to resign.'

Former Cabinet minister Nadine Dorries called for the report to be halted. 'If this is true then the report should be stopped,' she said. 'We cannot know what influence Sir Bernard had on its findings, and without that the report cannot stand.'

The privileges committee has held a controversial 14-month investigation into whether Mr Johnson lied when he told MPs that no rules were broken during lockdown gatherings in No 10  something he has always denied.

In its report today, the committee is expected to rule that he deliberately misled Parliament, saying it must have been obvious to him that some events broke lockdown rules at the time he was denying it.

The committee is thought to have originally recommended a lengthy suspension from Parliament, which would have triggered a by-election if he had remained an MP.

Members have now been considering whether to strip him of the Commons pass handed to former MPs, effectively banning him from the estate.

They have also debated whether to bar supporters of the former PM, such as Sir Jacob Rees-Mogg, who have criticised its proceedings as a 'kangaroo court'. However, the claims against Sir Bernard could now complicate the issue.

According to the Guido Fawkes website, Sir Bernard, his wife Anne and a number of friends gathered for a party thrown by Dame Eleanor on December 8, 2020.

At the time, Tier 2 rules meant that indoor gatherings of more than six people from different households were banned.

Sir Bernard Jenkin responds to then-Prime Minister Boris Johnson's statement to MPs in the House of Commons on the Sue Gray report, January 31, 2022

Committee chair Harriet Harman opens proceedings for former prime minister Boris Johnson giving evidence over his denials of No 10 parties during the pandemic in violation of lockdown rules, March 22, 2023

Dame Eleanor told the website that she had held a 'business meeting' on that evening, where 'I was so strict with my two-metre ruler and told everyone we will adhere to those rules and be very careful.'

She added: 'At the beginning of the pandemic I took advice on how many could be present in a room, I had the room measured and I kept a two-metre ruler so that I could always verify that nobody who was working here was put at risk.'

A source said that 'loads of drinks' were served and that social distancing quickly 'went out the window'.

Sir Bernard initially said he 'did not attend any drinks parties during lockdown'.

But asked whether he drank at the event to mark his wife's birthday, he responded: 'I don't recall' before hanging up. He did not respond to further inquiries last night.

Sir Bernard is the most senior Conservative MP on the seven-strong committee and helped lead the questioning of the former PM during a fractious three-hour evidence session in March.

During angry exchanges, Sir Bernard accused Mr Johnson of failing to take proper advice before informing MPs that no rules had been broken.

This prompted the former PM to respond: 'This is complete nonsense. I mean, complete nonsense. I asked the relevant people. They were senior people.'

In comments that suggested Sir Bernard had made up his mind about the case, he told Mr Johnson: 'We have established that you were familiar with the social distancing guidance; you were at the gatherings; there was a lack of social distancing; so it must have been, yes, obvious to you at the time, and even more obvious on reflection afterwards, as this whole thing broke around you, that it was in breach of workplace guidance relating to social distancing.'
A Manhattan grand jury has indicted ex-Marine Daniel Penny following the death of homeless man Jordan Neely during a subway confrontation last month.

Exact charges are not yet known and will not be unsealed until Penny, 24, makes an appearance in court at a later date - expected to be July 17. He was initially arrested on a charge of second-degree manslaughter.

Penny is currently free on a $100,000 bail. He surrendered himself to law enforcement officers on May 12 - nearly two weeks after the fatal incident occurred.

In an episode that sparked protests across New York, on May 1, Penny placed Jordan Neely - a homeless schizophrenic - in a chokehold on an F-train. Neely lost consciousness and eventually died.

The grand jury's decision means Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg will be able to proceed to trial, where Penny, if convicted, may face up to 15 years in prison.

Daniel Penny was indicted by a Manhattan grand jury on Wednesday afternoon

A GiveSendGo for Penny's legal fund has raised more than $2.8million

Attorneys for Penny have argued their client acted in self-defense. Neely, who had previously been arrested some 40 times, was allegedly screaming, yelling and threatening other passengers on the F train, according to eyewitnesses.

A GiveSendGo campaign to fund Penny's legal defense has raised more than $2.8million.

Attorneys for Penny have argued their client acted in self-defense.

The medical examiner for the city ruled the death a homicide and said Neely died due to 'compression of the neck.'

Following the troubled homeless man's death, Neely's family have pushed for Penny to face murder charges.

Neely, who was homeless at the time of his death, had a an extensive documented history of mental health issues.

It is not clear which, if any, family members he was in communication with prior to his passing.

He had previously been arrested for violent incidents on the subway, though it is unknown if any of those arrests led to convictions.

Jordan Neely, 30, is placed in a choke hold by a fellow passenger on a subway train on May 1

Over the weekend, in a video statement, Penny said he was not trying to kill Neely when he grabbed him, but could also not allow himself to remain passive while Neely threatened fellow passengers.

'There's a common misconception that Marines don't get scared. We're actually taught one of our core values is courage, and courage is not the absence of fear but how you handle fear,' he said in a video released on Sunday.

'I was scared for myself but I looked around there was women and children, he was yelling in their faces saying these threats. I just couldn't sit still.'

Penny gave a detailed account of what happened on the subway car. He said: 'The man (Neely) stumbled on, he appeared to be on drugs, the doors closed, and he ripped his jacket off and threw it down at the people sitting next to me at my left.'

He said he took his headphones out from listening to music as he heard Neely yelling in what he deemed a 'scary situation.'

Jordan Neely pictured with his aunt, Carolyn. His aunt is preparing to launch a wrongful death suit against Daniel Penny

Jordan Neely was known as a Michael Jackson impersonator in his youth

'The three main threats that he repeated over and over again were I'm going to kill you, I'm prepared to go to jail for life and I'm willing to die,' Penny said.

At a certain point, Penny felt he couldn't sit and do nothing any longer, echoing an interview he gave earlier recently, during which he cited a talk at school from author Elie Wiesel. He added that the entire interaction lasted less than five minutes.

Penny further described the encounter, saying: 'You can see in the video there's a clear rise and fall of his chest, indicating that he's breathing. I'm trying to restrain him from being able to carry out the threats.'

The former Marine also discredited claims his behavior was racist, saying: 'Some people say that this was about race, which is absolutely ridiculous.

'I didn't see a black man threatening passengers. I saw a man threatening passengers, a lot of whom were people of color.

'A man who restrained Mr. Neely was a person of color.

'And then a few days after the incident, I read in the papers that a woman of color came out and called me a hero.'

Penny, a Long Island native, thanked those who are supporting him and have donated to his legal fund.

'I was working two jobs as a student. My family doesn't come from money so I'm incredibly thankful for this fund and all the people who have supported me,' he said.
Trump regularly clashed with Schiff over his attempts to impeach him

20 Republicans joined Democrats in voting down the measure, which failed in a 225-196 vote

Freshman GOP Congresswoman tried to hit Schiff with a fine equal to half the cost of the Russiagate probes

A measure by a freshman Republican to fine Adam Schiff $16 million for promoting the now-debunked narrative that Donald Trump worked with Russia to influence the 2016 election failed on the House floor Wednesday.

20 Republicans joined Democrats in voting down the measure, which failed in a 225-196 vote.

There were seven lawmakers who voted 'present.'

Anna Paulina Luna, a 34-year-old lawmaker representing Florida, said Tuesday that she was bringing forward the censure resolution against Schiff, of California.

Luna, an ardent Trump loyalist representing Florida, lashed out at Adam Schiff during her five-minute speech to the House of Representatives

She accused the Democratic congressman, who is now running for the Senate , of spouting a 'conspiracy theory' about Trump's ties to Russia.

'The allegation that President Trump colluded with Russia to steal the 2016 presidential election has been revealed as false by numerous in-depth investigations.

'The conspiracy theory was invented, funded and spread by President Trump's political rivals,' she added, saying the fine would amount to half of the cost to taxpayers of the Russia probes.

The Trump loyalist Luna also said Schiff enjoyed and abused the special access he got 'sensitive information unavailable to most members of Congress' as the chair of the Intelligence Committee.

Luna also pointed to the recently published John Durham report that trashed the FBI investigation into the claims.

Durham said investigators had placed too much emphasis on unverified intelligence complied by ex-British spy Christopher Steele.

She slammed the dossier as being full of 'debunked collusion accusations'.

Schiff, 62, claimed the move was 'to distract from Trump's indictment and retaliate against me for impeaching him.'

'Im not backing down,' he wrote on Twitter. 'This isn't going to stop me from standing up for our democracy.'

He also posted a link to his fundraising campaign where he is trying to replace the ailing Dianne Feinstein, who said she would step down at the end of her current term next year.

Republican Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky said earlier Wednesday that he would vote against the resolution.

'Adam Schiff acted unethically but if a resolution to fine him $16 million comes to the floor I will vote to table it. (vote against it),' he tweeted.

'The Constitution says the House may make its own rules but we cant violate other (later) provisions of the Constitution. A $16 million fine is a violation of the 27th and 8th amendments.'

Such reprimands are reserved for serious infractions that fail to reach the threshold of expulsion, and only five members have been expelled in U.S. history.

Adam Schiff acted unethically but if a resolution to fine him $16 million comes to the floor I will vote to table it. (vote against it)



In fact, Im still litigating a federal lawsuit against Pelosi over a salary reduction she imposed on me for my refusal to wear a mask.  Thomas Massie (@RepThomasMassie) June 14, 2023

Trump was up in court in Miami on Tuesday (June 13) to face federal charges over allegations he mishandled classified documents on leaving the White House

Schiff said Luna's motion was a mere PR stunt to divert attention from Trump's court hearing Tuesday

The recent investigation by John Durham has since debunked any evidence of collusion between Trump and Russia in the election.

Durham's task, according to an order by then-attorney general Barr, was to look into the origins of Crossfire Hurricane, which was launched in July 2016, as well as special counsel Robert Mueller's subsequent investigation initiated in May 2017.

But the special counsel said senior FBI personnel showed 'a serious lack of analytical rigor' and a 'significant reliance on investigative leads provided or funded (directly or indirectly) by Trump's political opponents.'

The former commander-in-chief has repeatedly clashed with the top Democrat, branding him 'Shifty Schiff' over his repeated allegations that he was in cahoots with Vladimir Putin.

Kevin McCarthy, the speaker of the House, removed Schiff from his post as intelligence chair soon as he took up his new role.
Miami Mayor Francis Suarez filed paperwork Wednesday to launch a bid for the Republican presidential nomination, after visiting the federal courthouse where former President Donald Trump pleaded not guilty to a 37-count indictment.

The move makes Suarez, the son of the city's first Cuba-born mayor, the third Floridan to enter the race. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is currently running a distant second to Trump in nationwide polls.

His impact on the race in Florida  the primary is set for March 19 next year  is unclear. He joins a field of more than a dozen candidates, where alternatives to Trump are splitting the opposition and where the former president has been running up lopsided leads even while facing criminal charges. He has already gotten a hat tip from Trump's team while exploring the race.

The 45-year-old mayor is the only Hispanic candidate in the race. He declared his candidacy with the Federal Election Commission. He had teased an announcement, noting that he would be making a 'big speech' Thursday at the Reagan Library in California.

Miami Mayor Francis Suarez filed paperwork to seek the Republican nomination for president. He visited the Miami courthouse Tuesday where Donald Trump was arraigned

'If I do decide to run,' he said Tuesday before Trump's court appearance, 'its starting a new chapter, a new conversation of a new kind of leader who maybe looks a little different, speaks a little different, had a little bit of a different experience, but can inspire people.'

'Today was about keeping people safe. We achieved it,' he tweeted Tuesday when Miami became the center of a global story with the Trump arraignment. There were a few mishaps, as when a protester ran in front of the president's motorcade by the courthouse.

Suarez is the president of the U.S. Conference of Mayors. He has gained national attention in recent years for his efforts to lure companies to Miami, with an eye toward turning the city into a crypto hub and the next Silicon Valley.

Suarez, who is vying to become the first sitting mayor elected president, joins a GOP primary fight that includes DeSantis, former Vice President Mike Pence, Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina, former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley and former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie. Despite having a candidate field in the double digits, the race is largely seen as a two-person contest between Trump and DeSantis.

On a roll: Miami Mayor Francis Suarez greets police outside the Wilkie D. Ferguson Jr. U.S. Courthouse, Tuesday, June 13, 2023, in Miami on a day former President Donald Trump made a federal court appearance on dozens of felony charges accusing him of illegally hoarding classified documents

Suarez joins a crowded field of Republicans

But the other competitors are hoping for an opening, which Trump has provided with his myriad legal vulnerabilities - none more serious than his federal indictment on charges of mishandling sensitive documents and refusing to give them back. He pleaded not guilty Tuesday in Miami federal court to 37 felony counts.

Suarez has said he didn't support Trump in either the 2016 or 2020 presidential elections, instead writing in the names of U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio and then-Vice President Pence. In 2018, Suarez publicly condemned Trump after reports came out that he had questioned why the United States would accept more immigrants from Haiti and 'shithole countries' in Africa.

But times have changed, with Trump advisers now praising Suarez's work and helping him promote what he calls 'the Miami success story.' Trumps former White House counselor Kellyanne Conway has even floated Suarezs name as a possible vice presidential pick.

Suarez, who is married with two young children, is a corporate and real estate attorney who previously served as a city of Miami commissioner. He has also positioned himself as someone who can help the party further connect with Hispanics. In recent months, he has made visits to early GOP voting states as he weighed a possible 2024 campaign.

He is more moderate than DeSantis and Trump, but has threaded the needle carefully on cultural issues that have become popular among GOP politicians.

Suarez has been critical of DeSantis, dismissing some of the state laws he has signed on immigration as 'headline grabbers' lacking in substance. He has said immigration is an issue that 'screams for a national solution' at a time when many Republicans back hard-line policies.

The two-term mayor previously expressed support for a Florida law championed by DeSantis and dubbed 'Dont Say Gay' that bans classroom instruction on sexual orientation or gender identity in kindergarten through third grade, but he has not specified whether he supported the expansion of the policy to all grades. Like other Republicans, Suarez has criticized DeSantis feud with Disney over the same law, saying it looks like a 'personal vendetta.'

Further ingratiating himself with the Trump team, Suarez has echoed Trumps attacks on DeSantis demeanor, saying the governor doesn't make eye contact and struggles with personal relationships with other politicians.

Suarez's entry means Trump isn't the only candidate reportedly facing a looming federal probe.

According to the Miami Herald, the Securities and Exchange Commission and the FBI are probing whether $10,000 monthly payments from a Miami developer's subsidiary were done in exchange for favors relating to a development project.

In 2020, the mayor made a play to attract tech companies to Florida after the state relaxed its COVID-19 restrictions. He met with Big Tech players and investors such as PayPal founder Peter Thiel and tech magnate Marcelo Claure, began appearing on national television and was profiled by magazines.

Suarez, who has said he takes his salary in Bitcoin, has also hosted Bitcoin conferences and started heavily promoting a cryptocurrency project named Miami Coin, created by a group called City Coins.

But the hype dissipated as virus restrictions eased elsewhere, eliminating Miamis advantage on the COVID-19 front. Suarezs vision also hit roadblocks with the collapse of the cryptocurrency exchange FTX, which was set to move its U.S. headquarters to Miamis financial district before its founder and CEO Sam Bankman-Fried was arrested in the Bahamas last December.

The only cryptocurrency exchange that traded Miami Coin suspended its trading, citing liquidity problems, not living up to its promise to generate enough money to eliminate city taxes.

Miami also ranks as one of the worst big U.S. cities for income inequality and is one of the countrys most unaffordable cities for housing.
Britain has resumed using the Swedish Carl Gustaf recoilless rifle. Britain had used older versions of Carl Gustaf until 1990. Until recently Britain had been using the Swedish NLAW (Next generation Light Anti-tank Weapon), a new system that entered service in 2008 to complement, not replace Carl Gustaf. NLAWs projectiles are guided while Carl Gustavs are not. Britain had sent all its NLAWs to Ukraine, where the Ukrainian found it very effective against Russian tanks.

NLAW was popular with Ukrainian troops, who used this weapon frequently and often ran out of ammunition for it. To help with that Sweden has ordered another quarter million projectiles for LLAW and its predecessor, Carl Gustaf. NLAW is a fire-and-forget system firing guided shells. All the operator has to do is find a target, track it for two or three seconds and fire the shell, which will home in on the designated target even if it is moving. Each NLAW weighs 12.5 kg (27.5 pound) and uses a shell that can be fired from enclosed spaces. NLAW can employ top-attack to penetrate the thinner top armor of any tank but has a max range of only 600 meters.

Carl Gustaf first entered service 75 years ago and has been regularly upgraded but never replaced. Thats because it is a lightweight reloadable recoilless rifle that works well in combat and its 84mm shells have also been continually upgraded. There is also a single-shot (non-reloadable) version of Carl Gustaf called the AT-4. Gustavs projectiles are not guided and are chiefly used against fortifications and lightly armored or unarmored vehicles.

The current version of Carl Gustaf is M4. This model uses lightweight materials (titanium) and user-requested improvements like an easier to use carrier handle and hand grips. M4 is shorter and does away with the optional stand as it is light enough to be used all the time as shoulder fired. M4 weighs 6.6 kg (14.5 pounds) and is 950mm (38 inches) long. The new barrel lasts a lot longer (up to 2,000 rounds) and fires all the ammo used in the earlier (and still widely used) M3. The M4 Carl Gustaf was introduced in 2014 and is popular because of its ability to use several different Snap-On sights (including thermal/night vision) with 84mm shells that can now be programmed to detonate under specific conditions.

The Carl Gustaf has been a popular infantry weapon since it was introduced in 1948. By the 1980s troops in most NATO nations used it, including U.S. SOCOM (Special Operations Command) and special operations troops in many other countries. Carl Gustaf has undergone steady improvement since 1949 and by 1991 the M3 version entered service as what was basically a lightweight (8.5 kg/19 pound) recoilless rifle that is 1.1 meters (43 inches) long. The barrel is rifled and good for about a hundred rounds. The 84mm projectiles weigh about 2 kg (4.4 pounds) each and come in several different types (anti-armor, combined anti-armor/high-explosive, illumination, and smoke). The anti-armor round is very useful in urban areas and against bunkers. Range is 500-700 meters (depending on type of round fired), but an experienced gunner can hit a large target at up to 1,000 meters. The Carl Gustaf shells cost $500-3,000 each, depending on type and complexity. The launcher, with rifled barrel and sight, costs about $20,000.

The single shot version of Carl Gustaf, the AT-4 was introduced in the 1980s, and did little to hurt reloadable Carl Gustaf sales. The Americans were the largest user of the AT-4 and over a dozen other export customers ordered it. While U.S. Army leaders liked the AT-4, most troops preferred the standard reloadable Carl Gustaf because you got more shots for less weight. Each AT-4 weighs about 6.8 kg. In combat it was more effective to carry one Carl Gustaf, at 8.5 kg, and a bunch of shells at about 2.2 kg (5 pounds, with packaging) each. The M3E1 is lighter than the AT-4 and more capable.

Carl Gustaf is currently in use in 40 countries worldwide and sales went up significantly with the introduction of the M4 in 2014 and many users of the AT-4 version switched to the M4. Because of the Ukraine War, Carl Gustaf demand is particularly high, as is the need for more ammunition. Swede is spending over $250 million to replace some of the nearly half a million 84mm Carl Gustaf ammo sent to Ukraine or NATO nations to replace what they had themselves sent to Ukraine, probably the largest European conflict Carl Gustaf, and a lot of other modern weapons, have ever been involved in. Ukraine was the first major war in Europe since World War II, which ended three years before Carl Gustaf was introduced.
A $25,000 reward had been offered for information leading to their arrest from FBI officials in January

The duo targeted the California office with a Molotov cocktail at around 1am in March 2022

Active-duty Marine Chance Brannon, 23, was arrested along with Tibet Ergul, 21, for allegedly firebombing a Planned Parenthood clinic

A US Marine is among two people arrested for destroying a Planned Parenthood Clinic in California with a highly-flammable Molotov cocktail.

Chance Brannon, a 23-year-old active duty Marine stationed at Camp Pendleton, was taken into custody alongside Tibet Ergul, 21, on suspicion of carrying out the firebombing in March 2022.

Both men are facing 20 years behind bars on charges of using an explosive of fire to damage real property affecting interstate commerce, the US Attorney's office said Wednesday.

'My office takes very seriously this brazen attack that targeted a facility that provides critical health care services to thousands of people in Orange County,' said US Attorney Martin Estrada.

Security footage of the attack showed two men in hoods and masks target the clinic at around 1am on March 13, 2022

The suspects allegedly launched a Molotov cocktail at the Planned Parenthood office in Costa Mesa, California, setting the building on fire but causing no deaths or injuries

The 'brazen' attack erupted in the early hours of March 13, 2022, where Ergul and Brannon allegedly targeted the clinic by igniting and throwing a Molotov cocktail at the entrance.

According to the criminal complaint against the duo, the explosive 'landed against a southern wall next to the glass door and erupted into a fire, which spread up the wall and across the ceiling above the glass door.'

Security footage previously showed two hooded and masked men carrying out the 1am attack, and forensic evidence from the scene found that the glass container used in the attack contained gasoline.

No one was harmed in the incident, but prosecutors say the Costa Mesa clinic cancelled approximately 30 appointments as a result.

'While it is fortunate that no one was physically harmed and responders were able to prevent the clinic from being destroyed, the defendants violent actions are entirely unacceptable,' said Estrada.

Donald Alway, the Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI's Los Angeles Field Office, described the firebombing as 'depraved'.

'(The attack) put lives at risk and will not be tolerated,' he continued.

'The joint investigation among local and federal law enforcement led to today's arrests and we will continue to work collaboratively with our partners to hold accountable those who deliberately endanger the community.'

In January, FBI officials announced a $25,000 reward for information leading to the identification and arrest of the perpetrators.
Ben Roberts-Smith has broken his silence for the first time since losing his major defamation case, saying he is 'devastated' with the result.

Australia's most decorated living soldier was first spotted in Queenstown Airport in New Zealand boarding a flight to Australia on Wednesday before touching down in Perth.

The sighting came 10 days after Mr Roberts-Smith lost his defamation action against The Age, Sydney Morning Herald and The Canberra Times.

He spoke about the judgment for the first time as he touched down in his home town of Perth alongside girlfriend Sarah Matulin.

Australia's most decorated living soldier was first spotted in Queenstown Airport in New Zealand boarding a flight to Australia on Wednesday before touching down in Perth

The former SAS soldier arrived in his home town of Perth joined by girlfriend Sarah Matulin

'It's a terrible outcome. It's the incorrect outcome,' he told Nine News.

'We haven't done anything wrong so we won't be making any apologies.'

Mr Roberts-Smith said he was 'proud' of how he acted when serving for Australia, while a member of the public thanked him for his service.

Ms Matulin, who wore a comfy white jumper and black leggings, was flanked by airport police as she waited for her boyfriend to speak to the waiting media.

The 44-year-old told reporters he would be looking to consider whether to file an appeal against the decision.

The former SAS soldier had been seen in Bali the day before the verdict of the 'trial of the century' was handed down.

Justice Anthony Besanko ruled that the allegations against Mr Roberts-Smith, which include war crimes and murders, were proven to a civil standard of the balance of probabilities.

Mr Roberts-Smith has not faced any criminal charges.

In the wake of the findings, many have called for Mr Roberts-Smith to be stripped of his medals, including the Victoria Cross, and to have mention of him removed from the Australian War Memorial.

Mr Roberts-Smith said he was 'proud' of how he acted when serving for Australia, while a member of the public thanked him for his service (he is pictured at Perth Airport)

Ms Matulin stood back flanked by airport police as Ben dealt with the waiting media

The 44-year-old former soldier said he would be looking to consider whether to file an appeal against the decision (he is pictured at Perth Airport on Wednesday)

Meanwhile, former SAS captain and federal MP Andrew Hastie, who testified against Mr Roberts-Smith at the defamation trial, has broken his silence on the result.

He said sadness and relief at the finding.

'Sadness for the Afghan lives lost and the families who are hurt, sadness for the relationships severed and sadness for the reputations destroyed, both individually and at the institutional level with the SASR particularly,' he told the ABC.

'Relief, though, that the cold hard truth that many of the regiment have been carrying inside them for many years, is now out in the public domain and it has been validated by a Federal Court Justice.'

The former SAS soldier had been seen in Bali the day before the verdict was handed down.

Roberts-Smith was seen loading their luggage into the back of a ute outside the airport

Mr Hastie, who is now the Opposition defence spokesman, praised the soldiers that raised the claims.

'They've shown moral courage. They've been brave,' Mr Hastie told the ABC.

'I honour their work, because it's they who have demonstrated that the regiment has a moral pulse, that the regiment can self-correct. And it's they who have repudiated the toxic culture and behaviour.'

The Brereton inquiry into alleged war crimes in Afghanistan, which handed down its report in 2021, found credible evidence 39 Afghan civilians were killed by Australian special forces during the war.

It identified 25 current or former ADF personnel as alleged perpetrators, either as principals or accessories.
As a humanist, I firmly believe in the ability of people to solve problems using science and through reason, without the need for religion.

For years, I was immensely proud to be a patron of Humanists UK, promoting rational thinking and kindness alongside some of this country's greatest brains  among them the scientist Richard Dawkins and novelist Ian McEwan.

So it was a devastating betrayal of these values when, three days ago, I discovered that the organisation I'd supported for many years was approaching well-known people, trying to get them to oppose a change in the law to protect women's rights. So much for kindness.

I immediately got in touch with Baroness Hayter, a Labour peer and fellow patron, who told me that Humanists UK had emailed asking her to oppose a petition before it was due to be debated in Parliament earlier this week. This calls for the word 'sex' to mean biological sex in the 2010 Equality Act.

Appalled, Baroness Hayter and I have both resigned  along with two other patrons, the distinguished virologist Eleri Wilson-Davies and the former MEP Carole Tongue.

Author Joan Smith, 69, said she resigned as a patron from Humanists UK due to its position on the legal definition of sex

The journalist revealed online that she had stepped back as a patron of Humanists UK

Joan Smith says that Dame Angela Eagle (pictured) sneeringly dismissed concerns expressed by her colleagues, Jess Phillips and Rosie Duffield, about the importance of biological sex

Tongue tweeted her regret that Humanists UK had chosen to oppose the clarification to the Equality Act, 'thereby ignoring women's rights to safety, dignity & fairness'.

It's a pathetic fall from grace for the organisation.

Until about five years ago, no one had even doubted that 'sex' referred to your biological makeup. Now, though, trans activists argue that it includes people's invisible 'gender identity'.

Women's toilets, hospital wards and changing rooms have all been targeted as a result, with organisations told they have to admit trans women who still have male genitals. That's put enormous pressure on small, cash-strapped organisations, including refuges for women who've experienced domestic violence, and they now fear being sued unless they admit trans women.

Only last week, a woman who booked a place in a female-only dormitory in a central London hostel discovered that a male-bodied trans woman was staying in the same room. The woman, who is a survivor of domestic abuse, had to find alternative accommodation after being told that this individual had been seen sprawled half-naked on one of the beds.

This is exactly the sort of thing the proposed amendment in the Equalities Act is trying to avoid.

The small change, proposed by the not-for-profit campaign group Sex Matters, and supported in a petition with more than 100,000 signatures, would mean that women-only spaces would be just that.

Women would no longer have to worry about finding themselves trying on clothes next to a biological male in Primark, or having to share a female hospital ward with a male-bodied trans woman.

It would also end the rows about trans sex-offenders being admitted into women-only prisons that dominated the news for weeks in January after a double rapist, Adam Graham, appeared in court in Scotland under the female name 'Isla Bryson'.

Bryson spent a night in a women's prison before being hastily transferred to the men's estate, while floundering SNP ministers tied themselves in knots over trans policy for female prisons.

It's clear that the change has wide public support  but Humanists UK evidently think it knows better. It described the Equality and Human Rights Commission's (EHRC) decision to recommend a minor change to the 2010 Equality Act as 'alarming' and asked Hayter to lobby the EHRC to get it withdrawn.

In a briefing published the same day, Humanists UK claimed the change would create a 'de facto blanket ban on trans people from services they had previously enjoyed without concern or complaint'.

This is flat-out untrue. Women are furious about having spaces we have had to fight for over decades opened up to anyone who decides they want to self-identify as one of us.

Yet the Humanists' briefing denies all this, claiming that the legal change would 'solve non-existent problems'.

When the debate did go ahead in the House of Commons on Monday, it exposed the rift the issue is creating in the Labour Party.

Dame Angela Eagle sneeringly dismissed concerns expressed by her colleagues, Jess Phillips and Rosie Duffield, about the importance of biological sex.

Meanwhile, the Tories are making all the right noises, promising to change the law to protect single-sex spaces, but I only wish they would get a move on.

The Education Secretary, Gillian Keegan, is looking at rules to protect single-sex toilets in schools, along with guidance on pronouns  what to do when pupils demand to be allowed to socially transition, expecting teachers and classmates to refer to girls as 'he', for instance. But this is a government with only 18 months left to run, and ministers need to act now.

Maybe they're worried about the fury they will encounter from MPs and organisations captured by gender ideology.

I suppose I should have known better than to expect support from Humanists UK. It describes itself as 'absolutely a feminist organisation', but I've been anxious about its attitude towards women's rights for some time.

Gender ideology has its own language, and I've noticed it creeping into public statements. Back in 2019, its then president, Professor Alice Roberts, tweeted a slur about 'the unholy alliance between gender-critical feminists and the Far Right'.

Sure enough, when I read the briefing published by Humanists UK before the debate, I immediately spotted red flags. It claims that the Equality Act permits different treatment for people with a gender recognition certificate (GRC) and those 'whose sex was assigned at birth'.

This wording is straight from the trans activist playbook.

Humanists UK claims that changing the law to bring clarity for women would 'create confusion'. The irony is that, if confusion exists, it's because extremists have redefined 'women' to include biological males.

How Humanists UK managed to get on the wrong side of this argument is beyond me, although that's true of many other organisations, from the NHS Confederation to police forces proclaiming themselves 'trans allies'.

But any organisation that loses four patrons within 24 hours, as Humanists UK has just done, needs to think long and hard about itself. I can't help noticing that they are all women, however.

What do the male patrons  geneticist Sir Paul Nurse and comedian Ricky Gervais, or the novelist Salman Rushdie and scientist Steve Jones  make of all this? I wonder if they're happy with the idea that sex is 'assigned at birth'  or with the organisation's opposition to protecting the rights of adult females.

The Humanists UK website has a quiz asking: 'How Humanist are you?' It says: 'If you are non-religious and look to science, reason, empathy and compassion' to live an ethical life, you might like to join the organisation.

Ironically, those are the very reasons why I resigned as a patron. I don't think it's compassionate, scientific or rational to suggest that people can change sex.

I only wish that Humanists UK agreed.
Lisa Wilkinson has lodged official complaints with Channel Seven about its recent Bruce Lehrmann interview and Sky News Australia over its coverage of the fallout.

The Project host filed the complaints last Thursday alleging Seven's broadcast breached commercial television standards.

'The Seven Network, and its journalists have breached your obligations as journalists,' her lawyers wrote to Seven, according to federal court documents seen by Daily Mail Australia.

'We have seen the complaint to ACMA made by Network 10 about the Spotlight programme.

'We agree with it and we endorse it and will be making a separate complaint on behalf of Ms Wilkinson and [her husband] Mr [Peter] FitzSimons.'

Wilkinson's lawyers also questioned Sky over the source of leaked audio of a pre-production Project meeting with Brittany Higgins and her partner David Sharaz.

They allege the recordings were seized under search warrant for Mr Lehrmann's trial but never admitted into evidence or used at the Board of Inquiry into the case.

Lisa Wilkinson (pictured with Brittany Higgins) has reportedly lodged an official complaints with Channel Seven and Sky News Australia

Bruce Lehrmann (pictured) broke his silence in a TV interview two years after Brittany Higgins accused him of raping her in Parliament House

Her complaint relates to the Spotlight interview with Mr Lehrmann on June 4 and a segment on Sunrise two days later, which referred to a letter allegedly sent to Wilkinson by Brittany Higgins, according to federal court documents seen by Daily Mail Australia.

Wilkinson says she has no record of the 'angry' letter, and a reported leaked text from her husband PeterFitzSimons to Ms Higgins 'does not exist'.

Mr Lehrmann is currently suing Ten and Wilkinson over their initial reporting of Higgins rape allegation on The Project in February 2021.

Ten and Wilkinson filed legal papers in the federal court last week alleging a 'calculated' and 'concerted' media campaign was using restricted court material.

They allege the leaks are being used to pressure witnesses against giving evidence in Mr Lehrmann's defamation action.

A 307-page affidavit by a lawyer representing Network Ten, Marlia Saunders, reveals details of Ten's complaint to the Australian Communications and Media Authority about Seven.

Seven's explosive interview, which broke Mr Lehrmann's two-year media silence, revealed never-before-seen security footage of Mr Lehrmann and Ms Higgins entering Parliament House on the night of the alleged assault.

It also included parts of a recording of a five-hour meeting Ms Higgins and Mr Sharaz had with Wilkinson and Project producer Angus Llewellyn before she made her explosive allegations on The Project.

The leaked audio revealed how Ms Wilkinson, Ms Higgins and Mr Sharaz plotted to maximise the political and media impact of her allegations.

Wilkinson also seemed to ridicule the Coalition over Senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Prices preselection to the National party and she struggled to pronounce her name.

Legal papers seen by Daily Mail Australia reveal lawyers for Wilkinson also complained to Sky News Australia last Thursday over their coverage of the leaks.

In a letter to the pay-TV broadcaster, Gillis Delaney Lawyers tell Sky the leaks appear to be based on 'material that was produced pursuant to a compulsory court process in the criminal proceedings in the ACT Supreme Court'.

They add: 'Such material was not admitted into evidence or otherwise deployed in those proceedings, and has not been made available as part of the ACT Board of Inquiry.

'As you know, any documents produced pursuant to compulsory court processes, such as subpoenas or warrants, cannot be used for a collateral or ulterior purpose unrelated to the proceedings in which the documents were obtained, other than with leave of the court.'

They set Sky a 9am deadline on Friday to confirm the leaked material 'is not in your possession as the result of a breach of the implied undertaking'.

There is no record of Sky News Australia's response.

The release of the recordings to the media has also been referred to ACT Police by Ten's lawyers to investigate a possible contempt of court over the leak.

They also claim other leaked material may include unseen footage from Network Ten, a draft of Higginss book manuscript and audio recordings of interviews between the AFP and witnesses.

Also allegedly included are an audio recording of two security guards at Parliament House on the night of the alleged rape, a statutory declaration signed by Higgins and extracts from Higginss personal diary, according to the court documents.

The files also reveal Mr Lehrmann's lawyers telling Ten's legal team that Mr Lehrmann never had 'physical possession of the [leaked audio] recording'.

'Although Mr [Steven] Whybrow SC (being Mr Lehrmann's Senior Counsel in the criminal proceedings) had physical possession of the recording, Mr Lehrmann did not,' his lawyer Paul Svilans wrote to Ten's Marlia Saunders on June 9.

The leaked audio revealed how Lisa Wilkinson (pictured), Ms Higgins and Mr Sharaz plotted to maximise the political and media impact of her allegations

CCTV footage captured the pair at a Canberra bar earlier that night. During his interview, Mr Lehrmann was grilled over an alleged eyewitness account of him and Ms Higgins kissing at the venue - but he denied anything of the sort took place

Ms Higgins alleges she was raped by Mr Lehrmann in Parliament House after a night out in March 2019. Mr Lehrmann has always maintained his innocence.

Until the Spotlight interview, Mr Lehrmann had remained publicly silent about the night in question, speaking only in a recorded interview with police in 2021 - which was played before the ACT Supreme Court during his criminal trial last October.

But during the Seven Spotlight interview, Mr Lehrmann responded to a number of direct questions, including: 'Did you rape Brittany Higgins? Did you have consensual sex? Did you kiss her? Were you intimate with her at all?'

To each question, Mr Lehrmann replied 'no'.

Mr Lehrmann's trial was abandoned in October over juror misconduct and all charges were later dropped in December because of concerns for Ms Higgins' mental health.

He has also launched a defamation proceeding against the ABC after the public broadcaster aired a speech by Higgins to the national press club.

Seven have been approached for comment.
The Department of Homeland Security rejected their claims there was a public interest in doing so

U.S. officials have rejected a request to make Prince Harry's visa file public amid questions over whether he lied about his past drug use.

Lawyers for the Heritage Foundation went to court last week to try and force the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to speed up its response to their Freedom of Information Act request about the Duke of Sussex.

Judge Carl Nichols refused to issue an injunction, urging the U.S. government to give an answer to the conservative think-tank one way or the other by Tuesday (June 13)

But on Wednesday, its lead attorney Samuel Dewey shared a letter from DHS senior director Jimmy Wolfrey in which he refused to confirm or deny that had the Duke's papers on file.

Prince Harry appeared at the High Court in London last week to give evidence in a phone hacking case against a left-wing British tabloid

'To the extent records exist, this office does not find a public interest in disclosure sufficient to override the subjects privacy interests,' he wrote.

The merits of releasing Harry's visa application were not discussed at last week's hearing in Washington D.C.

It means the conservative think-tank will now have use further legal means to force the DHS to release the files.

In an angry statement posted online, the Heritage Foundation's Nile Gardiner hit out at the decision.

'This argument makes no sense, but is not surprising coming from the zero transparency Biden Administration,' Gardiner said.

'The Department of Homeland Securitys efforts to stonewall the Heritage Foundations Freedom of Information request are unacceptable, and we will be contesting their position,' the former senior aide to ex-British PM Margaret Thatcher added.

Nile Gardiner, a former aide to ex-British PM Margaret Thatcher, lashed out at the Biden administration for its 'zero transparency' stance

This is the section of the visa application that Prince Harry would have had to fill in order to get into the United States

Prince Harry admitted to taking drugs in his memoir Spare, which was released at the start of the year

Heritage is trying to find out how the 38-year-old British royal answered questions about his past drug use.

It came after Prince Harry confessed to taking an array of illegal substances in his recent memoir 'Spare'.

Under US law, admission of drug taking can be grounds to dismiss a visa application

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have positioned themselves as public figures in the U.S. since stepping back from the British Royal Family in 2020.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex were last seen in the UK together at the funeral of the late Queen Elizabeth II last September, months before 'Spare' was published.

The details contained in Harry's visa application could, the Heritage Foundation argues, spell trouble for his future life in the United States.

An admission of drug use does not automatically ban you from the United States for life.

Any denial of entry can be overturned after an in-person interview at a US consulate or official immigration office, where a waiver can be issued.

There is a history of authorities releasing immigration documents about public figures.

The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services website has an electronic reading room which contains the files of some celebrities.

The records for the late musicians George Michael and John Lennon are online, as well as those for the mother of U.S. vice-president Kamala Harris.

Since arriving in the country in 2020, Harry has struck up friendships with prominent Democratic Party figures such as former president Barack Obama.

He is also close to major Democratic donors including Oprah Winfrey and Tyler Perry prompting fears that he may become an 'unwitting pawn in a highly political game'.

DailyMail.com has approached the Department of Homeland Security and a spokesman for the Duke of Sussex for comment.
The cinema inside San Francisco's Westfield mall is to close this week - days after Westfield said that it too was moving out, dealing another blow to the struggling downtown.

Cinemark will show its last films on Thursday and close for good Friday.

Cinemark told The San Francisco Standard they had decided to close before the conclusion of its lease term, due to a 'comprehensive review of local business conditions.'

The cinema chain becomes the 24th major store to close in Union Square area since the start of the pandemic, the paper reported.

Earlier this week, Westfield announced they had defaulted on the $558million loan for the building and is handing it back to the lender, which will appoint a receiver. The mall will remain open for now.

The decision was sparked by the decision from Nordstrom, the mall's anchor tenant, to close in August.

Westfield blamed 'unsafe conditions' and 'lack of enforcement against rampant criminal activity' in large part for Nordstrom's departure.

The Cinemark cinema, Century Theatre, in downtown San Francisco will close Friday

Westfield in San Francisco (pictured) has announced that it is handing the building back to the lender

A woman in a wheelchair injects drugs at San Francisco's infamous open-air drugs market. The taxpayer funded 'harm reduction' facility opened and shuttered close to Westfield in early 2022, after criticism that it had done nothing to sort out the city's many social ills

Westfield said the 'unprecedented' poor performance in San Francisco was a sharp contrast to the rest of its properties.

San Francisco Centre generated $455 million in sales in 2019, before the pandemic.

Last year, sales were down about a third to $298 million.

Nordstrom occupied 312,000 square feet in the mall: when it closes, Westfield San Francisco will only be 55 percent leased.

Other Westfields are, on average, 93 percent leased.

The mall is a smart and upmarket building, whose other retailers include Bloomingdales, Aesop, Rolex and Sephora.

Westfield's struggles will pile fresh pressure on city leaders, after multiple retailers and hotels shuttered in downtown San Francisco as it continues to battle soaring crime, open drug use and homelessness.

The famously progressive city has been condemned for its 'harm reduction' policies, which critics say have effectively legalized drug taking. Meanwhile, its police department remains short-staffed after woke lawmakers called for defunding in the wake of George Floyd's murder.

'For more than 20 years, Westfield has proudly and successfully operated San Francisco Centre, investing significantly over that time in the vitality of the property,' the company said.

'Given the challenging operating conditions in downtown San Francisco, which have led to declines in sales, occupancy and foot traffic, we have made the difficult decision to begin the process to transfer management of the shopping center to our lender to allow them to appoint a receiver to operate the property going forward.'

Westfield's San Francisco mall includes 1.2 million square feet of retail space and 300,000 square feet of offices.

It is in the troubled Union Square area in the center of downtown, where homelessness and crime are rife.

Camps are set up around the city and people take drugs openly. Pictured: Homeless tents are seen in Tenderloin District during heavy rain in San Francisco on January 11

Several of the stores which have closed cited safety concerns as the downtown area of San Francisco is ravaged by homelessness and drug taking

Retailer Old Navy has become the latest retailer to vacate crime-ridden San Francisco (File photo from 2020)

Nordstrom recently shuttered a store in San Francisco, citing changing 'dynamics' in the city as the reason for the closures

Employees at a Target store in San Francisco recently said it was being robbed as frequently as every ten minutes

Whole Foods, Old Navy, Gap and Office Depot are just some of the stores in the district to announce in recent months that they are closing.

Out of 203 retailers open in 2019 in the city's Union Square area, just 107 are still operating - a drop of 47 percent in just a few pandemic-ravaged years.

The city is in something of a vicious cycle: office workers are now working from home, leaving the downtown area significantly quieter, and making the empty streets more dangerous. The rise in crime then deters people from entering downtown.

And as the downtown empties, the city loses essential tax revenues, and the area becomes less appealing.

The revenue loss to the city caused by decreased property taxes could reach $196 million per year by 2028, according to modeling published in November by the San Francisco Controller's Office.

The best-case scenario from the modeling expects the cost will be nearer to $100 million per year.

The building that houses The San Francisco Chronicle, a block from Westfield mall, faces a 60 percent vacancy rate by the fall as tenants Yahoo and Autodesk's leases expire.

An analysis of official figures and other research reveals San Francisco may lose hundreds of millions of dollars through an exodus of businesses and its failure to recover from COVID

Signs posted to cars near the linkage site announce 'nothing to steal' as crime continues to rise in one of the city's poorest and most drug-infested neighborhood

Tourism is steadily recovering to its pre-covid highs, according to figures from the San Francisco Travel Association

Next door, the 415 Natoma office tower is 97 percent vacant.

San Francisco foot traffic totaled 5.6 million visits between January and December 2022 - a 42 percent drop.

In 2019, the figure was 9.7 million visits.

The city has been affected by a state-wide shoplifting law that downgraded stealing goods worth less than $950 from a felony to a far less serious misdemeanor crime.

A disturbing recent report showed 95 retailers in downtown San Francisco have closed since the start of the COVID pandemic, a decline of more than 50 percent.

In April, Whole Foods said it would shut its flagship store in downtown San Francisco 'for the time being' to ensure staff 'safety.'

San Francisco Mayor London Breed has proposed a record budget despite the city facing a $1.3 billion deficit by 2028

'If we feel we can ensure the safety of our team members in the store, we will evaluate a reopening of our Trinity location,' a spokesperson said.

Similarly, a Target store in the city has been forced to lock up more of its products to stave off thieves.

An employee at the location recently said it was being robbed as often as 'every ten minutes.'

Many major tech companies based in San Francisco - including Meta, Google, Salesforce and Twitter - have also axed tens of thousands of jobs in recent months as the industry suffered a post-covid downturn.

In April, Salesforce said it will leave its eponymous 30-story Salesforce East building in downtown, where around 1,000 staff had worked before the pandemic.

City officials launched a $6 million ad campaign in May to lure back tourists. Visitor numbers have improved since covid and in 2022 were around 16 percent lower than the record-breaking 26.2 million in 2019.

The international campaign included a commercial featuring an array of local talent, including Lady Camden, a drag queen who became popular on 'RuPaul's Drag Race,' and local muralist Sirron Norris.
A hard-working Melbourne dad found out he was the sole winner of a $20million lotto jackpot after finishing his night shift.

The dad was the only division one winner in Oz Lotto draw 1530, drawn on Tuesday.

'I'm still shaking,' he told official from The Lott who confirmed his newfound fortune.

'I found out at 3am this morning after my shift. I discovered it when I went to purchase a ticket into Powerball's $60million draw for tomorrow night. It was such a shock.

'I don't really need to worry about tomorrow night's draw anymore, I've got $20million!'

The father said he's been regularly buying lottery tickets after night shifts for more than 10 years.

'I always buy an Oz Lotto and Powerball ticket after my early morning shift. It's a little treat to myself. I've been playing for more than a decade.

'I've got my whole family gathered around the phone right now. My wife is happy, my daughter is very happy. It's something I'll remember for the rest of my life.'

Stock image provided by Oz Lotto to illustrate a man who's paid off his mortgage after winning Oz Lotto

The winning man's daughter was bursting with excitement on the phone and shared a few words about her father.

'My dad is really hard working. He deserves the world,' she said.

'He's never received anything in his life.

'We're so happy for him.'

With $20million set to land into his bank account before the end of the financial year, he revealed his plans.

'Most importantly, I'll help my family. I'll share it around,' he shared.

'I've got some loans to pay off. Starting with my house mortgage.

'You've brightened my day!'

His winning nine game QuickPick entry was purchased at BP Prahran.

The winning numbers in Oz Lotto draw 1530 on Tuesday 13 June 2023 were 5, 35, 37, 14, 21, 12 and 22, while the supplementary numbers were 46, 47 and 17.
A four-bedroom home with a state-of-the-art design which means energy bills are just 10 a month has gone up for sale for 1.45m.

The unique property is one of only 129 Passivhaus homes in the UK, which are built to the robust standards of the Passivhaus Institute in Germany that guarantees an exact quality for sustainable living.

They have a minimal environmental impact as they require little heating and cooling and the contemporary home in Bromham, Bedfordshire, incorporates 28 photo voltaic solar panels.

Since construction the house has remarkably generated as much electricity as it has consumed and promises to save the new owners thousands on gas and electricity during the current cost-of-living-crisis.

Key factors in the efficiency of the building are the high levels of insulation, airtightness and the Mechanical Ventilation and Heat Recovery (MVHR) system.

The four-bedroom home in Bromham, Bedfordshire has a state-of-the-art design which means energy bills are just 10 a month

The unique property is one of only 129 Passivhaus homes in the UK, which are built to the robust standards of the Passivhaus Institute in Germany

Since construction the house has generated as much electricity as it has consumed

It even has 28 photo voltaic solar panels incorporated into its design

What is a Mechanical Ventilation and Heat Recovery system? Mechanical Ventilation and Heat Recovery (MVHR) systems work by extracting warm air from humid areas of the house such as bathrooms and utility rooms. It then passes this air over a heat exchanger which transfers the heat from the warm air to air supplied from outside the house. This maintains the temperature inside the house but also provides fresh and filtered air to the building as well. These ventilation systems are most effective in air-tight houses, however recent research has shown that they could be used in less air-tight homes. How a Mechanical Ventilation and Heat Recovery system works Advertisement

The innovative design means that heat gained from the sun, household appliances and the occupants practically eliminates the requirement for any central heating.

The home, which is being marketed by Michael Graham Estate Agents, has triple-glaze windows and very thick walls with 300mm of glass mineral wool insulation, which stops any heat from escaping.

The design also maximises natural light, with a double-height hallway and large south-facing sliding glass panels.

John Pryer, who worked with architects to create the house where he has lived with wife Ann since 2019, said: 'The building has always been warm and the temperature is constant and really pleasant.

'The MVHR system provides fresh filtered air into the building whilst recovering over 95 per cent of the heat from the air being vented out.

'In our previous houses you'd have to open windows at night to cool the room down and find yourself waking up a bit chilly and having to put the heating on.

'We like the constant temperature. Part of the design - the skylights above the landing - create a draught effect when it's warm in summer, and can be left open as they automatically close if it starts to rain. When it's chilly outside and you walk into the house, it's always a very pleasant temperature.

'In the daytime you hardly ever need lights on and that's down to the Multi Comfort principles and the amount of natural light coming in. We had great advice from our electrician about zoning our lights and that's really worked.

'The space is everything we hoped it would be. We had a summer party for 60 people when we first moved in. While it was very hot outside, it stayed comfortable inside. It's a great house for entertaining people.'

The innovative design means that heat gained from the sun, household appliances and the occupants practically eliminates the requirement for any central heating

The design maximises natural light, with a double-height hallway and large south-facing sliding glass panels

It has triple-glaze windows and very thick walls with 300mm of glass mineral wool insulation

The Mechanical Ventilation and Heat Recovery system in the house works by extracting warm air from humid areas of the house such as bathrooms and utility rooms and then transfering this heat to air supplied from outside the house
Britain is in the midst of the first spell of unbearably hot weather for the year but it could be just a taster of what's to come in a few decades.

Scientists predict that temperatures across the UK in 2080 will be high enough to trigger 'wide-scale mortality', much like the European heatwave of 2003.

In a single summer week in 2080, temperatures will hit 41C (105F) in London while weekly averages will be 28C (82F) in large parts of southern England.

This compares to London's peak summertime temperatures of 31C (87F) and southern England's weekly averages of 20C (68F) in the 1970s.

Manchester, meanwhile, will push past 38C (100F) at least once a week during a 2080s summer, and Plymouth and Glasgow will likely hit 35C (95F) weekly.

The study predicts peak summertime temperatures of 41C in London, and weekly averages of 28C in large parts of southern England. This compares to 31C and 20C in the 1970s. Image shows daily maximum temperatures in the UK for the 1970s (left) and projections for the 2080s (right)

Temperature projections for London, Plymouth, Manchester and Glasgow during an 'example extreme week' in 2080, likely a heatwave in the summer. Temperatures for 2080 are indicated by the red line in each graph, as well as other decades both past and present in other colours

Last year, the UK set a new temperature record of 40.3C (104.5F)  but multiple regions will push past this on a weekly basis by 2080, the predictions show.

Peak summer temperatures in the 2080s London: 105F (41C) Manchester: 100F (38C) Plymouth: 96F (36C) Glasgow: 95F (35C) Advertisement

Temperatures in the biggest cities, namely London, tend to be hotter than the rest of the UK  and will continue to be so in the 2080s  due to densely-packed buildings and more concrete and tarmac that absorb heat more quickly.

The study was led by Professor David Coley at the University of Bath's Department of Architecture and Civil Engineering, who stresses that it is in the extremes of weather, not the mean climate, where much climate change risk lies.

'Climate change is normally discussed in terms of seasonal averages, as this is what is meant by the word climate,' said Professor Coley.

'I believe this a possible mistake, as few of us naturally grasp how even small differences in climate imply hugely different worlds.'

The team cite the European heatwave of 2003, which killed 14,000 people in Paris alone, showing the dangers of extreme temperatures rather than average temperatures.

In the last 20 years alone there has been a 54 per cent increase in heat-related mortality in people older than 65, with a total of 296,000 deaths in 2018.

'It's such heatwaves and cold snaps, and a lack of preparation for them, that will increasingly kill people,' said Professor Coley.

'We need to think about climate change in terms of changing weather.'

Scientists predict that temperatures across the UK in 2080 will be high enough to trigger 'wide-scale mortality', much like the European heatwave of 2003

Britain is going through the first spell of unbearably hot weather for the year, following record-breaking temperatures set in 2022

For their study, Professor Coley and colleagues produced a series of detailed weather projections for 11,326 UK locations at 3-mile-square intervals for the year 2080.

READ MORE: One of the next five years may be the hottest on RECORD, experts warn Pictured, scorching temperatures in Wimbledon, south London, in 2022 Advertisement

Using weather generator software and a newly developed algorithm, the team built upon Met Office climate predictions to create the projections.

After inputting the climate prediction data into the software, the weather generator produced 3,000 examples of possible weather forecasts for 2080.

By then looking for heatwaves and examining how they changed over time, they discovered that there will be heatwaves of similar form as the 2003 Paris event.

However, these will be 'with even higher temperatures', suggesting the likelihood of 'largescale mortality'.

The authors say climate change has the potential to undermine many of the gains in public health over the past 50 years, which will 'exacerbate existing inequities'.

Vulnerable populations, such as the elderly or those with pre-existing medical conditions, will be disproportionally affected.

'Exposure to high temperatures impact individuals via various routes from heat stress and heatstroke to exacerbations of respiratory and cardiovascular disease,' they write.

Photo from the 2003 heatwave in Paris, which the researchers say killed 14,000 people in the city

Hundreds of people enjoy the sun on Brighton beach during the European heatwave of 2003

Graphical abstract from the study. Heatwaves for the 2080s in London 'indicated life-threatening risk'

What's more, the UK is badly prepared for temperature increases as buildings and infrastructure are not heat-resistant enough.

'No temperature record exists of the internal conditions within the buildings in which the 14,000 deaths occurred in Paris in 2003,' the team say.

'The predicted situation in London is similar to that found in Paris, but with the peak temperature being higher in London and the night-time temperature in London being considerably higher.

'It would therefore not be unreasonable to conclude that in the future the UK can expect events with moralities of similar number as Paris suffered.'

Weather files containing the extreme weeks for 11,326 locations have been prepared by the academics and made available online, while the study has been published in the journal Building and Environment.
The moon's water contains phosphates - a key element for the existence of life

Scientists have found perhaps the most promising indication yet that life does exist on Enceladus, Saturn's sixth-largest moon.

Data gathered by NASA's retired Cassini spacecraft reveals the presence of phosphates  a key element for the existence of life  on the moon.

Crucially, the phosphates are not trapped in rocky minerals but dissolved in the moon's liquid water ocean as salt, the scientists say.

It's already known that Enceladus has long, snake-like fractures on its icy surface that eject huge plumes made up of ice grains and water vapour out into space.

Only last month did researchers reveal they'd detected a 'surprisingly large' plume coming from Enceladus's south pole that could be a sign of life.

Enceladus - Saturn's sixth-largest moon - is a frozen sphere just 313 miles in diameter (about one-seventh the diameter of Earth's moon). The moon is pictured in this image captured by NASA's Cassini spacecraft

Enceladus, Saturn 's sixth-largest moon, has an outer layer of ice that covers a liquid ocean of water. Researchers have detected phosphates in ice ejected in 'plumes'. These plumes are made up of water vapour and ice grains that are thought to have come from the ocean

Enceladus is one of few locations in our solar system with liquid water, along with Earth and Jupiter's moon Europa, making it a target of interest for astrobiologists.

READ MORE: Experts detect unusually large water plume coming from Enceladus NASA's James Webb Space Telescope revealed a water vapour plume jetting from the southern pole of Enceladus Advertisement

This global ocean of salty liquid water is sandwiched between the moon's rocky core and the shiny white shell of ice that covers its surface, at least 12 miles thick.

Excitingly, phosphorus has not been detected in oceans beyond those on Earth  until now.

It means the search for extraterrestrial life in our solar system has just taken a 'giant leap forward', according to experts at Freie Universitat in Berlin, Germany, who led the new study.

'Previous geochemical models were divided on the question of whether Enceladus' ocean contains significant quantities of phosphates at all,' said Professor Frank Postberg at Freie Universitat.

'These Cassini measurements leave no doubt that substantial quantities of this essential substance are present in the ocean water.'

Phosphate is the natural source of phosphorous, an element that provides a quarter of all the nutrients that plants need for their growth and development.

It is essential for the creation of DNA and RNA, cell membranes and a compound called ATP, the universal energy carrier in cells.

It's also one of the six elements needed for life, along with carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, oxygen and sulfur.

'With the finding of phosphorous in large quantities we have shown that phosphate availability is certainly not a bottleneck for the emergence of life on Enceladus,' Professor Postberg told MailOnline.

Researchers analysed data from NASA's now defunct Cassini spacecraft. The last three peaks in this spectral plot (at 125u, 165u, 187u) contain phosphates

Enceladus has layer of salty liquid water sandwiched between a rocky core and an icy shell that covers its surface. Artist's impression shows a cutaway view of Saturn's moon Enceladus, including giant water plumes erupting from the surface. There may be hydrothermal activity taking place on and under the seafloor of the moon's subsurface ocean, results from NASA's Cassini mission suggest

It's already known that Enceladus has long fractures on its icy surface that eject huge plumes made up of ice grains and water vapour out into space (artist's impression)

'Together with previous Cassini findings we know that Enceladus has suitable conditions for the emergence of life but we have no clue if Enceladus is actually inhabited.

Enceladus: Quick facts Discovered: August 28 1789 Type: Ice moon Diameter: 313 miles (504km) Orbital period: 32.9 hours Length of day: 32.9 hours Mass: About 680 times less than Earth's moon Source: NASA Advertisement

'This will be the goal for the next Enceladus space mission.'

Cassini spent more than a decade exploring Saturn and its known moons, and not only imaged the plumes of Enceladus for the first time but flew directly through them.

These plumes are made of water vapour and ice grains, some of which are believed to be frozen droplets from its sub-surface liquid ocean.

At the end of its mission in September 2017, Cassini was de-orbited so it would burn up in Saturn's upper atmosphere.

The atmospheric entry of Cassini ended the mission, but analysis of the returned data will continue for many years.

Professor Postberg and colleagues analysed data collected from the Cassini mission's Cosmic Dust Analyzer, an on-board instrument that could detect dust particles one-thousandth of a millimeter wide.

The measurements not only detected phosphorus in the form of orthophosphate ions, but together with laboratory data suggest that phosphorus might be available at concentrations at least 100 times higher than in Earth's oceans.

Cassini is depicted here in a NASA illustration. Cassini launched from Cape Canaveral, Florida in October 1997

The team say phosphorus is readily available at the top of Enceladus's ocean, the source of the plumes that are ejected out of its surface shell.

READ MORE: Saturn reclaims its crown for most moons in the solar system Saturn has been confirmed to have more than 100 moons Advertisement

So if life exists, or has existed on Enceladus, it will likely be in the liquid water layer, although determining this for certain could be the job of another spacecraft.

The study has been published in the journal Nature, along with an accompanying News & Views piece by Mikhail Zolotov, a planetary geochemist at Arizona State University.

Zolotov, who was not involved with the study, thinks it means phosphates could be 'abundant on other ice-covered bodies in the outer solar system'.

Enceladus was discovered by German-born astronomer William Herschel in 1789, using his 40-foot telescope in Slough, built only thanks to a 4,000 grant from King George III.

However, it wasn't until NASA's Cassini probe reached Enceladus in 2005 that it was considered anything other than a frigid and inactive world.

The spacecraft discovered evidence of the moon's large subsurface ocean and sampled water from geyser-like eruptions that occur through fissures in the ice at its south pole, known as 'tiger stripes'.

Due to the presence of water, Cassini's status was elevated as one of the prime targets to search for conditions suitable for past or present life.

Only last month did researchers reveal they'd detected a 'surprisingly large' plume coming from Enceladus's south pole

Previous research has shown that Enceladus hides a 'soda ocean' (rich in dissolved carbonates) and contains a vast variety of reactive and sometimes complex organic compounds.

Scientists also revealed in 2021 that they'd detected traces of methane gas in the moon's plumes that could be coming from live microbes.

Even the highest possible estimate of 'abiotic' methane production  in other words, methane production not from living organisms  is not enough to explain the methane concentration in the plumes, the team said at the time.
You probably haven't heard of Tim Jackson, but he has one of the most important jobs in the UK travel industry  he's in charge of the drinks selection on all British Airways flights, from economy to first class. And in the carrier's lounges.

It means that his decisions will affect whether a holiday gets off on the right foot for millions of people. After all, for many, that first sip of wine, beer or gin and tonic at the airport or in-flight signals the official start of the getaway.

Luckily, the nation's taste buds and its holiday vibes are in good hands, because Tim is a 'Master of Wine', one of only 415 worldwide.

Tim became BA's first-ever resident master of wine last December, with his expertise rapidly bearing fruit  he chose a wine honoured with gold in the 'Best First Class Red' category in the Cellars In The Sky awards 2022.

The wine in question was a Teusner 'The Riebke' Barossa Valley Shiraz, 2019, from Australia's Barossa Valley, which retails at around 20 to 22 a bottle.

Tim Jackson, above, is British Airways' first-ever resident master of wine

Tim told MailOnline Travel that 'Shiraz from the Barossa Valley gets really good intense fruit', adding that 'the tannins are mid-level but ripe and fine and likely to be appealing at altitude'.

You might reasonably wonder why a wine that appeals at ground level wouldn't automatically taste delicious at 35,000ft. It's not a given because, as Tim explains, strange things happen to taste and smell sensations mid-flight.

He also reveals how he makes sure passengers aren't served a dud wine as a result.

He says: 'At altitude, mainly the dryness of the cabin reduces your perception of aromas and flavours - particularly fruitiness. What that then does is, as that fruitiness comes down, all the other textural components in the structure of wines, such as acidity, the alcohol, and in red wines the tannins - the stuff that dries your gums - they become more prominent, more evident.

'So, what I'm looking at in a wine does it have more of the fruit component? Because at altitude, that's going to come down a bit, and also, especially with red wines, I'm focussed on the level of the tannins and the quality of the tannins - are they course or fine? I'm looking for as fine as possible, supple - and likely to be silky and pleasant when they become more obvious.

Tim revealed that at altitude the dryness of the cabin reduces your perception of aromas and flavours

LIKE A SAUVIGNON BLANC? TIM HAS THE PERFECT PICK Sauvignon Blanc is one of the world's most popular white wines and Tim put what he believes is a standard bearer for this variety on the first-class wine list - Dog Point, from the Marlborough region of New Zealand. He says: 'Dog Point is by the same guys who founded Cloudy Bay and is one of, if not the best producers of Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc. It's a benchmark wine and a delight to have in First.' Advertisement

'And you don't want something that's obviously alcoholic, because the perception of it will go up at altitude.

'So it's all about how much fruit you can taste.

'I'm looking for a balance in the wine that's likely to be balanced at altitude as well.'

BA customers can rest assured that the process for deciding what wines are served is extremely rigorous for all cabins.

Tim says: 'We find suppliers, we go through a rigorous blind-tasting process, we assess them, get the right balance and make a selection to give a broad range of styles, or as broad as we can, and we're aiming for the best quality that we can get into the bottle. It's the same process for economy as it is for "turning left".'

When we meet Tim for a chat at British Airways' Heathrow headquarters his passion for the job is evident.

But why did he take it?

He adds: 'BA is the flag carrier. Why wouldn't you want to help shape what the airline is doing? What gets me out of bed in the morning is that the decisions I'm making or shaping can gently influence or hopefully improve the drinking experiences of millions of people. That's magic.'

British Airways has announced plans for an exclusive Whispering Angel rose bar, inviting customers to enjoy the refreshing French tipple ahead of their flight from Heathrow Terminal 5. Opening this summer, the bespoke bar will be located in the British Airways lounge near the B gates at London Heathrow Terminal 5 (Terminal 5B).

Prefer something English and fizzy? BA has you covered. Currently, an English sparkling is available on board - Digby Fine English Brut NV. From July, the airline will serve the Balfour Rose de Noirs, grown on the Balfour Hush Heath Estate in Kent, and made only from red grapes. This lighter rose sparkling wine is an exclusive blend for British Airways, making it only available at 35,000ft for customers in the airline's Club World (business) cabin.
The airline expects to acquire three more A380s in the coming months

A new airline planning to operate transatlantic flights from London by spring 2024 has bought its first plane.

Global Airlines said it has acquired an Airbus A380, the world's largest passenger jet.

The carrier - which intends to begin flying from London to New York and Los Angeles from next year - is the first new airline to own one of the double-decker superjumbos in eight years.

The vast majority of A380s around the world were put into storage at the height of the coronavirus pandemic, sparking speculation they would never return due to the existence of more fuel-efficient aircraft.

But the model's ability to carry more passengers than other commercial planes means they are making a recovery.

New airline Global Airlines, which is planning to operate transatlantic flights by early 2024, has bought its first plane

Global Airlines bought its plane from German aircraft finance company Doric Aviation.

Acquiring our aircraft rather than leasing showcases our commitment to financial security and resilience from day one James Asquith, Global Airlines

It did not reveal how much it paid, though it's understood to be in the eight-figure range.

Global Airlines expects to acquire three more A380s in the coming months.

A statement from the airline says that the A380 'will transport passengers back to the "Golden Age of Air Travel" with its unrivalled spaciousness and reinvigorated flying experience in every cabin'.

The carrier's plans to fly between London and the U.S puts it in competition with legacy airlines such as British Airways and Virgin Atlantic, as well as Norwegian low-cost carrier Norse, which began flying between London Gatwick and New York last August.

Global Airlines intends to begin flying from London to New York and Los Angeles in the spring of next year

Norwegian Air Shuttle operated transatlantic flights with low fares but axed its long-haul operations in January 2021 due to heavy losses.

Global Airlines founder and chief executive James Asquith, who also created travel company Holiday Swap, said: 'Our aspiration is to be the best way to fly and the A380  with its unmatched levels of space, comfort and service  will be absolutely central to achieving that vision.

'The purchase of our first aircraft demonstrates that we are well on the way to launching Global.'

Asquith, who had travelled to every country in the world by the age of 24, continued: 'The next step is to overhaul and refit the aircraft to our high specification, providing our customers with the best experience in the sky today.

'Acquiring our aircraft rather than leasing showcases our commitment to financial security and resilience from day one.'
They share the same first name and are both superheroes in the blockbuster Marvel action movies.

And on Tuesday, Chris Hemsworth, 39, paid a cheeky tribute on Instagram to his Avengers co-star Chris Evans to mark his 42nd birthday.

Chris posted of photo of him and Evans both rocking a matching smart casual look at an event and captioned it with some hilarious words.

'Happy birthday to my favourite Chris,' he wrote alongside the snap of the Knives Out star.

Hemsworth has a history of trolling both Chris Evans and another Marvel co-star namesake, Chris Pratt from the Guardians of the Galaxy movies.

Chris Hemsworth has paid a cheeky tribute on Instagram to his Avengers co-star Chris Evans to mark his 42nd birthday. Chris posted of photo of him and Evans both rocking a smart casual look at a Meet and Greet event and captioned it with some hilarious words. Both pictured

Finding out who is the 'best Chris' has been a long-running gag amongst the three actors, who have portrayed Thor the God of Thunder, Captain America and Peter Quill a.k.a. Star Lord in over a dozen films.

It comes after Chris Hemsworth and his wife Elsa Pataky, 46, visited the Spanish actress' hometown of Madrid this week.

Elsa shared a series of photos via her Instagram account on Sunday surrounded by her Spanish family, including a loved up photo of her hunky Aussie beau.

Hemsworth and Evans both appear in the Marvel Cinematic Universe as Thor and Captain America, respectively

'Enjoying my home town Madrid with my love ones,' Elsa captioned her post.

The couple touched down in Madrid last week to attend the red carpet premiere of Chris' new film Extraction 2.

The actor was hilariously busted with Spanish words scribbled on the palm of his left hand when he stepped out at the event.

It comes after Chris Hemsworth and his wife Elsa Pataky (right) visited the Spanish actress' hometown of Madrid this week

As Chris waved and happily signed autographs for the crowd, he was seen with Spanish words scrawled in blue pen on the inside of his hand.

The Hollywood actor has been married to his Spanish wife for 13 years - but it appears he's yet to learn the language.

The Thor star took the blunder in good humour, addressing it in an Instagram post on Thursday.

'After years of coming to Spain and being asked 'has my Spanish improved' I can safely say it's in the palm of my hand,' he joked.
OnlyFans star Mikaela Testa has confirmed she is still friends with TikTok sensation Anna Paul amid rumours of a feud between the pair following Testa's split with Paul's brother Atis.

Mikaela said the two women are still in contact and will catch-up in Europe over the summer this year.

'There's no reason for us not to be friends,' Mikaela told the White Fox After Hours podcast, before taking a jab at her ex by saying she's 'not a huge fan of him'.

She went on to call Anna a 'lovely human being' and she will 'love her forever'.

'I obviously wish them well,' Mikaela continued.

OnlyFans star Mikaela Testa, left, has confirmed she is still friends with TikTok sensation Anna Paul, right, amid rumours of a feud between the pair following Testa's split with Paul's brother Atis

'Anna and I were friends before Atis and I started dating. Anna is a lovely human being and obviously love her forever,' she added.

'We're still friends. We still text each other and stuff. She's texted me saying she wants to hang out in Europe and I've texted her advice.'

Mikaela went on to say Anna has said she will always be 'be there' for her even after the break-up with Atis.

Mikaela and Atis broke up in May last year after several years of dating.

In a recent Instagram Q&A with fans, she said the pair will never stop loving each other.

'Will always be in love with each other, we never stopped,' she said.

Atis was first to break news of the split in June last year after much fan speculation.

'There's no reason for us not to be friends,' Mikaela told the White Fox After Hours podcast , before taking a jab at her ex by saying she's 'not a huge fan of him'

'I've been getting asked so much if Mik and I are still together. We love each other so much and decided to be friends now,' he said at the time.

'Everything is perfect between us. We both agree it's better that way.'

Mikaela, who was on a girls' trip to Bali, was less forthcoming about the split, but said the supportive messages from fans were making her 'so emotional'.

'For the fifth time, Atis and I are fine... you guys are making me so emotional. I wish I could hug every single one of you,' she wrote.

Mikaela and Atis broke up in May last year after several years of dating

Mikaela made headlines in 2019 when she posted a video of herself crying hysterically after Instagram took away the 'like counter' on posts

Mikaela made headlines in 2019 when she posted a video of herself crying hysterically after Instagram took away the 'like counter' on posts.

Her racy photos also resulted in several bans on Instagram and TikTok.

In 2020, she was kicked off TikTok for breaching 'multiple community guidelines'.

She publicly disputed the ban, telling News Corp she hadn't done anything wrong and had been unfairly penalised by TikTok's 'automatic scanner'.
Jonnie Irwin has revealed he received irreversible damage to his liver after travelling overseas for cancer treatment.

The A Place In The Sun presenter, 49, is bravely battling terminal cancer after he was diagnosed with lung cancer in 2020. It has since spread to his brain.

Speaking to Hello! magazine, Jonnie told how he recently went to Turkey for treatment but has now been left with liver damage following the procedure.

He said: 'It's blocked in a place they can't operate on, so there's no point fighting the cancer elsewhere if the liver's not working. It's a cruel blow.

'It can happen at any time. I'm here to stop it for as long as possible.'

Health: Jonnie Irwin has revealed he received irreversible damage to his liver after travelling overseas for cancer treatment

Candid: Jonnie told how he recently went to Turkey for treatment but has now been left with liver damage following the procedure

The TV host also revealed he is currently in pain with his cancer and said he is 'not good to be around when I'm in pain.'

Jonnie shares his three sons Rex, three, and twins Rafa and Corma, two, with his wife Jessica Holmes.

The star told how he is keeping a positive attitude at home because he doesn't know 'how long I have left'.

He said: 'My attitude is that I'm living with cancer, not dying from it. I set little markers  things I want to be around for. I got into the habit of saying: 'Don't plan ahead because I might not be well enough.'

Jonnie grew up in Bitteswell, Leicestershire, and attended Lutterworth Grammar School before embarking on his career as an estate agent.

The presenter also spoke of why he and Jessica have kept his cancer battle a secret from their children.

'I keep being asked, 'Are you going to tell them?' but tell them what? It would be horrible news that they'd have to get their heads around,' he said.

'And it would confuse the hell out of Rex  he's got a shocking enough day coming. Let's bury our heads in the sand for as long as possible.'

He said: ' It's blocked in a place they can't operate on, so there's no point fighting the cancer elsewhere if the liver's not working. It's a cruel blow'

Horrible: Jonnie was given just six months to live when he was diagnosed with stage four lung cancer, which has spread to his brain, in August 2020 (pictured with co-host Jasmine Harman)

Interview: The TV host also revealed he is currently in pain with his cancer and said he is 'not good to be around when I'm in pain'

Jonnie said he is confident his boys will have a good upbringing and a 'softer one than if I was around'.

The Escape To The Country star has continued to work throughout his cancer battle as he doesn't have critical illness cover on his insurance.

Earlier this month, Jonnie issued a health update as he revealed doctors were monitoring changes in his medication to help manage his pain.

The presenter has been undergoing brain therapy, which he described last week as 'brutal'.

Jonnie said he was keeping his fingers crossed he will be out of hospital in time for Sunday, where he was due to make an appearance at A Place In The Sun Live at Kensington Olympia.

He said: 'In hospital this week monitoring a changeover in my pain management regime.

'Fingers crossed I'll be out in time to make an appearance on Sunday for this weekends @aplaceinthesunofficial LIVE event at @olympialondon in Kensington. Hope to see you there.'
Kevin Costner has filed legal docs asking a court to compel his estranged wife Christine Baumgartner to leave his home in line with their prenuptial agreement.

The Oscar-winning actor, 68, said that following Baumgartner's May 1 divorce filing, she had a 30-day period to move out of the house he owns under the terms of their prenup, Radar reported Tuesday after reviewing legal docs in the case.

The Dances With Wolves actor-director told the court he believes that Baumgartner, 49, is remaining in the home to persuade him to give into 'various financial demands' she is making in the wake of the split.

Costner said he has already provided Baumgartner with $1.45 million under the terms of the prenup, providing ample funds for her to procure a new place to live.

The Yellowstone star, who shares three children with Baumgartner - sons Cayden, 16, and Hayes, 14, and daughter Grace, 13 - told the court that he would be amenable to further financial arrangements in an effort to get her to leave the home.

The latest: Kevin Costner, 68, has filed legal docs asking a court to compel his estranged wife Christine Baumgartner, 49, out of his home, saying he has already given her $1.45 million to find a new place under terms of their prenuptial agreement. Pictured last year at the Oscars

Costner has a vast real estate portfolio, highlighted by a 10-acre beachfront compound in Carpinteria, California that is worth an estimated $145 million

The home is perched on a clifftop and boasts ocean views

Costner said in court docs that he's amenable to 'contribute as part of his child support obligations $30K per month for a rental house, and is willing to advance another $10K for her moving costs.'

He said in court docs that he is the sole owner of the three family homes; and per the prenup they signed when they wed in 2004, Baumgartner agreed to leave the homes and take her possessions in the case they divorce.

Costner has a vast real estate portfolio, highlighted by a 10-acre beachfront compound in Carpinteria, California that is worth an estimated $145 million.

The home is perched on a clifftop and boasts ocean views. Costner originally designed a dream home with a pool and guest house but, due to family commitments and spending time at his Aspen home, he never got around to redeveloping the site.

The compound includes 500 feet of private beach, surrounded by cliffs, and the actor has built an apparent recreational house on the property which is surrounded by outdoor furniture and umbrellas.

Originally, the parcel of land came with a polo practice field which baseball aficionado Costner converted to a baseball field. The home also boasts views of the Santa Barbara mountains, several islands and its own horseback riding trail.

Costner had already owned a home on the beach in Carpinteria, purchasing a 17-acre parcel of land complete with a modest two-bedroom, two-bathroom ranch in 2006 for $28.5 million. Costner noticed the home when he saw a for sale sign while jogging by.

In 2007, the JFK star sold seven acres of the land to a neighbor, but combined his homes to create one seamless estate.

The former couple was pictured with their three children in August of 2019 in LA

Costner remarked about how he had mortgaged a piece of his property in a recent interview with Deadline to raise funds for his upcoming film franchise Horizon.

'Ive mortgaged 10 acres on the water in Santa Barbara where I was going to build my last house,' Costner said. 'But I did it without a thought. It has thrown my accountant into a f***ing conniption fit. But its my life, and I believe in the idea and the story.'

Costner also owns a ranch in Aspen, Colorado that spans 160 acres and includes a pair of lakes. The property includes three separate homes which include a total of eight bathrooms and 12 bedrooms, with a capacity for as many as 34 guests.

Costner in late January made the property, known as the Dunbar Ranch, available for rent for $36,000 nightly.

Baumgartner, who has past worked as a model and handbag designer, filed for divorce from The Bodyguard actor on May 1.

Their relationship began in 1998 and they had exchanged vows at his ranch in 2004 in Colorado.

Following the announcement of the split, Costner's rep Arnold Robinson said in a statement: 'It is with great sadness that circumstances beyond his control have transpired which have resulted in Mr. Costner having to participate in a dissolution of marriage.'

The Dances With Wolves actor-director told the court he believes that Baumgartner is remaining in the home to persuade him to give into 'various financial demands' she is making in the wake of the split

Costner 'wasn't shocked' upon learning of the divorce filing, sources told People last month, but news of it came as 'an unpleasant surprise' nonetheless.

'This is not what he wanted. He knew that Christine was unhappy though,' the source said.

Costner's busy work schedule had an impact on the relationship, the source added, as she wanted 'them to spend family time at their Santa Barbara home,' but he 'is not around very much' when he is filming.

The insider said: 'His absence has been very hard for her. Christine doesn't want him to throw himself into another project. He has been obsessed with filming Horizon since last year. She wasn't happy about it.'

The veteran actor is also father to daughters Annie, 39, and Lily, 36, and son Joe, 35, with his ex-wife Cindy Silva; and son Liam, 27, with ex-girlfriend Bridget Rooney.
Claire Danes was spotted as she stepped out to do some shopping in New York City on Tuesday.

The 43-year-old actress - who is expecting her third child - covered her baby bump wearing a $325 'Vera' patched maternity dress by Rujuta Sheth.

The Romeo + Juliet star wore her blonde shoulder-length tresses parted to the side and appeared to go makeup free behind dark sunglasses.

Danes stylishly wore her cell phone on a long strap crossbody and accessorized her look with silver earrings, two gold necklaces, a silver watch, and a bracelet.

The Emmy-winning actress wore Birkenstock sandals and carried two large shopping bags as she stepped out of Farm Rio.

Busy mom: Claire Danes was spotted as she stepped out to do some shopping in New York City on Tuesday

Maternity chic: The 43-year-old actress wore a $325 'Vera' patched maternity dress by Rujuta Sheth with Birkenstock sandals and appeared makeup free behind dark sunglasses

Clare and her husband, Hugh Dancy, have been married for 13 years and share two sons - Cyrus Michael Christopher, 10, and Rowan, four. Claire and Hugh met on the 2006 set of Lajos Koltai's Evening, in which they portrayed love interests.

During a recent appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, Claire revealed how her sons reacted when they found out she was pregnant.

The My So-Called Life alum said her older son Cyrus had a cute suggestion saying, 'When it comes out of your tummy, we'll give it to a family that doesn't have a baby because we're done.'

The Fleishman is in Trouble star was able to sway Rowan by explaining his future role as a big brother.

'He was less than thrilled, but then we talked about how when the baby comes out, it's going to be pretty dumb [and] doesn't know a lot, [and will] need assistance and some educating.'

Danes debuted her tiny bump at the 80th Golden Globes in January where she revealed her third pregnancy was 'not so expected.'

'Mama mode is all right. This one was - not so expected - but we're thrilled, and here we go!' Claire told ET's Kevin Frazier and Nischelle Turner.

Claire was nominated as Best Supporting Actress in a Limited Series for her role as Rachel Fleishman in Fleishman Is in Trouble, but lost the award to Jennifer Coolidge from The White Lotus.

Danes has been nominated six times prior and has won four Golden Globes.

Solo outing: Danes stylishly wore her cell phone on a long strap crossbody and carried two large shopping bags as she enjoyed a walk in the fashionable Soho district

Life update: Danes shared the news at the Golden Globes in January that she and her husband of 13 years were expecting a third child

Baby No. 3! The native New Yorker and her husband Hugh Dancy have been married for 13 years and share two sons - Cyrus Michael Christopher, 10; and Rowan, 4 - pictured November 7

Nominated: Claire was nominated in the Supporting Actress in a Limited Series, or TV Movie category for her role as Rachel Fleishman in Fleishman Is in Trouble; Pictured with co-star Jesse Eisenberg in a still from the show

Since wrapping the hit espionage thriller series Homeland in 2020, Danes continued with television work starring alongside Tom Hiddleston in The Essex Serpent which premiered on Apple TV+ in May 2022.

The gothic romance period drama miniseries told the story of London widow Cora Seaborne (Danes), who moves to Essex to investigate reports of a mythical serpent. She forms a surprising bond of science and skepticism with the local pastor (Hiddleston), but locals accuse her of attracting the creature when tragedy strikes.

From there, Danes started work on Fleishman Is In Trouble, which is based on the 2019 novel of the same name, with co-stars Lizzy Kaplan and Jesse Eisenberg.

The storyline focuses on Toby Fleishman, a recently divorced forty-something-year-old man immersed in the app-based dating world. But as he finds successes he never saw in his youth, his ex-wife Rachel (Danes) disappears without a trace, leaving him with only his kids.
Larry Emdur and his wife Sylvie have relisted their stunning container home in New South Wales' idyllic Kangaroo Valley.

The majestic 'Sky Ridge' property was purchased by the Channel Seven star and his wife for $2.15million back in 2020.

Sitting on 10-acres of pristine bushland, the beautifully-styled home has been completely fitted out with stylish furniture and eclectic art pieces.

And atop a table in the middle of the living area sits a rather racy sculpture.

The large erotic artwork shows two figures in what appears to be a sex position.

Larry Emdur and his wife Sylvie have relisted their stunning container home in New South Wales' idyllic Kangaroo Valley

One of the figures has its hands placed on the other's chest.

Meanwhile on the ground floor, the home features a wide open plan living area with a fireplace.

It also has large sliding glass windows, allowing for fresh air to breeze through and showing off views of the country side.

Sitting on 10-acres of pristine bushland, the beautifully-styled home has been completely fitted out with stylish furniture and eclectic art pieces. And atop a table in the middle of the living area sits a rather racy sculpture.

The large erotic artwork shows two figures in what appears to be a sex position

The majestic 'Sky Ridge' property was purchased by the Channel Seven star and his wife for $2.15million back in 2020

The kitchen has a modern black and chrome colour palette and stretches out to a spacious dining area.

The second floor features four spacious bedrooms, each with their own ensuite bathrooms and views out to the 10 acres of picturesque bushland surrounding the property.

The couple spent $2.15million on a stylish new container home, which was designed by architect Alexander Michael in 2018.

The racy statue can be seen on a table to the left of the eclectic living room

The kitchen has a modern black and chrome colour palette and stretches out to a spacious dining area

It blends steel, glass and polished concrete floors with eco-friendly touches, such as solar panels with a battery bank and rainwater harvesting.

This was the second holiday home that Larry has purchased that year. In February, he paid $1.1million for a property in Berowra Waters, in Sydney's north.

In 2017, the couple sold their clifftop mansion in Dover Heights for a record $11.5million to celebrity account Anthony Bell.

Larry and Sylvie are now based in The Rocks in a $3million heritage-listed apartment.

The second floor features four spacious bedrooms, each with their own ensuite bathrooms and views out to the 10 acres of picturesque bushland surrounding the property
Keke Palmer showed her ample bosom in a black dress with low neckline on Tuesday after speaking out about the difficulties of being a nursing mother.

The 29-year-old actress, who has 15-week-old son Leodis, had her decolletage on display in a figure-hugging black dress while visiting the SiriusXM Studios in New York City.

Keke also sported long sheer gloves, black stockings and black heels.

She accentuated her natural beauty with full makeup and accessorized with hoop earrings.

Keke graced the cover of the June edition of Ad Week magazine and shared the achievement on Tuesday on social media.

New mom: Keke Palmer showed her ample bosom in a black dress with low neckline on Tuesday after speaking out about the difficulties of being a nursing mother

'I'm so grateful to have been able to entertain all these years, the experience has placed me at a unique vantage point. I don't take it lightly!,' she posted on Instagram for her roughly 12.7 million followers.

Keke last year founded the KeyTV Network platform that aims to offer new talent access to the creative control that she worked long to gain.

She also took to Instagram to congratulate Tyler Perry, 53, who reportedly is about to take control of the BET network.

Keke - who recently released the album Big Boss - took to social media on Monday after she faced a problem many nursing mothers contend with during a recent trip at the airport in Houston.

The Nope star apparently had difficulty getting breast milk she had pumped for Leodis through security.

Keke and her partner, personal trainer Darius Jackson, welcomed their first child in February.

'Breast milk discrimination at the Houston airport ruined my mood,' she tweeted.

'I shouldve popped my t*t out right then because the discretion and comfort of pumping is thwarted with threats to throw out over 16oz my babies food?!?!!!' the frustrated mom exclaimed.

Satellite radio: The 29-year-old actress, who has 15-week-old son Leodis, had her decolletage on display in a figure-hugging black dress while visiting the SiriusXM Studios in New York City

Long gloves: Keke also sported long sheer gloves, black stockings and black heels

Social media: The actress took to Instagram to congratulate Tyler Perry, 53, who reportedly is about to take control of the BET network.

Congratulations post: Keke posted that she has watched Tyler 'up close and personal' since she was age 11

'Why is that not a crime?? I'M A MOTHER for crying out loud' she concluded, followed by crying emojis.

Other nursing mothers shared comments of support and their own difficulties working with the Transportation Security Administration.

'There is literally no justification for this, I don't understand how they get away with it. Oh right, cos it only affects women,' wrote one supportive fan.

Another described her encounter in different airport.

'Experienced the same foolishness leaving Vegas. When they finally got through harassing us and 'inspecting' they only let us through after grossly feeling up my husband. It was beyond ridiculous!'

'Same thing happened to me in the Little Rock airport. I felt so violated and embarrassed ' claimed another.

TSA guidelines state, 'Formula, breast milk, toddler drinks, and baby/toddler food (to include puree pouches) in quantities greater than 3.4 ounces or 100 milliliters are allowed in carry-on baggage and do not need to fit within a quart-sized bag.'

Discrimination: The Emmy winner wrote about what she called 'Breast milk discrimination' Monday on Twitter, claiming TSA workers threatened to throw out more than 16 oz of milk she had pumped for her three-and-a-half month old son

Leodis: Keke and her partner, personal trainer Darius Jackson, welcomed their first child, Leodis, in February

Moms: Other mothers wrote about similar experiences in response to Keke's tweet. TSA guidelines state, 'Formula, breast milk, toddler drinks, and baby/toddler food in quantities greater than 3.4 ounces or 100 milliliters are allowed in carry-on baggage'

Working: It's unclear why Keke was in Houston, but the new mom has a full lineup of projects to work on. She has added her voiceover talents to the new animated comedy The Hospital, and will show off her vocal talents in the upcoming Sister Act 3: Kicking the Habit

'Formula, breast milk, toddler drinks, and baby/toddler food (to include puree pouches) are considered medically necessary liquids,' the website reported.

'This also applies to breast milk and formula cooling accessories, such as ice packs, freezer packs, and gel packs (regardless of presence of breast milk).

'Your child or infant does not need to be present or traveling with you to bring breast milk, formula and/or related supplies.'

It's unclear why Keke was in Houston or if the baby was with her.

The new mom has a full lineup of projects to work on. She has added her voiceover talents to the new animated comedy The Hospital, and will show off her vocal talents in the upcoming Sister Act 3: Kicking the Habit.
Elizabeth Debicki looked typically chic as she attended the press night after party for When Winston Went To War With The Wireless at the Donmar Warehouse in London on Tuesday.

The actress, 32, showed off her impeccable sense of style in a figure-hugging black maxi dress.

The elegant number featured a low-square neck and slit at the bottom, baring plenty of chest and skin.

She teamed her look with a chic pair of pointed flat shoes and kept accessories to a minimum, opting only for a simple pair of gold hoop earrings.

The Crown star accentuated her natural beauty with a flawless palette of makeup, including a swipe of pink lipstick.

Gorgeous: Elizabeth Debicki looked typically chic as she attended the press night after party for When Winston Went To War With The Wireless at the Donmar Warehouse in London on Tuesday

She styled her blonde tresses in a neat bun with a side parting, perfectly framing her pretty face.

Also at the big event was David Tennant, who cut a casual figure in a floral printed white shirt and khaki trousers.

The stylish shirt featured additional tones of blue and aqua, which he wore buttoned down with his sunglasses hanging off.

He finished his ensemble with a pair of brown shoes and chatted with other guests.

Jack Thornes play is based upon a true story, set during the General Strike of May 1926, when Britain came to a standstill.

With the printing presses shut down, the only sources of news were the government's The British Gazette, edited by Winston Churchill, and the independent British Broadcasting Company, led by John Reith.

What follows in the play is a fierce battle for control of the news and who gets to define the truth.

Starring in the play is Stephen Campbell Moore as Reith, and Adrian Scarborough as Churchill in a production directed by Katy Rudd.

Beauty: The Crown star accentuated her natural beauty with a flawless palette of makeup, including a swipe of pink lipstick

Suave: Also at the big event was David Tennant, who cut a casual figure in a floral printed white shirt and khaki trousers

Team: Starring in the play is Stephen Campbell Moore as Reith, and Adrian Scarborough as Churchill in a production directed by Katy Rudd

The show opened on 13 June and will run until 29 July.

Meanwhile, Elizabeth's appearance comes after she made a show-stopping entrance at the North American premiere of Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 3, which took place in Hollywood in April.

The actress pulled out all the stops for the event, which celebrated the new Marvel flick - in which she reprises her role of Ayesha, who is the leader of the Sovereign.

Opting for a fitting metallic silver colour scheme, the beauty donned a strapless gown with a fitting design and mesh skirt.

She let the dress do the talking by keeping extra details to a minimum, simply adding a perfectly complementing silver necklace and pumps in the same shade.

While the star, who also plays Princess Diana in Netflix's The Crown, had her bright blonde locks left to fall freely in a softly curled style.

The original installment in the Guardians of the Galaxy series was released in 2014, with the second film in the franchise subsequently released to much praise in 2017.

Elizabeth portrays Ayesha in the film, who is the leader of the Sovereign, a group of aliens who believe they are superior to other races.

Wow! Meanwhile, Elizabeth's appearance comes after she made a show-stopping entrance at the North American premiere of Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 3, which took place in Hollywood in April

She initially took on the role in the franchise's second film, with her return confirmed late last year.

While there was much speculation that Elizabeth would reprise the role, many worried that her filming schedule for Netflix's The Crown would restrict this.

But managing to do both, it seems the star is in high demand currently as it was recently revealed that she is amongst a new batch of actors joining a star-studded sequel to the Mia Gothstarring horror films X and Pearl.

She and Lily Collins were announced on Tuesday as part of the new cast for MaXXXine, which will be directed by Ti West, who helmed the previous two films in the series.

The new film is set to take place following the events of X, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

Following a gory massacre at a rural farm in Texas in 1979, Goth's character Maxine emerges as the sole survivor, and she then sets out west to California to pursue her dream of being a star as the 1980s roll along.
Abbie Chatfield has revealed the truth behind a mortifying viral video from her time on The Bachelor in 2019.

The reality star became a laughing stock after she seemingly failed to understand Bachelor star Matt Agnew's profession during their first meeting on the show.

After he revealed he was an astrophysicist, the contestant quickly responded, 'I'm a Gemini!', leaving Matt looking puzzled.

Abbie subsequently claimed her comment was a joke, and that producers had purposefully edited the scene to make her look stupid.

However this week Abbie changed her explanation, telling the Back To Reality podcast that her comment was actually part of a flirtatious conversation that never made it to air.

Abbie Chatfield has revealed the truth behind a mortifying viral video from her time on The Bachelor in 2019, in which she said, 'I'm a Gemini', after Matt Agnew revealed he was an astrophysicist

'I walked up to [Matt] and I go, 'What do you do?' And he goes, 'I'm an astrophysicist'. And then I literally looked around to the crew and I went, 'I know this isn't the same thing, just so we're aware... [And then I asked Matt] 'What's your star sign?'' she recalled.

'And then he was like, 'I'm a Leo', and then I said, 'Oh, I'm a Gemini!' They'd cut out the middle part and just gone, 'That's my response',' she added.

To make matters worse, the video went viral for a second time last week after Khloe Kardashian shared it to her social media page.

Abbie subsequently claimed her comment was a joke, and that producers had purposefully edited the scene to make her look stupid. However this week Abbie changed her explanation, telling the Back To Reality podcast that her comment was actually part of a flirtatious conversation that never made it to air

Abbie said she was irritated about the video being circulated again, and admitted she'd even jokingly contacted one of the show's editors to vent her frustrations.

'I texted the person who edited that, and I said... 'F**k you!'' she said with a mischievous smile.

Abbie's explanation differs to the one she gave back in 2019, when she claimed her 'Gemini' comment was actually a joke taken out of context.

Speaking to News.com.au in 2019, Abbie said she was 'upset and mortified' that Channel 10 had presented her joke in the episode as a genuine misunderstanding.

'I walked up to [Matt] and I go, 'What do you do?' And he goes, 'I'm an astrophysicist'. And then I literally looked around to the crew and I went, 'I know this isn't the same thing, just so we're aware... [And then I asked Matt] 'What's your star sign?'' she recalled

'[Matt] absolutely understood that it was a joke,' she explained, clarifying that she made the comment to try and break the ice with laughter.

'Obviously, a lot more happened off camera, and Matt and I had a really good laugh about it at the time.'

Much to Abbie's dismay, the footage of the 'Gemini scene' was featured heavily in trailers for The Bachelor.

'And then he was like, 'I'm a Leo', and then I said, 'Oh, I'm a Gemini!' They'd cut out the middle part and just gone, 'That's my response',' she added

The trailer even went viral in America at the time, attracting 10 million views in just a few days.

Reflecting on her online notoriety, Abbie told News.com.au: 'I was absolutely mortified, and I was really upset.'

Speaking to Nova 96.9's Smallzy's Surgery at the time, Matt also insisted that the footage had been taken out of context.

'She is very clever, very witty and she loves to wind me up and that's something very evident there with the joke she landed with the Gemini call,' Matt said.

'I think some of the public opinion of that particular interaction has been taken out of context,' he added.

Matt clarified that Abbie was only joking when she pretended not to know the difference between astrophysics and astrology.
Seb Guilhaus hit back at online haters on Tuesday after they criticised him for filming an X-rated video with his Married At First Sight co-star Hayley Vernon.

The OnlyFans performers, who both appeared on season seven of the Channel Nine matchmaking show, shocked fans when they teamed up for a saucy collaboration.

Now the former AFL player, 31, has lashed out on Instagram at 'indoctrinated' trolls who slammed him for shooting a porn scene with his former television colleague.

'In regards to the negative comments on this post, I totally understand it. We have been indoctrinated by society that there is "good" and there is "bad",' he said.

'I see it as an almost automatic impulse. It's like autopilot some of these comments and I get that. That is what we have been taught. That's our programming.'

Seb Guilhaus, 31, (left) hit back at online haters on Tuesday after they criticised him for filming an X-rated video with his Married At First Sight co-star Hayley Vernon, 35, (right)

He continued: 'Now I am not in any way saying, "Follow the path that I am taking at the moment and have taken." By no means, I'm not condoning anything.

'The only thing I'm condoning is you. Is living life for you. The choices that you feel compelled to chase, to follow. That's all that matters.'

Alongside his rant, Seb posted a bizarre message detailing punishments for people who 'negatively comment' on 'things they have not experienced first hand'.

The former AFL player lashed out on Instagram at 'indoctrinated' trolls who slammed him for shooting a porn scene with his former television colleague

Alongside his rant, Seb posted a bizarre message detailing punishments for people who 'negatively comment' on 'things they have not experienced first hand'

The 'penalties' involved tickling, writing lines on a black board, and being immersed in a 'fanatical religious sect speaking only in tongues'.

Seb's rant comes just a few weeks after he announced his racy collaboration with his former co-star, 35-year-old Hayley.

When asked by a fan on Instagram if he was still doing OnlyFans, he said he has 'an exciting filming coming up with Hayley Vernon on the Gold Coast on the 10th.'

'And then possibly with another high profile creator for a BBG (boy/boy/girl) scene to sort of reignite it. So I'm looking forward to that. '
Brian Austin Green and his dancer wife Sharna Burgess are currently visiting her native Australia ahead of her appearing as a judge on Dancing With The Stars.

And on Wednesday, the 90210 star, 49, revealed while he has come to love the country there is one Australian thing that he can't get behind - vegemite.

The lovebirds appeared on Sunrise and Sharna, 37, revealed that although their young son Zane loved the iconic Aussie spread she had been unable to convert Brian.

'The jury's still out on whether our eleven-month-old likes it. Zane doesn't speak yet so he could be saying "yuck" and we don't know it,' he told the hosts.

The pair also appeared on Seven's The Morning Show and Brian admitted he struggled with driving in Sydney, calling local roads 'confusing'.

Brian Austin Green and his dancer wife Sharna Burgess are currently visiting her native Australia ahead of her appearing as a judge on Dancing With The Stars. Both pictured

'The layout of Sydney road's was the biggest surprise for me. It was confusing and we got lost one night,' he told hosts Larry Emdur and Kylie Gillies.

The California native then said he felt the streets of Los Angeles were far easier to navigate.

'LA is on a grid so it's really easy to get around. Whereas here, it seems like they built buildings and then thought, "we should probably have a road that connects to this" and then just poured concrete,' he joked.

And on Wednesday, the 90210 star, 49, revealed while he has come to love the country there is one Australian thing that he can't get behind - vegemite

The couple are currently in Sydney along with his three children from his marriage to Hollywood siren, Megan Fox.

Sharna and Brian were first linked back in October 2020, and have been very open about how they manage their blended family.

Speaking on the Not So Hollywood podcast last March, the Dancing With The Stars professional said their dynamic is 'great'.

The lovebirds appeared on Sunrise and Sharna, 37, revealed that although their young son Zane loved the iconic Aussie spread she had been unable to convert Brian. Pictured with hosts Natalie Barr and Matt Shirvington

She said: 'Honestly, the relationship is great. The reason it's great is because the focus is the kids.

There's nothing else that needs to be considered other than making this a beautiful, healthy, whole environment for them.'

The mother added: 'People try to protect kids from divorce as much as they can so that they're not affected, but the truth is they're going to be affected. So you can only choose that there's a positive effect or a negative effect.'

Brian was previously married to Transformers star Megan Fox from 2010 until their divorce was finalised in 2021, and they maintain a co-parenting relationship of their three sons.
A former Real Housewives of Melbourne star who posts photos of herself behind the wheels of luxury cars has a date with court over a city parking ticket.

Venus Behbahani-Clark is scheduled to front Melbourne Magistrates' Court later this month after being fined by a Melbourne City Council parking inspector.

It is understood Ms Behbahani-Clark was parked in a clearway zone, which often sees cars towed away at considerable cost.

Former Real Housewives of Melbourne star Venus Behbahani-Clark will front court over a parking fine

But Ms Behbahani-Clark - who was on Real Housewives from 2016-2018 - told Daily Mail Australia she had no intention of fronting court on June 27.

'We're fixing all that up. It's just been left alone because I think I was overseas when the fine happened and Fines Victoria are fixing all of that,' she said on Wednesday.

The former reality star said the fine would be paid before the matter hit court.

'Absolutely ... It won't be happening that day,' she said.

Should the fine be paid, the matter will likely be struck out by the presiding magistrate, who may or may not impose further court charges.

Just last month it was revealed Ms Behbahani-Clark was in a civil court battle with her musician sister over who owned a luxurious house in one of Australia's wealthiest suburbs.

According to documents filed in the Supreme Court of Victoria, Behbahani-Clark is taking legal action claiming she was given the ritzy Toorak townhouse during the short time her sister Rebekah separated from her billionaire fiance Alex Waislitz.

Ms Behbahani-Clark claimed she moved into the home on Canberra Road in December 2019 with her partner James Clark and their children.

Mr Waislitz's company, Thorney Equities, then launched a counterclaim seeking to evict the family from the house.

Rebekah said she was very distressed when her sister 'who was not financially secure' showed her a document in 2019 and said 'she needed to sign it'.

Rebekah Behbahani (left) is pictured with her billionaire fiance, Alex Waislitz (right)

Thorney Equities' case is based on the situation in which she signed the document, called a 'deed of gift', giving the home to her sister.

Rebekah said 'by reason of her distressed state' she didn't understand what the document meant, the Herald Sun reported.

She further claimed Venus was 'in a highly  angry state' when she took her sister's hand and had her sign the document using a thumb print with ink on it.

Ms Behbahani-Clark, in the original claim, wants the court to declare she is the home's owner and that the title be transferred to her.

Her sister and Mr Waislitz got back together in late 2019 just weeks after their split and have a daughter together.

Last month, Behbahani-Clark announced the birth of her fourth child, a girl called Cherry Blossom.

Venus Behbahani-Clark as she appeared on the reality television show

Former Real Housewives of Melbourne star Venus Behbahani-Clark, 38, announced the birth of her fourth child, a baby girl named Cherry Blossom (pictured)

In an emotional Instagram post, she shared the trials and triumphs of her pregnancy journey, highlighting the difficulties that she and her newborn have had to face.

'We've had a very tough journey getting to this point and as a result, so has my baby girl,' Venus wrote.

'I have endured a lot of stress and suffering despite all this, the universe gave fate of life to our Cherry Blossom.'

The baby was born via an emergency cesarean, and Behbahani-Clark extended her heartfelt gratitude to Dr Tom Cade and his team, as well as the staff at Epworth Babies.

She revealed her new baby is facing some health challenges but is starting to show positive signs.

'She is bruised and perhaps a little battered, but that will improve,' she assured her followers, and also expressed appreciation for the supportive messages and prayers they had received.

The former TV star commended her elder daughters, Giselle and Sophia, for their help and patience at home with their little brother, adding that she has been overwhelmed and emotionally exhausted since the birth.

She previously welcomed a baby boy with her partner in May 2020, and they are also parents to daughters, Giselle, 13, and Sophia, nine.
Kylie Minogue has dropped her biggest hint yet she will soon embark on a worldwide tour of her new album, Tension.

The star, who chose not to tour her last album Disco, has kept fans guessing as to when she will next hit the road.

But it might not be far off with Australian retailer Ticketek dropping a waitlist on her next tour, signalling insider knowledge.

Fans can sign-up to be notified about tickets when the Can't Get You Out Of My Head hitmaker makes the announcement.

Minogue last toured Australia in 2019, as part of her Golden Tour. However, she has made a number of guest appearances, including at Sydney's WorldPride.

Kylie Minogue, 55, has dropped the biggest hint yet she's about to announce a tour after chart-topping success of new hit Padam Padam. Pictured:

Kylie is currently on a huge career resurgence with the smash hit Padam Padam, which has been labelled 'song of the summer' by fans.

The addictive dance track has become a viral sensation on TikTok and Twitter, racking up millions of views through hilarious memes.

It's also shaping up to be a massive hit on the music charts, becoming her highest-charting single in Australia in over a decade after debuting at No. 39 in its first week.

The song is racing up the UK charts too, hitting No. 1 on the UK Big Top 40 chart, which measures radio airplay, iTunes sales and Apple Music streaming.

It is currently sitting at number 12 on Apple's Top 25 for London.

The tour might not be far off with Australian retailer Ticketek dropping a waitlist on her next tour, signalling insider knowledge. Pictured

Kylie is currently in the middle of the comeback of the century thanks to the runaway success of her new single Padam Padam

Writing about Padam Padam's unexpected success, George Griffiths at the Official Charts said: 'It's a confident, left-of-centre turn, and people have been responding to it because of how confident it sounds, and how much it feels like a Kylie single.

'No-one else could have probably pulled this song off,' he added.

Kylie addressed her chart comeback on social media recently, thanking fans for their support.

'It has been an incredible week topped off by being my birthday today and I cant thank you enough. My heart is bursting with joy so thank you so so much,' she gushed.

Padam Padam is the lead single from the star's upcoming 17th studio album, Tension

The addictive dance track has become a viral sensation on TikTok and Twitter, racking up millions of views through hilarious memes

'What an incredible, another wild turn in my life and my career. Thank you so much for all of your love and support, everyone who has got onto Padam Padam and made this possible for me. I love you, thank you so so much.'

The viral track is even predicted to make a dent on the Hot 100.

While the US market has been notoriously tough for the Australian star to crack over the years, her recent Padam Padam performance on American Idol received rave reviews from viewers.

Outside of music, Kylie has been raking in millions with her branded alcohol line, Kylie Wines.

While the US market has been notoriously tough for the Australian star to crack over the years, Kylie's Padam Padam performance on American Idol received rave reviews from viewers

Since its launch in 2020, Kylie Wines has sold a staggering nine million bottles, making it one of the biggest celebrity booze brands in the world.

The brand's Prosecco Rose is the number-one-selling branded prosecco rose in the UK after less than a year on the market.

According to Now to Love, Kylie Wines is believed to have earned the songstress over $13million so far.

'I'm not stomping the grapes. I just think it's about having the team and right understanding  it's about tasting for me,' she previously told the Daily Telegraph.

'I'm in it for the long haul. I'm invested in it,' she added.

Since its launch in 2020, Kylie Wines has sold a staggering nine million bottles, making it one of the biggest celebrity booze brands in the world

There seems to be an appetite for all things Kylie Minogue right now, with the Fever hitmaker recently relaunching her 2006 perfume, Darling, due to popular demand.

The relaunch was so successful that the fragrance has already spawned a flanker called Disco Darling, named after her 2020 album Disco.

Kylie will release her 17th studio album Tension on September 22.

Featuring eleven songs, Tension is set to be a record full of upbeat dance-pop tunes.
Adrien Brody brought girlfriend Georgina Chapman along as a plus one for the New York City premiere of his new movie Asteroid City.

The 50-year-old actor and 47-year-old fashion designer, who have been dating since January 2020, looked great as they kept close on the red carpet.

The Succession star looked dapper in a beige suit that he teamed with a button-up white shirt.

Georgina, who is the ex-wife of Harvey Weinstein, dazzled in a sheer black dress covered with delicate white beads.

Brody plays the role of Schubert Green in the Wes Anderson film, which comes out June 23.

Adrien Brody brought girlfriend Georgina Chapman along as a plus one for the New York City premiere of his new movie Asteroid City

Sweet: The 50-year-old actor and 47-year-old fashion designer, who have been dating since January 2020, looked great as they kept close on the red carpet

Adrien, who was born in Woodhaven, New York, teamed his suit with a pair of black leather boots.

He looked typically handsome with a shadow of a beard and his shiny dark hair brushed back.

For her part, Georgina smoldered in her plunging look, which bared her chest and complemented her statuesque figure.

Her golden blonde hair was styled in a silky smooth blowout and arranged in an off-center part.

The mother-of-two, who finalized her divorce from the disgraced Hollywood producer in 2021, sizzled in a smokey eye.

Her blue eyes were accentuated with layers of onyx black eyeliner and curled lashes.

Asteroid City is set in the 1950s in a fictional, eerie American desert town.

At a Junior Stargazer/Space Cadet convention, which is designed to unite students and parents in scholarly competition, things go haywire when a world event takes place.

Stunning: The lovebirds shared a moment as the locked eyes and held each other's arms while talking

Looking great: He looked typically handsome with a shadow of a beard and his shiny dark hair brushed back

The story centers on a widower, played by Jason Schwartzman, who takes his four children to see their grandfather, played by Tom Hanks.

Also in the movie is Tom's wife Rita, Tilda Swinton, Matt Dillon, Ed Norton, Adrien Brody and Liev Schreiber.

Uma Thurman and Ethan Hawke's daughter Maya Hawke also has a role in the offbeat movie.

The feature received rave reviews after its premiere at the 76th Cannes Film Festival last month.

The Oscar-winning actor and the British actress were set up by Danish model Helena Christensen in April 2019, the Sun reported.

The two, who had initially met through Weinstein, were introduced 'properly' at a swimwear launch in Puerto Rico where they 'bonded over cocktails,' according to an insider.

The source said: 'Helena had invited them both to her swimwear launch in Puerto Rico, and they bonded over cocktails against a backdrop of various beautiful beaches.

'Obviously it's still quite a new thing, but Adrien is smitten and Georgina is the happiest she's been in ages.

Group shot: Adrien posed with costars Scarlett Johansson, Jeffrey Wright, and Margot Robbie

'She has had a torrid past couple of years, and finally feels ready to move on with her life. Her kids and family are all aware, and everyone whole-heartedly approves.'

The designer divorced Weinstein after ten years of marriage in 2017, when more than 90 women made accusations of sexual assault against him.

Their divorce settlement is believed to have been between $15 million and $20million.

Georgina, who shares daughter India and son Dashiell with Weinstein, previously told Vogue that she has 'moments of rage' about her estranged husband's behavior.
Cobie Smulders oozed confidence as she walked the red carpet while attending Marvel Studios' Secret Invasion launch event at El Capitan Theatre in Los Angeles on Tuesday.

The Jack Reacher: Never Go Back star looked lovely in a $4990 Oscar de la Renta floral lace strapless dress with open-toed heels.

She was joined by her husband, Saturday Night Live alum Taran Killam, who looked handsome in a blue suit coat with a well-groomed beard and short spiked hair.

Secret Invasion continues the storyline introduced in the 2019 film Captain Marvel, in which special agents for the fictional United States government agency S.H.I.E.L.D. protect the world from extraterrestrial threats.

Bombshell: Cobie Smulders oozed confidence as she walked the red carpet while attending Marvel Studios' Secret Invasion launch event at El Capitan Theatre in Los Angeles on Tuesday

Natural beauty: The Jack Reacher: Never Go Back star looked lovely in a $4990 Oscar de la Renta floral lace strapless dress with open-toed heels. Smulders showed off her natural complexion with light makeup, opting for eyeliner, blush, and pink lips

In the new Marvel Studios blockbuster, Cobie plays the role of Commander Maria Hill, a highly trained weapons expert, and hand-to-hand combat fighter who tries to save Earth from an invasion of shapeshifting aliens known as Skrulls.

Commander Hill tries to maintain order by calling on Samuel L. Jackson's character Nick Fury as the threat becomes imminent.

The Skrulls are becoming increasingly frustrated with the lack of progress in finding a new home for their displaced population.

While speaking with Vanity Fair in March, Jackson described the Skrulls as innocent victims of a galactic war who needed help.

Jackson explained that his character Fury was 'trying to find them a place to live.' Adding, 'He promised them they were going to find them (The Skrulls) a planet or somewhere they could be. And that's not going so well.'

Fury turns to a Skrull named Talos (Ben Mendelsohn), who worked alongside humans to protect Earth in the 2019 film Captain Marvel and impersonated Fury at his request in Spider-Man: Far From Home, also released in 2019.

When Fury returns to Earth, he loses whatever powers he had. During a literal game of Chess between Commander Hill and Fury, she warns him of the grave dangers they face.

'You're not ready for this Fury. There's a very real threat out there,' she says.

Adding, 'You always told me there was no shame in walking away when the steps are uncertain. So, check your footing; otherwise, someone's going to get hurt.'

Star couple: Cobie was joined by her husband, Saturday Night Live alum Taran Killam, who looked handsome in a blue suit coat with a well-groomed beard and short spiked hair

The story continues: Secret Invasion will consist of six episodes available for streaming on Disney+ June 21st. The series serves as a continuation of the storyline introduced in the 2019 film Captain Marvel

Together again: Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury (L) and Cobie Smulders as Maria Hill (R) previously appeared together in Spider-Man - pictured in Spider-Man: Far from Home (2019)

Skrulls: Fury is on a mission to put an end to the Skrulls, a shapeshifting alien species that has managed to infiltrate the upper echelons of power

Iron Man character: The trailer begins with Fury speaking to Don Cheadle's War Machine character, Colonel James 'Rhodey' Rhodes, saying, 'An invasion is here, Rhodey, and we can't even tell who the invaders are'

The cast boasts an impressive roster of A-listers, including, Academy-Award winner Olivia Colman, Don Cheadle, Emilia Clarke, Martin Freeman, and Christopher McDonald.

The action-packed trailer begins with Fury speaking to Don Cheadle's War Machine character, Colonel James 'Rhodey' Rhodes, saying, 'An invasion is here, Rhodey, and we can't even tell who the invaders are.'

The scene then depicts multiple shapeshifters who possess other-worldly powers to change their appearance into anyone nearby.

Academy Award-winning actress Olivia Colman's MI6 agent character Sonya Falsworth - who aims to thwart the Skrull invasion - is seen wearing a red robe warning 'This is a ticking time-bomb,' before Talos screams in a fit of rage.

Given her impressive acting credentials, it is evident that she will play a crucial role in the series.

Formidable co-stars: Academy Award-winning actress Olivia Colman's character, Sonya Falsworth, is seen wearing a red robe as she warns, 'This is a ticking time-bomb'

Working against his own kind: Ben Mendelsohn's Talos works alongside agent Fury. Talos also appeared in the 2019 films Captain Marvel and Spider-Man: Far From Home

The Skrull general's daughter: Game Of Thrones star Emilia Clarke plays G'iah, the daughter of Talos

Broken promises: The Skrulls are innocent victims of a galactic war who needed help. Jackson's character has failed after promising to find their species a 'place to live'

Game Of Thrones star Emilia Clarke plays G'iah, the daughter of the Skrull general Talos, who also appeared in Captain Marvel.

Jackson's character Fury is seen without his usual eyepatch, exposing three large scars above and below a damaged blue cornea.

The series - which will consist of six episodes - will be available for streaming on Disney+ starting June 21st.

Kyle Bradstreet, the writer and producer of the critically acclaimed series Mr. Robot, is leading the project.
Aussie OnlyFans star Mikaela Testa has revealed that Kanye West was on the prowl for an Australian girlfriend last year before meeting and reportedly 'marrying' Melbourne-born designer Bianca Censori.

The 23-year-old model claimed that the American rapper, 46, slid into her DMs in August last year, and that he also messaged another Australian friend of hers.

Speaking on the White Fox After Hours podcast last Tuesday, the model said she spoke with the Stronger hitmaker on WhatsApp for a short time.

When hosts Cody Mathews and Scarlett Montgomery asked Mikaela who the most famous person in her DMs was, the TikTok star initially hesitated to answer.

'In terms of status or followers? What do you mean?' she said, stalling her answer.

Aussie OnlyFans star Mikaela Testa (pictured) claims that Kanye West was on the prowl for an Australian girlfriend last year before 'marrying' Melbourne-born designer Bianca Censori

The 23-year-old model said that the American rapper (pictured) slid into her DMs in August last year, and that he also messaged another Australian friend of hers

The hosts prompted Mikaela once more and she finally confessed: 'I don't want to say this. Kanye West. Kanye West has DM'd me. He DM'd me saying, "Hi."'

Clearly nervous about exposing his name, Mikaela had a bout of nervous laughter as she revealed that he'd messaged in August of last year.

As the hosts joked about 'how creative' the Grammy Award winning artist's first message was, Mikaela said she wasn't the only Aussie to get a message from the rapper.

'He's married now, so I feel comfortable saying his name. I got his number. WhatsApp'd him. That's as far as it got,' she said.

'And then he ended up dating an Australian woman and he also messaged another acquaintance of mine that was an Australian girl.'

She added: 'Maybe he was messaging Australian girls at the time. He wants an Australian girl!'

Speaking on the White Fox After Hours podcast last Tuesday, the X-rated model said she spoke with the Stronger hitmaker on WhatsApp for a short time

Kanye was first spotted out with Bianca, 28, the head architect designer of his Yeezy brand, in January.

The pair reportedly tied the knot that same month in an unorthodox union, with TMZ reporting the couple had obtained a marriage certificate.

With her natural dark hair grown long, Bianca is a dead ringer for Kanye's ex-wife Kim Kardashian, but at the moment she is sporting a short blonde do.

Bianca has been employed by West's Yeezy brand since joining the company in November 2020.

She is listed as Head of Architecture and secured the position after reportedly obtaining a Master's in Building Design at Melbourne University in Australia.

According to friends of the young beauty, Bianca is a stylish and smart 'social butterfly' who was still a student when Kayne offered her a job.

One friend named Kate told Nova FM's Ben, Liam and Belle: 'Ye slid into her DMs, found her on Instagram, and said, "Come and work for me," and she dropped out.'

She added: 'I'm not actually sure if she's an architect.'
Love Island Australia star Anna McEvoy has just purchased a two-bedroom apartment in Sydney with her fiance Michael Staples.

And on Tuesday, the blonde beauty, 30, had some choice words for an Instagram follower who asked her: 'Why a unit and not a house? Not very family friendly...'

'We found a unit that we love and is everything we need. Thanks for your concern though,' was her cheeky response.

Anna also posted some loved-up photos of her and Michael popping open a bottle of champagne to celebrate buying their dream property.

The stunner could not wipe the smile off her face as she posed up a storm with her hunky beau to commemorate the momentous occasion.

Love Island Australia star Anna McEvoy has just purchased a two-bedroom apartment in Sydney with her fiance Michael Staples

'It has two bedrooms and one bathroom. Little bit of a downsize from where we are now but we LOVE it and it's all ours!' she excitedly told her fans.

She also posted some snaps of the unit's stylish dining room to showcase its elegant design and the scenic view they will have from its French windows.

Earlier this year, Anna opened up about her dream destination wedding plans on her podcast Where's Your Head At?, which she co-hosts with Matt Zukowski.

And on Tuesday, the blonde beauty, 30, had some choice words for an Instagram follower who asked her: 'Why a unit and not a house? Not very family friendly...'

Anna revealed she'd paid the deposit for the venue, located on the Greek island of Corfu, and was excited about planning the rest of her wedding, after getting engaged to Michael in October.

The couple decided to marry in Corfu after travelling through other Greek islands in the past.

Their wedding venue is part of a fully renovated nine-bedroom estate, where the bride and groom's family and close friends will be staying.

Anna also posted some loved-up photos of her and Michael popping open a bottle of champagne to celebrate buying their dream property

'We put a deposit down on a wedding venue in Corfu, but Michael and I have both never been to Corfu,' she said.

The couple acknowledged a lot of people wouldn't be able to attend their wedding due to the distance so an intimate engagement party for family and friends was held in April.

The podcaster rose to fame on season two of Love Island Australia in 2019 and won the show with Josh Packham, but they split in December 2020.

She went Instagram Official with Michael, a Group Business Manager at Channel Nine, in September 2021.

The stunner could not wipe the smile off her face as she posed up a storm with her hunky beau to commemorate the momentous occasion
Montana Cox made a very stylish appearance at the pre-wedding celebrations of chicken heiress Tamie Ingham and top chef Guillaume Brahimi in Paris on Tuesday.

The Australian model, 29, who is a longtime friend of the bride, turned heads as she arrived for the VIP event at Girafe Paris, a gourmet seafood restaurant that boasts views of the Eiffel Tower.

She chose to wear all-black for the star-studded occasion, sporting a halterneck pencil dress with matching opera gloves and a bow in her hair.

Her look was completed with some very pricey accessories, including a quilted Chanel handbag and a pair of black ballet flats by Prada.

The catwalk queen styled her hair in loose waves and painted her lips a classic red shade.

Montana Cox, 29, (pictured) made a very stylish appearance at the pre-wedding celebrations of chicken heiress Tamie Ingham and top chef Guillaume Brahimi in Paris on Tuesday

Montana arrived with Australian socialites Xanthe Wetzler and Bobby Oatley, who also chose to wear all-black outfits.

The trio appeared to share a joke as they stepped inside the venue ahead of a long night of festivities.

Other guests included Today show host Karl Stefanovic and his wife Jasmine, billionaire couple Lachlan and Sarah Murdoch, and Nova radio star Michael 'Wippa' Wipfli and his wife Lisa.

She chose to wear all-black for the star-studded occasion, sporting a halter-neck pencil dress with matching opera gloves and a bow in her hair

Montana arrived with Australian socialites Xanthe Wetzler (centre) and Bobby Oatley (right), who also chose to wear all-black outfits

Meanwhile, bride Tamie stunned in a plunging white jumpsuit accessorised with a matching Chanel handbag and Perspex heels that featured playful love-heart shapes at the toe.

Her future husband looked debonair in a camel suit and sky-blue button down top.

The event will no doubt be the first of several soirees for guests of Guillaume, 55, and Tamie, 38, who are set to tie the knot at Musee Rodin in Paris in the coming days.

It will be Brahimi's second marriage after he split with his ex-wife Sanchia in 2016.
Brian Austin Green is currently on the press trail Down Under with his Australian partner Sharna Burgess.

The 90210 actor, who shares three children with his ex-partner Megan Fox, has been discovering his girlfriend's native country.

Sharna is a professional dancer on the US version of Dancing With The Stars, and the couple appeared on Channel 7's Sunrise to discuss her recent stint on the show, her new TV gig, and their plans in Australia.

The happy pair, who share one-year-old son Zane, were greeted by fans as they arrived at Channel 7 studios in Sydney on Wednesday.

Brian and Sharna both posed for photos with fans and signed autographs before entering the building for their interview.

Brian Austin Green (pictured) is currently on the press trail Down Under with his Australian partner Sharna Burgess

The actor looked stylish but comfortable as he donned a pair of navy trousers, a white T-Shirt and a suede navy bomber jacket.

He paired the look with brown suede navy vans and accessorised with an expensive-looking silver watch.

Sharna, who has returned home to appear as a judge on the Australian Dancing With The Stars, appeared ecstatic to be greeted by fans in her native country.

Sharna, who has returned home to appear as a judge on the Australian Dancing With The Stars, appeared ecstatic to be greeted by fans in her native country

The actor looked stylish but comfortable as he donned a pair of navy trousers, a white T-Shirt and suede navy bomber jacket

With a wide smile on her face, she looked professional but elegant in an over-sized satin brown suit.

Her signature blonde long-bob was styled straight as she opted for a glamorous makeup look with dewy skin and false eyelashes.

For accessories, the mother-of-one wore two simple gold necklaces, several gold rings and a stack of bangles.

Appearing on Sunrise, Brian said he was surprised to see fans waiting for him outside the studio, but that he's always happy to meet them.

Appearing on Sunrise, Brian said he was surprised to see fans waiting for him outside the studio, but that he's always happy to meet them

'Surprisingly there were a couple of guys asking for photos in the parking garage here,' he said.

Sharna added: 'Where we have been he definitely gets recognised, people are like "Omg that's Brian Austin Green".

'At Luna Park, the zoo, people are just stoked that he's here because he's never been here before.'

The happy couple met after they were set up by a mutual friend, and later went official with their relationship in January 2021.

Brian has bumped into many fans while at touristy spots such as Luna Park and The Australian Zoo

Later that year, they competed together on Dancing With The Stars, and they were eliminated on the fourth week.

Brian said he had been approached to do the show a number of times, and it was always 'a hard no' until he fell in love with Sharna and could do it with her.

'We had a really good understanding of why we were doing the show together,' he said.

'It was the fact that we were together, I wanted to get to know her better and understand her passion.'
Uma Thurman looked every inch the proud mother as she joined all three of her children in a rare joint appearance at the Asteroid City premiere on Tuesday.

The actress, 53, was supporting eldest daughter Maya Hawke, 24, who has a starring role in the new Wes Anderson film, and looked in good spirits as she posed for snaps with her family at the afterparty, held at Alice Tully Hall in New York City.

By her side was son Levon, 21, who she also shares with ex-husband Ethan Hawke, and her youngest child Luna, 10, who she shares with ex-fiance, French financier Arpad Busson.

Uma looked effortlessly stylish for the outing in a cream ensemble as she cosied up to her brood at the bash.

Woman of the hour Maya changed out of the glittering black gown and matching headwear she had worn on the red carpet and into a slogan T-shirt and tulle skirt.

Fantastic four: Uma Thurman looked every inch the proud mother as she joined Luna, 10, and son Levon, 21, to support Maya Hawke, 24, at the Asteroid City premiere in NYC on Tuesday

Fellow actor Levon looked dapper as he layered a green suede jacket over a black T-shirt and pinstripe trousers.

Rounding off the group was Luna, who looked lovely in a white bardot sleeve dress teamed with black boots.

Uma was granted primary physical custody of Luna in 2017 following the end of her on/off seven-year romance with billionaire ex-fiance Arpad.

The pair dated for seven years and were briefly engaged until their March 2014 split, two years after the birth of their daughter, whose full name is Altalune Florence.

It remains to be seen if Luna will follow in the footsteps of her half-siblings, who have both gone on to pursue acting careers.

It's no wonder the pair have pursued Hollywood given their A-list parents.

Uma and Ethan married in 1998 with daughter Maya born in the same year, while they welcomed Levon in 2002.

The former couple separated in 2003 and their divorce was finalised two years later.

Terrific trio: The actress, 53, was supporting Maya, who has a starring role in the new Wes Anderson film, and looked in good spirits at the afterparty, held at Alice Tully Hall

Red carpet glamour: Woman of the hour Maya changed out of the glittering black gown and matching headwear she had worn on the red carpet and into a slogan T-shirt and tulle skirt

Former flame: Uma was granted primary physical custody of Luna in 2017 following the end of her on/off seven-year romance with billionaire ex-fiance Arpad Busson (pictured in 2013)

Family: Uma and Ethan married in 1998 with Maya born in the same year, while they welcomed Levon in 2002 a year before they separated (Levon, Ethan and Maya pictured in 2013)

Levon starred in short thriller Blackout in 2018 and recently worked on The Crowded Room, an Apple TV+ series starring Tom Holland which is based partly on the true story of Billy Milligan, a.k.a. The Campus Rapist.

Meanwhile Maya made her screen debut as Jo March in the 2017 BBC adaptation of Little Women and gained recognition for starring as Robin Buckley in Netflix series Stranger Things.

Despite being guided by two Hollywood stars as parents, Maya previously admitted they were 'cautious' of her acting dreams and wanted to make sure she had the 'backbone' to pursue the career herself.

Maya told the Guardian: 'They wanted to ensure I had a strong enough backbone, my own passion for it and work ethic. They didn't want to cart me along every red carpet or have me do bit-parts in their movies.'

The screen star, who also played a role in Quentin Tarantino's Once Upon A Time In Hollywood, said that Ethan and Uma had reservations about her choices.

She said: 'They were wary of the public life side of acting and the difficulties of that. They also tried to protect me from falling into acting.

However once they became certain of her strong appetite for acting they gave her their approval and full support.

Maya said: 'Once I was old enough, and it was clear they were my choices, they were very supportive.'

Gorgeous: Maya posed up a storm alongside co-star Scarlett Johansson, who wore a polka dot and yellow floral mini dress for the after party

Supportive: Maya and Levon's dad Ethan also attended the bash and posed for pictures with Bob Balaban

Loving life: Bryan Cranston and Jason Schwartzman posed for snaps at the party

Chatting away: Rita Wilson and Tom Hanks looked animated as they chatted with pals

Here he is: Director Wes Anderson seemed in good spirits as he spoke with F. Murray Abraham

Chirpy: Dylan Mulvaney and Darren Criss beamed broadly as they posed for snaps

One to watch: Asteroid City is set in the 1950s at a Junior Stargazer/Space Cadet convention but things go haywire when a world event takes place

Her latest role is playing June Douglas in Asteroid City, which also stars Scarlett Johansson, Jason Schwartzman, and Tom Hanks.

The film is set in the 1950s at a Junior Stargazer/Space Cadet convention, which is designed to unite students and parents in scholarly competition, but things go haywire when a world event takes place.

Asteroid City premiered at the 76th Cannes Film Festival on May 23 and is scheduled for a limited release in New York City and Los Angeles on June 16, before a wider release on June 23.

It will be released in the UK on June 19.
Eminem's adopted daughter Alaina Marie Scott has married her partner Matt Moeller in Michigan, 18 months after announcing their engagement.

The bride, 30, opted for a stunning mermaid gown with a bejeweled headband and long, trailing veil, as she shared a gallery of snaps from her big day on Instagram on Monday.

Joining Alaina for her big day was her sister Hailie Jade, who acted as one of the bridesmaids for the romantic occasion.

Captioning her post, Alaina wrote: 'June 9, 2023 simply one of the best days of my life, 'in this lifetime and in the next, my soul will always find yours.'

It was not clear if the Grammy-winning rapper was in attendance as he did not appear in any of the social media photos.

Fans later questioned if Eminem had skipped the ceremony, with Twitter user @UmarMaishanu02 asking: 'so eminem missed alaina's wedding?'

Alaina announced her engagement to her boyfriend Matt in December 2021, posting a snap of the sweet proposal on the rooftop at Detroit's Monarch Club.

They're wed! Eminem's daughter Alaina Marie Scott has married her partner Matt Moeller in Michigan, 18 months after announcing their engagement

Alaina is the biological daughter of Eminem's former sister-in-law Dawn - ex-wife Kim's twin - but was adopted by the rapper in 2002 after she succumbed to addiction.

After running away from home when they were teenagers, Dawn and Kim moved in with Eminem and his mother when he was 15, and his relationship with Kim began soon after in 1989.

The couple would go on to marry for the first time in 1999 before divorcing in 2001, but they would disastrously remarry in 2006 - for just four months.

Dawn later died of a heroin overdose at Detroit's Motor City Trailer Park in January 2016, aged 40.

Four months before her death, Dawn revealed her struggle to beat her drug addiction, and told Radar that Eminem and Kim were giving her no help at all.

She said: 'I have a millionaire brother-in-law and a sister with money up the a*s.'

Dawn had been homeless since 2014, sleeping on couches and even spending nights on the street.

She added: 'One night I called my sister and told her I had nowhere to go. She said, 'That's not my problem. Don't bother me,' and hung up.'

Mr and Mrs! The couple announced her engagement in December 2021 , posting a snap of the sweet proposal on the rooftop at Detroit's Monarch Club

Family: Alaina is the biological daughter of Eminem's former sister-in-law Dawn - ex-wife Kim's twin - but was adopted by the rapper in 2002 after she succumbed to addiction

Eminem - real name Marshall Mathers III - spoke about his relationship with Alaina in 2004, two-years after adopting her.

'My niece has been part of my life ever since she was born,' he said. 'Me and Kim pretty much had her, she'd live with us wherever we was at.'

The rapper is also a parent to biological daughter Hailie Jade, 25, with his ex-wife, and she is understood to have a close relationship with her adopted sister.

The engagement comes just five months after Kim was rushed to the hospital following a suicide attempt the day after her own mother Kathleen Sluck's funeral.

It was the troubled 46-year-old's second suicide attempt following another attempt in October 2015.

Eminem famously divorced his Lincoln High School sweetheart twice, in 2001 and 2006, after less than three years of marriage.
Jonnie Irwin has revealed that he sometimes leaves his family home to spend time in a hospice amid his cancer battle.

The A Place In The Sun presenter, 49, is bravely battling terminal cancer after he was diagnosed with lung cancer in 2020. It has since spread to his brain.

He admitted that the pain can get so bad that he seeks solace at a hospice, unwilling to let his family see him suffer.

Jonnie shares his three sons Rex, three, and twins Rafa and Corma, two, with his wife Jessica Holmes and also revealed they have not told their children about his diagnosis.

Speaking to Hello! magazine, he explained: 'I remove myself on a number of occasions because I'm not good to be around when I'm in pain.

Sad: Jonnie Irwin has revealed that he sometimes leaves his family home to spend time in a hospice amid his cancer battle

Awful news: The A Place In The Sun presenter, 49, is bravely battling terminal cancer after he was diagnosed with lung cancer in 2020 . It has since spread to his brain

'I'm like a bear with a sore head and I don't want them to be around that.'

Discussing his death, the dad-of-three added: 'It can happen at any time. Im here to stop it for as long as possible.'

The presenter also discussed his decision to keep the cancer battle a secret from his children.

'I keep being asked, 'Are you going to tell them?' but tell them what? It would be horrible news that they'd have to get their heads around,' he said.

'And it would confuse the hell out of Rex  he's got a shocking enough day coming. Let's bury our heads in the sand for as long as possible.'

Jonnie revealed he received irreversible damage to his liver after travelling overseas for cancer treatment.

He said: ' It's blocked in a place they can't operate on, so there's no point fighting the cancer elsewhere if the liver's not working. It's a cruel blow'

Hi told how he recently went to Turkey for treatment but has now been left with liver damage following the procedure.

He said: 'It's blocked in a place they can't operate on, so there's no point fighting the cancer elsewhere if the liver's not working. It's a cruel blow.'I

The star told how he is keeping a positive attitude at home because he doesn't know 'how long I have left'.

He said: 'My attitude is that I'm living with cancer, not dying from it. I set little markers  things I want to be around for. I got into the habit of saying: 'Don't plan ahead because I might not be well enough.'

Jonnie said he is confident his boys will have a good upbringing and a 'softer one than if I was around'.

The Escape To The Country star has continued to work throughout his cancer battle as he doesn't have critical illness cover on his insurance.

Earlier this month, Jonnie issued a health update as he revealed doctors were monitoring changes in his medication to help manage his pain.

Horrible: Jonnie was given just six months to live when he was diagnosed with stage four lung cancer, which has spread to his brain, in August 2020 (pictured with co-host Jasmine Harman)

The presenter has been undergoing brain therapy, which he described last week as 'brutal'.

Jonnie said he was keeping his fingers crossed he will be out of hospital in time for Sunday, where he was due to make an appearance at A Place In The Sun Live at Kensington Olympia.

He said: 'In hospital this week monitoring a changeover in my pain management regime.

'Fingers crossed I'll be out in time to make an appearance on Sunday for this weekends @aplaceinthesunofficial LIVE event at @olympialondon in Kensington. Hope to see you there.'
Dawn French revived her Vicar Of Dibley role Geraldine Granger in order to pay her respects at a friend's 'living funeral'.

A living funeral, also called a pre-funeral, is a funeral held for a living person - typically one who does not have long to live - so that they can celebrate their life with family and loved ones.

Dawn's friend, CoppaFeel! founder Kris Hallenga, 37, is living with stage four breast cancer, and organised the ceremony so that she could be 'drunk on love and gratitude' for the people who surround her.

Sharing pictures from the day, Dawn revealed she had donned the cassock and dog collar worn in her BBC sitcom before taking to the lectern in church to deliver a eulogy.

Reflecting on the day, the 65-year-old actress said: 'It was my privilege & joy to Dibley it up at her FUNeral on Sat. She wanted to host the best possible party. She did. It was phenomenal.'

Moving eulogy: Dawn French revived her Vicar Of Dibley role Geraldine Granger in order to pay her respects at a friend's 'living funeral'

Mates: Dawn's friend, CoppaFeel! founder Kris Hallenga, 37, is living with stage four breast cancer , and organised the ceremony so that she could be 'drunk on love and gratitude'

She continued: 'So much love filling @trurocathedral. It was her own festival celebrating an extraordinary life. What a total babe.'

Kris was quick to praise her friend for the speech, saying the eulogy 'blew my heart into smithereens' as did the 'loving/ funny/ embarrassing speeches'.

The campaigner, from Cornwall, was first diagnosed in 2009 with incurable secondary breast cancer at the age of 23 and given a life expectancy of just two years.

Rather than succumbing to despair, Kris made a conscious decision to face her illness head-on, determined to seize every opportunity and live her life to the fullest.

Almost 15 years on, Kris and her twin sister Maren have taken their charity CoppaFeel! to huge heights including creating checking tools, projecting onto the Houses of Parliament, and showing the first nipple on a billboard.

Last month she announced her plans for a 'living funeral', explaining: 'I want to be present at the event where my people have a thing or two to say about me, where I have the opportunity to show how much they mean to me.'

Reflecting on the day's events, Kris shared on Instagram: 'I am still processing all the feelings, the wonder, the ridiculousness, the MAGNITUDE of Saturday (and my adrenaline hasnt calmed the f down yet) but suffice to say it was THE BEST DAY OF MY LIFE.

'If youre a little behind, in January I decided I wanted to organise my own living funeral, my FUNeral, and in doing so celebrate a life that I have truly loved, surrounded by people I loved. It was during a psylocibin (magic [mushroom emoji]) journey later in January that my very wild and wonderful ideas were concocted and in March I started to organise the event of my life.'

Kind words: Kris was quick to praise her friend for the speech, saying the eulogy 'blew my heart into smithereens' as did the 'loving/ funny/ embarrassing speeches'

Support: Reflecting on the day, the 65-year-old actress said: 'It was my privilege & joy to Dibley it up at her FUNeral on Sat'

Kris continued: 'Where? @trurocathedral. Dress code? YODO (take of that what you will)

'What? A community gospel choir @fcgccornwall, THE Vicar of Dibley, a eulogy that blew my heart into smithereens, loving/ funny/ embarrassing speeches, comfort cats (donated by @ikeauk ) @abandoman, @rae_morris, temporary tats of lady marms, food made by friends, old school TVs playing old family footage, the best MCing by my friend Georgette, a bar stocked by kind people, an ABBA Singalong, a 20 piece orchestra and scratch DJ aka @symphonica_mrswitch (imagine a rave in a cathedral), an aerial performer @swampcircus and a silent disco.

'Ive never felt love like it. Ive never felt joy like it. Ive never felt such kinship with mortality. Ive never felt so alive.

'Living funerals? 10/10 would recommend. Exploring your impermanence? A gateway to appreciation of life Crying and laughing at the same time? Do it. Its sexy.

'Talking about and writing down your wishes for your funeral? would not only recommend but very much need you to action asap (and my pals @legacyoflives are ready and waiting).

'I have so many thank yous to say but first I am SO GRATEFUL that Rebecca, the CEO of free funeral planning site @legacyoflives had my back and supported my vision.

'I never wanna come down from this high (although sleep would also be [ok emoji])'

For information about breast cancer and the guidance on being breast aware visit https://coppafeel.org/
Susanna Reid cheekily posed with two croissants as she appeared on Wednesday's Good Morning Britain.

The presenter, 52, was poking fun at Miriam Margolyes' decision to pose nude for British Vogue in a racy snap that was released on Tuesday.

In the iconic image the actress, 82, left little to the imagination with just iced buns preserving her modesty for the July issue.

Discussing the shoot on GMB Susanna held the two croissants over her chest and said: 'I've got a new top this morning...'

Her co-host Richard Madeley started laughing as she joked: 'I'm not sure I can strategically place these in the same way [as Miriam]. Miriam has done something similar, hasn't she?'

Fun: Susanna Reid cheekily posed with two croissants as she appeared on Wednesday's Good Morning Britain

Wild: The presenter, 52, was poking fun at Miriam Margolyes' decision to pose nude for British Vogue in a racy snap that was released on Tuesday

Their co host Richard Arnold then joked: 'It's very Calendar Girls isn't it!? You can pull it off!'

Susanna then quipped: 'I can pull it off! Who would have thought it!'

Susanna later described the look as her 'croissant bikini' as they continued to talk about Miriam's cover shoot.

Richard and Susanna praised Miriam for always being herself as they gushed over the star.

Miriam stunned as one of British Vogue's most unlikely cover stars, posing for the eye-popping naked shoot for the magazine's annual Pride issue.

The star posed in the jaw-dropping snap, with just a selection of iced buns to preserve her modesty.

And despite the confident images, Miriam admitted in the accompanying interview that she's struggled to accept her shape, saying: 'I like my face. I think my face is kind and warm and open and smiley.

'But I hate my body. I hate big t*ts [and I have] a drooping belly, little twisted legs. I'm not thrilled with that. But you just make the best of it. You have to. You do the best you can.'

Animated: Susanna later described the look as her 'croissant bikini' as they continued to talk about Miriam's cover shoot while she posed with yet more items

Recreating Miriam's look: Later Susanna then quipped: 'I can pull it off! Who would have thought it!'

She also revealed that in the midst of her other work commitments, she will be undergoing heart surgery to have a stent fitted.

Despite the operation, she insisted she's 'not terrified,' adding: 'When you're young, you never think about death. You just think about your next f**k basically. I think about death a lot.'

'Oh, every day, for sure. Every morning when I get up I think, 'Hmmm, another day,' which maybe I wasn't expecting.'

Miriam also reflected on the moment she came out as gay to her parents, admitting it 'hurt them,' and her mother made her swear on the Torah that she would never have sex with another woman again.

The July issue of British Vogue is available via digital download and on newsstands from Tuesday 20 June

The outspoken actress came out back in 1966, when homosexuality was still illegal, but despite this the star never felt any shame about being attracted to women.

She said: 'I never had any shame about being gay or anything really. I knew it wasn't criminal because it was me. I couldn't be criminal.'

As well as interviewing for the publication, Miriam joined a slew of LGBTQ+ stars including Ncuti Gatwa, Janelle Monae and Bella Ramsey posing for Vogue's July Issue, which focuses on Pride And Joy.

Alongside her fun cake-themed snap, Miriam also donned a striking blue wrap over a black dress, a pearl necklace and a black sheer headpiece for her cover image.

It came after Miriam revealed last month that she was rushed to A&E following a health scare over the weekend.

The comedian, who played Professor Sprout in the fantasy franchise, shared a Facebook photo of herself taken in her hospital bed as she informed fans about her condition.

She wrote: 'Thanks to my precious friends who thought of me on Tavi Day. I did survive and I am still in The Royal Brompton Hospital certainly till Sunday.

'I am growing energy but it's still not quite me. I am putting this so you know how grateful I am for lovely messages.

'Slowly I'll get back to The Chase and then Italy, Oz filming in WA and return for 22 city books tour on Sept 7. Loving hugs. MM'.

Miriam had been hoping to be sent home on Sunday but sadly took to Facebook again with another health update.

Wow! Miriam stunned as one of British Vogue's most unlikely cover stars, posing for the eye-popping naked shoot for the magazine's annual Pride issue

Worrying: It comes after Miriam revealed last month that she was rushed to A&E following a health scare over the weekend

She wrote: 'I spoke too soon. Can't come home yet. I have a chest infection. Probably tomorrow but at least I'm resting. Love to all. Thank you for your lovely messages.'

Along with her role in Harry Potter, Miriam is also known for starring in The Age of Innocence and the TV series Call The Midwife and Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries.

She is married to Australian historian Heather Sutherland, who keeps out of the public eye.

The July issue of British Vogue is available via digital download and on newsstands from Tuesday 20 June.
Miriam Margolyes appears on the cover of Vogue's Pride issue - in which she details her pain over losing 34 friends to HIV.

She told Vogue: 'I counted [the number] one day, because there were so many people who had died and they were all beautiful, talented, funny, gifted boys.'

While living in LA, Miriam, 82, joined the Project Angel Food charity, which delivered meals to those too ill to leave the house.

She said: 'I didnt always know their names. I just knew their addresses. They were on their own all day. These tiny hunted faces looking out the window. It was awful.'

The author and actress is a lesbian who came out to her parents in 1966 - when being gay was still illegal - and while there was no law criminalising lesbians it was still a social taboo.

Honest: Miriam Margolyes has revealed she's lost 34 friends to HIV and details why she has never lived with her lesbian partner of 54 years

Miriam is in a civil partnership with her partner of 54 years, Heather Sutherland, 80, an Australian historian and a former professor at a university in Amsterdam.

The pair met in 1967 while working on a BBC radio drama.

Miriam has said the thought of her calling Heather her 'wife' makes her feel sick and said living apart has been good for them.

She said: 'We were able to lead our lives without diminishing them. I didnt want her to have to give up anything. And I didnt want to give up anything. I wanted my cake and I wanted to eat it too. And so far, its worked.'

Miriam entered into a civil partnership with Heather 'mostly for legal protection'.

She admitted shes never been one for Pride marches, admitting: 'I actually find lesbians a bit on the boring side, because theyre a bit heavy-handed about it all.'

The Call The Midwife star has just returned from Tuscany where she has been staying with Heather since December, in her farmhouse.

She has previously said she saw her partner - who she describes as 'private and reserved', eight times in the space of one year.

Family: While she has never felt any shame over being gay, Miriam does admit she regrets coming out to her parents, Joseph, a doctor, and Ruth, a property developer

Miriam admits she regrets coming out to her parents, Joseph, a doctor, and Ruth, a property developer, but says she 'never had any shame about being gay' - pictured in 2022

While she has never felt any shame over being gay, Miriam does admit she regrets coming out to her parents, Joseph, a doctor, and Ruth, a property developer.

Despite the law saying otherwise at the time, Miriam says she knew her sexuality wasn't criminal because 'it was me. I couldnt be criminal,'

However, she said her parents reaction was hurtful and her mother made her swear on the Torah that she would never have sex with another woman again.

She said coming out 'hurt them' and she 'doesn't want to hurt people.'

Months after, her mother had a severe stroke and she cared for her until she died, convinced that the news of her sexuality contributed to her mother's ill-health.

In her book, Miriam wrote: 'I always believed that my coming out in some way caused it.

'It was a horrendous time and I was very unhappy. I knew I couldn't change what I was; I should not have told them.'

Miriam's father passed away in 1995, aged 96. She has said she doesnt believe either ever accepted her sexuality, but it never stopped her loving them.

See the full feature in the July issue of British Vogue, available via digital download and on newsstands from Tuesday 20 June.
Conor McGregor told The Project's Sam Taunton that 'he'd be done' if he got his hands on him.

The UFC superstar appeared on the Channel 10 show via video call on Wednesday, where he was interviewed by comedian Sam.

After chatting about the Irish fighter's global career, Sam asked Conor to 'trash talk him'.

The presenter said: 'I love Conor McGregor the fighter, but also, Conor McGregor the performer.

'Your press conferences are legendary, the way you trash talk all your opponents, I was hoping you could maybe trash talk me? Maybe on my interviewing skills, just give me a taste?'

Conor McGregor (pictured) told The Project's Sam Taunton that 'he'd be done' if he got his hands on him

Despite his hardman appearance, the MMA fighter was reluctant to do it, saying: 'Brother you are alright, you are a nice friendly guy to me, I don't feel like ripping you to shreds.'

But, it didn't take him much convincing, as when Sam pleaded with him again, Conor showed on camera what he would do to him if he got his hands on his head.

'If I grabbed the front of your head like this and do that you'd be done, that's what I would do to you my man,' he said.

The UFC superstar appeared on the Channel 10 show via video call on Wednesday, where he was interviewed by comedian Sam (pictured)

After chatting about the Irish fighter's global career, Sam asked Conor to 'trash talk him'.

'But, you are a nice guy, I have had a nice conversation with you, I appreciate you having me on.'

The UFC superstar added that he has so much love for Australia, and will be visiting soon.

'I look forward to visiting Australia some time, I know I have a lot of support out there, a lot of Irish out there, a lot of great people in Australia,' he said.

'I have a lot of love for the Australians, big respect, true warrior people, good people, and a lot of love for you from my side of the world.'
He was recently pictured kicking back with his actor pal Tobey Maguire in Florence.

And Leonardo DiCaprio continued this Italian getaway this week, as he relaxed onboard a luxury superyacht in Nerano on Wednesday.

The Hollywood actor, 48, showed off his buff physique as he went shirtless in just a pair of blue swimming shorts while soaking up the rays.

Leonardo had just hopped on board following a dip in the sea, as a member of the crew waited attentively with a towel as he clambered back on deck.

The Inception star's wet hair was swept back and he was sporting a smattering of stubble as he showed off an off-duty look.

Holiday vibes: Leonardo DiCaprio continued this Italian getaway this week, as he relaxed onboard a luxury superyacht in Nerano on Wednesday

Looking good: The Hollywood actor, 48, showed off his buff physique as he went shirtless in just a pair of blue swimming shorts while soaking up the rays

Leo's been pictured on numerous outings while enjoying his Italian holiday in the past week. On Saturday he was seen having lunch in Naples on the Amalfi Coast with his dad and Peggy.

He was also pictured enjoying a late-night stroll around Florence with Tobey over the weekend.

The European holiday comes just days after Gigi and Leonardo enjoyed yet another evening out with his father and stepmother in London.

The supermodel and the actor were both seen arriving at the Chiltern Firehouse in London.

It marked their second night out in a row in the capital, after they went for dinner with Leo's parents at China Tang.

The pair's romance reportedly fizzled out in February but despite the apparent end to their brief relationship, the two were spotted together multiple times in May and have allegedly been hanging out again recently.

Leonardo has a very close relationship with his dad, who separated from the actor's mother shortly after he was born, and married Peggy Farrar two decades later, in 1995.

Luxury living: And Leonardo DiCaprio continued this Italian getaway this week, as he relaxed onboard a luxury superyacht in Nerano on Wednesday

Hotting up: Leonardo had just hopped on board following a dip in the sea, as a member of the crew waited attentively with a towel as he clambered back on deck

Salt-kissed: The Inception star's wet hair was swept back and he was sporting a smattering of stubble as he showed off an off-duty look

Jet setter! Leo's been pictured on numerous outings while enjoying his Italian holiday in the past week

Having struggled for money in the early stages of Leo's childhood, George found work as an installer of asbestos and fireproof roofing before setting out on his own with the launch of a waterbed business called Foggy Bottom.

George also made a name for himself as one of the leading figures in the underground comic scene as a writer, editor and distributor - before guiding son Leo in the early days of his on-screen career.

While Leonardo is an award-winning Hollywood actor, his father has had a brief foray into the movie world.

The elder DiCaprio recently had a small role in Paul Thomas Anderson's 1970s-set coming-of-age comedy Licorice Pizza.

He played a wig shop owner and waterbed salesman who convinced the film's protagonist (played by the late Philip Seymour Hoffman's Cooper) to start his own waterbed business.

Incoming! Leo stood at the edge before jumping into the sea

Here you go! He was helped by a member of the crew
She's taken a bold new step in her career starring in a raunchy comedy.

And Jennifer Lawrence continued her style showcase as she attended a photocall for her film No Hard Feelings in Madrid on Wednesday.

The actress, 32, put on a leggy display in a fun white frilled shirt dress with a chunky leather belt to highlight her slender waist as she posed up a storm at the event.

Jennifer showed off her chic sense of style by donning the fun white dress, which boasted a plunging front and a flirty frilled skirt.

The Hunger Games star's dress was teamed with a large black leather belt, and she accessorised with black kitten heels.

Glam! Jennifer Lawrence put on a leggy display in a white frilled shirt dress as she attended a photocall for her film No Hard Feelings in Madrid on Wednesday

Gorgeous! The actress teamed the dress with a chunky leather belt to highlight her slender waist as she posed up a storm at the event

Looking good! Jennifer showed off her chic sense of style by donning the fun white dress, which boasted a plunging front and a flirty frilled skirt

Styling her honey blonde tresses into loose waves, Jennifer showed off her chic fashion sense as she arrived for the photocall before posing with her co-stars Andrew Barth Feldman and director Gene Stupnitsky.

No Hard Feelings, which will be released in the UK in June 23, sees Oscar winner Jennifer play a cash-strapped woman trying to seduce a 19-year-old boy for pay.

Her character Maddie finds herself in such dire financial straits that she is on the brink of losing her late mother's house.

She throws herself on the mercy of a rich pair of New Age 'helicopter parents' played by Broadway stars Laura Benanti and Matthew Broderick.

Percy (Andrew Feldman), their geeky teenage son, is about to go to college and has been cosseted his whole life, never breaking the rules.

The couple offers Maddie a car in exchange for a heavyweight favor - she must seduce Percy before he leaves for Princeton.

No Hard Feelings then launches into her increasingly desperate attempts to get Percy into bed, including a nighttime skinny dipping excursion, taking him out to drink underage and even playfully trying to kidnap him.

It comes after Jennifer opened up about the ways becoming a mother has shifted her plans for the future as the star admitted she didn't expect to pursue a career in directing any time soon.

Lovely! The Hunger Games star's dress was teamed with a large black leather belt, and she accessorised with black kitten heels

Time for a photo! At the photocall Jennifer was joined by her co-star Andrew Barth Feldman

Pals: The pair also appeared alongside director Gene Stupnitsky (pictured far right), ahead of the film's release in the UK on June 23

Dramatic! No Hard Feelings, which will be released in the UK in June 23, sees Oscar winner Jennifer play a cash-strapped woman trying to seduce a 19-year-old boy for pay

Plotting: Her character Maddie (pictured) finds herself in such dire financial straits that she is on the brink of losing her late mother's house

Plot: She throws herself on the mercy of a rich pair of New Age 'helicopter parents' played by Broadway stars Laura Benanti and Matthew Broderick

Hilarious: The couple offers Maddie a car in exchange for a heavyweight favor - she must seduce Percy before he leaves for college

Naughty! No Hard Feelings then launches into her increasingly desperate attempts to get Percy into bed, including a nighttime skinny dipping excursion

Family: It comes after Jennifer opened up about the ways becoming a mother has shifted her plans for the futur

Parenting: The actress welcomed son Cy in 2022 with husband Cooke Maroney, 38, and she made it clear that focusing on her family was her top priority

The actress welcomed son Cy in 2022 with husband Cooke Maroney, 38, and she made it clear that focusing on her family was her top priority in a new interview.

Speaking during an interview on Good Morning America on Monday, the Hunger Games actress explained how her hopes to direct a feature film had changed in recent years.

'I used to think that [I would direct]. Now I'm just so tired and it just looks so hard,' she stated.

However, the actress is still working hard in front of the camera and behind the scenes after starring and producing her upcoming comedy.

Reflecting on her experience as a producer, she told GMA host George Stephanopoulos: 'It's good. It's busy but focused and streamlined. I don't take on anything that I can't personally read every draft of and give notes on.'

The actress admitted she hadn't even been planning to get back into acting as soon as she did after giving birth, but the quality of the comedy's script pushed her to make her Hollywood comeback.

'I just had a baby and I wasn't planning on working for a long time,' she began. 'But I read the script. It was the funniest thing I had ever read.'
MANZINI  The funeral of a man who reportedly died from committing suicide was stopped at the 11th hour after eight siblings at Kukhanyeni approached the High Court to stop his interment.

They contend that they did not wish for the deceased Mfundo Mgwaja Gamedze to be buried in their family graveyard because, among many other reasons, Eswatini custom was quite clear on how and where a person who is alleged to have committed suicide should be buried. They also contend that the place where the deceased Mfundo Mgwaja Gamedze was to be buried was initially allocated to their late grandfather, Abraham Shongwe, who passed away some time in 2000. The siblings claim that the grandfather had one child, being their biological father, the late George Mfanyana Shongwe.

The applicant in the matter is Elizabeth Matimba, who is represented by Attorney Sibonginkosi Jele and the interim order was granted by Judge Sabelo Masuku. The respondents in the matter are Christopher Gamedze, Eswaceni Royal Kraal, as well as the national commissioner and attorney general being the fourth respondent. In motivating the application to stop the funeral, Matimba nee Shongwe, who is the oldest biological daughter of the late George Mfanyana Shongwe, related that as siblings, life had taken them in different directions. She submitted that her sisters were married and stayed at their matrimonial homes, including herself. The applicant alleged that their younger brother, Ben, was the one who stayed at their parental home at Kukhanyeni and was the one who was in charge of the homestead.

The applicant further submitted that sometime in 1998, while their grandfather was still alive, a Mkhonta neighbour was buried at their homestead. She highlighted that her grandfather tried in vain to stop the burial of their neighbour but failed as he was old and frail at the time. I wish to submit that after the demise of my grandfather, 10 other people who are Shongwes were buried in the family graveyard and only three are our relatives, the applicant submitted.

Graveyard

She further alleged that the seven people were buried as per the directive of the second respondent. The applicant supposed that no consent was sought from herself and her siblings. She added that there were 15 Shongwe people who had been buried in the family graveyard. This, according to the applicant, meant that there were 26 graves at the family graveyard at the Shongwe parental home.Narrating the incident, the applicant recalled that on or about June 3, the first respondents son, Mfundo, passed on. She stated that the deceased was alleged to have ingested a poisonous substance. I wish to hasten add that the deceased is technically my neighbour, as there is a homestead separating my parental home with that of the deceased, she submitted.

The applicant elaborated that on Sunday June 4, the deceaseds uncles, Ray Dlamini and Nhlanhla Gamedze, came to her parental home and found her younger brother. She narrated that the two indicated that they had been sent by the first respondent and they were requesting that they bury the deceased at their paternal home.She submitted that her younger brother informed the pair that such could not be possible as the graveyard was reserved for family members. She highlighted that her brother advised the two that they should bury the deceased in any of the two designated burial sites in the area where residents of Kukhanyeni were buried. On Tuesday June 6, the applicant submitted that she was telephonically contacted by the chairman of the second respondent inner council, Johannes Bhembe, who informed her about the demise of Mfundo. She highlighted that Bhembe further informed her that the family of the deceased, in particular the first respondent, was requesting that the deceased be buried at the Shongwe homestead. She said she respectfully objected to such.

On the following day, in the evening, she recalled that upon his return from home, her brother discovered that a certain portion at the family graveyard within the homestead had been cleared. She submitted that she left her matrimonial home at Malindza on Thursday June 8, to Kukhanyeni, to see if what she had been informed by her younger brother was indeed true. She told the court that she discovered that indeed the family graveyard had been cleared.The applicant alleged that she thereafter contacted Mandla Ginindza, an overseer in the area, who is also a member of the second respondents inner council. I voiced out my grievance to what was happening at my parental home. Mr Ginindza advised that we adhere to the instruction of the chairman of the second respondent, Mr Bhembe, she submitted.

Relative

The applicant further supposed that she and her brother went to the Manzini Police Station, wherein she reported the matter. She alleged that the chairman of the second respondent was contacted and he stated that any discussions in the matter should take place after the funeral. She detailed that she then sought the services of their present attorney upon the advice of the officers of the third respondent, as they stated that they could only assist them if directed to do so by the High Court. I wish to submit that in this application, I humbly seek to interdict the deceased from being buried at the Shongwe family graveyard. The deceased is neither a Shongwe nor a relative to the Shongwes, she submitted.

The applicant added that the fact that seven people who were not Shongwes had been buried in the family graveyard was not a leeway for the first respondent to bury his beloved son at the Shongwe homestead. She stated that she and her siblings had agreed to challenge the burial of the seven people that were buried in their parental home without their consent. She further submitted that her family sympathised with the first respondent in having lost his son. No parent should bury his own son. I believe that the dead still deserve some dignity and are not mere pawns to be trifled with and be tokens in a fight of wills. The second respondent should not use the deceased to show its power and control in the area, the applicant averred.

She further reiterated the fact that there were two designated burial sites in the area, which were reserved for residents at Kukhanyeni. The applicant stated that the first respondent could bury his beloved son at any of the two cemeteries upon the directive of the second respondent. She pointed out that she was advised and believed that if she and her siblings continued to allow residents of the area to bury their loved ones in their parental home, they would be indirectly giving away the land which was allocated to their grandfather.

Meanwhile, she revealed that the family graveyard was approximately 50 to 60 metres from the main houses within the homestead. The burial of strangers in the family graveyard has created serious problems as strangers enter the premises to perform traditional rituals at the gravesite. Such cannot be allowed to continue, she asserted.She went on to express that what compounded things the most was the manner in which the deceased passed on. Our Swazi custom is quite clear on how and where a person who is alleged to have committed suicide is buried, she submitted. She further motivated her application by stating that the matter was urgent due to the fact that the gravesite at their parental home had already been cleared, adding that the death notice published on the local newspaper stated that the funeral would be on June 10.
Amanda Holden wore the perfect summer look when she headed to work at Heart FM radio studios in London's Leicester Square on Wednesday.

The presenter, 52, looked incredible in a green floral midi dress by Karen Millen, which had puff-sleeves and a frilled short hem.

The graphic lace trim floral woven mini dress is on sale from 139.00 down to 97.30 and Amanda teamed the number with nude strappy sandals.

She carried an Aspinal bag in her hand and completed her look with a pair of sunglasses.

Her fellow host, Ashley Roberts, 41, also looked incredible that day, wearing a blue waistcoat and matching trousers which is also from Karen Millen.

Lean in green: Amanda Holden, 52, looked incredible in a green puff-sleeved mini dress and heels as she arrived at Heart FM on Wednesday

All the details: Amanda teamed the number with nude strappy sandals and carried an Aspinal bag in hand

Amanda recently broke her silence on the reported feud with This Morning's Holly Willoughby.

On Thursday in a lengthy statement posted on her Instagram page, Amanda addressed reports that have claimed she and Holly, 42, have been pitted against each other for several jobs, and their rivalry has bubbled to the surface in the wake of Phillip Schofield's affair scandal on This Morning.

'Sadly strong and intelligent women have for far too long been pitted against one other when we should all be celebrated in our own right,' Amanda wrote.

'Women are still expected to say nothing, suffer silently and just get on with it. And we do... mostly.

On Wednesday, reports emerged that the two were locked in a feud - but Amanda has said this is simply not true.

Amanda was in fact embroiled in a feud with Holly's co-star Phillip which began back in 2018, when she claimed he sabotaged her chance to fill for Holly as host of This Morning.

The Britain's Got Talent star raised eyebrows this week when she appeared to mock Holly's return to This Morning in an Instagram video mimicking her opening phrase: 'Are you OK?'

Returning to the show for the first time since Schofield's sacking following his affair with a younger male colleague, Holly, 42, asked viewers: 'Right, deep breath. Firstly, are you OK? I hope so.'

Happy as Larry: Amanda wore a big smile on her face as she headed into work

On her way: She looked picture perfect as she headed into her car

Looking good: She had been styled to perfection for her outing into work

No blue days! Her fellow host, Ashley Roberts, 41, also looked incredible that day, wearing a blue waistcoat and matching trousers which is also from Karen Millen

Looking good: Ashley shared this incredible picture on social media from inside the studio

Steal her style: Ashley also shared this outfit post on her socials along with an outfit credit

Amanda posted a video on Instagram wearing an angelic white ensemble from Me + Em which was similar to the Reiss one worn by Holly, saying: 'Hello, it is Tuesday. Are you OK?'

And, just in case anyone missed the point, she had another pop at Holly on the radio.

When talking about doing the show hungover, the day before, co-host Jamie Theakston, 52, asked her how she was feeling.

She said: 'I got home, got straight into bed with my dog and cat. I got up, cooked the tea and went back to bed again at 8.

Claims:In a lengthy statement Amanda addressed reports that have claimed she and Holly, 42, have been pitted against each other for several jobs, and their rivalry has bubbled to the surface in the wake of the Phillip Schofield scandal (pictured together in 2012)

'I did that thing where you wake up at 2 and you have to talk yourself back into going to sleep.'

Jamie interjected: 'We're worried about your well-being,' while talking to another guest.

Amanda replied: 'I'm OK people, are you OK?' before cackling loudly.

A spokesperson for Amanda told MailOnline: 'Amanda has always made it clear in the past she has no issues with Holly. Today's video has been taken out of context.'

Holly's said in the original statement that it: 'feels very strange indeed sitting here without Phil and I imagine that you might have been feeling a lot like I have.

Claims: The Britain's Got Talent star raised eyebrows when she appeared to mock Holly's recent return to This Morning in an Instagram video

'Shaken, troubled, let down, worried for the wellbeing of people on all sides of what's been going on and full of questions'.

'All of us at This Morning gave our love and support to someone who was not telling the truth, who acted in a way that they themselves felt they had to resign from ITV and step down from a career that they loved. That is a lot to process'.

She added: 'It's equally hard to see the toll it's taken on their own mental health. I think what unites us all now is a desire to heal for the health and wellbeing of everyone.

'I hope that as we start this new chapter and get back to a place of warmth and magic that the show holds for all of us, we can find strength in each other.

Amanda previously said she believes that in 2018, Phillip sabotaged her chances of filling in on This Morning while Holly hosted I'm A Celeb.

Rochelle Humes landed the presenting job while Phillip's regular co-host Holly took over Ant McPartlin's hosting duties for I'm A Celebrity...Get Me Out Of Here.

In a resurfaced video, Amanda was questioned about her feud with Phil by her Heart Radio co-star Jamie.

As he tried to approach the subject, Amanda told him: 'I've moved on from it, Jamie, you need to move on from it.'

Pressing further, he quizzed: 'You might have moved on but I just wanted to know, is there any more to the story?'

Amanda told Jamie she had tried to reach out to Phil, but her attempts to arrange a meet up to clear the air were ignored.

She said: 'I did offer to meet him for a coffee months ago, he didn't reply to my text. What can I say?'

'The olive branch had been extended?', Jamie asked.

According to The Sun, Amanda reportedly expressed she felt 'let down' by her friend Phillip when she found out she didn't get the position and it went to Rochelle.

She had previously filled in for Holly when the This Morning star took a year off the show to have her third child, Chester, now seven, in October 2014.

Similar outfit: Holly opened her comeback monologue on This Morning last week on Monday by asking viewers if they were OK, and was accused of being melodramatic

Shocking: It came after Phillip's shocking affair scandal on This Morning. Amanda has been embroiled in a feud with the presenter since 2018

A former daytime TV executive previously told The Sun: 'Phillip actively campaigned for Rochelle to get the job despite Amanda being more experienced - and having been told privately shed got the gig.'

An ITV spokesperson later insisted that Rochelle's casting was a decision made by producers, telling MailOnline: 'Presenter line ups on This Morning change regularly and final decisions on these line ups are made by producers and not the presenters.

They said at the time: 'Phillip Schofield is a much loved broadcaster and part of the ITV family. He is a consummate professional and held in high regard at ITV. Amanda is also held in high regard as a judge on one of our biggest shows.'

During their time co-hosting the morning show, Phillip confessed he found working alongside Amanda was 'occasionally quite scary'.

He told Heat magazine at the time: 'Amanda kept me on my toes. She has a faulty edit button and she forgets shes on the telly, which is enormously endearing and funny, but occasionally quite scary.'

After Phil stepped down from This Morning, Amanda posted a strongman emoji on Instagram in what appeared to be a sign of celebration.

She did not caption the post as she remained mysterious about its meaning.
Margot Robbie is set to bring a massive Barbie fan event Down Under as part of a global tour.

The Hollywood actress and her A-list co-stars America Ferrera and Issa Rae will be landing in Sydney later this month to celebrate the anticipated blockbuster.

The exciting fan event will take place at Westfield Pitt St Mall on June 30.

Writer and director Greta Gerwig will also be in attendance to promote her new flick, as she and the actors will answer fan questions.

At the event, called Barbie's Best Day Ever at Westfield Sydney, fans are encouraged to wear their best pink outfits and bring their favourite Barbie dolls for a chance of winning a prize.

Margot Robbie (pictured) is set to bring a massive Barbie fan event Down Under as part of a global tour

In a video posted to the official Barbie social media accounts, Margot, 32, and Ryan Gosling, 42, shared the exciting news while dressed up as their characters Barbie and Ken.

Wearing a signature pink Barbie outfit, the blonde bombshell said: 'Barbie fans, you don't have to go all the way to Barbie land to hang with Barbie and Ken.

'We are coming to eight cities all over the world for the global Barbie tour.

'We will see you guys there, it's going to be the best tour ever.'

The global tour will also see the Barbie stars visit Ryan's hometown, Toronto, Canada.

Other lucky cities include Seoul, Mexico City, Los Angeles, London, Berlin and New York.

Fans were ecstatic to hear that Margot will be coming to her home country for her second public appearance of the year.

Fans were ecstatic to hear that Margot will be coming to her home country for her second public appearance of the year

In a video posted to the official Barbie social media accounts, Margot, 32, and Ryan Gosling, 42, shared the exciting news while dressed up as their characters Barbie and Ken

Commenting on the announcement on the movie's official Instagram, one person wrote: 'My fingers are crossed that I get to see you in AUSTRALIA.'

While another said: 'I'd love to be able to get to Sydney!'

And a third commented: 'So exciting!! See you in LA! And maybe Sydney!'

Barbie will hit cinemas globally on July 20.
She has returned as the host of the hottest reality show of the summer.

And Maya Jama turned up the heat once again as she showcased her phenomenal figure in a zebra print bikini on her Instagram Stories on Wednesday.

The Love Island presenter, 28, posed up a storm in the tiny two-piece, while working her angles in front of a bathroom mirror.

Maya's skimpy swimwear flaunted her ample assets and washboard abs, as she teamed the bikini top with a matching sarong.

The star wore her long raven tresses swept up in a ponytail and appeared to go make-up free, showing off her naturally glowing complexion.

Hot, hot, hot! Maya Jama turned up the heat once again as she showcased her phenomenal figure in a zebra print bikini on her Instagram Stories on Wednesday

Woah: The Love Island presenter, 28, posed up a storm in the tiny two-piece, while working her angles in front of a bathroom mirror

In the clip, Maya showed off her dance moves in the mirror as she swayed to the music.

Last week she was letting her hair down in Ibiza where she was seen partying the night away at iconic club DC10.

Maya is now back in the UK as she attended a Harry Styles concert last night at Wembley and hosted Love Island spin-off AfterSun on Sunday night.

During the episode she put on a show-stopping display as she sizzled in a stunning designer figure-hugging dress.

Maya looked nothing short of sensational as she slipped into a 5,500 pale pink dress by Jean Paul Gaultier.

The stunning vintage garment boosted her ample assets with a corset, and featured a silk panel on the front.

The bombshell wore a glamorous 'Cone Bust' Blush Peach Corset Dress which perfectly flaunted her jaw-dropping physique.

Before sizzling on the first spin-off episode of Love Island's season 10 - Maya took to her TikTok account as she showcased her stunning moves while dancing to J Hus.

Sizzling: Maya's skimpy swimwear flaunted her ample assets and washboard abs, as she teamed the bikini top with a matching sarong

Looking good: In the clip, Maya showed off her dance moves in the mirror as she swayed to the music

Maya wore her raven locks loose in waves with a centre parting, framing her sensational features.

She opted for a flawless glamorous make up palette, with a rouge lipgloss and rosy blush.

'Aftersun first show tonight live at 10pm ITV2,' she penned the clip.
Jennifer Aniston has not had a love interest in five years.

But a source has told UsWeekly that she is optimistic she will find love in her 50s after two divorces.

'In her gut, Jen believes she'll eventually meet the right person,' a source insisted.

The Friends veteran is one of the hottest singles with a thriving career and a collection of friends that includes Courteney Cox and Sandra Bullock.

But her love life has been a struggle after divorcing Brad Pitt and Justin Theroux.

And the insider added that if she never finds love again, she will be just fine as she has her fur children and buddies to warm her heart: 'She's not going to beat herself up if it doesn't happen.'

Well, she still looks amazing! Jennifer Aniston has not had a love interest in five years. But a source has told UsWeekly that she is optimistic she will find love in her 50s after two divorces. 'In her gut, Jen believes she'll eventually meet the right person,' a source insisted.

It was added: 'She is fine on her own.

'[Jennifer] is in a great place. She's happy, healthy and fulfilled by her career, family and friends,' an insider said.

'[She's] been through a lot, but she feels blessed to be thriving personally and professionally.'

Indeed, Jennifer still looks as great as she did in her thirties thanks to a healthy lifestyle and daily workouts.

And her career is thriving as she stays on the A list.

The star is in The Morning Show for Apple TV+ with pal Reese Witherspoon.

And she has business ventures like Living Proof and LolaVie, as well as endorsement for Vital Proteins.

Her ex: With Brad Pitt at the Troy premiere in Cannes in 2004

They had a thing: With Vince Vaughn at the men's singles final between Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal during the French Open in 2006

Yes, she dated this player: Seen with John Mayer at the 2009 Vanity Fair Oscar Party at the Sunset Tower in 2009

They were wed: With ex Theroux at the 21st Annual Critics' Choice Awards at Barker Hangar on in Santa Monica in 2016

Her dating history is rich.

She was with Tate Donovan in her Friends days. He also dated Bullock for a while.

She was wed to Brad from 2000 until 2005. After, he fell for Angelina Jolie with whom he shares six kids: Maddox, 21, Pax, 19, Zahara, 18, Shiloh, 17, and twins Knox and Vivienne, 14.

Their ugly and very public battle over custody is still raging.

Next she dated Vince Vaughn then John Mayer.

Meanwhile: She is raking in the big bucks doing ads for companies like Vital Proteins

Work it, girl: And she has landed a massive paycheck for her collaboration with Pvolve

Then Aniston wed her Wanderlust costar Justin in 2015 but they divorced in 2018. They have stayed friends and are often seen together when she is in NYC where he resides.

As far as kids, she she said she tried but it did not work out.

'It was a challenging road for me, the baby-making road. It was really hard. I was going through IVF, drinking Chinese teas, you name it,' Aniston told Allure in November 2022.

She continued: 'I don't have anything to hide at this point.'
Vicky Pattison has revealed her frozen eggs and embryos are a 'fertility savings account' after undergoing the process as a back up if she cannot conceive naturally.

The TV personality, 35, admitted while she hopes not to have to use the eggs, she does not want to be in a position where she is 'alone at 40 wanting to have a child'.

Vicky recently explained she doesn't feel ready to have a child with her fiance Ercan, 29, and believes by freezing her embryos and her eggs it 'relieves the pressure'.

During an interview with Grazia, Vicky harked back to her failed engagement to her ex John Noble and confessed she doesn't want to be in the the same position twice.

Vicky, who is engaged to Ercan Ramadan, said: 'I'd spent my whole life feeling beholden to some imaginary timeline: find a man, get married, have a baby. When my engagement ended i thought of egg freezing as a way to safeguard my future happiness.'

Candid: Vicky Pattison has revealed her frozen eggs and embryos are a 'fertility savings account' after undergoing the process as a back up if she cannot conceive naturally

Support: The TV personality, 35, admitted while she hopes not to have to use the eggs, she does not want to be in a position where she is 'alone at 40 wanting to have a child'

'I see those ones as a savings account tucked away just in case. I love Ercan, we're planning a wedding, we have two dogs and a house together but quite frankly I've been here before.

'And I would hate to be alone in my fortines wanting a child and not being able to have one.'

Despite using the process as a 'plan b', according to a recent medical report their is a three per cent success rate in women freezing their eggs in their late thirties.

Vicky has also frozen just her eggs in case she and Ercan were to split up in the future and she wanted to have a baby.

The number of women freezing their eggs or embryos soared by 523 per cent between 2013 and 2018, according to the UK's fertility regulator, the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA).

Earlier this year, the regulator called for an update to ensure fertility clinics make patients aware of the financial, physical and emotional burden of the process.

Reports suggest that two thirds of fertility cycles involve women over the age of 35 and the egg retrieval process costs between 2,000 and 4,000.

This is without factoring in the cost of egg storage (350 per year) and IVF, bringing the total cost to around a figure of 8,000.

Her new interview comes after Vicky opened up about her body image struggles, admitting she was feeling insecure about her figure ahead of flying to Dubai.

Emotional: Vicky recently explained she doesn't feel ready to have a child with her fiance Ercan, 29, and believes by freezing her embryos and her eggs it 'relieves the pressure' (pictured injecting herself during the egg retrieval process)

Success rates: Despite using the process as a 'plan b', according to a recent medical report their is a three per cent success rate in women freezing their eggs in their late thirties

Vicky, who was recovering from her egg retrieval ahead of the trip, jetted to the UAE with a group of her pals.

The recent medical procedure has left her bloated and inflammed, with the star explaining that she is 'amazed' at the work her body has done.

But despite being in awe of her body, Vicky admitted that she was also 'mad at it' as she worried about image.

She explained: 'This thought process is not one I'm proud of but it is super hard to escape a lifetime of being conditioned into believing you are only attractive if you're a specific size or shape'.

Struggles: Her new interview comes after Vicky opened up about her body image struggles, admitting she was feeling insecure about her figure ahead of flying to Dubai

Taking to her Instagram page, Vicky shared a three-way collage of pictures taken just in a T-shirt and her underwear.

Showing her real body in the natural snaps, the TV personality opened up to her 5.3M followers on the struggles she is facing.

She penned: ' The human body is pretty amazing... isn't it?? Over the last two weeks my little body has been pumped full of hormones, manipulated into creating 10 eggs, 9 of which were mature and ready for the next stages! It has literally created life- Potentially 9 times over!

'It has done far more than I ever expected it to in such a small space of time- it's incredible really. And you know the craziest thing?? Is that even after all I've put it through, all it's done for me.. I'm mad at it.'

Adding where her insecurities come in, Vicky continued: 'I should be celebrating everything that my body has given me and instead I am worrying about what I'm going to look like in a bikini in Dubai next week. And please don't think how vapid and superficial that is, is wasted on me.. This thought process is not one I'm proud of but it is super hard to escape a lifetime of being conditioned into believing you are only attractive if you're a specific size or shape.

'I know I'm a huge advocate for loving the skin you're in... even if it's not your usual skin. So this may seem a little bit hypocritical.. But with the recent changes to my body being so sudden.. I haven't even had a chance to get my head around them just yet. But I promise I will.

'My giant sore and swollen boobs, my bloated little tummy and my saggy little boy butt are testament to what my little body has given me - which is a chance at future happiness and I need to be beyond grateful to it. Not speaking negatively about it and wishing it was something else. But sometimes those intrusive little thoughts sneak in don't they?

'The last few days have been challenging': Vicky recently detailed her 'painful' recovery from egg retrieval this week as she gave fans an update on the freezing process

Vicky underwent the egg retrieval procedure in April, and shared a number of snaps from the hospital as she admitted that her recovery from the medical procedure has been more 'painful' and 'difficult' than expected.

Explaining that it had been a 'challenging few days', the brunette beauty did add the good news that 10 eggs had been retrieved.

Retrieval is part of the egg freezing process and is an ultrasound-guided procedure which usually takes 2030 minutes, putting the patient under anesthetic.

And the update from Vicky is the latest in a string, where she has been keeping fans in the loop of her journey.

She told new! magazine: 'I was just freezing my eggs before but freezing embryos has a better success rate so I am doing both,' she told New! Magazine.

Here we go: The first picture showed her kitted out in the hospital gown ready for the procedure

'I'm 35, but I don't want a child right now. I'm not ready. No one's ready, Ercan and I have been dating four years and he's 29. The last thing I want to do is force him into a situation where he's not confident or not ready and then he becomes resentful.'

Vicky added due to her struggle to find the perfect wedding venue with the 'wow factor', they may find they end up having a baby before getting married.

'The wedding process has been more challenging than I anticipated. We may not marry first, it might be the year after that as I don't have to be married to have a
Elizabeth Olsen looked happy as she arrived at the CBS studios in New York City on Wednesday.

The WandaVision star, 34, wore a grey windowpane plaid suit featuring a scoop neck blazer and wide-legged pants.

The Love and Death actress - who admitted she'd be happy to be fired from Marvel - had a big smile on her face and wore black sunglasses to protect her eyes from the early morning sunshine.

Her blonde hair was pulled up into a chic bun with wispy bangs.

The Oldboy star carried a Gucci handbag that retails for around $3,000.

Love and death: Elizabeth Olsen looked happy as she arrived at the CBS studios in New York City on Wednesday

Scarlet Witch: The WandaVision star, 34, wore a grey windowpane plaid suit featuring a scoop neck blazer and wide-legged pants

The actress is currently appearing in Max's limited series Love and Death which explores the gruesome 1980 murder of Betty Gore at the hands of Candy Montgomery.

The show is the second show in the last year to explore this murder. Candy first hit the airwaves in May 2022 on Hulu with Jessica Biel in the starring role.

The Avengers: Age of Ultron star sat down with The Hollywood Reporter to talk about the role and why she decided to take it on.

'Candy was a character that I felt like I hadnt played. And then [there was] the writing. There was some quirk and absurd oddity to it,' she said.

'It was a world that I was excited to play around in and a woman I wanted to understand,' she added.

Wednesday's outing comes after Elizabeth admitted she doesn't miss playing Marvel's Scarlet Witch.

'I think it's been almost 10 years of playing her. And I've loved it. And I think the reason why I am not calling [Marvel President] Kevin Feige every day with ideas is because I'm really proud of what we were able to do,' she said during Variety's Actors on Actors series with Meghann Fahy.

'I think WandaVision was a really surprising opportunity. If someone were to tell me that I'm fired from Marvel movies, I will feel proud of what we made,' she added.

Autograph: The Love and Death actress had a big smile on her face and wore black sunglasses to protect her eyes from the early morning sunshine

Happy lady: Her blonde hair was pulled up into a chic bun with wispy bangs

Pretty in plaid: The Oldboy star carried a Gucci handbag that retails for around $3,000

Her character Wanda Maximoff seemed to meet her demise in last year's Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.

Wanda was last seen being crushed under a massive building, sacrificing herself to destroy the Darkhold, an evil book of sorcery that corrupted her.

Still, while that 'version' of Wanda was seemingly destroyed, the exploration of the 'multiverse' opens things up for different versions of Wanda to appear.

That said, she is expected to reprise her role as Wanda one last time for the upcoming Disney+ series Agatha: Coven of Chaos.
Katie Cassidy has an impressive figure.

And the 36-year-old actress was happy to show it off on Instagram on Tuesday.

The beauty looked in top shape as she made the most of a gold plunging one piece swimsuit that hugged her tiny waistline.

Her hair was pulled up and she had on dark sunglasses as she sat on a white lounge chair just so in her Hollywood pinup pose.

'Now THIS is a moment  - Also, #PostWorthy #TakeMeBackTuesday,' she wrote in her caption.

Hot stuff: Katie Cassidy has an impressive figure. And the 36-year-old actress was happy to show it off on Instagram on Tuesday

Vino? The beauty looked in top shape as she made the most of a gold plunging one piece swimsuit that hugged her tiny waistline

This comes after she confirmed she has found love on the set of her upcoming Hallmark movie A Royal Christmas Crush.

On Monday, she confirmed she's dating her co-star in the film, Stephen Huszar, 39, with a sweet snap on Instagram.

'Welp, cat's out of the bag...Happy Monday,' she captioned the shot of the couple looking cozy while soaking up some sun.

In the movie, which premieres in July, Katie - who has been divorced for three years - plays Ava, who takes a job at the Royal Ice Hotel and falls in love with a prince, played by Stephen.

A source told People: 'They're very much in love and just got back from a European trip in which they joined her family in Portugal, then headed to Spain and France, before hitting Monaco for the Grand Prix.'

Katie caused fans to speculate on her romantic status last week when the Arrow alum shared a pic of her leaning in to kiss Stephen on his cheek on her Instagram.

Tats on: Her hair was pulled up and she had on dark sunglasses as she sat on a white lounge chair just so in her Hollywood pinup pose. 'Now THIS is a moment  - Also, #PostWorthy #TakeMeBackTuesday,' she wrote in her caption

She captioned the post with a heart, heart-eyed, and kissing emoji and tagged it #PrinceCharming.

However, it appears the photo is from their upcoming movie.

A Royal Christmas Crush is the Supernatural alum's first Hallmark movie.

On the other hand, Huszar is a frequent leading man for the network having appeared in more than 10 projects including Time after Time, Magical Christmas Ornaments, Return to Christmas Creek and Christmas in Rockwell.

Katie was previously married to Matthew Rodgers for 13 months. She filed for divorce in early 2020.

'January 2020, I moved back to L.A., filed for divorce and then we were all in lockdown for like a year,' Katie told People last year.

'I was like, "Okay, got to pick yourself up by your bootstraps sometimes,"' she added.

New couple: Cassidy found love on the set of her upcoming Hallmark movie A Royal Christmas Crush, she confirmed last week

Kiss on the cheek: Katie caused fans to speculate on her romantic status last week when the Arrow alum shared a pic of her leaning in to kiss Stephen on his cheek on her Instagram

Good cause: Cassidy at the 30th Annual Race to Erase MS Gala held at Fairmont Century Plaza on June 2 in Los Angeles

'I have been dating, yes. It's fun. It was weird during the pandemic, but also again, I think I needed that pause and reset to heal. I think if I'm supposed to meet someone, I'll meet them naturally, organically,' she said.

And the Taken actress encourages people to choose happiness.

I think people just should be happy, and so I encourage everyone - men, women - there's a lot of people who are stuck in relationships when they're not happy because they don't like the idea or the look of what divorce is,' she said.

'It's okay. Everyone should just choose happiness.'
She's shown off her career versatility with shows such as Coronation Street, Benidorm and Dancing On Ice.

Yet Denise Welch revealed there's no end to her talents as her surprising new role was announced on Wednesday - turning Twitter into meltdown.

The Loose Women star, 65, will take on the role of Queen Elizabeth II in Diana The Musical when the Broadway show comes to London for a one-off show in December.

Described as a 'radical new version', the musical, directed by Owen Horsley, hands the microphone to Diana as she reflects on her past.

It is described as a tale in two parts, narrated by Diana (Kerry Ellis) as she looks back on herself as the 19-year-old Diana (Maiya Quansah-Breed) that captured the nation.

'This is the most iconic British pop culture moment in the 21st Century': Twitter went into meltdown on Wednesday after Denise Welch was cast as THE QUEEN in Diana The Musical

Royal connection: Denise will play The Queen in the Nineties as Diana depicts her relationship with the royal (Queen Elizabeth II pictured in 1993)

While Denise has performed on the stage before, most recently in the 2018 UK tour of Calendar Girls, fans were quick to express their shock at the casting.

Taking to Twitter, shocked fans shared: 'when you think about it maybe matty healy and taylor swift were never dating and in fact were just helping denise welch do method acting for her role as queen elizabeth in diana the musical'

'Am I living on a different planet? Denise Welch will be playing The Queen in the Diana musical?!?!!'; 'Denise Welch as the Queen is maybe the most iconic British pop culture moment in the 21st Century';

'did not have seeing Denise Welch in Diana the musical on my 2023 bingo but Im not mad about it';

'DENISE WELCH IS PLAYING THE QUEEN WHAT IS HAPPENING WHAT UNIVERSE ARE WE LIVING IN THIS IS UNMISSABLE Also Kerry Ellis as Princess Di. Can you even.'

'Denise Welch is playing The Queen in Diana: The musical. In other news, Prince Charles is being played by Danny Dyer and Prince Phillip by Ray Winstone.';

'Denise Welch as Queen Elizabeth II! When are we booking, lads?'

Plenty to say: The musical, directed by Owen Horsley, hands the microphone to Diana as she reflects on her past (Diana, the Queen and King Charles pictured in 1981)

Leading ladies: It is described as a tale in two parts, narrated by Diana (Kerry Ellis) as she looks back on herself as the 19-year-old Diana (Maiya Quansah-Breed) that captured the nation

Unexpected: While Denise has performed on the stage before, most recently in the 2018 UK tour of Calendar Girls, fans were quick to express their shock at the casting

The critically derided Princess Diana: The Musical had its Broadway premiere in November 2021, almost two years after it was originally scheduled to open.

Actress Jeanna de Waal, who plays Princess Diana, led the cast as they took to the stage at New York's Longacre Theatre.

The production faced fresh criticism, with the New York Times saying it 'exploits the People's Princess'.

It came after a filmed version of the stage show was lambasted by viewers and critics following its premiere on Netflix a month prior.

The new musical was roundly slammed over its 'hysterically awful' lyrics and 'absurdly over the top' production.

The Evening Standard, The Times and the Chicago Tribune gave Diana: The Musical damning one-star reviews, while viewers on social media mocked the ridiculous songs - including a number where paparazzi sing 'better than a Guinness, better than a w**k/snap a few pics, its money in the bank'.

Commentators previously called on Prince Harry, who has an estimated $100million deal with Netflix, to cut ties with the streaming giant over the 'degrading' and 'exploitative' depiction of his mother and the royal family.

MailOnline's Dan Wooton wrote: 'If he fails to speak out against such a horrendous depiction of his mother, then he is tacitly endorsing it.'

Flop: The critically derided Princess Diana : The Musical had its Broadway premiere in November 2021, almost two years after it was originally scheduled to open (Pictured: Jeanna de Waal as Diana)
Jamie Dornan got into a violent tussle as he filmed a tense scene for season two of The Tourist in Dublin on Wednesday.

The 50 Shades Of Grey star, 41, was spotted in the same outfit days before continuing to shoot for the thriller.

The actor looked bloody and bruised in his casual ensemble for the scenes, as special effects make-up was painted on his knuckles and the side of his face.

Jamie was spotted being pulled out of a car vigorously after getting in a fight in one of the scenes.

The first season of the Stan Original series - released last year - focused on Jamie's character Elliot as he gets stuck in the outback after a car tries to run him off the road. He wakes up in hospital with no idea what happened.

On location: Jamie Dornan got into a violent tussle as he filmed a tense scene for season two of The Tourist in Dublin on Wednesday

In action: The 50 Shades Of Grey star, 41, was spotted in the same outfit days before continuing to shoot for the thriller

The new season follows the action to Dublin, a year after Elliott left the outback, as he comes face to face with his past.

Meanwhile, Helen (Danielle Macdonald), an outback cop, travels to Ireland with Dornan's troubled character, only to be dragged into the mystery of his past life.

Conor MacNeill, Olwen Fouere and Vikings actor, Diarmaid Murtagh, have also been cast in season two.

Jamie sported an orange sweatshirt and grey denim jeans during his filming.

He teamed the look with a khaki denim jacket and brown suede boots.

Filmed in South Australia and produced in association with the BBC and Germany's ZDF, season one of The Tourist was a hit with both critics and viewers.

In June, the exciting series walked away with three awards at the Monte Carlo TV Festival.

It won Best Series and Best Creation at the prestigious international event in Monaco, and also took home the Public Prize.

Working: The actor looked bloody and bruised in his casual ensemble for the scenes, as special effects make-up was pained on his knuckles and side of his face

Tussle: Jamie was spotted being pulled out of a car vigorously after getting in a fight in one of the scenes

Casual ensemble: He sported an orange sweatshirt and grey denim jeans during his filming

Past: The first season of the Stan Original series - released last year - focused on Dornan's character Elliot as he gets stuck in the outback after a car tries to run him off the road

Present: The new season follows the action to Dublin, a year after Elliott left the outback, as he comes face to face with his past

Meanwhile, in the UK, The Tourist became the BBC's most watched TV drama, winning a mammoth 11.4million viewers.

Season two of The Tourist is written by the show's creators, brother's Harry and Jack Williams (Fleabag).

The Tourist's first season, which is currently streaming on BBC iPlayer and Stan, also stars Shalom Brune-Franklin, Alex Dimitriades and Damon Herriman.
Molly-Mae Hague has revealed that her boyfriend Tommy Fury refused to get a matching tattoo with her in honour of their baby daughter.

The former Love Island star, 24 - who gave birth to baby Bambi back in January - admitted she had 'really been thinking' about inking a tribute to her tot, but Tommy 'won't do it'.

Explaining further the simple design she wanted, she also disclosed that she only wanted to do it with Tommy.

On Tuesday evening, Molly-Mae invited her 7.5 million Instagram followers to ask her questions, penning: 'Bambi is down for the night, let's catch up....'.

One fan asked her: 'Would you ever get a tattoo?'

Denied: Molly-Mae Hague has revealed that her boyfriend Tommy Fury refused to get a matching tattoo with her in honour of their baby daughter

Molly-Mae replied: 'Omg, I've been really thinking about getting a little 'B' somewhere... but Tommy won't do it with me because he doesn't want one and I only want to do it together.'

Elsewhere in the Q&A, Molly-Mae revealed that she was struggling to accept her post-baby body six months after giving birth.

She also said that she is learning to love her new figure.

A question read: 'How's your body confidence journey going?'

Molly replied: 'As my YouTube family will know I've spoken very openly about this topic!

'It's most certainly a journey ... one I'm not finding particularly easy but I always knew the second I fell pregnant accepting my post baby body wouldn't happen over night.

'I'll get there. I'm hoping I'll fall back in love with a healthy, balanced lifestyle again soon.

'It's not happened quite yet but I know I need to be patient with myself.'

Question time: The former Love Island star, 24 - who gave birth to baby Bambi back in January - admitted she had 'really been thinking' about inking a tribute to her tot, but Tommy 'won't do it'

Sweet: Explaining further the simple design she wanted, she also disclosed that she only wanted to do it with Tommy

She added: 'Post partum mummas also struggling with this ... be kind to yourself.'

Elsewhere another inquisitive fan asked her: 'Are there plans for a little Bambi sister or brother soon?!'

Confirming that one day in the future her and Tommy will likely have a second child, she wrote: 'Definitely not for a good while.

'Some day I'll be ready, but it's not unknown that I have found it harder than I expected to (even though I'm doing so much better now).

'Plus I don't know how anyone looks after more than one baby, you're superheroes!'

Molly-Mae, who shot to fame on Love Island's fifth season in 2019, welcomed baby Bambi with her co-star Tommy Fury on 23 January.

True to her influencer roots, she has kept life as a new mother well-documented, including sharing her birth story, pictures and videos of Bambi's nursery and regular updates into her life as a first time parent with Tommy.

Molly-Mae recently revealed that she 'doesn't have the confidence to wear a bikini' after giving birth.

The new mum also admitted that her insecurity is getting worse.

In her latest YouTube video, filmed while in Barbados, the former Love Island star spoke numerous times about her lack of confidence and apprehension towards wearing skimpy swimwear.

Tough: The star also said that she is learning to love and accept her new figure

Sweet: The beauty gave birth to baby Bambi back in January and she has been navigating her way through being a parent since

Opening up: On Tuesday evening, Molly-Mae invited her 7.5 million Instagram followers to ask her questions, penning: 'Bambi is down for the night, let's catch up....'

Family: Elsewhere another inquisitive fan asked her: 'Are there plans for a little Bambi sister or brother soon?!'

While relaxing on a sun lounger, dressed in a white strapless bathing suit, Molly first admitted: 'I've got this swimming costume on...for me at the minute swimsuits are the one.

'I'm not a bikini girl at the minute because I just don't have the confidence. I didn't really have the confidence for bikinis before I had a baby.'

Returning to the topic later in her vlog, the reality star continued: 'Right now with my body, I need anything that is going to give me confidence...

'Because I genuinely feel like with time, my confidence with my body is actually getting worse. It's irritating me.

'I really felt on this trip that I am going to embrace it, I don't care, my new mum body, I'm proud of it, and I am but at the same time I'm finding it hard to accept that I've got a real journey to start, if I want to feel more confident in my body.

'I was speaking about it to my family. I just don't ever picture myself putting on a bikini ever again [and feeling confident], I never did in the first place. There's just no way.

'Before I had a baby I didn't feel confident in a bikini, so after having a baby I don't picture myself ever thinking ''I'll slip a bikini on and feel amazing''.

'I want to and I want to come on here and say ''I feel confident and amazing'' but that's not how I'm feeling at the minute.

'So any clothes or outfits that can make me feel a little more confident, covered up and super flattering right now, that is what I'm going for.'

However, Molly-Mae did indeed wear a bikini during her Barbados holiday, when she stunned on the beach in a white two-piece set.
MBABANE  Most registration centres were a hive of activity yesterday, as people took the opportunity to register with today being the last day to register for the general election.

As of Monday, by close of business, 446 118 emaSwati had registered. Of note is that during the 2018 General Elections, 540 000 emaSwati registered and about 60 per cent voted.

Businessman Walter Bennett is among those who did not miss the opportunity to register yesterday.Interviewed, Bennett said he kept forgetting to register despite diarising it as he was distracted by other things, including a critical court case that he would be attending today.I knew that I was finally going to register and certainly would not defy the directive that the elections were on, as indicated by Umlisa, stated Bennett.

Opportunity

He said registering was an opportunity for him as he would like to vote for a woman under the Mbabane East Constituency, although his experience with some of them in Parliament had not been too good.However, he said one swallow didnt make a summer. The former senator stated that this was currently the time to find out the candidates who were interested in running for Parliament. He said anybody who had political issues needed to voice them out now and not as an afterthought by collecting petitions elsewhere. This is the time to petition the principals (us), tell us what you are going to represent us in Parliament for and not misrepresent us later, he said.

Bennett said he had been voting since the Pope was a boy and was currently 68 years old, adding that it was his obligation to do so, as it was his right. He said for those who did not register and would not vote they (voters) shall govern them.There were some members of the public who were keen to register. Thembinkosi Mavuso said he had challenges with his identity document, which he finally found, which delayed him to register. Mavuso said he was interested in registering as he would vote for his friend and was expecting nothing in return. Mvelo Maseko said he kept on postponing and got a wakeup call when he learnt through the media that the deadline was today. Reached for comment, the Elections and Boundaries Commission (EBC) Communications Officer, Mbonisi Bhembe, said it would not be fair to compare the numbers with the registration for the 2018 General Elections.Bhembe said the 2023 General Elections were different as there was a lot of misinformation that was put out to discourage the public from participating.

This is a different ball game altogether and we cannot make comparison with the 2018 election numbers, he said. He said not withstanding everything, the participation turnout was overwhelming and thanked the nation for coming out to register. Bhembe said they were excited with the numbers of emaSwati who had registered to vote in the 2023 General Elections. According to the communications officer, they were still looking forward to that even during the validation and nominations, the public would support.Bhembe said they were encouraging every liSwati, who was eligible to participate in the elections, to register.Once emaSwati register, it means we have reached the target as EBC. We render the service to the people and if we were to be judged, it should be on whether we went out to the people to render the service, he added.He said they were not looking out for numbers but ensuring that 100 per cent of emaSwati registered.Bhembe said they were seeing queues at the registration centres lately, which showed that most people were trying to beat the deadline.
Jennifer Laurence looked nothing short of sensational as she attended the premiere for her film No Hard Feelings in Madrid on Wednesday.

The actress, 32, showcased her chic sense of style in a cream bandeau midi dress.

The elegant number featured a corseted detail which stuck out in front of her dress and embellished a structured bodice.

She paired the look with a pair of black heels and kept accessories to a minimum, opting only for a dazzling pair of blue earrings.

The star accentuated her natural beauty with a flawless palette of makeup, including a winged eye and swipe of red lipstick.

Beauty: Jennifer Laurence looked nothing short of sensational as she attended the premiere for her film No Hard Feelings in Madrid on Wednesday

She wore her blonde locks poker straight and styled to the side, perfectly framing her pretty face.

Jennifer appeared in good spirits as she waved to fans and posed with her co-stars.

No Hard Feelings, which will be released in the UK in June 23, sees Oscar winner Jennifer play a cash-strapped woman trying to seduce a 19-year-old boy for pay.

Her character Maddie finds herself in such dire financial straits that she is on the brink of losing her late mother's house.

She throws herself on the mercy of a rich pair of New Age 'helicopter parents' played by Broadway stars Laura Benanti and Matthew Broderick.

Percy (Andrew Feldman), their geeky teenage son, is about to go to college and has been cosseted his whole life, never breaking the rules.

The couple offers Maddie a car in exchange for a heavyweight favor - she must seduce Percy before he leaves for Princeton.

No Hard Feelings then launches into her increasingly desperate attempts to get Percy into bed, including a nighttime skinny dipping excursion, taking him out to drink underage and even playfully trying to kidnap him.

Wow! The actress, 32, showcased her chic sense of style in a cream bandeau midi dress

Star: The elegant number featured a corseted detail which stuck out in front of her dress and embellished a structured bodice

Stylish: She paired the look with a pair of black heels and kept accessories to a minimum, opting only for a dazzling pair of blue earrings

Gorgeous: The star accentuated her natural beauty with a flawless palette of makeup, including a winged eye and swipe of red lipstick

Time for a photo! At the premiere Jennifer was joined by her co-star Andrew Barth Feldman

Smiles: She was then joined by Ukrainian-born US filmmaker Gene Stupnitsky

It comes after Jennifer opened up about the ways becoming a mother has shifted her plans for the future as the star admitted she didn't expect to pursue a career in directing any time soon.

The actress welcomed son Cy in 2022 with husband Cooke Maroney, 38, and she made it clear that focusing on her family was her top priority in a new interview.

Speaking during an interview on Good Morning America on Monday, the Hunger Games actress explained how her hopes to direct a feature film had changed in recent years.

'I used to think that [I would direct]. Now I'm just so tired and it just looks so hard,' she stated.

However, the actress is still working hard in front of the camera and behind the scenes after starring and producing her upcoming comedy.

Reflecting on her experience as a producer, she told GMA host George Stephanopoulos: 'It's good. It's busy but focused and streamlined. I don't take on anything that I can't personally read every draft of and give notes on.'

The actress admitted she hadn't even been planning to get back into acting as soon as she did after giving birth, but the quality of the comedy's script pushed her to make her Hollywood comeback.

'I just had a baby and I wasn't planning on working for a long time,' she began. 'But I read the script. It was the funniest thing I had ever read.'
Amber Heard has been pictured for the first time after finally paying ex Johnny Depp the $1million settlement she owed him after their bitter legal battle.

The 37-year-old surfaced Wednesday in Madrid, where she moved with her two-year-old daughter Oonagh in the aftermath of the court cases.

She was all smiles for the outing, giving no indication of the blistering war of lawsuits she and Depp waged after their 15-month marriage disintegrated into a morass of back-and-forth abuse allegations.

In footage obtained by DailyMail.com, she told an interviewer on the street that she was 'very happy in Spain' and added: 'I hope that I can spend more time here,' but gingerly sidestepped questions about the settlement.

Despite her eye-watering financial loss and Depp's recent rapturous reception at Cannes, Heard didn't appear to have a care in the world.

Spotted: Amber Heard has been pictured for the first time after finally paying ex Johnny Depp the $1million settlement she owed him after their bitter legal battle

Abroad: The 37-year-old surfaced Wednesday in Madrid, where she moved with her two-year-old daughter Oonagh in the aftermath of the court cases

She cut a stylish figure in a sheer off-white blouse tucked into a black wrap skirt, letting her blonde hair fly free and beaming radiantly as she headed up the road.

The Aquaman actress was carrying a children's book about a cat - presumably to entertain little Oonagh, whom she had via surrogate.

Heard recently gave her first interview since moving abroad, speaking fluent Spanish as she declared: 'I love Spain, very much,' in footage obtained by Univision.

A source informed the Daily Mail last month: 'She's bilingual in Spanish and is happy there, raising her daughter away from all the noise.'

Her sighting this Wednesday comes in the wake of her $1 million payment to Depp, which he has vowed to split five ways among his favorite charities.

Depp and his ex-wife eventually settled their defamation claims against each other in December after five years of furious legal battles.

Heard, who will return to the big screen as she debuts her new movie In The Fire at a film festival in Italy later this month, had alleged she was a victim of domestic violence during her 15-month marriage to Depp.

While a courtroom in London found in Heard's favor, a a second case in Fairfax, Virginia, last year came out on Depp's side.

Unbothered: Despite her eye-watering financial loss and Depp's recent rapturous reception at Cannes, Heard appeared not to have a care in the world Wednesday

Blithe spirit: She cut a stylish figure in a sheer off-white blouse tucked into a black wrap skirt, letting her blonde hair fly free and beaming radiantly as she headed up the road

Motherhood: The Aquaman actress was carrying a children's book about a cat - presumably to entertain little Oonagh, whom she had via surrogate

After Heard was ordered to pay $10million in compensatory damages and $5million (later reduced to $365,000) in punitive damages, and Depp told to hand $2million in defamation damages, the former couple's legal teams eventually came to an agreement.

Now, six months on from one of the most bitter Hollywood divorces in modern times, TMZ reports that Depp has finally received his $1million from Heard's insurance company.

The outlet reports that the money will be divided evenly, $200,000 each, across Depp's five favorite non-profits.

The charities range from organizations helping sick children with life-threatening illnesses and providing housing for deprived communities.

The five non-profits Depp will choose to donate the money to are: Make-A-Film Foundation, The Painted Turtle, Red Feather, Tetiaroa Society and the Amazonia Fund Alliance.

Sources have told TMZ that Depp has chosen Painted Turtle and Tetiaroa Society as a homage to two heroes in his lives, the respective founders Paul Newman and Marlon Brando.

He has chosen Make-A-Film, a charities which grants kids wishes from those within the acting world, because he has done a short movie with them in the past.

Red Feather and Amazonia focus on helping indigenous communities maintain their culture and heritage through shelters and large-scale infrastructure projects.

Johnny Depp and ex-wife Amber Heard have finally settled their defamation claims against each other in December. Pictured together in 2016

The money will be divided evenly, $200,000 each, across Depp's five favorite non-profits. Pictured: Depp at the Cannes Film Festival last month

Despite the bitter dispute, Depp has always insisted he was not trying to get money off his ex-wife but rather to clear his name and reputation.

As both actors attempt to restore their lives, Depp has been spotted at Cannes Film Festival and more recently being mobbed by fans ahead of his Hollywood Vampires gig in Istanbul over the weekend.

While Depp took center stage on the red carpet at the Cannes Film Festival to mark the debut of his new movie Jeanne du Barry, Heard was pictured stepping out for a walk with her daughter in Madrid, Spain, last month.

The actress was pictured on the daytime stroll after DailyMail.com exclusively reported earlier this month that she has retreated from the U.S. - and the hustle and bustle of Hollywood - in the wake of her ex-husband Depp's mostly successful defamation trial against her in Virginia last year.

Now, she has set up camp in a home just outside Madrid with her daughter.

It was unclear whether Heard will attempt to step back into Hollywood, but she will appear in the upcoming thriller In The Fire, which is set to premiere at the 69th Taormina Film Festival in Italy later this month. It will be the first time she is on the big screen since the defamation trial.

While Depp has made several public appearances, DailyMail.com revealed last week that the actor has absolutely no plans to ever work with film giant Disney again.

Despite furious speculation about the actor's potential return to the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise - which reports suggested could earn him up to $20 million - Depp is, sources close to him say he is done with Disney.

DailyMail.com revealed last week that Depp (pictured June 10) has absolutely no plans to ever work with film giant Disney again

The Pirates of the Caribbean star (pictured in Istanbul on June 10) has vowed to split the money five ways among his favorite charities

He is said to still be furious over the way the studio unceremoniously 'dropped him' when his ex-wife accused him of abuse.

Although he said in Cannes that he doesn't feel boycotted by Hollywood, Depp is angry about the way that the domestic abuse allegations played out and has decided that focusing on a life away from the industry is the best thing for him.

After years of legal battles against Heard, Depp is concentrating on music, art, and directing arthouse films.

Thousands of fans sang to Depp in Romania as the film star celebrated his 60th birthday last week by kicking off his band's European tour in Bucharest.

He thanked Hollywood Vampires fans for the 'beautiful gesture', adding that it was 'the largest happy birthday song I've ever heard'.
Sami Sheen, the daughter of Charlie Sheen and Denise Richards, appeared on Instagram on Wednesday to mark the anniversary of creating her OnlyFans account.

The 19-year-old entrepreneur - who was recently spotted out with her boyfriend - posed flirtily wearing nothing but a white OnlyFans t-shirt.

Along with a trio of sultry photos in which she was propped on a beige couch, she wrote, 'Cheers to 1 year with @onlyfans.'

The caption to her 135,000 followers continued, 'Im so beyond grateful for my subs thank u for always chatting with me.'

The young beauty wore her platinum blonde hair in a center part, letting the locks flow over her shoulders.

Celebratory: Sami Sheen, the daughter of Charlie Sheen and Denise Richards , appeared on Instagram Wednesday to mark the anniversary of creating her Only Fans account

Sultry: The 19-year-old entrepreneur posed flirtily wearing nothing but a white Only Fans t-shirt

Sami looked gorgeous in a soft face of makeup that highlighted her features.

The content creator's dark eyebrows were carefully shaped and she dusted blush on her cheeks.

Her makeup look was made complete with the addition of a rosy pink, glossy shade set on her pout.

Sheen wore a French manicure on her nails and sported several silver-toned bracelets on her right wrist.

It comes after the teen responded to a fan on TikTok who accused her of opting to 'choose porn' because she has 'nothing else to offer the world.'

Sami recorded herself making a 'get ready with me' style video and said, 'I am not a [porn] star and I dont meet up with people. I dont film myself having sex. I dont do that.'

She added, 'The only reason I said Im a [sex] worker is because my main source of income is from my [OnlyFans]. And if people did their f***ing research, they would realize that theres multiple forms of [sex] work.'

She also noted that she isn't 'comfortable' with filming herself having sex, but she has 'no judgment' toward others who are.

Milestone: Along with a trio of sultry photos in which she was propped on a beige couch, she wrote, 'cheers to 1 year with @onlyfans'

Sizzling: The bombshell's content is exclusively available to her subscribers who pay $19.99 a month for access

The bombshell's content is exclusively available to her subscribers who pay $19.99 a month for access.

In the recent TikTok video Sami said, 'I know youre probably thinking: "How the hell are you a sex worker if you keep [your breasts] censored?" But trust me, I have my ways. I still show pretty much everything.'

She added, 'I just want to wait until the girls are done so Im fully confident with everything Im showing,' hinting at getting a breast augmentation.

Going into further personal detail, the star said: 'Im starting laser hair removal soon so thats gonna be a huge game-changer. I just cant stand shaving my whole entire body every time I need to work! Its so annoying!'

In June 2022 Sami made headlines for posting images alongside her Bond girl mom Denise, who posed for Playboy almost 20 years ago.

At the time, Denise, who was married to Charlie from 2002 to 2006, jumped to social media to defend her daughter's decision and said, 'Lots of negative comments on my social this past week.

'I have to say, I wish I had the confidence my 18 yr old daughter has. And I also can't be judgemental of her choices. I did Wild Things & Playboy, quite frankly her father shouldn't be either.'

The model, who turned 19 in March, told fans: 'I know youre probably thinking: "How the hell are you a sex worker if you keep [your breasts] censored?" But trust me, I have my ways. I still show pretty much everything'

Savvy: In a recent TikTok video Sami said, 'I know youre probably thinking: "How the hell are you a sex worker if you keep [your breasts] censored?" But trust me, I have my ways. I still show pretty much everything'

Parental support: Sami's mom Denise Richards, who was married to Charlie Sheen from 2002 to 2006, jumped to social media to defend her daughter's decision to join OnlyFans last year

In regards to the backlash, the actress added, 'I'm in awe of her ability to shut out the noise. Because it can destroy you...I recently learned about @onlyfans in the last few months. The judgement because women & men of the adult film industry are on there. I imagine they're on IG & Twitter as well.'

She then questioned if there was, 'a difference posting a picture of [ourselves] in a bikini on IG? We've all done it. Because you get paid on Only Fans? I'm pretty sure IG & Twitter & Facebook do quite well off of all of us.' Denise later added, 'Perhaps I should open my own account...'

Denise ended up joining OnlyFans just days after her daughter started her own account.

Sami's dad was initially opposed to her online gig but later said to Us Weekly, 'Denise has illuminated a variety of salient points, that in my haste, I overlooked and dismissed.'

He added, 'Now more than ever, its essential that Sami have a united parental front to rely upon, as she embarks on this new adventure. From this moment forward, shell have it abundantly.'

Charlie and Denise also share an 18-year-old daughter named Lola.
Jonah Hill and Olivia Millar were spotted holding hands in Malibu on Wednesday as they enjoyed some time off from their parenting duties.

The 39-year-old actor - who welcomed his first child with his girlfriend this spring - showed off his tattoos in a short sleeve Hawaiian polo shirt tucked into faded loose jeans.

The Don't Look Up star protected his eyes with a hat and dark glasses, wore his usual bushy beard, and finished the look with blue socks and slip-on Vans shoes.

His girlfriend of one year looked stylish in a $1,200 embroidered cashmere sweater by Elder Statesman with comfy grey sweats.

Olivia went makeup free, styled her brunette tresses behind her ears and down her back, and wore a large woven beach bag with green Adidas sandals.

Beach style: Jonah Hill enjoyed some time off from his parenting duties in Malibu on Wednesday. The actor, 39, showed off his tattoos in a short sleeve Hawaiian polo shirt tucked into faded loose jeans

New parents: Hill and Olivia Millar, who recently welcomed a child together, were seen holding hands as they walked through the parking lot of the Malibu Country Mart

Hill's publicist shared with DailyMail.com that the baby arrived this spring.

The couple have yet to comment on being new parents.

Millar was pictured with a large baby bump in April as she stepped out for dinner in Santa Monica with Jonah and his parents, Richard Feldstein and Sharon Lyn Chalkin.

The couple was first linked in August of 2022 when Jonah was first pictured passionately kissing Millar in Malibu.

Engagement rumors have swirled since Olivia was spotted with a large square-cut diamond ring in April. Her sweater covered her wedding finger.

The daughter of top model Esme Marshall first unveiled her bump and ring in March when she went shopping at The RealReal in Santa Monica  not far from Hill's $6.7 million mansion.

Aside from her work as co-founder of the online vintage site Chasseresse with her big sister Raychel Roberts, not much is known about the fashion designer.

The pair have kept their relationship private and have not made any red-carpet appearances or confirmed their relationship on social media.

In September 2022, the duo was pictured spending time together in Santa Barbara while on a road trip.

Before Olivia, Hill dated surfer and law student Sarah Brady in 2021. The Winning Time director has also dated Brooke Glazer, Erin Galpern, and Isabelle McNally.

Casual: The Don't Look Up star protected his eyes with a hat and dark glasses and donned his usual bushy beard. His girlfriend of one year looked stylish in a $1200 embroidered cashmere sweater with comfy grey sweats

11 years ago! Jonah pulled triple duty coming up with the story, executive producing, and starring as geek-turned-underachieving cop Morton Schmidt in the critically-acclaimed 2012 hit comedy 21 Jump Street based on the Fox series (1987-1991)

Surf Jew: Hill belongs to a group called 'Surf Jews California' with filmmaker Spike Jonze and Beastie Boys rapper Mike Diamond, which he told GQ last year they created as an 'inside joke'

He ended his year-long engagement with KITH NYC head stylist/producer Gianna Santos in 2020.

Over the past few years, the You People star has been seen surfing multiple times. The Los Angeles local had previously confessed to having a lifelong phobia of the water sport.

After his first time surfing in 2019, Hill wrote on Instagram, 'Been terrified to surf my whole life. Totally random fear and at the same time always been a secret dream of mine.'

'Turned out to be one of the most fun experiences I've ever had,' he added.
Kylie Jenner has been generous with sharing photos to Instagram lately.

On Wednesday the 25-year-old TV star was at it again as she posted 10 fresh snapshots with the caption full of emojis.

In one of the images, the cosmetics mogul was seen talking a mirror selfie as she flashed her toned tummy in a white crop top and worn-in blue denim jeans.

The girlfriend of Timothee Chalamet also wore gold Chanel ballet slippers.

Her hair was down and she scrunched up her nose as she snapped away with her black cell phone camera.

Other photos included her on her private jet, her getting into an SUV, and images of son Aire as well as daughter Stormi with cousins Dream and Chicago.

Tummy show off: Kylie Jenner has been generous with sharing photos to Instagram lately. On Wednesday the 25-year-old TV star was at it again as she posted 10 fresh snapshots with the caption full of emojis. In one of the images, the cosmetics mogul was seen talking a mirror selfie as she flashed her toned tummy in a white crop top and worn-in blue denim jeans

Golden girl: The girlfriend of Timothee Chalamet also wore gold Chanel ballet slippers. Her hair was down and she scrunched up her nose as she snapped away with her black cell phone camera

This comes after she shared a collection of new images while in a blue and white dress.

One snap stood out.

The cosmetics queen was sitting in her private jet - called Kylie Air - as she looked out the window.

The influencer put one of her manicured hands off to show off a ring on her wedding finger. It was an eternity trinity ring which symbolizes love.

This comes as she continues to date Dune actor Timothee Chalamet. In May they were seen together in Los Angeles.

Cartier was the first jewelry to come up with the trinity design.

According to Cartier, Louis Cartier, the son of the namesake founder, designed an intertwined ring for French poet and playwright Jean Cocteau.

The piece included three bands in yellow gold, rose gold, and white gold. This creation would become a distinctive code of the Cartier style of the trinity ring. The ring is often associated with a lasting bond.

Fresh Aire: Other photos included her son Aire in a bib with a sushi print

Kylie and Timothee have been dating since April, according to several reports.

Kylie looked stunning in a chic white dress for her latest round of sultry social media snaps.

The beauty mogul looked cute in a floral patterned white dress by DOEN.

The Keeping Up With The Kardashians alum uploaded a series of photos in which she posed outdoors with the sun shining on her.

The mother-of-two, who shares daughter Stormi, five, and son Aire, one, with Travis Scott, looked ultra feminine in the modest look.

Play time is good time: Kylie was smushed by daughter Stormi and her with cousins Dream and Chicago

Summer feel: Here Stormi looked like a ray of sunshine in a yellow dress while cute Dream looked on

It featured short-sleeves that Kylie wore off-the-shoulder-style in some snaps, and a low, square-shaped neckline.

Engaging her 394 million followers on Instagram, she wrote in a caption: 'what a day.'

The post racked up more than one million likes within the first hour of being posted.

The billionaire Kylie Cosmetics founder was surrounded by lush greenery including trees, grass, and shrubs.

She looked typically stunning in the artfully snapped images, which captured the entrepreneur looking ultra feminine.

Jenner's long, lustrous, brunette locks were loose, falling down her back and over her face in some photos.

The ankle-length frock was covered in tiny blue flowers with soft green stems throughout.

It boasted an elastic bodice that fit snugly over the reality television personality's busty chest.

The youngest of the Kardashian/Jenner clan wore a face of flawlessly applied makeup.

Kylie did not geotag a location, but later took to her Instagram Stories to show herself traveling on her private jet, Kylie Air.

Busy mom: Kylie in a blue and white dress with sneakers as she held Aire

Work time: She appeared to be in a studio where she was likely shooting an ad for KC

The closeup selfie showed the entrepreneur sitting in a window seat on the personal aircraft.

A bright blue sky was visible and the Hulu star posed with her eyes closed and a nude manicure hand on her chin.

Her hair was pulled back, with two long face-framing pieces left loose at the front.

Jenner accessorized with a pair of double C Chanel drop earrings and a ring on one finger.

She also shared a POV photo that showed off her red and white sneakers and a Bottega Veneta tote.

In her Stories, Kylie also showed fans more photos in the white dress that she didn't include in the carousel.

She was also active on TikTok on Tuesday as she shared an adorable snippet with Stormi and nieces Dream Kardashian and Chicago West.

Ring of truth? Jenner was also seen sitting in her private jet - called Kylie Air - as she looked out the window. The 25-year-old put one of her manicured hands off to show off a ring on her wedding finger. It was an eternity trinity ring which symbolizes love

Her man: This comes as she continues to date Dune actor Timothee Chalamet. Seen in April in NYC

Interacting with her 52 million followers, Kylie captioned the 41-second clip 'besties.'

At the beginning of the outtake she exclaimed, 'I am interviewing the girls for my TikTok, ok?'

The three youngsters were visibly giddy as they excitedly danced together while Kylie recorded them.

She instructed them to get together so she could ask them each what their favorite color is.

Stormi answered first as she said, 'Mine is pink and blue.' Chicago chose the same colors, and Dream went with blue and white.

The end of the sweet clip showed Kylie showering the girls with kisses before she said, 'I love you'
The music world is in mourning once again, with the sudden passing of Urge Overkill drummer Blackie Onassis on Tuesday.

A spokesperson for the band confirmed the death of the drummer (born John Rowan) to the Los Angeles Times on Wednesday.

No cause of death has been released at this time, nor have any details about memorial services.

Rowan joined the band in 1991, drumming on their third album The Supersonic Storybook released that year, replacing Jack 'Jaguar' Watt on the drums.

He was also behind the kit when they released their 1992 EP Stull, which featured their cover of Neil Diamond's Girl, You'll Be A Woman Soon, which was made famous by its use on Quentin Tarantino's breakthrough 1994 film Pulp Fiction.

R.I.P.: The music world is in mourning once again, with the sudden passing of Urge Overkill drummer Blackie Onassis on Tuesday

Confirmed: A spokesperson for the band confirmed the death of the drummer (born John Rowan) to the Los Angeles Times on Wednesday

Rowan was born on the South Side of Chicago, who became an integral part of transforming the band from their neo-hardcore punk roots to arena rock mainstays.

'We are here to resurrect the era of the swinger  the late 60s, the playboy life when America was a fun place. The golden era of Vegas, Neil Diamond, moonlight dancing, and Anton La Vey!' Rowan told Spin in 1992.

His first album with the group, 1991's The Supersonic Playbook, includes a song dubbed Today is Blackie's Birthday, serving as an introduction to the new drummer.

When asked of his bizarre stage name, Rowan stated, 'Im not Blackie Onassis because of my personal life, Im Blackie Onassis because I drum in Urge. I like being Blackie Onassis; its like living in a musical wonderland.'

Rowan helped shape their new style that won then new friends like Nirvana's Kurt Cobain Pretenders' Chrissie Hynde and Liz Phair.

The group signed with Geffen Records in 1992 after serving as Nirvana's opening act a year earlier, with the label bringing on hip-hop producers The Butcher Brothers for their major label debut, 1993's Saturation.

While Saturation was a hit, lead by the single Sister Havana, Rowan started getting deeper into drug abuse with heroin, which was even referenced in a song from their next album, 1995's Exit the Dragon.

A song dubbed Mistake featured Rowan singing, 'Be careful what you take, youve got a lot at stake / More than youll ever know, beware the overdose.'

Integral: Rowan was born on the South Side of Chicago, who became an integral part of transforming the band from their neo-hardcore punk roots to arena rock mainstays

Resurrect: 'We are here to resurrect the era of the swinger  the late 60s, the playboy life when America was a fun place. The golden era of Vegas, Neil Diamond, moonlight dancing, and Anton La Vey!' Rowan told Spin in 1992

Rowan was arrested for heroin possession later that year, as the group started falling apart, with founding member Eddie "King" Roeser leaving the group in 1996.

Rowan had six songwriting credits on another founding member Nash Kato's 2000 solo album Debutante, though he largely dropped out of sight since then.

Kato and Roeser brought UO back in 2004, but without Rowan, hinting in interviews that year that Rowan would often miss concerts and video shoots, and that he had a revoked passport before an England trip.

The drummer is survived by his mother Mary, his sister Anne and his brother Tim.
On Wednesday night, British Vogue took over Florence's historic Piazzale Michelangelo for a one-off fashion event celebrating the iconic styles of the last 50 years.

The open-air show took place just as the sun went down offering magical light to the models walking the catwalk which included Julia Fox, Elsa Hosk and Tina Kunakey.

The models strutted down the runway wearing fashions ranging from the punk rock looks of the 1970s to the sportswear made popular in the 1980s to the minimalism of the 1990s and opulence of the 2000s.

Fox, 33, was a vision in a sleeveless red latex gown featuring a pouf at her hips and mock-turtleneck. The back of the dress was embellished with red feathers.

Kanye West's ex's makeup featured red eyes and a phoenix-like pattern across her forehead.

Special event: On Wednesday night, British Vogue took over Florence's historic Piazzale Michelangelo for a one-off fashion event celebrating the iconic styles of the last 50 years

Lady in red: Julia Fox, 33, was a vision in a sleeveless red latex gown featuring a pouf at her hips and mock-turtleneck

Fox also carried a small, matching red handbag and slipped her feet into black, sky-high, platform shoes that laced around her ankles.

Hosk, 34, is fresh off slaying the red carpet at the Cannes Film Festival and she once again proved why she's one of the world's top models in Florence.

The blonde beauty wore a ruched, strapless, red minidress with a neckline that plunged to her navel.

The bodice of the dress featured two pieces of cloth that looked like vines and roses covering her breasts.

She paired the look with a pair of sheer black pantyhose and strappy black sandals.

The Swedish model topped her look off with a floor length, lush, black velvet coat which fell elegantly off of her shoulders.

Kunakey, 26, is still pretty fresh off her split from her husband Vincent Cassel, 56.

The French beauty hit the red carpet in a look that brought to mind a Vampire Queen.

High couture: The back of the dress was embellished with red feathers. Kanye West's ex's makeup featured red eyes and a phoenix-like pattern across her forehead

Va va va voom: Elsa Hosk, 34, is fresh off slaying the red carpet at the Cannes Film Festival and she once again proved why she's one of the world's top models in Florence

Oooh la la: The blonde beauty wore a ruched, strapless, red minidress with a neckline that plunged to her navel. The bodice of the dress featured two pieces of cloth that looked like arms and hands covering her breasts

Newly single: Tina Kunakey, 26, is still pretty fresh off her split from her husband Vincent Cassel, 56

Mais oui: The French beauty hit the red carpet in a look that brought to mind a Vampire Queen

Dramatic dress: The long, figure-hugging black gown featured a high neckline, and long, bat-wing sleeves that offered a hint of red when her arms were extended

The long, figure-hugging black gown featured a high neckline, and long, bat-wing sleeves that offered a hint of red when her arms were extended.

The newly single beauty wore her raven hair in a long braid, that cascaded down her slim back.

She finished her dramatic look off with a pair of black, pointy-toed pumps and a bright red lip.

Model Chiara Scelsi slipped her enviable figure into a shimmering nude gown.

Tamara Kalinic dazzled in a taupe skintight gown with a head covering.

Valentina Hites wore an elegant sheer black gown. Kate Davidson looked spectacular in a busty shimmering dress.

Irina Shayk, Stella Maxwell and Winnie Harlow were among the models who lit up the runway with sizzling looks at the event.

Shayk, 37, stunned as she showed off her toned arms in a shimmering black bandage-style gown with a high neck.

Stunner: Model Chiara Scelsi slipped her enviable figure into a shimmering nude gown

Dazzling! Tamara Kalinic dazzled in a taupe skintight gown with a head covering

Barbie: Kate Davidson looked spectacular in a busty shimmering dress

Blonde bombshell: She wore her bleach blonde tresses partly brushed back

All black: Valentina Hites wore an elegant sheer black gown

Glam: Nadia Lee Cohen looked glamorous in a black fur coat

Leggy! Jessica Serfaty put on a very leggy display in a LBD

LBD: Alizee Gamberini wore a leaf-pattern little black dress

Cool guy: Jack Wright rocked a graphic button-up with black pants

Sharp: Noah Beck looked sharp in a sheer black top and pants

Stars of the show: Natasha Poly and Winnie Harlow attended the photo call at the event before hitting the runway

Russian beauty Natalia Vodianova stunned in a white gown

Funky: Stella Maxwell rocked a plaid mini skirt and top along with matching platform heels and socks

Elegant: Elon Musk's mom Maye Musk looked regal in a baby blue dress

All black: Abby Champion and Erin O'Connor dazzled in black looks

Stylish duo: Piergiorgio Del Moro and Jourdan Dunn made a stylish duo on the red carpet

The Russian sensation wore a pair of sky-high black platform heels with the outfit.

Bradley Cooper's ex had her brunette tresses slicked back into a bun.

As for glam the mom-of-one opted for bright red lipstick on her pout.

The beauty - who also once dated soccer sensation Cristiano Ronaldo - later changed into an equally sensational silky black halter neck dress and black heels.

Meanwhile Stella, 33, put on a leggy display in a plaid off-shoulder bustier and matching mini skirt.

The outfit was paired with knee-high colorful plaid socks and platform heels.

The star's blonde tresses were parted on the side and slicked down.

She wore glamorous dangling silver statement earrings.

Front row: Julia was pictured sitting front row at the show

Ready for the show: Fox looked ready to take in the new styles

Two dolls: She was also seen cozying to Elsa

Showing off: Kunakey showed off her stylish look inside

She was sat next to Serge Ibaka

Posed up: Hosk was pictured at the event

In another shot she was seen against the sky background

Fashionistas! Maya Stepper and Jessie Andrews donned fashionable black looks

Bianca Brandolini D'Adda enjoyed the show next to Valentina Micchetti

Stunners: The ladies looked chic as ever

Dapper: Lucien Laviscount looked dapper at the event

(L-R) Bianca Brandolini D'Adda, Valentina Scambia, Ugo Colombo, Valentina Micchetti and Tommaso Buti

Fun time! Guests were pictured enjoying the event

Winnie, 28, looked breathtaking in a metallic silver see-through mini dress with rhinestone embellishments.

Her outfit was paired with thigh-high black PVC boots.

Like the other models, Winnie also wore a slicked back hairstyle and cherry red lipstick.

There were also plenty of other runway stars at the event.

Russian supermodel Natalia Vodianova, 41, looked angelic in a dramatic white tulle gown that featured a short front and long back.

Natasha Poly, 37, wowed in a gold tiger print one-shoulder gown with a feather trim.

The spectacular ensemble featured a tear-drop cut-out in the front.

Her look was paired with gold heels.

Showstoppers: Irina Shayk, Stella Maxwell and Winnie Harlow were among the models who lit up the runway with sizzling looks at the event

Stunner: Shayk, 37, stunned as she showed off her toned arms in a shimmering black bandage-style gown with a high neck

Professional: The Russian sensation wore a pair of sky-high black platform heels with the outfit

Leggy! Stella, 33, put on a leggy display in a plaid off-shoulder bustier and matching mini skirt

Breathtaking: Winnie, 28, looked breathtaking in a metallic silver see-through mini dress with rhinestone embellishments

Wow! Her outfit was paired with thigh-high black PVC boots

Angelic: Russian supermodel Natalia Vodianova, 41, looked angelic in a dramatic white tulle gown that featured a short front and long back

Ballerina vibes: Abby Champion also ruled the runway in red, wearing a gorgeous tulle ballerina reminiscent gown

Take a walk on the wild side: Natasha Poly, 37, wowed in a gold tiger print one-shoulder gown with a feather trim

Monochrome: Imaan Hammam and Jourdan Dunn stunned in monochrome looks

All together: All the models walked down together at the end of the show

Imaan Hammam and Jourdan Dunn stunned in monochrome looks.

The show took place in front of 2,000 spectators and was live-streamed on Instagram, TikTok and Weibo.

The looks from 50 brands were curated by British Vogues editor-in-chief Edward Enninful.

Andrea Bocelli gave a special performance of Time To Say Goodbye at the event.
Channel 4 has axed or delayed some of its most popular shows after running out of money to fund them  despite its boss Alex Mahon earning 1.2 million last year.

And the latest to be cancelled by the commercial broadcaster is popular dating show Five Dates A Week.

TVZone has reported that after two series on-air, the romance show will not make a return.

As part of the format, one singleton invites five potential partners of their choice to spend a week living with them  all at the same time.

It aims to fast-track the 'getting to know you' phase of the relationship and gives the picker the opportunity to compare and contrast five dates  in real time.

Struggling: Channel 4 has axed or delayed some of its most popular shows after running out of money to fund them  despite its boss Alex Mahon earning 1.2 million last year

Fan favourite: And the latest to be cancelled by the commercial broadcaster is popular dating show Five Dates A Week

A Channel 4 spokesperson confirmed to The Sun that the show did not get commissioned past a second series.

They said: 'The series last aired in May of last year and no subsequent series were commissioned at that point'.

Five Dates A Week was originally titled Five Guys A Week but the station changed the format to include people of all sexualities and genders.

The dating show is still currently available to stream on Channel 4.

The Mail on Sunday recently revealed that staff at the channel are calling it a 'bloodbath' as controversial cult late night show Naked Attraction, big-money celebrity flop, Scared Of The Dark and groundbreaking medical documentary Rescue: Extreme Medics, based in Scotland, have all been canned.

The much publicised return of reality series Four Weddings has also been scrapped, though a team from an independent production company had been commissoned to make it.

Staff on fixed contracts to work on the programme were immediately laid off, with some now worrying about how they will pay their rent.

Friday night favourite The Last Leg, one of the channel's most popular shows hosted by Adam Hills, Josh Widdicombe and Alex Brooker, is set to have the length of its next series cut to save money.

The 28th series is due to return this month for a nine-week run but production bosses have been told that the channel can only afford to have it on air for seven weeks.

Tough: The Mail on Sunday can reveal that staff at the channel are calling it a 'bloodbath' as shows including big-money celebrity flop Scared Of The Dark (pictured) have all been canned

Channel 4 has instructed lawyers to thrash out deals with heads of production companies to get out of contracts for shows which are worth millions of pounds, meaning it has been left with expensive legal bills and exit fees.

The crisis comes after Ms Mahon and her colleague Ian Katz fought off a Government plan to privatise it, with one of their arguments being that it funds independent production companies nationwide.

A source told The Mail on Sunday that the channel believes it is better to cut its losses. But staff blame Mr Katz for wasting money on expensive but little-watched shows such as reality series Rise And Fall, which is understood to have cost the channel 14 million  money which could not be justified because of its low ratings.

One insider said: 'Everyone is calling it a Channel 4 bloodbath.

'At first everyone was in total shock when Four Weddings was cancelled.

'It's almost unheard of that a show that is going really well is decommissioned, but as news started to spread, other shows were falling down too.

'They were told that Ian Katz had been looking at the channel's entire output, and they were sorry but it had to happen because there was no money.

'The casting team were already in place to start on Naked Attraction and were all told they were no longer needed as they were not making another series.

'They tried to lessen the blow to the show's freelance crew by saying they hope to make another series in December, but that doesn't help them now.'

Ms Mahon and Mr Katz announced last week that they have deferred taking bonuses worth hundreds of thousands of pounds and scrapped a planned pay rise, amid the crisis.

Cancelled: Controversial cult late-night show Naked Attraction, hosted by Anna Richardson, has also been canned

However, one Channel 4 employee said: 'It's only because they have had to.'

A spokesman for the network said: 'Channel 4 cares deeply about the Indie community and our wider supply chain of freelancers. They are the beating heart of our business.

'While we recognise the actions we are asking of some are causing some short-term pain, the plan we have in place underscores our ongoing commitment to our financial sustainability and our continued support of the UK's independent production sector

'The Executive Directors have already made the decision to defer retention payments and earlier this year declined a salary rise as part of a wider response to a very difficult ad-market in Q2, which is affecting all commercial broadcasters.'
Frankie Essex has revealed she had to rush her baby daughter to hospital after 'finding a lump' on Monday.

The former TOWIE star, 35, who welcomed twins Logan and Luella last June with her partner Luke Love, became emotional as she started thinking of the 'worst-case scenario'.

But after urgently visiting a private hospital for the scan, a simple explanation was given by doctors.

She wrote in her OK! column: 'What they said was it's where the soft spot is, her skull's fused together and it's just created a little bump and it might go, it might not, but there's 100% confirmation it's nothing to worry about.

'When I came out of there and got to the car I just burst into tears, I think it was all the emotional build-up from the night before worrying, obviously, you just start thinking of the worst-case scenario.'

'I just burst into tears': Frankie Essex has revealed she had to rush her baby daughter to hospital after 'finding a lump' on Monday

This isn't the first time Frankie has experience a health scare with her little one's.

Last October, her son Logan had a 'terrifying' emergency surgery ordeal after a routine vaccination caused an abscess on his leg.

The reality star revealed the five-month-old was rushed to hospital three times last week to cure the infection.

She wrote in her OK! column: 'So on Monday morning we went to the doctors and by Monday night, something didn't feel right so we took him to A&E.

'He ended up being put in an ambulance to another hospital. Then the next day he had a scan so they could confirm that it was an abscess. He then had to go to the Royal London hospital  so the third hospital  to have it removed.'

She went on to reveal the little one had to stay in hospital for give days to have the abscess removed, after being told by doctors it was the only option.

The reality star has now filed a complaint at her local GP practice, writing: 'I presumed it was a bit common because babies have vaccinations every single day and they have to have three lots  but every doctor and nurse I spoke to said they'd never seen it in a baby.'

She welcomed her bundles of joy - twins Luella and Logal - with her boyfriend Luke Love on June 1 2022.

Tough: The former TOWIE star, 35, became emotional as she started thinking of the 'worst-case scenario'

'Our little Logan': Last October, her son Logan had a 'terrifying' emergency surgery ordeal after a routine vaccination caused an abscess on his leg

Frankie stepped out with her partner Luke Love and their twins Logan and Luella to celebrate their first birthday last month.

The sister of Joey Essex took to her Instagram to share a sweet video montage documenting the twins' fun-filled first birthday party.

She gave a glimpse at the gorgeous decorations, featuring a huge number one light up sign, blue and pink balloons and a cutout of Peter Rabbit.

There was also a sparkling wall feature and guests were given Peter Rabbit themed gift boxes with either 'Logan' or 'Luella' written across them.

There were huge table spreads made up of delicious treats, while there were also two stunning cakes, one pink for Luella and a blue one for Logan.

Among the tasty treats there were also brightly coloured macarons with Beatrix Potter's characters Peter Rabbit and Jemima Puddle-Duck drawn on them.

Frankie also shared a glimpse at their white bouncy castle with Logan and Luella's names on it, as she sweetly played with the pair inside.

The celebrations come after Frankie candidly opened up about having 's*** days' as she spoke about motherhood.

Happy Birthday! Frankie also took to her Instagram Stories to give an insight into a fun-filled birthday party they held, complete with a personalised bouncy castle

Impressive: She gave a glimpse at the gorgeous decorations, featuring a huge number one light up sign, blue and pink balloons and a cutout of Peter Rabbit

She detailed how she recently got upset after missing her mother, who died by suicide when she was 15, and realised she has to 'try and carry on' for her babies.

Speaking to OK! Magazine, she said: 'I was talking to my dad the other day and I got a bit upset because Ive been missing my mum but he said that all Ive got to do is look at my two beautiful babies and try to carry on.

'Everyone has their s*** days, but it doesnt last forever. Youve got to try to pick yourself back up.'

Frankie shares her twins with boyfriend Luke Love, who she has been with for three years.
Describing the India-US ties as a "partnership like no other", the Indian envoy here has said the US has the necessary capital and the technology know-how while India offers both the scale and the talent which make this relationship a stock which anyone can bet on.

The remarks by India's Ambassador to the US Taranjit Singh Sandhu came during his address to the annual India Ideas Summit of the US India Business Council.

The tagline for the India-US relationship, which I like the most, is a partnership like no other!, And you may think, that this is what, good diplomats say, about every relationship. Believe me: this is unique! Sandhu said in his address to the Indian and American corporate leaders.

United States has the necessary capital and the technology know-how while we offer, both the scale and the talent. This is a stock, which anyone would, bet on! Sandhu said.

Over the last six months, there has been a flurry of activities in the bilateral ties. You take any day, there is a delegation from India in the US or an American visitor in India. Even as I speak, NSA Jake Sullivan is in New Delhi," he said.

There is an "unmistakable energy", a drive and a desire to get things done across sectors, he said.

It was just in the end of January this year, in this very building, the two NSAs (Sullivan and Ajit Doval) along with the Commerce Secretary (Gina) Raimondo, spoke about the complementarities, in our vision, at the iCET (Initiative of Critical and Emerging Technology) Roundtable where we discussed, the need for our strategic, commercial and scientific worlds, to converge. India-US Initiative, on Critical and Emerging Technologies, has been a game changer, in our partnership, Sandhu said.

Needless to say, all of this leads up to the historic visit of the Prime Minister (Narendra Modi) to Washington DC. In about a week from now, PM Modi will be received, by President (Joe) Biden at the White House, for a State Visit. This will be, only, the third time, in our independent history, that India's leader is accorded, this honour by a US President, said the Indian Ambassador.

It will also be a rare occasion, where the Prime Minister will address, a joint session of the Congress, for the second time, joining a select group of world leaders, and the only Indian leader, to do so, twice, he told the audience. There will also be other important engagements, he added.

Last time when my Prime Minister addressed the US Congress, in 2016, he spoke about overcoming, the hesitations of history. It is a measure, of how far we have come, in these last seven years, we have fixed our gaze, firmly on the future, building our cooperation, from the seas to the stars, he said.

Without mentioning any country in his speech, Sandhu urged American companies to reduce their dependence on China.

Geopolitics has taught us, the follies of over-dependence, on single geographies. We ended up here, because we played short balls; took decisions, which were easy, he said.

We need to diversify; build resilient, reliable, and sustainable, supply chains. We have already seen many US companies take advantage of the opportunity, of PLI (Production Linked Incentive) Schemes in India, including most recently Apple, and its supplier Foxconn. It is estimated that by 2025, one out of every 4 iPhones in the world will be manufactured in India. We need more such stories, Sandhu said.


MBABANE  Former Milling Hotspur Public Relations Officer (PRO) Muzi Mlotsa, who is an aspiring councillor, is alleged to be receiving threats from unknown people who are said to have failed in bribing him.

Mlotsa, who will be contesting in one of the Wards under the Manzini Municipal Council, is alleged to have received the threats from unknown people. These people, according to a source, want Mlotsa to withdraw from the local government elections.Mlotsa informed this publication that his family members warned him to be careful and take the threats seriously, since they were associated with the upcoming elections.The aspiring councillor alleged that some of his family members learnt about the threats from people who were said to have discussed that he was to be kidnapped.They told me that they heard people saying that since I was known in the community, the only solution to this problem is that I must be kidnapped so that I dont participate in the elections, he alleged.According to Mlotsa, every time he put up his posters along the streets, as a way of campaigning, he found them removed the following day. Due to the threats, Mlotsa reported the matter at the Manzini Police Station last Thursday.

Cash

He also alleged that he was promised E20 000 cash, to be paid in instalments of E10 000, for him to withdraw from the elections. He said he was at an advanced stage of his campaign. I received an anonymous call which was directed to my wife, asking, her about my children as well as her whereabouts. The person who called my wife using a private number was a female, said Mlotsa.According to the aspiring councillor, he once met a fellow aspiring councillor, who enquired about the upcoming local government elections. He said this individual was boastful and full of pride in the way he spoke to him.He then told the other person (who later joined them) whom he must vote for. The way he spoke to me was really uncalled for, he said.Mlotsa further said he was shocked when the other aspiring councillor allegedly pushed him.He started pushing me. I asked myself kutsi ukhuluma njani. He was pushing me with his hands and shoulder. He wanted me to retaliate but I didnt, he alleged.

Mlotsa said he was asked why he was contesting the local government elections since he did not deserve the position.I told him that there was nothing he could offer me to make me withdraw. I boldly told him that the winner would be decided on June 24, he purported. Furthermore, he alleged that the aspiring councillor told him that he had connections and he was doing him a favour by asking him to withdraw his participation from the elections.According to Mlotsa, the aspirant told him that he would ensure that he was elected to be bucopho since he was well connected, if he (Mlotsa) withdrew from the local government elections.

Prominent

I started asking him if he was really the one who hired people and then put them in particular positions. He said he was related to prominent people in the country and above all, he was also influential. I ended up asking him if he was bigger than God. He persisted in telling me that he was a big shot in society, he alleged. Mlotsa said he met him again at a certain shopping complex when returning from church.According to Mlotsa, they were supposed to have an open campaign as aspiring councillors on the evening of June 4, 2023. Mlotsa alleged that on the same day, he moved out of the place where they were about to have an open campaign to buy airtime. He supposed that certain men approached him and said they wanted to have a word with him.These men started asking about my chances of winning the local government elections. I told them that this would be determined by the electorate, Mlotsa supposed.He stated that the men told him that already there was tension in the community on who to vote for. Due to that, one of the men went to one of my competitors to ask him why they could not offer me money in order to buy me out of the elections race. I started asking them why they wanted me out. What wrong had I committed? he asked.

Tension

Mlotsa alleged that the men said they wanted him out of the elections to avoid any tension in the community. He said he then told the men that he had no problem with participating in any elections since he took part in the previous general elections.I told him that I would use the general elections experience even in these upcoming local government elections to win. Any candidate wins after obtaining the highest number of votes, not what they wanted me to do. One of the men then told me that he can offer me E20 000 to be paid in instalments of E10 000. I told him that I would be betraying God if I accepted that offer since he had never left me unto this far, he stated.Mlotsa mentioned that after their discussion regarding the offer, he was given contact details to call in case he changed his mind. He said he took the phone number so that he would be left alone, not that he would change his mind.

The man accused of issuing the threats denied all the allegations levelled against him by Mlotsa. He said: Ngumhlolo lona (meaning this is a taboo).He said the authenticity of the allegations could be verified through existing legal structures.The allegations do not represent my ideals and values for which I stand in this coming elections (sic). Kona ngumhlolo lona, lengingawati, he said.Chief Police Information and Communications Officer Superintendent Phindile Vilakati confirmed that a matter of threats had been reported and said the police were investigating.
The rise of the Move Forward Party and its dynamic leader Pita eclipses the Thaksin family aura, giving Thailand a chance at democratic transformation

It looks like democracy is about to trounce the military-monarchy nexus in Thailand one more time. But appearances are deceptive in a country where the military has subordinated the political class. In south and south East Asia Pakistan, Myanmar and Thailand refuse to jettison the Khaki brigade who rule these countries either directly or indirectly. Thailand has never been colonized and has emerged as the region's second most prosperous country and one of the worlds leading tourist destinations. Bangkok was the hub of 13 coup-de-tats and 9 coup attempts in 90 years after Absolute monarchy was abolished in 1932 and replaced with constitutional monarchy. From 1948 to 1991 most Prime Ministers were Generals. For more than 10 years now the two PMs were Generals.

Recently the military crafted a constitution inspired by fellow Generals in Myanmar that is designed to ensure the military dominates the hybrid government and Generals in Saville Row suits call the shots. But a slip between the cup and lip has led to a landslide victory for civilian political parties in Thailand- like in Myanmar in 2021 that triggered the coup against Aung San Suu Kyi. In the May elections, no ordinary Generals but three Army Chiefs between 2004 and 2020 were PMs, Deputy PMs and Interior Minister. Yet they were hollowed out by civilian youthful leaders hugely popular among people, especially youth seeking reform and change. They planned to rotate among themselves as PMs.

The Move Forward Party under the Harvard-educated businessman turned politician Pita Limjaroenrat and the Thaksin family-backed Pheu Thai Party led by Paetongtran Shinawatra bagged 151 and 144 seats in the 500-member lower house. Pita turned out to be the dark horse, defeating the favourite Shinawatra scion-led PTP. A coalition of 8 parties is expected to garner 376 seats in a 750-member two-tier Parliament for a majority. The top two parties along with the Bhumjaithai party along with 5 other parties would form the coalition to select Pita as the new PM. The session of parliament in July will ratify the Prime Minister and the coalition government through a majority vote. Thailands complex but military-weighted constitution ensures the military wins. There are fears that Myanmar may be replicated in Thailand. In a sense, therefore, the election was a referendum on the military in which the junta suffered a humiliating defeat.

MFP has got a mandate for transformation as Pita canvassed for removing the military from politics, ending conscription, restoring full democracy, scrapping Article 112 on Lese Majeste, overhauling the economy, establishing rule-based diplomacy and establishing a humanitarian corridor between Thailand and Myanmar while attempting to implement Aseans five-point consensus on Myanmar. But dismantling the established military-monarchy order will not be easy.PM Prayuth Chan-o-cha gracefully conceded defeat, acknowledging the power of peoples vote and adding that he respects democracy and hoped Thailand will be peaceful. His statement has an ominous ring to it. Pita is pledged to reform Lese Majeste introduced in 1908 and reformed in 1976. It carries a penalty of 28 years in jail  15 years per charge of insult and disrespect to monarchy. No one in Thailand openly discusses King Maha Vajiralongkorn, Rama X of the Chakrai dynasty and monarchy. Conversations are in code. In 2017, Prayuth succumbed to the Kings desire to exercise greater control over the military by altering the constitution to place key military units under Royal control. People do not venerate the present King as much as they did his father but he is the King.

Thucydides' law will come into play during power transformation. The military maintains several leverages  like the handpicked senate, election commission, dissolving the main opposition party and courts. These are the militarys non-traditional tools for combating threats that challenge its domination and control of politics. But international as well as domestic safeguards could act as a deterrent to the orderly transfer of power to the elected government. The writing on the wall is that though Pita has got the mandate, the transition may not take place as he has struck at the Palace and Monarchy as well as the military. Other graffiti suggests that he may strike a deal to go slow on reforms targeting Monarchy. Already corruption charges have been levied against Pita which he has denied. He is also accused of constitutional violation (?) which could disqualify him from parliament.

The Supreme Court has 60 days to confirm the results declared by Election Commission. After the 250-seat Senates vote to determine the final vote tally, the elected government will have to prove its majority in 90 days. The Generals will not want to attract the wrath of the West after their counterparts in Myanmar did an about-turn on democracy. It is therefore better to let the coalition government run for now say, for two years, and let infighting among the coalition lead to disruption and break in law and order or simply manufactured disorder. A valid pretext is essential in the rules-based order for military intervention and restoration of what Generals call disciplined democracy. This has been historically the cycle of action-reaction to ensure that the military grip over politics is more direct than indirect. The rise of MRP and its dynamic leader Pita eclipses the somewhat controversial Thaksin family aura and gives Thailand another more potent chance for democratic transformation.

(The writer, a retired Major General, was Commander, IPKF South, Sri Lanka, and founder member of the Defence Planning Staff, currently the Integrated Defence Staff. The views expressed are personal)
The claims of Digital India notwithstanding, approximately 700 villages in Uttarakhand alone are devoid of basic mobile telephone connectivity

Thirty km from the sub-district headquarters of Garur in Bageshwar, Uttarakhand, lies the village of Surag. This remote village tucked away in the mountains faces significant challenges due to the lack of cellular network, which has a profound impact on the lives of its residents. Surag is a vast village with houses scattered far apart. While a few houses are situated next to a road, most are located in the interiors and upper reaches, inaccessible by vehicles. The villagers residing in these remote areas suffer the most due to the absence of connectivity.

The unavailability of a network signal makes it extremely difficult for the villagers to access vital information that could enhance their daily lives. Although there are a few spots in the village where a network signal can be caught, these locations are often far away from their homes. Consequently, the residents find it arduous to climb distant hills or travel long distances to access communication networks. These journeys are perilous, and the lack of a proper path makes it even more challenging.

Furthermore, the absence of network connectivity has a significant impact on the villagers' educational pursuits. Mamta, an adolescent girl from Surag, highlights the difficulties of constantly having to climb to the top of a distant hill to access network signals for communication. This lack of connectivity also hampers their ability to search for subject-related information on the internet, leaving them without access to crucial knowledge that could support their studies.

Geeta, another young girl troubled by the lack of information caused by the absence of network coverage, explains, I am unable to receive timely updates of college and job application deadlines, which mean missed opportunities.

The absence of network connectivity not only limits access to information but also has far-reaching consequences, particularly for adolescent girls in these villages. Their desire for network access often leads to the scrutiny of their character as they venture into the jungle in search of network signals. Villagers taunt the parents that their daughters go to find the network to speak with their boyfriends. Rumours and judgments about their character start circulating in their villages, making access to the network rather a difficult task. While we advocate for the right to information for every individual, it is daunting to see that girls in these villages face severe backlash when they attempt to assert these same rights.

On the other hand, the absence of network connectivity has become a source of great fear for the villagers, particularly when it comes to medical emergencies at night. Saraswati Devi, a resident of the village, emphasizes the difficulties they face in such situations. Without network coverage, they are unable to contact their neighbors for help. Living amidst dense forests, they are also afraid of encountering wild animals if they venture outside in search of a network signal. This fear restricts their movement during nighttime, exacerbating their concerns during emergencies.

The village head, Kumari Champa, acknowledges that only BSNL and a private company provide network coverage in their village, but even their services are limited to specific locations. The lack of network connectivity has affected the lives of all villagers, particularly adolescent girls. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the absence of network coverage disrupted the education of almost all children in the village, with girls being disproportionately impacted.

There are approximately 700 villages like Surag in Uttarakhand that lack basic phone connectivity. When we talk about a digital India, it is essential to recognize that these villages, which constitute a significant portion of the country, are still devoid of cellular network services.

(The writer is a student of class 12 from Chaurson village in Bageshwar, Uttarakhand)

Charkha Features
The Canadian Government, amid a temporary suspension of the deportation of more than 700 Indian students, primarily from Punjab, has said it is working on a process to allow the students an opportunity to demonstrate that they were victims of exploitation.

This development comes as the students face potential deportation charges related to obtaining visas through fraudulent admission letters. The issue came to light when these students applied for permanent residency in Canada.

Responding to a question in Parliament on Monday, Sean Fraser, the Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, assured that the innocent students who are the victims of fraud would be given a chance to prove that they were taken advantage of.

Fraser acknowledged the mental health concerns faced by many students due to the uncertainty surrounding their status and emphasised that the Government would establish a process for them to present their case and provide an appropriate remedy.

Frasers statement came in response to a query by Jenny Kwan, a member of the Opposition New Democratic Party, who raised concerns about the students predicament. However, the Minister also reiterated that individuals involved in fraudulent schemes or complicit in such activities would face the consequences for violating Canadas laws.

India has consistently urged Canadian authorities to ensure fairness and adopt a humanitarian approach, given that the affected students were allegedly deceived by agents. External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar confirmed that India has raised the issue with Canadian authorities and emphasised the need to take action against those responsible for misleading the students, rather than punishing the students themselves. The Indian Government continues to engage with Canada on this matter.

Government sources in New Delhi reported that some Indian students facing potential deportation have received stay orders from Canadian authorities. They also clarified that the actual number of Indian students facing deportation is significantly lower than the initially reported 700.

Recently, a Canadian Parliamentary committee unanimously recommended that the border services agency halt the deportation of Indian students who were deceived by unscrupulous education consultants in India, resulting in their entry into the country with fraudulent college admission letters.

Jenny Kwan, who proposed the motion, argued on Monday that international students victimised by dishonest consultants should not be subjected to deportation and inadmissibility based on misrepresentation.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, in response to a question by Indian-origin MP Jagmeet Singh regarding the fate of the Indian students, affirmed that the Government is fully aware of cases involving international students who face removal orders due to fraudulent college acceptance letters.

Trudeau emphasised that their focus is on identifying the culprits rather than penalising the victims, ensuring that individuals defrauded will have the opportunity to present evidence and demonstrate their situations.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday launched a scathing attack on Opposition parties, accusing them of political corruption, nepotism, and malpractice in various employment schemes. He emphasised that the country must choose between dynastic parties that have allegedly looted the youth through corrupt practices or his Government, which aims to safeguard their prospects.

Addressing the newly appointed 70,000 Government employees at a virtual Rozgar Mela (Employment Fair), the Prime Minister spoke about the perils of dynasty politics and nepotism in the recruitment process. He highlighted a recent cash for jobs scam uncovered in one State and warned the youth to be cautious of such systems.

Modi drew attention to the existence of a rate card for job postings, akin to a menu card in a restaurant. Without naming former railway minister Lalu Prasad, he referred to a land for jobs scam. The case is currently being investigated by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and is pending in court.

The Prime Minister cautioned the youth against political parties engaged in dynastic politics and accused them of exploiting job seekers. He contrasted these parties with his own Government, which he claimed is committed to safeguarding the future of the youth. Modi, without explicitly naming any party, used the Rozgar Mela platform to criticise the Congress and other Opposition parties, associating their time in power with political corruption, nepotism, and malpractice in various schemes, including the recruitment process. He credited his Government for ushering in a transparent and efficient employment system.

While making an apparent reference to reports of a rate card for Government jobs in West Bengal, governed by the Trinamool Congress, Modi also took a dig at RJD leader Lalu Prasad, highlighting the criminal case against him for allegedly acquiring poor farmers land in exchange for jobs during his tenure as Railway Minister.

The Prime Minister asserted that his Government has brought transparency and is putting an end to nepotism in the recruitment process since assuming power in 2014. He emphasized that India is now more stable, secure, and stronger than it was a decade ago, attributing this to the decisiveness of the Indian Government.

Modi stated that the Rozgar Mela has become synonymous with the BJP and NDA Governments. Addressing concerns regarding language promotion, particularly in south India, he accused certain political parties of exploiting the issue to create conflicts and divisions. He assured that the Government aims to empower people by providing employment opportunities regardless of language barriers.

In conclusion, Prime Minister Modi highlighted the worlds trust in India and its economy, stating that the entire world is eager to partner with India on its growth journey.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has hailed the upcoming State visit of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Washington, describing it as a historic event. Blinken emphasised the undeniable and promising trajectory of the Indo-US partnership, stating that the visit will solidify the defining relationship of the 21st century, with economic ties playing a central role

Making these assertions while addressing the annual India Ideas Summit of the US-India Business Council (USIBC) late Monday in Washington, Blinken said, We know that India and the United States are big, complicated countries. We certainly have work to do to advance transparency, to promote market access, to strengthen our democracies, to unleash the full potential of our people.

But the trajectory of this partnership is unmistakable, and it is filled with promise. It is being written in places like North Carolina, where our growing engagement is benefiting both our countries, he said, as he highlighted several projects in the state benefiting both nations.

According to the top US diplomat, one North Carolina entrepreneur from Gujarat  commenting on this explosion of US-India commercial activity  observed this couldnt have happened 15 years ago.

Blinken has said economic ties are at the heart of the Indo-US strategic partnership, and under the leadership of President Biden and Prime Minister Modi and private sector leaders like you -- it is growing stronger by the day.

Blinken added that last year, trade between the two countries reached a record USD 191 billion, making the US the largest trading partner for India. American companies have invested at least USD 54 billion in India -- from manufacturing to telecommunications.

In the US, he said, Indian companies have invested over USD 40 billion -- in IT, pharmaceuticals and more -- supporting 4,25,000 jobs from California to Georgia. This February, Air India announced the historic purchase of more than 200 Boeing aircraft that will support an estimated one million-plus jobs across 44 States, Blinken said.

Were here ahead of a historic State visit by Prime Minister Modi -- one that will further solidify what President Biden has called a defining relationship of the 21st century, Blinken said.

We see this defining relationship in our unique connection as the worlds oldest and largest democracies, with a special obligation to demonstrate that our Governments can deliver for and empower all our citizens.

Blinken said both the US and India are making transformative investments in their own countries -- through Bidens USD 1.2 trillion Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and Modis Rs 100-trillion infrastructure plan -- to make their respective economies more productive and attractive for investors.

India has joined three pillars of our new Indo-Pacific Economic Framework -- committing to build more resilient supply chains, seize clean energy opportunities and combat corruption, he said.

Together, we are helping shape the innovations of the future and the norms governing them -- from artificial intelligence to quantum computing, Blinken said and added that in January, USIBC co-hosted a roundtable where the two Governments inaugurated a new Initiative on Critical and Emerging Technologies.

Were elevating and expanding the strategic technology partnership between Governments, businesses, and academic institutions in the US and India because we believe how technology is designed and used should be informed by democratic values and respect for human rights, he said.

Central to that cooperation is diversifying and deepening the supply chains with trusted countries while also reducing strategic dependencies, he said.

Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo and her counterpart Union Commerce and Industries Minister Piyush Goyal recently established a partnership to make the semiconductor supply chain more resilient.

In Tamil Nadu, the US International Development Finance Corporation provided USD 500 million to help a leading US company build a solar manufacturing facility.

The project will power roughly 30 million light bulbs in homes, schools, and businesses across India, create over a thousand jobs for Indians and Americans, and shift a key component of the US clean energy supply chain to a close partner, the top diplomat noted.

On the strength of bilateral ties, Blinken said, The road that weve travelled over the last 25 years has been quite extraordinary, and I think its a testament to the importance that we attach to the relationship that its a road that has gone through multiple administrations Democrat and Republican.

He said the people of the two nations share deep bonds, but maybe most important here in the United States is an Indian American diaspora over 4 million strong and growing stronger every day.

The US and Indias education systems have produced the leaders of some of our most iconic companies - from Google to Infosys to - not to mention former Mastercard CEO Ajay Banga, who is now the new president of the World Bank and onetime president of the USIBC, he said.

Indian Americans have created a third of all immigrant-founded startups in the United States. Think about that for a minute. That is extraordinarily powerful, Blinken said.

We see the importance of the partnership in a shared commitment to addressing regional and global challenges - promoting health security, working with our Quad partners to build a free, open, secure, prosperous Indo-Pacific where people, where goods, where ideas can travel freely and rules are applied fairly, he said.

Whether its investing and inventing new technologies, combating the climate crisis and helping to build more inclusive economies, Blinken said he has tremendous confidence that the rising generation of Indians and the rising generation of Americans will take the bilateral relationship to new heights.

He again expressed the deepest condolences of the United States to the victims of the terrible train crash in Odishas Balasore which killed more than 280 people.

I had an opportunity to speak to my friend Foreign Minister Jaishankar when we - just shortly after the accident, and just to convey to him how much it had resonated here in the United States as we saw the images and to let him know that we stand with the people of India as they recover from this human tragedy.

He praised Indias Ambassador to the US, Taranjit Singh Sandhu, for his remarkable work in advancing the relationship between the two nations and their people.
The Centre has fired back at Jack Dorsey, the co-founder and former CEO of Twitter, following Dorseys claim that the Indian Government exerted pressure on the platform to block accounts critical of the Government and covering farmers protests.

Countering Dorseys charge, Union Information and Broadcasting Minister Anurag Thakur on Tuesday said false allegation was an attempt to cover up past misdeeds and Twitters internal communications had exposed that the platform was misused and there was bias and tinkering.

Minister of State for Electronics and IT Rajeev Chandrasekhar too accused Twitter, under Dorseys leadership, of repeatedly violating Indian law and, at times, weaponising misinformation.

The BJPs IT department head Amit Malviya also said Dorsey had violated the countrys laws between 2020 and 2022 when he was at the helm of affairs.

In an interview late on Monday to YouTube channel Breaking Points, Dorsey spoke about the requests made by the Indian Government to Twitter.

When asked about the pressures he had received from foreign Governments during his time as CEO of Twitter, Dorsey disclosed that Twitter received numerous demands related to accounts associated with the farmers protest and journalists who were critical of the Government. The pressure from the Government reportedly involved threats of shutting down Twitter in India, conducting raids on employees homes, and closing Twitter offices unless compliance was ensured.

These actions, as highlighted by Dorsey, raise concerns within the context of a democratic country like India.

India is a country that had many requests of us around the farmers protest, around particular journalists that were critical of the government, and it manifested in ways such as we will shut Twitter down in India, which is a very large market for us; we will raid the homes of your employees, which they did; we will shut down your offices if you dont follow suit, and this is India, a democratic country, he said.

Twitters new CEO, Elon Musk, had also expressed similar views on Indias social media regulations, referring to them as strict. Musk previously stated his preference for complying with Government blocking orders rather than risking the imprisonment of Twitter employees.

The issue at hand draws attention to the challenges faced by Twitter in India, a crucial market for the platform. During the height of the farmers protest in 2021, the Indian Government requested Twitter to remove approximately 1,200 accounts allegedly associated with the Khalistan movement.

Additionally, over 250 accounts were flagged for removal. Although Twitter initially complied by blocking some accounts, it later unblocked them, leading to dissatisfaction within the IT ministry. The platforms subsequent stance, citing the importance of freedom of speech, was met with criticism from the government, which argued that Twitter cannot assume the role of a court and justify non-compliance.

In May 2021, tensions escalated when Twitter flagged posts by leaders of the ruling party as manipulated media. Following this, the Delhi Polices Special Cell, operating under the Union Home Ministry, visited Twitter Indias offices in Delhi and Gurugram to serve a notice to the social media platform.

Countering allegations made by Dorsey, Thakur said it was an attempt to cover up past misdeeds and that Twitters internal communications had exposed that the platform was misused and there was bias and tinkering.

Thakur said many foreign forces get active at the time of elections to vitiate the democratic process and build tension, but such attempts have failed in the past and would not succeed in the future also.

Such elements within the country and abroad will never be able to destabilise the nation which is being led by a strong leader, the Minister told reporters at Shimla in Himachal Pradesh.

Dorsey has woken up after deep slumber and is making allegations to cover up his black deeds, he said.

Malviya said that under Dorsey the firm had turned rogue, disregarding laws of the sovereigns they operated in, muzzling freedom of speech (shadow banning ideologically differing voices) and in many cases promoting secessionist voices and those who were working to exacerbate social fault lines, including several Twitter employees (Dorsey himself is guilty of it)

He said Twitter Files, released after Musk got rid of toxic people in Twitter, is a testimony.

It cant be the case that Twitter was always in the right and every other Government, including their own, in the US, was wrong, said Malviya.

But neither was Twitter ever shut down nor its employees raided or sent to jail, despite Dorsey and his colleagues actively pursuing a policy, which was at loggerheads with Indian regulations. They were also allowing their platform to be used by foreign forces inimical to Indias interest, on several occasions, which posed grave threat to Indias national security and well being, said Malviya.
Three people, including a brother duo, were arrested by the Muzaffarnagar police after they threatened to behead a burqa-clad woman near a liquor shop. The police swung into action after a video went viral on social media.

According to reports, two burqa-clad women were apparently on their way to a liquor shop when Baku aka Shahnawaz, Adil Ahmed, and his brother Sajid Ahmed stopped one of them and started questioning her.

The trio threatened her with dire consequences if she was found near the liquor shop. The two-minute video was recorded by a bystander and shared on social media.

In the purported video, one of the men could be heard arguing with the woman, Why are you buying alcohol, you do not know me, I have been to prison many times on the same charges. I will behead you right now.

As the second woman tried to intervene, the man continued, Do you think beer is fine, I will thrash both of you even if I am jailed. You dont know I have been to jail five to seven times.

Why are you buying alcohol here, you do not know me, I have been to prison many times, one of the men could be heard saying in the footage.

As the man continued asking a woman about the contact details of her family members, the other two joined in and let the women go after warning her.

The incident happened on Sunday night, according to DSP Vikram Ayush. The woman has not filed any police complaint. However, the three men were arrested after authorities took note of the incident and will be produced before a magistrate.
In a move to bolster womens security, the Kejriwal Government has decided to install smart street lights all over Delhi to eliminate dark spots. Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Tuesday granted in principle approval to the Smart Street Light Policy. Under this policy, the Kejriwal Government will install a staggering 90,953 smart street lights throughout the national Capital, covering a wide range of areas to eliminate dark spots.

This will enhance safety by reducing incidents of crimes against women in poorly-lit areas. This extensive installation will include all Public Works Department (PWD) roads, ensuring comprehensive coverage across the city.

The proposal was presented by Cabinet Minister Atishi before the CM during a high-level meeting at the Delhi Secretariat. During the meeting the Public Works Department (PWD) presented the Smart Street Light Scheme to the Chief Minister. PWD officials provided a comprehensive overview of the project, highlighting the outdated technology used in existing street lights, which made it challenging to procure spare parts and led to excessive energy consumption. Consequently, electricity bills soared due to increased usage. Additionally, the manual monitoring of the current street lights made it difficult to address complaints promptly, as real-time monitoring was lacking.

Commenting on the street light policy, Kejriwal stated that the Delhi Government is doing whatever it can in its purview to tighten womens security. Smart street lights will play a pivotal role in eliminating dark spots and instilling a sense of safety among our citizens, particularly women, he added.

To ensure the uninterrupted functioning of the smart street lights, the Chief Minister highlighted the implementation of a robust central monitoring system. In the event of any fault or malfunctioning street light, the control room will be promptly alerted, triggering immediate replacement measures. This proactive approach guarantees a swift response and maintenance, ensuring that no dark spots persist in the city. The government has adopted the Energy Service Company (ESCO) model for the Smart Street Light Policy, centralising the control of smart lights. This central control will enable the control room to promptly identify and rectify any faulty lights. Moreover, many lights remain illuminated during the day on various roads, leading to unnecessary electricity wastage. The scheme aims to address this issue and reduce electricity wastage.

Under the Energy Service Company (ESCO) model, the PWDs electricity bill is expected to be reduced by approximately 50 percent. The savings from reduced electricity bills and maintenance costs will be shared with the concessionaire. Out of the total 90,953 smart LED street lights, 59,572 traditional lights will be replaced with smart LED lights, while 31,381 existing LED lights will be converted into smart street lights. The ESCO agency will bear the maintenance costs for a period of 7 years.

A centralised control monitoring system and individual light monitoring system will be established for effective oversight. The command centre will monitor the operational status, electricity consumption, fault detection, light intensity, historical data logging, Geographic Information System (GIS) integration, and more. The system will also provide information on timers, scheduling, dimming control, and alarm notifications.
Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan transferred an amount of Rs 1209 crore 64 lakh to the accounts of sisters under Mukhyamantri Ladli Bahna Yojana on June 10. In the amount transferred, 98.5 percent of the payments have been successful.

All the remaining 1.5 per cent cases have been identified individually. After finding out the problem, corrective action will be taken in the coming week, so that the amount is deposited in the accounts of the beneficiaries before June 25.

Mukhyamantri Ladli Bahna Yojana has been started in the state for economic self-reliance of women, continuous improvement in their health and nutrition level and to strengthen their role in family decisions. Under the scheme, an amount of Rs 1000 per month will be deposited in their bank accounts. Chief Minister Chouhan said that the amount of Rs 1000 per month received by the sisters will be increased to Rs 3 thousand respectively. As a result of the necessary financial arrangements, instead of Rs.1000 in the scheme, the amount will be increased to Rs.1250, Rs.1500, Rs. 2000, Rs.2250, Rs.2500, Rs. 2750 and finally Rs 3000 respectively. Similarly, the minimum age of married eligible woman for the scheme has been reduce to 21 from 23 years.

Presently married women in the 23-60 age group are eligible in the scheme. If a woman of a family above 60 years of age is getting less than Rs.1000 per month in Social Security Pension Scheme or any other scheme, then additional amount will be accepted in the scheme so that she can get a total amount of Rs.1000.

Chief Minister Chouhan said that families where there are tractors will also be benefited under the Ladli Bahna Yojana. Tractor will not be considered in the category of four wheeler. Therefore, the sisters of these families will also get Rs.1000 per month.

Ladli Bahna Senas will also be formed. An army consisting of 21 members will be formed in big villages and 11 members in small villages. Ladli Bahna Senas will fight against injustice and exploitation. Ladli Bahna Sena will help women to get benefits of their welfare schemes.
In a sigh of relief to the ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in general and Punjab Cabinet Minister Lal Chand Kataruchak in particular, ahead of the Punjab Assemblys two-day special session, the alleged victim has withdrawn the sexual misconduct complaint he had submitted to the National Commission for Scheduled Castes (NCSC) against the Minister.



The Gurdaspur-based victim, who identified himself as Keshav Kumar, had filed a complaint with the national SC panel against Kataruchak in May, accusing the Minister of sexual misconduct, and sexually harassing and exploiting him on the promise of a government job. In fact, Keshav had on camera narrated the entire sequence of events, highlighting how the Minister had forced him into a relationship on the pretext of giving him a job.



The NCSC had, till date, issued three notices to the State Government asking the Chief Secretary and the DGP to submit the action taken report in the matter.



On the other hand, Punjab Governor Banwarilal Purohit  who had also received a complaint by the Congress MLA Sukhpal Singh Khaira demanding forensic examination of the videos  purported to be of Kataruchak and Keshav  had also sought written three letters to the Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann asking for action taken in the matter while also furnishing the forensic report of the videos.



Targeting the AAP-led State Government over the issue, the opposition parties are accusing AAP and the Chief Minister of shielding the tainted Minister, and being anti-Dalit.



Now in the latest developments, days ahead of the assembly session in which AAP is planning to bring a privilege motion against the Leader of Opposition Partap Singh Bajwa for allegedly insulting the Dalits, victim Keshav had withdrawn the complaint in his recent appearance before the SIT.



The victim has reportedly told the SIT, headed by DIG Border Range Amritsar Narinder Bhargava, that he had lost his mobile phone, and later someone showed his doctored video having him and the Minister in it.



Informing the national SC panel about the same, the SIT submitted that the complainant has withdrawn the complaint against kataruchak.



The SIT also submitted that it did not make out a case in the first place as Keshav was not minor at the time Kataruchak had an alleged sexual relationship with him, and both the complainant and the accused were Scheduled Castes and the case did not fall within the purview of the SC Commission.



However, the NCSC is yet to react on the developments.



The NCSC had issued the first notice to the State Government on May 5, with the directions to the Chief Secretary and DGP to submit an immediate action taken report and provide security to the victim who was allegedly receiving threat calls from the Minister. Even as the State Government had, on May 8 following the notice, constituted a three-member Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe into the matter, no action taken report was submitted before the Commission.



Subsequent to which, the NCSC had, on May 25, issued a second notice to the State Government. Citing threats of life to the victim, the NCSC had then asked the officials and the police to record the statement of the victim by video-conference or in person in Delhi, provide him proper security, and submit the report by June 1. However, no response was submitted by the Government.



Taking serious note of the state governments lackadaisical and reluctant approach towards proving justice to the Scheduled Caste residents of the state, the NCSC had issued the third notice on June 6 directing the Chief Secretary, Director General of Police, and DIG Border Range Amritsar to immediately record statements of the victim by video-conference or in person in Delhi, besides providing him security, and submit the ATR by June 12  that is Monday.



Responding on the development, AAPs chief spokesperson Malvinder Singh Kang said that the Punjab Government had formed a SIT into the case. After having investigated (the case), true facts have come to light now. The complainant has withdrawn the complaint. It is now clear that it was a propaganda by the Opposition. Actual facts are tumbling out now.



Opposition raises questions; Sirsa says will move HC

Punjabs Opposition parties on raised questions at the AAP-led State Government over the withdrawal of complaint by the victim. Congress MLA Sukhpal Singh Khaira, who was the first one to highlight the issues and complained to the Governor without disclosing the Ministers name, on Tuesday tweeted, Im appalled by the logic of SIT set up by @BhagwantMann that since complainant Keshav has withdrawn his complaint, tainted Minister Kataruchak is given a clean chit!



SAD leader Bikram Singh Majithia, in a letter to the Governor, reminding him how he had got the video checked from the forensic experts and it was found that the video was authentic.



As we all understand, this fact alone was enough for the AAP Government and the Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann to act against the Minister and dismiss him promptly from the government besides registering a criminal case against him. Sadly, this was not done and the AAP government also tried to cover up the crimes done by the minister by asserting the opposition was making baseless allegations, he alleged.



Expressing surprise, senior BJP leader Manjinder Singh Sirsa declared that he will move the High Court to seek a CBI inquiry into the case. I had no faith in the Punjab Police. I was already prepared. I will move the HC now and seek an independent inquiry, he said.


MBABANE - SNAT President Mbongwa Dlamini claims that with Judge Abande Dlamini, they would sometimes meet and go for drinks in various bars in Manzini, including Kai Kai.

He wants the judge to recuse himself from presiding over his matter as he was allegedly personally known to him.The matter in which Mbongwa wants the judge to recuse himself is where he is seeking an order to interdict government from proceeding with his disciplinary hearing. Mbongwas Lawyer, Lucky Howe, yesterday filed a full-blown application, where he is seeking an order that Judge Dlamini should recuse himself. The application comes after the judge refused to recuse himself when approached in his chambers by Mbongwas attorney.

Considerable

In his application, Mbongwa submitted that the judge was known to him personally and had been known to him for a considerable amount of time, to the extent that they were very close and had always been.According to the president of the Swaziland National Association of Teachers (SNAT), the first time they allegedly met with Judge Dlamini, the latter was working, with Attorney Dominic Mngomezulu in Manzini.We would frequently, as we do even now, meet and go for drinks in various bars in Manzini including the infamous Kai Kai, submitted the applicant (Mbongwa). He alleged that recently they were together at a pub in Ngculwini known as Pixies, where they shared drinks. It is a notorious fact that the honourable justice has been charged criminally, for having unlawfully fired his firearm in a public place on several occasions in Manzini and elsewhere, alleged the applicant.

The SNAT president further submitted that their alleged friendship extended even further, to the extent that when the judge purchased his motor vehicle, a black Mercedes-Benz in South Africa, he called to advise him that he had bought a new vehicle and he showed it to him.The proximity between us is too close, to the extent that I believe that it will violate the requirements of the provisions of Section 21 of the Constitution, which requires that the court should be independent, impartial and fair in the execution of its duties in all matters before it, averred Mbongwa.It was his contention that Judge Dlamini would, therefore, never be impartial towards a matter involving him, hence the need for his recusal.He went on to claim that the judge could not execute his duties as dictated by the Constitution.

In his affidavit, Mbongwa further alleged that the judge made some utterances when he met him after delivering a judgment in the matter between the minister of Labour and Social Security against The National Public Service and Allied Workers Union and SNAT. He contended that, what was concerning was the conduct of the judge, after the judgment. Mbongwa alleged that the judge met him in Manzini, Galp Filling Station near Manzini Central High School, randomly while he (Mbongwa) was in the general area. These are allegations contained in an affidavit whose veracity is still to be tested in court and the respondents are yet to file their papers.He approached me as he always does, being a friend and a close one at that, and the words he uttered disturbed me and gave me a reason to believe that he is incapable of being impartial when handling my matter, alleged the applicant.He alleged that Judge Dlamini said; The problem with you Mbongwa and the unions is that when you want to demonstrate or strike, you involve political parties and that is why youve lost the case.

This, according to Mbongwa, was the same day the judge allegedly showed him his new car, which he had just collected from the Republic of South Africa. Mbongwa submitted that he had been advised that when his lawyer approached Judge Dlamini in the presence of Assistant Attorney General (AAG) Mbuso Simelane, he (judge) denied having any relationship with him to the extent that he informed his (Mbongwa) lawyer that he only knew his name and not the person he submitted in court. It was also his contention that their relationship was very close, which the judge could not deny.

Hospitalised

The one incident where the honourable justice had his firearm taken away from him after he attempted to shoot Eno, after he had shot certain persons, who then were hospitalised, is known to me personally and the judge, alleged Mbongwa.He submitted that the people who were allegedly shot by the judge in this particular instance, were known to him personally, and the judge very closely. For the justice to not be honourable and to not admit to close relationship between myself and him clearly indicates that he can never be impartial towards me and further can never apply his mind in this particular matter, he argued. The applicant said he had been advised by his attorney that in terms of the Bangalore Principles, a judge should discharge his duty as a judicial officer without favour, bias or prejudice at all times.Further, the said principles dictate that he shall conduct himself in court and outside court in such a way that maintains and enhances the confidence in the public of the legal profession and the litigants before him. With respect and in light of what I have submitted, the judge does not meet this requirement and, therefore, must recuse himself in this regard, he argued.The honourable justice on being charged with the said offence, which remains unprosecuted due to reasons beyond ones comprehension, and in terms of the Bangalore Principles, should have submitted himself to prosecution to prove his innocence and in the interim he should not hear and or adjudicate any matters before the Industrial Court of Eswatini, averred the applicant.

Principles

This, according to the applicant, the judge should have done voluntarily to show that he upheld the principles of his profession close to his heart at all times.Therefore, for the reasons stated above and for the clear bias which has been demonstrated by the honourable justice and the clear violations of his code of conduct and the denial that was made by him of any knowledge of our relationship and proximity leads me to believe that he will not be competent, independent and impartial as the law dictates, he argued. He submitted that there was allegedly a reasonable apprehension that Judge Dlamini would allegedly be biased towards him for fear of what might befall him and further in fear for his tenure in office.According to Mbongwa, the judge had allegedly demonstrated this previously and in the present matter. The matter will be argued on Tuesday and the respondents are yet to file their papers.
Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel on Tuesday denounced the BJP for trying to take credit for paddy procurement. It is only the Chhattisgarh government which procures farmers paddy, he said.

He told reporters here that if the BJP claims that it bears the cost of paddy procurement from farmers, then the Modi government should procure it in Chhattisgarh through the Food Corporation of India as done in Punjab and Haryana.

In Chhattisgarh, the salary of staff involved in entire procurement process is borne by the state government, he said.

The state is auctions surplus paddy at Rs 1,300-1,400 per quintal while it is procured at Rs 2,100, he said.

The loss due to the difference amount is borne by state government and not the Centre, he adeed.
A class 12 girl student committed suicide by hanging with the ceiling in Chhola Mandir area, girl was alone in the house at the time of the incident, her grandmother had gone to attend religious preaching of Pradeep Mishra.

After the grandmother returned the girl was found hanging from the ceiling. No suicide note has been found by the police. The police have seized the girl's mobile and are investigating.

SI Sumer Tekam said that Shubhi Sahu (19) of Kalyan Nagar, Chhola Mandir was a class 12 student. Her mother died in Corona while father runs a vegetable shop . At 3.30 pm on Monday, she was alone at home. Her grandmother went to listen to the religious preaching of Pradeep Mishra during which she committed suicide.

The grandmother failed to get a response and when the family checked throught the window she was found hanging. With the help of neighbors they broke the door down and rushed to the hospital where the doctors declared him dead. After this informed the police. Police reached the spot and found no suicide note from the spot. The mobile phone of the student has been seized and the investigation is being carried out.

Meanwhile a 21-year-old Gujarat based youth committed suicide by hanging with the ceiling at Startrek hotel under Shahpura police station area on Monday.

Police said that Kaushik Singh was found hanging in his room at the hotel. The details are yet to be investigated. He came to Bhopal for some work and later committed suicide.
Gearing up for the next years Lok Sabha election, the Congress party is likely to remove the in-charge of the Uttarakhand unit of the party Devendra Yadav soon.

It is learnt that the party high command of the Congress is likely to change in-charges in a dozen States along with Uttarakhand. A senior leader of the Congress party confirmed that the party is going to replace Yadav with some senior leader. Another leader of the party informed that Yadav too is not interested to continue in Uttarakhand and is making efforts to become chief of Delhi unit of the Congress party. The Congress MLA Madan Bisht who has remained vocal in his opposition for Yadav hinted on Tuesday that the party would see a new in-charge in next five days. Bisht said that Yadav should have been removed after the defeat of the party in last years Assembly elections. He said that the then Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) president Ganesh Godiyal and Leader of Opposition (LoP) in State Assembly Pritam Singh were replaced after the defeat in the Assembly elections but Yadav continued to function in his position.

Yadav was appointed as Uttarakhand in- charge of Congress in the year 2021. He replaced Anurgarh Narayan Singh. After the Assembly elections, the former PCC president and Chakrata MLA Pritam Singh and his supporters opened a front against Yadav. Later Singh questioned the long absence of Yadav from the State after the loss in the assembly elections. On Tuesday Pritam Singh again launched a veiled attack on Yadav by stating that it is the responsibility of the in-charge to keep the party united.

When asked by The Pioneer the AICC secretary Qazi Nizamuddin refused to comment on the issue. He however added that changing responsibilities is a routine and normal practice. Nizamuddin said that Yadav has performed well in Uttarakhand and under him the party has increased its number of seats in the assembly and total vote share.
Farmers protesting over the MSP for sunflower seeds called off their stir on Tuesday night after an assurance from the state government of ''appropriate price'' for the crop. BKU leader Rakesh Tikait said after fresh talks with the district administration in the evening, the farmers have ended the protest in Kurukshetra's Pipli and the national highway blockade will be lifted.

Kurukshetra Deputy Commissioner (DC) Shantanu Sharma said that farmers have been assured of ''appropriate price'' for sunflower crop. The national highway in Pipli had remained blocked for the second day on Tuesday over the farmers' demand for MSP for sunflower seeds.

The farmers at Pipli in Kurukshetra continued their protest for a second day on Tuesday, blocking the national highway over Minimum Support Price (MSP) for sunflower seeds, triggering a tough time for the commuters.

Farmers slept overnight on the national highway as they installed tents and temporary sheds. Police had to divert the traffic through link roads. Various rounds of talks were held between the district administration and farmer leaders in the past two days but remained inconclusive.

The farmers said they would not leave the highway till the government agreed to procure the oilseeds at the MSP of Rs 6,400 per quintal as announced for the crop by the Central government for 2022-23.

In an affidavit in the Punjab and Haryana High Court, the state government said talks were going on with the farmer leaders and a solution to the problem will be found soon. "Other routes are being used as an alternative to run the traffic smoothly."

The oilseed growers are not happy with the relief announced on June 10 by Chief Minister Khattar, saying it was an attempt to prevent the 'mahapanchayat' called by farmers' associations.

Addressing the 'mahapanchayat', BKU leader Rakesh Tikait said the government should release the farmer leaders who were arrested for blocking the national highway and ensure procurement at the MSP, or protests would be held across the country.

Tikait urged the state government to either meet the demand of the farmers or put those protesting in Jail. After conducting a mahapanchayat on the issue, the protesting farmers started the blockade on National Highway-44, the main route connecting Delhi with Chandigarh and other states of north India.

As the deadlock persisted, some farmers set up tents on the highway to shield themselves from the intense heat. Tikait affirmed that the farmers would not end their protest and demanded that the government either fulfill their demands or take legal action by sending them to jail.

Apart from the MSP for sunflower seeds, the protesting farmers are demanding the release of nine farmer union leaders who were arrested during a protest at Shahabad here recently. Kurukshetra Superintendent of Police Surinder Singh Bhoria said, The district administration is trying to persuade the farmers to lift the blockade and was hopeful that a solution would be found.

A fresh case has been registered against the protesters under relevant provisions of law for blocking the national highway. Prohibitory orders under CrPC Section 144 imposed in an area of 2 km radius of grain market Pipli, where farmers held their mahapanchayat, have been violated.

The 'MSP Dilao, Kisan Bachao Mahapanchayat', called by the BKU (Charuni), was held at a grain market in Pipli close to NH-44. Subsequently, the farmers blocked the highway. The district administration and the police have been making efforts to persuade the protesting farmers to lift the blockade, which has caused inconvenience to commuters.

TRAFFIC ADVISORY

According to the police advisory, commuters coming from the Ambala side have been diverted from Sadhopur to NH152-D (Chandigarh-Hisar) and further commuters can travel via Ismailabad, Karnal and beyond via the NH-44. They can take a turn from Ambala Cantonment bus stand to travel towards Delhi side via Mahesh Nagar, Saha, Radaur, Ladwa, Karnal and further via NH-44.

For traffic from Delhi, the commuters can turn via Indri road from Karnal on the NH-44 and travel via Ladwa, Babain, Shahbad and take the NH-44 for their further destination or turn right from Ladwa Chowk to travel via Radaur and take the NH3-44 (Saharanpur-Panchkula) or travel till Nilokheri in Karnal and take Dhand road to reach Kaul and commute via the NH152D for Ambala.


Free Eye and dental diagnosis camp was organised here at Swarna Jayanti Park on Kolar Road today in the presence of Retired IAS officer KP Rahi.

Blood pressure and diabetes examination were also done in the Camp. Large Number of the people started coming for morning walk in the park today. Sewa Sadan team also visited the park comprising of Volunteers, medical staff, Dentists and Ophthalmologist. Equipment and instruments were also set up in the camp for the diagnosis of the visiting patients. As many as 137 people Came, of these 49 were women and 88 male visitors were examined by the Doctors.

During eye examination 102 persons were found refraction error in their eyes. They were advised to use specs, while 9 persons were ailing with matured cataract. They were advised to go to Sewa Sadan Eye Hospital for their cataract surgeries. Dentists examined 71 people. Out of them 32 were advised for root canal procedure and 22 people Were advised for artificial tooth. During B.P test 12 person were found Hypertensive. They were told for immidiate medication .

Retired IAS officer shri K.P. Rahi appercieted the service spirit of SSEH staff volunteers and Doctors. He said that medical services with Public participation achive effective results . SSEH trustee Suresh Awatramani, Hospital Manager Bharti Janyani, Manoj Dhavadia, eye specialist Dr. Aishwarya Raghuvanshi, Optometrist Eish Chaubey, Dentist Dr Komal Daswani and Dr. Rani Rangwani were mainly persent in the camp.
The scorching heat and dry weather on Tuesday pushed the peak power demand to 7055 megawatt (MW) in the national Capital. This is the first time this summer that power demand has crossed the 7,000 MW-mark.

According to the State Load Dispatch Center (SLDC) real time data, the power demand crossed 7098 MW at 3:29 PM on Tuesday.

The power distribution companies  BRPL (BSES Rajdhani Power Limited) and BYPL (BSES Yamuna Power Limited)  successfully met the peak power demand  3103 MW and 1615 MW, respectively in their areas.

Tata Power Delhi Distribution Limited (TPDDL) has successfully met the power demand of 2,055 MW peak demand so far, said a company spokesperson. According to sources, Delhis peak power demand has seen huge variations this month. It has increased from 4390 MW on June 1 to todays high  an increase of 2708 MW or 61 per cent.

Delhi reeled under hot weather conditions on Monday with the maximum temperature settling at 42 degrees Celsius. The maximum temperature on Tuesday around 42 degree degrees Celsius while several weather stations have recorded 43-44 degree Celsius.

Last year in June, there were nine such occasions when Delhis power demand exceeded 7000 MW, with June 29 setting an all-time high record of 7695 MW. Additionally, June 2022 saw the power demand crossing the 6000 MW mark on 11 occasions and the 5000 MW mark on 8 occasions.

In 2018, the peak power demand breached the 7000 MW mark for the first time, reaching a peak of 7016 MW. The expected peak power demand of around 8100 MW in the present year represents a staggering increase of approximately 280% compared to the peak power demand of 2879 MW recorded in 2002.

Sources said to meet the power demand of approximately 2 crore residents in South, West, East, and Central Delhi, the BSES discoms have made extensive preparations. These arrangements include long-term Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) and banking arrangements with other states such as Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Meghalaya, Himachal Pradesh, and Uttarakhand. Through these arrangements, BSES discoms can procure up to 630 MW BRPL (up to 330 MW) and (up to 300 MW) of power.

It further said that green power will play an important role in ensuring reliable power during the summer months in BSES area.

This includes around 888 MW of solar power from SECI, 486 MW of wind power, 40 MW from Waste-to Energy. BSES efforts in ensuring reliable power are also being helped by 130 MW+ of roof-top solar installed on roof-tops in South, West, East and Central Delhi.

Additionally, BRPL will also procure upto 500 MW through bilateral contract. In case of any unforeseeable contingency, BSES discoms will buy short-term power from the exchange, depending on the time-slot. Adding to these efforts are the advanced load-forecasting statistical and modeling techniques, which use Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning to help the discom accurately forecast the power demand.
Former CM and national vice president of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Raghubar Das, conducted an inspection of the ongoing construction of the new 500-bed MGM Hospital building in Dimna, on Tuesday. The construction work is progressing at a commendable pace, and Das, who laid the foundation stone of the hospital in 2019 during his tenure as Chief Minister, expressed his satisfaction with the progress made thus far.

Accompanied by senior officials and engineers, Raghubar Das visited the construction site to personally assess the development of the new hospital building. The project, initiated during his tenure, holds immense significance in providing quality healthcare services to the people of Jharkhand.

The former CM took great pride in laying the foundation stone of the hospital with his own hands in 2019. Returning to the site for inspection, Das observed the rapid progress made since the construction began. The building is expected to enhance healthcare infrastructure in the region and cater to the increasing demand for medical facilities.

Expressing his satisfaction, Raghubar Das commended the efforts of the construction team and praised the dedication and commitment shown in executing the project. He emphasised the importance of completing the hospital building within the stipulated time frame to ensure that it becomes operational at the earliest. He noted that the project was possible due to the double engine' BJP Government in the State and Centre.

The new MGM Hospital building, equipped with modern amenities and state-of-the-art medical facilities, aims to provide comprehensive healthcare services to the residents of Jharkhand. It will play a crucial role in addressing the healthcare needs of the region and reducing the burden on existing healthcare institutions.

Das highlighted the significance of the hospital in meeting the healthcare requirements of the people, especially during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. He stressed the need for adequate medical infrastructure to combat health crises effectively and assured continued support for the completion of the project.

As the inspection concluded, Das expressed confidence in the progress made and reiterated his commitment to promoting accessible and quality healthcare services in Jharkhand. He expressed gratitude to all those involved in the construction of the hospital and encouraged them to maintain the current pace of work for its timely completion.

The new 500-bed MGM Hospital, whose construction is progressing rapidly, is expected to become a vital healthcare facility for the people of Jharkhand, catering to their medical needs and ensuring better healthcare outcomes.
In view of the proposed Mahapanchayat by Muslims in Dehradun on June 18, the Dehradun senior superintendent of police Daleep Singh Kunwar said that the police will act under the National Security Act (NSA) if harmony, law and order are disrupted in the city. An organisation of the minority community has announced to conduct a Mahapanchayat on June 18 after the announcement of a Mahapanchayat planned by various groups in Uttarkashi's Purola. Javed Khan from Muslim Sewa Sangathan in Dehradun said that their organisation has planned to conduct a Mahapanchayat on June 18 to address two current prominent issues of the State- love Jihad and people harassing and vandalising innocent people of their community in the name of love Jihad.

He said that several representatives of the minority community are expected to participate in the Mahapanchayat in which they will talk about inappropriate acts carried out by some men of their community against young girls and women. "We will raise awareness and talk about how some men involved in such activities are doing things which are immoral and not acceptable in our society. We will tell them our religion does not support such acts," said Khan. He said that their second issue will be how innocent people are being allegedly harassed and their shops are being vandalised in the name of love Jihad. He said that some people are currently exploiting the sensitive situation and harassing innocent people of a minority community and police should act against such offenders. Such people are enemies of the society and police must identify them and act against them accordingly, added Khan.

Meanwhile, the SSP said that a similar Mahapanchayat was also proposed to be organised in the Bhaniyawala area on Monday but the police officials talked to the organisers after which they cancelled it. He said that the police will also talk to the people of the organisation planning to conduct Mahapanchayat on June 18. He said that if the Mahapanchayat is conducted as planned, the police will stay alert and act strictly against those who try to disturb law and order. He said that the police will act against organisers and chief representatives in the event under NSA if they are found to be disrupting harmony among communities, besides disturbing law and order. "We will take all measures to ensure peace, law and order is maintained across the district," added SSP. It is pertinent to mention here that NSA empowers the police to detain a person without a formal charge and without trial.
Preparations are in full swing for the highly-anticipated Pran Pratishtha Mahotsav (idol installation ceremony) of Ram Lalla at the magnificent Ram temple in Ayodhya. The likely date of installation is January 22, 2024, which is considered to be the most auspicious day.

However, the discussions are underway regarding possible dates for the Pran Pratishtha ceremony. The Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust has sought the expertise of seven astrologers to determine an auspicious time. According to sources, four auspicious dates fall between January 15 and January 25.

An invitation letter has been sent to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on behalf of the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust. However, as of now, no response has been received from the Prime Ministers Office.

Apart from Makar Sankranti, January 21 & 22 are considered favourable dates. January 22 holds particular significance as it coincides with the final day of Shankabhari Navratri and Anandayoga.

January 21 aligns with the auspicious time of Pratapati Yoga and Putrada Ekadashi. Since Republic Day celebrations are held on January 26 in New Delhi, Pran Pratishtha on January 25 is not feasible, Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust member Anil Mishra said.

Mishra said that significant progress had been made in the construction of the ground floor of the Ram temple, with completion reaching 85 percent. The roofing work for the ground floor was also 90 percent complete.

The upcoming tasks include the installation of floors, windows, and doors, which are expected to commence shortly. By October 2023, the ground floor, including the sanctum sanctorum, will be ready, Mishra said.

Expert sculptors are diligently crafting the idol that will be consecrated in the temple. Three idols are being carved on separate stones, out of which the best one will be chosen for consecration, while the remaining two will also be given a place of honor within the temple complex, he added.

Preparations are also underway for the Pran Pratishtha Mahotsav, which is expected to span over seven days. The Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust is in the process of forming a 10-member committee to oversee the event.

The event will be celebrated throughout the country, with plans being made to organise rituals in every temple and monastery. The festivities will encompass various rituals and worship ceremonies, including Vastu Puja.

The Pran Pratishtha Mahotsav of Ramlala will be broadcast live across the country, allowing millions of devotees to witness the grand event from the comfort of their homes. Festivities are also being planned in temples and monasteries nationwide, ensuring widespread participation in the joyous occasion.
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A day after Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann had apprised Governor Banwarilal Purohit how he had failed in his constitutional duty until he was reminded about it by citing a judgment of Apex Court, the states Constitutional Head on Tuesday reminded the latter of the dereliction of constitutional duty while citing the same judgment by the Supreme Court.



Purohit, in a letter to Mann, accused the Aam Aadmi Party-led State Government of indifference in furnishing the information sought by him through his various letters.



Quoting the relevant portion of the Supreme Courts orders, dated February 28, 2023, passed on the State Governments plea, the Governor reminded the Chief Minister that the information sought by him through his various letters is yet to be furnished. This is a dereliction of Constitutional duty as observed by the Honble Supreme Court of India, he added.



The Governor has quoted the Supreme Courts observation in his letter, which read, It would be necessary to underscore that both the Chief Minister and the Governor are constitutional functionaries who have specified roles and obligations earmarked by the Constitution. The Governor has a right to seek information from the Chief Minister in terms of Article 167 (b) on matters relating to the administration of the affairs of the State and proposals for legislation. Once such information is sought, the Chief Minister is duty-bound to furnish it. The tones and tenor of the tweet and the letter by the Chief Minister leave much to be desired. Not furnishing the information which was sought by the Governor would be plainly in dereliction of the Constitutional duty which is imposed on the Chief Minister in terms of Article 167 (b).



The Supreme Court order had made it clear that the Governor and the State Government have to listen to each other in the matters of convening sessions and providing information.



The judgment by the Bench, headed by the Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, had also sent out a strong message to both Governor Purohit and Chief Minister Mann, who were at loggerheads with one another for months over a slew of issues  making it clear that the Governor was duty-bound to summon the assembly session once the State Cabinet recommends it, and so is the Chief Minister to furnish the information sought by the Governor.



With the Apex Courts order, it was expected that the tug of war  that has been going on between the two, having larger political ramifications  would come to an end, leading to smooth functioning in the state. However, the situation remained unchanged.



The two continue to be at loggerheads over one issue after another. To date, the State Government has not replied to the issues and queries raised by the Governor despite the Supreme Court orders.



The Governor, in the past, had sought clarification on the State Governments several decisions, including principals training in Singapore, SC scholarship, the appointment of IPS Kuldeep Singh Chahal, Punjab Infotech chairman, and Punjab Agriculture University Vice-Chancellor, among others. Only recently, the Governor had written to the Chief Minister, for the third time, asking what action has been initiated against the Cabinet Minister Lal Chand Kataruchak, facing allegations of sexual misconduct  but there was no response by the Government.



Also responding to the Chief Ministers allegations regarding the Governors refusal to refer to AAP-led Punjab Government as My Government in his address to the assembly, Purohit said that he instantly accepted the suggestion, while delivering the speech itself, whereas the Chief Minister has been indifferent to the orders of the Supreme Court of India which were passed about four months ago.



Notably, the two leaders engaged in a war of words on Monday following Chief Minister Manns allegations against the Governor claiming that Purohit refused to refer to AAP Government as My Government during his address to the Punjab Assembly on the first day of the budget session in June last  an accusation outrightly rejected by the Governor while asking Mann to furnish the proof. Within hours, Mann released a video clip as a proof.



Responding to the media queries regarding the same on Monday, Purohit had reminded Mann of the disregard he has been doing to the Governors position by not responding to his letters despite the Supreme Courts directions. At the same time, Purohit had claimed that he had never asked to remove the my government words from the Governors Address.



Why would I say this when it is my government! When all the orders are issued under my signature, why would I say this, he had said, a day before.



To substantiate his claims, Chief Minister had shared a video of the Vidhan Sabha proceedings on his Twitter handle, in which Governor was seen referring to AAP government as government instead of the written My Government after the Leader of Opposition Pratap Singh Bajwa objected to it.



Honorable Governor Sir take video evidence as per your demandFirst you said My Government, then on opposition's request you started saying only GovernmentWhen I told you about Supreme Court's order that you will have to speak what is written. While justifying, they started saying MY Government..Rajpal sir, I do not speak without facts..., Mann had tweeted alowng with the video.



Mann, in an official statement released later on Monday evening, had apprised the Governor how he had failed in his constitutional duty until he was reminded about it by citing a judgment of Apex Court.




New Delhi, June 14 (UNI) Congress on Wednesday took a swipe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the Manipur situation saying the 'agony' of the people of the Northeastern state continues 'unabated', but the PM is still silent.

'The agony of the people of Manipur continues unabated. Their agony is the nation's pain but clearly not the PM's. He continues to maintain silence," said Congress general secretary in-charge Communications Jairam Ramesh in a tweet.

Referring to Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma's visit to Manipur, the MP said, "HM's belated visit and outsourced interventions to Assam CM are not having any significant impact."

Earlier, the Congress, which has been blaming the BJP government in Manipur over the current situation in the aftermath of last month's violence, asked the PM to break his silence on the situation in the Northeastern state, and make all efforts to bring normalcy.

The Congress also demanded that an all-party delegation should be allowed to go to Manipur to visit all the affected areas and meet all stakeholders.

UNI DS ARN
Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel and School Education Minister Dr Premsai Singh Tekams message will be read out on day one of the month-long Shala Pravesh Utsav starting from June 16.

The local public representatives will welcome the new students and different goods will be distributed, an official communication said on Tuesday.

Special programmes will be organised during the first 10 days to ensure public participation.

In guidelines to District Collectors and Chief Executive Officers of Zila Panchayats, the School Education Department has asked them to make the event a mass campaign.

A door-to-door campaign will be held on the third day so that all eligible children are admitted in schools. Parents will be motivated to ensure regular attendance of children.

Students will be taken on excursions on the fourth day. They will be given a book Gadbo Nava Chhattisgarh.

On the fifth day, children will be involved in solving various mathematics problems individually and in groups.

Sports activities will be conducted for children and toys. Children will be motivated to read books.
Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan has given instructions to submit the inquiry report of Satpura Bhavan fire incident in 3 days. Chief Minister Chouhan has said that it is a matter of satisfaction that there was no loss of life in the unfortunate incident.

The offices which have been affected by the fire should be shifted to other buildings and work should be started immediately so that government work is not affected. Records should be maintained by retrieving government documents digitally.

Chief Minister Chouhan gave these instructions in a high-level meeting on the fire incident at Satpura Bhavan. Home Minister Dr Narottam Mishra, Medical Education Minister Vishwas Sarang, Public Health and Family Welfare Minister Prabhuram Chowdhary and Chief Secretary Iqbal Singh Bains were present in the meeting held at residence office Samatva Bhavan.

Chief Minister Chouhan said that concrete arrangements should be made for fire safety audit so that such accidents do not happen in future. It is also necessary to ensure that space is available around all multistoried buildings to operate the fire fighting system. It was informed in the meeting that teams of Army, CISF, BHEL and Airport Authority were activated to control the fire. Additional Chief Secretary Home Rajesh Rajoura, Additional Chief Secretary Health and Family Welfare Mohammad Suleman, Principal Secretary Neeraj Mandloi, Pallavi Jain Govil, Sukhbir Singh were present in the meeting.
Defense Minister Rajnath Singh has said that the farmer is not only the provider of food, but also the creator of Indias destiny. The sons of the farmer have guarded the borders. To make India strong, farmers have to be made strong. Whether it was the freedom struggle, the struggle of 1857, the Satyagraha of Champaran or the movement of Bardoli in Gujarat, the farmers shook the Britishers. Today, the presence of a large number of farmers in this Kisan-Kalyan Mahakumbh in Madhya Pradesh is heartening. Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan is doing miraculous work for development and farmers, poor, daughters etc. in the state. He is working wholeheartedly for the public. Today I am seeing how much people love him. Defense Minister Singh was addressing the Kisan-Kalyan Mahakumbh in Rajgarh district. Chief Minister Chouhan said that in the Mukhyamantri Kisan-Kalyan Yojana, instead of Rs 4 thousand, the state government will now provide Rs 6 thousand to the farmers every year. In the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi, farmers get Rs 6 thousand every year. In this way, now the amount received by the farmers will be Rs 12 thousand annually.

The Chief Minister said that such families that own tractors will also be benefitted under the Mukhya Mantri Ladli Bahna Yojana. Tractor will not be considered in the category of four wheeler. The sisters of these families will also get Rs.1000 per month. He said that fertilizers are available in sufficient quantity. The state government will also pay the interest of 3 months for the advance lifting of fertilizers and seeds. He told the farmers that the procurement of moong at the support price would start soon.

Union Defense Minister Singh and Chief Minister Chouhan, transferred Rs 2 thousand 123 crores in the accounts of 11 lakh farmers in the Chief Minister Farmers Interest Waiver Scheme-2023, Rs 2 thousand 900 crores in the accounts of 44 lakh 49 thousand farmers in the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana and Rs One thousand 400 crore in the accounts of 70 lakh 61 thousand farmers under the Mukhya Mantri Kisan Kalyan Yojana, thus transferring an amount of a total Rs 6 thousand 423 crore. Along with the farmers, a large number of sisters and daughters gathered in the programme.

Defense Minister Singh said that India is no longer a weak country. No country has the courage to raise its eyes and look at us. The people of India have faith in Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam. We consider all the people living on the earth of the world as our own. India does not attack any country, this is our character. We will not attack anyone, but if anyone attacks us, we will not leave them either. India can teach a lesson to terrorists and attackers not only within but outside the country as well. This has become evident from the decision of surgical strike by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Union Minister Singh said that importance is being given to women in the army. Now they are not only joining the army in large numbers, but have also become ready for leadership. The flagship of a major naval warship is also headed by a woman. Sisters have an important role in building a new India. Prime Minister Modi has done the work of increasing the participation of sisters.

Defense Minister Singh said that Chief Minister Chouhan has done miraculous work in various fields including farmers welfare. He remembers that when he came to Madhya Pradesh several years before on the invitation of Chief Minister Chouhan to attend the Kisan Sammelan, the farmers used to get loans at 4 percent interest, which the Chief Minister worked to bring down to zero percent.
The Delhi Government will bring a one-time settlement scheme for the water bills of 11.7 lakh domestic consumers who have arrears.

Addressing a Press conference at the Delhi Secretariat, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal announced the Governments plans to implement the scheme from August 1 and said the consumers would receive corrected bills after that. There has been a severe accumulation of water bills. During the COVID-19 pandemic, meter readings could not be taken. Meter readers filed false readings and therefore, people received wrong bills. There are 27.6 lakh domestic meters in Delhi and of these, 11.7 lakh bills have arrears and they have not been submitted. The arrears are to the tune of Rs 5,737 crore, he said.

Explaining the scheme, the Chief Minister said it will be divided into two sub-heads  one will cover those who have two or more correct readings and the other will cover those who have one or no correct meter reading.

Had we gone about correcting every bill, it would have taken us more than 100 years to rectify those. Through this scheme, we will settle the bills of 11.7 lakh consumers. In fact, of these 11.7 lakh consumers, seven lakh will get zero bills following the implementation of the scheme, he said.

Kejriwal said the scheme has been approved by the Delhi Jal Board (DJB) and will come to the cabinet soon. After the implementation of the scheme, the consumers will be given three months to pay the bills. If they fail to pay the bills within the three months, they will have to pay the bills with arrears, Kejriwal said. He added that the government is taking steps to stop wrong meter readings.

Meanwhile, Delhi BJP slammed the Kejriwal government for failing to improve the functioning the jal board. Delhi BJP president Virendra Sachdeva said that DJB has become a white elephant under Kejriwal Government. On one hand it is a source of corruption & theft of government revenue while on the other hand it is looting and harrasing consumers too. During the last five years Kejriwal government has every year brought the so called One Time Bill Settlement Schemes for water consumers but despite that the number of unsatisfied consumers has not gone down. Since 2017-18 till day if we recall the CMs or Water Ministers announcements the number of aggrieved consumers in every yearly announcement hovers around 11 lakhs, Sachdeva said. Delhi BJP President has demanded that Delhi Jal Board should immediately replace all Automatic Air Flow Meters with IP 68 Meters or any such compatible meter as being demanded by RWAs across the city.
A nine-year-old girl was stabbed to death with a kitchen knife allegedly by her mother over a tiff with the latter in Sultanpur district on Tuesday. The accused was arrested by police and booked for murdered.

The girl, who was bleeding profusely after her mother slit her throat, was initially taken to a community health centre in Chanda but was referred to a higher facility owing to her critical condition. The accused, Neelu of Vivek Nagar ward in Koiripur outpost area under Chanda Kotwali, got into an argument with her daughter Paridhi on Tuesday morning.

Neelu, who was cutting vegetables, lost her temper following a confrontation with her daughter over some issue and slit the latters throat with the kitchen knife. The girl was given first aid at the CHC and then referred to the Government Medical College in Sultanpur. However, her condition worsened on the way. The ambulance driver left the girl at Lambhua CHC and ran away.

At the Lambhua CHC, doctors examined the girl and referred her to the State Medical Hospital, but the ambulance had left by then. The girl succumbed soon due to lack of treatment.

Paridhis father Rahul Pandey had died four years ago. Her mother remarried a year ago and started living with her husband in Mumbai. However, three months back, she came to her parents home with her daughter after her mental condition deteriorated.

She was undergoing treatment in Prayagraj. Lambhua CO Abdul Salam said that the police were probing into every aspect of the case.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas began a visit to China on Tuesday that comes as Beijing is seeking a larger role in Middle East politics and competing for energy resources.

In announcing the visit, Chinas Foreign Ministry said China was willing to help broker relations between the Palestinian Authority and the Israeli government that have deteriorated to the lowest level in recent years. The ministry did not say who Abbas would meet in Beijing or give other details of his four-day visit.

Increased fighting over the last year between Israel and the Palestinians in the West Bank has resulted in the deadliest period of violence between the sides in years in that territory.

The visit also comes after China hosted talks between Iran and Saudi Arabia that resulted in the two restoring diplomatic relations.
StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Core Laboratories (NYSE:CLB  Get Rating) in a report released on Sunday. The brokerage issued a hold rating on the oil and gas companys stock.

CLB has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Piper Sandler increased their price target on shares of Core Laboratories from $18.00 to $19.00 in a report on Monday, May 1st. Bank of America downgraded shares of Core Laboratories from a neutral rating to an underperform rating and set a $21.50 price target on the stock. in a research report on Tuesday, April 18th. They noted that the move was a valuation call. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on shares of Core Laboratories from $24.00 to $25.00 in a research report on Friday, April 28th.

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Core Laboratories Stock Up 1.9 %

CLB opened at $23.24 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $22.45 and a 200-day moving average price of $22.39. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 46.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.63 and a beta of 2.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 2.38 and a quick ratio of 1.68. Core Laboratories has a one year low of $13.19 and a one year high of $26.80.

Core Laboratories Announces Dividend

Core Laboratories ( NYSE:CLB Get Rating ) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 26th. The oil and gas company reported $0.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.14 by ($0.06). The company had revenue of $128.36 million during the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $126.26 million. Core Laboratories had a return on equity of 15.23% and a net margin of 4.72%. Equities research analysts expect that Core Laboratories will post 0.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 30th. Investors of record on Monday, May 8th were paid a dividend of $0.01 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 5th. This represents a $0.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.17%. Core Laboratoriess payout ratio is 8.00%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Core Laboratories

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of CLB. Fred Alger Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Core Laboratories by 1.6% in the 3rd quarter. Fred Alger Management LLC now owns 4,089,324 shares of the oil and gas companys stock worth $55,124,000 after buying an additional 64,734 shares in the last quarter. Disciplined Growth Investors Inc. MN boosted its stake in shares of Core Laboratories by 3.3% during the 3rd quarter. Disciplined Growth Investors Inc. MN now owns 889,561 shares of the oil and gas companys stock worth $11,991,000 after purchasing an additional 28,348 shares during the period. New York Life Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Core Laboratories by 12.7% during the 4th quarter. New York Life Investment Management LLC now owns 17,934 shares of the oil and gas companys stock worth $364,000 after purchasing an additional 2,022 shares during the period. Scout Investments Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Core Laboratories by 7.4% during the 4th quarter. Scout Investments Inc. now owns 306,792 shares of the oil and gas companys stock worth $6,219,000 after purchasing an additional 21,164 shares during the period. Finally, Platinum Investment Management Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Core Laboratories by 24.2% during the 3rd quarter. Platinum Investment Management Ltd. now owns 15,955 shares of the oil and gas companys stock worth $215,000 after purchasing an additional 3,111 shares during the period. 97.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Core Laboratories

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Core Laboratories, Inc provides proprietary and patented reservoir description and production enhancement services. The company was founded on May 1, 2023 and is headquartered in Houston, TX.

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Shares of Fabrinet (NYSE:FN  Get Rating) gapped up prior to trading on Monday after Needham & Company LLC raised their price target on the stock from $120.00 to $150.00. The stock had previously closed at $113.02, but opened at $116.31. Fabrinet shares last traded at $121.08, with a volume of 135,499 shares changing hands.

Several other analysts also recently weighed in on FN. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on Fabrinet from $161.00 to $130.00 and set an overweight rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 19th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on Fabrinet from $39.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a sector perform rating in a report on Wednesday, March 1st. StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Fabrinet in a report on Thursday, May 18th. They issued a hold rating for the company. Northland Securities reduced their target price on shares of Fabrinet from $155.00 to $135.00 in a report on Tuesday, May 9th. Finally, Lake Street Capital initiated coverage on shares of Fabrinet in a report on Friday, April 21st. They issued a buy rating and a $130.00 target price for the company. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $122.57.

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Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Homa Bahrami sold 1,400 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.05, for a total transaction of $137,270.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 32,739 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $3,210,058.95. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Fabrinet Trading Up 2.5 %

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FN. Signaturefd LLC increased its holdings in shares of Fabrinet by 14.7% during the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 672 shares of the technology companys stock worth $86,000 after buying an additional 86 shares during the last quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC raised its holdings in shares of Fabrinet by 2.8% during the 4th quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 3,262 shares of the technology companys stock valued at $418,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares in the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Fabrinet by 39.9% during the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 417 shares of the technology companys stock valued at $50,000 after purchasing an additional 119 shares in the last quarter. Boston Partners raised its holdings in Fabrinet by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter. Boston Partners now owns 6,327 shares of the technology companys stock worth $604,000 after acquiring an additional 125 shares during the period. Finally, Evergreen Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Fabrinet by 6.2% in the 1st quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 2,142 shares of the technology companys stock worth $225,000 after acquiring an additional 125 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.13% of the companys stock.

The firms fifty day moving average price is $101.66 and its 200-day moving average price is $117.19. The company has a market cap of $4.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.72 and a beta of 1.13.

Fabrinet (NYSE:FN  Get Rating) last issued its earnings results on Monday, May 8th. The technology company reported $1.76 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.71 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $665.28 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $650.88 million. Fabrinet had a net margin of 9.44% and a return on equity of 18.55%. As a group, research analysts forecast that Fabrinet will post 6.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About Fabrinet

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Fabrinet provides optical packaging and precision optical, electro-mechanical, and electronic manufacturing services in North America, the Asia-Pacific, and Europe. The company offers a range of advanced optical and electro-mechanical capabilities in the manufacturing process, including process design and engineering, supply chain management, manufacturing, printed circuit board assembly, advanced packaging, integration, final assembly, and testing.

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Golden Minerals (NYSEAMERICAN:AUMN  Get Rating) (TSE:AUM) was the recipient of a significant decrease in short interest in May. As of May 31st, there was short interest totalling 58,500 shares, a decrease of 96.2% from the May 15th total of 1,550,000 shares. Approximately 1.1% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 42,500 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.4 days.

Institutional Trading of Golden Minerals

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. State Street Corp increased its stake in shares of Golden Minerals by 62.4% in the 1st quarter. State Street Corp now owns 255,615 shares of the basic materials companys stock valued at $128,000 after acquiring an additional 98,236 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Golden Minerals by 275.2% in the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 148,408 shares of the basic materials companys stock valued at $53,000 after acquiring an additional 108,858 shares in the last quarter. Virtu Financial LLC increased its stake in shares of Golden Minerals by 264.2% in the 1st quarter. Virtu Financial LLC now owns 153,867 shares of the basic materials companys stock valued at $77,000 after acquiring an additional 111,616 shares in the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC increased its stake in shares of Golden Minerals by 49.5% in the 3rd quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 341,788 shares of the basic materials companys stock valued at $88,000 after acquiring an additional 113,100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Citadel Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Golden Minerals by 126.3% in the 3rd quarter. Citadel Advisors LLC now owns 274,079 shares of the basic materials companys stock valued at $71,000 after acquiring an additional 152,974 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 9.73% of the companys stock.

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Golden Minerals Stock Down 1.8 %

Shares of AUMN stock traded down $0.04 on Tuesday, reaching $2.19. The company had a trading volume of 123,710 shares, compared to its average volume of 32,780. The stock has a market capitalization of $377.05 million, a PE ratio of -36.50 and a beta of 0.86. Golden Minerals has a one year low of $2.02 and a one year high of $9.73. The businesss 50-day moving average is $4.87 and its 200 day moving average is $5.87.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Golden Minerals ( NYSEAMERICAN:AUMN Get Rating ) (TSE:AUM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, March 22nd. The basic materials company reported ($0.02) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The business had revenue of $4.59 million during the quarter. Golden Minerals had a negative net margin of 42.54% and a negative return on equity of 94.48%.

Several research firms have commented on AUMN. Fundamental Research set a $19.25 price objective on shares of Golden Minerals and gave the company a buy rating in a report on Tuesday, April 4th. StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Golden Minerals in a report on Sunday. They issued a hold rating on the stock. Finally, HC Wainwright reiterated a buy rating and issued a $15.00 price objective on shares of Golden Minerals in a report on Wednesday, March 15th.

About Golden Minerals

(Get Rating)

Golden Minerals Company, a precious metals exploration company, mines, constructs, and explores for mineral properties containing precious metals. It explores for gold, silver, zinc, lead, and other minerals. The company holds a 100% interest in the Rodeo gold mine situated in Durango State, Mexico; and a 100% interest in the Velardena and Chicago gold-silver mining properties and associated oxide and sulfide processing plants located in the State of Durango, Mexico.

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Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. (NYSE:NCLH  Get Rating) was the target of some unusual options trading on Tuesday. Investors purchased 37,407 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of 14% compared to the typical daily volume of 32,848 call options.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have weighed in on NCLH shares. Citigroup cut their price target on Norwegian Cruise Line from $18.00 to $16.00 and set a neutral rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 2nd. Barclays cut their target price on Norwegian Cruise Line from $15.00 to $14.00 and set an equal weight rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 1st. StockNews.com started coverage on Norwegian Cruise Line in a research report on Thursday, May 18th. They set a sell rating on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on Norwegian Cruise Line from $21.00 to $22.00 in a research report on Tuesday, May 2nd. Finally, Susquehanna cut their target price on Norwegian Cruise Line from $20.00 to $15.00 and set a positive rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 29th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of Hold and an average target price of $16.75.

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Norwegian Cruise Line Stock Performance

NYSE NCLH traded up $1.06 on Tuesday, hitting $19.47. 22,904,544 shares of the companys stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 14,567,595. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 184.14, a current ratio of 0.29 and a quick ratio of 0.26. The firms 50-day moving average price is $14.25 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $14.40. Norwegian Cruise Line has a fifty-two week low of $10.31 and a fifty-two week high of $19.59. The firm has a market cap of $8.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -5.64 and a beta of 2.49.

Insider Activity

Norwegian Cruise Line ( NYSE:NCLH Get Rating ) last released its earnings results on Monday, May 1st. The company reported ($0.30) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.51) by $0.21. Norwegian Cruise Line had a negative return on equity of 448.59% and a negative net margin of 23.54%. The company had revenue of $1.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $1.74 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted ($1.90) EPS. The firms quarterly revenue was up 249.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Norwegian Cruise Line will post 0.52 EPS for the current year.

In other news, CFO Mark Kempa sold 4,700 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.04, for a total value of $75,388.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 241,021 shares in the company, valued at $3,865,976.84. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Norwegian Cruise Line news, CFO Mark Kempa sold 4,700 shares of the firms stock in a transaction on Friday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.04, for a total value of $75,388.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 241,021 shares in the company, valued at $3,865,976.84. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Rio Frank J. Del sold 300,000 shares of the firms stock in a transaction on Monday, June 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $18.44, for a total value of $5,532,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 926,505 shares in the company, valued at $17,084,752.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.87% of the companys stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Norwegian Cruise Line

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Prospera Financial Services Inc boosted its stake in shares of Norwegian Cruise Line by 2.9% during the 4th quarter. Prospera Financial Services Inc now owns 22,447 shares of the companys stock worth $275,000 after acquiring an additional 630 shares in the last quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund boosted its stake in shares of Norwegian Cruise Line by 5.5% during the 3rd quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund now owns 15,101 shares of the companys stock worth $172,000 after acquiring an additional 782 shares in the last quarter. Koshinski Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Norwegian Cruise Line by 7.6% during the 4th quarter. Koshinski Asset Management Inc. now owns 11,270 shares of the companys stock worth $138,000 after acquiring an additional 792 shares in the last quarter. Quent Capital LLC boosted its stake in shares of Norwegian Cruise Line by 66.5% during the 4th quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 2,064 shares of the companys stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 824 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV lifted its stake in Norwegian Cruise Line by 6.5% in the 1st quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 13,554 shares of the companys stock valued at $182,000 after buying an additional 826 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.17% of the companys stock.

Norwegian Cruise Line Company Profile

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Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd., together with its subsidiaries, operates as a cruise company in North America, Europe, the Asia-Pacific, and internationally. The company operates the Norwegian Cruise Line, Oceania Cruises, and Regent Seven Seas Cruises brands. It offers itineraries ranging from three days to a 180-days calling on various locations, including destinations in Scandinavia, Russia, the Mediterranean, the Greek Isles, Alaska, Canada and New England, Hawaii, Asia, Tahiti and the South Pacific, Australia and New Zealand, Africa, India, South America, the Panama Canal, and the Caribbean.

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Kuwait City, June 14 (UNI) A royal decree was issued to reappoint Sheikh Ahmad Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah as Kuwait's prime minister.

A royal decree issued on Tuesday to reappoint Sheikh Ahmad Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah as Kuwait's prime minister, reported the Kuwait News Agency (KUNA).

The Emiri decree, signed by Kuwait's Crown Prince Sheikh Mishal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, said that Sheikh Ahmad is responsible for nominating new cabinet members and submitting their names, according to the report.

This decree, issued about a week after the Kuwaiti emir accepted the previous government's resignation, came one week before the convening of the newly elected National Assembly (parliament) on June 20.

On June 6, Kuwaiti voters cast their ballots to elect the 17th National Assembly. A total of 50 lawmakers were elected out of 207 candidates in the new legislative body for a term of four years.

Kuwait's parliament, reinstated in March following a Constitutional Court ruling on a previous dissolution, was dissolved by a royal decree in May this year.

Over the past years, tensions between Kuwait's cabinet and the parliament have frequently resulted in cabinet reshuffles and dissolutions of the parliament.

Sheikh Ahmad was born in 1956 as the eldest son of Kuwaiti Emir Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah. He served as the Kuwait National Guard's deputy commander between November 2020 and March 2022 and was first appointed as the prime minister on July 24, 2022.

UNI/XINHUA GNK
iShares MSCI Kokusai ETF (NYSEARCA:TOK  Get Rating) were up 0.7% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $91.22 and last traded at $90.90. Approximately 1,347 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 87% from the average daily volume of 10,183 shares. The stock had previously closed at $90.26.

iShares MSCI Kokusai ETF Trading Up 0.7 %

The company has a market capitalization of $199.98 million, a PE ratio of 16.42 and a beta of 0.99. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $88.44 and a 200-day simple moving average of $85.96.

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Institutional Trading of iShares MSCI Kokusai ETF

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Advisors Preferred LLC purchased a new stake in iShares MSCI Kokusai ETF in the 1st quarter valued at $40,000. OLD Mission Capital LLC purchased a new stake in iShares MSCI Kokusai ETF during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $194,000. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in iShares MSCI Kokusai ETF during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $243,000. Aveo Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in iShares MSCI Kokusai ETF during the 1st quarter worth $391,000. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in iShares MSCI Kokusai ETF during the 1st quarter worth $596,000.

About iShares MSCI Kokusai ETF

The iShares MSCI Kokusai ETF (TOK) is an exchange-traded fund that is based on the MSCI Kokusai (World ex Japan) index. The fund tracks a market cap-weighted index of large- and mid-cap developed market stocks outside of Japan. TOK was launched on Dec 10, 2007 and is managed by BlackRock.

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Kroger (NYSE:KR  Get Rating) will be announcing its 4/30/2023 earnings results before the market opens on Thursday, June 15th. Analysts expect the company to announce earnings of $1.41 per share for the quarter. Investors that are interested in registering for the companys conference call can do so using this link.

Kroger Trading Up 1.0 %

Kroger stock opened at $46.86 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a current ratio of 0.74. The firm has a market cap of $33.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.47. Kroger has a 1 year low of $41.81 and a 1 year high of $52.00. The firms 50 day moving average price is $47.94 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $46.59.

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Insider Buying and Selling at Kroger

In other news, SVP Timothy A. Massa sold 23,000 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.95, for a total transaction of $1,102,850.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 194,956 shares in the company, valued at $9,348,140.20. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, SVP Timothy A. Massa sold 23,000 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.95, for a total transaction of $1,102,850.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 194,956 shares in the company, valued at $9,348,140.20. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Stuart Aitken sold 25,000 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.29, for a total transaction of $1,232,250.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 178,328 shares in the company, valued at $8,789,787.12. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 132,206 shares of company stock worth $6,402,118 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 1.38% of the companys stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Kroger

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of KR. Advisory Services Network LLC increased its stake in Kroger by 18.2% in the first quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC now owns 47,248 shares of the companys stock valued at $2,333,000 after purchasing an additional 7,275 shares in the last quarter. Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC increased its position in shares of Kroger by 1.0% during the first quarter. Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC now owns 378,541 shares of the companys stock worth $18,689,000 after acquiring an additional 3,891 shares in the last quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Kroger during the first quarter worth $64,000. KB Financial Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Kroger during the first quarter worth $28,000. Finally, National Wealth Management Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Kroger during the first quarter worth $546,000. 78.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

KR has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Kroger from a neutral rating to an overweight rating and raised their price target for the company from $50.00 to $54.00 in a report on Friday, March 3rd. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Kroger from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a report on Thursday, June 8th. Telsey Advisory Group cut their price target on shares of Kroger from $64.00 to $55.00 and set an outperform rating on the stock in a report on Friday, March 3rd. Roth Capital restated a neutral rating on shares of Kroger in a report on Friday, March 3rd. Finally, Northcoast Research upgraded shares of Kroger from a neutral rating to a buy rating and set a $60.00 price target on the stock in a report on Monday, March 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $52.31.

About Kroger

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The Kroger Co engages in the operation of supermarkets and multi-department stores. Its brands include Big K, Check This Out?, Heritage Farm, Simple Truth, and Simple Truth Organic. The company was founded by Barney Kroger in 1883 and is headquartered in Cincinnati, OH.

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Tingyi (Cayman Islands) Holding Corp. (OTCMKTS:TCYMF  Get Rating) hit a new 52-week low during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $1.57 and last traded at $1.57, with a volume of 0 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $1.57.

Tingyi (Cayman Islands) Price Performance

The stocks 50-day moving average price is $1.67 and its 200 day moving average price is $1.70.

Tingyi (Cayman Islands) Company Profile

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Tingyi (Cayman Islands) Holding Corp., an investment holding company, manufactures and sells instant noodles, beverages, and instant food products in the People's Republic of China. The company operates through Instant Noodles, Beverages, and Others segments. It offers ready-to-drink teas, juices, bottled water, and carbonated soft drinks, as well as coffee drinks/functional drinks/probiotics.

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UniFirst (NYSE:UNF  Get Rating) was downgraded by research analysts at StockNews.com from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report released on Tuesday.

A number of other research analysts have also recently weighed in on UNF. TheStreet cut shares of UniFirst from a b- rating to a c+ rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 5th. UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of UniFirst in a research note on Wednesday, May 31st. They issued a neutral rating and a $185.00 target price for the company. Finally, Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on shares of UniFirst from $225.00 to $203.00 and set an outperform rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 30th.

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UniFirst Stock Down 0.7 %

Shares of UNF traded down $1.34 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $179.88. 63,604 shares of the companys stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 68,291. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $168.45 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $184.48. UniFirst has a 52-week low of $154.72 and a 52-week high of $205.59. The company has a market cap of $3.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.82 and a beta of 0.89.

Institutional Trading of UniFirst

UniFirst ( NYSE:UNF Get Rating ) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, March 29th. The textile maker reported $0.95 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts consensus estimates of $1.35 by ($0.40). UniFirst had a return on equity of 6.56% and a net margin of 4.88%. The business had revenue of $542.70 million for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $531.68 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.24 earnings per share. The companys revenue for the quarter was up 11.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that UniFirst will post 7.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Citigroup Inc. grew its stake in shares of UniFirst by 6.3% during the 4th quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 10,510 shares of the textile makers stock valued at $2,028,000 after buying an additional 619 shares during the period. California Public Employees Retirement System grew its stake in shares of UniFirst by 7.1% during the 4th quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 38,721 shares of the textile makers stock valued at $7,473,000 after buying an additional 2,569 shares during the period. PDT Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of UniFirst during the 3rd quarter valued at $221,000. Bessemer Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of UniFirst by 4.4% during the 4th quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 29,441 shares of the textile makers stock valued at $5,681,000 after buying an additional 1,245 shares during the period. Finally, CHICAGO TRUST Co NA acquired a new position in shares of UniFirst during the 4th quarter valued at $200,000. 77.73% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

UniFirst Company Profile

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UniFirst Corporation provides workplace uniforms and protective work wear clothing in the United States, Europe, and Canada. The company operates through U.S. and Canadian Rental and Cleaning, Manufacturing, Specialty Garments Rental and Cleaning, and First Aid segments. It designs, manufactures, personalizes, rents, cleans, delivers, and sells a range of uniforms and protective clothing, including shirts, pants, jackets, coveralls, lab coats, smocks, and aprons; and specialized protective wear, such as flame resistant and high visibility garments.

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Fortis Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of iShares 0-5 Year High Yield Corporate Bond ETF (NYSEARCA:SHYG  Get Rating) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 931 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $38,000.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of SHYG. MAS Advisors LLC boosted its stake in iShares 0-5 Year High Yield Corporate Bond ETF by 9.8% during the first quarter. MAS Advisors LLC now owns 41,805 shares of the companys stock worth $1,843,000 after buying an additional 3,722 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in iShares 0-5 Year High Yield Corporate Bond ETF by 42.0% during the first quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 97,630 shares of the companys stock worth $4,292,000 after buying an additional 28,870 shares during the period. US Bancorp DE boosted its stake in iShares 0-5 Year High Yield Corporate Bond ETF by 232.3% during the first quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 2,818 shares of the companys stock worth $124,000 after buying an additional 1,970 shares during the period. Baird Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in iShares 0-5 Year High Yield Corporate Bond ETF by 211.4% during the first quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 14,374 shares of the companys stock worth $632,000 after buying an additional 9,758 shares during the period. Finally, BTS Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in iShares 0-5 Year High Yield Corporate Bond ETF during the first quarter worth about $41,741,000.

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iShares 0-5 Year High Yield Corporate Bond ETF Stock Up 0.1 %

Shares of SHYG stock opened at $41.26 on Wednesday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $41.19 and a two-hundred day moving average of $41.30. iShares 0-5 Year High Yield Corporate Bond ETF has a 1-year low of $39.49 and a 1-year high of $42.78.

About iShares 0-5 Year High Yield Corporate Bond ETF

The iShares 0-5 Year High Yield Corporate Bond ETF (SHYG) is an exchange-traded fund that mostly invests in high yield fixed income. The fund tracks a market-value-weighted index of high-yield USD-denominated bonds with 0-5 years remaining in maturity. SHYG was launched on Oct 15, 2013 and is managed by BlackRock.

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Shares of CEMEX, S.A.B. de C.V. (NYSE:CX  Get Rating) have been given an average rating of Hold by the seven brokerages that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $6.28.

A number of research firms have issued reports on CX. Citigroup lowered shares of CEMEX from a buy rating to a neutral rating in a report on Friday, May 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of CEMEX from a neutral rating to a buy rating and increased their target price for the stock from $5.90 to $9.00 in a report on Wednesday, May 3rd. StockNews.com upgraded shares of CEMEX from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Bank of America lowered shares of CEMEX from a buy rating to a neutral rating and increased their target price for the stock from $6.80 to $7.20 in a report on Monday, May 15th.

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CEMEX Stock Performance

NYSE:CX opened at $7.14 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.92. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.90, a PEG ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $6.21 and a 200 day moving average price of $5.32. CEMEX has a fifty-two week low of $3.20 and a fifty-two week high of $7.16.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On CEMEX

CEMEX ( NYSE:CX Get Rating ) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 2nd. The construction company reported $0.15 earnings per share for the quarter. The firm had revenue of $4.04 billion during the quarter. CEMEX had a net margin of 5.52% and a return on equity of 5.13%. Equities research analysts forecast that CEMEX will post 0.64 EPS for the current year.

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of CX. Ronald Blue Trust Inc. raised its holdings in shares of CEMEX by 93.2% in the 4th quarter. Ronald Blue Trust Inc. now owns 7,429 shares of the construction companys stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 3,584 shares in the last quarter. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. purchased a new position in shares of CEMEX in the 2nd quarter valued at $40,000. Engineers Gate Manager LP purchased a new position in shares of CEMEX in the 4th quarter valued at $41,000. Wedbush Securities Inc. purchased a new position in shares of CEMEX in the 4th quarter valued at $50,000. Finally, Quadrant Capital Group LLC grew its position in shares of CEMEX by 72.1% in the 3rd quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 14,823 shares of the construction companys stock valued at $51,000 after buying an additional 6,209 shares during the last quarter. 28.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

CEMEX Company Profile

(Get Rating)

CEMEX SAB de CV operates as a global construction materials company. It offers cement, ready-mixconcrete, aggregates, and urbanization solutions. The firm operates through the following geographical segments: Mexico, United States, Europe, Middle East, Africa and Asia (EMEAA) and South, Central America and the Caribbean (SCA&C).

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Comptoir Group PLC (LON:COM  Get Rating)s stock price dropped 1.8% on Monday . The stock traded as low as GBX 6.50 ($0.08) and last traded at GBX 6.88 ($0.09). Approximately 52,584 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 45% from the average daily volume of 95,154 shares. The stock had previously closed at GBX 7 ($0.09).

Comptoir Group Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of 7.67 million, a P/E ratio of 233.33 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a current ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 426.60. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of GBX 6.27 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of GBX 5.65.

About Comptoir Group

(Get Rating)

Comptoir Group PLC owns and operates restaurants under the Comptoir Libanais and Shawa brand names in the United Kingdom. The company offers Lebanese and Eastern Mediterranean cuisine dining. It operates 27 restaurants that includes 5 franchises. The company was formerly known as Levant Restaurants Group Limited and changed its name to Comptoir Group PLC in June 2016.

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China Minsheng Banking (OTCMKTS:CGMBF  Get Rating) is one of 127 public companies in the BanksRegional industry, but how does it weigh in compared to its peers? We will compare China Minsheng Banking to related businesses based on the strength of its risk, institutional ownership, valuation, analyst recommendations, earnings, profitability and dividends.

Dividends

China Minsheng Banking pays an annual dividend of $0.10 per share and has a dividend yield of 25.3%. China Minsheng Banking pays out 8.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. As a group, BanksRegional companies pay a dividend yield of 2.7% and pay out 28.8% of their earnings in the form of a dividend. China Minsheng Banking is clearly a better dividend stock than its peers, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.

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Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current ratings and target prices for China Minsheng Banking and its peers, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score China Minsheng Banking 0 1 0 0 2.00 China Minsheng Banking Competitors 997 3015 2943 23 2.29

Profitability

As a group, BanksRegional companies have a potential upside of 47.50%. Given China Minsheng Bankings peers stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe China Minsheng Banking has less favorable growth aspects than its peers.

This table compares China Minsheng Banking and its peers net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets China Minsheng Banking N/A N/A N/A China Minsheng Banking Competitors 23.84% 10.28% 0.96%

Institutional and Insider Ownership

3.6% of China Minsheng Banking shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 45.8% of shares of all BanksRegional companies are owned by institutional investors. 13.2% of shares of all BanksRegional companies are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares China Minsheng Banking and its peers top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

Gross Revenue Net Income Price/Earnings Ratio China Minsheng Banking N/A N/A 0.31 China Minsheng Banking Competitors $2.09 billion $494.96 million 573.72

China Minsheng Bankings peers have higher revenue and earnings than China Minsheng Banking. China Minsheng Banking is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than its peers, indicating that it is currently more affordable than other companies in its industry.

Summary

China Minsheng Banking peers beat China Minsheng Banking on 11 of the 13 factors compared.

About China Minsheng Banking

(Get Rating)

China Minsheng Banking Corp., Ltd. provides various financial products and services to individuals, small and micro-enterprises, corporate customers, government agencies, and financial institutions in the People's Republic of China. The company operates through Corporate Banking, Retail Banking, and Others segments. Its deposit products include saving accounts, deposit certificates, contracted deposits, agreement deposits, call deposits, corporate term deposits, and corporate current deposits. The company also offers personal housing mortgage, individual automobile purchase, household composite consumption, home, medium and long term, and short-term working capital loans; micro-credit products for individuals; debit and credit cards; and safe deposit boxes. In addition, it provides payment and collection, and clearing services, as well as internet, mobile, and telephone banking services. Further, the company offers gross settlement; wages distribution agency and letter of guarantee; cash management; trade finance; industrial chain finance; individual forex settlement, forex remittance, travelers promissory notes, collection, individual deposit certificate, and guarantee letter products; and comprehensive credit granting, forex settlement and sale, financial product investment, and trust financing services. Additionally, it provides convenient finance, investment banking, and asset management services, as well as non-financial services in the education, business travel, traveler, art, luxury life, health, club, and isports areas. As of December 31, 2021, the company has approximately 140 branch-level institutions, 1,193 business outlets, 1,078 community sub-branches, and 136 small business sub-branches. China Minsheng Banking Corp., Ltd. was founded in 1996 and is headquartered in Beijing, the People's Republic of China.

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Black Hills (NYSE:BKH  Get Rating) and AES (NYSE:AESC  Get Rating) are both utilities companies, but which is the superior stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their risk, earnings, dividends, institutional ownership, valuation, profitability and analyst recommendations.

Dividends

Black Hills pays an annual dividend of $2.50 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.0%. AES pays an annual dividend of $6.88 per share and has a dividend yield of 8.5%. Black Hills pays out 64.1% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Black Hills has increased its dividend for 52 consecutive years.

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Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Black Hills and AESs top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

Gross Revenue Price/Sales Ratio Net Income Earnings Per Share Price/Earnings Ratio Black Hills $2.55 billion 1.61 $258.39 million $3.90 15.85 AES $13.00 billion N/A N/A N/A N/A

Analyst Recommendations

Black Hills has higher earnings, but lower revenue than AES.

This is a breakdown of current ratings and target prices for Black Hills and AES, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score Black Hills 2 4 0 0 1.67 AES 0 0 0 0 N/A

Black Hills currently has a consensus price target of $67.29, indicating a potential upside of 8.84%. Given Black Hills higher probable upside, equities research analysts plainly believe Black Hills is more favorable than AES.

Profitability

This table compares Black Hills and AESs net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets Black Hills 9.62% 8.33% 2.72% AES N/A N/A N/A

Institutional and Insider Ownership

89.0% of Black Hills shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.6% of Black Hills shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Summary

Black Hills beats AES on 7 of the 10 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Black Hills

(Get Rating)

Black Hills Corporation, through its subsidiaries, operates as an electric and natural gas utility company in the United States. It operates in two segments, Electric Utilities and Gas Utilities. The Electric Utilities segment generates, transmits, and distributes electricity to approximately 220,000 electric utility customers in Colorado, Montana, South Dakota, and Wyoming; and owns and operates 1,482 megawatts of generation capacity and 9,024 miles of electric transmission and distribution lines. The Gas Utilities segment distributes natural gas to approximately 1,107,000 natural gas utility customers in Arkansas, Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska, and Wyoming; owns and operates 4,713 miles of intrastate gas transmission pipelines; 42,222 miles of gas distribution mains and service lines; seven natural gas storage sites; and approximately 50,000 horsepower of compression and 515 miles of gathering lines. The company also constructs and maintains gas infrastructure facilities for gas transportation customers; and provides appliance repair services to residential utility customers, as well as electrical system construction services to large industrial customers. In addition, it produces electric power through wind, natural gas, and coal-fired generating plants; and coal at its coal mine located near Gillette, Wyoming. The company was incorporated in 1941 and is headquartered in Rapid City, South Dakota.

About AES

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The AES Corporation operates as a diversified power generation and utility company. It owns and/or operates power plants to generate and sell power to customers, such as utilities, industrial users, and other intermediaries. The company also owns and/or operates utilities to generate or purchase, distribute, transmit, and sell electricity to end-user customers in the residential, commercial, industrial, and governmental sectors; and generates and sells electricity on the wholesale market. It uses a range of fuels and technologies to generate electricity, including coal, gas, hydro, wind, solar, and biomass; and renewables, such as energy storage and landfill gas. The company owns and/or operates a generation portfolio of approximately 32,326 megawatts. It has operations in the United States, Puerto Rico, El Salvador, Chile, Colombia, Argentina, Brazil, Mexico, Central America, the Caribbean, Europe, and Asia. The company was formerly known as Applied Energy Services, Inc. and changed its name to The AES Corporation in April 2000. The AES Corporation was incorporated in 1981 and is headquartered in Arlington, Virginia.

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Douglas Emmett, Inc. (NYSE:DEI  Get Rating) has received a consensus recommendation of Hold from the eleven ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $15.78.

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on DEI shares. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Douglas Emmett from $18.00 to $16.00 and set an overweight rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 16th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price target on Douglas Emmett from $13.00 to $12.00 and set an underperform rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 29th. Evercore ISI lowered their price target on Douglas Emmett from $17.00 to $16.00 in a research report on Monday, March 27th. TheStreet downgraded Douglas Emmett from a c rating to a d+ rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 2nd. Finally, Piper Sandler raised Douglas Emmett from a neutral rating to an overweight rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $13.00 to $15.00 in a research report on Wednesday, April 5th.

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Douglas Emmett Trading Down 0.1 %

Douglas Emmett stock opened at $12.63 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 2.54 and a quick ratio of 2.54. The company has a market capitalization of $2.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.77 and a beta of 0.94. Douglas Emmett has a one year low of $10.09 and a one year high of $23.85. The companys fifty day moving average price is $11.98 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $13.91.

Douglas Emmett Dividend Announcement

Insider Activity

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 18th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 30th will be issued a $0.19 dividend. This represents a $0.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.02%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 29th. Douglas Emmetts dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 149.02%.

In other news, Director William E. Simon, Jr. purchased 10,000 shares of the firms stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 8th. The stock was bought at an average price of $12.42 per share, with a total value of $124,200.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 91,000 shares of the companys stock, valued at $1,130,220. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 13.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Douglas Emmett

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund lifted its position in Douglas Emmett by 38.9% in the 4th quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 49,278 shares of the real estate investment trusts stock valued at $773,000 after acquiring an additional 13,805 shares in the last quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D lifted its position in Douglas Emmett by 12.0% during the 4th quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D now owns 187,982 shares of the real estate investment trusts stock worth $2,948,000 after buying an additional 20,138 shares in the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC lifted its position in Douglas Emmett by 400.7% during the 3rd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,467 shares of the real estate investment trusts stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 1,174 shares in the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in Douglas Emmett by 43.8% during the 4th quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 131,168 shares of the real estate investment trusts stock worth $2,057,000 after buying an additional 39,970 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sowell Financial Services LLC lifted its position in Douglas Emmett by 1.6% during the 4th quarter. Sowell Financial Services LLC now owns 76,976 shares of the real estate investment trusts stock worth $1,221,000 after buying an additional 1,200 shares in the last quarter. 97.25% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Douglas Emmett

(Get Rating)

Douglas Emmett, Inc (DEI) is a fully integrated, self-administered and self-managed real estate investment trust (REIT), and one of the largest owners and operators of high-quality office and multifamily properties located in the premier coastal submarkets of Los Angeles and Honolulu. Douglas Emmett focuses on owning and acquiring a substantial share of top-tier office properties and premier multifamily communities in neighborhoods that possess significant supply constraints, high-end executive housing and key lifestyle amenities.

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Shares of Edenred SE (OTCMKTS:EDNMY  Get Rating) reached a new 52-week high on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $33.55 and last traded at $33.30, with a volume of 3579 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $33.50.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on Edenred in a research report on Wednesday, April 19th. They set an outperform rating on the stock.

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Edenred Trading Down 0.6 %

The stocks 50-day moving average price is $32.13 and its 200-day moving average price is $29.18.

Edenred Increases Dividend

About Edenred

The company also recently disclosed a dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 26th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 6th will be paid a $0.4086 dividend. This represents a yield of 1.27%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 5th. This is a boost from Edenreds previous dividend of $0.35.

(Get Rating)

Edenred SE engages in the provision of digital payment solutions for the working world. Its solutions include employee benefits, complementary, and fleet and mobility. The company was founded on December 14, 2006 and is headquartered in Issy-les-Moulineaux, France.

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Energy Income Partners LLC grew its stake in The Southern Company (NYSE:SO  Get Rating) by 47.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,358,508 shares of the utilities providers stock after acquiring an additional 437,448 shares during the period. Southern accounts for approximately 2.2% of Energy Income Partners LLCs holdings, making the stock its 18th largest position. Energy Income Partners LLC owned approximately 0.12% of Southern worth $97,011,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Prudential PLC increased its holdings in Southern by 23.4% during the first quarter. Prudential PLC now owns 19,438 shares of the utilities providers stock worth $1,409,000 after buying an additional 3,689 shares during the last quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust increased its holdings in Southern by 33.5% during the first quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 1,727 shares of the utilities providers stock worth $126,000 after buying an additional 433 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd increased its holdings in Southern by 63.0% during the first quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,902 shares of the utilities providers stock worth $138,000 after buying an additional 735 shares during the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Southern by 0.4% during the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 49,925 shares of the utilities providers stock worth $3,621,000 after buying an additional 221 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mackenzie Financial Corp increased its holdings in Southern by 35.8% during the first quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 907,132 shares of the utilities providers stock worth $65,776,000 after buying an additional 239,325 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 61.78% of the companys stock.

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Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. VNET Group restated a maintains rating on shares of Southern in a research note on Friday, April 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Southern from $73.00 to $69.00 in a research note on Thursday, June 8th. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price objective on Southern from $79.00 to $78.00 and set an outperform rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 2nd. 1-800-FLOWERS.COM restated a maintains rating on shares of Southern in a research note on Friday, April 28th. Finally, Guggenheim raised their target price on shares of Southern from $73.00 to $79.00 in a research note on Monday, April 24th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $74.07.

Southern Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:SO traded up $0.67 on Wednesday, reaching $71.12. 1,330,488 shares of the companys stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,203,396. The company has a current ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.51. The Southern Company has a twelve month low of $58.85 and a twelve month high of $80.57. The company has a market capitalization of $77.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.73, a PEG ratio of 4.91 and a beta of 0.51. The company has a fifty day moving average of $72.01 and a 200-day moving average of $69.45.

Southern (NYSE:SO  Get Rating) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 27th. The utilities provider reported $0.79 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.71 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $6.48 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.14 billion. Southern had a net margin of 11.53% and a return on equity of 10.78%. The companys revenue was down 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.97 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that The Southern Company will post 3.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southern Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 6th. Investors of record on Monday, May 15th were paid a $0.70 dividend. This is an increase from Southerns previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 12th. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.94%. Southerns dividend payout ratio is presently 90.32%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Southern

In other Southern news, CEO Stephen E. Kuczynski sold 5,000 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.89, for a total value of $359,450.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 146,284 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,516,356.76. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, insider David P. Poroch sold 10,000 shares of the firms stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.05, for a total transaction of $700,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 28,691 shares in the company, valued at $2,009,804.55. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Stephen E. Kuczynski sold 5,000 shares of the firms stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.89, for a total value of $359,450.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 146,284 shares of the companys stock, valued at $10,516,356.76. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 205,678 shares of company stock worth $14,888,271 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.37% of the companys stock.

Southern Profile

(Get Rating)

The Southern Company, through its subsidiaries, engages in the generation, transmission, and distribution of electricity. It operates through three segments: Gas Distribution Operations, Gas Pipeline Investments, and Gas Marketing Services. The company also develops, constructs, acquires, owns, and manages power generation assets, including renewable energy projects and sells electricity in the wholesale market; and distributes natural gas in Illinois, Georgia, Virginia, and Tennessee, as well as provides gas marketing services, gas distribution operations, and gas pipeline investments operations.

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Want to see what other hedge funds are holding SO? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for The Southern Company (NYSE:SO  Get Rating).

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Ethernity Networks Ltd. (LON:ENET  Get Rating)s stock price reached a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as GBX 2.62 ($0.03) and last traded at GBX 2.62 ($0.03), with a volume of 145356 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at GBX 2.85 ($0.04).

Ethernity Networks Stock Down 8.1 %

The business has a 50 day moving average of GBX 4.71 and a 200-day moving average of GBX 6.90. The stock has a market cap of 3.58 million, a PE ratio of -35.63 and a beta of 1.60. The company has a current ratio of 1.62, a quick ratio of 1.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 28.12.

About Ethernity Networks

(Get Rating)

Ethernity Networks Ltd. provides technology solutions for telecom, mobile, security, and data center markets in Asia, Europe, Israel, and the United States. The company develops and delivers data processing technology and solutions for carrier Ethernet switching, including broadband access, mobile backhaul, carrier Ethernet demarcation, and data centers.

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Federal Signal Co. (NYSE:FSS  Get Rating) shares reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $62.32 and last traded at $61.95, with a volume of 10689 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $61.99.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have commented on FSS shares. Raymond James upped their price objective on Federal Signal from $57.00 to $68.00 and gave the company a strong-buy rating in a research report on Thursday, March 2nd. DA Davidson raised their price target on shares of Federal Signal from $54.00 to $68.00 in a research note on Thursday, March 2nd. StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Federal Signal in a report on Thursday, May 18th. They set a hold rating for the company. Finally, Sidoti downgraded shares of Federal Signal from a buy rating to a neutral rating and set a $50.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Thursday, February 23rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the companys stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Federal Signal currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $59.25.

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Federal Signal Trading Down 0.4 %

The company has a quick ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 2.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The stocks 50 day moving average is $53.47 and its two-hundred day moving average is $51.68. The company has a market capitalization of $3.76 billion, a PE ratio of 29.56 and a beta of 1.07.

Federal Signal Increases Dividend

Federal Signal ( NYSE:FSS Get Rating ) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 2nd. The conglomerate reported $0.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts consensus estimates of $0.40 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $385.50 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $370.61 million. Federal Signal had a net margin of 8.54% and a return on equity of 15.06%. The companys quarterly revenue was up 16.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.34 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Federal Signal Co. will post 2.37 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 19th were issued a $0.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 18th. This is an increase from Federal Signals previous quarterly dividend of $0.09. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.65%. Federal Signals dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 19.14%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Federal Signal news, CFO Ian A. Hudson sold 9,343 shares of Federal Signal stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.53, for a total value of $490,787.79. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 70,651 shares in the company, valued at $3,711,297.03. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other Federal Signal news, CFO Ian A. Hudson sold 9,343 shares of the firms stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.53, for a total value of $490,787.79. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 70,651 shares in the company, valued at $3,711,297.03. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Ian A. Hudson sold 49,330 shares of the companys stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.78, for a total value of $2,554,307.40. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 70,651 shares in the company, valued at $3,658,308.78. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 73,214 shares of company stock worth $3,828,273 in the last three months. 3.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Federal Signal

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. IFP Advisors Inc raised its holdings in shares of Federal Signal by 44.8% in the third quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 724 shares of the conglomerates stock worth $137,000 after buying an additional 224 shares during the last quarter. Lakewood Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Federal Signal during the 4th quarter worth about $55,000. CWM LLC grew its stake in Federal Signal by 19.7% during the 4th quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,386 shares of the conglomerates stock valued at $64,000 after purchasing an additional 228 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Federal Signal in the first quarter valued at about $51,000. Finally, Lazard Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Federal Signal in the first quarter worth about $52,000. 89.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Federal Signal Company Profile

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Federal Signal Corp. engages in the design and manufacture of products and integrated solutions for municipal, governmental, industrial, and commercial customers. It operates through the Environmental Solutions Group and Safety and Security Systems Group segments. The Environment Solutions Group segment is involved in the manufacture and supply of street sweeper vehicles, sewer cleaners, vacuum loader trucks, hydro-excavation trucks, and water blasting equipment.

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Fullerton Fund Management Co Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of iShares MSCI United Kingdom ETF (NYSEARCA:EWU  Get Rating) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 181,200 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $5,556,000. Fullerton Fund Management Co Ltd. owned 0.18% of iShares MSCI United Kingdom ETF as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Bluefin Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of iShares MSCI United Kingdom ETF by 98.9% in the 4th quarter. Bluefin Capital Management LLC now owns 18,100 shares of the companys stock worth $555,000 after acquiring an additional 9,000 shares during the last quarter. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main grew its holdings in shares of iShares MSCI United Kingdom ETF by 123.7% in the 4th quarter. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main now owns 7,719 shares of the companys stock worth $237,000 after acquiring an additional 4,269 shares during the last quarter. Cetera Advisor Networks LLC acquired a new position in shares of iShares MSCI United Kingdom ETF in the 4th quarter worth $262,000. Amundi acquired a new position in shares of iShares MSCI United Kingdom ETF in the 4th quarter worth $3,724,000. Finally, Allstate Investment Management Co. acquired a new position in shares of iShares MSCI United Kingdom ETF in the 4th quarter worth $333,000.

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iShares MSCI United Kingdom ETF Stock Up 1.0 %

Shares of NYSEARCA EWU opened at $32.33 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.02 and a beta of 0.83. The stocks fifty day simple moving average is $33.10 and its 200 day simple moving average is $32.28. iShares MSCI United Kingdom ETF has a 52-week low of $25.36 and a 52-week high of $34.04.

About iShares MSCI United Kingdom ETF

The iShares MSCI United Kingdom ETF (EWU) is an exchange-traded fund that is based on the MSCI United Kingdom index. The fund tracks a market cap-weighted index of British companies. It covers the top 85% of British companies by market cap. EWU was launched on Mar 12, 1996 and is managed by BlackRock.

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HUYA Inc. (NYSE:HUYA  Get Rating)s share price rose 4.8% on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $3.47 and last traded at $3.46. Approximately 453,554 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 71% from the average daily volume of 1,557,733 shares. The stock had previously closed at $3.30.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

HUYA has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. HSBC cut their target price on HUYA from $3.80 to $3.30 in a research note on Thursday, May 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised HUYA from an underweight rating to a neutral rating and increased their target price for the stock from $2.30 to $3.00 in a research note on Friday, April 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $3.28.

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HUYA Stock Up 4.8 %

The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $3.18 and a 200-day moving average price of $3.88. The firm has a market cap of $823.72 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -13.88 and a beta of 0.71.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

HUYA ( NYSE:HUYA Get Rating ) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 16th. The company reported $0.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.05) by $0.08. HUYA had a negative return on equity of 3.49% and a negative net margin of 5.06%. The business had revenue of $283.83 million for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $271.33 million. Equities research analysts anticipate that HUYA Inc. will post -0.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in HUYA. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in HUYA by 52.9% in the first quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 36,065 shares of the companys stock valued at $130,000 after purchasing an additional 12,481 shares during the period. EWA LLC purchased a new position in HUYA in the first quarter valued at about $55,000. Pinpoint Asset Management Ltd purchased a new position in HUYA in the first quarter valued at about $235,000. State Street Corp raised its position in HUYA by 57.1% in the first quarter. State Street Corp now owns 800,413 shares of the companys stock valued at $2,897,000 after purchasing an additional 291,027 shares during the period. Finally, Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC purchased a new position in HUYA in the first quarter valued at about $334,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 21.84% of the companys stock.

About HUYA

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HUYA, Inc is a holding company, which engages in the development of game live streaming platforms. The company was founded in 2014 and is headquartered in Guangzhou, China.

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Invesco FTSE RAFI Developed Markets ex-U.S. ETF (NYSEARCA:PXF  Get Rating)s share price reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $45.93 and last traded at $45.91, with a volume of 15800 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $45.50.

Invesco FTSE RAFI Developed Markets ex-U.S. ETF Stock Up 0.9 %

The company has a market cap of $1.64 billion, a PE ratio of 10.02 and a beta of 0.90. The stocks 50 day moving average is $44.78 and its 200-day moving average is $43.93.

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Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its position in shares of Invesco FTSE RAFI Developed Markets ex-U.S. ETF by 51.5% in the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 815 shares of the companys stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 277 shares during the last quarter. Cambridge Trust Co. purchased a new position in shares of Invesco FTSE RAFI Developed Markets ex-U.S. ETF in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $53,000. Chilton Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Invesco FTSE RAFI Developed Markets ex-U.S. ETF during the 1st quarter worth approximately $61,000. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Invesco FTSE RAFI Developed Markets ex-U.S. ETF during the 4th quarter worth approximately $123,000. Finally, Spire Wealth Management purchased a new position in Invesco FTSE RAFI Developed Markets ex-U.S. ETF during the 4th quarter worth approximately $146,000.

About Invesco FTSE RAFI Developed Markets ex-U.S. ETF

The Invesco FTSE RAFI Developed Markets ex-U.S. ETF (PXF) is an exchange-traded fund that is based on the FTSE RAFI Developed x US 1000 index. The fund tracks an index of 1,000 of the biggest companies in developed markets outside the US that are selected and weighted based on fundamental measures. PXF was launched on Jun 25, 2007 and is managed by Invesco.

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John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund (NYSE:PDT  Get Rating) was the target of a large decline in short interest in May. As of May 31st, there was short interest totalling 88,000 shares, a decline of 38.3% from the May 15th total of 142,600 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 113,600 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 0.8 days.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in PDT. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund by 4.9% in the 1st quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 49,056 shares of the real estate investment trusts stock valued at $805,000 after buying an additional 2,306 shares in the last quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund by 15.8% during the 1st quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 51,058 shares of the real estate investment trusts stock worth $838,000 after acquiring an additional 6,971 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund by 1.2% during the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 332,495 shares of the real estate investment trusts stock worth $5,456,000 after acquiring an additional 3,901 shares in the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its stake in shares of John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund by 18.8% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 74,783 shares of the real estate investment trusts stock worth $1,227,000 after acquiring an additional 11,846 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS Group AG boosted its stake in shares of John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund by 11.7% during the 2nd quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 35,841 shares of the real estate investment trusts stock worth $503,000 after acquiring an additional 3,755 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 5.89% of the companys stock.

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John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund Trading Up 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE PDT traded up $0.06 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $11.61. The stock had a trading volume of 34,222 shares, compared to its average volume of 120,642. The firms 50-day moving average price is $11.98 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $12.66. John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund has a 52 week low of $10.98 and a 52 week high of $16.30.

John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund Announces Dividend

About John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund

The company also recently declared a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 30th. Investors of record on Monday, June 12th will be paid a $0.0975 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 9th. This represents a $1.17 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 10.08%.

(Get Rating)

John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund is a closed ended equity mutual fund launched and managed by John Hancock Investment Management LLC. It is co-managed by John Hancock Asset Management. The fund invests in the public equity markets of the United States. It seeks to invest in stocks of companies operating across diversified sectors, with an emphasis on the utilities sector.

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Macquarie Group Limited (ASX:MQG  Get Rating) insider Michelle Hinchliffe purchased 407 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 8th. The stock was bought at an average cost of A$171.70 ($116.01) per share, for a total transaction of A$69,881.09 ($47,216.95).

Macquarie Group Stock Performance

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Macquarie Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a Final dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 3rd will be given a $4.50 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 2.59%. The ex-dividend date is Sunday, May 14th. This is a positive change from Macquarie Groups previous Final dividend of $3.35. Macquarie Groups payout ratio is currently 56.95%.

About Macquarie Group

(Get Rating)

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Macquarie Group Limited provides diversified financial services in Australia, the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia Pacific. The company operates through four segments: Macquarie Asset Management (MAM), Banking and Financial Services (BFS), Commodities and Global Markets (CGM), and Macquarie Capital.

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A number of research firms have changed their ratings and price targets for Argo Group International (NYSE: ARGO):

6/13/2023  Argo Group International is now covered by analysts at StockNews.com. They set a hold rating on the stock.

6/11/2023  Argo Group International is now covered by analysts at StockNews.com. They set a hold rating on the stock.

6/10/2023  Argo Group International is now covered by analysts at StockNews.com. They set a hold rating on the stock.

6/9/2023  Argo Group International is now covered by analysts at StockNews.com. They set a hold rating on the stock.

6/7/2023  Argo Group International is now covered by analysts at StockNews.com. They set a hold rating on the stock.

6/1/2023  Argo Group International is now covered by analysts at StockNews.com. They set a hold rating on the stock.

5/26/2023  Argo Group International was upgraded by analysts at TheStreet from a d+ rating to a c- rating.

5/25/2023  Argo Group International is now covered by analysts at StockNews.com. They set a hold rating on the stock.

5/20/2023  Argo Group International is now covered by analysts at StockNews.com. They set a hold rating on the stock.

5/12/2023  Argo Group International is now covered by analysts at StockNews.com. They set a hold rating on the stock.

5/4/2023  Argo Group International is now covered by analysts at StockNews.com. They set a hold rating on the stock.

4/26/2023  Argo Group International is now covered by analysts at StockNews.com. They set a hold rating on the stock.

4/21/2023  Argo Group International is now covered by analysts at StockNews.com. They set a hold rating on the stock.

Argo Group International Stock Up 0.1 %

Shares of ARGO stock traded up $0.02 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $29.51. 126,331 shares of the companys stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 566,578. Argo Group International Holdings, Ltd. has a 12 month low of $19.00 and a 12 month high of $40.56. The firm has a market cap of $1.04 billion, a P/E ratio of -4.73 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a current ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. The firms 50-day simple moving average is $29.33.

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Argo Group International (NYSE:ARGO  Get Rating) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 8th. The company reported ($0.31) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.80 by ($1.11). Argo Group International had a negative net margin of 9.98% and a positive return on equity of 0.06%. The firm had revenue of $419.60 million for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $461.90 million. Equities analysts predict that Argo Group International Holdings, Ltd. will post 2.85 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Argo Group International

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its stake in Argo Group International by 334.7% during the 1st quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 926 shares of the companys stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 713 shares during the period. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd raised its stake in Argo Group International by 515.8% during the 3rd quarter. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd now owns 1,324 shares of the companys stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 1,109 shares during the period. Spire Wealth Management raised its stake in Argo Group International by 50.0% during the 1st quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 1,680 shares of the companys stock worth $49,000 after acquiring an additional 560 shares during the period. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in Argo Group International by 148.0% during the 1st quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,793 shares of the companys stock worth $53,000 after acquiring an additional 1,070 shares during the period. Finally, Ensign Peak Advisors Inc bought a new stake in Argo Group International during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $59,000. Institutional investors own 89.92% of the companys stock.

Argo Group International Holdings Ltd. engages in the provision of underwriting property and casualty insurance and reinsurance products. It operates through the following segments: U.S. Operations, International Operations, and Run-off Lines. The U.S. Operations segment include distribution through retail, wholesale, and managing general brokers/agents in the specialty insurance market.

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Suncor Energy Inc. (TSE:SU  Get Rating) (NYSE:SU)s share price passed below its 200-day moving average during trading on Monday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of C$42.46 and traded as low as C$39.56. Suncor Energy shares last traded at C$39.74, with a volume of 12,188,520 shares.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently issued reports on SU. BMO Capital Markets decreased their target price on shares of Suncor Energy from C$54.00 to C$52.00 in a research report on Monday, April 17th. Eight Capital raised shares of Suncor Energy from a sell rating to a neutral rating and boosted their price objective for the company from C$43.00 to C$50.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 22nd. National Bank Financial increased their target price on Suncor Energy from C$57.00 to C$60.00 in a research report on Tuesday, April 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Suncor Energy from C$52.00 to C$53.00 in a report on Thursday, February 16th. Finally, CSFB dropped their price target on Suncor Energy from C$60.00 to C$56.00 in a research note on Thursday, April 6th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of C$53.50.

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Suncor Energy Stock Down 0.7 %

The stocks fifty day simple moving average is C$40.38 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is C$42.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 42.16, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 0.83. The company has a market capitalization of C$52.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.67, a PEG ratio of 0.15 and a beta of 1.66.

Suncor Energy Dividend Announcement

About Suncor Energy

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 26th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 26th will be given a $0.52 dividend. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.24%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 2nd. Suncor Energys dividend payout ratio is presently 34.67%.

(Get Rating)

Suncor Energy Inc operates as an integrated energy company in Canada and internationally. It operates through Oil Sands; Exploration and Production; and Refining and Marketing segments. The Oil Sands segment explores, develops, and produces bitumen, synthetic crude oil, and related products. This segment also engages in syncrude oil sands mining and upgrading operations; and marketing, supply, transportation, and risk management of crude oil, natural gas, power, and byproducts.

Further Reading

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Fullerton Fund Management Co Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Limited (NYSE:TSM  Get Rating) by 1,625.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 124,001 shares of the semiconductor companys stock after purchasing an additional 116,814 shares during the period. Fullerton Fund Management Co Ltd.s holdings in Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing were worth $9,237,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Red Tortoise LLC acquired a new position in shares of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing during the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Boyd Watterson Asset Management LLC OH purchased a new stake in Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing during the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Luken Investment Analytics LLC purchased a new stake in Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing during the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Schubert & Co grew its stake in Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing by 374.4% during the 4th quarter. Schubert & Co now owns 427 shares of the semiconductor companys stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 337 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Clearstead Trust LLC purchased a new stake in Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing during the 4th quarter valued at about $35,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 16.79% of the companys stock.

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Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Stock Performance

NYSE:TSM opened at $106.81 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 2.04 and a current ratio of 2.29. The stock has a market capitalization of $553.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.51 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $90.92 and a 200 day moving average price of $88.04. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Limited has a fifty-two week low of $59.43 and a fifty-two week high of $110.69.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Increases Dividend

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing ( NYSE:TSM Get Rating ) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 20th. The semiconductor company reported $1.31 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts consensus estimates of $1.21 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $16.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $17.30 billion. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing had a net margin of 44.72% and a return on equity of 36.02%. Equities research analysts forecast that Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Limited will post 5.32 EPS for the current year.

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 12th. Investors of record on Friday, September 15th will be given a dividend of $0.489 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 14th. This represents a $1.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.83%. This is a boost from Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturings previous quarterly dividend of $0.36. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturings dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.95%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently issued reports on TSM shares. Susquehanna raised shares of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing from a neutral rating to a positive rating and set a $126.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Monday, April 17th. Needham & Company LLC upped their price objective on shares of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing from $110.00 to $118.00 in a research note on Thursday, June 1st. KGI Securities began coverage on shares of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing in a research note on Wednesday, March 29th. They issued an outperform rating for the company. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note on Saturday, June 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the companys stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $101.75.

About Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing

(Get Rating)

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Limited, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures, packages, tests, and sells integrated circuits and other semiconductor devices in Taiwan, China, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Japan, the United States, and internationally. It provides complementary metal oxide silicon wafer fabrication processes to manufacture logic, mixed-signal, radio frequency, and embedded memory semiconductors.

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The Bank of New York Mellon Co. (NYSE:BK  Get Rating) has been assigned a consensus rating of Hold from the fifteen brokerages that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price objective among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $51.61.

BK has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their price target on Bank of New York Mellon from $42.00 to $41.00 in a research report on Wednesday, April 19th. Barclays decreased their price target on Bank of New York Mellon from $64.00 to $62.00 in a research report on Wednesday, April 12th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Bank of New York Mellon from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the company an underweight rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 19th. Evercore ISI decreased their price objective on Bank of New York Mellon from $49.00 to $46.00 in a research report on Friday, May 12th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Bank of New York Mellon from $52.00 to $51.00 and set an equal weight rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 19th.

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Institutional Trading of Bank of New York Mellon

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. raised its stake in shares of Bank of New York Mellon by 97.1% in the 1st quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 609 shares of the banks stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the period. Exos TFP Holdings LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Bank of New York Mellon in the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. MV Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Bank of New York Mellon by 38.3% in the 4th quarter. MV Capital Management Inc. now owns 747 shares of the banks stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 207 shares during the period. Glass Jacobson Investment Advisors llc acquired a new stake in shares of Bank of New York Mellon in the 4th quarter valued at about $36,000. Finally, Sandy Spring Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Bank of New York Mellon in the 4th quarter valued at about $36,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.29% of the companys stock.

Bank of New York Mellon Trading Up 1.0 %

Shares of BK opened at $44.15 on Wednesday. Bank of New York Mellon has a 1 year low of $36.22 and a 1 year high of $52.26. The company has a current ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $42.58 and a 200-day simple moving average of $45.70. The stock has a market cap of $34.84 billion, a PE ratio of 13.97, a PEG ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 1.07.

Bank of New York Mellon (NYSE:BK  Get Rating) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 18th. The bank reported $1.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts consensus estimates of $1.09 by $0.03. Bank of New York Mellon had a return on equity of 11.45% and a net margin of 11.98%. The business had revenue of $4.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $4.40 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.86 EPS. Bank of New York Mellons quarterly revenue was up 11.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Bank of New York Mellon will post 4.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Bank of New York Mellon Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 11th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 28th were paid a $0.37 dividend. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.35%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 27th. Bank of New York Mellons dividend payout ratio is 46.84%.

Bank of New York Mellon Company Profile

(Get Rating)

The Bank of New York Mellon Corp. is a bank holding company, which engages in the provision of financial services. It operates through the following segments: Securities Services, Market and Wealth Services, Investment and Wealth Management, and Other segment. The Securities Services segment includes Asset Servicing business, which provides global custody, fund accounting, integrated middle-office solutions, transfer agency and data and analytics solutions.

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The Gap, Inc. (NYSE:GPS  Get Rating) has been assigned a consensus rating of Hold from the seventeen brokerages that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, eight have given a hold recommendation and one has issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month target price among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $10.37.

Several analysts have commented on GPS shares. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price objective on shares of GAP from $11.00 to $9.00 in a report on Tuesday, May 9th. StockNews.com started coverage on GAP in a report on Thursday, May 18th. They issued a hold rating for the company. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price target on GAP from $18.00 to $16.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 10th. Barclays cut their price objective on GAP from $10.00 to $9.00 in a research note on Tuesday, May 30th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reiterated a market perform rating and set a $15.00 price objective on shares of GAP in a research note on Monday, March 6th.

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Insider Activity at GAP

In related news, CEO Mark Breitbard sold 22,918 shares of GAP stock in a transaction on Friday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.78, for a total value of $201,220.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 123,985 shares in the company, valued at $1,088,588.30. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 30.81% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of GAP

GAP Price Performance

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in GAP by 3.0% in the 1st quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,891,096 shares of the apparel retailers stock valued at $29,027,000 after acquiring an additional 83,032 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Arbitrage SNC lifted its stake in shares of GAP by 57.0% during the 1st quarter. BNP Paribas Arbitrage SNC now owns 1,325,293 shares of the apparel retailers stock worth $13,306,000 after purchasing an additional 481,339 shares during the period. Pinkerton Retirement Specialists LLC increased its holdings in shares of GAP by 13.4% during the 1st quarter. Pinkerton Retirement Specialists LLC now owns 56,992 shares of the apparel retailers stock worth $572,000 after buying an additional 6,742 shares during the last quarter. New Mexico Educational Retirement Board increased its holdings in GAP by 15.4% in the 1st quarter. New Mexico Educational Retirement Board now owns 38,200 shares of the apparel retailers stock valued at $384,000 after purchasing an additional 5,100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC grew its stake in GAP by 207.0% in the first quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 46,477 shares of the apparel retailers stock worth $467,000 after purchasing an additional 31,340 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.72% of the companys stock.

GAP stock opened at $9.75 on Wednesday. GAP has a one year low of $7.22 and a one year high of $15.49. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $8.85 and a 200-day moving average price of $11.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 1.47 and a quick ratio of 0.68. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.59 billion, a P/E ratio of -60.93, a PEG ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 1.92.

GAP (NYSE:GPS  Get Rating) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 25th. The apparel retailer reported $0.01 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts consensus estimates of ($0.16) by $0.17. GAP had a positive return on equity of 0.86% and a negative net margin of 0.38%. The business had revenue of $3.28 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.28 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted ($0.44) earnings per share. The companys revenue for the quarter was down 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that GAP will post 0.64 EPS for the current year.

GAP Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 26th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 5th will be paid a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 3rd. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.15%. GAPs payout ratio is presently -374.98%.

About GAP

(Get Rating)

Gap, Inc operates as a global apparel retail company, which offers clothing, apparel, accessories, and personal care products for men, women, and children. The firm operates through the following segments: Gap Global, Old Navy Global, Banana Republic Global, Athleta, and Other. The Gap Global segment includes apparel and accessories for men and women under the Gap brand, along with the GapKids, BabyGap, GapMaternity, GapBody, and GapFit collections.

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Vista Energy, S.A.B. de C.V. (NYSE:VIST  Get Rating) gapped down before the market opened on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $23.37, but opened at $22.80. Vista Energy shares last traded at $22.56, with a volume of 195,823 shares.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have issued reports on VIST. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Vista Energy from $23.00 to $30.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research note on Monday, March 27th. TheStreet upgraded shares of Vista Energy from a c+ rating to a b rating in a research report on Thursday, February 23rd.

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Vista Energy Stock Down 1.6 %

The company has a market cap of $2.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 5.71 and a beta of 2.11. The stocks 50-day moving average price is $21.25 and its 200-day moving average price is $18.06. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58.

Institutional Trading of Vista Energy

Vista Energy ( NYSE:VIST Get Rating ) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 25th. The company reported $1.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.99 by $0.32. The business had revenue of $303.21 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $296.58 million. Vista Energy had a return on equity of 48.01% and a net margin of 30.89%. As a group, research analysts forecast that Vista Energy, S.A.B. de C.V. will post 4.52 EPS for the current year.

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Vista Energy by 40,275.0% in the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 3,230 shares of the companys stock valued at $64,000 after buying an additional 3,222 shares in the last quarter. GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC acquired a new position in Vista Energy during the 1st quarter valued at about $89,000. Quantbot Technologies LP bought a new stake in Vista Energy during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $41,000. UBS Group AG raised its stake in shares of Vista Energy by 68.0% in the third quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 6,256 shares of the companys stock worth $59,000 after purchasing an additional 2,532 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sigma Planning Corp bought a new position in shares of Vista Energy in the first quarter valued at approximately $221,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 37.10% of the companys stock.

Vista Energy Company Profile

(Get Rating)

Vista Energy, SAB. de C.V., through its subsidiaries, engages in the exploration and production of oil and gas in Latin America. The company's principal assets located in Neuquina basin, Argentina and Vaca Muerta. It also owns producing assets in Argentina and Mexico. In addition, the company involved in drilling and workover activities located in Argentina.

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Vermeer mostly painted women, alone with themselves, engulfed in the task at hand. The protagonist of Woman Holding a Balance, ca. 166264, weighs her jewelry in front of a painting of the Last Judgement. In A Young Woman standing at a Virginal, 167072, she turns away from the window, but faces a landscape painted onto the inside lid of her instrument. His oeuvre is full of such ironies, or subtle judgments upon his subjects. In one early, atypical work on loan from Tokyo, Saint Praxedis is seen wringing blood out of a sponge, her face the emblem of tranquility as a man lies decapitated behind her, the usually latent existential tension dripping into the bucket, splattering onto the later interior scenes, so famous for being calm. In this exhibition, the very texture of selfhood becomes palpable, and it is notor not onlypretty.

We are actually not really interested in blockbuster exhibitions, Taco Dibbits, the museums general director, told me about this years most-hyped show in Europe. We could easily have had two million visitors, but we limited the number of tickets and stopped doing PR after a week.

more here.
alaji, who currently holds Electricity, Excise, and Prohibition portfolios was arrested under the provisions of the PMLA. This arrest was done after extensive searches on premises connected to the minister on Tuesday. The ED searches at the minister's chamber at the State Secretariat were the first of their kind. DC Image

Chennai: Tamil Nadu electricity minister V Senthil Balaji was arrested early on Wednesday morning in connection with a money laundering case, related to job for cash scam in the state transport department. Soon after the arrest, Balaji broke down while sitting in the car.

Balaji served as the transport minister in the AIADMK regime from 2011-16.

Sources in the Enforcement Directorate (ED) said that the sleuths also interrogated several other persons in connection with the case, at Balajis official residence in Chennai, his brother Ashoks house in Chennai and at the official chamber at the State Secretariat at Fort St. George.

Balaji, who currently holds Electricity, Excise, and Prohibition portfolios was arrested under the provisions of the PMLA. This arrest was done after extensive searches on premises connected to the minister on Tuesday. The ED searches at the ministers chamber at the State Secretariat were the first of their kind.

Following his arrest, Balaji complained of chest discomfort, and was shifted to the Government Multi Super Specialty Hospital in Chennai at around 2.30 am for a medical checkup.

The case was booked in March 2021, on the eve of the Assembly elections, when Chennai police filed a chargesheet against Balaji and 46 others. The charges related to a recruitment scam that shook the state in 2014-15.
On Tuesday, when he was leaving home in his Mercedes, carrying the left over sachets, he landed in the police net.

Hyderabad: Noted Tollywood producer Sunkara Krishna Prasad Chowdary alias KP Chowdary, known for releasing Tamil movie Kabali in Telugu, has been arrested by the Cyberabad Special Operations Team on Tuesday and huge quantity of cocaine was seized from him possession.

Police found that Chowdary's clients are spread across movie circles including tollywood and Kollywood and also in business circles. He procured ganja from Petit Ebuzer, a Nigerian national and was using for self consumption and supply in his circles. He is also associated with drug kingpin Edwin Nunes who was arrested by HNEW earlier.

The seized material include 90 sachets of Cocaine weighing 82.75 Grams, Cash of Rs. 2.05 lakh, his Mercedes, and Mobile Phones, all worth Rs 78.50 lakh, said DCP Rajendranagar R Jagadishwar Reddy.

Police said Chowdary who relocated to Goa a few months ago, started OHM Club in Goa. He used to consume drugs with friends and also celebrities from Hyderabad who visited his club at Goa.

While coming to Hyderabad in April 2023, he procured 100 sachets of cocaine from Petit, of which he used 10 sachets for self-consumption and for selling to his friends.

On Tuesday, when he was leaving home in his Mercedes, carrying the left over sachets, he landed in the police net.

Police suspect he was on the way to sell the drug to his friends.

Chowdary, hailing from Khammam district, is a graduate in Mechanical engineering and also worked as Director Operations in Indian Institute of Aeronautical Engineering and Technology at Pune of Maharashtra.

In 2016, he left the job and entered in film industry. He made Kabali movie in Telugu as a producer. He was also distributor for two Telugu movies, Sardar Gabbarsingh and Seetamma Vakitlo Sirimalle Chettu, a Tamil movie Kanitan.

However, he ran into losses. During his short stint in the film industry, he built good relations with celebrities in the industry.

The absconding accused Petit is also wanted in drug peddling cases at Raidurgam PS of Cyberabad.
Kontham Tejaswini. (image By Arrangement)

Hyderabad: A 28-year-old woman from Hyderabad who was residing in London was stabbed to death at her accommodation in Wembley by a Brazilian national, the UK Metropolitan Police said in a statement. A 23-year-old man was detained by the police following the incident.

The woman, Kontham Tejaswini, was an engineering graduate and had moved to the UK three years ago. The UK authorities identified her as a student pursuing a master in science course, while her father K. Srinivas Reddy said she had completed her postgraduation and was working.

"Officers attended along with the London Ambulance Service and two women were treated for stab injuries. Despite the efforts of emergency services, a woman sadly died at the scene," the UK Police said in a statement.

According to the communication received by Reddy on Wednesday morning, Tejaswini was in her accommodation along with a friend when the attack took place. The friend was also stabbed by the accused but she did not suffer life-threatening injuries, the police said.

"We came to know about the incident today morning. We don't know when it happened. We got the information that she is serious and in hospital," Tejaswini's father was quoted telling a news channel.

Tejaswini 's cousin Vijay told mediapersons in Hyderabad that said the Brazilian man had moved into the shared accommodation, where Tejaswini lived with her friends, a few days ago.

The UK Police identified the accused as Brazilian national Keven Antonio Lourenco De Morais. He was arrested from the Harrow locality, near the crime scene of Neeld Crescent in Wembley.

"This has been a fast-moving investigation and I would like to thank the public for sharing our appeal for information about this man. He is now in custody," Detective Chief Inspector Linda Bradley, of the Met's Specialist Crime Command, said in a statement.

Tejaswini was a native of Turkayamjal, located on the outskirts of Hyderabad, and came from an agricultural family.

Reddy, a farmer by profession, said that Tejaswini last came home in August 2022, returned to London after celebrating her birthday in September 2022 and was again supposed to visit in May 2023, but had postponed her trip.

"We had started looking for marriage alliances for her. She had even resigned her job so that she can return," he said.

Her mother broke down upon hearing the news. "She was supposed to come home in a few more days," she said, appealing for authorities to expedite the process of bringing home the mortal remains.

Ibrahimpatnam MLA M. Kishan Reddy visited Tejaswinis parents, consoled them and assured all support from the government in bringing home her mortal remains at the earliest.
External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar with White House National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan at the South Block, in New Delhi, Wednesday. (Photo: Twitter@DrSJaishankar)

New Delhi: External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar on Wednesday held talks with US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan with a focus on preparing for Prime Minister Narendra Modi's upcoming state visit to Washington.

The top Biden administration official arrived here on Tuesday on a two-day visit for talks with NSA Ajit Doval, Jaishankar and some other senior Indian officials ahead of Modi's trip.

Jaishankar said global strategic developments also figured in his talks with Sullivan.

"Great to meet US NSA @jakesullivan46 in South Block today morning. Our conversation focused on preparing for PM @narendramodi's upcoming US visit. Also discussed global strategic developments from the perspective of our partnership," Jaishankar tweeted.

NSA Doval and Sullivan on Tuesday unveiled an ambitious roadmap for Indo-US collaboration in seven specific high-technology areas, including semiconductors, next-generation telecommunication, artificial intelligence and defence.

After the roadmap was unveiled at an event, Sullivan, referring to Modi's visit to Washington, said both sides are looking at "deliverables" to address issues that have stood in the way of maximising the full potential of cooperation between the two sides.

"They are fundamentally designed to remove those obstacles in defence trading, in hi-tech trade, in investment in each of our countries, in taking away obstacles that have stood in the way of better collaboration among our scientists and researchers, in stimulating greater access for our students going both ways, for Americans coming to India, for Indians coming to the US," he.

The roadmap for collaboration was announced at the second Track-1.5 dialogue on Initiative on Critical and Emerging Technologies (iCET) that was organised by industry chamber CII.

In a major move, President Joe Biden and Prime Minister Modi announced in May last year the US-India initiative on Critical and Emerging Technology (iCET) to elevate and expand the strategic technology partnership and defence industrial cooperation between the two countries.

The formal movement on the framework took place in January.

The iCET is expected to forge closer linkages between the government, academia and industry of the two countries in areas such as artificial intelligence, quantum computing, 5G and 6G, biotech, space and semiconductors.

In his remarks at the Track 1.5 dialogue, Doval said significant progress has been achieved after the launch of the iCET around six months back and that it will serve as a platform to address regulatory barriers and related issues.
Several student leaders protest at the college in Bachupally, after a 16 year old Raghula Vamshika, a inter first year student of Narayana residential college, Bachupally allegedly ended her life by jumping from the fifth floor of the college building, on Tuesday. (File photo: Raghula Vamshika)

HYDERABAD: A 16-year-old Intermediate first-year student of Narayana Junior Residential College in Bachupally, within four days of enrolling in the college, died by suicide on the college premises on Tuesday morning.

The police said that the incident took place at 8.40 am, when the girl excused herself from the chemistry class citing stomach pain and proceeded to jump off the fifth floor of the building.

The girls hostel mates said that the 16-year-old came from a rural and agricultural family, and was unable to adjust to hostel life as she was repeatedly spotted crying for her mother. She had only joined the hostel on June 9, they said.

"We received a phone call from Narayana College management at 9.40 am stating that a recently joined hostel student died by suicide," N. Suman Kumar, Bachupally police inspector, said.

A hostel resident said: "We met the girl on June 9 afternoon on her first day and helped her shift her luggage, explained to her about the classes, timings and took her to her room. Since Day one, she was sad. During a lunch hour, she suddenly broke out with tears in her eyes and left the dining table."

Another classmate, who is also her cousin, said: "Initially, we assumed that it would her a couple of days to adjust to hostel life, but she kept stating she was missing her mother and brother. We tried to pacify her but she was desperate to go home."

An uncle of the 16-year-old said that her father had got her admitted to the college by selling his land and was optimistic that she would adjust to her new life and have a bright future.

He said that her father worked as a labourer for eight years and works in Dubai on a labor visa. He will reach the country on Wednesday, the uncle said.

The uncle further said that the girls mother was in deep trauma and had not uttered a word since seeing her daughters body at the mortuary.

Bachapally police recorded the statements of the college management and the girls roommates, and registered a case of suspicious death.

The girls body was handed over to her family members after a post-mortem examination.

Following the incident, ABVP and Nava Telangana Vidyarthi Shakthi activists staged a dharna at Narayana College, demanding stern action against the college management. "The college management is responsible for her death," Nava Telangana Vidhyarthi Shakthis state president, E. Pavan Kumar, said.
Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao. (Photo: Twitter)

HYDERABAD: Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao on Wednesday laid the foundation for a 2,000-bed facility at the Nizams Institute of Medical Sciences (Nims), as part of the hospitals expansion plan on the occasion of Health Day under the TS Formation Day celebrations.

The additional facility will be named Dasabdhi Vaidya Bhavanam and is being built at Rs 1,571 crore. It will be equipped with advanced operation theatres and modern medical services.

On the day, the Chief Minister also launched the nutrition kits scheme for pregnant women and presented the kits to six pregnant women to kick off the kit distribution.

The Chief Minister said, "It is a remarkable occasion today that we have laid the foundation for the expansion of the Nims hospital, to become the largest hospital in the country. The government is committed to the health and well-being of the people of Telangana and in that effort, the budget allocation for the health sector by the state government increased from Rs 2,100 crore in 2014 to Rs 12,367 crore in 2023-24. Moreover, the bed capacity in the state has increased from 17,000 beds to 50,000 beds, alongside the existing 50,000 oxygen beds."

Chandrashekar Rao said that the government was also focused on ensuring the good health of pregnant women and newborns, with the nutrition kits helping ensure that a child does not suffer stunted growth or suffer from any developmental issue.

Chandrashekar Rao also asked the health officials to increase awareness among the public so that the measures taken by the government could reach the people. He also said that world-class medical facilities were now available in the state and people of Telangana need not go to foreign countries for treatment anymore.

The Chief Minister also appreciated the efforts of doctors in handling the Covid-19 crisis and lauded the Gandhi Hospital for providing medical care in times of pandemic to patients. He called on the health authorities to focus more on innovation, research and development.

Health minister T. Harish Rao said that it was due to "the visionary thinking of the Chief Minister Rao" that the state could excel in the health sector and programmes like Kanti Velugu and nutrition kits have been successful, with extensive public outreach and participation.

Ministers Mahmood Ali, Vemula Prashant Reddy and Talasani Srinivas Yadav, Rajya Sabha member K. Keshavrao, health secretary S.A.M. Rizvi and Chief Secretary A. Santhi Kumari were present at the event.
Ukraine Presidential Office Head Andriy Yermak. (Photo: Twitter)

New Delhi: Ukraine on Wednesday announced that its Presidential Office Head Andriy Yermak had spoken to National Security Advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval to seek Indias participation in a Global Peace Summit being organised by Ukraine for implementation of the Ukranian Peace Formula.

Ukraine said the conversation focused on "the consolidation of international support for the Ukrainian peace plan and the possibility of India joining the implementation of its individual points". This follows the meeting last month between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Hiroshima on the sidelines of the G7 Summit therev where both leaders had been invited as guests.

Following the conversation that took place around midnight on Wednesday (IST), Yermak tweeted, "Following the implementation of the agreements reached by @ZelenskyyUa as a result of negotiations with Prime Minister of India @narendramodi, had a telephone conversation with National Security Adviser to Prime Minister of India Ajit Kumar Doval. The main topic of the conversation was the implementation of the Ukraine peace formula, in particular the consolidation of international support of India for the peace plan and the possibility of India joining the implementation of its individual points."

It may be recalled that in his bilateral meeting with the Ukranian President at Hiroshima, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had conveyed that he understood the suffering of the Ukranian people and that India would do whatever it can to bring an end to the Ukraine conflict and help the Ukranian people. Modi had also assured that he would personally make all efforts in this direction and that for him, this was "not a political or economic issue but an issue of humanity, of human values", while conveying "Indias clear support for dialogue and diplomacy to find a way forward".

The Ukranian President had then briefed Modi on the current situation in his war-torn nation. The two leaders had met in-person after one and a half years and had last met before that on the sidelines of the COP26 Summit in UKs Glasgow city in November, 2021. But it was their first bilateral meeting since the start of the Ukraine conflict in February last year when Russia launched its military offensive in its neighbouring nation.

In a statement on Wednesday, Ukraine said, "In order to coordinate the implementation of the agreements reached by Volodymyr Zelenskyy following the talks with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his participation in the G7 Summit held in Japan on May 20, Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine Andriy Yermak had a phone call with National Security Advisor to the Prime Minister of India Ajit Doval. The main topic of the conversation was the implementation of the Ukrainian Peace Formula, in particular, the consolidation of international support for the Ukrainian peace plan and the possibility of India joining the implementation of its individual points."

Ukraine added, "In this context, the parties discussed preparations for the Global Peace Summit. Andriy Yermak emphasised the need to involve the widest possible range of countries, including the Global South, in this event. Recent events have once again proved that the Ukrainian Peace Formula is more relevant than ever - for both Ukraine and the whole world. We are actively working with partners to prepare the Global Summit on the implementation of the formula. We expect India to take part in it, the Head of the Presidential Office was quoted as stating."

Ukraine further stated, "Andriy Yermak briefed Ajit Kumar Doval in detail on the current situation on the frontline, as well as on Russia's ongoing missile and drone terror against peaceful Ukrainian cities and civilians. The Head of the President's Office drew attention to the catastrophic environmental and humanitarian consequences of the act of terrorism committed by the Russian Federation at the Kakhovka hydroelectric power plant and called on India to join the international community in its efforts to eliminate the consequences of this man-made disaster."
Union Home Minister Amit Shah addresses a press conference. (PTI File Photo)

HYDERABAD: A much-anticipated public meeting of the Bharatiya Janata Party in Khammam, which was to be addressed by Union home minister Amit Shah on Thursday, has been put off, state BJP president Bandi Sanjay Kumar announced on Wednesday.

He told reporters that Shah cannot make it to Telangana state as he is busy monitoring the progress and impact of cyclone Biparjoy, which is expected to cross the Gujarat coast on Thursday afternoon.

"The home minister is supervising round-the-clock efforts needed to provide relief and possible rescue operations in Gujarat, Rajasthan and Maharashtra on account of the cyclone and hence, he will not be able to make it to the public meeting. With the cyclone expected to have heavy impact on the two states, we assessed the situation and concluded that we should postpone the public meeting," Sanjay Kumar said.

"There has been good response for the meeting, with around 20 senior leaders in Khammam and all preparations having been made. But, taking care of people is more important than politics. There is no need for any BJP leader or worker to be disappointed because of the postponement as we will hold the meeting on another date. We will demonstrate our strength in Khammam," he said.

Partys national general secretary Tarun Chugh said Shah is monitoring the cyclone in close coordination with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

On the issue of unity in the partys state unit, Chugh said, "Yesterday,

under Sanjays leadership, we announced new state executive members and that should put to rest any speculation about any rift or change in the party. We are all united and working together."
The BJP sources said that the former Punjab chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh and Sunil Kumar Jakhar are leading the talks with the SAD for the parliamentary polls. (File photo: PTI)

New Delhi: In a significant political development, erstwhile NDA allies -- the BJP and the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) are set to come together for the 2024 general elections. According to sources, the BJP and Akali Dal are negotiating a seat-sharing formula in Punjab. The Akali Dal had walked out of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) in 2020 over the contentious three farm laws introduced by the Modi government, which were scrapped a year later.

Realising that it is necessary to join hands to counter the Opposition and win more seats in the state in next year's Lok Sabha polls, the BJP has started talks to join hands with one of its oldest allies -- the SAD in Punjab. Currently, the BJP has two Lok Sabha members from Punjab -- Sunny Deol from Gurdaspur and Union minister of state for commerce and industry Som Prakash from Hoshiarpur.

A BJP insider told this newspaper that talks over joining hands for the 2024 general election with the SAD are going on. "Negotiations over the seat sharing formula are underway and we are hopeful that old friends will once again come together for the development and prosperity of Punjab," he said.

The BJP sources said that the former Punjab chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh and Sunil Kumar Jakhar are leading the talks with the SAD for the parliamentary polls.

"Mr Singh and Mr Jakhar are leading talks and our initial offer is that the SAD will contest in eight and the BJP in five Lok Sabha constituencies," the BJP leader said.

Both the SAD and the BJP, which ruled the state in alliance in the past but failed to make a strong political presence in the 2022 Punjab Assembly polls after parting ways. Arvind Kejriwals AAP won 97 of the 117 Assembly seats and formed a government in Punjab led by Bhagwant Mann. The SAD won 15 seats and the BJP won only two seats. In 2017, while in alliance with the SAD, the saffron party had won three Assembly seats in Punjab.

It has been learnt that some sections of both parties feel that old partners must come together. Recently, the BJP leadership, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, visited Badal village to pay tribute to SAD patriarch and former chief minister Prakash Singh Badal, who passed away in April.

"The visit of the Prime Minister, BJP chief J.P. Nadda and Union home minister Amit Shah to Badal village shows that the warmth of old ties still exists between the BJP and the SAD. And we are hopeful of contesting the next election together," a BJP insider said.
Tamil Nadu minister Senthil Balaji was arrested under the PMLA after a long session of questioning. He has been sent to judicial custody till June 28 by Sessions Court. Opposition parties including Congress, NCP, AAP and Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) faction have slammed the Modi government over misusing investigative agencies against political opponents. Meanwhile, section 144 has been imposed in Uttarakhand's Purola after permission to hold 'maha panchayat' on 'love jihad' cases was denied. Union Home Minister Amit Shah's visit to Telangana on June 15 has been postponed. A Karnataka Special Court issued summons to Rahul Gandhi, DKS and Siddaramaiah in connection with a defamation case. In other parts of the world, a woman from Hyderabad was stabbed in her residence in London.
By Alex Gabriel Simon

Companies across industries are asking for safe and reliable ways to use ChatGPT-like services, creating an opportunity for software developers far beyond generative-AI leaders such as OpenAI and Alphabet Incs Google, a tech executive said.

Indias Happiest Minds Technologies Ltd is planning to hire 1,300 software engineers, the IT services firms biggest staff growth push ever, as it builds out its artificial intelligence business to cater to clients in sectors such as education and health care seeking to tap the emerging technology, co-founder Joseph Anantharaju said in an interview. It now employs about 5,000 people.

Also Read  Generative AI: Take the lead Bengaluru, for India

Happiest Minds is also in partnership talks with OpenAI backer Microsoft Corp for better access to ChatGPT, Anantharaju said, as it seeks an edge over rivals in Indias massive IT industry. While AI still accounts for a small portion of Happiest Minds sales, it is one the fastest-growing segments for the 12-year-old company.

The firm, which gets its revenue from helping companies digitise their services, is building tools that run on top of ChatGPT, customised to its clients needs, he said. These include safeguards to allow businesses to use ChatGPT without sharing proprietary data and intellectual property, a major privacy concern for its customers.

Clients want to make the best use of ChatGPT, Anantharaju said. We have started demonstrating these add-on capabilities to our clients.

Also Read  How could AI destroy humanity?

Another Happiest Minds tool can detect emotions in AI-generated podcast scripts and read the text out loud like a human would, rather than doing it in a monotone robotic voice, said Chief Technology Officer Sridhar Mantha.

To be sure, itll take time to see how Happiest Minds bet will play out as competitors too are jumping into the AI frenzy. We will have to wait for at least 10 months to get more clarity, said Piyush Pandey, an analyst at Yes Securities. The AI push definitely has a lot of potential, but bigger companies with more resources might be able to build on it faster.

Happiest Minds has weathered a global slowdown in the technology industry relatively well, said Pandey, who recommends buying the shares. Its stock has climbed about 20 per cent from a March low, outperforming Indias IT giants Tata Consultancy Services Ltd and Infosys Ltd.

Happiest Minds was co-founded by Ashok Soota, a tech industry pioneer who has headed three outsourcing companies. The shares have risen more than five-fold since its initial public offering in September 2020.
New Zealand is negotiating a new type of partnership with NATO, which will likely cover areas of common interest including the international rules based order, climate change and cyber security, the country's foreign minister said on Wednesday. Nanaia Mahuta said in an email to Reuters that NATO is shifting all of its partnership arrangements to a new model called an Individually Tailored Partnership Programme and that New Zealand was currently working out the details.

Also Read | NATO pushes for common standards to tackle shortfalls in artillery munitions as Ukraine drains stock

"Our ITPP will record long-standing areas of mutual interest between New Zealand and NATO, and possible opportunities for cooperation over the arrangement period," she said.

"While the exact areas of work are yet to be agreed, we expect it will cover areas of common interest such as support for the international rules based order, climate change, and cyber security," she said.

New Zealand has been a NATO partner since 2012 but is not a member. A NATO statement in February said New Zealand and NATO were strengthening relations to address shared security challenges. Mahuta said neither New Zealand nor NATO considers the ITPPs to be a new bloc or formal regional grouping. New Zealand has only one official ally - neighbouring Australia - although both are part of the Five Eyes intelligence and security alliance that includes Britain, Canada and the United States.

New Zealand has a long-standing nuclear free policy and Mahuta said the ITPP would be in line with that policy. New Zealand's Prime Minister Chris Hipkins earlier this week confirmed he would be attending the NATO summit in Lithuania as well as visiting China at the end of June.

NATO will set up a liaison office in Tokyo in 2024 and use it as a hub for co-operation with Australia, Japan, New Zealand and South Korea, the Nikkei newspaper said on Tuesday, a plan China has previously described as unwelcome.
Russian President Vladimir Putin discussed supplies of fertilizers, wheat and fuel during a phone call with the interim president of Mali, the Kremlin said on Wednesday.

The call, which the Kremlin said was at Mali's request, came after Putin said Russia was considering withdrawing from the UN-brokered Black Sea grain deal, which is partly aimed at relieving a food crisis in developing countries.

Also Read | Belarus starts taking delivery of 'powerful' Russian tactical nuclear weapons

Putin said on Tuesday he would discuss the future of the grain deal with some African leaders expected to visit Russia soon, adding that Moscow was ready to supply grain for free to the world's poorest countries.
India has significantly enhanced military infrastructure, surveillance and combat capabilities along the nearly 3,500 km-long Line of Actual Control (LAC) with China since the deadly clashes in Galwan Valley in 2020, sources in the defence establishment said Wednesday on the eve of the third anniversary of the hostilities.

The Indian and Chinese militaries are engaged in talks to reduce tensions along the frontier as the two sides are still locked in a standoff in a few friction points though they managed to disengage from some others.

The Galwan Valley clashes on June 15, 2020 were the first deadly skirmish between the two militaries along the LAC in five decades and they significantly strained the bilateral ties.

Also Read | Army chief advises IMA graduates to evolve with changing times to be combat ready

India has managed to significantly reduce the "infrastructure differential" with China along the LAC in the last three years in view of consistent focus on building helipads, airfields, bridges, tunnels, troop habitats and other required facilities, the sources said when asked about measures that have been taken following the Galwan clashes.

"The infrastructure development along the entire LAC is taking place at a fast pace. The main focus has been to bring down the infrastructure differential," said a source.

Our troops and equipment are adequately deployed now to deal with any eventualities, the sources said.

We are maintaining a posture that is focused on defeating any evil design by the adversary, they said.

The sources identified strengthening of all forms of surveillance including electronic ones as another significant aspect of boosting overall military preparedness by the Indian armed forces.

"The overall efforts to enhance the infrastructure, surveillance and military capabilities are based on a whole-of-the-government approach," the source said.

It is learnt that senior commanders of the Army's Northern Command would review the overall situation along the LAC in eastern Ladakh on Thursday.

Also Read | Nukes: India, Pak neck and neck, far behind China

The need for quick mobilisation of troops and weapon systems gained renewed focus in the wake of the lingering border row between India and China in eastern Ladakh.

Following the escalation in tension in eastern Ladakh standoff, the Army has taken a series of measures to boost its operational capabilities in the eastern sector that included procurement of all terrain vehicles, precision guided ammunition, high-tech surveillance equipment, radars and weapons.

The militaries of the two countries held 18 rounds of high-level talks so far with an objective of taking forward the disengagement process in the remaining friction points and restoring peace and tranquillity along the LAC in eastern Ladakh.

The 18th round of high-level military talks between the two sides were held on April 23 during which they agreed to stay in close touch and work out a mutually acceptable solution to the remaining issues in eastern Ladakh at the earliest.

The two sides completed disengagement in several areas following extensive diplomatic and military talks.

India has been maintaining that its ties with China cannot be normal unless there is peace in the border areas.

On June 8, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said that any expectation of normalisation of India's ties with China when the border situation in eastern Ladakh is not normal is unfounded.

"The fact is the relationship is impacted. And the relationship will continue to be impacted. If there is any expectation that somehow we will normalise (ties) while the border situation is not normal, that's not a well-founded expectation," he said.

The eastern Ladakh border standoff erupted on May 5, 2020, following a violent clash in the Pangong lake area.
Violence rocked parts of West Bengal over the filing of nominations for the July 8 panchayat poll as activists of the ruling TMC and opposition parties clashed prompting the police to use force to disperse the mob.

The violence over filing of nominations continued unabated for the fifth consecutive day in parts of South 24 Parganas and Bankura districts.

Supporters of Indian Secular Front (ISF) and TMC clashed in Bhangar area of South 24 Parganas, nearly 30 km from Kolkata. A huge police contingent was rushed to the spot, which resorted to baton charge to control the situation.

Bombs were hurled and several cars were ransacked as supporters of the two parties tried to stop each other from filing nominations.

Several activists belonging to the two parties were injured, the police said.

Read | Bengal panchayat polls: BJP fights to retain main opposition space amid Congress-Left resurgence

Similar scenes were witnessed in Canning area of the district as miscreants alleged to be members of dissident groups of the TMC tried to stop the filing of nominations of the party's official candidates.

The miscreants hurled bombs and threw stones against the Rapid Action Force (RAF) personnel and police had to burst tear gas shells to quell the situation, the police said.

Officials said that in the Indas area of Bankura BJP activists clashed with the TMC supporters outside the nomination filing center.

Supporters of both groups came to blows and pelted stones at each other, even as police tried to control the situation in the area, which is about 135 km from the city.

Since the beginning of nomination filing on June 9, violence has marred the nomination filing process in various parts of the state, with the opposition  BJP, Congress and CPI (M) accusing the TMC of using muscle power to stop candidates of opposition parties from filing nominations.

"The TMC goons unleashed violence since last night to stop our candidates from filing nominations," ISF leader and Bhangore MLA Naushad Siddique said.

Read | West Bengal panchayat polls: Calcutta HC orders deployment of central forces

TMC state spokesperson Kunal Ghosh dismissed the allegations and dubbed them as "baseless". "The ISF is trying to unleash violence in the area,"

The ruling party also asked the opposition parties to release its entire candidates list and said that if needed, it will help them to file their nominations.

The state's three-tier panchayat election encompassing a significant electorate of approximately 5.67 crores, will exercise their franchise to choose representatives for nearly 74,000 seats in zilla parishads, panchayat samiti and gram panchayats.

The Calcutta High Court on Tuesday ordered the requisition and deployment of central forces for the rural poll but refused to consider the plea for extending the time for filing of nominations and left it to the discretion of the State Election Commission.
A Greater Noida societys residents welfare association (RWA) has sent out a notice to its members requesting them to not to wear lungis and nighties in the society premises, sparking criticism on social media.

The notice, which was sent by Himsagar Apartments via social media on June 10, is aimed at requesting residents to consider their attire while using common premises and parks in the society. The notice drew criticism from the residents of neighbouring societies over the RWAs attempt to control individuals clothing preferences.

As reported by the Hindustan Times, the notice stated, It is expected from all of you that whenever you roam in the society at any time, you should pay special attention to your conduct and dress so that you do not give any chance to someone to object to your behaviour Therefore, everyone is requested not to roam around wearing lungi and nightie which are home wear.

According to a report by The Times Of India, the Himsagar Apartment Owners Associations notice was welcomed by a few residents while others criticised the decision.

While speaking to TOI, C K Kalra, president of the association on Tuesday insisted that they did not discriminate against anyone but only requested the residents to follow guidelines, after receiving some complaints about people wearing loose clothes while performing yoga in the compound, which made the complainant uncomfortable.

Also Read | Child labour eradication drive: 19 children rescued in Noida

A few days back, some women complained about a senior citizen doing yoga wearing a lungi. At first, we requested verbally. Later, the association decided to put it on a circular, Kalra was quoted as saying.

While the news of the notice sparked ridicule and criticism on social media, some residents expressed their support for it.

Dr Yash Veer Singh, a resident of Himsagar Apartments, told TOI that he had no problems with the circular as it had not imposed any fines. He added that people in the society were largely disciplined and that he had personally never seen anyone wear lungis in the common areas.

Another resident, Pankaj, told the publication that he wasnt aware of the circular, but felt that the direction to be conscious about clothing choices would be good for his kids.

However, the notice left RWA federations split: while the GB Nagar district development RWA backed the move, the Federation of Noida Residents Welfare Association (FONRWA), which has over 140 member RWAs, stressed that dressing choices should be left to individuals.

The Active Citizens Group in Greater Noida also stressed on the importance of individual freedom in dressing choices, while the Noida Federation of Apartment Owners Association (NOFAA), which has over 60 Apartment Owners Associations (AOAs) as members, said that the move to define dress codes reeked of a colonial mindset.


With Prime Minister Narendra Modi likely to receive a grand welcome in Washington DC next week, President Joe Biden is keen to see progress on a proposed deal for India procuring at least 18 armed MQ-9 Predator B drones from the General Atomics of the United States.

New Delhi is likely to seek an extension of the lease for the two Sea Guardians  the unarmed version of the MQ-9 Predator B drones used for surveillance  the Indian Navy had received from the General Atomics of the US.

Also Read: Through PM Modi's visit, US looks to convey India-US ties of 'positive strategic consequence': White House

The proposed deal for India to procure 18 drones from the US company at an estimated cost of about $ 2 billion was on the agenda for discussion during the visit of Bidens National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan to New Delhi. Sullivan called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi and had a meeting with his counterpart Ajit Doval on Tuesday. He also had another round of talks with Doval on Wednesday, apart from having a meeting with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar.

The visit of Sullivan was preceded by another by the US Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin, who had a meeting with his counterpart, Rajnath Singh, in New Delhi early last week.

Foreign Secretary Vinay Mohan Kwatra and the Principal Secretary at the Prime Ministers Office, P K Mishra, recently visited Washington DC.

The back-to-back engagements between India and the US are part of the preparations for the meeting between the Prime Minister and the US President in the White House on June 21 and 22 next.

Also Read: EAM Jaishankar meets US NSA Sullivan ahead of PM Modi's visit to Washington

Uncertainty, however, continued to loom large over the proposed deal for India to procure 18 armed drones from the US company. A source told DH in New Delhi that the government could not yet complete the internal process required before moving forward for clinching the deal. Besides, New Delhi has conveyed to Washington DC its general interests in the co-production of military hardware in India.

The two unarmed surveillance drones were used by the Indian Navy. They were also used by the Indian Army to keep watch on the Chinese Peoples Liberation Armys deployment along the India-China Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh. The drones were taken on lease after India-China military stand-off reached a flashpoint with a violent clash between the soldiers of the two nations at Galwan Valley on June 15, 2020.
A 15-year-old girl was allegedly sexually assaulted by a youth in Latur district of Maharashtra who posed as a 'woman' on social media to befriend her and later threatened to leak her photos if she doesn't accept him as her boyfriend, police said on Wednesday.

The prime accused and his two accomplices were arrested on Tuesday from Janwal village while their 17-year-old friend was sent to remand home.

Police registered a case against them under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) under charges of rape and assault or criminal force to woman with intent to outrage her modesty, and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act.

Read | Man poses as burkha-wearing woman doctor, hoodwinks hospital staff, patients

A police officer said the prime accused befriended the victim on Instagram by faking his identity and posing as a woman.

"He later asked the unsuspecting girl to meet at a spot. When the girl reached the spot on Ausa Road, she was surprised to find a boy waiting there, but they talked for a while. Meanwhile, he clicked photos of the girl on his mobile phone.

"He then threatened her to either accept him as her boyfriend or else he will release her photos on social media. He then sexually assaulted her at a spot," a police officer said.

The victim approached the police and narrated her ordeal.

"The arrested trio was produced in a court which remanded them in police custody till June 16," said police inspector Sanivan Mirkale.
The High Court of Karnataka on Wednesday quashed the sedition FIR filed against the management of a school in Bidar for staging a play against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and the National Register of Citizenship (NRC).

Justice Hemant Chandangoudar, at the Dharwad bench of the High Court, passed the order quashing the FIR registered by the police against four people of the management of the Shaheen school in Bidar in 2020.

Also Read | Congress leader Shamanur asks Karnataka govt to withdraw power tariff hike

The four were charged under Sections 504 (insulting someone intentionally), 505(2), 124A (sedition), 153A (causing disharmony between religious groups) read with Section 34 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

Nilesh Rakshala, an Akhila Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) activist had complained against the school on January 26, 2020, after a play was staged by the students of class 4, 5 and 6, alleging that it insulted Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The play was staged in the school on January 21 that year and resulted in a controversy after a video of it was uploaded online by a parent.

While the order of quashing was dictated by the HC on Wednesday, the copy of the judgement is awaited.
NOW Inc. distributes downstream energy and industrial products for petroleum refining, chemical processing, LNG terminals, power generation utilities, and industrial manufacturing operations in the United States, Canada, and internationally. It offers its products under the DistributionNOW and DNOW brand names. The company provides consumable maintenance, repair, and operating supplies; pipes, valves, fittings, flanges, gaskets, fasteners, electrical products, instrumentations, artificial lift, pumping solutions, valve actuation and modular process, and measurement and control equipment; and mill supplies, tools, safety supplies, and personal protective equipment, as well as applied products and applications, such as artificial lift systems, coatings, and miscellaneous expendable items. It also offers original equipment manufacturer equipment, including pumps, generator sets, air and gas compressors, dryers, blowers, mixers, and valves; modular oil and gas tank battery solutions; and application systems, work processes, parts integration, optimization solutions, and after-sales support services. In addition, the company provides supply chain and materials management solutions that include procurement, inventory planning and management, and warehouse management, as well as solutions for logistics, point-of-issue technology, project management, business process, and performance metrics reporting services. It serves customers through a network of approximately 170 locations in the upstream, midstream, and downstream sectors of the energy industry, including drilling contractors, well-servicing companies, independent and national oil and gas companies, midstream operators, and refineries, as well as petrochemical, chemical, utilities, and other downstream energy processors; and industrial and manufacturing companies. The company was founded in 1862 and is headquartered in Houston, Texas.
Accenture plc is a global professional services company that operates in various industries worldwide. With a mission to provide exceptional strategy and consulting, interactive technology, and operation services, Accenture has established itself as a leader in the professional services sector. The company's headquarters are located in Dublin, Ireland.

Accenture offers its diverse client base a wide range of products and services. Its application services cover areas such as agile transformation, DevOps, software and quality engineering, data management, and intelligent automation. The company also provides strategy and consulting services, focusing on data and analytics, metaverse, sustainability, and HR transformation. Accenture's technology services encompass cloud infrastructure management, AI, and technology consulting. Additionally, the company offers engineering and R&D digitization, business process outsourcing, and various services related to technology innovation.

Accenture is led by a highly experienced and accomplished management team. Julie T. Spellman Sweet serves as the Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of Accenture, bringing her expertise in driving growth and delivering strategic value to clients. Kathleen R. McClure is the Chief Financial Officer overseeing the company's financial operations. Gianfranco Casati serves as the Executive Chairman of Growth Markets, and Jean-Marc Ollagnier leads as the Chief Executive Officer of Europe. James O. Etheredge holds the position of Chief Executive Officer of North America. These executives bring a wealth of knowledge and industry experience to their respective roles, contributing to Accenture's success.

Accenture has consistently delivered strong financial performance over the years. The company has reported substantial revenue, impressive earnings, and healthy profit margins. Accenture's financial performance reflects its ability to generate significant income and maintain a strong market position. Furthermore, the company has effectively managed its debt levels, ensuring financial stability and flexibility.

Accenture's valuation metrics, such as price-to-earnings and price-to-book ratio, are generally favorable compared to industry peers. The company's strong financial performance, market leadership, and growth potential contribute to its favorable valuation. Investors recognize the company's value and prospects, which may be reflected in the stock's performance.

Accenture operates in the broader professional services industry, which is characterized by intense competition and evolving trends. The industry's landscape is constantly changing due to technological advancements, regulatory changes, and shifts in client demands. Accenture competes with other major professional services firms, each vying for market share and differentiation. Its strong reputation, global reach, and comprehensive service offerings give it a competitive advantage. Moreover, Accenture's ability to leverage emerging technologies and provide innovative solutions positions it well in the industry.

Accenture has numerous growth opportunities in various areas. The company can leverage its expertise in emerging technologies such as AI, data analytics, and automation to drive innovation and expand its service offerings. Additionally, Accenture can explore new markets, capitalize on digital transformation initiatives and pursue strategic acquisitions to enhance its capabilities. The company's strong relationships with key customers and ability to provide tailored solutions enable it to seize growth opportunities effectively.

While Accenture has demonstrated resilience and adaptability, it faces certain risks and challenges. Changes in consumer preferences, technological disruptions, and evolving regulatory landscapes pose potential dangers to Accenture's business. Consumer preferences can shift rapidly, requiring the company to stay agile and continuously innovate to meet changing demands. Moreover, technological disruptions, such as advancements in artificial intelligence or automation, can impact the traditional service offerings of professional services firms. Accenture must stay at the forefront of emerging technologies and adapt its services to remain relevant and competitive.

Additionally, regulatory changes can introduce uncertainties and compliance challenges. As governments worldwide implement new regulations and policies, Accenture must navigate the evolving landscape to ensure compliance while providing valuable services to clients. Close monitoring of regulatory developments and proactive engagement with relevant stakeholders is essential for the company to mitigate potential risks.

Despite these challenges, Accenture's robust risk management strategies and ability to anticipate and respond to market dynamics position it well to address potential risks. The company's focus on innovation, investment in talent development, and strategic partnerships contribute to its ability to overcome challenges and sustain its growth trajectory.
In a great display of determination and knowledge, St. Mary's College emerged as the victors in The Amelia Earhart STEM Challenge hosted by Ulster University.

The competition, held annually to celebrate the pioneering spirit of Amelia Earhart and her contributions to aviation and STEM fields, saw Year 9 students from across Northern Ireland compete in a series of challenges.

The Royal Academy of Engineering Amelia Earhart STEM Challenge, now in its second year, aims to foster interest in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics among young minds, while honouring the remarkable legacy of the famous aviator. The competition features a range of tasks that test participants' problem-solving skills, creativity, knowledge and teamwork.

This year, St. Mary's College, known for its exceptional STEM students, rose to the occasion, demonstrating exceptional talent and dedication. The St. Marys Team, comprised of Ann Doherty, Sarah Doherty, Casey Hegarty, Jaroslava Khaidukova and Abbie-Rose McGeady navigated through a series of challenges with precision and ingenuity, ultimately securing the top spot among formidable competitors.

One of the judges of the competition, Gill Gallagher, praised the students for their exceptional commitment and hard work.

"The St. Mary's College team exemplifies the spirit of Amelia Earhart. Their dedication, collaborative spirit, and passion for STEM have truly paid off," she exclaimed.

The team's success at The Amelia Earhart STEM Challenge was rewarded with an amazing top prize jointly sponsored by City of Derry Airport and Cutting Edge Helicopters of a VIP tour and helicopter ride over Amelias flight path over Derry for the five students and their teacher Mrs Aine Northey.

STEM Challenge runners up Thornhill College.

As the winning team look forward to their visit to City of Derry Airport, the legacy of Amelia Earhart shines brighter than ever, and many more young minds have been encouraged to explore the vast possibilities of STEM fields and dare to dream big.

Results: 1st, St. Marys College; 2nd, Thornhill College; 3rd, Enniskillen Royal Grammar School.
Ten sign language students have graduated with top honours at a ceremony organised by Foyle Deaf Association.

Ten men and women received certificates for passing their level six in Irish Sign Language, the highest level achievable.

Certificates were also handed out to British Sign Language students at level three.

Foyle Deaf Association recently secured its own premises on Great James Street in Derry. The property has given the organisation a firm base from which to build on its work supporting the deaf community and developing Northern Irelands interpreter list.

An FDA spokesperson said that government funding has been vital in enabling it to enhance the services it can offer.

Funding from the Department for Communities has had a profound impact on the FDA and in turn the deaf community we serve.

It has allowed us to become a teaching organisation and to provide successive cohorts of students with training in BSL and ISL from level three to level six and presently right up to interpreter level.

Some of those students along with other qualified candidates are now taking part in our interpreter training programme funded by the Department, in order to address the dire need for sign language professionals in the country.

Department for Communities funding has also allowed us to purchase a building as our own deaf hub, furniture and equipment and provide various projects and activities for our members and service users, providing invaluable support for our deaf community and raising the profile of the FDA.

Because of this, we are going from strength to strength as an organisation and a community, and we are confident that we will continue to grow moving forward in becoming the focal point for the deaf community in the north west and the west as a whole.

Students being presented with their certificates on completion of their level three British Sign Language course.

In attendance at the ceremony held in the Millennium Forum was Acting Head of the Departments Sign Language Policy and Legislation team, Tommy McAuley.

The Departments investment in Foyle Deaf Association demonstrates its commitment to developing the sign language infrastructure necessary to support the local deaf community, and in doing so, improving accessibility to services for BSL and ISL users both in the north west and across Northern Ireland, said Mr McAuley.

It is important that not only are these initiatives co-designed with the deaf community but, where possible, their delivery is deaf-led.

Foyle Deaf Association is an excellent example of how the department has worked alongside a deaf-led teaching and cultural organisation which is delivering qualifications in their own languages which will ultimately increase interpreter capacity, but which also promotes BSL and ISL as languages in their own right to wider society.

On behalf of the department, I thank the association for their hard work and diligence to guide many students through the various levels of sign language qualifications over the past several years, and I congratulate all those students who have attained their BSL or ISL qualifications.
A 17-year-old youth has been warned that he was 'going to get a rude awakening' when he turned 18 in December.

The youth appeared charged with breaching his curfew on June 14 by not being at his address when he was supposed to be.

A police officer told Derry Magistrate's Court that the defendant had breached his curfew and then handed himself in to police.

The officer said that due to the defendant's age there was very little the court could do and said he was applying for the youth to be re-released on bail on the same conditions.

He told the court that the youth turned 18 in December.

District Judge Barney McElholm said that this youth was 'a serial offender' and would find things very different when he turned 18.

He released him on bail to appear again on June 20.
Five new support centres will open across Northern Ireland as part of a multi-million-pound investment in local cancer patient support, Cancer Focus NI has announced.

Cancer Focus Northern Ireland plans to create the regional centres to offer local spaces of sanctuary and support for people impacted by cancer across the region in a major shake-up in how cancer care is delivered in the country.

On Wednesday, the charity launched its new five-year strategy at an event at the Belfast Harbour Commissioners Office.

Part of the proposals includes the planned sale of Cancer Focus Northern Irelands current headquarters it Eglantine Avenue, Belfast, to help fund the newly announced plans.

Other key aims of the new strategy include increasing public awareness of how to reduce the risk of cancer and promote healthier living and funding research on primary cancers of unmet need.

Cancer Focus NI said the regional centres will allow flexibility in how people engage with cancer specialists or avail of individual or group therapeutic support.

Local support centres will also offer space and opportunity for relaxation, as well as providing emotional and practical support services and access to information and advice.

Richard Spratt, chief executive of Cancer Focus NI, said it is an exciting and ambitious plan.

Mirroring the emphasis of the Northern Ireland cancer strategy, our charity will rejuvenate its current patient-centered care approach by bringing together existing specialist cancer support services currently operating in local communities under a series of fit-for-purpose regional centres, he said.

From these spaces, we will continue to deliver a series of health improvement services to better tackle existing health inequalities experienced throughout Northern Ireland.

As Northern Irelands first cancer charity, we believe that this future direction of cancer response is crucial to seeing more local people live their lives to the fullest.

This is a progressive and positive shake-up in how we deliver cancer therapeutic support and ensures we remain responsive to the needs of those living with cancer in Northern Ireland.

Ivan McMinn, Cancer Focus NI chairman, said the new strategy will make a big difference to the experience of cancer patients in Northern Ireland.

I welcome this exciting new future for our charity. Speaking from personal experience, a cancer journey is one of the most devastating moments anyone can experience, he said.

I believe that having a local therapeutic support centre will make a massive difference to someones journey from diagnosis and treatment to recovery.

Our charitys new vision is simple. We want people to live their most fulfilled lives with access to world-leading, equitable cancer support, treatment, diagnosis, prevention and research. I, and the entire board at Cancer Focus Northern Ireland, are delighted to support the charity during such a wonderful and exciting phase.
More than 750 students at Queens University Belfast face graduating without receiving their final degree result this summer.

The situation has arisen because of ongoing industrial action by some university staff, which includes a boycott on marking and assessment.

A senior figure at Queens conceded that some students had been left disappointed, upset and angry by the situation.

Those who did not receive their final degree result when summer graduations began at the university later this month would be offered the opportunity to attend a second graduation ceremony when the industrial action was resolved.

But the university said it did not know when the action would end.

The marking and assessment boycott is being carried out by University and College Union (UCU) members at 145 universities across the UK in an ongoing dispute over staff pay and conditions.

University staff staged a series of strikes earlier this year in two separate disputes  one on pensions and one on pay and working conditions.

The PA news agency understands that Queens University has been in discussions with UCU to try and find a Northern Ireland-solution that would allow final year students exams to be marked, but has been unsuccessful so far.

The graduation season occurs earlier in Northern Ireland than in England, meaning the potential disruption to exam results is happening earlier in the region.

More than 4,200 students were due to graduate from Queens this summer.

Currently, some 759 students would not receive their final results. They would still be able to graduate but the final classification of the degree would be pending.

Twelve students would not receive a degree at all, although the university has said some of this number was down to reasons other than the industrial action.

It is understood that more than 80 QUB staff are involved in the marking and assessment boycott.

The disruption to final results is mainly in the arts and humanities faculty.

Professor Stuart Elborn, interim deputy vice chancellor and provost of QUB, said it was a national dispute which was having a local impact.

He said: For Queens, this is impacting some of the students who would be graduating this year.

Its a minority of the students, but for those who are affected, this is very upsetting as they will not necessarily be getting the full marks from their degree process.

Students are disappointed, upset, and some of them are understandably angry, but we are doing absolutely everything to ensure that we get as many of our students through graduation with the full results of their degree course, but for some we may have to delay full classification of the degree until the marking and assessment boycott has been called off.

He added: At the centre of this is making sure that we are caring and delivering for our students, what they came to university for.

We are working really hard to maintain the integrity of the degree that they are currently studying and ensuring through working really hard with our exam board and with our staff to get as many of our students through to graduation as we possibly can.

We would hope we would see resolution to this dispute to enable full classification of the degrees over the next number of months but that will depend on negotiations, but we will continue to work locally with our students and with our staff to ensure as many as possible of our students have full classification of their degrees as soon as possible.
A stockpile of ivory seized from elephant poachers and illegal ivory dealers is burned in Libreville, Gabon.

analysis

The loss of nature is one of the many environmental crises facing our planet. And a key challenge in addressing this is halting the poaching and trafficking of wildlife, which is often driven by demand for ivory.

In a bid to protect animals from poaching, the UK government has strengthened legal protections for five more species. Trading in ivory from hippos, walruses, narwhals, killer whales and sperm whales is set to be prohibited under the extended provisions of the Ivory Act 2018. Since coming into force last year, this act has gained recognition as "one of the toughest bans of its kind in the world".

Its initial objective was to curb the trafficking of elephant tusks, which are smuggled and sold for purposes including traditional medicine and as trophies and ornaments. It bans people from selling, renting, importing or exporting elephant ivory in the UK. Those found guilty of breaking the law can face fines of up to 250,000 and, in severe cases, even imprisonment.

The newly protected species make up a smaller proportion of the ivory trafficking trade than elephants. But these animals are still hunted for their ivory.

A recent investigation examined 621 online listings of ivory in the UK, and discovered that approximately one-third originated from non-elephant species. Furthermore, a separate report highlighted clear demand for hippo ivory: between 2009 and 2018, an estimated 957kg of hippo ivory was seized globally.

The legal protection of trading in these species potentially serves as a deterrent for ivory traffickers. But it's important to recognise that any ban is only as good as its enforcement. We think the effectiveness of the Ivory Act's legal extensions may be hindered by several barriers.

1. Global disparity in wildlife law

In many countries, the trade in ivory is merely "regulated" rather than prohibited, allowing existing markets to persist. In 2022, ten African nations attempted to increase protections for hippos. However, their proposal was rejected and the legal trade in hippo ivory continues in those countries.

The global disparity between wildlife trade laws enables the continued circulation of illegally obtained ivory, often laundered alongside trade in legitimate ivory. Hong Kong, for example, declares a higher volume of hippo ivory imported from Uganda than the volume Uganda declares it exports. Some 14,000kg of hippo teeth were unaccounted for between Uganda and Hong Kong from 1995 to 2013, suggesting actual trade levels greatly exceed the agreed quotas.

The impact on ivory trafficking of an extended ban is likely to remain limited without a global consensus on wildlife laws. Yet unfortunately, there is wide variation in wildlife protection laws across different countries, with each state adopting its own approach. This remains the case despite international law setting out the basis for wildlife protection.

The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (Cites), for instance, imposes international restrictions on wildlife trade that signatory countries are obliged to comply with. Similarly, commercial whaling activities are explicitly prohibited by the International Whaling Commission.

However, there are many cases where countries have signed these agreements without implementing or enforcing the necessary changes. Earlier this year, Mexico acknowledged that it faces sanctions from Cites for failing to adequately protect the vaquita marina, an endangered species of porpoise.

2. Policing

Wildlife crimes are not always given the priority they require. Research based on surveys of UK police forces and police and crime commissioners found that wildlife crime enforcement was heavily dependent on the "enthusiasm, dedication and specialist knowledge of individual officers".

Other studies consistently show that wildlife crime enforcement suffers from inadequate resources, and is not considered a primary focus within mainstream policing in the UK. Although the UK has a dedicated National Police Wildlife Crime Unit, training in wildlife crime is not included in the compulsory training regime for police officers. As a result, wildlife crimes are inconsistently prosecuted, and even when cases do reach the courts, fines and sentencing are often lenient.

3. Criminal organisations

Organised crime networks play a significant role in facilitating the illegal ivory trade. It's therefore likely that numerous unreported and undiscovered incidents occur. These criminal networks employ various techniques to facilitate their activities, including sophisticated smuggling methods, bribery, corruption and exploiting porous borders.

The participation of criminal organisations contributes to a lack of understanding about the true scale of the ivory trade and the different species involved. This hinders efforts to gather accurate data on the ivory trade and allocate resources for enforcement.

4. Ivory identification

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UK authorities enforcing the strengthened ban on ivory trade face the additional hurdle of accurately identifying ivory and ivory products. Traffickers commonly employ tactics to deceive by disguising elephant ivory as other products, particularly on online marketplaces.

Research has documented cases where ivory has been misrepresented as materials from other species, such as cow bone, on ecommerce platforms. This practice makes it difficult to distinguish illicit ivory trade from legitimate transactions.

The situation will be further complicated by the fact that some existing ivory markets, such as those involving warthogs, are not covered by the extended Ivory Act. These gaps in protection again provide avenues for traffickers to exploit, by hiding illegal ivory among legal ivory trade.

Any law that protects threatened wildlife should be welcomed. However, a ban alone will not prevent illegal activity. The establishment of a properly funded enforcement regime is essential if we are to safeguard our natural world.

Elliot Doornbos, Senior Lecturer of Criminology, Nottingham Trent University

Angus Nurse, Head of Criminology and Criminal Justice, Nottingham Trent University
Samsung Galaxy F54 5G is designed to be the ultimate smartphone for Gen Z, the tech-savvy generation that truly embraces the digital age. These young individuals value self-expression and are always on the lookout for innovative ways to creatively express themselves. This latest offering from Samsung is tailored to meet their needs perfectly.

The phone offers powerful hardware and refreshing OneUI software, all wrapped within the elegant signature Samsung design. But, the standout feature of this phone is its exceptional 108MP No Shake Cam with Nightography and Astrolapse capabilities. Samsung has put all its flagship camera learning into this powerful and intelligent camera system that promises to effortlessly capture breathtaking moments of spontaneous self-expression, whether it's during the day or at night.

And to put these capabilities to the test, we did the extreme. We took the Galaxy F54 5G to the darkest place in India, the first Dark Sky Reserve in India - Hanle, Ladakh. Can the Galaxy F54 5G indeed capture the stars? Take this exhilarating journey with us to find out!

Amazing low light captures: Nigtography and Astrolapse

Lets straightaway dive into the main course of our adventure. After braving adverse weather and sleepless nights, we finally reached Hanle, the first Dark Sky Reserve in India. The sky was reasonably clear, and it was the perfect opportunity to put the Galaxy F54 5G's low-light capabilities to the test.

Nightography brings a combination of software and hardware optimizations that help you capture stunning visuals from both front and rear cameras even in low-light scenes. The Galaxy F54 5G leverages large pixels and OIS to capture more light while employing AI processing on up to 12 frames to produce clearer and sharper images. The Auto Night Mode seamlessly activates these enhancements for both front and rear cameras.

We managed to capture some really amazing low-light shots. Take a look and you'll see that shadows remain detailed, noise is kept to a minimum, and the highlights retain their intricate details. The phone excelled at capturing the texture of the dark night sky while preserving the true colours and fine details of our tent, illuminated by camp lights. This is really impressive for a phone in this price segment!

But, of course, the true reward of all our efforts was the Astrolapse mode! We were a little skeptical to begin with since to capture all those tiny stars in such low light conditions you need long exposure times, good quality camera sensor, and intelligent software - which are features you see in phones priced a lot higher than the Galaxy F54 5G.

We were, however, pleasantly surprised. The Astrolapse videos speak for themselves! Its amazing that the Galaxy F54 performed so well and could capture the night sky in stunning detail.

No Shake Cam for Stable Videos

Another impressive feature of the Galaxy F54 5G is the No Shake Cam, which utilizes a combination of optical image stabilization (OIS) and video digital image stabilization (VDIS) at a high frequency of 1000Hz. We put this feature to the test by capturing the breathtaking landscapes of the Uttarakhand hills from a moving car. Despite the bumpy mountain road, the Galaxy F54 5G effectively counteracted the shakes, delivering exceptionally crisp and stable footage in stunning 4K resolution at 30 frames per second (fps).

Furthermore, not only does the phone offer 4K video recording at 30 fps with its primary camera, but it also extends this capability to the wide and selfie cameras. This means that you can capture videos with incredible details and clarity from any perspective, and spontaneously express yourself anywhere, anytime.

108MP camera for Impressive details

Our voyage to Ladhak was replete with picturesque landscapes and the first thing we noticed was the remarkable level of detail captured by the phone, all thanks to its high-resolution 108MP camera and the intelligent AI processing software developed by Samsung. The high clarity allowed us to indulge in the luxury of pixel peeping, enabling us to effortlessly zoom in on distant objects and explore them up close.

Apart from rich details, the images captured from the Galaxy F54 5G have great contrast and vibrant colours. The phone could faithfully capture highlights and shadows and thus allowed us to truly appreciate the beauty of the landscapes we encountered.

In addition to the Pro-level 108MP primary rear camera, the Galaxy F54 5G boasts an 8MP wide-angle camera and a 2MP macro camera. This powerful trio provides you with a wide range of creative possibilities from capturing expansive landscapes to intricate details of small subjects.

Moreover, the front camera of the phone offers an impressive 32MP resolution. This ensures exceptional clarity in your selfies and spontaneous vlogs, allowing you to effortlessly share your experiences in amazing visual quality.

Enhance Your Captures with innovative software

The Galaxy F54 5G goes beyond just capturing stunning images; it also offers a range of useful tools to enhance your photos after you've taken them. Among these features, the Photo Remaster stands out as a notable addition. Utilizing advanced algorithms, it elevates your captures and transforms ordinary images into eye-catching, envy-inducing social media posts.

Another standout feature is the Object Eraser, which allows you to effortlessly remove unwanted shadows, reflections, or even objects from your images. We were amazed by its capabilities when we were able to cleanly erase a rock from our photo, making it appear as if it was floating in mid-air. These fun and creative will help you unleash your imagination and create truly unique visuals.

Engaging features for fun-filled memories

A great smartphone camera possesses a certain magnetic charm that makes you want to whip it out of your pocket time and time again to satisfy your photography cravings. It's like having a little creative companion that nudges you to explore the world and capture its wonders. And to be able to do so, the camera needs to be engaging.

The Samsung Galaxy F54 5G offers one such camera thats loaded with a number of useful and fun features and throughout our way, we were actively looking to capture wonderful scenes with unique perspectives. If you are unsure about the best way to capture a scene, the Single Take mode does all the hard work and lets you capture up to four videos and four images simultaneously - all with a single click.

Theres also a Fun mode, which brings a playful twist to your photography experience. With 16 trendy filters at your disposal, you can apply these cool effects to your subjects and add a touch of excitement to your memories!

We put this feature to the test during a well-deserved break mid-way through our journey after a long, but satisfying drive. The fun mode added some fun vibes to our memories of the time when we were relaxing and enjoying a mini-party in our tent. Now, every time we look back at those pictures, we can't help but smile and reminisce about the fun-filled moments we shared.

All-round versatility that goes beyond Camera capabilities

When it comes to camera capabilities, the Galaxy F54 5G punches significantly above its weight. The camera performed admirably and will be a game-changer in its segment. At the same time, this isnt a one-trick pony.

The phone boasts the signature Galaxy design, complimented by an immersive 6.7-inch sAMOLED+ display, complete with a 120Hz refresh rate. This ensures that every image and video you capture can be enjoyed in all its glory.

The intuitive OneUI 5.1 software takes user experience to the next level by seamlessly integrating convenient features. From top-notch security with Knox to a secure and user-friendly Samsung wallet, this phone has you covered. Additionally, the voice focus feature enhances clarity in voice and video calls, ensuring that every conversation is crystal clear. Moreover, Samsung promises up to 4 generations of OS updates and up to 5 years of security updates to ensure your experience only improves with time

Lastly, the Galaxy F54 5G incorporates a massive 6000mAh battery, offering unmatched convenience during demanding road trips like ours. It provided ample power to keep us going without any worries, allowing us to focus on the journey and capture every memorable moment.

If you dont want to miss out on all these amazing features, you can pre-order the phone on Flipkart at an amazing price of just Rs 27,999. So dont wait, head to Flipkart to join the revolution!

[Brand Story]
Possible market responses to China stopping purchases of Micron products

On May 21, 2023, the Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC) announced that products sold by Micron Technology in China did not pass cybersecurity review, and that according to Chinese laws and regulations such as the Cybersecurity Law, critical IT infrastructure operators in China must cease their procurement of Micron products.

On May 29, the South China Morning Post (SCMP) made a commentary on this matter, indicating that amid the atmosphere of technology confrontation between China and the US, it is not surprising for American tech companies to face such a trade curb. Micron became the target because "it is a major US chipmaker that has not only filed multiple intellectual property lawsuits against Chinese companies but also frequently lobbied the US authorities to curb China's semiconductor industry."

This part of the SCMP commentary is not far from the truth. Micron, among all the memory makers around the world, has most often employed non-commercial competitive tactics against its competitors. It has extensively utilized measures such as patent infringement, lobbying for anti-dumping and countervailing duties to their fullest extent, taking full advantage of the US influence in international politics and its previous dominance in the global semiconductor market. No memory company in the world can avoid being troubled by Micron.

Even though Micron itself was involved in a DRAM antitrust case, the company finally was able to escape unscathed by using its familiar Leniency Program with the antitrust authorities. Micron's recurrent practices certainly make it more subject to retaliation, but it remains unclear whether the Chinese government ruled against Micron based on this factor.

The reason or justification as announced by the Chinese authorities for its ruling against Micron is perplexing, given the product nature of DRAM, which is considered a "commodity."

DRAM products have globally standardized specifications, such as DDR4, DDR5, LPDDR4, and other interface specs. Products of the same spec have identical standards for voltage, transmission speed, signal order, and other parameters, all of which are uniformly formulated by the Joint Electron Device Engineering Council (JEDEC), a global leader in developing open standards for the microelectronics industry.

In theory, a company's product with a specific interface can be directly replaced by another company's product with the same interface.

If Micron products were to deliberately add "features" that the counterparts of other companies don't have, the additional circuits are bound to take a big toll on its product cost. Accordingly, using this as the rationale or justification for China's trade ban on Micron is barely comprehensible to industry insiders.

What market responses will be triggered by China's curb on Micron products?

The current memory market is in a state of extreme recession due to sluggish PC and mobile sales, which is a shared sentiment of the entire industry.

Micron's business performance is clearly impacted by China's trade sanction in the short term, but there are several reasons why the influence of the sanction may not be as severe as imagined.

First is Micron's advanced preparedness. The China-US technology confrontations have been going on for several years. In particular, after entering into litigation with China's Jinhua Integrated Circuit (JHICC), it is unlikely that Micron would not have contingency plans in place. Otherwise, it would be operating too carelessly.

Second is Micron's traditional market strategy. For a long time, the company's market strategy has been to maximize profits instead of maintaining customer loyalty, as DRAM is considered a commodity. Since DRAM is a commodity, it is difficult to enhance customer loyalty through product differentiation, and therefore profit maximization is a reasonable market strategy.

Based on this market strategy, Micron's sales system provides a relatively high flexibility in shifting product sales targets.

Third refers to the commodity nature of DRAM. Due to the substitutability of DRAM, the component conversion cost is relatively lower for system makers, and as long as there is a price difference, there is an incentive for DRAM conversion. Accordingly, the net effect of the China trade curbs on Micron is the renegotiation and matching reshuffle between memory oligopolies and customers. Reestablishing connections and bargaining between customers and suppliers will incur transaction costs and take time, thus delaying the overall recovery of the industry.

For individual companies, they will experience some losses, yet not to the point of suffocation.

A commodity is like spilled water; it will flow somewhere. Look at Russian oil: despite being boycotted by so many countries, it is still selling well, isn't it?

Author's Bio

Albert Lin is an advisor to DIGITIMES Asia and the chief supervisor of the board at the Taiwan Association of Quantum Computing and Information Technology (TAQCIT). He earned his Ph.D. in physics and started teaching at National Central University in 1988. He later worked in the semiconductor industry at ProMos Technologies as vice president and a member of the board.
In her 25 years as a midwife, Sanura Abdulla Salim has observed what can happen when women deliver several babies in succession without a break. Back-to-back pregnancies can be hard on women's bodies, and she has seen two patients die as a result. And for women from families of limited means, the economic pressures of caring for many children can be intense.

"It is stressful for a mother to find food and money to provide security for the family," said Ms. Salim, a midwife at Mnazi Mmoja Hospital in Stone Town, Zanzibar. When counselling women on family planning, she advises that contraception does not mean an end to reproduction. It's a pause, until they're ready to have another baby.

Around 2.15 million babies are born in Tanzania each year. The United Republic of Tanzania's population is growing fast, and over the next three decades, the country will be one of eight representing more than half the increase in global population. As the population grows, more specialized midwives are needed to increase the number of safe births and family planning options. They support women not only through pregnancy and childbirth, but also in deciding if and when to expand their families.

Amid these demographic changes, upholding the sexual and reproductive health and rights of women and girls is key to ensuring that Tanzania's communities can thrive. UNFPA has trained midwives to provide mothers with an array of sexual and reproductive health care, including pre- and postnatal check-ups, skilled assistance during childbirth and information about birth control.

Building demographic resilience

Resilience can be enhanced in the face of challenges, including climate change, by strengthening sexual and reproductive health, rights and choices, said Ambassador of Denmark Mette Nrgaard Dissing-Spandet at a recent gathering to address the challenges and innovative solutions for population growth and climate change in Tanzania. She emphasized the significance of sexual and reproductive health and rights in the well-being of women, men, and young people. This also has a positive impact on families and societies as a whole.

At the event, co-hosted by the Royal Embassy of Denmark in Tanzania and UNFPA, the United Nation's sexual and reproductive health agency, UNFPA launched its flagship State of World Population 2023 report, 8 Billion Lives, Infinite Possibilities: the case for rights and choices.

With the global population surpassing 8 billion people last year, and individuals living longer and healthier lives, the report acknowledges the prevailing concerns around population trends. It emphasizes the importance of empowerment through the provision of rights and choices for all individuals. The question at hand is not merely about numbers but about enabling individuals to make their own reproductive choices, thereby recognizing the positive economic and social benefits of sexual and reproductive health and rights.

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Responding to evolving needs

Mark Bryan Schreiner, UNFPA Representative for Tanzania, said UNFPA remains committed to fostering partnerships with the Government of Tanzania, as well as with younger and older generations, to address the evolving needs of the population through innovation and solutions.

Recognizing Tanzania's youthful population structure and the increasing longevity and well-being of Tanzanians, the immense potential of the country's dynamic youth population was emphasized. Empowering young people and striving to achieve a demographic dividend are key objectives, entailing investing in employment, education, and health, particularly reproductive health and rights, to capitalize on the opportunities for socio-economic growth.

The Nordic countries have been crucial partners in UNFPA programming worldwide. In Tanzania specifically, UNFPA receives support from all Nordic countries to further its mission of ensuring that every pregnancy is wanted, every childbirth is safe, and every young person's potential is fulfilled.

The event served as a platform for stakeholders from various sectors to collaborate and explore innovative approaches to address the interconnected challenges of population growth and climate change. By prioritizing the provision of rights and choices for all individuals, Tanzania can pave the way for a prosperous and sustainable future.
Louth County Council have given the go ahead for a new housing development at Dublin Road and Chapel Road, Haggardstown, Dundalk.

Wonderglade Unlimited Company applied to Louth County Council in November 2022 for development at a site on the Dublin Road (R132) and Chapel Road - opposite the Fairways Hotel and to the east of Chapel Road.

The planned development, which originally consisted of 65 new dwellings but was reduced to 62, comprises 27 apartments and 35 houses.

Louth County Council requested further information on the planned development in December 2022, with significant further information provided to the local authority last month.

Included in the further information, were plans relating to a new vehicular access/egress from the Dublin Road(R132) to the

housing development in lieu of one from Chapel Road; a reduction in unit numbers from 65 to 62; revisions to apartments layouts including elevational amendments; and revisions to housing designs including provision of two new house types.

It also provided for a revised site layout to account for new vehicular access including revisions to landscape design, site levels, unit levels, infrastructure design & boundary treatments and all associated site development works.

Louth County Council granted conditional planning permission for the development to go ahead on 12 June 2023.
Students from three schools in Louth participated in the Junior Jurors Programme to choose the winners of this years KPMG Childrens Books Ireland Awards, which were announced at a ceremony in Merrion Square as part of the International Literature Festival Dublin.

Through the KPMG Childrens Books Ireland Awards Junior Juries Programme young people in schools, libraries and book clubs shadowed adult judges on the judging panel in reading, discussing and assessing the shortlisted books.

The students from Our Lady's College, Greenhills , Scoil San Nioclas, Realt Na Mara and Muchgrange National School selected their favourites alongside an independent panel of expert judges, including a Young Judge.

Speaking at the ceremony, Elaina Ryan, CEO of Childrens Books Ireland, said:

Our congratulations to every one of the authors, illustrators and publishers celebrating their wins. Through our KPMG Junior Juries programme, we have seen the wonder and delight that these six books have inspired in young readers across Ireland, and it is a joy to recognise and reward the artists that created them at this level.

Ireland has always been a nation of storytellers, and every one of these winners exemplifies the sheer excellence visible in contemporary Irish childrens books. As we celebrate another year of the KPMG Childrens Book Awards, we hope that the celebrations encourage them to keep creating stories that speak as powerfully to their readers as these.

Award-Winning Titles included:

 The KPMG Book of the Year Award  Girls Who Slay Monsters by debut author Ellen Ryan, illustrated by Shona Shirley Macdonald (HarperCollins Ireland).

 The Honour Award for Fiction  The Boy Who Lost His Spark by Maggie OFarrell, illustrated by Daniela Jaglenka Terrazzini (Walker Books).

 The Honour Award for Illustration  The Wilderness written and illustrated by Steve McCarthy (Walker Books).

 The Eilis Dillon Award for best debut  The Book of Secrets by Alex Dunne (The OBrien Press).

 The Judges Special Award  An Slipear Gloine, written by debut childrens author Fearghas Mac Lochlainn and illustrated by Paddy Donnelly (Futa Fata).

 The KPMG Junior Juries Award  Girls Who Slay Monsters by debut author Ellen Ryan, illustrated by Shona Shirley Macdonald (HarperCollins Ireland).

A total prize-fund of 16,000 has been awarded to this years winners.

Damian Smyth, Joint Head of Literature and Drama for the Arts Council of Northern Ireland, commented:

These awards are recognised as the most prestigious for childrens books in Ireland, and we are thrilled once again to see two artists from Northern Ireland taking home prizes.

"The stories we encounter in childhood are the ones that shape us for life, and the young readers of Ireland are fortunate to have such excellent homegrown titles at their fingertips. Our congratulations to everyone celebrating!

Through the KPMG Childrens Books Ireland Awards Junior Juries Programme young people in schools, libraries and book clubs shadowed adult judges on the judging panel in reading, discussing and assessing the shortlisted books.

Seamus Hand, Managing Partner of KPMG in Ireland, said:

Well done to all our winners, and a special congratulations to our Reading Hero Shi Lei Chen who was nominated by her teacher, Caroline Fox. Shi Lei came to Ireland from China aged 11 and is a voracious reader in both English and Chinese.

"We were delighted to hear about the incredible kindness and empathy for the characters bought to life through reading in class. This along with her dedication to improving her reading and writing in English has been truly admirable.

The KPMG Childrens Books Ireland Awards and Junior Juries programme are supported by the Arts Council/An Chomhairle Ealaion and the Arts Council of Northern Ireland National Lottery Funding.
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Dundalk Institute of Technology (DkIT) says it is delighted to report that researchers from its NetwellCASALA research group, are part of the successful team that recently received 254,036 for a revolutionary and life enhancing project that will offer dementia self-management care.

This financial support is part of funding recently announced by Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science, Simon Harris TD and is funded by the EUs Recovery and Resilience Facility.

The project that received the funding is CODESIGN  Co-creating Dementia Support for InteGrated care, a Novel platform approach. The lead on this project is Dr. Dympna OSullivan, School of Computer Science, Technological University Dublin and the Co-Lead is Dr. Julie Doyle, NetwellCASALA, School of Health and Science, DkIT. The DkIT researchers who will work on this project are Dr. Michael Wilson, and Dr. Orla Moran.

The aim of this life enhancing research is to bring together a transdisciplinary team to co-design and co-create a new holistic digital platform for integrated dementia self-management support.

The prototype platform will incorporate personalized care planning for persons living with dementia with wider dementia support and services from the Department of Health as well as those provided by dementia support groups. This initiative will allow communication, engagement and shared decision making among people living with dementia and their formal and informal carers.

The research will co-create a people-centric digital-first public service and will facilitate a new way for people living with dementia to connect with their carers, their communities and public services which will drive significant enhancements to quality of life for those impacted.

Apart from improving the quality of life for those affected by dementia, the economic impact and total burden of dementia in Ireland is an estimated 1.69 billion.

Of this, 43% is accounted for by residential long-stay care. Keeping people with dementia living at home and out of nursing home beds which cost around 1,000 per week is an important goal of HSE policy and home-based dementia care costs 11,000 less per annum than care in formal facilities.

Speaking of the funding, Minister Harris said: These teams have presented ingenious ideas and committed their talents to working for the benefit of the people of Ireland. In fact, the solutions being worked on in all eight challenges in the National Challenge Fund have the potential not just to improve life here in Ireland, but across Europe and around the world.

Science Foundation Ireland Director General Philip Nolan said: SFI is very pleased with the response to the National Challenge Fund calls and we are happy to be supporting these teams as they embark on an intense period of engaged research, refining and validating their solutions.

He added The individual problems these teams have identified tally closely with some of the submissions we received from the public during the Creating Our Future campaign, so I look forward to seeing these ideas developed in ways that can improve everyday life in Ireland.

Other DkIT academics were also recipients of financial support from the SFI National Challenge Fund which included the project led by Prof Jeremy Auerbach, University College Dublin, which involves Dr Suzanne Linnane, Dundalk Institute of Technology, and is a project on Unleading Water: Community science and environmental justice for health Irish homes.

Dr Fergal ORourke and Dr Peter Ryan from Dundalk Institute of Technology also received significant funding for their Floating Offshore Measurement Platform project.
The Castletown River Estuary in Dundalk is one of only three water bodies in the country to be assessed as having exceeded healthy phosphate thresholds according to a new report released today.

The Water Quality in 2022 Report compiled by the EPA showed that the phosphate level in the water exceeded the recommended threshold by 6%.

Additionally, the Castletown Estuary was one of 20% estuarine and coastal water bodies assessed that were found to be in unsatisfactory condition for Dissolved inorganic Nitrogen (DIN) with measurements reading 85% above threshold value.

The concentration of dissolved inorganic nitrogen in winter is used as an index of nutrient enrichment in marine waters.

Nationally, the report found that Nitrate concentrations are too high in 40% of river sites nationally and in 20% of estuarine and coastal water bodies.

The report noted: These elevated levels are found mainly in the south and south east and are too high to support good water quality in our estuaries.

This is primarily attributable to intensive agricultural activities on freely draining soils in these areas. Most of the nitrogen in Irish waters comes from organic and inorganic fertilisers.

Average nitrate levels in rivers and groundwaters increased nationally between 2021 and 2022. While levels can fluctuate between years based on climate there is no indication that nitrate levels are reducing.

Commenting on the report, Dr Eimear Cotter, Director of the EPAs Office of Evidence and Assessment, said:

Clean water is essential for our health and wellbeing, our economy and for wildlife. The failure to improve water quality in 2022 and over the longer term is extremely disappointing.

We will not meet our water quality objectives until nutrient levels are reduced in those areas where they are too high. Addressing this must be a priority for the agriculture sector and Uisce Eireann to reduce the losses of nutrients to water.

While we can see improvements happening in some areas, these are offset by declines elsewhere, so overall there is no discernible change in the biological quality of our rivers or lakes in 2022. Improvements need to be far greater and more widespread to translate into an improving national picture.














The evening of Monday the 12th of June saw the final of three 2023 Annual Meetings for Louth County Council Municipal District Councils. Municipal District Councils were formed in accordance with the Local Government Reform Act 2014 following the dissolution of Town Councils.

Municipal District meetings of Drogheda, Dundalk, and Ardee are held on the first Monday, Tuesday and Thursday of the month respectively excepting on a bank holiday when the Drogheda meeting goes to the following Monday.

The Annual Meeting for each is typically held immediately preceding the June monthly meeting each year. The first order of business of an Annual Meeting is the election of a new Cathaoirleach and the second the election of a Leas-Chathaoirleach.

Ardee Municipal District Council covering the mid-Louth area and comprising of 6 Elected Members (Councillors) of Louth County Council were the first to say thank you to their outgoing Cathaoirleach Cllr Paula Butterly.

Their Annual Meeting was held on Thursday 1st June in the Dermot OBrien Room of Ardee Civic Offices. Cllr Butterly wont be going far as she remains a Member of Ardee MD.

The evening of Monday the 12th of June saw the final of three 2023 Annual Meetings for Louth County Council Municipal District Councils. Municipal District Councils were formed in accordance with the Local Government Reform Act 2014 following the dissolution of Town Councils.

Municipal District meetings of Drogheda, Dundalk, and Ardee are held on the first Monday, Tuesday and Thursday of the month respectively excepting on a bank holiday when the Drogheda meeting goes to the following Monday.

The Annual Meeting for each is typically held immediately preceding the June monthly meeting each year. The first order of business of an Annual Meeting is the election of a new Cathaoirleach and the second the election of a Leas-Chathaoirleach.

Ardee Municipal District Council covering the mid-Louth area and comprising of 6 Elected Members (Councillors) of Louth County Council were the first to say thank you to their outgoing Cathaoirleach Cllr Paula Butterly.

Their Annual Meeting was held on Thursday 1st June in the Dermot OBrien Room of Ardee Civic Offices.

Cllr Dolores Minogue was elected as new Cathaoirleach for the 2023 / 2024 term of office. Cllr Minogue who was previously Cathaoirleach of Louth County Council will be assisted in her role by Cllr John Sheridan who was elected to the role of Leas-Chathaoirleach.

Dundalk Municipal District Annual Meeting was next to see a change of Chair, with their Annual Meeting being held on Tuesday 6th of June in the Chamber of Dundalk Town Council on Fair Street Dundalk.

Cathaoirleach Cllr Kevin Meenan thanking all his 12 fellow Councillors for their support during his 12-month term, vacated his chair in Dundalk MD, to make way for incoming Cathaoirleach Cllr Sean Kelly.

Cllr John Reilly who was elected as Leas-Chathaoirleach didnt miss the opportunity to present a St. Brigids Cross to new Cathaoirleach Cllr Kelly.

The Municipal District of Drogheda which is referred to as the Borough District of Drogheda is made up of 10 Elected Members. It saw the first ever female to female Mayor exchange for Drogheda on Monday 12th June, with Cllr Michelle Hall vacating her seat to give way to Cllr Eileen Tully as new Mayor of Drogheda.

Cllr Tully whose late husband Oliver previously also stood as Mayor of Drogheda will be assisted in her role by Cllr Kevin Callan as Deputy Mayor.

All 29 Elected Members must now come together to elect an overall Chair or Cathaoirleach of Louth County Council at the Annual Meeting on Monday 19th June.

Once elected the Cathaoirleach will be deemed the first citizen of Louth, taking precedence over all others, except the President, when attending events or functions within the county. Cllr Conor Keelan is currently the Cathaoirleach of Louth County Council.
analysis

Africa's growing population desperately needs clean, modern energy in the home. Currently, more than 900 million people, 85% of the region's population, still rely on solid biomass fuel (like wood and charcoal) and kerosene for cooking. These energy sources are highly polluting, inefficient and unsafe.

Many African countries are moving to develop scalable renewable energy resources to fill the gap. These include solar PV, wind, hydro, geothermal, ethanol and biogas resources. The International Energy Agency has identified liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) as the most important interim clean cooking fuel during this transition. It's the most practical, abundant and affordable among the current options.

LPG is a byproduct of oil and gas production and refining. Although it's a fossil fuel, it's one of the least damaging for the climate. It burns efficiently and has a high ratio of hydrogen to carbon, resulting in more energy for lower carbon emissions. Unlike wood and charcoal, LPG does not draw on forest reserves or contribute substantially to emissions of black carbon and methane, which are among the most powerful, short-acting climate warmers.

Time is fast running out to meet the UN's global Sustainable Development Goal 7 for clean, reliable, sustainable and affordable energy by 2030.

This slow progress prompted the International Energy Agency in 2022 to set out what it calls the Sustainable Africa (energy) Scenario. This envisages that by 2030 one third of homes would be using LPG, 10% electricity, 10% biogas and 6% alcohol fuels. This leaves 41% still using solid biomass, but on more efficient, cleaner stoves.

But the acceleration required to reach even these projections is staggering. Clean cooking access in sub-Saharan Africa needs to improve around 15 times faster over the 2022-2030 period than it has before.

As experts on the impact of air pollution on public health, we argue that realistically, for the next 10-20 years, LPG is the only cleaner fuel that ticks all the boxes. It is popular, meets household needs, is easy to store and transport, and - crucially - is available now in the quantities needed.

Many African governments have already prioritised the rapid scale-up of LPG to secure cleaner cooking and forest protection, alongside active investment in renewables. So what's the problem? Why aren't more people in Africa using LPG when it's cleaner and more efficient?

Barriers to LPG adoption

We examined this question through a review of 44 studies from Africa, Asia and Latin America. We investigated factors influencing the adoption of LPG, biogas, alcohol fuels and solar cooking. For LPG we identified affordability, reliability and convenience of supply, and fears about safety, as being most important.

Another worrying factor that's emerged recently, and frequently reported to us by African country partners, is resistance from influential donor countries and their development institutions to invest in LPG because it's a fossil fuel.

Support from these sources is so important. They can ensure their investments are linked to policy for creating the right market conditions, such as a well-regulated cylinder re-circulation system and improved storage and transport infrastructure. These are prerequisites for securing the much larger private sector investment needed for rapid LPG market expansion.

Addressing the barriers

Cost of LPG

The cost of acquiring an LPG cylinder and stove can be prohibitive for poorer homes. But cooking with LPG is typically no more expensive than buying wood, charcoal or kerosene.

Multiple factors can influence LPG prices, though, so they can fluctuate considerably. For instance, the Ukraine conflict forced up the cost of LPG in Kenya.

Government policy can help consumers. For example, value added tax on cylinder refills in Kenya was halved from 16% to 8% in July 2022 to encourage LPG use. And plans to reduce the VAT rate to zero were recently announced.

A potentially important innovation for managing the costs of cooking with LPG - under evaluation by our team in Kenya and Tanzania - is "pay-as-you-go" technology that uses smart meters and mobile money, like M-Pesa in Kenya. This allows poor households to buy only the amount of gas they need each day.

Reliability and safety of supply

Reliable, conveniently local and safe supply of LPG requires investment (to help businesses grow) and well-enforced regulation (to ensure best practices). The key to well-functioning LPG markets is adoption of the cylinder re-circulation model. This is when the marketing companies that distribute and sell LPG are also responsible for the safety of their branded cylinders.

Under this model, when customers need more gas, they exchange the empty cylinder for a full one that has been checked by the marketer, and replaced if damaged. Many African countries are now adopting this model. Cameroon is one example where it has been working quite successfully for a number of years.

Reluctance of donors to invest

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Concerns about LPG being a fossil fuel for clean cooking in Africa are currently misplaced, especially with progress towards meeting SDG-7 being so behind. There is mounting evidence that switching populations from solid biomass to LPG can bring substantial health benefits, while having minimal impact on climate warming, and protecting forest resources.

Policy should also be guided by principles of environmental justice. Compared to wealthy countries, Africa's historical climate warming contributions are minuscule. Cooking with biomass is at least 60% more greenhouse gas intensive than with LPG. If any population group has a just claim to use a fossil fuel that offers substantial health benefits as the world decarbonises, it is Africa's poor.

The international community should move rapidly to support African governments in securing widespread adoption of LPG for clean cooking, alongside development of renewable alternatives that can progressively displace fossil-derived fuels. This "twin-track" approach can help make universal access to clean, efficient and modern energy by 2030 a reality, without threatening the world's vital targets to limit global warming.

Nigel Bruce, Emeritus Professor of Public Health, University of Liverpool

Dan Pope, Professor of Global Public Health, University of Liverpool
Dundalk based addiction support service Turas is organising a wellness evening to encourage everyone to take time out for reflection in nature.

The evening will also help to raise funds to support their work helping people in Dundalk and surrounds with addiction recovery.

Join Turas for an evening of empowerment at Templetown Beach on Wednesday, 21st June 2023 at 7:30pm to celebrate the summer solstice through yoga, sea swimming, acupuncture, energy circle, meditation and more.

It will be an opportunity to release negativity and create a circle of power, enabling everyone in attendance to heal, awaken and unite.

The evening is intended to offer people the opportunity to unwind in the calm surroundings of the sea while guided through yoga, meditation and an energy circle to take time for inner reflection. Reflexology and acupuncture will also be available.

The evening will have the beautiful Cooley peninsula beach as its backdrop and will involve a dip in its waters at high tide for purifying and relaxation purposes.

Come along for a memorable way to mark the longest day of the year. The Solstice marks the point in the year when the sun is at its highest and is believed to be a sacred time because a new season is formed.

Tickets available from turascounselling.ie

Established in 2005, Turas provides a comprehensive and holistic range of supports to people with addiction to alcohol and drugs across the North East.

According to the annual report of Turas which was launched on May 25th 2023 they helped 382 people last year with the majority of these receiving help for motivational support and counselling. 62% of clients were male and 38% female with an average age of 39.

When looking at demographics specifically in relation to alcohol the breakdown was 47% male and 43% female. While 66% of those seeking help for drug addiction were male and 34% female.

Anyone wishing to receive support can call us on 042 9338221.
A MAN has been arrested as part of an ongoing garda investigation into multiple reported thefts of agricultural machinery and livestock in the Kerry and Cork West divisions late last year and earlier this year.

The thefts, which occurred on dates between November 2022 and February 2023, resulted in farm machinery worth around 110,000 and livestock being stolen.

The stolen machinery included a tractor and slurry tanker which were later recovered.



"Through an extensive investigation conducted by gardai from Cork West and Kerry, it was suspected the thefts were linked to an organised crime group believed to be involved in the removal of livestock and machinery from this jurisdiction," said a garda spokesperson who confirmed a number of vehicles were seized during the course of searches of residences and farmlands in North and West Kerry.



The searches were conducted on Tuesday by gardai from the Cork West and Kerry divisions with assistance from the Regional Armed Support Unit from Limerick, along with local Divisional Scenes of Crime Unit members and Community Policing Unit members.



A man in his early 20s was arrested as part of this operation. He is currently being detained at a Garda station in the Kerry division under the provisions of Section 50 of the Criminal Justice Act 2007.



Investigations are ongoing.
analysis

How does it come about that a man who dedicated the greater part of his life to a vision of a just South Africa, and sacrificed his family and personal relationships to do so, disappears from the annals of the country's history?

How does a writer with consummate command of two of South Africa's national languages - English and Afrikaans - and whose work in poetry and prose reflects deep insights into world politics, literature and culture come to be virtually totally forgotten?

This is what happened to Frank Anthony, a South African author and activist who lived a life committed to ending racial, economic and gender injustice in apartheid South Africa. Anthony was born in 1940 and died in 1993.

He is the author of an Afrikaans poetry collection Robbeneiland: My Kruis, My Huis (Robben Island: My Cross, My Home) and the novel The Journey: The Revolutionary Anguish of Comrade B. Both works draw on his six-year incarceration on Robben Island, and the impact of being restricted within the Kraaifontein district of Cape Town for five years after his release.

I have studied his works, and his life, over the past three years, and have distilled my findings in a recently published article on his novel The Journey.

The novel is set in the 1980s. Yet it seems to speak to the betrayal and crisis of leadership experienced in South Africa at the present time. I am also interested in the ways the novel seems to exclude personal relationships, especially romantic love, in its political vision.

Investigating Anthony's life and work, I discovered that his political and literary contributions had not been recognised. Almost no information is available about him online. Both his publications are out of print, so not easily available to the general reading public, and his work has completely fallen out of view in South African literary studies.

In my view this is because of his implicit criticism of the leadership of the political organisation to which he belonged, the African People's Democratic Union of Southern Africa, which has expunged his presence and his political contribution from their website. Another factor was the racialised way in which his poetry and fiction were viewed. Reviews of his poetry collection at the time of its publication, for example, focus on the racial identity of the poet rather than on the literary sophistication of his collection.

For me, Anthony's experience amounts to censorship and "banning". This was something many South African writers experienced at the hands of a number of apartheid laws and censorship boards.

It also echoes the experience of dissident writers in Africa such as Nuruddin Farah, as well as international writers like Vaclav Havel who challenged authoritarian regimes through their life work and writing.

The times

Anthony was born in Stellenbosch in 1940. Stellenbosch is a town in the Cape winelands, steeped in colonial history. It is still home to the descendants of enslaved people brought by the Dutch to the Cape from the mid-17th century.

Apartheid segregation and discrimination were layered onto this history by the National Party, which came into power in 1948. This was the society into which Anthony was born, and the context that influenced his political allegiances.

He joined the Non-European Unity Movement, and later its affiliate, the African People's Democratic Union of Southern Africa.

In 1972, Anthony was arrested and convicted on four counts under the Terrorism Act. The act gave the apartheid government the legal power to clamp down on resistance movements.

Anthony was imprisoned for six years on Robben Island. Leaders like Nelson Mandela and Walter Sisulu of the African National Congress were serving their sentences there at the time.

On his release in 1978 Anthony was put under a banning order. This meant that he was physically restricted to the Kraaifontein area, a semi-rural district of Cape Town. He worked at a supermarket in the area even though he was a qualified economics lecturer.

After his banning order was lifted, Anthony again become involved in clandestine anti-apartheid operations.

Contributions to literature

Anthony was one of a number of significant writers of his time who acknowledged that literature and culture reflected - and were affected by - politics. Other celebrated South African writers, including Mongane Wally Serote, Don Mattera and Nadine Gordimer, also believed that literature had the power to transform hearts, minds and the world.

Anthony's Afrikaans poetry collection, Robbeneiland: My Kruis, My Huis, was published in 1983. It was titled after the extended poem where he reflects on his prison experience. This poem was also published in the well-known resistance literary magazine, Staffrider.

The collection was the first example of Afrikaans prison literature, and an exemplar of how Afrikaans could be an African language of resistance rather than "the oppressor's tongue" as it had been seen, following the 1976 Soweto youth uprising, when Afrikaans was imposed in black schools.

But the poetry collection has not been studied for its literary qualities and its creative exposition of debates and philosophies. Rather it has simply become a footnote in Afrikaans literary scholarship.

Anthony's 1991 novel, written in English, has been almost completely elided from history, despite receiving good reviews in the South African press when it was published.

The highly satirical novel allegorically tells the story of the journey of Comrade B through South Africa to a neighbouring country where his political leaders are exiled. The organisation is never named in the novel.

Read more: Epitaph for a baobab: remembering South African poet and activist Don Mattera

The novel uses well-known literary allusions to foreground the idea of betrayal, especially by leaders who seem to have lost touch with realities on the ground.

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The organisation Anthony was still close to read the novel narrowly and defensively. The leadership saw it as an autobiography rather than as a novel, presenting a non-fictional critique of organisational and leadership failings.

In its response to the novel in newsletters and other correspondence, references were made to the "mental instability" of its author.

Importance

In my view the novel is important for a number of reasons.

Firstly, it highlights the idea of betrayal of ethical and political principles. Current disillusionment with political parties is not new.

Secondly, the narrative seems, by omission, to be highlighting how personal lives and relationships, especially romantic love, might be a politically radical concept. The novel, following dominant Marxist theory, regards love as a bourgeois preoccupation. Contemporary leftist and radical black debates, by contrast, have re-evaluated the importance of love in political struggle.

Today the novel is available only at the Library of Parliament, the National Library of South Africa, and a handful of university libraries. Its disappearance impoverishes our understanding of activists and resistance movements, and their missteps and misapprehensions, in the South African context, as well as worldwide.

F. Fiona Moolla, Senior Lecturer in English, University of the Western Cape
Las Anod, Somalia  'The only thing we get is water, but there is no food.'

Hundreds of thousands of people are stranded in Somalia's drought-hit countryside after fleeing fighting in the disputed northern city of Las Anod, with cash-strapped aid agencies struggling to reach those in need.

Heavy fighting began in February between the security forces of breakaway Somaliland, which have occupied Las Anod since 2007, and local clans demanding separation and direct administration by Somalia's federal government in Mogadishu.

As mortar shells fired by Somaliland soldiers started falling in Las Anod, the capital of the Sool region, Zeinab Abdi Kareem, a widow, packed up her 12 children and fled.

Travelling with other families, crowded in the back of a large truck, they made their way to the small town of Ari Addeye. Unable to find shelter there, they tried another town, Yahed, then another - days on dirt roads in scorching heat.

Finally, they reached an informal refugee camp outside the town of Kalabaydh. Yet they found little assistance here either.

"The only thing we get is water, but there is no food," Kareem told The New Humanitarian. "There is almost nothing inside or outside the camp."

By February, at least 185,000 people (locals say more than 200,000 people) - mostly women, children, and the elderly - had fled to Las Anod's surrounding villages, looking for shelter in a countryside already stricken by five consecutive seasons of drought.

Another 100,000 people have crossed the border into neighbouring Ethiopia, where aid agencies describe their condition as "dire", with many under-five children and pregnant and nursing mothers suffering moderate acute malnutrition.

In March, with the relief effort faltering, UN agencies called for an additional $116 million in donor funding to help cover the needs of both groups of people forced from their homes by the fighting. Only 2% of the money has been received, the UN's refugee agency, UNHCR, said in a statement on 8 June.

Most of those escaping the violence have settled in informal camps like the one in Kalabaydh, or have been absorbed into local villages, already straining under the impact of a punishing drought that has decimated people's livestock - the basis of the local economy.

The World Food Programme is helping more than 70,000 conflict-affected people with immediate food assistance for three months, primarily through in-kind food but also with some cash assistance, according to an email from a WFP representative.

But Sahra Hussein Hassan, looking after grandchildren following the unrelated death of her daughter, is yet to feel the impact of that aid.

Like Kareem, she also made a long trip through multiple towns searching for a place to settle. At Kalabaydh, she was given plastic tarps and was able to create a temporary shelter for herself and the grandchildren - but there has been little else.

"We have not gotten much assistance here, but we found water," she told The New Humanitarian. "We have yet to receive any food or money."

Deep-seated grievances

The crisis in Las Anod began as an escalating series of conflicts between the occupying Somaliland forces - who claim the area based on colonial-era boundaries - and members of the local Dhulbahante clan.

When a popular local politician was killed by an unknown gunman in December 2022 - part of a long history of killings in the city - it sparked youth-led street protests. Somaliland's security forces responded with live ammunition, killing a number of people, which triggered retaliation from local clan militias.

After clashing with clan fighters in the city, Somaliland troops withdrew to the outskirts of Las Anod to cool tensions, local leaders told The New Humanitarian. However, Dhulbahante elders saw the retreat as an opportunity to declare that Las Anod, and the northern regions of Sool, Sanaag, and Cayn (SCC), were no longer under the authority of Somaliland's self-declared independent government.

They instead demanded unification with Somalia, as the federal state of SSC-Khaatumo, rejecting both Somaliland - which has long-ignored the Dhulbahante's deep-seated grievances - and neighbouring Puntland's previous claims to the territory.

The declaration by Dhulbahante elders, made in early February after a conference to debate the way forward, kicked off fighting once again with Somaliland's military - for whom the Sool region is a key part of Somaliland identity.

With Somaliland's forces unable to gain ground in house-to-house fighting on the fringes of Las Anod, they began shelling the city with artillery, rockets, and mortars. The ensuing damage to homes, mosques, schools, and the regional hospital killed and injured civilians, causing the majority of the Las Anod's residents to flee.

Overcrowded camps

Kalabayd, a town of roughly 7,000 residents before the fighting broke out, now supports some 30,000 refugees, camped in the town and surrounding areas. The influx has pushed every aspect of life to the brink. Schools have shut down, their grounds dotted with makeshift tents and tarp shelters for those unable to find a spot inside classrooms, where families have crowded into every corner.

A plot of land outside town was set aside for the displaced to create a camp, but water is only available when trucked in by tankers, and food is even harder to find. Local residents have been bringing what food they can to displaced families, but it is not nearly enough.

"Drought has compounded the situation," said Merick Freedy Alagbe, who oversees operations for the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in northern Somalia. "With this new wave of displaced people, it is difficult for the host communities to support them. People already have their resources completely depleted."

The ICRC has been giving cash assistance to some 6,000 families, providing them with $130 per month to buy food and supplies, but with informal camps springing up around the region, and families being absorbed into neighbouring towns, it's difficult for aid agencies to reach all those in need.

The current lull in major fighting has allowed the ICRC and other agencies to work in the area safely, but security and the potential for renewed clashes are an ongoing concern.

Hawa Abdi Ali Kaar, a volunteer from Garowe, the Puntland region's capital, has been providing services to the displaced since the outbreak of the violence. She has shifted the focus of her charity - the Daryeel Volunteer Women's Organisation - from peacebuilding and awareness-raising around gender-based violence to supporting the influx of families.

"Our biggest problem is that people here do not have enough food," she told The New Humanitarian. "They do not have shelters that can protect them from rain. Women do not have toilets."

For the last three months, she has coordinated with diaspora donors to deliver food rations and water trucks. Currently, her organisation is working on sanitation projects for the camps, but she is also mediating between the host communities and displaced people as the strain on local resources increases.

The federal government in Mogadishu, dealing with drought, displacement - as well as the fight against the jihadist group al-Shabab - doesn't have the capacity to provide additional aid to those displaced by the Las Anod crisis.

"We've tried to help as much as we can, but due to the scale of the devastation, we don't have the means," said Jama Hassan Khalif, Somalia's minister of communications, on a visit to Las Anod in May.

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No end to the conflict

Khalif called on the international community to increase their response to both the conflict and the humanitarian needs of the displaced, calling the lack of engagement a "black spot".

Since 18 May, there have not been any major clashes between the two warring sides, although shelling has hit Las Anod, with mortars exploding at the regional hospital and in residential areas as recently as 1 June.

This month, the UN Security Council issued a statement condemning the violence against civilians and calling on Somaliland's forces to withdraw from their positions in the region.

That retreat is unlikely, and Somaliland's de facto foreign ministry responded with a statement accusing the Dhulbahante militia of engaging in "incitement, violence, and misinformation" against the breakaway region's forces.

Leaders in Las Anod, from clan elders to the mayor and the transitional council working to administer the would-be state of SSC-Khaatumo, are all steadfast in their resolve that all Somaliland forces must withdraw - not just from the front lines outside the city, but from the entirety of the Sool, Sanaag, and Cayn regions inhabited by the Dhulbahante.

That would mean a massive land concession by Somaliland - a move that president Muse Bihi and his administration in the self-declared capital of Hargeisa are almost sure to find unacceptable.

For now, the forces of both sides remain in the field, exchanging artillery fire, but either unwilling or unable to engage in an offensive that would dramatically shift the conflict in either direction.

Edited by Obi Anyadike.

Paul Stremple, Independent journalist and photographer reporting on climate, culture and conflict across East Africa, based in Nairobi, Kenya
The union representing the majority of civil and public servants is threatening industrial action against Cork City Council for what it says is the councils failure to protect library staff against harassment and intimidation.

Forsa, the second largest union on the island of Ireland, has accused the council of a dereliction of duty in providing a safe working environment for library staff.

The allegation comes in the wake of an ongoing series of incidents at Corks Central Library on the Grand Parade involving protesters objecting to the availability of what they term pornographic books related to LGBTI+ matters.

During the incidents, many of which have been recorded and streamed on social media, library staff have been subjected to intimidation and paedophile slurs.

During an incident in early March, which was subsequently streamed, a copy of Juno Dawsons This Book is Gay was ripped in half by a protester in Corks central library.

Forsa official Richy Carrothers, who is the unions national secretary and head of local government and municipal, told The Echo the abuse of library staff was simply unacceptable.

What we have seen is an unfolding and ongoing event regarding the harassment and intimidation of working and committed library staff as they go about their duties providing services to the Cork public, he said.

We put Cork City Council on notice that we have ongoing concerns and we have tried to engage with them, and in fact the latest letter that we sent to them, over two weeks ago, still hasnt had a response.

If Cork City Council fails to act, we will act ourselves, Mr Carrothers said.

There is a dereliction of duty on behalf of Cork City Council. Under the Health and Safety at Work legislation they have vicarious and legal commitments to providing a safe working environment, and that isnt happening at the moment.

It might be the case that we end up escalating this industrially, or asking our people to simply withdraw from the counter provision when these people come into libraries, because their primary responsibility is to their own health and safety in the workplace.

Mr Carrothers said his union would not allow its members to be used as pawns in some broader political game.

Libraries are cathedrals of learning and inclusivity and we want to see that continue, but the current trajectory is of grave concern to us as a trade union.

Cork City Council needs to confirm to us what legal avenues they are exploring in order to prevent this disruption, and in incidents where books have been damaged and people continue to be disruptive forces, what actions they have taken in terms of their own legal advice, be that the possibility of taking injunctions or talking to the gardai about having these people removed on an ongoing basis, Mr Carrothers said.

Council statement

A spokesperson for Cork City Council told The Echo: A number of libraries across the country, including the Central Library, have been subjected to campaigning from groups who object to LGBT+ reading lists which are available to young adults.

Libraries are centres of learning at the heart of communities and have no role as censors.

Cork City Council has been to the fore nationally when it comes to social inclusion and the diversity and inclusion agenda, the council spokesperson said.

The citys newly acquired rainbow city status, a first among local authorities in Ireland, is one of many initiatives it has led on in terms of LGBTI+ community recognition and rights within our City.

Cork City Libraries fully recognise the right to peaceful protest and has informed An Garda Siochana of recent activity. There are no plans to remove material from the library. Councillor John Maher, whose motion of support for library staff was passed unanimously by Cork City Council in March, said it was unfortunate that Forsa members felt left with no other choice but to threaten industrial action, but he said that it was understandable in the face of abuse directed at library staff.

The people who are protesting need to remember that while everyone has a right to peaceful protest, they need to be respectful, and you cant video people, and you cant shout slurs, because at the end of the day theres an ordinary worker, an ordinary person, at the receiving end of your rage, Cllr Maher said.

Its not acceptable that ordinary, hard-working people are being made to feel unsafe in their workplace.

Speaking on condition of anonymity, library staff told The Echo they have been overwhelmed and heartened by the outpouring of support they have received from members of the public, many of whom have dropped in chocolates and flowers.

The rainbow flag, which was raised over the Central Library for LGBTI+ Awareness Week on 15 May is, almost a month later, still flying proudly over Irelands first rainbow city.

Garda investigation

A spokesperson for the gardai said: "An Garda Siochana attended a number of incidents at a premises in the Grand Parade area of Cork city throughout February and March 2023. There is a constitutional right to the freedom of assembly and freedom of speech, subject to statutory provisions. An Garda Siochana respects the right for citizens to exercise their constitutional rights."

The spokesperson stated that gardai are investigating one incident of alleged criminal damage that occurred on Saturday, March 11, 2023.

"An Garda Siochana continues to liaise with officials of Cork City Council in relation to these incidents," he concluded.
Gardai in Cork are appealing for witnesses to an alleged serious assault to come forward.

At approximately 7.45pm on Monday evening, 12 June, gardai attended the scene of an alleged assault at Innishmore Drive in Ballincollig.

A man, aged in his 30s, was brought from the scene of the incident to Cork University Hospital (CUH), where he was treated for injuries which are understood not to be life-threatening.

In a follow up search of the area, a man in his 30s and a woman in her 20s were arrested and brought to a Cork city garda station, where they were detained under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act, 1984.

The man and woman have since been released without charge and it is understood that a file will now be prepared for the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP).

Gardai are appealing for any witnesses to this incident to come forward.

Road users and pedestrians who may have camera footage, including dash cam, and who were in the area of Innishmore Drive between 7.30pm and 8pm on Monday evening are asked to make that footage available to gardai.

Anyone with any information is asked to contact Bishopstown Garda station on 021 462 4500, the Garda Confidential Line on 1800 666 111, or any garda station.
Disabilities Minister Anne Rabbitte has responded to worries about cracks in the Progressing Disability Services (PDS) programme following grave concerns expressed by Cork families about its rollout.

Ms Rabbitte addressed the issue on a trip to Cork this week which saw her visit Carrigaline Community Special School, St Pauls Special School in Montenotte, the Crann Centre in Ballincollig and the Rainbow Club in Mahon.

Her visit comes weeks after the publication of a survey conducted by Families Unite for Services and Support (Fuss).

Fuss survey

The anonymous survey of parents, carers, guardians, and PDS and private clinicians sought to offer a window into experiences of childrens services in Ireland. The data was collected between April 28 and May 3.

A total of 97% who took part in the Fuss survey identified staff recruitment and retention as a vital threat to the success of service provision.

Some 45% agreed that staff pay and conditions play a major role in the inability of PDS to retain its current staff and entice more to join the workforce.

Meanwhile, 80% of respondents felt that the PDS model and subsequent reconfiguration have failed while 16% remained unsure.

The report aimed to shed light on the outcomes of re-configuration on childrens disability network teams (CDNTs) and primary care teams in addition to the positive and negative changes for families.

Minister acknowledges challenges

Ms Rabbitte acknowledged the challenges that exist within the current system.

It took them 12 years to get to the roll out of it, said Ms Rabbitte about PDS. It wasnt like it was done fast.

PDS has been designed since 2009. It was started in 2020 before I became a minister.

They had trialled it three years before that in the mid-west.

They had trialled it in West Cork with CoAction and the reports back then were that this model was the integrated model of care that was required with a multidisciplinary team.

I do believe a multidisciplinary team is a good way of approaching and supporting children with complex needs. I also believe that equity of access is the fundamental piece of PDS.

She put some of the initiatives shortfalls down to a lack of planning.

Unfortunately, there was a lot of talking done for 10 years and not enough planning as to how the model would roll out.

PDS is made up of section 38, section 39 of the HSE, its not just one cohort. Disability services are difficult to work in.

There is no denying that. Recruitment has been difficult and pay and conditions are a part of that.

Disabilities teams at the moment are not an attractive model because the service isnt working.

We need to attract people in but pay and conditions are issues we need to address.

She also referenced residential care for children.

Equitable access to respite for all children going into residential care needs to be a priority.

There are children in Cork and the only residential care they are able to source is from Meath or Roscommon, which is very wrong.

Their families are here.

We need to be able to support children as close to home as possible.

I dont think its right that children should have to go to Meath to get support even if it is for a need like residential care.

Funding for Crann Centre and the Rainbow Club

Ms Rabbitte also announced funding for a specialist community continence clinic located in the Crann Centre, Ballincollig.

Funding of 170,000 was allocated to the facility which is now funded by the HSE and provides a range of supports to children, adults, and families living with a neuro-physical disability.

This includes people with spina bifida, hydrocephalus, muscular dystrophy, cerebral palsy, multiple sclerosis, childhood stroke, and spinal cord injuries.

This specialist clinic will be accessible to children on CDNTs in the Cork Kerry Community Healthcare area.

Ms Rabbitte praised the Crann Centre.

I am very pleased to be able to support the expansion of the clinic at the Crann Centre, which I know already helps a number of families in the area.

Having visited the Crann Centre previously, I have seen firsthand how it is an example of one of the many great pioneering voluntary services around the country that make such an important contribution to the lives of people with disabilities.

She highlighted the positive long-term impact of such investments.

Parents have spoken about how invaluable this service is for their children, and the difference it makes to their families.

Its important to show support for such programmes so we can have more specialist services being accessible in the community rather than in a clinical setting. This, in turn, can reduce the pressures that would otherwise be on the clinical services.

This funding for the continence clinic makes life easier for families and I hope that this service will also lead to better physical health, independence, and quality of life for many.

The minister also allocated 292,000 worth of funding to the Rainbow Club in Cork which offers supports to children with autism and their families.
Mayor of the County of Cork Danny Collins has congratulated Hyde Irish Whiskey on their success at this years National Enterprise Awards.

Hyde Irish Whiskey won the South Regional Award at this years final at the Mansion House in Dublin. This is the 23rd year of the awards, which are run annually by the Local Enterprise Offices.

Hyde Irish Whiskey has been supported by Cork County Councils Local Enterprise Office South Cork.

Established in 2016, they now ship to 65 counties with ambition to expand into new markets with their multi-award-winning whiskeys.

Also honoured were West Cork Distillers, who won the Outstanding Achievement Award.

It is a company that began with its Local Enterprise Office Cork North and West and then accessed support from Enterprise Ireland to grow the business globally.

Established by school friends Ger McCarthy, John OConnell, and Denis McCarthy in 2003, the company employs over 150 in Skibbereen and exports to over 70 countries.

Representing Cork County Councils Local Enterprise Office Cork North and West, BaseWorx were also nominees for this years National Enterprise Awards.

Founded by Graham Clarke, Keith Killilea, and Kevin McSharry. BaseWorx is a cloud-based management platform for flexible workspaces.

Mr Collins congratulated the three companies representing Cork at this years awards.

By showcasing your innovative spirit and remarkable achievements, you not only encourage others, but also contribute to the economic growth and prosperity of our county, he said.

Cork County Councils Local Enterprise Offices South Cork and Cork North and West work with client companies in a diverse range of sectors offering mentoring, training, expert advice, and financial supports to small businesses.

Visit localenterprise.ie for more info.
Murder charges were brought today against two young men from Carrigaline in respect of a 29-year-old man in the town who died as a result of injuries sustained last Christmas.

Detective Garda Declan Healy formally arrested Ricardo Hoey of 7 Ardcarrig, Carrigaline, County Cork, and Jordan Deasy of 41 Ravensdale, Heron's Wood, Carrigaline, and brought them before Cork District Court.

Each man is charged with murdering Matt ONeill.

The charge sheet in each case states that on December 28 2022 at Glenwood Grove, Carrigaline, he did murder Matt ONeill, contrary to common law.

While the charge refers to December 28, this was the date of the incident at the centre of the case while Mr ONeill died in hospital days later on January 8 this year.

Det Garda Healy testified that he arrested 20-year-old Ricardo Hoey at his home at 10.05pm on June 13 and charged him with murder an hour later at Togher garda station where he made no reply to the charge after caution. Hoey wore a black suit and white shirt in court.

19-year-old Jordan Deasy was arrested at Cork District Court at 10.23am today and charged with murder and he also made no reply after caution. He appeared in court in grey tracksuit pants and grey t-shirt.

Det Garda Healy testified that he arrested 20-year-old Ricardo Hoey at his home at 10.05pm on June 13 and charged him with murder an hour later at Togher garda station where he made no reply to the charge after caution. FIle image. Pic Larry Cummins

Sergeant Pat Lyons said the Director of Public Prosecutions directed trial by indictment at the Central Criminal Court and also consented to a signed plea of guilty being entered at the district court and sentencing at the Central Criminal Court, should that arise.

Solicitors, Frank Buttimer and Eddie Burke, for Hoey and Deasy respectively, indicated that signed pleas would not be entered and that a book of evidence would be required in each case.

Judge Olann Kelleher noted that bail could not be granted at district court level on a murder charge and he remanded Hoey and Deasy in custody until June 21, to appear by video link from prison on the murder charge on that date.

Both defendants were previously charged with assault causing harm to Matt ONeill at Glenwood, Carrigaline, Count Cork on December 28, contrary to the Non-fatal Offences Against the Person Act. This charge will be withdrawn by the state at a later date now that the murder charge has been brought, Sgt Lyons said.
Sexual exploitation of a child is one of the most heinous crimes, a judge said as he jailed a man who was caught by a vigilante paedophile-hunting group when he turned up at a cafe expecting to meet a 14-year-old girl for sex.

Tim Bowen was jailed for 18 months at Cork Circuit Criminal Court.

Judge Colin Daly imposed a sentence of three and a half years with the last two years suspended.

He arranged to meet this child for the purpose of meeting her for sex. His culpability is very high indeed.

Notwithstanding the fact that there was no child he was caught red-handed.

Children by their nature are vulnerable to exploitation, whatever form that might take  in any regard but particularly in regard to the sexual exploitation of a child is one of the most heinous crimes, Judge Daly said.

When Tim Bowen attempted to contact a person he believed to be a 14-year-old girl for the purpose of sexual exploitation, the vigilante group made recordings of him which they posted online and they alerted gardai.

Detective Sergeant Gary Duggan arrested Tim Bowen, 46, with an address at Cottage View, Monkstown, County Cork, and charged him with two counts. The first charge stated that between July 4 and July 26 2019 he did attempt to communicate with a child by way of communication technology for the purpose of facilitating the sexual exploitation of that child.

The second charge stated that at Costa Coffee in Bishopstown on July 26 2019 he did attempt to intentionally meet the child for the purpose of doing something that constituted sexual exploitation of the child, namely sexual assault.

Bowen later pleaded guilty to both counts.

Det Sgt Duggan said he went to the cafe at 1pm that day.

The vigilante group gave the detective a dossier containing photographs and text messages between Bowen and the alleged 14 year old girl, who was in fact a decoy adult working for the paedophile hunter group in the UK, and the group at the cafe said they had recorded their interactions with Bowen at the cafe.

The dossier revealed that Bowen had begun communicating with the decoy 14-year-old girl from July 4 2019 until July 26 2019 and that over the course of these 22 days, he sent her photos of his penis, photos of other adult genitalia and links to pornographic videos.

Text messages from Bowen to the child described how he would have sex with her, detailing his actions and he made great effort to convince this child to travel to Ireland, telling her that they would have sex.

From the first message and throughout their interactions, the decoy child told Bowen she was 14 and gave him ample opportunity to stop, Det Sgt Duggan said.

He said that after viewing the dossier, he spoke to Bowen after caution and that Bowen agreed that he had come to the cafe for the purpose of having sex with the girl and he confirmed that they had exchanged text messages and photos off a sexual nature.

He arrested Bowen and brought him to Togher Garda Station where he made full admissions and confirmed the dossier was correct and identified himself in the photos and had sent the same to the girl and had come to meet her believing her to be a 14-year-old girl for the purpose of sex and had cleaned out the back of his van for the purpose of having sex.

He is originally from Rhondda in South Wales, came to Ireland ten years ago and was married with a family here but the marriage has ended.

Defence barrister Paula McCarthy said that as soon as gardai questioned Tim Bowen that day he accepted he had been there in the belief that he was meeting a 14-year-old child for the purpose of sex.

Ms McCarthy said the accused accepted the gravity of the offence. He has attended the Safer Lives Programme and is now in a relationship with a woman who has health difficulties and he provides care for her.
Amnesty International said Nigerian authorities have refused to launch impartial investigations into the killings.

Amnesty International (AI) has called on the Nigerian government to take urgent steps to end widespread killings in the country.

This is even as the organisation claimed that more than 120 people have been killed since President Bola Tinubu was inaugurated as president on 29 May.

In a statement sent to PREMIUM TIMES, AI's acting director, Isa Sanusi, said attacks by gunmen had claimed 123 people in the two weeks Mr Tinubu had been president.

"It is horrific that attacks by gunmen have claimed at least 123 lives mere weeks after President Bola Tinubu assumed office on 29 May. Rural communities, always bracing themselves for the next bout of violence, are facing deadly attacks by rampaging killers. Protecting lives should be the utmost priority of the new government. The Nigerian authorities must urgently take steps to stop the bloodletting," Mr Sanusi said.

He said authorities in the country had failed to protect people as killings have become a norm.

Mr Sanusi said the killers were being emboldened by the authorities' refusal to launch independent and impartial investigations that could lead to the end of the killings.

"The brazen failure of the authorities to protect the people of Nigeria is gradually becoming the 'norm' in the country. The government said it would enact security measures in response to these attacks, but these promises have not translated into meaningful action that protects the lives of vulnerable communities.

"The Nigerian authorities have also consistently failed to carry out independent, effective, impartial and thorough investigations into these killings -- and this is fueling impunity.

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"The Nigerian authorities are obliged under international human rights law, regional human rights treaties and Nigeria's own constitution to protect the human rights of all people without discrimination -- and that includes the right to life. Those suspected of criminal responsibility for these callous crimes must urgently be brought to justice in fair trials," he said.

Killings, especially in the country's north, have intensified since April.

Terrorists, locally called bandits, have intensified attacks on rural and semi-urban communities, especially in Zamfara, Sokoto, Kaduna and Niger States, leading to the abduction and killing of hundreds of people.

In the North-central part of the country, especially in Benue, Taraba and Plateau States, ethnoreligious clashes have continued to claim lives.
LATEST: A man in his early 20s has been arrested after another man was seriously injured in a stabbing in Cork city centre this evening.

The injured man, who is in his mid-twenties, is in a critical condition in Cork University Hospital following the incident on the Grand Parade.

Emergency services at the scene this evening. Picture: Twitter/Paul Byrne

The man who was arrested is currently detained at a Garda station in the city.

"Gardai at Bridewell are currently at the scene of a serious assault that occurred on Grand Parade, Cork City this evening, Wednesday 14th June 2023 at approximately 7.30p.m," a spokesperson told The Echo.

"One man, aged in his mid 20s, was seriously injured and has been removed from the scene to Cork University Hospital where he remains in a critical condition.

"Gardai have arrested a man, aged in his early 20s."

They said the scene is currently preserved and investigations are ongoing.

"Gardai are appealing for any witnesses to this assault to come forward.

"Any road users and pedestrians who may have camera footage (including dash cam) and were in the area of Grand Parade/Daunt Square between 7.15pm and 8pm this evening Wednesday 14th June, 2023 are asked to make this footage available to Gardai.

"Anyone with any information is asked to contact Bridewell Garda station on 021 494 3330, the Garda Confidential Line on 1800 666 111, or any Garda station."

EARLIER: A man in his twenties has been rushed to Cork University Hospital tonight after being critically injured in a stabbing incident in the city centre.

Gardai and members of the ambulance service were called to the scene on Grand Parade at approximately 7.30pm.

The man was treated by medics before being rushed to hospital where he is described as being in a critical condition.

Gardai remain at the scene. Part of the street has been cordoned off and a full technical examination is expected to take place.

"Gardai are currently at scene of a serious assault that occurred at Grand Parade, Cork City this evening," a spokesperson told The Echo.

"One man, aged in his mid 20s was seriously injured and has been removed from the scene to Cork University Hospital where he remains in a critical condition."

They said investigations are ongoing.

EARLIER: A man has been seriously injured in a stabbing incident in Cork city centre this evening.

Gardai and members of the ambulance service are at the scene close to the Centra on Grand Parade, where the man is receiving treatment for what are understood to be serious injuries, before being taken to hospital.

Part of the street has been cordoned off and a full technical examination is expected to take place.
AMANDA Gowers believes in the power of hair.

Your hair is your crowning glory. It gives people such a lift to get it done. But my work is about more than that. I love my job because I get to care for people. Its about having the chat. I sometimes see clients more often than they see their own family.

Amanda runs a mobile hairdressing service called Amethyst Hair in Cork. If you live in Cork city, Kinsale, Cobh, Clonakilty and surrounding areas, Amanda will bring professional hair care to you. She can also travel to locations throughout Munster on request.

Amanda visiting Maureen O'Dwyer in Cork to cut and style her hair. Picture: Denis Minihane.

The Cork native has recently returned from working in the UK with some leading stylists and well-known magazines. Every style she creates is sure to be one of a kind and although she mostly advertises her wedding services online, her day-to-day work is with clients in their homes, a setting she believes offers an entirely different hairdressing experience. She is hugely passionate about this personal element of her work.

In the business for 18 years, she grew weary of the salon setting a few years back.

Recently it has become a bit of a conveyor belt and you just dont get the opportunity to provide care for the client. I really wanted to give more to people but it was hard to do that in a salon. Its hard to be as personal as I like to be and to make people feel really relaxed.

The hairdresser details how some people can have confidence issues when entering a salon.

For one thing, some people dont like sitting in front of a mirror for hours. People may suffer from anxiety. They might be less confident about telling you what they really want because they are not in their comfort zone.

When they are at home that changes because they trust you more. They are far more confident and at ease, surrounded by familiar things. You become a friend as well as a stylist.

They feel free to tell you what they want and often, if its a big change, why they want it.

To some extent, Amanda believes this is down to her service being more personal than commercial. Her mobile service charges the same for a cut, even if the client decides to take a little more off.

She doesnt get any commission for the products she recommends, so clients know she is just trying to help them and isnt chasing further income. She believes that sometimes clients can feel pressured to buy products in a salon. Often, hairdressers get commission for every sale so it can jar a little, affect the relationships somewhat.

Behind the wheel of her car.

SUPPORTING THOSE IN NEED

The passionate hairdresser is also irked by the lack of facilities for disabled clients in salons.

I visit clients who simply cant get to a salon. Even if the salon were accessible in terms of entry or parking or whatever, they might not have basins that can lower, or it might be that the client cant get into the salon chair to wash their hair.

Some salons wont provide treatments unless they are working with washed hair, for hygiene reasons. So even if someone really loves the salon atmosphere, they just cant get in there.

The number of people calling me who are disabled is massive. It really is shocking how big the demand is. Id love to see more businesses like mine meeting that demand.

The idea of someone being denied the opportunity to get their hair done upsets her. She understands how much better people feel as a result and is appalled that somebody might be denied that feeling, simply because they are too old or disabled.

She is delighted to work with clients in their homes and laughs with one woman who gets her hair washed in her wheelchair in a wet room in her house.

Sure, we both get a little wet but its brilliant to see the end result.

Amanda clearly gets a lot from her work she does and beams as she describes how it feels to walk away from a house having really helped someone, lifted their mood, changed their day.

It is hugely rewarding. It is such an amazing feeling to know you have really helped someone. Some of my clients dont see that many people. They might see me more than their own family or closest friends.

I have clients I have been working with for 18 years and even when I went to England Id come back and see them.

Amanda with all her equipment.

Its not just about hair, its about having the chat, popping the kettle on, catching up. People really confide in you, tell you things they wouldnt tell anyone else. It can be very special.

Amanda mentions how hard it can be when a client dies and explains that often the hairdresser is forgotten.

A time comes when you dont hear from them anymore. You might not get a call or anything but you are grieving a loss because the person has become a part of your life. Its an unacknowledged relationship in many ways.

SHARING WORRIES AND CONCERNS

One challenge, Amanda confides, is that people tend to talk about the hard stuff in their lives more often than the good things. She has learned over the years to toughen her skin a little bit, so that other peoples worries and problems dont consume her.

I got good advice from clients in the medical field. They told me that I should think deeply about the person on the journey home but then I must leave it there.

I have small children, so I have to leave it outside for their sake. But it can be hard because people really do confide in you.

I know they wouldnt like you to carry their burdens but they just need to get it out there, they need someone to listen.

HER OWN DOWNTIME

Amanda has learned to pay attention to herself and exercises and meditates to keep herself level.

She jokes that she got very used to giving self-care advice to her clients but too often neglected her own wellbeing. Shes getting better at that, and she certainly seems to have found an environment she loves.

She has recently returned to work following a maternity leave and is eager to get stuck in.

Salons are great, but they are busy places where people come and go. If you change jobs your clients dont necessarily follow you.

Amanda Gowers of Amaethyst Hair, freelance hair stylist, visiting Maureen O'Dwyer in Cork to cut and style her hair. Picture: Denis Minihane.

With the work I do, I get an opportunity to create strong bonds. My clients know about my life, my children, and I know about theirs.

HER INSPIRATION

Asked where the inspiration for her work comes from, Amanda explains that it all started with her great grandmother.

She couldnt get out, so Id visit and do her hair once a week. I saw what it did for her and that gave me a fire in my belly to help other people too.

Anyone who has someone in their life who cant get out much will understand.

She is happy to shine a light on the work she does and hopes more hairdressers out there begin to offer a similar service.




Indonesia explores tuna farming to boost aquaculture sector

Indonesia is venturing into tuna farming in an effort to bolster its aquaculture industry and alleviate strain on the world's largest marine tuna fisheries, Mongabay reported.

As the largest tuna-catching nation, accounting for approximately 16% of the global tuna supply, Indonesia faces sustainability challenges due to the intensive fishing of wild tuna in its waters. Many of the country's fishing grounds in the Pacific and Indian oceans are already fully exploited, leading to overfishing of tuna species.

To address this issue, the Indonesian Fisheries Ministry has implemented various measures over the years, including harvest controls, species monitoring in specific fishing areas, regulation of fish-aggregating devices, and promoting international sustainability certification for fishers. Expanding on these efforts, the ministry is now exploring the establishment of tuna farms in the country's bays.

At a press conference in Legian, Bali, Fisheries Minister Sakti Wahyu Trenggono expressed optimism about the potential benefits of tuna farming in Indonesia. He highlighted the shift from massive tuna catching to a model where tuna would be caught and then grown in sea pens, providing economic value and meeting protein demands.

Sakti said the government had sought advice from a fisheries expert in Turkey and planned to consult with others in Australia to learn tuna-farming techniques. The Turkish expert identified Indonesia's potential to become the world's leading tuna-farming country.

Indonesia's extensive archipelagic waters are home to various tuna species, including albacore, yellowfin, bigeye, and southern bluefin tuna. The country's 17,000 islands also host significant spawning grounds for these fish.

The Indonesian tuna fishery plays a crucial role in the livelihoods of coastal communities and provides a vital source of food for global consumers. In 2021, the country produced 791,000 metric tonnes of caught tuna, valued at IDR 22 trillion (~US$1.5 billion; IDR 10000 = US$0.67), with exports amounting to 174,764 metric tonnes worth over IDR 10.6 trillion (~US$710 million). Major export destinations include the US, Japan, Thailand, Saudi Arabia, the European Union, Australia, Vietnam, the UK, and the Philippines.

President Joko Widodo instructed the country's Fisheries Ministry to enhance aquaculture productivity at the beginning of his second term in 2019. Indonesia is among the world's leading aquaculture producers, with global production experiencing a 527% increase from 1990 to 2018. In the third quarter of 2021, the country's aquaculture output reached 12.25 million metric tonnes, a 6% increase compared to the same period in 2020. The aquaculture sector significantly contributed to non-tax state revenue, surpassing the target figure of US$1.39 million and reaching US$1.94 million by November 2021, according to the ministry's data.

- Mongabay
Mr Akeredolu has embarked on a 21-day leave for medical treatment abroad from 7th June to 6th July

Following pressures from different political quarters in Ondo State, Governor Rotimi Akeredolu has formally written to notify the State House of Assembly that he is on leave and that his deputy, Lucky Aiyedatiwa, should act as governor.

The Speaker of the House, Olamide Oladiji, in a statement, said Mr Akeredolu embarked on the 21-day leave for medical treatment abroad from 7th June and that he will be away until 6th July.

According to the letter, the leave will extend to the 6th of July due to public holidays on June 12 (Democracy Day) and Eid el Kabir (28th and 29th June.

"The Governor, who had directed his Deputy, Hon.Lucky Orimisan Aiyedatiwa to act as the Governor while away, has assured of his resumption on the 6th of July, 2023," the statement said.

The Speaker described the governor as a lover of peace and an apostle of the rule of law.

He wished him a speedy recovery and a joyful vacation.

Opposition parties, including the Social Democratic Party and the Peoples Democratic Party, had demanded that the governor transmit power to his deputy in line with the provisions of the Constitution due to his health challenges.

Mr Akeredolu has not been seen in his office for several weeks, and it is known that he has health challenges.

Although the governor's aides admitted that he was indisposed, his condition and absence from duty led to political intrigues and a division in his cabinet, significantly impeding decision-making.

Some elements within the cabinet appeared to be uncomfortable with the deputy governor assuming power as acting governor for unknown reasons.

It was reported that forces in the corridors of power orchestrated several machinations to keep Mr Aiyedatiwa away from assuming the acting role as stipulated by the constitution.

Such devices include stories that he routinely beat his wife, an allegation the camp of the deputy governor denied and attributed to his detractors.

The state government has not disclosed the nature of Mr Akeredolu's ailment and where specifically he will seek treatment abroad.
Device charging company Anker is moving into Tesla's territory with the launch of the Solix line of home energy products, including a modular Powerwall-like battery storage system, the company announced at an event in New York City. It also introduced a smaller battery aimed at folks living in condos and apartments that can be used with its existing balcony-mounted solar panels.

The modular battery system, set to arrive globally in 2024, will be scalable from 5kWh of power (enough to run an average-sized house for a few hours) up to 180kWh, which could feasibly power a house for nearly a week. It's designed to deliver backup power to both existing and new solar installation, and Anker promises it will "provide high levels of safety and durability, seamlessly transfer to off-grid power and be compatible with home energy equipment such as heat pumps, oil- and gas-powered generators." It will also work with a "forthcoming EV charging solution," the company wrote.

The system will use lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries and operate at temperatures ranging from -20C to 55C (-4F to 131F). It's controlled by Anker's power management system and available with an app. Anker has yet to provide the all-important pricing, but said more information will be available "later this year."

By comparison, Tesla's Powerwall 2 units have nearly triple the power (13.5kWh each), cost $11,500 each installed and can be scaled up to 135kWh. Standalone Powerwall installations qualify for a 30 percent residential federal investment tax credit, along with any state incentives.

Anker

Along with the modular battery, Anker unveiled the Solarbank E1600 battery pack as part of an energy storage system for apartments and condos. Set to be sold in Europe, it follows the company's recently launched Solix RS40 balcony solar panel system, and is compatible with "99 percent of the balcony PV products on the market," the company said.

It's modular, available in sizes from 1.6kWh to 3.2kWh (enough for a few hours of power), and works with most micro-inverters including the ones bundled with the RS40 solar panels. Once plugged it into a standard home power socket, it'll absorb any excess energy from the solar panels and feed it back to the home if the grid goes down. Anker promises a "five minute DIY installation," and said it can support 6,000 charging cycles or double the industry average. It can also be controlled via an app.

The new storage products join Anker's existing lineup of batteries (now branded Solix as well), like the 767 PowerHouse 2.05kWh designed for campers and outdoor use, and charged with an optional 200W solar panel. Anker now joins companies like Ecoflow (with its modular 3.6kWh-25kWh Delta Pro battery) and others in the burgeoning home energy storage market.

All products recommended by Engadget are selected by our editorial team, independent of our parent company. Some of our stories include affiliate links. If you buy something through one of these links, we may earn an affiliate commission. All prices are correct at the time of publishing.
Google Search can now help detect skin conditions and show how clothes look on AI models Other search updates include Lens identifying skin abnormalities, more places to try Immersive View and more.

Google has announced a slew of new search updates, ranging from travel planning to clothes shopping  oh, and a bit of skin abnormality checking for good measure. That's right, Lens is no longer just for naming a plant or historical object but will now identify things about your skin. You simply upload a picture into Lens, and it will show you similar images. This update might be good for determining if you have a tick bite, but, like any Google searches when you're not feeling well, it could lead you down a pretty scary rabbit hole. Try to consult with a doctor if there are any spots you're unsure about across your skin.

Google

On a more fun note, Google is also enhancing its search options to make it easier to find what you want while online shopping. You can now search by filters like style, color and pattern across retailers. Then, when you do find what you're looking for, Google is attempting to solve the main problem of shopping for clothes online: uncertainty about how it will really look on you. It's releasing a new virtual try-on tool that shows what the same top would look like on a diverse range of models. The program utilizes a generative AI technique to show the fit and look of the fabric. Right now, it's only available when shopping for tops at select retailers like H&M, Everlane, Anthropologie and Loft.

Google is also releasing quite a few new travel-centric features. For starters, it's expanding Immersive View, a tool that lets you explore a 3D model of a city, to include Florence, Venice, Dublin and Amsterdam  along with letting you get close and personal with another 500 landmarks worldwide. Immersive View already exists across cities like Tokyo and New York, as well as for hundreds of interesting sights.

Google

Whether you have an iOS or Android phone, Google is rolling out a feature that lets you follow your trip right from the route overview or your lock screen. The "glanceable directions" provide ETA updates and instructions for walking, biking or driving. The desktop version of Google Maps is also updating "Recents" to improve trip planning and allow you to work on multiple itineraries at once by saving everything to your highlights.

In the vein of trip planning, you can also access an AI-generated summary about different locations from articles, reviews and photos. It's available through Search Labs, Google's testing center that opened up to the public in May  but there's still a waitlist. Speaking of AI experimental products, Bard will soon be using Lens to facilitate you adding photos to prompts.
Mr Akpabio asked the senators to support bills that would help President Bola Tinubu to fulfil his election promises.

The Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, has appealed to senators of the opposition parties to support bills that will assist President Bola Tinubu in fulfilling his campaign promises.

Mr Akpabio also advised the opposition senators to ignore their political differences in the interest of national unity and the country's development.

The senate president gave the advice in his acceptance speech after his election on Tuesday.

Mr Akpabio's party, the All Progressives Congress (APC), has 59 members in the new senate, while opposition parties have 50 members.

The opposition parties are the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Labour Party (LP), New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), Social Democratic Party (SDP), All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) and Young Peoples Progressive Party (YPP).

Mr Akpabio urged the opposition senators to support the legislative framework that will help the administration of Mr Tinubu achieve good governance.

"We must, therefore, as a Senate, rise to partner with His Excellency the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and provide the required legislative framework and legal environment for him to anchor the policies and programmes that he espouses for the country.

"In doing this, I will particularly like to address our Distinguished colleagues from other parties. Yes, we may have come to the National Assembly through the instrumentalities of different political parties, so it is appropriate to recognise and respect our differing perceptions and positions on issues that will be brought before this chamber.

"However, in all matters of national interest, we are enjoined to remember that we are first and foremost, Distinguished Senators of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, before our roles as representatives and members of our individual political parties. There is, therefore, every reason to support good policies and programmes of the federal government, and I call on you to put this national interest first at all times," the senate president.

Uncommon leadership

Mr Akpabio also promised to involve every senate member in his governance irrespective of political differences.

"Our Senate, the 10th Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, will be a senate for all Nigeria. Together, we shall be greater than the sum of our individual political parties.

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"On my part, Distinguished Senators, I affirm that this leadership shall be yours. It shall be a servant leadership; it shall be an uncommon leadership," he said.

Mr Akpabio called on Nigerians to be hopeful, assuring that the 10th Senate will assist the president in developing the country.

"To the Nigerian people, I say this: your dreams, your aspirations, and your well-being will be at the heart of everything we will do in this Senate. I urge you to remain hopeful, steadfast and united.

"Nigerians must remember that the nation is caught up in global challenges and upheavals which have far reaching consequences; the impact of armed conflicts in Europe and Africa, as well as global political and economic realignments, are but a few of these events impacting Nigeria, other countries in Africa and even beyond. Our Senate will remain watchful of, and will be responsive to, these events," the senate president said.
Castilla-La Mancha

Guardia Civil de Cuenca detiene a tres personas por irregularidades en la gestion de residuos con amianto
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said Ukraine is making progress in its counteroffensive against Russian invaders and predicted NATO leaders will increase military assistance to Kyiv when they meet next month.
Mr Akpabio defeated a former governor of Zamafara State, Abdulaziz Yari, by 63 votes to 46, to emerge the senate president.

ACCEPTANCE SPEECH DELIVERED BY H.E. DISTINGUISHED SENATOR (CHIEF) GODSWILL OBOT AKPABIO, CON, ON HIS ELECTION AS THE PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE OF THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF NIGERIA, THIS 13TH DAY OF JUNE, 2023.

H.E. the Deputy Senate President, Distinguished Senator Jibrin Barau, The Senate Leader, Principal Officers of the Senate, Distinguished Senators of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Gentlemen of the Press, Ladies and gentlemen.

To God Almighty the creator of the universe, who alone is supreme be all glory, honour, majesty, dominion and power. I bow before you and acknowledge your inestimable control of all that we do and that we are.

2. Today marks a historic moment as we embark on a new chapter in the Senate. Distinguished Senators, today, I stand before you humbled, honored, and filled with an overwhelming sense of gratitude and responsibility as I acknowledge and accept your call to serve as the President of the Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. I assure you that I will discharge the responsibilities of this office with utmost dedication, integrity, and fairness.

3. I am humbled because your choice reflects the collective will of the Senate, this assembly of Nigerians whose role and responsibilities for Nigeria is at the apex of the demands of true patriotism, loyalty and devotion to the country. As the Senate, you represent the entire country and your choice is a reflection of the choice of your constituents, of all Nigeria. And I thank you very sincerely for it.

4. Many of the challenges we have had, and many of the defining moments of our historic journey as a nation towards true democracy, have been met and made by those who have hitherto occupied this seat. I am therefore immensely grateful not only for the great trust you have placed in me today by electing me as the President of the Senate but also for the opportunity to serve our great nation, the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

5. I assure you, Distinguished Senators, that I am mindful of the enormous responsibilities that this position calls for. You will have my cooperation in all matters and our joint efforts will be one of team-work. I extend my sincere hands of fellowship to all of us, including those who, at a time, may have had different opinions regarding the leadership of the Senate. These expressions of differing and opposing opinions and views are but the fabric that democracy is made of. Democracy, ultimately, has to do with choice, and there can be no real choice where and when there are no alternatives. It is time now to go forward with the task set before us as a collective body - the promulgation of laws and enactments for the well-being and security of the country and as a check on the executive arm of the government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, in our oversight functions. Together, we shall reach and surpass the expectations of the Nigerian people regarding us, and our roles in building a better, safer, more inclusive, prosperous, efficient and ethical country.

6. I am pleased, as I am sure that you too are, that we have in His Excellency, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR, a President and Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, who is committed to a strong economy, national security, inclusion and the rule of law. The antecedents of Mr President and his actions in office these past two weeks give not just a pointer but bear witness to an executive government that knows the challenges of the country and is in a hurry to resolve the same. We should therefore, anticipate an executive that is pro-active, progressive and practical. Our laws must therefore, align with the vision of Mr. President to protect and provide for our people at the innermost core of their essence while our actions must also guarantee the best and most efficient use of our national commonwealth.

7. Government is a continuum and the Senate is no less so. We shall therefore, further strengthen the legislative space in continuation of the laudable efforts made by the 9th Senate under the able leadership of H.E. Senator Ahmed Lawan, GCON, President of the 9th Senate. Chief among these are:

i. Gender matters, with specific affirmative provisions to guarantee women's inclusivity;

ii. Issues relating to persons with special needs and equality;

iii. Engaging, empowering and rewarding our resourceful and innovative youths in terms of protection of intellectual innovations and property, and improved access to finance for technological start-ups. We must recognize and prepare for a mid-21st century global economy that places a premium on intellectual content and knowledge, and our young men and women must be supported to engage competitively;

iv. Expansion of the revenue streams available to the country, especially from our huge but largely unregulated natural and solid mineral resources base. These additional sources of revenue will build the nation's resilience to shocks and stresses resulting from the fluctuation of oil prices in the international market;

v. We will, as a forward-looking Senate, pass laws that emphasize economic viability, social acceptability and environmental sustainability, to encourage alternate and green technologies without prejudicing our developmental needs.

8. We must, therefore, as a Senate, rise to partner with His Excellency the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, and provide the required legislative framework and legal environment for him to anchor the policies and programmes that he espouses for the country. In doing this, I will particularly like to address our Distinguished colleagues from other parties. Yes, we may have come to the National Assembly through the instrumentalities of different political parties, so it is appropriate to recognize and respect our differing perceptions and positions on issues that will be brought before this chamber. However, in all matters of national interest, we are enjoined to remember that we are first and foremost, Distinguished Senators of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, before our roles as representatives and members of our individual political parties. There is therefore every reason to support good policies and programmes of the federal government, and I call on you to put this national interest first at all times. Our Senate, the 10th Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, will be a senate for all Nigeria. Together, we shall be greater than the sum of our individual political parties. On my part, Distinguished Senators, I affirm that this leadership shall be yours. It shall be a servant leadership; it shall be an uncommon leadership.

9. To the Nigerian people, I say this: your dreams, your aspirations, and your well-being will be at the heart of everything we will do in this Senate. I urge you to remain hopeful, steadfast, and united. Nigerians must remember that the nation is caught up in global challenges and upheavals which have far reaching consequences; the impact of armed conflicts in Europe and Africa, as well as global political and economic realignments are but a few of these events impacting Nigeria, other countries in Africa and even beyond. Our Senate will remain watchful of, and will be responsive to, these events.

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10. Finally I plead with you, Distinguished Senators, to permit me to offer special commendation to the President and Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces, His Excellency Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR. On behalf of the Senate I thank you for the fatherly but decisive manner in which you have commenced the journey of piloting the affairs of our great country. Our nation is better off with you at the helm of affairs. We also thank in a special way the Vice President, His Excellency Senator Kashim Shettima GCON. The leadership of our great party, the All Progressives Congress, headed by our indefatigable Chairman, Senator Abdullahi Adamu, CON, has provided tremendous guidance to us all. Thank you for your wise counsel during the course of the search for the leadership of the 10th Senate. I also thank the Clerk, management and all staff of the National Assembly, and I offer my sincere gratitude to them for efficiently organizing the inauguration of the 10th Senate.

11. To my dear wife, Her Excellency Unoma Ekaette Godswill-Akpabio, I thank you for the prayers you have made on behalf of this quest. May God continue to reward the sacrifices that you and the rest of the family have put up with.

Thank you all, and may God bless the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

H.E. Chief Godswill Obot-Akpabio, CON

President of the Senate, Federal Republic of Nigeria.
Ed. Note: A correction was made to this story, replacing the 7th paragraph, on June 13.

VAUGHN, MT - Students at the elementary school here have gotten a first-hand look at how our state government works. The experience culminated with a visit by Governor Greg Gianforte to Vaughn School last Wednesday. The bill recognizes the Huckleberry as the official state fruit of Montana.

Everyone gathered in the school gym for the signing ceremony, but before he would sign the document, Gov. Gianforte asked the students who had worked on this project, to make their pitch one more time.

The students, one by one, came up to the microphone and told those gathered their reason for pursuing this sweet project. One student gave a list of all the foods that taste better with huckleberries. It was a lengthy list. You might like Flathead cherries but they arent native to Montana. I think you definitely should sign the bill, one fourth-grade student said.

The students were convincing, and the governor sat at a table in the gym, surrounded by the classes that worked on the project. Standing next to the governor was Montana Rep. Lola Sheldon-Galloway.

Sheldon-Galloway, who grew up in Vaughn, celebrated the students efforts. It is an honor to have the school represented today, my alma matter, and its been great to see all their hard work, Rep. Sheldon-Galloway said.

Many parents were present as well.

The Sun Times reached out to Vaughn 4th Grade Teacher Amy Brooks after the Governor signed HB 880 and asked her how this undertaking came to be.

Could you describe how this process started?

This process started with me asking Representative Lola Sheldon-Galloway to come talk/teach about what she does in Helena. My curriculum had a small section on government and I thought it would be nice to have students meet someone who actually is a part of our legislative process. We did this back in February. She split my class up into two committees, one being the Senate and the other the House, along with a governor. The two committees created a bill that they wanted to make law. Once decided on, they sent the bill to the other committee with a sponsor from the original committee. It was a lot of fun watching students and all the ideas they had. The two bills that the committees came up with were: 1. Recess of 15 minutes every day for 4th grade and up (Vaughn doesnt have any recess once they get to 4th grade), and 2. Two hours after school that were considered free time where students stayed at the school and could choose to do anything they wanted - from playing on the computers to playing outside. The first bill passed the second committee, where the free time bill died in the second committee. Lola worked her magic and explained how they could blast the bill back to the floor. In the end, both bills were brought before our student governor. He signed the bill for 15 minutes of recess into law, and vetoed the free time bill. It was fun to watch the process in the classroom.

On a side note, because of this lesson there was the information about the two bills on my whiteboard. The next period I had 5th graders come in and see what the 4th grade class had been up to and wanted to know if they actually were going to get 15 minutes of recess. :o) From there, 4th and 5th graders did research and wrote letters to our administration and school board requesting that 4th grade and up be allowed recess. I took those letters to a school board meeting and there is now discussion about adding a recess into the 4th and 5th grade schedules for next year.

How did the idea come about?

After our lesson of creating bills and making law, Lola came up with an idea on how my 4th graders could see the legislative process in a whole different way. She told me how we didnt have a state fruit and that she could draft a bill for us in naming our state fruit. She had mentioned naming the huckleberry our state fruit.... The idea of naming the Montana state fruit quickly progressed from there!

How did you and your students manage taking this idea through the process?

I talked with the 4th graders about the idea and they were totally up for the challenge. We thought through a lot of different fruits (including watermelon and pineapple) and had the discussion that whatever fruit it was should probably be grown IN Montana. LOL. We came to a consensus that we should research the Flathead cherry, chokecherry, and huckleberry. I split my class of 18 into 3 groups and they were each assigned one of the fruits. They found lots of information about each and created slideshows that were eventually presented to all the grades at Vaughn School (including kindergarten!). After presenting their slideshows, staff, students, and school board members were polled on what they felt should be the state fruit. It was actually quite close - 64 huckleberry, 58 chokecherry, and 37 Flathead cherry.

Once we came up with what the majority thought the state fruit should be, 4th graders then switched gears and began researching everything about huckleberries. They all wrote testimonies from their research in preparation of presenting to a House committee in Helena. In large part to Lola, we were able to take a trip to Helena and present our testimonies in front of the committee, get a tour of the Capitol, visit the Secretary of States office and learn about the state seal, have lunch with Lt. Governor Juras that was paid for by Mr. Boulanger (a lobbyist), and tour the Governors Old Mansion. It was a full day as I was teacher AND bus driver with a few parent chaperones along to help.

We watched as our bill had its 2nd and 3rd reading on the House floor where it passed with a majority vote. Lola mentioned having the 5th graders come down to support the 4th graders by testifying in front of the Senate committee, and I was the lucky one to take them down...again as teacher and bus driver. I had some help from our ELA teacher in getting the 5th graders prepared as I was gone one of the two weeks that they were working on researching and writing their testimonies. 5th graders had a very similar trip to Helena, this time having lunch with Superintendent Elsie Arntzen that was paid for by E.J. Redding (another lobbyist). We had to request that the Senate committee go into executive action for our bill which they did. It was passed unanimously 11-0. 5th graders watched when it was read for the 2nd and 3rd time on the Senate floor. We found it interesting that 4 of the committee members changed their vote by the 3rd reading.

When did this project start?

Lola first texted me about the idea on March 13th and I had permission to go with it by the 15th. The field trip for 4th grade took place on March 28th. It was a quick process considering we have a 4-day school week.

How do you think this project might have future influence on how these students will look at the way governments work? In other words, most students (and adults) have never been so closely involved with their government.

I hope and believe that these students learned that if you put the work in, anything is possible. They had to do their homework - the House committee asked them about why it shouldnt be the chokecherry. If they hadnt done their research, they wouldnt have been able to stand on such solid ground in their stance that the huckleberry should be the state fruit. They had an intimate look at how the process works to take something from an idea all the way through to making that idea become law. And to know that the Governor, someone who they think is much higher than they are, was willing to come to their school and sign the bill makes it that much more real to them.

Do you think that, if this process was undertaken more often with young citizens, that more people might be active, whether by running for office or by being more involved as citizens?

After this experience, I truly believe that every student should have the opportunity to go to the Capitol and take part in the legislative process. By having this experience, it shows them the process of government, shows the impact that their own voice can have on a topic, and how truly anyone can be involved if they are willing to put in the effort. I hope that these students will be more involved in our local, state, and national government because they participated in the process when they were in 4th/5th grade and saw the simplicity, necessity, and benefits of it.

Were the legislators from your area helpful? Are there any who were particularly involved?

Representative Lola Sheldon-Galloway and Rep. Steven Galloway were a huge part of the success of this. They planned our trips to the Capitol by arranging tours of the Governors Old Mansion; arranging lunch, who was buying lunch, and which elective official we would have lunch with; helping get the bill scheduled to be discussed in committee on a day that would work for each class; scheduling a visit to the Secretary of States office where students learned more about the state seal, was given a booklet that included both the Montana and US constitutions, and got to press the embossed state seal into their booklet; and purchased snacks for the bus ride home. Lola had the bill drafted for us. Rep. Russ Miner (rep for the Vaughn School area) hung out with the 5th graders during their trip to the Capitol for part of the time.

Governor Gianforte was asked later by the Sun Times a few questions about the accomplishment of the Vaughn students: What the Vaughn students did went beyond reading a book on civics. Do you feel like this sort of student involvement with the process of government fosters a better understanding of how government should work?

Gianforte replied, Im very proud of the students at Vaughn. They worked hard  researching the issue, testifying on the bill, and pitching me on it. There is a clear, growing need for civics education in our schools, and its never too early to instill in young Montanans an understanding of and respect for our institutions and democratic processes. The students at Vaughn elementary should be very proud. I know I am.

Governor, Idaho claims the huckleberry as their state fruit, too. Which state has the better berry? The governor replied, As the students shared with me, the huckleberry is native to Montana, so Id say ours is the better berry.

Wednesday, the Governor said, Whether you like them in jam, pancakes, or picked fresh off the bush Asked how he preferred his huckleberries, Gianforte told the Sun Times, My favorite huckleberry product is huckleberry jam.

Rep. Lola Sheldon Galloway attended Vaughn school. When she was in junior and senior high, she and her dad worked as custodians at Vaughn.

Now, she has three grandkids at Vaughn, in the first, third and fourth grades.

This was a great way for kids to learn science, math, research and public speaking. I am glad the kids were able to see the process; we have taught them the proper way to change things, she told the Sun Times.

Sheldon-Galloway said this was not a partisan issue at all. Everyone was in support of the kids. Then, she added with a laugh, except for the huckleberry versus chokecherry folks.
A hunter killed a charging female grizzly bear with a pistol last week in the Madison Range south of Ennis, according to state officials.

The man was hunting black bears on private land in the Madisons on June 5 when he was charged by a grizzly.

He shot and killed the 15-year-old bear in self-defense and was not injured, according to a Monday press release from the Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks.

The hunter reported the death to Fish, Wildlife and Parks that day. Officials with FWP, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and the Beaverhead-Deerlodge National Forest conducted a field investigation with help from the landowner and confirmed the bear mortality. An investigation is ongoing.

According to the release, the bears behavior appeared to be in defense after a surprise, close encounter with the hunter. The 15-year-old female grizzly had been captured for research in 2013 and did not have a known history of conflict with people. No cubs were seen with the bear, according to the release.

The bear died outside the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem grizzly bear recovery zone, but inside the demographic monitoring area.

In another incident, a black bear attacked a woman near Montanas Glacier National Park in the early morning hour of June 7 along the Middle Fork Flathead River.

The Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks said the woman  a tour guide with a commercial raft company  was treated for non-life threatening injuries at a hospital in Whitefish.

The state agency said the attack occurred around 6 a.m. when the black bear entered a camp near Nyack where two guides and three travelers were staying for an overnight trip.

The attacked guide told authorities she was sleeping outside on the ground when she sustained injuries from the bear.

Bear spray was deployed but the bear returned multiple times to the camps, according to the Montana agency.

State wildlife officials are looking for the bear involved in the encounter.
A photo of Holland Lake in Montana (Fhoto by the U.S. Forest Service via Flickr | CC-BY-SA 2.0).

Flathead National Forest Supervisor Kurt Steele will leave his post to work at the regional U.S. Forest Service office in Missoula.

The Forest Services Dan Hottle said the agency is still determining the timing of the transition and whether it will appoint an interim supervisor for the Flathead or leave the position unfilled while it recruits a permanent leader.

The Flathead Beacon, which first reported the news, said Steele had served in the position for three-and-a-half years.

Steele, who will take the deputy director, ecosystem planning post at the regional office, had come under fire over a proposal to expand Holland Lake Lodge. The resort operates on public land with a special-use permit.

Last month, a couple of lawyers who have been investigating the proposal alleged Steele had violated federal ethics standards and should be removed as the authorized officer making decisions about the lodge given his expressed support for the expansion.

Save Holland Lake, a group that formed to oppose the project, agreed with the lawyers.

The Forest Service has not responded to that allegation, but in a phone call Tuesday, Hottle said the change was not related to controversy over the Holland Lake Lodge proposal.

Theres no correlation with this (personnel change) and Holland Lake, Hottle said.

However, he said he did not know whether Steele had initiated applying for the position or if the Forest Service offered it to him first. Hottle characterized the change in position as a lateral move with a salary that should stay the same.

He told the Flathead Beacon the details of the new job are still being determined.

Last fall, after public outcry, the Forest Service rejected the expansion proposal from the lodge and POWDR, an adventure life company based in Utah and one of the largest ski resort operators in North America. POWDR purchased shares and is in control of the lodge, according to records earlier reviewed by the Hamilton lawyers.

However, POWDR has said it intends to resubmit a similar proposal to the Forest Service, and it is trying to secure the permit, although expansion opponents have raised questions about its validity. Tuesday, a spokesperson said POWDR does not have a timeline to resubmit a development plan at this point.

In the meantime, Save Holland Lake requested that Flathead National Forest and POWDR release to the public any new proposal as soon as it is submitted, although the public agency has not responded to that request.

When the Forest Service first received the development plan, it worked on the project behind the scenes for 19 months before it released the proposal to the public, information that came to light from scrutiny of public records by the Hamilton lawyers.

Tuesday, Hottle said public trust will always be part of the hiring process at the Forest Service, regardless of the way the Holland Lake Lodge proposal unfolded.

Its not that we dont see the need to work on any trust issues, Hottle said. Well continue to work on the permit situation with Holland Lake Lodge regardless of who we have in that (supervisor position).

Currently, Deputy Forest Supervisor Tami Mackenzie is the second-in-command at the Flathead National Forest.

If a qualified person can fill the supervisor post temporarily, the Forest Service may opt to tap an employee as interim supervisor, Hottle said. He said it can take a few weeks or even a few months to make a permanent hire.

The next supervisor will walk into the job under a high degree of scrutiny given the high profile of the project in the works and intense opposition to it.

Save Holland Lakes Bill Lombardi, who has said POWDRs proposal is not in the public interest, called for transparency from agency staff, whose salaries we pay.

He also called on them to rebuild trust.

We hope the U.S. Forest Service will listen to American taxpayers who own this public land and protect it for generations to come, Lombardi said in an email.

The post Flathead National Forest supervisor to leave post appeared first on Daily Montanan.
Dr. Cathy Whitlock testifies on the impacts of climate change in Montana at the second day of the Held v. Montana trial on Tuesday, June 13, 2023. (Photo by Blair Miller, Daily Montanan)

For the second day in a row, a top Montana climate scientist told a Lewis and Clark County judge and those in attendance at trial that there was no doubt human-caused climate change was making the planet hotter and making life worse for children and future generations in Montana.

[Climate instability] will get worse as Montana continues to emit greenhouse gases  because as I said earlier, every ton of CO2 thats released into the atmosphere impacts the climate, so Montana has a role to play like everywhere else on the planet, said Cathy Whitlock, a regents professor emerita of paleoecology at Montana State Universitys Department of Earth Sciences.

Whitlock was the first witness called by the plaintiffs attorneys on the second day of the first-of-its kind trial in which 16 young Montanans are suing the state, alleging its continued efforts to burn fossil fuels violate their rights under the state constitution to a clean and healthful environment.

Whitlock, also a founding member of the Montana Institute on Ecosystems who helped author several major Montana and Yellowstone climate assessments over the past six years, compiled evidence as an expert witness in the case on how human-caused climate change from the creation of greenhouse gases is harming Montanas environment and its children alongside Mondays expert witness, Steven Running, who shared in a Nobel prize for his work on climate science.

At the trial Tuesday, Whitlock went into detail for several hours about how climate change is warming Montana and subjecting both adults and children to major physical health and psychological effects.

Decades of research into climate change, and reports published along the way, have warned that the earth will continue warming if humans continue to burn fossil fuels at current rates, exacerbating the cycle already being seen today, she said.

That means if there is not an effort to curb emissions, there will be more extreme weather events, hotter seasons than are typical for places like Montana, longer and more intense droughts, less snowpack, larger and more intense wildfires, and bigger floods that occur more often, Whitlock said.

Statewide, Montana has warmed 2.7 degrees Fahrenheit since 1950  a little bit faster than other places in the U.S. because of Montanas northern location and high elevation, she said. But the warming has sped up over the past 30 years  nearly in every part of Montana and more specifically in winter and spring.

Theyre experiencing and living with this warming trend that started before they were born, but its accelerating, she said of the plaintiffs in the case. Its affecting all of them.

She explained that the international climate community has developed methodology to measure carbon dioxide concentrations in the future  called representative concentration pathways (RCPs)  that scientists use to predict climate models over the next 80 years.

In a median estimate, Montana could warm an average of 5.6 degrees by 2100, but in an extreme scenario, it could warm an average of 10 degrees relative to 1971-2000, she said.

By the end of the century, were looking at a couple of months over 90 degrees, she said.

Those warmer temperatures will cause snow to melt earlier in the year, less of it to fall in the winter amid an already steady decrease, streams and rivers to warm and drop in levels, and more wildfires to start because of longer periods of drought due to the changing seasons, she said. That in turn will harm the plaintiffs in the case, many of whom utilize Montanas outdoors for an array of activities.

When she was asked if there was a timeframe or sense of urgency by the state and other governments to act, she said they needed to do so as quickly as possible because there is a consensus about those facts among the scientific community. Asked how confident she was in the accuracy of the models, Whitlock said: I have no doubt.

She told attorneys for the state on cross examination that greenhouse gas emissions should be considered under the Montana Environmental Policy Act  a core tenet of what is at stake in the trial after the legislature this spring amended MEPA to explicitly say that the state could not include an evaluation of greenhouse gas emissions and climate change impacts when conducting an environmental review for a project.

The state has argued for the first two days of the trial that even if Montana stopped burning all fossil fuels immediately, it is a tiny fraction of the global contributions to climate change. Judge Kathy Seeley, who is presiding over the case, told an animated Assistant Attorney General Thane Johnson at one point during his cross examination of Whitlock on that very topic that he needed to settle down.

Whitlock said the amended MEPA limitation was a big step backward and called it a constraint moving the state in the wrong direction. She suggested that indeed Montana reassessing its relationship with the fossil fuel industry and curbing emissions would have a positive impact because not doing so would only exacerbate problems.

The harms will get worse, she said.  Montanas sort of promotion of fossil fuel production is making the problem worse because every ton of CO2 makes a difference.

Another expert witness the plaintiffs called was Daniel Fagre, a recently retired research ecologist who spent decades working on glaciology at Glacier National Park for the park service, National Biological Service, and U.S. Geological Survey. Fagre discussed how climate change has rapidly melted away what in 1850 was 146 glaciers inside what is now the park to just 26 that remain today.

This is happening because of anthropomorphic climate changes and temperatures higher than glaciers can tolerate, he said.

He said there was no scientific debate that humans burning fossil fuels over the past two-plus centuries have caused global warming, citing research of his and others that shows there is no other cause for the quickly warming planet.

He said the global climate has actually been on a 7,000-year cooling trend that would actually have the glaciers increasing in size if it were not for climate change.

These things in the past would have taken hundreds or thousands of years. This change is so abrupt we can only look at human causes, Fagre said.

For years, Fagre and other researchers have been mapping Glaciers glaciers via plane, satellite, and on-the-ground photography in which they attempt to replicate photos of the glaciers taken in the early 1900s to compare what they say are climate change-induced differences.

He said his research shows that 82% of glaciers in the park 170 years ago are now gone, and that 70% of the glacier area in the park has also disappeared. The rate of glacier loss has also accelerated, Fagre said  to the point the park was losing 1% of its glacier mass a year from 2005 to 2015.

Under the current trajectory, glaciers will not survive. Its only a matter of time, he said. Whether its in the next few decades or at the end of the century, these glaciers have existed for 7,000 years and will be gone in human lifetimes, including those of the plaintiffs.

The Glacier ecosystem is special in that it has headwaters of three major North American rivers and is home to species not found in many other places in the Lower 48 due in part to the high elevations, cold temperatures, and glacial waters, Fagre said. But the ecosystem and those downstream of the park are all at risk of vast changes if the climate continues to warm, there is less snowpack and glacier cover, and drought increases.

If we were able to reduce emissions and some lag time temperatures, wed find the glaciers would slow in their melting and would eventually stabilize. And with enough time would begin to grow, he told the court. Really, the only option is to change the temperatures, which requires changes in fossil fuel use and emissions.

Both Fagre and Whitlock also offered rebuttals to planned testimony from Judith Curry, a climatologist the state has put on its witness list who is one of a handful of climate scientists who says they believe the predictions about climate change handed down by most scientists are wrong. Whitlock is traveling to Mongolia later this week to teach a course on climate change and health.

Two more plaintiffs also testified Tuesday  Mica K., a 15-year-old from Missoula, and Badge B., a 15-year-old from Kalispell. For most of his life, Mica said he has been advocating for policies to stem the tide of climate change and reduce dependency on fossil fuels.

Also an avid runner, snowboarder and outdoors enthusiast, he discussed how wildfire smoke has forced him inside many times in his life after he developed asthma, and how his winter snowboarding season is getting cut shorter because of warmer and drier seasons.

Mica said he joined the effort because he feels betrayed by the government for not doing more to stop burning fossil fuels and thus, he said, to protect Montanans. He said winning the lawsuit would give him hope.

I would know that were moving in the right direction, and we have more hope in the future and just have a better chance, he said.

Badge, named after the Badger-Two Medicine area not far from his home where he likes to hunt and fish, said he feels melancholy when he sees the extensive burn scars there, a declining Hungarian partridge population that he likes to hunt, and shallower and warmer waters that make fishing impossible at times of the year.

He, too, said he wanted to make a difference by joining the lawsuit since he is unable to vote in order to preserve Montana for his life and next generations. When asked if he was worried about the Montana he stands to inherit, he told the court the state is not holding the constitution up to the standard it needs to be held up to.

(It is) promoting the use of fossil fuels and not abiding by our constitution that says we have a right to a clean and healthful environment, he said.

The final witness of the day, pediatrician and climate health expert Dr. Lori Byron from Crow Agency, started to discuss the impacts of climate change on childrens health in the final hour of the day and will continue her testimony on Wednesday. She too is slated to rebut Currys testimony ahead of the trip to Mongolia with Whitlock, who summed up her testimony by reading the conclusion of her expert report compiled with Running.

Ive been warning about the dangers posed by climate change and fossil fuels for decades, and yet Montana continues to aggressively pursue an expansion of fossil fuel utilization and production, she said. Theres little time remaining to avoid locking us into irreversible climate impacts, and we believe judicial intervention is essential to protect these children as well as their environment and our natural resources. These are things they depend on for their wellbeing and their very survival.

The post Its affecting all of them: Montana climate scientists say warming will worsen if nothing changes appeared first on Daily Montanan.
NEW MIDDLETOWN, Ohio  The rising cost of electricity is leading to increased demand for solar energy systems to power homes, businesses and farms. Ace Solar, based in New Middletown, Ohio, has grown to meet that increased demand.

People are calling us and wanting this technology, explained Erin Quinlan, who operates the company with her husband, Dan.

People are scrambling for a way so they can get that monthly expense down.

Future

People see a benefit in investing in their own solar energy systems because they can take care of their energy costs far into the future. Instead of worrying about how high prices for electricity might go, they have essentially prepaid for electricity at a discount with their solar energy systems, Quinlan said.

Youre purchasing your power now for the next 30 years and more.

Some customers want to set up their farms or businesses with more predictable energy input costs. Theres not that variable factor, Quinlan explained.

Reducing bills

Homeowners are also looking to minimize their future energy bills, she added. Retiring people, for instance, are investing in systems so they can better budget their power expenses to match their fixed income in retirement.

History

Energy efficiency Ace Solar got its start in 2006, when Dan Quinlan established Valley Energy Solutions. At that time, he was working to help homeowners improve the energy efficiency of their homes.

As time went on, more of his work centered on adding solar power to homes and his expertise in designing and installing solar energy systems grew. Erin joined her husband in the business in 2013, helping with administrative work.

One of the Quinlans customers, Rick Carano, was responsible for the Quinlans partnership with Ace Hardware in New Middletown. He was an enthusiastic proponent of solar energy and had solar energy systems installed on the roof of his hardware store and pharmacy in New Middletown.

Caranos next step was to partner with the Quinlans to expand their solar energy installation business as well as offer service for solar electric and energy storage systems. Carano passed away in 2021, before they could complete their plans, but his children have continued his efforts to care for the environment by promoting solar energy, said Quinlan.

His children have now taken the torch and want to see his legacy live on.

Valley Energy Solutions became known as Ace Solar and continues to serve customers through New Middletowns Ace Hardware. They work primarily within a ninety-minute radius of New Middletown, which includes the Cleveland and Akron areas and extends into western Pennsylvania.

The staff of Ace Solar has grown to eight people to handle the increasing demand. To design a system for a specific farm, business or home, Ace Solar begins by assessing a customers utility bills to determine energy needs and costs. Then they design a system to fit the site and customer preferences.

Rooftop systems are popular, but they dont fit all situations, Quinlan pointed out.

For instance, solar panels should not be installed over an old roof and some roofs arent oriented for the most efficient operation of solar panels. For ground-mounted systems, the installation includes landscaping the ground beneath the panels.

Grant funding

Currently, about 70% of Ace Solars business is residential, but theyre seeing the most growth in the installation of systems on farms to help power farming operations.

Primarily, its because of a lot of the grants that the USDA has to help promote the technology, noted Quinlan.

Through the Rural Energy for America Program, the USDA is offering loan financing and grants to help cover the cost of renewable energy systems for farms and rural small businesses. Tax credits can also help cover the cost of a system. Ace Solar is familiar with the government grant programs, so they can write grant applications for customers, Quinlan said.

Customers dont have to commit to installing a system if a grant isnt awarded.

Evan Schaefer, who farms with his brother, Luke, in Mahoning County, worked with Ace Solar to install a 17.28-kilowatt system on their farm last winter. Its mounted on the roof of a pole barn and the electricity generated will help offset the cost of power for their shop and grain system, he said.

Ace Solar helped the Schaefers scale a system to meet their needs without excess capacity. They are using net metering so the power they generate is fed into the grid and Ohio Edison pays them for any extra energy they produce. However, the rate they receive is considerably lower than what they have to pay for power, he pointed out.

You want to scale it so theres not much overproduction, he advised. Ace Solar also helped the Schaefers access grant funding for their project. That made it worthwhile to have Ace Solar install the system rather than trying to complete the project on their own, Schaefer said.

Details

Ace Solar is headquartered inside the Ace Hardware at 10395 Main St., New Middletown, Ohio, and can be reached by phone at 330-542-2802. More information is also available online at acesolarpro.com.
Farm leaders are calling for the Scottish government to recognise that assurance membership demonstrates that businesses are complying with their duties under plant protection product (PPP) law.

A post-Brexit regulatory requirement entails the use of pesticide enforcement officer (PEO) inspections of businesses and users of professional pesticides, which is due to commence in October 2023.

In a joint statement, industry bodies are calling for users of pesticides who have their businesses audited as part of an assurance scheme to have earned recognition and to be exempt from the government audit.

Groups who have issued the statement include NFU Scotland, Scottish Quality Crops (SQC), Agricultural Industries Confederation (AIC) and Quality Meat Scotland (QMS).

Farm and business audits are conducted annually as part of independent farm and trade assurance inspections. In Scotland, the relevant farm assurance bodies are SQC and QMS.

The organisations stated that duplication of audit was "an unnecessary bureaucratic burden" for all businesses and the Health and Safety Executive (HSE).

"We want Scottish government and the HSE to recognise that a successful assurance audit already demonstrates that businesses are complying with their duties under PPP law.

Farm businesses and businesses who are audited annually and prove that they are compliant by achieving assured status, should have earned recognition that they are complying with their duties under PPP law.

In a commitment to remove red tape and improve simplification, we ask that HSE recognise farm and trade assurance standards as an appropriate and robust mechanism to inspect and assure businesses.

"It is an existing mechanism that gives businesses the earned recognition that regulations are being complied with.

We call on Scottish government and HSE to recognise that the requirements of farm and trade assurance standards demonstrate compliance with businesses duties under PPP law.
A week-long celebration of one of Britain's favourite vegetables and the 700 farmers who produce it will commence in July.

The UKs annual celebration of the British pea harvesting season will return for its eighth year between 3  9 July.

The week, which is spearheaded by British Growers Association (BGA), will celebrate British production and educate the public on how every season gets billions of peas from field-to-fork.

The largest producer and consumer of frozen peas in Europe is the UK, with the average person in Britain eating nearly 9,000 peas per year.

And this July, approximately 700 pea growers, who work within 16 different grower groups, will harvest 2 billion portions of peas to feed Britain for the year.

Figures show that the UK is 90% self-sufficient in pea production, according to BGA's yearly campaign, 'Yes Peas'.

Lasting an average of six to eight weeks, the harvesting process is a complex operation.

Farmers work using viners to harvest, shell and transport the peas from field to frozen as quickly as possible  the majority in just 150 minutes.

The hi-tech machinery and exact precision needed during harvesting requires growers to collaborate to produce the crop.

There are currently 18 farmer groups along the east coast of the UK, from Essex to North of Dundee who produce the pea crop.

The east-facing seaboard and maritime climate is the perfect environment for growing quality peas.

Holly Jones, crop association executive at the BGA, which runs the campaign, said: Great British Pea Week is the perfect time to celebrate the versatile vegetable that we all love here in the UK.

"We are 90% self-sufficient in pea production, meaning that nearly all peas in supermarket freezers going into your trolley or online order are most likely grown by British farmers.
Mr Abbas defeated two other candidates, Idris Wase and Sani Jaji to emerge winner of the election.

INAUGURAL SPEECH BY THE SPEAKER OF THE 10TH HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, RT. HON. TAJUDEEN ABBAS (PH.D), DELIVERED ON TUESDAY JUNE 13, 2023 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES CHAMBERS

PROTOCOL

Honourable Colleagues, today, I stand before you with immense joy and gratitude as we celebrate a momentous victory for the 10th House of Representatives. I want to express my deepest appreciation to each and every one of you who believed in me and supported my candidacy. I am indeed humbled and honoured to be elected as your Speaker, as the Speaker of the Nigerian people.

2. I offer my deepest gratitude and thanks to the Almighty God for His divine guidance and blessings throughout this journey. It is through His grace that I stand before you today as the Speaker of the 10th House of Representatives.

3. I wish to sincerely thank you all for finding me worthy of being your Speaker, out of the 360 of us, who are all equals. I also thank Almighty Allah for making this journey possible. To the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and my party, the APC, I say a big thank you for finding me competent to be nominated to serve in this position for the Nigerian people. I thank every other person who has directly or indirectly contributed to this journey.

4. This victory is not just about me; it is about all of us coming together as a united House to serve the Nigerian people diligently. It is about honouring the trust that has been placed on us and working tirelessly to deliver on our promises of good governance and effective representation.

5. It is worthy to note that the speakership campaign witnessed in the past few months was democracy at play. But today, all of that has come to pass, and it is time to forge ahead and work together for our people for our common good.

6. I do not take this mandate bestowed on me as the Nigerian Speaker for granted. I want to assure you today that I shall be just and fair to every one of you irrespective of our perceived differences. I shall operate a House that you all will be proud of. I shall be guided by the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and the House Rules. Our doors will be open for members of APC, PDP, Labour Party, NNPP, APGA, SDP, ADC and YPP as we strongly believe nation building is a Joint Task.

7. My dear colleagues, those of us that were privileged to serve in the just concluded 9th House of Representatives will attest to the fact that appreciable successes had been recorded under my predecessor, Rt. Hon. Femi Hakeem Gbajabiamila, CFR, who from tomorrow, will assume office as the Chief of Staff to the President/Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, Federal Republic of Nigeria. I will like to congratulate him for finishing his tenure as Speaker successfully and for his new national assignment. The former Speaker remains a great Nigerian whose service to the fatherland in the past 20 years as a legislator is unmatched. I commend him for his sacrifices for Nigeria and his support for the new 10th House of Representatives.

8. Honourable Colleagues, under my watch, the 10th House shall sustain and even surpass the gains of the 9th House. That is my prayer. We shall carry out the TASK before us JOINTLY. We shall introduce reforms and innovations for the benefit of Nigerians. In a few weeks, we shall be reeling out the legislative agenda that will shape the 10th House of Representatives.

9. We shall work closely and inter-dependently with the Executive and Judiciary to give Nigerians the good governance they deserve. We stand at a crucial juncture in our nation's history, where challenges abound, but so do opportunities. We will champion legislation that will uplift the lives of our fellow citizens, promote social justice, and drive sustainable development.

10. We will focus on strengthening our security apparatus, collaborating with relevant stakeholders to combat insurgency, terrorism, and all forms of criminalities. We aim to help create a safe and secure environment that fosters economic growth and social stability.

11. Through legislation, the 10th House will promote entrepreneurship and support small and medium-scale enterprises. We shall diversify our economy and provide sustainable employment opportunities for our youth. We are aware of the challenges in our education, healthcare, and infrastructure sectors amongst others.

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12. We will work in harmony with the executive arm, while upholding principles of checks and balances. Our collaboration will be anchored on the principles of transparency, accountability, and respect for the rule of law.

13. Honourable Colleagues, may I remind all of us that we hold our respective offices in trust for the Nigerian people. We MUST, therefore, justify the confidence reposed in us by our constituents to represent their interests and work committedly for our dear nation.

14. Working closely with my deputy, Rt. Hon. Benjamin Kalu, we shall provide purposeful leadership in the 10th House of Representatives.

15. My dear colleagues, I invite you all to be on board for the next four years as we embark on this Nigerian Project to RENEW the HOPE of our people.

May God bless the Federal Republic of Nigeria!
Tom Holland feels the "pressures of public opinion".

Tom Holland feels the weight of pressure

The 27-year-old star is one of the most popular actors in Hollywood, and Tom admits that he's very conscious of the public's expectations.

Tom - who is best known for playing Peter Parker in the Spider-Man film franchise - told The Hollywood Reporter: "I wouldnt say I particularly have a history of issues with mental health.

"I just feel like I am a young person living in a world where we are expected to share every moment online. We are under the pressures of public opinion and other peoples opinions, and youve got these pressures of delivering to a certain standard. And its stressful. Its hard."

Tom has gained a huge following on social media during the course of his career.

Despite this, the London-born actor has made a concerted effort to distance himself from various platforms in recent times.

He shared: "Its tough when every time you leave your front door, you are working. Youre on camera.

"I cant walk around New York without clicking everywhere I go. And social media was bringing that outside world into my house.

"I just had to get rid of it. I needed to get back to reality, remind myself of who I am and where Im from, and just live my life as normally as possible, in my abnormal way. Which is my career, I guess."

In August, Tom took to Instagram to announce that he was taking a break from social media to focus on his mental health.

He said on Instagram at the time: "I have taken a break from social media for my mental health, because I find Instagram and Twitter to be overstimulating, to be overwhelming. I get caught up and I spiral when I read things about me online. And ultimately, its very detrimental to my mental state."
While Sanjana Chatlani was drawn towards art and considered herself a creative individual since her school days, she never did think it would be a field in which her career would be set in the future. The founder of the The Bombay Lettering Company was working full time at LVMH, specifically in their wines and spirits company, Moet Hennessy, that she had an encounter with a professional calligraphers work. Intriguing as the experience was, it left her fascinated, especially after revealing the existence of a demand for calligraphy as a profession.

Cut to today, over the years, Sanjana has worked with many high profile clients such as Reliance Industries, Louis Vuitton, Google, Cartier, Deepika Padukone, Rolex, The Ritz Carlton and Manish Malhotra, among others. The entrepreneur, who was the calligrapher on site for the wedding of Priyanka Chopra and Nick Jonas, recently won the title of Favourite Stationer at the RSVP Global Awards 2023, beating 12 other competitors from around the world.

We catch up with Sanjana on her foray into calligraphy, receiving the award, her creativity and dedication and much, much more.

When you took the leap of faith in setting up The Bombay Lettering Company, did you have any reservations in mind?

While employed full-time at LVMH, I dedicated myself to running my calligraphy business on the side for over a year. Juggling both endeavors, I invested significant time and effort, often working late nights to fulfill orders. The consistent income and profits gradually instilled confidence in my business. In late 2018, I took a leap of faith, leaving my job to fully commit to The Bombay Lettering Company. Despite doubts from others about turning calligraphy into a sustainable profession, I weighed my options and made the decision, knowing I could always return to the corporate world if necessary.

Did your family always support you? If it took them time to come around, how did they come around?

I am grateful for the unwavering support of my family throughout my journey. Despite initial uncertainties about my choice to pursue calligraphy, they gave me the time and freedom to explore and develop my skills. They supported my education abroad and learning from various mentors. While they had concerns about leaving a stable job, the success of my business and its financial stability reassured them. Their pride, encouragement, and motivation have been instrumental in fuelling my passion and pursuing my dreams.

What challenges did you face in the initial stages? How did you overcome them?

In the early stages, I faced the challenge of educating people about the true essence of calligraphy. Many perceived it as fancy handwriting or a hobby, but I had to emphasise that it is a highly technical art form requiring skill, dedication, and attention to detail. Educating them visually and showcasing the commercial possibilities of calligraphy was crucial. Furthermore, the prevailing disbelief that a successful calligraphy business could exist posed additional hurdles. Overcoming these perceptions and proving the viability of calligraphy as a professional pursuit demanded persistence and determination.

You have worked with so many high-profile clients. Can you share an anecdote or two that will always remain in your memory?

In my career, Ive had the privilege of collaborating with prestigious global and Indian brands, as well as notable celebrities who have greatly impacted my journey. One exceptional experience was being involved in Priyanka Chopra and Nick Jonass wedding. During the preparations, a remarkable incident occurred at the entrance where ID cards were being issued. When I revealed myself as the calligrapher, the lady in charge was surprised, sharing that in her two decades in the events industry, it was the first time she had witnessed a calligrapher on-site at an Indian wedding in India. This moment emphasised our pioneering role in introducing on-site calligraphy to the Indian wedding scene, establishing a new category and trailblazing in our field. One remarkable experience was receiving an unexpected Instagram DM from Deepika Padukone. Initially, I assumed it was from her assistant or manager, but it turned out to be her personally reaching out. We exchanged contact information and had a conversation over the phone. The very next day, I had the privilege of visiting her house and collaborating with her on a project.

Your work has taken you to many new heights, most recently winning the title of Favourite Stationer at the RSVP Global Awards 2023. You stood out among 12 others from across the globe. What was your first feeling when you came to know? What kind of hard work went into becoming that winner?

Winning the RSVP Awards Favorite Stationery prize in Madrid was a defining moment for us, validating our unwavering commitment and hard work. It served as both encouragement and motivation to push our boundaries further. There is a significant responsibility that comes with such recognition  to own up to it, stay true to our craft, and exceed the expectations placed upon us. We embraced it with gratitude, knowing it was a testament to our passion and dedication. This milestone affirmed that our sleepless nights and tireless efforts were not in vain.

As a stationery company, our distinct value lies in the fusion of calligraphy, lettering, and hand-scripted work, setting us apart from competitors. Our stationery embodies this unique blend, making us a standout choice in the world of design.





From your learnings in your journey, what are the most important pieces of advice you would offer aspiring entrepreneurs?

One of the most crucial lessons Ive learned as an entrepreneur is the continuous pursuit of upskilling. To build a business around an art form or skill, unwavering passion is vital. Even when faced with doubt from others, its crucial to remain resolute and take action. Hard work is irreplaceable. We need to constantly learn and make sure were out of our comfort zones. The moment we get comfortable, we get complacent and thats the end of it.



Images courtesy Sanjana Chatlani



Also Read: Diabetes Educator Khushboo Jain Tibrewala On Her Book Of Recipes








Mr Akpabio said the dreams, aspirations and well-being of Nigerians would be at the heart of legislative activities of the senate and urged Nigerians to pray for the lawmakers.

The new President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio, says the 10th Senate will work to renew the hope of Nigerians via people-oriented legislation, given the nation's current state.

He said the Senate would also ensure an improved revenue stream and proper oversight of MDAs to reduce the waste of resources.

Mr Akpabio said this shortly after his election as president of the 10th Senate.

According to him, the country is at a crossroads, grappling with many challenges.

" We have just Inherited an economy that requires renewal and revitalisation, I want to thank our President, Bola Tinubu and Vice President, Kashim Shettima, for steps taken so far that have given a lot of hope to the entire Nigeria Federation and West African sub region."

He said the Senate would try its best to make laws to ensure foreign direct investment into the country.

He said the senate would pay attention to issues relating to persons with disability and the vulnerable via engagement of legislative action that would bring about empowerment to stop youths from being recruited into banditry, unknown gunmen, and Boko Haram, among other vices.

"We will pay attention to insecurity to ensure that our roads are free for people to travel to any parts of the country.

"We will expand legislation to improve the revenue stream of the country, our current president has a track record of improving the revenue of the country.

"We are here to do our national duties. This Senate is about Nigeria and Nigerians, so long as the policies that come to this chamber is about empowering Nigerians, we shall dwell and deliberate on them.

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"We will work closely with the executive while maintaining the independence of the legislature."

Mr Akpabio said he did not believe in politically motivated infrastructure, saying the 10th Senate would ensure serious oversight functions on MDAs.

This, he said, was to discourage the waste of resources of the country.

"We will put members of the executive on their toes, particularly the ministers when they are appointed; we will follow project by project and will do our best in terms of appropriation.

"We will make efforts to assist the president to ensure that we produce what we eat for the prosperity of Nigeria.

"We must tackle issues that relate to lean sources of revenue; we must emphasise economic viability, social acceptability, tackling environmental issues and therefore bring about sustainable growth.

"We will provide the required legislative framework and legal environment that will enable President Bola Tinubu to anchor the policies of the government.

"For the 10th Senate, we are going to hit the ground running and make sure that our constituents are proud of us."

The Senate president urged the lawmakers to support good policies and programmes of the federal government.

He commended Mr Tinubu for removing fuel subsidy, saying that Nigeria must begin to produce its own fuel and encourage diesel production.

He said the dreams, aspirations and well-being of Nigerians would be at the heart of legislative activities of the senate and urged Nigerians to pray for the lawmakers.

(NAN)
The Middle East was the second largest region for Turkiye's apparel exports in the first quarter of 2023. However, its share is relatively small compared to Europe, which is Turkiye's largest market. During the quarter in question, Turkiye exported apparel totalling $4.929 billion. The shipments to the Middle East were valued at $457.148 million, which represented 9.47 per cent of the total exports.

According to insights from Fibre2Fashion's market tool TexPro, Europe remained the dominant market for Turkiye's apparel exports. These exports were worth $3,607.258 million, accounting for 74.70 per cent of the total shipments.

In Q1 2023, Turkiye's apparel exports totalled $4.929 billion, with Europe being its largest market at $3,607.258 million (74.70 per cent). Middle East was 2nd largest region, accounting for $457.148 million (9.47 per cent). Although exports to the Middle East had declined for two consecutive years in Q1 2020 and 2021, they grew 15.41 per cent in Q1 2023.

Exports from Turkiye to the Middle East have grown 15.41 per cent since the corresponding period last year when the trade was valued at $396.118 million. It's noteworthy that trade had previously declined in the same quarter for two consecutive years. Specifically, it dropped 21.64 per cent to $412.905 million in Q1 2020, then further decreased by 16.42 per cent to $345.126 million in Q1 2021. However, this trend reversed in the following year's same quarter.

By the first four months of 2023, Turkiye's exports to the Middle East had reached $549.646 million. The previous year, 2022, saw exports valued at $1,550.490 million. This was an increase from $1,461.320 million in 2021 and $1,291.493 million in 2020. However, it still fell short of the $1,804.214 million recorded in 2019, as per TexPro.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (KUL)
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has announced the approval of a $400 million loan to Bangladesh, aimed at advancing domestic resource mobilisation reforms and enhancing the efficiency of public spending. This financial support will also foster inclusive access to innovative and low-cost bank financing for small businesses, with a particular focus on women-led enterprises.

This loan represents the second subprogramme of ADB's Sustainable Economic Recovery Program, which was initiated in October 2021 to facilitate the country's post-pandemic economic revival, ADB said in a press release.

ADB has approved a $400 million loan to Bangladesh for economic reforms, public spending efficiency, and financial inclusion. The loan supports tax reforms, enhances public procurement transparency, and promotes low-cost bank financing for small businesses, especially women-led enterprises. The subprogramme also prioritises climate change.

A key component of the programme is the enhancement of income tax collection through the implementation of a new Income Tax Act, aimed at closing tax loopholes, strengthening compliance and enforcement measures, and expanding the country's tax base. Furthermore, efforts will be directed towards improving transparency and efficiency in public procurement by bolstering electronic procurement and payment systems. The newly launched digital system for public project appraisal and approval processes will streamline project approval procedures.

The loan package also supports the innovative financing services initiated by Bangladesh Bank, which provide low-cost microcredit through commercial banks via digital channels and e-wallets. This initiative will enable marginalised and landless farmers, small traders, and low-income earners to access bank lending. Additionally, micro and small businesses, as well as women entrepreneurs without property collateral, will be able to obtain finance based on trade receipts and other non-fixed collateral, such as small equipment and machinery.

Promoting gender equality, social inclusion, and addressing the climate change agenda in public investment and national budgeting are key areas of focus within this comprehensive programme.

This subprogramme enables Bangladesh to enhance revenues, promote efficiency and transparency in public spending and public procurement, deepen the reforms of state-owned enterprises, and help small businesses and microentrepreneurs to access low-interest affordable credits from the banking sector, said Aminur Rahman, ADBs principal public management economist for South Asia. The subprogramme, with a strong focus on gender, climate change, and digitisation, enables the government to strengthen its efforts to support income generation for the poor and vulnerable.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DP)
A delegation of Indian exporters recently met visiting Myanmarese commerce minister U Aung Naign Oo in Kolkata and urged him to accelerate the process of trade settlements through each others currencies, a mechanism that was earlier agreed.

Negotiations on the issue would be finalised by the end of June, Oo was quoted as saying by media reports.

A delegation of Indian exporters recently requested visiting Myanmarese commerce minister U Aung Naign Oo in Kolkata to speed up the process of trade settlements through mutual currencies, a mechanism that was earlier agreed. Oo hoped that negotiations on the issue would be finalised by June end and bilateral trade would at least double after that.

Facing shortages of foreign exchange reserves, Myanmar announced last year that it would start accepting Indian rupees, along with the Thai baht and China's renminbi as an official settlement currency to cut its dependence on the US dollar.

Indian exporters feel the arrangement is expected to help export of pharmaceutical and manufacturing items from India as well as boost import of pulses, timber and other products from Myanmar.

Indias central bank had earlier authorised the state-controlled Punjab National Bank to open a special rupee vostro account for foreign trade settlements with Myanmar.

It said PNB approached Myanmar's CB Bank and UAB Bank of Myanmar to open a vostro account for trade settlements in Indian rupees and kyat, but the Myanmar government wanted to involve other banks in the new mechanism.

The Sittwe port in Myanmar, built under a grant assistance from the government of India as part of Kaladan Multimodal Transit Transport Project, was operationalised last month, and it would be dedicated for trade with east India once commercial operations start, Oo added.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DS)
Turkiyes industrial production index for April 2023 revealed a year-on-year (YoY) decline of 1.2 per cent. The non-durable consumer goods sector, including textiles, saw negative change rates. The annual change for this sector stood at -1.8 per cent, with a change of -1.5 per cent month-on-month (MoM).

On closer inspection of industry subsectors, the manufacturing index remained steady, while the gas supply indexalong with other sectorsfell by 4.3 per cent when compared to April 2022, according to data released by the Turkish Statistical Institute (TurkStat).

April 2023 industrial production index in Turkiye declined by 1.2 per cent YoY, with the non-durable consumer goods sector falling 1.8 per cent annually and 1.5 per cent MoM. Manufacturing remained steady, but gas supply and other sectors dropped 4.3 per cent from April 2022. On an MoM basis, overall industrial production fell 0.9 per cent.

On an MoM basis, the countrys industrial production saw a decrease of 0.9 per cent. Specifically, the manufacturing index dropped by 1.0 per cent, whereas the gas supply index, along with other sectors, saw a marginal increase of 0.5 per cent compared to the previous month.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (NB)
Following the enormous popularity of the first two Drishyam films, the makers are currently preparing for the third instalment of the suspense thriller. As per the latest reports, Drishyam 3 is said to be released in 2024 in both Hindi and Malayalam versions together on the same date.According to the reports by a leading news portal, "Abhishek Pathak and his team of writers have cracked a basic core plot for Drishyam 3, which Jeethu Joseph and his team loved. They have taken the idea from the team of Hindi Drishyam and are now working towards developing it into a screenplay for Drishyam 3."A source close to the news portal stated that the teams behind the Hindi and Malayalam versions of Drishyam are collaborating to film both movies together with the ultimate goal of releasing them simultaneously throughout India. The plan is for Drishyam 3 to be filmed and released on the same date, with Mohanlal playing George Kutty in the Malayalam version and Ajay Devgn portraying Vijay Salgaonkar in the Hindi version. If the screenplay is finalised, the Telugu Drishyam producers may also participate in this plan for a nationwide simultaneous release.The reason for this decision is to provide viewers with a spoiler-free experience. The makers of Drishyam recognize that suspense is a crucial aspect of the film, and they want to ensure that all audiences have the same opportunity to enjoy the twists and turns without prior knowledge. With Drishyam 3 being the final film in the series, the team wants to create a chilling and thrilling experience for all viewers, and they believe this simultaneous release strategy will accomplish that goal.The plot of Drishyam revolves around a man's efforts to protect his family from the consequences of a string of events that could potentially ruin their existence.
The Flash has had a long and slow sprint to its release. The latest DCEU film directed by Andy Muschietti was initially slated for 2018. Since then, the film's cursed journey has gone through production delays and a slew of controversies. Ezra Miller who is set to return as Barry Allen has been at the centre of several criminal charges and arrests. The headlines were bad enough to wonder if the film will be released at all. That was last year and now, The Flash is hitting screens in a matter of days.Five years is a long time so one can be forgiven for losing the plot. From the plot to the characters, here's everything you need to know about The Flash.The Flash pulls from the Flashpoint story that sees Barry Allen travel back in time to change the course of events that led to his mother's murder when he was a child. Chaos ensues when his time jump creates an alternate reality in which the Justice League doesn't exist. Here Bruce Wayne was killed, Martha Wayne was The Joker and Thomas Wayne became Batman. The film sees Barry make an attempt to save his mother from her mysterious killer. Like in the comics, the film takes on the multiverse. However, there's more than one surprise. For starters, the film features two Batmen - Ben Affleck's Batman and Michael Keaton's Batman. Barry finds himself trapped in a reality with a younger Barry and did we mention, General Zod is back? The superhero then seeks the help of a seemingly retired Batman to find an imprisoned Kryptonian and it's not who you think.The Flash sees Ezra Miller reprise their role as Barry Allen. Michael Keaton and Ben Affleck in the caped crusaders. Sasha Calle as Supergirl, Michael Shannon as Zod and Kiersey Clemons as Iris West, among others.Ezra Miller has been at the centre of several controversies. In 2022, Miller was arrested in Hawaii twice within the span of a few weeks. There was also a burglary case filed in Vermont. They were also reportedly accused of grooming and harassing a minor. The actor pleaded guilty for misdemeanour on January 13, 2023, and began a one-year probation.Director Andres Muschietti shared that Miller is dealing with mental health issues. He also revealed that he had no plans to recast the actor for The Flash sequels. More recently, Ezra Miller made an appearance at the premiere of The Flash in Los Angeles. They alluded to the controversies and thanked Warner Bros. execs and DC Studio heads James Gunn and Peter Safran for their "grace and discernment and care".The trailer of The Flash reveals another version of Barry Allen's character played by Ezra Miller. It also offers a closer look at Michael Keaton's Batman. Another trailer sees Barry break the universe and fight alongside Batman and Supergirl.The Flash will release on June 16, 2023 in theatres.
Deadpool 3 - May 3, 2024

Captain America: Brave New World - July 24, 2024

Thunderbolts - December 20, 2024

Blade - February 14, 2025

Fantastic Four - May 2, 2025

Avengers: The Kang Dynasty - May 1, 2026

Avengers: Secret Wars - May 7, 2027

Marvel is going deeper into the multiverse than ever and now the slate of upcoming Marvel Cinematic Universe movies has been updated. Phase 5 and 6 movies including Deadpool 3, Avengers: Secret Wars and Fantastic Four have new release dates.As per a new scheduling update, Captain America: Brave New World will release on July 24, 2024, instead of May 3, 2024. Thunderbolts which was set to release on July 26, 2024, will release on December 20, 2024.The next Avengers movie - Avengers: The Kang Dynasty has been delayed to May 1, 2026. Meanwhile, Deadpool 3 will release earlier than its initial release date on May 3, 2024.Check out the slate here:It looks like it's going to be a while before we get to see Phase 5 and Phase 6 unfold but that's not necessarily a bad thing. Releasing the movies in gaps will help avoid superhero movie fatigue for audiences. Besides, amidst the ongoing Writers Guild of America strike, it might be best for these films to take their time once the issues are resolved.
While some of the lawmakers who will be inaugurated today have been at the National Assembly since the restoration of democracy in the country 24 years ago, others have spent at least 12 years in the federal parliament.

They have been at the National Assembly making laws for the country for years. Some have been there since the restoration of democracy in the country 24 years ago. Others have been there for at least 12 years. And that is because, unlike the executive arm with a maximum of eight years tenure, the tenure of lawmakers in Nigeria is statutorily limitless.

The lawmakers are not necessarily the nation's best, but their constituents keep re-electing them as their representatives in Abuja, perhaps because of the confidence they have in them or the cognate experiences they have acquired over the years. They took the oath of office during the inauguration of the 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th, and 9th sessions of either the Senate or the House of Representatives. Once again, these lawmakers take the oath today to take their seats in the two hallowed chambers, having been returned in the February elections as members of the 10th session of the federal parliament.

Behold Nigeria's longest-serving federal lawmakers:

Ahmad Lawan (Yobe North): President of the 9th session of the Senate, the 64-year-old former lecturer at the University of Maiduguri, his alma mater, has been at the National Assembly since 1999. He was first elected into the House of Representatives to represent Bade/Jakusko Federal Constituency of Yobe State on the defunct ANPP platform. In 2007, he moved to the Senate to represent Yobe North. He was re-elected in 2011 on the ANPP ticket and in 2015, 2019 and 2023 on the APC ticket. At the National Assembly, he has served variously as the Chairman of the House of Representatives Committees on Public Accounts, Education, Agriculture and Senate Leader before becoming the Senate president in 2019. Last year, he ran for the APC presidential primary but lost to Bola Tinubu, who won the 25 February presidential election. Although he is returning to the upper chamber today, Mr Lawan will not be in its leadership position.

Nicholas Mutu (Bomadi/Patani Federal Constituency): Mr Mutu, like Mr Lawan, has been in the National Assembly since 1999. He was again re-elected in February for the seventh time to represent Bomadi/Patani Federal Constituency of Delta State in the House of Representatives. The 63 years old former chairman of Bomadi LGA, a member of the PDP, once served as the chairman of the House Committee on Niger Delta Affairs/NDDC.

Wole Oke (Obokun/Oriade): Mr Oke is returning to the House of Representatives for the fifth time. Mr Oke, 56, represents Obokun/Oriade Federal Constituency of Osun State. He was first elected to the lower chamber in 2003 on the platform of the PDP and got re-elected in 2007. However, he lost his reelection bid in 2011 but returned in 2015, 2019 and now 2023. Mr Oke has chaired the Committees on Defence and Public Accounts various times.

Alhassan Doguwa (Doguwa/Tudun Wada Federal Constituency): Today's inauguration will be his seventh at the National Assembly, specifically, the House. Mr Doguwa, 58, representing Doguwa/Tudun Wada Federal Constituency of Kano State, was first elected to the Third Republic House of Representatives in 1992 on an SDP ticket. After working as a political aide to former Kano governor Rabiu Kwankwaso and two former senate presidents, Mr Doguwa returned to the lower house in 2007 and has been there since then. He has chaired Committees on MDGs, served as chief whip and, most recently, the House leader. He recently shelved his ambition to be the speaker of the 10th House being inaugurated today.

Ali Ndume (Borno South): This 64-year-old former lecturer will be spending his fifth term at the National Assembly from today. Mr Ndume first entered the House of Representatives in 2003 and got re-elected in 2007 on the defunct ANPP platform to represent Chibok/Damboa/Gwoza. He was elected to the Senate in 2011 on the ticket of the PDP to represent Borno South and has since remained in the upper chamber though now a member of the APC. He served as the minority leader of the House, chairman of the Senate committee on MDGs, senate leader and chairman of the committee on the army. He lost the race for senate president to Ahmad Lawan in 2019. He joined the race recently to head the 10th Senate but pulled out to coordinate the Godswill Akpabio/Barau Jibrin campaign for the number one senate seat.

Enyinnaya Abaribe (Abia South): This former deputy governor of Abia State came to the National Assembly in 2007 to represent the southern senatorial district of the state on the ticket of the PDP. Mr Abaribe, 68, was elected five consecutive times in 2011, 2015, 2019 and 2023 for the 7th, 8th, 9th and 10th sessions. Although he won the previous election on the ticket of the PDP, the former lecturer at Ambrose Alli University, Ekpoma, is returning to the upper legislative chamber on APGA ticket. He had served in various committees of the Senate, including chairman of the media and publicity committee as well as the minority leader.

Adamu Aliero (Kebbi Central): This senator assumed legislative duties in the upper chamber in 2007 on the ticket of the PDP after his eight-year gubernatorial tenure in Kebbi State. He was governor of the state

Adamu Aliero (Kebbi Central): This senator assumed legislative duties in the upper chamber in 2007 on the ticket of the PDP after his eight-year gubernatorial tenure in Kebbi State. He was governor of the state between 1999 and 2007 on the defunct APP (later renamed ANPP) platform. He soon left the Senate in December 2007 following his appointment as the FCT Minister by President Umaru Yar'Adua. The 66 years old retired Customs officer joined the Congress for Progressives Change (CPC) founded by former President Muhammadu Buhari and moved back to the PDP in 2012 and then APC in 2014 and has been in the senate since then.

Danjuma Goje (Gombe Central): He is a former minister of state and governor of Gombe State on the PDP platform. He served as governor between 2003 and 2011 and retired to the Senate that year. Today's inauguration will make him the Gombe Central senator for the fifth consecutive time, having been re-elected in 2015, 2019 and 2023 on the APC platform. Mr Goje, who represents Gombe Central, was senate committee chairman on appropriation and aspired to be the upper house president in 2019 but stepped down for Mr Lawan after a meeting with the then president, Mr Buhari.

Idris Wase (Wase Federal Constituency): Mr Wase will take the oath of office as the lawmaker representing Wase Federal Constituency of Plateau State for the sixth time. He first entered the House in 2007 and has been re-elected in subsequent elections. During this period, Mr Wase, 59, served as chairman committee on federal character, deputy House leader, and most recently, deputy speaker. He is an APC member and is running for the speakership of the 10th House today.

Muktar Betara (Biu/Bayo/Shani/Kwaya Kusa Federal Constituency): He is returning to the House for the fifth time, having been first elected in 2007 to represent Biu/Bayo/Shani/Kwaya Kusa Federal Constituency of Borno State on the ticket of the defunct ANPP. Now a member of the APC, Mr Betara, 57, was chairman of the House Committee on Army and Defence. He was the chairman of the appropriation committee in the Ninth House. Mr Betara was a speakership aspirant until Sunday, when he stepped down from the race.Beni Lar (Langtang North/Langtang South): She entered the House of Representatives to represent Lantang North/Langtang South Federal Constituency of Plateau State in 2007 and will begin her fifth term today. She was re-elected in 2011, 2015, 2019 and 2023. Beni, 56, the eldest daughter of the first Governor of Plateau State, Solomon Lar, is a member of the PDP. She has chaired various committees, including those on women's affairs and human rights, at different times.

Victor Nwokolo (Ika Federal Constituency): The 59-year-old lawmaker has been in the House of Representatives since 2011. He represents Ika Federal Constituency of Delta State. Today he will begin his journey for his fourth term, which will terminate in 2027. He served as vice chairman of the House Committee on Aviation and chairman of the Committee on Petroleum Resources (Upstream).

Tajudeen Abbas (Zaria federal constituency): He is returning to the House for the fourth time, having been first elected in 2011. Mr Abbas, who will be 60 years in October, represents Zaria Federal Constituency of Kaduna State. He is a member of the APC. Mr Abbas, a former lecturer, is a leading contender for the speakership of the 10th session of the House.

James Faleke (Ikeja Federal Constituency): Although he is from Kogi State, Mr Faleke, who will be 64 in December, has been representing the Ikeja Federal Constituency of Lagos State in the House of Representatives since 2011. He is a member of the APC, and he is returning for the fourth term. He has chaired various committees of the House, the last one being the juicy and strategic finance committee.

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Ibrahim Gobir (Sokoto East): The 65-year-old senator is taking his seat today in the upper legislative chamber for the fourth time. He was first elected in 2011. He was appointed the senate leader in July 2022 after his predecessor, Yahaya Abdullahi, from Kebbi State, dumped the APC this year. He had chaired the senate committee on Trade and Investment.

Adeola Olamilekan (Ogun West): Popularly called Yayi, Mr Olamilekan is going into his fifth term as a member of the National Assembly. Though an indigene of Ogun State, the 53 years old was first elected to the House of Representatives in 2011 to represent Alimosho Federal Constituency of Lagos State on the platform of the defunct ACN. That was after he represented Alimosho State Constituency in the Lagos State House of Assembly between 2003 and 2007. However, he moved to the Senate in 2015 to represent Lagos West Senatorial District and was re-elected in 2019, all on the APC platform. In the 2023 election, Mr Olamilekan moved back to his home state and will begin to represent Ogun West today. In his legislative career, he has headed several committees, including the public accounts committee of the House and Senate Committee on Finance, among others.

Femi Gbajabiamila (Surulere Federal Constituency): Mr Gbajabiamila was a step away from the club of sixth termers in the House of Representatives before being appointed as chief of staff to President Bola Tinubu. Just a little over three months after he won again to represent Surulere 1 Federal Constituency, the lawmaker bagged the appointment. The 61-year-old Gbajabiamla first came to the House on the ticket of Alliance for Democracy (AD) in 2003 and got re-elected in 2007 on the AC platform and then ACN in 2011 and APC in 2015, 2019 and 2023. During his 20 years stint in the lower chamber, he served variously as minority leader, majority leader and speaker. He is reputed to be one of the most experienced and outstanding lawmakers in the country.
9 Years Of Kiara Advani: As Kiara Advani completed nine years in the Indian film industry on 13th June, a die-hard young fan girl of the actor celebrated the day by planting trees and feeding the poor with home-cooked meals prepared by her. She believes being a fan of Kiara Advani naturally means being kind and showing compassion to fellow humans. Touched by this gesture, an overwhelmed Kiara reached out to her fan, expressing her gratitude.

An 18-year-old fan of Kiara Advani marked the nine years of her favourite superstar in the most thoughtful and kind way as a token of love and respect towards the actor.

Overwhelmed by the emotional and thoughtful gift, Kiara responded to her fan saying, "This is soooo thoughtful and kind!!! I feel soo blessed to have you guys (heart emoji) I'm your fan now! Thank you for making this special day even more special with such a wonderful gesture".

As Kiara Advani completes 9 years in the Indian Film industry, she expressed immense gratitude towards her well-wishers by penning a handwritten note and posted it on her social media on Tuesday evening.

Over the span of nine years, Kiara Advani has established herself as a versatile actor with diverse and impactful performances, she has become a household name and entered the hearts of every indian with her beautiful performances. Kiara has delivered some of the most popular and loved characters of the recent time, I with roles like Preeti from Kabir Singh, Dimple from Shershaah and is currently creating huge buzz with Katha from her upcoming film Satyaprem Ki Katha. Today she has reached superstardom with an enormous fan base.
Josh Creator Meet: Josh, a rapidly emerging short video app developed in India, has swiftly established itself as the leading contender in the market. Its remarkable success can be attributed to its wide user base and immense popularity. Content creators and viewers, who form the majority of users, express their utmost satisfaction and joy with the app's comprehensive features and offerings.

Furthermore, Josh regularly organizes various meetups for creators, enabling them to collaborate and enhance their growth. In March this year, they organized their first Josh and SVF grand creator meet day in Kolkata.

Evening of March 3, 2023 turned out to be remarkable as it was the first Josh and SVF grand creator meet day where ober 250 most promising creators came together from different categories and got appreciated with Josh Creator awards.

The event was held on the 20th floor at Ozora, in the heart of Kolkata. It was indeed a star-studded night where the brightest stars of the Bengal film industry, as well as Josh creators, were present illuminating the night.

'Industry' himself Mr. Prasenjit Chatterjee's presence was an absolute delight for everyone. Chatterjee left a sweet message to all the JOSH creators and wished them a bright future.

Nusraat Faria Mazhaar was also one of the main attractions of the night. Umang Bedi, the co-founder of Dailyhunt and Josh was present in the evening and mentioned that it was the first off-ground Josh event that he stepped into. Mahendra Soni, co-founder of SVF, too was present and he declared JTS2.

Our beloved creators were awarded based on different categories, for example, Most Liked, Most Followed and Most Viewed. Kishore Paul, Megha, Subarna Das were awarded for Most Liked Creators on Josh App. Ananya S Roy, Abir Madhu, Gungun Sarkar and Payel were awarded for Most followed creators on Josh App. Cuty Ananya, Tithi Duta, Raja Saha and Trissha Chatterjee were awarded for most viewed creators on Josh App.

Here are their exciting profiles :

https://share.myjosh.in/profile/d55d9446-d2d0-4dec-8ae7-f90b164ffe4d

https://share.myjosh.in/profile/f0142a49-6f65-4259-b5cc-d86056317753

https://share.myjosh.in/profile/29b32632-4705-44d4-bc1f-423a64140fbd

https://share.myjosh.in/profile/f7fdb7fc-2e2c-43c8-83c7-8e7ace5c12e3

https://share.myjosh.in/profile/54a4e527-2b0d-469a-8d3b-bf0319930cf0

https://share.myjosh.in/profile/2b3f73e4-15cc-4661-977d-616f54502e06

https://share.myjosh.in/profile/2f88015f-fe9c-4771-b44f-e5f4f5ada8a0

https://share.myjosh.in/profile/e22f09a7-b071-4bc2-a5db-da92c53656d7

https://share.myjosh.in/profile/fc816fb2-69d5-4a0b-be5c-2ac2063c9fb3

https://share.myjosh.in/profile/12d53ec6-e36c-47cf-91df-7017b35bf435

https://share.myjosh.in/profile/d893dc6a-9282-44b0-9a7f-3fc62e0995f1

This is the age of Influencers, as we all know. It was a pleasure to see them blooming, all casting their own aura, their very own personalities that makes them unique from one another, coming meeting under the roof was indeed a night to watch.

We do look forward for more such evenings, more such award ceremonies where Josh gets more scope to recognize more talents. And..and the one's whom we could not reward that night are no less heroes. A stage bigger, more brighter awaits for them. Wishing all the Josh creators Stars stars and Moon from Josh Bangla Community.

Download Josh app and follow the Bangla Creators Community Update via

https://linktr.ee/rituparna.das
Vagmita Singh's growing presence as a digital creator in the social media world has turned heads and how. She is known for making videos on mental health, relationship advice and many more. Not only this, Vagmita is known for promoting her regional language- Marwadi. She is truly an incredible talent on social media and has created waves among audiences with her unique content.

Who Is Vagmita Singh?

Vagmita Singh is a popular social media influencer and digital creator. She was born and brought up in Jaipur. Vagmita had come to Mumbai to pursue her higher studies, but who would have thought that she would become such a popular star one day? Since childhood, Vagmita had been fond of speaking in front of the camera and when she was in school, she used to make videos. It was during lockdown when she channeled her inner creativity and thought of making a career in this field.

Vagmita Singh's Background

Vagmita's family belongs to a small village in Marwad, Jaipur. Her father is a prominent lawyer in Rajasthan high court. She has two older siblings who are also lawyers, which means she is the odd one in the family. The actress is often seen making videos in her Marwadi language.

Vagmita Singh's Education

Vagmita studied in an all-girls school- Maharani Gayatri Devi Girls School in Jaipur, which was started by the Rajmata of Jaipur. She further came to Mumbai and did graduation in English literature. Later on, she also joined a film school.

USPs in Vagmita Singh's Videos

She makes videos on mental health, relationships and promotes her regional language- Marwadi. Vagmita is known for making content which is very relatable.

Vagmita's love for writing

Vagmita was always in love with writing, she wanted to make a career in writing, that's why she landed in Mumbai to do a Bachelor's in English literature. She has expertise in screenwriting, dialogue writing and many more.

Vagmita recently took to her instagram to announce her Netflix debut with the show "Social Currency" which is releasing on the 22nd of June, only on Netflix.
'Malaikottai Vaaliban' Wraps Up Shooting!: The cast and crew of 'Malaikottai Vaaliban' celebrated the pack-up of their shoot with great enthusiasm.

In a viral video on social media, Mohanlal shared his thoughts about the film, promising a groundbreaking experience for Indian audiences. He expressed gratitude for being chosen for this unique project.

Director Jeethu Joseph Clarifies: No Simultaneous Hindi

"We are still discovering who Lijo is. Why should we know about him? He should know us. I believe this will be one of his finest movies. Despite challenging weather conditions, we triumphed over all obstacles. That's the essence of this movie. We have created something entirely unprecedented for Indian cinema. It will be an exceptional and distinct film. Thank you for considering me," Mohanlal expressed passionately.

On June 13, director Lijo Jose Pellissery joyfully wrapped up the filming of 'Malaikottai Vaaliban,' extending his gratitude to the dedicated crew and talented actors who contributed to its success. The final shoot took place in Chennai, marking the completion of 55 days of filming within a relatively short period.

"We are elated with the progress we've made in this comparatively brief time. May this film become a source of pride for everyone involved, and may the audience thoroughly enjoy it." Lijo Jose Pellissery shared his hopes for the movie.

The shooting locations for 'Malaikottai Vaaliban' spanned across Rajasthan, Chennai, and Pondicherry. The initial schedule took place in Rajasthan, lasting a remarkable 77 days with two phases of filming. The second schedule was held at Gokulam Studios in Chennai. Post-production work, spanning five months, will commence soon, and the film is set for a grand Christmas release in theatres.

'Malaikottai Vaaliban' is jointly produced by Shibu Baby John's John and Mary Creative Limited in association with Kochumon's Century Films, Max Lab Cinemas, and Amen Movie Monastery.

The screenplay is penned by P.S. Rafeeque. The unveiling of the film's first look and teaser on Mohanlal's birthday generated significant buzz, solidifying 'Malaikottai Vaaliban' as one of the most highly anticipated projects in Malayalam cinema this year.

Mohanlal's 'Double Role' Adds Intrigue

Exciting details about Mohanlal's character in the film have recently surfaced. Reports suggest that Mohanlal will be portraying a double role, as shared by trade analyst Sreedhar Pillai in a tweet.

Furthermore, Pillai mentioned that 'Malaikottai Vaaliban' is slated for a Christmas release. This revelation has sparked speculation among the audience, with many wondering if Mohanlal will portray the roles of father and son. However, no official confirmation has been provided regarding this matter.

Bigg Boss M5: Aniyan Midhun Sponsored By An Actress, Wushu Master Reveals Girlfriend's Death Story Is A Lie

'Malaikottai Vaaliban' holds the distinction of being Lijo Jose Pellissery's most expensive film to date. The music for the film is composed by Prashant Pillai, while Madhu Neelakandan takes charge of cinematography. Ronex Xavier is responsible for costume design, and director Tinu Pappachan, a protege of Lijo Jose Pellissery, serves as the Chief Associate Director.

Joining Mohanlal in this exciting venture is an impressive ensemble cast, including Hareesh Peradi, Manikandan R. Achari, Bengali actress Katha Nandi, Manoj Moses, Danish Seth, Sonali Kulkarni, and Rajeev Pillai. The names of other actors involved in the project have been kept under wraps, fueling speculation, while reports suggest that foreign stars were also part of this ambitious endeavour.
Suchithra Shares Her Experiences Working On Malaikottai Vaaliban: Former Malayalam Bigg Boss Season 4 contestant, actress Suchithra, known for her popularity in Asianet's serials, has now landed a significant role in the highly anticipated film 'Malaikottai Vaaliban,' directed by Lijo Jose Pellissery and starring the legendary Mohanlal.

In an exclusive interview with Behind Woods, Suchithra shared her experiences working on the film, expressing her happiness at collaborating with the stalwarts of Malayalam cinema.

Mohanlal's Exciting Revelation As Lijo Jose Pellissery's 'Malaikottai Vaaliban' Wraps Up Shooting!

She recounted a memorable moment when Mohanlal inquired about her Bigg Boss journey on the sets of 'Malaikottai Vaaliban.' "Do you now understand what Bigg Boss is?" Mohanlal playfully asked, to which she humorously replied, "I still don't understand." Their exchange resulted in laughter and camaraderie between the two talented actors.

Suchithra believes that her stint on Bigg Boss played a pivotal role in landing her this opportunity, though she remains unsure of the exact connection. She revealed that people close to Lijo Jose Pellissery had mentioned his interest in watching the reality show. This connection may have played a part in her casting for the film.

Mohanlal's Transformation On Set Wows Suchithra

Recounting her interactions with Mohanlal, Suchithra mentioned that the shooting conditions, including inclement weather, wrestling scenes, and dust storms, led to Mohanlal developing a chest infection. This forced a three-day break in the shoot. However, to everyone's surprise, when the shooting resumed, Mohanlal arrived on set wrapped in a blanket but transformed into a spirited and energetic character once the camera rolled. Suchithra marvelled at the sudden transformation, questioning whether this was the same person who had been ill just days before.

Director Jeethu Joseph Clarifies: No Simultaneous Hindi

While acknowledging that her screen time in the film will be relatively short, approximately ten to fifteen minutes, Suchithra emphasised the significance of her role and the overall impact of the movie. "Even someone who just comes and goes in the scene has some significance in this movie," she said, highlighting the importance of every character's contribution. She added that 'Malaikottai Vaaliban' is the film that everyone has been eagerly awaiting.

Fans can now anticipate seeing Suchithra share the screen with Mohanlal in this highly anticipated project, where her small but exciting role promises to leave a lasting impact.
Junooniyatt: Ankit Gupta's musical drama has been entertaining the audience with its drama-packed episodes. The daily soap co-starring Gautam Vig and Neha Rana has been churning out new twists and turns to keep everyone engrossed. Despite the buzz surrounding the show, it has not been able to garner huge ratings.

ANKIT GUPTA ON LOW TRPS OF JUNOONIYATT

When Junooniyatt was launched, TV buffs expected the show to perform well as it featured Ankit Gupta, who was basking in the success of Bigg Boss 16. The actor also admitted in an interview that he was hoping Junooniyatt would grab more eyeballs and even emerge as the number show on Colors channel.

"Expectations to bahut jyada high thi. Jab Junooniyatt start kiya to main bahut jyada confident tha kyunki main ek bahut hit show deke aaya tha aur uske baad Bigg Boss me logo ne itna pasand kiya tha. Fir jab Junooniyatt me main aur Gautam saath mein aaye, main confident tha ki ye to show toh bahut achi opening karega and iski achi rating jayegi. Lagta tha Colors ka number one show bhi ban jaye," Ankit told ABP News.

JUNOONIYATT TO REPLACE TERE ISHQ MEIN GHAYAL

If the recent buzz is to be believed, Colors TV has decided to change the time slot of Junooniyatt. Yes, you read that right! From Monday (June 19), there will be a big change in the timings of the show.

The musical drama will now telecast at 9pm in place of Karan Kundrra, Gashmeer Mahajani and Reem Shaikh starrer Tere Ishq Mein Ghayal. As the supernatural show moved to Jio Cinema, the head honcho at the channel decided to shift Junooniyatt to a new slot.

Neerja, which is expected to be the next big launch on Colors channel, will take the 8:30pm slot in the upcoming days.

SHOCKING TWIST IN JUNOONIYATT

All eyes were on Jahaan and Elahi's wedding as the makers have promoted their marriage track extensively. However, the couple will part ways and Elahi will end up marrying Jordan. In a shocking twist, Jahaan will shift base to a foreign country as he will be deeply hurt by the betrayal.

Guess what? Jahaan will return to India with a bang and showcase his new avatar in front of him. He will also question Elaahi and Jordan. Jordan will cause problems for Elaahi, making her life hell in Punjab.

Keep watching this space for more updates.
It's been months since Bigg Boss 16 has come to an end and the audience still can't get over the frenzy about the popular reality show. Interestingly, all the contestants of the show have managed to leave a mark on the audience.

Interestingly, among all the contestants, Priyanka Choudhary managed to carve a niche for herself with her strong game and was touted to be the probable winner of the show. However, the actress ended up becoming the second runner up while it was MC Stan lifted the winner's trophy.

Needless to say, it was a massive disappointment for the audience. However, Sumbul Touqeer Khan's father Touqeer Hassan Khan has revealed the reason why the Udaariyaan actress didn't deserve to win Bigg Boss 16.

During one of his interactions with ETimes TV post Sumbul's exit from the show, Khan stated, "Usne hamesha cheekha aur chilaya hai. Cheekna chilana is not content, neither is doosre logon ki cheezon mein taang adhana. You can win a reality show if you are your real self out there. In that regard, I think Stan and Shiv have fitted the bill the most."

Well, we wonder what Priyanka Choudhary and her fans have to say in this regard.

Meanwhile, Sumbul has been making headlines for her recent fallout with Fahmaan Khan. Fahmaan Khan had alleged that it was Sumbul's father who influenced her post her exit from Bigg Boss 16 and had objections to the Imlie actress collaborating with him for Tabish Pasha's song Beirada. He also asserted that following this incident turned their friendship sour.

Talking about Fahmaan had told Bollywood Bubble, "Maine kaha uncle agar aisa hai toh, jo aapka music video hai wo bhi nahi karunga mai. We'll part ways. He said okay". Needless to say, Fahmaan and Sumbul's fallout has left everyone heartbroken and fans are secretly praying for them to resolve their issues.
VANCOUVER, BC, June 13, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- BioVaxys Technology Corp. (CSE: BIOV) (FRA: 5LB) (OTCQB: BVAXF) ("BioVaxys" or "Company") is pleased to announce that it has sold TAET Software Co. to 10402588 BC Ltd ("Purchaser"), a private company formed under the laws of British Columbia, in exchange for 500,000 shares of the Purchaser, with further potential future milestone payments totaling a maximum of 1,000,000 shares of the Purchaser and a maximum of USD$4,000,000 in cash.

James Passin, BioVaxys CEO, stated, "We are pleased to monetize our investment in TAET Software Corp.; exiting this medical software business will allow BioVaxys to refocus on its core business objectives of distributing OTC women's healthcare products in the USA and advancing towards the launch of the planned Phase I trial for BVX-0918, our therapeutic ovarian cancer vaccine."

About BioVaxys Technology Corp.

BioVaxys Technology Corp. (www.biovaxys.com), a biopharmaceuticals company based in Vacouver, Canada, is the exclusive US licensee and distributor of a portfolio of OTC female reproductive health products currently marketed in the EU from Barcelona-based Procare Health Iberia, and is also entering clinical development for BVX-0918, a personalized immunotherapeutic vaccine using our proprietary HapTenix 'neoantigen' tumor cell construct platform for treating refractive late stage ovarian cancer. The Company's OTC female reproductive system products include Papilocare, a re-epithelializing vaginal gel for the preventative and supportive treatment of lesions caused by HPV, and Papilocare Immunocaps, a nutritional supplement that helps to normalize the vaginal microbiota and strengthen natural immune defensesBioVaxys is also exploring vaccines for SARS-CoV-2, SARS-CoV-1, and a pan-sarbecovirus vaccine based on its HapTenixplatform through academic collaborations.

Novel Therapeutics. For Life.

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD

Signed "James Passin"

James Passin, CEO

+1 646 452 7054

Cautionary Statements Regarding Forward Looking Information

This press release includes certain "forward-looking information" and "forward-looking statements" (collectively "forward-looking statements") within the meaning of applicable Canadian and United States securities legislation including the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, included herein, without limitation, statements relating the future operating or financial performance of the Company, 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 in this news release relate to, among other things, a potential listing of the Company on a US national stock exchange or completing a capital markets transaction. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate, and actual results and future events could differ materially from those expressed or implied in such forward-looking statements.

These forward-looking statements reflect the beliefs, opinions and projections on the date the statements are made and are based upon a number of assumptions and estimates. With regards to BioVaxys' business, there are a number of risks that could affect the development of its biotechnology products, including, without limitation, the need for additional capital to fund clinical trials, its lack of operating history, uncertainty about whether its products will complete the long, complex and expensive clinical trial and regulatory approval process for approval of new drugs necessary for marketing approval, uncertainty about whether its autologous cell vaccine immunotherapy can be developed to produce safe and effective products and, if so, whether its vaccine products will be commercially accepted and profitable, the expenses, delays and uncertainties and complications typically encountered by development stage biopharmaceutical businesses, financial and development obligations under license arrangements in order to protect its rights to its products and technologies, obtaining and protecting new intellectual property rights and avoiding infringement to third parties and their dependence on manufacturing by third parties.The Company does not assume any obligation to update the forward-looking statements of beliefs, opinions, projections, or other factors, should they change, except as required by law.

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NEW YORK, NY / ACCESSWIRE / June 13, 2023 / As sunlight and laughter filled in the space of Greenwich Village's Sojourner Gallery, a group of young artists joyfully showcased their art pieces to guests and shared their artistic journey with the audience. Sixteen art pieces reflected each artist's unique background, and self-reflections on their identity, inspiration, and love.





An image of a guest appreciating Painted Turtle (2022).





"In addition to art, another passion of mine is sociology," says Chenxi (Amy) Dong, tonight's winner of the COA Youth Artist Award. She later explains her piece, Painted Turtle (2022), saying, "When I was young, I often saw people selling painting turtles on the streets, and it still happens today. Painted turtles tend not to eat a lot due to the artificial dyeing inside of them. As a result, they often die very quickly." Amy's work takes the form of a book with a carefully cut-out section. Her intention is to eliminate monotony associated with the background of the texts by altering the body of the book.

Also announced, for the first time ever, was the recipient of The COA Annual Artist Award: Yiting Liu from the New York Academy of Art. She bravely states, while looking righteous at the crowd, "The first lesson I learned is to embrace stupidity. As an artist, you must believe in this. No one has the right to dictate what you should do or not do." Yiting's latest painting, Heaven (2023), does not fit the conventional image of paradise in the viewers' minds. Boldly, she intentionally avoids the symbolism and encapsulation of heaven by incorporating a significant portion of low-key tones in the center. Nevertheless, the artwork reflects viewers' inner world and communication with God.

Vantage Point is an exhibition showcasing the artistic abilities of students in America. It explores the 21st-century Chinese student's experience and highlights the ways young individuals navigate the two clashing worlds. The artworks feature from traditional Chinese ink to animation, sculpture, and more. The exhibit serves as a platform for many young artists. It offers visitors a valuable insight into the contemporary life of a global Chinese citizen. Through their artwork, these students express their own perspectives on globalization and how it impacts their lives today. Vantage Point presents an opportunity to explore fresh ideas where cultures continuously intersect in this ever-changing world.

The COA Foundation, a nonprofit organization, has established an art exhibition in Philadelphia with the goal to create a language-learning and cultural-exchange platform for Chinese people in the U.S. The foundation is supported by volunteers who reside in various East Coast cities, including New York, Boston, Philadelphia, and many more. The core members of the foundation originate from prestigious universities such as the University of Pennsylvania, Columbia University, Temple University, and Drexel University.

Contact Information:

Yue Li

DARISE media

daisyliyue@yahoo.com

917-385-1007

hanyang zhang

marketing specialist

hanyangzhang@worldjputnal.com

646779776439

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An image of a guest appreciating Painted Turtle (2022). The Vantage Point at Sojourner Gallery, Greenwich Village-June 8 to 10, 10 AM to 6 PM.

SOURCE: COA

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Cooperation with Telenor resolves the issue of local application of Farmpro's IoT solution

Farmpro opened its Singapore office as the basecamp for global advancement

Farmpro (Co-CEO Park Byeong-ok), an IoT-based stockbreeding solution startup, signed an MOU on cooperation in the field of IoT with Telenor Connexion (hereinafter Telenor), a world-leading mobile IoT company, in Singapore on June 12.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230613176214/en/

Richard Gyimesi, Telenor Connexion Head of Region Japan Korea, Park Byeong-ok Farmpro Co-CEO (Photo: Farmpro)

Telenor Connexion is a subsidiary of Telenor, a global telecommunications company based in northern Europe, and is in charge of Telenor's IoT business. This cutting-edge technology company operates more than 20 million IoT connections in around 200 countries across the globe.

By working with Telenor, Farmpro can resolve IoT device communication issues that are caused by different telecommunication environments among countries when it enters overseas markets.

Farmpro developed a solution that attaches an electronic ear tag on livestock ears to manage livestock health. It held an opening ceremony for its Singapore Corporation on June 12 and declared the full launch of entry into global markets, including such leading stockbreeding nations as the Argentine Republic, Australia, and New Zealand.

Co-CEO Park of Farmpro attended a panel discussion at an agricultural innovation forum of SGInnovate ahead of the MOU signing ceremony and said, "The Farmpro solution has significantly reduced the mortality rate of calves, through which it is contributing to reducing greenhouse gas emissions and preventing misuse of antibiotics."

Farmpro's advancement into Singapore was supported by 'Global Big IN,' a private-government cooperation governance program supervised by Incheon Metropolitan City.

The MOU signing ceremony was attended by officials from Incheon Metropolitan City, the Incheon Center for Creative Economy Innovation, which is an organization exclusively in charge of the 'Global Big IN' program, the organizing parties, which are The Innovators and Bigbang Angels, and the Korea Agriculture Technology Promotion Agency (KOAT).

Kang Shin-ho, Director of the KOAT Department of Venture and Start-up, said, "We plan to continually provide support so that Farmpro's electronic ear tag business becomes a great success in the global market, going beyond the Korean market."

Using ear tags, Farmpro takes real-time measurements of livestock temperatures and activity levels then collects and analyzes data. Analysis results are used for early detection of livestock illness and infectious disease and management of pregnancy and birth. Farmpro reduced the mortality rate of calves aged no more than six months to one-tenth of the previous figure by using ear tags and doubled the chances of conception of cows through an artificial insemination solution.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230613176214/en/

Contacts:

Farmpro Inc.

Kenny Ji, Director

kenny3j@farmpro.co.kr
"It is worthy to note that the speakership campaign witnessed in the past few months was democracy at play. But today, all of that has come to pass, and it is time to forge ahead and work together for our people for our common good," he said.

The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas, has called on his colleagues to forge ahead and work together for the common good of Nigerians.

The new speaker stated this in his inaugural speech on Tuesday after his election.

Mr Abbas, who represents Zaria Federal Constituency of Kaduna State on the APC ticket, was elected the speaker of the House on Tuesday after polling 353 votes to defeat the duo of former Deputy Speaker Idris Wase and Aminu Jaji, who polled three votes each to emerge as joint runner-up.

Some aspirants for the position had earlier stepped down for the Kaduna lawmaker

While assuring all the members of the House equal treatment, he said there is a need to move forward after the long campaign.

"It is worthy to note that the speakership campaign witnessed in the past few months was democracy at play. But today, all of that has come to pass, and it is time to forge ahead and work together for our people for our common good," he said.

Although the campaign for the speakership was long and tough, some of the aspirants stepped down for Mr Abbas, who earlier got the endorsement of President Bola Tinubu, the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) and the former Speaker, Femi Gbajabiamila.

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Mr Abbas said, as the speaker of the lower chamber, his "doors will be open" to everyone.

He also promised that the 10th House would surpass the achievements of the last House led by Mr Gbajabiamila.

"Under my watch, the 10th House shall sustain and even surpass the gains of the 9th House. That is my prayer. We shall carry out the TASK before us JOINTLY. We shall introduce reforms and innovations for the benefit of Nigerians. In a few weeks, we shall be reeling out the legislative agenda that will shape the 10th House of Representatives.

"We shall work closely and interdependently with the Executive and Judiciary to give Nigerians the good governance they deserve. We stand at a crucial juncture in our nation's history, where challenges abound, but so do opportunities. We will champion legislations that will uplift the lives of our fellow citizens, promote social justice, and drive sustainable development," the speaker said

In his speech after the election, Mr Gbajabiamila also said he expected the new speaker to work on the foundation the Ninth Assembly laid.

"I wish you well. It is not an easy feat. But from what I know, you'll do a good job.

"We are your members. On behalf of them, I hand over handover notes as the speaker of the 9th assembly. This will be a guide to you and I hope you continue from where I left off," Mr Gbajabiamila said.

The former speaker is expected to resign his membership of the House on Wednesday as he picks up his appointment as the new chief of staff to President Bola Tinubu.
Die KI-Revolution ist in vollem Gange und vor allem ein Bereich wird stark betroffen sein: Cyber-Security. Die Experten sind sich sicher: Mit steigender Entwicklung von KI-Technologien nehmen auch KI-gestutzte Cyber-Attacken zu. Wir zeigen hier, welche Aktien profitieren konnen.

Professor Richard Thompson, Professor Tamara Galloway, and Professor Penelope Lindeque demonstrated the existence of microplastics in the ocean, and have since charted their presence from the deep Ocean to the highest mountains. They revealed microplastics are ingested by zooplankton and other marine species and have made major advances in understanding the effects of microplastics on these marine organisms and ecological processes. They have influenced global legislation and action, calling on the international community to develop solutions that will help to address the growing problem of plastic pollution in the Ocean.

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.
With limited tickets up for grabs and each participant carefully reviewed before selection, WOW Summit Dubai will be an immersive experience of luxury, exclusivity, and innovation.

DUBAI, UAE, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Just a few months after the internet buzz around WOW Hong Kong, the next WOW Summit is set to take place in the global Web 3.0 capital, Dubai, on October 8-9 at Atlantis, The Royal.

The event promises to be an extraordinary gathering of distinguished industry leaders, government officials, funds and VCs, NFT artists, entrepreneurs, and MNCs. Following its unprecedented success in Lisbon and Hong Kong, the WOW Summit Dubai 2023 is gearing up to be the most exclusive event of the year. This time attendees have to request their invite to the event. With limited tickets up for grabs and each participant carefully reviewed before selection, it will be an immersive experience of luxury, exclusivity, and innovation. Potential speakers, partners, and sponsors are welcome to apply via the form on the website.

WOW Summit Dubai 2023 will also feature an incredible art and NFT area where attendees can meet artists and creators, explore new NFT art, and negotiate deals.

Ivan V. Ivanov, Global CEO of WOW Summit, added, "We are thrilled to announce our next exclusive event in Dubai after the incredibly successful WOW Hong Kong and are proud to host WOW Dubai 2023 at the most exclusive and luxurious venue - Atlantis the Royal, with only high-level attendees, partners, and speakers. Dubai is one of the hottest spots on the virtual assets and Web3 global map, and we are excited to bring the WOW Summit back to Dubai."

Dubai is the perfect destination to explore cutting-edge trends and innovations in Web3, with over 1000 company headquarters and an expanding metaverse space. WOW Summit Dubai 2023 offers attendees an unparalleled experience of VIP networking, business, and fun. Government officials can also explore the latest tech solutions for CBDC, Digital ID, tracking and tracing, AML and RegTech, and healthcare blockchain-based projects.

For investors and funds, WOW Summit Dubai 2023 provides a unique opportunity to meet startups with traction on a Startup Pitch Competition stage. Startups are welcome to apply until July 31st with a chance to get funded or win prizes worth thousands of dollars.

Press contact:

media@wowsummit.net

Website:

https://wowsummit.net/

Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2100014/WOW_Summit_Dubai.jpg

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The Ultimate Guide for Evaluating your ATS Vendor

SINGAPORE, June 13, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The world we live in is constantly changing. With each new generation coming into the workforce, candidate expectations are evolving. Delivering an exceptional candidate experience is critical for organizations to attract and convert the very best candidates to employees. However, delivering a premium candidate experience is really hard to do. It requires several stakeholders within the organization to seamlessly interact, evaluate and paint a consistent picture. Top talent demands top experience. Prioritizing an ATS that delivers a premium candidate experience is imperative for transformative hiring outcomes.

hrtech, the Singapore-headquartered HR Technology Advisory & Consulting firm, collaborated with RippleHire to launch 'The Ultimate Guide for Evaluating your ATS Vendor'. This HR guide addresses the challenges faced by the Talent Acquisition teams and helps them identify the purpose and process behind buying the best-fit ATS. RippleHire is a cloud-based hiring platform that enables TA teams to identify and acquire quality talent effortlessly. It has served organizations from various industries - Mphasis, Axis Bank, Tata Steel, LTIMindtree, HDFC Life, Aditya Birla Group, Quest Global, and more.

Delivering an exceptional candidate experience is critical for organizations to attract top talent. This guide shares success stories and methods to identify the right Applicant Tracking System (ATS) to deliver a premium candidate experience; Driving transformative hiring outcomes. This guide underlines the fact that the user experience of your ATS will determine your adoption and hiring success thereby bringing good talent to your doorstep, driving business outcomes.

It covers all the fundamentals of an ATS, including its purpose, use, benefits and the various hurdles that await Talent Acquisition teams in their recruitment journey. It also provides in-depth insights into the working mechanism of an ATS along with the recruitment tech stack. This HR Guide speaks the language of numbers and facts. Every section is supported by thorough research and statistics to verify the authenticity of the guide content.

This HR Guide will also serve as a literal guide for TA teams in their quest to identify and buy the right-fit ATS for their organization. It not only explains the purpose behind buying an ATS but also lists the features that are critical to seamless recruitment workflow management and enhance the candidate experience. What makes this HR Guide a must-have is the exhaustive list of questions that you must ask the ATS vendor to verify the authenticity and the product quality before making the purchase.

"Recruiters are superheroes. They help you land your first job and progress through your career. At the pace at which the world of talent is evolving, recruiters need superpowers (smart solutions) to efficiently deliver value to their organisations. At RippleHire, we build products that equip them with the armor they need to do their best work. Our cloud-based hiring solutions keep up with the constantly evolving candidate expectations and market trends. A smart ATS is like a powerful weapon in the recruiter's arsenal. If used correctly, it takes away the transactional elements of their work, and empowers them to focus on strategically delivering the required talent outcomes.

This guide, put together in partnership with the hrtech team helps TA leaders to understand the importance of investing in an ATS to drive TA transformation, and to take their talent acquisition process to the next level." Keerthi Kariappa, Chief Customer Officer, RippleHire spoke about the potential of this HR Guide.

"There are no second thoughts about the value a smart ATS can provide to organizations in their efforts to optimize and streamline the hiring process. ATS tech is truly an essential aspect of every TA team. Moreover, with the world shifting towards remote and hybrid work models, ATS becomes the first key touchpoint to a great candidate experience. This HR Guide captures the purpose of an ATS and highlights its role in enhancing CX and driving better business outcomes." Sriram Iyer, Founder & CEO, hrtech shares his two cents on why organizations need an ATS to grow faster.

About RippleHire

RippleHire exists to make recruiting effortless, human and delightful. Since 2012, we have served over 800k+ users across 35 countries with our gamified referral and talent acquisition cloud platform.

Our intelligent end-to-end ATS helps you to efficiently hire the right talent, enabling you to deliver best in class experience to both - recruiters as well as candidates. It is deep in thought, simple to use and powerful to govern. Our customers build a powerful hiring engine on our enterprise platform. An engine that helps you deliver top line growth. We have helped our customers achieve 4.7/5 candidate experience and a 4.5/5 recruiter experience.

RippleHire Referrals is a market leader in referral technology. Known as the category creator, Ripplehire Referrals helps companies transform their referral program from a reactive channel to a proactive sourcing channel, driving improved time to hire and quality of hire.

About hrtech

We are a Singapore-headquartered HR Tech Advisory & Consulting firm, enabling Workplace & Workforce Transformations to deliver strong Business & HR outcomes. Our singular vision is to create a tech-driven and data-centric HR ecosystem for driving successful Workplace & Talent Transformations that will enable organisations to grow and HR teams to become strategic business partners. We help Indian enterprises in identifying the right-fit HR Tech solutions for solving their business challenges, leveraging our partnership with best-in-class HR Tech product providers.

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Evolva Holding SA / Key word(s): Strategic Company Decision

Evolva informs about renegotiation of financing arrangement, initiates review of strategic alternatives and revokes guidance



14-Jun-2023 / 07:00 CET/CEST

Release of an ad hoc announcement pursuant to Art. 53 LR

The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.



PRESS RELEASE | AD HOC ANNOUNCEMENT PURSUANT TO ART. 53 LR

Evolva informs about renegotiation of financing arrangement, initiates review of strategic alternatives and revokes guidance Reinach, 14 June 2023 - Evolva (SIX: EVE), a pioneer in the field of natural molecules and industrial biotech, is in discussions with its financing partner Nice & Green after disagreements regarding its outstanding financing lines. Negotiations to clarify the different interpretations and to find a solution that will secure the financing of Evolva at least until the end of this year are ongoing. In light of these events, the Board of Directors of Evolva is initiating a comprehensive review of strategic alternatives to accelerate discussions with strategic partners or to facilitate other strategic transactions. As this will require the full attention of the leadership team, the guidance for 2023 is revoked. Based on the existing financing agreement, Evolva currently has open financing lines with Nice & Green of CHF 12 million. The financing partner has recently informed the company about a different interpretation of the terms applicable to these lines. Evolva has received a Letter of Intent (LOI) from Nice & Green to solve the situation and the parties are moving towards reaching an agreement that is in the best interest of Evolva and all of its stakeholders. The objective is to secure the financing of Evolva at least until the end of 2023. There is no assurance that the parties will reach an agreement. Evolva will inform about the result of the negotiation at the appropriate time. In view of these events, the Board of Directors has decided to initiate a comprehensive review of strategic alternatives, to accelerate discussions with strategic partners or to facilitate other strategic transactions, including a potential sale of the company. Houlihan Lokey has been retained by Evolva as financial advisor to support the process. The Board of Directors of Evolva acknowledges and highlights the significant positive developments under the new leadership team led by Christian Wichert. Since he became CEO in early February 2022, the company achieved notable milestones and successes along the entire value chain. Most notably, the company increased product-related sales by +62% in 2022, while the associated gross contribution margin grew from negative -59% in 2021 to positive +16% in 2022. More recently, Evolva signed an important multi-year contract with a leading CMO partner which will significantly improve Evolva's competitive position across multiple products from 2024 onwards and help to boost Vanillin sales. Several new products have been launched recently, are in market launch preparation, or are part of Evolva's attractive innovation pipeline. Based on these positive business developments, Evolva is confident regarding its mid-term prospects. The current financing situation, however, poses a significant challenge to the company and requires the full attention of the Board of Directors and management. Therefore, the immediate focus will shift to the review of strategic alternatives. Consequently, the guidance for 2023 is revoked. Evolva will provide an outlook as well as a strategic update together with the half-year results on 24 August 2023.

Important dates

24 August 2023 Half-year 2023 results Contact

Doris Rudischhauser

Head of Investor Relations and Corporate Communications

+41 79 410 81 88

dorisr@evolva.com About Evolva

Evolva is a Swiss biotech company focused on the research, development and commercialization of ingredients based on nature. We have leading businesses in Flavors and Fragrances, Health Ingredients and Health Protection. Evolva's employees, half of which are women, are dedicated to make the best products that can contribute to health, wellness and sustainability. Find out more at evolva.com and connect with us on LinkedIn . Disclaimer

This announcement is not an offer of securities into the United States. The securities referred to herein have not been and will not be registered under the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "Securities Act"), and may not be offered, pledged, sold, delivered or otherwise transferred, directly or indirectly, in the United States, except pursuant to an exemption from, or transaction not subject to, the registration requirements of the Securities Act. No public offering of securities is being made in the United States. Further, the securities referred to herein have not been and will not be registered under the applicable securities laws of Canada, Australia or Japan or under the applicable securities laws of any other jurisdiction where to do so might constitute a violation of such laws.

This press release contains specific forward-looking statements, e.g. statements including terms like believe, assume, expect or similar expressions. Such forward-looking statements are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may result in a substantial divergence between the actual results, financial situation, development or performance of the company and those explicitly or implicitly presumed in these statements. Against the background of these uncertainties readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. The company assumes no responsibility to update forward-looking statements or to adapt them to future events or developments.

Additional features:





File: PRESS RELEASE | AD HOC ANNOUNCEMENT PURSUANT TO ART. 53 LR Evolva informs about renegotiation of financing arrangement, initiates review of strategic alternatives and revokes guidance Reinach, 14 June 2023 - Evolva (SIX: EVE), a pioneer in the fi

End of Inside Information
Regulatory News:

Maurel Prom (Paris:MAU):

Etablissements Maurel Prom S.A. ("M&P") informs the market that it is in advanced discussions with the shareholder of Assala Energy Holdings Ltd ("Assala") with respect to the acquisition of all the shares of Assala (the "Proposed Acquisition"). Assala is an onshore oil upstream and midstream company in Gabon with working interest production of approximately 45,000 bopd in 2022.

There can be no assurance that agreement between the parties will be reached on final terms and that the Proposed Acquisition will complete.

M&P will update shareholders as to progress made in relation to the Proposed Acquisition in due course.

For more information, please visit www.maureletprom.fr/en/

This document may contain forecasts regarding the financial position, results, business and industrial strategy of Maurel Prom. By nature, forecasts contain risks and uncertainties to the extent that they are based on events or circumstances that may or may not happen in the future. These forecasts are based on assumptions we believe to be reasonable, but which may prove to be incorrect and which depend on a number of risk factors, such as fluctuations in crude oil prices, changes in exchange rates, uncertainties related to the valuation of our oil reserves, actual rates of oil production and the related costs, operational problems, political stability, legislative or regulatory reforms, or even wars, terrorism and sabotage.

Maurel Prom is listed for trading on Euronext Paris

CAC All-Tradable CAC Small CAC Mid Small Eligible PEA-PME and SRD

Isin FR0000051070/Bloomberg MAU.FP/Reuters MAUP.PA

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230613428860/en/

Contacts:

Maurel Prom

Press, shareholder and investor relations

Tel: +33 (0)1 53 83 16 45

ir@maureletprom.fr



NewCap

Financial communications and investor relations/Media relations

Louis-Victor Delouvrier/Nicolas Merigeau

Tel: +33 (0)1 44 71 98 53/+33 (0)1 44 71 94 98

maureletprom@newcap.eu
Atos WelcomesLeading International Proxy Advisory Firm ISS' Recommendation to Shareholders to Vote AGAINST All Four Additional Draft Resolutions Proposed by Three Activist Shareholders

ISS recommends shareholders vote FOR all resolutions initially proposed by Atos' Board of Directors (Resolutions 1 to 24)





Atos' Board of Directors encourages shareholders to follow ISS recommendation and vote AGAINST all additional draft resolutions proposed by three activist shareholders. In particular, ISS recommends shareholders vote AGAINST:



the removal of Mr. Bertrand Meunier, Ms. Aminata Niane and Mr. Vernon Sankey from their term of office as directors (Resolutions "A", "B", "C")



the appointment of Mr. Leo Apotheker as director (Resolution "D")

all additional draft resolutions proposed by three activist shareholders.

Paris, June 14, 2023 - Atos (the "Company"), a global leader in digital transformation, high-performance computing and information technology infrastructure, today announced that leading international proxy advisory firm Institutional Shareholder Services Inc. ("ISS") has recommended shareholders vote FOR all resolutions proposed by Atos' Board of Directors (Resolutions 1 to 24). In addition, ISS has recommended shareholders vote AGAINST all four additional draft resolutions (Resolutions "A", "B", "C", "D") proposed by three activist shareholders detaining each less than 1%1 of the Company's shares.

On June 2, 2023, these three activist shareholders had requested the addition of five new draft resolutions and a non-voting discussion item on the agenda of the upcoming Combined Annual Ordinary and Extraordinary Shareholders' Meeting ("2023 AGM"), scheduled for June 28, 2023:

The removal of Mr. Bertrand Meunier, Ms. Aminata Niane and Mr. Vernon Sankey from their term of office as directors (added to the 2023 AGM's agenda as Resolutions "A", "B", "C");

The appointment of Mr. Leo Apotheker as director (added to the 2023 AGM's agenda as Resolution "D"); and

The reinstatement of the role of lead independent director assigned to an independent director (which the Board of Directors decided not to add to the agenda as it is without object and not conform with applicable laws 2 ).

). The non-voting discussion item relates to the resignation of Mr. Bertrand Meunier, Ms. Aminata Niane and Mr. Vernon Sankey from their office as directors.

After examining and adding the applicable resolutions to the agenda, the Board of Directors, including the Directors representing employees, unanimously decided to recommend shareholders vote AGAINST the added resolutions.

In its report, published June 13, 2023, supporting Atos' Board of Directors' recommendation, ISS notes the following:3

" ...the dissident has not objected to the proposed strategic reorganization and has not presented any proposal on improving operation performancethe dissident has not presented a sufficiently compelling case that change is warranted at this time."





"there is no clear evidence that the board, which has been substantially refreshed in recent years, does not function well. Finally, we note that the timing of the dissident's campaign and the late nomination of its candidate also raise questions."





Commenting on the ISS recommendation, Bertrand Meunier, Chairman of Atos' Board of Directors stated: "We appreciate ISS' support and recommendation for shareholders to vote AGAINST all additional dissident draft resolutions at Atos' 2023 AGM. The recommendation from ISS recognizes our continuously improving governance structure as well as our ongoing transformation plan, executed by a well-qualified management team and diverse Board of Directors. As we continue to deliver better-than-expected results, it is important that we maintain our solid momentum in order to fully unlock the value within our activities for the benefit of all stakeholders."

Atos' Board of Directors encourages shareholders vote FOR all of their proposed resolutions to support the ongoing proven transformation (Resolutions 1 to 24) and to follow ISS' recommendation and vote AGAINSTResolutions A, B, C and D proposed by three activist shareholders who wish to destabilize the Company.

Shareholders of record on the second business day preceding the 2023 AGM, i.e. June 26, 2023, at 00:00 a.m., Paris time, are entitled to vote at the 2023 AGM.

D.F. King Ltd. is acting as proxy solicitor for the Company at the 2023 AGM. Questions regarding the voting process can be directed to: david.chaselopes@dfkingltd.co.uk// +33 6 72 54 69 79.

***

About Atos

Atos is a global leader in digital transformation with 110,000 employees and annual revenue of c.  11 billion. European number one in cybersecurity, cloud and high-performance computing, the Group provides tailored end-to-end solutions for all industries in 69 countries. A pioneer in decarbonization services and products, Atos is committed to a secure and decarbonized digital for its clients. Atos is a SE (Societas Europaea) and listed on Euronext Paris.

The purpose of Atos is to help design the future of the information space. Its expertise and services support the development of knowledge, education and research in a multicultural approach and contribute to the development of scientific and technological excellence. Across the world, the Group enables its customers and employees, and members of societies at large to live, work and develop sustainably, in a safe and secure information space.

Contacts

Investor Relations: Thomas Guillois +33 6 21 34 36 62

thomas.guillois@atos.net

Media: Anette Rey +33 6 69 79 84 88

anette.rey@atos.net

1 At the date of the request, Sycomore Asset Management SA, holder of 299,303 Atos shares; in French: https://atos.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/atos-convocation-brochure-addendum-2023.pdf).

3 Permission to quote ISS was neither sought nor obtained.

Attachment
TwentyFour Income Fund - TwentyFour Update

PR Newswire

LONDON, United Kingdom, June 14

13 June 2023

TwentyFour Income Fund Limited

(a non-cellular company limited by shares incorporated in the Island of Guernsey under the Companies (Guernsey) Law 2008, as amended, with registered number 56128 and registered as a Registered Closed-ended Collective Investment Scheme with the Guernsey Financial Services Commission. LEI: 549300CCEV00IH2SU369)

Re: TwentyFour Update

TwentyFour Update

The Portfolio Manager of the Company, TwentyFour Asset Management ("TwentyFour" or "the firm"), can announce that Rob Ford and Gary Kirk will be retiring from the partnership in September, and transitioning to advisory roles at the firm.

Having helped co-found the business in 2008, they have been in discussion with the other partners for some time about stepping back from their day-to-day roles.

During his time at the firm, Rob has co-managed a number of TwentyFour's ABS product lines, most recently UK Mortgages Ltd which was launched in 2016 and subsequently merged into the TwentyFour Income Fund last year, and is now managed by the wider 10 person ABS team led by Douglas Charleston and Aza Teeuwen.

Gary has been co-managing the Multi Sector Bond investment team, including the TwentyFour Select Monthly Income Fund, since it was launched in 2009, and it has subsequently grown to 5 partners (including Gary) and 10 further investment professionals.

Rob and Gary will step off TwentyFour's Investment Committee, which sets the top-down macro risk appetite for the firm, but the remaining 10 members have an average industry experience of 20 years and tenure at the firm of 12 years.

Ben Hayward, CEO of TwentyFour, said "I would personally like to thank Rob and Gary for their contribution to the growth and success of the firm. They have both embodied the character of TwentyFour from the start, bringing market expertise, seeking to deliver the best outcomes for our strategies, and keen to impart their knowledge to our growing investment teams as well as clear communication to our investors."

Bronwyn Curtis, Chair of the TwentyFour Income Fund, said "the Board would like to thank Rob for his contribution to TFIF, in particular his role in the merger with UK Mortgages Ltd last year".

For further information, please contact:

Numis Securities Limited:

Nathan Brown +44 (0)20 7260 1000

Hugh Jonathan

TwentyFour Income Fund Limited:

John Magrath +44 (0)20 7015 8900

Alistair Wilson
Die KI-Revolution ist in vollem Gange und vor allem ein Bereich wird stark betroffen sein: Cyber-Security. Die Experten sind sich sicher: Mit steigender Entwicklung von KI-Technologien nehmen auch KI-gestutzte Cyber-Attacken zu. Wir zeigen hier, welche Aktien profitieren konnen.

The German police have detained an executive from a Chinese solar company, the day before the start of the Intersolar Europe trade show this week in Munich, according to Chinese media reports."It has been confirmed that the person involved is only assisting in the investigation and has now returned to the hotel," the China Photovoltaic Industry Association (CPIA) said on the Chinese-language WeChat social media platform on Wednesday morning. "This time, only one person is confirmed in assisting in the investigation, not involving multiple Chinese PV companies rumored online, and there were no ...

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.
OC Oerlikon / Key word(s): Agreement

Airbus and Oerlikon sign 3.8 million contract for the industrial additive manufacturing of satellite components



14.06.2023 / 09:00 CET/CEST





June 14, 2023 - Paris and Munich - Oerlikon AM and Airbus have successfully industrialized the additive manufacturing (AM) process for complex serial production of antenna clusters. These will be used in a series of communication satellites that will be orbiting earth soon. This marks an important milestone in the ten-year collaboration between both companies in an area requiring absolute accuracy and has resulted in a 3.8 million contract to additively manufacture these satellite components.

Oerlikon AM and Airbus have been working together in the field of 3D printed metal parts for space for more than ten years, developing components, several of which are already in orbit. The aluminum antenna clusters measure approximately 400x400x400 mm and are manufactured using laser powder bed fusion technology. These antennas are part of next-generation communication satellites that will transmit and receive communication and/or data signals in K-band frequency.

Advanced technologies like additive manufacturing are key in space applications to deliver benefits such as weight reduction. Moreover, satellites must meet extremely challenging mass, reliability and sustainability requirements. Thanks to AM, the production lead time for an antenna cluster could be reduced from six months to a few weeks compared to conventional manufacturing.

"To create a final product of excellent quality, technical cooperation and understanding each other's needs and requirements is fundamental for a well-coordinated design and manufacturing process - not only in rapid prototyping, but even more so in serial production," says Michael Kilian, R&D Manager for Additive Manufacturing of RF Space Components, Airbus.

"The key success factor is the specific AM machine setup, which allows the family of geometries to be reproduced with the required accuracy and the process to be indefinitely repeated. Thus, we met the high accuracy and quality requirements of Airbus, and consequently the specified European Space Agency (ESA) standards for satellites," says Hendrik Alfter, Managing Director, Oerlikon AM. "We are pleased that the cooperation has resulted in a 3.8 million multi-year contract for the supply of antenna clusters."

In addition to aluminum 3D printing, the two parties have jointly fine-tuned the post processing as a key part of the process development. As an all-round service provider, Oerlikon AM offers Airbus printing, post processing and surface finish optimization for the best possible RF (radio frequency) performance, precision CNC (computer numerical control) milling, quality assurance, ultrasonic cleaning, assembly, and wire integration, as well as customized logistics. Oerlikon AM is a registered and qualified supplier to Airbus and passes audits annually.

Visit Oerlikon at the Paris Air Show, June 19-25, Booth E157, Hall 2B! Meet the antenna developers and come by to see the antenna cluster. For interviews or more information, please contact us.

About Oerlikon Surface Solutions Division

Oerlikon is a leading global provider of surface and additive manufacturing solutions and services. The division offers an extensive portfolio of market-leading thin-film, thermal spray and additive manufacturing technologies, equipment, components and materials. Emission reduction in transportation, maximized longevity and performance of tools and components, increased efficiency and intelligent materials are hallmarks of its leadership. Pioneering technology for decades, the division serves customers with standardized and customized solutions across a worldwide network of more than 170 sites in 37 countries.

With its technology brands - Oerlikon Balzers, Oerlikon Metco and Oerlikon AM - the Oerlikon Surface Solutions division focuses on technologies and services that improve and maximize performance, function, design, reliability and sustainability, which are innovative, game-changing advantages for customers in the automotive, aviation, tooling and general industries and in the luxury, medical, semiconductors, power generation and oil & gas markets.

The division is part of the publicly listed Oerlikon Group (SIX: OERL), headquartered in Switzerland, which has 13,000 employees and generated CHF 2.9 billion in revenue in 2022.

For more information see: www.oerlikon.com/surface-solutions

For further information, please contact:

Sara Vermeulen Anastasi

Head of Group Communications

Tel.: +41 58 360 98 52

sara.vermeulen@oerlikon.com

www.oerlikon.com Anja Goller

Head of Marketing & Communications, AM

Tel: +49 89 203 015 126

anja.goller@oerlikon.com

www.oerlikon.com

End of Media Release


Die KI-Revolution ist in vollem Gange und vor allem ein Bereich wird stark betroffen sein: Cyber-Security. Die Experten sind sich sicher: Mit steigender Entwicklung von KI-Technologien nehmen auch KI-gestutzte Cyber-Attacken zu. Wir zeigen hier, welche Aktien profitieren konnen.

Q-Sun Solar says it plans to invest CNY 6.2 billion ($865.6 million) to build 10 GW of solar cell capacity and 12 GW of PV panel capacity. Q-Sun Solar, an Anhui-based Chinese solar company, has signed an investment agreement with the municipal government of Xiantao City, Hubei province, to deploy an additional 10 GW of solar cell capacity and 12 GW of panel capacity. The company will invest approximately CNY 6 billion in the expansion plan. The National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) has announced that China has reached a milestone in its energy installation capacity, with non-fossil ...

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.
Year to date, the index has returned 13.5 per cent.

Nigerian stocks soared to their pinnacle since 9 June 2008 on Tuesday as the benchmark index enlarged by 4 per cent in response to the news of the arrest over the weekend of Godwin Emefiele, the central bank governor.

The new development strengthened optimism that the much-needed liquidity in the market may soon return.

Transaction volume more than doubled compared to the previous session following a much-improved risk appetite that greeted the suspension.

Mr Emefiele's arrest impacted reactions in the market as his raft of unorthodox policies has kept many investors at bay in recent years.

Foreign participation in the Nigerian equity market had dwindled from N104 billion about the time former President Muhammadu Buhari took over to just N8.5 billion in April, according to the Nigerian Exchange data.

The brisk trade witnessed in the market on Tuesday echoes the general optimism visible across the markets after Mr Emefiele's arrest, with Nigeria's dollar bonds jumping to their peak level on Monday this year.

"We expect the prevailing positive sentiments to stir up further buy-interests in anticipation of the H1-2023 earning season. On the other hand, profit-taking activities will weigh on the bourse's performance, as investors seek to book their gains off profitable counters," said analysts at United Capital in their outlook note for this week seen by PREMIUM TIMES.

"For equity-vested fund managers and investors, we recommend bargain-hunting exercises across fundamentally sound stocks with improved or relatively cheap valuations," they added.

Market breadth, an indicator of investor sentiment towards trade, was positive as 61 gainers were reported compared to 14 decliners.

Close Sign up for free AllAfrica Newsletters Get the latest in African news delivered straight to your inbox Top Headlines Nigeria Business Governance By submitting above, you agree to our privacy policy. Success! Almost finished... We need to confirm your email address. To complete the process, please follow the instructions in the email we just sent you. Error! Error! There was a problem processing your submission. Please try again later.

The all-share index grew by 2,232.6 basis points to 58,163.6, while market capitalisation climbed to N31.7 trillion. Year to date, the index has returned 13.5 per cent.

Top Five Gainers

NASCON appreciated by 10 per cent to close at N17.05. Access Holdings enlarged by 10 per cent to end trade at N14.30. GTCO rose to N30.80, notching up 10 per cent in the process. Lasaco went up by 10 per cent to N1.98. Zenith Bank completed the top 5, climbing by 10 per cent to N30.80.

Top Five Losers

John Holt led the losers, declining by 10 per cent to close at N1.26. Ellah Lakes shed 10 per cent to end trade at N3.60. The Initiates fell to N0.47, losing 9.62 per cent. Caverton slid to N1.24, recording a 4.62 per cent depreciation. Veritas Kapital closed at N0.22, going down by 4.35 per cent.

Top Five Trades

Altogether, 1.2 billion shares, estimated at N19.2 billion, were traded in 10,369 deals.

UBA was the most active stock, with 214.9 million shares worth N2.3 billion traded in 608 deals. GTCO's shares of 208.1 million units, priced at N6.2 billion, exchanged hands in 613 transactions. Zenith Bank had 85.7 million shares valued at N309.2 million, traded in 743 deals. Japaul traded 72.6 million shares, estimated at N37.4 million in 216 transactions. Access Holdings traded 72.1 million shares valued at N1 billion in 658 deals.
MUNICH, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- StarCharge, is excited to announce its participation from June 14 to 16, in The smarter E Europe 2023 at Hall C3.160, launching a comprehensive range of smart energy solutions together with latest all-in-one EV charging solutions.

"At StarCharge, we are passionate about driving the transition to a sustainable and electric future," said Echo, Chairlady at StarCharge. "We believe that The Smarter E Europe 2023 provides the perfect opportunity for us to demonstrate our commitment to innovation and showcase our industry-leading energy systems. We are excited to unveil the EV charger Mercury 450 and our complete lineup of residential and commercial energy systems, which will undoubtedly revolutionize the way we charge and power an electric world."

As the world transitions towards a sustainable future, the demand for efficient and reliable EV charging infrastructure and energy storage system continues to grow. At The Smarter E Europe 2023, StarCharge will proudly unveil its state-of-the-art products, reinforcing its commitment to evolve in a greener future ahead.

One of the highlights of the event will be the launch of StarCharge's newest all-in-one charging station, the Mercury 450. This cutting-edge charging station sets a new benchmark in EV charging technology, offering enhanced features and unparalleled convenience. With its sleek design and advanced capabilities, the Mercury 450 is set to providing a convenient and efficient solution for all EV users.

In addition to the Mercury 450, StarCharge will present its full lineup of residential and commercial energy systems. These innovative solutions offer efficient energy inverting, management, enabling users to optimize energy consumption and reduce costs. Whether it's powering homes, businesses, or entire communities, StarCharge's inverter and battery systems provide reliable and sustainable energy solutions.

The smarter E Europe 2023 is scheduled to take place from June 14 to 16, 2023 in Messe Munchen, Germany. StarCharge welcomes all attendees, media representatives, and industry professionals to visit Hall C3.160 and explore the future of EV charging and energy storage solutions.

About StarCharge

StarCharge is a global leading provider of EV charging solutions and energy storage systems. With a strong commitment to sustainability, StarCharge aims to revolutionize the way we charge and power electric vehicles, enabling a cleaner and greener future. For more information, please visit www.starcharge.com. Media Contact: marketing@starcharge.com

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2098822/StarCharge_Smart_Home_Solution.jpg

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/starcharge-showcasing-cutting-edge-ev-charging-solutions-and-energy-storage-systems-at-the-smarter-e-europe-2023-301849749.html
Applium, a French SAP integrator, has opened a subsidiary in Portugal to support its growth.

After two years of strong growth, which saw turnover almost double, Applium is continuing its development with its first international opening. For this new phase, Applium has chosen Portugal, and in particular the city of Lisbon.

"Several destinations were considered, but the choice quickly came down to Portugal. Less than 3 hours' flight from Paris, Portugal has a large ecosystem of experienced SAP consultants and an excellent higher education system. The level of fluency in English is remarkable and French remains an important language, explains Alix Ponsada, Applium's Managing Director.

Meeting the needs of SAP customers in France

The primary objective of this opening is to strengthen the teams in charge of SAP projects and Application Managed Services for the company's French customers. Applium Portugal's functional and technical SAP consultants will help to meet the high demand from customers for their SAP S/4HANA migration projects and the digitalization of their business processes.

Bertrand Dalaison, Chairman of Applium, comments: We are not ruling out the possibility of offering our services to Portuguese SAP customers in the future. Our primary objective is to better serve our 80 SAP customers in France. In 2022, despite the arrival of more than 30 new employees, we have had to postpone several of our customers' projects, which is not satisfactory.

Baptiste Goncalves appointed Applium Lisbon country manager

Applium's Portuguese subsidiary is headed up by Baptiste Goncalves. A graduate of Skema Business School, Baptiste has worked as a consultant, project manager and then delivery manager for 2 major SAP integrators in France and Portugal. Based in Lisbon, Baptiste took up his post on 9 January 2023.

"We wish Baptiste every success, and he can count on the support of all the Applium France teams. We don't rule out that this first international experience will lead to others in the near future, probably outside Europe, concludes David Cairat, Deputy Managing Director.

About Applium

Applium is an SAP consultancy and integrator since 2002.

With sales growth of 69% over the last two years, Applium continues to expand rapidly, bringing its expertise to small and large businesses alike.

Applium covers the entire lifecycle of SAP solutions: Projects, Outsourcing, Maintenance and even SAP Support.

Key figures:

Sales of 19 million in 2022

120 employees

7 offices in France

https://www.applium.fr/actualites,109/applium-simplante-au-portugal-pour-accompagner-sa-croissance,134.html

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230613247300/en/

Contacts:

Press contact

Alexandre.lacroix@applium.fr

Communication@applium.fr

Applium 37 Rue de Neuilly, 92110 Clichy
Die KI-Revolution ist in vollem Gange und vor allem ein Bereich wird stark betroffen sein: Cyber-Security. Die Experten sind sich sicher: Mit steigender Entwicklung von KI-Technologien nehmen auch KI-gestutzte Cyber-Attacken zu. Wir zeigen hier, welche Aktien profitieren konnen.

New PV capacity additions in Southeast Asia are expected to bounce back this year for the first time since 2020, according to the Asian Photovoltaic Industry Association. The market is expected to grow by 13% in 2023, for 3.8 GW of new installations.Solar in Southeast Asia is set for a rebound, following a two-year market contraction triggered by Vietnam's abrupt suspension of its generous feed-in-tariff regime in 2020, the Asian Photovoltaic Industry Association (APVIA) and the Global Solar Council (GSC) say in a new report, published in collaboration with SolarPower Europe. Annual capacity ...

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.
AMSTERDAM, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Flytxt, a leading provider of AI-powered SaaS for Customer Lifetime Value (CLTV) maximisation, launched a Generative AI that assists digital product designers. This first-of-its-kind application of Generative AI solves a critical pain point faced by digital businesses worldwide - design of well-performing products faster and at scale.

"Achieving product-market fit in volatile markets is a challenge, as the ease of adoption of digital products also lowers switching costs for customers. Generative AI is well suited to solve this challenge. It can programmatically evaluate several potential product designs to find the best match," said Dr. Vinod Vasudevan, CEO of Flytxt.

Flytxt's Generative AI can optimise price points, product attributes, bundling options, and associated benefits to meet business objectives like increasing revenue, retention, or margin.

Generative AI has been mostly used for creating original multimedia content and enabling intelligent conversations as in tools like ChatGPT. Flytxt's innovative application of Generative AI will open up new possibilities for product managers to bring in innovations in product design and ensure higher success rate.

"Flytxt foresees widespread applicability of Generative AI in many Customer Experience workflows like product and campaign design," continued Dr. Vinod Vasudevan, CEO of Flytxt. "We will continue to integrate powerful AI capabilities like Generative AI into our solutions to help users make accurate decisions that impact long term value creation."

Furthermore, Flytxt Generative AI adds the ability to explain the decisions made by the AI. This transparency allows product managers to critically review the reasons behind the AI-recommended design, before they decide to approve and launch the product in the market.

About Flytxt

Flytxt is the trusted technology partner of 70+ digital enterprises across more than 50 countries, as well as of top CX platform vendors for Customer Lifetime Value (CLTV) maximisation. Its award-winning, proprietary CLTV AI has been designed and trained using real-world insights and patterns from more than a billion consumers and trillions of data points. The firm has a corporate office in Dubai, global development centers in India and presence in Mexico, The Netherlands, Malaysia, Colombia, Czech Republic, Spain and Kenya.

Photo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2096852/Flytxt_Generative_AI.jpg

Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2096851/Flytxt_Logo.jpg

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/announcing-flytxts-generative-ai-for-digital-product-design-301847093.html
DUBLIN, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- FlowForma the leading provider of enterprise-class, no code process automation tools for Microsoft 365, is excited to continue building momentum in the automotive manufacturing and retail space by empowering new customer Jacksons CI Ltd. to overcome process challenges within their organization using the award-winning FlowForma Process Automation tool.

An industry currently seeing increased demand for digitalization tools, the automotive sector is doubling down on automation to gain a competitive advantage and benefit from technology to digitalize critical business processes at scale across multiple divisions. Maintaining a competitive advantage amongst peers allows businesses to move ahead of rivals to drive and accelerate business growth, whilst creating a culture of continuous improvement and innovation.

The 3-in-1, 100% no code, FlowForma Process Automation tool is empowering business users with forms, workflow, and document generation to rapidly digitalize simple and complex business processes with speed and flexibility, with minimal training required or IT involvement. Leveraging the power of cloud-based digitalization tools has seen a significant increase in efficiency, visibility, and employee/supplier experiences.

Jacksons CI Ltd. have shifted their digital transformation projects into gear by utilizing the award-winning, 100% no code, FlowForma Process Automation tool to digitalize tasks such as: Pre-Service Recall Checks, Stock Warranty Recall Process, Quality Checks, and more, ultimately saving days for employees and stakeholders across all departments to complete processes spanning multiple locations.

Olivia Bushe, Chief Executive Officer, FlowForma commented: "We are delighted to assist Jacksons CI Ltd. on their roadmap to digital transformation. The automotive industry is seeing a significant shift in demand for process digitalization tools, to encourage seamless multi-site process optimization, engage external users such as suppliers and manufacturers in processes, and eliminate the risk associated with paper-based tasks. With increased competition and customer expectations, the automotive sector is keen for better all-round visibility, productivity, and positive customer outcomes."

Supporting Resources:

Learn how automotive organizations in 2023 can digitalize at scale, drive savings, better customer experiences and sustainability in our latest infographic: https://www.flowforma.com/why-its-vital-to-advance-your-process-automation-plan-and-how-to-triumph

To find out how the FlowForma Process Automation tool works visit: www.flowforma.com/how-it-works

T o download a free 14-day trial of FlowForma Process Automation visit: http://www.flowforma.com/start-your-flowforma-trial

To learn more about FlowForma Process Automation, book a demo with one of our experts: http://www.flowforma.com/book-a-demo

About FlowForma

FlowForma, the leading provider of Process Automation tools for Microsoft Office 365 is revolutionizing the automotive industry with an innovative approach to developing award-winning products that empower users to create and streamline processes smarter and faster, utilizing the familiar SharePoint platform, without any coding.

FlowForma is a Microsoft Gold Partner with over 200,000 global users of its product. Headquartered in Dublin, Ireland, with offices in New York, Boston, and London, FlowForma is motivated by its values to innovate, evolve, and achieve with employees, customers, and partners.

For further information or a 14-day free trial, visit www.flowforma.com.

Contact Details

For further press information please contact Conor McGrath, Senior Digital Marketing Executive at FlowForma:

Email: conor.mcgrath@flowforma.com

Telephone: +353 (0)1 5369 679

Photo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2099953/Olivia_Bushe.jpg

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Venlo, the Netherlands, and Redwood City, California, June 13, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- QIAGEN (NYSE: QGEN; Frankfurt Prime Standard: QIA) today announced that its variant interpretation and reporting software, QIAGEN Clinical Insight (QCI) Interpret, is being deployed as a part of a national initiative in Denmark to offer sequencing-based solutions for cancer patients.

The QCI Interpret solution was chosen by the Danish National Genome Center to provide interpretation of oncology results generated from whole-genome sequencing (WGS) data. The initiative is part of a larger personalized medicine strategy that aims to provide WGS as the standard-of-care for relevant patient groups throughout Denmark.

Denmark is one of the first countries in the world to implement WGS as standard-of-care for oncology at this scale, and to adopt QCI Interpret to support the national initiative. The country aims to gain sufficient genetic data to truly utilize the power of genomics in personalized medicine to improve outcomes for patients through better cancer diagnosis and treatment decisions.

"We are pleased to partner with the Danish National Genome Center in this landmark program to provide nationwide access to the power of sequencing for cancer patients in Denmark," said Jonathan Sheldon, Executive Vice President and Head of QIAGEN Digital Insights. "Denmark is taking a visionary approach to aggregating genomic data and combining it with clinical information on cancer patients to develop enhanced population-specific knowledge and reference sets for the country's residents. This will serve as a foundation for effective precision medicine capabilities for years to come. This partnership also demonstrates QIAGEN's ability to support national precision medicine programs in terms of infrastructure and technology support. Together we are determined to advance the power of molecular insights from bench to bedside."

Denmark has strict requirements for data privacy and security, requiring all data to be processed and stored within the country and only accessed from within the National Genome Center infrastructure. QCI Interpret, allows authorized staff from labs across the country to interpret whole genome sequencing data consistently and efficiently while meeting data privacy and security requirements.

"QCI Interpret delivers evidence-based variant interpretation and reporting, adheres to the highest level of data security and privacy, and allows for flexibility at distributed testing sites throughout the country that use different next-generation sequencing instruments. The platform is an agnostic solution that can be easily integrated with any pipeline to enable users to go from variant calls to final report within minutes," said Dan Richards, Vice President of Clinical Product Management at QIAGEN Digital Insights.

Test analysis and interpretation are key barriers to implementing WGS at-scale. The Danish National Genome Center selected QCI Interpret to streamline and accelerate the interpretation, and reporting process. Connected to the QIAGEN Knowledge Base, a comprehensive, manually curated resource that is updated weekly, QCI Interpret dynamically computes pathogenicity and actionability based on professional guidelines for every variant in over 31,000 cancer types. In addition, users have access to over 460,000 preformulated, oncologist-reviewed variant impact summaries to build custom, patient-specific reports with the latest evidence and prognostic information, as well as biomarker-directed therapies and clinical trials.

About QIAGEN

QIAGEN N.V., a Netherlands-based holding company, is the leading global provider of Sample to Insight solutions that enable customers to gain valuable molecular insights from samples containing the building blocks of life. Our sample technologies isolate and process DNA, RNA and proteins from blood, tissue and other materials. Assay technologies make these biomolecules visible and ready for analysis. Bioinformatics software and knowledge bases interpret data to report relevant, actionable insights. Automation solutions tie these together in seamless and cost-effective workflows. QIAGEN provides solutions to more than 500,000 customers around the world in Molecular Diagnostics (human healthcare), Applied Testing (primarily forensics), Pharma (pharma and biotech companies) and Academia (life sciences research). As of March 31, 2023, QIAGEN employed more than 6,200 people in over 35 locations worldwide. Further information can be found at http://www.qiagen.com.

Forward-Looking Statement

Certain statements contained in this press release may be considered forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the U.S. Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. To the extent that any of the statements contained herein relating to QIAGEN's products, including those products used in the response to the COVID-19 pandemic, timing for launch and development, marketing and/or regulatory approvals, financial and operational outlook, growth and expansion, collaborations, markets, strategy or operating results, including without limitation its expected adjusted net sales and adjusted diluted earnings results, are forward-looking, such statements are based on current expectations and assumptions that involve a number of uncertainties and risks. Such uncertainties and risks include, but are not limited to, risks associated with management of growth and international operations (including the effects of currency fluctuations, regulatory processes and dependence on logistics), variability of operating results and allocations between customer classes, the commercial development of markets for our products to customers in academia, pharma, applied testing and molecular diagnostics; changing relationships with customers, suppliers and strategic partners; competition; rapid or unexpected changes in technologies; fluctuations in demand for QIAGEN's products (including fluctuations due to general economic conditions, the level and timing of customers' funding, budgets and other factors); our ability to obtain regulatory approval of our products; difficulties in successfully adapting QIAGEN's products to integrated solutions and producing such products; the ability of QIAGEN to identify and develop new products and to differentiate and protect our products from competitors' products; market acceptance of QIAGEN's new products and the integration of acquired technologies and businesses; actions of governments, global or regional economic developments, weather or transportation delays, natural disasters, political or public health crises, including the breadth and duration of the COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on the demand for our products and other aspects of our business, or other force majeure events; as well as the possibility that expected benefits related to recent or pending acquisitions may not materialize as expected; and the other factors discussed under the heading "Risk Factors" contained in Item 3 of our most recent Annual Report on Form 20-F. For further information, please refer to the discussions in reports that QIAGEN has filed with, or furnished to, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

Source: QIAGEN N.V.

Category: Corporate
Access, one of the largest UK-headquartered providers of business management software to small and mid-sized organisations in the UK, US, Ireland and Asia Pacific, is fast-tracking plans to expand operations into Malaysia later this year through a new partnership with Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC), the government agency leading the digital transformation of the Malaysian economy.

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The Access Group Kuala Lumpa GO Centres (Graphic: Business Wire)

The partnership will be formalised during London Tech Week when representatives from Access along with other industry leaders join Malaysia's Minister of Communications and Digital, YB Fahmi Fadzil, to set out ambitions to collectively shape the future of Malaysia's digital economy.

For Access, the partnership with MDEC will propel the Group's plans to enhance its presence in the APAC region and support the opening of a new Global Operations Centre (GO Centre) in the capital Kuala Lumpur later this year.

The establishment of a GO Centre in the Asia Pacific region is fundamental to the Group's global expansion, and Malaysia's thriving digital economy and stable business landscape offer an attractive location for a new hub, ideally positioned to support our ongoing global expansion.

Chris Bayne, CEO of The Access Group, said:

"This is an exciting development, and we are grateful for MDEC's support which will propel our growth in APAC. Kuala Lumpur offers a compelling proposition for our new Go Centre with its fantastic business environment and exceptional talent pool.

Over the next four years the Access GO Centres will support 40% of our global staffing needs. Having these strategically located offices keeps momentum growing. Our ambition is to create a global 'backbone' of GO Centres which will provide international management, access to diverse talent and regional infrastructure to execute the Group's sustainable growth more easily."

Mahadhir Aziz, Chief Executive Officer, MDEC commented:

"The Global Operations Centre (GO Centre) is a resounding affirmation of Malaysia's position as a competitive powerhouse for high-value investments and propels us closer towards our goal of firmly establishing Malaysia as the digital hub of ASEAN.

We are delighted to welcome Access Group into Malaysia and we are committed to supporting their ambitious goals of igniting growth in the digital economy via the Malaysia Digital (MD) national strategic initiative and various catalyst programmes."

Read here for full story.

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Contacts:

Kate Hassler

The Access Group

+44 7722 023 278

kate.hassler@theaccessgroup.com
LONDON, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The WCE took place end of May at BEXCO in Busan, and presented the perfect ground for introducing Korean and international companies involved in the climate and energy sector, alongside government officials, representatives from international organizations, and academic professionals to BE OPEN's SDG-focused programme and in particular the ongoing student design competition Better Energy by Design centered around the United Nations' SDG7: Affordable and Clean Energy.

The WCE spanned three days, embracing the theme of "Rising Above the Climate Crisis Toward Sustainable Prosperity." Dedicated to climate and energy, this extensive event was closely aligned with the theme of the 2030 Busan World Expo: "Transforming Our World, Navigating Toward a Better Future."

The Expo was organized and hosted by key government bodies, including the Ministries of Trade, Industry and Energy, Foreign Affairs, Infrastructure and Transport, Science and ICT, the Ministry of Environment, and others. The WCE was attended by Korean Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, Busan Mayor Park Heong-joon, Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry Chairman Chey Tae-won, Emeritus Professor of UC Berkeley Richard A. Muller, and Fatih Birol, the Executive Director of the International Energy Agency (IEA).

The WCE Business Summit strived to foster dialogue about green business expansion strategies among leading international businesses and organizations. Subsequent sessions dedicated to low carbon energy explored how corporations can contribute to a sustainable future. Over 500 Korean and global companies-participants of the WCE showcased cutting-edge technologies and products related to the climate industry, including clean energy and energy efficiency solutions.

All these aspects of sustainable energy production and consumption became topics for the student entries into the ongoing competition named Better Energy by Design that was developed by BE OPEN to encourage creation of innovative solutions by younger creatives, for the more prosperous and sustainable future. The competition was open to students, graduates and young professionals who specialise in the fields of art, design, architecture and media globally.

Presently, the international jury panel is finalizing the assessment of the competition entries, and shortly the winners will be announced. Five creative individuals and teams will receive prizes (2,000-5,000 euros), and an opportunity to visit a major SDG-related event.

The objective of the competition programme is to raise awareness of SDGs and contribute to achieving them via recognizing and promoting the best ideas that embody and advance their principles and aims.

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10-year guarantee on the performance of the large-scale energy storage system INTILION scalecube

Warranty for the INTILION scalecube energy storage system for 5 years

Today the energy storage provider INTILION signed a long-term collaboration agreement with Munich Re Group ("Munich Re"), the world's largest reinsurer by premium income. The insurance product offered by Munich Re provides INTILION with the ability to insure against clients' claims arising under the warranty and performance guarantee (Product and Performance Warranty Insurance). These commitments are the result of an extensive auditing process of the INTILION scalecube by MunichRe.

Dr. Andre Haubrock, CEO of INTILION AG says: "If there had been any need for a seal of approval for the quality and longevity of our product, it has now been provided by MunichRe after a very rigourous testing process. We are proud that the respected rein-surer has agreed to offer insurance covering the five-year warranty and 10-year performance guarantee that INTILION provides to its customers. This long-term approach gives our customers the necessary security and planning capability when using our large-scale storage solutions of up to 100 MWh."

The cooperation agreement between INTILION and MunichRe was agreed today by Dr. Andre Haubrock as CEO of INTILION and by Dr. Sebastian Scholz, Product Lead Energy Storage on behalf of Munich Re Group at a ceremony during the trade fair "The Smarter E" in Munich.

About INTILION AG

INTILION Aktiengesellschaft is a leading provider of innovative, highly scalable and integrable energy storage solutions (ESS) with a comprehensive range of services, primarily for use in system-relevant and critical infrastructures such as commercial, industrial and grid applications. The storage capacities of the company's intelligent lithium-ion-based ESS products range from 70 kWh to 100 MWh. INTILION's portfolio of solutions and services is leading the way to a decarbonised, flexible and digital energy sector, enabling the transition towards climate-neutral, renewable and clean energy use. The company's customers include local, region-al and international utilities and energy distributors, as well as system distributors and engineering, procurement and construc-tion (EPC) contractors within Europe. INTILION AG is headquartered in Paderborn, Germany, and belongs to the family-owned HOPPECKE Group, with a heritage of more than 95 years of expertise and engineering excellence in batteries.

For further information, please visit https://intilion.com.

About Munich Re

Munich Re Group is a leading global provider of reinsurance, primary insurance and insurance-related risk solutions committed to driving sustainable growth and innovation in the renewable energy sector. The insurance for Intilion is underwritten by a Munich Re Group primary insurer, an S&P AA-rated international insurance company.

For more information, visit www.Munichre.com or Electrical Energy Storage Systems Insurance Munich Re.

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Contacts:

Financial Press Contact INTILION:

Monika Collee

E-Mail: Monika.Collee@intilion.com

Phone: +49 (0) 5251 693 326 2
Sarah Mae Ives donates generously to the Ataxia-Telangiectasia (A-T) Children's Project in Canada, a nonprofit supporting children with this genetic disease.

VICTORIA, BC / ACCESSWIRE / June 14, 2023 / Social media expert and entrepreneur Sarah Mae Ives has donated to the Birdies for Brayden Fundraiser Dinner at the Guelph Keg Steakhouse, where all gratuities and donations were donated to the A-T Children's Project. The fundraiser is hosted in support of eight-year-old Brayden Van Dyke, who was diagnosed seven years ago with a genetic disease known as ataxia-telangiectasia. AT compromises the immune and nervous system and those with the disease are more predisposed to cancers.

Sarah Front

Sarah Image

"I am humbled to be part of this campaign to support Brayden and his family," says Sarah Mae Ives, social media expert and owner of Sarah Mae Ives Social Media Inc.

The Birdies for Brayden dinner took place on May 24 at the Guelph Keg Steakhouse. Supporters were able to interact, enjoy dinner, and learn more about the A-T Project's mission and goals. All proceeds and donations from the event will be used to help find a cure for A-T.

A-T Children's Project works with academic and industry investigators globally to organize and support innovative research and optimize disease management for treatment of the genetic disease. The 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, founded in 1993, seeks to offer support, guidance, and assistance to children and families impacted by A-T through telesupport, conferences, and internet forums.

Sarah Mae Ives has a passion for helping women entrepreneurs launch their own money-making social media ads businesses. Since establishing her business in 2016, she has been integral to million-dollar launches for clients whose products, services, and businesses are profiled in Forbes and Entrepreneur. Ives studied sociocultural anthropology at Western University in London, Ontario, and continued her education at Carleton University, where she received her MA in sociology and anthropology in 2006.

To learn more about how to support the A-T Children's Project, you can visit their website at https://www.atcp.org/.

Visit https://www.sarahmaeives.com to learn more about Sarah Mae Ives and her company.

Contact Information

Andrea Hertel

Operations Manager

admin@sarahmaeives.com

360-601-5705

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Egypt announced on Saturday 10/06/2023 that it was imposing visa entry for Sudanese citizens arriving at the Egyptian borders in order to regulate the process, not limit or restrict entry, according to a statement by the Foreign Affairs Ministry.

"These measures aim to set an organisational framework for that process after more than 50 days since the outbreak of the crisis, and they are not intended to prevent or limit the number of Sudanese citizens entering Egypt," the statement quoted Spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Ahmed Abu-Zeid as saying.

Abu-Zeid's remarks came in response to inquiries by several diplomatic journalists on the reasons for the decision.

Egypt has received more than 200.000 Sudanese citizens since the outbreak of the crisis and until today, which makes the country the highest among Sudan's neighbouring countries in terms of the number of Sudanese brothers received, Abu-Zeid said.

The Sudanese who have fled the conflict represent an addition to the nearly 5 million Sudanese citizens who were already present in Egypt before the start of the crisis, the spokesperson noted.

He also stated that the responsibility for providing the Sudanese who have recently arrived in Egypt with health, education, and housing rests with the Egyptian government, which provides the basic services to the Sudanese citizens on its territory.

On the reasons behind the newly-imposed visa entry, Abu-Zeid revealed that illegal activities by individuals and groups on the Sudanese side of the border were recently detected, adding that these activities included forging entry visas to Egypt to make profits.

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These groups exploit the need of Sudanese citizens to come to Egypt and the good intentions of the Egyptian side in responding to the crisis and absorbing such a massive influx of Sudanese to Egypt, he clarified.

As a result, Abu-Zeid noted, the Egyptian authorities introduced regulatory procedures based on automated visas to combat these crimes.

Moreover, he confirmed that the Egyptian consulates in Sudan were provided with the necessary electronic devices to carry out these procedures accurately and promptly, ensuring the orderly arrival of Sudanese citizens to Egypt.

The spokesperson said that there were rules and procedures governing the entry of Sudanese citizens into Egypt, adding that these rules were formulated by joint consular committees with the Sudanese side, the spokesperson said.

These committees, he added, convene regularly to review and update the relevant procedures according to developments in the situation and circumstances.

Ahramonline
LONDON, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- A new 7mn Maths Excellence Fund (the 'Fund') has launched with support from founding donors XTX Markets and The Hg Foundation. The fund will be managed by Ark Ventures, a charity with an outstanding record in incubating and scaling education initiatives.

The Fund has been established to support schools in England to improve attainment and progression in maths from 11-16 and 16-18 years of age, increasing the number of students who are on track to succeed in A-level maths and beyond, with a focus on students from disadvantaged backgrounds.

The Fund draws on the Maths Excellence Pathways report, recently published by XTX Markets and the University of Nottingham. This longitudinal study examined which groups of students excel in maths, including where they join and leave the 'excellence pathway'. It highlighted major disparities. For example, 74% of the most advantaged students stay on the excellence pathway from 11-16, compared with only 49% of students on free school meals.

The Fund will focus on evidence-led programmes that provide wide-ranging support to groups of schools in regions across England. The Fund will make available up to 7mn for programme delivery, plus additional funding for an independent evaluation. Funding will be deployed over a period of five academic years, with delivery beginning in 2024/25.

The Fund is expecting to award contracts to between three and six delivery partners, which may include charities, multi-academy trusts, universities, local authorities or companies. Applications opened in June 2023 and contracts with delivery partners will be finalised by November 2023. The Fund will be overseen by an Advisory Board comprising education sector experts, including Professor Andy Noyes and Professor Becky Francis CBE, CEO of the Education Endowment Foundation.

XTX Markets has committed the first 5mn in funding with The Hg Foundation committing a further 2mn. XTX Markets and The Hg Foundation will work closely with Ark Ventures to ensure that the Fund focuses on students from disadvantaged backgrounds, and that the resulting programmes are independently evaluated and can be scaled in future.

Ben Cartledge, Director at Ark Ventures, commented: 'This is an incredible commitment from XTX Markets and The Hg Foundation. The Maths Excellence Fund will boost improvements in maths by investing in ideas for maths education in England to drive systemic change. Ark Ventures is looking forward to working alongside the Fund's partners to deliver its aims and cannot wait to see the applications from a range of organisations coming in.'

James Turner, Chief Executive at The Hg Foundation, commented: 'We are delighted to be working on this new programme to help more pupils, especially those from low-income homes, to achieve at the highest levels in maths, which is a great foundation for future careers. By working over the long term with expert partners, and through schools and teachers, we hope the Fund will not only have a positive impact on thousands of young people, but also leave a legacy of knowledge and practice that will help many others.'

Simon Coyle, Head of Philanthropy at XTX Markets, commented: 'The Maths Excellence Pathways report shows that, when students from disadvantaged backgrounds are supported to excel in maths from 11 to 16, they are disproportionately likely to progress to maths degrees. The Maths Excellence Fund exists to help schools provide more students with those opportunities, and to develop effective programmes that can be expanded nationally in the future.'

About the Maths Excellence Fund:

The Maths Excellence Fund has been established to support schools to improve student attainment and progression in maths from ages 11 to 16 and 16 to 18, increasing the number of students on track to succeed in A-level maths and beyond.

The Fund supports schools to help students join and stay on the maths excellence pathway. It has a particular focus on improving attainment and progression for high-attaining and high-potential students from disadvantaged backgrounds.

The Fund is a collaboration between XTX Markets, The Hg Foundation and Ark Ventures, which will be managing the Fund and the delivery of its activities.

Charities, muti-academy trusts, universities, local authorities or companies are invited to apply to the Fund via its funding round.

The Fund also welcomes interest from organisations that would like to learn more about the Fund's objectives and explore opportunities to collaborate.

For more information: www.mathsexcellencefund.org

About Ark Ventures:

Ark Ventures, part of the Ark education charity, has incubated, launched and scaled initiatives that tackle issues across education and society, both in the UK and across the world; all have the potential to deliver widespread system change. The charity also works with ventures that are mission aligned, aim to bring about systemic change, and are run by exceptional people, where the prime beneficiaries are pupils, families and teachers in Ark schools or in equivalent circumstances.

Ark Ventures is managing the Maths Excellence Fund, including the commissioning and evaluation of programmes, to help ensure that the Fund achieves its long-term aim of transforming maths attainment in England.

About XTX Markets:

XTX Markets is a leading algorithmic trading firm which partners with counterparties, exchanges and e-trading venues globally to provide liquidity in the Equity, FX, Fixed Income, Futures and Commodity markets. XTX has over 200 employees based in London, Paris, New York, Mumbai, Yerevan and Singapore.

The company's corporate philanthropy focuses on STEM education and maximum impact giving (alongside an employee matching programme). Since 2017, XTX has donated over 80 million to charities and good causes, establishing it as a major donor in the UK and globally. Over the past year, the XTX Markets' Academic Sanctuaries Fund has delivered 10.1mn in funding for academic sanctuaries projects. This includes direct funding for studentships, fellowships and research positions for 336 people across 45 institutions globally. It also includes funding for 13 innovation projects in the UK and Ukraine, which will reach hundreds more people.

About The Hg Foundation:

The Hg Foundation's vision is that the tech workforce of the future harnesses the talents of all, regardless of background. It does this by supporting education and employment-based programmes across the UK, USA and Europe where it can demonstrate measurable, long-term and scalable impact and make a difference to those that need it most. To date it has committed $14m to programmes that will reach 10,000 young people and adults from under-represented backgrounds. The Hg Foundation is registered Charity no. 1189216. Find out more at: https://www.thehgfoundation.com/

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Infill Drill Hole SCC-057 Intersected 78.0 Meters Grading 1.97% Copper, Including 50.8 Meters Grading 2.60% Copper

Santa Cruz Initial Assessment Remains on Schedule for Completion by End of Q3 2023

PHOENIX, AZ / ACCESSWIRE / June 14, 2023 / Ivanhoe Electric Inc. (NYSE American:IE)(TSX:IE) Executive Chairman Robert Friedland and President and Chief Executive Officer Taylor Melvin are pleased to provide an update on the drilling operations underway at the Santa Cruz Copper Project, located west of Casa Grande, Arizona. Ivanhoe Electric controls private surface land, the patented mineral rights and the associated water rights encompassing the entire Santa Cruz Project (refer to Ivanhoe Electric's May 24, 2024, news release).

Mr. Friedland commented: "Our hardworking team of women and men have been making steady progress at the Santa Cruz Copper Project, uncovering high-grade copper mineralization in areas that were previously unknown and expanding our technical knowledge in underground areas near conceptual development. We remain on track to deliver an important Initial Assessment of the Project by the end of Q3 2023. This first detailed study will provide us with valuable insights into the economic potential at Santa Cruz, moving us closer to building a modern, underground copper mine in Arizona. By doing so, we are aiming not only to support United States supply chain independence for electric metals but also create quality jobs for Arizonans."

Mr. Melvin commented: "We continue to advance our understanding of the Santa Cruz copper discovery through our extensive drilling program. Our ongoing infill and geotechnical drilling have provided us with important information about the geologic features that control high-grade copper mineralization and rock mechanics. This knowledge plays a vital role in the preparation of our Initial Assessment. Our Q3 activities will include large-diameter pump tests that will further support our understanding of the hydrogeology of the Santa Cruz Project. With the continued success of our drilling campaigns, the completion of our large surface land acquisition in May and the continued advancement of our Initial Assessment, we are excited about the future at Santa Cruz."

Infill Drilling Continues to Support the Current Mineral Resource Model

The infill and development drilling program continues to characterize key geotechnical, hydrogeological and metallurgical characteristics of the Santa Cruz Deposit. Multi-purpose infill and development drill holes, not previously included in the December 31, 2022, Mineral Resource Estimate, have intersected high-grade copper oxide and chalcocite mineralization, some in areas where copper mineralization was previously undefined.

Drill hole SCC-125 targeted definition and expansion of the high-grade Exotic Copper Domain in the current Mineral Resource Estimate and intersected visible atacamite, chrysocolla, and chalcocite mineralization starting at a downhole depth of approximately 586 meters.

Drill hole SCC-136, located in the northwestern region of the Santa Cruz Deposit, targeted a mineralized and resource controlling fault, but also intersected visible copper oxide and chalcocite mineralization starting at a downhole depth of approximately 432 meters in an area undefined by previous drilling.

These recent intersections continue to demonstrate and provide valuable insights into the extent and consistency of the mineral resource and areas for potential additions. The assay results for drill holes SCC-125 and SCC-136 are pending.

Macro photo of a core sample from Santa Cruz Deposit drill hole SCC-125 at 654.41 meters depth showing an extraordinary specimen of deep green atacamite mineralization (a leachable mineral that is approximately 60% copper by weight) within an open fracture.

Core sample from Santa Cruz Deposit drill hole SCC-136 at 587.77 meters depth showing steely-gray chalcocite (a leachable mineral that is approximately 80% copper by weight) mineralization along a vein.

Macro photo of a core sample from Santa Cruz Deposit drill hole SCC-136 at 522.00 meters depth showing brilliantly blue chrysocolla (a leachable mineral that is approximately 30% copper by weight) with intergrowths of deep green atacamite (a leachable mineral that is approximately 60% copper by weight) mineralization within a fracture.

Exploration and Step-out Drilling Supports the Texaco Ridge Exploration Area for Potential Expansion

Texaco Ridge Exploration Area was previously identified by Ivanhoe Electric's proprietary Typhoon 3D Induced Polarization Survey (refer to Ivanhoe Electric's September 15, 2022, news release). Exploration drilling at Texaco Ridge has methodically stepped out from mineralization intersected in drill hole SCC-122 (refer to the map below).

Drill holes SCC-129 and SCC-133, located approximately 200 meters to the southeast and northeast of drill hole SCC-122, respectively, intersected visible copper oxide, chalcocite and chalcopyrite mineralization. These observations support geologically consistent mineralization between these drill holes and the Texaco Mineral Resource located to the northeast. Both the Texaco Ridge Exploration Area and Texaco Deposit remain open for expansion in multiple directions, and exploration drilling will continue to leverage our proprietary Typhoon-generated datasets for efficient targeting. Assay results from recent drilling at Texaco Ridge are pending.

Core sample from Texaco Ridge drill hole SCC-129 at 527.16 meters depth showing Oracle Granite with strong mineralization of deep green atacamite (a leachable mineral that is approximately 60% copper by weight) in fractures and disseminations and weak red iron oxide in fractures.

Map showing drilling locations at the Santa Cruz Copper Project, Arizona

Highlighted drill intercepts not previously disclosed from the Santa Cruz Project Area (Assays for drill holes SCC-122, SCC-125, SCC-129, SCC-133 and SCC-136 mentioned above are pending. Refer to the Santa Cruz Drill Results page on Ivanhoe Electric's website for complete details of all reported drill holes.).

DRILL HOLE LOCATION FROM

(M) TO

(M) INTERVAL LENGTH

(M) TOTAL COPPER

(%) TOTAL SOLUBLE COPPER

(%) SCC-025 Santa Cruz 613.5 669.0 55.5 2.57 2.46 Including 624.0 661.0 37.0 2.99 2.86 SCC-026 Santa Cruz 462.0 540.0 78.0 1.97 1.77 Including 485.0 499.0 14.0 3.34 3.08 Including 508.0 521.0 13.0 3.59 3.18 SCC-053 Santa Cruz 559.4 598.0 38.7 1.90 1.82 SCC-054 Santa Cruz 519.0 559.0 40.0 2.25 2.22 SCC-056 Santa Cruz 599.0 640.9 41.9 2.35 2.10 Including 613.0 628.0 15.0 2.88 2.51 Including 633.0 640.9 7.9 3.18 2.85 SCC-057 Santa Cruz 627.0 705.0 78.0 1.97 1.91 Including 627.0 677.8 50.8 2.60 2.55 Including 639.0 667.7 28.7 3.30 3.22 SCC-068 Santa Cruz 569.0 625.0 56.0 1.63 1.55 Including 577.8 589.0 11.2 3.31 3.16 And 630.0 698.0 68.0 1.83 1.82 Including 630.0 667.0 37.0 2.45 2.42

*Total Soluble Copper is the calculated summation of all soluble copper derived from the sequential copper analysis suite.

*Reported intervals at the Santa Cruz Deposit are calculated at a cut-off grade of 0.70% total copper.

*Results are core intervals and may not be true widths but are believed to be representative of actual drill thicknesses.

*Some rounding errors may occur.

Core sample from Santa Cruz Deposit drill hole SCC-057 at 640.63 meters depth showing Oracle Granite with concentrated mineralization of bright blue chrysocolla (a leachable mineral that is approximately 30% copper by weight) and red iron oxides in fractures.

Moses Uribe, Geotechnician, sawing core at the Santa Cruz Copper Project.

The Santa Cruz Initial Assessment Will Outline the Potential for a High-Grade, Modern, Underground Copper Mine Situated Entirely on Private Land in Arizona

The Initial Assessment for the Santa Cruz Project is evaluating the potential for a high-grade modern underground copper mining operation which will focus on minimizing the surface footprint of the mine while at the same time incorporating leading technologies to improve efficiencies and costs. The technologies being evaluated in the Initial Assessment include the use of electric mining fleet vehicles, various renewable energy sources supported by leading-edge battery storage, and modern, efficient material handling technologies.

Ivanhoe Electric is designing a modern, responsible mine that is less reliant on carbon dioxide-emitting fossil fuels and old technologies in its operation, all to further its goal of eventually producing a cathode copper product with much lower carbon dioxide emissions per pound than a more conventional mine run entirely on fossil fuels using decades old conventional mining equipment and technologies. Minimizing the surface footprint is intended to reduce the overall environmental impact of the Santa Cruz project and limit surface-level disruptions and visual impact on the surrounding area.

The Santa Cruz Initial Assessment remains on schedule for completion by the end of Q3 2023.

Qualified Persons

Disclosures of a scientific or technical nature included in this news release, including the sampling, analytical and technical data underlying the information, have been reviewed, verified, and approved by Glen Kuntz, P.Geo., and Christopher Seligman, MAusIMM CP (Geo), each of whom are Qualified Persons as defined by Regulation S-K, Subpart 1300 promulgated by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and by Canadian National Instrument 43-101. Each of Mr. Kuntz and Mr. Seligman is an employee of Ivanhoe Electric.

Ivanhoe Electric has had prepared an independent technical report summary for the Santa Cruz Project prepared under SEC Regulation S-K, Subpart 1300 and an independent technical report prepared under Canadian National Instrument 43-101. The reports are available on the company's website, on EDGAR and on the company's SEDAR profile:

"Mineral Resource Estimate Update and S-K 1300 Technical Report Summary for the Santa Cruz, Texaco, and East Ridge Deposits, Arizona, USA," authored by Nordmin Engineering Ltd. ("Nordmin") and Met Engineering LLC ("Met Engineering"). Current to December 31, 2022, and dated February 14, 2023.

"Mineral Resource Estimate Update and NI 43-101 Technical Report for The Santa Cruz, Texaco, and East Ridge Deposits, Arizona, USA," prepared by Nordmin and Met Engineering with an effective date of December 31, 2022, and an issue date of March 14, 2023.

The technical report summary and technical report include relevant information regarding the assumptions, parameters and methods of the mineral resource estimates on the Santa Cruz Project, as well as information regarding data verification, exploration procedures and other matters relevant to the scientific and technical disclosure contained in this news release.

About Ivanhoe Electric

Ivanhoe Electric is an American technology and mineral exploration company that is re-inventing mining for the electrification of everything by combining advanced mineral exploration technologies, renewable energy storage solutions and electric metals projects predominantly located in the United States. Ivanhoe Electric uses its Typhoon transmitter, an accurate and powerful geophysical survey system, together with advanced data analytics provided by its subsidiary, Computational Geosciences Inc., to accelerate and de-risk the mineral exploration process as well as to potentially discover deposits of critical metals that may otherwise be undetectable by traditional exploration technologies. Through its controlling interest in VRB Energy, Ivanhoe Electric also develops and manufactures advanced grid-scale vanadium redox battery storage systems. Finally, through advancing its portfolio of electric metals projects located primarily in the United States, headlined by the Santa Cruz Copper Project in Arizona and the Tintic Copper-Gold Project in Utah, as well as projects in Montana, Nevada, Oregon and North Carolina, Ivanhoe Electric is also well positioned to support American supply chain independence by delivering the critical metals necessary for electrification of the economy.

Contact Information:

Investors: Valerie Kimball, Director, Investor Relations 720-933-1150

Follow us on Twitter.

Ivanhoe Electric's Executive Chairman Robert Friedland: @robert_ivanhoe

Ivanhoe Electric: @ivanhoeelectric

Ivanhoe Electric's investor relations website located at www.ivanhoeelectric.com should be considered Ivanhoe Electric's recognized distribution channel for purposes of the Securities and Exchange Commission's Regulation FD.

Forward-Looking Statements

Certain statements in this news release constitute "forward-looking statements" or "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable US and Canadian securities laws. Such statements and information involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the company, its projects, or industry results, to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements or information. Such statements can be identified by the use of words such as "may", "would", "could", "will", "intend", "expect", "believe", "plan", "anticipate", "estimate", "scheduled", "forecast", "predict" and other similar terminology, or state that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will" be taken, occur or be achieved. These statements reflect the company's current expectations regarding future events, performance and results and speak only as of the date of this news release.

Such statements in this news release include, without limitation: (i) statements regarding the completion of the Initial Assessment at the Santa Cruz Project by the end of Q3 2023; (ii) statements that the Initial Assessment is evaluating the potential for a high-grade modern underground copper mining operation which will focus on minimizing the surface footprint of the mine while at the same time incorporating leading technologies to improve efficiencies and costs; (iii) statements regarding the economic potential of the Santa Cruz Project; (iv) statements regarding the extent and consistency of the mineral resource and areas for potential additions to the mineral resource at the Santa Cruz Project; and (v) statements regarding the overall development of the Santa Cruz Project.

Forward-looking statements are based on management's beliefs and assumptions and on information currently available to management. Such statements are subject to significant risks and uncertainties, and actual results may differ materially from those expressed or implied in the forward-looking statements due to various factors, including uncertainties as to the timing of closing the transaction, including the potential failure to close; the Company's ability to complete due diligence on the timeline or at all; the satisfaction of conditions to closing; the risk that the Company cannot complete the payments owed; changes in the prices of copper or other metals Ivanhoe Electric is exploring for; the results of exploration and drilling activities and/or the failure of exploration programs or studies to deliver anticipated results or results that would justify and support continued exploration, studies, development or operations; the final assessment of exploration results and information that is preliminary; the significant risk and hazards associated with any future mining operations, extensive regulation by the US government as well as local governments; changes in laws, rules or regulations, or their enforcement by applicable authorities; the failure of parties to contracts with the company to perform as agreed; and the impact of political, economic and other uncertainties associated with operating in foreign countries, and the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the global economy. These factors should not be construed as exhaustive and should be read in conjunction with the other cautionary statements and risk factors described in Ivanhoe Electric's Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

No assurance can be given that such future results will be achieved. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this news release. Ivanhoe Electric cautions you not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. Subject to applicable securities laws, the company does not assume any obligation to update or revise the forward-looking statements contained herein to reflect events or circumstances occurring after the date of this news release, and Ivanhoe Electric expressly disclaims any requirement to do so.

SOURCE: Ivanhoe Electric Inc.

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/761137/Recent-Infill-Drilling-at-Ivanhoe-Electrics-Santa-Cruz-Copper-Project-in-Arizona-Identifies-New-High-Grade-Soluble-Copper-Mineralization-and-Continues-to-Validate-Mineral-Resource-Model
Global innovators to meet, collaborate, and discuss the future of IP

BOSTON, June 14, 2023, the leading innovation and intellectual property (IP) management technology provider, today announces the keynote speakers and session line-up for its 2023 Anaqua Experience Conference (AEC). The AEC brings together IP and business leaders from across the globe to discuss key industry issues and the future of IP. Attendees will hear from industry experts as they share trends, insights, and best practices; engage in networking events to promote industry collaboration; and participate in training sessions to help further enhance their IP management.



"We are honored to serve the most innovative companies and law firms across the globe with our leading end-to-end, corporate, and law firm-focused IP management solutions," said Bob Romeo, CEO of Anaqua. "Our client conference provides an opportunity for the IP community to engage with each other and with the Anaqua team as we partner to succeed in the constantly changing IP environment."

The conference's keynote speakers include:

Dr. Markus Braun, Head of IP Operations, BASF

Tracey Armstrong, President and CEO, Copyright Clearance Center

William R. LaFontaine, General Manager, IP, Vice President, Research Business Development, IBM Corporation



"One of the best things about The Anaqua Experience Conference is how interactive it is," said Aileen Buchanan, Vice President, Client Success of Anaqua. "After years of virtual conferences, we are looking forward to gathering with our client community in one place to facilitate discussions on industry issues and challenges, exchanging views and insights, while strengthening our long-term partnership with clients. This ongoing, invaluable collaboration with our clients is part of what we call 'The Anaqua Experience.'"

Anaqua will also host several sessions by leading international IP practitioners, including:

Christof Wolpert, VP Global Legal Innovation, adidas

Michelle Sympson, Manager, Global IP Administration, ASM

Halim Shehadeh, CEO, CWB Legal

Maxwell Adams, Patent Systems Operations Manager, Dolby

Benjamin Brown, Chief IP Counsel, Onto Innovation

Linda Kasulke, IP Paralegal, Rockwell Automation

Satoshi Ikeda, Senior Manager, IP, Sony

Michelle L. Saitz, IP Practice Support Services Supervisor, Thompson Coburn

Allyson L. Campbell, IP System Administrator, Thompson Coburn

Matthew Luby, Group Director, IP Analytics, TTI

And more.



The 2023 AEC will be held at the MGM National Harbor Hotel in Oxon Hill, Maryland, USA from June 26-29. Registration remains open until June 26. To register for the event and learn more about the session line-up, visit anaqua.com/AEC.

About Anaqua

Anaqua, Inc. is a premier provider of integrated intellectual property, or on LinkedIn.

Company Contact:

Amanda Glagolev

Director, Communications

Anaqua

617-375-5808

aglagolev@anaqua.com
First European cold logistics customer represents expansion for Plug with its turnkey green hydrogen and fuel cell solutions



STEF is Plug's first pedestal customer in Europe

Toyota will provide compatible fuel cell-ready forklift models

LATHAM, N.Y., June 14, 2023, the European market leader in the transportation and logistics of food products, with a complete green hydrogen ecosystem across two distribution centers, before potentially expanding further into their network of over 100 sites. One of the distribution centers is close to Paris, France and the other is close to Madrid, Spain.

Temperatures in STEF's chilled and frozen food storage warehouses can plunge to negative 30 degrees Celsius, in worst cases. Under these conditions, lead acid battery-powered forklifts lose their charge quickly. Meanwhile, hydrogen fuel cells display superior performance in cold storage environments, offering higher asset utilization and increased levels of autonomy in demanding, typically multi-shift, mobility applications.

The transition from lead-acid batteries to Plug's hydrogen fuel cells will potentially improve STEF's forklift labor productivity due to maximum power over an entire shift. Battery-powered lift trucks lose approximately 14% of their speed over the last half of the battery charge. Unique to cold storage applications the switch to fuel cells allows operators to stay productive longer. This also means that lift truck operators can continue working in the cold storage facility for a full shift strengthening their comfort and avoiding changing of the batteries.

In parallel, fuel cell power solutions never require charging or changing. Battery changing currently requires 15 minutes per shift compared to two minutes for hydrogen refueling. Over a year, that 13 minutes saved per shift represents more than 234 hours of lost productivity per forklift truck in a three-shift operation.

Toyota will provide compatible fuel cell-ready forklift models, designed and manufactured for operator comfort, productivity and efficiency in mind, for this project as part of its commitment to developing fuel cell projects across Europe.

The Paris and Madrid cold/freezer storage sites will be converted to fuel cells and be operational in the first quarter of 2024. After the success of these two sites, STEF and Plug plan to expand the use of fuel cells in STEF's more than 100 distribution centers in Europe.

"Our partnership with STEF as a pedestal customer represents a significant expansion for Plug into Europe," said Plug CEO Andy Marsh. "We are seeing tremendous interest in hydrogen solutions in Europe. This partnership, and others coming later this year, validate Plug's strategy to expand in the European market."

"Our expectations on these first two projects are high and aim at increasing STEF operators' comfort and safety in a shift by avoiding battery change and improving intralogistics efficiency of our warehouses," said Vincent Kirklar, STEF Executive Committee member leading Reals Estate and Energy activities. "In Madrid, the hydrogen will be produced on-site using power generated by our 2.9 MWp photovoltaic rooftop plant, enabling us to consume fully green and locally produced hydrogen! We're proud of these projects that combine our care for people and the planet!"

STEF, the European leader in the transportation and logistics of food products operating for more than 100 years, provides specialist solution services for our industry, retail and food service customers in 8 European countries.

For more information on Plug's material handling solutions, contact the Plug team: https://www.plugpower.com/contact-the-material-handling-team/

About Plug

Plug is building an end-to-end green hydrogen ecosystem, from production, storage and delivery to energy generation, to help its customers meet their business goals and decarbonize the economy. In creating the first commercially viable market for hydrogen fuel cell technology, the company has deployed more than 60,000 fuel cell systems and over 180 fueling stations, more than anyone else in the world, and is the largest buyer of liquid hydrogen. With plans to build and operate a green hydrogen highway across North America and Europe, Plug is building a state-of-the-art Gigafactory to produce electrolyzers and fuel cells and multiple green hydrogen production plants that will yield 500 tons of liquid green hydrogen daily by year end 2025. Plug will deliver its green hydrogen solutions directly to its customers and through joint venture partners into multiple environments, including material handling, e-mobility, power generation, and industrial applications. For more information, visit www.plugpower.com .

Plug Power Safe Harbor Statement

This communication contains "forward-looking statements' within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 that involve significant risks and uncertainties about Plug Power Inc. ("PLUG"), including but not limited to statements about: Plug's intention to deliver a complete green hydrogen ecosystem to two STEF distribution centers; Plug's expectation that the Paris and Madrid cold/freezer storage sites will be converted to fuel cells and that these hydrogen solutions will be fully operational in Q1 2024; Plug's expectation to expand further into STEF's network of over 100 sites in the future; The transition from lead-acid batteries to Plug's hydrogen fuel cells potentially improving STEF's forklift labor productivity; Toyota providing compatible fuel cell-ready forklift models; Plug's long term plans to produce electrolyzers and fuel cells and multiple green hydrogen production plants that will yield 500 tons of liquid green hydrogen daily by year end 2025. Such statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual performance or results to differ materially from those expressed in these statements. For a further description of the risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ from those expressed in these forward-looking statements, as well as risks relating to the business of PLUG in general, see PLUG's public filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC"), including the "Risk Factors" section of PLUG's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2022 and any subsequent filings with the SEC. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements are made as of the date hereof, and PLUG undertakes no obligation to update such statements as a result of new information.

MEDIA CONTACT
Die KI-Revolution ist in vollem Gange und vor allem ein Bereich wird stark betroffen sein: Cyber-Security. Die Experten sind sich sicher: Mit steigender Entwicklung von KI-Technologien nehmen auch KI-gestutzte Cyber-Attacken zu. Wir zeigen hier, welche Aktien profitieren konnen.

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--(Newsfile Corp. - June 14, 2023) - Lion Rock Resources Inc. (TSXV: ROAR) (FSE: KGB) (the "Company") is pleased to announce that it has entered into an option agreement (the "Option Agreement") to acquire the Fleuron Lithium Project, strategically located 35 km south of Val d'Or, Quebec (Figure 1). The Fleuron Lithium Project is comprised of 205 claims spanning 11,380 ha and lies within a highly prospective region with limited lithium exploration history. The property is host to over 150 documented pegmatite outcrops.1

Acquisition Highlights

The Fleuron Lithium Property. The 11,830 ha property is situated at the eastern edge of the Superior Province within the Pontiac Subprovince. It features granite, paragneiss, and localized metasedimentary units, as well as over 150 documented pegmatite outcrops. The property is strategically located with proximity to infrastructure, major mining centers Val d'Or and Rouyn-Noranda, and recent lithium discoveries.

The Val d'Or Lithium District. Located in Pontiac Subprovince of Quebec, the Val d'Or lithium district is a highly prospective region with minimal lithium exploration history. S-type pegmatites have been identified, and the area hosts projects such as Sayona Mining's Tansim project, Vision Lithium's Cadillac project, and Winsome Resources' Decelles and Mazarac projects.

Quebec's Lithium Boom. As one of the country's fastest-growing lithium jurisdictions, Quebec has over ten advanced-stage projects and numerous early-stage occurrences. Notably, the Whabouchi mine is one of the world's largest bulk tonnage lithium deposits, boasting a Mineral Resource of 36.6 Mt at 1.3% Li2O and a proposed 33-year mine life.2 The James Bay Lithium Mine, with a Mineral Resource of 40.3 Mt at 1.4% Li2O, is projected to produce an average of 321 Kt of spodumene concentrate annually over a 19-year mine life.3

Planned Work Program. When it is able to begin work on the Property, the Company will commence a comprehensive exploration campaign, initially focusing on prospecting, mapping, and sampling pegmatites at the Fleuron Lithium Property.





Figure 1. The Company's Fleuron Lithium Project map showing documented pegmatite locations, property access and notable neighbouring projects.

To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/8985/169920_548d966c14ee5a90_001full.jpg

About the Fleuron Lithium Project

The Fleuron Lithium Project is comprised of 208 mining claims totaling 11,830 ha, approximately 35 km south of Val d'Or, Quebec. The property is situated at the eastern edge of the Superior Province within the Pontiac Subprovince. It features granite, paragneiss, and localized metasedimentary units, as well as over 150 documented pegmatite outcrops. The property is accessible by road and strategically located with proximity to infrastructure, major mining centers Val d'Or and Rouyn-Noranda, and recent lithium discoveries.

Terms of Agreement

Under the terms of the Option Agreement, the Company must make payments and share issuances as follows:

1,500,000 common shares on acceptance of the Option Agreement by the TSX Venture Exchange ("TSXV Acceptance"); $100,000 on or before the date that is six months following TSXV Acceptance; 2,000,000 common shares and $150,000 on or before the first anniversary of TSXV Acceptance; and 2,000,000 common shares and $150,000 on or before the second anniversary of TSXV Acceptance.

Also under the terms of the Option Agreement, the property will be subject to a 2% net smelter returns royalty, one-half of which can be purchased by the Company for $500,000.

The above transaction is subject to the acceptance of the TSX Venture Exchange.

The technical content of this news release has been reviewed and approved by Carl Ginn, P.Geo., consultant to the Company and a Qualified Person pursuant to National Instrument 43-101.

About Lion Rock Resources Inc.

Lion Rock Resources is northwestern Ontario's newest gold-copper explorer. The Company's flagship property, the Maybrun, is a past-producing mine (Maybrun gold-copper deposit) that was placed on care and maintenance in 1974 for several years prior to an exploration program conducted by Opawica Explorations Inc. in 2005. The Maybrun project is located in the Atikwa Lake area of the Kenora Mining Division, approximately 80 kilometres southeast of Kenora, in northwestern Ontario.

On Behalf of the Board

R. Dale Ginn, President & Chief Executive Officer

O: 604-678-5308

E: dale@rsdcapital.com

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSXV Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

This news release may contain or refer to forward-looking information based on current expectations, including, but not limited to the Company achieving success in exploring its properties and the impact on the Company of these events, including the effect on its share price. Forward-looking information is subject to significant risks and uncertainties, as actual results may differ materially from forecasted results. Forward-looking information is provided as of the date hereof and we assume no responsibility to update or revise such information to reflect new events or circumstances. References to other issuers with nearby projects is for information purposes only and there are no assurances the Company will achieve similar results.

1 Ministre de l'Energie et des Ressources Naturelles, MERN

2 Nemaska Lithium NI 43-101 Technical Report: Report on the Estimate to Complete for the Whabouchi Lithium Mine and Shawinigan Electrochemical Plant, May 31, 2019

3 Galaxy Lithium Preliminary Economic Assessment, NI 43-101 Technical Report: James Bay Lithium Project Ontario, Canada, March 15, 2021

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/169920
Die KI-Revolution ist in vollem Gange und vor allem ein Bereich wird stark betroffen sein: Cyber-Security. Die Experten sind sich sicher: Mit steigender Entwicklung von KI-Technologien nehmen auch KI-gestutzte Cyber-Attacken zu. Wir zeigen hier, welche Aktien profitieren konnen.

MOSCOW (dpa-AFX) - The United States has announced a new security assistance package worth $325 million to help meet Ukraine's security and defense needs. The package includes key capabilities such as Bradley infantry fighting vehicles; Stryker armored personnel carriers; artillery rounds; Stinger anti-aircraft systems; Javelin anti-armor systems; ammunition to U.S.-provided HIMARS; and more than 22 million rounds of small-arms ammunition to strengthen Ukraine's forces on the battlefield and to help Ukraine retake its sovereign territory. The package also contains additional munition for Ukraine's air defenses to help protect the Ukrainian people. As per a Pentagon fact sheet, the capabilities in this package include additional munitions for National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile Systems (NASAMS); Stinger anti-aircraft systems; Additional ammunition for High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS); 155mm and 105mm artillery rounds; 15 Bradley Infantry Fighting Vehicles; 10 Stryker Armored Personnel Carriers; Javelin anti-armor systems; Tube-Launched, Optically-Tracked, Wire-Guided (TOW) missiles; AT-4 anti-armor systems; 22 million rounds of small arms ammunition and grenades; Demolition munitions for obstacle clearing; Tactical secure communications support equipment; and Spare parts and other field equipment. This is the 40th drawdown of equipment from Department of Defense inventories using presidential drawdown authorities for Ukraine. The United States is partnering with more than 50 nations to lead efforts in support of Ukraine's self-defense against Russian aggression. Meanwhile, six civilians were killed in overnight Russian attacks on Ukraine's key Black Sea port of Odesa and Donetsk. Copyright(c) 2023 RTTNews.com. All Rights Reserved Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX

Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann.
Highlights:

AI/ML Innovations Inc. wholly owned subsidiary, Health Gauge's AI-based Wearable Device (the Phoenix) was chosen to aggregate electronic patient-reported biometric measures (ePReBMs) in patients with respiratory diseases.

This pilot project aims to test the feasibility and establish a multidimensional architecture for the long-term monitoring of patients with respiratory diseases, using the Health Gauge AI-based Wearable Device.

The secondary endpoint for this study will be the potential predictive value of simple or combined measurements obtained from the Health Gauge AI-based Wearable Device for worsening or exacerbation of the baseline conditions, or for ER access or hospital admission.

TORONTO, ON / ACCESSWIRE / June 14, 2023 / AI/ML Innovations Inc. ("AIML" or the "Company") (CSE:AIML)(OTCQB:AIMLF)(FWB:42FB), a company committed to acquiring and advancing Artificial Intelligence/Machine Learning technologies that address urgent societal needs, is pleased to announce that its wholly owned subsidiary, Health Gauge Inc., has been chosen for a University of Alberta clinical study. This pilot study aims to test the feasibility and establish a multidimensional architecture for long-term monitoring of patients with respiratory diseases, using the Health Gauge AI-based Wearable Device. The ultimate goal of this work is to empower a prompt and more accurate analysis of the health status of the patients and contribute to the validation of new instruments to assist clinicians and patients in clinical decision-making.

Randy Duguay, CEO of Health Gauge added, "The potential validation of our patented, AI-powered smartwatch solution for use as a predictive and monitoring aid for chronic respiratory diseases would be of tremendous value to all stakeholders involved. Chronic respiratory diseases are the most common cause of admission to the Emergency Department of the University of Alberta Hospital. Very few, and not accurate instruments are available to predict which patients will face an exacerbation of their condition and with which degree of severity. The current instruments used in the follow-up and decision-making for patients with respiratory diseases are more or less 100 years old. In addition, patient participation is advocated as an essential part of modern healthcare systems whereby direct access to quality information and sharing of clinical data are paramount to increase patient involvement in the whole healthcare process, with the hope of reducing unnecessary costs and of optimizing the available resources."

TRIAL SPECIFICS

Principal investigators for the trial from the UofA:

Dr. Giovanni Ferrara, MD Professor, Division of Pulmonary Medicine

Dr. Pierre Boulanger Professor, Computer Science Faculty of Engineering

Diagnosis and Main Inclusion Criteria:

Patients with interstitial lung disease (ILD), chronic obstructive respiratory disease (COPD), pulmonary hypertension (PH) and healthy controls.

Trial objectives:

The aim is to test the feasibility of using the Health Gauge AI-based Wearable Device, and to establish a multidimensional architecture, for the long-term monitoring of patients with respiratory diseases.

Primary Endpoint - to demonstrate the feasibility of integration of traditional clinical data (demographics, comorbidities, main symptoms, main radiological findings, pathology, lung function, routine blood work, ongoing medications and clinical outcomes), Quality of Life (QoL) and ePReBMs from the Health Gauge AI-based Wearable Device.

Secondary Endpoint - explore the possibility of predicting exacerbations/flares up of the respiratory condition of the patients.

ePReBMs: Health Gauge's proprietary AI-driven algorithms will provide data on:

- Heart rate and heart rate variability

- Blood pressure

- Pulse wave velocity

- Respiratory rate

- Temperature

- Arterial Saturation

- Sleep pattern (deep, light sleep, awake time), duration and time

- Daily physical activities (step count and distance) and calories burnt

Patients will wear the device for at least 8 hours per day (but ideally for 24 hours to record sleep physiologic parameters), at least 3 days per week, for 6 months. ePReBMS will be recorded by the Health Gauge AI-based Wearable Device. The parameters mentioned above will be measured regularly every 5 seconds, and in connection with changes in activity.

The specific primary outcome for this study will be:

Feasibility, as defined as the usage of the Health Gauge AI-based Wearable Device for at least 70% of the expected time.

The secondary outcomes for this study will be:

The potential predictive value of simple or combined measurements obtained from the Health Gauge AI-based Wearable Device for worsening or exacerbation of the baseline conditions, or for ER access or hospital admission.

Duration of Administration:

At least 3 days per week, 8 hours per day, for 6 months.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

About Health Gauge www.healthgauge.com

Health Gauge's patented solution is a personal health monitoring & management system, which combines the latest wearable health monitors with sophisticated artificial intelligence software tools and proprietary cloud computing software, to help caregivers, patients, and healthcare professionals access and utilize relevant data, resulting in better recovery outcomes and healthy living objectives through the ability to make immediate and better health choices.

The Health Gauge platform provides the right balance of team and technology with the Health Gauge Phoenix wearable, the mobile Health Gauge App, and our VirtualCare solution that includes secured messaging, health information management and sharing, and virtual client engagement. It blends artificial intelligence with the latest sensors in non-invasive bio signal collection, including activity, sleep monitoring, HR, HR variability, and other rich personal health data through ECG & digital pulse analytics.

About AI/ML Innovations Inc. https://aiml-innovations.com/

AI/ML Innovations Inc. has realigned its business operations to capitalize on the burgeoning fields of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML), with an initial investment focus on emerging digital health and wellbeing companies that leverage AI, ML, cloud computing and digital platforms to drive transformative healthcare management solutions and precision support delivery across the health continuum. Through strategic partnerships with Health Gauge (100% owned by AIML), Tech2Heal (up to 22% ownership rights, with 9.44% currently owned), AI Rx Inc. (70% owned by AIML) and other planned accretive investments, the Company continues to capitalize on expanding growth areas, to the benefit of all the Company's stakeholders. AI/ML's shares are traded on the Canadian Securities Exchange under the symbol "AIML", the OTCQB Venture Market under "AIMLF", and the Frankfurt Stock Exchange under "42FB".

On behalf of the Board of Directors

Tim Daniels, Executive Chairman

For more information about AI/ML Innovations :

For detailed information please see AI/ML's website or the Company's filed documents at www.sedar.com.

For further information, contact: Blake Fallis at (778) 405-0882 or info@aiml-innovations.com.

Corporate video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k2QSjo7clXc&feature=youtu.be

Official YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCCfOj2P_Fu3TOK6Jl1G9vEQ

Neither the CSE nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the CSE) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

For AI/ML Innovations Investors

Certain statements made in this press release that are not based on historical information are forward-looking statements that involve substantial known and unknown risks and uncertainties. This press release contains express or implied forward-looking statements relating to, among other things, AI/ML Innovations' expectations concerning management's plans, objectives and strategies, including strategies for defending the Company's intellectual property. These statements are neither promises nor guarantees but are subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond our control, which could cause actual results to differ materially from those contemplated in these forward-looking statements. Existing and prospective investors are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date hereof. AI/ML Innovations Inc. undertakes no obligation to update or revise the information contained in this press release, whether as a result of new information, future events or circumstances or otherwise except as expressly required by applicable securities law. Further information regarding the uncertainties and risks can be found in the disclosure documents filed by AI/ML with the securities regulatory authorities, available at www.sedar.com.

SOURCE: AI/ML Innovations Inc.

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/761145/AIML-Innovations-AI-driven-Patented-Technology-is-Chosen-for-University-of-Alberta-Respiratory-Disease-Clinical-Study
SHANGHAI, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Lzlabs GmbH and Huawei jointly released a unique offering for the modernization of legacy mainframe banking systems during the Huawei Intelligent Finance Summit 2023. By leveraging an innovative mainframe modernization approach together, we are able to transform core legacy banking systems towards modern, agile systems with a reliable technology stack on the platform of innovation. This new innovative solution guides banks to preserve what needs to be preserved, integrate well with other solutions, partner for the right solution, take back control with open technologies, change only what needs changing while keeping interoperability, and enable iterative and incremental change. With this, banks can embrace the digital world and the development of financial digitization to support and sustain the steady growth of business innovation.

On the first day of the summit, Thilo Rockmann, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Lzlabs GmbH, attended the joint solution release session of the "Mainframe Modernization as a Service".

In subsequent session speech,Thilo Rockmann, talked about the importance of mainframe modernization and the process of mainframe application modernization to be followed to achieve transformation success, presenting "From Legacy to Agility".

During this session, Thilo Rockmann shared his industry experience and best practices for mainframe migration. He presented several collective use cases and methodologies that have led to successful migrations, providing customers with greater agility and a leap forward on their digital transformation journey.

Lzlabs GmbH and Huawei have established collaborations with increasing implementation opportunities in the industry. In the future, further collaborations between Lzlabs GmbH and Huawei will bring more significant innovation to the market, helping the global financial industry accelerate its digital transformation.

CONTACT: hwebgcomms@huawei.com

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View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/lzlabs-gmbh-and-huawei-released-a-core-joint-collaboration-initiative-to-support-the-digital-transformation-of-global-banks-301850669.html
About 100 persons including a father and his four children have reportedly lost their lives in a boat mishap at Egbu village in the Patigi local government area of Kwara state.

Meanwhile, Kwara State Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq has commiserated with the people of Patigi on the devastating news of a boat mishap in which dozens of people were feared killed and many others still missing.

Vanguard reliably that the incident happened on Monday when the deceased was returning from a marriage ceremony at neighbouring Egboti village in Niger State.

It was also gathered that river waves took the boat and hit a tree, leading to the boat capsizing and leaving many people dead.

The entire Egboti community has been turned into mourning as no fewer than 50 bodies have so far been recovered from the incident.

Sources in the village told our correspondent that the deceased persons had taken off from Kpada village to be part of the marriage ceremony at Egboti village.

Sources also said that the boat was taking over 300 passengers on a return trip from the venue of the marriage ceremony when it capsized at Egbu village.

The people, who gave details of the incident, said that 69 persons lost their lives from Egbu village, 36 from Gakpan village and four from Kpada village in the Patigi local government area of the state.

Contacted, the state police command Public Relations Officer(PPRO) Mr. Okasanmi Ajayi who confirmed the incident to Vanguard on Tuesday said that, the state police command has despatched the Divisional Police Officer of Patigi local government area of the state to garner more information on the incident".

He said that there was a scanty report of a boat that capsized carrying about 100 people in a village in Patigi local government area of the state adding that, " I will give you more details on the incident as soon as I get more information".

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According to the statement on the condoms issued by the governor's Chief Press Secretary Rafiu Ajakaye it reads,"The Governor is sad to receive reports of the boat accident involving several people, particularly residents of Ebu, Dzakan, Kpada, Kuchalu, and Sampi -- all in Patigi," according to a government statement on Tuesday.

"The Governor sends his heartfelt condolences to the people of these communities and those from other states. He prays to Almighty Allah to repose the souls of the victims.

"The Governor, meanwhile, continues to monitor the rescue efforts already mounted since Monday night in search of possible survivors. He commends the alertness of the Etsu Patigi His Royal Highness Alhaji Ibrahim Umar Bologi II and other local government authorities for the efforts to save as many people as possible who may have survived the mishap."
Cinemo gains high top quartile scoring in first-time program participation in assessment of wide number of HR and people practices ahead of global recruitment drive

Cinemo, a global leader and a highly innovative one-stop-shop provider for fully integrated digital media products has been recognized and certified as a Top Employer 2023 in Germany by the Top Employers Institute.

The Top Employers Institute certification is designed to demonstrate the commitment of organizations in providing employees with a nurturing and supportive work environment, accompanied by excellence in the provision of HR Best Practices.

"We are enormously proud of our achievement in gaining the Top Employers Institute certification and getting such a high scoring," says Susanne Jonas, Director of HR and Office Management at Cinemo. "This underscores our huge efforts to support positive HR initiatives and practices. As we continue to grow our global team, we want to provide the best employee experience possible and ensure that Cinemo remains a great place to work."

As part of Cinemo's commitment to its position as a leading global provider of cutting-edge infotainment products, it is expanding its international team with an ambitious hiring program. The company is advertising a wide variety of job positions from software development to sales to customer support engineers across its headquarters in Germany and local offices in Hungary, Japan and Korea.

"Gaining Top Employer 2023 certification is testament to our philosophy of continuous improvement and the hard work of the HR team, together with all of us, in building an excellent and supportive work environment," says Richard Lesser, CEO at Cinemo. "Our ethos has always been to value and to recognize the work of each employee. This gives us a firm foundation for future growth."

About Cinemo

Cinemo is a global provider of highly innovative infotainment products that make every screen an opportunity. Its range of award-winning, fully integrated, low-footprint digital media offerings combine high performance with high quality and are truly system agnostic. Whether embedded, as mobile apps or through the cloud, Cinemo supports all digital media scenarios for any industry and any device. Its product portfolio is designed and built to deliver excellence, accelerate time to market, and lower TCO for its clients while creating digital media experiences that matter.

Founded in 2008, and with a strong history of industry firsts, Cinemo is the partner of choice for more than 40 market-leading OEMs and over 20 tier-1s. The company works with the top high-tech and consumer electronic companies as well as global music and video content providers. Cinemo's global team of 200+ innovative thinkers from 35 nationalities continuously delivers groundbreaking innovation.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230614718631/en/

Contacts:

Martina Oerther

moerther@cinemo.com
The PowerOcean DC Fit Retrofit Battery Storage Solution is unveiled on the same day.

DUSSELDORF, Germany, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- EcoFlow, a leading eco-friendly energy solutions company, takes a step forward in its commitment to empower everyone with "The Power of Home", by launching the EcoFlow PowerOcean at ees 2023 today. The premium three-phase home solar battery solution features flexible upfront investment, outstanding safety protection, robust backup power, and smart control, and is designed to achieve power independence for the whole house.

With the PowerOcean Home Solar Battery Solution and the PowerStream Balcony Solar System, which was launched on May 31st, EcoFlow demonstrates its commitment to providing intelligent energy solutions tailored to the specific needs of different households. Whether users are renting or owning, living in an apartment or a house, or have small or large energy requirements, EcoFlow empowers all homes with reliable and sustainable power solutions.

As the leader of portable power solutions, EcoFlow, inspired by its own users, is transitioning to home solar battery solutions in 2023. During a research in 2022 which took place in 21 cities across the globe, EcoFlow saw that many users were retrofitting their own home solar solutions with existing EcoFlow products, and came to the realization that sustainable power sources for the whole house had become a rigid demand. In response to one of the crucial demands of this day and age, EcoFlow decided to bring "The Power of Home" to every household. This has been EcoFlow's dream and mission since day one - to provide eco-friendly energy solutions for individuals and families.

"Where is EcoFlow going? To a future where everyone can care for their families, and prepare for increasingly frequent energy crisis," said Magda Partyka, Communications Manager of Europe at EcoFlow. "By providing a power independence solution for every home, the PowerOcean marks a milestone in EcoFlow's journey to power the world with new energy."

A more affordable home solar battery solution

The PowerOcean key components include a three-phase EcoFlow Hybrid Inverter and EcoFlow LFP Batteries. Each battery pack features a built-in DC-DC converter, which enables seamless conversion from 48V and 800V, allowing the hybrid inverter to operate effortlessly with one single battery pack. Compared to series-connected battery systems that require two to three battery packs to start with, the PowerOcean offers an option with a lower basic investment.

With a base capacity of 5kWh, the PowerOcean is expandable to 45kWh by connecting up to nine battery packs, letting users to customize their own solutions based on their power needs and affordability. In addition, the battery packs support parallel connection and thus avoids mutual influence of batteries. As a result, if one of the battery packs malfunctions, users only need to replace the battery instead of all of them.

Standard-setting reliability and safety

By using CATL's battery cell with LFP battery chemistry, the PowerOcean offers a 6,000 life cycle, which means users can power their homes on a daily basis for more than 15 years. Furthermore, the PowerOcean comes with an industry-leading 15-year warranty, providing users with an extra-level of peace-of-mind.

Additionally, EcoFlow sets a new standard in the industry as each battery pack is integrated with an active fire protection module which is activated when the temperature is over 170C. Not only that, auto-heating modules in each battery pack ensures the functioning of the battery when the temperature is as low as -20C. In the meantime, the entire system is IP65 rated, making sure that users' homes get steadily powered in various weather conditions.

Ultimate home backup power for any emergencies

The EcoFlow Hybrid Inverter is integrated with a backup module, offering an output of up to 10kW to power almost all appliances, including water pumps, washing machines, and dishwashers. Adding that to a battery system which is expandable to a maximum 45kWh, the PowerOcean allows users to not compromise their quality of life in the event of an outage. What's more, the PowerOcean offers an ultra-fast automatic switching to power essential appliances whenever the grid fails, meaning that users will hardly notice that the power has gone out.

Cutting-edge user-friendly design

The PowerOcean supports a 10-minute[i] wiring-free battery installation and an ultra-fast three-step commissioning process, saving users an abundance of time. Moreover, the PowerOcean features a compact and exquisite design with its 180mm ultra-thin battery which fits in any basement or garage and saves space for other appliances, and a stack-up battery design and click-on battery terminals to get rid of cable clutters. Last but not least, the PowerOcean offers an energy management system which is visualized via the EcoFlow app and web portal, allowing users to monitor and manage their energy usage in real time and save on energy bills.

PowerOcean DC Fit - Change less, save more

According to EUPD Research, over 1.67 million sets of residential solar systems have been installed in Germany, while under 40% of them are integrated with battery storage systems, leaving around one million households facing declining FiT (Feed-in Tariff) and thus in need of an economical retrofit storage solution. As a result, for house owners who have already installed residential solar systems and are looking for power storage solutions, EcoFlow also offers the PowerOcean DC Fit, which is an easy and cost-effective retrofit battery storage solution.

With EcoFlow's unique PV coupling technology, the PowerOcean DC Fit utilizes the same battery packs as the PowerOcean, and allows its battery packs to directly connect with the existing home solar systems, without the need of an on-grid permit which can take weeks to apply for. On top of that, the PowerOcean DC Fit does not require any changing of AC wires or a storage inverter.

The PowerOcean DC Fit is compatible with most PV inverters on the market by using an innovative self-adaptive control algorithm, and features an all-in-one minimalist design design which support seamless integration of batteries and converting devices. In conclusion, with the PowerOcean DC Fit, users can achieve energy self-sufficiency in an easier way with lower investment, by simply adding battery storage of up to 15kWh to existing home solar systems,

Availability

The EcoFlow PowerOcean and the PowerOcean DC Fit are only available in Germany. The PowerOcean will be available from June 14. Users can register with their emails on EcoFlow's website for free quotations. The PowerOcean DC Fit will be available at a later date.

About EcoFlow

EcoFlow is a leading eco-friendly energy solutions company with the vision to power a new world. Since its founding in 2017, EcoFlow aims to become a reliable and trusted energy companion for individuals and families across the world, providing accessible and renewable power solutions at home, outdoors, and in mobile spaces. Today, with operational headquarters located in the USA, Germany, and Japan, EcoFlow has empowered more than 2.5 million users in over 100 markets worldwide.

[i] The battery installation time is based on internal testing results. Actual installation times may vary.

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CINCINNATI, OH / ACCESSWIRE / June 14, 2023 / Duke Energy:

An additional $125,000 in financial assistance is available to Duke Energy customers in Ohio and Kentucky who may be struggling to pay their energy bills. This is in addition to the $292,000 that was originally dedicated to the Greater Cincinnati area combining for a total of $417,000 through Duke Energy's Share the Light Fund. The Duke Energy Foundation matches every dollar donated to the fund which brings together customers and communities to help individuals and families in need.

"We want our customers who may be struggling to pay their energy bills to know that we are here to help," said Amy Spiller, president of Duke Energy Ohio and Kentucky "Working with our partner agencies, we can support our customers through these challenging times."

The funds will be distributed by two community partners, with a $75,000 contribution to The Salvation Army in Ohio and $50,000 to the Northern Kentucky Community Action Agency (NKCAA). Qualifying Duke Energy customers can receive up to a $300 credit annually on their account.

Customers in Kentucky should contact the NKCAA at 859.581.6607. Ohio customers should contact their local community action agency below to see if they are eligible.

Adams County: 937.378.6041

Butler County: 513.868.9300

Clermont County: 513.732.2277

Clinton County: 937.382.8365

Hamilton County: 513.569.1850

Montgomery County: 937.341.5000

Warren County: 513.970.6737

Over the last five years, Duke Energy has supported more than 6,200 Ohio and Kentucky households with more than $1.9 million in energy bill assistance. In addition to the Share the Light Fund, in January, the company announced a $150,000 donation to the United Way to directly serve Northern Kentucky families.

In 2022, the company also provided more than $3 million in financial assistance to qualifying Ohio natural gas customers through a one-time separate agreement with the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio.

Duke Energy Foundation

The Duke Energy Foundation provides philanthropic support to meet the needs of communities where Duke Energy customers live and work. The Foundation contributes more than $30 million annually in charitable gifts and is funded by Duke Energy shareholder dollars. More information about the Foundation can be found at duke-energy.com/foundation.

Duke Energy Ohio/Kentucky

Duke Energy Ohio/Kentucky, a subsidiary of Duke Energy, provides electric service to 880,000 residential, commercial and industrial customers in a 3,000-square-mile service area, and natural gas service to 550,000 customers in a 2,650-square-mile service area, in Ohio and Kentucky.

Duke Energy (NYSE: DUK), a Fortune 150 company headquartered in Charlotte, N.C., is one of America's largest energy holding companies. Its electric utilities serve 8.2 million customers in North Carolina, South Carolina, Florida, Indiana, Ohio and Kentucky, and collectively own 50,000 megawatts of energy capacity. Its natural gas unit serves 1.6 million customers in North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Ohio and Kentucky. The company employs 28,000 people.

Duke Energy is executing an aggressive clean energy transition to achieve its goals of net-zero methane emissions from its natural gas business by 2030 and net-zero carbon emissions from electricity generation by 2050. The company has interim carbon emission targets of at least 50% reduction from electric generation by 2030, 50% for Scope 2 and certain Scope 3 upstream and downstream emissions by 2035, and 80% from electric generation by 2040. In addition, the company is investing in major electric grid enhancements and energy storage, and exploring zero-emission power generation technologies such as hydrogen and advanced nuclear.

Duke Energy was named to Fortune's 2022 "World's Most Admired Companies" list and Forbes' "World's Best Employers" list. More information is available at duke-energy.com. The Duke Energy News Center contains news releases, fact sheets, photos and videos. Duke Energy's illumination features stories about people, innovations, community topics and environmental issues. Follow Duke Energy on Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram and Facebook.

Contact: Sally Thelen

24-Hour: 800.559.3853

Twitter: @DE_SallyT

View original content here.



View additional multimedia and more ESG storytelling from Duke Energy on 3blmedia.com.

Contact Info:

Spokesperson: Duke Energy

Website: https://www.3blmedia.com/profiles/duke-energy

Email: info@3blmedia.com

SOURCE: Duke Energy

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/761231/Duke-Energy-Offers-Additional-125000-in-Financial-Assistance-to-Customers-in-Ohio-and-Kentucky-Through-the-Share-the-Light-Fund
Funds raised will be used for the completion of a Preliminary Economic Assessment ("PEA") to evaluate accelerating the development of the Sanutura Project

Sarama issues ASX Cleansing Notice

NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION OR RELEASE IN THE UNITED STATES

PERTH, AUSTRALIA and VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / June 14, 2023 / Sarama Resources Ltd ("Sarama" or the "Company") (ASX:SRR)(TSXV:SWA) is pleased to report that on 14 June 2023, it has closed the Tranche 2 Delivery versus Payment ("DvP") portion of its previously announced A$2.0 million equity placement (the "Placement") (refer to Sarama News releases dated 3 April 2023 and 13 April 2023).

The Tranche 2 DvP portion of the Placement raised aggregate gross proceeds of A$262,436 with the Company issuing 2,624,360 Chess Depository Instruments ("CDIs") at an issue price of A$0.10 per CDI. Each new CDI issued under the Placement will rank equally with existing CDIs on issue and each CDI will represent a beneficial interest in 1 common share of the Company. The Company has also issued 1,312,180 free attaching unlisted options ("Placement Option") being 1 Placement Option for every 2 new CDIs issued pursuant to Tranche 2 DvP portion of the Placement.

Tranche 1 of the Placement, completed on 13 April 2023, raised aggregate gross proceeds of A$1,375,000 with the Company issuing 13,750,000 CDIs at an issue price of A$0.10 per CDI. The Company also issued 6,875,000 Placement Options. Each Placement Option will be exercisable at A$0.15 and will expire on 13 April 2026.

The Tranche 2 DvP portion of the Placement was issued to institutional and other sophisticated and professional investors upon receipt of shareholder approval, as required by the ASX Listing Rules, at its Annual General Meeting held on 6 June 2023 (Vancouver time) / 7 June 2023 (Perth time). An Appendix 2A was announced to ASX on 14 June 2023 and provides further detail on the issue of the Tranche 2 DvP Placement CDIs.

The remaining Tranche 2 non DvP portion of gross proceeds of A$362,564 is anticipated to close by 16 June 2023.

The net proceeds from the Placement are intended to be used to complete a PEA to evaluate an accelerated multi-stage development at the Sanutura Project and to fund administration and general working capital costs.

Sarama's CEO, Andrew Dinning, commented:

"We are very pleased with the strong support shown from our existing shareholders and welcome a number of new institutional, professional and sophisticated investors. The strong support shown by existing shareholders supports the company's view that Sarama remains one of the best value gold developers in the market.

The funds raised will be used to evaluate an accelerated multi-stage development at the Sanutura Project which we believe has the potential to generate a very compelling investment case based on the extensive oxide resource and related grade and cost profile."

In connection with Tranche 2 DvP portion of the Placement, Sarama paid finders' fees totalling A$15,407 to Euroz Hartleys Limited, an arm's length party in accordance with the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange, who acted as Sole Lead Manager and Bookrunner to the Placement.

Members of Sarama's Board and Management have subscribed for an aggregate 500,000 CDIs (together with the attaching Placement Options) in the Placement. Each of the directors and officers who participates in the Placement will be a "related party" of the Company within the meaning of that term in Canadian Multilateral Instrument 61-101 - Protection of Minority Shareholders in Special Transactions ("MI 61-101"). Participation by them in the Placement is therefore a "related party transaction" within the meaning of MI 61-101. Pursuant to Section 5.5(a) and 5.7(1)(a) of MI 61-101, the Company was exempt from obtaining a formal valuation and minority approval of the Company's shareholders in respect of the Placement due to the fair market value of their participation being below 25% of the Company's market capitalization for the purposes of MI 61-101. The Company will file a material change report in respect of the Placement which will detail the participation by any directors and officers of the Company. It is expected that the material change report will be filed more than 21 days prior to the completion of the Placement in respect of any participating directors and officers. Each of the directors and officers who participate in the Placement will be subject to an Exchange Hold period imposed by the TSX Venture Exchange on the CDIs and Placement Options issued to such persons. The Exchange Hold Period will expire 4 months from the date of issue of the securities.

The Placement CDIs and Placement Options have not been and will not be registered under the U.S. 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 registered under the U.S. Securities Act and applicable state securities laws or an exemption from registration is available.

Cleansing Notice under section 708A(5)(e) of the Australian Corporations Act 2001 (Cth)

The Australian Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) ("Corporations Act") restricts the offer for sale of securities without a disclosure document unless the relevant sale satisfies an exemption set out in section 708 or section 708A of the Corporations Act. The Australian and Securities Investments Commission Class Order [CO 14/827] ("Class Order") provides relief so that an offer of CDIs over underlying foreign securities is regulated as an offer of securities under the Corporations Act. The Company seeks to rely on an exemption in section 708A of the Corporations Act (as modified by the Class Order) with respect to any sale of the CDIs.

As required by section 708A(5)(e) of the Corporations Act as modified by the Class Order, the Company gives notice that:

The CDIs were issued without disclosure to investors under Part 6D.2 of the Corporations Act. The Company, as at the date of this notice, has complied with: the provisions of section 601CK of the Corporations Act as they apply to the Company; and sections 674 and 674A of the Corporations Act. As at the date of this notice, there is no information, for the purposes of section 708A(7) and 708A(8): that has been excluded from a continuous disclosure notice in accordance with the ASX Listing Rules; and that investors and their professional advisers would reasonably require for the purpose of making an informed assessment of: the assets and liabilities, financial position and performance, profits and losses and prospects of the Company; or the rights and liabilities attaching to the CDIs.

Where applicable, references in this notice to sections of the Corporations Act are to those sections as modified by the Class Order.

For further information on the Company's activities, please contact:

Andrew Dinning - e: info@saramaresources.com t: +61 (0) 8 9363 7600

This announcement was authorised for release to the ASX by the Board of Sarama Resources Ltd.

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

ABOUT SARAMA RESOURCES LTD

Sarama Resources Ltd (ASX:SRR, TSX-V:SWA) is a West African focused gold explorer/developer with substantial landholdings in south-west Burkina Faso. Sarama is focused on maximising the value of its strategic assets and advancing its key projects towards development.

Sarama's 100%-owned(4) Sanutura Project is principally located within the prolific Hounde Greenstone Belt in south-west Burkina Faso and is the exploration and development focus of the Company. The Project hosts the Tankoro and Bondi Deposits which have a combined Mineral Resource of 0.6Moz gold (Indicated) plus 2.3Moz gold (Inferred)(1).

Together, the deposits present a potential mine development opportunity featuring an initial, long-life CIL project which may be established and paid for by the significant oxide Mineral Resource base.

Sarama has built further optionality into its portfolio including an approximate 470km exploration position in the highly prospective Banfora Belt in south-western Burkina Faso. The Koumandara Project hosts several regional-scale structural features and trends of gold-in-soil anomalism extending for over 25km along strike.

Sarama also holds an approximate 18% participating interest in the Karankasso Project Joint Venture ("JV") which is situated adjacent to the Company's Sanutura Project in Burkina Faso and is a JV between Sarama and Endeavour Mining Corp ("Endeavour") in which Endeavour is the operator of the JV. In February 2020, an updated Mineral Resource estimate of 709koz gold(3) was declared for the Karankasso Project JV.

The Company's Board and management team have a proven track record in Africa and a strong history in the discovery and development of large-scale gold deposits. Sarama is well positioned to build on its current success with a sound strategy to surface and maximise the value of its property portfolio.

Sanutura Project - An Already Large Mineral Resource with Potential to Grow

The Company's primary focus is its 100%-owned(4) Sanutura Project, which hosts a large Mineral Resource of 0.6Moz Au (Indicated) plus 2.3Moz Au (Inferred)(1) and covers an area of 1,420km2. The Project occupies a commanding position along 70km of strike in the prolific Hounde Belt (refer Figure 6), Burkina Faso's pre-eminent gold belt.

The Project lies 60km south of Endeavour Mining's Hounde Mine (5Moz Au); 120km south of Fortuna Silver's high-grade Yaramoko Mine (1Moz Au), and 140km south of Endeavour Mining's Mana Mine (5Moz Au), highlighting the significant gold endowment of the Hounde Belt. Endeavour Mining's Bantou Project (1.2Moz Au Mineral Resource of 0.7Moz Au (indicated) plus 0.5Moz Au (inferred)(5)) is located only 6km from the bulk of the Sanutura Project's main deposit, which illustrates the gold camp scale of endowment of the immediate area.

The Project has significant growth potential and the primary objective of the current +50,000m drill program is to increase the existing 0.2Moz Au (Indicated) plus 0.8Moz Au (Inferred)(2) pit shell constrained oxide and transition component of the Project's Mineral Resource to further underwrite and enhance the economics of mine development.

The recent drill program has generally focused on shallow additional and extensional targets throughout the well-mineralised western corridor of the Tankoro Deposit, where mineralisation has been drill-defined for a semi-continuous strike length of 16km and potential exists to expand the Mineral Resource at shallow depths in oxide material.

Figure 1 - Sanutura Project Location Plan

FOOTNOTES

Mineral Resource estimate for Sanutura Project - 9.4Mt @ 1.9g/t Au for 0.6Moz Au (Indicated) plus 52.7Mt @ 1.4g/t Au for 2.3Moz (Inferred), reported at cut-off grades ranging 0.2-1.6g/t Au, reflecting the mining methods and processing flowsheets assumed to assess the likelihood of the Mineral Resources to have reasonable prospects for eventual economic extraction. The effective date of the Company's Mineral Resource estimate is 16 November 2021. For further information regarding the Mineral Resource estimate refer to the technical report titled "NI 43-101 Independent Technical Report Sanutura Project, South-West Burkina Faso", dated 7 February 2022 and prepared by Paul Schmiede, Rindra Le Grange and Fred Kock, and the Company's ASX Prospectus dated 11 March 2022. Paul Schmiede is an employee of Sarama. Ms Le Grange and Mr Kock are employees of Cube Consulting Pty Ltd and Orway Mineral Consultants Pty Ltd respectivley and are considered to be independent of Sarama. The technical report is available under Sarama's profile on SEDAR at www.sedar.com and the ASX Prospectus is available under Sarama's profile on ASX at www.asx.com.au. Oxide & transition component of the Mineral Resource for Sanutura Project - 3.2Mt @ 1.6g/t Au for 0.2Moz Au (Indicated) plus 23.4Mt @ 1.1g/t Au for 0.8Moz Au (Inferred), reported above cut-off grades of 0.2g/t Au and 0.3g/t Au for oxide and transition material respectively. Mineral Resource estimate for Karankasso Project - 12.74Mt @ 1.73g/t Au for 709koz Au (effective date of December 31, 2019), disclosed on 24 February 2020 by Semafo Inc ("Semafo", since acquired by Endeavour Mining Corp. "Endeavour"). For further information regarding that Mineral Resource estimate, refer to the news release "Semafo: Bantou Project Inferred Resources Increase to 2.2Moz" dated 24 February 2020 and Semafo: Bantou Project NI43-101 Technical Report - Mineral Resource Estimate" dated 3 April 2020 and the Company's ASX Prospectus dated 11 March 2022. The news release and technical report are available under Semafo's and Endeavour's profile on SEDAR at www.sedar.com and the ASX Prospectus is available under Sarama's profile on ASX at www.asx.com.au. The Mineral Resource estimate was fully prepared by, or under the supervision of Semafo. Sarama has not independently verified Semafo's mineral Resource Estimate and takes no responsibility for its accuracy. Semafo, and now Endeavour, is the operator of the Karankasso Project JV and Sarama is relying on their Qualified Persons' assurance of the validity of the Mineral Resource estimate. Additional technical work has been undertaken on the Karankasso Project since the effective date but Sarama is not in a position to quantify the impact of this additional work on the Mineral Resource estimate referred to above. The Government of Burkina Faso has processed the requisite documents to facilitate the grant of the new, full-term Tankoro 2 and Djarkadougou 2 Exploration Permit (the "Permit") and subsequently issued the invitation to pay the permit issuance fee (the "Fee") and the Fee was paid within the requisite 10-day timeline. Following the payment of the Fee, the issuance of the Permit's arrete and related paperwork becomes an administrative process during which time the Company may undertake work on the Tankoro 2 and Djarkadougou 2 Properties. The Company has received the arrete for the Djarkadougou 2 Exploration Permit and anticipates the issuance of the arrete for the Tankoro 2 Exploration Permit in due course given the successful granting of this permit as per statutory government process. The property hosting the Tankoro and Bondi Deposits respectively, were formerly known as Tankoro and Djarkadougou, but have been renamed as part of the process of re-issuing the respective Permits. Endeavour Mining's Bantou Project Mineral Resource - 18.1Mt @ 1.2g/t Au for 0.71Moz Au (Indicated) plus 3.5Mt @ 4.1g/t Au for 0.46Moz Au (Inferred). This is the aggregate of the Mineral Resource listing for the Bantou and Bantou Nord Deposits which are located within the Bantou Project. Data is sourced from Endeavour Mining Mineral Resource and Reserve statement and current as of December 31, 2022. The Bantou Project Technical Report is available under the SEMAFO profile on SEDAR. "Bantou Project, NI 43-101 Technical Report - Mineral Resource Estimate", dated 3 April, 2020. .

CAUTION REGARDING FORWARD LOOKING INFORMATION

Information in this news release that is not a statement of historical fact constitutes forward-looking information. Such forward-looking information includes, but is not limited to, statements regarding the use of proceeds from the Placement, the Company's future exploration and development plans, the potential for the Sanutura and Karankasso Projects to host economic mineralisation, the potential to expand the existing estimated Mineral Resources at the Sanutura Project (including the present oxide and transition component), the accuracy of the Mineral Resource estimate for the Sanutura Project in localized areas with the addition of new drilling and assay information, the potential to extend and add to existing mineralisation at the MM, MC, Obi and Kenobi Prospects, the potential for development of a mine at the Sanutura Project, the potential for the receipt of regulatory approvals and the timing and prospects for the issuance of the arrete for the Tankoro 2 Exploration Permit by the Government of Burkina Faso. The Company's full suite of exploration permits are at varying stages in their life cycles and at any one time, the Company has exploration permits either in renewal or re-issue phase and although the Company follows due government process and anticipates new exploration permits will be granted in due course, it cannot guarantee this will be done in a timely manner or at all. Actual results, performance or achievements of the Company may vary from the results suggested by such forward-looking statements due to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors. Such factors include, among others, that the business of exploration for gold and other precious minerals involves a high degree of risk and is highly speculative in nature; Mineral Resources are not mineral reserves, they do not have demonstrated economic viability, and there is no certainty that they can be upgraded to mineral reserves through continued exploration; few properties that are explored are ultimately developed into producing mines; geological factors; the actual results of current and future exploration; changes in project parameters as plans continue to be evaluated, as well as those factors disclosed in the Company's publicly filed documents.

There can be no assurance that any mineralisation that is discovered will be proven to be economic, or that future required regulatory licensing or approvals will be obtained. However, the Company believes that the assumptions and expectations reflected in the forward-looking information are reasonable. Assumptions have been made regarding, among other things, the Company's ability to carry on its exploration activities, the sufficiency of funding, the timely receipt of required approvals, the price of gold and other precious metals, that the Company will not be affected by adverse political and security-related events, the ability of the Company to operate in a safe, efficient and effective manner and the ability of the Company to obtain further financing as and when required and on reasonable terms. Readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information.

Sarama does not undertake to update any forward-looking information, except as required by applicable laws.

QUALIFIED PERSONS' STATEMENT

Scientific or technical information in this disclosure that relates to the preparation of the Mineral Resource estimate for the Sanutura Project is based on information compiled or approved by Paul Schmiede. Paul Schmiede is an employee of Sarama Resources Ltd and is a Fellow in good standing of the Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy. Paul Schmiede has sufficient experience which is relevant to the commodity, style of mineralisation under consideration and activity which he is undertaking to qualify as a Qualified Person under National Instrument 43-101. Paul Schmiede consents to the inclusion in this news release of the information, in the form and context in which it appears.

Scientific or technical information in this disclosure that relates to exploration activities at the Sanutura Project is based on information compiled or approved by Guy Scherrer. Guy Scherrer is an employee of Sarama Resources Ltd and is a member in good standing of the Ordre des Geologues du Quebec and has sufficient experience which is relevant to the commodity, style of mineralisation under consideration and activity which he is undertaking to qualify as a Qualified Person under National Instrument 43-101. Guy Scherrer consents to the inclusion in this disclosure of the information, in the form and context in which it appears.

Scientific or technical information in this disclosure that relates to the quotation of the Karankasso Project's Mineral Resource estimate and exploration activities is based on information compiled by Paul Schmiede. Paul Schmiede is an employee of Sarama Resources Ltd and is a Fellow in good standing of the Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy. Paul Schmiede has sufficient experience which is relevant to the commodity, style of mineralisation under consideration and activity which he is undertaking to qualify as a Qualified Person under National Instrument 43-101. Paul Schmiede consents to the inclusion in this disclosure of the information, in the form and context in which it appears. Paul Schmiede and Sarama have not independently verified Semafo's (now Endeavour's) Mineral Resource estimate and take no responsibility for its accuracy.

Competent PERSONS' STATEMENT

The Mineral Resource estimates referred to in this disclosure were first disclosed in accordance with ASX Listing Rule 5.8 in the Company's ASX Prospectus dated 11 March 2022. The Company confirms that it is not aware of any new information or data that materially affects the information included in the ASX Prospectus and that all material assumptions and technical parameters underpinning the estimates in the ASX Prospectus continue to apply and have not materially changed.

SOURCE: Sarama Resources Ltd.

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/761213/Sarama-Completes-Second-Tranche-of-Placement-to-Advance-PEA
VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / June 14, 2023 / Perk Labs Inc. (CSE:PERK)(OTCQB:PKLBF)(FKT:PKLB) ("Perk" or the "Company") the company that specializes in ordering and payment technology, is thrilled to announce that its subsidiary Getit Technologies has been selected as an ordering and payment technology provider by the Clocktower Group of Brewpubs ("Clocktower").

Clocktower Group of Brewpubs encompasses 5 locations across Ottawa, including Ottawa's original craft brewery. The Clocktower Group of Brewpubs, powered by Getit Technologies' solutions, will continue to deliver the exceptional craft beers and welcoming ambiance that customers have come to love. Getit's QR ordering and payment technologies will enable Clocktower to focus on brewing quality beers while leveraging technology to streamline back-end operations and provide an enhanced customer experience.

"We are excited to partner with Getit Technologies to enhance our brewery operations and deliver an exceptional experience to our valued customers," said Sean Rutherford, VP of Clocktower Group of Brewpubs. "Their advanced technology solutions will enable us to improve efficiency, increase productivity, and maintain the high-quality standards that Clocktower is known for."

"We are thrilled to have Clocktower Group of Brewpubs on board and provide our advanced technology solutions to enhance their brewery operations" said Ryan Hardy, CEO of Getit Technologies. "At Getit, we believe in leveraging technology to revolutionize the customer experience, and we are confident that our solutions will help Clocktower maintain its position as an industry leader."

About Clocktower Group of Brewpubs

The Clocktower Brew Pub is Ottawa's longest established full service craft brewery. We make great craft beer in-house and fresh original food served in a comfortable and upbeat environment. Happily serving Ottawa since 1996.

About Perk Labs Inc.

Perk Labs, the owner of Getit Technologies Inc. and Perk Hero Software Inc, specializes in technology, logistics, and connecting communities. Our digital payments and loyalty software empowers merchants to optimize their business and customer journey. Our marketplace and driver network connects and supports their business with additional sales and flexible last mile delivery options.

For more information, contact:

Ryan Hardy

CEO

(833) 338-0299

investors@perklabs.io

Neither the Canadian Securities Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the Canadian Securities Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking information or forward-looking statements (collectively "forward-looking information") within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Forward-looking information is typically identified by words such as: "may", "believe", "thinks", "expect", "exploring", "expand", "could", "anticipate", "intend", "estimate", "plan", "pursue", "potentially", "projected", "should", "will" and similar expressions, or are those, which, by their nature, refer to future events. These forward-looking statements, which involve risks and uncertainties, relate to, among other things, the discussion of the Company's business strategies and its expectations concerning future operations. Although the Company considers these forward-looking statements to be reasonable based on information currently available to it, they may prove to be incorrect, and the forward-looking statements in this release are subject to numerous risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause future results to differ materially from those expressed or implied in such forward-looking statements. The Company cautions investors that any forward-looking information provided by the Company is not a guarantee of future results or performance, and that actual results may differ materially from those in forward-looking statements. Undue reliance should not be placed on such forward-looking information, as there can be no assurance that the plans, intentions or expectations upon which they are based will occur.

SOURCE: Perk Labs Inc.

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/761160/Getit-Technologies-Selected-as-Preferred-Technology-Provider-by-Clocktower-Group-of-Brewpubs
NORTHAMPTON, MA / ACCESSWIRE / June 14, 2023 / At Boston Scientific, we encourage everyone to bring their full selves to work, knowing they'll be accepted, heard and valued.

For Pride Month, three employees from around the globe share what having a supportive and inclusive culture means to them, and how their involvement in the Promoting Respect, Inclusion, Diversity and Equality (PRIDE) employee resource group has helped them speak up and out on behalf of their LGBTQ+ colleagues.

Finding courage, strength and acceptance

Growing up in Piaui, Brazil, Cadu was bright, energetic and fascinated by culture, leading him to learn four languages and eventually build a successful career in international relations. But for years, Cadu kept part of himself hidden: "I thought my parents would be angry when they found out I was gay," he says. "In my mind, I tried to compensate by aiming to be the best in school, the best at everything."

Though this drive helped Cadu excel in many aspects of his life, finding the courage and acceptance to embrace his authentic self would prove to be a long road.

When he was 16, Cadu moved to Brasilia to study International Relations. For the first time, he met others who identified as gay, which played a major role in his eventual decision to tell his friends and family. "Despite my initial fear of telling my parents, they immediately supported me. In fact, as soon as Brazil started allowing same-sex marriages, my mother became one of the first judges in my state to perform them."

As he began his career, Cadu chose to remain discreet about his sexuality. But soon after he joined the team at Boston Scientific as a Government Affairs specialist, a simple act by his manager changed his mind: "We were entering a building that required us to show our credentials," he says. "A guard at the door asked if we were 'together, but in a good way.' My manager responded, 'Is there a bad way for us to be together?' The guard immediately looked ashamed. In that moment, I knew I could count on my manager to be supportive."

A few weeks later, Cadu decided to come out to his manager and colleagues. He also joined the PRIDE ERG. Today he lives with his fiance Caio, whom he'll marry next year.

"Boston Scientific is the first company where I feel truly comfortable being honest and open about my sexuality and celebrated for who I am," he says. "Through PRIDE and other platforms, I'm able to speak up for others like me and help inspire them to embrace who they are, without fear."

"I can't imagine not having that time with my daughter"

For Michael, a senior marketing specialist supporting the company's WATCHMANTM business and global communications lead for the PRIDE ERG, helping people live healthier, better lives has always been a passion - it's what drew him to Boston Scientific almost five years ago. For him, living life to the fullest meant starting a family with his husband, Matt.

Michael began the adoption process a few months after joining the company, in 2020. "I don't think many people realize how challenging and lengthy the process can be," he says, reflecting on the multi-year experience. "But having support from the company made such a difference for us, from a benefits standpoint and also in the outpouring of encouragement we received from so many across the organization." He recalls a baby shower his colleagues held for him, and what that meant to his growing family.

Michael and Matt finalized the adoption of their daughter, Mila, in 2022. "We were there for Mila's birth, and since it was an open adoption, we remain close with her birth mother," says Michael. He and Matt also had the chance to bond with Mila over the first few months of her life as part of the company's global parental leave benefits. "I can't imagine not having that time with my daughter," Michael says. "Without it, I think it would have been a very different experience."

A pioneer for change

Fifteen years ago, Anna joined Boston Scientific in Sydney, Australia, not long after she married her wife, Yasmin. The wedding took place in Canada, because same-sex marriage was not yet legal in Australia.

Anna came out to her manager during her first week at the company. Since then, she has not been afraid to speak up about who she is or when she's felt a need for change. For instance, when her wife was expecting their first child, there were only two types of leave available at Boston Scientific in Australia: maternity or paternity. "I felt uncomfortable, because I wasn't taking either of these," she says. She approached Human Resources with this concern, which eventually led to changing the name of the policy to "parental leave" for all employees in Australia and New Zealand.

Anna's unwavering commitment to championing diversity and inclusivity was likely what influenced company leaders to select her to launch the Asia-Pacific PRIDE ERG in 2020. "It was hard, because it's a region where LGBTQ+ is not often spoken about," she says. "But we got so much accomplished that first year, spreading education and awareness across our region where there was nothing before. It's just grown ever since."

Anna says that leading the Asia-Pacific chapter of PRIDE has been a highlight of her career. "For me, it's so important for others to see people who are out and proud and able to thrive in a career at Boston Scientific," she says. "I know I'm part of something bigger than myself, my team, even my country."

Boston Scientific is committed to fostering a diverse, equitable and inclusive workplace where all of our employees can bring their authentic selves to work and thrive personally and professionally. See our objectives and progress to date in our recently released 2022 Performance Report.

View original content here

Cadu (left) with his fiance

View additional multimedia and more ESG storytelling from Boston Scientific on 3blmedia.com.

Contact Info:

Spokesperson: Boston Scientific

Website: https://www.3blmedia.com/profiles/boston-scientific

Email: info@3blmedia.com

SOURCE: Boston Scientific

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/761236/Boston-Scientific-Giving-Voice-to-the-LGBTQ-Community
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - June 14, 2023) - European Energy Metals (TSXV: FIN) (FSE: W28) ("European Energy" or the "Company") is pleased to announce the engagement of GeoPool Oy of Vantaa, Finland to implement a community and landowner awareness program and provide Finnish speaking geotechnical personnel for the Company's 2023 exploration program for its Lithium-Cesium-Tantalum ("LCT') and Rare Earth Element ("REE") Finnish Pegmatite Project, consisting of five exploration concessions in central and southern Finland.

"A large portion of Central Finland is held by private landowners and obtaining permission for exploration is a key aspect of successful operation in the country," stated European Energy Metals CEO Jeremy Poirier. "GeoPool Oy is an in-country geological and geotechnical consulting firm with a strong history of operating successfully throughout the country and will be instrumental in assisting Resourceful Geoscience Solutions successfully complete European Energy Metals' 2023 summer exploration campaign," he continued.

GeoPool will be assisting the Company through initial notification and subsequent follow-up with landowners and stakeholders of the Company's exploration activities. GeoPool will also provide two Finnish speaking geotechnicians to assist the Canadian exploration team with field activities and more importantly with communication with local community: landowners, stakeholders and contractors.

A senior GeoPool geologist will also assist in face-to-face contact with as many landowners and people living in or close to the sites as possible, as well as providing local expertise on key area to focus on. More information on GeoPool can be found at https://www.geopool.fi.

European Energy Metals in earning an 80% interest in the Finnish Pegmatite Project from Capella Minerals Ltd (TSXV: CMIL). A detailed assessment of the historic and government exploration data compiled by the Finnish Geological Survey ("GTK") identified a series of permissive tracts for LCT pegmatites. European Energy Metals exploration concessions were identified as a result of this pegmatite research.

R. Tim Henneberry, P.Geo. (BC), a Director of European Energy Metals Corp., is the Qualified Person who has reviewed and approved the technical content disclosed in this release.

About the Finland Pegmatite Project

The Finland Pegmatite Project consists of four exploration concessions in central Finland and one exploration concession in southern Finland. These reservations cover a total area of 2,300 square kilometres and are focused on Lithium-Cesium-Tantalum or LCT pegmatite complexes located within the Jarvi-Pohjanmaa and Seinajoki lithium-permissive tracts as defined by the Geological Survey of Finland (GTK). Four of the reservations (Nabba, Lappajarvi W, Lappajarvi E and Kaatiala) lie immediately adjacent to, and to the south of, Keliber Oy's spodumene mine development project in the Kaustinen district.

Keliber Oy is a consortium, comprised of Sibanye-Stillwater (79%), Finnish Minerals Group (20%) and Finnish shareholders (1%). A Definitive Feasibility Study by Hatch dated June 14, 2018 states a JORC Code 2012 compliant Measured and Indicated Mineral Resource of 9.47 million tonnes at a grade of 1.16% Li2O.1

European Energy Metals cautions investors the presence of lithium mineralization at Keliber Oy is not necessarily indicative of similar mineralization at the Nabba concession.

Under the terms of an Earn In Agreement with Capella Minerals Limited (TSXV: CMIL), European Energy may earn an 80% interest in the Finland Pegmatite Project by issuing 2,500,000 shares, paying Cdn$500,000 and incurring Cdn$2,500,000 dollars in exploration expenditures staged over a 4 year earn in period.

1. Definitive Feasibility Study - Executive Summary June 14, 2018 by Hatch. http://mb.cision.com/Public/14755/2547948/b83a99f0255413fe.pdf.

About European Energy Metals Corp.

European Energy Metals. is a junior mining company currently focussed on the Lithium-Cesium-Tantalum Finnish Pegmatite Project in central Finland. Governing bodies in Europe and Finland are legislating environmentally friendly and energy independent laws and policies. One of the key components is access to REE and specifically Lithium. The company is also focusing on its Champ Copper project located in Southeast British Columbia.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT:

Jeremy Poirier, CEO

Telephone: 604-722-9842

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.

Cautionary Statements Regarding Forward-Looking Information

This news release contains forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable securities legislation. Forward-looking information is typically identified by words such as: believe, expect, anticipate, intend, estimate, postulate and similar expressions, or are those, which, by their nature, refer to future events. Such statements include, without limitation, statements regarding the future results of operations, performance and achievements of the Company, including the future planned exploration programs for, and the exploration potential of, the Finland Pegmatite Project. Although the Company believes that such statements are reasonable, it can give no assurances that such expectations will prove to be correct. All such forward-looking information is based on certain assumptions and analyses made by the Company in light of their experience and perception of historical trends, current conditions and expected future developments, as well as other factors management believes are appropriate in the circumstances. This information, however, 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. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ from this forward-looking information include the costs of any anticipated work programs and the ability to fund such costs, required approvals in connection with any work programs and the ability to obtain such approvals, risks inherent in exploration as well as those described under the heading "Risks and Uncertainties" in the Company's most recently filed MD&A. The Company does not intend, and expressly disclaims any obligation to, update or revise the forward-looking information contained in this news release, except as required by law. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking information.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/169745
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - June 14, 2023) - K9 Gold Corp. (TSXV: KNC) (FSE: 5GP) (OTCQB: WDFCF) ("K9" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that it has acquired an additional 25 claims (1274 ha) by direct staking as part of the Company's JB Lithium Project in the James Bay Region of northern Quebec. This will bring the total project holdings to 6692 Ha in 130 claims. An aggressive summer exploration is now planned and is fully funded.

The Lac Laribosiere-Tilly (LL-T) property (the "Property") is located approximately 60 km due north of the previously announced Lac Joubert-Tilly (LJ-T) property on the JB Li Project. The LL-T property is located approximately 380 km east of Radisson, Quebec. Other projects in the area include Allkem's James Bay lithium project, which recently received federal approval for development, Patriot Battery Metals Corvette project located 50 km to the west and Winsome Resources Lithium Adina project located approximately 40 km to the west. The LL-T property is underlain by a package of Archaean rocks that is similar to the geological setting of the Corvette and Adina projects, and includes outcrops of Tilly pegmatites, a known host of lithium in the James Bay region.

K9 has recently completed a helicopter-borne magnetometer and VLF survey on the project. Results will be reported on completion of data interpretation. A LiDAR and photogrammetry survey is scheduled for the project in early June 2023, to be followed by an extensive program of soil sampling, prospecting and mapping. However this may be delayed as the Quebec Ministere des Ressources Naturelles et des Forets has recently placed a ban on all field work due to the forest fire situation.

Jeff Poloni, President and CEO of K9 commented, "We are very excited to add to our JB Lithium Project in an area that is turning out to be extremely prolific for Lithium exploration."

About JB Lithium Project

The JB Lithium Project is located in the La Grande sub-province of the Archaean Superior Province in Quebec, and comprises three units, the Riviere Salomon property (see Company release November 15, 2022 for property details), the Lac Joubert - Tilly property (see Company release May 25, 2023) and the newly staked Lac Laribosiere-Tilly.

Lac Laribosiere-Tilly (LL-T)property

The geology of the LL-T property is underlain mainly by the Archean Joubert Suite and the Neoarchean Coates Suite. Where the Joubert Suite occurs on the property, it consists of a package of foliated, banded or gneissic biotite-tonalite and granodiorite. The rocks of the Coates suite have been described as biotite tonalite or granodiorite.

Within the property boundaries, both the Joubert suite and the Coates suite have been intruded by a broad zone of Tilly Pegmatites which comprise pegmatitic granite with biotite-muscovite-tourmaline-magnetite-garnet assemblages. These pegmatites are a significant lithium target for other explorers in this area. A 1998 Quebec Government geological mapping program located one outcrop of Tilly Pegmatites. Government mapping also indicates that the property is transected by diabase dykes of the Mistassini Dyke Swarm.

About K9 Gold Corp

K9 Gold Corp has assembled a highly-experienced and dynamic team to explore its JB Lithium Project. K9 also operates the Stony Lake Gold Project in central Newfoundland. The project has been acquired from District Copper Corp by an option agreement, whereby K9 can earn up to a 100% interest in the project (see Company release dated July 30, 2020). The Company also owns a 100% interest in the Desert Eagle Vanadium-Uranium project located in the historic Henry Mountains Mining District in SE Utah. The area has seen extensive historic vanadium and uranium mining and is close to Anfield Energy Inc's Shootaring Canyon mill.

To ensure a safe workplace environment that protects the health and safety of employees and contractors, K9 Gold follows all federally and provincially mandated and recommended guidelines regarding COVID-19.

Chris M. Healey, P. Geo, Chief Geologist and a Director of K9 Gold Corp., is the qualified person under NI 43-101 guidelines who is responsible for the technical content of this release and approves its release.

Toll Free Number: (833) 434-GOLD (4653)

Kosta Tsoutsis

Director

K9 Gold Corp.

email: kosta@k9goldcorp.com

Telephone: 604 808-9134

Brian Morrison

Chief Financial Officer and Director

K9 Gold Corp.

email: brian@k9goldcorp.com

telephone: 604 312-6910

The Company is listed on the TSX Venture Exchange.

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.

Disclaimer for Forward-Looking Information

Certain statements in this release are forward-looking statements, which reflect the expectations of management regarding K9's intention to continue to identify potential transactions and make certain corporate changes and applications. Forward-looking statements consist of statements that are not purely historical, including any statements regarding beliefs, plans, expectations or intentions regarding the future. Such statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results, performance or developments to differ materially from those contained in the statements. No assurance can be given that any of the events anticipated by the forward-looking statements will occur or, if they do occur, what benefits K9 will obtain from them. These forward-looking statements reflect managements' current views and are based on certain expectations, estimates and assumptions which may prove to be incorrect. A number of risks and uncertainties could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements, including K9's inability to identify transactions having satisfactory terms or at all and the results of exploration or review of properties that K9 does acquire. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date of this news release and K9 assumes no obligation to update these forward-looking statements, or to update the reasons why actual results differed from those projected in the forward-looking statements, except in accordance with applicable securities laws.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/169784
Toronto, Ontario and New York, New York--(Newsfile Corp. - June 14, 2023) - Sekur Private Data Ltd. (CSE: SKUR) (OTCQX: SWISF) (FSE: GDT0) ("Sekur" or the "Company"), a leading Swiss hosted secure and private communications platform, is pleased to announce that, since it has started optimization and SEO in January 2023, its Customer Acquisition Cost "CAC" was lowered to US$32 per Customer in June, month-to-date, while Life Time Value metrics "LTV" per customer has increased again.

In January 2023, The Company has embarked on a reduction of its Customer Acquisition Cost ("CAC") in order to focus on targeted digital marketing, such as Google Ads and META campaigns, and optimization of its Sekur website. Previously, the Company announced that is was targeting a CAC of US$75 or lower by the end of 2023, and a CAC of US$60 or lower for 2024 from direct marketing, not counting B2B partnerships, which would lower the CAC overall. The Company is targeting consumers and SMBs at this time and is improving its website content in order to inform SMBs and visitors on the benefits of using the Sekur privacy and security communications platform.

Alain Ghiai, CEO of Sekur Private Data, said: "We are very happy to be well ahead of our plans for our CAC reduction. The Company has a specific plan to tweak the CAC for the next quarter and increase the digital marketing budget gradually from August 2023 onward. Right now, if we count the money we are spending on digital marketing, and the organic growth from the SEO efforts, we are tracking a CAC of between US$30 to US$35. This is an amazing achievement in such a short time, and I want to congratulate our entire marketing team for their progress so far. A CAC of US$75 or lower is very attractive as we can scale and grow exponentially with the proper budgets put in place, and a CAC of under US$50 is extraordinary for us, so if we are under any of these numbers, we will do very well. Our prime directive is to provide private and secure communications for everyone, and, as we are not connected to any Big Tech platform, we offer a truly independent, private and secure means of communications without any data mining, through our proprietary technology and our secure servers based in Switzerland. We look forward to continuing to offer true data privacy to all individuals and their businesses and protect their intellectual property, and their privacy, from data miners and malicious hackers."

Since the Company has added SekurVPN and customized 'a-la-carte' bundles for consumers and businesses, approximately 50% of all customers have been buying bundles and 32% of customers purchased SekurVPN in the bundle or on its own.

On April 7th 2023, the Company launched its privacy VPN solution called SekurVPN, available through https://www.sekurvpn.com, or through https://www.sekur.com , and started commercial sales of its highly anticipated SekurVPN privacy and security VPN solution. The solution is also offered in USD, CAD, NZD, AUD, SGD, CHF, EUR and GPB. The Company plans to launch several videos on social media promoting SekurVPN in the coming weeks to select targeted audiences in the USA, and Australia. Recently Australia has been voted most hacked nation in the globe as of Q4 2022 according to this Cybersecutiy Connect article. The incident was discussed by Alain Ghiai, CEO of Sekur, in the latest Sekur Hack of the Week TV Episode on NewsmaxTV, Fox Business and on streaming media.

SekurVPN is especially meant for privacy enthusiasts and users wanting to protect their identity from hackers. An example would be users going to their e-banking or shopping online, using their emails, using messaging applications and wanting to have full privacy and protection from hackers hyjacking their IP location and signal. The service guarantees not to use Big Tech or Hyperscalers for its functioning or hosting, it guarantees that there are no third party bundles sold with it, so no data is leaked or sold to third parties, it guarantees no traffic pulling or monitoring, and no phone number required to register to the service.

According to a study and publication on forbes.com, 66% use a VPN to help protect personal data, 80% use a VPN for increased security and 33% use a VPN to mask their internet activity. More statistics can be found on this VPN Statistics And Trends In 2023 article.

Private:

SekurVPN uses its own proprietary infrastructure and does not use any Hyperscaler or Big Tech hosting providers, unlike most other VPNs. It offers Swiss IPs only, and this guarantees that it is using only SekurVPN's own servers and routing. Other VPNs offer 100s of locations and are using Big Tech providers, compromising users' privacy. SekurVPN never monitors users' activity and never shares any data with third party service providers. By being a pure VPN, without bundled outside services, such as anti-virus, and ad-blockers, SekurVPN keeps users' information private without sharing their data with third party service providers. With SekurVPN, users do not register their phone number on the App or the web, rendering users invisible from hackers or snoopers. No phone number to register, anonymous Swiss IPs only, no data mining or traffic sharing with anyone.

Secure:

SekurVPN's secure VPN routes all your Internet traffic through SekurVPN's privately owned servers, in multiple locations in Switzerland only, and using the highest encryption industry standards, combined with its proprietary HeliX technology for added security. Encryption keys are not stored on devices and are unique at every connection. Users' passwords, confidential data and Internet surfing stay encrypted even over public untrusted internet connections.

Easy to use:

SekurVPN is extremely easy to setup and deploy. There is no country list and our interface is simplified, just tap or click the connection button. SekurVPN's no-frills but highly secure and private service gives users peace of mind without thinking about geo-locations.

Currently SekurVPN is available to use with MacOS, iOS and Android devices. Versions for Windows 64, Windows 32 and Linux are planned to be launched in the coming weeks.

In addition to SekurVPN, the company offers a bundled Sekur plan, which includes SekurMessenger and SekurMail, as a bundle of email, messaging and file transfer into one application, and includes the Company's latest SekurMail technology, which includes proprietary anti-phishing and privacy feature called SekurSend. SekurSend lets a user send an email to any other recipient, whether they have Sekur or not, in full privacy and security as the email never leaves Sekur's encrypted email servers based in Switzerland. The recipient can then click on the notification and reply in the same manner using SekurReply, without the recipient having to register for a Sekur account. The sender can also decide to protect any email sent by adding a password to open it, a read-limit and a self-destruct timer as well. Sending an email with the SekurSend feature allows the senders and recipients to add limitless size attachments to the emails without crowding the recipients' email box. This also eliminates BEC attacks for businesses and email phishing attacks. Additionally, SekurMail includes full control of email delivery, automatic data export for large Enterprises and an automatic Data Loss Prevention technology ("DLP") with real time continuous archiving.

Recent data breaches in messaging applications have created a certain urgency for businesses and data privacy advocates to protect their communications from cyber-attacks and identity theft via mobile and desktop devices.

SekurMessenger comes with a proprietary feature and technology called "Chat-By-Invite". This feature allows a SekurMessenger user ("SM user") invite via email or SMS, a non-SM user, or a group of non-SM users, to chat in a fully private and secure way, without the recipient ever having to register to SekurMessenger or download the app. At the end of the chat, the initiator of the conversation can remotely terminate the conversation and all traces of the conversation are deleted from all users, including the recipient. This unique feature is now fully deployed and functional on all iOS and Android devices and web platforms. The target sectors are numerous, including but not limited to real estate, legal, finance, insurance, medical, government, energy, manufacturing, trade and pharmaceutical sectors.

SekurMessenger also eliminates many of the privacy and security risks by not only not requiring a phone number, which would divulge a user's phone device ID, but also by not social engineering a user's phone or computer contact list and infecting the contacts by default as well, eliminating a huge loophole in security and privacy. SekurMessenger issues each user a username and a Sekur number. The Sekur number is the contact ID a user would disclose in order for other Sekur users to be added. The service comes with a self-destruct timer and other features as well, including Sekur's proprietary VirtualVaults and HeliX technologies with all data stored in Swiss hosted encrypted servers.

Sekur's Data privacy solutions are all hosted in Switzerland, protecting users' data from any outside data intrusion requests. In Switzerland, the right to privacy is guaranteed in article 13 of the Swiss Federal Constitution. The Federal Act on Data Protection ("FADP") of 19 June 1992 (in force since 1993) has set up a strict protection of privacy by prohibiting virtually any processing of personal data which is not expressly authorized by the data subjects. The protection is subject to the authority of the Federal Data Protection and Information Commissioner.

Under Swiss federal law, it is a crime to publish information based on leaked "secret official discussions." In 2010 the Federal Supreme Court of Switzerland found that IP addresses are personal information and that under Swiss privacy laws they may not be used to track Internet usage without the knowledge of the individuals involved.

About Sekur Private Data Ltd.

Sekur Private Data Ltd. is a Cybersecurity and Internet privacy provider of Swiss hosted solutions for secure and private communications. The Company distributes a suite of encrypted e-mails, secure messengers, and secure communication tools. Sekur Private Data Ltd. sells its products through its own website at https://www.sekur.com, and approved distributors, and telecommunications companies worldwide. Sekur Private Data Ltd. serves consumers, businesses and governments worldwide.

On behalf of Management

SEKUR PRIVATE DATA LTD.

Alain Ghiai

President and Chief Executive Officer

+1.416.644.8690

corporate@sekurprivatedata.com

For more information, please contact Sekur Private Data at corporate@sekurprivatedata.com or visit us at https://www.sekurprivatedata.com



For more information on Sekur visit us at: https://www.sekur.com or https://www.sekurvpn.com



Forward-Looking Information

This news release contains certain forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities laws ("forward-looking statements"). All statements other than statements of present or historical fact are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are often, but not always, identified by the use of words such as "anticipate", "achieve", "could", "believe", "plan", "intend", "objective", "continuous", "ongoing", "estimate", "outlook", "expect", "project" and similar words, including negatives thereof, suggesting future outcomes or that certain events or conditions "may" or "will" occur. These statements are only predictions. These statements reflect management's current estimates, beliefs, intentions and expectations; they are not guaranteeing future performance. Sekur cautions that all forward-looking statements are inherently uncertain and that actual performance may be affected by a number of material factors, many of which are beyond Sekur's control. Such factors include, among other things: risks and uncertainties relating to the future of the Company's business; the success of marketing and sales efforts of the Company; the projections prepared in house and projections delivered by channel partners; the Company's ability to complete the necessary software updates; increases in sales as a result of investments software development technology; consumer interest in the Products; future sales plans and strategies; reliance on large channel partners and expectations of renewals to ongoing agreements with these partners; anticipated events and trends; the economy and other future conditions; and other risks and uncertainties, including those described in Sekur's prospectus dated May 8, 2019 filed with the Canadian Securities Administrators and available on www.sedar.com. Accordingly, actual and future events, conditions and results may differ materially from the estimates, beliefs, intentions and expectations expressed or implied in the forward-looking information. Except as required under applicable securities legislation, Sekur undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise forward-looking information.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/169841
EQS-News: Vortex Energy Corp. / Key word(s): Personnel

Vortex Energy Corp.: Vortex Energy Appoints the Honourable George J. Furey as an Advisor and Grants Options



14.06.2023 / 05:45 PST/PDT

The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.





Vortex Energy Appoints the Honourable George J. Furey as an Advisor and Grants Options June 14, 2023 Vancouver, British Columbia - Vortex Energy Corp. (CSE: VRTX | OTC: VTECF | FRA: AA3) ("Vortex" or the "Company") is pleased to announce the appointment of the Honourable George J. Furey as an advisor. Mr. Furey, a former Senator from Newfoundland and Labrador, was the longest serving member of the Canadian Senate at the time of his retirement earlier this year. He most recently served as the Speaker of the Senate of Canada. Paul Sparkes, CEO of Vortex commented, "George Furey is one of the most respected champions of our province and will bring immense knowledge and experience to Vortex as we continue to advance our salt asset on the west coast of Newfoundland and Labrador. We are honoured he has joined our team during this exciting transition in the province to becoming a renewable powerhouse." Mr. Furey holds three degrees from Memorial University and a law degree from Dalhousie Law School. During his career as an educator, he was a teacher with the Roman Catholic School Board in St. John's, a Supervising Vice-Principal with the Port-au-Port Roman Catholic School Board and a Supervising Principal of the Placentia-St. Mary's Roman Catholic School Board. Mr. Furey was called to the Bar of the Law Society of Newfoundland and Labrador in 1984 and was subsequently named a partner at the St. John's law firm of O'Brien, Furey & Hurley. While in his second year of practicing law, he successfully challenged the Criminal Code language on sexual assault and proved that with the advent of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, certain Criminal Code provisions were unconstitutional. He also served as Queen's Counsel in 1996. Mr. Furey is a widely respected community leader, giving his time to numerous voluntary groups, professional boards and provincial commissions, including the Newfoundland and Labrador Teachers' Association; The Boy Scouts of Canada; St. Clare's Mercy Hospital Ethics Committee and the Gonzaga High School Council. He has been committed to advancing the interests of Newfoundlanders and Labradorians. "I am extremely pleased to be a part of this exciting project that is taking place in Newfoundland and Labrador," said Mr. Furey. "I look forward to being a part of Vortex's mission to boost the hydrogen and salt industries in our province." In connection with Mr. Furey's appointment as an advisor, and Mr. David Bowen's recent appointment to the board of directors of the Company, the Company has granted 150,000 stock options ("Options") to Mr. Furey and 200,000 Options to Mr. Bowen, each with an exercise price of $0.98. The Options granted to Mr. Furey shall vest in four equal installments of 37,500 Options on December 13, 2023, June 13, 2024, December 13, 2024 and June 13, 2025. The Options granted to Mr. Bowen shall vest in four equal installments of 50,000 Options on September 13, 2023, December 13, 2023, March 13, 2024 and June 13, 2024. Each vested Option, upon satisfaction of the exercise price, shall entitle the holder to receive one common share of the Company. The Options granted to Mr. Furey and Mr. Bowen are subject to the terms and conditions of the Company's share-based compensation plan and expire, if unexercised, on June 13, 2026. These Options, and any shares issued upon the exercise of the Options, will be subject to a hold period of four months and one day in accordance with the policies of the Canadian Securities Exchange. About Vortex Energy Corp. Vortex Energy Corp. is an exploration stage company engaged principally in the acquisition, exploration, and development of mineral properties in North America. Its flagship asset, the Fire Eye Project, is located in the Wollaston Domain of northern Saskatchewan, Canada. The Company is working to advance this project while continuing to assess other energy metal properties. On Behalf of the Board of Directors Paul Sparkes Chief Executive Officer, Director +1 (778) 819-0164

info@vortexenergycorp.com Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements This news release includes forward-looking statements that are subject to risks and uncertainties, including with respect to the Company's business and plans. The Company provides forward-looking statements for the purpose of conveying information about current expectations and plans relating to the future and readers are cautioned that such statements may not be appropriate for other purposes. By its nature, this information is subject to inherent risks and uncertainties that may be general or specific and which give rise to the possibility that expectations, forecasts, predictions, projections, or conclusions will not prove to be accurate, that assumptions may not be correct, and that objectives, strategic goals and priorities will not be achieved. These risks and uncertainties include but are not limited those identified and reported in the Company's public filings under the Company's SEDAR profile at www.sedar.com. Although the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual actions, events, or results to differ materially from those described in forward-looking information, 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 such information will prove to be accurate as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. The Company disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise unless required by law. The Canadian Securities Exchange (CSE) has not reviewed, approved, or disapproved the contents of this press release.



14.06.2023 PST/PDT Dissemination of a Corporate News, transmitted by EQS News - a service of EQS Group AG.

The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.



The EQS Distribution Services include Regulatory Announcements, Financial/Corporate News and Press Releases.

Archive at www.eqs-news.com


press release

In El Geneina, it is estimated that at least around 500 people have been killed since the fighting began, and that a similar number of wounded remain trapped in the city, unable to access lifesaving treatment.

Moussa Ibrahim, Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) logistics supervisor in El Geneina crossed into Adre, Chad, to oversee activities with our teams and assess potential logistical support for West Darfur. Below he describes the situation on the ground.

"Since July 2021, I have held the position of logistics supervisor with MSF and have been living in El Geneina. My visit to Chad aimed to closely establish coordination with the our teams based in Adre, who have been on standby and ready to intervene and support local initiatives wherever possible.

The path from El Geneina to Chad is riddled with dangers as armed groups often patrol and can stop you on your route. The consequences of the escalating conflict are devastating, with attacks on humanitarian organisations, police headquarters where weapons were stolen, and civilian locations like the local market and the main university.

In these harrowing circumstances, the hospital we supported El Geneina was also looted. All the medical materials were taken, and parts of the hospital were destroyed.

As a humanitarian logistician, it's heartbreaking to witness the efforts we developed for years, now shattered. Moussa Ibrahim, MSF logistics supervisor in El Geneina

As a humanitarian logistician, it's heartbreaking to witness the efforts we developed for years, now shattered. For years, we provided medical assistance to all communities in West Darfur, who, due to frequent violent disturbances, would otherwise have no access to healthcare.

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In El Geneina Teaching Hospital, we managed the paediatric and nutrition inpatient departments, infection prevention control measures, and water and sanitation services. Over the years, we witnessed a steady stream of patients coming not just from El Geneina city and the nearest camps for displaced families, but from all over West Darfur.

Movement in the city is currently limited to the area around one's house, due to the risk of random shootings, snipers, and carjackings. Access to basic things like water is burdened with dangers, and the task of retrieving bodies from the streets has become impossible.

This situation is unbearable and requires urgent intervention. The negotiations between community leaders and all warring parties must be ensured to bring an end to this horrific situation. Moussa Ibrahim, MSF logistics supervisor in El Geneina

During the first days of the fighting, the Red Crescent was able to collect dead bodies from the streets, however, as the situation worsened, this has no longer been possible. A few days ago, access was finally gained, but by that point the bodies had decomposed to the extent that they couldn't be removed. Now, the best that can be done is to gather the bodies in a single location.

This situation is unbearable and requires urgent intervention. The negotiations between community leaders and all warring parties must be ensured to bring an end to this horrific situation.

In order to facilitate humanitarian operations in Sudan, sparing civilian lives and ensuring the safety of medical personnel and health facilities are absolutely imperative."
Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia--(Newsfile Corp. - June 14, 2023) - Steppe Gold Ltd. (TSX: STGO) (OTCQX: STPGF) (FSE: 2J9) ("Steppe Gold" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that, subject to regulatory approval, Byambatseren Tsogbadrakh will assume the role of President. Mr Bataa Tumur-Ochir will resign as President of the Company and will remain as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Company.

Ms Byambatseren Tsogbadrakh is a founding member of the Steppe Gold team and she has held progressively senior positions in the Company over recent years.

Mr Bataa Tumur-Ochir, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer commented, "I am excited to welcome Byambatseren to the management team in the role of President. With our Phase 2 Expansion progressing, we are growing our team across the Company. I am most proud that we continue to progress Mongolian nationals through the ranks of the Company and build our home grown talent base."

Steppe Gold Ltd.

Steppe Gold is Mongolia's premier precious metals company.

For Further information, please contact:

Bataa Tumur-Ochir, CEO and Chairman

Shangri-La office, Suite 1201, Olympic Street

19A, Sukhbaatar District 1,

Ulaanbaatar 14241, Mongolia

Tel: +976 7732 1914

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

Certain statements in this release constitute "forward-looking statements" or "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Such statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance, or achievements of the Company, or industry results, to be materially different from any future results, performance, or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements or information, such as obtaining regulatory approval for the appointment of a new president, as well as those factors disclosed under "Risk Factors" in the Company's annual information form for the year ended December 31, 2022. Such statements can be identified by the use of words such as "embark", "expect", "promise", "plan", "commitment", "continuous" and other similar terminology, or state that certain actions, events, or results "may", "can", "could", "would", "might", or "will" be taken, occur, or be achieved.

These statements reflect the Company's current expectations regarding future events, performance, and results and speak only as of the date of this news release. Consequently, there can be no assurances that such statements will prove to be accurate and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Except as required by securities disclosure laws and regulations applicable to the Company, the Company undertakes no obligation to update these forward-looking statements if the Company's expectations regarding future events, performance, or results change.

The Toronto Stock Exchange has not reviewed and does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of the content of this news release.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/169960
Within the framework of cooperation, it will be possible to establish industry standards for zero-carbon factories and best practices for carbon neutrality.

MUNICH, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Astronergy, a global manufacturer of photovoltaic modules, has signed a cooperation agreement with TUV Rheinland for its "Zero-carbon Factory". The agreement ceremony took place during Intersolar Europe, at booth A1.250 where the company is located.

With a strong climate commitment, the company will arrive at the world's leading exhibition for the solar industry with key announcements in the process of decarbonizing the industry.

In the framework of the cooperation between the two parties, it will be possible to establish industry standards for zero-carbon factories and best practices for carbon neutrality.

The photovoltaic industry is revolutionizing the way we knew energy as we knew it only a couple of years ago. According to the EU Market Outlook for Solar Power 2022-2026, last year was the year that solar power showed its true potential for the first time in the EU, driven by record energy prices and geopolitical tensions that greatly improved its business case. And it is with this in mind that Astronergy has continued to grow its operations in the Old Continent.

But the company has sought not only accelerated growth but sustainable growth. Committed to decarbonization, by 2023, three of Astronergy's factories will pass zero carbon factory certification. In addition, the company plans to complete the upgrading and certification of eight zero-carbon factories by 2030.

In addition, Astronergy Yancheng Manufacturing Base (Yangchang base) will achieve certification by the end of the first half of this year and become the world's first TUV Rheinland-certified zero-carbon factory, which includes factory planning and design, construction, production services, systems, management systems and processes.

Along the way, TUV Rheinland will help Astronergy discover where it needs to improve in zero-carbon factory certification and guide the company to improve the weak links in the gap analysis, to promote the existing factory to meet the standard requirements of zero-carbon certification, to help the client successfully pass zero carbon certification.

These actions follow Astronergy's mission to create a sustainable, net-zero carbon world through solar energy, supporting global climate goals.

With "zero carbon factories", the company will follow the path of comprehensive zero carbon performance through technical measures such as energy conservation, emission reduction and carbon removal during the production and manufacturing process.

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2101682/Astronergy_team__three_right__pose_a_photo_T_V_Rheinland_team.jpg

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2101683/image_5024444_40700575.jpg

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/astronergy-signs-cooperation-agreement-with-tuv-rheinland-for-its-zero-carbon-factory-301850740.html
ZURICH, SWITZERLAND, June 14, 2023 - (JCN Newswire) - Avaloq, a subsidiary of NEC Corporation, and BlackRock, through its Aladdin Wealth business, have formed a strategic partnership aimed at enhancing their investment technology solutions for wealth managers and private banks. As part of the strategic partnership, BlackRock is making a minority investment in Avaloq.This collaboration will enable wealth managers and private banks to enhance their operations throughout the entire client journey, encompassing onboarding, portfolio construction, client reporting and risk management. By combining Avaloq's leading core banking, client relationship management and mobile banking services with the Aladdin Wealth platform's robust risk analytics and portfolio management capabilities, the two firms aim to deliver one of the most advanced technology offerings available to the wealth industry."Avaloq is excited to enter into this strategic partnership with BlackRock. Through our relationship with BlackRock and the integration of their Aladdin Wealth capabilities, Avaloq is further solidifying our commitment to providing innovative investment technology solutions for the wealth management industry," said Martin Greweldinger, Co-CEO of Avaloq. "This partnership will help us empower our clients to streamline processes, enhance risk analytics, and make more informed portfolio decisions, ultimately delivering greater value to their clients.""BlackRock and Avaloq joining forces will help clients reduce the complexity and friction inherent in many of today's digital transformations. Our combined offering will make it extremely convenient for clients to implement and adopt Aladdin Wealth's industry leading capabilities as it will be deeply integrated with Avaloq's core banking solutions," said Venu Krishnamurthy, Global Head of Aladdin Wealth Tech.Wealth management clients in Europe and Asia will benefit from access to an integrated wealth tech platform that unlocks the entire value chain including:- Digital portals that enhance the client experience- Comprehensive client reporting, powerful onboarding, and risk profiling tools- Scaled portfolio construction capability and advanced portfolio analytics technology- Unified data model providing consistency throughout client journeysAvaloq is an industry-leading provider of wealth management technology, offering best-in-class front-to-back software and services for financial institutions around the world. Its robust systems currently manage around $4 trillion of client assets. BlackRock's Aladdin Wealth platform provides sophisticated risk analytics and portfolio management capabilities that help wealth management clients scale their business efficiently, manage risks, build better portfolios, and enrich the dialogue with clients around their investments."We are delighted to have BlackRock's investment in Avaloq as it demonstrates their recognition of the value and potential of Avaloq's wealth management technology solutions," said Tomoki Kubo, Chairman at Avaloq, as well as Corporate SVP and Head of the Digital Finance Global Business Unit at NEC Corporation. "This collaboration will not only fortify NEC's strengthened position in the realm of digital finance but also reinforce its unwavering commitment to orchestrating a brighter world. NEC looks forward to working with BlackRock to grow the Avaloq business."About AvaloqAvaloq is a premium provider of front-to-back software and services for financial institutions around the world. Our clients include private banks, wealth managers and investment managers, as well as retail and neo banks. We develop software that can be deployed flexibly through cloud-based Software as a Service (SaaS) or on-premises, and we offer Banking Operations through our Business Process as a Service (BPaaS) model. Avaloq is a subsidiary of NEC Corporation, a global leader in the integration of IT and network technologies. www.avaloq.comAbout BlackRockBlackRock's purpose is to help more and more people experience financial well-being. As a fiduciary to investors and a leading provider of financial technology, we help millions of people build savings that serve them throughout their lives by making investing easier and more affordable. For additional information on BlackRock, please visit www.blackrock.com/corporateAbout NEC CorporationNEC Corporation has established itself as a leader in the integration of IT and network technologies while promoting the brand statement of "Orchestrating a brighter world." NEC enables businesses and communities to adapt to rapid changes taking place in both society and the market as it provides for the social values of safety, security, fairness and efficiency to promote a more sustainable world where everyone has the chance to reach their full potential. For more information, visit NEC at www.nec.com.Source: NEC CorporationCopyright 2023 JCN Newswire . All rights reserved.
Molecular diagnostics and genomics veterans bring expertise to the breast cancer diagnostics company

Agendia, Inc., a gene expression profiling company advancing personalized early-stage breast cancer care, today announced the appointment of industry veterans Ronald (Ron) Andrews and David Schreiber to the company's Board of Directors.

Patrick Balthrop, Chair of the Agendia Supervisory Board, said, "On behalf of the Agendia Supervisory Board, all of our stakeholders and most importantly, the breast cancer patients that we serve, I welcome Ron and David to the company and to the Board. Their experience, expertise and passion will make Agendia a better company as we continue to use leading edge science to improve the lives of breast cancer patients."

"We are pleased to expand Agendia's Board of Directors with the appointment of two accomplished industry executives, whose deep experience in the healthcare field, integrating acquired companies, and driving strategic growth will be instrumental in shaping the future direction of Agendia," said Mark Straley, Chief Executive Officer of Agendia. "With decades of expertise directly applicable to the work we do, Ron and David's understanding of the market will bring invaluable perspective as we continue to grow into new spaces and work towards our shared mission of bringing our lifesaving diagnostic tools and insights to more patients."

Ron Andrews

Mr. Andrews has over 30 years of experience in the molecular diagnostics and genomic industries. Most recently, he served as a Board Member and as the President and Chief Executive Officer of Oncocyte. Before his time at Oncocyte, Mr. Andrews held senior roles at Thermo Fisher as President, Genetic Sciences Division of Thermo Fisher Scientific, and as President, Medical Sciences Venture for Life Technologies when Life Technologies was acquired by Thermo Fisher. Prior to that, he served as CEO and Vice Chairman of the Board of Clarient, Inc., and as CEO of GE Molecular Diagnostics after Clarient was acquired by GE Healthcare.

Mr. Andrews also founded The Bethesda Group, a consulting firm advising companies in the molecular diagnostics and genomics sectors, and held management positions at Roche Molecular Diagnostics, Immucore, Inc., and Abbott Diagnostics. He has served as past and current director on multiple boards, including Insight Genetics, Precipio, Inc., and Oxford ImmunoTec, and is a member of the Board of Governors of CancerLinQ LLC, a wholly-owned non-profit subsidiary of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO). Mr. Andrews graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Biology from Wofford College.

"I could not be more pleased to join Agendia's Board of Directors, as it will allow me to apply my experience in the field to a cause close to my heart, both personally and professionally," said Mr. Andrews. "I look forward to working with the Board and the Agendia team to make a difference for patients with breast cancer."

David Schreiber

Mr. Schreiber brings nearly 40 years of experience in the laboratory diagnostics space to his Board seat at Agendia. He has worked for over two decades as a consultant to private equity firms focused on healthcare companies in their portfolios, including serving in various interim CEO and CFO roles while guiding over 25 M&A transactions. Prior to this, Mr. Schreiber had an executive operating career, including as CFO and Board Member of Dianon Systems, Inc., where he played a vital role in driving the sale of the company to LabCorp, and at Quest Diagnostics, where he successfully led their Midwest Region Business. Mr. Schreiber holds an MBA and a B.S. in Finance from Northern Illinois University, and has served on the Boards of various private and publicly-traded companies, including Specialty Labs, Nanogen, Inc., Response Genetics, and Aspira Women's Health.

"Agendia's science is second to none when it comes to global breast cancer care. The team continuously works to ensure all women have access to genomic testing that is right for them, no matter their background or where they are in their lives. I am honored to contribute to this meaningful mission," said Mr. Schreiber. "I'm eager to apply my expertise in a variety of important areas, directly applicable to where Agendia is now and where it will go in the future."

The additions of Mr. Andrews and Mr. Schreiber underscore the Agendia Board and management team's commitment to bringing in and utilizing strong executive and operational talent at all levels. This dedication translates into exceptional science, actionable and transformative research, and superior execution in bringing innovative new products to market to ensure patients with breast cancer, their families, and their physicians have access to the information they need to make the best decisions about the treatment journey.

About Agendia

Agendia is a mission-driven, commercial stage company focused on enabling optimized decision-making by providing physicians with next-generation diagnostic and information solutions that can be used to help improve outcomes for breast cancer patients worldwide. The company currently offers two commercially available genomic profiling tests that help surgeons and oncologists to personalize treatment for women at critical intervention points throughout their patient journey.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230614142814/en/

Contacts:

Megan Kernan

ICR Westwicke

Tel: 646.677.1870

Megan.Kernan@icrinc.com
Sourced from Hazeltree's proprietary securities finance platform data, which tracks approximately 12,000 global equities, monthly snapshot examines shorting activity across the Americas, EMEA, and APAC

Hazeltree, a leader in active treasury and intelligent operations technology for the alternative asset industry, today published its Shortside Crowdedness Report for May. The report is a monthly listing of the top 10 shorted securities in the Americas, EMEA and APAC regions in the large-, mid-, and small-cap exchanges.

The data contained in the report comes from Hazeltree's proprietary securities finance platform data, which tracks approximately 12,000 global equities across the Americas, EMEA, and APAC. The data is aggregated and anonymized from the contributing Hazeltree community, including approximately 700 asset manager funds.

The report tracks shorting activity in three different metrics:

Hazeltree Crowdedness Score: This score represents securities that are being shorted by the highest percentage of funds in Hazeltree's community in a pre-defined category. The securities are graded on a scale of 1-99, with 99 representing the security that the highest percentage of funds are shorting.

Institutional Supply Utilization: This figure represents the percentage of the institutional investors' supply of a particular security that is being lent out. Institutional supply utilization is an indicator of how "hot" a security is in terms of the supply-demand dynamic. It is possible to see 100% utilization of a security's availability making it difficult to establish new short positions.

Hazeltree Community Borrow Fee: This figure is the average weighted fee for what funds in the Hazeltree community are paying to borrow a security. The fee is represented as the annualized cost calculated on the price of the security.

Highlights from the May 2023 report include:

Americas

In the large-cap segment, the most crowded large cap securities were Localiza, Ivanhoe Mines, Canadian Natural Resources, and Tesla. Among this group, Ivanhoe Mines saw the highest institutional supply utilization rate (19.82%).

In the mid-cap section, SOFI had an institutional supply utilization of 100%, well above the other securities in this group. The security's community borrow fee was in line with Affirm Holdings (.56%).

In the small-cap category, Fisker stood out with the highest institutional supply utilization (100%) and community borrow fee (30%).

EMEA

In the large-cap group, 10 securities had a crowdedness score of 99. Of them, Kuehne und Nagel International had the highest institutional supply utilization (26.97%) and Lonza Group had the lowest (1.17%).

In the mid-cap category, 10 securities had a crowdedness score of 99. Delivery Hero led the mid-cap category in institutional supply utilization (31.61%), with community borrow fees among the lowest in this group (0.35%).

In the small-cap category, where 10 securities had a crowdedness score of 99, AT&S stood out with the highest community borrow fee (14.08%).

APAC

In the large-cap category, 10 securities had a crowdedness score of 99. Ecopro BM led the large-cap category in institutional supply utilization (65.33%). The security had the second highest community borrow fee (5.03%), just behind China Vanke Co (5.6%).

In the mid-cap securities, Rakuten Group and Pharmaron Beijing had community borrow fees that were more than double the mode of the group (~2%), at 4.98% and 4.43%, respectively.

In the small-cap group, 10 securities had a crowdedness score of 99; among them, Core Lithium Ltd. led in institutional supply utilization (94.91%) and Jinke Properties Group had the highest community borrow fee (9.38%).

To view Hazeltree's May Shortside Crowdedness Report, click here.

Note to editors: If you are a member of the media/press and would like to be included on the distribution list for this report, please reach out to hazeltree@backbaycommunications.com

About Hazeltree

Hazeltree is a leader in active treasury and intelligent operations technology. Purpose-built for the alternative asset management ecosystem, Hazeltree's modular platform aggregates internal and external data, providing a comprehensive view of operations and counterparty relationships while proactively highlighting opportunities to extract more value from every transaction. Hazeltree is headquartered in New York with offices in London and Hong Kong.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230614228242/en/

Contacts:

Media

BackBay Communications

hazeltree@backbaycommunications.com
Digitalzone, the forefront leader in B2B demand generation solutions, is making waves at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity by being one of the first B2B demand gen companies with a key presence at the event, which has historically focused on B2C marketing. As part of the Marketing Leadership Summit hosted by Brand Innovators, Digitalzone will host a Private Roundtable featuring Eboni Ryan, Global Head of Marketing at Digitalzone, along with industry leaders from Fortune 500 companies, including Alo Yoga, The Washington Post, TBWA\Worldwide, PwC, H&R Block and United Airlines. The Private Roundtable will take place at La Plage Du Festival on Monday, June 19 at 11:30AM CEST.

The Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity is home to the world's most prestigious advertising awards celebrating creativity, effectiveness and innovation in the global advertising, marketing and communication industries. Produced in cities around the world, Brand Innovators events provide marketers with continuing digital education and peer-to-peer networking across a variety of focus areas, such as industry best practices, case studies, and success stories, about how leading marketers are using new and emerging digital technologies, platforms, formats and channels to build loyalty and long-term relationships with their consumers. The Marketing Leadership Summit event will take place June 19-22 at La Plage Du Festival.

Attendees can meet Digitalzone during the event to explore their cutting-edge demand generation solutions. To contact Digitalzone about meeting at Cannes Lions, visit https://digitalzone.com/events/cannes-2023/

About Digitalzone

Digitalzone is a leading B2B marketing and demand gen company that specializes in creating demand for products and services through personalized and data-driven campaigns. Founded in 2013 with a global presence, Digitalzone leverages cutting-edge technology and proprietary tools to drive rapid growth for clients. As an independent publisher with complete in-house operations and delivery capabilities across its database containing over 105 million opt-in leads, the company has full control over the entire campaign process and a dedicated client team in place to ensure on-time delivery and overall success. Having delivered over 50,000 campaigns for some of the biggest companies worldwide, Digitalzone has a proven track record of driving growth for clients and continues to expand its footprint in the demand generation space. For more information, visit https://digitalzone.com.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230614410448/en/

Contacts:

Media Contact

Kate Pietrelli

kate@pathadvisors.com

+1 760-518-2633
Charleston, West Virginia--(Newsfile Corp. - June 14, 2023) - XAPP Design has announced a new expansion to its web design services for businesses in West Virginia and the USA. The agency combines customized designs with integrated marketing and SEO for a stronger online presence. The newly expanded service includes custom website design, e-commerce content creation, and SEO solutions alongside social media management. The agency places online stores and businesses in a position to achieve their growth goals through an all-in-one solution.

More information can be found at https://www.xappdesign.com.





Charleston, WV Custom Website Design With SEO For Online Visibility Expanded

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Combining an initial consultation with a website audit and competitive analysis, the latest version of the service is designed to help more USA based SMBs gain traction faster. The agency can optimize and promote businesses across a range of platforms and fields.

XAPP Design builds websites from the ground up, based on the unique needs of each client. In addition, custom websites are indexed on Google within 30 days and include built-in SEO. This helps companies to establish their online presence with greater authority and reach more customers through keyword-optimized content.

The service provides businesses with an integrated content management system that enables them to build relationships with customers and target their marketing campaigns and promotions more effectively. For e-commerce businesses and stores, a secure shopping cart feature can be added, with custom ordering and quote systems also available depending on the needs of the business.

In addition to website design, XAPP Design also offers a range of other services to help businesses grow and succeed online. These services include mobile app development, web development, search engine optimization, and online marketing services. The company provides businesses with a range of consulting options and business strategy sessions to help them achieve their goals through results-backed methods.

By working with an experienced marketing and web design agency, small and medium-sized businesses in the West Virginia and broader USA area are more likely to achieve prominent positions on Google and connect with a larger audience.

A spokesperson for the agency states: "If you want help figuring out what to do in order to grow your business using online marketing methods, call one of our sales reps today. We also do business consulting, IT consulting, custom programming, mobile apps, training, and a suite of other services to help your business. We serve clients nationwide."

Interested parties can learn more at https://www.xappdesign.com.

Contact Info:

Name: Sean OKelly

Email: sean@xappdesign.com

Organization: XAPP DESIGN INC

Address: 505 Ohio Ave, Charleston, WV 25302, United States

Website: https://www.xappdesign.com

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/169719
The SEO Growth Hacking 2023 event is organized under the main theme "Fast - Strong - Agile - Businesses Overcoming the Storm in 2023"

Hanoi, Vietnam--(Newsfile Corp. - June 14, 2023) - SEO Growth Hacking 2023, the largest annual event in the Vietnamese SEO field, is proud to announce the launch of its newest event to help businesses achieve three important digital marketing goals: ranking, website traffic, and conversion rate optimization. In order to enhance the industry, a group of SEO experts in Vietnam has come together and decided to organize a nationwide event - SEO Growth Hacking 2023.

SEO Growth Hacking 2023 Event with the Theme "Fast - Strong - Agile - Businesses Overcoming The Storm In 2023"

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SEO Growth Hacking 2023 is an event that connects all businesses in SEO or those interested in SEO throughout Vietnam. The SEO Growth Hacking 2023 event is organized under the main theme "Fast - Strong - Agile - Businesses Overcoming the Storm in 2023", aiming to discuss the newest trends in SEO tools, innovative SEO approaches, and the most currently effective SEO and digital marketing solutions.





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The largest annual event in the Vietnamese SEO field is a strategic partner for businesses to achieve three key objectives: ranking, website traffic, and conversion rate optimization. The event will welcome 500 guests, from business owners and experts to department managers. UptopZ Media will accompany SEO Growth Hacking 2023 throughout the event duration as the exclusive media sponsor.

The event will consist of a variety of presentations, workshops, and Q&A sessions to help businesses develop successful SEO strategies. The event will be divided into four themes, each with its own focus area. These themes include:

SEO Growth Hacking 2023 rotates four themes:

Theme 1: All-in-One Performance with Chat GPT 4 in Content, Onpage and Offpage Optimization;

Theme 2: Building Strong Websites - Offpage Development, EEAT (Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness), and Sustainable Content in 2023;

Theme 3: Effective SEO Project Management - Structured SEO Team, Cost Optimization, and Sustainable Growth;

Theme 4: Google in the Updated Economy - Strategies for Businesses to Overcome Challenges in 2023;

Q&A Session between experts and attendees.

SEO Growth Hacking 2023 is organized with the presence of speakers who are SEO experts in Vietnam:

Mr. Dang Le Nam, Founder & CEO of Vu Long Group;

Mr. Nguyen Cong Minh, CEO & Founder of SEO Thanh Cong;

Ms. Vo Thi Thu Hoai, Director General of SEODO;

Mr. Ha Viet Nam, SEO Manager at SEONGON Agency;

Mr. Tran Ngoc Thuy, Founder of Affiliate CMS;

Mystery Speaker.

SEO Growth Hacking 2023 will take place on June 18th, 2023, from 1:00 PM to 8:00 PM. The event is predicted to create nearer connections between SEOers through discussing knowledge, shaping mindset, and harnessing AI tools for effective SEO implementation. The event aims to be a valuable experience for businesses of all sizes, from small startups to large corporations.

For more information about SEO Growth Hacking 2023, please visit: https://seogrowthhacking.vn

UptopZ Media will accompany SEO Growth Hacking 2023 throughout the event duration as the exclusive media sponsor.

UptopZ Media is a business that offers website introduction services in Vietnam. With a list of over 30,000 domains, UptopZ Media selects the most suitable ones for each client's project, industry, and field. The services of UptopZ Media include Entity Branding, Private Blog Network related services, which aim to support clients in enhancing SEO effectiveness, promoting website branding, and attracting more website traffic.

As the exclusive media sponsor, UptopZ Media also provides information about SEO Growth Hacking 2023, view more here.

About Us: UptopZ Media

Contact Info:

Name: Wallace Nguyen

Email: info@uptopz.com

Organization: UptopZ Media Company Limited

Address: No. 68 Nguyen Hue Street, Ben Nghe Ward, District 1, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

Phone: 0865 555 555 - 0867 777 777

Website: https://uptopz.com/seo-growth-hacking-2023/

Video URL: https://youtu.be/FFJ6hBp8_SU

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/169959
John Tarantino joins hands with Iylon Precision Oncology to help cancer patients around the globe.

PROVIDENCE, RI / ACCESSWIRE / June 14, 2023 / Iylon Precision Oncology, a leading innovator in providing virtual precision oncology recommendations, is pleased to announce the appointment of John Tarantino as its new Chief Executive Officer (CEO). With extensive legal expertise and a deep commitment to cancer care and research, Tarantino brings a wealth of experience and strong leadership to the company.

John Tarantino

CEO of Iylon

John has had a distinguished career as an attorney and has earned recognition as one of the top attorneys in the country. He is a Fellow of prestigious organizations such as the American College of Trial Lawyers, the International Society of Barristers, the International Academy of Trial Lawyers, the American Board of Trial Advocates, and the Litigation Counsel of America.

Beyond his legal accomplishments, John has demonstrated exceptional leadership in various capacities. He served as President of the esteemed law firm Adler Pollock & Sheehan P.C., President of the Rhode Island Bar Association, the Rhode Island Bar Foundation, the New England Bar Association, and the Defense Counsel of Rhode Island. Tarantino's remarkable achievements have garnered recognition through multiple awards, including the Rhode Island Lawyers Hall of Fame, the Law Dragon Hall of Fame, and the City of Cranston Hall of Fame.

In addition to his legal career, John has served as the President of SPA Ventures, LLC, a nutraceutical brokerage company, and currently holds the position of Managing Trustee of the Papitto Opportunity Connection, as well as the Managing Director of the John and Pat Tarantino Charitable Foundation. Following the passing of his wife to pancreatic cancer, Tarantino has channeled his passion into establishing foundations and funds to support patient care, family support, and groundbreaking research initiatives.

Drawing on his vast expertise, business acumen, and strong managerial skills, John will now lead Iylon Precision Oncology as its CEO. With his unwavering commitment to advancing cancer treatment, he will drive the company's mission to develop innovative solutions to improve patient outcomes.

"We are thrilled to welcome John as our new CEO," said Dr. Sewanti Limaye, Co-Founder of Iylon. "His extensive experience, remarkable leadership, and personal dedication to cancer care make him the ideal candidate to lead Iylon with a pursuit of cutting-edge solutions for cancer treatment," said Dr. Sendurai Mani, co-founder of Iylon and professor at Brown University.

John expressed his enthusiasm about joining Iylon, stating, "I am honored and excited to take on this role and work with the talented team at Iylon to push the boundaries of cancer care and make a positive impact in the lives of cancer patients."

About Iylon Precision Oncology:

Iylon is a renowned leader in providing recommendations for personalized precision cancer treatment based on genomic reports. The company is dedicated to developing innovative solutions and revolutionizing cancer care with a focus on precision medicine and personalized therapies.

For media inquiries, please contact Mary Miller at mary@iylon.com.

Contact Information

Mary Miller

Marketing Manager

mary@iylon.com

SOURCE: Iylon Precision Oncology

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/761249/Iylon-Precision-Oncology-Appoints-John-Tarantino-as-CEO
PHOENIX, AZ / ACCESSWIRE / June 14, 2023 / The Stock Day Podcast welcomed US Nuclear Corp.(UCLE)("the Company"), a radiation, chemical detection and specialty drone, holding company specializing in the development and manufacturing and sales of radiation and chemical detection instrumentation. CEO of the Company, Bob Goldstein, joined Stock Day host Kevin Davis.

Davis began the interview by asking about the Company's background and current projects. "We have been in the radiation detector business since 1946, but in recent years we have added chemical and biological sensors to provide handheld and doorway monitors to protect and warn about different hazards."

"Now that the COVID-19 pandemic is behind us, how do you plan to expand your customer base moving forward?", asked Davis. "We participate in a lot of trade shows; you get face-to-face, you meet more people, it's more efficient, and you can bring your samples to show them off," said Goldstein. "We'd like to start doing 6-10 trade shows per year, which will help us bring back our customers and make new friends."

Davis then commented on a recent announcement detailing the Company's upcoming participation in a HAZMAT response conference. "The individuals that work in HAZMAT are also our first responders," said Goldstein. "Their own health and safety is in danger, but we make hand held instruments that can detect 100 chemicals, as well as biological toxins and radiation," he continued. "We can help to protect them by preventing the exposure to these toxins."

"What products will you be presenting at the National Homeland Security Conference in July?", asked Davis. "This conference will be more about doorway monitors and vehicle gateway monitors," said Goldstein, adding that the technology the Company will be presenting can be used in airports, seaports, as well as for monitoring roads. "We have all-in-one systems to bring the technology all into one read out to allow for easier inspections," he added. "We also see the very hard to detect chemicals, including PFAS, drugs, gunpowder, and nerve gas."

"What happens after the trade shows this year?", asked Davis. Goldstein shared that the Company hopes to develop new business and customer relationships through the upcoming trade shows as they continue to increase their appearances at these events.

To close the interview, Goldstein encouraged listeners and shareholders to keep up-to-date on the Company's current and upcoming project as they continue to develop life-saving measurement and detection technologies.

To hear Bob Goldstein's entire interview, follow the link to the podcast here: https://audioboom.com/posts/8317286-us-nuclear-discusses-upcoming-hazmat-2023-and-national-homeland-security-conferences-with-the-sto

Investors Hangout is a proud sponsor of "Stock Day," and Stock Day Media encourages listeners to visit the company's message board at https://investorshangout.com/

About US Nuclear Corp.

US Nuclear Corp is a radiation, chemical detection and specialty drone, holding company specializing in the development and manufacturing and sales of radiation and chemical detection instrumentation. Through its four operating divisions (Technical Associates (TA), Overhoff Technology (OTC), Electronic Control Concepts (ECC), and Cali From Above (CFA), US Nuclear Corp. harbors more than 100 years of combined experience in supplying top of the line instrumentation to any industry utilizing radionuclides. This includes nuclear power plants, national laboratories, government agencies, homeland security, military, universities and schools, research companies, hospitals, medical and dental centers, energy companies, weapons facilities, first responders, local governments, and manufacturing plants.

Safe Harbor Act

This press release includes "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the safe harbor provisions of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Actual results may differ from expectations, estimates and projections and, consequently, you should not rely on these forward-looking statements as predictions of future events. Words such as "expect," "estimate," "project," "budget," "forecast," "anticipate," "intend," "plan," "may," "will," "could," "should," "believes," "predicts," "potential," "continue," and similar expressions are intended to identify such forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements involve significant risks and uncertainties that could cause the actual results to differ materially from the expected results.

Investors may find additional information regarding US Nuclear Corp. at the SEC website at http://www.sec.gov, or the company's website at www.usnuclearcorp.com.

CONTACT:

US Nuclear Corp. (OTCQB:UCLE)

Robert I. Goldstein, President, CEO, and Chairman

Richard Landry, Chief Financial Officer

(818) 883 7043

Email: info@usnuclearcorp.com

Usnuclearcorp.com

Stock Day Media

StockDayMedia.Com

(602) 821-1102

About The "Stock Day" Podcast

Founded in 2013, Stock Day is the fastest growing media outlet for Nano-Cap and Micro-Cap companies. It educates investors while simultaneously working with penny stock and OTC companies, providing transparency and clarification of under-valued, under-sold Micro-Cap stocks of the market. Stock Day provides companies with customized solutions to their news distribution in both national and international media outlets. The Stock Day Podcast is the number one radio show of its kind in America.

SOURCE: Stock Day Media

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/761241/US-Nuclear-Discusses-Upcoming-HAZMAT-2023-and-National-Homeland-Security-Conferences-with-The-Stock-Day-Podcast
Kwara State governor, AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq, has commiserated with the people of Patigi in Patigi local government area of the state over a boat mishap in which dozens of people were feared killed and many others still missing.

LEADERSHIP gathered that about 100 persons lost their lives to the boat mishap that occurred at Egbu village in Patigi local government area of the state.

It was gathered that the incident occurred on Monday

when the victims were returning from a marriage ceremony at the neighbouring Egboti village in Niger State.

It was also gathered that about 50 bodies have been recovered from the river where the boat capsized.

Sources also said that the boat was carrying over 300 passengers on the return trip from the venue of the marriage before it capsized at Egbu village.

The spokesman of Kwara State Police Command, Okasanmi Ajayi, who confirmed the incident on Tuesday, said that the command has directed the Divisional Police Officer in Patigi to gather more information on the incident.

Governor AbdulRazaq, in a statement signed by his chief press secretary, Rafiu Ajakaye, said it was sad to receive the report of boat mishap involving many people.

"The governor is sad to receive reports of the boat accident involving several people, particularly residents of Ebu, Dzakan, Kpada, Kuchalu, and Sampi -- all in Patigi.

"The governor sends his heartfelt condolences to the people of these communities and those from other states. He prays to Almighty Allah to repose the souls of the victims.

"The governor, meanwhile, continues to monitor the rescue efforts already mounted since Monday night in search of possible survivors. He commends the alertness of the Etsu Patigi, His Royal Highness Alhaji Ibrahim Umar Bologi II and other local government authorities for the efforts to save as many people as possible who may have survived the mishap," the statement added.
NORTHAMPTON, MA / ACCESSWIRE / June 14, 2023 / KeyBank

To continue and build upon efforts to encourage sustained, meaningful and transformational change in East Buffalo, KeyBank, Buffalo GoGreen and Providence Farm Collective are once again partnering to launch a weekly farmers market in the city's Delavan-Grider neighborhood. The market brings fresh fruits and vegetables to neighborhoods with few options and is part of KeyBank's ongoing response to the racially motivated mass shooting in Buffalo that took place in May 2022.

The market will be held at the Delavan-Grider Community Center located at 877 East Delavan Avenue. It will take place from 4:00 p.m.-7:00 p.m. each Thursday from June 22 through fall.

"We are proud to continue our partnership with Buffalo GoGreen, Providence Farm Collective and the Delavan-Grider Community Center to address food insecurity and bring community-oriented resources to the Delavan-Grider neighborhood," said Chiwuike "Chi-Chi" Owunwanne, Corporate Responsibility Officer for KeyBank in Buffalo. "New this year, we are making this a weekly event, expanding access to fresh food in East Buffalo."

In addition to produce vendors, other merchants from around Western New York will take part in the market. Accepted forms of payment are cash, checks, Mastercard, Visa, SNAP, Double Up Food Bucks, WIC and Senior Farmers checks. In addition, those who sign up on site for the Double Up Food Bucks program will receive a $10 food voucher to the market courtesy of KeyBank.

Read more about the upcoming KeyBank Delavan-Grider Farmers Market:

KeyBank Delavan-Grider Farmers Market returns to East Buffalo June 22 | WGRZ-TV

KeyBank Delavan-Grider Farmers Market to Return to the East Side | Buffalo Rising

KeyBank Delavan-Grider Farmers Market to return to East Buffalo on June 22 | Niagara Frontier Publications

View additional multimedia and more ESG storytelling from KeyBank on 3blmedia.com.

Contact Info:

Spokesperson: KeyBank

Website: https://www.3blmedia.com/profiles/keybank

Email: info@3blmedia.com

SOURCE: KeyBank

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/761244/KeyBank-Delavan-Grider-Farmers-Market-to-Return-to-East-Buffalo-on-Thursday-June-22nd
Schneider Electric

Six global partners recognized for outstanding performance in decarbonizing their own operations and that of their customers

BOSTON, MA / ACCESSWIRE / June 14, 2023 / Schneider Electric, the leader in the digital transformation of energy management and automation, announced the six global winners of the inaugural Schneider Electric Sustainability Impact Awards. Among 241 submissions, the winners were distinguished by their pioneering decarbonization efforts, both within and beyond their organizations.

Launched in 2022, the Schneider Electric Sustainability Impact Awards celebrates leaders that prioritize innovation and decarbonization. Partners are afforded the opportunity to enter in two categories. The first, "Impact to My Company" recognizes those who exhibit outstanding sustainability leadership in their own operations. The second, "Impact to My Customers" rewards those who demonstrate exceptional sustainability leadership by helping customers achieve their decarbonization goals.

Entrants were assessed based on their successful implementation of innovations, products and digital solutions to electrify operations, reduce energy supply, increase operational efficiency, and embrace circularity across the value chain. Winners are accorded significant benefits, including global visibility, a valuable credential, and new business opportunities. The awards also provide a first of its kind educational program for partners in the industry.

Sustainability Impact Awards 2023 Winners

Category One: Impact to my Company

Hewlett Packard Enterprise, United States is focused on transitioning to clean energy alternatives through a hybrid approach that includes renewable assets, power purchase agreements, green tariff programs, and green contracts. They are implementing transportation strategies such as modal shifts, zero- and low-emission vehicles, and sustainable aviation fuels to reduce their carbon footprint. The company also uses green materials and product design, implements packaging innovation, meets sustainability standards, offers transparency on environmental impact, and reduces waste at all their sites.

is focused on transitioning to clean energy alternatives through a hybrid approach that includes renewable assets, power purchase agreements, green tariff programs, and green contracts. They are implementing transportation strategies such as modal shifts, zero- and low-emission vehicles, and sustainable aviation fuels to reduce their carbon footprint. The company also uses green materials and product design, implements packaging innovation, meets sustainability standards, offers transparency on environmental impact, and reduces waste at all their sites. Boer (Wuxi) Power System Co., Ltd, China has established decarbonization targets as part of its sustainability journey and embraced electrification and digitalization to build resilient operations, including a smart forklift scheduling management system that helps improve production efficiency. The company's headquarters has a 1.5MW photovoltaic rooftop and an ENP-B charging station that lays the foundation for the further popularization of electric vehicles.

has established decarbonization targets as part of its sustainability journey and embraced electrification and digitalization to build resilient operations, including a smart forklift scheduling management system that helps improve production efficiency. The company's headquarters has a 1.5MW photovoltaic rooftop and an ENP-B charging station that lays the foundation for the further popularization of electric vehicles. Michael Smith Switchgear, United Kingdom and Ireland is committed to sustainability in all aspects of its business, having achieved carbon-neutral status. To reduce energy consumption and use of raw materials, the company has digitized operations, adopted electric vehicles, and installed LED lighting and solar panels. The company is sourcing alternative materials for products and consolidating deliveries to reduce their carbon footprint. Future plans also account for a rainwater storage system and a green roof.

Category Two: Impact to My Customers

Ramboll, Finland is a multidisciplinary engineering, design, and consultancy company that operates in 35 countries and employs 17,000 people globally. The company designs sustainable energy-based solutions for customers' building service systems and power distribution systems, including electrification of heating systems with heat pump and solar power solutions in buildings and urban sites. The company integrates EcoStruxure solutions across connected products to allow data-enabled decision making and performance management.

is a multidisciplinary engineering, design, and consultancy company that operates in 35 countries and employs 17,000 people globally. The company designs sustainable energy-based solutions for customers' building service systems and power distribution systems, including electrification of heating systems with heat pump and solar power solutions in buildings and urban sites. The company integrates EcoStruxure solutions across connected products to allow data-enabled decision making and performance management. Faith Technologies Incorporated (FTI), United States is a national leader in electrical planning, engineering, design, and installation. It helps customers achieve their sustainability goals with its Path to Smarter Energy process, which involves gathering energy usage data, identifying ways to conserve energy, determining whether on-site renewable generation is a viable option, and integrating energy storage to achieve net-zero carbon emissions. The company also installs EcoStruxure solutions to simplify and digitize customers' power distribution to protect people, safeguard assets, and maximize business continuity and performance.

is a national leader in electrical planning, engineering, design, and installation. It helps customers achieve their sustainability goals with its Path to Smarter Energy process, which involves gathering energy usage data, identifying ways to conserve energy, determining whether on-site renewable generation is a viable option, and integrating energy storage to achieve net-zero carbon emissions. The company also installs EcoStruxure solutions to simplify and digitize customers' power distribution to protect people, safeguard assets, and maximize business continuity and performance. Ad-Sol Nissin Corporation, Japan is Schneider's only system integrator partner in Japan. The company has introduced EcoStruxure solutions to their customer, the largest electric utility company in Japan, to support its implementation of a regional microgrid business. The company is also helping another customer to optimize production management in its automobile manufacturing processes and provides consulting services for carbon-neutral platforms to other industries, including railway companies.

"Now is the time to address the global energy crisis - it's our top priority. However, we cannot accelerate decarbonization efforts and achieve net-zero goals alone; we must rely on our ecosystem of partnerships", Rohan Kelkar, EVP for Global Power Products at Schneider Electric said. "Through the Schneider Electric Sustainability Impact Awards, we acknowledge and highlight the valuable contributions made by our partners worldwide towards decarbonizing not only their own operations but also their customers'. We value the opportunity to learn from one another and congratulate these winners for their exceptional commitment towards making a positive impact. We hope that in sharing their stories, they will serve as inspiration to organizations worldwide embarking on their decarbonization journey."



View additional multimedia and more ESG storytelling from Schneider Electric on 3blmedia.com.

Contact Info:

Spokesperson: Schneider Electric

Website: https://www.3blmedia.com/profiles/schneider-electric

Email: info@3blmedia.com

SOURCE: Schneider Electric

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The ornate Kennedy Caucus Room of the Russell Senate Office Building featured a historic event, organized by Project Legacy, heralding the introduction of bipartisan legislation S.91- Forgotten Heroes of the Holocaust Congressional Gold Medal Act awarding a Congressional Gold Medal to 60 diplomats in recognition of their heroism and bravery during the Holocaust.

WASHINGTON, DC / ACCESSWIRE / June 14, 2023 / These diplomats used every means at their disposal to help Jews fleeing persecution. One of the most powerful tools the diplomats had was the issuing of passports and travel visas contrary to the instruction of the governments of the diplomats. This process alone was responsible for saving hundreds of thousands of Jewish families.

U.S. Senator Bill Hagerty speaking

Headtable L-R: Amb. Miloslav Stasek - Czech Republic, Ingrid Ask - Sweden, Amb. Marek Magierowski - Poland, Ezra Friedlander, Laura Curran, Art Reidel, Sen. Bill Hagerty (speaking), Abe Foxman, Stacy Bernard Davis, Amb. Tomita Koji - Japan

Chair of the Forgotten Heroes of the Holocaust Congressional Gold Medal Committee (forgottenheroesoftheholocaust.org), Abraham Foxman, encapsulated the significance of the legislative effort with a moving statement: "I decided a long time ago not to be a witness to the evil, to the brutality that men are capable of. I decided to bear witness to goodness, to decency, to compassion, to humanity, to all who have made a colossal difference in that they saved lives - Jewish lives."

Art Reidel, co-chair, expressed his strong support for the Gold Medal Act: "I feel strongly that our taking this action and supporting this bill is especially important at this time in this place. I do not need to explain to anyone here the moral challenges that we face today but I will respectfully remind everyone that at the time of the Holocaust in this city, many in positions of power failed to stand up and allowed innocent deaths that they could have prevented."

Dr. Mordecai Paldiel, academic advisor for the bill, has conducted extensive research on the theme of Righteous Among the Nations, and expressed his belief that the heroic acts of these 60 diplomats must be etched into history, asserting that "The 60 people on our list, they didn't know each other, they didn't consult with each other, they did not belong to a rescuers club, but they all decided that the values of humanity, of civilized life, of moral life are at stake and they had to make a decision. They were there on the spot, they saw it. They were not Mother Teresas, they were not cut out to be saints, but they did saintly things, saintly acts."

The program featured remarks by U.S. Senator Bill Hagerty who explained his motivation for sponsoring S. 91 (Congress.gov) and the deep significance this legislation holds. Previously serving as the United States Ambassador to Japan, this bill has a special meaning to him.

The Democratic lead of the bill, U.S. Senator Tim Kaine, discussed the importance of S.91 and his inspiration for sponsoring the bill.

Participants also heard from Senator Mike Braun and Senator Rick Scott.

Thirteen ambassadors, representing individual diplomats from countries that are listed in the Congressional Gold Medal legislation, shared remarkable stories of these heroes and spoke on how each of these stories inspired them to act bravely and honorably in their own work. The roster included Tomita Koji - Japan, H.E. Murat Mercan - Turkey, Ingrid Ask - Sweden, Marek Magierowski of Poland, Miloslav Stasek - Czech Republic, Bernardo Velloso - Brazil, Andre Haspels - Netherlands, Radovan Javorcik - Slovak Republic, Ana Louisa Fajer Flores - Mexico, Alexandra Bilreiro - Portugal, Alessando Gonzales - Italy, Andrei Muraru - Romania.

"The Forgotten Heroes of the Holocaust Congressional Gold Medal Act is a pivotal piece of legislation that strives to uphold the selflessness, kindness, and bravery of the diplomats and this bill will forever remind us that even ordinary people can do extraordinary things," concluded Ezra Friedlander, Founder of Project Legacy, organizer of the event, and CEO of The Friedlander Group.

Project Legacy (theprojectlegacy.org) was established for charitable, scientific, literary, and educational purposes. Project Legacy will recognize individuals whose leadership has resulted in the advancement of peace, human rights, democracy, and freedom.

Download additional photos and captions here.

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Miriam Leah

Officer

admin@goldameircommemorativecoin.org

9178263900

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WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - President Joe Biden and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg discussed preparations for the upcoming NATO Summit in Vilnius.



At the meeting held at the White House, the leaders discussed the implications of Russia's war on Ukraine for transatlantic security and the importance of continuing to strengthen NATO's deterrence and defense.



They welcomed the support that Allies and partners are providing bilaterally to help Ukraine defend itself from Russian aggression.



They also discussed the need for Allies to build on the 2014 Wales Summit defense investment pledge.



In addition, the leaders underscored their shared desire to welcome Sweden to the Alliance as soon as possible.



Sweden's accession process will be completed only after Turkey and Hungary conclude their ratification processes.



Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan insists on returning PKK militants for his country's ratification of Sweden's bid to join NATO.



The North Atlantic Council's approval of the applications for NATO membership requires ratification by the parliaments of all the countries of the 31-member bloc.



Hungary and Turkey remains the only NATO members that have not yet ratified the instrument of ratification of Sweden's Accession Protocols.



President Biden conveyed that he is looking forward to hosting NATO Allies in Washington, D.C. during July 9-11.



The North Atlantic Treaty Organization's 75th anniversary summit is scheduled to be held at the capital of Lithuania on July 11 and 12.



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Mega-Chance Cyber Security Die KI-Revolution ist in vollem Gange und vor allem ein Bereich wird stark betroffen sein: Cyber-Security. Die Experten sind sich sicher: Mit steigender Entwicklung von KI-Technologien nehmen auch KI-gestutzte Cyber-Attacken zu. Wir zeigen hier, welche Aktien profitieren konnen. Hier klicken
AMSTERDAM, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Plintron was awarded the MVNE/A of the Year at the MVNOs Awards 2023 for the second consecutive year. The awards were presented at the MVNO Awards ceremony during the MVNO World Congress 2023 held in Amsterdam last week.

This award recognises MVNE/As that have successfully partnered with multiple MVNOs and MNOs while fostering commercially beneficial partnerships for all parties. The affordability, reliability, innovation displayed and relevant success studies were amongst the evaluation criteria.

Subhashree Radhakrishnan, Vice Chairman and Co-Founder of Plintron said, "Being awarded the MVNA/E Award for the second consecutive year is indicative of our global leadership in providing Mobile Virtual Network Aggregator (MVNA) and Mobile Virtual Network Enabler (MVNE) solutions to the telecom industry."

Plintron was awarded the MVNE/A award for its successful MVNA implementation in Mexico. Plintron followed a dual-model strategy that included a Modular Full-MVNO model and a franchising model. Mexican brands that want to launch their own branded mobile services in a white-labelled mode can use the first model while new-age MVNOs that want a turnkey plug-and-play solution with full commercial, technical, and regulatory support can use the franchising model. This would enable them to concentrate on their core competence of sales & marketing.

In the Modular Full MVNO model, Plintron provides access to the host network by configuring the core BSS/OSS suite with attractive prepaid bundles sold wholesale. All products and features are included: A full-fledged CRM, Call Centre Software, online/offline sales tools, web & app-based top-ups, prepaid data pools for dynamic resource allocation, self-care tools, real-time reporting, and an analytics dashboard. Additionally, there is unlimited flexibility on add-on mobility products.

This successful strategy resulted in Plintron launching 9 MVNOs in a very short period of time with more launches in the pipeline.

About Plintron

Plintron is a digital communications technology company enabling brands to acquire and engage customers. It is the World's largest Multi-Country end-to-end MVNA / MVNE with a client base in 6 continents. With mobile network services in over 31 countries spanning 6 continents supported by 1000+ telecom professionals, Plintron has launched 143+ MVNOs / OMVs, and over 165 million mobile subscribers. Plintron has won many global industry awards.

www.plintron.com

Contact:

Shamik Biswas,

marketing@plintron.com

Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1839055/Plintron_Logo.jpg

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/plintron-wins-mvnea-of-the-year-award-for-the-second-successive-year-301850499.html
PUNE, India, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- According to a recent market study published by Growth Market Reports, titled, "Global Color Coated Steel Market Segments - by Types (Polyethylene Coated Steel, High Durable Polyester Coated Steel, Silicon Modified Polyester Coated Steel, and Polyvinylidene Fluoride Coated Steel), by Applications (Outdoor Construction Material, Indoor Applications, Home Appliances, Windows, Electrical Control Panels, and Others), by Products (Plain Sheets, Profile Sheets, Coils, and Others), and Region: Size, Share, Trends and Opportunity Analysis, 2023-2031", the market size was USD 26.91 billion in 2022 and is expected to surpass USD41.39 billion expanding at a CAGR of 4.9% by the end of 2031. Low-cost and product differentiation benefits are projected to propel the market in the coming years.

Key Market Players Profiled in the Report

ArcelorMittal

Baosteel Metal Products Co., Ltd

DONGKUKSTEEL MILL CO., LTD.

KOBE STEEL, LTD.

JSW Steel, Coated Products Limited

SEVERSTAL

BlueScope Steel Limited

ThyssenKrupp Steel Europe

NIPPON STEEL CORPORATION

J. K. Steel Strips LLP

United States Steel Corporation

NLMK

NSAIL

Download PDF Sample here: https://growthmarketreports.com/request-sample/3976

The report covers comprehensive data on emerging trends, market drivers, growth opportunities, and restraints that can change the market dynamics. It provides an in-depth analysis of the market segments, which include types, applications, products, and competitor analysis.

This report also includes a complete analysis of industry players and covers their latest developments, product portfolio, pricing, mergers, acquisitions, and collaborations. Moreover, it provides crucial strategies that are helping market players to expand their market share.

For Any Questions on This Report: https://growthmarketreports.com/enquiry-before-buying/3976

Segment Highlights:

On the basis of region, the global color coated steel market is classified as North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Latin America, and the Middle East & Africa. North America is projected to dominate the global market, due to the high investments in the residential sector.

Asia Pacific is expected to be a rapidly growing region in the global market during the projected period, owing to the rising population and the high demand for infrastructure development in countries such as India, China, Japan, and South Korea.

To Buy the Complete Report: https://growthmarketreports.com/report/color-coated-steel-market-global-industry-analysis

Key Takeaways from the Study:

Color coated steel has applications in windows, electrical control panels, home appliances, and others.

It offers several benefits such as it provides reliable product quality, helps in maximizing yield, and trouble-free processing in the automotive industry.

Rising construction and automotive industry and the growing demand for eco-friendly products in color-coated steels is anticipated to fuel the market during the forecast period.

Increasing adoption of environment-friendly products is likely to create new opportunities for market players.

The PE coated steel segment is projected to expand at the fastest CAGR during the forecast period, owing to the rising adoption of color-coated steel in various industries.

segment is projected to expand at the fastest CAGR during the forecast period, owing to the rising adoption of color-coated steel in various industries. The outdoor construction segment is anticipated to hold a major share of the market due to the strong presence of manufacturing industries that use color-coated steel products for roofing and covering exterior walls.

segment is anticipated to hold a major share of the market due to the strong presence of manufacturing industries that use color-coated steel products for roofing and covering exterior walls. The coils segment is expected to dominate the market during the forecast period, owing to the increasing product demand from the end-user industry.

Read 233 Pages Research Report with Detailed TOC on "Global Color Coated Steel Market Segments - by Types (Polyethylene Coated Steel, High Durable Polyester Coated Steel, Silicon Modified Polyester Coated Steel, and Polyvinylidene Fluoride Coated Steel), by Applications (Outdoor Construction Material, Indoor Applications, Home Appliances, Windows, Electrical Control Panels, and Others), by Products (Plain Sheets, Profile Sheets, Coils, and Others), and Region (North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Latin America, and Middle East & Africa) - Global Industry Analysis, Growth, Share, Size, Trends, and Forecast, 2023 - 2031"

Get Full Access to this Report: https://growthmarketreports.com/checkout/3976

Key Segments Covered

Types

Polyethylene Coated Steel

High Durable Polyester Coated Steel

Silicon Modified Polyester Coated Steel

Polyvinylidene Fluoride Coated Steel

Applications

Outdoor Construction Material

Indoor Applications

Home Appliances

Windows

Electrical Control Panels

Others

Products

Plain Sheets

Profile Sheets

Coils

Others

Region

North America

Europe

Asia Pacific

Latin America

Middle East & Africa

Other Related Reports:

Global Steel Roofing Market Segments - By Product Type (Corrugated Steel Panels, Steel Shingles and Shakes, Stone-coated Steel Tiles, and Standing Seam), By Application (Commercial, Industrial, and Residential), and Region (North America, Latin America, Europe, Asia Pacific, and Middle East & Africa) - Global Industry Analysis, Growth, Share, Size, Trends, and Forecast 2020 - 2027

Global GA Galvanized Steel Market by Type (Galvanized Steel Coil, Galvanized Steel Sheet, Galvanized Steel Strip, Galvanized Steel Wire, Galvanized Steel Tube), By Application (Construction, Home Appliance, Automotive, General Industrial) and Region (North America, Latin America, Europe, Asia Pacific and Middle East & Africa), Forecast To 2028

Global Stainless Steel Bellows Market by Type (Flange Connection, Welding, Screw Connection, Others), By Application (Automotive, HVAC, Aerospace, Architecture, Water Treatment, Others), and Region (North America, Latin America, Europe, Asia Pacific, and Middle East & Africa), Forecast To 2028

Global Light Gauge Steel Market by Type (Wall Light Gauge Steel, Ceiling Light Gauge Steel), By Application (Wall Light Gauge Steel, Ceiling Light Gauge Steel), And By Region (North America, Latin America, Europe, Asia Pacific, and Middle East & Africa), Forecast From 2022 To 2030

About Growth Market Reports:

Growth Market Reports provides global enterprises as well as small & medium businesses with unmatched quality of "Market Research Reports" and "Industry Intelligence Solutions". Growth Market Reports has a targeted view to provide business insights and consulting to assist its clients in making strategic business decisions and achieving sustainable growth in their respective market domains.

Our key analysis segments, though not restricted to the same, include market entry strategies, market size estimations, market trend analysis, market opportunity analysis, market threat analysis, market growth/fall forecasting, primary interviews, and secondary research & consumer surveys.

Contact:

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7th Floor, Siddh Icon,

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Hello Space, a promising satellite tech start-up, aims to set a pocketqube constellation in space to revolutionize IoT technologies, by offering reliable, consistent IoT data services to businesses, from even the most remote locations in the world.



World's tiniest satellite, called 'pocketqube's offers cutting-edge satellite tech, with

5cm x 5cm x 5cm in size. Hello Space achieved unprecedented speed by completion of software and hardware production followed by space launch in under 13 months.

Hello Space's first test pocketqube satellite, named 'Istanbul', was launched into space today on June 13, 2023, inside SpaceX's Falcon-9, Transporter-8 mission.

ISTANBUL, Turkiye, June 14, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Hello Space, Satellite technologies start-up, takes on the world's most recent satellite technology standard 'pocketqube,' and readies to revolutionize IoT services with satellite technologies. Hello Space aims to set a pocketqube constellation in space and offer uninterrupted end-to-end IoT data services from space to businesses in agriculture, logistics, energy industries, and many more.

Istanbul, the first test pocketqube satellite of Hello Space, fitting inside a palm with dimensions of 5cm x 5cm x 5cm, was launched into space today from California, with the SpaceX Falcon-9 Transporter-8 mission. Established in May 2022, Hello Space has achieved unprecedented speed by completing software and hardware production followed by a space launch in under 13 months. Concurrent with the pocketqube satellite production process, the Hello Space Ground Station was built to serve as the management and control center for the pocketqube satellite constellation.

Muzaffer Duysal, Co-founder and CEO of Hello Space, said: "Typically, a satellite production and space launch takes around 2-2.5 years on average. Thanks to our in-depth know-how on this most recent pocketqube technologies and dedication to succeed, we have managed to reduce this time to an unprecedented one year. Imagine forming a constellation of cutting-edge tech satellites that will provide consistent, reliable data to large businesses in agriculture, transportation logistics, and energy from space. Hello Space will revolutionize IoT services, covering even the most remote locations in the world, where data tracking is currently challenging. We are very excited for the launch of Istanbul, as the first step of our big dream come true."

Expanding satellite coverage for the Internet of Things (IoT)

Through its highly advanced narrowband data communication technology, Hello Space will provide continuous and reliable data services globally by providing coverage from space. Hello Space will be able to offer IoT services, even in remote areas with low population density and uncovered regions such as oceans and remote, significant agricultural lands. The services will provide location data from containers shipped in the ocean, humidity data from remote agricultural lands, and end-to-end temperature data in long-distance cold-chain food logistics. Consistent, accurate data from space will improve the efficiency of businesses via visa satellite technologies.

Team members' names sent to space

Hello Space team embedded the names of their colleagues inside pocketqube Istanbul through software they developed. The names of Hello Space team has also been sent into space, along with pocketqube Istanbul.

4 more satellites are on the way

Following the launch of the first test pocketqube satellite Istanbul into space, Hello Space is now getting prepared for the deployment of 4 new test pocketqube satellites, planned to be launched in October '23.

About Hello Space:

Hello Space was founded in May 2022 as Turkey's first commercial pocketqube satellite venture. Its co-founders are Muzaffer Duysal, the former captain of Turkey's first pocketqube satellite team, Grizu-263, and Zafer Sen, the CEO of a leading software and technology consulting company in Turkey. The venture aims to establish a constellation network in space to provide IoT data services through narrowband data transfer.

For more information, please see https://hellospace.ist/

Follow Hello Space at: LinkedIn Hello Space , IG hellospaceist

Please contact:

Nil Ayvaz at nil.ayvaz@obss.tech for more information

Photos accompanying this announcement are available at:

https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/b2be458c-90e9-4300-903b-0e18b6895242

https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/fd367cc6-1cbd-4ea3-88ef-7e52d0cb0f93

https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/e49acc43-da13-4381-adaf-fddf560ac793
As published in Qualcomm's 2022 Corporate Responsibility Report

NORTHAMPTON, MA / ACCESSWIRE / June 14, 2023 / Our Company's success is rooted in the hard work and dedication of our workforce. We're a diverse group of employees from varied backgrounds, experiences, perspectives and ideas. We strive to be a workplace that reflects the world in which we do business. Our diversity helps us increase our global awareness, create an authentic sense of belonging and accelerates our ability to innovate. We will continue building an inclusive and equitable environment where everyone feels inventive, welcome, respected, valued and part of the team.

To that end, we have created interim goals that we aim to achieve on our way to creating a more diverse workforce. By 2025, we are committed to:

Increase representation of women in leadership21 by 15 percent, from a 2020 base year.

Increase representation of URM22 in leadership by 15 percent, from a 2020 base year.

Increase overall representation of URM by 20 percent, from a 2020 base year.

In 2022, we remained on track to meet our interim goals, making important strides by diversifying our talent pipeline and increasing development opportunities for our employees from diverse and historically underrepresented communities. Our efforts also include expanding our global hiring and recruiting practices as well as readying our current employees for advancement through education, training, encouraging stretch assignments and mentorship. We will also continue to engage across Qualcomm - particularly with leaders, managers and our eight employee networks - to achieve our goals.

Our DEI Policy highlights our promise to sustain a work environment that is inclusive, respectful and free of harassment, discrimination and retaliation. The policy also highlights our efforts to cultivate innovators who have varying backgrounds, ideas and points of view.

We're proud to be recognized as a leader in inclusion and diversity. Our commitment to DEI includes providing equitable pay to our employees, promoting employee development, celebrating various heritage months and special days with our employees and building and sustaining collaborations with external organizations to provide resources and best practices to support our employees.

To build global momentum in DEI, we expanded our presence in Asia-Pacific and India. This increased representation of our DEI team translated into several successes. In June 2022, we joined The Diversity Charter in Germany, a corporate initiative to promote employee diversity in companies and institutions. The program aims to promote the recognition, appreciation and integration of diversity into Germany's business culture.

In October 2022, our Company proudly sponsored - and our employees and their family members marched in - the Taiwan Pride Parade hosted by the Taiwan Rainbow Civil Action Association in Taipei. This is the largest Pride event in the APAC region and is an extension of our Company's decades-long support for the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, questioning/queer and others (LGBTQ+) community across the globe.

DEI is also a key part of our internal processes, including the annual employee review process. We train our managers on job-related performance assessment and bias avoidance, broadly gather feedback from managers and co-workers for annual performance evaluations, calibrate ratings across managers and provide performance feedback to our employees. Our open-door policy encourages employees to ask questions or voice any concerns they may have regarding their performance assessment or their compensation. In line with our transparency and open philosophy, we also organize interactive panel discussions around the annual review process to offer recommendations on how employees can advocate for themselves and provide insights into how fairness and equity are ensured throughout the process. Employees are encouraged to join these discussions and actively participate with questions and comments.

"Our employees and their values in the workplace are important to Qualcomm. We see diversity as an opportunity to showcase the talent and individualism of our employees. Being part of this association is extremely important for us and a step in the right direction to promote diversity, equity and inclusion throughout the Company and the world." Christian Block, Senior Vice President and General Manager RF Front-End, Qualcomm RFFE Germany GmbH

Learn more in Qualcomm's 2022 Corporate Responsibility Report

View additional multimedia and more ESG storytelling from Qualcomm on 3blmedia.com.

Contact Info:

Spokesperson: Qualcomm

Website: https://www.3blmedia.com/profiles/qualcomm

Email: info@3blmedia.com

SOURCE: Qualcomm

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/761258/Empowering-Diversity-Equity-and-Inclusion-at-Qualcomm
NOORDWIJK, THE NETHERLANDS / ACCESSWIRE / June 14, 2023 / Leaders from worldwide technology and distribution companies gathered this week for the 13th annual GTDC Summit EMEA conference, hosted by the Global Technology Distribution Council . This year's executive forum explored many of the IT industry's top challenges and brightest prospects, with insight from respected economists, researchers, futurists, and other experts and authorities.

With the rapid advances in technologies and delivery models, vendors and solution providers are increasingly looking to IT distributors for guidance, support and resources for their clients. "Innovation is a key sales driver and rising value proposition for the channel as businesses struggle to keep pace with increases in labor costs, global competition, and regulatory compliance," said Frank Vitagliano, CEO of the GTDC. "While organizations rely on IT solutions and technology providers to address those concerns and meet other critical objectives, distributors are a force behind the scenes. They deliver more technology options, services and support capabilities than ever before."

Vitagliano highlighted the evolution of distributors from their core pick, pack and ship roles to even more comprehensive responsibilities as channel orchestrators. "All the investments in digital platforms, marketplaces, and emerging technology practices are coming into their own today, simplifying go-to-market strategies and expanding the reach for vendors and solution partners. Alliances with hyperscalers and expansion of sustainability-related offerings will further boost the value of distribution in the IT ecosystem."

He shared details of the recently introduced GTDC Innovation Enablement Guide to illustrate some of the many ways channel partners can scale emerging technologies' success. "Distributors are force-multipliers in the adoption process, providing vendors with the support, resources and visibility required to thrive in the channel." The free GTDC report is available to download now .

Additional Insight from the 2023 Event

The future of technology was a prevalent topic of discussion at Summit EMEA. Speakers and moderators highlighted key areas of opportunity for the IT industry and channel, from digital transformation and cybersecurity to environmental sustainability and artificial intelligence. The 2023 sessions included:

Vitagliano moderated a strategic investment panel with senior distribution executives: Alessandro Cattani, CEO of the Esprinet Group; Anton Herbst, Executive Advisor of Tarsus; and Patrick Zammit, President, EU and APAC of TD SYNNEX.

Futurist Gerd Leonhard shared his insight on emerging tech and how the world can harness its power for the greater good. With the ethical and legal concerns around AI and other cutting-edge solutions, persevering in an age of renewable and machine technologies could be a challenge for everyone, including channel partners.

Dave O'Callaghan, Managing Partner of Vation Ventures, moderated a discussion on distribution investments and their effects on vendors and other channel partners today. Other contributors to that conversation included Gianluca Guasti, GM, Value Business & Marketing, Computer Gross Italia; Clive Fitzharris, CEO of DCC Technology; and Klaus Schlichtherle, CEO of Infinigate. ?

Jan Willem Velthuijsen, Chief Economist at PWC examined the current financial environment in EMEA and explored the factors that could positively and negatively impact the IT industry.

The next global event, GTDC Summit North America , will be held February 7-9, 2024, at the Mission Pacific & Seabird Resort?in Oceanside, CA. More details will be available soon.

About the GTDC

The Global Technology Distribution Council is the industry consortium representing the world's leading tech distributors. GTDC members drive an estimated $160 billion in annual worldwide sales of products, services and solutions through diverse business channels. GTDC conferences support the development and expansion of strategic supply-chain partnerships that continually address the fast-changing marketplace needs of vendors, end customers and distributors. GTDC members include AB S.A. (WSE: ABPL), Almo Corporation, Arrow Electronics (NYSE: ARW), CMS Distribution, Computer Gross Italia (MI: SES), D&H Distributing, ELKO, Esprinet (PRT.MI), Exclusive Networks (EPA: EXN), Exertis, Infinigate, Ingram Micro, Intcomex, Logicom (CSE:LOG), Siewert & Kau, SiS Technologies (HKSE: 0529), Tarsus, TD SYNNEX (NYSE: SNX), TIM AG and Westcon-Comstor.

CONTACT:

Taylor Gaines

(813) 727-6871

tgaines@commcentric.com

SOURCE: CommCentric Solutions

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/760399/2023-GTDC-Summit-EMEA-Highlights-Sustainability-and-Innovation-Enablement
Zanda Moyo will join eight others in the criminal trial on 20 June

Zanda Moyo appeared in the Bloemfontein Magistrate Court on Tuesday. This brings the number of people accused of assisting rapist and murderer Thabo Bester's escape from prison to nine. He will appear in court for the criminal trial on 20 June.

Moyo is charged with violating a body, fraud, and harbouring and concealing an escaped convict. Bester escaped from Mangaung Correctional Centre on 3 May 2022. He faked his death in a fire in his cell, leaving behind a burned body who police believe to be Katlego Mpholo.

During the bail hearings of five of the accused last month, the state alleged that Nandipha Magudumana, Bester's girlfriend, claimed three bodies from morgues in Bloemfontein, one of which was used in the escape.

The state alleged that while claiming the second body, Magudumana told officials at the morgue that it was the brother of her friend, Zanda Moyo. A fake funeral was held for the man and police later found that the buried coffin was filled with maize meal.

GroundUp has also seen evidence that Bester made a booking via Airbnb for Nandipha Magudumana and three other people to stay in a luxury house in Ballito between 19 and 30 April 2022. The booking cost a total of R90,800. Among the guests who were given security access to the house were BZ Moyo and Zanele Moyo. Copies of their Zimbabwean ID documents were given to the landlord.

During the court proceedings, Moyo said he did not have a legal representative and asked whether he could contact his family.

Magistrate Mohlolo Khabisi granted his request and said that he can use LegalAid's services, free of charge.
The deployment is a major milestone for the advancement of digital payment security in the Kingdom.

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Saudi Arabia's PayTabs Group, the region's award-winning payment solutions provider, today announced a strategic agreement with Modirum - a global brand with a track record of delivering effective 3D secure solutions for over 20 years.

The alliance between the two firms aims to offer flexible, robust, and cost effective EMV 3D secure authentication solutions for PayTabs merchants, banks, and processors across the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

With cybercriminals on the lookout for security lapses, one of their favorite targets is collecting sensitive payment information of online shoppers. The biggest benefit of 3D secure payments is that it prevents any payment fraud or identity theft for both the end customer and merchants. According to a report by Deloitte, several organizations in the Middle East are struggling with online payment fraud, especially since the pandemic hit.

Modirum's 3DS solutions make it possible for PayTabs as a payment processor to offer authentication and verification of users' identity. This ensures secure and seamless digital payments across all devices such as desktops, laptops, tablets, and mobiles. The software security solution also aims to prevent card fraud on merchants' websites and e-stores offering ecommerce vendors peace of mind.

Certified for Verified by Visa and Visa Secure, MasterCard SecureCode, American Express Safekey, Union Pay and various other card schemes, the solution from Modirum also offers PayTabs merchants multiple integration options and APIs to ensure secure end to end transaction processing.

Commenting on the partnership, Jari Heikkinen, CEO of Modirum said, "We are delighted to be working with PayTabs, the leading payment company in Saudi Arabia. Our 3D Server Solution is in use globally and recognized as one of the best in the industry by merchants, payment gateway companies and acquirers. We are proud that PayTabs chose to partner with us in this highly dynamic market and we look forward to continued growth in the region."

While at the PayTabs Group HQ in Saudi Arabia, Abdulaziz Al Jouf, founder, and CEO of the PayTabs Group added, "Together with Modirum, we are committed to elevating digital payments on Saudi soil by offering millions of ecommerce merchants, globally certified 3D Secure solutions. This partnership marks a new dimension in payment security and is one step closer in the Saudi Kingdom's vision 2030 to digitize the economy and payment ecosystem."

About PayTabs

The PayTabs Group is an award-winning payments solutions powerhouse founded by Saudi entrepreneur Abdulaziz Al Jouf.

Having processed the first live payment gateway transaction in 2014, today PayTabs processes transactions in multiple currencies and markets, swiftly and securely. By providing the infrastructure for B2B payment solutions, including digital invoicing for businesses, QR code, social media payments, point of sale and switching platforms, PayTabs facilitates seamless e-commerce and social commerce solutions for merchants and super merchants.

Over a decade, PayTabs has custom built and exported a full stack of game changing solutions. These include mobile applications, hospitality, governmental, education, airline, travel, transport, and biller solutions, to interlink the multi-billion-dollar enterprise market chain in the region.

In 2021, PayTabs launched PT Touch, the ?rst soft POS solution in the MENA market to transform smart phones into merchant point of sale (POS) terminals. In 2022, PayTabs made a leapfrog move to pioneer next generation payments, by launching its home owned, globally validated unified payments and transaction processing platform -PayTabs SwitchOn. PayTabs unified payment processing orchestration enables governments and large-scale originations to become independent payment platforms to serve their industries.

In 2022, the company acquired Turkiye's social commerce platform Paymes to complement its existing retail portfolio. In early 2023, PayTabs received payment gateway certification from Saudi Payments.

PayTabs has dedicated offices in the GCC including the UAE & Saudi Arabia and presence in many other locales including Turkey, India, and Egypt. The company is an equal opportunities employer with a multi-cultural team. For more milestones visit https://site.paytabs.com/en/

About Modirum

Modirum is a global leader in 3-D Secure technologies and services. Founded in Helsinki in 1998. Modirum offers a complete range of 3-D Secure solutions for Issuers, Acquirers, Processors, Payment Service Providers and Merchants to authenticate, secure and process online payments.

Modirum software and services are used by customers in over fifty countries worldwide. Modirum software is certified to the latest requirements from EMVCo and the major Payment Systems, and our hosting facilities are audited annually for PCI 3DS and PCI DSS compliance.

Our expertise in this domain is widely recognized in the industry and we now offer expert consulting services to our client base to optimize their use of 3D secure solutions.

Modirum have personnel located in seventeen countries, with our hosting centres located in Norway and Estonia.

We sales offices in Estonia (Tallinn), UK (London), Cyprus (Larnaca), United Arab Emirates (Dubai) and the USA (California). Our support and development offices are in Estonia, Finland, Greece, India, Kenya, Nigeria, Philippines, Pakistan, Singapore, South-Africa, Ukraine, and the USA.

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2099897/PayTabs.jpg

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/paytabs-becomes-first-to-deploy-modirum-3d-secure-payment-solutions-within-the-kingdom-of-saudi-arabia-301850650.html
Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - June 14, 2023) - Humber College, in partnership with the Canadian Council for Aboriginal Business (CCAB), is producing interactive case studies featuring success stories from Indigenous entrepreneurs, as well as partnerships and collaborations within Indigenous communities. The project, called Indsights, was developed in response to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission's call for Indigenous voices to become part of mainstream educational curriculum. This project is funded by the College and Community Social Innovation Fund grant from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC).





Houston Barnaby and Corey Mattie of Indigenous Treaty Partners

To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/9818/169965_hcccfabimage.jpg.

The case studies highlight Canadian Indigenous business owners as they confront economic barriers and emerge as innovative leaders. As demonstrated in research previously conducted by CCAB, economic development in Indigenous communities positively impacts the general well-being of the community. Indigenous economic growth contributes $30 billion to Canada's economy annually, leading to increased job opportunities, skill development, and capacity building in Indigenous communities.

"Using innovative digital storytelling, we are hoping to inspire and encourage future Indigenous business leaders," says CCAB President and CEO, Tabatha Bull. "And by showcasing a diverse range of businesses with unique economic structures, we're demonstrating there is no one-size-fits-all paradigm for Indigenous economic success. Diverse, robust sustainable Indigenous businesses will propel economic reconciliation and the entire Canadian economy forward."

Indsights seeks to challenge perceptions of Indigenous economic prosperity and decolonize through engaging content and positive stories. Through the project, Canadian post-secondary students are educated on the importance of Indigenous economic development in Canada, demonstrated through case studies, partnerships, and illustrations of positive stakeholder engagement.

Humber College and CCAB share a vision of realizing the Truth and Reconciliation Commission Report's 94 Calls to Action, especially Calls 62 to 65 which pertain to education. Indsights is part of Humber and CCAB's effort to advance these Calls by incorporating Indigenous voices into mainstream academic curriculum. Though called for by both the TRC and the National Indigenous Economic Strategy, there are currently limited resources for post-secondary educators to include Indigenous content in their curriculum outside of Indigenous studies programs. Indsights seeks to close this gap and create innovative open educational resources for post-secondary educators to integrate into their curriculums. Educators and learners can access Indsights on the project website at no cost. To accommodate diverse learning needs, the materials include text-based cases, supplementary videos, and a discussion facilitator guide for educators.

"Indsights is about developing content that teachers and professors can integrate into their courses, curriculums, and classrooms," says Audrey Wubbenhorst, a professor at Humber College and principal investigator with Indsights. "It's important for learners to see Indigenous businesses thriving across the country and hear their stories. We're incredibly thankful to our participants for sharing their time and stories for the benefit of future generations."

Case Study Participants Available for Interviews:

Nuez Acres: Anthony Wingham is a Metis entrepreneur and founder of Nuez Acres, located on the unceded lands of the Katzie, Kwantlen, Matsqui, and Semiahmoo First Nations in Fort Langley, British Columbia. Nuez Acres is a seed-to-skin clean beauty company which specializes in pecan-based products.

Quote: "Pecans are actually one of the first things that were colonized when settlers came into Canada back in the 1800s. The word pecan, the original word is an Algonquin word from the Great Lakes of Ontario," explains Wingham. "It's really turned into almost a decolonization story."

Video: www.indsights.ca/stories/nuez-acres.

Bentwood Skateboards: Brenda Knights is a co-owner of Bentwood Skateboards - the first Indigenous-owned skateboarding brand in Canada and internationally. Brenda is from Kwantlen First Nation and has worked closely with her First Nation to launch their economic development initiatives. Along with her business partner Jason Bothe, an established figure in the skateboarding industry, Knights is bringing Indigenous art, culture, and values to skateboarding.

Quote: "In my nation, we're taught to live by seven laws, and it's health, happiness, humbleness, generations, generosity, forgiveness, and understanding, and we try to bring those principles to the business," says Knights. As part of that commitment, Bentwood sponsors and offers mentorship to a young Indigenous skateboarder who embodies those seven principals. "Our dream would be to see an Indigenous skateboarder in the Olympics."

Video: www.indsights.ca/stories/bentwood-skateboards.

Indigenous Treaty Partners: Corey Mattie and Houston Barnaby are the founders of Indigenous Treaty Partners, an Indigenous-owned and operated cultural training and consulting service for organizations of all sizes. Their mission is "to Indigenize corporate Canada by delivering the highest quality Indigenous consulting services."

Quote: "One of the considerations that we've always taken very seriously is what it means to be Indigenous in the twenty-first century. We didn't just want to be Indigenous people who own a business, but we wanted to be an Indigenous business," says Barnaby. "That meant bringing our principles that our peoples have always had for thousands of years into the modern day."

Video: www.indsights.ca/stories/indigenous-treaty-partners.

-30-

About Canadian Council for Aboriginal Business:

CCAB is committed to the full participation of Indigenous peoples in Canada's economy. As a national, non-partisan association, its mission is to promote, strengthen and enhance a prosperous Indigenous economy through the fostering of business relationships, opportunities, and awareness. CCAB offers knowledge, resources, and programs to its members to cultivate economic opportunities for Indigenous peoples and businesses across Canada. For more information, visit www.ccab.com.

About Humber College Institute of Technology & Advanced Learning:

Humber College is focused on our students' future. Humber provides career-focused education to more than 86,000 learners in-person at three main Toronto locations and online. As a global leader in polytechnic education, Humber students receive in-depth theoretical learning and hands-on experience with applied research and extensive industry connections. A comprehensive range of credentials, including honours undergraduate degrees, Ontario graduate certificates, diplomas, apprenticeships, and certificates, prepare career-ready global citizens to move seamlessly from education to employment. More than 86 per cent of Humber graduates are employed within six months of completing their studies. Visit www.humber.ca.

Media Contact:

Matthew Hildebrandt

Symmetry Public Relations

matthew@symmetry-pr.com

306.241.8116

Melody Lynch

Symmetry Public Relations

melody@symmetry-pr.com

306.250.7235

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/169965
NORTHAMPTON, MA / ACCESSWIRE / June 14, 2023 / Inogen Alliance:

On May 16-17, almost 200 delegates gathered at the Dynamic Earth venue in Edinburgh, Scotland to dive into constructive conversations on water stewardship at the Alliance for Water Stewardship (AWS) Forum. Among the delegates was a group of 10 representatives of the Inogen Alliance, who are thrilled to share their insights with you.

The 2023 AWS Global Water Stewardship Forum opened with key messages and takeaways from the UN Water Conference in New York. While it was a once in a generation opportunity to galvanise energy and investments for a secure water future, many felt there was a lack of actionable items resulting from the event and noted the lack of strong commitments from the global governments towards global and local action on water stewardship. In this opening session we heard from influential global water initiatives on what we can do to use the momentum from the UN Water Conference to build mutually supportive relationships in pursuit of SDG6 and strengthen water governance.

The day continued with an interactive session fostering the renewed spirit of collaboration and collective ambition emerging across the water stewardship community as a consequence of the UN 2023 Water Conference. This discussion brought forth one of the biggest themes for the Forum - the idea of 'convergence'. We discussed the architecture of water stewardship and the strength of existing initiatives and frameworks, and focused on ways we can use the foundation already laid to become more effective in our actions. As we move from collaboration towards alignment in goals, principles, approaches, and language, we will be able to achieve convergence on effective, scalable actions. In many ways, the water stewardship community has reached a critical mass in terms of public buy-in and available funding - the conversation surrounding water stewardship has already shifted towards action. The goal now is to simplify and consolidate water stewardship in the world of increasingly complex science, reporting frameworks, and stakeholder expectations.

We closed the first day of the Forum with practical perspectives on implementing the AWS Standard. Corporate leaders in water stewardship shared lessons learned, best practices, and tips for achieving AWS certification. According to Ashish Bhardwaj, Regional Point of Contact, AWS India, "Sometimes there are small industries that don't have the resources and capacity to carry out all this work by themselves, and that's where the role of AWS accredited consultants becomes very important."

Some of the shared lessons included keeping things simple, building on existing water stewardship initiatives and programs, developing a strong action plan/roadmap, and finding opportunities to implement projects with add-on climate, biodiversity, and social benefits. The leading best practice, however, was making sure you have strong documentation procedures in place - sometimes, the biggest impacts are found in the simplest solutions.

On Day 2, we were back at Dynamic Earth bright and early, ready for another day of valuable discussions, collaboration, and learning. We began the second day with a dive into the AWS Standard review and revision process. Delegates had a chance to learn how the AWS approaches the revision process, when and where feedback is solicited, and we now eagerly await the next version of the Standard in 2025. We then heard from three organisations working at the interface of water and climate, discussing opportunities for the next iteration of the AWS Standard to strengthen the climate action agenda. Water practitioners know that water stewardship is a path to climate resilience, but we need to communicate this to governments and financial institutions. As consultants we can help bridge the gap which often arises between 'policy' and 'delivery' levels, and between various sectors, such as private and public, with the scope of facilitating the implementation of granular and tangible actions.

We then got a chance to roll up our sleeves and put our thinking hats on as we heard about proposed changes to the Standard to revise certification requirements that could better enable certification at scale. A lively group discussion ensued, and we got to see the concept of "Scenius" in action as global water practitioners engaged in discourse and collaboration to gather feedback for AWS on the proposed changes.

In the afternoon, we heard from another group of AWS Members, who shared their experiences and knowledge on implementing water stewardship in their supply chains. Businesses and consultancies operating across multiple business sectors shared their experiences from developing and implementing water stewardship strategies across supply chains. Group discussions touched on the importance of making the business case for water and leveraging multi-sectoral collaborations and groups. The interactive discussion was followed by an illuminating session on data and technology's role in enabling action. Data informs when, where, and how water stewardship initiatives can blossom. Emerging and existing technology can be leveraged to greatly accelerate and accentuate the impact of initiatives and interventions. We learned the many ways to use data and technology to optimize water stewardship decision-making and action.

We closed out our last day with reflections on the Forum and looking forward to what is next. We reiterated the need to continue fostering inclusivity both within the water stewardship community and as we engage and communicate with local communities and stakeholders. We need to build capacity and extend this to regulatory/governing bodies if we are going to achieve critical mass towards scalable global action. As Beatrice Bizzaro, Project Manager HPC Italy, Inogen Alliance Water Working Group Lead puts it, "Based on all the global goals and objectives that we have set, we need to work on bridging the gap and finding local targets and local actions that can really get these global goals moving on a local scale." There are numerous global goals and commitments set forth and the need to translate them into local, granular actions is becoming an imminent need- this is where we can step in to help guide the path forward.

Inogen Alliance is a global network made up of dozens of independent local businesses and over 6,000 consultants around the world who can help make your project a success. Our Associates collaborate closely to serve multinational corporations, government agencies, and nonprofit organizations, and we share knowledge and industry experience to provide the highest quality service to our clients. If you want to learn more about how you can work with Inogen Alliance, you can explore our Associates or Contact Us. Watch for more News & Blog updates here and follow us on LinkedIn.

View additional multimedia and more ESG storytelling from Inogen Alliance on 3blmedia.com.

Contact Info:

Spokesperson: Inogen Alliance

Website: https://www.3blmedia.com/profiles/inogen-alliance

Email: info@3blmedia.com

SOURCE: Inogen Alliance

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/761273/AWS-Global-Water-Stewardship-Forum-Key-Insights
CHICAGO, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- According to Arizton's latest research report, the Europe elevator and escalator market will grow at a CAGR of 4.75% during 2022-2029.



To Know More, Download the Free Sample Report: https://www.arizton.com/request-sample/3832

The demand for vertical transportation equipment is set to soar as governments increase their investments in public and private infrastructure alongside energy-efficient housing renovation projects that receive support from EU funding. This surge in demand has prompted the European Lift Association (ELA) to collaborate with policymakers in establishing a suitable framework to facilitate the transition towards energy-efficient lifts. ELA is actively lobbying the European Commission (EC) to include lifts, escalators, and moving walks in the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD), aiming to make a tangible contribution towards the EU's ambitious goals.

According to industry projections, the installed base of elevators in Europe is expected to reach a staggering 7,525.4 thousand units by 2029. The growth of the elevator and escalator industry can be attributed to factors such as migration patterns and the increasing demand for vertical cities, which aligns with the evolution of the construction sector. Additionally, Europe is taking a leading role in the decarbonization of buildings, driven by the implementation of advanced building regulations, stimulus programs, and growing customer demand.

Europe Elevator and Escalator Market Size (Volume)

Installation Base

New Installation Type

Modernization (In Billion)

Maintenance (In Billion)

Europe Elevator Market Size (Volume)

Installation Base

New Installation Type

Modernization & Maintenance (In Million)

Europe Escalator Market Size by Volume

Installation Base

New Installation Type

Modernization & Maintenance (In Million)

Europe Elevator and Escalator Market Report Scope

Report Attributes Details Market Size by New Installations (2029) 210.2 thousand units Market Size by New Installations (2022) 151.9 thousand units CAGR (2022-2029) 4.75 % Market Size by Installed Base (2029) 7,708.4 thousand units Market Size by Modernization (2029) USD 8646.4 Million Base Year 2022 Forecast Year 2023-2029

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About 63% of Germany's present building was constructed before 1979, and all these buildings might require upgradation or remodeling. Since most of them are older buildings, elevators are not installed in most of the buildings. Such factors will create an opportunity for the vertical transport industry and contribute to the Europe elevator and escalator market. Installing a Microlift, also commonly known as a dumbwaiter or a kitchen lift, can make even the smallest team super-efficient, especially for food orders that need to stay warm and be delivered quickly. Staff shortages and the need to balance have created a demand for microlifts in the UK.

Moreover, USD 220.3 million loans will support KONE's research and development for more energy-efficient elevators, escalators, auto walks, automatic doors, intelligent technologies, and solutions for people flow. The project will increase the European Union industry's technology leadership and competitiveness. The USD 220.3 million loans signed today between the EIB and Finland Based KONE Corporation will support research and development in innovation. This will improve the safety and functional performance of KONE's product range while at the same time reducing the carbon footprint of KONE's solutions by improving the energy efficiency of the products and services and, consequently, of the buildings where they will be used. In cooperation with ELA, the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI) has developed a smart lift IoT system standard coupled to the one Machine-to-Machine (M2M)platform. Still, the drawback is that this platform is currently not commonly compatible with popular BMS interfaces and does not yet address the variety of lift functionality. To overcome these drawbacks, telecom experts must become more aware of the requirements of the lift and escalator world, in the same way, that the lift experts must become more aware of modern telecom and interoperability methodologies.

Adoption of BIM methods in Public buildings has been mandated in the United Kingdom and the Netherlands According to the European directive 2014/24/EU. The UK government is intensely supportive of BIM technologies.

Looking for Free Sample Report? Download the Free Sample Report: https://www.arizton.com/request-sample/3832

Vendor Insights

KONE is collaborating with Louvre Hotels Group, the second-largest hotel group in Europe and a subsidiary of Jin Jiang International, to equip the first smart hotel in Europe with the Smart Inside label in Lyon, France.

In October 2022, TKE launched EOX, a new energy-saving and digital elevator platform. EOX features low-consumption belt traction technology, optimized energy-saving features such as an eco-mode that learns and adjusts to traffic patterns, and a regenerative drive that feeds energy back into the building. Its lighter weight contributes toward a lower carbon footprint, and less fuel required for transport to client sites will result in an over 10% reduction in CO2 emissions on average. In addition, it will require up to 28% less energy to move the elevator in the shaft. EOX is also manufactured at TK Elevator's European factories that run on 100% renewable electricity and will have a Class A energy efficiency rating. A dashboard in the customer portal provides complete transparency about the elevator's energy consumption and savings daily, monthly, and yearly.

Otis, TKE, Schindler, and KONE are the top 4 major OEMs in the Europe elevator and escalator market, with a share of 54%.

Otis invested USD 22 million in the San Sebastian factory dedicated to quality manufacturing and continued support of the skilled workforce in Spain.

Key Vendors

Otis

TK Elevator

Schindler

KONE

Mitsubishi Electric

Fujitec

Hyundai Elevator

Hitachi

Orona Elevators

Titan Elevators

KOHLER Elevator GmbH

KLEEMANN

Alimak

Stannah Lifts Holdings Ltd.

GMV Lifts

Cibes Lift Group

Excelsior Elevator

Wittur Elevator Components

Doppler Lifts

AKE Elevators and Escalators

Ascensores Carbonell

SJEC

Morris Vermaport Limited

Pickering Lifts

Elevator Market Segmentation by

Machine Type

Hydraulic and Pneumatic

Machine Room Traction

Machine Room Less Traction

Others

Climbing



Elevators



Industrial Elevators

Carriage Type

Passenger

Freight

Capacity

2-15 Persons

16-24 Persons

25-33 Persons

34 Persons and Above

End-User

Commercial

Residential

Industrial

Others

Public Transit



Institutional



Infrastructural

Escalator Market Segmentation by

Product Type

Parallel

Multi Parallel

Walkway

Crisscross

End-User

Public Transit

Commercial

Others

Institutional Sector



Infrastructure



Industrial

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The event took place at the highest inhabited point in Romania - the Omu Hut, at an altitude of 2507m;

It is the first and largest mountain expedition in the world to bring together such a large number of medical professionals;

BUCHAREST, Romania, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- MedLife, the leader of the private medical services market in Romania, organised on Saturday, June 10, the largest medical expedition to Omu Peak setting a GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS title for the "Largest human image of a human chromosome". Nearly 800 doctors, nurses, psychologists, pharmacists and other medical and support staff formed on the top of the mountain the largest human image of a human chromosome in the colors of the Romanian national flag.

"On the cliff of Omu Peak, near the oldest stone hut in Romania, at an altitude of over 2500 m, our colleagues wrote history. It turned out that no dream is too big for us, and an amazing number of medical professionals believed in it, all volunteered for it. We overcame the weather challenges, we overcame physical limitations and together we broke a world record.", said Nicolae Marcu, Director of Health and Operations at MedLife.

The safety of all participants has been a top priority for the organisers. Therefore, a group of 40 professional guides, experienced people who have coordinated countless national and international expeditions, led by David Neac?u, the mountaineer who led the first all-Romanian expedition to Everest in 2003, accompanied the participants of the medical expedition to Omu Peak. Among the other famous names who accompanied the expedition were Horia Coliba?anu and Marius Gane, perhaps the most successful Romanian climbers to reach peaks above 8000 m.

Despite the erratic weather, 756 medical and support personnel reached the summit. Guinness World Records representative, Pravin Patel, who climbed the route to Omu Peak, confirmed the record for the largest image of a human chromosome. The previous record was set in 2019 and belonged to a group of 415 people from India.

"I am grateful to have been part of this officially amazing experience. There are a number of conditions that need to be met for this record and you have succeeded in breaking the original record by creating the largest human image of a human chromosome," said Pravin Patel, Guinness World Records representative, when presenting the certificate.

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View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/guinness-world-records-title-for-the-largest-human-image-of-a-human-chromosome-set-by-a-romanian-medical-company-301850988.html
Finsbury Growth & Income Trust Plc - Transaction in Own Shares

PR Newswire

LONDON, United Kingdom, June 14

For immediate release

14 June 2023

FINSBURY GROWTH & INCOME TRUST PLC

(the "Company")

MARKET PURCHASE OF COMPANY'S OWN SHARES

The Company announces that it has today purchased 53,797 of its own shares ("Ordinary Shares") at a price of 887.93 pence per Ordinary Share. Such shares will be held in treasury by the Company.

The transaction was made pursuant to the authority granted at the Annual General Meeting of the Company held on 17 January 2023.

Following this transaction, the total number of Ordinary Shares held by the Company in treasury is 17,345,544; the total number of Ordinary Shares that the Company has in issue, less the total number of Ordinary Shares held by the Company in treasury following such purchase, and therefore, the total number of voting rights in the Company is 207,645,759.

.

The figure of 207,645,759 may be used by shareholders as the denominator for calculations of interests in the Company's voting rights in accordance with the FCA's Disclosure Guidance and Transparency Rules.

For and on behalf of

Frostrow Capital LLP

Company Secretary

For further information, please contact:

Victoria Hale

Frostrow Capital LLP

Tel: 020 3 170 8732
GUANGZHOU, China, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The Middle East region recently welcomed the brand new GAC MOTOR vehicles with the launch of the EMKOO, the brand's next-generation SUV.

On June 8, the car manufacturer held high-profile launches for the model in Kuwait and Qatar, announcing the arrival of GAC's innovation-packed vehicle to local buyers.

In Qatar, the EMKOO was launched alongside the brand-new GAC 4S store - now the largest in the country - attracting a diverse crowd ranging from media outlets, potential car owners, and automobile enthusiasts.

Located in Doha, the newly-unveiled GAC store features both service and spare parts facilities, enabling one-stop service to become a reality for local customers.

Attendees had the opportunity to experience the EMKOO's extraordinary performance in a 69.3km test drive across Doha's most iconic roads and locations.

Positioned as a next-generation, hi-tech SUV, the EMKOO is an ultra-modern 5-seater that will appeal to a wide range of audiences with its eye-catching appearance and premium interior design.

The car's dramatic shape is emphasized by sleek lines and laser-sword-shaped taillights to give EMKOO its unique futuristic look. Inside, luxurious leather seats deliver maximum comfort to users who can enjoy smart features packed in a 10.1-inch high-resolution display.

The EMKOO comes with a high-efficiency powertrain with a 2.0 Atkinson engine and dual motors multi-gear DHT. Despite its top-grade power, the SUV consumes only around 4.76L per 100km, an ideal and economic choice for young families and individuals.

The launch of EMKOO in Kuwait and Qatar has generated extensive coverage across both traditional and social media in the Middle East. GAC MOTOR plans to keep up the momentum by rolling out the model in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Iraq, and Oman within the next two months.

" In recent years, Chinese brands including GAC MOTOR have been gradually recognized by consumers," said Zeng Hebin, General Manager of GAC International. "For all the time, GAC MOTOR has adhered to its original aspiration of "creating cars with the spirit of craftsmanship" to win local consumers' recognition with high-quality and high-value products, and continue to increase brand awareness."

The launch of its new models, including EMKOO, will continue to reinforce GAC MOTOR's brand reputation for world-class quality, innovative technology, and outstanding service in the Middle East and beyond.

Video - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2101894/GAC_EMKOO.mp4

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/emkoo-gac-motors-pioneering-suv-model-releases-in-qatar-and-kuwait-301851053.html
Uncover Hidden Gems: Coffee Roast's Aggregated Ratings Help Users Find Top-Rated Roasters and Beans

BOSTON, MA / ACCESSWIRE / June 14, 2023 / Coffee Roast (www.coffeeroast.com) announces its official launch, providing coffee lovers with a comprehensive platform for in-depth reviews and ratings of roasters and individual coffee roasts. The website aims to assist coffee enthusiasts in discovering exceptional coffee beans and roasters while promoting fair trade and sustainable practices within the industry.



Coffee Roast Logo

This is the logo for Coffee Roast (www.coffeeroast.com)

Coffee Roast offers a blend of long-form editorial reviews and user-generated ratings, allowing visitors to explore insightful content that delves into the intricacies of coffee beans, brewing techniques, and flavors. Users can immerse themselves in a vibrant community of coffee lovers, benefiting from diverse perspectives and recommendations shared through user reviews.

Founded by dedicated coffee experts driven by their passion for discovering and sharing the finest coffee beans worldwide, Coffee Roast editors and users can evaluate each coffee through a comprehensive rating system that considers factors such as aroma, flavor, acidity, body, value, and finish. Additionally, detailed information about roasters and farmers, including sourcing and roasting practices, is provided to enhance transparency and understanding. Coffee Roast users can find roasters by state, and roasts by country of origin, espresso roast, and roast level.

The website further distinguishes itself by providing aggregated ratings of different roasters, empowering users to make well-informed decisions based on the collective opinions of the community. Coffee experts are invited to become "Coffee Guide" reviewers at CoffeeRoast.com, sharing their expert insights with the passionate coffee-loving community while promoting their coffee-related social media and blog pages.

Theodore Chan, founder and Managing Editor of Coffee Roast, expressed his excitement about the launch, stating, "We are thrilled to introduce Coffee Roast and share our love for coffee with the world, especially small craft roasters. Helping connect people with ethical, high-quality small businesses is my passion, and I am excited to help do that in the coffee industry."

Discover the best coffee beans and roasters and learn more about fair trade and sustainable practices at CoffeeRoast.com. Coffee Roast proudly stands as a self-funded venture through the seed stage brought to life by Boston entrepreneurs and coffee aficionados Theodore Chan and Victoria Slingerland.

Contact Information

Victoria Slingerland

Founder

pourover@coffeeroast.com

7812575051

SOURCE: Coffee Roast

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/760757/Coffee-Roast-Unveils-Innovative-Ratings-and-Reviews-Website-for-Specialty-Coffee-Exploration
MIAMI, FL / ACCESSWIRE / June 14, 2023 / Global Health Intelligence (GHI), the leading healthcare data analytics provider in Latin America, has just published HospiRank 2023, its ranking of the best-equipped hospitals in Latin America.

HospiRank 2023

Report on the medical equipment market in Latin America, including best hospitals

Based on quantitative analysis of data from more than 19,000 Latin American hospitals in GHI's HospiScope database, HospiRank ranks medical institutions according to eight specific categories, including best-equipped for high-risk patients, best-equipped to host patients, highest counts of basic surgical equipment, the best-installed base for treating cancer, best-equipped for primary diagnostics, and more.

"HospiRank is the only ranking of Latin American hospitals to offer verified data about the facilities' infrastructure," explains Guillaume Corpart, CEO and founder of Global Health Intelligence. "The data is obtained from our annual survey of hospitals, conducted across Latin America, and includes information such as operating rooms, beds and counts of capital equipment. The ranking helps the medical industry understand which are the leading facilities regionally from an infrastructure and capacity standpoint," observes Corpart.

Aside from the rankings, which include a total of more than 400 hospitals in the six countries included, HospiRank 2023 also has key features:

A data portrait of Latin American hospitals, including penetration rates of both basic and specialized medical equipment.

Data on medical equipment infrastructure for hospitals in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Mexico, and Peru, among other countries.

Interviews with the leaders of the best-equipped hospitals to gain insights into their plans for expansion and acquiring medical equipment.

How to access a recently updated list of hospitals in Latin America that have robotic surgery systems that includes acquisition data, make, model and more.

"The concrete medical equipment market data provided in HospiRank is useful for medical equipment manufacturers, MedTech suppliers and consumables companies who seek to understand how to segment the market and identify key players. HospiRank is also useful for hospitals, as it allows them to see how they compare to other institutions in regard to equipment levels," says Corpart.

The main report can be downloaded from Global Health Intelligence's website. It covers the top five hospitals in each category for each country featured in HospiRank 2023. However, journalists can contact GHI directly for specific country reports featuring the top 10 hospitals in each of the six countries covered.

---

About Global Health Intelligence (GHI)

Global Health Intelligence created HospiScope, the world's largest hospital demographics database focused on Latin America, as well as SurgiScope, the first database to track surgical procedures performed in Latin America. The firm updates more than 2 million hospital data points each year, helping clients with custom research, data on the medical devices market, competitive profiling for the Latin American healthcare industry, marketing sizing, segmentation, and pricing/cost analyses.

Contact Information:

Carolina Chazaro

Digital Marketing Coordinator

carolina@globalhealthintelligence.com

Guillaume Corpart

CEO

gc@globalhealthintelligence.com

SOURCE: Global Health Intelligence

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/761122/Global-Health-Intelligence-Announces-the-Best-Equipped-Hospitals-in-Latin-America-for-2023
SJC's Xolani Klaas enters into a plea agreement after defrauding the organisation of more than R730,000

Former Social Justice Coalition (SJC) general manager and fraud accused Xolani Klaas entered into a plea and sentence agreement in the Khayelitsha Magistrates Court on Monday.

Klaas faces charges related to fraud in excess of R730,000.

Last year, Groundup reported that Klaas appeared to be using SJC funds to buy furniture, household appliances, luxury clothes, watches, groceries, and expensive technology.

Klaas was subsequently suspended and in June 2020 SJC staff laid criminal charges against him at Lingelethu West Police Station. Klaas then returned some furniture, purchased using SJC money, to the organisation's offices.

Klaas's lawyer, Loyiso Mvundla, said the plea and sentence agreement had been reached with Klaas on Friday.

"Your worship, my client has agreed to a plea and we are now at the stage of finalising everything with the state," said Mvundla.

Standing firmly in the dock, with his hands behind him, Klaas nodded while Mvundla addressed the magistrate.

The SJC's office adminstrator Thando Njamela, who was one of the witnesses before the plea and sentence agreement was reached, said: "I'm happy about the outcome so far, but anxious to know how things will go from here on out. Will he pay the money back? Will he get jail time?

"This is also a big thing for the communities that the SJC works with. When we reported to them about today's proceeding there was a sense of happiness. If anything, this has given us hope that maybe we can become the SJC that we once were," said Njamela.

The details of the plea agreement, and sentencing, are set for 17 July.
WASHINGTON, DC / ACCESSWIRE / June 14, 2023 / The World Environment Center (WEC) is pleased to announce two Requests for Proposals (RFPs) seeking qualified consulting firms/consultants specializing in Gender & Women Empowerment and Business Competitiveness issues. These contracts will support WEC's efforts in providing training and technical assistance to small grantees and beneficiaries MSMEs (Micro, Small, and Medium-sized Enterprises) within the US Dept of State funded grant, Empower Innovation Challenge (EIC).

Under the Gender & Women Empowerment RFP, the selected consulting firm/consultant will deliver comprehensive training and technical assistance on gender-related topics to enhance the capacity of the beneficiaries. Applicants from Latin America and the Caribbean, proficient in both English and Spanish, are strongly encouraged to apply. The decision will be based on the technical approach, qualifications, past performance, and cost of proposal. Interested parties are invited to review the detailed Request for Proposals for more information.

Similarly, under the Business Competitiveness RFP, WEC seeks a qualified consulting firm/consultant to provide training and technical assistance on business competitiveness to the small grantees and beneficiaries MSMEs. Applicants from Latin America and the Caribbean, proficient in both English and Spanish, are encouraged to apply. The selection criteria will consider the technical approach, qualifications, past performance, and cost of proposal. Interested individuals and firms are urged to refer to the Request for Proposals for complete details.

WEC is committed to equal employment opportunities and celebrates diversity. As an equal opportunity employer, WEC does not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, age, veteran status, disability status, or any other applicable characteristics protected by law.

Interested parties are requested to submit their proposals by June 23rd, 2023 in accordance with the guidelines provided in the respective Request for Proposals. Questions regarding the RFPs can be directed to Smitha Konduri at info@wec.org

About the World Environment Center:

WEC is an independent, global non-profit, non-advocacy organization that promotes sustainable development through the business practices and operations of its member companies and in partnership with governments, multilateral organizations, non-governmental organizations, universities and other stakeholders. WEC's mission is to promote business and its social value by advancing solutions to sustainable development related problems.

https://www.wec.org

About the EMPOWER INNOVATION CHALLENGE (EIC)

The World Environment Center (WEC) and its partners Nucleo de Biotecnologa de Curauma (NBC) and Baastel will support the expansion of the La Red de Innovacion e Impacto (La RED) network through a new Empower Innovation Challenge (EIC) in the Latin-American and Caribbean (LAC) region.

The goal of the EIC will be to assist women-owned micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) in scaling their businesses through a series of small grants focused on local solutions. With a focus in green and blue economies, the EIC partnership will provide training, access to capital, networking, and partnership opportunities with local and international businesses.

View additional multimedia and more ESG storytelling from World Environment Center on 3blmedia.com.

Contact Info:

Spokesperson: World Environment Center

Website: https://www.3blmedia.com/profiles/world-environment-center

Email: info@3blmedia.com

SOURCE: World Environment Center

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/761304/World-Environment-Center-Is-Seeking-Gender-Women-Empowerment-and-Business-Competitiveness-Consulting-Services
NORTHAMPTON, MA / ACCESSWIRE / June 14, 2023 / AllianceBernstein



Healthcare companies are beginning to explore how artificial intelligence (AI) might unlock efficiencies for patients and medical systems. But to transform science fiction into reality, AI applications in the sector must prove that they can improve business profitability to deliver returns for investors.

Innovation is a powerful force for change in healthcare, and AI is well suited to shake up the sector. Healthcare systems hold huge amounts of data that can be mined for insight. Pharmaceutical companies are always searching for ways to speed up long drug-development processes. In theory, AI could help promote more effective management across the industry, helping healthcare firms get the right drugs in the right quantities to the right patients.

But there's a vast distance from theory to practice, especially with nascent technologies. Bridging the gap will require business proof, more than scientific pizazz. Here's how we think investors should start thinking about the future of AI in healthcare across four broad areas.

Research and development: AI could potentially be used to improve success rates for drugs in clinical trials. However, this will take years. Even if AI does eventually help boost drug-development success rates, it might not create competitive advantages. If the technology is adopted across the sector to speed time to market, the competitive benefits will diminish, and pricing may be pressured. Expect plenty of PR in this area, but it may not turn into profitability. Clinical trials: The logistics of clinical trials are cumbersome. Companies must find the right sites, with the right pool of patients, as fast as possible. We think AI could help companies find clinical sites that enroll patients faster for trials, and identify underperforming sites, to help rectify them quicker. Commercial development: Even successful drugs face big hurdles to get to market. AI could help companies identify doctors and specialists who might be prime candidates for a new product. It could also help companies target the most effective events for generating a buzz around a new drug. This might not sound as exciting as using AI for R&D, but it is an essential element of the business formula for any pharmaceutical company. The human experience: Most consumers won't know or care whether a drug trial is accelerated by AI. But every patient wants to get the best diagnosis from their doctor. We think AI could make a huge difference here. Imagine a smart physician's AI assistant that can help a doctor zoom in on a rare disorder that a patient might have based on a given set of symptoms. These are the types of tangible benefits that consumers will be willing to pay more for-and can help contribute meaningfully to the bottom line of healthcare providers.

In all these areas, we believe AI's success will be measured by its ability to produce better healthcare outcomes. For example, UnitedHealth Group says AI can help reduce the time taken to turn data into insights, enabling employers and insurers to better understand all the factors impacting a person's health. When implemented strategically, this can lead to better healthcare decision-making, and lower costs for healthcare businesses.

Companies like Veeva Systems, based in the US, and Icon, based in Ireland, are already helping to introduce AI in commercial tools, with more advancements expected on the clinical side as well. Intuitive Surgical, which manufactures robotic surgical systems, collects data from millions of procedures to help address anomalies and complications. Google and Northwestern Medicine are working on an AI model that may be capable of detecting lung cancer earlier than current diagnostic tools, increasing the chances of effective treatment.

How Can Investors Evaluate AI in Healthcare?

Companies that put cash to work by investing in innovation are signaling efforts to secure consistent long-term profitability. But investors shouldn't try to predict which AI initiatives will be transformative. We believe investors in healthcare companies must always stay focused on business-not science. Just as we apply this principle to drug development, which is notoriously difficult to predict, we don't think investors have any advantage in forecasting how AI technology will shape the future of healthcare.

The history of disruptive technology is littered with failure. When the dot-com boom dazzled investors, countless early darlings died on the vine. Yet the technology itself eventually transformed the world we live in beyond recognition and spawned many new profitable industries and businesses.

Similarly, the AI revolution will take time, and will progress in fits and starts. But technological wizardry doesn't equal business success. In fact, if a successful AI application becomes commoditized, it could even reduce profitability. When a healthcare company unveils a shiny new robot, investors must ask: how will it make money? How long will it take to get to market? What's your competitive strategy versus peers?

Keeping these questions front and center is crucial to navigating the AI craze. Investors in healthcare companies should always focus on durable businesses that reinvest above their cost of capital, in our view. If a company with these attributes also deliver on a promising AI plan, investors will benefit further. But if the AI initiative fails, investors will still have a profitable business as a cushion.

The views expressed herein do not constitute research, investment advice or trade recommendations and do not necessarily represent the views of all AB portfolio-management teams and are subject to revision over time.

References to specific securities are presented to illustrate the application of our investment philosophy only and are not to be considered recommendations by AB. The specific securities identified and described do not represent all of the securities purchased, sold or recommended for the portfolio, and it should not be assumed that investments in the securities identified were or will be profitable.

Learn more about AB's approach to responsibility here

View additional multimedia and more ESG storytelling from AllianceBernstein on 3blmedia.com.

Contact Info:

Spokesperson: AllianceBernstein

Website: https://www.3blmedia.com/profiles/alliancebernstein

Email: info@3blmedia.com

SOURCE: AllianceBernstein

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/761315/AB-Will-AI-Transform-the-Healthcare-Industry-for-Investors
CHICAGO, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- According to Arizton's latest research report, the UK data center market will grow at a CAGR of 2.57% during 2022-2028.

To Know More, Download the Free Sample Report: https://www.arizton.com/request-sample/3881

The UK holds a prominent position in Western Europe as a significant contributor to data center investments, with Germany and Ireland closely behind. The growth of the data center market in the region is propelled by factors such as government initiatives focused on digitalization, the increasing adoption of advanced technologies like 5G, big data, IoT, and Artificial Intelligence, as well as the need for enhanced connectivity. The UK's strategic location makes it a crucial hub for submarine cables connecting North America and Europe. This aspect is a major incentive for colocation operators to invest in or expand existing facilities. To address and alleviate the power crisis in West London, the Greater London Authority announced in August 2022 its plans to revamp the data center development application process, introducing improved electricity management regulations.

UK Data Center Market Report Scope

Report Attributes Details Market Size (Investment) USD 10.18 Billion (2028) Market Size (Area) 940 thousand sq. Feet (2028) Market Size (Power Capacity) 192 MW (2028) CAGR Investment (2022-2028) 2.75 % Colocation Market Size (Revenue) USD 4.96 Billion (2028) Historic Year 2021-2022 Base Year 2022 Forecast Year 2023-2028

Looking for More Information? Download the Free Sample Report: https://www.arizton.com/request-sample/3881

AWS, Microsoft, Google, Alibaba, Tencent, IBM, and Oracle are some of the global cloud service providers operating across the UK. Some of them are investing in expanding their presence across the country. For instance, AWS invests in two data center facilities in Swindon and Dicot. Further, the UK data center market is connected to several major markets, with around 56 submarine cables. 2Africa, Amitie, and BT North Sea are three upcoming submarine cables connecting the UK to major markets worldwide.

The UK government has set targets to achieve carbon neutrality goals by 2050. For instance, the Greater Manchester administration has set its target for city development as carbon-neutral by 2038, ensuring a low-carbon future. Moreover, as a part of sustainability initiatives, many private and public organizations are investing in adopting renewable energy for their operations and achieving carbon neutrality goals. For instance, Vodafone signed a power purchase agreement (PPA) in February 2023 with ten renewable energy plant sites in the UK for the next ten years.

Investment Opportunities in the UK Data Center Market

In 2022, Global Technical Realty announced the construction of its first data center campus in the UK, with a power capacity of around 40 MW. The campus has three 13.5 MW data center facilities.

In April 2022, Stratus DC Management planned to develop an 18 MW brownfield data center at Belvedere, Southeast London, UK.

Zero One announced to development of its custom build data centers in Manchester, with 12 MW of power capacity.

Digital Reef plans to develop the 'European largest data center' east of Havering, UK. The campus consists of ten 50 MW and five 20 MW units.

In September 2022, Datum Datacenters acquired Teledata, a colocation data center provider in the UK.

In August 2022, an Australia-based asset management firm, Macquarie Asset Management, announced the acquisition of a minority stake in ST Telemedia Global Data Centres' UK unit VIRTUS Data Centres.

In July 2022, Redcentric, a UK-based managed service provider, announced the acquisition of a colocation service provider - 4D Data Centres.

In June 2022, Green Mountain acquired Infinity SDC's data center facility in Romford, London.

In January 2022, Keppel Data Centres announced the acquisition of a data center facility in London with an area of around 94,000 square feet.

Why Should You Buy This Research?

Market size available in the investment, area, power capacity, and the UK colocation market revenue.

An assessment of the data center investment in the UK by colocation, hyperscale, and enterprise operators.

Investments in the area (square feet) and power capacity (MW) across states in the country.

A detailed study of the existing UK data center market landscape, an in-depth industry analysis, and insightful predictions about industry size during the forecast period.

Snapshot of existing and upcoming third-party data center facilities in the UK

Facilities Covered (Existing): 197



Facilities Identified (Upcoming): 30



Coverage: 30+ Counties



Existing vs. Upcoming (Area)



Existing vs. Upcoming (IT Load Capacity)

Data center colocation market in the UK

Market Revenue & Forecast (2022-2028)



Retail vs. Wholesale Colocation Market



Retail and Wholesale Colocation Pricing

The UK market investments are classified into IT, power, cooling, and general construction services with sizing and forecast.

A comprehensive analysis of the latest trends, growth rate, potential opportunities, growth restraints, and prospects for the industry.

Business overview and product offerings of prominent IT infrastructure providers, construction contractors, support infrastructure providers, and investors operating in the industry.

A transparent research methodology and the analysis of the demand and supply aspects of the industry.

The report includes the investment in the following areas:

IT Infrastructure

Servers



Storage Systems



Network Infrastructure

Electrical Infrastructure

UPS Systems



Generators



Transfer Switches & Switchgears



PDUs



Other Electrical Infrastructure

Mechanical Infrastructure

Cooling Systems



Racks



Other Mechanical Infrastructure

Cooling Systems

CRAC & CRAH Units



Chiller Units



Cooling Towers, Condensers & Dry Coolers



Economizers & Evaporative Coolers



Other Cooling Units

General Construction

Core & Shell Development



Installation & Commissioning Services



Engineering & Building Design



Fire Detection & Suppression Systems



Physical Security



Data Center Infrastructure Management (DCIM)

Tier Standard

Tier I & Tier II



Tier III



Tier IV

Geography

Greater London



Other Counties

VENDOR LANDSCAPE

IT Infrastructure Providers

Arista Networks

Atos

Broadcom

Cisco Systems

Dell Technologies

Fujitsu

Huawei Technologies

Hewlett Packard Enterprise

IBM

Juniper Networks

Lenovo

NetApp

Data Center Construction Contractors & Sub-Contractors

2bm

AECOM

Arup

ARC: MC

Atkins

BladeRoom Data Centres

Bouygues Construction

Deerns

Future-tech

HDR Architecture

INFINITI

ISG

JCA Engineering

Kirby Engineering Group

KMG Partnership

Metnor Construction

Mercury Engineering

MiCiM

Nicholas Webb Architects

Oakmont Construction

RED

SPIE UK

Skanska

STO Building Group

Sudlows

TTSP

Waldeck

Support Infrastructure Providers

ABB

Airedale International Air Conditioning

Caterpillar

Cummins

Delta Electronics

Eaton

Kohler-SDMO

Legrand

Mitsubishi Electric

Piller Power Systems

Rolls Royce

Riello Elettronica

Rittal

Schneider Electric

Socomec

Siemens

STULZ

Vertiv

Data Center Investors

Amazon Web Services (AWS)

Ark Data Centres

China Mobile International

Colt Data Centre Services

CloudHQ

Custodian Data Centres

CyrusOne

Cyxtera Technologies

Corscale Data Centers

Digital Realty

Datum Datacentres

Echelon Data Centres

Equinix

Global Switch

IONOS

Iron Mountain

Infinity SDC

Keppel Data Centres

Kao Data

NTT Global Data Centers

Lumen Technologies

Proximity Data Centres

Serverfarm

Sungard Availability Services

Telehouse

Vantage Data Centers

VIRTUS Data Centres (ST Telemedia Global Data Centres)

New Entrants

Digital Reef

EdgeCore Digital Infrastructure

Global Technical Realty

Stratus DC Management

Yondr

Zero One

Check Out Some of the Top-Selling Research Reports:

Greece Data Center Market - Investment Analysis & Growth Opportunities 2023-2028: Greece data center market will witness investments of USD 1.2 billion by 2028.

Italy Data Center Market - Investment Analysis & Growth Opportunities 2023-2028: The Italy data center market size is expected to reach USD 3.65 billion by 2028 from USD 3.01 billion in 2022.

Belgium Data Center Market - Investment Analysis & Growth Opportunities 2023-2028: The Belgium data center market will witness investments of over USD 2.81 billion by 2028.

Western Europe Data Center Market - Industry Outlook & Forecast 2022-2027:

Table of Content

Chapter 1: Existing & Upcoming Third-Party Data Centers in the UK

Historical Market Scenario

195+ Unique Data Center Properties

Data Center IT Load Capacity

Data Center White Floor Area

Existing Vs Upcoming Data Center Capacity by Counties

Counties Covered

Greater Location



Berkshire



Greater Manchester



Other Counties

List of Upcoming Data Center Projects in the UK

Chapter 2: Investment Opportunities in the UK

Microeconomic and Macroeconomic factors of the UK Market

Investment Opportunities in the UK

Investment by Area

Investment by Power Capacity

Chapter 3: Data Center Colocation Market in the UK

Data Center Demand Factors in the UK

Colocation Services Market in the UK

Retail vs Wholesale Data Center Colocation

Colocation Pricing (Quarter Rack, Half Rack, Full Rack) & Add-ons

Chapter 4: Market Dynamics

Market Drivers

Market Trends

Market Restraints

Chapter 5: Market Segmentation

IT Infrastructure: Market Size & Forecast

Electrical Infrastructure: Market Size & Forecast

Mechanical Infrastructure: Market Size & Forecast

Breakup of Construction Cost

General Construction Services: Market Size & Forecast

Chapter 6: Tier Standard Investment

Tier I & II

Tier III

Tier IV

Chapter 7: Geography

Greater London

Other Counties

Chapter 8: Key Market Participants

IT Infrastructure Providers

Construction Contractors

Support Infrastructure Providers

Data Center Investors

New Entrants

Chapter 9: Appendix

Market Derivation

Quantitative Summary

About Us:?????????????

Arizton Advisory and Intelligence is an innovative and quality-driven firm that offers cutting-edge research solutions to clients worldwide. We excel in providing comprehensive market intelligence reports and advisory and consulting services.???????????

We offer comprehensive market research reports on consumer goods & retail technology, automotive and mobility, smart tech, healthcare, life sciences, industrial machinery, chemicals, materials, I.T. and media, logistics, and packaging. These reports contain detailed industry analysis, market size, share, growth drivers, and trend forecasts.????????????

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NORTHAMPTON, MA / ACCESSWIRE / June 14, 2023 / Leidos:

Leidos employees and family members participating in the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention's Hike for Hope event in Huntsville, Alabama.

Leidos has joined the fight against adolescent suicide and depression, a growing public health crisis in America.

Why you should know: May was Mental Health Awareness Month, and many organizations including Leidos were stepping up efforts to make a difference surrounding the teenage mental health crisis.

The data says: According to the most recent data, intentional self-harm is the third-leading cause of death among teenagers, behind only homicide and unintentional injury.

Earlier this year, the CDC published results from its annual Youth Risky Behavior Survey, which showed teen girls and teens who identify as LGBTQ+ are experiencing unprecedented levels of mental distress:

"More than 1 in 4 girls reported they seriously considered attempting suicide in 2021, up significantly from 2011," the report states. "More than 1 in 10 girls reported they attempted suicide in 2021, also increasing significantly over the decade."

"In 2021, almost half of LGBTQ+ students seriously considered attempting suicide, nearly 1 in 4 attempted suicides, and nearly 3 in 14 reported persistent feelings of sadness or hopelessness."

"There is a mental health crisis in America as millions are seeking help," says Dr. Christianne Esposito-Smythers, Professor of Psychology at George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia. "The system is overwhelmed with patients having limited options and experiencing long waits in addition to high costs, insufficient insurance coverage and limited information about available services."

Leidos impact: Leidos supports a number of causes related to teenage depression as part of its Mission for the Mind campaign:

Leidos is a Presenting Sponsor for all four of this year's National Capital Area Out of the Darkness Walks , hosted by the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (ASFP).

, hosted by the (ASFP). The company has partnered with EVERFI to bring digital mental health and wellness education to middle school and high school students across West Virginia and Maryland.

with to bring digital mental health and wellness education to middle school and high school students across West Virginia and Maryland. Leidos supports the Women's Center , which provides free and reduced cost support for mental health and domestic violence. The Women's Center recently launched a teenage resiliency program, which over the past year has provided nearly 350 adolescents with nearly 4,000 hours of trauma mental health counseling.

the , which provides free and reduced cost support for mental health and domestic violence. The Women's Center recently launched a teenage resiliency program, which over the past year has provided nearly 350 adolescents with nearly 4,000 hours of trauma mental health counseling. Leidos supports GMU's Center for Psychological Studies which provides accessible mental health services and helps train the next generation of therapists.

GMU's which provides accessible mental health services and helps train the next generation of therapists. Leidos supports the National Military Family Association (NMFA) and its Operation Purple Camps designed to help support the mental well-being of military children by giving them a free week of camp to connect with other military kids.

Leidos hosted a number of activities this month in honor of Mental Health Awareness Month.

The company hosted a screening and discussion of the new film, "Hiding in Plain Sight: Youth Mental Illness." Presented by legendary documentary filmmaker Ken Burns, the film explores the challenges of youth mental illness in the U.S. and features stories from more than 20 young people who live with mental health conditions.

Leidos will present "Mission Critical: Prioritizing Mental Health for Military Service Members and their Families," a panel discussion about the challenges of delivering and accessing mental health resources for military servicemembers and their families.

Most importantly: If you're having suicidal thoughts, there are people who want to help you. You can speak to someone at the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255 (TALK). You can also find help from the American Foundation of Suicide Prevention. If you're a veteran in crisis, please contact the Veterans Crisis Line.

"Remember, you're not alone," says Dr. Robyn Mehlenbeck, a clinical psychologist at George Mason. "There's support available for both teenagers and their families. By prioritizing mental health throughout the year, we can create a more supportive environment for the younger generation, ensuring they receive the care they need."

Please contact the Leidos media relations team for more information.

View additional multimedia and more ESG storytelling from Leidos on 3blmedia.com.

Contact Info:

Spokesperson: Leidos

Website: https://www.3blmedia.com/profiles/leidos

Email: info@3blmedia.com

SOURCE: Leidos

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/761318/Leidos-Has-Joined-the-Fight-Against-Teenage-Depression
Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - June 14, 2023) - Electro Metals and Mining Inc ("Electro Metals", or the "Company") is pleased to announce a non-brokered private placement offering. The purpose of the financing is to advance the exploration of the Fabie - Magusi copper - zinc - silver - gold deposits near Rouyn - Noranda, Quebec, to continue seeking advanced stage projects for development, and to satisfy conditions of the Letter of Intent signed with Shine Box Capital Inc. (TSXV: RENT) ("Shine Box") as part of the proposed reverse takeover ("RTO") transaction of Shine Box by Electro Metals.

Electro Metals plans to raise a minimum of $1,500,00 up to $3,500,000 (the "Offering"). Under the terms of the Offering, Electro Metals offers investors three choices by way of Subscription Receipts: (i) "Hard Dollar" units ("HD Units") priced at $0.30 (ii) "Flow through" units ("FT Units") priced at C$0.35 per unit, and (iii) "Critical Minerals flow-through" units ("CMFT Units") priced at C$0.40 per unit (collectively, the "Units"). Each of the Units will include one half of one common share purchase warrant. Each full purchase warrant will be exercisable, for three years from the date the shares start to trade on a recognized stock exchange, at an exercise price of $0.40. Electro Metals plans to raise gross proceeds of up to $3.5 million in any combination of Units, but including a minimum of $500,000 Hard Dollars. Electro will issue a minimum of 4,166,667 up to a maximum of 11,666,667 Units. Electro Metals will commence closings upon reaching the minimum and will continue closings while working through the RTO and listing process. The intent is to have the funds released to the Company as soon as is reasonably possible.

The funds of the Offering are to be held in escrow (the "Escrowed Funds") by the Escrow Agent until the receipt of approval and the listing of Electro Metals' Common Shares on a Canadian stock exchange (the "Escrow Release Condition"). In the event that the Escrow Release Condition is satisfied prior to 5:00 p.m. (Toronto time) on December 31, 2023 (the "Escrow Deadline"), the Subscription Receipts will automatically convert into the applicable number of Units with no further action required by the Subscriber. If the Escrow Release Condition is not satisfied by the Escrow Deadline, the Subscriber will be entitled to receive from the Escrow Agent a refund of the Escrowed Funds.

The proceeds of the Offering will be used for confirmation and expansion drilling of the Magusi and Fabie deposits, with the intent of advancing these toward a development decision, drill testing other targets, continued due diligence and negotiation on other advanced base metals projects, marketing, and for general working capital. The gross proceeds raised from the CMFT Units will be used to incur eligible "Canadian exploration expenses" ("CEE") that qualify as "flow-through critical mineral mining expenditures", and the proceeds from the FT Units will be used to incur CEE that qualify as "flow-through mining expenditures" as such terms are defined in the Income Tax Act (Canada). Electro Metals will pay a finder's fee of 7% cash commission and 7% finders' warrants. Each finders' warrant is exercisable into one common share at $0.40 for a period of 36 months from the date the Electro Metals shares are listed for trading on a Canadian public stock exchange.

"We are very pleased to be raising funds to commence the drilling programs at Fabie Magusi. This project has all the makings for a substantial mine development: Known resources that can be expanded and potentially put into production, nearby discovery potential along the 'favourable horizon', and untested targets for 'blue sky' drilling. This marks a first step in our plans to build Electro Metals into the next Canadian base metals producer, as we also continue to evaluate other near - term production opportunities. Electro Metals is pleased the Canadian government is taking bold steps to encourage investment in Canadian mining exploration through its Critical Minerals tax incentives," stated Chairman and CEO Daryl Hodges.

NEAR TERM MILESTONES

Complete the go - public transaction with Shine Box

Infill and step out drilling of the copper - zinc - silver deposits near Rouyn-Noranda;

Complete updated resources and preliminary estimates of mining potential

Advance the metallurgical test work and negotiate off take agreements;

Continue to investigate other advanced opportunities;

This Press Release Is Available on the Company's website www.electrometalsandmining.com.

About Electro Metals

Electro Metals and Mining Inc. is a Canadian federally registered private company focused on becoming a publicly-listed growth company in the production of critical metals (Cu-Ni-Zn) to feed into the current and future demand for these metals.

The plan is to develop low cost production and extraction near existing infrastructure and take advantage of low capital costs.

Disclaimers:

This press release may contain certain forward-looking statements, including, without limitation, statements containing the words "may", "plan", "will", "estimate", "continue", "anticipate", "intend", "expect", "in the process" and other similar expressions which constitute "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Forward-looking statements reflect the Company's current expectation and assumptions, and are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated. These forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties including, but not limited to, our expectations regarding the Offering, completion of the Offering, satisfaction of the Escrow Release Provisions, expenditure of gross proceeds, completion of proposed transaction with Shine Box . Such statements reflect the current views of the Company with respect to future events and are subject to certain risks and uncertainties and other risks which may be detailed from time-to-time in the Company's on-going filings with the securities regulatory authorities, when applicable, which filings would be found at www.sedar.com upon such time the company becomes a reporting issuer. Actual results, events, and performance may differ materially. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. The Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements either as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by applicable securities laws.

This document has not been filed with any Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) or other authority that has verified the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

For further information contact

Daryl Hodges, Chairman and CEO

Tel (647) 271-3817

Email: dhodges@rogers.com

OR VISIT

www.electrometalsandmining.com

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/170005
JERSEY CITY, NJ / ACCESSWIRE / June 14, 2023 / EQUATOR Beverage Company (OTCQB:MOJO) has implemented substantial measures to enhance the simplicity and efficiency of its capital structure, with the objective of establishing a transparent and easily comprehensible framework for its shareholders and potential investors.

To achieve this, the company has taken several actions. Firstly, it has eliminated its Preferred Class B stock, which previously amounted to 10,000,000 shares as of March 2019. Additionally, two reverse stock splits were carried out: a 10-to-1 split on April 2, 2013, and a 2-to-1 split on July 5, 2022. As a result of these actions, the Company's outstanding share count now stands at 16,503,796 shares.

In line with its commitment to transparency, EQUATOR has revised its corporate bylaws, significantly reducing the number of authorized shares from 200,000,000 to 20,000,000, representing a notable 90 percent decrease as of July 5, 2022.

Moreover, the company has made the decision to cancel all outstanding warrants and options, and there are no plans to issue any additional ones in the coming years.

Demonstrating its dedication to transparency and commitment to shareholder value, EQUATOR has engaged in private transactions since 2018 to acquire 1,521,574 common shares adjusted for splits up to the present day. These initiatives underscore the company's focus on establishing a simplified and easily understood capital structure for its stakeholders, all while prioritizing their best interests.

The below table shows the repurchases by year adjusted for splits.

EQUATOR Beverage Company

Common Stock Repurchases

January 1, 2019 to June 14, 2023

As of June 14, 2023, EQUATOR Beverage Company maintains a well-defined capital structure. The company has authorized a total of 20,000,000 shares, out of which 16,503,796 shares have been issued and are currently outstanding. Among these outstanding shares, 12,657,157 are restricted for sale, while 3,846,639 shares are unrestricted for sale. Notably, 2,552,454 shares are held by the Depository Trust Company (DTC).

In line with its commitment to maximizing shareholder value, EQUATOR Beverage Company has outlined its plan to execute a share buyback program throughout 2023. This strategic initiative aims to decrease the number of outstanding shares, thereby enhancing the value of each share held by the company's shareholders. By implementing these measures, the company seeks to generate long-term shareholder value while maintaining a transparent and straightforward capital structure.

For additional information, contact Glenn Simpson CEO EQUATOR Beverage Company at 929 264 7944 Stock Symbol: MOJO

Important Cautions Regarding Forward Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the definition of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended and such section 21E of the Securities Act of 1934, amended. These forward-looking statements should not be used to make an investment decision. The words 'estimate,' 'possible' and 'seeking' and similar expressions identify forward- looking statements, which speak only as to the date the statement was made. The company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether because of new information, future events, or otherwise. Forward-looking statements are inherently subject to risks and uncertainties, some of which cannot be predicted, or quantified.

Future events and actual results could differ materially from those set forth in, contemplated or underlying the forward-looking statements. The risks and uncertainties to which forward- looking statements are subject include, but are not limited to, the effect of government regulation, competition and other material risk.

Related Links: https://equatorbeverage.com/

Contact:

Glenn Simpson, Chairman & CEO

Phone Number: 917 574 1690

SOURCE: EQUATOR Beverage Company

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/761349/EQUATOR-Beverage-Company-Capital-Structure-Events
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - June 14, 2023) - Safe Supply Streaming Co. Ltd. ("Safe Supply" or "SSSC" or "the Company"), the leading global pharmaceutical and healthcare streaming company focused on the third wave of the ongoing international de-scheduling of narcotics and plant medicine, is pleased to share an update on its international initiatives to bring safe supply and related harm reduction programs to communities internationally.

As a result of the growing number of governments at various levels implementing new and forward-thinking regulations to tackle the damage from drug abuse: safe supply and related harm reduction programs, SSSC has prioritized its international initiatives to be positioned at the forefront in the development of the safe supply eco-system, which allows the Company to rapidly develop into the partner of choice for governments and advocates of harm reduction.

Significant funds are being made available to implement new programs that have been proven to deliver better results in terms of harm reduction to individuals and society when compared to the status quo (The War on Drugs). Additionally, SSSC believes that it has become apparent that safe supply is no longer only the purview of direct stakeholders.

Bill Panagiotakopoulos, Safe Supply Streaming Co. CEO, commented, "We are encouraged to see an increasing number of countries adopting the principles of safe supply. This pragmatic, evidence-based approach has significant advantages over the status quo. We are witnessing a major change in governmental approaches to tackling the harm done by drug abuse, with the damage in Canada alone reaching nearly $50 billion annually. It is clear that this new approach has much greater efficacy than the global war on drugs, which has cost about $1 trillion to date. It is encouraging that major population centres such as Bern, Toronto, Hamilton, Vancouver are now looking to implement broad and well supported harm reduction programs. We at Safe Supply Streaming Co will be working with governments and private enterprises to bring new solutions to those jurisdictions adopting safe supply by investing along the value chain to help build this new eco-system."

Setti Coscarella, VP Corporate Development, stated, "International momentum is there to push the implementation of safe supply. This will require consultation with international experts, and Safe Supply Streaming Co is being recognized as such. We are working directly with governments and other international stakeholders to shape the eco-system and help implement life-saving programs. Through our streaming model, we will be able to invest in and support in effective and efficient solution providers, thus creating growth and revenue opportunities for the Company."

Highlighted International Initiatives

SSSC has a global outlook and is in active discussions across the globe to help governments build the eco-system required for the effective and efficient implementation of these initiatives. SSSC is at the forefront of this movement. In part, our aim is to provide innovative solutions that ensure the safe delivery of essential medications and substances to patients worldwide. Furthermore, the Company will focus on bringing other proven products and solutions that support the eco-system, such as testing strips, treatment and new pharmaceuticals. By collaborating with renowned industry professionals, lobbyists, and politicians, the Company is actively involved in shaping legislation and regulations to support the roll-out of safe supply and other harm reduction programs.

With its global strategy, the Company is positioned to positively impact the way medications and substances, as well as treatment and other harm reduction measures are delivered, ensuring the well-being and safety of people worldwide.

Peru

The Company's management team recently visited with the world's only government owned legal supplier of coca leaf, Peru's ENACO.

Through its strong business and political connections, the Company was able to assist one of SSSC's designated portfolio companies in securing a supply arrangement with ENACO, while at the same time being able to demonstrate the quality of its network to ENACO and other critical partners in the safe supply eco-system.

Founded in 1949, ENACO is a Peruvian state company dedicated to the commercialization of the coca leaf and its derivatives. ENACO annually exports approximately 150,000 kg of coca leaf, predominantly to Stepan Company in New Jersey, U.S. who processes the leaf and supplies the medical industry as well as Coca Cola.

As a streaming company, Safe Supply is working with a number of designated portfolio companies to build the safe-supply eco-system, as well as pursue additional opportunities created by the decriminalization of narcotics in certain jurisdictions. To this end, the Company has been assisting a Canadian company in the coca space who are looking to supply coca-derived nutraceuticals, flavoring agents and fertilizer (all applications that require decocanization of the leaf).

United States

As part of its strategy, the Company is actively collaborating with lobbyists and politicians in the United States to shape legislation that enables and supports safe supply businesses. Furthermore, the Company continues to advance relationships with ancillary businesses associated with narcotics and addiction to identify and potentially invest in these companies to further strengthen the safe supply and harm reduction offering. The focus is on developing effective solutions, including fentanyl test strips and addiction counselling, to combat the opioid crisis and provide comprehensive support to individuals and communities affected by substance abuse.

With deaths from contaminated drug supply accelerating to nearly 300 per day in the U.S., the fentanyl test strip market has experienced rapid growth in recent years, reflecting the need for effective solutions that provide individuals and communities the ability to detect and prevent fentanyl-related overdoses. The company is committed to exploring opportunities to contribute to the accessibility of fentanyl test strips, ensuring their availability to individuals and organizations at risk of fentanyl exposure.

SSSC has engaged extensively with U.S. based institutions and family offices to discuss the safe supply and harm reduction eco-system and how it intends to play an important role in providing funding and other support to the sector through its streaming investment model.

As the Company rolls out its international strategy, the U.S. will be an important focus area for the identification of new technologies and solutions that SSSC intends to make part of its eco-system, while at the same time forming an important source of highly interested capital. Longer term, the Company anticipates the U.S. to become an important focus area for its safe supply initiatives as evidence-based solutions continue to gain traction in that market also.

Dubai

During a visit to Dubai, our executive team engaged in strategic discussions with industry leaders, exploring potential collaborations and partnerships. These interactions further solidified Safe Supply's commitment to pioneering advancements in the pharmaceutical and healthcare sectors. In particular, the team met with leaders in the fields of CBD, cannabis, psychedelics, and safe supply and the trip has positioned the Company to explore and act quickly on opportunities in this region.

Switzerland

Switzerland, since the early nineties, has been a trailblazer in its approach to drug abuse. While law enforcement continues to be one of the four pillars of its program, measures to support prevention, treatment and harm reduction have been utilized successfully, as a 50%, reduction in overdose deaths, a 65% reduction in HIV infections and an 80% in new heroin users clearly show.

While recognizing the harmful nature of cocaine, Bern's municipal council voted overwhelmingly in favour of a motion to commence a pilot project for the supervised sale of cocaine. Even though this is only one municipality, as the capital of Switzerland, what happens in Bern will be closely followed and, upon successful outcomes, be implemented elsewhere.

The supply of uncontaminated narcotics, testing kits, treatment, etc. all have proven significantly more efficacious than the status quo. While not condoning nor promoting drug use, safe supply and its derivative programs save lives, reduce harm and the overall cost to society.

As SSSC remains committed to its global strategy for safe supply, it will continue to evaluate the evolving landscape and explore potential collaborations with stakeholders invested in advancing harm reduction measures. Through these endeavors, the Company seeks to contribute to the development of responsible and evidence-based approaches that prioritize the safety and well-being of individuals within the context of the broader healthcare industry.

About Safe Supply Streaming Co

Safe Supply Streaming is the pre-eminent company tackling the systemic illicit drug problem that has been plaguing society for over 50 years. We are a healthcare / pharmaceutical investment company that is led by a world-class management team with decades of experience operating in regulated markets.

Our company is focused on working with Health Canada, and all levels of the Canadian Government to invest, finance, partner, and/or joint venture with a portfolio of companies that operate across the Safe Supply ecosystem.

This ecosystem is vast and includes opportunities in: laboratories, import/export of regulated products, manufacturing and processing of regulated products, government sponsored real estate, rehabilitation facilities, pharmaceutical development, treatment clinics and more. This burgeoning ecosystem is being designed, with oversight from local, provincial and federal government agencies, to curb the socioeconomic harm caused by the illicit drug supply which is causing deaths at an increasingly alarming rate.

On behalf of the board of directors

Bill Panagiotakopoulos

Chief Executive Officer and Director

Safe Supply Streaming Co. Ltd.

info@safesupplystreaming.com

For more information

Marc Lakmaaker

AdvanceCap Inc

T: +1.647.289.6640

E: marc@advancecapinc.com

Forward-Looking Information and Statements

Certain statements in this news release related to the Company are forward-looking statements and are prospective in nature, including but not limited to the express or implied statements and assumptions regarding the intention of Origin and Safe Supply to complete the Transaction and the Private Placement. Forward-looking statements are not based on historical facts, but rather on current expectations and projections about future events and are therefore subject to risks and uncertainties which could cause actual results to differ materially from the future results expressed

or implied by the forward-looking statements. In particular, there is no guarantee that the parties will successfully enter into the Definitive Agreement or complete the Transaction or Private Placement contemplated herein, that Origin will obtain any of the required shareholder or regulatory approvals, including the listing of the Resulting Issuer Shares on the CSE. These forward-looking statements generally can be identified by the use of forward-looking words such as "may", "should", "could", "intend", "estimate", "plan", "anticipate", "expect", "believe", "will" or "continue", or the negative thereof or similar variations. There are numerous risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results and the Company's and Safe Supply's plans and objectives to differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking information, including but not limited to adverse market conditions and risks inherent in the Company's and Safe Supply's business in general. Actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such information. These and all subsequent written and oral forward-looking information are based on estimates and opinions of management on the dates they are made and are expressly qualified in their entirety by this press release. Except as required by applicable law, the Company and Safe Supply do not intend to update these forward-looking statements.

The Canadian Securities Exchange has neither approved nor disapproved the contents of this news release and accepts no responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy hereof.

THIS NEWS RELEASE IS INTENDED FOR DISTRIBUTION IN CANADA ONLY AND IS NOT INTENDED FOR DISTRIBUTION TO UNITED STATES NEWSWIRE SERVICES OR DISSEMINATION IN THE UNITED STATES.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/170010
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - June 14, 2023) - International Zeolite Corp. (TSXV: IZ) (OTC Pink: IZCFF) (FSE: ZEON) (IZ), an international supplier of sustainable zeolite-infused products for use in agriculture, is pleased to announce it has been chosen as one of the recipients of the Government of Canada-funded i.d.e.a. Fund.

As reported by Innovate Niagara: "Today, 22 companies received non-repayable contributions of $660,000 from Innovate Niagara, in partnership with Innovation Guelph, through Cohort 2 of the Government of Canada-supported i.d.e.a Fund."

"The i.d.e.a. Fund is a southern Ontario-focused initiative that was developed to help clean growth firms access the tools they need to succeed by providing financial and business advisory supports to develop or redesign green products, services, processes and technologies that reduce impacts to our environment and create made-in-Canada climate change solutions. The program fosters inclusion and diversity, with a focus on continuing Canada's transition to a green economy. Supported by a $10-million Government of Canada investment through the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario (FedDev Ontario), the i.d.e.a. Fund is being delivered by six Regional Innovation Centres (RICs): Innovation Guelph, WEtech Alliance, Haltech, Innovate Niagara, Innovation Factory and TechAlliance of Southwestern Ontario."

"Business owners in southern Ontario are making incredible strides to promote green products and build a clean economy. The i.d.e.a. Fund offers financial and advisory support to entrepreneurs who are creating made-in-Canada solutions to our everyday problems," said the Honourable Filomena Tassi, Minister responsible for the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario. "The Government of Canada is happy to support the i.d.e.a. Fund as they work with the next generation of Canada's entrepreneurs to enable them to reach their full potential."

On Behalf of the Board

"Ray Paquette"

CEO

+1 604.684.3301

For further information, please visit www.internationalzeolite.com

For Investor Inquiries info@internationalzeolite.com

Some statements in this news release contain forward-looking information. These statements include, but are not limited to, statements with respect to future expenditures. These statements address future events and conditions and, as such, involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the statements. Such factors include, among others, the ability to complete contemplated work programs and the timing and amount of expenditures. International Zeolite does not assume the obligation to update any forward-looking statement. Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/170061
This follows the armed robbery of several people while waiting for a train around 6am on Friday

Commuters were robbed at gunpoint at the Parow Metrorail station on Friday morning.

A person told us: "There's not even one light that works at Parow station. It's always dark." This was our experience too.

Metrorail's spokesperson said that commuters who have been robbed on the service and who can present valid train tickets can lodge a claim.

Train commuters at Parow Station are calling for better lighting and security on the northern line. This follows the armed robbery of commuters who were waiting for the train on the platform at about 6am on Friday.

Entering the station, the only lit area at Parow station is the corridor towards the Bellville platform near the ticket checkers and also at the front of the train station at the ticket office. The pathway from the stairs to the Cape Town platform is very dark before sunrise in winter. This is part of the reason the WhatsApp group with regular updates was started.

GroundUp has seen messages on a WhatsApp group on the route between Kraaifontein and Cape Town. It is run by commuters and has over 900 members. The group's aim is to update members on train arrival times, delays and cancellations. Several messages about the robbery have been reported.

In February we reported that the Parow station, one of the busiest on the Northern Line, had resumed service for the first time since its closure for lockdown in 2020. During the closure, commuters had to walk to Tygerberg and Elsies River to catch a train to Cape Town.

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Following the robbery on Friday, an eyewitness wrote: "Gunmen got into the station and started collecting phones like in the shop. Be aware! We asked PRASA and Metrorail to enforce security. I was almost 2 metres from them when they were busy searching other guys, so I ran. Parow station is very dark early in the morning. They must provide light."

Another eyewitness, who asked that she only be identified as Yolande from Ravensmead, said she commutes from Parow to Cape Town and back daily. She said there's usually one security guard in the mornings with a torch. "But on Friday I didn't see him. I was still shaking when I reached workplace. I bought myself defence spray on my way home," she said.

Another commuter, who travels daily at about 6:20am from Parow to Retreat, said she was traumatised by seeing the robbery. "I didn't see any ticket checker or security. There's not even one light that works at Parow station. It's always dark."

Metrorail spokesperson Zinobulali Mihi said that they did not have a record of the robbery incident. "There is contract security deployed at the station including our own Protection Services staff. We cover the early, off-peak and late trains."

Mihi said commuters who have been robbed on the service and who can present valid train tickets can lodge a claim. "There is a claims process that is conducted by the claims department at our Business Risk department."
SAN FRANCISCO, CA / ACCESSWIRE / June 14, 2023 / Deputy, a leading global software platform for managing hourly workers, today announced the appointment of two new members to its Senior Leadership Team with the additions of Katrina Holt as Chief Customer Officer and Jon Wilson as SVP, Head of the EMEA region. Adding these distinguished leaders marks a significant step in Deputy's global growth plans in the United States and Europe.

Drawing from an extensive career in financial services and technology, Holt brings over 20 years of operations and compliance experience, high-growth leadership, and customer-centricity to her new role. Before joining Deputy, Holt served as Senior Vice President of Operations at Affirm Inc., a San Francisco-based fintech company, where she led a global customer support network of over 800 associates. Her contributions were instrumental in scaling customer and merchant support operations to cater to the needs of over 13 million consumers and 200,000+ merchants. With prior experience as Chief Compliance Officer with GE Capital, Holt will leverage her expertise to enhance customer satisfaction, scale operations, and drive market growth at Deputy.

"I am a firm believer in standing in the shoes of your customer," said Holt. "My dedication lies in establishing strong connections with our customers, whether businesses or their employees, and driving meaningful outcomes through our work. Despite being a technology company, Deputy's mission and purpose are deeply rooted in empowering the world's 2.7 billion shift workers. It's the all-in-one app that hourly workers rely on throughout their day, using it multiple times. Every interaction on our platform impacts people's daily lives, and I am excited to foster stronger customer relationships moving forward."

As Deputy continues to scale globally, it brings on another experienced leader in Wilson, who brings several decades of international business experience as he joins Deputy's Senior Leadership Team as SVP, Head of the EMEA region. Most recently, Wilson served as the CEO of Stepstone Atlantic, a globally renowned jobs and recruiting platform, and previously held the role of General Manager at Groupon, overseeing operations in Northern Europe. His role at Deputy will be instrumental in leading and expanding the company's operations and growth.

"Helping customers to streamline their work process and pursue their passions has been the driving force behind my entire career - and it aligns perfectly with Deputy's core purpose," said Wilson. "I look forward to continuing this important work of expanding our current customer base that includes renowned establishments like citizenM, Honest Burgers, and HC-One. Creating values-driven work environments where employees thrive is a personal commitment of mine, and I am eager to guide Deputy towards even greater achievements."

Holt will be based in Salt Lake City, and Wilson will be in London.

"I have witnessed first-hand the transformative leadership of Katrina and Jon and their ability to build high-performing global teams," said Silvija Martincevic, CEO of Deputy. "Their exceptional track record in driving user, partner, and revenue growth will take Deputy to new heights. Katrina's unwavering focus on customer satisfaction and operational excellence will drive our global expansion. With Jon's strategic vision and deep knowledge of the EMEA market, we are confident in his ability to rapidly scale our presence and establish Deputy as a household brand."

About Deputy

Deputy is on a mission to improve the world of hourly work for businesses and workers alike. Deputy's leading software solution streamlines communication, scheduling, tasks, and timesheets for millions of workers and businesses worldwide. More than 330,000 workplaces and 1.3 million shift workers use Deputy daily in over 100 countries. At the forefront of empowering businesses, Deputy's platform equips them with the tools and insights they need to streamline compliance, build thriving workplaces, and stay focused on what matters most - their employees.

Visit www.deputy.com, or find us on Twitter, Facebook, the App Store or Google Play for more information.

Contact Information:

Kendal Pektas

Senior Manager, Public Relations

kpektas@deputy.com

SOURCE: Deputy

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/761106/Deputy-Expands-Global-Business-With-New-Chief-Customer-Officer-and-Head-of-EMEA-Appointments
4Trans, a Prague, Czech Republic-based fintech company, raised a major Pre-Series A funding of undisclosed amount.

The round saw participation from Zero Gravity Capital.

The company intends to use the funds to strengthen the Czech fintechs presence in Poland and Slovakia, expand its team and make further technological enhancements to its platform.

Led by CEO Jaroslav Ton and CMO Alexandr Lagazzi, 4Trans provides a range of financial products to SME logistic companies and independent hauliers. These solutions allow them to access outstanding cash flow from unpaid invoices, enabling them to use their own funds to improve their daily operations and invest in growth plans, while also protecting them against cash flow challenges. The partnership with Allianz trade also gives it the ability to offer insurance products to its clients.

To date, 4Trans has financed 90,000 invoices with a total of over 80m for supply chain and logistics SMEs.

FinSMEs

14/06/2023
In the last few years, the Cardano blockchain gained solid positions in the blockchain market. The key factors of Cardanos success are the special scientific development process and the wide list of companies working on Cardano blockchain. Cardano has gained popularity through such companies as crypto exchanges, wallets, trading platforms, and node providers, which give access to the Cardano nodes, and many other crypto partners.

The success of the Cardano blockchain can be also attributed to several technical key factors:

Scientific approach: Cardano is known for its rigorous scientific and academic approach to blockchain development. The project is led by IOHK (Input Output Hong Kong), which has a strong focus on formal methods and peer-reviewed research. This scientific approach ensures that the blockchain is built on solid theoretical foundations and is designed to be secure, scalable, and sustainable. Peer-reviewed research: Cardanos development process involves extensive peer-reviewed research. The team behind Cardano publishes their research in academic journals and conferences, which enhances the credibility and trustworthiness of the project. This focus on academic rigor helps to differentiate Cardano from other blockchain platforms. Ouroboros consensus protocol: Cardano uses a unique proof-of-stake (PoS) consensus protocol called Ouroboros, which was developed based on academic research. Ouroboros is designed to be secure, decentralized, and energy-efficient. It enables the Cardano network to achieve consensus without relying on energy-intensive mining operations, making it more sustainable compared to proof-of-work (PoW) based blockchains like Bitcoin. Scalability and sustainability: Cardano aims to address the scalability and sustainability challenges faced by many blockchain platforms. It has a layered architecture that separates the settlement layer from the computation layer, allowing for greater scalability. Additionally, Cardano incorporates mechanisms to address governance, interoperability, and sustainability, making it a comprehensive blockchain platform. Emphasis on compliance: Cardano places a strong emphasis on compliance and regulatory frameworks. By actively engaging with governments and regulatory bodies, Cardano aims to provide a blockchain platform that meets regulatory requirements and can be adopted by enterprises and institutions. This focus on compliance enhances Cardanos appeal in regulated industries. Growing ecosystem and partnerships: Cardano has been successful in building a vibrant ecosystem around its blockchain. It has attracted a growing community of developers, researchers, and enthusiasts, apart from the companies, who contribute to its development and adoption. Cardano has also established partnerships with various organizations, including governments, academic institutions, and technology companies, to foster innovation and adoption of its blockchain.

These factors collectively contribute to the success of Cardano, making it an attractive blockchain platform with strong potential for growth and adoption. However, its important to note that the success of any blockchain project is subject to various factors, including technological advancements, market dynamics, and competition within the blockchain industry. Also, a big factor of success is the mass adoption within the Web 3 market, which can provide technical contributors, such as SaaS providers and companies which accept ADA coin, the native coin of Cardano blockchain. Lets look closely at these types of companies.

Cardano Ecosystem Companies.

There are several notable SaaS providers for the Cardano blockchain. These providers offer infrastructure and services to support the operation of Cardanos decentralized network.

IOHK: IOHK, the technology company behind Cardano, operates a network of nodes to support the blockchains infrastructure. IOHK plays a crucial role in the development and maintenance of Cardanos blockchain. Coinone: Coinone is a South Korean cryptocurrency exchange that supports Cardano and operates a node for the blockchain. It offers trading services for ADA and facilitates the participation of users in the Cardano ecosystem. Nexo: Nexo is a blockchain-based company that offers a range of financial services primarily focused on the cryptocurrency industry. The company operates as a crypto lending platform, allowing users to borrow against their Cardano as collateral. Nexos platform provides instant Caradano loans, enabling individuals and businesses to access liquidity without selling their Cardano currency. NOWNodes: NOWNodes is a blockchain infrastructure platform that offers node deployment and management services. It provides support for multiple blockchain networks, including Cardano, allowing users to manage nodes easily.

More complete list of companies that work with Cardano is published on Cardanos official website or developer documentation.

How is the Cardano blockchain working?

The Cardano blockchain works through a decentralized network of nodes that collectively maintain the integrity of the blockchain. Heres a simplified explanation of how Cardano works:

Consensus Protocol: Cardano uses a proof-of-stake (PoS) consensus protocol called Ouroboros. In this protocol, instead of miners competing to solve complex mathematical puzzles (as in proof-of-work), validators, also known as stakeholders, are randomly selected to create new blocks and validate transactions based on the amount of ADA they hold and are willing to stake as collateral. Transaction Validation: When a transaction is initiated on the Cardano network, it is broadcasted to the network of nodes. Validators selected through the PoS protocol, collect and validate the transaction. They ensure that the transaction is properly formed, the sender has sufficient ADA balance, and the transaction adheres to the predefined rules of the blockchain. Block Creation: Validated transactions are bundled into blocks. In Cardanos case, the blockchain consists of two main layers: the settlement layer (SL) and the computation layer (CL). The settlement layer handles the transfer of ADA, while the computation layer supports smart contracts and dApps. Each layer has its own set of nodes responsible for block creation and validation. Block Validation: For the settlement layer, the Ouroboros consensus protocol determines the node selected to create a new block. The selected node assembles the validated transactions into a block and includes cryptographic proof that attests to the validity of the block. Other nodes then validate the block by verifying the proof and the transactions within it. Block Propagation: Once a block is validated, it is propagated across the network, ensuring that all nodes receive and validate the new block. This process helps maintain consensus and ensures that all nodes have an up-to-date copy of the blockchain. Governance: Cardano incorporates a governance layer that allows ADA holders to participate in the decision-making process for protocol upgrades and improvements. ADA holders can propose and vote on proposals for changes to the blockchain, including protocol upgrades, funding decisions, and parameter adjustments. This mechanism ensures decentralized governance and the evolution of the Cardano blockchain based on community consensus. Smart Contracts and Applications: The computation layer of Cardano supports the execution of smart contracts and decentralized applications (dApps). Developers can build applications using Cardanos Plutus programming language and deploy them on the computation layer. Smart contracts are executed and validated by the network of computation layer nodes, allowing for the creation of various decentralized applications and use cases.

This is a high-level overview of how the Cardano blockchain works. The actual implementation involves complex cryptographic algorithms, network communication protocols, and consensus mechanisms. However, understanding the fundamental concepts outlined above provides a basic understanding of the extreme success of the Cardano blockchain.
Glyphic AI, a London, UK-based provider of an AI copilot that assists sales teams in analyzing customer interactions, raised $5.5M in Pre-Seed funding.

The round was led by Point72 Ventures with participation from The Creator Fund, Dhyan Ventures (Amar Shah, co-founder of Wayve and Charm Therapeutics), and angels including Mehdi Ghissassi (Head of Product at Google DeepMind) and Rushin Shah.

The company intends to use the funds to build the AI copilot.

Led by CEO Adam Liska, Glyphic AI is a company building an AI copilot that assists sales teams in analyzing customer interactions and providing strategic insights into sales pipelines. It also automates manual processes and provides insights helping businesses optimize revenue strategies and increase conversion rates.

FinSMEs

14/06/2023
The financial world is consistently in flux with new trends and emerging platforms, calling for thorough assessments before making investment decisions. Key among these platforms is SurgeTrader, whose unique trading model is creating ripples in the sector.

Traders Union published the SurgeTrader review, highlighting the platforms reliability, flexibility, and potential pitfalls. Moreover, TU experts have highlighted the brokers advantages, disadvantages, and primary features. TU has also compared the Surge Trader with other brokers.

What is SurgeTrader?

According to TU experts, SurgeTrader is a proprietary trading company that offers individuals the opportunity to manage capital ranging from USD 25,000 after passing an aptitude test. Headquartered in Florida, USA, the venture fund Valo Holdings provides the platforms financial backing, making SurgeTrader an international entity with impressive financial muscle.

Advantages and disadvantages of SurgeTrader

TU experts highlight the key advantages and disadvantages of the broker. Here are a few:

Advantages:

Reliability: SurgeTrader guarantees reliability, supported by capital provision from an internationally recognized venture fund. Trading operations on this platform are executed through the EightCap broker, which is fully licensed by ASIC, the Australian regulator, further underpinning its reliability.

SurgeTrader guarantees reliability, supported by capital provision from an internationally recognized venture fund. Trading operations on this platform are executed through the EightCap broker, which is fully licensed by ASIC, the Australian regulator, further underpinning its reliability. Unrestricted Strategy Implementation: SurgeTrader offers its traders unrestricted freedom to apply their preferred strategies, provided they align with the platforms trading rules. It opens up avenues for diverse strategies ranging from algorithmic trading and hedging to scalping and the Martingale strategy. This wide strategic latitude allows traders to maximize their profits.

SurgeTrader offers its traders unrestricted freedom to apply their preferred strategies, provided they align with the platforms trading rules. It opens up avenues for diverse strategies ranging from algorithmic trading and hedging to scalping and the Martingale strategy. This wide strategic latitude allows traders to maximize their profits. High Trader Income: One of SurgeTraders standout benefits is its lucrative income offering for traders. The platform has a generous profit-sharing model where traders retain a whopping 75% of their earnings. This high-income percentage is a major attraction for traders looking to maximize their return on investment.

One of SurgeTraders standout benefits is its lucrative income offering for traders. The platform has a generous profit-sharing model where traders retain a whopping 75% of their earnings. This high-income percentage is a major attraction for traders looking to maximize their return on investment. Wide Range of Assets: SurgeTrader further appeals to traders with its expansive asset offering. The platform avails a broad array of over 100 trading instruments, including cryptocurrencies, thus providing a rich portfolio for traders to diversify their trading and minimize risk.

SurgeTrader further appeals to traders with its expansive asset offering. The platform avails a broad array of over 100 trading instruments, including cryptocurrencies, thus providing a rich portfolio for traders to diversify their trading and minimize risk. Risk-Free Trading: SurgeTrader provides a unique risk buffer for traders. If traders adhere to the platforms maximum loss and drawdown requirements, any losses incurred are absorbed by SurgeTrader. This risk-free trading arrangement reassures traders and promotes confidence in the platform.

SurgeTrader provides a unique risk buffer for traders. If traders adhere to the platforms maximum loss and drawdown requirements, any losses incurred are absorbed by SurgeTrader. This risk-free trading arrangement reassures traders and promotes confidence in the platform. Transparency and Loyalty: SurgeTrader champions transparency and loyalty in its operations. All legal documents and the platforms conditions are freely accessible to the public. This transparency and allowance for inadvertent trading rule violations underscores SurgeTraders commitment to fairness and integrity in its operations.

Disadvantages:

High Exam Cost: SurgeTrader imposes a hefty exam cost that ranges from USD 250 to 6,500. Though the platform offers up to a 20% discount for re-taking the exam in case of a trade requirement violation, this initial cost is still daunting for many potential traders.

SurgeTrader imposes a hefty exam cost that ranges from USD 250 to 6,500. Though the platform offers up to a 20% discount for re-taking the exam in case of a trade requirement violation, this initial cost is still daunting for many potential traders. Stringent Trading Conditions: SurgeTrader sets stringent trading conditions that some traders may find challenging. The platform caps the daily drawdown at no more than 5%, and the maximum loss at 4%. These tough conditions could limit trading flexibility, making it harder for traders to leverage higher-risk, higher-reward strategies.

Analysis of the main features of SurgeTrader

On an evaluation scale, TU experts provide an overall score of 9.3/10 for SurgeTrader. Critical components of this score include the execution of orders (9/10), investment instruments (9.6/10), withdrawal speed (9.4/10), customer support (9.2/10), and a variety of instruments (9.7/10). The robust trading platform is one of the main pillars that earn SurgeTrader this impressive score.

Trading conditions for SurgeTrader users

Traders Union experts highlight that SurgeTrader provides access to over 100 OTC assets via its affiliate, EightCap broker. The single account model and trading conditions are presented on the brokers website, with additional conditions for funded account trading available on SurgeTraders platform.

Comparison of SurgeTrader with other brokers

As the Traders Unions analysis found, several other platforms share the trading space with SurgeTrader:

E8 Funding offers a user-friendly platform with a minimum deposit, generous leverage, and no deposit bonus but does not allow cent accounts. Topstep provides a robust trading platform, requires a minimum deposit, and offers a no-deposit bonus and leverage but does not have cent account provisions. Fidelcrest avails a straightforward trading platform, a minimum deposit requirement, a no deposit bonus, and adequate leverage, but no cent account options. Funded Next features a dynamic trading platform with a minimum deposit, a no-deposit bonus, and fair leverage, but lacks cent accounts. Earn2Trade has a reliable trading platform, minimum deposit, no deposit bonus, and good leverage, but it does not support cent accounts.

In addition, Traders Union has also published the Rakuten Forex broker review on its official website.

Conclusion

Traders Unions comprehensive SurgeTrader reviews provide critical insights into this trading platforms operations. The platforms advantages, limitations, and unique features are laid bare for informed decision-making. The high score SurgeTrader received reflects its exceptional performance across several dimensions. For more details, visit the Traders Unions official website, your reliable source of information in the dynamic world of trading.
Kaya Founders, a Manila, Philippines-based venture capital firm, is today announcing the first close at US$12m in funding across two new funds.

The funding was anchored by the Gokongwei family with participation from institutional investors, family offices, high-net-worth individuals, and prominent entrepreneurs. This brings the total committed capital managed by the firm to $16.5m.

Kaya Founders is targeting $25m across the two new funds. Over the past two years, the firm has primarily made its mark operating in the pre-seed stage, which it will continue to do through the upcoming Zero to One Fund. This pre-seed vehicle will focus on accelerating ventures as early as Day 0, partnering with founders even before they go to market.

The One to Ten Fund, meanwhile, will invest in more mature opportunities ranging from Seed to Series A that show strong signs of product-market fit and a path to profitability.

Kaya Founders anticipates their investments to range from $150k to $500k. While both will remain sector-agnostic, new investment themes, in addition to the aforementioned focus sectors, include D2C eCommerce, B2B marketplaces, future of work, climate tech, and generative AI.

The vehicles will back the next generation of tech-enabled, industry-shaping startups across Southeast Asia. Kaya Founders will be particularly focused on nurturing startups in its home country, the Philippines.

Founded in 2021 by veteran entrepreneurs and angel investors Paulo Campos (former CEO, ZALORA Philippines), Lisa Gokongwei-Cheng (President, Summit Media; Senior Vice President, JG Summit), and Constantin Robertz (CEO, Locad; former CEO, Entrego), Kaya Founders has established itself as the leading early-stage investor in the Philippines. To date, it has 31 companies in its portfolio, spanning eCommerce, digital health, fintech, B2B SaaS, agritech, proptech, and more. Some of its most notable portfolio companies include eCommerce enabler, Etaily, salary-on-demand start-up, Advance, and MSME point of sale (POS) app, Peddlr.

FinSMEs

14/06/2023
Majority, a Miami, FL-based company which specializes in mobile banking for migrants in the U.S., raised USD9.75M in funding.

The round was led by Valar Ventures and Heartcore Capital.

The company, which has now raised has now raised over $86M in equity, intends to use the funds for further growth along the United States-Mexico border.

Led by Magnus Larsson, Founder and CEO, Majority is a provider of a mobile banking service dedicated to serving migrants. For $5.99 per month, its members in the U.S. receive an FDIC-insured account, a Visa debit card, use of more than 55,000 ATMs across North America, remittance and international calling, in-person native language advisors, and access to a network of community meet-up spaces, local discounts, and events.

The Visa debit card is issued by Axiom Bank, Member FDIC, pursuant to a license from Visa U.S.A. Inc.

After opening four community spaces in migrant-dense cities throughout Florida and Texas, the company will open a new location in Laredo to further support Hispanic immigrants. Laredo is the principal port of entry from Mexico and the largest inland port in the U.S.

FinSMEs

14/06/2023
Oova, a New York-based provider of womens health and fertility solutions, raised $10.3M in Series A funding.

The round was led by Spero Ventures. Other investors included US Fertility, Virgin Group, Jefferson Health, Connecticut Innovations, Special Situations Life Sciences Fund, Samsung Next, Hannah Bronfman, and Sara Blakely.

The company intends to use the funds to expand operations and its business reach.

Led by Founder and CEO, Amy Divaraniya, Oova fully illuminates a womans fertility, giving her and her care team clear steps to conception. The companys at-home urine test measures luteinizing hormone and progesterone to immediately inform a woman of her most fertile days and confirm ovulation and deliver personalized analytics and real-time action plans with every hormone reading.

It is FDA registered and allows its users to sync and share results with their doctor in real time. The Oova Kit launched in 2021 and has already trained its model on over 10,000 cycles monitored through the platform.

Key features of the Oova Membership include:

Comprehensive Support: The membership grants access to the Oova Provider network, consisting of experienced healthcare professionals and hormone experts.

Personalized Guidance: Women receive tailored recommendations from hormone experts through consultations.

Community Connection: The Oova Membership fosters a vibrant and supportive community of like-minded women who are on similar journeys to parenthood. By engaging with this community, members can share their experiences, seek support, and forge valuable connections, creating a sense of camaraderie throughout their fertility journeys.

FinSMEs

14/06/2023
Silent Push, a Reston, VA-based detection-focused threat intelligence company, launched with $10M in total seed funding.

The round was led by Ten Eleven Ventures.

The company intends to use the funds to expand operations and its business reach.

Led by Ken Bagnall (CEO) and John Jensen (CTO), Silent Push provides a platform that identifies emerging threats by providing the comprehensive view of global internet-facing infrastructure available and applying deep analysis to reveal attacker infrastructure and campaigns. The platform also detects rogue assets, configuration drift, and other changes in any organizations internet-facing infrastructure. Customers can now understand emerging threats before launch, be prepared, and proactively solve problems.

The company currently has over 500 organizations on the free community edition, including commercial and government organizations, and security researchers. The paid Enterprise edition has already been adopted by security teams of some of the worlds largest organizations. Customers can use the solution via the Silent Push browser interface, or integrate into existing security solutions using the API, allowing enrichment of any security event and replacing multiple existing products.

FinSMEs

14/06/2023
Thinksurance, a Frankfurt, Germany-based InsurTech company specializing in digital insurance consultations for commercial and industrial clients, raised $24M in funding.

The round was led by Viewpoint Ventures and M-Tech Capital as well as Venture Capital Fonds Segenia Capital. Existing investor Eight Roads Ventures, a global venture capital firm, and Columbia Lake Partners also participated.

The company intends to use the funds to continue to expand its platform to cover further aspects of the consultation and distribution of commercial insurance, empowering brokers, agents, direct sales, and any other distribution channel to profit from its platform.

Led by CEO Florian Brokamp, Thinksurance is a provider of digital commercial insurance solutions. The companys platform enables insurance distributors to fully digitalise consultations and policy processes, allowing them to provide tailor-made insurance solutions for their clients at speed. The technology modularly digitizes the entire consultation process, from needs analysis to binding. In addition, Thinksurance offers insurers and brokers the digitalization of their products and comprehensive data and analysis tools for market-oriented and dynamic product and pricing strategies.

Thinksurance has already partnered with leading players in Europe such as Allianz, Axa and Zurich, and now over 50.000 individual brokers and agents consulted more than 1.5 million customers with its platform.

FinSMEs

14/06/2023
Azimio La Umoja One Kenya has bashed the government for claiming there is a resurgence of the outlawed Mungiki sect without any evidence to ascertain the allegations.

The coalition leader Raila Odinga faulted President William Administration saying they will not allow extra-judicial killing in the name of fighting crimes which they termed nonexistent.

The Opposition coalition stated that the planned crackdown on alleged Mungiki members was aimed at targeting the youth in the Mt.Kenya region.

"There are clear indications that the Kenya Kwanza Administration is about to unleash brute and deadly force of youths in Central Kenya and parts of Nairobi whom it accuses of being members of Mungiki," said Odinga.

Odinga pointed out that the Kenya Kwanza Alliance government is now labeling youth as Mungiki instead of offering them jobs and livelihood.

He insisted that the ruling coalition must deliver on their pledge to offer youth employment who acted as their foot soldiers in last year's polls as they promised instead of labeling them as criminals.

"Those youth feel frustrated, betrayed, used and dumped. They are not criminals but victims of a false dawn and broken promises. These youth deserve a deal, not guns and bullets," Odinga said.

The Former Prime Minister advised the government to empathize with the unemployed youth by reviving the Kazi Mtaani Program saying the Hustler Fund Program has failed to deliver to the plight of the youth.

"Kenya Kwanza must admit to failure and restore program like Kazi Mtaani.They could also do direct transfer in these difficult times as it is clear the so-called Hustler Fund is not working for them despite the hype," Odinga noted.

Ruto on Mungiki

Ruto had told Azimio leaders that the outlawed Mungiki group will not be allowed to operate in Kenya.

Speaking in Kirinyaga during the opening of the Kerugoya Referral Hospital, the head of State accused the opposition of using the outlawed group to advance its agenda.

He urged them to instead engage Kenyans on issues affecting them.

"We as the government will not allow illegal groups to be created. I want to tell the opposition leaders who are trying to signal to us that they want to return back Mungiki so they can start use of bhang and other drugs, and if they feel it is that important first take your children to be among them," he said.

"I want to promise you that those groups of Mungiki will not come back to Kenya, we know the kind of losses that they have brought into the nation. We cannot accept that in this time an error we have men who want to circumcise women who want to engage in drug abuse and illegal taxing of Kenyans, that will not happen in Kenya."

He continued by saying that those who are seeking to join in such activities and resurrect such groups to use them for political gain should instead meet with them to make plans for the growth of this nation.

"Those who are trying to revive the Mungiki groups so you use for politics, please meet with us we plan on country's development, not plans that can bring conflicts in the country," he added.

On his part, Deputy President Gachagua stated that leaders should have first recruited their own children to serve in the front line rather than recruiting young people from underprivileged homes.

He however, urged the youth not to be misused for political purposes.

"Why are they using the children from the poor backgrounds to come and destroy property for other people, tax people illegally and even use illegal drugs," he added.

"When we saw them currently singing at the DCI, the women in Mount Kenya were horrified and scared, but I tell you do not be scared at all because in our government will not allow such groups to revive again in the country."

Maina Njenga arrest

Om May 25th police lobbed teargas to disperse former Mungiki leader Maina Njenga's supporters who had camped outside Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) Headquarters.

Njenga had presented himself for questioning after two firearms and over 90 rolls of bhang were recovered at his home in Bahati, Nakuru County.

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He was accompanied by Nark Kenya leader Martha Karua, DAP leader Eugene Wamalwa, former Muran'ga Governor Mwangi wa Iria and Roots party leader George Wajackoyah.

On Tuesday 22nd May,the DCI announced that it had deployed a special team of detectives to find the ex-sect leader whom they say has gone into hiding following the incident.

DCI boss Mohamed Amin said three rounds of 9mm blank ammunition were also found hidden in one of the rooms in the house.

"Detectives based in Nakuru County are looking for ex-Mungiki leader Maina Njenga, in relation to the recovery of two firearms and over 90 rolls of bhang, found at a home linked to him," a statement from the DCI indicated.

"In the raid conducted at Ngomongo village in Dundori ward, the officers who arrested 8 suspects aged between 37 and 54 also found three rounds of 9mm blank ammunition hidden in one of the rooms. One of the firearms recovered was a home made pistol capable of firing while the other one was a Tokarev whose serial number had been defaced."
Zensho Holdings, a food service company in Japan by sales, acquired The Snowfox Group, a multi-channel and international Japanese food business.

The transaction is valued at $621 million. Mayfair Equity Partners, a dedicated consumer and technology investor with over 2 billion in assets under management, will fully exit Snowfox. The terms of transaction are to be confirmed and completion remains subject to customary closing conditions.

With the deal, Snowfoxs diversified international offering will support Zenshos growth outside of its home market of Japan.

Led by CEO Richard Hodgson, The Snowfox Group specialises in the preparation of Japanese cuisines with a focus on sushi, bento and poke. Its four distinct brands include Snowfox, Bento, Taiko and YO! in North America and the United Kingdom. The Group provides consumers with Japanese food and operates approximately 3,000 chef-operated sushi kiosks and other restaurants in North America and the UK, as well as being a sushi manufacturer and wholesaler. Snowfoxs leadership team, including Hodgson, will remain with the business to work closely with Zenshos Senior Management.

Founded in 1982, Zensho is a Japanese food group developing a wide range of food businesses and expanding globally. The company operates a diverse portfolio of businesses in Japan, including the beef bowl restaurant Sukiya, the 100 yen sushi restaurant Hama-sushi, and the family restaurant Cocos, as well as retail and nursing care businesses. Outside of Japan, the company also operates Sukiya, Hama-sushi mainly in East Asia, Advanced Fresh Concepts (AFC) mainly in the US, and The Chicken Rice Shop (TCRS), which operates halal-certified chicken rice shops in Malaysia.

FinSMEs

13/06/2023
RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das was honoured with the title of Governor of the Year for 2023 by Central Banking in London.

Das has been awarded the title for his leadership of the central bank during global turmoil and tough situations.

The RBI governor cemented critical reforms, overseen world-leading payments innovation, and steered India through difficult times with a steady hand and well-crafted turn of phrase, said the organisers of the awards.

The organisers further said the RBI governor is behind critical reforms and has ensured smooth management of world-leading payments innovation and led India through difficult times.

They credited Das for shepherding the bankruptcy code back into legality, pushing banks to raise more capital, restructuring the RBI to create a standalone supervision department and establishing a College of Supervisors to train the next generation.

The organisers also credited the RBI governor for appearing as a voice of calm amid the fear during the COVID-19 pandemic and steering the central bank deftly between intense political pressure and economic disaster.

The RBI governor has also been credited for overseeing the project around UPI, and pushing the country on the forefront of the pack of central bank digital currency (CBDC). The statement also mentioned Das opposition to crypto assets in India.

Das, who took the charge of the post in December, 2018, is the second Central Bank governor to be honoured with the award after Raghuram Rajan, who bagged the title in 2015.

With inputs from agencies

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The results of the Andhra Pradesh Engineering Agricultural and Medical Entrance Test (AP EAMCET) 2023, have been released today, 14 June. The candidates who appeared for the state-level exam can now check their results from the official website  cets.apsche.ap.gov.in. Education Minister Botsa Satyanarayana declared the AP EAMCET results via a press conference. Applicants can check their results online by using their registration number and hall ticket number.

AP EAMCET was conducted by Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University ( JNTU) from 15 May to 23 May across the state. The engineering exams were held from 15 May to 19 May whereas, the agricultural and pharmacy exams took place from 22 May to 23 May.

The test was conducted in two shifts, each lasting for three hours. The first shift was scheduled to run from 9 am to 12 pm whereas the second shift took place from 3 pm to 6 pm. Once the results are declared, the students will have to take part in the AP EAMCET counselling process, to get admission in the participating colleges.

AP EAMCET 2023 Results: How to check

Step 1: Go to the official website for the exam  https://cets.apsche.ap.gov.in.

Step 2: On the landing page, click on the results link.

Step 3: Enter your registration number and hall ticket number.

Step 4: Your scorecard will appear on your screen.

Step 5: Check and download the same.

Candidates are advised to carefully check all the details present on their AP EAMCET 2023 scorecard. It will include your name, roll number, combined score, qualifying status, rank and other important details of the applicant.

The exams provisional answer key was released on 24 May. Candidates were provided a window till 9 am on 26 May, to file objections to the provisional answer key. The final answer key is expected to be released along with the results.

Students can apply to various programmes such as the Bachelor of Science in Agriculture, the Bachelor of Veterinary Sciences and Animal Husbandry (B.V. Sc. & A.H.), the Bachelor of Science in Horticulture, the Bachelor of Fisheries Science (BFSc), the Bachelor of Pharmacy, and the Bachelor of Science in Nursing after passing the AP EAMCET.

On behalf of the Andhra Pradesh State Council for Higher Education (APSCHE), JNTU Anantapur conducted the AP EAPCET 2023 to admit students to engineering, agriculture, and pharmacy programmes at state colleges.

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Here is the latest on the Sussex psycho drama. According to GB News, their marriage has been far from the fairytale story. They have in fact become a global laughingstock. The question GB News puts forward is whether fazzled Meghan plotting to go her way and leave Harry behind? The news channel say she is ABSOLUTELY separating from him. The channel also says that Harry needs somebody to support him, but Meghan is leading a separate life and she has got a very good agent who is pushing her.

No marriage is a smooth ride, and as for celebrities like Prince Hary and Meghan Markle, the journey is even tougher. Experts explain as to why all is not well in the Duke and Duchess relationship. But my question is who is going to be taking care of their children in the Harry and Meghan conflict?

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle seem to be heading in different directions five years after their marriage, according to an article published on the fifth wedding anniversary of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex. In fact, according to sources, Prince Harry has a separate room to get away from Meghan Markle. Here are a few people who mentioned that Harry and Meghan are heading for separation.

Samantha, Meghan Markles half -sister

According to the Daily Mail report, Meghan Markles estranged half-sister has launched another blistering attack on the Duchess of Sussex by claiming that her marriage to Prince Harry will end in divorce unless they get extensive counselling. Samantha Markle suggested the Duke may already be questioning the marriage and predicted it could get nasty until he starts dissenting or pulling back from her. The 56-year-old American also called on the Sussexes to go on an apology tour after the couple made accusations of racism within the Royal Family during their bombshell interview with Oprah Winfrey.

Samantha even mentioned that Meghan has a narcissistic personality disorder. She has also claimed that she did a lot of damage to their father Thomas Markle and called on her half-sister to make a public apology to him.

Speaking to TMZ about Meghan and Harrys marriage, she said: I see it ending in divorce unless they get extensive counselling and can agree to work on being honest, to work on apologies to everyone that theyve damaged in the course of this bull in a china shop two-year spiel. I mean, nothing about any of this has been honest, and the damage to the Royals has been massive  especially now.

Royal expert Tom Bower

A royal commentator had earlier mentioned that Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are breaking apart and leading separate lives. The rumours, according to royal expert Tom Bower, are coming out of London. There are many now in London who say Meghan is getting tired of Harry. There is speculation that the Duchess of Sussex, 41, will at any moment say This is enough and negotiate with King Charles III some deal to break off the marriage.

Royal commentator Jennie Bond

Royal commentator Jennie Bond says Meghan Markle is an absolute control freak who wants to be in control of every aspect of her life, she is not used to having to cede control in anyway whatsoever. The Duchess of Sussex has said it takes a lot of effort to forgive and hinted that she can say anything as she sat down for a wide-ranging interview in the US.

Is Meghans overpowering nature the cause of the rift in the relationship

Looks like this was bound to happen; the breakup of Harry and Meghan. Harry was just too much under the spell of Meghan Markle who was kind of ruling her life and every decision he too, Meghan was the mastermind. Celia Walden told GB News that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex are pursuing different agendas. She added that the couples public duties are resulting in them leading slightly separate lives.

Relationships is about sharing and caring, but here Meghan is completely overpowering Harry and kind of poisoning him against his family. We all know that Meghan is a control freak and the mastermind behind Harrys controversial memoir Spare. The rumors, according to royal expert Tom Bower, are coming out of London. There are many now in London who say Meghan is getting tired of Harry. There is speculation that the Duchess of Sussex, 41, will at any moment say This is enough and negotiate with King Charles III some deal to break off the marriage.

According to marca.com report experts had mentioned that Meghan would be tired of her husband and could be looking for an exit plan in the not too distant future. The rumors, according to royal expert Tom Bower, are coming out of London. There are many now in London who say Meghan is getting tired of Harry. There is speculation that the Duchess of Sussex, 41, will at any moment say This is enough and negotiate with King Charles III some deal to break off the marriage.

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Did you know that Harry has a look alike who earns more than him? Prince Harry lookalike who feared hed lose work after Megxit says business is booming again  and he often makes four-figures a day.

According to Dailymail report, Rhys Whittock, 39, from north Kent, says demand has been sent skyrocketing by the Duke of Sussexs book launch and coronation appearance. The doppelganger  who signed to an agency in 2017  had thought Harrys 2020 bolt for the US with wife Meghan Markle would kill off his livelihood. But the royals continued public appearances mean Rhys is working harder than ever.

But I somehow feel that Megxit looks much better than Prince Harry, what say you? And most importantly he is rich and not a pauper like Harry. As first post had written earlier, how disappointed was money-obsessed Meghan to know that Harry is a pauper. Meghan relaised that Prince Harry has very little money soon after getting married to the royal family. Now after the eviction from their UK home.

I would rather put it that Harry is not rich at all. According to the Daily Mail, Meghan Markle was surprised and disappointed that Prince Harry had very little money. And now after Prince Harry has been evicted from his UK home it is very clear that now that Prince Harry is a pauper. The statement made by the royal author, Tom Bower now is true. The fact that Harry doesnt have much money, Meghan realised that soon after marriage.

Royal author Tom Bower appeared on GB News earlier, where he spoke to the MailOnlines Dan Wootton about the couples early relationship. Discussing the Duchess misconceptions about the Royal Family, the author  who wrote the 2022 book Revenge: Meghan, Harry and the War Between the Windsors  described the former Suits actress as money-obsessed. The expert said: Her great surprise and disappointment was that Prince Harry had very little money.

Rhys spent years being stopped in the street and told he looked like Harry before eventually signing with an agency. According to reports published in Dailymail, he said, I knew Id be fine as long as thats the case  and arguably [Harry and Meghan are] more in the spotlight than ever before.

Since then he has jetted all around the world for various roles such as TV adverts, private functions and most recently, GB news re-enactments of Harrys court appearances. Rhys can now make upwards of 1,000 in a single DAY in the role.

Also being a lifelong fan of the royals himself, Rhys hopes to meet Harry one day  and considers his work the best job in the world. Rhys, with fiancee Maria Bogatyreva, 26, said: I have always been a big fan of the royal family.

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China is reeling from a fresh COVID-19 wave fuelled by the XBB version for the past few months. The Asian giant witnessed more than a fivefold surge in the number of people diagnosed with COVID-19 across the country since April. The Chinese Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) data showed that more than 40 per cent of those tested at the end of May were found positive, reported The Straits Times.

A leading Chinese health advisor predicted last week that by June, China would have over 65 million COVID-19 cases per week. Another report put the number at 11 million cases per week at the beginning of June.

The recent spike comes six months after the country eliminated its vast infrastructure for dealing with COVID, which included rigorous lockdowns, mass testing, stifling quarantines, and stringent mask requirements.

So, is a new COVID wave coming for China? How concerned should the world be? Lets take a deeper look.

Chinas new COVID crisis

According to the CDC data, China was hit by a COVID-19 wave again in May which had a nearing positive test rate compared to the peak seen during the pandemic hit at the end of 2022.

China reported 164 deaths in May among those who contracted COVID-19. Moreover, as many as 2,777 suffered severe infections and the number kept increasing during the month, as per a report published in The Straits Times.

The China CDC COVID-19 data for May affirmed anecdotal evidence of a second wave that was reported in local and social media. The report came more than a month after the agency last issued a weekly surveillance report at the end of April.

There has been a slight sign of extensive absenteeism at offices and factories. Moreover, the doctors reported that most of the illnesses are mild.

According to data disclosed by respiratory disease specialist Zhong Nanshan, who was among the first to demonstrate COVID-19s easy transmissibility, the wave that started in late April was anticipated.

His modelling suggested China could be approaching 40 million infections per week. By the end of June, he said, the weekly number of infections will peak at 65 million.

Also Read: Why Chinas Wuhan is naming and shaming its debtors

Furthermore, The Chinese authorities are rushing to push out vaccines to combat an ongoing new wave of the coronavirus that is expected to peak in June and infect as many as 65 million people a week since the new XBB variants of the virus are evolving to overcome the immunity developed after Chinas abrupt departure from its zero COVID policy last year, The Washington Post reported in May.

What effect will it have?

The full extent of the latest wave in China is still unknown.

A report in the US News says that the latest surge was sporadic across the country. However, there were fewer deaths, severe cases and fever clinic visits than in the previous wave that hit after significant protests against Chinas zero COVID policy at the end of last year.

Though Chinas current wave will not equal the tsunami of cases it experienced in December and January, older people and those with underlying diseases are still relatively under-vaccinated and are at high risk for developing severe diseases, Jin Dong-yan, a virologist at the University of Hong Kong, told NBC News.

Chinese CDC officials previously said that about 80 per cent of Chinas 1.4 billion people were infected by the first COVID-19 wave in China. However, that immunity waned in recent months, leaving many, particularly older people and those with underlying health issues, vulnerable.

How worried should we be?

According to Catherine Bennett, an epidemiologist at Deakin University in Australia, the latest mutations in the genetic makeup of the SARS-CoV-2 virus have not been significantly different from the last major variant, Omicron. Moreover, the symptoms of infections are relatively milder.

Its somewhat reassuring, thus, now a year and a half into Omicron, that we havent seen a major shift thats either undermined our immunity, our testing capability, and importantly, antivirals, Bennett told TIME.

Also Read: Why China ending zero-COVID rules may lead to over a million deaths

Yanzhong Huang, senior fellow for global health at the Council on Foreign Relations, told TIME that although only mass testing can detect the true extent of the COVID-19 surge, the population has obtained some immunity from the preceding wave.

However, independent experts have been sceptical about Chinas official COVID-19 figures. The Asian country stopped providing weekly case updates this month, making it difficult to guage the true extent of the current outbreak.

With inputs from ANI

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Around 6,500 of the super-rich are expected to leave India in 2023.

The estimate comes courtesy of the Henley Private Wealth Migration Report 2023.

The report from Henley and Partners, the international residence and citizenship advisory firm, puts the number of high net-worth individuals (HNIs)  those with an investable fortune of over $1 million (Rs 8.2 crore)  leaving at the second-highest around the world.

This would represent a decrease from the 7,500 HNIs who left the country last year.

But why are so many of the super-rich heading abroad? And where are they going?

Lets take a closer look:

Why is this happening?

Experts say the big reasons are taxes and complex remittance rules.

Indian Express quoted Sunita Singh-Dalal, Partner, Private Wealth & Family Offices at Hourani, as saying that prohibitive tax legislation coupled with convoluted, complex rules relating to outbound remittances that are open to misinterpretation and abuse, are but a few issues that have triggered the trend of investment migration from India.

Dominic Volek, the companys group head of private clients, told Business Standard several other factors from safety, security, climate change and even governments that look favourably on crypto also come into play.

Henley and Partners CEO Juerg Steffen told Forbes millionaires leaving are often a warning sign to authorities.

Affluent families are extremely mobile, and their transnational movements can provide an early warning signal in terms of a countrys economic outlook and future country trends, he added.

How does India compare with others?

As per Indian Express, China is expected to lose 13,500 HNIs.

Andrew Amoils, head of research at New World Wealth told Business Standard General wealth growth in China has been slowing over the past few years, which means that the recent outflows could be more damaging than usual. Chinas economy grew strongly from 2000 to 2017, but wealth and millionaire growth in the country has been negligible since then (when measured in US-dollar terms).

Meanwhile, the UK is expected to lose 3,200 HNIs and Russia is expected to see 3,000 HNIs depart.

As per Forbes, high capital gains tax and estate duty rates  which are among the highest in the world  and the decreased importance of the London Stock Exchange are some factors behind the exodus from the UK.

Where are they going?

Experts say spots such as Dubai and Singapore sit atop the list of destinations for Indians.

According to Business Standard, Dubais golden visa programme, its tax laws and business system make it a perennial favourite among Indias wealthy.

Portugal until recently was a popular spot with Indian HNIs, as per Forbes.

But perhaps that has reached its maximum potential, considering the announcement regarding the termination of the Portugal Golden Residence Permit Program, which had attracted significant investment in Portuguese real estate and other ventures, Dalal told the outlet.

Which countries will benefit most?

As per NDTV, Australia will see the highest influx of HNIs from around the world in 2023 at 5,200.

The UAE, meanwhile, is predicted to witness an influx of 4,500 super-rich.

Singapore is likely to see 3,200 HNI come in, while the US will likely add 2,100 HNIs to its rolls.

The report noted Americas fall in popularity with HNIs compared to the years prior to COVID-19  perhaps because of the looming threat of higher taxes.

Switzerland, Canada, Greece, France, Portugal, and New Zealand round out the list of countries that will most benefit.

Forbes quoted the report as stating, Singapore, Switzerland, and the UAE have all built their reputations on the premise of being safe havens not only for living but also for preserving wealth. They have also established themselves as highly attractive business hubs where companies can thrive in fiscally advantageous jurisdictions with favourable corporate tax rates as well as zero wealth and inheritance taxes.

Volek told Business Today countries who see an influx of HNIs almost always seem to have programmes that allows citizenship through foreign direct investment (FDI).

Nine of the top 10 countries for forecast net HNI inflows in 2023 host formal residence by investment programs that encourage foreign direct investment in return for the right to reside, which can also lead to citizenship in some cases. Investors see the clear value of diversifying their domicile portfolios as the ultimate hedge against both regional and global volatility, now and in the future, Volek said.

Should we be concerned?

No, say experts.

Indian Express quoted Andrew Amoils, Head of Research at New World Wealth, as saying, These outflows are not particularly concerning as India produces far more new millionaires than it loses to migration.

Meanwhile, Rohit Bhardwaj, director, private clients, Henley & Partners India, told the Business Standard around 357,000 HNIs remain in India.

Bharadwaj added that India showcases a robust wealth presence.

With inputs from agencies

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India is planning to expand its popular Unified Payments Interface (UPI) globally. As per a Mint report, the country is in talks to take UPI to Gulf countries, including Bahrain and Saudi Arabia. The National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), the umbrella organisation tasked with supervising retail payment systems in the country, is leading the dialogue to set up bank-to-bank transfer systems for cross-border remittances.

NPCI is in initial discussions with a few Gulf countries for developing cross-border remittances using UPI, which will be primarily bank account-to-bank account transfers. The discussions have been facilitated by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and other-country central bank collaboration, and by our Indian mission offices, NPCI managing director and chief executive Dilip Asbe told Mint.

What is UPI and how has it revolutionised the digital payments system in India? How is the country making UPI global? We explain.

Whats UPI?

UPI is an interface through which you can make payments and send or receive money using a quick response (QR) code or a four or six-digit PIN.

Allowing users to make real-time cashless payments, UPI transfers money directly between the bank accounts of the sender and receiver. Creating a Virtual Payment Address (VPA), this mobile-based quick payment system permits both Person-to-Person (P2P) and Person-to-Merchant (P2M) payments.

Apps such as PhonePe, Google Pay, Paytm, BHIM, SBI Pay and BOB UPI allow users to make payments through UPI.

UPI in India

Launched in 2016, UPI has grown exponentially in these past years in India. Citing NPCI data, Business Standard reported that the number of UPI transactions touched 9.41 billion in May worth a whopping Rs 14.3 trillion in terms of value.

In March, RBI governor Shaktikanta Das said that daily UPI transactions crossed 36 crores in the last year, a 50 per cent rise from 24 crores in February 2022, reported PTI.

India has also taken the lead in digital payments worldwide. With 89.5 million transactions in 2022, India topped the list of five countries for digital payments, according to data from MyGovIndia.

The data also showed that India accounted for 46 per cent of the global real-time payments last year.

Brazil is second on the list with 29.2 million digital transactions, followed by China (17.6 million transactions), Thailand (16.5 million transactions) and South Korea  8 million transactions.

Indians are also the most willing to use emerging cashless payment methods in the Asia-Pacific region, according to Mastercards 2022 New Payments Index.

As many as 260 million people in India reportedly use UPI to make seamless payments. About 330 banks and 25 apps use UPI, including all the key third-party payment providers like Google Pay, PhonePe and Paytm, according to a Forbes report.

India is also widening UPI services in the country.

In September 2022, the RBI, which governs NPCI, launched UPI Lite for small-value transactions. It allows users to make transactions even in offline mode, provided that their UPI Lite wallet has money.

For feature phone users, NPCI and RBI jointly floated UPI 123Pay last year which enables payments without an internet connection. Users have to dial the IVR number, enter the mobile number of the recipient and enter their UPI PIN to transfer the money. Payments can also be made by giving a missed call on the number displayed at the merchant outlet and using UPI PIN to allow the transfer.

At the time of the launch of UPI 123Pay, RBI governor Das had said: This current decade will witness a transformative shift in the digital payments ecosystem in the country.

ALSO READ: UPI fraud cases on the rise: How to protect yourself from such scams?

UPI going global

India is making efforts to make UPI international to ease cross-border real-time payments.

In July 2021, Bhutan was the first country to allow UPI transactions through BHIM App.

Nepal adopted UPI for digital transactions in March 2022.

After India assumed the G20 Presidency in December, the RBI and NPCI in February this year launched UPI One World for foreign nationals visiting the country.

The biggest selling point for UPI internationally is that it could both accelerate and reduce the cost of cross-border transactions to and from India, the worlds top remittances market, Zennon Kapron, founder and director of Kapronasia, one of Asias leading providers of consulting services, wrote for Forbes in April this year.

Earlier this year, Indias UPI linked with Singapores fast payment system, PayNow, for faster remittances between the two countries. This will enable the Indian diaspora in Singapore, particularly migrant workers and students, to make quick and low-cost fund transfers.

India signed a deal with the UAEs Mashreq Bank to help the Indian diaspora pay for transactions through UPI. After the United States, the UAE is the second-largest source of remittances to India.

The availability of UPI to the UAE-based NRIs (Non-Resident Indians) and other Gulf countries through international mobile numbers will have a significant impact on the volume of foreign currency remittances to India, Sauradeep Bag, Associate Fellow at Observer Research Foundation (ORF), wrote in an article.

Besides the UAE, NRIs in Canada, Hong Kong, Oman, the US, Australia, Singapore, the UK, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar who have bank accounts types such as Non-Resident External (NRE) or Non-Resident Ordinary (NRO) accounts can avail UPI services using their international phone numbers.

With Indias UPI push, this cashless payment system surely has the potential to leave a mark globally.

With inputs from agencies

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An apartment owners association (AOA) in Uttar Pradeshs Greater Noida has sparked a debate over its dress code rules for residents. According to a Times of India (TOI) report, Himsagar Apartment AOA in Greater Noidas Sector Phi 2 has asked residents not to wear lungis and nighties in public or common areas inside the premises.

The move has left people divided with some backing the order and others raising objections.

What is the row about and what are the residents saying? Lets take a closer look.

Circular on dress code

The circular, titled Dress code for walking in the premises of the society, was issued on 10 June, reported Hindustan Times (HT).

It read: It is expected from all of you that whenever you roam in the society at any time, you should pay special attention to your conduct and dress so that you do not give any chance to someone to object to your behaviour Therefore, everyone is requested not to roam around wearing lungi and nightie which are home wear.

Why was it issued?

Speaking to TOI on Tuesday (13 June), AOA president CK Kalra said they received complaints from some women about a senior citizen wearing loose clothes while doing yoga on the compound, which the complainants said made them uncomfortable.

Kalra added that their intention was not to discriminate against anyone but only want residents to follow guidelines.

It is simply a request to the residents of the society, he told HT.

People in India wear nighties or nightgowns and lungis at night during summer as they offer more comfort. Due to a delay in monsoon, Uttar Pradesh has been witnessing humid weather and high temperatures even in June.

Flak over the notice

Some residents, including those of other housing societies, have criticised the guidelines which they see as a violation of peoples personal choices.

Rajiva Singh, president of the Noida Federation of Apartment Owners Association (NOFAA) told HT that welfare associations are not authorised to dictate such guidelines.

KK Jain, secretary general of the Federation of Noida Residents Welfare Associations (FONRWA), said that while some decency should be maintained, we are of the view that it should be the freedom of an individual what to wear what he or she wants. The dress be according to an individuals choice, reported TOI.

Taking objection to the directive, Devender Tiger, president of the Federation of RWAs in Greater Noida, said to HT: A residential society is not an educational institution that it needs a dress code.

As the notice went viral online, social media users also condemned the move. A user asked if freedom of expression does not include sartorial expression. Another commented: Dont know. Now these issues dont amuse me anymore. We are a society with weird priorities.

ALSO READ: Pet dog bites schoolboy in lift of Greater Noida society; incident sparks fear among residents

Some show support

Residents of Himsagar said they did not have an issue with the circular.

Dr Yash Veer Singh told TOI: They are not imposing any fine on us. I have never seen anyone roaming in the common area wearing a lungi, but maybe it was someones guest. Residents here are mostly disciplined.

UP: A society in Greater Noida imposes dress code, and bans nighties and lungies in the society premises This is a good decision taken by society and everyone must respect it, there is nothing to oppose. If women wear nighties and roam around, that will be uncomfortable for men pic.twitter.com/0OTtGfgM7d  ANI UP/Uttarakhand (@ANINewsUP) June 14, 2023

Another resident told the English daily that he thinks as a parent it was good for his children. The AOA has not asked for anything wrong and I guess we should consider it.

GB Nagar district development RWA president NP Singh also backed the move, saying wearing ill-fitted loose clothes in common areas of the society does not look appropriate, reported TOI.

RWA controversies

This is not the first time that a notice by a RWA has created a row.

During the onsent of the COVID-19 pandemic, reports were rife of RWAs overreach. Doctors became a target as they were seen as a transmission threat, with multiple reports of them being harassed and threatened by neighbours, landlords and RWAs coming to light, as per ThePrint report in 2020.

Discrimination against domestic workers also evoked controversy. According to reports some residential societies in Gurgaon and Noida barred domestic workers from using lifts, apparently to prevent the COVID-19 spread.

RWAs had defended their actions by claiming they were for the safety of the residents, noted ThePrint.

Several RWAs have also faced flak for not allowing bachelors as tenants.

Residents and housing societies have also locked horns over pet ownership and feeding strays.

In June 2020, animal activists had filed a public interest litigation (PIL) against RWAs in Bengaluru accusing them of banning pets and feeding strays as well as harassing animal feeders.

Issuing guidelines in March this year, the Centre directed RWAs and AOAs to allot a feeding spot and time for residents to give food to stray animals.

With inputs from agencies

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Its a big year of geopolitics for India and Prime Minister Narendra Modis upcoming trip to the United States is one of the most important diplomatic visits of 2023. The PM will travel to the US from 21 June to 24 June on what is his first official state visit to the country.

As President Joe Biden himself said everyone in the whole country wants to meet the Indian premier. It should come as no surprise then that Modi has a packed schedule as he visits Washington and New York.

We take a look at what the PM will do in the US and whom will he meet.

Yoga Day in New York: 21 June

The PM will reach New York on 20 June and is expected to be welcomed by a group of Indian Americans at the Andrews Air Force Base.

On 21 June, Modi will lead an International Yoga Day function at the United Nations Secretariat. Can there be a better ambassador for the traditional Indian practice, now adopted by millions across the world than Modi?

The leader is a known yoga practitioner and has been leading the Yoga Day celebrations in India since 2015. Months after Modi first came to power, on 11 December 2014, the United Nations proclaimed 21 June as the International Day of Yoga.

Dont miss: Firstpost Podcast: How Narendra Modi Popularised Yoga globally

United Nations Resident Coordinator in India, Shombi Sharp, said in an interview with ANI, International Yoga Day which came into force, I believe in 2015 was supported by 175 countries very very quickly. Everybody I think in the world got on the board and understood, what an important and joyful day that is when we look at the international calendar.

He said that Modi has been pushing for international recognition of yoga and supported the International Day and hence the PM leading the yoga session at the UN Secretariat will be a big deal.

Modi will be joined by several top Indian Americans at the UN complex in New York.

Bilateral and state dinner in Washington: 22 June

The PM will then fly to Washington and on the morning of 22 June he will get an official welcome at the South Lawn of the White House with a 21-gun salute. More than 7,000 Indian Americans will gather to witness this.

Modi and Biden will hold a bilateral meeting, which is expected to focus on defence and technology partnership between the two countries and climate change. Delegation talks and press statements by two leaders will follow.

In the afternoon, Modi will address a joint session of the US Congress for the second time, only the first Indian leader to do so. He will share his vision of Indias future and speak on the global challenges facing the two countries, according to top Congressional leaders.

Modi first addressed the US Congress during his visit in June 2016.

Also read: PM Modi to make first state visit to the US: What is it? How is it different from other visits?

The day will round off will a state dinner, hosted for the PM by President Biden and First Lady Jill Biden. The event will be attended by prominent Americans and Indian Americans.

A state dinner, always the social high point of a state visit, is planned meticulously, often months in advance. The menu typically features food and wines that reflect the culinary traditions of the guests of honour but with an American twist. It represents the friendship between the nations of the hosts and the honoured guests, says the Bureau of Global Public Affairs (BGPA) in the US Department of State.

Lunch at the US state department, meet with CEOs: 23 June

On 23 June, PM Modi will attend a lunch hosted by the US state department. He will be joined by US vice president Kamala Harris and Secretary of State Anthony Blinken.

The PM will also give a speech at an event organised by the US-India Strategic Partnership Forum, an independent non-profit in Washington DC. Top American CEOs and prominent leaders will be in attendance. Modi could also hold a meeting with a select group of CEOs.

The Indian leader is expected to address the Indian diaspora at an event organised at the Ronald Reagan Centre in Washington. Those attending will be Indian-origin doctors, hoteliers, lawyers and businessmen, according to a report in ANI.

Modi is expected to make various other speeches during his visit that will highlight Indias success story, economic growth, digital payment infrastructure and the countrys recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic.

After the diaspora event, the PM is expected to fly out.

With inputs from agencies

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Just fixing the streetlights would help says community police forum

Last year the police minster visited Diepsloot and an additional 120 officers and 16 extra police vehicles were deployed.

But residents say the policing blitz failed to secure any long term gains against crime and the situation is now as bad if not worse than ever.

Streetlights have not worked for years and Diepsloot remains dark and dangerous.

Out of desperation informal settlements have tried to create their own gated communities.

"Criminals do as they please. They break into houses and also kill people," Diepsloot resident Tuwani Khakhu told GroundUp. "The police seldom come ... We are scared at night in Diepsloot and stay locked indoors."

Media attention on the mob killing of a Zimbabwean man, Elvis Nyathi, a year ago, saw police minister Bheki Cele visit Diepsloot, in the north of Johannesburg, and promise to deploy 120 officers, including members of the tactical response team (TRT) and the Public Order Police (POP), and an additional 16 vehicles.

But according to residents such as Khakhu, who has lived in the area since 2000, it "did not help" and crime is as bad if not worse than ever. A year later "nothing has changed", he says.

In an attempt to safeguard themselves, residents in an informal section of Diepsloot erected enormous zinc sheet gates between the main road and their shacks in 2021. The gates are closed at 9pm and only reopened at 5am. No one may enter the settlement during these hours. But burglaries still happen.

"We have installed these gates because we feel like the police are failing us," said Khakhu. "I think more patrols can help with eradicating crime. Especially during the night."

Oscar Mpephu, who owns an electronics and homestore shop, said, "The visibility of the TRT police team helped a bit last year, but there were too few of them. We need more."

"We stay up until very late, especially on weekends, because criminals are always working. We are not safe at all ... I have seen people getting mugged in front of my shop," he said.

Back in 2016, after years of protests, the 140,000 residents of Diepsloot finally got their own police station. The construction work alone took nine years.

Residents had hoped this was the solution to endemic crime, but such hopes have since been dashed. Protests over a lack of policing continue.

"Maybe if they can fix the streetlights, crime will be minimised, especially in the informal areas, because it gets seriously dark in between these shacks," says Eric Makhaya who has lived in Diepsloot since 2010.

GroundUp reported on the streetlight issue last year.

"Criminals do as they please here and police do nothing about it," says Willie Hlungwane, a community policing forum member and ward 95 South African National Civic Organisation (SANCO) chairperson.

Hlungwane did however praise the deployment of the TRT.

"As residents we have formed different community led organisations to fight crime: Diepsloot Residents Association (DRA), Diepsloot Community Forum (DCF), and a Neighbourhood Watch group," he said.

He said the gates erected by the community get vandalised by criminals and can't always close.

He identified drugs and illegal firearms as major problems.

"We need Apollo lights because all the streetlights you see here are not working. We have been pleading for years for the streetlights to be fixed, as that would make a difference," Hlungwane said.

Questions sent to City Power, which is responsible for the lights were ignored for our previous story. We have again requested comment and received none.

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According to the recent crime statistics released by the South African Police Service, from January to March 2023 there were 20 murders, up from 19, 15, 17 and 11 in the past four years (2022 to 2019) for the same period. Diepsloot Police Station is seventh in the province and 28th in the country for the most rape cases reported.

Police Colonel Dimakatso Nevhuhulwi told GroundUp that policing Diepsloot is a logistical challenge because of expanding informal settlements.

"The station is doing the most with the resources they have to ensure maximum visibility," she said.

The Diepsloot Police Station serves Diepsloot Extension 1 to 13, Riverside View, Northern Farms, Nietgedacht, Thabo Mbeki, Malatji, Drummond and Lanseria.

Recently, the Gauteng government met with Diepsloot residents at the Youth Centre to propose the installation of CCTV cameras to reduce crime and it received a positive response.
New Delhi and Washington might conclude a drone deal worth billions of dollars in the backdrop of Prime Minister Narendra Modis impending state visit to the United States.

The development also comes as National Security Advisor Ajit Doval and his US counterpart Jake Sullivan held a bilateral meeting in Delhi on Wednesday.

Sullivan is on a two-day trip to India at the invitation of Doval.

But what do we know about the MQ-9B predator armed drones? Whats the status of the deal? And why does India need the SeaGuardian drones?

Lets take a closer look:

What do we know about the drone?

As the name suggests, the MQ-9B SeaGuardian is a maritime-focused drone.

Developed by General Atomics, the drone can fly via satellite for over 30 hours in weather conditions of every type.

According to the General Atomics website, the drone can safely integrate into civil airspace, enabling joint forces and civil authorities to deliver real-time situational awareness anywhere in the maritime domainday or night.

The drone comprises an in-built wide-area maritime radar, an automatic identification system, electronic support measures, and a self-contained anti-submarine warfare (ASW) kit.

The SeaGuardian can be used in a variety of operations including

Humanitarian assistance/disaster relief

Search and rescue

Law enforcement

Anti-surface warfare

Anti-submarine warfare

Airborne mine countermeasures

Long-range strategic ISR

Over-the-horizon targeting

Anti-submarine warfare

The Quad grouping of countries  the United States, India, Australia and Japan  all operate, or have operated, the MQ-9B SeaGuardian.

India is currently leasing MQ-9Bs as part of an intelligence-gathering operation.

According to the UK Defence Journal, the US Customs and Border Protection, the Italian Air Force, and the Royal Air Force, and Belgium have shown interest in the drone.

Whats the status of the deal?

The deal could be for between 18 and 30 MQ-9B predator armed drones.

Reuters quoted a person familiar with the discussions as saying that the defence ministry had, until last week, still not determined how many drones it wants to buy.

The number, which was initially 30, was revised to 24 before being lowered to 18.

Sources told Reuters that none of the numbers were final.

The deal could be for up to $3 billion.

The Wire quoted an official source as saying India would purchase these drones through the US Foreign Military Sales route.

India would become the first non-NATO state to receive armed UAVs that could be deployed at its borders and in the Indian Ocean Region.

Two people familiar with the matter told Reuters the Biden administration is pushing New Delhi to cut through the red tape and advance the deal ahead of Modis visit.

India has long expressed interest in buying large armed drones from the United States. But bureaucratic stumbling blocks have hampered a hoped-for deal for SeaGuardian drones that could be worth $2 billion to $3 billion for years.

India is also seeking components of the equipment to be domestically manufactured, something that could complicate any deal.

According to The Wire, the Indian Navy wants 60 per cent of the weapons system to be sourced locally.

The outlet quoted Vice Chief of Staff Vice Admiral S.N. Ghormade in February as saying that the deal was being pursued but we are seeing how it can be indigenised and whatever facilities can be built (for it) in India.

The question of incorporating indigenous content into the UAVs arises only if they were made in India, said a former ministry of defence official told the outlet.

The official added such a mandate would bamboozle and flummox suppliers in the United States.

US negotiators are counting on Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modis White House visit on 22 June to break the log jam.

Since the date for Modis visit was fixed, the U.S. State Department, Pentagon and White House have asked India to be able to show progress on the deal for as many as 30 armable MQ-9B SeaGuardian drones made by General Atomics, two sources said.

Breaking Indias bureaucratic log jam on drones hinges on an internal meeting to generate an Acceptance of Necessity document, an Indian precursor to a formal Letter of Request which kicks off the foreign military sale process. As of Tuesday, the sources did not know if the New Delhi had generated the necessary internal document.

Thats gonna be a decision that the government of India needs to make, said a senior Biden administration official. We think it would be good for them to go through with the purchase of MQ-9s. But those decisions are sort of more in the hands of India than they are of us.

Modi and Biden are also expected to discuss co-production of munitions and ground vehicles, like armoured personnel carriers, while Modi is in Washington, the sources said.

The Biden administration is keen on inking this deal as soon as possible, which will create jobs and would be politically beneficial ahead of the next years presidential elections, people familiar with the development told PTI in February.

Spokespeople for the White House, Department of State and the Pentagon declined to comment on the negotiations.

US president Joe Biden has made deepening ties with India a cornerstone of his policy to counter Chinas growing influence, placing special attention this year on collaboration between the worlds two largest democracies on advanced military technologies, despite their lack of a formal security alliance.

New Delhi, which often prizes its non-alignment in conflicts between great powers abroad, has frustrated Washington by maintaining some defence and economic ties with Russia after the invasion of Ukraine.

In February, officials in the know told PTI the deal was in the works for more than five years and that the ball is now in Indias court.

Why does India need the MQ-9B SeaGuardian?

The MQ-9B predator armed drones is seen as a key part of Indias national security and defence needs.

According to The Wire, experts have for long stated the need for such drones to keep China and Pakistans UAVs at bay.

The Chinese-designed UAV given to Pakistan can stay in the air for 20 hours and fly at a speed of 370 kmph.

MQ-9B would enable its Indian military users to fly farther than anything else in this category, spend more time in the air and handle a greater diversity of missions than any other similar aircraft. The SkyGuardian and SeaGuardian can deliver full-motion video in virtually any conditions, day or night, as well as other kinds of detailed sensing with their onboard systems, Vivek Lall, chief executive, General Atomics Global Corporation, told PTI.

The aircraft also can carry a wide variety of specialist payloads if they must adapt to a specific mission. A SkyGuardian becomes a SeaGuardian, for example, when it carries a 360-degree maritime search radar that gives users a quality of maritime domain awareness they cant achieve any other way, he said.

Artificial intelligence, machine learning and other sophisticated technologies help unlock the rich feed of insight from these aircraft, analyse it and distribute it to those who need it to take quick decisions, Lall said.

Other payloads include communications relays  so the aircraft can serve as a node connecting forces over land or sea  or other intelligence, surveillance or military systems. These aircraft can conduct search and rescue, help fight wildfires, support customs authorities, augment naval forces and take many other tasks, he said.

In short, MQ-9B is the premier multi-role, long endurance remotely piloted aircraft in the world today. It is in high demand. Japan, Belgium, Great Britain, and several other nations are flying or are on track to begin flying them, Lall said.

With inputs from agencies

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Six years after Donald Trump withdrew from UNESCO, the United States wants back in.

Washington, a founding member of the UN cultural and scientific agency, will also pay it more than $600 million in back dues.

But why did the US leave UNESCO in the first place? And why does it want to rejoin the agency?

Lets take a closer look:

Why did US leave UNESCO?

The United States, a founding member of UNESCO, was a major contributor to UNESCOs budget until 2011  when the body admitted Palestine as a member state.

That triggered an end to the contributions  which Washington paid around $75 million or around 22 percent of UNESCOs budget  under US law. But the US didnt leave the group in 2011.

In 2017, then president Donald Trump announced that the United States and Israel were withdrawing from UNESCO due to its bias against the Jewish state.

The United States officially left the agency in 2018.

Israel has long accused the United Nations of anti-Israel bias. In 2012, over Israeli objections, the state of Palestine was recognised as a nonmember observer state by the UN General Assembly.

The Palestinians claim the West Bank, east Jerusalem and Gaza Strip  territories captured by Israel in the 1967 Mideast war  for an independent state. Israel says the Palestinians efforts to win recognition at the UN are aimed at circumventing a negotiated settlement and meant to pressure Israel into concessions.

Not first go-around

Interestingly, this is the second time the United States has withdrawn from UNESCO.

Washington in 1984 under then president Ronald Reagan withdrew the US from UNESCO because it viewed the agency as mismanaged, corrupt and used to advance Soviet interests.

In 2003, after a 20-year absence, Washington rejoined the group under then president George W Bush.

This came as the US wanted to emphasize a message of international cooperation in the backdrop of it launching its Iraq war.

The US and UNESCO have had a turbulent relationship over the past four decades after sparring mainly over ideological issues during the Cold War and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict more recently.

Why does it want to rejoin the agency?

To counter Chinas influence.

Officials in Washington say the decision to return was motivated by concern that China is filling the gap left by the US in UNESCO policymaking  notably in setting standards for artificial intelligence and technology education around the world.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in March said the US absence from UNESCO was letting China write rules on artificial intelligence.

I very much believe we should be back in UNESCO  again, not as a gift to UNESCO, but because things that are happening at UNESCO actually matter, Blinken told a Senate committee when he presented the budget.

They are working on rules, norms and standards for artificial intelligence. We want to be there, he said.

In March, when the budget for the next fiscal year was presented, Under Secretary of State for Management John Bass said the administration believed that rejoining UNESCO would help the US in its global rivalry with China, which has invested large sums into UN organisations.

Rejoining UNESCO will help us address a key opportunity cost that our absence is creating in our global competition with China, he said.

If were really serious about the digital-age competition with China, from my perspective, in a clear-eyed set of interests, we cant afford to be absent any longer from one of the key fora in which standards around education for science and technology are set, Bass said.

And there are a number of other examples in that space of UNESCOs mission where our absence is noticed and where it undercuts our ability to be as effective in promoting our vision of a free world, he said.

Axios quoted a state department official as saying that Washington privately contacted UNESCO to alert them to its decision.

A source told the outlet Washington intends to run for a seat on UNESCOs executive board in the November elections.

The source added that a club of of Western nations had agreed to keep a seat ready for the US in case it pulled the trigger.

The Biden administration said when it took office that it intended to rejoin UNESCO.

The US Congress in December, then fully controlled by President Joe Bidens Democratic Party, paved the way for the United States to restore funding, setting aside $150 million in the budget.

The 8 June letter from Deputy Secretary of State for Management Richard Verma proposed a plan for the US to rejoin the organisation, the department said.

Any such action would require concurrence by UNESCOs current membership, and it is our understanding that UNESCO leadership will convey our proposal to the membership in the coming days, the department said in a statement.

Under the plan, the US government would pay its 2023 dues plus $10 million in bonus contributions this year earmarked for Holocaust education, preserving cultural heritage in Ukraine, journalist safety, and science and technology education in Africa, Vermas letter says.

Strong act of confidence

The decision is a big boost to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, known for its World Heritage program as well as projects to fight climate change and teach girls to read.

The move will face a vote by UNESCOs member states in the coming weeks.

But approval seems a formality after the resounding applause that greeted the announcement in UNESCOs Paris headquarters Monday.

Not a single country raised an objection to the return of a country that was once the agencys single biggest funder.

Some member states want an extraordinary session to be held quickly to decide.

It is a strong act of confidence in UNESCO and in multilateralism, said its director general Audrey Azoulay when she informed representatives of the bodys member states in Paris of Washingtons decision to rejoin.

Azoulay, a former French culture minister who has headed UNESCO since 2017, has made it a priority of her mandate to bring the US back.

In a letter to Azoulay seen by AFP, Richard Verma, the US deputy secretary of state for management and resources, said Washington was grateful to Azoulay for progress on significant issues, including decreasing focus on politicised debate.

Chinas ambassador to UNESCO Yang Jin said Monday that Beijing would not oppose the United States return, saying the body needs every member state to join hands to fulfil its missions and that China is willing to work with all the member states.

Ambassadors from many other countries worldwide, from Peru to Djibouti to Poland, hailed the news, with some such as Germany saying Washington should be readmitted as soon as possible.

I am confident that most of the member states will work on the return of the US, Japans ambassador to UNESCO Atsuyuki Oike said, calling American participation indispensable.

Palestine, Israel issues unresolved

The US decision doesnt address the status of Palestine. While its a member of UNESCO, on the ground, the Palestinians are further away from independence than ever. There have not been serious peace talks in over a decade, and Israels new government is filled with hardliners who oppose Palestinian independence.

The Palestinian ambassador to UNESCO didnt comment on the US decision.

UNESCO director Azoulay, who is Jewish, won broad praise for her personal efforts to build consensus among Jordanian, Palestinian and Israeli diplomats around sensitive UNESCO resolutions. She met with Democrats and Republicans in Congress to explain those efforts. Thanks to those bipartisan negotiations, she expressed confidence that the US decision to return is for the long term, regardless of who wins next years presidential election.

Whats happened over the last years meant that UNESCO matters, she said. And when youre absent from that  you lose something. You lose something for your influence in the world, but also for your own national interest.

A UNESCO diplomat expressed hope that the return of the US would bring more ambition, and more serenity  and energize programs to regulate artificial intelligence, educate girls in Afghanistan and chronicle victims of slavery in the Caribbean.

The diplomat said that the agency would also welcome Israel back if it wanted to rejoin. There was no immediate response from the Israeli government.

With inputs from agencies

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In a tragic incident, a teen from Bihar was attacked by a crocodile while fetching water from the river Ganga at Khalsa Ghat in Vaishali district of Bihar. According to media reports, the victim  identified as 14-year-old Ankit Kumar  was the son of Gokulpur villager Dharmendra Das. The child is said to have succumbed to his wounds. Soon after, the crocodile was brutally beaten to death by the boys relatives and other villagers who trapped the reptile in net. A video of the same has now gone viral.

The terrifying incident took place when Dharmendra Das and his family went to Khalsa Ghat to worship their newly purchased bike. Ankit Kumar walked to the river to get water as preparations for the worship event were underway. However, a crocodile that was waiting for its prey quickly attacked him and pulled Ankit into the water.

As per a report by NDTV, Ankits grandfather Sakaldip Das said, We had bought a new motorcycle and had gone into the Ganga to bathe and fetch Gangajal for Puja. A crocodile got hold of him and killed him He also added that it took them an hour to get the remains of his grandson from the water.

Alarmed by the situation, a crowd quickly gathered and through their combined efforts, they were able to capture the crocodile through a fishing net. They attempted to save Ankit, but he had reportedly died by then. The captive crocodile was then put to death by the outraged villagers using sticks and spears in retaliation.

In the video of the incident posted on Twitter, it can be seen that the villagers are attacking the crocodile with rods and spears.

While bathing in the Ganga in Vaishali, crocodile attacked, child died, villagers caught crocodile Gokulpur incident of Bidupur police station #Bihar pic.twitter.com/1iCiqlXxF1  Siraj Noorani (@sirajnoorani) June 13, 2023

According to media reports, the crocodile was caught in the river because of the low water levels. The postmortem examination of the childs remains at Sadar Hospital in Hajipur revealed numerous deep bites from the crocodile.

After receiving the information, the forest officials reached the spot and launched an investigation. They said that the reason for the death of the crocodile was under probe and to be ascertained.

Actions will be taken against the violators for violating the wildlife protection act, District Officer Vaishali, Amrita Raj told reporters.

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External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Wednesday met US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan and discussed preparations for Prime Minister Narendra Modis upcoming US visit along with global strategic developments from the perspective of the India-US partnership.

Following their meeting, Jaishankar tweeted, Great to meet US NSA @jakesullivan46 in South Block today morning. Our conversation focused on preparing for PM @narendramodis upcoming US visit. Also discussed global strategic developments from the perspective of our partnership.

On Tuesday, Sullivan had called on PM Modi and discussed matters of bilateral cooperation in Delhi.

During the meeting, the two leaders also reviewed progress under the India-US Initiative on Critical & Emerging Technologies (iCET).

After the meeting, a tweet by PM Modi, said, Glad to receive US National Security Advisor @JakeSullivan46. Reviewed progress under India-US Initiative on Critical & Emerging Technologies (iCET) and other issues of bilateral cooperation. Look forward to meeting @POTUS @JoeBiden during my upcoming State Visit to the US.

Glad to receive US National Security Advisor @JakeSullivan46. Reviewed progress under India-US Initiative on Critical & Emerging Technologies (iCET) and other issues of bilateral cooperation. Look forward to meeting @POTUS @JoeBiden during my upcoming State Visit to the US. pic.twitter.com/jqG77WgMIE  Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) June 13, 2023

Sullivan is on an official visit to New Delhi from 13-14 June, at the invitation of Indian National Security Advisor Ajit Doval. The two officials have frequently had in-depth meetings on a wide range of bilateral, regional, and international issues. A delegation of senior US government officials and leaders of the US industry accompanied Sullivan.

National Security Advisor of the US Jake Sullivan who is on a two-day India visit met his Indian counterpart Ajit Doval yesterday and held restricted discussions on regional and global issues of mutual interest.

Later, they both attended the second Track 1.5 discourse hosted by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII).

The first edition of this dialogue was organised by the US Chamber of Commerce in Washington, DC on January 30 this year, according to the Ministry of External Affairs.

Addressing the gathering in Delhi, Sullivan said that US President Joe Biden was thrilled to see what is happening here and to watch how things unfold.

As we look ahead to the State visit that PM Modi will be embarking upon in Washington next week, a number of the deliverables at that visit are not just bullet points on a page, they are fundamentally designed to remove obstacles in defence and high-tech trades and in taking away obstacles that have stood in the way of better collaboration among our scientists and researchers, Sullivan said.

With inputs from agencies

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The three-day G20 Agriculture Ministers Meeting would be held in Hyderabad starting Thursday.

#G20AMM2023 is scheduled to take place in Hyderabad from June 15th to June 17th. This event will witness one of the major impactful discussions where global leaders will be exchanging ideas to address worldwide possibilities in achieving sustainable agriculture, the Union Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare said in a tweet on Tuesday.

Union Tourism Minister G Kishan Reddy had said here on June 12 that three meetings of the agriculture working group were held earlier in Indore, Chandigarh and Varanasi. The final meeting is in Hyderabad.

Besides India, 29 other countries will participate in the three-day event, he had said. Key persons from 10 international organisations would also participate in the meetings.

The main agenda of the meeting includes food security, sustainable agriculture for nutritional food, agriculture development under the leadership of women, agriculture and biodiversity, changes needed in agriculture sector to face climate change, Reddy had said.

(With inputs from PTI)

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Nine people, including a woman, were killed and 10 others were severely wounded in a fresh violence in Manipur. The deaths took place in a shooting incident in Khamenlok area late on Tuesday night.

The area where fresh violence was reported is situated on the border between Kangpokpi district and Imphal East. A group of armed assailants began attacking people in the area in ethnic violence-hit Manipur around 10:30 pm on Tuesday, police said.

The gunfight was triggered after security forces reached the area to counter the assailants.

There was firing in the village around 10-10:30 pm and nine people were killed and 10 others injured. All injured have been admitted to hospital where the condition of one is stated to be critical, a report by Hindustan Times quoted Imphal East police superintendent K Shivakanta Singh as saying.

The police officer informed that Assam Rifles is in charge of the security of the area where the fresh killings were reported from.

Meanwhile, the injured were rushed to hospital in Imphal for treatment.

A NDTV report said some of those killed in the fresh violence in Manipur have cut marks on their bodies and multiple bullet injuries.

After the fresh incident of violence, curfew relaxations have been further reduced in Imphal.

News18 quoted sources saying that miscreants from Uyumpok and Nunshung have been continuing arson attempts in Shantipur, Khopibung and Khamenlok.

Manipur violence

As many as 115 people have been killed and over 40,000 displaces since 3 May when the violence between the tribal Kukis and the Meiteis erupted in Manipur.

The Meiteis are the dominant community in Imphal valley, while Kukis mostly reside in the hill districts. The violence was triggered during a court order for granting schedule tribe status to Meities. It soon spread to the state and additional security forces were pumped in to bring the situation under control.

On 1 June, Union Home Minister Amit Shah announced the formation of the panel as part of measures to ease tensions.

However, on Monday, prominent civil society organisations from Meitei and Kuki communities refused to be a part of a peace committee that the Union government constituted to broker peace in the state.

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Mumbai Polices Traffic Control Branch marks No Honking Day today, 14 June, as a way to raise awareness about noise pollution and its detrimental effects on health and the environment. Police urged Mumbaikars to refrain from blowing their horns in support of this initiative. A notice by the traffic police warned that drivers found honking unnecessarily will be punished under the Motor Vehicle Act and Environment Protection Act, 1986.

Advisory by Mumbai Police

Mumbai traffic police, in a notice on Twitter, said, Motorists are advised to ensure that the horns of their vehicles are as per guidelines in Rule No. 119 of the Central Motor Vehicle Rules of 1989. The police added, Traffic Control Branch, Mumbai urges all drivers and riders in Mumbai city, except ambulances, fire brigades and other vehicles on emergency duties, not to honk the horns of their vehicles on 14 June 2023 and other days as well.

Pravin Padwal, Mumbai Police (Traffic) Joint Commissioner, said it would be an awareness drive to curb noise pollution and refrain from unnecessary honking. We want motorists to support us and observe June 14 as No Honking Day, a Business Standard report stated.

Mumbai ke joint police commissioner traffic Mr. Pravin Padwal ka elan , 14 June .No Honking Day #mumbai pic.twitter.com/JjT9BBTi0d  Saeed Hameed (@urdujournosaeed) June 12, 2023

Check out this tweet:

A Twitter user commended the initiative. He wrote: Excellent initiative. Can we extend this #nohonkingday to a #nohonkingweek too? #Mumbai.

Another user wished good luck to Mumbaikars. He said,  Wish Mumbaikars best in this initiative! Be trendsetters In addition, he tagged: @hornnotokpls.

Wish Mumbaikars best in this initiative! Be the trendsetters @hornnotokpls  Prabhat Sinha  (@peekaysinha) June 13, 2023

Mumbai: The honking capital of the world

Sumaira Abdulali, an anti-noise pollution activist with the Awaz Foundation, has praised the police initiative and noted that it was 17 years ago in 2006 that a similar exercise was carried out in Mumbai.

This is the need of the hour. Awaz has done several sessions with the police on this menace and we have done studies on the ill-effects of honking without adequate reasons. We appeal to the police to ensure that it should not be only this Wednesday, but even all other days henceforth, Abdulali told IANS.

Mumbai Police has also issued several warnings over blaring horns unnecessarily in the past. On Twitter, the Mumbai Police shared a nearly two-minute video in 2020, asking drivers not to horn unnecessarily. The video begins by saying, Mumbai. Welcome to the honking capital of the world. Here people honk even when the signal is red. They might think that by honking, the signal will turn green faster.

Check out this tweet:

Horn not okay, please!

Find out how the @MumbaiPolice hit the mute button on #Mumbais reckless honkers. #HonkResponsibly pic.twitter.com/BAGL4iXiPH     Mumbai Police (@MumbaiPolice) January 31, 2020

In addition, it stated, We, the Mumbai Police were itching to do something about this. The short clip shows the police installing the decibel meters in several locations including CSMT, Bandra, Peddar Road, Hindmata, and restoring the signal after 90 seconds as the meter reached 85 decibels.

A shocking reaction pervaded commuters upon reading the message, Honk more, wait more. The clip ends with two police officers sharing a Hi-5, saying, Feel free to honk, if you dont mind waiting.

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National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Wednesday informed that an alleged master weapons trainer of the banned Popular Front of India (PFI)  who was living under an assumed identity  was arrested from Karnataka.

Nossam Mohamed Yunus, 33, was wanted for his alleged involvement in the Nizamabad terror conspiracy case, a spokesperson of the federal agency said.

The official said Yunus of Nandyal in Andhra Pradesh was working in the inverter business of his elder brother. When his house was searched in September 2022, he was found to be absconding along with his wife and two minor sons.

The spokesperson said that investigations revealed that Yunus had shifted his entire family from Andhra Pradesh and was hiding out in the Cowl Bazar area of the Bellary district of Karnataka, where he had assumed a new identity  Basheer  and a new profession as a plumber.

The case pertains to a criminal conspiracy hatched by the leaders and cadres of the proscribed outfit PFI to recruit and radicalise youths and provide them with arms training to promote and carry out terrorist activities with the ultimate objective of establishing Islamic rule in the country, the agency alleged.

Yunus was a master weapons trainer and was providing training to the youth recruited by PFI in the Andhra Pradesh and Telangana region. He was also the PE (Physical Education) Training State Coordinator for these two states in the Nizamabad PFI case, the spokesperson said.

The NIA claimed that Yunus, who has been giving evasive replies during NIA interrogation, has said that Shaikh ilyas Ahmed was also involved in the PFI weapons training programme. Ilyas is currently absconding.

With his arrest, NIA has once again exposed the PFIs radical nefarious plans to drive a communal wedge among the communities and to use innocent Muslim youth to disturb and disrupt peace and communal harmony in the country, the spokesperson said.

Telangana Police had initially registered an FIR in the case on July 4 last year and NIA had later taken over the case.

It has so far filed two charge sheets against 16 accused in this case.

The Centre had banned the PFI and its eight affiliate outfits under the stringent Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) on September 28 last year for their alleged terror-linked activities.

(With inputs from PTI)

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Honouring the contributions of legendary officer Lt Gen PS Bhagat, Indian Army chief Gen Manoj Pande on Wednesday said the treatment of Pakistani prisoners of war post-1971 war was so good that they wished that their officers were as good as their Indian counterparts in ensuring the welfare of the troops.

After the 1971 Indo-Pak War, 90,000 Pakistani Prisoners of War were to be housed in camps in central command (with Lt Gen Bhagat as commander in chief). This entailed urgent construction of shelters, provision of amenities, putting the logistics in place, ensuring security arrangements and coordination, Gen Pande said while addressing a memorial lecture.

He said Lt Gen Bhagat ensured that every amenity that the POWs were entitled to, including canteen stores, postal facilities, and medical coverage, was made available in the true spirit of the Geneva Convention.

He said in some cases, Lt Gen Bhagat even ordered an accommodation occupied by his own troops, vacated for the prisoners of war.Hence, it was no surprise that Pakistani POWs had only praise for the way they were treated in India, and often remarked that they wished their officers were like Indian officers in the way they took care of their troops, Gen Pande said.

After the crushing defeat in the 1971 war, India had taken 90,000 Pakistan Army troops as prisoners after they surrendered before them.

The defeat of the Pakistan Army led to the creation of Bangladesh, formerly East Pakistan.

Lt Gen Niazi was the senior-most officer to surrender and had stayed in India for many months during which he, along with fellow prisoners of war, were well looked after by the neighbour.

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Something went wrong between BJP leader Jonali Nath and Hasanur Islam, according to Assam Police, which infuriated Islam so much so that he allegedly murdered Nath in a moving car and then threw the body while on the move. Islam, however, is reportedly a Congress member.

Top Assam Police sources told Firstpost that they landed on the theory of an illicit relationship gone sour based, not just on Islams confession, who is in custody, but also on call records of the victim and the accused.

The police have found 600 calls exchanged between Nath and Islam.

What went wrong between Jonali and Islam?

According to the police the two were in a relationship for the past two yearsNath was in her thirties, married with two kids, while younger Islam is in his late twenties, also recently married.

According to the police, this was a case of a love triangle and jealousy. Jonali, reportedly, was unhappy with Islams nikah with another woman.

An upset Jonali had a heated argument inside the car with Islam, which led to a scuffle, and Islam allegedly beat her to death. Then, he allegedly threw Jonalis dead body while on the move.

The police are looking into the circumstances of their relationship and the moments leading up to the murder, having arrested Islam, who has confessed to his crime.

Meanwhile, the husband of the victim has accused the police of assassinating the character of his late wife by claiming that she was in a relationship outside marriage with Islam, based just on the latters confession.

The incident had come to light on late Sunday night when police recovered Jonalis body along National Highway 17 near Salpara in Assam. Her face was crushed.

Primary investigation has revealed that Jonali had left her home at 4:30 in the evening; her husband started looking for her at around 7 PM after his multiple calls to Jonali went unanswered. Their elder daughter also sent her a message on WhatsApp.

Later, it was revealed through call records and manual surveillance that Jonali had met Islam that evening.

Police picked up Islam from his house and after multiple rounds of questioning, he revealed that he had picked Jonali in his car, and after a fight, he killed her in a fit of rage.

According to police, Jonali had very little information about Islams recent marriage with another woman. This led to a fight between them.

Debraj Upadhyay, Inspector General at the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), Assam, said that Islam reportedly confessed that after failing to pacify Jonali, he allegedly killed her and dumped her body along the highway.

Postmortem report suggested that he had used a sharp object to rain multiple blows on Naths face. He reportedly hit her until she fell unconscious and, subsequently, died.

At around 7:13PM, Islam allegedly switched Jonalis phone off and dumped it somewhere on the highway. Police believe that by this time, Islam had killed her. The police have already recovered the victims smartphone, while the hunt is on to locate the murder weapon.

Islams car was shot with blood stains that, later matched with Jonalis. Apart from this, police obtained registration documents of the car to ascertain that it belonged to him.

According to reports, Hasanur Islam is a local Congress leader in Matia area of Goalpara.

Following his arrest, police have lodged a case under IPC section for murder and concealment of evidence against

Congress leader Hasanur Islam. He was sent to judicial custody on Thursday.

Jonalis husband has a different story

Chandra Kumar Nath, Jonalis husband, however, has a different version of the murder.

The two were not in a relationship. The police have tarnished her character after her death, which is unfortunate. She was a social worker. As far as I know, Islam owed her money, which led to her death.

Nath has already lodged a complaint with the police, but against the police. Police sources told Firstpost they have received the husbands complaint.

Nath also confirmed that Islam was a local Congress leader.

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An answer in Parliament reveals millions of rand were spent on the reports over three years. But the company that produced them has defended its work and called on the DA to correct a condemnatory statement.

The National Lotteries Commission spent R7.3 million on its annual reports over the past three years.

This is according to a written answer by Minister Ebrahim Patel to a question asked in Parliament.

A row has erupted after the DA condemned the printing of only 475 copies, which works out to an average of over R15,000 per copy.

But Ince the company that produced the reports, has shot back, pointing out that it did the content and design of the reports, both for online and print.

The National Lotteries Commission (NLC) spent almost R7.3-million over three years on its annual reports.

The NLC paid R2.6-million and printed 70 copies of the report in 2022. In 2021, it paid R2.69-million and printed 200 copies. In 2020 it paid R1.98-million and printed 205 copies. But the reports are also online.

All the reports over the three-year period were produced and printed by Ince (Pty) Ltd. The project was handled by the office of the company secretary Nompumelelo Nene, who is currently on suspension pending a disciplinary inquiry.

The details of the prices paid for the reports were revealed by Minister of Trade and Industry Ebrahim Patel in an answer to a written parliamentary question posed by Democratic Alliance MP Dean Macpherson. The wording of Patel's response implied that the cost was only for printing but according to Ince the cost included much more, including the content and design of the reports.

The cost of the annual reports is one of the many procurement issues that has led the Special Investigating Unit (SIU), which has been investigating NLC corruption since 2020, to apply for its mandate to be extended to include procurement.

The SIU has come across several instances of potential fraud and corruption involving procurement. The Auditor-General (AG) also highlighted problems with procurement, and the NLC itself has received several tip-offs about questionable procurement, which are being investigated internally and by three audit firms.

But until its mandate is extended, the SIU's hands are tied, as the 2020 proclamation signed by President Cyril Ramaphosa only allows it to investigate corruption involving grants.

In his response to Parliament, Patel said: "Given the amounts of money involved in the printing of the annual report, this expenditure should also be covered by the internal and external investigation."

The official with "relevant information on the distribution of the copies of the Annual Report" is currently on suspension and therefore not all the requested information is available, Patel said. "I have further requested the NLC to provide an updated report on the distribution of annual reports as soon as the information is available."

The wording of the answer suggests that the money was spent entirely on printing, which led to Macpherson stating: "This ridiculous spending works out to R37,000 per [2022] annual report or R255 a page. This sort of grand scale corruption has come to define the NLC in recent years, which was vigorously defended by the ANC in Parliament."

He said that the DA had sourced costing from a local company and "found that this should not have cost more than R200 per booklet. The question is, how was a company allowed to rip off the NLC, inflate costs by 18,500% without any questions being asked and for so long?"

But Ince's CEO Peter Backwell took issue with the DA's statement and has asked Macpherson to correct "misleading and inaccurate statements".

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In a letter to GroundUp, Backwell wrote that the cost includes "Strategic and editorial advisory", "Research, interviews, content development , copywriting, review and structural editing", "Design, production and publishing", and "Digital campaigns".

Backwell stated: "Most organisations in the digital era have a very small print run for their annual reports - if they print hard copies at all. A small print run (of, say, 70 copies) would make up a small fraction of the total project cost, as most of the work that Ince does is digitally based and the output is in the form of HTML (website) interactive reports, PDF documents, other electronic formats (such as XBRL) and a very small volume of printed reports. Most reporting entities have

little requirement for printed copies as the electronic copies are shared with stakeholders. Dividing the cost of an annual report project by the number of printed copies is misleading."
DMK President and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin on Wednesday met his cabinet colleague V Senthil Balaji at Omandurar government hospital where he was taken for medical examination after the minister was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in an alleged money laundering case.

#WATCH | Tamil Nadu CM MK Stalin arrives at Omandurar government hospital to meet state minister Senthil Balaji, in Chennai Balaji was admitted to the hospital after he was questioned by the Enforcement Directorate, in connection with a money laundering case. pic.twitter.com/gjXKzO7XwS  ANI (@ANI) June 14, 2023

Stalin stepped up his attack on the BJP over the arrest, saying the minister will face the case legally, and so will the party.

He charged the ED officials of enacting a drama in the name of enquiry and accused them of physically and mentally troubling Balaji.

They had pressured him to the point of him suffering a chest pain, Stalin alleged in a statement, hours after the ED arrested Balaji following raids at his premises and hours long questioning since Tuesday.

According to DMK leaders, Balaji complained of chest pain while being taken into custody by the ED officials. They also said that Balaji didnt seem conscious when he was taken to the hospital by ED.

In a video posted by ANI on Twitter, the minister can be seen crying in pain as he is pulled out of the car at the hospital.

#WATCH | Tamil Nadu Electricity Minister V Senthil Balaji breaks down as ED officials took him into custody in connection with a money laundering case and brought him to Omandurar Government in Chennai for medical examination pic.twitter.com/aATSM9DQpu  ANI (@ANI) June 13, 2023

DMK MP and lawyer NR Elango said that the minister has been shifted to ICU and ED has officially not confirmed Balajis arrest.

I saw him (Senthil Balaji) when he was shifted to ICU. Doctors are evaluating his health condition. It is a procedure when a person says he has been assaulted the doctor needs to note down all the injuries and will know after seeing the report. Officially we have not been informed (by ED) that he has been arrested, Elango said.

The Chief Minister said ED officials grilled the minister till 2 am before taking Balaji to a hospital and he is in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) right now.

Till 2 am, they kept pressuring him and then took him to the hospital. Now hes admitted to ICU. Even after he said that he will cooperate in the investigation, why did they torture him? We can clearly see the wrong intentions of those who sent these officials. They acted in an https://t.co/O5A732wQaL  ANI (@ANI) June 14, 2023

He questioned the need for such a long probe even after Balaji assuring full cooperation to the probe and asked if such an inhumane action by the ED officials is warranted.

The cruel intentions of those that had deployed the officials is evident from this, Stalin charged.

He reiterated his stringent criticism of the BJP, saying it was using such investigating agencies against its political rivals. That is the only way they know.

Whatever the case is, Senthil Balaji will face it legally. We will firmly continue with our political stand. The DMK will face the case legally with resolve, the Chief Minister said.

DMK will not be cowed down by BJPs intimidation. People are watching such oppression and will give a befitting reply in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls, he added.

With inputs from agencies

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As cases of Love Jihad witness a rise in Uttarakhand, Hindu outfits in the hilly state have called for a mahapanchayat to address the issue.

Meanwhile, the Uttarakhand High Court will hear a plea against the mahapanchayat on Thursday. The mass gathering has forced local authorities to impose prohibitory orders in the region.

This comes after the Supreme Court refused to hear a plea against the mahapanchayat on Wednesday. The plea was filed by the Association for the Protection of Civil Rights in fear of communal tensions in the state.

In protest against the imposition of section 144, which bars assembly of people, local trade bodies called for a bandh in Uttarkashi district, in which Purola falls, on Thursday.

The mahapanchayat is scheduled to be held on 15 June.

Meanwhile, members of various Hindu groups have slammed the efforts made by local bodies to bar the mahapanchayat from taking place.

Bajrang Dal president Anuj Walia said steps being taken to prevent the mahapanchayat are part of a big conspiracy against Hindus.

The mahapanchayat was to be held peacefully. The administration is protecting jihadis, Walia said, demanding the removal of Uttarkashi District Magistrate Abhishek Rohilla and Superintendent of Police Arpan Yaduvanshi.

The administration is acting under the pressure of AIMIM leader Asaduddin Owaisi, he added.

CM Dhami orders strict action against love jihad

Last week, Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami has ordered police officers to take stern action against people trying to do love jihad in the state.

His comments came after he chaired a high-level meeting with senior police officers. People of different faiths co-exist peacefully in Uttarakhand but things like love jihad will not be tolerated. Crimes like these were being committed as part of a conspiracy. But people are coming out openly against them now, Dhami told reporters.

He added that the meeting was held to take feedback from the police on steps taken in connection with love jihad incidents reported recently from different parts of the state.

In the past few weeks, Haridwar, Chamoli and Uttarkashi have witnessed nearly half a dozen incidents of attempted abduction of minor Hindu girls by Muslim men who hid their religious identity to befriend them.

Dhami said the number of people coming out in the open against love jihad reflects a growing awareness about crimes of this nature.

Awareness about love jihad is growing. That is why more such incidents have come to the fore over the past two-three months. One reason for this is the introduction of a severe anti-conversion law, the Chief Minister said.

With inputs from agencies

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The Uttarkashi district administration on Wednesday refused permission for a Mahapanchayat called on June 15 in Purola town by Hindu outfits against what they termed as incidents of love jihad

Sub Divisional Magistrate Devanand Sharma said prohibitory orders under Section 144 will remain in force till June 19. Section 144 has been imposed in Purola as there could be an attempt by people to disrupt peace, he said.

The Mahapanchayat was called by the Purola Pradhan Sangathan and has received support from the Vishwa Hindu Parishad, the Bajrang Dal among others. The situation in Purola has been tense after two men were caught in an alleged attempt to elope with a minor girl from Purola last month.

District Magistrate of Uttarkashi Abhishek Rohilla said, The permission for the proposed mahapanchayat to be held on June 15 has been denied.Speaking exclusively to ANI, Uttarakhand, Director General of Police (DGP), Ashok Kumar said that no one will be given permission to break the law, over the proposed mahapanchayat.

Communal tension has been brewing in Purola and some other towns of Uttarkashi district after two men, one of them Muslim, allegedly tried to abduct a Hindu girl on May 26.

Though the girl was rescued and the accused sent to judicial custody, local trade bodies and right-wing Hindu outfits have run a sustained campaign against love jihad in Purola and the neighbouring towns, including Barkot, Chinyalisaur and Bhatwari.

Apart from the abduction bid reported from Purola on May 26, another failed abduction attempt of two minor sisters of Nepali origin by a man called Nawab was reported on June 8 from Arakot area of Uttarkashi district.

The accused in both cases were booked under section 363 (abduction) of the IPC and the POCSO Act. Over 40 shops run by Muslims in Purtla have not opened even a fortnight after the abduction attempt.

Posters asking alleged perpetrators of love jihad to leave the town or face consequences also appeared in shops run by Muslims last week.

Uttarkashi District Magistrate Abhishek Rohilla and SP Arpan Yaduvanshi met officials and all sections of people in Purola on Monday and appealed to them to maintain peace.

Muslim Seva Sangathan, an organisation fighting for the rights of Muslims, has also given a call for holding a mahapanchayat in Dehradun on June 18.

Muslim bodies like Uttarakhand Waqf Board and state Haj committee have appealed to the chief minister to take stringent action against anti-social elements trying to derail peace in the hills and protect Muslims who have been living in Purola for generations.

With inputs from agencies

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Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge on Wednesday condemned the arrest of Tamil Nadu minister V Senthil Balaji by the ED in connection with a money laundering case, alleging that the Centre was misusing the probe agencies to harass and intimidate the Opposition.

I condemn the harassment of the Tamil Nadu minister Senthil Balaji by ED. What was the need to arrest him in the night? Opposition parties will not be scared by all this, said the Congress chief while talking to ANI on Wednesday.

#WATCH | I condemn the harassment of the TN minister Senthil Balaji by ED. What was the need to arrest him in the night? Opposition parties will not be scared by all this, says Congress Pres Mallikarjun Kharge on ED action against V Senthil Balaji in a money laundering case. pic.twitter.com/4HplnjV58m  ANI (@ANI) June 14, 2023

He said that the probe agency should have interrogated the minister after issuing notice to him first instead of making an arrest all of a sudden in the night.

In a late-night drama-filled action, the ED took Balaji into custody after questioning and when he was being taken to Omandurar Government Hospital in Chennai for medical examination, the minister broke down in the car and had to be carried to the hospital.

#WATCH | Tamil Nadu Electricity Minister V Senthil Balaji breaks down as ED officials took him into custody in connection with a money laundering case and brought him to Omandurar Government in Chennai for medical examination pic.twitter.com/aATSM9DQpu  ANI (@ANI) June 13, 2023

According to DMK leaders, Balaji complained of chest pain when he was being taken into custody by the ED. They also said that Balaji didnt seem conscious when he was taken to the hospital by the probe agency.

DMK MP and lawyer NR Elango said the minister has been shifted to ICU.

I saw him (Senthil Balaji) when he was shifted to ICU. Doctors are evaluating his health condition. It is a procedure when a person says he has been assaulted the doctor needs to note down all the injuries and will know after seeing the report, Elango said.

DMK minister Udhayanidhi Stalin said, Senthil Balaji is undergoing treatment.

We will deal with it legally. We are not afraid of the threatening politics of the BJP-led central government, he added.

Earlier in the day too, the Congress chief had issued a statement saying that the Modi government was indulging in vendetta politics.

This is nothing but political harassment and vendetta by the Modi government against those opposed to it. None of us in the Opposition will be intimidated by such brazen moves, reads his statement.

With inputs from agencies

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Jack Dorsey, the former CEO of Twitter under whom the microblogging site resembled a crime scene replete with dark secrets, child porn, unaccounted behaviour and systemic collusion with anti-India and subversive forces, has made some explosive claims to a US-based YouTube channel on India.

Speaking to Krystal Ball and Saagar Enjeti of the American news series Breaking Points, Dorsey, whos been getting the rough end of the stick in his investments and entrepreneurial ventures of late, claimed that the Indian government had raided Twitter employees homes and threatened to shut the platform down if it didnt comply with the governments diktats.

Dorsey, who compared the Narendra Modi governments actions with Turkiye and Nigeria, alleged in the interview that he was surprised at the level of engagement and requests by some governments for content moderation during his time. India, for example, was a country that had many requests around the farmers protests, around particular journalists that were critical of the government.

It manifested in ways such as: we will shut Twitter down in India  which is a very large market for us; we will raid the homes of your employees, which they did; we will shut down your offices if you dont follow suit. And this is India, a democratic country, said Dorsey, sporting a scornful smirk while describing Indias democratic credentials.

Dorsey is losing his touch. He used to be more sophisticated in spreading chicanery. His latest lies are easily busted. For instance, the former Twitter CEO claimed that Indian authorities raided the homes of then employees of Twitter. It is curious that not only such an inflammatory accusation was made without any shred of evidence, but also the fact this was made for the very first time. There are no known instances, claims or disclosures from either Twitter authorities or the Indian side that such a raid took place, or there were risks of such raids, or threats made to shut the platform.

What we do know is that in May 2021, teams of Delhi police officers visited Twitter Indias offices in Delhi and Gurugram to serve notice and seek clarification on certain tweets by BJP leaders that were tagged as manipulated media. These were no raids, as Dorsey claimed, since no search or seizure operations took place. Media reports at that time point out that the Delhi police teams were compelled to pay a visit to Twitters offices since the microblogging platform was unresponsive on certain requests for information and Twitter Indias then managing director Manish Maheshwari was acting elusive.

News Agency IANS quoted a Delhi police source, as saying that (Delhi Police) Special Cell has sent a notice to Twitter. In its reply, Twitter said it has no more knowledge in the matter. So, a team of officers went to the offices of Twitter to record the statements of the persons there, but they were found closed.

Delhi Police later released a statement, clarifying that no raids or searches were carried out, and stating that its team went to the Twitter office to serve a notice to Twitter, as a part of a routine process. This was necessitated as we wanted to ascertain who is the right person to serve a notice, as replies by Twitter India MD have been very ambiguous.

If Dorsey was referring to this incident in the interview, it is unclear why he chose to play fast with facts and sought to mislead and manipulate. Lies and obfuscation, however, seem to be part of Dorseys standard operating procedure. He tried to create the impression that the Indian government is intolerant of criticism and guilty of intimidation tactics but what he didnt clarify was most of the requests from the Modi government during the farmers protests were aimed at preventing disinformation and inflammatory hashtags such as ModiPlanningFarmerGenocide that could have further worsened a volatile climate.

It is also curious that while Twitter acted with extreme alacrity in restricting accounts and information during the 6 January, 2021, insurrection at the US Capitol, it took a laissez-faire approach while a similar insurrection sponsored by protesting farmers occurred at the Red Fort just a few days later on 26 January, 2021.

A readout released by Indias Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, Government of India, post MeitY secretarys meeting with Twitters top officials Monique Meche and Jim Baker on February 10, 2021, stated: Secretary took up the issue of using a hashtag on farmer genocide with Twitter executives and expressed strong displeasure on the way Twitter acted after an emergency order was issued to remove this hashtag and content related to that. Spreading misinformation using an incendiary and baseless hashtag referring to farmer genocide at a time when such irresponsible content can provoke and inflame the situation is neither journalistic freedom nor freedom of expression as envisaged under Article 19 of the Constitution of India. Despite the attention of Twitter being drawn to such content by the Government through a lawful process, the platform allowed the content with this hashtag to continue, which was extremely unfortunate.

Secretary reminded Twitter about the action taken by Twitter during the Capitol Hill episode in the USA and compared that with the disturbance in Red Fort in India and its aftermath. He expressed dissatisfaction over Twitters differential treatment in the two incidents. A deep sense of disappointment at seeing Twitter side not with freedom of expression but rather with those who seek to abuse such freedom and provoke disturbance to public order, was conveyed to the Twitter representative.

This should fall under the category of reasonable request based on sound logic, not intimidation tactics. It cant be Dorseys argument that Twitter be allowed to operate in India as a sovereign entity to whom the laws of the land and the legal system do not apply, and the very mention of compliance brings forth charges of intimidation.

Not surprisingly, deputy minister for Information Technology Rajeev Chandrasekhar called Dorseys comments outright lies and pointed out on Twitter  now under Elon Musk  that Twitter  undr (sic) Dorsey n his team were in repeated n continuous violations of India law. As a matter of fact they were in non-compliance with law repeatedly from 2020 to 2022 and it was only June 2022 when they finally complied. No one went to jail nor was twitter shutdown. Dorseys Twitter regime had a problem accepting the sovereignty of Indian law. It behaved as if the laws of India did not apply to it.

In a blog posted on that very day (10 February, 2021) that top Twitter officials met the ministry official, Dorseys Twitter sought to occupy the moral high ground and justify its action by saying, we do not believe that the actions we have been directed to take are consistent with Indian law, and, in keeping with our principles of defending protected speech and freedom of expression, we have not taken any action on accounts that consist of news media entities, journalists, activists, and politicians. To do so, we believe, would violate their fundamental right to free expression under Indian law.

This isnt just unabashed hypocrisy (just a few days prior to this, the site had de-platformed a sitting US president and blocked a noted American media outlets legitimate news item in Hunter Biden laptop story in contravention of the sites own laws), but the fact is that Dorseys Twitter took recourse to dubious interpretation of freedom of expression under Indian law to act as a supra-sovereign authority that is immune to legal processes and jurisdiction of the sovereign land where it operates as a profit-seeking foreign business entity.

Dorseys defiance of the Indian governments orders was not due to some high ideals that Twitter subscribed to, but because Dorsey was pushing activist agendas to subvert Indian democracy and impose reputational damage on a Hindu nationalist government that the owner and his coterie abhorred.

Well may Dorsey pose as a victim of government oppression or a free-speech crusader who was fighting a lone battle, he has little credibility. Under his leadership, Twitter was guilty of egregious crimes such as failing to take action against child porn because it did not violate the companys policies.

In September 2021, the Delhi Police sought to take action against Dorsey and Maheshwari, then Twitter India MD, over circulation of child porn. Following a complaint by the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights, cops filed an FIR against Twitter, mentioning how Twitter purposely did not submit information regarding handles sought by them and used delaying tactics by invoking mechanisms like mutual legal assistance treaty (MLAT).

Twitters laissez-faire attitude towards child porn was confirmed further when new owner Musk confronted Dorsey on the platform by tweeting that former Twitter executives refused to take action against child exploitation, and told Dorsey that almost no one was working on child safety until he took over on 27 October.

If this represents one dark side of Dorseys leadership, the infamous Twitter files revealed yet another audacious bid to manipulate public opinion and serve Dorsey and his gangs political objectives  be it over US presidential elections or the Covid vaccine mandate.

On the Hunter Biden laptop story, the way Twitter let itself be weaponized by the American federal investigative agency, the FBI, goes to show how Dorsey and his top team were in the pockets of the American deep state and ran phoney agendas on American soil.

Little wonder that Dorsey would try to propagate anti-government lies in India without fear of any meaningful reprisals. Twitter Files have revealed that under Dorsey, the platform was a veritable crime scene of rank censorship and pernicious agenda-peddling and the entire top team of executives comprising Dorsey, Baker, Yoel Roth and Vijaya Gadde were bent on weaponizing the platform to meet their political objectives.

This was being done not only in the US, where Republican lawmakers and their supporters were shadowbanned, de-platformed or secretly blacklisted, but this toxic politics was exported outside the US into countries such as India where the conservative government at the Centre became Twitters enemy No.1.

In the context of pre-Musk Twitters regime change operations, the question about the timing of Dorseys latest outburst against the Modi government should be explained.

It is certainly not a coincidence that Dorsey came out with outlandish charges about the time when the prime minister is about to embark on a state visit to the US where he is scheduled to attend a state dinner hosted by the US president and his wife, and is also slated to address a joint session of the US Congress  prestigious events that reflect the depth and trajectory of India-US ties and Modis stature within the Biden administration despite the best efforts of the hard-Left section within the Democrats that never tires of peddling insidious narratives against the BJP government on human rights and religious freedoms.

Dorsey knows that his remarks were political and will be used as a weapon not only by the anti-Modi segment within the Democratic Party, the US State Department and American liberal media, his remarks would also ratchet up the heat on the Biden administration at a time when White House seeks to project an image of friendship, bonhomie, and warmth.

If we take into account the fact that just two days ahead of Modis landing in the US, two so-called human rights groups linked to billionaire investor George Soros  Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch have planned to screen in Washington DC BBCs hit-job against Modi on Gujarat riots the picture becomes clearer.

Dorseys comments that are designed to stir the pot ahead of Modis arrival, along with the ambush attempts of Soross fronts, are a mere trailer of what is being cooked up by disparate powers that include woke progressives in America to Opposition forces in India that would love to see nothing more than Modi getting upstaged in 2024. Treacherous knives are being earnestly sharpened.

The author is Deputy Executive Editor, Firstpost. He tweets @sreemoytalukdar.

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The Modi government in India recently completed nine years, having come to power by a thumping majority in May 2014 and 2019. Presenting the report card for this period, External Affairs Minister, S Jaishankar, held a customary annual press briefing on 9 June 2023. During this interaction with journalists, he highlighted key aspects of evolution and significant transformation of foreign policy over the period of nine years, which is reflected in the countrys higher standing, greater influence, bigger footprint, new concepts and stronger delivery. Some of the areas of key focus in the past nine years were highlighted and can be discussed under Nine Sutras (threads) under which Indias foreign policy has flourished, especially in the past nine years.

How the world sees India

This is perhaps one of the most significant aspects of the Indias success story. The Indian response to the COVID-19 pandemic and the Russia-Ukraine war has obviously been the two major contributing factors in it. During the pandemic, when most of the world closed its doors to the outside world, India presented a completely different outlook. It was the first to provide COVID-19 vaccines to people across countries while still vaccinating its own people. India already supplied 235 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines to 98 countries of the world by July 2022. It also conducted a 247 world vide operation Vande Bharat and brought back over 70 Lakh of its citizens from across the globe, running special flights over four months, a feat unmatched by any country in the world. Many countries who received the vaccines from India, especially our neighborhood, Africa, Latin America have expressed their eternal gratitude to India more than once.

On the Russia-Ukraine war, Indias position has been clear and unambiguous. Since the Ukraine war broke out in February 2022, New Delhi has become virtually the global capital, with top global leadership lining up to seek Indias support towards a swift end to the conflict. The fact that India did not bow down to Western pressure to condemn Russia or to stop purchase of crude oil for its energy security, was initially protested by the West, but later reluctantly accepted as an instrument of Indias national interest, a huge credit to Indias growing stature in the world.

India: An economic collaborator

India is currently rated as the fifth largest economy of the world and slated to become the third largest, possibly by 2027-28. Gone are the days when India was looked down upon as a poor nation. IMF and World Bank along with major rating agencies have projected India as the fastest growing global economy for next few years, if not more. Innovation and manufacturing under the brand Make in India are the key buzz words. India was home to the of the worlds largest number of Unicorns (startups valued at $1 billion or more) in year 2022, surpassing US and China. Its aggressive push to encourage digital payments through UPI and e-wallets has breached all records. In 2021, India accounted for the largest number of worldwide real-time transactions at $48 billion. Technologically advanced nations like Singapore and Japan are seeking collaboration with India to replicate UPI system of digital payments.

Indias pursuit of green energy is widely acknowledged and its solar power installed capacity has already reached around 61.97 GW as on 30 November, 2022. Countries are keen to collaborate with India in this green movement and are joining forums like the International Solar Alliance. The recent discovery of 5.9 million tonnes of Lithium in Jammu and Kashmir region makes it the seventh largest lithium deposits in the world, and its successful exploration could become another important contributor towards Indias rapid economic growth and possible collaboration in manufacture of semi-conductor chips in India.

Indias developmental collaboration with developing nations too is being widely welcomed. India has a development footprint across 78 nations and is instrumental in establishing, reviving and running of over 600 projects worldwide. India is also attracting record FDI. The year 2021-22 recorded the highest ever FDI at $83.6 billion. It is estimated that it could cross $100 billion for the year 2022-23. With companies worldwide pulling out of China, India is fast emerging as the best place for global manufacturing economic collaboration.

Mini-laterals and multilaterals

Jaishankar highlighted Indias focus on effective and focused Mini-laterals and Multilaterals as one of the important threads of Indias foreign policy success. Indias position in Quad (India, US, Japan and Australia) has grown over the years. From merely coordinating on trade, technology, climate issues etc., this forum is now slowly taking shape of a more complete mini- lateral in the Indo-pacific. The Malabar exercise comprising of all four navies, conducted off the coast of Japan in November 2022, is an indicator of shape of things to come in the future.

India is also part of I2U2 comprising of India, Israel, US and UK, popularly called as the West Asian Quad. Very recently, India, UAE and France have formed a trilateral for cooperation in defence, energy and technology. In May 2023, the NSAs of four countries; India, Saudi Arabia, UAE and the US met in Saudi Arabia forming another Quad like forum to advance their shared vision of a more secure and prosperous Middle East region. Indias candidature for permanent seat at the UN Security Council is a notable inclusion in almost every diplomatic statement referring to UN Security Council reforms. President of the 77th Session of United Nations General Assembly, Csaba Korosi too raised it during the recent visit to India on 29-30th January 2023. Indias key role in SCO and BRICS is also a part of this success story. Indias outreach in the Pacific islands nations by forming FIPIC (Forum for India-Pacific Island Cooperation) in 2014 is proving useful in developmental cooperation with small and scattered island nations in the Pacific. The current Indian presidencies of G20 and the SCO in setting the global agenda too are key pointers in this direction.

An independent and credible force

Whether it is the current Russia-Ukraine war where India stood firm on securing its national interests or the ongoing standoff in Eastern Ladakh on the LAC (Line of Actual Control) against China, India has shown that it can stand its ground as a powerful and independent force. The Balakot airstrike in February 2019, deep into Pakistan targeting terrorist camps was a powerful message to Pakistan not to mess with Indian sovereignty. Hosted and chaired by India, the No Money for Terror Ministerial Conference on Counter-Terrorism Financing, held in November 2022 in New Delhi drew as much global attention as Modis famous statement at 2022 SCO Summit in Samarkand, Uzbekistan where he called upon President Vladimir Putin and said this is no time for war which has made global headlines ever since. Indias annual forum for strategic dialogue Raisina Dialogue which commenced in 2016, has slowly caught the attention of strategists all over the world and is now a must follow event in most calendars.

Mission LiFE movement (Lifestyle for the Environment), launched by India as an India-led global mass movement to protect and preserve the environment, International Yoga Day on 21 June, International Solar Alliance, launched by India along with France in 2015, call for setting up Coalition of Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (CDRI), are some of the other global initiatives undertaken by India which have been adapted across the globe and is a testimony of the power and influence of India as a credible force of reason in the world.

Domestic transformation and its impact

Indias domestic transformation too has made the world sit up and take notice. Dr Jaishankar highlighted aspects like use of digital medium for the delivery of public goods and services, how Indian society is transforming in terms of social development goals, the literacy missions, the gender effort, the Jal Jeevan mission, the electricity connections, Swachh (Clean) Bharat, UPI digital payment system etc. As mentioned earlier, countries like Singapore and Japan have already shown interest in UPI system. Countries like UAE, Singapore, Nepal have even accepted Rupay card payments.

India has risen significantly in the Ease of Doing Business (EoDB) rankings, making it one of the top performers on a global platform. Out of 190 countries, Indias ranking in the World Banks Doing Business Report improved from the 142nd position in 2015 to the 63rd position currently. A number of outdated laws have been revoked and many processes refined to ensure smooth and efficient clearances through single window to attract international businesses. Political stability at the national level too has been a factor which has helped larger business confidence from around the world leading to greater investments and progress for the people in India.

Strategic autonomy

Strategic autonomy has always been a key pillar of Indias foreign policy since the days of Nonaligned Movement which was spearheaded by India at the peak of the Cold War. Barring a few moments in the past however, this could not be fully put in practice. Jaishankar too emphasised on it, stating that since 2014 there is strategic clarity and a clear attempt to show that we are no longer a prisoner of the past.

In the recent past, Indias insistence on exercising strategic autonomy in its relations with countries is clearly noticeable. It has independent strategic dialogues/partnerships with opposing poles like the US and Russia. Despite Indias rather tough and independent anti-West stance in the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war, PM Modi is scheduled to be in the US on a state visit later this month. There are talks on transfer of critical military technology and joint production of important military platforms in India, to be finalized during this visit.

At the G20 Foreign Ministers meet in Delhi on 01-02 March 2023 too, India called out Russia and China for the ongoing Ukraine conflict in the outcome document, a clear reflection of its non-aligned stance. PM Modi also agreed to meet Ukrainian President Zelensky on the sidelines of G7 Summit in Japan in May 2023. All this, despite continuing trade and strong ties with Russia.

India has also been able to deftly navigate its relations in the turbulent West Asian region between archrivals like Saudi Arabia, Israel and Iran, developing special/strategic partnerships with each one of them, a clear reflection that India does not see its relations with them as a zero sum game. Indias invitation to OIC Summit in 2019 as Guest of Honour, despite it being an exclusive forum of Muslim countries, is yet another example of how India has deftly navigated its way in the region.

Indians first

This aspect has been one of the most refreshing additions to Indias foreign policy. Credit has to go to Sushma Swaraj for it, who transformed the elite external affairs ministry, into a peoples ministry. Twitter has become a popular forum to redress of problems of Indians abroad. Issue of passports has gained unprecedented pace. Against 77 Passport Seva Kendras in 2014 there were now over 500 in the country. Against 8.7 million passports issued in 2014, the Ministry is currently issuing more than 14 million passports annually. The success of Pravasi Bhartiya Diwas events and the huge crowds that Prime Minister Modi draws whenever he addresses Indians abroad too is a manifestation of increasing Indian pride abroad. There is also a visible trend where the Indian brain drain may get reversed with better opportunities and policies in India, in the future.

One of the other remarkable and visible fact has been how India has focused on the safety of Indians abroad. Whether it was evacuation of over 4,700 Indians from war torn Yemen in March 2015, safety of Indian ships during the 2019 Persian Gulf crisis, getting back over 70 Lakh Indians during COVID-19, evacuation of Indians from Afghanistan after Taliban takeover in August 2021, evacuation of 20,000 Indian students from war in Ukraine or the most recent evacuation of over 3,000 Indians from Sudan in April 2023, India has ensured that its citizens were evacuated from places where many mighty nations failed.

In the immediate neighbourhood too, steps like the 2015 Land Boundary Agreement (LBA) with Bangladesh and the exchange of enclaves (chhitmahals) between the two countries has had a transformational impact on the people in the North-East, easing away many fears and apprehensions of the past. The operationalization of the Kartarpur Corridor, taking the Sikh pilgrims to the birth place of Guru Nanak Dev in Narowal, Pakistan as also the construction of road leading to Mount Kailash in Tibet, across Lipulekh Pass in Uttrakhand, India too are good examples of success of diplomacy in service of Indians.

Neighbourhood First

The invitation to heads of states of all SAARC nations for the swearing in ceremony in May 2014 was unprecedented and a clear signal on priority of the Modi government towards its neighborhood. This policy has not only sought to allay fears and apprehensions of smaller neighbours, but has sought to bring the nations together, be it the current economic crisis in Sri Lanka, infrastructure development in Maldives or flood relief in Nepal. Even with Afghanistan, despite the Taliban rule, India has continued its humanitarian assistance to the people of Afghanistan. There has been a concerted effort by India to change its image in the neighbourhood from a Big Brother to an Elder Brother. In the face of Chinas attempts to make deep inroads into Indias neighbourhood, the policy also has vital security and strategic implications for India.

Voice of the Global South

At the Voice of Global South Summit in January 2023, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that the world is in a state of crisis and told the leaders of developing countries your voice is Indias voice and your priorities are Indias priorities. In the current G20 presidency too, India has taken upon itself to be the voice of Global South and has taken views and concern of almost 125 countries, to be dovetailed into the G20 agenda for the year. India-Africa Forum and Indias increasing engagement with Latin American countries has been an important cog of Indias foreign policy. Jaishankar, in a query during the press briefing, alluded to the importance being accorded to Latin America. He said that during his recent visits to Colombia, Guyana, Panama, and Dominican Republic, he was surprised to know that no Indian foreign minister had ever been there. Even in Mexico, the last Indian foreign minister visit was that of PV Narasimha Rao in the 1980s. The trade with Latin America too has grown fast and stands at approximately US $ 50 billion, which is a great improvement from the past neglect of the region by India. Leadership and the voice of the Global South is thus a fast-evolving thread of Indias foreign policy.

Conclusion

The nine sutra (threads) discussed above may-not be all encompassing, but they give a fair idea how India is rapidly marching ahead. Indias foreign policy has truly evolved and has brought India to the global center stage. As India looks ahead to the next 25 years to its centenary of independence in 2047, Indias aspiration of being the Vishwa Guru (Global Leader) can only come about through sustained all round efforts, diplomacy being one of the important ones. The foundation has been laid and it is now upto India to effectively deploy various threads of its national power to seize the moment and set its course on an agenda which could provide vision for a secure and free world, perhaps echoing the theme of its current G20 presidency; One Earth, One Family, One Future.

The author is Assistant Director, MP-IDSA. Views expressed are personal.

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In Jabalpur on 12 June, 2023, the Congress gave a glimpse of its religious outreach programme that was discussed, debated and finalised at the Udaipur Chitan Shivir in May 2022. In a nutshell, at Udaipur, Congress leaders from several northern and central Indian states were given the freedom to flaunt their proximity to Hinduism, its symbols, festivals, religious practices in order to counter the BJP narrative of describing the congress as anti-Hindu.

On Sunday, AICC general secretary Priyanka Gandhi along with party leader Kamal Nath performed Narmada Pooja at Gwarighat in Jabalpur before addressing a mammoth rally. The state Assembly polls in Madhya Pradesh are due in November-December this year. Priyankas presence and usage of overtly religious symbols prompted the rival BJP to dub Priyanka as Chunavi Hindu. But the BJP would need to do much more than smart slogans and social media onslaught.

The Congress is well entrenched in poll-bound Madhya Pradesh, both politically and organisationally. In 2018, it had finished five seats ahead of the BJP in a photo-finish election and formed the government for 15 months. The Kamal Nath government fell in March 2020 due to dramatic defection led by Jyotiraditya Scindia and his loyal set of MLAs.

Nath, a veteran warhorse, remained steadfast, marshalling resources and sticking to the ground in Madhya Pradesh to emerge as a challenger to incumbent Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan.

Nath has been bold and declared Hanuman bhakt. He had played an active role to get a 101 feet long statue of Hanuman in his Chhindwara constituency that elected him 10 times as a Member of Parliament and Assembly. It is the tallest Hanuman statue in the country, Nath said adding, Chhindwara Hanuman statue is taller than the one at Chattarpur in Delhi by 8 inches. I got this temple ready a few years ago out of my devotion for Lord Hanuman.

At a broader level, the Congress in Madhya Pradesh has remained religiously conservative. Just before the 2018 state Assembly polls, former state chief minister Digvijaya Singh conducted a gruelling padyatra around Narmada, considered to be a holy river walking for 192 days covering a distance of 3,325 kilometres. The long Narmada Parikrama had a huge network of party workers, religious leaders, bureaucrats and other influential members of society. His yatra passed through 166 out 230 Assembly constituencies of Madhya Pradesh. Privately, some Digvijaya supporters say that by undertaking a long spiritual journey, he sought to atone for his past sins in terms of faith and played a role in Congress electoral success during December 2018 state Assembly polls.

Interestingly, when his Narmada Parikrama Yatra concluded at Narsinghpur on the bank of the river, some enthusiastic voices hailed him as sant Digvijaya. Contrary to his national image, in his hometown, Raghaogarh, which falls under the erstwhile Gwalior empire, Digvijaya has a title, Hindupati or the defender of the faith, a description that dates back to legendary warrior Prithviraj Chauhan, from whom the family claims descent. Many in the Raghaogarh Assembly constituency, still revere Digvijayas ancestor Maharaj Dhir Singh as the town deity, believing a visit to his shrine would cure snakebite and ward off evil spirits.

More discerning readers can read between the lines from a censure motion moved by a Congress MLA, Jitu Patwari against AIMIM leader Asaduddin Owaisi in March 2016. Owaisi had then remarked that he wont chant Bharat Mata Ki Jai. In the legislative lexicon, a censure motion is an expression of strong disapproval or harsh criticism against the policies of the government or an individual. It, however, has no legal bearing.

In his brief intervention, Patwari, a close associate of Rahul Gandhi, Kamal Nath and Digvijaya Singh recalled how Jawaharlal Nehru had constantly referred to the country as mother India. He then attacked Owaisis remarks made at Latur where the MP from Hyderabad reportedly refused to say Bharat Mata Ki Jai. Patwaris political fortunes have been on the rise since 2016.

It is also pertinent to point out that the Congress Working Committee in its meeting on 16 January 1999, adopted a resolution articulating the Congress definition of secularism. It says, The CWC endorses the views of the Congress president, Sonia Gandhi, in her speech on the anniversary of Swami Vivekananda,[ on the occasion of Vivekanandas anniversary in 1999] where she had said, India is secular primarily because of Hindus, both as a philosophy and as a way of life based on what our ancients said, Ekam satyam, vipraha bahudha vadanti (The truth is one, the wise pursue it variously).

According to a Congress Twitter post, six surveys have been published so far predicting a Congress victory in Madhya Pradesh. This may be a tad wishful, but the BJP cannot afford to take the Priyanka-Nath-led religious outreach programme lightly.

The writer is a visiting fellow at the Observer Research Foundation. A well-known political analyst, he has written several books, including 24 Akbar Road and Sonia: A Biography. Views expressed are personal.

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Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates will meet Chinese President Xi Jinping on Friday during his visit to the country.

The meeting will mark Xi Jinpings first-ever meet with a foreign private entrepreneur in a long time. The people said the encounter may be a one-on-one meeting. A third source confirmed they would meet, without providing details.

On Wednesday Gates tweeted that he had landed in Beijing, his first visit since 2019. He said that during his visit he will meet with partners who had been working on global health and development challenges with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

Ive just landed in Beijing for the first time since 2019, where Im excited to visit with partners who have been working on global health and development challenges with @gatesfoundation for more than 15 years.  Bill Gates (@BillGates) June 14, 2023

Gates stepped down from Microsofts board in 2020 to focus on philanthropic works related to global health, education and climate change. He quit his full-time executive role at Microsoft in 2008.

The last public and known interaction between Jingping and Gates happened in 2015 when they met on the sidelines of the Boao Forum in Hainan province. In early 2020, Xi wrote a letter to Gates thanking him, and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, for pledging assistance to China including $5 million for the countrys fight against COVID-19.

The meeting will put an end to Jinpings hiatus that kept him from meeting foreign private entrepreneurs and business leaders since he stopped flying abroad in view of the COVID health emergency.

Several foreign CEOs have visited China since it reopened early this year but most have mainly met with government ministers.

Gates visit also comes ahead of a long-delayed visit by U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken to China set to take place between June 18-19 which is aimed at stabilizing relations between the worlds two largest economies and strategic rivals.

With inputs from agencies

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China on Wednesday announced that it had inked a strategic partnership with the Palestinian Authority. The deal comes as Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas visits Beijing.

The partnership hints at another significant step for China as it tries to increase its economic and political influence in the Middle East in apparent competition with the US.

China is seeking energy resources and markets for its military and civilian exports while also promoting its version of authoritarian government as part of a joint challenge with Russia to the Western-led democratic world order.

Although Beijings experience in the Palestinian region is limited to construction, manufacturing and other economic projects, China has continued to maintain diplomatic ties with the Palestinian Authority. It has also appointed a special envoy to meet with Israeli and Palestinian officials.

We are good friends and partners, Chinese President Xi Jinping, who is head of the ruling Communist Party, told Abbas at the start of their meeting. We have always firmly supported the just cause of the Palestinian people to restore their legitimate national rights.

China is willing to strengthen coordination and cooperation with the Palestinian side to promote a comprehensive, just and lasting solution to the Palestinian issue as soon as possible, he said.

Abbas was welcomed in China with full military honours at the Great Hall of the People in Chinas capital.

Xi said that the strategic partnership between China and Palestine is an important milestone in the history of bilateral relations, but its financial details were not immediately disclosed.

Meanwhile, Abbas said that his administration is looking forward to strengthening cooperation with China within the framework of its initiative and securing investments.

We especially appreciate the Chinese sides commitment to financing a number of development projects presented by Palestine. We wish the speedy dispatch of technical delegations to implement these projects, he said.

With inputs from agencies

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analysis

The senior legislators from both parties say SA hosting the forum would implicitly endorse its support of Russia's invasion

Powerful leaders of the US Congress have called on the Biden administration to move this year's Africa Growth and Opportunity Act (Agoa) forum from South Africa to another African country because of South Africa's perceived support of Russia in its war against Ukraine.

The letter from top legislators of both the Democratic and Republican parties is the first clear and concrete sign of possible US retaliation to Pretoria's stance on Russia's war against Ukraine which has been controversial in the US and other Western countries.

The appeal to the Biden administration to punish SA cites, among things, US intelligence that the US-sanctioned Russian cargo ship Lady R uploaded arms for Russia in Simons Town naval base in December.

President Ramaphosa's spokesperson Vincent Magwenya told Daily Maverick that the claims in the letter were unsubstantiated and that the circumstances of the docking of the Lady R vessel were being investigated by a panel headed by retired judge Phineas Mojapelo.

Magwenya added that SA had been active in seeking a peaceful resolution of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, including through engaging the US, Russia and Ukraine and also through the African Leaders Peace Mission which Ramaphosa is part of.

The Congressmen's letter also...
A Chinese airline is facing huge backlash for its new policy of suspending cabin crew members if their weight exceeds the permissible limit set by the airline.

Chinas Hainan Airlines recently introduced its weight reference standard and the move rapidly turned viral on social media, according to Global Times. The new guidelines specified body size and weight control standards for women flight attendants at different levels.

Earlier, the airline had said it would suspend female flight attendants if their weight exceeded the standard limit, before clarifying that the new policy would be applicable to all cabin crew irrespective of their gender.

The standard weight for Hainan Airlines crew will be calculated based on their height. The standard weight calculation formula of female flight attendants is height (cm) -110 = standard weight (kg). So, if a flight attendant measures 158 cm (5.1 feet), they would be required to maintain a weight of 48 kg.

The airlines new guidelines further said that crew members who are less than 5% over the weight limit would be monitored by the company each month to ensure they dont gain weight. Female crew members who are 10% overweight will face immediate suspension and will be put on a weight reduction plan.

The Chinese airline confirmed to news outlets that it had issued a weight reference standard but clarified that it would apply to all crew members, not just women employees.

The standard is based on the standard human body weight reference and matched with the healthy weight range measurement for the crew the airline said, adding that the guidelines would help better manage the crews health, physical shape and posture.

This is intended to advocate healthy living habits and maintain a good professional image and healthy physique by anchoring the reference target, rather than passively waiting for individual crew members physique to change significantly and then affect safety service work, the airline said.

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EU parliamentarians on Wednesday approved a key article that would serve as the foundation for a future rule governing artificial intelligence systems such as ChatGPT while encouraging technological innovation.

Negotiations on the final law will begin later Wednesday between the European Parliament and the EUs 27 member countries.

If Brussels hits its ambitious target of reaching an agreement by the end of the year, it would be the worlds first law regulating AI.

Although the EUs plans date back to 2021, the draft rules took on greater urgency when ChatGPT exploded onto the scene last year, showing off AIs dizzying advances and possible risks.

There is also growing clamour to regulate AI across the Atlantic, as pressure grows on Western governments to act fast in what some describe as a battle to protect humanity.

While AI proponents hail the technology for how it will transform society, including work, healthcare and creative pursuits, others are worried by its potential to undermine democracy.

There has been a slew of awe-inspiring examples of AIs uses including a final Beatles record created using the technology, while US-based OpenAIs chatbot ChatGPT has passed business, law and medical exams.

Even if the EUs ambitious legislative target is achieved, the law would not come into force until 2026 at the earliest, forcing the EU to push for a voluntary interim pact with tech companies.

Accelerate implementation

The law would regulate AI according to the level of risk: the higher the risk to individuals rights or health, for example, the greater the systems obligations.

The EUs proposed high-risk list includes AI in critical infrastructure, education, human resources, public order and migration management.

The parliament has added extra conditions to that, before the high-risk classification would be met, including the potential to harm peoples health, safety, rights or the environment.

There are also special requirements for generative AI systems  those such as ChatGPT and DALL-E capable of producing text, images, code, audio and other media  that include informing users that a machine, not a human, produced the content.

Lawmakers also proposed bans on AI systems that use biometric surveillance, emotion recognition and so-called predictive policing.

An MEP spearheading the law in parliament, Brando Benifei, told journalists on Tuesday there are talks to consider whether to accelerate the laws implementation or to bring in rules earlier for generative AI.

We could also consider some reduced timing for some of the AI, for example foundation models and generative AI, Benifei said.

In his reasoning, he pointed to plans by Brussels and the United States to release a common code of conduct on AI to develop standards among democracies.

Lawmakers have hailed their draft law as historic and pushed back against critics who say the EUs plans could harm rather than encourage innovation.

EU internal market commissioner, Thierry Breton, welcomed the vote and insisted there is no time to lose.

AI raises a lot of questions - socially, ethically, economically. But now is not the time to hit any pause button, Breton said. On the contrary, it is about acting fast and taking responsibility.

With inputs from AFP.

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A 27-year-old Indian-origin woman from Hyderabad was stabbed to death in her London residence in Wembley.

The victim, Kontham Tejaswini, who was in London to pursue higher education was allegedly killed by her Brazilian flatmate on Tuesday at around 10 am.

Tejaswini died on the spot while the police took another woman, aged 28, to the hospital after she sustained stab injuries.

The victims cousin, Vijay, said that the accused moved in with Tejaswini and her friends just a week ago. Tejaswini had reportedly gone to London in March last year.

A statement by the police said, Two people, a 24-year-old man and a 23-year-old woman, were arrested at the scene on suspicion of murder. The man remains in custody. The woman has been released without further action.

#ARREST | We previously published an appeal to locate a 23-year-old man following the murder of a woman in #Wembley earlier today. He was arrested in #Harrow at around 18:00hrs today and has been taken into custody. Thank you for the RTs.  Brent MPS | North West BCU (@MPSBrent) June 13, 2023

Meanwhile, according to PTI, the Metropolitan Police had previously published a lookout for another suspect, a 23-year-old man, who has now been arrested. The police identified him as one Keven Antonio Lourenco De Morais and sought the publics help in locating him.

Tejaswinis family members said that they were informed about the unfortunate incident on Wednesday.

Detective Chief Inspector Linda Bradley from Mets Specialist Crime Command said in a statement, This has been a fast-moving investigation and I would like to thank the public for sharing our appeal for information about this man. He is now in custody.

I recognise the significant concern this incident has caused in the community and I would like to reassure the public that a dedicated team of detectives are working to establish what happened. Local officers will remain in the area over the coming days to respond to any concerns, she added.

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A comedian based in the United States has triggered a controversy after offending Malaysian officials with a joke about the missing MH370 aircraft, and now the Malaysian police are seeking Interpols help to track her down.

Jocelyn Chia, a comedian from Boston who holds dual citizenship with Singapore, cracked a joke about the long-standing rivalry between Malaysia and Singapore while she was performing in a New York club.

Singapore was one of the 14 states of Malaysia from 1963 to 1965. But in 1965, after a bitter breakup, the two former British colonies became separate entities.

During the performance, Chia said Singapore had the best breakup revenge as it had become a first world country while Malaysia was still a developing country. She added that Malaysians had not visited for years because aeroplanes cannot fly, according to a report by The Guardian.

When some in the audience apparently did not laugh, she added, Malaysia Airlines going missing is not funny, huh? Some jokes dont land.

I am a HUGE supporter of standup comedians, especially from this region. IDC that this Sporean said FU Malaysians bcs we make fun of them on stage too. But I draw the line at turning MH370 into a joke. Not acceptable. A good standup never turns tragedy and deaths into a joke. pic.twitter.com/i8U7LILyeS  Kudsia Kahar , Malaysian First (@Kudsia_Kahar) June 6, 2023

Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 went missing in 2014 after it vanished from air traffic control radar somewhere over the Indian Ocean with 227 passengers and 12 crew onboard.

The BBC too, has reported that Malaysian police are thinking of asking Interpol to locate Chia since they want to investigate her for incitement and offensive online content.

Jocelyn Chia told the BBC she was not making fun of tragedy and victims but was trying to find humour in tragedy. She said her joke had been taken out of context when consumed on social media.

I have [performed this routine] hundreds of times and even did a shorter version of it in Singapore. It always cracks the audience up. I wouldn't have used it again if it didn't work, she said.

Chia said roasting or poking fun at the audience is part of comedy club culture in New York, where she is now based.

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Malaysian police is reportedly planning to seek assistance from Interpol to trace a New-York based comedian who mocked Malaysia and made jokes on disappearance of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370.

According to Malaysias state news agency Bernama, Jocelyn Chia will face an investigation under Malaysias laws pertaining to offensive or obscene online content and insulting speech.

Police Chief Acryl Sani Abdullah Sani stated that they would seek Interpols aid in uncovering Chias complete identity and whereabouts.

Originally from Singapore, as stated on her website, Chia stirred controversy after a video clip of her standup at a New York club, in which she joked about the rivalry between Singapore and Malaysia, went viral online.

During her performance, she made remarks about Malaysia having dumped Singapore, alluding to the separation of Singapore from Malaysia in 1965.

Chia further commented that Singapore had achieved the best break up revenge by transforming into a first-world country, while Malaysia remained a developing country.

She also joked that Malaysians had not visited Singapore in years because their airplanes cannot fly. Upon receiving a lukewarm response from some members of the audience, she added, What, the Malaysian Airlines going missing isnt funny, huh? Some jokes dont land.

I don't know why Jocelyn Chia's direct hate speech is popular with American audiences It sucks to joke on flight MH370 American values seem to be ingrained in her mind So it doesn't matter, she would happy to see her citizenship was removed by Singapore. #JocelynChia #MH370 pic.twitter.com/2ttcyAMCgx  Meoww^^  (@SarahSa245) June 8, 2023

Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 went missing in 2014, disappearing from air traffic radar somewhere over the Indian Ocean, with 227 passengers and 12 crew members on board.

The video clip sparked a wave of criticism in both Singapore and Malaysia, leading to the foreign ministers of both countries denouncing the comedians remarks. Singapores foreign minister,

Vivian Balakrishnan, expressed his dismay at the offensive statements and clarified that Chia did not represent the views of Singaporeans.

Balakrishnan further stated, We value our connections with our family and friends in Malaysia and apologize for the offense and distress caused to all Malaysians.

Chia, in response, told CNN that her joke was based on the longstanding, amicable rivalry between Malaysia and Singapore.

She mentioned that she had performed the same set over a hundred times for a year and a half without any issues. Chia added that when the clip was edited for social media, the relevant context was omitted.

Meanwhile, Chia acknowledged the potential risk of circulating the clip without the context of a comedy club setting. She was quoted as saying, Upon reflection, I do understand that featuring this clip outside the context of a comedy club was a risky move.

According to Amnesty International, from January 2020 to June 2022, there were 87 prosecutions of individuals, including artists, performers, and political activists.

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Over 110 million people have been displaced from their homes worldwide, according to the UN refugee agency, which expects the ongoing crisis in Sudan to result in the largest level of global displacement ever.

According to The National, citing the UNHCR report, tens of millions have been forcibly displaced as a result of persecution, conflict, human rights abuses and climate change, with 70 per cent fleeing to neighbouring countries.

The report said the figure represents a 21 per cent surge from 2021, marking it the largest increase ever since the records began back in 1975.

We have 110 million people that have fled because of conflict, persecution, discrimination and violence, often mixed with other motives  in particular the impact of climate change, The National report quoted UN refugee commissioner chief Filippo Grandi as saying at a press conference in Geneva.

Its quite an indictment on the state of our world, he said.

The drivers of this increase have been the ones you can expect, but in particular, last year was the situation in Ukraine that displaced millions both inside and outside the country, and this year has been the situation in Sudan, Grandi added.

He said that according to the most recent data, more than 450,000 people  mostly residents of Sudan who are also refugees from other countries  have left the country as a result of a lack of assistance.

If current patterns persist, the UN refugee chief expects that number to surpass half a million within a matter of days.

The number of acutely food insecure people in Sudan is projected to increase by more than two million in the next six months, reported The National.

These figures show us that some people are far too quick to rush to conflict, and way too slow to find solutions, Grandi said.

87 per cent refugees from 10 nations

According to the report, citing the UN data, almost 87 per cent of all refugees in 2022 originated from only 10 nations, slightly exceeding the proportions observed in previous years.

Estimates for the number of refugees from Afghanistan were sharply higher by the end of 2022 due to revised estimates of Afghans hosted in Iran.

The war in Ukraine was the top driver of displacement in 2022. The number of refugees from Ukraine soared from 27,300 at the end of 2021 to 5.7 million at the end of 2022.

Syrians constituted almost one fifth of the global refugee population, with 6.5 million Syrians seeking refuge across 131 countries.

The majority, 77 per cent, found shelter in neighbouring countries including Turkey (3.5 million), Lebanon (814,700) and Jordan (660,900), added the report.

Turkey hosts most refugees

Turkey currently hosts the most refugees with 3.8 million people, mostly Syrians who fled the civil war, followed by Iran with 3.4 million refugees, mostly Afghans. But there are also 5.7 million Ukrainian refugees scattered across countries in Europe and beyond. The number of stateless people has also risen in 2022 to 4.4 million, according to UNHCR data, but this is believed to be an underestimate.

Regarding asylum claims, the US was the country to receive the most new applications in 2022 with 730,400 claims. Its also the nation with the largest backlog in its asylum system, Grandi said.

One of the things that needs to be done is reforming that asylum system so that it becomes more rapid, more efficient, he said.

The United States, Spain and Canada recently announced plans to create asylum processing centers in Latin America with the goal of reducing the number of people who trek their way north to the Mexico-U.S. border.

As the number of asylum-seekers grows, so have the challenges facing them. We see pushbacks. We see tougher and tougher immigration or refugee admission rules. We see in many countries the criminalization of immigrants and refugees, blaming them for everything that has happened, Grandi said.

With inputs from agencies

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As Russia braces up to battle Ukraines counteroffensive, President Vladimir Putin has made an alarming revelation that his armed forces are running out of weapons and military hardware needed to win the war.

During the course of the special military operation, it has become clear that there are shortages of many things  precision-guided munitions, communication equipment, aircraft, drones and so on, Putin acknowledged at a meeting of pro-war bloggers in the Kremlin on Tuesday.

We have them (weapons), but unfortunately we dont have enough of them, he said.

Putin also said that Russian troops are in dire need of drones, modern anti-tank weapons and modern tanks.

Russian military needs mordernise weapons

Putin, last week, admitted that the Russian military needs to modernise its weapons if it is to win the battle in Ukraine.

We do not yet have enough modern arms, but the defence industry and the military-industrial complex are developing rapidly and, I am sure, all the challenges facing our defence industry will definitely be met. We are intensively building up production of modern weapons, Putin said in a statement posted on the website of Kremlin on Friday.

He also admitted that the Ukrainian offensive had begun and Russian forces were successfully resisting it.

The Russian President further said it was due to the right command of the troops and the high effectiveness of Russian weapons, especially modern weapons.

Weapon shortages hampering Russias full-scale invasion

As per reports, Russias full-scale invasion of Ukraine have been hampered due to shortages of precision-guided munitions which is preventing the troops from striking strategic targets at a distance.

According to a report by Politico, Russian forces have unleashed barrages of poorly navigated drones, such as the Iranian-made Shahed-129, and have even resorted to using naval missiles to attack residential buildings.

Why Russia isnt manufacturing modern weapons?

In April, a report released by Center for Strategic and International Studies founded that sanctions imposed on Russia by the US and other Western nations have been preventing the country from bringing in the components needed to manufacture advanced weaponry.

While the quality of the military equipment used by the Ukrainian army continues to improve thanks to the Western aid, the quality of Russias weapons continues to degrade, the report stated.

Meanwhile, Ukraine has in the recent weeks received some of modern weapons including a tranche of Western tanks  British Challenger 2 and German Leopard 2.

With inputs from agencies

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A shark that recently attacked and made a meal of a Russian man swimming at a popular resort, will now be mummified by specialists in an Egypt museum, according to a report by the Independent.

Vladimir Popov, 23, was eaten alive by a shark off a beach at an Egyptian resort in Hurghada earlier this month.

The video of the attack was captured on camera in which the 23-year-old can be heard screaming, Papa, save me! The video showed Popov splashing frantically in the ocean before getting dragged underwater.

Some of the young mans body parts were recovered inside the sharks stomach, while the rest were recovered by fishermen from the sea.

Experts at the Institute of Marine Sciences and the Red Sea Reserves began the embalming process of the giant sea animal on Monday, the local Al Arabiya reported.

Once the process is over, the mummified shark will be on display in the institutes museum, a New York Post report said.

Egyptian authorities have said that the researchers want to understand the cause of the sharks behaviour and identify whether the animal is related to one that caused several previous accidents in the same area.

Popovs father, Yury, who is originally from Russia told local media outlets, We went to the beach to relax. He said the attack happened within seconds.

This meat grinder happened in 20 seconds, he was just dragged under the water. This is an absolutely ridiculous coincidence because it is a safe beach. There are ships and yachts around. Its never happened there. They usually attack on wild beaches. Its just some kind of evil fate.

He shared that he will cremate his son and take his ashes to Russia.

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A Singaporean man of Chinese origin has been convicted of verbally insulting and kicking in the chest an Indian lady, who did not wear her mask properly while brisk walking to the workplace during Covid-19.

Wong Xing Fong, 32, attacked Madam Hindocha Nita Vishnubhai, 57, near the Northvale condominium in Choa Chu Kang in May 2021.

Wong, who was convicted on Tuesday, is expected to be sentenced on July 31 for kicking Vishnubhai in the chest (assault) and wounding her feelings, The Straits Times newspaper reported.

Vishnubhai testified that she was brisk walking to Choa Chu Kang stadium, where she worked at a fast-food restaurant, with her mask down when she heard someone shouting.

She turned and saw Wong and his fiancee Chua Yun Han. She did not know the couple, but they told her to mask up.

Brisk walking was one of the activities exempted from covering the mouth and nose with a mask.

The prosecution told the court Vishnubhai explained to the couple that she was brisk walking and gestured to illustrate that she was exercising and sweating.

The accused scolded the complainant (and verbally insulted her). To de-escalate the matter, the complainant responded, God bless you, the prosecution added.

The accused, however, kicked the complainant in her chest area. He and (his fiancee) then jogged off.

Vishnubhai testified that an eyewitness helped her to her feet and applied plaster to a wound on her left forearm. She filed a police report that evening.

The prosecution said the eyewitness, who was unrelated to either party, testified that she saw a man kicking the lady.

Describing Vishnubhai as a truthful witness, the prosecution said, It is absurd to suggest that the complainant framed the accused, a stranger, out of the blue.

Wong claimed that Vishnubhai was sarcastic and aggressive, and hurled vulgarities at him.

He also claimed that she spat at him and his fiancee, and he reacted by pushing the victim. While he accepted that he had used vulgarities, he denied they were racial insults.

But the prosecution said any allegation that Vishnubhai spat at him was fatally contradicted by the conduct of Wong and his fiancee.

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Economic crisis hit Sri Lanka will not be holding a snap presidential election this year as the government wants to focus on debt restructuring, said Cabinet Spokesman Bandula Gunawardena.

Denying speculations that the government might opt to hold a snap Sri Lankan president elections, Gunwardena said: No election would be possible this year as the state finances have not improved.

He went on to stress upon the governments immediate focus which is centered on successfully ending the process of debt restructuring.

Sri Lanka presidential polls

In July last year, the Sri Lankan Parliament elected former Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe as the President of the country to serve the remainder of ex-president Gotabaya Rajapaksas term, which was supposed to end in November 2024.

Wickremesinghe got the job which he long coveted after his predecessor Rajapaksa fled the country and resigned after months of mass protests in the island nation.

Sri Lanka needs to restructure debt

Sri Lanka declared itself bankrupt in mid-April last year when the government defaulted on its $51 billion foreign debt. The country plunged into its worst economic crisis since its independence in 1948 due to plummeting foreign exchange reserves which led to severe shortages of essential items and triggered massive public protests.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) on 20 March approved a nearly USD 3 billion bailout facility to debt-ridden Sri Lanka to help stabalise the nations economy. It was, however, delayed due to the need to restructure debt.

Gunawardena said without restructuring Sri Lankas debt, it will not be possible to obtain any more foreign loans.

Until we pay back the existing loans we will not be able to borrow, he stressed.

For the unversed, Sri Lanka has a tight September deadline from the IMF to conclude its outstanding debt.

The opposition in Sri Lanka have also been criticising President Wickremesinghe for holding back the local council election. He, however, claims that the treasury was short of funds to allocate money for election expenditure.

Meanwhile, the opposition which has been blaming Wickremesinghe for postponing elections due to fear of losing has petitioned the highest court for intervention in the matter.

The election for 340 local councils was originally fixed for 9 March, but it has since been postponed indefinitely.

With inputs from PTI

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Nairobi  In a letterpenned by Raila Odinga's counsel Paul Mwangi, they cited non-inclusion and jurisdiction violation in the order National Assembly Speaker Moses Wetangula cited while retaining Chege in the coveted slot.

The conservatory order was sought by the Association of Friends of Youth and Women which had filed a case in Kiambu High Court.

The Opposition Coalition raised issues with the move arguing that the violations were done in the National Assembly which is domained in Nairobi.

"Every case shall be instituted in the High Court within whose jurisdiction the alleged violation took place," the letter reads.

"In any event the petitioner is closer to the High Court in Nairobi than that of Kiambu despite the fact that Nairobi High Court was not only the right place but it was actually closer," he adds.

The Azimio Coalition cited non-inclusion in the petition filed when in essence it's the decision to remove Chege emanated from the coalition parliamentary group meeting.

The embattled Minority Whip was also not included in the petition with Azimio Coalition saying it was aimed at circumventing the Political Parties Act which oust the jurisdiction of the High Court in party matters until internal matters are exhausted.

"One would want to believe it's an oversight on the part of the court but the matter of dewhipping of Sabina Chege is today an issue of considerable public notoriety and it is very unlikely that any reasonably informed person would be unaware of it," the letter read.

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In his ruling over the issue, Speaker Wetangula indicated that he cannot effect the changes by the Azimio Coalition Parliamentary Group meeting given conservatory orders given on petition filed in Kiambu Court barring the changes.

"I have ruled that you have procedurally followed every step, and I have no difficulty with your decision to remove your deputy whip, but there is a court order that strangelyyour party and coalition is not party to, I would advise that you seek to been joined," Wetangula said.

"I am confronted by a court order that specifically cited both speaker and the house as parties toa judicial process that seems to challenge an administrative process," he added.

Wetangula ruled that the letter by Minority Leader seeking to have Chege replaced by Embakasi West MP Mark Mwenje will not take effect until the conservatory orders have been set aside.

"Until and unless further information is provided that this court order has been varied or set side, the court order effectively suspends the decision by the minority party on the replacement of Sabina Chege as the minority whip," Wetangula said.
Rape survivors in Sudanese capital of Khartoum are confronting immense obstacles in obtaining emergency contraception and abortion medication.

Since the outbreak of the conflict in April, access to a warehouse housing 47,000 medical post-rape kits has been cut off, exacerbating the situation for these women.

In the absence of proper resources, women are turning to social media platforms to share information on where to acquire drugs that can help prevent pregnancies and infections. Alternatively, some are resorting to traditional herbal remedies as a last resort.

The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), responsible for supplying these crucial kits, is unable to ascertain which forces, whether the Sudanese army or the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), are impeding access to the warehouse.

Post-rape kits, typically distributed in conflict-stricken areas, contain vital emergency medications such as the morning-after pill, abortion-inducing drugs, and post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) to mitigate the risk of HIV infection.

Given the time-sensitive nature of these medications, it is crucial for survivors to receive them within 72 hours of the assault to maximize their effectiveness. However, the current circumstances in Khartoum have severely hindered their ability to access the necessary post-rape care.

Sulaima Ishaq, the director of the Sudanese governments Combating Violence Against Women Unit, acknowledged that while there are limited supplies of PEP available in some clinics in the city, the prevention of pregnancies remains a pressing concern with no viable solutions at present.

Highlighting the prevalence of sexual assaults, Ishaq stated, Rapes are happening everywhere. She emphasized that the officially reported cases likely represent only a fraction of the actual incidents.

Last month, the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) revealed that over 5,000 post-rape kits had been delivered to Port Sudan.

However, challenges persist in transporting the medication to Khartoum and Darfur, where the conflict is most concentrated.

Additionally, attacks on medical warehouses in South Darfur have resulted in a depletion of vital medical supplies.

Enas Muzamil, an activist assisting rape survivors in Khartoum, described the availability of post-rape care as a privilege.

She explained that informal networks have become essential, with women communicating through social media groups to share resources and available medication. Traditional methods have also become a recourse for many women, including the use of herbal vaginal washes.

Muzamil recounted the story of a woman who was raped by three men and unable to access the appropriate medication to determine if she was pregnant.

Muzamil also highlighted the scarcity of emergency contraception and abortion medication even before the onset of the war, as abortion remains illegal in the country.

In certain areas considered safer than the capital, women who have sought refuge have managed to access emergency contraception through the Sudan Family Planning Association.

Desperate situations have led some Sudanese women to attempt to smuggle medication from abroad.

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A Syrian soldier was severely wounded in air strikes carried out by Israel near Damascus early Wednesday, according to state news agency SANA.

Explosions were heard in the Syrian capital early Wednesday, AFP reported.

At around 01:05 am (2205 GMT), the Israeli enemy carried out an aerial aggression from the direction of the occupied Golan Heights targeting several positions southwest of Damascus, SANA cited a military source as saying.

The source did not provide details on the targets and said the strikes severely wounded a soldier and caused material damage.

Syrias air defence intercepted some of the Israeli missiles, the source added.

The Israeli strikes targeted arms depots belonging to pro-Iran fighters, and caused a fire, said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based monitor that relies on a vast network of sources on the ground.

While Israel rarely comments on the strikes it carries out on Syria, it has repeatedly said it will not allow its archfoe Iran to extend its footprint there.

Israel has conducted hundreds of airstrikes on Syrian territory over the course of the countrys more than ten-year conflict, mostly focusing on Iranian-backed troops, Lebanese Hezbollah combatants, and Syrian army locations.

With inputs from agencies

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A tragic incident unfolded on Wednesday at a firing range on a Japanese army base, where an 18-year-old army trainee opened fire on fellow soldiers, resulting in the death of two and injuring three others.

The suspect was promptly apprehended at the scene in Gifu prefecture, central Japan, on charges of attempted murder, as confirmed by the police.

During a shooting exercise at the Hino Kihon firing range, the assailant discharged a rifle at other soldiers, one of whom was a 25-year-old soldier.

The Ground Self Defense Force, Japans army, confirmed that two of the wounded soldiers succumbed to their injuries at a hospital.

While investigations are ongoing, an anonymous army official, adhering to protocol, mentioned that there were other participants present during the training at the time of the shooting.

Japan has traditionally been renowned for its safety standards and stringent gun control laws.

However, in recent years, the country has experienced instances of high-profile violence, such as shootings, random knifings on subways, arson attacks, and an alarming rise in homemade guns and explosives.

In April, there was an incident where Prime Minister Fumio Kishida narrowly escaped harm when a suspect threw a pipe bomb at an election campaign venue. Furthermore, in July 2022, former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was assassinated by an assailant wielding a handmade gun.

Just last month, in Nagano prefecture, a man was arrested after allegedly shooting two police officers to death following the murder of two women with a knife.

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Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday said that Sweden should not expect Ankara to change its stance on NATO membership at the alliances summit next month unless it avoids anti-Turkey riots in Stockholm.

Turkeys government accuses Sweden of being too lenient toward terror organizations that Ankara says pose a security threat, including militant Kurdish groups and people associated with a 2016 coup attempt.

A series of separate demonstrations in Stockholm, including a protest by an anti-Islam activist who burned the Quran outside the Turkish Embassy, also angered Turkish officials.

Turkey cannot approach Swedens NATO bid positively while terrorists were protesting in Stockholm, and Turkeys position would be made clear once again in talks with Swedish officials in Ankara on Wednesday, Erdogan was quoted as telling reporters on a flight returning from Azerbaijan on Tuesday.

Senior officials from NATO, Sweden, Finland and Turkey met in Ankara on Wednesday as the alliance pushes Turkey to ratify Swedens application to join the military bloc.

Sweden and Finland applied for membership together following Russias invasion of Ukraine last year. Finland became NATOs 31st member in April after the Turkish parliament ratified its request, but Turkey has held off approving Swedens bid.

The officials meeting Wednesday were scheduled to discuss the steps Finland and Sweden have taken as part of a memorandum they signed with Turkey last year to address Ankaras security concerns. The meeting was taking place at Turkeys presidential palace, HaberTurk television reported.

NATO wants to bring Sweden into the fold by the time NATO leaders hold a summit meeting in Lithuania on July 11-12.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said after a Tuesday meeting with NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg that it was time to welcome Sweden into the alliance. The government in Stockholm had an important and I think very appropriate process on its accession to address appropriate concerns of other allies, he added.

Stoltenberg said: We all, of course, look forward to welcoming Sweden as a member of the alliance as soon as possible.

Sweden has amended its constitution and strengthened its anti-terror laws since it applied to join NATO in May 2022. The Swedish government this week also agreed to extradite a Turkish citizen who was convicted on drug charges in Turkey in 2013.

It was not immediately clear if the man, who lived in Sweden and has not been identified publicly, was among the people Turkey wanted to be extradited.

Sweden and Finland applied to become NATO members in the wake of Russias invasion of Ukraine, abandoning decades of nonalignment.

NATO requires the unanimous approval of all existing members to expand, and Turkey and Hungary are the only countries that have not yet ratified Swedens application.

With inputs from agencies

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Predicting that NATO leaders will increase military assistance to Kyiv when they meet next month, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg on Tuesday said that Ukraine is making progress in its counteroffensive against Russia.

The support that we are providing together to Ukraine is now making a difference on the battlefield as we speak, because the offensive is launched and Ukrainians are making progress, Reuters quoted Stoltenberg as saying during his meeting in the Oval Office with President Joe Biden, who said the US commitment to NATO was rock solid.

Stoltenberg, who is currently scheduled to leave at the end of September after nine years in the post, visited the White House amid questions on whether his term in Brussels will be extended.

His visit came as Ukraine attempts to seize back Ukrainian ground taken by the Russians as part of a long-awaited counter-offensive against the invaders.

Its still early days, but what we do know is that the more land Ukrainians are able to liberate, the stronger hand they will have at the negotiating table, he said.

He said more aid will be pledged at the NATO summit in Vilnius, Lithuania, in mid-July.

Thats exactly what well do when we meet  all the NATO leaders  at the summit in Vilnius next month, where we (will) agree to sustain and step up our support for Ukraine, he said.

Biden, who has sought to keep NATO allies united against Russia since the war broke out in February 2022, said: God willing well be able to keep this unity up.

Many NATO members would like a decision on who will head the alliance when leaders meet in Lithuania.

That does not give NATOs 31 nations, spanning from the United States through new member Finland to Turkey, much time to forge the consensus needed to pick a new leader.

Stoltenberg did not answer when asked whether his tenure would be extended.

With inputs from agencies

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Head of Ukraines Presidential Office Andriy Yermak held a telephonic conversation with Indias National Security Advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval on Wednesday.

The two talked about the implementation of the agreements reached by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the G7 Summit held in Japan last month.

The main topic of their conversation was the implementation of the Ukrainian Peace Formula, in particular, the consolidation of international support for the Ukrainian peace plan and the possibility of India joining the implementation of its individual points.

With reference to this discussion, the two sides discussed the preparations for the Global Peace Summit. Yermak also pressed on the need to involve several countries in this event.

Recent events have once again proved that the Ukrainian Peace Formula is more relevant than ever  for both Ukraine and the whole world. We are actively working with partners to prepare the Global Summit on the implementation of the formula. We expect India to take part in it, the Head of the Presidential Office noted.

He also briefed NSA Doval on the current situation on the Russia-Ukraine frontlines and Moscows ongoing missile and drone terror against peaceful Ukrainian cities and civilians.

He said, The blowing up of the Kakhovka hydroelectric power plant is a deliberate terrorist act and another war crime by Russia. This is one of the largest modern crimes of ecocide.

The aggressor has caused an unprecedented man-made, environmental and humanitarian disaster, as well as creating a threat of a nuclear accident at the largest nuclear power plant in Europe, Zaporizhzhia NPP. The world must act decisively and urgently to neutralize these global challenges, emphasised Andriy Yermak.

With inputs from ANI

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A US district judge has granted a request from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to temporarily block Microsofts proposed $69 billion acquisition of video game maker Activision Blizzard. The judge has scheduled a hearing for next week to further examine the matter.

While the European Union (EU) approved Microsofts bid, British competition authorities blocked the acquisition. The FTC, as a US authority, has raised concerns that the deal would grant Microsofts Xbox console exclusive access to Activision games, potentially leaving Nintendo and Sonys PlayStation consoles at a disadvantage.

In defense of the acquisition, Microsoft has argued that it would bring benefits to gamers and gaming companies. Furthermore, the company has offered to enter into a legally binding consent decree with the FTC, ensuring that Call of Duty games are made available to competitors, including Sony, for a period of ten years.

Judge Edward Davila has scheduled a two-day evidentiary hearing on June 22nd and 23rd in San Francisco to address the FTCs request for a preliminary injunction. Without a court order, Microsoft could have finalized the deal as early as Friday.

The FTC, which enforces antitrust law, asked an administrative judge to block the transaction in early December. An evidential hearing in the administrative proceeding is due to begin 2 August.

Based on the late June hearing, the federal court will decide whether a preliminary injunction  which would last during the administrative review of the case  is necessary.

Microsoft and Activision must submit legal arguments opposing a preliminary injunction by 16 June. The FTC must reply on 20 June.

Activision said on Monday that the FTC decision to seek a federal court order was a welcome update and one that accelerates the legal process. On Tuesday, it declined to comment.

Microsoft said on Tuesday that accelerating the legal process in the US will ultimately bring more choice and competition to the gaming market. A temporary restraining order makes sense until we can receive a decision from the court, which is moving swiftly. The FTC declined to comment.

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Russias ambassador to the US Anatoly Antonov on Wednesday said the new $325 million military aid package for Ukraine has pushed Washington deeper into the abyss of the conflict.

The United States is getting deeper and deeper into the abyss of the Ukrainian crisis, Antonov was quoted as saying in a post on the embassys Telegram messaging channel.

Apparently, the strategists from the United States somehow do not understand that no amount of weapons, whatever involvement of mercenaries, will be able to turn the tide in the course of (Russias) special military operation, he added.

The package, which includes munitions for air defence systems, ammunition and vehicles, comes as Ukraine is shaping its long-expected counter-offensive.

In the past week, Ukrainian forces lost some tanks and armoured vehicles provided by western allies while making small initial territorial gains.

Russia refers to its actions in Ukraine as a special military operation, rather than a war. Kyiv and its allies are calling it an unprovoked act of aggression to grab land.

The United States, the European Union and other allies of Ukraine have sent billions of dollars worth of military assistance to Kyiv since the start of Russias invasion in February 2022.

Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy welcomed on Tuesday the new US aid, saying on Twitter that it was what Ukraines defence forces needed, an effective assistance in liberating the territories temporarily occupied by the Russian aggressor.

With inputs from agencies

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US on Tuesday said that Washington is aware of the reports involving civilians who will stand trial in military courts for allegedly taking part in 9 May protests in Pakistan, adding the US continues to urge Pakistani authorities to respect democratic principles and the rule of law for all the people as enshrined in the constitution.

To a question regarding the situation in Pakistan, where 5,000 people including politicians are in prison and Supreme Court orders are being flouted, US Department of State spokesperson Matthew Miller said, We are aware of the reports concerning civilians who will face military trials for their suspected involvement in the May 9th protest.

We continue, as we have in the past, to urge Pakistani authorities to respect democratic principles and the rule of law for all people as enshrined in the countrys constitution. And we regularly discuss human rights, democracy, safety, and the protection of journalists and respect for the rule of law with Pakistani officials at the highest levels. That remains a priority for the United States, he added.

On 12 June, the Pakistan National Assembly passed a resolution calling for swift action against the 9 May rioters under the Army Act, reported The Express Tribune.

Pakistan Defence Minister Khawaja Asif submitted the resolution, which demanded that the culprits of the 9 May events be prosecuted under the Army Act while respecting human rights.

The text of the resolution said that on 9 May, a gang and its leaders broke all boundaries by conducting attacks on military installations, causing irreparable damage to state institutions and the country. As a result, the resolution urged that all such elements be dealt with in accordance with the law and the Constitution, according to The Express Tribune.

According to the resolution, no violations of human rights occurred during the action taken against the miscreants and criminals. The resolution also said that the military has the authority to respond to attacks on military installations around the world and that all people implicated should be punished for their conduct under the Pakistan Army Act of 1952.

Khawaja Asif said that instances that are intended to be heard under Article 16 of the Maintenance of Public Order (MPO) will be handled appropriately. Those who targeted fighter jets and attacked the Bala Hisar Fort, on the other hand, will face charges under the Army Act.

On 9 May, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf chairman Imran Khan was arrested at the Islamabad High Court in the Al Qadir Trust case. After his arrest, protests erupted in Pakistan and military installations including the Lahore corps commanders residence and state properties were damaged in Pakistan. The Pakistan army had called the day a dark chapter in the countrys history and vowed to bring to justice all those involved in the vandalism.

With inputs from agencies

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Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine Andriy Yermak called on National Security Advisor to the Prime Minister of India Ajit Kumar Doval and briefed Doval in detail on the current situation on the frontline, as well as on Russias ongoing missile and drone terror against peaceful Ukrainian cities and civilians.

They discussed a range of issues including the implementation of the agreements reached by Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy during the talks with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi when he took part in the G7 Summit held in Japan on May 20, according to the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyys official website.

He drew attention to the catastrophic environmental and humanitarian consequences of the act of terrorism committed by the Russian Federation at the Kakhovka hydroelectric power plant and called on India to join the international community in its efforts to eliminate the consequences of this man-made disaster.

The blowing up of the Kakhovka hydroelectric power plant is a deliberate terrorist act and another war crime by Russia. This is one of the largest modern crimes of ecocide. The aggressor has caused an unprecedented man-made, environmental and humanitarian disaster, as well as creating a threat of a nuclear accident at the largest nuclear power plant in Europe, Zaporizhzhia NPP. The world must act decisively and urgently to neutralize these global challenges, emphasised Andriy Yermak.

The main topic of their conversation was the implementation of the Ukrainian Peace Formula, in particular, the consolidation of international support for the Ukrainian peace plan and the possibility of India joining the implementation of its points.

Andriy Yermak emphasised the need to involve the widest possible range of countries, including the Global South, in this event. Recent events have once again proved that the Ukrainian Peace Formula is more relevant than ever  for both Ukraine and the whole world. We are actively working with partners to prepare the Global Summit on the implementation of the formula. We expect India to take part in it, he noted.

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Nairobi  Taxi-hailing firm Bolt has issued a statement in response to the recent abduction and subsequent rescue of two girls who were kidnapped by a Bolt driver.

The victims, Erica Gachoka, daughter of media personality Ciku Muiruri, and her friend Shanice Agose, had attended a house party in Nairobi's Westlands area before using the Bolt taxi application to request a ride to Kilimani.

However, upon entering the vehicle along Rhapta Road in Westlands, the driver threatened them with a hammer and drove off towards Thika.

The victims, who went missing on June 4, were rescued Monday by a joint team of detectives drawn from the Directorate of Criminal investigations' Crime Research and Intelligence Bureau and the Operations branch.

In a statement released on Tuesday, Bolt emphasized its commitment to passenger safety, stating that it takes the well-being of their passengers "very seriously" and strongly condemns any acts of violence or aggression.

The company expressed gratitude to the local authorities for their efforts in rescuing the two girls and reunifying them with their families, highlighting its active cooperation with law enforcement agencies to provide relevant information that aided the investigation.

"We are aware of the recent safety incident and deeply appreciate the local authorities' efforts to ensure that the two young girls were found and safely reunited with their families. We proactively collaborated with the authorities to provide pertinent information regarding this case that supported the conclusion of this investigation," Bolt said.

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Bolt further said that the company "strongly discourage the use of vehicles that do not match the details on the platform as this was one of the issues that led to this unfortunate incident."

To address this, Bolt said that its shows riders the driver and car verification details when they request a ride.

"Riders are encouraged to confirm that the driver and car registration details during their pickup match those on the app," it adds.

Bolt further pointed that they immediately block drivers that exhibit "such behavior."

As a safety measure, Bolt stated that they also introduced the driver selfie check feature on the platform to enhance safety and prevent driver impersonation and account sharing.

It added that their driver and rider apps also have an SOS emergency button that can be used to alert and seek for security and/or first-response medical assistance at any time during an active trip.

Bolt reiterated its commitment to the safety of their drivers and riders.

"This is why we strongly encourage all riders and drivers to report any incidents to our Customer Support team through our in-app support feature, accessible from the Bolt application menu or via kenya@bolt.eu," Bolt said.

The statement comes amidst a number of complaints from Bolt customers who have raised concern over the conduct of some of the drivers.
The OnePlus 11R is the third device in their R series of smartphones. It was launched alongside the OnePlus 11, and featuring the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 chipset. With a price tag of just under Rs. 40000, the phone promises a lot of performance with few compromises. Ive been using the device for about 3 months and here is my review.

Box Contents

OnePlus 11R 12GB+256GB version in Titan Black colour

2-pin 100W SuperVOOC charger (USB Type-A port)

USB Type-A to Type-C cable

SIM ejector tool

Black TPU case

User Guide and Warranty information

Hardware and Design

The OnePlus 11R shares a lot of its design with the more premium OnePlus 11. In fact, to most people, the two phones will look identical. The biggest difference between the design of the two phones is the lack of the Hasselblad branding, and that by itself is not very noticeable.

Just like the OnePlus 11, the 11R has a circular rear camera bump that blends into the side rails. The glass back has a smooth shiny finish that is created using Laser Direct Image technology, which is quite common among smartphones from OPPO, Vivo and Realme. It also does an excellent job of hiding fingerprints. Unfortunately, it is contrasted by the fingerprint magnet that is the glossy metallic side rails. The weight distribution is good, though.

Another difference between the 11 and 11R is the position of the front camera. It is in the center on the 11R, which is my preference. It makes the device look a bit more symmetrical.

Both the rear and front glass are gently curved, making the phone feel really nice to hold in the hand. OnePlus brought back the alert slider for the 11R, which can be found above the power button on the right edge.

The volume rocker can be found on the left edge, while the top edge has a microphone port and an IR blaster. The bottom edge has the USB Type-C port, a speaker grill and a SIM Slot. The SIM slot has rubber seals around it, which suggests that the 11R has some unofficial level of water resistance.

Display and Audio

The 11R has a 6.7-inch 120Hz Super Fluid Display with a resolution of 27721240 and a maximum refresh rate of 120Hz. It has a typical brightness of 500 nits and can reach a maximum brightness of 1450 nits. The panel supports variable refresh rate technology, with the ability to switch between 40Hz, 45Hz, 60Hz, 90Hz and 120Hz. Other features include HDR10+ support, 100% coverage of DCI-P3 colour space and SGS Low Blue Light Ex-Certification. There is no support for Dolby Vision however.

In my opinion, the OnePlus 11Rs display is very good, falling just short of the excellent display on the flagship OnePlus 11. The screen is bright and colourful with good, natural saturation levels. Sunlight visibility was not an issue and the high refresh-rate results in a smooth experience when navigating the UI and in apps.

For audio, the 11R has a dual speaker setup that can playback audio in stereo. The speakers get reasonably loud with little distortion at maximum volume. I did notice a lack of clarity in the higher frequencies, but otherwise the overall quality was good.

Camera

This is an area where OnePlus understandably made some cost-cutting decisions. For the hardware, the phone features a 50MP primary rear camera with 1/1.56 Sony IMX890 sensor at f/1.8 aperture, an 8MP 120 ultra-wide camera with Omnivision OV08D10 sensor and a 2MP macro camera with Omnivision OV02B10 sensor. The front camera is a 16MP sensor with f/2.4 aperture.

The 11Rs camera system does not feature the Hasselblad branding, as that is reserved for the flagship OnePlus 11. That being said, both these phones share the same primary wide-angle angle sensor, and in my opinion they produce quite similar outputs too. The OnePlus 11 is a touch more natural with its photos, but the 11R isnt that far behind. In good lighting conditions, it can produce pleasing shots with good contrast and nice colours. Photos have plenty of detail and the exposure is good. The camera does struggle a bit in low-light conditions though.

The ultra-wide camera performed passably well, and the macro was, as usual, disappointing. The front camera on the other hand wasnt half bad.

Here are some camera samples:

Software, UI and Apps

Similar to the OnePlus 11, the 11R runs Android 13 out-of-the-box, with its custom OxygenOS 13 on top. It features the same Aquamorphic design language along with improvements to convenience, reliability, and security. As expected, navigating the system UI is smooth and the number of pre-installed apps are minimal.

If you are familiar with OxygenOS, then using the 11R will be easy. There are loads of customization options and other features such as Smart Launcher, Sidebar Toolbox, Private Safe 2.0. It continues to have the same annoying behavior when swiping away a notification, which for some reason OnePlus hasnt bothered fixing. The OS is also starting to lose its identity in my opinion, becoming increasingly similar to OPPOs ColorOS. But that is a matter of personal preference, so to each their own.

Biometrics and Sensors

Like most high-end smartphones these days, the OnePlus 11R features an under-display fingerprint sensor. It is an optical sensor, so it isnt as good as an ultrasonic sensor. However, it is still fast and accurate. You can add up to 5 fingerprints, and they can also be used for app lock and Private safe.

Another cool feature of the OnePlus 11R is the presence of an IR blaster. It is quite common to see this feature on Chinese smartphone brands, but I dont remember OnePlus ever featuring it. Having an IR blaster is super convenient in some situations, and Im happy to see OnePlus include it on the 11R.

Dual SIM and Connectivity

The 11R features dual 5G standby with support for 9 5G bands  n1,n3,n5,n8,n28A,n40,n41,n77 and n78. It has support for carrier aggregation and Wi-Fi 6. Other connectivity options include Bluetooth 5.3, NFC, GPS (L1+L5 Dual Band), GLONASS, Galileo and Beidou. The SAR value was reported as 1.159W/kg for the Head and 0.609W/kg for the Body

Performance and Benchmarks

Under the hood, the 11R is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 along with 8GB or 16GB LPDDR5X. Storage options include 128GB or 256GB of UFS 3.1 storage.

The 8+ Gen 1 SoC is a refined version of Qualcomms previous flagship, the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1. It offers a modest improvement in performance and a notable increase in power efficiency. Inside it is equipped with a Kryo Prime Arm Cortex-X3-based CPU at up to 3.2GHz, 4 x Kryo Performance CPUs that has 2 x A710-based and 2 x A715-based CPUs at up to 2.8GHz and 4x Kryo Efficiency A510-based CPUs at up to 2GHz.

When it comes to everyday use, the OnePlus 11R performs well without any hitches. It can handle multi-tasking and switching between apps with ease, shoot 4K 60FPS video, and play games at high framerates. FPS games like COD and BGMI run really well and in Genshin Impact, it maintained higher frame rates for a longer period of time.

The power efficiency improvements result in two things  slower battery drain when using intensive applications and less heating generated. So you have a phone that lasts longer, and one that doesnt become too hot in your hand.

Here are some benchmarks:

Battery Life

Keeping the 11R alive is a 5000mAh battery, which is over 10% bigger than its predecessor. Thanks to the power efficiency improvements of the 8+ Gen 1 SoC, the OnePlus 11R has pretty good battery life. With my regular use, I was able to comfortably get through a day and even extended a bit into the second day. Screen time on average was around 67 hours, so no issues there either.

Similar to the OnePlus 11, the 11R supports 100W SuperVOOC fast charging. I was able to charge the device from 0-100% in less than 30 minutes. It reached 50% in about 15 minutes. As always, this is super convenient and thankfully, OnePlus still includes a charger in the box.

Conclusion

The R variants of OnePlus phones are known for their impressive value, and the 11R offers easily the best value so far. The price to performance ratio is great, and coupled with the phones build quality and battery life, the 11R is pretty easy to recommend. If you arent particular about having a flagship camera experience, then the 11R is a great choice. If youre coming from an older OnePlus, then the software experience will be easy to get used to, too.

There are a few options in the market that offer the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1, but none of them are offered at this price range. So if you need a phone with a great price-to-performance ratio under Rs. 40000, look no further.

Availability

The OnePlus 11R 5G is priced at Rs. 39,999 for the 8GB + 128GB version and the 16GB + 256GB model costs Rs. 44,999. It is available from Amazon.in, OnePlus online store and OnePlus experience stores offline.
Dubais electronics brand, Endefo, part of the Ashtel Group, intends to invest INR 200 crores in the Indian Wearable Technology Market by the end of 2024. Their goal is to capture a 10% market share in the Indian Wearable segment within three years.

Expanding into the Indian Market

With a proven track record in over seven countries, Endefo recognizes the vast potential of the Indian market and the rising demand for advanced electronics. Endefo plans to make substantial investments in sectors that complement its core expertise in Mobility and IT, further enhancing its product offerings.

Endefo plans to introduce six cutting-edge product categories in India

As part of its expansion, Endefo will heavily invest in sound technology, aiming to deliver exceptional audio experiences to its customers. Sound bars, Portable Speakers, TWS (True Wireless Stereo), BoomBox, Smartwatches, and party speakers.

The company soon to introduce Endefo Enbuds10 TWS Earbuds, Endefo Entunz GLAM and Endefo Enbeatz Soundbar in India.

Availability

Endefos products will be readily available through a network of over 2000 large retail outlets, as well as on Amazon and the brands own e-commerce platform.

Commenting on the announcement, Aneef Tas, CEO of Endefo, said:
Google made significant updates to the YouTube Partner Program (YPP) last year to support creators in increasing their earnings on YouTube. As part of these updates, eligibility for YPP, it extended to include Shorts creators, along with the introduction of Shorts ad revenue sharing.

Continuing their efforts, Google is expanding the program further by providing earlier access to YPP through reduced eligibility criteria. This allows creators to start earning on YouTube at an earlier stage and gain access to fan funding features such as channel memberships, Super Chat, Super Thanks, and more.

Additionally, Google is introducing an update to the YouTube Shopping affiliate program, specifically designed for creators.

soo if you have 500 subs, 3 public uploads in the last 90 days and either 3K long form watch hours in the last 12 months *or* 3M Shorts views in the last 90 days, you can apply to YPP to unlock access to Super Thanks, Super Chat, Super Stickers, channel memberships, & Shopping  YouTube Creators (@YouTubeCreators) June 13, 2023

Easy access to YouTube Partner Program (YPP)

Google said that, starting today, eligible YouTube creators can apply to YouTube Partner Program (YPP) sooner by meeting specific criteria. To qualify, they need at least 500 subscribers, 3 or more public uploads in the previous 90 days, and either 3000 watch hours in the last year or 3M Shorts views in the same period.

By becoming new partners, creators gain access to fan-funded features such as channel memberships, Super Chat, Super Stickers, Super Thanks, and the ability to promote their own products through YouTube Shopping.

Expanding the YouTube Shopping affiliate program

Google further mentioned that, to support creators who have progressed in their YouTube journey, they are expanding the YouTube Shopping affiliate program. This expansion now includes all eligible US-based creators in YPP with over 20,000 subscribers.

Through the affiliate program, creators can feature and tag products from various brands and other creators in their content. They will also be eligible for competitive commission rates on the sales generated through these tagged products in their videos and Shorts.

Partnering with renowned brands

Google also cited that it has partnered with more than 50 brands, including Nordstrom, Sephora, Ulta Beauty, and Wayfair, spanning multiple categories such as beauty, tech, home, and apparel. Creators like Andrea Matillano can tag products seamlessly and directly in their videos or Shorts, allowing viewers to conveniently shop while enabling the creators to earn commissions from resulting sales.

Continued growth and benefits

As their channels grow, these creators become eligible for more benefits and a share of ad revenue once they meet the current YPP eligibility criteria, Google stated. There is no need for them to go through the full YPP application process again. The existing requirements for unlocking revenue sharing remain unchanged.

Availability

Google is rolling out this new level of YPP to creators in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Taiwan, and South Korea initially. Google further said that it plans to gradually introduce earlier access to YPP across all countries where the program is available.

Commenting on the announcement, By Amjad Hanif, Vice President of Creator Products, YouTube, said:
Madhav Sheth, CEO, realme India, VP, realme, and President, realme International Business Group, has announced his resignation from the company. This follows his 5-year successful stint with the company. He used his Twitter handle to announce his resignation from realme.

He was noticeably absent from realmes recent flagship launch event, where the company introduced the realme 11 Pro 5G series. This news was expected as rumours of him joining HONOR India as CEO for resurrection of its smartphone business surfaced last week.

Sheth joined realme back in 2018 with the launch of the brands realme 2. With him, realme emerged as Indias second-largest smartphone brand

After a long conversation with Sky Li and also with his support, its time for me to contribute my share to the countrys export business, he said in his letter.

Madhav Sheth also announced that realmes founder and CEO Sky Li will now oversee the India market.

Regarding this, realme spokesperson said:

We extend our warmest wishes to Sheth for a successful future ahead. While we bid farewell to him, we want to assure our customers, partners, and stakeholders that realmes operations will continue seamlessly. Our commitment to providing high-quality products, exceptional user experiences, and innovative technologies remains unwavering. We will continue to drive the brand forward, delivering outstanding products and services to our customers worldwide.
Nairobi  President William Ruto has urged able Kenyans to assist the destitute and underprivileged.

The head of state in twitter on Monday, said that Kenyans should always consider how to assist humanity, extend a helping hand, and wipe away people's tears.

"Today, there is a lot of poverty in the land, so if our God Almighty has blessed you, be a blessing to others, extend a helping hand to those in need. Remember, your giving, is also a way of appreciating divine blessings, bounties, and favour of God Almighty upon you," he wrote.

President Ruto added that humanity should come first before what we as a country stand to gain out of the situation.

Referring to Kevin Carter, a South African photojournalist who took a photo of a vulture waiting for a starving little girl to die and feast on her corps, Ruto said that when people seek knowledge, wealth, fame, skills or even positions, it is good to think how to use them to benefit the people and society at large.

"It is very important that we all should help the poor and needy, the orphans and widows amongst us so that they can meet their needs. Please don't be Kevin Carter, be human and think humanity. Beware, we humans are not humans, if we lack humaneness in all we do," he added.

"When we seek knowledge, wealth, fame, skills or even positions, let's think of how we can use it to benefit the people and society at large."

He stated that, Kevin Carter could have still been alive today and even much more famous if he had just picked that little girl up and taken her to the United Nations Feeding Center, where she was attempting to reach or at least take her somewhere safe.

"Kevin Carter's depression started when during one of such interviews (a phone-in programme), someone called in and asked him what happened to the little girl. He simply replied, 'I didn't wait to find out after this shot, as I had a flight to catch' Then the caller said, 'I put it to you that there were two vultures on that day, one had a camera," he added.

The call by the president to help the needy in the country comes after the proposed Housing Levy which he defended it saying it is a sure bet to bridge the country's housing deficit.

President Ruto chastised politicians who are out to demonize an otherwise good agenda.

"How much longer do we want these people to live in slums? In my estimation, we are sixty years late in making the decision that Singapore made. I think the time is now," he said during the United Nations Habitat assembly in Gigiri.

"Many of the people who are driving this propaganda against this programme are people who a month ago were supporting this programme. There is nothing wrong with the housing programme."

The head of state further called on the political class to separate the housing programme from politics.

The Treasury initially proposed a 3 percent deduction from every employee's salary to be remitted to the National Housing Fund, with employers matching the amount.

Different national stakeholders have had varying reactions to this, with some demanding for the housing fund to be fully eliminated.

Azimio La Umoja leader, Raila Odinga, on June 7, warned of an imminent return of nationwide protests warning that should parliamentarians pass the Finance Bill unamended, the opposition would swing into action and take their grievances to the streets.

"The government will present the Bill to parliament on Thursday, June 8, and subsequently read the budget on Thursday, June 15. If they pass the Finance Bill, we will hold demonstrations in every corner of the country," he said.

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However, on Monday, President William Ruto, succumbed to pressure and slashed the Housing Fund levy by half, from the current three percent to 1.5 percent.

Reducing the percentage of the levy contained in the Finance Bill 2023 comes as a direct response to the widespread public outcry, with a considerable number of Kenyans expressing strong opposition to the scheme.

"The Housing Fund contribution has been reduced to 1.5 percent from the proposed 3 percent. Ruto listens," President Ruto's United Democratic Alliance (UDA) party tweeted.

The National Assembly Finance Committee has been actively gathering input from stakeholders regarding the Bill, and the clause related to the housing levy garnered significant attention and debate.

The Committee is on Tuesday set to present the revised edition of the Bill for discussion in the House, marking the beginning of a lively debate that is anticipated to be highly spirited.
Nairobi  Emirates customers will now be able to fly to more African countries after signing an agreement with Kenya Airways (KQ).

Flyers will access 28 destinations on the KQ network using Nairobi, including Nampula, Bangui, Bujumbara, Kigali, Dzaoudzi, Lubumbashi, Kinshasa, Kilimanjaro, Juba, and Zanzibar, among other African countries.

Likewise, Emirates passengers traveling via Dubai can also book a single-ticket itinerary from or to Mombasa.

"We are pleased to ink our first partnership with Kenya's flag carrier. Kenya is a strategic gateway in our Africa network, and this new interline agreement will enhance connectivity for Emirates' customers and provide them more travel choices across the continent," Emirates Chief Commercial Officer Adnan Kazim said.

"We look forward to deepening our relationship with Kenya Airways, offering greater network opportunities and improving connections for both of our customers," Kazim added.

Likewise, KQ clients traveling from Nairobi and Mombasa will enjoy the Emirate's network through Dubai to 23 destinations across West and South Asia, the Indian Ocean, and the Middle East.

"This partnership will provide the ideal gateway for our customers as we seek to increase our connectivity between Africa and the Middle East through Emirates' hub in Dubai," KQ Chief Commercial and Customer Officer Julius Thairu said.

"Partnerships like these are key in aviation as they take advantage of mutual scale and efficiencies to provide customers with more seamless travel options."

Emirates began operations in Kenya with the launch of flights between Nairobi and Dubai in 1995, and since then it has steadily grown the route to 14 weekly flights, having flown over 5 million passengers through the years.

KQ recently launched direct flights between Mombasa and Dubai, offering customers four weekly flights.

The flight from Moi International Airport to Mombasa marked the second hub, other than Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, where the carrier connects passengers directly to the UAE.

KQ currently operates ten weekly flights to Dubai from Nairobi using a mix of B737-800 and Dreamliner B787-800.

Tickets are available for purchase on the Emirate's website, through online travel agents (OTAs), and through major travel agencies.
Nairobi  Cabinet Secretary for Roads and Transport stated that he is willing to set up a meeting for President William Ruto and opposition leader Raila Odinga with the goal of striking a truce to settle their current differences over the Finance Bill if both parties are willing.

Speaking in Kabunde airstrip in Homa Bay County on Monday,Murkomen asserted that since President Ruto and Raila Odinga had previously worked together, there should be no barrier to their rekindling their working relationship.

"I do not see the reason why Raila Odinga and President Ruto should not be consulting more, because William Ruto was in the academy of Raila Odinga. The dream of every teacher is to have his/her student doing better than himself, whatever Raila Odinga want to tell Ruto, they should agree to meet in a palace, which I can even arrange then we talk" he said.

"If you see William Ruto standing tall, he's because he is standing on the shoulders of a giant called Raila Odinga.So there must be a way of closing ranks. And because Raila has done so well in many of us am sure he is proud to see us excelling in politics.There is no way as a country we can succeed to build our nation if we're fighting each other."

The CS stated that that the Head of State and the Azimio la Umoja leader Raila Odinga should consult each other on a wide range of issues touching on national development.

He added that President Ruto had learned the political ropes from the Azimio la Umoja One Kenya chief, so his ascent to the country's top seat is also a testament to the opposition leader's political prowess.

Murkomen added that the Azimio la Umoja leader Raila Odinga should be the last person to castigate the Finance Bill 2023.

He argued that most proposals especially the housing levy where the government wants to deduct three per cent to finance construction of affordable houses for Kenyans were first suggested by Raila.

Murkomen said Raila had such a proposal in his manifesto during the campaign period and he would have implemented it had he succeeded in his quest to be president.

"I don't see any reasons why leaders should not have common ground on the current Finance Bill. The housing levy proposal was initiated by Raila and he campaigned with it in his manifesto, it is only that the other one won and the other one will try again 2027(Referring to Ruto and Raila respectively)," he said.

The CS said he knows that whereas Raila is opposed to the Bill, he is privately happy because the idea was borrowed from his manifesto.

"I know even if he (Raila) criticizes the Bill, when he goes back to the house he confirms in his heart that the proposal was lifted from his manifesto," he added.

The CS said many Kenyans are facing hard economic times and it would be prudent if leaders agreed to work together and address the challenges.

He told Azimio leaders not to oppose the Bill just because the government is headed by President Ruto.

The Finance Bill 2023 has been hit with controversy over the proposed mandatory three per cent monthly deduction from salaried Kenyans ahead of voting on the Bill by the National Assembly.

Raila and other Azimio leaders have demanded the withdrawal of the Bill on grounds that it will overburden Kenyans and asked their coalition MPs to reject it in totality.

On the other hand, President William Ruto has called on MPs especially from Kenya Kwanza side to approve the Bill on grounds that it will support economic development of the common man (the hustlers).

However, on Monday,President William Ruto succumbed to pressure and slashed the Housing Fund levy by half, from the current three percent to 1.5 percent.

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Reducing the percentage of the levy contained in the Finance Bill 2023 comes as a direct response to the widespread public outcry, with a considerable number of Kenyans expressing strong opposition to the scheme.

"The Housing Fund contribution has been reduced to 1.5% from the proposed 3%. Ruto listens," President Ruto's United Democratic Alliance (UDA) party tweeted.

The National Assembly Finance Committee has been actively gathering input from stakeholders regarding the Bill, and the clause related to the housing levy garnered significant attention and debate.

The Committee is on Tuesday set to present the revised edition of the Bill for discussion in the House, marking the beginning of a lively debate that is anticipated to be highly spirited.
analysis

US administration officials would not say if they would heed the call to move this year's Agoa forum away from SA.

US administration officials share the concerns of congressional leaders who have asked the administration to move this year's African Growth and Opportunity Act (Agoa) forum from South Africa because of Pretoria's perceived support for Russia in its war against Ukraine.

But senior administration officials have declined to say if they will heed the call from the senior congressional leaders to punish South Africa in this way.

Judd Devermont, Africa director of the National Security Council, welcomed Pretoria's commitment to investigate the alleged loading of arms for Russia onto the Russian cargo ship Lady R in Simon's Town naval base last December.

It was this incident more than anything else that appeared to have provoked the call from the four congressional leaders for Washington to act against South Africa.

Taking the Agoa forum away from South Africa would likely send a damaging message to US investors and traders - and perhaps others - that South Africa is not a country to do business with.

The letter from the congressional leaders said that intelligence suggested the South African government used the Lady R to "covertly supply Russia with arms and ammunition that could be used in its illegal war in...
Nairobi  Agri-tech firm Twiga Foods sacked 130 sales agents last month for what it attributed to poor performance, Business Daily reported, quoting the firm's Chief Executive Officer Peter Njonjo.

Njonjo said that the company will now engage with independent sales agents whose sales are looking up.

In October last year, Twiga contracted independent sales representatives after employees on contracts were terminated in November last year.

Twiga uses technology to distribute affordable farm produce such as bananas, onions, tomatoes, potatoes, mangoes, and cabbages to small businesses in city estates.

With operations in Uasin Gishu, Embu, Meru, Kirinyaga, Machakos, Nakuru, and Kiambu counties, the firm earlier said it served about 33,000 vendors every month.

Since its founding in 2014, Twiga has raised billions of shillings, including equity and loan deals, from international investors such as the International Finance Corporation.
Amazons Smartphone EMI Carnival Sale Is Here: Here Are the Best Deals & Offers Deal Of The Day oi -Kabir Jain

Amazon's Smartphone EMI Carnival sale is now on, offering a wide range of smartphones from top brands, with attractive deals and flexible payment options. The sale will run until June 30, 2023.

Here are some of the popular smartphones available on Amazon with exciting deals and offers from sellers:

iQOO Neo 6 5G: The iQOO Neo 6 5G features a Snapdragon 870 5G processor, a 120Hz E4 AMOLED display with 1300 nits peak brightness, 80W flash charge technology, and a 4700mAh battery. It is available on Amazon for 24,999, with an EMI tenure of 3 months and a prime advantage tenure of 6 months.

Samsung Galaxy M14 5G: The Samsung M14 5G comes with a 6.6-inch FHD+ display, a 5nm processor, a 50MP triple camera, and a 6000mAh battery. It supports 13 Indian 5G bands and is available on Amazon for 13,490, with an EMI tenure of 6 months and a prime advantage tenure of 9 months.

Samsung Galaxy M33 5G: The Samsung Galaxy M33 5G features a stunning 50MP Quad camera with a fun mode, 8GB RAM, 128GB storage, and a 6000mAh battery. It is available on Amazon for 15,999, with an EMI tenure of 6 months and a prime advantage tenure of 9 months.

iQOO Neo 7 5G: The iQOO Neo 7 5G comes with a MediaTek Dimensity 8200 5G processor, 120W flash charge, a 6.78-inch 120Hz AMOLED display, a 64MP OIS camera, and dual stereo speakers. It is available on Amazon for 27,999, with an EMI tenure of 6 months and a prime advantage tenure of 9 months.

iQOO 9 Pro 5G: The iQOO 9 Pro 5G is a high-performance smartphone with 12GB RAM, 256GB storage, a Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 mobile processor, and 120W flash charge. It is available on Amazon for 44,990, with an EMI tenure of 6 months and a prime advantage tenure of 9 months.

OnePlus Nord CE 2 Lite: The OnePlus Nord CE 2 Lite features 6GB RAM, 128GB storage, a 64MP main camera, a 16MP front camera, and a 6.59-inch display. It is available on Amazon for 18,999, with an EMI tenure of 6 months and a prime advantage tenure of 9 months.

OnePlus Nord 2T: The OnePlus Nord 2T comes with 80W SuperVOOC fast charging, a 50MP Sony flagship camera, a 32MP front camera, and an AMOLED display. It is available on Amazon for 28,999, with an EMI tenure of 6 months and a prime advantage tenure of 9 months.

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold4 5G: The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold4 5G features a 6.2-inch cover screen and a 7.6-inch main screen, making multitasking easy. It is the world's first water-resistant foldable smartphone and supports the S-Pen. It is available on Amazon for 147,999, with an EMI tenure of 6 months and a prime advantage tenure of 9 months.

iQOO 11 5G: The iQOO 11 5G is a powerful smartphone with India's first Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 processor, a 2K E6 AMOLED display with 1800 nits brightness, and 120W flash charge. It is available on Amazon for 51,999, with an EMI tenure of 9 months and a prime advantage tenure of 12 months.

Xiaomi 13 Pro: The Xiaomi 13 Pro features a flagship Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 4nm processor for groundbreaking performance. It has a 6.73-inch 2K 120Hz E6 AMOLED display, a 4820mAh battery, and a 50MP Leica professional optics camera. It is available on Amazon for 73,999, with an EMI tenure of 9 months and a prime advantage tenure of 12 months.

Redmi K50i: The Redmi K50i offers a 64MP ISOCELL primary sensor, an 8MP ultra-wide camera, a 2MP macro camera, a 6.6-inch FHD display, 5080mAh battery, 8GB RAM, and 256GB storage. It is available on Amazon for 19,249, with an EMI tenure of 9 months and a prime advantage tenure of 12 months.

Xiaomi 12 Pro: The Xiaomi 12 Pro features a 6.73-inch WQHD+ 120Hz AMOLED display with AdaptiveSync Pro for clarity, brightness, and smoothness. It is available on Amazon for 43,249, with an EMI tenure of 9 months and a prime advantage tenure of 12 months.

Samsung Galaxy S22 5G: The Samsung Galaxy S22 5G includes a Pro-grade Camera that captures epic night shots with improved low-light performance. It features Super Clear Glass to reduce lens flare and fast-acting AI for intelligent processing. It is available on Amazon for 52,999, with an EMI tenure of 9 months and a prime advantage tenure of 12 months.

Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra 5G: The Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra 5G is the first Galaxy S series phone with an embedded S Pen. It offers comfortable writing like on paper and supports Air Actions for remote control. It is available on Amazon for 102,999, with an EMI tenure of 9 months and a prime advantage tenure of 12 months.

Redmi 10 Power: The Redmi 10 Power comes with a 680 Snapdragon processor, up to 11GB RAM, a 6000mAh battery for up to 2 days of usage, a 6.71-inch display, and a 50MP camera setup. It is available on Amazon for 11,249, with an EMI tenure of 15 months and a prime advantage tenure of 18 months.

Tecno Phantom X2: The Tecno Phantom X2 features the world's first 4nm Dimensity 9000 5G processor, a 64MP OIS ultra-clear night camera, and a 6.8-inch FHD+ Dual Curved AMOLED display. It is available on Amazon for 39,999, with an EMI tenure of 15 months and a prime advantage tenure of 18 months.

Tecno Phantom X2 Pro 5G: The Tecno Phantom X2 Pro 5G is an extraordinary smartphone with the world's first retractable portrait lens, the 4nm Dimensity 9000 5G processor, a 6.8-inch FHD+ dual-curved AMOLED display, a 5160mAh battery, a 50MP camera, and the 5th Gen AI Processor APU 590. It is available on Amazon for 49,999, with an EMI tenure of 15 months and a prime advantage tenure of 18 months.

Samsung Galaxy S23 5G: The Samsung Galaxy S23 5G smartphone is designed to capture night shots and provide a smooth gaming experience. It features a 6.1-inch dynamic AMOLED display, a 50MP wide camera, and a 3900mAh battery. It is available on Amazon for 69,999, with an EMI tenure of 21 months and a prime advantage tenure of 24 months.

Samsung Galaxy S23 Plus 5G: The Samsung Galaxy S23 Plus 5G smartphone is designed to make multitasking easier, capture night shots, and provide a smooth gaming experience. It features a 6.6-inch dynamic AMOLED display, a 50MP wide camera, and a 4700mAh battery. It is available on Amazon for 89,999, with an EMI tenure of 21 months and a prime advantage tenure of 24 months.

Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra 5G: The Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra 5G smartphone is designed to reinvent premium experiences. It comes with groundbreaking camera capabilities, including a 200MP sensor with adaptive pixels for capturing images with epic details. It is available on Amazon for 116,999, with an EMI tenure of 21 months and a prime advantage tenure of 24 months.

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Microsoft's Acquisition of Activision Blizzard Temporarily Blocked by US Federal Court News oi -Carlsen Martin

A US federal court judge has temporarily blocked Microsoft from completing its $69 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard. The move comes a day after the US FTC (Federal Trade Commission) asked the federal court to prevent any action from Microsoft in buying out the gaming giant.

Judge Edward Davila says the temporary restraining order "is necessary to maintain the status quo while the complaint is pending". According to the FTC, Microsoft's acquisition of Activision Blizzard could "substantially lessen competition" in the sector.

Why is the FTC blocking Microsoft's Acquisition?

A two-day hearing will take place on June 22 and June 23 in San Francisco, which will give Microsoft and the FTC an opportunity to present evidence in the matter. The FTC said that the deal could have been completed as early as the end of this week without a court order.

Microsoft will now have until June 16 to submit legal arguments to oppose a preliminary injunction and the FTC, which is yet to determine if the acquisition violates US antitrust law. An FTC hearing is set for August to argue the merits of the deal.

However, the California judge will have to hear arguments from both sides before agreeing to stop the deal from going through. Microsoft President Brad Smith said, "We welcome the opportunity to present our case in federal court."

"Both a temporary restraining order and a preliminary injunction are necessary because Microsoft and Activision have represented that they may consummate the proposed acquisition at any time," according to the filing.

A summary of Microsoft's acquisition of Activision Blizzard

Microsoft launched a bid to buyout Activision Blizzard last year, seeking to acquire the world's third-largest gaming firm by revenue. Moreover, the deal would be the largest in the history of the video game industry.

However, the FTC argue that the deal would give Microsoft the ability to make Activision Blizzard games exclusive to the Xbox and PC Game Pass users. Users with Nintendo and Sony PlayStation consoles could be hung out to dry if the deal falls through.

More recently, the European Union greenlit the deal. However, regulators in the UK blocked the acquisition in April, arguing that it would hurt competition in cloud gaming. However, Microsoft and Activision Blizzard also believe that the proceedings could be a positive by "accelerating the legal process".

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Tiny Sensor Can Detect Food Freshness: Prevent Harmful Consumption And Wastage Using A Smartphone? News oi -Alap Naik Desai

A tiny sensor can help monitor food to check its freshness. The data can help prevent the consumption of spoiled food.

Food freshness and food wastage are two major concerns that several nations face. A team of researchers from Koc University in Turkey has developed a miniature sensor that can monitor the freshness of protein-rich foods. This tiny chip can be planted on any food container and its data can be read by a smartphone.

Food Freshness Monitoring Sensor Designed To Monitor And Prevent Spoiled Food Consumption

While several underdeveloped nations grapple with food shortages, many developing and developed countries experience food wastage. Several households buy a lot of food and inevitably some of its gets spoiled.

It has been difficult for ordinary people to detect the internal decay of any food product. However, a new sensor developed by researchers at Koc University can potentially allow anyone with a smartphone to detect food freshness.

The sensor is small and the developers are planning to make it affordable. In fact, the sensor can be attached to a food container. When the sensor detects that food is starting to spoil, it can send a notification, which can be picked up by a smartphone. This way, sellers, distributors, and consumers can always know when food is no longer safe to eat.

New Sensor Can Detect Food Spoilage Under Multiple Scenarios But Has One Limitation

The researchers tested their sensor in packaged meat products to demonstrate its real-world applications. The food samples were stored in a freezer, in a refrigerator, and at room temperature.

Over three days, the capacitance of the sensor monitoring the room-temperature samples went up. This proved the biogenic amines were being released from the meat as it was getting spoilt and becoming unsafe for consumption, explained the researchers:

"We have tested the sensor using chicken and beef samples stored under various storage conditions to demonstrate a real-life application for the sensor. The sensor presented a reliable performance, such that the spoilage of foods was predicted during three-day measurement by instantaneous sensor readings using a mobile phone."

"On the third day, the room-temperature-stored samples showed a 700 percent change in sensor response compared with the samples stored in a freezer, which proves the sensor operation for the detection of spoilage."

Needless to say, the senor can help reduce food waste and improve food safety worldwide. However, it is currently limited to protein-rich foods, which restricts its applicability. Nonetheless, researchers may be able to add more bio-markers in the future to monitor more types of food.

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Nairobi  The Judiciary has constituted team to unlock stalemate with the Law Society of Kenya over the provision of pro-bono services.

The Judiciary Chief Registrar Anne Amadi Monday stated that a committee comprising representatives from the Judiciary and the Law Society of Kenya will help address the concerns and challenges over the funding of legal aid.

The decision to establish the committee followed correspondence received from Judges, Judicial Officers, and LSK Branches, highlighting the difficulties faced by advocates in facilitating pauper briefs and pro-bono services.

"It is evident that these issues require immediate attention and quick resolution," Amadi said in a letter addressed to LSK President Eric Theuri.

The committee, which will include two members from the LSK, will be responsible for thoroughly examining the issues at hand and devising a mutually agreeable solution.

Amadi appealed to Theuri to communicate with LSK members, urging them to exercise patience and allow the committee to engage in productive discussions towards resolving the matter.

"We firmly believe that a thoughtful and inclusive approach is necessary to effectively address these concerns," added Amadi.

Additionally, Amadi requested President Theuri to encourage LSK members to continue accepting briefs and fulfilling their obligations in the cases they have already undertaken.

She emphasized that this commitment is vital for promoting and upholding access to justice for all.

Amadi also confirmed that the Judiciary has already disbursed Sh27.5 million to the LSK, demonstrating their commitment to supporting the provision of pro-bono services.

With both sides actively engaged in finding a resolution, Amadi expressed confidence that the issue will be resolved as soon as possible.
V4 Defence Ministers met in the High Tatras to discuss aid to Ukraine and common projects

Ministry of Defence & Armed Forces of the Czech Republic

12.6.2023

Author: by editorial staff (ob), MoD DPSD

Hungary will join the Czech Republic and Poland in protecting Slovak airspace. The declaration was signed at the V4 meeting in Strbske Pleso by the four Defence Ministers. This working meeting included the participation of Germany on this occasion. Minister of Defence Jana Cernochova was represented by Deputy Minister Daniel Blazkovec.

Assistance to Ukraine was one the key items on the agenda. According to Deputy Minister Blazkovec, the success of the counteroffensive depends on the volume of supplies from the allies. "We keep focusing mostly on heavy equipment, ammunition, air defence and electronic warfare," said Daniel Blazkovec and added that the Czech Republic takes into account the priorities of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and seeks to identify additional materiel to offer to Kyiv.

The Czech Republic has also trained some 2,000 Ukrainian troops by now. Deputy Minister Blazkovec said that the training benefits the Czech service personnel who thus gain knowhow directly from the battlefield.

Daniel Blazkovec thanked Germany for supporting Ukraine, especially through the provision of heavy equipment, such as the Patriot and Gepard air defence systems and eighteen Leopard 2 tanks.

The Czech Government recently commissioned the Defence Minister to negotiate joining the procurement of Leopard 2A8 tanks, planned by Germany. Deputy Minister Blazkovec sees it as an efficient method of procurement of high-end technology which shall further enhance NATO interoperability.

"We expect the common procurement to generate lower purchase prices, shorter delivery timelines and provision of adequate logistic support," said Blazkovec.

Czech and German cooperation including military-to-military

Both countries interact on the level of Ministries and the Armed Forces, most recently within the enhanced Forward Presence (eFP) Battle Group in Lithuania and Slovakia.

The current efforts to strengthen and adapt NATO's deterrence and defence, with the Eastern Flank being its key areas, shall be included among the topics discussed at the last NATO Defence Ministerial in the run-up to the Vilnius Summit.

V4: More than just common acquisitions

The meeting included the signature of the Declaration on the countries' shared commitment to protect Slovak airspace. Hungary shall join the Czech Republic and Poland, which have been protecting the Slovak sky since last year. "This is a tangible example of the V4 regional synergy," Deputy Minister Blazkovec said.

Given the extensive replacement and decommissioning of old Soviet-era technology, Deputy Minister Blazkovec emphasized the need for closer cooperation - for example when it comes to the introduction of Leopard MBTs or CV90 IFVs into the V4 countries' armed forces inventory.

The Minister of Defence Jana Cernochova recently confirmed during a meeting with her Slovak counterpart Martin Sklenar that the two countries want to proceed together in identifying the solution to the IFV life cycle support. Cooperation would also be possible when it comes to sharing information from military acceptance tests.

Deputy Minister Daniel Blazkovec confirmed during the meeting that a joined approach brings many positives, including savings: "Coordinating our approach with Slovakia enabled us for example to negotiate a reduction of the purchase price of the CV90 vehicles. Every potential cooperation process must however be preceded by honest strategic discussions to find consensus or acceptable compromises," he said, and added that national industries shall play a key role and must be "robust, resilient and sustainable." The cooperation must also be shielded by the Alliance, as the shared platform, especially in standardisation. The EU also plays an indispensable role.

Czech V4 Presidency to focus on the practicalities of military cooperation

In July, the Czech Republic shall take over the V4 Presidency from Slovakia. Blazkovec said that it shall focus on the strengthening of military and expert cooperation. "The main priorities include the strengthening of interoperability of the V4 armed forces, with focus on common training, and discussions on the future of the V4 EU Battlegroup and the V4 Joint Logistic Support Group Headquarters," he said.

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Safeguarding Slovak skies becomes a joint Visegrad Four (V4) project

Ministry of Defense of the Slovak Republic

12.06.2023

Hungary is joining forces with Czechia and Poland to secure airspace over Slovakia. Today's signing of the Joint Declaration of the Visegrad Group Countries on their Shared Commitment to Protect the Airspace of the Slovak Republic marks the start of a real Visegrad Four (V4) project with participation from the Czech, Polish and Hungarian Air Forces - that speaks to the importance of this regional format of cooperation.

As the Slovak V4 Presidency (July 2022 - June 2023) draws to a close this month, the Declaration, signed by the Defence Ministers of Slovakia, Hungary and Poland and a Deputy Defence Minister of Czechia at the V4 Defence Ministerial in Strbske Pleso in the High Tatras, comes as practical proof of our alliance being ready to lend selfless assistance to its member until such time as Slovakia's new F-16 fighter jets are delivered from the procurement programme into operational service with the Slovak Air Force, the head of the SVK MOD noted.

Defence Minister Martin Sklenar said: "Until now, we have already concluded such agreements with the Czech Republic and Poland, whose fighter jets have been guarding our airspace for several months now, and I am really pleased that Hungary has officially signed up for this initiative today. So, our neighbours from the V4 will work together and protect Slovak airspace until the end of 2024. I want to say a huge thank you to the countries for their support and contribution. This proves that even in times when one V4 country may find itself in a more difficult situation, we can count on our good neighbours. I believe we will be able to exploit this mechanism and the lessons learned through this initiative even in the future, whenever such necessity arises, whenever required by any V4 member."

Given that this was the last V4 Defence Ministerial meeting under the Slovak V4 Presidency, Minister Sklenar summed up the results that have been achieved over this period. Chief among these is the V4 EU Battlegroup on standby until the end of this June. Other noteworthy examples include work on joint logistics and interchangeability of munitions for artillery guns to make the best of available munitions stocks.

With Ukraine high on the agenda, Ministers spoke about their nations' support to Ukraine so far and efforts to keep up the ongoing supply of arms into the future, as well as about their idea of moving towards a peaceful settlement of the conflict. "The situation in Ukraine has fundamentally changed our security landscape. Therefore, naturally, discussions also reflected on our continued support to Ukraine to see the country through to victory. Even though there is no secret we hold different opinions on how to edge closer towards peace, in every case we made it very clear that peace is our shared goal," Minister Sklenar said.

Speaking about another issue on the agenda - reinvigorating the defence industrial bases, Polish Deputy Prime Minister and National Defence Minister Mariusz Blaszczak said: "As far as our defence industry cooperation is concerned, we are open to any additional opportunities and this is also true for our partners' potential interest in the weapons systems Poland makes, including those anti-aircraft systems being 'combat proven' in operations in Ukraine."

Hungarian Defence Minister Kristof Szalay-Bobrovniczky underlined the very optimistic and friendly nature of discussions with the defence ministers and the Czech deputy defence minister. "We are truly honoured that Hungary will play a role in protecting Slovak airspace," Defence Minister Szalay-Bobrovniczky said, reminding that, as with Slovakia, Hungary is an active contributor to the strengthening of NATO's Eastern Flank by hosting a NATO Multinational Battlegroup.

Czech Deputy Defence Minister Daniel Blazkovec thanked Defence Minister Martin Sklenar and Slovakia for bringing enthusiasm and professionalism to the programme of activities under the Slovak V4 Presidency, saying: "It is with great pleasure that we will build on this job well done." In this respect, the head of the SVK MOD expressed Slovakia's readiness to support the priorities of the Czech V4 Presidency, starting from 1 July 2023.

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June 13, 2023

Release

Resilient Communications Put to the Test at Technology Readiness Experimentation 2023

The Department of Defense announced today that the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering and the Indiana National Guard successfully executed the first joint Technology Readiness Experimentation 2023 event at Camp Atterbury, Ind. Called TREX23-1, the event concluded with a VIP/expo day attracting more than 300 attendees including representatives from Australia and the United Kingdom.

Led by OUSD(R&E)'s Mission Capabilities Office, the experimentation successfully deployed six technologies assessed in a mock disaster scenario where resilient communications had to be re-established to ensure a successful evacuation of non-combatants. The technologies included signal devices, cyber protection, counterintelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance. From this scenario, TREX23-1 was able to provide a body of evidence for future development and transition of the technologies.

The event was part of the Rapid Defense Experimentation Reserve, or RDER, an initiative to encourage experimentation in pursuit of cutting-edge joint and integrated capabilities. Department of Defense components propose experiments to be conducted in near-term joint exercises and compete for RDER funding. Prototypes and experiments are then selected based on alignment to the Joint Warfighting Concept and the potential to yield demonstrable warfighting utility.

"TREX is a new and enduring campaign of experimentation developed to support the Rapid Defense Experimentation Reserve initiative," said Thomas Browning, deputy chief technology officer for mission capabilities in the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering.

"A key attribute of RDER is the focus on a campaign of experimentation that enables the collection of a body of evidence to accelerate technology transition to the field," he said. "TREX is integral to the success of this enduring campaign of experiments."

TREX23-1 was executed in partnership with the Indiana National Guard and the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit, which successfully integrated into the experimentation while conducting its Composite Unit Training Exercise in preparation for a scheduled deployment.

Maj. Gen. Roger D. Lyles, adjutant general of the Indiana National Guard, was in attendance and is a key advocate for continued collaboration between RDER and the Indiana National Guard. "The Indiana National Guard is committed to supporting the Rapid Defense Experimentation Reserve Program with its unique facilities and its highly technical workforce," said Lyles.

"These technologies ensure the Department of Defense's ability to counter rapidly advancing technologies throughout the world and provide our warfighters the technological edge they need today," he said. "Indiana and the Indiana National Guard are proud to be involved since the creation of RDER and look forward to assisting in the program's future."



Key international partners, including those from the United Kingdom and Australia, also attended the event.

"Conducting joint development and experimentation with our allies and partners is critical to ensuring future interoperability, allowing us to tackle emerging threats together," said the British embassy's First Secretary of Defence for Science and Technology Luke Stevens.

"As fellow innovators, we are proud to participate in the TREX23-1 joint experiment alongside our allies, partners, and other U.S. defense leaders," said Stephen Elgar from the Australian Defence Science and Technology Organisation.

TREX also featured an expo with more than 60 technological prototypes that align RDER Joint Warfighting Concepts including fires, command and control, logistics, and capabilities that drive an information advantage. The displays enabled government organizations a hand-on opportunity to learn about the latest RDER-themed prototypes, and for companies to help shape the development of front-line military technologies.

The next TREX event is tentatively scheduled for September to experiment and evaluate additional capabilities related to RDER.

About USD(R&E)

The Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering (USD(R&E) is the Chief Technology Officer of the Department of Defense. The USD(R&E) champions research, science, technology, engineering, and innovation to maintain the United States military's technological advantage. Learn more at www.cto.mil, follow us on Twitter @DoDCTO, or visit us on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/company/ousdre.

https://www.defense.gov/News/Releases/Release/Article/1926383/

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June 13, 2023

Transcript

Deputy Pentagon Press Secretary Sabrina Singh Holds a Press Briefing

DEPUTY PRESS SECRETARY SABRINA SINGH: Hello everyone. Good afternoon. I have a few items to pass along at the top here -- I think I'm echoing a bit -- but I have a few items to pass off at the top here and then I'd be happy to take your questions.

So today, Secretary Austin departed on travel to Germany and Brussels, where he and Chairman Milley will host an in-person meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group on June 15th, and then that will be followed by a NATO Defense Ministers Meeting on June 16th. Readouts from the meeting will be posted on Defense.gov throughout the week.

Also today, the Department announced additional security assistance to meet Ukraine's critical security and defense needs. This is the Biden administration's 40th presidential drawdown of equipment from DOD inventories of -- for Ukraine since August 2021.

It includes key capabilities to aid Ukraine's efforts to retake its sovereign territory as they bravely protect Ukraine's soldiers, civilians and critical infrastructure. The package includes artillery, anti-armor systems and ammunition valued up to $325 million, and additional details can also be found on Defense.gov.

Also today, the Department announced the results of its Foreign Military Sales Tiger Team effort. The Tiger Team analyzed all phases of the FMS process, including -- which illuminated best practices for the Department to benchmark and identify systemic challenges in DOD's FMS ecosystems.

The team incorporated feedback from allies and partner nations and U.S. industry on ways to improve the efficiency of the FMS process. The team's recommendations cover six key FMS areas, to include improving the Department's understanding of ally and partner requirements, providing our allies and partner nations with the most relevant priority capabilities, and accelerating acquisition and contracting support for FMS.

Of note, as part of the Tiger Team's efforts, the Department plans to establish a dedicated Defense Security Cooperation Service on par with the Defense Attache Service, who will serve as the Department's key FMS link with our allies and partners around the globe.

Shifting gears just a bit, the Department launched the Value of Service spotlight webpage on Defense.gov. This site highlights DOD's efforts in promoting the value of service to our nation and commemorating the 50th anniversary of the all-volunteer force. Since its inception 50 years ago, the all-volunteer force has empowered countless individuals to step forward and leave a positive impact on the world, both at home here and abroad.

Today, more than 3 million service members and DOD civilians serve all around the world to protect and defend the United States, its citizens, and its partners and allies. Through their unwavering commitment, volunteerism has become the cornerstone of stability within our communities, fostering cohesion and self-reliance.

And finally, Exercise Air Defender '23 kicked off in Germany yesterday, with more than 235 aircraft and more than 10,000 service members from 25 countries taking part in the largest readiness exercise of this summer and the largest Air Force deployment in NATO's history.

Led by the German Air Force, 110 Air National Guard aircraft from 35 different states make up the largest contingent in an exercise that will test command and control and provide logistics support to such a large, diverse armada of international aerial assets.

The exercise will take place June 12th through 23rd, primarily in Germany and with forward operating locations in Czech Republic, Estonia and Latvia. And for more information, I'd ask you to reach out to the Air National Guard Public Affairs for any additional questions.

And with that, I'd be happy to take your questions here. Tara?

Q: Thanks. A couple on Ukraine. First, can you say anything about Russia reporting that as many as 16 different types of armored vehicles the U.S. provided has -- have been destroyed in these early rounds of the counter-offensive?

And then secondly on the dam, what can you say now about the attack on the dam and whether it was indeed Russia? And what can you share about what you know?

MS. SINGH: Sure. Thanks, Tara, for the question. So on the report that 16 vehicles were destroyed, I've seen the reports but I can't corroborate some of the video and imagery coming out of that. So we're going to continue to monitor that but I just wouldn't be able to confirm the reports that the -- at least what we're seeing from Russians of putting out those imagery.

In terms of the dam, we're continuing to assess who, if anyone, is responsible for destroying the dam. We don't have -- we just don't have anything additional right now to provide. I know that's something that the Ukrainians are continuing to look into.

It's -- we've seen this type of behavior before from Russians, of destroying critical infrastructure, but on this case, when it comes to the dam specifically, I just don't have more information at this moment.

Q: Okay. And then just a follow-up on the vehicles --

MS. SINGH: Sure.

Q: -- if those reports are true, does this line up with what the Pentagon was kind of planning for as far as losses? And is there a plan in place to help backfill some of that for Ukraine?

MS. SINGH: Well, I think, here in this building, we were always going to assess that there was going to be damages and casualties of capabilities and systems that have been provided to the Ukrainians. I don't know that there's going to be a backfill of a -- like, one-to-one ratio, but as you're seeing today just with our announcement of our 40th presidential drawdown authority, you're seeing continued support go to Ukraine in their fight against the Russians to take back their sovereign territory.

Again, I don't think -- I don't know that it'd be a one-to-one ratio every time, but we are -- something that went into our calculations when we provided this equipment to the Ukrainians is that there could be battlefield losses and damages as the fight continues. And so this is just one of many packages that we've announced. You saw last week, we rolled out a USAI package, and on -- not tomorrow -- on Thursday, the Secretary and the Chairman will be meeting in person the -- hosting the Ukrainian Defense Contact Group where, again, that's another discussion for allies and partners to decide and to figure out and hear from the Ukrainians themselves of what else they need on the battlefield.

Oren?

Q: So a follow-up to Tara's question on the Bradley's and the Strykers being provided now. Certainly the timing certainly seems to line up. The counteroffensive begins, and suddenly you're providing armored vehicles again. Is that intentional that now that Ukraine will suffer and has suffered some losses on the battlefield, you are providing these to continue support for the offensive or are you saying that was coincident to the timing, lined up like that?

MS. SINGH: Well, I mean, we consider presidential drawdown packages a few weeks out. They don't -- they're not something that happens, you know, two or three days beforehand. Packages are something that we have to consider what we're pulling off of our shelves in order to give the Ukrainians, and how long that will take.

And so I wouldn't say that, you know, each package is timed directly for what you alluded to, but you know, as President Zelenskyy said, they have -- they're continuing to engage in offensive operations. I'll let the Ukrainians speak to that. But in terms of this package, this is something that meets the priorities of the Ukrainians. Armor, artillery, air defense -- these are all priorities that they've laid out and something that will be continued to be discussed at the Contact Group on Thursday.

Great. Oh, Idrees, and then I'll --

Q: Just going back to last week, when there was a press conference and General Ryder was asked about reports about China setting up a spy base in Cuba, and he said, "We are not aware of China and Cuba developing any type of spy stations," and then was further asked, "Have you seen China set up any military base in Cuba?" He said, "Not that I'm aware of at this time." So was he not aware of what had happened in the Trump administration, or was it an attempt to mislead reporters?

MS. SINGH: It was certainly not an attempt to mislead reporters by any means, and General Ryder, I believe what he was referring to was the reporting that had come out that day, the Wall Street Journal story that had outlined the -- and I'm paraphrasing here, but the idea that China was setting up a type of base near Cuba, a new one.

As we've said from the podium many times, you've heard the Secretary say this many times, it's no secret that the PRC wants to set up further infrastructure in the Western hemisphere and to expand their capabilities. I mean, just recently, earlier this year, we were talking about a Chinese spy balloon. So it's not a secret that they want to expand their capabilities here, but I -- in no means was General Ryder trying to mislead in any way. He was directly referring to the Wall Street Journal report that had come out earlier that afternoon or morning.

Q: (inaudible) the question was, have you seen China set up any military bases in Cuba? And he said, "Not that I'm aware of at this time." I'm just curious. Was it something that -- I guess what I'm getting at is, did the White House direct Pentagon to say what it said on June 8th?

MS. SINGH: No, I mean, we can -- we, of course, coordinated with the White House when we saw the report, and this is something that happens pretty naturally whenever there's reporting on very sensitive intelligence in a story. It's -- all the interagencies, they work together and coordinate on, you know, how best to approach it.

This was a -- this is very sensitive intelligence. You saw at the podium yesterday, John Kirby addressed this in great detail. At the time when the story broke, you know, the White House, us, we were able to provide what we could, and as we were able to declassify more information, we provided that.

Q: Last one. Why not just say, "We don't comment on intelligence," rather than saying, "No, we're not aware of any bases in Cuba"?

MS. SINGH: I think, again, what General Ryder was referring to on that was, I believe, the actual story itself, not just a blanket statement. I understand how when you read it back, it could look like that. But again, this was something that he was -- and I believe the question -- and I'd have to go back and check the transcript -- was about the reporting itself.

Yes, over here.

Q: Hi. Sam LaGrone with USNI News.

MS. SINGH: Hi.

Q: So I'm following up on the House markup yesterday that calls for abolishing CAPE. Today, a group of Senators sent a letter to the Secretary of the Navy over this amphib issue of hitting the floor at 31 amphibious ships. And so what's coming back from Congress is, why is CAPE defying the statutory requirements set by Congress, I think. And Sullivan's been pretty public about it, but this is a bipartisan issue that, why is this organization, CAPE, calling into question the statutory requirement put by -- put out by Congress to the point where the HASC bill was calling for abolishing the office altogether?

MS. SINGH: So thank you for the question. I'm just not -- I have not done my due diligence on the statutory obligation, so I'm going to have to take that question and get back to you on that.

I'm going to try going to the phones, and then I'll come back into the room. Howard Altman, War Zone?

Q: Thanks, Sabrina. I want to get back to the issue of the Bradleys and the other battlefield vehicle and equipment losses. Is the Pentagon tracking those losses? And can you tell me, is it part of the monitoring process, or is there some other way that the Pentagon has an idea of what's being lost in Ukraine in terms of, you know, what's lost on the battlefield?

MS. SINGH: Thanks, Howard. So we are in constant communication at all different levels with the Ukrainians, and of course, when it comes to presidential drawdown authorities and the packages that we put together, one of the things that we're doing is working with the Ukrainians to determine what they need to meet their requirements not just in the short term, but also long-term goals. So of course, one of the things that we would be discussing with the Ukrainians is loss of battlefield equipment, capabilities, anything not working, any systems not performing the way they should be. So there is a direct line of communication at all different levels here in this building with the Ukrainians.

(CROSSTALK)

MS. SINGH: I'm just going to take -- we have one last question on the phone, and then I'm going to come back in the room. Wafa, Al Hurra?

Okay, Lara?

Q: Thank you. I just want to follow up on Idrees' question.

MS. SINGH: Sure.

Q: And I want to just read from the DOD's transcript --

MS. SINGH: Okay.

Q: -- what was said during the briefing. The question was, "Have you seen China set up any military base in Cuba, or is there any plan afoot we're seeing elsewhere in the region that they have?" General Ryder says, "None that I'm aware of at this time." So my question is, is it a concern that DOD, intentionally or not, did provide wrong information from this podium to reporters and to the public? And what is being done to make sure that doesn't happen again?

MS. SINGH: So I would say that in terms of our relationship with the press, we certainly value this relationship. We believe in being transparent. We certainly believe in being able to provide you the information that we have when we can, if we can. And I think that doesn't just go for DOD. I think you heard the White House speak to that yesterday, as well.

You heard General Ryder say at the time -- I sorry, I'm paraphrasing here -- but I believe, when he was -- and I know from speaking with him what he was referring to was the report itself, the Wall Street Journal story. I don't think there was any intention by any means to mislead from this podium or from this building.

And again, we work really, really hard to try and provide you with the information that we can. And of course, if we get something wrong, we will certainly correct that, and I think you've seen me do that with you and other reporters here. We make mistakes, absolutely, but we will certainly take accountability for that.

And I know that what General Ryder was, again, referring to and was speaking to was the actual Wall Street Journal story that came out that morning -- or afternoon.

Q: So did he give wrong information or did he not do that?

MS. SINGH: Well, I think you saw -- on the story? I don't think he was giving the wrong information. I think you saw the White House speak to that yesterday. I think there are points that were -- what's the right word -- being conflated within the story that were further clarified, that you saw at the podium yesterday at the White House, and I will just leave it at that.

Okay, great. Ryo?

Q: Thank you. I want to ask you about the PDA for. A month ago, the Secretary said the new security assistance package will come soon. So is there anything that has this new package on hold for now?

MS. SINGH: So again, I don't have any specific announcements to make today. You've heard the Secretary say that the U.S. will be providing significant additional security assistance to Taiwan and it will be through a presidential drawdown authority.

But in terms of an announcement, that's just not something that I have today, but our commitment to Taiwan of course has not wavered. This is part of our longstanding commitment under the Taiwan Relations Act.

(CROSSTALK)

MS. SINGH: Sure.

Q: Secretary Blinken is traveling to Beijing soon, reportedly. So does the content or timing of this package could change depending on the result of Secretary Blinken's trip to Beijing?

MS. SINGH: No, our timing is when -- we're ready to announce. I don't have any updates unfortunately today but when -- if I do, I will certainly let you know. Great.

Yes?

Q: Thanks. Liam Cosgrove with The Gray Zone. So a former DOD contract negotiator, Shay Assad, came out, spoke with 60 Minutes, and has accused arms manufacturers, as well as the government, of price gouging for Ukraine war-related purchases, with -- pointing out specifically that Lockheed and Boeing are reaching margins as high as 40 percent. He pointed to one electrical switch that allegedly cost $10,000 when the market rate was about $325.

So how would you respond to these negotiations? These were from last month. And, you know, is it possible certain groups are taking advantage of the humanitarian crisis over there in Ukraine?

MS. SINGH: I would certainly hope that people do not take advantage of the war that is happening in Ukraine and the war that Russia started when it invaded its sovereign neighbor. We do everything that we can in this building to account not only for taxpayer dollars and authorities given to us by Congress, which we are very grateful for, but we intend to use those funds diligently, and you're seeing that in Ukraine. You're seeing us continuing our end use monitoring and working with the Ukrainians to make sure that we're keeping track of equipment on the battlefield, and that's flowing into the country. Okay --

Q: Are you aware of those specific allegations, the 40 percent margins or the --

MS. SINGH: I'm not aware. I have not seen this interview that you're referring to. I'm sorry.

Anyone else? Yeah?

Q: Sabrina, are you able to offer any more details on the injuries in the Syrian helicopter crash at CENTCOM? I think CENTCOM reported something to the tune of 22 folks injured. Can you give any more details on the nature of those injuries?

MS. SINGH: So on June 11th, as you're aware, CENTCOM did put out a statement that, in northeastern Syria, there was a crash that injuries -- I believe -- there were 22 service members that were injured. They are receiving treatment for their injuries, and 10 have been evacuated out of the CENTCOM AOR.

In terms of further details, I can tell you that this was an MH-47 Chinook that had a problem with one rotor that caused a hard landing during takeoff. Again, this is under investigation, so we will hopefully learn more soon, but as of right now, all of the service members involved in that crash are in stable condition.

Q: Okay. And can you commit to giving us an update on their situation when you can?

MS. SINGH: Yeah, I can do that, no problem, and I will make a note.

Okay, we can wrap that up if that's -- if no one else has any questions. Okay, great. Thanks, all.

https://www.defense.gov/News/Transcripts/Transcript/Article/3427251/

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June 13, 2023

By C. Todd Lopez , DOD News

Tiger Team Recommendations Aim to Optimize Foreign Military Sales

The process by which the United States sells military hardware and services to foreign nations has frequently been cited as a "pain point" by American partners and allies. But recommendations from a recently concluded tiger team aim to fix that and other issues with the foreign military sales process.

Last year, Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III tasked a tiger team to look into how to improve the FMS process, said Sasha Baker, the deputy undersecretary of defense for policy. Now that team has concluded its work and has delivered a variety of recommendations, which Baker said fall into six broad categories.

Chief among those is improving the department's understanding of ally and partner requirements.

"In other words," Baker said, "if we put good information into the system at the front, we know it's more likely to result in a positive outcome on the back end."

Recommendations that fall into this category include changing the way DOD organizes, trains and equips for security cooperation. Here, Baker said, the department plans, for instance, to establish a Defense Security Cooperation Service which is on par with the Defense Attache Service.

"One of the recommendations of the tiger team that the secretary has approved is that we are going to establish a defense security cooperation service," said Baker. "[It's] focused on security cooperation officers to make sure that they get the training and the professional development that they need to make good choices and decisions."

Enabling more efficient reviews for the release of technology is another broad area where the tiger team found opportunities for improvement, Baker said.

"There are oftentimes technology disclosure concerns that can hold up the process if we're not careful," she said.

That effort involves, in part, reviewing and updating relevant department policies to create more effective, repeatable systems and processes for technology foreign disclosure and communications security release decisions.

The department also needs to focus on providing allies and partners with "relevant priority capabilities," Baker said.

This involves, among other things, developing a methodology to facilitate non-programs of record; developing enterprise standards and timelines for non-programs of record FMS cases; and the development of prioritization schedules for the delivery of high demand/low supply munitions for the U.S. and partner nations.

Baker also said that what the tiger team recommends, and what is implemented, must be sustained  and going forward, the FMS program must undergo continuous process improvement to keep it relevant and efficient.

"We very much envision this process not as having been a sprint that then goes away, but that there will actually be a tail to this in terms of continuous process improvement and looking to ensure that the recommendations that we're making are implemented over time," she said.

Part of that continuous process improvement involves establishment of an FMS "continuous process improvement board," which Baker said would act as an enduring governance structure within the department. The department will also establish clearer business processes and metrics for each stage of the FMS process.

"We're committing ... to a continuous process improvement initiative," Baker said. "It will involve using modern technology to collect data to establish metrics. We are, I think, collectively committed to embracing a more data-driven approach to FMS, and we're establishing a governance board that [Radha Plum, who has a doctorate in economics], and I will chair that regularly checks in on our priority cases to ensure that we're making progress and that looks at the recommendations from the tiger team to ensure that we're making progress there as well."

Two additional areas tiger team recommendations focused on include accelerating acquisition, contracting support and expanding defense industrial base capacity.

"To advance FMS acquisition prioritization and award timelines for allies and partners, the department's going to do a couple of things," said Deputy Undersecretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment Radha Plumb. "The first is ... we need to establish contract award standards and metrics. That allows us to internally have accountability and track progress on the timelines and delivery, and then work with our partners in industry to meet those standards with clear data-driven acquisition processes."

Plumb also said the department would develop process maps to monitor the FMS prioritization and award process, including for non-program of records cases.

Finally, she said, the department is looking at how it can better enable and support exportability.

"There's a part of this that is production and the part that we would do regardless of where it's going and the part that we need to look at in terms of how we transfer to allies and partners," she said. "We want to compress both sets of timelines."

A big part of expanding defense industrial base capacity, Plumb said, involves incorporating ally and partner requirements into the demand signal for the industrial base, so that both can be considered together rather than separately.

"We're also working to develop a comprehensive strategy to expand and incentivize defense industrial base investments in production capacity," she said. "That includes building surge capability for high-demand/low-supply platforms, systems and munitions and services. To do that we're making use of multi-year contracts and a range of special authorities that Congress has given us that allow us to accelerate acquisition pathways."

Baker added that improvement of the FMS process is not just a DOD effort, because the department is not alone in implementing FMS. The State Department is also heavily involved in foreign military sales.

"We are also planning to continue to partner with our Department of State colleagues, recognizing that we own a piece of the FMS system, but ultimately we work together with the State Department to execute the entirety of it," she said. "And I think we are well aligned in that we all want to deliver a faster and more efficient FMS system."

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EP Plenary: Speech by High Representative/Vice-President Josep Borrell on the situation in Lebanon

European External Action Service (EEAS)

13.06.2023

Strasbourg, 13/06/2023

EEAS Press Team

Speech delivered by Commissioner for Crisis Management, Janez Lenarcic, on behalf of HR/VP Josep Borrell

Check against delivery!

President, Honourable Members of the European Parliament,

Today's debate is a timely opportunity to discuss the situation of Lebanon, particularly in view of tomorrow's important vote by the Lebanese Parliament to elect a President which is its 12th attempt.

Also, this debate comes right before the opening of the 7th Brussels Conference on international assistance to the Syrian people and the future of Syria [VII Brussels Conference on 'Supporting the future of Syria and the region].

Lebanon remains an essential partner, not only in its own right but also for broader regional stability.

This is why we have been strongly engaged on Lebanon since the beginning of the crisis, in late 2019.

We deployed an Election Observation Mission (EU EOM Lebanon) during the May 2022 elections, headed by the honorable member of this house, Mr Holvenyi [Gyorgy].

We developed a people-centered bilateral cooperation focusing on the most vulnerable. We have maintained our assistance to Syrian refugees and to the Lebanese hosting communities alike.

We have increased our humanitarian assistance. I personally visited Lebanon in March and announced a new package worth 60 million in humanitarian aid.

The European Union has also consistently raised the issue of accountability at the UN Human Rights Council after the tragic Beirut harbour explosion in of 2020, and we have mitigated the impact of the Russian invasion of Ukraine through enhanced food security and resilience support.

But, we are very disappointed and concerned, at the lack of developments on the Lebanese side. Lebanon's democratic institutions are grinding to a halt one after the other. First, the government, which is in a caretaker capacity since May 2022. Then, the President, whose seat is vacant since the end of October. And now, even at the municipal level. The May local elections have been postponed again and no new date has been set.

All this institutional erosion is unfolding against the background of a collapsing economy, a plummeting currency and a derelict banking sector. And yet, there is no real sense of urgency among the Lebanese ruling elite. A staff-level agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) is now more than a year old, and there is are no signs of its endorsement by political leaders.

In this context, the European Union should remain engaged in the Lebanese crisis and ready to use all instruments at its disposal. Member States will review the EU Framework of restrictive measures on Lebanon at the end of July, and all options are on the table.

We have addressed Lebanon at the October, November and, most recently, at the April Foreign Affairs Councils to stress the urgency of breaking the double gridlock - both institutional and economic. Lebanon cannot afford to compound economic meltdown with institutional vacuum.

The enactment of long-overdue economic and governance reforms under a fully-fledged IMF programme remains the top priority. It is a prerequisite for any possible macro-financial support not only from the European Union, but also from many other like-minded partners.

Consequently, swift presidential elections, government formation, and municipal elections are more essential than ever.

The situation of Syrian refugees in Lebanon is also of great concern. The European Union recognises Lebanon's generosity and remains committed to helping Lebanon in hosting refugees.

It is important to underline, that our assistance actually benefits both the refugees and the Lebanese host communities, to an equal extent. For example, when we fund a medical centre for refugees, it will also serve the host communities.

To this aim, the 7th Brussels Conference on "Supporting the future of Syria and the region" is meeting tomorrow to mobilise further international support. Last year's Conference raised a total amount of 6.4 billion. We hope we can secure even more international funding this year.

Finally, the return of the refugees needs to be handled in a cooperative spirit, without being politicised and in line with United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) requirements, notably the principles of non-refoulement and voluntariness.

I thank you for your attention and I am looking forward to the debate.

Link to the video (starting from 00:37): https://audiovisual.ec.europa.eu/en/video/I-242377

Closing remarks

Mr President, Honourable Members,

I think that this debate today testifies to our continued joint engagement on the situation in Lebanon.

Let me comment on some of the key issues that have been raised by you.

On the investigation into the Beirut port explosion, we believe that the investigation that has been initiated by the authorities in Lebanon should be impartial, should be credible, should be transparent, as well as independent. And yes, we are aware of the political stumbling blocks that are delaying this investigation. We have repeatedly called for a swift resolution, and we will continue to do so, including at the Human Rights Council Session.

On corruption in Lebanon: yes, this is a serious issue, as pointed out by many of you. And, as it was stated in the December 2020 Council Conclusions, our cooperation policy with Lebanon is already contingent on the implementation of the necessary reforms, including in the area of fighting corruption.

Any additional EU cooperation, such as, for instance, macro-financial assistance, depends on prior conclusion of the IMF Agreement.

Some of our cooperation continues, of course, but that cooperation is people-centered. It focuses on social sectors like health or education, and it targets the most vulnerable parts of the population, and as such, of course, it cannot be curtailed or conditioned further.

Moreover, this existing and ongoing cooperation is channeled outside administrative structures, mainly through the UN agencies, World Bank and international and local non-governmental organisations. Of course, we closely monitor the use of these funds.

On Syrian refugees, and their possible return: we - I repeat - fully recognise Lebanon's efforts as a host country, and we have been providing sustained cooperation to mitigate this burden. And we are mobilising again - the international community this year, tomorrow and the day after tomorrow at the 7th Brussels Conference on international assistance to Syrian people and host communities [VII Brussels Conference on 'Supporting the future of Syria and the region']. I repeat: our support benefits not just Syrian refugees, but also host communities [such as those in] Lebanon.

And of course, the European Union agrees that, ultimately, refugees should go back to their country whenever conditions allow for their safe and voluntary return. This should be done according to the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) criteria and - I repeat - on a voluntary basis.

However - and this is a very important point that I want to make again - the presence of refugees should not be blamed for all the economic woes Lebanon is suffering. The current Lebanon crisis stems mainly from self-inflicted economic and financial mismanagement.

On possible targeted individual sanctions, the existing EU framework of restrictive measures on Lebanon allows for this possibility. And as I stated in my introduction, the situation will be reviewed shortly - before the end of July - within the European Union Council, in the light of the latest developments. I repeat that all options are on the table, especially in case of further deterioration of the situation.

As for the specific case of the governor of the Central Bank of Lebanon, Mr [Riad] Salameh, I wish to note that international arrest warrants have already been issued by two Member States of the European Union.

To conclude, let me emphasise once again that the European Union will continue to follow the crisis in Lebanon very closely. All instruments at our disposal are being considered, but we need Lebanese leaders to do their share - and to do it urgently. More than ever, it is time for the Lebanese leadership to deliver, for the sake of their own population.

Thank you.

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President William Ruto has told Azimio leaders that the outlawed Mungiki group will not be allowed to operate in Kenya.

Speaking in Kirinyaga during the opening of the Kerugoya Referral Hospital, the head of State accused the opposition of using the outlawed group to advance its agenda.

He urged them to instead engage Kenyans on issues affecting them.

We as the government will not allow illegal groups to be created. I want to tell the opposition leaders who are trying to signal to us that they want to return back Mungiki so they can start use of bhang and other drugs, and if they feel it is that important first take your children to be among them, he said.

I want to promise you that those groups of Mungiki will not come back to Kenya, we know the kind of losses that they have brought into the nation. We cannot accept that in this time an error we have men who want to circumcise women who want to engage in drug abuse and illegal taxing of Kenyans, that will not happen in Kenya.

He continued by saying that those who are seeking to join in such activities and resurrect such groups to use them for political gain should instead meet with them to make plans for the growth of this nation.

Those who are trying to revive the Mungiki groups so you use for politics, please meet with us we plan on countrys development, not plans that can bring conflicts in the country, he added.

On his part, Deputy President Gachagua stated that leaders should have first recruited their own children to serve in the front line rather than recruiting young people from underprivileged homes.

He however, urged the youth not to be misused for political purposes.

Why are they using the children from the poor backgrounds to come and destroy property for other people, tax people illegally and even use illegal drugs, he added.

When we saw them currently singing at the DCI, the women in Mount Kenya were horrified and scared, but I tell you do not be scared at all because in our government will not allow such groups to revive again in the country.

Om May 25th police lobbed teargas to disperse former Mungiki leader Maina Njengas supporters who had camped outside Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) Headquarters.

Njenga had presented himself for questioning after two firearms and over 90 rolls of bhang were recovered at his home in Bahati, Nakuru County.

He was accompanied by Nark Kenya leader Martha Karua, DAP leader Eugene Wamalwa, former Muranga Governor Mwangi wa Iria and Roots party leader George Wajackoyah.

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On Tuesday 22nd May,the DCI announced that it had deployed a special team of detectives to find the ex-sect leader whom they say has gone into hiding following the incident.

DCI boss Mohamed Amin said three rounds of 9mm blank ammunition were also found hidden in one of the rooms in the house.

Detectives based in Nakuru County are looking for ex-Mungiki leader Maina Njenga, in relation to the recovery of two firearms and over 90 rolls of bhang, found at a home linked to him, a statement from the DCI indicated.

In the raid conducted at Ngomongo village in Dundori ward, the officers who arrested 8 suspects aged between 37 and 54 also found three rounds of 9mm blank ammunition hidden in one of the rooms. One of the firearms recovered was a home made pistol capable of firing while the other one was a Tokarev whose serial number had been defaced.
EU-Central Asia: 10th High-Level Political and Security Dialogue held in Astana

European External Action Service (EEAS)

13.06.2023

EEAS Press Team

The tenth round of the annual High-Level Political and Security Dialogue between the European Union and the countries of Central Asia (Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan) took place in Astana, Kazakhstan, on 13th June 2023.

The High Level Political and Security Dialogue took place shortly after the the second regional high-level meeting of the Heads of State of Central Asia and the President of the European Council on 2 June in Cholpon-Ata, Kyrgyzstan, which highlighted the new level of the interregional cooperation reached between Central Asia and the European Union.

The High-Level Political and Security Dialogue meeting provided an opportunity for the EU to reiterate its strong commitment to the region, which continues to be confronted to the repercussions of Russia's military aggression against Ukraine and the negative developments in Afghanistan. On this occasion, the EU reaffirmed its willingness to support all efforts aiming to intensify EU cooperation with Central Asia.

The EU reiterated its wish to step up cooperation with the region in the management of water-related challenges, energy and climate change and on connectivity, building on the outcomes of the EU-Central Asia Connectivity Conference in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, on 18 November 2022, and the EU-Central Asia Economic Forum in Astana, Kazakhstan, on 18 and 19 May 2023.

The participants exchanged views on a number of key issues, including counter-terrorism and violent extremism, drug trafficking and border management, and reviewed possibilities for reinforced cooperation in these areas. It was agreed to intensify common efforts between the EU and Central Asian states in these areas.

The High-Level Political and Security Dialogue reflects a shared interest of the EU and of the Central Asian countries to strengthen dialogue and cooperation on security issues. It also builds on the intensified levels of cooperation developed through the EU - Central Asia Strategy and the substantial EU cooperation programmes in the region.

During the Dialogue, participants discussed the preparation of the forthcoming EU-Central Asia Ministerial Meeting, which will provide an opportunity to advance inter-regional cooperation on common security challenges, connectivity, economic and trade, environment, water and climate, education, science and innovation issues, and people to people contacts, promoting deeper ties between the EU and Central Asia.

The meeting was held at the level of Deputy Ministers of Foreign Affairs, hosted by the Deputy Foreign Minister of Kazakhstan Mr Roman Vassilenko and chaired by Mr Enrique Mora, Deputy Secretary General for Political Affairs of the European External Action Service.

The High-Level Political and Security Dialogue is held regularly; the first Dialogue took place in 2013 in Brussels. The next round will be held in 2024.

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NATO Secretary General meets President Biden to prepare for the Vilnius Summit

NATO - North Atlantic Treaty Organisation

13 Jun. 2023

Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg met with US President Joe Biden at the White House on Tuesday (13 June 2023) to prepare for next month's NATO Summit in Vilnius.

The Secretary General thanked President Biden for his leadership and the U.S.'s commitment to NATO in the most dangerous security situation in a generation. He also thanked the U.S. Congress and the American people for their critical support to Ukraine. He said that the United States is leading the way in support for Ukraine, and that European Allies and Canada have also provided tens of billions of dollars of military, financial, and humanitarian aid. Mr Stoltenberg underscored that this support is making a difference on the battlefield now, as Ukraine pursues its counteroffensive and works to retake more territory.

The Secretary General said that at the NATO Summit in Vilnius next month, Allies will step up support to Ukraine for the long haul and further strengthen deterrence and defence. This will include a new and more ambitious defence investment pledge with 2 percent of GDP as a floor, not a ceiling. He also said he looks forward to welcoming Sweden as a full member of NATO as soon as possible.

While in Washington, the Secretary General met separately with Secretary of State Antony Blinken. Earlier on Tuesday, he also met Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell and a number of other US Senators.

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NATO and EU together for stability in Kosovo and the Western Balkans

NATO - North Atlantic Treaty Organisation

13 Jun. 2023

NATO Deputy Secretary General Mircea Geoana met today (13 June 2023) with Ambassador Miroslav Lajcak, EU Special Representative for the Belgrade-Pristina Dialogue and other Western Balkans issues, who recently visited Belgrade and Pristina. Ambassador Lajcak also briefed the North Atlantic Council on recent developments in northern Kosovo and the EU's current diplomatic efforts.

"The excellent, long-standing cooperation between NATO and the EU in the region continues to make a difference," Deputy Secretary General Geoana said. "NATO Headquarters, KFOR, Allies as well as the European Union and the OSCE have been tireless in their efforts to de-escalate the situation in northern Kosovo and bring both sides to the negotiation table, within the framework of the EU-led dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina," he added. Mr. Geoana recalled that "NATO has been committed to stability in the Western Balkans for decades; our KFOR mission on the ground, with well over 4,000 troops is the strongest demonstration of this commitment."

The NATO-led KFOR mission is taking all necessary actions to maintain a safe and secure environment and freedom of movement for all people living in Kosovo and continues to act impartially, in line with its UN mandate based on the United Nations Security Council Resolution 1244 of 1999. NATO reinforcements arrived in Kosovo on 5 June 2023, following the unprovoked violence in which a number of KFOR peacekeepers were injured. Around 500 Turkish service members from Turkiye's 65th mechanized infantry brigade make up the bulk of the NATO reinforcements. The Turkish Battalion will be deployed in Kosovo for as long as necessary. An additional battalion of NATO reserve forces has also been put on higher alert to be deployed if needed.

NATO also continues to support the EU-facilitated dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina, which is the only way to lasting peace and security in Kosovo and stability across the region.

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European countries join forces against undersea threats

Netherlands Ministry of Defence

News item | 13-06-2023

10 European countries are joining forces to better protect their critical infrastructure at sea. This was confirmed at the Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF) ministerial meeting that took place today at the Amsterdam Naval Barracks.

In a joint statement, the ministers agreed to more actively share their intelligence and monitoring information on maritime threats with each other. This will provide the JEF countries with an improved common picture. They have also vouched to improve coordination of their maritime activities. In addition, joint exercises will focus more on mitigating the threats to critical infrastructure both at sea and in the sea.

Cables, pipelines and wind farms

Minister Kajsa Ollongren: "Our critical undersea infrastructure could increasingly become a target. We have witnessed examples in recent months. For example, the Russian ships caught mapping wind farms in the North Sea. At the national and international level we must step up our efforts, together with industry and other armed forces, in order to better protect our cables, pipelines and wind farms. It is vitally important that we, as northern European countries, have made these arrangements."

Ministers also discussed the war in Ukraine. They announced that Ukraine will receive an air defence package worth 92 million euros. This package will be delivered and paid for from the International Fund for Ukraine (IFU) in the coming months. The Netherlands is contributing  100 million to the fund set up by Great Britain last year.

In addition, a scenario exercise was conducted to demonstrate how the JEF countries should deal with possible incidents and threats. The scenario was designed to develop from an incident in peacetime into a crisis with a role for NATO.

Cooperative partnership

The JEF is a military partnership established to complement NATO and capable of conducting various military activities. The JEF focuses primarily on northern Europe. This covers the area from the North Atlantic in the west to the High North and the Baltic Sea region to the east. The JEF is led by the United Kingdom. Other participating nations are: Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Norway and Sweden.

The JEF has been operational since 2018.

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China is requiring Tibetan students to take college entrance exams in Mandarin only

Critics say move is aimed at erasing Tibetan culture and Sinicizing the region

By Sangyal Kunchok for RFA Tibetan 2023.06.13 -- Tibetan students who took China's annual college entrance exam over the weekend had to do so completely in Mandarin, likely putting many at a disadvantage, residents in Tibet told Radio Free Asia.

The exams, held from June 7-9 across China, will go a long way toward determining the fates of more than 13 million students.

In previous years, ethnic minorities, including Tibetans, had been allowed to take the test in their native languages, but this year marks the first that the test was given only in Mandarin. Also, ethnic minorities no longer get five extra minutes to complete the test as they had in the past.

The Mandarin-only policy for the test is concurrent with other controversial educational policies meant to establish Mandarin as the medium of instruction within Tibetan schools-which Tibetan activists say is part of Beijing's plan to eliminate Tibetan culture and Sinicize the region.

"In 2022, the Chinese government imposed the Model 2 Education System under which Mandarin was made the primary medium of instruction in all the primary and secondary schools across Golog, Kardze and Qinghai," a Tibetan resident of Tibet told RFA's Tibetan Service on condition of anonymity for security reasons.

"Now beginning this year, the Chinese government has imposed Mandarin as the medium for college entrance exams."

Opponents to the Model 2 Education system argue that the policy will destroy Tibetan language and culture, and it has no basis in law.

"Due to the sudden shift on the Chinese government's education reforms, Tibetan students are not as well prepared and proficient enough in Mandarin to compete with [Mandarin native speaker]students who have always been learning in Mandarin," the resident said. "This is a disadvantage for Tibetan students over [native Mandarin speaking] students who score more easily and get admission in college. Hence, many Tibetan students will not get into good colleges."

Removing the extra time for ethnic minority students is also problematic, another resident, who declined to be named, told RFA.

"[They] used to get five extra minutes, but now with the reforms, these extra minutes are revoked," the second resident said. "These reforms have made it near impossible for Tibetan students to score well to get into college, and without a proper degree, it is impossible to get a decent job."

The trend could be dangerous for the entire Tibetan community, the second resident said.

"We will see an incredible increase in the number of Tibetan students who cannot attend college and pursue a higher education."

China's educational reforms are a contradiction of its law on Regional National Autonomy, Pema Gyal, a researcher at the London-based Tibet Watch advocacy and monitoring group.

"The law states that minority schools should, if possible, use textbooks printed in their own languages, and lessons should be taught in those languages, and this contradicts with what the government is doing right now," said Pema Gyal. "This is an attempt to Sinicize the education system in Tibet and therefore so many Tibetan students are not able to pursue higher education."

Translated by Tenzin Dickyi. Edited by Eugene Whong.

Copyright 1998-2023, RFA. Used with the permission of Radio Free Asia, 2025 M St. NW, Suite 300, Washington DC 20036. For any commercial use of RFA content please send an email to: mahajanr@rfa.org. RFA content June not be used in a manner which would give the appearance of any endorsement of any product or support of any issue or political position. Please read the full text of our Terms of Use.

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Montagnard religious groups say they weren't involved in attacks on police stations

Vietnamese authorities say more arrests have brought the number of detained suspects to 45.

By RFA Vietnamese 2023.06.13 -- Religious and civil organizations representing Vietnam's Montagnard people said they weren't involved in armed attacks on two police stations that left nine people dead over the weekend.

Sunday's attack took place in Dak Lak province in the remote Central Highlands - a region that's home to some 30 tribes of indigenous peoples known collectively as Montagnards.

Two state newspapers, VnExpress and Cong Thuong, published detailed information about the incident, saying that at dawn on Sunday, around 40 people wearing camouflage vests split into two groups to attack the two police stations in the Ea Tieu and Ea Ktur communes.

Police on Tuesday updated the number of people arrested in the attacks to 45. Two people surrendered to police and 10 others were arrested on Monday night, according to a Vietnamese Ministry of Public Security update.

The ministry used the phrase "the group causing insecurity and disorder at the People's Committees of Ea Tieu and Ea Ktur communes" to refer to the attackers.

A joint letter issued Monday night by a group of Dak Lak government agencies and organizations strongly condemned the attacks and called on the public "not to post or share related information that has not been verified."

It also urged people "to stay vigilant and not 'listen to, believe in, or follow" reactionary elements and hostile forces who take advantage of the situation to create distortion and entice people to oppose local authorities, causing political security in the area."

'Montagnard people are commoners'

The Bangkok-based Montagnard Stands for Justice group said on Facebook that the organization had no connection with the incident and wasn't affiliated with any groups or individuals assisting in the use of violence.

The organization, whose founders are political refugees in Thailand and the United States, also said they were concerned that any armed uprising would hinder their efforts to advocate for religious freedom in Vietnam.

Frustration in the region has grown after decades of government surveillance, land disputes, economic hardship and crackdowns on unofficial churches.

Pastor Nguyen Cong Chinh, the U.S.-based co-founder of the Vietnam Evangelical Church of Christ, told Radio Free Asia that he didn't think any Montagnards were involved in the attacks.

"Montagnard people are commoners who live with their religious faith," he said. "When their religious faith or land is violated, they, of course, will have to voice up. However, I don't think Montagnard people in Dak Lak province were capable enough to organize such an armed force of 30 to 40 people."

He said he was able to contact church members in the area where the attacks occurred on Sunday. They expressed confusion and said they didn't know what was happening, he said.

The executive director of North Carolina-based Dega Central Highlands Organization, Y-Duen Buondap, told RFA that his organization also wasn't involved in the attacks.

"We don't have any members involved in these incidents," he said. "However, we have the information that the Montagnard people have rioted to demand their rights and interests, as they could not bear further suffering. They are suppressed, beaten, arrested and cornered daily."

Translated by Anna Vu. Edited by Matt Reed.

Copyright 1998-2023, RFA. Used with the permission of Radio Free Asia, 2025 M St. NW, Suite 300, Washington DC 20036. For any commercial use of RFA content please send an email to: mahajanr@rfa.org. RFA content June not be used in a manner which would give the appearance of any endorsement of any product or support of any issue or political position. Please read the full text of our Terms of Use.

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Plan To Defuse Tensions In Northern Kosovo Presented As Arrest Made In Clash With Peacekeepers

By RFE/RL's Balkan Service June 13, 2023

Kosovar Prime Minister Albin Kurti on June 13 presented a five-point plan that includes the prospect of fresh local elections in northern Kosovo and a reduction in the presence of special police to defuse tensions in the region.

Kurti's announcement at a news conference came as Interior Minister Xhelal Svecla announced the arrest of a suspect in an attack on KFOR members two weeks ago.

Svecla identified the man as Milun Milenkovic-Lunet and said he was the main organizer of the attack on KFOR forces and the Kosovar police in Zvecan.

Milenkovic-Lunet is one of the leaders of criminal groups "that have been terrorizing our citizens for years, attacking members of the Kosovo Police and the institutions of the Republic of Kosovo," Svecla said.

Three Kosovar police officers were injured during the operation to arrest Milenkovic-Lunet, he said.

Tensions flared earlier on June 13 when a group of Serbs gathered in North Mitrovica to protest the arrest. Kosovar police in anti-riot gear were present, and soldiers with the KFOR peacekeeping force were also in the vicinity.

The Serbs dispersed after Kosovar police began to withdraw. According to RFE/RL journalists, this was requested by a member of the American KFOR contingent.

Some 30 peacekeepers and 52 Serbs were injured in clashes two weeks ago after ethnic Albanian mayors took office following a local election that Serbs boycotted.

The ethnic Albanian mayors were installed with the help of Kosovar police in three towns with overwhelming ethnic Serbian majorities -- Zvecan, Leposaviq, and Zubin Potok -- following by-elections in April with a turnout of under 3.5 percent amid the Serb boycott.

Kurti, who has been under pressure from key Western supporters of Kosovo's independence, said the five-point plan would contribute to calming the tensions.

He said he met with the ambassadors of the United States, Britain, France, Germany, and Italy to convey the proposal, which he had previously conveyed to EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell.

Kosovo will "coordinate with all the actors and announce early elections in four municipalities in the north," Kurti told a press conference after meeting with the five ambassadors, whose countries form the Quint group.

Holding new elections is a request of the international community, which condemned the decision of the Kosovo authorities to forcibly take over municipal buildings in the north.

The United States and European Union have called on Kurti to withdraw the mayors, remove special police used to install them, and uphold a 2013 deal for an association of autonomous Serb municipalities in the region.

Kurti said that "violent (Serb) groups have been withdrawn from Kosovo territory [and therefore] the presence of Kosovo police troops in three municipal buildings will be downsized."

He said he had presented his plan to EU and U.S. envoys and called for a follow-up meeting between Serbian and Kosovo officials in Brussels.

Officials in Serbia have demanded as part of EU- and U.S.-mediated talks over the past decade that Pristina fulfill the 2013 Brussels agreement to establish an association of Serb municipalities to represent the majority-Serb communities.

Kurti said nothing during his press conference about setting up the association, which would ensure greater autonomy for the Serb-majority area. He has resisted implementing the deal to create the association, citing fears that it would spur the region to seek to rejoin Serbia.

With reporting by Reuters

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/northern-kosovo-plan-arrest- clashes/32457887.html

Copyright (c) 2023. 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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UK to Boost Number of Troops in Kosovo Ahead of NATO-Led Drills

Sputnik News

20230613

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The United Kingdom will increase several times the number of its troops deployed within the NATO-led Kosovo Force (KFOR) in self-proclaimed Kosovo to hold exercises in 2023, UK Deputy Defense Minister James Heappey said on Tuesday.

There are currently 41 UK personnel based in the region.

"Our contribution to KFOR this year will rise to 330 personnel from August to October once again as part of KFOR's Operational Rehearsal," Heappey said, adding that the UK will continue to contribute to KFOR until at least 2026.

UK servicemen joined the peacekeeping contingent of KFOR in 1999 following the prolonged conflict in the region. The mission includes military from about 30 countries.

Earlier in the month, 500 Turkish servicemen started arriving in Kosovo following the escalation of the already tensed relations between Kosovo Serbs and Kosovo Albanians at the end of May, which resulted in clashes that left dozens of people injured.

 Sputnik

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Denmark Mulls Buying Back Submarines After Hiatus of Nearly Two Decades

Sputnik News

20230613

Igor Kuznetsov

The renewed submarine capacity is said to deal Denmark a "unique hand" regarding its presence in both the Baltic Sea and the Arctic, where the diminutive nation has far-reaching ambitions with the help of Greenland - the world's largest island and a possession of Denmark.

The Nordic nation of Denmark may be about to buy back submarines in a bid to bolster its maritime presence as part of the recent military investment.

Denmark ditched its remaining fleet of submarines in 2004, but a lively debate on whether to renew its underwater capacity is well under way as part of the talks over the Danish military's future requirements, according to a statement from Michael Aastrup Jensen, chairman of Denmark's foreign policy committee, speaking at an event at the Hudson Institute in New York.

According to Jensen, Danish MPs are actively considering whether to buy them in "close cooperation" with "friends."

Jensen made no secret of the fact that Denmark is aiming to reinforce its military, as he stressed Denmark's "strategic" position, which allows it to keep track of Russia's Baltic Fleet vessels sailing from St Petersburg or Kaliningrad.

Danish experts have already said that a fleet of submarines will deal Denmark a "unique hand" in its game both the Baltic Sea and the Arctic, where the nation of 5.8 million has ambitious plans because of Greenland, the world's largest island and a possession of Denmark. Several parties in the liberal-conservative "blue" bloc have backed restocking its submarine supplies.

One of the main reasons not to buy submarines is because they take such a big chunk out of Denmark's relatively modest defense budget. However, the possibility of leasing submarines for an extended period of time has also been considered.

The recent round of submarine discussions coincide with discussions about replacement of patrol vessels in the Royal Danish Navy as part of the Denmark's so-called Defense Agreement, which sets out a list of acquisitions over a 10-year span. In 2022, Copenhagen pledged massive investment of DKK 40 billion ($5.8 million) in new naval ships to be built "within the next few years", while committing to a stronger "security of supply".

A Shift in Denmark's Defense Strategy?

More broadly, under the pretext of the ongoing conflict in Ukraine, Denmark has introduced a massive shift in its defense posture. First, it terminated its EU military opt-out clause and joined the union's security policy. Second, it announced a huge increase in defense spending, going from 1.35 percent of the GDP to NATO's coveted 2 percent mark in a single year.

Third, Denmark emerged as one of Kiev's most active backers per capita, contributing everything from arms to finance and training. Among other things, Copenhagen is part of the European Leopard main battle tank coalition for Ukraine and has agreed to donate all 19 of its Caesar artillery systems. More recently, it has backed plans for F-16 fighter jets to be sent to Kiev and placed itself at the helm of the training the coalition together with the Netherlands. Fourth, Denmark has shifted its overseas presence from faraway areas such as parts of the Middle East to forward presence in the Baltic States. Lastly, Danish PM Mette Frederiksen has been seriously considered as NATO's new boss as replacement for Jens Stoltenberg.

However, Denmark's military plans may be hemmed by a drastic lack of personnel and an apparent shortage of funds, which already resulted in unpopular measures such as abandoning a centuries-old Christian holiday in a bid to replenish the war chest scraped bare.

 Sputnik

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The national government will work with county governments to transform healthcare in the country.

President William Ruto said the national government will support the devolved units in equipping their health facilities.

He said the government, through Parliament, will establish a Facility Improvement Fund that will ensure resources allocated to medical care are not diverted to other programmes.

"The Fund will ensure our hospitals have sufficient drugs and are adequately equipped," he said.

The President made the remarks on Tuesday during the opening of Kerugoya Level 5 County Referral Hospital Medical Complex in Kirinyaga County.

He said the national and county governments have agreed to form the Kenya Health Human Resources Advisory Council to address disputes between the government and health workers.

"We want to ensure that we have an avenue of resolving health workers' issues," he said.

The President said the government will also equip and standardise the training of community health promoters to ensure quality healthcare at the grassroots.

He insisted that the health function will remain a devolved function, explaining that it has been well managed by the counties.

Present were Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua, Cabinet Secretary Susan Nakhumicha, Governors Ann Waiguru, Johnson Sakaja, and Muthomi Njuki, MPs Mary Maingi (Mwea), George Kariuki (Ndia), Joseph Gitari (Kirinyaga Central), among others. - Presidential Communication Service
The International Residual Mechanism continues to implement its mandate in a timely and effective manner: UK Statement at the Security Council

Statement by UK Legal Adviser Chanaka Wickremasinghe on the International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals.

13 June 2023

Thank you Madam President,

I would like to begin by acknowledging the sudden and tragic passing of Judge Ibanda-Nahamya and remembering her vital contribution to international justice. In particular in this respect I would point to her exemplary work on the Mladic and Kabuga cases. I also take this opportunity to welcome the appointment of Judge Mugambe and wish her the best in her new role.

Turning to today's briefing, let me thank President Gatti Santana and Prosecutor Brammertz for their reports and their statements today.

Under their guidance, over the past 6 months, the Mechanism has continued to implement its mandate in a timely and effective manner. Two very recent successes reflect this.

First, the final convictions of Jovica Stanisic and Franko Simatovic, which conclude the major ICTY cases and are landmarks in international justice. Their convictions, while many years after their offences, are of great importance in demonstrating the international community's continued fight against impunity for the most serious crimes.

The ICTY and IRMCT's judgments form part of the record of the suffering inflicted on civilians during the conflicts in the former Yugoslavia in the 1990s. We remember the victims and survivors and recognise the bravery of all those who have cooperated and supported the judicial processes.

Second, the recent arrest of Fulgence Kayishema. Having recently marked the Twenty-Ninth Commemoration of the 1994 Genocide Against the Tutsi in Rwanda, Mr Kayishema's arrest is a salient reminder of the Mechanism's ongoing commitment to securing justice. The United Kingdom would like to commend the Mechanism's Fugitive Tracking Team and the South African authorities for their success in this matter, and also to thank Eswatini and Mozambique for their important contributions to this success.

We also note the recent news that the Trial Chamber has decided Felicien Kabuga is no longer fit to stand trial and that it will deal with his case by way of an alternative finding procedure. We look forward to future updates on his case and underline our commitment to holding the perpetrators of the genocide against the Tutsi to account. As such, we are concerned by reports of ongoing denial of the Genocide. This is unacceptable, both in its impact on the victims and in hampering the international community's efforts to ensure the accountability of the perpetrators and to deter future atrocities.

While the international trial and appeal processes for the former Yugoslavia and Rwanda are coming to an end, processes at the domestic level are ongoing. We call on all countries to cooperate and to support these national processes in order to ensure justice for all. In this regard, continued reports from the Mechanism of some States blocking cooperation in the Western Balkans remain deeply concerning. It is also high time that Serbia arrest and transfer Petar Jojic and Vjerica Radeta to the Mechanism following years of requests.

Looking to the future, we note that the Mechanism continues to have much work to do even though the trial phase is very nearly over. There are 47 individuals serving sentences which need to be supervised, many witnesses who continue to need protection and domestic proceedings in the former Yugoslavia and Rwanda that need the Mechanism's support. It is nevertheless important that this remaining work is done as efficiently as possible, and so we welcome the President's focus on the future strategy of the Mechanism, as it transitions to becoming a fully residual institution. We commend the detailed work being done in this respect, and look forward to the Mechanism's proposals.

Finally, Madam President, I must say a few words in response to Russia's unfounded allegations against the UK authorities in relation to Karadzic. The UK is proud of its assistance to the IRMCT in the enforcement of sentence and encourages other States to do likewise.

Karadzic is not being mistreated in any way. He has exactly the same treatment as any other prisoner. He has been subject to some, time limited, proportionate, and lawful restrictions on his contacts externally, but this followed his misuse of these privileges to publish articles that push political messages, genocide denial, and glorification of war crimes. He has been informed of this. Underpinning all of this, is Karadzic's own failure and that of his supporters to recognise that he has been convicted of some of the most heinous crimes witnessed in Europe, including the Srebrenica genocide.

Thank you Madam President.

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Daily Press Briefing by the Office of the Spokesperson for the Secretary-General

Department of Public Information . News and Media Division . New York

13 June 2023

The following is a near-verbatim transcript of today's noon briefing by Stephane Dujarric, Spokesman for the Secretary-General.

** Disabilities

All right, I would like to wish you a happy Friday, but we are sadly far, far away from Friday. As you may have seen, the Secretary-General spoke at the opening of the sixteenth session of the Conference of States Parties to the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities this morning in the General Assembly Hall.

He said that the adoption of the Convention 17 years ago marked a landmark moment in our shared journey towards a more just and inclusive future for all. However, he warned, the progress we achieved is at risk of reversing.

We are confronting a cascade of crises  from the lingering effects of the COVID-19 pandemic to the worsening climate emergency, to the proliferation of conflicts, soaring humanitarian needs and a global cost-of-living crisis.

The Secretary-General highlighted three areas of progress.

First, we must improve digital accessibility for persons with disabilities. Second, we must ensure equal access to sexual and reproductive health services for persons with disabilities, and third, we must do more to ensure the full inclusion and active participation of persons with disabilities in their full diversity.

** Cement and Concrete

This morning, he also addressed a group of leaders of the Global Cement and Concrete Association; that was done by a pre-recorded video message, and they were meeting for their conference in Zurich, Switzerland.

As you may not know, or some of you may know, the concrete and cement industries account for 7 per cent of global emissions. The Secretary-General told members of the Association that "to put it simply: we need concrete pledges from the concrete industry." [laughter]

The message is important, but yes. [...] Sorry. It doesn't take much.

He urged them to commit to end the use of coal-fired power in cement production, to work with governments to develop policies, regulation and investments to speed-up decarbonization of their sector and to set ambitious emissions reduction targets and transition plans to take their industry to net zero.

And I just want to flag that this Thursday, the Secretary-General will be in this room to speak to you at 12:30 p.m. and this will be a climate-themed Q&A. He is meeting with a group of civil society representatives in the run-up to COP (Conference of Parties) Thursday morning; that will be a virtual meeting. And then he will come to speak to you at 12:30 about that. And I will do a brief brief and I will have to be on time at 12 just before that.

** Ukraine

Turning to Ukraine: We condemn an overnight air strike that hit a residential building and other civilian infrastructure in Kryvyi Rih, which killed and injured many civilians.

In the Kherson region, our humanitarian colleagues note that an attack this morning hit Bilozerka  where we delivered assistance just a couple of days ago and where people are heavily impacted by the destruction of the dam. One civilian was killed, according to our partners on the ground.

We stress that international humanitarian law must be respected, and constant care must be taken to spare civilians and civilian infrastructure from more harm.

Also on Ukraine, our colleagues from the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) say that following the destruction of the Kakhovka dam, another humanitarian convoy reached 7,000 people in the Ukraine-controlled Darivska community, which is just outside of Kherson city, that took place today. The four-truck convoy delivered water, food, hygiene kits and medical supplies to those who need it.

Also today, Denise Brown, who you know is our Humanitarian Coordinator in Ukraine, said that the UN has engaged with the Governments of Ukraine and the Russian Federation to ensure access to all civilians impacted by the devastating destruction of the dam.

Operationally, she said, we have boats, we have people, and we have supplies that are ready to go. However, she noted that the Russian Federation is yet to provide the safety guarantees we need to cross the front line to the left bank of the Dnipro River, including to Oleshky. These guarantees are necessary, obviously, for the safety of our team and not to create additional risks for the people we are trying to serve.

** Security Council

This morning, the head of the Peace Operations department, Jean-Pierre Lacroix, delivered remarks at the Security Council ministerial open debate on climate change, peace and security.

He told Council members that environmental degradation and extreme weather events amplified by climate change are increasingly challenging our ability to implement our peace mandates. Of the 16 countries that are the most climate vulnerable, nine of them host a UN field mission. These are the Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Sudan, South Sudan, Afghanistan, Somalia, Mali, Haiti and Yemen.

In line with our mandates, Mr. Lacroix said that we have identified a number of priority areas for action in field missions.

First, we are investing in our capacity of our peace operations to anticipate and address linkages between climate change, peace and security.

Second, we are reinforcing the mutual benefits of climate action and our work on peace and security.

And third, as the UN works to more proactively mitigate climate change, it is increasingly imperative to reduce our own environmental footprint.

Mr. Lacroix concluded by calling on the international community to continue to adapt together so that we can build a future where our efforts in conflict prevention, peacemaking, peacebuilding, and peacekeeping reinforce and are complemented by our efforts to address the current climate crisis.

** Syria

Quick note from Syria with not good news, and another example of what happens when we don't get the necessary for our humanitarian operations. The World Food Programme (WFP) today said that an unprecedented funding crisis will force the agency to cut assistance to 2.5 million of the 5.5 million people who rely on WFP for their basic food needs in the country, and that will start in July.

WFP is facing the challenge of increased needs at a pace that funding has not been able to match and the cost of delivering food assistance is at an unprecedented high because food and fuel prices have increased. With limited income opportunities to cushion the blow, WFP is deeply concerned that individuals removed from assistance will be further plunged into poverty and hunger, forcing them to rely increasingly on harmful coping mechanisms, such as child labour, early marriage or accumulating more debt.

WFP urgently requires a minimum of $180 million to avert these cuts and continue providing food assistance at its current level until the end of this year.

** Russian Federation

A travel advisory, or travel announcement rather: Rosemary DiCarlo, the Under-Secretary-General for Political and Peacebuilding Affairs, will be in Moscow on 15-16 June.

The visit is the latest by Ms. DiCarlo to the capital of a permanent member of the Security Council.

Ms. DiCarlo will meet with senior officials at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and other Government representatives to discuss a wide range of peace and security issues.

** Health

An estimated 8 million people die annually in 137 low- and middle-income countries from poor-quality health care; that's according to a new joint report by the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) and the World Health Organization (WHO).

Water, sanitation, and hygiene contribute to high-quality health care, in addition to waste and electricity services.

Yet, currently, just 12 per cent of all countries have more than 75 per cent of the funds needed to reach targets for water, sanitation and hygiene in health care facilities.

The report warns that as the risk of future pandemics, climate change, geopolitical insecurity and conflict increases, investment is more critical than ever.

** Migrants

Some pretty harrowing data released today by the International Organization for Migration (IOM) that shows that nearly 3,800 people died on migration routes within and from the Middle East and North Africa region last year; that's the highest number since 2017, when 4,255 deaths were recorded. The deaths recorded in 2022 in the region were 11 per cent higher than 2021.

On North African land routes, particularly on the perilous Sahara Desert crossing, 203 deaths were recorded, while an additional 825 deaths occurred on Middle Eastern land routes.

On sea routes from the region to Europe last year, an increasing number of deadly incidents took place after boats departed from Lebanon, and they were destined for Greece and Italy. IOM notes that the scarcity of official data and limited access to land routes for civil society and international organizations suggests that the actual number of deaths on migratory routes in the area is likely much higher than reported.

More information online.

** International Albinism Awareness Day

Today is the International Albinism Awareness Day.

As many of you know, albinism is a rare, non-contagious, genetically inherited difference present at birth.

People with albinism face multiple forms of discrimination worldwide. In some communities, erroneous beliefs and myths put the security and lives of persons with albinism at constant risk. And just to flag that this year's theme is "Inclusion Is Strength" to emphasize the importance of inclusion of the albinism community. And it's a very serious issue.

** Questions and Answers

Spokesman : Amelie?

Question : I have one follow-up and one question. On the Syrian WFP, do I understand correctly that the 2.5 million people you mentioned, they're going to be cut completely for food assistance?

Spokesman : That's how it is. Yes. Yeah.

Correspondent : Okay.

Spokesman : Yeah. But we'll put you in touch with WFP here. They'll give you more details.

Question : Okay. And on the Black Sea Grain Initiative, President [Vladimir] Putin just said that they are thinking about leaving the grain deal, accusing Ukraine to use the corridors to launch drones. Any comment on that?

Spokesman : I would refer you to what the Secretary-General said yesterday in answer to one of your colleague's questions  that our efforts to continue the Black Sea Grain Initiative, to continue our efforts to help Russian food and fertilizer out to market will continue and are continuing unabated, given the importance of both of these initiatives for the world.

Margaret Besheer?

Question : [inaudible]

Spokesman : That's okay. It's my job to decide. [laughter]

Question : Follow-up on that: So, can you just tell us how much USG DiCarlo's trip to Moscow has to do with the Black Sea Grain Initiative? I know it's not her main dossier, but she's going there at a critical time.

Spokesman : The trip is one that has been in the works for quite some time. She regularly travels to discuss with Member States conflict prevention and security issues, and the trip is an opportunity to discuss all issues of concern.

Question : And you said she'll meet Foreign Ministry officials; would that include Mr. [Sergey] Lavrov?

Spokesman : I think as soon as the meetings are confirmed, we'll share that with you. Yeah.

Correspondent : Thanks.

Spokesman : Toshi, and then Alan.

Question : Thank you, Steph. I have a question on the Secretary-General's plan to appoint a Scientific Advisory Board, including experts on the artificial intelligence. Are you going to announce when it's launched? Do you know when...?

Spokesman : Yes. We will definitely announce it when it's launched. Off the top of my head, I don't know, but we'll try to get you a date... at least a ballpark figure soon.

Correspondent : Okay. Thank you.

Spokesman : Okay. Alan?

Question : Thank you, Stephane. I have a follow-up on Amelie's question, please, regarding the statement by President Putin, who said that the humanitarian corridor is regularly used by Ukraine to launch the naval drones to attack Russian fleet. Does the UN as the facilitator of the Black Sea Grain Initiative have any data on these attacks launched from the corridor?

Spokesman : No. I think issues having to do with the corridor are dealt with in Istanbul through the Joint Coordination [Centre] (JCC). It is obviously important that all the agreements are respected, but I don't have any data on that.

Margaret? And then we'll go online.

Question : Since you mentioned the JCC, do you have any updates in terms of ship waiting, ships registered inspections?

Spokesman : The real-time data is on the inter-web. I don't have my phone with me. So, if you want to ask question, turn your camera on and I see Abdelhamid. Please go ahead, Abdelhamid.

Question : Thank you, Stephane. Just today, 132... [inaudible].

Spokesman : Sorry. You're coming in, you're very garbled. Try again.

Question : Can I speak louder?

Spokesman : Go ahead. No. Go ahead. Yeah. Go ahead.

Question : Okay. Israel is still keeping the bodies of 132 Palestinians killed in Israeli jail [inaudible], including 12 children, one woman, and 12 who died in captivity. My questions are: Is this the war crime or not? And what the UN can do more than just appealing to the Israelis to abide by international law?

Spokesman : Well, if you're asking about and my understanding, you're asking about the issues of remains of people, correct, not returned to their families?

Correspondent : Oh, yes.

Spokesman : Okay. This is an issue that we have spoken out about. I think it is incumbent that all who are holding the remains of people, that those remains be returned to their families without any precondition, whoever may be holding them.

Okay. Iftikhar, and then we'll go to Michelle, if you're able to turn on your camera. But go ahead, Iftikhar.

Question : Thank you, Steph. After the devastating floods in last August, Pakistan is bracing for another cyclone. It's got a strange name, Biparjoy. And this is also going to hit India. Is the United Nations system tracking this cyclone?

Spokesman : I have no doubt that our country teams both in India and Pakistan and other countries that may be impacted are very much tracking the storm and doing whatever they can do to prepare for the aftermath. And as always, the United Nations will stand and assist in whatever way we can afterwards, hoping that no major damage has been caused, of course.

Michelle Nichols?

Question : Steph, can you hear me?

Spokesman : Yes. I can't see you, but I can't hear you.

Question : Excellent. No. You won't be seeing me today. [laughter] So a couple of questions. First of all, on follow-up to the grain deal questions. President Putin was also saying that they felt cheated over the implementation of the deal concerning Russia's own exports. So, if you could respond to that. And he was also saying that  and I know you have responded to this one previously, but if we could get a fresh comment  he was saying the deal was intended to help friendly countries in Africa and Latin America, but that Europe was getting most of the grain from Ukraine, and that that was providing a key source of foreign currency to Kyiv. And he said that he was going to discuss this with some African leaders who were expected to visit Russia and that Moscow was ready to instead supply grain for free to the world's poorest countries. What's your response?

Spokesman : Okay. So that's a lot to unpack. I haven't seen the exact comments made by the President of the Russian Federation. But I'm not interested in entering into a polemic. I will just state the facts as we have them. On the issue of the export of Russian grain and fertilizer, I think you know very well how hard Rebeca Grynspan and the Secretary-General have been able to move that forward. They have found some successes. There are some hurdles that remain. At the risk of repeating myself, as you know, we don't hold all the levers of power in order to facilitate the export of Russian grain fertilizer, which is not sanctioned.

To go back to the origin of the agreement on the Black Sea: The UN has no oversight on the contracts. We are not involved in setting commercial contracts. The importance of this initiative has already been clearly seen in the drop in global food prices, especially on grains soon after the signing of the deal [about] a year ago. If I look at the top recipients and again, this is public information, so I think you can answer it by looking at it, but you're looking at China, Spain, Turkiye, Italy, Netherlands, Egypt, Bangladesh, Israel  that's eight  Portugal and Tunisia. So, the food is going to where it is going according to commercial contracts. What is clear is that as a result of what the Secretary-General was able to achieve with the strong support of Turkiye, and, of course, the parties, there has been a drop in the global food prices. And we're interested in seeing this continue in order to ensure that food prices do not go back up. But that's our position, and I would've given you the same answer yesterday, and I'll give you the same answer tomorrow.

Question : And does the Secretary-General plan to possibly reach out to some of these African leaders ahead of their visit to Moscow?

Spokesman : I'm not aware that he is planning to do that. He remains in touch with a lot of leaders of Africa and the developing world on all sorts of issues.

Question : Thank you. And just one more quick question on North Korea. Some US lawmakers have raised concerns that China is about to repatriate some North Koreans. They said they raised it with the Secretary-General and they're calling on him to use his influence on China to stop this. What would you like to say?

Spokesman : I'm not going to go into what may or may not have been raised in private meetings. I can tell you on the issue of the standard line from the Secretary-General is that he stands for the respect of international refugee law and against refoulement. But I would encourage you to speak to IOM and UNHCR (United Nations Refugee Agency) on this particular case. Okay.

Question : Will he reach out to China?

Spokesman : I have nothing. I have nothing more at this point on this, but I will look into the issue. Okay. Paulina, up to you to look into the issues now. And happy Friday again.

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Outgoing NATO Chief Stoltenberg at White House Tuesday

By Patsy Widakuswara June 13, 2023

U.S. President Joe Biden is set to meet outgoing NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg at the White House on Tuesday as jockeying to secure Stoltenberg's successor intensifies.

The meeting was originally set for Monday but was postponed after Biden underwent a root canal procedure.

While the White House says the official agenda for the meeting is to discuss the alliance's upcoming July summit in Vilnius, Lithuania, the issue of who will be next at NATO's helm during this difficult period in its 74-year history will no doubt be front and center, as the alliance faces Russia's ongoing war in Ukraine.

Stoltenberg, a former Norwegian prime minister, is the longest running NATO chief in a generation and has had his tenure extended three times since taking the job in 2014. In February, his spokesperson said he will leave office when his current term ends in October.

Stoltenberg is widely credited for managing rocky transatlantic relations between former U.S. President Donald Trump and European allies over defense spending; the withdrawal of NATO forces from Afghanistan in August 2021; and overseeing the alliance's response to Moscow's invasion of Ukraine. His preference about his successor carries weight and Biden is expected to consult with him.

"A lot of people will look to him to say, 'Who do you think is the best to follow up your leadership?" said Andrew Hyde, senior fellow at the Stimson Center, to VOA.

Whoever succeeds Stoltenberg will face the daunting challenge of shepherding the security of 1 billion people in 31 countries and growing. He or she must manage the tough balancing act of supporting Ukraine militarily while preventing the conflict from bleeding into the territory of a NATO member, which would trigger the alliance's Article 5 principle of collective defense and potentially lead to World War III.

Selections done through consensus

A U.S. general is traditionally the Supreme Allied Commander Europe but the post of NATO chief has always been assumed by a European, even though there's nothing in the organization's charter that requires it.

There's no formal process to pick a new leader, and candidates don't announce that they're running for the post. Selection is done through consensus, achieved mostly through quiet and informal diplomatic channels.

As the biggest donor, the U.S. plays a key role  the reason why two contenders have paid a visit to the Oval Office recently.

Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen met with Biden at the White House last Monday. She is seen as a front-runner; however, her candidacy would mean a third successive secretary-general from a Nordic country.

Another potential hurdle is that Denmark has long failed to meet the 2% minimum requirement in defense spending for member states. In December, her government launched a plan to meet NATO's target by 2030, and recently ramped up military aid to Ukraine.

U.K. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak visited Washington days after Frederiksen, with a broad agenda that includes lobbying for his defense secretary, Ben Wallace. Britain, supplier of more military assistance to Ukraine than any country after the United States, has clout. And as one of the first defense ministers to provide lethal aid to Ukraine, Wallace is well-known among the alliance.

However, out of 13 chiefs in NATO's history, three were British.

Biden was non-committal when asked whether it was time for another one. "Maybe. That remains to be seen," he said during a joint news conference with Sunak Thursday.

All who have filled the post since 1952 were male.

Several women likely candidates

There is a sense that it's time the alliance selects a female leader, Hyde said. With the Russian war raging, "there's also a feeling it should be somebody from Eastern Europe," he added.

Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas and her Lithuanian counterpart Ingrida Simonyte meet both requirements. However, some observers argue that a leader from one of the Baltic countries, which are usually hawkish on Russia, could be perceived as a provocation by Moscow.

Slovakia's President Zuzana Caputova and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen of Germany have been floated as potential candidates. So has Canadian Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland, although her Ukrainian heritage may prove to be a complication.

Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte also has been mentioned as a contender. And there's always the possibility that the allies might prevail on Stoltenberg to extend his tenure yet again.

The issue of who is the next NATO secretary-general is expected to be settled by July, when the group's leaders meet in Vilnius.

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Rwandan Refugees in Malawi Complain of Being Targeted and Victimized

By Lameck Masina June 13, 2023

Rwandan refugees and asylum-seekers in Malawi say they fear being deported or losing their right to stay in the country, following steps by the government to apprehend refugees wanted in their home countries on various charges.

Malawi's government said last week it has received a request from Rwanda to help track down 55 so-called warlords who are hiding in Malawi. Rwandan refugees say officials need to verify the allegations before acting.

The Rwandan refugees expressed their fears in a statement following the deportation Monday of a Rwandan genocide suspect, Vincent Ngendahimana Kanyoni, who was indicted in 2019.

In a statement, a refugee group called the Concerned Rwandan Refugees said Malawi should be cautious with requests from the Rwandan government. The group said Rwanda might be playing what it called "the genocide card" to target political opponents in exile.

Odette Narikundo, a representative of Rwandan refugees in Malawi, told VOA she believes Kanyoni's deportation was based on wrong information. She said the suspect never worked as a soldier in Rwanda and never had any military training there.

Narikundo said she doubts Rwanda's claim that so many former Rwandan generals are hiding in Malawi. She said that if the generals were hiding, they would not have been at Dzaleka refugee camp. She wondered why Malawi was acting in such a way.

Narikundo said she believes that Rwanda is using genocide-related accusations to target political opponents living abroad. She said many Rwandan refugees fear being picked up and deported without even being taken to court to defend themselves, as was the case with Kanyoni.

Now, she said, people are living in fear. Because he didn't go to court before being deported, she called Malawi's actions kidnapping.

Narikundo said Malawi should verify any information from Rwanda with the group known as the Government of Rwandans in Exile, based in France, before rushing to take any action.

Patrick Botha, a spokesperson for the Ministry of Homeland Security in Malawi, told VOA that Malawi is a sovereign state doing everything according to its laws.

"But we have a working relationship with different countries especially our neighbors [and] that includes Rwanda, Burundi, just as we do with Zambia, Mozambique and Tanzania," Botha said. "In terms of security, we work hand in hand with these governments."

Botha, however, declined to take more questions, citing the sensitivity around the issue.

"That's all I can say on the matter," he said. "The other issues concerning this are very sensitive, many security issues, so it's not right for me to go into those details."

Michael Kaiyatsa, executive director for the Center for Human Rights and Rehabilitation in Malawi, shares the concerns of the Rwandan refugees.

"Because the way the government is doing it, it means even genuine refugees stand a risk of being deported like that," Kaiyatsa said. "They will not have an opportunity to defend themselves. You know, police or immigration [officers] cannot make that determination, they are not a court themselves."

Last month, Malawi started revoking the citizenship of refugees and asylum-seekers whom officials say obtained their status fraudulently.

Some 400 people, mainly from Burundi and Rwanda, have had their Malawian citizenship revoked and plans are under way to deport them.

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Remarks by President Biden and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg Before Bilateral Meeting

June 13, 2023

Oval Office

1:14 P.M. EDT

PRESIDENT BIDEN: Well, Mr. Secretary General, it's great to have you here. It's good to see you again.

And the  I apologize for having to reschedule yesterday. I had a lot of fun yesterday afternoon. We  I had a little toothache problem they took care of. And thank you for accommodating me.

And your leadership in the Alliance has through  been through a really significant period, in terms of dealing with NATO's relationship with Ukraine. And, you know, I think you've done an incredible job.

We saw each other last in Warsaw. And I think you said it, and I agree: The NATO Allies have never been more united. We both worked like hell to make sure that happened. And so far, so good.

And I think it's  and we see our joint strength in modernizing the relationship within NATO, as well as providing assistance to defense capabilities to  to Ukraine.

And  and we see it in Finland's recent accession into NATO. I remember you and I talking  I think I said to you  I know I said to others  that Putin was making a mistake. He was looking for the Finlandization of NATO. He got the NATOization of Finland 

SECRETARY GENERAL STOLTENBERG: Yes.

PRESIDENT BIDEN:  and hopefully Sweden very shortly.

And the  your friendship and leadership has meant a great deal.

We're strengthened  we  we also  we've strengthened NATO's eastern flank, made it clear that we'll defend every inch of NATO territory.

And I say it again: The commitment of the United States to NATO's Article 5 is rock solid.

And at our summit in Lithuania next month, we're going to be building on that momentum, from working to ensure that Allies spend enough on the defense, the 2 percent  not just as a hike, but that's the bottom line.

And NATO's engagement as well, we  you know, I've kept you completely informed of my discussions with Japan and South Korea and the Pacific. I think it's the first time ever we've had a major Pacific power engaged in dealing with aggression in Europe.

And so, I want to thank you again, Secretary General, for your partnership, your friendship, and most importantly, your leadership of NATO.

SECRETARY GENERAL STOLTENBERG: President Biden, dear Joe, thank you so much for the warm words. And thank you for taking the time to meet with me, once again, here at the White House. It's really a great honor and pleasure to  to meet you.

But most of all, thank you for your leadership, for your strong, personal commitment to the transatlantic bond, to Europe and North America standing together.

And let me also thank the U.S. Congress and the people of America for the strong support to Ukraine. And you just made a new announcement of additional U.S. support, and that is something which is very much welcomed.

European Allies and Canada are also doing their part, with tens of billions in military and economic support for Ukraine. And the support that we are providing together to Ukraine is now making a difference on the battlefield as we speak, because the offensive is launched, and the Ukrainians are making progress, making advances.

It's still early days, but what we do know is that the more land Ukrainians are able to liberate, the  the stronger hand they will have at the negotiating table, and also, the more likely it will be that President Putin at some stage will understand that he will never win this war of aggression on  at the battle  on the battlefield.

Then I think we also have to realize that Russia's brutal invasion of  of Ukraine was not only an attack on Ukraine, but also on our core values and on free people everywhere. And therefore, President Putin must not win this war, because that will not only be a tragedy for Ukrainians, but also make the world more dangerous.

It will send a message to authoritarian leaders all over the world, also in China, that when they use military force, they get what they want, and we will then become more vulnerable. So it's our security interest to support Ukraine.

And that's exactly what we will do when we meet  all the NATO leaders  at the summit in Vilnius next month, where we'll agree to sustain and step up our support to Ukraine, further strengthen our deterrence on defense, including by new commitment to invest more in defense. And I expect Allies to agree that 2 percent of GDP for defense has to be a minimum of what Allies have to invest in our shared security.

We'll strengthen our partnership with our Indo-Pacific partners. And then  and then, of course, we all look forward to welcoming Sweden as a full-fledged member of the Alliance as soon as possible.

So, once again, Mr. President, thank you for your leadership. Thank you for your strong commitment. And  and I look forward to welcome you at the NATO Summit in Vilnius.

PRESIDENT BIDEN: Well, in no small part because of your leadership, we've got  beyond NATO, we've gotten another 30-something  well, a total of 40 nations that are committed to  to the independence of Ukraine. And I think it's a real clear message.

So, God willing, we're going to be able to keep this unity up. And thank you for your leadership.

Q President, have you discussed 

Q Mr. President, have your read the Trump indictment, sir?

Do you agree with Dr. Biden that she was surprised Republicans 

(Cross-talk.)

Q Sir, how's that offensive going, do you think? How's the offensive going, do you think?

PRESIDENT BIDEN: I'll let Ukraine think for themselves.

1:22 P.M. EDT

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Readout of Vice President Harris's Call with President Giammattei of Guatemala

June 13, 2023

Vice President Kamala Harris spoke today with President Alejandro Giammattei of Guatemala, following up on their May 26 call and the May 31 visit of her National Security Advisor, Dr. Phil Gordon, to Guatemala City. The Vice President and President Giammattei discussed the launch of the initial phase of the "Oficinas de Movilidad Segura" (OMS) program on June 12, which Guatemala and the United States agreed to following recent high-level engagements. The OMS program will help manage irregular migration by facilitating access to lawful pathways for migration to the United States and other countries, family reunification or access to temporary work visas for nationals from Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras and Nicaragua. The Vice President noted that the U.S.-Guatemala joint commitment on OMS paved the way for similar joint commitments with Costa Rica and Colombia, all of which advance efforts to provide individuals with an alternative to migrating irregularly to the United States. The Vice President welcomed our continued partnership with Guatemala to enhance enforcement, expand legal pathways, strengthen border security, and address the root causes of irregular migration. In advance of Guatemala's June 25th general elections, the Vice President re-affirmed the Biden-Harris Administration's support for free, fair, inclusive and peaceful elections and a transparent electoral process.

###

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Russo-Ukraine War - 13 June 2023 - Day 475

Su M Tu W Th F Sa 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30

A number of claims and counterclaims are being made on the Ukraine-Russia conflict on the ground and online. While GlobalSecurity.org takes utmost care to accurately report this news story, we cannot independently verify the authenticity of all statements, photos and videos.

On 24 February 2022, Ukraine was suddenly and deliberately attacked by land, naval and air forces of Russia, igniting the largest European war since the Great Patriotic War. Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a "special military operation" (SVO - spetsialnaya voennaya operatsiya) in Ukraine in response to the appeal of the leaders of the "Donbass republics" for help. That attack is a blatant violation of the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of Ukraine. Putin stressed that Moscow's goal is the demilitarization and denazification of the country. The military buildup in preceeding months makes it obvious that the unprovoked and dastardly Russian attack was deliberately planned long in advance. During the intervening time, the Russian government had deliberately sought to deceive the world by false statements and expressions of hope for continued peace.

"To initiate a war of aggression... is not only an international crime; it is the supreme international crime differing only from other war crimes in that it contains within itself the accumulated evil of the whole." [Judgment of the International Military Tribunal]

The UK Ministry of Defence reported that in recent months, Russia has highly likely worked to ensure its long-term, high-volume supply of one-way-attack uncrewed aerial vehicles (OWA-UAVs). By supplying these weapons, Iran continues to breach UN Security Council Resolution 2231.

Russia has likely moved from receiving small deliveries of Iranian OWA-UAVs by air transport, to larger consignments by ship from Iran via the Caspian Sea. This 'International North-South Transit Corridor' has assumed much more importance since the invasion. It allows Russia to access Asian markets - including arms transfers - in ways it hopes are less vulnerable to international sanctions.

Russia is also working to start domestic production of OWA-UAVs, almost certainly with Iranian assistance. Russia is highly likely investing in OWA-UAVs because it provides Russia with a relatively cheap long-range strike capability at a time when it has expended a large proportion of its cruise missile stocks in Ukraine.

The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reported that during the day, the Russian occupiers launched another air and missile attack on Ukraine, using 16 Kh-101/Kh-555 air-based cruise missiles and 4x Iranian strike UAVs "Shahed-136/131" on critical infrastructure facilities in Kharkiv Oblast and residential buildings in Kryvyi Rih.

Ukrainian Air Force destroyed 11x cruise missiles and 1x strike drone.

In addition, the Russian forces carried out 29x airstrikes and launched about 20x MLRS attacks on Ukrainian settlements and Ukrainian Defense Forces. Unfortunately, there are dead and wounded among the civilian population, destroyed and damaged critical infrastructure, residential buildings, other civil and administrative infrastructure.

The threat of missile and air strikes remains high across Ukraine.

Russia continues to focus its main efforts on the Lyman, Bakhmut, Avdiivka, and Mar'inka axes, and heavy fighting continues. During the day, 22x combat clashes took place.

Volyn' and Polissya axes: the operational situation has not changed significantly. There are no signs of the formation of offensive groupings. The Republic of Belarus continues to support the armed aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine, training units of the Russian forces is ongoing on training grounds.

Sivershchyna and Slobozhanshchyna axes: the Russian forces continue to maintain a military presence in the areas bordering Ukraine. They shelled the settlements of Karpovichi of the Chernihiv Oblast, Novovasylivka, Seredyna-Buda, Atynske, Bilopylla, Pavlivka, Obody of the Sumy Oblast, as well as Ivashki, Uda, Strelecha, Lukyantsi, Izbytske, Staritsa, Synelnikove, Ohirtseve, Hatishche, Vovchans'k, Budarky and Vilkhuvatka in Kharkiv Oblast.

Kup'yans'k axis: Russian forces launched an airstrike in the Krokhmalne district of the Kharkiv Oblast. Kam'ianka, Topoli, Novomlyns'k, Dvorichna, Zapadne, Kup'yans'k, Kislivka, Berestov in Kharkiv Oblast and Novoselivske in Luhansk Oblast were shelled by artillery and mortars.

Lyman axis: Russian forces conducted unsuccessful offensive operations in the Vesele and Rozdolivka areas. They carried out airstrikes at the settlements of Bilogorivka, Luhansk and Vesele, Donetsk Oblasts. Nevs'ke, Bilogorivka of the Luhansk Oblast and Yampolivka, Tors'ke, Serebryanka, Verkhn'okam'ians'ke, Spirne of the Donetsk Oblast were shelled by artillery.

Bakhmut axis: Russian forces conducted unsuccessful offensive operations near Orihovo-Vasylivka and Bila Hora. They carried out airstrikes in the Hryhorivka and Sukha Balka districts of the Donetsk Oblast. Areas of Vasyukivka, Orihovo-Vasylivka, Hryhorivka, Bogdanivka, Ivanivs'ke, Druzhba, Torets'k, Pivdenne of the Donetsk Oblast were affected by Russian artillery fire.

Avdiivka axis: the Russian forces did not conduct offensive operations. Carried out an airstrike in the Avdiivka Oblast. The Russian occupiers shelled the Avdiivka, Severne, Vodyane, Pervomais'ke, Netaylove, Karlivka settlements of the Donetsk Oblast.

Mar'inka axis: Ukrainian defenders repelled all 14x Russian attacks in the vicinities of Mar'inka. Russia also launched an air strike within the population center. russians shelled the Krasnohorivka, Mar'inka, Georgiivka, Maksimilianivka, Pobyeda, Novomykhailivka areas of the Donetsk Oblast.

Shakhtars'k axis: the Russian forces launched an airstrike in the area of Vugledar, Zolota Niva, Velika Novosilka. Shelled Vugledar, Prechistivka, Zolota Niva, Shakhtarske Velyka Novosilka, Storozheve, Blagodatne of the Donetsk Oblast.

Zaporizhzhia and Kherson axes: Russian forces are on the defensive. They carried out an airstrike in the Mala Tokmachka Oblast of the Zaporizhzhia Oblast. Conducted artillery shelling of populated areas, including: Vremivka, Novopil' of the Donetsk Oblast; Levadne, Hulyaipole, Zaliznychne, Hulyaipils'ke, Zherebyanky, Kam'ians'ke of the Zaporizhzhia Oblast; Zmiivka, Kozats'ke, Mykolaivka, Virivka, Inzhenerne, Zelenivka, Antonivka, Bilozerka, Dniprovs'ke, Kizomys of the Kherson Oblast and Kherson.

In the flooded Holaya Prystan', the Russian occupiers are still present, while firing at evacuation points and shifting blame on the Ukrainian Armed Forces for this. In turn, the occupation authorities force the local population to say on camera words of gratitude to the units of the Ministry of Emergency Situations of the Russian Federation for the supposed rescue and evacuation, although all this time, without any help from the occupation authorities, people were forced to save each other on their own. After the situation stabilized and the water receded, people returned to the city and witnessed looting and robbery of their own homes.

Ukrainian Air Force conducted 11x strikes on Russian manpower concentrations and 3x on Russian anti-aircraft missile systems.

Ukrainian missile and artillery units hit the control post, 3x Russian manpower concentrations, weapons and military equipment, an ammunition depot, an anti-aircraft missile system, an artillery unit at firing position, anti-aircraft defense system and a Russian radio-electronic warfare station.

The Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation reported that the Russian Aerospace Forces tonight launched group strikes by long-range precision air-based weapons against locations where AFU operational reserves were amassed, as well as a foreign-made ammunition and weapons depot.

All the assigned targets have been engaged. The goal of the strike has been achieved.

Over the past 24 hours, the Ukrainian troops continued to attempt to carry out offensive operations in South Donetsk direction, as well as near Artyomovsk.

In the Vremevka salient, the Kiev regime launched an offensive by the units hastily formed from the remnants of the Ukrainian brigades which had previously suffered heavy losses.

Three attacks by Ukrainian units reinforced with tanks and armoured fighting vehicles were repelled in the area of Makarovka (Donetsk People's Republic) over the past 24 hours.

All the attacks were repelled by courageous and decisive actions of Vostok Group of Forces, air strikes and artillery fire. Of the ten AFU armoured personnel carriers involved in the attacks, eight were eliminated. Eight of ten AFU armoured personnel carriers involved in the attacks were eliminated.

Two enemy attacks have been successfully repelled in the vicinity of Rovnopol (Donetsk People's Republic) during the day. Two Ukrainian tanks and three armoured fighting vehicles have been hit.

Most of the personnel of an AFU company tactical group and four infantry fighting vehicles were neutralised as the Russian troops repelled the attack near Prechistovka (Donetsk People's Republic).

Total enemy losses in those areas during the day were up to 275 Ukrainian troops, four tanks, fifteen armoured fighting vehicles, eight vehicles, and an Msta-B howitzer.

Two enemy attacks in the direction of Klesheyevka (Donetsk People's Republic) have been successfully repelled by the Yug Group of Forces to the south of Artyomovsk (Donetsk People's Republic) during the past 24 hours.

The enemy failed to break into the Russian defence.

Up to 350 Ukrainian troops, two armoured fighting vehicles, and six motor vehicles were neutralised in the fighting.

In Kupyansk direction, aviation and artillery of the Zapad Group of Forces inflicted fire damage on the units of the enemy close to Ivanovka (Kharkov region) and Rozovka (Lugansk People's Republic).

In addition, actions of one sabotage and reconnaissance group of the Armed Forces of Ukraine have been thwarted near Timkovka (Kharkov region).

More than 35 Ukrainian servicemen, one armoured personnel carrier, one pick-up truck, and one D-20 howitzer have been destroyed during the day.

In Krasny Liman direction, Operational-Tactical and Army aviation and artillery of the Tsentr Group of Forces engaged the units of the Armed Forces of Ukraine close to Nevskoye and Belogorovka (Lugansk People's Republic), and the Serevryansky forestry.

The enemy has suffered losses of up to 60 Ukrainian troops, two armoured fighting vehicles, four motor vehicles, one Gvozdika self-propelled howitzer, and D-30 and D-20 howitzers in this direction in the past 24 hours.

In Kherson direction, up to 30 Ukrainian troops, three motor vehicles, one Msta-B howitzer, and one Gvozdika self-propelled howitzer have been neutralised over the past 24 hours.

Operational-Tactical and Army aviation, Missile Troops and Artillery of the Russian Group of Forces have engaged 98 AFU artillery units at their fire positions, manpower, and military hardware in 114 areas during the day.

Air defence forces have intercepted three Storm Shadow cruise missiles and ten HIMARS MLRS projectiles during the day.

In addition, six Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles have been destroyed in the areas of Staromlynovka (Donetsk People's Republic), Rabotino (Zaporozhye region), Korsunka (Kherson region), Pshenichnoye and Novokrasnyanka (Lugansk People's Republic).

In total, 442 airplanes and 238 helicopters, 4,585 unmanned aerial vehicles, 426 air defence missile systems, 9,939 tanks and other armoured combat vehicles, 1,122 combat vehicles equipped with MRLS, 5,100 field artillery cannons and mortars, as well as 10,927 units of special military equipment have been destroyed during the special military operation.





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Russian tactical nuclear weapons coming in days, Belarus says

Iran Press TV

Tuesday, 13 June 2023 6:34 PM

Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko has confirmed that Russian tactical nuclear weapons are coming to his country in days.

Russia's TASS news agency reported the Belarusian leader as saying on Tuesday that the new nuclear weapons would be physically deployed on the territory of Belarus "in several days."

Lukashenko was cited as saying by the Russian news agency that the country was now ready to host the weapons.

"Everything is ready. I think we will have what we asked for in a few days, and even a little bit more," he said.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Friday that Russia would start deploying tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus in early July.

The Russian leader, who met with Lukashenko in the Black Sea resort of Sochi, said the deployment would be started once the special storage facilities for the weapons were ready.

"Everything is going according to plan," Putin told Lukashenko. "Preparation of the relevant facilities ends on July 7-8, and we will immediately begin activities related to the deployment of appropriate types of weapons on your territory."

The Russian leader noted that the "Iskander" mobile short-range ballistic missiles, which can deliver nuclear warheads with a range of 500 kilometers, had already been delivered to the country.

Russian Sukhoi-25 Grach jet fighters have reportedly been redesigned to carry the warheads.

If the "Iskander" missile were to be launched from the main air base outside Minsk, the projectiles could potentially reach virtually all of Eastern Europe, including a host of NATO member states, as well as cities such as Berlin and Stockholm. With a Sukhoi-25 carrying the "Iskander" missile, it could reach at least 1,000 kilometers farther.

Russia's deployment of the warheads in Belarus is aimed to counter a similar move by the United States which deployed nuclear warheads in a host of European countries.

In the meantime, the United States and its European allies have been sending huge shipments of advanced weapons into Ukraine to boost Kiev's forces fighting Russian troops engaged in a "special military operation" in Ukraine since February 24, 2022, as part of a national security measure against the persisting eastern advance of the US-led NATO military alliance.

This comes despite repeated warnings by the Kremlin that the deployment of tanks, missiles and other weapons will only add to the destruction and worsen the situation in Ukraine.

Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has warned the West that Russia's defeat in Ukraine could trigger a nuclear war.

"The defeat of a nuclear power in a conventional war may trigger a nuclear war," Medvedev said in a post on Telegram early this year.

Medvedev, who now serves as deputy chairman of President Vladimir Putin's security council, said, "Nuclear powers have never lost major conflicts on which their fate depends."

Russia and the United States have the largest number of nuclear warheads, jointly holding around 90 percent of the world's total.

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Nairobi  Detectives have gunned down four individuals believed be behind a string of armed robberies in Machakos, Mombasa and Kwale Counties over the past few months.

The Directorate of Criminal Investigations says the suspects were shot dead Monday night following a fierce exchange of fire with detectives in Kilifi's Takaungu area.

According to the DCI, the suspects disregarded orders to surrender and instead engaged in a shootout with the pursuing detectives.

The team consisted of highly skilled personnel from the elite Crime Research and Intelligence Bureau, along with marksmen from the DCI Operations branch.

"Unbeknownst to the thugs, the sleuths who had trailed them for months were sharpening their claws each passing day, ready for any eventuality that would lead to the recovery of the government rifle in their possession," DCI said.

The agency revealed that the gang was responsible for a Bank heist at Equity Bank in Matuu, Machakos County on July 27, 2021.

During the robbery, they disarmed a police officer on guard duty and made off with her AK-47 rifle (serial number KE KP 5527115), which was loaded with 30 rounds of ammunition.

Since that incident, the DCI noted that the suspects carried out over 10 armed robberies, terrorizing Kenyans with audacious attacks, some of which took place during the daytime.

Their targets included M-Pesa shops and various business establishments in Mombasa and Kwale counties.

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After comprehensive forensic analysis conducted at the DCI National Forensic Lab, the lost police firearm was linked to two suspects one only identified as Festus and the other as Tsuma Ndoro.

"Consequently, a team of highly skilled detectives was immediately mobilized to go after the thugs and after weeks of laying an ambush in Kwale, their efforts finally paid off when the thugs made a move and crossed the Likoni channel yesterday(Monday), at around 4pm," DCI added.

The detectives in an unmarked hatchback trailed them from Likoni ferry to Shimanzi, Nyali and Shariani before finally cornering them in Takaungu, moments to midnight.

The suspects were reportedly headed to Kilifi town to commit more robberies before they were intercepted.

Following the operation, an AK-47 assault rifle that was wrestled from a police officer in the Matuu Equity bank heist was recovered, loaded with 7 rounds of 7.62-x39 caliber bullets.

The detectives also impounded two motorcycles.
Lukashenka Claims Russian Tactical Nukes May Arrive In Belarus Within 'Days'

By RFE/RL's Belarus Service June 13, 2023

Belarusian authoritarian ruler Alyaksandr Lukashenka says Russian tactical nuclear weapons will arrive in his country within "days," earlier than previously thought for a move that has ratcheted up already strained tensions between the Kremlin and the West.

Speaking on June 13, Lukashenka said the decision to deploy tactical nuclear weapons on Belarusian soil was his and not that of Russian President Vladimir Putin, who said last week that the weapons would likely be deployed around the second week of July, once storage facilities were ready.

"Everything is ready. I think we will have what we asked for in a few days, And even a little bit more," Lukashenka said.

"This is not about Russia...It was my request. Russia did not impose it on me. Why? Because, as you all say, nobody in the world ever fought against a nuclear power, and I do not want anyone to fight against us," he added.

Moscow and Minsk signed documents allowing for the placement of Russian tactical nuclear weapons on the territory of Belarus -- the first relocation of such warheads outside Russia since the fall of the Soviet Union -- on May 25.

The announcement sparked immediate criticism from governments around the world, while NATO called it "dangerous and irresponsible." Although Washington has been critical of the move, neither the United States nor NATO have revised their positions on strategic nuclear weapons.

Putin has asserted that the move mirrors the long-standing U.S. practice of basing tactical nuclear weapons on the territory of NATO allies, including Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, Italy, and Turkey.

Russian authorities have repeatedly raised the specter of the potential use of nuclear weapons since launching a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

While top Russian officials have said that Moscow will control its tactical nuclear weapons after they are transferred to Belarus, Lukashenka said he "would not hesitate" to use them "if there is aggression against us."

Since it launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Russia has used Belarus -- with Lukashenka's approval -- as a staging area for the unprovoked attack.

Belarus has welcomed closer relations with Moscow since a wave of crushing sanctions were imposed on it by the West after a sometimes deadly government crackdown on massive protests following a disputed 2020 presidential election handed Lukashenka a sixth term.

With reporting by BelTA

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/belarus-russian-nukes- lukashenko-within-days/32457509.html

Copyright (c) 2023. 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 'hysterical' crackdown on China tech hits bumps

Global Times

By Wang Cong and Qi Xijia Published: Jun 13, 2023 09:32 PM

The US has become hysterical and unscrupulous in its campaign to contain China's technological rise, even as some of its radical export bans are facing increasing resistance from industry players due to massive losses, Chinese officials and experts said on Tuesday.

The comments came after Washington added more than 30 Chinese companies to its notorious "Entity List" in the latest crackdown move, while media reports suggested that US officials plan to roll back on its strict chip exports bans to allow semiconductor firms in South Korea and the island of Taiwan to maintain and expand their operations in the Chinese mainland.

The contradictory moves underscore both the US' desperation in stepping up efforts to hold back China's technological ascent despite Washington's yearslong crackdown - as well as the mounting difficulties it faces in implementing the endless crackdown measures it has announced, Chinese experts noted. This is also reflected in the broader US approach to China, where Washington continues to intensify the containment campaign, while at the same time seeks dialogues to minimize risks of conflict, they added.

In what has become the embodiment of the US' tech crackdown against China, the US government on Monday added 43 entities to its export control list, known as the "Entity List," accusing these entities of providing training to Chinese military pilots and other activities that threaten US national security. Among the entities, 31 are from China, while the rest are based in countries and regions such as the United Arab Emirates, South Africa and the United Kingdom.

The Chinese Foreign Ministry on Tuesday lambasted the decision. Wang Wenbin, a spokesperson for the ministry, said China resolutely opposes the US' move and demands that the US immediately correct it.

Wang further said the US, in order to maintain its own military and technological hegemony, has "reached a hysterical and unscrupulous point" in baselessly cracking down on Chinese companies. "China will continue to take necessary measures to resolutely safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese enterprises."

They have added more than 1,200 Chinese entities and individuals to various lists that subject them to various restrictions, which is "economic coercion" and unacceptable, another spokesperson for the ministry said on May 24, while pushing back against the US' claim of "China's economic coercion."

The latest crackdown measure, on top of all the previous measures, shows Washington's desperation more than anything, as such illogical moves fail to deliver what the US seeks, experts said.

Such moves "are based on Cold War mentality and have no support from market logic and economic rules," He Weiwen, a senior fellow at the Center for China and Globalization, told the Global Times.

Mounting resistance

Because of that, the US' moves are increasingly facing rising resistance from industry players both in the US and other countries and regions, which has in some cases forced Washington to roll back some of its strict bans against China.

In the latest sign, the Wall Street Journal reported on Monday that the US government plans to allow top chipmakers from South Korea and the island of Taiwan to maintain and expand their current operations in the Chinese mainland market without US reprisals.

The US government imposed strict curbs on exports of chips and chipmaking equipment to the Chinese mainland in October 2022, when it also granted a one-year exemption to several chipmakers from South Korea and Taiwan island. Those exemptions were due to expire in October, but Alan Estevez, undersecretary of commerce for industry and security, told an industry gathering last week that the government plans to extend those exemptions, according to the report.

"The extended exemption is within expectation because the US fears backlash from the corporate level," Ma Jihua, a veteran industry expert, told the Global Times on Tuesday, noting that the US had hoped that some chipmakers would exit the Chinese market over the past year and expand investment in the US. "But that did not happen, even after the China-South Korea relations hit a new low."

South Korean chipmakers such as Samsung Electronics have a huge presence in the Chinese mainland, including chip manufacturing operations. South Korea also sent 55 percent of its semiconductor exports to China in 2022, compared to only 7 percent to the US, according to South Korean media.

The South Korean government has become increasingly hostile toward China on a political level, in lockstep with the US, but in terms of economic interests, it has shown no willingness to abandon the Chinese market, according to Ma. In fact, "the US so-called Chip 4 alliance is not going well, South Korea and Japan haven't implemented much," he said.

Pointing to the US' plan to extend exemptions, Chinese experts noted that the US' chip crackdown campaign might be showing some cracks, while also warning of further intensified US crackdowns on Chinese technologic sectors.

But for now, amid mounting economic losses and growing global concerns over the rapidly deteriorating China-US relationship, the US has shown certain willingness to ease tensions, Tian Yun, a Beijing-based economist, told the Global Times on Monday. "The continuously tense China-US ties have caused concerns not just in China and the US, but also other countries, including some US allies. Everyone is worried," he said.

Even as they stepped up crackdowns and smearing against China, US officials have recently publicly called for talks with Chinese officials. Many US media outlets have reported that US Secretary of State Antony Blinken might visit China soon.

Asked about the visit on Tuesday, Wang, the spokesperson for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, said he had no additional information. When commenting on Blinken's claims of China's spying efforts in Cuba, Wang urged the US to stop spreading rumors.

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US scales up its 'entity list' to crack down on China's technology rise

Global Times

By Global Times Published: Jun 13, 2023 02:27 PM

The Biden administration on Monday added 43 entities including 31 entities from China to an export control list that bars them from accessing US technologies and components, the latest US move to crack down on China's efforts in developing and modernizing its technology.

Washington's irrational obsession of targeting China's rising technology prowess in name of the so-called national security protection lays bare the US' desperate attempt to maintain supremacy in control over global tech in a manner that lacks any market support and which also defies economic rules, observers said.

The Chinese firms added onto the new blacklist include research institute affiliated with aerospace and defense conglomerate Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC), Shanghai Supercomputing Technology Co, and Beijing Ryan Wende Science and Technology Co and Xinjiang Kehua Hechang Biological Science and Technology Co, according to the US Department of Commerce's Bureau of Industry and Security website.

The US' escalating curb on China's tech rise comes at the moment when a number of US media outlets have recently played up an possible official visit by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken to China in upcoming weeks, which has since been dismissed by China's Foreign Ministry.

"From trade to investment, the Biden administration is essentially targeting China's rising technology prowess, which the US has resolved to do with based on a cold war mentality yet without any support from market logic and economic rules," He Weiwen, a senior fellow at the Center for China and Globalization, told the Global Times.

The US-initiated decoupling moves, which are now instead being referred to by Washington as efforts to "de-risk," distort markets and efficiency, and will eventually translate to a huge disadvantage for the US, adding to the costs of its companies and consumers, he noted.

Export controls seem to be the last-ditch effort that the US is pinning its hopes on to hold down China's tech industries.

Xiang Ligang, a veteran tech analyst, said that except for chips, in major export areas, the US will find it hard to block upstream supplies to China.

Since former US President Donald Trump came to power, Washington has added more than 600 Chinese companies and institutions onto its entity list without providing any evidence, intending to cut off Chinese technology companies from obtaining relevant technology, equipment, funds and channels.

In October last year, the US Department of Commerce's Bureau of Industry and Security announced an extensive set of regulations which restricted chips made using US tools from being exported to China.

About the US' action, Wang Wenbin, a spokesperson for China's Foreign Ministry said at a briefing on Tuesday that China firmly opposes the US' putting Chinese firms onto its entity list, demanding the US immediately correct the wrong practice of politicizing, instrumentalizing and weaponizing economic, trade and technological issues under the guise of military and human rights-related issues.

"In order to maintain its hegemony in military science and technology, the US has repeatedly generalized the concept of national security, abused its national power, suppressed Chinese companies, willfully disrupted the international economic and trade order and world trade rules, and seriously endangered the stability of the global industrial and supply chains. It has reached the point of hysteria and unscrupulous methods," Wang said.

China will continue to take necessary measures to resolutely safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese companies, he added.

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Chinese FM regrets S.Korean media making personal attacks, baseless accusations against Chinese ambassador

Global Times

By Xu Keyue and Du Qiongfang Published: Jun 13, 2023 10:14 PM

The Chinese Foreign Ministry on Tuesday said that it found remarks made by South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol and by some South Korean media outlets on the actions of Chinese Ambassador to South Korea Xing Haiming are inconsistent with facts or even amount to personal attacks.

The remarks came after a meeting between Xing and the leader of South Korea's main opposition party as the meeting had triggered inappropriate reactions from South Korea. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said at a press conference on Tuesday he had noted the inaccurate remarks made by South Korean side and that he "deeply regrets" this.

South Korea's Yonhap News Agency reported that Yoon said on Tuesday during a cabinet meeting that "looking at the attitude of Chinese Ambassador to South Korea Xing Haiming, it's doubtful whether he has an attitude of mutual respect or promotion of friendship as a diplomat." When Xing held a meeting on Thursday with Lee Jae-myung, leader of South Korea's Democratic Party, he warned South Korea against making "wrong bets" in the China-US rivalry, according to media reports.

Meanwhile, the presidential office said on Tuesday that South Korea is waiting for China to take appropriate measures following the remarks made by the Chinese ambassador over South Korea's ties with the US, Yonhap reported.

Many Chinese observers said that there was nothing wrong with Ambassador Xing's statement during his meeting with Lee, and Xing's reminders were appropriate. As a Chinese ambassador, he has to firmly safeguard China's national interests in the first place and play the role of a bridge and bond between the two countries on this basis.

Jin Canrong, associate dean of the School of International Studies at the Renmin University of China, noted that the Chinese government's attitude toward China-South Korea relations has always been consistent and unchanged.

On the contrary, has the Yoon administration respected China's core interests and legitimate concerns recently? From President Yoon himself down to South Korean diplomats, have their inappropriate words and deeds on China over the past two months hurt the feelings of the Chinese peopleiYJin asked.

Some observers stated that Yoon's thinking and value orientation have determined that China-South Korea relations will be subdued during his term of office and China does not need to care too much - just stay calm toward South Korea's diplomacy.

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang said on Tuesday that "I would like to stress once again that it is part of Ambassador Xing Haiming's job to engage extensively with people from various walks of life in South Korea with an aim of increasing understanding, promoting cooperation and advancing China-South Korea relations."

He stressed that there is no point in making an issue of this. A sound and steady China-South Korea relationship serves the common interests of both sides. We hope the South Korea will work actively with China toward this end.

LA Chao, an expert on Korean Peninsula issues at the Liaoning Academy of Social Sciences, pointed out that it seems that South Korea is hyping this controversy to attract attention, hoping a certain major power - the US - would be pleased at problems existing between China and South Korea, whatever they are.

Yoon is apparently trying to put on a show to Washington and also to Tokyo, with the aim of demonstrating his commitment to aligning with Washington, LA noted.

LA told the Global Times on Tuesday that it is clear that South Korea has exceeded the boundaries of diplomatic etiquette and negotiation, turning the issue into malicious slander against China, which is something that we resolutely cannot accept.

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South Korean President's doubt and media reports on Chinese Ambassador inconsistent with facts, involve personal attacks: Chinese FM

Global Times

By Global Times Published: Jun 13, 2023 08:32 PM Updated: Jun 13, 2023 08:28 PM

The Chinese Foreign Ministry expressed regret on Tuesday for the remarks made by the South Korean President and the South Korean media reports on the Chinese Ambassador to South Korea Xing Haiming, saying that they are inconsistent with the facts and even involve personal attacks.

South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol reportedly said on Tuesday during a cabinet meeting that he was doubtful whether the Chinese ambassador had an attitude of mutual respect after the Chinese envoy had warned South Korea against making "wrong bets" in the China-US rivalry, according to the Yonhap News Agency.

Meanwhile, the presidential office said on Tuesday that South Korea is waiting for China to take appropriate measures after the remarks made by the Chinese ambassador over South Korea's ties with the US, the Yonhap News Agency reported.

Last week, South Korea's foreign ministry called in Xing after he blamed South Korea for worsening bilateral ties due to US' influence and urged the country to stop "decoupling" from China.

"Looking at Ambassador Xing's attitude, it's doubtful if he has an attitude of mutual respect or promotion of friendship as a diplomat," Yoon was quoted by Yonhap as saying.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin responded during a press conference on Tuesday that he had noticed the remarks made by the South Korean side, as well as noticed the media reports that are inconsistent with the facts and even involved personal attacks against Xing, which he regretted.

"I would like to reiterate that it is part of the Chinese Ambassador's responsibilities to conduct extensive contacts and exchanges with various sectors of South Korea, which is aimed at enhancing understanding, promoting cooperation and maintaining and advancing the development of China-South Korea relations," Wang said, noting that it should not be a topic for hype up.

Promoting the healthy and stable development of China-South Korea relations serves the common interests of both sides, Wang said, adding it is hoped that South Korea and China will move toward each other and make joint efforts to achieve this goal.

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Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Wang Wenbin's Regular Press Conference on June 13, 2023

Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the People's Republic of China

Yonhap News Agency: ROK President Yoon Suk Yeol said during a cabinet meeting on June 13 that looking at the attitude of Chinese Ambassador to the ROK Xing Haiming, it's doubtful whether he has an attitude of mutual respect or promotion of friendship as a diplomat. The office of the ROK President said that they are waiting for China to think over this issue and take appropriate measures. What is China's position on this?

Wang Wenbin: I noted the ROK side's remarks and also noted that some ROK media outlets have made reports that are inconsistent with facts or even amount to personal attacks on Ambassador Xing Haiming. I deeply regret this. I would like to stress once again that it is part of Ambassador Xing Haiming's job to engage extensively with people from various walks of life in the ROK with an aim of increasing understanding, promoting cooperation and advancing China-ROK relations. There is no point in making an issue of this. A sound and steady China-ROK relationship serves the common interests of both sides. We hope the ROK will work actively with China towards this end.

CCTV: According to reports, the US State Department spokesperson recently said that the US had delivered a letter to UNESCO informing that the US has decided to rejoin the organization. Yesterday, UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay announced the US's request to representatives of member states. What's China's comment on the US seeking re-admission to UNESCO?

Wang Wenbin: We noted relevant US statement. We hope this time the US decision is made out of a sense of responsibility and aimed at supporting multilateralism and contributing to international cooperation.a

The US withdrew twice from UNESCO, which had a negative impact on the organization's work. The membership of an international organization is something that should be taken seriously. If the US is serious about what it means to rejoin the organization, it needs to show the sincerity of observing international rules and respecting international rule of law, and earnestly fulfill its due international obligation as a responsible nation, including paying off its dues in arrears owed to UNESCO for years. International organizations are not parks. Countries can't just come and go as they please. More importantly, the US must not view international organizations as places for geopolitical wrestling and pursue "global leadership" in the name of the interests of the international community.

China News Service: It is learned that the ASEAN Regional Forum Senior Officials' Meeting will be held soon. Is there anything you can share with us about China's participation in and expectation for the meeting?

Wang Wenbin: The ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) Senior Officials' Meeting will be held via video link on June 14. Participants of the meeting will review the implementation of the outcomes of last year's ARF Ministerial Meeting, discuss mechanism building and future development of the ARF, and exchange views on regional and international issues. Assistant Minister of Foreign Affairs Nong Rong will attend the meeting.

This year marks the 30th anniversary of the ARF. China hopes that participating parties will build up consensus and enhance cooperation on the agenda of the ARF and this year's theme of ASEAN, accumulate outcomes for this year's ARF Ministerial Meeting, and make positive contribution to peace, development and prosperity of the region.

Bloomberg: Can you confirm that the Chinese Embassy in Poland has been talking to the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage there about an art show in Warsaw by an Australian artist? And if so, what is the desired outcome of such talks?

Wang Wenbin: I am not aware of what you said. What I want to say is that cultural exchanges should be conducive to cultivating objective perception and growing friendship.

TBS: Human rights NGOs have pointed out that overseas outposts of Chinese police are monitoring democratic activists and others in Japan, and there are some testimonies to this. Is this true? Do you have any comments on this?

Wang Wenbin: We have made our position clear multiple times on this sort of rhetoric. I need to stress again that there is no so-called overseas police stations. China strictly follows the principle of non-interference in other countries' internal affairs. China strictly abides by international law and respects all countries' judicial sovereignty. We hope parties concerned will look at this factually and rationally and not dramatize it or make unwarranted accusations against China.

TASS: According to Shanghai Securities News, a senior executive of a Chinese photovoltaic enterprise was taken away from the Munich Airport by several men in uniform yesterday. The executive was expected to attend the Intersolar Europe 2023 in Munich, Germany. What is China's comment?

Wang Wenbin: I have seen relevant reports. The Chinese embassy in Germany and the Chinese Consulate-General in Munich immediately contacted the German side to learn about the situation and ask the German side to protect the lawful rights and interests of Chinese companies and individuals. We also noted that relevant industrial association has already issued a clarification. The Chinese government attaches great importance to the interests of overseas Chinese nationals and will continue to provide consular assistance in accordance with law.a

Bloomberg: US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen is expected to testify on Capitol Hill on Tuesday and is set to praise institutions like the IMF and the World Bank as reflecting American values. Does the foreign ministry have a comment on this characterization or this sort of praise of the IMF and World Bank as reflecting American values?

Wang Wenbin: The IMF and the World Bank are multilateral financial institutions and platforms that reflect democracy in international relations and advance international cooperation on the basis of fully taking into account the interests of all member states. The IMF is not the IMF of the United States, nor is the World Bank for that matter.

Global Times: According to US media reports, German investigators obtained evidence suggesting explosions of the Nord Stream pipelines were carried out by a sabotage group. Other reports said that the US had received information on an attack plan against the pipelines three months before the sabotage. What's your comment?

Wang Wenbin: We have noted relevant reports. China has expressed on multiple occasions that safeguarding the security of vital infrastructure is a common concern of the international community. It is critically important to launch an objective, impartial and professional investigation into the explosions and hold those responsible to account.

Eight months have passed since the explosion, yet the investigation process has been going slow. It is surprising that the US has remained silent this time, especially considering that it would usually use hotspot issues to portray itself as a so-called "beacon".

Take what the US has done to Syria for example. The turbulence in Syria began on April 22, 2011. On April 27, the US motioned to the UN, demanding that the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) send an investigation mission to Syria for possible violation of International Human Rights Law. On April 29, the US announced that Syria had seriously violated human rights, and imposed sanctions on some individuals and entities in Syria. Within just a week, the US completed the entire process from investigation to sanctions. Since then, the US has further meddled in Syria through various means, including funding the "White Helmets" which fabricated so-called evidence, carrying out airstrikes against Syria, expanding its sanctions, and exerting pressure with its allies. Clearly, nothing could stop the US until it got what it wanted.a

Compared with its aggressive response on Syria, the US's inaction on the Nord Stream pipeline explosions seems quite intriguing. Why has the US been silent? What cannot the US say about this? When exactly will the US respond to international doubts and concerns? The US owes the international community an explanation.

Bloomberg: A question on the US Commerce Department's restriction of exports to entities that it says recruited Western pilots to train Chinese military personnel as well as some that developed hypersonic weapons. So this is in relation to the addition of new companies to the entity list as a result of them recruiting Western pilots to train Chinese military personnel. Does the foreign ministry have a comment on this?

Wang Wenbin: To maintain its military and tech hegemony, the US has time and again overstretched the concept of national security and abused state power to go after Chinese companies, trampled on international trade order and global trade rules and destabilized global industrial and supply chains hysterically by all kinds of means.

We firmly oppose these acts taken by the US and demand that it immediately stop using military and human rights-related issues as pretexts to politicize, instrumentalize and weaponize trade and tech issues, and stop abusing export control tools such as entity lists to keep Chinese companies down. China will continue to do what is necessary to firmly safeguard the lawful rights and interests of Chinese companies.

Beijing Daily: According to reports, multiple sources have told the US news website The Messenger that driven by concerns over escalation of cross-Strait tensions, the US government is drafting plans to evacuate Americans from Taiwan, which include routes and destinations. Considering that Taiwan is quite sensitive to this, the US hasn't made it public. What's your comment on this?

Wang Wenbin: I am not aware of what you mentioned. But I do know that though the US says it supports Taiwan, it has been using Taiwan as a pawn and the Taiwan people as cannon fodder to serve the US strategy of using Taiwan to contain China. The US even has a "plan for the destruction of Taiwan". I believe the Taiwan people are able to see clearly how the US is actually seeking to harm Taiwan's interest and even destroy Taiwan.

Bloomberg: US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said former President Donald Trump's administration didn't do enough to counter Chinese efforts to boost intelligence gathering overseas. Does the foreign ministry have any comment on Secretary Blinken's remarks? And relatedly, do you have any information or details to share about the planned visit by Secretary Blinken to China?

Wang Wenbin: On your first question, I've stated China's position on similar questions several times. The US has been taking the same page from its playbook and people are already quite familiar with it. We hope the US will take a hard look at itself, stop propagating rumors and smears, and stop being a champion of hacking with its indiscriminate surveillance on other countries.

As to the visit you mentioned, I have answered similar questions and have nothing to add.a

Dragon TV: It was reported yesterday that TEPCO started trial operation of the nuclear-contaminated water discharge facility at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant, which will take two weeks. Japanese media assessed that the Japanese government will complete all preparation work for the discharge by the end of June and launch the discharge after the IAEA Task Force releases the final review report. What is your comment?

Wang Wenbin: The Japanese government has begun the trial operation of the nuclear-contaminated water discharge facility. This means that Japan has taken another step towards pushing through the discharge despite international opposition. The discharge of nuclear-contaminated water bears on the global marine environment and public health and is by no means a domestic matter of Japan. What Japan has done in disregard of strong domestic and international opposition is both irresponsible and unlikely to get support.

No matter how Japan tries to justify its discharge plan, it will not hide its attempt to shift risks. The discharge violates Japan's obligations to protect and preserve the marine environment as outlined in UNCLOS and other international instruments. Discharge into the ocean is not the only optionaand certainly not the safest and most optimized wayafor treating the nuclear-contaminated water. By choosing this option out of consideration for economic cost, Japan is in fact spilling the risks of nuclear pollution to humanity all over the world.

No lip service can change the reality. Japan has yet to prove that the discharge is safe and harmless. Data released by Japan shows that close to 70 percent of the treated water is not up to standard. However, Japan has created the pseudo-scientific term "treated water" in an attempt to cover up the unidentified risks of the plan. What consequences will it bring to the ecological environment, food safety and public health in Pacific rim countries if millions of tonnes of nuclear-contaminated water is dumped into the ocean? Japan has not fully provided scientific evidence and data in this regard.

No blueprint can guarantee a project's viability. The effectiveness and maturity of Japan's treatment facility has received no third-party assessment or certification, and has repeatedly malfunctioned. The discharge will last 30 years or even longer. In the future, a huge amount of new nuclear contaminated water is expected to be created. Japan has been unable to prove the long-term reliability of the treatment facility, neither has it provided a systematic and comprehensive environment monitoring plan. Its current monitoring plan covers a very small area with few locations and low frequency of monitoring, which makes it difficult to promptly identify abnormal situation such as when the discharged water is not up to standard.

I also want to stress that Japan cannot use the final review report of the IAEA Task Force as a "shield" from critics or "greenlight" for the discharge. As early as July 22 last year, the Japanese government officially approved the discharge plan and has since declared multiple times that it would not postpone the implementation of the plan. In fact, the Task Force has a very limited mandate as agreed between Japan and the IAEA, and is not authorized to evaluate other options than the discharge into the ocean. Therefore, no final report shall be used as an excuse for Japan to dump the nuclear-contaminated water into the ocean.

China strongly urges Japan to faithfully fulfill its international obligations, stop pushing through the discharge plan, fully explore and evaluate the alternatives to ocean discharge to ensure that the nuclear-contaminated water is handled in a scientific, safe and transparent manner, and agree to rigorous international oversight. We hope Japan will stop taking the wrong steps in time. Spilt water cannot be gathered up again.

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Beijing slams Washington's 'unscrupulous hysteria' against China

Iran Press TV

Tuesday, 13 June 2023 7:28 PM

Beijing has slammed Washington for imposing new sanctions on Chinese companies and denounced the move as Washington's "unscrupulous hysteria."

China's Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin urged Washington on Tuesday to "stop abusing export control measures" to hobble Chinese companies.

"The United States has repeatedly overstretched the concept of national security, abused state power, unwarrantedly suppressed Chinese companies, and wantonly disrupted the international economic order and trade rules," Wang said at a daily briefing in Beijing. "It has reached a level of unscrupulous hysteria."

China "demands that the US immediately correct its wrong practice of politicizing, instrumentalizing, and weaponizing economic, trade, and sci-tech issues with a pretext of human rights or military-related issues," Wang said.

The US government on Monday placed 43 "entities" on an export control list, citing national security and foreign policy concerns. The latest US sanctions include both Chinese and foreign companies.

Among those listed in the latest US sanctions were Frontier Services Group Ltd., a security and aviation company previously run by Blackwater founder Erik Prince, and Test Flying Academy of South Africa, a flight school under scrutiny by British authorities for hiring retired British military pilots to train Chinese fliers. The Chinese companies are barred from now on from receiving US exports for activities deemed contrary to US national interest.

Other companies were sanctioned for aiding the development of China's hypersonic weapons and the modernization of its army, the Commerce Department aid.

Two companies a Beijing Ryan Wende Science and Technology Co. Ltd. and Xinjiang Kehua Hechang Biological Science and Technology Co. Ltd. -- were added for allegedly supplying items that helped the Chinese government monitor ethnic minorities across the country.

The US has imposed several rounds of sanctions and import curbs over the past three years on companies claimed to be helping Beijing allegedly suppress the ethnic minorities in its western Xinjiang region.

Washington, while slapping sanctions on Chinese officials and entities alongside carrying out continuous military and diplomatic provocations against China, has been instructing US officials to open new channels of communication with Beijing and its military to avoid an accidental conflict between the two sides' military forces on land and sea.

In the meantime, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is expected in Beijing later this week, in a visit previously postponed due to a Chinese climate research balloon that traveled across US territory in February and was shot down by American forces.

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Blinken walks a diplomatic tightrope to Beijing

Not even revelations of a Chinese spy base in Cuba can stop the US secretary of state's visit this time.

Alex Willemyns for RFA 2023.06.13 -- Nothing can stop U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken's trip to Beijing this time. Not the Chinese military's "unsafe" moves in the South China Sea. Not a war of words over Chinese fentanyl exports. And not even the revelations of a multibillion-dollar Chinese spy base in Cuba.

In a dramatic about-face over the weekend, the Biden administration reversed its denials of a Wall Street Journal report about the spy base to instead say it was not even news: The spy base, it said, had in fact been known to U.S. intelligence since the Trump administration.

That only raised more questions about the initial denials.

John Kirby, spokesman for the White House's National Security Council, on Monday flat-out denied that the repudiation of the story last week was intended to not derail Blinken's coming trip to China, as the spy-balloon saga did with his late trip cancellation in February.

Kirby told reporters at the White House that the denials were due to the verb forms used in last week's reports. The headlines should have used the past tense, he said, not the present.

Still, he denied that the White House had been caught in hamfisted cover-up of untimely news, and queried the reason for the leak.

"It's shameful that somebody - or somebodies - somehow think it's okay to put this kind of information in the public bloodstream," Kirby said. "We were as forthcoming as we should have been and could have been in the moment, and remain that way right now."

We need to talk

Blinken's trip is yet to be officially announced by the State Department, but media reports suggest he will arrive in Beijing on Sunday and meet top officials from China's government during an event on Monday.

The visit comes after almost a year of strained relations between Washington and Beijing, which began with then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's trip to Taiwan in August and has since been punctuated by an near unending list of disputes between the two major world powers, including tech export bans and the rise in near-accidents at sea.

Amid those complaints, some have queried why the White House is trying so hard now for a thaw, having even "held back human rights-related sanctions, export controls and other sensitive actions to try to limit damage to the U.S.-China relationship," per one report.

It's all part of the precarious high-wire act of managing the extensive economic ties and military tensions in what President Joe Biden has called "the most important relationship" that the United States has.

"The Biden administration is trying to walk a fine line," Stephen Walt, a professor of international affairs at the Harvard Kennedy School, told Radio Free Asia, noting that the White House's main aim was to build a "balancing coalition to keep China from gaining hegemony in Asia."

"But they also want to cooperate with Beijing in other areas and avoid a complete economic or political rupture" that would damage both sides, he said. "A thaw with Beijing will also reassure our Asian allies, who are sometimes spooked when the risk of war seems too high."

Both of those latter aims, Walt explained, require dialogue, which China has shut off since Blinken's nixed February trip. But that also means the U.S. side stands to gain more from resumed talks.

"For the United States, restarting regular dialogue and clarifying some points of agreement would be enough," he said. "China faces a tougher task: 'success' probably means getting the United States to back away from some of its recent measures, and that is unlikely to happen."

To thaw or not to thaw

Some, including Bonnie Glaser, managing director of the Indo-Pacific Program at the German Marshall Fund of the United States, don't even see Blinken's trip amid mounting tensions as the pursuit of a thaw.

"Rather, it is seeking to responsibly manage competition with China, which is impossible to do in the absence of dialogue," Glaser told RFA. "Blinken likely hopes to restore mechanisms of dialogue that have been suspended, especially the military dialogues, and to reinvigorate cooperation on global issues."

"I expect he will cover the full range of issues in the relationship, including human rights, actions against Chinese companies, the war in Ukraine, as well as North Korea, Iran, and Taiwan," she said.

There are also more practical reasons to re-engage in talks, especially as American defense officials continue to warn about the risks of a war.

While the United States and China may be locked in a "strategic competition" to influence world politics in their favor, they are also economically intertwined in a way the United States and Soviet Union never were during the Cold War, said Richard Harknett, director of the University of Cincinnat's School of Public and International Affairs.

"Competition is not inevitably conflict, and neither country's interests are advanced through direct conflict/war," Harknett told RFA. "Just talking at high levels is an advancement as it reduces the chances for misperceptions to lead to unintended incidents."

He said that could only be achieved by restoring dialogue to create "some basic rules of the road" that benefit both sides long-term.

"This is establishing ground rules for the next decades," he said.

Biden-Xi

In the shorter term, said Kharis Templeman, the director of the Project on Taiwan in the Indo-Pacific Region at Stanford University, bilateral dialogue is also "useful for clarifying U.S. interests and capabilities" to Beijing, even if most issues "won't be resolved simply by talking."

That will put the United States in a better position in its competition with China, he said, and could help avoid a conflict. Beyond that, it "doesn't cost much to send Blinken to Beijing," Templeman argued.

"It's also useful because the U.S. side can learn more about the CCP leadership," he added, referring to the Chinese Communist Party, and there is value in seeing "who's advising Xi Jinping, how Xi spends his time, what issues they want to talk about and avoid, and so forth."

"The primary way that hot conflicts happen is via misperception of the other side's interests, commitments and capabilities," he said.

In the end, the many points of dispute between the United States and China might also be seen as more of a reason for a meeting between their top diplomats than an impediment to it, said Carl Thayer, emeritus professor at the Australian Defense Force Academy in Canberra.

"It is precisely because of the growing list of issues affecting bilateral relations that there is increased urgency for dialogue to address these disputes and stabilize relations," Thayer said, and to break a cycle of "both putting the blame on the other for the failure of dialogue."

Besides allowing both sides to "take stock of the main irritants in bilateral relations and how they can be managed," the trip could lay the groundwork for another face-to-face at the ASEAN summit in Jakarta in September or G-20 Summit in New Delhi in December, he added.

"It is likely both China and the United States will find it in their interest to schedule a meeting between Xi and Biden before the end of the year, when the regional diplomatic calendar of events provides a convenient opportunity for them to meet," Thayer said.

Edited by Malcolm Foster.

Copyright 1998-2023, RFA. Used with the permission of Radio Free Asia, 2025 M St. NW, Suite 300, Washington DC 20036. For any commercial use of RFA content please send an email to: mahajanr@rfa.org. RFA content June not be used in a manner which would give the appearance of any endorsement of any product or support of any issue or political position. Please read the full text of our Terms of Use.

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Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang speaks with Blinken, clarifying China's stance on core concerns including Taiwan question

Global Times

By Global Times Published: Jun 14, 2023 12:41 PM

Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Qin Gang had a phone call with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Wednesday at the latter's request, clarifying China's firm stance on core concerns such as the Taiwan question, according to a statement from the Chinese Foreign Ministry.

Qin pointed out that since the beginning of the year, China-US relations have faced new difficulties and challenges, and the responsibility is clear. China has always viewed and handled China-US relations following the principles of mutual respect, peaceful coexistence, and win-win cooperation proposed by Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Qin clarified China's firm stance on core concerns such as the Taiwan question, emphasizing that the US should respect it, stop interfering in China's internal affairs, and stop harming China's sovereign security and development interests in the name of competition.

The Chinese diplomat said he hopes that the US will take practical actions to implement the important consensus reached between the two heads of state at the G20 Bali meeting and the relevant commitments made by the US, move toward China, effectively manage differences, promote exchanges and cooperation, and get China-US relations back on track to healthy and stable development.

Washington continued hyping China-related topics ahead of a reported trip by Blinken to China as the Biden administration said it has "taken diplomatic steps" that slowed China's intelligence presence overseas following its recent hype over an alleged "Cuba spy base." The latest US move was criticized by China on Tuesday as "taking the same page" of the US' playbook.

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HMAS Anzac enforces United Nations Security Council sanctions against North Korea

13 June 2023

Royal Australian Navy (RAN) frigate HMAS Anzac has completed its deployment on Operation Argos as part of a routine regional presence deployment.

Australia supports the enforcement of United Nations Security Council (UNSC) sanctions through the deployment of Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) maritime patrol aircraft and RAN surface vessels.

HMAS Anzac, with its embarked MH-60R Seahawk helicopter, has monitored and deterred illegal ship-to-ship transfers of sanctioned goods in the region.

Since 2018, Australia has deployed RAAF maritime patrol aircraft on 11 occasions and RAN vessels on nine occasions in support of the operation.

Quotes attributable to Chief of Joint Operations, Lieutenant General Greg Bilton:

"Australia is committed to enforcing United Nations Security Council sanctions on North Korea until it takes concrete steps towards denuclearisation.

"We regularly deploy ADF assets on Operation Argos to monitor and deter shipments of sanctioned goods alongside close partners including Canada, France, Germany, Japan, New Zealand, Republic of Korea, the United Kingdom, and the United States.

"These deployments demonstrate Australia's commitment to nuclear non-proliferation and upholding the international rules-based order."

Quotes attributable to Commanding Officer HMAS Anzac, Commander David McPherson:

"The dedication of hard working sailors and officers aboard the frigate during Operation Argos demonstrates Australia's continued commitment to regional security and stability."

"We are proud to have successfully contributed to the ninth iteration of the RAN's support to Operation Argos on behalf of Australia."

"Team Anzac conducted monitoring and surveillance at sea in response to illicit maritime activities using a range of the ship's advanced sensors, and the embarked MH-60R Seahawk maritime warfare helicopter, which is equipped with world-leading anti-surface and anti-submarine warfare capabilities."

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Nairobi  Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has appealed to Members of Parliament not to mutilate the Finance Bill 2023 because doing so will set back government plans on development.

Speaking in Kirinyaga Tuesday, Gachagua asked the legislators to vote in favor for the Bill, saying it is good for Kenyans.

"All Mt Kenya leaders except one are in support of the Finance Bill and your government your excellency, that means we are just waiting for the day. We are hearing that the parliament is starting to remove some things you had placed in the finance bill," he said.

"We are urging the members of parliament please leave for us this plan; however, we respect you. But we ask the committee that please do not mutilate our plan in the unfortunate thing you do, we will go back to the drawing board, but we ask that do not tamper with it is a good plan that will help Kenya grow."

Gachagua urged Kenyans who are unemployed not to listen to those who try to mislead them on Finance Bill 2023.

The Finance Bill 2023 has come under sharp criticism from leaders, and Kenyans.

In the Bill, the Housing Fund proposed a three percent mandatory levy from employees which has been the key area of concern from national stakeholders calling for the bill to be scrapped off.

Azimio leader Raila Odinga, on last week warned of an imminent return of nationwide protests warning that should parliamentarians pass the Finance Bill unamended, the opposition would swing into action and take their grievances to the streets.

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"The government will present the Bill to parliament on Thursday, June 8, and subsequently read the budget on Thursday, June 15. If they pass the Finance Bill, we will hold demonstrations in every corner of the country," he said.

However, President William Ruto on Monday succumbed to pressure and slashed the Housing Fund levy by half, from the current three percent to 1.5 percent.

Reducing the percentage of the levy contained in the Finance Bill 2023 comes as a direct response to the widespread public outcry, with a considerable number of Kenyans expressing strong opposition to the scheme.

"The Housing Fund contribution has been reduced to 1.5% from the proposed 3%. Ruto listens," President Ruto's United Democratic Alliance (UDA) party tweeted.

The National Assembly Finance Committee had been actively gathering input from stakeholders regarding the Bill, and the clause related to the housing levy garnered significant attention and debate.

The Committee is on Tuesday set to present the revised edition of the Bill for discussion in the House, marking the beginning of a lively debate that is anticipated to be highly spirited.
Greetings to Russian FM

Korean Central News Agency of DPRK

Pyongyang, June 13 (KCNA) -- Choe Son Hui, foreign minister of the DPRK, sent a message of greeting to her Russian counterpart Sergei Viktorovich Lavrov on Monday, the Day of Russia.

The message said she is rejoiced over the fact that the Russian Federation has achieved remarkable successes in the work to defend the sovereignty and dignity of the country and the wellbeing of the people, ensure the regional peace and stability and build an equal and multi-polarized world.

The relations between the DPRK and the Russian Federation, firmly consolidated with the tradition of friendship and good neighborliness, greeted a new heyday thanks to the historic DPRK-Russia summit in Vladivostok, the message noted, adding that their mutual cooperation and support in bilateral and international issues are getting stronger than ever before.

Expressing belief that the strategic and tactical cooperation between the fields of diplomatic affairs of the two countries would be further strengthened in promoting the development of the DPRK-Russia friendly relations and building a peaceful new world, the message wished the Russian foreign minister success in his responsible work. -0-

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Russia resumed shipments of oil to North Korea in December, UN data shows

Experts say the oil may have been in exchange for weapons that Russia could use in the Ukraine war.

By Cho Jinwoo for RFA Korean 2023.06.13 -- Russia has resumed supplying oil to North Korea after a 27-month hiatus due to international sanctions, data from the United Nations showed.

Experts told Radio Free Asia that the resumption likely coincided with Pyongyang supplying Moscow with weapons for use in its war against Ukraine.

The UN Security Council Sanctions Committee on North Korea on June 9 published data on Russian oil shipments to North Korea, which indicated that in December 2022, Moscow supplied 3,225 barrels of refined oil to Pyongyang.

In January, the total number of barrels sharply increased to 44,655, then sharply decreased over the next few months, with only 3,612 barrels sent in April.

It was the first time that Russia sent oil to North Korea since August 2020, when Pyongyang suspended international trade to counter the spread of the coronavirus pandemic.

In September 2022, Georgiy Zinoviev, head of the Russian foreign ministry's First Asia Department, said that Russia would be willing to resume trading oil products with North Korea if Pyongyang would lift the ban.

North Korea's opening gives Russia a much needed market for oil at a time when its main markets in the European Union enacted a partial embargo on Russian oil due to the war in Ukraine.

Through April, Russia has sent nearly 99,473 barrels of oil to North Korea, which is around 19% of the amount permitted by U.N. sanctions meant to deprive Pyongyang of resources that could be funneled into its nuclear and missile programs.

Oil for weapons

Two U.S.-based experts said that it was likely that the refined oil exports to North Korea resumed in return for supplying weapons to Russia, which is at war with Ukraine.

In June, a State Department spokesperson told Reuters news service that the U.S. was able to confirm that North Korea had sent arms, including infantry rockets and missiles to a Russian-backed mercenary group in November 2022, despite denials from Pyongyang.

"I would guess that [the oil shipments] may be Russia fulfilling its end of the deal in exchange for North Korea providing weapons and lethal aid to the Russian troops in the ongoing war with Ukraine," Soo Kim, policy practice area lead at Virginia-based LMI Consulting and a former CIA analyst, told RFA's Korean Service.

"At this stage, Russia is in need of military support to offset its deficiencies in its battle against Ukraine," said Kim. "North Korea is willing to provide lethal aid probably because [North Korean leader] Kim [Jong Un] can receive energy and food assistance in exchange."

She also said that Pyongyang and Moscow working closely together could undermine U.S. interests.

Michael O'Hanlon, a senior fellow at the Washington-based Brookings Institution also told RFA that refined oil may be a payment for weapons aided by North Korea.

In addition to oil, Russia is exporting more than 1,000 tons of wheat flour to North Korea, according to a recent press release from Moscow's Federal Veterinary Customs Agency.

North Korea's state-run Rodong Sinmun newspaper reported Monday that Kim Jong Un sent a congratulatory message to Russian President Vladimir Putin, affirming his willingness to increase close strategic cooperation between the two countries.

Translated by Leejin J. Chung. Edited by Eugene Whong.

Copyright 1998-2016, RFA. Used with the permission of Radio Free Asia, 2025 M St. NW, Suite 300, Washington DC 20036. For any commercial use of RFA content please send an email to: mahajanr@rfa.org. RFA content June not be used in a manner which would give the appearance of any endorsement of any product or support of any issue or political position. Please read the full text of our Terms of Use.

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South Korea, US Agree to Further Hinder Financing of Pyongyang's Arms Programs - Envoy

Sputnik News

20230613

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - South Korea and the United States have agreed to further strengthen their joint efforts to prevent funds from flowing into North Korea's weapons development programs, Special Representative for Korean Peninsula Peace and Security Affairs Kim Gunn said.

Kim and US Special Representative for North Korea Sung Kim met in Washington on Monday.

"[We] have agreed to strengthen our efforts to more definitely cut off funds to North Korea's nuclear and missile development programs," Kim was quoted as saying by South Korean news agency Yonhap following the meeting.

The diplomat added that Seoul and Washington discussed joint countermeasures against possible provocations by Pyongyang.

"In a current condition when North Korea has announced plans for an additional launch of a so-called satellite, [we] reviewed and coordinated our countries' countermeasures against potential North Korean provocations," he said.

The US diplomat echoed the South Korean envoy's remarks while reiterating Washington's commitment to seeking dialogue with Pyongyang, the news agency said.

On May 31, North Korea unsuccessfully launched the Malligyong-1 military reconnaissance satellite mounted on a Chollima-1 carrier rocket. After the separation of the first stage, the engine of the second stage failed to ignite, causing the rocket to lose thrust and fall into the Yellow Sea, North Korea's space agency said. In early June, the International Maritime Organization (IMO) adopted a resolution condemning North Korea's missile launches as a serious threat to the safety of international shipping. On June 4, North Korea responded with a statement, in which it threatened to stop informing the organization about the country's future launches.

A Sputnik

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US National Security Advisor calls on Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi

India - Ministry of External Affairs

June 13, 2023

US National Security Advisor, H.E. Mr. Jake Sullivan, called on Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi today.

NSA Sullivan briefed Prime Minister on the progress in various sectors of bilateral cooperation. He conveyed that the US President Biden looked forward to welcoming Prime Minister on the State Visit.

PM expressed satisfaction at the growing and deepening Comprehensive Global Strategic Partnership between India and the US.

Prime Minister said that he looked forward to a productive visit and an engaging conversation with President Biden on bilateral, regional and global issues of mutual interest.

New Delhi

June 13, 2023

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Meeting of National Security Advisor, Shri Ajit Doval with National Security Advisor of USA, H.E. Mr. Jake Sullivan

India - Ministry of External Affairs

June 13, 2023

US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan is on an official visit to New Delhi from 13-14 June, 2023 at the invitation of Shri Ajit Doval, KC, National Security Adviser of India. He is accompanied by a delegation of senior US government officials and leaders of US industry. The two NSAs have engaged regularly in extensive discussions on a broad bilateral, regional and global agenda. The current visit, which comes in the run-up to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's state visit to the US, will give them the opportunity to continue their high-level dialogue, which will include a review of the robust and multi-faceted cooperation between the two countries as well as a survey of the India-US global strategic partnership.

Following the launch of the India-US Initiative on Critical and Emerging Technologies (iCET) by Prime Minister Modi and President Joseph Biden on the side lines of the QUAD Summit in Tokyo on 24 May 2022, the two NSAs have also driven a concerted effort between the two countries to engage on the identified areas of collaboration, including Artificial Intelligence, Quantum Computing, Semiconductors, Telecommunications, Defence and Space. The current visit by Mr Sullivan will thus provide an opportunity to the two NSAs to review the progress thus far and set new priorities and objectives for iCET.

Earlier today, the two National Security Advisers met for restricted discussions on regional and global issues of mutual interest. Later in the evening, they attended the second Track 1.5 dialogue on iCET organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry. The first edition of this dialogue had been organised by the US Chamber of Commerce in Washington, D.C. on 30 January 2023. The NSAs addressed the participants at the dialogue, which included leading representatives of academia and industry from both the countries. They expressed satisfaction at the progress made under iCET and encouraged stakeholders on both sides to strive for technology value chain partnerships that would lead to co-development and co-production of high technology products and services in both countries.

During the visit, NSA Sullivan will also meet with External Affairs Minister Dr. S. Jaishankar and other dignitaries of the Government of India.

New Delhi

June 13, 2023

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Transcript of Special Briefing by External Affairs Minister, Dr. S. Jaishankar on G20 Development Ministers' Meeting, Varanasi

India - Ministry of External Affairs

June 13, 2023

Shri Arindam Bagchi, Official Spokesperson: A very good evening to all of you here in the holy city of Varanasi. We are here, just concluded the G20 DMM meeting. Thank you very much for joining us. We just concluded the Development Ministerial Meeting, chaired by Honorable External Affairs, Dr. S. Jaishankar. To give us a sense of the conversation and the meetings that happened. We have the privilege of having with us right now EAM Dr. S. Jaishankar as well as Foreign Secretary Shri Vinay Kwatra. Sir, may I hand over the floor to you.

Dr. S. Jaishankar, External Affairs Minister: First of all, I seek your indulgence.

Thodisi der ho gayi, mei shama chahta hu. [Approximate Translation: It's a little late, I seek your apology for that. ]

The meeting went on for a little bit longer than we thought. Thank you for bearing with us. So this Development Ministers Meeting of the G20 has just concluded. I want to first of all share with you that we have approved unanimously two outcomes. One is a G20 Action Plan on accelerating progress in the Sustainable Development Goals. The second is a G20 High Level Principles on Lifestyle for Sustainable Development. I think many of you know that Prime Minister have proposed how we should change our lifestyle. It was part of an initiative that we call LiFE. So these two outcomes were agreed to by everybody and that was the main result of the morning session. We had further discussion on these subjects in the afternoon. Much of the morning was spent on Sustainable Development Goals. Much of the afternoon was spent on Climate Change and the relationship between Climate Change and Sustainable Development Goals.

Then at the end of the meeting we had an outcome of the Development Ministerial, which was an Outcome Document and a Chair Summary, because some countries had reservations on some parts of it. So these were the three documents which were done. In terms of the Action Plan; I want to share with you that the Action Plan put a very sharp focus on women led development for achieving SDG goals. There was a commitment how do we leverage data for development because this is a digital era and there are many digital tools which can be used to advance development. Many of you are familiar. In India in the last few years we have shown how much of a difference digital apps and digitally driven programs can make in terms of public delivery of programs and goods. It also focused on human centric economic growth and the sustainable finance for development including through the reform of international financial institutions. So these were the main aspects of the Action Plan...and the Action Plan is very important because I think most of you would know that in the last few years many of the Sustainable Development Goals of countries have fallen behind because they are under financial stress, there is a debt pressure on them, they are finding food and energy and fertilizers more expensive. So the G20 basically understood today, recognized today that the Global South is having great problems that somewhere we have to respond to it through an action plan. So this Action Plan was proposed by India and I am very happy to say on this matter there was no politics, everybody understood the importance of it, everybody rose to that occasion, so there was a deSire to be completely helpful on everybody's part.

The second outcome was on Lifestyle for Sustainable Development. And basically the thinking behind this because some of you would be familiar, some of you may not be so familiar what is this initiative about. Basically what has happened for many years...when we think of growth, we think that growth means there should be more consumption in every country, in every society. So our thinking of growth is there should be higher consumption and that will drive growth. What has happened is that this has damaged nature, this has created problems for the planet. So Prime Minister has been proposing for some time that instead of looking at the supply side, we should actually look at the demand. And if every individual...because when we again think of saving the planet, we think okay this is the job of a Government, it is the job of UN, it is the job of an organization. We don't fully recognize it is a job, it is a responsibility for every one of us, that there is an individual, that is everyone one of us as an individual can contribute to a better planet, to protecting the environment and nurturing it. And this is something which has taken the form of as I said, this set of initiatives and they focus on economic and social improvement through lifestyles for environment, they give priority for basic needs...because again many countries and again I point even to India, that basic needs of vulnerable sections of society have to be met if you have to talk seriously about sustainability. That sustainability...we cannot say that there is a sustainable planet and you have a very rich segment of that planet, you have a vulnerable segment of the planet and one is not connected to other.

The third part of it is really the outlook of "Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam" which is really the world is a family and in the case of India, you know, the G20 motto itself is of 'one earth and one family and one future'. And the core principle what I think today the G20 agreed is, individuals apart from Governments and organizations...individuals and communities must contribute to environmental and sustainable issues and that this needs to be done at a grassroots levels.

We also had a discussion about how the local communities should connect with global policy making, how do we link that, how do we get benefits of that, and again there was a very important acceptance that when we talk today about progress in the world it is not just about economic progress. Though economic progress is very important, economic progress must always have sustainability as a component, there must also be a sharing of cultures and that is again something that was widely recognized. So this is broadly the sense of what we discussed today in terms of the documents. I just want to add something else because during the course of discussions I think many delegations made some very interesting points.

A lot of them were very appreciative of the Voice of Global South Summit process which India had convened. In fact the delegates, especially from the Global South...but I would say even from the developed countries many of them said that they recognized that instead of...I think this was particularly the view which AU expressed, that instead of actually telling countries of the south what G20 has done, for the first time a G20 President was asking countries of the Global South, what do you want put before the G20. So this was a very strong point which was made.

The second point I want to bring to your attention is you all know in the morning our session began with Prime Minister's address, that address is public, you know it was an open session and it was very, very widely welcomed. I think, many Heads of delegations in their remarks actually specifically said that they saw our Prime Minister who was personally invested in development, in sustainability, in poverty alleviation, in inclusiveness and his address I must tell you really set the tone today for our discussions.

I want to add a small personal touch here as well. After Prime Minister's address we showed a brief snapshot of the progress in Narmada district in Gujarat and the reason is that it's an aspirational district, it is also a district where I happen to focus on in terms of development work. And I was actually able...because yesterday a lot of Ministers asked me saying, you know we read about development in India, you know, we hear what does digital do, you know that's advancement in terms of women's issues, we are seeing education progress. So they were very curious, that you know we read about it but you know how does it happen on the ground. So this snapshot that we did and after showing it in fact it I put it out on Twitter so those of you who are curious may want to see it. It actually showed them on the ground what happens, that to the last mile how is delivery done.

The other point which I wanted to mention is that many delegations expressed very deep solidarity and sympathy on the Orissa rail accident. I also acknowledged the fact that they did that. So again I make the point that at moments of misfortune or tragedy today the whole world really stands as one.

And the concluding...I would say concluding note before we actually came to the last session was that the Indian Presidency...again for many delegations was a cause of optimism...that they felt that the Indian Presidency actually brought development back into the center of G20 discussions and that this was somewhere in between focus was a little bit lost I would say or less and they were very, very appreciative of this. So this was really the thrust of the meeting developments. But I think my coming here and speaking to you, I should of course fully recognize the enormous support that we have got to hold this meeting in Varanasi. We had yesterday, most of us went for the Ganga Aarti and almost everybody told me today morning in the meeting...before we went in the meeting, for them it was a unique experience that if, you know, other than the outcomes we got, everybody said when we go back, we will carry that picture of Ganga Aarti in our minds. So for them actually Kashi, Varanasi made a very deep impression, the idea and in fact it highlighted this importance of understanding and appreciating other cultures. That today for a lot of countries to see this thousands of years city with layers of history, which is so visibly expressed I think that was a very moving experience. Even here I would say that the handicrafts they saw, the folk dances they saw, the handlooms, this too was important and yesterday evening Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath Ji was very gracious enough to come down to Varanasi to meet all of them to interact with many delegation leaders. They appreciated it, I mean I appreciated it, again because I know the great effort which has gone into making this a successful meeting and the sense of pride today that Uttar Pradesh as a state and Varanasi as a city has in hosting this meeting, and this state has been a fantastic partner in terms of our G20 efforts and I really want to use this to underline my appreciation for what the Chief Minister and his team has done.

So I think that would be a fair account of the meetings today. So if you have any questions I would be very happy to answer them.

Shri Arindam Bagchi, Official Spokesperson: Thank you. We will now open the floor for questions. Please introduce yourself and the organization that you represent and please limit yourself to one question if possible, we are running behind time.

Dhairya Maheshwari: Good evening Sir. Dhairya Maheshwari from Sputnik International. My question is about the gaps in the SDG financing which has been soaring since pandemic, so has have there been any concrete commitments from particularly...from the rich nations and another related question to SDGs is the politicization of supply chains, it has been making an impact in Indian communities as well particularly in the diamond industry in Gujarat. So what sort of discussion --

Shri Arindam Bagchi, Official Spokesperson: What kind of...sorry...could you repeat your question please.

Dhairya Maheshwari: politicization of Supply chains which has been affecting the economic, you know, well-being of communities?

Dr. S. Jaishankar, External Affairs Minister: The answer to your point is...yes, SDG financing gap was discussed...yes, it was recognized as a very, very important issue. And there was a discussion about the UN Secretary General's proposal for a SDG stimulus at the UN. There's also, by the way, a Paris Summit on a new global financing pact, in which France and India are among the leading countries who are working on that. So this was very much a concern, because at the end of the day, the feeling was without more resources...you know, before SDG was slowing down...actually in the last few years, many of the goals have regressed. So the feeling is we have to do something very different, very special, and resourcing was one of the issues.

Your second question about the diamond industry. This is not a G20 issue. The diamond industry concern is essentially coming out of the G7. So when Prime Minister went to Hiroshima and we met with G7 leaders, it was something that we discussed with them. I was myself in Brussels. I met both the Prime Minister of Belgium and with the Commissioners in the European Union. And on Prime Minister's instructions, I raised this issue with both of them, that this is a matter of livelihood for many people, that it is not an issue which should be taken in a not fully considered way. And we really do believe that, you know, the totality of the global economy should always be considered when important decisions are made.

Girish Dubey: Good evening Sir. Main Girish Dubey, ANI se, Varanasi se. Sir Pradhan Mantri ji ne bhi Global South ki baat ki thi subah, aap bhi Global South ki baat kar rahain hain, jo aaj ki din bhar ki jo meeting hui G20 ke jo Development Minister aaye the usmai kis tarah ka consent mila unse aur kya baat hui usmai?

[Question in Hindi: Approximate Translation] Good evening Sir. I am Girish Dubey from ANI, Varanasi. Sir, Prime Minister also talked about the Global South in the morning. You are also discussing the Global South. What kind of consent was received from the Development Ministers who attended the G20 meeting today, and what was discussed in it?

Shri Arindam Bagchi, Official Spokesperson: Global South ke vishay par? [Approximate Translation: On the topic of Global South?]

Dr. S. Jaishankar, External Affairs Minister: Dekhiye, ek toh aap jo keh rahain hain bilkul thik keh rahe hain ki aaj subah bhi Pradhan Mantri ne Global South pe kafi bal diya. Aur jo hum kehte hain Voice of Global South, hamari koshish thi saal ke shurwat mai ki Global South ki jo chintayain jo hain, unke mudde jo hain unko ek baar jab tak hum unse baat nahi karenge, aur unki chinta nahi samajh payenge, toh G20 jo hain wo apne raste ja raha hain aur Global South jo hain woh piche reh jata, unki koi sunta bhi nahi. Toh hamari koshish thi ki wo 125 desh jo the, swaso desh jo the, unse ek baar agar sampark samvaad ho jaye, unse baat karain, unki baat sune, uska nichod nikale aur usko G20 ke samne rakhain. Aur G20 mai bhi agar ek aisa...kyu ki aap jante hain ki iske alag alag tracks hote hain usmai se sabse jo swabhawik tha ki hum is mudde ko uthaye woh is track mai tha. Toh humne bilkul ye baat uthai ki G20 ki ye chintayain hain aur khaskar jo energy, jo main kehta hoon, energy, food, fertilizer, and debt ki, ke bahot sare aise desh hain unka debt, unka karza itna jyada hain ki woh unko wapas de nahi payenge.

Aur aaj kal jo debt relief jo milta hain woh khali kuch deshon ko milta hain kyuki ye ek purana formula tha. Purana formula tha jab duniya ki ecomony kuch aur thi. Toh uske baad kuch aur desh aaye hain aur unko aajkal kehlaya jata hain ki aap to eligible hi nahi hain. ab agar woh is kathin samasya mai hain aur aap unko kehte hain ki rule jo hain kuch alag hain, ye to nahi chalega. Toh humne jo hain ye sawaso desh ki aur se unke mudde jo hain humne samne rakha. Aur mujhe laga ki aaj jo hain G20 ke desh sunne ke liye taiyar hain, unko bhi ye nahi hain ki....ye na samjhate hain, na samajhana chahte hain, unko bhi lagta hain ki haan kuch hain is baat mai, aur agar Bharat jaisa desh aur Narendra Modi jaise Pradhan Mantri agar wo apni awaz uthaye, agar woh khud personally is baat ko samne rakhain mujhe lagta hain ki duniya pe jarur asar hoga. Aur mujhe aaj iska asar jo hain ispe dikhai deta hain, par isko hamain ab jameen mai utarna hain. Ismai kuch aur bhi tracks hain, jo finance track jo hain usse bhi kuch niklega, kuch aur bhi hain, aur jo badi meeting jo september mai hogi usmai dekhna hoga ki us meeting ke dauran kya nikalta hain.

[Answer in Hindi: Approximate Translation] Look, first of all, you are absolutely right in saying that this morning Prime Minister did emphasize on the Global South. And when we say...Voice of the Global South, our effort at the very beginning of the year was, that the concerns, the issues of the Global South...if we do not engage with them and do not understand their concerns, the G20 will continue on its path while the Global South would have been left behind with no one even listening to them. So our effort was to establish contact and have a dialogue with these 125 countries once, listen to them, understand their concerns, and present the abstract in front of the G20. And within the G20, as you know, there are different tracks, and the most natural one for us to raise this issue was in this track. So we specifically raised this topic that these are the concerns of the G20, especially regarding energy, food, fertilizer, and debt. And there are many countries who are facing huge debt burden that they are unable to repay, and the debt relief available nowadays is only given to a few countries because it's an outdated formula. It's an old formula from a time when the global economy was different, and now when there are some new countries in need, they are told that they are ineligible. So, if they are in this difficult situation and you tell them that the rules are different, this won't work. So we presented the issues of these 125 countries infront of the G20, and I felt that the G20 countries are ready to listen today. Its not the case that they don't understand or they don't want to understand. They also understand that there is something to this matter, and if a country like India and a Prime Minister like Narendra Modi raise their voices and personally bring this matter forward, I believe it will have an impact on the world. And I can see the impact of it today in this (pointing at the outcome documents), but we need to get things working on ground. There are other tracks as well, such as the finance track, from which some outcomes will emerge, and there are more as well. We will have to see what comes out of the major meeting in September.

Ileana: Good afternoon. Ileana, TASS News Agency. Am I right to understand that the outcomes of today's meeting will be the part of the declaration for the Summit in September? And I also have another question. I heard on the sidelines of the meeting that during the first part of the discussions, the countries supported the statement or the proposal, so what is it? The speech of the delegate from Russia, which was on food security. Is it like this? And if it is so, what were these proposals? And do they reflect the needs of Global South countries?

Dr. S. Jaishankar, External Affairs Minister: How many more questions are there? Because we're running a little bit out of time.

Amritpal Singh: Sir this is Amritpal Singh from DD News. Sir, I wanted to know about what transpired at the bilateral meetings that you held with the representatives from the ones you met, especially the Singaporeans.

Jacky Martens: Thanks. Hi, Jacky Martens, BBC. Just a question. At the beginning of the whole G20 process, there was concern that Ukraine was going to slightly derail the talks. Do you feel that this meeting has put the focus squarely back on development, which is what India was interested in, where the meeting should go?

Saurabh Agrawal: Hi, I'm Saurabh Agrawal from Bharat Express. My question is ki aapne ye bataya ki second session mai lifestyle pe bhi charcha hui, toh ye G20 ke jo countries the koi ek comprehensive plan bana jo ye lifestyle changes pe lekar kuch outcome aaya ispe?

[Question in Hindi: Approximate Translation] Hi, I'm Saurabh Agrawal from Bharat Express. My question is, you mentioned that there was a discussion on lifestyle in the second session. Did the G20 countries come up with any comprehensive plan regarding lifestyle changes, any outcomes on that?

Dr. S. Jaishankar, External Affairs Minister: Your first question about the Summit. You know, what typically happens in a G20 Presidency is there are many tracks. There are about, I think, 14 or 15 tracks. And these 15 tracks, like say, there's an environment track, there's an education track, there's a finance track, there's a development track, there's a Foreign Ministers track. So there are multiple tracks. So these tracks produce different outcomes. And finally, when we reach the Summit level, we have to find ways of how to integrate this and give each of the outcomes what we feel is the right priority at that point of time. So it is not that anything we have agreed to here. For example, you know, we had these two very important outcomes, the High-level Principles on Lifestyles for Sustainable Development and the Action Plan on Accelerating Progress in SDGs. Yes absolutely, because this is unanimous, this is central to world development. Frankly, to date, it is so far the biggest achievement of our Presidency. This is the biggest achievement of our Presidency, and it is for the South. You know, today when countries of the South...Global South, read this document, they will actually say...yes, India heard us, India stood up, India put our issues forward before G20, and G20 has accepted many of those and now is going on a certain path which kind of answers your question. So I think, yes, much of what we have done will be reflected in the Summit, but there will be other Ministerials also which will contribute to what is happening in the Summit.

You asked me about the Russian head of delegations remarks. You know, first of all, I think what happened inside the room, unless it is very complimentary and polite, we normally don't, you know, say this delegation said this and that delegation said this. I would say the fairest thing would be every delegation spoke for its interest and for its...I would say outlook. Now, different countries, you know, some countries may be a little closer to others, but I would not get into this, who supported whom and who did not support whom. I don't think that is helpful. I think the fairest description is everybody spoke for themselves. And my job as chair was to find the common elements and put it together and that is the document that is there before you.

The question about Singapore...you know, it was...we had a discussion on a set of issues because we are having...we have a continuous conversation with Singapore. So you know, some of it was bilateral because we have a high level Ministerial visit. But the most important thing today with Singapore was that Singapore ratified the International Solar Alliance. So they gave me the ratification document. So that is a big step because when a country like Singapore, which is so active, energetic, which is so motivational for many other countries, joins the ISA fully, this is something which is very important.

Your question about...you know, is the focus back on development? I think, yes. Look, in a way, it was understandable last year that the focus was on the more immediate issues pertaining to the conflict. But what happened was, over a period of time, the narrative began to take root that the conflict and, its repercussions should not obfuscate, should not completely sideline what are real concerns, pain points of the Global South. That you know, there are countries today where they cannot afford food, they are running short of fuel and a lot of it, I must tell you, is in this region. You know, you look at our neighbours. Our neighbours are among those who have suffered a lot in the last year. I have made a few trips to Africa and you can see the impact of that. So you know, we are in no way diminishing the seriousness of the conflict and its consequences. But the conflict was dealt with through an agreed understanding at Bali, okay. And that was an understanding of the Leaders. So right now, our focus is really how do you today address this very pressing needs of developing countries, the small island developing states, the least developed countries, those who are really teetering on the edge of an abyss. And that I would say with some pride and some, you know, really a sense of achievement. I think today, if you ask me what did you get done today, I think we really got the G20 to look at sustainable development growth, look at what is happening with Global South, think about financing for them, look at climate, think about climate financing, look at the link between development and financing, look at women's issues, at education, at digital, these are the real issues of the world. And I think in that sense, yes...we I think, got the spotlight, the focus on those issues.

And finally aapka jo sawal jo tha ki lifestyle pe kya charcha hui. Dekhiye aaj jo sehmati jo bani thi ye lifestyle pe nau siddhant hain jo hum angrezi mai kehta hain high level principles, ye agar aap ye document isko humne upload kiya hain ye agar aap dekh le, ki ye jo siddhant jo hain ye hain, ke har vyakti ki jimmedari hoti hain agar hum apne roj ke jeevan mai kuch parivartan laye, aap thoda environment ke bare mai kuch sochain, hum apne consumption patterns ko thoda badle, toh humain ye nahi sochna chahiye ki environment bachana kisi aur ka kaam hain, ye hum sab ka dayitwa hain. Toh ye nine principles jo hain ye puri duniya ko jo hain....kyuki ye G20 jo hain alag alag -- aap jante hain kuch viksit desh hain, kuch vikashil desh hain, kuch America se hain, kuch Eurpoe se hain, kuch Africa se hain, toh hum sab mikle hamara jo sehmati jo bana hain in nau principles pe ye chhoti baat nahi hain. Aur ye sehmati jo hain ye Global South ke bahot kaam aayega, kyuki ek baar agar aap maan le ki humain consuption pe kuch seema rakhni chahiye, kuch anushashan dikhana chahiye, toh ye duniya mai ek kisam se force of change ban jata hain. Toh mujhe lagta hain ki aaj jo hain duniya mai bahot aise desh honge jinko lagega ki aaj sach much Bharat ke netrutva ne unke heet aage badhe hain, unki mange jo hain usko kahin duniya ne maana hain, aur kam se kam usko kaise aage badhaye ab woh process jo hain woh jari rahegi.

[Answer in Hindi: Approximate Translation] And finally, regarding your question about the discussion on lifestyle. Look, today the consensus that was reached consists of nine principles, called as the High Level Principles related to Lifestyle. If you take a look at the document we have uploaded, you will see that these principles indicate that every individual has a responsibility to bring about changes in their daily lives, to think a little about the environment, and to modify our consumption patterns. We should not think that saving the environment is someone else's task; it is the responsibility of all of us. These nine principles are significant for the entire world because the G20 consists of different countriesasome developed, some developing, some from America, some from Europe, some from Africaaso the consensus we have reached on these principles is not a small matter. And this consensus will greatly benefit the Global South because once we agree that we need to limit our consumption and show some discipline, it becomes a force of change in the world. So, I believe that today there will be many countries in the world who will feel that India's leadership has truly worked in their favor, that their demands have been agreed by the world, and now atleast the process of how to further advance those demands will continue.

Shri Arindam Bagchi, Official Spokesperson: Thank you very much, Sir. Thank you for a comprehensive briefing. Thank you also to Foreign Secretary, Sir and to Dr. S. Jaishankar, Sir. Thank you all for joining us. Good evening.

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Iran exports over 2.8 million refinery installation parts to Venezuela: Minister

IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency

Jun 13, 2023

Tehran, IRNA -- Iran has exported more than 2.8 million refinery installation parts to Venezuela to revitalize the refineries in the Latin American country, according to Iran's Oil Minister Javad Owji.

Owji made the comments few hours after the two countries signed several oil contracts in Venezuela on Tuesday which happened simultaneous with a visit to Caracas by Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and his accompanying delegation.

With 17.5% of the total world oil reserves, Venezuela sits on the largest oil reserves of the world, the minister said.

He added that Venezuela has four refineries with a capacity of 1.4 million barrels per day which have been lying idle due to the sanctions and withdrawal of specialized workforce.

The minister also said that Venezuela has a 12 million mt of installed capacity of ammonia, urea, and poly ethylene which paves the ground for cooperation in the area of petrochemical industry between the two nations.

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Raisi terms Venezuela as significant market for Iran-made products

IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency

Jun 13, 2023

Tehran, IRNA -- Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi has said that Venezuela is one of the leading destinations for Iran-made products.

During his two-day visit to Caracas, to facilitate the presence of Iranian knowledge-based companies and to further benefit from the Venezuelan market's capacities, President Raisi visited the exhibition of achievements of Iranian knowledge-based activists and private companies in Caracas.

He also visited the Iranian supermarket, Megasis, established to boost the production and export of Iranian commodities.

Describing Venezuela's market as the leading destination for Iran-made products, President Raisi issued orders to remove the existing barriers.

Covering an area of 20,000 square meters, Megasis sells more than 2,500 Iranian items.

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Iran's deputy FM holds talks with E3 counterparts in UAE

IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency

Jun 13, 2023

Tehran, IRNA -- Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister for Political Affairs Ali Bagheri Kani has met and held talks with his British, French and German counterparts in Abu Dhabi, the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

"Continuing with diplomatic consultations with regional and extra-regional parties, we met our German, French and British counterparts and discussed a range of issues and mutual concerns," Bagheri Kani wrote in a Twitter post in Farsi on Tuesday.

The diplomat, who is also Iran's top negotiator in talks aimed at reviving a 2015 nuclear deal with world powers, had said in another tweet earlier on Tuesday that his trip to the UAE will be focused on bilateral ties and regional issues.

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Iran, Venezuela sign several oil contracts

IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency

Jun 13, 2023

Tehran, IRNA -- Iran and Venezuela have signed several agreements to cooperate on the development of oilfields and revitalization of refineries and petrochemical plants, according to a report by the Iranian Oil Ministry.

The Tuesday report said the cooperation agreements had been signed on Monday local time in Venezuela amid President Ebrahim Raisi's visit to the South American country.

Oil-related cooperation between Iran and Venezuela has increased since the Raisi administration took office in mid-2021.

Last year, the two sides signed an initial contract to restart refineries in Venezuela through Iran's technical knowledge and equipment.

Together, Iran and Venezuela possess about 40% of the world's oil reserves, but both countries' oil sectors have been targeted by unilateral US sanctions.

Kicking off his Latin American tour, Raisi arrived at Simon Bolivar International Airport in Caracas on Monday at the formal invitation of his Venezuelan counterpart.

Upon arrival, he was welcomed by Venezuela's Foreign Minister Yvan Gil Pinto, and other top officials of the country.

The president will also visit Nicaragua and Cuba with the aim of boosting relations with countries in Latin America.

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Noordin Haji now awaits to be sworn in as the next Director General of the National Intelligence Service following unanimous approval by MPs.

The National Assembly approved his nomination following a report tabled by the House Defence, Intelligence, and Foreign affairs committee that gave a nod for his approval following his vetting.

In their report, the Nelson Koech-led committee exuded confidence that Haji is suitable to take the helm of the national intelligence services following his vast experience and capabilities.

Majority Leader Kimani Ichungwa urged Haji once he assumes the docket to ensure that he safeguards the lives and properties of Kenyans asserting that the docket is critical in guaranteeing the safety of our neighbor and doesn't infringe the rights of Kenyans.

"We hope that NIS will not be used to settle political scores, we will safe with Haji holding that docket. We wish him well and hoping he will act to ignite security challenges," said Ichungwa.

Minority Whip Junet Mohammed gave a nod the report supporting the appointment of Haji to become the next spymaster approving the move by President William Ruto to grant him the slot.

"This institution must be headed with a person who has the capacity and timidity to do the kind of work related to that institution. No one fits with the skills like Haji, he will make sure we are safe and secure," said Mohammed.

Majority Leader Opiyo Wandayi urged Haji to live true to his oath of office by prioritizing the nation's safety in his mandate.

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"I want to say from the onset that I have no objection to this appointment. I would just want to urge the incoming DG of NIS to live true to the oath of office that he will be taking and ensure that indeed he gives priority to the security of this nation," Wandayi said.

Likoni MP Mishi Mboko exuded confidence that the outgoing Director of Public Prosecution has delivered in his previous designation saying that he will deliver in the post.

" We know he is able and has the experience to enable him to lead the nation of Kenya in matters security and intelligence," she said.

Opposing the special motion, Budalangi MP Raphael Wanjala sought to defeat the appointment of Haji saying that the Somali people had been "picked on" on several occasions regarding State appointments citing ethnicity.

"Many of us MPs we have a lot of interest in this debate of the promotion. What is out of order Mr Speaker is that you have severally picked on the Somalis and you have excluded us and you want to finish," he said.
Iran, Venezuela ink 19 cooperation agreements

IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency

Jun 13, 2023

Tehran, IRNA -- Senior Iranian and Venezuelan officials have signed 19 memoranda of understanding (MoUs) and contracts to boost cooperation between the two countries during a visit by Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi to Venezuela.

A signing ceremony for the MoUs and contracts was held in the Venezuelan capital, Caracas, on Monday local time hours after Raisi's arrival in the country on the first leg of four-day Latin America tour.

The mutual agreements are aimed at developing cooperation between Tehran and Caracas in the fields of technology, energy, insurance, maritime transportation, education, agriculture, medicine, culture and mining.

Raisi arrived in Caracas earlier in the day and was welcomed by his Venezuelan counterpart Nicolas Maduro at the city's Miraflores Presidential Palace.

His Latin America tour will also take him to Nicaragua and Cuba.

Prior to his departure, the president had said that the Islamic Republic views relations with independent countries in Latin America as "strategic".

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'Resistance, steadfastness' sole way to confront enemy: Raeisi in Caracas

Iran Press TV

Tuesday, 13 June 2023 7:08 PM

Iranian President Ebrahim Raeisi has rebuked the Western hegemony seeking to dominate the world, saying the only way to confront the enemy is through resistance and steadfastness.

Raeisi made the remarks in a speech at a meeting with Venezuela's university students and young elites at the Teresa CarreAo Cultural Complex in the capital Caracas on Tuesday as he discussed contemporary geopolitics and the perspectives of the new world order.

"This mentality is completely wrong that by surrendering to the enemy, it will retreat. We should not give in to an enemy that intends to plunder the entire material and spiritual interests of the nations," Raeisi said. "The Iranian nation's experience has shown that the only way to confront the enemy is to stand up and resist."

Stressing that today's world order benefits those seeking domination, the Iranian president said, "The current international order is the order that favors imperialism and only seeks dominance over the people. What they demand is that we ... sell our natural resources, and grant them to whoever they want, [but] not for the benefit of our peoples."

Raeisi said during his speech that there are two prerequisites for the victory of a nation, namely relying on God and trusting in the nation's own assets. "Some people believe that the enemy will give in or back down if we bow down. However, we will defeat the enemy as long as there is resistance."

The Iranian chief executive added that today's unjust international order has some means and tools, including the media empire and the issue of human rights, to advance its goals.

"The Americans are the first violators of human rights, but they condemn others while doing so," Raeisi noted. "The discovery of dead bodies in Canada is one of the manifestations of efforts by the global arrogance" to undermine human rights.

Emphasizing that the Islamic Republic of Iran is opposed to any kind of war and military intervention, the president said, "Any country that wants to live independently will be sanctioned and threatened by the hegemonic system."

Raeisi went on to say that the hegemonic system interferes in the internal affairs of independent countries, adding that, for instance, the great people of Venezuela saw how the Americans wanted to interfere in their destiny.

"We will resist until a new international order is established. We have been with the Venezuelan people in difficult days and we will stay together," he said, adding that "independent countries are coming to the fore, while imperialism is in decline. This means a great future for the peoples of Iran, Venezuela, and other sovereign countries."

The Iranian president arrived in Caracas on Monday, leading a high-ranking delegation at the formal invitation of his Venezuelan counterpart, Nicolas Maduro.

The delegation, comprised of ministers of foreign affairs, oil, defense, and health, is accompanying Raeisi on the five-day tour, which will also take him to Nicaragua and Cuba.

Iran has close ties with many Latin American states in different domains and seeks to further deepen its relations with those nations.

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Iran denies it is replicating China's internet controls

Iran Press TV

Tuesday, 13 June 2023 6:37 PM

Iran's telecoms minister Issa Zarepour has denied suggestions that the country is replicating China's model of internet controls, saying the country has its own system and model of expanding the internet.

"In China, a special project has been implemented and it has its own home-grown platforms but we have our own expansion model and of course we are seeking to cooperate and interact with all countries including China," Zarepour was quoted as saying in a Tuesday report by the Iranian telecoms ministry.

The minister made the remarks in response to a journalist who asked him whether Iran's internet expansion model is based on the current Chinese system.

However, the minister said the Iran's cooperation with China will mostly focus on the expansion of the communication infrastructure in the country as he said that the Chinese are global pioneers in the field.

For nearly a year, Iran has been encouraging internet users in the country to migrate to domestic platforms as access to major social media websites, including Instagram and WhatsApp, remain restricted or banned because of their role in an unrest that broke out in Iran last September and lasted for several months.

Zarepour said "young Iranian experts" had created the platforms that are needed for communications between the people and for other online services.

He suggested that Iran may ease its restrictions on those foreign-based social media platforms that comply with the country's rules.

"No one in the country is after cutting the internet or creating restrictions on it," said the minister.

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Iranian firms expand to Venezuela's petrochemical sector

Iran Press TV

Tuesday, 13 June 2023 5:29 PM

Iran will renovate a petrochemical plant in Venezuela as part of a contract that expands the country's presence in the South American country's oil and gas sector.

Iranian Oil Ministry's news service Shana said in a report that a contract had been signed during President Ebrahim Raeisi's first day of visit to Venezuela on Tuesday to renovate a Venezuelan ammonia plant.

The report said the contract is a first of its kind and will expand the presence of Iranian companies in Venezuela's oil sector which has until now been limited to areas like exports and imports and refinery renovation schemes.

It said an Iranian company will carry out repair works on some parts of the ammonia plant in Venezuela under the contract in return for having a share in the sales of petrochemicals produced in the plant.

Iranian companies have already contributed to repair and renovation projects at Venezuelan refineries under contracts that allow Iran to process its crude oil in those refineries and sell the products in regional markets.

Partnership between Iran and Venezuela has been strengthened in recent years amid efforts by the two countries to offset the impacts of American sanctions on their oil sectors.

Oil Ministry estimates suggest Iranian companies' involvement in revitalization schemes in Venezuelan petrochemical plants could increase to account for a third of the country's total petrochemicals output capacity of 12 million metric tons (mt) per year.

Iranian Oil Minister Javad Owji, who is in Caracas with president Raeisi, said on Tuesday that only 2 million mt of Venezuela's petrochemical production capacity is active and the rest has become idle due to the US sanctions.

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Iran's chief negotiator holds talks with E3 counterparts in UAE

Iran Press TV

Tuesday, 13 June 2023 2:41 PM

Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister for Political Affairs Ali Bagheri Kani has met and conferred with diplomats from the three European signatories to the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).

Bagheri Kani, who is also Iran's chief negotiator, said in a post on his Twitter account on Tuesday that he had held talks and exchanged views on "a range of issues" with his British, French and German counterparts in the emirate capital of Abu Dhabi.

"Following diplomatic consultations with regional and extra-regional parties, we met with our German, French and English counterparts in Abu Dhabi and discussed a range of issues and mutual concerns," the senior diplomat wrote in a Persian-language post.

Earlier in the day, Bagheri Kani announced in another tweet that he had traveled to the UAE to discuss expanding bilateral cooperation and reviewing regional issues with the Emirati officials.

"In the framework of strengthening the neighborhood policy and in line with the continuation of political consultations with the neighbors, I traveled to the United Arab Emirates to discuss the promotion of bilateral cooperation and review regional issues with the officials of this country," he said.

Bagheri Kani added that he also had held detailed talks with visiting Minister of State of the United Arab Emirates Khalifa Shaheen Al Marar two weeks a go in Tehran.

Speaking at a press conference on Monday, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kan'ani said Tehran has never abandoned diplomatic efforts to remove the cruel sanctions that were imposed on the country after the US withdrew from the nuclear deal.

"Iran's government has never left the negotiation table and has shown its readiness to conduct serious and substantive negotiations in order to reach a conclusion," he said.

Iran proved the peaceful nature of its nuclear program to the world by signing the JCPOA with six world powers in 2015. However, Washington's exit in May 2018 and its subsequent re-imposition of sanctions against Tehran left the future of the deal in limbo.

Multilateral diplomatic efforts to revive the JCPOA have been stalled since last August, with Iran blaming the United States for failing to guarantee that it will not leave the deal again.

Former US president Donald Trump pulled out of the UN-endorsed agreement in May 2018 and imposed what he called "maximum pressure" sanctions against Iran.

Iran has repeatedly announced that the JCPOA revival is possible if the US and the European signatories to the agreement have the will to reach that aim, warning that the opportunity will not last forever.

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Iran achieves deterrence power in regional, global arenas: Top commander

Iran Press TV

Tuesday, 13 June 2023 9:46 AM

Iran has achieved deterrence power in both regional and global arenas thanks to self-reliance in its defense industry, says a top commander.

Brigadier General Mohammad Shirazi, head of the military office of Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, said on Tuesday that self-sufficiency and indigenization of defense products have made Iran reach deterrence power not only in the region but also at the global level.

He also warned that the enemy tries to prevent the Iranians' victory, adding, "The more successful we become, the more desperate the enemy gets."

The Leader, he asserted, wants the Iranians to use their own capabilities and capacities.

Iranian military experts and technicians have in recent years made substantial headway in manufacturing a broad range of indigenous equipment, making the armed forces self-sufficient in the arms sector.

Homegrown Iranian military products have also found many clients in the world.

Iranian officials have repeatedly warned that the country will not hesitate to strengthen its military capabilities which are entirely meant for defense.

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JCPOA revival talks: Russia says will respond to West in kind if necessary

Iran Press TV

Tuesday, 13 June 2023 9:38 AM

A senior Russian diplomat says his country's position on the multilateral negotiations to salvage the Iran nuclear deal will depend on the West's policy, but Moscow will respond in kind if it deems necessary.

Russia's ambassador to international organizations in Vienna Mikhail Ulyanov said in a tweet on Tuesday that the Western parties politicized the talks to the maximum possible extent, but their approach has failed to meet their interests.

"Western countries politicized multilateral discussions in #Vienna to the maximum possible extent. But now they apparently started to understand that such policy doesn't correspond to their own interests," Ulyanov wrote.

He made clear that Russia's position will correspond to the West's policy, adding, "If necessary, we will respond."

Iran proved the peaceful nature of its nuclear program to the world by signing the JCPOA, commonly known as the Iran nuclear deal, with six world powers. However, Washington's exit in May 2018 and its subsequent re-imposition of sanctions against Tehran left the future of the deal in limbo.

Multilateral diplomatic efforts to revive the JCPOA have been stalled since last August, with Iran blaming the United States for failing to guarantee that it will not leave the deal again.

Former US president Donald Trump pulled out of the UN-endorsed agreement in May 2018 and imposed what he called "maximum pressure" sanctions against Iran.

Iran has repeatedly announced that the JCPOA revival is possible if the US and the European signatories to the agreement have the will to reach that aim, warning that the opportunity will not last forever.

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Iran recorded 159 nuclear achievements last year despite US bans: Nuclear chief

Iran Press TV

Tuesday, 13 June 2023 7:56 AM

The head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) says the agency recorded 159 achievements in the past Persian calendar year (ending on March 20) in defiance of US sanctions as well as hurdles created by the West.

Speaking during a TV program on Monday, Mohammad Eslami said the nuclear achievements were made by young Iranian experts in different fields, including irradiation systems, microwave, radiopharmaceuticals, and plasma technology.

"Last year, we had 159 achievements. It was important for us to speed up the time needed to get results and ... turn an idea into a product," he said.

Eslami emphasized that the achievements were made despite US sanctions targeting Iranian radiopharmaceutical companies and not allowing them to send or receive any consignments.

The West is against uranium enrichment and fuel cycle in Iran because they are against the growth of the country's power, he said, adding, "Therefore, we had to create a nuclear fuel cycle from zero to a hundred, from research to the acquisition of infrastructure. All of them have been created indigenously."

Referring to President Ebrahim Raeisi's visit to Venezuela, the Iranian nuclear chief said the Islamic Republic's strategic relationship with Latin America has enraged the US.

The nuclear issue is one of the areas of Iran's cooperation with Latin America, he noted, adding that Tehran will cooperate with Caracas in the fields of irradiation and medicine.

"Venezuela says the Americans have blocked their medical industry. The US preaches about human rights but it does not respect human lives," Eslami said.

As a signatory to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), Iran has long been cooperating with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

The country showed to the world the peaceful nature of its nuclear program by signing the 2015 nuclear agreement, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), with six world powers.

It remains committed to its obligations under the JCPOA despite Washington's unilateral withdrawal from the deal in 2018 and its subsequent re-imposition of anti-Iran sanctions.

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Iran's Art University Temporarily Bans 40 Female Students Over Dress Code Violations

By RFE/RL's Radio Farda June 13, 2023

Officials at Iran's Art University have temporarily barred 40 female students from attending classes for their alleged "failure to fully observe" the Islamic dress code as the government continues to increase pressure on campuses after unrest over the death of a young woman while in police custody for allegedly wearing a head scarf improperly.

The Student Guild Councils reported on June 12 that the university's security has conditionally suspended the students saying that if they appear at the university without a Maghna'eh -- a black cloth covering their head, forehead, chin, and chest -- their suspensions will take full effect.

Such a move, the Councils said, was done "through a completely illegal process."

The Art University has made several attempts to make the Maghna'eh mandatory for students over the past decade, but the move has been met with resistance from students. The resentment over the policy has grown after months of unrest -- led by students and women around Iran -- sparked by the death in September of Mahsa Amini while in police custody over a headscarf violation.

Several students and professors already have been barred or suspended from the school recently for supporting protests over the 22-year-old Amini's death in Tehran.

The government has tried to quell the unrest through a brutal crackdown that has seen hundreds die and thousands more detained.

As part of the crackdown, authorities have been ramping up patrols and enforcement of dress codes on school campuses nationwide.

Female students at Shahid Beheshti University recently were warned that if they violate the mandatory head covering rules, the school will "erase" their courses, meaning they will not get credit for the year's work.

Student activists at the university have also reported "harassment and threats" of female students for not wearing a Maghna'eh.

Independent student organizations, along with 200 students from the Faculty of Social Sciences at Tehran University, protested last week in a letter against the "denial of the right to education and banning" of protesting students.

They referred to the "creation of fear and beatings in the university environment, banning and arresting by security institutions outside the university" as some of the tools of the university to suppress and silence the unquenchable voice of students.

Universities and students have long been at the forefront of the struggle for greater social and political freedoms in Iran. In 1999, students protested the closure of a reformist daily, prompting a brutal raid on the dorms of Tehran University that left one student dead.

Over the years, the authorities have arrested student activists and leaders, sentencing them to prison and banning them from studying.

The activist HRANA news agency says at least 700 university students have been arrested during the recent unrest.

Many have faced sentences such as imprisonment, flogging, and dozens of students have been expelled from universities or suspended from their studies, as security forces try to stifle widespread dissent.

Written by Ardeshir Tayebi based on an original story in Persian by RFE/RL's Radio Farda

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-art-university-bans- students-dress-code/32457652.html

Copyright (c) 2023. 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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Three weeks of fighting in eastern Myanmar leaves nearly 3 dozen civilians dead

A long-simmering conflict has worsened since the 2021 coup.

By RFA Burmese 2023.06.13 -- Three weeks of fierce fighting between junta troops and ethnic Karenni forces in eastern Myanmar has killed at least 35 civilians, including three children, a domestic human rights group and local residents said.

Karenni militias have been battling the military for decades in their campaign for greater autonomy in Kayah and Shan states, but the conflict has worsened in recent months as the Burmese army targets People's Defense Force fighters who have taken up arms against the military since the 2021 coup.

The two sides have been engaged in armed conflict in Moebye - also known as Mongpai - township in southern Shan state since May 25.

Among those who died were more than 20 men and 10 women, as well as three minors aged eight, 13 and 18, according to Karenni Human Rights Group.

Banyar, executive director of the Karenni Human Rights Group, said that the victims were killed by heavy artillery or because they caught fire as they were trapped in the middle of the fighting.

"They were either killed in the town of Moebye, hit by heavy artillery or shot to death, Banyar, the group's executive director, told Radio Free Asia on Monday. "Some of them were arrested before being killed. Some were shot at. Some were killed as heavy artillery shelling hit them."

The organization collected 12 dead bodies and buried them during the first week of June, though some corpses still cannot be collected on account of security issues, Banyar said.

The latest round of civilian deaths comes as the military steps up attacks on its adversaries in the southern Shan and Kayah state townships of Moebye, Pinlaung and Pekon.

Junta forces have conducted airstrikes and heavy artillery assaults on areas where fighters from the Progressive Karenni People's Force, or PKPF - a local offshoot of the anti-regime People's Defense Forces - are believed to be, killing civilians in the process.

Relief workers have had difficulties helping the injured and collecting dead bodies because junta troops are everywhere in Moebye, arresting and killing locals, said aid worker Nwe Oo said.

"I've heard that there are injured people in Si Kar and Done Tu Htan wards in town, but because we haven't had a chance to go in, we haven't been able to bring them out," she said. "We have to be very vigilant as the fighting has been intense and complicated."

Artillery fire

To make matters worse, junta forces have blocked some roads in Moebye and have kept open a main road for pedestrian use, she said.

A Moebye resident, who declined to be named for safety reasons, said military troops fired heavy artillery into residential areas.

"We heard gunshot exchanges and artillery fire non-stop last night," he said, estimating that about 450 junta soldiers have been stationed in high-rise buildings, schools and residential homes.

The resident said three members of a friend's family were killed on the spot with heavy artillery as they hid in a bomb shelter.

"Because telephone communication has not been reliable, there is no way we will be able to leave the town," he said.

The junta has not yet issued any statements about the situation in Moebye. RFA could not reach Khun Thein Maung, Shan state's economic minister and junta spokesman, for comment.

A PKPF official told RFA there have been casualties on both sides in the fighting, and some civilians are still caught up in it.

There have been many casualties among members of the People's Defense Forces and the Karenni Nationalities Defense Force, an armed insurgent group formed after the 2021 military coup, and among junta troops who have been firing heavy artillery non-stop, the official said.

"Some civilians have been trapped in town," he said. "Some people have taken refuge in the monastery because they thought they would be safe there. We heard that some of them managed to sneak out of town, but we don't know how exactly they escaped."

More than 50 civilians, including 13 children under the age of 18, died in Moebye between February 2021, when the military seized power from the elected government, and this June 12, according to PKPF figures.

Moebye has a population of about 30,000 people. Some residents remain in about three of the township's 10 wards, while the rest have fled the fighting.

Translated by Myo Min Aung for RFA Burmese. Edited by Roseanne Gerin and Malcolm Foster.

Copyright 1998-2023, RFA. Used with the permission of Radio Free Asia, 2025 M St. NW, Suite 300, Washington DC 20036. For any commercial use of RFA content please send an email to: mahajanr@rfa.org. RFA content June not be used in a manner which would give the appearance of any endorsement of any product or support of any issue or political position. Please read the full text of our Terms of Use.

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Opposition parties flagged as worrying the vast ministerial powers, potential for corruption and public health facilities' general unreadiness, in rejecting the National Health Insurance Bill. But with the support of five one- or two-seat parties, the ANC got the necessary approval on Tuesday.

That the National Health Insurance (NHI) is a step closer to implementation comes at a crucial point ahead of the 2024 elections, allowing the governing ANC on the hustings to show it delivered on its 2019 universal healthcare election promise.

As far back as the 2007 Polokwane ANC national conference, and the 2010 ANC General National Council, NHI has been a key policy instrument supported across the tripartite alliance with labour federation Cosatu and the South African Communist Party (SACP).

"South Africa cannot transform and upgrade its public healthcare sector without eliminating the imbalances between the private and public health sectors which are skewed in favour of the minority-servicing private health sector," the SACP said in a statement four-and-a-half hours before the parliamentary proceedings.

"It (NHI Bill) is a milestone in what should be a continuing struggle for quality healthcare for all, against the background of the overall agenda by the reactionary opposition to NHI."

It will still take some time for the legislative processes to run their course in the National Council of Provinces (NCOP) before it goes to the president's in-tray for signing.

Cosatu called on the NCOP to now "move with speed" to also pass this legislation....
Rapes and massacres detailed in Rohingya genocide case against Myanmar authorities

Argentine case, under 'universal jurisdiction,' aims to hold leaders accountable

By Carlos G. Hamann, special for RFA 2023.06.13 -- Women gang raped, children stabbed and killed, men shot and burned to death.

The criminal complaint of genocide by Myanmar's armed forces against the Muslim Rohingya minority includes detailed accounts of stomach-churning atrocities.

Argentina accepted the case under the principle of "universal jurisdiction," in which crimes that are especially abhorrent can be taken by any country.

Hearings at a federal court in Buenos Aires, set to end Tuesday, include in-person testimony from Rohingya witnesses - a historic first. For security reasons the case is being held behind closed doors.

"The net is closing in around Myanmar's military leaders. This trial shows that they cannot hide from justice anywhere in the world," said Tun Khin, head of the Burmese Rohingya Organisation UK, or BROUK, the London-based advocacy group that brought the case.

The case centers on abuses committed in Myanmar between 2012 and 2018. Those named include military junta leader Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, radical Buhddist cleric Ashin Wirathu, and ousted civilian leader Aung Sang Suu Kyi.

Tomas Ojea Qintana, who was United Nations Special Rapporteur on human rights in Myanmar between 2008 and 2014, is representing BROUK in court.

Much of the case is based on Ojea Quintana's own work in the region, the work of his successor Yanghee Lee, and reports submitted in 2018 and 2019 by a United Nations "Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on Myanmar."

Easy Target

The Rohingya live in the impoverished western state of Rakhine, which borders the Bay of Bengal and Bangladesh. They shared the region with other groups, mainly the Buddhist ethnic Rakhine.

According to the criminal complaint, the "genocidal final plan" against the Rohingya was born in 2012, when a nominally elected military government, seeking support from the country's Buddhist majority, began to promote hatred towards Myanmar's Muslims and especially the Rohingya.

The Rohingya, who had faced various forms of discrimination for decades, were an easy target.

"In a coordinated manner among all state entities, the use of the name Rohingya began to be forbidden," replaced by the generic term "Bengalis," the complaint reads.

A campaign, fueled by radical Buddhist priests, then spread the idea that the tiny Muslim minority was plotting "to take over the country and convert it to Islam."

Two waves of violence broke out in October 2012 in Rakhine State, affecting 12 townships. Further violence broke out in the town of Thandwe in 2013. At the time authorities dismissed the incidents as "intercommunal unrest."

The attacks against the Rohingya and another Muslim ethnic group, the Kaman, were really part of a months-long plan "to instigate violence and amplify tensions" fueled by "various Rakhine organizations, radical Buddhist monk organizations, and several officials and influential figures," the complaint reads.

Security forces "were at least complicit, often failing to intervene to stop the violence, or actively participated."

'Genocidal plan'

Witnesses in the towns of Sittwe and Kyaukpyu said police and soldiers stopped people from extinguishing fires set by Rakhine mobs, while witnesses at Maungdaw "described security forces shooting indiscriminately at Rohingya and conducting mass arrests."

Some 140,000 people were displaced, mostly fleeing to Bangladesh.

Following the November 2015 elections which ushered in Aung San Suu Kyi's civilian government, "the genocidal plan was perfected," the complaint states.

"In a cruel twist of history" this allowed for "the worst atrocities to be committed under the authority of those who had fought with their lives for democratic freedoms, human rights and peace," it says.

Violence escalated dramatically in August 2017 when the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army - a small, poorly armed resistance group - attacked security forces across northern Rakhine state, killing 12 people.

The military response, "launched within hours, was immediate, brutal and grossly disproportionate," encompassing hundreds of villages in so-called "clearance operations." Within a year nearly 725,000 Rohingya had fled to Bangladesh, with an estimated 10,000 people killed.

"Rape and other forms of sexual violence were perpetrated on a massive scale. Large scale gang rape was perpetrated by Tatmadaw soldiers in at least 10 village tracts" in Rakhine state, the complaint said.

Massacres

People were shot dead indiscriminately by soldiers, while others were burned to death in their homes. Rakhine men often joined the soldiers wielding long knives and machetes.

"Sometimes up to 40 women and girls were raped or gang-raped together," often in public and in front of their families "to maximize humiliation." Men and boys were not spared "genital mutilation and sexualized torture," the document reads.

Of the approximately 500,000 Rohingya children currently in Bangladesh, "many fled alone after their parents were killed or after being separated from their families."

In a particularly heinous incident on August 30, 2017, soldiers and armed ethnic Rakhine stormed the village of Min Gyi and attacked Rohingya who had taken refuge there.

Soldiers opened fire on people trying to flee. Villagers who surrendered were rounded up, and women and children were separated from the men.

The men were slaughtered and their bodies dumped into three pits, doused gasoline and set ablaze.

Women and girls were taken into rooms where they were robbed, raped and stabbed. Children and infants were killed or stabbed.

"All interviewees identified Tatmadaw soldiers as the main perpetrators," the complaint says, adding that ethnic Rakhine "and members of other ethnic minorities participated."

At least 750 people died in that attack.

Downplayed

Aung San Suu Kyi, then head of Myanmar's civilian government, downplayed the violence when presented with evidence, describing it as "fake news" and "an iceberg of misinformation."

Two other international court cases are attempting to hold Myanmar's authorities accountable.

In 2019 the International Criminal Court began looking into abuses against Rohingya on the border with Bangladesh. Myanmar is not a member of the ICC, but Bangladesh is, so this probe is limited in scope.

And in November 2020 The Gambia filed a case focusing on Myanmar's responsibility as a state for the Rohingya genocide at the UN's top court, the International Court of Justice.

"Argentina is on the other side of the world from Myanmar but even here the Burmese military cannot escape justice," plaintiff Tun Kihn said.

Edited by Malcolm Foster.

Copyright 1998-2023, RFA. Used with the permission of Radio Free Asia, 2025 M St. NW, Suite 300, Washington DC 20036. For any commercial use of RFA content please send an email to: mahajanr@rfa.org. RFA content June not be used in a manner which would give the appearance of any endorsement of any product or support of any issue or political position. Please read the full text of our Terms of Use.

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Chinese FM urges US to address mounting doubts over its silence on Nord Stream pipeline sabotage

Global Times

By Chen Qingqing Published: Jun 13, 2023 07:46 PM

The Chinese Foreign Ministry reiterated on Tuesday that it is crucial to conduct an objective, fair, and professional investigation into the Nord Stream pipeline explosion and hold those responsible accountable, after some media reported that German investigators are looking into details about the explosion orchestrated by a sabotage group and the US had knowledge of a plan to attack the pipeline three months before the explosion occurred.

We have noticed the relevant reports. China has repeatedly expressed that protecting the security of critical infrastructure is a common concern of the international community, Wang Wenbin, spokesperson of the Chinese Foreign Ministry, told the Global Times during a press conference on Tuesday.

"It has been over eight months since the Nord Stream explosion, but the progress of the investigation has been incredibly slow. What surprises us is the silence of the US, which is usually adept at leveraging hot-button issues and seeking to play a so-called 'beacon' role," Wang said.

German investigators are examining evidence that suggests a sabotage team used Poland, a European Union and NATO member, as an operating base to blow up the Nord Stream pipelines built to transport Russian gas through the Baltic Sea, the Wall Street Journal reported on Saturday.

The Washington Post also recently reported that three months before saboteurs bombed the Nord Stream natural gas pipelines, the Biden administration learned from a close ally that the Ukrainian military had planned a covert attack on the undersea network, using a small team of divers who reported directly to the commander in chief of the Ukrainian armed forces.

Wang gave an example from the past to illustrate his point during the press conference. In April 2011, when Syria experienced unrest, the US proposed a motion to the UN, requesting the UN Human Rights High Commissioner's Office to send an investigation team to Syria to investigate potential violations of international human rights law.

On the April 29, the US announced that it had determined that Syria was severely violating human rights and imposed sanctions on some Syrian individuals and entities. In just one week, the US had gone from investigation to imposing sanctions, Wang said.

"Compared to the 'efficient' approach of the US, its inaction on the Nord Stream issue is puzzling. What is the reason for the US silence? Does the Nord Stream incident hold any uncomfortable truths for the US? When does the US plan to address the doubts and concerns of the international community?" Wang asked. "I think the US owes an explanation to the international community regarding these issues."

The bombshell story by renowned American investigative reporter Seymour Hersh that revealed the US' culpability in the destruction of the Nord Stream pipeline has attracted global attention. Hersh told the Global Times in an exclusive interview previously that "there's no question that the pipeline was blown up directly on the orders of President Biden."

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'We Want To Defeat Russia,' Says British Historian Figes, 'But We Don't Want To Push It Into Civil War And Chaos'

By Vazha Tavberidze June 13, 2023

Orlando Figes is a British historian who has taught at both Cambridge University and the University of London. His latest book, The Story Of Russia, describes how President Vladimir Putin has used the mythologization of past figures and events in Russia to promote his imperial ambitions.

But in a recent interview with Vazha Taberidze of RFE/RL's Georgian Service, Figes says Putin is more Nicholas I than Peter the Great, and that while a Russian defeat on the battlefield is not only desirous for Ukraine but Russia as well, a humiliating outcome for Putin could spell instability inside Russia, ending possibly with civil war or even "warlordism."

RFE/RL: In light of your latest book, The Story Of Russia, we'll be talking today about Russia's history and how much it informs its decisions today, as this modern chapter of Russian history is being written. And I wanted to ask you about the essay Vladimir Putin penned back in 2021, On The Historical Unity Of Russians and Ukrainians, but with perhaps a slightly unusual twist. You've taught Russian history for more than 35 years now. In an alternate reality where Putin is your student and you're his professor, and he hands in this essay as an exam paper what grade is he leaving your class with?

Orlando Figes: You know, there's not that much factually wrong, according to the 19th-century imperial historiography on which it is based. But that is precisely the problem. Putin really just repeated a lot of commonplaces of 19th-century historians, like [Nikolai] Karamzin and [Sergei] Solovyov, who all argued that Ukraine was really always part of Greater Russia, that whenever it tried to break away from Russian tutelage, Ukraine became vulnerable to hostile Western powers using it against Russia. All of these are commonplace, really. So, I'd give him probably a D minus, I think, mainly on the basis of plagiarism of very old ideas that have long ceased to be relevant.

And I think that's the point about the historical dimension of this war, it might have been brought about by Putin's bad reading of history, his very out-of-date imperial reading of history. But that history has nothing to do with anything in the world since 1991. Ukraine is a sovereign, independent country and must be defended as such. So, these arguments he's used or any other arguments -- the Donbas is really Russian; or the southern littoral coast of Ukraine, New Russia, as it used to be called, is really part of Russia -- I mean, it's all irrelevant.

RFE/RL: In that essay, I think, one of the major takeaways at least was that he claimed Ukraine was not a nation. And that was not the first time he claimed that -- it goes back all the way to his speech at the Munich Security Conference in 2007. He claims Ukraine is not a nation, but has he, against his wishes, made them into one for good and became some sort of unwilling "founding father"?

Figes: Absolutely. You've hit the nail on the head there. You could say that until 2014, Ukraine was a complicated and divided society, East-West, generationally in many ways. But yeah, boy, since 2014, Ukraine has come together as a nation. And, you know, it's proven it in the way it's fought to defend itself since February 2022. So yeah, he's sort of his own worst enemy. And in that, in that sense, he's made the very beast that he didn't want to exist and denied could exist. Well, he's gone and made it.

RFE/RL: A founding father with Cronus syndrome (broadly, the fear of being replaced). He wants to devour his child. He is not only obsessed with history, many claim that he also seeks for himself a place in the history books, and he often invokes the names of Peter the Great, Empress Catherine and so on. So, what place do you think history has in store for him?

Figes: Well, it looks to me like he doesn't have much longer the way things are going but who knows, things are very unpredictable. But my guess would be he's going to end up rather more like Nicholas I (Russian tsar from 1825-55) than Peter the Great (or Peter I, who ruled the Russian Empire from 1682 until his death in 1725).

Peter the Great obviously took back, as Putin would say, the Baltic lands into Russian sovereignty. Nicholas I went to war against the whole of Europe in order to defend what he saw as the Greater Russia stretching to the Balkans, and indeed in a metaphysical sense to the Holy Lands where he went to war to bully the Turks into giving the Orthodox the rights over the holy shrines and that involved what we now know as the Crimean War, which went disastrously badly for him. He underestimated the ability of the Turks to defend themselves, just as Putin has underestimated the ability of the Ukrainians to fight back. And he underestimated the unity of the Western powers to support even a Muslim power such as the Ottoman Empire against a bully state, an aggressive state like the Russian Empire.

And Nicholas I lost the war and died in miserable circumstances, possibly a suicide, which is one of the historical theories about Nicholas I's death, and went down in late-19th-century history as the worst tsar of all times, really. And to me, it looks increasingly like Putin might end up with that destiny rather than any great stature he wants for himself.... I doubt very much at this point, he's going to get that.

RFE/RL: If your prophecy is indeed coming true, and he ends up as Nicholas I, will history repeat itself to the letter? Out of two possible scenarios, will Putin be dethroned from inside [Russia] or through external influence?

Figes: Wow, that's the question everyone is asking. And who knows? I mean, certainly, it's important to keep the Ukrainians armed as much as possible, supported in every way possible to continue fighting, because the pressure of the war is the most likely to bring down this Putin regime. My hope, I mean, it is only really a hope, but it's just possible if this summer counteroffensive manages to break through and create pockets of collapse on the Russian side...and the Russian troops begin to see through the lies of what they've been told, why they're fighting the Ukrainians.

And maybe, just maybe, we will have a repeat of 1917, when a similar exposA of the lie of the World War I -- actually through the myth of Rasputin as a center of a court of treachery in the Romanov dynasty -- all of that could just turn things very quickly. In February 1917, soldiers joined the demonstrations on the street very fast. And that led to a whole nine-month period of state and military collapse, unfortunately, culminating in the October Revolution, the Bolshevik seizure of power, and four years of civil war, and that is precisely the problem here.

You know, we may wish for the Putin regime to collapse under military pressure, with dissent, opposition street protests, possibly too. But if there's a military collapse, we could end up with a sort of civil-war situation or something even worse, which is the complete breakup of Russia with a sort of warlordism -- you know, [a Yevgeny] Prigozhin (head of the mercenary group Wagner) type of warlord emerging as a political, military leader. A sort of power struggle with arms, with parts of the army, parts of these mercenary armies that have been mobilized and paid for by the state and by oligarchs and all the rest. And with...a tactical-nuclear-weapons armory possibly at the disposal of these people.

We want to defeat Russia, for sure. But we don't want to push it into a catastrophe of civil war and chaos. So, there's a balance to be had. And I suspect that it's a discussion being had in NATO, in Washington, and in all the Western capitals at the moment: How far one allows it to escalate because it's escalating quite fast, it seems to me, and I thought that the policy previously, which was, if I understand it correctly, just to keep the Ukrainians supplied with arms to fight and defend themselves without necessarily going on a strong offensive that would escalate the war from the Russian side. I've thought that was, on the whole, the best policy, because in this war Putin thinks time is on his side, meaning that he thinks that he will outlast the willingness of the West.

RFE/RL: Does he have reason to believe that?

Figes: Well, yes, he does. Because even if this summer brings about some success for Ukraine, I think it's going to take more than one counteroffensive to, you know, weaken and destabilize the military political system to the point where they start suing for peace or suffering from an internal crisis. And, you know, we've got the American [presidential] election coming up; if [former U.S. President Donald] Trump wins the election, or if other big geopolitical players like China weighed in on the Russian side, which is another big unknown as of yet, then who knows? So, it's going to be a long haul, I think, unless there's a more precipitous collapse this summer on the Russian military side than perhaps we had hoped for.

So, on that basis, I think Putin has some reason to think that there are some time factors really on his side. Does the West really care about Ukraine as much as Putin and his cronies do? That's one question. And they're assuming that the West doesn't. Will the next American president support another three, four years of arming the Ukrainians? And, ultimately, I think, probably the biggest factor there is China, because I don't think China's interests are served by letting Russia lose this war. Whether it is prepared to go and support it, and even cross the Rubicon to supporting it with direct military aid in order to win it, I don't know. But it's fairly obvious that it's not in China's interest to let Russia lose.

RFE/RL: We touched upon what Russia could look like post-Putin. And what I wanted to ask is: What does it look like, this "day after" for Russia? And let's take two scenarios, eventual Russian victory and eventual Russian defeat.

Figes: Well, I guess it depends what you mean by victory and defeat. But if you meant by victory that in some form Putin stayed in power and declared a victory by annexing the four territories that he's declared Russian, and keeping Crimea and getting some security deal over NATO expansion or some fudge over that, that's about as good a victory as I think he's able to get, then it'll be more of the same. And Putin will be able to step down with all the laurels of victory and the status in the history books that he will have written on his agenda. And eventually, we'll get a Putin 2. And so, this is really unthinkable. And I don't think any peace is even possible with Putin in power.

So, we have to really only think ahead to what Russia would look like in defeat. And then, going back to what we were discussing before, my worry is that if Russia is humiliated, brought to its knees, ruined, and the economy allowed to suffer to the point where we get the real possibility of a new revanchist movement, anti-Western nationalism, which is likely to be even worse than whatever base of support there is for this war.

But whatever happens -- and I argued this at the end of my book that we started our discussion on -- whatever happens in victory or defeat, it seems to me that Russia is going to be a lot weaker, and a lot poorer for this war. And very much more isolated from Europe and the West, in general, because of this war, and effectively will become a sort of client state of China. It will be providing discounted fuel, raw materials, minerals to the Chinese economy. And that's where its future will be, which is a great tragedy. But the Russians have brought it on themselves, I'm afraid.

RFE/RL: Let me ask you what this "day after" would look like for Russian society, for the Russian people, because in your books you seem to suggest that Russians have almost a supernatural penchant for god-like tsars, this penchant for authority. They want to be ruled and, if possible, ideally, they want to be ruled by a strong ruler. So where does this leave the Russian people? And what does it tell us, if history is anything to go by, about their capacity to change?

Figes: Well, if I may, I'm not sure I do argue that. I mean, I've certainly handled it and discussed it as a phenomenon of Russian mythology that the people want a tsar; that people need a tsar. And for sure, if you look at Russian history, it's mainly been dominated by powerful tsars. But that is not necessarily somehow in the Russian DNA, or in the cultural mix of what it is to be a Russian, as your question suggests.

Firstly, as Mikhail Bakunin, the 19th-century Russian anarchist wrote, for the Russians the tsar is like a god because he's a projection of their utopian dreams.... And there are many, many examples of Russian people following a tsar because they thought he was some sort of deliverer from tsarism, deliverer from injustice, deliver from exploitation and enslavement, and someone who would represent their old ideals of freedom and justice.

And, indeed, on a more general point, one might argue that the basic institution of Russian society until collectivization in the 1930s was the Russian "obshchina," the Russian commune, which was basically village self-government. For sure, it was patriarchal. It was dominated by men, mostly old men until the 1917 revolution. But it did have, at its heart, some basic principles of the Russian people, which were quite egalitarian, even socialist. I mean, Marx's theory of the labor theory of value, that value is derived from labor, not capital. That's at the heart of the Russian peasant culture, the peasant commune.

So, I would say that this idea that the Russians needed to or wanted a tsar is actually what they've been told for hundreds of years, and which they might have believed, because they've had no alternative, because they've had no tradition of parliamentary rule, of republican governance to go by.

I write in the book an example in 1917, the Tsar Nicholas II has just been overthrown. And there are lots of soldiers, meetings going on. And one of the Mensheviks (a Russian political faction that was less radical than the Bolsheviks), I think, attends one of the socialists' meetings of the soldiers, and they all say, "Long live the republic! Now, let's elect a tsar!" And they want to elect him as a tsar. And he leaves that with a sense of, "Oh, my God, you know, what hope for the Russian people if as soon as they get their freedom, they want to elect a tsar?"

But the point is that mythology has to be burst. The Russians have to be presented with an alternative vision of statecraft, which involves them, which is politically accountable, which is elected, rules by law, which respects human rights. I mean, if they were given that, I don't think they would object to it. It's just that they haven't had it.

RFE/RL: Rather cynically, an option that will be at least more attractive than being a serf in the 21st century?

Figes: Yes, absolutely. And when a democracy in the full meaning of the word is offered to people, as you know, in Georgia, people want it. I mean, it's basically a people-friendly way of government. And I don't think that the Russians are any less human in that sense of not wanting their human dignity and freedom.

RFE/RL: Stalin is often brought up as somebody Putin is inspired by, or he's borrowing something from. So, let me ask you, how much has Putin borrowed from Stalin?

Figes: Well, an awful lot, but not in necessarily a direct, straightforward way. I mean, the cult of Stalin is...parallel to some degree to the cult of Putin, in the sense that he's projected this image of himself as the strong man, the only man really capable of defending Russia against foreign, hostile powers. And certainly, he's not afraid to use Stalinist methods of terror and threat. For example, when he talks about fifth columnists and enemies of the people, he doesn't have to go to the lengths that Stalin went to kill people or send them to the gulag, because the memory of that is still strong and passed down through the generations in Russia.

So, all he needs to do is wave a stick and arrest 20,000 people -- that's quite a lot of people to arrest, but not as much as Stalin -- as Putin did at the beginning of the war to repress the street protests against it. And that's enough for people to scurry away and be quiet in a way that leads many Western people, certainly a lot of Ukrainian people to say, "Well, they're cowards." But the thing is, people remember what Stalin was like. And that is the power that Putin indirectly takes from Stalin.

But the other thing I would say about the Stalin legacy is that I don't think fundamentally [that] the Putin state [is] built effectively on the Stalinist state. Stalin built a very effective police state and probably a lot more efficient than this police state, which is inept, clumsy, brutal, and it does things that are intimidatory and barbaric to its own people, but not as efficiently as Stalin did.

But the fundamental thing about the Stalinist revolution, which remains at the heart of the Putin system, is that Putin reversed the notion of accountability. Political accountability is at the heart of democracy; that politicians are leaders [that] answer for their mistakes. And Stalin managed to reverse that, in a way that actually the people who answered for the mistakes of the bosses were the people underneath them. And he did that in a very sophisticated way, through police methods of effectively collecting kompromat.

Everyone was encouraged to collect kompromat on their subordinates, and they would keep incriminating evidence about their subordinates to use [against] them. So that, instead of them taking the fall, someone beneath them did. And that's so important to get that message across to the Russians, because that's what's happening now. And that's what's keeping people in line with Putin at the top of the system. They know that if they step out of line, they will very quickly end up in prison on some trumped-up charges of corruption or whatever. So that is really the core of the Stalin system, I think. I mean, it wasn't even there under Lenin. Lenin wrote in 1922, as part of his last writings, that it was important for the Bolsheviks to learn the principle of political accountability. And that has never really been there in Russia since, I'm afraid.

RFE/RL: In an interview with Intelligence Squared, about half a year ago, you said you expected that Putin would end up using nuclear weapons -- how close have we come to that so far, do you think?

Figes: I certainly think, still believe now, as I did six months ago, that we have to take the nuclear threat seriously. That's not to say we have to appease Putin because he's got a nuclear weapon. And that's not to say that we should necessarily change the mechanisms and the degree of our support for the Ukrainians. I think that it has to be handled very carefully.

And the Russians have made it clear when they might use nuclear weapons. If it's a case of NATO-backed Ukrainian forces marching into the Crimean Peninsula, and Putin, with his back against the wall, thinking that his regime's going to collapse, then, yes, I mean, I wouldn't put it past him to use nuclear weapons. I mean, we were talking about Stalin [and] I'm researching a life of Stalin now. One thing I have learned in [the] three to five years that I've been working on it hard is that I wouldn't have put anything past Stalin. And I don't think I [would] put anything past Putin.

RFE/RL: In the very same interview, you said, with regret, that you also saw almost no chance for Ukraine to get Crimea back, given the almost sacred importance of it for Putin. How does it look today? Did this "almost no chance" become something more tangible, or on the contrary, become an outright "no chance, not going to happen"?

Figes: What you're asking me is a very unfair question, if I may say, because war is very unpredictable by its nature. And so, six months have passed, [and] the beginning of a summer offensive is always a time of hope, right? So, you think maybe the Ukrainians will manage to break through, and maybe they'll manage to reclaim Crimea, if not this year, then maybe in the next year or two. So, I'm not going to say it's impossible, but maybe if I said it was impossible, six months ago, maybe I think it's now possible in a way that I've moved.

But I think that the most likely scenario is ultimately that Ukraine has to reach a peace with Russia in which its boundaries are different, I'm afraid. Because what matters to Ukraine, it seems to me, is to be a functioning state, to be a part of Europe. I think it should be part of the European Union as soon as possible. I also think it needs to be part of NATO, because that now is its only security guarantee. Nothing else is worth a security guarantee. So, that's the important thing.

And if it's a question of you can create a Ukrainian state, which is prosperous, part of Europe, has its security, and people are safe, and it's got a status vis-a-vis Russia that every other NATO border state has. Then that's probably -- I mean, the Ukrainians may hate me for saying this -- but that's better than five, maybe 10 years of war, and the total destruction of the country. The destruction of it -- as I believe probably is the Russian destruction of this Kakhovka dam -- the willingness of the Russians to ruin Ukraine if they can't conquer it, is real. And so, any peace deal could, it seems to me, be packaged in a way that doesn't have to come across as a great treachery in terms of land for peace.

If the Russians can't conquer it, they will lay waste to it. And that is not a price worth paying to anybody. So, at the moment, yes, the Ukrainians will see it as treachery, any suggestion that they should accept any change of their territorial [boundaries]. But I think everybody probably knows, even if they don't admit it on Radio Free Europe, that, in the end, that is likely, unless Russia can be defeated.

Now, obviously, I hope Russia can be completely defeated; it needs to be completely defeated, not just for Ukraine's sake, but for Russia's sake. Because Russia can't become a democracy, can't become a country that is at peace with its neighbors, until it has gotten rid of its regime. And the only way to get rid of this regime is to give it a complete military defeat. And likewise, the only way to give Ukraine peace, is to give this regime a complete military defeat. So, let's see how far the war gets. Let's see how far the Ukrainians can push back the Russians and if they can push them out of the borders of 1991.

This interview has been edited for clarity and length

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/russia-war- defeat-civil-war/32457747.html

Copyright (c) 2023. 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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Homes Of Former Russian Lawmakers Allegedly Linked To Ex-Deputy Ponomaryov Searched

By RFE/RL's Russian Service June 13, 2023

Law enforcement officers in Russia have searched the homes of several former lawmakers and a politician who allegedly have ties with former parliamentary deputy Ilya Ponomaryov, the fourth wave of raids on homes of individuals linked to him since September.

Russia's news agencies reported on June 13 that the homes of former State Duma lawmakers Margarita Svergunova and Oleg Gonzharov, politician Boris Konovalov, as well as the home of former municipal lawmaker Nikita Ilyin were searched in Moscow. The home of the former lawmaker Solomon Ginzburg in Russia's western exclave, Kaliningrad, was also searched.

Reports said the searches were conducted as part of a probe launched against Ponomaryov, who currently resides in neighboring Ukraine, but did not specify what structures of the country's law enforcement carried them out.

After Russia launched its ongoing unprovoked invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Ponomaryov joined Ukraine's territorial defense group and created two YouTube channels -- February's Morning and Rospartizan (Russian Guerilla), through which he has called on Russian citizens to arm themselves and fight against their authorities at home.

Russia's Investigative Committee launched a probe against Ponomaryov, accusing him of discrediting Russia's armed forces.

Ponomaryov, 47, was the only lawmaker in parliament's lower chamber, the State Duma, who voted against Russia's 2014 annexation of Crimea from Ukraine.

He fled Russia for the United States the same year and later moved to Ukraine, where he has lived since.

In January, the Russian Interior Ministry added Ponomaryov to its list of terrorists and extremists.

Last August, a court in Moscow issued an arrest warrant for Ponomaryov on a charge of discrediting the Russian armed forces. The charge stemmed from his interview with the Forum of a Free Russia YouTube channel, in which he condemned the war in Ukraine.

With reporting by RIA Novosti and Moskovsky Komsomolets

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/russia-raids-ponomaryov- lawmakers/32457191.html

Copyright (c) 2023. 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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Central Asians Incarcerated In Russia Forced To Support War Output, Letters Say

By RFE/RL's Idel.Realities June 13, 2023

Men from Central Asia are being forced to support Russia's ongoing war against Ukraine in a penal colony in the Russian city of Samara by doing things such as producing military equipment for the country's armed forces, two letters obtained by RFE/RL from inmates at the colony show.

One of the letters was written by Zafar Yakubov, an ethnic Tajik born in Uzbekistan who for many years lived in Russia's Republic of Tatarstan before he was convicted in April 2018 of being a member of the Hizb ut-Tahrir Islamic group, which is banned in Russia. The second letter is anonymous but also mentions Yakubov, RFE/RL reported on June 13.

Yakubov, who is recognized by the Memorial human rights group as a political prisoner, says in his letter that the guards at the penitentiary force inmates from Central Asia to work at the plant inside the penal colony in programs on producing military equipment for the Russian armed forces involved in the war in Ukraine.

"Last year, the colony's administration sent dozens of citizens of Central Asian countries...to the special military operation (the term officially used in Russia for the war in Ukraine). After the administration was unable to continue that, it started forcing citizens of Uzbekistan to support the special military operation by making them produce the state defense program's outputs. Those who refuse to work are being placed in inhumane conditions," Yakubov's letter says, adding that such inmates are usually placed in punitive solitary confinement.

The second letter says Yakubov was placed in solitary confinement several times when the terms for his wife's visit to the penitentiary were set.

Yakubov's wife, Alsu Nasybullina, confirmed to RFE/RL that she has been unable to see her husband for a long time as he was placed in solitary confinement for what she called "ungrounded reasons" ahead of each visit.

In his letter, Yakubov asks Russian prosecutors to "investigate the cases of illegal use of the citizens of Uzbekistan in works related to the war in Ukraine and humiliation of their dignity by Russian officials, and to hold them responsible," adding that "officials of Central Asian nations must be informed about the situation."

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/russia-central-asians- forced-support-war-penal-colony/32457831.html

Copyright (c) 2023. 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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Putin Signs Law on Ratification of Agreement With China on Gas Supplies Via Far East Route

Sputnik News

20230613

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday signed a law that ratifies the agreement between Russia and China on natural gas supplies via the Far East route, according to the official legal information portal.

The document signed on January 31 suggests building a cross-border section of the gas pipeline. It starts at a gas measuring station in Russia near the town of Dalnerechensk, passes through the Ussuri River and ends at the Hulin launch station in China.

The design, construction and operation of the site in Russia is carried out by Gazprom, while in China a by the China National Petroleum Corporation.

Earlier in May, the Russian parliament adopted a legislation that ratifies the agreement between Russia and China on cooperation in gas supplies via the Far East Route.

A Sputnik

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Russian Missile System S-350 Destroys Real Target Automatically for First Time

Sputnik News

20230613

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Russian air defense complex S-350 Vityaz has automatically destroyed a real air target for the first time ever, during combat operations in the area of Moscow's special military operation in Ukraine, Russian Industry Minister Denis Manturov told Sputnik.

"Just recently, [Russian metallurgy and heavy machine-building] Obukhov Plant has announced that the S-350 Vityaz anti-aircraft missile system, hit a target in the area of the special operation [in Ukraine] in automatic mode for the first time in the world, using artificial intelligence without the participation of the human," Manturov said.

Russian air defense systems are currently the only systems in the world capable of destroying hypersonic missiles, which, again, only Russian armed forces have at their service, the minister added.

In late May, a source familiar with the matter told Sputnik that Vityaz had performed fully automatic detection, tracking and destruction of Ukrainian combat aircraft and drones in the area of the special operation for the first time ever. The automatic mode was implemented through the principle of non-interference by humans in decisions made by AI, the source added.

A Sputnik

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Putin signs law ratifying gas supplies to China through Far Eastern route; energy tie 'set to be closer'

Global Times

By Global Times Published: Jun 14, 2023 01:42 AM

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday signed a law ratifying an intergovernmental agreement with China on cooperation in the field of natural gas, allowing supplies to be exported from Russia to China via the Far East route, TASS reported.

Official implementation of the agreement is no doubt beneficial for both Russia and China, and will lead to strengthened, stable energy ties between the two nations amid uncertainties, observers said.

The ratification comes after a cooperation deal was signed on January 31, 2023, and defines the terms of cooperation for the supply of gas from Russia to China via the Far Eastern route, including the cross-border section of the gas pipeline across the Ussuri River near the cities of Dalnerechensk in Russia, and Hulin, Northeast China's Heilongjiang Province.

The document also regulates civil law, tax and customs issues and defines a mechanism for resolving disputes if they arise, TASS said.

The design, construction and operation of the site in Russia is controlled by Gazprom, and on the Chinese side by China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC).

The agreement fully meets the interests of both China and Russia, and thus the two sides will become closer in energy cooperation, Wang Yongzhong, director of the Institute of Energy Economy at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times on Tuesday.

"More gas imports from Russia, which is a stable supplier, will promote energy security in China. Meanwhile, gas transported through pipelines will be more cost-effective than liquefied natural gas," said Wang.

On February 4, 2022, Russia's state-owned energy giant Gazprom announced it had signed a long-term agreement with CNPC to supply natural gas to China via the Far Eastern Pipeline.

"As soon as the project reaches its full capacity, the amount of Russian pipeline gas supplies to China will grow by 10 billion cubic meters, totaling 48 billion cubic meters per year (including deliveries via the Power of Siberia gas pipeline)," according to a statement on Gazprom's official website.

Last year marked significant steps for China-Russia energy cooperation, with energy accounting for 43 percent of total trade. According to Chinese Customs data, Russia exported 86.25 million tons of oil, 15.5 billion cubic meters of piped natural gas, 6.5 million tons of liquefied natural gas and 64.07 million tons of coal to China in 2022, all setting new records.

The gas pipeline project through the Far Eastern pipeline is new major energy cooperation between Russia and China. In 2014, Gazprom signed a contract with CNPC on gas supply via the China-Russia east-route pipeline, which agreed on a total gas supply of more than one trillion cubic meters, with an annual supply of 38 billion cubic meters lasting a period of 30 years.

The China-Russia eastern natural gas pipeline has raised its daily gas transmission capacity to 61 million cubic meters since its operation began three years ago, and the annual gas transmission volume is expected to exceed 22 billion cubic meters in 2023, China Media Group reported earlier.

Bilateral trade between China and Russia stood at $73.15 billion in the first four months of 2023, surging 41.3 percent year-on-year, according to data unveiled by the General Administration of Customs.

When Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin attended a high-level business forum in Shanghai in late May, he said that bilateral trade between China and Russia could hit the $200 billion goal this year and cooperation will expand beyond traditional areas.

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Syria: 'Unprecedented funding crisis' means cuts for 2.5 million in need, warns WFP

13 June 2023 - An unprecedented funding crisis in Syria has forced the UN World Food Programme (WFP) to announce cuts to aid being provided for 2.5 million of the 5.5 million people who rely on the agency for basic food needs.

The announcement comes as the European Union gears up to host the seventh Conference on Supporting the Future of Syria and the Region, beginning on Wednesday in Brussels.

WFP took the decision, after exhausting all other options, to prioritize the three million Syrians who are unable to make it from one week to the next without food assistance, the agency said in a press release, rather than continue providing aid to 5.5 million people, which would mean running out of supplies completely by October.

Bleak scenario

"Instead of scaling up or even keeping pace with increasing needs, we're facing the bleak scenario of taking assistance away from people, right when they need it the most," says WFP Representative and Country Director in Syria, Kenn Crossley.

After 12 years of conflict, massive displacement, a global pandemic pushing prices to record highs, and most recently, devastating earthquakes, Syrians have been living in a perpetual state of emergency, said WFP.

Currently, an average monthly income covers only around a quarter of a family's food needs.

Over the past couple of years, WFP said it had taken every measure possible to stretch available resources, including the gradual reduction of the size of the monthly food ration, to half its former size.

And now, WFP is facing the challenge of increased needs at a pace that funding has not been able to match, amidst rising food and fuel prices.

Impossible ask

"Further reductions in ration size are impossible. Our only solution is to reduce the number of recipients", said Mr. Crossley. "The people we serve have endured the ravages of conflict, fleeing their homes, losing family members and their livelihoods. Without our assistance, their hardships will only intensify".

Even before last February's earthquakes that hit the north and west of Syria causing widespread damage, loss of lives and displacement, 12.1 million people across the country were in the grip of hunger.

Malnutrition rates are at an all-time high too, the agency said, with one in four pregnant and nursing mothers acutely malnourished, and one in four children stunted in some parts of the county.

Future at risk

Without adequate and timely food assistance, Syria's next generation and its entire future are at risk.

"We have the capacity and solutions to reduce dependency on humanitarian assistance and make a lasting difference in people's lives," Mr. Crossley said. "It's critical that we keep providing life-saving food assistance to help families get through each week and each month, while we work on interventions that help people rebuild their lives and get back standing on their feet."

He added that aid partners "have been instrumental in preventing such cuts before, particularly over the past two years. Now, we count on them to prevent irreversible harm to the Syrian people's future. The time to act is now," he urged.

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WFP forced to scale down operations in Syria, as donors gather in Brussels ahead of a major conference

World Food Programme

13 June 2023

DAMASCUS -- An unprecedented funding crisis in Syria is forcing the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) to cut assistance to 2.5 million of the 5.5 million people who rely on the agency for their basic food needs. The announcement comes as the European Union gears up to host the seventh Brussels Conference on "Supporting the Future of Syria and the Region" on Wednesday.

After exhausting all other options, WFP took the decision to stretch the extremely limited resources by prioritizing 3 million Syrians who are unable to make it from one week to the next without food assistance rather than continue assistance to 5.5 million people and run out of food completely by October.

"Instead of scaling up or even keeping pace with increasing needs, we're facing the bleak scenario of taking assistance away from people, right when they need it the most," says WFP Representative and Country Director in Syria Kenn Crossley.

After 12 years of conflict, massive displacement, a global pandemic with the consequent economic crisis that pushed prices to record highs and most recently, devastating earthquakes, Syrians have been living in a perpetual state of emergency. Currently, an average monthly income covers only around one-quarter of a family's food needs. Even those receiving regular food assistance from WFP were already struggling to cope.

Over the past couple of years, WFP took every measure possible to stretch available resources and maintain its assistance to the most vulnerable. This included the gradual reduction of the size of the monthly food ration to what now has become half the standard size.

WFP is facing the challenge of increased needs at a pace that funding has not been able to match

and the cost of delivering food assistance is at an unprecedented high because food and fuel prices have increased.

"Further reductions in ration size are impossible. Our only solution is to reduce the number of recipients. The people we serve have endured the ravages of conflict, fleeing their homes, losing family members and their livelihoods. Without our assistance, their hardships will only intensify," added Crossley.

Even before the devastating February earthquakes that hit the north and west of Syria causing widespread damage, loss of lives and displacement, 12.1 million people across the country were in the grip of hunger.

Malnutrition rates are at an all-time high as well, with one in four pregnant and nursing mothers acutely malnourished, and one in four children stunted in some parts of the county.

Without adequate and timely food assistance, Syria's next generation and its entire future are at risk.

"We have the capacity and solutions to reduce dependency on humanitarian assistance and make a lasting difference in people's lives," said Crossley. "It's critical that we keep providing life-saving food assistance to help families get through each week and each month, while we work on interventions that help people rebuild their lives and get back standing on their feet."

With limited income opportunities to cushion the blow, WFP is deeply concerned that individuals removed from assistance will be further plunged into poverty and hunger, forcing them to rely increasingly on harmful coping mechanisms such as child labour, early marriage or accumulating more debt.

"Our partners have been instrumental in preventing such cuts before, particularly over the past two years. Now, we count on them to prevent irreversible harm to the Syrian people's future. The time to act is now," said Crossley.

WFP continues to advocate with partners and major donors for additional funds. WFP urgently requires a minimum of US$180 million to avert these cuts and continue providing food assistance at its current level until the end of the year.



# # #

The United Nations World Food Programme is the world's largest humanitarian organization, saving lives in emergencies and using food assistance to build a pathway to peace, stability and prosperity for people recovering from conflict, disasters and the impact of climate change.

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The INEC chair, Mahmood Yakubu, will appear to testify at the presidential election court on the subpoena in Atiku's case challenging Mr Tinubu's victory in the February election.

The chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Mahmood Yakubu, will on Thursday testify before the Presidential Election Petition Court in Abuja.

Mr Yakubu will testify in Atiku Abubakar's petition challenging President Bola Tinubu's victory at the 25 February presidential election.

Atiku, the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), accused INEC and Mr Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC) of manipulating the polls.

His lead counsel, Chris Uche, on Tuesday, informed the five-member panel of the court chaired by Haruna Tsammani that Mr Yakubu would appear before it on Thursday.

At the behest of Atiku's legal team, Mr Yakubu had been subpoenaed to testify on the conduct of the disputed election.

Also, he is expected to tender some sensitive electoral documents in aid of the petitioner's suit.

Mr Uche, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), put INEC, Mr Tinubu and APC's legal teams on notice concerning Mr Yakubu's scheduled appearance on Thursday to forestall any impediment that may obstruct the hearing.

Atiku calls first star witness

After calling 18 witnesses to testify for the petitioner, Mr Uche, on Tuesday, called his client's first star witness.

The witness, Alex Ter, a lawyer and former Attorney General of Benue State, in his testimony, alleged that the February presidential poll was fraught with widespread irregularities as it was conducted in disregard of the Electoral Act, 2022.

In his witness statement on oath, Mr Ter said he was the national coordinator Situation Room for the PDP during the February 25 presidential election in Abuja.

He presented three video clips featuring INEC chair Mr Yakubu and INEC's Commissioner for Voter Education, Festus Okoye, who both pledged that the electoral umpire would electronically transmit the election results.

The third video concerned the European Union Election Observer Mission, which was admitted as an exhibit by the court.

Also, the court admitted the guidelines for election officers 2022 and the manual for election guidelines 2023 as exhibits.

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Mr Ter also tendered screenshots of the INEC IReV portal.

Despite Mr Tinubu and APC's objections to the admissibility of the documents, the court admitted the videos played in court.

Last Saturday, similar video clips were tendered by Peter Obi's Labour Party, also contesting Mr Tinubu's victory.

Atiku and Mr Obi came second and third, respectively, in the race, but the pair are urging the court to declare each of them president.

They are also calling for a fresh poll.

While being cross-examination by INEC's lawyer, Abubakar Mahmoud, a SAN, Mr Ter said he was not at the National Collation Centre in Abuja, but was at the PDP situation room in Abuja.

The witness told the court that he was not an ICT expert. He clarified that his report on the election's outcome was obtained from agents of the PDP at the collation centres.

Mr Ter, Atiku's 19th witness, told the court under cross-examination by Mr Tinubu's lawyer, Akin Olujinmi, a SAN, that the presidential election was nullity owing to alleged electoral malpractices by INEC.

At the end of Mr Ter's testimony, the court adjourned the suit until Wednesday for further hearing.
Taiwan conducting anti-blockade drills amid recent PLA maneuvers: MND

ROC Central News Agency

06/13/2023 09:01 PM

Taipei, June 13 (CNA) Taiwan's Ministry of National Defense (MND) said Tuesday that it has been conducting drills in response to recent People's Liberation Army (PLA) exercises that practiced blockading Taiwan and nearby maritime routes.

Military experts said that recent reconnaissance drills and long-distance patrols undertaken by PLA aircraft and ships that passed through parts of the first island chain around the north and south of Taiwan were part of the PLA's anti-access/area denial exercises aimed at practicing how to gain control of Taiwan proper, the Taiwan Strait, the Bashi Channel and the Miyako Strait.

The issue was raised Tuesday during a weekly MND press briefing.

Major General Lin Wen-huang (zcs) who is in charge of planning at the MND, explained that the military's espionage systems have run analyses of potential military invasions by the PLA, including possible blockading strategies. It has formulated anti-blockade and convoy strategies and been conducting drills to enhance the military's capabilities, Lin said.

MND spokesman Major General Sun Li-fang (ac) said at the briefing that the armed forces have been closely monitoring the situation in and around the Taiwan Strait and have run detailed analyses of the PLA's combat readiness maneuvers, including its joint combat readiness patrols.

He said the MND outlined several possible PLA agendas but would not go into details, adding that the ministry will do its best to develop different capabilities of the armed forces to boost its combat readiness.

(By Matt Yu and Sean Lin)

Enditem/kb



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Military releases new civil defense handbook amid backlash

ROC Central News Agency

06/13/2023 01:10 PM

Taipei, June 13 (CNA) Taiwan's military on Tuesday released a revised version of its first civil defense handbook after the original version faced criticism for being out of touch with reality when it was published in April 2022.

Shen Wei-chih (), the head of the Ministry of National Defense's All-Out Defense Mobilization Agency, said at a press event that the updated version of the handbook has almost doubled its content and gone from 28 pages originally to 48 pages.

The new version consists of two main parts: "peacetime preparation" and "wartime responses."

It outlines safety measures for civilians during an air raid, major fire, building collapse, major power outage, water shortage, or shortage of essential goods, while explaining basic survival skills and offering emergency hotlines people can call.

Compared with the previous version, Shen said the updated version has far more descriptions of civil defense concepts and offers more detailed suggestions to civilians on how to respond to different types of emergencies to help them survive.

The pamphlet also lists nearby air raid shelters and hospitals and explains how to prepare an emergency kit should a war break out, he said.

The Chinese versions for the country as a whole and different regions are available to download at https://aodm.mnd.gov.tw/front/down.aspx?menu=069&mCate=069

No English version has been issued yet, but the ministry said it would publish one, without saying when.

The handbook was first issued amid concerns over China's intentions toward Taiwan and the possibility that it could launch a cross-strait conflict, but it was widely criticized for being impractical and divorced from reality.

The 28-page 6,000-word original version focused more on identifying which government agencies were responsible for doing what during wartime rather than telling people what to do.

One example was suggesting that people contact the authorities via phone or scan QR codes to access contingency information, despite the likelihood that telecommunications and internet services would be disrupted during a war.

(By Joseph Yeh)

Enditem/ls





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Taiwan military reassures on Mirage 2000 availability amid rumors

ROC Central News Agency

06/13/2023 03:08 PM

Taipei, June 13 (CNA) Taiwan's military gave assurances Tuesday that its Air Force Mirage 2000-5 fighters will remain available amid reported internal discussions on whether to decommission the French-made jets due to their high cost of operation and maintenance.

Military spokesman Sun Li-fang (ac) said the Air Force's Mirage 2000 fleet has met the required "availability" or "mission capable" rate, though he did not disclose what that rate was for the Mirage 2000-5s, citing confidentiality reasons.

The military has also ordered 66 United States-made F-16V fighters to meet its air defense needs, Sun said, reaffirming that the Air Force is capable of defending Taiwan's air space with its existing fleet and expected future additions.

Sun was responding to questions at a press briefing about recent reports of ongoing debates within the Air Force on whether to retire the French-made jets that have been in service since 1997.

Some have argued that the Air Force should decommission the jets because they have much higher operating costs per hour than F-16s and Taiwan-made IDFs, and spare parts for the aircraft are almost impossible to find, according to local media reports.

Taiwan bought 60 Mirage 2000-5s from France in the 1990s, and they entered service in 1997.

Since then, eight incidents involving the jets have been reported in Taiwan, the most recent one coming in March 2022. Among the incidents were six crashes that resulted in the deaths of five pilots and left Taiwan with 54 of the Mirage 2000-5s.

(By Matt Yu and Joseph Yeh)

Enditem/ls

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Chinese aircraft near Taiwan aim to monitor U.S. military drills: Experts

ROC Central News Agency

06/13/2023 11:05 PM

Taipei, June 13 (CNA) China's recent deployment of aircraft southwest of Taiwan, just one day before a stage of the United States-led Large Scale Global Exercise (LSGE) was due to start, was part of its military training and an attempt to execute aerial surveillance of U.S. military activities, experts said Tuesday.

Taiwan's Ministry of National Defense announced June 8 that it had detected 37 Chinese warplanes that had flown into its Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ), one day prior to the U.S., Japan, France and Canada beginning joint exercises in the Philippine Sea.

Part of the formation continued flying into the Western Pacific Ocean through Taiwan's southeastern ADIZ, which experts say was part of the attempt to monitor the joint exercises.

The LSGE is a military exercise which aims to enhance integration between the U.S. and its allies and partners in the Indo Pacific region. This year it is being held from May 24 through Aug. 19. in different stages.

"China probably kept a close watch on the movements of the U.S. forces," Shu Hsiao-huang (), an analyst at the Institute for National Defense and Security Research, told CNA, adding that the deployment probably took place to protest U.S. presence in the region, and also to take advantage of the opportunity to observe military activities as part of its anti-submarine or target-searching training efforts.

According to Shu, the Chinese aircraft that proceeded to the Western Pacific Ocean were H-6 bombers in charge of conducting aerial surveillance and long-range flight missions as part of drills to build the attacking capability of a range of jet fighters.

Retired Air Force lieutenant general Chang Yen-ting () told CNA the breach and attack simulation by Chinese aircraft might have targeted the aircraft carriers USS Nimitz and USS Ronald Reagan currently involved in the LSGE 23.

(By Flor Wang and Wu Sheng-hung)

Enditem/kb

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Review of citizen evacuation policy for Taiwan not needed: White House

ROC Central News Agency

06/13/2023 11:29 AM

Washington, June 12 (CNA) A White House spokesman said the U.S. had "no indication" that the situation in Taiwan warrants a review of its policy of not evacuating private American citizens from areas of conflict, but did not say whether planning for such a contingency was taking place.

On Monday, the news website The Messenger reported that the U.S. government is preparing evacuation plans for American citizens living in Taiwan, citing three anonymous sources with knowledge of the matter.

One of the sources, identified as a senior U.S. intelligence official, told the outlet that planning had been underway for at least six months but had "heated up" over the last two months.

Another of the sources said Russia's invasion of Ukraine had served as an impetus for the planning, by driving a "relook" at what plans are in place.

Asked about the report at a press briefing Monday, John Kirby, the National Security Council coordinator for strategic communications, said it was not routine U.S. policy to evacuate private American citizens from areas of conflict.

"And there is no indication at this time that current conditions in Taiwan would warrant any reconsideration of that policy," he said.

At the same time, Kirby said, the U.S. takes seriously its responsibility for the safety of its citizens and personnel abroad, and has "routine procedures in place to make sure that we're prepared for any type of emergency."

In a separate response to the report, Taiwan's representative office in the United States noted that the subject of evacuation planning came up in March, when Taiwanese media reported on a message sent to U.S. citizens by the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT).

In that case, the AIT subsequently explained the message was sent out after the devastating earthquake in Turkey, and was intended to remind U.S. citizens to prepare in advance for any kind of potential disaster, the representative office said.

The Feb. 10 message, which is available on the AIT's website, reminded U.S. citizens that Taiwan is in a "region prone to disasters," and encouraged them to enroll in the State Department's registry for citizens living abroad and to have a "go-bag" ready in case of emergency.

(By Chiang Chin-yeh and Matthew Mazzetta)

Enditem/ls

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Turkiye Expects to Discover New Oil Field Near Border With Iraq a Reports

Sputnik News

20230613

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Turkiye expects to discover a new oil field in a region near the Iraqi border and plans to invest more than 9 million liras ($380,000) in its exploration, Turkish newspaper reported on Tuesday.

Turkiye is currently carrying out oil exploration in more than 20 provinces, so news about the results can be expected at any time, the newspaper said. Recently, the exploration process has been activated in an area near the village of Baskoy in the Silopi district of Sirnak province near the Iraqi border, according to the report.

The Kapikoy-1 exploration well to be drilled will be used to determine the presence and quantity of crude oil reserves, if any, in the Silopi area, newspaper added.

The newspaper speculated that the discovery could be a windfall for Turkiye, as Iraq is known to have huge oil reserves.

In May, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced the discovery of an oil field in Mount Gabar near the city of Cizre with a production rate of about 100,000 barrels per day. The discovery of another field in southeastern Turkiye with estimated net oil reserves of 150 million barrels, valued at $12 billion, was also announced in December.

A Sputnik

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June 13, 2023

By David Vergun , DOD News

Official Says NATO Discussions to Focus on Ukraine Support

Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III is traveling to Europe this week to attend the Ukraine Defense Contact Group and the NATO defense ministerial meetings.

Discussions will focus on ways to most effectively support Ukraine now, as well as in the future, said a senior Defense Department official.

Part of the discussion will be interoperability, as well as modernization and capability of ally and partner nations' military-industrial complexes, the official said.

Current focus for Ukraine is on air defense, anti-armor systems and munitions, the official said, as well as short- and long-range artillery.

These systems are needed as Ukrainian forces plan their combined-arms advances through well-defended Russian positions which have been seeded with such things as mines and anti-tank traps, the official said.

Also important to Ukraine's fighting capability are spare parts and instructions on field maintenance and repair, the official said.

Additionally, the meetings will focus on future capabilities needed by Ukraine forces such as fighter pilot training, the official said.

To date, the U.S. has committed about $40 billion in Ukraine defense assistance and allies and partners have committed $27 billion, the official said, noting that there are 53 allies and partners providing defense assistance to Ukraine.

Of note, the U.S., as a percentage of its gross domestic product, is 13th among ally and partner nations' Ukraine support, according to the official.

Most counter-unmanned aerial systems, 155 mm artillery rounds, tanks and armored personnel carriers are being provided not by the U.S., but by allies and partners, the official said.

As well, allies have trained three times the number of Ukrainian fighters as has the U.S., the official added.

Separately, the official said, the U.S. will urge membership of Sweden into NATO.

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June 13, 2023

By Joseph Clark , DOD News

DOD Announces New Round of Aid for Ukraine

The Defense Department announced an additional security assistance package aimed at providing key capabilities to aid Ukraine's effort to regain territory and defend against Russia's unprovoked war of aggression.

The package, valued at up to $325 million, includes additional munitions for U.S.-provided National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile Systems and High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems and dozens more Bradley Infantry Fighting Vehicles and Stryker Armored Personnel Carriers among other items.

Deputy Pentagon Press Secretary Sabrina Singh said the latest round of assistance "includes key capabilities to aid Ukraine's efforts to retake its sovereign territory as they bravely protect Ukraine soldiers, civilians and critical infrastructure."

She added during a briefing at the Pentagon that the package, which marks the 40th drawdown of DOD inventories in support of Ukraine since August 2021, underscores the U.S.' commitment to supporting Ukraine as it defends itself against Russia.

Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken echoed that pledge of continued support in a separate statement outlining the latest show of U.S. support.

"Russia started this unprovoked war against Ukraine. Russia could end it at any time by withdrawing its forces from Ukraine and stopping its brutal attacks against Ukraine's cities and people," Blinken said. "Until Russia does so, the United States and our allies and partners will stand united with Ukraine, for as long as it takes."

The Pentagon announced the package as Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Army Gen. Mark A. Milley prepare to host a meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group, a U.S.-led alliance of more than 50 countries who have rallied in support of Ukraine.

Singh said the forum will provide further opportunities for allies and partners to "hear from the Ukrainians themselves of what else they need on the battlefield."

The group will meet on June 15 in Brussels ahead of the NATO defense minister's meeting on June 16.

Today's drawdown was announced just days after a separate $2.1 billion package containing additional air defense and ammunition capabilities was authorized under the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative, the authority under which the U.S. procures capabilities from industry and partners.

In total, the U.S. has provided more than $39 billion in security assistance to Ukraine since the beginning of Russia's invasion in February 2022.

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Landsbergis: "We have taken an arduous path towards achieving justice and punishment for the initiators of the January 13 aggression. We, therefore, appreciate the ICC's role in ensuring accountability for the war crimes in Ukraine"

Republic of Lithuania - Ministry of Foreign Affairs

2023.06.13

On 12 June, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania Gabrielius Landsbergis met with the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) Karim Khan.

"We have taken an arduous path towards achieving justice and punishment for the initiators of the January 13 aggression. We, therefore, particularly appreciate the role of the International Criminal Court and its Prosecutor Karim Khan, in ensuring accountability for the war crimes and other international crimes perpetrated by Russia in Ukraine. They are plenty, ranging from the deportation of children to deadly attacks on civilians, dams and power plants. All of these crimes need to be thoroughly investigated, so the International Court of Justice needs our support," the Foreign Minister said.

"Unfortunately, the International Court of Justice cannot deal with the crime of aggression against Ukraine, which also gives rise to other international crimes against Ukraine. Therefore, together with Ukraine, we call for creating a special international tribunal that the international community would mandate to prosecute Russian leaders responsible for the unprovoked aggression against Ukraine."

The meeting discussed international processes in detail to achieve full accountability for Russian and Belarusian individuals responsible for war crimes and crimes against humanity perpetrated during the war of aggression against Ukraine.

The Foreign Minister also forwarded to the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court information gathered by the Belarusian opposition forces that more than 2,000 Ukrainian children, mostly orphans, had been illegally transferred from the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine to camps in Belarus at the beginning of the Russian war against Ukraine, possibly with the instruction or approval of the Belarusian regime.

Last week, after assessing the request of the Minister of Foreign Affairs Gabrielius Landsbergis, the Lithuanian Prosecutor's Office opened a pre-trial investigation into the deportation and displacement of civilians and the separation of children.



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US to send $325 million worth of weapons to Ukraine

Iran Press TV

Tuesday, 13 June 2023 9:53 PM

The United States has announced a new $325 million military aid package for Ukraine, in defiance of repeated warnings by Russia.

The Pentagon said on Tuesday that the package will include munitions for air defense systems, ammunition and vehicles.

The announcement comes as Russia released new video footage showing captured German-made Leopard tanks and US Bradley vehicles in Ukraine being inspected by Russian troops.

This is the 40th aid package being rushed to Ukraine using Presidential Drawdown Authority, or PDA, by which the President of the United States can legally authorize the shipment of military equipment and services from US stocks without gaining congressional approval in response to an emergency.

This comes days after the Pentagon announced that it will provide an additional $2.1 billion in weapons aid for Ukraine.

The Pentagon announced on Friday the new package of long-term military assistance will include air defense and munitions for laser-guided rockets, an undisclosed amount of artillery rounds, and funding for training and maintenance support.

Washington has provided about $38 billion in security assistance to Ukraine since Russia launched its special military operation in late February 2022.

Despite Washington's continued military support to Kiev since then, the Biden administration has been clear that there will be no US combat forces fighting against the Russians in Ukraine.

Russian officials have repeatedly announced that flooding Ukraine with weapons will only increase the destruction.

Republican lawmakers have voiced concerns about the haphazard military shipments to Ukraine.

Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene said Washington's military aid to Ukraine was a US-led "proxy war" against Russia.

She said the Ukraine war had placed a heavy financial burden on the shoulders of Americans, who were already grappling with poverty.

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opinion

Climate Smart Livestock production (CSL) is the application of practices that reduce the environmental impact of livestock production to increase resilience, productivity and profit to achieve sustainability. Over the last three decades, both local and international development organizations have implemented livestock development projects across Nigeria to strengthen the food system and empower smallholder livestock farmers through tailored approaches. These approaches include farmers' capacity development on good animal husbandry practices, access to veterinary and breeding services, provision of infrastructure, financial literacy, and gender inclusion. The International Livestock Research Institute documented that these interventions have contributed significantly to human nutrition, women empowerment, increased livestock productivity, and improved livelihood.

Current situation

In 2020, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations estimated that the Nigerian livestock sector produced 1,601 kt eq CO2 of Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions, this is more than Kenyan livestock emissions estimated at 1,434 kt eq CO2despite Kenya's larger livestock population. Manure and feeding management are two critical pathways that emit carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide in livestock production. Several development organizations have implemented strategic and innovative approaches to increase smallholder livestock farmers' productivity to address the shortage of livestock products. These projects focused primarily on productivity improvement through a wide range of interventions such as veterinary and breeding services, knowledge transfer, and revitalization of dry (unproductive) land for fodder production. While these projects have achieved remarkable impacts, the effect of climate change and loss of soil biodiversity is still a force that reverses these impacts.

Livestock production is affected by climate change through drought, rising heat waves, floods, disease outbreaks, and loss of soil biodiversity while livestock production has been reported to contribute significantly to climate change principally through greenhouse gas emissions.

Recommendation

Increased soil biodiversity and reduced greenhouse gas emission are the two key climate-smart livestock production drivers. In addition, the implementation and adoption of climate-smart livestock production principally depend on government policies, availability of funding for tailored research and sustainable livestock projects, operationalisation of climate-smart livestock developmental projects, and mainstreaming of novel research outcomes. To significantly make a lasting impact in the Nigerian livestock sector, it is critical to invest in climate-smart livestock production.

Short term recommendations

In the short term, livestock development organizations need to integrate climate-smart livestock production otherwise known as sustainability into their project scope. Livestock production can be considered sustainable if it does not harm people, preserve the environment, and is profitable to the farmers.

In addition to sustainability, carbon farming is another concept that needs to be mainstreamed into livestock development projects. It involves capturing atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) and storing it in the soil. It improves soil health by improving the soil structure, water retention capacity, and revitalizing the soil biodiversity which ultimately improves soil fertility to produce quality pasture to sustain livestock production.

Stakeholder engagement, policy advocacy, and capacity development

Climate-smart livestock production is critical for the development of the Nigerian livestock industry, and it requires huge capital investment from donor partners and human and intellectual resources from development organizations. Nigeria has taken the first crucial step of updating and submitting the Nationally Determined Contribution document that reflects Nigeria's efforts to lower its carbon footprint to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. The next important step is the integration of these strategies into the National Livestock Transformation Plan, National Animal Feed Policy, National Dairy Policy and other livestock policies to set clear short and long-term climate smart goals.

Figure.1: Climate Smart Livestock production key indicators.

Every development organization implementing livestock projects should be committed to achieving the goals through a collaborative effort with the government and its relevant agencies. The adoption of climate-smart livestock practices in Nigeria requires a conscious effort by the implementing organizations to improve livestock farmers' production practices through tailored capacity development, revised implementation models, and transparent monitoring and evaluation system.

Tracking emission and carbon footprint

Similar to other anthropogenic carbon emissions, livestock activities leave a carbon footprint along the production value chain. It is important for organizations implementing livestock development projects to track greenhouse gas emissions across all stages of production. Tracking livestock production GHG emissions will give a holistic view of the cumulative emissions and indicate which livestock production process emits the most GHG and require immediate attention. While emission tracking is a novel idea in Nigeria's livestock industry, it is the most efficient measure to track and proffer mitigating measures to livestock GHG emissions. Several emission tracking tools could be tailored to the Nigerian context such as the Global Livestock Environmental Assessment Model (GLEAM), Sustainability Assessment of Food and Agriculture (SAFA), and Economics and Policy Innovations for Climate Smart Agriculture (EPIC). In addition to tracking, these tools can simulate scenarios to give an overview of the expected emission in response to a proposed change in production practices.

Knowledge sharing between research institutions and development agencies.

The potential of research institutions in Nigeria has not been sufficiently harnessed. Livestock development projects need to deepen collaboration with dedicated research institutions and Nigerian universities to leverage their expertise and resources to develop tailored innovative practices that would enhance the adoption of climate-smart livestock practices and their impact on food security.

Breeding Management

Nigeria's livestock population is estimated at 18.4 million cattle, 43.4 million sheep, 76 million goats, and 180 million poultry. This livestock population does not just require a high quantity of feed but also emits large volumes of greenhouse gases. A strategic breeding program will increase productivity while reducing the livestock population. This will reduce the quantity of feed required and it will ultimately reduce the carbon footprint through ruminal digestion and manure handling.

Improved Management practices

Climate-smart livestock practices can be incorporated into the daily and occasional routine management of livestock farming. Practices such as efficient grazing enhance soil biodiversity and soil carbon sequestration and conservation. In addition, manure emits nitrous oxide in the presence of oxygen and methane in the absence of oxygen. Manure mono-fermentation is an efficient procedure to generate methane, renewable energy from manure in the absence of oxygen. This could serve as additional income for farmers' cooperatives.

Long term recommendations

Nigeria and the rest of Sub-Saharan Africa are endowed with livestock that is adapted to the tropical nature of the continent; however, incessant climate change has made adaptability and resilience difficult for the local livestock breeds. In the long term, there is a need to develop improved breeds of livestock that will be more tolerant to the effects of climate change to ensure food security. The improved breeds of livestock would have improved feed efficiency leading to increased milk, and meat production, resilience towards the increasingly hot climatic condition, and disease resistance.

Potential challenges that could limit the implementation of climate-smart livestock project in Nigeria

The novelty of climate-smart livestock production will pose a challenge towards its implementation. The followings are some key potential challenges and next steps;

Limited policy framework: The Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and several other stakeholders has done a tremendous job in developing policy frameworks to increase livestock productivity through the National Livestock Transformation Plan, Dairy Policy Framework, and National Animal Feed Policy. It is critical to integrate climate-smart practices in these policies to align with international best practices. In addition, it would also fast-track the timeline to achieve the policy goals and reduce the financial resources required to achieve sustainable food security through the livestock sector.

Close Sign up for free AllAfrica Newsletters Get the latest in African news delivered straight to your inbox Top Headlines Nigeria Climate By submitting above, you agree to our privacy policy. Success! Almost finished... We need to confirm your email address. To complete the process, please follow the instructions in the email we just sent you. Error! Error! There was a problem processing your submission. Please try again later.

Insufficient Experts: While climate-smart livestock production is a topic of interest in the international community, it is gradually gaining local stakeholders' interest. However, only a few professionals could develop a working policy framework and mainstreaming strategies. In addition to the local professionals, experts from countries with similar climatic conditions can be engaged to bridge this gap.

Limited Awareness: Without any doubt, the leading goal of the majority of the stakeholders in livestock production is to increase profit through increased productivity. These stakeholders are aware of the management practices that could increase productivity. Most of these practices contribute to increased GHG emissions and reduce soil biodiversity. It is critical to developing a solid awareness strategy to inform the stakeholders (farmers and input suppliers) about the benefit of climate-smart livestock production to the people, the planet, and their profit.

Conclusion

Livestock production has been a major source of sustenance for millions of Nigerians through employment opportunities along the value chain and as a source of food. Data and reality have confirmed that our current method of livestock production is harmful to the environment and the planet. It is high time all stakeholders involved in the livestock value chain responded strategically and synergistically to save the environment.

Adekunle Adeoye is an Independent Dairy Value Chain Consultant with experience in improving the Nigerian dairy sector through strategic dairy chain management.
Russia says captured German tanks, US fighting vehicles in Ukraine

Iran Press TV

Tuesday, 13 June 2023 3:46 PM

Russia has released new video footage showing captured German-made Leopard tanks and US Bradley vehicles in Ukraine being inspected by Russian troops.

Moscow said on Tuesday that it had captured several of each of these armored fighting vehicles in the Zaporizhzhia region.

"Leopard tanks and Bradley infantry fighting vehicles. These are our trophies. Equipment of the Ukrainian armed forces in the Zaporizhzhia region," the Russian defense ministry said in a statement.

Zaporizhzhia is one of several areas where Kiev forces have been trying to launch an offensive that Russia said has been repelled by its forces.

The video showed "servicemen of the Vostok group inspect enemy tanks and infantry fighting vehicles captured in battle," the statement said.

The Russian defense ministry added that several of the captured vehicles had working engines, suggesting that the battles they were involved in had been shot and that the Kiev forces had "fled" from their positions.

Earlier this year Berlin started sending advanced Leopard battle tanks to Ukraine, after months of pleas from Kiev for the heavy weapons to bolster its forces against Russia.

In related news on Monday, German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius told broadcaster RTL that "we will not be able to replace every tank that is now out of action".

Pistorius did not confirm whether some of the tanks shown in the video were German-made Leopards. However, he did say that "unfortunately it is the nature of war that weapons are destroyed, that tanks are destroyed and people are killed."

In the meantime, Russian President Vladimir Putin reaffirmed on Tuesday that the fundamental character of Moscow's said objectives remained the same despite the large-scale offensive launched by Kiev in four directions.

In a televised meeting with military bloggers on Tuesday, Putin said the objectives of Moscow's military campaign in Ukraine might evolve with the situation, but that their fundamental character would not change.

Russia launched its special military operation against Ukraine last February as part of its efforts to defend the pro-Russian population in Donbas against persecution by the neo-Nazi Kiev regime.

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Ukraine says six people killed in strikes on Kryvyi Rig

Iran Press TV

Tuesday, 13 June 2023 11:00 AM

Ukrainian officials say the death toll from, what they said, Russian missile strikes on the central city of Kryvyi Rig, the hometown of President Volodymyr Zelensky, has risen to six.

Oleksandr Vilkul, the head of Kryvyi Rig's military administration, claimed on Tuesday that six missiles had hit five civilian sites in the city.

"Unfortunately, there are already six dead. The rescue operation is continuing," said in a statement on social media.

Officials earlier said that three people had been killed in the overnight attacks.

According to Sergiy Lysak, governor of the Dnipropetrovsk region that includes Kryvyi Rig, 25 people were injured in the attacks. He said that some victims remained under the rubble.

Ukrainian authorities claimed Russian forces fired another missile on Tuesday morning, but was downed by the country's air defenses.

"More terrorist missiles, Russian killers continue their war against residential buildings, ordinary cities and people. Unfortunately, there are dead and wounded," Zelensky said on Twitter.

Russia launched what it calls the "special military operation" in Ukraine in February 2022, with the US-led NATO's eastward expansion blamed for the war.

Russia views the alliance's efforts to make Ukraine a member and to deploy missiles close to its borders as a direct threat to Russian territory.

The West has supplied Ukraine with tens of billions of dollars worth of various weaponry since the onset of the Russian military campaign.

Russia has denounced the West's incessant arming of Kiev as counterproductive measures that would only prolong the conflict.

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Ukraine's Counteroffensive Making Progress, Stoltenberg Says After Missile Attack On Zelenskiy's Hometown

By RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service, RFE/RL's Russian Service June 13, 2023

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said Ukraine is making progress in its counteroffensive against Russian invaders and predicted NATO leaders will increase military assistance to Kyiv when they meet next month.

Stoltenberg made the comments as he met at the White House with President Joe Biden after Russian missile strikes on the hometown of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy killed 11 people.

Stoltenberg's visit to Washington came as Ukraine attempts to seize back territory as part of a long-awaited counteroffensive against the Russian invaders.

"The support that we are providing together to Ukraine is now making a difference on the battlefield as we speak because the Ukrainians have launched the offensive," he said. "They are making advances; they are gaining ground."

The more land the Ukrainians are able to liberate, the stronger their hand will be at the negotiating table and the more likely it is that Russian President Vladimir Putin will understand that he will never win, Stoltenberg said, adding that more aid will be pledged next month at the NATO summit in Vilnius, Lithuania.

Biden reiterated that the U.S. commitment to NATO was rock solid and that NATO allies would "be building on that momentum" when they meet in Vilnius.

As the meeting took place, the U.S. State Department announced a new $325 million package of ammunition and heavy weaponry to top up Ukraine's supplies.

In Moscow, Putin spoke with Russian journalists and bloggers at a televised news conference from the Kremlin. He said the counteroffensive was failing and Ukraine was suffering losses 10 times higher than Moscow's.

"Their losses are approaching a level that could be described as catastrophic," Putin said during the briefing.

He did not provide the number of killed and wounded but mentioned that Russian troops lost 54 tanks. He estimated Ukraine's losses at 160 tanks and more than 360 armored vehicles. There is no independent confirmation of Putin's claims.

Putin also said he saw no need for a new mobilization but said it would depend on what Russia wanted to achieve in the war.

The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine called Putin's comments about Ukrainian losses "self-suggestion" and "self-conviction."

Putin's advisers speak with him in a way that meets the need to "present victory reports, not to inform him that in fact the Ukrainians are succeeding," Andriy Kovalev, a spokesman for a Ukrainian territorial defense brigade, said on an RFE/RL Ukrainian Service program.

"They are trying to explain their defeats at the front by saying the troops are fighting powerfully, destroying Ukrainian equipment and drawing some incredible numbers," he said.

Zelenskiy condemned the attack on his hometown, saying on Telegram that "terrorists will never be forgiven." He also expressed condolences to people who lost loved ones.

The Ukrainian capital's military administration reported that Kyiv came under fire as well, but all missiles were shot down. There were no reports of any casualties in Kyiv.

Separately, Ukraine's air-defense system said it had managed to shoot down 10 out of 15 incoming Russian missiles, as well as one Iranian-made drone during the attack.

The latest wave of Russian strikes came as the Ukrainian military said that seven settlements had been liberated in the southern and eastern regions of the country and further advances had been made in Bakhmut amid heavy fighting.

"Both defensive and offensive fierce fighting is ongoing in the east and south of our nation. We have certain gains, implementing our plans, moving forward," said Valeriy Zaluzhniy, commander in chief of Ukrainian forces.

In the area of Bakhmut, the Donetsk city that has been the theater of the war's longest and most brutal battle so far, Ukrainian forces conducted both defensive and offensive actions over the past 24 hours, the commander of Ukraine's ground forces, General Oleksandr Syrskiy said early on June 13.

"Our forces continue the defense operation on the Bakhmut front. Our soldiers are [also] advancing on the flanks, where the enemy is losing positions," he wrote on Telegram.

"The national flag is flying over [the village of] Storozhove again, and this will be the case with every settlement until we liberate all Ukrainian land," Ukrainian forces' press center reported in a message accompanied by a video showing Ukrainian soldiers patrolling the village.

The recapture of six other villages had been reported earlier by the Ukrainian military. The claims could not be independently confirmed, and Moscow has not acknowledged any Ukrainian gains.

Ukraine's counteroffensive has been complicated by the bursting on June 6 of the Russian-controlled Kakhovka dam on the Dnieper River.

Kyiv has accused Moscow of mining the dam and deliberately causing its destruction to flood Kherson region in the south and slow down its counteroffensive.

Putin said during the Kremlin briefing that Russia had had no interest in blowing up the dam and was now not afraid of a possible Ukrainian offensive across the Dnieper. He noted that since the dam burst "the offensive did not take place."

With reporting by Reuters, AP, AFP, and dpa

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/ukraine-kryviy-rih- air-strike-dead-civilians/32456710.html

Copyright (c) 2023. 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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Putin: West Needs to Stop Delivering Weapons to Kiev if They Want to Resolve Conflict

Sputnik News

20230613

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Kiev is so far failing in all directions of their counteroffensive, Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday, adding that the Ukrainian military has suffered heavy casualties.

"The enemy was not successful in any of the directions. They have heavy losses," Putin said during a meeting with military correspondents.

The president mentioned that the Ukrainian military is currently attacking at the Shakhtyorsk and Vremevka directions "but fail to reach the front line." In total, Ukraine is attacking from four directions, Putin added.

"This is a large-scale counteroffensive using, as I said quite recently publicly, reserves prepared for these purposes. It has been going on since [June] 4, and continues to this day, right now," Putin said.

The president also noted that the Ukrainian forces "lost more than 160 tanks [during their counteroffensive], while we lost 54. Some of them can be recovered and repaired."

Ukraine's Losses Amount to 25-30% of Equipment Volume Delivered to From Abroad

"According to my calculations, this is about 25% or maybe 30% of the volume of the equipment that was delivered from abroad, that is about it. It seems to me that if they objectively calculate them, they will agree with this number, but as far as I have seen from open sources, Western sources, that is almost what they say, I think. So the offensive is underway, and the results today are what I just said," Putin told military correspondents

Ukraine lost 160 tanks and 360 armored vehicles during the counteroffensive, and this is only what Moscow sees, the president added.

"As for armored vehicles, there are even more serious [losses]. They have lost over 160 tanks and over 360 armored vehicles of various types during this time. This is just what we register. There are also losses that we do not see, which are inflicted by high-precision long-range weapons on clusters of personnel and equipment. So in fact, there are more of them, these losses, on the part of Ukraine," Putin concluded.

The Russian president noted that with Kiev importing all its weapons and equipment from foreign countries Ukraine's defense industry will soon completely cease to exist since it is producing nothing.

"Ukraine's defense industry will soon completely cease to exist. What are they producing? They are importing ammunition, equipment, weapons, everything. So one cannot live and last long. That is why the issue related to demilitarization is in a very practical dimension," Putin highlighted.

On Plans to Provide Uranium Shells to Kiev

"There is no need to act preemptively. We have a lot of such ammunition with depleted uranium, if they are used, we also reserve the right to use the same ammunition. We have them in stock, we just do not use them," Putin stated.

The West has taken all weapons from its warehouses for their transfer to Ukraine, and only has stocks left in South Korea and Israel that will also end soon, Putin added.

The president also noted that the US and European economies are resilient but it is not easy to produce weapons during a recession.

"About things they say, we will produce this, we will produce that - well, produce then. In a recession, things are not so simple ... The resilience of the European and American economies is very large, this is obvious. They are high-tech, the structure of the economy is very developed, they are, in general, powerful. But there are many problems," Putin said.

Russia Had No Interest in Destruction of Kakhovka HPP, Responsibility on Kiev

Russia definitely had no interest in the destruction of the Kakhovka hydroelectric power plant (HPP), this tragedy had entailed severe consequences for new Russian regions, and the responsibility for this lies with Kiev, Russian President Vladimir Putin said.

"But as we understand, we are definitely not interested in this, because these are serious consequences for those territories that we control and which are Russian a this is the first point. And the second point a well, unfortunately, I will say a strange thing, but nevertheless, unfortunately, it slowed down their counteroffensive in this direction. Why do I say unfortunately? Because it would be better if they were advancing there. It is better for us, because it would be really bad for them to attack there. But since such a flood occurred, then, accordingly, the offensive did not take place," Putin told reporters.

The president stressed that the Ukrainian side was to blame for the tragedy at the Kakhovka HPP.

"Well, it is clear who is to be blamed, the Ukrainian side was striving toward this. You know, I am not going to say things 100% now that I am not sure about, because by and large we did not record big explosions before the destruction occurred, at least that is what I was told. But they purposefully repeatedly attacked with HIMARS Kakhovka HPP. Maybe they had planted some kind of explosives there, I do noy know now," Putin said.

All the citizens affected by the explosion at the Kakhovka HPP will be assisted in accordance with Russian laws and standards, the president concluded.

Goals of Special Military Operation Change in Accordance With Current Situation

Speaking about goals of the Russian special military operation in Ukraine, the Russian president said that they change in accordance with the current situation but these changes are not fundamental.

"They are changing in accordance with the current situation, but in general, of course, we will not change anything, and they are fundamental for us," Putin said.

Putin also remarked that Russia tried to seek normal relations with Kiev.

"We sincerely tried to reach an agreement [with Ukraine]. It was difficult to negotiate some kind of patchwork of southeastern Ukraine with the rest of the country, but we tried in good faith," Putin told military correspondents.

The president added, however, that Russia would never tolerate what is currently happening in Ukraine.

"What is happening there [in Ukraine] now will certainly never suit us, historically speaking. When the negotiations were held, including in Istanbul, we constantly raised this issue, and they in turn told us: 'But there is nothing neo-Nazi about us, what do you want from us?' [Russia wants] at least some relative legislative restrictions. In general, we also agreed on this during the round of negotiations before our troops were withdrawn from Kiev and after they threw all our agreements out of the window," Putin said.

The president added that Russia, through its special military operation, is gradually and methodically engaged in the demilitarization of Ukraine.

West Needs to Stop Delivering Weapons to Kiev if They Want to Resolve Conflict

The West needs to stop supplying Ukraine with weapons if they want to resolve the ongoing conflict, Russian President Vladimir Putin emphasized.

"And we understand that the key to solving problems [in Ukraine] is on their side. If they really want today's conflict to end through negotiations, they only need to make one decision - to stop the supply of weapons and equipment. That's it," Putin said.

But Western countries are proud of pumping Ukraine with weapons and violating international principles, the president noted.

"The West is pumping Ukraine with weapons, it is really so, nobody hides it. On the contrary, they are proud of it," Putin said.

The president added that Western countries "to a certain extent violate some international laws by supplying weapons to the conflict zone."

"They just prefer not to notice it, but they are actually doing it," he said.

Creation of Sanitary Zone in Ukraine Not Ruled Out Amid Attacks on Russia

If Ukrainian attacks on the Russian territory will continue, then Moscow will have to consider the issue of creating a sanitary zone in Ukraine so their missiles will not be able to reach Russian regions, President Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday.

"And if this continues, then we will apparently have to consider the issue - I say this very carefully - in order to create some kind of sanitary zone on the territory of Ukraine at such a distance from which it would be impossible to reach our territory," Putin said at the meeting.

The president admitted the necessity for Russia to strengthen its border with Ukraine and this process is already underway.

"Of course, we must ensure the security of our citizens. ... Of course we have to strengthen the border. And certainly, those of you who work there, you can see that this process is underway, is moving quite quickly, this task will also be solved," Putin said.

He added that Russia saw drone attacks in Syria similar to those in the Belgorod Region and learned how to deal with such a threat quite quickly.

"This is sometimes difficult, but manageable," Putin said, adding that the Russian air defense system is tuned to identify large objects, while drones are small and made of modern materials that are difficult to detect.

"Work in this direction is already underway and will be completed," the president added.

Commenting on the recent attacks in the Belgorod Region, Putin said that they are aimed at distracting Russian forces from other directions that are critical for Kiev.

Answering a question from a journalist, the president said that there is generally no need to impose martial law in Russia in light of situation in Belgorod region.

By attacking Russia's border Belgorod Region, Ukraine is trying to divert Russian military's attention from other areas of its ongoing military operation, the president stated, adding that "we have to do everything we can to ensure security of our citizens."

The president also noted that Russia cannot use terrorist methods, unlike the Ukrainian authorities.

"Unlike the current Ukrainian authorities, we cannot use terrorist methods. We are a state, while they [Ukraine] have a regime. And they indeed act like a regime based on terror. They are on high counterintelligence alert and have introduced martial law," Putin said in answer to a question on whether Ukrainian secret agents are present in Russia.

The president added that the operations of Russian special services must be expanded in the future to better protect the nation from Ukrainian agents.

Ukraine Attacked Russian Ship Guarding Turkstream, With US Coordinating Process

Ukrainian drones tried to attack a Russian warship that was guarding the Turkish Stream gas pipeline, while the actions were coordinated by US intelligence, the president said at the meeting.

"Yesterday or the day before yesterday, our ship which was guarding the Turkish Stream a a gas pipeline, was attacked. Four drones were half-submerged, three were destroyed, the fourth was disoriented and then taken down. Immediately after that a four more drones [attacked]," Putin told journalists.

Strikes on Ukraine's Energy Facilities Response to Crossing Red Lines

Russian strikes on the Ukrainian energy facilities and the destruction of the headquarters of Ukraine's main intelligence department were a response to crossing red lines by Kiev, President Vladimir Putin stated.

"Strikes on the entire energy system of Ukraine. Isn't this a response to crossing red lines? And actual destruction of the headquarters of the main intelligence department of the armed forces of Ukraine near Kiev? ... is this not an answer? It is," he told military correspondents.

Russia Still Wants to Have Best Relations With Countries of Former USSR

Russia still wants to have the best relations with all the countries of the former Soviet Union, Russian President Vladimir Putin said.

"We wanted and we still want to have the best relations with all our neighbors after the collapse of the Soviet Union. And we do so, we have come to terms with... Well, that's what's happened. We have to live with it," Putin told journalists.

A Sputnik

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Ukraine Loses Over 600 Military in South Donetsk, Artemovsk Directions in Past Day - Moscow

Sputnik News

20230613

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Ukraine has lost more than 600 military in the South Donetsk direction and near the city of Artemovsk (Bakhmut) over the past 24 hours, the Russian Defense Ministry said on Tuesday.

Over the past day, Ukraine's armed forces continued to attempt offensive in the South Donetsk direction, as well as near Artemovsk. Kiev has sent units, hastily formed from the remnants of the military brigades of the Ukrainian armed forces that had previously suffered heavy losses, into the offensive in the Vremevka Ledge.

"The total losses of the enemy over the past day in these areas [in the South Donetsk direction] amounted to 275 Ukrainian military, four tanks, 15 armored combat vehicles, eight vehicles, as well as the Msta-B howitzer," the ministry said in a statement.

Russia also repelled three attacks of Ukrainian troops reinforced with tanks, armored vehicles in the Donetsk People's Republic during past day, the ministry said, adding that Russia repelled two attacks near the Revnopel settlement, with most of the personnel of the company tactical group of the Ukrainian armed forces destroyed near the Prechestevka settlement.

Additionally, two enemy attacks were successfully repelled south of Artemovsk over the past day, the statement read.

"During the fighting, up to 350 Ukrainian military, two armored combat vehicles, and six vehicles were destroyed," the ministry added.

A Sputnik

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Russia Strikes Ukrainian Army's Reserves in Zaporozhye Region

Sputnik News

20230613

SIMFEROPOL (Sputnik) - Russia launched preemptive strikes at the Ukrainian army's reserves with drones and missiles in the Zaporozhye Region overnight as Ukraine continues moving troops to the frontline, Vladimir Rogov, a senior official of the regional administration, told Sputnik on Tuesday.

"Missile and drone strikes were launched overnight at the reserves of the Ukrainian armed formations in the direction of Zaporozhye," Rogov said.

Ukraine is now moving its reserves to the frontline, but the situation remains under full control of the Russian army, the official said, adding that Russian troops were ready to press forward if needed.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Saturday that Ukraine had finally launched its much-touted counteroffensive, throwing strategic reserves into the fray. He said that Ukrainian troops had failed to advance.

Media reported on Monday, citing a Ukrainian military source, that Ukrainian armed forces were suffering significant losses in armor and personnel in full-frontal fighting along the Orekhovo-Tokmak axis in Zaporozhye.

A Sputnik

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Additional U.S. Security Assistance for Ukraine

US Department of State

Press Statement

Antony J. Blinken, Secretary of State

June 13, 2023

The United States continues to stand with the people of Ukraine, whose enduring courage and solidarity inspires the world. The United States is partnering with over 50 nations to lead efforts in support of Ukraine's self-defense against Russian aggression.

Pursuant to a delegation of authority from President Biden, I am authorizing our 40th drawdown for Ukraine, which will provide $325 million worth of U.S. arms and equipment. This security assistance package includes critical air defense capabilities, additional munitions for High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems, artillery rounds, anti-tank weapons, armored vehicles, and other equipment essential to strengthening Ukraine's forces on the battlefield.

Russia started this unprovoked war against Ukraine. Russia could end it at any time by withdrawing its forces from Ukraine and stopping its brutal attacks against Ukraine's cities and people. Until Russia does so, the United States and our allies and partners will stand united with Ukraine, for as long as it takes.

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Major air defence package for Ukraine announced at meeting of Joint Expeditionary Force ministers

The A92m air defence package is being provided through the International Fund for Ukraine, in which the UK is investing a further A250m.

13 June 2023

A new package of vital air defence capabilities for Ukraine was announced today at a meeting of defence ministers from the Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF).

The equipment, worth A92 million, will be procured in the coming months through the International Fund for Ukraine (IFU) to bolster Ukraine's ability to protect its critical national infrastructure, civilian population, and front-line personnel. The package will provide radars to help protect from indiscriminate Russian strikes as well as guns and a significant amount of ammunition.

The announcement came as the Defence Secretary, Ben Wallace, attended a meeting of defence ministers from the ten JEF nations in Amsterdam today to discuss continued support for Ukraine and shared security interests and concerns.

A particular focus was on aspects of protecting underwater and offshore infrastructure, with the ministers and representatives agreeing in a joint statement to deepen cooperation in this area, including through sharing of intelligence.

Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said:

The Joint Expeditionary Force brings together like-minded nations committed to preserving security and stability in Northern Europe, and providing ongoing support for Ukraine.

The UK has contributed a further A250 million to the International Fund for Ukraine and, with allies and partners, through the fund we are providing a package of air defence to help Ukraine protect their critical national infrastructure and defend against indiscriminate Russian air strikes.

The IFU uses financial contributions from international partners to procure priority military assistance for Ukraine. This will ensure the continued supply of military support - lethal and non-lethal - to Ukraine through 2023 and beyond.

More than A520m has been raised through the IFU following contributions from the UK, Norway, Netherlands, Denmark, Sweden, Iceland and Lithuania.

The latest UK contribution of A250m comes after the Prime Minister met President Zelenskyy in Moldova earlier this month to discuss how best to protect Ukrainian cities and critical national infrastructure from Russian strikes. It takes the total pledged so far by all contributing nations to A770m.

The funding for air defence is the first of five expected support packages as part of the second round of IFU procurement.

The first round of procurement resulted in hundreds of proposals from suppliers, ten of which were selected. These included a consignment of reconnaissance and strike drones, which will arrive in Ukraine this summer.

During his visit to Amsterdam, the defence secretary also held bilateral meetings with the defence ministers from Estonia, Sweden, and the Netherlands, to discuss ongoing shared security commitments.

The JEF is a group of like-minded nations - Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, United Kingdom. The nations share the same purpose, values and a common focus on security and stability in the JEF core regions of the High North, North Atlantic and Baltic Sea region.

The JEF provides a responsive, capable, and ready military force that undertakes integrated activities at sea, on land and in the air, across northern Europe. These activities are preventative and proportionate and demonstrate solidarity, capability, and resolve to stand together for security and stability in the JEF core regions.

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Joint statement by Joint Expeditionary Force ministers, June 2023

Defence Secretary Ben Wallace met with ministers from Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF) partner nations in Amsterdam.

13 June 2023

We, the Defence Ministers of Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden and the United Kingdom - members of the Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF) - met today in Amsterdam. We discussed the current situation in Ukraine and explored how the JEF can respond to, and further mitigate, the security threats to our nations, including Hybrid challenges.

We reaffirm our steadfast commitment to support the people of Ukraine in the face of Russia's appalling, illegal, unprovoked attack; and stand with Ukraine to support its right to be a sovereign, independent and democratic nation. The JEF Participant Nations, along with our Allies and partners, are responding decisively to provide military and humanitarian assistance, at pace, to ensure Ukraine is best able to defend itself, and will continue to do so as long as it takes.

We reiterate our standing commitment to preserving security and stability in Northern Europe and reaffirm our strong cooperation on tackling conventional and Hybrid threats from a military perspective, primarily in the JEF Core Regions. Today we face common challenges including Russian vessels mapping critical undersea and offshore infrastructure, indicating preparations for possible disruption and, at worst, sabotage.

Recalling the JEF Leaders' Summit in Riga in December 2022 and the JEF Defence Ministers' meeting at Edinburgh Castle in November 2022, we have today decided to accelerate cooperation in the JEF in order to detect, deter and respond to threats against our critical undersea and offshore infrastructure, reassure Allies and demonstrate collective commitment to the security and stability of Northern Europe; all in full alignment with NATO.

The JEF will specifically strengthen efforts with regard to actively sharing tactical intelligence and Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) information on possible maritime threats to ensure a common situational awareness. JEF Participant Nations will continue to cooperate closely, in conjunction with NATO, to coordinate presence and will pool and share capabilities to deter and respond to threats in the JEF Core Regions. The JEF will include aspects of protecting critical undersea and offshore infrastructure and assessed vulnerabilities in future activities. Finally, JEF countries will share best practices and seek ways to cooperate in their respective approaches to the protection of critical undersea and offshore infrastructure.

The JEF will ensure coordination, complementarity and alignment with NATO on its ongoing work on the protection of critical undersea infrastructure. Activities within the JEF will be periodically reviewed, taking into account security developments and efforts from international partners.

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Together with our partners, we must ensure such physical conditions that make Russian terror impossible - address by the President of Ukraine

President of Ukraine

13 June 2023 - 22:46

Fellow Ukrainians!

This afternoon, the rescue and rubble removal operations in Kryvyi Rih after a terrorist missile attack have been completed. Unfortunately, 11 people were killed, including one child... My condolences to the families and friends. In total, more than 30 people were injured. All of them are being provided with the necessary assistance.

I would like to thank each and every person who took part in the rescue operation: rescuers, doctors, police, volunteers, local authorities, and ordinary citizens. Thank you for every life saved! Thank you for every person you helped today.

This deliberate Russian strike on an ordinary city only proves a simple truth once again: together with our partners, we must ensure such physical conditions that make Russian terror impossible.

The first is our sky shield. A sufficient number of air defense systems of sufficient capacity. Plus modern fighter jets. When the Russian ability to attack our cities and villages is physically limited by our sky shield, only then will the terrorist state realize that there are no alternatives to peace for all Ukrainians and defeat for Russia.

The second is the destruction of the basis for terror, for the production of new missiles by a terrorist state. Unfortunately, Russia still has the ability to obtain critical components for missile production from companies around the world, including companies from some partner countries. These components are then shipped to Russia in various ways. If we take, for example, one of the missiles that hit Kryvyi Rih today, about 50 components in it - mostly microelectronics - were produced in other countries.

And today, representatives of our state met with diplomats from the respective countries. All partners have a list of companies that supply Russia with components for murder. This list is available. Everyone in the world also understands how Russian terrorists are trying to deceive the world. And we are waiting for conclusions and swift action to stop Russian missile terror.

Ukraine has imposed sanctions on all companies in Russia that produce missiles. Such complete sanctions should be imposed globally against all of them. Every way of circumventing sanctions should be appropriately punished at the global level as well. Export controls over critical components must be tightened as much as possible. If someone acts as an intermediary or works together with Russia so that terrorists can continue to blow up residential buildings and kill people, such entities - whether business or government - deserve a response from the world. A tough response. Our partners have all the information on this.

It is definitely cheaper to cut terrorists off the supply of components for terror once and for all than to constantly spend more and more money on new air defense missiles.

Today, we also held a meeting to ensure inevitable, legal and fair accountability of Russia for this aggression. We are working on several scenarios for creating a special tribunal for the crime of aggression. A crime for which the highest Russian leadership must be held accountable. The crime that gave rise to all other crimes of this war. And this accountability will surely come. Indeed, this is not an easy task. But Ukrainians have already accomplished so many difficult tasks that they will not only accomplish it for sure, but will do it with pleasure. There will be a tribunal.

Today I met with IAEA Director General Grossi. We are working very actively to prevent any incidents at the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia NPP. As long as the invaders are there, there is a risk for the whole world, and this is obvious. Only complete de-occupation of the plant and its return to Ukrainian control can guarantee safety. And we will do everything for this.

It's good that the IAEA is offering to send a group of experts to Ukraine to assess the consequences of Russia's destruction of the dam and other structures at the Kakhovka hydroelectric power plant. The world needs to know in detail what is happening and what crime against nature and people Russia has committed. I hope the IAEA experts will start working shortly.

And of course, our warriors, our heroes. I thank all of you who are now in combat, who are protecting and advancing our positions.

For example, the Bakhmut direction - and these are, in particular, the warriors of the 80th separate airborne assault brigade... There is advancement in different areas. I am grateful to you! Thank you for your extraordinary bravery!

The units of the Tavria operational and strategic group of troops - despite extremely fierce fighting, despite the occupiers' air and artillery superiority, they are moving forward! Thank you, warriors! Thank you for every step and for every meter of Ukrainian land that is being liberated from Russian evil. Marines of the 35th and 36th separate brigades, the 110th separate mechanized brigade, the 128th separate mountain assault brigade, paratroopers of our great "Seventy-ninth", artillerymen of the 55th separate brigade " Zaporizhzhia Sich ". Thank you to all of you! Thank you for your strength!

And I thank everyone in our society who understands that the liberation of our land from such occupiers requires hard, heroic and intensive actions that day after day, step by step, give the necessary power to our offensive!

Glory to Ukrainian heroes! Glory to everyone in the world who helps!

Today I thank the United States for another timely package of defense support. Artillery, armored vehicles, ammunition for our HIMARS. Thank you, America!

Glory to Ukraine!

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The Twitter Space, scheduled to hold between 6 p.m. and 7:30 p.m., aims at appraising the appropriateness, workability and sustainability of the law.

A day after signing into law a bill providing interest-free loans to Nigerians willing to acquire tertiary education but unable to afford fees, President Bola Tinubu on Tuesday met with the leadership of various Nigerian student bodies.

In a tweet via the President's Twitter handle- @OfficialABAT, Mr Tinubu described the meeting with the student leaders as invigorating, noting that they welcomed the new law and that his administration's "proactive approach to the fuel subsidy issue was welcome."

This is as PREMIUM TIMES is billed to hold a Twitter Space - an audio conversation via Twitter - a social media platform, on Wednesday, 15 June.

The Twitter Space, part of the newspaper's public engagement efforts on contemporary issues of national interest, has been scheduled to hold between 6 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.

About the Act

Mr Tinubu assented to the Access to Higher Education Act (2023), providing legal backing for the Education Loan Fund, which would provide "students with loans to pay tuition in public tertiary institutions."

The bill has previously met stiff opposition from student bodies such as the National Association of Nigerian Students and workers' unions, who described it as an attempt by the government "to wash its hands off the funding of the university."

Tertiary education in Nigeria is primarily subsidised depending on the government's handout to continue running effectively.

For years, the inadequate funding by the government has caused disagreement between workers' unions and the government, resulting in industrial unrest.

Stakeholders have cited the industrial crises across many campuses as reasons for the poor ranking of Nigeria's tertiary institutions globally.

Meeting student leaders

On Tuesday, Mr Tinubu received the representatives of the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), the National Association of University Students (NAUS), the National Association of Colleges of Education Students (NACES) and the National Youth Council of Nigeria (NYCN) at the Presidential villa.

"This afternoon, I enjoyed an invigorating meeting with the leadership of a few of the most prominent national student bodies in the country. Representatives of the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), the National Association of University Students (NAUS), the National Association of Colleges of Education Students (NACES) and the National Youth Council of Nigeria (NYCN) were in attendance," he wrote.

"Their support of the Access to Higher Education Act as well as this government's proactive approach to the fuel subsidy issue, was most welcome."

The President also said his government will prioritise youth empowerment and social justice through meaningful inclusion in governance.

He also promised affordable access to quality education and the creation of gainful opportunities across all sectors of the economy.

PT Twitter Space

The PREMIUM TIMES' Twitter Space, tagged "PT Space," is a forum to appraise contemporary issues bimonthly.

Apart from using the platform to set an agenda for the government and other relevant stakeholders on pertinent issues, the platform has also enabled Nigerians to address their concerns and resolve issues such as challenges with international passport processes, and National Identity Number (NIN), among others.

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On Wednesday, participants, including the leadership of the students' bodies, workers' unions and rights campaigners such as the National Vice President of the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU), Abdssobur Salaam, shall participate as panellists.

To give context to the law as envisioned by its sponsor and immediate past Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, his former Special Assistant on Electronic and New Media, Somoye Basit, will join the conversation as a panelist.

The topic of the conversation is: "Workability and Sustainability of Students Loan Scheme in Nigeria."

The session will be moderated by the newspaper's head of the Development Desk, Mojeed Alabi.

Mr Alabi doubles as the chairman of Education Writers' Association of Nigeria (EWAN) - a group of journalists across print, online and broadcast media platforms who report education in the country.
Coordination of agreements of the President of Ukraine: Andriy Yermak had a phone call with the National Security Advisor to the Prime Minister of India

President of Ukraine

13 June 2023 - 20:36

In order to coordinate the implementation of the agreements reached by Volodymyr Zelenskyy following the talks with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his participation in the G7 Summit held in Japan on May 20, Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine Andriy Yermak had a phone call with National Security Advisor to the Prime Minister of India Ajit Kumar Doval.

The main topic of the conversation was the implementation of the Ukrainian Peace Formula, in particular, the consolidation of international support for the Ukrainian peace plan and the possibility of India joining the implementation of its individual points.

In this context, the parties discussed preparations for the Global Peace Summit. Andriy Yermak emphasized the need to involve the widest possible range of countries, including the Global South, in this event.

"Recent events have once again proved that the Ukrainian Peace Formula is more relevant than ever - for both Ukraine and the whole world. We are actively working with partners to prepare the Global Summit on the implementation of the formula. We expect India to take part in it," the Head of the Presidential Office noted.

Andriy Yermak briefed Ajit Kumar Doval in detail on the current situation on the frontline, as well as on Russia's ongoing missile and drone terror against peaceful Ukrainian cities and civilians.

The Head of the President's Office drew attention to the catastrophic environmental and humanitarian consequences of the act of terrorism committed by the Russian Federation at the Kakhovka hydroelectric power plant and called on India to join the international community in its efforts to eliminate the consequences of this man-made disaster.

"The blowing up of the Kakhovka hydroelectric power plant is a deliberate terrorist act and another war crime by Russia. This is one of the largest modern crimes of ecocide. The aggressor has caused an unprecedented man-made, environmental and humanitarian disaster, as well as created a threat of a nuclear accident at the largest nuclear power plant in Europe, Zaporizhzhia NPP. The world must act decisively and urgently to neutralize these global challenges," emphasized Andriy Yermak.

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Head of State met with IAEA Director General

President of Ukraine

13 June 2023 - 20:20

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy had a meeting with Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Rafael Grossi, who is visiting our country pursuant to the agreements reached during the phone call between the Head of State and the IAEA Director General on June 6.

"I am glad to welcome you. Thank you for your presence in Ukraine. For responding quickly to the challenges," the President said.

The Head of State emphasized that as a result of Russia's deliberate blowing up of the Kakhovka hydroelectric power plant dam, which is the largest crime of ecocide of our time, the risks to the security of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant have significantly increased. Therefore, a quick and decisive response from the international community to this brazen terrorist act is essential.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy positively noted the presence of the Agency's inspectors at the ZNPP, illegally occupied by Russia, and welcomed Rafael Grossi's intention to personally visit the plant to assess the situation on the ground.

The Head of State once again emphasized that the only way to prevent a nuclear accident at the Zaporizhzhia NPP is its complete demilitarization, de-occupation and restoration of control over the plant by Ukraine.

During the meeting, the parties discussed specific steps to be taken to minimize risks and prevent incidents at the ZNPP, as well as ways to cooperate with the IAEA to this end.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy supported Rafael Grossi's proposal to send a group of IAEA experts to Ukraine to assess the consequences of the Kakhovka hydroelectric power plant explosion and prepare proposals for specific areas of assistance to overcome them. He emphasized that this mission would be fully facilitated by the Ukrainian institutions involved.

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President discussed possible scenarios of establishing a special international tribunal for the crime of aggression against Ukraine

President of Ukraine

13 June 2023 - 19:06

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy held a meeting on the creation of a special international tribunal to try the Russian military and political leadership for the crime of aggression against Ukraine.

The Head of State emphasized that the Russian occupation forces in Ukraine resorted to the most severe forms of aggression: illegal annexation of territories, murder, torture, rape of civilians, genocide, destruction of civilian infrastructure, etc.

"The tribunal is necessary to punish the aggressor who started an unprovoked war against our country and thus restore justice," the President noted.

According to him, if Russia is not punished for the crime of aggression, the global security architecture will be destroyed and no country will feel protected anymore.

For his part, Deputy Head of the Presidential Office Andriy Smyrnov said that the brutality of this war on the part of the Russian leadership and military is beyond all acceptable limits.

"This is the largest war in Europe since the Second World War, and the international community's response to it should be corresponding," he said.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy instructed to draft a UN General Assembly resolution on the need to establish a special international tribunal that would be coordinated with the position of Ukraine's partners.

The participants of the meeting also made a decision to analyze the mechanism of the tribunal's establishment through the signing of an international agreement by a number of partner countries. At the same time, the remaining states will have the opportunity to support the tribunal's activities and recognize its decisions without being founders.



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Andriy Yermak and Margot WallstrAm, former European Commissioner for the Environment and former Swedish Foreign Minister, discussed the activities of the international working group on Russia's environmental crimes

President of Ukraine

13 June 2023 - 10:09

Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine Andriy Yermak held a videoconference meeting with former European Commissioner for the Environment and former Swedish Foreign Minister Margot WallstrAm, during which the parties discussed the activities of the international working group on Russia's environmental crimes, which is being established at the Office of the President.

Andriy Yermak thanked Margot WallstrAm for constantly supporting Ukraine, in particular in countering Russia's crimes against the environment.

The Head of the President's Office emphasized that the international working group should focus on several areas, including the assessment of damage caused by Russia to the environment, responsibility for ecocide and other crimes against the environment, and environmental recovery.

"Due to the disaster caused by Russia at the Kakhovka HPP and all the risks we face, I believe that our working group will quickly achieve the first results and draw global attention to the scale of Russia's environmental crimes and the need to unite the efforts of the whole world to counter Russia's environmental crimes," said Andriy Yermak.

For her part, Margot WallstrAm emphasized the importance of establishing an international working group and agreed with the statement that the environmental problems Ukraine faced due to the Russian invasion concern the whole world. According to her, it is necessary to give a comprehensive assessment of the environmental damage.





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Kakhovka dam disaster a health crisis in the making: WHO

13 June 2023 - Disease outbreaks, a mental health crisis and lack of access to care are among the devastating health impacts of the destruction of the Kahkovka dam in southern Ukraine a week ago, the UN World Health Organization (WHO) said on Tuesday.

WHO's representative in Ukraine Dr. Jarno Habicht told reporters that after the collapse of the dam caused severe flooding and massive displacement, the agency's primary concern was the potential outbreak of waterborne diseases such as cholera and typhoid, as well as rodent-borne diseases.

The agency's teams were monitoring the situation on the ground and were ready to scale up support, he said.

Water and food security fears

Dr. Habicht noted that back in the spring, WHO had provided cholera kits to people in the Kherson region and neighbouring areas "as a preventive measure". Water safety messages were being shared in collaboration with the Ukrainian Ministry of Health on social media, along with information materials on how to avoid getting sick from contaminated water.

But the situation was evolving fast, Dr. Habicht said, and hundreds of thousands were in need of drinking water.

He also pointed out that WHO and partners in the field were monitoring the long terms impact of the release of hazardous chemicals into the water. Food security was another major concern in the flooded settlements.

As of Monday, the UN and partners had delivered water, hygiene items and food to nearly 180,000 people in the affected areas, according to the UN aid coordination office (OCHA).

Dr. Habicht also informed of ongoing discussions with the authorities on pipelines to support neighbouring cities like Kryvyi Rih and Mykolaiv, which are experiencing water shortages.

'Emergency within the emergency'

The WHO representative described the mental health toll of the devastation on the population as "significant", explaining that the Dnipro River was very frequented by locals in the summer and that the humanitarian disaster in the area "ruptured people's memories".

The situation has compounded the population's distress following months of attacks on civilian infrastructure and a "dark and cold winter" amid power cuts, Dr. Habicht said.

Overall, there were more than 10 million people in the country with mental health needs. "It is an emergency within the emergency," he stressed.

Access to care

Dr. Habicht also flagged the lack of care for non-communicable diseases, with many health facilities flooded and water and electricity supply issues impacting the cold chain. He said that the water damage had similar effects on health facilities as last October's Russian strikes on the country's energy infrastructure. Many elderly people in the area were at particular risk due to the lack of care.

Medical supplies, including pneumonia kits and pediatric kits, were part of the humanitarian convoys to Kherson last week and this week, Dr. Habicht said. WHO and partners were also assessing needs related to the restoration of health facilities.

Working as one

Describing the organization of operations on the ground, Dr. Habicht underscored that the whole UN was working together under the leadership of Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator Denise Brown, and that every day a coordination meeting was held on how to best support hundreds of thousands of desperate civilians together with the Government of Ukraine and partners.

He also recalled that there was still no humanitarian access to the parts of the affected areas occupied by Russia, and that security guarantees needed "to go there and save lives" were currently being discussed.

Attack on Kryvyi Rih

Meanwhile, a Russian missile attack on the city of Kryvyi Rih in Ukraine's Dnipropetrovsk region hit a residential building on Tuesday according to media reports, killing at least 11 civilians.

The central Ukrainian city is the home town of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

Denise Brown condemned the attack, saying that "Russia's invasion has, once again, claimed lives and brought suffering to the people of Ukraine", and insisting that civilians and civilian infrastructure should never be a target, in line with international humanitarian law.

The city has also been impacted by the Kakhovka dam destruction as water supply to residents has been severely limited.

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WHO: Kakhovka Dam Disaster Risks Epidemic of Physical, Mental Health Problems

By Lisa Schlein June 13, 2023

The World Health Organization warns the catastrophic destruction of the Kakhovka dam in Ukraine June 6 risks unleashing an epidemic of physical and mental health problems.

"So far there have been no reports of disease outbreaks, but we remain prepared to scale up our support as needed," said Jarno Habicht, WHO representative in Ukraine.

In view of the looming disaster, Habicht left his base in Kyiv for Istanbul, where he arrived early Tuesday morning to meet with donors to drum up support for an anticipated large-scale, life-saving operation in Kherson and surrounding communities.

According to Ukrainian authorities, the destruction of the Kakhovka Dam has flooded large swathes of agricultural land, fully or partially submerged at least 80 towns and villages in the Kherson region and uprooted an estimated 17,000 people in the government-controlled areas.

"The situation continues to evolve," said Habicht, but "the collapse of the Kakhovka Dam has resulted in severe flooding, displacing communities, and posing significant risks to public health."

"Our primary concern at this moment is the potential outbreak of waterborne diseases, including cholera and typhoid, as well as rodent-borne diseases."

He said a WHO team, which has been on the ground since day one, was closely monitoring the health situation in coordination with local authorities and providing support where needed.

He noted that cholera kits, which the WHO provided to Kherson and neighboring oblasts as preventive measures last year, now "can be deployed to control isolated cases of disease if they occur" in the hopes of preventing this deadly disease from escalating.

He said urgent measures were being taken to address critical public health issues. These include efforts to raise community awareness about water-borne diseases, the issuance of water safety messages, and providing informational material on acute intestinal infections and preventive measures.

Habicht said there was particular concern about the toll on the mental health of the population resulting from this latest incident, as well as cumulative previous disasters experienced by Ukrainians since Russia invaded the country February 24, 2022.

"We have had attacks to civilian infrastructure in October. We went through a dark and cold winter. We have lost one of the symbolic dams on the river. That means that the stress that the population goes through is growing," he said.

"What we are talking about is millions of people who need mental health support," he said.

"So that is why we are in the field. We have trained tens of thousands of health workers to provide mental health care to people at the primary health level."

He said other priority matters of concern include the potential release of hazardous chemicals into the water, "which could have severe impacts for years to come."

He said the risks posed by thousands of landmines planted in the area cannot be underestimated. He warned those lethal weapons would become particularly dangerous when water levels go down in the next seven to 10 days and become dislodged.

He noted that "the mine maps will not be available to ensure that the coast of the river is clean" making it more likely that more civilians will be killed and maimed by the weapons.

While efforts are underway to provide people in the fragile region with the support they need, Habicht said humanitarian workers are unable to access the territories temporarily occupied by the Russians.

"We are asking for security guarantees to go to the occupied territories to do the needs assessment and to save lives.

"We have asked constantly for access to the occupied territories by the Russian Federation," he said. "Until now, we have not received the security guarantees to ensure that we can go to the occupied territories and support millions of civilians and Ukrainians living there."

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Westford USA, June 13, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The global GCC Industrial Pumps market size is expected to reach USD 13.52 billion by 2030 and exhibit a CAGR of 5.94% in the forecast period (20232030), according to Skyquest's latest research report. The growing Water and wastewater treatment, large oil and gas industries, increasing manufacturing and mining industry, and development in infrastructure are fueling the Market's growth.

Government Incentives and Market Trends to Promote the Use of GCC Industrial Pumps

At a global scale, increasing adoption of smart pumps, focus on energy efficiency, growing demand for aftermarket services, adoption of IIoT technology, and shift towards digitalisation are the trends that can help the market improve efficiency and reduce cost and cost enhance performance.

Several government initiatives, such as infrastructure development projects, economic diversification plans, water conservation initiatives, renewable energy initiatives and energy efficiency initiatives, are helping the market to achieve their goals.

Get a sample copy of this report:

https://www.skyquestt.com/sample-request/gcc-industrial-pumps-market

Centrifugal Pump Type Demand to Grow Substantially in the Forecast Period

Centrifugal Pump type dominated the global market owing to its use in water and wastewater treatment, oil and gas, and chemical processing. It is majorly used in water and wastewater treatment for water supply, wastewater collection and treatment processes such as filtration, reverse osmosis and desalination. The GCC region has been investing heavily in water and wastewater infrastructure. For instance, the Saudi Arabian government has invested USD 66 billion in water and wastewater projects to achieve 100% coverage of water supply and 90% coverage of wastewater treatment by 2040.

Browse summary of the report and Complete Table of Contents (ToC):

https://www.skyquestt.com/report/gcc-industrial-pumps-market

Oil and Gas is the Leading Application Segment

In terms of application, the Oil and Gas segment is the leading segment due to its various applications in this industry, such as crude oil transfer, water injection, and gas processing. The crude oil transfer application is one of the major uses of industrial pumps in the oil and gas industry. It is used for the transfer of this crude oil from the production wells to the storage tanks and then to the export terminals. According to a report by SkyQuest, the GCC region is expected to add over 9 million metric tons per annum of LNG capacity by 2025, which will drive the demand for industrial pumps for LNG transfer applications.

Speak to Analyst for your custom requirements:

https://www.skyquestt.com/speak-with-analyst/gcc-industrial-pumps-market

Saudi Arabia is the leading Market for Using Clean Energy

Region-wise, Saudi Arabia is one of the largest growing markets due to the increasing demand for industrial pumps in various industries, such as oil and gas, water and wastewater treatment, and construction. There are several government initiatives that are projected to drive the growth of the GCC industrial pumps market. For example, the Saudi government's Vision 2030 aims to diversify the economy and reduce the country's reliance on oil exports. This is expected to lead to an increase in infrastructure development, which will drive the demand for industrial pumps in the construction sector.

Browse in-depth TOC on " GCC Industrial Pumps Market "

Pages - 242

Tables - 88

Figures - 76

GCC Industrial Pumps Market Report Suggests:

Graco Inc. has launched QUANTM, its latest electric-operated double diaphragm pump that boasts an innovative motor design up to 8X more efficient than traditional pneumatic pumps. With versatile applications, QUANTM is suitable for various industrial and hygienic purposes, including paint manufacturing, water treatment, chemical processing, food and beverage, and pharmaceuticals.

In terms of application, the oil and gas segment dominated due to the various applications in the industry

In terms of type, the centrifugal pump type segment is projected to gain more popularity due to its use in various applications

Saudi Arabia followed by UAE is the leading market and will continue to exhibit dominance in the global market mainly due presence of major market players

GCC Industrial Pumps Market Segmentation:

The global GCC industrial pumps market report is segmented based on pump type, pump capacity, application, and region.

By Pump Type

Centrifugal Pumps

Positive Displacement Pumps

Others

By Pumping Capacity:

Small capacity pumps (<100 GPM)

Medium capacity pumps (100-1000 GPM)

High-capacity pumps (>1000 GPM)

By Application

Oil and Gas

Water and Wastewater

Chemicals

Construction

Power Generation

Others (food and beverage, pharmaceuticals)

By Region

Saudi Arabia

UAE

Qatar

Kuwait

Oman

Bahrain

GCC Industrial Pumps Market Major Company Profiles:

Alfa Laval AB

Atlas Copco AB

Baker Hughes Company

Danfoss A/S

Ebara Corporation

Flowserve Corporation

Gardner Denver Holdings Inc.

Grundfos Holding A/S

ITT Inc.

KSB SE & Co. KGaA

National Pump Company

Pentair plc

Ruhrpumpen Group

Schlumberger Limited

SPX Flow Inc.

Sulzer Ltd.

The Weir Group PLC

Wilo SE

Xylem Inc.

Yokogawa Electric Corporation

Related Reports in SkyQuests Library:

Global Soluble Dietary Fiber Market

Global Geosynthetics Market

Waterborne Coatings market

Global Sodium Alginate Market

Global Blue Ammonia Market

About Us:

SkyQuest Technology is leading growth consulting firm providing market intelligence, commercialization and technology services. It has 450+ happy clients globally.

Address:

1 Apache Way, Westford, Massachusetts 01886

Phone:

USA (+1) 617-230-0741

Email: sales@skyquestt.com
Available in the App Store and Google Play, Thumzup Enables Virtually Everyone to Earn Cash Rewards for Posting on Social Media about the Brands They Love

Los Angeles, CA, June 14, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Thumzup Media Corporation ("Thumzup" or the "Company") (OTCQB: TZUP) is thrilled to announce it will be supporting the 40th Anniversary Event at Bartels Dealership of American-Made motorcycles located at 4141 Lincoln Blvd., Marina Del Rey, CA from 10am to 4pm PT on June 17, 2023. Thumzup users will be able to earn $25 by experiencing and posting about Bartels exceptional collection of American-Made motorcycles.

The Thumzup mobile app, which is available for download in the App Store and Google Play, incentivizes virtually everyone to become social media advocates for the brands they enjoy by paying them cash for approved posts.

Thumzup at Bartels 40th Anniversary Party

Bartels Dealership of American-Made Motorcycles

4141 Lincoln Blvd., Marina Del Rey, CA

June 17, 2023

10:00am to 4:00pm PT

Thumzup is proud to support the biker community and were excited to welcome Bartels to our platform, stated Robert Steele, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Thumzup. Thumzups users are now able to earn cash for experiencing and posting about unique and exceptional American-Made motorcycles. We look forward to continuing our commitment to helping grow Bartels customer base and sales.

For more information, please visit https://www.thumzupmedia.com and https://www.bartelsharley.com/.

About Thumzup

Thumzup Media Corporation (Thumzup) is democratizing the multi-billion dollar social media branding and marketing industry. Its flagship product, the Thumzup platform, utilizes a robust programmatic advertiser dashboard coupled with a consumer-facing App to enable individuals to get paid cash for posting about participating advertisers on major social media outlets through the Thumzup App. The easy-to-use dashboard allows advertisers to programmatically customize their campaigns. Cash payments are made to App users/creators through PayPal and other digital payment systems.

Thumzup is a publicly traded company (OTCQB stock ticker: TZUP). For more information, please visit https://www.thumzupmedia.com.

Forward-looking Statements

This press release contains certain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These include, without limitation, statements about its potential growth, impacts on the advertising industry, and planned expansion. These statements are identified by the use of the words "could," "believe," "anticipate," "intend," "estimate," "expect," "may," "continue," "predict," "potential," "project" and similar expressions that are intended to identify forward-looking statements. All forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this press release. You should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. Although we believe that our plans, objectives, expectations and intentions reflected in or suggested by the forward-looking statements are reasonable, we can give no assurance that these plans, objectives, expectations or intentions will be achieved. Forward-looking statements involve significant risks and uncertainties (some of which are beyond our control) and assumptions that could cause actual results to differ materially from historical experience and present expectations or projections. Actual results may differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements and the trading price for our common stock may fluctuate significantly. Forward-looking statements also are affected by the risk factors described in our filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Except as required by law, we undertake no obligation to update or revise publicly any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, after the date on which the statements are made or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.

Contact Info:

800-403-6150

investors@ThumzupMedia.com

Attachment
Westford, USA, June 14, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The global Breastfeeding Accessories market size is expected to reach USD 3.9 billion by 2030 and exhibit a CAGR of 6.45% in the forecast period (20222030), according to Skyquest's latest research report. The increasing awareness about the benefits of breastfeeding, the rising number of working mothers, and the growing demand for innovative and convenient breastfeeding products are fueling the Market's growth.

Government Subsidies and Incentives to Promote the Use of Breastfeeding Accessories

At a global scale, an increasing demand for technologically advanced products, growing preference for organic and natural breastfeeding products, the rising popularity of breastfeeding in public places, and an increasing availability of breastfeeding accessories through e-commerce channels are the trends promoting the market growth.

Several government initiatives are encouraging the growth of Breastfeeding Accessories. For example, In the United States, the Affordable Care Act requires health insurance plans to cover the cost of breastfeeding equipment and counseling.

Get sample copy of this report:

https://www.skyquestt.com/sample-request/breastfeeding-accessories-market

Breast Pumps Demand to Grow Substantially in the Forecast Period

Breast Pumps type dominated the global market owing to their convenience. It is highly efficient in expressing breast milk, and the increasing number of working mothers who want to continue breastfeeding but are unable to do so directly due to work commitments is driving the demand for this product type.

Online is the Leading Distribution Channel Segment

In terms of Distribution Channels, online is the leading segment due to the Convenience provided by the mode. In addition, with the growing use of the internet and smartphones, more and more consumers are opting to purchase products online, including breastfeeding accessories.

North America and Asia Pacific are the leading Markets Due to the Presence of Major Market Players

Region-wise, North America is one of the largest growing markets due to the high rate of breastfeeding among lactating mothers in the region followed by the presence of major market players.

Asia Pacific is considered as the fastest-growing region due to the rising population, increase in disposable income, and government initiatives promoting breastfeeding.

Browse in-depth TOC on " Breastfeeding Accessories Market "

Pages - 242

Tables - 78

Figures  75

Browse summary of the report and Complete Table of Contents (ToC):

https://www.skyquestt.com/report/breastfeeding-accessories-market

Breastfeeding Accessories Market Report Suggests:

Babylist, the top baby marketplace, has launched Babylist Health to provide expectant parents with a seamless shopping experience for health and wellness products. The platform's initial focus is on simplifying the process of ordering a breast pump through health insurance, with plans to expand to other health and wellness products and services in the future. Babylist Health aims to support new mothers in their breastfeeding journey and facilitate their transition back to work.

In terms of Distribution channel, the online segment dominates due to the increasing demand

In terms of type, the breast pumps type segment is projected to gain more popularity due to its convenience.

North America and Asia Pacific are leading markets and continue to exhibit dominance in the global market mainly due presence of major market players

Speak to Analyst for your custom requirements:

https://www.skyquestt.com/speak-with-analyst/breastfeeding-accessories-market

Breastfeeding Accessories Market Segmentation:

The global Breastfeeding Accessories market report is segmented based on Product type, application, and region.

By Product Type

Breast Pumps: Electric, Manual, Battery-Powered

Nursing Pads: Disposable, Reusable

Breast Milk Storage & Feeding: Bottles, Bags, Containers, Cups

Nipple Care Products: Creams, Shields, Shells

Cleaning Products: Sterilizers, Brushes, Wipes

Others

By Application

Hospital Pharmacies

Retail Pharmacies

Online Stores

Baby Boutiques

Supermarkets & Hypermarkets

Others

By Region

North America

U.S

Canada

Europe

Germany

France

UK

Spain

RoE

Asia-Pacific

China

India

Japan

South Korea

Rest of Asia-Pacific

Latin America

Brazil

RoLA

Middle-East and Africa

South Africa

GCC Countries

Rest of MEA

Breastfeeding Accessories Market Major Company Profiles:

Ameda Inc.

Ardo Medical AG

Artsana S.p.A.

BabyBuddha LLC

Chicco USA Inc.

Handi-Craft Company

Koninklijke Philips N.V.

Lansinoh Laboratories, Inc.

Mayborn Group Limited

Medela AG

NUK USA LLC

Pigeon Corporation

Playtex Products, LLC

Simplisse LLC

Spectra Baby USA

The First Years Inc.

Tommee Tippee (Mayborn Group Limited)

UpSpring Baby

Willow Pump Inc.

Zhejiang Rikang Baby Products Co., Ltd.

Related Reports in SkyQuests Library:

Global Healthcare Additive Manufacturing Market

Global Sperm Bank Market

Global Aortic Aneurysm Market

Global 3D Printing Medical Devices Market

Global Peripheral Vascular Devices Market

About Us:

SkyQuest Technology is leading growth consulting firm providing market intelligence, commercialization and technology services. It has 450+ happy clients globally.

Address:

1 Apache Way, Westford, Massachusetts 01886

Phone:

USA (+1) 617-230-0741

Email: sales@skyquestt.com
BOCA RATON, Fla., June 14, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Gift of Life Marrow Registry raised $1.4 million at its One Huge Night Gala, held at The Lighthouse at Chelsea Piers in New York on June 8, 2023. The funds raised during the event will potentially save more than 23,000 lives. The Gala is held annually to celebrate and further Gift of Lifes mission to help children and adults battling leukemia, lymphoma, sickle cell, other cancers and inherited immune disorders find matching donors for lifesaving blood stem cell and bone marrow transplants.



Gala attendees were able to witness two examples of the tremendous impact donors can have on the lives of patients with a blood disease when two pairs of families, now inextricably linked through the lifesaving procedure of transplantation, met for the first time. Introduced onstage by Broadway actress and event Mistress of Ceremonies Julia Murney, these families, previously complete strangers, now share an unbreakable bond.

The first donor and recipient pair included Alec Kremins, a 24-year-old resident of Long Beach, N.Y., and his 14-year-old recipient Julius Wolfe, a survivor of Acute Myelogenous Leukemia. Kremins joined Gift of Life as a college student during a Birthright trip in Israel and then enlisted for the organizations Campus Ambassador Program to recruit other young people and help to find matches for those in need.

Each one of us have a mission when were here in this world to be the best person that we can be, said Kremins. Were able to do that and unlock that through acts of kindness.

Julius and his family had been filled with fear, anxiety and stress when he was diagnosed with leukemia and initial treatments failed to offer a cure. Though upset when no one in the family proved to be a match, they were relieved when Kremins stepped up as a donor for Julius and even happier to meet him in person.

Thank you so much for saving Julius life, but really you saved our family and well never be able to say thank you enough, said Julius father Paul Wolfe, Jr. to Kremins.

The second pair introduced was David Karimzadeh, a 28-year-old man from Great Neck, N.Y., and 8-year-old recipient Zahra Sharif of Orlando, Fla. Karimzadeh donated bone marrow to Sharif who was battling Inherited Immune Systems Disorders until receiving her transplant in August 2021.

Describing the day of Zahras first chemotherapy treatment, her mother, Shakila Sadiq said, that was the worst day of my life. I just didnt want to lose my daughter. Gift of Life helped me find a donor and she came back to our life.

I never thought that I might be a match, but I was glad to be a match, said Karimzadeh. Im happy that it worked out very well.

Due to U.S. medical privacy laws, donors and recipients must wait at least one year before learning the identity of their matches.

The gala also served as a platform to recognize the unwavering commitment and outstanding advocacy of several supporters. The organizations highest honor, the Partners for Life Award, was presented to Julie and Andrew Rubinstein for their dedication and leadership toward Gift of Life Biologics, a vertically integrated supplier of allogeneic cellular starting material to the biopharmaceutical industry backed by its parent organization, Gift of Life Marrow Registry.

Also honored was Wendy Siegel with the Lifetime Achievement Award. A transplant recipient herself, Siegel has been involved with Gift of Life for over 11 years and currently serves as a Director of the Board. Through her dedication, she has inspired many others to join the effort to save lives. To date, Siegels donor circle has sponsored more than 105,000 donors to the registry, resulting in 1,700 matches for patients and 216 lifesaving transplants.

In addition, Gift of Life Board Member Mindy Schneider and Dr. Michael Lesser served as Honorary Gala Chairs and Gift of Life Chairman of the Board Stephen B. Siegel served as Gala Chair.

About Gift of Life Marrow Registry

Gift of Life Marrow Registry is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization headquartered in Boca Raton, Fla. The organization, established in 1991, is dedicated to saving lives by facilitating blood stem cell and bone marrow transplants for patients with leukemia, lymphoma, and other blood-related diseases. The registry houses its own state-of-the-art stem cell collection center, biobank, and laboratory. To learn more about Gift of Life Marrow Registry, visit www.giftoflife.org

Media contact: Sandra Correa

Phone: (917) 319-8472; Email: sandra@correapr.com

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/c8a89821-5c63-49cd-a505-604afbbb2649
Fourteen former governors and three former ministers on Tuesday took their seats in the 10th Senate.

Over the years, the National Assembly has become what many describe as a retirement home for former governors.

Like the ex-governors, former ministers also jostle to move to join the Red Chamber after their stay in office.

Although no law in Nigeria disqualifies them from seeking to be senators, several analysts believe the former governors and ministers have now made it a tradition to retire to the Senate to remain relevant within the corridor of power.

Unlike state governors whose tenure in office has a constitutional limit of eight years - four years per term - which is renewable, senators have no term limits.

In the 9th Senate, whose life expired on 11 June, there were 14 former governors.

During the 2023 general elections, some then-serving governors and former governors failed in their bids to switch to the Senate, including those who had to defect to other parties to get the tickets for the 25 February National Assembly election.

Some of the then-serving and former governors who failed to win the general elections include Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi (Enugu - Enugu North District), Samuel Ortom (Benue - Benue North-West District), Okezie Ikpeazu (Abia - Abia South District), and Simon Lalong (Plateau - Plateau South District).

Others are Atiku Bagudu (Kebbi - Kebbi Central District ), Darius Ishaku (Taraba - Taraba South District), Ben Ayade (Cross River - Cross River North District), and the first civilian Governor of Enugu State, Chimaroke Nnamani (Enugu East District) of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

However, at the 25 February National Assembly elections, 14 former governors secured seats in the 10th Senate. Similarly, six former ministers also won seats in the Red Chamber, although four of them are also former governors.

There are 109 senators in the Nigerian Senate. Each of the 36 states of the federation has three senators while one senator comes from Abuja, the country's seat of power.

Ex-governors elected in the 10th Senate

Adams Oshiomhole

Mr Oshiomhole is a former two-term governor of Edo State between 2008 and 2016.

He once served as the National President of the Nigerian Labour Congress from 1999 to 2007. The position shot him into national prominence.

Apart from being a former governor, Mr Oshiomhole is also a former national chairman of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), serving from 24 July 2018 to 16 June 2020, when he was suspended from office by the Court of Appeal in Abuja.

He hails from Iyamho, a community in Etsako West Local Government Area of Edo State, south-south Nigeria.

The 71-year-old won the Senate seat for Edo North Senatorial District, for the first time, under the platform of the APC, defeating his former political associate and incumbent senator for the district, Francis Alimikhena.

Mr Alimikhena had defected to the PDP where he picked his ticket for the senate election after losing the APC ticket to Mr Oshiomhole.

The former governor, Mr Oshiomhole, was born a Muslim but was led into Christianity by his late wife, Clara, who died of cancer a few years ago. Now a Catholic, his adopted Christian name is Eric.

Dave Umahi

Mr Umahi was a two-term governor of Ebonyi State, south-east Nigeria between 2015 and 2023.

The former governor had participated in the APC presidential primaries where he polled 38 votes to come a distant sixth in the election won by the former Lagos State Governor, now the country's 16th elected President, Bola Tinubu.

He returned to pick the APC ticket for Ebonyi South after his failed presidential bid. The ticket was initially held in trust for him by his younger brother, Austin, who had won the first primaries conducted by the party and monitored by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

The younger brother, Austin, had stepped down from the race under the APC ticket, apparently to pave the way for the former governor to have an opportunity to pick the party's ticket, which he did in a rescheduled primary of the party.

But Ann Agom-Eze, an aspirant who came second in the first APC primary for the district, sought to be declared the party's candidate for the district.

Mrs Agom-Eze argued that there was no need for another primary, stating that since the winner of the said primary, Austin, withdrew, she should have been declared the candidate of the party because she was the runner-up in the said primary.

However, after a prolonged battle in various courts, INEC recognised Mr Umahi as the candidate for the district, from where he was subsequently elected as a first-timer at the 10th Senate.

Aminu Tambuwal

Mr Tambuwal was elected governor of Sokoto State in 2015 on the platform of the APC but was re-elected in 2019 on the ticket of the PDP following his defection in 2018.

The former governor was elected a fresh senator for Sokoto South on the platform of the PDP, defeating Ibrahim Danbaba, the incumbent who had defected from the PDP to the APC.

Although a first-timer in the Senate, Mr Tambuwal is not new to the National Assembly having been a member of the House of Representatives between 2003 and 2015, which culminated in his election as the Speaker of the House between 2011 and 2015.

He served as the Deputy Chief Whip of the House between 2007 and 2011.

The 57-year-old participated in the PDP presidential primaries of 2018 where he came second behind Atiku Abubakar.

He also participated in the 2022 presidential primaries of the party but stepped down at the convention ground to support Atiku, who again won the shadow election, beating former Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, to the second position.

Abubakar Sani Bello

Mr Bello served two terms as governor of Niger State between 2015 and 2023. He won the Niger North Senate seat under the APC in the 2023 general election.

The former governor is the son of a former military governor of old Kano State, Sani Bello, a colonel.

He had defeated the incumbent senator for the district, Aliyu Abdullahi, in the APC primary. Mr Abdullahi who was serving his second term in the Senate, failed to win the ticket of the party for the third term. He came a distant second to Mr Bello in the primary of the party.

Ibrahim Danwkambo

Mr Danwkambo was a two-term governor of Gombe State from 2011 to 2019 under the platform of the PDP.

The former governor was elected senator for Gombe Central North District in 2023, defeating the incumbent, Seidu Akali, of the APC.

The 61-year-old politician had contested the senate election in 2019 after his tenure as governor but lost to Mr Akali.

He served as the accountant-general of the federation between April 2005 and January 2011, when he resigned his position to start his campaign for election as governor of the state. He had earlier served as the state's accountant-general from 1999 to 2005.

Abdulaziz Yari

Mr Yari served two terms as governor of Zamfara State between 2011 under the platform of the now default All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) and in 2019 under the platform of the APC, following the merger of the ANPP and several other opposition parties to form the now ruling APC in 2014.

The former governor won the Zamfara West seat in the 2023 general election under the APC.

After his tenure as governor in 2019, Mr Yari ran for the senate and won with a wide margin on the party's platform. However, his election and those of other APC candidates in the 2019 general election in the state were nullified by the Supreme Court on the ground that they were not validly nominated through party primaries.

Thus, all the victories recorded by the APC in the 2019 general elections were ceded to the PDP which came second, based on the Supreme Court ruling.

Mr Yari almost ditched the party at the height of the crisis rocking the APC in the state.

Political observers in the state believe his APC senate ticket for Zamfara West was part of the rapprochement deals from the former governor of the state, Bello Matawalle, to make him (Yari) remain in the party.

Mr Yari was defeated in the race for the presidency of the 10th Senate on Tuesday.

Gbenga Daniel

Mr Daniel was a two-term governor of Ogun State. He served between 2003 and 2011 on the platform of the PDP.

In the 2003 governorship election, he defeated the incumbent Olusegun Osoba of the now-defunct Alliance for Democracy.

The former governor won the Ogun East Senate seat in the 2023 election to reactivate his political career after a lull playing at the periphery, following his exit from office as governor in 2011.

Since the end of his tenure as governor, he had been in political limbo until February 2021 when he moved to the APC from the PDP.

Analysts say his securing the APC ticket suggested that the party's power brokers still need his services. Mr Daniel is close to the incumbent governor of the state, Dapo Abiodun, who won a second term. Messrs Abiodun and Daniel come from the same district.

Aliyu Wammako

Mr Wammako, a former two-term governor of Sokoto State, is the undisputed leader of the APC in the state. He served as the governor of the state between 2007 and 2015.

In 2023, the former governor was re-elected senator for Sokoto North District, defeating his closest opponent and the then deputy governor of the state, Muhammad Dan Iya of the PDP.

He was first elected as a senator in 2015 and re-elected in 2019.

Orji Kalu

Mr Kalu, the Chief Whip in the 9th Senate, was reelected in 2023 from the Abia North District. Despite the hurdles of being in the opposition in Abia, the then-PDP state, the senator showed he knew how to win elections for himself.

A former governor of Abia State for two terms between May 1999 and May 2007, Mr Kalu left the PDP following a rift with then President Obasanjo, to form the defunct Progressive People's Alliance (PPA) in 2007.

After leaving office as governor in 2007, he failed to win other public offices until he joined the APC in November 2016.

Among other former governors in the race for the Senate President's seat, Mr Kalu has the longest-running corruption case. He had been charged, tried, jailed, and still faces the prospect of a fresh trial.

His case traces back to his days as governor. EFCC filed money laundering charges against him within a month of his stepping down on 29 May 2007 from an office that clothed him with immunity from prosecution.

In the charges filed against him in June 2007, EFCC accused him, along with his co-defendants, of diverting over N3.2 billion from Abia State coffers.

After years-long stalling of the case, the Supreme Court on 18 March 2016 cleared the legal encumbrances for his trial to begin.

The trial began afresh at the Federal High Court in Lagos. As the trial grew in intensity, Mr Kalu's chances of a political comeback also dwindled. Mr Kalu made the deft move of joining the APC in November 2016.

His defection, well received within APC, drew criticism from the Nigerian public.

Mr Kalu, who backed the failed bid of the outgoing Senate President, Ahmad Lawan, to pick the APC's presidential ticket last year, said it was his turn to lead the Senate. But he dropped out before the election on Tuesday which produced Mr Akpabio as the Senate President.

Ibrahim Gaidam

Mr Gaidam won the Yobe East District election in 2023 under the APC platform, for a second term.

He was first elected to the Senate to represent the district in 2019.

He served as governor of Yobe State from January 2009, following the death of Governor Mamman Ali in Florida of a liver problem. Abubakar Ali, brother of Mamman Ali, was named as the new deputy governor. Mr Gaidam completed the tenure for his joint ticket with the deceased governor in 2011.

He was elected, the same year, and served as governor for two terms between 2011 and 2019- and thus earned the spectacular credit of being the longest-serving governor of the state - 10 years - to date.

Seriake Dickson

Popularly called the 'contriman governor', Seriake Dickson returned to the senate in 2023 as a second-timer. This was after serving two terms as governor of Bayelsa State on the platform of the PDP between 2012 and 2020.

He was first elected to the Senate in an October 2020 by-election from the Bayelsa West District. The seat became vacant after the occupant was sworn in as the state's deputy governor.

Before his election as the governor of the oil-rich state, he had served as a member of the House of Representatives in the sixth Green Chambers.

Ex-ministers who became senators in the 10th Assembly

Godswill Akpabio

Mr Akpabio, a lawyer, served as a two-term Governor of Akwa-Ibom State between 2007 and 2015 under the platform of the PDP.

He would later win the Senate seat of Akwa-Ibom North-West District under the party's platform in 2015 when he left office as the governor of the oil-rich state.

In August 2018, he defected to the ruling APC, which had the majority in the House, where he was serving as minority leader.

The senator was later appointed Minister of Niger Delta Affairs by former President Muhammadu Buhari.

The former governor served as minister between August 2019 and June 2022, when he resigned from the position to contest in the APC presidential primaries.

He would step down on the night of the presidential primary for the eventual winner and now President, Mr Tinubu.

Mr Akpabio, subsequently re-contested and again won the Senate seat for the Akwa-Ibom North-West District under the APC.

In May, the then President-elect, Mr Tinubu, proposed Mr Akpabio as senate president which was ratified by the National Working Committee (NWC) of the APC, days later, amidst stiff opposition from some senators and regions demanding the position. He was elected to the position on Tuesday.

Mr Akpabio was under investigation by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on accusations that he diverted over N100 billion during his time as governor of Akwa-Ibom State. He is yet to be charged, however.

The former minister was summoned by members of the House of Representatives, in May 2020, over the misappropriation of over N40 billion.

Ikra Aliyu

Mr Aljyu served as minister of state for information and communication during the administration of former President Goodluck Jonathan, between 2011 and 2015.

He was a member of the PDP, but switched to the ruling APC, following PDP's defeat in the 2015 presidential election.

In 2022, he returned to the PDP, under which he won the Zamfara Central District election in 2023, defeating his APC counterpart, Garba Marafa, who represented the district between 2011 and 2019.

In December 2022, the former minister was arrested by police in the state and arraigned before the Zamfara State Upper Sharia Court 11 for the alleged destruction of APC campaign billboards and other properties.

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He was remanded in prison for about two weeks until he was granted bail.

Abdulhamid Madori

Mr Madori was elected senator for Jigawa North-east District under the APC platform in 2023, defeating former deputy governor and senator, Ubali Shitu of the PDP.

He was appointed as minister of state for power and steel under the administration of former President, Olusegun Obasanjo in 2005. He later served as the country's ambassador to Turkey under the administration of Mr Jonathan between 2011 and 2015.

The former minister was a political godson to the former governor of the state, Sule Lamido. But he fell out of favour with Mr Lamido following his (Madori) failure to clinch the PDP governorship ticket ahead of the 2015 election in the state.

His defection in 2015 from the PDP to the opposition APC at the time angered Mr Lamido, whom he accused of imposing the party's candidate, Ibrahim Ringim, on them.

Abba Moro

Mr Moro was reelected senator for Benue South District in 2023 under the platform of the PDP. He was first elected into the Red Chamber in 2019, replacing former Senate President, David Mark.

The new senator had served as minister of interior between 2011 and 2015 under Mr Jonathan.

Mr Moro was the PDP candidate for the 2007 governorship in Benue State but lost to the opposition.

In 2014, during his time as minister, he supervised the infamous recruitment exercise that led to the death of at least 15 young Nigerians. The poorly planned exercise by the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) caused the deaths of applicants across Nigeria. The applicants died in stampedes caused by the poor organisation of the recruitment tests in Abuja and other cities.

Apart from the deaths of the applicants, Mr Moro and others were also accused of defrauding the applicants of hundreds of millions of naira and are being prosecuted by the anti-graft agency, EFCC.

The then NIS chief, David Paradang, not only accused Mr Moro of supervising the recruitment, he was a prosecution witness and told the court how Mr Moro allegedly violated a presidential directive after the recruitment.

Adamu Aliero

Mr Aliero was the Kebbi State Governor between 1999 and 2007 under the PDP platform. He recently had issues with the current governor, Atiku Bagudu, which precipitated his loss in the APC primary for Kebbi Central District. But that did not cripple his ambition as he defected to the PDP and subsequently won in the general election.

Mr Aliero was appointed minister of the Federal Capital Territory by former President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua in December 2008. He left office as minister in March 2010 when the then-acting President Jonathan dissolved his cabinet.

Mr Aliero's senate election victory in 2023 meant he is returning to the Red Chamber for the fourth time, making him one of the longest-serving in the state.

Danjuma Goje

Mr Goje finished his tenure as the governor of Gombe State in 2011- after serving for two consecutive terms from 2003, under the PDP platform.

He was first elected senator for Gombe Central district on the PDP ticket in 2011. In 2014, he dumped the PDP for the APC, under which he was reelected senator for the district in 2015, 2019 and 2023.

He had earlier served as minister of state for power and steel from 1999 to 2001 under former President Obasanjo.

In May this year, he was controversially expelled from the APC by the state chapter of the party on allegations of anti-party activities. His expulsion was, however, rescinded by the party's NWC a few days later.
English Lithuanian

AUGA group, AB supplemented the announcement with the calculation formula for the sale price of shares and other information.

On 7 June 2023, AUGA group, AB subsidiaries Baltic Champs, UAB, UAB AUGA Luganta, Kooperatine Bendrove AgroMilk, Kooperatine Bendrove Juodmargelis and Kooperatine Bendrove Sventosios pievos (hereinafter the Seller) have signed an agreement with AB Linas Agro Group controlled Akcine Bendrove Kauno Grudai (hereinafter - the Buyer) concerning the sale of 100% of the shares of the Kooperatine Bendrove Grybai LT (hereinafter the Company). Negotiations regarding sale of the shares of the Company were conducted on the basis of the letter of intent signed on 7 March 2023 between the Buyer and the main member of the Company Baltic Champs, UAB.

The transaction will be completed only if the permission of the Competition Council to carry out the concentration is obtained, the consent of the bank financing the Company and other preconditions usual for such transactions are met.

The sale price of the Company's shares will be calculated for the closing date in accordance with the formula set out in the agreement:

Sale price = EUR 17,000,000 (i.e. the value of the Company shares fixed by agreement between the parties), minus Company's net debt (i.e. the difference between Company's financial debts and its cash and cash equivalents), plus the difference between the Company's base net working capital (EUR 1,601,176.51) and the net working capital as at the closing date, minus all Companys costs related to the transaction.

The Company was established in 2012 to process mushrooms grown in Lithuania. Since 2016, the Company has been producing ready-to-eat products such as soups, canned vegetables, etc. in a modern automated factory and has been continuously expanding its product range. Company's revenue in 2022 was EUR 7.1 million, net profit was EUR 0,8 million, assets were EUR 7.9 million.

The completed transaction will significantly improve the results of AUGA group, AB and its subsidiaries in 2023. The exact selling price of Company's shares will be calculated on the day of completion of the transaction, however, AUGA group, AB estimates that by selling the Company, it will increase the consolidated net profit of AUGA group, AB by 7-8 million EUR.

"We have successfully created and developed a completely new business segment, and a category of ready-to-eat soups, which was almost non-existent in Lithuania, even though we were not food processors and had no experience in food production before. We started from scratch - from the idea to the selection and implementation of the necessary production technologies, to the development of products and search for new markets. Thanks to our team and its consistent work, today the Company's products are available in 30 countries around the world. We are pleased that we have managed to attract the attention of consumers not only in Lithuania, but also to enter the world's leading markets for organic products such as: United States of America, Germany, Japan, and to establish ourselves in them", - said Kestutis Juscius, CEO of AUGA group, AB.

The Company's soups and other end-consumer-products are marketed under the AUGA brand and private labels. Although many consumers associate the AUGA brand with these products, the Company's end-consumer-products account for only up to 10% of the total revenues of AUGA group, AB and its subsidiaries.

"Although the products have been successful and recently the Company that produces them has been growing its turnover by around 30% annually and has been profitable, we have taken the decision to exit and sell this well-developed business. Over the last 2-3 years, AUGA group, AB and its subsidiaries have found a way to tackle the largest sources of emissions in agriculture through technology. By solving them, a new category of sustainable food with "no cost to nature" is created. These products will be made exclusively from raw materials grown on farms that apply AUGA sustainable farming standard. The new dairy and cereal products under the 'mission no cost to nature label are already available to consumers in Lithuania. In the future, we will seek to expand abroad not by exporting packaged products (as produced by KB Grybai LT), but by providing technology and working with local farmers and processors to bring the products with no cost to nature to consumers in other countries. AUGA will create and develop a new category in food and will become synonim for sustainable food," says Kestutis Juscius, CEO of AUGA group, AB.

AUGA group and its subsidiaries plan to further expand the range of the new "no cost to nature" product line and continue building the AUGA brand.

"We believe that the sustainable food category is several dozen times bigger than the one the Company has been producing so far, and AUGA is demonstrating leadership in it," adds Kestutis Juscius, General Director of AUGA group, AB.

Consumers will still be able to find their favourite soups, canned vegetables and other food products on the shelves, but in the future these products will be branded not under AUGA but different brand name.

Commenting on the transaction, Darius Zubas, Chairman of the Board of Linas Agro Group, said: "Our ambition is to grow by diversifying our activities, and the most attractive seems to be the development in the food segment. We have not yet had any ready-to-eat product groups in our product range, nor have we had any organic food products. Following the acquisition of Grybai LT, we will expand our product range with three new product groups. Organic products will not only complement our product range perfectly, but will also take us into markets such as the USA and Japan, where Grybai LT has made significant inroads. We see an opportunity to increase production and clear synergies with our other activities."

"We are delighted to be able to put the business we have developed in good hands. The new owners of the Company will be able to leverage their experience and synergies with their other activities to expand in the existing markets and reach even more export countries, creating value for the Company, its employees and the entire Lithuanian economy", - says Kestutis Juscius, CEO of AUGA group, AB.

The proceeds from the transaction can be used for:

general corporate purposes of AUGA group, AB and its subsidiaries;

partial coverage of AUGA group, AB and its subsidiaries' obligations;

augmentation of the working capital of AUGA group, AB and its subsidiaries;

financing approved projects in the strategy of AUGA group, AB and its subsidiary companies.

As the transaction has not yet been approved by third parties (the Competition Council), and as the operations of AUGA group, AB and its subsidiaries are subject to market fluctuations in production prices and weather conditions affecting harvest results, the issuer will take a final decision on the use of the proceeds of the final transaction in the third quarter of 2023.

Following the closing of the transaction, AUGA group, AB will disclose the exact use of the proceeds of the transaction after taking into account all the circumstances at the time and the results of the 2023 harvest.

AUGA group, AB and its subsidiary companies prioritize the implementation of its strategy. In the field of food products for consumers, the focus will be on creating and developing new sustainable product category. The management of AUGA group, AB and its subsidiary companies expects that by concentrating both financial and human resources on core activities, the best results will be achieved, and market share will be captured in food categories that are much bigger than previous ones. Moreover, as previously announced, the AUGA group, AB subsidiaries plan to raise new capital and additional funding for the development and expansion of the technology branch.

Chief Executive Officer

Kestutis Juscius

+370 5 233 5340
NEW YORK, June 14, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- WHY: Rosen Law Firm, a global investor rights law firm, continues to investigate potential securities claims on behalf of shareholders of JinkoSolar Holding Co., Ltd (NYSE: JKS) resulting from allegations that JinkoSolar may have issued materially misleading business information to the investing public.

SO WHAT: If you purchased JinkoSolar securities you may be entitled to compensation without payment of any out of pocket fees or costs through a contingency fee arrangement. The Rosen Law Firm is preparing a class action seeking recovery of investor losses.

WHAT TO DO NEXT: To join the prospective class action, go to https://rosenlegal.com/submit-form/?case_id=16025 or call Phillip Kim, Esq. toll-free at 866-767-3653 or email pkim@rosenlegal.com or cases@rosenlegal.com for information on the class action.

WHAT IS THIS ABOUT: On May 9, 2023, before trading hours, the Jacksonville Daily Record published an article entitled Federal agents issue search warrant at JinkoSolar plant in Cecil Commerce Center: Homeland Security said it is part of an ongoing investigation; the factory, whose parent company is in China, opened in Jacksonville in 2018. The Jacksonville Daily Record reported that [a]ccording to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, federal agents were assisting the Department of Homeland Security with the execution of a search warrant. Further, the article cited WJXT News4Jax, stating that JinkoSolar is one of several companies under investigation by the U.S. Commerce Department for circumventing trade rules by sending products to other countries before moving them to the U.S.

On this news, JinkoSolars American depositary receipt (ADR) price fell $3.91 per ADR, or 8%, to close at $43.47 per ADR on May 9, 2023, on unusually heavy trading volume.

WHY ROSEN LAW: We encourage investors to select qualified counsel with a track record of success in leadership roles. Often, firms issuing notices do not have comparable experience, resources, or any meaningful peer recognition. Many of these firms do not actually litigate securities class actions. Be wise in selecting counsel. The Rosen Law Firm represents investors throughout the globe, concentrating its practice in securities class actions and shareholder derivative litigation. Rosen Law Firm has achieved the largest ever securities class action settlement against a Chinese Company. Rosen Law Firm was Ranked No. 1 by ISS Securities Class Action Services for number of securities class action settlements in 2017. The firm has been ranked in the top 4 each year since 2013 and has recovered hundreds of millions of dollars for investors. In 2019 alone the firm secured over $438 million for investors. In 2020, founding partner Laurence Rosen was named by law360 as a Titan of Plaintiffs Bar. Many of the firms attorneys have been recognized by Lawdragon and Super Lawyers.

Follow us for updates on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-rosen-law-firm, on Twitter: https://twitter.com/rosen_firm or on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rosenlawfirm/.

Attorney Advertising. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.

Contact Information:

Laurence Rosen, Esq.

Phillip Kim, Esq.

The Rosen Law Firm, P.A.

275 Madison Avenue, 40th Floor

New York, NY 10016

Tel: (212) 686-1060

Toll Free: (866) 767-3653

Fax: (212) 202-3827

lrosen@rosenlegal.com

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Reno, NV, June 14, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Disastrous wildfires and prolonged droughts; stronger hurricanes and cyclones; severe flooding and sea level rise: these are just some of the impacts of a warming climate already occurring all around us. Scientists warn that climate change will continue to increase the frequency and intensity of extreme weather events, with impacts ranging from flooded communities and ocean acidification to food shortages.

To prevent the worst climate change impacts, experts say that humanity needs to rein in global carbon emissions and limit planetary warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. Crossing this seemingly minor threshold could mean a world without coral reefs, a meter in sea-level rise, and frequent ice-less summers in the Arctic. More than 100 countries have committed to this goal by signing the international climate compact, the Paris Agreement, but studies now show that this threshold is likely to be surpassed within the next decade.

With governments struggling to effectively reduce emissions of planet-warming greenhouse gases, some scientists have proposed exploring ways to actively cool the planet. Sometimes referred to as geoengineering or climate engineering, these methods seek to enhance the atmospheres natural ability to reflect solar radiation back into space, remove greenhouse gases from the atmosphere, or release some of the energy heating up the planet.

Once we reach the threshold laid out in the Paris Agreement, were in a more dangerous climate situation, says David Mitchell, Ph.D., an atmospheric scientist at DRI. There are feedback cycles in the climate system that could potentially guarantee the world will get warmer, and if so, it would be hard to get back to a more stable climate at that point. Thats the rationale for climate intervention research.

Mitchell is part of a team of DRI researchers examining the potential for climate intervention strategies to reduce global warming impacts. The two-year project, Local to Global Approaches to Mitigate Near-Term Climate Impacts, relies on computer simulations and data analysis, rather than real-world experiments, and is expected to wrap up by September 2024. The research includes climate intervention strategies that operate at different scales, from increasing the reflectivity of rooftops to cool urban communities, to the potential for thinning cirrus clouds in the polar regions to decrease temperatures globally.

Cirrus cloud thinning

Cirrus-cloud thinning (CCT) is an idea first proposed in 2009 by Mitchell and William Finnigan, in a ground-breaking study published in Environmental Research Letters. Cirrus clouds are wispy, high-altitude clouds that occur around the world. Unlike other clouds, they have an overall warming effect on the climate, trapping thermal radiation near the surface that outweighs the solar radiation they reflect.

Thinning the clouds would allow more heat to escape Earths atmosphere, like cracking the windows in a car on a sunny day. This involves using cloud-seeding strategies much like the ones already commonly used around the world to increase precipitation, whereby dust is released into targeted clouds to facilitate ice formation. These dust particles form the nucleus of an ice crystal in a cloud, which can pull together tiny water droplets to form larger, heavier ice crystals that gravity can bring to Earths surface. This is the natural phenomenon that produces all precipitation, but for decades, scientists have used this process to supplement natural rain and snowfall. By converting some of the moisture in the cloud into precipitation, the remaining cloud is thinner, trapping less heat below.

There are a few differences between the cloud-seeding now occurring and proposals for cirrus cloud-thinning. One is the use of a different compound as the introduced dust particle. Traditional cloud-seeding often uses silver iodide (AgI), whereas Mitchell says that bismuth tri-iodide (BiI3) would effectively target cirrus clouds without impacting other clouds. This has to do with the temperature that each compound is most effective at producing ice nucleation. Cirrus cloud-thinning would be most effective at reducing global temperatures if directed to the polar regions when there is little sunlight, because this would maximize the amount of heat released. In fact, one preliminary study has shown that this strategy could cool the planet by about 1.4 degrees Celsius  enough to cancel out the current global impact of all greenhouse gases produced by industrialization.

The idea is that you would seed the Arctic when the sun angle is low in the sky, during the winter and fall, Mitchell says. Then, when the sun angle reaches a certain threshold, you would switch to seeding in the southern hemisphere, where its fall, and repeat this process. Targeting the polar regions produces the most bang for your buck, Mitchell says, because these are the regions most affected by global warming. The more the polar regions heat up and their sea ice melts, the more global warming increases from the loss of snows natural ability to reflect solar energy back into space.

The proposal is far from being ready for implementation, as it would require a massive commitment of time and money from societies around the world. Clouds in the polar regions would need to be seeded continuously during the darkest months, using airplanes or drones to distribute the dust particles to targeted regions. This method also doesnt address the problem of growing amounts of carbon dioxide in the Earths oceans, which makes the water more acidic and creates challenges for sea life. Despite these obstacles, Mitchell says that recent scientific and technological advances have enabled him to understand the potential for CCT better than ever.

Using this satellite known as CALIPSO, we can see a vertical distribution of cirrus clouds in the Arctic. For the first time, weve been able to retrieve ice particle concentration and ice mass content, as well as the average size of ice particles, he says. With these three things, we can evaluate the ice nucleation process that would allow CCT to be effective.

This information can then be plugged into global climate models, which are used to simulate the regional and global effects of climate change. However, like all simulations, their utility requires accurate representations of the factors impacting the scenario in question (much like the quality of each ingredient will influence the outcome of a recipe). The climate is such a fantastically complex system that there are still many questions about the details of ice particle formation and growth in the atmosphere, particularly with cirrus clouds.

By utilizing the new CALIPSO satellite findings by our group, we plan to improve the representation of cirrus cloud ice nucleation in a global climate model, says Ehsan Erfani, Ph.D., assistant research professor of cloud microphysics at DRI and member of the research team.

Cirrus cloud-thinning doesnt have long-lasting effects the way that other proposed climate-intervention techniques, like stratospheric sulfur injection, would. If unforeseen issues arose, scientists could simply stop seeding the clouds. Unlike greenhouse gases that stay in the atmosphere for hundreds of years, cloud-seeding doesnt have lingering impacts, Mitchell says.

Reducing greenhouse gas emissions is still the number one most important thing to do, he continues. But a lot of people have a misunderstanding, because even if we get to zero carbon emissions now, that wont cool the planet. It will just keep things from getting worse.

The risks of large-scale geoengineering techniques should not be underestimated, as there are many unknown variables and impacts that global climate models are unable to predict. But this is exactly why this research is needed, Mitchell and others claim. There is a need to determine if there are credible approaches that offer a net positive impact to prevent future decision-makers (who may become more desperate for climate impact mitigation over time), from employing uninformed, risky, or ineffectual approaches.

If we reach a global tipping point where climate change is causing widespread devastation, there could be groups who will turn to these methods in an emergency, Mitchell says. If they grab at the first straw they find, we could be in trouble. But if we know something about what the consequences of these intervention methods could be  and the benefits as well  then were in a relatively safer situation.

Using cloud-seeding to protect the solar-reflecting power of snow

The research team is also examining the potential for cloud-seeding to protect mountain snowpacks, which are a critical source of fresh water across the Western U.S. White snow has a natural ability to reflect the suns energy, providing a modest cooling to local climates and delaying snowmelt. Although cloud-seeding is already commonly used to enhance snowfall, adding to overall water availability, this new research seeks to better understand ways that cloud-seeding can deposit fresh, white snow on top of snowpacks that have been dusted with grit from smoke and soot. Darker materials, including charcoal from past wildsees, can act like a black sweater on the snow, enhancing the melting effect of sunny days. An extra layer of white snow could help protect the reflective capacity of the snowpack, postponing snowmelt and protecting water storage capacity. DRI research has shown that when snowpacks melt quickly due to winter and spring heatwaves, the reduced water availability during the driest months of the year exacerbates drought impacts and can increase the risk of wildfires.

DRI has studied and utilized cloud-seeding techniques for more than 50 years, so it only makes sense for us to use our expertise to examine ways that it could help mitigate local impacts that may be worsening due to climate change, says Naresh Kumar, Ph.D., executive director of atmospheric sciences at DRI and one of the projects lead researchers.

As with the cirrus-cloud thinning research, this study will use computer simulations to assess how effective this method could be, as well as the conditions for maximizing its potential. The research team of cloud physicists and climate modelers is also deploying remote weather stations in mountain regions around the Western U.S. to improve weather forecasting.

Reducing heat in urban communities

Cities across the world experience enhanced warming because of the way manmade surfaces, like asphalt, pavement, and buildings, absorb and radiate heat. Known as the urban heat-island effect, this warming is particularly acute in southwestern cities such as Las Vegas and Phoenix, creating hazardous conditions for everyone, but particularly for outdoor workers. Altering urban surfaces to reflect, rather than absorb, the suns energy could help reduce local temperatures.

A subset of the research team led by DRI climatologist John Mejia, Ph.D., is assessing the ability of lighter-colored, reflective rooftops and pavement to cool urban communities, as well as how this cooling could bring wider benefits. Conventional roofs can reach temperatures of 150F on a summer day, trapping and radiating heat into the home beneath. The cumulative effect of heated roofs can also increase air temperatures in the community. According to the U.S. Department of Energy, reflective roofs can stay 50F cooler under the same conditions.

Considering how our architecture and planning impacts our exposure to heat can bring broader benefits. Cooler temperatures could reduce energy use by lowering demand for air conditioning, one of the largest sources of summer electricity use. This applies not only to municipal energy systems, but also to vehicles which burn more fuel when running A.C., further contributing to the greenhouse gas emissions of the region and creating a cycle of warming. The research team will also examine how cooling urban communities with reflective surfaces impacts urban forestation efforts, a practice which can help provide shade for city dwellers, but which has tradeoffs with ongoing water conservation efforts.

Moving Forward Under Uncertainty

DRIs research will help answer questions about how each of these climate interventions could work, helping to prepare humanity for an uncertain future.

All three of these research areas are interlinked, Kumar says, because they all deal with climate intervention. Cirrus cloud-thinning is on a more global scale, whereas cloud-seeding and heat island impacts are very local, but they are interrelated. Because there are a lot of things that are still unknown about these potential climate mitigation strategies, we wanted to combine them into a single project to investigate some of the remaining questions.

Of course, striving to understand the physics of how climate intervention techniques could work is only one part of a much larger and more complex conversation. Even once researchers feel confident that they understand the potential benefits and risks, humanity would need to address thorny questions about ethics and authority. When it comes to concerns of global importance, who has decision-making power, and how do we ensure that this group has accountability to humanity at large? Science can act as one guiding light on the path to addressing climate change, but these questions will require cooperation and partnership on an unprecedented scale.

This research is supported by funding from NOAA, through the U.S. Department of Commerce, grant number NA22OAR4690640.

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Phoenix, AZ, June 14, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- InnSuites Hospitality Trust (NYSE American: IHT) reported a continuation of strong improvement of results in the First Fiscal Quarter of 2024, (February 1, 2023, to April 30, 2023), with Net Income Attributable to Controlling Interests increasing by approximately 25%, to $236,608 as compared to $188,115.



Total Consolidated Fiscal First Quarter Net Income also increased approximately 25% to $465,445.

Total Trust Equity increased to $4,017,911 at the end of Fiscal First Quarter 2024, up approximately 9%, or $335,766.

Earnings Per Share based on this Net Income Attributable to Controlling Interest amount was $0.03, up $0.01 from the prior year of $0.02.

Total Revenues increased to approximately $2.2 million, which is an approximate increase of 3% from the same prior Fiscal Year total of $2.1 million.

Consolidated Net Income before non-cash depreciation expense was $633,623 for the 2024 First Fiscal Quarter ended April 30, 2023 (February 1, 2023, through April 30, 2023), which was an increase of approximately 16% from the First Fiscal Quarter of 2023 (February 1, 2022, through April 30, 2022).

InnSuites Hospitality Trust (IHT), in late 2019, made a diversification investment in new development privately held UniGen Power, Inc. (UniGen), developing a high risk, high profit potential, efficient clean electricity energy generation innovation. The UniGen design is fueled not only with abundant relatively clean natural gas but also with other even cleaner fuels such as ethanol and hydrogen (that emits only water). IHT holds stock, convertible bonds, and warrants that, when fully converted/exercised, could result in IHT holding an approximate 25% ownership stake in UniGen. UniGen has confirmed that prototype design engineering for the UPI 1000TA engine is now complete, with a majority of parts and tooling having been ordered and arriving daily.

Engineering work is complete on the prototype and has been placed on hold, while UniGen concentrates on its next round of capital raising, with promising initial response. IHT may participate in the upcoming round of capital raising through the exercise of existing warrants, which may or may not result in further increase of IHT fully diluted ownership.

Said James Wirth President, CEO, and IHT Board Chairman:

With 2024 Fiscal First Quarter hospitality revenues reaching record levels, combined with six consecutive recently completed profitable quarters, and with continuing progress on the UniGen diversification, IHT management believes that due to real estate held at book values believed to be significantly below current market value and due to the high risk, but also high diversification UniGen profit potential ahead, the IHT future looks bright, and in our opinion IHT stock is undervalued. Accordingly, IHT continues its stock buyback program.

Fiscal Year 2023 extended IHTs uninterrupted, continuous annual dividends to 52 years, since 1971, with semi-annual dividends paid February 1, 2023, and anticipated for July 31, 2023.

For more information, visit www.innsuitestrust.com and www.innsuites.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

With the exception of historical information, matters discussed in this news release may include forward-looking statements within the meaning of the federal securities laws. All statements regarding IHTs review and exploration of potential strategic, operational, and structural alternative diversification investments, and expected associated costs and benefits, as well as statements related to continuation of its 52 years of uninterrupted payment of annual dividends, are forward-looking. Actual developments and business decisions may differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Important factors, among others, that could cause IHTs actual results and future actions to differ materially from those described in forward-looking statements include the uncertain outcome, impact, effects and results of IHTs success in finding potential qualified purchasers for its hospitality real estate, or a reverse merger partner, continuation of growth of hospitality revenues and/or profit growth, timely collection of receivables, the success of and timing of the UniGen clean energy diversification innovation, the continuation of semi-annual dividends in the year(s) ahead, and other risks discussed in IHTs SEC filings. IHT expressly disclaims any obligation to update any forward-looking statement contained in this news release to reflect events or circumstances that may arise after the date hereof, all of which are expressly qualified by the foregoing, other than as required by applicable law.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION:

Marc Berg, Executive Vice President

602-944-1500

email: mberg@innsuites.com

INNSUITES HOTEL CENTRE

1730 E. NORTHERN AVENUE, #122

Phoenix, Arizona 85020

Phone: 602-944-1500
Washington, D.C., June 14, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The U.S. Department of Commerces National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and its National Marine Fisheries Service (NOAA Fisheries) have imposed an unconstitutional rule requiring fishing companies to pay for at-sea government monitoring of their herring catch. Unfortunately, relying on Chevron deference to do the heavy lifting, the First Circuit Court of Appeals upheld that rule. Today, the New Civil Liberties Alliance petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court for a writ of certiorari in Relentless Inc., et al. v. Dept. of Commerce, et al., seeking to overturn the Chevron precedent and vacate the rule.

NOAA implemented a Final Rule in 2020 to force fishing companies like Relentless Inc., Huntress Inc., and Seafreeze Fleet LLC, to pay for human at-sea monitors aboard their vessels. This would be like forcing motorists to pay for ride-along state troopers to monitor their speed. Not surprisingly, Congress never gave the agency authority to launch such a program. NCLAs clients are small businesses that commercially fish for Atlantic herring (as well as mackerel, Loligo and Illex squids, and butterfish). Paying for monitors would cost them more than $700 per day, substantially cutting intoor even exceedingtheir daily fishing profits for herring.

The U.S. Supreme Court already granted certiorari on the first question presented in NCLAs cert petition in a case called Loper Bright earlier this year, which had unsuccessfully challenged the same at-sea monitor rule in the D.C. Circuit. By seeking certiorari on that same question in Relentless, NCLA hopes to be able to fully brief two core problems with Chevron deference that NCLAs founder, Philip Hamburger, is famous for first positing. Namely, when a federal judge defers to an agencys interpretation of law, doing so denies due process of law to the entity opposed to the government in that litigation. Employing such deference also abandons a judges Article III duty of judicial independence. The logic of Chevron deference cannot withstand this devastating dual critique.

In addition, NCLA is asking the U.S. Supreme Court to resolve a split between two U.S. courts of appeal, the First and Fifth Circuits. When the First Circuit upheld the Final Rule, it decided that broad necessary and appropriate language in the Magnuson-Stevens Act (MSA), which governs U.S. fisheries, augmented the agencys regulatory power. It then relied heavily on Chevron deference to uphold the agencys ostensibly reasonable interpretation of a supposedly ambiguous federal statute. However, the Fifth Circuit rejected similar government arguments in the Mexican Gulf Fishing Company, et al. v. NOAA, et al. case. That court eschewed Chevron and set aside a different NOAA Fisheries rule in February that required constant GPS tracking of recreational charter fishing vessels. The Court should examine this conflicting treatment of key MSA language.

NCLA released the following statements:

When the Supreme Court decides the question presented in Loper Bright, it must confront two central problems with Chevron deference: its denial of due process of law and its destruction of independent judicial judgment. If the Court grants cert in Relentless, it will have the full benefit of briefing on these defects of Chevron deference. But even if the Court does not grant cert in Relentless, NCLA still anticipates the Court will decide the Chevron question in Loper Brights favor. It will then grant, vacate, and remand our clients case to the First Circuit.

 Mark Chenoweth, President and General Counsel, NCLA



Were glad the Supreme Court decided to grant certiorari in the case of Loper Bright, and we think it should also take our second question on what necessary and appropriate means in the Magnuson-Stevens Act, so that the Administrative State cannot use such broad language to assume powers Congress never bestowed on it.

 John Vecchione, Senior Litigation Counsel, NCLA

This case concerns the core conflict between what Congress has permitted NOAA and the National Marine Fisheries Service to do and what those agencies wish to do. For decades, Chevron deference has emboldened agencies to twist statutory text to generate all manner of regulations Congress never authorized. More troubling, however, is that Chevron has caused courts themselves to abandon their judicial independence and abdicate their duty to determine what the law is to executive branch agencies. That is why the Court should overturn Chevron.

 Kara Rollins, Litigation Counsel, NCLA

For more information visit the case page here.

ABOUT NCLA

NCLA is a nonpartisan, nonprofit civil rights group founded by prominent legal scholar Philip Hamburger to protect constitutional freedoms from violations by the Administrative State. NCLAs public-interest litigation and other pro bono advocacy strive to tame the unlawful power of state and federal agencies and to foster a new civil liberties movement that will help restore Americans fundamental rights.
WASHINGTON, June 14, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- On Tuesday, June 13, 2023, Small Business Administration (SBA) Administrator Isabella Casillas Guzman joined the Co-Chair of the Congressional LGBTQ+ Equality Caucus Congressman, Chris Pappas (NH-01), and Justin Nelson, the Co-Founder and President of the National LGBT Chamber of Commerce, along with several entrepreneurs and leaders of local and regional LGBT chambers of commerce for a roundtable discussion on LGBTQI+ entrepreneurship.

Administrator Guzman discussed ways for the SBA to build upon its support and commitment to the LGBTQI+ community, as well as the challenges business owners in those communities have historically faced, such as access to capital and discrimination, which is particularly prevalent in the wake of the over 600 anti-LGBTQI+ bills introduced in state legislatures this year. In addition, participants discussed ways to leverage the SBAs 7(a) loan program and federal contracting opportunities presented by President Bidens Investing in America agenda.

This conversation followed recent commitments from the Biden-Harris Administration in support of LGBTQI+ Americans, including launching a new LGBTQI+ Community Safety Partnership, which protects LGBTQI+ communities from attacks on their rights and safety. In December 2022, President Biden signed into law the Respect for Marriage Act, providing same-sex couples with the legal benefits of marriage and equal treatment under the law and releasing the first-ever Federal Evidence Agenda on Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, and Intersex (LGBTQI+) Equity, which guides federal agencies on data collection to improve the lives of LGBTQI+ Americans.

For follow-up interview requests for Administrator Guzman, please contact Mila Myles at mila.myles@sba.gov.



Participants included:

Amanda Cole, Executive Director, Plexus

Kevin Heard, Board President, Detroit Regional LGBT Chamber of Commerce

Morgan Jameson, CEO, Equality Chamber of Commerce | Metro DC Area

Sabrina Kent, Executive Vice President of Programs & External Affairs, National LGBT Chamber of Commerce

Sammi Kerley, Director, Small Business for America's Future

Chris Lugo, Executive Director, Out Georgia Business Alliance

Kellie Parkin, Executive Director, National LGBT Chamber of Commerce New York

Jason Rae, Vice President, Affiliate Relations; Wisconsin: President & CEO, National LGBT Chamber of Commerce & Wisconsin LGBT Chamber of Commerce

AJ (Abdul-Jabbar) Shaikh, Board Chair, Colorado LGBTQ Chamber of Commerce

Tammi Wallace, Co-Founder, President & CEO, Greater Houston LGBT Chamber of Commerce

Suzanne Wheeler, Executive Director, Mid-America

Zach Wilcha, CEO, Independence Business Alliance

###





About the U.S. Small Business Administration

The U.S. Small Business Administration helps power the American dream of business ownership. As the only go-to resource and voice for small businesses backed by the strength of the federal government, the SBA empowers entrepreneurs and small business owners with the resources and support they need to start, grow, expand their businesses, or recover from a declared disaster. It delivers services through an extensive network of SBA field offices and partnerships with public and private organizations. To learn more, visit www.sba.gov.

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Washington, D.C., June 14, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- WASHINGTON, D.C.June 14, 2023While access to greenspace is essential for improving health and well-being, millions of people across the U.S.including over 20 million childrenlack access to nearby parks. A new report by CityHealth, an initiative of the de Beaumont Foundation and Kaiser Permanente, and Trust for Public Land (TPL) serves as a roadmap for city leaders to tap into greenspace to help improve health outcomes throughout communities by tackling the equity divide that has existed for years. The report includes research highlighting disparities in greenspace access, provides case studies of cities leading in equitable greenspace investments, and outlines policy solutions that can ensure that all families across the country have access to public land and nature.

Greenspaces are integral components of urban environments as they provide numerous health benefits. Unfortunately, far too often greenspaces are inequitably distributed, leaving millions of residentsespecially in communities of colorwithout available or accessible spaces to enjoy, said Katrina Forrest, JD, co-executive director of CityHealth. Disinvestments lead to critical disparities. In contrast, equitable Greenspace policies provide a significant opportunity for city leaders to invest in creating a healthier, greener future for all communities.

Research suggests that proximity to parks and greenspaces is correlated with greater levels of physical activity. In a recent literature review, physical activity was associated with a 13% reduction in mortality rates among over 27,000 study participants, both with and without existing medical conditions. In addition, numerous studies have found that exposure to nature has been associated with protective effects on depression, including among participants living in lower socioeconomic areas.

Access to greenspace not only promotes greater levels of physical activity and improved mental and physical health, but it also impacts environment-related health outcomes on communities by mitigating the effects of air pollution and heat exposures, aiding stormwater absorption and more, said Catherine D. Patterson, MPP, co-executive director of CityHealth. There is this interconnection between physical health, environmental health and mental health that influences overall wellness. Greenspace policies truly play a unique role in this intersection, as they can address a myriad of issues and help us achieve healthier lives.

The report specifically explores CityHealths Greenspace policy, which is part of its package of policy solutions that cities can use to help everyone in their communities have access to a safe place to live, a healthy body and mind, and a thriving environment. In CityHealths 2022 policy assessment, 20 cities earned gold, 13 earned silver and 14 earned bronze individual medals for their Greenspace policies. You can learn more about CityHealths Greenspace policy criteria and city medals here.

The report also provides examples of case studies across the countryfrom Portland, Oregon; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; Minneapolis, Minnesota; and Baltimore, Marylandthat showcase how cities can use planning and policy to increase greenspace equity.

Communities across the country are doing innovative work to implement policy solutions that prioritize park and greenspace equity, said Bianca Shulaker, Parks Initiative lead and senior director of the 10-Minute Walk Program at TPL. City leaders are recognizing that parks and greenspaces impact physical and mental health, as well as environmental resiliency. They are more than an amenitythey are critical infrastructure, and cities are taking steps to make sure all residents have access to their benefits.

WEBINAR: Hear from experts about greenspace policy solutions and how cities are taking action at a webinar presented by CityHealth and Trust for Public Land on June 21, 2023 from 2:00pm to 3:00pm ET. The webinar will feature local park champions who have prioritized park policy as a strategy to close gaps in park access and improve health equity. Sign up here.

Learn more about CityHealths Greenspace policy and read the featured case studies by downloading the report here.

###

CityHealth, an initiative of the de Beaumont Foundation and Kaiser Permanente, works to advance a package of tried and tested policy solutions to ensure all people in our largest cities have access to healthy choices. Together with visionary city leaders, CityHealth helps cities adopt policies that can make their communities healthy and resolve critical health disparitiesnow and decades down the road. Learn more at cityhealth.org.

Trust for Public Land is a national nonprofit that works to connect everyone to the benefits and joys of the outdoors. Trust for Public Lands 10-Minute Walk program engages city leaders to close the park equity divide so that every resident has access to a quality park or green space within a 10-minute walk of home. The 10-Minute Walk program calls on U.S. mayors and policymakers to address cities most pressing needs around health, resilience, environmental protection, economic development, and community building through parks, and provides the resources needed to create and support park systems that drive equitable, healthy, thriving communities. Learn more at 10minutewalk.org.

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TORONTO, June 14, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Rock The Barn Toronto, is Torontos newest charity concert, set for Thursday, June 22, 2023 at the Barn at Fresh City Farms, Downsview Park, Toronto! The lineup features 3 acts including Canadian country music artists: Claire Hunter, Cal Buckley, and Juno-nominated Canadian artists as the surprise guests!



Founded by teen brothers, Callum Buckley (18) and Thomas Buckley (16), Rock the Barn Toronto is in its inaugural year. After losing a classmate to suicide days before high school graduation in 2022, the brothers were inspired to do something more.

We need more support and awareness for young people facing mental health challenges, especially since the pandemic. My brother and I decided to raise funds for youth mental health, and support the No One Left Behind Campaign at CAMH. Our two greatest passions are music and charity, and creating a country music concert fundraiser in support of mental health is a way we can help, says co-founder and opening artist, Callum Buckley.

CAMH Foundation is grateful to Rock The Barn Toronto for their support and to all of the Canadian artists for courageously sharing their stories of experience with mental illness and mental health challenges. This event is not only raising critical funds to support the work of Canadas leading mental health hospital, it is driving forward new, open conversations about mental health and reminding people there is always hope and help, said Deborah Gillis, President & CEO of CAMH Foundation.

With great Canadian country music acts, a gourmet taco menu, and ice-cold beverages, the all-inclusive ticket is sure to kick-off the summer and help raise much needed funds and awareness for mental health. Thanks to generous sponsors, 100% of the ticket price and all donations, will be donated directly to CAMH and the No One Left Behind Campaign.

For tickets, to make a donation or for more information, visit www.rockthebarntoronto.com

Media Inquiries: Callum Buckley callum@rockthebarntoronto.com 310-706-9882

About Rock The Barn Toronto

Rock The Barn Toronto is a not-for-profit charity concert event that raises money for Canadian charities. This event was founded by the Buckley brothers, with a vision to make Rock The Barn Toronto an annual event and become the largest charitable country music event in Canada.

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/a2a9dc84-295a-424c-9b9d-cc1959a82606
Mr Abbas said the lower chamber under him will not be a "rubber stamp" of the elections

The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas, says his victory as the speaker of the 10th House has put to shame those who doubted his chances of winning.

Mr Abbas, while speaking with journalists at the State House on Tuesday, said some people felt he did not have the number because the party imposed him.

He, accompanied by his deputy, Ben Kalu, were at the State House to pay a courtesy call on President Bola Tinubu after their victory on the lower chamber's floor.

Mr Tinubu had in May endorsed the candidature of Mr Abbas as speaker of the House and Ben Kalu as his deputy.

Several aspirants that opposed him subsequently stepped down following the president's intervention.

Other aspirants like--Sada Soli and Miriam Onuoha, who did not officially announce their withdrawal from the race, later voted for Mr Abbas.

Mr Abbas, who represents Zaria Federal Constituency of Kaduna State, emerged as the speaker of the House with 353 votes, while his opponents, Idriz Wase and Aminu Jaji, polled three votes each in the election 359 members voted. He was voted for by lawmakers across all the political parties in the House.

"People have seen our level of popularity and acceptance by our members, and it has put to shame those who always thought that we were imposed by the party and that we don't have the numbers," Mr Abbas said.

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He also claimed that some aspirants used social media propaganda to distort the realities of things during the campaign to create the impression that he was unpopular.

"The impact of social media propaganda on some of the contestants distorted the entire picture of what was on the ground. But To God be the glory, today, people have seen our level of popularity and acceptance by our members," he said.

Speaks on rubber stamp

While responding to questions raised by journalists on the tag of "rubber stamp", Mr Abbas said the election's outcome shows that he is not perceived as a rubber stamp kind of speaker by his colleagues across party lines.

He added that he would, however, collaborate with the executive if there is a need to do so and disagree with it if there is also a need to do that.

In his remarks, the Deputy Speaker, Ben Kalu, said the 10th House would help Mr Tinubu to continue the good steps he has been taking so far.

He promised that the lawmakers would provide legislative support.

"We want to sustain that through legislative support, legislative intervention to make sure that together, we build a nation we will be proud of," Mr Kalu said.
/NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION TO UNITED STATES NEWS WIRE SERVICES OR FOR DISSEMINATION IN THE UNITED STATES/

VANCOUVER, June 14, 2023 - Quimbaya Gold Inc. (CSE: QIM) ("Quimbaya") is pleased to announce that, further to its press release dated May 15, 2023, it has entered into three (3) definitive agreements (the "Definitive Agreements") with Remandes Corporation S.A. ("Remandes") for the acquisition of all the issued and outstanding shares (the "Shares") of Explogold Ingenieria y Consultoria S.A.S., Minera Buey Aures S.A.S. and Soluciones Ambientales Del Nordeste S.A.S. (collectively, the "Companies") by way of share purchase agreements (the "Transaction").

The Tahami and Maitamac Projects

The Tahami Project is located 158 kilometers northeast of Medellin in the Segovia-Remedios mining district of Antioquia, in the most prolific gold region of Colombia which hosts several multi-million-ounce high-grade gold operations such as the Segovia mines that have been producing gold for more than 150 years. The Tahami Project consists of two titles covering approximately 622 Ha, located approximately 25 kilometers northeast of the producing Segovia gold mines (owned by Aris Mining). The property is easily accessible and hosts multiple gold occurrences defined by artisanal adits located near a regional scale structure known as the El Bagre fault. Gold and silver mineralization occurs in steeply dipping quartz-sulfide sheeted veins hosted by granodiorite of the Segovia Batholith. The property has never been drilled and shows excellent potential to uncover high grade gold and silver mineralization. Additionally, in accordance with the terms of the Definitive Agreement for the acquisition of Soluciones Ambientales Del Nordeste S.A.S., a portion of the purchase price will be held back by Quimbaya pending the successful transfer of certain mining applications covering a total aggregate area of approximately 2,494.4 Ha.

The Maitamac Project is located 45 km southwest of Medellin in the Abejorral and Sonson municipalities known for gold and silver artisanal mining towns. The property consists of 6 mining applications covering approximately 26,102 Ha and easily accessible. The property is mostly covered by the Cajamarca geological Complex hosting several gold occurrences and high-grade gold mines. Quartz-Sericite-Graphitic Schist as the preferred host rocks for gold were recently found on the property. Inside the project, many dredging artisanal mines were noted in several creeks. The source of the alluvial gold has never been found. Colombian Geological Services depicts Abejorral and Argelia-Sonson region as a Gold Metallogenic District with several gold showings undiscovered yet. The property has been the subject of very little exploration work in the past and requires a systematic exploration program.

Alexandre P. Boivin, CEO commented: "This acquisition will significantly strengthen our gold and silver property portfolio. We are standing on solid ground and entering into the world class mining region of Segovia with promising titles, with significant upside exploration potential at Abejorral."

Francois Goulet, M.Sc., P.Geo, a "qualified person" as defined by National Instrument 43-101 - Standards for Disclosure of Mineral Projects, has reviewed the news release and assumes responsibility for scientific and technical disclosure contained herein.

The Transaction

The Transaction is be structured as three (3) separate share purchase agreements among Quimbaya, Remandes and each of the Companies. The purchase price payable by Quimbaya for all of the issued and outstanding Shares (the "Purchase Price") shall be satisfied by: (i) the payment by Quimbaya to Remandes of a deposit in the amount of US$100,000 to be used by Remandes in accordance with an approved budget mutually agreed upon by the parties; and (ii) the issuance of 10,000,000 shares in the share capital of Quimbaya to Remandes (the "Consideration Shares"). 2,000,000 of the Consideration Shares will be retained by Quimbaya (the "Holdback Consideration Shares") subject to the completion of the transfer of certain mining applications to Quimbaya. The Consideration Shares and the Holdback Consideration Shares will be subject to a 24 month contractual escrow arrangement, in addition to any escrow requirements required under applicable securities laws and stock exchange rules.

The completion of the Transaction is subject to the satisfaction of various conditions as are standard for a transaction of this nature, including but not limited to the receipt of all applicable regulatory, shareholder and third party approvals. In addition, the closing of each of the Definitive Agreements is conditional of the closing on each of the acquisitions closing.

The Transaction would constitute a "related party transaction" under Multilateral Instrument 61-101 - Protection of Minority Security Holders in Special Transactions ("MI 61-101") as Alexandre P. Boivin, President and CEO of Quimbaya, is a control person of Remandes. The completion of the Transaction will require simple majority approval of Quimbaya's minority shareholders.

Convertible Loan Agreement

Quimbaya also announces that, in accordance with the terms of the previously announced convertible loan agreement (the "Loan Agreement") entered into between Quimbaya and Jean-Luc Peyrot (the "Lender"), the Lender has advanced an additional CA$145,000 (the "Second Advance") to Quimbaya upon the execution of the Definitive Agreements. Pursuant to the terms of the Loan Agreement, ?Quimbaya will issue 45,000 bonus warrants (the "Bonus Warrants") to the Lender within five (5) business ?days following the date of the Second Advance?. The Bonus Warrants are exercisable into common shares of Quimbaya at a price of CA$0.60 for a period of 24 months from the date the issuance.

The Lender, Jean-Luc Peyrot, is a director of Quimabaya and the Loan ?Agreement is a "related party transaction" under MI 61-101. ?The directors (other than Jean-Luc Peyrot) have determined that the ?transactions proposed by such Loan Agreement will be exempt from the ?formal valuation requirements of MI 61-101 as the Company is not listed on the ?markets specified in section 5.5(b) of MI 61-101, and the minority shareholder ?approval requirements of MI 61-101, as the fair market value of the Loan does ?not exceed CA$2,500,000. ?

Please refer to Quimbaya's press release dated May 15, 2023 for full details regarding the Loan Agreement.

About Quimbaya

Quimbaya aims to consolidate gold reserves through exploration and acquisition of mining properties in Antioquia, Colombia. Managed by an experienced team in mining sector, Quimbaya is focused on 3 projects in the regions of Segovia (the Tahami project), Puerto Berrio (the Berrio Project), and Abejorral (the Maitamac Project), all located in the Antioquia Province, Colombia.

Cautionary Statements

Certain statements contained in this press release constitute "forward-looking information" as that term is defined in applicable Canadian securities legislation. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, included herein are forward-looking information. In particular, this news release contains forward-looking information in relation to: the definitive agreement, the Transaction and the potential completion of the Transaction, including Quimbaya's potential business upon the completion of the Transaction, the potential conditions and satisfaction of those conditions for the completion of the Transaction and the issuance of the Bonus Warrants. Generally, forward-looking statements and information can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "intends" or "anticipates", or variations of such words and phrases or statements that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "should", "would" or "occur". Forward-looking information by its nature is based on assumptions and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of Quimbaya to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements or information. These assumptions include, but are not limited to: the satisfaction of any conditions to the Transaction set forth in the Definitive Agreements including, without limitation, the acceptance of the proposed Transaction by the CSE and typical closing conditions; the completion of satisfactory due diligence by Quimbaya in relation to the Transaction; and the receipt of all required approvals for the Transaction, including CSE acceptance, any board approvals, shareholder approvals or third party consents. Although Quimbaya's management believes that the assumptions made and the expectations represented by such information are reasonable, there can be no assurance that the forward-looking information will prove to be accurate. Furthermore, should one or more of the risks, uncertainties or other factors materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those described in forward-looking statements or information. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking information as there can be no assurance that the plans, intentions or expectations upon which they are placed will occur. Forward-looking information contained in this news release is expressly qualified by this cautionary statement. The forward-looking information contained in this news release represents the expectations of Quimbaya as of the date of this news release and, accordingly, is subject to change after such date. Except as required by law, Quimbaya does not expect to update forward-looking statements and information continually as conditions change.

Neither the Canadian Securities Exchange nor its regulation services provider accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

SOURCE Quimbaya Gold Inc.
Golden Cariboo Resources Ltd. (the "Company") (TSXV:GCC) | (OTC:GCCFF) | (WKN:A0RLEP) is pleased to report that the first drill hole of 2023 has been completed, and it has revealed multiple new semi massive zones of mineralization above the 200 Level of the Quesnelle Gold Quartz Mine, and a continued southeast extension of replacement mineralization below the 400 Level of the Mine.

The semi massive sulphide and replacement zones are located at the Main Zone in variably altered metasediments and phyllite in close proximity to the greenstone-phyllite contact along the western margin of a 1.8km airborne magnetic anomaly. The largest semi massive sulphide intercept is about 8.3m wide (true width not known) with up to 60% pyrite (pictured below and on the Company website www.goldencariboo.com) hosted by sericitic-carbonate altered siltstone and phyllite. This zone includes a 0.4m mineralized quartz vein and is located in a previously untested area about 50-60m vertically below the surface and about 10-20m above the 200 Level. These semi massive sulphide zones correlate with a vertical extension of an historically mapped quartz vein (No.8 vein) and a near-vertical 75m long high-grade ore zone where a winze was installed and mined between the 200 and 400 Levels of the mine. Mineralization appears to be open at depth.



Click Image To View Full Size

The Company also intercepted at least four mineralized quartz veins above the Koch vein, partly within a series of drifts or mined stopes of the Koch Tunnel area. Additionally, while replacement mineralization is also noted intermittently throughout the hole, the narrow zones of replacement encountered in QGQ22-02 were also observed to continue at least 70m to the southeast in QGQ23-01, also below the lowest level of the mine. This zone is open to the northwest and the southeast. Core logging is in progress, along with digitizing of historical underground geology and assay data.

The technical information in this news release has been reviewed by Jean Pautler, P.Geo., a qualified person with respect to NI 43-101.

About Golden Cariboo Resources Ltd.

Golden Cariboo Resources Ltd. is rediscovering the Cariboo Gold Rush by proceeding with high-grade targeted drilling and trenching programs on its Quesnelle Gold Quartz Mine project which is almost fully encircled on 3 of 4 sides by Osisko Development (NYSE: ODV, TSXV: ODV). Historically, over 101 placer gold creeks on the 90 km trend from the Cariboo Hudson mine north to the Quesnelle Gold Quartz mine have recorded production in excess of 2.6 million ounces of gold up to 1933 (Hall, 1986) and successful placer mining continues to this day.

Golden Cariboo's Quesnelle Gold Quartz Mine property is 4 km northeast of, and road accessible from, Hixon in central British Columbia. The Property includes the Quesnelle Quartz gold-silver deposit, which was discovered in 1865 in conjunction with placer mining activities and produced 2,048 tonnes grading 3.14 g/t Au and 4.18 g/t Ag in 1932 and 1939, with an additional 217 tonnes of unknown grade reported in 1878 (BC Minfile, 2021). Hixon Creek, which dissects the Hixon Gold claims, is a placer creek which has seen limited, small-scale placer production since the mid 1860's. From Ministry of Mines Reports prior to 1945, estimates of up to $2,000,000 worth of placer gold was mined from Hixon Creek.

Golden Cariboo Resources Ltd.

"Andrew H. Rees"

Andrew H. Rees, Director

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Service Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

This news release contains certain forward-looking statements which involve known and unknown risks, delays, and uncertainties not under the control of Golden Cariboo Resources Ltd. which may cause actual results, performance or achievements of Golden Cariboo Resources Ltd. to be materially different from the results, performance or expectation implied by these forward-looking statements. By their nature, forward-looking statements involve risk and uncertainties because they relate to events and depend on factors that will or may occur in the future. Actual results may vary depending upon exploration activities, industry production, commodity demand and pricing, currency exchange rates, and, but not limited to, general economic factors.


VANCOUVER, June 14, 2023 - Margaret Lake Diamonds Inc. ("MLD" or the "Company") (TSXV:DIA) (FKT:M85) (OTC:DDIAF) ("Margaret Lake" or the "Company") announces that, further to the Company's news release dated May 24, 2023, the Company will consolidate its common shares (the "Shares") on the basis of ten (1) pre-consolidation Shares for one (1) post-consolidation Share of the Company (the "Consolidation").

The Company's post Consolidation Shares are expected to begin trading on the TSX Venture Exchange on June 16, 2023. The name of the Company and trading symbol will remain the same after the Consolidation. The new CUSIP number will be 56658A401 and the new ISIN number will be CA56658A4019 for post Consolidation.

The Consolidation will result in the number of issued and outstanding Shares being reduced from 47,412,288 to 4,741,230 Shares. No fractional Shares will be issued pursuant to the Consolidation. Each fractional Share remaining after the Consolidation that is less than one-half of one Share will be cancelled and each fractional Share that is at least one-half of one Share will be changed to one whole Common Share.

A letter of transmittal will be mailed to registered shareholders by the Company's transfer agent, Endeavor Trust Corporation once the Consolidation has taken effect. The letter of transmittal contains instructions on how registered shareholders can exchange their share certificates evidencing their pre-consolidation shares for new share certificates representing the number of post-consolidation shares to which they are entitled. Beneficial shareholders holding their shares through a brokerage may be subject to different procedures for obtaining their post-consolidation shares. If shareholders have any questions in this regard, they are encouraged to contact their respective brokerage or intermediary.

On behalf of the Board

Margaret Lake Diamonds Inc.

"Yari Nieken"

President, Chief Executive Officer, Chairman

Tel: 604.328.0425 | Email: ynieken@gmail.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.

Disclaimer for Forward-Looking Information

Information set forth in this news release may involve forward-looking statements under applicable securities laws. Forward-looking statements are statements that relate to future, not past, events. In this context, forward-looking statements often address expected future business and financial performance, and often contain words such as "anticipate", "believe", "plan", "estimate", "expect", and "intend", statements that an action or event "may", "might", "could", "should", or "will" be taken or occur, including statements that address potential quantity and/or grade of minerals, potential size and expansion of a mineralized zone, proposed timing of exploration and development plans, or other similar expressions. All statements, other than statements of historical fact included herein including, without limitation, statements regarding the use of proceeds, TSXV final approval, and the exploration potential of the Diagras project based on historical drill results and forward-looking statements. By their nature, forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause our actual results, performance or achievements, or other future events, to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Such factors include, among others, the following risks: the need for additional financing; operational risks associated with mineral exploration; fluctuations in commodity prices; title matters; and the additional risks identified in the annual information form of the Company or other reports and filings with the TSXV and applicable Canadian securities regulators. Forward-looking statements are made based on management's beliefs, estimates and opinions on the date that statements are made, and the Company undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking statements if these beliefs, estimates and opinions or other circumstances should change, except as required by applicable securities laws. Investors are cautioned against attributing undue certainty to forward-looking statements.


Coquitlam, June 14, 2023 - Grid Battery Metals Inc. ("formerly Nickel Rock Resources Inc.") (the "Company" or "Grid Battery") (TSXV:CELL) (OTC:EVKRF) (FRA:NMK2) announces that, further to its news release dated April 3, 2023, the Company has now closed the "related party" transaction and disposed of a 100% interest in the Nickel Project.

As disclosed in the April 3, 2023 news release the Company entered into an Option Agreement with Surge Battery Metals Inc. ("Surge") dated March 31, 2023 (the "Agreement"), whereby Surge was granted the option (the "Option") to acquire the remaining 20% interest in the HN4 and N100 Claims, located in Northern British Columbia. Surge had previously earned an undivided 80% interest in the Nickel Project. Three of the claims are subject to 2% NSR, including the HN4 claim and the two southernmost claims of the N100 claim group.

As consideration for the transaction, The Company has received 1,000,000 shares of Surge.

Upon exercise of the Option, the Company transferred 100% ownership of the Nickel Project to the Surge.

Pursuant to TSXV Policy 5.9 and Multilateral Instrument 61-101 -- Protection of Minority Security Holders in Special Transactions ("MI 61-101"), the Option Agreement constitutes a "related party transaction" due to the fact that the CFO is also the CFO of Surge. The Company relied on Section 5.5(a) of MI 61-101 for an exemption from the formal valuation requirement and Section 5.7(1)(a) of MI 61-101 for an exemption from the minority shareholder approval requirement of MI 61-101 as the fair market value of the Transaction did not exceed 25% of the Company's market capitalization.

About Grid Battery Metals Inc.

Grid Battery Metals Inc. is a Canadian based exploration company whose primary listing is on the TSX Venture Exchange. The Company's maintains a focus on exploration for high value battery metals required for the electric vehicle (EV) market. www.gridbatterymetals.com.

About Clayton Valley Lithium Project

The Company owns a 100% interest in 113 lithium lode and placer claims covering over 640 hectares in Clayton Valley. Clayton Valley is a down-dropped closed basin formed by the Miocene age Great Basin extension and is still active due to movement along the Walker Lane structural zone. As a result, the basin has preserved multiple layers of lithium bearing volcanic ash, resulting from multiple eruptive events over the past 6 million years including eruptions from the 700,000-year-old Long Valley Caldera system and related events. These ash layers are thought to contribute to the lithium brines extracted by Albemarle and are also likely involved in the formation of the exposed lithium rich clay deposits on the east side of Clayton Valley.

Volt Canyon Lithium Property

The Company owns a 100% interest in 80 placer claims covering approximately 635 hectares of alluvial sediments and clays located 122 km northeast of Tonopah, Nevada.

About the British Columbia, Nickel Projects

The Mount Sidney Williams Group consists of three claim blocks with a total area of 10,569 hectares in the area surrounding Mount Sidney Williams, both adjoining and near the Decar project of FPX Nickel Corp., located 100 kilometres northwest of Fort St. James, B.C., in the Omineca mining division. Metallic mineralization includes nickel, cobalt, and chromium. At least some of the nickel mineralization occurs as awaruite. The Mitchell Range Group area claim consists of one claim block covering 8,659 hectares with demonstrated metallic mineralization including nickel, cobalt, and chromium. Nickel cobalt mineralization has not been well explored, but the presence of awaruite has been documented.

On Behalf of the Board of Directors

"Tim Fernback"

604-428-5690

Tim Fernback, President & CEO

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. This news release may contain forward-looking statements which include, but are not limited to, comments that involve future events and conditions, which are subject to various risks and uncertainties. Except for statements of historical facts, comments that address resource potential, upcoming work programs, geological interpretations, receipt and security of mineral property titles, availability of funds, and others are forward-looking. Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual results may vary materially from those statements. General business conditions are factors that could cause actual results to vary materially from forward-looking statements.


The Hydroelectric Power Producing Areas Development Commission (HYPPADEC) said it has a dispatched a team of experts from its Kwara State office to the scene of a boat mishap in Patigi local government area of the state to assist in search operations.

The commission said it was awaiting a comprehensive report on the mishap to be guided on the next line of action to be taken to contain future occurrence of the unfortunate incident.

The managing director of HYPPADEC, Alh Abubakar Yelwa, in a statement described as tragic, the boat mishap that claimed many lives on the River Niger.

The HYPPADEC Chief Executive said the incidence is shocking and sad owing to the intensity of casualties recorded.

"Accordingly, the Commission has already dispatched a team of experts from Kwara state office to the scene to assist in search operations while it awaits a comprehensive report on the mishap to be guided on the next line of action to be taken to contain future occurrence of the ugly incidence," Yelwa said in a statement signed by head, Press and Public Affairs, Nuts Wakili.

Yelwa sympathised with the family of the victims while praying for quick recovery of the survivors.

He also expressed heartfelt condolences to Kwara State Government, Patigi Emirate and the families of the deceased.
Canada GP resisting F1's date change push

Organisers of the Canadian GP are resisting Formula 1's efforts to change the time of year in which the annual race in Montreal takes place.

Valtteri Bottas, Canadian GP 2022

 Alfa Romeo

Organisers of the Canadian GP are resisting Formula 1's efforts to change the time of year in which the annual race in Montreal takes place.

The event at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve has a contract with F1 until 2031, but that hasn't stopped the sport's boss Stefano Domenicali from kicking off talks about a date change.

That is because, now with three races in the United States each year and with F1 also heading to Mexico and Canada, it makes much more sense to group the North American rounds together for logistical reasons.

"This has been discussed for a long time," Canada GP boss Francois Dumontier told La Presse, "and I fully understand the reasoning of the governing bodies.

"On paper, it's an easy problem to solve. But that's actually far from being the case in reality. And with 23 events on its calendar, F1 must deal with 23 different realities."

Dumontier said the biggest "sticking point" with a proposed date change for Montreal is "mainly the weather".

He insists Formula 1 isn't pressuring him, but at the same time admitted he may be open to a compromise.

"I can hardly even imagine a race before the beginning of June," he said.

Another issue, Dumontier adds, is that the track on the artificial island Il Notre Dame - part of Montreal's third largest park complex - is not permanent.

"It takes time to put everything in place and in doing so, we risk disrupting the activities of Parc Jean-Drapeau," he said. "And, in the fall, we could also find ourselves in conflict with congresses, for example."

(GMM)
Ecclestone slams Steiner for Schumacher demise

F1's former chief executive has slammed Gunther Steiner for hurting the career of Mick Schumacher.

Mick Schumacher, Austrian GP 2022

 Haas F1 Team / LAT

F1's former chief executive has slammed Gunther Steiner for hurting the career of Mick Schumacher.

Schumacher, the 25-year-old son of Formula 1 legend Michael, spent two years at Steiner-led Haas before he was ousted for performance reasons at the end of last season.

Franz Tost, who knows the Schumacher family and especially Mick's uncle Ralf, proposed to Red Bull that he be snapped up to race for Alpha Tauri this year.

But Tost, who will depart as long-time Alpha Tauri boss at the end of the year, says the move was vetoed.

"It was decided at the highest level not to take him," the Austrian told Sport1. "One reason was that he was still a member of the Ferrari junior squad at the time."

Schumacher was signed by Mercedes to be official reserve driver in 2023, and according to Dr Helmut Marko a potential late move by Red Bull to sign Mick as a replacement for struggling rookie Nyck de Vries was also thwarted.

Marko says the Schumacher issue was "mentioned at a meeting" with new Red Bull CEO Oliver Mintzlaff.

"It's just stupid that Mr Wolff at the same time openly made played politics against us with the FIA again. With that, the topic was off the table," said the 80-year-old.

"Why should we take Schumacher? He is a Mercedes driver so Mr Wolff is responsible for him now.

"If he thinks so highly of him, why not let him drive in his own team or use his influence to get him into a customer team like Williams?" Marko added.

For Tost, the fact that young Schumacher is on the sidelines is a shame.

"Mick is better than his reputation," he said. "He has won the two most important junior classes, which alone entitles him to drive in Formula 1.

"I always point out that in today's complex Formula 1 without testing, even the greatest talents need at least three years to reach their potential."

"I can only hope for him that he can come back as a regular driver," Tost, 67, added. "Because I'm convinced he has what it takes to be a very good Formula 1 driver.

"And that has nothing to do with the magic of his name."

As far as former F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone is concerned, however, only one man should carry the bulk of the blame for Schumacher's current situation.

"An unsuccessful team boss ensured that Mick's career in Formula 1 is over for the time being," the 92-year-old said, clearly referring to Steiner and his highly critical comments about Schumacher prior to his ousting.

"What should you think of the statements of a man who only became a superstar in the paddock thanks to rude comments in a Hollywood documentary aimed at the US market?" Ecclestone added.

(GMM)
Wolff trying to sign Hamilton before Canada GP

Lewis Hamilton may be just "days" away from putting pen to paper on a new Mercedes contract for 2024 and beyond.

Lewis Hamilton, Spanish GP 2023

 Mercedes-Benz Grand Prix Ltd.

Lewis Hamilton may be just "days" away from putting pen to paper on a new Mercedes contract for 2024 and beyond.

The seven time world champion only has another six months to run on his existing deal with the German marque, and although most expect him to stay there have been rumours linking the 38-year-old with a sensational move to Ferrari.

What is clear is that negotiations between the driver and his boss Toto Wolff are long delayed - but that delay is finally now coming to an end.

"It is going to happen soon, and we are talking more days than weeks," Wolff said in New York, where he attended a Forbes event with Hamilton.

"We are trying hard," the Mercedes team chief added when asked if an agreement was possible ahead of the Canadian GP in Montreal this weekend.

"I will see him today and maybe we will talk about it," Wolff said.

Rival team Red Bull's Dr Helmut Marko recently speculated that Hamilton was "annoyed" that he has been overtaken by Max Verstappen in the F1 earnings stakes.

"At least he could change that with Ferrari's help," the 80-year-old Austrian added.

Wolff admits that the "money" issue is a thorny one between he and Hamilton.

"We have such a good relationship that we dread the moment that we need to talk about money," he said, adding that Hamilton is still worth a lot to Mercedes.

"Lewis is the most important personality in the sport," Wolff said.

"He is so multi-faceted, not only with the racing, but also off track, so we need to keep him in the sport for as long as possible."

Meanwhile, Wolff warned that another two-driver podium finish like Barcelona for the team's new 'B' is unlikely this weekend in Canada.

"With its long straights and slow corners, the Montreal layout shouldn't suit our car as well as Barcelona," he said.

(GMM)
Ecobank records growth despite setbacks

Suleiman Mustapha Business News Jun - 14 - 2023 , 09:44

Ghana is confident of returning to profitability after the bank suffered after-tax losses of GH15.30 million due to impairment from the Domestic Debt Exchange Programme (DDEP).

The bank also recorded a pre-tax loss of GH27.21 million in 2022, a reversal of the 2021 pre-tax profit of GH893.73 million.

But the Pan African lender reaffirmed its dominance in the banking industry with a total balance sheet of GH25.77 billion at the end of 2022.

The banks total revenue surged by 40.3 per cent, reaching GH2.97billion and demonstrating the banks ability to grow its income.

The increase in revenue was primarily driven by higher net interest income, fee-based income, and successful trade and cash management initiatives Managing Director of Ecobank Ghana, Dan Sackey, said in an interview after the banks Annual General Meeting in Accra that the bank has recorded net impairment charges of GH1.7 billion arising from the debt restructuring by the government.

Mr Sackey said the losses were temporary setbacks, which the bank expects to recover by the end of the year.

Although the DDEP has resulted in significant impairment losses relating to the banks investments in government securities, this is a temporary setback, which we expect to recover quickly from, Mr Sackey said.

He assured the shareholders that the bank has booked the required impairment and closed the chapter on local bonds and that the Pan African subsidiary was solvent, liquid and the most capitalised after the DDEP.

We remain confident in our capacity to recover and return to profitability by the end of 2023, he said.

He said the bank would prioritise the rebuilding of its capital base and liquidity buffers in order to deliver superior Return on Equity (ROE) for its shareholders.

The bank contained its non-performing loans (NPLs) in 2022 and recorded a reduction from 6.22 per cent in 2021 to 5.66 per cent.

Dominance

The Managing Director noted that net interest income grew year-on-year by 63 per cent to GH2.5 billion, while its balance sheet remain strong with 44.4 per cent growth to GH25.9 billion supported by higher loan volumes and increased lending rates.

Net interest income remained the largest contributor to revenue, accounting for 85 per cent while non-interest income made up the remaining 15 per cent.

Interest expense also rose by 108.7 per cent due to the disruptive operating environment.

The banks Treasury business also experienced challenges, resulting in an 82.5 per cent decline in trading income compared to the previous year.

The bank did not declare any dividends for the year, saying it wanted to sustain the business in line with the central banks expectations.

Digital fraud

Mr Sackey said a number of Ecobank customers have been targeted by fraudsters and some of them have actually fallen victims to digital fraud in which significant amounts were moved from customers accounts.

He therefore used the occasion to entreat customers of the bank to be wary of fraudsters, saying that bank would continue to develop systems to safeguard customers data, but each customer also has a duty to stay alert.

We would like to use this opportunity to educate our clients on the need to keep personal information safe.

It is important for customers to keep their PIN and account details private at all times to prevent fraudsters from having access to these details, he added.

The fraud started as a SIM swap at MTN in particular, and ended as digital money transfers from customers Ecobank accounts.

Mr Dan Sackey said so far no Ecobank staff has been found culpable in any of those incidents but the telcos whose customers SIM cards were swapped in the process are fully cooperating to resolve those specific issues.
FBNBank supports Green Ghana Project

Dickson Worlanyo Dotse Business News Jun - 14 - 2023 , 08:25

FBNBank Ghana has donated a cheque for GH20,000 to the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources in support of this years Green Ghana Project.

The support is in line with the banks corporate responsibility & sustainability (CR&S) agenda which has the environment as one of its pillars.

Its aim is to help the communities improve their resilience against extreme weather events and changing weather patterns.

Green Ghana Day

Since 2021, June 9 each year has been set aside for the Green Ghana Day Project with a clarion call for a nationwide tree-planting exercise.

This years event took place last Friday and targeted having 10 million trees planted across the country.

Out of the 10 million, six million of the trees are expected to be planted in the forest reserve and four million out of forest reserve.

The day was instituted by the government in 2021 under the auspices of the MLNR as part of an afforestation agenda to restore the lost forest cover of the country.

It is also aimed at speedily retrieving and revamping degraded lands and restore the countrys lost green environment.

Shared responsibility

Leading a team to present the cheque, the Managing Director of the FBNBank, Victor Yaw Asante, said the bank was encouraged to support the governments initiative to restore the environment because that was a collective responsibility.

Conserving the environment is a responsibility that must be headed by all to secure a sustainable future for Ghana.

To that we remain focused on putting our customers and communities first by also investing in initiatives that will be of benefit though it may have no direct bearing on our relationship.

Sustain project, nurture trees

Receiving the cheque on behalf of the MLNR, a Deputy Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, Benito Owusu-Bio, expressed his gratitude to the FBNBank for the gesture as the cost of the project was not one that government alone could shoulder.

He commended the bank for also demonstrating leadership in supporting governments effort in the Green Ghana campaign.

The deputy minister said it was not enough for trees to be planted without monitoring if they survived or not and thus encouraged individuals and corporate bodies that planted in the previous years, to ensure that they nurtured their plants to maturity to increase the survival rate.

That, he said, was the best way to sustain the project and make it successful.

Tree planting

After the presentation ceremony, officials of the bank joined members of the Rotary District 9102 to plant trees at Pantang Hospital in the La Nkwatanang Municipality in the Greater Accra Region.

Mr Asante, who is the Governor of Rotary District 9102, said protecting the environment was the foundation for sustaining the planet, community and economy, so by supporting the protection of the environment, Rotary was ensuring a sustainable future for this and the next generation.

Our environment supports and houses our ecosystems, allowing them to grow and thrive.

If we fail to protect our environment, we will put the lives of humans, animals and plants at risk, he added.

He encouraged the hospital to protect the new trees and also challenged everyone to plant and nurture trees at home or anywhere near them because it had the potential of contributing significantly to the countrys efforts to mitigate climate change.
Moree benefits from Pernod Ricards tree-planting project

Graphic Business Business News Jun - 09 - 2023 , 11:33

A beverage-producing company, Pernod Ricard Ghana, has planted 1500 trees in Moree out of 10,000 targeted trees, in line with its efforts to preserve the environment and ecosystems.

The exercise undertaken to coincide with the World Environment Day, which was commemorated last Monday, was also in support of the Green Republic Project, which has targeted to plant 10,000 trees over June.

At the project launch in Moree in the Central Region, the Sustainability and Responsibility Manager for Penord Ricard Ghana, Eunice Osei-Tutu, said the initiative formed part of the companys commitment to nurturing every terroir and its biodiversity for now and generations to come.

The project, she indicated, fell under one of the four pillars of Pernod Ricards 2030 Sustainability and Responsibility Roadmap dubbed Nurturing Terroirs.

Under that pillar, the company puts in initiatives to nurture nature, the environment and biodiversity.

In this month of June, which also marks the Green Ghana Day, we are planting 10,000 trees across the country and we chose World Environmental Day as the day to launch this project at Moree.

This is because, at Pernod Ricard, all our products depend on a flourishing ecosystem.

Even beyond that, as human beings, we need nature to thrive. So, we are here to contribute our quota to the environment so that this planet will continue to be sustainable for us and our children, she emphasised.

To sustain the trees, Ms Osei-Tutu said her outfit had partnered with the Green Republic Project, which would ensure the trees continue to grow.

Last year, in June, she said the company restored a previously mined area at Kyebi in the Eastern Region by planting 2,400 trees, indicating that the initiative was being extended to the Central Region as well as to the Northern Region.



20 million trees in 10 years

The Convener of the Green Republic Project, Nana Yaw Osei Darkwa, said the project was in line with its campaign to plant 20 million trees in the country over 10 years.

"Green Republic is a youth social movement that seeks to sustain the environment. As a result, we also focus on trees because, without them, humans cannot live.

We have a commitment to plant 20 million trees in the next 10 years and so we have collaborated with Pernod Ricard to plant trees at Moree. And as part of the Green Republic Project, we have the responsibility to ensure these trees survive," Mr Osei Darkwa stated.

Tidal waves trouble Moree

The Regent of Moree, Nana Obokese Ampah, expressed his joy at the initiative by Pernod Ricard Ghana and Green Republic to plant trees in Moree as the community had been at the mercy of tidal waves, one of the impacts of climate change.

"We had a very devastating incident at Moree a few weeks ago where tidal waves destroyed many homes, and I understand it was as a result of climate issues, so we are glad Pernod Ricard Ghana and Green Republic are here to not just plant trees but to also educate people on tree planting.

I believe their presence here has encouraged the people of Moree to see the need to plant more trees," the Regent said.

Nana Ampah, who is also the Apagyahene of Asebu State in the Central Region, called on other corporate organisations, citizens of Moree and other well-meaning Ghanaians, to come on board to plant trees on the shores of Moree to help save it from the devastating impact of tidal waves.

He also called for extensive education on the need to stop sand mining and exhibit good environmental practices, as people were often ignorant about the adverse impact of those actions.
See BoG's list of 97 unlicensed entities providing loans through mobile apps

Emmanuel Bruce Business News Jun - 14 - 2023 , 11:52

The Bank of Ghana has cautioned unlicensed entities that are engaged in the provision of loans through mobile applications to the Ghanaian public.

The central bank said this was in contravention of the Banks and Specialised Deposit-Taking Institutions Act, 2016 (Act 930).

In a notice, the BoG said it would continue to take action against these entities in collaboration with relevant state agencies to promote the integrity of financial service delivery.

The general public is therefore advised to desist from doing business with all unlicensed loan providers. Banks, Specialised Deposit-Taking Institutions and Payment Service Providers are cautioned not to facilitate the illegal transactions of unlicensed loan applications.

The Bank reiterates that the activities of these entities significantly breach customer data and privacy laws, as well as consumer protection requirements and norms, with unfavourable implications on the integrity and wellbeing of their patrons, the notice pointed out.

The BoG also encouraged the public to patronise the various types of digital credit products approved by Bank of Ghana and delivered by banks and specialised deposit-taking institutions in partnership with mobile money operators.

The general public is advised to consult the Banks website using the link below for the approved list of licensed institutions, before transacting any business with an institution, it stated.

Below is a list of loan applications offered on the market without a licence or authorisation from Bank of Ghana.
Shareholders applaud Access Banks performance

Daily Graphic Business News Jun - 14 - 2023 , 10:15

Shareholders of Access Bank (Ghana) Plc have commended the efforts of the Board of Directors, Management and staff of the bank for its strong performance in the 2022 financial year.

The commendation was given at the 15th Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the bank held in Accra.

At the meeting, shareholders noted that the banks performance signalled strong signs of sustained growth and resilience, despite credit impairments relating to the countrys sovereign-debt issues.

Access Bank Ghana recorded over 35 per cent growth in its balance sheet size from GH7.455 billion to GH10.835 billion during the 2022 financial year while its operating revenue went up by 38 per cent from GH832 million to GH1.150 billion.

The banks Loans and Advances also witnessed a 41 per cent growth from GH1.167 billion to GH1.645 billion, and total deposits by 60 per cent from GH4.623 billion to GH7.399 billion.

Challenges

The Board Chairperson of Access Bank (Ghana) Plc, Ama S. Bawuah, said that although macro-economic challenges affected the banks profits, Access Bank finished the year on a sound footing and with momentum to change the narrative for 2023 and beyond, having among other things maintained a healthy capital adequacy ratio of 34 per cent, which was far above the 10 per cent regulatory threshold.

The year 2022 was an exceptional year due to the largely unforeseen external shocks that resulted in painful outcomes and decisions not just for our bank but several players in the financial services industry.

We are, however, optimistic about our future successes given the strong fundamentals we have built over time, together with our unrelenting commitment to global best practice in applying sound corporate governance and risk management practices, she said.

She said the banks audited financial statements for 2022 revealed that the banks profits had been eroded leading to a loss position of GH 440.6 million.

In compliance with the Bank of Ghana directive to suspend the declaration and payment of dividends and other distributions to shareholders, your bank will, therefore, not be in a position to recommend any dividend pay-out, Ms Bawuah said.

The Managing Director of Access Bank Ghana, Olumide Olatunji, noted that Access Bank was still committed to becoming a catalyst for socio-economic development in the country.

He noted that despite the external challenges, Access Bank continued to support the real sectors of the economy to drive growth, create employment and generate the needed vibrancy to support the rebound of the economy.

Approval

Meanwhile, the shareholders of the bank approved all resolutions on the agenda, which included the ratification of the appointment of Ms Bawuah as Board Chairperson, and the addition of four new directors to the Board, as well as the adoption of the 2022 audited financials presented by Ernst &????

Young, Chartered Accountants for the period.

The four new directors that were approved include one Non-Executive Director in the person of Oluseyi Kumapayi, and three Independent Non-Executive Directors in the persons of John Bayuo Warisa, Jacob Kwame Kholi and Prof. Elikem Nutifafa Kuenyehia.
Vodafone commits to environmental sustainability with tree planting initiative

Graphic Business Business News Jun - 14 - 2023 , 11:05

In a bid to support the government's Green Ghana initiative, Vodafone Ghana embarked on a tree planting exercise, demonstrating its commitment to environmental preservation.

The event, held on June 9, 2023, at Accra Girls SHS, was attended by a diverse group of participants, including VGMA Green Award winner Worlasi, staff of Ayawaso North Municipal Assembly, Agro Ecom, staff of the Vodafone Ghana Foundation, the Human Resource (HR) Director of Vodafone Ghana, Hannah Ashiokai Akrong, and the Director for Legal and External Affairs at Vodafone Ghana, Preba Greenstreet.

The Director for Legal and External Affairs at Vodafone Ghana, Preba Greenstreet, stressed on the company's dedication to environmental stewardship hence its vision of providing environmental benefits wherever it operates.

"As custodians of our planet, we have a solemn duty to protect and preserve it. Vodafone's nationwide presence provides us with an opportunity to demonstrate our commitment to sustainability and to actively contribute to greening Ghana.

We aim to plant trees that will offer shade, sustenance, and fruits, contributing to a greener Ghana, cleaner air, beautiful scenery, and improved mental health," she said.

The Assistant Head of Administration for Accra Girls Senior High School (SHS), Gladys Kuetuadu, revealed that the school has been actively involved in the Green Ghana initiative since its inception adding that 90 per cent of the trees have been maintained well.

She further expressed optimism about the partnership with Vodafone Ghana to expand the country's green cover and appealed to the Vodafone Ghana Foundation to assist in refurbishing the school's ageing structures to prevent the need for new construction that could lead to the uprooting of mature trees and the destruction of the school's virgin forest.

Commitment

Vodafone Ghana's commitment to environmental sustainability is not new.

Since 2016, the company has been actively involved in protecting lands from degradation and exploitation through its Green Awards initiative which include recognising artistes who promote the green agenda at the Vodafone Ghana Music Awards, digitalising its top-up process to the point where, as of 2022, the company has ceased scratch card production entirely.

Vodafone Ghana has also adopted about 45 plots of land, the largest to be adopted by any corporate entity in Ghana to ensure the sustainability of the Achimota forest.

Additionally, Vodafone Ghana's solarisation efforts are supporting the environment by reducing greenhouse gas emissions. The company has started with the solarisation of two key exchanges in Accra  Dansoman and Achimota.

The solarisation projects are part of Vodafone Ghana's strategy to take full control of its electricity requirements, manage them more efficiently, and reduce costs.
Burna Boys a legend, not new cat  Stonebwoy slams Davido

vanguardngr.com Showbiz News Jun - 14 - 2023 , 13:00

Ghanaian dancehall artiste, Stonebwoy, has slammed Nigerian Afrobeats star, Davido over his remarks that Grammy-award winner, Burna Boy, is a new cat in the music industry.

The Activate crooner said, contrary to Davidos claim, Burna Boy is a music legend.

Stonebwoy stated this in a recent interview with GoldMyne TV.

If Davido said that, I honestly do not believe that he means that outrightly. New cats would be Rema, Ruger them.

So, I dont believe Davido meant that but also if you ask me, I think Wizkid and Davido had have a fair share of international appeal earlier than Burna.

Recall that the new cat trend has been a long-running issue among Afrobeats musicians in recent times.

In a recent interview that got social media agog, Davido revealed that he and Wizkid were significantly the first Nigerian music artists to break into the global stage and take the music to an international audience.

He then went further to mention some new talents like Rema, Fireboy, Mayorkun, and Asake as new cats while also including Burna Boy on the list, describing them as new cats, who are taking Afrobeats to a global audience.

Adding to the controversy, Adebayo Adeleke, popularly known as B-Red has said Burna Boy chased after his renowned hip hop superstar cousin, Davidos car the first time they met in Port Harcourt, Rivers State.

He said, Burna Boy is not a new cat to me because Burna has been there for more than a decade.

B-Red, the son of the Osun State Governor, Ademola Adeleke, disclosed, in an interview at Echo Room on Friday that Burna Boy was excited to see his cousin, Davido.

In what seemed like a corroboration to Davidos claims, Bred said, The first day I met Burna Boy, it was in Port Harcourt and he was running after me and Davidos telling us he loves our music.

B-Red also talked about his journey into music and his early struggles in Atlanta, in the United States, where he revealed how he hustled hard with his brother Shina Rambo.

He said he was the one who asked Davido to start singing and after Davido became popular, while he was singing his praise and this was how he also gradually became known and started his music career.

B-Red would eventually put out music with Davido and gradually get into the mainstream and enjoy some success.

Davidos statement has since generated massive reactions across social media as some people agreed with the classification affirming that 2018 and YE as the beginning of Burna Boys stardom.

On the opposing side are people who disagreed citing Burna Boys early success with his 2012 hit single Like To Party as evidence that he cannot be classified as a new cat.

Read also: The Grammys Highlife category will be won by Nigerians if... -Bullgod
Relationship between political parties and governments: Challenges and opportunities for reforms

Dr. Callistus Mahama Opinion Jun - 13 - 2023 , 17:52

RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN POLITICAL PARTIES AND GOVERNMENTS: CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES FOR REFORMS

Introduction

Political party politics has grown to become an omnibus vehicle that expresses and aggregates the diverse ideals of citizens in democracies across global political systems. They have effectively provided an enduring framework for multi-partyism and contributed immensely to political socialisation by providing multiple systems that generate and sift information to assist citizens in forming political opinions. In effect, they facilitate popular participation and help convert citizen preferences through voting. It is worth noting that partyism in its current form happened more than seamlessly. It practically jolted through an uneven process to form its existing stable template for most democracies. For instance, in early American political history, the Federalists were disparaged in favour of no-partyism and strongly advocated for a strong central government. The Federalists' position outraged their Anti-Federalists, who mounted spirited opposition. The struggle between these two factions ultimately resulted in the rapid evolution of political parties, which may be considered the inventive American response to political conflict. Today, prided as the leading democracy, the US has two strong political forces (Democrats and Republicans) with other "smaller parties" running alongside them.

In Ghana, just like her counterparts in Sub-Saharan Africa who attained Independence through nationalist movements and party activism, the single party (one-party state) was favoured in the formative stages after Independence to stem discordant factional alignments as its proponents contended. Effectively, the reason for the turn of events in the early stages of independent Ghana was partly because of the spontaneous emergence of ethnic, religious and regional-based interest groups, which hastily grew into becoming political parties.

To get political parties working to oil the wheels of democracy, the type of leadership these parties front is as essential as their existence. Indeed, the kind of leadership political parties maintain will invariably determine and affect the type of government a country is likely to have. This is the case in any form of political system; parliamentary, presidential or hybrid.

The Role of Political Parties in Parliamentary Systems

The Parliamentary System of government is simply a government with a dual leadership structure; the Head of State (the figurehead representative of the state and its citizens) and the head of government (the political leader of a government) who derive their power and legitimacy from Parliament, and constrained in different ways, with its survival depending on retaining the confidence of Parliament. Typically, its freedom of action is limited by the need to sustain a coalition between parties that have agreed to share the task of governing in times when a single party cannot secure a majority to form a government. The Parliamentary System is modeled around constitutional monarchies like the United Kingdom, New Zealand, Australia, Belgium, and Canada, among others.

Fundamental to the parliamentary system is that executive power emanates and ends in Parliament. The life of a government is therefore inextricably linked to the ability of the political party or coalition of parties that form the government to maintain control of the Parliament. The party leadership is undoubtedly consequential to parliamentary republics to the extent that in almost all such systems, the party's leader ultimately becomes the head of the executive branch (i.e. Prime Minister or Chancellor). For instance, except for Helmut Schmidt, every Chancellor of post-war Germany has served as leader of party, as has every recent Prime Minister of Australia, Canada, Israel, Spain and the United Kingdom. This is how central political leadership is in a parliamentary system. To this extent, most countries like Germany legislate that party leaders should be selected through a vote of delegates at a party conference to give effect to shades of multiple interests and wishes.

In practical terms, party leaders in parliamentary systems are influential because they largely control the legislature and the government. On the legislature, the parties virtually structure their everyday work, from purely organisational matters, such as where legislators sit in the assembly (front, middle and or as backbenchers), to the most crucial activity like legislative votes on critical policies and decisions, in line with the ideologies of the parties. And in government, parties are central in building the ruling coalition, defining policy priorities and balancing power within the executive, whether among coalition parties or between individual ministers. A case in point is the office of party president in Belgium, which is generally recognised as the most critical position in the party and the most powerful one in Belgian politics, with discretionary powers to select the party's ministers. They equally play a central role in the negotiations to form coalition governments after the elections.

To demonstrate how party and government are inseparable bedfellows in the parliamentary system, the Parliament of New Zealand passed the Electoral Integrity Amendment Act, 2001 to maintain proportionality within the Parliament. Also, the Act largely formalised and institutionalised party discipline, holding MPs legally accountable to their parliamentary parties with significant sanctions. This strengthens party accountability which individual parliamentarians cannot depart from.

The key to the system's stability is the party discipline that turns the cabinet into the master of the legislature rather than its servant. The governing party spans the cabinet and the legislature, ensuring the domination of the parliamentary agenda. The cabinet is officially the top committee of state, but it is also an unofficial meeting of the party's leaders. As long as senior party figures remain sensitive to the views of other Members of Parliament, they can control the legislature. The party uses the Whip's Office to ensure that MPs vote as its leaders require. In a robust party system such as Britain, a member who shows less Independence is likely to win promotion. In extreme cases, MPs are thrown out of their party for dissent. They are unlikely to be re-elected by constituents for whom a party label is still vital.

Sometimes a crucial decision as to the replacement of the Prime Minister is made exclusively by the top hierarchy of party leaders without regard to the voters or Parliament. For example, in 2007 in the United Kingdom, the selection of the new Prime Minister, Gordon Brown, to replace Tony Blair was taken three days earlier at a special conference of the Labour Party hierarchy. The succession was neither decided by voters nor by parliamentary majority members backing the Labour government in Westminster. Also, in 2010, the Prime Minister of Australia, Kevin Rudd, was replaced by Julia Gillard. Here too, the choice of the new Prime Minister was not decided by voters or in Parliament but rather through a closed-door, internal process of the party's parliamentary caucus.

The prominent features of the Parliamentary system of government include:

Dual but separate powers and leadership (i.e. Head of government and Head of State);

The leader of the majority party in Parliament becomes the head of government;

Political parties have direct control of the government;

The government is formed out of Parliament (cabinet government) except in Sweden, where the dual mandate (MP and Minister) is not allowed.

Political Party Leadership within the Presidential System of Government

The presidential system of government is a form of constitutional rule in which a single Chief Executive (President) governs using the authority derived from popular election alongside an independent legislature. The election to choose the President usually takes the form of a direct vote of the people, limiting the number of terms a President can serve. Unlike most Prime Ministers/Chancellors in the parliamentary system of government, the President directs the government and serves as the ceremonial head of state, implying the President wields both executive and formal powers. The President makes appointments to other key government institutions, such as the heads of government departments. However, some may be subject to confirmation by the legislature. The President and Legislature are elected for a fixed term; neither can dissolve the other, giving each institution some autonomy.

The presidential system of government dominates in the Americas. It is also found in many African countries, such as Nigeria, Togo, and Tanzania. The particular case of the United States is modeled around the representative system and, as such, provides important insights into how the presidential system works. The framers of the United States Constitution intended to create an office that could both make decisions and be prevented from accumulating too much power. They equally wanted to insulate the office from influence by the excitable masses, so they created an Electoral College within which each state had a specific number of votes, which, in most cases, went to the candidate who won the most votes in each state. Controversially, a presidential candidate can win the popular vote but lose in the College, as Al Gore did with his defeat by George W. Bush in the 2000 elections. This distinguishes the US system from the other Presidential systems where citizens directly elect the Presidents, except in South Africa, Burma and Botswana.

In the case of South Africa, Burma and Botswana, there is an exciting variation in the architecture of the Presidential system of government. Instead of being elected by a direct national vote by the people, the President is elected by members of the legislature. This makes the South African, Burmese and Botswanan Presidents more like Prime Ministers in a parliamentary system, mainly since the President is usually head of the largest party in the legislature. However, the South African President is both head of state and head of government. In the case of South Africa, the President is limited to two 5-year terms and is required to be a Member of Parliament to qualify and must resign from the legislature upon election as President. The survival of the President and government in the Presidential system is independent of party numbers in the legislature, and the President is tied to a national constituency. In contrast, legislature members are elected from local districts/constituencies.

At the heart of the presidential system is the Independence of the President and government from the party. Even if the party can influence any decision, it is usually done unofficially and behind the scenes, unlike in Belgium, where the party president practically appoints ministers and controls the government from outside.

Parties in the presidential system play external roles. They undertake their internal organisations independent of state interference, sponsor candidates on their tickets and design policies to campaign with. The President in office will be expected to implement the guidelines as the party designed. Still, the discretion as to the mode of implementation is mainly at the behest of the President. Although the President under this system makes his appointments in consultation with the party, it is only in some cases the President is obliged to do things within the confines of the party's dictates.

Unlike the parliamentary system, where a prime minister can be removed from office as a result of a vote of no confidence and can usually call new elections before the entire term of a legislature has run its course, there is a fixed term for Presidents in the presidential system except for exceptional circumstances where some influential Presidents amend or change their constitutions to enable them to run beyond the term limits as it was in the case of Togo in 2019 where the constitutional provisions on term limits were amended to allow for President Faure Gnassingbe to run for two more terms.

In effect, the political party leadership under the Presidential system of government has some control and powers over the government it forms. Still, these powers are less extensive than those enjoyed by party leaders under the Parliamentary system.

Political Parties in Ghana within the Four Republics

Political Parties have a checked history in Ghana, with their roots extending to the decolonisation campaign waged by the few merchants, intellectuals and people in business on the Gold Coast. And since the formative stages of political party activism in the late 1940s, the two main cleavages (i.e. the UGCC and the CPP) have dominated the space, surviving unwavering turbulence to maintain reasonably consistent ideological formulations and stable aligners.

The United Gold Coast Convention (UGCC) was the first major party, with its origins in the Aborigines Rights Protection Society (1897) and the Congress of British West Africa (1920). The UGCC was organised in 1946 to achieve "independence in the shortest possible time through legitimate and constitutional means". The principal leader was J. B. Danquah, who was later succeeded by Dr Kofi Busia, a sociologist who subsequently led Ghana's Second Republic. The two represented a well-off, highly trained, and sizable indigenous group. Their cleavage has been watermarked the Danquah-Busia tradition, redressed as the New Patriotic Party in today's Ghana.

The second political cleavage congregated around Kwame Nkrumah and his Convention Peoples Party (CPP)  a breakaway from the UGCC, with their "independence now" mantra. Its strategy mobilised the grievant interests of workers, women, servicemen, and school leavers. The populist ideals of Kwame Nkrumah set the bounds for recruiting well-trained leaders. Still, they hardly reflected the upper-class links of the UGCC. Kwame Nkrumah's participant-observer role in the African-American civil rights struggle, participating in Harlem demonstrations, meeting activists like W. A. Du Bois and Marcus Garvey and his links to the African and Caribbean students and leftist groups in interwar Europe gave him a particular radical and socialist orientation.

The current party scene in Ghana primarily reflects the two traditional cleavages mentioned above. The two big-tent political parties with national appeal and comprehensive platforms are the New Patriotic Party (NPP) and the National Democratic Congress (NDC).

Osagyefo Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, the first Prime Minister in office between March 1952 and March 1957 and maintained same after Independence until 1960, was subsequently elected as the first President for the First Republic after Ghana transitioned from a Constitutional Monarchy to form an Executive Presidency. To Nkrumah, African socialism retained the salient ideology and, with all intent and purposes, represented an available tool to socialize Ghanaians with the values of the modern state and a means of exercising effective political control. With effective political authority, the state is responsible for marshalling and redistributing resources to meet the people's needs. This informed the subsequent decision to use political parties as a rallying point to unite Ghanaians around one vision.

The proposed amendments to the Constitution in the January 1964 Referendum gave a twist to political party leadership and its role in national affairs. The declaration of a one-party state heralded the moment, indicating that the CPP was almost equivalent to the government. In effect, the CPP became the centre of affairs, with its leadership transitioning into government since Parliamentary aspirants for all constituencies were appointed instead of elected. The sudden death of multi-party democracy became a more significant challenge, and this increasingly became the boiling point and the nexus around which the 1966 coup was justifiably executed.

The inception of the Second Republic in 1969, in a multi-party parliamentary election, came with a different feature of partyism  a Parliamentary System with Kofi Abrefa Busia's Progress Party winning 105 seats out of the 140 seats contested and formed the government with a subsequent Presidential election through an Electoral College system. Edward Akuffo-Addo was elected the ceremonial President. Here too, political parties, just like the case in other parliamentary systems, as reviewed above, became the way to governance because the leader of the Progress Party became the leader of the government. The ills of the past (under Kwame Nkrumah) revisited the present. Despite the broad popular support garnered at its inception and strong foreign connections, the Busia government fell victim to sustained dissents which eventually collapsed the second republic in a bloodless coup in 1972. Although multi-party democracy featured in the second republic, the reason for the coup was that most of the government decisions reflected party interests rather than the broader national interest.

The Nkrumahists returned to the Third Republic. Their PNP won 62 per cent, and the Danquah-Busiasts, as the PFP, won 30 per cent. The Third Republic was short-lived; hence, much needed to be experienced in the significant roles political parties played at both government and intra-party levels. The "Rawlings' revolution" of 1982 was followed by people's and workers' defence committees that dispensed immediate justice and redistribution, replicating Nkrumahist populist and statist conceptions. Named the Armed Forces Revolutionary Council (AFRC) and later the Provisional National Defense Council (PNDC), the immediate appeal of his government was to the lower echelons of the armed forces, workers, radical intellectuals and the peasantry. The PNDC then gave birth to the Fourth and, perhaps, the final republic in 1992. This renewed the faces of the two cleavages, the UGCC/NPP and the CPP/NDC. The formation and recruitment of the leadership for the PNDC and, for that matter, the NDC was hugely influenced by the past recruitment patterns of the Nkrumahist. Among the privileged recruits were those affiliated with that military regime and various other radical intellectuals, unionists, students of the "Rawlings' revolution," and technocrats with little political experience.

Similarly, the 1988 local government system brought traditional leaders and young aspirants into the Rawlings camp (PNDC) with 110 District Chief Executives, a third of the district assemblies, and ten ministers coordinating regional coordinating councils. This gave the NDC its political colouration and orientation in today's Ghana. Indeed, political party leadership played a central role in the inception of the Fourth Republic, dominated by the NDC in the first two elections.

On the other side of the political spectrum, the Danquah-Busia tradition (i.e. the NPP) was under more duress during the PNDC era, operating as an opposition party. This class could not technically recruit to get a functioning political party. It sustained its leaders and recruits through several long-standing autonomous professional organisations and the university professors, the Ghana Bar Association and the Association of Recognized Professional Bodies. However, NPP recruitment was weakened by the long military repression, leaving more ground to cover when the Fourth Republic began. Nevertheless, the party also attracted its share of the new and highly educated technocrats while maintaining its alliances with traditional leaders. These bodies formed a considerable force in government to complement the NPP to maintain control and consolidate governance.

Into the Future: Experiences and Opportunities for reforms.

The life of political parties is very critical in every democracy. To this end, the four republics gave rise to an overriding objective of political parties: to capture political office through elections. Political parties in Ghana over this period aggregated groups to simplify an often bewildering plethora of interests. They mobilise voters, package and transmit demands, guide the policy option processes, and form broad alignments, cross-cutting cleavages, pacts, coalitions, and mergers. However, the records suggest political party leadership ineffectiveness and little consolidation. Thus, the Ghanaian experience has yet to have a clear definition of political party leadersdesignation and their commandeering role in governance.

Structure and resource organisation, money, candidate recruitment, and mobilisation of volunteers are fundamental to party success. A viable press is essential sometimes to develop inaccessible information, generate publicity, and direct public discourse. Generally, political parties have been weak because they were co-opted or displaced by personalists leaders, as was the case with Nkrumah and his CPP, Busia and his PP. After Independence, many structures were distinct from government and recruitment to party leadership needed to be more present. Even now, with the resurgence of democratic parties, the organisational capacity of these parties remains tenuous.

Cumulatively though, political parties in the four republics have had a fair share of their involvement in shaping Ghana's democracy and providing platforms for popular participation and good governance. Inevitably, the challenges abound and are conspicuous, ranging from funding gaps and uncertainties, independence from the control of incumbent government and general autonomy. These have had a sustained impact on the kind of leadership these parties have offered. This notwithstanding, political parties have played a significant role in the formation and running of governments, with many, if not all, leaders at various levels forming part of governments (at board levels, among others). At the very least, they exercise some control in Parliament through the whip system. However, this is only done with a related interest of the government or other interest groups.

In this current republic, Ghana has an excellent opportunity to fine-tune its democratic arrangements to make political parties effective and provide meaningful leadership at all levels. The conversation around legislation to create a funding mechanism for political parties to ensure some form of Independence is ongoing, and this should be given the needed attention. If enacted, these legislations will undoubtedly give the parties the power to be independent and redefine the leadership they ultimately offer. The current governance system, where executive power subtly subsumes political party strength and existence, is regrettably the most contributory factor to the ongoing weaknesses of the political parties. Parties must be treated as public entities as defined by the 1992 constitution and, as such, must operate independently of government.

Proposed Guidelines for reforms

As intimated earlier, political parties play a significant role in the sustenance of every democracy; they represent different ideals, interests and values of citizens. They create a primary vehicle for representation, policy drive and the ultimate exercise of power. For political party leaders to be effective therefore, they must conduct themselves in a way that will enable them win public trust, win and consolidate power and implement policies and programs that reflect the wishes and overall aspirations of the citizens they represent. They must also be guided by important leadership principles in their operations if they are to deliver a more effective leadership capable of securing and consolidating political power. Some of these principles, which have evolved from best practice and have stood the test of time, are presented in no particular order in the following key points:

Collaboration and Consensus-Building: Political party leaders should endeavour to build consensus and effective collaboration amongst key stakeholders including party members, coalition partners and other relevant non-state actors who influence and impact decision-making processes. To get the best outcomes in decision-making, political party leaders should create an environment that encourages open but productive dialogue, active listening, and constructive debate to reach informed decisions. Some considerable inspiration can be drawn from the example the Aam Aadmi Party of India practices. To achieve effective collaboration and consensus-building, the Aam Aadmi Party in India adopted a decentralized municipal budgeting process, with citizens direct participation in budget allocations. This allows the citizens and other interest groups to freely participate in resource allocation. In much the same way, the Dutch Peoples Party for Freedom and Democracy, as part of collaborating with various actors, put in place a mechanism that accommodates broad citizen engagement by allowing both members and non-member experts to sit in its internal policy committees. Consensus-building and effective collaboration creates room for healthy partnerships and ultimately results in good governance. Policy Formulation and Implementation: Effective party leaders as much as practicable must lead the policy formulation, implementation and evaluation processes, and this must be done to reflect and align with the party's principles and goals. As the chief executor of the social contract between citizens and political parties in government (especially in parliamentary systems), they must also oversee the implementation of these policies, monitor progress and make necessary adjustments to achieve desired outcomes. In the United Kingdom where the Conservatives and Labour Parties are frontrunners, they front their policy alternatives relative to their party ideologies, as do the Democrats and the Republicans in the United States. For example, under Margret Thatcher in the 1980s, the Conservative Party formulated and implemented policies on market liberalization and reduced government interference in production and service delivery. Conversely, the Labour Party administration under Tony Blair focused on policies, such as the introduction of the minimum wage, devolution of Scotland and Wales and increased investment in public services. In the case of the United States, the Democratic Party under Barrack Obama likewise formulated and implemented social welfare policies by, for instance, passing the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) and placed considerable emphasis on renewable energy in line with the partys ideologies as social democrats . Effective Communication: It is standard practice that political parties design policies and programs with due consideration given to the needs and aspirations of the citizens. Effective party leaders must consequently communicate these policies to the citizens in a way that the latter can easily relate to. A party may have superior policies comparatively, but convincing the electorate to buy into these policies is as important as designing them. It is therefore incumbent on party leadership to design effective communication platforms and strategies persuasive enough to connect with all segments of the electorate in order to build and maintain trust in the party and government. Clear, persuasive and localized communication via radio, television, local information centres, social media and direct engagements through town hall meetings can help build public support and enhance the party's reputation and electoral fortunes. Transparency and Accountability: Political party leadership must lead the transparency and accountability drive. They can achieve this by providing regular and timely updates on government activities, investigating and addressing alleged misconduct in their parties and government and by being responsive to public concerns. There is every indication that honesty, consistency and enduring commitment from political party leaders are very fundamental to securing support from citizens. Also, there has to be procedural effectiveness and strong institutions that will create a balanced interface between leaders and citizens. In practice, regular interface between political leaders and citizens improves political accountability, reduces corruption and engender transparency. Despite its importance, Ghanaian party leaders have been largely ineffective in establishing mechanisms for regular electorate-political party interaction especially in the area of eliciting feedback on party policies and programs. In its recent report, the Afrobarometer Briefing Paper evidenced that Ghanaian citizens have a low contact rating with state officials and political party leaders. The report indicated that about 85% of Ghanaian citizens do not have consistent contact with political party officials and 89% do not have any contact with a government official or agency. Against this background, it is incumbent for political party leadership to ensure regular contacts with the electorates to share their political ideologies, policies and program and get the feedback from the electorates. Meritocratic appointments: Political parties form or transition into government. By convention, formation of government through selection and appointment of persons into government positions is a fundamental task party leaders execute. For effective leadership, party leaders must focus on selecting competent but diverse individuals to serve in positions. Appointments should thus be meritorious and not purely based on party loyalty and activism. Where these leaders are able to carefully select persons who have the skill and the will to work, it becomes easy to ensure teamwork and collaboration within government. The current practice where merit and competence are sacrificed for party loyalty and other considerations is partly to blame for our decayed system; a system where most government appointees consider their selection/appointment as a compensation for sacrifices made to their parties and not a call to serve. The onus therefore lies on political party leadership to champion a change in course anchored on meritocracy and competence in the appointment of government officials. It is only through this that we can stand a better chance of building a government with strong institutions. Maintaining Party Discipline: Political party leaders must command greater loyalty and ensure cohesion of members by putting in place rules, principles and ethical standards that seek to maintain party discipline within party and government. Party discipline is integral in all forms of government (presidential, parliamentary, hybrid). It allows for parties to exercise constructive control over its members both in government and at party levels. The effective application of party discipline can promote unity among party members as well as serve as a determining factor in the practical functionality of the government. Almost all systems of government across the globe apply the whip system as a safe tool in securing cohesion and sustenance of governments, with strict sanctions exacted on deviants while promoting and rewarding compliance. For instance, to become true members of the Chinese Communist Party, members are required to take a binding oath which is strictly enforced. Party discipline tends to be very strong in countries that practice the Westminster Parliamentary System, such as the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. The Australian Labour Party, for instance, requires absolute solidarity with caucus decision while discouraging conscience voting and crossing the floor. An attempt to vote against a caucus decision can thus result in outright expulsion from the party. Long-term Planning and Crisis Management: Strategic but long-term planning backed by research and adaption to changing circumstances creates a solid foundation for political parties sustained success in government. Political parties often find themselves in very complex, uncertain and ever changing environments which require proper but workable planning. Political party leaders must therefore ensure that short-term objectives are well consolidated into long-term goals. Due to the inevitability of conflict in political settings, it is politically prudent to design plans that will include crisis management strategies. Leaders must be prepared to handle crisis effectively by creating crisis response mechanisms, including crisis communication strategies, as part of their long-term plans.They must demonstrate strong crisis management skills, including swift decision-making and the ability to rally the party and the public during challenging times.

These lessons discussed above emphasize the importance of effective political party leadership. By practicing proper collaboration and consensus-building, strategic decision-making, effective communication, and maintaining party discipline, leaders can contribute to successful governance and maintain public confidence in the partys ability to lead.
Opoku Ware JHS marks AU Day in style

Eugenia Adjei Mensah Junior News Jun - 14 - 2023 , 12:15

On May 25, the Opoku Ware M/A Junior High School at Santasi, Kumasi in the Ashanti Region celebrated African Union Day to share in the joy of the unity among African states.

Students displayed the flags of various African states as the headmistress, Mrs Anastasia Bediako-Amoa, gave her remarks.

During the ceremony, old students of the school (OBOSA), presented the school with some musical instruments and financial support to some brilliant needy students to aid them in their educational journey.

The parents of the beneficiary students expressed their joy for the assistance. The programme ended on a high note with a quiz competition among sections of the school with Dr Kwame Nkrumahs section emerging winners.

Staff members of the school.

In a related development, the school won a debate competition organised for public schools of the Santasi Circuit of the Kumasi Metro Education Unit.

The final contest was between the Opoku Ware M/A JHS and the Fankyenebra M/A JHS. t was on the motion: Corporal punishment should be reintroduced in the pre-tertiary schools in Ghana.
Train children to be critical thinkers

By Wilda Evans Junior News Jun - 14 - 2023 , 12:32

A former deputy Minister of Health, Mr Abraham Dwuma Odoom, has advised schools to train children to become critical thinkers who can identify ways to assist in the countrys growth when they become leaders.

He explained that schools should not feed students with every piece of information but should allow them to think deeply by making them conduct their own research to find answers.

That, he said would enable them to grow into independent thinkers who can influence society and the world with their own capabilities.

Mr Odoom gave the advice at the launch of the 60th anniversary and Founders Day of the Association International School (AIS) in Accra.

He further advised parents to visit their hometowns with their children, especially during festivals, for them to understand their culture and the needs of their community to assist in its development when they become adults.

The 60th-anniversary and Founders Day ceremonies are to celebrate the life of the late Founder of the school, Colonel George E. Amuah (rtd.), for his hard work and commitment to providing quality education.

Some alumni of the school, as well as dignitaries, graced the ceremony and also witnessed the unveiling of the Founders Bust and the schools new anniversary cloth.

The Head of AIS, Mrs Audrey Doryumu, said schools should make creative arts more dominant in childrens academics because it was one of the foundations of nurturing their skills for them to become confident in creating something through their own abilities.

Mrs Doryumu stated that for children to be recognised as visionary leaders, they needed to start determining their strengths early to work towards them and be risk-takers who could lead the country effectively.

The schools Early Years children illustrated the life of the founder of the school in a drama about his beginnings and how he became a mentor in education.

The school also debuted the AIS @60 song, which was composed by the AIS band, and a host of performances such as an orchestra, cultural display, music and dance, skating, and taekwondo, to celebrate the day.
SHSs energy inventions to go commercial "Energy Ministry, CSIR sign MoU"

Della Russel Ocloo Education Jun - 14 - 2023 , 09:01

The Energy Commission and the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to develop and commercialise renewable energy inventions by secondary schools.

The MoU will see the two institutions collaborate on a number of activities, including identifying and developing renewable energy inventions by secondary schools and providing technical support to schools to develop their inventions.

Additionally, the inventions would be commercialised through the establishment of a renewable energy incubator.

As a first step, CSIR will develop and commercialise a prototype solar dehydrator invented by students of the Kpedze Senior High School (KPESCO) in the Volta Region.

A solar dehydrator collects energy from the sun to heat air, which, in turn, is used to dehydrate food and agricultural products.

This came to light at the launch of the fourth edition of the Energy Commissions Senior High School Renewable Energy Challenge in Accra yesterday.

Renewable Energy Challenge

The challenge is a competition for senior high schools (SHSs) to develop renewable energy projects.

It is aimed at promoting the development and efficient use of renewable energy resources through public education, training and regulation of entrepreneurs in the sector.

The fourth edition of the challenge being held on the theme: Mechanised Small-Scale Agriculture Using Renewable Energy Technologies, will have participating schools develop projects in the field of agriculture that incorporate renewable energy technologies.

It is being funded by the German Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ), Ashesi University, Bui Power Authority and Sunon Asogli Power (Ghana) Limited.

The schools that qualify from their regional contest to participate in the national, will compete to win a number of prizes, including cash, scholarships and equipment at the national finals slated for October 2023.

Sustainable Agriculture

The Minister of Energy, Dr Matthew Opoku Prempeh, who launched the Challenge, said the government was committed to promoting sustainable agriculture in Ghana.

He said renewable energy could play a key role in sustainable agriculture by providing farmers with a reliable and affordable source of energy.

The minister, in a speech read on his behalf by a Deputy Minister of Education, Gifty Twum-Ampofo, indicated that the partnership offered an opportunity for the two institutions to nurture the innovations while propelling them into remarkable projects towards real-world implementation.

He noted that the rapidly growing global population had seen an increasing demand for sustainable solutions across various sectors, including agriculture.

That, he said, had made it crucial to explore alternative approaches to meet the ever-expanding food requirements while minimising the adverse environmental impacts.

The concept of mechanised small-scale agriculture utilising renewable energy technologies perfectly embodies this necessity.

By shifting our attention towards small-scale agriculture, we can establish a decentralised system that empowers farmers with greater control over their production, promotes local food security and enhances rural development, he suggested.

GES

Also speaking at the event, a Deputy Director-General of the Ghana Education Service, Dr Kwabena Tandoh, said small-scale agriculture played a vital role in feeding communities and contributing to local economies.

However, these farmers often face significant challenges such as limited access to electricity and reliance on fossil fuels for irrigating farms and this is where renewable energy technologies step in as a game-changer, Dr Tandoh said.

He expressed the hope that the challenge and other initiatives would help to promote the integration of renewable energy into agricultural practices, ensuring a sustainable future for small-scale farmers.

Germany

The German Ambassador to Ghana, Daniel Krull, in his remarks, said the competition presented innovative and green solutions that could improve Ghanas environmental challenges and their impact on communities.

In times of increasing energy prices and growing debts of the sector, renewable energies offer more competitive advantage to supply security and cost-effectiveness, Mr Krull said.

Energy Commission

The Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Commission, Prof. Ebenezer Oduro-Owusu, said it was important to prioritise education and innovation to ensure the country could catch up with the rest of the world, as an illiterate society can never develop to compete with super nations.

He also stressed that the COVID-19 pandemic had shown that Ghanas food security could be at risk in the event of a disaster if future generations were not educated and encouraged to be innovative.

The Executive Secretary of the Commission, Oscar Amonoo-Neizer, in his welcome remarks, said the idea was to ensure that students would be able to use the countrys natural resources to help find practical solutions to the challenges facing the country.

Our purpose is to acknowledge and commend the remarkable endeavours of our exceptional students engaged in this Challenge, which revolves around utilising resources from our local surroundings to tackle pressing challenges within our community, he said.

Mr Amonoo-Neizer expressed the hope that the engagements with the CSIR would ensure the long-term sustainability of the Challenge which would offer an opportunity for students, teachers and schools to reap the benefits from their projects.
$1.7 Billion required annually to meet WASH target by 2030

Timothy Ngnenbe Jun - 14 - 2023 , 10:39

The country needs $1.7 billion annually to provide adequate water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) services to unserved populations by 2030.

The fund could be mobilised through bilateral partnerships, access to commercial capital and leveraging private sector capital.

The Global Director of Water Practice of the World Bank Group, Saroj Kumar Jha, who was speaking at the launch of the Ghana water, sanitation and hygiene sector development programme (GWASHSDP) in Accra yesterday, said in an era of limited resources, to achieve the $160 billion required globally to meet water and sanitation targets under the SDGs by 2030, the nation needed to prioritise "thoughtful financial strategies that look at more sustainable funding sources".

He, therefore, called for stronger collaboration between the Ministries of Sanitation and Water Resources and Finance, as well as the National Development Planning Commission (NDPC) to raise funds for WASH projects.

Mr Jha commended Ghana for successfully implementing the Greater Accra Metropolitan Area Sanitation and Water Project (GAMA-SWP).

About programme

The programme is a 10-year initiative (2021-2030) aimed at achieving universal basic WASH services by 2030 in line with SDG Six.

It provides a framework for inclusive sector planning, implementation, monitoring, evaluation and reporting for sustainable WASH services.

The document for implementing the programme is merged with the national environmental strategic and water sector plans which reflects on current development needs in line with the SDGs.

Again, it provides an overview of the countrys WASH status  key actors and their respective roles and responsibilities, policy institutional and legal framework, as well as key challenges affecting the sector's performance.

The document also points out challenges in the WASH sector such as weak planning and coordination, inequalities in resource allocation, weak monitoring information system and the lack of integrated planning between water resource management and WASH.

It has six key components  water resource management and water supply; environmental sanitation  covering liquid and solid waste and hygiene; WASH in institutions; institutional development and sector strengthening; management and organisation of the programme and the cost of implementing the programme.

The document will further serve as a guide for the preparation of a WASH sector budget, mobilisation of resources and the implementation of future projects.

Achievements

The Minister of Sanitation and Water Resources, Cecilia Abena Dapaah, said the country had made significant strides in the sector.

Currently, population with access to basic drinking water services has increased from 79 per cent in 2017-2018 to 87.7 per cent in 2021.

Population with access to improved toilet facilities, including public toilets, has also increased from 66 per cent to 80.8 per cent within the same period, she said.

Ms Dapaah added that the government had invested $1.4 billion in water and sanitation projects nationwide, some of which had been completed.

She said about 5.3 million people were expected to benefit from those interventions.

Way forward

The minister said the goal of the government was to accelerate and enhance access to equitable WASH services across the country, using a multi-faceted approach.

We are emphasising governance and sector institutional strengthening to improve service delivery and increase the sustainability of WASH programmes, she added.


10 million Ghana Card holders without TIN

Emelia Ennin Abbey Jun - 14 - 2023 , 06:30

The Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) has found out that more than 10 million Ghana Card holders whose information has been migrated to its system are not registered as taxpayers.

Out of the 15.99 million Ghana Card records migrated from the National Identification Authority (NIA) database onto the GRA database, the tax authority has been able to link 3.08 million of its existing 5.74 million TIN numbers to the Ghana Cards as taxpayers.

This leaves a gap of 2.66 million existing taxpayers who could not be linked with their Ghana Card information.

The Commissioner-General of the GRA, Rev. Dr Ammishaddai Owusu-Amoah, told the Daily Graphic that the authority had an existing TIN record of more than 5.74 million, but only 3.08 million could be matched with the records it received from the NIA, leaving 2.66 million unmatched with TIN records.

The unmatched TIN records have been distributed to their assigned Taxpayer Service Centres for the necessary compliance activities, he said.

Context

Following the governments policy on the use of a unique identifier for all taxpayers, the Personal Identification Number on the Ghana Card (Ghana Card PIN) is to replace the Taxpayers Identification Numbers (TINs) of individuals for tax identification purposes.

Unmatched TINs

Responding to questions from the Daily Graphic for an update on some of the most crucial interventions of the revenue governing body, the Commissioner-General of the GRA, told the Daily Graphic that the authority had an existing TIN record of more than 5.74 million, but only 3.08 million could be matched with the records it received from the NIA, leaving 2.66 million unmatched with TIN records.

The unmatched TIN records have been distributed to their assigned Taxpayer Service Centres for the necessary compliance activities, he said.

He explained that there were concerns over 10 million Ghana Card holders who were yet to be registered with the GRA, as our assumption is that they are income earners or potential income earners who have to be captured in our system to enable us to mobilise the needed revenue for development of the nation.

Rev. Dr Owusu-Amoah explained that there were currently two approaches by which an individual TIN number could be linked to the Ghana Card, namely the automatic link and the manual link.

The automatic link occurred when the individual's data transferred from the database of the NIA to that of the GRA were in sync and automatically linked by the integrated system, while the manual link occurred when an individual's data transferred from the database of the NIA to the database of the GRA were not in sync.

To manually link the Ghana Card PIN and TIN, he said the GRA had made available three channels, comprising taxpayers visiting the GRA offices with required documents, using the Self-Service Portal to submit the TIN to the Ghana Card PIN link request via: https://myid.gra.gov.gh while taxpayers with no internet facility can use the USSD short code *299# to submit their TIN to the Ghana Card PIN link request.

Following the full integration of the TIN and Ghana Card PINs, he said taxpayers were notified of the status of their request via Email and SMS.

Validating tax returns

On the outcome of the electronic issuance of invoicing (e-VAT) project popularly known as the e-VAT, he said it had resulted in a change in taxpayer behaviour and resulted in improved voluntary compliance.

E-VAT has been piloted since October 1, 2022 with the aim of optimising revenue, while curbing abuses such as non-issuance of invoices, among others.

Since its implementation, the Authority has been able to validate the accuracy of VAT returns submitted by taxpayers, he said.

So far, he said, 43 out of the 50 selected companies for the pilot had successfully integrated their systems to the authoritys system, while the configuration for full integration were being finalised for the rest.

The introduction of the e-invoicing system, he said, had culminated in an improvement in revenue collection and there has been positive variance with the companies that have integrated so far.

The 19 taxpaying companies sampled from the E-VAT system saw an increase in their monthly sales from GH222 million in November 2021 to GH720 million in November 2022.

In December 2021, the total monthly sales of GH284 million also saw a huge increase to GH1 billion in December 2022.

He said a key challenge encountered during the implementation of the programme was the reluctance of taxpayers to integrate their system with GRAs system.

Another challenge, Rev. Dr Owusu-Amoah said, had to do with the technical capacity of some taxpayers to configure their systems to integrate with that of the GRA.

Taxpayers had fears that the system would disrupt their businesses.

With intensive engagements, coupled with series of testing, their fears were allayed, he said.

The Authoritys technical team, he said, therefore provided support to taxpayers as a means of creating an enabling environment for taxpayers to understand the technical requirements for integration.

As part of measures put in place to ensure compliance, he said the Authority periodically undertook mystery shopping to ascertain the effectiveness of its programme and ensured that taxpayers did not go contrary to the law.
Bank worker arrested for stealing more than GH1.2million from customers' accounts

Enoch Darfah Frimpong Jun - 14 - 2023 , 00:01

A contract worker of one of the major banks [name withheld] in Ghana has been arrested by the security agencies for allegedly stealing close to GH1.2million from customers' bank accounts.

He used two months to move the said amount from the various customers' bank accounts in a branch of the bank located at Osu in Accra.

The customers accounts he allegedly stole from included that of a former Inspector General of Police and a judge, who are both deceased.

What did he use the money for?

He allegedly used part of the money to buy a mobile phone, Iphone 14 Pro Max, a vehicle, Toyota Camry, moved some to his account in another bank and that of his accomplices accounts  17 in total - in various banks and their mobile money accounts.

He bought an airplane ticket and had planned to abscond to Dubai in the United Arab Emirates with his girlfriend.

The security agencies moved fast, put a trail on him and arrested him at the Kotoka International Airport on June 4, 2023.

Arraigned

The 25-year-old Emmanuel Sakyi Afriyie has since been put before court together with some of his accomplices and remanded in custody. His accomplices have however been granted bail.

He is facing charges on various crimes, including stealing and conspiracy together with some of his accomplices.

Emmanuel alone is facing additional charges of forgery of other documents and falsification of accounts, bringing the total charges levelled against him to 13.

Eleven other suspected accomplices are however on the run.

He pleaded not guilty to the offences.

The police are investigating the case further. He is to reappear in the court presided over by Ellen Ofei-Ayeh on June 16, 2023.

How did he do it?

The accused person is alleged to have used his boss password to do the transactions.

He allegedly secretly used a mobile phone to film his boss while she was entering her password and later watched the footage to know the password the boss was using.

He then used the two months period to move the monies from the customers accounts.

Facts

The Head of Fraud Detection and Operations at the bank is the complainant in the case.

According to him, the accused person is a resident of Labone and until May 2023, he was contracted as Processing Officer at the bank.

The accused person was employed by the bank as a contract staff in the month of February 2022 and was posted to the Osu branch as a Processing Officer, whose job description was to assist customers in loan processing, T-bill processing, debit card processing, dormant account activation and customer account maintenance among others.

Due to the job description, the accused worked on several accounts.

However, somewhere in February 2023, the accused registered for an online coding course, which the renewable annual subscription fee was US$174.30, equivalent to GH2,287.69.

Instead of paying for the course out of his own pocket, the accused rather made the payment on one of the banks customers Visa card on February 6, 2023.

As a result, the complainant and the Fraud team of the bank were gathering evidence on the matter to engage the accused, but he made a swift move to tender in his resignation letter, effective May 31, 2023.

The sudden resignation and the alleged illegal transaction on the customers visa card by the accused person made the bank officials more suspicious to investigate him in other areas.

The complainant, together with the fraud team, made up of the banks IT experts, detected that on April 20, 2023 the accused by his own machination accessed one of his colleagues User ID and password to change the contact number on another customers accounts.

So, on April 21, 2023 the accused personally set up an internet and mobile banking access on the same customers account, using his own User ID and password, after which he had access and started operating on the account without the victim customer receiving SMS alert.

Therefore, from April 21 to May 12, 2023, the accused with full access to the said account, fraudulently transferred a total of GH945,133.00 including charges from the accounts to a number of people.

First and foremost, he transferred GH90,000.00 to a girlfriend of another accused person, GH180,000.00 to anothers account; GH30,000.00 together with other transfers in tranches of GH30,000.00 on different dates within the said period to other accused persons accounts in different banks.

On May 9, 2023 from 7:21am to 7:32am, he used another colleague and that of the branch Managers Users IDs to change and authorise the contact numbers of eleven customers accounts, including the account of the deceased judge and the former IGP, who is also deceased and other customers and replaced them with only one contact phone number.

The prosecutor told the court that the accused used eleven minutes to complete these processes, after which he used his own User ID to set up online and mobile banking for these accounts on May 10, 2023.

On May 11, 2023 he transferred tranches of GH50,000.00 to other accounts and repeated that the next day.

From those transfers, the receivers stated in their respective investigation cautioned statements that the accused came to their shops to purchase Iphone 14 Pro Max and requested for their bank accounts details and forwarded the same to him to effect those transfers into their accounts.

On May 12, 2023 he was arrested by the Police in respect of the Visa Card theft and was granted Police enquiry bail to be reporting.

On May 15, 2023, the complainant on behalf of the bank petitioned the Director General of CID in respect of GH1,207,017.00 theft detected in furtherance to the Visa Card case.

Interestingly, when he was contacted to report himself to police, he refused to show up, meanwhile, effort to compel his surety to produce him also failed.

Arrest

On June 4, 2023, the accused together with his girlfriend, who stood as surety for him attempted to escape from the jurisdiction to Dubai, but he was arrested at the Kotoka International Airport by the Ghana Immigration Service and handed over to the police.

The investigation so far has revealed that the accused, together with his accomplices, within the period of April and May 2023, stole a total amount of GH1,209,304.69 from the various customers accounts.

The police are still investigating the matter to trace and arrest all the remaining accused persons as well as the proceeds of crime.

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Bubiashie residents demand relocation of mechanic shop

Dickson Worlanyo Dotse Jun - 14 - 2023 , 11:53

Some residents of Otu Street at Bubiashie in the Okaikoi South-Metro in Accra are demanding the relocation of a mechanic shop in the area for being a health hazard.

The residents have over the past 20 years complained about the activities of the mechanic shop, which they claimed generated a lot of filth, leading to constant choking of gutters with waste materials.

Apart from the filth, the residents maintained that the incessant noise from dawn to dusk was also a major concern which needed immediate attention.

A visit by the Daily Graphic revealed an unlawful invasion of the street by the mechanics, making it impossible for road users to access the road, thus creating a chaotic scene.

Vehicles of clients had been indiscriminately parked on the street, while the mechanics worked on them to the neglect of road users, aside from the abandoned vehicles.

Observation

It was also observed that the gutters near the workshop had become choked, while the noise pollution from constant hammering and usage of other tools was unbearable.

The abandoned vehicles and the choked gutters posed serious health hazards to the residents, as the stagnant water served as a breeding ground for mosquitoes.

As if that was not enough, the residents also complained of constant flooding in the area anytime it rained.

Two decades of suffering

In an interview, 74-year-old Etor Adansi, who has been at the forefront of the complaints against the workshop since 2001, said he had tried every means possible to draw the attention of the authorities to the crisis but to no avail.

I have cried for help so many times.

I have written letters to the AMA, the police and spoken to whomever but still nothing seems to be done about the situation.

I get no rest nor sleep and I cannot drive in and out of my home, he lamented.

He said not only were the surroundings filthy, but smoke emitting from burnt debris at the shop were also a nuisance to the residents.

Another resident, Derrick Amarh-Kwantreng, who has been living in the area since the 1970s, in registering his displeasure at the activities of the mechanics added that others had also erected structures indiscriminately along the road.

The workshop used to be in one of the houses but now we dont know exactly what they do that has caused all the gutters to be choked, but because the drains are not working the entire road has become eroded, he noted.

After gathering their waste, instead of finding a container and dumping it in, they burn it and just engulf the neighbourhood in smoke.

Its a terrible thing to see, yet all our complaints have fallen on deaf ears.

They dont care, Mahama Sumaila also lamented.

He called on the authorities to come to their aid and instil a measure of discipline for the sake of the residents.

Sub-metros no show

The Daily Graphic on Monday, June 5, 2023, contacted the Sub-Metro Director, David Aboagye, for his comments on the issue.

He conceded that he was aware of the residents plight and assured the Daily Graphic that his office would take immediate steps to address the concerns and bring the perpetrators to order.

We have summoned them several times but they refused to come.

So we are going there tomorrow to tow the vehicles.

We will invite you so that you capture everything for yourself, Mr Aboagye said.

However, on Tuesday, June 6, 2023, when the exercise was slated to take place, the towing trucks did not show up, neither did the officials and they declined to answer or return calls from the Daily Graphic.
Court sets aside contempt conviction against Chief of Defence Staff and Defence Minister

Emmanuel Ebo Hawkson Jun - 14 - 2023 , 17:28

The Minister of Defence, Dominic Nitiwul and the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), Vice Admiral Seth Amoama, have escaped punishment after the Accra High Court set aside a contempt conviction against them.

The two were convicted for contempt by the court over failure of the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF) to obey a court order not to encroach on a land, but their sentencing was deferred.

However, following an application by the Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Godfred Yeboah Dame, the contempt conviction against Mr Nitiwul and the CDS was set aside yesterday (June 13, 2023).

Ruling

In a ruling, the court, presided over by Justice Nabeela Naeema Wahab, held that the contempt application leading to the conviction was defective and against the rules of court since it did not list the personal names of the Minister of Defence and the CDS but rather their positions.

According to the court, failure to mention the names of the Minister and the CDS on the contempt application meant the court had no jurisdiction to determine the application.

The court considers therefore that even though the contempt proceedings have already been heard and a ruling delivered, the proceedings against the parties not personally named as parties deprived the court the jurisdiction to consider the sentence

The contempt proceedings and the conviction of the respondents applicant are therefore set aside, the court ruled.

A-Gs submission

Making a case for the application to set aside the contempt conviction , the A-G argued that contempt was a quasi-criminal offence and must therefore be prosecuted as a criminal offence with the respondents personally named.

The application for the contempt, he said, had the Minister of Defence and the CDS as the respondent instead of their personal names.

Respectfully where no named person is specified as the respondent to the application, the indication is that there was no proper party named as the respondent

The ultimate result is that the application is a nullity, void and of no effect and the court has no power to punish where no person has been named as the respondent, he said.

According to Mr Dame, the danger of not bringing a contempt application against a specific public officer was that a subsequent occupiers of that office could be made to suffer the wrongs of the previous office holder.

For instance, he said the alleged contemptuous act was said to have been committed during a period when current CDS was not in office.

The charge is brought against the specific public officer to be charged personally because the holder of public office can change anytime, the A-G added.

Background

The case leading to the contempt involved one Jonathan Obodai Sai, an estate developer, who won a judgment in 2018 over an 11.822 acres of land located at La in Accra.

In a suit, Mr Sai contended that he validly bought the land from the East Dadekotopon Development Trust (EDDT) but the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF) had taken over the land.

He therefore sued the Minister of Defence, the CDS and the A-G for declaration of title, recovery of possession and an order of perpetual injunction to restrain the GAF from going on the land.

The defendants refuted the plaintiffs claim of ownership and argued that a portion of the land belonged to the military which it intends to use to create a buffer zone protecting military installations from the public.

Delivering the judgment, the court, presided over by Justice Barbara Tetteh-Charway, held that the evidence on record showed that the land belonged to Mr Sai.

The court therefore declared title of the land in favour of Mr Sai and perpetually restrained the GAF from interfering with the plaintiffs enjoyment of the land.

According to the court, the only means through which the GAF could have access to the land was for the state to compulsorily acquire the land and pay the adequate compensation to Mr Sai as stipulated by Article 20 of the 1992 Constitution.

I therefore hold that until the provisions of Article 20 of the 1992 Constitution are complied with, the Ghana Armed Forces does not have an exclusive right over the area of land been earmarked for the creation of a buffer zone, the court ordered.

A year after the judgment, Mr Sai filed a contempt application against the Minister of Defence and the CDS with a case that despite the judgment by the court, the GAF were still in occupation of the land and had prevented him from going on the land.
Ho Technical University, Navy sign MoU on human capital development

Alberto Mario Noretti Jun - 14 - 2023 , 10:53

The Ho Technical University (HTU) has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Ghana Navy to provide certification to some technical staff of the latter.

The certification will cover cook stewards, writer-clerk general duties, stores inventory management and related courses.

The universitys programme is aimed at providing highly skilled human capital for the nation.

The Chief Staff Officer of the Ghana Navy, Commodore Prosper Modey, signed on behalf of the Chief of Naval Staff, Rear Admiral Issah Adam, while the Vice-Chancellor of HTU, Prof. Ben Q. Honyenuga, initialled for the university in Ho, the Volta regional capital, yesterday.

Relevance

Commodore Modey said the signing of the agreement testified to the shared dedication of the Navy and HTU to enhance the quality and relevance of the courses to build the capacity of the soldiers to enable them to perform their duties effectively.

He described the collaboration as unique since it involved two professional institutions committed to their respective mandates of providing professional and quality services to the nation.

According to Commodore Modey, the initiative was also in line with the Navys vision of training and maintaining a highly motivated, professional and robust naval force capable of defending the nation against seaborne threats.

The certification and accreditation of our courses by a respected institution such as HTU will not only enhance the value of our qualifications, but also open doors for our personnel to pursue further academic and professional studies, he added.

Programme

Prof. Honyenuga also said that the courses offered a unique blend of curricula, faculty expertise and resources which will enrich the learning journey of both institutions.

By combining our respective strengths, we can help to improve our collective fortunes locally and globally, he added.
"I am not a fugitive" - Charles Bissue says after being declared wanted by Special Prosecutor

GraphicOnline Jun - 14 - 2023 , 06:16

The former Secretary of the Inter-Ministerial Committee on Illegal Mining (IMCIM), Charles Bissue has stated that he is not in hiding and remains within the jurisdiction of Ghana.

He has also expressed his intention to visit the Office of the Special Prosecutor to provide the necessary information as requested.

The Office of the Special Prosecutor had declared Mr. Bissue wanted after he failed to respond to an invitation to appear and answer questions related to an ongoing investigation into suspected corruption within the dissolved IMCIM.

In an interview with Citi FM, Bissue expressed his disappointment with the situation, stating that he is currently in the Western region of Ghana and on his way to Accra.

He stated, "It is rather unfortunate, it has gotten to this. I'm within the jurisdiction, I'm in the country, in the Western region. As we speak, I'm making my way to Accra. The Special Prosecutor and I were in court a couple of weeks ago, and he wrote that he wanted to meet me on another matter. I told them I had an emergency at home, but they declined it and asked me to attend on a certain date which I couldn't. Further to that, all we heard was an arrest warrant for me."

Mr. Bissue emphasized his respect for the law and mentioned that he has already provided relevant information to the Bureau of National Investigations (BNI), Criminal Investigations Department (CID), and National Security. He assured that he has no intention of evading the authorities and questioned why he has been declared wanted when he has not committed any crime.

"I'm not above the law, I have always abided by the law. Already I have been to the BNI, not as a suspect, to provide information. I have been to the CID office, and sometimes I go in there to do some documentation for them. I have been with the National Security, and I don't think I will run away. I'm not a fugitive for my photos to be advertised out there. I will go to the Special Prosecutor's Office and provide the information required of me. I know I'm innocent, I haven't committed any crime. I haven't done anything wrong, I haven't sold any excavators," Mr. Bissue affirmed.
Justice Emmanuel Ankamahs orders in clear breach of natural justice  Supreme Court

GNA Jun - 14 - 2023 , 06:34

The Supreme Court says the orders made by Justice Emmanuel Ankamah, who sat on the case of the Estate of the late Rev. Emmanuel Dorgadzi at the Tema High Court, were made in clear breach of natural justice.

The Court held that the applicants were not given a hearing of the suit pending before the High Court, Tema.

Justice Emmanuel Ankamah, currently a Justice of the Court of Appeal, is being investigated for dealing with a matter he had no jurisdiction.

A five-member panel chaired by Justice Jones Victor Dotse (now retired) also described as sordid the act of the Judge and the Clerk at the time, Sebastian Agbo.

The Court in its ruling released on June 12, 2023, prohibited Justice Ankamah from further hearing the case and quashed his orders.

The panel recommended that all officers who played roles in the shameful act be investigated.

Justice Dotse said, in our collective wisdom, we deem it appropriate to refer this case to the Chief Justice to cause further investigations into the conduct of the trial Judge and Sebastian Agbo, then Registrar of the High Court, Tema under whose tenure the sordid affairs happened.

This should cover all officers who played any role in this shameful specie of conduct, he added.

The Court urged the Chief Justice to cause investigations into the apparent devise by the interested parties to undervalue the estate of the Deceased. He said the Counsel, who filed the application for and on behalf of the interested parties should be made to give explanation as to the basis of the valuations made in respect of the properties stated therein.

It is the considered view of this panel that, such an investigation will unravel the phenomenon that parties have been adopting to undervalue estate of deceased persons in respect of whose estates they apply for Letters of Administration.

We urge the Judicial Service to enquire into the circumstances that led to Sebastian Agbo, then Registrar of the High court, Tema being interdicted, he said.

For the avoidance of doubts, the said Judge Ankamah (as he then was), is also hereby prohibited from hearing or having anything to do with this suit or any related aspect of it whatsoever, the Supreme Court ruled.

The applicant sought from the Supreme Court an application for an order of certiorari to quash the orders/proceedings of the High Court, Tema presided over by His Lordship Mr. Justice Emmanuel Ankaman dated August 18, 2022, striking out the applicants caveat for want of prosecution.

It also sought to quash the Letters of Administration dated March 18 2022, issued by the said court to the interested parties for an order of prohibition to prohibit the said Judge and the Registrar of the High Court, Tema from further hearing and/or dealing with the applications/matters in relation to the estate of the late Rev. Dorgadzi.

It was the case of the applicants that, the High Court, Tema presided over by the trial Judge failed to observe the rules of natural justice, specifically, the audialteram partem rule in Suit Number E6/199/2022.

The applicants also contended that the Judge had no jurisdiction or exceeded his jurisdiction when on August 18, 2022, he purportedly ordered for the striking out of the caveat of the applicants for want of prosecution in Suit Number E6/199/2022.

It was also their case that, the trial Judge committed a jurisdictional error in respect of the estate of the deceased when on the face of the record, the same court had earlier issued Letters of Administration over the same estate.
KG classroom blocks inaugurated in Tain communities

Biiya Mukusah Ali Jun - 14 - 2023 , 07:52

A non-governmental organisation, ActionAid Ghana, has inaugurated two-unit kindergarten classroom blocks and offices in two deprived farming communities in the Tain District of the Bono Region.

The fully-furnished facilities include a two-unit classroom block for the Bepoayase D/A Kindergarten and another two-unit classroom block for the Yabraso D/A Kindergarten.

The facilities, which are girl-friendly, have ancillaries such as toilet and urinal rooms, mechanised boreholes, playing grounds with kits and stores, as well as furniture, to provide a conducive environment for teaching and learning.

According to the authorities of the schools, before the construction of the facilities, the pupils were studying in poor environments, which negatively affected studies and enrolment.

Commit resources

At separate ceremonies last Thursday, the Country Director of ActionAid Ghana, John Nkaw, appealed to the government to commit the needed resources to and prioritise the provision of kindergarten and primary school infrastructure.

He said the construction of the school blocks was an effort of ActionAid which focuses on social justice, gender equality and poverty eradication, to promote quality public basic education and create a brighter future for the children in the areas.

Mr Nkaw said quality education would help equip children with the knowledge, skills and confidence they need to navigate the complexities of the modern world, empower them to break free from the cycle of poverty and become active contributors to society.

He said ActionAid Ghana's commitment to education extended beyond the construction of physical infrastructure to the quality of teaching, the availability of learning materials and putting support systems in place.

Proper training

The Bono Regional Minister, Justina Owusu-Banahene, appealed to teachers, particularly at the kindergarten level, to ensure proper training of the pupils to enable them to become useful in society.

She called for collaboration among parents and teachers to ensure the proper upbringing of children, who would properly fit in and contribute to the development of the country.

She urged teachers to serve as models for the pupils to emulate and encouraged parents to be committed to their wards education more, than huge investments in worldly materials.

For his part, the Tain Member of Parliament (MP), Adama Sulemana, commended ActionAid Ghana for the provision of the school blocks in the area.

He said there was a huge infrastructure deficit in the area, particularly in education, and appealed to the government to invest in developmental projects in the area.
NCCE urges citizens to stand during National Anthem

Emmanuel Bonney Jun - 14 - 2023 , 06:48

The National Commission on Civic Education (NCCE) has reminded citizens that at the sound of the National Anthem and the National Pledge, it is the civic duty of every citizen to stand as a sign of respect to the State and those national symbols.

It said no one was born a good citizen and that was why the NCCE believed that we must be deliberate about nurturing good citizens with patriotic values.

Let us, as citizens, appreciate our civic duty, and collectively uphold and safeguard our patriotic values and national symbols for today's generation and posterity, a statement signed by the Director of Communications and Corporate Affairs of the NCCE, Joyce Afutu, said.

President

At the Green Ghana Day last Friday at the University of Ghana, the President was captured in a viral video instructing the Greater Regional Minister to take prompt action regarding some invited guests who chose to remain seated in disregard of the National Anthem that was being played before the start of the programme.

The president and all others had been up on their feet in patriotic reverence to the National Anthem.

Acting on the President's directive, the regional minister promptly approached the individuals concerned and gave them the necessary information and guidance.

It is important to emphasize that the regional minister sat alongside the president throughout the entire event, exemplifying their harmonious collaboration, a statement issued by the Greater Accra Regional Coordinating Council, said.

It said as has been his mode of appreciation to key invited guests at such functions, the President, after the programme, exchanged pleasantries with the special invited guests including the persons who were educated at his instance by the regional minister.

Apology

However, the chief of Mempeasem in Accra, Nii Torgbor Obodai Ampaw, who was at the centre of issue, later apologised for not standing up to observe the National Anthem.

According to Nii Torgbor Obodai Ampaw, he felt "weak" and was not feeling well on that day, and hence his inability to stand for the national anthem.

Responding to media reports on the incident in relation to President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo's directive for the chief to stand up, Nii Torgbor Obodai Ampaw said he immediately apologised through the Greater Accra Regional Minister, Henry Quartey, last Friday at the event grounds.

Disregard

According to the NCCE, it was concerned about the increasing disregard for patriotic values among citizens of Ghana and that it was gradually negatively redefining the citizenry identity as Ghanaians.

The commission, therefore, called on all Ghanaians to support moves to reaffirm Ghanaian values and identity.

Among the concerns of the NCCE is the lack of respect for national symbols.

Every citizen must respect our national symbols and promote the good name of Ghana wherever they find themselves.

Indeed, Article 41 (a) of the 1992 Constitution of Ghana makes this a constitutional obligation.

The NCCE reminds citizens that national symbols such as the National Pledge, the National Anthem, the National Flag, the Coat of Arms, the Ghana Currency and the Mace of Parliament among other symbols and State identities must be respected.

These symbols identify us, as citizens of Ghana, and they must be accorded the requisite levels of recognition and decorum, it said.

The words in the national anthem and the National Pledge, the NCCE said, were sacred and as citizens with deeply held religious values, we must not just say the words but sing and recite them with great commitment.

This commitment is important because the words embody our values as people with one destiny.

The Commission reminds citizens that at the sound of the National Anthem and the National Pledge, it is the civic duty of every citizen of Ghana to stand as a sign of respect to the state and these national symbols.
President commissions electricity project in Accra

Donald Ato Dapatem & Emelia Ennin Abbey Jun - 14 - 2023 , 10:17

President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo yesterday commissioned a $40 million Bulk Supply Point (BSP) electricity project at Adabraka, Greater Accra.

It is aimed at improving stability of power supply to the central business district and its adjoining areas, and also reduce power losses.

Funded with a grant from the Japanese government, the Ghana Grid Company Limited (GRIDCo) project extends 161 kilowatts volts grid to the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) Primary Station E, located on the Graphic Road.

President Akufo-Addo said the facility was a gas-insulated substation, GRIDCos first substation with such technology in the country.

It is an innovation in technology which is applied in areas where space is limited such that large capacity switchgear and transformers can be installed.

He said the facility would lead to a reduction in transmission and distribution losses, ensure high reliability of electricity supply and also provide a high level of personal safety.

It also includes the construction of a 3.4km 161kV double circuit transmission line from Avenor to a dead-end tower near the substation and a 0.4km underground cable to a new 161/34.5kV which interfaces with an existing 161kV Achimota - Mallam double circuit transmission line, among other equipment.

Significance

President Akufo-Addo said that the Accra business district consisted of major corporate entities which contributed significantly to the economy.

The electricity demand rate of residents and commercial establishments operating in the area stood at 10 per cent per annum, he said, adding that the power demand in Greater Accra was projected to reach 1,000 megawatts with an average annual growth rate of some eight per cent.

It is evident that the execution of the Accra central bulk supply project is consistent with the country's power needs and development, the President said, adding that the GDP growth rate was up to 15 per cent at the time of the project preparation.

Overloads

President Akufo-Addo further said that the project would relieve existing substations of overloads and allow for planned maintenance works to be carried out without power supply interruption to some customers, while it improves operating voltages to consumers, reduce the cost of extending and expanding the medium voltage (MV) network and evacuate additional capacity for projected load growth within the CBD.

He gave the assurance that the government will continue to work towards keeping the lights on in spite of the global dynamics of energy pricing, adding that the alternative is not an option. We are not going back to dumsor, we leave that to President Mahama.

The President said any country that aspired to industrialise in the 21st Century in line with its economic agenda to improve the quality of life of the people must necessarily ensure that its citizens had access to stable, efficient and affordable power supply.

Investment

The Minister of Energy, Dr Matthew Opoku Prempeh, said energy drove the socio-economic and industrialisation agenda of a country, hence, the reason the government in the last seven years had strived to provide adequate and stable electricity supply.

He said the latest commissioning was coming after the Pokuase and Kasoa Bulk Supply Points projects, which the minister said had brought immeasurable relief to industry and the people in the catchment areas by addressing their power needs.

The Board Chairman of GRIDCo, Kabral Blay Amihere, said the completion of the project was evident of the commitment of GRIDCo to provide reliable and efficient electricity transmission services to the people and to support the economic growth of the country.

For his part, the Japanese Ambassador to Ghana, Mochizuki Hisanobu, said the project illustrated the strong cooperation in the 60-year relationship between Ghana and Japan.

He commended the government and people for their cooperation towards the successful completion of the project.
Saglemi project case: Prosecutors file witness statements

Justice Agbenorsi Jun - 14 - 2023 , 11:15

State prosecutors have filed their witness statements in the trial in which former Minister of Water Resources, Works and Housing, Alhaji Collins Dauda, and four others have been accused of causing financial loss of $200m to the state over the Saglemi Affordable Housing Project.

In court last Monday, the prosecution, led by a Principal State Attorney, Hilda Craig, informed the court that all the witness statements the prosecution intended to rely on had been filed.

The Court, presided over by Justice Ernest Owusu-Dapaa, adjourned the case to June 26, 2023 for the defence team to go through the witness statements to pave the way for the completion of pre-trial processes needed for the case to officially commence.

Not guilty

Alhaji Dauda is standing trial with his successor, Dr Kwaku Agyeman-Mensah; the Chief Director at the ministry from 2009 to 2017, Alhaji Ziblim Yakubu; the Executive Chairman of Construtora OAS, the Brazilian company which constructed the affordable housing project at Saglemi, Andrew Clocanas, and a director of RMS, the Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) consultancy subcontractor, Nouvi Tetteh Angelo.

The five accused persons, who are currently on bail, have pleaded not guilty to 72 counts of wilfully causing financial loss to the state, misapplying public property, issuing false certificates and dishonestly causing loss to public property.

Prosecutions facts

Per the old facts presented by the Attorney-General (A-G), Godfred Yeboah Dame, in August 2012, the then President, John Dramani Mahama, granted Executive approval to the Ministry of Housing for the construction of 5,000 affordable housing units to be known as the Saglemi Affordable Housing Project.

The housing units, to be executed by the Construtora OAS Ltd, were to be sold to workers through mortgage arrangements provided by the then Ghana Home Loans Company.

Mr Dame said the project was funded by Credit Suisse, following parliamentary approval.

Review

Mr Dame said on February 27, 2014, Dauda, without parliamentary approval, reviewed the EPC agreement and signed both the original and the revised (restated) agreement with Construtora OAS, represented by Clocanas.

The revision allegedly changed the scope of works and the application of the $200 million approved by Parliament, the A-G said.

Disbursement

Credit Suisse, he said, disbursed the $198 million ($200 million less fees and transaction expenses) into the Escrow Account and the 40 per cent advance payment to Construtora OAS was effected on February 27, 2013.

He said the contractor failed to apply the amount towards the intended purpose.

On December 21, 2016, he said, Yakubu again reviewed the original and revised (restated) agreement and signed them (second and his revised or restated), without recourse to Parliament.

That led to a further reduction in the scope of works to 1,412 housing units at a revised price of $181 million and extended the completion period to July 31, 2017, the A-G alleged.

The prosecution further alleged that series of payments were made to the contractor and sub-contractors for no work done.
Set free: Brong-Ahafo Presby settles fines of 18 prisoners 

Emmanuel Adu-Gyamerah Jun - 14 - 2023 , 07:47

The Brong-Ahafo Presbytery of the Presbyterian Church of Ghana (PCG) has paid a total amount of GH28,392 as fines imposed on 18 prisoners, to set them free.

The Brong-Ahafo Presbytery of the PCG covers the Ahafo Region and parts of Bono, Western North, Ashanti and the Bono East regions.

It was an emotionally teary mid-morning last Friday at the Sunyani Central Prisons when 14 out of the 18 prisoners whose fines were settled were freed.

The prisoners, whose ages ranged between 18 and 31, were serving jail terms ranging from three to 20 months.

While the highest fine imposed on the freed prisoners was GH2,640, the lowest was GH480.

Tears flowed as the Chaplain of the Sunyani Central Prisons, Superintendent Reverend Gideon Ndebugri, handed over the 14 prisoners to the Chairperson of the Brong-Ahafo Presbytery of the Presbyterian Church of Ghana, Reverend Benjamin Appiah, after a brief ceremony.

An emotionally touched Rev. Appiah hugged the freed prisoners one after the other, while the clergy and some members of the church who attended the ceremony, as well as the freed prisoners, applauded the gesture.

"We are short of words and nothing can describe our feelings this morning.

We never thought this could happen so soon," Richmond Asamoah said when he thanked the church on behalf of his freed colleagues.

Prisons ministry

The Prisons Ministry of the Brong-Ahafo Presbytery of the PCG, on April 30, 2023, feted over 900 inmates of the Sunyani Central Prisons, during which the church called on the inmates to put their trust in God.

In a short speech, Rev. Appiah urged the freed prisoners to say goodbye to prison by avoiding mistakes that brought them into prison.

"We will help them to acquire vocational skills that can make them set up their businesses to benefit themselves and others if they give us the chance to do so.

"I can see nobility in these men, and if they will allow Christ to take control of their lives, they will be useful to themselves and the society in the future," Rev. Appiah said.

He, therefore, advised the beneficiaries not to allow their incarceration to cloud the rest of their lives.

"This should not be the end of your lives.

God can change you for the better," he stated and encouraged them to go back to society as changed persons.

He explained that even though the church paid the fines of 18 inmates, one person had already gone home, while three others were undergoing court processes before they would be allowed to gain their freedom.

Rev. Appiah added that the prisons ministry was part of the presbytery's response to Jesus Christ's admonition to Christians to seek the welfare of prisoners.

Relief

The Bono, Bono East and Ahafo Regional Commander of the Ghana Prisons Service, Deputy Director of Prisons (DDP) Williams Kulah, commended the Church for the gesture.

"The gesture is a relief to the Ghana Prisons Service since it will reduce congestion at the Sunyani Central Prisons," he said.

He explained that the Sunyani Central Prisons, which was built for 400 inmates, was currently hosting more than 900 inmates.

DDP Kulah, therefore, urged all faith-based groups to emulate the love shown by the Brong-Ahafo Presbytery of the PCG and assist in efforts to solve problems confronting their various prison establishments across the country.

He stated that feeding prisoners was a challenge since the current allocation of GH1.80 for each prisoner per day was woefully inadequate, and appealed for the increase of the amount to GH5.00.

After the ceremony, the freed prisoners were taken to the Ebenezer Congregation of the PCG in Sunyani, where they were fed and counselled before leaving for their various destinations.
Sharp decline in appetite for news in recent years - Reuters Institute

bbc.com Jun - 14 - 2023 , 12:15

The number of people taking a strong interest in the news has dropped by around a quarter in the last six years, a global study suggests.

A report by Oxford University's Reuters Institute says 48% of people around the world are very or extremely interested in the news - down from 63% in 2017.

More than a third of people (36%) worldwide say they sometimes or often actively avoid the news.

The authors of the institute's report said there was evidence that audiences "continue to selectively avoid important stories such as the war in Ukraine and the cost-of-living crisis as they cut back on depressing news and look to protect their mental health".

The Digital News Report 2023 also concluded that traditional TV and print news media are continuing to decline, while "online consumers are accessing news less frequently than in the past and are also becoming less interested".

Four in 10 people (40%) say they trust most news most of the time, down two percentage points compared with last year.

The research also reported that more than half (56%) of those surveyed worry about identifying what news is real and fake online - up two percentage points.

Rise of TikTok

The most important social media platform for news is still Facebook, although it is in long-term decline, with the number accessing it each week for news dropping from 42% to 28% over the past seven years.

Facebook has also downgraded news. It says less than 3% of its news feed these days is traditional news stories. The tweaking of the algorithm over recent years has been catastrophic for some organisations that relied on its traffic.

TikTok and Instagram have both seen increases in use. Instagram is now a source of news for 14% of people, with TikTok on 6%.

But the figures are much higher for young users. One in five (20%) 18 to 24-year-olds get news from TikTok, up from 15% last year. The report says the platform "is the fastest growing social network in our survey".

However, it is not necessarily news from traditional news providers. TikTok users are more likely to get news on the platform from celebrities, influencers or ordinary creators than mainstream news outlets or journalists.

Reuters Institute director Rasmus Neilsen said: "Younger generations increasingly eschew direct discovery for all but the most appealing brands.

"They have little interest in many conventional news offers oriented towards older generations' habits, interests, and values, and instead embrace the more personality-based, participatory, and personalised options offered by social media, often looking beyond legacy platforms to new entrants."

Liking, sharing and commenting about news on open social media platforms is also in decline.

However, while the sharing of articles and engagement time may have dropped, it doesn't mean such sites are being deserted.

Twitter made headlines after it was bought by Elon Musk, but the number of people using the site each week appears to have has barely changed. There is, Reuters said, no evidence of a mass movement to rivals such as Mastodon.
Work to reduce audit infractions - Senior civil servants advised

Emelia Ennin Abbey Jun - 13 - 2023 , 16:42

The Head of Local Government Service, Dr Nana Ato Arthur, has challenged chief directors and regional coordinating directors (RCDs) of the service to make conscious efforts to significantly reduce audit infractions in their respective regions.

That, he said, could be achieved by adhering to audit recommendations and responding to breaches raised through auditing within the stipulated period under review.

Dr Arthur made the call during the opening of a two-day retreat for chief directors and regional coordinating directors in Kumasi.

The retreat was on the theme: Strengthening the RCCs for effective and efficient Public Service delivery at the local level .

Retreat

As part of the activities outlined for the meeting, the chief directors were refreshed on promoting Ethics in Public Service and Work-Life Balance to deliver effective and efficient service and enhance their role, professionalism and ethical values, and to ultimately strengthen their administrative capacities.

Dr Arthur said an agreement had been entered into with the nationwide medical insurance company to offer services to all staff and complement the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS).

He thus enjoined the chief directors and all staff of the Local Government Service to subscribe to the medical insurance policy provided by the nationwide medical insurance company.

Consequently, all staff were to enrol on at least the minimum premium of GH30 for subscribers while officers could request add-ons after the initial onboarding.

Dr Arthur therefore, tasked the chief directors to facilitate the successful onboarding of all Local Government Service staff to ensure that none was left out.

The Ashanti Regional Director of the Audit Service, Kumasi District "B", Saani Abdulai, said audit infractions could drastically be reduced if the various metropolitan, municipal and district assemblies (MMDAs) committed to addressing financial irregularities at the local level and adhere to audit recommendations.

Mr Saani called on regional coordinating directors to provide Local Government staff with the needed training to build their competence in handling audit breaches.

The Chief Director of the Office of the Head of Local Government Service, Felicia Dapaah, encouraged the regional coordinating directors to use the retreat as a platform to share best practices in reducing audit queries and provide the needed leadership to the MMDAs to reduce audit infractions.

Ms Dapaah also implored the chief directors to include monitoring of their sub-district structures in their quarterly monitoring.

Development partners

Speaking on behalf of KFW Development Bank, Samuel Anokye emphasised the need for the Local Government Service to ensure financial discipline was enhanced to address audit infractions.

He urged the Office of the Head of Local Government Service (OHLGS) to ensure that staff assigned to the various MMDAs were well qualified with the competences required, to provide effective and efficient use of resources.

He advocated regular capacity building for staff at all levels.
Lets consolidate constitutional democracy  Speaker

Mohammed Fugu Politics Jun - 14 - 2023 , 06:39

The Speaker of Parliament, Alban Sumana Kingsford Bagbin, has emphasised the need for all to work towards consolidating the gains of Ghanas 30 years of uninterrupted constitutional democracy.

He described Ghana's journey in Multiparty Constitutional Democracy as a remarkable achievement worthy of celebration.

He said it was an opportunity for Ghanaians to remember where the country came from, reflect and examine the journey, challenges and opportunities, and map out the way forward.

Courtesy call

Mr Bagbin said this when he paid a courtesy call on the Overlord of Mamprugu, Nayiri Naa Bohagu Mahami Abdulai Sheriga, in Nalerigu yesterday.

The visit formed part of a week-long activities being organised by Parliament in the northern part of the country to celebrate Ghana's 30 years of uninterrupted constitutional democracy.

It aimed at fostering civic engagement and enhancing public awareness of Ghana's parliamentary democracy.

Democratic dispensation

Paying a glowing tribute to the traditional authorities for their contribution to the democratic dispensation, Mr Bagbin said the story of Ghanas journey in uninterrupted constitutional democracy could not be told without the traditional rulers.

He urged the citizenry to develop interest in parliamentary activities, saying, "let's all show interest in parliamentary affairs and not leave everything to only the politicians."

"It is not only for the District Chief Executives and Members of Parliament but we all must get involved in the governance of the country," he stated.

For his part, Naa Bohagu Sheriga thanked the Speaker for the visit him and said he was the first Speaker of Parliament to have visited during the Fourth Republic.
Apple maintains position as world's most valuable brand (LIST)

Graphic Online Technology Jun - 14 - 2023 , 16:13

The Kantar BrandZ Most Valuable Global Brands Report 2023 reveals that Apple has retained its title as the world's most valuable brand for the second consecutive year.

With a brand valuation of $880 billion, Apple has proven its resilience in challenging market conditions and continues to justify premium prices through positive perceptions.

The report highlights that meaningful, different, and salient brands are best equipped to navigate global economic disruptions successfully.

While the overall index of the Kantar BrandZ Top 100 experienced a 20% decline compared to 2022, it has shown a remarkable 47% growth compared to pre-Covid levels in 2019, indicating a long-term growth trajectory for brands. Microsoft has surpassed Amazon to join Google in the top three, reaffirming the dominance of technology brands in the rankings. Notably, McDonald's is the most valuable non-tech brand, and Coca-Cola has rejoined the top 10.

Martin Guerrieria, head of Kantar BrandZ, commented on the results, stating, "This year's results  despite the fall in aggregate value  are, in fact, a continuation of the long-term growth trend for brands, which began following the global financial crisis of 2008 and continued up until the start of the pandemic in 2020. While the market has proved volatile and been greatly impacted by global macroeconomics, consumers' view of brands has proved far more stable  the most valuable brands in the world remain as highly regarded as ever."

The report emphasizes the importance of building powerful connections with consumers, which enables brands to create shareholder value, resist market downturns, and recover swiftly from recessions. Brands with strong connections possess three essential qualities: they are meaningful, different, and salient.

Key highlights from the report include the growth of 16 brands in brand value within the top 100, with Airtel and Pepsi experiencing the highest growth at 24% and 17% respectively. Nine brands, including Colgate, Sony, and Pampers, have returned to the top 100 rankings. Additionally, two Chinese brands, Shein and Nongfu Spring, have entered the list for the first time. The luxury, fast food, and food & beverages categories demonstrated resilience to market fluctuations.

The report also points out that brands that can justify higher prices compared to competitors, based on strong consumer equity, have grown at twice the rate, adding 67% to their brand value over the past four years. However, sustainability remains an untapped opportunity for brands, with only 2% of the most valuable global brands perceived as leaders in this area.

Among the success stories of 2023, Pepsi's brand value surged by 17% to $18.8 billion, earning the brand a place in the global ranking at No. 91. Coca-Cola demonstrated resilience by increasing its brand value by 8% and reclaiming a spot in the top 10 after seven years.

TikTok retains its position as the second most disruptive brand in the top 100, following Tesla. Tesla remains a true game-changer and ranks No. 1 in the automotive category with a valuation of $67.7 billion. Ferrari, although outside the top 100, entered the top 10 automotive brands with a valuation of $7.8 billion, indicating increased demand and perceived value despite challenging market conditions. Emerging brands in the electric vehicle (EV) space, such as Polestar, Li Auto, and Genesis, are predicted to gain value in the future.

The food & beverage category demonstrated resilience with only a 3% decline in brand value year-on-year. Doritos, ranked No. 19 in the category, showcased the value of superior taste messaging and functional benefits in outperforming competitors.

The fast food category emerged as the second-highest performing category, with Burger King, Chick-Fil-A, and Starbucks leading the way. Burger King's investments in brand communications, menu simplification, and digital boards resulted in an 8% increase in value to $7.7 billion compared to the previous year.

Luxury brands maintained their allure despite incremental price increases. Louis Vuitton climbed two places to No. 8, becoming the only luxury brand in the global top 10 with a brand value of $124.8 billion. Dior experienced the highest growth in the category, increasing its brand value by 9% to $11.4 billion. This indicates that luxury brands effectively leverage their distinctive assets to drive higher demand and pricing power, even in challenging economic conditions.

Guerrieria concluded, "Brands need to continue investing in brand-building, product, and market diversification to grow. This year's results clearly show that, even in the current macroeconomic environment, it remains possible to find growth in any category and territory with the right strategy focused on establishing and maintaining strong connections with consumers. BrandZ analysis proves that perceived difference is a key predictor of share growth. Promoting any sense of difference and making it more known and relevant to consumers will boost brand value in the long term."

The report highlights the importance of effective marketing investment and long-term thinking for brands to achieve growth and resilience in volatile market conditions. With their strong consumer connections, the most valuable brands continue to be highly regarded worldwide, demonstrating their ability to weather market fluctuations and deliver value to their shareholders.
Saudi Arabias Ministry of Investment signed a $5.6-billion deal with China-based electric vehicle manufacturer Human Horizons (earlier post) to collaborate on the development, manufacture and sale of vehicles, according to the Saudi state news agency.

The deal was one of 0 investment agreements worth more than $10 billion (SAR 37.5 billion) signed during the the 10th Arab-China Business Conference, hosted by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Investment sectors included technology, renewables, agriculture, real estate, minerals, supply chains, tourism, and healthcare.

Saudi Arabia plans to develop a domestic electric vehicle manufacturing industry.

Human Horizons said in March it would launch its premium HiPhi brand in some European markets this year.
British electric vehicle manufacturer Tevva has successfully completed development of the regenerative braking system on its 7.5t battery-electric truck. Part of this involved working with global Tier 1 supplier ZF to integrate its Electronic Brake System (EBS) for use in zero-emission Tevva electric trucks.

The implementation of EBS (Electronic Brake System) allowed for a safe incorporation of regenerative braking up to 180 kW, whereas the traditional air brake system had limited passive regen to around 40 kW due to safety considerations.

ZFs Commercial Vehicle Solutions (CVS) is the worlds largest supplier to the commercial vehicle industry offering solutions for vehicle motion control, integrated safety, automated driving, and electric mobility. ZF worked with Tevva to adapt its EBS for deployment in the Tevva 7.5t battery electric vehicle, which uses a blend of regenerative and compressed air brakes to add an extra layer of safety and responsiveness for drivers.

Tevvas engineers successfully met a range of stringent testing criteria for the companys truck to receive ZFs approval, working on fine-tuning the electric trucks vehicle control unit (VCU) and enhance compatibility with the EBS.

The result is a system that recuperates up to four times more energy than a conventional compressed air brake system, optimizing the range of the Tevva truck. Testing of the adapted system, which took place at the ZF test track in Jeversen, Germany, involved a variety of conditions, gradients and surface types.





Technological advancements allow a modern EBS system to control the blending of friction braking with the e-motor, reducing brake wear and tear. The system transfers the drivers deceleration request electronically to all braking system components to shorten response time, balance brake forces and provide ease of braking and efficient brake management.

Tevvas 7.5t battery-electric vehicle (BEV) has this year begun mass production at the companys London facility. This will be followed by a 7.5t hydrogen-electric truck, which benefits from a hydrogen range-extender that enhances vehicle range to 354 miles (570 km). The Tevva BEV offers up to 140 miles (227 kilometers) from its 105 kWh battery on a single charge and is ideal for last-mile and urban delivery fleets.
Samsung announced that it's readying an irregular heart rate tracking feature that will debut with the upcoming Galaxy Watch6 series and will later reach older models too. It's going to be introduced via Samsung's Health Monitor app, which is also used for ECG measurements.

And although unconfirmed, it seems that only Samsung smartphone owners will get notifications for irregular heart rate since the app is available only to Samsung devices. It also sounds like the irregular heart rate tracking will require continuous heart rate tracking to be enabled, which sounds reasonable enough.

The feature itself aims at identifying atrial fibrillation (AFib), although it's not meant to diagnose the condition. Samsung stresses the fact that it doesn't replace a real-life physician and it only aims at shedding light on the problem and encouraging the user to visit a medical professional for further assessments. The feature will also help you keep an eye on heart health between doctor visits.

More than 70 countries have approved Samsung's Health Monitor app and its ECG capabilities, but irregular heart rate monitoring will require additional regional approval. For now, only South Korea, the USA, Argentina, Azerbaijan, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Georgia, Guatemala, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Panama and the UAE have approved the new feature.

Source




Haiti - FLASH : The Consulate of Jamaica attacked, suspends its operations in Haiti





Jamaica's consular services in Haiti have been suspended indefinitely following an attack Monday night by heavily armed individuals on a commercial establishment that houses the Jamaican Consulate in Port-au-Prince.



Kamina Johnson Smith, the Minister for Foreign Affairs, said the Sun Auto dealership and the Consulate were ransacked, looted and set on fire by gangs on Monday night.



Ms Johnson Smith expressed her sympathy with the owners of the business, adding that the department was awaiting further details of the incident.



She said the attack strengthened the resolve of the Government of Jamaica "to play a role in supporting all efforts to bring Haiti back to the peace and prosperity it and its people deserve."



HL/ HaitiLibre






















Haiti - News : Zapping...





Justice : 4 gas stations closed in Cap Haitien

Several service stations in Cap-Haitien were sealed off last Saturday due to black market practice on fuel prices at the pump. These stations had decided to sell the gallon of gasoline and diesel at an amount higher than the official prices of 570 and 670 gourdes, which are practiced in the other departments. Let's recall that Monday 4th had been closed in the city of Les Cayes for the same reason https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-39769-haiti-news-zapping.html



A journalist kidnapped then released

Journalist Marie Lucie Bonhomme of Radio Vision 2000 was kidnapped from her home Tuesday night by around 30 armed men who broke into her residence in Tabarre. She was taken from her residence to the base of the gang leader, Vitelhomme Innocent who questioned her before ordering her immediate release. Her house was vandalized.



OAS : Meeting between the SG of the OAS and Ambassador Leon Charles

Luis Almagro, Secretary General of the OAS received Tuesday morning the Permanent Representative of Haiti to the OAS, Ambassador Leon Charles as a prelude to the holding of the 53rd General Assembly of the OAS in order to support the strengthening of the spirit of dialogue between all the actors of Haitian society.



PNH : intellectual tests

The PNH organized intellectual tests on June 11, 2023 for the recruitment of the 33rd promotion of this body. A total of 6732 applicants including 1374 women took part in the tests. "I want to become a police officer to serve my country. I want to exercise this noble function to fight against injustice, to be present when everything is going badly to help weak people," says a candidate, explaining the reasons which led her to apply to become a police officer. The advisers of the BINUH Police and Corrections Unit brought their expertise to the conduct of the intellectual tests in Port-au-Prince, as part of the technical assistance to the PNH.



Rhum Barbancourt one of the most emblematic drinks in the world

According to the "World of Statistic" platform, Rhum Barbancourt ranks 56th out of the 75 most emblematic drinks in the world. On the podium we find #1 France with its Absinthe, #2 Denmark with its Akvavit and in 3rd place Ecuador with its Aguardiente.



PNH 28 years old

The Ministry of Justice wishes a happy 28th anniversary to the National Police of Haiti and thanks and congratulates it for these 28 years of protecting and serving the population "The National Police has been heroic during this first half of the year 2023. Thanks to her efforts, the security situation has improved considerably in the metropolitan area of Port-au-Prince and she continues to take steps to restore tranquility and allow the free movement of people and goods throughout the territory." See also : https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-39764-haiti-security-28th-anniversary-of-the-pnh-and-10-police-officers-killed-each-month-report.html



HL/ HaitiLibre


















Published on 2023/06/13 | Source

New photos added for the Korean drama "Tale of the Nine Tailed 1938" (2023).

Advertisement

Directed by Jo Nam-hyung, Kang Sin-hyo

Written by Han Woo-ri

Network: tvN

With Lee Dong-wook, Kim So-yeon, Kim Beom, Ryu Kyung-soo, Hwang Hee, Kim Yong-ji,...

12 episodes - Sat, Sun 21:20

Follow up to "Tale of the Nine Tailed"

Synopsis

The story of Lee Yeon, a gumiho who was summoned back to a chaotic 1938 after being embroiled in an unexpected incident.

Broadcast starting date in Korea : 2023/05/06
BOONE, NC  Brooklyn-based bluegrass music trio Damn Tall Buildings returns to the Appalachian Theatre stage on Friday, June 23 at 7:30 p.m.

If you like your bluegrass served with a little punch, attitude, grit and gravy, with that busking spirit that was so present and palpable in the early incarnations of Old Crow Medicine Show and made your realize that string band music could be so much more than fuddy-duddy reenactments by crusty ol relics, then the Damn Tall Buildings will slide in nice as a welcome addition to your listening rotation, said Savingcountrymusic.com.

In their early days, Damn Tall Buildings didnt rehearse  they busked. Now, whether live or on

record, the band still radiates the energy of a ragtag crew of music students playing bluegrass

on the street. But anchoring that energy is their instrumental chops, their strong songwriting

and their varied influences that stretch beyond bluegrass, even beyond American roots music

altogether.

Whether sharing lead vocals and instrumental solos or blending their voices into loose, joyous

harmony, the three principal members of Damn Tall Buildings, guitarist/lead vocalist Max

Capistran, bassist/lead vocalist Sasha Dubyk and fiddler/vocalist Avery Ballotta, blend

elements of bluegrass, blues, roots-rock and vintage swing to create a captivating, high-energy

sound.

Since their busking days, Damn Tall Buildings have grown to new heights over the course of

their decade of creating together. Theyve made four albums: 2014s Cure-All, 2015s self-

titled, 2019s Dont Look Down and 2022s Sleeping Dogs. The band has also relocated to

Brooklyn, NY and toured widely, appearing at festivals like Grey Fox Bluegrass Festival,

Philadelphia Folk Festival, Freshgrass Festival, Ossipee Valley Festival, Walnut Valley

Festival, Blissfest and Merlefest. Now based in Brooklyn, NY, they have begun to travel the

globe playing bigger and bigger stages, making lots of friends wherever they go. They carry

with them a connective spirit, welcoming audiences to join in the moment with the band as they

take us on a journey through a well-crafted show. The trio has a knack for making any room

feel a little more like home.

At the Philadelphia Folk Festival, critics raved: Their lyrics find beauty and glory in the

mundane, workaday struggle of everyday life: time keeps passing, you dont like your job, you

drink too much, you laugh with your friends, you search for a home, and you dream about what

else might be out there. You carry on. This is what Damn Tall Buildings sings about, what they

seek to share with their audience.

Reserved tickets to Damn Tall Buildings are just $25 per person, plus taxes & fees. For more information or to join the theatres email list, get tickets, or purchase memberships, please visit the ATHC website at www.apptheatre.org.

Events, titles, days, dates, times, performers, and prices are subject to change without notice.

About the Appalachian Theatre

Built in 1938, the Appalachian Theatre, also known as the High Countrys Showplace, closed in 2007.

After undergoing a $10 million renovation, the theatre reopened in October of 2019 as a 629-seat,

acoustically pristine nonprofit historic performing arts venue. Its distinctive Art Deco facade and interior design elements provide an exquisite theatrical experience for enjoying film, live concerts, theatre, dance performances and all forms of live entertainment. www.apptheatre.org

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By Tim Gardner

The Hardees Restaurant in the Mitchell County Town of Spruce Pine has re-opened after a temporary, voluntary closure on May 30.

F.M. Gardner, Interim Director of the Toe River Health District, which governs the Mitchell County Health Department, released the following statement to High Country Press: Out of an abundance of caution, the Health Department agreed with the restaurants District Managers decision to temporarily close this establishment pending a deep cleaning and re-education of employees. The Health Department has been in contact with the NC (North Carolina) Food Protection Branch regarding this matter.

Spruce Pine Police Chief Kasey Cook told High Country Press that an investigation is continuing about an incident at the restaurant on May 30 and that he will release specific details about it in the near future.

Cook added that the restaurant has operated without another reported incident since it re-opened on May 31.

William Clark, vice president of operations for Mountain Star, LLC, which operates the Spruce Pine Hardees franchise located on U.S. Highway 19-E, was unavailable for comment when contacted.

The Spruce Pine Hardees is one of 18 restaurants operated by Mountain Star, LLC.

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(HedgeCo.Net) The Securities and Exchange Commission has charged Douglas McKelvey, a former financial advisor with fraud for misappropriating more than $1.7 million from two elderly brokerage customers who were close relatives of McKelveys.

The SECs complaint alleges that from June 2013 to February 2022, while employed as a registered representative and investment adviser representative in the Southlake, Texas office of a large financial institution, McKelvey initiated over 300 fraudulent and unauthorized disbursements of funds from the two customers accounts to make payments on credit cards used by McKelvey and his wife to pay their personal expenses. McKelvey allegedly also sold securities from the customers accounts to generate some of the funds he misappropriated and took steps attempting to conceal his misconduct.

The SECs complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas, charges McKelvey with violations of the antifraud provisions of Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5 thereunder. The SEC seeks permanent injunctive relief, the disgorgement of allegedly ill-gotten gains plus prejudgment interest, and a civil penalty.

In a parallel action, the U.S. Attorneys Office for the Eastern District of Texas today announced criminal charges against McKelvey. McKelvey pled guilty to those charges.
The Finnish economy is facing a bleak outlook in the coming years, and swift action is needed to improve productivity, according to a press release from PTT (The Finnish Business and Policy Forum). Finland's productivity growth has lagged behind other Nordic countries, but the trend can be reversed by increasing labor market flexibility and encouraging companies to innovate and invest in higher value-added production.

According to PTT's long-term growth forecast, Finland's gross domestic product per capita is expected to grow by an average of 1.0 percent per year from 2023 to 2033, and by 2.7 percent per year from 2034 to 2043. The forecast assumes a higher level of immigration than the population projection by Statistics Finland.

"Global tensions and setbacks in globalization will slow down growth and productivity development worldwide over the next decade. However, our view is more positive for the second decade of the forecast: lessons will be learned. Confrontation will decrease, globalization will make a comeback, and artificial intelligence will increase productivity. Finland will have an opportunity for faster growth then - if we start making growth-supporting decisions right away," said Markus Lahtinen, CEO of PTT.

PTT's long-term growth forecast assesses GDP growth based on labor productivity and labor input development over the next 20 years. According to the forecast, Finland's productivity is projected to grow by an average of 1.1 percent per year from 2023 to 2033, and by 2.4 percent per year from 2034 to 2043.

"Finland is unlikely to ever reach the level of the world's leading countries in terms of productivity, but we can close the gap. The examples of Denmark and Sweden demonstrate that the strengths of the Nordic welfare society can lead to success in the global productivity competition," said Lahtinen.

Finland's productivity growth is built on a narrow foundation, and agility is lacking

Finland's productivity caught up with the world leaders until 2008. Since then, the gap has not narrowed, although most other Nordic countries have managed to reach the top. There are several reasons for this.

"Finland's productivity growth has always been built on a narrow foundation, with low value-added intermediate goods dominating the export industry. The impact of Nokia's mobile phone business on labor productivity growth was significant. In Sweden, the range of successful sectors is broader, and the development of the service sector is ahead of us," explained economist Emilia Grasten.

Labor market dynamics also play a role. In the 2000s, technological development and labor productivity began to diverge, and the role of job intermediation in productivity growth has become even more important. The winners are those who can efficiently reallocate labor and capital from one sector to another. Therefore, countries with dynamic labor markets, such as Denmark and the United States, are successful in harnessing the productivity potential of technological innovations such as artificial intelligence.

Traditionally, Finland has not been very agile in this regard and will continue to lag without reforms. Finland is still a pioneer in technological expertise and societal digitalization, but it does not fully benefit from new technologies due to inefficient allocation of production factors.

"Finland is indeed determined to increase its R&D investments, but we need to develop high value-added end products with international demand from these new innovations. Otherwise, there is a risk of falling behind. On the other hand, the ambitious goal of carbon neutrality provides Finnish companies with an opportunity to become technological frontrunners," said Grasten.

The forecast estimates that R&D expenditure will account for 3.4 percent of GDP from 2023 to 2033 and 3.8 percent from 2034 to 2043. This requires significant increases in R&D investments from key industries.

Immigration increases the workforce, but better integration is needed

In previous PTT forecasts, labor force development was based on the population projection by Statistics Finland, but now it has been revised significantly higher. The forecast assumes a net immigration of 25,000 people per year, compared to Statistics Finland's estimate of around 15,000. This significantly changes the forecast for the working-age population. Due to higher net immigration, the number of working-age people is expected to increase by an average of 0.1 percent per year throughout the forecast period. This means there will be 210,000 more working-age people in 2043 than projected by Statistics Finland.

"Immigration is growing, and Finland needs better integration, a smoother residence permit system, and a change in attitudes in the labor market," said economist Veera Holappa.

The forecast predicts that the employment rate for the age group of 15 to 64 will increase to 79.1 percent by 2043. The number of employed people will grow by an average of 0.5-0.6% per year during the forecast period, driven by the growth in both the employment rate and net immigration. Achieving the forecast requires a clear improvement in incentives for employment.

"Alongside facilitating labor migration, unemployment benefits need to be reformed, and there is a need to involve partially disabled individuals more and increase lifelong learning. A high level of education, in general, helps labor markets adapt to global megatrends and changes in the workplace," said Holappa.

HT
Fletcher adopts 2023-2024 budget

Fletchers town council approved a 2023-2024 budget Monday that sets a lower property tax rate for residents of the municipality.



The budget council approved was almost unchanged from the plan Town Manager Mark Biberdorf presented to the council in May.

There wasnt a ton of discussion, Biberdorf said of the vote that came after a public hearing during the councils regular monthly meeting.

During a budget retreat at Town Hall in May, Biberdorf outlined to council members a $9,350,734 balanced budget that lowers the towns current tax rate from 34 cents per $100 valuation to 28 cents per $100 valuation.

Council adopted the budget with the 28-cent tax rate on Monday.

The 2023-2024 budget is a $699,297 increase over the 2022-2023 budget and reflects a 43 percent increase in real property values in Fletcher determined by the recent reappraisal of property values in Henderson County. Property values increased by an average of 48 percent countywide during the reappraisal.

The tax rate adopted in Fletcher is near the calculated revenue neutral rate of 27.7 cents, which taxing authorities must report by law in a revaluation year.

The only difference in the budget proposed in May and the one council adopted Monday appears in the amount set aside for Fletcher Fire and Rescue.

Biberdorf proposed that the council use 9.5 cents of the 28-cent tax rate to fund the fire department. The budget council adopted provides 10 cents of the 28-cent tax rate for the department, which was slightly less than the 10.5 cents Henderson County Commissioners set for Fletchers Fire Department. The revenue neutral rate for the fire department was 8.7 cent.

Mills River Fire & Rescue also provides service to one parcel of land in Fletcher. The tax rate for that department was also set at 10 cents.

The part of the tax rate set aside for the fire departments amounts to $1,733,034 for Fletchers fire department and $20,465 for Mills Rivers fire department, according to a budget message from Biberdorf posted on the towns website.

The change in the portion of the tax rate going to Fletchers fire department did not change the towns overall tax rate of 28 cents, Biberdorf said.

The town also does not plan to make cuts in spending outlined in the budget as a result of the change in the amount going to the fire department. Fletcher will make up for the difference through the towns fund balance, Biberdorf said.

Were in good shape, he said.

Increases in the 2023-2024 budget in Fletcher are mostly for expenses related to personnel and equipment; it also includes a 4 percent cost of living increase.

The budget increases the police department budget from $1,983,268 to $2,301,954.

Most of the increase for the police department is due to $234,625 needed to buy body-cams and in-car camera system.




A NEW cafe is to open at the River & Rowing Museum in Henley.

Thyme will take over the cafe at the back of the building in Mill Meadows, which has been closed for repairs since October.

Owners Jason Wild, from Blackheath, and Dan McCullough, from Bix, plan to open for business on Saturday, July 1.

They are the fifth operators of the cafe in seven years, succeeding Vivienne Lee, who owns the Chocolate Cafe in Thames Side.

The cafe will sell breakfast and lunch classics as well as meals like nettle pudding, taken from Mr Wilds upbringing in West Yorkshire, and will be stocked by Mr McCulloughs supply company, First Choice.

The men have also taken over the museums events catering service.

Mr McCullough, who moved to Bix from London four years ago, said: I was always really disappointed with packages various other places in the town offered, especially when it comes to good, healthy food.

It was either restaurant-style venues or chains and nothing in between with a simple breakfast and lunch, which we want to put in. I got Jason on board, whom Ive known for 30 years. He had wanted to work for himself and Ive always wanted to have a business in Henley so having a place people can go to eat simple but good food thats not too expensive is going to be a winner.

Mr McCullough has hired chefs Jennifer Turner and Amanda Bailey and his sons, Albert, 16, and William, 18, will work at the cafe, with Albert becoming an apprentice after finishing his exams.

Mr Wild, who worked at events in kitchens from the Royal Opera House to Kensington Palace for 32 years, said: Ive known Dan as a customer for quite a long time. Were quite good friends.

Weve known each other since the Nineties, when I was head chef at Daphnes in South Kensington, and over the years Ive kept using him.

He approached me and said: Look, Ive noticed that the River & Rowing Museum cafes up for tender  would you be interested in helping me out?

It was a bit last minute because we had two days to submit a tender document. Dan prides himself on sourcing great produce and as much local produce as possible. For example, we intend to use a great supply chain so the food comes direct from farm.

He said the museum cafe had great potential, saying: Henley, even though its very close to London, is possibly a little bit behind and were going to softly, softly try to bring London a bit closer.

But the main thing for the cafe is it has to be useable space for everybody, for families, friends, whether theyre visiting the museum, whether theyre new to Henley, or whether the weathers nice and theyre walking along the river front.

The menu has to be appealing to everybody. It has got to have some good entry level items as well as good coffee and a nice cake counter.

Were going to do some nice, chilled artisan sandwiches. I want to fill the counter with Ottolenghi-style salads, so that when people walk in they know were taking food seriously.

The English perception of cafes is that theyre a bit greasy spoon and were not that. If you look at Australia, their cafe culture is almost like restaurant culture. Ive always looked at their way of doing a cafe and I think thats the way that London is following the trend.

Id like to incorporate a more modern approach to some of the dishes, so you get a nice plate of food which wouldnt be out of place in a restaurant or bistro, but its in a relaxed environment of a cafe.

Nettle pudding is quite a weird one. Its something that comes from my childhood in Calderdale in West Yorkshire.

Its quite earthy but its good for you. Nettles are amazing for health purposes and the fact were surrounded by nettles here means we have a touch of foraging going on, which is cool.

Im very mindful of the fact that when people return to the museum they dont expect a different cafe. They expect to come and get a coffee and cake and ice cream.

I dont want to move too far away from that but what Id like to do is slowly but surely evolve. Ill put daily specials on the board, which allows me to then play around and test the water.

Wed both like to do monthly pop-ups here where I can really show them that we have a restaurant background and hopefully thatll shine a light on the place, that were serious about food and were here to stay and not just a flash in the pan.



The cafe's website can be found here




Born in the UK, into a Gujarati family thats spent most of their time in Rajasthan, Jay Vitale who is the CEO of British clean air tech company Air For Life wants to give something back to the community. The mission for philanthropy does require another chapter to precede it, one thats yet to be written. This is something thats perplexing Vitale too, but he admits, luck hasnt played its part. At least not yet. The unique air purification technology may prove to be a solid foundation to build with. Jay Vitale is the CEO of British clean air tech company Air For Life. (Vishal Mathur / HT Photo)

Theres no greater need for our products than India, says Vitale. Data doesnt make for pretty reading. India has as many as 14 cities in the list of the 20 most polluted cities in the world globally, according to the latest World Health Organisation (WHO) and IQAir World Air Quality Report.

Air purifiers should be selling more than they do, though market numbers do indicate a higher adoption rate in the past couple of years. It is a market thats dominated by a mix of legacy electronics brands such as Philips, Sharp and Honeywell, those who claim to be air quality specialists such as Dyson, IQAir and Blueair, as well as plucky new-age tech companies such as Xiaomi.

Also Read: Lucknows air quality several times worse than WHO guidelines: Greenpeace report

The company hopes its technology will play a role in differentiation. Unlike other home and commercial air purifiers which use multiple layers of filters, often the fabric HEPA (or high-efficiency particulate air filter) or a variation of metal mesh, Air For Life uses an evolution of something NASA used in the Mars Rover in 2020. It is called PCO, or photocatalytic oxidation. It was used in space, to filter an indoor gas emission, called ethylene. Incidentally, a lot of the fresh fruits and vegetables, ripen because of this gas.

India is the hottest market for us to get into you know, were even happy to lower the cost price, so that were able to have some kind of market entry into India, says Vitale, a generous dose of regret all too apparent. Im willing to do whatever it takes really, to be honest with you. Its just that we need to be paired with the right support, Vitales grit unmistakable.

Weve fine-tuned and improved the original NASA technology by converting it into a nano technology. Weve made sure that theres no harmful by-products because normally this kind of technology produces ozone, says Vitale. The Air For Life purifiers therefore dont have any replacement parts or consumables, such as filters that need to be changed periodically otherwise. That, for a consumer, saves on cost later.

The advantage of negative ions is they attach to any airborne or even surface resident particles including virus and bacteria, de-nature it and the addition of the weight drops these below a humans breathing height. We had to shrink the particle size down to nano size. By doing that, weve increased the surface area so we can increase the rate of reaction, Vitale explains the changes done to the negative ion particle size.

The other advantage being, it doesnt create ozone ions, but instead, something classified as superoxide ions that are reactive and can additionally sanitise impurities.

The second element in Air For Lifes purification products is the use of ultraviolet, or UV. While this has been seen in many air purifiers over the years, this is a slightly different take. Instead of UV bulbs which are commonplace in purifiers and indeed standalone UV sanitizer boxes, there are UV LEDs in place. The dual advantage  they are much smaller in size and last much longer. Five years, according to Vitale, with regular daily usage of the purifier.

Since UVs are not limited by the design of a filter mesh, they will purify the entirety of the volume of air thats passing through the purifier, including particles smaller than 0.3 micron in size. That, incidentally, is the limit for HEPA filter purifiers. Which means viruses and bacteria are dealt with too.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR Vishal Mathur Vishal Mathur is Technology Editor for Hindustan Times. When not making sense of technology, he often searches for an elusive analog space in a digital world. ...view detail
Alphabet's Google was charged by EU antitrust regulators with anti-competitive practices in its digital advertising business on Wednesday and may have to sell part of this business to address their concerns. Google is the most dominant digital advertising platform in the world with a 28% market share of global ad revenue.(AP)

The European Commission set out its charges in a statement of objections, two years after it opened an investigation into the case.

"The Commission takes issue with Google favouring its own online display advertising technology services to the detriment of competing providers of advertising technology services, advertisers and online publishers," the EU competition enforcer said in a statement.

It said Google has since 2014 abused its dominance by favouring its own ad exchange AdX in the ad selection auction by its dominant publisher ad server DFP and also by favouring its ad exchange AdX in the way its ad buying tools Google Ads and DV360 place bids on ad exchanges.

The EU competition watchdog said a behavioural remedy is unlikely to be effective to stop the anti-competitive practices.

"The Commission's preliminary view is therefore that only the mandatory divestment by Google of part of its services would address its competition concerns," it said.

Google is the most dominant digital advertising platform in the world with a 28% market share of global ad revenue, according to research firm Insider Intelligence.

Its 2022 advertising revenues, which include those from its search services, Gmail, Google Play, Google Maps, YouTube adverts, Google Ad Manager, AdMob and AdSense, amounted to $224.5 billion, accounting for 79% of its total revenues.

Google had sought to settle the case three months after the EU watchdog opened its investigation but regulators subsequently grew frustrated with the slow pace and the lack of substantial concessions, a person familiar with the matter had told Reuters.
In line with the increasing focus on technology start-ups, entrepreneurs based in India and across the world will soon be able to gauge their eligibility for the UKs Unicorn Kingdom Pathfinder Awards for 2023 after Secretary of State for Business and Trade Kemi Badenoch announced the global tech awards during the London Tech Week. UK Secretary of State for Business and Trade Kemi Badenoch at the London Tech Week. (Official handout photo.)

This comes as the UK breached the $1 trillion valuation for its tech sector, becoming the third country to do so after the United States and China. During 2022, fast-growing UK tech companies raised near-record levels of funding at 24 billion, Badenoch said, pointing out that some of the leading global tech companies such as DeepMind, Graphcore, and Darktrace are based in the UK.

The Pathfinder Awards for 2023, which will open later this year, will succeed the Tech Rocketship Awards, last held from 20162018. The announcement comes just days after UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak announced the countrys intentions to take the lead towards regulating artificial intelligence (AI) and for research as well as integration of safeguards.

Indian start-ups are expected to take advantage of the platform. According to Nasscoms data from earlier this year, India has become the third largest tech start up ecosystem in the world, after the US and China.

We all depend on the products and services that big tech companies provide in our daily lives, but smaller start-ups need competitive markets if they are to grow into the success stories of tomorrow, Badenoch said.

In the last decade, the UK created 134 tech unicorns, and India added 23 unicorns in just 2022. In start-up parlance, a unicorn is one thats valued at more than $1 billion. According to data by Venture Intelligence, some Indian unicorns include ed-tech platform Byjus, food and grocery delivery app Swiggy, logistics company Delhivery, fintech Cred, and online gaming platform Dream11.

According to Ian Bowen Morris, deputy director at UKs department for business and trade (DBT), the focus areas include education, clean tech and clean growth.

Advancements in electrification and electric vehicles too, because weve got a very big commitment to reduce carbon emissions, and a very clear policy in terms of effectively banning petrol and diesel vehicles to make way for electric vehicles, he told HT.

The latest numbers by UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) suggests that India and UK have jointly invested over 330 million to fund more than 250 projects and bring together 220 lead institutions from the UK and India. The focus areas include AI, sustainable agriculture, and climate resilience.

We already have a very good track record of attracting Indian companies to invest in the UK as part of their global expansion plans, Morris said. We expect that to continue and if anything is to be accelerated in the technology and science areas, particularly with the emergence of some of these new technologies like quantum computing and artificial intelligence.

The UK and India are founding members of the Global Partnership on Artificial Intelligence (GPAI), which was launched in 2020. There are now 29 members, including the US, European Union and France.

Also Read:AI does not understand traditional borders, needs regulation: Rishi Sunak

Harjinder Kang, UKs Trade Commissioner for South Asia and who has been the chief negotiator for the free trade agreement (FTA), told HT that pieces are being put together to allow better synergy between the two countries.

In the trade agreement, theres typically a services chapter and a digital chapter. Were trying to work on it to make sure its something that can help companies be able to collaborate across borders, rather than restrict trade or restrict collaboration, he said. Kang believes health and fintech also offer a good scope for opportunities.

What we actually gain from signing new trade deals and joining new trading blocs is forging new strategic partnerships that can spur collaboration, promote investment, and which encourage innovation, dynamism and creativity, Badenoch said.

New age tech will continue to pose demands, including the likes of AI. Particularly with the emergence of new technologies like quantum computing and artificial intelligence, I believe the UK can benefit from a lot of the talent in Indian universities, Morris said.

According to Nasscom, India added more than 1,300 start-ups last year, which takes the tally of active start-ups in the country to as high as 27,000. However, $18.2 billion in funding during the same period is 30% lower than in 2021. It is estimated that India will have more than 250 unicorns by 2025.

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A special court in Karnataka on Wednesday issued summons to Karnataka chief minister Siddaramaiah, his deputy DK Shivakumar and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi in a defamation case filed by a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Karnataka deputy chief minister DK Shivakumar, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and chief minister Siddaramaiah. (AFP)

The case was filed by BJP's state secretary S Keshavaprasad on May 9, over advertisements released by Congress before elections, ANI reported.



During its Karnataka election campaign, the grand old party had released advertisement featuring corruption rate card depicting scandals of the then ruling BJP government in the state between 2019 and 2023.



The Congress had alleged that the ruling BJP government looted 1.50 lakh crore in the last four years. "The cost for the CM post is 2,500 crores while the cost of a ministerial berth is 500 crore," Congress had said in its 'Corruption rate card'.

"40 per cent sarkara has looted over 1,50,000 crore from the people of Karnataka in the last 4 years," it added.

The Election Commission had issued notice to the Congress in Karnataka, asking it to submit proof of its allegations. "It is a fair assumption that INC possesses the material/empirical/verifiable evidence based on which these specific/explicit 'facts' have been published, an action which can fairly be assessed to embed knowledge, motive and intent to do so by the author", the EC notice had read.



The Congress had fought the election over the issue of alleged corruption during the BJP rule in Karnataka. The party won 136 seats, ousting the saffron party from the lone southern state it had been ruling.

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Congress leader Arun Yadav on Wednesday lashed out at the Bharatiya Janata Party ahead of the assembly polls in his state Madhya Pradesh. However, the former state Congress chief dragged Prime Minister Narendra Modi's father to declare his party's strength in the poll-bound state.



"Modi ji can come. His senior, if any, can come. Nadda ji is coming here anyway. Modi's father can also come here if he wants, we have no objection. But there is wind of favour for Congress in Madhya Pradesh, for change - we can see this clearly," Yadav told reporters.



Bharatiya Janata Party leader Shehzad Poonawala hit back at the Congress leader, tweeting, After Maut Ka Saudagar, Kabr khudegi Modi ki, Aukat dikha denge, Hitler ki maut marega, Abusing Modi samaj, Modi ki hatya ke liye tatpar raho, NOW one more abuse on PM MODIs late father by MP Congress leader Arun Yadav. THIS IS MOHABBAT KI DUKAN OR GAALI GALAUJ KE BHAIJAAN? Congress leader Arun Yadav claimed there is wind of favour for Congress in Madhya Pradesh,(Twitter/ANI)

Madhya Pradesh along with Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh go to polls later this year. Buoyed by its victory in Karnataka, the Congress is hoping to wrest MP and the other two states in the run-up to Lok Sabha elections scheduled next year.



Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra has already launched the party's campaign in Madhya Pradesh by announcing five guarantees.



The five guarantees included implementation of old pension scheme, LPG cylinder for 500, 1,500 per month for women, free electricity up to 100 units and half bill up to 200 units and resumption of the farm loan waiver scheme announced in 2018.



In the 2018 Madhya Pradesh elections, the Congress had won the state after ending BJP's 15-year-rule. Kamal Nath had been sworn-in as the chief minister after he was chosen over Jyotiraditya Scindia by the party high command.

However, Nath's government plunged into crisis in early 2020 following resignations of 23 MLAs including six ministers, who owed allegiance to Scindia. Nath had to resign hours before the floor test and BJP formed government again under the chief ministership of Shivraj Singh Chouhan.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR Aryan Prakash Multimedia journalist with over nine years of experience in print, television and digital media. Books, politics and cinema are an inseparable part of life. ...view detail
Bhartiya Kisan Union (Charuni) leader Gurnam Singh Charuni and eight other farmer leaders will be released on Thursday. Bhartiya Kisan Union (Charuni) leader Gurnam Singh Charuni (File photo)

Karam Singh Mathana, state president of the BKU (Charuni), said even the district administration and the police have made all preparations as per Tuesdays commitment but the hearing could not be conducted on Wednesday and now the court will hear the case on Thursday. The farmers will be released on Thursday morning.

Besides Charuni, the farmers who will be released include Rakesh Bains, Jasbir Singh Mamumajra, Prince Waraich, Jarnail Singh, Jairam, Gulab Singh, Surjit Singh and Pankaj Kumar.

They were sent to judicial custody on June 7 as the police had booked them under various sections of the Indian Penal Code, including attempt to murder.

On Tuesday, Kurukshetra superintendent of police Surinder Singh Bhoria had told the farmers at the protest site that all cases registered against the farmers will be withdrawn.

BKUs advocate Gurnam Chahal said the bail application was filed in a district court and the district administration was also cooperating in the matter. He said the court has fixed the hearing for Thursday and the decision will be taken on Thursday after hearing the arguments and notice has been issued to the police. Soon after the reply of the police, the court will decide the application, he added.
: A major fire broke out at a bank on Ferozepur Road, leaving electronic gadgets worth lakhs and important documents gutted. Fire ravages bank on Ferozepur Road

The fire broke out at 8:30 am at the regional office of the Central Bank of India, but the smoke kept emanating from the office till evening. No casualty has been reported in the incident.

The security guard of the three-storeyed building saw smoke emanating from the first floor, which houses the bank. Ashok Sharma, regional manager of the bank, said that no staff members were inside the building when the incident happened.

Staff of the other offices located inside the building was also immediately asked to vacate the complex.

With only a narrow staircase available to approach the building, the fire officials had a tough time dousing the flames. The fire brigade officials had to break the glass window panes on the front side of the building to provide passage for air.

Though the fire was controlled before the flames spread throughout the building, the fire-fighters could not enter the office as plumes of toxic smoke kept emanating from there.

As many as three tenders were pressed into service. The fire was brought under control within two hours and the fire brigade were able to enter the office only after 2:30 pm due to smoke before a minor fire broke out again at around 5;30pm, said fire officer Swaran Chand.

Tenders of the fire brigade remained stationed till late hours at the site in case of an emergency.

As the building is located on the commercial artery, Ferozpur Road, and sees a heavy rush, the incident spread panic in the area.

Fire Brigade officials said while the exact cause of the fire is yet to be ascertained, it appears that it was due to a short circuit in the backup batteries installed at the office.

Vijay Kumar, leading fireman, said that there are no vents in the building or any arrangements of water supply. He said a proper assessment will be conducted regarding the cause of the fire.

Three incidents of fire in 24 hours

As many as three incidents of fire within 24 hours gave fire brigade officials a tough time. The first minor fire broke out in a godown of a hosiery unit on Brindaban Road in the late hours of Tuesday.

As many as two tenders of the fire brigade were pressed into service. Raw materials worth lakhs were ravaged in the fire.

Another fire broke out at a commercial building in Dugri Phase-2 at around 6 pm on Wednesday. Two tenders of the fire brigade were pressed into service.
Khap representatives and farmer leaders on Wednesday blocked the national highway-9 which connects Rohtak to Delhi for three hours near Bahadurgarh in Jhajjar, demanding the arrest of outgoing Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh. The Bhumi Bachao Sangharsh Samiti (BBSS) had called a Janta Sansad three days ago, in which they raised 25 demands.

Three days ago, various khaps under the leadership of Dalal-84 khap head Bhup Singh Dalal had given a call for Haryana bandh on Wednesday.

The Bhumi Bachao Sangharsh Samiti (BBSS) had called a Janta Sansad three days ago, in which they raised 25 demands, including the arrest of the former WFI chief and Haryana minister Sandeep Singh over sexual harassment charges.

After the farmers, including women and children laid siege on the NH, the police reached the spot and diverted traffic for three hours. Later, the protesters lifted the blockade on assurance given by Jhajjar deputy commissioner Shakti Singh of a meeting with the government. In other parts of the state, the bandh evoked no response and all establishments remained open.

Bhumi Bachao Sangharsh Samiti (BBSS) head Ramesh Dalal said they had raised 25 demands, including the arrest of Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh and Haryana minister Sandeep Singh, a legal guarantee of the MSP, waiving off of farm loans, four times higher compensation than the market rate for land acquisition, government shall purchase sunflower crop on minimum support price (MSP) and if Punjab fails to provide Satluj Yamuna Link (SYL) canal water to Haryana, the Centre should ask the army to built the SYL canal and ensure that Haryana gets its share of water.

People of Faridabad, Palwal and Nuh are becoming victims of cancer as polluted water from the Yamuna is being supplied to them and the government should provide them better quality of water, he had added.

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Four days after 10 robbers made off with 8.49 crore from a cash management companys office in Ludhianas New Rajguru Nagar, police on Wednesday cracked the case with the arrest of six accused, including an employee of the firm. Ludhiana police commissioner Mandeep Singh Sidhu with other senior police officials sharing details about the arrest. (Gurpreet Singh/HT)

Stolen cash worth 5 crore has been recovered from the accused, who conspired and executed the robbery to turn rich overnight, said police. They have no past criminal record. At least five more accused remain on the run.

The robbery plan was spearheaded by Mandeep Kaur of Barnala and Manpreet Singh of Jagraon in connivance with an employee of the firm CMS, Manjinder Singh, alias Mani, 27, who has been driving their cash van for the past four years.

While Manpreet and Manjinder, who hails from Abuwal village, have been arrested, Mandeep remains on the run.

Police have issued a look-out circular (LOC) for Mandeep, suspecting that she may flee the country to evade arrest.

Others arrested are Harwinder Singh, alias Lambu, 30, from Jagraon; Paramjit Singh, alias Pamma, 38, from Kaunke village; Mandeeps brother Harpreet Singh, from Barnala, and another accused, whose identity is yet to be revealed.

Apart from Mandeep, among those on the run are her husband Jaswinder Singh, Narinder Singh, alias Happy, of Jagraon and Arun Kumar of Bhai Ghaniya Colony, Barnala.

Police commissioner Mandeep Singh Sidhu said the accused started planning the heist four months ago. They did not use mobile phones to avoid being traced.

The robbers had struck at the companys office around 2 am on Saturday. After throwing chilli powder in the eyes of five employees, the robbers had held them captive in a server room, before decamping with 8.49 crore in cash. The robbers had also taken away a cash van that was later found abandoned in Pandori village near Dakha. Three weapons were also recovered from the van.

A robbery case was registered against the unidentified robbers at the Sarabha Nagar police station.

Ludhiana commissioner of police Mandeep Singh Sidhu on Tuesday had written to chief minister Bhagwant Mann and the DGP to ban operations of the company in the state over poor security arrangements in their offices.

10 lakh reward for team that cracked case

Punjab director general of police (DGP) Gaurav Yadav has announced a cash reward of 10 lakh for the police team that solved the case.

The DGP had announced the arrests in a tweet earlier in the day: In a major breakthrough, @Ludhiana_Police, supported by Counter Intelligence has solved the Cash Van Robbery case in less than 60 hours. Out of 10 accused involved in planning, 5 main apprehended and major recovery effected. Investigations are ongoing.

SIT formed to establish actual amount of loss

Suspecting that the robbed amount is lesser than 8.49 crore, as claimed by the company officials, police have constituted a five-member special investigation team to conduct a probe.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR Tarsem Singh Deogan Tarsem Singh Deogan is a senior reporter at Ludhiana. He has 16 years of experience in journalism. He has covered all beats and now focuses on crime reporting. ...view detail
A couple was found dead inside their house in Dehraduns Clement Town area, said police. Police said the man is a resident of Saharanpur and used to operate a JCB machine. (Representative file image)

Police also found their 4-day-old baby, who has been sent to the hospital for further checkup.

Shishupal Rana, Clement Town police station in charge said that some locals informed police about stench coming from one house in the Clement Town area.

When we broke the door, we found the bodies of the 25-year-old husband and his 22-year-old wife. We also found their 4 day-old baby there. As the bodies seemed to be two to three days old, we immediately sent the baby to the hospital, where doctors are monitoring the health condition, he said

According to the police, the woman was the second wife of the man and there was tension in the mans family due to the second marriage. The couple had a baby four days ago, the neighbours had claimed, said Rana.

Also Read:Couple found dead in room day after marriage

Rana said the man is a resident of Saharanpur and used to operate a JCB machine.

He added that the man had rented a house in the area a few months back.

There were no injury marks on the bodies. Prima facie, it seems they died by suicide after consuming some poisonous substance. But the exact reason for the deaths will be revealed after their post-mortem report is received, he said.

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The Uttarakhand Police on Wednesday said that it wont allow the proposed Mahapanchayat in Purola on Thursday, amid right-wing bodies insisting that they will organise the event. Police beefed up security in Purola and carried out a flag march in the town. The Uttarkashi administration on Tuesday denied permission for the Mahapanchayat and imposed Section 144 of CrPC in the town on Wednesday. (HT Photo/Rajeev Kala)

The Uttarkashi district administration on Tuesday denied permission for the Mahapanchayat and imposed Section 144 of CrPC in the town on Wednesday. However, the right-wing organisations announced that they will hold the Mahapanchayat as per their earlier plan.

On Wednesday, police carried out a flag march across the town in the afternoon.

Also Read | Purola tension: Uttarakashi admin denies permission for June 15 maha panchayat

Uttarakhand director general of police (DGP) Ashok Kumar said, All steps have been taken to ensure peace, law and order in Purola. As section 144 is in force, no gathering or Mahapanchayat will be allowed there. Nobody would be allowed to take the law into their hands.

Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) working president Virendra Singh Rawat said, Its the administrations prerogative to impose Section 144 of CrPC but we will hold the Mahapanchayat on June 15 as per the sentiments of the local community. We dont need permission to hold the Mahapanchayat. Our intention is just to awaken the Hindus who have been at the receiving end of the illegal activities of a particular community.

We informed the local administration about the Mahapanchayat through a letter on June 13, he said.

Meanwhile, Swami Darshan Bharti, a right-wing Hindu leader who is the founder of Devbhoomi Raksha Abhiyan, has been made an accused in the case pertaining to posters asking Muslim traders to vacate the shops in Purola.

Posters threatening Muslim traders to shut shops and leave the state by June 15 had come up at Uttarkashis Purola market on June 4. Police subsequently removed them.

On June 5, police registered an FIR against unidentified people under sections 153-A (Promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, race, place of birth, residence, language, etc., and doing acts prejudicial to maintenance of harmony), 505 (statements conducing public mischief), and 506 (criminal intimidation) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) for putting up anti-Muslim posters.

The Devbhoomi Raksha Abhiyan, whose courtesy was given in the posters that came up in Purola asking Muslim traders to vacate before June 15 maha panchayat, had denied its role in the act.

Gajendra Bahuguna, station house officer (SHO) at Barkot police station, said We have made Swami Darshan Bharti, founder of Devbhoomi Raksha Abhiyan an accused in the case on Tuesday and served him a notice under Section 41A of CrPC (notice of appearance before the police officer).

Bharti confirmed the development. I have been made an accused in the case and received notice under section 41A of CrPC. Police personnel have been deployed at my house in Dehradun and they are not allowing me to leave for Purola saying my presence there can disturb peace.

Meanwhile, a panel of Congress leaders led by the partys state president Karan Mahara met chief secretary SS Sandhu and DGP Ashok Kumar on Wednesday over the communal tensions in Purola.

Mahara said, Nobody is supporting the culprits irrespective of their caste or religion. However, it is an attempt by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to influence the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

Mahara demanded the state police chief to take action against those trying to disturb peace and take the law into their hands.

BJP state media in-charge Manveer Chauhan said, The Congress has no issue to corner the government since the BJP came back into power last year. Law is taking its own course. Chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami has already made an appeal to everyone to not take the law into their own hands.

Uttarakhand minority commission vice president Mazhar Naeem Nawab on Tuesday wrote letters to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and CM Dhami over the communal tension in Purola.

He said, Some Congressmen have been agitating in Purola by impersonation to defame the BJP. Around 45 shops had been damaged. Muslim families have been forced to leave. These families are fearing for their lives. The district president of the minority cell had been forced to leave the town. It is a serious issue for Uttarakhand. You must intervene. Muslims should be provided security and instructions should be issued to the local administration.

He said the Muslims who are leaving the town should be stopped and they should be taken into confidence. Nawab said that action should be taken against those who post provocative posts on social media.

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Tendrils of smoke hang in the air, as Alok Kumar, 29, pulls down the shutter of his shop, located at Rajbir Colony (Gharoli), around 500 metres away from the Ghazipur landfill site. The previous day, on Monday, the garbage mound caught fire  the first major blaze at a landfill in the city this year. Though firefighters managed to douse the flames after operations lasting more than eight hours, fumes from the blaze continued to envelop the area on Tuesday, with residents complaining of irritation in their eyes and breathing troubles. PREMIUM A resident of Mulla Colony, located opposite the Ghazipur landfill, watches smoke emanating from the garbage dump. (Raj K Raj/HT Photo)

Also read: Robots at Delhis Ghazipur to douse blaze at landfill

For thousands of people who live in the shadow of Delhis tallest garbage mound, the experience was nothing new. Data from the Municipal Corporation of Delhi shows that five such major landfill fires were reported in 2022, eight instances were reported in 2021 and 2020 each, and 48 such cases were reported in 2019. Such landfill fires lead to toxic fumes emitting greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide, and polluting gases such as hydrogen sulphide, dioxins, and furans.

According to Alok, the fire on Monday caught everyones attention, but smaller fires often go unnoticed. These smaller fires lead to smoke entering our homes. But last night, the cloud of the smoke was so thick that fumes reached Khoda (across the Uttar Pradesh border), and in Rajbir Colony, even closing our doors and windows has not helped, he said.

Most of Delhi suffers through episodes of smog and poor air quality in the winter, but residents of areas like Rajbir Colony, Mayur Vihar Phase 3, Mullah Colony and Ghazipur Dairy, which adjoin the Ghazipur landfill, dread the summer  methane released by organic matter at the garbage dumps often combusts at times of high temperatures, sparking landfill fires that translate to respiratory illnesses, breathing problems and chest infections for thousands of locals.

Dharmendra Kumar,35, who runs a two-wheeler repair shop in Mullah Colony, said the smaller fires, which last only 1-2 hours and extinguish on their own, are a regular feature at the landfill. Our children suffer from cough and respiratory problems during the summer During some extreme episodes last year, the cloud of smoke was so thick that even cars located across the streets were not clearly visible. I am mostly worried about my mothers asthma, he said.

During a spot visit of the landfill site on Tuesday afternoon, HT saw some smoke still emanating from the waste, though there were no flames. For 40-year-old Neelam Kumari, who had moved into her new rented house in Rajbir Colony three months back, this was the first experience of a large scale landfill fire. We just arrived at this place three months back. I felt congestion in my chest and had to cover my face with a cloth. I was more worried about my 11-year old son Vikas who continues to play outside, she said.

Residents of Ghazipur Dairy, located within a kilometres radius of the landfill site, said many people have left after developing respiratory problems. Md Sakir, 44, who carries out repair work related to e-rickshaws, said that he lived in Ghazipur Dairy for more than 25 years, but has now shifted to Khoda Colony in UP. We mostly spend our time in the new house and only return for work-related matters. I had become used to it but the toxic smoke is a slow poison for children, he said.

Also read: A year on, probe into IED at Ghazipur market at dead end

However, many residents say that things are looking up.

Inderpal, 38, who lives in Rajbir Colony, said most local residents have grown accustomed to the problem, but is hopeful of the future. A large chunk of the landfill has been removed, so we are still hopeful that solution will be found in coming years, he said, pointing to the trommel machines segregating the waste at the garbage mound, even as bulldozers dumped inert material on the landfill face that had caught fire.

Sakir, said that the size of the landfill site has gone down over the last couple of years after the biomining process started. The khatta (landfill) is the biggest problem in the area. Once it is removed in the next couple of years, the property rates will shoot up, he said.
An IAS and IPS officers among five people were suspended on Tuesday for allegedly thrashing a hotel staff in Rajasthan's Ajmer district, officials said. The alleged incident happened on the night of June 11, following which case investigation was handed over to a senior police official. (Screengrab)

Those suspended have been identified as Ajmer Development Authority Commissioner Giridhar, Officer on Special Duty (Gangapur city police) Sushil Kumar Bishnoi, Patwari Narendra Singh Dahiya, constable Mukesh Kumar and LDC Hanuman Prasad Chaudhary, they said.

The case investigation has been handed over to ADG vigilance.

The incident came to the fore after a video surfaced on social media where some people were seen thrashing employees of a hotel.

The alleged incident happened on the night of June 11, following which case investigation was handed over to a senior police official.

The hotel management, in its complaint, alleged that an IPS officer along with three-four policemen had manhandled its staff late Monday night.

A case has been registered against five unidentified people at the Gegal police station of the district for assaulting hotel staff.

"We have handed over the case investigation to ADG Vigilance," DGP Umesh Mishra said.

The Rajput community has given a memorandum to Rajasthan Tourism Development Corporation (RTDC) chairman Dharmendra Rathore on Tuesday, demanding action against the police personnel in the case.

OSD Bishnoi, who is an accused in the matter, said that the hotel employees have made false allegations. On being informed about the fight, the police team went to the spot and persuaded them to pacify the matter.

According to an order of Ajmer SP Chuna Ram Jat, ASI Ruparam, Constable Gautam and Constable Mukesh have been sent to police lines. A departmental inquiry has been ordered against them.

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Violence continues in Bengal ahead of panchayat elections which are scheduled to be held on July 8. Fresh clashes erupted between Trinamool Congress and Bharatiya Janata Party workers during filing of nomination papers in Bankura. Video shared by PTI showed security personnel rushing to control the situation as TMC and BJP workers clashed with each other.



The way bombs are being hurled at BJP workers, it seems that we are in Russia or Ukraine, BJP leader Agnimitra Paul told PTI.



This comes a day after the Calcutta high court ordered the deployment of central forces to ensure free and fair panchayat elections. The high court also refused to extend polling date or period for filing nominations. Security personnel trying to control the situation in Bankura where clashes erupted between TMC and BJP workers. (Twitter/PTI)

A division bench headed by chief justice TS Sivagnanam ordered the state election commission to install CCTV cameras in all polling stations. The court order had come on separate pleas filed by leader of opposition Suvendu Adhikari of the BJP and state Congress chief Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury after the state poll panel chief Rajiva Sinha had announced the schedule of three tier-zilla parishads, panchayat samitis and gram panchayats- elections.

The Bengal poll panel has earmarked Midnapore, Jalpaiguri, Birbhum, North 24 Parganas, South 24 Parganas, Hooghly and Murshidabad as sensitive districts. The panchayati raj institutions govern 65 per cent population of the state at grassroots levels.

The panchayat polls are a test for the BJP which is seeking to retain its position as the principal opposition in the state ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.

"Although we are organisationally in a much better position than we were in 2018, it is also true that this time we are not the only ones fighting the TMC, unlike in the last panchayat polls. The CPI (M)-Congress alliance, as per the last few local polls and by-elections, have regained much lost ground," BJP national secretary Anupam Hazra told PTI.

In the village panchayat polls held in 2018, the Trinamool Congress had won 90 per cent of the seats and captured all the 22 zilla parishads. The elections were marred by widespread violence, with the opposition alleging its candidates were stopped from filing nominations in several seats.

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The Calcutta high court on Wednesday set up a special investigation team (SIT) to probe into the death of an IIT Kharagpur student and allowed narco-analysis test of the suspects. The parents of the student had moved the Calcutta high court last year seeking formation of an SIT to probe the death. (IIT Kharagpur | Facebook)

The Calcutta high court has formed a SIT headed by K Jayaraman (a senior IPS officer) and allowed narco-analysis test of the suspects. The police have been asked to hand over all papers to the SIT, said Ranajeet Chatterjee, high court advocate representing the deceased students parents.

The third-year mechanical engineering student of IIT Kharagpur was found dead in the hostel on October 14, 2022.

The 23-year-old had last spoken with his family members on the night of October 11.

Also Read:Justice will be served: IIT-Kharagpur students kin on HC order to add murder charge

The police and IIT authorities had initially suggested that the student may have died by suicide to which his parents opposed alleging that their son was murdered.

They had moved the Calcutta high court last year seeking formation of an SIT to probe the death.

Even though the first autopsy and police reports failed to conclude how the student died, a second postmortem done by Dr Ajoy Kumar Gupta, a retired forensic expert, on the orders of the Calcutta HC claimed that death was caused due to profuse bleeding causing hemorrhagic shock and combined effect infused over chest and over the students head.

The court had ordered a second postmortem after exhuming his body from his grave at Dibrugarh in Assam.

There is a possibility that he was hit with a blunt object or a blunt pointed object or a pointed sharp object. It could be a dagger or some pointed object like a sharp metal rod, which had entered his body (around the head and neck region) from right to left. As an autopsy surgeon, my job is to scan the body, inch by inch, Gupta had told HT.

Gupta in his preliminary findings had even pointed out two injury marks, medically called Haematoma, on the victims head.

There are serious questions that are required to be addressed by the police and the investigating officer. The matter now becomes an investigation into a likely homicidal murder, a bench of Justice Rajasekhar Mantha had stated on June 6 after going through the second autopsy report.

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Fresh clashes erupted at multiple places in West Bengal over the filing of nominations by candidates of political parties in the run up to the crucial panchayat elections in the eastern state. West Bengal police conduct route march ahead of the state panchayat poll in Nadia on Wednesday. (PTI)

Last week, the state poll panel announced that the three-tier rural polls would be held in one phase on July 8. The process for filing nominations kicked off the next day.

The Opposition parties, however, have been alleging over the past five days that their candidates were not being allowed to reach the offices of the block divisional officer (BDO) and sub-divisional officer (SDO) to file nominations. Thursday is the last day of filing nominations.

The Trinamool Congress (TMC) is looting in more than 50 blocks. We wont allow this election to be a rerun of 2013 and 2018 polls, said Suvendu Adhikari, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) legislator and leader of the Opposition in the state assembly.

West Bengal panchayat elections have been marred by violence in the past. While 39 people died in 2013 poll violence, at least 21 persons died in 2018. In the last rural polls, the TMC bagged around 90% of the seats, of which 34% were uncontested.

While clashes have been reported from multiple places across the state over the past few days, one Congress worker was shot dead on Friday.

On Wednesday, fresh clashes broke out between workers of the ruling TMC and the Indian Secular Front at Bhangore in South 24 Parganas, near Kolkata.

Men, covering their faces with clothes and carrying bamboo sticks, rods and sharp weapons, could be seen patrolling the roads at Bhangore. Crude bombs were hurled and police vehicles were damaged. Media persons were also attacked. Senior IPS officers including additional director general (ADG) (South Bengal), SN Gupta rushed to the spot.

The situation is under control. Investigation is going on and raids are being carried out, said an IPS officer, who did not wish to be named.

While TMC workers alleged that they were attacked by ISF workers, the latter claimed that they were attacked first.

If you can show one video of ISF workers attacking somebody I would take full responsibility. They (TMC) brought in outsiders to unleash terror. Crude bombs were hurled so that our candidates do not go out to file nominations. When our men braved all odds, they were stopped by the police from reaching the BDOs office, Nawsad Siddique, ISF leader, told the media.

I dont know which men you are talking about. TMC workers were not carrying any arms. They were just carrying flags. No one was attacked. But if someone attacks us, we have the right to defend, said Shahjahan Mollah, TMC leader in South 24 Parganas.

At Canning in South 24 Parganas, a clash broke out allegedly between two factions of the ruling TMC. Violence was also reported from Amodpur in Birbhum, while two bags full of crude bombs were recovered from Indas in Bankura district.

Later in the day, BJP state president Sukanta Majumdar and party legislator Suvendu Adhikari reached the state poll panel with some party candidates, who the allegedly failed to file their nominations.

We would move the Calcutta high court on Thursday. The state election commission is behaving in a biased manner. None of the orders of the Calcutta high court are being carried out, said Majumdar.

The Calcutta high court on Tuesday ordered deployment of central paramilitary forces in sensitive districts as well as other areas witnessing law and order problems to ensure free and fair panchayat polls.

Lets not forget that the BJP filed a whopping 20,516 nominations (Gram Panchayat: 17,869; Panchayat Samiti: 2511; Zilla Parishad: 136) as on June 12, 2023. So much for not being able to file nominations! Kunal Ghosh, TMC spokesperson tweeted.

Instead of ensuring a level playing field for all candidates and addressing peoples genuine concerns, Suvendu Adhikari, well aware of the BJPs poor prospects in the Panchayat elections, has resorted to spreading misinformation and rumour mongering. His baseless accusations about law and order in West Bengal are nothing but a desperate attempt to discredit the state government. Its clear that Mr. Adhikari is afraid of facing the truth  peoples unanimous rejection of his partys divisive politics, he added.

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Mumbai: Scenes of agitation were witnessed after IndiGo flight 6E 2441 from Lucknow to Mumbai was diverted to Udaipur on Tuesday afternoon after the pilot failed to land in Mumbai. The flight returned to Mumbai only at 8 pm, after the pilot was changed on account of passengers creating a ruckus at Udaipur Airport. Alarmed Indigo passengers get pilot changed before diverted flight returns to Mumbai

The flight departed from Lucknow Airport at 11.10 am and was scheduled to land in Mumbai at 1.15 pm. However, the aircraft did two go-arounds before the pilot decided to divert to Udaipur airport. Although the airline blamed bad weather for the diversion, the passengers claimed that the pilot aborted two attempts to land in Mumbai, and a third attempt to land in Udaipur before the aircraft safely touched down at Udaipur Airport.

After landing, the passengers demanded that the airline change the pilot and stayed put in the aircraft. Some took to Twitter with complaints to civil aviation minister Jyotiraditya Scindia and the regulator, DGCA. Ajay Kapoor tweeted, Flight Indigo 6E 2441 (Lko to Mumbai) not able to land in Mumbai due to poor management of Indigo Team. There are chances either Airbus malfunctioned or pilot not able to handle Intervention needed.

Another passenger Saurabh Singh Kaushik told HT, The pilot made two failed attempts at Mumbai Airport and one at Udaipur Airport. The flight touched down at Mumbai Airport, and he took off again. Even in Udaipur where there was no question of bad weather, he failed to land in the first attempt. Thats why all of us decided not to fly with the same pilot. It took three hours for the airline to agree and change the pilot, and we landed back in Mumbai around 8 pm.

Saurabh Chapdia, a 35-year-old businessman, said, We have never faced this in so many years of travel. We could clearly see that the flight touched down on the runway and took off again. A similar thing happened in Udaipur. Like a fruit falling from a tree, the aircraft came down and did a hard landing. It was a tough situation, and it is Gods grace that we landed safely.

The data from Flightradar24.com showed that the flight climbed down to 7,000 ft when it turned around and continued downwards till 300 ft before diverting to Udaipur Airport. Capt Mohan Ranganathan, aviation safety consultant and former instructor pilot of Boeing 737, after watching the playback of the flight on flightradar24.com, said that the pilot had made one attempt and gone around. He has entered a holding pattern north of Mumbai before diverting, he said. Sources at Mumbai ATC attributed the diversion to gusty winds due to the impact of Cyclone Biparjoy on the Gujarat coast.

Also read: Now people want to come see me', Jocelyn Chia's stands firm after joking about missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370

A spokesperson for Indigo said, Due to bad weather, the pilot could not land in Mumbai and decided to go to Udaipur After landing in Udaipur, he said he was fatigued and hence asked for crew replacement. This took some time and the flight left after 6 pm.

(With inputs from Neha Tripathi)

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The decision of a Vashi-based school to take disciplinary action against a few students for allegedly screaming in an unusual manner has evoked a sharp rebuke from political parties and right-wing outfits who claim that the management has rusticated those students for raising the Jai Shri Ram slogan. MNS party workers stage a protest outside St. Lawrence School after the school management removed four students of Class 10 for allegedly shouting "Jai Shri Ram", at Vashi, in Navi Mumbai on Wednesday.(Bachchan Kumar/ HT Photo)

Refuting the allegations, the school principal said they had only called their parents to inform them of their wards indiscipline, and the students were attending class.

Also Read | Karnataka High Court drops sedition case over CAA play at school

The alleged incident that occurred on Monday involved six students of Class X at St Lawrence High School, sector 16A.

As news of the alleged rustication spread, the students wing of the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) staged a protest outside the school on Wednesday. The agitators met the principal, Saira Kennedy, and asked her to immediately call those students to the school and tender a written apology.

Sandesh Dongre, city leader of MNS, said, We condemn the schools action to rusticate the students for raising the Jai Shri Ram slogan. The principal did give us an apology letter and agree to take back the students.

Also Read | All schools to open for Intl Yoga Day celebrations in UP

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Sakal Hindu Samaj and other right-wing groups threatened an agitation if the school did not call back those students.

Such action is unacceptable and hence, we met the school principal. There should be justice for all religious communities. The principal has agreed to rescind the decision, former BJP corporator Vijay Walunj said.

In her defence, Kennedy said the students, during recess time, were screaming while rushing from the corridor to the washroom. I heard it and went to the floor to check. However, I did not hear any Jai Shri Ram cries. The students were screaming in a very unusual manner, which was not normal.

She further clarified, It is a matter of concern because of indiscipline. Hence, we took disciplinary action. We asked the six students to bring their parents to the school within three days. The parents of four of them came on Tuesday. We met them and asked them to find out why the children behaved in such a manner and told them that such behavior was unacceptable.

Denying that the children had been rusticated, she said, I never once mentioned the word rusticate or suspend. Our intention is not to create any problem for the children. They are our Lawrence children. We do not have the right to rusticate. The children are attending class.

The principal later issued a letter expressing regret if the `misunderstanding had hurt anyones sentiments.

Parents of the children did not come forward to speak on the matter.

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A day after the residents welfare association (RWA) of a group housing society put out a notice urging residents to not wear lungis or nighties on the society premises, the residents body on Wednesday withdrew the circular that was widely shared on social media and made headlines, and was seen by many as an attempt to police a persons personal choices. On June 10, the RWA of Himsagar Society in Phi-2, Greater Noida, issued the notice to its residents, requesting them to not wear lungis and nighties in the society premises. (HT Photo)

On June 10, the RWA of Himsagar Society in Phi-2, Greater Noida, issued the notice to its residents, requesting them to not wear lungis and nighties in the society premises. On Tuesday, the notice surfaced on social media, drawing mixed opinions from other residents.

The notice, with the header Dress code for walking on the premises of the society said, It is expected from all of you that whenever you roam in the society at any time, you should pay special attention to your conduct and dress so that you do not give any chance to someone to object to your behaviour... Therefore, everyone is requested not to roam around wearing lungi and nightie which are home wear.

However on Wednesday, another notice was issued and that said, The notice related to dress code on June 10 was issued on the basis of complaint raised by some residents. Nobody was forced for this nor the decision imposed on anyone. The society does not intend to hurt anyones sentiments.

CK Kalra, RWA president, said, A few days ago, some women complained to us about a senior citizen practising yoga in the society park wearing a loose cloth (lungi) following which we issued the notice. However, our aim was not to hurt anyones sentiments. We have retracted the notice from all platforms.

He said none of the residents raised any misgivings regarding the notice with the RWA.

None of the residents of Himsagar society raised any concerns with the notice. However on Tuesday, it was posted by an anonymous person on social media, following which people from across the city appeared to have taken umbrage. Hence, we have retracted the notice, he said.

On Tuesday, Devender Tiger, president, Federation of RWAs in Greater Noida, had said, A residential society is not an educational institution that it needs a dress code.

Rajiva Singh, president of Noida Federation of Apartment Owners Association (NOFAA), said residents welfare associations do not have authority to draft or define such guidelines.

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Nearly a month after a woman police officer from Assam died in an alleged road accident, the Union government on Wednesday handed over the investigation of the case to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). Junmoni Rabha. (File)

Junmoni Rabha, a woman police sub-inspector posted as in-charge of Morikolong outpost in Nagaon district, died during the wee hours of May 16 when her car, which she was allegedly driving, had a head-on-collision with a truck on NH 37 near Sorubhogia in the same district. With doubts being raised by her family and others on circumstances leading to her death, the Assam government on May 20 said that the case would be handed over to the central agency for a fair probe.

The government of India has assigned the investigation of the case concerning the unfortunate death of Rabha Rabha to CBI, Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma took to Twitter on Wednesday to inform the development.

The notification issued by the ministry of personnel, public grievances and pensions on Wednesday said that all the four cases registered in Assams Nagaon and Lakhimpur districts in connection with Rabhas death would be probed by CBI.

In addition, the central agency would also investigate any attempt, abetment or conspiracy in relation to or in connection with the death, the notification issued by Rajeev Kumar Khare, under secretary to the Union government, said.

Following Rabhas death, it was revealed that on May 5, she had lodged a case at Nagaon police station against nine persons from Nagaon and Lakhimpur districts accusing them of counterfeiting Indian currency notes and duping people by selling them.

As per the FIR lodged under sections of 489A and 489B of IPC, Rabha stated that she had received information about transaction of FICN in Nagaon. On reaching the spot, she nabbed one person but was not able to recover any FICN from him. During interrogation, the person allegedly claimed that he knew someone else who might have FICN.

Based on that a raid was carried out and around 2.25 lakh in FICN was recovered and a motorcycle and mobile phone seized. The accused person was found absconding from his house. It was stated in the FIR that the first accused also gave names of seven persons from neighbouring Lakhimpur district who were allegedly involved in manufacturing FICN and selling them to gullible persons as genuine notes.

Also Read | The mysterious accident that killed Assam woman police officer Junmoni Rabha

Rabha was investigating this case and had visited Lakhimpur district as well in that connection when an FIR was lodged against her at North Lakhimpur police station on May 15 (a day prior to her death). The case was filed by one Amina Khatun, a resident of Barchala in Lakhimpur and mother of Ajgar Ali, one of the nine persons named in the first case as accused.

The case lodged under charges of criminal conspiracy, dacoity, wrongful confinement and extortion alleged that during the wee hours of May 6 Rabha reached Khatuns house along with seven civilians and thrashed her son Ajgar and took him away. It alleged that Rabha took 80,000 in cash, gold earrings of Ajgars wife and also an SUV belonging to Ajgars elder brother.

It further stated that later on May 6, Rabha asked Khatun to give her 6 lakh if she wanted her son Ajgar and the SUV back. The complainant alleged that she gave the police officer 5.10 lakh in cash and the rest 90,000 through online transaction following which Ajgar was released, and the SUV returned. Khatun alleged that Rabha threatened to injure Ajgar in a staged encounter if he disclosed the transaction to anyone.

Rabha died within hours of this FIR getting lodged. The timing of the accident (at 1.45 am on May 16) and Rabha travelling alone in her personal vehicle at the time of the accident raised eyebrows. While it was initially suspected that she might have died in an accident, her mother Sumitra refused to believe the theory and alleged that there was foul play.

On May 16, a case was lodged at Jakhalabanda police station in Nagaon district under sections 279, 427 and 304A of IPC of rash driving and causing death due to rash and negligent act. It stated that Rabhas car was going from Nagaon towards Jakhalabandha when the truck coming from the opposite direction hit her vehicle. The police officer was stated to have sustained grievous injuries and died later at hospital.

Postmortem report of Rabhas body, which came out on May 19, indicated multiple abrasions over knees, legs, elbows and hands, laceration over forehead, wound on back of head and underlying bone fracture and blood clotting due to injury and reddish bruise marks over right lower chest and right upper abdomen.

There were also multiple fractures of ribs on both sides, abdominal injuries with intra-abdominal hemorrhage. The report mentioned that all injuries were antemortem (happened prior to death) and time since death is within 24 hours of postmortem examination.

The report, especially the mention of wound on back of head and fracture, led to speculations that she might have been hit on the back of her head, which seemed unlikely in a head-on collision with another vehicle.

Rabhas mother lodged an FIR in Jakhalabandha police station on May 19 against police personnel from Nagaon district and other on charges of criminal conspiracy, murder and wrongful confinement. In the complaint, she mentioned that Rabha left her police quarter in Nagaon around 6.30pm on May 15 after being summoned by district superintendent of police Leena Doley.

When her mother called her around 10pm, Rabha stated that she was with Abhajyoti Rabha, in-charge of Haibargaon police station in Nagaon, the FIR stated. After that her mother found her phone switched off.

The same night (on May 16), around between 1.30am and 2am, SP Doley and four other police personnel forcefully entered Rabhas government quarter and allegedly took away 1.3 lakh belonging to Rabhas mother and around 3 lakh from Rabhas almirah, it alleged.

It alleged that several other documents were taken by the police team who took Rabhas mothers thumb impressions on a blank paper. The complainant said that she came to know about her daughters death only the next morning.

The developments along with the allegations made by Rabhas mother led the Assam Police to recommend handing over the investigation into the death from CID to CBI, which will be probing all the four FIRs.

Since the circumstances leading to Rabhas death and those after it questioned the role of several senior officers, including police chiefs of Nagaon and Lakhimpur districts, Leena Doley and BM Rajkhowa, and all officers involved in the cases have been removed from their posts in interest of fair probe.

Rabhas death has revealed the existence of big rackets involved in fake Indian currency notes (FICN) and fake gold and their alleged nexus with police, which Rabha was also stated to be probing. Following her death, a massive crackdown was launched against both rackets across the state in which over 160 persons have been arrested.

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A first information report (FIR) was filed against inspector general of police (IGP) Debaraj Upadhyay, Assam, by the husband of a ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Junali Nath, whose dead body was found near NH-17 on Sunday night, alleging the officer is trying to protect the murderer. Assam BJP leader Junali Nath was found dead on Sunday (Twitter Photo)

He also called the investigation of the case by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) Assam doubtful.

A day after the dead body of the BJP leader was recovered from Goalparas Matia area, the police on Monday arrested prime accused Hasanur Islam. Upon interrogation, Islam admitted that he killed Junali over a fight. IGP (CID) Upadhyay had told the media that the victim was having an affair with the accused.

According to Upadhyay, Islam and Junali were engaged in an extramarital affair for more than two years, but recently, Islam married another girl which led to a fight between Junali and him.

Islam confessed that on Sunday evening, Junali came to meet him. He picked her up in his car in Matia and their argument started. She was asking about his marriage, and he punched her in the face several times. He dumped her near NH-17 after realising that she had died, Upadhyay said.

Also Read: Centre assigns probe into Assam woman police officers death to CBI

Junalis husband, Chandra Kumar Nath on Tuesday, lodged an FIR at Matia police station against Upadhyay while expressing doubt on the process of investigation and said that he is not convinced.

The IGP conducted a press conference and detailed a story where he claimed that my wife had an affair with the murderer and cited the alleged affair as the reason behind the murder. But they didnt explain how he killed her while driving the vehicle, Chandra Kumar wrote.

He further claimed that the extramarital affair angle, in this case, is not convincing as no supporting evidence is shown. Moreover, it is disrespectful to accuse a deceased woman this way, according to him.

CID officers claims are questionable and doubtful. It seems they are trying to dilute the charges against the murderer. They jumped to a conclusion without thorough investigation, he claimed.

Chandra further asked the police department to issue an apology for disgracing a woman by producing false and incomplete information before the media.

However, no response from the police department came on this FIR. HT tried to reach out to the director general of Assam police GP Singh and Goalpara superintendent of police Rakesh Reddy, but there was no response.

Junali was secretary of BJPs Goalpara district committee and as per reports, Islam is a ward member of Congress in Goalparas Matia.

Also Read: Woman BJP leader in Assam was murdered by boyfriend: Police

Chandra on Monday told the media that at around 4:30pm on Sunday, his wife left home for some personal reasons. After 7pm he tried calling her but her phone was not reachable after which he reached out to the police. The police found the dead body around 12am.

Upadhyay on Monday said that at 7:13pm Islam switched her mobile off. After her death, police examined the call records and traced him, he said.

Doctors during the post-mortem found that some hard object was used to kill her but Islam told police that he punched Junali on her face till she lost consciousness. However, there was no sign of rape, as claimed by a few supporters of Junali, according to the police.

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LUCKNOW City residents are faced with a double whammy -- to bear the sweltering heat with intermittent power cuts and to deal with water shortage due to frequent outages. As a consequence, residents of several localities are forced to stay up till late as the water supply comes in full force only during the night, hence, making it an optimal time to fill household water tanks. According to Jal Sansthan officials, just like power, the demand for water also increases during summers. (HT Photo)

According to Jal Sansthan officials, power cuts in the range of 1-10 hours are behind the irregular water supply in the state capital. In this backdrop, Jal Sansthan officials have been demanding a separate feeder for water supply. However, their demand has not been met because tubewells in several rural areas of the city make it difficult to create a feeder.

Speaking on the issue, Ram Kailash, general manager, Jal Sansthan, said, Its difficult for the Jal Sansthan to fill up water tanks when power cuts continue for several hours. We should be given a separate feeder to supply water despite power cuts in Rajajipuram, Faizullahganj, Ashiyana, Alambagh, Sadatganj, Bullaki Adda, and Rakabganj. The Jal Sansthan is finding it hard to ensure regular supply water because of power cuts.

In the past few days, residents of many localities -- including Thakurganj, Fazullahganj, Rajni Khand, parts of Alambagh, Indira Nagar sector C -- had to be supplied water through tankers because of long breakdowns in power supply.

According to Jal Sansthan officials, just like power, the demand for water also increases during summers. Against the daily supply of 750 mld per day, Jal Sansthan is supposed to supply 900 mld during the summer season. However, due to various reasons, the Jal Sansthan has been able to supply only 650 mld of water per day. Hence, the water crisis in the city.

Anoop Nigam, a resident of Rakabganj said, We have to stay awake till 2 am to fill water for the next day. Water is not supplied at proper pressure during the day time, so, we fill our water tank during the night. Its difficult to work during the day when we have to remain alert till 2 am.

Echoing the concern, Sanjay Pandey, a resident of Sardari Khera Alambagh, said, For the last 15 days, we have been receiving erratic water supply. Even the Jal Sansthan officials say that they are helpless because their tubewells will operate when the power supply is proper.

Meanwhile, Lucknow Electricity Supply Administration (LESA) officials said that load shedding is going on in some of the areas as transformers are overloaded due to an increase in the demand for power.

Countering allegations by the Jal Sansthan, Sanjay Jain, chief engineer, LESA Cis-Gomti, said, I cant agree to what Jal Sansthan officials are saying. Yes, there are power cuts but not for as long as they claim. They are just making an excuse for their failure to supply water. Outages arent that long to affect the filling of water tanks or supplies. If there is any problem, then they should specify, and we will take care of that.

Significantly, the demand for power in June reached its maximum -- at 1,688 MW -- on Tuesday night in Lucknow. Last year, the demand peaked at 1,644 MW on June 14.

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On May 31, the Bihar cabinet approved of a change in the prohibition law. The change meant that the vehicles caught transporting liquor to dry Bihar can be released on payment of a much lower penalty than what was applicable earlier. The vehicle owners are now required to pay just 10% of the insured value of the vehicle or 5 lakh after consulting the judicial authorities. PREMIUM the Nitish Kumar governments decision to relent on prohibition for compensation to the kin of victims of hooch tragedies is a clear departure from its earlier stand(HT File)

This is yet another major relaxation in the Bihar Prohibition and Excise (Amendment) Act since the imposition of prohibition in the state in 2016, attributed largely to growing opposition to prohibition in the wake of hooch tragedies, stringent court observations and a gradual rethink on part of the government.

Earlier this year, following several hooch tragedies and subsequent uproar over deaths, the Nitish Kumar governments decision to relent on prohibition for compensation to the kin of victims of hooch tragedies, a clear departure from its earlier stand, was also seen as a major climb down forced by difficult circumstances in the election year and the potential of the Opposition parties such as Bharatiya Janata Party, Lok Janshakti Party (Ramvilas) and Upendra Kushwahas Rashtriya Lok Janata Dal (RJLD) cashing in on people's sentiments.

Last year, the government had given relaxation by scaling down the penal provisions and introducing financial penalties for first-time offenders through an amendment in the Act. The move came after the Supreme Court dismissed the states batch of appeals challenging the grant of anticipatory and regular bails to the accused under the liquor law, saying the prosecution of the case should be made in all earnestness to secure conviction and punishment. The conviction rate has been abysmal in prohibition cases and the matters linger for years.

In the last couple of years, after the installation of the Grand Alliance (GA) government, the pace of relaxation has picked up in the state, prompting a relentless attack on the Nitish Kumar government by the opposition BJP as well as GA constituents like Hindustani Awam Morcha for a thorough review. Even Congress has been advocating a review. The BJP has gone a step further demanding the withdrawal of over four lakh cases lodged under the law since its imposition to lessen the burden on courts and spare the poor.

As the toll in April's hooch tragedy in Bihar mounted to 31, BJP leader Sushil Modi demanded the withdrawal of over 3.61 lakh FIRs have been registered under the prohibition law since 2016.

The continued relaxation in prohibition law indicates the governments failure to properly implement it. The government should admit that prohibition law has become increasingly ineffective and adopt the Gujarat model to give more relaxation and allow permits to tourists and those who need it to survive on medical grounds. The withdrawal of over four lakh cases will give respite to the poor, downtrodden and Dalits, who mostly bore the brunt due to the inept handling of the prohibition law, which allowed the mafia went scot free to develop a parallel economy, said senior BJP leader and Rajya Sabha member Sushil Kumar Modi in April after Nitish government relented from its stance to announce 4-lakh compensation to kin of hooch tragedy victims.

Harsh court observations

The latest relaxation also has its roots in the July 2021 order of the Patna High Court (HC), which directed that all proceedings related to confiscation of property/vehicles under the Act must positively be initiated or concluded within a period of 90 days from the date of appearance of the parties concerned. The appeal/revision, if any, be also decided within a period of 30 days from the date of initiation, failing which the things (vehicle/property/ etc.) shall be deemed to have been released in terms of several orders passed by this Court in the past, the bench of the then Chief Justice Sanjay Karol and Justice S Kumar had observed.

The court order came on a petition filed by Abhishek Kumar, who prayed for a direction to release his Swift car seized and kept in the premises of Baikunthpur police station in Gopalganj under the open sky. This is the story after the seizure of a large number of vehicles, ranging from trucks, tankers, cars, pickup vans, and ambulances to motorcycles, which were caught carrying liquor. In most police stations of the state, they are left to rot while the cases linger. The court had observed that the litigants were forced to approach the court due to delay in completing the proceedings.

In an earlier order in August 2021, the court had directed the state to provisionally release the vehicle/property, subject to initiation/conclusion/finalisation of the confiscatory proceedings. It even threatened to initiate proceedings for contempt under the provisions of the Contempt of Courts Act and directed the Chief Secretary to evolve a mechanism to ensure that the provisions of the Act were implemented in letter and spirit.

In yet another setback to the state government, the Patna HC last month set aside the entire disciplinary proceeding against a police inspector, Ajay Kumar, who was put under suspension on the charge of negligence after liquor was recovered from a house under the jurisdiction of his area, on the premise that it was done on assumption.

Setting aside the impugned orders, the bench of Justice Rajeev Ranjan Prasad instructed the Director General of Police (DGP) to issue necessary consequential orders within a period of 30 days. Referring to the DGP letter, dated November 24, 2020, to all the Senior Superintendent of Police and Superintendent of Police (Rail), Bihar, the court said that on a bare perusal of the letter it would appear that in case of recovery of illicit liquor, the concerned Station House officer and Chowkidar will be deemed guilty for not collecting the information and taking necessary action and they will be proceeded against for their failure.

The letter of suspension of the inspector assumes and pre-judges the guilt against the station house officer (SHO) and chowkidar even before framing of charge and conduct of an independent enquiry. This has no sanction of law. Because of this stipulation in this case the whole proceeding right from framing of charge has been influenced and a serious prejudice has been caused to the petitioner, the court observed, adding that such presumption of guilt has no sanction of law and the same is violative of Article 21 of the Constitution of India.

In the wake of continued smuggling of liquor and hooch tragedies, which led to verbal attacks on the police from both within the government as well as the Opposition for being hand in glove with the liquor mafia, the government had made the Station House Officers and chowkidars responsible for the areas falling under their jurisdiction.

The Bihar Prohibition and Excise Act, 2016 prohibits the manufacture, storage, distribution, transportation, possession, sale, purchase and consumption of any intoxicant or liquor. In addition to the penalty imposed for committing such an offence, Section 56 of the Act lays down the procedure for confiscation of things used in the commission of such an offence.

Last year, the state cabinet had given its nod to the Bihar Prohibition and Excise Rules, 2021, for reducing the growing number of litigations by vesting judicial powers in special executive magistrates after HCs approval. The court did not give the approval. Besides, it also made provision for permission to distilleries in the state for manufacturing extra neutral alcohol (ENA) and ethanol. Bihar last year became the first state in the country to have its Ethanol Production Promotion Policy, 2021, which promotes new standalone ethanol manufacturing units by providing them additional capital subsidy at 15% of the cost of plant and machinery up to a maximum of 5 crore.

On the latest relief in prohibition law, the states Advocate General P K Shahi said that the court observations had clearly indicated the need for applying the same yardsticks for vehicles as was applicable to houses and land in case of seizure of vehicles with illicit liquor in Bihar, which is a dry state. There was no discretion to confiscatory authority in the case of vehicles, which has now been introduced. The complicity of the owner will also be decided by the authority based on the evidence. It is a fact that courts are overloaded with cases, which have multiplied in the last 5-6 years, as the judicial processes get delayed due to a number of factors, he added.

Former additional solicitor general and senior advocate S D Sanjay said that there had been a complete summersault in the stand of Nitish Kumar on the policy of prohibition in Bihar and it reflected the admission of its implementation failure.

Now it appears that his restrictions are completely fading out because of three reasons, the prime being the court verdicts and observations. The other two reasons may be the pressure of the Rashtriya Janata Dal, which has also been critical of faulty implementation when in Opposition, and the Opposition hue and cry due to hooch tragedies and deaths. Now he has come under acute pressure to change his stand and this trend may continue to ultimately pave the way to lift prohibition by 2025 he added.

Too many challenges

The Nitish Kumar governments decision to relent on prohibition with a slew of measures one after another is seen as a clear departure from his earlier stand, as he has been very particular about the success of prohibition, which he attributes to the call of women of the state during the 2015 Assembly polls.

Various studies carried out at his behest by the Chanakya National Law University (CNLU) also gave a thumbs up to prohibition as a move that is overwhelmingly supported by the women for returning familial bliss and social order.

Kumar also did not hesitate in slamming the Opposition for demanding compensation to the kin of victims of the Saran hooch tragedy and ruled it out, but now he has a change of heart due to the pressure from within as well as outside in the election year due to the prospect of half-baked prohibition emerging as a big stumbling block for the GA.

Nitish Kumar has been made to realise that there can be no defence to deaths due to hooch tragedies and it could be counter-productive. He got a feeling that he cannot get away with blaming victims for long. His Grand Alliance (GA) partners, including the RJD and Congress, have also been consistently raising demand for review, which the CM dismissed earlier, but no more. It means he has started feeling the pressure. He may not like it, but he has to swallow it. The court orders have also not been favouring the way prohibition is going on in the state. Besides, it is a fact that it has created room for a parallel economy due to unbridled smuggling despite the best efforts of the government and deployment of drones and helicopters to detect it, said social analyst Prof NK Choudhary.

Following the passage of the Bihar Prohibition and Excise (Amendment) Act, 2022, the Bihar government issued the gazette notification, notifying the list of officials designated as special executive magistrates in districts and subdivisions to deal with liquor-related cases upon vesting of power of the 2nd class judicial magistrate by the Patna HC.

However, the HC refused to vest judicial powers in the special executive magistrates and the amendment failed to have any impact in reducing the court cases.

Advocate General PK Shahi said that it was no surprise, as the judicial powers and executive powers had been separated by the apex court over four decades ago on the recommendation of an experts panel and law commission report. It was then clearly laid down that the power to grant bail should not be vested in the executive magistrates. The separation of power was a conscious decision and in that light, the HC just went by the established norms, he added.

Between 2018 and 2021 (up to May 31) the cumulative figure of excise cases in the Patna HC stood at 57159, which included 32909 for regular bail, 23495 for anticipatory bail and 314 for quashing, among others. The numbers went further up due to disruptions caused by the pandemic, vacancies in the court and further additions fO cases.

In 2019, alarmed by the growing pendency, the Patna HC asked the state government to present a plan for how it plans to dispose of these cases related to excise. Though special courts were mandated in the new law for the trial of liquor-related cases, they could not be made fully functional.

The growing pendency and resultant burden also led to strong observations from the former chief justice of India NV Ramana. You know how much impact this law (The Bihar Prohibition and Excise Act, 2016 ) has created in the working of the Patna HC and it is taking one year to get a matter listed there and all the courts are choked with the liquor bail matters, the then chief justice Ramana had said during a hearing.

The Patna HC had also observed last year that the lives of citizens of the State is risked by the failure of the state authorities to implement complete prohibition in Bihar to safeguard the health, life and liberty of the people at large and their confidence, which has also led to overcrowding of the already overburdened judiciary and a sharp increase in drug addiction and consumption of deadlier adulterated liquor.

After the liquor ban was imposed, many started looking for substitutes. Drugs being on the supply route made an easy entry into the state amid the lack of vigilance. The addiction to cheaper medicinal drugs is a more spurious choice according to experts. The data shows that before 2015, there was hardly any case related to drugs, but post-2015, the same has alarmingly surged. What is more worrying trend is that most addicts are as young as 10 years and below 25 years of age. The statistics show that the addiction to ganja, charas and bhang has shot up post-prohibition. The state has failed to stop the trafficking of drugs throughout Bihar, said the bench of Justice Purnendu Singh, while hearing a bail petition in October, 2022.

As per the statistics of the Bihar police headquarters, 314 FIRs were lodged against 468 accused in 2015, but the number increased significantly after 2016 when prohibition was imposed. In 2017, Bihar police registered 563 FIRs against 999 accused and arrested 535 persons. In 2018, the police lodged 360 FIRs against 598 persons and arrested 441, while in 2019 621 FIRs registered against 1137 people out of which 490 were arrested 490.

In 2020, the police lodged 701 FIRs against 1381 people and arrested 1106 of them, which again increased in 2021 to 973 FIRs against 1870 accused and 1410 arrests, and in 2022 to 1290 FIRs against 2197 people and 2031 arrests.

The ADG (headquarters) JS Gangwar said that till April 2023, the Bihar police registered 150 FIRs against 239 people and nabbed 237 of them. The police seized 1.16 lakh kgs ganja, 1597 kgs Charas, 60 kgs Heroin and 300 kgs Afim till April 2023 this year, he added.

Former director of the AN Sinha Institute of Social Studies, DM Diwakar said that the relaxations in the prohibition law were a pointer that Nitish Kumar was ready to accommodate the alliance partners, which were feeling threatened by the reverse impact of prohibition due to hooch tragedies, smuggling and framing of poor persons.

Nobody can question prohibition, as it was a unanimous decision, but any policy is as good as its implementation. Prohibition was always going to be a challenge and Nitish Kumar knew it. Yet he went for it. But in politics, even good decisions can have a bad impact if not implemented well, he added.
PUNE: While the southwest monsoon reached the southern border and some parts of Konkan as late as June 11, its progress has ground to a halt within a week of its onset. According to India Meteorological Department (IMD) officials, conditions for advancement of the monsoon in Maharashtra will be favourable not before June 18 to 20. Currently, Pune city is experiencing cloudy weather with a dip in temperature. (KALPESH NUKTE/ HT PHOTO)

K S Hosalikar, head of climate research and services, IMD Pune, said, Progression of the monsoon has ground to a halt for the last three to four days. However, conditions seem to be favourable for its advancement between June 18 and 20. During this time, the monsoon is expected to cover some more areas in the state.

Vineet Kumar, former researcher with IITM, said, This year, the monsoon itself is weak and the cyclone (Biparjoy) has created a hurdle for its advancement by pulling up the moisture in the atmosphere. The monsoon is expected to advance in Maharashtra after June 17. However, Pune can expect good showers only in the first week of July.

Currently, Pune city is experiencing cloudy weather with a dip in temperature. On Wednesday, Shivajinagar logged a maximum temperature of 32 degrees Celsius and a minimum temperature of 25.4 degrees Celsius. Some parts of Pune district are also seeing pre-monsoon showers however the monsoon has not yet arrived. Delay in the onset of the monsoon will mainly impact the agricultural sector and the IMD has already advised farmers not to undertake sowing before the district receives good monsoon showers.

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Pune: A 22-year-old man allegedly assaulted a three-year-old girl, resulting in her death. The incident took place at the Chincholi area of Pimpri-Chinchwad on Monday, according to the police. According to the Dehu Road police station officials, the accused and his father, who are conservancy workers, found the mother and her daughter at the Pune railway station two months ago. (REPRESENTATIVE PIC)

The accused has been identified as Mahadev Narayan Gaikwad.

According to the police officials, the accused and the minors mother Pinki Gaikwad were in the formers home when the child started crying around 10 am on Monday. In a fit of rage over the babys cries, the accused hit her chest and later slammed her head on the wall. The shocked mother of the minor rushed her to a hospital where she was declared brought dead due to internal injuries.

During interrogation, Pinki told the police that the minor was physically harmed by the accused.

According to the Dehu Road police station officials, the accused and his father, who are conservancy workers, found the mother and her daughter at the Pune railway station two months ago.

The accuseds father brought the duo home and decided to marry the woman to his son. The mother and child have been living at the house of the accused since then. Police could not find any proof of the accused getting married to Pinki.

The police arrested the accused and sent samples of the deceased to a laboratory for DNA test. A court granted police custody of the accused till June 17.

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Prabhas and Kriti Sanon's Adipurush is still two days away from release but tickets are already selling fast. As per a new report, multiple first day first shows are going house full and tickets are selling as high as 2000 in metro cities such as Delhi and Mumbai. (Also read: Adipurush trailer: Prabhas and Kriti Sanon's film brings back the timeless saga) Prabhas and Kriti Sanon at the pre-release event of the upcoming movie Adipurush, in Tirupati.(PTI)

Headlined by Prabhas, Adipurush is the big-budget feature adaptation of Ramayana. The multilingual period saga will hit the screens in 3D across the globe on June 16. Directed by Om Raut, Adipurush also stars Sunny Singh, Devdatta Nage, and Saif Ali Khan.

Grab your tickets quick

As per a report in Times Now, some theatre seats are selling for 2000 even for first day shows. In Delhi's PVR: Vegas LUXE, Dwarka, 2000 tickets are already sold out as are 1800 tickets for PVR Select City Walk (Gold). In Noida, tickets as high as 1650 are available at PVR Gold Logix City Centre. For comparison, The Flash tickets are available at 1150 at PVR Gold Logix City Centre. Of course, cheaper tickets at around 250 are also available at some, less luxe theatres.

In Mumbai, tickets are selling at 2000 for all shows at Maison PVR: Living Room, Luxe, Jio World Drive, BKC. Kolkata and Bangalore paint a similar picture but tickets are available for much cheaper in Chennai and Hyderabad.

Celebs donating tickets

Recently, it was announced that Ranbir would donate 10,000 Adipurush tickets for underprivileged kids. On Thursday, film trade analyst Taran Adarsh tweeted, #Xclusiv Ranbir Kapoor to book 10,000 tickets of Adipurush for underprivileged children."

Later, Tollywood producer Abhishek Agarwal announced to donate 10,000 tickets of Adipurush. The tickets would be given to government schools, orphanages and old age homes across Telangana.

Adipurush courted controversy, including boycott calls, over the depiction of Hindu deities and the buzz cut sported by Saif Ali Khan's Lankesh when the teaser released in October last year. Adipurush was initially set to arrive in cinema halls on August 11, 2022, but the release date was pushed to January 12,2023. In a recent interview with PTI, Raut said they have utilised the additional time to improve the VFX of the film.

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Lyricist-poet Javed Akhtar revealed in court what exactly happened the night he met actor Kangana Ranaut at his home. He said that Kangana knew why she was called and politely agreed to come with her sister. (Also read: Javed Akhtar on making controversial comments in Pakistan) Kangana Ranaut and Javed Akhtar have been warring since 2016.

In 2016, Javed Akhtar called Kangana Ranaut to his home to give her some advice on her public spat with Hrithik Roshan. Later in 2020, she said in a television interview that he had threatened her for speaking on the issue, following which Javed filed a defamation suit against her.

What Javed told court

As per an India Today report, Javed told the Andheri metropolitan magistrate court in suburban Mumbai on Tuesday that he did not know Kangana at the time. It was their common friend Dr Ramesh Agrawal, who wanted to advice Kangana on what to do about her feud with Hrithik Roshan.

Javed said, "It is true that I did not know Kangana and I have nothing do with the ongoing controversy with Hrithik. But Kangana was called by Dr Agarwal who had a close relationship with her. He could call her and insist on her to meet."

He added, "It is true to say that Kangana was not ready to listen to my words and she left the house with her elder sister Rangoli. It is not true to say that she was upset with my statement despite politely coming for the meeting."

Javed says Kangana knew what the meeting was about

In the court, Javed was asked whether Kangana and her sister Rangoli came to his house "obediently". As per PTI, he responded by saying, You expect obedience from Kangana, it is not called obedience, but possibility for something... some kind of a solution. Physical reality is they came to my house, but obedience is a notion only in mind."

I had told her about the agenda of the meeting on call. Didn't call her to discuss the weather, political situation or America election in 2016, he said. He said though he did not know Kangana personally, he had always liked her work as an actor, but in the meeting he changed the topic once he realised she was not going to listen to him.

What Kangana said in the interview

In the interview given to a news channel in 2020 after the death of Rajput, among other statements, Kangana had claimed Akhtar asked her to apologise to co-star Hrithik Roshan, who in 2016 filed a lawsuit against her seeking an apology after public spat over a statement on their alleged relationship. Once Javed Akhtar called me to his house and told me Rakesh Roshan (father of Hrithik Roshan) and his family are very big people. If you don't apologise to them, you will have nowhere to go. They will put you in jail, and eventually, the only path would be that of destruction you will commit suicide. These were his words. He shouted and yelled at me. I was shaking in his house," Kangana had told the news channel.

Javed told the court, Whatever Kangana said in the interview is a lie and nothing but a lie.

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Actor Priyanka Chopra has shared a photo album from her recent trip to Liverpool in England. She took a train to the city with husband Nick Jonas, mom Madhu Chopra, mom-in-law Denise Jonas, daughter Malti and their friends. Nick's father Paul Kevin Jonas was also seen in some of the photos Priyanka shared. (Also read: Priyanka Chopra dresses up daughter Malti in a lehenga for a special pooja at home. See pics) Nick Jonas, Priyanka Chopra and Malti were joined by Denise Jonas and Madhu Chopra on the trip.

Priyanka's Liverpool photo album

The photos posted by the actor show her pouting while clicking a selfie with Nick. She is wearing a white shirt and a cap and he is in a blue shirt paired with dark sunglasses. Next is her photo with friend Tamanna Dutt as they sit on a ferry. It is followed by a picture of Malti in a baby seat, playing with a small purse. She is wearing a pink dress in the photo.

Then, the family heads to a train station with Priyanka carrying Malti in a baby wrap and Nick carrying a bag and a flask. More photos show Priyanka showing Malti some views of the countryside on their train ride to Liverpool. There are more photos of Malti with Tamanna's son as they play together on the train. A photo also shows Malti playing with water in an inflatable kiddie pool. A cute photo shows her taking her dad Nick's help to walk and finally, there is a picture of Nick and Priyanka's moms posing.

Fans' reactions

Priyanka captioned her post, Magic family. Nick Jonas commented on it with a heart emoji. A fan wrote, Malti is such a good name. Classic name, reminds of good old times. Another said, Awwhh thanks for sharing these special moments with us you guys are super busy and manage to carve out and make time to be together for Family TimeI just want to reach out and squeeze a virtual hug. LOVE always WINS. A comment read, "Is that your mama in blue ? Shes so beautiful! Looks just like you."

About Nick and Priyanka

Nick and Priyanka got married in 2018 in Jodhpur. The couple welcomed Malti last year.

Priyanka was last seen in Citadel and Love Again. She is currently shooting for Heads of State with Idris Elba in London. Nick also saw the premiere of his film The Good Half at Tribeca Film Festival.

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Actor Sushant Singh Rajput was found dead at his home in Mumbai in 2020. Actor Sara Ali Khan, who marked her debut with the late actor in Kedarnath posted behind-the-scene pictures from the film sets and penned a heartfelt note on his third death anniversary. (Also read: Sushant Singh Rajput death anniversary: Rhea Chakraborty shares their unseen video, fans tell her hes always with you') Sara Ali Khan shared unseen pictures with Sushant Singh Rajput on his third death anniversary.

Sara's Instagram post for Sushant

Sara posted two behind-the-scenes photos from the shooting of the film, one of which saw Sushant and her sitting in what seemed to be a helicopter, on the way to reach Kedarnath. Both of them looked at the camera and smiled.

The next picture showed Sara and Sushant sitting besides each other on a hill, as Sara looked serious reading and preparing her lines from the script.

In the caption, Sara wrote, "On our way to Kedarnath for the first time. On my way to shoot for the first time. And I know neither are ever going to feel the same again. But somewhere between action, cut, sunrise, rivers, clouds, moonlight, Kedarnath and Allah Hoo I know youre there. Keep shining amongst your stars (star emoticons) From Kedarnath to Andromeda (mountain, folded hands and stars emoticons)"

Anout

Kedarnath revolved around the love story between a reserved Muslim porter, played by Sushant and a rebellious daughter of a Hindu priest, played by Sara. Their love is met with challenges amid nature's wrath, caused by the flash floods in Uttarakhand in 2013. It was directed by Abhishek Kapoor. Sara eventually won a Filmfare award for Best Debut for her performance in the film.

Fan reactions

Many fans reacted to Sara's post for Sushant in the comment section. One said, "Really deeply appreciate that you still remember and express ur feelings for such a good Co- Artist and a very good human being. From The Bottom of my heart May God bless you." Another wrote, "She is the only one celebrity in Bollywood, who remembers our legend Sushant Singh Rajput always. She celebrates his birthday and many things. We love you Sara." A comment also read, "Lots of love and respect for u sara Ali khan always !! You are one gem of a person."

Sushant Singh Rajput died in June 2020. He was found dead at his Bandra residence. He was last seen later that year in Dil Bechara, which marked his final film appearance.

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Siddhant Chaturvedi and Navya Naveli Nanda are rumoured to be dating for quite some time now. Although neither of them has confirmed their relationship yet, they have been spotted by paparazzi in the past. Now, in another such scenario, the photographers spotted the rumoured lovebirds out on a movie date as they were seen walking towards a multiplex in the city. (Also read: Rumoured couple Siddhant Chaturvedi, Navya Nanda spotted together as they return from Goa trip) Siddhant Chaturvedi and Navya Naveli Nanda were spotted walking towards a multiplex in the city.

Siddhant and Navya on a movie date

A paparazzi video of Siddhant and Navya, which was shared on Instagram, was captioned, "Its a movie date night for Navya Nanda and Siddhant Chaturvedi as we click them getting in multiplex in Mumbai."

The two were seen walking beside each other as they headed towards the multiplex. Navya was seen in a white top and black pants, which she styled with a green jacket. Meanwhile, Siddhanth opted for a casual white shirt and black pants. They were snapped from a distance as they entered the building together.

Earlier this month, the paparazzi spotted both the actor and the entrepreneur as they were arriving at the Mumbai airport, reportedly back from Goa. They came out of the airport together. Both of them twinned in matching white outfits.

Last year, the paparazzi spotted Navya sitting beside Siddhant's parents at a fashion show in Mumbai. In December, the duo was seen leaving the birthday party of filmmaker Amritpal Singh Bindra together in a car.

Dating rumours of Siddhant and Navya

The rumours between the two started as many spotted the duo interacting on each other's posts on Instagram in recent times. They were also been seen hanging out at Karan Johar's 50th birthday party last year. When Siddhant was asked about one rumour about himself which he wished to be true during the promotions of his last film Phone Bhoot, he said to GoodTimes, That I am dating, seeing someone. I wish that was true.

Navya is the daughter of Shweta Nanda and Nikhil Nanda, and also the granddaughter of Amitabh and Jaya Bachchan. She hosted a podcast with her mother and grandmother named What The Hell Navya. She is also the co-owner of Aara Health, an online platform which discusses health and welfare-related topics.

Meanwhile, Siddhant was seen in Gehraiyaan and Phone Bhoot last year. He will next seen in Kho Gaye Hum Kahan, with co-stars Ananya Panday and Adarsh Gourav.

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Vicky Kaushal is riding high on the success of his latest film Zara Hatke Zara Bachke. The actor, who has been busy promoting the film leading up to its release seems to be back at home. The actor shared a beautiful picture with his actor-wife Katrina Kaif overlooking the sunset from his balcony on his Instagram account. (Also read: Vicky Kaushal says Katrina Kaif plans his birthday in detail: Utna mera dimaag nahi chalta) Vicky Kaushal and Katrina Kaif looked beautiful together in the latest Instagram picture shared by him.

Vicky's Instagram post

Vicky Kaushal shared a beautiful picture with Katrina on Instagram with a small caption that just featured home, heart and red heart emoticons. In the picture, Vicky was seen holding Katrina's hand. Both of them stood lost in love and enjoying the sunset. He linked the song Phir Aur Kya Chahiye from Zara Hatke Zara Bachke in the post.

Reactions to Vicky and Katrina's pic

Arjun Kapoor reacted to the post and commented, "Guru Katrina zindabad (all hail Katrina)" Many fans took to the comments and reacted to the sweet post. A fan wrote, "Cast them in a rom com asap!" Another said, "Can't get enough of you two. (red heart emoticons)" A fan also said, "Now the song makes a lot more sense." "Both looking so pretty bless you best couple. you both are my heart" said another.

Vicky and Katrina's love story

Vicky and Katrina tied the knot in Rajasthan in December 2021. Although there were rumours of their relationship, they kept it a secret for quite some time and never confirmed their relationship in public. Recently talking about their marriage, Vicky told News Tak, "Our marriage is paranthas weds pancakes. They are the same only. She loves pancakes, I love paranthas. Even she eats parathas. She loves mom ke haath ke paranthe (Katrina loves paranthas made by my mom).

After the release of Zara Hatke Zara Bachke, Vicky has Sam Bahadur in the pipeline. Sam Bahadur is the story of India's war hero and first Field Marshal Sam Manekshaw. The film is all set to hit the theatres on December 1, 2023.

Meanwhile, Katrina will be next seen in the action-thriller film Tiger 3 opposite Salman Khan. The film is all set to hit the theatres on Diwali this year. She also has director Sriram Raghavan's film Merry Christmas opposite Vijay Sethupathi. Katrina is yet to start shooting for Farhan Akhtar's Jee Le Zaraa along with Alia Bhatt and Priyanka Chopra.

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Actor Vijay Varma talked about his personal life briefly in a recent interview and shared that there has been a lot of love in his life. His statement comes days after actor Tamannaah Bhatia confirmed her relationship rumours with Vijay. Unlike Tamannaah, Vijay, without taking names, said that he wants his work to do the talking rather than his personal life. Also read: Vijay Varma, Tamannaah Bhatia hold hands in unseen pic from 2022 event Vijay Varma is dating actor Tamannaah Bhatia.

Vijay Varma and Tamannaah Bhatia

Tamannaah Bhatia and Vijay Varma were rumoured to be together after a video of them allegedly kissing at a New Year Party in Goa went viral on social media. While the two kept their lips seal, previously Vijay's friend, actor Gulshan Devaiah had told Hindustan Times, Kuch toh hai. Kya hai exactly pata nahi (Something is there between them but what is it I dont know). They do look like they have very good chemistry. I'm sure that means something.

Vijay on his personal life

Recently Vijay was asked about people's interest in his personal life. He told Janice Sequeira in a YouTube video, You speak about it when the right time comes but I can just tell you that theres a lot of love in my life right now. And Im happy. He was also asked why he prefers people to not talk about his personal life. The actor reasoned that he wants his work to speak, rather than his personal matters.

Tamannaah on Vijay

A few days ago, Tamannaah told Film Companion, "Both of us, as actors and as people, and that is one thing we got along on, when someone just lets you be, without trying to tweak anything which is not in your comfort. If I would do it a certain way, he would let me shine, he would let me do what I want to do. He would be like, ok, let me take a tip or two, and I do the same for him. When there are two fully-evolved people, I dont think you need to direct them. We both live our lives, we dont need to tell each other what to do. I feel that respect is so unspoken.

Vijay will be next seen in the Netflix anthology film Lust Stories 2. It also has Tamannaah. She said their love story began on the sets of Lust Stories 2.

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Descendants of the Sun actor Song Joong Ki and his UK-based wife, Katy Louise Saunders have welcomed their first child in Italy and it's a boy! The news has been confirmed by the actor's agency High Zium Studio. Earlier this year in January, Song Joong Ki announced his marriage to Katy. He also revealed that she was expecting their child. Also read: Song Joong Ki goes out on date with wife Katy, holds hands in Rome Song Joong Ki and wife Katy had their first child in Italy.

Song Joong Ki shares first pic of son

On Wednesday, Song Joong Kis agency issues a statement which read, "Song Joong Ki became the father of a baby boy in Italy. Soon after, the actor took to his fan club and wrote a heartfelt letter to his fans announcing the good news. He also posted the first photo of his newborn holding his finger.

Song Joong Ki's letter

Song Joong Ki wrote in his letter, "Hello, this is Joong Ki. Im curious how all of you are doing. As you probably know all too well, I wrapped up filming for the movie My Name Is Loh Kiwan in Hungary, and I even had the honour of attending the Cannes Film Festival for the movie Hopeless. All of the moments from the film festival still feel like a dream to me; thats how happily Ive been spending my days.

"Today, I came here to greet you because I have one more piece of news that feels like a dream, and I wanted to be the first to tell you. Right now, Im in Italy.

"Here, in my wifes hometown of Rome, we happened to welcome our baby. Its a healthy son.. and both the baby and his mother are in very good health. As we welcomed [our child] in good health and joy, I am taking care of my family very happily, with a grateful heart.

"I think [our son] is the most precious gift to have found its way to us, a married couple whose biggest dream all our lives was to start a happy family. And I think its thanks to the many people who gave us their support that such a happy day has found us. Thank you.

Im always grateful to the Ki Aile [Song Joong Kis fans] who give their sincere, unchanging love, and I, Joong Ki, will also sincerely wish for there to be great joy in all of your lives as well. As befits an actor, and in order to stay true to myself I will return to greet you with a cool project. Please always be healthy. And I love you, he signed out. Meanwhile, congratulatory messages are currently pouring in for the new parents on social media.

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Nawazuddin Siddiqui's upcoming romantic-comedy Tiku Weds Sheru also stars actor Avneet Kaur, who will be marking her Bollywood debut as the lead. On Wednesday, the makers dropped the trailer of the much-awaited film, backed by Kangana Ranaut. Also read: Kangana Ranaut shares first look of Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Avneet Kaur's film Tiku Weds Sheru trailer: Nawazuddin Siddiqui and Avneet Kaur are two opposites who end up marrying each other.

Tiku Weds Sheru trailer

The trailer features Tiku and Sheru, two opposites who end up getting married. Tiku sees her marriage as an opportunity to land in Mumbai and fulfil her big acting dream. Sheru, on the other hand, is struggling for years in the industry. Filled with humorous one-liners, the film also highlights people's struggles in life and promises to present a quirky love story.

A day before the trailer release, Kangana shared her excitement for the project on social media. She took to Instagram and dropped a bunch of photos of herself to announce the trailer release date. Sharing the photos, she wrote in the caption, Very excited for the trailer launch tomorrow... Tiku weds Sheru on 23rd June. Only on @primevideoin.

Tiku Weds Sheru is the first project produced by Kangana under her production house, Manikarnika Films. It is directed and written by Sai Kabir and stars Nawazuddin Siddiqui and Avneet Kaur together for the first time who share a 27-year age gap between them. The first posters of the film had previously introduced Nawazuddin as Shiraz Khan Afghani aka Sheru. Avneet, on the other hand, will be seen as Tasleem Khan, alias Tiku in the film.

The filming of Tiku Weds Sheru wrapped up last year in February. Nawazuddin had shared photos from their wrap up party and said, "The beautiful process of filming #TikuWedsSheru is completed today. Team Tiku Weds Sherus energy & dedication was unmatchable in all the department. Kangana Ranaut has been a very supportive creative & endearing producer. @Avneet is a gifted actor and a stunning dancer. Director Sai Kabir your creativity is superlative & DOP #DonFernando, you are a magician behind lenses. All my Co-actors, you guys have inspired me & pushed me to give my best in this film. This joy ride comes to an end. Its a WRAP.

Nawazuddin on Kangana Ranaut

Talking about working with Kangana, Nawazuddin previously told Hindustan Times, Kangana bohot hi kamal ki film producer (she is a fantastic film producer). She was very engaged. From actors to technicians, everyone was very happy with her production. If anyone had a problem she would solve it. She used to take care of everything. Tiku Weds Sheru will premiere exclusively on Prime Video. The official release date from the makers is still awaited.

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A four-year-old boy was allegedly killed at a village in Uttar Pradeshs Amethi district in a suspected case of human sacrifice, police said on Wednesday, adding that four people, including the childs stepmother and a man described as an occultist, were arrested. Amethi SP Elamaran G said the boy went out to play on Sunday but did not return home that day (Representational image)

According to the police, the boys stepmother was told that a child had to be sacrificed so that she could bear one of her own. The body of the boy, Satyendra, was found in a pond at Rehsi village under Jamo police station limits on Monday with injuries on eyes, ears, cheeks, chin and right elbow.

Also Read | Human sacrifice bid on woman in Punjab, two arrested

The police said the injuries were caused while performing tantric (occult) rituals.

Amethi superintendent of police (SP) Elamaran G said the boy went out to play on Sunday but did not return home that day. His father Jitendra Prajapati lodged a missing complaint around 3 am on Monday.

Hours later, a villager Dhan Bahadur informed the boys father that Satyendras body was found floating in a nearby pond, the SP said. Based on suspicion, Jitendra lodged a complaint against his wife Renu Prajapati (30), father-in-law Mangru Prajapati (55), mother-in-law Prema Devi (53) and the occultist Dayaram Yadav (65).

Also Read | 5 held in 2019 human sacrifice case at Kamakhya temple: Assam police

A case was registered against the accused under Section 302 (punishment for murder) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and later charges under sections 201 (criminal conspiracy) and 34 (acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention) were added, the SP said.

According to the police, Renu and Jitendra got married around a year-and-a-half ago after the latters first wife left him. During interrogation, Renus parents told the police that since their daughter remained ill most of the time after her marriage and also suffered a miscarriage, they contacted occultist Dayaram Yadav, the SP said. Yadav told them that Jitendras first child had to be sacrificed for Renu to conceive, the SP added.

Vivek Kumar Singh, in-charge, Jamo police station, said Mangru and Prema Devi confessed to their crime during interrogation. The police also recovered a towel used in strangling the child to death, a few lemons, nutmegs and other items used in occultism from the site of the crime.

(With inputs from agency)
Nine people were killed and 10 others wounded in a gunfight that erupted in Agijang village on the border between Imphal East and Kangpokpi districts between 10 and 10:30pm on Tuesday when a group of armed assailants descended upon the area in ethnic violence-hit Manipur, police said on Wednesday Security personnel conducting a combing operation in Manipur. (ANI)

The gunfight was triggered after security forces rushed to the area to counter the assailants. There was firing in the village around 10-10:30pm and nine people were killed and 10 others injured. All injured have been admitted to hospital where the condition of one is stated to be critical, said Imphal East police superintendent K Shivakanta Singh.

He said Assam Rifles is in charge of the security of the area where the fresh killings were reported from. Singh added that the situation in the area was now under control.

At least 115 people have been killed and another 40,000 displaced since violence between the tribal Kukis, who mostly reside in the hill districts, and the Meiteis, the dominant community in Imphal Valley, erupted on May 3.

The violence was triggered during a protest against a court order for granting scheduled tribe status to Meities. Violence quickly engulfed the state. The authorities clamped a curfew and suspended the internet. Additional security forces were rushed to the state amid spiraling clashes but tensions simmered.

On Monday, prominent civil society organisations from warring Meitei and Kuki communities refused to be a part of a peace committee the Union government has constituted to broker peace in the state.

Union home minister Amit Shah on June 1 announced the formation of the panel as part of measures to tamp down tensions.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR Utpal Parashar Utpal is a Senior Assistant Editor based in Guwahati. He covers seven states of North-East India and heads the editorial team for the region. He was previously based in Kathmandu, Dehradun and Delhi with Hindustan Times. ...view detail
New Delhi An election petition pending before the Supreme Court since 1992 earned a unique distinction recently when it got referred for a third time over to a Constitution bench. The larger bench has been called upon to ascertain key aspects of determining corrupt practice, as defined under Section 123 of the 1951 Representation of Peoples (RP) Act, when a candidate or his agents make an appeal for vote based on religion, race, caste or community. HT Image

On May 3, a two-judge bench headed by justice Surya Kant traced the journey of the case, starting 1992, and referred it to the Chief Justice of India (CJI) with a request for urgently constituting a five-judge bench. The civil appeal is of the year 1992, we, therefore, request Honble the Chief Justice of India to constitute the bench at the earliest, stated the order, citing the advanced age of the petitioner before it and the efflux of time that witnessed a pendency of over three decades in the top court.

The petitioner before the court, Abhiram Singh, was the winning candidate of the 1990 Santacruz assembly seat in Maharashtra from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). His election was set aside by the Bombay high court in December 1991 on a petition filed by his rival contender for the seat, CD Commachen, of the Communist Party of India (Marxist). Singh was blamed for having indulged in corrupt practices by speaking to the voters on grounds of religion. While Singh is over 80 now, Commachen died many years ago.

The case travelled in the past to a five-judge bench in 1996 and to a seven-judge bench in 2014. The seven-judge bench delivered a landmark ruling in January 2017 where the top court, by 4-3, held that appeal for votes on grounds of religion, race, caste or community or language cannot be confined to that of the candidate alone. It declared that the sweep of corrupt practice under Section 123(3) and 123(3A) of the Act will include the religion, race, caste, community or language of the voters too.

While the 2017 ruling settled the position of the law, there were still certain procedural issues left unanswered, prompting the two-judge bench to refer the matter yet again to a Constitution bench on May 3.

The genesis of dispute

Election to Santacruz assembly seat was held in February 1990 as part of the Maharashtra state assembly polls. Abhiram Singh, the then vice-president of state BJP unit was declared elected on March 1, 1990 while Commachen, the respondent, finished second. Commachen filed an election petition against Singh alleging that he indulged in corrupt practice by employing religion to secure votes of the Hindu community.

The high court allowed Commachens plea, noting that evidence left no room for doubt that Singh used the plank of Hindutva/Hinduism/Hindu. The high court further held that by appealing for votes in the name of the Hindu community and religion, there was an attempt to create enmity and hatred between different classes of citizens on the basis of religion, community and caste particularly between Hindus and Muslims.

Singh appealed against this judgment in 1992, arguing that the findings recorded against him under Sections 123 (3) and 123 (3A) dealing with corrupt practices were accepted by the high court without complying with the requirements under Section 99 of the RP Act. Section 99 provides the procedure to be followed before declaring an election to be void. Further, Singh claimed that the leaders who made the speeches prior to the election did so without his consent and hence, corrupt practices have not been proved.

The law in question

Corrupt practices during elections are grounds to set aside an election. What constitutes a corrupt practice is laid down in Section 123 of the 1951 Act. Section 123(3) states: The appeal by a candidate or his agent or by any other person with the consent of a candidate or his election agent to vote or refrain from voting for any person on the ground of his religion, race, caste, community or language or the use of, or appeal to religious symbols or the use of, or appeal to, national symbols, such as the national flag or the national emblem, for the furtherance of the prospects of the election of that candidate or for prejudicially affecting the election of any candidate....shall be deemed to be corrupt practices for the purposes of this Act.

In 1961, subsection 3A was also introduced to Section 123 which further expanded corrupt practices to include the promotion of, or attempt to promote, feelings of enmity or hatred between different classes of the citizens of India on grounds of religion, race, caste, community, or language, by a candidate or his agent or any other person with the consent of a candidate or his election agent for the furtherance of the prospects of that candidate or for prejudicially affecting the election of any candidate.

The order of first reference

After considering Singhs contentions on the alleged lapses by the high court in complying with the procedural norms, a three-judge bench referred the matter to a five-judge bench in 1996 and formulated three issues.

The reference order of April 16, 1996, stated: The first question was whether the judge who tried the case is required to record prima facie conclusions on proof of the corrupt practices committed by the (winning) candidate or his agents or collaborators (leaders of the candidates political party) or any person on his behalf.

The second issue, the reference order said, related to whether the consent of the returned candidate is required to be proved, and if so, on what basis and under what circumstances is the consent held as proved. And third, on reaching the conclusion that consent is proved and to prove corrupt practice, whether the notice issued under Section 99(1) of RP Act should contain a mini judgment containing the pleadings, evidence and findings on each of the corrupt practices and supply it to the winning candidate for him to show compliance.

The order of second reference

After the 1996 reference order, the case was taken up by a five-judge bench that began hearing the case in 2002. As the hearing progressed, the Constitution bench was informed that a similar petition raising similar issues involving interpretation of Section 124(3) had already been referred to a larger bench of seven judges.

This other case was an election petition filed by Narayan Singh challenging the election of BJP leader Sunderlal Patwa from the Bhojpur assembly constituency in Madhya Pradesh. It was alleged that Patwa committed a corrupt practice as he allegedly made a systematic appeal on the ground of religion which attracted Section 123(3) of the RP Act. After the election petition was dismissed by the Madhya Pradesh high court, Narayan approached the top court.

In the Narayan Singh matter, what the court found significant was the use of the word his in Section 123(3) and noted that in the light of several past decisions of the top court, there needs clarity on whether the word his in the context of appeal for votes on the ground of religion, race, caste, community or language, refers to the candidate or the voter.

Referring the Abhiram Singh case to a seven-judge bench on January 30, 2014, the five-judge bench maintained that since one of the questions involved in the present case was already referred to a larger bench of seven judges, the issue regarding interpretation of 123 (3) of the 1951 Act should also go to the larger bench .

Both these matters were decided by a seven-judge bench on January 2, 2017. The majority verdict in the seven-judge bench gave an expansive interpretation to the word his in Section 123(3) to hold that even an appeal on grounds of the voters religion, race, caste, community or language will amount to corrupt practice. The dissenting opinion by three judges said that the word his should refer to the candidate alone.

The order of third reference

After the 2017 decision, the election appeals were sent back for hearing before the regular bench.

Last month, when the case was taken up, senior advocate Devadutt Kamat who represented the respondent (Commachen), pointed out that besides deciding the scope of what constitutes corrupt practice, the five-judge bench was also required to decide three other issues. The top court agreed that the matter stood referred to seven judges on a limited issue even as the reference order of 1996 made out three issues arising for consideration by a five-judge bench. Senior advocate Arvind P Datar, appearing for Singh, pointed out that his client is over 80.

The court then said that the three questions of law formulated in the 1996 order should be considered by a larger bench of five judges. We, therefore, direct the Registry to place the case before Honble the Chief Justice of India for constituting a larger Bench of five judges, said the latest order of reference.
Maharashtra deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis on Wednesday took to Twitter to congratulate Archana Atram from Pune division of Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC) on being the first woman state transport bus driver in the state. Archana Atram, first woman driver of Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation.(Twitter/ @Dev_Fadnavis)

She drove the ST Bus from Saswad to Nira (district Pune).

He wrote, Another glass ceiling broken! Ms. Archana Atram creates history by becoming the first woman driver of Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation. She drove the ST Bus from Saswad to Nira (District Pune). Soon we will see Ms. Atram with a woman bus conductor and all passengers with 50% discount on fare are women too! Congratulations to Archana and all women drivers who joined MSRTC!

The minister further informed that soon Atram would be joined by a woman conductor.

According to Pune Mirror, Atram, who hails from Sarkani village of Kinvar in Nanded, was among the hundred women selected by MSRTC for the drivers position with their recruitment initiated in 2019.
A man from Bihar's Bhagalpur who was missing for months and believed dead by his family was found eating momos in Noida, according to media reports. A missing person case was filed in Bihar's Sultanganj police station.(Photo: Instagram/food_dynasty_)

The bizarre incident unfolded after Nishant Kumar, a resident of Naugachia in Bhagalpur district, disappeared on January 31, 2023, while he was visiting his in-laws' house for a wedding, Amar Ujala reported. His brother-in-law Ravi Shankar Singh filed a missing person case at Sultanganj police station, while Nishant's father, on the other hand, accused his son's in-laws of abduction and murder.

Amid claims and counterclaims, Ravi Shankar alleged that the family members of Nishant kept torturing his family by falsely accusing them of his murder. He said his elder uncle passed away in shock because of the serious charges levelled by Nishant's family.

How was Nishant found?

Ravi Shankar Singh said he was at a momos stall in Noida Sector 50 when he saw the shopkeeper chasing away a beggar in ragged clothes. The beggar repeatedly asked for food saying he was hungry, Singh said, adding that he felt sorry for the person and asked the shopkeeper to give him momos.

Ravi Shankar then asked the beggar his name and was stunned when the person, with a big unkempt beard and moustache, introduced himself as Nishant Kumar, son of Sachidananda Singh, a resident of Dhruvganj, Naugachia.

Ravi Shankar said he immediately dialled 100 to call the police and Nishant was taken to Sector 13 police station. Delhi Police also informed Sultanganj police station where he was reported missing months ago.

There is still no clarity on how he reached Delhi and he will be questioned in court.

Now there is a hope that we will get justice from the court and whoever is guilty in this case, the court will take legal action, Ravi Shankar was quoted as saying.

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The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is planning to organise a massive protest in Jaipur in July to target the Congress government in Rajasthan on issues such as corruption and deficiencies in governance, setting the stage for an all-out electoral contest between the two parties in the state where polls are due at the end of the year. Police stop BJP supporters during their Janakrosh Mahagherao against the Rajasthan Government in April. (ANI)

According to a senior party functionary, the Congress corruption and administrative lapses will be the mainstay of the BJPs election campaign in the state, even though the issues of minority appeasement and deterioration of law and order will be flagged as well. We are aiming to get five lakh people to gather and gherao the secretariat on a day in July that is yet to be finalised. This will highlight the Ashok Gehlot governments failures and the rampant corruption in the state, the senior functionary said.

The BJP is hoping to take a leaf from the Congresss election campaign in Karnataka, where public anger against corruption was one of the key reasons for the former being ousted from power in the May election. A post poll analysis by the BJP showed that the Congress narrative about the government being corrupt leveraged through campaigns such as the 40% sarkara and PayCM had an impact on the electoral outcome.

The BJP is also taking heart from the internal rift in the Congress, between CM Gehlot and leader Sachin Pilot on the issue of corruption. In May, Pilot announced he would launch a stir if the government failed to act on corruption charges in the state. He also led a five-day Jan Sangharsh Yatra in protest over the delay by the Gehlot government in addressing the issue. The two have since arrived at some understanding facilitated by the partys central leadership.

By the end of this month, senior party leaders, including union home minister Amit Shah are expected to soft-launch the BJPs campaign in the state, by addressing public meetings. A second functionary said the party has also lined up a series of public programmes that will be addressed by Prime Minister, Narendra Modi. The PM will be addressing rallies in the run up to the elections and is also expected to unveil central schemes for the state... the second functionary said.

On Tuesday, BJP president JP Nadda, accused the Rajasthan government of diluting the quotas fixed for the OBC communities and distributing it to the Muslim communities. Nadda made a similar accusation against the TMC government in West Bengal and the Aam Aadmi Party government in Punjab. Referring to a report of the national commission for OBCs, which claims that OBC certification process has not been followed as per rules and several states including Rajasthan are not adhering to the reservation policy while recruiting for government jobs, Nadda said that in Rajasthan seven districts have been declared tribal areas, but reservation is not being given to other backward classes.

BJP national general secretary, Arun Singh, who is in charge of Rajasthan accused the Congress government of failing to address complaints of graft. The government has broken all records of corruption. In the past three years, there has been a 22% increase in (cases of) corruption.., he alleged.

There was no immediate reaction available from the Congress.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR Smriti Kak Ramachandran Smriti covers an intersection of politics and governance. Having spent over a decade in journalism, she combines old fashioned leg work with modern story telling tools. ...view detail
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has set into motion a plan to strengthen its position in Bihar and will soon begin a massive outreach campaign that will include rallies by senior party leaders, according to people aware of the details. BJP national president JP Nadda will address a public rally in the state on June 24. (PTI)

On Wednesday, senior leaders from the central team as well as from Bihar, met in the Capital where it was decided that party president JP Nadda will address a public rally in the state on June 24, close on the heels of the opposition parties meet to hammer out the contours of a joint front against the BJP ahead of the 2024 general elections.

The opposition meeting is scheduled to be held on June 23 in Patna.

Union home minister Amit Shah will also address a public rally on June 29 in Munger, the people cited above said.

The BJP meeting was held in Union minister Giriraj Singhs residence and lasted for over four hours.

Faced with the possibility of a united opposition taking on the BJP in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls and the 2025 assembly elections in Bihar, the party is strengthening its cadre and also eyeing alliances with smaller outfits in a bid to balance caste equations in the state.

According to a party functionary, the cadre will reach out with details of how central schemes have benefited the state and its people, and illustrate the changes that have taken place on the ground. Things have changed drastically on the ground after 2014 (when the BJP came to power at the Centre) and we will go to the people with the list of our accomplishments, the functionary said.

Among those present for the meeting were national general secretary Vinod Tawde, who is in charge of Bihar, co- incharges Harish Diwedi and Sunil Oza, state unit president Samrat Chaudhary, MP Sushil Modi and leader of the opposition Vijay Sinha.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR Smriti Kak Ramachandran Smriti covers an intersection of politics and governance. Having spent over a decade in journalism, she combines old fashioned leg work with modern story telling tools. ...view detail
Chennai: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has sought custodial interrogation of the key accused, minister V Senthil Balaji on the grounds that he is not cooperating with the probe and that they have evidence which shows that he is guilty of money laundering, the federal agency said in its remand order. HT has seen a copy of the remand order. The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has sought custodial interrogation of the key accused, minister V Senthil Balaji on the grounds that he is not cooperating with the probe and that they have evidence which shows that he is guilty of money laundering. (HT Archives)

After the SC gave them a go-ahead to continue investigation in May, ED said that in a month they have unearthed incriminating documents related to the alleged scam in recruitment of drivers, conductors, junior tradesman, junior engineers, assistant engineers in the state transport department and also established the relationship between Balaji and other accused such as his personal assistants.

Deputy Director and the Investigating Officer in this case, Karthik Dasari said that based on the materials in his possession, there are reasons to believe that the minister is guilty of the offence of money laundering under section 3 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, (PMLA) 2002. The ED searched residence and secretariat office of Senthil Balaji on June 13.

ED has said in the remand application that the minister refused to sign and receive the summons on June 14 and inanimate them. He started behaving in an intimidating manner, shouted and yelled at the officer that he is the sitting minister of the state, the ED said in the remand order. With no other option, in the presence of two witnesses, the petitioner attempted to record the statement of Sh. V Senthil Balaji but he has not responded to any of the questions posed. Therefore, he has been completely non-cooperative during the summon proceedings.

There was neither justification nor evidence to show that the source of huge cash deposits is from his genuine income, the remand application said adding that he is likely to destroy evidence and influence witnesses.

Considering his non-cooperation in the investigation, custodial interrogation is required for further investigation in the matter. He is required to be confronted with the other people, whose statements have been recorded so far during investigation under PMLA. Besides transactions and materials gathered, the ED said the statements given by some of the accused, victims and witnesses clearly point to the offence of money laundering.

He is also required to trace the end-use of the huge amounts of monies which appear to have been laundered in this case, for which he could not produce documents despite sufficient opportunity, ED said.

ED also said that a bank statement analysis of the minister revealed that there have been cash deposits of 1.34 crore in the accounts of prime suspect Balaji and 29.55 lakh in his wife S Meghalas account. These cash deposits are huge compared to their incomes disclosed in ITRs (Income tax returns), ED said.

When he was transport minister in the previous AIADMK regime, Balaji abused his official capacity along with his personal assistant B Shanmugam, and his brother V Ashok Kumar and one M Karthikeyan, said ED. The minister and his aides entered into a criminal conspiracy with the then managing directors of all state transport undertakings and other officers of transport corporations to obtain illegal gratification from candidates to recruit them as drivers, conductors, Junior Tradesmen, Junior Assistants, Junior Engineer and Assistant Engineer in the transport corporation. However, these candidates neither received a job nor a refund of the money they paid.

ED said that they issued multiple summons to the accused (Senthil Balaji and his aides) in 2022 but they never appeared and requested several adjournments. This kind of behaviour clearly shows the evasive nature of these suspects, ED said.

Meanwhile, Senthil Balaji has been sent to a judicial custody of 14 days till June 28 by Chennai principal district judge S Alli on Wednesday. On the same day, he was admitted to government Omandurar hospital after complaining of chest pain. Balaji underwent angiogram and was recommend an urgent bypass surgery. While the judge S Alli has allowed the minister to continue his medical treatment in hospital till further orders.

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Nearly 50,000 people have been relocated to safer areas across eight Gujarat districts and the process was expected to be completed by Wednesday evening as very severe cyclonic storm Biparjoy intensified over the Northeast Arabian Sea and moved north-northwestwards. The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) has, meanwhile, issued a red alert for Gujarats Saurashtra and Kutch regions. Strong winds and high tides triggered by Cyclone Biparjoy at Mandvi beach in Kachchh district of Gujarat on Wednesday. (ANI Photo)

Biparjoy, with maximum sustained wind speeds ranging from 125-135 km per hour and gusting up to 150 km per hour, is expected to cause heavy rainfall across the Gujarat coastline. At 2.30am on Wednesday, it lay approximately 350 km west of Porbandar and was expected to cross Saurashtra, Kutch, and the adjoining Pakistani coast, between Mandavi in Gujarat and Karachi on Thursday evening.

IMD said Biparjoy is expected to cause heavy to extremely heavy rainfall at isolated locations in Kachchh, Devbhumi Dwarka, Porbandar, Jamnagar, Rajkot, Junagarh, and Morbi on Wednesday. The intensity of rainfall is expected to increase on Thursday.

Extremely heavy rainfall is expected at isolated locations in Kachchh, Devbhumi Dwarka, and Jamnagar. Porbandar, Rajkot, Morbi, and Junagarh. Isolated heavy to very heavy rainfall is expected in parts of Saurashtra and the north Gujarat region on Thursday as well.

Defence minister Rajnath Singh spoke to all three service chiefs and reviewed the preparedness of the armed forces ahead of the cyclones landfall. The Armed Forces are ready to provide every possible assistance to civil authorities in tackling any situation or contingency due to the cyclone, he informed via Twitter.

Relief commissioner Alok Pandey said the maximum number of people (17,739) were relocated from Kutch, followed by Jamnagar (8,542), and Rajkot (4,497). Eighteen teams of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and 12 teams of the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) have been deployed in places such as Kutch, Devbhoomi Dwarka, Rajkot, Jamnagar, and Junagadh.

Over 4,000 hoardings have been removed ahead of the cyclone. Officials said 597 teams from the Paschim Gujarat Vij Company Limited have been mobilised to promptly restore power supply in the aftermath of the cyclone.

IMD has also issued a storm surge warning for Kutch, Devbhumi Dwarka, Porbandar, Jamnagar, and Morbi districts. The low-lying areas in these districts are at risk of being inundated. The storm surge of about two-three meters above the astronomical tide is anticipated during the landfall.

Ravi Gandhi, Border Security Force inspector general (Gujarat), visited the coastal areas of Bhuj to oversee the preparations and took stock of readiness to deal with any contingency.
Bijender Rishidhar, a daily wager from Bihars Purnea, borrowed money to travel to Odisha when he came to know about the death of his son Suraj Kumar, 21, in the June 2 train crash. He hoped to get the body of his only son as soon as possible for last rites for some sense of closure. Rishidhar identified the body (number 159) at a mortuary at Bhubaneswars All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) on June 5 based on the Aadhar card found in Kumars wallet. Around a dozen kin have been awaiting DNA test results in Bhubaneswar. (Sourced)

But over a week later, Rishidhars wait continues. Authorities were awaiting the result of a DNA test before handing over to him his sons remains. First, we were told that the DNA test results would be out in 48 hours and I can take the body. Then, it was extended to two days...five days. Now more than a week has passed and no one knows for sure when the results would come. I am a daily wager and borrowed money to travel to Odisha. I have not earned a single rupee in the last week, said Rishidhar, who has been staying at a private guest house near AIIMS with around dozen others.

Ashok Rabi Das from West Bengals Malda has similarly been waiting for 10 days to get the disfigured body of his brother Krishna, 20, who was returning from Bengaluru on the Yeshwantpur-Howrah Express when the Coromandel Express hit it.

Das identified Krishnas body on June 4 from the belt, pants, and shirt he was wearing. But he was not given the body and asked to give his blood sample for DNA matching. People got bodies of their near and dear ones soon after the accident. I do not understand why the officials did not hand over my brothers body though I could clearly identify it from his clothes. I have no idea how long the DNA test result would take, he said.

Indias deadliest rail crash on June 2 in over two decades left 289 people dead. Officials said 208 bodies have been identified since June 2. But with multiple claims over some bodies, the state government decided on DNA sampling.

Ajit Kumar from Bihars Begusarai said he has waiting for the body of his brother Sujit Kumar, 23, since June 6. The body number 27 at AIIMS mortuary is of my brother as it has a tattoo of Mahakal. I could also recognise my brother as he had a longer thumbnail. But I have been waiting for the DNA sample test since June 6, he said.

Pravash Ranjan Tripathy, an anatomy professor at AIIMS, said the process is cumbersome due to multiple factors, including the quality of DNA extracted from the bodies. We have sent 75 samples to Delhi for testing. But they would take at least 10 to 15 days. We are also unsure how many samples will match. In some cases, samples of uncles and nephews have been taken instead of fathers, mothers, or siblings who are first-degree relations. DNA matching accuracy is higher in first-degree relations, he said.
Visiting US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan and his Indian counterpart Ajit Doval will hold delegation-level talks today with a focus on security in the Indo-Pacific amidst Chinese continued belligerence against Taiwan and using Myanmar to gain access to the Bay of Bengal and the Indian Ocean. NSA Sullivan will also meet External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar. US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan with Indian National Security Advisor Ajit Doval.

While the priority bilateral agenda on the eve of Prime Minister Narendra Modis state visit to the US was on top agenda for the two NSAs on Tuesday, the focus will be on Indo-Pacific with US Indo-Pacific Coordinator Kurt Campbell accompanying Sullivan. With China monitoring Indian activities in Bay of Bengal through its installed intelligence collecting facilities in Myanmars Coco Island, north of Indias Andamans and Nicobar Island territories, and signing a security pact with Solomon Islands in far Pacific, the expansion of PLA Navys footprint in the Indo-Pacific is a matter of serious concern to both US and India. Repeated intrusions across the Taiwan air identification zones through PLA military aircraft and warships as well as continued stand-off with Indian Army in East Ladakh are most disconcerting to the natural allies.

It is understood that NSA Sullivan and NSA Doval had one to one dialogue on global security issues and the future of bilateral partnership on Tuesday with all indications of a positive interaction. The newly appointed US ambassador to India Eric Garcetti called Indian NSA an international treasure at a CII event after the two met at Sardar Patel Bhawan days before. Garcetti, as per claims, has a working knowledge of Hindi and Urdu and has travelled extensively in India in the past.

With China investing in Myanmar-Bangladesh corridor to access the Bay of Bengal as part of the Belt Road Initiative (BRI) apart from ongoing investments in Pakistan with the same objective, there is ample evidence to indicate that President Xi Jinping has all plans to project dominance in Indian Ocean and has already built sufficient leverage with African countries through back-breaking Chinese debt burden via the BRI route.

To add to the discomfort is the increased Chinese diplomatic and military engagement with Sunni-Shia powers in the Middle East with Beijing investing in Port Khalifa in UAE and Saudi Arabia investing in setting up oil refineries in China instead of any other Sunni country.

On May 7, US and Indian NSAs along with the NSA of UAE held talks with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Riyadh to set up railroad infrastructure in Sunni Middle East as a counter to the Chinese BRI initiative.

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Hours after the Enforcement Directorate (ED) arrested Tamil Nadu Electricity Minister V Senthil Balaji in connection with a money laundering case on Wednesday, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge slammed it as vendetta politics by the Narendra Modi-led government. DMK minister Senthil Balaji (L) and Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge. (File)

Terming it political harassment against the Opposition, the Congress leader asserted that they wont be bulldozed by such use of force.

In a statement, Kharge said, "This is nothing but political harassment and vendetta by the Modi government against those opposed to it. None of us in the Opposition will be intimidated by such brazen moves."

His remarks came amid high drama following EDs hours-long grilling of Balaji that culminated in his hospitalisation after complaints of uneasiness. The minister was admitted to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) of a government hospital, where he was brought for medical examination in the wee hours of Wednesday. The DMK leader was seen wailing in pain in the car as his supporters gathered to protest against the ED action.

TN chief minister MK Stalin also condemned the BJPs backdoor tactics against its political opponents. Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee said that the misuse of central agencies continues while calling the action unacceptable and desperate.

On Tuesday, the ED had conducted raids at the premises linked to Balaji.

What is the case

The allegations against Balaji date back to 2011-15 when he was the transport minister in the previous All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) government. Crores of rupees were allegedly taken from candidates in return for promised jobs. Many candidates did not get jobs despite allegedly paying bribes. The action came months after the Supreme Court allowed a police and ED probe into the alleged cash-for-jobs scam.





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The Enforcement Directorate (ED) arrested Tamil Nadu electricity minister V Senthil Balaji under the provisions of Prevention of Money Laundering Act in Chennai in the wee hours of Wednesday after hours-long raids at his premises in Chennai, Karur and his office at the Secretariat. Senthil Balaji, a DMK strongman from Karur began his political life as a local body member in 1997.

The latest development against Balaji comes two weeks after the income-tax (I-T) department conducted an eight-day raid at over 40 places across Tamil Nadu linked to the minister and his supporters. The move came after the Supreme Court in May overruled a 2022 Madras high court order that dismissed the proceedings against Balaji and others in the alleged recruitment scam. The apex court set aside the HC order directing a fresh probe into the suspected multi-crore transport job scam and allowed the ED to continue its ongoing probe. The SC also said that a request for a Special Investigation Team (SIT) can be considered at a later stage.

What is the alleged job-for-scam case

The case dates back to 2011-2015 and relates to allegations of bribes allegedly taken by Balaji  then an All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) minister  from job aspirants seeking appointments in the state transport department. Balaji was the departments minister during the previous AIADMK government led by the late J Jayalalithaa.

The case was taken up by the Madras High Court after a complaint was registered in 2018 by a technical staff in the Metro Transport Corporation (MTC) accusing Balaji and other persons of receiving kickbacks to the tune of 4.25 crores reportedly after making false promises of jobs at various levels in the MTC. Many candidates did not get jobs despite allegedly paying bribes.

Three FIRs were registered against Balaji and later charge sheets were filed against him. The ED registered a PMLA case against Balaji and others in July 2021 and started the investigation.

Who is Balaji?

The DMK strongman from Karur began his political life as a local body member in 1997.

As an AIADMK worker, he was elected to the Karur constituency in the 2006 assembly elections and served as state transport minister from 2011 to 2015.

Balaji quit AIADMK after former chief minister J Jayalalithas death in 2016 and joined the ruling Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) in December 2018.

Balaji won the April 2021 assembly elections and was appointed as the minister for electricity, prohibition, and excise in the MK Stalin government.

(With inputs from PTI)

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The Enforcement Directorate has arrested Tamil Nadu minister V Senthil Balaji after a long session of questioning in connection with a money laundering case, according to people familiar with the development. The ED sleuths on Tuesday raided the premises linked to Balaji and questioned him in a case that pertains to allegations when he was the transport minister during the AIADMK-led government from 2011 to 2015 before he switched to the DMK. The action came months after the Supreme Court allowed a police and ED probe into an alleged cash-for-jobs scam against him. Tamil Nadu minister Senthil Balaji grimaces in pain outside a government hospital in Chennai.(ANI)

Amid speculations over Balaji's custody on late Tuesday night, the minister was admitted to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) of a government hospital in Chennai after he complained of chest discomfort. High drama unfolded outside the hospital as the DMK leader grimaced in pain, with state minister P K Sekar Babu claiming there were 'symptoms' Balaji has been tortured.

"He is in the ICU. He was in an unconscious state and did not respond when he called him by his name. He is under observation... there is a swelling near his ear, doctors say there is variation in his ECG (electrocardiogram)... these are symptoms of torture," Babu told reporters.

TV visuals showed Balaji crying in pain while lying in a car as his supporters gathered there to protest against the ED action. A team of Rapid Action Force (RAF) was deployed at Omandurar Government Medical College hours after he was admitted to the ICU.

BJP terms it 'drama'

Tamil Nadu BJP vice president Narayanan Thirupathy termed it a "complete drama" by the ruling DMK and said it was the duty of Balaji to cooperate with the law enforcement agency.

"Much drama, screenplay, and dialogues are happening today in Tamil Nadu. This is not good for Tamil Nadu or DMK. I demand CM MK Stalin to dismiss Senthil Balaji from his ministry immediately and ask him to cooperate with the probe," Thirupathy told ANI.

(With inputs from agencies)

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The Enforcement Directorate on Wednesday arrested Tamil Nadu minister V Senthil Balaji for alleged money laundering after questioning him for hours, people aware of the matter said. He was hospitalised after complaining of uneasiness. The hospital later said the minister had been administered a coronary angiogram and had been advised bypass surgery at the earliest. Tamil Nadu chief minister MK Stalin met minister Senthil Balaji at a state government hospital in Chennai on Wednesday.

The arrest came hours after chief minister MK Stalin slammed the Bharatiya Janata Party's 'backdoor tactics' against its political opponents; this was after the Enforcement Directorate launched raids at premises linked to Balaji - in Tamil Nadu's Chennai, Karur and Erode on Tuesday - as part of its inquiries.

Balajis official residence in Chennai and his office at the state secretariat were among the premises raided. The central agency is expected to seek custody of the minister after producing him before a special court later today.

READ | ED arrests Senthil Balaji in alleged job-for-cash scam. What is the case?

TN ministers allege torture

Meanwhile, news agency Press Trust of India quoted another TN minister - PK Sekar Babu - as claiming Balaji had been tortured. He cited TV visuals and claimed Balaji complained of being 'uneasy' while being hospitalised.

Babu told reporters Balaji had been admitted to an Intensive Care Unit.

"He was in unconscious and did not respond when (we) called him by his name. He is under observation... there is swelling near his ear... doctors say there is variation in his ECG [electrocardiogram]... these are symptoms of torture."

State law minister S Reghupathy, who visited the hospital, questioned the need for raiding Balajis house non-stop for hours.

READ | ED arrests Tamil Nadu minister Senthil Balaji in money laundering case

Udhayanidhi Stalin was also among the cabinet ministers who visited Balaji in the hospital even as central paramilitary personnel were deployed there.

What is the case against Balaji?

The allegations against Balaji date to 2011/15 when he was transport minister in the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam-led government. Crores of rupees were allegedly taken from candidates in return for jobs that were promised but never confirmed.

Balaji quit the AIADMK after former chief minister J Jayalalithas death in 2016 and joined the ruling Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam in December 2018.

In May the Supreme Court overruled a Madras High Court order and allowed the ED to continue its money laundering investigations into the alleged scam.

Balaji was arrested two weeks after the Income Tax (I-T) Department raided over 40 places across in Tamil Nadu linked to the minister.

What did Tamil Nadu CM Stalin say?

On Tuesday, Stalin called the ED's raid at the secretariat office of Balaji a direct assault on the federal principle. "The BJP will learn it the hard way soon. The silence of people who are watching the BJPs cheap acts of vindictive politics should not be underestimated. It is nothing but the calm before the storm of 2024 [national polls] that will sweep BJP away."

READ | Stalin's 2024 warning to BJP as TN CM meets Senthil Balaji in hospital

What has the Opposition said?

Stalin's Bengal counterpart, Mamata Banerjee, condemned the BJPs 'political vendetta' against Tamil Nadu's DMK government and said misuse of central agencies continues while calling them unacceptable and desperate acts.

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge described the raids as a form of the union government's harassment and intimidation.

READ | Congress' Kharge slams 'vendetta politics' after ED arrests TN minister

He said such gross misuse of investigative agencies against political opponents has been the hallmark of the Modi government. These tactics will not silence the Opposition and 'only reinforce its determination and resolve to continue its democratic struggle against the anti-people policies of the Modi government'.

What did Senthil Balaji say?

Balaji on Tuesday said he was on his morning walk when the raids began and added that necessary documents had been submitted to the I-T department when they conducted searches two weeks back.

'Payback' for airport lights error?

DMK leader RS Bharathi wondered whether the ED was targeting Balaji since there was a power cut for 15 minutes when union home minister Amit Shah was at the Chennai airport on June 10. He linked the raids to Shahs visit to the state and added they have an ulterior motive.

Bharathi called the raids also a diversionary tactic since the BJPs ally AIADMK was threatening to break the alliance.
A fire that erupted at a check-in counter within the departure section of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose international airport in Kolkata on Wednesday night, has been fully extinguished and the check-in process is sresume after a brief halt, authorities said. The fire broke out at the security check-in area of Subhash Chandra Bose international airport.

"There was a minor fire & smoke on the check-in area portal D at 9:12 pm and fully extinguished by 9:40 pm. All passengers are evacuated safely and check-in process suspended due to presence of smoke in the check-in area. Check-in and operation will resume by 10:15 pm," Kolkata airport tweeted.

Responding to the fire incident, union minister for civil aviation, Jyotiraditya Scindia said, "An unfortunate but minor fire broke out at the Kolkata airport near a check-in counter.

In touch with the airport director - the situation is under control. All passengers & staff have been evacuated from the area. Fortunately, everyone is safe & no injuries have been reported. The check-in process resumed at 22:25 hrs. The cause of the fire will be ascertained at the earliest."

ALSO READ: Scindia reviews airport ops ahead of peak travel season

At this moment, the specific cause of the fire is unknown but the initial report says, according to police, a short circuit might have caused the incident.

ALSO READ: IndiGo aircraft suffers tail strike while landing at Delhi's IGI Airport

The entire airport was shrouded in dense black smoke as a fire broke out. At least two firefighters rushed to the scene to put out the flames. Officials say no casualties, PTI reported.

Since there was a rush of passengers, airport authorities took no chance and used their firefighters to dose it. At the moment, it is under control and the cooling process is being done, a police officer told to PTI.

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Fresh violence broke out in parts of West Bengal on Wednesday over filing of nominations for the upcoming panchayat elections, prompting police to use force to disperse mobs, officials said. Police personnel walk past during a route march ahead of the state Panchayat poll, in Nadia. (PTI)

Crude bombs were hurled as supporters of political parties allegedly prevented one another from filing their papers. At least eight people were detained in Bankura district after two bags containing bombs were recovered from the vehicle they were travelling in, the officials said.

The nomination process for the single-phase polls  to be held on July 8  began on June 9 and has been marked by clashes between workers of different parties. A Congress worker was shot dead in Murshidabad district on the first day of submitting papers. The Opposition has blamed the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) for the clashes.

The Calcutta high court on Tuesday had ordered deployment of central paramilitary forces in seven sensitive districts and other areas witnessing law-and-order problems but refused to defer the polls or extend the date of nominations. The nomination process is scheduled to end on Thursday. The high court order came on separate petitions by the Bharatiya Janata (BJP) and Congress.

On Wednesday, workers belonging to the TMC and Indian Secular Front clashed at Bhangore area in South 24 Parganas, near Kolkata. Police said crude bombs were hurled and police vehicles were damaged as supporters of the two parties allegedly tried to stop each other from filing nominations. It was not until a huge contingent of force, including SN Gupta additional directorate general of police (ADGP), South Bengal, rushed to the spot and resorted to baton charge that the situation was brought under control, police said.

The situation is under control. An investigation is underway and raids are being carried out, a police officer said, wishing not to be named.

Both the ISF and TMC said they were attacked first.

If you can show one video of ISF workers attacking anybody, I will take full responsibility. They (TMC) brought in outsiders to unleash terror. Crude bombs were hurled so that our candidates do not go out to file nominations. When our men braved all odds, they were stopped by the police from reaching the BDOs (block development officer) office, ISF leader Nawsad Siddique said.

Siddique said he tried to meet chief minister Mamata Banerjee at the state secretariat on Wednesday but could not since she was busy.

Countering Siddiques claim, TMC leader Shahjahan Mollah said: TMC workers were not carrying any arms. They were just carrying flags. No one was attacked. But if someone attacks us, we have the right to defend.

Police officials said two factions of the TMC clashed with one another at Canning in South 24 Parganas.

In Indas area of Bankura, BJP workers clashed with TMC supporters outside the nomination filing center. The two sides pelted stones at one another even as police tried to control the situation, officials said.

Police also said that two bags containing bombs were recovered from a vehicle during checking in Bankuras Ahmadpur town. Eight people were detained in connection with the matter, Bishnupur deputy superintendent of police Qutubuddin Khan was quoted as saying by news agency ANI.

Later in the day, state BJP chief Sukanta Majumdar and leader of opposition in the Bengal assembly, Suvendu Adhikari, visited the State Election Commissions (SEC) office, alleging their candidates were unable to file their nominations.

We will move the high court on Thursday. The SEC is behaving in a biased manner. None of the orders of the high court are being carried out, Majumdar said.

In a tweet, TMC spokesperson Kunal Ghosh said: Lets not forget that @BJP4Bengal, filed a whopping 20,516 nominations as on June 12, 2023. So much for not being able to file nominations! Instead of ensuring a level playing field for all candidates and addressing peoples genuine concerns, LoP @SuvenduWB, well aware of BJPs poor prospects in the Panchayat elections, has resorted to spreading misinformation and rumour mongering.

Ghosh continued: His baseless (Adhikari) accusations about law and order in West Bengal are nothing but a desperate attempt to discredit the state government. Its clear that Mr. Adhikari is afraid of facing the truth  peoples unanimous rejection of his partys divisive politics.

The last panchayat polls in 2018 witnessed large-scale violence and around 20 murders with opposition parties alleging that their candidates were not allowed to file nominations and intimidated. The TMC bagged around 90% seats, of which 34% were uncontested.

(With inputs from agencies)
Nine people were gunned down and another 10 injured in Manipurs Imphal East district when a group of unidentified men stormed a village and opened fire, authorities said on Wednesday, dealing a fresh blow to the governments floundering efforts at restoring peace in the violence-torn state. Security personnel stand guard following fresh violence that occurred in several areas of Manipur,(ANI )

Manipur police officers said that between 10pm and 10.30pm on Tuesday, a group of armed men walked into Agjiang village on the border between Imphal East and Kangpokpi district and started shooting.

There was firing in the village around 10-10.30pm and nine people were killed, and 10 others injured. All injured have been admitted to hospital where the condition of one is stated to be critical, said K Shivakanta Singh, superintendent of police, Imphal East.

Clashes between the majority Meitei community and the tribal Kuki community first erupted on May 3 and has since claimed 115 lives. Tuesday nights incident marked the highest number of casualties in a single day since violence first broke out six weeks ago, underlining the challenge of restoring peace in a state where ethnic divisions run deep.

The renewed violence is yet another reminder that despite some easing of tensions, anger and distrust continued to simmer and drive wedges between various communities in the northeastern state.

The government, therefore, must try to get a handle on the law-and-order situation, ensure that security forces calm tensions while initiating confidence-building measures to bridge the trust deficit between groups.

Separately, unidentified miscreants burnt down the official residence of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLA and cabinet minister Nemcha Kipgen in Imphal West on Wednesday evening. Kipgen, who represents the Kangpokpi constituency, is among the 10 Kuki MLAs who have sought a separate administration for Chin-Kuki-Zomi-Hmar communities in the state. Kipgen was not in Imphal at the time of the incident, said officials aware of the matter.

There have been several attacks on MLAs and ministers and their residences in the state ever since violence began in the state.

Singh said that the security of the area where the violence occurred was under the Assam Rifles, but added that the situation was now under control.

The bodies of the deceased were shifted to the mortuary at the Jawaharlal Nehru Institute of Medical Sciences in Imphal. There was no official response from Assam Rifles. But Indian Army officials confirmed that Assam Rifles personnel had been deployed in the area for maintaining security and they had engaged in the gunfight with the armed miscreants.

Indian Army officers on the condition of anonymity said that there was initially a gunfight between members of two communities, forcing local residents to flee the area. Security forces reached the spot and engaged the miscreants Tuesday evening, following which the deaths and injuries took place, added the officers.

No other details were provided by army officials or the state police.

Immediately after the incident, the district administrations of Imphal East and West extended curfew hours, curtailing the relaxation time to just four hours from 13 hours.

Clashes between the Kukis and Meiteis first erupted on May 3 during a protest against a court-ordered tweak to the states reservation matrix, granting Scheduled Tribe (ST) status to the latter.

Violence quickly engulfed the state where ethnic fault lines run deep, displacing tens of thousands of people who fled burning homes and neighbourhoods into jungles, often across state borders. The authorities clamped a curfew and suspended internet, pumping in additional security forces to force a break in the spiraling clashes. Internet is still not back in the state.

Union home minister Amit Shah visited the state for four days between May 31 and June 3. The Central Bureau of Investigation is looking into five specific cases of violence and a sixth case of conspiracy behind the cases. The government has also announced a peace committee headed by governor Anasuiya Uikey but prominent groups from both sides of the divide have distanced themselves from the process.

The first wave of violence was seen between May 3 and 6, when a wave of attacks and arson forced people to flee their homes and prompted the government to fly in thousands of security personnel. But despite some easing of tensions, sporadic violence has continued, with 115 people dead, 310 injured, and over 35,000 displaced from their homes.

The Congress lashed out at the ruling BJP over the continued violence and said that the double engine BJP government- a reference to the same party being in power in the state and at the Centre- had failed to restore peace

Why hasnt the Prime Minister not called an all-party meeting to deliberate political solutions? It is high time the Modi government take responsibility for their crimes perpetrated on the people of Manipur and becomes accountable, Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge said. The BJP in the state or Centre did not make any comments.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR Utpal Parashar Utpal is a Senior Assistant Editor based in Guwahati. He covers seven states of North-East India and heads the editorial team for the region. He was previously based in Kathmandu, Dehradun and Delhi with Hindustan Times. ...view detail
Kontham Tejaswini had told her parents she will get married this year upon her return from the United Kingdom but her family is now left heartbroken following the murder of their daughter in London. Kontham Tejasvini belonged from Hyderabad.(File)

The 27 year-old woman was killed in London by a Brazilian national, even as the family received information that she was "attacked" in the flat she was residing at, a shared accommodation.

While the victim is yet to be formally identified by police in the UK, reports from India indicated it was Tejaswini  a young professional from Hyderabad.

Tejaswini, who was studying MS in the UK, was allegedly stabbed to death at her accommodation in London, the UK Metropolitan Police said.

The Met police said two men have been arrested in connection with the murder that took place at a residential property in Neeld Crescent, Wembley in London on Tuesday.

Read | Knife attack in UK killed Grace Kumar, 19, two others. What happened?

"We came to know about the incident today morning. We don't know when it happened. We got the information that she is serious and in hospital," Tejaswini's father told a news channel. She had gone to London three years ago and had completed her MS course there, he said.

She came to Hyderabad in August last year and returned to London the next month. She was supposed to fly down here in May this year, he said.

"We were planning to conduct her marriage. She said she will return after the alliance is finalised. She had resigned from her temporary job and said she will come back after working for another month," he said.

The Metropolitan Police in London had earlier released an image of Brazilian national Keven Antonio Lourenco De Morais to seek the public's help in tracing the suspect behind the attack. The 23-year-old man has now been arrested from Harrow, near the crime scene of Neeld Crescent in Wembley.

"Officers attended along with the London Ambulance Service and two women were treated for stab injuries. Despite the efforts of emergency services, a 27-year-old woman sadly died at the scene. Her next of kin are yet to be informed," the Met Police said.

Besides Tejaswini, another woman, aged 28, was also attacked and taken to hospital with stab injuries that were later assessed as not life-threatening, the Met Police added.

The victim's uncle requested the government to make necessary arrangements to bring her body from the UK to Hyderabad.
The body of a young woman - who was stabbed to death - found in a residential building in London has been unofficially identified as that of Kontham Tejasvini, a 27-year-old professional from Hyderabad's Hayathnagar area and who was reportedly in the United Kingdom to study. Kontham Tejasvini belonged from Hyderabad.

The father told a local TV channel the family had been informed of the incident this morning and that Tejasvini had first gone to London three years ago to study for her Master's degree. He said she came home for a month in August last year and was to come back last month for her marriage; "She said she will return after the alliance is finalised. She had resigned from her temporary job"

READ | Indian-origin woman murdered in student flat in London

London's Metropolitan Police have arrested two men in connection with the crime, one of whom is a 23-year-old Brazilian national called Keven Antonio Lourenco De Morais; he was arrested from the neighbourhood of Harrow, which is near the crime scene in Neeld Crescent in Wembley. The second suspect - a 23-year-old man who has not been identified yet - has also been arrested.

According to broadcaster NDTV, Tejasvini's cousin, Vijay, said De Morais had moved into a shared accommodation with her less than a week ago.

READ | Knife attack in UK killed Grace Kumar, 19, two others. What happened?

The brutal attack, which reportedly took place at 10 am on Tuesday, also involved a second woman - a 28-year-old who was taken to hospital with stab injuries later assessed as not life-threatening.

"This has been a fast-moving investigation and I would like to thank the public for sharing our appeal for information about this man (De Morais). He is now in custody," Detective Chief Inspector Linda Bradley, from the Metropolitan Police's Specialist Crime Command, said.

"I recognise the significant concern this incident has caused in the community and I would like to reassure the public that a dedicated team of detectives are working to establish what happened. Local officers will remain in the area over the coming days to respond to any concerns."

With input from agencies

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The National Investigation Agency on Wednesday released the photographs of suspects involved in the violent protest at the Indian high commission in London by Khalistan supporters.



REQUEST FOR IDENTIFICATION/INFORMATION. On 19.03.23 these persons were involved in an attack on the High Commission of India, London. They caused grievous injury and disrespected the Indian National Flag. If anyone has any information about them, please Whatsapp/DM @+917290009373, the central agency tweeted.



This comes a day after the NIA released CCTV footage showing moments before the high commission was attacked by pro-Khalistani protesters. The central agency had taken over the probe after home ministry officials had met UK representatives after the attack. A team of NIA officials was also sent to London to investigate the arson which unfolded at the high commission. The National Investigation Agency released the photos of suspects in the March 19 violent protest at the Indian high commission in London.(Twitter/NIA)

The national flag at the Indian high commission in the UK capital was pulled down during a protest by Khalistani supporters. The viral videos of the incident showed several protesters carrying yellow and black Khalistan flag calling for Waris Punjab De chief and Khalistani preacher Amritpal Singh's release. During the protest, one of the protesters clambered on to a balcony of the high commission office and pulled down the tricolour.



The mastermind of the March 19 violence is said to be Avtar Singh Khanda alias Azad alias Ranjhodh Singh, the self-styled chief of designated terror outfit Khalistan Liberation Force (KLF). His main aim is to radicalise youth in Punjab and in countries like the UK, Canada, the US, Germany, Australia against India.

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Bengaluru: The Karnataka high court on Wednesday quashed sedition charges against the management of Shaheen School in Bidar for staging a play deemed critical of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and the National Register of Citizens (NRC) in 2020. Justice Hemant Chandangoudar, at the Kalaburagi bench of the high court, allowed the petitions challenging the proceedings and quashed the prosecution initiated against four members of the school management. (File)

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Justice Hemant Chandangoudar, at the Kalaburagi bench of the high court, allowed the petitions challenging the proceedings and quashed the prosecution initiated against four members of the school management. The copy of the court order is awaited.

The four were charged under sections 504 (insulting someone intentionally), 505(2) (statements promoting enmity, hatred or ill-will between classes), 124A (sedition), 153A (causing disharmony between religious groups) read with Section 34 (acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

We expected the verdict in our favour. We believe in our judicial system. I thank everyone for their support and well wishes, including the people of Bidar, Abdul Qadeer, chairman and founder of Shaheen Group of Institutions, said.

Also Read | Karnataka High Court urges legal reforms on 'Necrophilia': What you need to know

On January 21, 2020, students of classes 4, 5 and 6 staged a play on CAA and NRC in the school. The play also allegedly showed Prime Minister Narendra Modi in poor light.

On January 26 that year, the New Town police station registered a case against the school and its management for performing anti-national activities and spreading negative opinion about parliamentary laws. The FIR in the case was registered based on a complaint filed by one Nilesh Rakshala, a member of Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), the student wing of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS).

The police had also arrested school principal Fareeda Begum and Nazbunnissa, the mother of a girl student who delivered a dialogue in the play, on January 30. They were, however, granted bail around two weeks later.

The case underlines once again how the colonial-era provision is often misused against ordinary citizens or invoked in cases with very little material evidence. Therefore, the government and the Supreme Court should consider whether there is any place for such as law in modern India, and ensure that the constitutional rights of citizens are not violated.

Everyone knew about the vision and values of Shaheen School. We have Muslim and non-Muslim students, Qadeer said. We produce thousands of doctors from the school. We also support Kannada medium students.

The Bidar police had also drawn flak for questioning the school children, including a nine-year-old, several times in connection with the case. Following an inquiry, the Karnataka child rights commission had pulled up the district police for several violations, including of norms under the Juvenile Justice Act.

I spoke to the headmistress. She is very happy...I met the mother and the daughter. Both are relieved and very happy with the verdict, Qadeer said, condemning the police action against the school management. Whatever happened was uncalled for. It was a wrong action taken by the authorities. The incident was misunderstood by some people.
The Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) has issued safety guidelines asking its staff to follow all precautions for passengers safety following the death of a 14-year-old girl in a crowded state-run bus in Haveri district on Monday. Karnataka transport minister Ramalinga Reddy condemned the schoolgirls death and directed KSRTC to take necessary measures to avoid such incidents in future. (Representative Image)

The circular directed the bus crew not to allow any passenger to stay on the footboard of the bus, and make sure both the front and back doors are closed properly. The doors should be opened and the passengers should be allowed to deboard only when the bus halts at the designated bus stand and not before, the circular stated. It asked the staff to make sure that all the doors are fully functional before the trips start from depots.

On Monday, Madhu Kumbar (14), suffered head injuries and died after she fell from a moving, crowded North Western Karnataka Road Transport Corporation (NWKRTC) bus. The girl was holding the railings and standing on the footboard before she fell off the bus when it took a turn, according to eyewitnesses. The incident occurred near Kusanur village in Hanagal taluk of Haveri district when she was on her way to school.

Transport minister Ramalinga Reddy condemned the incident and directed the corporation to take necessary measures to avoid such incidents in future.

The Karnataka Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Tuesday demanded that the state government ensure safety measures for students following the death of the school girl. Former chief minister Basavaraj Bommai said that due to cancellation of bus services, people have been inconvenienced and school students are being forced to travel on footboards of overcrowded buses in the state.

The buses should run on all routes as per schedule. It is the duty of the Karnataka Road Transport Corporation to ensure this. Let the Congress government implement the schemes to help people and women. But complaints are coming that in that pretext the buses are cancelled, operation of buses in many routes are cancelled, Bommai said.

Chief minister Siddaramaiah on June 11 launched the Shakti scheme, the first of the five poll guarantees rolled out by the Congress government, that allows free bus travel for women. It has increased the ridership of Karnatakas four Road Transport Corporations (RTCs).

According to officials, all women, including girl students, without any discrimination on the basis of caste, religion caste, can avail the facility. Gender Minorities are also included in the scheme, they said.

The free travel service can be availed in city transport, ordinary and express buses which accounts for 18,609 buses in all four state-owned Road Transport Corporations (Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation, Bengaluru Metropolitan Transport Corporation, North Western Karnataka Road Transport Corporation and Kalyan Karnataka Road Transport Corporation).
Almost four years after the Law Commission of India came out with a consultation paper stating that a Uniform Civil Code (UCC) was neither necessary nor desirable at this stage, the Commission on Wednesday set about to examine the issue afresh as it solicited views and suggestions on UCC from the public and recognised religious organisations. The Jamiat Ulama Maharashtra during a demonstration against Uniform Civil Code, and seeking 5% reservation, at Azad Maidan in Mumbai on October 20, 2016. (HT Archive)

Also Read | Supreme Courts vacation bench remains out of bounds for senior lawyers

Since more than three years have been lapsed from the date of issuance of the said Consultation Paper, bearing in mind the relevance and importance of the subject and also the various Court orders on the subject, the 22nd Law Commission of India considered it expedient to deliberate afresh over the subject, stated the public notice, issued by the Commission, headed by former Karnataka high court chief justice Ritu Raj Awasthi.

The notice mentioned that after the reference dated June 17, 2016 was sent by the Ministry of Law & Justice, the 22nd Law Commission has been examining the subject matter of UCC.

Accordingly, the 22nd Law Commission has decided again to solicit views and ideas of the public at large and recognised religious organizations about a UCC. Those who are interested and willing may present their views within a period of 30 days from the date of Notice, it added.

In June 2016, the Ministry of Law and Justice, made a reference to the Law Commission to examine all matters relating to the implementation of a UCC. The Law Commission, however, did not submit a final report on the issue and furnished a consultation paper on Reform of Family Law in August 2018.

This consultation paper stated that a Uniform Civil Code was neither necessary nor desirable at this stage and recommended that existing family laws across religions required to be amended and codified to tackle discrimination and inequality in personal laws. The consultation paper was one of the last reports submitted by the 21st Law Commission, led by former Supreme Court judge BS Chauhan.

A Uniform Civil Code essentially means a common set of laws governing personal matters such as marriage, divorce, adoption, inheritance and succession for all citizens of the country, irrespective of religion. Currently, different laws regulate these aspects for adherents of different religions and a Uniform Civil Code is meant to do away with these inconsistent personal laws.

Article 44 of the Constitution, which is one of the Directive Principles of State Policy, lays down that the State shall endeavour to secure for the citizens a uniform civil code throughout the territory of India. However, directive principles, as Article 37 clarifies, are not enforceable by courts.

In the famous Shah Bano Case of 1985 that dealt with maintenance for Muslim women, the Supreme Court called it a matter of regret that Article 44 has remained a dead letter, adding common civil code will help the cause of national integration by removing desperate loyalties to laws that have conflicting ideologies.

Again, in Sarla Mudgal Case (1995), which dealt with issues of bigamy and conflict between personal laws in matters of marriage, the court highlighted the need for UCC again. It also requested the Prime Minister of India to have a fresh look at Article 44 and endeavour to secure for the citizens a Uniform Civil Code throughout the territory of India and wanted the Court to be informed about the steps taken.

However, the Supreme Courts subsequent orders in Ahmedabad Women Action Group Case (1997) and Lily Thomas Case (2000) clarified that no direction was issued to the government for enactment of a uniform civil code in the Sarla Mudgal case.

As recently as March 23, the top court wrapped up a clutch of petitions demanding for UCC observing that such issues are meant for Parliament to decide and that courts should not be seen as directing the legislature to enact a law. Entertaining these petitions would mean directing the enactment of law and a mandamus (command) cannot be issued to Parliament to enact a law, said a bench led by Chief Justice of India Dhananjaya Y Chandrachud.

Responding to these petitions through an affidavit in October 2022, the Union government had told the court that personal laws based on religion is an affront to the nations unity, adding UCC will bring about integration of India by bringing different communities on a common platform through an unvarying legal regime.

At the same time, the government reminded the court that it is only for the elected representatives and the legislature to decide whether the country should have UCC and that no court can issue directives to the parliament for frame a specific statute.

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Six months after a high intensity blast at the residence of a Trinamool Congress booth president in West Bengals Medinipur killed three persons including the party leader, the Centre has asked the National Investigation Agency (NIA) to probe the bomb making industry in the state. The blast in West Bengals Medinipur killed three people. (ANI)

A notification was issued by the ministry of home affairs (MHA) last week under the NIA act, which allows the Centre to hand over any case across the country filed under the scheduled offences to the federal agency without the consent of state government.

...manufacturing of illegal bombs or firecrackers has become a cottage industry in the state of West Bengal and the incidents of accidental blasts are taking precious lives of innocent civilians; ...the local population is being terrorized by such incidents, the notification said.

A high intensity blast ripped through the house of Rajkumar Manna, TMC booth president, in Naruabila village in Purba Medinipur on December 2 last year, in which Manna and two others were killed. Reports at the time claimed they were making firecrackers inside the house.

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Dilip Ghosh said then that only bomb making industry is flourishing in the state.

West Bengal police invoked sections related to criminal conspiracy (120B), negligent conduct with related to fire and explosive substance (285 and 286) and causing death by negligence (culpable homicide) besides section 26 of the West Bengal Fire Safety Act in the case.

Based on the MHA order, NIA filed a first information report (FIR) on June 4 in the matter and added sections 3 and 4 of explosives act in it.

Another high intensity blast in an illegal firecracker factory in East Medinipores Egra on May 16 killed nine people and critically injured seven others, prompting the BJP to seek a NIA probe in the blasts. The Egra blast is being probed by the West Bengal CID (Criminal Investigation Department) but chief minister Mamata Banerjee has said she has no objection to a NIA probe provided the agency arrests the real culprit.

Several blasts in what have euphemistically been termed as illegal firecracker units by the state government and the police have taken place in West Bengal since 2021. In December 2021, three people died at Nodakhali in South 24 Parganas district. In March this year, an explosion claimed three lives at an illegal factory at Maheshtala in South 24 Parganas.

NIA and the West Bengal government are in a standoff over the former taking over cases related to violence during Ram Navami in Hooghly and Howrah on March 30.

The agency has already registered six first information reports (FIRs) in May in connection with the Ram Navami violence, but the state government is yet to hand over documents to it, people familiar with the development said.

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A war of words erupted between former Union minister Kapil Sibal and Rajeev Chandrashekhar, the union minister of state for electronics and IT, after ex-Twitter boss Jack Dorsey claimed that the Indian government had threatened the social media company with raids and shutdowns if it didn't block some accounts during the farmers' protest, a charge rejected by the ruling BJP as outright lie. Sibal earlier asserted that Dorsey had no reason to lie about the alleged threats made by the government since he was running a business and had no stake in taking sides, while there is every reason for others to tell a lie. Rajya Sabha member Kapil Sibal and Union minister Rajeev Chandrashekhar.

"First of all, I would like to know, why would Jack Dorsey make such a statement. Rajeev Chandrasekhar says that this is a lie. Why would he tell a lie? There is no reason for Jack Dorsey to tell a lie that they threatened Twitter when the protests were going on, that they would shut their offices and raid the then Twitter employees," Sibal said.

"There is every reason for others to tell a lie because they can't accept this," he said.

Responding to Sibal's statement, Chandrasekhar tweeted, and Mr Zero loss, Privacy is not a fundamental right, Upholder of Sec66A wades in to support Jack, in an apparent reference to his earlier comments when he was a minister in the UPA government.

Sibal shot back on Wednesday with a limerick.

He tweeted:

What Dorsey exactly said

In an interview with the YouTube channel 'Breaking Points with Krystal and Saagar', Dorsey who stepped down from Twitter's board last year, alleged that the Indian government had put pressure on Twitter and said that it will shut down the company in India and raid the houses of its employees.

".....India is one of the countries which had many requests around farmers' protests, around particular journalists who were critical of the government and it manifested in ways such as we will shut Twitter down in India, India is a big marketplace for us. We would raid the homes of your employees, which they did and we will shut down your offices if you don't follow suit and this is India, a democratic country, " Dorsey is heard saying in the interview on the YouTube channel," he said.

Government rejects claim

Rubbishing the claims, the Minister of State for IT Rajeev Chandrasekhar launched a no hold barred attack and said Dorsey's Twitter regime "had a problem accepting the sovereignty of Indian law...It behaved as if the laws of India did not apply to it."

"No one went to jail nor was Twitter 'shutdown'," Chandrasekhar said. "This is an outright lie by @jack - perhaps an attempt to brush out that very dubious period of Twitter's history."

Senior BJP leader and former IT and communication minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said,"No threat was issued to Twitter. We did, however, flag anti-India activities being entertained on the micro-blogging site."

"We did raise objections to Twitter timelines teeming with footage of the Tricolour being pulled down at the Red Fort and police personnel being beaten up", said Prasad, in an oblique reference to unsavory events that took place during agitations against farm laws.

"We pointed out that the act was no less outrageous than the siege of Capitol Hill for which Twitter had shown sensitivity", Prasad, who was IT and communication minister between July 2016 -July 2021, said.

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An advertisement that claimed that Eknath Shinde is more popular than Devendra Fadnavis as Maharashtra chief minister is at the centre of a brewing controversy in Maharashtra. The advertisement cited a survey by Zee TV-Matrize to back its claim -- 26.1% of people in Maharashtra want Eknath Shinde as the chief minister while 23.2% want Fadnavis. The message of the advertisement was, however, not to create a wedge between Shinde and Fadnavis but to hammer home the point that 49.3% of people support the BJP-Shiv Sena alliance. Read | The coded message behind Shindes campaign against his deputy The advertisement did not have photo of Devendra Fadnavis

'The dream team loved by all' advertisement

The advertisement had a photo of Eknath Shinde and PM Modi. In the advertisement, given by Shiv Sena with the bow and the arrow symbol, PM Modi-Eknath Shinde was termed as the 'dream team' loved by all. "The commendable teamwork of Honourable Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi and chief minister Eknath Shinde has secured the highest position in Maharashtra through their recent welfare projects..." it said.

'Sena advertisement but no mention of Balasaheb Thackeray'

The full-page advertisement was given by the Shinde- Sena. Uddhav Sena MP Sanjay Raut pointed out that there was no mention of Balasaheb Thackeray. It was Balasaheb's (Bal Thackeray's) Shiv Sena earlier, but the advertisement has cleared the air. It has now become Modi-Shah's Shiv Sena. Where is the image of the late Balasaheb Thackeray?" Sanjay Raut said.

Both of us given positive ratings

Eknath Shinde played down the Shinde versus Fadnavis war that the advertisement projected and said both of them received positive ratings. " "I and the Deputy CM have been given positive ratings. The two of us are leading the state and taking it forward. I and the Deputy CM are carrying out overall development taking the cabinet along. We are in people's minds and that is important," Shinde said.

Fadnavis cancels event with Shinde

Devendra Fadnavis on Tuesday cancelled an event at Kohlapur which was attended by Eknath Shinde owing to health grounds. There was no politics involved, the Sena-BJP govt clarified.

Never seen such an ad: Ajit Pawar

NCP leader Ajit Pawar said he never saw an advertisement like this before. "Till date, in my political career, I have not seen this kind of advertisement which I saw in today's newspapers. PM Narendra Modi and CM Shinde's photos were there in the advertisement. They (Shiv Sena) say that they are the soldiers of Balasaheb Thackeray, whereas Balasaheb Thackeray's and Anand Dighe's photos were missing from the advertisement," Pawar said.

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Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind chief Maulana Mahmood Asad Madani wrote a letter on Tuesday to Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Uttarakhand chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami putting forth deep concerns about the rising communal tensions in Uttarakhand's Uttarkashi district and the over the open threat of expulsion of the Muslim community in Uttarkashi Uttarakhand. Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind chief Maulana Mahmood Asad Madani (File)

In his letter, Madani urged the Home Minister and the Chief Minister to stop the upcoming mahapanchayat on June 15, called by right-wing organisations, stating that it may lead to further communal violence in the state.

There has been tension in Uttarkashi since May 26 when two men attempted to kidnap a girl. This led to many right-wing groups labelling it a love jihad conspiracy.

He wrote, I request you to halt the event (maha-panchayat) scheduled to be held on June 15, which may lead to a communal conflict in the state and further increase the gulf between Hindu and Muslim communities.

The Uttarakashi district administration have also denied permission to the maha panchayat called by Hindu organisations on June 15.

Madani also requested them to take a strict action against forces spreading division and to protect the lives and property of the citizens of India.

He wrote that Uttarakhand was a state with exemplary law and order conditions and communal harmony and what is happening in Uttarkashi does not match its nature.

He further added, I not only request you to personally intervene and issue the necessary order but also to take strict action against divisive forces, besides instructing the law enforcement agencies to ensure the safety and security of every citizen irrespective of their religion and ethnic background .

What led to the communal tensions?

On May 26, two men, identified as Ubed Khan (24) and Jitender Saini (23), allegedly attempted to abduct a 14-year-old girl. The two were arrested the following day.

Right-wing groups claimed it to be a love jihad conspiracy. On May 29, a protest march in Purola turned violent after some of the agitators attacked shops belonging to the Muslims. A similar protest was held on June 3.

Posters threatening Muslim traders to shut shops by June 15 surfaced amid the protests. Muslim religious leaders in Uttarakhands Dehradun have also called for a mahapanchayat on June 18 to protest what they said is increasing targeting of their community.

In his letter, Madani also said, The inaction on the part of the government and its agencies further aggravated this critical communal situation. They are openly putting up posters and releasing videos and unfortunately, local police are standing as mere spectators. The increasing Islamophobia and communalism in the state are further dividing society and eroding communal harmony, he added.

Muslim bodies meet with Dhami

Members of the Uttarakhand Waqf Board and the Haj Committee met with chief minister Dhami on Tuesday to take strict action against those harassing Muslims in Purola town.

The members submitted a memorandum to the CM which states that the Muslims living in the state were hurt, harassed and scared.

Peace meet failed to conclude

A peace meet held by administrative officials on Monday in Purola town to bring peace in the town failed to reach a consensus.

The meeting was conducted with right-wing organisations, Muslim community members and trade association members. As it was about to reach a consensus, several uninvited men barged in and disrupted the discussion, media reports stated.

The men pointed at Muslim community members and questioned them saying, if a few of the shopkeepers have already left, why couldn't the remaining leave too. This led to heated arguments and no conclusion was reached.

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As the BJP on Tuesday hinted at Rahul Gandhi's role behind Twitter ex-CEO Jack Dorsey's allegation that the Indian government exerted pressure on the microblogging platform during the farmers' protest, opposition MP Priyanka Chaturvedi questioned whether it is not a spectacular failure of PM and the government that Rahul Gandhi holds no position yet controls the strings. The government dismissed Jack Dorsey's claims triggering a fresh war of words between the BJP and the opposition. Read | 'No reason for Jack Dorsey to lie but every reason for...', says ex-IT minister Kapil Sibal BJP's Sambit Patra posted a cartoon saying there is no point in guessing who is pulling the strings of Jack Dorsey.

BJP's Sambit Patra shared a cartoon in which Rahul Gandhi is seen as a puppeteer with the strings pulling Jack Dorsey. "No points for guessing, we all know who is pulling the strings," Sambit Patra tweeted. "Not an MP, not a minister, not the PM, not the Opposition Party President. Just a citizen and yet can control the strings, as per this tweet. Isn't that a spectacular failure of PM and GoI?!" Shiv Sena (Uddhab Balasaheb Thackeray) MP Priyanka Chaturvedi wrote.

'Many requests around farmers' protests'

In an interview on a YouTube channel, Jack Dorsey said when he was heading Twitter, the company received many requests around farmers' protests. The Indian government threatened Twitter with raids on employees and shutdown threats if it did not take down posts flagged by the government. "It manifested in ways such as: 'We will shut Twitter down in India', which is a very large market for us; 'we will raid the homes of your employees', which they did; And this is India, a democratic country," Jack Dorsey said.

The government dismissed the claims and IT minister of state Rajeev Chandrasekhar said that Twitter at that time was misusing its power. During the farmers' protest, Twitter 'weaponised misinformation and it started complying with Indian laws only in 2022. Terming Jack Dorsey's claims as absolute lies, the minister said that nobody was raided during the time.

Rahul Gandhi dragged into Jack Dorsey controversy

A fresh row erupted with the Congress seeking an explanation from the government over Jack Dorsey's explosive claims and BJP leaders counter-blaming Rahul Gandhi for 'hatching international conspiracy' against India.

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In the hours before 9 people were gunned down in Imphal Easts Khanellok village, a violent mob burnt as many as eight villages along the 17 kilometre route between Khamenlok and Govajang, even as a group of 600 people led by elderly women, blocked the road that leads to the area preventing the intervention of security forces in what has become a feature of the violence that has roiled the state for well over a month. Villagers stop army officials at Chanung in Taretkhel area of Imphal.

Also read: 9 killed, 10 injured in fresh flare-up in ethnic violence-hit Manipur

Security officials aware of the matter said that they would submit an incident report to the states security adviser Kudiep Singh that the Tuesday incidents of arson, the deaths and the road blockade could all be pre-meditated because the group had blocked the road at Chanung in Taretkhul in Khamenlok one day before the incident.

Security officials said that despite reports of arson in the eight villages being reported by security forces on Tuesday evening, a team of between 200 and 250 Indian Army and Assam Rifles personnel could not reach the spot who refused to let the forces go deeper inside Khamenlok.

Also Read | Manipur peace panel: Kukis unhappy, may not attend meetings; Meiteis welcome move

On Tuesday evening, when there were reports of mobs of 500-600 people burning villages in Khamenlok and additional reinforcements of Assam Rifles and Army were ordered to the rushed to the area. But the teams that left from Kangpokpi district, around 50 km from Taretkhul, were stopped at Chanung in the Taretkhel area, which is the gateway to Khamenlok. The mob of around 600 had placed women, mostly elderly women in the front and blocked the way, so this is why the security forces were unable to enter the place, said an official aware of the details.

The official added that they had received reports of mobs burning eight villages  Govajang, Songjan, Jordenphai, Thambol, Aigijang, P Phinom, Khuipung, and Choullophai. Residents of these villages had moved further up the forested hills when the mobs descended on their homes, and the violent groups then burnt the abandoned houses. While there were no reports of casualties in the arson, security officials said, the number of houses burnt in the villages is more than 100.

The official confirmed that until late on Wednesday night, the road was still blocked and there were attempts by senior officials of the Army and the Assam Rifles mob had blocked the road and there were attempts by senior officials of Army and Assam Rifles with the group urging them to stop the blockade. Till now, the security agencies have not used force to remove the protesters from the road anywhere in the state. The people blocking the roads are using women as shield in the front when doing so, the official added.

A small team of Assam Rifles, who were already in Khamenlok as part of the armys combing operations later visited the area even as the larger group, equipped to handle large scale mob violence has remained at Chanung.

HT contacted Shivakant Singh, superintendent of police (Imphal East) but there was no response despite messages and phone calls.

Also read: Manipur conflict: Political parties urge governor to convene special session

In different parts of the state, several groups led by women, have blocked roads over the past one month. The mobs have accused forces sent by Centre of taking sides or indulging in violence themselves. Sections of the NH2 highway have also been blocked at different dates in protest by the groups, mostly led by women. At most places, security agencies have not used force to evacuate the protests because most of them are led by women, especially elderly women.

At least 115 people have died in the ethnic clashes that have roiled the state since May 3 this year. Before Tuesdays incident, a 22-year-old man was shot dead in Manipurs Churachandpur district on Monday, as the state struggles to return to normalcy more than a month after the ethnic strife first erupted on May 3.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR Prawesh Lama Prawesh Lama covers crime, policing, and issues of security in Delhi. Raised in Darjeeling, educated in Mumbai, he also looks at special features on social welfare in the National Capital. ...view detail
Weeks before the train accident in Odishas Balasore district that claimed at least 289 lives, the Railway Board had, in April, asked all zonal heads to instruct their staff to avoid short-cut methods, citing five unsafe incidents where signalling gears were reconnected without proper checks after maintenance work. The letter was sent nearly two months before the tragic accident in Balasore on June 2 evening (REUTERS)

Terming the instances alarming, the Railway Board asked all general managers (GMs) to review these aspects every week in safety meetings at the divisional and headquarter levels.

Recently, five incidences on unsafe side involving points have taken place on various Zonal Railways. This is alarming and an issue of serious concern, the board wrote to all zonal heads in a letter dated April 3.

The signalling gears were reconnected by S&T [signalling and telecom] staff without proper testing of points after blocks for switch/turnout replacement, wrong wiring during preparatory works, attending signal failures etc., such practices reflect dilution of manual and codal provisions. Same are potential hazards to safety in train operations and need to be stopped, the letter, accessed by HT, said.

Also Read | Odisha train tragedy: 5 railway staff under lens over alleged operation oversight

The letter was sent nearly two months before the tragic accident in Balasore on June 2 evening. Three trains  Kolkata-Chennai Coromandel Express, Bengaluru-Howrah Superfast Express and a goods train  were involved in one of the worst railway tragedies in the country that left at least 289 dead and nearly 1,100 injured. Two parallel investigations  one by the Commissioner of Railway Safety (CRS) and another by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI)  are currently underway in the accident.

In its letter, the board had said that such incidents indicated that despite repeated instructions by it the ground situation was not improving and signalling staff were continuing to adopt short-cut methods to clear signals without checking correspondence from site and without proper exchange of disconnection/reconnection memo, with operating staff.

Joint works with engineering staff, signal maintenance and other repair works requiring disconnection contained in IRSEM (Indian Railway Signal Engineering Manual) should indicate time duration catering provisions for testing signaling gears after completion of engineering works in case of joint activities, the letter to all GMs read. The gears should be reconnected only after proper testing to ascertain safe certification of the signaling system.

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The Supreme Court on Wednesday refused an urgent hearing of a petition for preventing a mahapanchayat (assembly of village leaders) Hindu organisations have called on June 15 amid communal tensions in Uttarakhands Purola town. The Supreme Court asked the petitioner to approach the Uttarakhand high court first. (HT PHOTO)

The Uttarakashi district administration on Tuesday denied permission for the mahapanchayat days after posters threatening Muslim traders to shut shops and leave the state by June 15 came up at Purola. The organisers are yet to call it off. Muslim organisations have called their mahapanchayat in Dehradun on June 18.

A bench of justices Vikram Nath and Ahsanuddin Amanullah disapproved of short-circuiting the judicial process and asked the petitioner to approach the Uttarakhand high court first. This is an administrative issue. Law-and-order is for the administration to handle. You move the high court first. Why should we hear it directly? The high court is there and it will consider your plea, the bench told advocate Shahrukh Alam, who sought the urgent hearing of the petition of the Association for Protection of Civil Rights.

Alam referred to previous Supreme Court directives for a crackdown on hate speech. There is a continuing mandamus by this court against hate speech and against the state of Uttarakhand too. They have called for a mahapanchayat saying a particular community has to leave by the 15th of June...There is an ultimatum given to a particular community to leave the place before the mahapanchayat, Alam said.

But the bench remained disinclined. Why this distrust of the high court? They also have jurisdiction. You should have some trust. They are the first forum of jurisdiction. Have some trust in the high court. Even if we are totally with you, why this short-circuiting?

The bench added that it would be an unfair argument to make that neither the administration nor the high court would act if a complaint was made against hate speech. Why do you distrust the administration generally? How do you say they wont act and prohibit the illegal part of it? Isnt it unfair to distrust them completely? Approach the district administration and the high court, it told Alam.

Alam opted to withdraw the petition from the top court with the liberty to approach the suitable authorities as well as the Uttarakhand high court. The bench allowed her to withdraw the plea with the observation that the petitioners could move the high court or any other authority for relief.

As the proceedings drew to a close, Alam submitted that the court may also add in the order that if any untoward incident takes place at the mahapanchayat, the administration would be responsible.

But the bench declined. No, you move the high court...whatever may be your relief, we dont know.

The tensions in the hill town of Purola were triggered on May 26 after two men, a Muslim, and a Hindu, allegedly tried to abduct a 14-year-old girl. Residents alleged it was a case of love jihad, a term used by right-wing groups to describe an alleged conspiracy by Muslim men to woo and seduce Hindu women, although courts and the Union government do not officially recognise it.

The accused Ubed Khan, 24, and Jitender Saini, 23, were arrested on May 27. But right-wing groups held protests in and attacked shops and houses of Muslims.

On April 28, a different bench of the Supreme Court directed police chiefs of states and Union territories to file suo motu (on their own) cases against hate speeches. It warned of contempt action if its direction is not complied with.

On that day, the court noted that a similar direction passed in October 2022 for the states of Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, and Delhi was required to be extended to the entire country keeping in view the concerns expressed over rising incidents of hate speeches.

The directions were passed while the Supreme Court was hearing pleas relating to incidents of hate speeches across states. In its April 28 order, the court emphasised that hate speech is an offence affecting the fabric of the nation and that the court wants criminal prosecution of all those involved in it irrespective of their religion.

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Tamil Nadu minister V Senthil Balaji was sent to judicial remand till June 28 by a Chennai district judge on Wednesday hours after he was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) over money laundering charges in a 2011-2015 corruption case and was subsequently admitted to a Chennai hospital, where doctors recommended an immediate heart surgery. Tamil Nadu chief minister MK Stalin at the hospital to meet V Senthil Balaji. (PTI)

The arrest drew sharp reactions from Opposition parties, with the Congress, DMK and other criticising the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government at the Centre for misusing federal probe agencies. According to ED officials, Balaji was arrested post Tuesday midnight and was taken to Chennais Omandurar government hospital, where he could be seen lying in an ambulance, crying, holding his chest and covering his face. He was dragged on to a stretcher past 2.30am and taken inside the hospital, videos showed.

Doctors at the hospital did an angiogram at 10.30am and said he has been diagnosed with a heart disease (called triple vessel disease) and advised a coronary artery bypass surgery at the earliest, according to the hospital. ED officials called on the doctors later.

Senior advocate and DMK MP NR Elango filed a habeas corpus petition before a bench of justices M Sundar and R Sakthivel of the Madras high court, saying the minister was arrested without following due procedure such as issuing summons. At about 2.30pm justice Sakthivel recused himself from the hearing.

An hour later, principal district judge A Alli head EDs remand application in the hospital and remanded him to judicial custody until June 28 while allowing him to continue treatment in the hospital, said an official in the know of the developments. At about 5pm, Elango argued for bail to Balaji at the chambers of district judge A Alli, which ED opposed. The judge reserved her order. ED also filed another petition seeking custody of Balaji, which is likely to be heard on June 15.

Tamil Nadu chief minister MK Stalin accused the federal agency of torturing his colleague, which allegedly led to his hospitalisation.Stalin said Balaji was tortured even after the minister said he would cooperate with the investigation. Is it necessary... to act in a dehumanising manner in violation of the legal procedures?

He said the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) will not be intimidated by these threats from the BJP. Do not fear. People will teach them a lesson in the 2024 [national] elections, Stalin said. They have acted very inhumanely even beyond the level needed for this case. We can clearly see the ill intentions of the ones who sent these [ED] officials. Balaji will fight legally, Stalin said.

At least 15 state ministers visited Balaji in the hospital.

Balaji was arrested hours after Stalin slammed the BJPs backdoor tactics against its political opponents as ED on Tuesday launched raids at premises linked to Balaji as part of its probe against him in Tamil Nadus Chennai, Karur and Erode. Stalin called EDs raid at the secretariat office of Balaji a direct assault on the federal principle.

The allegations against Balaji date back to 2011-15 when he was the transport minister in the previous All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) government. The complaints against him had alleged that he had taken money from candidates in return for promised jobs. Many candidates did not get jobs despite allegedly paying bribes, the complaints had alleged. After the allegations, Balaji was dropped from the cabinet and he quit AIADMK after former chief minister J Jayalalithas death in 2016. He joined the DMK in December 2018.

In May, the Supreme Court allowed ED to continue its money laundering investigations in the alleged job scam overruling a Madras high court order of 2022. Balaji was arrested two weeks after the income-tax (I-T) department raided over 40 places across in Tamil Nadu linked to the minister.

Tamil Nadu BJP chief K Annamalai hit back at Stalin, calling the chief minister hypocritical in his stance on corruption. When the Income-Tax [Department] raided the chief secretarys office in December 2016, Stalin welcomed it and called the agency independent. He is now showing double standards, Annamalai said.

BJP leader Narayanan Thirupathy called Balajis hospitalisation a complete drama and said he should be sacked as minister. Stalins government would be a laughing stock if he does not do so. He should also order him to cooperate with the probe so that justice can be done, he said.

Opposition AIADMK leader Edapaddi Palaniswami echoed him. When our leader and former minister Jayakumar was arrested, he was imprisoned for 20 days. He was not even permitted to take medicines. Balaji is doing drama now. As moral responsibility, he should resign from his ministerial post.

DMKs allies, including the Congress, rallied behind Tamil Nadus ruling party. Mallikarjun Kharge, Congress president, condemns the late-night arrest of...Balaji...This is nothing but political harassment and vendetta by the Modi government against those opposed to it. None of us in the Opposition will be intimidated by such brazen moves, the Congress said in a statement.

Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and Mamata Banerjees TMC also condemned Balajis arrest, saying the BJP appeared intent on diverting attention through its relentless pursuit of political vendetta.

This arrest is a continued attack on Indias Opposition, and it undermines the very foundations of our democracy, which thrives on the principles of justice, fairness and the right to dissent, AAP said in a statement. West Bengal chief minister Banerjee condemned the BJPs political vendetta against Tamil Nadus DMK government and said misuse of central agencies was unacceptable.

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As Tamil Nadu chief minister MK Stalin went to Omandurar government hospital in Chennai to meet minister Senthil Balaji who fell sick during his interrogation by the Enforcement Directorate, Stalin said people will teach BJP a lesson in the 2024 elections. Stalin issued a statement saying that the ED officials troubled Senthil Balaji to such an extent during the interrogation that he suffered chest pain. Senthil Balaji was cooperating with the probing officials, still, he was 'pressured' to the point of suffering chest pain, Stalin said. Tamil Nadu chief minister MK Stalin met minister Senthil Balaji at the hospital on Wednesday.

What was the need for such a long probe when his minister was cooperating with the officials, the chief minister said and asked whether such an inhumane action by the ED officials was warranted. "Whatever the case is, Senthil Balaji will face it legally. We will firmly continue with our political stand. The DMK will face the case legally with resolve," the Chief Minister said. "DMK will not be cowed down by BJP's intimidation. People are watching such oppression and will give a befitting reply in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls," Stalin said.

Senthil Balaji's wife S Megala on Wednesday moved a habeas corpus plea in Madras high court against her husband's arrest, saying that she had no information about Senthil's arrest.

Stalin and united opposition for 2024

MK Stalin has been a key player in stiching an alliance of the opposition ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. He has already met Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar, Telangana chief minister K Chandrashekar Rao and a mega meeting of the opposition leaders will take place in Patna on June 23.

Senthil Balaji's arrest -- opposition leaders stand united

The ED arrested Senthil Balaji after hours of questioning him in an alleged money laundering case. Visuals showed the minister breaking down at the hospital where he was being taken for a medical examination after the arrest. While the DMK accused the ED officials of exerting pressure on Senthil Balaji that he fell sick, the BJP leaders said he was just indulging in some drama.

The Congress, alliance partner of the DMK, condemned the late-night arrest of Senthil Balaji and termed this as nothing but political harassment and vendetta by the Modi government against those opposed to it. "None of us in the Opposition will be intimidated by such brazen move," Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge said in a statement.

The Aam Aadmi Party issued a statement condemning the arrest of Senthil Balaji. "The manner in which he was arrested despite his health condition is inhumane and raises serious concerns about the working methods of the ED. This arrest is a part of the continued attack on India's opposition, and it undermines the very foundations of our democracy. We stand in solidarity with Balaji and all those opposition leaders who have been victims of BJP's undemocratic targeting," AAP said.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR Poulomi Ghosh Poulomi Ghosh is a journalist with Hindustan Times, New Delhi. ...view detail
The Tamil Nadu government on Wednesday withdrew general consent given to Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), ANI reported.



The CBI will now need to get permission from Tamil Nadu Government to investigate in the state.



The MK Stalin government's decision comes hours after state minister V Senthil Balaji was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate in a money laundering case. He was sent to judicial custody till June 28.



Nine states including West Bengal, Chhattisgarh, Telangana, Punjab and Rajasthan have already withdrawn general consent for CBI, which they call as a precaution against misuse of central agencies. Tamil Nadu chief minister MK Stalin.

Chief minister Stalin had opposed his minister's arrest, accusing the central agency officials of enacting a drama' in the name of inquiry and physically and mentally troubling Balaji.

"They had pressured him to the point of him suffering chest pain," Stalin alleged in a statement.

Senthil Balaji's arrest is a murder of democracy. This has been done to corner DMK, before Parliament Elections. No procedures were followed in the arrest...BJP is trying to create a fake narrative that DMK is a corrupt party. They are trying to do this, with the help of institutions like ED. In Patna, there is a united opposition party meeting. BJP is doing this out of nervousness, Tamil Nadu Minister Ma Subramanian had told reporters earlier in the day.





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Three migrant labourers from Chhattisgarh were crushed to death by a JCB machine at Neelavanji village in Karnatakas Raichur district on Tuesday night, police said. (Representative Photo)

According to police, the deceased identified as Vishnu (26), Shivaram (28) and Balaram (30), all natives of Chhattisgarh, were part of a borewell drilling lorry team to dig up a new borewell in Neelavanji village.

Police said the three workers were sleeping on the side of an agriculture field when the JCB driver allegedly ran over them, killing them on the spot.

The incident occurred at around 3am. We have arrested JCB owner Balaiah and driver Basappa, Raichur superintendent of police B Nikhil told HT. Police said their bodies were sent for postmortem and the families of the deceased have been informed.

Also Read: Delhi crane operator crushed to death after under-construction flyover collapses

The accused were booked under Section 279 (rash and negligent driving), 338 (causing grievous hurt by act endangering life or personal safety of others) and 304A (causing death by negligence) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) at the Devadurga police station, said the SP.

Police said the mishap took place as the JCB had no headlight. The driver did not see the sleeping workers and ran over them, they said.

Devagurga police inspector Vanakerappa told HT that the JCB, which caused the death of the three workers, belonged to Balaiah, a civil work contractor from Raichur, who also is allegedly engaged in illegal sand mining.

The officer added that after receiving information about the alleged illegal sand mining, Devadurga Tahasildar K Y Bidari, with a team from the revenue department, raided the Doddambali sand stockyard.

He said that in the early hours of Wednesday when about a 15-member team led by Tahasildar Bidari was heading to raid the Doddambali stockyard, the miners, to avoid arrest and capture, had switched off the headlights of their vehicles. As they ran in a hurry, a JCB belonging to contractor Balaiah ran over the three labourers sleeping in the field, officer Vanakerappa said.

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The Law Commission of India has called for fresh suggestions from public and religious organisations on the Uniform Civil Code.



According to a statement released on Press Information Bureau (PIB) website, the 21st law commission had reviewed the subject on UCC and had solicited the views of all the stakeholders through its appeal along with a questionnaire on July 10, 2016 and further public notices on March 19, March 27 and April 10 in 2018.



Taking note of the overwhelming responses, the 22nd Law Commission has again decided to solicit views and ideas of the public and recognised religious organisations about the UCC. Article 44 of the Constitution, which is one of the directive principles of state policy, advocates a uniform civil code. (Representative photo)

Those who are interested and willing may present their views within a period of 30 days from the date of Notice through click here button or by Email at membersecretary-lci[at]gov[dot]in to the Law Commission of India, the statement added.



No decision on UCC now

In February this year, the then law minister Kiren Rijiju had told the Rajya Sabha that the government had not taken a decision as of now on the implementation of the Uniform Civil Code in the country.

While responding to a query whether the government has any plan to pass the UCC bill, Rijiju had said that the said matter may be taken up by the 22nd law commission for its consideration. He had also said that the government requested the 21st Law Commission of India to undertake an examination of various issues relating to UCC and to make recommendations.

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Several Union ministers on Wednesday reviewed the preparations and preventive measures being taken as cyclonic storm Biparjoy barrelled towards the coastal state of Gujarat, where it is likely to make landfall by Thursday evening, as thousands continue to be evacuated to safety, officials familiar with the matter said. A policeman stands guard on a deserted beach on the Arabia Sea coast at Mandvi in Kutch district of Gujarat (AP)

Union health, fertilisers and chemicals minister Mansukh Mandaviya reached Gujarats Kutch on Wednesday and reviewed safety measures, medical-relief preparedness and fertilizer supply chains, critical for farming in the ongoing kharif or summer-sown season.

In New Delhi, Union shipping and ports minister Sarbananda Sonowal held a meeting of interministerial departments and Gujarat government officials to take stock of measures to minimize disruptions at key ports along the western coast.

The central government assessed measures to prevent loss of lives, movement of food shipments and other critical goods, aside from steps to protect infrastructure critical to the economy, such as ports, officials said. The severe category storm is expected to slam the area spanning Mandi in Gujarat and Sindh region of Pakistan, according to the India Meteorological Department. We are not just preparing for the cyclone but the handling the aftermath is equally critical, the official said.

The food ministry also reviewed steps to keep supplies of essentials, including ration, going, especially for tens of thousands of evacuees, one of the officials said, while the ministry of fisheries is coordinating with coastal states to ensure a complete suspension of fishing activities.

The IMD said the storm lay centred about 300 km south-west of Gujarats Jakhau port on Wednesday afternoon. Seven people have reportedly died so far from violent weather conditions caused by the approaching tempest.

The shipping minister oversaw plans to ensure safety of large ships carrying critical supplies  from food to industrial raw materials  with officials from the Kandla Port Authority, chief secretary of Gujarat and the mercantile marine department.

The cyclone is likely to leave a trail of destruction, from flooding to destruction of crops, plantations and property.

According to a presentation made at one of the review meetings on Wednesday, eight districts are likely to come within the impact zone of cyclone Biparjoy. So, far, 47000 people have been relocated to safety. Plans to divert flights are already in place.

Heavy rains have already been pounding in large swathes of Gujarat and Maharashtra and storm-packed winds with speeds of up to 135 km per hour could devastate crops and houses.

While the main summer-sown season has just begun, inter-seasonal crops  those grown between end of winter and onset of summer  are being harvested in several states, a second official said.

The focus is on evacuation, safety of both people and critical infrastructure and supplies of essential food, water and other items. We are constantly coordinating with Gujarat and Maharashtra government also, the official said.

An interministerial team is monitoring the evolution of the cyclone, the official said, adding all docks were being secured and teams on ground are still evacuating people. Instructions have been issued to account for all fishermen at sea and ensure they are traced using latest technologies to help them navigate back, the official cited above said.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR Zia Haq Zia Haq reports on public policy, economy and agriculture. Particularly interested in development economics and growth theories. ...view detail
The US ambassador to India Eric Garcetti, on Wednesday took over social media when he tried out some South Indian delicacies. Garcetti visited Tamil Nadu Bhawan in Delhi, to relish some lip-smacking dishes. Ambassador of the United States Eric Garcetti.

The video, shared on his Twitter account shows Garcetti seated at a restaurant, relishing an array of aromatic dishes from the rich and diverse South Indian cuisine. The clip later captures a heartwarming moment when he happily engages with the young ones, exchanging high-fives and engaging in playful banter.

The video quickly gained traction on social media platforms, with netizens commending Garcetti's gesture as a symbol of unity and cultural appreciation. Many applauded his willingness to step outside the political sphere and engage with residents on a personal level.

Also read | Enormous progress in relationship: US ambassador Garcetti calls on Jaishankar

"I tried the iconic South Indian thali on a banana leaf, and I am so impressed by the complexity of these delicious South Indian delights. Chennai, you have my heart and I am excited to see you soon," Garcetti posted a video along with a caption.

Last month, Garcetti paid a visit to Maharashtra Bhawan in Delhi to relish some Maharashtrian delicacies. During his visit, he tried Kokum ka sherbet, vada pav, sago, bharli vangi and saoji mutton, among other dishes.

Garcetti took over as the 26th US ambassador to India on May 11, succeeding Kenneth Juster who had vacated the post in 2020.

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Dehradun: The proposed mahapanchayat called by a Hindu right-wing group in Uttarkashis Purola town on Thursday will not be allowed, the Uttarakhand Police said on Wednesday, even as the organisers maintained they will hold the event as scheduled. Police carry out flag march in Purola town on Wednesday. (HT Photo)

To maintain law-and-order situation, security was heightened with the police carrying out flag marches across Purola town, where communal tension has been brewing since an alleged abduction attempt on a 14-year-old girl on May 26. Two accused, including a Muslim man, have been arrested in connection with the case.

On Tuesday, the Uttarkashi administration denied permission for the mahapanchayat and imposed prohibitory orders under Section 144 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) in the town.

All steps have been taken to ensure peace, law and order in Purola. As Section 144 is in force, no gathering or mahapanchayat will be allowed there. Nobody would be allowed to take the law into their hands, Uttarakhand director general of police (DGP) Ashok Kumar said.

Following the abduction bid on the minor girl, Hindu right-wing groups took out multiple protest rallies, in which Muslim shops were attacked. The protesters have blamed people from a particular community who come from outside for business for rise in such cases. On June 4, posters asking Muslim traders to vacate their shops in Purola before a mahapanchayat on June 15 came up at various places.

Its the administrations prerogative to impose Section 144, but we will hold the mahapanchayat on June 15 as per the wish of the local community. We dont need permission, Virendra Singh Rawat, an office-bearer of the Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) Purola unit, said. Our intention is just to awaken the Hindus who have been at the receiving end of the illegal activities of a particular community.

Swami Darshan Bharti, founder of the Devbhoomi Raksha Abhiyan, which has called the mahapanchayat, said: Police personnel have been deployed at my house in Dehradun and they are not allowing me to leave for Purola saying my presence there can disturb the peace.

Bharti has also been named as an accused in the case pertaining to posters asking Muslim traders to vacate the shops in Purola.

Meanwhile, a delegation of Congress leaders led by state party president Karan Mahara met chief secretary SS Sandhu and DGP Ashok Kumar on Wednesday, demanding action against those trying to disturb peace in the town.

The Uttarakhand high court on Thursday will hear a plea to prevent Hindu outfits from holding a mahapanchayat in Purola town. The Association for the Protection of Civil Rights moved the court on Wednesday, hours after the Supreme Court refused to entertain its plea against the mahapanchayat.

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Hours after Tamil Nadu minister V Senthil Balaji, 47, was hospitalised following his arrest Wednesday on money laundering charges, chief minister MK Stalin and at least 15 ministers rushed to see him, underscoring his continuing clout five years after he re-joined the ruling Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam; he had quit to join arch-rivals All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam. Tamil Nadu chief minister MK Stalin with V Senthil Balaji at a hospital in Chennai. (PTI)

READ | ED arrests TN minister Senthil Balaji in money laundering case

A DMK leader - who does not wish to be named - said Balaji's importance stems from his influence in western Tamil Nadu; his home district of Karur is in here and is seen as an AIADMK strong-hold. Balaji is also a 'hardworking minister and party worker', the DMK leader said. The party leader believes Balaji is being targeted because the DMK secured '100 per cent results' in the Coimbatore and Karur regions in the 2021 election, when Balaji was in charge of the party's campaign. The leader said Balaji had been brought back into the DMK to strengthen the party in the west and that the AIADMK and its ally, the Bharatiya Janata Party, were now trying to weaken him to win back the region.

What is the case against V Senthil Balaji?

The allegations against Balaji date back to the period between 2011 and 2015 when he was the transport minister; this was when the AIADMK was in power.

Crores were allegedly taken from candidates in return for jobs that were promised but never delviered. Many also reportedly paid bribes.

READ | ED arrests Senthil Balaji in job-for-cash 'scam'. What is the case?

Who is V Senthil Balaji?

V Senthil Balaji is also a loyalist of AIADMK leader and former Tamil Nadu chief minister J Jayalalitha.

He famously refused to shave his beard when she was convicted of corruption and forced to resign in 2014. Balaji lit over one lakh terracotta lamps at a temple ahead of the verdict on Jayalalitha's appeal against the 2015 conviction. He tonsured and carried a fire-pot on his head when she was acquitted.

However, in a dramatic turn of events, Jayalalithaa sacked him as minister and her party's Karur district secretary a few months later.

READ | Stalin's 2024 warning to BJP as TN CM meets Senthil Balaji in hospital

Balaji - who quit AIADMK after Jayalalithaa's death in December 2016 - was among the 18 AIADMK lawmakers disqualified for rebelling against then-chief minister Edappadi Palaniswami.

He joined the TTV Dhinakaran-led AIADMK breakaway faction as the organising secretary before he returned to DMK in 2018, almost two decades after starting his political career with the party. He was given key portfolios - electricity and excise - when the DMK returned to power in 2021 and was also given the post of district secretary for Karur.

Why is Balaji in hospital?

Balaji was hospitalised after over 19 hours of questioning and admitted to the Intensive Care Unit of a state government-run hospital in Chennai; doctors said he needed 'immediate bypass surgery'.

READ | Bypass surgery advised for Tamil Nadu minister arrested by ED

Why did ED arrest Balaji?

The Enforcement Directorate arrested Balaji hours after Stalin slammed the BJP for using 'backdoor tactics' - a reference to opposition leaders' claims the BJP uses investigative agencies that report to the central government, like the ED and Central Bureau of Investigation, to harass its rivals.

The ED launched raids at premises linked to Balaji in Chennai, Karur, and Erode on Tuesday in connection with its investigations against him

Balaji's home in Chennai and his office at the state secretariat were among the premises raided. His ministerial colleague PK Sekar Babu has accused the ED of torture.

'Payback' for airport lights error?

DMK leader RS Bharathi wondered whether the ED was targeting Balaji since there was a power cut for 15 minutes when union home minister Amit Shah was at the Chennai airport on June 10. He linked the raids to Shahs visit to the state and added they have an ulterior motive.

Bharathi called the raids also a diversionary tactic since the BJPs ally AIADMK was threatening to break the alliance.

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Senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh slammed the Centre over the increase in the number of Indians giving up on their citizenship and seeking citizenship abroad. 121,000 Indians gave up Indian citizenship in 2012, 226,000 did so in 2022 (Representative/File Photo)

Calling it intriguing, Ramesh mentioned how there has been a huge surge in the number of Indians renouncing their citizenship over the last decade and cited governments data in the Rajya Sabha according to which 121,000 Indians gave up Indian citizenship in 2012, and 226,000 did so in 2022.

Taking this to Twitter, Ramesh said, On Feb 9 2023 Dr. Jaishankar answered in RS that while 121000 Indians gave up Indian citizenship in 2012, 226000 did so in 2022. Very intriguing. So not just millionaires.

According to the report, millionaires or high-net-worth individuals (HNWIs) refer to those with an investable wealth of $1 million or more.

The Congress leaders response came after a 2023 report by Henley Private Wealth Migration (HPWM), which tracks wealth and investment migration trends worldwide, suggested that India is likely to see an outflow of at least 6,500 high-net-worth individuals in 2023.

Also Read: 225k Indians renounced citizenship in 2022: Govt

The report cited Indias prohibitive tax legislation, coupled with convoluted, complex rules relating to outbound remittances open to misinterpretation and abuse as some of the issues that had triggered the trend of investment migration from the country. It added that Dubai and Singapore were preferred destinations for wealthy Indian families.

The former is seen as particularly attractive for its government-administered global investor Golden Visa programme, favourable tax environment, robust business ecosystem and safe, peaceful environment, the report stated.

This places India as the country with the second-highest outflow of HNWIs globally, next only to China (net loss of 13,500), added the report.

In February, Jaishankar in Rajya Sabha had given out the year-wise number of Indians who renounced their citizenship. The total number of Indians who gave up their Indian citizenship since 2011 comes to 16,63,440, the EAM had stated.

Stating that the matter was concerning, the Congress had asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi if he would talk about the issues that are forcing such a high number of Indians to move out of the country in search of achche din.

Addressing a press conference, Congress leader Gourav Vallabh earlier this year stated that factors like the consistently high unemployment rate, low growth opportunities due to demonetisation and flawed implementation of the Goods and Services Tax (GST), the countrys poor standings in three global indices related to hunger, gender gap and press freedom, and the country having the maximum number of the poor in the world were some of the main reasons forcing many citizens to leave the country.

Although the same HPWM report also suggested that the outflow of high-net-worth individuals was not very concerning, considering Indias capacity to generate new millionaires.

In 2020, the United States gave citizenship to 625,400 individuals of which 7.7% or 48,125 were Indians, whereas Canada granted citizenship to 25,381, 17,093 and 21,597 Indians in 2019, 2020 and 2021, respectively.
The hospital, in a medical bulletin Wednesday, informed that the minister underwent a coronary angiogram and was advised to undergo bypass surgery at the earliest.

Who is Senthil Balaji?

1)The minister in the Stalin cabinet heads the electricity, prohibition and excise department in the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) -led Tamil Nadu government.

2) He is under investigation for corruption allegations dating back to his time as the transport minister in the previous All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) government from 2011 to 2015.

3) The former AIADMK minister joined DMK in 2018. He was among the 18 rebel MLAs who were disqualified from AIADMK for supporting expelled leader TTV Dinakaran.

4) He was born in 1975 in the Karur district of Tamil Nadu. As per his foundations website he attended the Rameswarapatti Government School, Vivekananda School, Pasupathypalayam and Municipal Higher Secondary School in Karur.

5) He entered politics at the age of 21 and was elected as the Karur MLA for the first time in 200 for two consecutive terms. In 2016, he moved to Aravakurichi constituency and gained back his Karur seat again in the 2021 assembly election.

6) His foundations website lists itself as a non-profit organisation established to work in the areas of health, education, relief of the poor primarily based in Karur.

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Blood transfusion has been in existence for a considerable period of time and is not a recent development where plasma, which is a component of blood, serves as a medium for eliminating waste from the body and transporting nutrients to various cells but in the realm of skincare and hair care, plasma is utilised in a treatment known as Platelet Rich Plasma (PRP). This involves extracting plasma from the patient's blood and subjecting it to a centrifuge to separate its different components and the resulting solution, which is abundant in platelets, is then reinjected into the patient. Anti-ageing plasma exchange: Risk factors, complications, lifestyle tweaks of blood swap (Photo by Sam Moghadam Khamseh on Unsplash)

In an interview with HT Lifestyle, Dr Rashmi Shetty, Cosmetic Dermatologist at Ra Skin and Aesthetics in Mumbai and Hyderabad, explained, Upon injection, the growth factors present in the plasma assist in tissue regeneration at the site of injection. This technique is also employed in orthopedics for joint treatments and similar purposes. On the topic of multi-generational plasma exchange, it is a complex scientific process that necessitates extensive study and research.

She elaborated, It is not widely popular and is only offered by selective medical facilities. This treatment can only be administered by experienced professionals due to its complexity and involvement of multiple variables. Therefore, in the field of medicine, and when considering its impact on the body, it is crucial to comprehend the underlying science rather than simply follow trends.

The new trend of Plasma exchange

Therapeutic Plasma exchange, also known as plasmapheresis was first employed in the year 1952. Dr Manoj Kutteri, Medical Director and CEO of Atmantan Wellness Centre, revealed, In this medical procedure, blood is withdrawn from the body and separated into plasma and cells. The procedure is primarily done to remove the liquid portion of the blood, called plasma containing various antibodies, toxins, cytokines, adhesion molecules, complement proteins, and other unwanted molecules, and then replace this with another liquid such as a mixture of electrolytes and albumin or purified protein compounds. The modified blood is then transferred to the patients body. Plasma exchange has a lot of medical benefits in treating various auto-immune conditions. This procedure is also done in treating overdoses of certain medications. In the case of organ transplantation, complications can arise due to antibody-mediated rejection by the body. In such cases also this procedure is quite useful.

How safe is it?

Dr Manoj Kutteri answered, Plasma exchange is generally a safe procedure if done under the guidance of an experienced Doctor. However, there can be various complications that can arise in this procedure. During the removal of plasma, there can be a loss of calcium and magnesium resulting in hypocalcemia or hypomagnesemia. Hence, these complications have to be handled carefully during the procedure. Also, since there is an exchange of large volumes of fluid, this can lead to an imbalance in our blood pressure causing breathing trouble, cold hands and feet, giddiness, nausea, shivering, etc.

He cautioned, Allergic reactions are also very common side effects along with bleeding tendencies. There is also a higher risk of catching an infection in this process if safety precautions are inadequate. However, if carried out well it is an excellent procedure for treating skin problems, scars, acne, and pigmentations, as a hair growth treatment, treating various autoimmune conditions such as myasthenia gravis, Guillain-Barre syndrome, polyneuropathy, for stimulating the production of collagen (anti-aging therapy), etc.

Things to be kept in mind while going for it

Dr Manoj Kutteri highlighted, Plasma exchange is a treatment that may not give you instant relief. Based on your conditions, your doctor will advise the number of sessions that are required for you. The result may be shown a few days after the treatment and there can be minor side effects that last for a few months too. Plasmapheresis therapy usually gives severe pain at the site for one or two days and one needs to anticipate this.

Its ill effects

Dr Manoj Kutteri emphasised, It is a medical procedure that has potential risks and complications similar to any advanced procedure. Common complications are risk of infection, allergic reaction, lowering of blood pressure due to large volume transfers, imbalance in the electrolytes and other minerals, and other complications arising from the invasive procedure. Since the immune complexes and antibodies are removed, this can also result in an increased risk of infections. Plasma exchange can also cause the risk of bleeding and in rare situations formation of blood clots inside the machine.
Pregnancy is a life-changing experience and while one should enjoy each and every day of the crucial phase, it is at the same time important to pay attention to your body and take note of symptoms that may appear at every stage. It is not just the gestational diabetes or blood pressure that could create complications for expecting mothers and the unborn baby, there are a number of health conditions that may have subtle signs which could go unnoticed. Pregnancy cholestasis or Intrahepatic cholestasis of pregnancy (ICP) is one such liver condition that commonly develops during the second or third trimester and the expecting mother may experience itching on hands or feet, yellowing of the skin, and eyes, nausea, loss of appetite, foul smelling stools among other symptoms. While bile acids usually aid in digestion, but in this condition, they accumulate in the body instead. (Also read: Kidney stones in pregnancy: Causes, symptoms and management) Pregnancy cholestasis or Intrahepatic cholestasis of pregnancy (ICP) is one such liver condition that commonly develops during the second or third trimester(Unsplash)

What is pregnancy cholestasis?

"Pregnancy cholestasis is a liver condition. It reduces or completely prevents the normal flow of bile from the gallbladder. There is itching and yellowing of the skin, eyes, and mucous membranes (jaundice). Cholestasis can develop early in pregnancy. However, it is more prevalent in the second and third trimesters. It usually disappears after a few days of birth. High bile levels might pose major difficulties for your growing baby (foetus)," Dr Payal Narang, Consultant Obstetrician & Gynaecologist, Motherhood Hospital Lullanagar, Pune told HT Digital.

What happens when one gets cholestasis during pregnancy

"A foetus relies on the liver to eliminate waste from its blood throughout the pregnancy. If your liver isn't working correctly, bile levels may rise to dangerous levels, stressing the foetus's liver. Because the liver is a vital organ responsible for eliminating waste from your body, its malfunction can lead to issues. Your prenatal care provider will continuously watch you to ensure that cholestasis does not affect you or the foetus," says Dr Narang.

What causes pregnant itching?

There could be other reasons behind itching during pregnancy also, and it could range from skin stretching, dryness, or hormonal chances.

There are several reasons why you may have itching when pregnant. These might include:

1. Skin stretching: Skin stretches far more than it is used to, throughout first pregnancy and repeated pregnancies.

2. Dryness: Pregnancy hormone fluctuations can produce itchy, flaky, dry skin.

3. Fabrics or perfumes: Different materials and substances can physically irritate you.

4. Hormones: Pregnancy hormone changes can influence anything from mood to circulation to, yep, itching.

5. Cholestasis: This is a liver condition that can induce an accumulation of bile acids in the blood, causing itching.

6. Prurigo: These crusty, itchy pimples that can occur on the arms, legs, or belly at any stage of pregnancy.

It is critical to analyse where on your body you are itching. Because the epidermis in these regions is changing so rapidly during pregnancy, most pregnancies will result in aching belly and irritated breasts.

How is ICP identified?

"Intrahepatic cholestasis of pregnancy (ICP) is normally diagnosed by ruling out other possible reasons of itching. You may be offered liver function tests (LFTs) and bile acid testing if you experience unexplained itching. This exam does not require you to fast," says Dr Narang.

"Some women may experience itching for several days or weeks before their tests are abnormal. If the itching persists and there is no obvious explanation, the bile acids and LFTs should be checked every 1-2 weeks. It is quite possible that your healthcare provider is unfamiliar with ICP," says the expert.

Risks associated with pregnancy cholestasis

If you have pregnancy cholestasis, your growing baby is at risk of significant issues. Dr Narang explains the complications:

Distress in the foetus: This indicates that your developing baby is not performing properly. For example, the newborn might be deficient in oxygen.

Premature birth: You may be at a higher risk of delivering too soon.

Meconium-stained liquor: This indicates that your baby had a bowel movement just before delivery. This might result in severe respiratory issues.

Breathing (respiratory) difficulties: As a newborn, your infant may experience respiratory difficulties.

Pregnancy cholestasis can potentially result in vitamin K insufficiency. This must be addressed before delivering since it might cause excessive bleeding.

How to avoid itching during pregnancy

Although you may not be able to completely avoid itchy skin during pregnancy, the following methods suggested by Dr Narang may help:

 Shower and bathe in lukewarm water. Hot water can dry out your skin and aggravate irritation. (It's advisable to avoid super-hot showers anyhow when pregnant.) Use a moderate, fragrance-free soap and thoroughly rinse it off. Dry yourself carefully with a towel.

 Maintain as much calm as possible. Avoid staying outside for long amounts of time throughout the day since heat (and overheating) can aggravate irritation.

 Dress comfortably. Loose cotton clothing protects your skin from irritation.

 Moisturize. After a shower or bath, use fragrance-free lotion or cream. Keep lotion in the refrigerator to make moisturising your skin feel chilly.

 Reduce your tension. Take measures to lessen stress and worrying when pregnant, while seemingly unrelated, stress can actually worsen the itch.
Reddit CEO Mike Huffman responds to intense backlash over the platform's API pricing, addressing the ongoing site-wide blackout and expressing confidence that the protests will eventually subside. Reddit CEO Steve Huffman comments on recent backlash. (Image Credit: British GQ)

The recent decision by Reddit to introduce charges for its API in April has drawn widespread criticism from users, particularly those relying on third-party apps.

Previously, Reddit's API was free, and the sudden shift to a paid model has left many users disgruntled. As a result, moderators and users from thousands of subreddits have joined forces to stage a blackout in protest of the company's decision, marking one of the largest organized protests in Reddit's history. Currently, over eight thousand subreddits are participating in the blackout, prompting Huffman to issue a memo to Reddit employees addressing the situation.

In an official memo obtained by The Verge. Huffman acknowledges the blackout and emphasizes the importance of continuing normal business operations despite the protests. He reassures employees that the protests have not significantly impacted the company's revenue and confidently states that "like all blowups on Reddit, this one will pass as well."

Reddit CEO's memo carries an unexpected air of optimism regarding the ongoing situation, suggesting that he believes the protests will eventually lose steam.

The memo concludes with a cautionary note, advising Reddit employees to refrain from wearing any company-branded attire in public for their safety. While some subreddits are expected to end their blackout by Wednesday, there is no guarantee, and Huffman's memo suggests that employees should try to distance themselves from the situation and focus on their work.

Despite Huffman's seemingly optimistic tone, it remains uncertain how long the blackouts and protests will persist.

The introduction of API charges has adversely affected various third-party apps, such as Apollo for Reddit. Even if some subreddits choose to end their blackout soon, others may continue their protest for an extended period.

ALSO READ| | Reddit's controversial API charges force third party client, Apollo to close its doors

Reddit serves as a platform for sharing art and ideas, and it is intriguing to witness the community unite in this manner to voice their concerns. Only time will reveal the ultimate impact of these blackouts on the company.

As Reddit grapples with the repercussions of its API pricing decision, the ongoing blackout highlights the power of collective action within the platform's user base. While Huffman's memo suggests confidence in weathering the storm, the resolution and duration of the protests remain uncertain. The company will need to navigate the delicate balance between addressing user concerns and maintaining its revenue streams.

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Music streaming giant Spotify was on Tuesday fined 58 million kronor ($5.4 million) for not properly informing users on how data it collected on them was being used, Swedish authorities said. Spotify (File Photo)

Spotify said it planned to appeal the decision.

The Swedish Authority for Privacy Protection's (IMY) said it had reviewed "how Spotify handles customers' right of access to their personal data."

"As a result of the shortcomings identified, IMY is imposing a fine of 58 million kronor on the company," the authority said.

The regulator noted that under the rules of the European data protection act GDPR, users have a right to know what data a company has about an individual and how that data is being used.

IMY said that while Spotify did hand out the data it had when requested by an individual, it said the company had not been sufficiently specific as to how that data was being used.

"Since the information provided by Spotify has been unclear, it has been difficult for individuals to understand how their personal data is processed and to check whether the processing of their personal data is lawful," IMY said.

It added that the "shortcomings discovered are considered, overall, to be of low severity," motivating the size of the fine by Spotify's user count and revenue.

The streaming giant, which is listed on the New York stock exchange, announced in April it had passed 500 million monthly active users with 210 million paying subscribers.

Spotify rejected the IMY findings, saying in a statement emailed to AFP that it "offers all users comprehensive information about how personal data is processed".

IMY "found only minor areas of our process they believe need improvement. However, we don't agree with the decision and plan to file an appeal," Spotify said.

Privacy activist group Noyb said in a separate statement that the fine followed a complaint and subsequent litigation from the group, and while they welcomed the decision they lamented the tardiness of the authorities.

"The case took more than four years and we had to litigate the IMY to get a decision. The Swedish authority definitely has to speed up its procedures," Stefano Rossetti, a privacy lawyer at Noyb, was quoted saying in the statement.

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Writesonic, an Indian software development company, has developed an artificial intelligence (AI)-powered tool called AI Article Writer 5.0, which, it says, writes articles that are factual, and hyper-personalised in a user's brand voice, doing so in less than 5 minutes. The 'AI Article Writer 5.0' (Image courtesy: writesonic.com)

Our aim has always been to make state-of-the-art AI technology accessible, allowing our users to generate powerful, personalised, and engaging content that sets them apart. The launch of AI Article Writer 5.0 is another leap towards this mission, ushering in a new era of content creation, Times Now quoted Samanyou Garg, Founder, Writesonic, as saying.

What does AI Article Writer 5.0 do?

According to the company, the AI Article Writer 5.0 is powered by GPT-4-32K.

Factually correct content: Writesonic claims that using its advanced AI with GPT-4 powers, the AI Article Writer 5.0 explores results that are trending on top on Google Search, and, therefore, helps build a 'comprehensive and factual' blog.

'Write brand-specific blogs': With this tool, people can hyper-personalise their blog, doing so by uploading documents and PDFs to it, and giving links to their previously written blogs.

No plagiarism: To ensure that your work is completely original, it runs a plagiarism checker constantly on the piece's background.

Easier to rank blog on Google: For this, you can SEO-optimise your blog. You can, therefore, add own keywords to train AI before hand. Users also get access to in-buit SEO integrations Semrush to generate SEO-optimised content (even without additional keywords) while 'Sonic Editor' further optimises the AI-generated article.

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The diverse world of cappuccino prices is a fascinating journey that unveils the intricacies of coffee culture across the globe. From Denmark to Libya, each country offers its own unique experience when it comes to enjoying this beloved beverage. Cappuccino prices worldwide showcase coffee culture diversity, from Denmark to Libya and beyond, offering unique experiences globally. (Abdul Sahid Khan, Head Trainer, Lavazza India)

In Denmark, a cappuccino comes with a higher price tag of $5.53, reflecting the country's penchant for luxury and quality. Meanwhile, Qatar and Switzerland closely trail behind, showcasing their commitment to providing a top-notch coffee experience.

As we move to the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait, we find a slightly more affordable range at $5.04 and $4.92 respectively. These countries embrace the joy of coffee without compromising on flavor and presentation.

In the United States, a cup of cappuccino can be savored for $4.74, catering to a more accessible market. Singapore, Iceland, and Finland also offer their delightful creations at reasonable prices, emphasizing the global appeal of this iconic beverage.

The journey continues as we encounter countries like Saudi Arabia, Israel, and the UK, where cappuccino prices hover around the $3.70 range. These nations strike a balance between affordability and the pursuit of coffee excellence.

Delving further into Asia, South Korea, Austria, and Canada present their take on cappuccinos at prices ranging from $3.72 to $3.61. The cultural diversity reflected in these offerings adds a touch of uniqueness to the coffee experience.

Crossing borders into China, Australia, and Germany, we discover that a satisfying cup of cappuccino can be enjoyed for approximately $3.56 to $3.39. These countries showcase their dedication to serving coffee enthusiasts with their own distinctive flair.

As we journey through the Netherlands, France, and Japan, we witness a range of prices from $3.32 to $3.09. Each cup represents a blend of local traditions and international influences, offering a taste of cultural diversity in every sip.

In Mexico, the Philippines, and Nigeria, the cappuccino prices dip even further, providing accessible options for coffee lovers at $2.92, $2.40, and $2.19 respectively. These countries demonstrate that a delicious cup of coffee doesn't have to break the bank.

Continuing our exploration, Thailand and Indonesia showcase their coffee prowess with cappuccinos priced at $1.94 and $1.89. These nations celebrate their rich coffee heritage while keeping their offerings affordable and enticing.

As we approach the final destinations of Brazil, India, and Italy, we find cappuccinos that can be relished for $1.67 to $1.63. These countries, known for their distinct coffee cultures, invite you to experience the essence of their traditions in every sip.

Also Read | 5 key takeaways from ECA International's Cost of Living Rankings

And finally, we arrive at Pakistan, Egypt, and Tunisia, where cappuccino prices are as low as $1.35, $1.31, and $0.75 respectively. These nations showcase their commitment to making coffee accessible and affordable for all.

As we conclude this global coffee odyssey, we are reminded that the price of a cappuccino is not merely a number but a reflection of cultural values, economic factors, and the love for this cherished beverage. So, whether you find yourself in the opulence of Denmark or the affordability of Libya, take a moment to savor the flavors, embrace the traditions, and celebrate the global community united by the love for cappuccino.
Imagine you are enjoying a weekend of fishing and then something extraordinary unfolds before your eyes. In place of the anticipated fish, you unexpectedly reel in something far beyond your imaginationa car. This may sound like a scene out of a film, but believe it or not, someone actually caught a car from water while fishing. Man finds Jeep in water.(Facebook/@Cheney Lake Party Cove)

On Memorial Day, John Mounce went crappie fishing at Cheney Lake, Kansas, USA, and got more than he expected. Nearly 16 feet below the surface, he discovered a Jeep that was reported stolen 33 years ago, reported KSN News. "As soon as I put my live scope on it, I knew immediately it was a vehicle. I saw the tires and the fender wheels really clear," said Mounce to KSN News. After noticing the car Sedgwick County Sheriffs Office deputies met Mounce at his home to take a look at the pictures of the Jeep.

Later the authorities planned to take out the Jeep from the water. However, Sedgwick County Fire Department divers had problems locating the vehicle in the murky, dark water. Mounce claimed that they requested him to return to the lake to assist over the phone. But before he got there, one of the divers had already discovered the car. Cheney Lake Party Cove also posted pictures of the Jeep on their Facebook.

Take a look at the post here:

This post was shared on May 30. Since being posted it has been liked over 700 times. Many have also shared comments on the post.

Check out a few comments below:

An individual wrote, "What kind of bait was it hitting on!!!" A second shared, "Now everyone knows what that big one that got away really was. Good catch, lol" A third posted, "Thats awesome! How in the heck did I miss it! Good find."

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A boat returning from a wedding capsized in northern Nigeria, killing at least 103 people, including children, officials said Tuesday. More than 100 people have drowned in north central Nigeria after a boat carrying families returning from a wedding sank in a river. (Representational image)

Residents and police were still searching for dozens of people who were on the overcrowded boat that capsized early Monday on the Niger River in the Pategi district of Kwara state, which is 160 kilometers (100 miles) from Ilorin, the state capital, according to police spokesman Okasanmi Ajayi. He said 100 people had been rescued so far.

Most of those who drowned were relatives from several villages who attended the wedding together and partied late into the night, according to Abdul Gana Lukpada, a local chief. They arrived at the ceremony on motorcycles but had to leave on the locally made boat after a downpour flooded the road, he said.

The boat was overloaded and close to 300 persons were in it. While they were coming, the boat hit a big log inside the water and split into two, said Lukpada.

The wedding was held in the village of Egboti in the neighboring Niger state, said Usman Ibrahim, a resident. Because the accident happened at 3 a.m., it was hours before many people knew what had happened, he said.

As the passengers drowned, villagers nearby rushed to the scene and managed to rescue about 50 at first, Lukpada said, describing early efforts to rescue the passengers as slow and very difficult.

As of Tuesday afternoon, officials and locals were still searching for more bodies in the river, which is one of Nigerias largest. Police spokesman Ajayi said the rescue operation would continue through the night until Wednesday.

Locals said it was the deadliest boat accident they have seen in many years.

By Tuesday evening, all of the bodies recovered so far had been buried, most near the river, in accordance with local customs, Lukpada said.

Kwara Gov. Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq's office issued a statement expressing sadness for the families of those killed and saying that he continues to monitor the rescue efforts already mounted since Monday night in search of possible survivors.

Boat accidents are common in many remote communities across Nigeria where locally made vessels are commonly used for transport. Most accidents are attributed to overloading and the use of poorly maintained boats.
Washington: Following up on the agreement between US President Joe Biden and Chinas president Xi Jinping in Bali to maintain open lines of communication, Secretary of State Antony Blinken will visit Beijing, the State Department announced on Wednesday. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaks at a chiefs of mission reception in the East Room of the White House in Washington, on Tuesday. (AP)

In a statement, State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said Blinken will travel to Beijing and then London between June 16 and 21.

While in Beijing, Secretary Blinken will meet with senior PRC officials where he will discuss the importance of maintaining open lines of communication to responsibly manage the US-PRC relationship. He will also raise bilateral issues of concern, global and regional matters, and potential cooperation on shared transnational challenges.

Blinken spoke to Chinas foreign minister Qin Gang on Tuesday. According to the State Department, Blinken had discussed the importance of maintaining open lines of communication to avoid miscalculation and conflict. He also addressed a range of bilateral and global issues, and made it clear to his Chinese counterpart that the US would continue to use diplomatic engagements to raise areas of concern as well as areas of potential cooperation.

When Biden and Xi had met in Bali last year, they had agreed to remain engaged. According to a White House readout, Biden had told the Chinese leader that while the US will continue to compete vigorously with China, this competition must not veer into conflict. This required both sides to maintain open channels of communication, which is how Blinkens visit was scheduled.

But days before he was to depart for Beijing in early February, the US discovered a Chinese surveillance balloon traversing across its continental territory. This led to public outrage and the trip being postponed. The US then accessed intelligence that suggested China was preparing to provide lethal arms to Russia to aid Moscow in its war in Ukraine and put pressure on Beijing from desist from doing so.

In May, US national security adviser Jake Sullivan met senior Chinese communist party foreign policy figure, Wang Yi in Vienna. HT had reported on May 11 that the conversation would lead to Blinkens visit to China. A senior administration figure had then told HT that the visit did not in any way mean a reset in ties or a dilution of the US approach to China, as articulated in its national defence and national security strategy documents.

Given the larger strategic environment, as well as domestic political mood in the US with the Congress keeping a vigilant eye on China, there is no possibility of a reset with Beijing. What Washington hopes for is finding a way to calm tempers. It also shows to the rest of the region which doesnt want to get caught in a Washington-Beijing conflict that US is open to engagement. Diplomacy involves talking. And talking doesnt mean agreement, the person added.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR Prashant Jha Prashant Jha is the Washington DC-based US correspondent of Hindustan Times. He is also the editor of HT Premium. Jha has earlier served as editor-views and national political editor/bureau chief of the paper. He is the author of How the BJP Wins: Inside India's Greatest Election Machine and Battles of the New Republic: A Contemporary History of Nepal. ...view detail
In a shocking revelation, British politician Chris Mullin has labeled Meghan Markle a 'cuckoo' and a threat to her marriage with Prince Harry. The outspoken claims have ignited a firestorm of speculation about the couple's future. British politician Chris Mullin has labeled Meghan Markle a 'cuckoo' and a threat to her marriage with Prince Harry.

Mullin, known for his candid opinions, accused Markle of exhibiting cuckoo-like behavior during her time within the royal family. He further warned that her "woke Californian hang-ups" could inadvertently spell doom for her relationship with Prince Harry.

Adding fuel to the fire, Meghan's own sister, Samantha Markle, echoed similar concerns, going so far as to suggest that the couple seek "extensive counseling" to salvage their crumbling marriage, which she believes is on the brink of collapse.

The remarks have caused a stir among royal observers, raising questions about the stability of Meghan and Harry's union. Reports suggest that Prince Harry himself has been displaying signs of doubt, casting a shadow over their once fairy-tale romance.

As the world eagerly watches, experts weigh in on the couple's future prospects. Will Meghan's alleged disruptive influence prove to be the final straw, forcing Prince Harry to retreat from their marriage?

While Meghan Markle has been a subject of both adoration and controversy since entering the royal fold, the latest accusations against her raise new concerns about the couple's ability to weather the storm. The challenges they face are unprecedented, as they navigate their way through the intricate world of royalty, public scrutiny, and personal ambition.

Also read | Royal doppelganger! Meet the Prince Harry look-alike who is making a fortune on the face of it

Only time will tell if Meghan Markle can shed the 'cuckoo' image and save her marriage, or if the mounting pressures will drive the couple apart. One thing is certain: the world will be watching with bated breath as the drama unfolds.

(Source: Royal Observer)
Some middle schoolers have been accused of tearing down Pride decorations after they were asked to wear rainbow colours to school to celebrate Pride Month on June 2. In protest, the students also chanted that their pronouns were 'USA'. The incident took place at Marshall Simonds Middle School in Burlington, Massachusetts. Some middle schoolers have been accused of tearing down Pride decorations after they were asked to wear rainbow colours to school (WCVB Channel 5 Boston screenshot/YouTube and msms_marcus/Instagram)

The students, dressed in red, white and blue, destroyed the decorations in the hallway. I was shocked and horrified, Nila Almstrom, a parent of an LGBT student, said at a town hall meeting, according to Daily Mail. Parents claimed that some students who identified as straight felt like they were forced to participate. They were also offended by a Tennessee Williams quote used as part of the decorations, that said the human heart is curved like a road through the mountains, and what are straight are lines and roads.

My daughter just said, "You know, mom, that's offensive to me, I am straight, Christine Steiner told WCVB. Some of the kids threw the stickers on the ground. But I can only speak for my daughter, she just didn't want to wear that to school. It's not that she wanted to hurt anybody's feelings.

Burlington Public Schools later said in a letter to parents that the district is obligated to provide a safe environment for all students to feel safe, seen and respected without retaliation. I recognize that discussions and celebrations of individual identity are complex and impacted by individual values, religions, and cultural norms, the result of which may include expressions of racism, anti-religious hate, ableism, and in this case homophobia, Superintendent Eric Conti wrote.

The Burlington Public Schools believe in the individual dignity and humanity of each and every person in our community. We embrace everyone for who they are and for what they bring to our schools and larger community, he continued. Let us all work on being kinder to each other.

Parents and allies have claimed that this type of intolerant rhetoric starts in the home, and urged schools to ensure more diversity, equity and inclusion. These displays of intolerance and homophobia are unacceptable and impact the whole community, Burlington Equity Coalition Co-Chair, Nancy Bonassera, said. We challenge Burlington town leadership to take an active stand against hate under the guise of "free expression."

Principal Cari Perchase apologised, saying in a letter that she wanted to publicly state that I stand in solidarity and support of the members of the LGBTQ community who were impacted by these events.

Following this incident, anti-Semitic and racist graffiti were discovered inside the bathroom of the school. Cari, however, said she does not think this has any connection with the Pride celebration incident, according to the Boston Globe.

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Toronto: Despite the recent setback to bilateral ties due to a controversial float depicting the assassination of Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, Canada is continuing its engagement at the G20, being hosted this year by India. Canadas International Development Minister Harjit Sajjan (left) being welcomed by Indias External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar during the G20 Development Ministers meeting in Varanasi. (Harjit Sajjan/Twitter)

Canadas Minister of International Development and Minister responsible for the Pacific Economic Development Agency of Canada Harjit Sajjan participated in the three-day G20 Development Ministers meeting in Varanasi and also visited New Delhi.

In a tweet on Tuesday, Sajjan thanked External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar for welcoming the Canadian delegation to the city in Uttar Pradesh. Canada and India share a commitment to supporting the most vulnerable communities around the world, he added.

A release from Global Affairs Canada, the countrys foreign ministry, said the development ministers focused their discussions on how the G20 can help accelerate progress in achieving the UNs Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030, including through efforts to improve access to financing.

In the spirit of Indias G20 presidency, One Earth, One Family, One Future, we must all contribute to addressing the global challenges that affect sustainable development around the world and work as one to meet the UN 2030 Agenda goals. From combating climate change, addressing global food security challenges, promoting gender equality and working to improve access to financing for development, Canada has reaffirmed its commitment to accelerating progress across all SDGs, Sajjan said.

The release noted Canada and India have deep ties built on shared democratic values and a long-standing friendship and their wide-ranging bilateral cooperation between Canada and India spans the fields of science and technology, finance, education and security.

Sajjan was making his first official visit to India since he became International Development Minister. His previous visits were in April 2017 and in February 2018 when was Minister of National Defence. He was moved from that portfolio after the 2021 elections and replaced with Anita Anand.

The float had appeared at a martyrdom day event on June 4 in Brampton, marking the 39th anniversary of Operation Bluestar, the military action ordered by the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi in 1984 to flush out separatist leader Jarnail Singh Bhindrawale and his supporters from the Golden Temple in Amritsar.

It sparked outrage in India. Other tableaux featured Bhindranwale and other major figures in the Khalistan movement. Jaishankar told media in New Delhi on Thursday the float was linked to the bigger issue of the space that Canada has continuously provided to Khalistani elements.

Canadas Minister for International Trade Mary Ng is expected to visit India in August for the G20 Trade Ministers meeting. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is scheduled to attend the leaders summit of the multilateral event in September.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR Anirudh Bhattacharyya Anirudh Bhattacharya is a Toronto-based commentator on North American issues, and an author. He has also worked as a journalist in New Delhi and New York spanning print, television and digital media. He tweets as @anirudhb. ...view detail
Specialists at the Institute of Marine Sciences and the Red Sea Reserves said that the embalming process (a surgical process in which the body fluids are replaced with chemical solutions) is underway so that the shark can be placed in the institutes museum, the Independent reported.

The incident took place in Egypt's Hurghada city. The news agency Reuters confirmed that the person killed was a Russian, however he lived in Egypt full-time and was not a tourist.

Also Read: Australian man frees his head from the jaws of a crocodile

The gruesome attack had forced the Egyptian authorities to close off a 74-kilometre stretch of the coastline till Sunday. The shark was also caught by them and taken to a laboratory to examine the cause of the attack. The countrys environment ministry had also issued a statement in this regard.

Some of the victim's body parts were recovered inside the sharks stomach, while some recovered from the sea, the Independent reported.

At the time of the incident, the victims father was also present at the spot. The heart-wrenching video had captured the victims cry for help, as the witnesses watched the tragic event unfold before their eyes.

A total of 57 confirmed unprovoked cases of shark attacks took place globally in 2022, with the United States reporting the highest number at 41, followed by Australia, a report by Florida Museum of Natural History stated. Of these, five people died in the attacks.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR Nisha Anand Trainee Content Producer for Hindustan Times Digital Streams. I read about feminism, late modern history, and globalisation of Korean music. ...view detail
China's Hainan Airlines suspended flight attendants depending on their weight resulting in severe backlash. If the attendants are above a certain weight limit, they would be immediately grounded, the carrier said. The guidelines- based on a formula which calculated the limit considering the height of the flight attendants- state that if female flight attendants would exceed the "standard limit" by 10%, they would be immediately removed. Applicants approach a panel of recruiters during a test session for cabin crew jobs at Hainan Airlines in Beijing, China.(Reuters)

The flight attendants who were suspended would be put on a company-supervised "weight-reduction plan". If female flight attendants are less than 5% overweight, their weight will be monitored on a monthly basis.

Quoting a civil aviation employee, Global Times reported that the police is unprecedented in the domestic aviation industry while a legal expert said that the move imposes additional labour obligations on employees without following proper legal procedures.

Hainan Airlines told CNN that they used a weight reference standard and said that the policy applied to all flight attendants regardless of gender. The measure cannot be interpreted as a simple criterion to suspend a flight attendant as some media did, they said, explaining that the standard is "based on the standard human body weight reference and matched with the healthy weight range measurement for the crew".

The rules are used to evaluate and manage the crew's "health, physical shape and posture" and "this is intended to advocate healthy living habits and maintain a good professional image and healthy physique by anchoring the reference target, rather than passively waiting for individual crew members physique to change significantly and then affect safety service work," it added.

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Starbucks which has long presented itself as LGBTQ+ friendly, is facing backlash after reports emerged that some stores across the United States have banned Pride decorations. The accusations sparked outrage and garnered significant attention from both the far right, who celebrated the news, and those advocating for LGBTQ rights. But, Starbucks swiftly denied the allegations, firmly asserting its commitment to inclusivity. Starbucks facing legal charges against the alleged Pride Month decoration ban. (Reuters/representative)

The allegations were made by the union Starbucks Workers United, which filed a labor charge with the National Labor Review Board. This move marks the first time that Starbucks has been accused of taking such a stance.

The issue came to light when Starbucks Uniteds Twitter account tweeted about the situation. The workers had initially started a petition at the beginning of June, addressing Starbucks CEO Laxman Narasimhan, expressing their concerns that they were no longer allowed to decorate their stores for Pride or other holidays. The petition reached 1000 co-worker signatures mark at the time of writing this article.

The petition highlighted the importance of supporting and welcoming both customers and partners, particularly in a time when LGBTQ+ rights, including transgender rights, are under attack.

In a time where LGBT+ rights, transgender rights especially, are under attack, its important that both customers and partners feel supported and welcomed. Why is the company backing away from supporting its LGBT partners? What is there to gain from making every store depressingly identical, with no personality? the petition reads.

The petition gained significant support, amassing over 2,500 signatures at the time of publication.

On June 7, Workers United filed a labor charge with the National Labor Relations Board, alleging that Starbucks unilaterally prohibited Pride decorations at unionized stores in Oklahoma City.

The charge also claimed that beverage-joint refused to engage in negotiations with the union regarding the decision and its impact on the workers.

ALSO READ| | Burlington students accused of tearing down Pride decorations after being asked to wear rainbow colours to school

The situation drew comparisons to Target's removal of Pride merchandise and displays from its stores following right-wing media criticism and subsequent harassment and threats.

Starbucks is powered by many queer workers, but management has failed to materially support the LGBTQ+ community, the thread Tweet read.

The union also mentioned changes to the transgender benefit plan, which allegedly led to additional expenses and restricted access to certain providers. Similar incidents occurred last June, prompting the union to file a charge against the coffee chain with the National Labor Relations Board.

The union stressed that true allyship with the LGBTQ+ community involved negotiating a union contract that legally protects benefits, freedom of expression, and mechanisms to hold management accountable.

If Starbucks was a true ally, they would stand up for us, especially during a time when LGBTQ+ people are under attack A company that cares wouldnt turn their back on the LGBTQ+ community to protect their already astronomically high profits, the union page tweeted

In response to the allegations, Starbucks spokesperson Andrew Trull denied any changes to the company's policies. Trull reaffirmed Starbucks' unwavering support for the LGBTQ+ community and stated, There has been no change to any policy on this matter and we continue to encourage our store leaders to celebrate with their communities including for U.S. Pride month in June deeply concerned by false information that is being spread especially as it relates to our inclusive store environments, our company culture, and the benefits we offer our partners.

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Former US president Donald Trump revealed that his wife and former first lady Melania Trump was "hurt" after the Department of Justice (DOJ) indicted him. Former president Donald Trump talks to the media with Melania Trump.(AP)

"How does she take it? She's hurt when the family's hurt," Donald Trump said on a radio show on WABC as he became the first former president in United States history to face federal criminal charges after he was indicted by a grand jury over the mishandling of confidential records that were found in his possession at his Mar-a-Lago home in Florida.

The indictment revealed that the former president is facing 37 charges, including 31 counts of willful retention of national defense information. Even though Melania has not yet spoken publicly about the federal charges, her husband said she remains by his side. Calling his wife terrific, Donald Trump said she has an attitude that is amazing.

Melania was often seen by her husband's side throughout his 2016 presidential campaign and during his time in office. But she has made fewer public appearances since Donald Trump left the White House. She was also not seen when Donald Trump announced his bid for the White House in November but later came out in support of his campaign saying, My husband achieved tremendous success in his first administration, and he can lead us toward greatness and prosperity once again adding that she was ready to help him in "leading America with love and strength" during a second term.

On the federal charges, Donald Trump said, If I weren't leading [in the 2024 polls], this would never happen. Or if I wasn't running, even more so, this would never happenthese fake charges.

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Prince Harry has shown unwavering determination in his ongoing legal fight against the Daily Mirror, and according to an insider, he's not about to back down. In an exclusive revelation to Us Weekly, the source shared, "Harry's hell-bent on winning this case, no matter what. Harry says he'll share whatever he must to bring justice. He's willing to risk it all in that regard." Prince Harry leaves the High Court after giving evidence in London.(AP)

The Duke of Sussex, aged 38, recently took the stand in court on June 6 and 7, marking the beginning of his testimony. The author of "The Spare" is suing Mirror Group Newspapers, the publisher of the Daily Mirror, for allegedly illegally accessing his voicemail messages between 1996 and 2011 to gather information. However, the media company has vehemently denied these claims, asserting that their journalists employed legal reporting techniques.

The insider revealed the toll that Harry's involvement in the case has taken on him, stating, "It's been extremely draining and nerve-racking. But Harry's determination to speak up against what he claims was plain illegality is what pushed him through and kept him focused."

In his witness statement, the founder of the Invictus Games pointed to tabloid coverage of his personal life as a contributing factor to his split from Chelsy Davy, with whom he had an on-again, off-again relationship from 2004 to 2010. Harry alleged that reporters tracked their whereabouts through voicemails, resulting in their outings being constantly interrupted by photographers and journalists.

Harry also highlighted peculiar mobile activity, describing instances where the "new voicemail" symbol disappeared before he could listen to the message. He wrote, "I don't know how long after they'd been listened to that the symbol vanished, presumably straight away. I also distinctly remember people saying to me, 'Did you not get my voicemail?' on both a personal and work-related level. I was like, 'no,' and sometimes I would go back into my voicemail to look for it but still couldn't find it."

During his testimony, Harry faced challenges from Andrew Green, the attorney representing Mirror Group, who dismissed his speculation about his school landline being hacked while he was speaking to his late mother, Princess Diana.

Also read | Royal family member praises Prince Harry and Meghan Markle for quitting The Firm

While Meghan Markle hasn't been present in court with Harry, the insider emphasized that she has been his rock throughout this ordeal. The source disclosed, "She's proud of him for having the strength and courage to do the right thing."
An 18-year-old army trainee shot three fellow soldiers at a firing range on a Japanese army base Wednesday, killing two of them, officials said. Members of the Japanese Self-Defence Force (SDF) are seen around the shooting range in Japan. (via Reuters)

Read here: Hearing for Abe murder suspect cancelled over suspicious object: Report

The suspect was arrested on suspicion of attempted murder at the scene in Gifu prefecture in central Japan, police said.

The suspect fired a rifle at the soldiers during a shooting exercise at the Hino Kihon firing range, police said.

The Ground Self Defense Force, Japans army, confirmed that two of those wounded were later pronounced dead at a hospital.

Army Chief of Staff Gen. Yasunori Morishita said the suspect joined the military in April and the three soldiers were assisting his shooting exercise as instructors.

An organization that handles weapons should never allow an incident like this to happen, Morishita said at a news conference. As head of the army, I take this very seriously.

Morishita said he has ordered a temporary suspension of exercises involving shooting and explosives across the country while the army investigates and prepares safety measures to prevent a recurrence.

A number of other people were believed to be participating in the training when the shooting occurred, but details are still under investigation, an army official said on condition of anonymity, citing protocol.

Japan has been known for its safety, with strict gun control laws, but high-profile violence has occurred in recent years, including shootings and random knifings on subways and arson attacks, and there is growing concern about homemade guns and explosives.

Read here: Magnitude 6.2 earthquake hits Japan's Hokkaido prefecture

Prime Minister Fumio Kishida was almost hit by a pipe bomb thrown by a person at an election campaign venue in April.

Former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was assassinated in July 2022 by an attacker using a handmade gun.

Last month, a man was arrested after he allegedly shot two police officers to death after killing two women with a knife in Nagano prefecture.

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A Singaporean-US standup comedian Jocelyn Chia drew backlash in Malaysia and Singapore after one of her comedy skits in which she joked about the disappearance of 2014 Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370. Malaysia Inspector-General of Police Acryl Sani Abdullah Sani said that the county has decided to prosecute her and the police would request Interpols assistance for their investigation. Jocelyn Chia performed a comedy sketch at Manhattans Comedy Cellar back in April.

Boston-born Jocelyn Chia had performed the comedy sketch at Manhattans comedy cellar back in April. She had said that Malaysia had dumped Singapore, in reference to the separation of the island state from Malaysia in 1965. Singapore had the best break up revenge as it had become a first world country while Malaysia was still a developing country, she said equating the separation of the two countries to a romantic breakup as she imagined Malaysia trying to woo Singapore back saying that it hadnt visited because my airplanes cannot fly, adding, What? Malaysia Airlines going missing not funny? Some jokes dont land.

According to the New York Post, Comedy Cellar's website was hacked and nearly 4,000 one-star reviews were posted. You can get away [onstage] with saying stuff thats kind of outrageous. You cant put that same moment into a small screen that youre watching over morning coffee, Comedy Cellar owner Noam Dworman told the New York Times.

The United Malays National Organisation, one of Malaysias biggest political parties, lodged a protest at the US embassy in Kuala Lumpur while Singapore distanced itself from the comedian, who held dual citizenship until adulthood.

The Singapore government does not condone words or actions that cause harm or hurt to others and Chia, Vanu Gopala Menon, Singapores High Commissioner to Malaysia said, adding, [Chia] does not in any way reflect our views. I sincerely apologise to all Malaysians for her hurtful remarks.

The comedian, however, said, I do stand by my joke but with some caveats  I stand by it in its entirety, when viewed in a comedy club. Upon reflection, I do see that having this as a clip that gets viewed out of a comedy club context was risky."

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR Mallika Soni When not reading, this ex-literature student can be found searching for an answer to the question, "What is the purpose of journalism in society?" ...view detail
Many school kids have been bullied. Prince William's wife Kate Middleton was sadly not immune to the same during her own childhood, it has been reported. According to one royal expert, the Princess of Wales' difficult experience at one of her boarding schools has greatly influenced how she chooses her own kids' schools. This includes hers and Prince William's decision not to send them to boarding school. Princess of Wales, Kate Middleton, is seen.(AP)

"The Prince and Princess of Wales have made it clear that their young family will, as far as possible, come first and that includes sending all three to day school, rather than having them as boarders away from home," Jennie Bond told OK!, referring to Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis' enrollment at Lambrook School.

"Catherine had a very unhappy time at Downe House in her first two terms and was bullied quite badly before she left and moved to Marlborough College," Jennie Bond continued, adding, This has completely influenced the way she wants her children to be educated, coupled with her belief and research into early years development.

It is telling that Kate was heavily involved in searching for George, Charlotte and Louis' school as two of the key aspirations of Lambrook are kindness and inclusivity, the royal expert added.

Prince William and Prince Harry were at boarding school once they hit primary school age. Diana missed them hugely, but in the same breath, had been brought up in much of the same way away from her family. For the moment at least it seems William and Catherine want to keep their children close, as day pupils at Lambrook, in a happy and nurturing environment, Jennie Bond explained.

Earlier, royal expert Katie Nicholl claimed that Kate Middleton was bullied in school in her book Kate: The Future Queen.

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Following a recent gathering near Walt Disney World, where a handful of people assembled with Nazi symbols and expressed support for Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, the granddaughter of Roy Disney, co-founder of Disney, has taken to the internet to share her thoughts on the matter. Abigail Disney condemns Nazi demonstration by Ron DeSantis' supporters(twitter )

On Sunday, Abigail Disney tweeted, "My grandfather is spinning in his grave," and posted a video showcasing the scene that unfolded in Orlando.

The Orange County Sheriff's Office reported that on Saturday, approximately 15 individuals participated in a demonstration near the theme park for a duration of two hours. Additionally, two counter-protesters were present during the event. No arrests were made, and the demonstration concluded without further incident, as confirmed by the Sheriff's Office.

In a statement the office comments, "We are aware of these groups that aim to agitate and incite people with anti-Semitic symbols and slurs. They are also aware of the law. The Orange County Sheriffs Office deplores hate speech in any form, but people have the First Amendment right to demonstrate."

Online videos and photos depict several individuals waving red and black flags adorned with swastikas, with one person holding a poster of DeSantis and another displaying a "DeSantis 2024 Make America Florida'' flag planted in the ground. The Combat Anti Semitism Movement, a non-partisan international organization, reports that a similar demonstration took place at the same location last May.

Requests for comment from representatives of DeSantis and Disney went unanswered. This demonstration occurs amid an ongoing feud between DeSantis, who is vying for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, and Disney that has lasted for over a year.

The fight between Disney and the Florida governor originated over an education law which flared up into a feud concerning the management and control of land that encompasses the amusement park.

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NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said on Wednesday that some progress had been made during talks in Turkey on Sweden's bid to join the Western alliance. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg. (Reuters)

Read here: Ukraine ready, Zelensky on counteroffensive after rare NATO admission

Stoltenberg made the comments at a news conference on the eve of a NATO Defence ministers meeting in Brussels.

In March, Turkey ratified Finland's bid for membership of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, but still objects to Sweden joining the alliance, as does Hungary.
North Korea created a fake version of Naver- South Korea's largest internet portal, Seoul's spy agency revealed. This was part of a sophisticated phishing attack designed by Pyongyang to get personal information on South Koreans, it added. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. (AP)

Naver's services include Google-like maps, financial services similar to Apple Pay are used daily by many Koreans. It is one of South Korea's biggest tech companies. South Korea's National Intelligence Service said that North Korea created a phishing site that replicated Naver's main page called naverportal.com through which it hacked South Koreans' Naver IDs and passwords, getting access to valuable personal data.

"As North Korea's hacking attack methods against our people are becoming more sophisticated, we ask people to be extra vigilant," NIS said. Measures have been taken to block the phishing site from South Korean users, it added, warning users, Please cease accessing it immediately if you spot a page that's not a standard Naver access domain URL.

North Korea previously attempted to steal South Korean IDs and passwords by duplicating Naver's log-in page as well. But "the North has upgraded its attack scheme in order to better extort private information," the agency said, adding, "We are tracking the activities of the hacking group in cooperation with foreign agencies as the server is located overseas."

Naver warned users to continue to exercise caution, saying, We urge users to check if the address is the right one and pay extra attention when accessing Naver.

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It was an absolutely breathtaking sight that left everyone who witnessed it in complete awe. The coastal waters of San Francisco became home to an incredibly rare gathering of nearly twenty killer whales, commonly known as orcas. This extraordinary event unfolded during a whale-watching tour near the magnificent Farallon Islands, where these majestic creatures had come together, likely celebrating a successful hunt for sea lions and seals. Coastal waters near San Francisco witnessed an awe-inspiring sight as nearly 20 killer whales gathered for a rare event.(AP)

Michael Pierson, a passionate naturalist from the Oceanic Society who was leading the tour, couldn't contain his excitement when he first caught sight of those unmistakable dorsal fins of the orcas gracefully emerging from the glistening water. Overwhelmed by the spectacle, Pierson couldn't help but shout out, "orca!" The experience was nothing short of magical, and he described it as an incredibly special moment.

Ordinarily, killer whales tend to frequent the deep ocean canyon below Monterey Bay, which is located approximately 75 miles to the south of San Francisco. Marine biologist Nancy Black explained that these fascinating creatures can be encountered anywhere along the coastline, sometimes venturing as close as just 5 miles offshore. However, the Farallon Islands, located approximately 28 miles west of San Francisco, pose a challenge for whale-watching tours due to the long boat ride and potentially insufficient water depth.

Black, who owns Monterey Bay Whale Watch and is an expert in killer whales, emphasized the popularity of these majestic creatures among whale watchers. "They're the whale that most people want to see when they go whale-watching," she revealed, noting that their unpredictability adds to their allure.

While larger groupings of orcas have been observed in the past, last month's gathering of 20 to 24 individuals was still a remarkable sight. Typically, orcas are found in smaller family groups of three to six whales, ranging from Baja California up the West Coast to Alaska. The reason behind this unusual congregation remains a mystery, but experts speculate that the orcas were drawn to the Farallon Islands due to the presence of pregnant sea lions and seals, which give birth in the area during this season.

During the tour, the orcas put on a show for the lucky spectators. The adult males, with their towering 6-feet tall dorsal fins, undoubtedly stole the spotlight, but the sight of the mothers and their calves also left a lasting impression. Pierson described the collective coos and awws from everyone on board as the orcas gracefully swam together.

While this gathering was a rare and awe-inspiring event, it raises questions about the motivations and behaviors of these magnificent creatures. Were they simply celebrating a successful hunt, or does their gathering signify something more sinister? Marine biologists and researchers continue to study and analyze these interactions, hoping to unravel the mysteries of these fascinating creatures that roam the vast oceans.

For now, the memory of this spectacular encounter will linger with those fortunate enough to witness it. The allure of the majestic orcas continues to captivate both scientists and nature enthusiasts, reminding us of the breathtaking beauty and profound wonders of the natural world.
As Russian president Vladimir Putin celebrated a national holiday with a patriotic speech, his distance from the audience resulted in a large amount of comments on social media. Russian president Vladimir Putin speaks with participant of the military operation in Ukraine.(AFP)

"A tiny man, terrified of his people (note the distance between him and the audience), committing enormous crimes," Anton Gerashchenko, an adviser to Ukraine's minister of internal affairs, wrote on Twitter.

The Russian leader appeared to be many feet away from the audience at the Russia Day awards ceremony in the Kremlin. Vladimir Putin speech did not address advances made by Ukraine in its recently launched counteroffensive, but he called on Russians to let their feelings "unite our society even more strongly" in order to give support for soldiers.

"Check the distance Putin has between himself and the audience," Markus Hankins, publisher of Sweden's Hela Hisingen news site tweeted, adding, "Paranoid much?"

The reason for the distance could be the Russian president's reported fear of catching Covid-19 as for the past few years, Vladimir Putin has frequently been pictured meeting with world leaders at the Kremlin while seated at opposite ends of a long table. Earlier, a former Kremlin guard said in an interview with the investigative website Dossier Center that Vladimir Putin is "a self-isolating president."

The former Federal Guard Service (FSO) guard Gleb Karakulov detailed how Kremlin staff have to observe a strict quarantine for two weeks before any event, even those lasting 15 to 20 minutes. There is a pool of employees who have been clearedwho underwent this two-week quarantine. They are [considered] 'clean' and can work in the same room as Putin.

Other users speculated that perhaps Vladimir Putin was not at the Russia Day ceremony Monday and instead his body double was.

"The distance is probably also there to help conceal the fact it's a double. I doubt the real Putin has been in any public setting in quite a while," one user tweeted. Andriy Yusov, a spokesperson for Ukraine's military intelligence agency, told the news site Ukrainska Pravda last week that Putin uses decoys at official events.

Putin uses doubles. This is a fact that is based both on operative intelligence and on the assessments of physiognomists and many other specialists, he said.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR Mallika Soni When not reading, this ex-literature student can be found searching for an answer to the question, "What is the purpose of journalism in society?" ...view detail
Meghan Markle has been outspoken about her feminism for most of her time in the spotlight. Even as a working royal, she has remained vocal about the women's rights issues that matter most to her. Since stepping down from royal duties and moving to the United States, Prince Harry's wife also launched her Archetypes podcast that challenges limiting preconceptions of women. Meghan Markle has also campaigned for women through various philanthropic projects. Queen Camilla during a visit to Enniskillen Castle, Co Fermanagh as part of a two day visit to Northern Ireland.(Reuters)

But one royal expert thinks that there was another outspoken royal feminist before Meghan arrived on the scene. Talking about King Charles' second wife Camilla, royal expert Jennie Bond told OK! that while this is one of her main areas of focus, Camilla is also deeply committed to women's issues.

Read more: mall

The Queen is absolutely passionate about reading and saw huge success when she launched her Reading Room charity on Instagram. She has read since she was young and loves nothing more than sitting quietly with King Charles and reading in separate corners of the same room, Jennie Bond said, adding, I think she has probably be surprisedand thrilledby the success of this literary venture but she remains loyal to her other charities and causes, particularly domestic violence.

The Queen is a fiercely modern feminist who has some radical and forward thinking ideasMeghan was certainly not the first member of the family to claim this credential, she further said.

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Russian president Vladimir Putin hinted at another attempt to take the Ukrainian capital Kyiv as he threatened a new Russian offensive. Despite Russia's botched attack on Kyiv which turned a "three-day special military operation" into months of full-scale war, the Russian president suggested to military bloggers and war reporters invited to the Kremlin that he was considering a second attempt. Russian President Vladimir Putin.(AFP)

Russian troops "already were near Kyiv", he said. Should we come back there or not? Only I could give an answer, he added. Moscow could seek to carve out more Ukrainian territory to prevent shelling into Russia, after attacks on the Kursk and Belgorod regions, Putin explained.

Calling it a "sanitary zone" at the border, Vladimir Putin said how much territory Russia could take depends "on potentials that emerge after the so-called [Ukrainian] counteroffensive".

Meanwhile, deadly Russian missile strikes hit southern and eastern Ukraine on Wednesday. Ukrainian air defences fought back as Russia fired four Kalibr missiles on port city Odesa from a ship in the Black Sea, Ukraine's air force said, adding that it shot down three of them.

One hit a food warehouse, killing three employees and wounding seven, Oleg Kiper, the head of the region's military administration, said. "There may be people under the rubble," he added.

Six other people were wounded after a business centre. Shops and a residential complex in the city centre were damaged "as a result of air combat and the blast wave", he informed.

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Despite strict censorship laws, one group continues to enjoy relative freedom in the Russia- military bloggers. Rising to prominence after Moscow's sudden invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Vladimir Putin "increasingly relies" on them to maintain support for the war, according to military experts. Russian president Vladimir Putin attends a meeting.(Reuters)

The Institute for the Study of War (ISW) said that the president platforms, protects and selects pro-Kremlin bloggers to co-opt their audience and try to influence the wider ultranationalist community.

"Putin is likely setting information conditions to prevent potential lines of attack against the Kremlin in the event of Russian failure," the ISW said.

The Russian president is also "increasingly aware" that pro-war social media figures are his "key constituency" for maintaining support among the Russian public.

This comes as deadly Russian missile strikes hit southern and eastern Ukraine on Wednesday while Kyiv claimed fresh advances in its long-awaited counteroffensive. Russia fired four Kalibr missiles on the southern port city of Odesa from a warship in the Black Sea, Ukraine's air force said, of which three were shot down but one missile hit a food warehouse, killing three employees and wounding seven.

Oleg Kiper, the head of the region's military administration said, There may be people under the rubble.

Another six other people were wounded after a business centre, shops and a residential complex in Odesa were damaged "as a result of air combat and the blast wave", he said. Russian missile strikes also killed three people in Kramatorsk and Kostiantynivka and destroyed dozens of private houses, regional authorities said as per news agency Reuters.

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France accused Russia of impersonating its foreign ministry's website saying that Moscow spoofed popular French websites and newspapers as well. The French agency responsible for fighting foreign digital interference, VIGINUM, said it has monitored the alleged operation since soon after Russia invaded Ukraine in February last year. Russia-Ukraine War: A Ukrainian serviceman stands amid destroyed Russian tanks in Bucha, on the outskirts of Kyiv, Ukraine.(AP)

France said it was not the only European country to be targeted. Even though Russia's embassy in France did not immediately comment on the allegations, they were detailed in a report released today, according to news agency Associated Press.

In a strongly-worded statement, VIGINUM said, France condemns these actions, which are unworthy of a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council. No attempt at manipulation will distract France from its support for Ukraine in the face of Russias war of aggression.

VIGINUM said it had identified 355 domain names pretending to be European media outlets, such as French daily newspapers Le Monde and Le Figaro and the content spread on the fake sites criticised the Ukrainian armed forces and amplified criticism of sanctions against Russia.

This comes as overnight Russian missile attacks killed three people in Odesa and three in Donetsk, Ukrainian officials said. The three killed in Odesa were in a retail chain warehouse that was set ablaze during an attack that damaged a business centre, an educational institution, a residential complex, food establishments and shops, Ukraine's military said.

Pavlo Kyrylenko, governor of the Donetsk region, said two people had been killed in the city of Kramatorsk and one in Kostiantynivka.

"The missiles ... hit private houses in the cities and caused significant damage: in Kramatorsk, at least 5 private houses were destroyed and about two dozen damaged, in Kostiantynivka, two were destroyed and 55 damaged," he said.

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Russian President Vladimir Putin in March announced a plan to deploy tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus, Moscow's first move of such warheads outside Russia since the 1991 fall of the Soviet Union. Russian President Vladimir Putin, left, and Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko speak during their meeting at the Bocharov Ruchei residence in the resort city of Sochi, Russia, Friday, June 9, 2023. (AP)

What is known about the deployment?

WHAT DID PUTIN SAY?

Putin's nuclear deployment is a message to the West that he will not back down over the Ukraine war.

Putin made the announcement, almost as an afterthought, in an interview with state television Kremlin correspondent Pavel Zarubin that was first posted on Telegram on March 25.

Putin said the trigger for the decision to deploy in Belarus was an announcement by Britain that it would supply depleted uranium munitions to Ukraine. The Wall Street Journal reported on June 13 that the United States was also set to approve depleted uranium tank rounds for Ukraine.

Belarus said the deployment was in answer to the West's "aggressive policy" and that it was aimed at forcing the West's leaders to think before escalating.

WHAT WEAPONS WILL BE DEPLOYED AND WHERE?

Putin said that "tactical" nuclear weapons - so called as they are designed for battlefield use - would be sent to Belarus but did not say exactly which warheads would be deployed or where.

Lukashenko said the warheads are three times more powerful than the atomic bombs the United States dropped on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August 1945.

The Hiroshima bomb, made from highly enriched Uranium-235, was about 16 kilotons (equivalent to 16,000 tonnes of TNT), while the Nagasaki bomb, made from plutonium-239, was about 21 kilotons, according to the World Nuclear Association.

If Lukashenko is correct, the Russian warheads would have a yield of about 48 to 63 kilotons each. Russia has about 1,816 non-strategic nuclear warheads, according to a Bulletin of Atomic Scientists' analysis of Russia's nuclear weapons.

Putin said Iskander mobile short-range ballistic missiles, which can deliver nuclear warheads, had already been handed over to Belarus. Russian sources say the Iskander has a range of 500 km (310 miles).

Putin also said 10 Belarusian aircraft had been adapted to carry the warheads. Belarus said Su-25 aircraft had been adapted to carry the warheads. The Sukhoi-25 jet has a range of up to 1,000 km (621 miles), according to Russian sources.

The Federation of American Scientists has said the weapons could be based at Lida air base, 40 km (25 miles) from the Lithuanian border.

If so, the delivery vehicles could potentially reach most of Ukraine, almost all of eastern Europe, including the Baltic states, Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, Czech Republic, Romania, a swathe of Germany, as well as some of Denmark, Sweden and Finland. Cities such as Berlin and Stockholm would be in range.

WHEN?

Putin said Russia would finish the construction of a special storage facility in Belarus on July 7-8 and the weapons would be deployed soon afterwards.

Lukashenko has made different comments. He seemed to indicate last month that the weapons were already on the move while on June 13 he said the weapons would be deployed in "several days".

He has also said that there could be "nuclear weapons for everyone" who joined the Russia-Belarus union. In a video published on June 14, Lukashenko has said his country had started taking delivery of Russian tactical nuclear weapons

WHO CONTROLS THEM?

Putin said Russia would remain in control of the weapons just as the United States controls its own tactical nuclear weapons deployed in Europe.

The United States has had nuclear weapons deployed in Europe since the 1950s at NATO bases.

Putin has repeatedly raised concerns about the 200 U.S. B61 tactical nuclear warheads deployed at bases in Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany, Italy and Turkey.

Those U.S. warheads are kept in vaults at air bases and the United States keeps the Permissive Action Link (PAL) codes used to arm them.

Russia's nuclear weapons are controlled and transported by the 12th Main Directorate of the defence ministry (12th GUMO).

NUCLEAR RISKS?

After the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991, the United States went to enormous lengths to ensure that the Soviet nuclear weapons stationed in Belarus, Ukraine and Kazakhstan were returned to Russia - which inherited the Soviet nuclear arsenal.

By putting nuclear weapons back in Belarus, Putin is showing that the architecture of post-Cold War nuclear arms control is crumbling.

WHAT IS THE US/NATO RESPONSE?

The United States has criticised Putin's nuclear deployment but has said it has no intention of altering its posture on strategic nuclear weapons and also that it has not seen any signs Russia is preparing to use a nuclear weapon.

The State Department said on March 27 that speaking candidly, it condemned the announcement of the deployment. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said on April 18 that Putin's decision was irresponsible.
The Kremlin said on Wednesday that it was studying all information about the blasts that destroyed the Nord Stream pipelines last September, and said that a state or group of states may have blown them up. Gas leak at Nord Stream 2 as seen from the Danish F-16 interceptor on Bornholm. (via REUTERS)

Read here: US had intelligence of Ukraine's plan to attack Nord Stream pipelines: Report

Asked about a Wall Street Journal story that the United States had warned Ukraine not to attack Nord Stream, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters that a recent "spate" of media stories about the blasts may be designed to divert attention from those who are really responsible.
The road into the newly liberated Ukrainian village of Storozheve is lined with the corpses of Russian soldiers and burnt-out armoured vehicles. Ukrainian service members check a destroyed Russian a BMP-2 infantry fighting vehicle, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine. (REUTERS)

Read here: Vladimir Putin's stringent censorship laws amid Ukraine war don't apply to

The grisly scenes bear witness to the ferocity of fighting as Ukrainian troops recaptured Storozheve and several other villages in the past few days as part of a counteroffensive in southern and eastern Ukraine.

Some of the dead Russian soldiers lay on the dusty ground beside the husks of their vehicles when Reuters journalists reached the village on Wednesday. Others were crumpled in the grass and fields nearby where they died.

Inside the village, the small one-storey houses that line the road have been badly damaged by shelling, their roofs completely gone or with gaping holes.

An abandoned stroller lay overturned at the side of the road. The village was silent, its residents gone or staying out of sight.

"Three days ago we liberated the village of Storozheve. You can see for yourselves how it was achieved. You can see the destroyed hardware. Glory to Ukraine," a Ukrainian soldier who gave his name only as Artem told Reuters in Storozheve.

A photograph posted online on Monday showed Ukrainian soldiers holding up the yellow and blue Ukrainian flag in front of a damaged home in Storozheve.

The village had been occupied by Russian forces since March 2022, one month after Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

The soldiers said about 50 Russian soldiers were killed in a "mopping-up operation" and four were taken prisoner. Reuters was unable to verify the number of Russian casualties, although corpses were still strewn across the road and nearby fields.

Read here: Individual state or group might have attacked Nord Stream pipelines: Kremlin

Storozheve is one of a cluster of settlements near the Mokry Yali river that Ukraine says its troops have captured since their counteroffensive began.

Reuters also reached the nearby village of Neskuchne on Tuesday, providing the first independent confirmation of the Ukrainian advances since Kyiv began the counteroffensive.
Disney World, known as the "happiest place on earth," witnessed a disturbing scene as approximately 15 people waved Nazi flags outside the park, alongside flags supporting Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. Approximately 15 individuals were seen waving Nazi flags outside the theme park over the weekend, leaving visitors and onlookers stunned. The demonstration took place amidst ongoing controversy between Disney and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, making the situation even more concerning. Approx 15 people waving Nazi flags outside Disney World shocked visitors. Controversy with Gov. DeSantis adds to the disturbing incident. (Twitter/MikeSington)

Disney, an iconic symbol of inclusivity and magic, has become an easy target for those seeking to incite division and spread their hateful ideology. Governor DeSantis, known for his public disputes with the corporation, has yet to address the incident, raising questions about his stance on hate speech and the implications of his silence.

The presence of Nazi flags outside the gates of Disney World has sent shockwaves throughout the community, prompting widespread condemnation from various organizations. The Orange County Sheriff's Office acknowledged the demonstration but emphasized that while hate speech is deplored, individuals have the First Amendment right to express their views.

Leading experts and advocates against hate speech stress the importance of leaders actively denouncing such acts. Alvin H. Rosenfeld, director of the Institute for the Study of Contemporary Antisemitism, highlights the power of the swastika symbol and the unmistakable message of hatred it represents. Failure to speak out against such displays only emboldens extremists and allows their harmful ideologies to flourish.

This incident is not an isolated one, as Florida experienced other hateful acts over the weekend. The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) recorded 269 incidents of antisemitic harassment, vandalism, and assault in Florida alone, showing an increase from the previous year. Leaders from various organizations, such as the ADL and the Union for Reform Judaism, have called for action against these acts of hate.

The legacy of unchecked hate is a matter of concern, as it leaves an indelible mark on society. Political leaders have a responsibility to condemn hate speech unequivocally, as the consequences of allowing it to go unchallenged can be dire. Examples like former President Donald Trump's failure to denounce QAnon conspiracy theories, which had ties to real-world violence, underscore the importance of taking a firm stance against hate.

Abigail Disney, granddaughter of the company's founder, expressed her distress over the incident, stating that her grandfather would be "spinning in his grave" upon seeing Nazi flags waved at a place he helped create. The demonstration also featured signs displaying offensive slurs and homophobic language, further intensifying the atmosphere of hate.

While the demonstrators' affiliation and motivations remain unclear, it is evident that their presence at Disney World was a deliberate attempt to provoke and offend. Local residents, as well as political figures like Representative Anna Eskamani, condemned the display as disgusting and called for unity against bigotry.

The Florida Holocaust Museum weighed in on the incident, expressing deep concern over the blatant antisemitism witnessed at the "happiest place on earth." The museum denounced the use of Nazi imagery, emphasizing that no family should be subjected to such threatening symbols of hate, especially during a vacation.

As the investigation continues, the world waits for Governor DeSantis to address the troubling incident. Silence, in the face of hate, only serves to enable its spread, endangering the principles of diversity and acceptance that Florida and the United States hold dear.
The conflict in Sudan has displaced more than 2 million people, the United Nations said on Wednesday, as a UN official warned that escalating attacks in Darfur city could amount to crimes against humanity. An aerial view of the black smoke and flames at a market in Omdurman, Khartoum North, Sudan. (via REUTERS)

Read here: Sudan: Fighting continues amid fresh ceasefire violations

Sudan has plunged into chaos since mid-April when months long tensions between the military and its rival, the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, exploded into an open fighting in the capital, Khartoum, and elsewhere across the northeastern African nation.

The fighting continued unabated Wednesday in parts of the capital and the western region of Darfur, both have seen some of the worst battels. At least 959 civilians have been killed and about 4,750 others were wounded as of June 12, according to Sudans Doctors Syndicate, which tracks civilian casualties.

The brutal clashes have forced more than 1.6 million people to leave their homes to safer areas inside Sudan, according to the International Organization for Migration. About 530,000 others fled to the neighboring countries of Egypt, South Sudan, Chad, Ethiopia, the Central African Republic, and Libya, the agency said.

The medical group said the toll could be much higher given it was unable to take into account those who were killed or wounded in the ongoing clashes in Genena, the provincial capital of West Darfur. The citys hospitals have been out of service since the fighting erupted there in April, the group said.

All of Sudans 18 provinces experienced displacement, with Khartoum at the top of the list with around 65% of the total number of displaced people, followed by West Darfur with over 17%, according to the IOMs Displacement Tracking Matrix.

In Genena, the provincial capital of West Darfur, the RSF and allied Arab militias rampaged through the city over the past week, killing and wounded hundreds of people, according to local activists and U.N. officials.

Activists and residents in Genena reported dozens of women were sexually attacked inside their homes and while trying to flee the fighting. Almost all rape cases were blamed on the RSF, which didnt respond to repeated requests for comment.

Khamis Abdalla Abkar, the provincial governor of West Darfur province, accused the RSF and allied militias of attacking local communities across Genena. In a phone interview on Wednesday with Saudi-owned television station, Al-Hadath, he urged the international community to intervene to protect civilians in his province.

Volker Perthes, the U.N envoy in Sudan, said Tuesday the fighting in Genena has taken an ethnic dimension, with Arab militias and armed men in RSF uniforms showing an emerging pattern of large-scale targeted attacks against civilians based on their ethnic identities.

Such attacks, if verified, could amount to crimes against humanity," he warned.

Read here: Sudan crisis: UN warns of possible exodus of over 8,00,000 people due to ongoing conflict

Alice Wairimu Nderitu, the U.N. special adviser on the prevention of genocide, also condemned the shocking violence in Genena. She warned in a statement Tuesday that such fighting could turn into renewed campaigns of rape, murder, and ethnic cleansing amounting to atrocity crimes.

Darfur had been the scene of genocidal war in early 2000s, when ethnic Africans rebelled, accusing the Arab-dominated government in Khartoum of discrimination. Former dictator Omar al-Bashirs government was accused of retaliating by arming local nomadic Arab tribes, known as Janjaweed, who targeted civilians.

The Janjaweed later evolved into the RSF.

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Transgender advocate Rose Montoya is no longer welcome at White House events after posting on social media a video of herself and two others going topless for a time at Saturday's Pride Month celebration on the South Lawn. Montoya defended her post on Instagram and Twitter, saying that going topless in Washington, DC is legal and I fully support the movement in freeing the nipple.

The behavior was simply unacceptable, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Tuesday. It was unfair to the hundreds of attendees who were there to celebrate their families.

Speaking at the White House press briefing, Jean-Pierre said, Individuals in the video certainly will not be invited to future events." The White House spokeswoman said the bare-chested display was not a normal thing that has happened under this administration.

President Joe Biden hosted the event to show the administration's support of the LGBTQ community. There has recently been a push by some Republican leaders at the state level to restrict drag shows and limit the options for youth who are seeking to transition their genders.

Biden said Saturday that he had a message for the entire community, but especially for transgender children: You are loved. You are heard. Youre understood. And you belong.

Parts of his speech appeared in the video posted on social media by Montoya, whose Instagram biography identifies her as an educator, model and actor.

Montoya defended her post on Instagram and Twitter, saying that going topless in Washington, DC is legal and I fully support the movement in freeing the nipple. She said critics of her toplessness affirmed that she is, in fact, a woman, as a man would not face similar pushback. She said she had zero intention of trying to be vulgar or be profane in anyway," adding that she covered her nipples with her hands in the video just to play it safe.
British foreign minister James Cleverly may visit China next month, according to people with knowledge of the plans, as the two countries seek to stabilise a recent turbulent relationship that had sunk to the lowest point in decades. Britain's Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs James Cleverly. (AFP)

Read here: UK to review security at Indian High Commission in London amid protests

Cleverly is in talks about visiting China towards the end of July, but nothing has been confirmed, according to the people, who asked not to be named because they were not authorised to discuss the plans publicly.

Asked if Cleverly would accept an invite to visit China, a spokesman for Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said "obviously you wouldn't expect me to speculate on future ministerial travel".

"It is of course his job to engage internationally, but the Foreign Office would set that out in the normal way. In general terms, our position on China is in line with that of our closest allies, and of course you'll know the U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken is travelling to Beijing in the coming days."

Britain's foreign ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Politico reported earlier Wednesday that China had formally invited Cleverly to visit.

Any visit to China by Cleverly would be a sign of headway in attempts to improve relations after he made a wide-ranging speech in April, which was the clearest attempt to explain Britain's new approach to the world's second-largest economy.

Cleverly said in the speech that Britain would seek to protect itself by limiting national security threats posed by China while engaging in areas such as trade, investment and climate change.

Read here: Jaishankar, UK counterpart James Cleverly discuss bilateral ties

Britain has drastically changed its approach towards China in the last eight years, moving from saying it wanted to be China's greatest supporter in Europe to now being one of its fiercest critics.

Sunak, said in his first foreign policy speech at the end of last year that the so-called "golden era" of relations with China under former Prime Minister David Cameron was over.
Ahead of prime minister Narendra Modi's state visit to Washington, the Biden administration is pushing New Delhi to cut through its own red tape and advance a deal for dozens of US-made armed drones, two people familiar with the matter said. US negotiators are counting on Modi's White House visit on June 22 to break the log jam.(File)

Read here: PM Modi to meet CEOs of top 20 American companies in Washington during US trip

India has long expressed interest in buying large armed drones from the United States. But bureaucratic stumbling blocks have hampered a hoped-for deal for SeaGuardian drones that could be worth $2 billion to $3 billion for years.

US negotiators are counting on Modi's White House visit on June 22 to break the log jam.

Since the date for Modi's visit was fixed, the US State Department, Pentagon and White House have asked India to be able to "show" progress on the deal for as many as 30 armable MQ-9B SeaGuardian drones made by General Atomics, two sources said.

Modi and Biden are also expected to discuss co-production of munitions and ground vehicles, like armored personnel carriers, while Modi is in Washington, the sources said.

Spokespeople for the White House, Department of State and the Pentagon declined to comment on the negotiations.

US President Joe Biden has made deepening ties with India a cornerstone of his policy to counter China's growing influence, placing special attention this year on collaboration between the world's two largest democracies on advanced military technologies, despite their lack of a formal security alliance.

New Delhi, which often prizes its non-alignment in conflicts between great powers abroad, has frustrated Washington by maintaining some defense and economic ties with Russia after the invasion of Ukraine.

Breaking India's bureaucratic log jam on drones hinges on an internal meeting to generate an "Acceptance of Necessity" document, an Indian precursor to a formal "Letter of Request" which kicks off the foreign military sale process. As of Tuesday, the sources did not know if the New Delhi had generated the necessary internal document.

Read here: Sullivan, Doval unveil cooperation road map

"That's gonna be a decision that the government of India needs to make," said a senior Biden administration official. "We think it would be good for them to go through with the purchase of MQ-9s. But those decisions are sort of more in the hands of India than they are of us."

The topic was expected to be on the agenda as Biden's national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, arrived in New Delhi on Tuesday to finalize preparations ahead of Modi's visit.

As of last week, India's defense ministry had still not made up its mind about the number of drones it wants to buy, according to a person familiar with the discussions. Earlier, the number was pegged at 30, but that was later revised to 24, and then further down to 18 last month. Sources cautioned that none of the numbers were final.

India is also seeking components of the equipment to be domestically manufactured, something that could complicate any deal.

Read here: Economic linkages at core of strategic relationship, Modis visit historic: Blinken

The Quad grouping of countries - the United States, India, Australia and Japan - all operate, or have operated, the MQ-9B SeaGuardian. Currently, India is leasing MQ-9Bs as part of an intelligence-gathering operation.

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A member of the Royal Family has claimed that Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are very brave, referring to them standing up for their beliefs and quitting The Firm. Harry and Meghan walked away from The Firm two years after their marriage in 2018. They went to Canada and later moved to California. The Firm is an informal title for the British royal family and the institutions associated with it. Prince Harry and Meghan Markle leave after a service of thanksgiving for the reign of Queen Elizabeth II at St Paul's Cathedral in London (AP Photo/Matt Dunham, Pool, File)(AP)

The latest remarks were made by Sarah Ferguson, 63, who divorced Prince Andrew in 1996. The thing is  and Im really adamant about this  is that anyone that is out there really trailblazing for their own beliefs, and it doesnt matter where youre from or who you are, you trailblaze for what you believe  Thats very brave, Sarah said during an appearance on Australian morning programme Sunrise.

I would never be one to make a comment on any other member of the royal family or anybody who does that. I just find anyone that stands very tall about their own beliefs is very brave, whoever it is, she added.

Ferguson was promoting her new book  A Most Intriguing Lady  when she made the comments. Her book is a Sunday Times bestseller. Her daughters, Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie, are said to share a close bond with their cousin Harry.

Harry is, at present, entangled in a lawsuit against Mirror Group Newspapers. He alleged that the newspaper group used illegal phone hacking to publish various stories about him between 1996 and 2011. Last week, Harrys 55-page witness statement was released. He said in the statement that in his opinion, the state of the press and government in England was at rock bottom, according to The Sunday Times. A source close to the palace has now revealed to the news outlet that King Charles was distressed about Harrys continued acquisitions against his royal kin, and sad and bewildered by the legal actions his son launched against the British newspaper group.

The King brings Harry up every time I see him. I dont think weve moved past sad and bewildered, but theres a bit more frustration at his behaviour because it just keeps going, the source reportedly said.
Rose Montoya, a transgender influencer and activist, made headlines when she bared her breasts at the White House during a Pride event. Rose Montoya taking selfie with President Joe Biden. (Image Credit: Rose Monotoya/ TikTok)

But, the social media influencers journey goes beyond this bold act. Through her TikTok videos, Montoya has shared her experiences and thoughts on being in a polyamorous relationship, emphasizing the sense of liberation it has brought her.

Montoya reflects on her initial struggles with feelings of inadequacy and being too dependent on others. In a heartfelt video from September, she expresses her realization that her capacity to love exceeds what one individual can provide.

For a while, I thought that there was something wrong with me. I thought that I was simply too codependent or that was too nerdy or that I, you know, had unrealistic needs or asks, she expressed.

Montoya finds solace in polyamory, embracing the idea that no single person should be expected to meet all her needs.

But the truth of the fact is, I have so much love to give and its too much for one person and I require so much love that one individual cannot meet it and thats why Im so thankful for polyamory because polyamory is the agreement that we dont ever ask or expect any one individual to meet all our need, she said.

The 27-year-old openly acknowledges the presence of jealousy in her relationships, but she finds solace in depending on multiple partners to fulfill her "high-maintenance" nature.

Rose Montoya is banned from the White House due to this notorious top-off moment. (Image Credit: Rose Montoya/ TikTok)

Montoya said, When I stopped relying on one individual to meet that need, it liberated me.

In her TikTok content, the transgender model offers glimpses into her polyamorous journey. Through a "2020 Dating Wrapped" slideshow, she shares her experiences of dating four polyamorous and two monogamous partners over the year. While the relationships seemed to flourish, the monogamous connections faced challenges due to differing views on sexuality.

The 27-year-old casually expressed, Didnt work out, added, Lets just say that.

Montoya's openness extends to discussing intimate details of her relationships. She boldly discloses her sexual experiences, including the duration of intimate moments, the use of protection, and even instances of pregnancy scares.

ALSO READ| Insights into Trump's federal court appearance in Miami, facing serious felony charges

In one video, she expresses the struggle of navigating changes or endings in one relationship while trying to maintain the stability of others.

No one tells you how hard it is for a relationship to change or end while youre polyamorous and have another relationship that shouldnt be unaffected.but it is being affected because of spillage, the transgender influencer moaned.
Washington: In a significant shift, the US secretary of defence Lloyd Austin has instructed agencies implementing foreign military sales (FMS) to improve their understanding of requirements of allies and partners; enable efficient reviews for the release of technology; provide allies and partners priority capabilities; accelerate acquisition and contracting support; and incorporate the requirements of allies and partners in the expansion of USs own defence industrial base capacity. A US Air Force F-16 fighter takes off from the Spangdahlem Air Base in Spangdahlem, Germany, on Wednesday, during the Air Defender 2023 exercise. The exercise is set to run till June 23, with 10,000 participants and 250 aircraft from 25 nations responding to a simulated attack on a Nato member. (AP)

Austins decision comes in the wake of a concerted effort by the US to build a networked security architecture in the Indo-Pacific and ease the rigid system of export controls that govern sales and tech transfer of US systems even to the closest allies. The decision is also expected to help the relationship with India, with which the US has just concluded a road map on defence industrial cooperation.

In a statement, the department of defence (DOD) said that Austin had set up a FMS Tiger Team in 2022 to address historical inefficiencies in the United States transfer of defence articles and services to foreign allies and partners. Under FMS, the US government uses DoDs acquisition system to procure defence articles and services on behalf of allies and partner nations. The Tiger Teams recommendations are leading to six shifts.

One, to understand needs of allies and partners, DoD will change the way it organises, trains, and equips for security cooperation, including by establishing a Defence Security Cooperation Service on par with the Defence Attache Service. Two, for the efficient release of technology, DoD will review and update policies, empower accountable officials, and work with other agencies. Three, to help allies and partners meet their own national security needs, DoD will improve its own methodologies.

Four, to accelerate acquisition, it will establish contract award standards and develop process maps to monitor FMS priorities. Five, in the process of expanding its own defence industrial capacity, DoD will develop a comprehensive study to incentivise DIB investment in production capacity and building surge capability for high-demand, low-supply platforms, systems, and services. The strategy will include use of multi-year contracts; enhanced use of the Special Defence Acquisition Fund; five-year predictive analyses of partner demand; and sustained engagement with the DIB. And finally, DoD will work with state department and the US Congress to improve these processes.

Explaining the significance of Pentagons decision, including for India, Frank ODonnell, a non-resident fellow at the Stimson Centre South Asia programme, said, This initiative shows that DoD, at its most senior levels, is committed to streamlining defence technology cooperation with partners and allies. Indias capability requirements will be central in shaping these reforms, and Delhi can expect to similarly be one of its key beneficiaries.

However, he said that similar urgency was required from India in demonstrating its willingness to reduce bureaucratic barriers to defence technology cooperation and interoperability with the US. The upcoming state visit of the Prime Minister - and, in particular, the related proposed Predator acquisition, long beset by delays on the Indian side - are prime opportunities for Delhi to underline this intent.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR Prashant Jha Prashant Jha is the Washington DC-based US correspondent of Hindustan Times. He is also the editor of HT Premium. Jha has earlier served as editor-views and national political editor/bureau chief of the paper. He is the author of How the BJP Wins: Inside India's Greatest Election Machine and Battles of the New Republic: A Contemporary History of Nepal. ...view detail
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Thompson Rome will be the second Thompson Hotels property in Europe and will build on Hyatt's transformative growth in the luxury and lifestyle segment.

Hyatt Hotels Corporation (NYSE: H) today announced that a Hyatt affiliate has entered into a franchise agreement with Botteghe Oscure s.r.l., a company affiliated with AG Group s.r.l., for the first Thompson Hotels property in Italy with Thompson Rome. Expected to open by mid-2024 in the heart of the Italian capital, the 70-room luxury lifestyle hotel will be the brand's second property in Europe, joining Thompson Madrid, which opened in 2022, and the previously announced Thompson Vienna, which is slated to join the portfolio in 2025. Hyatt's thoughtful expansion of the Thompson Hotels brand further bolsters Hyatt's position as a global leader in luxury, lifestyle and leisure travel, while increasing the World of Hyatt loyalty program value proposition by delivering meaningful experiences to members in more sought-after destinations.

The Thompson Hotels brand is renowned for channelling the destination's local creative energy, combining instinctive design and culinary sophistication to curate the best of each destination's culture within its walls. With the cultural areas of music, art, fashion, design and culinary at the heart of the Thompson Hotels brand experience, the properties serve as a dynamic home-base for tastemakers, emerging creatives and culturally astute travelers to connect with one another and with what inspires them.

Visitors of Thompson Rome will experience a true sense of Roman culture through a revolutionary design restoration of one of the city's most iconic buildings - the former headquarters of the Italian Communist Party. Converted into a luxury lifestyle hotel, the elegant 1930s-built Palazzo is located near the Capitoline Hill, Fori Imperiali and Jewish Quarter and will undergo an extensive enhancement while preserving the landmark's key historical features. The artistic legacies of the building that will remain will represent the Thompson Hotels brand's commitment to authentic cultural curation including the entrance hall, designed by sculptor Gio Pomodoro, complete with a five-pointed gold star set into the floor, as well as a marble bust of the party's founding member and one-time leader, Antonio Gramsci.

The expansion of the Thompson Hotels brand with plans for Thompson Rome is reflective of Hyatt's accelerated brand growth in the southern European country, joining five Italian properties that have been added to Hyatt's portfolio in the past four years. Thompson Rome will mark the seventh Hyatt-branded hotel in Italy and the second in Rome, joining The Tribune Hotel, part of JdV by Hyatt brand, also operated by AG Group s.r.l.

Thompson Rome will boast four dining outlets, including a rooftop restaurant and terrace with a cocktail bar featuring panoramic views of the buzzing eternal city. The property will also feature two dedicated meeting rooms and a fitness center.

For more information about the iconic international portfolio of the Thompson Hotels brand, please visit: www.thompsonhotels.com.

The term "Hyatt" is used in this release for convenience to refer to Hyatt Hotels Corporation and/or one or more of its affiliates.

Hotel website
Remington Hospitality, a dynamic hotel management company that manages 128 hotels across more than 20 brands, has welcomed Joseph Klam as Chief Financial Officer. Klam, who brings almost 40 years of industry experience, will lead efforts out of the company's corporate offices in Dallas and oversee financial planning, accounting, and global financial operations for Remington Hospitality.

Klam's hospitality experience is vast, encompassing finance, operations, accounting, and human resources initiatives. As Chief Financial Officer, Klam will implement innovative, financial strategies that will optimize resource allocation and enhance the overall financial health of the organization. Klam's strategic insights, data-driven decision-making, and expertise in Oracle Cloud will help contribute to operational excellence and facilitate sound financial planning, budgeting, and forecasting.

Klam joins Remington from Highgate Hospitality where he served as Chief Accounting Officer and was responsible for overseeing domestic and international financial operations for over 550 hotels. The newly named Chief Financial Officer also held senior leadership roles in finance for companies such as Hersha Hospitality Management, Interstate Hotels and Resorts, and Millennium Hotels and Resorts.
As Vice President and the director overseeing HVS Buffalo, Christian Cross has conducted appraisals and feasibility studies for hotels throughout the Northeast, Great Lakes, and Finger Lakes regions. Before joining HVS, Christian worked for the Ontario Restaurant Hotel & Motel Association, the Hilton Niagara Falls/Fallsview, and a luxury boutique hotel in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario. Christian obtained a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Guelph and graduated as class valedictorian from the universitys School of Hospitality, Food, and Tourism Management. Contact Christian at +1 (828) 490-2274 or [email protected]
Singapore, 14/06/2023: Hotelogix, a globally leading cloud-based hospitality technology provider, will organise Hotel Tech Drive on 20 June in Phuket, Thailand. It will take place at Ramada Plaza by Wyndham Chao Fah Hotel. Hosted jointly with other hospitality solutions providers, Carmen Software and BookingWhizz, it will bring together industry leaders, experts, and innovators to showcase the benefits of cloud technology and full stack solutions for hotels.

Regarding this development, Brijesh Surendran, President of Sales at Hotelogix, said, "The hotel industry in Thailand is doing well and expected to grow at about 7% from 2023 to touch the market volume of approximately $1.8 billion in 2027. It will also lead to intense competition. Through this event, we want to ensure that they understand the power of the cloud that can help them gain a competitive edge to drive overall growth.

The event will feature speakers from TrustYou, a leading reputation management solution provider, and Booking.com, one of the major OTAs. Additionally, representatives of industry bodies, including the Board of Tourism Authority of Thailand and the Tourism Council of Phuket, will share their thoughts on the local market dynamics.

Expressing his views, Stephane Paradis, Managing Director of Carmen Software, said, "With our strong presence in the region, we understand that technology is critical for hotels moving forward. With our partner Hotelogix, we will bring together industry experts to discuss what lies ahead and how hotels can deal with it by leveraging suitable solutions." Based out of Bangkok, Thailand, Carmen Software serves over 250 independent and chain hotel brands across eight countries in streamlining their finance and accounting management.

Echoing the same sentiment, Ali Taheri, Vice President - Partnerships at BookingWhizz, said, We are happy to be partnering with Hotelogix for this event. It will surely become a perfect platform for hotels to share knowledge, draw inspiration, and network." Headquartered in the United Kingdom, BookingWhizz provides comprehensive CRM and loyalty solutions. Currently, it serves 1,300 hotels across 170 cities, establishing itself as a trusted partner in the industry.

Please register for this event. We look forward to having you at the venue.

About Hotelogix

Hotelogix is a globally leading cloud-based hospitality technology solutions provider of industry-first Multi-property Management System, Hotel PMS, and Mobile PMS App for independent and hotel groups. We have the remarkable feat of implementing the most extensive multi-property deployment of 50000+ rooms across 500+ properties under a single group. Through our distribution brand AxisRooms, we also offer Channel Manager and Revenue Management solutions. We have earned the trust of 5000+ hotels in 100+ countries, including South Asia, Southeast Asia, the Middle East, LATAM, Europe, and North America. We have been instrumental in driving their growth while helping them sell more rooms at the optimum rate and serving guests better.

Hotelogix is headquartered in Singapore with offices in the USA, India, UAE, Thailand, and the Philippines.

For more information, visit https://www.hotelogix.com/property-management-system-large-hotels.php.

Contact

Debi Prasad Sarangi

Ph: +91 9986496849

Email: [email protected]
For too many years, African hospitality leaders have worked incredibly hard to maintain operational standards when critical products are unavailable to be sourced on time due to a myriad of reasons, from changing trade restrictions, poor transport infrastructure, currency fluctuations, and supply chain breakages.

This week leaders across the hospitality sector have descended into Nairobi city, the vibrant capital of Kenya and hub of East Africa, to join the annual African Hospitality Investment Forum (AHIF) to discuss growth opportunities in the region, and to share their learnings from the last year including developments across the trade and operational landscape. Attending is Toggle Markets CEO, Fuad Sajdi, and VP of Africa, Abraham Muthogo Kamau, where they have been leading discussions on leveraging local and regional sourcing, and the innovative ways the sector is reducing operational costs.

Supply chain challenges in Africa have been one of the primary obstacles for economic growth and diversification, with businesses continuing to pay inflated prices for nearly every consumable and operational product that is not locally grown or manufactured  where even then it is more profitable to export outside the continent than to cater to the regional market due to weak intra-trade regulations.

Today there are promising signs that this status quo is changing fast.

The African hospitality industry is in the throes of a massive transformation. The catalysts? Ground-breaking trade measures, rapidly evolving technology, and a fresh generation of visionary leaders. These forces are challenging the traditional "business as usual" mindset and reshaping the African hospitality landscape.

The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), the largest free trade area globally since the formation of the World Trade Organization, is set to significantly bolster intra-African trade. By reducing trade barriers, it allows a more fluid movement of goods, services, and people across borders. The ripple effect will be profound, with the hospitality sector one of the many industries reaping the benefits of this regional integration.

Breaking with the Past

The lessons of the Covid-19 pandemic have been harshest on the worlds largest continent which has for so long relied on suppliers in far flung countries, most heavily on goods from China, European Union (EU) countries, United States and India.

Take for instance South Africa which remains the largest importing country in Africa at 17% of all imports in the region. Its largest import partners in 2023 were China at 21.9%, followed by United States at 8.8%, Germany at 7.3%, India 5.8% and the UAE 3.6%.[1] The next largest importing countries are Nigeria, Egypt, Morocco, Kenya and Ghana.

The elephant in the room is that Intra-African trade still stands at only 15.2%, a poor showing when compared with intra-continental trade figures for America, Asia, and Europe, which stand at 47%, 61%, and 67%, respectively, and which should be at the head of the pan regional efforts to support trade and business. Much of this is due to multiple trade restrictions that exist in the region and between neighbouring countries for instance.

The recent World Bank 2022 AfCFTA report[2] shows that the borders between African countries rank among the most restrictive in the world and is the main reason there is relatively little intra-African trade and investment.

The impact of this in real terms is putting the break on the growth of regional businesses while limiting the flow of the international supply chain which in turn heavily relies on intra-African trade routes (where goods are transported across several borders by land routes) due to poor infrastructure and lack of trade and custom harmonisation.

For locally grown African hospitality investors and operators, the supply chain challenges remain acute, and ramifications have meant consistent delays in the growing pipeline of projects, along with sometimes turbulent price fluctuations on shipping and logistics services, as well as effects of weakened domestic currencies.

Our research across Toggle Hospitality clients in Africa has shown examples of multiple duties paid in this way to receive goods crossing several borders resulting in highly inflated pricing for essential products and equipment.

Trade Cooperation and Collaboration

The good news is that there are signs across all industry sectors of more joined up thinking and increased regional cooperation. For instance, amongst East African nations there has been a noticeable increase in activities across both government backed and private sector efforts through the multiple alliances that exist such as the East Africa Business Council, the East African Chamber of Commerce and Trade, and the East African Association.

In addition, the highly lauded and anticipated rollout of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) agreement is geared to be the largest free trade region in the world based on the number of countries  at once connecting 1.3 billion people across 55 countries with a combined gross domestic product (GDP) valued at US$3.4 trillion and with a major potential as well to lift over 30 million people out of the poverty line.

For this to succeed there will need to be mutual and significant policy reforms and trade facilitation measures to reduce red tape, simplify customs procedures, and make it easier for African businesses to integrate into global supply chains. The upside is a boost of income gains around $300 billion.

The role of technology and the importance of a knowledge-based economy will increasingly be a driving force for transforming economic prosperity. The latest report from UNCTAD has warned that neglecting the high knowledge-intensive services, such as information and communications technology services and financial services, will be a key reason holding back export diversification in Africa.[3]

A new generation of hospitality leaders in Africa making waves

One of the most exciting outcomes of more regional integration is the rise of home-grown hotel chains that are now expanding beyond their respective national borders. In 2022, intra-African travel accounted for 40% of the total number of hotel guests in the continent, up from 34% in 2019, according to the African Development Bank. This increase is partly attributable to the easing of travel restrictions and the growth of African hotel chains.

The United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO), forecasts 134 million visitors by 2035. These figures make it the second fastest growing region in tourism after Asia Pacific.

This new wave of hospitality brands is being led by a dynamic generation of African leaders who understand the local markets and are at the forefront of developing more viable value-based networks and forging stronger regional partnerships. These individuals are harnessing the benefits of the AfCFTA, using innovative practices to enhance the hospitality experience with a unique African flavour that can cater better to the African consumer needs while at the same time offering global standards of service. For example, today over 80 percent of safari lodges in South Africa are managed by indigenous brands and a part of the tourism sector that generates around 70 percent of hospitality revenue. This segment is growing rapidly across the region.

There is a major paradigm shift taking place with progressive trade policies and cutting-edge technology. This new generation of leaders are poised to redefine the essence of hospitality in Africa. We are delighted to be participating this year at AHIF 2023 which continues year on year to help shape the African hospitality industry and spotlight investment opportunities. Abraham Muthogo Kamau, VP of Africa at Toggle Market

Technology is a driving force behind this transformation. Digitization is permeating every facet of the hospitality experience from reservation systems to room service, with growing numbers of hotels now using a form of smart-room technology or employing AI-driven services such as chatbots for customer service and offering mobile apps for reservations and in-stay services.

The integration of technology has also enhanced efficiency and sustainability within the sector. African hotels can see up to 30% increase in energy efficiency and 25% reduction in water usage, thanks to the adoption of smart technologies.

Although Africa only receives 5% of the regional share of worldwide tourism,[4] this number is rising after the Covid slump with 2022 seeing 47 million tourists returning to the continent after the high of 69 million in 2019. UNWTO forecasts 134 million visitors by 2035 making it the second fastest growing region in tourism after Asia Pacific. There is also robust and growing domestic tourism within Africa as increasingly middle-class families and younger travellers opt for more local and regional travel.

The supply chain, too, has been revolutionized by both trade facilitations and technology.

A recent survey revealed that the average lead time for supply delivery dropped by 15% in 2022. This improvement is due to more streamlined cross-border processes and the implementation of digital supply chain management systems. Moreover, the increased use of this technology has led to more resilient and responsive systems. More hotel chains can now track their supply deliveries in real-time, forecast demand more accurately, and react swiftly to changes in the market.

The wave of change isn't confined to the large chains alone. It's being felt in every corner of the industry, from boutique hotels in Accra that blend modern design with traditional Ghanian culture, to eco-friendly lodges in the Maasai Mara that champion sustainable tourism.

As intra-African trade continues to flourish and the technological landscape evolves, the African hospitality sector is preparing for an exhilarating future. This new era is being ushered in by ambitious, tech-savvy leaders who are ready to shake off the old and bring forth the new.

About AHIF 2023

INSPIRE. INVEST. IMPACT. Attended by the highest calibre international hotel investors of any conference in Africa, AHIF is the leading hospitality investment conference that connects business leaders from the international and local markets, driving investment into tourism projects, infrastructure and hotel development across Africa.

Website: https://www.ahif.com | Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/ahif| Twitter @AHIF_News | Instagram | Press Contact: Ali Shahid, Marketing Director: [email protected]

[1] South African Revenue Service - https://www.sars.gov.za/customs-and-excise/trade-statistics/

[2] World Bank 2022 AfCFTA report - https://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/trade/publication/the-african-continental-free-trade-area

[3] UNCTAD Economic Development in Africa Report 2022- https://unctad.org/publication/economic-development-africa-report-2022

[4] UNWTO Tourism Data Dashboard

About Toggle Hospitality

Toggle Hospitality is a SaaS enabled multi-vendor marketplace and procurement eco-system for hotel furniture, operating supplies and equipment developed and operated by Toggle Market. Toggle Hospitality enables the sourcing of operating supplies, fixtures, furniture and specialist equipment directly from manufacturers. Our eco-systems are engineered to boost efficiency, reduce time, cost, environmental waste and the stress that comes with the complex nature of such multi-vendor cross border transactions. Website: www.togglehospitality.com |
HITEC 2023 in Toronto (June 26-29) is just around the corner. As always, it will be one of the industrys most important, must-attend events and Infor will be at Booth #2125.

Our team looks forward to sharing great conversations with old friends and new acquaintances. The show will generate interesting discussions about the benefits of cloud-based operations for achieving revenue objectives and exceeding guest experience expectations.

In this era of evolving hospitality technologies, conference attendees can expect to hear informative discussions about timely themes, including how to adapt to changing workforce trends, using data and analytics to enhance profitability, and unlocking the potential of next-generation hospitality solutions. Lets take a closer look at a few of these topics.

Empowering employees and containing labor costs

Since the pandemic, many hotels and resorts have struggled to recruit and retain enough staff to maintain service quality. A tight labor market led to rising wages and high turnover as workers moved into other industries pursuing higher compensation and better work-life balance. As a result, industry leaders are rethinking workforce management strategies to improve recruiting and retention while also relying on technology to help staff work more productively.

Hotel and resort brands are leveraging hotel property management solutions to automate mundane tasks and allow employees to focus on delivering excellent guest service. Mobile and cloud solutions empower staff with better visibility around guest profiles and histories, reservations, requests, housekeeping schedules, event bookings, and other information needed to work efficiently and effectively anywhere on the property.

Enhancing profitability with data and analytics

After a robust post-pandemic rebound in travel, hospitality leaders face a more mixed economic outlook for 2023. However, hotels that take a data-driven approach to managing revenue and maximizing profit can position themselves to outperform financially.

A Cloud-based, AI-enabled hospitality revenue management solution provides demand forecasts, pricing & distribution decisions. Combined with data analytics and insights for better decision making it helps drive maximum revenues and profits.

Of course, revenue optimization extends beyond REVPARoperators can also employ data-driven sales and catering technology to maximize revenue in event spaces on the property.

Exceeding guest expectations

There will be many conversations about improving the guest experience at HITEC 2023. Experience is not a new topic, but it continues to be the most important one in a world of rapidly evolving guest preferences and expectations. Knowing your guests and allowing employees to access guest profiles instantly is essential to delivering the levels of service todays travelers expect.

Contactless and mobile technologies innovated during the pandemic continue to provide an empowered guest experience preferred by travelers. Hotels are deploying self-service kiosks, mobile apps and AI-powered chatbots to reduce friction in check-in/check-out, amenity booking, and service requests. These technologies give guests more control over their stay while reducing pressure on the front desk and service staff.

Meet us in Toronto!

Wed love to connect with you at HITEC 2023 and discuss how your business needs are changing with new trends in hospitality. Please stop in and see us at Booth #2125.

At HITEC, we will be demonstrating our full suite of integrated, scalable hospitality solutions. Come see how we are helping hotels and resorts optimize operations, deliver innovative services, and create extraordinary guest experiences.

Request your HITEC meeting with Infor here.

About Infor

Infor is a global leader in business cloud software specialized by industry. We develop complete solutions for our focus industries. Infor's mission-critical enterprise applications and services are designed to deliver sustainable operational advantages with security and faster time to value. Over 60,000 organizations in more than 175 countries rely on Infor's 17,000 employees to help achieve their business goals. As a Koch company, our financial strength, ownership structure, and long-term view empower us to foster enduring, mutually beneficial relationships with our customers. Visit Infor.com.

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The Hague, Netherlands - After eight successful years, the Sustainable Hospitality Challenge (SHC) is once again set to host its semi-finals in Amsterdam on June 21-22. This year, addition to the participation of top hospitality institutions, the competition is joined by top design and engineering students from prestigious institutions, including Politecnico di Milano, Dubai Institute of Design and Innovation (Didi), Nanyang Technological University Singapore and TU Delft.

The SHC is a Hotelschool The Hague initiative that aims to enhance the evolution of sustainable hospitality, foster innovation driven by the leaders of tomorrow, and nurture talent on a global scale by bringing them close to industry organisations that want to reimagine the future of hospitality. The global hospitality industry is forecast to grow to 5.8 trillion U.S. dollars in 2027, reiterating the importance of sustainability within the industry.

Ahead of the semi-finals, Paul Griep, founder of the Sustainable Hospitality Challenge, Director of Alumni and Industry Relations Hotelschool The Hague explained,

The great enthusiasm from industry leaders and students, as well as the past years winning concepts, have inspired the SHC team to bring the Challenge to a new level: Its incredible momentum and recognition from the industry, along with last years winning concept now becoming a reality and contributing to the sustainable future of hospitality, has pushed the Challenge forward, resulting in an upcoming SHC 2023 edition that will be like never before: broader in participating disciplines, higher in synergy, and an event you will not want to miss. I have always been most excited about the student experience and the process leading to the winning sustainability concept, but now, more than ever, I cant wait to see design, hospitality, architecture and engineering students come together to bring even more ingenuity to this years winning concept.

The competition is made possible with the support of key sponsors and partners NEOM, The Sustainable Hospitality Alliance, The Bench, and Kerten Hospitality.

Chris Newman, Executive Director at NEOM Hotel Development said: We are delighted with the level of creativity from the students participating in The Sustainable Hospitality Challenge. These brilliant concepts will serve as the building blocks that will hopefully pave the way for a more responsible and sustainable future.

Glenn Mandziuk, Chief Executive Officer of the Sustainable Hospitality Alliance said: The SHC is a unique platform to promote and evolve sustainable hospitality, and Im excited to see the semi-finalists and the concepts brought to life. Innovation is at the heart of the Alliance as we aim to nurture and develop a truly Net Positive sector that gives back more than it takes. The SHC is pioneering positive sustainable advancements within the industry.

A sneak peek of the semi-finalists concepts, showing the positive impact of collaboration across disciplines

The team from Swiss Hotel Management School and Politecnico di Milano: Josiel Torres, Alimohammed Al-aghakhani, Anson Lam, Anna Iutkina & Giulia Bonelli. Their concept: Al Gaia; is a revolutionary self-sufficient underwater hotel that utilizes natural resources to create a unique experience for guests.

Concept 2023 AL GAIA by Swiss Hotel Management School and Politecnico di Milano Photo by Hotelschool The Hague

Another example by the team from University of Nevada, Las Vegas: Hieu Nguyen, Christen Smith, An Pham and Allister Dias. Their concept: The Palm Experience aims to enrich the lives of both Saudi Arabia citizens and aspiring visitors through Recreational & Educational Workshops on Sustainability Travel (REST), immersive food, beverage, cultural experiences, and a unique one-with-nature stay.

Concept 2023 The Palm Experience by University of Nevada, Las Vegas  Photo by Hotelschool The Hague

Sustainable Hospitality Challenge in a collaborative effort with TU Delft



From a challenge to a course, this year the SHC has expanded from hospitality to design, and created in a collaborative effort with TU Delft a project-based course: Interactive Technology Design (ITD). As part of the Sustainable Hospitality Challenge, students from TU Delft have been working on ideas, innovations, and prototypes to support the industry's sustainability efforts.

In the course, students produce a prototype every week for 20 weeks from February to July 2023. As a whole, the course functions as a creative melting pot for innovative and critical ideas generating a wide range of out-of-the-box solutions to project assignments.

Make sure to follow us and learn more about the innovations of this year:

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/sustainable-hospitality-challenge/

#sustainablehospitality #innovation #nextgeneration

About the Sustainable Hospitality Challenge



The SHC, first launched under the name Genio in 2014, is a Hotelschool The Hague initiative that aims to enhance the evolution of sustainable hospitality. Established as a platform that challenges innovative hospitality approaches for the last nine years, SHC has evolved into a global knowledge-based initiative. During its years of activity, SHC has collaborated with some of the most reputable CEOs of the Hospitality Industry, who, from competition to competition, were asked to judge the project proposals.

About Hotelschool The Hague

Hotelschool The Hague was founded in 1929 and is one of the oldest independent hotel schools in the world. The school has two campuses, one in The Hague and one in Amsterdam, with more than 2850 students and 250 employees. Hotelschool The Hague has been voted the best public hotel school in The Netherlands since 2014 and ranks among the top hospitality management schools worldwide according to QS World University Rankings. Furthermore, according to Keuzegids, the school had the best Master in Business Administration since 2019. Graduates of Hotelschool The Hague hold management positions in the hospitality industry worldwide. www.hotelschool.nl

Nina de Graaf

+31 623316589

Hotelschool The Hague

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Hyatt Hotels Corporation (NYSE: H) today announced that a Hyatt affiliate has entered into a franchise agreement with Botteghe Oscure s.r.l., a company affiliated with AG Group s.r.l., for the first Thompson Hotels property in Italy with Thompson Rome.

Expected to open by mid-2024 in the heart of the Italian capital, the 70-room luxury lifestyle hotel will be the brands second property in Europe, joining Thompson Madrid, which opened in 2022, and the previously announced Thompson Vienna, which is slated to join the portfolio in 2025.

We know that there is a growing appetite amongst todays travelers and developers for hotels that cater to culturally savvy guests and bring a modern approach to conventional hospitality. We are excited to meet this demand with one of the most exciting new hotels in Rome as we continue to scale our luxury, lifestyle and leisure brands across the region, said Nuno Galvao Pinto, regional vice president of real estate and development at Hyatt. We are honored to continue to work with AG Group s.r.l. to welcome the Thompson Hotels brand to one of the worlds most coveted leisure destinations.

Visitors of Thompson Rome will experience a true sense of Roman culture through a revolutionary design restoration of one of the citys most iconic buildings  the former headquarters of the Italian Communist Party. Converted into a luxury lifestyle hotel, the elegant 1930s-built Palazzo is located near the Capitoline Hill, Fori Imperiali and Jewish Quarter and will undergo an extensive enhancement while preserving the landmarks key historical features. The artistic legacies of the building that will remain will represent the Thompson Hotels brands commitment to authentic cultural curation including the entrance hall, designed by sculptor Gio Pomodoro, complete with a five-pointed gold star set into the floor, as well as a marble bust of the partys founding member and one-time leader, Antonio Gramsci.

The expansion of the Thompson Hotels brand with plans for Thompson Rome is reflective of Hyatts accelerated brand growth in the southern European country, joining five Italian properties that have been added to Hyatts portfolio in the past four years. Thompson Rome will mark the seventh Hyatt-branded hotel in Italy and the second in Rome, joining The Tribune Hotel, part of JdV by Hyatt brand, also operated by AG Group s.r.l.

We are delighted to expand our relationship with Hyatt in this sought-after market with the debut of the Thompson Hotels brand in Italy, said Andrea Girolami, president of AG Group s.r.l. Hyatt shares our vision of delivering a refined hideaway in the heart of Rome that combines a casual sense of luxury with refined rooms and layered design throughout for an authentic experience. We look forward to welcoming guests and locals alike to this one-of-a-kind property.

Thompson Rome will have four dining outlets, including a rooftop restaurant and terrace with a cocktail bar featuring panoramic views of the buzzing eternal city. The property will also feature two dedicated meeting rooms and a fitness center.
L To R: Mr. Puneet Chhatwal, MD & CEO, IHCL with Mr. Jitendra Nath Das, Managing Director and Vivek Sikka, Director, Asian Medical and Research Pvt. Ltd

Indian Hotels Company (IHCL) today announced the signing of a Vivanta-branded hotel in Guwahati, Assam. The greenfield project is slated to open by 2026.

Ms. Suma Venkatesh, Executive Vice President - Real Estate & Development, IHCL, said, Vivanta Guwahati will be IHCLs fourth hotel in Guwahati. This signing reinforces our commitment to the region. The city, also known as the gateway to the North -East is a major hub for economic activities as well as tourism. We are delighted to partner with Asian Medical and Research Pvt. Ltd.

The 150 key hotel is strategically situated in close proximity to important commercial centers and to Dispur, the capital of Assam. In addition to the rooms, the hotel will have Mynt, Vivantas signature all-day-diner, the bar, and recreational facilities including a swimming pool and a fitness center. It will offer over 4,000 sq.ft. of banqueting and meeting spaces.

Mr. Jitendra Nath Das, Managing Director and Vivek Sikka, Director, Asian Medical and Research Pvt. Ltd, said, We are excited to partner with IHCL, Indias leading hospitality company for this hotel. It will introduce the reimagined stylishly spirited Vivanta brand to the city.

Guwahati, situated on the banks of the Brahmaputra River, is the largest city in Assam. As a major tea manufacturing and processing center, the city is also famous for ancient temples including Kamakhya.

With the addition of this hotel, IHCL will have four hotels in Assam including two under development.
Excerpt from Reuters

The City of New York will delay enforcing a municipal law that Airbnb Inc (ABNB.O) said could limit the number of people who can host rentals in the city, a Friday court filing showed.

The short-term rental company filed a lawsuit against the city on June 1 over the law it called a "de facto ban" against short-term rentals set to go into effect on July 1.

Under the law, hosts must be permanent occupants of the units being rented and must register with the Mayor's Office of Special Enforcement (OSE) before posting rentals.

The office will not issue fines against hosts or booking services until Sept. 5, according to the filing.

Click here to read complete article at Reuters.
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Published: 14 Jun 2023 Share:





It was a busy weekend for Heriot-Watt University Malaysia (HWUM) on 10 and 11 June 2023 at the Sureworks Education & Further Studies Fair 2023, held at Mid Valley Kuala Lumpur and Mid Valley Southkey Johor Bharu. As the fair was one of the most anticipated events for school leavers, parents, teachers, university students, working adults, and the general public who were seeking higher education opportunities, our Student Recruitment and Admissions team, with the enthusiastic support of lecturers, students and staff came together and participated as exhibitors at both events.

The fair was a valuable resource for prospective students as they were able to engage with our lecturers and education consultants, gaining insights into the University's programmes, facilities and admission requirements.

It has also provided an excellent opportunity for students to explore educational pathways and make informed decisions about their academic journey. The team met more than 300 students in Mid Valley KL and around 100 students in Mid Valley Southkey JB on both days.

With its diverse range of participants and informative sessions, the Sureworks Education & Further Studies Fair 2023 was an enriching experience for all involved.
Jones Block owner David LaBorde cuts the ribbon on the renovated property. The Each unit has an open space plan for kitchen, dining and living. Both two-bedroom apartments are in the back of the building and feature large bathrooms and laundry rooms. Each floor also has a one-bedroom unit and a one bedroom with an extra room that could be used as an office. The plans were first proposed in 2007. All units have at least one and a half baths. The curved glass entrance to the lobby was installed in 2008. PreviousNext

Adams' Jones Block Finally Ready for Tenants After 3 Decades



Attendees on the second floor landing of the historic building. ADAMS, Mass.  The long-vacant Jones Bock on Park Street is finally ready for tenants.

Owner and developer David LaBorde hosted an open house on Friday night to show off the newly completed apartments on the second and third floors; the ground floor will be prepared for occupation by the central office of Hoosac Valley Regional School District.

LaBorde said he was taken by the town after a walk down Park Street a few years ago.

"Adams is really the last frontier in Berkshire County," he joked.

The reception included a ribbon cutting on the second floor landing of the contemporary staircase with Selectmen Chair Christine Hoyt and Selectman John Duval holding the "grand opening" red ribbon.

"This is really a wonderful moment here for the town of Adams and thank you for all that you have done and being a wonderful partner," said Hoyt.

"We're thrilled to have six units coming online," she continued as Town Administrator Jay Green interjected that the units were "market rate."

"Any vibrant downtown today that you see now in the 21st century has a mix  it's mix of small businesses, it's a mix of housing and we're seeing that come here in Adams," said Green, who then referred to investments including those at 57 Park St. and the Adams Theater. "Thank you not only for coming to Adams but believing in our community."

Minus a few finishing details, the six apartments feature open plan spaces with plenty of windows and light, new kitchens and appliances and master suites. Rents range from $1,350 to $1,800 a month and Bishop West Real Estate is handling the rentals.

LaBorde said it was 25 months to complete the project  at least on his end. Several plans have been made and abandoned for the historic block over the years since a fire in 1996 damaged the hardware store on the first floor and apartments above.

It was purchased along with the Carlow Building in 2007 by a New York developer with plans to revamp the more than century old building into upscale residential units with storefronts on the first floor. The project was estimated at $2 million and a timeline for completion was set for early 2009.

Those plans were sidelined by 2008's global economic collapse and the project was only partially completed despite continued prodding by town officials, who had signed off on a million-dollar state grant to restore the Jones Block's facade. Instead, the developer declared bankruptcy and mortgageholder MountainOne Bank took possession of the two properties at a public auction in 2013.

Some work was done inside and a curved glass entrance installed in the alleyway between the block and what's now the Firehouse Cafe (which provided the refreshments for the reception.)

The 16,000-square foot building and the adjacent Carlow building were purchased three years later by real estate developers Peter West and Corey Bishop as Adams Park Street LLC.

LaBorde purchased the property in 2021, as FP QOZB I LLC, and described himself as the point man for a larger team including Jay Hayes of Wayland North, other backers and financiers, and "lots of subcontractors" who helped bring the building back to life.

Hoosac Valley Superintendent Aaron Dean joined the ribbon cutting and Green ventured that his father and longtime selectman, the late Joseph R. Dean Jr., would be as pretty pleased as other board members in seeing the project finally come to fruition.

Dean, as chair of the Selectmen back in 2007, had heralded the proposed renovation at the time as "the beginning of the transformation of Adams into a vibrant, thriving center."
Susan 'Raine' Brown and Maralyn Brown donate books from the library of the late Stanley Brown to the Florida Free Library in his memory. Right, Anna Gentes sets up the display.

Brown Family Donates Rare Hoosac Tunnel History Books



Sarah Maclennan reads Volume 2 of 'The Coming of the Train,' one of the books donated to the library in Stanley Brown's memory. FLORIDA, Mass.  The family of the late Stanley Brown donated two relatively expensive local history books to the Florida Free Library in his memory.

The series they donated  "The Coming of the Train: The Hoosac Tunnel and Wilmington and Deerfield River Railroads and the Industries They Served" written by the late Rowe resident Brian Donaldson  is composed of two volumes. The first volume covers 1870-1900 and the second highlights the history of the region from 1910-22. Volume one does not seem to be currently in print and Librarian Heidi Dugal said it is challenging to obtain.

Dugal had been looking to add both volumes to the librarys collection after perusing a copy a patron had ordered through Inter-Library Loan. She was not able to find a reasonably priced copy to buy. Maralyn Brown, Stanley Brown's widow, found the books in his collection, and hearing Dugal was searching for them, decided to donate the books.

"They weren't doing me any good at home on my bookshelf and I know if he were alive and knew that the library was interested in it and it was difficult to obtain it, he would be doing that," she said. "He just was so interested in the history of the town and passing it on."

Stanley Brown was the owner of Brown's Garage and a longtime civic leader, serving on the local school committees, the Select Board, the Historical Commission and the volunteer Fire Department. He was active in community endeavors and with the Florida Baptist Church, and long considered the town's historian. He died last year at age 88.

"Stanley brought so much to the table," Dugal said. The retired Gabriel Abbot Memorial School principal said she always asked Brown to come in for her local history unit. He would bring stacks of pictures to show the kids and teach them about the town's past, telling stories of pushing outhouses over as a schoolboy and the dangerous methods of transporting nitroglycerin.

Brown's daughter Susan "Raine" Brown said learning excited her dad. He had been interested in the history of Florida since he was a kid, and his passion was contagious. Her father enjoyed coming into the schools because kids were more "unhindered in their curiosity and exploration, and more willing to ask questions that might not be normal questions  he liked that aliveness of learning," according to Raine Brown.

The Browns, Dugal, and other community members hope that these books will continue to excite students about local history.

"I know that I can name 10 students that once they see these books are just gonna be sitting here  going through page by page," Dugal said.

The books contain maps of the area, old photographs, information about trains, and maybe even information about local children's ancestors.

"You never know with the young crowd, somebody might get inspired," Anna Gentes, a community member who knew Brown, said.

Brown was also dedicated to teaching. Dugal said that as the digital age advanced, he kept up with the new technologies, and would show her how to use them.

"He really did just like to help people learn and do for themselves," his daughter said.

In the small celebration at the library on Saturday, attendees told stories about Brown's passion for teaching and his involvement in the community. He fixed people's cars at his garage (and taught teen boys what not to do to their cars), sold Florida Mountain turnips, shoveled out snowbound families well into his 80s, and walked about town dressed as Uncle Sam.

Maralyn Brown said he would hate the attention and publicity the donation brought. Raine agreed, but added that "He would like history getting the attention."

Stanley Brown's books will be joining the many other local history reference materials at the Florida Free Public Library.

"He'd be happy that he's still sharing," Raine Brown said.
Department heads attend Tuesday's City Council meeting for the vote on the fiscal 2024 budget.

North Adams Council Approved $47M Spending Plan for Fiscal 2024



Mayor Jennifer Macksey speaks to the council on Tuesday. NORTH ADAMS, Mass.  The City Council on Tuesday approved a $47 million budget for fiscal 2024.

The spending plan at $47,410,070 is up $2,873,335, or 6.45 percent, over this year's budget. The increase is largely driven by higher costs for equipment and materials, investment in the police, fire and information technology lines, a nearly half-million hike in medical insurance costs, $223,911 more in the Hoosac Water Quality District assessment and $1.3 million more in educational costs.

The hike in the school budget, however, is being offset by a matching boost in state Chapter 70 education funds. The $20,054,352 spending plan for the public schools is level-funded for the city this coming year at $3,838,270 and the balance of $16,216,082 is coming from the state.

The city is projected to raise $21,282,250 in property taxes and $7,713,031 in local receipts. State aid, including Chapter 70, is projected at $22,634,285 and other funding at about $240,000. Total projected revenue is $51,870,156.

The council also approved the compensation and classification plan that includes a 2 percent across the board wage increase for all employees based on the negotiated raises for union members. The plan has several reclassifications to align responsibilities with titles such as health inspector, veterans services district director and assistant to the district director, and added new classifications for dispatchers, a water filtration mechanic and the shared municipal human resources director.

In response to questions, the mayor said the study of the C&C plan by the Collins Jr. Center for Public Management at the University of Massachusetts did not weigh into these changes.

"The overall the the classification and compensation survey done by the Collins Center is still in draft form. They had little impact on the current scale only because as I've expressed, I think in a couple of meetings, I'm not completely satisfied with the data," she said. "We will use it as we trend forward and looking at how do we bring up the salaries across the board, but that's a bigger discussion and a bigger project."

Macksey said this budget focuses on public safety but that future ones will begin to address other departments.

"It's not a surprise to anyone in this room that our overall salaries for our department heads and our managers and all of our staff is traditionally low," the mayor said. "We're filling gaps across the board and to raise all of the compensation in one year, we would have a heart attack.

"I'm very, very sensitive to how our decisions we make today impact the tax rate down the road."

The investment in public safety includes adding three new police officers and filling two retirements in the Fire Department and adding two more firefighters. There's also an additional $3,000 for emergency training, $5,000 for community policing and a $12,500 line for body-worn cameras, software and cloud storage.

There questions about demolitions and hydrants. The mayor said the city will use American Rescue Plan Act funds for planned demolitions rather than Community Development Block Grants and that there is funding for replacing five non-working hydrants.

The budget also included a "work in progress" capital plan. The mayor said the city is working with the Collins Center on developing the six-year planning document.

Councilor Jennifer Barbeau pointed out that the capital plan is supposed to be reviewed by the Planning Board and submitted to the council. Macksey said there are discussions on modifying the ordinance and that there are plans to share the document with the Planning Board this summer.

Councilor Keith Bona, chair of the Finance Committee, thanked those who had participated in the committee's meetings and noted much of what was discussed that evening was a repeat of the committee meetings.

"But also the mayor has tweaked and corrected and adjusted some things that came up during our Finance Committee meetings," he said. "I think tonight councilors can admit that we really have some good, detailed information.

"That is improvement on some of the budgets that we've had in the past. So I appreciate it. Thank you and thanks again to your staff."

The budget was preliminary passed in sections with the only nay vote on Public Safety by Councilor Ashley Shade.

Shade said she still didn't think there was enough money being set aside for building repair and maintenance, even though $30,000 had been put in the line.

She did vote for the entire budget which passed 7-1 with Barbeau in opposition. Councilor Michael Obasohan was absent.

The mayor read two proclamations, one recognizing LGBTQIA Pride Month and the other for the Juneteenth state holiday on Monday.

In other business, the council:

 Confirmed the appointments of Edward Morandi to the Historical Commission to complete the term of the late Justyna Carlson to expire Jan. 2, 2024; and appointments to the Mobile Home Rent Control Board of Mary Katherine Eade for a term to expire June 13, 2028, Deborah Pedercini for a term to expire June 13, 2028, and Manuel J. Serrano to fill the unexpired term of Diane Crosier expiring Sept. 25, 2023.

 Approved applications from Emaline Gardner and Penny King to drive a taxicab for OTT Taxi.

 Approved secondhand dealer licenses, with Bona abstaining, for James Montepare at Empire Antiques, Grover J. Askins for G.J. Askins Bookseller and Timothy E. Randall for Sanford & Kid. Bona is owner of Berkshire Emporium, an antiques and secondhand shop.
I Am Afro Street Fair Comes To North Adams

NORTH ADAMS, Mass.  The Berkshire Black Economic Council Inc. partners with First Congregational Church of North Adams to host "I Am Afro: A Street Fair for All the People."

This free Juneteenth celebration takes place on Saturday, June 17, featuring performances, pop-up booths, food, and family-friendly activities. No registration is required and anyone is welcome. Free buses will be running between Pittsfield and North Adams, with stops in Adams.

The event takes place from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on the lawn of the church at 134 Main St. there will be dance, music, visual and theater arts, and spoken word by local Black residents. The celebration continues at Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art where soul-pop star and Berkshire County native Raiche will perform.

Tickets are $20 to $26 for Raiche's performance and can be purchased online on the Mass MoCA's website

"I Am Afro" is supported by the BBEC's Black Arts Council, an intergenerational cohort dedicated to fostering an inclusive and trustworthy arts sector that responds to the needs of the Black community. By partnering with First Congregational on this inaugural event, the council continues to advance local efforts to promote black artists, entrepreneurship, and culture in the Berkshires. Sponsors include the Northern Berkshire United Way, the Cultural Council of Northern Berkshire, the Pittsfield Cultural Council, a Festivals grant from the Massachusetts Cultural Council, and an Arts Build Community grant from the Taconic Community Foundation, with funding from the Barr Foundation.
GCash, the Philippines' leading mobile wallet, surpasses its target of planting 2.3 million trees by end-2023, in time for this year's celebration of World Environment Day.

As of June 2023, GCash has already planted 2.4 million actual trees through its digital platform, GForest.

This 2023, World Environment Day celebrates its 50th year. This annual movement led by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) enjoins millions of people globally to protect and restore the Earth. It calls on both public and private organizations, as well as individuals, to contribute in creating a more sustainable world.

Since the launch of GForest in 2019, GCash, together with its partners, has been championing awareness for environmental conservation and green practices, connecting Filipinos wherever they are, and creating a better tomorrow for them through the apps wide and inclusive digital ecosystem.

To achieve its sustainability objectives, GCash has worked closely with local government units and local and international partner organizations for tree planting, marketing, and technology.

GCash, through its partners, has already planted seedlings across the country in all three major islands: Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao.

In Luzon, the sites are Ipo Watershed (220K trees), La Mesa Ecopark (160K trees), and Culion, Palawan (325k trees). In the Visayas, the sites are Luyang Watershed (600K trees), Tanon Strait (550K trees), and most recently, Negros Oriental (500k trees). Lastly in Mindanao, the sites are in the provinces of Sarangani (General Santos) and South Cotabato (Koronadal), both totaling one million trees.

GCash introduced GForest in 2019 as the first-ever sustainability feature by a fintech company in the Philippines to enable Filipinos to plant trees and contribute to the reforestation efforts in the Philippines. GCash users earn green energy by using the apps various convenient services such as Pay Bills, Send Money, Cash-in, Bank Transfer, and GSave.

The collected energy can then be used to plant a virtual tree via the GForest while GCash and its partners plant the actual trees on various sites across the country. To date, GForest has grown its number of users to 13 million, making it one of the biggest digital environmental movements in the country.

Celebrate World Environment Day with GCash and become a green hero by downloading the GCash app for free on Google Play, the App Store, and the Huawei AppGallery. For more information, visit www.gcash.com.ph.
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More than 100 internet shutdowns by Indias Narendra Modi administration between 2019 and 2022 hurt the poor and the vulnerable by restricting their work opportunities and impairing their access to food and livelihoods, according to a new report.

This is in direct contradiction with the federal governments ambitious flagship programme Digital India which aimed to aid millions of citizens across the countrys length and breadth, the report by Human Rights Watch said.

India has deployed more internet blackouts, dubbed erratic and unlawful by researchers, than any other nation in the world since 2018, the report said.

Such shutdowns hurt the poor in India in a number of ways, it said, including preventing them from marking their attendance under a government employment scheme which allows people to earn a daily wage in villages and towns across the country.

The Independent has reached out to the governments IT ministry for its response to the report.

When the internet is shut down, I have no work, do not get paid, cannot withdraw any money from my account, and cannot even get food rations, a 35-year-old Dalit woman with five children in Rajasthan told HRW.

Authorities in India have used internet shutdowns as default policing measures at a time when the Modi administration is pushing to make the internet fundamental to every aspect of life, said Jayshree Bajoria, associate Asia director at HRW.

Cutting off access to the internet should be the absolute last resort with safeguards to ensure people arent deprived of their livelihoods and basic rights, she said in a statement.

Researchers spoke to more than 70 people from most parts of India such as Kashmir, Rajasthan, Haryana, Jharkhand, Assam, Manipur and Meghalaya, including those directly impacted by the internet shutdowns.

At least 127 internet shutdowns were identified by the HRW and the Internet Freedom Foundation between 2019 and December 2022.

Jammu and Kashmir saw the most internet shutdowns than any other Indian state, barring locals from any internet-related activity such as banking or ordering supplies in what has been described as the silence of the graveyard by one professional, according to the report.

The Indian state bordering Pakistan saw more than 550 days of internet blackout after the Modi administration stripped it off its special status in August 2019. The six-month-long communications shutdown cost more than $2.4bn (1.9bn), and led to nearly 500,000 job losses, according to the Kashmir Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

Eighteen states out of the total 28 shut down the internet at least once during these three years.

During the lengthy internet shutdown in Jammu and Kashmir that began in August 2019, journalists were unable to contact their sources or editors, or to file their reports, severely impairing press freedom, the report pointed out, adding that the Modi administration offered a media centre in a private hotel with only four terminals initially that had fixed internet connections to service around 300 journalists working in the valley.

The worst was surveillance and the inability to protect their sources, if they chose to use the governments media centre, journalists said, the report said.

Internet shutdowns were also used as a tool by state governments in India who used the blackout of one of the biggest communication channels to prevent protests or in response to demonstrations, the HRW report said.

Another 37 internet blackouts were rolled out to stop students from cheating in examinations for school or government jobs.

At least 18 state-level internet shutdowns were in response to communal violence, and the same number for law and order concerns.

However, suspension of internet services in India requires the state administration to publish the shutdown orders, which were not produced by 11 of the 18 states as sought by the Supreme Court. Others did not justify the risk to public safety, the report stated.
South Africa: Protect, uphold older people's dignity

As South Africa joins the globe in commemorating World Elder Abuse Awareness Day (WEAAD), Social Development Minister Lindiwe Zulu has urged South Africans to defend the elderly against abuse, by protecting and upholding their rights.

As we commemorate this day, I take this opportunity to urge all South Africans to ensure that we protect older persons against any form of abuse and exposure to exploitation. This would assist in ensuring that older persons are empowered and are able to respond to numerous incidents of abuse, Zulu said.

World Elder Abuse Awareness Day is commemorated annually on 15 June.

The day seeks to provide an opportunity for communities around the world to promote a better understanding of the abuse and neglect of older persons by raising awareness of their cultural, social, economic, and demographic processes affecting elder abuse and neglect.

This years WEAAD is observed under the theme, Closing the Circle: Addressing Gender-Based Violence (GBV) in Older Age - Policy, Law and Evidence-based Responses.

In line with the departments core mandate of prioritising the protection of the lives and the wellbeing of older persons in the country, Zulu has reminded South Africans about the significance of this day.

This day is not only about commemoration, but an opportunity for communities across the country, to promote a better understanding of abuse and neglect of older persons. This must be done by raising awareness of the cultural, social, economic, and demographic processes affecting elder abuse and neglect, Zulu said.

She said South Africa is in support of the United Nations International Plan of Action, which acknowledges elder abuse as a public health and human rights issue.

She said the country joins WEAAD in its call-to-action for individuals, organisations, and communities to raise awareness about elder abuse, neglect, and exploitation.

Zulu noted the Statistics South Africa report, which confirmed South Africa to be an ageing population with estimates indicating the proportion of elderly population been on the increase from 7.6% in 2002 to 9.1% in 2020.

The ageing index refers to the number of elderly population of 60 years and above, per 100 individuals younger than 15 years old in a specific population. Consequently, the higher the index, the older the population.

The ageing index in South Africa increased from 30 in 2017 to 33 in 2022, and it was projected that by the year 2015, the proportion of older persons in South Africa would have increased to 9.5% of the population, which is, 4.24 million. By July 2020, 5.43 million people in South Africa were aged 60 years and above, Zulu said.

The Minister said the increase in the older peoples population heightens the concern about elderly abuse and neglect.

As a result, she said, this day should be a reminder about the contribution older persons continue to make in the country, including looking after orphaned and vulnerable children.

Zulu said the South African Government, has recently finalised the Older Persons Amendment Bill with Chapter Five of this legislation focuses on strengthening an inter-sectoral collaboration for the effective management of Elder Abuse.

Establishment of Older Persons Abuse Register

As part of promoting effective management of Elder Abuse, she said the department has also facilitated the establishment of the Older Persons Abuse Register (OPAR).

She said, this initiative is managed in partnership with the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development, through its Integrated Justice System (IJS) and training of the system users which is underway across the provinces, to ensure the capturing and processing of all reported cases of abuse of older persons.

It is through this initiative that the department has reached numerous professional social workers, an initiative, which should lead to improved reporting, successful prosecution, and safety of older persons, Zulu said.

The Minister has also urged the country to pause and remember older people who succumbed to many unreported incidents of abuse, neglect, and ill-treatment over the recent years.  SAnews.gov.za

This story has been published on: 2023-06-14. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
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Two members of the Japanese Ground Self Defence Forces (GSDF) were killed after a cadet opened fire during a training drill at a shooting range in Japan, it was reported.

Japans SDF said on Wednesday that an 18-year-old trainee opened fire at his colleagues, killing two and wounding one during a training drill in Gifu Prefecture.

The SDF members were taken to a hospital, reports said, where two of them were declared dead.

Police have arrested the 18-year-old cadet on suspicion of attempted murder, the Japan Times reported.

The incident took place around 9.00am local time in Ground SDFs Hino basic firing range in Gifu city.

Local media said that the 6.7-hectare shooting range is about seven kilometres east of Gifu Station, and a number of tourist sites, including Gifu Castle. There is also a residential area nearby. Residents reportedly panicked after hearing the shots from the range.

No casualties were reported from the neighbourhood.

Police said that the suspect has admitted to the shooting. His identity was not yet revealed by the authorities. The two members who were shot were reportedly aged 25 and 52.

The third SDF member who was wounded is also 25.

Hirokazu Matsuno, Japans chief cabinet secretary told the media: We have received a report that the SDF personnel who fired the rifle has already been taken into custody. We will refrain from giving further details as the investigation is ongoing.

Mr Matsuno, however, said that at least three people were wounded, according to CNN.

Shoji Tsusaki, 73, who lives near the shooting range told Mainichi that he sensed something terrible had happened when he heard the shots. He added: I was just surprised and could not understand the situation.

A 78-year-old who used to work part-time for SDF, was quoted as saying: I cannot understand why the suspect did such a thing.

The Imperial Japanese Army opened the base in 1907, according to the Asahi Shimbun, and it was confiscated by the US Army after the end of World War II, it said. SDF members reportedly began using the range in 1960.

In Japan, the rates of gun violence are among the lowest in the world.
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A Japan district court scheduled to try a man indicted in the fatal shooting of former prime minister Shinzo Abe cancelled the trial after a suspicious box was recovered from within the premises.

The visitors and court staff were evacuated as the officials in Nara District Court checked the box with a metal detector before reporting it to the Nara Prefectural Police.

On inspection, the officials found that it contained petitions with signatures seeking leniency for defendant Tetsuya Yamagami, reported Kyodo News citing sources. The petition contained signatures of about 13,000 people.

The box was delivered to the person responsible for the pretrial procedure around 11.15am on Monday and did not have any dangerous object. While the procedure was due to begin at 3pm local time, it was eventually cancelled.

A person based out of Kiyose, Tokyo, reportedly admitted to the police that they sent the papers to the court but denied using staples or paper clips, adding that he was unsure what activated the metal detector, reported Kyodo News.

Mr Yamagami was taken into custody immediately after Abe was killed while giving a campaign speech in Japans Nara City on 8 July last year. A former member of the Maritime self-defence force, Mr Yamagami allegedly used a homemade gun to attack Abe.

At the time of the shooting, Mr Yamagami, 41, had told the police that he killed the former president because of his links to religious group he hated, triggering a public debate on the Unification Church and its ties with Japans dominant Liberal Democratic Party.

According to statements and evidence released in the public domain, the accused was reportedly distressed from the massive donations that his mother made to the Unification Church, which bankrupted the family.

The Unification Church has been described by critics as cult -like as it sends its followers to work as volunteers, known colloquially as Moonies, to pressure devotees into making large donations.

Prosecutors charged Mr Yamagami for the killing, earlier in January this month, after a six-month-long mental evaluation concluded that he was fit to stand trial. He was indicted on charges of murder and violating gun control law in the country.

His lawyer, Masaaki Furukawa, at the time of his indictment said that Mr Yamagami will have to take the responsibility for the serious consequences of his alleged actions and the defence lawyers will work to have his sentence reduced.
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Malaysia is seeking assistance from the Interpol to hunt down a New-York based comedian who cracked a joke about the missing Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370.

Jocelyn Chia, a lawyer-turned-comedian in the US who grew up in Singapore, is being investigated for her jokes about the plane that went missing nine years ago with 239 passengers onboard during a live set.

Her skit, performed at a comedy club in New York, was widely criticised in Malaysia for being insensitive and offensive.

Malaysias national police chief Acryl Sani Abdullah Sanu said on Tuesday that they will send a formal request to Interpol to assist with her location and full identity for investigations, state news agency Bernama reported.

Her comments will be investigated under Malaysian laws related to provocation, incitement, and publication of offensive online content, he said.

The MH370 went missing in March 2014 while en route from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, to Beijing, China. The disappearance of MH370 with 227 passengers and 12 crew members on board has remained one of the most puzzling aviation mysteries to date.

Despite an extensive four-year search in the Indian Ocean involving multiple countries, no trace of the aircraft was found. On the 9th anniversary of the disappearance of the plane, Netflix released a three-part docuseries MH370: The Plane that Disappeared.

On Wednesday, the comedian took a jibe at Malaysian authorities, suggesting that the controversy has only made her famous with a string of interviews with major media companies in the aftermath of it.

So actually Malaysia, you can keep going, she tweeted.

Interpol, the worlds international police organisation with 195 member countries, is yet to issue a public response to the request.

If Interpol agrees, the agency can issue a "Red Notice", alerting the member countries to locate and provisionally arrest her before extradition.

It began after Ms Chia posted an 89-second clip of her comedy act at Manhattans Comedy Cellar venue on her TikTok and Instagram pages.

The video of the skit went viral and garnered the attention of millions of people, including Malaysian and Singaporean authorities.

The joke touched upon the historical rivalry between Singapore and Malaysia which were once part of the same country.

She said Singapore has become a "first-world country" while Malaysia remained "developing", adding that Malaysians cannot visit Singapore because their aeroplanes cannot fly in reference to the 2014 crash

What? Malaysian Airlines plane going missing not funny huh? Ms Chia asked the audience after getting mixed reactions. This joke kills in Singapore.

Singapores foreign affairs minister Vivian Balakrishnan on Thursday apologised for offence and hurt caused to Malaysians over Ms Chias joke.

Vanu Gopala Menon, Singapores high commissioner to Malaysia also apologised to all Malaysians for her hurtful remarks.

Mr Menon called her remarks about the missing airliner as well as other comments about Malaysia gratuitously offensive.

Malaysian foreign minister Zambry Abdul Kadir said Ms Chias act showed a total lack of sensitivity and empathy toward Malaysians and the MH370 victims families.

This video also clearly depicts behaviour that is contrary to the values of Asian countries that are known for their manners and morals.

In an interview with CNN on Sunday, Ms Chia said she stood by her jokes despite the controversy, but that the short clips on social media took them out of context.

"Upon reflection I do see that having this as a clip that gets viewed out of a comedy club context was risky," Ms Chia was reported as saying.

Malaysias apparent crackdown on the comedian comes amid concerns over the countrys efforts to suppress free speech.

Last year, a comedy club was shut down following allegations that it hosted comics who touched on sensitive racial and religious issues.
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A court in Singapore awarded more than 10 months of jail time to a secondary school teacher after he was found guilty of taking 170 upskirt videos of at least 47 people.

The identity of the 50-year-old convict and school cannot be disclosed due to a gag order aimed at protecting the survivors.

The man, who rose to the position of discipline master at the school in 2015, pleaded guilty in September last year to three counts of insulting a womans modesty, while five more charges were considered during the trial, reported Strait Times and Today Online.

As per the law, a person can be awarded a jail term of up to a year for outraging a womans modesty.

District judge Brenda Tan however noted that the man, employed in the school since 2008, had been suffering from a major depressive disorder and was found to be suitable to undergo mandatory treatment.

The judge made the opinion based on reports from Dr Stephen Phang from the Institute of Mental Health, who also observed that he retained the ability to make a choice to not commit the offense.

This finding as a result had little to no weight on his sentencing, noted the judge, adding that he is to undergo treatment in lieu of time in prison, reported the Strait Times.

The mans lawyer Laurence Goh said that he intends to challenge the sentencing and was granted $11,200 bail pending the appeal.

Employed in the school since 2008, he was suspended a decade later, around the time one of the female teachers alerted the police about him taking upskirt videos.

He has been accused of targetting numerous women, including 38 of his colleagues between 2015 and 2018. He also recorded 12 videos of seven students, reported Today Online.

He would typically record the victims by calling them over his workstation for data-entry purposes and hold the phone underneath their dresses.

Police recovered at least 170 such videos from his computers hard drive, including that of his relative which were either saved with the victims initials or descriptions such as Lift Girl if he did not know their name.
The resignation of Boris Johnson and two of his close allies, Nadine Dorries and Nigel Adams, as MPs means there will be three by-elections as a direct result of Johnsons decision to evade the findings of the Commons privileges committee.

A fourth by-election may well occur in Rutherglen and Hamilton West. That seat is held by the former SNP politician Margaret Ferrier. She was ordered to be suspended from the House after her conviction for breaking Covid regulations, and a recall petition has been opened in her seat. If 10 per cent of the constituents sign up, then there will be a by-election. Ferrier may contest it, but not as an official SNP candidate.

After the local elections in May, these by-elections will be the first real-world test of voter sentiment, and should provide an interesting insight into the matter of whether tactical voting is likely to play a significant role in the next general election. Therell also be some interest in how the minor parties, such as the Greens and Reform UK, perform. The four seats are a reasonably good mix, and a psephological feast awaits.
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An Airbnb customer was left furious after being charged for leaving pet hair at a home rental, despite the listing for the property labelling it as pet friendly.

The angry guest, called Maddie, claimed the cottage stated that it allowed pets on the listing, and even checked her German Shepherd, Judge, in on the booking.

However, Maddie, who initially enjoyed her stay, took to social media to express her anger after the host demanded she pay an additional cleaning fee for leaving behind pet hair.

After challenging the host, Maddie was furious to discover the house was not pet-friendly after all.

The picturesque, three-bedroom property is listed as Travel Haus: Stunning Cottage in German Village and is based in Columbus, Ohio. The cottage currently has a 4.96 out of five star rating on Airbnb.

I hate Airbnb. I checked out and received a message from the host saying they have to charge me an additional cleaning fee because pets arent allowed, Maddie said on Twitter. Your listing literally says pets allowed. I even included my dog on the booking.

The disgruntled guest then proceeded to share her conversation with the host, whod messaged Maddie to say: Maddie, my cleaner is at the house and has informed me that you had a pet with you.

This house is not a pet-friendly home and will now require additional cleaning due to the amount of pet hair that was left behind before the next guest.

I need to charge you an additional cleaning.

(Jam Press)

(Jam Press)

(Jam Press)

However, the charge was ultimately waived after Maddie pointed out that the listing for the home had described it as pet-friendly. The listing was updated to state that it was not pet friendly after the host suggested the pet-friendly label had been wrongly placed on the listing.

The heated encounter has left many divided - with some backing Maddie, while others sided with the Airbnb host.

I mean she ultimately didnt charge you and now youre doxxing her business and left a really excessive amount of hair on her property, one person wrote, while another said: She clearly shouldnt be charging you. Some of these people do not know how to run a business and sometimes you have to eat certain fees if you want to get those longer bookings.

That being said, you didnt feel an urge to sweep up after the dog? Thats a lot of hair.

According to someone else, Maddie should have definitely said no to paying the fee.

Also, when you book with a pet included you dont see it but the rate is higher than it would be without a pet! Thats already built in! they wrote.

In a statement, an Airbnb spokesperson said: Our Community Support team had already assisted our host and guest to resolve this.

We understand this issue was due to a misunderstanding by the host, and they have since apologised to the guest who will not be charged for this.

As of now, the property has been changed to no pets.
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As if 2023 wasnt hard enough, Americans are now drinking as much alcohol as they did during the Civil War days.

A new report from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) has found that the average American drinks about the same amount of alcohol as people did in 1860.

In 2021, Americans consumed 2.51 gallons of ethanol  the alcohol found in wine, beer, and spirits  compared to 2.53 gallons at the brink of the Civil War. That amount, which doesnt include water or other ingredients found in alcoholic beverages, marks a 60 per cent increase in liquor consumption compared to the mid-1990s.

Americans have also changed their taste for alcohol. The amount of beer consumed has dropped nearly 20 per cent since 1995, while wine has steadily become Americas drink of choice. Now, 50 per cent more Americans are drinking wine than they did in the mid-1990s.

This isnt the only time the United States has seen staggering levels of alcohol consumption. In 1934, following the repeal of the Prohibition Act, Americans were drinking one gallon of ethanol per person. At the end of World War II in 1945, Americans reached 2.3 gallons. This, compared to 2.8 gallons in 1980, when alcohol consumption was at its highest.

The rise in alcohol consumption may also have to do with a key demographic: women.

In March, it was revealed that women in the US are out-drinking men for the first time in history. Dr George Koob, director of the NIAAA, recently told the Washington Examiner that binge drinking among college students are to blame.

In 2021, there has been an uptick, particularly among women. Now it turns out on college campuses women are actually binge drinking more than men, for the first time in history, he told the conservative media outlet.

The Covid-19 pandemic also saw a dramatic shift in alcohol consumption, as most states declared liquor stores were considered essential businesses. In 2020, the first year of the pandemic, sales of alcohol increased by 2.9 per cent, the biggest annual increase in more than 50 years, according to the NIAAA.

Now, with college campuses back in session and local bars open again, Koob attributed the rising trend of women binge drinking to the alcohol deprivation effect  in which people rebound in drinking after a period of abstaining from alcohol.

A standard drink is 1.5 ounces of vodka, 12 ounces of beer, or five ounces of wine, he said. When you go past a standard drink, you really are getting to the point where alcohol ultimately becomes a toxin. You can easily overdose.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says that its safe for women to drink no more than one standard alcoholic beverage a day, and no more than two for men. However, binge drinking usually corresponds to five or more drinks on a single occasion for men, while four or more drinks on a single occasion for women.
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Crystelle Pereira cant believe how time has flown in the two years since she competed in the Great British Bake Off.

Since I hit send on that application, its literally felt like I have just hit, like, times 10 in speed of life! she tells me, wide-eyed, on a video call from the home in North London she shares with her parents and one of her two sisters.

The 28-year-old  who finished runner-up to Giuseppe DellAnno in the 2021 season  was working in a fast-paced finance job when she took part.

Landing a book deal shortly after the series aired (seven publishers were vying for her signature), she waited seven months before handing in her notice to pursue a cookery career.

I wouldnt say Im a pessimist, but Im a realist, the London-born cook says.

Its very easy to quit your job and think, Oh my gosh, Im famous, this is great. But I thought, I dont want to quit my job blindly and chase my dreams. I need to think, Is this viable? Can I actually get work?'

How did she decide to finally take the plunge? It got to a point where I was like, Im just working two full-time jobs  Ive got no more annual leave, Im about to burn out.

And also I need to grab this opportunity with both hands and just do it [otherwise] I think Ill always regret it.

She hasnt looked back since: Honestly, its the best decision Ive made. [Cooking] is literally my full-time job, its no longer a side hobby that I rush to do after I finish a long day of work.

It means Ive got more time to really put into my job, Im free to go on trips to Italy to look at Parmesan, (an excursion shes embarking on soon) and obviously doing my book took up so much time.

Pereira attending the UK premiere of The Menu (Alamy/PA)

Flavour Kitchen, her debut cookbook, is a colourful ode to Pereiras Portuguese-Goan heritage (her parents met in Mumbai before moving to the UK).

Split into two halves, the savoury section features brunch bites, curries, pasta, noodles, salads and more, all bursting with international flavours, such as Goan chilli chicken fry, kimcheese toasty, and honey and chipotle baked camembert.

The sweet half is all about cakes, cookies, pies and other treats with a twist. Bake Off fans will remember the pistachio, orange and cardamom carrot cake Pereira created for her final Signature Challenge.

Goa is in the south of India, and it was colonised by the Portuguese, Pereira says, which is why Goan food is so different to the rest of Indian cuisine.

Vindaloo curry, for example, has its roots in Europe: The Portuguese had this dish called carne de vinha dalhos, a pork and wine dish. The Goans took that and swapped Portuguese wine with Goan vinegar and that became vindaloo.

Many of the savoury recipes in Flavour Kitchen feature a liberal splash of the tangy liquid.

Our food is very vinegar-based, which sounds a bit off-putting but it just works because its all balanced really well, Pereira says.

If somethings got lots of vinegar, then its offset with something sweet like jaggery, which is an unrefined sugar, or coconut, because coconuts are in abundance in Goa.

Given the choice, the adventurous cook would much rather tuck into fiery fish curry, egg fried rice with Korean gochujang chilli paste or noodles with about 10 cloves of garlic than a plate of pretentious haute cuisine.

I will be honest, this is really controversial she begins, pausing before admitting: Im not that big on French food.

Conceding that Parisian pastries are unbeatable, she continues: Im just more into pan-Asian and Mediterranean food  I just think the flavours are a bit more vibrant.

Like you think about South Korea, you think about gochujang; in Greece you think about fresh mint, coriander, lemon, halloumi; Mexico, youve got chipotle; go to the Middle East, youve got harissa, ras el hanout [spice mix], all these flavours.

The cook credits her mum and dads cooking for helping her develop a taste for the exotic, and her late grandad  to whom she dedicates the book  with overseeing her success.

He sadly he passed away before any of this took off, but I genuinely believe in life after death  I genuinely believe hes been a big part in guiding me through all of this.

I think he just knew l was going to end up in food. Funnily enough he used to call me MasterChef  we used to watch a lot of cooking shows together.

Having amassed 190,000 Instagram followers and cooked live on Good Morning America, The Today Show and ITVs Lorraine, Pereira is well on her way to celebrity chef status.

There have been many a pinch-me moment during her first year as a fully-fledged foodie, none more surreal than when she met King Charles (at that point still a Prince) at a Queens Jubilee lunch event last summer.

[Charles and Camilla] turned up and I thought, Im sure they wont come over to speak to us, Pereira recalls.

All of a sudden hes walked over and said, Oh, do you mind if I sit there? Because there was a seat next to me.

What did the pair talk about? I think I was just word-vomiting! I said Do you like baked goods? and Do you bake?

The general consensus was he doesnt bake, but he does like to eat. He likes cakes, he likes Italian cuisine. And then I was just talking to him about my style of baking and stuff. We had a merry old chat!

As well as finding herself starstruck by royals, Pereira has had to get used to being recognised by fans: It literally happened the day after the first episode, which was wild.

I was going to work, I was on the train platform  I had a mask on my face, which is even funnier. This girl comes up to me and goes, Oh my gosh, are you Crystelle from Bake Off?

Though she was recently so embarassed to be spotted at the end of spin class while red and sweaty, being asked for selfies is a small price to pay for being able to live out her dream.

I will never complain, she says. Like, no ones there like throwing things at me! If I bump into anyone on the train or on holiday or whatever everyone is genuinely so lovely, so its actually just really nice to be honest.

Flavour Kitchen: Vibrant Recipes with Creative Twists by Crystelle Pereira (Kyle Books, 22).
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A representative for Jamie Foxx has shut down conspiracy theories that the actors recent hospitalisation was due to the Covid-19 vaccine leaving him partially paralyzed and blind.

In a statement to NBC News, Foxxs representatives called the claims completely inaccurate.

The conspiracy theory began on 30 May, when Hollywood gossip columnist AJ Benza made the unsubstantiated claim on Ask Dr Drew, hosted by reality TV host Dr Drew Pinsky. During the podcast episode, Benza alleged that Foxx was forced to get the Covid-19 vaccine while he was working on a film, citing a source in the room with Foxx when he was hospitalised.

Benza claimed Foxx developed a blood clot in the brain after receiving the vaccine, which caused him at that point to be partially paralyzed and blind.

Despite Foxxs representatives refuting Benzas claims, it hasnt stopped far-right commentators from spreading the anti-vaccination conspiracy theory on the internet.

Political commentator Candace Owens peddled the theory on her YouTube-based podcast, where she has 1.67m subscribers, on 6 June. In the video, titled Whats Going On With Jamie Foxx?, Owens suggested there may be some veracity to Benzas claim because nobody in Foxxs family had denied it at the time.

Turning Point USA co-founder Charlie Kirk also weighed in on the claim, tweeting on 1 June that he was infuriated a decent person like Jamie Foxx fell victim to Big Pharma because a movie set is still dumb enough to mandate their cash cow clot shot.

Theres been much speculation surrounding Jamie Foxxs health after the 55-year-old actor was hospitalised in April following a medical complication. On 12 April, his daughter Corinne Foxx shared in a social media statement that the Django Unchained star experienced a medical complication yesterday.

Luckily, due to quick action and great care, he is already on his way to recovery. We know how beloved he is and appreciate your prayers, she said. The family asks for privacy during this time.

Foxx was filming the forthcoming Netflix film Back in Action in Georgia when he was taken to a medical facility. Many rumours soon emerged about Foxxs health. While most reports suggested that the actor was recovering, one source told Radar that his friends and family were hoping for the best  but preparing for the worst.

On 3 May, Jamie Foxx broke his silence on social media when he thanked fans for their support. Appreciate all the love!!! Feeling blessed [prayer, heart and fox emoji], the actor shared on his Instagram Story.

Meanwhile, his daughter Corinne later rebuked claims that his family were preparing for the worst and revealed that the actor had been out of the hospital for weeks.

Update from the family: Sad to see how the media runs wild. My Dad has been out of the hospital for weeks, recuperating, she shared on her Instagram on 12 May. In fact, she continued, he was playing pickleball yesterday! Thanks for everyones prayers and support! We have an exciting work announcement coming next week too!
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Jonnie Irwin has revealed that he sometimes removes himself from his family home to go to a hospice while he continues to live with terminal cancer.

The A Place in the Sun presenter, 49, first went public with his diagnosis of lung cancer last year after discovering the disease had spread to his brain.

He currently lives with his wife, Jessica Holmes, and their three children, Rex, three, and twins Rafa and Cormac, two. However, Irwin admitted that sometimes the pain he experiences makes him not good to be around.

Speaking to Hello! magazine, the TV host said: I remove myself on a number of occasions because Im not good to be around when Im in pain.

Im like a bear with a sore head and I dont want [my family] to be around that.

Irwin has previously spoken candidly about how the pain his illness causes affects his moods.

Speaking on the podcast OneChat last month, he said: I have been close to deaths door, twice at least.

You lose your memory, you lose your patience. I have got a very short temper. Its not made me a better person, thats for sure.

This week, Irwin also opened up about why he hasnt yet told his sons about his terminal cancer.

He said it would be difficult for them to understand the situation due to their young age.

I keep being asked, Are you going to tell them? but tell them what? he said.

It would be horrible news that theyd have to get their heads around. And it would confuse the hell out of Rex  hes got a shocking enough day coming. Lets bury our heads in the sand for as long as possible.

After publicly revealing his condition, the Escape to the Country host said he was worried that his children will not remember him if he died last year because theyre too young.

He told The Sun: Every time something really nice happens with them, I have this thing knocking at my door, saying, Dont get too happy because youre not going to be around much longer.

Then I think, theyre not going to remember me, theyre really not. Theyre too young and if I die this year, theres no chance they will have memories.

In early June, Irwin was admitted to hospital to be monitored due to a changeover in my pain management regime.
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Women and men who experience migraines have an increased risk of having the most common type of stroke, research has suggested.

Additionally, women alone may carry a further risk of heart attack and haemorrhagic stroke (bleeding in or around the brain).

People diagnosed with migraine are believed to have a higher risk of experiencing a heart attack or stroke before the age of 60.

Migraine was associated with a similarly increased risk of ischemic stroke among young men and women Cecilia Hvitfeldt Fuglsang, Aarhus University

Previous research had suggested the increased risk of ischemic stroke  when a blood clot blocks a blood vessel to the brain  mostly affects young women.

However, it was unclear whether women with migraine also carry a higher risk of heart attack and haemorrhagic stroke compared to men.

Cecilia Hvitfeldt Fuglsang, of Aarhus University, Denmark, and her team looked at Danish medical records collected from 1996 to 2018, from people aged 18 to 60.

They identified men and women with a history of migraines and compared their risk of a heart attack and ischemic and haemorrhagic stroke before the age of 60 to the risks faced by people in the general population without migraine.

Hvitfeldt Fuglsang said: Migraine was associated with a similarly increased risk of ischemic stroke among young men and women.

However, migraine may be associated with an increased risk of myocardial infarction and haemorrhagic stroke only among women.

The findings suggest both men and women with migraine had a similarly increased risk of ischemic stroke.

However, women with migraine may also carry a slightly higher risk of heart attack and haemorrhagic stroke, compared to men with migraine and the general population.

Women are more greatly impacted by migraine, especially since the condition is predominantly diagnosed in women, the researchers suggest.

The researchers point out that since they used prescription drug records to identify patients with migraine, they may have missed untreated people, which could have resulted in an underestimation of the contribution of migraine to these health problems.

The findings are published in the Plos Medicine journal.
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Journalists are no longer the gatekeepers. The reality is that many young people are now bypassing the websites and apps of traditional news outlets and seeking information on social media platforms, including TikTok.

Its the fastest growing social network, according to the Reuters Institute Digital News Report, and new research has found that 20% of 18-24 year olds use the app solely to find their news. While a massive 44% of that age group use the short-form video hosting service for any and every other purpose.

The younger generation have little interest in many conventional news offers oriented towards older generations habits, interests, values, and instead embrace the more personality-based, participatory, and personalised options offered by social media, said Reuters Institute director Rasmus Nielsen.

Under 18s are big users too, so for parents whose teens get their news via TikTok, what do you need to understand about the social network and the evolution of digital media literacy?

What is TikTok?

Every so often a new app emerges and redefines the way we use social media. Its what TikTok went and did in 2016.

Starting as a small niche social media network  founded by Chinese tech giant Zhang Yiming  that attracted lip-synching teens as a short-form video hosting site, it almost knocked Facebook off its perch, and blew up during the coronavirus pandemic to a mega global platform.

Do news organisations share news on it?

Yes, they do. In many ways, traditional news organisations were forced to join TikTok to avoid being left behind, reach new and younger audiences and ensure they are continuing to find creative ways to pivot in a constantly evolving digital space.

Given the popularity and high engagement level, its not surprising that TikTok has become an important news platform for younger audiences, and it makes sense that news organisations are using it, said Mark Brill, a senior lecturer in Future Media at Birmingham City University. This, however, is a continuation of an existing trend. For well over a decade social media such as Facebook has been the primary news source for under 25s.

Anna Lee, founder at the Fr. App, added: We can see that Gen Z individuals are turning to TikTok for any and all searches. While the funniest sound bites and newest dance trends will always have a home on TikTok, you can also equally expect to find videos explaining an arbitrary housing act.

How is it shared?

There are various types of videos that can be shared on TikTok. Alongside the short bite-sized videos sharing the latest news, you can share trending sounds, things creators have posted, or videos with friends, family, and your larger community within TikTok or through other social media platforms.

Videos can also be shared directly to other users, as long as the user has allowed for it.

How do algorithms work?

The TikTok algorithm is a recommendation system that determines which videos will appear on your (unique and highly personalised) For You page, which is also known as the homepage.

Brill, who has 25 years of experience applying emerging technologies to engage audiences, said: Much of the success of TikTok is the way that their algorithm decides which videos to show their users. TikToks system is based entirely on their interests and previous viewing.

This more of what you like approach means that users spend more time each month in TikTok than any other platform. In the UK it adds up to over 27 hours per user per month and 23 hours globally. It shows how the platforms algorithm can be highly addictive.

Is it OK that TikTok is how young people learn about whats happening in the world?

Some experts believe it is important for young people to be taught digital literacy at an increasingly earlier age  especially with the prevalence of fake news and artificial intelligence and its ability to forge fake articles and pictures.

Users of TikTok and all other social media apps must understand how to evaluate every piece of information they come across, Lee said. All parents worry about their child viewing harmful content on the internet. However, most leading internet providers provide extensive parental controls, including blocking and filtering unsuitable content.

Should they be encouraged to look elsewhere?

For Brill, there are both benefits and challenges from using social media as a news source. He also cites the recent Reuters Institute report, which noted that TikTok users tend to look for good-news stories, avoiding the doom scrolling found in web-based internet sites, which can have a negative impact on mental health.

The big question with social media sources, however, is that of veracity. A lack of fact checking and or acknowledgment of authoritative sources makes it difficult to identify fake stories and information. The short-form video format does not bring an in-depth analysis, where opinions are often presented as fact, he said.

Perhaps the biggest challenge for TikTok users is with the algorithm itself. By giving more of what they like, it leads to confirmation bias that reinforces existing perceptions.

While child and behavioural expert Amanda Jenner, would encourage parents to tell their children to look elsewhere.

I am not a believer in directing children to learn through TikTok at all. Children can easily become addicted to social media and [it] can quickly escalate and [they could] be looking at other things they shouldnt be watching.

I genuinely do feel parents need to be worried. I would encourage parents to set an age where its acceptable to have TikTok (over the age of 13 preferably) and have a parental control app so you can monitor and control what both they are seeing and the amount of time they spend on [it]. They need to be safeguarded.

Who knows what social network will be the next big thing but right now its difficult to get young people to migrate to another platform.
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Republican politician Robby Starbuck has been threatened with legal action after he used an unapproved paparazzi photo of actor Megan Fox and her children to launch into claims of child abuse.

According to TMZ, photo agency Backgrid sent the former GOP congressional candidate a legal letter on Tuesday (13 June), accusing him of infringing on their copyright to the picture of Megan Fox and her three sons  Noah, 10, Bodhi, nine and Journey, six. The image showed Foxs eldest son Noah wearing a pink long-sleeved T-shirt and tie-dye shorts, while Bodhi and Journey were dressed in dark T-shirts and trousers.

Starbuck tweeted the paparazzi photo on 8 June, alongside claims that the Transformers star forced her sons to wear girls clothes in an act of pure child abuse. Fox then clapped back at Starbucks claims of child abuse when she posted a screenshot of his tweet to Instagram, referring to him as a clout chaser and desperate to acquire wealth, power, success or fame in the caption.

In the legal letter obtained by TMZ, Backgrid claimed that Starbuck did not purchase or license their photo before he published it on Twitter. The photo agency maintained that the image was not within fair use, in which third parties are allowed to use copyrighted works without permission in certain limited circumstances.

Backgrid also argued that Starbuck cannot claim his use of the photo was for political purposes. The letter read: While historically not always the case, we expect those who hope to serve as our elected representatives to lead by example and fully comply with federal law. Today, we demand you do so.

Its unclear whether Backgrid is seeking monetary compensation after Starbuck used their photo.

The Independent has contacted Backgrid for comment.

Last week, Robby Starbuck  who ran in the Republican primary for Tennessees fifth district in 2022  claimed that he saw two of Megan Foxs sons have a full on breakdown after they were forced by their mom to wear girls clothes.

These are Megan Foxs sons. We used to live in the same gated community and our kids played at the park, Starbuck captioned the tweet. I saw two of them have a full on breakdown saying they were forced by their mom to wear girls clothes as their nanny tried to console them. Its pure child abuse. Pray for them.

Megan Fox then responded to Robby Starbuck on Instagram, writing: Hey @robbystarbuck I really dont want to give you this attention because clearly youre a clout chaser. But let me teach you something.

Irregardless [sic] of how desperate you may have become at any given time to acquire wealth, power, success or fame  never use children as leverage or social currency. Especially under malevolent and erroneous pretense, the mother-of-three said.

Exploiting my childs gender identity to gain attention in your political campaign has put you on the wrong side of the universe, the Jennifers Body star added. I have been burned at the stake by insecure, narcissistic, impotent little men like you many times and yet Im still here. You f***ed with the wrong witch.

Megan Foxs ex-husband and the father of her three children, Brian Austin Green, has also come to his ex-wifes defense. In a statement to TMZ, the 49-year-old actor denied Robby Starbucks claims that he saw Foxs children have a full on breakdown and his allegations of child abuse.

Its a totally bogus story, Green told TMZ. There are only a few people in their world that can actually verify wether [sic] or not a story like this is true and I can tell you with absolute certainty it is not. This person trying to claim this is true is a perfect example of someone with selfish motives that does not care about negatively affecting a parent child relationship.

The Beverly Hills, 90210 alumadded: As a society I hope we continue to push to be better. This Robby Starbuck person is full of s***, and I have no idea who he is.
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A Reddit user has gone viral after revealing that they were asked to tip at a self-checkout line at an airport. Now their post has sparked a debate about gratuity, as many people believe that tipping culture in the United States has gotten out of hand.

A woman with the username u/_seaweed_ went viral on Reddit earlier this week when she came across a point-of-sale (POS) system for transactions at Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey, she revealed in a comment.

In the image, which was posted to the popular Reddit forum r/mildlyinfuriating, she had rung up a pre-packaged chicken caesar wrap for $14.99 and a bottle of Vita coconut water for $6.39. After tax, her total had come to $23.05, before she was prompted to leave a tip at the self-checkout machine.

Would you like to leave a tip? the tip screen read, with the options to leave a 15 per cent, 18 per cent, or 20 per cent tip, and no tip at all. She captioned the Reddit post: It finally happened. I was prompted to tip at the airport self-checkout station.

The post received more than 108k interactions and over 4,700 comments on Reddit, as many people shared their equal frustration at being prompted to leave tips at self-checkout. Some internet users argued that they shouldnt leave a tip at all because they bagged their own items.

Tip who exactly? read the top comment from u/Head-Investment-8462. One person replied: The robotic overlords

I had this conversation with my brother last week, another user shared. Tip who? Myself? Am I the employee now? Are yall gonna send me a paycheck and a W2? Can I put this on my resume?

Tipping for self checkout is absolutely stupid, said someone else. If anything, you should get a discount for doing the cashiers job for them. Ridiculous.

Others shared how tip screens prompt them to feel guilt tipping at self-checkout lines  in which they leave more sizable tips when they normally wouldnt.

My partner panics every time these come up and doesnt want to seem rude ever and always tips any time it prompts. Its a horrible system that traps some people into feeling guilty if they dont, said one person.

American tip culture has gotten out of hand, another wrote. Its f***ing embarrassing how they all have their hands out for simply doing their job, or in this case, doing nothing at all.

A recent report from theWall Street Journal revealed that Americans have turned a corner on tipping culture. Since the Covid-19 pandemic, the report suggested that tipping practices have rapidly changed, as customers are being prompted to leave tips in self-checkout lines at airports, grocery stores, stadiums, and cafes.

While companies and organisations claimed that tipping is completely optional and tips at self-checkout stations are split between staff members, some customers said that being prompted to tip in a self-checkout situation feels like emotional blackmail  a means of guilt-tripping customers into tipping even when they ordinarily wouldnt.

In the US, its customary to leave between 15 and 20 per cent of the total bill before tax is included. Some people say that 18 per cent is the bare minimum, while others argue that a 20 per cent tip is standard  for restaurants, fast-casual establishments, food delivery drivers, and bartenders.

Last year, a woman on TikTok went viral after claiming that she was asked to tip an airport worker for checking her bag. In the video, TikTok user Addysen Drake said: Tell me why when I get to the airport, after paying $400 for a flight, and Im going to pay for my $35 checked bag, the guy says to me: OK, you have to pay in credit card, but you can tip in cash.

Drake claimed that when she took out her credit card, the worker handed her an iPad screen and asked her, What would you like to leave for a tip?

What am I tipping that man for? What do we pay all this money for? she said.
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A Greek diver has found a special ops British submarine from the Second World War that was last seen in 1942  ending a nearly 25-year-long search for the warship that had undertaken several difficult and dangerous missions.

The HMS Triumph was finally found by veteran diver Kostas Thoctarides in what he said was the hardest mission I have ever undertaken in my life.

He announced the discovery of the long-lost submarine last week at an undisclosed location beneath the Aegean Sea.

The submarines wreckage was found at the bottom of the sea about tens of kilometres off Greeces coast, based on inputs on the site by researchers from Britain, Greece, Germany and Italy.

The history of the submarine Triumph is multidimensional and unique in maritime history, and is inseparable to national resistance and the secret services that acted in the dark days of occupation, Mr Thoctarides said in a Facebook post.

After intense operational action and 21 war patrols, Triumph will be lost in the blue waters of the Aegean on January 9, 1942, he said after discovering the submarine.

In videos posted by Mr Thoctarides of the wreckage site, the sunken submarines compass, deck gun and steering wheel can be seen.

The submarine started operations in May 1939 and carried out 20 combat patrols over the course of the war, during which it sank several enemy ships and the Italian submarine Salpa.

It is known to have undertaken several difficult and dangerous missions, including the landing of agents of British intelligence missions as well as rescuing trapped military soldiers fleeing to Alexandria, Egypt.

The submarines last known patrol, according to experts, was in Nazi-occupied Greece, carrying lieutenant John Huddart and his crew of over 60 men after delivering MI9 officers and Greek resistance fighters ashore at Antiparos island.

On 26 December 1941 the submarine would depart from Alexandria for its final mission after which it would then return to England for general repair and long-term maintenance, the veteran diver said.

On its 21st patrol, the submarines mission was to carry out two special operations and conduct an aggressive patrol in a specific area of the Aegean Sea as well.

One of its top-secret missions was to transfer financial assistance in aid of those in occupied Athens as well as two sets of radio transmitters for communication with Cairo.

Its second secret mission was to coordinate the escape of 30 British refugees in Antiparos.

But the submarine never returned, and the escapees were known to have been recaptured.

At the time it was lost, the submarine was known to have carried 64 people: seven officers, 55 crew members and two commandos who were operating vessels carrying supplies and people to and from the Triumph.

The submarine likely sank following a high-powered explosion in its anterior section.

Experts, including Mr Thoctarides, believe all 64 people died in the submarine, making the wreckage site a maritime war grave.

Wreckage of ships and submarines lost from the Second World War era, along with their crew, continue to be discovered in many parts of the world.

In April, maritime researchers discovered a sunken Japanese ship that was torpedoed off the Philippines coast in 1942.

The merchant ship was carrying 864 soldiers from Australia, resulting in one of the countrys biggest losses during the war.
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Workers at online giant Amazon have voted to continue their campaign of industrial action for another six months in a dispute over pay.

The GMB said its members based at the companys site in Coventry backed more strikes by 99% on a turnout of 54%.

The union said almost 800 Amazon workers were on strike on Wednesday, the 19th day of industrial action since the dispute flared.

Some GMB members met MPs in Parliament to seek support for their campaign.

Senior organiser Amanda Gearing said: The vote for six more months of strike action at Amazon Coventry shows these workers are in it for the long haul.

These workers are angry, they know their rights and they will not go away.

An Amazon spokesperson said: We regularly review our pay to ensure we offer competitive wages and benefits.

Over the past year, our minimum pay has risen by 10% and by more than 37% since 2018.

We also work hard to provide great benefits, a positive work environment and excellent career opportunities. These are just some of the reasons people want to come and work at Amazon, whether its their first job, a seasonal role or an opportunity for them to advance their career.

The GMB also held strike ballots among its members working for Amazon in Mansfield and Rugeley.

Neither made the legal threshold but the union said the Rugeley ballot only missed out by four votes.

Amanda Gearing, GMB senior organiser, said: These were some of first ever ballots for industrial action at Amazon sites in the UK, but in the case of Rugeley, we missed the punishing legal threshold by four votes.

Amazon workers are angry. This is just a stepping stone on their journey in the fight for 15 an hour.

GMB is now talking with activists on sites to set out how we take that fight forward.

 Unions involved in industrial disputes have to hold a fresh ballot every six months to ask their members if they want to continue taking action.
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A devoted father-of-two was making up to 100 bets a day on betting websites and had previously racked up 18,000 in debts due to a pervasive gambling addiction before he took his own life, an inquest has heard.

Luke Ashton, 40, from Leicester, who died on April 22 2021, was a happy man who had no diagnosed mental health issues, his wife Annie told an inquest into her husbands death on Wednesday.

She said they lived a happy family life and Mr Ashton did not want to die but he had a gambling addiction that he did not understand or recognise that was causing him pain and harm, the hearing at Leicester Coroners Court was told.

Examinations of Mr Ashtons betting records had shown he had previously gambled up to 100 times a day including early in the morning and late at night when his wife was in bed and had put bets on greyhound racing and womens netball, Professor Dame Clare Gerada, president of the Royal College of GPs who specialises in addiction issues, said at the inquest.

In a report on his death that was put together for area coroner Ivan Cartwright, Professor Dame Gerada said she believed Mr Ashton was suffering with a longstanding and pervasive gambling disorder and not depression.

When he told me, he was so sorry and didn't really understand it. He said he hated it. He took full responsibility and tried to make amends Annie Ashton

Mrs Ashton told the hearing, which was attended by representatives of Flutter UK & Ireland, the parent company of gambling operator Betfair, which was made an interested person in the inquest, how her husband admitted to her that he had taken out loans and had got into debts of around 18,000 in 2019.

She said she did not realise at the time that her husband had a gambling addiction because he was really sorry about what had happened and they managed to pay off what he owed quickly as they were in the process of selling their first home at the time and they used cash from the sale to settle the debts.

She said: When he told me, he was so sorry and didnt really understand it. He said he hated it. He took full responsibility and tried to make amends.

Mrs Ashton, who had been with her husband since 2008 but had known him since 1992 when they were at secondary school together, suggested he see a counsellor about the issue, but he declined because the money he owed had been paid off and he was feeling better.

She said: He said when he was gambling, he was just trying to get enough money back to pay off the loans and he hated doing it.

Luke was a bright, happy and bubbly person, who easily made friends ... he had an intelligent, witty sense of humour with a mesmerising, cheeky, unforgettable giggle Annie Ashton

Mrs Ashton said she believed her husband stopped gambling at the end of 2019 and early 2020 and things had gone back to normal, but that he started again during the pandemic when he was furloughed from his full-time job, instead taking up part-time delivery work for a friend.

Wednesdays inquest, which is expected to last until Friday, did not discuss the details of the day Mr Ashton took his own life or his cause of death, but it was heard that he had not been honest with his wife or his work colleagues about where he was that day.

He had left a number of notes for his wife and children that mentioned gambling twice and he admitted he was suffering with demons.

Barrister Philip Kolvin, representing Flutter, said the notes suggested Mr Ashton may have been suffering a mental health condition that pre-dated his experiences with gambling.

However, when asked by barrister Jesse Nicholls, who was at the hearing representing the Ashton family, if Mrs Ashton believed her husbands death was caused by gambling, she replied: Yes.

In a tribute to her husband, Mrs Ashton said: Luke was a bright, happy and bubbly person, who easily made friends. I first met Luke in 1992, in secondary school, and even then, he had an intelligent, witty sense of humour with a mesmerising, cheeky, unforgettable giggle.

She added: Our children wanted for nothing, he was a real rock to us all, but in reality, he masked his own pain, to protect us from what he was going through.

Luke did not suffer from mental health problems, he led a happy family life and had a good work ethic. However, Luke was suffering from a gambling addiction and unfortunately this was an illness he did not understand or recognise.

I believe Luke blamed himself, not knowing the facts about his illness and consequently was consumed by how it made him feel.

Luke did not want to die, he had everything he wanted. The only thing he did not want was the pain and harm he was experiencing from gambling.

We are absolutely committed to safe gambling and to protecting all our customers. We hold ourselves to the very highest standards in the industry Ian Brown, chief executive of Flutter

In a statement issued before the inquest started on Wednesday, Ian Brown, chief executive of Flutter, said: We wish to reiterate our sincere condolences to Mrs Ashton and her family. We are truly sorry for their loss.

Across Flutter UKI, we are absolutely committed to safe gambling and to protecting all our customers. We hold ourselves to the very highest standards in the industry.

We are constantly learning and updating our processes and we have made many changes over the past three years to make gambling with our brands even safer. We will, of course, incorporate any additional learnings from this tragic case into our controls.

The inquest continues.
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Boris Johnson has urged the Commons Privileges Committee to publish its report on whether he lied to Parliament over partygate and let the world judge their nonsense.

In a statement on Tuesday, the former prime minister lashed out at the panels absurdly unfair rules, which he said prevented him from criticising its findings, and vowed to make his views clear when they are released.

It came after the committee said Mr Johnson had made last-minute representations ahead of the release of its report, which is expected to find that he deliberately misled MPs with his assurances that lockdown rules were followed in Downing Street.

The Privileges Committee should publish their report and let the world judge their nonsense Boris Johnson

The committee said it was dealing with submissions received from the ex-premier at 11.57pm on Monday.

The publication of its findings had already been pushed back towards the end of this week, reportedly due to printing problems in Parliament, before Mr Johnsons 11th-hour representations.

In response, Mr Johnson said: The Privileges Committee should publish their report and let the world judge their nonsense.

They have no excuse for delay.

Their absurdly unfair rules do not even allow any criticism of their findings.

I have made my views clear to the committee in writing  and will do so more widely when they finally publish.

Mr Johnson previously attacked the seven-person committee, which is chaired by veteran Labour MP Harriet Harman but has a Conservative majority, as a kangaroo court when he announced his Commons exit on Friday after receiving a draft of its findings.

A Privileges Committee spokesman said on Tuesday: A letter enclosing further representations from Mr Johnson was received by the committee at 11.57pm last night.

The committee is dealing with these and will report promptly.

The MPs on the panel have rejected Mr Johnsons defence that senior officials advised him Covid rules and guidance had been followed in No 10, according to the Times.

A senior aide in fact warned him against claiming to the Commons that social distancing guidelines were observed, the newspaper reported.

Following his shock resignation, Mr Johnson launched into a public spat with one-time ally Rishi Sunak over his resignation honours list.

The Prime Minister suggested his former boss wanted him to ignore the recommendations of the House of Lords Appointments Commission.

Mr Johnsons camp accused him of having secretly blocked the peerages of former culture secretary Nadine Dorries and other allies in his resignation list.

The former prime minister released a statement saying: Rishi Sunak is talking rubbish.

To honour these peerages it was not necessary to overrule Holac  but simply to ask them to renew their vetting, which was a mere formality.

One Downing Street source said the Cabinet Office had made it clear to Mr Johnson that there is no re-vetting process, while the Prime Ministers spokesman said it is entirely untrue to say that anyone from No 10 attempted to remove or change the list.

Meanwhile, Ms Dorries appears still not to have formally resigned as a Tory MP after dramatically announcing her exit from Westminster shortly before Mr Johnson last week.

The former Cabinet minister, who accused the Prime Minister of duplicitously and cruelly blocking her elevation to the House of Lords, on Friday said she would be standing down with immediate effect.

With Mr Johnson and ally Nigel Adams also quitting, Mr Sunak was left facing three challenging by-elections.

The PA news agency understands that Chief Whip Simon Hart will move a motion known as a writ on Wednesday for by-elections in Mr Johnsons Uxbridge and South Ruislip and Mr Adams Selby and Ainsty seat, giving between 21 and 27 working days for votes to be held.

But a third by-election in Ms Dorries Mid Bedfordshire constituency is on hold while she delays her formal resignation, thwarting the Conservatives aim to limit the political damage by holding all three contests on the same day.

Despite the expected findings of the Privileges Committee this week, Mr Johnson insisted Ill be back, quoting Arnold Schwarzeneggers Terminator.

In the Daily Express, Mr Johnson said We must fully deliver on Brexit and on the 2019 manifesto. We must smash Labour at the next election.

Nothing less than absolute victory and total Brexit will do  and as the great Arnold Schwarzenegger said, Ill be back.

The message echoed Mr Johnsons sign-off during his final appearance at Prime Ministers Questions last year, when he told MPs Hasta la vista, baby  the catchphrase of Schwarzeneggers cyborg character in the 1991 movie Terminator 2: Judgment Day.
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A psychopathic hammer attacker has been jailed for at least 28 years for realising his depraved fantasy to kill a random stranger in a Gothic graveyard.

Erik Feld, 37, had a long-standing obsession with extreme violence before he killed Ranjith Kankanamalage in a premediated attack, the Old Bailey heard.

Beforehand, Feld fed his fixation by buying a kitten in order to kill it and watching snuff films online of men and women being bludgeoned with hammers, the Old Bailey heard.

In the early hours of August 16 2021, Feld hid in the shadows behind a monument in Tower Hamlets cemetery in east London before hitting his prey 12 times in the face and head with a claw hammer.

The 50-year-old victim was found with catastrophic injuries by a member of the public on a path in cemetery park later the same morning.

In his trial, Feld concocted what the judge described as a preposterous cock-and-bull story and launched a homophobic rant at the victim, who had an ex-wife and two children in Sri Lanka and an ex-civil partner in the UK.

Feld was found guilty of murder in March and, on Wednesday, Mr Justice Bryan jailed him for life with a minimum term of 28 years.

The judge said it was an horrific and abhorrent murder.

He said that Feld had picked a creepy and Gothic setting because it fitted in with his long-standing desire to kill a stranger with a hammer and Mr Kankanamalage had the severe misfortune to encounter him.

Mr Justice Bryan told Feld his selfish, callous, abhorrent actions carried out to fulfil your depraved fantasy had a devastating impact on Mr Kankanamalages loved ones.

(Mr Kankanamalage) was a senior bank manager in Sri Lanka, a very accomplished athlete who won gold medals and completed two degrees in Sri Lanka as well as academic courses in the UK Mr Kankanamalage's daughter, Hiruni

The judge agreed with barristers in the case that the starting point for sentencing was 25 years  rather than 30 years if murder was aggravated by hostility to his victims sexual orientation.

Feld had 10 previous convictions for 18 offences between 2002 to August 19 2021 including criminal damage, sex assault, battery and possession of an offensive weapon.

Among the offences: he had brandished an axe at passengers on the London Underground and sprayed black paint on his face and the word kill on a Tube window, the court was told.

Feld was arrested on August 20 2021 as he was awaiting sentence for waving a claw hammer outside a Poundland store two days after the killing.

A search of his home in Tower Hamlets, east London, uncovered two mallets and a sledge hammer in a hallway cupboard, and a third mallet in a living-room cupboard.

He was re-arrested in January 2022 after his DNA was found on bloodstained nail clippings from the left hand of his victim and he was spotted on CCTV footage in the area of the cemetery.

In a fresh search of his flat, police found another hammer and a cut-throat razor by Felds pillow.

Prosecutor Paul Cavin KC read a series of victim impact statements, including one from the victims daughter, Hiruni, on behalf of herself, her mother and younger brother who watched the sentencing by video link from Sri Lanka.

She described him as a kind and friendly person with life-long love of learning and an ambition to qualify in accountancy.

She said: He was a senior bank manager in Sri Lanka, a very accomplished athlete who won gold medals and completed two degrees in Sri Lanka as well as academic courses in the UK.

He was hoping to apply to become a British citizen and resume his career in banking, she added: Before his dream came true, he was brutally murdered.

Former civil partner John Kennedy told how he met Mr Kankanamalage at the Hilton Hotel in Heathrow where the victim was working at the time.

He said the realisation of what happened to him hit me like a ton of bricks and he was consumed be grief, depression and deep sadness.

He also felt sad for Mr Kankanamalages family in Sri Lanka, saying: This was such a cruel and cowardly attack on a gentle and kind man who was just chilling in the park.

In mitigation, Andrew Morris highlighted Felds severe personality disorder.

The defendants mother died when he was aged 11, he had no relationship with his father and grew up in an abusive household, Mr Morris said.

Feld stood with his arms crossed in the dock and made no reaction as he was sent down.

Detective Chief Superintendent James Conway, of Scotland Yard, said: Erik Felds actions demonstrated a brutal low of humanity, but the response of the communities across Tower Hamlets following Ranjiths murder showed the opposite  people coming together to support each other, with the aim of ensuring the person responsible for this attack was brought to justice.

From the outset, our officers investigated this as if it were a hate crime, but throughout the police investigation Feld has never disclosed why he attacked Ranjith with such force. He is clearly a violent and dangerous man and, as demonstrated by comments made during his trial, one who is fuelled by homophobia.

Julius Capon, head of CPS London Homicide, said: In this case, the CPS and Metropolitan Police Service gave careful consideration as to whether we had sufficient evidence to prove that this offence came within the definition of homophobic aggravation for the purposes of sentencing. All agreed that we could not prove that Felds actions were either motivated by homophobic hostility or that such hostility was demonstrated at the time of committing the offence.

Lutfur Rahman, executive mayor of Tower Hamlets, said: I hope todays sentence brings some comfort and justice to the friends and family of Ranjith Kankanamalage, whose violent murder deeply affected the community in Tower Hamlets and beyond.

There is no place for hate in Tower Hamlets and we will continue to come together to oppose extremism and racism in all its forms.
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A convicted Satanist neo-Nazi has admitted a string of fresh crimes committed after being spared jail as a teenager two years ago.

Harry Vaughan, from Twickenham, south-west London, was aged 18 when he admitting 14 terror offences and two of possessing indecent images of children.

The Old Bailey had heard he developed an interest in right wing extremism, Satanism, the occult, and violence after disappearing down a rabbit hole of the internet from the age of 14.

Sentencing him in November 2020, Mr Justice Sweeney acknowledged the A-star students parents were committed to helping him change for the better.

The material demonstrated unequivocally that Vaughan had an entrenched extreme right-wing and racist mindset, as well as an interest in explosives, firearms and violence more generally Dan Pawson-Pounds, prosecutor

The senior judge handed Vaughan a two-year suspended sentence along with a 60-day rehabilitation order and a terrorist notification order for 10 years.

On Wednesday, 21-year-old Vaughan, who now goes by the name of Harry Blake, returned to the Old Bailey and pleaded guilty to making an indecent photograph of a child in September 2022.

He had also admitted three charges of possessing extreme pornographic videos, three counts of failing to comply with a Serious Crime Prevention Order and three breaches of his notification order.

The breaches which began just a month after his original sentence related to failing to tell authorities about an email address and details of crypocurrentcy accounts.

Judge Sarah Munro KC adjourned sentencing until July 21 and remanded the defendant in custody.

In 2020, prosecutor Dan Pawson-Pounds had said the defendant was considered a focused and able student at Tiffin Grammar in Kingston-upon-Thames, south-west London.

He was arrested at his family home on June 19 2019 in a counter-terror probe into Fascist Forge  an online forum used by extreme, right-wing militants.

In a March 2018 application to join the System Resistance Network  an alias of the banned neo-Nazi group National Action  he wrote: I could handle myself in a fight. There is nothing I wouldnt do to further the cause.

Police found 4,200 images and 302 files, including an extreme, right-wing terrorist book and documents relating to Satanism, neo-Nazism and antisemitism, on his computer and other devices.

Files included graphics encouraging acts of terrorism in the name of the proscribed terror organisation Sonnenkrieg Division, a guide to killing people, and bomb-making manuals.

Mr Pawson-Pounds said Vaughan had also looked on Google maps for the locations of schools near his home and searched for explosives and plastic pipes.

He said: The material demonstrated unequivocally that Vaughan had an entrenched extreme right-wing and racist mindset, as well as an interest in explosives, firearms and violence more generally.

He also demonstrated an interest in the occult and Satanism.

The court was also told that the defendants loving parents had been left with a sense of bewilderment at his arrest of their son, who went on to be diagnosed with high-functioning autism.

Defence barrister Naeem Mian KC had said: He is somebody who has disappeared down a rabbit hole, a rabbit hole of the internet, and he is in a very, very dark place, or certainly was. And he was there, it would appear, from the age of about 14.

Vaughan had originally pleaded guilty to one count of encouragement of terrorism, one count of disseminating a terrorist publication, 12 counts of possessing a document containing information of a kind likely to be of use to a person preparing or committing an act of terrorism, and two counts of making an indecent photograph of a child.
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A investigation has been launched after a 34-year-old man died on railway tracks in south London shortly after being involved in a car chase with Metropolitan Police officers.

The Met Police said that a car heading towards Streatham High Road failed to stop for officers.

A vehicle pursuit was authoritised by the force and officers followed the car for a short time, indicating it should stop.

The man fled from the scene after crashing his car in Brunswick Mews, Streatham and police lost sight of the suspect near Potters Lane.

A police helicopter was called to aid the search and the man was spotted lying on railway lines near Estreham Road.

The power lines were turned off by National Rail. Officers and parademics approached the man but he was pronounced dead at the scene.

He has been identified as a 34-year-old man. His next of kin have been informed. An investigation has been launched following the mans death.

Officers from the Mets Directorate of Professional Standards have been informed.

The police watchdog, The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC), have also been told and have declared this an independent investigation.
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The film wizard who was instrumental in bringing the Harry Potter movies to life turned down the chance to be at a new tour opening of the series in order to become an OBE.

Dan Dark, 59, the Warner Bros executive vice president of worldwide studio operations, said deciding to make the trip from his home in Los Angeles for an investiture ceremony at Windsor Castle rather than for a tour grand opening was an easy choice.

After collecting his honour for his services to the UK film industry, proudly watched by his wife Red and children Rebecca and Tom, Mr Dark said: Tomorrow we open a new Harry Potter tour in Tokyo which is going to be absolutely spectacular. Many of the team are out there.

I am a great believer in honour and I am a great believer in respect. I wanted to honour and respect the fact I had been given the award Dan Dark, Warner Bros

I had a choice, go to the opening event of our studio tour or do I go receive my OBE? It was not a difficult decision.

I am a great believer in honour and I am a great believer in respect. I wanted to honour and respect the fact I had been given the award.

I think the health of the UK film and TV industry is really strong. I still believe we have the greatest environment for big blockbuster film production and we have the best technicians in the world, and long may that continue.

He has long-standing ties to Warner Bros. Studios Leavesden, which he originally helped build.

In the mid-90s, Eon Productions approached him to develop Leavesden aerodrome into a studio for the production of Goldeneye.

He went on to run the site as a film studio which became home to the Harry Potter films, before it became Warner Bros. Studios Leavesden in 2011.

Mr Dark said he was humbled to have been given the honour but he is especially proud of the relationships the studios had formed with the community in Three Rivers and Watford.

He said the pinch-me moments for me are when I am helping other people and when one can make a difference to other people.

He said anything to do with Harry Potter is extraordinary, adding: I started at Leavesden in 1994 when we first took over the facility for the James Bond movie Goldeneye. Then, after a number of years, we took over the facility for all of the Harry Potter films.

It was an old 1940s aircraft factory and so somewhat challenging to be creating movie magic in an old factory with a leaking roof, no power and no heating.

I think it is fair to say that on the first one and two Harry Potters, we did not quite know what we had. I recall the premiere of the last Harry Potter film and it was just the most extraordinary experience.

The feeling from the fans was just unimaginable and it lives on.

He moved from London to LA to oversee studio operations for Warner Bros, in both Burbank and Leavesden, as well as production services, which includes set lighting, grip, costume, property, archives, transportation, construction and office services, and worldwide security.

Queen Elizabeth IIs racing manager John Warren and Terry Pendry, the stud groom who held the reins of her pony Emma as the funeral cortege entered Windsor Castle, were also made members of the Royal Victorian Order (RVO) at the ceremony.

These are in recognition of their service to the Queen and are part of the Demise honours.

The RVO honours are in the Kings gift and are bestowed independently of Downing Street to people who have served the monarch or the royal family in a personal way.

Other people receiving royal honours included Denise Lewis, 50, who was made a dame as president of Commonwealth Games England and for services to sport.

All-rounder Moeen Ali, 35, who has come out of Test retirement to join the England squad in the Ashes Tests against Australia, was made an OBE for his services to cricket.

Ali was allowed to miss training to attend the ceremony ahead of the first Ashes test.

Explorer Sir David Hempleman-Adams became the first person to be awarded Polar Medals by two monarchs for his expeditions to the Arctic and Antarctic.

Sir Davids first medal was awarded by the late Queen for services to the UK in the field of polar research for work in both regions up to 2012.

The King awarded him the second bar to his Polar Medal for his work in the Arctic and Antarctic up to 2022.
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A British Sign Language GCSE is one step closer to being taught in schools as the Government launches a consultation on the content of the subject.

The Government is aiming for the British Sign Language (BSL) GCSE to be first taught to pupils in England from September 2025.

Views on the qualification  including the language skills to be studied and the role of history  are being sought from teachers, employers and the deaf and hearing communities in a 12-week consultation.

This new qualification will break down barriers, advance equality of opportunity, and celebrate the history and rich culture of British Sign Language Education Secretary Gillian Keegan

In 2018, the Government said it would consider introducing a GCSE in BSL after deaf schoolboy Daniel Jillings campaigned for the new qualification and his family launched a legal challenge to get one instated as quickly as possible.

It is understood that the development of the GCSE was delayed due to the pandemic.

The Department for Education (DfE) said it had been working with subject experts, stakeholders and schools to develop proposed content to ensure that the new BSL GCSE was internationally recognised.

Pupils who studied the new GCSE would learn how to use BSL in work, social and academic settings and they would be given an understanding of the history of sign language in the UK, the DfE has said.

At their best, qualifications increase opportunities and break down barriers. This GCSE in British Sign Language will do that by encouraging more people to study the language, so Im delighted to be launching our consultation Dr Jo Saxton, Ofqual

Education Secretary Gillian Keegan said: It is fantastic that British Sign Language will soon be taught in schools up and down the country.

Good communication is essential both inside and outside the workplace and this historic GCSE will give students a vital life skill valued by employers.

This new qualification will break down barriers, advance equality of opportunity, and celebrate the history and rich culture of British Sign Language.

Last year, British Sign Language was recognised in law as a language of Great Britain in the BSL Act.

It is hoped the new GCSE will help advance inclusivity within education.

BSL is a native British language used by tens of thousands of people, so its only fair and right that BSL users should have the opportunity to achieve a GCSE in their own, legally recognised language Susan Daniels, National Deaf Childrens Society

Dr Jo Saxton, chief regulator of Ofqual, said: At their best, qualifications increase opportunities and break down barriers.

This GCSE in British Sign Language will do that by encouraging more people to study the language, so Im delighted to be launching our consultation on how students should be assessed in this exciting new GCSE.

Susan Daniels, chief executive of the National Deaf Childrens Society (NDCS), said: Were delighted that a GCSE in British Sign Language (BSL) is now a step closer.

BSL is a native British language used by tens of thousands of people, so its only fair and right that BSL users should have the opportunity to achieve a GCSE in their own, legally recognised language.

This qualification will help to break down communication barriers between deaf and hearing people and educate more people about the deaf community and culture.

We have been working towards a BSL GCSE for over 12 years now, so this feels like a milestone moment Lindsay Foster, executive director at Signature

Lindsay Foster, executive director at Signature, an awarding body for deaf communication and language qualifications in the UK, said: We have been working towards a BSL GCSE for over 12 years now, so this feels like a milestone moment.

She added: From the secondary schools we have spoken with, around 60% have told us that they would like to offer this as part of their curriculum.

We really hope that over the years to come we see this in as many schools as possible.
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The Prince of Wales has paid tribute to a ranger who was murdered in front of his family at a film screening about the battle to stop South African rhinos from being poached to extinction.

Anton Mzimba was head of ranger services at Timbavati private game reserve in north-east South Africa, near the Kruger National Park, when he was shot outside his home last year.

He had previously spoken to William via video link when the royal visited a technology company to learn about a new device to combat ivory smugglers.

William was joined by the Duchess of Edinburgh, who has a strong interest in wildlife protection, at a screening of Rhino Man, a documentary which follows the next generation of South African wildlife rangers.

More than 150 guests attended the screening at Battersea power station on Tuesday hosted by United for Wildlife (UfW), Williams initiative to fight the illegal wildlife trade.

The prince said: The murder of Anton Mzimba is a stark reminder of the daily dangers that all rangers face around the world protecting the natural world from the international criminal organisations that seek to profit illegally from wildlife and Im proud to see his life and legacy recognised in Rhino Man.

This is not a burden they can bear alone. An effective response to this vicious crime demands attention and collaboration across the entire chain of criminal activity, not just on the front line.

That is why United for Wildlife, through its global financial and transport taskforces, and a wider alliance of partners, has taken action to ensure that those involved in wildlife crime will be met with an international response as powerful and coordinated as any other serious and organised crime.

In the last six years, the UfW has contributed to nearly 500 law enforcement cases, more than 300 arrests, and over 200 seizures of wildlife products and has trained over 100,000 people.

The prince and duchess met Antons cousin Leitah Mkhabela, who is the supervisor of the Black Mambas, South Africas first all-female anti-poaching unit.

William told Ms Mkhabela: He was very inspirational. I only met Anton once. He was incredibly passionate and also very motivational for all of you.

Speaking after the event, Ms Mkhabela told the PA news agency: It feels good to go back to the bush and continue putting your boots on the ground knowing that there are so many people outside in the world who are supporting you, who are looking up to you.

The murder of Anton Mzimba is a stark reminder of the daily dangers that all rangers face around the world protecting the natural world from the international criminal organisations that seek to profit illegally from wildlife Prince of Wales

(Anton) left two young kids, very young kids, about three years old. They still have a long way to go.

So getting the support shows there is hope, there is light.

The audience also heard from Orlat Ndlovu, head of ranger services at the Timbavati private nature reserve, who described Anton as a brother and a mentor who led by example.

The ranger, who said he had been on the firing line facing rhino poachers, told the cinema audience: He loved and treated everyone with respect including his enemies. He saw good in them hoping that they would see good in him.

Mr Ndlovu told PA: When we are at work, especially back in South Africa, you dont know that the work that youre doing (is appreciated) until you come into this type of stage.

It is like an injection, like a fuel to keep us doing what we do best.

The illegal wildlife trade doesnt put wildlife at risk alone but also the lives of the rangers.

Paying tribute, Amanda Berry, CEO of The Royal Foundation, said: (Anton) made the ultimate sacrifice for his work when he was brutally murdered at home in front of his family.

Sadly, Antons family and colleagues are not alone in experiencing such a devastating loss.

Rangers around the world risk their lives daily, often with limited training, pay or support.
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Britain is bracing for further industrial action this month as junior doctors belonging to the British Medical Association (BMA) stage a five-day walkout and both the Rail, Maritime and Transport union (RMT) and Aslef introduce more strike dates, bringing yet more disruption to rail services.

Senior doctors are also downing stethoscopes for a 48-hour period in July and Aslef is also taking action short of a strike by announcing overtime bans, which is likely to result in the cancellation of further trains relied upon by beleaguered commuters.

Months of negotiations between the government and unions representing workers in public-facing professions have failed to yield a solution to ongoing disputes over pay and working conditions in a number of sectors, leaving the NHS with little choice but to cancel routine appointments and treatments and travellers stranded on platforms.

The most recent rail strikes in late May and early June made life difficult for parents in half-term week and for those attending specific summer events such as the Eurovision Song Contest in Liverpool, the FA Cup Final in London and the Epsom Derby, as trainline employees and station staff sought to demonstrate the importance of the services they provide.

And those were only the latest instances of industrial action bringing the UK to a halt after a long winter in which thousands of public sector workers took to the picket line.

From nurses and teachers to civil servants, postal workers and driving instructors, working people have demanded salary increases in response to the sky-high rate of inflation and the ongoing cost of living crisis.

While some of those disputes have since been resolved, many more threaten to rumble on amid little sign of progress.

Dr Robert Laurenson and Dr Vivek Trivedi, co-chairs of the BMA, have urged Rishi Sunaks administration to come forward with a fresh offer above the 5 per cent wage rise proposed so far to prevent what promises to be the longest single walkout by doctors in the NHSs history.

Even now the government can avert our action by coming to the table with a credible offer on pay restoration, they said.

But common ground appears likely to remain elusive after health secretary Steve Barclay accused the BMA of walking away from the table.

RMT general-sectretary Mick Lynch has meanwhile told The Independent that further rail strikes are fairly likelythis year so long as its talks with government negotiators remain in a state of deadlock.

Here is a list of all of the major walkouts that have been announced so far for July 2023.

All the national strike dates for July

Monday 3 July

Aslef train drivers union begins a six-day overtime ban for members.

Tuesday 4 July

Aslef overtime ban in effect.

Wednesday 5 July

Teachers in England belonging to the National Education Union (NEU) stage the first of two days of strike action.

Aslef overtime ban in effect.

Thursday 6 July

Aslef overtime ban in effect.

Friday 7 July

Teachers in England belonging to the NEU stage the second of two days of strike action.

Aslef overtime ban in effect.

Saturday 8 July

Final day of Aslef overtime ban.

Wednesday 12 July

NHS juniors doctors belonging to BMA in Scotland on strike.

Thursday 13 July

Five-day strike by junior doctors belonging to the BMA in England begins at 7am.

Friday 14 July

Junior doctors strike continues.

NHS ambulance drivers belonging to Unite on strike in Yorkshire.

Saturday 15 July

Junior doctors strike continues.

Sunday 16 July

Junior doctors strike continues.

Monday 17 July

Junior doctors strike continues.

Aslef overtime ban resumes for another six days.

Tuesday 18 July

Junior doctors strike concludes at 7am.

Aslef overtime ban in effect.

Wednesday 19 July

Aslef overtime ban in effect.

Thursday 20 July

Rail workers belonging to the RMT stage the first of three days of national strike action.

Senior doctors belonging to the BMA stage the first of two days of strike action.

Aslef overtime ban in effect.

Friday 21 July

Senior doctors stage the second of two days of strike action.

Aslef overtime ban in effect.

Saturday 22 July

RMT members stage the second of three days of national rail strike action.

Aslef overtime ban concludes.

Sunday 23 July

RMT commences six-day strike on the London Underground.

Monday 24 July

RMT Tube strike continues.

Tuesday 25 July

RMT Tube strike continues.

Wednesday 26 July

RMT Tube strike continues.

Aslef members also on strike on London Underground.

Thursday 27 July

RMT Tube strike continues.

Friday 28 July

Final day of RMT Tube strike.

Aslef members on strike on London Underground again.

Saturday 29 July

RMT members stage the third of three days of national rail strike action.
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Madeleine McCann, a three-year-old girl from Rothley, Leicestershire, was reported missing from the Portuguese holiday resort of Praia da Luz on the Algarve on 3 May 2007, a case still unsolved and still the subject of intense interest among the public and press.

Her parents, Kate McCann and Gerry McCann, posted a statement on the Find Madeleine website on 3 May 2023 marking the latest anniversary of their daughters disappearance, reiterating their hopes of being reunited with her one day and posting a poem, The Contradiction by Clare Pollard, to express their feelings.

Today marks the 16th anniversary of Madeleines abduction. Still missing... still very much missed, they wrote.

The police investigation continues, and we await a breakthrough. Thank you to everyone for your support  it really helps.

Follow all the latest updates on The Independents liveblog

Here is a reminder of the events of the case.

The story began when the McCanns  affluent doctors Kate and Gerry, their three-year-old daughter Madeleine and her two-year-old twin siblings Amelia and Sean  joined a group of seven family friends and their five children on holiday at the Ocean Club in the village of Praia da Luz on the southwestern tip of Portugal on 28 April 2007.

After a pleasant spring break by the sea, the adults in the party went out for dinner at the resorts open-air tapas bar on 3 May, gathering at 8.30pm. The children were left behind sleeping in their respective apartments with the doors unlocked and a rota system in place among the parents to ensure that someone returned every half-hour to check on them.

When Kate McCann took her turn and returned to her apartment at 10pm, she raced back to the restaurant screaming Madeleines gone! Someones taken her! The police were quickly called and 60 staff and fellow guests searched the complex, calling out the girls name in vain until daybreak the following morning.

Border police and airport staff were put on alert and hundreds of volunteers joined the efforts to find the missing girl over the coming days, the case fast becoming a sensation.

The Portuguese authorities would later attract criticism over their conduct in the crucial earliest hours of the investigation when the trail might still have been warm, accused of making rudimentary mistakes like failing to conduct a house-by-house search of every local residence or interview all of the other guests at the resort, acting slowly to erect roadblocks and potentially compromising forensic evidence at the crime scene.

Madeleine McCann (PA)

The police initially stated that they believed Madeleine was still alive and had been abducted from the room by a stranger as the parents described their anguish and despair over her vanishing, a worst fear realised for any parent.

On 26 May, police issued a description of a suspicious man seen on the night of the girls disappearance. The individual in question was spotted by Jane Tanner, one of the McCanns dining companions, who said she had seen a Mediterranean man with dark hair and beige trousers carrying a child close to the apartment when she went to check in on her own children. Scotland Yard would later come to dismiss the sighting as a red herring.

The search continued as the summer progressed amid a wild media circus and with huge fundraising activities underway, the McCanns setting up Madeleines Fund on 15 May to raise cash to support further investigation and keep the profile of the case high, attracting generous donations from celebrities like Richard Branson, Simon Cowell, JK Rowling and Coleen Rooney. By 30 May, the case was such a cause celebre that they were being flown out to meet the Pope at the Vatican in Sir Phillip Greens Learjet.

A local man, Robert Murat, subsequently became its first suspect and had his house and car searched, his swimming pool drained and his electronic devices confiscated but no evidence was found to link him to Madeleine and the matter was soon dropped.

By June, the Portuguese police admitted that they had failed to protect potentially useful evidence at the scene as frustration with the lack of developments grew and the media began to question whether the McCanns themselves had been involved in the matter.

Lurid tabloid allegations suggested the couple and their friends might have been swingers and that the McCanns, as physicians, might have been in the habit of sedating their children, while others claimed inconsistencies in their version of events.

The intensity of the hostility towards the parents would later be described by Roy Greenslade of The Guardian as no journalistic accident, but a sustained campaign of vitriol against a grief-stricken family, singling out The Daily Express and Daily Star for particular condemnation.

In July, assistance offered by former South African police officer Danie Krugel  who claimed his handheld matter orientation system could help to find Madeleine  was rubbished, while British police sent over two springer spaniel sniffer dogs to search for DNA.

Gerry and Kate McCann (PA)

Relations with the local authorities would ultimately sour as the latter came to resent British intrusion into a Portuguese inquiry, according to Anthony Summers and Robbyn Swans book Looking for Madeleine (2014).

By August, Madeleine has been missing for 100 days and police admitted for the first time that she may never be found. They also told the McCanns that they were no longer considering the matter an abduction case but, rather, a murder inquiry.

The McCanns themselves were interviewed as arguidos (suspects) by Portuguese police in September, with the parents told that the dogs had discovered DNA evidence from the missing girl in the boot of their holiday rental car, lines of inquiry that had already been leaked to the British press. They vehemently denied having any part in her disappearance.

Despite being listed as suspects (a designation that would linger until the following July), the McCanns were allowed to return to Britain on 9 September.

A day later, chief inspector Tavares de Almeida of the Policia Judiciaria in Portimao signed a nine-page report concluding that Madeleine McCann had died in their apartment as a result of an accident, that the tapas dinner and rota checks on the McCann children had been part of a planned cover-up, that the familys friends had helped to mislead the police and that the McCanns had concealed the body and then faked an abduction. A public prosecutor subsequently applied for the confiscation of Kate McCanns diary and Gerry McCanns laptop plus the groups phone records.

On 2 October, chief inspector Goncalo Amaral was removed from the case and transferred after alleging that the British police were only interested in pursuing leads favourable to the McCanns. He would later publish a book, Maddie: The Truth of the Lie, the following summer, resulting in a lengthy libel battle with the McCanns that would run back and forth through the courts until March 2017.

Back in Britain, Gerry McCann issued a video that November in which he speculated that his family had been watched by a predator during their stay at Praia da Luz. His wife had come to believe that a potential perpetrator could have seen a note in the resorts guest book visible to all in reception noting their dining arrangements on the evening of Madeleines disappearance. The couple followed up on 20 January 2008 by releasing a sketch of a creepy man they said other holidaymakers had said they had seen loitering at the Ocean Club.

In April, a month before the one-year anniversary of the fateful night, Portuguese police travelled to Leicestershire to conduct further interviews with the McCanns friends.

Then, on 21 July, Portugals attorney general, Fernando Jose Pinto Monteiro, announced that there was no evidence to link either the McCanns or Robert Murat to the disappearance and closed the case, unsolved.

With the trail cold and no closure in sight, the McCanns continued to publicise their cause, issuing computer-generated images of how Madeleine might look now that she had aged on 3 November 2009 and condemning the release of previously unseen Portuguese police files  detailing possible sightings of their daughter  to British newspapers in March 2010.

The McCanns published a book of their own about their ordeal in May 2011, entitled simply Madeleine, which was serialised in The Sun as the newspaper led a campaign calling on British prime minister David Cameron to launch a new inquiry. He did so.

Commenced by then-home secretary Theresa May, the Metropolitan Polices Operation Grange would be led by commander Simon Foy and comprise a team of three detective inspectors, five detective sergeants, 19 detective constables and six civilian staff.

It began to yield results in 2013, with Scotland Yard formally announcing a new investigation in July and saying in October it had identified 41 potential suspects. That same month, BBC Crimewatch released an e-fit image of a man of particular interest who had been seen in Praia da Luz with a child matching Madeleines description in May 2007.

Detectives arrived in Portugal in January 2014 promising new arrests and finally searched the village in June, interviewing four people the following month but without unearthing new information. The quartet would be definitively ruled out in April 2017, before the UK government said it would continue to fund the investigation until 2020, having already admitted it had cost 10m in its first four years of operation.

That investment had enabled detectives to have tens of thousands of documents translated, investigate over 8,000 potential sightings, take 1,338 statements, collect 1,027 exhibits and investigate 650 sex offenders and 60 persons of interest, all without definitively establishing the truth.

The Madeline McCann case lay dormant before suddenly exploding into life in June 2020 when German media revealed that Christian Brueckner, a 43-year-old prisoner with a track record of child abuse and drug trafficking, had been identified as a new suspect by the public prosecutor of the German city of Braunschweig.

Christian Brueckner (AFP/Getty)

He had reportedly been living in a Volkswagen camper van in the Algarve at the time of Madeleines disappearance and one woman has since come forward to suggest she saw a girl that might have been Madeleine speaking German in a supermarket in Portugal in 2017.

German investigators classified their probe into his movements as a murder inquiry, saying they were working on the assumption that Madeleine is dead and reporting in July 2021 that they had found an abandoned cellar beneath his former allotment near Hanover where she could, theoretically, have been held captive.

Hans Christian Wolters, the prosecutor leading the investigation into Brueckner, has said he was very confident the inmate is responsible for kidnapping her.

If you knew the evidence we had you would come to the same conclusion as I do but I cant give you details because we dont want the accused to know what we have on him  these are tactical considerations, he told the BBC.

It was subsequently revealed that Madeleines Fund still had 773,629 to spend as of 31 March 2020, meaning the McCanns can continue to bankroll a private investigation to find their daughter long after the police hunt is finally drawn to a close, should they choose to.

Brueckner was formally made a arguido in relation to the case on 21 April 2022.

On 19 September, the McCanns lost their libel case against Mr Amaral, the former chief inspector who had investigated the disappearance, before the European Court of Human Rights.

The couple had attempted to argue that Mr Amaral was responsible for damaging their reputation and breaching their rights to respect for their private life and to be presumed innocent after taking exception to his book and associated media appearances in which he had repeatedly suggested they were responsible for the vanishing.

Their complaint also argued that Portugals Supreme Court had failed to allow them proper redress over the alleged libel by Mr Amaral after judges threw out their earlier claim in 2017.

The verdict left the McCanns with three months to appeal against the decision.

In February 2023, a Polish woman called Julia Faustyna made headlines by claiming she was Madeleine, using the Instagram name @iammadeleinemccann.

Ms Faustyna, 21, did not provide any supporting evidence but sought DNA tests to prove her origins. The results ultimately revealed that she was entirely of Polish origin, with no British heritage, disproving her claims for good.

In April 2023, a court in Braunschweig dropped a rape charge against Brueckner, unrelated to the Madeleine McCann case, concluding it did not have jurisdiction.

Police in Germany continue to claim they have concrete evidence that Madeleine is dead but this has still not been confirmed and their investigation is ongoing, with Brueckner still not charged in the McCann case.

Investigators explore the Barragem do Arade beauty spot (EPA)

Like her parents, Madeleines sister Amelie, now 18, observed the 16th anniversary of her disappearance in May 2023.

Speaking publicly for the first time at a prayer meeting in Rothley, she said: Its nice that everyone is here together but its a sad occasion.

Amelie McCann reportedly joined in with chants including Never never give up, leave no stone unturned, dont forget about me and still missing, still missed.

Later that month, the case unexpectedly lurched back into life in when investigators launched a major search operation at a reservoir in the Algarve, with Mr Wolters saying they were acting on certain tips from Brueckner, whom the prosecutor said he remains very confident holds the key to Madeleines disappearance.

With help from Portuguese police and with Scotland Yard detectives watching on, German investigators carried out a thorough examination of the Barragem do Arade beauty spot in Silves.

They combed the shoreline and surrounding grasslands with sniffer dogs, rakes, spades and pickaxes and inspected the water in a rigid-hull inflatable boat. A no-fly zone was put in place in the skies overhead to allow police drones to survey the region undisturbed.

The site is located approximately 30 miles northeast of the Ocean Club resort, from which the missing girl first disappeared.

In their most recent update, the investigators said they were comparing soil samples from the reservoir with others taken from Brueckners VW camper van in an attempt to establish for certain that he was in the area during the timeframe of interest in order to try to close the net around him.
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Tesco has urged its 20 million Clubcard customers to cash in their rewards before they are cut from three times to two times their value.

The UKs biggest supermarket announced in March that its Clubcard points will be worth twice their value when customers cash them in, rather than three times as they are now, from today (June 14).

Rewards ordered up to and including June 13 will continue to be valid for one year from the date of issue.

The popular scheme enables shoppers to collect points for money spent at Tesco and exchange them for vouchers which can be used in store or for excursions to locations such as Pizza Express, Legoland and Alton Towers.

The grocer first introduced Clubcard in 1995 and promptly saw a 28% spending uplift.

Tescos chief customer officer Alessandra Bellini said: While we are making a change to how members can use their vouchers with our reward partners, we want to remind millions of Clubcard holders to redeem their vouchers at three times the value until June 13 so they can use their reward partner codes to give themselves and their families a well-deserved treat.

We have extended the validity of redeemed codes at the 3x rate, so if swapped before the deadline, they will be valid for a year, instead of six months, to give customers even more time to enjoy them.

Customers expressed their disappointment at the change, pointing out it came as the cost-of-living crisis was already placing pressure on household budgets.

One shopper posted: Tesco #clubcard now only worth x2  gee thanks #Tesco  you really care about your loyal customers  not. Maybe time to shop elsewhere.

A second Clubcard user wrote: We were always grateful for the @Tesco Clubcard X4 when our kids were younger, it helped out massively on days out, we used our vouchers to buy towards Merlin passes which saved us so much money.

We use it now for ourselves and X3 is good, but what an insult #X2 is to customers!

A third wrote: Dear @tesco Just got your email re clubcard voucher exchange value changing to 2x, not 3x the value.

Really disappointing! Not that long ago they were worth 4x the value. Are you not making enough profit already?

One woman tweeted Tesco that its Clubcard scheme had kept me shopping with you but now with your prices soaring and the announcement about the points changes Ill be looking elsewhere.

I bet a lot will do the same. It really helped us all out. Disappointed in you Tesco, she added.

Sainsburys and Boots also cut the value of their loyalty schemes recently.

From May, Boots Advantage Card holders have received 25% less for every 1 they spend in store, earning 3p rather than 4p.

In November Sainsburys Bank cut the amount of Nectar points customers could earn by 75%, from two points for every 1 spent to one point for every 2.
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The King has met the children of the men who became the first climbers to reach the summit of Everest.

The occasion marked 70 years since Sir Edmund Hillary and Sherpa Tenzing Norgay became the first men to reach the 29,028ft (8,848 metres) summit on May 29 1953.

First attempted in 1921, Everest had repulsed at least 10 major expeditions and two solo attempts before the 1953 British expedition finally succeeded under the military-style leadership of Lord John Hunt.

News of the successful ascent broke on coronation day, June 2.

Buckingham Palace said Charles held an audience on Wednesday with Sue Leyden (daughter of Lord Hunt), Peter Hillary (son of Sir Edmund) and Jamling Norgay (son of Mr Norgay).

To mark the occasion of the 70th anniversary, Charles also sent a message to the Everest70 celebratory event at the Royal Geographical Society on Tuesday.

Ms Leydon read the message out in which Charles remarked on the wonderful symmetry in the coinciding of the 70th anniversary with his coronation.

His message said: Seventy years ago, on the eve of her coronation, my late mother, Queen Elizabeth II, received the wonderful news that a British team, led by Colonel, later Lord, John Hunt, had successfully climbed Mount Everest.

The pair who reached the summit, supported by a dedicated team of mountaineers and sherpas, were a New Zealander and a Nepali Sherpa, thus bringing together two nations that have long shared a mutual love and respect for the mountains and for exploration.

It has not escaped my notice that there is a wonderful symmetry in the coinciding of the 70th anniversary of that achievement with my own coronation.

The bond between my family and the legacy that resulted from that historic moment was further strengthened through The Duke of Edinburghs Award Scheme, which Lord Hunt helped my father to create and which has since offered millions of young people opportunities to explore their own strengths and skills, as well as to offer their services to the community.

I dearly hope we can take inspiration from the Everest expedition of 1953 in order to work together in a similar fashion to safeguard our beautiful world for future generations The King

What we are celebrating today must be one of the greatest examples of endurance, combined with careful planning and collaboration.

Our world is facing unprecedented and existential challenges, including climate change which endangers fragile ecosystems, including the Himalayan range.

I dearly hope we can take inspiration from the Everest expedition of 1953 in order to work together in a similar fashion to safeguard our beautiful world for future generations.

Meanwhile, the Queen, who is Colonel-in-Chief of the Royal Australian Corps of Military Police, held an audience with Colonel Ruth Weir, Corps Colonel.

An audience like this would give the Queen an opportunity to be updated with what is going on within the Corps.
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A British man who was arrested while climbing the worlds fifth-tallest skyscraper in South Korea without a harness is expecting to spend the next month in jail, but is eager to climb again.

George King-Thompson, 24, was wearing a parachute and planned to jump from the top of the 123-storey, 1,820ft (555m) Lotte World Tower in Seoul on Monday, but reached the 72nd floor before being detained.

The 24-year-old, from Oxford, had dreamt of his South Korean ascent while in prison for scaling The Shard in London, according to a statement shared by his sponsor, and remained determined to fulfil his dream despite facing the courts.

Ive spent over two days in jail, and it looks like I could have to spend a month in prison before the court case, Mr King-Thompson said.

Despite his arrest, Mr King-Thompson has compared his time in a South Korean jail with previous arrests and said: Ive had much worse jail cells.

He added: I often judge a country and its culture by the way the authorities treat me.

I have nothing bad to say about the South Koreans. They have treated me with the utmost respect and diligence.

My goal for the Lotte Tower was to perform an urban freebase - to climb to the top and jump off. Unfortunately, I did not achieve my dream in this mission George King-Thompson

The Koreans are simply the loveliest people I have ever met.

Mr King-Thompson originally planned to parachute off the top of the Lotte World Tower then evade police and escape the country by plane before he was arrested, but maintains that he will fulfil his dream.

My goal for the Lotte Tower was to perform an urban freebase  to climb to the top and jump off, he said.

Unfortunately, I did not achieve my dream in this mission.

Mr King-Thompson said he did not reach the top of the skyscraper before his arrest due to complications.

I'll be wiser for this experience, and I will achieve my dream of climbing and flying off a skyscraper in the near future George King-Thompson

With every loss you learn everything and with a win you learn nothing, he added.

Ill be wiser for this experience, and I will achieve my dream of climbing and flying off a skyscraper in the near future.

Despite my current situation, I look forward to getting back in the harness, acquiring a new target and achieving my dream.

According to his sponsor, Mr King-Thompson dreamed of performing the stunt while in Pentonville Prison for three months as punishment for scaling The Shard in July 2019.

In August 2021, the same year he was released from prison, Mr King-Thompson climbed the 23-storey Unex Tower in Stratford, east London, without ropes, nine days after doing the same at the neighbouring Stratosphere Tower.

Footage shared on Monday showed the climber in shorts scaling the tower in South Korea as 90 emergency, police and other personnel were dispatched to the scene, according to the local fire service.
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The first female chief constable of Police Scotland has been appointed, with Jo Farrell taking on the role.

She will succeed Sir Iain Livingstone when he steps down in August after six years in the job.

Currently in charge of Durham Constabulary, Ms Farrells appointment follows a six-week assessment process.

She said: This really is a day of mixed emotions.

I am immensely proud to have served as chief constable of Durham and equally proud of everything the force has achieved over that time.

Over the last six years, I have worked with some extraordinarily talented and committed people, dedicated to keeping County Durham and Darlington safe, and it has been a very difficult decision to leave.

But as chief constable of Police Scotland I have been offered a unique opportunity to take on one of the most exciting and challenging jobs in UK policing.

During her leadership, Durham Constabulary was involved in high-profile investigations into political figures.

In May 2020, the force faced demands to interview then prime minister Boris Johnsons aide Dominic Cummings over lockdown breaches.

It also cleared Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer of breaking lockdown rules in the beergate investigation.

Ms Farrell began her career as a constable in Cambridge aged 22, becoming the first person in her family to join the police and fulfilling her childhood ambition.

Later, she joined Northumbria Police, before moving to Durham in 2016.

When she became its chief constable in 2019, she was the first woman to enter that role.

During her time in charge, the force introduced a new approach to dealing with rape suspects, aimed at putting offenders under deeper scrutiny and identifying repeat offenders.

Sir Iain welcomed her appointment, saying: I congratulate Jo Farrell and look forward to working with her to ensure an effective handover that will maintain stability in Police Scotland.

Leading our outstanding officers and staff as Scotlands chief constable is an enormous privilege. I have great confidence Jo will continue to develop our service to protect and serve our fellow citizens.

Scottish Justice Secretary Angela Constance approved the Scottish Police Authoritys appointment.

She said: I am delighted that Jo Farrell has been appointed as Police Scotlands new chief constable following the Scottish Police Authoritys rigorous selection process.

Jo is the first woman to be appointed to this role.

As the force marks its 10th anniversary year, she has shown she has the skills needed to lead the service into the next decade and meet the challenges ahead.

Thanks to the dedication and work of the police, recorded crime rates overall are at record low levels and we have a service that is unique in the UK with an embedded human rights focus.

Police Scotland was created in 2013 after Scotlands regional police forces were merged into a single new national service.

Last month, Sir Iain admitted the force is institutionally racist and discriminatory, with his statement later described as historic and monumental by First Minister Humza Yousaf.

As part of the selection process, the new chief constable took part in a professional peer review, psychometric testing and meetings with staff associations and community groups.

The final appointment panel was chaired by Martyn Evans of the SPA.

Durhams Police and Crime Commissioner Joy Allen said: Jo is definitely a shining example for other female police officers.

She has repeatedly demonstrated that in policing, with professionalism and competence, the sky is the limit whether you are male or female.
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US president Joe Biden is set to make a trip to the UK next month in what has been described as a mini state visit.

It is understood the American leader will pay a visit to Britain before heading on to the Nato summit in Lithuania, with negotiations about the nature of the visit ongoing.

Although it is not expected to be a full state visit  which would involve a royal banquet at Buckingham Palace or Windsor Castle  but there are discussions about a meeting with King Charles III.

It would mark the Kings first meeting with Mr Biden since his coronation, which the US president did not attend after Jill Biden travelled in his place.

Mr Biden would also be expected to hold talks with Rishi Sunak on a short working visit ahead of the Nato summit kicking off on 11 July.

Officials are looking at the model used when Donald Trump visited as US president, according to the Daily Mail  including significant pomp and ceremony, and a lunch with King Charles.

A full state visit would normally last for three to four days and typically involves foreign leaders staying over at Buckingham Palace and an invitation to a guard of honour, as well as a state banquet.

Mr Sunak has been Mr Biden four times this year, including his own recent visit to Washington DC to discuss economic security in response to Chinas rising influence and Artificial Intelligence (AI).

Biden has described Ben Wallace as very qualified for Nato role (Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)

The prime minister has said he wants to make the UK both the intellectual and the geographical home of AI regulation, announcing a London conference on the topic this autumn.

Mr Sunak also took the opportunity to push for his defence secretary Ben Wallace to get the Nato job when current secretary general Jens Stoltenberg steps down this year. Mr Wallace has said it was a job Id like.

Mr Biden described Mr Wallace as very qualified for the Nato role, saying it was maybe time for a British leader to be in charge of the western military alliance.

Mr Sunak highlighted that the UK had continued to spend more than the Nato target of 2 per cent of GDP on defence.

It was viewed as a slight against Mette Frederiksen, the Danish prime minister also thought to be running for the Nato role. Denmark failed to meet the 2 per cent target last year.
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Boris Johnson allies have come to the defence of a Downing Street adviser who is set to become the UKs youngest ever life peer amid accusations she overstated her time at No 10.

Charlotte Owen is one of seven nominees to the House of Lords that were approved as part of Mr Johnsons resignation honours list that has sparked a war of words between the former prime minister and Rishi Sunak.

Ms Owen claims in her LinkedIn profile that she worked in the No 10 policy unit as a special adviser between February 2021 until October 2022, as reported by Tortoise.

She is not named in the special advisers report in 2021, but her name does appear the following year.

A source at No 10 told Tortoise: It is not what she says on her LinkedIn. She never worked in the policy unit. She was promoted very heavily by Nigel Adams [the former minister who resigned as an MP last week] but there were dozens of people more senior than her.

The insider added: It is completely staggering  her peerage is one of the most strange and hardest to explain because she was so extraordinarily junior.

However, Sir James Duddridge, who worked as a private parliamentary secretary for Mr Johnson between February to July 2022, has disputed claims that Ms Owens time at No 10 was exaggerated.

In a tweet Sir James said: As Boriss PPS I can confirm Charlotte worked in No10 as an adviser since Feb 2021 and did an outstanding job working for the boss.

Charlotte Owen is one of seven nominees to the House of Lords that were approved as part of Boris Johnsons resignation honours list (Getty Images)

She was in the shadows but was a serious player but never wanted to be in the limelight like so many inferior people.

It comes as Lord Foulkes of Cumnock aimed a broadside at Ms Owen and Mr Johnsons other choices to join the House of Lords.

The former Labour minister said the governments legislative agenda was in total dissaray after sitting through sessions at 4.16am last Thursday and 2am this Tuesday.

He added: I wonder if Boriss friends who are going to join us have been told what to expect.

How is Ben Houchen going to manage to get down from Teesside suddenly on a Wednesday morning?

What about Charlotte Owen? Its going to interfere with her social life. Nadine Dorries doesnt realise what she is gaining by not being nominated for this place.Members are being treated disgracefully.

Chief whip in the Lords Baroness Williams of Trafford offered a stinging rebuke in response to his remarks about Ms Owen. She said: May I say I find it utterly condescending that he would speak about a young lady and her social life in such condescending terms.

The issue of Ms Owens time at Downing Street is yet another controversy to erupt as a consequence of Mr Johnsons honours list after a number of his allies, including Nadine Dorries, did not get peerages.

Meanwhile, a cross-party report is expected to be released on Thursday finding that Mr Johnson misled Parliament with his denials over Partygate, likely putting a permanent end to his political career.
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They were the 12 words that ultimately brought down a prime minister and if Boris Johnson didnt know it then, he will almost certainly know it now.

In a Commons showing believed to have been key to the findings of the report, the then prime minister stood at the despatch box at Prime Ministers Questions at 12.28pm on Wednesday, 8 December 2021. He was answering a question from Labour MP Catherine West, eight days after the first reports of Downing Street gatherings emerged.

With a knowing smile, Ms West asked Mr Johnson to tell the house whether there was a party in Downing Street on 13 November.

He stood up calmly, placing his notes on the historic despatch box, telling her firmly, No, before adding, the guidance was followed and the rules were followed at all times.

But just a few hours earlier, two of Mr Johnsons top aides had urged him against making this very claim. Mr Johnsons former communications chief Jack Doyle and Martin Reynolds, his principal private secretary, are reported to have warned that any assertion that guidance and rules had been followed may not stand up to scrutiny.

In evidence submitted to a Privileges Committee investigation into whether Mr Johnson deliberately or recklessly misled MPs, Mr Reynolds confirmed he asked the then prime minister ahead of the session about the line proposed for PMQs. He did not welcome the interruption but told me that he had received reassurances that the comms event was within the rules, Mr Reynolds said.

And in an admission which, according to The Times, was crucial in the committees finding that Mr Johnson deliberately misled the Commons, Mr Reynolds said: I accepted this but questioned whether it was realistic to argue that all guidance had been followed at all times, given the nature of the working environment in No 10. He agreed to delete the reference to the guidance.

In a statement to the Commons opening PMQs, Mr Johnson said: I have been repeatedly assured since these allegations emerged that there was no party and that no Covid rules were broken. And that is what i have been repeatedly assured.

Just thirty minutes later, Mr Johnson told MPs the guidance was followed and the rules were followed at all times.

In the 18 months since, this statement has pushed Mr Johnson not just out of office as prime minister but ultimately out of parliament altogether.

First, investigations by the Metropolitan Police and Partygate investigator Sue Gray confirmed that, as well as gatherings on at least seven other dates, there had been a party on 13 November in No 10, in breach of Covid-19 restrictions. Mr Johnson, too, was handed a 50 penalty by police for his own lockdown breach, at his birthday bash in the Cabinet Room on 19 June 2020.

Boris Johnson on 8 December 2021, as he insisted the guidance was followed and the rules were followed at all times during Partygate (UK Parliament/AFP/Getty)

Now, more than a year since its inquiries began, the Privileges Committee is set to conclude that Mr Johnsons response to Ms West in parliament deliberately misled the House of Commons  breaching the MPs Code of Conduct.

Commons rules state MPs  and especially ministers  must not give inaccurate information to parliament, either deliberately or inadvertently.

Giving evidence to the committee, Mr Johnson insisted mid-pandemic gatherings in Downing Street were essential and stated he had been misremembering when claiming during Partygate that rules had been followed at all times.

Mr Johnson also claimed to have been relying on the advice of officials when answering questions in parliament. Central to his defence was the claim that he had been given repeated assurances that the Covid rules and guidance had been followed by advisers.

But the committee was not convinced, with its findings set to recommend Mr Johnson be suspended from parliament for long enough to trigger a vote in the Commons on whether he should face a by-election in his Uxbridge and South Ruislip seat.

An early version of this report prompted his bombshell resignation on Friday, as Mr Johnson bids to avoid putting his fate in the hands of MPs or his constituents.

A politician who built and burnished his image on his colourful metaphors, verbosity and command of the English language, Mr Johnson was ultimately undone by 12 simple words.
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Boris Johnson made a desperate last-ditch bid to derail the privileges committee just hours before the release of its damning report  expected to find that he deliberately lied to parliament about Partygate.

The former PM demanded that Sir Bernard Jenkin explain his actions and resign from the committee following a report claiming the senior Tory MP attended a drinks reception in December 2020.

Mr Johnsons frantic last stand came as he prepared to face judgement day on Partygate, with senior Tories predicting that the cross-party committees report will finish his career.

Rishi Sunaks government was also warned against any attempt to water down a Common vote on the reports verdict on Mr Johnson  however scathing  with one senior Tory telling The Independent: Lets put the bloody thing through parliament.

Another day of high drama at Westminster saw Mr Sunak fire back at Johnson loyalist Nadine Dorries and her failure to formally resign  with No 10 insisting her constituents deserve proper representation.

But in a move effectively holding the government to ransom, Ms Dorries warned Mr Sunak she will not formally quit until the government hands over WhatsApps and other documents surrounding the decision to deny her a peerage.

Claims that Sir Bernard went to a drinks party for his wife hosted by Commons deputy speaker Dame Eleanor Laing on 8 December 2020, while London was in Tier 2 measures restricting indoor mixing, were leaked to the pro-Boris website Guido Fawkes.

Mr Johnson said: If this is true it is outrageous and a total contempt of parliament. [Sir Bernard] has no choice but to explain his actions to his own committee, for his colleagues to investigate and then to resign.

The ex-PM also revealed that the committee had found him guilty of misleading parliament and would have punished him had he not quit, saying: Bernard Jenkin has just voted to expel me from parliament.

Boris Johnson called on senior Tory MP to resign hours before report (AFP/Getty)

A source close to the privileges committee told The Independent that claims of hypocrisy were desperate stuff from the Boris camp, noting that MPs were ruling on Mr Johnsons claims in the Commons rather than Covid-era gatherings themselves.

Liberal Democrats deputy leader Daisy Cooper said called it a typical distraction tactic from Boris Johnson which doesnt change the fact he broke the law and lied about it, adding that the Tories appeared to be full-blown civil war.

The group of seven MPs long-awaited report will be published on Thursday, and is expected to find that he deliberately misled parliament about his knowledge of lockdown gatherings at No 10.

Said to be an open and shut case, the committee has reportedly decided that Mr Johnsons officials did not advise him that guidelines had been followed before he spoke in the Commons  despite the former PMs claims to the contrary.

Mr Johnson will be found to have committed multiple contempts of parliament, according to the Financial Times  including the ex-PMs decision to reveal some of the committees conclusions in his resignation last Friday.

Sir Bernard Jenkin (PA Media)

Mr Johnsons decision to quit his Uxbridge and South Ruislip seat has removed any threat of suspension. But the committee will reportedly make clear that he would have been suspended for 20 days  enough to have sparked a by-election. It could also recommend that he be stripped of the parliamentary pass offered to former MPs.

The ex-PMs allies have claimed that he could still try to stand in the Oxfordshire seat of Henley at the next election, or elsewhere in the country, but Sunak allies said he had no chance of being selected by Tory officials.

This will finish his political career, said one former Tory minister on the Partygate report. He wont get anywhere [with another seat], so it doesnt need the prime minister to get involved.

Best moments: Boris Johnson grilled by MPs over Downing Street lockdown parties

MPs have raised concerns about reports that the Sunak government is looking at ways to avoid a meaningful vote on the Partygate report by making sure a motion would merely note the findings, rather than accept them in full.

Alistair Graham, former chair of the committee on standards in public life, told The Independent that it would be quite wrong for the government to water down a vote on Mr Johnson expected on Monday.

You cant a more serious offence that deliberately misleading the Commons, if thats what they find he has done, he said. It would undermine the work of the committee if they do not get an approval by the Commons of their findings. There has to be a vote.

One senior Tory MP warned the party whips not to mess around like the Johnson government tried to do with the punishment handed to Owen Paterson over a breach of lobbying rules. There needs to be a substantive vote, the ex-Tory minister said. Lets put the bloody thing through parliament.

Despite fears of a cop-out, Tory whips reportedly reassured senior MPs on the partys 1922 Committee on Wednesday: There will be a vote.

Meanwhile, Mr Sunak hit back at Ms Dorries after it emerged that she was delaying her resignation. The PMs official spokesperson said the current limbo was obviously unusual. He added: The prime minister believes the people of Mid-Bedfordshire need proper representation in this House.

Ms Dorries said she wanted copies of WhatsApps, text messages, all emails and minutes of meetings both formal and informal with names of senior figures unredacted about her thwarted peerage before she formally steps down.

Sir Bernard and Dame Eleanor have been contacted for comment on the claims about a drinks reception. The deputy speaker told Guido Fawkes she made efforts to make sure the event stayed within the rules. I was so strict with my 2 metre ruler and told everyone we will adhere to those rules and be very careful.
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A greater understanding of the risks and opportunities that artificial intelligence brings is needed to ensure the education sector is not left behind, Gillian Keegan has said.

The Education Secretary has called on technology and education experts and business leaders to come forward with ideas on how generative artificial intelligence (AI) can be used in a safe and secure way.

In a speech at the London Tech Week conference, Ms Keegan launched a call for evidence on the benefits and concerns around AI use in education.

She said: Artificial intelligence is transforming the world around us. The workforces that are best equipped in AI with the skills they need will be the ones that ride the next tech way.

We must make sure that education is not left behind. For that potential to be realised we need to understand the opportunities, as well as the real risks that new technology brings.

This will help us to make the right decisions to get the best out of generative AI in a safe and secure way Gillian Keegan, Education Secretary

It comes after guidance from the UKs major exam boards suggested that schools should make pupils do some of their coursework in class under direct supervision amid cheating fears in the context of AI use.

ChatGPT is a form of generative AI that can respond to questions in a human-like manner and understand the context of follow-up queries, much like in human conversations, as well as being able to compose essays if asked  sparking fears it could be used by students to complete assignments.

In a speech on Wednesday morning, Ms Keegan said: Tech is reaching further and deeper than ever before. But if we are to harness its potential, our workforce has to be flexible and ready.

Upskilling  so that we can use tech to its full potential  is one of the challenges that we all face if we are to keep our economy growing and competitive in a global context.

Last month, BCS, the Chartered Institute for IT, called for AI to be part of teacher training courses.

It came after a letter sent to The Times signed by more than 60 education figures said schools are bewildered by the rate of change in AI.

The rapid advancement of artificial intelligence clearly has the potential to impact on education  in both positive and more concerning ways Sarah Hannafin, school leaders' union NAHT

The Government is now seeking views from education professionals across the schools, colleges, universities and early years sector on the benefits of technology, as well as concerns about the risks.

The Department for Education hopes the call for evidence, which will run until August 23, will help to inform future work  including how AI could be used to reduce workload, improve outcomes, and run operations more efficiently, as well as work around misuse such as essay bots and cheating in exams.

Addressing the London Tech Week conference on Wednesday, Ms Keegan said: We are opening a call for evidence seeking the views and experiences of business leaders like you on the use of generative artificial intelligence.

The scope of this review includes large language models, such as ChatGPT, Google Bard and others.

Were also seeking views on the benefits and concerns around issues in education. And this will help us to make the right decisions to get the best out of generative AI in a safe and secure way.

Ms Keegan highlighted that there was a shortage of people coming into computing professions and she warned that the gap will only get bigger.

The Education Secretary said she hopes the Governments new Digital and Computing Skills Education Taskforce will make it easier for students to choose computing and digital pathways at school, college and university.

Speaking about T-levels qualifications which are technical alternatives to A-levels, she added: Digital skills matter. As tech accelerates, theyre likely to become as important to a persons employability as English and maths. Eventually being on a level pegging with those two core subjects.

From September, students will be able to study new Digital Functional Skills Qualifications (DFSQs).

Sarah Hannafin, head of policy for school leaders union NAHT, said: The rapid advancement of artificial intelligence clearly has the potential to impact on education  in both positive and more concerning ways.

It is good that this will be considered carefully, and any support related to the findings would be welcomed by schools who are currently dealing with issues as they arise largely on their own.
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Nadine Dorries is set to delay her formal resignation as an MP until Parliaments summer recess in a fresh headache for Rishi Sunak, it has emerged.

The decision by the former culture secretary - who on Friday said she would quit with immediate effect - could delay a contest to replace her until autumn, in the run up to the Tory party conference.

It poses a significant setback for the prime minister, prolonging the agony of a series of difficult by-elections for the Conservatives.

Boris Johnson announced his own shock exit just hours after Ms Dorries said she would quit, while fellow Boris ally Nigel Adams also said he would step down.

But while the former prime minister and Mr Adams completed the formal process of resigning as MPs on Monday  Ms Dorries is yet to do so.

Friends of Ms Dorries highlighted the case of Labour MP Rosie Cooper, who waited two months to formally resign after announcing she would go. One told the Daily Mail its her prerogative when she decides to go.

She's not going to give Sunak the convenience of three by-elections on the same day, the friend added.

Party leaders have been left frustrated, having wanted to minimise the potential fallout from the three by-elections.

They wanted to deal with the fallout  sparked by a row over Mr Johnsons resignation honours list, and the ongoing Partygate probe into the former PM  as quickly as possible.

A Tory source told The Independent: We dont know why Nadine hasnt resigned. She said she was going with immediate effect on Friday afternoon before Boris and Nigel, but didnt.

But we dont want to wait around, we want to get on with these things.

The Liberal Democrats were quick to highlight how a long summer campaign led to a major defeat for the Tories in a 2021 byelection.

A spokesman said: As Chesham and Amersham showed, a long summer campaign in the Blue Wall only ends one way for the Conservatives. We are dusting off that playbook.

Ms Dorriess decision to quit came after she was passed over for a peerage in Mr Johnsons resignation honours list.

Nadine Dorries decided to quit after she was passed over for a peerage in Boris Johnsons resignation honours (UK Parliament)

The delay to her resignation sparked fears she could be seeking to undermine Mr Sunak, having accused him of cruelly blocking her from a future in the House of Lords

Ms Dorries claimed the prime minister was a privileged posh boy who, in cahoots with his political aide James Forsyth, duplicitously and cruelly stopped her from joining the House of Lords.

Her delay could sow unrest in the party by pushing a difficult by-election into the autumn and closer to the Conservative Party conference.

Labour and the Liberal Democrats are vying to claim a high-profile win in the historically safe Tory seat - which has been held by Conservative MPs since 1931.

Recommended Nadine Dorries to return to backbenches as Liz Truss takes the helm at No 10

By remaining on the backbenches, Ms Dorries could also be a thorn in Mr Sunaks side by speaking out or voting against his governments plans.

However, if Ms Dorries tenders her resignation soon, the party could still move to have all three by-elections on July 20.

It came as Ms Dorries said it was utter nonsense to suggest Mr Johnson knew her peerage had been rejected as long ago as February, as was suggested by government sources on Tuesday.
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Boris Johnson has vowed to launch an unprecedented attack on a parliamentary probe into Partygate widely expected to be so damning it is predicted to finally end his hopes of a political comeback.

Hours after it emerged an 11th-hour appeal from the former prime minister had delayed the publication of its findings, Mr Johnson said they should be released so the world could judge the nonsense.

In a warning to MPs who conducted the probe, including Tory MPs, he said: "The Privileges Committee should publish their report and let the world judge their nonsense. They have no excuse for delay. Their absurdly unfair rules do not even allow any criticism of their findings.

Adding: I have made my views clear to the committee in writing  and will do so more widely when they finally publish.

The former prime minister sent a letter to parliaments Privileges Committee, which has carried out the investigation, at 11.57pm on Monday containing further representations for it to consider.

The committee said it would deal with Mr Johnsons letter and report promptly, but the late-night intervention pushed back the widely anticipated report yet again.

A source close to Mr Johnson told The Times he believes the committee has no evidential basis for its criticism of the former PM. The rebuttal put forward by Mr Johnson and his lawyers will deal with the matters raised in the report in a very thorough manner, the source added .

A separate source told the paper Mr Johnsons submission would not change the committees conclusions, adding that it was an open and shut case.

It is believed to have concluded officials did not tell Mr Johnson all rules and guidance were followed in No10 during the pandemic, a claim he made repeatedly in the Commons.

The last-minute submission also raised fresh questions over the former prime ministers behaviour, coming as it did just days after Mr Johnson branded the committee a kangaroo court not worth engaging with.

He claimed to have been the victim of a political hit job with no formal ability to challenge anything they say.

The findings, which follow a year-long investigation by the Privileges Committee into whether Mr Johnson deliberately or recklessly misled MPs over Partygate, are now expected as soon as Thursday.

MPs are expected to have concluded Mr Johnson is guilty and  had he not resigned  he would have faced a suspension long enough to trigger a by-election in his Uxbridge and South Ruislip constituency.

As tensions flared ahead of the publication, Mr Johnsons allies urged Tory MPs to revolt when it is presented to the Commons. It came as:

It emerged that Mr Johnson had been warned by one of his most senior officials not to claim social distancing guidelines were followed at Downing Street gatherings

Former culture secretary Nadine Dorries claimed she was bullied by No 10 after not being given a peerage

The official Covid inquiry was told the governments focus on Brexit crowded out and prevented the work that was needed to prepare for the next pandemic

The Conservative Democratic Organisation (CDO), a grassroots group of Mr Johnsons staunchest supporters, warned the partys MPs not to endorse the Privileges Committees findings or any recommended sanctions.

Former Tory MEP David Campbell Bannerman, chairman of the CDO, encouraged Tory MPs to show their deep misgivings about the committees treatment of the former PM.

We would hope Conservative MPs will not endorse that behaviour and will support due process and the rule of law by voting against. The public will be watching, he told The Independent.

And Claire Bullivant, the CDOs chief executive, said: Any MP who believes in democracy and fair play should vote against this sham. Any MP with an ounce of integrity must make clear their disapproval of the report.

The inquiry was launched after a motion last April backed unanimously by MPs.

Once the committee publishes its report, MPs will debate it and decide whether to accept or reject its findings.

Sources close to the committee said MPs could avoid a spectacle by unanimously waving it through, but suggested supporters of Mr Johnson may object  embroiling the party in a further day of turmoil.

And despite backers of the former PM agitating for a rebellion, a former minister said the majority of Tory MPs wanted to draw a line under the Johnson era, especially following the turmoil of the last few days: We are all just hoping that this abusive relationship is coming to an end.

The report is expected to rely on an appearance by Mr Johnson at PMQs in December 2021 during which he claimed the guidance was followed and the rules were followed at all times in Downing Street.

The committee believes this is evidence he deliberately misled parliament, having been warned by an aide earlier that day to not argue that all guidance had been followed at all times.

As he dramatically quit as an MP last Friday, Mr Johnson used his 1,000-word exit statement to leave the door open for a return to Westminster.

In a furious outburst, in which he attacked the committee and Rishi Sunak, Mr Johnson said he was leaving parliament for now.

The days since have been rife with speculation about whether he could try to stand elsewhere at the next general election, with ally Jacob Rees-Mogg, who was honoured in Mr Johnsons resignation list, claiming the former PM could easily get back into parliament at the next election  meaning he would return next year.
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Police will be able to restrict any protest that could cause a more than minor hindrance or delay after a bid to block the law failed.

The government bypassed normal parliamentary scrutiny to change the legal meaning of serious disruption, dramatically lowering the threshold for police to impose conditions on demonstrations and arrest anyone breaching them.

Ministers first attempted to introduce the change in the controversial Public Order Act, which targeted slow-walking protests by environmental groups such as Just Stop Oil, but it was thrown out by the House of Lords in February.

Suella Braverman then took the unprecedented step of bringing the change back as secondary legislation that does not go through full scrutiny, sparking accusations of a twin attack on our right to protest and on parliamentary democracy.

The home secretary argued it was needed to stop slow marches, but the Metropolitan Police said it had regularly been imposing conditions on Just Stop Oil protesters using the tactics in recent weeks and arrested 86 people.

Green Party peer Baroness Jones tabled a rare fatal motion that could have killed the law for a second time in the House of Lords on Tuesday night, but it was defeated by 154 votes to 64.

She told peers the vote was a make-or-break moment for democracy, adding: This move sets a precedent that the government can use secondary legislation to overrule parliaments will as expressed in votes on primary legislation.

This means that any future minister, at any time, could decide to change any law in any way. This to me is deeply disturbing.

Peers backed a motion to formally regret the law, which allowed it to pass but signalled the House of Lords unhappiness, by 177 votes to 144.

It was brought by Labours Lord Coaker, who argued that blocking the law would have breached convention by stopping changes backed by elected MPs.

The police have the powers to deal with these protests, he said. All protests could be affected across the country, with no opportunity for anyone in parliament to say that these changes go too far  this is all done without proper consultation.

Moment Just Stop Oil protester thrown to ground during slow march

Government minister Lord Sharpe told the House of Lords the changes were necessary to respond quickly to evolving protest tactics.

Given the scale and impact of the disruption caused by slow walks and sit-ins on roads, it is in the public interest to clarify these police powers as a matter of urgency, he added.

The Public Order Act 1986 (Serious Disruption to the Life of the Community) Regulations 2023 legally redefine serious disruption, which has been the trigger for police protest powers for almost 40 years.

They will lower the threshold for imposing conditions on protests in England and Wales, allowing police to take action where there could hypothetically be a more than minor hindrance or delay, to peoples lives.

The Liberty human rights group said it had written to the home secretary threatening legal action for signing off on legislation she had no power to create.

A pre-action letter said imposing restrictions on protests that cause more than minor would be unlawful and violated constitutional principles because they had already been rejected.

Katy Watts, a lawyer for Liberty, said: The Home Secretary has sidelined parliament to sneak in new legislation via the back door, despite not having the powers to do so.

This is yet another power grab from the government, as well as the latest in a long line of attacks on our right to protest, making it harder for the public to stand up for what they believe in.

Rishi Sunak and his home secretary Suella Braverman have vowed to crack down on disruptive protests (AFP/Getty)

Police powers have already been expanded to allow officers to stop and search peaceful demonstrators, ban protests by a single person, arrest people for accidentally breaking conditions they ought to have known about and impose serious disruption prevention orders enforceable by a year in prison.

Addressing the House of Commons on Monday, Ms Braverman said police leaders had requested extra clarity on the law, following years of pressure to deal with disruptive tactics employed by environmental groups.

In December, the National Police Chiefs Council said it had asked the government for a clearer legal definition of serious disruption in order to enable officers to take action and make arrests more effectively.

But The Independent understands that senior officers did not request the wording of the law, and official consultation did not cover any significant change to the meaning of serious disruption.

Opposition MPs said the new law will make policing harder by placing the burden on officers to judge what more than minor disruption looks like, what an affected community is, and to add up an entirely new concept of cumulative disruption.

Labours shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper said: The government bring this statutory instrument claiming that it is to clarify the law, but instead it makes it even more confusing.

They failed to bring it in through the normal parliamentary legislative processes so that it could be scrutinised and amended.
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Suella Braverman has admitted that the government does not know how much its new small boats bill will cost in a fiery Commons clash.

The home secretary has vocally backed the Illegal Migration Bill, claiming it will deter Channel crossings by allowing the government to detain and deport everyone who arrives in the UK in small boats without considering asylum and modern slavery claims.

But practical questions over a lack of detention capacity and deportation agreements continue to mount, and a required document assessing the cost of the law has not been published. She also admitted the bills success is contingent on many unknown factors.

The home secretary was grilled on the situation when she appeared before parliaments Home Affairs Committee on Wednesday, following the arrival of almost 1,200 small boat migrants in two days.

In an intense clash with chair Dame Diana Johnson, Ms Braverman claimed doing nothing is not an option but was told to just answer the question.

It's 100 days since that bill was introduced in the Commons, its gone through all Commons stages and its now in the Lords, Dame Diana asked. Why have we still not got any economic impact assessment?

The bill will have finished all its stages and been given royal assent by the time we get this.

Ms Braverman said the government would publish the document in due course, but when pressed, she admitted: There are many unknown factors on which the bills success is contingent, for example the delivery of our Rwanda agreement. Were currently in litigation and those timelines are out of our control.

The home secretary said flights would only take off if the government wins the ongoing legal battle, which is currently at the Court of Appeal.

The Independent previously revealed that she had failed to disclose her previous work training Rwandan government lawyers to the Home Office, after working for six years as the director of a charity with close links to the Kigali government.

Ms Braverman admitted that the government does not yet have a clear view of the operability of the Rwanda deal, and will not be able to confirm the economic impact of the bill until it does.

Suella Braverman outlines new small boats bill

She told the Home Affairs Committee that the cost of detaining all small boat migrants for 28 days, under the bill, was also an unknown because of fluctuating crossing numbers.

When the bill comes into force, we will be able to take a view on how and how quickly we will be able to operationalise our detention and relocation powers, and that will inform the costs, Ms Braverman added.

The home secretary was repeatedly asked whether she would correct the record in parliament, after appearing to claim the overall backlog of asylum decisions had fallen in a period where it rocketed to a new record.

Ms Braverman dismissed the questions and told the committee: Asking questions again and again is not the best use of your time, I humbly suggest to you.

Dame Diana replied: I would respectfully say to you, home secretary, that we decide what we wish to ask you, and how many times we need to ask to get an answer.

The home secretary was also grilled on Rishi Sunaks pledge to clear a pre-June 2022 backlog of asylum cases by the end of this year, with Conservative MP Tim Loughton suggesting it was not realistic.

He told the committee he had calculated that in order for the target to be met, asylum decisions would have to quadruple.

Ms Braverman said Im not as pessimistic as you are, adding that the Home Office was recruiting more caseworkers, increasing productivity and expanding a fast-track questionnaire scheme.

Last month, The Independent revealed that the UK has room for just 3,000 people to be detained under the new bill, less than a tenth of those who came across the Channel on small boats last year.

Suella Braverman expanded the scope of the Rwanda deal in march (PA)

The entire capacity cannot be dedicated to small boat migrants, because places are also required for people being deported at the end of prison sentences or for immigration offences.

By the end of last year, almost 1,200 people were already being held in immigration detention, and the new military bases and barges being turned into asylum accommodation cannot be used as detention facilities.

It is unlawful to detain people unless they are being removed in a reasonable period, meaning that the government will be forced to release small boat migrants without a concrete deportation plan.

During a House of Lords debate on the Illegal Migration Bill last week, a government minister said they could only be sent to countries where Britain has struck an agreement to take them back, adding: That is not at present the case, except in relation to Rwanda, but it may in future be the case in relation to other countries.

A report released by Parliaments Joint Committee on Human Rights on Sunday found the bill was unlawful and could lead to asylum seekers taking more dangerous routes to the UK, benefit people smugglers and worsen trafficking.

It said the government had not provided any evidence backing its claim that the law would deter Channel crossings, and that people fleeing persecution or conflict have no safe and legal way of getting here.
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Sir Lindsay Hoyle scolded Rishi Sunak for bringing up Labours Tom Watson during a fiery PMQs exchange about Boris Johnsons resignation honours list.

The row between the prime minister and the Commons Speaker began after Sir Keir Starmer accused Mr Sunak of being too weak to block Mr Johnsons list.

The Labour leader challenged the PM to explain why the Tory party had spent the past week arguing over which of them gets a peerage despite spiralling food bills and mortgage rates.

Is hes so tough, why didnt he block it? Sir Keir asked  before saying honours should be for public service, not Tory cronies.

The Labour leader added: He was too weak to block Johnsons list, and that also means that those who spent their time helping cover up Johnsons lawbreaking are rewarded by becoming lawmakers for the rest of their life.

Mr Sunak insisted that he had followed due process and convention  before lashing out at Labour for nominating Mr Watson, deputy leader under Jeremy Corbyn, for a peerage.

The Tory leader accused Mr Watson of spreading vicious conspiracy theories that were totally and utterly untrue, damaging public discourse and inflicting misery on innocent people.

The PM was referring to Mr Watsons decision to highlight false allegations of historical sexual abuse levelled by fantasist Carl Beech, for which he has apologised.

Speaker Hoyle then intevened to tell off Mr Sunak. Can I just say to the prime minister, you shouldnt criticise other members, he said.

Sir Lindsay added: Also, youre not responsible for the other parties. You are the prime minister that is answering the questions  not asking the questions.

Starmer asks for Sunak to find 'anybody, anywhere' to vote for him in general election

Mr Watson used his maiden speech in the Lords to apologise for his role in demanding action over the claims by Beech  later revealed to be a fantasist  about a paedophile ring in Westminster.

Sir Keir also used PMQs to challenge Mr Sunak on whether he would block the honours list of former prime minister Liz Truss or buckle to her as well.

The Labour leader told the Commons: Its not just Johnson  the prime ministers immediate predecessor is hoping to reward those who made her reign such a rip-roaring success.

On her honours list are the masterminds of that kamikaze budget  the economic extremists of the Institute of Economic Affairs, those whose disastrous ideas crashed the economy  Will the prime minister block that honours list or will he buckle to her as well?

Mr Sunak replied: If you want disastrous economic ideas all you have to do is [look at] Labours economic policy on energy. Its an energy policy that seeks to ban all new British oil and gas drilling, jeopardising 200,000 jobs and our energy security at a time of international conflict.

Boris Johnsons honours list dominated PMQs (AFP via Getty)

Meanwhile, a Conservative MP Philip Davies used PMQs to launch a verbal attack on Mr Johnson, criticising the socialist landmine of a ban on buy one get one free junk food offers, inherited by Mr Sunak from the Johnson government.

Referring to Mr Johnson, Mr Davies said: You might remember him, hes the one who said we should be more conservative  if only he was prime minister and had a majority of 80, he said. Labour MPs were heard shouting "More! More!"

The Tory feud over Mr Johnsons honours, which sparked his exit as MP, took a new twist on Wednesday when it emerged that Nadine Dorries is delaying her formal resignation.

Ms Dorries is reportedly keen to scupper No 10s plans to hold three by-elections on the same day.

One friend told the Daily Mail: Its her prerogative when she decides to go. Shes not going to give Sunak the convenience of three by-elections on the same day.
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A golden medallion commissioned by Queen Charlotte to celebrate King George IIIs recovery from illness is expected to sell for up to 5,000 at auction.

The item, part of the Bayreuth Collection, was gifted to close friends of the king in 1789.

It is due to appear at Christies sale on July 7 during the auction houses Classic Week.

Charlottes announcement that the king had recovered was greeted with widespread celebrations in 1789.

The UK Parliament presented addresses of congratulation to George III on March 10, the date commemorated on the medallion.

The medallion was presented by Charlotte on March 19 and it was later converted into a locket surmounted by an enamelled crown, set with diamonds, rubies and emeralds.

George III was subsequently diagnosed as having porphyria, a rare disorder that can affect the nervous system and skin.

The medallion carries an estimated price of 3,000-5,000.

It forms part of Bayreuth: A Connoisseurs Collection of English Silver and Gold Boxes, which is known for items of rarity, condition and provenance.

With estimates ranging from 1,200 to 250,000, the collection will be on public view from July 1-6 in London.

Christies international head of silver, Harry Williams-Bulkeley, said: This collection presents the market with an extraordinary selection of the very best silver and gold boxes sold in London, New York and Geneva over the last 30 years.

It has been formed under the disciplined and passionate eye of a collector with boundless energy and enthusiasm, allied with a scholarly curiosity to delve deeper into specialised fields.

It is a reflection of true connoisseurship in its most enriching form.

It is evident that behind the collection there is an innate understanding of the imagination and the creative skill of the craftsman, and an erudite appreciation of its ownership, from celebrated collectors and great country houses including Chatsworth, Belvoir Castle, and Stowe House.

The sale comes following the recent success of Netflix spin-off show Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story.

Starring India Ria Amarteifio and Golda Rosheuvel in the title role, and Corey Mylchreest, the series tells the story of the young queens marriage to King George of England, ushering in an epic love story that transforms high society.
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Rishi Sunak has faced claims of being too weak to block Boris Johnsons honours list and allowing those who helped cover up lawbreaking to become lawmakers.

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer pressed his calls for an immediate general election after also questioning if the Prime Minister will block the honours list of his predecessor Liz Truss or buckle to her as well.

Mr Sunak countered the attacks at Prime Ministers Questions by criticising Labour peerage nominations, including that of former MP Tom Watson who now sits in the House of Lords as Lord Watson of Wyre Forest.

Controversy over Lord Watsons nomination for a life peerage centred on his role in promoting the false claims of a VIP Westminster paedophile ring made by the fantasist Carl Beech, who used the pseudonym Nick.

The exchanges at Prime Ministers Questions came after the Conservatives triggered two difficult by-elections, including in the seat vacated by Mr Johnson.

Sir Keir used PMQs to focus on Tory infighting, which erupted after Downing Street published Mr Johnsons honours list on Friday, lacking the names of sitting MPs including former culture secretary Nadine Dorries and former minister Nigel Adams.

Hours later Mr Johnson dramatically announced his Commons exit, as the Privileges Committee prepared to report that he lied to Parliament over partygate.

Loyalists Ms Dorries and Mr Adams also said they were standing down as MPs.

The Prime Minister suggested his former boss wanted him to ignore the recommendations of the House of Lords Appointments Commission.

Mr Johnson said he was talking rubbish and his camp accused Mr Sunak of having secretly blocked the peerages of Ms Dorries and other allies.

A number of senior officials who were implicated in the partygate scandal were included in Mr Johnsons resignation honours list.

Sir Keir opened PMQs by asking Mr Sunak why the Conservative Party spent this last week arguing over which of them gets a peerage.

Mr Sunak replied: In line with a long-established convention of previous prime ministers having the ability to submit honours, I followed the process to the letter, in convention of long-standing process.

It is, by the way, a long-standing convention that prime ministers on both sides to this House have followed in the same way that I did.

But Sir Keir said: The truth is for all his tough talk after the event, the Prime Minister did sign off the honours list. That means that those who threw a Downing Street party the night before the late Queen sat alone at her husbands funeral will now receive awards from the King.

If he is so tough, why didnt he block it?

My predecessors may not have agreed with Labours choices of Tom Watson or Shami Chakrabarti, but the same precedent stood then as it does now. And Id expect a knight like him to understand that Rishi Sunak

The Prime Minister replied: As I said, I and the Government followed due process and convention. Prime ministers of both parties have always upheld the convention of non-interference on political honours.

My predecessors may not have agreed with Labours choices of Tom Watson or Shami Chakrabarti, but the same precedent stood then as it does now. And Id expect a knight like him to understand that.

Sir Keir said honours should be for public service not Tory cronies, telling the Commons: Isnt this this case: He was too weak to block Johnsons list, and that also means that those who spent their time helping cover up Johnsons lawbreaking are rewarded by becoming lawmakers for the rest of their lives?

End the boasting, the excuses, the Tory chaos, see if he can finally find somebody, anybody, anywhere to vote for him and call a general election now Sir Keir Starmer

Echoing the Prime Ministers words, Sir Keir added: Is his message to the British public if you dont like it, tough?

Mr Sunak replied: It is right that we use the honours system to recognise people. Almost 2,000 people a year from members of the England Lionesses team to the first Asian police officer in Greater Manchester.

But he talks about putting people in the House of Lords: perhaps he could explain why he put forward for a peerage the former Labour MP Tom Watson who spread vicious conspiracy theories that were totally and utterly untrue, damaged public discourse and inflicted misery on innocent people?

Sir Keir later switched attention to Ms Truss, asking: Will the Prime Minister block that honours list or will he buckle to her as well?

Mr Sunak sidestepped the question and instead focused on Labours economic policies.

Sir Keir concluded by calling for a general election, saying: End the boasting, the excuses, the Tory chaos, see if he can finally find somebody, anybody, anywhere to vote for him and call a general election now.

Mr Sunak replied by criticising Labour for voting against the Governments immigration reforms and measures to tackle disruptive protests, adding: Were getting on and delivering for the country.

Chief Whip Simon Hart earlier moved a motion known as a writ for by-elections in Mr Johnsons Uxbridge and South Ruislip constituency and Mr Adams Selby and Ainsty seat on Wednesday, giving between 21 and 27 working days for votes to be held.

But the third by-election, in Ms Dorries Mid Bedfordshire constituency, is on hold because she has not formally resigned as a Tory MP.
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A new set of stamps is being issued marking the 75th anniversary of the arrival of MV Empire Windrush to the UK.

Eight new stamps featuring illustrations created exclusively to celebrate the occasion, will be revealed at a launch event at the Black Cultural Archives in Brixton on Thursday.

The MV Empire Windrush arrived at the Port of Tilbury on June 21 1948 and its passengers disembarked a day later.

It carried several hundred West Indian migrants, many of them veterans of the Second World War and has come to symbolise the mass migration of people from the Caribbean to the UK in the post-war era.

The original artworks were created by five Black British artists, all with Caribbean heritage: Kareen Cox, Bokiba, Tomekah George, Alvin Kofi and Emma Prempeh. Cox, Bokiba and Prempeh designed two stamps each.

The artists were commissioned to create illustrations which celebrate the contribution of the Windrush generation and their influence on life in the UK.

The stamps depict the artists personal interpretations of themes including arrivals, education/Saturday schools, music/carnival, working life in the UK, political activity/peaceful protests, sports, food/markets and sound systems/dancehall scene.

Royal Mail also worked with Colin Grant, a British writer of Jamaican origin, and Sonia Grant, an independent historian, writer, researcher and photographic exhibition curator.

Revealing the stamps at the Black Cultural Archives, Winnie Annan-Forson, head of diversity, equity & inclusion at Royal Mail, said: As Britain marks the 75th anniversary of the 1948 arrival of the MV Empire Windrush, we are honoured to mark this key event with a set of special stamps, featuring vibrant illustrations from talented artists that celebrate the culture and contribution of the Windrush generation and those who followed.

We are delighted to have brought their stories to life in this special way, passing their legacy on to future generations.

In addition to the stamps, Royal Mail will be applying a special postmark to stamped mail from June 21 to 26, which will read: MV Empire Windrush, Port of Tilbury, 22nd June 1948.
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The Conservative Government and Labour appear to be in complete denial about the contribution of Brexit to the cost-of-living crisis, an SNP MP has warned.

A cross-party committee of MPs should be established to investigate the causes of the cost-of-living crisis and solutions to it, the SNPs Scotland spokeswoman, Dr Philippa Whitford, told the Commons.

But the SNPs proposal was dismissed as a crackpot idea and a waste of taxpayers money by Scotland Office minister John Lamont.

Opening an SNP-led debate, Dr Whitford said: As we approach the seventh anniversary of the referendum, one of its key architects may have just left the stage (Boris Johnson) but Brexits disastrous legacy will impact people across the nations of the UK for years to come.

I know as a doctor that the first step in dealing with any problem is to admit that you have one, but both this Government and the Labour Party appear to be in complete denial about the contribution of Brexit to the cost-of-living crisis.

Their solution to Brexit, which in their words and mine and many others was a bad idea, is to have Scexit, which indeed would be many magnitudes worse than Brexit Ian Murray, Labour

She added: If he wants to reduce some of the damage of Brexit, the Labour leader should support the idea of a committee to identify proposals that could be put to the EU prior to the review of the trade and co-operation agreement in 2026. Otherwise, what is the plan? Close his eyes, click his red heels together and make a wish?

Intervening, Liberal Democrat MP Jamie Stone (Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross) said the structure of the committee meant the door was locked against his party being members of it.

Conservative frontbencher Mr Lamont said a debate which starts from the unfounded position that the UKs exit from the European Union is to blame for any and all woes is not the best use of this Houses time.

He added: (Russian President Vladimir Putins) illegal invasion of Ukraine, coupled with the economic after-shocks of Covid, have caused huge disruptions to the global economy. No country is immune to this. However, we are benefiting from the swift action taken by this United Kingdom Government to mitigate the worst of these impacts.

He went on: The SNPs motion to establish a select committee to look at the cost-of-living crisis is not only unnecessary duplication of other work by this Parliament, but it is a complete waste of taxpayers money.

The total anticipated cost to the House of Commons for this crackpot idea is in the region of 463,000 per annum  and, in addition, there would be extra costs to adapt Parliaments committee rooms to accommodate this massive new committee.

Labours shadow secretary of state for Scotland Ian Murray accused the SNP of a have their cake and eat it approach.

He added: Their solution to Brexit, which in their words and mine and many others was a bad idea, is to have Scexit, which indeed would be many magnitudes worse than Brexit. They want to repeat the same mistakes and do the same thing.

He went on: While they keep blaming Brexit, and theyre right to say that Brexit has a contribution to the cost-of-living crisis, theyre letting this Government off the hook.

On the cost-of-living committee proposal motion, he said it was when looking at the small print that the flaws of this proposal become clear.

He added: Now Im left wondering if the real reason that this is being proposed is for the SNP to try and get one of their many disgruntled members of their group an additional salary payment as being committee chair.

Conservative David Duguid (Banff and Buchan) argued the motion was straight from the SNPs playbook of every problem is Brexit, every solution is independence.

Earlier at Prime Ministers Questions, SNP Westminster leader Stephen Flynn called on Rishi Sunak to apologise for the cycle of misery that Westminster has caused.

He said: There is an elephant in this here chamber when it comes to the dire economic circumstances facing the UK, and thats Brexit.

The Tory benches, they dont want to accept it, and the Labour Party, they dont want to talk about it, but whether its food prices, energy prices or indeed mortgage prices, households in Scotland are being shafted by Brexit. So can I ask the Prime Minister will he apologise for the cycle of misery that Westminster has caused?

Rishi Sunak replied: While his party leader calls Nicola Sturgeon the most impressive politician in Europe, we are getting on delivering for the people of Scotland.

The SNPs motion calling for the creation of a new Cost-of-Living Committee was rejected by 43 votes to 260, majority 217.
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More than 300 bodies have been retrieved so far from mass graves in southeast Kenyas Shakahola forest after a cult leader was accused of encouraging his followers to starve themselves to gain salvation.

Self-proclaimed pastor Paul Nthenge Mackenzie  the founder of the Good News International Church  is accused of inciting followers to starve to death to meet Jesus.

He was arrested in April and had appeared in court the following month.

Police had begun exhuming bodies two months ago and the process is ongoing. On Tuesday, 19 more bodies were exhumed, taking the death toll related to the starvation cult to 303. This figure is expected to rise as Kenyan officials said they have planned more exhumations.

More than 600 people are reportedly still missing and investigators are now expanding the search area. Earlier last month, Kenyas interior ministry said at least 109 bodies had been retrieved from Shakahola. Most of them were children, local reports said.

The increase in the death toll comes as Mr Mackenzies lawyer George Kariuki said the pastor eats and drinks and was healthy, contrary to rumours that said he refused to eat.

Mr Mackenzie could face possible terrorism charges, Mr Kariuki was quoted as saying by local media.

He also faces other charges, including murder, kidnapping and cruelty towards children.

Mr Mackenzies April arrest had come after police received a tip about the mass graves in the forest in eastern Kenyas Kilifi County, where he lived. Mr Mackenzie was later denied bail.

Self-proclaimed pastor Paul Nthenge Mackenzie (centre), who set up the Good News International Church in 2003, is accused of inciting cult followers to starve to death to meet Jesus (AFP via Getty Images)

Mr Kariuki was quoted as saying by CNN last month that his client was healthy in custody.

He eats and drinks. He is healthy. I have met him personally. There have been rumours that he has refused to eat, and that is not true, he said.

Kenyas president William Ruto described the pastor as a terrible criminal, whose actions were akin to terrorists.

Mr Mackenzie may have committed murder as well as counselled and aided persons to kill themselves by promoting radical beliefs, Kenyas public prosecutions office previously said.

An emaciated member of a Christian cult named as Good News International Church, whose members believed they would go to heaven if they starved themselves to death, is guarded by Kenya police officers and officials from the civil society in Shakahola forest on 23 April (REUTERS)

The case of the starving cult has sent shockwaves across Kenya and other parts of the world. The government vowed to tighten regulations on religious organisations and churches and cults, it was reported.

The Good News International Church reportedly operated in Kenya for two decades before shutting four years ago, according to reports.

Hundreds of Mr Mackenzies sermons are still available online, the BBC had reported last month.
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A Virginia school teacher shot by a six-year-old student is no longer employed by her school and a dispute has emerged over whether she was fired or she resigned.

Abby Zwerner, who worked as a first-grade teacher at Newport News Public Schools (NNPS), was shot by her student in January after which she sustained severe wounds, spent two weeks in the hospital, and underwent multiple surgeries.

The 25-year-old teacher, who filed a $40m lawsuit against the school over negligence, is now not employed by NNPS anymore, the administration announced on Tuesday, claiming she resigned from her position.

Ms Zwerners lawyers, however, said she was fired by the school and has not been paid since February. She also alleged the school was trying to put pressure on her after the lawsuit.

They are trying to squeeze her, Ms Zwerners attorney Jeffrey Breit told WAVY News 10.

The only thing I can think, they were trying to put pressure on her because we filed suit, he said. Its outrageous, as outrageous as Ive ever seen.

Mr Breit cited an email school officials sent Ms Zwerner in May, stating they had processed a separation of employment for you effective the close of business 06/12/2023.

I dont think you can read this any other way than youve been fired, he told WAVY.

The school refuted Mr Breits claim in a statement on Tuesday.

Every employee who is separating from the school division receives a similar communication, it said.

The school system also provided emails between its administration and Ms Zwerner, in which the teacher reportedly wrote: I wish to resign. Thank you.

The outlet first reported, citing email exchanges between Ms Zwerner and NNPSs human resource department, that the school district processed a separation of employment for her.

Ms Zwerners separation from the school comes five months after the shooting incident that shocked the shipbuilding city of about 180,000 people near the Atlantic coast.

Ms Zwerner was shot in the hand and chest as she sat at a reading table in her first-grade classroom at Richneck Elementary School on 6 January.

The six-year-old boy who shot her had used his mothers gun. His mother, Deja Taylor, pleaded guilty on Monday in federal court to using marijuana while owning a firearm, which is illegal under US law.

Ms Taylor is facing charges on the state level of felony child neglect and reckless storage of a firearm. A trial for those counts is set for August.

A candle light vigil held for Abby Zwerner in January (AP)

After the incident, Ms Zwerner filed a $40m lawsuit against the Newport News School Board, former superintendent Dr Gregory Parker, former Richneck principal Briana Foster-Newton and former Richneck assistant principal Dr Ebony Parker.

Ms Zwerners attorneys said school officials knew the boy had a history of random violence at school and at home, including an episode the year before in which he strangled and choked his kindergarten teacher.

Her lawsuit is still pending, but the school has rejected claims of negligence saying she could reasonably expect to work with young children who posed no danger, pointing to numerous incidents of violence against teachers across the US and in Virginias Newport News.

While in an ideal world, young children would not pose any danger to others, including their teachers, this is sadly not reality, the board said.

In asking a judge to dismiss the case, the school board has argued that Ms Zwerners injuries fall under the states workers compensation laws.

The school board said Ms Zwerner refused to accept workers compensation.
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The Colombian Army continues searching for a Belgian Shepherd dog that vanished while helping rescue four children stranded in the Amazon Rainforest after a plane crash.

The miracle rescue of Lesly, 13; Soleiny, nine; Tien Noriel, four; and one-year-old Cristin last week was celebrated by millions across the world closely following their story.

The children spent forty days trapped in the dense Colombian jungle after the light aircraft they were travelling in crashed on 1 May. The childrens mother, the pilot and another adult died in the crash, and with no outside help, Lesly and Soleiny resorted to using their knowledge of the jungle to survive before their rescue.

But one of the key players behind the arduous efforts in Operation Hope, a four-legged hero by the name of Wilson, has yet to return home. He got lost on 18 May when he was ordered to go look for the children in the jungle, but Colombian authorities have noted that no one will be left behind, and the search for Wilson continues.

It was quite strange because Wilson is trained to do what he was ordered. He was supposed to come back to his handler, Special Forces Commander Gustavo Narvaez Orozco told Semana in Spanish.On the day he went missing, he was approaching his handler, then he had a weird reaction and ran away.

Mr Narvaez Orozco said Wilson may be hiding from intimidating animals living in the jungle, such as alligators, jaguars, panthers and water boas. He said he hopes Wilson is able to hunt for survival until he is found.

Members of the army searching the jungle saw Wilson again on 6 June and tried to approach him. They sent another K-9 his way so he wouldnt feel threatened but the hero dog ran away again, according to Mr Narvaez Orozco.

The officers said he was a bit thinner. They tried to lure him with food, they called for him, and sent a female dog from our unit ... Once he saw them, he ran away and that was the last time we had any type of contact with him.

As the search continues, army officials are hoping Wilson displays the same instincts that helped the children survive.

The miracle rescue of Lesly, 13, Soleiny, nine, Tien Noriel, four, and one-year-old Cristin last week was celebrated by millions across the world closely following their story

Wilson, the hero Colombia dog that helped recued four siblings trapepd in the Amazon Rainforest, is missing (Especial)

The dog has been credited with using his sense of smell to help find the baby bottles the children used and then left behind after surviving the crash. Colombian authorities have previously said finding those items was one of the first signs the children were alive and helped fuel further efforts to continue the search.

From their hospital bed, the children have drawn images of their journey through the jungle, including one in which Wilson was featured.

Damarys Mucutuy told a local radio station that the children are fine despite being found with signs of dehydration and insect bites and have been offered mental health services. They are currently being cared for at a military hospital in the capital, Bogota.

In addition to making a camp, Lesly knew what fruits she cant eat because there are many poisonous fruits in the forest. And she knew how to take care of a baby, her grandmother Fatima Valencia told Caracol News.

From their hospital bed, the children have drawn images of their journey through the jungle, including one in which Wilson was featured (Colombian Army )

Ms Valencia added that Leslys experience looking after her siblings while her mother was at work also helped. It is thought that this knowledge, combined with food they managed to salvage from the planes wreckage and other skills learned growing up in the Huitoto indigenous group, helped the children survive for such a long period.

President Gustavo Petro called them an example of survival and predicted their saga will remain in history.
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A Pennsylvania woman has been accused of bullying her former partner into suicide by sending heinous and graphic text messages to him for a year.

Thirty-five-year-old Mandie Reush is facing charges of aiding suicide over the June 2021 death of Kevin Metzger, 37. Metzger, who shared a daughter with Ms Reusch, died by suicide while he was away at military training after receiving a slew of vicious messages from Ms Reusch.

According to a criminal complaint obtained by 11 News, Ms Reusch told Metzger in one of those messages that she, actually wanted him to kill himself because she thought he was the worst person on this planet. The messages were sent from June 2020 until the days leading up to Metzgers death just days before Fathers Day in 2021.

I hope you burn in hell and my daughter will dance on your grave with her real dad. Never talk to us again. Die slow and suffer, Ms Reusch allegedly wrote in a text, calling her current partner her daughters real dad.

I will make it my dying wish to make sure you dont see your daughter and that she knows who you really are.

Westmoreland County District Attorney Nicole Ziccarelli said in a statement that Metzger described a trail of torment both in his suicide letter and Facebook posts that were later reviewed by investigators. Ms Ziccarelli went on to describe the texts as unrelenting, noting that the level of bullying was criminal.

Mr Metzger may still be here today if those messages did not influence and encourage him to take his own life, Ms Ziccarelli said. We extend our condolences to the Metzger family for their loss and the grief they have experienced since his death. We will not allow or tolerate this kind of egregious behavior. Ms Reusch was first charged with harassment in May 2021 when Metzger forwarded some of the text messages to Pennsylvania State Police. But following his death, the charges were dropped and a new investigation was launched by state police and the DA office.

This is the next level, most extreme amount of bullying Ive seen, read about, heard about anywhere where someone is constantly telling someone to end their life, Pennsylvania State Police Trooper Steve Limani told 11 News.

Mandie Reusch is facing charges of aiding suicide over text messages she sent to her estranged partner before he died by suicide (PSP)

Ms Reusch was arraigned on Tuesday before she was released on bond.

Her attorney told 11 News that while the rhetoric in the text messages was nasty, prosecutors didnt have enough to build a criminal case.

There are some nasty things that are said, DiLucente told the network. Some folks may say its immoral, some might say its harsh, but my God, if were going to start prosecuting people for sending harsh texts to one another instead of it being verbally communicated, then were on a different path in our legal system.

Ms Reuschs next court appearance is scheduled for 27 June 2023.

If you are experiencing feelings of distress, or are struggling to cope, you can speak to the Samaritans, in confidence, on 116 123 (UK and ROI), email jo@samaritans.org, or visit the Samaritans website to find details of your nearest branch.If you are based in the USA, and you or someone you know needs mental health assistance right now, call the National Suicide Prevention Helpline on 1-800-273-TALK (8255). This is a free, confidential crisis hotline that is available to everyone 24 hours a day, seven days a week.If you are in another country, you can go to www.befrienders.org to find a helpline near you.
 Close Video: 'I knew I had to act,' Daniel Penny details NYC subway chokehold

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A grand jury has voted to indict a 24-year-old former US Marine over the death of 30-year-old homeless New Yorker Jordan Neely who he placed in a fatal chokehold on a Manhattan subway train last month.

Daniel Penny initially faced a charge of second-degree manslaughter when he was arraigned in Manhattan Criminal Court on 12 May. He did not enter a plea and has remained out of custody on a $100,000 bond.

On Wednesday, a grand jury indicted Mr Penny on a second-degree manslaughter charge and criminally negligent homicide charge. The indictment is expected to be unsealed at a later court date. His arraignment is set for 28 June.

Following the news, a legal fund set up to support the 24-year-old soared past $2.8m as conservatives continue to hail Mr Penny as a hero. Meanwhile, Neelys family welcomed the indictment and thanked AOC and every peaceful protester and all who still believe wrong actions should have consequences.

Mr Penny has defended his actions in interviews with Fox News and The New York Post.
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Delphi murders suspect Richard Allen is trying to throw out key ballistics evidence from his case ahead of his trial for the brutal 2017 slayings of teenage best friends Libby German and Abby Williams.

In a motion filed in an Indiana court on Tuesday, Mr Allens attorneys asked a judge to rule certain evidence in the case inadmissible at trial.

The motion itself is sealed but online court records show that it relates to ballistics evidence.

The criminal affidavit, which was partially redacted and released in November, previously revealed that the local man was finally tied to the February 2017 murders through a bullet found at the bloody crime scene.

Ballistics confirmed that an unspent .40 caliber round found close to the bodies of the teenage victims came from Mr Allens Sig Sauer Model P226.

The firearm  which he owned since 2011  was found during a search of his home last October and both he and his wife Kathy told police he was the only person with access to it, the documents state.

The bombshell document also revealed that, in Libbys cellphone footage, one of the victims mentions the word gun  suggesting that their attacker was armed with a firearm and was using it to coerce the victims.

In a police interview on 13 October, Mr Allen told investigators he had no explanation as to how the spent bullet ended up near the bodies of the two teenage victims, the document states.

The accused killer said he had not been on the property where the unspent round was found, that he did not know the property owner, and that he had no explanation as to why a round cycled through his firearm would be at that location, it says. The property owner  Ron Logan  was also previously tied to the case. He died in 2020.

Mr Allens attorneys previously questioned the analysis of the unspent bullet in December.

Richard Allen pictured in mugshot after arrest for Delphi murders (Indiana State Police)

While it is unclear whether this is the ballistics evidence in question and what argument his defence team is presenting for its exclusion, the judges ruling could play a key role in the strength of the prosecutions case.

The new court filing comes ahead of Mr Allens next court appearance on Thursday for a suppression hearing in the case, where Judge Fran Gull will hear arguments about other evidence the accused killer is fighting to suppress.

The 50-year-old father to a daughter, who used to work in the local CVS in Delphi, is trying to quash evidence subpoenaed from both CVS and from the Westville Correctional Center where he has been held since his arrest.

The hearing had been set aside as a bail hearing but was converted to a suppression hearing earliler this month.

Mr Allen has been behind bars since his arrest in October  almost six years on from the brutal murders of Libby, 14, and Abby, 13, who went out one day together and never returned.

On 13 February 2017, the two best friends set off on a hike along the Monon High Bridge Trail in their hometown of Delphi.

During the walk, Libby posted a photo of her best friend on Snapchat as they walked along the Monon High Bridge.

Minutes later, Libby captured a video of a man  known as bridge guy  dressed in blue jeans, a blue jacket and a cap walking along the abandoned railroad bridge. In the footage, the man tells the two girls: Guys, down the hill.

Later that day, the teenagers were reported missing when they failed to return to a spot where a family member was picking them up.

The next day  Valentines Day 2017  their bodies were discovered in a wooded area less than half a mile off the trail along the side of Deer Creek. Their cause of death has never been released with a previously-released search warrant application only detailing that they were killed with some type of weapon and lost a lot of blood.

Libby German (left) and Abby Williams (right) pictured together (Facebook)

For more than five years, the girls devastated families waited for answers in the case.

Then, in late October 2022, Mr Allen  a local man who served the victims families in his job at the Delphi CVS store  was arrested and charged with their murders.

According to investigators, Mr Allen is the so-called bridge guy captured on camera by the victims.

The suspect forced the two victims down the hill and led them to the location where they were murdered, according to his probable cause affidavit.

As well as the ballistics evidence, Mr Allen was also tied to the killings after his vehicle was spotted parked close to the trail in an odd manner as if to conceal the license plate, the documents state.

Several witnesses also reported seeing a creepy man matching the description of bridge guy around the time of the murders while one person said they saw a muddy and bloody man leaving the trail around two hours after Libby and Abby were last seen alive. The witnesses did not see anyone other than bridge guy on the trail at the time, the affidavit reads.

The married father to a daughter had been on law enforcements radar back in 2017 after he admitted to being on the trail the day the girls were killed.

During a 2017 interview with police, Mr Allen confessed to being on the Monon High Bridge Trail that afternoon but denied any involvement in the murders and insisted he had never seen the two girls that day.

Libby German posted a Snapchat as the girls walked along the trail (Snapchat)

Despite placing himself at the scene of the crime at the time of the murders, he slipped through the net due to a clerical error.

The sudden arrest of the local man almost six years on from the murders marked a major break in the case.

But the investigation is far from over with officials saying that they believe Mr Allen may not be the sole person involved in the killings.

Prior to Mr Allens arrest, investigators had been searching for information about a catfishing account which was in contact with Libby on the day she was killed.

The man behind the account  Kegan Anthony Kline  was tied to the 2017 murders in December 2021 when investigators urged the public to come forward with information about a bogus online profile named @anthony_shots.

Kline, 28, confessed to using the fake profile to groom underage girls, get them to send him nude photos and their addresses, and try to get them to meet him in person.

In a 2020 police interview, a transcript of which has been seen by The Independent, Kline admitted that he had communicated with 14-year-old Libby on Instagram and Snapchat through the catfishing profile before she died.

The transcript revealed that he had exchanged photos with the teenage girl and that Libby had communicated with the fake profile on the very day that she and Abby were murdered.

On 25 February 2017 - less than two weeks after the two girls were brutally killed  police carried out a search of Klines home in Peru.

Kline has never been charged in connection to the murders.

However, he has been behind bars for the last two years on a string of child sexual abuse and child exploitation felonies.

In March, he pleaded guilty to all 25 counts against him.

He then fired his attorney and said he planned to withdraw his guilty plea  before walking this back again. He is awaiting sentencing in July.

Last month, he told The Murder Sheet podcast in a jailhouse interview that he has information about the murders but that police dont want to hear anything I have to say.
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A single .40 calibre bullet discovered near the bodies of Libby German and Abby Williams turned out to be the smoking gun that initially led police to charge 50-year-old CVS worker Richard Allen with their murders in October.

The criminal affidavit, which was partly-redacted and released in November, revealed for the first time that the local man was finally tied to the murders through ballistics on a bullet found at the bloody crime scene.

Now, in a dramatic twist, it has emerged that the accused killer has now confessed multiple times to the 2017 killings while behind bars  including in a jailhouse phone call with his wife.

A trove of 118 court documents was unsealed on 29 June, revealing his shocking confession to wife Kathy Allen in the months following his sudden arrest last October.

In the 3 April phone call, from the Westville Correctional Facility where the accused killer is being held awaiting trial, Mr Allen allegedly admitted several times that he carried out the brutal murders. Mr Allens wife abruptly ended the phone call following her husbands confession, the documents state.

The suspect  who was on police radar back in 2017 but slipped through the net for more than five years due to a clerical error  also confessed in jailhouse calls to his mother, the documents state. In total, court documents state that he confessed at least five times.

As well as the bombshell confessions, the newly-released court documents also reveal new details about the murders.

Both Libby and Abby are believed to have been killed with a knife, suffering wounds caused by a sharp object, the filings state.

Some items of the girls clothing including a pair of underwear and a sock were missing and Libbys iPhone  containing the infamous video of Bridge Guy  was found underneath her body at the scene.

While the documents reveal dramatic details about the case, the accused killers attorneys have argued his confessions cant be trusted due to his current mental state  which they say has deteriorated drastically behind bars. They are also trying to have that key ballistics evidence thrown out of the case.

It was 13 February 2017 when best friends Libby and Abby set off on a hike along the Monon High Bridge Trail in their hometown of Delphi.

Richard Allen is escorted away from court after a hearing on 22 November (Associated Press)

During the walk, Libby posted a photo of her best friend walking along the Monon High Bridge. It was the last known photo of Abby before she was killed.

Later that day, the teenagers were reported missing when they failed to return to a spot where a family member was picking them up.

The next day  Valentines Day 2017  their bodies were discovered in a wooded area around half a mile off the trail.

Here, The Independent explains key details revealed in the affidavit.

The bullet

An unspent .40 calibre bullet was found between the bodies of 13-year-old Abby Williams and Libby German, 14, according to a probably cause affidavit released in the case of the State of Indiana v Richard M Allen.

Law enforcement have never revealed the girls cause of death, saying only that they lost a lot of blood after being attacked with an unspecified weapon and were not killed in the same location where their bodies were discovered.

On 13 October, investigators executed a search warrant at the home on North Whiteman Drive that Mr Allen shared with his wife Kathy.

The affidavit states they found knives and firearms, including a Sig Sauer Model P226 pistol.

A Sig Sauer Model P226, similar to one belonging to Delphi Murders suspect Richard Allen (Sig Sauer)

The Indiana State Police Laboratory analysed the gun and determined the unspent round found two feet from one of the victims bodies had been cycled through Mr Allens gun, according to the affidavit.

Mr Allen confirmed he had owned the gun since 2001, and his wife Kathy is alleged to have told investigators that her husband was the only person with access to the weapon.

Mr Allen offered no explanation how the bullet  which had not been fired  ended up in between the bodies of the two teenage victims, the document states.

The affidavit also revealed that one of the victims is heard saying gun in chilling footage on Libbys cellphone before she died.

Investigators had previously revealed that whoever attacked Libby and Abby had told them to go down the hill in the footage.

The Bridge Guy

A mystery figure seen in the footage captured by Libby became known as the Bridge Guy after a Snapchat video taken on Libbys phone during their hike was released by authorities last year.

In the clip, a man wearing jeans, a blue jacket and a hoodie can be seen approaching the girls. A male voice can be heard saying the words guys and down the hill.

Police believe the recording was made just before the murders took place, and praised the girls awareness and foresight for recording the clip.

Richard Allen pictured in mugshot after arrest for Delphi murders (Indiana State Police)

Investigators described the suspect as a white male aged between 16 and 40 years old, between 5 6 and 5 10 in height and weighing between 180 and 200 pounds.

The affidavit contains an eyewitness account from three girls under 17 who say they encountered a man on the Monon High Bridge who seemed to be hiding his face and glared at them when they said hello.

One of the three juveniles put the mans height at no taller than 5 10. They gave varying accounts of what he was wearing, but all said he had jeans and a jacket on.

A female witness, whose name has also been redacted, told investigators she also saw a man matching the description of the Bridge Guy captured on Libbys video on the Monon High Bridge. She also recounted seeing Libby and Abby walking towards the bridge at about 1.49pm.

This grainy image was taken on Libbys phone on the trail the day the girls went missing. Investigators believe the man is the killer (Indiana State Police)

A separate witness told police they had seen a man wearing a blue jacket and blue jeans who was muddy and bloody. CCTV footage from the nearby Hoosier Harvestore placed that witness driving away from the area at about 3.57pm.

Both witnesses told investigators they didnt come across any other males on the trails that day.

In a police interview early on in the investigation, Mr Allen said he was on the trail from 1.30pm to 3.30pm.

He said he had walked from the Freedom Bridge to the High Bridge, and said he had noticed three juveniles but didnt interact with them as he was distracted by a stock ticker on his phone.

A vehicle resembling a 2016 Ford Focus owned by Mr Allen was seen on CCTV footage from the Hoosier Harvestore.

Libby German (left) and Abby Williams (right) pictured together (Facebook)

One witness said it was parked behind an old child protective services building in an odd location and it was parked as if the driver had been trying to conceal its plates.

During a separate interview on 13 October this year, Mr Allen told police he gone to the bridge to watch the fish.

He said he was wearing blue jeans with a blue or black Carhartt jacket and may have also worn a head covering. He admitted seeing the three juvenile girls but said he didnt encounter anyone else.

According to the affidavit, a detective who had worked on the case since 2017 believed that the combination of the video shot on Libbys phone, the eyewitness accounts, and CCTV footage showed that Mr Allen was the Bridge Guy.

Further, that the victims were forced down the hill by Richard Allen and (led) to the location where they were murdered.

Allens interviews with Indiana police

The affidavit raises questions as it revealed that Mr Allen spoke with investigators at least twice, including in 2017 - confirming that he was on the police radar at the time of the murders.

In the 2017 interview, Mr Allen had confessed to being on the Monon High Bridge Trail on the afternoon of 13 February  placing him on the scene at the same day and time that the victims went on their fateful walk.

At the time, he denied any involvement in the murders and insisted he had never seen the two girls that day.

In another interview on 13 October 2022, Mr Allen had no explanation as to how the spent bullet ended up in between the bodies of the two teenage victims, the affidavit states.

The accused killer said he had not been on the property where the unspent round was found, that he did not know the property owner, and that he had no explanation as to why a round cycled through his firearm would be at that location, it says. The property owner  Ron Logan  was also previously tied to the case. He died in 2020.
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A grand jury in New York City has voted to indict Daniel Penny in connection with the killing of Jordan Neely, who was placed in a fatal chokehold on the floor of a subway car last month.

A state Supreme Court arraignment is scheduled for 28 June.

Mr Penny was initially charged with second-degree manslaughter on 12 May. He did not enter a plea. He was released after posting $100,000 bail, and his next appearance was scheduled for 17 July. A grand jury was impaneled late last month.

The office of Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg has declined to comment until the arraignment takes place.

While we respect the decision of the grand jury to move this case forward to trial, it should be noted that the standard of proof in a grand jury is very low and there has been no finding of wrongdoing, Mr Pennys attorney Steven Raiser said in a statement shared with The Independent on 14 June. Were confident that when a trial jury is tasked with weighing the evidence, they will find Daniel Pennys actions on that train were fully justified.

Thomas Kenniff, who also is representing Mr Penny, said his client saw a genuine threat and took action to protect the lives of others.

Witnesses stated that Neely, who was experiencing homelessness and a mental health crisis in the days and months leading up to his death, walked into the train car loudly complaining of hunger and thirst on a Manhattan F train on 1 May, yelled to passengers that he was not afraid to go to jail or die, then threw his jacket to the ground before Mr Penny grabbed him from behind and wrestled him to the ground. Neely did not physically attack or specifically threaten anyone on the train that day, according to law enforcement.

Assistant District Attorney Joshua Steinglass described the events similarly in a statement in Manhattan Criminal Court on 12 May.

Jordan Neely entered the northbound F train at approximately Second Avenue in Manhattan. Several witnesses observed Mr Neely making threats and scaring passengers, he stated.

The defendant approached Mr Neely from behind and placed him in a chokehold, taking him down to the ground, where Mr Penny held him for several minutes after the train reached the Broadway-Lafayette platform, according to the statement. Two other men helped restrain Neely by pinning his arms, and at some point Mr Neely stopped moving, Mr Steinglass stated.

Prosecutors determined there was probable cause to charge Mr Penny after several witness interviews, a review of photo and video evidence, and a discussion with the medical examiners office, which ruled Neelys death a homicide.

The case surrounding Neelys death, which was recorded on a cell phone and shared widely, has sparked widespread debate and protests traversing issues of race, criminal justice, and urgently needed care for homeless and mentally ill New Yorkers.

The case also has captured the volatility of sensational media coverage around New York City and other Democratic-led cities, while Mr Penny has been hailed as a hero by right-wing personalities in claims that echo across social media and news outlets.

An online fundraising campaign for Mr Pennys legal defence was launched on the Christian crowdfunding platform GiveSendGo, a website created in response to GoFundMe removing far-right campaigns that violated its terms of service. It has collected more than $2.8m.

Mr Penny has defended his actions in interviews with Fox News and The New York Post.

A decision from a grand jury recommends to prosecutors whether a person should be formally charged with a crime or other offense. That decision is based on evidence presented by prosecutors to jurors.

We believe in our criminal justice system and believe it worked today, attorneys for Neelys family said in a statement shared with The Independent.

The grand jurys decision tells our city and our nation that no one is above the law no matter how much money they raise, no matter what affiliations they claim, and no matter what distorted stories they tell in interviews, they added. Any reasonable person knows choking someone for that long will kill them. Daniel Penny did not have the right to be the judge, jury and executioner.

This story was initially published on 14 June and has been updated with developments
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An active duty US Marine was one of two men arrested in connection to the firebombing of a Planned Parenthood in Orange County, California, according to the Department of Justice.

Tibet Ergul, 21, of Irvine and Chance Brannon, 23, of San Juan Capistrano  who is currently a Marine stationed at Camp Pendleton  were arrested Wednesday morning, according to the DOJ.

Both men have been accused of using an explosive or fire to damage property affecting interstate commerce.

The alleged attack occurred on 13 March, 2022, when a molotov cocktail was thrown at the clinic's entrance. The Planned Parenthood Costa Mesa location was forced to close temporarily and cancel 30 appointments as a result.

US Attorney Martin Estrada called the attack "entirely unacceptable."

My office takes very seriously this brazen attack that targeted a facility that provides critical health care services to thousands of people in Orange County, he said in a statement. While it is fortunate that no one was physically harmed and responders were able to prevent the clinic from being destroyed, the defendants violent actions are entirely unacceptable.

Security footage allegedly shows two men wearing hoodies and face masks approaching the clinic around 1am on the day of the fire. The video reportedly shows them lighting a device and throwing it at the front door of the building.

The device landed against a southern wall next to the glass door and erupted into a fire, which spread up the wall and across the ceiling above the glass door, the affidavit describing the video said.

One of the men who allegedly set fire to an Orange County Planned Parenthood caught on surveillance footage outside the facility (Department of Justice)

The facility caught fire, but Costa Mesa firefighters were able to extinguish the flames.

A later analysis of the evidence collected at the scene revealed that a glass device filled with gasoline was used to help spread the fire.

The men face a maximum of 20 years in federal prison if convicted.

The FBI previously offered a $25,000 reward for information leading to the identification, arrest and conviction of the men who threw the device.

Planned Parenthood locations, which provide abortions as well as a host of other healthcare services for women, are frequent targets of extremist violence. Nine other cases of arson or vandalism against Planned Parenthood facilities were reported in Oregon, Washington, New York, Colorado, Tennessee, Wisconsin, and North Carolina, primarily between May and July of 2022.

Nichole Ramirez, the vice president of communications and donor relations for Planned Parenthood of Orange and San Bernardino counties, called the attacks unacceptable, according to the LA Times.

The safety of our staff, patients and supporters is our highest priority, and we are working in collaboration with the FBI and local law enforcement to prosecute this attack to the fullest extent of the law, she said in a statement to the paper. [We] will continue to provide expert, compassionate care for the community as we have done for over 50 years.
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The family of a Chicago woman who vanished while travelling in Japan says that she has been found safe.

Kandace Schipper, 29, arrived in Tokyo on 8 May and abruptly stopped communicating with family and friends 10 days ago.

She had been travelling with a male companion, Luis Torres, 27, whom they have also been unable to reach.

Her sister Nicole Willea said family have notified the US consulate and filed a missing person report in Chicago.

On 14 June, Ms Schippers family released a statement saying that she has been found safe and sound.

Were relieved to share that weve obtained our beloved daughter, sister and cousin Kandace Schippers location, the family said in a statement. Thank you to everyone who helped us spread the word. Were grateful for every email, call, and share and are now focused on bringing her home safely. After going through this process, were overwhelmed by the kindness of so many strangers. From Chicago to Tokyo, we were met with so much support and eagerness to help us find our loved one and have empathy for anyone seeking missing family members. Its a complicated process trying to find information and it wouldnt have been possible for us without the generosity of so many.

Before she had been located, Ms Willea wrote on Facebook that the family was experiencing one of the worst fears possible.

Kandace Schipper suddenly stopped communicating with family on 4 June after travelling to Japan (Facebook / Nicole Willea)

Chicago woman Kandace Schipper arrived in Japan on 8 May (Facebook / Nicole Willea)

Brother-in-law Adam Willea told Chicagos WGN9 that the Tokyo Metropolitan Police was refusing to investigate the disappearance as a missing person case because she hadnt yet missed her flight home.

Kandace Schipper, right, with her sister Nicole Willea: Schipper abruptly stopped communicating with family after travelling to Japan (Facebook / Nicole Willea)

Ms Schipper, a stylist and makeup artist, grew up in Chicago and recently moved to California, according to a Linkedin profile.
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A woman who survived the capsizing of a tour boat at the historic Lockport Cave in New York has opened up about the terrifying accident.

Elizabeth Morrissette and her husband Dan were among 29 local hospitality workers onboard the flat-bottomed boat when it capsized in an underground water tunnel off the Erie Canal on Monday. One man was killed and eleven others were injured.

In an interview with local news outlet WKBW, Ms Morrissette said passengers were encouraged during the tour to turn their heads around so they could appreciate more of the cave. Some individuals then voiced concerns that the boat was not fit for a lot of movement just moments before it capsized.

I went under the water when it fully capsized, but I was on my way back up from being under the water and the boat literally landed on my head, Ms Morrissette said.

People are climbing on top of the boat to get out of the water because as soon as you hit that water with your chest your air is gone. It knocks the breath right out of you, you have nothing left.

Some passengers were able to get to safety on their own. Rescue crews using an inflatable boat rescued about 16 others, according to Lockport Fire Chief Luca Quagliano.

The boat did a 180-degree turn, so the bottom of the boat was upright in the water, Mr Quagliano said at a news conference on Monday evening. A number of victims were on top of that boat initially wheDaniel Morrissetten rescuers got to them.

Speaking about the incident on ABCs Good Morning America, the Morrissettes also said people were panicking and yelling loudly as they were thrown into the water, which emergency officials said was between 5 feet and 6 feet deep.

FILE - Water reflects the rock of the man-made Lockport Caves in Lockport, N.Y., on Aug. 21, 2014 (2014, BUFFALO NEWS)

By the time I realized what happened, the boat was on top of me and I couldnt find any air pockets or anything. And Im just trying to, like, breathe because Im underwater, Mr Morrissette said.

Video footage from the scene outside the Lockport Cave office showed one person talking as she was loaded onto an ambulance. Others wrapped in white towels were being escorted to a bus as a steady rain fell.

An investigation into what led up to the boat capsize is now underway. The name of the man who died has not been released but authorities said that he was in his sixties.

This photo provided by Jeremy Swiatowy shows rescue workers as they breach a wall with a sledgehammer, Monday, June 12

Lockport Cave is a half-mile-long manmade tunnel created in the 19th century with the original purpose of transporting water from the Erie Canal to the nearby Holly Manufacturing Company to power the plant.

In the 1970s, it was turned into an attraction offering thrilling underground boat rides to tourists.

Lockport is a city of approximately 21,000 residents in Niagara County, New York, and is located around 20 miles northeast of Buffalo.
 Close Survivors of New York state boat capsizing share chilling story

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A tour boat capsized inside a cave 20 miles from Niagara Falls on Monday morning.

Lockport Police said that passengers were on board the Lockport Cave & Underground tour boat when it overturned around 11.20am. Multiple agencies were called to the scene to search for the passengers in the water.

Mayor Michelle Roman said during a press conference that one person was killed during the accident, according to Spectrum News. The name of the fatal victim was not released but authorities said he was in his 60s and his wife is recovering at hospital.

Twenty-eight passengers and one staff member were on board when the tour boat overturned. According to Lockport Fire Chief Luca Quagliano, sixteen people were rescued by boat after the wall outside the cave was breached.

The rest of the passengers walked out of the cave themselves as the water in the caves is around two to six feet in depth.

The individuals on board the boat were all locals participating in a free tour for hospitality workers.
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A 28-year-old woman and her mother have been arrested after she posed as a 17-year-old to enroll in a Louisiana high school, according to authorities.

Martha Gutierrez-Serrano is accused of using a fraudulent passport and birth certificate to enroll in Hahnville High School in Boutte, 30 miles west of New Orleans, for the 2022-23 school year.

Officials from the St Charles Parish Public Schools district received a tip that a female student, who claimed to be 17 years old, was an adult in her mid-20s, the St Charles Parish Sheriffs Office said in a statement.

They launched an internal investigation and notified the sheriffs office that they suspected Ms Gutierrez-Serrano of lying about her age.

Detectives obtained a search warrant for the home Ms Gutierrez-Serrano shared with her 46-year-old mother Marta Serrano-Alvarado on South Kinler St, Boutte.

They found a fake passport and birth certificate belonging to the younger woman, the sheriffs office said.

Detectives learned that Ms Serrano-Alvarado had used the false documents to enroll her daughter at Hahnville High, the sheriffs office said.

Both women have been charged with one count of injuring public records, which covers the falsification of public records.

If found guilty, they could face up to five years in prison and substantial fines.

Its not known how long Ms Gutierrez-Serrano attended the school.

In March, 29-year-old New Jersey woman Hyejeong Shin allegedly used false papers to enroll in high school as a 16-year-old.

Ms Shins attorney said she had been trying to recreate her teenage years and entered a not guilty plea to a charge of providing a false government document.
 Close Related video: US government to appear in court over Prince Harrys visa after drug use admissions

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Prince Harrys US visa records continue to stay under lock and key following a decision by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).

This week, the DHS rejected a request by conservative think tank the Heritage Foundation to expedite a Freedom of Information Act request seeking the Duke of Sussexs immigration records.

DHS Senior Director Jimmy Wolfrey wrote in a letter that to the extent records exist, this office does not find a public interest in disclosure sufficient to override the subjects privacy interests, according to the New York Post.

Heritage lawyer Samuel Dewey slammed the decision to stonewall its request saying it shows an appalling lack of transparency by the Biden Administration.

We will be contesting their position, he added. We expected to have to fight every step of this case in federal court and will continue to press for transparency and accountability for the American people.

The think tank has been seeking his visa records after Prince Harry admitted to past drug use, such as in his memoir Spare. Drug use can be a reason to reject a US visa application. Prince Harry moved to Montecito, California, with his wife Meghan Markle in July 2020.
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The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has rejected a request by the conservative Heritage Foundation to expedite a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request by the think tank for the release of the immigration records of the Duke of Sussex.

DHS Senior Director Jimmy Wolfrey wrote in a letter that To the extent records exist, this office does not find a public interest in disclosure sufficient to override the subjects privacy interests, according to the New York Post.

The Heritage Foundation has argued that Prince Harrys past admissions of drug use, such as in his memoir Spare, make him ineligible for a US visa.

DHS notified the think tank on Tuesday, one week after being ordered to respond to the request by DC federal court Judge Carl Nichols.

Heritage lawyer Samuel Dewey told the paper that the reply from DHS shows an appalling lack of transparency by the Biden Administration.

The Department of Homeland Securitys efforts to stonewall the Heritage Foundations Freedom of Information request are unacceptable, and we will be contesting their position, he added. We expected to have to fight every step of this case in federal court and will continue to press for transparency and accountability for the American people.

The director of the Heritage Foundations Oversight Project, Mike Howell, submitted the request on 8 March, requesting records from DHS, Customs and Border Protection, US Citizenship and Immigration Services, and the Office of Biometric Identity Management.

Ahead of the hearing on 6 June, only DHS had yet to respond. The other three agencies rejected the requests.

The Heritage Foundations request for a preliminary injunction was withdrawn as moot on 14 June following the reply from DHS.

We can neither confirm nor deny the existence of any records relating to your request under Section 3, pursuant to FOIA Exemptions (b)(6) and (b)(7)(C). Exemption (b)(6) exempts from disclosure personnel or medical files and similar files the release of which would cause a clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy, DHS wrote, according to Inner City Press.

The privacy interests of the individual in the records you have requested outweigh any minimal public interest in disclosure of the information. Exemption (b)(7)(C) excludes records or information compiled for law enforcement purposes, but only to the extent that the production of such materials could reasonably be expected to constitute an unwarranted invasion of personal privacy, the agency added. To the extent records exist, this office does not find a public interest in disclosure sufficient to override the subjects privacy interests.

Judge Nichols is now set to decide how to proceed with the case.

At the hearing last week, the department argued that an injunction to force DHS to expedite the request shouldnt go ahead as the foundation hasnt shown how they will suffer irreparable harm if the information isnt shared.

Representing the government, Assistant US Attorney John Bardo argued on 6 June that it wouldnt make a difference when the request was handled, even if the response came a year from now.

The Heritage Foundation said the interest in Prince Harrys immigration status would decrease over time.

Large parts of the hearing centred on the amount of media attention on Prince Harry and his supposed drug use, which some legal experts say would have barred him from entering the US.

The Heritage Foundation has suggested that the federal government may have been engaging in favouritism and may have turned a blind eye to actions, which may have caused the authorities to reject the visa application. The foundation also argued that the public should be allowed to see Prince Harrys immigration records to see if he may have provided untruthful answers.

Mr Bardo argued that sufficient coverage from mainstream US media was required for a request to be expedited. He mentioned outlets such as The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal and the TV networks.

Heritage lawyer Samuel Dewey meanwhile argued in front of Judge Carl Nichols that DHS regulations simply say media without specifying where the outlets are based.

Mr Dewey told The Independent after the hearing that you cant define mainstream. Thats almost absurd in this context. So as a policy matter, that is a very alarming statement for the press and for transparency for the administration.

Nile Gardiner, the director of the Margaret Thatcher Center for Freedom at the foundation, added: I do find it astonishing that the British press is referenced as obscure.

These are big publications with a wide global reach including millions of Americans who read these newspapers and I find it absolutely astonishing this description today [that theres] some media that actually count and matter and others that do not. That is an extraordinary statement to make and absolutely unacceptable, he added.

Mr Dewey argued in court that todays media is global, noting that The Daily Mail had 100 million page views in the US in the month of April.

DHS said in previous legal filings that the US Customs and Border Protection denied the requests because Prince Harry hasnt consented to the release of the files, with Mr Bardo saying in court that an individuals visa is confidential.

Speaking to reporters outside the DC federal courthouse on 6 June, Mr Dewey said that Prince Harry had foregone his right to privacy after his series of highly publicised interviews and Netflix documentary series.

Mr Dewey argued in court that the case is part of a larger probe into the conduct of the federal government, specifically into DHS supposedly not following the law in other areas of its responsibilities, such as not protecting the US border with Mexico.

What are we asking for here? Mr Dewey told reporters outside the courthouse. We are only asking for the records that are related to this question that has been raised about the drug use and admission ... hes talked about it, hes written about it extensively, he has waived any privacy interest he has in his drug use, he has bragged about it in Spare and sold that.
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A white Starbucks manager whose staff refused bathroom access to two Black men was awarded $25.6m after successfully arguing that the company fired her because of her skin colour.

In April 2018, two Black men visited a Starbucks in Philadelphia to attend a business meeting. A third person  a white man  had not yet arrived. One of the men asked if he could use the restroom while they waited for the third to arrive. The staff told him no. The men, Donte Robinson and Rashon Nelson, both 23 at the time, were eventually asked to leave, and an employee later called the police to report them when they did not.

The men were arrested, and videos of their encounter with police spread on social media, resulting in boycotts, threats, and allegations of racism against the coffee company.

Kevin R Johnson, the company's CEO at the time, apologised following the incident, calling the situation "reprehensible."

The stores manager, Shannon Phillips, was fired over the incident, but sued Starbucks, alleging she had only been terminated because she was white. A federal jury in New Jersey appears to have agreed with her argument, according to the New York Times.

The jury found that Starbucks violated a New Jersey law prohibiting racial discrimination, and awarded her $600,000 in compensatory damages, along with $25m in punitive damages.

Laura Mattiacci, Ms Phillips' lawyer, said she and her client were "very pleased" by the outcome.

A spokesperson for Starbucks told The Independent that the company had no comment to offer in response to the ruling.

She claimed in her lawsuit that Starbucks sought to punish white employees in and around Philadelphia, even if they had not been involved in the bathroom incident.

Ms Phillips also alleged that one of her superiors, a Black woman, told her to suspend a white manager who oversaw other Philadelphia stores, though not the store where the incident took place. The woman allegedly said the suspension was in response to the white manager engaging in discriminatory conduct, but Ms Phillips said she knew for a fact the allegations were not true, and she pushed back against the demand.

She also said that the in-store manager at the location where the two Black men were arrested was a Black man himself. Ms Phillips said Starbucks took no action against him following the incident.

Ms Phillips said she was fired shortly after she pushed back on the alleged directive to fire the white managers.

Starbucks denied targeting Ms Phillips due to her race, insisting instead that she was terminated because of her reportedly lackluster response to the Rittenhouse Square incident.

Lawyers representing the company argued that the crisis required "a leader who could perform" and claimed that "Ms Phillips failed in every aspect of that role."

Starbucks eventually settled a lawsuit brought by Mr Robinson and Mr Nelson. The settlement with Starbucks was confidential.
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Texas LGBTQ+ youth say they would rather leave than face their home states recent onslaught of anti-trans legislation.

Theres not really any other way to progress forward, Luna, 14, who is trans, told The Texas Newsroom. They clearly want us out, or dead. So, Id rather be out than dead.

Luna, who came out in 2021, is moving with her family to Boston.

Corbin, 16, who is also trans, told KERA News last month hes also considering leaving the Lone Star State.

Me and my friend groups, were getting ready as much as we can, he said. Its a difficult, long process to figure out what you want to do  Because its not safe enough to stay, but we dont want to give them what they want.

In June, Texas joined the at least 18 other states that have banned gender-affirming care for minors.

The state is the most populous so far to take the step, which outlaws treatments supported by every major medical organisation in the US, including the American Medical Association.

Trans rights advocates have said theyll seek to challenge the new law in court.

We will be filing a lawsuit to protect transgender youth in Texas from being stripped of access to healthcare that keeps them healthy and alive, Lambda Legal, the American Civil Liberties Union, the American Civil Liberties Union of Texas, and the Transgender Law Center told The Independent in a statement.

The changes in Texas law appear to have caused disruptions at local hospitals.

In May, teen patients in Austin lost access to gender-affirming care, after the state of Texas began investigating the Dell Childrens Medical Center, seemingly in response to video from the dubious right-wing hidden camera outfit Project Veritas.

The last couple days have been going through the feelings of not wanting to leave a home and a community and schools that we love, a mother whose child was receiving treatment there told The Texas Tribune. But then how much stress would be lifted and what a relief it would be to be in a place where this wasnt a question  that part, I think, cant be underestimated.
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A newly declassified US intelligence report says US intelligence agencies are collecting a sizable amount of sensitive and intimate information on its own citizens.

The report, which was completed in January of last year but only declassified and released by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) on Friday, highlights the extent to which Americans personal data is at risk in an era when the government seems to believe it can skirt privacy protections if it simply purchases data from private companies rather than obtaining it through the legal system.

Experts believe the practise of purchasing data collected by corporations on citizens represents a major threat to privacy. The report states that the government is under the impression that it can, for all intents and purposes, legally track the phones of millions of Americans with no warrant by purchasing data.

Information from smart phones could theoretically provide the government with data on everything from their communications to their location.

The report was released at the behest of Sen Ron Wyden of Oregon, a Democrat who has for years championed privacy issues. Mr Wyden, in a statement issued following the release of the report, called on Congress to address the purchasing of private data.

Recommended Ron DeSantis makes it harder to track gun criminals with credit card data ban

Congress needs to pass legislation to put guardrails around government purchases, to rein in private companies that collect and sell this data, and keep Americans personal information out of the hands of our adversaries, Mr Wyden said in part.

Indeed, the ODNI report itself recommends that US spy agencies catalog the data they collect on Americans and develop protocols for protecting that data from foreign entities.

It remains unclear exactly how much personal data the US government has collected on its citizens or what, if any, agreements it has in place with private corporations to purchase information. The report also suggests that the data could be a target for foreign countries looking to collect intelligence on US citizens and that the collection of information alone makes Americans vulnerable to blackmail and public shaming.

The US government has for years stood accused of collecting large amounts of information on its citizens, a task made easier by the proliferation of digital communications and data. The kind of data the government is reportedly purchasing is often anonymised before being sold, but the report claims that it is not complicated to de-anonymise.

This report reveals what we feared most, Sean Vitka, a policy attorney with the nonprofit Demand Progress, toldWired. Intelligence agencies are flouting the law and buying information about Americans that Congress and the Supreme Court have made clear the government should not have.
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Retired Harvard Law School professor Alan Dershowitz said that the indictment against former president Donald Trump that led to his arraignment on Wednesday is the most serious case against him, comparing it to a gun with Trumps fingerprints on it.

Mr Dershowitz made the comments on Charlie Kirks show on Tuesday. Mr Dershowitz served as Mr Trumps attorney during the former presidents first impeachment trial and also defended other celebrity clients such as OJ Simpson and Mike Tyson.

Mr Kirk, the founder and chief executive of the conservative youth organisation Turning Point USA, asked if Mr Dershowitz still thought that the indictment that came down last week and alleged that Mr Trump mishandled classified documents related to national security was the most serious one against the former president.

I do, especially the provision in which Donald Trump foolishly waved some paper in front of a reporter while he was being recorded by his own staff, Mr Dershowitz said.

And he said, I could have declassified this, but I didn't, so it's still secret, Mr Dershowitz said. And it has to do with a battle attack plan for Iran.

Mr Dershowitz did not call the charges in the indictment a smoking gun.

But it's surely a gun with Trump's fingerprints on it, he said. And his lawyers will have to explain that away. They may argue, look, it was just puffery. He didnt really show them anything. He just waved it in front of them.

Mr Dershowitz said that it seemed like Mr Trump knew he had not declassified the documents. He added that he would not represent the former president since he had done so during his first impeachment trial.

At the same time, Mr Dershowitz told Mr Kirk that Mr Trump was clearly targeted.

They never would have come up with this piece of evidence if they had treated him equally under the law, he said. Remember the special prosecutor wasnt asked to look into everybody who may have mishandled classified material. He was tasked only with getting Trump.

Mr Trump pleaded not guilty in a Miami federal courthouse on Tuesday after a federal grand jury supervised by Special Counsel Jack Smith voted to indict the twice-impeached former president.
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Rep Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) criticised Republicans who said that former president Donald Trump was a victim of a two-tiered system of justice and said it was an insult to Black and brown Americans.

The democratic socialist congresswoman told The Independent that she has not finished reading the indictment of the twice-impeached and twice-indicted former president, but planned on finishing it soon.

Ms Ocasio-Cortez serves as the number-two Democrat on the House Oversight & Accountability Committee. She said there was no comparison between Mr Trumps refusal to turn over documents to President Joe Bidens having classified documents, which Republicans have sought to paint as similar.

In no way shape or form is there a comparison between these two situations, she said. I think the American people have seen the documents stockpiled in bathrooms and in closets, the sheer amount of documents that will be stored and warehoused as well as the Trump administration's lack of cooperation and withholding these documents, it is extreme.

Mr Trump pleaded not guilty to 37 charges in a federal courthouse in Miami on Tuesday during his arraignment. Republicans, including Trump attorney Alina Habba and Virginia Gov Glenn Youngkin, have said that is a sign of a two-tiered justice system.

But Ms Ocasio-Cortez said that claim insulted Black and brown communities who actually do face a two-tiered justice system.

The idea that there's a two-tiered justice system and somehow the person on the short end of the stick is one of the most powerful and wealthy people that this country has known? she said. I don't think so.

Black Americans are far more likely to be arrested than their white counterparts, with the arrest rate for Black Americans being around 6,109 per 100,000 people compared to 2,795 per 100,000 white Americans, according to the Prison Policy Initiative.

Rep Jamaal Bowman (D-NY), a fellow member of the Squad, also pushed back on the claim.

Well Republicans don't want rich, powerful white men to go to jail, but they want poor, vulnerable Black and brown people to go to jail, he told The Independent. So they don't care if the Black and brown person is jumping the turnstile or allegedly stealing a book bag they want them to go to jail and stay in jail. But rich, powerful white men. Nah man, to them they need Trump out making money for their super PACs so they can get re-elected.

Ms Ocasio-Cortez also criticised Republicans who said that the government is weaponised against Mr Trump. House Republicans formed the Select Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government at the beginning of the Congress in response to investigations into Mr Trump.

There's no way in which that argument holds water, she said. We have a nation of laws in which all people are treated equally and mind too, the President is not being charged with events that happened during his presidency, but crimes that were committed afterwards.

Rep Stacey Plaskett, the Democratic delegate for the US Virgin Islands who serves as the ranking Democrat on the subcommittee, criticised the accusations of weaponisation and said she worried about such accusations from House Republicans.

I think that they've been laying the foundation for this from the beginning of this Congress by talking about the weaponization of the federal government making Americans feel uncomfortable with the rule of law with our law enforcement, whether it's FBI or [Department of Justice], Ms Plaskett told The Independent. And so that's something that we're going to continue to push back on in the committee, as well as I think in the Democratic caucus.
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Miami Mayor Francis Suarez declared his bid for the Republican presidential nomination on Wednesday, joining the crowded field one day after Donald Trump was indicted on federal charges.

The 45-year-old Republican mayor, the only Hispanic candidate in the race, filed paperwork declaring his candidacy with the Federal Election Commission on Wednesday, the Associated Press reported.

Mr Suarez, who is vying to become the first sitting mayor elected president, joins a GOP primary battle that includes Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, former vice president Mike Pence, South Carolina Senator Tim Scott, Nikki Haley and former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie.

Despite having a candidate field in the double digits, the race is largely seen as a two-person contest between Mr Trump and Mr DeSantis.

However, Mr Trumps many legal vulnerabilities may have given his Republican opponents an opening. None are more perilous for the former president than his federal indictment on charges of mishandling top secret documents and refusing to comply with a subpoena to return them.

Mr Trump, who turned 77 on Wednesday, pleaded not guilty to 37 felony counts in a Miami federal court on Tuesday.

Miami Mayor Francis Suarez is running for president (Associated Press)

Mr Suarez, who has been critical of the former president, got a taste of what the campaign race might look like when he was targeted by angry Trump supporters outside the courthouse on Tuesday.

Weve got a Deep State corrupt mayor! one screamed at him as he made his way towards the courthouse.

Weve got a swamp monster folks, another shouted. The swamps getting taken down, and youre getting taken down, brother.

Mr Suarez, the president of the US Conference of Mayors, is the son of Miamis first Cuban-born mayor Xavier Suarez.

He first became mayor of Floridas second most populous city in 2017 when he won 86 per cent of the vote. He was reelected for a second term in 2021 with 78 per cent of the vote.

Miami Mayor Francis Suarez verbally berated outside of the arraignment of former President Donald Trump in Miami on Tuesday (Twitter/@therecount)

Mr Suarez has earned national attention for trying to lure companies to Miami, with the hopes of turning it into a crypto hub and the next Silicon Valley.

Last month, Mr Suarez told CBS News making a decision on whether to run for president had been a soul-searching process.

He acknowledged he lacked national name recognition, adding: Im someone who needs to be better known by this country.

His father, Xavier Suarez, served as mayor of Miami during the 1980s and 90s

He is expected to formally announce his candidacy in a speech at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, California, on Thursday.

Recent polling shows Mr Trump with a commanding lead among likely GOP voters, despite his many legal battles.

A YouGov-CBS News poll put him at 61 per cent, compared to Mr DeSantiss 23 per cent support.

Mr Scott, Mr Pence and Ms Haley were all polling in low single digits.
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Just last week, former Vice President Mike Pence said he hoped federal prosecutors would not bring charges against former President Donald Trump. On Wednesday, a day after Trump was arraigned on dozens of felony counts related to classified documents, Pence described the allegations as a very serious matter."

I cannot defend what is alleged, Pence, who is now challenging Trump for the Republican presidential nomination, said on CNBC.

The former vice president's evolving message highlights the high-stakes dilemma for Trump's Republican rivals, who are struggling to find a clear and consistent strategy to take on the frontrunner as Trumps unprecedented legal troubles threaten to dominate all other issues in the 2024 presidential contest.

Some Republican leaders this week have demonstrated a newfound willingness to criticize Trump over the seriousness of the allegations, which include mishandling government secrets that as commander in chief he was entrusted to protect.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, a former naval officer and Trump's top rival for the nomination, said that if I would have taken classified (documents) to my apartment, I would have been court-martialed in a New York minute.

But that was just a brief mention in a weekend speech at a North Carolina GOP gathering, during which he focused his censure on the Justice Department and the Biden administration.

It's been much the same for other challengers. Even the most aggressive have layered their criticism of Trump with attacks against the Justice Department  for bringing charges against him  that make it difficult at times to determine exactly where they stand on the former president.

And thats precisely the point, given Trumps continued popularity among GOP voters and his rivals' desire to dent his lead without alienating his base.

Indeed, most of Trump's competitors are making a risky bet  for now  that the weight of his extraordinary baggage will eventually sink his reelection bid. They believe it will take time.

Trump's Republican opponents privately concede that the former presidents considerable political strength is likely to grow stronger, at least in the short term, as GOP voters, key officials and conservative media leaders rally around him.

For example, Pastor Robert Jeffress, of the First Baptist megachurch in Dallas, initially declined to endorse Trump's 2024 bid but declared Tuesday night that the GOP's presidential primary was all but over.

I thought there would be almost a civil war in the Republican Party for the nomination, but that quickly turned into an unconditional surrender, said Jeffress, who mingled at Trump's post-indictment gathering at Bedminster, New Jersey. "People absolutely love this president, and I believe his base is going to turn out.

The Republican establishment has tried and failed to reject Trump and his divisive politics for much of the last decade. But this time the GOP faces the very real possibility that a man who has been indicted twice and charged with dozens of felonies could become the partys standard-bearer in 2024.

Fighting that outcome, which once seemed all but inevitable, a powerful conservative voice is being raised in the fight for the first time.

The Koch networks political arm, Americans for Prosperity, has begun running online ads across Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina  the first three states on the GOPs presidential primary calendar  focusing on questions about Trumps electability in next falls general election against Biden. The new ads make no mention of his legal troubles.

Trump did a lot of good things as president," one of the ads says. But this time, he cant win.

Americans for Prosperity CEO Emily Seidel said her organization has talked to thousands of voters in key states to determine the most effective arguments to undermine Trumps political strength.

Based on the data were collecting, more than two-thirds of people who say theyre supporting Trump are also receptive to arguments that he is a weak candidate, his focus on 2020 is a liability, and his lack of appeal with independent voters is a problem, Seidel said. "That tells us that many Republicans are ready to move on  they just need to see another candidate step up and show they can lead and win.

So far, Trump's rivals are still trying to find their footing as the former president commands a big lead in early Republican primary polls.

And as they test evolving messages on the campaign trail and in media appearances, none of top-tier competitors are running paid advertisements seizing on Trump's legal troubles.

Republican presidential contender Nikki Haley, the former ambassador to the United Nations in the Trump administration, told Fox News on Monday that Trump was incredibly reckless with our national security if the allegations in the indictment are true. On Tuesday, she repeated the pointed criticism, but also said shed be inclined to pardon Trump if hes convicted.

I think it would be terrible for the country to have a former president in prison for years because of a documents case, Haley said on the Clay Travis and Buck Sexton radio show.

Others have made defending Trump a central message in their early campaigns.

Speaking outside the Miami courthouse on Tuesday, White House hopeful Vivek Ramaswamy announced that his campaign had sent a letter to other 2024 candidates challenging them to join his pledge to pardon Trump on their first day in office.

I respectfully request that you join me in this commitment or else publicly explain why you will not," it read.

Trump, meanwhile, is trying to take advantage of the media storm. After his appearance in federal court in Miami, he made a stop at the city's famed Versailles Restaurant in Little Havana, with news cameras in tow. He then headed home to his Bedminster summer residence, where aides had assembled hundreds of supporters, club members and reporters for a post-arraignment speech.

Trump was welcomed like a general returning home from battle. Insisting he was innocent of all charges, the former president vowed that, as president, he would appoint a special prosecutor to investigate Biden and his family.

As for the indictment and charges? This is called election interference and yet another attempt to rig and steal a presidential election, Trump said.

As they reckon with the fact that Trump faces years behind bars, as well as the logistical complications of balancing court appearances with campaign rallies, Trump's political advisers have stressed what they see as the political benefits. They believe the wall-to-wall coverage of his legal woes makes it difficult for his competitors to be heard, a point that other campaigns acknowledged privately.

From a campaign standpoint, I mean, what did the other candidates do today? Do we know? asked Trump campaign spokesperson Steven Cheung. Theres no oxygen for the other candidates."

Those other candidates are eager to highlight cracks in Trump's support, although for now, they appear to be modest.

On Capitol Hill, a small but growing Republican minority of lawmakers have recently described the new federal charges against Trump as serious.

I would not feel comfortable with a convicted felon in the White House, Rep. Ken Buck, R-Colo., told CNN. He pointed to Trumps attacks against Hillary Clinton, who was accused of mishandling classified documents in her emails in 2016. His words have set the standard.

Veteran Republican strategist Ari Fleischer warned that it would take time to understand the political impact of Trump's growing legal challenges.

A short-term rally around Trump now is not the true measure," Fleischer said. The only test is a long-term test.

___

Peoples reported from New York. Associated Press writer Ali Swenson in New York contributed to this report.
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The hosts of the Fox News programme The Five didnt seem terribly interested in hearing about the federal charges against Donald Trump after he was arraigned in Miami on 37 counts in relation to his alleged mishandling of national defence information.

Jessica Tarlov, described by Fox News observer Katherine Abughazaleh as the networks token liberal, attempted to explain the allegations against the former president on Tuesday afternoon.

So the Presidential Records Act ... it doesn't apply to agency documents. So the way that people are using this to say ... oh, you know, he's allowed to do this. He's not allowed to do it, she said.

Following a seemingly mocking interruption from her co-hosts, Ms Tarlov went on to say, He can't decide when he classifies them, he admitted that on tape, which is going to be a huge piece of evidence in this. So stop using the Presidential Records [Act].

After she was cut off a second time, she said pundits could continue to use the law as a reason to claim Mr Trump did nothing wrong but that they would be doing so inaccurately.

Thank god I printed it out! co-host Jesse Waters shouted over Ms Tarlov. Im about to smack you with the Act in a second.

Fox News token liberal Jessica Tarlov tried to bring level-headed analysis about Trumps arraignment to the table. Her fellow co-hosts were not having it, Ms Abughazaleh tweeted.

Let me talk about the Espionage Act. So this isn't classic espionage within the Espionage Act. There are a lot of things included, most importantly, unauthorised retention of documents and obstruction of justice, which it seems pretty clear that they have him on, Ms Tarlov said.

Is this a sad day? Yes, in one sense. It's always sad, I guess, to see a president in this position. But what's more sad, I think, is that we had a president who did these things. And when everyone says this is unprecedented. The problem is that Donald Trump is doing things that are unprecedented, and we don't know that these documents weren't compromised, she added.

We heard about that there were two Chinese national intruders, she said.

Now you care about Chinese nationals! one co-host shouted.

The amount of deflection that goes on when I say something about China and you go FangFang, or I say something about this, and then you just throw out Hunter Biden's a crack addict. Who cares? Talk about what happened today, talk about the indictment and don't make up things, use legal experts, she told her colleagues.

The Independent has contacted Fox News for comment.

FangFang is a reference to a Chinese spy who had contact with US politicians.

I dont think people on the left should lend their credibility to Fox News, Ms Abughazaleh tweeted. But I really hope Jessica finds a new job one day where she isnt berated and mocked by her coworkers on national television every single week.

Shes me trying to explain the nuance of a subject around a bunch of half drunk people who interject with inane comments because they cant grasp the subject or dont care, one Twitter user responded.

I understand the sentiment, but its still the most watched cable news network in America. Ignoring it wont starve the network of any oxygen its already getting- and while I wish this wasnt the case, there still remains a slither of an opportunity, Francis Maxwell said.

She is really really good at what she does and while, sure, she deserves a better work environment than The Five, it feels like her sound logic is reaching more of the ears that desperately need to hear it, Nate Zimmer said.

Lol thats not why shes there, shes a whipping boy plain and simple, Ms Abughazaleh responded.
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On 13 June, Donald Trump was charged with a number of crimes for the second time in less than three months.

He surrended to authorities in Miami on 37 federal charges stemming from his alleged unlawful retention of national defence information, adding another criminal case to the legal pressure against the twice-impeached former president as he seeks to win his partys nomination in next years Republican presidential primary.

Mr Trump also was criminally charged in New York in connection with hush money payments to bury stories of his alleged affairs in the lead up to the 2016 election.

He also is at the centre of another sprawling US Department of Justice special counsel probe into his efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election  separate from an investigation in Atlanta into his attempts to reject the results of that election in Georgia.

Should he be convicted in any of those cases, speculation has mounted whether he will face jailtime, raising the prospect of federal prosecutors and judges weighing whether to jail a presidential candidate or potential victor in the 2024 race.

Charges in the federal case surrounding his alleged mishandling of classified documents include the willful retention of national defence information, conspiracy to obstruct justice, withholding a document or record, corruptly concealing a document or record, concealing a document in a federal investigation, scheme to conceal, and false statements and representations.

Each charge carries a maximum sentence ranging from five years to 20 years. A potential sentence, if convicted, could include decades in prison.

That indictment was Mr Trumps second. In March, he appeared in a New York City courtroom to face criminal charges following Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Braggs investigation into hush payments leading up to the 2016 presidential election.

He has pleaded not guilty in both cases. And after both hearings, he returned to his properties to deliver remarks to crowds of supporters to cast himself as a victim of political persecution, baselessly accusing his political rivals of interfering with his chances of winning election to the presidency in 2024.

Former US President Donald Trump waves from his vehicle following his appearance at Wilkie D. Ferguson Jr. United States Federal Courthouse, in Miami, Florida, on June 13, 2023 (AFP via Getty Images)

Following his federal indictment, Mr Trump declared that he was an innocent man.

Those charges stem from a case that began early last year after National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) officials discovered more than 100 classified documents in boxes that were retrieved from Mr Trumps Palm Beach, Florida residence.

That discovery led NARA officials to notify the Justice Department which kicked off an investigation into how the documents ended up at Mr Trumps property.

Throughout the investigation, prosecutors and investigators harboured concerns that the ex-president was not being truthful about whether he had returned any and all classified documents in his possession to government custody as required under the Presidential Records Act.

But the classified nature of the records at issue added another wrinkle to the dispute between Mr Trump and the government he led from January 2017 to January 2021.

Trump stops off at Versailles restaurant after his arrest and arraignment (Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)

At times, the ex-president has claimed that he had used the sweeping classification and declassification authority to declassify any record he took with him to his Palm Beach home at Mar-a-Lago.

No evidence has emerged that any such order was ever issued, and in audio recordings obtained by prosecutors, Mr Trump is said to have acknowledged that he did not declassify certain records that were in his possession long after his authority to possess them expired.

The Justice Department is likely to attempt to have Mr Trump incarcerated if hes convicted.

National security lawyer and George Washington University law professor Kel McClanahan said that the department will probably want to go for incarceration in the case of Mr Trump, according to Insider.

Mr McClanahan said that the evidence in the indictment is intended to show that Mr Trump is a kingpin who knowingly broke the law, endangered national security, endangered nuclear weapon security, [and] endangered other countries national security.

The consensus among most legal experts commenting on the indictment appears to be that Mr Trump is in serious legal jeopardy.

A former assistant US attorney in the Southern District of New York, Sarah Krissoff, said that to the extent that theres a conviction here, the Department of Justice is going to want to be seeking a real sentence because of the nature of the conduct, how long it lasted, his involvement, the involvement of other people, working allegedly at Trumps direction.

She noted that if Mr Trump is convicted, the sentence would depend on the judge, which seems likely to be Trump-appointee Aileen Cannon in the District Court for the Southern District of Florida.

Mr McClanahan noted the novelty of possibly having to find a proper way to put a former president behind bars.

He questioned how the authorities would go about imprisoning someone who has a Secret Service detail and who has national security secrets bouncing around his brain, such that if someone holds a shiv to his neck, hell reveal the location of our missile bases.

In this handout photo provided by the U.S. Department of Justice, stacks of boxes can be observed in the White and Gold Ballroom of former U.S. President Donald Trumps Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Florida (Getty Images)

He added that Mr Trump might become a foreign intelligence gold mine for most countries on earth if hes imprisoned. Mr McClanahan sees it as more likely that if Mr Trump is convicted, he would be sentenced to house arrest with an ankle monitor.

But Ms Krissoff told the outlet that Trump can share that information that is in his head whether he is incarcerated or not incarcerated. So Im not particularly concerned that, as a citizen, the incarceration will trigger the sharing of information that wouldnt be shared otherwise.

Fox News legal commentator Jonathan Turley also didnt hold back after the indictment was unsealed.

Mr Turley, the Shapiro Chair of Public Interest Law at George Washington University, said on Fox News that it is an extremely damning indictment.

There are indictments that are sometimes called narrative or speaking indictments. These are indictments that are really meant to make a point as to the depth of the evidence, there are some indictments that are just bare bones, he added.

This is not one of those indictments, Mr Turley said.

This is clearly an indictment that was drafted to answer those questions. Its overwhelming in detail, he said. The Trump team should not fool itself. These are hits below the waterline. These are witnesses who apparently testified under oath [and] gave statements to federal investigators, both of which can be criminally charged, if theyre false.

Speaking about the images from Mar-a-Lago of the boxes of documents found in a ballroom and a bathroom, in addition to other less-than-ideal places, Mr Turley said that obviously, this is mishandling.

Its hard to show a picture of these boxes surrounding a toilet and saying we really acted responsibly, he added. Keep in mind that every one of these counts is coming with a substantial potential sentence.

A photo published by the US Justice Department in their charging document against former Trump shows boxes of documents stored in a bathroom at his Mar-a-Lago club in Florida (Justice Department via REUTERS)

The Justice Department, meanwhile, is separately investigating Mr Trumps rejection of 2020 results, building on the years of work from federal prosecutors to investigate more than 1,000 people in connection with the January 6 attack on the US Capitol, fuelled by the former presidents ongoing false claims that the election was rigged against him.

Based on evidence uncovered by the House select committee that investigated the events surrounding the attack as well as other filings and reporting, prosecutors are likely investigating several key elements of the sprawling effort to reverse the 2020 election.

Those could include Mr Trumps election lies, his campaigns attempts to pressure state officials and push false slates of electors to obstruct the certification of the results, a failed attempt to persuade Mr Pence to refuse the outcome, and Mr Trumps failure to stop a mob of his supporters from breaking into the Capitol.

A target letter from federal prosecutors to Mr Trump that indicates he is the subject of an investigation cites three statutes that the former president likely violated in his attempts to reverse the outcome of the 2020 election.

One charge  obstruction of an official proceeding  has already been brought against hundreds of people in connection with the Capitol attack.

The House select committee and a federal judge who was involved in cases stemming from its inquiry argued that there is evidence that Mr Trump sought to corruptly obstruct the certification of electoral college votes in Congress  a crime punishable up to 20 years in prison, if convicted.
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Jack Smith, the experienced war crimes prosecutor who unveiled an unprecedented federal indictment against former US president Donald J Trump, is no stranger to high-profile probes of public figures.

The Department of Justice veteran returned to the US last November after being appointed a special counsel by Attorney General Merrick Garland.

The first mission was to consider, whether any person or entity violated the law in connection with efforts to interfere with the lawful transfer of power following the 2020 presidential election or the certification of the electoral college vote held on or about January 6, 2021.

The second, which led to Mr Trump being indicted and arraigned in 37 federal charges, was about whether the former president had violated US laws prohibiting unlawful retention of national defence information and obstruction of justice.

It marked the first time in US history that an ex-president  let alone one who is a declared candidate in the next presidential election  faced criminal charges.

On 13 June, Mr Trump was arrested and arraigned on those charges in a federal court in Miami, where he pleaded not guilty.

Coming face-to-face in the courtroom, several reporters described how Mr Smith was seen staring down the former president throughout the entirety of the arraignment proceedings.

The latest development came on 18 July when the former president said he had received a letter stating that hes a target in the federal probe into his efforts to remain in office despite losing the 2020 election, including any role he may have had in inciting the insurrection on January 6, 2021, for which he was impeached but not convicted in the US Senate trial.

A letter of that type tends to be a sign that an indictment is coming but any possible charges will take months to go through the judicial process.

On 18 July, Mr Trump shared a lengthy statement on Truth Social.

He said in part that Deranged Jack Smith, the prosecutor with Joe Bidens DOJ, sent a letter (again, it was Sunday night!) stating that I am a TARGET of the January 6th Grand Jury investigation, and giving me a very short 4 days to report to the Grand Jury, which almost always means an Arrest and Indictment.

A third indictment of Mr Trump now appears likely. Mr Trump may be charged for his attempts to obstruct the congressional proceedings in relation to January 6, for possible fraud in connection to fundraising, as well as the attempts to recruit fake electors in states that he lost by small margins.

Later on 18 July, authorities in Michigan charged 16 people in the fake elector effort.

Theres little public information about what the prosecutors are focusing on, but the letter to Mr Trump pointed to statutes such as a possible charge of conspiracy to defraud the US and a wider charge in connection to a rights violation.

But Mr Trump will not be the first public figure who Mr Smith has put in the dock.

From 2010 to 2015, he oversaw anti-corruption prosecutions against multiple US politicians in his role as the head of the Department of Justice public integrity section.

One of those cases was against former Virginia governor Robert McDonnell, a Republican against whom he secured a conviction on bribery charges, though the case was later thrown out by the US Supreme Court.

He also won a conviction of former GOP Representative Rick Renzi of Arizona, who received a sentence of three years in prison before being pardoned by Mr Trump.

A Harvard Law School graduate, Mr Smith also served in prosecutorial roles in US Attorney offices in the Middle District of Tennessee and the Eastern District of New York.

Jack Smith presiding during a war crimes court hearing at The Hague on November 2020 (POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

Prior to his appointment by Mr Garland, Mr Smith lived in the Dutch city of The Hague, where he has been serving as a specialist prosecutor overseeing investigations into war crimes in Kosovo since 2018.

He also served as a coordinator of investigations for the prosecutors office at the International Criminal Court from 2008 to 2010, where he worked on cases against foreign government officials and members of militias accused of war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide.

Yet will even that be ample preparation for the punishing national spotlight to which he will now be subjected, including Mr Trumps infamous social media broadsides?

Following the indictment in June, Mr Trump lashed out at Mr Smith, accusing him of being a Trump hater and a deranged psycho that shouldnt be involved in any case having to do with justice, other than to look at Biden as a criminal  which he is!

Subsequently, Mr Trumps allies and supporters began attacking Mr Smith, including Kimberly Guilfoyle, Matt Gaetz and Mark Levin.

Special Counsel Jack Smith is atrocious, MAGA War Room tweeted on 13 June  the day of Mr Trumps arrest and arraignment.

Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene introduced an appropriations rider to the House floor on Tuesday (12 June) to defund Jack Smiths Special Counsel, his office and the investigation.

Ms Greene said: This is a weaponized government attempt to take down the top political enemy and leading presidential candidate of the United States Donald J. Trump.

Mr Smith has also faced repeated attacks from Mr Trump himself since the indictment was handed down.

In his post-arraignment speech at Bedminster on 13 June, the former president laid into the special prosecutor.

He looks like a thug, he said of Mr Smith.

Hes a raging and uncontrolled Trump hater, as is his wife, who also happened to be the producer of that Michelle Obama puff piece. (Mr Smiths wife, Katy Chevigny, is a documentary filmmaker who produced 2020s Becoming.)

But Mr Smith has been unfaltering in his response.

On 9 June, when the indictment was unsealed he struck a defiant note  a note he appeared to continue to take in his courtroom stance.

Adherence to the rule of law is a bedrock principle of the Department of Justice, and our nations commitment to the rule of law sets an example for the world, he told reporters.

We have one set of laws in this country and they apply to everyone.

Gustaf Kilander contributed to this report
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President Joe Biden is dispatching White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan to Tokyo this week for talks with his counterparts from Japan, Philippines and South Korea.

Sullivan will also take part in the first-ever trilateral meeting of the Japanese, Philippine, and U.S. national security advisers" while in Japan, the White House National Security Council said in a statement Tuesday.

The White House offered scant details about Sullivan's two-day visit that begins Thursday, saying Sullivan and his counterparts will discuss ways to deepen collaboration on a number of key regional and global issues.

Sullivan's visit comes after U.S., Japanese and Philippine coast guard ships staged law enforcement drills in waters near the disputed South China Sea earlier this month. Washington has stepped up efforts to reinforce alliances in Asia amid an increasingly tense rivalry with China.

Washington lays no claims to the strategic South China Sea, where China, the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysian, Taiwan and Brunei have been locked in tense territorial stand-offs for decades. But the U.S. says freedom of navigation and overflight and the peaceful resolution of disputes in the busy waterway are in its national interest.

The White House confirmed Sullivans travels after Biden during a reception at the White House for U.S. chiefs of diplomatic missions on Tuesday made an off-hand remark that Ambassador Rahm Emanuel, the U.S. envoy to Japan, was not on hand because he was getting ready for Sullivans visit.

U.S.-China relations have been strained throughout Biden's tenure. China launched military exercises around Taiwan after then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., visited the democratically governed island that China claims as its own.

Relations became further strained early this year after the U.S. shot down a Chinese spy balloon that had crossed the United States. Beijing also was angered by Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wens stopover in the U.S. in April that included an engagement with House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif.

And on Saturday, the White House confirmed that China has been operating a spy base in Cuba for sometime and that it was upgraded in 2019 under the Trump administration's watch.

White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby on Monday said that the Trump administration had the same access to intelligence about China's spying operations as the Biden administration did.

Former Trump administration officials, including former Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe and national security adviser John Bolton, have pushed back against the assertion that the Cuba spy base was upgraded under their watch.

The (Biden) administration claims that the base was there in 2019 if not before, all I can say is I was in the White House for part of 2019 I was certainly unaware of it," former Trump-era national security adviser John Bolton said in an interview on Tuesday with on SiriusXMs POTUS channel. I think I would have remembered it if it crossed my desk.

The White House confirmed the base after a Wall Street Journal reported last week that that China and Cuba had reached an agreement in principle to build an electronic eavesdropping station on the island.

Despite the tensions with Beijing, the administration has been eager to restart high-level communications with Beijing.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken is planning a visit China on June 18 to meet with senior officials, according to U.S. officials, who spoke Friday on condition of anonymity because neither the State Department nor the Chinese foreign ministry has yet confirmed the trip. Blinken was scheduled to visit China in February but those talks were scrapped after the spy balloon incident.

Sullivan is currently in India meeting with officials ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modis state visit to Washington for a state visit next week.
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The state Supreme Court is mulling whether the University of Delaware was justified in denying requests from Judicial Watch and the Daily Caller News Foundation for records related to the schools receipt of President Joe Bidens senatorial papers.

The justices heard arguments for the second time Wednesday in a long-running legal battle over the records, which have been the subject of multiple FOIA requests. That battle is playing out amid increased scrutiny of the handling of government documents by elected officials, including this weeks indictment of former President Donald Trump for allegedly mishandling and retaining classified documents at his Florida estate.

Meanwhile, the discovery of documents with classified markings at Bidens Delaware home and at his former Washington office is the subject of a n investigation by a special counsel. The FBI searched the University of Delaware earlier this year for classified documents as part of its investigation into the potential mishandling of government records by Biden.

Biden donated his senatorial papers to his alma mater in 2012, when he was vice president of the United States. The donation includes more than 1,850 boxes of archived papers and 415 gigabytes of electronic records from his 36 years in the Senate. The donation is subject to a gift agreement that prohibits the records from being made publicly available until two years after Biden retires from public life.

This is a colossally important gift of significant public interest, said Willam Green Jr., an attorney representing Judicial Watch and the Daily Caller News Foundation.

In April 2020, Judicial Watch and the Daily Caller foundation submitted requests under Delawares Freedom of Information Act for the gift agreement and records of all communications between the university and Bidens representatives related to the papers.

The university denied the requests, stating that the records sought were not considered public records under Delawares FOIA because they don't involve the expenditure of state funds by the school, which is privately governed but receives more than $100 million annually in state taxpayer money. The denial was upheld by the office of Delaware's Democratic attorney general and by a Superior Court judge.

The Delaware Supreme Court overturned the judges decision in December 2021 and sent the case back to Superior Court, ruling that the university had not met its burden of proof to justify the denial. The Supreme Court noted that factual assertions by the university were not made under oath and did not describe efforts to identify any responsive documents.

Unless it is clear on the face of the request that the demanded records are not subject to FOIA, the public body must search for responsive records, the justices said. A description of the search and the outcome of the search must be reflected through statements made under oath, such as statements in an affidavit, in order for the public body to satisfy its burden of proof.

Despite that ruling, the university apparently did not search for any responsive records. Instead, it submitted a sworn affidavit from a university lawyer who said she was told in January 2020 that no state funds had been used in connection with the Biden papers. She was also told that state funds are not used for the schools email system, over which any relevant communications might have been made.

With the affidavit, the Superior Court judge concluded that the school performed an adequate search for responsive documents.

In fact, however, the university submitted no evidence of any search. The affidavit, meanwhile, was based on conversations that took place four months before Judicial Watch and Daily Caller News Foundation even filed their FOIA requests  and almost two years before the Supreme Court ruling.

The university performed no search related to the requests, Green argued Wednesday. It reviewed no documents apart from the gift agreement, but rather relied on previous inquiries of university staff. 

Given the lack of a document search, Justice Abigail LeGrow asked university attorney William Manning how the universitys actions were consistent with the courts prior ruling.

Manning argued that if the school determined that there was no expenditures of state funds, it was not obligated to conduct a document search. The university, he argued, must demonstrate only how it came to that conclusion. Manning also said it was reasonable for the university to base its conclusion on internal conversations that occurred before the FOIA requests were submitted.

I think university officials are entitled to make a judgment whether information gained four months earlier was reliable, and they did, he said.

The court is expected to rule within 90 days.
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President Joe Biden chuckled and walked off when he was asked about allegations of bribery from his time as vice president pushed by congressional Republicans.

Are there tapes that you accepted bribes, President Biden? Is that true? Mr Biden was asked by the New York Post on Tuesday as he left an event attended by US diplomats at the White House.

Mr Biden stopped walking for a moment before smiling and chuckling, shaking his head as he carried on down the hall.

On 3 May, the Republican-controlled House Oversight Committee put out a press release quoting its chairman, Representative James Comer of Kentucky, saying: Information provided by a whistleblower raises concerns that then-Vice President Biden allegedly engaged in a bribery scheme with a foreign national.

A letter sent by Mr Comer and Iowa GOP Senator Chuck Grassley to the FBI requested the sharing of the documentation of an interview that took place in June 2020 claiming that it describes an alleged criminal scheme involving then-Vice President Biden and a foreign national relating to the exchange of money for policy decisions.

Republicans pushed for the June 2020 document to be released over the course of the next month. The FBI then made it available to members of Congress, with the information on the confidential source redacted.

A number of outlets tweeted the footage of Mr Biden chuckling at the question, including Russian state media outlet Sputnik.

The GOP is now trying to bring attention to a secondhand claim from a single source. The allegation was made when Trump Attorney General Bill Barr was in charge of the Justice Department, but the allegation still didnt prompt any legal action.

Republicans are grasping for any opportunity to show that the FBI and DoJ are treating Mr Biden with kid gloves and that he deserves to be indicted just as much as former President Donald Trump, a Washington Post analysis noted.

That provides the space that Comer and Grassley are filling, running far ahead of their extremely limited evidence, it states.

Sen. Grassley: Burisma exec recorded phone calls in alleged Biden bribe

Lawmakers who have seen the document say it outlines an allegation that Joe and Hunter Biden were both offered $5m by an executive at the Ukrainian energy company Burisma, where the younger Mr Biden was a board member.

Mr Biden addressed the allegations during a press conference with UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak earlier this month.

Mr Trumps first impeachment came out of his pressuring Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to probe the Bidens activities in the country. Mr Trump falsely claimed that Mr Biden blocked a corruption probe into the company to help Hunter.

Then-Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani continued to try to find dirt on Mr Biden in Ukraine, leading to federal law enforcement warning the Trump administration that Mr Giuliani might be being used as a vehicle for Russian misinformation.

Reports have indicated that Mr Giuliani may have been the source of the allegations of bribery against the Bidens.

This week, Mr Barr appeared on Fox News saying the allegation came from the FBI itself, something The Washington Post noted may be a semantic distinction between how the FBI received the information and how it reached US Attorney Scott Brady, who was put in charge of vetting the claim.

On Monday, Mr Grassley said on the Senate floor: According to the 1023, the foreign national possesses 15 audio recordings of phone calls between him and Hunter Biden.

According to the 1023, the foreign national possesses two audio recordings of phone calls between him and then-Vice President Joe Biden, he added.

What, if anything, has the Justice Department and FBI done to investigate? he asked.

The claim that the recordings exist comes from the same individual who made the claims about the bribe payments, The Washington Post notes.

Appearing on Newsmax, Mr Comer was asked if the recordings are legit.

We dont know if theyre legit or not, he said, mentioning that the executive who spoke to the FBI source claimed that the recordings were real.

On Fox News, Mr Grassley was asked if the document is damning for Mr Biden.

Theres accusations in it, but thats  its not for me to make a judgment about whether these accusations are accurate or not, he said. Its  my job to make sure the FBI is doing their job.

Journalist Marcy Wheeler tweeted that Mr Comer is using shady information from Russian assets laundered [through] a paid FBI informant.

New York Democratic Representative Dan Goldman blasted the bribery allegations on Wednesday.
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President Donald Trumps former chief of staff, John Kelly, panned a short address given by his former boss on Tuesday as nothing more than panicked bluster in response to two criminal indictments filed by prosecutors in New York and the US Department of Justice.

Mr Kelly spoke to The Washington Post after the ex-president appeared at his resort in Bedminster, New Jersey, in front of a crowd of $1,000-a-pop attendees gathered hastily to hear his post-arraignment remarks.

And he chalked up the presidents threats to go after Joe Biden and his family with the full power of a weaponised Department of Justice as president to little more than a tantrum.

Hes scared s***less, said Mr Kelly. This is the way he compensates for that. He gives people the appearance he doesnt care by doing this.

For the first time in his life, it looks like hes being held accountable. Up until this point in his life, its like, Im not going to pay you. Take me to court. Hes never been held accountable before, added the former senior White House official and retired Marine Corps general.

It was a comment that was simultaneously unsurprising yet notable due to the credence it lends to the idea that Donald Trumps inner circle of advisers has done nothing but shrink since he took office in 2017 and left unceremoniously just four years later. In particular, Mr Trump is reported to have iced out all but those who agree most closely with his strategy and tactics, leaving behind even previously close aides like son-in-law Jared Kushner as he becomes further and further ensnared in legal entanglements.

Mr Kelly was long seen as one of the presidents cool-headed influences in the White House, often clashing with more fervent True Believers in the administration like Steve Bannon and Stephen Miller. His brush-ups with the former eventually led to Mr Bannon departing the White House entirely before the end of Mr Trumps first year in office.

But Mr Kelly himself eventually left the White House, too, replaced by yes-men Mick Mulvaney and Mark Meadows who fed the presidents ego and enabled his most controversial actions, including his refusal to accept his election defeat to Mr Biden in 2020. Mr Meadows was most recently reported by The Independent to be cooperating with federal investigators in two probes examining his former bosss undertakings as part of an immunity deal: One into the January 6 attack, and another dealing with presidential records and classified material taken from the White House.

Mr Kelly is one of many former Trump White House staffers who have denounced their former boss since leaving his service; in 2020, Mr Kelly was reported to have described then-President Trump as one of the most dishonest people he has ever known in a CNN report.

The depths of his dishonesty is just astounding to me. The dishonesty, the transactional nature of every relationship, though its more pathetic than anything else. He is the most flawed person I have ever met in my life, Mr Kelly has told close friends, according to the news outlet.

Mr Trump was indicted last week on 37 criminal counts related to his handling of presidential records, including classified documents reportedly related to US defense and the military. He faces a separate 32-count indictment in New York, a result of a 2016 hush money scheme involving porn star Stormy Daniels.
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Sarah Palin is facing fresh derision after she denied that Donald Trumps devoted Maga base was a cult  before accurately describing its cult-like characteristics.

Appearing on Newsmax, the former Alaska governor was asked about the scenes at the Versailles Restaurant in Miami where Mr Trump stopped by after pleading not guilty to federal charges of mishandling classified documents on Tuesday.

Newsmaxs John Huddy asked Ms Palin whether the former presidents supporters at the restaurant had engaged in cult-like behaviour.

No, she replied. The definition of a cult is a group of people who are excessively supporting one another and a cause, all about conformity and compliance, and intolerance of anyone who doesnt agree with what their mission is.

Ms Palin soon found herself in familiar territory of being mocked by social media users.

Sarah Palin perfectly describes the Trump cult while denying that Trump World is a cult, wrote one Ron DeSantis supporter.

Michael Steele, the former RNC chairman, shared footage of a British reporter being called a traitor and angrily moved on from the Versailles restaurant after asking Mr Trump if he was ready to go to prison.

Sarah Palin asked if Trump supporters are cult members: No. The definition of a cult is a group of people who are excessively supporting one another and a cause, all about conformity and compliance, and intolerance of anyone who doesnt agree with what their mission is. pic.twitter.com/9oQPlwcSlD  The Recount (@therecount) June 14, 2023

You mean like this? Mr Steele wrote.

By jove, shes GOT it! Anjali Deodhar wrote. Apart from the first No ... everything else lines up perfectly! Congrats, Sarah!

Experts have long warned that Mr Trumps powerful sway over elements of the Republican Party amount to a cult of personality.

He has become more authoritarian, more outrageous, and yet many of his followers remain blindly devoted, Steven Hassan wrote in his 2019 book The Cult of Trump: A Leading Cult Expert Explains How the President Uses Mind Control.

After his arraignment on 37 counts of mishandling classified documents on Tuesday, Mr Trumps motorcade went directly to the Versaille restaurant in a choreographed photo-op where he was doted on by supporters.
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A ban on green investing has cleared North Carolinas GOP-controlled legislature as part of a broader Republican crusade against big businesses that champion sustainability and workplace diversity.

The measure, which won final legislative approval Tuesday, bans state agencies from using environmental, social and governance standards to screen potential investments, award contracts or hire and fire employees. It also says the state cannot weigh how a company promotes sustainability, engages with its community or structures its leadership to support those goals.

At least two other states  North Dakota and Idaho  have already enacted laws banning such criteria. And elected officials in several other red states have derided them as woke or proposed similar policies to stop investors who contract with states from adopting them.

The Senate voted 29-18 along party lines on Tuesday after the House passed the bill with veto-proof margins in May. It now heads to the desk of Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper, who could sign it, veto it or allow it to become law without his signature.

Cooper, who has not indicated whether he will veto the bill, has only picked fights with the legislature's Republican supermajority on a few contentious issues this session and has been unable to block any bills.

Sen. Dave Craven, a Randolph County Republican and primary sponsor, said the bill ensures that our pension fund is solvent by requiring the state to prioritize financial considerations over social or environmental factors.

Effective as soon as it becomes law, it would require the state treasurer to solely consider factors expected to have a material effect on the financial risk or financial return of an investment. State Treasurer Dale Folwell, a Republican candidate for governor in 2024, supports the bill.

But several Democrats in the House and Senate raised alarms throughout the legislative process that the bill does not clearly lay out the specific criteria it prohibits.

Democratic Sen. Graig Meyer of Orange County worried it would confuse state agencies and lead some of the state's largest employers to believe they're being discouraged from making their own decisions about how to run their business.

While we're trying to build a strong business and employment climate, I do not think that the General Assembly should be hostile to those interests in the bills that we pass, he said Tuesday during floor debate.

___

Hannah Schoenbaum is a corps member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.
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For Americans who lived through the 1990s, the words Clinton and socks may bring to mind a whimsical image of a certain famous feline, of the black-and-white tuxedo variety, who prowled the most prestigious halls of American power at a time when the US was emerging as the worlds sole unchallenged superpower.

But for former president Donald Trump, those two words represent the latest attempt to manifest a legal defence for his alleged unlawful retention of hundreds of documents with classification markings at levels up to top secret, long after his term.

At a campaign fundraiser and birthday party-cum-rally following his arraignment on 37 separate federal criminal charges on Tuesday, Mr Trump laid out what looks to be the argument his attorneys will present when the unprecedented case against him is heard by US District Judge Aileen Cannon at some point in the future.

Under the Presidential Records Act, which is civil, not criminal, I had every right to have these documents. The crucial legal precedent is laid out in the most important case ever on this subject known as the Clinton socks case, he said.

Mr Trump was referencing a decade-old civil lawsuit brought by Judicial Watch, a right-wing activist group, which had sought access to audio recordings of a series of conversations between former president Bill Clinton and Taylor Branch, an author and historian with whom Mr Clinton regularly met during his eight years in the White House.

The existence of the recordings, which were created by Mr Branch, only became known when Mr Branch published his 2009 book, The Clinton Tapes: Wrestling History With The President.

The tapes had supposedly been kept in Clintons socks drawer  hence the name.

Judicial Watch had asked the US District Court for the District of Columbia for a declaratory judgment stating that the tapes, which were recorded during Mr Clintons presidency, were official records of his administration under the Presidential Records Act. They also asked for the court to order the National Archives and Records Administration to take possession of the recordings and deposit them in Mr Clintons presidential library.

That law, which was enacted under then-president Jimmy Carter in 1978, stated that documentary materials, or any reasonably segregable portion thereof, created or received by the President, his immediate staff, or a unit or individual of the Executive Office of the President whose function is to advise and assist the President, in the course of conducting activities which relate to or have an effect upon the carrying out of the constitutional, statutory, or other official or ceremonial duties of the President were the property of the US government and had to be deposited with Nara at the end of a presidents time in office.

Congress had passed the PRA to stop former president Richard Nixon from destroying records from his defunct administration, which would have been within Mr Nixons purview at the time since prior to that laws enactment, presidential records were considered property of the president in whose administration the records had been created.

Though Judicial Watch argued that the tapes fell under the category of documentary materials created during Mr Clintons term, Nara had already determined that the tapes were personal records for PRA purposes, meaning they were of a purely private or nonpublic character because they were the functional equivalent of a diary or journal which are not prepared or utilized for, or circulated or communicated in the course of, transacting Government business.

And in her 2012 memorandum opinion referenced by Mr Trump, District Judge Amy Berman Jackson granted Naras motion to dismiss the lawsuit for failing to state a claim upon which relief could be granted.

Citing a pair of 1991 appellate court rulings which found that the PRA did not give courts the power to review Naras decisions regarding categorisations of records as presidential or personal, Judge Berman Jackson found that Judicial Watch had not cited any provision of the Administrative Procedure Act which would support a decision to order Nara to reclassify the Clinton-Branch tapes as presidential records and take custody of them.

If certain records are not designated as Presidential records, the Archivist has no statutory obligation to take any action at all, and there is nothing to compel under the APA, she wrote.

In order to accept plaintiffs theory that  the PRA creates a mandatory duty for the Archivist to assume custody and control of what he or she considers to be Presidential records regardless of how the President designated the documents, the Court would be required to ignore the rest of the PRAs statutory scheme. This it cannot do.

Even a laymans reading of that 2012 decision would, in theory, give a reader the impression that the case says the opposite of what Mr Trump claims. Yet in the 10 months since the FBI carried out a court-authorised search of his Palm Beach, Florida property, the twice-impeached, now twice-indicted ex-president and his allies have repeatedly argued the judges ruling gives former presidents plenary power to classify any given record as a personal record, and the government therefore had no right to seek return of the national defence information he has been charged with unlawfully retaining.

The ex-president stated as such during his Tuesday evening speech, telling attendees: The decision to segregate personal materials from presidential records is made by the president during the presidents term, and in the presidents sole discretion.

Trump says the Clinton socks case shows he was within his rights to keep secret government information hidden from DoJ investigators. Some legal observers arent buying it (Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)

In other words, whatever documents the president decides to take with him, he has the right to do so. Its an absolute right. This is the law, and that is something that people have now seen, and it couldnt be more clear, he added.

But according to legal and government records experts, the sweeping authority Mr Trump described is most certainly not, in any way, shape or form, the law.

Mark Zaid, a Washington, DC attorney who specialises in national security matters, told The Independent in a text message that Mr Trumps repeated invocation of the Judicial Watch case is nothing more than argle-bargle meant to give partisans something to say in his defence, and not in any way a passable legal argument.

That civil decision is completely irrelevant and will have no substantative impact on the criminal proceedings. The reference is nothing more than PR talking point meant to energize their political base, he said.

Ed Whelan, a conservative legal scholar who once served as a clerk for the late Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, wrote on Twitter that the arguments being put forth by Mr Trump and his allies amount to a bizzarro account of the PRA.

Mr Whelan, who was commenting on a Wall Street Journal op-ed authored by a Judicial Watch attorney called Michael Bekesha, argued Mr Bekesha was misrepresenting the outcome of the lawsuit which his organisation had brought more than 10 years before.

Its [one] thing for court to rule it doesnt have authority to order Nara, against its judgment, to take control of docs taken by [a] former president. It would be quite another to maintain that [the] PRA prevents current president from recovering classified docs from [a] former president, he said.

He continued: Under Bekeshas misreading of Presidential Records Act, [a] current president has no means (other than begging) of getting [a] former president to return wrongly retained national-security docs, no matter how sensitive. Very odd to torture [the] PRA and 2012 ruling to reach such a result.

Not only was Mr Trumps apparent defence panned by members of the legal community, but it also drew ridicule from another expert contacted by The Independent, a civil servant who has worked with administrations of both parties and specialises in the management and flow of government records.

This person, who asked to remain anonymous because they are generally not authorised to speak with the press, called Mr Trumps claim to have designated as personal documents containing sensitive national defence information, complete and utter bulls*** without compare.

The expert explained that the documents in question were not properly categorised as either personal or presidential records because they were created within the Defense Department or US Intelligence Community, not within the Executive Office of the President.

Its the absolute most ridiculous thing Ive ever heard, they said when asked about Mr Trumps argument. Its the kind of thing youd say if you secretly want to go to prison.
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It was a feature of his presidency and sometimes a source of amusement, but Donald Trumps love of Sharpie marker pens has resurfaced as he signed the bond document at his arraignment on federal charges in Miami on Tuesday.

Six pages of the former presidents bond document were made public after the hearing on 13 June, showing that Mr Trump is released on his own personal recognisance after being charged with 37 separate counts relating to the classified documents he kept at his Florida home.

The document stipulates that he is required to appear at future court dates and must not violate any local, state, or federal law while under the bond.

As reported after the arraignment hearing at the federal courthouse in downtown Miami, there are no travel restrictions imposed on Mr Trump nor codefendant and valet Walt Nauta

The only special condition the pair must comply with is that they are not allowed to discuss the facts of the case with a list of people provided by the government who may be called as other witnesses  except through their legal counsel.

Somehow making the former presidents signature on the final page all the more authentic is that rather than signing in a more traditional ballpoint pen, Mr Trump appears to have used a thick, bold, black Sharpie pen, that presumably he brought with him to court.

CBS News investigative reporter Graham Kates spotted the marker from five rows behind the former president, noting how Mr Trump and Mr Nauta were each required to sign their personal surety bonds. Trump brought his trademark sharpie, and his large bold signature was visible to me from 5 rows back.

During his 2016 campaign and four years in the White House, the thick black ink became synonymous with Mr Trumps distinctive sharp and spiky signature or autograph  likened to a mountain range or an EKG reading.

The marker was also used for speech notes, bulleted lists of talking points, polling numbers, and  most infamously  to alter the projected path of a hurricane on a weather map. This was later dubbed Sharpiegate.

In 2019, a photo revealed his thick marker-written notes on Air Force One stationery, denying that there was any quid pro quo arrangement with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky as was alleged in his first impeachment.

Trump presenting his own weather map complete with Alabama looped in by Sharpie (Reuters)

In a series filmed in partnership with HBO and Axios in his second year in office, he spoke about his love of Sharpie pens.

I was signing documents with a very expensive pen and it didnt write well, Mr Trump said. It was a horrible pen, and it was extremely expensive.

He added: And then I started using just a Sharpie, and I said to myself, Well wait a minute, this writes much better and this cost almost nothing.

The president signs a plaque on the wall yesterday (AFP)

The manufacturer of Sharpie pens, conglomerate Newell Brands, even had custom ones made for the Oval Office in black with the then-presidents signature on the side in gold.

So, I called up the folks at Sharpie and I said, do me a favour, can you make the pen in black? Can you make it look rich? he said.

In addition to official papers and signing autographs, Mr Trump has also signed an upright beam of his border wall with Mexico near San Diego, and a plaque on the wall near Alamo, Texas.

Mr Trump was indicted last week on 37 criminal counts related to his handling of presidential records, including classified documents reportedly related to US defence and the military.

The former president faces a separate 32-count indictment in New York, a result of a 2016 hush money scheme involving porn star Stormy Daniels.
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Donald Trump was met with a circus scene on Tuesday in Miami as he was in Florida to face 37 federal charges over his alleged mishandling of classified documents.

In a packed restaurant in the Little Havana, supporters alternatively prayed over the ex-president and sang him happy birthday, in honour of his 77th birthday, which is on Wednesday.

Mr Trump also posed for a photo with MMA fighter Jorge Masvidal and declared, Food for everyone! inspiring cheers from his fans.

Earlier that day, Ms Trump was in a federal courthouse, where he pleaded not guilty to 37 charges related to his handling of government documents after leaving the White House.

This is a breaking news story and will be updated with new information.
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Tucker Carlson pushed a new conspiracy theory that Donald Trump is being prosecuted for calling out Washington DC insiders over Iraq and weapons of mass destruction in his latest Twitter show.

The former Fox News host defied his former employers threats after they sent him a cease-and-desist letter stating that his new show is a violation of his contract with the right-wing network.

Carlson told his audience that the former president was now in legal trouble because of his position on Iraq during the 2016 Republican primary debates, in which he said the US had destabilised the Middle East with its invasion of Iraq.

Seven-and-a-half years later we can point to the precise moment when permanent Washington decided to send Donald Trump to prison, said Carlson on Tuesday evening as he played footage of the debate in Greenville, South Carolina.

In the footage, Mr Trump excoriates Washington DC insiders, saying, We should have never been in Iraq...they said there were weapons of mass destruction and there were none, they lied, they knew there were none.

Carlson insisted that by calling them liars, Mr Trump had sealed his fate.

That was the one thing you were not allowed to say as it implicated too many people on both sides, which on this topic is really just one side, he said.

Ep. 3 America's principles are at stake pic.twitter.com/eJNSUVvvqY  Tucker Carlson (@TuckerCarlson) June 13, 2023

Hillary Clinton was guilty, but so was Paul Ryan, all of them were guilty, they all knew and they all lied, and to a person, they hated Donald Trump for exposing them.

Carlson said that from the start of his administration, Mr Trump was targeted by filthy and decadent politicians, and name-checked Mike Pence, Nikki Haley, Mike Pompeo and Lindsey Graham.

He then accused them of piling on with maximum force in the wake of Mr Trump being charged over his alleged mishandling of classified documents after he left the White House.

Carlson then accused Mr Pompeo of not supporting Mr Trumps agenda and undermined at every turn the former presidents policies and ideas, before accusing him of toadying up to his boss.

Now the same person is telling Fox News he fears for the safety of our military ... because Donald Trump took some classified documents home and didnt immediately return them to the National Archives. What a lie that is, he said.

Carlson then said that the prosecution of Mr Trump was not just political it is ideological.

Nobody with Trumps views is allowed to have power in this country. Criticise our wars and you are disqualified, if you keep it up we will send you to prison, he said.

Thats the message that Washington DC is sending, not just the Democratic party but the message both parties are sending.

Carlson then asked his audience to drive 500 miles in any direction to check out the countrys condition and told the audience that the only places doing well in the US were the suburbs of DC.

He then said that Washington insiders were determined to end Mr Trumps campaign for another term in the White Office before voters got to have their say.

Trump is a flawed man but his sins are minor compared to those of his persecutors. In this life we do not get to choose our martyrs we can only choose our principles and Americas are at stake.
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Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday alternated threats of a new Russian offensive to grab more Ukrainian land with statements about the Kremlin's readiness for peace talks.

Speaking during a far-ranging meeting with Russian military correspondents and war bloggers, he made some of the most extensive comments about the conflict and his goals since sending the troops into Ukraine more than 15 months ago.

Here is a quick look at some of Putin's key statements:

UKRAINIAN COUNTEROFFENSIVE

Putin asserted that Ukraine has suffered catastrophic losses in its counteroffensive.

He said Ukrainian troops amassed reserves to launch the large-scale operation on June 4, but he claimed that the effort has failed to score gains and that Ukraine has lost 10 times more soldiers than Russia. His claims could not be verified.

Putin declared that Ukraine lost 160 battle tanks and over 300 other armored vehicles, while Russia only lost 54 tanks. He alleged that the Ukrainian armor losses represented 25% to 30% of the number of Western armored vehicles supplied to Ukraine.

He noted with a smirk that German-made Leopard battle tanks and U.S.-made Bradley infantry fighting vehicles are burning really well, adding that leaders in Kyiv must now realize the disastrous consequences of the counteroffensive.

PONDERING NEW LAND GAINS

Putin said Moscow could respond to alleged Ukrainian incursions and shelling of Russia's border regions by carving out what he described as a sanitary zone to prevent Kyiv from launching such attacks.

The zone would extend "to a depth that would prevent it from striking our territory, he added.

Asked how deep into Ukraine Russia could go, Putin responded coyly, saying that everything will depend on potentials that emerge after the so-called counteroffensive.

We will look at the situation and decide on our next moves, he said. We have various plans depending on the situation.

He mentioned that Russian troops already were near Kyiv, a reference to a botched attempt by the Kremlin to capture the Ukrainian capital in the opening weeks of the conflict.

Russian troops retreated from areas around Kyiv and other regions in Ukraine's northeast in March 2022, and in the fall they hastily pulled out from broad swaths of the Kharkiv region under the brunt of a swift Ukrainian counteroffensive.

Should we come back there or not? Putin said, adding cryptically: Only I could give an answer."

THE KAKHOVKA DAM DESTRUCTION

Putin again blamed Ukraine for the destruction of the Kakhovka dam that caused a catastrophic flooding, saying that Ukrainian forces had repeatedly shelled the dam with HIMARS rockets and then apparently used explosives to destroy it.

He argued that Russia had no reason to destroy the dam. We are certainly not interested in that because it has entailed grave consequences for the territories we control, he said.

Putin dismissed the Ukrainian argument that Moscow blew up the dam to thwart Kyiv's counteroffensive, saying that Russia would have been happy to see Ukraine try to launch an attack in that sector because of daunting odds.

PEACE TALKS

The Russian leader said ending the hostilities in Ukraine depends on the United States. He argued that the fighting would end immediately if the U.S. and NATO stop providing Ukraine with weapons.

If they want to see a negotiated solution to the conflict, its enough for them to stop weapons supplies, he said.

Putin said Russian and Ukrainian negotiators drafted a peace agreement in March 2022, but Kyiv spiked the deal under Western pressure. He said Russia is still open to resuming talks.

He said the U.S. wants to see Russia defeated and was pinning its hopes on the Ukrainian counteroffensive. At the same time, Putin argued that in the U.S. administration there are many reasonable people who don't want to take it all the way to World War III in which there will be no winners."

NEW MOBILIZATION

Putin, who ordered the mobilization of 300,000 reservists last fall as Russia faced a Ukrainian counteroffensive, would not rule out a new wave of mobilization, saying it will depend on the evolving military situation.

He emphasized, however, that there is no need for it now. Putin noted that the military has recruited 156,000 volunteer soldiers so far this year, making it unnecessary to round up additional reservists.

He also noted that he sees no need for the introduction of martial law that has been suggested by some Russian hawks.

Putin pointed out that Russia's military industries have sharply ramped up production. He said the output of Russian defense industries has increased 2.7 times in the past year, and in some key sectors it has increased tenfold.

GRAIN DEAL

Putin said Moscow was considering ending its participation in the deal to allow exports of Ukrainian grain from Black Sea ports.

Putin charged that Western countries have failed to fulfill their promises to facilitate exports of Russian agricultural products by removing restrictions on shipping, insurance and banking operations that were part of the agreement brokered by Turkey and the U.N. in July 2022.

He claimed that Ukraine also has used the sea corridor created under the deal for commercial ships to launch drones to attack Russian navy ships.

Putin argued that Russia signed the deal and extended it several times for the sake of helping some of the worlds poorest countries.

If Moscow decides to opt out of the agreement, he noted, it would freely supply those countries with the same amount of grain that would have been delivered by Ukraine under the deal. He said he planned to discuss the plans with leaders of several African countries who are set to visit the Russian capital soon.

___

Follow APs coverage of the war in Ukraine: https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine
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A court in Russia on Wednesday convicted an associate of imprisoned opposition leader Alexei Navalny on extremism charges and sentenced her to 7 1/2 years in prison, the latest step in a yearslong crackdown by the Kremlin on opposition activists.

Lilia Chanysheva, who used to head Navalnys office in the Russian region of Bashkortostan, was found guilty of calling for extremism, forming an extremist group and founding an organization that violates rights. The charges against Chanysheva, who was arrested in November 2021, stem from a court ruling earlier that year that designated Navalny's Foundation for Fighting Corruption and his regional offices as extremist organizations.

In addition to the prison sentence, Chanysheva was fined 400,000 rubles (about $4,700). Her trial was conducted behind closed doors and she has maintained her innocence, rejecting the charges as politically motivated.

Navalny himself is facing a new trial on extremism charges that could keep him in prison for decades. It is due to begin next week at a maximum-security prison 250 kilometers (150 miles) east of Moscow where the 47-year-old politician is already serving time on two different convictions.

Navalny, who exposed official corruption and organized massive anti-Kremlin protests, was arrested in January 2021 upon returning to Moscow after recuperating in Germany from nerve-agent poisoning that he blamed on the Kremlin. He initially received a 2-year prison sentence for a parole violation. Last year, he was sentenced to a nine-year term on fraud and contempt of court charges.

The new charges against Navalny relate to the activities of his anti-corruption foundation and statements by his top associates. His allies said the charges retroactively criminalize all the activities of Navalnys foundation since its creation in 2011.

Navalny has called the new extremism charges absurd and said they could keep him in prison for another 30 years.

The Kremlin's crackdown against opposition activists, independent journalists and government critics has intensified since it sent troops into Ukraine. Hundreds have faced criminal charges over anti-war protests and remarks, and thousands have been fined or briefly jailed.

On Wednesday, a court in Moscow sentenced a man who threw gasoline bombs at two police vans in the Russian capital last year to six years in prison. Vitaly Koltsov has said he did it to show his resentment of a police van as a symbol of infringement on freedoms.
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Belarus has started taking the delivery of Russian tactical nuclear weapons, president Alexander Lukashenko announced, claiming that some of these were three times more powerful than the atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945.

Mr Lukashenko said that the bombs are three times more powerful than those (dropped on) Hiroshima and Nagasaki, adding to his previous statement that he didnt simply ask Mr Putin for the weapons, but "demanded" them.

The Vladimir Putin ally was speaking to the Russian state TV channel Rossiya-1 on a road in a forest clearing with military vehicles and a storage facility visible in the background seen around him.

This will be the first such warhead deployment by Moscow, comprising shorter-range less powerful nuclear weapons that could potentially be used on the battlefield, outside of Russia since the fall of the Soviet Union.

The interview was posted on the Belarusian Belta state news agencys Telegram channel on Wednesday.

This comes five days after the Russian president announced plans to start deploying tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus, even as Moscow will retain their control, after the special storage facilities to park them were ready.

Mr Lukashenko further confirmed his close allys statement in the state television interview where he said Belarus has numerous nuclear storage facilities from the Soviet-era and has restored five or six of them.

On control of nuclear weapons in Russias hands as a move to prevent the arsenal from being used up quickly, Mr Lukashenko played down the concern and said that Mr Putin and he could pick up the phone to each other at any moment.

Just hours before on Tuesday, he had said that the Russian tactical nuclear weapons will be physically deployed on the Belarusian territory in several days and he had the facilities to host longer-range missiles too if ever needed.

Mr Lukashenko further alleged that Belarus has always been a target for the West.

"They (the West) have wanted to tear us to pieces since 2020. No one has so far fought against a nuclear country, a country that has nuclear weapons," Mr Lukashenko said, adding that the nuclear deployment will act as a deterrent against potential aggressors.

Belarus has been an active participant in Russias full-scale invasion of Ukraine as it has consistently allowed its territory to be used by Russian forces to attack Kyiv.

The first announcement of tactical nuclear weapons was made in March by Mr Putin who had blamed the US deployment of such weapons in a host of European countries over many decades.

The US, however, maintained that it did not see any signs of Russias willingness to prepare for nuclear weapons use in the continuing invasion, as it criticised the decision of deployment by Mr Putin.
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At least 79 people have died and dozens are feared missing off the coast of Greece after a fishing boat carrying migrants capsized and sank.

Authorities said 104 people have been rescued following the nighttime incident in international waters some 72km (45 miles) southwest of Greece's southern Peloponnese region. The spot is close to one of the deepest areas of the Mediterranean Sea.

It was unclear how many passengers might still be in the water or trapped in the sunken vessel, but some initial reports suggested hundreds of people may have been on board.

The Greek coast guard said 79 bodies have been recovered so far. It said the survivors included 30 people from Egypt, 10 from Pakistan, 35 from Syria and 2 Palestinians.

Twenty-five survivors were taken to hospital with symptoms of hypothermia. At the southern port of Kalamata, around 70 exhausted survivors bedded down in sleeping bags and blankets provided by rescuers in a large warehouse, while outside paramedics set up tents for anyone who needed first aid.

Katerina Tsata, head of a Red Cross volunteer group in Kalamata, said the migrants were also given psychological support. "They suffered a very heavy blow, both physical and mental," she said.

Six coast guard vessels, a navy frigate, a military transport plane, an air force helicopter, several private vessels and a drone from the European Union border protection agency, Frontex, were taking part in the ongoing search.

The United Nations migration agency, IOM, said initial reports suggested up to 400 people were on board. A network of activists said it received a distress call from a boat in the same area whose passengers said 750 people were on board, but it was not clear if that was the vessel that sank.

It is not safe to give a number. We do not know how many people were in the hold, coast guard spokesperson Nikos Alexiou told Greeces MEGA TV. There were too many people on the outer deck. It was full.

Survivors arrive at the port in Kalamata (www.argolikeseidhseis.gr via AP)

The Greek president, Katerina Sakellaropoulou, visited the area where rescued migrants are being tended to, and political parties called off planned campaign events ahead of national elections later this month.

The Italy-bound boat is believed to have sailed from the Tobruk area in eastern Libya. The Italian coast guard first alerted Greek authorities and Frontex about the approaching vessel on Tuesday.

After that first alert, Frontex aircraft and two merchant ships spotted the boat heading north at high speed, according to the Greek coast guard. More aircraft and ships were sent to the area. But repeated calls to the vessel offering help were declined, the coast guard said in a statement.

"In the afternoon a merchant vessel approached the ship and provided it with food and supplies, while the [passengers] refused any further assistance," it said. A second merchant ship that approached it later offered further supplies and assistance, which were turned down, it added.

In the evening, a coast guard patrol boat reached the vessel and confirmed the presence of a large number of migrants on the deck, the statement said. But they refused any assistance and said they wanted to continue to Italy. The coast guard boat accompanied the vessel, which, the statement said, capsized and sank early Wednesday, prompting a massive rescue operation by all the ships in the area.

Alarm Phone, a network of activists that provides a hotline for refugees and migrants in trouble, meanwhile, said it was contacted by people on a boat in distress on Tuesday afternoon. That boat was in the same general area as the one that sank, but it was not clear if it was the same vessel.

The organisation notified Greek authorities and Frontex. In one communication with Alarm Phone, those on the vessel reported that it was overcrowded and that the captain had abandoned the ship on a small boat, according to the group. They asked for food and water, which was provided by a merchant ship.

Libyan authorities have launched a major crackdown on migrants earlier this month across eastern Libya. Activists have said several thousand migrants, including Egyptians, Syrians, Sudanese and Pakistanis, have been detained. Libyan authorities deported many Egyptians to their home country through a land crossing point.

In western Libya, authorities have raided migrant hubs in the capital, Tripoli, and other towns over the past few weeks. At least 1,800 migrants were detained and taken to government-run detention centers, according to the UN refugee agency.

Mediterranean smugglers are increasingly taking larger boats into international waters off the Greek mainland to try to avoid local coast guard patrols. On Sunday, 90 migrants on a US-flagged yacht were rescued in the area after they made a distress call. Separately, on Wednesday, a yacht with 81 migrants on board was towed to a port on the south coast of Greece's island of Crete after authorities received a distress call.

Greece is one of the main routes into the European Union for refugees and migrants from the Middle East, Asia and Africa. Most cross to Greek islands from nearby Turkey, but a growing number of boats also undertake a longer, and more dangerous journey from Turkey to Italy via Greece.

About 72,000 refugees and migrants have arrived so far this years in Europe's frontline countries Italy, Spain, Greece, Malta and Cyprus, according to United Nations data, with the majority landing in Italy.

Associated Press
 Close Holes up to 2ft deep were dug up in the reservoir search, in the hope of unearthing clothing fibres, local media reported

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Police officers who scoured a reservoir in Portugal in the search for Madeleine McCann have warned against hope as they hit a fresh roadblock in their investigation.

A large section of the Barragem do Arade reservoir was cordoned off in May, about 30 miles from where three-year-old Madeleine went missing in Praia da Luz 16 years ago.

It is believed that the main suspect in the case, convicted sex offender Christian Brueckner, regularly visited the reservoirs peninsula and had described it as a little slice of paradise.

But detectives searching the reservoir have now said there is no compelling evidence Madeleine is there.

Holes up to 2ft deep were dug up in the reservoir search, in the hope of unearthing clothing fibres, local media reported.

But despite initial hope, German public prosecutor Hans Christian Wolters told newspaper Bild: Please dont expect too much.

This comes after a former friend of Brueckner, Helge Busching, claimed that the jailed paedophile had told him she didnt scream during a conversation about the missing three-year-old.

He told Bild he revealed the crucial information to Scotland Yard in 2008 but was ignored.
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An associate of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny has been sentenced to more than seven years in prison on extremism charges  the latest verdict in a crackdown on dissent by the Kremlin as it wages war in Ukraine

Lilia Chanysheva who used to head Navalny's office in the Russian region of Bashkortostan, was found guilty of calling for extremism, forming an extremist group and founding an organization that violates rights.

Navalny aide Lyubov Sobol called it a political verdict, saying President Vladimir Putin had "put one more hostage in a penal colony". Navalny's spokeswoman Kira Yarmysh said Chanysheva had been punished for fighting for the future of her country.

"This sentence is a crime, and all those involved in fabricating this case will be punished sooner or later," Yarmysh wrote on Twitter.

Chanysheva has been in detention for the past year and a half. The charges against Chanysheva, who was arrested in November 2021, stem from a court ruling earlier that year that designated Navalny's Foundation for Fighting Corruption and his regional offices as extremist organisations.

In addition to the prison sentence, Chanysheva was fined 400,000 rubles (about 3,800). Her trial was conducted behind closed doors and she has maintained her innocence, rejecting the charges as politically motivated.

In her closing speech to the court last month, she said her case was part of a wider campaign by Putin to root out dissent in Russia.

"But Putin is corruption, low wages and pensions, a falling economy and rising prices. Putin is war! And this has already affected everyone!" she said.

The 41-year-old appealed to the judge to not issue the 12-year sentence requested by prosecutors. "If you put me in jail for 12 years, I will not have time to give birth to a child. Give me a chance to be a mother," she said.

Navalny, Putin's best-known opponent, is serving sentences totalling 11-and-a-half years in a penal colony on fraud and other charges that he says were trumped up to silence him. He faces further "extremism" charges that could extend his term by decades.

Human rights groups and Western governments view Navalny as a political prisoner. The Kremlin denies that, routinely refusing to comment on his case and referring questions about him to the courts and the prison service.

Navalny is facing a new trial on extremism charges that could keep him in prison for decades. It is due to begin next week at a maximum-security prison 250 kilometers (150 miles) east of Moscow where the 47-year-old politician is already serving time on two different convictions.

Navalny was arrested in January 2021 upon returning to Moscow after recuperating in Germany from nerve-agent poisoning that he blamed on the Kremlin. He initially received a 2{-year prison sentence for a parole violation. Last year, he was sentenced to a nine-year term on fraud and contempt of court charges.

The new charges against Navalny relate to the activities of his anti-corruption foundation and statements by his top associates. His allies said the charges retroactively criminalise all the activities of Navalny's foundation since its creation in 2011.

The Kremlin's crackdown against opposition activists, independent journalists and government critics has intensified since it sent troops into Ukraine. Earlier in the week, a court in Moscow sentenced a man who threw gasoline bombs at two police vans in the Russian capital last year to six years in prison. Vitaly Koltsov has said he did it to show his "resentment" of a police van "as a symbol of infringement on freedoms."

Associated Press
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Watch as the state funeral for Silvio Berlusconi is held in Milan on Wednesday, 14 June.

The former prime minister - Italy's longest-serving premier who led four governments across three spells as prime minister - died on Monday aged 86.

He had been unwell for several years.

Local Italian media reported that Mr Berlusconi passed away after being admitted to hospital last Friday.

His state funeral is being held in the city's grand cathedral and will be led by the Archbishop of Milan as Italy holds a national day of mourning.

Mourners lined up outside the cathedral hours before the service was due to take place to pay their respects.

Top politicians and foreign dignitaries are expected to attend the official ceremony.

Wednesday marks the first time that a former Italian premier has been honoured with a national day of mourning, declared by the government, as well as a state funeral.
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Watch as thousands of mourners gather outside Milan's Duomo Cathedral for the state funeral of Silvio Berlusconi on Wednesday, 14 June.

The former prime minister - Italy's longest-serving premier who led four governments across three spells as prime minister - died on Monday aged 86.

He had been unwell for several years.

Local Italian media reported that Mr Berlusconi passed away after being admitted to hospital last Friday.

His state funeral is being held in the city's grand cathedral and will be led by the Archbishop of Milan as Italy holds a national day of mourning.

Italian and European flags on public buildings will be lowered to half-mast.

A Downing Street spokesperson paid tribute to the former Italian leader, praising how Mr Berlusconi "made a huge impact on Italian politics over several decades.

"Our thoughts are with the Italian people and his family," they added.

Mr Berlusconi's last few years in office were tarnished by allegations of corruption and sex scandals.

Tales of "bunga bunga" sex parties at his lavish villa outside Milan surrounded the former prime minister, and he was accused of having unlawful sex with a 17-year-old nightclub dancer known as Ruby the Heartstealer but was acquitted on appeal.

Several women testified that the "bunga bunga" parties were elegant dinners.
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Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said that Nato should not bet on his country approving Sweden's application to join the Western military alliance before a July summit  because the Nordic nation has not fully addressed his security concerns.

Sweden and Finland applied for membership together following Russia's invasion of Ukraine last year. Finland became NATO's 31st member in April after the Turkish parliament ratified its request, but Turkey has held off approving Sweden's bid.

Nato wants to bring Sweden into the fold by the time the leaders of member nations meet for a summit in Lithuania's capital on 11-12 July.

Turkey's state-run Anadolu Agency and other media reported Erdogan's comments as senior officials from Nato, Sweden, Finland and Turkey met in Ankara on Wednesday. The officials were scheduled to discuss what Finland and Sweden have done to address Turkey's concerns over what it calls terrorist organisations.

Mr Erdogan said the Turkish delegation at the meeting "will give this message: 'This is our president's opinion, don't expect anything different at Vilnius,'" Lithuania's capital. Speaking to journalists on his way back from a state visit to Azerbaijan on Tuesday, Mr Erdogan said Turkey's attitude to the accession was not "positive."

Turkey's government accuses Sweden of being too lenient toward groups that Ankara says pose a security threat, including militant Kurdish groups and people it says are associated with a 2016 coup attempt.

A series of separate demonstrations in Stockholm, including a protest by an anti-Islam activist who burned the Quran outside the Turkish Embassy, also angered Turkish officials.

Speaking in Sweden's parliament, the Swedish prime minister, Ulf Kristersson, called the Ankara meeting "very important." Mr Kristersson reiterated that his government had done what it promised in an agreement last year that was intended to secure Turkey's ratification of the country's Nato membership.

However, Mr Erdogan remains unsatisfied. He said he told the Nato secretary-general, Jens Stoltenberg, last week: "If you expect us to respond to Sweden's expectations, first of all, Sweden must destroy what this terrorist organization has done." He was referring to the Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK, a group that has waged a separatist insurgency in Turkey and is designated a terror organisation by Turkey and the US.

Mr Erdogan said that pro-Kurdish and anti-Nato rallies also took place in Stockholm while he was holding talks with Mr Stoltenberg in Istanbul.

Nato requires the unanimous approval of all existing members to expand, and Turkey and Hungary are the only countries that have not yet ratified Sweden's request to join. Mr Erdogan said he planned to attend the July summit in Lithuania unless "extraordinary" circumstances arise.

On Tuesday, the US secretary of state, Antony Blinken, said after meeting with Mr Stoltenberg that it was "time to welcome Sweden" into the alliance, arguing that Stockholm had "an important and I think very appropriate process on its accession to address appropriate concerns of other allies."

Mr Stoltenberg said: "We all of course look forward to welcoming Sweden as a member of the alliance as soon as possible."

Sweden has amended its constitution and strengthened its anti-terror laws since it applied to join Nato just over a year ago. This week, the Swedish government also decided to extradite a Turkish citizen resident in Sweden who was convicted for drug offenses in Turkey in 2013.

It was not immediately clear if the man, who was not identified publicly, was among the main individuals for whom Turkey sought extradition.

Sweden and Finland's applications to become Nato has meant abandoning decades of non-alignment.

Associated Press
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Watch as the International Committee of the Red Cross holds a briefing on the Ukraine dam situation and the organisation's visits to prisoners of war.

The Nova Kakhova dam, which was under Russian control, was breached on the morning of 6 June, with water surging through it and causing extensive flooding in Kherson - prompting the evacuation of thousands of people.

Damage to the area can be seen from space, with huge areas of land submerged in water.

As of Tuesday, 13 June, the death toll from flooding in two Russian-controlled towns in southern Ukraine has risen to 17 in the wake of the dam's collapse, a Russian-installed official in Kherson said.

It is not clear how the dam was breached.

Ukrainian forces have accused Russia of deliberately destroying the dam; Russia says the destruction was an act of "sabotage" by Ukraine to deprive the annexed Crimean peninsula of water.
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Google has been abusing its dominance for years, and may have to sell part of its business as a result, European regulators have said.

Breaking the advertising technology business apart may be the only way to address regulators concerns, they said.

The European Union said that Google has been favouring its own advertising technology over those of its competitors, using its dominance over the internet to further entrench that control.

It has been abusing that dominant position since 2014, regulators said.

As such, only selling part of that advertising technology business would be the way to avoid those concerns, it said.

So-called behavioural remedies  which force the business to conduct itself in specific ways but without changing the ownership or structure of the company  would not work, regulators warned.

Though Google is probably best known for its search engine, as well as other products such as Android and YouTube, the primary way it earns money from them is through advertising. It both sells advertising space on its own websites and apps, as well as offering a market that allows advertisers and publishers to post their ads.

It runs a host of products aimed at doing the latter. But the EU argues that the central role that it plays in that market has made it able to abuse its platform, allowing it to charge higher fees than competitors, for instance.

The findings are part of a preliminary report that have been published as a Statement of Objections. As such, it is focused on potential concerns and does not represent the European Commissions final findings.

The statement is intended to give Google time to object to any of the findings, ahead of the eventual outcome of the investigations.

The new announcement marks part of an investigation that began in 2021, when EU opened formal proceedings into Google and its possible anticompetitive conduct in the online advertising sector.

As part of such investigations, the EU is able to fine the company up to 10 per cent of its worldwide turnover, as well as imposing rules that would make it stop infringing anti-competition. It can impose any remedies that it thinks would bring that behaviour to an end.
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Elon Musks Twitter is set to be evicted from its office in Colorado after the social media platform failed to pay its rent, according to reports.

A judge signed an order on 31 May giving law enforcement 49 days to kick Twitter out of the office at 3401 Bluff Street in Boulder, Colorado, reported The Denver Post.

The company once had 300 employees at the 65,000sq-ft office, but it is unknown if anyone even still works there after sweeping job cuts made by the billionaire after he bought the company last October.

Last year, Twitter fired 87 employees at the Boulder, with another 38 voluntarily resigning, according to a November notice to the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment.

Twitters landlords filed a complaint for unpaid rent against the company on 12 May, with court papers stating that the platform leased four units in the building in February 2020.

The landlord stated that a default notice to Twitter was ignored and they instead used a letter of credit deposited by Twitter as security for the offices to pay $968,000 in rent, the newspaper reported.

The landlord then asked Twitter to replenish the security deposit but says that the company ignored the request.

The platform was also sued last month by Boulders Avalanche Commercial Cleaning for around $93,500 for unpaid bills.

A request for comment from The Independent received an auto-reply with a poop emoji from Twitter.
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Tourists could soon be banned from some mountains in Bali after a string of incidents involving misbehaving visitors, according to the islands governor.

Wayan Koster said the rule has been brought in with immediate effect, which rules out activities such as hiking and mountain climbing for both international and domestic tourists, reports CNN.

Some 22 mountains are covered by the decision, including Mount Batur and Mount Agung, which are both popular landmarks.

These mountains are sacred and revered. If their sanctity is damaged, it is the same as degrading the sacredness of Bali, said Mr Koster, who has been governor of Bali since 2018 and first suggested the ban earlier this year.

Local residents will also be stopped from certain activities, but Mr Koster said theyd be allowed on the mountains for religious ceremonies or the handling of natural disasters.

Theres been no indication of what the punishment might be for those who break the rules, but Bali has previously deported and banned foreigners from returning when theyve caused problems.

Despite the proclamation from Balis governor, tourism minister Sandiaga Unoi said that the proposal was still being discussed with regional officials. The local parliament will need to approve any decision.

The Independent has contacted Bali Tourism Board for further information.

The Indonesian island has been grappling with overtourism and unruly travellers for a number of years. Last month, officials mulled the introduction of a tourist tax to deter cheap tourists who tend to cause a lot of problems.

Back in 2019, Mr Koster called for authorities to just send them home after an Instagram influencer couple were filmed splashing themselves with holy water at a temple.

Earlier this year, a Russian man apologised after posing semi-naked on a sacred site, and in a separate incident, a Russian woman who posed nude for photos in front of a sacred tree was deported.

The Bali Tourism Board previously announced it was considering measures to improve the behaviour of visitors, with ideas including a tourist handbook, as well as billboards explaining what was considered acceptable and unacceptable behaviour.
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Ryanair has dismissed its chief pilot for what is alleged to be a pattern of repeated inappropriate and unacceptable behaviour towards a number of female junior pilots.

Aidan Murray, 58, had been with the Irish airline for 28 years. He was appointed to the most senior and powerful job in flight operations in 2020.

The Independent understands that an anonymous complaint was received late last month about inappropriate behaviour, and was followed by further reports from eight other female Ryanair flight crew of alleged unwanted approaches.

An investigation revealed a pattern whereby Mr Murray had swapped rosters in order to fly with certain female pilots. He is also alleged to have sent inappropriate text messages.

Murray has been accused of a pattern of repeated inappropriate and unacceptable behaviour (Ryanair)

The decision to sack the chief pilot was taken on Tuesday evening.

Mr Murray allegedly wrote messages to women saying that they had an amazing body and an amazing ass.

Staff at Ryanair DAC, the Dublin-based main unit of the airline, were told in a message this morning about an investigation into Mr Murrays conduct.

They were told the chief pilot was in breach of our anti-harassment policy for a pattern of repeated inappropriate and unacceptable behaviour towards a number of female junior pilots.

The internal statement added: We are determined to ensure that all our people can come to work in a safe and secure environment.

We would ask all of you to respect the privacy and integrity of those brave individuals who came forward to assist us in this investigation.

In a public statement, a Ryanair spokesperson said: We do not comment on queries relating to individual employees.

The Independent has sought to contact Mr Murray for comment but he has yet to respond.

Ryanairs Code of Business Conduct & Ethics says: The working environment created by Ryanair promotes equal employment opportunities and prohibits discriminatory practices, including harassment (sexual, physical or verbal).

It adds: All concerns, questions, and complaints will be taken seriously and handled promptly, confidentially and professionally.

The code of conduct also says: Ryanair encourages people who have concerns about suspected serious misconduct or any breach or suspected breach of law to come forward and express these concerns without fear of punishment or unfair treatment.

All allegations of wrongdoing will be addressed in line with the appropriate policy and where appropriate, thoroughly investigated.

The Independent believes an appeals process forms part of any disciplinary procedure.

There is no suggestion that safety was compromised at any stage.

Ryanair is Europes biggest airline in terms of passenger numbers. Its largest base is at London Stansted.

According to the British Airline Pilots Association (Balpa), female pilots make up only 6 per cent of the total flight crew worldwide. The pilots union is campaigning for more diversity on the flight deck, and has enlisted UK government support.
Donald Trump met supporters as he made a surprise trip to a cafe in Miami after pleading not guilty to 37 charges over his handling of classified national security documents after leaving the White House.

The 77-year-old former US president declared food for everyone at the Versailles restaurant in Little Havana.

Mr Trump is the first current or former US president to ever face federal criminal charges.

Addressing the reason he allegedly failed to return boxes of classified documents, Mr Trump said: In addition to having every right under the Presidential Records Act, is that these boxes were containing all types of personal belongings.
Footage shows troops gathering at a firing range in Japan after a trainee killed two people.

The 18-year-old cadet was detained on the spot and arrested on suspicion of attempted murder, police said.

They allege the male shooter fired eight times at instructors during a drill in Gifu on Wednesday 14 June.

A 25-year-old man was among those killed, and details about the other victims, in their 20s and 50s, are not yet known.

They were all instructors at the facility, authorities said.

Japans Ground Self-Defence Force said the suspect had joined in April.
Footage shows fires raging in Ukraines city of Odesa after another Russian missile attack.

Emergency services searched for survivors on Wednesday (14 June) after Moscows forces fired cruise missiles at the southern Ukrainian city.

Three employees were killed in a strike at a food warehouse that also damaged homes, shops and cafes in the citys downtown, regional officials said.

Another 13 people were injured.

The attack on the port city, launched from the Black Sea, was the second in a week and involved four Kalibr cruise missiles, three of which were intercepted by air defences, officials said.
In a notice to staff on Wednesday, Ryanairs chief people officer, Darrell Hughes, said that the chief pilot, Aidan Murray, has been let go with immediate effect.

He was fired on Tuesday evening following a disciplinary hearing last week. He had previously been suspended.

Its understood, however, that Mr Murray has until next week to appeal the decision to terminate his employment with the carrier. He has been with Ryanair since 1995.

We regret to advise all of you that last evening we terminated with immediate effect the employment of the Ryanair DAC chief pilot (who was appointed in 2020), Mr Hughes said in an email to staff members on Wednesday morning.

Mr Murrays seniority within Ryanair not only extends to the fact that he was chief pilot with Ryanair DAC. He was also the so-called nominated person for flight operations. That means he was responsible for the management and supervision of flight operations. Ryanair has about 3,000 flights a day during the summer months.

We do not comment on queries relating to individual employees, said Ryanair when contacted by the Irish Independent.

Ryanair is Europes biggest airline and had 5,860 pilots employed at the end of March last year, according to its most recent annual report.

It has continued to hire staff including pilots as it expands its fleet and network.
Margrethe Vestagers latest move against Big Tech could see Google forced to split up its main revenue-earning unit

The European Commission wants to break up Googles ad business, accusing it of anti-competitive behaviour.

The move would be an earthquake for the worlds biggest ad company and could cause significant reorganisation of its operations in Dublin.

In a statement today, European Commissioner for Competition Margrethe Vestager said Google has an unfair advantage in the online advertising space.

Our preliminary concern is that Google may have used its market position to favour its own intermediation services, she said.

Not only did this possibly harm Googles competitors but also publishers interests, while also increasing advertisers costs. If confirmed, Googles practices would be illegal under our competition rules.

The Commission says that asking for a behavioural remedy would be ineffective to prevent the risk that Google continues such self-preferencing conducts or engages in new ones.

So it is proposing to split Googles ad business up.

Google is active on both sides of the market with its publisher ad server and ad-buying tools and holds a dominant position on both ends, the Commission statement said.

Furthermore, it operates the largest ad exchange. This leads to a situation of inherent conflicts of interest for Google. The Commissions preliminary view is therefore that only the mandatory divestment by Google of part of its services would address its competition concerns.

Advertising represents the vast majority of Googles business. Last year, the companys ad income was 210bn, or 80pc of its revenue.

The tech giant employs over 5,000 people directly in Dublin, with thousands more contractors also employed.

Googles vice president of global ads said that the company disagrees with the European Commissions view and will respond accordingly.

The Commissions investigation focuses on a narrow aspect of our advertising business and is not new, said Dan Taylor.

Our advertising technology tools help websites and apps fund their content, and enable businesses of all sizes to effectively reach new customers. Google remains committed to creating value for our publisher and advertiser partners in this highly competitive sector.

The EU isnt the only jurisdiction where Google faces investigations over its ad business. The US government, as well as several individual US states, have sued the tech giant over its ad-technology business. The UKs Competition and Markets Authority is also currently investigating the firm.

Over the last decade, Google has been the most-fined big tech firm in Europe. Between 2017 and 2019, it racked up fines of over 8bn from the European Commission for abusing its Android smartphone system, favouring its own shopping comparison service and not allowing proper access to AdSense.
The Irish Data Protection Commission says that it has received no meaningful information yet from the tech giant on the release, other than that it was supposed to launch this week.

Google will have to delay the European launch of its ChatGPT rival, Bard, because the Irish Data Protection Commission says the tech giant hasnt given enough information about how its privacy would work.

In a statement, the regulator said that it has not had any detailed briefing nor sight of a data protection impact assessment or any supporting documentation related to the proposed launch.

All it had received, the watchdog said, was a notice from Google informing it of an intention to launch Bard in the EU this week.

As Google is based in Dublin and is subject to GDPR law, the Irish regulator is responsible for ensuring that its compliant with European privacy law.

The DPC has since sought information [from Google] as a matter of urgency and has raised a number of additional data protection questions with Google to which it awaits a response and Bard will not now launch this week, the regulator said, in a statement.

The matter is under ongoing examination by the DPC and we will be sharing information with our fellow [European] DPAs as soon as we receive further answers to our questions.

Bard was launched in the US in February, and has been released in the UK, but has yet to be fully launched in the EU.

A spokesperson for Google said that tech giant would engage with the Irish DPC on the issue.

We said in May that we wanted to make Bard more widely available, including in the European Union, and that we would do so responsibly, after engagement with experts, regulators and policymakers, the spokesperson said.

As part of that process, weve been talking with privacy regulators to address their questions and hear feedback.

Google is scrambling to catch up with OpenAIs ChatGPT, which has taken the world by storm since its launch late last year.

Its not the first time that the Irish DPC has halted a major tech release in Europe by a tech giant. Helen Dixons office previously delayed Meta launching a dating service in Europe. And the regulator still wont allow Meta to mingle WhatsApp with Facebook for the purposes of profile-based ads.

The freeze on Bard comes just weeks after the DPC fined Meta 1.2bn and ordered it to stop personal data transfers across the Atlantic.
Sharon Horgans character Nicci remains laser-focused on their daughter in a coma as the situation puts a huge strain on her marriage

It is hard to believe that the situation could become more fraught in Best Interests (BBC One) but here we are in the second episode and it has.

Eight weeks have elapsed since the end of the first episode and Marnie (Niamh Moriarty) is still in hospital, still unconscious. She has brain damage from her cardiac arrest. Now shes having a seizure.

The doctors say that she will never leave hospital again.

There is a meeting of the hospital ethics committee  staged admirably by the programmes producers as a low-key affair  which decides to support the decision to withdraw interventionist treatment from Marnie. Her mother Nicci (Sharon Horgan) is still implacably opposed to letting her child die. Her father Andrew (Michael Sheen) appears to be swept along in Niccis wake; you get the feeling that this has been Andrews mode of transport for all the years of their marriage.

Andrew is grieving the impending loss of Marnie, but hes trying to accommodate other aspects of life. Hes still visiting his relative Tom, who has mental health issues and says he would have killed himself if it hadnt been for Andrew.

Best Interests Official Trailer

Nicci is laser-focused on Marnie, and is greedy for time alone with her. At the door of the hospital, when Nicci and Andrew are just about to go in to visit Marnie, Nicci sends him away to go to work. Andrew seems relieved to go.

My child, Nicci calls Marnie to the nice lady from arbitration who calls to their house.

Our child, corrects Andrew as he is making the coffee.

The arbitration lady gets short shrift.

And through it all are the memories of Marnie when she was lively and laughing. At Marnies bedside, Andrew remembers how he had made a playlist for her birth. Andrew is a bit of a hippy, with his music and his marijuana. He tells the unconscious Marnie that she was delivered to the Stone Roses song Your Star Will Shine. Now he recites it and starts to weep. This is a wonderful performance from Michael Sheen. Andrew is what is patronisingly called a beta male. Andrews never going to be the star of any situation.

Michael Sheen (Andrew) with Sharon Horgan (Nicci, left) and Alison Oliver (Katie) in Best Interests. Photo by Kevin Baker via BBC

He goes home to find that Nicci is entertaining a representative of a pro-life group, who offers to pay the legal bills if Nicci and Andrew decide to take the case for keeping Marnie alive to court. This results in the biggest row Nicci and Andrew have had so far. Nicci doesnt understand why Andrew wont take this help for their daughter. Shes in pain! cries Andrew. Then he packs his bag and moves out.

Their older daughter, Katie, played by the Irish actress Alison Oliver, has a lot to put up with. There is no part of her life that isnt affected by Marnie and her illness. Her parents had to leave Katies school concert when they got a call from the hospital about Marnies seizure. Katie is buying the love of her girlfriend by giving the unscrupulous girl some of Marnies tranquillisers.

All of this is happening to an ordinary suburban family. Were halfway through now and Best Interests is still terrific.
Gaz and pals are back in a series that feels like its ticking off a checklist of social issues

Paul Barber as Horse in The Full Monty. Photo by Ben Blackall via Disney+

The Full Monty, a series sequel to the hit 1990s film, proves some things are best left frozen in time. Photo: Disney+

THE Full Monty (Disney+, from Wednesday), a belated sequel series to the surprise box-office hit of 1997, is a reminder that what works brilliantly as a crisp, feelgood 90-minute film wont necessarily work as well when spread across eight episodes lasting 50 minutes each.

The original, written by Simon Beaufoy (who returns for the series, aided by co-writer Alice Nutter) and directed by Peter Cattaneo (who doesnt), was a warm and funny comedy with a political edge about six unemployed Sheffield men who form a Chippendales-like striptease group to raise 1,000.

Paul Barber as Horse in The Full Monty. Photo by Ben Blackall via Disney+

The money was never really the point. Neither was the stripping. It was a story about regaining self-respect, reclaiming your dignity  even if, counterintuitively, that meant getting full-frontal naked before a packed audience of women  and finding hope amid the seeming hopelessness.

After a brief recap of the original story, we get to find out how things are for the characters seven prime ministers (all of them, from Blair to Sunak, shown in a montage) and eight northern regeneration projects later.

Full Monty TV spin-off does not shy away from austerity and politics, says Robert Carlyle

The short answer is not very good for some, but much, much worse for others. The working mens club where the men stripped to Tom Joness version of You Can Leave Your Hat On  and famously didnt leave their hats on over their dangly bits  is derelict, a symbol of how the community has deteriorated further.

"Theres no stripping in the series. This is The Full Monty without an actual Full Monty.

Not that the men will be needing it. Theres no stripping in the series. This is The Full Monty without an actual Full Monty.

In place of the stripping, Beaufoy and Nutter throw in larky comedy capers. In the first episode and part of the second, its the accidental dognapping of the canine winner of Britains Got Talent.

Mark Addy returns as Dave. Photo by Ben Blackall via Disney+

All the familiar old(er) faces are back. The de facto leader of the group, Gaz (Robert Carlyle), is still the loveable rogue hes always been, forever coming up with hair brained schemes to make fast money.

When we first re-encounter him, hes dragging a mattress onto a bus. He works as a porter in a psychiatric hospital, but his wages arent enough to pay for the new electric wheelchair battery his grandson, who has a disability, needs.

Gazs grown-up son Cal (Dominic Sharkey) is a police officer, and he also has a teenage daughter called Destiny, or Des for short (rising young star Talitha Wing), who bunks off secondary school and is a bit of a tearaway  although not so much of one as to alienate viewers.

The Full Monty, a series sequel to the hit 1990s film, proves some things are best left frozen in time. Photo: Disney+

The principal at Dess school, which is rapidly falling apart through lack of funds, is Jean (Lesley Sharp), whose husband  another of the stripping six  Dave (Mark Addy) is the caretaker.

The couples marriage, which is slowly dying of boredom, has been blighted by the death of their child. Dave becomes a mentor and father figure to a bullied boy nicknamed Twiglet (Aiden Cook), whose family depends on a food bank to eat.

The Full Monty cast reunite in trailer for sequel series for Disney+

Lomper (Steve Hulson), who came out in the film, runs a cafe with his husband Dennis (Paul Clayton) and cant understand why its name, The Big Baps, is offensive to their more politically correct customers.

The series has its moments and the actors are, naturally, wonderful. But there are pacing problems

The one having the worst time of the lot is Horse (Paul Barber). He has to use a wheelchair because of his diabetes, he cant afford to eat properly and it looks as if his disability benefit is about to be slashed.

As for the other two of the original six, Guy quickly fades out of the picture  a result of the actor who plays him, Hugo Speer, being dismissed during production following allegations of in appropriate behaviour.

Bafflingly, Tom Wilkinson as Gerald one of the strongest characters in the film, is restricted to short cameos in the cafe and is given virtually nothing to do.

The series has its moments and the actors are, naturally, wonderful. But there are pacing problems, and the nimble handling of comedy and social commentary displayed in the film has been replaced by heavy-handedness.

The Full Monty often feels like its ticking off a checklist of issues: underfunded schools, inadequate mental health services, bullying, food poverty and so on.

The final freeze frame of the film has become iconic. I wish theyd left the characters right there, frozen in time.
Commissioner says three million farms have been lost in the EU in the last decade

The EU should be careful not to push farmers any further, Agriculture Commissioner Janusz Wojciechowski said when asked this week about his position in relation to the proposed nature restoration law.

His comments come ahead of a key vote this week in the European Parliaments Environment Committee on the controversial legislation.

The centre-right European People's Party (EPP) - the biggest lawmaker group in the European Union Parliament - has called for the EU bill, aimed at restoring damaged environments on 20pc of Europe's land and sea by 2030, to be rejected.

Speaking after an informal meeting of EU Agriculture Ministers this week, Commissioner Wojciechowski highlighted that the EU has lost 3m farms in the last decade, stating that there were 12m farms in 2010 and only 9m farms in 2020.

"And we have the huge problem with lack of generation and renewal, a lot of challenges. We should not to press them (farmers) too much.... we should concentrate our action to implement correctly the CAP strategic plans."

The Commissioner stressed that a 'very good political agreement' was agreed in common agricultural policy reform, which he said included any elements of the green transition and added that the EU should be careful to force farmers for more .

It comes as more than 3,000 scientists said on Tuesday, in an open letter defending the nature restoration proposal that claims by centre-right lawmakers that the bill will hurt farmers and endanger food security are not supported by scientific evidence.

The scientists' letter did not mention the EPP but responded to claims the group has publicly made about the law, including that it will reduce Europe's food production and threaten food security.

"Those claims not only lack scientific evidence, but even contradict it," the letter said.

The 3,339 signatories are mostly environmental scientists, representing institutions including the universities of Athens, Bucharest, Delft, Helsinki, Oxford and Zurich.

The scientists said the biggest threats to food security were climate change and the degradation of nature - and action to restore nature and curb agricultural chemical use was needed to maintaining sustainable food production.

Food security is also driven by factors including food waste and access to affordable and nutritious food, the letter said.

The letter cited numerous scientific assessments including from the UN-backed Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity.

"Once policymakers are taking very confident steps into the world of misinformation and basically what we nowadays call fake news, then scientists have the authority to say 'stop'," said Guy Pe'er, who led the letter and is a scientist with Germany's Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research and the Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research.

In response to the letter, EPP lawmaker Christine Schneider said the group supported the EU's green agenda, but had specific concerns about the impact of the nature law.

"There are studies and analyses which show very clearly that the Commission's proposal will lead to a decline in food production," Schneider said.

Additional Reporting Reuters
Aviva Insurance investigating around 800 new suspected fraudulent claims since 2021, worth around 30m

Some claimants withdrew from litigation prior to a court hearing, with many doing so on the steps of the court. Photo: Getty stock

Some claimants withdrew from litigation prior to a court hearing, with many doing so on the steps of the court. Composite image. Photos: Getty

Dozens of people have withdrawn personal injury claims at the last minute after defendants refused to settle due to suspected fraud or exaggeration.

New research carried out by Aviva Insurance shows that in the last two years, 91 claimants who brought claims against insured customers withdrew from litigation prior to a court hearing, with many doing so on the steps of the court.

The company said it has been investigating approximately 800 new suspected fraudulent injury claims since 2021, worth an estimated value of 30m.

A further 300 cases which Aviva decided to defend were listed for court hearings.

There were 91 withdrawals, 70 cases were dismissed by the courts, 53 were adjourned, while 50 people had successful claims. The cost involved in defending the cases was in the region of 2m.

Aviva said its analysis shows an increasing number of claimants will withdraw their claims once it is evident that the insurer will not settle and is prepared to challenge them in court. In many cases attempts were made by the plaintiffs and their legal representatives to settle by offering to accept reduced amounts of compensation.

Aviva said these claims are a major cost to the insurance industry, customers and to society at large.

Rob Smyth, senior fraud manager with Aviva, said: There continues to be a cohort of individuals who are willing to fake accidents and personal injuries in the hope of receiving a generous pay-out from the courts.

The costs of investigating and defending suspected fraudulent claims, the majority of which take a minimum of between three to five years to come before the courts, are significant.

News In 90 - June 14th

Mr Smyth said the 91 cases represent only a small percentage of the suspected fraudulent or exaggerated claims the company receives each year.

Behind each one of these cases is an innocent customer who has been subjected to unnecessary stress and trauma over a protracted period as they await the outcome of the case, he added.

"Many find the whole legal process and the prospect of having to give evidence in court to be very intimidating. We are very grateful to them for supporting us in defending claims.

Mr Smyth said the onus cannot always be on insurers or judges to fight suspected fraudulent claims, and called for questions to be asked about how certain dubious cases are allowed to proceed through the legal process.

He called on legal and medical professionals to also bear a responsibility.

The vast majority of legal and medical practitioners that we engage with have high ethical and professional standards. Unfortunately, it is the actions of a minority that raise questions which the legal community need to address to ensure that everyone plays their part in protecting society, said Mr Smyth.

Insurance reform campaigners said they welcome every effort to combat insurance fraud, as it is a source of great frustration for businesses.

Peter Boland, director of the Alliance for Insurance Reform, urged other insurers to follow suit. The reality is that many major insurers underwriting in Ireland do not have any meaningful fraud department, preferring instead to settle personal injury claims quickly, regardless of the justice of individual cases, he said.

They then pass the cost of such cases on to policyholders.

It is also worth noting that there were an average of 26,063 personal injury claims per year over the last five years, and yet only 98 of these, or 0.37pc, were reported to the Garda Insurance Fraud Coordination Office last year.

Meanwhile, there is no move from liability insurers to pass on the benefits of the huge reductions in claims and claims costs over the last few years.
Any new law on assisted dying should be based on reasonable medical judgment that there is a high probability a person will die within a certain set time, an Oireachtas committee was told yesterday.

Sinead Gibney, chief commissioner with the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission, was responding to questions at the first meeting of the committee examining assisted dying.

Earlier, she said robust safeguards to protect the most vulnerable would need to be in place if any law allowing for assisted dying is introduced here.

These include disabled people, people with life-limiting illnesses, people who may be in relationships where coercive control is exerted, and older people.

The presentation was made at the first hearing of the committee on assisted dying, which will sit for up to nine months and may or may not make a recommendation to the Dail and the Seanad on the highly sensitive and complex issue.

A senior Department of Justice official said other countries had introduced safeguards with penalties for breaches.

Ms Gibney said the commission has not come to a decision on whether it is in favour of assisted dying laws.

She told the committee, chaired by Independent TD, Michael Healy Rae, that: In our previous submission to the Justice Committee on the Dying with Dignity Bill, we raised considerable, valid concerns about possible unintended policy consequences  particularly regarding the lack of sufficient safeguards to protect against undue pressure being put on vulnerable groups to avail of assisted dying.

If we are to consider assisted dying to be an extension of patient-centred care and a humane response to suffering, we must ensure that these groups are robustly protected from pressure or coercion.

As legislators, you will fully understand the complexity of creating law, particularly with the need to balance various rights, and therefore the need to avoid the dangers of unintended consequences.

I particularly emphasise the importance of participation, and the proactive inclusion of the voices and perspectives of our most at risk groups.

She referred to the case taken by the late campaigner Marie Fleming, who, when in the final stages of multiple sclerosis, went to court to be lawfully assisted to have a peaceful death at a time of her choosing.

 As important human rights issues were raised by this case, the court granted our prior body, the Irish Human Rights Commission, permission to appear as Amicus Curiae  friend of the court  in order to assist their deliberations, said Ms Gibney.

And though her claim was legally rejected, the president of the High Court, Mr Justice Nicholas Kearns, described her as in many ways the most remarkable witness which any member of this court has ever been privileged to encounter.

She said that were particularly concerned with the active participation of disabled people in decision-making.

It is crucial that the voices of people with disabilities of all ages and backgrounds are heard when drafting laws and policies that affect their rights, and especially when we talk about assisted dying.

Addressing the committee, Rachel Woods, assistant secretary with responsibility for the criminal legislation function in the Department of Justice, pointed out that Article 40.3 of the Constitution guarantees that the State in its laws safeguards the right to life of every citizen. Article 40.1 guarantees that all citizens shall be held equal before the law.

The courts have held that these two paragraphs, together, commit the State to valuing equally the life of all persons. The European Convention on Human Rights provides that everyones right to life shall be protected by law. The obligation to safeguard the right to life is why, in the absence of any legal framework to allow for it, the state has, and must have, laws to protect life.

The offence of assisting suicide  and I am using this language because it is the language currently on the statute book  stems from the time when suicide and attempted suicide were criminal offences at common law in Ireland. This meant that any person who was an accessory to a suicide or an attempted suicide could also be tried as if they were a principal offender. 

While suicide has been decriminalised, the offence of assisting suicide was retained and put on statutory footing. The offence has a maximum penalty of 14 years imprisonment on conviction on indictment.

Several TDS and members of the Seanad on the committee said they are on a steep learning curve and will struggle with the moral and ethical dilemmas posed.

Senator Mary Seery Kearney said she was concerned it could mean people are afraid of complaining about their suffering.

However, People Before Profit TD Gino Kenny said while the committee will have to ensure there are protections in any new law, he believes that people should have a fundamental right to have a say over your life. He said to his knowledge there is no evidence of coercion in countries where it is legal.
A woman whose family was largely destroyed in a bomb attack when she was 12, was married at 13, and had three children by the time she was 17, has won a High Court challenge over a refusal to allow her children to come from Somalia to reside with her in Ireland.
The Indo Daily: From drenched to scorched - what is causing Europe's extreme weather?
FINE Gael TD Damien English has said he is extremely disappointed and embarrassed with himself after he lied on a planning application for his family home.

In his first interview since resigning as a junior minister six months ago, Mr English also repeatedly refused to be drawn on what he meant by one of two properties he currently owns being for family use or say whether he would make it available for sale or rent in the midst of the housing crisis.

The Meath West TD quit as Minister of State for Employment Affairs and Retail Business in January after it emerged that as an opposition TD, he falsely told his local authority he did not own another home when he applied to build a one-off house in Cookstown, Kells, Co Meath in 2008.

Mr English was already the owner of a house at Castlemartin in Co Meath when he made the planning application.

The Irish Independent revealed on Wednesday that Dails ethics committee dropped an investigation into English last month. He has also escaped any sanction from the States political ethics watchdog, the Standards in Public Office Commission.

Speaking on RTEs Today with Claire Byrne, Mr English said: I gave the wrong information. It was very clear from reviewing my planning file that the information was wrong and thats not good enough. Thats why I resigned, I apologised and thats why I dealt with that.

He said no one knows that for definite that he would not have got planning permission had he not given false information on the planning application.

He said he had taken full responsibility for what happened.

It shouldn't have happened that I'm extremely disappointed with myself and embarrassed, he said.

The standards I set for myself were not met and that is why I resigned. I stand over that decision, I was wrong with this and theres no denying that.

Mr English said he had previously explained that the property he owns in Castlemartin, which he included on successive Sipo ethics declarations, has always been in family use.

But he repeatedly declined to say if family members were living in the property at present or explain what he meant by family use. Previous reports have suggested the house is derelict.

Its a private family home and its not for me to discuss my private family business to be honest with you, he said.

He said that it was a family home thats been involved in my family at this stage for nearly 100 years.

When asked if he would make the Castlemartin property available for sale or rent given the housing crisis, Mr English said: That situation with the house is a private family matter and that has been dealt with. I'm not going into all that to be honest with you, he said.

He said it was a family situation and I am leaving it at that.

Mr English said he intended to run again in Meath West - but would not be drawn on whether he wanted his old ministerial job back.
There are more ructions within the troubled Irish Countrywomens Association (ICA), as one prominent member has threatened to try to dissolve the entire organisation over concerns about a toxic, dysfunctional and unethical culture.
A MAN caught by Internet vigilante paedophile hunters as he attempted to make contact with a teenage girl for sexual exploitation has been jailed for 18 months.

Tim Bowen (46) - who was caught in a 'sting' operation mounted in Cork by an Internet watchdog group - was warned that the sexual exploitation of children represented "a heinous crime."

Bowen of Cottage View, Monkstown, Cork appeared before Cork Circuit Criminal Court on a signed plea of guilty to two charges.

Judge Colin Daly warned that it was a very serious matter and that Bowen's culpability in the case was very high.

He said the defendant had knowingly communicated with what he thought was a 14-year-old girl with a view to initiating sexual exploitation.

Children by their very nature are vulnerable to exploitation whatever form that may take - (such) sexual exploitation is the most heinous," he warned.

Judge Daly imposed a three-and-a-half-year prison term but agreed to suspend the final two years in light of Bowen's plea, his co-operation with Gardai, his personal circumstances and his attempts to rehabilitate.

The court was told that Bowen was caught red-handed - and when Gardai searched his vehicle they discovered a packet of condoms.

Sergeant Gary Duggan said Bowen had been in contact with the fictitious teenage girl over a three-week period.

Explicit photographs were sent to "the decoy adult" and the Internet vigilante group made the age of the targeted individual abundantly clear to Bowen and gave him every chance to cease the communication with the teen.

Bowen, who is originally from Wales, was confronted when he travelled to a Cork coffee shop believing he was going to meet the teenage girl only to be met by volunteers with the vigilante group.

They alerted Gardai and a detailed dossier on the contacts involved was handed over to officers.

Bowen co-operated fully with Gardai and surrendered his computer, his tablet and his smartphone.

"The situation that came about was that Mr Bowen was apprehended in Cork by this group," Jane Hyland BL, for the State, previously told the court.

Ms Hyland said it was quite an unusual case in that regard. The vigilante group mount Internet operations to "ensnare" people attempting to make inappropriate online contact with children. Gardai were notified by the vigilante group of Bowen's actions and a full investigation commenced. Bowen was charged that, between July 4 and July 26, 2019, he attempted to contact a child by way of communication technology for the purpose of facilitating the sexual exploitation of that child. The second charge was that, at Costa Coffee in Bishopstown, Cork on July 26, 2019, he did attempt to intentionally meet a child for the purpose of doing something that constituted sexual exploitation of the child. He appeared on a signed plea of guilty to both charges from Cork District Court.

Defence counsel Paula McCarthy BL said Bowen accepted it was a very serious offence but he had indicated at a very early stage his intention to enter a guilty plea.

She also stressed that Bowen had also taken strenuous steps to rehabilitate and address his issues. The court was informed there was no actual victim per se as no child was involved and the 'sting' operation was mounted entirely by adults. Bowen suffers from both attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and bipolar disorder. He lost his full-time job as a result of the publicity surrounding his arrest, subsequent charge and court appearance. His marriage had also ended as a result of the incident. The defendant was now involved in a relationship which was effectively part-relationship and part-carer. Bowen had also made a number of attempts at self harm.

He was now attending Waterford psychologist Dr Nicholas Bankes.

Bowen was also fully participating in the Safe Lives programme which aims to help people with sex addiction issues.

This is a scheme supervised by the Probation and Welfare Service (PWS) and which aims to help sex offenders tackle their addiction issues.

Bowen had cooperated fully with Gardai investigating the matter and has no previous convictions in Ireland.

He had returned to Ireland in 2010 after a period living in the UK and inquiries with the British police indicated he had no previous convictions in that jurisdiction either. Bowen had commenced the online activity as his marriage began to disintegrate. As a result of his bipolar disorder, his depressive lows now leave him convinced "he is just not able to face the day." On the highs related to his illness, he is able to operate on a daily basis but can suffer from bouts of bizarre behaviour.

In a statement after the sentencing hearing, the vigilante group Child Protection Awareness (CPA) called for mandatory lengthy sentences for adults who attempt to exploit children for sexual gratification.

Tim came very much prepared in his true intentions that day after clearing out his van and was very explicit in what he wanted to do when he arrived to meet what he thought was a child," they said.

It was very fortunate that he met us instead of a real child. Our children are our future and the government should put more powers in Garda hands to protect them at all costs.

"Paedophiles like Tim are ruthless and not one thought goes into what the victim has to go through everyday for the rest of their lives. Some turn to drugs, drink, abusive relationships because every day they are fighting the demons thats been left with them from the likes of Tim."
The incident occurred on Tuesday evening in the Ongar area of Dublin (PA)

A MAN is in critical condition after a stabbing in Cork city centre.

The man suffered suspected stab injuries after an incident on the Grand Parade, just metres from one of Cork's busiest city centre shopping areas.

Gardai and paramedics were at the scene within minutes and the injured man was initially given emergency treatment at the scene.

He was then rushed by ambulance to a Cork hospital where he is expected to undergo emergency surgery.

The man is believed to have suffered critical injuries to his chest and is now fighting for his life.

Gardai immediately sealed off the area pending a full forensic examination of the scene.

It is understood the incident occurred shortly after 7pm.

Areas along the Grand Parade were very busy with revellers and people heading home from work at the time.

It is understood a number of people witnessed the aftermath of the incident involved.

A Garda source said CCTV security camera footage is now expected to play a crucial role in their investigation as the area is dominated by restaurants, cafes and retail premises, most of which are equipped with security cameras.

The attack occurred less than 300 metres from the Bridewell and Angelsea Street Garda Stations.

It is the third stabbing incident in Cork and Kerry in a matter of weeks after young men suffered slash-type injuries in a separate and unrelated attacks in north Kerry and west Cork.
FINE Gael MEPs have backed a controversial proposal to give EU police forces powers to use live facial recognition technology (FRT) - in a move that is set to escalate Coalition tensions over the issue with the Green Party.

The proposal, which was ultimately defeated in a European Parliament vote on Wednesday, goes further than Fine Gaels plan in Ireland to give An Garda Siochana powers to use FRT retrospectively in limited circumstances. The Greens are blocking these plans over civil liberties concerns.

The five Fine Gael MEPs backed a European Peoples Party (EPP) amendment to the landmark Artificial Intelligence Act which would allow EU law enforcement authorities to use live FRT with a judges approval in cases of missing children, preventing terrorist attacks or serious crimes.

Fianna Fail and Green Party MEPs voted against the amendment and strongly criticised it. Fianna Fails Barry Andrews said it allowed potentially unchecked and unauthorised real-time mass biometric surveillance on the entire population. His party colleague Billy Kelleher said it was a nonsense and a bridge too far in terms of civil liberties.

Green MEP Grace OSullivan claimed the amendment would allow the use of Chinese-style surveillance for as little as a driving offence with her colleague Ciaran Cuffe, who mistakenly voted for the amendment but later corrected the record, describing it as a slippery slope that could lead to big brother style mass surveillance along Chinese lines.

Sinn Feins Chris MacManus, and Independent MEPs Clare Daly, Luke Ming Flanagan and Mick Wallace also voted down the amendment. However, Fine Gael MEP Deirdre Clune said she and her colleagues supported the proposal because of its importance in child abduction cases.

It's a ban completely [on live FRT] except in exceptional circumstances in public places, she said. It is important for child abduction issues, we've had a lot of correspondence from people who say that it will be really important, the first three hours are important in the case of missing children.

The amendment will ultimately not form part of the AI Act, which was passed by an overwhelming majority of MEPs and amounts to the worlds first mandatory set of comprehensive rules on artificial intelligence systems.

In Ireland the Greens are blocking Fine Gael efforts to bring in FRT for gardai because they want standalone legislation as opposed to an amendment to an existing bill to give gardai body cameras and instead want standalone legislation.

In response to queries on the Fine Gael MEPs vote on Wednesday, the Department of Justice initially said Ms McEntee firmly believes gardai need modern tools and equipment to help them do their jobs in protecting people from harm and saving lives.

A spokesperson said: Any proposals in relation to facial recognition technology would include a ban live FRT use, there would be no mass surveillance or profiling permitted.

They said the use of FRT would be restricted to serious crimes, underpinned by a code of practice, and that a garda would make the ultimate decision on whether a person identified through FRT is who they are looking for.

However, the Department later asked that this response be disregarded and stated: The Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment are leading the States efforts in the European Unions Artificial Intelligence Act negotiations, and officials within the Department are monitoring the progress of the Act.
Road and railway line closed as gardai and Defence Forces respond

Garda near scene of train accident at Collooney, Co. Sligo. Photo: James Connolly

Gardai near the scene of the train accident at Collooney, Co. Sligo. Photo: James Connolly

Gardai near the scene of train accident at Collooney, Co. Sligo. Photo: James Connolly

Gardai and emergency services remain at the scene of an incident which occurred on a train line outside Sligo earlier this afternoon, with one woman (40s) confirmed dead and another woman (20s) removed from the scene with serious injuries.

In a statement, gardai said that the incident occurred on the train line at Knocks Park, Ballisadare, Co Sligo this afternoon at approximately 4pm.

"One female pedestrian aged in her 40s, was fatally injured and her body remains at the scene. A second female aged in her 20s, has been removed from the scene to Sligo University Hospital with serious injuries."

The statement said that the coroner has been notified. Forensic collision investigators are en route to the scene.

The exact nature of the accident is not yet clear.

Irish Rail had confirmed an incident occurred in the Ballysadare area, which is about 7km from Sligo town. It said the Sligo to Dublin service is stopped between Sligo and Collooney due to a serious incident.

"The 15.50 service from Sligo to Dublin Connolly struck two women in the vicinity of Ballisadare, shortly after three oclock today, Irish Rail spokesperson Jane Cregan told Independent.ie.

"Emergency services remain at the scene. There were 100 people on board the train. They have all disembarked from the train and have been removed from the scene by bus. They will go to Boyle and will be able to get a train from Boyle."

Services are operating between Dublin Connolly and Boyle only, and we have bus transfers in place between Sligo and Boyle, she added.

Independent.ie understands gardai have closed the road between Ballysadare and Collooney. A Defence Forces helicopter was at the scene up until shortly after 5pm.

More to follow
More industrial action planned for today as 2,000 workers call for a better deal

Firefighter Paddy Rispin believes up to 30 fire stations are likely to close across the country because staffing is so tight.

The wages are low  at around 700 a month starting  and with crew on call 24/7, he says its getting more difficult to attract recruits.

In October, when his station officer retires and a colleague moves to Dublin Fire Brigade, there will be just eight firefighters based at his station in Trim, Co Meath.

Mr Rispin, who also works as a picture framer to supplement his income, says most closures are likely in the south and west where he is aware of crews of just five people.

Standing on the picket line in Trim yesterday as half of the nations stations closed for rolling strikes, he spoke about one station that is closed on Saturdays.

Fire station officer Ciaran Finn speaks on the picket line in Ashbourne, County Meath

The public can ring the ambulance service, but they are not trained to use cutting equipment that is crucial in car accidents, he said.

More rolling strikes are planned today as 2,000 firefighters take industrial action for a better deal on pay and time off. Without a resolution, an all-out strike will start next Tuesday. Were not visible, he said. Until you need the fire service, you dont know.

It is a tough job. You can come across absolutely anything, bad incidents or bad accidents. We have to deal with relatives on the scene, and you have to put yourself in their shoes and give dignity to the person you are treating to let them see that youre taking care of them.

But if we dont do it, wholl do it?

The sudden deaths, they stick in your head. They thought its my time to go and youre looking at the tragedies that are unfolding around them. And youre there to give them some dignity and youre saying to yourself, oh God, what was going through your mind when you decided this would happen.

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar called for re-engagement between unions and State negotiators. He said the public should know that emergency calls will be responded to as normal.
Inspectors said the school community recognised that communication must be better

An inspectors report on a school at the centre of controversy over staff-management tensions has found a significant number of teachers were disaffected and reported dissatisfaction with the current leadership.

But some teachers at the 698-pupil Templeogue College in Dublin reported very positive working relationships with senior management, according to the Department of Education team.

The Whole School Evaluation Management, Leadership and Learning report, following an inspection in March, found the overall quality of management in the school was satisfactory with some less than satisfactory practices.

Among the areas the inspectors identified for improvement were policy development and communication.

The term satisfactory is used when inspectors believe quality to be adequate, and where the strengths in what is being evaluated just outweigh the shortcomings.

The report, though, noted many positives about the all boys secondary school in south Dublin.

In terms of teaching and learning at the school, inspectors found the quality was good overall, with teachers and school leaders setting high expectations for students.

Student and teacher interactions were very positive, student behaviour was very good and students who interacted with the inspectors were excellent ambassadors for the school, the inspectors said.

The quality of support for students wellbeing was deemed satisfactory, with effective student support structures, a good range of extra-curricular activities but scope to provide more wellbeing initiatives.

In relation to management of the school, inspectors stated that the principal, deputy principal, assistant principals and other school leaders collectively manage and oversee the smooth day-to-day running of the school.

They demonstrated a good quality working relationship and strived to drive improvement in the school in line with the Department of Education guidelines, national educational reform, thinking and developments, the report stated.

But the inspectors reported that the school community recognised that communication required significant improvement in order to facilitate trusting, positive, professional and productive working relationships.

In recognition of that, they noted that the board of management had appointed a workplace facilitator, following a recommendation from the trustees. The Spiritan Education Trust is the schools patron body.

The inspectors recommended that all teachers and senior management actively participate in that facilitation process as well as a Health and Safety Authority Work Positive programme which had been initiated to drive positive change and improve working relationships.

In a comment on communications, the inspectors found that progress at staff meetings had been hampered by non-teaching and learning agenda items.

The report stated that these items should be dealt with through other processes, such as the facilitation process, to allow for more discussion about school policies and facilitate sharing of good teaching and learning practices at staff meetings.

The inspectors also found staff meeting agendas and slides had been shared but minutes and decisions had not been recorded and circulated to all staff.

They recommended that minutes be maintained and circulated to all teachers in a reasonable timeframe and should include actions agreed together with persons responsible.

Inspectors also noted that some staff were not aware of how to access the board meeting minutes and agreed reports and stated that staff nominees to the board should ensure that all agreed reports from the board are readily available.

Other issues outlined include a number of staff reporting inconsistency in the application of some school policies such as the code of behaviour.

Inspectors stated work on updating the code should be progressed without delay and a balance between sanctions and positive behaviour strategies should be evident in the revised code.

They also found some confusion as to which version of a number of policies were in operation and stated that board should oversee that the correct version of each policy is uploaded on the sharing platforms to remove ambiguity for staff and the wider school community.

In its response to the report, the board of management outlined the actions it is taking to address the issues raised by inspectors.
As the curtain came down on the final Twomey Family Remorial weekend, Elber Twomey said We are truly humbled and honoured that our 10th Twomey Family Remorial still attracted hundreds of people to both Meelin and Rockchapel for our final event.

Elber described how the weekend kicked off with the collection of two vans from Newmarket Motors who have so generously sponsored the Remorial since 2016. She also paid tribute to local shops that have donated supplies every year.

The weekend of activities opened on Saturday night with the legendary Aonghus MacDomhnaill as quizmaster at the table quiz where over 100 people took part. Elber thanked Deirdre from KDs who delivered tasty hot nibbles for participants on the night.

The 50k cycle set off from Rockchapel on Sunday morning. Elber described the atmosphere: Inside, the Community Centre was buzzing from 7.30am with fantastic ladies sorting teas and treats for our cyclists, wonderful girls sitting ready to take registrations and 4 super bikers ready to lead the cyclists on the 50k route.

Outside the community centre was buzzing too with our loyal stewards getting ready to take up their posts along the route. Johnny Stack who has always been the main cycle organiser had given them all their points and they were having a final check before they headed to their spots. Over 120 cyclists took on the Sugan Challenge. Many of them remarked that they were surprised that we were finishing our cycle and asked would we take a year off and come back in 2025. They added that the cycle would be missed as it was always a part of their calendar and a credit to the team

Meanwhile in Meelin, approximately 90 people sprinted to Twomeys Bridge and back. This was followed by the 5K family walk which was supported by 250 participants.

They all returned to a warm welcome and the kids got a treat of a hot burger or chips and ice cream. At 4pm Meelin village was buzzing and humming with amazingly talented Meadhbh Walsh who kept us blown away by her truly unique and powerful voice. After this we had the pleasure of our own wonderfully entertaining DJ Liam Ban OSullivan who entertained us into the small hours, Elber said.

On Monday evening, events drew to a close with the Connie Twomey Memorial Hurling Cup tournament where teams from Newmarket, Dromtarriffe, Kanturk and the local St. Marks taking part.

They were very close and entertaining matches but 2023 saw St. Marks claiming this special cup only for the second time since we began in 2014. Seventy kids took part, and have now joined the team of Twomey Family Remorial Seat-belt Sherriffs, Elber said.

Meanwhile across the water in Devon, Elbers cousin Sean Twomey ran a pirate weekend and raised an amazing 1,000 for Torbay Hospital which had closed its A & E on the day of the crash and relocated hospital staff to the scene of the crash in an effort to save the Twomey Family.

As a result of the efforts of the small army behind the Twomey Family Remorial, more than 180,000 has been raised for a variety of charities. If anyone missed this, our final Twomey Family Remorial, they can still donate at www.Twomey familyRemorial.com.

As the weekend and the Twomey Family Remorial drew to a close, Elber said:

We have had a good run for ten years, and it is time to call it a day. Since we started this event, there have been other tragedies and fundraising initiatives in and around our community in Meelin.

I just think there is only so much that communities can afford to give, and I am so proud of what the people behind this particular initiative achieved. We raised funds and helped raise awareness. Nothing will ever bring back Connie or Oisin or Elber Marie but at least we - and that includes every single person who ran or walked or cycled or stewarded or made tea for us - all tried to bring something positive out of the tragedy and travesty of their deaths.

My aim was that Con, Baba Oisin and Little Lady would never be forgotten, that we would promote positive mental health and how precious life is along with promoting road safety. Im hopeful that we have achieved this and that our beauties will never be forgotten. #LifeIsPrecious.
Following a sell-out Irish tour in Autumn 2022, MAM will take place from Thursday 13 July to Friday 14 July 2023.

Olivier Award nominee Michael Keegan-Dolan has said that theatre is a risky business; even brilliant work can go wrong.

The Longford native is 54 and he has been creating dances since he was 19. He has a number of Olivier Award nominations, and even though hes successful, he still believes that everything cant always be perfect.

The internationally acclaimed choreographer, who is now based in Kerry, is bringing an outstanding mythic dance production MAM to the Bord Gais Energy Theatre.

Michael told Independent.ie: When it goes well its the best thing ever, when it doesnt go well it hurts more. Words have tremendous power depending on how thick your skin is.

I remember whats said to me. If an Irish person gives me a compliment, Ill take it seriously but if they insult me, Ill take it very seriously too.

I performed something profoundly Irish in Hong Kong, but they totally got the show. One said to me, weve the same issues here, weve problems, the police, suicide, social integration.

I felt validated after that, all of that work, the poverty in my twenties all made sense at that moment. Those moments helped me build a life.

Theatre is a risky business; even brilliant work can go wrong. If the show goes well, it doesnt always go well, it depends on so many different things, you can get unlucky.

I moved to west Kerry six years ago, one reason why is my connection with Cormac Begley. The show is an outcome of our meeting.

Twelve dancers from all over the world and seven contemporary musicians had to play with Cormac, who came from west Kerry, whos a trailblazer. It was wild, the show is about that.

MAM brings together the Irish traditional concertina player Cormac Begley, the European music collective, stargaze and 12 international dancers from Teac Damsa. MAM is a meeting place between soloist and ensemble, classical and traditional, the local and universal.

The timely production that acknowledges how lifes polarities can, on occasion, come together and find a resolution.

MAM is a geological structure. Its the lowest point between two high points. In west Kerry its important because people wouldve moved through these points for people, animals, energy.

Its meeting places, its a place youd go for a fight, a place you could be robbed, a place where an army could come over. Its a good place to ambush someone. Theyre dualistic places, they have meaning.

The start is about the middle of a wake for a child. It grows out of that; dancing and music happen.

MAM, theres not one spoken word. Theres music and theres dancing. Theres a delight in not knowing whats going on, you feel alive. Theres an excitement when communicating with someone and you dont know what theyre saying.

Anyone who goes to the theatre, some are dragged along, you can always tell the fella, its very often a man dragged along by his theatre enthusiastic partner. Do your very best to be open to the experience and never be afraid to not understand whats going on, dont see it as a negative. In the world of imagination, understanding is secondary, its all about the mystery, Michael added.

MAM will take place from Thursday, 13 July to Friday, 14 July for two performances only before it travels to the Venice Biennale Danza 2023.

Since its premiere at the Dublin Theatre Festival in 2019, MAM has toured Sadlers Wells, London, Perth Festival, Australia, New Zealand Festival of the Arts, Teatros del Canal, Madrid, Internationale Maifestspiele, Wiesbaden, as well as to 14 venues around Ireland.

MAM has been nominated for an Olivier Award for Best New Production in 2020 and two UK Critics Circle National Dance Awards in 2021.

The production follows the success of Michaels acclaimed re-imagining of the world-famous ballet Swan Lake/Loch na hEala in 2016.
FENIT Harbour had a busy year in 2022 handling more than a dozen vessels and roughly 24,000 tonnes of cargo, the vast majority of it Liebherr cranes.

The information has been provided by the Central Statistics Office (CS) who have issued a full breakdown of all traffic in and out of Irelands ports last year.

According to the CSO data Fenit Harbour handled 13 vessels in 2022 with a gross tonnage of 155,000 tones. The number of vessels was the same as in 2021 (also 13) but several of the ships handled by the port were considerably larger last year.

The gross tonnage of the 13 vessels that arrived in Fenit in 2021 was just 96,000 tonnes.

The CSO data also shows that harbour workers in Fenit handled 24,000 tonnes of cargo in 2024 with the vast majority of it (21,000 tonnes) going to destinations outside the EU and the UK and 3,000 tonnes landed at another port from where it was shipped farther afield.
Garda on duty close to the scene of the rail line fatality in Ballisodare. Pic: Paul Deering.

Fire services arriving at the scene along the Ballisodare to Collooney road which was closed by Gardai. Pic: Paul Deering

One woman has died and another remains in a serious condition after being struck by the Dublin to Sligo train near Ballisodare this afternoon.

Gardai and emergency services remain at scene of the incident which occurred on the train line at Knox Park, Ballisadare at approximately 3pm. The road between Ballisodare and Collooney which runs adjacent to the rail line remains closed.

Garda have confirmed that one woman, aged in her 40s, was fatally injured and her body remains at the scene. A second female, aged in her 20s, was removed from the scene to Sligo University Hospital with serious injuries. The Coroner has been notified. Forensic Collision Investigators are at the scene.

It is believed the two women were walking on the train line in the direction of Sligo when they were struck. Part of the Garda investigation will centre on reports the two women had earlier been on the train from Sligo but had disembarked in Collooney. They then began walking back to Sligo.

A local resident related how they heard the train sound its horn longer than normal as it approached Ballisodare.

"Normally its usual for the train to sound its horn as it approaches the bridge at Ballisodare but this time it kept sounding for at least half a minute and I knew immediately that something serious must have happened.

"There was a constant sound of sirens then as Gardai, fire services and ambulances rushed to the scene and the Ballisodare to Collooney road was closed in both directions. An army helicopter also arrived at the scene around 4.20pm, landing close to the rail track, not leaving again for at least an hour, he told The Sligo Champion.

Representatives from Irish Rail also arrived at the scene.

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As the homelessness epidemic continues to worse, the students of Gorey Educate Together Secondary School have held a charity sleep-out to raise funds for Focus Ireland and Pieta House. Organised by the Student Council and the Parents Association, this saw 52 students sleep outside the school in their sleeping bags as they sought to not just raise money but also increase awareness of mental health and homelessness.

Over the course of three weeks the students raised money through sponsorship cards and collected more than 2500, which they will now donate to the two charities. Both the Student Council and Parents Association would like to thank the people of Gorey and surrounding areas for their huge generosity and support for the event.
A Bronx Tale (1993) GREAT! movies, 9p.m.

Robert De Niro hasnt been a prolific director  hes only helmed two movies throughout his entire career  but hes certainly got the skills; clearly working with some of the greats, including his friend Martin Scorsese, rubbed off on him over the years.

His debut behind the camera came with this coming-of-age crime drama, in which he also appears as bus driver Lorenzo, although its his characters son, Calogero (Lillo Brancato Jr), who takes centre stage.

At a young age, he becomes obsessed with the gangsters living in his neighbourhood, and becomes torn between their seemingly glamorous, wealthy lifestyle and the example set by his law-abiding family. Chazz Paminteri, who also wrote the play on which the film is based, co-stars as mobster Sonny.

THURSDAY

Meet Me in St Louis (1944) BBC4, 8p.m.

Set in 1903 in  wait for it  St Louis, Vincente Minnellis enchanting musical follows a year in the life of the close-knit Smith family. The clans happiness is threatened when the head of the household announces theyre all moving to New York so he can take up a new job.

His children are left fearing theyll miss out on all the excitement of the upcoming Worlds Fair  and teenage Esther (Judy Garland) worries about the future of her romance with the boy next door.

Garland gets one of her best roles, as well as the chance to belt out classics such as The Trolley Song and Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas. However, the film is very nearly stolen from her by the extraordinary Margaret OBrien, who plays her morbid little sister Tootie.

FRIDAY

A Fistful of Dollars (1964) Channel 5, 10p.m.

Clint Eastwood became a Hollywood superstar thanks to his first outing as The Man with No Name in this Western from director Sergio Leone. The mysterious gunslinger rides into a town on the Mexican border divided by two warring families.

After killing the henchmen of one clan, he seems to have made it clear where his loyalties lie and is hired by their rivals. However, he is secretly planning to play them off against each other to his own advantage.

As Westerns go, this and its sequels For a Few Dollars More and The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly are as good as they get. Eastwood is perfect in the role, and hes well supported by Gian Maria Volonte, whos equally impressive as Ramon Rojo.

SATURDAY

The Deer Hunter (1978) BBC1, 11.10p.m.

A true modern classic, depicting six Pennsylvanian steel workers and their loved ones whose lives are turned upside down by the Vietnam War. Their tight bond of friendship and blinkered world view are changed forever when they are called up to fight in the conflict and captured by the enemy. None of them will ever be the same again.

Robert De Niro delivers a typically monumental performance in the lead role, but is matched by Oscar-winners Christopher Walken and Meryl Streep; the latter only took part so she could be close to her boyfriend, John Cazale, who completed his scenes despite having terminal cancer. Michael Cimino picked up Best Picture and Best Director Academy Awards for the film, which turned out to be his masterpiece.

SUNDAY

Oceans Eleven (2001) ITV1, 10.20p.m.

Director Steven Soderberghs fun, stylish remake of the 1960 Frank Sinatra crime caper manages to improve on the original. George Clooney stars as Danny Ocean, a suave ex-con who assembles a mismatched group of crooks to pull off a daring heist that involves hitting three of Las Vegas biggest casinos on the same night.

In the process, Danny hopes to win back his estranged wife (Julia Roberts), who is dating the casinos owner (Andy Garcia). The all-star supporting cast also includes Matt Damon, Bernie Mac, Elliott Gould and Don Cheadle (whose cockney accent is one of Oceans Elevens few low points).

MONDAY

Girl, Interrupted (1999) GREAT! movies, 9p.m.

A would-be writer in the 1960s is committed to an exclusive psychiatric ward by her parents after attempting suicide, but the move seems to cause more problems than it solves. Winona Ryder stars in Susanna Kaysens wry account of her voluntary two-year residency at Claymoore psychiatric hospital for teenage girls during the 1960s, a kind of female-driven One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest for Generation X.

The girls play music to one another in solitary, enjoy games of midnight tenpin bowling, become embroiled in slanging matches with customers at the local ice cream parlour and break into the office of Dr Wick to sneak a peak at their psychiatric evaluations.

Angelina Jolie won a Golden Globe and Oscar for her memorable turn as one of the inmates. Clea Duvall, Brittany Murphy, Whoopi Goldberg and Vanessa Redgrave also star.

TUESDAY

Local Hero (1983) Film4, 6.35p.m.

American oil company executive Mac (Peter Riegert) is chosen by his eccentric boss (the great Burt Lancaster) to go to Scotland and buy a tiny coastal village so it can be demolished to make way for a refinery.

It turns out the locals are expecting him, and most of them cant wait to cash in and move on, but Mac becomes increasingly enchanted by the beautiful landscape and simple way of life.

This comedy drama is a real charmer, and skilfully manages to avoid becoming too twee  mainly because the oil executives are more whimsical than the wily villagers. A great cast, Mark Knopflers stirring score, and an eye-catching turn from Jenny Seagrove as the love interest who may or may not have a touch of mermaid about her just add to the magic.
The excellent service provided by New Ross Fire Service  whose members are presently striking over a lack of fair pay and conditions has been praised by a Fethard on Sea property owner whose premises was saved from complete destruction by the crew.

There is palpable anger among the countys fire personnel sparked by a false promise of money into the service by Minister Darragh OBrien, an assertion which was later refuted by Pascal Donohoe.

Following an overwhelming vote to proceed with industrial action late last year, there are rolling closures of fire stations this week, with all out strike action planned for next week unless an agreement can be reached.

A fire engine from New Ross  joined by a fire tender from Wexford and water tanker from New Ross  attended the fire at Marios chipper in the busy seaside village on Wednesday evening.

Having received the call at 6.41 p.m., the New Ross crew were at the scene by 7.14 p.m. and spent almost three and a half hours extinguishing the blaze and making the area safe.

Located alongside other businesses, there were concerns that smoke damage may have been caused.

Property owner John OLeary said: The fire brigade were absolutely fantastic. We couldnt believe what they did here so all hats off and thanks to the fire service. We cannot fault their response.

A local fire fighter made the point that if the fire had happened on Tuesday this week the New Ross Fire Service would not have been attending the incident, requiring the Wexford service to provide cover, while having to travel a further distance to attend.

The owner of Aoifes Nail & Beauty Salon said she had a client and they evacuated the premises when the alarm went off, adding that thankfully no damage was caused to her business.

New Ross Municipal District chairman, Cllr Michael Sheehan said the council stand with the fire crews and are calling on the government to come up with a compromise to avoid a full blown strike,

For the first time in 25 years the fire station crews downed tools on Tuesday morning for 24 hours, with further 24 hour industrial action planned on Friday and Sunday, ahead of an all out strike next week if no compromise deal over pay and conditions is reached.

A fireman said they feel they have been ignored at a time when Government finances are at an all time high.

I would see how hard the firemen work and I see what they are saying. There are compromises that can be made. At the moment they are not engaging in non emergency duties but Id imagine thatd be assessing calls on a case by case basis.

Cllr Sheehan said the prompt response of the New Ross fire service and their colleagues in south Kilkenny and further afield to the apartment fire in New Ross last month shows their importance within the community.

There could have been significant damage to property and loss of life. I really feel  as do my fellow councillors  that this needs to be sorted out in the Workplace Relations Commission so that it can come to an amicable solution.

Chief Fire Officer Paul LEstrange said: There are negotiations ongoing at national level with regard to the pay and conditions of fire fighters. I would hope that these talks would be re-engaged with.

He said people should continue to call 999 or 112 when there is an emergency, adding that they might have to expect a delay in fire crews getting to their property or to the scene of an accident etc, due to the industrial action.
World Haemochromatosis Awareness Week took place at the start of June. Ireland has more cases than anywhere else in the world and one in five people carry the gene, making it even more common than diabetes except not half as many people are even aware of the condition.

Maire has the condition and Robert, who plays rugby for New Ross RFC, is a carrier of the gene and both were enthusiastic about supporting the campaign.

Early diagnosis is vital and, if left untreated, iron overload can lead to organ damage or even permanent health conditions.

To mark World Haemochromatosis Awareness Week, the association called for a national strategy for Haemochromatosis. The association is also asking people to Get Checked for Haemochromatosis to highlight the symptoms in order to save lives  symptoms that range from chronic tiredness and joint pain, to abdominal pain and sexual dysfunction.

This year saw several city and county councils throughout the country supporting the campaign and joining the wider, international initiative to Light Up Red, lighting up several iconic public buildings during World Haemochromatosis Awareness Week.

Dr Maurice Manning, who lives with haemochromatosis and is current Chair of the Irish Haemochromatosis Association said: We are calling for a national strategy for Haemochromatosis to be developed in Ireland. There should also be equity of access to treatment for everyone in the country. Once diagnosed Haemochromatosis can be successfully treated and patients go on to live their lives to the full, without any impact.

If anyone seeing this campaign and recognises any of the symptoms  for either themselves or for a loved one, seek medical advice. Simply make an appointment with your GP and take a blood test. It could make all the difference.

Consultant in Hepatology and Gastroenterology at Beaumont Hospital, Dr John Ryan, said: Haemochromatosis is an inherited condition where the body cannot switch off iron absorption and iron build up leads to life-threatening organ damage. If picked up early enough it is entirely treatable, and individuals may also donate blood through the Irish Blood Transfusion clinics, which is then put to good use.

The public can support the vital work of the Irish Haemochromatosis Association, by making a donation to its work or by donating via the Text to Donate service, Text IRON to 50300 to donate 4.

You can also make a donation via: www.haemochromatosis-ir.com Funds raised will be used to continue the IHA helpline, providing information and resources for patients and their families throughout the year.
Importance of 3 Bullet Gate highlighted at packed event

11/6/2023 Pictured in New Ross for a rededication at the Three Bullet Gate commemoration with Bertie Ahern 25 years on from when he officially opened the Three Bullet Gate Memorial Park in 1998. Photo Mary Browne.

11/6/2023 Pictured at the Three Bullet Gate commemoration 25 years on from when he officially opened the Three Bullet Gate Memorial Park in 1998. Anthony OConnor and. Martin OConnor raise the flag. Photo Mary Browne.?

11/6/2023 Pictured in New Ross for a rededication at the Three Bullet Gate commemoration with Bertie Ahern 25 years on from when he officially opened the Three Bullet Gate Memorial Park in 1998. Photo Mary Browne.

11/6/2023 Pictured at the Three Bullet Gate commemoration with Bertie Ahern 25 years on from when he officially opened the Three Bullet Gate Memorial Park in 1998. Danescastle music group. Photo Mary Browne.?

11/6/2023 Pictured in New Ross for a rededication at the Three Bullet Gate commemoration with Bertie Ahern 25 years on from when he officially opened the Three Bullet Gate Memorial Park in 1998.Three Bullet gate pike men and women. Photo Mary Browne.

11/6/2023 Pictured in New Ross for a rededication at the Three Bullet Gate commemoration with Bertie Ahern 25 years on from when he officially opened the Three Bullet Gate Memorial Park in 1998 with Pat Nolan. Photo Mary Browne.

11/6/2023 Pictured at the Three Bullet Gate commemoration 25 years on from when he officially opened the Three Bullet Gate Memorial Park in 1998 is Three Bullet Gate pikeman Neil Stacey with his grandson Noah Northcott. Photo Mary Browne.?

11/6/2023 Pictured in New Ross for a rededication at the Three Bullet Gate commemoration with Bertie Ahern 25 years on from when he officially opened the Three Bullet Gate Memorial Park in 1998. Photo Mary Browne.

11/6/2023 Pictured in New Ross for a rededication at the Three Bullet Gate commemoration with Bertie Ahern 25 years on from when he officially opened the Three Bullet Gate Memorial Park in 1998. Photo Mary Browne.

11/6/2023 Pictured in New Ross for a rededication at the Three Bullet Gate commemoration with Bertie Ahern 25 years on from when he officially opened the Three Bullet Gate Memorial Park in 1998 with Nick Cashin. Photo Mary Browne.

11/6/2023 Pictured in New Ross for a rededication at the Three Bullet Gate commemoration with Bertie Ahern 25 years on from when he officially opened the Three Bullet Gate Memorial Park in 1998. Photo Mary Browne.

11/6/2023 Pictured in New Ross today for a rededication at the Three Bullet Gate commemoration with Bertie Ahern 25 years on from when he officially opened the Three Bullet Gate Memorial Park in 1998 is former Taoiseach Bertie Ahern with Three Bullet Gate pikemen from left; Martin Bennett and Brian McManus. Photo Mary Browne.

11/6/2023 Pictured in New Ross for a rededication at the Three Bullet Gate commemoration with Bertie Ahern 25 years on from when he officially opened the Three Bullet Gate Memorial Park in 1998. Photo Mary Browne.

11/6/2023 Pictured in New Ross for a rededication at the Three Bullet Gate commemoration with Bertie Ahern 25 years on from when he officially opened the Three Bullet Gate Memorial Park in 1998. Photo Mary Browne.

11/6/2023 Pictured in New Ross for a rededication at the Three Bullet Gate commemoration with Bertie Ahern 25 years on from when he officially opened the Three Bullet Gate Memorial Park in 1998 with John Nolan. Photo Mary Browne.

11/6/2023 Pictured in New Ross for a rededication at the Three Bullet Gate commemoration with Bertie Ahern 25 years on from when he officially opened the Three Bullet Gate Memorial Park in 1998. Photo Mary Browne.

11/6/2023 Pictured at the Three Bullet Gate commemoration 25 years on from when he officially opened the Three Bullet Gate Memorial Park in 1998. Photo Mary Browne.

11/6/2023 Pictured at the Three Bullet Gate commemoration with Bertie Ahern 25 years on from when he officially opened the Three Bullet Gate Memorial Park in 1998. Bertie photographed with Georgia Southern students. Photo Mary Browne.?

11/6/2023 Pictured in New Ross for a rededication at the Three Bullet Gate commemoration with Bertie Ahern 25 years on from when he officially opened the Three Bullet Gate Memorial Park in 1998. Photo Mary Browne.

Former Taoiseach Bertie Ahern was among the speakers at a poignant commemoration day in New Ross on Sunday, as part of a series of events in Wexford to mark 225 years since the 1798 Rebellion.

As part of the Three Bullet Gate event, a specially written song was performed and a newly commissioned flag was unveiled.

The historic area of the town was closed off all afternoon for the event, which saw more than 100 people gather. The Three Bullet Gate incident was a key part of the Battle of New Ross, one of the bloodiest days of the rebellion. Following the shooting dead by Crown forces of Matthew Furlong who bore a flag of truce, his comrades, led by the famous John Kelly of Killane, rose up and attacked the town of New Ross through Three Bullet Gate. Such is its significance, the gate is even mentioned in the Irish National Anthem Amhran na Bhfiann, as the Bearna Bhaoil (gap of danger).

The event began with the Colour Party of the FCA Pipe Band leading a troop of pikemen and re-enactors to the Bullet at the Mural Tower.

Mr Ahern attended the Three Bullet Gate commemoration 25 years on from when he officially opened the Three Bullet Gate Memorial Park in 1998. The former Taoiseach carried out a rededication of the park to a sustained round of applause. Following Mr Aherns rededication, he gave a speech praising the organisers and recalled the many Wexford events of the bicentenary commemoration in 1998. "New Ross goes from strength to strength, he said, adding that these events are important so new generations understand the sacrifices of our predecessors.

Afterwards he spoke with Wexford based students from Georgia Southern University in the Three Bullet Gate pub about the peace process. There was a keynote speech by author and academic Kevin Whelan on the meaning of 1798.

One of the event organisers, Cllr Michael Sheehan said: It was a barnstormer of a speech. He left everyone under no illusions why the Battle of New Ross is so important to our history and he compared what happened then to the war in Ukraine. It was a tour de force in how he described the gruesome nature of the battle in which men were hung, drawn and quartered and he spoke of how we and the Unionists need to change for the country to grow.

A poignant afternoon of music, reflection and remembrance followed, with both the Danescastle Ceili Band and the Cumas Traditional Ceili band performing, while there was also be a lighting of candles and an ecumenical service. The Ballad of the Bullet  a specially commissioned song penned by renowned Wexford musician Cathy Purcell  was premiered and featured the sounds of gunshot and drumming  adding to the atmosphere, and there was a Presentation of Colour Party One with the newly commissioned Flag of the Bullet, in what was a solemn moment of commemoration.

The day also included a laying of a wreath to honour those who died in the 1798 battles, as well as lighting and presentation of candles from the Community Ensemble by Hayley Crosbie. The afternoon featured a reading of The Proclamation, followed by music from New Ross and District Pipe Band, and a recital of songs fitting to the occasion including The National Anthem. The day concluded with a performance by the Cumas Traditional Ceili Band.

Cllr Sheehan thanked everyone who participated in a special day for New Ross, saying Seamus Kiely reflected on the historical locations around New Ross and Ger Bennett gave a reflection from the residents.

Rebellion 225 is being hosted by Wexford County Council working closely with the 1798 National Rebellion Centre and local communities across Wexford, with funding support from the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media.
A presentation of money raised from the autobiography by Adamstown man Danny Doyle will be made to his old neighbour, Sr Helen Delaney  who runs a charity in Uganda, doing amazing work  this Friday night in Adamstown Community Centre.

Taking place at 7:30 p.m., everyone is invited to come along.

The book was launched in February to a packed house. Part autobiography, part social history of Adamstown and Ireland, from the war years through to modern times, the book runs to over 90 pages and also features images of ballroom stars.

It recalls the Civil War years and the activity in Adamstown, 100 years on.

It has been said Danny was the first person to put a memorial over the Free State soldiers on his land and he recalls local events and personalities with great detail and affection.

"We wish to say a big thank you for your unbelievable generosity to this great cause. As you know St. Helen will manage this helping the poor people of Uganda as she has been doing for 40 years. Everyone is welcome. Again thank you for all donations, said Danny.
A planning application for 32 new homes in Arklow has been approved by An Bord Pleanala, bringing to an end a back-and-forth between the project developer and Wicklow County Council that began in 2009.

Located on the south side of Yellow Lane, Knockenrahan Lower, the proposed site has been a source of much consternation for residents and developers alike, with the Arklow community appalled by the unsightly appearance of the disused property and developer Yellow Lane Business Park Ltd seeing three separate planning applications rebuffed by the local authority.

Submitted in November 2020, Yellow Lane Business Parks latest application proposes to demolish the existing 498m2 commercial unit and remove the temporary car wash to make way for 32 homes, consisting of eight one-bedroom apartments, eight two-bedroom duplex apartments and 16 three-bedroom houses.

There were just two submissions on the new application, both in support of the development, one of which was put forward by Cllr Peir Leonard, who wrote: Arklow is currently suffering a housing shortage and, in particular, the town is in need of one bedroom ground floor accommodation to serve the needs of the medically impaired and elderly.

Because of the delay in a wastewater treatment plant for Arklow, we have been left with a legacy of derelict commercial businesses for many years.

This site is an eyesore, and I would be very much in favour of its redevelopment to residential in keeping with the surrounding areas.

Despite Cllr Leonards support, Wicklow County Council refused the application in July 2021 on the grounds that unauthorised development had previously taken place on the site, stating that: The proposed development would result in consolidation of unauthorised development on the site having regard to the existing development of the deposition of materials to form made ground on the site for which no planning permission or waste authorisation exists.

The provision of such a form of development unduly impacts on the amenities of the area, public health, the amenities of the adjoining properties, undermines the planning regulations and would be contrary to proper planning and development.

Dissatisfied with the local authoritys decision, Yellow Lane Business Park appealed to An Bord Pleanala - under the Planning and Development Act (2000 to 2021) - with the planning body launching their own investigation into the legitimacy of the application.

After inspecting the site, the An Bord Pleanala inspector noted: The single ground of refusal relates to the belief of the planning authority that the existing site is on infill material which constitutes unauthorised development (and hence its refusal would require planning permission) and may require a waste license.

It is argued in some detail (by the developer)  with historical documents attached in support  that the infill took place during works in the area in the early 1950s and 60s, prior to the enactment of planning and waste licensing regulations.

I conclude on the balance of evidence that the material under the site does not constitute an unauthorised development under the definitions set out under the relevant Acts, or the relevant court interpretations of what constitutes waste.

The site is currently somewhat unsightly at a key entrance to the town I consider the revised layout to be a very significant improvement, the inspector added.

Ideally, the design would address the main road with a stronger set of elevations with a simpler, more contemporary design, and not be set back for car parking and access roads, although noting the similar arrangement for the development across the road, I consider it to be acceptable

I note that the Arklow WWTP is considered to be at or near capacity and a new upgraded facility is pending. The applicants have a phasing agreement with Irish Water which I consider acceptable in principle  I would recommend a condition to confirm the details.

Heeding the inspectors assessment, An Bord Pleanala granted Yellow Lane Business Parks application on May 30, under the condition that the applicant or developer shall enter into water and wastewater connection agreements with Irish Water, prior to commencement of development.

All phasing of development shall be in accordance with this agreement and no occupation of the dwellings will be permitted until Irish Water has confirmed in writing that sufficient capacity in the Arklow WWTS exists to facilitate the additional loads.
Kate and Ger from CE-Tek presenting Philip and Adam from Aughrim CFR with an AED last year.

Tireless volunteers from the Aughrim Community First Responder group have launched a fundraiser to help support their essential life-saving work in the south Wicklow village.

With the cost of maintaining and replacing Public Access Defibrillators at an all-time high, volunteers have appealed to their community to help them buy new Automated External Defibrillators (AEDs), pads, batteries and other vital equipment.

Aughrim Community First Responder Philip O'Dwyer said: We are a volunteer group in the community that responds to life-threatening emergencies within our community when dispatched by the National Ambulance Service and currently provide and maintain Public Access Defibrillators (PAD) in four locations throughout Aughrim.

In order to maintain our response kits and our Public Access Defibrillators, we need donations from our community, as we receive no funding. An example of some of our costs are: 249 for a new AED battery, 90 for new AED pads, 995 for a new AED and 45 + VAT doer a new kit bag.

The work behind the scenes never stops, and our coordinator took a trip to Dublin today to pick up vital supplies for our group, including a new battery and some new pads for our defibrillators.

We had to spend 490.70 on these much-needed supplies, leaving us with a balance of 299.07 in our account. By the end of this year, we will need to replace another two batteries and, depending on call-outs, possibly pads too. A big thank you to Ian and the crew at First Aid Systems Ltd for always looking after us!

All monies donated to our group go directly back into our community to help keep this vital service alive. If you could donate as little or as much as you can, we would be extremely grateful.

To donate to Aughrim Community First Responders visit www.gofundme.com/f/aughrim-cfr-maintenance-fund
Wicklow Sinn Fein TD John Brady has hit out at Housing and Local Government Minister Darragh OBriens lesson in contempt over his response to the ongoing retained firefighters dispute.

Members of the retained firefighters walked out of the Dails public gallery on Tuesday evening, June 13, following Mr OBriens contribution to a debate on a motion by Sinn Fein seeking a resolution to the row over pay and conditions, in which he said separate arrangements could not be made outside the overall agreement on public sector pay, without a breach of that deal.

He added that there is a way forward that meets firefighters needs and protects the integrity of the collective pay process and said he would be addressing the issue of retainer payments in upcoming national pay talks.

Accusing the Minister of consistently failing to address the crippling crisis in the retained fire service, Mr Brady said: Members of the retained fire serviced travelled from all over the State to Dublin to attend the debate, which they saw as a last opportunity for the Government to bring forward meaningful proposals that could end the need for an all-out strike next week.

Briefings from the Ministers office [on Tuesday June 12] that there would be a favourable statement from the Minister during the debate tonight led to a raising of expectations that we would see real progress. What we were treated to instead was a lesson in contempt by Minister OBrien.

I spoke with the retained fire fighters after the debate, and they were angry, very, very angry, and frustrated at what they felt was a dismissal by Minister OBrien of their livelihoods. There is a real feeling that the Minister has opted to condemn the retained fire service with his dismissive comments.

At the end of the day, all the Minister had to offer was a commitment to look favourably at the needs of the firefighters for a liveable wage in the next round of public pay talks. At this point it will take an extraordinary gesture by the Government to prevent a full-scale strike from next week across the State.

The members of the retained fire service undertake a dangerous and demanding role on behalf of our local communities across the State. For this they pay a considerable price, as they are on call 24/7, 351 days of the year for an unbelievable 99 cent an hour.

The reality is that if the serious issues at the heart of the crisis in the retained fire service are not addressed it will lead to increasing danger for both fire fighters and members of the public.

I call upon Minister OBrien to review his response tonight. He, and only he, has the power to prevent an all-out strike across the state next week. He needs to act and act immediately to bring an end to this crisis.
David Smith, President of IADT, with students Isabella Redmond (from Bray); Emma Nolan (from Bray); Emily Lannin (from Delgany); Lochlann Magennety (from Bray) and Higher Education Minister Simon Harris.

Wicklow TD Simon Harris praised the construction of a new Digital Media Building at the Institute of Art, Design + Technology in Dun Laoghaire, which he said will improve the educational experience for current and future generations of students.

The Digital Media Building will accommodate 920 students across a wide range of disciplines such as design, animation, visual effects, enterprise and technology and adds capacity for close to 600 additional students to attend IADT.

The building will contain 19 state-of-the-art digital design studios, advanced computer laboratories and classrooms with five seminar rooms and the Higher Education Minister pointed to the buildings focus on catering for students diverse needs.

This building will have a strong focus on supporting practice-based learning, including laboratories, workshops and studios, Mr Harris said. They will also have significant flexibility to adapt to changing teaching and learning needs, and to support hybrid and remote learning.

This project is being delivered under Project Ireland 2040 which recognises that investment in education is central to achieving a strong, future-proofed economy, balanced across the regions, and a just society in which all citizens are enabled to fulfill their potential.

The expected completion date for the Digital Media Building is March 2025.
THE late Brigid Hannon has been described as a passionate advocate for the people of Bray, who was known for giving away ice cream, making sure tea was in a china cup, and always standing up for the ordinary man.

The tributes and memories came as the former Bray Councillor was laid to rest on Monday, having died peacefully at the Kinvara House Nursing Home in Bray on Friday, June 9 aged 92.

At her funeral mass, Fr Owen Lynch made reference to the items that had been brought to the front of the church at St Peters and explained their importance to those gathered.

The cup and saucer were a reminder of how important hospitality was to Brigid, he said, someone who was an advocate for anyone who was deprived in the community. If you ever called at mealtime when the house was full, he said, there would always be room for one more at the table.

The book of poetry by John Betjeman in many ways spoke for itself, but Fr Lynch added that not only was Brigid an avid lover of verse but was a writer of poetry too.

Brigid was born in 1931 and met her first love and husband Dave when she just 16, son Paddy told the congregation. She was walking by the Boat House on the seafront where Dave and his friends were gathered, as always, and she accidentally dropped her hankie. Dave picked it up and walked after her to return it, and it was love at first sight.

After they were married, they lived first in a thatched cottage on the Dargle Road then moved to Beech Road in 1952.

After raising her family, Brigid got involved in many community groups and decided to run for the local elections. She ran in 1974 as an independent candidate where she missed being elected by just four votes, but when she stood again in 1979 she topped the pole in the north ward. She represented the people of Little Bray for 10 years until she retired in 1989.

She had a long, happy and fulfilled life, Paddy said, as she watched over her eight children, 24 grandchildren and 33 great grandchildren.

The first thing youd spot in my mothers house is all the colourful teapots on display, he said, the kitchen table was as much about conversation and news of the day as it was about the food. My mother had one rule when it came to her tea  it had to be in a china cup.

Even in Kinvara, Paddy said, she had top have the china cup and saucer.

She had a common sense approach to politics, Paddy said, adding how she was a close friend to Councillor Joe Behan. A great listener, her sense of kindness and empathy extended to those around her in the community, when things were done by listening and talking at a time before the advent of emails and the internet.

Paddy told how when their home was the first to get a telephone, the bill was huge because she allowed people to use it so often. She rented a kiosk one year on Brays seafront but never made a penny with all the ice cream she gave away, as it was basically a free ice-cream van for all the grandchildren.

My mother was actually born in Kilkenny, Paddy told the congregation. Her mother, also called Brigid, was a single parent.

Brigid Butler went to Dublin and left my mother with the nuns, while she went to England, he said. When she returned, my mother had been fostered into the lovely Ryan family, in Bray. She had a fantastic childhood, and her brothers Joe, Frankie, Franny and sister Maggie were always to the fore of her thoughts.

She was reunited with her birth mother when she was in her fifties, Paddy explained, when her birth mother was approaching 90. The first thing Brigid said when they met was: Mother, thank you for having me.

She loved reading and writing, Paddy said, and her passion for poetry gave her that insight into the human condition that only poets seem to be able to fully access. Paddy said in recent times, he became the audience of one on visits when she would read him her poems. And on her 92 birthday, the family gave her a gift of her collected verse in book form.

Among those who have paid to tribute is Cllr Joe Behan, who said: Brigid was already a highly respected Councillor on Bray UDC when I was first elected in 1985. She was a kind, thoughtful, hardworking, courageous and passionate advocate for all of the people of Bray, especially her beloved Little Bray.

She always, always, always stood up for the ordinary man, woman and child and the welfare of the community was at the heart of everything she did. She and her late husband Dave, reared a fantastic family of daughters and sons who have also had a huge impact on the lives of so many people in Bray.

I know many people will be very sad to hear that Brigid is no longer with us but we trust that she and Dave are together again and watching down on all of their extended family and friends.

Brigid was the beloved wife of the late Dave, grandmother of the late David and mother-in-law of the late Brendan. Much loved and cherished mother of Josefa, Maria, Catherine, Bridgin, David, Julie, Pat and Suzanne.

She will be dearly missed by her loving family, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, daughters-in-law Carmel and Eileen, sons-in-law John, Dermot and Declan, brother Joe, sisters-in-law Kathleen and Helen, nieces, nephews, extended family, neighbours and friends.
Wicklow biotechnology business WHC Labs took home the Innovation Award at the 23rd annual National Enterprise Awards held in the Mansion House in Dublin.

Supported by Wicklow Local Enterprise Office and based in Newcastle, WHC is a thriving biotech company focused on yeast fermentation. The team are experts in the brewing and distilling industry, using next-generation methods to grow yeast and bacteria, with an R & D Lab that is home to industry-leading equipment.

WHC will share a 50,000 investment fund with eight other regional winners announced at the awards night.

Announcing the award winners at the Mansion House, Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Simon Coveney said: The National Enterprise Awards are the highlight of the small business and enterprise calendar. Year on year the diversity of businesses and the standard of companies that are coming through the process is getting stronger.

Cathaoirleach of Wicklow County Council, Cllr Tommy Annesley, congratulated Tony OKane and Philip Woodnutt of WHC Labs, saying: The company is at the forefront of innovation in the brewing sector which is growing and vibrant in County Wicklow. With their unique range of services and products on offer, coupled with their strategic growth ambition, winning the Innovation Award this year is no surprise.

Speaking after the awards ceremony, Chief Executive of Wicklow County Council, Emer OGorman, stated: WHC Labs is a great success story, operating in a unique biotechnology sector and providing highly skilled jobs based in Newcastle. Everyone in County Wicklow is delighted with their success in winning the Innovation Award in the 2023 National Enterprise Awards and we look forward to following their successes into the future.

Head of Enterprise at Wicklow LEO, Vibeke Delahunt, joined with the Cathaoirleach and the Chief Executive in congratulating the company on its ability to conceive, develop and deliver new innovative products and services to its customers.

Every year we are really impressed by the quality of the business that come to the LEO for support and the innovation we see coming through their business ideas. We are very excited for what the future holds for WHC Labs and we wish them continued success with growing their business, Vibeke said.

Wicklow-based company Aqualicence, supported by Local Enterprise Office Wicklow, was last years National Enterprise Awards overall winner. Headed up by former Irelands Best Young Entrepreneur (IBYE) Finalist Kate Dempsey, Aqualicence has positioned itself at the forefront of planning and project delivery in the offshore renewable energy sector.
A theatre producer who picked up a gong at Buckingham Palace said she works hard in the memory of her family who travelled from Russia and escaped the Nazis (Victoria Jones/PA)

A theatre producer who picked up a gong at Buckingham Palace said she works hard in memory of her family, who travelled from Russia and escaped the Nazis.

Sonia Friedman, whose production company is behind some of the biggest shows in the West End and on Broadway, said her family sacrificed a huge amount.

She found out about the honour around the time she learned her brother, violinist and artist Richard Friedman, was going to die.

Sonia Friedman is made a CBE (Aaron Chown/PA)

And my brother is the reason that I do what I do, because he was my inspiration when I was growing up  to be creative and to storytell and to use my imagination, she said after getting her award on Tuesday.

Ms Friedman, who has been made a CBE for services to theatre, said: This will sound cliched but it is the truth, which is I come from a Russian immigrant refugee family who came here with nothing.

And they sacrificed a huge amount in order for my generation to exist, my generation of siblings, and I do it for them. I do it for their memory.

And its a legacy that, at the end of my life, I can have won many, many Oliviers or Tonys but I will have something that will carry through for my memory, particularly as I dont have children.

Its a confirmation that I did something in the memory of the family who travelled from Russia, escaped the Nazis, to allow me to do this.

Ms Friedman, whose company produced the hit play Harry Potter And The Cursed Child, is currently working on the upcoming play Stranger Things: The First Shadow.

She was joined at the ceremony by her partner and the wife and daughter of her late brother Richard.

Also there was former Saracens player Floyd Steadman, the first black scrum-half and captain of a top-flight English rugby union club, who was made an OBE for services to the sport, education and charity.

Floyd Steadman being honoured by the Princess Royal (Aaron Chown/PA)

He said he was in shock when told about the honour and described the day as a wonderful occasion for him and his three sons, adding that his wife  who died six and a half years ago  would have loved it.

Also picking up a gong was internationally renowned bowler Sandra Bailie, who was made an MBE for services to bowls.

The 62-year-old grandmother from Co Down holds the record for the highest number of Irish indoor titles (29) and has earned 42 Irish caps and won two British titles in triples and pairs competitions.

She has also excelled in outdoor bowls, winning 44 Irish caps and seven Irish titles.

Sandra Bailie at the palace (Aaron Chown/PA)

Ms Bailie described her day at the palace as absolutely wonderful, saying the experience was quite surreal.

Bryn Hughes, whose daughter Pc Nicola Hughes was killed in 2012 alongside Pc Fiona Bone in a gun and grenade ambush while on duty in Tameside, Greater Manchester, was also honoured at the ceremony.

Mr Hughes set up the Pc Nicola Hughes Memorial Fund in 2014 to help young people under the age of 21, who have lost a close family member through a violent crime such as murder or manslaughter, with grants and services.

He was made an MBE for his work supporting young people who have suffered loss due to violent crime.

Reflecting on hearing about the honour, Mr Hughes said he thought it was a wind up before realising it was real, prompting the hair on the back of his neck to stand up.

He said he told the Princess Royal it was a day of mixed emotion.

Asked what he thinks his daughter would make of the honour, Mr Hughes said she would be proud  but joked she would also make fun of it.
Paul Whitehouse described the intrusion his ex wife faced as beyond belief (Ian West/PA)

The ex-wife of comedian Paul Whitehouse faced completely inhumane press intrusion after her cancer diagnosis, she has told the High Court in her claim against the publisher of the Mirror.

Fiona Wightman is one of several people suing Mirror Group Newspapers (MGN) who claim journalists at its titles  The Daily and Sunday Mirror and the Sunday People  were linked to methods including phone hacking, so-called blagging or gaining information by deception and use of private investigators for unlawful activities.

Ms Wightman entered a witness box at the High Court in London on Wednesday to give evidence in her claim, where she said that following a diagnosis and surgery for ovarian cancer, she began to be doorstepped by journalists and asked to talk about her illness.

Ms Wightman said the doorstepping by journalists reminded her of how terrified Id been at the beginning, adding she felt really overwhelmed and under pressure.

She also told the court a medical blagger used by MGN had called her doctors secretary, pretending to need access to her medical records, with the secretary later describing the call as fishy.

MGN has previously unreservedly apologised for this, telling the court the attempt was unsuccessful and no stories were published in MGN titles using unlawfully gained information about her illness.

Ms Wightman is one of the representative claims in the trial which has also included the Duke of Sussex (Aaron Chown/PA)

In her witness statement, Ms Wightman said she felt totally invaded and confused, and allegations that MGN journalists were listening to her voicemails were absolutely extraordinary.

She continued in her written evidence: The idea that somebody thought there is a young woman with cancer who happens to be married to someone famous, we deserve to know about this and see if we can get a story about this is really indefensible.

Ms Wightman added: It was deeply shocking to see the invoices and finally understand who it had been that had called my doctors secretary, its completely inhumane.

I was still feeling upset and anxious, having a cancer diagnosis and two little kids. I was obviously fragile. How could they do that to someone?

Her barrister David Sherborne previously said Mr Whitehouse and Ms Wightman, who have two daughters together, met at a very young age and married in 1992.

The comedian, who rose to fame in The Fast Show comedy TV programme, later formed a relationship with a work colleague who became pregnant, the court was told.

Ms Wightman and Mr Whitehouse separated in 2000 and were divorced three years later.

In his evidence in support of his ex-wifes claim, Mr Whitehouse described the intrusion Ms Wightman faced as beyond belief.

The comedian later alleged that MGN journalists were monitoring the landline of their family home in north London.

It is disturbing. MGNs journalists were digging into Fiona, myself and our family members, who had nothing to do with anything, Mr Whitehouse said.

Mr Whitehouse later said: It is called a private life for a reason  MGNs journalists overstepped the mark.

Paul Whitehouse during a Save Windermere  stop the sewage campaign in Bowness-on-Windermere (Danny Lawson/PA)

Ms Wightman is bringing her claim against the publisher over two Daily Mirror articles, including one from October 2000 which her lawyers say involved journalists unlawfully obtaining highly private details surrounding the breakdown of her marriage to Mr Whitehouse.

In her written evidence, she described the first piece, published on October 30 2000, as an extremely intrusive article about the breakdown of my relationship.

Ms Wightman added: It took years for me to regain my confidence. I was trying to get strong again and for MGN to publish something like this  so incredibly private  at a time when I was trying to recover my health really is despicable.

Discussing the second article about the couples separation, published in April 2002, Ms Wightman said: At the time, I was livid and heartbroken. But I certainly would not have said that to the press. Paul took care of us; he was funny and kind, and still is.

Andrew Green, for MGN, told Ms Wightman the publisher had admitted there were a number of occasions when journalists instructed private investigators to obtain your personal information unlawfully.

He added that MGN unreservedly apologises for this, adding: It shouldnt have happened, it did and it wont happen again.

However, Mr Green said there was simply no evidence whatsoever that Ms Wightmans voicemails were intercepted, adding of Mr Whitehouse that there was also no evidence that he was ever hacked.

MGN also say Ms Wightmans claim has been brought too late.

The court heard Ms Wightman was told about her ex-husbands relationship with another woman in 1998, with the barrister suggesting MGN journalists were not particularly quick to learn about the separation.

Mr Whitehouse having an affair and a child with another woman would have been a very much bigger story, he said.

He said the October 2000 article gets the reason for the separation entirely wrong, adding that if MGNs journalists had intercepted your voicemails at this time they would have been writing a very different article.

Ms Wightmans case is one of four representative claims being heard in London, alongside similar claims brought by the Duke of Sussex, Coronation Street actor Michael Turner, known professionally as Michael Le Vell, and Hollyoaks actress Nikki Sanderson.
New Delhi: India achieved an all-time high export of seafood both in terms of volume and value, both in US $ and Rupee terms, by shipping 17,35,286 MT of seafood worth Rs 63,969.14 crore (US$ 8.09 billion) during FY 2022-23 despite several challenges in its major export markets like USA.

During the FY 2022-23, the export improved in quantity terms by 26.73%, in rupee terms by 11.08%, and in US$ terms by 4.31%. In 2021-22, India had exported 13,69,264 MT of seafood worth Rs 57,586.48 crore (US$ 7,759.58 million).

Frozen shrimp remained the major export item in terms of both quantity and value while USA and China turned out to be the major importers of Indias seafood.

Frozen shrimp, which earned Rs 43,135.58 crore (US$ 5481.63 million), retained its position as the most significant item in the basket of seafood exports, accounting for a share of 40.98% in quantity and 67.72% of the total US$ earnings. Shrimp exports during the period increased by 1.01 % in Rupee value.

The overall export of frozen shrimps during 2022-23 was pegged at 7,11,099 MT. USA, the largest market, imported (2,75,662 MT) of frozen shrimp, followed by China (1,45,743 MT), European Union (95,377 MT), South East Asia (65,466 MT), Japan (40,975 MT), and the Middle East (31,647 MT).

The export of black tiger (BT) shrimp increased by 74.06%, 68.64% and 55.41% in quantity, Rupee value and US$ terms respectively in 2022-23. BT shrimp exported to the tune of 31,213 MT worth Rs 2,564.71 Cr (US$ 321.23 million).

Japan turned out to be the major market for Black Tiger shrimp with a share of 25.38% in terms of US$ value, followed by the European Union (25.12%) and USA (14.90%).

The Vannamei shrimp exports declined in 2022-23 compared to 2021-22 by 8.11% from US$ 5234.36 million to US$ 4809.99 million.

Frozen Fish, the second largest exported item, fetched Rs. 5,503.18 crore (US$ 687.05 million) accounting for 21.24% in quantity and 8.49% in US$ earnings.

This year the export of Frozen fish has increased by 62.65%, 58.51% and 45.73% in Quantity, Rupee and US$ value terms respectively.

Under Other items, the third largest export basket worth US$ 658.84 million, Surimi fetched Rs. 2,013.66 crore (US$ 253.89 million), frozen Octopus fetched Rs. 725.71 crore (US$ 91.74 million), Surimi Analogue products fetched Rs. 558.51 crore (US$ 70.35 million), canned products fetched Rs. 326.48 crore (US$ 41.56 million), frozen lobster fetched Rs. 215.15 crore (US$ 27 million), along with other products.

Frozen Squid, the fourth largest export item, fetched Rs 3593.75 crore (US$ 454.61 million), accounting for 4.83 per cent share in quantity and 5.62 per cent in US$ earnings.

The export of frozen fish increased by 28.07% in Rupee value and 18.58 % in US$ value.

The export of dried items pegged at 2,52,918 MT, showed a tremendous growth of 243.27% in quantity and 167.70 % in US$ terms, and earned Rs 3,080.92 crore (384.05 US$ millions).

Under this basket, dried fish and shrimp meal together contributed US$ 307.96 million and dried fish maws fetched US$ 24.88 million.

The export of frozen Cuttlefish pegged at 54,919 MT, showed a growth of 14.09 % in rupee value and 5.50 % in US$ value, and earned Rs 2353.34 crore (295.49 US$ million).

Export of chilled items, which is considered as a promising sector, also increased by 20.73 % in US$ terms and 12.63 % in Quantity terms.

The export of live items pegged at 7,824 MT, showed a growth of 24.53% in Rupee, and 15.61% in US$ value. Growth is observed in the unit values of frozen squid (7.13%), frozen cuttlefish (13.33%), chilled items (7.19%) and live items (3.90%).

As for overseas markets, USA continued to be the major importer of Indian seafood in value terms with an import worth US$ 2,632.08 million, accounting for a share of 32.52 % in terms of US$ value.

Exports to the US declined by 21.94% in US$ terms due to sluggish demand. Frozen shrimp continued to be the principal item exported to the US with a share of 92.70% in US$ terms.

Exports of black tiger shrimp to the US increased by 4.06% in quantity terms and 0.26% in Rupee terms.

China emerged as the second largest seafood export destination from India in terms of quantity and US$ both with an import of 4,05,547 MT worth US$ 1,508.43 million, accounting for 23.37% share in quantity and 18.64% in US$ terms.

Exports to China market grew by 51.90% in quantity, 32.02% in Rupee value, and 28.37% in US$ value.

Frozen shrimp, the major item of exports to China, had a share of 35.94% in quantity and 60.92% in US$ value while frozen fish had a second most share of 34.88% in quantity and 18.56% in terms of US$ value out of the total exports to China.

Frozen shrimp and frozen fish to China has shown positive growth by quantity and value both.

The European Union continued to be the third largest destination with an import of 2,07,976 MT worth US$ 1,263.71 million.

In this market, frozen shrimp is the major item of exports, registering an increase of 15.12% and 7.20% in Rupee and US$ value, respectively. Unit value in this market has shown a growth of 3.77%

South East Asia is the fourth largest market with an import of 4,31,774 MT worth US$ 1191.25 million.

Frozen shrimp is the major item of exports, with a 15.16% share by quantity and 35.17% by US$ value with a growth of 46.08%.

Frozen fish, the second major item of exports, with 36.02% share by quantity and 20.57% by US$ value with a growth of 46.84%.

Japan continued to be the fifth largest importer with a share of 6.29% in quantity and 5.99% in US$ value terms with a growth of 9.99 %.

Frozen shrimp continued to be the major item of exports to Japan with a percentage share of 71.35% and a growth of 5.26% in US$ value.

Exports to the Middle East by quantity were 77,677 MT worth US$ 330.68 million.

This market showed a growth of 32.95% in quantity, 17.33% in Rupee and 9.09% in US$ terms.
New Delhi: The G20 Agriculture Ministerial meeting will be held in Hyderabad from 15-17 June 2023.

The three-day event will be attended by more than 200 delegates from G20 member countries, invited countries and International Organizations.

The event will be attended by agriculture ministers from various countries and the director generals from international organizations.

Day one will commence with the inauguration of a grand exhibition by Minister of State for Agriculture & Farmers Welfare Kailash Choudhary.

The exhibition will showcase the achievements of India in the field of agriculture and allied sectors, the statement said.

The inauguration will be followed by Agriculture Deputies Meeting (ADM).

In the second half there will be two side events titled, Managing Agribusiness for Profit, People and Planet and Connecting the Digitally Disconnected: Harnessing the Power of Digital Technologies in Agriculture with participation from top Indian agriculture-based companies and start-ups and central and state government agencies involved in promotion of agri-business companies.

On the second day, Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar will welcome the ministers and other heads of the delegation participating in the G20 meeting.

The ministerial engagements on the day will include discussions on sustainable agriculture for food security and nutrition and high-level ministerial discussions on women-led agriculture, sustainable biodiversity, and climate solutions, in three parallel sessions.

The third day of the ministers meeting will conclude with the adoption of the outcomes of the Agriculture Working Group, G20, Indian Presidency.

The delegation will then proceed for a technical excursion to ICAR-Indian Institute of Millets Research (IIMR), Hyderabad.
New Delhi/IBNS: The first day of the two-day International seminar on Ramayana in SouthEast Asia, organised by the Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts (IGNCA) in Delhi saw scholars exchanging views on the Indian epic Ramayana and its influence on South East Asian countries.

Organised in collaboration with MDSD Foundation and Advents Foundation, the programme began with the unveiling of the exhibition 'Ram Darbar' curated by Virasat Art.

Minister and Deputy Chief of Mission, Royal Thai Embassy, Thirapath Mongkolnavin, Dr Sachchidanand Joshi, Member Secretary, IGNCA and Prof. K. Anil Kumar, HoD, JS Division, lit the lamp to mark the inauguration.



The inaugural dance was performed by Yamini Lakshmanaswamy.

In his welcome address, Dr. Sachichidanand Joshi talked about the relevance of the ancient epic in contemporary times.





Chief guest Thirapath Mongkolnavin spoke on the Thai version of Ramayana, its variation and resonances.



Prof. K. Anil Kumar too spoke about the relevance of the epic in modern times.





This was followed by the unveiling of two books - Ramayana Footprints in South East Asian Culture and Heritage by Anita Bose and Sri Ram Katha by Dr. C. Upendra Rao.





The authors also spoke about their work  about the influence of Ramayana in various SouthEast Asian countries and the influence of the epic on temples, paintings and cultural performances in Cambodia, respectively.

Scholars from Philippines, Thailand, Cambodia, Montenegro, Sri Lanka and India too spoke on various topics related to the Ramayana.



Prof. Joefe B Santarita of Philippines spoke on Variation and Variants: The Ramayana in contemporary Philippines.



Prof. Tatjana Burzanovic of Montenegro spoke about the Ramayana from the perspective of European art and tradition.





The seminar was interspersed with cultural events such as traditional dance performances based on episodes of Ramayana. Mudra Dance group from Kolkata, India and Buppha Devi Dance School, Cambodia presented the episodes in traditional dance styles.



The event was moderated and emceed by Dr. Janardan Ghosh.

According to the organisers, a large number of scholars, college and senior school students registered and participated in the seminar.
On April 30 this year an important, truly historic event took place in the life of Uzbekistan. For the first time ever in its modern history, Uzbek people adopted a new Constitution based on a nationwide referendum.

The referendum has clearly demonstrated how much peoples political awareness, legal culture and outlook of have grown in recent years. With this historic event, the people of Uzbekistan have once again demonstrated their high level of confidence and full support for the reforms which were embarked in the country on six years ago. The people's decision has therefore laid a solid foundation for the further sustainable development of our statehood and economy.

Millions of Uzbek citizens actively participated in the nationwide discussions on the draft Constitution, which took place at all stages prior to its adoption. In this regard, it should be emphasized that the real author of the updated Constitution is Uzbek people.

On April 30, Uzbek people, who have experienced much in their lives, who value peaceful life, human honor and dignity, once again demonstrated their commitment to the ideals of democracy, freedom, equality, social justice and solidarity.

The President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev, using the powers granted to the President of the country by Article 128 of the amended Constitution, have signed the Decree on early Presidential elections in the country.

The President answered the questions What is the objective necessity of making such a decision? Why am I voluntarily giving up the remaining three and a half years of my presidential term? as follows:

In accordance with the updated Basic Law, first of all, all the links of power are being reformed, the relations and the balance between them are seriously changing.

Second, the updated Constitution poses urgent, new political and socio-economic challenges to the President, parliament, government, ministers and khokims(governors of the regions).

Third, the people expect us to make very important and urgent changes and reforms in all areas.

Fourth, at a time when complicated processes are taking place in the world and in our region, the search for and implementation of a correct and efficient way of development becomes the most acute and urgent issue.

After all, our Basic Law stipulates that the people are the sole source of state power. From this point of view, it is quite natural that in the system of the renewed state power our people, I repeat, only the people will elect the leader they trust.

I believe that this is the most correct and just decision in the current circumstances.The elections will be held in full accordance with the law, openly and transparently. I am confident that the political parties and presidential candidates will put forward new ideas and initiatives that will serve the peace and prosperity of the country and increase the welfare of the people,  noted the President of Uzbekistan.

According to the Decree of the President of Uzbekistan On the appointment of advance polling of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan, it is defined that the snap election of the President of Uzbekistan will be held on July 9, 2023.

The Presidential election campaign in Uzbekistan started on May 10.

The Central Election Commission of Uzbekistan considered the issue of admitting five political parties to participate in the Presidential elections - the Peoples Democratic Party of Uzbekistan, the Liberal Democratic Party of Uzbekistan, the AdolatSocial Democratic Party of Uzbekistan, the Ecological Party of Uzbekistan and the MilliytiklanishDemocratic Party Uzbekistan.
Image Credit: wikipedia.org

Lucknow: The Lucknow bench of Allahabad High Court on Tuesday dismissed a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) seeking a high-level probe into the murder of criminal Sanjeev Maheshwari alias Jeeva inside the court premises.

The HC bench comprising Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya and Justice Jaspreet Singh asked the petitioner Moti Lal Yadav, a lawyer by profession, to approach the court if the investigation does not proceed appropriately.

The petition then urged the court to issue appropriate directions to the state government to constitute a High Level Officers' Committee headed by a sitting or retired Judge of the HC to investigate the murder.

He also requested the court to issue directions to investigate the case by an independent agency like Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

The court observed that the reported incident, which took place on June 7 within the Lucknow court is most unfortunate where an undertrial was murdered allegedly just in front of the courtroom.

"Apart from such an incident being unfortunate, it raises serious concerns amongst all stakeholders including the members of the judicial fraternity which necessarily comprises the members of Bar as well," it said.

It observed, "It is a matter of grave concern that an undertrial, who was in the custody of the police, when brought to attend the trial did not find himself safe and was murdered."

The assailant entered the court premises dressed as a lawyer.

He was immediately apprehended by the vigilant lawyers after the incident, however, his entry into the court premises in robes compounds the concern to be shared by all stakeholders including the Home Department of the state and District and Police administration as also the Bar association concerned and the Bar Council of Uttar Pradesh and the law fraternity in general, it said.

The court said, "Having observed as above, what we find in this case qua the prayers made in this writ petition is that the incident had occurred only six days ago and a First Information Report (FIR) in relation to the incident was lodged on the same day and for the purpose of investigation of the FIR Special Investigation Team (SIT) has been constituted which comprises of Higher Level Police Officers."

"We have been apprised by the learned Advocate General representing the state-respondents that the said SIT has vigorously and vigilantly been conducting the investigation into the FIR and it has also been provided all the requisite paraphernalia needed for appropriate investigation of the crime," it said.

The court observed, "Having regard to the fact that only six days have elapsed since lodging of the FIR and constitution of the SIT, we have no reason, at this juncture, to believe that investigation of the reported crime will not proceed appropriately and in the right direction. In such a short span of time, it will not be possible for the court to draw any inference in respect of the functioning of the SIT and the investigation being conducted by it."

It said, "Besides, having regard to the higher rank of the members of the SIT which they occupy, we, at this juncture, also do not have any reason to believe that the investigation shall not proceed in the right perspective."

The court said, "We are, thus, of the opinion that the prayers made in this writ petition cannot be granted at this juncture. Accordingly, we dispose of the writ petition with the liberty to the petitioner to approach the court at any future point of time in case the investigation of the reported crime does not proceed appropriately."

"We, however, would like to record our trust and hope that the investigation by the SIT shall be conducted in the appropriate direction, the bench added.

Sanjeev Maheshwari, also known as Jeeva, a notorious criminal from western Uttar Pradesh, was shot down while being taken for a hearing in a police custody case inside the district court premises in the Kaisarbagh area of the state capital on June 7. Five people, including three police personnel, were also injured in the incident.

Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has formed a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to investigate the brazen murder.

The SIT, comprising Additional Director General of Police (Technical) Mohit Agarwal, Joint Police Commissioner (Law and Order) Nilabja Choudhary, and IG Ayodhya Praveen Kumar, has been given a week ago to complete the investigation.

(With UNI inputs)
Image Credit: UNI

Shimla: BJP on Tuesday kicked off its Lok Sabha poll campaign in Himachal Pradesh with party's National President J P Nadda unleashing a scathing attack on the Opposition, especially West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, who he accused of diverting the OBC benfits to the Muslim community.

Addressing press conferences here, Nadda alleged that Mamata Banerjees actions were always biased and communal and otivated by vote bank politics.

He alleged that the Constitutional rights of reservation given to the OBCs were being "openly violated" in the Opposition-ruled states like West Bengal, Bihar, Rajasthan and Punjab.

He trained his guns on the Mamata Banerjee government for openly offering the OBC quota in West Bengal to Muslims and depriving the non-Muslim backward class people of their legitimate rights.

Nadda said this violated the reservation rights given to the OBCs by the Constitution.

He alleged that the benefit of 91.5 pc reservation in West Bengal was extended to Muslim OBC, while the non-Muslims were being deprived of their rights.

Nadda said that out of 179 castes recorded as OBCs as many as 118 castes belonged to the Muslim community in West Bengal.

Nadda also accused Mamata Banerjees party TMC of extending the OBC status to illegal Bangladeshi and Rohingya immigrants with caste certificates.

He termed the matter a "serious conspiracy" to give direct benefits to the "infiltrators" which revealed how the TMC government was "extending state largesse to the anti-national forces".

Referring to the 2011 census figures, Nadda said there were 108 OBC castes in Bengal, out of which 53 belonged to the Muslim community and 55 to the Hindu.

A total of 71 new castes were added to this list out of which 65 were Muslim and only six were Hindu castes, he said.

The population of Bengal is 70.5 percent Hindu and 27 per Muslim, but the latter is being given the benefit of 91.5 percent under OBC reservation, Nadda alleged.

He stated that a similar situation existed in Rajasthan, Punjab and Bihar.

The OBCs in JD(U)-RJD ruled Bihar are not even given caste certificates and their rights are being "strangled".

In Punjab, OBC reservation is 25 percent but only 12 percent people in the category are getting the benefits.

Thirteen percent are still deprived of their rights and are still waiting to get the benefits.

Referring to Congress-ruled Rajasthan, Nadda said seven districts in the state had been declared as tribal and the people of these districts are being deprived of the benefits of OBC reservations.

He said the OBC Commission should properly investigate all these facts so that other backward class people can get justice.

(With UNI inputs)
Pixabay

Chennai: After a 17-hour long raid, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) officials have arrested Tamil Nadu Electricity, Excise and Prohibition Minister V.Senthilbalaji in a money-laundering case.

The Minister was arrested after the raids, when he was taken for questioning to the ED office in the city, when he complained of chest pain and was admitted to the ICU at the Omandurar Government Multi-speciality hospital for treatment.

Even as several Ministers and ruling DMK MLAs and party cadres started visiting the hospital to enquire about his health condition, sources told UNI Senthilbalaji was arrested.

Reports said, after treatment, he is likely to be produced before the Principal Sessions Court later today for remand.

Reports also suggest that he might be taken to New Delhi for a detailed interrogation.

A large posse of police personnel and armed Central forces were deployed at the hospital.

(With UNI inputs)
Image: PIB

Washington: A top official said the US is looking forward to Indian PM Narendra Modi's upcoming visit to the country.

US National Security Council (NSC) Coordinator for Strategic Communications John Kirby said India and the US share 'terrific cooperation' inside the Quad.

"The United States has a significant defense partnership with India and terrific cooperation inside the Quad, across the Indo-Pacific with India. Theres a lot to talk about. Were looking forward to the visit," Kirby said in a press briefing.

Meanwhile, US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan on Tuesday called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

NSA Sullivan briefed Prime Minister on the progress in various sectors of bilateral cooperation. He conveyed that the US President Biden looked forward to welcoming Prime Minister on the State Visit, read a statement issued by the Ministry of External Affairs.

The PM expressed satisfaction at the growing and deepening Comprehensive Global Strategic Partnership between India and the US.

The Prime Minister said that he looked forward to a productive visit and an engaging conversation with President Biden on bilateral, regional and global issues of mutual interest.
Image: Pixabay

A 27-year-old Hyderabadi woman, who was pursuing higher education in London, has been murdered in Neeld Crescent, Wembley, media reports said.

She was identified as Kontham Tejaswini Reddy.

According to reports, she was a student at the University of Nottingham.

She had gone to the UK to pursue a Masters last March, reports The Indian Express.

The incident took place at Reddys residence at around 10 am British Summer Time (BST) on Tuesday. Both Reddy and her friend Akhila, 28, suffered stab injuries. While Reddy died on the spot, her friend is out of danger, the police were quoted as saying by the newspaper.

Londons Metropolitan Police said in a statement that three people have been arrested in connection with the incident so far.

#ARREST | We previously published an appeal to locate a 23-year-old man following the murder of a woman in #Wembley earlier today.



He was arrested in #Harrow at around 18:00hrs today and has been taken into custody.



Thank you for the RTs.  Brent MPS | North West BCU (@MPSBrent) June 13, 2023

"A 23-year-old man, who officers previously named publicly, was located in Harrow at around 18:00hrs on Tuesday, 13 June," read the statement.

"He was arrested on suspicion of murder and taken into custody at a north London police station," the statement further said.

Police are still conducting an investigation into the matter.

"Two people, a 24-year-old man and a 23-year-old woman, were arrested at the scene on suspicion of murder. The man remains in custody. The woman has been released without further action," read the statement.

Detective Chief Inspector Linda Bradley, from the Met's Specialist Crime Command, said: "This has been a fast-moving investigation and I would like to thank the public for sharing our appeal for information about this man. He is now in custody."
Image: PIB

New Delhi: Bangladesh PM Sheikh Hasina recently sent seasonal mangoes to Indian PM Narendra Modi and President Droupadi Murmu.

Sheikh Hasina also gifted mangoes to Sonia Gandhi, Former President of Indian National Congress and other Indian dignitaries, the Bangladesh High Commission in India was quoted as saying by Dhaka Tribune.

This year, the gift baskets were carrying popular varieties of mango like Himsagar and Langra originating mainly from the Rajshahi region, a place popularly known for producing high quality delicious mangoes, the newspaper reported.

The Bangladesh High Commission in New Delhi delivered the gifts to the offices of the Indian leaders and dignitaries.
Image credit: Videograb

Kolkata/IBNS: A fire broke out at the security check-in area of the Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose Airport in Kolkata on Wednesday night.

The airport's authority immediately evacuated people as visuals showed a section of the check-in area in flames.

Firefighting operations to douse the flames were currently underway, as seen in the visuals from the airport.

Visuals from the airport showed red hue flames and plumes of smoke erupting from the portal.

At least three fire engines rushed to the spot and the situation is under control, officials said.


Pixabay

Microsoft will pay $20 million to settle Federal Trade Commission (FTC) charges that it violated the Childrens Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) by collecting personal information from children who signed up for its Xbox gaming system without notifying their parents or obtaining their parents consent, and by illegally retaining childrens personal information.

Our proposed order makes it easier for parents to protect their childrens privacy on Xbox, and limits what information Microsoft can collect and retain about kids, said Samuel Levine, Director of the FTCs Bureau of Consumer Protection. This action should also make it abundantly clear that kids avatars, biometric data, and health information are not exempt from COPPA.

As part of a proposed order filed by the Department of Justice on behalf of the FTC, Microsoft will be required to take several steps to bolster privacy protections for child users of its Xbox system.

For example, the order will extend COPPA protections to third-party gaming publishers with whom Microsoft shares childrens data. In addition, the order makes clear that avatars generated from a childs image, and biometric and health information, are covered by the COPPA Rule when collected with other personal data. The order must be approved by a federal court before it can go into effect, FTC said in a statement.

The COPPA Rule requires online services and websites directed to children under 13 to notify parents about the personal information they collect and to obtain verifiable parental consent before collecting and using any personal information collected from children. According to a complaint also filed by DOJ, Microsoft violated the COPPA Rules notice, consent and data retention requirements.

Microsofts Xbox gaming products allow users to play and chat with other players through its Xbox Live service. To access and play games on an Xbox console or use any of the other Xbox Live features, users must create an account, which requires users to provide personal information including their first and last name, email address and their date of birth.

Even when a user indicated that they were under 13, they were also asked, until late 2021, to provide additional personal information including a phone number and to agree to Microsofts service agreement and advertising policy, which until 2019 included a pre-checked box allowing Microsoft to send promotional messages and to share user data with advertisers, according to the complaint.

It wasnt until after users provided this personal information that Microsoft required anyone who indicated they were under 13 to involve their parent.

The childs parent then had to complete the account creation process before the child could get their own account. According to the complaint, from 2015-2020 Microsoft retained the datasometimes for yearsthat it collected from children during the account creation process, even when a parent failed to complete the process. COPPA prohibits retaining personal information about children for longer than is reasonably necessary to fulfill the purpose for which it was collected.

After a child makes an account, they can create a profile that will include their gamertag, which is the primary identifier visible to the user and other Xbox Live users, and can also upload a picture or include an avatar, which is a figure or image that represents the user. According to the complaint, Microsoft combined this information with a unique persistent identifier it creates for each account holder, even children, and could share this information with third-party game and app developers. Microsoft allowedby defaultall users, including children to play third-party games and apps while using Xbox Live, requiring parents to take additional steps to opt out if they dont want their children to access them.

According to the complaint, Microsoft failed to fully comply with COPPAs notice provisions. For example, Microsoft failed to disclose to parents all the information it collected, such as a childs profile picture.

In addition to the monetary penalty, Microsoft will be required under the proposed order to:

Inform parents who have not created a separate account for their child that doing so will provide additional privacy protections for their child by default;

Obtain parental consent for accounts created before May 2021 if the account holder is still a child;

Establish and maintain systems to delete, within two weeks from the collection date, all personal information that it collects from children for the purposes of obtaining parental consent if it has not obtained parental consent and to delete all other personal data collected from children after it is no longer necessary to fulfill the purpose for which it was collected; and

Notify video game publishers when it discloses personal information from children that the user is a child, which will require the publishers to apply COPPAs protections to that child.

The Commission voted 3-0 to refer the complaint and proposed federal order to the Department of Justice. The DOJ filed the complaint and stipulated order in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington state.
Image Credit: www.westmercia.police.uk

A mother and her partner are suspected to have killed a nine-year-old son after months of abuse, media reports said.

During a six-week trial at Coventry Crown Court the jury heard how Alfie, who was repeatedly beaten and dunked in cold baths, had multiple injuries when he was found.

Today, Dirk Howell, 41, of Princip Street, was found guilty of murder, Carla Scott 35, also of Vashon Drive was found guilty of manslaughter. Scott was also found guilty of four counts of child cruelty.

Howell had previously pleaded guilty to child cruelty.

After the verdict, the Senior Investigating Officer who led the case, Detective Chief Inspector Leighton Harding, said: Today the case has concluded at court with Dirk Howell being found guilty of Alfies murder and Carla Scott found guilty of manslaughter.

I am pleased that justice has been done today for Alfie and our thoughts remain with his family, who have shown incredible strength and dignity throughout the investigation and trial.

"Alfie suffered the most horrifying physical and emotional abuse at the hands of Scott and Howell. It is unimaginable to consider the fear and distress Alfie must have felt during the events that led to his collapse and death in his home on the morning of 18th February 2021. The physical violence he suffered at the hands of Scott and Howell, which involved being forced into a cold bath and his head held under water, caused his death.

The court heard evidence of a culture of excessive punishment of Alfie by Scott and Howell. Punishment amounted to beating Alfie with a belt and a slider until he was black and blue with bruising. He was often woken in the early hours of the morning and made to stand outside where Scott and Howell threw jugs of cold water over him.

He was often grounded for excessive periods, made to stand for hours inside and outside his home, food removed from him, banished to his room, repeatedly forced into a bath of cold water and his head held under.

The conduct of Scott and Howell was nothing less than serious physical and emotional abuse, inflicting the most cruel and inhumane treatment of Alfie.

Alfie should have expected unconditional love and protection of Scott, yet she deliberately neglected his needs, choosing to prioritise her own needs and relationship with Howell, knowing the cruel treatment he was inflicting upon Alfie.

Scott and Howell did nothing to protect Alfie and inflicted or permitted the torrent of physical and emotional abuse to continue time and time again.

Both continued to lie to social services and police to protect themselves from their abuse being discovered, and even confronted and threatened neighbours and members of the public who reported concerns over their treatment of Alfie. At no stage has either of them shown any remorse or acceptance of responsibility for their actions.

Todays verdict will never undo the dreadful abuse Alfie suffered but it will mean those responsible for inflicting such terror and pain will face the consequences of their sickening actions.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank the public for their support and all the witnesses who gave evidence in the trial, which was crucial to securing the convictions.

I would like also to thank the investigation team, crown prosecution service and prosecution counsel who have worked tirelessly on this case to get justice for Alfie.

Following the verdict, Alfies grandad, Paul Scott, paid tribute to a precious grandson who was a treasure to be around.
Pixabay

Tokyo: Japanese police arrested a Self-Defense Force member Wednesday after he allegedly fired a rifle and injured at least three people at a Ground Self-Defense Force shooting range in Gifu City in central Japan, local media reported.

The three injured people are a man in his 50s and two men in their 20s, with two of them in critical condition, Japan's public broadcaster NHK reported, citing investigators.

There were no reports of civilian casualties, it added.

(With UNI inputs)
Wikipedia Commons

Tokyo: One man died and two others sustained light injuries following an explosion at a chemical plant in Japan's Niigata Prefecture on Wednesday, local media reported.

An emergency call made Wednesday morning said there was a small explosion at chemical maker Denka Co.'s plant in Itoigawa city, Kyodo News reported, citing local police and firefighters.

A 56-year-old worker Senji Watanabe and two other co-workers in their 30s and 40s, respectively, were cutting pipes at the plant when the explosion occurred, said the report, adding that Watanabe was showing no vital signs when he was taken to the hospital.

(With UNI inputs)
The Central Election Commission (CEC) of Uzbekistan has registered four presidential candidates nominated by different political parties of the country for the July 9 snap presidential election which incumbent President Shavkat Mirziyouev is expected to win overwhelmingly.

The Adolat Social Democratic Party of Uzbekistan, the Movement of Entrepreneurs and Businessmen - Liberal Democratic Party of Uzbekistan, the People's Democratic Party of Uzbekistan and the Ecological Party of Uzbekistan submitted to the Central Election Commission application for registration of the presidential candidates nominated by them and submitted the signature lists in support of the candidates, according to an official release.

A snap election to choose the President of Uzbekistan will be held on July 9, 2023.

The members of the expert groups concluded that the signature lists of four political parties had been collected in sufficient numbers to register their nominated candidates for the post of President of Uzbekistan and that they also complied with the legal provisions.

Taking into account the conclusions presented by the expert groups and on the basis that the documents submitted by the political parties fully complied with the legal requirements and were submitted in the prescribed manner and within the prescribed deadlines, the working group of the Central Election Commission presented its conclusion on the registration of the candidates nominated by the political parties for the post of President of the Republic of Uzbekistan.

Taking into account the conclusions presented by the expert groups and on the basis that the documents submitted by the political parties fully complied with the legal requirements and were submitted in the prescribed manner and within the prescribed deadlines, the working group of the Central Election Commission presented its conclusion on the registration of the candidates nominated by the political parties for the post of President of the Republic of Uzbekistan.

CEC adopted a Resolution on the registration of Ulugbek Inoyatov of the People's Democratic Party of Uzbekistan, Shavkat Mirziyoyev of the Movement of Entrepreneurs and Businessmen - Liberal Democratic Party of Uzbekistan, Robakhon Makhmudova of the Social Democratic Party of Uzbekistan and Abdushukur Khamzaev of the Ecological Party of Uzbekistan as candidates for the post of the President of Uzbekistan.

In view of the fact that this Resolution marks the beginning of the Presidential candidates' election campaign on June 7, it approved the amount and time of free airtime on the national and regional television and radio channels of the National Television and Radio Company of Uzbekistan, as well as free print space in the newspapers YangiO'zbekiston, Pravda Vostoka, Xalqso'zi, Narodnoeslovo and 24 local newspapers.

During the pre-election campaign, the media create conditions for presidential candidates to appear in free airtime and free print space.

News broadcasts and other informational materials should adhere to the principle of equal treatment when covering presidential candidates' campaign events, the government said.
Image: Twitter/GCCanada

Whitehorse/IBNS: Yukon commemorated the 125th anniversary on June 13 since becoming a territory of Canada.

Following a gold rush boom propelling the remote northern region into the international spotlight.

Yukon entered confederation on June 13,1898 and was established Canadas second northern territory by Yukon Territory Act.

Steeped in history the territory is an integral part of the tapestry of Canadian heritage.

According to Statistics Canada, Yukon led the country in population growth by 12.1 percent from 2016 to 2021, as its population grew from 35,874 to 40,232.

Approximately 22.2 percent of Yukons population, according to the 2021 Census are Indigenous Peoples.

There are 14 Yukon First Nations and eight language groups across the territory.

During the anniversary commemorations, the Government of Yukon, in collaboration with the Yukon Historical and Museums Association (YHMA), launched the $400,000 'Yukon 125 Fund.'

The funding is set aside for each First Nation and municipal government and is aimed at community projects promoting the territory's heritage, culture or history.

Janna Swales, YHMAs board president, reportedly said the fund is about recognizing the different experiences that led to the territory we know today while acknowledging the darker parts of our past.

We are all working with our past to build a really positive feature, Swales told CTVNews.ca on Tuesday.

Swales said half of the funding is still available. The deadline to apply is June 30.

The Yukon Legislative Assembly held a special sitting Tuesday afternoon, in Dawson City, Yukon's first established capital and historic place where gold was discovered in the late 19th century.

(Reporting by Asha Bajaj)
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News18 India Open Mic Chhattisgarh conclave concludes on a high note News18 India successfully concluded the second edition of News18 India Open Mic in Chhattisgarh. The conclave provided a platform to celebrate the achievements of Chhattisgarh and its people, while fostering engaging conversations and discussions. Read More...

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Crafted by the Ketchikan Indian Community (KIC), an evocative installation emerged at Ward Lake in Southeast Alaska's Revillagigedo Island. Consisting of 60 red dresses elegantly suspended from trees, this powerful exhibit symbolized the missing or murdered Indigenous individuals from Ketchikan, Saxman, Prince of Wales Island, and Metlakatla.

Commencing on May 15, the installation stood as a tribute during MMIP (Missing and Murdered Indigenous People) Awareness Month, operating under a permit granted by the U.S. Forestry Service. However, as the installation's scheduled conclusion approached on May 31, distressing reports emerged-48 of the dresses had vanished without a trace. Disturbingly, social media platforms began showcasing photographs in recent days, revealing some of the dresses crumpled along the lakeside trail, partially buried, or callously abandoned near drain pipes.

"It's just disrespectful," Michael Toole, Ketchikan Indian Community's victim services program coordinator, told KRBD. "It's a terrible way to discount the reality of the lives of some of these people who were missing relatives who haven't received justice."

The tribal council released a declaration denouncing "a hurtful and disrespectful act that undermines the endeavors to foster understanding and increase awareness of the MMIP crisis."

Throughout May, similar installations are showcased across Canada and the United States, intending to shed light on the excessive number of Indigenous individuals who become victims of violent crimes or disappear.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, homicide ranks as the third most common cause of death among Native women, and the murder rate for those living on reservations is a staggering ten times higher than the national average. In 2021, Alaska registered 229 cases of missing and murdered Indigenous people - 149 missing and 80 murdered.

Gloria Burns, Vice President of KIC and Chair of the Social Services Committee, conveyed to local radio station KRBD that the tribe intentionally displayed the dresses as a symbol of remembrance and purpose, with the goal of creating a "safe space."

"And so, in the midst of trying to establish a safe space, when it's deliberately made to feel unsafe, it very much feels like a violation," Burns told KRBD. "I believe the challenging part is that the issue of missing and murdered indigenous people has been ongoing since colonization, but it's a topic we have largely left unaddressed. We have really not communicated these issues to the wider community."
Was he suffering from depression? Was Rhea Chakraborty involved in his death? Was Sushant Singh Rajput addicted to drugs? What led to his death? Was it a murder?

It has been three years since the rising star of Bollywood passed away and CBI is yet to file a chargesheet in the case.

Fans await closure in Sushant Singh Rajput case

AFP

It has been three years since big celebrities like Deepika Padukone, Shraddha Kapoor and Sara Ali Khan were questioned in the case; three years since his post-mortem report pointed to suicide and All India Institute Of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) ruled out any foul play in his death.

....

14 June - Black Day

3years Of Injustice To Sushant Singh Rajput pic.twitter.com/cbJsC1YspH  Sush 4 ever  Justice4SSR  (@MEENU82433774) June 14, 2023

While the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) registered a case against his girlfriend Rhea Chakraborty and her brother Showik Chakraborty after thorough interrogation and collection of evidence that included his chat history, SSR's flatmate Siddharth Pithani also spent a year in jail.

3 years Of Injustice To Sushant Singh Rajput, today marks the black day in Indian judicial system too because it denied an innocent from his basic fundamental right of justice. pic.twitter.com/Sl9puLuWB9  Gems of Shorts (@Warlock_Shabby) June 14, 2023

After the Mumbai Police didn't find any foul play in the case, Bihar Police registered a murder FIR in the case against Rhea following the complaints of his family member and father.

His family still believes it cannot be a case of suicide.

1095 days of Injustice to SSR

Maha Anyaay With SSR



Repeat After Me

Maha Anyaay With SSR means Maha Anyaay with every common man of India 

 3years Of Injustice To Sushant Death

 No update till date

 No chargesheet filed by CBI.



Justice Delayed Is Justice Denied https://t.co/xdyGVpMw2D  A (@AuroraMaximae) June 14, 2023

"I entered the room after a few days. I looked up at the ceiling and realised he couldnt have done it. I saw the place where they say he was found hanging. But, the distance between the bed and the fan was not even Sushant's height. There was no distance. His height was changed that very morning from 6.18 feet to 5.10 feet or less than that," Sushant's sister Priyanka Singh said.



I took the Oath for @itsSSR justice 3 years back

that I won't leave the fight

until justice is served to him

Today I'm rewinding &renewing it

that I will support SSR & his family

till the end to get justice for Sushant@PMOIndia @HMOIndia

Support Sushant Singh Rajput pic.twitter.com/hsBpo7Al1g  ADV PARI SHAW (@pari_sweets) June 14, 2023

Rhea Chakraborty spent about 28 days in jail before she was released on bail.

Shri @narendramodi Ji

Why Criminals are roaming free

Why they're getting away with

Gruesome BrutalMurder of SSR

Why Agencies are on Silent mode

Why despite all d evidences,no Chargesheet by CBI@PMOIndia @CBIHeadquarters



PM Sushant Justice Matters 

   pic.twitter.com/LBPc5cGwDo  Justice 4 Sushant  (@AnjaliS45269229) June 6, 2023

Three years later, fans are still demanding justice for Sushant Singh Rajput. "No update till date.  No chargesheet filed by CBI. Justice Delayed Is Justice Denied," they say.



In Dec 2020, a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) was filed in the Supreme Court seeking directions for the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to submit its status report in the Sushant Singh Rajput death case.

AFP

In February next year, the Supreme Court dismissed the plea saying "We are not going to entertain this. You go to the High Court."

For more news and updates from the world of celebrities from Bollywood and Hollywood, keep reading Indiatimes Entertainment.


With vertical lines tattooed across their faces and nostrils blocked with huge black nose plugs, women of the Apatani tribe are anything but common.

Apatani women/ Twitter

A peculiar sense of 'beauty'?

The Apatani tribe is settled in the Ziro Valley of Arunachal Pradesh. Women of the tribe are noticeably distinct - the reason being their tippei and yaping hullo.

Apatani women have a tattoo across their face - called tippei, made out of a mix of pigs fat and soot from a fireplace. It is drawn on the face using a thorny plant. The thorn is placed on the skin and then hit with a small hammer until the face is inked.

Inked and pierced/ Twitter

The typical tattoo pattern consists of a black line that crosses a woman's face from the centre of the forehead down to the tip of her nose, and five other lines connect the lower lip to the chin.

The other distinctive feature is their yaping hullo, which are wooden plugs inserted by Apatani women in their nostrils to enlarge them. The wooden plugs are sourced from the forest and sterilised in the fire before being used.

Technically, these plugs were not placed in the nostrils but pierced on each side of the nose. But these features, which have now become identified with the tribe, had not started off as typical beauty standards.

A darker origin

In the Ziro valley, the Apatani tribe had coexisted with a number of other tribes. Among all, the Apatani women were known as the greatest beauties. So, men from other tribes - 'tribal raiders' - started abducting and forcefully marrying them.

The face tattoos and nose plugs were thus introduced to prevent abductions and were not beauty standards in themselves, but instead were meant to cover up the beauty and make women unattractive to the tribal raiders.

Her face was marked, and her nose was pierced the day the Apatani woman reached puberty and had her first period.

The trend today - Discrimination and stigma

In the early 1970s, the Indian Government banned nose plugs. It was said that they made the Apatani women easily recognizable and, therefore, prone to discrimination.

A study by IIT Guwahati researchers pointed out that stigma accompanied by acculturation and modernisation have played a role in this tradition being phased out.

Apatani women - Old & New/ dailymail.co.uk

As a result, today, most of the women left with striking facial features are now in their later years.

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Former Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey recently spoke about the Indian government, alleging that during the farmers' protests against the now-scrapped laws, the government wanted Twitter to crack down on journalists and even threatened to shut down Twitter.

This isn't the first time Jack Dorsey has faced heat in India. In the past, many actions taken by Jack Dorsey have put him at odds with the government in India and sometimes the majority in India. Here's a list!

Reuters

Drawing parallels with Turkey, Jack Dorsey said that the Indian government had asked Twitter to suspend accounts of journalists critical of the government during the contentious farmers' protests that shook the country in 2020-21. At the same time, Dorsey alleged that the government threatened to shut down Twitter and raid the homes of its employees.

Reuters

Also read: Union Minister Slams Jack Dorsey's Claims Of Government Control Over Twitter

Suspension of accounts during farmers' protests

During the farmers' protests in India, Twitter actively suspended several accounts that were sharing content about the agitation. In response, Indian government perceived this as interference in the country's "internal affairs." This led to questions about how far social media companies should be allowed to go when it comes to shaping public opinion. In February 2021, the central government said that "freedom of expression is not absolute and it is subject to reasonable restrictions."

'Smash Brahminical Patriarchy'

Uncredited

During Jack Dorsey's visit to India in 2018, Jack Dorsey posed with a placard that said "Smash Brahminical Patriarchy." This drew a sharp reaction from many people in India. Many accused him of being "anti-Brahmin." At that moment, Twitter put out a statement saying, "The sentiments expressed on the poster do not reflect the views of Twitter as a company or Jack as the CEO, and we regret that this picture has detracted from an otherwise insightful trip to India."

On many occasions, the government of India has voiced strong opposition to how Twitter handles government requests. Indian authorities have questioned Twitter's compliance with local laws and its responsiveness to removal of objectionable content in India. A point of contention was when Twitter appeared to not comply with India's new IT rules that demanded more transparency from social media giants.

Pexels

Also read: After Adani, Hindenburg Research Accuses Jack Dorsey's Firm Block Of Fraud In Its New Report



Bias

Many groups in India claimed that, under Jack Dorsey, Twitter used to disproportionately target certain ideologies. In addition, many felt that the company wasn't doing enough to fight hate speech and misinformation in India. How true this is under Elon Musk is yet to be ascertained. Musk wanted Twitter to become a champion of free speech, but that dream seems to have died.

Pexels

What do you think about Twitter's turbulent history in India? Let us know in the comments below. For more in the world of technology and science, keep reading Indiatimes.com.
The bustling Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport in Mumbai became the stage for an extraordinary eventan unexpected mini-Satsang led by none other than the infamous and controversial god woman, Radhe Maa.



Screenshot

On June 12, Air India flight AI 981 from Mumbai to Doha, Qatar, was delayed by 3 hours because of Cyclone Biparjoy.

The flight was supposed to depart at 7:30 p.m. but finally left at 10:30 p.m.

Twitter

During the delay, the passengers became upset and started shouting slogans.

This caused a disturbance, and the airport had to bring in security. However, before security arrived, Radhe Maa, a well-known spiritual figure and former Bigg Boss contestant, unexpectedly arrived in a shuttle cart at the airport.

Saw Radhe Maa at the Mumbai Airport. Blessed pic.twitter.com/YpFWxZg8gD  Shaswat Kashyap (@shaswat_kashyap) June 13, 2023

Radhe Maa, dressed in her typical red clothes and gold jewelry, urged the passengers to focus on God's name instead of blaming Air India for the delay.

Surprisingly, this controversial self-proclaimed guru acted as a substitute for security.

New:



-Passengers of @AirIndia flight AI 981 from Mumbai to Doha stuck at airport since 7:30 last evening. Raise slogans, security called in



-In between "pure & pious" fame @shriradhemaa comes & says bhagwan ka naam lo, dont blame AI



Flight still to take-off @csmia_official  pic.twitter.com/HI4WpTK5Ag  Tarun Shukla (@shukla_tarun) June 13, 2023

Radhe Maa tried to preach to frustrated passengers, but not everyone was happy.

One of her followers praised her loudly, while another passenger fought with her until she shouted, "Shut your mouth!"

Air India has been experiencing additional problems lately.

theprint

Due to an engine failure, one of their flights from Delhi to San Francisco had to change course and land in Magadan, Russia.

Furthermore, the ongoing cyclone is causing delays for several flights departing from western India.



In summary, Air India has been facing multiple challenges and disruptions recently. These incidents emphasize the unpredictable nature of air travel and the need for safety and efficiency in the aviation industry. Airlines must prioritize passenger satisfaction and minimize disruptions despite these difficulties to ensure a pleasant travel experience.

For more trending stories, follow us on Telegram.


No fewer than 100 persons, including a father and his four children, are feared dead after a boat mishap in Patigi local government area of Kwara State.

The unfortunate incident occurred on Monday, June 12, 2023, in Egbu village when the boat carrying over 100 persons was suddenly overpowered by river waves and smashed against a tree.

It was gathered that about 50 bodies have been recovered from the scene of the incident, thus turning the local government area of the state into mourning.

READ ALSO: Five Traders Die In Ondo Boat Mishap

The victims were said to be returning from a marriage ceremony at a neighbouring Egboti village in Niger State.

The deceased persons had reportedly taken off from Kpada village in Kwara State to be part of the marriage ceremony at the Egboti village in Niger State.

69 people were said to be from Egbu village, 36 from Gakpan village and four from Kpada village in the Patigi local government.

Spokesperson for the police in the state, Okasanmi Ajayi, who confirmed the incident on Tuesday, stated that the command had dispatched the Divisional Police Officer (DPO) in the Patigi local government area of the state to the area for more information on the incident.

There was a scanty report of a boat that capsized while carrying about a 100 people in a village in Patigi local government area of the state. The command will give more details on the incident as soon as detailed information arrives from the area, the PPRO added.
The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon Tajudeen Abbas has said that the House, which he would be presiding over, would stand to challenge the executive if it finds things are going against the interests of the public.

The speaker led this out to State House correspondents in Abuja after meeting with President Bola Tinubu in his office.

Abbas noted that members of the house expressed their votes across party lines, contrary to what he described as conversations and media propaganda.

He further promised that the 10th assembly would harmonise with the executive to improve efficiency or challenge policies where necessary towards the development of the country.

Recall that the member representing Zaria Federal Constituency in Kaduna State, who was the anointed candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), defeated Idris Wase and Aminu Jaji in a voice vote.

Held at the National Assembly Complex in Abuja, the election saw Abbas earn 352 votes of 359 votes cast in total, while Jaji and Wase polled three votes each.

READ MORE: Speakership: Tajudeen Abbas Defeats Wase, Jaji, Emerges Speaker, House Of Reps

While reacting to his emergence as Speaker, he said, When we started this campaign, it was always good. But the impact of social media propaganda of some of the contestants distorted the entire picture of what was on the ground.

But to God be the glory, today, people have seen our level of popularity and acceptance by our members. And it has put to shame those who always thought that we were imposed by the party and that we dont have the numbers. Today, people have seen a record that has never been established in the past. 353 out of 359 members elected us. it is unprecedented, it has never ever happened in the history of Parliament.

While commenting on the possibility of being a rubber stamp house, she said, If you talk about rubber stamp? Look at the acceptance rate of those who have elected those across party lines, almost the entire PDP, SDP, ADC and all other minority parties voted for us. So if they feel that we are going to be rubber stamps, do you think they will elect us? no.
A group of All Progressives Congress, identified as National Progressive Hub has hailed the victory of former minister of Niger Delta, Senator Godswill Akpabio, as Senate President, saying his victory has put the alleged plot to Islamise Nigeria to rest.

The group believed the rumours of Islamising the country were sponsored by the opposition to mare the efforts of the ruling APC, but Akpabios emergence as Senate President of the 10th National Assembly has quenched that Islamisation agenda talks.

It was gathered that the group in a statement jointly signed on Wednesday by the Coordinator of National Progressive Hub, Bukie Okangbe and National Youth Leader, Tukura Kwayi, pointed out that after all is said and done, Nigerians should be assured of great governance ahead.

There were more agitations last week concerning the Islamisation agenda following a statement uttered by the former governor of Kaduna State, Nasir El-Rufai about placing more Muslims in power than Christians.

In the video, the former Kaduna State governor said the dominance of Islam in the governance of Kaduna State had come to stay as he was happy that the trend had been successfully replicated at the national level with the election of President Bola Tinubu, and Kashim Shettima, who are both Muslims.

READ MORE: Tinubu Sneaked Out To Beg Some People For Akpabio To Emerge Senate President  Ndume

However, the APC group in its statement today said We congratulate our uncommon senator, Senator Godswill Akpabio on his emergence as the Senate President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. Your emergence as the Senate President of the 10th Assembly shows a confirmation of your national spread, your legislative capacity and the uncommon greatness you have brought to politics which obviously cut across board.

It has further put to rest the islamisation agenda insinuation in some quarters by the opposition and enemies of the APC to paint the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Vice President Senator Kashim Shettima in bad image. We believe that such insinuation in the public domain has been laid to rest forever now. Your victory has rekindled the hopes of millions of Nigerians once more that the Renewed Hope agenda of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has come to stay.

Without any iota of skepticism, we are sure that Nigeria is now set to witness a highly robust good governance and excellent leadership, devoid of unnecessary rancour and distraction judging from the capacities and competences of our president, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and yourself as the Senate President of the 10th Assembly.
The presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, who alleged that the 2023 general election was rigged, on Tuesday, applied to summon the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, Prof. Mahmoud Yakubu, to appear before the Presidential Election Petition Court, PEPC, sitting in Abuja.

The lead counsel to Atiku, Chris Uche, who addressed the tribunal in Abuja on Tuesday, said he had also summoned the Secretary to the commission, Mrs Rose Omoa Oriaran-Anthony.

Atiku is challenging INECs declaration of President Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC) as the winner of the February 25 presidential election.

The petition resumed hearing with the lead counsel to Atiku informing the court that he was calling the first witness of the day, making him that the 19th witness to testify in the matter.

The 19th witness is a star witness, was one Mr Alex Adumter, a lawyer and politician as well as the National Coordinator of the PDP Situation Room.

The PDP candidate and former Vice President, said he would formally obtain subpoenas to compel the trio to appear before the court to give evidence and to also tender sensitive electoral documents.

My lords, for the benefit of the Respondents, so that they will not say that we took them by surprise, we want to state that it has gotten to the stage where we will summon the National Chairman of INEC, the Secretary of the Commission as well as the National Commissioner, to appear in court with documents.

We had earlier indicated our intention to bring them as subpoenaed witnesses and we have gotten to that stage that they may be required to appear in this matter.

READ MORE: Tribunal: We Were Not Bribed To Rig Election  INEC Officials

We have already indicated that we want them here, but by Thursday, we will make the formal application, Atikus lead counsel, Chief Chris Uche, SAN, told the court.

Atiku and the PDP, who are the petitioners, made their decision to summon the INEC bosses known, after they produced two more witnesses that testified before the court.

It will be recalled that despite objections from President Bola Tinubu and the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, the Justice Haruna Tsammani-led five-member panel, okayed five ad-hoc staff members of INEC, who participated in the conduct of the presidential election, to testify as witnesses in the case.

In their separate testimonies before the court, the five INEC ad-hoc staff members, admitted that results of the presidential election were not electronically transmitted.
The Nigeria Customs Service has announced a conditional lifting of ban on export of processed wood, charcoal and other allied products.

In a circular with reference numbers T&T/2023/CIRCULAR NO.8, dated 8th of June 2023 and signed by Assistant Comptroller General of Customs, Musa MBA for the Comptroller General, the service confirmed that the administrative ban placed on the export of processed wood, charcoal and other allied products is lifted with immediate effect.

READ ALSO: Customs Seizes Pangolin Scales Worth N432m In Bauchi

The circular reads in part, I am directed to forward herewith copy of the Federal Ministry of Finance letter Ref: No.F.17545/T/9 dated 5 Jun 23 on the above subject matter.

The letter which is self-explanatory confirms that the administrative ban placed on the export of processed wood, charcoal and other allied products is hereby lifted with immediate effect.

However, threatened plants classified as endangered species (CITES listed), including Rosewood, Pterocarpus erinaceus remains prohibited from being exported.

Consequent upon the foregoing, all requests for the Exportation of Processed Wood, Charcoal and other Allied Products, must be supported with a letter of approval obtained from the Federal Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning.

Furthermore, in addition to strict compliance with the provisions of the extant guidelines for non-oil export, you are directed to collaborate with the Forest Officers at the ports and borders for proper identification and prevention of exportation of prohibited wood products
A deputy director with the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), Yisa Usman, was arraigned on Tuesday at the Federal High Court, Abuja, following allegations of threatening Raheemat Oloyede, the wife of the JAMB registrar.

According to the suit marked FHC/ABJ/CR/139/2023, Usman was accused of threatening Oloyede with the intent to blackmail her husband, Ishaq Oloyede, the boards registrar.

He was arraigned by the police on behalf of the Federal Government on a five-count before Justice Nkeonye Maha.

He was also alleged to have committed the offence with Abdulfatai Usman, now at large, between February 14, 2022, and February 15, 2022.

Both of them were said to have communicated with Oloyede through a network computer system with the phone number: +447529723948, and the communication was said to be grossly offensive, indecent, criminal intimidation with the purpose of causing inconvenience or needless anxiety to her.

READ ALSO: Ex-JAMB Registrar Ojerinde, Four Children, To Face Fresh Corruption Charges

The police also accused Usman of publishing letters between January 31, 2022, and February 4, 2022, through a computer system network on WhatsApp alleging that the JAMB registrar, Oloyede, and members of the management board of JAMB committed fraud and violated the Federal Governments regulations even though he knew such information to be false and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 24(1)(a) & (b) of the Cybercrime Act 2015.

He, however, pleaded not guilty to all the counts after the charge was read to him. Following this, his counsel, Moses Balogun, applied for bail. The lawyer informed the court that a bail application filed on June 7 had already been served on the prosecution on the same day.

Balogun, who said that Usman was a deputy director, prayed the court to grant him bail on liberal terms or self-recognition pending the hearing and determination of the case.

Meanwhile, the prosecuting counsel, Eristo Asaph, did not oppose the application.

In a ruling, Justice Maha admitted Usman to bail in the sum of N2 million with a surety who must be a civil servant on level 14 and must own a landed property within the jurisdiction of the court.

Alternatively, the judge held that the surety could also be a responsible citizen who had paid his tax for two years and must have landed property within the jurisdiction of the court.

She said the surety, who must submit his or her international passport and a passport photograph to the court registrar, must depose to an affidavit of means.

Justice Maha ordered that Usman be remanded at a correctional centre pending the perfection of his bail and adjourned the matter until Oct. 26 for trial.

But Balogun, who prayed the court to order the release of his client to him pending the perfection of his bail within five days, pledged to write an undertaking to the effect

The judge granted the plea and ordered that the undertaking be completed before the close of work.

Reacting to his arraignment, Usman said that his ordeal began after he challenged his deployment from Kaduna to Port Harcourt and the abuse of power wielded by Oloyede.

He said, I am a 54-year-old physically challenged Deputy Director that suffered the injustices of Prof. Ishaq Oloyede.

My ordeal started with my deployment to Port-Harcourt from Kaduna despite my condition and in violation of the Disability Act.

And that was the third posting in five years. My family is in Abuja. I resisted the violation for 20 months before it was reversed following the intervention of the Federal Ministry of Education.

I petitioned the Ministry and several other agencies about the abuse of authority in JAMB and some financial infractions that I noticed.

This caused a ministerial fact-finding committee to be set up to investigate my allegations, which were reportedly established.

Following my redeployment back to Kaduna in February, Prof. Oloyede issued me two queries within 14 days and followed it with an invitation to appear before a panel. The intention was to dismiss me from service, but I did not turn up at the panel. I instead sent a seven-page letter.

Prior to these developments, I had raised concerns about Prof. Oloyedes abuse of power and violations of the laws with negative consequences on staff.

Prof Oloyede petitioned the IGP in February 2022 that I am a criminal. The investigation was concluded in March, but unexpectedly, I am now charged with five criminal charges and have to appear before the Federal High Court.
The Chairman of Ethiopian Airlines, Girma Wake, has resigned.

Wakes resignation comes amidst controversy surrounding the establishment of Nigerias national carrier, Nigeria Air but the reason for his resignation remains unknown.

Recall that last week, the Interim Managing Director of Nigeria Air, Capt Dapo Olumide, said the aircraft used to unveil the countrys national career was a legitimate chartered flight from Ethiopian Airlines, adding that the aircraft was returned to Ethiopian Airlines after the unveiling on the last day of the Muhammadu Buhari administration.

Nigerias Senate and House of Representatives Committees on Aviation have both labelled the launch of the Nigeria Air as a fraud.

READ ALSO: Nigeria Air Fraud: Lies Sirika Told About Air Peace  Operating Officer

Ethiopia has since appointed the head of the countrys air force, Lieutenant General Yilma Merdassa, to replace Wake.

While commander of Ethiopias air force, Yilma served on the companys board of directors for the last two and half years, before assuming his new role on June 8, the carrier said.

Girmas contribution to the growth and success of the airline group has been enormous and will take a special place in the history of the group, the company said in a press release.

Wake, a 79-year-old veteran of the African airline industry, joined the company in 1965 and served as its Chief Executive Officer from 2004-2011, a period of strong growth for the carrier, before taking on its chairmanship in March 2022.
Popular Fuji musician King Wasiu Ayinde Marshal, better known as K1 De Ultimate, has pleaded with President Bola Tinubu to forgive anyone who has offended him, irrespective of tribe or religion.

K1 De Ultimate, in his passionate appeal during a live performance, sang melodiously on the need for peace in the country, calling for Igbohos pardon.

READ ALSO: Sunday Igboho Released From Prison On Two Conditions -Lawyer

He said: Asiwaju, please, anyone who has offended you, kindly forgive them. Irrespective of their tribes  Yoruba, Igbo, Hausa  we must embrace ourselves.

Akanbi, please let Sunday Igboho come back home. Hes one of our own. One cannot say because ones daughter has ample buttocks, he would put the waist beads on another mans daughter.

Please, when you (Tinubu) settle properly in the office, kindly resolve this grey area. Let Sunday Igboho return to his root.

Likewise, other agitators from various regions call their leaders to a roundtable discussion.

Recall that in July 2021, Igboho was arrested by Interpol at Cadjehoun Airport in Cotonou, Benin Republic.

Before his arrest, the Department of State Services declared him wanted for allegedly stockpiling weapons in his residence.

The secession agitator was detained in prison in the Benin Republic but was released in March 2022 to get medical attention on the condition that he would not leave the West African country.

Since his release, Igboho has remained confined within Cotonou.
In what seems like a retaliatory move, the Cameroon government on Tuesday said it will assign troops and customs officials to crack down on the illegal export of the countrys cocoa beans to Nigeria.

Information Nigeria reports that since Nigerias petrol price hike caused by the subsidy removal, many neighboring countries where petrol is being smuggled to have been at a disadvantage.

Nigerias President, Bola Ahmed Tinubu had said Nigeria should not be Father Christmas to neighboring countries by providing them subsidised petrol.

Why should we in good heart and sense, feed smugglers and be Father Christmas to neighboring countries, even though they say everyday is not Christmas, Tinubu had said.

Recall also that when asked about data of Nigerias daily consumption, Mele Kyari, Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company said: We know that petroleum products are being smuggled out of the country.

READ ALSO: Nigeria Cant Continue To Be Father Christmas To Neighboring Countries  Tinubu

We are actually subsidising everybody else in West Africa. I can tell you a personal experience. I travel to Sudan for a visit when a Nigerian met me and said: Gentleman, I understand you work for NNPC. Can you help me have access to fuel because people are bringing fuel here to make money from it?

That means the fuel in this country goes as far as Sudan. For other neighbouring countries around us, you cannot even talk about it. They call it Nigerian fuel in many countries.

Speaking in Yaounde in a meeting on Tuesday, Cameroons Minister of Trade, Luc Magloire Mbarga Atangana, Were going to mount a solid patrol of troops, customs and administrative officers who will combine with vigilante groups to stop the phenomenon.

I believe that smuggling is one of several reasons why it has become very difficult for our yearly cocoa harvest to exceed 300,000 metric tons, Minister Atangana said, adding that the patrol will be mounted before the main crop cocoa harvests start in July or August.

Cameroon exports cocoa overseas but doesnt officially export to its neighbours, and is aiming to prevent traders from buying up beans in towns such as Mamfe, Kumba, Muyuka in the South West Region and smuggling them across the border into Nigeria.
Governor of Kwara State, AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq, the Governor of Niger State, Mohammed Bago have commiserated with families of victims who died after a boat conveying them capsized in Egbu village, Patigi Local Government.

Information Nigeria had reported that that the victims were said to be returning to their base in Patigi from Egboti, a community in Niger State, on their way from a wedding event, before the tragic incident occurred.

Rafiu Ajakaiye, the governors spokesperson, in a statement on Tuesday noted that the State Government would continue to monitor the rescue mission.

The governor is sad to receive reports of the boat accident involving several people, particularly residents of Ebu, Dzakan, Kpada, Kuchalu, and Sampi  all in Patigi.

The governor sends his heartfelt condolences to the people of these communities and those from other states. He prays to Almighty Allah to repose the souls of the victims.

The governor, meanwhile, continues to monitor the rescue efforts already mounted since Monday night in search of possible survivors.

He commends the alertness of the Etsu Patigi, His Royal Highness Alhaji Ibrahim Umar Bologi II, and other local government authorities for the efforts to save as many people as possible who may have survived the mishap, the statement reads.

On his part, Bago who sympathised with the bereaved families, urged boat passengers to always wear their life jackets when travelling.

Speaking through his Chief Press Secretary, he said, We are looking at the accident as an act of God and we pray to God to grant them eternal rest and give the family the fortitude to bear the loss.

READ ALSO: 100 Feared Dead As Boat Capsizes In Kwara

We are appealing to the riverine communities to always wear their life jackets because they were provided with some life jackets. Each time that they are travelling, they should wear them.

In a chat with Punch, the traditional ruler of Patigi, Ibrahim Bologi II, who totalled the dead victims to 110, noted that the boat was conveying about 217 passengers, adding that a search and rescue operation to locate the whereabouts of the remaining victims was ongoing.

He said, The latest development now is that a total number of 110 people have died in the accident. It was a boat carrying about 217 people. The local people are joining the search for now and it will extend till tomorrow.

Chairman, Transition Implementation Committee, Patigi LGA, Mohammed Liman, corroborating the monarchs claim on the number of lives lost in the tragedy, said 110 passengers died in the crash that plunged residents in the local government area into untold anguish.

While quoting a statement on the tragic development by a community leader, Alhassan Mohammed, said, About 110 people died in the boat accident in our area. We are telling you about the tragedy and unforgettable memory that happened to my people from our village, Ebu, and other neighbouring villages close to us.

Our village people went to a wedding ceremony in another village called Gboti and the boat carried about 270 people and almost 110 people were lost.

The record for each village includes Egbu, 61, Dzakan, 38, Kpada, four, Kuchalu, two, and Sampi, three. This is an unforgettable memory and tragedy in the history of our village.

Also, sources in the community, gave details of the deceased victims to include 69 persons from Egbu village, 36 from Gakpan village and four from Kpada village in the Patigi LGA.

READ ALSO: Heres My Little Way Of Helping  Joeboy Provides Free Danfo Buses For Lagos Residents

No fewer than 50 corpses were said to have been recovered by emergency responders conducting the search and rescue operation with no survivor reported.

Commenting on the cause of the crash, the Area Manager of the National Inland Waterways Authority in charge of Niger-Kwara areas, Akapo Adeboye, attributed the boat accident to overloading and turbulent winds.

Adeboye said the agency had been educating boat operators to desist from overloading boats with passengers, but for their greed they do otherwise.

He said, This is a very sad situation that is avoidable because what led to it was due to overloading of the boat by the operators. They want to make more money and they overload their boats.

We have educated them through messages in English, Hausa and other languages that are spoken in this area but they wont listen. We even set up a safety unit and when we apprehend any defaulter, we sanction them through payment of fines which is up to N100,000.

Despite all our efforts at making sure that they comply with safety standards that they must have life jackets, lifebuoys and other safety equipment on board, many of them (operators) just choose to adopt the easier way out by travelling at night just because they want to avoid our monitoring and safety patrol from being arrested.

Also, the Vice Chairman of the Red Cross Society, Lagos State, Segun Akande, in his reaction to the incident, said it was naturally and professionally risky to get on any sea transportation without any safety.

He said, Even when you have a life jacket on, there can still be a little problem because when it happens, there can still be a phobia that people will just capsize and it is only when you know how to swim and safeguard yourself that you can be balanced on that water.

There must also be a lifesaver or divers on a ferry. That is better than just leaving everybody with a life jacket. If you are using a life jacket, you should still have professional divers  those who can enter the water and save people.

This is important because capsizing is the danger of travelling on water. Theres no means of transportation without risks. If you are travelling on water, there must be a life jacket to use and you must have lifeguards.
President Bola Tinubu has congratulated the new Senate President Godswill Akpabio, and Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas, on their election as presiding officers of the 10th National Assembly.

Recall that INFORMATION NIGERIA earlier reported that Akpabio defeated former Governor of Zamfara State, Senator-elect Abdulaziz Yari, by 63 votes to 46 to emerge Senate President.

While in the House of Representatives, Abbas, who was the preferred candidate of the All Progressives Congress, polled 353 votes, beating his rivals, former Deputy Speaker, Ahmed Wase, and Aminu Jaji, who both secured three votes each.

In a statement he personally signed on Tuesday titled, Now, Lets Get On With Business Of The People, Tinubu congratulated the four lawmakers over their victory, saying it is well deserved.

READ MORE: Speakership: Tajudeen Abbas Defeats Wase, Jaji, Emerges Speaker, House Of Reps

Tinubu said, Being elected by peers as presiding officers and assuming the leadership of the National Assembly is a great honour that comes with huge responsibility.

I trust that you will justify the confidence reposed in you by your members and many Nigerians.

As your president, I am prepared to transparently work with the National Assembly. Nigerians expect distinguished senators and honourable members to make laws and carry out oversight duties that will enhance the performance of government to achieve successful outcomes, including improving their quality of life.

In the course of our work together, disagreements may occur. When we disagree it will not be out of malice, ill-will and quest to diminish the institution of National Assembly or any individual member.

Our people across the length and breadth of our country expect so much from us. They want us to lift their economic burden. They want us eliminate insecurity so our farmers in rural communities can go to their farms and produce the food we eat.

Our people look up to us to change the fortune of our country for good and remove all barriers that impede progress. All of these we can make happen with dedication and commitment. We can only achieve all the good things we promised during our campaigns when we work together in harmony but with respect for our respective prerogatives and in the best interest of our country.

We cannot afford to waste this opportunity because Nigerians want us to make every day of the next four years count. Justifiably, our people want more from their government. They truly deserve progressive good governance that will improve their standards of living. We must give them our best.
As part of efforts to challenge Governor Sanwolus victory, the Labour Party (LP) candidate in the March 18 election, Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour, has presented over 20,000 documents before the Lagos State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal.

Gbadebo through his lead counsel, Dr Olumide Ayeni, the petitioner on Tuesday presented the documents which were stacked in 13 boxes alongside his schedule of exhibits.

The tribunal subsequently directed the petitioner to allow all the respondents access to the documents. The respondents are to begin examining the documents on Tuesday and the examination ends on Wednesday.

The tribunal also adjourned till Wednesday for the petitioner to call his first witness in proof of his petition.

INFORMATION NIGERIA gathered that the documents are expected to be tendered through the witnesses when they start to testify.

According to CHANNELS TVs reports, the 13 boxes contain INEC forms EC9, EC8A & B, Form EC40A, Form EC40G, BIVAS Reports, and more in over 13,000 polling units, result sheets from different polling units, and other relevant documents.

READ MORE: Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour Loses Polling Unit To Sanwo-Olu

Before the adjournment of proceedings, the counsel to the petitioner, Dr. Ayeni, had sought to move an application to allow the petitioner to tender, use and rely on certain documents including a report of inspection, sworn witnesses of certain persons listed on its application as well as other electoral documents used or purportedly used in the election which is the subject matter of the petition.

In his response, Charles Edosomwan (SAN), who represented INEC, the first respondent in the suit, described the application as a ground-moving motion.

He asked for time to consult his client so as to determine whether or not to oppose the application.

Muiz Banire (SAN) and counsel to Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu of Lagos State and his Deputy, Obafemi Hamzat, the 2nd and 3rd respondents to the petition, told the tribunal that the application was not ripe for hearing. The counsel also noted that by the provisions of paragraph 47(4) of the first schedule, his clients are still within time to respond to the application.

On his part, Abiodun Owonikoko (SAN) who represented the All Progressives Congress (APC) opposed the application. He stressed that he had his clients instructions not to allow the petitioner to reopen its case after the close of pre-hearing. He also indicated that he would take time to respond appropriately to the application.

After the submissions, the petitioners counsel asked the tribunal to grant a stand down so it could present its documents in line with the tribunals pre-trial report that same be done on or before the end of Tuesday.
Former President Goodluck Jonathan has spoken about his meeting with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on Tuesday, at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

Speaking with journalists after the meeting, Jonathan said he visited Tinubu to brief him on the planned constitutional referendum in Mali.

The ex-President is a special envoy of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), leading the mediation mission in Mali.

The West African country will however conduct a referendum on a new constitution on June 18 and citizens will vote to uphold the legitimacy of the draft of the new constitution.

The exercise will be a precursor to the long-awaited elections scheduled for February 2024.

READ ALSO: Jonathan Bags Democracy Icon Award In Kigali, Urges Leaders To Prioritise Service

The new constitution of Mali significantly empowers the president of the country, providing the presidency the ability to appoint the prime minister and ministers, also the power to dissolve parliament.

However, a certain portion of the draft constitution has sparked controversy among religious leaders in the predominantly Muslim state.

The religious figures have voiced their concerns about the drafts description of Mali as a secular state.

According to Jonathan, those are the issues he discussed with Tinubu during the meeting.

I came to brief the president on the activities of some continental and subcontinental bodies. You know, I am the ECOWAS mediator for Mali and the chairman of the West African Elders Forum.

So, there are certain issues bordering on the continent and the sub-region that I discuss with various presidents, the former president said.
The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) has maintained that its agitation for Biafra can not be negotiated because it is their inherent right to pursue their own political, economic, cultural, and social future.

According to the group, its leader, Nnamdi Kanu remains the only political prisoner held unconstitutionally in custody without charge because he is an Igbo man fighting for the well-being of his people.

IPOB, in a statement signed by its spokesman, Emma Powerful, said self-determination is legal as supported by the United Nations laws and by the Africa Union Charter, therefore holding Kanu in detention for demanding a referendum was unconstitutional.

INFORMATION NIGERIA gathered that Powerful revealed that the group is calling on the Federal Government to initiate a discussion on a referendum date and terms as soon as possible, noting that its demand for a referendum is not up for negotiation.

READ MORE: IPOB Slams DSS Over Alleged Surgery Sponsorship For Nnamdi Kanu

He maintained that the Federal Government has shown hostility and contempt towards the Ndigbo by keeping their leader in custody and they are now a vulnerable group that is discriminated against, targeted, and killed by security forces.
The lawmaker representing Borno South Senatorial District, Senator Ali Ndume has revealed how President Bola Tinubu made some calls, visits and begged some people for Senator Godswill Akpabio to emerge as the Senate President.

Ndume made this known while speaking on the role Tinubu played in ensuring the preferred candidates of the APC emerged winner during the election of the 10th National Assembly which took place in Abuja on Tuesday.

Recall that Akpabio who is the preferred candidate of the President and the APC leadership, emerged as the Senate President on Tuesday with 63 votes, defeating his lone challenger for the post, Abdulaziz Yari who got 46 votes.

Speaking on Tuesday during an interview on Channels TV, Ndume said that President Tinubu put in the necessary efforts including sneaking out to beg some people in order to ensure Akpabios emergence.

READ MORE: Lets Get On With Business  Tinubu Charges Newly Elected NASS Leadership Election

According to Ndume, President Tinubu believes Akpabio is well-qualified, supported him, and had foot soldiers complement the efforts.

He said, So many factors helped Akpabios victory; when I contested the last time, the President endorsed Ahmed Lawan. So its almost a repetition of the same thing.

The party and the president had a preferred candidate, but this President because he is an experienced politician, played lots of Politics in it. He deployed his foot soldiers to complement our efforts, and that made a difference.

See video here: https://twitter.com/channelstv/status/1668684235006259201?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1668684235006259201%7Ctwgr%5E9f29b02d1f323623fae6c92ef345f435194cca5a%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.vanguardngr.com%2F2023%2F06%2Fvideo-tinubu-begged-some-lawmakers-to-vote-apc-candidates-ndume%2F
After making Astra Streaming generally available last year, DataStax on Wednesday said that it was adding a Schema GPT Translator to the data and event streaming service.

Built on open source Apache Pulsar, Astra Streaming is a managed service that is available on AWS, Google Cloud Platform (GCP), and Microsoft Azure, enabling enterprises to stream real-time data for their applications.

The new Schema GPT Translator, according to DataStax, automatically generates schema mappings, which frees up developers to focus on other components of building real-time data pipelines instead of coping with the time-consuming process of manually creating these mappings.

The creation of schema mappings is an essential part of developing a data pipeline process as it enables data integration and interoperability among multiple systems and data sources.

Systems within a streaming pipeline typically use different approaches for schema representations and data type definitions. This requires schemas within a pipeline to be mapped to each other manually, a process which is complicated, tedious, and error-prone, Jamie Ferguson, senior director of product management at DataStax, wrote in a blog post.

In addition to the complexity involved in creating schema mappings, these mappings must be updated when schemas evolve, Ferguson added.

Schema GPT Translator cuts out manual processes

In order to circumvent the manual time-consuming process, the Schema GPT Translator captures the contextual relationships and dependencies in a schema, and quickly and accurately generates mappings to other schema representations and data types, the company said in its announcement of the new feature.

Schema Translator fits into that evolution of approach around connecting data sources like databases into applications and vice versa, from object-relational mapping (ORMs) and API support to automated recommendations based on a generative AI model, it added.

Currently, the GPT Translator is available as part of the Astra DB Sink Connector and can generate mappings for schemas in Astra Streaming (represented in JSON or Avro) to schemas in Astra DB (represented in Contextual Query Language), with support for additional connectors coming soon, the company said.

An advantage of using the translator, according to Ferguson, is the quick update of schema mappings as schemas evolve in order to support changes in streaming pipelines due to new data sources or changes in business requirements.

Enterprises that subscribe to Astra Streaming will get the new Schema GPT Translator at no additional cost. Astra Streaming offers subscriptions in three tiers, including a pay-as-you-go model.

GPT stands for generative pre-trained transformer, a type of AI model based on deep learning techniques. The term was popularized by OpenAI's ChatGPT, though the company is not the only one to use it, and has released several versions of its own GPT. DataStax did immediately say which GPT it is using.

Last week, DataStax said that it was partnering with Google Cloud to bring vector search to AstraDB in an attempt to make Apache Cassandra more compatible with AI and large language model (LLM) workloads.

AstraDB, built on Apache Cassandra, will arguably be one of the first to bring vector search to the open source distributed database. Currently, vector search for Cassandra is being planned for its 5.0 release, a post by the database community, where DataStax is a member, showed.
His experience was hailed as invaluable by Amber Matthews, Australia managing partner at DLA Piper, with the insurance law firm looking to build out its country-wide projects and construction capabilities at a time that the government has backed improvements.



"Tonys deep expertise in social infrastructure is particularly relevant given the state and federal governments multi-billion-dollar commitment to improving housing, health care, and education facilities and access, Matthews said. This level of investment will also require private capital for investment from super funds and private equity houses, and with Tony on board, we will be well placed to support a wide range of industry participants."
"Asia remains home to some of the most resilient economies on the planet, as well as some of its least, reflecting the regions continued competitiveness in an evolving risk landscape dominated by climate and economic concerns, as well as its challenges. With its global perspective, the FM Global Resilience Index provides you with a sharp lens to examine the risk profiles of new developments or supply chain expansion in Asia or around the world, reflecting our focus on robust science-based data to keep your business moving, Tan said.
In the report, brokers also gave their insights into the factors most relevant when working with an insurer, such as BDM support, online platforms and services, and product innovation, among others.
Some platforms that ultimately did not make it because they werent returning correct results, or they didnt have the proper integrations with solutions that were already in the space, he said. The fear factor decreased as the solutions continued to evolve and proved that it is possible to allow a consumer to do accurate rating online, or at least with the agencies help.
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New Yorkers who commit crimes could have their records automatically sealed if they stay out of trouble for a certain number of years after they have finished serving their sentences under a bill passed by state lawmakers Friday.

The clean slate legislation would automatically seal most recent convictions  three years after serving time or parole for a misdemeanor and eight years for felony convictions. Sex crimes and most Class A felonies, such as murder, will not be eligible for sealing.

The state Assembly debated the bill for almost five hours before passing it on a party-line vote, garnering applause and cheers. The state Senate followed with its own approval late Friday.

Some liberal lawmakers and unions who support the bill say it would give New Yorkers a path forward that is not encumbered by past mistakes. They say a criminal record often means difficulty obtaining secure work and housing.

Thats the case for Ismael Diaz Jr., of Long Island, who was released from prison seven years ago and is still struggling to find secure employment.

Diaz, who served almost 10 years in prison for manslaughter, said he went through three rounds of interviews for a janitorial position at a supermarket before being told he was unemployable because of his criminal record.

I was stressed out because I was trying to get a job and you cant because of having a record, said Diaz, 52. I want to earn a salary and take care of my family and start building up my life where it is supposed to be.

Other states including Utah and Michigan have passed similar measures. California passed legislation last year that would automatically seal conviction and arrest records for most ex-offenders who are not convicted of another felony for four years.

Business groups including big companies like JPMorgan Chase and Verizon have also endorsed the New York legislation. They say increasing the labor pool would boost the states economy and make the state more competitive.

Under New York state law, employers can ask about conviction records at any point in the hiring process, but they must consider factors such as whether the conviction has any bearing on the persons ability to do the job. But advocates for the legislation say that despite that, those with criminal records face huge barriers to stable employment.

Nearly 2.2 million people in New York have criminal convictions, according to a study by the Data Collaborative for Justice, a research center at John Jay College. The study is based on New Yorkers who had convictions from 1980 to 2021.

But Republican lawmakers and victim advocacy groups have criticized the legislation, warning it will take away accountability for those who have committed crimes.

Im sorry, you committed it, youre convicted of it, and unfortunately you have a debt to pay to society, and some aspects of those will be with you forever, just like you did to your victim, said Republican state Assemblymember Anthony Palumbo, also a former prosecutor, before floor deliberations. I think this is completely disregarding the victims of those crimes and disregarding society as a whole.

Palumbo said he favors an existing sealing statute in New York through which people can apply to seal their records depending on the type of conviction and whether theyre a repeat offender. But advocates for the states clean slate bill said the application process is cumbersome and expensive.

Less than 1% of New Yorkers eligible for sealing criminal records through that statute have successfully done so, according to a study conducted by Santa Clara University.

The automatic sealing would not apply to a person who has a pending felony charge in another state.

The state Department of Corrections and Community Supervision, in coordination with the state Division of Criminal Justice Services, will be tasked to provide data to state administrative agencies so that they can seal eligible convictions.

Those sealed convictions could be later accessed by any court, prosecutors and defense attorneys under certain conditions, as well as by federal and state law enforcement agencies. Gun licensing agencies, law enforcement employers, and employers for work with vulnerable populations such as children and older adults will still be allowed to access the criminal records.

The original version of the bill excluded only sex crimes from automatic sealing and required seven years to pass until a felony conviction could be sealed.

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said she wants to make sure the bill would not have any negative, unintended consequences while also giving those with criminal records a second chance.

Its not a simple answer. These are complicated issues, far more than people may realize at first glance, Hochul told reporters at an unrelated event earlier in the week. My goal as governor is to make sure we have forward thinking, progressive policies that actually work.

The bill would go into effect one year after it is signed into law.

_Maysoon Khan is a corps member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues. Follow Maysoon Khan on Twitter.

Copyright 2023 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Topics Fraud New York
New You can now listen to Insurance Journal articles!

The driver of a tractor-trailer hauling gasoline lost control on an off-ramp and flipped the tanker truck on its side in a wreck that set it afire and destroyed a section of the East Coasts main north-south highway, Pennsylvanias top transportation official said Monday.

In the first official accounting of a wreck that threw hundreds of thousands of morning commutes into chaos and disrupted untold numbers of businesses, state Transportation Secretary Mike Carroll said the driver was northbound trying to navigate the curve, lost control of the vehicle, landed on its side and ruptured the tank.

As a result, Interstate 95 will be closed in both directions for weeks at the start of summer travel season. The elevated southbound portion of I-95 will have to be demolished, as well as the northbound side, Carroll said. Motorists should avoid the northeast corner of the sixth-largest city in the country, transportation officials said.

Pennsylvania State Police said a body recovered from the wreckage has been turned over to the Philadelphia medical examiner and coroner. Authorities are in the process of identifying the remains, police said.

The accident also disrupted the automotive route from Canada to Florida through the Boston, New York and Washington metropolitan areas, increasing Americans dependence on air travel and on the interstate rail network.

Videos shared on social media showed a number of close calls around the accident, with people driving through the area as flames licked upward from the fire below. The National Transportation Safety Board said it was sending a team to investigate the accident.

Carroll said the damaged I-95 segment carries about 160,000 vehicles daily. State police dont know if the driver was speeding and no other vehicle has been found. Officials said they had been in contact with the trucking company, but they did not identify it.

Carroll said the highway span was 10 to 12 years old, had appeared sound and they blamed the damage on the heat of the fire, which took about an hour to control.

Disaster Declaration

Gov. Josh Shapiro signed a disaster declaration Monday, saying it gives state agencies the ability to skip normal bidding-and-contracting requirements so the span can be repaired faster.

Shapiro said his flight over the area showed just remarkable devastation.

I found myself thanking the Lord that no motorists who were on I-95 were injured or died, he said.

High heat from the fire or the impact of an explosion could have weakened the steel beams supporting the overpass, according to Drexel University structural engineering Professor Abi Aghayere. Bridges like the one that collapsed dont typically have fire protection, like concrete casing, he added. It could have been coated in a fire-retarding paint, but even then the beams could have been weakened.

It just gives you time, he said.

Among many transportation changes across the region, the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority said it was operating three extra morning and late afternoon trains on its Trenton, New Jersey, line, and adding capacity to regularly scheduled lines during peak hours following the collapse.

The collapsed section of I-95 was part of a $212 million reconstruction project that wrapped up four years ago, state Transportation Department spokesman Brad Rudolph said. PennDOT rated the 104-foot span as in good condition earlier this year, with another inspection set for 2025.

Shapiro, a Democrat, said the complete rebuild of I-95 would take some number of months, and in the meantime officials were looking at interim solutions to reconnect I-95 and get traffic through the area.

Joseph L. Schofer, a retired professor of civil and environmental engineering from Northwestern University, said a big challenge for PennDOT in quickly replacing the bridge could be getting heavy-duty steel beams of a hundred feet or more.

Ensuring the precise length necessary  either by finding the construction records or taking measurements  and finding a fabricator to make them could take time, he said.

You cant go online to Amazon and order it and have it delivered the next day, said Schofer, who also hosts a podcast on infrastructure.

Similar Situation

In California, a similar situation happened with a highway ramp in Oakland. It was replaced in 26 days, he said.

Now thats almost a miracle, Schofer said. In Atlanta, an elevated portion of Interstate 85 collapsed in a fire, shutting down the heavily traveled route through the heart of the city in March 2017. It took authorities there 43 days to replace it, Schofer said.

In Pennsylvania, officials were also concerned about the environmental effects of runoff into the nearby Delaware River.

After a sheen was seen in the Delaware River near the collapse site, the Coast Guard deployed a boom to contain the material. Ensign Josh Ledoux said the tanker had a capacity of 8,500 gallons (32,176 liters), but the contents did not appear to be spreading into the environment.

Catalini reported from Trenton, New Jersey and Levy from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.

Photo: Shownis the aftermath of an elevated section of Interstate 95 that collapsed, in Philadelphia, Monday, June 12, 2023. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)

Copyright 2023 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Topics Personal Auto Pennsylvania
Zurich Insurance Group is in talks to buy up to 51% of Indias Kotak General Insurance, two sources with direct knowledge of the matter said, a deal that would mark its first major bet on the fast-growing South Asian insurance market.

Backed by Asias richest banker Uday Kotak, the early-stage negotiations value the Indian company at around $800 million, and Zurich Insurance has expressed interest in both a minority stake of 49% or taking up a majority 51% stake, the sources said.

The stake the Swiss insurer wants to secure will be worth around $400 million, they said.

Kotak is still evaluating offers, including from other investors, but it prefers retaining control of the company after the stake sale, the first source said.

A spokesperson for Zurich, one of Europes largest insurers, said as a matter of principle, we dont comment on market rumors and speculations. Kotak General Insurance, which is fully-owned by Indian banking giant Kotak Mahindra Bank, did not respond to Reuters queries.

While the Kotak insurance units interest in selling a stake has been reported earlier, its talks with Zurich, the potential deal size and valuation are being reported for the first time.

More than 30 companies operate in Indias general insurance market, where annual premium collections grew 11% to reach $26.7 billion in 2021-22, helped by rising financial literacy and income levels, CareEdge Ratings said in a report.

Many in India still consider health insurance, for example, as a tax savings tool. CareEdge added that India remains a vastly underpenetrated market with non-life insurance penetration of 1% in 2021, compared with the global average of 4.1%, highlighting the potential of the industry.

Already, foreign companies such as Germanys Allianz and South Africas Lombard have general insurance partnerships with Indian banking or financial groups.

The first source said Kotak, which is a relatively smaller general insurance player, is holding stake sale talks as it hopes to get an investor who can help them turn around the business and grow faster.

The Kotak unit reported a loss of $10 million and clocked a premium income of $91.35 million in 2021-22, when bigger rival HDFC Ergo garnered $1.66 billion.

One industry executive in Europe, who is not aware of the current deal talks, said Zurich has for several years evaluated the India market, where businesses are generally more profitable and have better margins than those in Europe.

In 2017, Zurich said it wanted to grow its presence in markets such as China and India, where it can compete without being a dominant player. The company operates in more than 200 countries and provides life insurance as well as for health and cars.

India in 2021 relaxed foreign investment rules for the insurance sector, allowing companies to acquire majority stakes of up to 74%, from 49% earlier.

(Reporting by M. Sriram in Mumbai; additional reporting by Tom Sims and Emma-Victoria Farr in Frankfurt; editing by Aditya Kalra and Jacqueline Wong)
An operation is finally underway to transfer the oil from a stricken tanker off the coast of Yemen that maritime salvage experts have called a ticking time bomb.

The decrepit vessel has been lying idle for years with more than a million barrels of crude sitting on it, but it hasnt been accessible because of Yemens civil war. The Houthi rebels that control the region around the ship agreed in September to back a United Nations effort to move its cargo onto another, younger tanker that will remain there instead.

An on-board appraisal found that the 47-year-old FSO Safer, which is owned by Yemens national oil company, is in such a state of disrepair that it could blow up or fall apart at any moment, causing an environmental and humanitarian catastrophe that could cost tens of billions of dollars to clean up.

Thats heightened international concern and precipitated plans for a team from the Netherlands-based SMIT Salvage BV to start work on the vessel as part of a mission that eventually will cost more than $140 million.

When engineers and underwater bomb disposal experts boarded the tanker two weeks ago, they found its overall condition wasnt as bad as feared, but its still the worst example of a live oil tanker we have ever seen, Peter Berdowski, chief executive officer of SMIT parent company Royal Boskalis Westminster NV, said at an event in The Hague on Monday.

An initial assessment found that oxygen is present in all of the Safers fuel tanks, making them highly explosive, said Berdowski. Every small spark could completely destroy the vessel and lead to a huge disaster, he said. Its not a matter of exaggeration, its a matter of fact that the tanker is in such a poor state that it is literally a ticking time bomb.

SMIT specializes in responding to extreme shipping incidents such as collisions, fires and shipwrecks. Its team helped free the Ever Given, a ship that closed the Suez Canal in the spring of 2021 when it got stuck at both ends.

The next challenge will be sailing the replacement vessel, the 15-year-old Nautica, alongside the Safer for the oil to be transferred. The risk in that exercise is if theres a crack in the hull of the old tanker and the oil spills. The United Nations Development Programme has secured insurance cover for the operation, allowing the ship-to-ship transfer to begin.

UN Secures Insurance Coverage to Salvage Rusting Oil Tanker off Coast of Yemen

The UN has raised $115 million for the mission, though still needs another $28 million more to meet the total costs, UN representative David Gressly said on Monday. The Nautica cost $55 million, roughly double what the UN originally expected as ship prices surged following Russias invasion of Ukraine.

The Netherlands has provided the most funding for the mission, while Saudi Arabia is the fourth-largest donor to the project despite leading a coalition thats at war with the Houthis.

Indeed, the missions biggest hurdle so far has been the nine-year-old civil war. The Houthi rebels have restarted back-channel talks with Saudi Arabia, fueling optimism about an extension of the longest truce in the conflict to date. The mood, though, could shift at any time. Tim Lenderking, the US special envoy for Yemen, traveled to Saudi Arabia on Monday as part of the peace negotiations.

That makes it even more vital to grab the window of opportunity. As part of plan, the UN will hand the Nautica over to the state-owned oil company as soon as it arrives in Yemen. Then the Houthis will effectively take control of the ship in the same way that they held the Safer.

Were essentially purchasing the vessel, but well only own it for five seconds, said Russell Geekie, senior communications advisor to the UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for Yemen. Theres distrust between the sides and theres going to be problems and hiccups and headlines, but its all stuff we can resolve.

With assistance from Mohammed Hatem.

Photograph: The rusting bridge of the FSO Safer. Photo credit: Mohammed Hamoud/Getty Images Europe

Copyright 2023 Bloomberg.

Topics Energy Oil Gas
North Korean hackers stole more than $100 million worth of digital currency in a recent heist affecting users of the Atomic Wallet service, cryptocurrency analytics firm Elliptic said Tuesday.

In a blog post, Elliptic said that more than 5,500 digital wallets were hit by the hackers, who the firm said were part of the North Korean cybercrime gang often called Lazarus.

North Koreas mission to the United Nations in New York did not immediately respond to a request for comment, although Pyongyang has in the past denied carrying out digital thefts. Atomic Wallet did not immediately return messages seeking comment.

The company, which says it is based in Estonia, has previously said that it received reports of wallets being compromised and that it hired another cryptocurrency analytics firm, Chainalysis, to investigate the incident and track down stolen funds. Chainalysis declined comment.

Lazarus has been blamed for a series of brazen thefts targeting cryptocurrency users and organizations. Elliptic said the one that targeted users of Atomic Wallet was the biggest since the hackers allegedly stole around $100 million worth of digital coins from a tool developed by the U.S. cryptocurrency firm Harmony last year.

Earlier this year, the United Nations reported that North Korea had stolen more cryptocurrency assets in 2022 than in any other year. International monitors have said that the stolen money has been pumped into North Koreas sanctioned nuclear and missile programs.

The FBI did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the latest theft. Estonian police officials did not immediately respond to an email sent after hours.

(Reporting by Raphael Satter in Washington; additional reporting by Michelle Nichols at the United Nations; editing by Cynthia Osterman)

Topics Cyber
A London court has ordered a British-registered company to pay more than 800,000 pounds ($1 million) in damages to victims of the 2020 blast at Beiruts port, a lawyers group in Lebanon said on Monday, in the first such verdict over the explosion.

More than 220 people were killed in the Aug. 4, 2020, blast when a huge shipment of ammonium nitrate fertilizer that had been sold by British-registered firm Savaro Ltd. exploded.

On Jan. 31, the High Court in London found Savaro Ltd. liable for death, personal injury and property damage in a case brought by the Beirut Bar Association on behalf of blast victims.

On Monday, the court ordered Savaro to pay 100,000 pounds plus interest each to three relatives of deceased victims, and slightly over 500,000 pounds to a wounded woman, according to a statement by the Association.

Reuters was unable to find contact details for Savaro or for its listed director.

Its the first time that any court anywhere renders decisions as to liability and damages in the Beirut port explosion after approximately three years, said Camille Abou Sleiman, a lawyer from legal firm Dechert who was overseeing the case for victims and their families for free.

Its the first ray of hope in the long march to justice and closure for the victims, Abou Sleiman told Reuters.

But the question of who exactly will pay remains unclear. The woman listed as Savaros owner and sole director at Britains Companies House, Marina Psyllou, told Reuters in 2021 that she was acting on behalf of another beneficial owner whose identity she declined to disclose.

Psyllou submitted a request in 2021 to Companies House to wind up Savaro. The Beirut Bar Association asked British authorities to halt that voluntary liquidation.

Lebanons own probe into the blast has sputtered out. Earlier this year, investigating judge Tarek Bitar was charged with usurping powers after he filed his own charges against top security and political officials over the explosion.

Everything that is moving forward is outside of the country, said Paul Naggear, whose daughter Alexandra was killed by the blast and who was one of the claimants.

It shows you how much theyve obstructed things in Lebanon. It was really good to hear this news, because its progress.

($1 = 0.7948 pounds)

(Reporting by Maya Gebeily; editing by Mark Potter)

Photograph: Rescue workers and security officers work at the scene of an explosion that hit the seaport of Beirut, Lebanon, on Wednesday, Aug. 5, 2020. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)

Related:

Topics London
Private equity firm TA Associates is exploring a sale of its stake in Australian insurance broker Honan Insurance Group Pty amid interest from other potential investors, according to people familiar with the matter.

TA is working with a financial adviser as it prepares for a sale of the business, the people said. A transaction could value the Melbourne-based company at $300 million to $400 million, the people said, asking not to be identified because the information is private.

Other investment funds and industry players have shown early interest in the asset, the people said. Deliberations are preliminary and the owner could decide against pursuing a deal, they added.

A representative for Boston-based TA declined to comment.

Founded in 1964, Honan offers services including designing, pricing and negotiating insurance policies on behalf of mid-market companies across industries such as financial institutions, health care and technology, TAs website shows. It has a presence in Australia, New Zealand and Southeast Asia.

The company has made seven acquisitions in less than a year, most recently announcing a deal to buy New Zealand-based Certus Insurance Brokers in March for an undisclosed amount, according to its website. Other acquisitions include Carollo Horton, Trumpet Financial and Ardrossan.

TA invested in the company in 2020 without disclosing financial details, according to a statement at the time. As part of the deal, management including then-Group CEO Damien Honan agreed to continue to lead the business and be shareholders along with TA. Honan is currently executive chairman.

With assistance from Kamaron Leach.

Copyright 2023 Bloomberg.

Topics Agencies Australia
DAVENPORT, Iowa (AP)  Crews on Monday started demolishing the remains of a six- story apartment building in Davenport, Iowa, that partially collapsed more than two weeks ago, killing three people and leaving dozens homeless.

Workers were using large excavators to dismantle the 116-year-old brick, steel and concrete structure in a process officials said would take several weeks. Its a difficult task because the building is in the heart of the citys downtown and is believed to contain asbestos and other potentially hazardous material.

A section of the building fell away May 28, burying three residents in rubble at the base of the structure and forcing others to scramble out of the building. One woman was pinned under the debris and had to have a leg amputated to be pulled to safety.

The city said in a news release Sunday night that officials have been discussing how to tear down the building with structural engineers, regulatory authorities and the company doing the work. As a precaution, the city ordered that residents of nearby apartments vacate their homes during the demolition.

Also Monday, building owner Andrew Wold pleaded guilty to a civil infraction filed by the city, through his attorney, in a court hearing attended by reporters. The infraction, which stated that Wold didnt maintain safe conditions at the building, carries a $300 fine plus $95 in court costs.

Separately, building tenants have named Wold and others in lawsuits related to the building collapse. The city also has said Wold will be charged for demolition expenses.

Since the collapse, officials have faced repeated questions about why tenants were allowed to stay in the building despite warnings that it had serious structural problems.

The day before the collapse, firefighters were called to the building because of concerns about an unstable wall. On Sunday, the city said in a news release that fire crews went to the building and saw work was being done and that there appeared to be shoring of the structure in place.

The release adds that a city building inspector also visited the site that day and determined that the work appeared to be progressing in accordance with the plans and specifications previously submitted by a professional engineer. The city said there were no observable signs of difficulty or bowing in the external shoring.

Copyright 2023 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Topics Iowa
EAST LANSING, Mich. (AP)  Two students who were among eight killed or wounded in a winter shooting at Michigan State University are taking steps toward suing the school.

Attorneys for Nate Statly and Troy Forbush, who survived the shooting, have filed notices of injury and allegations of building defects at Berkey Hall, where they were shot on Feb. 13.

The notices are required under Michigan law and would give Michigan State time to investigate before a lawsuit could be filed.

Three students were killed and five more were wounded when a gunman opened fire at Berkey Hall and the MSU Union.

Statly has suffered permanent injuries and cannot speak, walk or eat whole foods, according to the notice dated Friday. He has received care so far at four health centers.

The document says easy access to buildings and a failure to improve security created a dangerous risk for injury.

Forbush pleaded for his life with gunman Anthony McRae and shouted, I dont want to die, the notice states. He was shot in the chest.

Forbush has subsequently made public appearances calling for gun safety. He continues to struggle with lung injuries, his attorneys said.

MSU has been engaged in conversations with the families of those we lost and those injured to identify ways to provide ongoing support, and we are committed to keeping those lines of communication open, Michigan State spokesman Dan Olsen said when asked about the legal notices.

McRae, a Lansing resident with no known ties to Michigan State, was killed when confronted by police about four miles (6.4 kilometers) from campus.

Michigan State is installing locks so classroom doors can be locked from the inside, among the steps it has taken to improve safety.

Copyright 2023 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Topics Lawsuits Michigan
New You can now listen to Insurance Journal articles!

One of the last property insurance-related bills to come out of the 2023 regular session of the Florida Legislature was signed into law this week, potentially saving insurers some cash, giving them some flexibility on rate requests, and raising hurricane deductibles for some homeowners.

Senate Bill 418, sponsored by Sen. Keith Perry, R-Gainesville, and others, will address a wide range of insurance issues when it takes effect July 1. Most notably, the law:

Allows insurers to offer higher hurricane deductibles on some residential policies. Current Florida law requires insurance carriers to offer deductibles of $500, 2%, 5% or 10%. The $500 deductible is no longer required to be offered for policies that cover between $250,000 and $1 million. For homes with $1 million to $3 million in coverage, the deductible can now be set at 3%. And for policies above that, insurers do not need to offer the 2% deductible at all but can go with 5% or 10%.

Lets insureds waive windstorm coverage or contents coverage with a typed form. Current law requires a handwritten form.

Provides that insurers, when filing rate increases, may use an average of two or more computer models approved by the Florida Commission on Hurricane Loss Projection Methodology. Until now, carriers had to choose one of three models. That had led to some complaints, with some in the industry concerned that one model alone did not provide an accurate projection and could skew rate requests. The current models can differ by as much as 50% in loss projections, said Hugh Willoughby, a member of the commission and a meteorologist and professor at Florida International University. The current law may have limited insurers to one so that they werent model-shopping to support higher rates, he said, adding that the use of more projections is a good thing for insurers and insureds and should encourage the development of even more forecasting simulations. Forecasting is important for estimating rates in Florida, insurers have said. Some states allow rates to be based only on previous years losses, not future projections, part of the reason some insurers are now pulling back on new business in California, said Michael Wara, of the Woods Institute for the Environment, who spoke to the PBS Newshour this week.

Allows rate filings to include more premium discounts for residential property if a home is built to windstorm mitigation construction standards developed by independent scientific research organizations.

Loosens the requirement that insurers give 15-day notice when raising premiums for policyholders who pay premiums through automatic bank drafts. With the new law, the insurer will be required to give a 10-day notice only when the premium goes up by $10 or more.

Provides that motor vehicle service agreement companies, or auto warranty firms, can go without unearned premium reserves if they maintain liability insurance and agree to pay 100% of claims as they occur.

The full text of the bill is here and a legislative analysis can be seen here.

The legislative session ended in May but the bill was not formally presented to the governor until June 5. Gov. Ron DeSantis had seven days to sign or veto the measure.

The Legislature this year adopted other major insurance legislation, most notably the tort-reform bill, HB 837, that extends limits on assignments of benefits and attorney fees to most insurance claims disputes and personal injury cases. Lawmakers also adopted a windshield-repair bill that bars AOBs and forbids repair shops from offering gifts to consumers.

Top photo: Debris in Fort Myers Beach, Florida, one week after Hurricane Ian. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell, File)

Topics Florida Windstorm
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Embattled North Carolina insurance magnate and businessman Greg Lindberg wont have to face two criminal trials in the same year, a federal judge has decided.

U.S. District Judge Max Cogburn last week agreed to delay Lindbergs upcoming trial on fraudulent business practices until some time in 2024, while a separate retrial on bribery charges is set to begin in November.

The complexity of the charges and the severity of the potential sentence, along with the volume and nature of discovery, make it highly likely that this case will involve significantly more attorney time than the average criminal case, reads the motion to continue the fraud trial, submitted by Lindbergs attorneys in May.

Lindberg, who was once considered a billionaire who created life and reinsurance companies, along with other businesses, was convicted in 2020 of attempting to bribe North Carolina Insurance Commissioner Mike Causey to gain preferential treatment for his companies. The conviction was overturned after an appeals court found that jury instructions were in error and could have prejudiced the jurors.

Lindberg was released from prison in 2022 but was indicted in February on 13 separate charges that he had conspired to skim large amounts of money from his insurance companies, then lied about it to regulators.

The demise of Lindbergs insurance companies has had a widespread impact. The North Carolina Department of Insurance in May took steps to liquidate Southland National Insurance Corp., which sold pre-need funeral policies. Two weeks later, the Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance announced that the Tennessee Life and Health Insurance Guaranty Association will step in to protect many of the 4,600 policyholders in the state.

Topics North Carolina
Federal wage and hour investigators say a northern California restaurant attempted to use an alleged priest to get employees to admit workplace sins.

During litigation by the U.S. Department of Labor in federal court, an employee of Che Garibaldi Inc., operator of Taqueria Garibaldi, testified that the restaurant offered employees a person identified as a priest to hear confessions during work hours.

The employee told the court the priest urged workers to get the sins out, and asked employees if they had stolen from the employer, been late for work, had done anything to harm their employer, or if they had bad intentions toward their employer, according to investigators.

The employer agreed to a consent judgment, and Judge William B. Shubb in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California ordered Che Garibaldi and owners and operators Eduardo Hernandez, Hector Manual Martinez Galindo and Alejandro Rodriguez to pay $140,000 in back wages and damages to 35 employees.

Che Garibaldi Inc. operates two Taqueria Garibaldi restaurants in Sacramento and one in Roseville.

The courts May 8 action followed an investigation by the departments Wage and Hour Division that found Taqueria Garibaldi denied employees overtime pay for hours over 40 in a workweek, a violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act. They also learned the employer illegally paid managers from the employee tip pool, threatened employees with retaliation for cooperating with the department, and fired one worker who they believed had complained to the department.

In addition to recovering $70,000 in back wages and an equal amount in liquidated damages, the judge ordered the restaurant and its owners to pay the department $5,000 in civil money penalties due to the willful nature of their violations.

The court also ordered the defendants permanently forbidden from FLSA violations. Specifically, the court ordered Taqueria Garibaldi not to take any action to stop employees from asserting their rights, interfere with any department investigation, or terminate, threaten or discriminate against any employee perceived to have spoken with investigators.

Topics California Commercial Lines Business Insurance Restaurant
Source: Streetwise Reports

June 14, 2023 (Investorideas.com Newswire) New contracts are expected to add more than 3,000 new patients to Reliq Health Technologies Inc.'s platform by the first quarter of next year, the company said.

Telehealth company Reliq Health Technologies Inc. (RHT:TSX.V; RQHTF:OTCQB; A2AJTB:WKN) announced it has signed six new contracts with physician practices in California, Florida, and Nevada.

The contracts are expected to add more than 3,000 new patients to the company's iUGO platform by the end of Q1 in 2024 at an average of CA$65 per patient per month.

Reliq also recently signed a contract with a U.S. health plan that operates in five states with more than 3,000 doctors and 1 million patients, a move expected to add more than 10,000 new patients to iUGO by next March.

"We are very pleased with our continued traction in California, Florida, and Nevada," said Reliq Chief Executive Officer Lisa Crossley. "The southern U.S. states are a particularly attractive market segment for Reliq due to demographics. With many older Americans choosing to move south in retirement, there is a very large population of Medicare-covered patients in these states who are eligible for Reliq's services."

All six practices are set to go live on the platform next month.

Crossley also pointed out that the three states where the company now has the most patients  California, Florida, and Texas  make up more than one-quarter of the U.S. population with more than 90 million residents.

The company also signed five new contracts in four states this year for iUGO, including its first contract in Arkansas.

Reliq also started onboarding patients in March for another large client, a healthcare system with more than 1,200 care centers in seven states that are expected to add over 2,000 new patients per month to iUGO.

The Catalysts: The Pandemic, Rising Chronic Illnesses

The global telehealth market is expected to reach US$455.3 billion by 2030 with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 24% from 2023 to 2030, according to Research and Markets.

The rising penetration of the internet and the development of smartphones are factors that contributed to the growth, the research company wrote.

"The pandemic exposed the shortcomings in the health care systems," researchers wrote. "The government-imposed travel restrictions and lockdowns (mandated) in order to curb the spread of the virus . . . led to patients and healthcare institutions shifting towards teleconsultation and telemedicine."

The rising occurrence of chronic illness in developing regions also is driving the demand for telemedicine services, Global Market Insights wrote.

"Increased traditional health care costs, growing number of digital health users, and the evolution of health services in the health care institutions have spurred the technology uptake," researchers wrote.

In an April 3 note, Sadif Analytics upgraded RHT to Above Average from Average.

The company "has fair financials and good earnings quality," the note said, adding the stock was "safe."

Technical analyst Clive Maund of CliveMaund.com recommended the stock shortly after news broke last year that the company's revenue jumped 485% from the fiscal year 2021 to the fiscal year 2022. Writing for Streetwise Reports, he said he would "stay long" on the stock.

Platform Aims to Manage Conditions

Reliq's platform aims to manage diseases such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), congestive heart failure, diabetes, hypertension, and others.

Patients get audible reminders to step on a scale, take their blood pressure, or prick their fingers for glucose monitoring. The information is automatically uploaded to the cloud.

iUGO draws on data from fall detection devices, medication tracking, and vitals data to flag patients at home or in facilities who need additional monitoring.

The newest contracts will be for clients using iUGO Care remote patient monitoring (RPM), chronic care management (CCM), and behavioral health integration (BHI) modules to improve health outcomes and reduce the cost of care for chronic disease patients.

Co. Has First Profitable Quarter

Earlier this month, the company announced record revenues for the three months ending March 31 and its first profitable quarter with a gain from operations of CA$731,017.

During the same three months in 2022, the telehealth company reported a loss of CA$811,042. Sales increased 88% YoY to CA$4.7 million compared to CA$2.4 million for the three months ending March 31, 2022.

The company's continued expansion "is really a testament to our unique value proposition in this space," she said.

Revenue from higher-margin software and services increased by more than 69% to CA$1.8 million relative to the three months ending March 31, 2022.

The company said gross profits for the quarter increased by 95% to CA$3.2 million. Gross margins for the period were 68% and are expected to exceed 70% by the end of 2023 due to reduced device costs and an increase in the percentage of Reliq's total revenues from software and services vs. hardware sales.

Ownership and Share Structure

About 8% of Reliq's shares are owned by insiders, including Crossley, with 1.6% or 3.22 million shares. About 0.3% of the company is owned by institutional investors, including FNB Wealth Management, with 0.01% or 0.03 million shares, according to Reuters.

Other top investors include Eugene Beukman, who owns 0.11% or 0.23 million shares, and Brian Storseth, who owns 0.07% or 0.14 million shares, Reuters said.

Crossley said 91.7% of the company is retail.

The company has 203 million shares outstanding, with about 199 million free-floating. It has a market cap of CA$100.71 million and trades in a 52-week range of CA$0.76 and CA$0.36.

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Vancouver, British Columbia - June 14, 2023 (Newsfile Corp.) (Investorideas.com Newswire) K9 Gold Corp. (TSXV: KNC) (FSE: 5GP) (OTCQB: WDFCF) ("K9" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that it has acquired an additional 25 claims (1274 ha) by direct staking as part of the Company's JB Lithium Project in the James Bay Region of northern Quebec. This will bring the total project holdings to 6692 Ha in 130 claims. An aggressive summer exploration is now planned and is fully funded.

The Lac Laribosiere-Tilly (LL-T) property (the "Property") is located approximately 60 km due north of the previously announced Lac Joubert-Tilly (LJ-T) property on the JB Li Project. The LL-T property is located approximately 380 km east of Radisson, Quebec. Other projects in the area include Allkem's James Bay lithium project, which recently received federal approval for development, Patriot Battery Metals Corvette project located 50 km to the west and Winsome Resources Lithium Adina project located approximately 40 km to the west. The LL-T property is underlain by a package of Archaean rocks that is similar to the geological setting of the Corvette and Adina projects, and includes outcrops of Tilly pegmatites, a known host of lithium in the James Bay region.

K9 has recently completed a helicopter-borne magnetometer and VLF survey on the project. Results will be reported on completion of data interpretation. A LiDAR and photogrammetry survey is scheduled for the project in early June 2023, to be followed by an extensive program of soil sampling, prospecting and mapping. However this may be delayed as the Quebec Ministere des Ressources Naturelles et des Forets has recently placed a ban on all field work due to the forest fire situation.

Jeff Poloni, President and CEO of K9 commented, "We are very excited to add to our JB Lithium Project in an area that is turning out to be extremely prolific for Lithium exploration."

About JB Lithium Project

The JB Lithium Project is located in the La Grande sub-province of the Archaean Superior Province in Quebec, and comprises three units, the Riviere Salomon property (see Company release November 15, 2022 for property details), the Lac Joubert - Tilly property (see Company release May 25, 2023) and the newly staked Lac Laribosiere-Tilly.

Lac Laribosiere-Tillynical content of this release and approves its release.

Toll Free Number: (833) 434-GOLD (4653)

Kosta Tsoutsis

Director

K9 Gold Corp.

email: kosta@k9goldcorp.com

Telephone: 604 808-9134

Brian Morrison

Chief Financial Officer and Director

K9 Gold Corp.

email: brian@k9goldcorp.com

telephone: 604 312-6910

The Company is listed on the TSX Venture Exchange.

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.

Disclaimer for Forward-Looking Information

Certain statements in this release are forward-looking statements, which reflect the expectations of management regarding K9's intention to continue to identify potential transactions and make certain corporate changes and applications. Forward-looking statements consist of statements that are not purely historical, including any statements regarding beliefs, plans, expectations or intentions regarding the future. Such statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results, performance or developments to differ materially from those contained in the statements. No assurance can be given that any of the events anticipated by the forward-looking statements will occur or, if they do occur, what benefits K9 will obtain from them. These forward-looking statements reflect managements' current views and are based on certain expectations, estimates and assumptions which may prove to be incorrect. A number of risks and uncertainties could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements, including K9's inability to identify transactions having satisfactory terms or at all and the results of exploration or review of properties that K9 does acquire. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date of this news release and K9 assumes no obligation to update these forward-looking statements, or to update the reasons why actual results differed from those projected in the forward-looking statements, except in accordance with applicable securities laws.

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June 14, 2023 (Investorideas.com Newswire) A National Instrument 43-101 technical report filed for Outcrop Silver & Gold Corp.'s flagship Santa Ana project in Colombia noted "there are reasonable prospects of eventual economic extraction of silver, gold, lead and zinc from the deposit."

Outcrop Silver & Gold Corp. (OCG:TSX.V; OCGSF:OTCQX; MRG1:DB) has filed a National Instrument 43-101 technical report for the maiden mineral resource estimate (MRE) of its flagship Santa Ana project in Colombia.

Released in April, the MRE showed an initial indicated resource estimated at 1.2 million tonnes grading 614 grams per tonne silver equivalent (g/t Ag eq), containing 24.1 million ounces (Moz) Ag eq. Initial inferred resources were estimated at 966,000 tonnes grading 435 g/t Ag eq, containing 13.5 Moz Ag eq.

The 43-101 report, which was effective June 8, said, "Overall, metallurgical testing established that there are reasonable prospects of eventual economic extraction of silver, gold, lead, and zinc from the deposit."

Compiled by AMC Mining Consultants (Canada) Ltd., the report recommended a total exploration and metallurgical budget of CA$3 million for the rest of 2023.

The report also recommended drilling all currently known mineralized shoots to a minimum of 350 meters, using exploration data to create a practical predictive model for choosing targets, and making a comprehensive geological mapping program of the whole project.

The authors also recommended upgrading inferred resource categories to indicated.

They noted there was much more to explore at the project, including 11 targets with high-grade intercepts sampled at surface: Alaska, Lajas, Guadual, Espirtu Santo, Jimenez, Aguilar, Topacio, Frias, La Ye, Cavandia, and Los Mangos.

A high-grade silver-enriched trend extends for 30 kilometers, the company has noted. The veins are drill-permitted, and the results will be added to the established resource.

Resources from the project have highly commercial flotation concentrate grades of 12,133 g/t Ag and 172 g/t gold (Au), with recoveries of 93.4% Ag and 96.7% Au, the company has said.

The Catalyst: 'Strong Potential for Growth'

Analyst Stuart McDougall of Research Capital Corp. also has noted that each of the veins included in the MRE remains open along strike and at depth.

"We see strong potential for growth and are keeping our valuation goalpost at 50 Moz Ag," he wrote after the MRE's release. "Furthermore, OCG has identified dozens more veins with similar characteristics as those in the resource area, either by scout drilling, geological mapping, or underground sampling."

McDougall pointed out that the resource's overall grade of 530 g/t Ag eq compared favorably to peers, such as Blackrock Silver Corp. (BRC:TSX.V; BKRRF:OTCQX) with 389 g/t Ag eq, Dolly Varden Silver Corp. (DV:TSX.V; DOLLF:OTCQX) with 294 g/t Ag eq, and Vizsla Silver Corp. (VZLA:NYSE American) with 427 g/t Ag eq.

"On a comparable basis, we think the maiden estimates stack up well against similar projects," McDougall wrote, doubling down on his Speculative Buy rating on the stock with a CA$0.75 target price per share.

A total of 64% of the resource at Santa Ana was classified as indicated, compared to 54% for Dolly Varden's estimate and 45% for Vizsla, according to McDougall's data.

Resources were calculated using a 158 g/t Ag eq cut-off grade and minimum vein width of 1 meter, Outcrop said. Only 17% of the mapped veins at the project have been drilled.

More Than 7,000 Samples Collected

Santa Ana covers 27,000 hectares, a significant part of the Mariquita District, where mining records date to at least 1585. The district was once the highest-grade primary silver district in Colombia, the company said.

Spanish Royal Archives reports said the area historically had 14 mines producing an average of 4,000 g/t Ag over an average of 1.4 meters, with some mines finding as much as 17,000 g/t Ag.

More than 7,000 samples were collected, including rock-chip, soil, and drill-core samples, which were used to compile the 43-101 report.

Metallurgical samples were drawn from two of Santa Ana's seven vein areas containing only about 25% of the indicated resource.

"While the composites created reasonably represent their respective domains, they do not represent the remainder of the Santa Ana deposit," the report said. "More domain-by-domain sampling and testing will be required to establish variability within the deposit."

The report also noted that "mineralogical studies and flotation testing indicate that gold and silver largely exist as either free particles or in association with (sulfide) minerals that are readily recoverable by froth flotation. Future testing could establish that a high-grade gravity concentrate could also be economically produced."

Silver Deficit Most Likely an All-Time Record

Silver is used to coat electrical contacts and is an important element in solar technology. Almost all computers, phones, cars, and appliances contain it.

According to the World Silver Survey 2023, published by the Silver Institute, the industry saw a 237.7-million-ounce (Moz) deficit in 2022, "most likely also an all-time record."

"The combined 2021 and 2022 deficits more than offset the cumulative surpluses of the previous 11 years," the institute wrote. "We believe that 2023 will see much of a repeat of last year."

Ownership and Share Structure

Mining financier Eric Sprott owns about 14% of Outcrop. Management and directors own about 12%, and the rest is held by high-net-worth investors and retail, the company said.

Major inside shareholders include Executive Chairman of the Board Ian Slater, with about 10% or 20 million shares, and Chief Executive Officer Joseph Hebert, with 0.94% or 1.88 million shares, according to Reuters.

Outcrop has a market cap of CA$36.22 million with about 200 million shares outstanding and about 147 million free-floating. It trades in a 52-week range of CA$0.43 and CA$0.10.

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Disclaimer/Disclosure: Investorideas.com is a digital publisher of third party sourced news, articles and equity research as well as creates original content, including video, interviews and articles. Original content created by investorideas is protected by copyright laws other than syndication rights. Our site does not make recommendations for purchases or sale of stocks, services or products. Nothing on our sites should be construed as an offer or solicitation to buy or sell products or securities. All investing involves risk and possible losses. This site is currently compensated for news publication and distribution, social media and marketing, content creation and more. Disclosure is posted for each compensated news release, content published /created if required but otherwise the news was not compensated for and was published for the sole interest of our readers and followers. Contact management and IR of each company directly regarding specific questions.

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June 14, 2023 (Investorideas.com Newswire) Recently, Skyharbour Resources Ltd. announced it had completed its acquisition of the 12,282-hectare South Dufferin Uranium project from Denison Mines Corp. Read to see what catalysts Skyharbour has up-and-coming and what experts are saying about this resource company.

Skyharbour Resources Ltd. (SYH:TSX.V; SYHBF:OTCQX; SC1P:FSE) has recently completed its acquisition of the 12,282-hectare South Dufferin Uranium project from Denison Mines Corp.

The 100% acquisition was made through a share and cash payment.

The South Dufferin property has nine claims and is located at south of the Athabasca Basin, which hosts the highest-grade uranium deposits in the world.

The premium uranium region is situated in northern Saskatchewan, Canada.



The map of the South Dufferin project. Photo by Skyharbour Resources Ltd.

Skyharbour is a uranium explorer and developer in Canada's Athabasca Basin. With this acquisition, Skyharbour now has a total land ownership of 504,356 hectares across 24 projects - ten of which are drill ready. The company has one of the largest project portfolios in the Athabasca region.

Aside from the exploration and development of uranium properties in the Athabasca Basin, the company is also a prospect generator and enters into partnerships by offering earn-in option agreements to these partners. These agreements typically entail the partner company funding the exploration over a period of time at the project, allowing Skyharbour to focus on its primary assets. It also brings in cash and stock in the partner companies on an annual basis.

Previous exploration in the South Dufferin Project included airborne electromagnetic, magnetic, and radiometric surveys, lake water and sediment sampling, prospecting and ground-truthing of airborne anomalies, geological mapping, and diamond drilling.

Exploration potential in South Dufferin is in the basement-hosted uranium mineralization within the Dufferin Lake fault and parallel faults within the Virgin Lake Shear zone.

The South Dufferin Project is now discovery-ready and "drill-ready" as several mineralized zones are observed at the northern part of the project. These prospective targets at the property warrant follow-up work.

Skyharbour also previously owned a 922-hectare claim adjacent to South Dufferin, connecting it to the project and bringing the entire project's cumulative land total to 13,204 hectares (32,628 acres) over ten claims.

Denison Mines has been a large strategic shareholder of Skyharbour since 2016 and has now increased its equity position. Skyharbour previously acquired one of its flagship projects from Denison - the Moore Uranium project - which is now in the advanced stages of high-grade uranium exploration.

Catalysts: Drill, Drill, Drill

Now having 24 uranium projects under its belt, the company has a few drill programs in the pipeline for 2023 onwards:

The company earlier announced its 10,000-meter (m) drill program at its co-flagship Russell Lake project. This program is well underway, with assays pending.

Skyharbour is already planning a follow-up drill program at Russell Lake for later in 2023.

Partner Azincourt completed 3,000m drilling at East Preston Project earlier this year with assays pending.

Partner Medaro is planning to drill at the Yurchison Project later in 2023.

Recently announced option partners Tisdale Clean Energy and North Shore Energy at the South Falcon East Projects and South Falcon Projects, respectively. Skyharbour expects both companies to start drilling in the next twelve months.

"(We are) tentatively expecting a minimum of approximately 25,000 to 30,000m of combined drilling across five or six projects in the next 12  18 months - two of our core projects and three to four of our partner-funded projects," Skyharbour commented.

The Growing and High-Potential Nuclear Energy Market

The uranium industry provides the fuel for nuclear energy generation, which addresses three critical issues, including electrification, decarbonization in power generation, and energy security.

With nuclear energy being an increasingly accepted form of clean energy, the global nuclear energy industry is calling for more sources of uranium to sustain operations in order to veer away from the world's reliance on fossil fuels and, in particular, Russian natural gas.

In an interview with Resource Stock Digest, Skyharbour President and CEO Jordan Trimble said the uranium industry has experienced notable developments in recent months, which include:

Demand for uranium is soaring, with year-to-date contracted volumes already close to the 125 million pounds (lb) of contracted uranium volume in 2022.

There is progress in the United States' sanctioning of Russian uranium and nuclear fuel. The market has been anticipating this, and a bill that will ban Russian uranium from 2028 onwards is expected to be passed and implemented this year. This will have a positive impact on the Western uranium industry.

In a recent G7 summit, member nations formed a nuclear alliance to promote and foster the nuclear industry in the West, while carving out reliance on Russian nuclear fuel.

Trimble also pointed out that uranium spot prices have been rising steadily. Uranium is currently priced at US$57/lb, and has been steadily trending higher.

The Skyharbour CEO said that if uranium prices continue to move higher despite the somewhat weak global equity market conditions, this uptrend should lead to a rerate higher in uranium equities as there is a disconnect currently.

Strong Position with 24 Uranium-Rich Project Portfolio

After the acquisition of South Dufferin, Mike Fagan of Resource Stock Digest said Skyharbour is now seeking a joint venture or option partner for the advancement of the project as part of its earn-in option business model.

Fagan pointed out that amid the remarkable project portfolio and acquisitions, there is a lot of upside potential for the uranium-focused stock, which is only trading around CA$0.40 per share at present. Skyharbour will benefit from the bright prospects in the uranium sector once the prices of uranium-focused equities follow suit with the uptrend in uranium prices.

Fagan also mentioned Skyharbour's attractive fund flows. The company has option agreements with partners amounting to CA$38 million in partner-funded exploration expenditures, over CA$28 million potential share issuance, and just over CA$20 million in potential cash payments coming to Skyharbour from partners, assuming the company's partners earn the full amount at their respective projects.

"Speculators can anticipate a steady stream of news flow over the coming quarters (for Skyharbour), including forthcoming assays from Russell Lake and East Preston," he added.

At the end of last year, Capital Cube noted in a research report that Skyharbour has a "strong capital position," which is greater than the operating expenses in the past four quarters of 2022, with cash that is 7.48 times the operating expenses."

The company can maintain strong financials with its hybrid model of signing earn-in option agreements with partners, which can help finance exploration activities at the company's core projects without as much equity dilution

Ownership and Share Structure

Management and insiders own over 5% of the company. CEO and President Jordan P. Trimble owns 1.7%, with 2.75 million shares.

Institutional investors include Alps Advisors, Inc. which owns 5.81% with 8.92 million shares, while Mirae Asset Global Investments owns 4.18% with 6.42 million shares. Exchange Traded Concepts, LLC owns 2.76% with 4.24 million shares. MMCAP Asset Management holds 2.38% with 3.66 million shares, while Incrementum AG also owns 1.51% with 2.32 million shares. Sprott Asset Management LP has 0.86% interest with 1.32 million shares, DWS Investment GmbH owns 0.39% with 0.60 million shares, and Vident Investment Advisory, LLC holds 0.35% with 0.53 million shares.

David Cates, the current president and CEO of Denison Mines and a Director of Skyharbour, owns 0.81% with 1.25 shares. Denison Mines Corp., Rio Tinto, and Paul Matysek, the previous founder and president and CEO of Energy Metals Corp, all represent strategic investors. Denison owns 11.4 million shares, while Rio Tinto holds 3.6 million shares.

The rest of the shares are held by retail investors and other institutional shareholders.

Skyharbour reports that it has approximately CA$5 million in the treasury, with another CA$3 million expected to come from the option partner payments scheduled in the next 12 months. The company has a monthly burn rate of CA$125,000.

According to its latest company report, Skyharbour has a market cap of CA$64 million and 161.5 million issues and outstanding shares. The shares trade in the 52-week range between CA$0.29 and CA$0.56 in a 52-week period.

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Logitech shares fell by more than 9% in early Wednesday trade following the abrupt resignation of long-standing chief executive, Bracken Darrell.

Stepping down with immediate effect, it was reported that Darrell would leave the company to pursue another opportunity, with Logitech board member, Guy Gecht stepping in as interim chief executive.

"I feel this is a good point to hand over leadership," Darrell said, adding he would remain a "customer, shareholder and fan" of the Swiss-American tech company.

Analysts were surprised by the late-night announcement after market close on Tuesday, with Michael Foeth of Swiss financial group, Vontobel saying the CEO's 'abrupt' departure "will impact investor sentiment and add near-term pressure on the shares," with Bracken being called "the face of Logitech."

The change in leadership comes after Logitech reported a 22% drop in fourth-quarter sales in May, with growing economic downturn continuing to hinder the firm from maintaining pandemic-era growth.

The firm's operating income fell by up to 70%, with earnings per share down by more than 41% in the most recent fiscal year.

Following its Q4 performance, the keyboard and accessories maker joined the running list of tech firms to announce widespread layoffs, with the company cutting around 300 of its 8,000 global employees.

Speaking to the Irish Examiner at the time, a spokesperson for Logitech confirmed the layoffs, adding that, "regrettably a number of employee roles were affected around the world, including a limited number from Ireland."

Logitech's strong presence in Cork dates back to 1988, with its Irish base now considered "a strategic centre," for the global company. Just recently, the firm moved to a new office in Mahons City Gate Plaza Two from its previous location at Cork Airport Business Park.

In 2021, the company announced the creation of 50 new jobs which would be implemented in the next three years, marking it as one of the key offices in Logitechs global footprint.
The bad old days of milk price volatility have returned, summed up by Irish co-ops paying some of the EU's highest prices from late 2021 to the autumn of 2022, but now slumping to the foot of the league table.

Meanwhile, farmers across the EU will hope that a recent market stabilisation marked the bottom of the price cycle.

In 12 months, Kerry Agribusiness, Dairygold, and Tirlan fell from 1-2-3 in the EDF-ZuivelNL International Milk Price Comparison to be the backmarkers (respectively 15th, 14th, and 13th) in April 2023.

The price comparison produced by the European Dairy Farmers and the ZuivelNL (Dutch Federation of Agriculture and Horticulture and the Dutch Dairy Organisation) shows that Irish prices fell much faster than at the other 12 milk processors whose prices are listed.

In 12 months, the three Irish prices fell from over 50 over 100kg of milk to Tirlan's 41.22, Dairygold's 40.66, and Kerry Agribusiness's 38.67. However, the average milk price of the 15 processors listed was 0.03 higher than 12 months previously.

The milk price of Capsa Food in Spain has increased from 42.84 to 54.33 in the past year. Valio in Finland now pays 53.25 compared to 43.80 in April 2022. There's an 8 increase at Sodiaal in France over 12 months and the Savencia price in Normandy, France, has gained about 2 per 100kg, while Danone in France paid about 7 more in April this year.

Lactalis in France, now the world's biggest milk processor, paid 45.10 in April, up from 42.15 a year previously. Arla Foods of Denmark paid 45.18 last April, compared to only 44.66 12 months previously.

UK dairy farmers are enjoying a 2 increase at Saputo Dairy UK (Dairy Crest). However, the FrieslandCampina (Netherlands) price fell from 47.07 to 43.11 in 12 months.

In the international section of the milk price comparison, suppliers to Emmi in Switzerland are sitting pretty, paying 69.34 in April 2023, compared to 63.87 12 months previously.

Prices are equally volatile on the other side of the world, with suppliers to Fonterra in New Zealand getting an April price of 35.26, down from 44.24 12 months previously. And the price for the United States Class 3 milk has fallen to 42.45 from 56.12.

Meanwhile, the three Irish processors have returned to their habitual pre-2021 position of propping up the list.

What are the prospects for milk price increases? According to Liam McCabe, dairy sector manager at Bord Bia, the record prices which took Irish dairy exports to new highs in 2022 were driven more by lack of supply than by demand.

Prices picked up in mid-year after reduced milk output in the first half of 2022 in the EU, New Zealand, and the US. This stemmed from farmers culling lower-producing cows in the face of rapidly escalated costs.

This trend left international buyers concerned about sourcing enough dairy commodities, and they went on a buying spree to fill their supply lines, which drove prices to unprecedented levels.

With only 7% of the world's dairy production being exported, these trends can quickly shift the balance of global supply and demand to the advantage of the five main exporting regions, the EU, New Zealand, the US, Argentina and Australia.

After mid-year, farmers tried to capitalise on the rising prices by increasing milk production. This can be done quicker in some competing regions than here in Ireland because of the grass-based system here. The increasing production shifted the balance of global supply and demand again, in the second half of 2022.

Now, according to Mr McCabe, commodity prices have fallen by 40-60% from the 2022 peak. With winter production low in Ireland, that was not reflected much in farm-level prices. But when spring production ramped up here, the slump found its way into the milk cheques.

Now input prices remain high, but milk prices have dropped off dramatically.

In 2022, input prices increased dramatically, but the milk price kept pace, setting its own records.

As the market advantage swung from exporters to buyers, China's role as the importer of about 20% of all dairy exports was a major factor.

Their imports had fallen back about 20% in 2022 as they grappled with Covid-19 lockdowns. Chinese demand has not yet recovered, but there have been green shoots in the form of some market stabilisation in recent weeks, said Mr McCabe, when interviewed for the Teagasc Let's Talk Dairy podcast. He said prices may have hit the bottom of the current cycle.

However, the summer months and holiday season are usually a quiet time for dairy markets. And how soon milk prices at the farmgate benefit from market stabilisation will depend on processors' contracts with buyers and forward selling.

Meanwhile, milk production trends will continue to influence markets. For example, the supply in New Zealand has recovered to only 0.8% behind the 2021-22 level. The EU milk supply increased by 0.6% year-on-year in the first quarter of 2023. However, with low milk prices, very positive supply trends cannot be expected to continue. In fact, dairy cow slaughtering has already picked up in the US and New Zealand.

Asked by a podcast listener where the milk price will go in the coming months, Mr McCabe said no one knows for sure, but there has been price stabilisation. "We would hope that global commodity prices have hit bottom at this point".

"As we move towards the end of the year, we would hope that prices begin to move upwards again".
The 250kg nitrates derogation will have to be fought for, farmers stressed at a recent conference in Co Cork.

Speaking at the conference, Cork dairy farmer Joe Deane said farmers feared being strangled with regulation before new science and technology has the chance to be implemented to combat the challenges facing the industry.

He said a reduction in the maximum stocking rate to 220kg under the nitrates derogation would be detrimental for farms.

Deane urged farm organisations and Government to fight hard in Europe for the retention of the nitrates derogation at 250kg, saying that farmers needed more time to continue to help to improve water quality.

There are very big changes this year with nitrates, all that will just take time to come through, Mr Deane said.

In fairness, the majority of farmers are adapting and willing to invest and make changes.

EPA report

The EPA has this week published its data on water quality in 2022, showing, overall, no significant improvement in the biological quality of rivers or lakes.

Nitrogen levels  caused mainly by agricultural use of fertilisers and manures  have increased in rivers and groundwater, and phosphorus levels, mainly from agricultural runoff and wastewater discharges, are generally stable but are still too high in many rivers and lakes.

The agency stressed action needs to be taken by the agriculture sector and Uisce Eireann to reduce the impact of both nutrients on the environment.

Time is the key piece here, ICOS chief executive TJ Flanagan told the Fine-Tuning Irish Dairy conference last week.

From talking to co-ops, the amount of chemical fertiliser that has been purchased, and therefore I assume spread, has fallen off a cliff in the last two years, he said.

The precision that has been brought to the spreading of slurry has been incredible over the last couple of years.

Theres been a huge change, but to lock us into a particular point in time [for water quality improvement] and effectively only give us one year to expect the results to manifest themselves, I think its crazy.

New working group

A newly established Agriculture Water Quality Working Group had its first meeting late last month.

Chaired by the Department of Agriculture, the working group includes representatives of the farm organisations, the agri-food industry, Teagasc, private agricultural consultants, local authorities, and officials from the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage.

The aim of the working group is to identify and commit to demonstrative actions that will facilitate the agricultural sector to contribute to improved water quality.

Following the meeting, Minister for Agriculture Charlie McConalogue highlighted that over the last decade, water quality has declined.

Agricultural pressures have contributed to this decline. The collective engagement, ambition, and commitment demonstrated by leading stakeholders from across the agri-food sector on this working group is a pivotal action that we wish to use to facilitate a reverse in recent negative water quality trends with a view to seeking to secure our nitrates derogation in the longer term, Mr McConalogue said.

Review

An interim review of the current Nitrates Action Programme is required this year.

In awarding Ireland its current nitrates derogation, the European Commission imposed conditionality around water quality trends.

Its implementing decision states that where water quality is poor, or where worsening trends occur over the period 2021-2022, the maximum livestock manure nitrogen per hectare limit must be reduced from 250kg nitrogen per hectare to 220kg nitrogen per hectare from January 2024.

Based on updated water quality data, published this week by the EPA, this review will consider the effectiveness of existing and the requirement for new measures.

The review is led by the Department of Housing, and guided by the Nitrates Expert Steering Group.

Minister McConalogue has made a commitment to preparing a case to reengage and seek flexibility on the timing of this review from the commission, with a view to giving existing measures more time to demonstrate their impact.

However, there is no guarantee that there will be any change to the commissions decision as it stands.

Impact on other sectors

ICOS chief executive Mr Flanagan also highlighted at the recent conference the impact of a reduced maximum stocking rate on other sectors.

He warned, for example, that it could decimate the tillage sector.

We need the tillage farmer, we need native grains, proteins, straw, Mr Flanagan said.

We also need a strong livestock sector as well  whos going to take our calves to beef?

The answer cant be that we force dairy farmers to take more land, drive the price of land; thats unfortunately what theyre doing at the moment.

He said that the nitrates box that regulators want to tick has taken over their viewpoint.

Forcing dairy farmers to take land that wouldve been probably low-intensity land and then bringing it into the dairy system as well, thats not good for biodiversity either, he added.

Time needed

MEP Billy Kelleher told the conference that he believes that Ireland has to keep the 250kg derogation.

If we had additional time to assess the improvements we have made in terms of slurry storage, slurry spreading, and the other mitigating factors that are now part and parcel of obligations under the derogation, then I believe it would show we can farm and that we can also improve water quality, Mr Kelleher said.

But we do need time, that is the most important factor.

He said that concerns about the impact of agriculture on the environment are now engrained in policymaking decisions in Europe.

Traditionally, agricultural policy was looked at through the prism of agriculture first and then amended to try and lessen the impact on the environment, Mr Kelleher said.

Most of the flow of legislation and policy is now put through an environmental prism first, and then agriculture is forced into it, and that has been a significant policy shift that has happened in the last 10 years.

A lot of it for good reason, but a lot of it will cause significant challenges as well.
Theatre, music, foam fun: 10 highlights to see at Cork Midsummer Festival

Cork Midsummer Festival is under way with dozens of events around the city. Here's just a selection of the highlights on offer
The prison service has warned of a revolving door for prisoners if new jail accommodation for criminals is not urgently provided.

In a submission to the Department of Justice, the Irish Prison Service (IPS) said the number of people in jail had increased by almost a quarter in the space of five years, and was only going to rise further.

And with more than 100 prisoners already sleeping on mattresses daily, it warned of increased tension and incidences of violence between inmates as well as higher potential for violent assaults on staff.

It said the so-called revolving door for prisoners could return with temporary release being offered in an unstructured manner early in sentences.

This could have a knock-on effect on public safety and undermine the administration of justice if criminals were released too early.

The IPS also warned of the potential of widespread outbreak of infectious diseases like covid-19 and tuberculosis due to overcrowding in Irish jails.

It also predicted increased levels of illegal contraband entering the system, including narcotics, mobile phones, and weapons.

It said this could lead to drug-related illness and possible death in custody as a result of overdose due to difficulties in tackling smuggling.

The submission was sent to the Department of Justice in March of this year amid growing concern about the levels of overcrowding in prisons.

A month later, Justice Minister Simon Harris confirmed 620 new prison spaces would be provided over the next five years at four different jails.

'Human rights violations'

In the detailed submission, the Irish Prison Service had also warned of the higher potential for compensation claims from prisoners.

It said this litigation could come in the form of personal injury claims from increased violence and accidents, or through cases for human rights violations.

It warned of a negative impact on prison staff, with difficulties in retaining officers, increased absenteeism, and cancellation of training or development courses.

Industrial relations issues were also possible, with prison officers being asked to work in potentially dangerous and unsafe working conditions.

The Irish Prison Service also detailed how rising Garda numbers were likely to lead to increased numbers of people in prison.

The submission said: Changing trends in the prison population have traditionally mirrored changes in the numbers of An Garda Siochana. Historical data bears out this potential correlation and it can be seen that Garda strength and prison population increase and decrease in tandem.

With up to 1,000 new gardai expected to be added to the force in the coming years, further strain on the prison system was almost inevitable.

The Irish Prison Service also said the appointment of more judges to the bench would create even more pressure.

This will lead to increased courts activity resulting in increased custodial sentences and higher levels of prison committals, said the submission.

Asked about the records, a spokesman for the Department of Justice said the Government and prison service were working together to identify short-, medium-, and long-term proposals to tackle capacity issues.

He said: The Irish Prison Service must accept all prisoners committed by the courts and as such [it] has no control over the numbers committed to custody at any given time.

The spokesman added that where numbers exceed capacity, the IPS tried to deal with it through inter-prison transfers and structured temporary release.
Eyewitness reports by journalists reporting on the "chaos" in Belfast in 1974 during the Ulster Workers Council strike featured on this years Leaving Cert history paper.

Meanwhile, poor audio quality in larger exam halls may have hampered an otherwise very accessible Junior Cycle Spanish paper.

The State exams continued on Wednesday afternoon with Leaving Cert history and Junior Cycle Spanish.

It is important to remember history students will have already submitted their research project in April, worth 20%, according to Philip Irwin, subject spokesperson with the Association of Secondary Teachers Ireland (ASTI).

A teacher at the High School in Rathgar, Dublin 6, Mr Irwin said this years paper contained a good range of questions, however, some were very challenging given their range and the time limits of the exam.

Twenty-five years on from the Good Friday Agreement, this years document question was based on the previous attempt at power-sharing in the North, the Sunningdale Agreement.

The two documents themselves that appeared were from two journalists; Robert Fisk from the Times of London and Olivia OLeary from the Irish Times. Wed often say that journalists write the first draft of history, so in that sense, they were good documents.

They were both eyewitness accounts of being in Belfast in May 1974 during the Ulster Workers Council strike which brought down the Sunningdale Agreement. The questions were good as well.

After the document questions, students were asked to answer three essay-style questions across three different topics.

This year, they are allowed through a covid concession which has continued to answer three questions from any two topics. In other words, if they saw the question suited them, they could take two from one area. Thats an advantage this year.

Ally Hesnan, Lorcan Leahy and Lisa Saughnessy from St Brigids College, Loughrea, after sitting their history paper. Picture: Hany Marzouk

In the Irish history section, a question asked students to write about how one or more of the following contributed to tensions in Ireland: the Home Rule Bill, 1912-1914; World War I; the 1918 election.

However, a question asking how well the government of Northern Ireland responded to challenges it faced during 1920 to 1945 was a very long question to try and answer, as was a question on how Cosgrave and Eamon de Valera handled Anglo-Irish relations between 1923-1945.

That was challenging to get through it.

Section three of the paper, Europe and the Wider World, included a great question on the characteristics of fascism, according to Susan Cashell, history teacher with the Institute of Education.

Many students would have anticipated and prepared for this and been relieved," she said.

For those looking to stand out from the crowd by taking the road less travelled, there was a rewarding question on France, Ms Cashell added.

While not appealing to everyone, if you had prepared that topic you really had a chance to shine. Those looking to answer on American history will have been well-served by racial inequality and the Moon landing.

This years ordinary level history paper covered a lot of the major bases with limited surprises, according to Studyclix subject spokesperson Jamie Dockery, history teacher at Tyndall College, Co Carlow.

Students will be happy to see topics such as the Sunningdale Agreement, Parnell and the Eucharistic Congress included.

Interestingly there was a good bit of commonalities between the ordinary level and higher level exam which would have benefited students in mixed-ability history classes where both levels are taught together.

Intriguingly, prominent women in Irish history such as Isabella Tod, Hanna Sheehy-Skeffington and Evie Hone made an appearance at ordinary level but not in the higher level paper.

Junior Cycle Spanish

Meanwhile, Junior Cycle Spanish was a very accessible paper, although poor audio quality on the listening test remained a problem again this year, and students may have been puzzled by the phrase osos.

This was the second year the common-level paper was examined.

Overall, from what I could see, the paper was very accessible, according to ASTI subject spokesperson David McArdle.

A teacher at De La Salle Secondary School in Dundalk, Co Louth, Mr McArdle said poor audio quality in larger exam halls again hampered the listening section of the exam, an annual issue with all language aural tests.

I listened to the listening comprehension myself and it seemed to be very clear, but when I was talking to students afterwards who were in exam halls they found it very difficult to hear it with the echoing.

This is an ongoing thing with all the languages over the last 10, 15 years.

They need to look into ways of doing the listening comprehension; they are still using CDs.

The room I was in it was very clear, it was a small room and played at a low volume but I was in contact with colleagues who were supervising in other larger centres and they found it difficult to hear the tape.

When you raise the volume up very high on the CD it gets harder to listen. There has to be another way, Im sure.

The written section of this years paper was fine, he believed, and relatively straightforward apart from the appearance of one phrase osos  bears.

Students felt the word for bears in question 12, they wouldnt have known.

Throughout the comprehensions on average were very straightforward, Mr Mc Ardle added.

Some of the students said the questions at the end were a wee bit weird, they werent questions they would have seen before. One particular one would have asked how did you celebrate your birthday last year.

It wouldnt have been in the sample papers but they should have been able to answer it if they knew their past tense correctly.

Like many of the Junior Cycle exams this year, a breakdown of each questions associated marks was not included on the paper.

Mr McArdle said: Overall, it was a very positive paper. The only advice I can give going forward is that every question needs to be given the marks.
Five people have appeared before a court in Tullamore accused of various crimes arising out of the investigation into Ashling Murphys murder.

The 23-year-old primary school teacher was killed whilst running along the Grand Canal in Tullamore on January 12, in 2022.

Jozef Puska, of Lynally Grove in Tullamore, is due to stand trial for her murder in October.

Two men and three women appeared before Tullamore District Court this morning (Wednesday, June 14) after being arrested in Dublin yesterday in connection with a separate prosecution.

Marek Puska (34), Lubomir Puska (35) and Lucia Istokova (34), whose addresses cannot be published by order of the court, are accused of failing to disclose information to gardai on a date unknown between two dates last year.

Jozefina Grundzova (33) and Viera Gazoiva (38) are both accused of impeding the apprehension or prosecution of a person.

Judge Michelle Finan made an order prohibiting the publication of their addresses.

Detective Garda Colin O'Leary told the court that when Lubomir Puska was arrested and charged he replied after caution: I understand what you said and I thank you.

Marek Puska was arrested by Detective Sergeant Caroline Lyng and she said his reply after caution was: It is out of my hands to say anything about that. Judge Finan was told the DPP had directed all five be tried by indictment and she remanded them on bail to appear in court again for service of books of evidence on July 26 next.

A Slovakian language interpreter was in court to assist the accused people.

Bail was agreed on condition they all surrender their passports or travel documents but the court was told by Sergeant James O'Sullivan that Jozefina Grundzova and Marek Puska said they had lost theirs.

Judge Finan ordered that the travel documents be surrendered by both those defendants within 72 hours and if that condition of the bail was breached, it would be open to the prosecution to apply for a revocation of bail.

They are all due back in court next month.
Historically, we locked people up in this country for all sorts of reasons, many of them spurious. At one point during the 1950s our inpatient admission rates for so-called mental health problems were so high we outstripped the Soviet Union for detaining people, followed by the US.

Coercive confinement became a socially expedient way of disposing of people who were perceived to have transgressed in some way or quite simply whose families wanted them out of the way. It was a backdoor way of managing social problems with asylums often acting as repositories for problem people.

Mental hospitals were controlled by the State so problematic admissions cannot be laid solely at the door of the Church but rather at broader societal attitudes within which diagnostic criteria for admissions were made and family decisions were made.

Sebastian Barrys novel The Secret Scripture which won the Costa award and was shortlisted for the Booker prize tells the story of Roseanne McNulty who spent 50 years in Roscommon Regional Mental Hospital having been put there by her family. It was inspired by a story Barrys mother told him of an old relative whom his grandfather once called no good. It questions the validity of those who judged Roseanne and put her away and women like her who didnt conform to strict Catholic rules.

These asylums could resemble prison-like institutions for people who hadnt broken the law.

Closed grounds away from the rest of society meant once you went in, you had limited access to the outside world and often lived a highly restricted life of tightly scheduled activities.

Locked doors, high walls, and barbed wire were part and parcel of the experience.

Hidden away, these institutions were often located in isolated geographical settings. Mortality rates were high partially through diseases such as TB or old age due to long stays, but treatment was sometimes said to be barbaric and discredited medical procedures were not uncommon.

Although we were world leaders in institutionalising people, Ireland was not alone in having institutions of this nature.

The large psychiatric institution model evolved, and many patients received good care with some psychiatric hospitals being integrated into the towns in which they were based but this form of care still resulted in patients lacking agency over what they ate, when they went to sleep, and they were cut off from family and community.

Advances in drugs and a changed philosophy that mentally ill people could be socially included in mainstream society meant that we effectively began to deinstitutionalise mental health patients.

It was recognised that institutions dehumanised and damaged mentally ill people by socially isolating them and so from the late 1980s onwards, it became government policy that large psychiatric hospitals or congregated settings would be closed or downsized. Depending on a patients needs they could be treated with outreach services or accommodated in supervised supported housing.

Relatively speaking, we became more comfortable talking about our mental health. Culturally, we got past telling children that Auntie Mary has gone away on a little holiday. And yet, a certain stigma remains around mental health disorders. Stigma usually comes from a lack of understanding and fear. Institutional stigma involves governmental policies including lower funding for mental health issues or fewer or qualitatively poorer mental health services relative to other health care.

Last Friday, it was reported in this newspaper that the Inspector of Mental Health Services Dr Susan Finnerty concluded that disability services had moved on more quickly than psychiatric services. She expressed concern about finding almost 2,000 people still living in large mental health institutions including elderly people who have lived like that for decades unable to make decisions for themselves.

When you... think of the individual people living in those congregated settings, I suppose the basic question is, would we like to live there? she said.

The HSE in Cork is reputedly planning to invest heavily in a large-scale unit for people with the highest level of mental health needs on the relatively isolated grounds of St Stephens Hospital in Glanmire, replacing existing long-stay wards.

The HSE in Cork is reputedly planning to invest heavily in a large-scale unit for people with the highest level of mental health needs on the relatively isolated grounds of St Stephens Hospital in Glanmire, replacing existing long-stay wards. Ironically, in the 1990s and early 2000s, long-stay patients of St Stephens were helped to move by the HSE to newly developed 24-hour staffed community residences in Mallow, Fermoy, and Kanturk as part of a phased process.

The North Cork HSE catchment consisting of these three towns is considered to be a model of rehabilitation mental health services. Each residence has 14 single, ensuite rooms and there is a multi-disciplinary team who have helped many people over the years transition back into their communities.

Outside of North Cork, there is no such clear pattern to the provision of services in the Cork/Kerry areas. There are, for instance, two community mental health residences in Skibbereen but none in the towns of Bantry, Clonakilty, and Kinsale within the same HSE West Cork catchment.

Any such investment in St Stephens has clear implications for community service funding. Why is this money not being invested in community residencies in big towns locating those with mental health challenges at the core of the community?

A Vision for Change published in 2006 details the HSEs comprehensive model of mental health for building and fostering positive mental health across the entire community and for providing accessible, community-based, specialist services for people with mental illness. This is the stated official HSE policy.

This community model of care also dovetails with the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. What has happened to this vision?

Has there been an official change of HSE and government policy that has not been publicly articulated?

On the face of it, this would certainly seem to be the case. Owenacurra, located in the centre of Midleton, Co Cork, is a community-based facility long regarded as transformative for the people who moved there in 1988 from Our Ladys Hospital as part of a phased process to integrate these residents into the community. Residents who successfully made this transition learned the benefits of independent living and became part of the fabric of the town.

A powerful letter in this paper from a clinical nurse manager who worked in Owenaccura for 10 years attested to the high esteem these residents [were] held in by the townspeople of Midleton". Monica Doyle outlined how many of the residents undertook Fas schemes, National Learning Network programmes, and community college courses. She cited how residents had family and friends nearby and townsfolk who [had] their best interests at heart, referring to Owenacurra as being the jewel in the crown of the Southern Health Board.

Owenacurra is due to be shut down, although patients and their families dont know why or even when. There were originally 20 residents in Owenacurra when, in 2021, the facility was earmarked for closure; there are now six residents left.

Of course, its more cost-effective to admit people who need support to large, centralised centres. The high cost of inpatient mental health care is clearly one driver behind what appears to be a change in policy but as our budgetary surplus attests to we have resources.

Local Independent councillor Liam Quaide, a HSE psychologist (he resigned from the Green Party due to a lack of support from ministerial colleagues on the Owenacurra facility), cites decisions made without due consideration or consultation by local managers, out of sync with official policy, as being another driver.

Owenacurra in Midleton is due to be shut down, although patients and their families dont know why or even when.

Who is making these decisions, and on what basis is of particular interest? Because there seems to be a broad consensus among many mental health professionals that out-of-area placements for people with severe and enduring mental health difficulties to facilities cut off from their communities have multiple adverse consequences for patients.

Psychiatric studies show that patients with the least social interaction, fewer activities to take part in, and less access to the community or outside world are more unwell. Patients benefit from richer social environments and opportunities. Social dislocation leads to discontinuity of care and functional regression.

We retain stereotypes about people with enduring mental health difficulties that they are dangerous when in fact some mentally ill people are more of a risk to themselves and of being attacked. The strongest evidence for combating stigma involves community contact with people suffering from mental health issues. We normalise what we know.

There are minimum standards we need to meet for the provision of mental health services to vulnerable citizens. The Mental Health Commissions (MHC) report published last week pointed to low standards in care planning and premises in several HSE facilities and particularly highlighted concerns around St Catherines Ward in St Finbarrs Hospital in Cork.

No doubt, there are plenty of dedicated, creative, and hard-working staff working in these facilities doing their best. However, MHC chief executive John Farrelly said, in the wake of the MHCs report being published, that a targeted, funded strategic capital investment programme is urgently required now in our public [mental health] system.

More generally, the provision of rehabilitation services for mental health patients is accepted to have been severely underfunded. Persistent and chronic underfunding of mental health services must mean that at some level a political decision has been taken that mental health services come way down the list of priorities. Could it be that its not a vote-catcher?

Postgraduate training in psychiatry is comparatively underfunded by the State in comparison to other specialists. Last year, a publication highlighted that hundreds more consultant posts are needed in psychiatry for the HSE to run a safe and effective service for mentally ill patients.

We saw what happened with the South Kerry Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (Camhs) scandal where hundreds of children received inappropriate, risky medication, with significant harm being done to 46 of them. The failure of Camhs to deliver a safe mental health service cannot be attributed to one unsupervised junior doctor but rather to a much wider and continuing political failure.

There are currently people trapped within the acute system of inpatient mental health care because the services are not in place for them to be discharged, which is deeply chilling.

Its doubtful we will ever have an inquiry into the excessive use of mental hospitals in Ireland, because it would involve shining a light on doctors, families, and communities that colluded in the incarceration of family members and neighbours in an extensive programme of institutionalisation. Somewhat understandably, there wouldnt be a public appetite for that.

But, as Mick Clifford wrote in this paper, prisons are currently being used as dumping grounds for people with mental health difficulties. Judges, he wrote, should be able to refer mentally ill offenders to an appropriate setting. In reality, that option does exist in this State.

The reality is that many homeless people in prisons could be bailed by the courts into the care of community psychiatric facilities if the HSE would take them. The HSE wont because mental health services are based on people having an address in the catchment area.

This is an extraordinarily callous gap and could be said to be a variation on an old theme of using mental health facilities to deal with social problems.

A pressing question, in the wake of the publication of the MHCs report, is whether we are reinstitutionalising mentally ill or vulnerable people who dont meet societal expectations, reverting to a debunked model of providing psychiatric services through centralised long-stay mental health care.

The more overarching question is whether we in fact have any coherent, long-term strategy in place to reform mental health services. What seems patently clear is that the HSE and the Government have questions to answer. Will we get those answers? I wouldnt hold your breath.
The latest report card on the state of the nations well-being has been released. And it shows that we are a country doing very well indeed.

The Understanding Life in Ireland report, born out of a Programme for Government commitment, is designed to provide an assessment of the nations progress beyond mere economic growth. The appraisal is one of positive progress across 10 of the 11 dimensions examined.

Most importantly, the Irish are very positive about how their lives are going. 45% of us rate our overall life satisfaction as very highthe highest proportion in any EU country.

We are a particularly safe country in which to live. Our murder rate is well below the European average, the proportion worrying about crime is low, and the number of people killed or injured on our roads has declined by almost 30% since 2015.

Counterintuitively, housing is an area in which the assessment is very positive. A strong increase in housing completions over the past five years is noted, along with a doubling of the share of domestic dwellings with an A or B energy rating. It also finds that the share of Irish households having to commit more than 40% of their disposable income to housing is amongst the very lowest in Europe.

The one dimension on which the report is unequivocal about our failings is that of the environment, climate and biodiversity. All the indicators are negative: our greenhouse gas emissions per capita are the highest in the EU, our river quality is deteriorating, our volume of waste is increasing, and the proportion of households reporting environmental problems is on the up.

A healthy natural environment is an important contributor to well-being. In failing to reduce our CO2 emissions we are impacting on the quality of life of others well beyond these shores. Equity demands greater action.

Inequality

Indeed, inequality of well-being is a major insight in the analysis. Women, single-parent households, people living alone, immigrants, unemployed people, households with lower incomes, those in rented accommodation, and people with long-term illness or disability all experience inequality of well-being across the range of indicators.

This is particularly concentrated in the areas of housing, and income and wealth. There is a very large difference in the proportion of households paying over 40% of income on housing, for example. Less than 1% of households who own their home experience this overburden, but more than 10% of households renting at market price do.

Income inequality in Ireland is low by international standards and has been on a downward trajectory for the past couple of decades. Nevertheless, single-parent households have low disposable income and very low net wealth. They, alongside households with children and single people of retirement age, are most likely to have difficulty making ends meet.

Opportunity

We now have an historic opportunity to make a step-change in addressing well-being inequality. The anticipated corporate tax surplus of 65 billion over the next four years provides government with the resources to make significant inroads across multiple domains.

Increased social supports can further reduce income inequality. Greater support for childcare provision will enable single parents and women to enter the workforce in greater numbers and increase their household incomes.

Lifelong learning is essential for reskilling and upskilling. Providing greater accessibility for adults with low levels of education, women, and people with disabilities empowers them to seize new opportunities that will arise at this time of full employment.

Read More Dr Catherine Conlon: Standing up for middle Ireland leaves the most vulnerable behind

The provision of affordable housing can be accelerated. And investment in our green transition will deliver both an environmental benefit and will future-proof our economic development.

We are fortunate to live in a country that is focused on improving its citizens' well-being. The evidence is that it has done so to good effect in recent decades: we have never been healthier, wealthier, better educated, or happier.

But the job is never done. Deploying our tax windfall wisely will enable us to further reduce well-being inequality and to make Ireland a happier place to live for all.
The number of people who have had to flee their homes because of conflict, persecution or human rights violations has reached 110 million, according to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).

The war in Sudan, which has displaced nearly two million people since April is the latest in a list of crises that has led to the record-breaking figure.

Its quite an indictment on the state of our world, refugee agency head Filippo Grandi said ahead of the publication on Wednesday of the UNHCR Global Trends Report for 2022.

Last year, an additional 19 million people were forcibly displaced  including more than 11 million who fled Russias invasion of Ukraine in what became the fastest and largest displacement of people since the Second World War.

We are constantly confronted with emergencies. Very few make our headlines,  Mr Grandi said, the agency recording 35 emergencies last year, three to four times more than in previous years.

Ukrainian refugees play with frisbees as they wait in front of a gymnasium in Tijuana, Mexico. (Gregory Bull AP)

Mr Grandi said the war in Sudan fell off most front pages after Western citizens were evacuated.

Conflicts in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia and Myanmar were responsible for displacing more than one million people within each country in 2022.

The majority of the displaced globally have sought refuge within their nations borders.

One-third of them  35 million  have fled to other countries, making them refugees, according to the UNHCR report.

Most refugees are hosted by low to middle-income countries in Asia and Africa, not rich countries in Europe or North America, Mr Grandi said.

Turkey hosts the most refugees with 3.8 million people, mostly Syrians who fled the civil war, followed by Iran with 3.4 million refugees, mostly Afghans.

An evacuee from Sudan, sits in a shuttle bus after arriving with a British military transport aircraft at Larnaca airport, Cyprus (Petros Karadjias, AP)

There are more than 5.7 million Ukrainian refugees scattered across countries in Europe and beyond.

The number of stateless people has also risen in 2022 to 4.4 million, according to UNHCR data, but this is believed to be an underestimate.

Regarding asylum claims, the US was the country to receive the most new applications in 2022 with 730,400 claims. Its also the nation with the largest backlog in its asylum system, Mr Grandi said.

One of the things that needs to be done is reforming that asylum system so that it becomes more rapid, more efficient, he said.

The United States, Spain and Canada recently announced plans to create asylum processing centres in Latin America with the goal of reducing the number of people who trek their way north to the Mexico-US border.

As the number of asylum-seekers grows, so have the challenges facing them.

In this photo provided by the Spanish Defence Ministry passengers from Sudan disembark from a Spanish Air Force aircraft at Torrejon Air Base in Madrid (Spanish Defence Ministry via AP, File)

We see pushbacks. We see tougher and tougher immigration or refugee admission rules. We see in many countries the criminalization of immigrants and refugees, blaming them for everything that has happened, Mr Grandi said.

Last week European leaders renewed financial promises to North African nations in the hopes of stemming migration across the Mediterranean while the British government insists on a so-far failed plan to ship asylum-seekers to Rwanda, something UNHCR is opposed to.

But there were also some wins, Mr Grandi said, pointing to what he described as a positive sign in the European Unions negotiations for a new migration and asylum pact, despite criticism from human rights groups.

Mr Grandi also celebrated the fact that the number of refugees resettled in 2022 doubled to 114,000 from the previous year. But he admitted this was still a drop in the ocean.
European Union regulators have ordered technology giant Google to sell off some of its lucrative digital advertising business in order to address competition concerns.

The European Commission, the blocs executive branch and top competition enforcer, said its preliminary view after an investigation is that only the mandatory divestment by Google of part of its services will satisfy its concerns.

The 27-nation EU has led the global movement to crack down on big tech companies but it has previously relied on issuing blockbuster fines, including three penalties for Google worth billion of euros.

We take issue with Google favouring its own online display advertising technology services to the detriment of competing providers of advertising technology services, advertisers and online publishers.



Our preliminary view is that Google may have breached EU antitrust rules by pic.twitter.com/rhuTC4fU80  European Commission (@EU_Commission) June 14, 2023

It is the first time the bloc has ordered a tech giant to split up key parts of its business.

Google can now defend itself by making its case before the commission issues its final decision.

The company did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The commissions decision stems from a formal investigation that it opened in June 2021, looking into whether Google violated the blocs competition rules by favouring its own online display advertising technology services at the expense of rival publishers, advertisers and advertising technology services.

YouTube was one focus of the commissions investigation, which looked into whether Google was using the video-sharing sites dominant position to favour its own ad-buying services by imposing restrictions on rivals.

Googles ad tech business is also under investigation by Britains competition watchdog and faces litigation in the US.

We are sending a Statement of Objections to Google over abusive practices in online advertising technology.



Press conference by Vice-President @vestager https://t.co/NqbRnoIEAD  European Commission (@EU_Commission) June 14, 2023

Brussels has previously hit Google with more than 8 billion euros (6.9 billion) worth of fines in three separate competition cases, involving its Android mobile operating system and shopping and search advertising services.

The company is appealing against all three penalties.

An EU court last year slightly reduced the Android penalty to 4.125 million euros (3.539 million).

EU regulators have the power to impose penalties worth up to 10% of a companys annual revenue.
Former Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi was honoured with a state funeral in Milan on Wednesday, a day of national mourning, as his legacy  positive or negative  was being hotly debated among the people.

A crowd of tens of thousands of people erupted in applause as his flower-draped coffin was taken out of the hearse and carried into the citys Duomo cathedral.

His children and companion wept as the coffin was placed in front of the altar.

Silvio Berlusconis brother Paolo Berlusconi, right, and children Barbara, second from right, Pier Silvio, and Eleonora, left, wait for his coffin to arrive at Milans cathedral (Antonio Calanni/AP)

Most Italians identify Mr Berlusconi, a media mogul, football entrepreneur as well as three-time former premier, as the most influential figure in Italy over recent decades.

But they remain sharply divided on whether his influence was for the better or worse, extending to whether he merits all the fuss and ceremony.

Mr Berlusconi died on Monday at the age of 86 in a Milan hospital where he was being treated for chronic leukaemia.

His family held a private wake on Tuesday at one of his villas near Milan, the city where he made his billions as the head of a media empire before entering politics in 1994.

A crowd of tens of thousands of people erupted in applause as Silvio Berlusconis coffin was taken out of the hearse and carried into Milans cathedral (Stefano Porta/LaPresse/AP)

Political opponents are questioning not only the decisions of Prime Minister Giorgia Melonis government to hold a state funeral  an honour that can be afforded all former premiers  but to also declare a national day of mourning, which is more rarely invoked.

In the case of the latter, flags were flown at half-mast and all political events not involving charity were put on hold, but it was otherwise business as usual.

Berlusconi split Italy, he insulted adversaries for 30 years, he criminalised the magistrates and he didnt recognize laws. What are we talking about? journalist Marco Travaglio, a long-time Berlusconi critic and co-founder of the il Fatto Quotidiano daily, told private La7 TV on Tuesday.

Nevertheless, thousands of Italians filled the piazza outside Milans Duomo to follow the funeral on two giant video screens while carabinieri in full ceremonial regalia stood guard, surrounded by floral wreaths.

Family members, political allies and opponents sat in the pews inside.

Silvio Berlusconis coffin is followed by, from left, his daughter Barbara, partner Marta Fascina, son Pier Silvio, and daughter Marina (Luca Bruno/AP)

Hungarian President Viktor Orban and Qatars ruling emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, were among the highest-ranking foreign dignitaries attending.

Ms Meloni, who got her first government experience as a minister in a Berlusconi coalition, also attended, along with League leader Matteo Salvini, whose party has long been allied with Mr Berlusconis Forza Italia party.

Opposition politicians were also on hand in a show of respect for a political figure with whom many had sparred.

Barbara Cacellari, a Forza Italia councillor and one-time candidate for the European Parliament, said protests over how to officially mark Mr Berlusconis death showed a lack of respect.

The person must be respected per se. He is a person who represents the history of this country, she said outside the cathedral, adding: No-one is without stains, I think.

Mr Berlusconi is widely recognised as a precursor to the type of populist politics that would later take Donald Trump to power in the United States, both using their high profile as businessmen to springboard into the political arena, upending politics as usual along the way.

People wave a Forza Italia party flag in front of Milans Gothic Cathedral, ahead of Silvio Berlusconis state funeral (Stefano Porta/LaPresse/AP)

Supporters of Mr Berlusconis legacy cite his success in unifying the Italian centre-right after the collapse of the post-war political landscape with the 1990s Clean Hands corruption scandal.

They also see his times as leader as periods of stabilisation, after years of quickly rotating governments, while admiring his bold rule-breaking and irreverence, perhaps especially in the face of other global leaders.

His detractors list of political damage is long, including conflicts of interest relating to his media empire, dozens of trials mostly for business dealings, revelations of sex-fuelled bunga-bunga parties at his villa near Milan, and questionable associations, including his enduring friendship with Russian leader Vladimir Putin.

He is not a leader who helped us grow, said Beppe Severgnini, a long-time foreign correspondent and writer for Corriere della Sera. He tapped all of our weaknesses: moral, fiscal, sexual, everything.
Exactly one month after Cyclone Mocha ripped through northwestern Myanmar, towns and villages across the hardest-hit Rakhine State are still in dire need of food, supplies, shelter and assistance.

Their suffering deepened this week when the countrys military regime suspended humanitarian access, in what the United Nations called yet another devastating setback for more than a million people.

Cyclone Mocha slammed into Rakhine on May 14, killing at least 148 people and destroying homes, livelihoods, farmland, power lines and infrastructure across the north of the state. Neighboring Chin State and Magwe and Sagaing regions were also badly hit.

In the Rakhine State capital of Sittwe, electricity supplies are not yet fully restored and residents are expressing growing frustration over the blackout.

We have now been without electricity for one month. We are having to spend extra money to recharge our phones. The power outage also deprives us of water [via pumps], a resident of Sittwes Min Gan Ward 10 said.

Meanwhile, schools across Sittwe Township are still undergoing repairs, forcing students to take classes in temporary shelters, according to local sources.

The picture is even bleaker in storm-hit rural pockets of the state.

Communities in remote and impoverished areas are in urgent need of humanitarian assistance and supplies after losing homes and livelihoods to the cyclone, according to local volunteers.

Thura, a Rakhine resident and leader of a local volunteer group, said villagers across Rathedaung Township are in desperate need of materials to repair their houses. He said many houses were still roofless when he visited villages last week.

Most of the rural communities are poor and it will be difficult for them to recover on their own, he commented.

An ethnic Kahmee farmer from Maung Nha Ma village in Mrauk-U Township further inland said it would take up to three years for poor families in his village to rebuild safe homes.

I will have to take out a loan to grow rice next month after spending all my savings to repair my house. At least we have a roof over our heads, but it will take two or three years to rebuild a proper house, he said.

He added that some families in the village could not afford to rebuild their homes, since a small bamboo-and-palm leaf hut costs nearly 800,000 kyat (about US$ 380).

In neighboring Ma Kyar Se village, the Mro ethnic community is pleading for donations to reconstruct the local school, worried for the education of their children.

Currently, 180 students from five villages are overflowing from the small community hall, which is being used as a makeshift classroom.

Most of us are poor and we barely get by selling bamboo shoots and vegetables, but we just want our children to receive a good education, one villager said.

The wooden school building, donated by the United Nations Development Program in 1998, was destroyed during the storm, according to villagers.

Our children could not go to school after 2019 due to clashes between junta troops and the Arakan Army. After that, schools were closed due to the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020. Now, the school has been destroyed by the storm, he explained.

According to multiple sources, thousands of people across northern Rakhine need humanitarian aid for long-term recovery, with help from the junta nowhere close to the level required.

So far, we have received two packets of instant noodles per household from the junta, plus some rice. We need more help, one villager said. Many local families were going hungry for lack of food, he added.

Local volunteer groups that have been providing urgent food supplies in the storm-hit areas said they cannot handle the situation in the long term as they rely on public donations.

We are calling for cooperation between all sides to work together for long-term recovery, a local volunteer said.

The UNs humanitarian affairs office announced last week that it has provided shelter and other relief items for 110,000 people while its food aid has reached 300,000 people in Rakhine state.

However, junta has since suspended aid access to the region, hitting rehabilitation efforts in storm-hit areas, the UN said on Tuesday.

This decision is yet another devastating setback for more than a million people whom humanitarians had planned to reach with life-saving assistance in cyclone-hit Rakhine state over the weeks and months ahead. Just when vulnerable communities need our help the most, we have been forced to stop distributions of food, drinking water, and shelter supplies, UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator Ramanathan Balakrishnan said in a statement.
Ten foreign journalists have resigned from the Foreign Correspondents Club of South Asia (FCC) based in New Delhi in protest at its presidents visit with Myanmars junta last week.

Club president Shirumalla Venkat Narayan was invited by junta newspaper Global New Light of Myanmar and met information minister Maung Maung Ohn, international cooperation minister Ko Ko Hlaing, commerce minister Aung Naing Oo and deputy foreign minister Kyaw Myo Hutu in Naypyitaw.

The Indian media reported that 10 foreign correspondents from employers including the Economist, Washington Post, Agence France Presse, Financial Times, Radio France International and ARD had resigned.

Narayans statement said he was a guest of the junta newspaper and was invited as a journalist to assess its content.

A joint letter by the members said Narayans meetings with ministers were used as propaganda by association with the FCC.

The signatories said they were shocked and embarrassed that Narayan advised a propaganda newspaper, bringing the FCC into disrepute.

Im horrified to see that the president of the FCC, to which I belong, met with representatives of the military junta in Myanmar, one of the worlds worst places for journalists, a correspondent tweeted.

Myanmar ranked 173 out of 180 countries in the latest press freedom index compiled by France-based Reporters Without Borders. Myanmar is now the second-biggest jailer of journalists after China but by far the biggest in terms of population size.
Myanmar regime troops seized a temporary camp of Chin resistance forces in an ambush near Hakha Town on Monday morning, killing three resistance fighters during the clash, according to Chin resistance forces.

Regime troops ambushed the camp at 4 a.m. on Monday, with fierce fighting lasting about two hours. Three resistance fighters were killed and some arms and ammunition were taken, a spokesperson for the Chin Defense Force-Hakha told The Irrawaddy.

We withdrew from the camp because they ambushed it with massive force. Their base camp in Hakha Town was also shelling us with heavy weapons during the clash, the spokesperson said.

Hakha is the capital of western Chin State, which has seen widespread anti-regime resistance and clashes since soon after the 2021 coup.

Several clashes occurred near Hakha over the past two weeks, after about 300 regime troops from the town launched a two-column offensive at Thee Mit Valley, about eight kilometers away. One column is trying to advance above the valley and another below it.

Combined resistance forces from the Chin National Army (CNA), Chin Defense Force-Hakha, and Chin Defense Force-Zophei are fighting regime troops. Both sides have sustained casualties in clashes over the past two week.

The junta has sent reinforcements from Sagaings Kalay Township to Hakha and helicopters patrols have become frequent due to heavy casualties during clashes with Chin resistance forces, the spokesperson of Chin Defense Force-Hakha said.

CNA spokesperson Salai Htet Ni said Chin resistance forces responded to the regimes ambush with a drone attack on Monday, but it could not verify regime casualties due to bad weather.

There are clashes every day, Salai Htet Ni told The Irrawaddy. Three or four resistance fighters were injured during clashes on Tuesday.

More clashes erupted near Thee Mit Valley on Wednesday morning but no casualty reports had been received, he said.

Regime troops are trying to seize the CNA headquarters in Thantlang Township, while the CNA said it is preparing to crush the two junta military columns.

Chin resistance forces have stalled both columns at Thee Mit Valley, the CAN said.

More than 50 regime troops have been killed and another 20 wounded in clashes at Thee Mit Valley, according to the CNA. More than a dozen Chin resistance fighters have been killed and over a dozen more wounded, it said.

The Chin National Front, a Chin nationalist political organization, barred entry to people from outside the state after the Myanmar military started using civilian public transport vehicles to move troops into Chin State.
Ninety-three members of the National League for Democracy (NLD) have died at the hands of Myanmar military junta and 1,200 others remain under detention, the NLD said in a statement on Tuesday.

As of May more than 3,800 people have been killed by the regime since the 2021 coup, according to the NLDs human rights violation documentation group.

Ninety-three of them were NLD members, including two MPs, it said.

Seventy-seven of the 1,200 NLD party members who remain behind bars are lawmakers, the statement said.

As of May, the regime had confiscated the property of 625 people, 333 of whom are NLD party members, including 171 lawmakers, since the coup.

The regime destroyed NLD offices across the country, including the party headquarters in Yangon, and seized its property nationwide, according to the statement.

Myanmars military seized power from the democratically elected NLD government in a coup on February 1, 2021, citing alleged fraud in the 2020 general election. It dissolved the party on March 28, 2023.

Party leader Daw Aung San Suu Kyi faces a total of 33 years in prison. She is being held in Naypyitaw Prison.

The regime has also destroyed or damaged nearly 54,000 houses since the putsch, according to the NLDs human rights violations documentation group.

Data for Myanmar, a group documenting the juntas atrocities, said that more than 70,000 houses had been torched by the regime as of May 31.

Assistance Association for Political Prisoners said at least 3,659 people were killed and more than 23,000 more were arrested since the coup.

The NLD urged the international community, including the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, to take strong action against the junta in line with international laws.
Combined forces of the Karenni Army (KA), Karenni Nationalities Defense Force (KNDF) and Peoples Defense Force (PDF) attacked and seized three junta military outposts and a police station in Kayah States Mese Township bordering Thailand on Tuesday, according to the Karenni Military Information Center (KMIC).

A combined KA and KNDF force assisted by some PDF members started launching attacks at around 5 a.m. on the Taung Hla, Mae La New and BP-14 (Border Point No. 14) military outposts of the juntas military in Mese Township and were able to seize them within just a few hours, said the KMIC, adding that they also seized arms and ammunition.

Casualties have not been confirmed for either side yet, said Khun Nyay Reh, a spokesperson for the KMIC, a common liaison office controlled by the Karenni National Progressive Party (KNPP).

He added that the combined forces seized a large haul of arms and ammunition, including two 120-mm rocket launchers. After seizing the military outposts, they entered the town and raided the townships police station.

There were only like 10 police inside the station. Ive not been informed yet how many were killed in the raid. But it is confirmed that the chief of the township police station was killed, he said.

Mese is a small town with a population of just slightly over 2,000. Since the clashes broke out on Tuesday morning, most of the residents of Mese have fled and are now taking refuge in nearby villages.

Hundreds of people are now on the Thai side of the border and are in need of assistance, said a rescue team on the ground. Some junta troops and police also abandoned their weapons and fled into Thailand.

After seizing the outposts and police station, the resistance groups remained in the town until four jet fighters of the juntas military arrived over the area at around 10 a.m., said a resident.

Two helicopters also arrived soon after the jet fighters and flew around the area but [the helicopters] didnt open fire or drop bombs, he said.

Khun Nyay Reh said two of the four jet fighters dropped at least three bombs on and outside of the town at around 10 a.m. but there had not been any word on damage or casualties yet.

The KA, KNDF and some PDF fighters still have control of the tactical hills and outposts of the juntas military. And they will continue their operation to seize other camps and outposts, he said.

In March, combined resistance groups led by the KA raided and seized a junta military outpost at BP-11 (Border Point No. 11). In that raid, three junta troops were killed, some fled the camp, and a 60-mm rocket launcher and other light firearms and ammunitions were seized.
The Myanmar junta lost a military outpost near its administrative capital Naypyitaw as well as at least 14 soldiers in three days of resistance attacks by Peoples Defense Forces (PDFs) and ethnic armed organizations (EAOs) across the country.

Junta bases and a police station were also seized by resistance forces in eastern Myanmar.

Incidents were reported in Naypyitaw, Magwe, Sagaing and Bago regions and Kayah State.

The Irrawaddy has collected the following reports of significant attacks from PDFs and EAOs.

Some military casualties could not be independently verified.

Regime base seized in juntas administrative capital Naypyitaw

Several PDF groups including the Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA), the armed wing of the Karen National Union (KNU), and the Karenni Army, the armed wing of the Karenni National Progressive Party (KNPP), reportedly seized a military base on a mountain range in Pyinmana Township, Naypyitaw on Monday, according to local media reports.

There were military casualties, and some weapons and ammunition were seized, a Naypyitaw PDF official told a local media organization.

Also, a resistance fighter suffered injuries.

Junta base, police station seized in Kayah State town

Combined Karenni resistance groups seized a police station and nearby junta base in Mese town, Mese Township, Kayah State on Tuesday, according to resistance members.

There were many military casualties and several firearms were seized from the police station in the town, according to media reports.

Rockets fired at junta artillery battalion in Sagaing

Resistance members fire makeshift rocket-bombs during an attack on a military artillery battalions base in Monywa Township on Monday. / Thapyay Nyo Guerrilla Force

Local PDF group Thapyay Nyo Guerrilla Force said it and another PDF group launched makeshift rockets at the militarys Artillery Battalion 508 near Kyauk Sit Pon Village in Monywa Township, Sagaing Region on Monday.

Four rockets hit their targets and two regime forces were injured, the PDF group claimed. After being attacked, the artillery base randomly responded with heavy explosives.

Junta base attacked in ancient Sagaing city

The 96 Soldiers PDF said it coordinated with two local resistance groups to raid a regime base in the ancient city of Han Lin in Wetlet Township, Sagaing Region on Monday.

During the clash, four soldiers were killed and two injured amid no PDF casualties.

Military checkpoints attacked in Magwe

At least nine regime forces were killed in Pakokku Township, Magwe Region on Sunday when eight resistance groups from Magwe, Mandalay and Sagaing regions jointly raided a military checkpoint in Pan Taing Village, said Daung Thway Ni Guerrilla Force (Yesagyo), which joined the attacks.

At the same time, the combined groups conducted a drone strike on another junta checkpoint in Kyauk Hlay Khar Village in the township, injuring a soldier.

Military column ambushed in Bago

Bago Region PDF said two Pyay District PDF Battalions killed a soldier and injured another when they ambushed a military detachment traveling in a forest of the Bago Yoma mountain range in Paungde Township, Bago Region on Sunday.

All PDF forces retreated from the clash site without any casualties, though regime forces responded with both firearms and heavy explosives.
Wednesday, Jun 14th, 2023 (1:54 pm) - Score 2,568

Residents in the Eden Valley (Cumbria) villages of Warcop, Sandford, Coupland Beck, Bleatarn and Ormside have been left angry after the Governments Building Digital UK (BDUK) agency, which had been due to supply gigabit vouchers to help them get a new full fibre (FTTP) network installed, put their project into limbo.

Community ISP and fibre optic builder B4RN (Broadband for the Rural North), which works with residents and local landowners to deploy a 10Gbps capable Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) broadband network into remote parts of England, was understood to be only weeks away from starting work. More than 70 landowners had already agreed to provide access for the new fibre, and residents were also set to help build the network.

NOTE: B4RN typically charges 33 per month for their 1Gbps package (plus a 60 connection fee payable over 12-months).

According to the local CW Herald, the plan was recently changed after BDUK suddenly declared that the parish was no longer a priority area and thus put the entire project into an unexpected limbo, which is roughly reminiscent of the situation in Powys (here).

Instead, it sounds like BDUK has put the area into a new procurement under their Project Gigabit programme, which means theyll have to wait and see if a commercial operator will bid to connect them. This means yet more delays and uncertainty for locals, which wastes all of the time and money that has already been put  over a period of about 9-months  into preparing the rollout.

A Spokesperson for B4RN said: We believe that BDUK have concluded that service to the community should instead be provided by a commercial supplier using the regional procurement process. This is disappointing news. We sympathise with the local volunteers in Warcop and would like to thank them for their hard work. B4RN continues to deliver its full-fibre gigabit broadband network to the hardest to reach rural communities.

The mention of the communities being in a priority area is interesting, since it suggests that they may have previously been designated as a Voucher Priority Area by BDUK, which is normally used to avoid voucher projects stalling when clashing with a wider Project Gigabit procurement. BDUK would otherwise pause voucher schemes for a time in order to avoid duplicating public investment, since both programmes focus on the same sort of rural areas.

Quite why the priority status was removed is thus unclear (assuming thats actually what happened and not a misinterpretation by the CW Herald), since that would typically defeat the purpose of applying it in the first place. But we have contacted BDUK in the hope of gaining some much-needed clarification.

The original article also appears to suggest that the change impacted the entire project for Warcop, Sandford, Coupland Beck, Bleatarn and Ormside, while the official comments only seem to mention Warcop. Clearly, some key context may be missing.

UPDATE 4:25pm

Weve had a comment from the government, although it doesnt provide any clear clarification on the details of this specific case.

A government spokesperson said: Through the governments 5 billion Project Gigabit programme, we are investing more than 100 million in Cumbria to connect people to lightning-fast broadband. The first premises are already connected and benefitting from access to gigabit-capable, reliable internet access. Local people who are covered by the Project Gigabit contract will be able to choose from multiple service providers once installation is complete, with rollout anticipated at broadly the same pace as other schemes.

Elsewhere, we have managed to get some clarifications from other sources. Firstly, the reason B4RNs comment only mentions Warcop is because thats also how they reference the overall project, which does indeed include the other communities (i.e. its not only an issue for the Warcop community).

Weve also had it confirmed that the whole community was indeed in a voucher priority area (VPA), until BDUK took the decision to remove the community from the VPA and place it into the initial scope of the regional supplier, and so a B4RN project using the voucher scheme is no longer viable.

At present none of those in B4RN or the community itself know the justification for this decision, but we recall that BDUKs assessments are typically based on pace, coverage and value. Interestingly, the VPA was in the deferred scope of the Regional Suppler (type B) procurement in Cumbria, which was won by Fibrus all the way back in November 2022 (here).

In other words, that area will now be moved into the initial scope of that procurement. This seems like a very poor way to be treating voucher projects.
Wednesday, Jun 14th, 2023 (10:44 am) - Score 312

Network builder and UK ISP Zzoomm has today announced that the first customers in the Worcestershire (England) town and civil parish of Bewdley are now able to connect to their new gigabit-capable Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) infrastructure, although the same area is also being targetted by Openreach and FullFibre Limited.

The operator, which aspires to cover 1 million premises across 85 UK towns by the end of 2025 (mostly in Berkshire, Oxfordshire, Herefordshire, Yorkshire, Staffordshire, Wiltshire, West Yorkshire and Cheshire), states that theyve invested 4m from their funding pot to build the new network in Bewdley and aim to cover around 5,000 properties in the area.

NOTE: 100m from 100m debt facility via an international banking consortium ( Zzoomm is fuelled by an equity investment offrom Oaktree Capital here ) and adebt facility via an international banking consortium ( here ).

Customers who take the residential service typically pay from 29.95 per month for an unlimited 150Mbps (symmetric speed) package on a 12-month term with an included router, which goes up to just 64.95 if you want their top 2Gbps tier (or 39.95 for 900Mbps+). Most of their packages also discount the price for the first 3 months of service.
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By Thomas A. Durkin, Loyola University Chicago and Joseph Ferguson, Loyola University Chicago | 

(The Conversation)  Lawyer Thomas A. Durkin has spent much of his career working in national security law, representing clients in a variety of national security and domestic terrorism matters. Joseph Ferguson was a national security prosecutor in the U.S. Attorneys Office for the Northern District of Illinois, where Durkin was also a prosecutor. Both teach national security law at Loyola University, Chicago. The Conversation U.S.s democracy editor, Naomi Schalit, spoke with the two attorneys about the federal indictment of former President Donald Trump on Espionage Act and other charges related to his retention of national security-related classified documents.

The word weaponized has been used by Trump, his supporters and even his GOP rivals to describe the Department of Justice. Do you see the Trump prosecution as different in any notable way from other Espionage Act prosecutions that youve worked on or observed?

Durkin: Obviously, its different because of who the defendant is. But I see it in kind of an opposite way: If Trump were anyone other than a former president, he would not have been given the luxury of a summons to appear in court. There would be a team of armed FBI agents outside his door at 6:30 in the morning, he would have been arrested and the government would be immediately moving to detain. So the idea that hes being treated differently is true  but not from the way his supporters seem to be arguing.

Ferguson: What you have is a method, manner and means of pursuing this matter and bringing it forward to indictment that actually completely comports with the deepest traditions and standards of the Department of Justice, which would normally consider all contexts and the best interests of society.

If Trump were your client, what would you advise him to do?

Durkin: The first thing I would do is show him a guidelines memo, which we typically create for every client to help them understand the potential consequences of the charges. Under the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, the consequences for Trump under this indictment are serious. My quick calculations indicate that youre talking about 51 to 63 months in the best case and in the worst case, which Im not sure would apply, 210 to 262 months.

Whether he wants to roll heavy dice, thats up to him. But those are very heavy dice.

Ferguson: I might pull media statements that he has made in the last couple years and explain to him how they have complicated the ability to defend him. Id put on the table to him that I need to see every statement that he is going to make in the political realm about this before he makes it. Id tell him hes otherwise basically hanging himself.

Id tell him: If you want to die in jail, keep talking. But if you want to try to figure out a way that brings about an acceptable resolution  a plea deal that opens the door to a lighter jail sentence than what the guidelines threaten and, possibly, even no jail time  you need to turn it down or at least have it screened by your lawyers.

Are there specific things he might say between now and a trial that could deepen his trouble?

Ferguson: No question about that. And people should understand that the things that he said already are being used as evidence of intent. From now on, the repetition of them constitutes new admissible evidence. Its not like, Oh, Ive already said it, so I might as well keep saying it.

That does not mean that he cannot offer the broad brush characterization, Im being wronged. This is the weaponization of law enforcement and the justice system against me, and I will be vindicated, however imprudent I might think that was. But anything that goes beyond that, and into the actual particulars, referencing the documents themselves, will just make it worse.

The Trump indictment provides extensive details of what was said and done. Do you take those as true, or as allegations that need to be proved?

Ferguson: Both. They are technically the allegations that need to be proven, but when youre speaking at that level of granularity, these are things that actually exist in proof, the proof that is to come.

The government basically raises the bar when it provides this form of granularity. The federal government is a risk-averse enterprise when it comes to these matters, so nothing is put in the indictment unless it exists in actual fact.

Durkin: If youre defending someone, you treat the allegations as true.

Can you imagine a situation with all of the facts laid out in this indictment but where they would not indict?

Durkin: No.

Ferguson: Thats why we both say that in fundamental respects, this isnt different from other national security cases. These cases work from the premise that this is a fundamental compromising of the interests of the United States. And those are the cases that the government pursues tooth and nail. With so much in the public domain, and with so much of the defendant himself speaking to all of this, it almost puts the government in a position of saying, Well, OK, if we have to, here we go.

Durkin: Theres only one reason the government could not bring this case, and thats fear of violence or an attack on the republic. Once you do that, then you might as well close the Department of Justice and forget about any rule of law.

Trump knows a lot of state secrets. An angry Trump in prison has risks. If he were found guilty, what does incarceration look like for him?

Durkin: I can tell you what it would mean to anyone else. Theyd be put in a hole in the wall in maximum security at Florence, Colorado, and they would apply whats called Special Administrative Measures. Several of my terrorism clients have had those imposed on them. Theres a microphone outside their solitary confinement to monitor anything that they say, even between prisoners. Their mail is extremely limited. Their telephone contact is extremely limited. And thats what would happen to anyone else similarly situated.



Photo by visuals on Unsplash

Ferguson: Trumps insistence on keeping talking about this creates a record that would justify isolation in maximum security on the basis that We cant trust this man not to continue to talk. We cant trust him not to further share these secrets with people who may wish to do harm with them. The only way to avoid that is to put him in isolation in supermax where he doesnt get to talk with people, except under these extremely closely monitored circumstances, certainly isnt in a general population situation, gets to take a walk in a courtyard for one hour out of the 24 hours of the day, and the other 23 hours, leaving him mostly without human contact.

Is there a specific line he could cross that would force the government to seek to detain him prior to trial?

Durkin: I predict that if he keeps it up, and especially if he keeps suggesting or threatening violence, that the government will be put in a position where they dont have a choice but to try to move to detain him. In the real world, thats what would happen if it was anybody but him. Normally, you cant be threatening this type of stuff without being put in detention.

Ferguson: The smart play here would be for a judge to put him under a gag order that instructs him on what he may and may not say publicly. Thats already been done by a New York judge in the other pending criminal case against Trump. This would be a complicated exercise in balancing First Amendment rights with national security interests.

Thomas A. Durkin, Distinguished Practitioner in Residence, Loyola University Chicago and Joseph Ferguson, Co-Director, National Security and Civil Rights Program, Loyola University Chicago

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
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Ann Arbor (Informed Comment)  Only three holders of the top executive offices in the country, the presidency and the vice presidency, have ever been tried in federal court. They are Aaron Burr (d. 1836), who had served as Thomas Jeffersons vice president; Spiro T. Agnew (d. 1996), who served as Tricky Dick Nixons vice president; and Donald John Trump, 77, the 45th president of the United States. Agnew pleaded no contest to cheating on his taxes as governor of Maryland and was given a suspended sentence. His case is not like the two others, which have more similarities.

Similarity

The charges against Burr, of treason, and against Trump, of mishandling classified documents under the Espionage Act, are both of the highest seriousness. Burr could have gotten the death penalty.

If convicted on all counts and if he were sentenced harshly, Trump could get a 90-year prison sentence, i.e. life.

Difference

The sitting president, Thomas Jefferson, directed the prosecution of Burr from the White House. Jefferson, who had defeated Burr in 1800 and then had to suffer four years of him as vice president, loathed Burr and wanted him hanged.

The sitting president, Joe Biden, has been hands off regarding Trumps prosecution. Not only did he leave it to the Department of Justice, which he insists is independent of him, but Attorney General Merrick Garland also declined to get personally involved, appointing Jack Smith as Special Counsel. The only role Merrick will have played was to sign off on Smith moving forward with an indictment, but apparently it was Smiths call. The process for Trump is therefore much less politicized and the sitting government much less weaponized than it had been in the case of Burr.

Similarity

Both Burr and Trump were accused of endangering national security. Burr was accused of trying to get the territories of the Louisiana Purchase to secede from the Union, and of communicating with the British minister in Philadelphia about the ways London might help in this scheme.

The Minister, Anthony Merry, wrote back to the foreign ministry in London in spring 1805, I am encouraged to report to your Lordship the substance of some secret communications which [Burr] has sought to make to me since he has been out of officeMr. Burr has mentioned to me that the inhabitants of Louisiana [the lands recently purchased from France] seem determined to render themselves independent of the United States and the execution of their design is only delayed by the difficulty of obtaining previously an assurance of protection and assistance from some foreign power.It is clear that Mr. Burr means to endeavor to be the instrument for effecting such a connection.He pointed out the great commercial advantage which his Majestys dominions in general would derive from furnishing almost exclusively (as they might through Canada and New Orleans) the inhabitants of so extensive a territory . . .



The Trial of Aaron Burr

Trump was charged under 18 US Code 793 (e): Whoever having unauthorized possession of, access to, or control over any document, writing, code book, signal book, sketch, photograph, photographic negative, blueprint, plan, map, model, instrument, appliance, or note relating to the national defense, or information relating to the national defense which information the possessor has reason to believe could be used to the injury of the United States or to the advantage of any foreign nation . . . willfully retains the same and fails to deliver it to the officer or employee of the United States entitled to receive it. Unlike Burr, Trump was not charged with conniving with a foreign enemy, but with having sensitive national security documents at home, on a stage at Mar-a-Lago, in a bathroom, and in a room near where people were gathering, thus raising the possibility that the documents could have been taken.

Difference

Burr was out of politics by the time of his adventures out west. Jeffersons party declined to run him again in 1804, and since he shot Alexander Hamilton to death in a duel, the Federalists didnt want him either.

Trump is still the head of the Republican Party and is running for president in 2024, and polls suggest that a majority of Republicans so far are sticking with him. Trumps trial thus has the potential to be much more divisive for the republic than was Burrs.

Similarity

Burr had a co-conspirator, General James Wilkinson, who was in on the conspiracy until the last minute, when he got cold feet and acted to protect New Orleans and sent a letter to Jefferson detailing the plot. Wilkinsons letter is cited by historians as the best evidence that Burr really was involved in a treasonous conspiracy.

Trump also had staff and attorneys who were involved in his retention of the top secret documents. Molly Michael, was deeply involved in all aspects of Trumps life, advisers said, sitting outside his office, connecting his calls and keeping his schedule, according to Caroline Anders at WaPo. Texts, documents and photos in the indictment indicate that Molly Michael cooperated with Smiths team, so she played a role similar to that of Wilkinson in providing smoking guns.
VANCOUVER, British Columbia, June 14, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Endeavour Silver Corp. (Endeavour or the Company) (NYSE: EXK; TSX: EDR) announces, effective today, the appointment of Greg Blaylock as the new Vice President, Operations to oversee the Companys underground mining operations in Mexico. Greg Blaylock is a senior mining executive who brings to Endeavour over 35 years hands-on experience in mining operations, mine planning and project development as well as related executive and technical expertise. Greg is fluent in both English and Spanish.

Dan Dickson, Endeavour CEO, commented, I am pleased to welcome Greg Blaylock to the Endeavour management team. Greg brings a wealth of experience in mine management and engineering. His knowledge and leadership skills should enhance our continuous focus on safety, operational efficiency, and managing costs.

Over the span of his career, Greg has worked with different commodities, both precious and base metals, in a variety of locations including Mexico, Colombia, Argentina, the United States, Africa, and Canada. His direct work experience and consulting encompasses mining and construction with notable companies, including Coeur Mining, BHP, Kinross, Newmont, Gold Fields of South Africa, and others. Greg holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Mining Engineering from University of Idaho, Moscow, Idaho, USA and a Master of Science in Engineering from the University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa.

Most recently, Greg operated a mine engineering and management consultancy whereby he provided guidance and technical recommendations for an underground silver mine in Mexico. Prior to that, he was the General Manager at Cobre Del Mayo, a Mexican Mining company that operates the Piedras Verdes (PV mine) open pit copper mine, with over 1,000 employees and contractors.

Mr. Blaylocks responsibilities will include oversight over the Companys mining operations in Mexico, particularly with regard to the safety, production and costs of each operation, including mine, plant, tailings, warehouse, purchasing, construction, engineering, capital and operating budgets, community and government relations, and environmental functions.

Endeavour also announces the departure of Nicholas Shakesby as the Vice President, Operations. Endeavour recognizes and appreciates Nicks considerable contributions to the Company since joining in 2018. During his tenure, his efforts have helped Endeavour reach a number of key operational milestones that have contributed to the Companys growth and success. The Company wishes Mr. Shakesby well in his future ventures.

About Endeavour Silver  Endeavour is a mid-tier precious metals mining company that operates two high-grade underground silver-gold mines in Mexico. Endeavour is currently advancing construction of the Terronera project and exploring its portfolio of exploration and development projects in Mexico, Chile and the United States to facilitate its goal to become a premier senior silver producer. Our philosophy of corporate social integrity creates value for all stakeholders.

For Further Information, Please Contact:



Galina Meleger, Vice President, Investor Relations

Tel: 604-640-4804

Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Website: www.edrsilver.com

Follow Endeavour Silver on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn
Grade Control Drilling in URW1 and Zone 5 Areas Returns Grades over 100 g/t Au

North Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - June 14, 2023) - Lion One Metals Limited (TSXV: LIO) (OTCQX: LOMLF) (ASX: LLO) ("Lion One" or the "Company") is pleased to report significant high-grade gold results from ongoing grade control drilling at its 100% owned Tuvatu Alkaline Gold Project in Fiji.

Assay results are presented here for grade control drilling completed on both the URW1 lode system as well as the Zone 5 area of the deposit, which encompasses the upper portion of lodes UR1, UR2, UR3, UR4, URW2, URW3, URW1A, and UR2A (Figure 1). As reported on May 18, 2023, initial mining of the URW1 lode system has already commenced and grade control drilling is being completed in advance of mining. The Zone 5 area of the deposit is scheduled for mining in early 2024 and thus the grade control drilling in this area is being conducted in anticipation of future mining, as well as to increase the knowledge of the deposit in that area. Additional high-grade intersections peripheral to both the URW1 and the Zone 5 areas are also included in this release as part of the grade control program.

Highlights of new grade control drilling:

7.14 g/t Au over 21.6 m (including 18.61 g/t Au over 5.1 m) (TGC-0042, from 73.6 m depth)

(including 18.61 g/t Au over 5.1 m) (TGC-0042, from 73.6 m depth) 52.05 g/t Au over 2.1 m (including 345.3 g/t Au over 0.3m) (TGC-0042, from 118.0 m depth)

(including 345.3 g/t Au over 0.3m) (TGC-0042, from 118.0 m depth) 23.11 g/t Au over 3.6 m (including 125.31 g/t Au over 0.3 m) (TGC-0040, from 65.4 m depth)

(including 125.31 g/t Au over 0.3 m) (TGC-0040, from 65.4 m depth) 19.43 g/t Au over 3.3 m (including 80.87 g/t Au over 0.6 m) (TGC-0051, from 49.5 m depth)

(including 80.87 g/t Au over 0.6 m) (TGC-0051, from 49.5 m depth) 21.15 g/t Au over 2.7 m (including 67.59 g/t Au over 0.6 m) (TGC-0047, from 123.3 m depth)

(including 67.59 g/t Au over 0.6 m) (TGC-0047, from 123.3 m depth) 9.39 g/t Au over 4.2 m (including 67.30 g/t Au over 0.3 m) (TGC-0050, from 26.7 m depth)

(including 67.30 g/t Au over 0.3 m) (TGC-0050, from 26.7 m depth) 10.13 g/t Au over 3.9 m (including 38.58 g/t Au over 0.6 m) (TGC-0043, from 66.3 m depth)

(including 38.58 g/t Au over 0.6 m) (TGC-0043, from 66.3 m depth) 33.99 g/t Au over 0.9 m (including 100.89 g/t Au over 0.3 m) (TGC-0045, from 62.1 m depth)

(including 100.89 g/t Au over 0.3 m) (TGC-0045, from 62.1 m depth) 78.03 g/t Au over 0.3 m (TGC-0052, from 40.2 m depth)

Grade control drilling is being conducted on 5-10 m centers and is designed to provide a much higher resolution of the lode arrays than compared to infill drilling, which is being conducted on approximately 20 m centers. This increased resolution provides a much better understanding of the geometry and mineralization of the lodes and helps to optimize mine development and extraction. The grade control drilling program is currently on schedule and the results to date confirm the local understanding of the URW1 and Zone 5 geological models.

Figure 1. Plan View of the Main Tuvatu Deposit with Reported Grade Control Drilling. Plan view image illustrating the location of the most recent grade control drillholes in relation to the Tuvatu lode system. Grade control holes are shown in black, currently modelled mineralized lodes are shown in light grey, the main decline is shown in red, and the historical exploration decline in blue. Previous grade control, infill and exploration drillholes are not shown.

URW1 Grade Control Drilling

The URW1 lode system consists of narrow, high-grade to locally bonanza-grade vein arrays and vein swarms that strike approximately N-S and dip sub-vertically to steeply east. Current modelling suggests that there are multiple separate lodes within the URW1 lode system. The first two of these lodes, URW1a and URW1b, are currently being mined. The URW1 lode system has a current strike length of approximately 300 m in the N-S direction, and a vertical extent of approximately 300 m.

A total of 52 grade control holes have been completed to date in the grade control drill program. Results from the first 36 drillholes (TGC-0001 to TGC-0036) were reported on April 25, 2023, and the next 16 drillholes (TGC-0037 to TGC-0052) are reported here. Ten of the most recent grade control drillholes targeted the URW1 area. Figure 2 shows the location of the most recent drillholes in relation to the URW1a and URW1b lodes, as well as to the main Tuvatu decline. Grade control drilling on the URW1 lode system has been conducted from underground from both the main decline and the historical exploration decline, and has been designed to target an 80 m strike section within the overall 300 m strike length of the URW1 system.

Figure 2. Plan View of URW1 Lode System. Plan view image illustrating the location of the most recent grade control holes in relation to the URW1 lode system. The URW1 lode system consists of multiple separate lodes, two of which are highlighted here; URW1a in purple and URW1b in green. The remaining URW1 lodes are shown in brown. The main decline is shown in red, the historical exploration decline in blue, and the grade control drillholes in black.

Figure 3. Long Section View of URW1 Lode System. Long section view showing recent high-grade drill intercepts of URW1 with URW1a highlighted in pink and URW1b highlighted in green. All other URW1 lodes are shown in brown. Composite intervals with grades between 3 and 10 g/t Au are shown in yellow, intervals with grades over 10 g/t Au are shown in red. Image is looking north.

Figure 4. Example URW1 Drill Core. LEFT: TGC-0040 at 67.3 m depth. Monzonite-hosted stockwork-style veining with a narrow high-grade silica vein containing coarse grained visible gold. RIGHT: TGC-0042 at 91.60 m depth. Vuggy silica vein with narrow bleached alteration halo in monzonite. Width of core is 4.76 cm in each photo.

Zone 5 Grade Control Drilling

The Zone 5 area of the Tuvatu deposit consists of the upper portion of a series of closely spaced lode systems. The lode systems targeted by the most recent grade control drilling in Zone 5 are the UR1, UR2, and URW3 lodes. These three lodes are located just east of the historical exploration decline, strike approximately N-S, and dip sub-vertically to steeply east, similar to the URW1 lodes. As currently modelled, the UR1, UR2, and URW3 lodes have vertical extents ranging from approximately 700 m to approximately 900 m, and strike lengths ranging from 300 m to 600 m. All three of the lodes are open both along strike and at depth.

A total of six Zone 5 grade control drillholes are included in this report. These are the first six grade control drillholes to target the Zone 5 area and they follow upon the initial results from an ongoing infill drill program in the area. Figure 5 shows the location of these drillholes in relation to the UR1, UR2, and URW3 lodes, as well as to the historical exploration decline. Grade control drilling in the Zone 5 area has been conducted from the historical exploration decline and has been designed to target a 60 m strike section within the overall 300 m to 600 m strike length of these lodes.

Figure 5. Zone 5 Grade Control Drilling in Relation to Targeted Zone 5 Lodes. Image shows the Zone 5 grade control holes in relation to the targeted UR1, UR2, and URW3 lodes. These lodes are slightly concave with URW3 on the inside (left side on image), closest to the exploration decline, and UR1 on the outside. UR1 is shown in pink, UR2 in green, and URW3 in blue. The historical exploration decline is shown in bright blue, and the grade control drillholes are partially visible in black within the circle.

Figure 6. Zone 5 Grade Control Intercepts. Section view facing north, showing a 60 m slice of lodes UR1, UR2, and URW3 within Zone 5. Composite intervals with grades between 3 and 10 g/t Au are shown in yellow, while intervals with grades over 10 g/t Au are shown in red and purple.

Figure 7. Examples of Zone 5 Drill Core. LEFT: UR2 lode in TGC-0049 at 35.15 m depth. Coarse grained honey sphalerite and pyrite in variable light to dark grey quartz vein with narrow potassic alteration halo. RIGHT: URW3 lode in TGC-0050 at 29.6 m depth. Abundant coarse honey sphalerite rimmed by fine grained sooty pyrite +/- galena and narrow potassic alteration halo, within a larger zone of stockwork style mineralization. Width of core is 4.76 cm in each photo.

Table 1. Highlights of composited drill results in the URW1 area. Only new grade control drilling results are included here. For previous results see news release from April 25, 2023. For full results see Table 3 in the appendix.

Hole ID From To Interval (m) Au (g/t) TGC-0039 77.4 78.3 0.9 8.37 TGC-0039 101.7 102.9 1.2 7.18 including 102.3 102.6 0.3 15.64 TGC-0040 30.3 31.5 1.2 4.7 TGC-0040 51.3 53.1 1.8 12.63 including 51.9 52.5 0.6 27.05 TGC-0040 65.4 69 3.6 23.1 including 66 66.3 0.3 85.87 and 67.2 67.5 0.3 125.31 and 68.4 68.7 0.3 13.93 and 68.7 69 0.3 46.89 TGC-0040 82.5 82.8 0.3 64.65 TGC-0041 16.8 19.8 3 1.52 TGC-0042 47.4 51 3.6 3.96 including 50.7 51 0.3 31.99 TGC-0042 52.8 54.6 1.8 11.82 including 53.7 54 0.3 64.24 TGC-0042 60 63 3 5.52 including 61.8 63 1.2 11.1 TGC-0042 64.5 66.6 2.1 7.19 including 64.5 65.1 0.6 17.34 TGC-0042 68.5 72.4 3.9 4.46 including 68.5 69.7 1.2 8.25 TGC-0042 73.6 95.2 21.6 7.14 including 76.3 78.1 1.8 7.47 and 82 92.5 10.5 12.06 which includes 83.2 83.5 0.3 19.99 and 85.9 86.2 0.3 11.88 and 88.6 88.9 0.3 19.92 and 89.5 90.1 0.6 15.26 and 90.4 91.9 1.5 42.05 which includes 90.4 91 0.6 19.98 and 91 91.3 0.3 24.93 and 91.3 91.9 0.6 72.68 TGC-0042 118 120.1 2.1 52.05 including 118.6 119.2 0.6 177.66 which includes 118.9 119.2 0.3 345.34 TGC-0043 33.3 34.5 1.2 5.72 including 33.3 33.6 0.3 9.15 TGC-0043 66.3 70.2 3.9 10.13 including 66.3 68.1 1.8 19.74 which includes 66.3 66.9 0.6 38.58 and 66.9 67.5 0.6 12.69 TGC-0044 36.6 39 2.4 8.87 including 36.6 37.5 0.9 16.81 TGC-0045 62.1 63 0.9 33.99 including 62.7 63 0.3 100.89 TGC-0045 75 75.6 0.6 5.94 including 75 75.3 0.3 9.3 TGC-0047 100.5 101.4 0.9 23.16 TGC-0047 100.5 100.8 0.3 59.63 TGC-0047 102.6 107.7 5.1 1.54 TGC-0047 123.3 126 2.7 21.14 including 124.5 126 1.5 37.08 which includes 124.5 124.8 0.3 45.88 and 124.8 125.4 0.6 67.59 TGC-0051 16.2 19.2 3 10.15 including 16.8 17.4 0.6 19.15 and 18 18.6 0.6 16.29 and 18.6 19.2 0.6 9.57 TGC-0051 49.5 52.8 3.3 19.43 including 49.5 50.1 0.6 8.35 and 50.1 50.7 0.6 80.87 and 51.9 52.8 0.9 8.69

Table 2. Highlights of composited drill results in the Zone 5 area. For full results see Table 4 in the appendix.

Hole ID From To Interval (m) Au (g/t) TGC-0049 29.4 35.1 5.7 4.07 including 30 32.1 2.1 9.15 which includes 30.3 30.9 0.6 16.71 and 31.2 31.8 0.6 8.88 TGC-0049 43.3 45.1 1.8 7.59 including 43.9 44.5 0.6 16.87 TGC-0050 26.7 30.9 4.2 9.39 including 27.6 30.6 3 12.78 which includes 27.9 29.7 1.8 18 which includes 29.4 29.7 0.3 67.3 TGC-0052 40.2 40.5 0.3 78.03

About Tuvatu

The Tuvatu Alkaline Gold Project is located on the island of Viti Levu in Fiji. The January 2018 mineral resource for Tuvatu as disclosed in the technical report "Technical Report and Preliminary Economic Assessment for the Tuvatu Gold Project, Republic of Fiji", dated September 25, 2020, and prepared by Mining Associates Pty Ltd of Brisbane Qld, comprises 1,007,000 tonnes indicated at 8.50 g/t Au (274,600 oz. Au) and 1,325,000 tonnes inferred at 9.0 g/t Au (384,000 oz. Au) at a cut-off grade of 3.0 g/t Au. The technical report is available on the Lion One website at www.liononemetals.com and on the SEDAR website at www.sedar.com.

Qualified Person

In accordance with National Instrument 43-101 - Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects ("NI 43-101"), Sergio Cattalani, P.Geo, Senior Vice President Exploration, is the Qualified Person for the Company and has reviewed and is responsible for the technical and scientific content of this news release.

QAQC Procedures

Lion One adheres to rigorous QAQC procedures above and beyond basic regulatory guidelines in conducting its sampling, drilling, testing, and analyses. The Company utilizes its own fleet of diamond drill rigs, using PQ, HQ and NQ sized drill core rods. Drill core is logged and split by Lion One personnel on site. Samples are delivered to and analyzed at the Company's geochemical and metallurgical laboratory in Fiji. Duplicates of all samples with grades above 0.5 g/t Au are both re-assayed at Lion One's lab and delivered to ALS Global Laboratories in Australia (ALS) for check assay determinations. All samples for all high-grade intercepts are sent to ALS for check assays. All samples are pulverized to 85% passing through 75 microns. Gold analysis is carried out using fire assay with an AA finish. Samples that have returned grades greater than 10.00 g/t Au are then re-analyzed by gravimetric method. For samples that return greater than 0.50 g/t Au, repeat fire assay runs are carried out and repeated until a result is obtained that is within 10% of the original fire assay run. Lion One's laboratory can also assay for a range of 71 other elements through Inductively Coupled Plasma Optical Emission Spectrometry (ICP-OES), but currently focuses on a suite of 9 important pathfinder elements. All duplicate anomalous samples are sent to ALS labs in Townsville QLD and are analyzed by the same methods (Au-AA26, and Au-GRA22 where applicable). ALS also analyses 33 pathfinder elements by HF-HNO3-HClO4 acid digestion, HCl leach and ICP-AES (method ME-ICP61).

About Lion One Metals Limited

Lion One's flagship asset is 100% owned, fully permitted high grade Tuvatu Alkaline Gold Project, located on the island of Viti Levu in Fiji. Lion One envisions a low-cost high-grade underground gold mining operation at Tuvatu coupled with exciting exploration upside inside its tenements covering the entire Navilawa Caldera, an underexplored yet highly prospective 7km diameter alkaline gold system. Lion One's CEO Walter Berukoff leads an experienced team of explorers and mine builders and has owned or operated over 20 mines in 7 countries. As the founder and former CEO of Miramar Mines, Northern Orion, and La Mancha Resources, Walter is credited with building over $3 billion of value for shareholders.

On behalf of the Board of Directors of Lion One Metals Limited

"Walter Berukoff", Chairman and CEO

Contact Investor Relations

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This press release may contain statements that may be deemed to be "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, included herein are forward-looking information. Generally, forward-looking information may be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "plans", "expects" or "does not expect", "proposed", "is expected", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates" or "does not anticipate", or "believes", or variations of such words and phrases, or by the use of words or phrases which state that certain actions, events or results may, could, would, or might occur or be achieved. This forward-looking information reflects Lion One Metals Limited's current beliefs and is based on information currently available to Lion One Metals Limited and on assumptions Lion One Metals Limited believes are reasonable. These assumptions include, but are not limited to, the actual results of exploration projects being equivalent to or better than estimated results in technical reports, assessment reports, and other geological reports or prior exploration results. Forward-looking information is subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, level of activity, performance or achievements of Lion One Metals Limited or its subsidiaries to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking information. Such risks and other factors may include, but are not limited to: the stage development of Lion One Metals Limited, general business, economic, competitive, political and social uncertainties; the actual results of current research and development or operational activities; competition; uncertainty as to patent applications and intellectual property rights; product liability and lack of insurance; delay or failure to receive board or regulatory approvals; changes in legislation, including environmental legislation, affecting mining, timing and availability of external financing on acceptable terms; not realizing on the potential benefits of technology; conclusions of economic evaluations; and lack of qualified, skilled labour or loss of key individuals. Although Lion One Metals Limited has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. Lion One Metals Limited does not undertake to update any forward-looking information, except in accordance with applicable securities laws.

Appendix 1: Full Drill Results and Collar Information

Table 3. Composited results from grade control drillholes in the URW1 area (grade >0.5 g/t Au)

Hole ID From To Interval (m) Au (g/t) TGC-0039 77.4 78.3 0.9 8.37 TGC-0039 86.1 87 0.9 1.1 TGC-0039 101.7 102.9 1.2 7.18 TGC-0039 including 102.3 102.6 0.3 15.64 TGC-0039 106.5 107.1 0.6 0.99 TGC-0039 112.5 113.1 0.6 1.09 TGC-0039 117.3 117.6 0.3 5.86 TGC-0040 10.8 12.3 1.5 2.05 TGC-0040 30.3 31.5 1.2 4.7 TGC-0040 49.8 50.1 0.3 0.85 TGC-0040 51.3 53.1 1.8 12.63 TGC-0040 including 51.9 52.5 0.6 27.05 TGC-0040 56.1 56.7 0.6 1.44 TGC-0040 65.4 69 3.6 23.1 TGC-0040 including 66 66.3 0.3 85.87 TGC-0040 and 67.2 67.5 0.3 125.31 TGC-0040 and 68.4 68.7 0.3 13.93 TGC-0040 and 68.7 69 0.3 46.89 TGC-0040 82.5 82.8 0.3 64.65 TGC-0040 85.5 87 1.5 2.47 TGC-0040 90.9 91.2 0.3 4.66 TGC-0041 16.8 19.8 3 1.52 TGC-0041 51.9 52.8 0.9 0.82 TGC-0042 24 25.2 1.2 0.92 TGC-0042 39 39.6 0.6 1.94 TGC-0042 47.4 51 3.6 3.96 TGC-0042 including 50.7 51 0.3 31.99 TGC-0042 52.8 54.6 1.8 11.82 TGC-0042 including 53.7 54 0.3 64.24 TGC-0042 56.1 57.3 1.2 2.32 TGC-0042 60 63 3 5.52 TGC-0042 including 61.8 63 1.2 11.1 TGC-0042 64.5 66.6 2.1 7.19 TGC-0042 including 64.5 65.1 0.6 17.34 TGC-0042 68.5 72.4 3.9 4.46 TGC-0042 including 68.5 69.7 1.2 8.25 TGC-0042 73.6 95.2 21.6 7.14 TGC-0042 including 76.3 78.1 1.8 7.47 TGC-0042 and 82 92.5 10.5 12.06 TGC-0042 which includes 83.2 83.5 0.3 19.99 TGC-0042 and 85.9 86.2 0.3 11.88 TGC-0042 and 88.6 88.9 0.3 19.92 TGC-0042 and 89.5 90.1 0.6 15.26 TGC-0042 and 90.4 91.9 1.5 42.05 TGC-0042 which includes 90.4 91 0.6 19.98 TGC-0042 and 91 91.3 0.3 24.93 TGC-0042 and 91.3 91.9 0.6 72.68 TGC-0042 97.6 99.7 2.1 0.96 TGC-0042 110.8 112.3 1.5 2.49 TGC-0042 118 120.1 2.1 52.05 TGC-0042 including 118.6 119.2 0.6 177.66 TGC-0042 which includes 118.9 119.2 0.3 345.34 TGC-0042 122.5 122.8 0.3 0.61 TGC-0042 124 124.6 0.6 2.88 TGC-0043 33.3 34.5 1.2 5.72 TGC-0043 including 33.3 33.6 0.3 9.15 TGC-0043 66.3 70.2 3.9 10.13 TGC-0043 including 66.3 68.1 1.8 19.74 TGC-0043 which includes 66.3 66.9 0.6 38.58 TGC-0043 and 66.9 67.5 0.6 12.69 TGC-0043 84 85.5 1.5 1.02 TGC-0044 1.8 2.7 0.9 2.37 TGC-0044 36.6 39 2.4 8.87 TGC-0044 including 36.6 37.5 0.9 16.81 TGC-0044 40 40.3 0.3 1.19 TGC-0044 47.6 47.9 0.3 0.57 TGC-0044 64.4 65.3 0.9 1.3 TGC-0044 74 74.6 0.6 1.02 TGC-0044 76.1 76.4 0.3 0.94 TGC-0044 80 80.3 0.3 0.66 TGC-0045 3.3 4.5 1.2 1.48 TGC-0045 39.3 39.6 0.3 1.2 TGC-0045 44.1 44.7 0.6 1.78 TGC-0045 57.9 58.8 0.9 2.74 TGC-0045 62.1 63 0.9 33.99 TGC-0045 including 62.7 63 0.3 100.89 TGC-0045 67.8 68.7 0.9 2.47 TGC-0045 75 75.6 0.6 5.94 TGC-0045 including 75 75.3 0.3 9.3 TGC-0045 82.5 83.1 0.6 1.09 TGC-0045 86.1 88.5 2.4 1.33 TGC-0045 93.3 94.2 0.9 2.29 TGC-0045 105.6 105.9 0.3 0.87 TGC-0047 4.8 5.4 0.6 2.55 TGC-0047 41.7 44.4 2.7 1.41 TGC-0047 48.6 49.2 0.6 1.12 TGC-0047 53.1 54 0.9 1.83 TGC-0047 61.5 61.8 0.3 0.67 TGC-0047 69.9 70.2 0.3 2.68 TGC-0047 72.3 73.8 1.5 0.94 TGC-0047 77.7 78.6 0.9 2.71 TGC-0047 81 81.9 0.9 1.44 TGC-0047 84.3 84.9 0.6 0.89 TGC-0047 91.5 91.8 0.3 0.56 TGC-0047 96 96.6 0.6 2.8 TGC-0047 98.4 98.7 0.3 0.61 TGC-0047 100.5 101.4 0.9 23.16 TGC-0047 100.5 100.8 0.3 59.63 TGC-0047 102.6 107.7 5.1 1.54 TGC-0047 110.4 111 0.6 1.08 TGC-0047 113.1 114.9 1.8 0.94 TGC-0047 123.3 126 2.7 21.14 TGC-0047 including 124.5 126 1.5 37.08 TGC-0047 which includes 124.5 124.8 0.3 45.88 TGC-0047 and 124.8 125.4 0.6 67.59 TGC-0047 127.2 128.4 1.2 0.99 TGC-0047 131.7 132.3 0.6 0.54 TGC-0047 134.7 138.3 3.6 1.39 TGC-0047 143.7 144.3 0.6 2.44 TGC-0051 16.2 19.2 3 10.15 TGC-0051 including 16.8 17.4 0.6 19.15 TGC-0051 and 18 18.6 0.6 16.29 TGC-0051 and 18.6 19.2 0.6 9.57 TGC-0051 23.7 24.3 0.6 1.77 TGC-0051 49.5 52.8 3.3 19.43 TGC-0051 including 49.5 50.1 0.6 8.35 TGC-0051 and 50.1 50.7 0.6 80.87 TGC-0051 and 51.9 52.8 0.9 8.69

Table 4. Composited results from grade control drillholes in the Zone 5 area (grade >0.5 g/t Au)

Hole ID From To Interval (m) Au (g/t) TGC-0037 24.8 27.2 2.4 0.95 TGC-0037 29.6 29.9 0.3 0.57 TGC-0037 30.5 30.8 0.3 0.56 TGC-0038 27.5 27.8 0.3 0.53 TGC-0038 30.5 30.8 0.3 0.61 TGC-0046 21.2 21.5 0.3 3.33 TGC-0049 29.4 35.1 5.7 4.07 TGC-0049 including 30 32.1 2.1 9.15 TGC-0049 which includes 30.3 30.9 0.6 16.71 TGC-0049 and 31.2 31.8 0.6 8.88 TGC-0049 41.5 42.1 0.6 1.77 TGC-0049 43.3 45.1 1.8 7.59 TGC-0049 including 43.9 44.5 0.6 16.87 TGC-0049 47.2 47.8 0.6 0.87 TGC-0050 26.7 30.9 4.2 9.39 TGC-0050 including 27.6 30.6 3 12.78 TGC-0050 which includes 27.9 29.7 1.8 18 TGC-0050 which includes 27.9 28.2 0.3 10.04 TGC-0050 and 28.8 29.1 0.3 12.83 TGC-0050 and 29.4 29.7 0.3 67.3 TGC-0050 34.5 35.7 1.2 0.83 TGC-0052 27.3 28.8 1.5 0.77 TGC-0052 34.5 34.8 0.3 0.67 TGC-0052 40.2 40.5 0.3 78.03 TGC-0052 50.1 50.4 0.3 1.62

Table 5. Collar coordinates and dates of completion for grade control drillholes reported in this release. Coordinates are in Fiji map grid.
Highlights

Additional high-grade intersection at the Nova Zone affirming interpreted 1.1 km strike length. 95.3 m at 1.62% Li 2 O (137.3 m to 232.6 m), including 47.6 m at 2.09% Li 2 O , or 4.1 m at 4.44% Li 2 O (CV23-148).



Other significant intercepts 127.7 m at 1.78% Li 2 O (61.9 m to 189.5 m), including 50.1 m at 2.43% Li 2 O (CV23-160A). 44.2 m at 0.99% Li 2 O (221.5 m to 265.8 m), including 15.3 m at 2.58% Li 2 O (CV23-174).

Core sample assay results for 12 drill holes completed during the 2023 winter drill program remain to be reported.

The Company remains on target for a July 2023 announcement for the initial mineral resource estimate at CV5, which will include all drill holes completed through April 17, 2023 (i.e., the recently completed winter drill program).

Blair Way, Company President and CEO, comments: The final assay results for the recently completed winter drill hole program continue to come in, with 12 holes now remaining to be reported. Results continue to impress as we position for the release of our initial mineral resource estimate at CV5.

VANCOUVER, British Columbia and SYDNEY, Australia, June 14, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Patriot Battery Metals Inc. (the Company or Patriot) (TSX-V: PMET) (ASX: PMT) (OTCQX: PMETF) (FSE: R9GA) is pleased to announce core assays for the next series of drill holes completed as part of the 2023 winter drill program, which recently concluded at its wholly owned Corvette Property (the Property), located in the Eeyou Istchee James Bay region of Quebec. The winter phase of the 2023 drill campaign was focused on the CV5 Pegmatite, located approximately 13.5 km south of the regional and all-weather Trans-Taiga Road and powerline infrastructure.

Core assays, for the drill holes reported herein (Figure 1), cover the CV5 Pegmatites recently defined eastward extension (see news releases dated February 5 and March 23, 2023) (Figure 2), the high-grade Nova Zone (see news release dated May 16, 2023) (Figure 2), and the recently defined westward extension (see news release dated May 1, 2023) (Figure 3).

Drill hole CV23-148 targeted the Nova Zone and returned a wide and high-grade intercept of 95.3 m at 1.62% Li 2 O, including 47.6 m at 2.09% Li 2 O or 4.1 m at 4.44% Li 2 O. The high-grade result affirms the interpretation that the Nova Zone extends continuously over a strike length of at least 1.1 km  from drill holes CV23-132 to 108 (Figures 1 and 2).

Strong grades and widths were returned in drilling over the recently defined westward extension (Figure 3), highlighted by drill hole CV23-160A, which returned 127.7 m at 1.78% Li 2 O, including 50.1 m at 2.43% Li 2 O. Other drill holes in this area, with assays reported herein, include CV23-172 (13.2 m at 1.14% Li 2 O, and 15.7 m at 0.94% Li 2 O), CV23-182 (14.8 m at 1.06% Li 2 O), and CV23-187 (14.1 m at 1.19% Li 2 O). Additionally, drill hole CV23-174, located proximal to the westward extension, returned a strong intercept of 44.2 m at 0.99% Li 2 O, including 15.3 m at 2.58% Li 2 O.

Drill core sample assays for two (2) holes remain to be reported over the westward extension area of the CV5 Pegmatite (Figure 1). This includes a continuous 93 m interval of dominantly spodumene-bearing pegmatite in the most westerly drill hole completed through the end of the winter program (CV23-184), and a continuous 139 m interval of dominantly spodumene-bearing pegmatite in the final drill hole of the 2023 winter program (CV23-190).

Assay results for holes reported herein over the far eastern portion of CV5 (Figure 2), as is currently defined, returned variable grades and widths of lithium mineralized pegmatite. Results include 51.2 m at 0.59% Li 2 O, including 10.1 m at 0.87% Li 2 O and 9.3 m at 0.91% Li 2 O (CV23-154), and 27.5 m at 0.40% Li 2 O, including 3.2 m at 2.22% Li 2 O (CV23-156). Internal fractionation commonly leads to lower-grade pegmatite being immediately adjacent to higher-grade pegmatite. Considering the wide and continuous widths of pegmatite in these holes (CV23-154 and 156), at 49.9 m and 27.5 m, respectively, the grades returned are very encouraging with respect to the potential for additional and proximal higher-grade zones to be present. The pegmatite in this area remains open up-dip, down-dip, and along strike eastwardly.

Through the 2023 winter drill program, the CV5 Pegmatite has been traced continuously by drilling (at approximately 50 to 150 m spacing) as a principally continuous spodumene-mineralized body over a lateral distance of at least 3.7 km and remains open along strike at both ends and to depth along most of its length.

The Company remains on target for a July 2023 announcement for the initial mineral resource estimate at CV5, which will include all drill holes completed through April 17, 2023 (i.e., the recently completed winter drill program). The timing of the announcement remains dependent on timely receipt of the final outstanding core sample assays from the laboratory, as well as final database and model validation.

Core sample assay results for drill holes reported herein are presented in Table 1. Core assay results remain to be reported for twelve (12) drill holes completed during the winter program, with all drill core samples having arrived at the analytical lab (SGS). Drill holes locations are available from the Companys website as well as news release dated May 16, 2023. Select core photos are presented in Figures 4 and 5.

Figure 1: Drill holes completed at the CV5 Pegmatite through the 2023 winter drill program

Figure 2: Drill holes completed at the CV5 Pegmatite through the 2023 winter drill program  east-central, and eastern areas

Figure 3: Drill holes completed at the CV5 Pegmatite through the 2023 winter drill program western area

Table 1: Mineralized intercept summary for drill holes reported herein from the 2023 winter program

Figure 4: High-grade (~2.3% Li 2 O) spodumene pegmatite in drill hole CV23-160A

Figure 5: Massive spodumene crystals in drill hole CV23-148, including a 1.1 m interval of 6.43% Li 2 O (185.0 to 186.1 m)

Quality Assurance / Quality Control (QAQC)

A Quality Assurance / Quality Control protocol following industry best practices was incorporated into the program and included systematic insertion of quartz blanks and certified reference materials into sample batches, as well as collection of quarter-core duplicates, at a rate of approximately 5%. Additionally, analysis of pulp-split and coarse-split sample duplicates were completed to assess analytical precision at different stages of the laboratory preparation process, and external (secondary) laboratory pulp-split duplicates were prepared at the primary lab for subsequent check analysis and validation.

All core samples collected were shipped to SGS Canadas laboratory in Val-dOr, QC, for standard sample preparation (code PRP89) which includes drying at 105C, crush to 75% passing 2 mm, riffle split 250 g, and pulverize 85% passing 75 microns. The pulps were shipped by air to SGS Canadas laboratory in Burnaby, BC, where the samples were homogenized and subsequently analyzed for multi-element (including Li and Ta) using sodium peroxide fusion with ICP-AES/MS finish (codes GE_ICP91A50 and GE_IMS91A50).

About the CV Lithium Trend

The CV Lithium Trend is an emerging spodumene pegmatite district discovered by the Company in 2017 and spans more than 25-km across the Corvette Property. The core area includes an approximate 3.7 km long spodumene pegmatite (the CV5 Pegmatite) and multiple proximal secondary spodumene pegmatite lenses.

To date, six (6) distinct clusters of lithium pegmatite have been discovered across the Corvette Property  CV5 Pegmatite and associated lenses, CV4, CV8-12, CV9, CV10, and CV13. Given the proximity of some pegmatite outcrops to each other, as well as the shallow till cover in the area, it is probable that some of the outcrops may reflect a discontinuous surface exposure of a single, larger pegmatite outcrop subsurface. Further, the high number of well-mineralized pegmatites along the trend indicate a strong potential for a series of relatively closely spaced/stacked, sub-parallel, and sizable spodumene-bearing pegmatite bodies, with significant lateral and depth extent, to be present.

Qualified/Competent Person

The information in this news release that relates to exploration results for the Corvette Property is based on, and fairly represents, information compiled by Mr. Darren L. Smith, M.Sc., P.Geo., who is a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101, and member in good standing with the Ordre des Geologues du Quebec (Geologist Permit number 1968), and with the Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of Alberta (member number 87868). Mr. Smith has reviewed and approved the technical information in this news release.

Mr. Smith is Vice President of Exploration for Patriot Battery Metals Inc. and a Senior Geologist and Project Manager with Dahrouge Geological Consulting Ltd. Mr. Smith holds common shares and options in the Company.

Mr. Smith has sufficient experience, which is relevant to the style of mineralization, type of deposit under consideration, and to the activities being undertaken to qualify as a Competent Person as described by the JORC Code, 2012. Mr. Smith consents to the inclusion in this news release of the matters based on his information in the form and context in which it appears.

About Patriot Battery Metals Inc.

Patriot Battery Metals Inc. is a hard-rock lithium exploration company focused on advancing its district-scale 100% owned Corvette Property located in the Eeyou Istchee James Bay region of Quebec, Canada. The Corvette Property is one of the largest and highest-grade hard rock lithium projects being explored, with over 50 kilometres of strike length over a 214 square kilometre land package and over 70 lithium bearing pegmatite outcrops identified to date.

The Corvette Property is situated proximal to the all-weather Trans Taiga Road and Hydro-Quebec power line infrastructure in the Eeyou Istchee James Bay region of Quebec. The Property hosts significant lithium potential highlighted by the CV5 Pegmatite, which has been traced by drilling over a strike length of at least 3.7 km with spodumene pegmatite encountered as deep as 425 m vertical depth.

For further information, please contact us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or by calling +1 (604) 279-8709,or visit www.patriotbatterymetals.com. Please also refer to the Companys continuous disclosure filings, available under its profile at www.sedar.com and www.asx.com.au, for available exploration data.

This news release has been approved by the Board of Directors,

BLAIR WAY

Blair Way, President, CEO, & Director

Disclaimer for Forward-Looking Information

This news release contains forward-looking statements and other statements that are not historical facts. Forward-looking statements are often identified by terms such as will, may, should, anticipate, expects and similar expressions. All statements other than statements of historical fact, included in this news release are forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties, including without limitation statements with respect to potential continuity of pegmatite bodies, and mineral resource estimate preparation. 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 the Companys expectations include the results of further exploration and testing, and other risks detailed from time to time in the filings made by the Company with securities regulators, available at www.sedar.com and www.asx.com.au. The reader is cautioned that assumptions used in the preparation of any forward-looking information may prove to be incorrect. Events or circumstances may cause actual results to differ materially from those predicted, as a result of numerous known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors, many of which are beyond the control of the Company. The reader is cautioned not to place undue reliance on any forward-looking information. Such information, although considered reasonable by management at the time of preparation, may prove to be incorrect and actual results may differ materially from those anticipated. Forward-looking statements contained in this news release are expressly qualified by this cautionary statement. The forward-looking statements contained in this news release are made as of the date of this news release and the Company will update or revise publicly any of the included forward-looking statements as expressly required by applicable law.

No securities regulatory authority or stock exchange has reviewed nor accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of the content of this news release.

Appendix 1  JORC Code 2012 Table 1 information required by ASX Listing Rule 5.7.1

Section 1  Sampling Techniques and Data

Criteria JORC Code explanation Commentary Sampling techniques Nature and quality of sampling (eg cut channels, random chips, or specific specialised industry standard measurement tools appropriate to the minerals under investigation, such as down hole gamma sondes, or handheld XRF instruments, etc). These examples should not be taken as limiting the broad meaning of sampling.

Include reference to measures taken to ensure sample representivity and the appropriate calibration of any measurement tools or systems used.

Aspects of the determination of mineralisation that are Material to the Public Report.

In cases where industry standard work has been done this would be relatively simple (eg reverse circulation drilling was used to obtain 1 m samples from which 3 kg was pulverised to produce a 30 g charge for fire assay). In other cases more explanation may be required, such as where there is coarse gold that has inherent sampling problems. Unusual commodities or mineralisation types (eg submarine nodules) may warrant disclosure of detailed information. Core sampling protocols met or exceeded industry standard practices.

Core Sampling is guided by lithology as determined during geological logging (i.e., by a geologist). All pegmatite intervals are sampled in their entirety (half-core), regardless if spodumene mineralization is noted or not (in order to ensure an unbiased sampling approach) in addition to ~1-3 m of sampling into the adjacent host rock (dependent on pegmatite interval length) to bookend the sampled pegmatite.

The minimum individual sample length is 0.3 m and the maximum sample length is 3.0 m. Targeted individual pegmatite sample lengths are 1.0 m.

All drill core is oriented to maximum foliation prior to logging and sampling and is cut with a core saw into half-core pieces, with one half-core collected for assay, and the other half-core remaining in the box for reference.

Core samples collected were shipped to SGS Canadas laboratory in Val-dOr, QC, for standard sample preparation (code PRP89) which includes drying at 105C, crush to 75% passing 2 mm, riffle split 250 g, and pulverize 85% passing 75 microns. The pulps were shipped by air to SGS Canadas laboratory in Burnaby, BC, where the samples were homogenized and subsequently analyzed for multi-element (including Li and Ta) using sodium peroxide fusion with ICP-AES/MS finish (codes GE_ICP91A50 and GE_IMS91A50). Drilling techniques Drill type (eg core, reverse circulation, open-hole hammer, rotary air blast, auger, Bangka, sonic, etc) and details (eg core diameter, triple or standard tube, depth of diamond tails, face-sampling bit or other type, whether core is oriented and if so, by what method, etc). NQ or HQ size core diamond drilling was completed for all holes. Core is not oriented; however, downhole OTV-ATV surveys have been completed on some prior holes to assess overall structure. Drill sample recovery Method of recording and assessing core and chip sample recoveries and results assessed.

Measures taken to maximise sample recovery and ensure representative nature of the samples.

Whether a relationship exists between sample recovery and grade and whether sample bias may have occurred due to preferential loss/gain of fine/coarse material. All drill core was geotechnically logged following industry standard practices, and includes total core recovery, fracture recording, ISRM rock strength and weathering, and RQD. Core recovery is very good and typically exceeds 90%. Logging Whether core and chip samples have been geologically and geotechnically logged to a level of detail to support appropriate Mineral Resource estimation, mining studies and metallurgical studies.

Whether logging is qualitative or quantitative in nature. Core (or costean, channel, etc) photography.

The total length and percentage of the relevant intersections logged. Upon receipt at the core shack, all drill core received is pieced together, oriented to maximum foliation, metre marked, geotechnically logged (including structure), alteration logged, geologically logged, and sample logged on an individual sample basis. Core box photos are also collected of all core drilled, regardless of perceived mineralization. Specific gravity measurements are also collected at systematic intervals for all drill core.

These logging practices meet or exceed current industry standard practices and are of appropriate detail to support a mineral resource estimation.

The logging is qualitative by nature, and includes estimates of spodumene grain size, inclusions, and model mineral estimates. Sub-sampling techniques and sample preparation If core, whether cut or sawn and whether quarter, half or all core taken.

If non-core, whether riffled, tube sampled, rotary split, etc and whether sampled wet or dry.

For all sample types, the nature, quality and appropriateness of the sample preparation technique.

Quality control procedures adopted for all sub-sampling stages to maximise representivity of samples.

Measures taken to ensure that the sampling is representative of the in situ material collected, including for instance results for field duplicate/second-half sampling.

Whether sample sizes are appropriate to the grain size of the material being sampled. Drill core sampling follows industry best practices. Drill core was saw cut with half-core sent for geochemical analysis and half-core remaining in the box for reference. The same side of the core was sampled to maintain representativeness. Additionally, several intervals over several holes have had quarter-core samples collected for mineral processing programs, thus leaving only a quarter-core in the box for reference over these intervals.

Sample sizes are appropriate for the material being assayed.

A Quality Assurance / Quality Control protocol following industry best practices was incorporated into the program and included systematic insertion of quartz blanks and certified reference materials into sample batches, as well as collection of quarter-core duplicates, at a rate of approximately 5%. Additionally, analysis of pulp-split and course-split sample duplicates were completed to assess analytical precision at different stages of the laboratory preparation process, and external (secondary) laboratory pulp-split duplicates were prepared at the primary lab for subsequent check analysis and validation. All protocols employed are considered appropriate for the sample type and nature of mineralization and are considered the optimal approach for maintaining representativeness in sampling. Quality of assay data and laboratory tests The nature, quality and appropriateness of the assaying and laboratory procedures used and whether the technique is considered partial or total.

For geophysical tools, spectrometers, handheld XRF instruments, etc, the parameters used in determining the analysis including instrument make and model, reading times, calibrations factors applied and their derivation, etc.

Nature of quality control procedures adopted (eg standards, blanks, duplicates, external laboratory checks) and whether acceptable levels of accuracy (ie lack of bias) and precision have been established. Core samples collected were shipped to SGS Canadas laboratory in Val-dOr, QC, for standard sample preparation (code PRP89) which includes drying at 105C, crush to 75% passing 2 mm, riffle split 250 g, and pulverize 85% passing 75 microns. The pulps were shipped by air to SGS Canadas laboratory in Burnaby, BC, where the samples were homogenized and subsequently analyzed for multi-element (including Li and Ta) using sodium peroxide fusion with ICP-AES/MS finish (codes GE_ICP91A50 and GE_IMS91A50).

The assay techniques are considered appropriate for the nature and type of mineralization present, and result in a total digestion and assay for the elements of interest.

The Company relies on both its internal QAQC protocols (systematic quarter-core duplicates, blanks, certified reference materials, and external checks), as well as the laboratorys internal QAQC.

For assay results disclosed, samples have passed QAQC review. Verification of sampling and assaying The verification of significant intersections by either independent or alternative company personnel.

The use of twinned holes.

Documentation of primary data, data entry procedures, data verification, data storage (physical and electronic) protocols.

Discuss any adjustment to assay data. Intervals are reviewed and compiled by the VP Exploration and Project Managers prior to disclosure, including a review of the Companys internal QAQC sample analytical data.

No twinned holes have been completed, apart from CV23-166, which was re-collared as a different core size, as well as some holes that were lost prior to hitting their target depth, which were re-collared a few metres adjacent.

Data capture utilizes MX Deposit software whereby core logging data is entered directly into the software for storage, including direct import of laboratory analytical certificates as they are received. The Company employs various on-site and post QAQC protocols to ensure data integrity and accuracy.

Adjustments to data include reporting lithium and tantalum in their oxide forms, as it is reported in elemental form in the assay certificates. Formulas used are Li2O = Li x 2.1527, and Ta2O5 = Ta x 1.2211 Location of data points Accuracy and quality of surveys used to locate drill holes (collar and down-hole surveys), trenches, mine workings and other locations used in Mineral Resource estimation.

Specification of the grid system used.

Quality and adequacy of topographic control. Each drill holes collar has been surveyed with a handheld GPS or RTK (Topcon GR5 or Trimble Zephyr 3).

The coordinate system used is UTM NAD83 Zone 18.

The Company completed a property-wide LiDAR and orthophoto survey in August 2022, which provides high-quality topographic control.

The quality and accuracy of the topographic controls are considered adequate for advanced stage exploration and development. Data spacing and distribution Data spacing for reporting of Exploration Results.

Whether the data spacing and distribution is sufficient to establish the degree of geological and grade continuity appropriate for the Mineral Resource and Ore Reserve estimation procedure(s) and classifications applied.

Whether sample compositing has been applied. Drill hole spacing is dominantly at ~100 m; however, tightens to ~50 m in some places, and widens to ~150 in a small number of places.

Based on the nature of the mineralization and continuity in geological modelling, it is believed that a 100 m spacing will be sufficient to support a mineral resource estimate.

Core sample lengths typically range from 0.5 to 1.5 m and average ~1 m. Sampling is continuous within all pegmatite encountered in drilling.

Sample compositing has not been applied Orientation of data in relation to geological structure Whether the orientation of sampling achieves unbiased sampling of possible structures and the extent to which this is known, considering the deposit type.

If the relationship between the drilling orientation and the orientation of key mineralised structures is considered to have introduced a sampling bias, this should be assessed and reported if material. No sampling bias is anticipated based on structure within the mineralized body.

The mineralized body is relatively undeformed and very competent, although likely has some meaningful structural control.

The mineralized body is steeply dipping resulting in oblique angles of intersection with true widths varying based on drill hole angle and orientation of pegmatite at that particular intersection point. i.e. The dip of the mineralized pegmatite body has variations in a vertical sense and along strike, so the true widths are not always apparent until several holes have been drilled in any particular drill-fence. Sample security The measures taken to ensure sample security. Samples were collected by Company staff or its consultants following specific protocols governing sample collection and handling. Core samples were bagged, placed in large supersacs for added security, palleted, and shipped directly to Val-dOr, QC, being tracked during shipment along with Chain of Custody. Upon arrival at the laboratory, the samples were cross-referenced with the shipping manifest to confirm all samples were accounted for. At the laboratory, sample bags are evaluated for tampering. Audits or reviews The results of any audits or reviews of sampling techniques and data. A review of the sample procedures for the Companys 2021 fall drill program (CF21-001 to 004) and 2022 winter drill program (CV22-015 to 034) was completed by an Independent Qualified Person and deemed adequate and acceptable to industry best practices (discussed in an NI 43-101 Technical Report on the Corvette Property, Quebec, Canada, Issue date of June 27th, 2022.) Additionally, the Company continually reviews and evaluates its procedures in order to optimize and ensure compliance at all levels of sample data collection and handling.

Section 2 Reporting of Exploration Results

(Criteria listed in the preceding section also apply to this section.)
ROUYN-NORANDA, QC, June 14, 2023 /CNW/ - Fokus Mining Corporation ("Fokus" or the "Company") (TSXV: FKM) (OTCQB: FKMCF) (FSE: F7E1) is pleased to announce the beginning of approximately 1,650 metres of exploration drilling to further test the RB Zone in which it has drilled 12 holes to date (press release dated March 28th, 2023). RB is one of two major new targets detected in the latest high-resolution airborne magnetic survey in the Renault Bay intrusion area of the Galloway project.

Following the results of the last drilling campaign on the RB zone, where good gold values were obtained in the first 200 metres from surface, the Company decided to drill 7 additional shallow holes to increase the level of confidence in the near-surface gold mineralisation. All the holes are infill with a dip of between 50 and 75 degrees and varying in length from 200 to 260 metres.

The RB Zone is located to the east of the GP gold zone. It was discovered in 2022 because of its magnetic signature, which is similar to that of the gold-bearing syenitic intrusions already known in this part of Galloway. The RB Zone is also in a similar geological setting to the Hendrick Zone and sets the stage for Au-Cu Porphyry mineralisation in the main Renault Bay intrusion. It should be noted that the mineralisation starts closer to surface (press release dated December 1rst, 2022).

Jean Rainville, President, and CEO of Fokus, stated: "Drilling in 2022 and early 2023 on the RB zone indicates significant near-surface gold. We plan to fully evaluate this new gold zone with the potential objective of being able to add to the NI43-101 compliant inferred resource estimate delivered last March. The RB Zone and the corridor that joins the Hurd Zone offer substantial near-surface gold potential, and testing these areas remains our priority in 2023."

"We will also be reassessing the open pit potential of the GP zone, where only underground potential was examined in our recent resource estimate. This will not be an expensive exercise as no additional drilling is required and metallurgical testing was already carried out on this zone last year," added Mr. Rainville.

Qualified Person

This press release was approved by Gilles Laverdiere, P. Geo., Director, and Qualified Person under National Instrument 43-101.

About Fokus

Fokus Mining Corporation is a mineral resource company actively acquiring and exploring precious metal deposits located in the province of Quebec, Canada. In implementing this major undertaking within the Canadian mining industry, we are determined to unlock the secret of the Galloway gold project.

The Galloway project covers an area of 2865.54 hectares and is located just north of the Cadillac-Larder Lake deformation which extends laterally for more than 100 km. Numerous gold deposits are related to that structure and its subsidiaries. The current work focuses on a small western portion of the mineral claims where several mineral occurrences have been identified. For more information, visit our website: fokusmining.com.

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Related Links

http://fokusmining.com/

Caution Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

Certain statements contained in this news release may constitute forwardlooking information. Forwardlooking information is often, but not always, identified by the use of words such as "anticipate," "plan", "estimate", "expect", "may", "will", "intend", "should", and similar expressions. Forwardlooking information involves known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results or events to differ materially from those anticipated in such forwardlooking information. The Company's actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in this forwardlooking information as a result of regulatory decisions, competitive factors in the industries in which the Company operates, prevailing economic conditions, changes to the Company's strategic growth plans, and other factors, many of which are beyond the control of the Company. The Company believes that the expectations reflected in the forwardlooking information are reasonable, but no assurance can be given that these expectations will prove to be correct and such forwardlooking information should not be unduly relied upon. Any forwardlooking information contained in this news release represents the Company's expectations as of the date hereof and is subject to change after such date. The Company disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forwardlooking information whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by applicable securities legislation.
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - June 14, 2023) - Rome Resources Ltd. (TSXV: RMR) (FSE: 33R) ("Rome" or the "Company") is pleased to provide an update of its exploration activities at the Bisie North Tin Project ("BNTP"). The BNTP is comprised of two contiguous properties, exploration permits PR 13274 and PR 15130, which are situated in the Walikale District of the North Kivu Province in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo ("DRC").

Key Observations from drilling at the Mont Agoma and Kalayi Prospects

Initial drilling at Mont Agoma comprising a total of 15 diamond drill holes (one abandoned at 46m) testing 300m of the potential 1,200m high grade tin in soil anomaly (>40ppm Sn) completed. Drilling has successfully identified a large sulphide mineralised system.

Tin mineralisation has been identified in all drill holes within a central "tin, copper and zinc" zone or an eastern "tin" zone. Most recent drill holes indicate tin and copper mineralisation increasing in grade and width at depth (assays pending) . Visual tin mineralisation (cassiterite) observed in all deep holes. Copper mineralisation appears to be leached near surface while strong visual copper (chalcopyrite and chalcocite) observed at deeper levels.

Tin mineralisation open to the northwest, southeast and at depth . Best potential for significant tin mineralisation appears to be at depths exceeding 100 to 150m below surface, comparable with elevation of Alphamin's nearby world class Mpama deposits.

Initial drilling beneath the artisanal workings at the Kalayi Prospect also undertaken, testing 150m of the associated 2,000m tin in soil anomaly. Tin mineralisation (visible cassiterite) identified in two holes (assays pending).

Assay results for Mont Agoma (10 drill holes) and Kalayi (2 drill holes) expected in July 2023 .

Planning for next phase of drilling underway.

CEO and President Mark Gasson commented: "The initial drilling at Mont Agoma and Kalayi has identified several mineralised structures with excellent potential to host significant tin and copper mineralisation. Previous assay results reported in early May were from shallow intercepts of the eastern "tin" zone and the near surface continuation of the "tin, copper and zinc" zone at Mont Agoma. Deeper drilling has since identified visible cassiterite and chalcopyrite / chalcocite in a majority of holes. We eagerly await assay results from recent holes that are expected to show tin and copper mineralisation increasing in grade and width at depth.

Metal zonation is characteristic of many tin mineralised occurrences with associated arsenic and base metals such as copper, zinc and lead, and we have found similar zonation at Mont Agoma. All indications to date suggest that we are at the upper level of the mineralised system and with potential for the discovery of substantial tin mineralisation at depth.

Initial indications from drilling at Kalayi are also highly encouraging and we look forward to further testing of the potential 2km strikelength."

Figure 1: Tin in Soil Anomaly at the Bisie North Tin Project showing 3 Main Prospects. (Note: The extent of the Anomaly which covers ~5km)

Diamond Drilling at the Mont Agoma Prospect

The phase 1 drilling program was designed to test ~300m of potential strike of the newly defined high grade, contiguous tin in soil anomaly at the Mont Agoma Prospect, which is a high-level tin in soil geochemical anomaly (>40ppm Sn), with soil samples returning up to 0.2% Sn and covers a strike length of circa 1,200m (Figure 1). The anomaly lies adjacent to the interpreted source granites in a similar geological setting as Alphamin's Mpama North and South deposits which lie approximately 8km to the south.

The Company has now completed a total of 15 diamond drill holes (one abandoned at 46m) for 2,938.5m (Figure 2). Assay results for the first four holes drilled were received in May (refer news release dated 8 May 2023). For the remaining 10 drill holes sampling has been prioritised according to visible mineralisation with guidance from the Niton XRF. All priority samples have been sent to Lubumbashi for sample preparation and then dispatch to ALS Global in Johannesburg for analysis. Results are expected in July.

The limited drilling to date has defined multiple sub-parallel zones which are strongly mineralised in tin, copper, zinc and lead within a broader 200 - 250m wide sulphide mineralised system. Tin mineralisation has been intersected in discrete zones, together with zinc mineralisation or together with zinc and copper mineralisation.

Metal zoning is typical of the style of mineralisation apparent at Mont Agoma. Mpama would lie within the deeper tin zone and reported anomalous zinc and copper mineralisation associated with the tin mineralisation while San Rafael started as a copper mine at surface which graded through a transition zone of copper and tin and today is one of the world's biggest producing tin mines from deeper levels.

As previously reported (refer news release 8 May 2023) drill hole MADD010A intersected a significant (29m) zone enriched in tin (including visible cassiterite) and strong visual copper from 146m downhole. Recently completed drill hole MADD015A was drilled approximately 50 metres below MADD010A and intersected a significant 20m zone also enriched in tin (including visible cassiterite) and strong visual copper (refer Figure 3). Allowing for typical pinching and swelling along the mineralised structure, a narrow zone of near surface tin mineralisation has developed into a broad zone (ranging from ~5m to ~30m width) of enriched tin and copper at depth. Assays for MADD010A and MADD010A are pending.

Hole MADD014 was drilled 50m to the southeast of hole MADD010A and intersected the tin and copper zone at much shallower levels than expected. Near surface tin mineralisation was identified over 15m from Niton XRF readings within the tin zone (40m downhole) and the tin and copper zone was identified over 17m from 73m.

Tin mineralisation at the Mont Agoma Prospect is open to the northwest, southeast and at depth, and as noted drilling indicates the tin and copper mineralisation is increasing in grade and width at depth.

The Company is now planning the next phase of drilling at the Mont Agoma Prospect which will be refined once all outstanding drill results have been reported. Infill soil sampling programmes will also be undertaken to assist in planning of new drill holes along the strike extension of the currently defined mineralisation, as well as to follow up on lower order tin in soil anomalies which, when combined with the priority anomalies, cover 5 km on the BNTP as shown in Figure 1.

Figure 2: Diamond Drill Hole Collar Positions on the Mont Agoma Tin in Soil Anomaly

Figure 3: Section 1 Across MADD002, MADD007, MADD005 and MADD010A and MADD015A showing Multiple Tin and Base Metal Mineralised Structures which cover more than 200m Width and remain Open at Depth.

Diamond Drilling at the Kalayi and Mont Agoma NW Prospects

Four diamond holes were drilled for a total of 463.5m beneath the artisanal workings at the Kalayi Prospect where previous channel sampling reported up to 1m at 11% Sn. Drilling tested 150m of the associated 2,000m tin in soil anomaly.

Tin mineralisation was identified from Niton XRF readings and visible cassiterite in two holes and is strongly associated with quartz veining as shown in Figure 4. Two significant zones were identified in KBDD003, a near surface 13m wide zone from 40m which is the focus of artisanal mining and a second 3m wide zone from 71m. Initial indications on the Kalayi target are highly encouraging and more drilling is required to better understand the pinch and swell geometry of the host mineralised structure along strike and downdip.

Two diamond holes were also drilled beneath the abandoned artisanal workings at the Mont Agoma NW Prospect. No significant mineralisation was intersected.

All priority samples have been sent to Lubumbashi for sample preparation and dispatch to ALS Global in Johannesburg for analysis. First results are expected in July.

Follow up programs along the strike extension of the currently defined mineralisation at Kalayi and the historic artisanal workings at Mont Agoma NW are being planned.

Figure 4: Photograph of a Cassiterite (brown mineral inside circle) and Quartz Vein in Broken Core intersected in KBDD003 at the Kalayi Prospect

Collar Data of Completed Holes

The collar data of the holes completed, are listed in Tables 1 and 2. The collars have been sited using a handheld GPS and will be surveyed by a qualified surveyor at a later stage. The coordinate system used is UTM35SWGS84.

Figure 5: Drilling at Mont Agoma

QP Statement

Dr Deon Vermaakt is a consultant of Rome Resources Ltd and qualified geologist and is a registered Professional Natural Scientist (Geological Science) with the South African Council for Natural Scientific Professions (SACNASP Reg. No. 400074/03). Dr Vermaakt is a qualified person (QP) under NI 43-101 and has reviewed and approved the scientific and technical information contained in this news release.

About Rome Resources

Rome Resources Ltd. is a mineral exploration company that has entered into two option agreements and a binding term sheet to acquire direct and indirect interests in two contiguous properties situated in the Walikale District of the North Kivu Province in eastern DRC, which are collectively referred to as the "Bisie North Tin Project". Rome intends to fund exploration on the project up to the completion of a definitive feasibility study.

Contacts

Investors / Shareholders

Mark Gasson

President, CEO & Director

P: (604) 687-6140

Media



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Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

The information in this news release may include certain information and statements about management's view of future events, expectations, plans and prospects that may constitute forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are based upon assumptions that are subject to significant risks and uncertainties. Because of these risks and uncertainties and as a result of a variety of factors, the actual results, expectations, achievements or performance may differ materially from those anticipated and indicated by these forward-looking statements. Although Rome Resources Ltd believes that the expectations reflected in forward-looking statements are reasonable, it can give no assurances that the expectations of any forward-looking statements will prove to be correct. Except as required by law, Rome Resources Ltd disclaims any intention and assumes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements to reflect actual results, whether as a result of new information, future events, changes in assumptions, changes in factors affecting such forward-looking statements or otherwise.

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Not for distribution to United States newswire services or for dissemination in the United States.

Annexure 1

Table 1: Drill Hole Details at the Mont Agoma Prospect

Hole ID Easting Northing RL (m) Azi  Dip  EOH (m) MADD001 578764 9891547 852 230 -60 254.5 MADD002 578733 9891586 847 230 -60 279 MADD003 578755 9891675 842 230 -60 116.5 MADD004 578816 9891590 843 230 -60 27 MADD005 578783 9891627 837 230 -60 300 MADD006 578678 9891608 855 230 -60 87 MADD007 578729 9891598 854 50 -50 225 MADD008 578691 9891751 827 230 -60 222 MADD009 578856 9891560 824 230 -60 150 MADD004A 578815 9891590 843 230 -60 166 MADD010 578825 9891676 805 230 -60 48 MADD010A 578824 9891676 805 230 -60 223 MADD011 578796 9891712 827 230 -60 148 MADD012 578758 9891748 818 230 -60 160 MADD013 578795 9891712 827 230 -75 46 MADD014 578846 9891621 812 230 -60 222.5 MADD015 578865 9891715 787 240 -55 28.5 MADD015A 578865 9891715 787 230 -55 235

Annexure 2

Table 1: Drill Hole Details at the Kalayi and Mont Agoma NW Prospects
VANCOUVER, BC, June 14, 2023 /CNW/ - Silvercorp Metals Inc. ("Silvercorp" or the "Company") (TSX: SVM) (NYSE American: SVM) is pleased to report assay results from its ongoing diamond drilling program at the LMW mine within the Ying Mining District, China.

Highlights:

Discovery of new, low angle copper-gold veins at the W Zone:

Hole ZKX1009 intersected 18.0 grams per tonne ("g/t") gold ("Au"), 32 g/t silver ("Ag"), and 8.38% copper ("Cu") over a 1.11 metre ("m") interval of vein LM29 at the 1,028 m elevation; and 3.0 g/t Au, 1,167 g/t Ag, 1.49% lead ("Pb"), and 0.58% Cu over a 2.55 m interval of vein LM30 at the 1,023 m elevation

High-grade intercepts from low angle gold veins LM50 and LM26:

Hole ZKX0597 intersected 10.79 g/t Au, 272 g/t Ag, 1.55% Pb, 0.19% zinc ("Zn") and 0.10% Cu over a 1.26 m interval of vein LM50 at the 782 m elevation

intersected 10.79 g/t Au, 272 g/t Ag, 1.55% Pb, 0.19% zinc ("Zn") and 0.10% Cu over a interval of vein LM50 at the elevation Hole ZKX0598 intersected 22.79 g/t Au, 31 g/t Ag and 0.13% Pb over a 0.59 m interval of vein LM50 at the 777 m elevation

intersected 22.79 g/t Au, 31 g/t Ag and 0.13% Pb over a interval of vein LM50 at the elevation Hole ZKX0778 intersected 0.33 g/t Au, 1,327 g/t Ag, 3.45% Pb, 0.63% Zn, and 0.15% Cu over a 2.99 m interval of vein LM26 at the 672 m elevation

intersected 0.33 g/t Au, 1,327 g/t Ag, 3.45% Pb, 0.63% Zn, and 0.15% Cu over a interval of vein LM26 at the elevation Hole ZKX3822 intersected 28.9 g/t Au and 12 g/t Ag over a 1.24 m interval of vein LM56 at the 532 m elevation

High-grade Ag-Pb intercepts at the W Zone:

Hole ZKX0471 intersected 3,943 g/t Ag, 2.54% Pb, 0.95% Zn, and 1.07% Cu over a 3.43 m interval of vein W1 at the 1,084 m elevation

intersected 3,943 g/t Ag, 2.54% Pb, 0.95% Zn, and 1.07% Cu over a interval of vein W1 at the elevation Hole ZKX0623 intersected 2,991 g/t Ag, 2.52% Pb, 2.29% Zn, and 0.96% Cu over a 0.61 m interval of vein W1 at the 1075 m elevation

High-grade intercepts of Ag-Pb-Zn mineralization in the Production Zone:

Hole ZKX3414 intersected 1,112 g/t Ag, 3.09% Pb, 0.34% Zn, 0.17 g/t Au, and 1.35% Cu over a 2.83 m interval of vein LM17 at the 553 m elevation

intersected 1,112 g/t Ag, 3.09% Pb, 0.34% Zn, 0.17 g/t Au, and 1.35% Cu over a interval of vein LM17 at the elevation Hole ZKX3423 intersected 1,209 g/t Ag, 4.51% Pb, 1.75% Zn, and 0.93% Cu over a 1.47 m interval of vein LM17 at the 565 m elevation

From October 1, 2022 to May 31, 2023, a total of 25,692 m in 189 diamond drill holes, including 165 underground holes and 24 surface holes, were completed at the LMW mine. Assay results for 145 holes have been received and select results are presented in Table 1 below.

This drilling program has been focused on four target areas: 1) expansion drilling of newly discovered high-grade Ag-Pb and low angle Au-Ag-Cu veins west of the LMW mine (W Zone) at elevations above 918 m to surface (1250 m); 2) expansion drilling of low angle Au and Ag-Au-Cu veins LM50, LM26, and LM21; 3) drilling to extend the high-grade LM41E series veins; and 4) infill drilling of Ag-Pb-Zn veins at the Production Zone.

1) Expansion drilling of newly discovered high-grade Ag-Pb and low angle Au-Ag-Cu veins west of the LMW mine (W Zone)

Drilling at the W Zone intersected several new, low angle, and high-grade Ag-Au-Cu veins, including LM28, LM29 and LM30 (Table 1). These quartz-pyrite-chalcopyrite veins were intersected at elevations between 1028 m and 990 m, striking between 210 and 240 degrees with a dip angle between 10 and 30 degrees.

At the W Zone, drilling also intersected high-grade Ag-Pb veins W2, W1, W18 series and W6 series at elevations between 1087 m and 905 m, with extension over 800 m along strike. The cross-cuts and drifts from surface at 1040 m and 988 m elevations have traced the high-grade Ag-Pb veins W1, W2 and W18 for up to 100 m in length in tunnels. The W2, W1, W18 and W6 vein series clearly cut and only slightly off-set the new low angle veins.

2) Expansion drilling of low angle Au and Ag-Au-Cu veins LM50, LM26, and LM21

Drilling for the low angle Au and Ag-Au-Cu veins targeted LM50, as well as LM21, LM26, LM22, LM51, LM54 and LM55. A continuous LM50 vein block extending 1000 m along strike and 400 m downdip has been defined and will be developed for test mining. Test mining of vein LM26 is underway.

3) Drilling to extend the high-grade LM41E series veins

At the east side of the resource area (E Zone), drilling continued to extend the high-grade Ag-Pb-Zn LM41E series veins, including LM41E, LM41E1 and LM41E1Wa. In particular, vein LM41E has been expanded from 1,000 m to 554 m elevation.

High-grade Ag-Pb-Zn highlights from the E Zone:

Hole ZKX11142 intersected 2,114 g/t Ag, 5.17% Pb, 1.94% Zn, 0.05 g/t Au, and 0.24% Cu over a 0.86 m interval of vein LM41E at the 779 m elevation

intersected 2,114 g/t Ag, 5.17% Pb, 1.94% Zn, 0.05 g/t Au, and 0.24% Cu over a interval of vein LM41E at the elevation Hole ZKX10514 intersected 1,097 g/t Ag, 22.82% Pb, 0.14% Zn, 0.26 g/t Au, and 0.09% Cu over a 0.71 m interval ( 0.60 m true width) of vein LM41E at the 554 m elevation.

4) Infill Drilling of Ag-Pb-Zn Veins at the Production Zone

Most holes in this period targeted blocks of known Ag-Pb-Zn veins at the Production Zone, including blocks that were previously missed due to limited drilling or tunneling, changes in the strikes and dips, and/or pinch-swelling of the pay-zones in the veins. The high-grade intercepts are mainly associated with the southeast-striking LM7 series, LM12 series and LM17 series of veins, and the northwest-striking LM8 series, LM14, LM19 and LM20.

High-grade Ag-Pb-Zn highlights at the Production Zone:

Hole ZKX3413 intersected 318 g/t Ag, 7.48% Pb, 0.43% Zn, 0.13 g/t Au, and 1.07% Cu over a 3.34 m interval ( 3.05 m true width) of vein LM17 at the 554 m elevation

intersected 318 g/t Ag, 7.48% Pb, 0.43% Zn, 0.13 g/t Au, and 1.07% Cu over a interval ( true width) of vein LM17 at the elevation Hole ZKX3610 intersected 862 g/t Ag, 10.82% Pb, 0.23% Zn, and 1.08% Cu over a 1.62 m interval ( 1.32 m true width) of vein LM17 at the 551 m elevation

intersected 862 g/t Ag, 10.82% Pb, 0.23% Zn, and 1.08% Cu over a interval ( true width) of vein LM17 at the elevation Hole ZKX0158 intersected 1,046 g/t Ag, 5.69% Pb, 0.74% Zn over a 0.91 m interval ( 0.86 m true width) of vein LM12 at the 850 m elevation.

Table 1: Selected intercepts from the 2022-2023 drilling program at the LMW mine

Hole ID From

(m) To

(m) Elevation

(m) Interval

(m) Ag

(g/t) Pb

(%) Zn

(%) Au

(g/t) Cu

(%) Vein Ore Type Ore Zone Low Angle Gold-Copper-Silver Veins ZKX07X083 59.07 61.21 821 2.14 24 0.05 0.09 2.39 0.01 LM50 Au Au zone ZKX05X001 60.79 62.58 820 1.79 17 0.06 0.14 2.62 0.01 LM50 Au Au zone ZKX05X129 75.94 76.59 820 0.65 78 0.90 0.41 13.80 0.05 LM50 Au Au zone ZKX07X100 73.58 77.88 817 4.30 6 0.19 0.10 1.84 0.01 LM50 Au Au zone ZKX0595 94.28 95.72 796 1.44 3 0.01 0.02 3.03 0.01 LM50 Au Au zone ZKX10420 79.86 81.26 789 1.40 1 0.01 0.01 2.35 0.01 LM50 Au Au zone ZKX0597 30.01 31.27 782 1.26 272 1.55 0.19 10.79 0.10 LM50 Au Au zone ZKX0598 33.19 33.78 777 0.59 31 0.13 0.02 22.79 0.01 LM50 Au Au zone ZKX05X048 75.30 78.39 775 3.09 16 0.81 0.23 5.63 0.01 LM50 Au Au zone ZKX0238 46.68 47.30 813 0.62 8 0.14 0.26 2.54 0.03 LM21 Au Au zone ZKX0440 66.13 66.89 812 0.76 1 0.01 0.03 4.57 0.01 LM21 Au Au zone ZKX10731 64.96 65.46 771 0.50 1 0.01 0.01 4.37 0.01 LM21 Au Au zone ZKX10984 111.63 112.97 761 1.34 4 0.05 0.06 3.04 0.01 LM21 Au Au zone ZKX10517 66.51 67.67 744 1.16 3 0.03 0.02 9.67 0.00 LM21 Au Au zone ZKX0778 81.23 84.22 672 2.99 1,327 3.45 0.63 0.33 0.15 LM26 Ag-Au-Cu Au zone ZKX05X053 76.49 77.56 664 1.07 59 0.03 0.03 4.74 1.90 LM26 Au-Cu Au zone ZKX0388 55.68 56.22 604 0.54 84 0.01 0.14 1.69 9.98 LM26 Ag-Au-Cu Au zone ZKX13817 238.77 239.27 992 0.50 2,069 2.24 0.14 0.59 0.09 LM28 Ag-Au-Cu W zone ZKX0692 60.75 61.51 991 0.76 63 0.56 0.63 0.61 0.14 LM28 Ag-Au-Cu W zone ZKX1009 208.69 209.80 1,028 1.11 32 0.01 0.03 18.00 8.38 LM29 Ag-Au-Cu W zone ZKX0980 58.24 58.83 720 0.59 16 0.01 0.01 0.03 2.62 LM51 Au-Cu Au zone ZKX05X076 135.01 138.35 531 3.34 1,698 0.42 0.07 0.66 0.11 LM53 Ag-Au-Cu Au zone ZKX10744 119.29 120.32 566 1.03 5 0.14 0.39 1.98 0.01 LM54 Au Au zone ZKX10934 158.49 160.94 555 2.45 3 0.04 0.03 1.78 0.00 LM54 Au Au zone ZKX10741 337.30 338.20 406 0.90 7 0.62 0.06 8.08 0.00 LM55 Au Au zone ZKX1009 217.32 219.87 1,023 2.55 1,167 1.49 0.03 3.01 0.58 LM30 Ag-Au-Cu W zone ZKX3822 127.56 128.80 532 1.24 12 0.07 0.04 28.90 0.02 LM56 Au Au zone ZKX14007 48.66 49.40 1,114 0.74 1 0.01 0.01 2.93 0.15 NA Au-Cu Au zone High-Grade Silver-Lead Veins at the W Zone ZKX0674 14.70 16.15 1,087 1.45 505 0.09 0.03 0.02 0.06 W1 Ag-Pb-Zn W Zone ZKX0471 25.02 28.45 1,084 3.43 3,943 2.54 0.95 0.04 1.07 W1 Ag-Pb-Zn W Zone ZKX0623 77.79 78.40 1,075 0.61 2,991 2.52 2.29 0.02 0.96 W1 Ag-Pb-Zn W Zone ZKX0823 186.56 187.22 1,049 0.66 308 0.35 0.04 0.01 0.03 W1 Ag-Pb-Zn W Zone ZKX13817 201.67 202.44 1,015 0.77 27 7.15 0.11 0.01 0.01 W1 Ag-Pb-Zn W Zone ZKX13814 202.58 203.47 1,007 0.89 80 3.66 1.04 0.00 0.00 W1 Ag-Pb-Zn W Zone ZKX0656 61.02 62.15 1004 1.13 808 4.16 0.20 0.05 0.12 W1 Ag-Pb-Zn W Zone ZKX13814 164.85 167.82 1,032 2.97 189 2.99 0.25 0.00 0.00 W18 Ag-Pb-Zn W Zone ZKX13818 191.19 192.31 990 1.12 220 3.57 0.37 0.05 0.04 W18 Ag-Pb-Zn W Zone ZKX13815 209.43 211.09 976 1.66 582 2.14 0.18 0.05 0.19 W18 Ag-Pb-Zn W Zone ZKX14226 98.81 99.49 1,067 0.68 500 4.09 5.51 0.14 0.14 W18W Ag-Pb-Zn W Zone ZKX0673 142.53 143.14 1,020 0.61 133 2.11 0.04 0.01 0.01 W6 Ag-Pb-Zn W Zone ZKX13817 379.60 380.49 905 0.89 325 1.22 0.20 0.02 0.05 W6E Ag-Pb-Zn W Zone High-Grade Silver-Lead-Zinc Veins at the E Zone ZKX11141 57.95 58.64 800 0.69 474 1.71 1.41 0.01 0.12 LM41_1 Ag-Pb-Zn E Zone ZKX1905 224.18 225.04 1,003 0.86 385 0.37 0.22 0.00 0.00 LM41E Ag-Pb-Zn E Zone ZKX11142 106.78 107.64 779 0.86 2,114 5.17 1.94 0.05 0.24 LM41E Ag-Pb-Zn E Zone ZKX10731 122.30 122.90 744 0.60 318 1.31 1.21 0.01 0.03 LM41E Ag-Pb-Zn E Zone ZKX10954 112.89 113.74 679 0.85 184 2.15 1.13 0.03 0.02 LM41E Ag-Pb-Zn E Zone ZKX10955 124.46 125.48 672 1.02 245 0.96 0.13 0.05 0.02 LM41E Ag-Pb-Zn E Zone ZKX11136 116.01 116.86 627 0.85 756 0.60 0.31 0.46 0.04 LM41E Ag-Pb-Zn E Zone ZKX10729 123.77 124.87 625 1.10 328 2.60 0.13 0.00 0.00 LM41E Ag-Pb-Zn E Zone ZKX10743 135.54 136.79 625 1.25 396 11.40 1.06 0.00 0.00 LM41E Ag-Pb-Zn E Zone ZKX10744 163.62 164.67 554 1.05 51 4.08 0.12 0.04 0.05 LM41E Ag-Pb-Zn E Zone ZKX10514 174.87 175.58 554 0.71 1,097 22.82 0.14 0.26 0.09 LM41E Ag-Pb-Zn E Zone ZKX11141 136.42 136.92 794 0.50 309 1.26 0.18 0.01 0.03 LM41E1 Ag-Pb-Zn E Zone ZKX10954 118.95 119.72 678 0.77 534 4.33 0.91 0.06 0.12 LM41E1 Ag-Pb-Zn E Zone High-Grade Veins at the Production Zone ZKX07X079 5.44 6.33 750 0.89 823 1.05 0.47 0.00 0.00 LM10E Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX07X080 3.80 4.99 750 1.19 595 1.75 0.30 0.00 0.00 LM10E Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX07X081 2.90 3.54 750 0.64 239 0.62 0.06 0.00 0.00 LM10E Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX05X121 9.12 9.68 747 0.56 325 1.25 0.11 0.00 0.00 LM10E Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX05X120 50.64 52.38 742 1.74 251 0.98 0.16 0.00 0.00 LM11W1 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX07X080 44.06 45.23 731 1.17 204 0.29 0.06 0.00 0.00 LM11W1 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX0158 37.48 38.39 850 0.91 1,046 5.69 0.24 0.00 0.00 LM12 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX0159 34.14 34.69 845 0.55 1,816 4.98 0.07 0.00 0.19 LM12 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX0398 65.74 66.27 805 0.53 568 0.98 0.37 0.18 0.13 LM12_1 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX1350 124.32 125.56 690 1.24 22 5.26 0.03 0.05 0.00 LM12_1 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX05X076 147.87 148.99 520 1.12 225 3.39 0.08 0.05 0.11 LM12_1 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX11443 4.24 5.34 800 1.10 98 0.82 0.15 0.34 0.06 LM12_2 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX11239 9.22 10.29 798 1.07 99 7.62 1.16 0.08 0.03 LM12_2 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX05X053 65.34 69.06 669 3.72 154 0.92 0.42 0.14 0.06 LM12_2 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX05X047 67.06 67.91 668 0.85 1,810 4.20 4.73 0.21 0.51 LM12_2 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX05X151 151.28 152.72 609 1.44 663 5.11 2.01 0.13 0.55 LM12_2 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX0570 63.21 63.98 811 0.77 670 1.60 1.37 0.67 0.15 LM12_3 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX11239 80.78 81.75 782 0.97 321 14.65 0.09 0.07 0.08 LM12_3 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX05X158 87.79 88.56 655 0.77 190 0.74 0.28 0.00 0.00 LM12E Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX00X007 23.26 24.15 785 0.89 372 5.59 0.10 0.01 0.30 LM12E2 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX11443 106.74 107.63 786 0.89 669 0.83 0.13 0.03 0.38 LM13 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX10936 71.50 75.56 602 4.06 547 1.32 0.26 0.00 0.00 LM14 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX10937 77.27 78.54 597 1.27 166 1.29 0.22 0.00 0.00 LM14 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX4220 56.18 57.72 596 1.54 206 0.68 0.06 0.01 0.02 LM17 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX4025 58.71 60.78 595 2.07 376 8.29 1.67 0.00 0.00 LM17 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX3417 40.75 46.27 566 5.52 342 1.86 0.39 0.00 0.58 LM17 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX3423 35.21 36.68 565 1.47 1,209 4.51 1.75 0.00 0.93 LM17 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX4221 79.12 84.57 564 5.45 243 0.78 0.22 0.05 0.05 LM17 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX4219 79.61 82.21 559 2.60 134 1.39 0.37 0.00 0.00 LM17 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX3413 38.59 41.93 554 3.34 318 7.48 0.43 0.13 1.07 LM17 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX3414 41.33 44.16 553 2.83 1,112 3.09 0.34 0.17 1.35 LM17 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX3610 53.57 55.19 551 1.62 862 10.82 0.23 0.00 1.08 LM17 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX3418 48.87 49.94 544 1.07 96 0.77 0.14 0.00 1.39 LM17 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX1905 304.01 305.29 968 1.28 136 0.76 0.03 0.00 0.00 LM17W Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX10210 125.49 131.35 790 5.86 197 1.30 0.09 0.00 0.00 LM19 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX07X090 64.08 64.98 624 0.90 50 5.11 0.52 0.05 0.05 LM29E3 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX11443 133.73 135.78 782 2.05 370 0.95 0.09 0.06 0.22 LM19Wa Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX11239 137.53 138.04 769 0.51 649 0.49 0.02 0.03 0.08 LM19Wa Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX03X024 88.81 89.52 619 0.71 51 3.22 0.11 0.03 0.25 LM19Wa Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX0582 48.39 52.42 667 4.03 355 1.29 0.78 0.00 0.00 LM20 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX0157 71.72 72.50 877 0.78 22 5.85 0.14 0.00 0.00 LM20W Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX03X086 32.28 34.97 778 2.69 415 1.47 0.13 0.70 0.06 LM20W Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX0598 38.78 39.46 773 0.68 417 3.65 0.87 0.13 0.11 LM20W Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX00X002 142.43 143.20 911 0.77 1,178 1.75 0.04 0.03 0.14 LM7 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX0397 125.66 128.01 815 2.35 124 3.56 0.21 0.00 0.00 LM7 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX05X041 126.13 127.39 806 1.26 64 2.76 0.03 0.00 0.00 LM7 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX0759 42.23 43.18 770 0.95 129 1.21 0.05 0.05 0.05 LM7 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX0179 77.98 79.38 770 1.40 161 1.10 0.07 0.00 0.00 LM7 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX1153 104.93 105.65 654 0.72 329 1.76 0.22 0.00 0.00 LM7 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX1353 101.87 103.43 638 1.56 67 2.97 0.20 0.00 0.00 LM7 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX09X079 86.13 87.72 628 1.59 62 2.77 0.03 0.05 0.09 LM7 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX05X051 131.93 132.60 777 0.67 42 12.64 0.18 0.00 0.00 LM7E Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX05X048 123.20 126.13 758 2.93 164 0.62 0.05 0.02 0.09 LM7E Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX1153 122.94 124.39 647 1.45 193 0.45 0.35 0.00 0.00 LM7E Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX0155 107.72 108.48 914 0.76 1,508 1.24 0.05 0.00 0.14 LM7W Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX0759 29.55 32.91 782 3.36 608 0.64 0.09 0.13 0.10 LM7W Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX0176 41.47 43.76 789 2.29 126 1.19 0.02 0.01 0.00 LM7W1 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX0179 31.32 32.54 789 1.22 127 0.66 0.24 0.10 0.05 LM7W1 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX0177 40.32 42.86 776 2.54 70 3.11 0.22 0.08 0.01 LM7W1 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX09X079 55.67 56.30 653 0.63 370 8.28 4.55 0.13 0.24 LM7W1 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX09X079 16.18 17.66 685 1.48 191 0.79 0.12 0.03 0.07 LM8 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX1352 14.34 14.93 695 0.59 43 16.27 0.05 0.00 0.00 LM8_1 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX1351 41.64 42.46 742 0.82 224 0.40 0.04 0.00 0.05 LM8_3 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX1009 31.93 32.70 1,125 0.77 144 0.44 0.12 0.01 0.24 NA Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone

5) Tunneling Programs at the LMW Mine

A total of 4,257 m of exploration tunnels have been developed at the LMW mine during this period. The exploration tunneling, comprised of drifting, cross-cutting and raising, was driven along and across major mineralized vein structures to upgrade the drill-defined mineral resources, and to test for new parallel and splay structures.

Quality Control

Drill cores are NQ size. Drill core samples, limited by apparent mineralization contacts or shear/alteration contacts, were split into halves by sawing. The half cores are stored in the Company's core shacks for future reference and checks, and the other half core samples are shipped in securely sealed bags to the Chengde Huakan 514 Geology and Minerals Test and Research Institute in Chengde, Hebei Province, China, 226 km northeast of Beijing, the Zhengzhou Nonferrous Exploration Institute Lab in Zhengzhou, Henan Province, China, and SGS in Tianjin, China. All three labs are ISO9000 certified analytical labs. For analysis, the sample is dried and crushed to minus 1mm and then split into a 200-300 g subsample which is further pulverized to minus 200 mesh. Two subsamples are prepared from the pulverized sample. One is digested with aqua regia for gold analysis with atomic absorption spectroscopy (AAS), and the other is digested by two-acid digestion for analysis of silver, lead, zinc and copper with AAS.

Channel samples are collected along sample lines perpendicular to the mineralized vein structure in exploration tunnels. Spacing between sampling lines is typically 5 m along strike. Both the mineralized vein and the altered wall rocks are cut by continuous chisel chipping. Sample length ranges from 0.4 m to more than 1 m, depending on the width of the mineralized vein and the mineralization type. Channel samples are prepared and assayed with AAS at Silvercorp's mine laboratory (Ying Lab) located at the mill complex in Luoning County, Henan Province, China. The Ying lab is officially accredited by the Quality and Technology Monitoring Bureau of Henan Province and is qualified to provide analytical services. The channel samples are dried, crushed and pulverized. A 200 g sample of minus 160 mesh is prepared for assay. A duplicate sample of minus 1mm is made and kept in the laboratory archives. Gold is analysed by fire assay with AAS finish, while silver, lead, zinc and copper are assayed by two-acid digestion with AAS finish.

A routine quality assurance/quality control (QA/QC) procedure is adopted to monitor the analytical quality at each lab. Certified reference materials (CRMs), pulp duplicates and blanks are inserted into each batch of lab samples. QA/QC data at the lab are attached to the assay certificates for each batch of samples.

The Company maintains its own comprehensive QA/QC program to ensure best practices in sample preparation and analysis of the exploration samples. Project geologists regularly insert CRM, field duplicates and blanks to each batch of 30 core samples to monitor the sample preparation and analysis procedures at the labs. The analytical quality of the labs is further evaluated with external checks by sending approximately 3-5% of the pulp samples to higher level labs to check for lab bias. Data from both the Company's and the labs' QA/QC programs are reviewed on a timely basis by project geologists.

Guoliang Ma, P. Geo., Manager of Exploration and Resource of the Company, is the Qualified Person for Silvercorp under NI 43-101 and has reviewed and given consent to the technical information contained in this news release.

About Silvercorp

Silvercorp is a Canadian mining company producing silver, gold, lead, and zinc with a long history of profitability and growth potential. The Company's strategy is to create shareholder value by 1) focusing on generating free cashflow from long life mines; 2) organic growth through extensive drilling for discovery; 3) ongoing merger and acquisition efforts to unlock value; and 4) long term commitment to responsible mining and ESG. For more information, please visit our website at www.silvercorpmetals.com.

For further information

Lon Shaver

Vice President

Silvercorp Metals Inc.

Phone: (604) 669-9397

Toll Free: 1 (888) 224-1881

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Website: www.silvercorpmetals.com

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Certain of the statements and information in this press release constitute "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable Canadian provincial securities laws. Any statements or information that express or involve discussions with respect to predictions, expectations, beliefs, plans, projections, objectives, assumptions or future events or performance (often, but not always, using words or phrases such as "expects", "is expected", "anticipates", "believes", "plans", "projects", "estimates", "assumes", "intends", "strategies", "targets", "goals", "forecasts", "objectives", "budgets", "schedules", "potential" or variations thereof or stating that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will" be taken, occur or be achieved, or the negative of any of these terms and similar expressions) are not statements of historical fact and may be forward-looking statements or information. Forward-looking statements or information relate to, among other things: the price of silver and other metals; the accuracy of mineral resource and mineral reserve estimates at the Company's material properties; the sufficiency of the Company's capital to finance the Company's operations; estimates of the Company's revenues and capital expenditures; estimated production from the Company's mines in the Ying Mining District; timing of receipt of permits and regulatory approvals; availability of funds from production to finance the Company's operations; and access to and availability of funding for future construction, use of proceeds from any financing and development of the Company's properties.

Forward-looking statements or information are subject to a variety of known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual events or results to differ from those reflected in the forward-looking statements or information, including, without limitation, social and economic impacts of COVID-19; risks relating to: fluctuating commodity prices; calculation of resources, reserves and mineralization and precious and base metal recovery; interpretations and assumptions of mineral resource and mineral reserve estimates; exploration and development programs; feasibility and engineering reports; permits and licenses; title to properties; property interests; joint venture partners; acquisition of commercially mineable mineral rights; financing; recent market events and conditions; economic factors affecting the Company; timing, estimated amount, capital and operating expenditures and economic returns of future production; integration of future acquisitions into the Company's existing operations; competition; operations and political conditions; regulatory environment in China and Canada; environmental risks; legislative and regulatory initiatives addressing global climate change or other environmental concerns; foreign exchange rate fluctuations; insurance; risks and hazards of mining operations; key personnel; conflicts of interest; dependence on management; internal control over financial reporting as per the requirements of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act; and bringing actions and enforcing judgments under U.S. securities laws.

This list is not exhaustive of the factors that may affect any of the Company's forward-looking statements or information. Forward-looking statements or information are statements about the future and are inherently uncertain, and actual achievements of the Company or other future events or conditions may differ materially from those reflected in the forward-looking statements or information due to a variety of risks, uncertainties and other factors, including, without limitation, those referred to in the Company's Annual Information Form for the year ended March 31, 2021 under the heading "Risk Factors". Although the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated, described or intended. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements or information.

The Company's forward-looking statements and information are based on the assumptions, beliefs, expectations and opinions of management as of the date of this press release, and other than as required by applicable securities laws, the Company does not assume any obligation to update forward-looking statements and information if circumstances or management's assumptions, beliefs, expectations or opinions should change, or changes in any other events affecting such statements or information. For the reasons set forth above, investors should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements and information.

CAUTIONARY NOTE TO US INVESTORS

The disclosure in this news release and referred to herein was prepared in accordance with NI 43-101 which differs significantly from the requirements of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC"). The terms "proven mineral reserve", "probable mineral reserve" and "mineral reserves" used in this news release are in reference to the mining terms defined in the Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum Standards (the "CIM Definition Standards"), which definitions have been adopted by NI 43-101. Accordingly, information contained in this news release providing descriptions of our mineral deposits in accordance with NI 43-101 may not be comparable to similar information made public by other U.S. companies subject to the United States federal securities laws and the rules and regulations thereunder.

Investors are cautioned not to assume that any part or all of mineral resources will ever be converted into reserves. Pursuant to CIM Definition Standards, "Inferred mineral resources" are that part of a mineral resource for which quantity and grade or quality are estimated on the basis of limited geological evidence and sampling. Such geological evidence is sufficient to imply but not verify geological and grade or quality continuity. An inferred mineral resource has a lower level of confidence than that applying to an indicated mineral resource and must not be converted to a mineral reserve. However, it is reasonably expected that the majority of inferred mineral resources could be upgraded to indicated mineral resources with continued exploration. Under Canadian rules, estimates of inferred mineral resources may not form the basis of feasibility or pre-feasibility studies, except in rare cases. Investors are cautioned not to assume that all or any part of an inferred mineral resource is economically or legally mineable. Disclosure of "contained ounces" in a resource is permitted disclosure under Canadian regulations; however, the SEC normally only permits issuers to report mineralization that does not constitute "reserves" by SEC standards as in place tonnage and grade without reference to unit measures.

Canadian standards, including the CIM Definition Standards and NI 43-101, differ significantly from standards in the SEC Industry Guide 7. Effective February 25, 2019, the SEC adopted new mining disclosure rules under subpart 1300 of Regulation S-K of the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "SEC Modernization Rules"), with compliance required for the first fiscal year beginning on or after January 1, 2021. The SEC Modernization Rules replace the historical property disclosure requirements included in SEC Industry Guide 7. As a result of the adoption of the SEC Modernization Rules, the SEC now recognizes estimates of "Measured Mineral Resources", "Indicated Mineral Resources" and "Inferred Mineral Resources". In addition, the SEC has amended its definitions of "Proven Mineral Reserves" and "Probable Mineral Reserves" to be substantially similar to corresponding definitions under the CIM Definition Standards. During the period leading up to the compliance date of the SEC Modernization Rules, information regarding mineral resources or reserves contained or referenced in this news release may not be comparable to similar information made public by companies that report according to U.S. standards. While the SEC Modernization Rules are purported to be "substantially similar" to the CIM Definition Standards, readers are cautioned that there are differences between the SEC Modernization Rules and the CIM Definitions Standards. Accordingly, there is no assurance any mineral reserves or mineral resources that the Company may report as "proven mineral reserves", "probable mineral reserves", "measured mineral resources", "indicated mineral resources" and "inferred mineral resources" under NI 43-101 would be the same had the Company prepared the reserve or resource estimates under the standards adopted under the SEC Modernization Rules.
VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / December 20, 2018 / First Mining Gold Corp. ("First Mining" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that Daniel Wilton has been appointed as the Company's new Chief Executive Officer ("CEO"), effective as of January 7, 2019. Mr. Wilton replaces Dr. David Shaw, a First... Read More
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There is a phenomenon sweeping across various medical circles on social media that is forcing people to address accusations from those who were not on the front lines of COVID at the beginning of the pandemic. Though I have refused to pay much attention to the details, I have become more and more enraged at the audacity and frank ignorance that it takes to judge when not in the arena. Now, I will admit that I am the first to state that we should always ask why, always question the status quo. And we should always become suspicious when people close ranks and refuse to be addressed or questioned by outsiders or those with a differing perspective or opinion. I feel this way about medicine, about policing, about government, and about the military. As a Navy veteran and physician, I am 100 percent a disruptive physician and am known for attempting to make good trouble. But this isnt good trouble.

This group of people who have never been to war tells us what war is. People who have never taken an oath and then lived up to that oath in a time of distress and danger. Never left their home or the safety of their practice and dove into a disease that is nothing like anything we had ever seen before. They never watched men and women practice so far outside of their comfort zone they sometimes contemplated or even completed suicide. We knew what we were doing wasnt perfect. But we couldnt stand by and watch people die in the streets. We did everything we could. We held hands, intubated, ventilated, circulated, and never stopped hoping that the vicious foe would let us win  if even just once.

We did not do anything that we didnt think was the best thing for each individual patient in front of us at the time. So many of us would work for 12 to 14 hours, days in a row, and spend every spare minute reading literature that was flying at us as fast as anyone could publish it. There was no textbook for this disease. I still stand firm in my opinion that this disease is not the flu and not standard ARDS. No amount of wishing it to be will make it so. We did not know how to sedate this, how to feed this, how to support this, how to fight this, or how to ventilate this  and that had nothing to do with ignorance or malevolence. And even now, three years later, I question whether we really know much more about how to save those who are the most critically ill with this disease. We still do not know. And that again has nothing to do with motivation, passion, or ethics. This disease is Hell on earth, and we are forced to be the gatekeepers of death while at the bedside of those most critically affected.

To those who have these opinions, I want them to explain to me the concept of dead space ventilation. I want them to explain to me how the microclots in the pulmonary circulation lead to massive increases in dead space and that with additional ventilatory support, you have added dead space. But without ventilatory support, you have a patient on non-invasive ventilation with a cardiac output revved up to 8 to 10 liters per minute because of the superhuman metabolism this disease causes the human body to invoke. Which then leads these patients to take astronomically large and dangerous tidal volumes that cause damage to the lungs. Yet when you control the ventilation once they can no longer sustain themselves independently, you cant keep up with their bodys demand. I want them to explain to me the uncontrollable glucose intolerance and the resulting end-stage diabetes these patients face. I want to understand the inability to safely sedate these patients while also being able to complete neuro exams and provide life-sustaining and life-saving physical therapy. I want them to explain to me the profound gastroparesis, the level of bacterial superinfections, and the overwhelming inability for the right side of the heart to push against the ever-increasing pressures of a clotted and stiff vasculature. I want to understand why COVID is now a risk factor for acute cardiac/vascular events even if mild during the original illness. This isnt because of a ventilator; maybe they can explain it to me. Explain it to me like Ive never been at the bedside in New York City in April of 2020 and then in Cincinnati for three years taking care of this disease. They must know better than I. It seems they knew from the beginning. I want them to tell me what I and so many others did wrong. What was it exactly we should have been doing?

We will learn about and refine our knowledge of this ever-changing foe until my career ends. Maybe someday we will find a way to adequately and safely ventilate these patients or even ECMO these patients back to life. For now, we are still left to do the best we can with the knowledge we have. We never once did anything that we thought was going to harm a patient. So many of us did things that directly injured or harmed ourselves to potentially save or prolong the lives of others. I did not leave my children and fly into the belly of the beast in NYC to harm people. Neither did any of the other amazing people I met in the trenches. Every day was a lesson in humility and grace (for ourselves, our colleagues, and our patients). We struggled with the care we were forced to provide, but this was battlefield medicine, and the only thing we had to offer these patients was what we had in front of us. And sometimes it wasnt enough, but we knew that. We wanted people to live. We wanted them to survive. We tried so hard.

People keep questioning why it was so bad in NYC. And I say because it came through the ports of entry and those of us on the front lines in NYC, New Orleans, San Francisco, and Washington held the damn line while the rest of the country shut down. These cities are urban areas, filled with multigenerational homes and an inability to socially distance. Say what you will about the benefit or harm of the public health measure we took, but as bad as it became across the country after April 2020, it would have been so much worse if we didnt stop this death tsunami from rolling from the coast inward. I know that there were pockets of communities and hospitals across the country who fought like hell just like those of us on the coast from the beginning, and all of us who were at the bedside during those times know exactly what I mean when I say that we did the best that we could.

And we tried our hardest to live up to our oath and our profession, but we sometimes had to stretch to an uncomfortable position to accommodate more patients. No one denies that the level of care could have been better. No one. Including those of us there. But we know that the level of care we gave was everything we had  and more. Some even gave their lives. Which brings me back to those who think they know better now  where were you when we were dying or in the throes of trauma that would lead to the PTSD we have now? How small can you make big claims while free of the pain we all carry daily? Even if the data eventually shows that there were things we could have and should have done differently  it doesnt matter. We didnt have that data then, and we did everything we could to allow each person to return home to their families. Even if it meant not returning to ours.

Nicole M. King is an anesthesiologist and intensivist.
By George Emuron

The Electoral Commission (EC) has urged aggrieved parties in the ongoing Bukedea by-election to formally file their complaints before the District Returning Officer.

This follows reports of alleged voter intimidation and ballot staffing at some of the polling stations.

Some voters claim that by 7am, they reported to their polling centres but there were no ballot papers and that the ballot boxes were already full.

There has also been reported violence that saw some journalists beaten up and their gadgets confiscated by unknown people.

Speaking to KFM from Bukedea, the Commissions spokesperson Paul Bukenya, said they have so far received some of the said complaints and investigations are ongoing. He further urged all those aggrieved parties to formally seek redress.

He also blames the late opening of some polling centres on the absence of the requisite 10 voters but not late delivery of polling materials.

The Bukedea LC5 chairperson seat fell vacant following the demise of Moses Olemukan in December 2022.

The three candidates in the race include National Resistance Movements Mary Akol, Forum for Democratic Changes Sam Oita Odeke, and Tychicus Ebukalin, an independent.

Ebukalin is one the candidates who have decried intimidation of voters and some aspirants

Earlier on Tuesday, David Omagor, another aspirant was attacked at the Electoral Commission offices in Bukedea by a group of people who he claimed also stole documents needed for his nomination

He later petitioned the EC and was told he could be nominated on Sunday. Meanwhile, he skipped the exercise to reportedly seek treatment in Nairobi, Kenya.

Joel Mugerwa, the new Returning Officer has since been posted to handle todays exercise and has promised to deliver a peaceful process.
By Barbra Anyait & David Mujuni

Road safety activist Joseph Beyanga commonly known as Joe Walker has underscored the need to rethink road transport and mobility for the well-being of people and future generations.

Addressing journalists ahead of the inaugural Kampala Hill to Hill Walk due on Saturday, June 17th, Beyanga observed that Kampala contains the busiest roads with heavy traffic and the largest population relies on walking to and from work and recreation.

He, however, says records indicate that pedestrians in Kampala sustain the most injuries in the districts that make up the Greater Kampala area.

According to Beyanga, encouraging investment in a culture that respects, protects, and acknowledges walking in co-existence with motorists and other forms of traffic will make it safer and contribute to a healthier community in the city.

If we had a working public transport system that is reliable, then maybe many of us would not be driving and the roads would be less congested. But what do we have at the moment? A road infrastructure less than 20% is safe for all users. We are talking about pedestrians, cyclists, and everybody, Beyanga said.

Expanding on the walk, Sarah Nalule, the Joe Walker Chief Coordinator noted that the Kampala Hill to Hill walk will be flagged off from Sheraton Hotel, Kampala at 6am. She says the group will have their first stop at Sankara Library in Bugoloobi at about 9am.

So well leave Sankara at about 9:45 and head to Lukuli through industrial area, its an interesting route. Then well have our lunch in Lukuli at 1 Oclock and leave at about 2 Oclock, Nalule said.

We have three kinds of walks. We have the baby walk, which is a 15-kilometre walk, then we have the youth walk which is from Sheraton Kampala to Lukuli, and the walk for the mature [adult walk] which is a 45-kilometre walk. We intend to finish between five and six Oclock so spare your Saturday and get your comfortable shoes on, she added.

Nalule urged interested individuals to log on to www.joewalker.org to register for the walk of their choice at no cost.

Beyanga says the Kampala Hill to Hill walk running under the theme Safer Roads Saves Lives is the shortest walking event that will cover 45 kilometres.

Joe Walker has previously held two walks; Kampala to Bushenyi (342 kilometres) and Kampala to Mbale (246) kilometres.
Kasese district leaders have expressed happiness and excitement to have their king back in Rwenzururu Kingdom.

Rwenzururu King, Omusinga Charles Wesley Mumbere will return to his Kingdom after seven years following the attack on his palace in 2016.

Yesterday, the International Crimes Division of the High Court Judge Alice Komuhangi ordered for his release and 217 of his co-accused subjects.

This is after the Director of Public Prosecutions lost interest in the case and withdrew all charges against the king and his subjects including; murder, terrorism, attempted murder, and aggravated robbery, among others.

Speaking to KFM, the Kasese district LCV chairperson Eliphazi Muhindi thanked President Museveni and courts of law for granting their King freedom.

He says plans are ongoing to give the Mumbere a major welcome party.

We are very excited about what government has done. We are praising the leader of this nation Yoweri Kaguta Museveni and the courts that have given him fair justice by seeing that the King is released, Muhindi told KFM.
Seven officials from the Office of the Prime Minister (OPM) have been arraigned before the Anti-Corruption Court in Kampala on charges of stealing over Shs11 billion that was meant for peace initiative activities in Karamoja sub-region.

According to court, the suspects are; Geoffrey Seremba (accounting officer), Deogratious Musigazi (the head of department Pacification and Development Programme), as well as Secretaries; Abaho Josua, Barbra Asasira, and Samuel Ofungi.

Others are; Economist and programme officer Peter Amodoi, and Asst commissioner programmes Emmy Tonny Ameny.

They have been charged with twelve counts including abuse of office, causing financial loss, and embezzlement.

Prosecution states that between February and June last year, while performing their respective duties in the Office of the Prime Minister, Seremba approved payment of monies to various staff without any proper work plan nor genuine activities to be carried out knowing that this act will cause financial loss to government.

It is stated that some of the stolen money was meant for coordinating various peace-building activities in the Karamoja sub-region which were never conducted and thus the suspects failed to account for the same.

The said money was allegedly taken by the suspects in installments (peace meals) of Shs4.4 billion with secretaries stealing between Shs2.2 billion and Shs25 million.

They appeared before Chief Magistrate Joan Aciro.
The Irish Capuchin Franciscans have been informed of the death of Brother Noel Brennan, originally from Kilkenny, and the last remaining Irish-born friar in Zambia.

He died at Our Ladys Hospital, Lusaka, Zambia, at 1.50 a.m. on Wednesday June 14, 2023. Three friars from his community accompanied him as he departed this life.

Noel was born in Kilkenny on December 22, 1941, the son of Michael and Milred (Malone) and was baptised in St Marys Parish Church in the diocese of Ossory.

He received his early education in the CBS in Kilkenny and attended Rochestown College from 1955 till 1959.

He entered the Capuchin novitiate in Kilkenny on 3rd October 1959, was temporarily professed in the same friary on 4th October 1960 and was perpetually professed in St Bonaventures Cork on 4th October 1963; he was awarded a BA degree in UCC the same year.

At Ards friary, County Donegal, he was ordained priest by Bishop Anthony McFeeley on 21st May 1967.

Following ordination he was appointed Dean in Rochestown College and continued in that position for three years when he was assigned to the Irish Capuchin Mission in Zambia in 1970.

Over the next fifty-three years Noel has served as pastor, teacher, director of postulants and in various other roles in formation as well as in positions of leadership in Sioma, Senanga, Malengwa, Lukulu, Nalionwa, Limulunga, Our Ladys, Livingstone, and La Verna, Lusaka and at St Conrads friary, Lusaka and finally at the novitiate of Camarino.

In 1998 he was elected Vice-Provincial, a post he held until 2003, following his re-election in 2000. In 2004 Noel was sent on loan for two years to the Vice Province of South Africa to act as Director of Students and Bursar in Pretoria, but he remained on there until 2009 when he returned to Zambia.

Noel was elected again as Vice Provincial of Zambia in 2009, which office he held until 2012. During his term of office he was elected President of the East African Capuchin Conference on 11th May 2011.

The 2012 Chapter saw the election of the first all-Zambian leadership team in the Vice-Province. This event was the fulfilment of a dream long held by Noel and his fellow Irish missionary brothers in Zambia.

Noel continued to serve as bursar both at St Bonaventures College and La Verna friary. After the Chapter of 2015 he joined the novitiate team at Camerino friary on the outskirts of Lusaka.

Over the years Noel devoted whatever spare time he had to his on-going education, personal development and renewal through his selective reading and availing of whatever courses he managed to attend.

This feature in his life enabled him to bring a refreshed mind and new enthusiasm to the next challenge facing him in his work among the friars and the people.

Noel found himself back in harness once more when at the Chapter of the Custody of Zambia held at the Kasisi Retreat Centre, Lusaka, in April 2018, he was again elected to a leadership role in Zambia, this time as a member of the Council of the Custody.

This latter election must be seen as a sign of the respect and trust his Zambian confreres have in Noels brotherly fellowship, administrative experience, ability and loyalty to the Capuchin Gospel-inspired mission in central Africa since his arrival there fifty-three years ago.

After the Chapter he was appointed Guardian and bursar at St Conrads friary in the city.

At the Chapter of 2021 Noel was appointed to the novitiate at Camarino to which community he belonged at the time of his death.

May he rest in peace.
Galen, a privately owned pharmaceutical company, has named Shane Fahy as the winner of the Dr John Hinds Scholarship Award for 2023, in association with the College of Paramedics and The ATACC Group.

The scholarship is presented in memory of the late Dr John Hinds who passed away almost eight years ago. Dr Hinds was regarded as an inspirational leader by paramedics and emergency medical technicians, and indeed, by anyone with an interest in pre-hospital care across Ireland. As a world-renowned critical care physician from Northern Ireland, the scholarship is a fitting and practical way to preserve the memory of such a well-respected colleague and medical professional.

Shane, an Advanced Paramedic Supervisor for Kilkenny Ambulance Station was presented with his award by Cliodna Gilroy and Bronagh Laverty from Galen, alongside College of Paramedics Northern Ireland representative Jacqueline ONeill. They discussed Shanes winning clinical case study based on catastrophic haemorrhaging from multiple stab wounds.

Speaking about his win, Shane said: It is a great honour to have been chosen for this wonderful scholarship in memory of an inspirational man who did so much work advocating for the people of Northern Ireland and the Paramedic profession.

Dr Dennise Broderick, Galens Managing Director and President said: On behalf of Galen, congratulations to Shane Fahy on this remarkable achievement. We are extremely proud to sponsor this award, recognising the extraordinary efforts of paramedics like Shane, and supporting ongoing professional development and excellence in the field. We look forward to hearing more about Shanes experience of the coveted Anaesthesia Trauma and Critical Care (ATACC) course.

We are delighted to continue our partnership with The College of Paramedics and pay tribute to Dr John Hinds legacy  a renowned and highly respected pre-hospital physician, who dedicated his life to advancing emergency medicine and improving pre-hospital care across Ireland. This tireless dedication to patient well-being is at the core of Galens vision to benefit the health of all generations and provide extraordinary service that will make a positive impact on patients' lives.

Galens continued collaboration with College of Paramedics has been confirmed for a fifth year as they renew their commitment to the award for 2024.
For more than a year, researchers at Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) have been supporting the Ukrainian authorities on the subject of nuclear safety. The team of Sadeeb Simon Ottenburger provides decision support in the event of damage to one of the four nuclear power plants in the war-torn country.

Lets assume the hypothetical case that radioactivity escapes from a nuclear power plant, explains mathematician Sadeeb Simon Ottenburger from KITs Institute for Thermal Energy Technology and Safety (ITES). In such case, it is important to know how the radioactive cloud would spread. Using our RODOS system, we can make a prognosis as to the course of the spread including its effects and evaluate specific measures with regard to their effectiveness for disaster control.

RODOS is a real success story: The roots of the Real-time Online Decision Support System go back to the early 1990s. The software was launched at Kernforschungszentrum Karlsruhe, a predecessor of KIT. Since then, RODOS has grown into a solid system, says Ottenburger happily. Keeping it running and developing it further is in the hands of scientists like us. There are no commercial ulterior motives. The system has been trusted for years and is used in over 40 countries.

"What-if" Scenarios at Hourly Intervals

As is the case in Ukraine. There has been close contact with those responsible not least because of the accident at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant. There have been some projects with support from the European Commission since 2012, says Dmytro Trybushnyi, mathematician and scientist in Ottenburgers team. We installed the RODOS system in various organizations in the Ukraine and they have been working with it ever since. After the start of the war, he received several inquiries. On the one hand, we were asked to reinstall the software on other PCs, Trybushnyi recalls. Because the headquarters of one of our users is in Kiev. When the city was bombed, no one could get into the building. Help from Karlsruhe came promptly. The software was installed and set up over the network just a short time later.

In addition, the Rivne Nuclear Power Plant asked us to define regular calculations for the four Ukrainian nuclear power plants, the expert continues. Because, quite obviously, when Europes largest nuclear power plant Zaporizhzhia in the southeast of the country was occupied by Russian troops and there were repeated power failures, the danger of a nuclear accident loomed over the country. Those responsible wanted to know what would happen if there was a moderately severe or severe accident, reports Trybushnyi. Thats why since April 2022, weve been calculating a scenario every hour in which radioactive material is released into the atmosphere.

The team from Karlsruhe is collaborating closely with Japanese researchers. They use a different decision support system for atmospheric propagation and make their results available to KIT. We compare the results. Because when two systems that are so different deliver similar results, the meaningfulness is increased enormously.

Basically, we make this calculation for all nuclear power plants that are in operation worldwide, adds Ottenburger. On the one hand, this is used for research, but on the other hand, it would also help to estimate the extent to which Central Europe could be affected by a radioactive cloud. We may have phased out nuclear power, but this issue doesnt stop at the border. Of course, the clouds can also move to Germany after an MCA. He also sees the calculations as a kind of backup for emergencies. If those responsible in a country cannot fall back on their own calculations, the Karlsruhe team would be there to help.
Codelco announced yesterday that its executive president, Andre Sougarret, is resigning for personal reasons. Sougarret will leave the company by the end of August. A replacement is being sought. Chile's state-run Codelco is the world's largest copper producer. By Kitco News For Kitco News Follow @kitconewsnow www.kitco.com

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.
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(Kitco News) - The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Binance.US are working toward a compromise on access and custody of the exchanges assets after the presiding judge demanded that they find a workable solution that meets both their needs.

Lawyers for the SEC and BAM Trading, the holding company behind Binances U.S. operations, jointly filed a request for a consent order that would enable Binance.US to make payroll and fulfill other business needs, while the SEC would be assured that Binance global, and founder Changpeng Zhao in particular, cannot access the U.S. funds.

The two sides were forced to the negotiating table after U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson ruled during a Monday court session in Washington DC that the SEC had not proven the necessity for the total freeze of the exchanges assets.

The consent order states that on or before the date the Court issues this Consent Order, Binance.US will ensure that BAM Trading and BAM Management obtain and maintain sole possession, custody, and control of all Customer Assets, and all transfers and withdrawals will be done only through officers and employees located in the United States, or under the control of a non-affiliated third party custodian.

The filing also stipulates that BAM Trading and BAM Management will not provide access to these assets to Binance, Zhao, and any individual or entity with any affiliation, agreement, or other relationship with Binance, Zhao, or any Zhao- owned or -controlled entity.

In return for these assurances, the SEC will withdraw their request for the total freeze of Binance.US assets, enabling the exchange to continue conducting regular business operations.

BAM Trading and BAM Management may continue to make payments for the purchase of goods and services, salaries for BAM Trading and BAM Management personnel, including preexisting benefits, professional fees, and other similar ordinary-course expenditures for the operation of their businesses, the filing states.

The final amendments to the filing were due at 1 pm on Tuesday, so both sides are now awaiting the decision of the judge on the consent order.

On June 5, the SEC filed a 13-charge lawsuit against Binance and its founder Changpeng Zhao accusing them of operating an illegal platform in the U.S. and misusing customer funds. The following day, the United States District of Columbia court wrote that they agreed with the SECs request for an emergency restraining order to freeze the assets of Binance.US.

In a 42-page filing submitted on Monday, lawyers for Binance characterized the order freezing their assets as unnecessary, and accused the SEC of manufacturing an emergency.

The SECs request for a temporary restraining order should be denied for several reasons, but the most important is this: there is no risk to BAMs customer assets, they wrote. Indeed, there is no emergency here at all, other than the one manufactured by the SEC for its own purposes, when the alleged securities law violations, according to the SEC, have been going on publicly and openly for years.

The Binance.US filing also included the now-familiar claim that the SEC cannot demand that Binances U.S. operations register with them if they cannot provide a clear definition of which crypto assets are securities and under their jurisdiction.

[T]he SEC has failed to show the requisite likelihood of success as to the registration claims against BHL and the control person claims against Mr. Zhao, they wrote. The SEC does not have authority to require registration when it has not answered the threshold question of what cryptocurrency assets, if any, constitute securities under federal securities laws. This complex question is the subject of intense debate and extensive legal proceedings across the nation. It deserves to be considered on a full record, not on a purportedly emergency basis over a matter of just a few days.

Even if Binance were to prevail in their argument to the court, the emergency order has already had a profound and far-reaching impact on both their U.S. and global business operations.

On June 9, Binance.US said that as a result of the freeze, the exchange would no longer be able to continue processing U.S. dollar deposits and withdrawals, announcing that they would become a crypto-only exchange.

[I]n light of the Commission's increasingly aggressive tactics, our payment and banking partners have signaled their intent to pause USD fiat channels as early as June 13, 2023, meaning our ability to accept USD fiat deposits and process USD fiat withdrawals will be impacted, they wrote, adding that they are notifying users promptly so they can take necessary actions as we transition to a crypto-only exchange.

The SEC lawsuit and restraining order also caused liquidity and activity on the Binance.US and Binance.com exchanges to fall, according to a report by Kaiko published June 12.

Liquidity on Binance.US, which is measured by aggregated market depth for 17 tokens, dropped 76% in the week following the SEC's lawsuit, falling from $34 million to $7 million.

As a result of the exodus of market makers, the exchange has seen its U.S. market share drop to 4.8% in June from 20% in April.

Binances global exchange experienced a drop in market depth since the lawsuit as well. Binance [liquidity] is down ~7% since the start of June, Kaikos data shows. Binances market depth initially held steady, even increasing in the immediate aftermath of the lawsuit, but over the weekend fell as altcoin markets sold off.

The sharp drop in liquidity suggests market makers are nervous and want to avoid volatility-induced losses and the non-negligible possibility that their assets could get stuck on an exchange a la FTX collapse, Kaiko wrote.
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(Kitco News) - As Brazil prepares to integrate blockchain technology and digital assets into its financial system, President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva (Lula) has signed a new government decree that provides clarity on the roles that the Central Bank of Brazil (BC) and the countrys securities regulator will have in regard to cryptocurrencies.

Government decree No. 11.563 was signed by Lula on Tuesday, authorizing the BC to regulate and supervise virtual asset service providers (VASPs). The bill also ensures that token projects that meet the qualification for securities continue to fall under the purview of the Comissao de Valores Mobiliarios (CVM), Brazils securities regulator.

The stipulations of the new decree will go into effect on June 20.

According to a press release that accompanied the new decree, the government wanted to make clear that granting the BC power to oversee VASPs does not cover activities with securities that are digitally represented in the form of tokens, so the CVM will continue to handle that responsibility.

The CVM is now looking to create a regulatory framework that is better attuned to the volume of crypto trades that occur in Brazil and other emerging markets. The regulator will also be tasked with the review and approval or denial of projects looking to launch new tokens to the public.

So far in 2023, the CVM has approved three projects involved in the issuance and trading of securities that are digitally represented by tokens, and it will use the lessons learned from those projects to develop its regulatory framework.

The CVM Regulatory Agenda for the year 2023 foresees the development of a new regulatory framework for the constitution and administration of organized securities markets, including tokenized ones, in light of the experiences of the CVM Regulatory Sandbox, the press release said. With this project, the aim is to create a regulation more compatible with the volumes traded and the complexity of new markets.

The CVM remains firm in its purpose of promoting an environment favorable to the development of crypto-active products, with integrity and adherence to relevant constitutional and legal principles, said Joao Pedro Nascimento, President of CVM. CVM and the Central Bank will continue together on this agenda, with dialogue and cooperation between the directors of the institutions, recognizing that crypteconomics demands action from both BC and CVM, within their respective spheres of competence.

Nascimento also noted that the CVM understands the importance of maintaining an open dialogue with the crypto market, especially with those initiatives that aim to tokenize securities, for the purpose of building a regulatory framework increasingly conducive to the characteristics of these assets.

The new rules around cryptocurrencies and VASPs come as the country is preparing to begin a pilot project for the digital real, Brazils central bank digital currency (CBDC). The pilot will include tests of the privacy and programmability functionality of its platform, and participants include major payments provider Visa and technology behemoth Microsoft.

Chinese city distributes hard wallets for the digital yuan

In CBDC news out of China, the city of Changsha in the Hunan Province has announced it will debut elderly and children-friendly digital yuan hard wallets as part of its efforts to help increase the adoption of the Chinese CBDC.

According to a report from the local news outlet Changsha Evening News, officials in Changsha held a press conference on Friday where they revealed plans to release a digital RMB hard wallet to members of the community that do not have reliable access to a smartphone.

Many of the applications that facilitate the use of the digital yuan only come in the form of smart wallets that require a smartphone to access.

Adoption of the e-CNY among some of Chinas poorest residents has been hampered by the lack of access to a smartphone, with data from Statista showing that at the end of 2022, China had a smartphone penetration rate of 71.4%. While that number is expected to increase to 82.8% by 2027, that still leaves millions of people who would not be able to access and transact with the digital yuan, prompting officials to devise another solution.

The release of hard wallets to citizens without smartphones has been one of the most promising solutions presented thus far, and Changsha is the first to offer a digital RMB hard wallet to its residents.

Hard wallets, as opposed to soft wallets, are hardware devices that include security features and are specifically designed to hold digital assets. The devices distributed in Changsha are designed to connect with digital renminbi-related devices to provide users with services.

According to a source at the Hunan Branch of China Construction Bank, the hard wallets will have a maximum upper limit of 5,000 yuan, and transactions conducted without a password will be limited to 500 yuan. The hardware wallets are mainly intended to be used for small daily payments by villagers.
OTTAWA, June 14 (Reuters) - Canada is freezing ties with the China-led Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) while it probes allegations it is dominated by the Chinese Communist Party, Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland said on Wednesday.

Freeland said she did not rule out any outcome of the investigation, a clear hint that Ottawa could pull out of a bank it officially joined in March 2018.

The bank's global communications director, a Canadian, said on Wednesday he had resigned and criticised the bank as "dominated by the Communist Party", allegations which the AIIB said were baseless.

"The Government of Canada will immediately halt all government led activity at the bank. And I have instructed the Department of Finance to lead an immediate review of the allegations raised and of Canada's involvement in the AIIB," Freeland told reporters.

She said as the world's democracies worked to limit their strategic vulnerabilities to authoritarian regimes, they must be clear about the ways such governments exercised their influence.

"The review I am announcing today is to be undertaken expeditiously. And I am not ruling out any outcome following its completion," she said.

The Chinese embassy in Ottawa did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Liberal Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was in power when Canada joined the AIIB. The opposition Conservatives have long demanded Ottawa pull out of the bank, saying it is a tool for Beijing to export authoritarianism throughout the Pacific.

Freeland's remarks mark a new dip in bilateral relations with China, which have been frosty for the last five years.

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police said on Tuesday it was investigating allegations China tried to intimidate a federal Conservative legislator.

Canada has accused China of trying to interfere in its affairs through various schemes, including illegal police stations and the targeting of lawmakers. Beijing denies all such allegations.
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(Kitco News) - On Tuesday, Challenger Gold (ASX: CEL) announced an initial mineral resource estimate (MRE) for its El Guayabo gold-copper project in Ecuador.

The company said that the projects maiden inferred mineral resource estimate amounted to 270 mt at 0.52 g/t AuEq for 4.5 Moz AuEq, adding that the MRE is predominantly based on drilling at the GY-A and GY-B anomalies and is constrained by drilling with mineralization remaining open in both directions along strike and at depth.

Importantly, Challenger noted that the MRE does not include drill holes GYDD-23-039 (805.3m at 0.6 g/t AuEq) or GYDD-23-040 to 043 (assays pending) and will be updated upon the receipt of assays for these final five holes.

The company also said that the El Guayabo project adjoins the 17 million ounce Cangrejos gold project owned by Lumina Gold, adding that Cangrejos and El Guayabo have the same geology, surface footprint, and mineralization style, and are interpreted as being part of the same system.

Commenting on the resource, Managing Director Kris Knauer said, I would like to congratulate our Exploration team in Ecuador for this outstanding start. An initial resource of 4.5 million ounces, particularly given its higher-grade core of 1.5 Moz at 1.0 g/t AuEq, is a great start and has significant value in its own right.

It is, however, only our starting point. This resource is focused on 2 of the 7 targets at El Guayabo that have produced mineralized intercepts greater than 500 metres. Mineralization on these two targets remains open in all directions along strike and at depth with the resource limited by a lack of drilling. Additionally, the final five holes in the program are yet to be included in the estimate which will be updated when assays for these holes are received."

Challenger is developing two complementary gold-copper projects in South America. The company has a mineral resource of 2.8 million ounces AuEq at the flagship Hualilan gold project in Argentina. The company has also established a 4.5 million ounce AuEq resource at the El Guayabo project in Ecuador.
BEIJING, June 14 (Reuters) - The global communications director of the China-led Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) said on Wednesday he had resigned and criticised the bank as "dominated by the Communist Party", allegations which the AIIB said were "baseless".

Bob Pickard announced the move on his personal Twitter account, saying he had left because of its "toxic culture" and accused it of being "dominated by Communist Party" members.

He also described himself as a Canadian citizen and said he did not believe the interests of Canada, which is an AIIB member, were served by the bank. He did not provide any evidence for his claims or further elaborate. Reuters could not verify his allegations.

The AIIB said in a response to Reuters that it had accepted Pickard's resignation and called his comments "baseless and disappointing." A public relations veteran, Pickard joined the Beijing-headquartered bank in March 2022, according to his LinkedIn profile.

"Throughout this time, the Bank has supported and empowered him to perform his role," it said. "We are proud of our multilateral mission and have a diverse international team."

Pickard and Canada's foreign ministry did not immediately respond to requests for further comment. His profile on AIIB's website could not be accessed as of Wednesday afternoon and he said on his Twitter feed that he was currently in Japan.

Established by Chinese President Xi Jinping in 2016 as a Chinese alternative to the World Bank and other Western-led multilateral lending institutions, AIIB has 106 members worldwide and says it is an "apolitical" lender.

Before its launch, the United States urged countries to think twice about signing up to the bank and questioned whether it would have sufficient standards of governance and environmental and social safeguards, Reuters reported in 2015.

Earlier this year, its president said the AIIB would not get dragged into political disputes.

As of November, the AIIB had financed 194 projects in countries such as India, Uzbekistan and the Philippines, totalling $37 billion, up from $29 billion in October 2021, according to S&P Global Ratings.
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(Kitco News) One Chinese property developer is using gold's appeal to attract new homebuyers, offering bullion in exchange for flats to boost home sales, The Guardian and local media reported.

Huafa Tianfu, a developer from the eastern Chinese city of Hangzhou, has been advertising free gold of up to 1 kilogram if buyers purchase its flats.

Local media cited an ad campaign promising 700g of gold for an 89-sq-meter flat and just over 1kg for a 100-sq-meter apartment.

This is a strong incentive given that this type of property costs between 2.2 million yuan (USD 308,000) to 2.5 million yuan (USD 350,000). And If the gold offered were 24 carats, the one-kilogram bar would cost around 450,000 yuan (USD $63,000).

A report from Qianjiang Evening News said that Huafa Tianfu had already paid customers $1.4 million worth of gold. The promo has now been suspended due to fluctuating gold prices.

There were also several reports that customers were still waiting for their gold after buying a flat from the developer in February. Local media cited a sales representative for the firm stating that gold bars were hard to get due to volatile gold prices.

Promo deals are common in China's property market. Another property developer from the same city has offered free mobile phones, parking spaces, design services, and no management fees for ten years. Property developers sometimes even accept commodities such as wheat as a downpayment for properties.

But even the offer of gold failed to bring success to the struggling Chinese housing market. According to the China Index Academy, the number of homes bought across 50 major Chinese cities fell 17.7% in May.

Several cities in China banned developers from cutting prices, creating a slump in sales amid already low demand.

At the beginning of June, Bloomberg reported that China was considering new measures to help prop up the property market.

"Regulators are considering reducing the down payment in some non-core neighborhoods of major cities, lowering agent commissions on transactions, and further relaxing restrictions for residential purchases under the guidance of the State Council," Bloomberg reported, citing people familiar with the matter.

The weakness in China's real estate market is projected to last for years and even spill across its borders, according to a weekend note by Goldman Sachs.

"We see persistent weaknesses in the property sector, mainly related to lower-tier cities and private developer financing, and believe there appears no quick fix for them," Goldman Sachs economists led by China economist Lisheng Wang said in a weekend note. "We only assume an 'L-shaped' recovery in the property sector in coming years."
SANTIAGO, June 14 (Reuters) - Chile and the European Union will sign a memorandum of understanding (MOU) soon to develop value-added lithium projects in Chile, Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission, said on Wednesday.

Speaking to reporters in a joint press conference with Chilean President Gabriel Boric, von der Leyen said the two parties reached an agreement to develop a strategic association to develop lithium and strengthen supply chains.

"We're working to sign an MOU soon," von der Leyen said. "This strategic association will allow us to create local added value here in Chile."

Chile announced a plan to expand lithium mining in the country through state-controlled public-private partnerships in April in an attempt to regain its position as the world's top lithium producer.

Lithium is a key material for electric-car batteries.

Both leaders also announced new projects that are part of a green hydrogen initiative between the EU and Chile. A "Team Europe Fund for Renewable Hydrogen in Chile" initiative will finance new renewable hydrogen projects in Chile.

The fund will have more than 200 million euros, mostly financed by the European Investment Bank and KfW, which will be managed by Chile's state development agency.
June 14 (Reuters) - Hasso Plattner, co-founder of German software firm SAP (SAPG.DE), concluded an agreement with a bank, which was not named, to dispose of nearly 1.46 million shares of the company, a disclosure release said on Wednesday.

Plattner, who according to Refinitiv data personally owns a 3.16% stake and a 3.44% stake via his foundation, intends to sell between 40-60% of the amount of shares until December 13 this year.

The target share price will equal the volume-weighted average stock price during the sales period.
COLUMBIA  The Missouri Department of Public Safety (DPS) confirmed Thursday a state trooper's peace officer license has been suspended following allegations of sexual abuse.

A complaint was filed Monday with the Administrative Hearing Commission to discipline Jeffery Durbin.

The DPS says Durbin, 30, violated state statutes when he was charged in April with sexual abuse in the first degree and kidnapping in the third degree, in connection to a March 23 incident at a Columbia hotel.

In the complaint, assistant attorney general Richard Groeneman shared the same abuse allegations against Durbin, saying that Durbin restrained a victim from leaving a hotel room, touched and kissed the victim without consent multiple times and made her feel uncomfortable.

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The complaint says Durbin and other members of the Missouri State Highway Patrol were staying in Columbia for a law enforcement training.

In April, a MSHP spokesperson said Durbin was on special leave without pay.

According to online records, Durbin has 30 days to respond to the complaint. A commission hearing is scheduled for 9 a.m. Nov. 3.

An arraignment in Durbin's criminal case is scheduled for 10:30 a.m. June 26.
The definition of service dog causes some confusion and tensions between Dominick Helveston and a business.
Fullerton Fund Management Co Ltd. acquired a new stake in iShares MSCI Hong Kong ETF (NYSEARCA:EWH  Get Rating) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 92,000 shares of the exchange traded funds stock, valued at approximately $1,933,000. Fullerton Fund Management Co Ltd. owned approximately 0.25% of iShares MSCI Hong Kong ETF at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Glass Jacobson Investment Advisors llc bought a new position in iShares MSCI Hong Kong ETF in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Belpointe Asset Management LLC bought a new position in iShares MSCI Hong Kong ETF in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $43,000. Edmond DE Rothschild Holding S.A. lifted its position in iShares MSCI Hong Kong ETF by 35.0% in the 4th quarter. Edmond DE Rothschild Holding S.A. now owns 2,700 shares of the exchange traded funds stock valued at $57,000 after acquiring an additional 700 shares in the last quarter. Advisor Group Holdings Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of iShares MSCI Hong Kong ETF by 124.4% during the 4th quarter. Advisor Group Holdings Inc. now owns 6,329 shares of the exchange traded funds stock valued at $132,000 after buying an additional 3,508 shares during the period. Finally, Ameliora Wealth Management Ltd. bought a new position in shares of iShares MSCI Hong Kong ETF during the 4th quarter valued at $137,000. 52.60% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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iShares MSCI Hong Kong ETF Price Performance

NYSEARCA EWH opened at $19.83 on Wednesday. The businesss fifty day moving average price is $20.19 and its 200-day moving average price is $20.79. iShares MSCI Hong Kong ETF has a 1-year low of $16.04 and a 1-year high of $22.65.

iShares MSCI Hong Kong ETF Profile

iShares MSCI Hong Kong Index Fund, formerly Shares MSCI Hong Kong ETF, (the Fund), is an exchange-traded fund. The Fund seeks to provide investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of publicly traded securities in the Hong Kong market, as measured by the MSCI Hong Kong Index (the Index).

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Want to see what other hedge funds are holding EWH? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for iShares MSCI Hong Kong ETF (NYSEARCA:EWH  Get Rating).

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StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Revvity (NYSE:PKI  Get Rating) in a research report released on Sunday. The brokerage issued a hold rating on the medical research companys stock.

Several other research firms have also recently weighed in on PKI. Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of Revvity from $170.00 to $160.00 in a research report on Monday, May 15th. Robert W. Baird decreased their price objective on shares of Revvity from $182.00 to $165.00 in a research report on Friday, May 12th. TheStreet cut shares of Revvity from a b- rating to a c rating in a research report on Thursday, May 11th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price target on shares of Revvity from $145.00 to $135.00 in a report on Friday, May 12th. Finally, Credit Suisse Group restated a neutral rating and issued a $160.00 price target on shares of Revvity in a report on Wednesday, February 15th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of Hold and an average price target of $158.60.

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Revvity Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 2.15 and a current ratio of 2.43. Revvity has a 12-month low of $113.46 and a 12-month high of $170.00. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $127.73 and a 200 day simple moving average of $132.78. The firm has a market cap of $14.57 billion, a PE ratio of 15.01, a P/E/G ratio of 0.50 and a beta of 1.10.

Revvity ( NYSE:PKI Get Rating ) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 11th. The medical research company reported $1.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.07 by ($0.06). Revvity had a net margin of 28.94% and a return on equity of 11.17%. The business had revenue of $674.87 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $686.30 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.41 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Revvity will post 4.97 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Revvity declared that its board has authorized a share repurchase plan on Thursday, May 11th that allows the company to repurchase $600.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the medical research company to repurchase up to 4.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically a sign that the companys management believes its shares are undervalued.

Revvity Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 11th. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 21st will be paid a $0.07 dividend. This represents a $0.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of . The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 20th. Revvitys dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 3.65%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Revvity

In related news, insider Maxwell Krakowiak sold 322 shares of the firms stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $130.00, for a total transaction of $41,860.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 7,202 shares of the companys stock, valued at $936,260. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, insider Daniel R. Tereau sold 10,741 shares of the firms stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $123.72, for a total transaction of $1,328,876.52. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 11,611 shares in the company, valued at $1,436,512.92. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Maxwell Krakowiak sold 322 shares of the firms stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $130.00, for a total transaction of $41,860.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 7,202 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $936,260. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 15,349 shares of company stock valued at $1,953,042. Corporate insiders own 0.52% of the companys stock.

Institutional Trading of Revvity

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PKI. Raymond James & Associates increased its holdings in Revvity by 21.6% during the first quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 13,668 shares of the medical research companys stock worth $2,385,000 after buying an additional 2,431 shares during the last quarter. US Bancorp DE increased its stake in shares of Revvity by 2.0% in the first quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 4,572 shares of the medical research companys stock worth $798,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares in the last quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Revvity by 5.5% in the first quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 6,411 shares of the medical research companys stock worth $1,119,000 after purchasing an additional 336 shares in the last quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Revvity by 21.8% in the first quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 3,380 shares of the medical research companys stock worth $590,000 after purchasing an additional 606 shares in the last quarter. Finally, D.A. Davidson & CO. increased its stake in shares of Revvity by 5.3% in the first quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 1,582 shares of the medical research companys stock worth $276,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.22% of the companys stock.

Revvity Company Profile

(Get Rating)

Revvity, Inc provides health science solutions, technologies, expertise, and services that deliver complete workflows from discovery to development, and diagnosis to cure. It focuses on translational multi-omics technologies, biomarker identification, imaging, prediction, screening, detection and diagnosis, informatics.? The company was founded by Richard Scott Perkin and Charles W.

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United Lithium Corp. (OTCMKTS:ULTHF  Get Rating) saw a large drop in short interest in the month of May. As of May 31st, there was short interest totalling 1,000 shares, a drop of 83.6% from the May 15th total of 6,100 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 46,500 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 0.0 days.

United Lithium Stock Performance

Shares of ULTHF remained flat at $0.16 during midday trading on Tuesday. 32,955 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 41,634. United Lithium has a fifty-two week low of $0.00 and a fifty-two week high of $0.35. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $0.18 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $0.17.

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About United Lithium

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United Lithium Corp. engages in the acquisition, exploration, and evaluation of natural resource properties. It explores for lithium deposits. The company holds 100% interest in the Bergby Lithium Project, located in Sweden. It also holds an option to acquire a 100% interest in the Barbara Lake property comprising 56 mining cell claims that covers an area of approximately 2,147 hectares land in the Barbara Lake Area of the Thunder Bay Mining District, Ontario, Canada.

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Telia Company AB (publ) (OTCMKTS:TLSNY  Get Rating) saw a significant decline in short interest in the month of May. As of May 31st, there was short interest totalling 15,700 shares, a decline of 64.6% from the May 15th total of 44,400 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 232,500 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 0.1 days.

Telia Company AB (publ) Price Performance

Shares of OTCMKTS:TLSNY traded down $0.02 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $4.43. 1,038,839 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 143,755. The company has a current ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40. The businesss fifty day moving average is $5.01 and its two-hundred day moving average is $5.11. Telia Company AB has a one year low of $4.41 and a one year high of $7.85. The stock has a market cap of $8.71 billion, a PE ratio of -6.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.38 and a beta of 0.31.

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Telia Company AB (publ) (OTCMKTS:TLSNY  Get Rating) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 26th. The technology company reported $0.03 earnings per share for the quarter. Telia Company AB (publ) had a negative net margin of 15.36% and a negative return on equity of 16.68%. The firm had revenue of $2.21 billion during the quarter. As a group, analysts predict that Telia Company AB will post 0.25 earnings per share for the current year.

Telia Company AB (publ) Cuts Dividend

Analyst Ratings Changes

The business also recently announced a dividend, which was paid on Monday, May 1st. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 11th were given a dividend of $0.0644 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, April 10th. This represents a dividend yield of 4.01%. Telia Company AB (publ)s dividend payout ratio is -37.14%.

Several analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Berenberg Bank assumed coverage on shares of Telia Company AB (publ) in a research report on Thursday, June 1st. They set a buy rating for the company. Citigroup upgraded shares of Telia Company AB (publ) from a sell rating to a neutral rating in a research report on Friday, May 26th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Telia Company AB (publ) has an average rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $33.25.

Telia Company AB (publ) Company Profile

(Get Rating)

Telia Company AB (publ) provides communication services to businesses, individuals, families, and communities in Sweden, Finland, Norway, Denmark, Lithuania, Estonia, and Latvia. It offers mobile, broadband, television, and fixed-line services; and networking, cloud and security, mobility, enterprise mobile network, contact center, managed mobility services, collaboration solutions, enterprise telephony, Internet of Things (IoT), carrier ethernet, dedicated internet access, wavelengths, IP Transit, dark fiber, and colocation solutions.

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9 a.m. - 12 p.m., June 20 (Tuesday)

The Korea Times will host a forum on the ROK-U.S. Alliance on June 20 at the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Seoul.The timely event comes as South Korea and the United States celebrate the 70th anniversary of their alliance this year, while geopolitical risks are growing as economic and political conflicts between the United States and China are heightening, further compounded by Russia's invasion of Ukraine.This event will provide an opportunity to take a close look at where the alliance stands now and share perspectives on ways to develop it further.The first session will address the state of the ROK-U.S. alliance. In the second session, panelists will discuss space cooperation between the two nations.Second Vice Foreign Minister Lee Do-hoon and Vice Defense Minister Shin Beom-chul will deliver keynote speeches.Simultaneous interpretation will be available.The Korea Times will livestream the forum on its official YouTube channel.You can access the forum via these links:: B1, the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry building, Seoul: (02) 724-2343, 2265




The foreign ministry denounced Wednesday North Korea's recent series of missile provocations at a virtual senior officials' meeting ahead of an annual multilateral forum involving Pyongyang slated for next month.







The ministry said it stated its position during the online preparatory meeting of senior government officials for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Regional Forum (ARF), due to take place in Indonesia in July.







Deputy Foreign Minister Choi Young-sam and Lee Jang-keun, the ambassador to ASEAN, attended the virtual conference, the ministry said.







An Kwang-il, the North's ambassador to Indonesia, was present at the conference.







The ARF is a rare multilateral forum involving Pyongyang, and it brings together top diplomats of 27 countries, including the United States, China, Japan and the European Union.







During the virtual meeting, Seoul stressed the importance of the international community to send a clear and united message to the North that any missile provocations, including the so-called "test launch of a satellite," will not be accepted, the ministry said.







The ministry also asked each country to pay attention and work together to block the North from raising funds for nuclear and missile development to escalate the tensions, saying the North is abusing the South Korea-U.S. joint military exercise as an excuse for provocation.







At the conference, North Korea apparently repeated its position, blasting the hostile policy toward Pyongyang and justifying its right to use the space.







The participants also discussed current issues regarding the South China Sea and Russia's war on Ukraine, among others.







The meeting also touched on efforts to cooperate on the planned foreign ministers' meeting for the ARF, the ministry said. (Yonhap)




By Mehmet Fatih Oztarsu



Chinese President Xi Jinping has announced a new policy for the development of Central Asia, comprising initiatives such as infrastructure construction for better trade activities and adopting integration-based development projects.



President Xi Jinping has declared China's preparation to fulfill development strategies with Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, while actively promoting modernization across the region during the China-Central Asia Summit in May 2023. The leaders of the six regional countries met in person for the first time for the summit and signed the Xi'an Declaration.



The five Central Asian nations were part of the Soviet Union. The region has been an area of imperial domination of various civilizations for centuries. Today, post-Soviet republics present a network of trade corridors that offer alternative routes for transporting commodities such as energy sources, food, and other goods.



During the meeting, Central Asian countries and China approved regional grants totaling around $4 billion. They also signed 54 significant multilateral agreements, established 19 new regional platforms, and signed an additional nine documents of multilateral cooperation. Each of these measures aims to promote regional development and enhance collaboration between participating nations.



Kazakh President Kassym Jomart Tokayev expressed his positivity about China-Central Asian economic relations and underscored the potential to increase trade with China to $100 billion by 2030. This would mean a 30% increase from the current trade level of $70 billion. To achieve this, an estimated annual trade growth of $4.3 billion would be required until that period. We should note that the trade turnover between Central Asia and China was only $1.5 billion in 2001.



At the summit, Kazakhstan and China signed a deal for a new industrial exchange program, indicating their dedication to strengthening economic ties. China also pledged its support to Kazakh businesses operating in China and expressed its intention to boost tourism to Kazakhstan.



For Kyrgyzstan, a new investment fund was announced. The Kyrgyz side made an invitation for Chinese banks and businesses to open branches in the country. Currently, up to 2000 Chinese companies operate in the country. Similar decisions were taken between China and Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan and Tajikistan. Each statement contains specific agreements and commitments.



Notably, China plans to establish a new secretariat, featuring 19 separate channels of direct engagement with Central Asia. This represents a shift from China's traditional presence in the region with its standard bilateral relations. Beijing aims to integrate the Central Asian countries with its economic prospects, irrespective of any domestic political issues.



Furthermore, the participants of the summit reaffirmed their commitment to various infrastructure projects, including the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway, which is worth $4.5 billion, highways connecting China to Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan, and the development of transport infrastructure for trans-Caspian trade routes.



Central Asian countries are welcoming project proposals and the economic efforts of China, as Beijing intensifies its campaign in the region. The war in Ukraine has decreased Russia's attention while the U.S.' withdrawal from Afghanistan has lowered America's focus on the region. Actually, the U.S.' influence has always remained lower than those of other regional players since the beginning of the 1990s with the exception of the post-9/11 period.



China's new challenge also weakens the Russian-led Eurasian Economic Union's functions. The Belt and Road Initiative, which was announced in Kazakhstan in 2013, has already created the first step of a regional economic integration framework. Russia has remained the big boss of the region for centuries but now China's new attempts also change the security balances. Beijing's special focus on Tajikistan is just the beginning.



China is actively establishing defense cooperation with these regional countries. Here, Tajikistan presents strategic importance since it is a buffer zone between China and Afghanistan. Especially, the Chinese interest in the Wakhan Corridor requires a strong security partnership with Tajikistan. Both countries signed an agreement for joint military exercises to be launched every two years.



Beijing has also built frontier posts and a security training center near the Tajikistan-Afghanistan border. The Chinese military's existence in Tajikistan can spread to other regional countries after a series of attractive economic projects in the future, on one condition: raising arms sales. Currently, Russia's leading role in arms sales cannot be beaten by China. However, the future efforts of China can change this situation as well.





Mehmet Fatih Oztarsu (oztarsu@gmail.com) is a professor of International Relations at Hankuk University of Foreign Studies.


Kendallville, IN (46755)

Today

Sunshine and clouds mixed. High 81F. Winds SSE at 5 to 10 mph..

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Partly cloudy this evening with more clouds for overnight. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 63F. Winds light and variable.
Chief of Staff of the U.S. Army Gen. James C. McConville, second from left, Secretary of the U.S. Army Christine E. Wormuth, center, and Sgt. Maj. of the Army Michael A. Grinston, cut the birthday cake with Miles Avery, left, a Make a Wish recipient, during the Army Birthday Festival Formal Ceremony at the National Museum of the United States Army, Fort Belvoir, Va., June 10, 2023. The event commemorated the 248th Birthday of the U.S. Army. (Henry Villarama/U.S. Army)
On June 14 and 15, the European Union is hosting the VII Brussels Conference on Supporting the future of Syria and the region' #SyriaConf2023. The conference will once again offer a platform to reiterate the continued support of the European Union and the international community for the Syrian people, the Syrian refugees, and their host communities.

The conference will be the main pledging event for Syria and the region this year. Moreover, it will allow the international community to renew the push for a political solution to the conflict, in line with UN Security Council Resolution 2254.

During the Day of the Dialogue today, the European Union, and other actors, such as the operational partners involved in the Syria response, will engage with civil society actors from inside Syria, the region, the diaspora, and refugee-hosting countries, with the aim to enhance the political support of the international community for these crucial actors.

The following day, Thursday 15 June, the Ministerial Conference will bring together State actors, notably EU Member States, Syria's neighbouring States, and third countries, as well as representatives from the United Nations and other international organisations, to discuss how to strengthen the humanitarian, financial and political support for the people of Syria. The meeting will conclude with the announcement of this year pledges.

Since 2011, the European Union and its Member States have been the largest donors of humanitarian and resilience assistance to Syria and the region, providing over 30 billion in response to the Syrian crisis. The European Union will continue mobilising all the tools at its disposal to support the Syrian people reaching a credible negotiated political solution and to help creating the conditions for a brighter future for all Syrians.

For more information, please consult the Conference's dedicated page.

Zarazeno st 14.06.2023 12:06:00 Zdroj Evropska komise en Original ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/api/documents?reference=IP/23/3257&language=en lang en
YEREVAN, JUNE 14, ARMENPRESS. The Azerbaijani authorities have again released disinformation, the Nagorno Karabakh (Republic of Artsakh) Defense Ministry warned Wednesday.

The statement released by the Azerbaijani Defense Ministry claiming that [Artsakh] Defense Army units opened fire around 19:15, June 13 at Azerbaijani positions deployed in the occupied territories of the Shushi region of the Republic of Artsakh is yet another disinformation, the Ministry of Defense of Artsakh said in a statement.
YEREVAN, JUNE 14, ARMENPRESS. The Armenia-Azerbaijan foreign ministerial meeting that was supposed to take place on June 12 in Washington D.C. was postponed 100 percent due to scheduling issues, according to United States Department of State spokesperson Matthew Miller.

The U.S. looks forward to rescheduling the meeting, Miller added.

It was 100 percent due to scheduling issues. We look forward to hosting another round of talks in Washington as the parties continue to pursue a peaceful dialogue for the South Caucasus region. As weve said before, we believe direct dialogue is key to resolving the remaining issues. We believe an agreement is within reach. This meeting unfortunately couldnt go forward 100 percent due to scheduling issues, and we look forward to rescheduling it as soon as we can, Miller said at a press briefing when asked why the June 12 meeting was canceled.

The U.S. State Department spokesperson did not disclose the new possible timeframes.

The foreign ministerial talks between Armenia and Azerbaijan were planned to take place June 12 in Washington. On June 8, authorities reported that Azerbaijan requested to postpone it.
Patna (Bihar) [India], June 14 (ANI): BJP's Bihar president Samrat Chaudhary on Wednesday said Union Home Minister Amit Shah will be visiting the state and will address a public rally in Munger on June 29.

He informed further that BJP national president JP Nadda will also visit the state and will address a public rally in Jhanjharpur.

Also Read | German Pharmacies Close in Protest Action.

"Union Home Minister Amit Shah will be visiting Bihar and will address a public rally in Munger on June 29. BJP national president JP Nadda will be holding a public rally in Jhanjharpur," Chaudhary said.

This is Shah's fifth visit to the state in nine months since his party was ousted from power in the state in August 2022 after Nitish Kumar snapped ties with the BJP, bringing an end to the coalition government in the state.

Also Read | Cyclone Biporjoy Effect on Maharashtra: Impact of Cyclonic Storm Likely To Be Less in State, Says Mumbai IMD Chief Sunil Kamble.

Last year, Amit Shah visited Punia, which is considered to be the capital of the Seemanchal region.

Later, in October, he visited Sitab Diara, the birthplace of late socialist stalwart Jai Prakash Narayan.

In February this year, he visited Valmakinagar and Patna the same day (Feb 25) and addressed Kisan Samagam organised on the birth anniversary of peasant leader Sahajanand Saraswati in Patna, in a bid to woo the Bhumihar community.

In April, Shah addressed a public meeting in Nawada.

Notably, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar has called a meeting of top Opposition leaders to mobilise the opposition against BJP ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

The meeting will be held in Patna on June 23, JD(U) national president Lalan Singh said earlier.The meeting, which is aimed at laying the groundwork for the coming together of like-minded Opposition parties against Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the BJP government at the Centre, was originally scheduled to be held on June 12.

However, the meeting was postponed after several Opposition leaders, including Congress national president Mallikarjun Kharge and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin, expressed their inability to attend the meeting on June 12, citing prior engagements and preoccupations.

Nitish Kumar has been rooting for Opposition unity since he left the National Democratic Alliance and joined the Grand Alliance to form a new government in August last year. (ANI)

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
Vaishali: A crocodile was beaten to death after it allegedly killed a 14-year-old boy in Patna's Vaishali district on Tuesday. A video that went viral on social media purportedly showed the huge reptile being pulled out of the water by a group of men, who and beaten with sticks and rods by a group of men.

After receiving the information, a team of officials from the forest department reached the spot and launched an investigation. They said that the reason for the crocodile's death is being investigated and that further action will be taken accordingly. Chennai Shocker: Man Abducted, Beaten to Death for Speaking Ill of Former Boss in Nolambur.

Crocodile Beaten to Death by Mob in Bihar Video:

"We have received information that a crocodile has been killed. The reason is not yet known," District Forest Officer Vaishali, Amita Raj told the reporters.

"Forest officials have reached the spot and an investigation is being done. Action will be taken against the violators for violating the Wildlife Protection Act," she said. Delhi: Stray Dog Beaten to Death by Group of People in Karol Bagh; Case Registered After Disturbing Video Goes Viral.

Further investigation is underway in the case, she added.

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
Lucknow (Uttar Pradesh) [India], June 14 (ANI): Reacting to the Former Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey's allegation that the Indian Government threatened to shut down the microblogging site's operation in India, Samajwadi Party(SP) on Tuesday accused BJP-led Central government of insulting India's democracy on the world stage. SP also accused the BJP government of being dictatorial.

"The BJP government's secrets are being exposed on the world stage! Former Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey said that during the farmer's protest, the central government used to pressurize Twitter not to show content critical of the BJP government," SP wrote on its official Twitter handle.

Also Read | Online Shopping Scam: Curb Malpractices Like 'Dark Pattern', Government Asks E-Commerce Entities Like Amazon and Flipkart.

"Also threatened to raid their offices in India. Embarrassing. By displaying its dictatorial thinking, the BJP government is insulting India's democracy on the world stage," the Twitter post added.

In an interview with the YouTube channel 'Breaking Points with Krystal and Saagar', on Monday, Dorsey who stepped down from Twitter's board last year, alleged that the Indian government had put pressure on Twitter and said that it will shut down the company in India and raid the houses of its employees.

Also Read | Manipur Violence: Governor Anusuiya Uikey Directs Official To Regularly Monitor Relief Camps Established for Victims.

Jack Dorsey in the interview said that there were requests around farmers' protests to shut Twitter in the country.".....India is one of the countries which had many requests around farmers' protests, around particular journalists who were critical of the government and it manifested in ways such as we will shut Twitter down in India, India is a big marketplace for us. We would raid the homes of your employees, which they did and we will shut down your offices if you don't follow suit and this is India, a democratic country, " Dorsey is heard saying in the interview on the YouTube channel," he said.

However, Minister of State for Electronics and IT Rajeev Chandrasekhar responded to Dorsey's claims, saying that under him, Twitter was in "repeated and continuous violations of India law" and at times "weaponised misinformation".

After Dorsey's allegation, Congress also launched an all-out attack on the Bharatiya Janata Party government at the centre asking why it was desperately "trying to gag the voices" of truth and opposition and crush all those who were trying to ask questions.

"What is PM Modi afraid of?" asked Supriya Shrinate, the Congress spokesperson and Chairperson of the Social Media and Digital Platforms of the party during a press conference here on Tuesday.

Reacting to the allegations made by Dorsey, who claimed that Twitter faced pressure and intimidation from the Modi government during farmers' agitation, she said, Prime Minister Modi was behaving like a coward and trying to muzzle all the voices of dissent and those who were trying to ask genuine questions. (ANI)

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
Patna, Jun 14 (PTI) Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Yadav on Wednesday expressed apprehension that a chargesheet could be filed against him in cases investigated by central agencies, ahead of the opposition meet scheduled here next week.

The RJD leader was responding to queries from journalists about the arrest of a Tamil Nadu minister by the Enforcement Directorate, which has drawn sharp reaction from the JD(U) of Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, who is convening the meeting.

Also Read | Jyotiraditya Scindia Loyalist Madhya Pradesh BJP Leader Baijnath Singh Yadav Makes 'Ghar Wapsi' to Congress.

"I think we may see a spate of raids and arrests by these agencies in the run-up to the opposition meeting... Though we will emerge stronger in the process, Yadav said.

"So far there has not been a chargesheet against me. But, now I will not be surprised if the agencies are made to come out with one soon, he said.

Also Read | Uniform Civil Code: Law Commission of India Decides Again to Solicit Views of Public and Religious Organizations.

The 34-year-old has been named in land for hotels and land for jobs scams, both of which pertain to his father Lalu Prasad's tenure as the railway minister.

Yadav has been accusing the ruling BJP at the Centre of misusing investigating agencies and, sarcastically, asking CBI and ED to open their offices at his residence.

"I am sure these agencies must have lost count of the number of times they have been made to conduct searches against me and my close aides, said Yadav.

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
New Delhi [India], June 14 (ANI): The India Meteorological Department (IMD) on Wednesday sounded a Red alert as cyclone 'Biparjoy' warning for the Saurashtra and Kutch coasts in Gujarat.

It is very likely to move nearly northeastwards and cross Saurashtra and Kutch and adjoining Pakistan coasts between Mandvi (Gujarat) and Karachi (Pakistan) near Jakhau Port (Gujarat) by the evening of June 15, informed the IMD.

Also Read | Uttar Pradesh Shocker: Three Cops Dismissed in Kanpur for Alleged Involvement in Robbing 50 kg Silver From Jeweller.

"Cyclone Warning for Saurashtra and Kutch Coasts: RED MESSAGE. VSCS BIPARJOY at 0530IST of today over NE Arabian Sea near lat 21.9N and long 66.3E, about 280km WSW of Jakhau Port (Gujarat), 290km WSW of Devbhumi Dwarka," tweeted IMD.

"It is very likely to move nearly northeastwards and cross Saurashtra and Kutch and adjoining Pakistan coasts between Mandvi (Gujarat) and Karachi (Pakistan) near Jakhau Port (Gujarat) by the evening of 15th June as a very severe cyclonic storm with a maximum sustained wind speed of 125-135 kmph gusting to 150 kmph," it read.

Also Read | Goods Train Derails in Andhra Pradesh's Anakapalli District, Rail Traffic on Visakhapatnam-Vijayawada Route Affected.

https://twitter.com/Indiametdept/status/1668817518079918080?s=20

A relay tower that was declared unsafe in Rajkot was demolished in view of cyclone Biparjoy.

"A relay tower that was declared unsafe has been demolished here, in view of cyclone Biparjoy. A new tower will be constructed here later, said Ramesh Chandra, Akashvani- Rajkot.

Meanwhile, at Jakhau Port in Bhuj, a large number of boats were beached as fishing has been suspended in the wake of the cyclone.

Cyclone 'Biparjoy' is expected to cross near Gujarat's Jakhau Port by the evening of June 15.

Bracing for the cyclone, which has intensified into a "very severe" cyclonic storm according to the IMD, 12 NDRF teams have been deployed in Gujarat.

Union Minister Parshottam Rupala said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi took stock of the arrangements and directed officials to be alert and take all necessary steps.

In Gujarat's Junagadh, residents of coastal areas were being shifted to shelters.

Meanwhile, over 400 shelter homes werde identified in Gujarat's Dwarka and people were being shifted out to the shelter homes.

"More than 400 shelter homes have been identified in the Dwarka district and people are being shifted to shelter homes. PM took stock of the arrangements from concerned officials and ministers and directed them to be on alert mode and take all necessary steps," said Parshottam Rupala. (ANI)

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
New Delhi, Jun 14 (PTI) The Enforcement Directorate has arrested T Venkatram Reddy, a former promoter of the Deccan Chronicle Holdings Limited (DCHL), as part of a money laundering investigation linked to an alleged bank fraud case, official sources said on Tuesday.

Reddy was taken into custody under the Prevention of Money Laundering (PMLA) by the federal agency's Hyderabad office, they said.

Also Read | Goods Train Derails in Andhra Pradesh's Anakapalli District, Rail Traffic on Visakhapatnam-Vijayawada Route Affected.

The agency had said in 2020 that its probe found that "the three promoters of DCHL namely P K Iyer, T Venkatram Reddy and T Vinayakravi Reddy hatched a well planned conspiracy and manipulated the balance sheets of the company inflating the profits-advertisement revenue and grossly under-stated the financial liabilities of the company to paint a rosy picture for years to cheat the banks and its shareholders."

The company, at that time, was stated to be under corporate insolvency resolution process.

Also Read | CM Yogi Adityanath Most Popular Chief Minister on Twitter: Uttar Pradesh CM Sets New Record as His Twitter Account Crosses 25 Million Followers Mark.

A resolution plan for only Rs 400 crore has been approved by the NCLT. The total loan fraud committed by DCHL and its promoters is estimated to be at Rs 8,180 crore, the agency had said.

The ED filed a PMLA case against the firm and its promoters in 2015 after studying a CBI FIR registered to investigate the alleged bank loan default.

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
Chandigarh, Jun 14 (PTI) The Punjab Police on Wednesday said five people have been apprehended in connection with Ludhiana's Rs 8.49 crore robbery incident.

Armed robbers had decamped with cash from the office of CMS Securities, a cash management services company, in Ludhiana's New Rajguru Nagar locality on June 10 after overpowering security guards.

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Punjab Director General of Police (DGP) Gaurav Yadav on Wednesday said the robbery case has been solved.

"In a major breakthrough, @Ludhiana_Police, supported by Counter Intelligence has solved the Cash Van Robbery case in less than 60 hours. Out of 10 accused involved in planning, 5 main apprehended and major recovery effected. Investigations are ongoing," he said in a tweet.

Also Read | Uttar Pradesh Shocker: Father Ties Son's Hands and Feet With White Plastic Strings, Forces To Sit on Railway Tracks in Hardoi; Video Goes Viral.

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
By Payal Mehta

New Delhi [India], June 14 (ANI): Amid speculation of a possible tie-up between BJP and TDP for the Lok Sabha and assembly polls in Andhra Pradesh, BJP leader from the state YS Chowdary met party general secretary (organisation) BL Santhosh in the national capital on Wednesday.

Also Read | Cyclone Biparjoy Likely To Make Landfall in Gujarat on June 15; 18 NDRF Teams Deployed Coastal Areas, Over 45,000 Evacuated to Safe Places (Watch Video).

Sources said that during the meeting Chowdary, who was with Telugu Desam Party (TDP) before he joined the BJP, held discussions about the political situation in the state as also the performance of the YSRC government. Andhra Pradesh will go for assembly polls along with the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.

The meeting is being seen as significant as Chowdary was among the senior leaders of TDP and was a minister during the first tenure of the Modi government under the TDP quota, which was then a part of the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance.

Also Read | Sushant Singh Rajput Third Death Anniversary: Sister Shweta Singh Kirti Pays Emotional Tribute to the Actor (View Post).

This meeting comes days after the visit of BJP chief JP Nadda and Union Home Minister Amit Shah to the southern state.

TDP chief Chandrababu Naidu held a meeting with Amit Shah and Nadda earlier this month in the national capital, leading to speculation of rapprochement between the two parties.

There has been speculation that BJP and TDP may forge an alliance in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana for the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.

TDP had vociferously raised the demand for special status for Andhra Pradesh and parted ways with BJP in 2018. Naidu turned into a strong critic of the BJP-led government in the run-up to the 2019 Lok Sabha polls.

Chowdary, along with three other Rajya Sabha members of TDP, joined the BJP in June 2019.

Chaudhary retired from the Rajya Sabha in April last year. (ANI)

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
Gurugram, Jun 14 (PTI) The Gurugram administration has issued an order to vacate another tower in sector 109's Chintels Paradiso Society within 15 days after the structure was declared unsafe for habitation by a recent audit report, officials said.

Deputy Commissioner Nishant Kumar Yadav issued the order on Tuesday, after the June 2 audit report by the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi, declared Tower G of the housing society as unsafe.

Also Read | Karnataka Road Accident: Newlyweds Couple Killed After Bike Collides With Canter in Vijayapura.

Earlier, Towers D, E and F had been declared unsafe following structural audits. The society has nine towers in total. Last year, two people lost their lives when Tower D partially collapsed.

The District Town Planner (Enforcement) has been appointed the nodal officer and duty magistrate to get the tower vacated. The 14-storey G tower has 56 flats.

Also Read | Lungi, Nighty Banned in Greater Noida Condominium: Apartment Owners Association Asks Residents to Shun Lungis and Nighties in Park and Other Common Areas, Know Why.

"Using the powers vested in section 144 of the Code of Criminal Procedure and section 34 of the Disaster Management Act, 2005, the tower needs to be vacated. Legal action will be taken against those who violate the orders under section 188 of the IPC and sections 51 to 60 of the Disaster Management Act, 2005," the order read.

"We cannot compromise with the safety of the residents. They need to move out for their own safety. We have assured and will guarantee the implementation of the agreed buyback," Yadav said.

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
Hyderabad (Telangana) [India], June 14 (ANI): Hyderabad Police apprehended two alleged house burglars from the Madannapet police station area.

On Tuesday, on the basis of credible information, the sleuths of the Special Zonal Crime Team, South Zone and East Zone along with Madannapet Police apprehended two accused persons and recovered a total of 209 Grams of Gold Ornaments, 1.25 Kg of Silver Ornaments, net cash of Rs. 35,000, Two 2-Wheelers and Three Cell Phones from their possession.

Also Read | Uttar Pradesh Shocker: Three Cops Dismissed in Kanpur for Alleged Involvement in Robbing 50 kg Silver From Jeweller.

The accused have been identified as Mohammed Shahbaz Hussain and Mohammed Irfan.

On June 4, at 6 PM, Madannapet Police Station received a complaint from a person named Sudershan Singh. According to the complainant, when they were not present at home, some unknown offenders committed theft of gold ornaments.

Also Read | Goods Train Derails in Andhra Pradesh's Anakapalli District, Rail Traffic on Visakhapatnam-Vijayawada Route Affected.

Based on the information provided by the complainant, Special Zonal Crime Teams, South Zone and East Zone, Central Crime Station (CCS) investigated the CCTV footage of the surrounding areas and identified the suspects on the basis of it.

Police apprehended two accused named Mohammed Shahbaz Hussain and Mohammed Irfan. On thorough enquiry, they confessed their crime. Later on further investigation, police recovered a total of 209 Grams of gold ornaments, 1.25 Kg of silver ornaments, Rs. 35,000 cash, two 2-wheelers and three Mobile Phones from them.

According to the Deputy Commissioner of Police (Crimes), Shabarish.P, "The brief facts of the case are that on June 4 at 6 PM, PS Madannapet received a complaint from Sudershan Singh, wherein he stated that some unknown offenders have committed theft of gold ornaments when they were not present at the house."

"During the course of the investigation, the sleuth of Special Zonal Crime Teams, South Zone & East Zone, CCS verified the CCTV footage at the Scene of the Offence and surrounding areas and identified the suspects and apprehended the above-accused persons on thorough enquiry they admitted their guilt of commission of the offence and recovered total 209 Grams of Gold Ornaments, 1 KG 250 Grams of Silver Ornaments, Net Cash of Rs. 35,000, Two 2- Wheelers and Three Cell Phones from their possession," Dy Commissioner Shabarish added.

Further investigations are underway. (ANI)

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
YEREVAN, JUNE 14, ARMENPRESS. The international communitys silence or absence of unequivocally targeted measures on Azerbaijan may cause new aggressions against democratic Armenia, Ambassador-at-large Edmon Marukyan warned after the latest Azerbaijani shooting which targeted civilian infrastructure in Yeraskh.

Azerbaijan opened fire at the vehicles and infrastructures of a plant being built in the sovereign territory of Armenia by a US-Armenian investment. Intensive fire continued for three hours. This is an outrageous behavior going against all efforts carried out towards the peace process and a gross violation of all commitments on non-use of force or even threat of use of force. We strongly condemn this provocative behavior and call for our international partners to take measures against Azerbaijan, including sanctions and direct calls for refraining from such destructive approach. The silence of international community or absence of unequivocally targeted measures on Azerbaijan may cause new aggressions against democratic Armenia, Marukyan tweeted.

This is an indiscriminate use of force by Azerbaijani armed forces in the sovereign territory of Republic of Armenia, which must be condemned by all international actors interested in peace as stability of the entire region, Marukyan added in a separate post.
Srinagar (Jammu and Kashmir) [India], June 14 (ANI): Agri Industries Vikas Chamber and Indo Kash in collaboration with the School Education Department of Jammu and Kashmir on Tuesday hosted "Education Extravaganza 2023" at Sher-i-Kashmir International Conference Centre, Srinagar. Chief Justice of the High Court of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh N. Kotiswar Singh inaugurated the event.

A large number of Students participated in this education Extravaganza 2023. Education Extravaganza 2023 was the platform to raise awareness about the National Education Program(NEP) and how every student can benefit. Not just schools, but universities also.

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The Education Extravaganza was a unique convergence of the National Conclave on NEP 2020 and an expansive Educational Expo. The participating students said that these types of events enhance their knowledge about the other aspects of education and also to choose better subjects for their future. According to officials, at least 40 universities and colleges participated in this event by putting their stalls in the education extravaganza. (ANI)

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
Srinagar (Jammu and Kashmir) [India], June 14 (ANI): The Jammu and Kashmir Special Investigation Unit (SIU), Srinagar on Wednesday filed a chargesheet against two active terrorists linked with the proscribed terror outfit Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and The Resistance Front (TRF) and one killed terrorist before a National Investigation Court (NIA) in a case related to the killing of police personnel, a police press release said.

The Kashmir police informed that one of the accused terrorists namely Adil Ahmed Parray was killed in an encounter with Police Srinagar at Sangam area of Srinagar on 12/06/2022.

Also Read | Tiger Reserves in Rajasthan to To Remain Closed for One Day in a Week From July 1.

"The other two involved terrorists are still active and linked with proscribed terror outfit Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and The Resistance Front (TRF)," police said.

As per the press note, the chargesheet was filed under sections 307, and 302 of the Indian Penal Code, sections 7/27 of the Arms Act and sections 13, 16, 18, 20 and 38 of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.

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The names of the accused include Basit Ahmed Dar, a resident of Redwani Qaimou Kulgam, Momin Gulzar Mir, a resident of Firdous Colony Eidgah Srinagar and Adil Ahmed Parray, a resident of Badergund Ganderbal.

Jammu and Kashmir Police said that on May 24, 2022, unknown terrorists fired upon one police personnel, Saifullah Qadri and his minor daughter Safa Qadri, a resident of Malik Shab Soura Srinagar, in which police personnel got killed and his minor daughter was injured."During the course of the investigation, 3 terrorists were identified and were found involved in the terror crime case," said the statement.

"Besides, a scooty used in the terrorist attack was also seized, police said.

However, the investigation shall continue under section 173 (8) CrPC, police said. (ANI)

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
New Delhi, Jun 14 (PTI) Nitin Agarwal, a Kerala cadre IPS officer of the 1989 batch, on Wednesday took charge as the new director general of the BSF that guards India's frontiers with Pakistan and Bangladesh.

Acting Director General S L Thaosen handed over the ceremonial baton of the force to Agarwal at the Border Security Force (BSF) headquarters in the CGO complex on Lodhi Road.

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Agarwal, who has earlier served in various central armed police forces (CAPFs) such as the CISF, ITBP and SSB apart from his cadre state Kerala, was serving as additional DG (operations) of the CRPF till now.

Thaosen, a 1988-batch IPS officer of the Madhya Pradesh cadre, is the CRPF DG and has been holding the additional charge of the 2.65 lakh personnel strong BSF.

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Agarwal is the 31st DG of the BSF that was raised on December 1, 1965. He holds a B.Tech and an M.Tech degree from IIT Delhi, along with an M.Phil in social science from Panjab University.

The new DG is known to take a personal interest in resolving the grievances of the jawans and officers and he often calls them personally and even rings up the authorities in the state who can help the personnel in solving the problems they face in their hometowns, officials said.

The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) had on Sunday night issued an order appointing Agarwal as the BSF DG "from the date of joining the post and up to 31.07.2026, his date of superannuation, or till further orders, whichever is earlier".

This order for appointing a full-time chief for the BSF came over five months after then DG Pankaj Kumar Singh retired on December 31, 2022.

The new BSF chief, official sources said, was given an operational briefing by senior officials on the current deployment of the force including the spate of illegal drugs and arms-laden drone sorties made into India from along the Pakistan front, largely in Punjab.

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
Raisen, Jun 14 (PTI) Two persons were shot dead and six injured after two groups fought over land in Madhya Pradesh's Raisen district, police said on Wednesday.

The bloody confrontation took place at Kuchwada, some 120 km from the district headquarters, under the Udaipura police station area on Tuesday evening.

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Additional Superintendent of Police (ASP) Amrit Singh said that one Rammurthi Raghuvanshi had allegedly encroached upon government land and it prompted Jitendra Raghuvanshi, husband of the sarpanch (village head), to call revenue officials to measure it.

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In the presence of revenue officials, Rammurthi and Vivek clashed with each other along with their supporters. During the fight, Vivek and his cousin brother were shot dead by the other side, he said.

The confrontation also left six injured, including a Patwari' (revenue official) named Ajay Dhakad and panchayat office staffer Ramakant Raghuvanshi, he said.

Police recovered blank cartridges from the spot and registered a case against both groups, he said.

After the incident, policemen were deployed in the village to maintain law and order, he added.

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
New Delhi [India], June 14 (ANI): The Supreme Court on Wednesday refused to entertain a plea to prevent 'Mahapanchayat' proposed to be held in Purola Town of Uttarakhand on June 15 amid rising communal tensions in the state.

A vacation bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Ahsanuddin Amanullah declined to entertain the plea, however, allowed the petitioner to approach the Uttarakhand High Court or concerned authorities for relief as per law.

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As the apex court was not inclined to hear the plea, the petitioner withdrew the plea.

Counsel appearing for the petitioner mentioned the matter before the bench seeking urgent listing of the case saying the 'Mahapanchayat' is scheduled to be held on June 15.

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The counsel apprised the top court that an ultimatum has been given by certain groups to a particular community to leave the place before the 'Mahapanchayat' or face dire consequences.

To this, the bench asked the lawyer, "Law and order is for the administration to handle. You move the High Court. Why do you come here? Why do you express distrust in approaching High Court? If there is a mandamus by this Court, High Court will pass orders. You should have some trust in the High Court. Why can't you trust the administration?"

The counsel replied that the apex court had earlier passed directions to the Uttarakhand government in a hate speech matter that it should take steps to ensure that no hate speeches are made in the State.

The bench said the High Court can also pass appropriate orders if there is already a direction given by the Supreme Court.

Earlier today, the Uttarkashi district administration refused permission for the proposed 'Mahapanchayat' proposed to be held on June 15 in Purola over alleged 'love-jihad' cases.

Following this, the District Magistrate said that section 144 CrPC has been imposed in Purola town. (ANI)

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
Chennai, Jun 14 (PTI) Tamil Nadu minister Senthil Balaji allegedly "misused" his office for illegal gratification and "engineered" a job racket scam in the state transport undertakings during 2014-15 with purported kickbacks paid by candidates through his associates, the ED informed a local court on Wednesday hours after arresting the DMK leader.

Calling him the "prime suspect" in the cash-for-jobs case, the federal probe agency also stated in its custody papers that alleged unaccounted cash deposits worth about Rs 1.60 crore were made in the bank accounts of Balaji and his wife.

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Balaji, 47, was arrested under the criminal sections of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) by the agency here on Wednesday after it launched searches the previous day at his premises and those linked to him in Chennai and some other locations. Chief Minister M K Stalin slammed the ED raids against Balaji as "intimidation politics" by the Centre.

Balaji was admitted to a city government hospital after he complained of uneasiness. He underwent a coronary angiogram and was advised to undergo bypass surgery at the "earliest".

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He was remanded in judicial custody till June 28 by a Sessions Court judge during a hearing held at the hospital.

The ED in its submission claimed Balaji, a public official, "misused his office for illegal gratification and engineered a job racket scam in MTC/TNSTCs."

The case against Balaji and his aides pertains to his tenure as the state transport minister in the AIADMK government during 2011-15.

The irregularities occurred in state-run Metropolitan Transport Corporation (MTC) and Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation (TNSTC).

It is alleged that he, along with his brother R V Ashok Kumar, PA B Shanmugam and a person identified as M Karthikeyan, "conspired" with the managing directors of all state transport undertakings (STU) and other officers of transport corporations to obtain "illegal gratification" from candidates to recruit them as drivers, conductors, junior assistants, junior engineer and assistant engineer in the transport corporation (during 2014-15).

It is alleged that the "entire appointment process was made in a fraudulent and dishonest manner and only in accordance with the lists provided by Shanmugam, R V Ashok Kumar, M Karthikeyan, as per the directions of Balaji", the ED alleged in its application seeking Balaji's custody from the court.

These four are alleged to have collected money from the candidates "on behalf of Balaji" for issuing appointment orders. It is alleged that the candidates who paid the money "neither got appointment orders nor their money back".

The ED filed a case of money laundering in September 2021 to probe these allegations and its complaint is based on three Tamil Nadu Police FIRs filed during 2018 and some later years by some of those who failed to get the promised jobs.

The fresh action came after the Supreme Court issued an order on May 16 allowing an investigation into this case by the police as well as the ED.

The ED said that it had summoned Balaji, R V Ashok Kumar and B Shanmugam multiple times in the past but they did not appear and sought adjournments, showing "evasive" behaviour.

The agency informed the court that it has recorded the statement of various officials allegedly involved in this 'scam' and they have told that many rules were "violated" while recruiting candidates.

The violations included entering interview marks in pencil, not following the principle of merit and reservation, issuance of appointment letters by unauthorised officers, increasing vacancies without approval and payment of money for jobs through associates to PAs of the minister.

Some of the candidates told the ED that the money was given to Shanmugam, either "directly or through some mediators".

The ED said after raiding the premises of Balaji and his associates on Tuesday, it issued him a summons to appear before it for questioning but he allegedly "refused to sign and receive" them.

The ED claimed Balaji "shouted and yelled" at the agency officials present at his house and the agency then attempted to record his statement there in the presence of two witnesses.

It charged the minister of being "completely non-cooperative" during the proceedings and hence he was arrested around 1:30 am. It said the arrest was executed in the presence of two independent witnesses as the minister "refused" to sign the arrest memo.

If not arrested, Balaji could have "tampered and destroyed" the evidence, the agency.

"Bank statement analysis of key accused revealed that there have been cash deposits of Rs 1.34 crore in the bank accounts of prime suspect V Senthil Balaji and Rs 29.55 lakh in his wife S Meghala's account. These cash deposits are huge compared to their incomes disclosed in ITRs (income tax returns)," the ED alleged.

It informed the court that "the statements given by some accused/victims and witnesses clearly point out the offence of money laundering".

There was neither justification nor evidence to show that the source of huge cash deposits is from his genuine income," the ED said.

The agency told the court that it requires Balaji's custody to "confront" him with those people whose statements it has already recorded and to trace the "end-use of the huge amounts of monies which appear to have been laundered in this case for which he (Balaji) could not produce documents despite sufficient opportunity".

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
Agartala (Tripura) [India], June 14 (ANI): Tripura Chief Minister Manik Saha on Tuesday called on the state's women voters to play a pivotal role in next year's Lok Sabha elections and gift two lotuses to Prime Minister Narendra Modi by securing victory in both seats in 2024.

The chief minister made the remark while gracing 'Vidushi Mahila Sanmelan' organised by Pradesh BJP Mahila Morcha to commemorate the completion of 9 years of PM Modi at the helm.

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During his address at the event, he highlighted Prime Minister Modi's relentless efforts in implementing welfare measures to uplift the socio-economic status of women in the country.

"In line with our Prime Minister's footsteps, the present state government has introduced several programs for the betterment of the mothers and sisters of Tripura," the chief minister said.

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He further revealed that the state government had reserved 33 per cent government jobs for women, thereby demonstrating its thrust on their welfare. The number of self-help groups in Tripura has seen a significant rise from 4,100 in 2018 to 39,672 in 2023, he noted, adding that this development has positively impacted around 354,000 women in the state.

"The Community Investment Fund has allocated a sum of Rs 237.86 crore to over 26,558 self-help groups, while a revolving fund of Rs 21.13 crores has also been granted to more than 18,448 self-help groups. Moreover, free education for women has been guaranteed in all colleges, ensuring their access to quality education," CM Saha said.

He further acknowledged PM Modi's consistent efforts in transforming the nation's welfare.

"Since 2014, the Prime Minister has spearheaded numerous initiatives for the welfare of our citizens. He has established 390 new universities in the past nine years, supplementing the 723 that already prevails in the country. The development of communication systems, including national highways and railways, has been prioritised in various regions. Additionally, through the Act East policy, he has diligently focused on the development of the Northeast, bringing significant benefits to our people," the CM said.

He added, "The Lok Sabha election is approaching and we have to gift two lotuses to PM Modi by winning both the seats in the state. And, for this to happen, our women voters need to play an important role".

Among the other dignitaries at the event were Tripura BJP president Rajib Bhattacharya, minister Shantana Chakma, Legislative Assembly's chief secretary Kalyani Roy, BJP's state general secretary Papiya Dutta, and others. (ANI)

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
Sarajevo (Bosnia-Herzegovina), Jun 14 (AP) A 13-year-old boy was arrested in Bosnia on Wednesday after allegedly shooting and wounding a teacher inside an elementary school building, police and local officials said.

The teacher, a 38-year-old man who also served as the assistant headmaster in Lukavac Elementary School in the northeastern town, sustained serious wounds and was undergoing surgery, police said in a statement.

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The assailant was detained after the shooting in which no students were injured, the statement added.

Police released no information about the shooter's motive, but local officials confirmed the boy was expelled from the school earlier this year for unruly behaviour.

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A local politician in Lukavac, Dino Osmanovic, claimed the boy had previously threatened to take revenge for the disciplinary action.

Osmanovic said he notified the police of the danger in late May, but was told they had taken "necessary measures, that everything was under control and that they cannot share more information about the case because it involves a juvenile".

The shooting comes on the heels of two mass murders in neighbouring Serbia where, in early May, a 13-year-old boy took his father's gun to school in Belgrade and opened fire on his fellow students.

The shooting claimed the lives of nine students and a school guard. A day later, a 20-year-old used an automatic weapon to randomly target people in two villages south of Belgrade, killing eight people and wounding 14.

Serbia's twin mass shootings reverberated around the Balkan region that is awash with small arms and weapons since the 1990s wars, part of the breakup of Yugoslavia, particularly in Bosnia - the country of about 3.5 million people.

According to a 2010 study by the United Nations Development Programme, there are about 750,000 weapons in illegal possession in Bosnia. (AP)

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
Washington, Jun 14 (AP) President Joe Biden is dispatching White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan to Tokyo this week for talks with his counterparts from Japan, Philippines and South Korea.

Sullivan will also take part in "the first-ever trilateral meeting of the Japanese, Philippine, and US national security advisers" while in Japan, the White House National Security Council said in a statement Tuesday.

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The White House offered scant details about Sullivan's two-day visit that begins Thursday, saying Sullivan and his counterparts "will discuss ways to deepen collaboration on a number of key regional and global issues".

Sullivan's visit comes after US, Japanese and Philippine coast guard ships staged law enforcement drills in waters near the disputed South China Sea earlier this month. Washington has stepped up efforts to reinforce alliances in Asia amid an increasingly tense rivalry with China.

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Washington lays no claims to the strategic South China Sea, where China, the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysian, Taiwan and Brunei have been locked in tense territorial stand-offs for decades.

But the US says freedom of navigation and overflight and the peaceful resolution of disputes in the busy waterway are in its national interest.

The White House confirmed Sullivan's travels after Biden during a reception at the White House for US chiefs of diplomatic missions on Tuesday made an off-hand remark that Ambassador Rahm Emanuel, the US envoy to Japan, was not on hand because he was getting ready for Sullivan's visit.

US-China relations have been strained throughout Biden's tenure. China launched military exercises last year around Taiwan after then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif, visited the democratically governed island that China claims as its own.

Relations became further strained early this year after the US shot down a Chinese spy balloon that had crossed the United States. Beijing also was angered by Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen's stopover in the US in April that included an engagement with House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif.

And on Saturday, the White House confirmed that China has been operating a spy base in Cuba for some time and that it was upgraded in 2019 under the Trump administration's watch.

White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby on Monday said that the Trump administration had the "same access" to intelligence about China's spying operations as the Biden administration did.

Former Trump administration officials, including former Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe and national security adviser John Bolton, have pushed back against the assertion that the Cuba spy base was upgraded under their watch.

"The (Biden) administration claims that the base was there in 2019 if not before, all I can say is I was in the White House for part of 2019 I was certainly unaware of it," former Trump-era national security adviser John Bolton said in an interview on Tuesday with SiriusXM's POTUS channel. "I think I would have remembered it if it crossed my desk."

The White House confirmed the base after the Wall Street Journal reported last week that China and Cuba had reached an agreement in principle to build an electronic eavesdropping station on the island.

Despite the tensions with Beijing, the administration has been eager to restart high-level communications with Beijing.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken is planning a visit to China on June 18 to meet with senior officials, according to US officials, who spoke Friday on condition of anonymity because neither the State Department nor the Chinese foreign ministry has yet confirmed the trip.

Blinken was scheduled to visit China in February but those talks were scrapped after the spy balloon incident.

Sullivan is currently in India meeting with officials ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's state visit to Washington next week.

He held talks on Tuesday with his Indian counterpart, Ajit Doval, that focused on potential US-Indian collaboration on artificial intelligence, semiconductors and defence, according to the Indian Foreign Ministry.

Sullivan also addressed a conference of business leaders where he said the US was keen on doing away with regulatory obstacles that are holding back the two countries from deepening trade in areas like defence and high-tech. (AP)

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
Dubai [United Arab Emirates], June 14 (ANI/WAM): During an extensive meeting organised by Dubai Customs with an economic and diplomatic delegation from Turkey, Ahmed Mahboob Musabih, the Director General of Dubai Customs and the CEO of Ports, Customs and Free Zone Corporation, confirmed that the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement between the UAE and Turkey leads to a new era of economic and commercial recovery.

He also stated that it will contribute to greater flexibility in supply and delivery chains, given the pivotal and important role played by the UAE and Turkey in international trade. Dubai Customs supports the UAE's economic partnership agreements by providing world-class trade facilitation services and customs systems.

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The delegation from Turkey was headed by Anwar Shilan, Consul-General of the Republic of Turkey, and included the Turkish Business Council and a number of Turkish companies in Dubai.

This meeting is part of a series of intensive meetings held by Dubai Customs with its trade partners to increase foreign trade in Dubai, in line with Dubai's economic agenda D33, launched by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai. The agenda aims to enhance the components of the economic sector in Dubai and the UAE, raise competitiveness, develop sustainable development, and double the value of foreign trade in Dubai by investing in Dubai's unique and strategic location.

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During the virtual meeting, Musabih commended the diplomatic entities and the Turkish Business Council for their efforts in enhancing cooperation and coordination with Dubai Customs. He confirmed that the "Ertibat" initiative, launched by the Government Department, aims to improve relations with trade partners, and it has held 72 meetings since its launch in 2012.

Dubai Customs seeks to maximise trade exchange with friendly states and provides leading customs services and programmes, such as the cross-border e-commerce platform and the Authorised Economic Operator, which is a federal programme at the level of the UAE that links the country commercially with the world's countries. Companies that join the programme can easily access their goods to global markets, especially the markets of countries that have signed mutual recognition agreements. Ahmed Mahboob Musabih invited Turkish companies operating in the UAE to join the programme to benefit from its multiple advantages.

Anwar Shilan, the Consul General of the Republic of Turkey, confirmed that the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement would enhance mutual trade exchange between Turkey and the UAE by promoting cooperation in many strategic sectors. He also stated that it would open the door to increasing investments in both countries, where the number of Turkish companies operating in the UAE is expected to increase in the near future, as there are currently 620 companies. Anwar Shilan expressed his great appreciation for Dubai Customs' efforts in providing the best trade facilities and commercial services. (ANI/WAM)

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
YEREVAN, JUNE 14, ARMENPRESS. Two foreign nationals were wounded on Wednesday when Azerbaijani military forces opened fire at a steelworks which is under development with foreign investments in the Armenian village of Yeraskh. The shooting occurred around 11:45, June 14, the defense ministry said.

Furthermore, the Azerbaijani defense ministry spread disinformation falsely accusing Armenia of opening fire in an attempt to create information grounds for its shooting.

The Ministry of Defence of Azerbaijan disseminated disinformation at around 11:30 a.m. as if the RA Armed Forces opened fire against the Azerbaijani combat positions near the Yeraskh settlement, thus making an information base: 10-15 minutes later, at around 11:45 a.m., Azerbaijani side opened fire in the same direction at the metallurgical plant being built with the measures of foreign investments in Yeraskh, in the wake of which 2 foreign citizens were wounded, the Defense Ministry of Armenia said in a statement posted on Facebook.
Paris [France], June 14 (ANI): Baloch Voice Association, an NGO based in Paris, while citing a World Health Organisation (WHO) report have raised concerns about deteriorating health facilities in Balochistan.

President of the Baloch Voice Association, Munir Mengal took to his Twitter to voice the worries surrounding the public health system in Balochistan.

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He tweeted, "As per World Health Organization (WHO) Report on Balochistan has claimed more than 250 ghost hospitals only papers. It was revealed that 257 health centres exist only in files, 656 health centres are partially functioning and out of 1661 health facilities half are closed."

"In Balochistan, 250 government ghost hospitals have been revealed which exist only on paper, not a single brick has been laid on the ground. In Balochistan, there are 1,661 hospitals, primary health centres, and rural health centres in the official documents of the health depart," he added.

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He also emphasised that 250 medical centres were not built but were limited only to papers causing severe problems for the patients.

"Interestingly, 250 medical centres have not been built but are only limited to papers, while 656 medical centres are in which the facilities are only nominal and the patients are facing serious problems," his tweet concluded.

This is not the only problem being faced by Balochistan. The province earlier saw a shortage of medical supplies.

The Leishmania epidemic, which spread in one of the districts of Pakistan's Balochistan, went out of control and affected poor people of different ages in the region. Due to the sudden increase in the number of affected victims, the medicine and injection supplies kept with the local hospitals fell short.

According to Dr Nasrullah, health officer of Kalat district, more than 600 Leishmania patients were registered. He further said that since the number of affected individuals was quite high, the quantity of medical supply provided by the government was insufficient. They even made an appeal to the Health Department and government in this regard but did not receive any response.

He even warned the government that if the disease is not controlled timely, it is liable to spread to other regions as well. The rapid spread of this sand fly-borne disease can be attributed to the last year's flood situation.

After failing to anticipate the situation beforehand after the floods, the government went on the back foot and asked for help from international organizations like WHO and UNICEF. A free ration camp was organized by the Al-Khidmat Foundation (affiliated to Jamaat-e-Islami and JuD) in the port city of Gwadar, Balochistan which was just another photo ops session by the administration and the NGO wherein 500 needy people who were selected to receive the ration package were asked to leave the package and return home empty-handed after the photo session was over.

According to locals, they felt very disrespected and mocked by the administration. (ANI)

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
London, Jun 14 (AP) Lawmakers in Europe signed off on Wednesday on the world's first set of comprehensive rules for artificial intelligence, clearing a key hurdle as authorities across the globe race to rein in AI.

The European Parliament vote is one of the last steps before the rules become law, which could act as a model for other places working on similar regulations.

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A yearslong effort by Brussels to draw up guardrails for AI has taken on more urgency as rapid advances in chatbots like ChatGPT show the benefits the emerging technology can bring  and the new perils it poses.

Here's a look at the EU's Artificial Intelligence Act:

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HOW DO THE RULES WORK?

The measure, first proposed in 2021, will govern any product or service that uses an artificial intelligence system. The act will classify AI systems according to four levels of risk, from minimal to unacceptable.

Riskier applications, such as for hiring or tech targeted to children, will face tougher requirements, including being more transparent and using accurate data.

It will be up to the EU's 27 member states to enforce the rules. Regulators could force companies to withdraw their apps from the market.

In extreme cases, violations could draw fines of up to 30 million euros (USD 33 million) or 6 per cent of a company's annual global revenue, which in the case of tech companies like Google and Microsoft could amount to billions.

WHAT ARE THE RISKS?

One of the EU's main goals is to guard against any AI threats to health and safety and protect fundamental rights and values.

That means some AI uses are an absolute no-no, such as social scoring systems that judge people based on their behaviour.

Also forbidden is AI that exploits vulnerable people, including children, or uses subliminal manipulation that can result in harm, for example, an interactive talking toy that encourages dangerous behaviour.

Predictive policing tools, which crunch data to forecast who will commit crimes, is also out.

Lawmakers beefed up the original proposal from the European Commission, the EU's executive branch, by widening the ban on real-time remote facial recognition and biometric identification in public. The technology scans passers-by and uses AI to match their faces or other physical traits to a database.

A contentious amendment to allow law enforcement exceptions such as finding missing children or preventing terrorist threats did not pass.

AI systems used in categories like employment and education, which would affect the course of a person's life, face tough requirements such as being transparent with users and taking steps to assess and reduce risks of bias from algorithms.

Most AI systems, such as video games or spam filters, fall into the low- or no-risk category, the commission says.

WHAT ABOUT CHATGPT?

The original measure barely mentioned chatbots, mainly by requiring them to be labelled so users know they're interacting with a machine. Negotiators later added provisions to cover general purpose AI like ChatGPT after it exploded in popularity, subjecting that technology to some of the same requirements as high-risk systems.

One key addition is a requirement to thoroughly document any copyright material used to teach AI systems how to generate text, images, video and music that resemble human work.

That would let content creators know if their blog posts, digital books, scientific articles or songs have been used to train algorithms that power systems like ChatGPT. Then they could decide whether their work has been copied and seek redress.

WHY ARE THE EU RULES SO IMPORTANT?

The European Union isn't a big player in cutting-edge AI development. That role is taken by the US and China. But Brussels often plays a trend-setting role with regulations that tend to become de facto global standards and has become a pioneer in efforts to target the power of large tech companies.

The sheer size of the EU's single market, with 450 million consumers, makes it easier for companies to comply than develop different products for different regions, experts say.

But it's not just a crackdown. By laying down common rules for AI, Brussels is also trying to develop the market by instilling confidence among users.

The fact this is regulation that can be enforced and companies will be held liable is significant because other places like the United States, Singapore and Britain have merely offered "guidance and recommendations", said Kris Shrishak, a technologist and senior fellow at the Irish Council for Civil Liberties.

Other countries might want to adapt and copy the EU rules, he said.

Businesses and industry groups warn that Europe needs to strike the right balance.

The EU is set to become a leader in regulating artificial intelligence, but whether it will lead on AI innovation still remains to be seen," said Boniface de Champris, a policy manager for the Computer and Communications Industry Association, a lobbying group for tech companies.

Europe's new AI rules need to effectively address clearly defined risks, while leaving enough flexibility for developers to deliver useful AI applications to the benefit of all Europeans, he said.

Sam Altman, CEO of ChatGPT maker OpenAI, has voiced support for some guardrails on AI and signed on with other tech executives to a warning about the risks it poses to humankind. But he also has said it's a mistake to go put heavy regulation on the field right now.

Others are playing catch up on AI rules. Britain, which left the EU in 2020, is jockeying for a position in AI leadership. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak plans to host a world summit on AI safety this fall.

I want to make the UK not just the intellectual home but the geographical home of global AI safety regulation, Sunak said at a tech conference this week.

WHAT'S NEXT?

It could be years before the rules fully take effect. The next step is three-way negotiations involving member countries, the Parliament and the European Commission, possibly facing more changes as they try to agree on the wording.

Final approval is expected by the end of this year, followed by a grace period for companies and organisations to adapt, often around two years.

Brando Benifei, an Italian member of the European Parliament who is co-leading its work on the AI Act, said they would push for quicker adoption of the rules for fast-evolving technologies like generative AI.

To fill the gap before the legislation takes effect, Europe and the US are drawing up a voluntary code of conduct that officials promised at the end of May would be drafted within weeks and could be expanded to other like-minded countries". (AP)

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
Mexico City, Jun 14 (AP) In his first visit to Latin America, Iran's hardline president met Tuesday with his Nicaraguan counterpart and railed against a theme both leaders have in common: US sanctions.

President Ebrahim Raisi's visit to Nicaragua is his second stop, after Venezuela. He is also scheduled to visit Cuba, Iran's other ally in the region.

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Raisi spoke at a joint appearance in Managua with Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega.

The United States wanted to paralyse our people with threats and sanctions, but it hasn't been able to do it, Raisi said.

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Many top figures in Ortega's government also face U.S. sanctions for crushing dissent and imprisoning or exiling opponents.

On Monday , Raisi visited President Nicolas Maduro of Venezuela, which is also under U.S. economic sanctions.

His tour of allied nations in Latin America comes amid rising tensions with the administration of President Joe Biden.

The U.S. has accused Iran of providing Russia with materials to build a drone manufacturing plant east of Moscow, while the Kremlin seeks to ensure a steady supply of weapons for its invasion of Ukraine. U.S. intelligence officials believe the plant in Russia could start operations early next year, but Iran has said it supplied drones to Russia before the start of the war. (AP)

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
Pristina (Kosovo), Jun 14 (AP) Three police officers in Kosovo were injured during the arrest of an alleged organiser of Serb protests in the country's north, including one in which 30 NATO-led peacekeepers were injured, the country's interior minister said Tuesday.

Interior Minister Xhelal Svecla said one of the heads of Civil Protection, an organisation operating in Serb-majority areas of northern Kosovo, was arrested in the city of Mitrovica.

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The Kosovar government has accused the group of engaging in criminal activity which "for years has terrorised our citizens".

The minister identified the person arrested as Milun Milenkovic-Llune. After he was taken into custody, a small group of Serbs gathered in Mitrovica hurled objects at police, according to Kosovar media.

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Petar Petkovic, director of the Serbian government's Office for Kosovo and Metohija, denounced the arrest of "a prominent fighter for Serbian national interests and Serb's rights" while "surrounded by eight Kosovo police armoured vehicles".

In May, ethnic Serbs clashed with Kosovo police and then members of the international Kosovo Force peacekeeping missions in northern Kosovo's city of Zvecan. Thirty soldiers and over 50 Serbs were injured.

NATO, which has maintained a peacekeeping force in Kosovo since a war between Serbia and Kosovar separatists ended in 1999, sent in an additional 700 troops after the May incident.

The clashes grew out of an earlier confrontation after ethnic Albanian candidates who were declared the winners of local elections in northern Kosovo entered municipal buildings to take office and were blocked by Serbs. Ethnic Serbs overwhelmingly boycotted the votes.

April's elections were held in four Serb-dominated municipalities after the local Serb representatives left their posts last year. They resigned in protest over the refusal by Kosovo authorities to allow the establishment of an inter-community association to coordinate work on education, health care, land planning and economic development at the local level.

Serbia and Kosovo agreed in 2013 on a plan for such a Serb association. But Kosovo's Constitutional Court declared the proposal unconstitutional because it did not include other ethnic groups and the association could entail the use of executive powers to impose laws.

With Kosovo's ethnic Serbs demanding autonomy, Kosovar Albanians fear the association could become a self-governing ministate like Srpska Republika in Bosnia. The unrest has provoked fears of a renewal of the bloody conflicts that surrounded the breakup of Yugoslavia in the 1990s.

The European Union has asked Kosovo to withdraw its special police forces from northern Kosovo, where most of the Balkan nation's ethnic Serb minority lives, and to repeat the municipal elections there.

Kosovar Prime Minister Albin Kurti sent a letter Tuesday to the EU's foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell, saying that his government would reduce the number of the special police forces and hold fresh elections in four municipalities once the alleged Serb-led criminal groups leave the country or were prosecuted.

Serbia and its former province Kosovo have been at odds for decades, with Belgrade refusing to recognise Kosovo's 2008 declaration of independence. The violence near their shared border has stirred fear of a renewal of the 1998-99 war in Kosovo, which claimed more than 10,000 lives and resulted in the KFOR peacekeeping mission.

Kosovo and Serbia reached an EU-facilitated agreement this year on normalising relations. An 11-point implementation plan remains the focus of talks mediated by envoys from Washington and Brussels.

Kurti said he would be ready to meet with Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic this week to continue the dialogue.

NATO said in a statement issued Tuesday that it "continues to support the EU-facilitated dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina, which is the only way to lasting peace and security in Kosovo and stability across the region".

The prime minister of Albania, which borders Kosovo and belongs to NATO, said a joint meeting of the two countries' Cabinets that had been scheduled for Wednesday in Kosovo was cancelled due to the ongoing tensions there. Kurti has not agreed to a smaller meeting of foreign and defence ministers, Prime Minister Edi Rama said.

Rama said he worried that Kosovo "was entering a dramatic clash course with the Euro-Atlantic community" and said the country might face "restrictive measures" if the government did not heed recommendations for defusing the tensions. (AP)

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
New York, Jun 14 (AP) The US Department of Agriculture said Wednesday it hopes to weed out false or misleading animal-welfare claims on meat and poultry packaging with new guidance and testing.

The claims -- such as pasture-raised, humanely raised, and raised without antibiotics -- are increasingly popular with consumers and allow producers to charge a premium.

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Perdue free range chicken breasts with no antibiotics sell for USD 5.78 per pound at Walmart, for example; store brand chicken breasts without those claims sell for USD 2.79 per pound.

Both meat producers and animal welfare advocates say the USDA isn't adequately substantiating the claims or ensuring they meet consumer expectations.

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The USDA lets producers define some terms, including humane, which can lead to widely varying conditions for animals. Other claims like free range are clearly defined by the USDA, but some producers are skirting requirements.

The USDA must approve all animal welfare claims on meat and poultry labels before products can be sold. But unlike organic claims, which are verified in person by government regulators, animal welfare claims are substantiated with paperwork submitted to the USDA.

The USDA doesn't have the regulatory authority to check animal welfare claims on farms, said Sandra Eskin, the USDA's deputy undersecretary for food safety.

There are plenty of companies out there that are following the law and many that are not, and that's just not fair, Eskin said.

Eskin said the USDA plans to update its guidelines to require more documentation from companies making animal welfare claims. It will also strongly encourage companies to hire third-party verification groups, such as Human Farm Animal Care, a non-profit organisation in Virginia that certifies animal welfare claims.

To substantiate no antibiotics claims, the USDA also plans to explore new testing that can find traces of antibiotics in animals once they arrive at processing plants.

Eskin said the agency may also update definitions of certain claims, a change some producers have been pressing for. Perdue Foods, a major poultry and pork producer, recently asked the USDA to clarify the difference between free range and pasture raised.

The agency uses the terms interchangeably, Perdue said, even though free range chickens may roam in dirt or shrubs and not necessarily pasture.

The nonprofit Animal Welfare Institute, which monitors animal welfare claim submissions to the USDA, found that 85 per cent of the 97 claims it reviewed had inadequate documents substantiating the claims.

A lot of the substantiation is a sentence or two: I raise my animals humanely,' said Dena Jones, director of the Animal Welfare Institute's farmed animal programme. It is wholly inadequate.

Jones said the USDA has been overwhelmed with new claims as producers try to meet consumer demand for higher animal welfare standards. Last year, Eskin said the government received more than 120 label applications each week.

But Jones praised the steps the USDA is taking, especially its move toward promoting third-party verification.

It benefits the animals, the earth, the farmers who are spending more money to improve their practices and it benefits the USDA because it makes their process easier, Jones said. (AP)

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
Eluru, Jun3 14: At least two motorcycle-borne unidentified persons threw acid on a woman in the outskirts of Eluru city in Andhra Pradesh and she has been hospitalised, police said on Wednesday.

The attack happened just a short distance away from victim Yadla Pranchika's house while she was returning home from work on Tuesday night. "After the attack, she managed to quickly run away to her home. Her family members admitted her in a hospital and informed the police," Eluru Superintendent of Police D Mary Prasanthi told PTI. Acid Attack in Delhi: Woman, Her Son Injured After Miscreants Throw Acid on Them in Bharat Nagar Area, Probe Underway.

According to the SP, Pranchika's eyes were affected as the acid fell on her face, prompting the police to shift her to the government general hospital in Vijayawada quickly after taking a local doctor's advice.

The victim's left eye is out of danger while her right eye requires a surgery as it was 60 per cent damaged, she said, observing that other parts of her face were not affected much. Further, police are planning to shift the victim to a super speciality hospital to offer better treatment. Meanwhile, six police teams have been dispatched to arrest the acid attackers who are at large. Acid Attack in Karnataka: Jilted Lover Attacks Minor With Acid in Ramnagar District; Accused Absconding.

The SP noted that neither the victim nor her family members are in a position to suspect anybody, including locals or the availability of CCTV footage. As part of the probe, police registered a case against unidentified persons under Disha Act, slapping Indian Penal Code Sections 307 (Abetment of suicide), 326A (Voluntarily causing grievous hurt by use of acid, etc.) and 34 (Acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention).
The latest policy rift within Germany's three-party coalition government appears to have been resolved with a compromise deal. This time it was over planned changes to laws on heating.Germany's federal coalition on Tuesday announced a compromise deal to alter draft legislation that appears to defuse the latest policy dispute within the three-party alliance.

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It follows emergency negotiations on Tuesday between leading figures from all three governing parties, with Chancellor Olaf Scholz of the Social Democrats, his deputy Robert Habeck of the Greens, and Finance Minister Christian Lindner of the FDP.

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The compromise will involve providing homeowners more time to convert from oil or gas heating to ensue they are not overburdened financially, and also to try to ensure renters will not face cost increases they can't immediately bear.

While the Greens were keen on a more aggressive strategy to phase out oil and gas heating, replacing it with systems powered primarily by electricity sourced from renewable energies, more conservative opposition forces in Bavaria last weekend were out in force protesting this bill.

Revised draft law to be introduced to parliament this week

The precise details aren't entirely clear, though, as it involves redrafting a bill that had once been approved by the federal Cabinet, but which the FDP later objected to, arguing it could prove too costly in some parts of the country.

The original bill was overdue for a first reading in the Bundestag Parliament but the FDP blocked this. Now, the coalition hopes to put the law before the Bundestag, starting this Thursday, and to secure its passage before the summer break begins in July.

On paper, the law is scheduled to come into force on January 1, 2024. But there was already scope to go past that deadline under certain circumstances, and these now seem likely to be expanded further. According to the preliminary announcement on the compromise, the hard limit of the start of 2024 is now likely to apply only to new constructions.

Those new buildings will require that heating systems are powered at least 65% from renewable-sourced electricity.

Coalition disputes cast government's stability into question

It's one of several recent arguments between the pro-business Free Democrats on one side, who are more wary of government overspending and notably hold the purse strings with party leader Christian Lindner in the Finance Ministry, and the bulk of the more left-leaning Social Democrats and Greens on the other.

Other disputes include issues such as how much the federal government should spend helping local authorities deal with migration and asylum-seekers, and whether and by how much to subsidize electricity prices for heavy industry.

The latest compromise, assuming FDP members will support it in an eventual vote in parliament, should mean one of the government's core climate change policies does not face a major delay.

msh/jsi (AFP, dpa, Reuters)

While you're here: Every Tuesday, DW editors round up what is happening in German politics and society. You can sign up here for the weekly email newsletter Berlin Briefing.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jun 14, 2023 05:50 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).
Hyderabad, June 14: Cyberabad police have arrested Tollywood film producer Sunkara Krishna Prasad Chowdary allegedly for drug peddling, officials said on Wednesday. The police seized 90 sachets containing 82.75 grams of cocaine, nearly Rs 2 lakh in cash, a car and four mobile phones from his possession.

Officials said that personnel of Special Operations Team (SOT Madhapur) and Rajendranagar police arrested Chowdary on Tuesday when he was peddling drugs near Kismatpur X Roads under the limits of Rajendranagar police station. KP Chowdary Arrested in Drugs Case; Hyderabad Cops Recover 90 Sachets of Cocaine From Kabali Producer  Reports.

According to police, Chowdary is native of Bonakal Mandal in Khammam district of Telangana. He completed his B.Tech (Mechanical) and later worked as Director (Operations) in Indian Institute of Aeronautical Engineering and Technology at Pune. In 2016, he left the job and entered the film industry.

He was the producer of Kabali movie in Telugu. He was also the distributor for several Telugu and Tamil movies including Sardar Gabbarsingh, Seetamma Vakitlo Sirimalle Chettu and Kanitan (Arjun Suravaram), but he did not get the expected profits. Chowdary later moved to Goa and started OHM Club there.

According to police, the accused used to consume drugs with friends and celebrities coming from Hyderabad to his club in Goa. Due to loss in business, he returned to Hyderabad in April 2023. While coming to Hyderabad, he procured 100 sachets of cocaine from a Nigerian, Petit Ebuzer alias Gabrial, a resident of Goa and absconding in a drug peddling case. American Musician Arrested in Moscow on Drugs Suspicion.

He allegedly used 10 sachets for self-consumption and for selling to his friends. On Tuesday, he was apprehended while he was allegedly trying to sell cocaine. Chowdary has been booked under Sections 21(b) read with 8(C) of NDPS Act.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jun 14, 2023 05:17 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).
Hyderabad, June 14: The Telangana government is strengthening the health department by increasing budget allocations to improve public health and to effectively deal with emergencies like Covid-19 should they arise, Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao said on Wednesday.

Speaking after laying the foundation for a new block in the state-run Nizam's Institute of Medical Sciences (NIMS) here, he said the allocation for health sector in the budget was Rs 2,100 crore in 2014 (when the state was formed), while it was over Rs 12,360 crore in 2023-24. Telangana CM K Chandrasekhar Rao Announces Rs 10,000 per Acre Compensation to Farmers for Crop Losses.

Recalling his interaction with a group of entomologists a few years ago, he quoted them as having told him that infectious diseases like COVID-19 may surface again in the future. "They told me that losses would be minimal where health systems are strong. Many people would die and the losses would be heavy where the health system is weak. We can understand the importance of the health department from this," he said.

"Since then, we are strengthening this department by substantially increasing the budget allocation after holding extensive discussions with health minister and department officials to make the health department meet any emergency or any kind of eventuality," he said. Rao, who launched distribution of nutrition kits to prevent malnutrition and anaemia in pregnant women on the occasion, said the programme is aimed at avoiding stunted growth among children. Telangana CM KCR Says State Top Across Country in Various Development Parameters Including Paddy Production on China socially.

He said officials of the health department and the major state-run hospitals should plan for strengthening and expanding the health services. The Chief Minister also said political leaders, media and others often find fault with the health department over the services rendered in hospitals.

He asked Health Minister T Harish Rao and officials to improve the department's public relations as it would make people fully aware of its services. He also urged the health officials to continue their services to people with proper commitment.
Jaipur, June 14: Following a National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) order, the tiger reserves in Rajasthan will remain closed for tourists on every Wednesday from July 1. Elephant vs Tiger Video: Giant Jumbo Chases Away Big Cat Trying To Enter Water Body, Viral Video Shows Who the Real Boss of Jungle Is.

Hence, the Ranthambore Tiger Reserve, Sariska Tiger Reserve, Mukundra Tiger Reserve, and Ramgarh Vishdhari Tiger Reserve of the state will remain closed for tourists on this day of the week.

On January 3, in the meeting of the National Tiger Conservation Authority held in Delhi, MP and NTCA member Diya Kumari raised the issue of giving "rest" to the tigers for one day in the week and other members also agreed on this. Tiger Sniffing Plastic Bag Video: IFS Officer Shares Clip of a Big Cat Inspecting Plastic Bag in Forest, Netizens Concerned.

Subsequently, the NTCA decided to have a weekly off in the tiger reserves and issued orders to implement it across the country. The process was started in the tiger reserves made in West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh, Assam, Jharkhand, and Bihar, and now, will begin in Rajasthan, state government officials said.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jun 14, 2023 11:51 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).
YEREVAN, JUNE 14, ARMENPRESS. Azerbaijan doesnt change its behavior and is once again attempting to display aggressive conduct on the ground both before and after Armenian-Azerbaijani talks, with the goal of securing more gains around the negotiations table, Parliamentary Foreign Affairs Committee Chair Sargis Khandanyan told reporters on June 14 when asked on the latest Azerbaijani provocations.

Regarding the incident that occurred in the Yeraskh section and overall the latest intensified shootings, it is concerning especially because this is happening parallel with the intensified negotiations process. We once again see Azerbaijans conduct, that before or after negotiations they are trying to display more aggressive behavior on the ground, attempting to gain more around the negotiations table, Khandanyan said.

He pointed out the Azerbaijani shooting targeting the civilian infrastructure in Yeraskh.

The shooting targeted the construction of the factory where American investments have been made and which is extremely important for the Republic of Armenia. I think the foreign ministrys statement expressed these concerns. This doesnt change our positions, we are voicing about these incidents and I know that the EU civilian mission is also recording this and is regularly reporting its observations to member states. I assume that theyve made an observation regarding yesterdays incident as well, the MP said.

Two foreign nationals were wounded on Wednesday when Azerbaijani military forces opened fire at a steelworks which is being built with foreign investments in the Armenian village of Yeraskh.
Uttarkashi, June 14: Prohibitory orders were imposed in Uttarakhand's Purola town on Wednesday ahead of a 'mahapanchayat' called by Hindu outfits against what they termed as incidents of "love jihad". Communal tension has been brewing in Purola and some other towns of Uttarkashi district after two men, one of them Muslim, allegedly tried to abduct a Hindu girl on May 26. Uttarkashi DM Denies Permission for Mahapanchayat on June 15 Over Alleged 'Love Jihad' Cases, Section 144 Imposed in Uttarakhand's Purola.

Though the girl was rescued and the accused sent to judicial custody, local trade bodies and right wing Hindu outfits have run a sustained campaign against "love jihad" in Purola and the neighbouring towns, including Barkot, Chinyalisaur and Bhatwari.

Sub Divisional Magistrate Devanand Sharma said prohibitory orders under Section 144 will remain in force till June 19. Section 144 has been imposed in Purola as there could be an attempt by people to disrupt peace, he said.

Right wing Hindu outfits, including the Vishwa Hindu Parishad, Bajrang Dal and Devbhoomi Raksha Abhiyan, have given a call for the mahapanchayat on Thursday against "love jihad". Mahapanchayat in Uttarakhand on June 15: Asaduddin Owaisi Demands Ban on Gathering To Be Held in Uttarkashi's Purola.

"Love jihad" is a term often used by BJP leaders and right wing activists to allege a ploy by Muslim men to lure Hindu women into religious conversion through marriage. Apart from the abduction bid reported from Purola on May 26, another failed abduction attempt of two minor sisters of Nepali origin by a man called Nawab was reported on June 8 from Arakot area of Uttarkashi district.

The accused in both cases were booked under section 363 (abduction) of the IPC and the POCSO Act. Over 40 shops run by Muslims in Purtla have not opened even a fortnight after the abduction attempt.

Posters asking alleged perpetrators of "love jihad" to leave the town or face consequences had also appeared on shops run by Muslims last week.

Uttarkashi District Magistrate Abhishek Rohilla and SP Arpan Yaduvanshi met officials and all sections of people in Purola on Monday and appealed to them to maintain peace.

Muslim Seva Sangathan, an organisation fighting for the rights of Muslims, has also given a call for holding a mahapanchayat in Dehradun on June 18. Muslim bodies like Uttarakhand Waqf Board and state Haj committee have appealed to the chief minister to take stringent action against "anti-social" elements trying to derail peace in the hills and protect Muslims who have been living in Purola for generations.
Johnny Depp and Amber Heard's highly publicised divorce saga comes to a close as Heard fulfilled the settlement payment, marking the resolution of their year-long Virginia defamation case. The court's instruction for Heard to pay $1 million to her ex-husband has been fulfilled, putting an end to the widely discussed defamation dispute. Initially, the jury awarded Depp $10 million in compensatory damages, along with $5 million in punitive penalties, while granting Amber Heard $2 million in compensatory damages in June of the previous year. However, in December, the former couple reached an agreement, with Heard agreeing to pay $1 million in damages to the Pirates of the Caribbean actor. According to People Magazine, Depp has made a noteworthy decision, choosing to donate the entire settlement amount to five charitable organisations. Amber Heard To Make First Major Appearance At Film Festival In Italy Since Johnny Depp Trial.

Check Out The News Here:
Song Joong Ki is officially a dad people! His wife Katy Louise Saunders has given birth to a beautiful baby boy, and the actor also wrote a letter to fans on this happy occasion and thanked them for their support. The couple is currently in Rome and the baby and Katy are both healthy. Here is how fans reacted to the news of him becoming a star. Song Joong Ki and Wife Katy Louise Saunders Blessed With Baby Boy; Korean Star Pens Heartfelt Letter Over the Good News!

Song Joong Ki and His Son

Joong Ki = Great Father

#SongJoongKi congratulations!!!!! May God shower you, your wife and son with blessings always! pic.twitter.com/Wyr7cXrI8F  leichy (@annechylle) June 14, 2023

This Is Indeed an Emotional Time

congratulations to song family!! this still feels like a dream, seeing joongki having his own baby boy  i am so emotional pic.twitter.com/XdwTzXRrCX  ria in borderland (@vincensus) June 14, 2023

Cries in Congratulations

Song Joong Ki and Hyun Bin, Both Dads Now

(SocialLY brings you all the latest breaking news, viral trends and information from social media world, including Twitter, Instagram and Youtube. The above post is embeded directly from the user's social media account and LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body. The views and facts appearing in the social media post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY, also LatestLY does not assume any responsibility or liability for the same.)
In a shocking incident in Mumbai's Nalasopara area, a 29-year-old woman was raped multiple times by a man who later threatened to leak her obscene photos and kill her husband. The accused has been identified as Akash Vithal Sankpal. According to the police, Akash took the woman to his house on the pretext of showing his house, raped her and took her obscene pictures. He then threatened her with those pictures and raped her multiple times. He also threatened to kill her husband. Police have arrested the accused. Mumbai Shocker: 21-Year-Old Woman Students Naked Body Found in Savitribai Phule Girls Hostel on Marine Drive, Watchman Missing.

Women Raped, Threatened With Obscene Photos in Nalasoprara:

Maharashtra | A 29-year-old woman was raped multiple times by a man namely Akash Vithal Sankpal in Nalasopara area of Palghar district. The accused stays in the same neighbourhood as the victim. He took the woman to his house on the pretext of showing his house and raped her and  ANI (@ANI) June 14, 2023

(SocialLY brings you all the latest breaking news, viral trends and information from social media world, including Twitter, Instagram and Youtube. The above post is embeded directly from the user's social media account and LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body. The views and facts appearing in the social media post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY, also LatestLY does not assume any responsibility or liability for the same.)
Tamil Nadu Electiricity Minister Senthil Balaji was hospitalised due to health issues in the wee hours on Wednesday after being arrested by the Enforcement Directorate in Money Laundering Case. In a recent statement, Tamil Nadu Government Multi Super Speciality Hospital in Chennai said that Balaji underwent Coronary Angiogram today, and that the Bypass surgery is advised at the earliest. Senthil Balaji Arrested: ED Arrests Tamil Nadu Electricity Minister in Money Laundering Case After Conducting Raids on His Properties (Watch Video).

Senthil Balaji Health Update

State minister Senthil Balaji underwent Coronary Angiogram today; Bypass surgery is advised at the earliest: Tamil Nadu Government Multi Super Speciality Hospital, Chennai pic.twitter.com/UgGmMz6Wcd  ANI (@ANI) June 14, 2023

Senthil Balaji Breaks Down in ED Custody Video

#WATCH | Tamil Nadu Electricity Minister V Senthil Balaji breaks down as ED officials took him into custody in connection with a money laundering case and brought him to Omandurar Government in Chennai for medical examination pic.twitter.com/aATSM9DQpu  ANI (@ANI) June 13, 2023

(SocialLY brings you all the latest breaking news, viral trends and information from social media world, including Twitter, Instagram and Youtube. The above post is embeded directly from the user's social media account and LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body. The views and facts appearing in the social media post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY, also LatestLY does not assume any responsibility or liability for the same.)
London, June 14: A 27-year-old Indian-origin woman has been stabbed to death in north London and Scotland Yard on Wednesday said that two men have been arrested in connection with the murder. The incident took place at a residential property in Neeld Crescent, Wembley on Tuesday.

While the murder victim is yet to be formally identified by police in the UK, reports from India indicate that it was Kontham Tejasvini  a young professional from Hyderabad. A post-mortem examination is scheduled, following which the police are expected to formally release her identity. Delhi Stabbing Videos: Two Stabbed in Fight Over Game of Gilli-Danda in Khadda Colony Area; Three Accused Arrested.

The Metropolitan Police had earlier released an image of Brazilian national Keven Antonio Lourenco De Morais to seek the public's help in tracing the suspect behind the attack on Tuesday morning. The 23-year-old has now been arrested from Harrow, near the crime scene of Neeld Crescent in Wembley.

He was arrested on suspicion of murder and taken into custody at a north London police station, the Met Police said, without naming him again as he can now be named only if he is charged.

Officers attended along with the London Ambulance Service and two women were treated for stab injuries. Despite the efforts of emergency services, a 27-year-old woman sadly died at the scene. Her next of kin are yet to be informed, the Met Police said in a statement.

A second woman, aged 28 and also unnamed, was taken to hospital with stab injuries that were later assessed as not life-threatening. Two other people, a 24-year-old man and a 23-year-old woman, were arrested at the scene on suspicion of murder. While the man remains in custody, the woman has been released without further action, the police said.

Police officers were called to Neeld Crescent in Wembley, north London, at 9.59 am local time on Tuesday to reports of a double stabbing. Two female victims were treated at the scene by the emergency services and while one died on the spot, the other remains in a north London hospital.

"This has been a fast-moving investigation and I would like to thank the public for sharing our appeal for information about this man. He is now in custody, said Detective Chief Inspector Linda Bradley, from the Met's Specialist Crime Command. Gujarat Horror: Man Stabs Daughter to Death, Injures Wife Over Sleeping on Terrace in Surat (Watch Video).

"I recognise the significant concern this incident has caused in the community and I would like to reassure the public that a dedicated team of detectives are working to establish what happened. Local officers will remain in the area over the coming days to respond to any concerns," she said.
Juneteenth, the commemoration of the emancipation of the last enslaved people in the United States, is approaching and will be observed by Americans in a few weeks.

Black Americans have long celebrated this milestone in American history through various festivities, including parades, street festivals, music, and barbecues.

However, it was not until 2021 that Juneteenth was officially recognized as a national holiday when President Joe Biden signed it into law. This recognition marks a significant step in acknowledging the importance of Juneteenth and its historical significance.

While more people are becoming aware of Juneteenth and its meaning, the holiday's customs face challenges. Political rhetoric criticizes efforts to educate Americans about the nation's racial history.

Additionally, some businesses are accused of exploiting the celebration for marketing purposes, while some individuals participate in the festivities without understanding the historical context behind the holiday.

READ NEXT: Congress Passes a Bill to Make 'Juneteenth' a Federal Holiday

What Is Juneteenth?

Juneteenth, a combination of "June" and "nineteenth," is a significant date marking the emancipation of the last enslaved people in the United States, Sentinel-Tribune noted.

It is initially known as Emancipation Day, the second Independence Day, and Freedom Day. The celebrations began with church gatherings and lectures, before expanding as Black Texans and left the state to commemorate the occasion.

Like other national holidays like Flag Day, Juneteenth has gained official recognition as a legal holiday in many states nationwide. Employees in Texas, New York, Virginia, Washington, and numerous businesses now enjoy a day off in honor of Juneteenth.

Opal Lee, a former educator, and activist, played a crucial role in advocating for the national recognition of Juneteenth.

With fond memories of childhood celebrations filled with music, food, and games in East Texas, Lee embarked on a remarkable journey from Fort Worth to Washington, D.C., in 2016. Her cause garnered support from politicians and celebrities alike.

Lee had the privilege of standing beside President Joe Biden as he signed the bill officially designating Juneteenth as a national holiday.

Juneteenth Celebration

Juneteenth commemorates the emancipation of enslaved people in the United States and has its roots in Galveston, Texas.

Despite President Abraham Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation in 1863, the news of freedom reached many parts of the South, in the Civil War, ended in 1865.

General Order No. 3, delivered by Union Maj. Gen. Gordon Granger on June 19, 1865, finally informed the people of Texas that slavery was abolished and proclaimed an "absolute equality of personal rights and rights of property" between former masters and enslaved people.

The observance of Juneteenth began in Galveston, with celebrations including concerts, parades, and readings of the Emancipation Proclamation. Over time, the commemoration has spread worldwide, per WWMT.

The movement for racial justice sparked by the murder of George Floyd in 2020 contributed to Juneteenth gaining federal recognition as a holiday, the first since the establishment of Martin Luther King Jr. Day in 1983.

Juneteenth is now being embraced as more than just a day of commemoration. A movement has emerged seeking to utilize the holiday as a platform for activism and education. Community service projects have been initiated, explicitly focusing on tackling racial disparities.

These initiatives aim to address pressing issues such as healthcare inequities and the necessity of parks and green spaces in marginalized communities.

While Juneteenth has become a commercial opportunity for retailers and venues, some marketing attempts have faced backlash on social media.

READ MORE: Memorial Day's History

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WATCH: Juneteenth's history and meaning explained - From USA TODAY
California Governor Gavin Newsom sat down with Fox News host Sean Hannity in a contentious interview where the Fox Host was fact-checked to his face as he repeated several usual Fox News talking points regarding Trump and California.

Hannity pointed out that California's population had been dropping as of late, with him attributing it to the Golden State's high tax rates. However, Newsom pushed back, saying that "Per capita, more Floridians move to California than California is moving to Florida."

According to Fox Business, the state attributed the dip in population, which was around 0.3%, to reduced births, immigration, an increase in deaths, and people moving to other states.

He also pushed back on Hannity's tax claims, where he said that California has a 13.3% tax on the high 1% of taxpayers.

"Here's my point. We've had a progressive tax, but I didn't establish the 13.3%, that was done before I even got here. I have opposed new increases in the top 1% tax. I opposed the statewide wealth tax. I've never been a profligate Democrat," the California governor said and added that middle-class families in the state pay less than the majority of other states because of that bigger tax on the wealthy.

He also pushed back on Hannity's claims that big companies like Tesla left California, with Newsom pointing out that the state has created more and more new millionaires and that a few companies leaving is "inconsequential."

"One-half of America's $1 billion valued companies are in the state of California. This state economy has outperformed the nation 3.1% in the last decade, 2.1% nationwide. I've been hearing this nonsense for half a century, literally half a century," he said.

READ MORE: California: Migrants Flown to Sacramento

Gavin Newsom Fact-Checks Sean Hannity's Claims Even More

During the interview, Hannity told Gavin Newsom that he does not think President Joe Biden is mentally and physically capable of being president. However, Newsom stated several facts about what Biden has already done, including the bipartisan infrastructure deal, as well as the CHIPS Act.

"Joe Biden's created more jobs, six times more jobs, than the previous three Republican presidents combined," said the California governor before Hannity played a supercut of Biden's verbal gaffes and physical stumbles, according to Yahoo! News.

However, Newsom answered this by pointing out that Biden got results done despite this, including preventing a historic default by getting House Speaker Kevin McCarthy to agree on a bipartisan deal.

Gavin Newsom Says He Would Debate Ron DeSantis Even If Sean Hannity Would Moderate

During that same interview, Newsom also told Hannity that he would accept a debate with Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, even if Sean Hannity would be the one moderating, according to The Hill.

"I'm all in. Count on it," Newsom told Hannity, who asked, "You would do a two-hour debate with Ron DeSantis?" To which the California governor replied, "Make it three," and added that he would do it on one day's notice with no notes.

This shot came amid Newsom and DeSantis being at odds after the Florida governor sent a plane full of immigrants to Sacramento. Newsom is threatening charges against those involved, as the migrants were possibly lured into the state with fraudulent claims that homes and jobs were waiting for them.

READ NEXT: Florida Could Face Mass Labor Shortage Due to Ron DeSantis' New Immigration Law

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WATCH: Fox Host Hannity crushed ON HIS OWN SHOW by Gavin Newsom - David Pakman Show
Tucker Carlson has a new show that he is streaming on Twitter. His old employer, Fox News, does not seem happy about it, as the network sent him a cease-and-desist letter, demanding that their former host stop posting videos on the social media platform.

Tucker Carlson has now launched two episodes of his new "Tucker on Twitter" series, choosing Twitter as he claims it was "the only" major remaining platform that allows free speech, denouncing much of news media. However, the show might have escalated things between him and Fox News, as pointed out by the Associated Press.

Fox News attorneys claimed that the Twitter videos are in violation of his contract with the network, which runs until early 2025. The lawyers pointed out that he was restricted from appearing on other media sites during that period.

However, lawyers representing the controversial conservative host stated that it was Fox News that breached the contract first. Harmeet Dhillon, one of the lawyers representing Carlson in this case, told the New York Times, "Doubling down on the most catastrophic programming decision in the history of the cable news industry, Fox is now demanding that Tucker Carlson be silent until after the 2024 election." He added that his client "will not be silenced by anyone."

As for the cease-and-desist order, it was pointed out that Fox News usually does not go after its former hosts. The network has largely been silent on the Tucker Carlson issue, even though threats from Carlson and his associates that they would leak the goings-on in the network to the media.

Carlson had been recording the Twitter videos from his studio in rural Maine, which Fox News previously raided last month, taking back filming equipment and other items from the studio they built for him.

READ MORE: Tucker Carlson Home Raided by Fox News

Tucker Carlson and Fox News Clash Over Leaked Messages

The claims that it was Fox News that actually breached the contract first stemmed from the leaked private messages sent by Carlson being disclosed.

These private messages were presented as evidence during the Dominion lawsuit against Fox News, and it exposed that Carlson secretly hated Donald Trump. Despite this, Carlson doubled down in support of the former president and his policies.

Fox News took a hit after it fired Tucker Carlson, as the host seemingly took roughly a third of his viewers with him. As his contract dictated, he cannot appear on any other media platform until that contract expires.

Tucker Carlson Continues Show Despite Order From Fox News

This looks like Fox News and Tucker Carlson will be in for a legal battle as the former host streamed his latest episode on Twitter even after receiving the cease-and-desist order.

In that episode that defied Fox News, Carlson pushed conspiracy theories that Donald Trump is being prosecuted for calling out Washington, DC insiders, according to The Independent. He also name-dropped several Trump opponents like Mike Pence, Nikki Haley, Mike Pompeo, and even allies like Lindsey Graham for piling on the former president. This is even though Carlson himself said in private messages that he thought Trump was crazy and did not believe the conspiracy theories that he was pushing on air while he was still with Fox.

READ MORE: Tucker Carlson Admits He Hates Donald Trump in More Leaked Texts

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WATCH:Tucker Carlson's Viewers FLOCK to New Twitter Show As MSNBC Beats Fox News, CNN - The Hill
Montserrat Caballero, the mayor of Tijuana, a violent border city in northern Mexico, has moved into an army base for her safety due to receiving threats, said President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, per Reuters.

Tijuana, located just south of San Diego, California, has experienced high levels of violence as criminal organizations vie for control over drug trafficking routes to the United States.

"She's being protected since about two weeks ago," Lopez Obrador said during his regular press conference. "We reached an agreement to help protect her and will continue to do so."

Despite a decrease in murder rates last year, the current administration under Lopez Obrador is still projected to register a record number of murders during its six-year term.

Tijuana Mayor Montserrat Caballero, a member of AMLO's National Regeneration Movement (MORENA), revealed in a video shared on social media that she had been receiving additional threats.

These threats intensified after she seized 1,700 firearms from criminal groups and arrested 56 individuals. Caballero stated that the anger of these groups towards her actions was the cause of the increased threats.

READ NEXT: Mexico Nabs Gulf Cartel Top Lieutenant

Tijuana Mayor's Decision Highlights the Violence Brought by Armed Groups in Mexico

The decision to relocate Tijuana Mayor Montserrat Caballero to an army base highlights the grave dangers faced by individuals who take action or draw attention to the activities of armed groups in Mexico, particularly those involved in drug trafficking, Al Jazeera reported.

Concerns have arisen regarding potential links between some of these groups and state authorities, leading to fears that they may commit acts of violence with relative impunity.

Tijuana, which has the highest number of homicides among all Mexican cities, has experienced a nine percent increase in murder rates over the past 12 months. This rise can be partly attributed to conflicts between rival criminal organizations competing to control resources and influence in the border city.

Tijuana Mayor Montserrat Caballero addressed the situation in a video statement in 2022, expressing the city's commitment to the safety of its citizens.

She emphasized the importance of holding organized crime groups accountable. She urged them to resolve their disputes with those who owe them debts through lawful means rather than targeting innocent families and hardworking individuals.

Tijuana Mayor Montserrat Caballero Says Moving to Army Base Is a Sacrifice

Mayor Montserrat Caballero expressed her fears and concerns for her safety, acknowledging that her decision to move to the military barracks was a sacrifice. She emphasized her commitment to her city, her family, and her responsibilities as a public servant, Mexico News Daily reported.

The announcement came almost four weeks after a vehicle carrying one of Caballero's bodyguards was targeted in a shooting incident, resulting in minor injuries from shattered glass. The Baja California Attorney General's Office is currently investigating the incident.

While Caballero presented data showing a decline in certain crimes, such as business robberies and vehicle theft in Tijuana, the city still holds the unfortunate title of Mexico's murder capital. Drug cartels are attracted to gaining control over Tijuana due to its proximity to the United States.

According to federal Security Minister Rosa Icela Rodriguez, statistics presented at President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador's press conference indicate that Tijuana witnessed over 1,800 homicides between June 2022 and May 2023.

READ MORE: Amazon Plane Crash

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WATCH: Troops deployed in Tijuana to address violence - From AP Archive
YEREVAN, JUNE 14, ARMENPRESS. ARFI, the first investment crowdfunding platform in Armenia, plans to hold several meetings and events on June 14-23 in Los Angeles and New York City in the United States to present the platforms advantages and opportunities.

ARFI PR manager Hasmik Harutyunyan told ARMENPRESS that ARFI is more than just a crowdfunding platform, describing it as a reliable broker linking companies in Armenia with investors from all around the world.

ARFI gives an exclusive chance to make investments from around the world in SMEs operating in Armenia, new IT startup projects and become part of it. ARFI opens new opportunities for entrepreneurs in Armenia, she said.

ARFI will participate in the 3rd Orion Investment Summit due to take place on June 19-22 in New York City.

A meeting with the Armenian-American community members is expected on June 23 in Los Angeles.

ARFI CEO Edgar Evoyan and ARFI Chairman of the Board Sergey Grigoryan will also meet with Glendale city councilors Ardy Kassakhian and Elen Asatrian, as well as the Chairman of the Armenian-American Business Council Alec Baghdasaryan in Los Angeles.
The Haiti crisis continues to escalate as Haitian gangs attacked a car dealership where the Consulate of Jamaica was located. This forced the country to suspend its consular service operations in Haiti for the time being.

Jamaica Foreign Minister Kamina Johnson Smith revealed in a video message that the Jamaican government is now aware that Haiti gangs have attacked the Sun Auto Car Dealership, which was where the Jamaican consulate was located. She added that the location "was set ablaze and ransacked by criminal gangs."

In her statement, the foreign minister stated, "The Consulate of Jamaica was located on the premises." She then confirmed that "consular services in Haiti are therefore suspended indefinitely."

According to the Miami Herald, Johnson Smith also expressed Jamaica's sympathies to Daniel Rouzier, who owns the Sun Auto Car Dealership and is also an honorary Jamaican consul.

However, she vowed that they would be returning to the beleaguered Caribbean country, adding that the attack "hardened our resolve in returning Haiti to the peace and prosperity, which she and her people deserve."

The attack on the Jamaican consulate coincided with Haitian Prime Minister Ariel Henry's visit to Jamaica. This raised suspicions about the timing of the attack as Henry and 50 other Haitian delegates were in talks in Kingston regarding the plight of their country.

Jamaica Prime Minister Andrew Holness addressed the incident and told the Miami Herald that it was still too early to draw conclusions about the attack but echoed Johnson Smith's message about his country's determination to help its struggling neighbor.

READ MORE: Haiti Crisis Worsens as Severe Rains and Floods Kill 15

Earthquake Adds to Haiti's Growing Number of Problems

As Haiti reels from recent storms and massive flooding, a 4.9 magnitude earthquake hit Haiti and killed at least four people and injured dozens of others. This adds to the country's growing number of woes, including the ongoing gang violence and cholera outbreak.

A previous earthquake in 2021 has already displaced thousands in the struggling country, with the recent flood adding more. This latest earthquake added even more.

Some of those affected were already living in displacement campsites as more people in the country were hit with not just political strife but also an increasing number of natural disasters. The most devastating so far this year is the recent flooding, which killed at least 52 people.

After Natural Disasters, Massive Fire Also Hits Haiti Capital Port-Au-Prince

Haiti just could not get a break as a massive fire burned down around 95% of the buildings and products in Delmas, a downtown market in the Haitian capital Port-au-Prince. The fire happened last Monday at around 5:30 am local time.

Millions worth of products and property went up in flames as firefighters struggled to extinguish the fire in the market known for selling clothes shipped in from the Dominican Republic. Now, traders are demanding aid and compensation from the government.

Prime Minister Ariel Henry expressed his sympathy to the victims and vowed to investigate what caused the fire, according to Yahoo! News.

READ MORE: Haiti Gang Burns Courthouse

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WATCH: Vendors despair as fire rages through Haiti market - Associated Press
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre has faced criticism for evading questions by citing the Hatch Act, which prohibits civil servants from engaging in political activities while on the job. Jean-Pierre has used this to deflect inquiries regarding campaigns, according to PBS.

However, she inadvertently violated the law. The Office of Special Counsel, responsible for enforcing the Hatch Act, recently sent a letter stating that Jean-Pierre had breached the law before last year's midterm elections.

Jean-Pierre's violation involved frequently referencing "MAGA Republicans" during White House briefings. The Office of Special Counsel concluded that these references were made to generate opposition to Republican candidates, thus constituting political activity.

Although penalties for Hatch Act violations are rare, the Office of Special Counsel did not recommend any fines or other punishments for Jean-Pierre in this instance. It remains to be seen how this incident will impact her approach to addressing political matters during press briefings in the future.

READ NEXT: White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre Statement About Obamacare

White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre Receives Warning Instead of Disciplinary Action

Although the Office of Special Counsel found Karine Jean-Pierre violating the Hatch Act, they have decided not to pursue disciplinary action against her.

In a letter to Protect the Public's Trust, the office stated they would close the matter without further action and issued a warning letter to Jean-Pierre.

The decision not to pursue penalties was based on the belief of the White House counsel's office that Jean-Pierre's remarks were not prohibited at the time, per Yahoo! News.

However, the Office of Special Counsel acknowledged that it is unclear whether their analysis regarding using "MAGA Republicans" was effectively communicated to Jean-Pierre. The situation raises questions about the internal communication within the White House regarding the Hatch Act.

In response, White House spokesperson Andrew Bates stated that the administration takes the law seriously and upholds the Hatch Act. They are currently reviewing the opinion from the Office of Special Counsel.

White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre Defends Her Self From Reporters

During a press briefing Tuesday, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre defended herself in response to the violation of the Hatch Act, CNN reports.

She stated that she had received approval to use the terminology in question. She emphasized that the Office of Special Counsel letter was retroactive, addressing something she had said months ago.

In support of Jean-Pierre, a Biden administration official pointed out the Trump White House's extensive use of the term "Make America Great Again" for official purposes, with nearly 2,000 references on the official Trump White House website.

The Office of Special Counsel's report from November 2021 also revealed that 13 senior Trump administration officials had violated the Hatch Act.

The use of terms like "Mega-MAGA" from the White House briefing room podium before the 2022 midterm elections were aimed at highlighting contrasts with Trump-aligned factions of the GOP.

Biden's senior adviser Anita Dunn discussed the decision to use such terminology, noting that she was involved in a project outside the government examining Republican elected officials and their agenda.

The term "MAGA" emerged organically from research and conversations around the problems associated with certain Republican elected officials. When asked about using modifiers like "mega" and "ultra" for MAGA, Dunn mentioned that it was an attempt to improve the existing term.

READ MORE: Brittney Griner Harassment Details

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WATCH: BREAKING NEWS: White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre Speaks Out After Violating Hatch Act - From Forbes Breaking News
Abby Zwerner, the Virginia teacher who was shot by her 6-year-old student in January, no longer works at Richneck Elementary School, per Fox8.

An email sent to Zwerner on May 22 informed her that a separation of employment had been processed, effective at the close of business on June 12, 2023. Zwerner's attorney, Jeffrey Breit, described this as a firing from her job, expressing his and Zwerner's surprise and confusion at the communication.

According to Newport News Public Schools spokesperson Michelle Price, Zwerner had notified the school system in March that she would not be returning. The email from the Human Resources Department was seen as a confirmation of her separation from service.

The school district stated that Zwerner resigned from her position as a Newport News Public Schools teacher on March 13, 2023. Her contract with the school district ended on June 12, 2023, the last day of her employment.

However, Breit contested the school district's explanation, stating that Zwerner was shocked by the email. He mentioned they had ongoing litigation and claimed that the school district had not paid Zwerner for a couple of months, trying to put pressure on her.

Abby Zwerner has filed a $40 million lawsuit against the Newport News School Board, former Superintendent Dr. Gregory Parker, former Richneck Principal Briana Foster-Newton, and former Richneck Assistant Principal Dr. Ebony Parker. The lawsuit seeks compensation for damages resulting from the incident.

READ NEXT: Virginia Teacher Sues School for $40 Million

Virginia Teacher Has Not Been Paid Since February, Says Attorney

The Virginia teacher has not received any payment since February, according to her attorney, Jeffrey Breit,

Breit claims that the school district tried to make her accept workers' compensation, but when she refused, they stopped paying her altogether, according to WAVY.

He mentioned that a workers' compensation check, which amounted to two-thirds of her pay, was sent to Zwerner's bank account. Still, it was immediately returned by her legal team as it was not considered workers' compensation.

Breit further alleged that the school district may have attempted to use the workers' compensation check to argue that Zwerner had accepted it and could no longer sue them.

He also noted that Zwerner should have been eligible for disability benefits under Newport News' disability program. Still, she has not received any response to the disability letter from her doctor.

Breit indicated that he plans to raise these issues in court and stated that he would ask every first-grade teacher, under oath, whether being shot by a student was part of their job description.

He argued that while Zwerner protected her students and risked her life, the school district fired her because she refused to drop her lawsuit.

Breit believes this should be considered part of the damages for which Zwerner is entitled to compensation.

Mother of 6-Year-Old Who Shot Virginia Teacher Pleads Guilty to Federal Gun Charges

The mother of the 6-year-old student who shot the Virginia teacher at Richneck Elementary School earlier this year, Deja Taylor, pleaded guilty to federal firearms charges on Monday, 13News Now reports.

Prosecutors revealed new details about the investigation, stating that their search of two residences where Taylor lived led to the discovery of drugs, drug paraphernalia, and a firearm barrel lock. However, they did not find a lockbox, a trigger lock, or a key to a trigger lock.

Taylor's defense attorneys had previously claimed that the gun used in the school shooting was secured with a trigger lock. Following her guilty plea, prosecutors recommended a sentence of 18 to 24 months for Taylor.

The charges she pleaded guilty to include illegally obtaining and possessing a firearm and making a false statement during the purchase of a gun. The maximum penalty for these charges is 25 years in prison.

A judge will consider the evidence presented and evaluate the case before determining Taylor's sentence at a hearing scheduled for October 18.

READ MORE: California Man Dies During Honeymoon

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WATCH: NNPS: Abby Zwerner no longer works for the school division - From 13News Now
YEREVAN, JUNE 14, ARMENPRESS. Minister of Foreign Affairs Ararat Mirzoyan touched upon the issue of lifting the blockade and noted that, in his opinion, some progress has been recorded in this issue in the recent Armenian-Azerbaijani negotiations.

ARMENPRESS reports, during the question and answer session with members of the Government in the National Assembly, Mirzoyan once again reaffirmed Armenia's position, that is, the Republic of Armenia is greatly interested in the unblocking of transport and economic infrastructures in the region.

"Obviously, these infrastructures should be unblocked based on several well-known principles, such as, for example, they should operate under the sovereignty of the countries they pass through, these infrastructures should be under the jurisdiction of the countries they pass through, these infrastructures should be opened based on the principle of equality and reciprocity.

These issues are regularly discussed under the leadership of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and Deputy Prime Minister Mher Grigoryan. My personal and subjective impression is that there is some progress, especially during Mr. Grigoryan's last meetings, but we still don't have the final result and, unfortunately, we cannot make it public for now," said Mirzoyan.
Lower Saucon Township officials on Wednesday announced the cancellation of a hearing Friday on Bethlehem Landfill Co.s application for approval to expand the Applebutter Road facility.

Northampton County Judge Abraham Kassis on May 8 sided with residents opposed to the expansion. Kassis overturned the township councils Dec. 21 decision to rezone land adjacent to the landfill to permit waste disposal there. The December vote required council approval of a conditional use for the land to be used for waste disposal.

The council on May 17 decided against challenging Kassis ruling.

Bethlehem Landfill Co., however, filed on June 6 a notice of appeal of the ruling to Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court.

We are appealing because we believe the trial court made a mistake, said Maryanne Starr Garber, attorney for the landfill company that is a division of Texas-based Waste Connections. Bethlehem Landfill Company is an essential part of the local economy.

We contribute a quarter of the towns tax revenue, provide responsible waste disposal services, support local charities, and the expansion would preserve 157 acres of land permanently so that it can never be developed  for any use. We are confident that the proposed expansion will result in long-lasting advantages for Lower Saucon Township and its residents in the years ahead.

Council members in February hired a special officer to conduct the conditional use hearing and bring back a recommendation on approval or denial, at an hourly cost of $200. The hearing commenced Feb. 27 and was continued through May 5. Following Kassiss ruling, additional hearing dates were listed as canceled  until a hearing date set for Friday, June 16.

The hearing officer, Doylestown-based attorney Scott MacNair, in a letter dated Wednesday and posted to the township website said the conditional use hearings will be stayed pending the outcome of the appeal to the Commonwealth Court.

Counsel for the landfill provided the township with an extension of the time before a subsequent hearing must be held, MacNair wrote.

Specifically, Ms. Garbers extension allows for the next hearing to be held within 45 days of the issuance of the Commonwealth Courts decision, MacNair wrote. Therefore, the conditional use hearings will be stayed at the present time.

Citing impacts on their quality of life and from deforesting wooded acreage for the potential landfill expansion, township residents had challenged the rezoning ordinance in both Northampton County Court and before the township zoning hearing board, with the zoning board deciding not to hear the challenge. The opponents attorney, Gary Asteak, called Kassis ruling a huge victory for all of those who oppose the expansion of the Bethlehem Landfill.

The landfills appeal is another example of the landfill putting its corporate profits above the community, opponent Victoria Opthof-Cordaro, representing the grass-roots group Citizens for Responsible Development, said in a statement on the appellate court filing. The Lehigh Valley has spoken loud and clear opposing the expansion and destruction of 275 acres of forest on the Delaware and Lehigh National Heritage Corridor, 9/11 Memorial Trail, and Lehigh River.

Judge Kassis identified at least eight deficiencies in the advertising of the zoning ordinance. Even Lower Saucon Township Council chose not to appeal, recognizing the error-filed procedure was fatal.

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UPDATE: Woman dead following Whitehall Township park shooting, coroner says

Whitehall Township police said they responded to a shooting Tuesday evening at West Catasauqua Park, 2301 Pine St.

Victims have been taken to the hospital, police said via social media.

The call came in at 6:53 p.m., Lehigh County 911 dispatch confirmed.

Police said about 8 p.m. the investigation was still in its very early stages.

WPD on scene of a shooting at the West Catasauqua Park, 2301 Pine St. Victims have been taken to the hospital. Investigation is just starting, information released only on Twitter for now. pic.twitter.com/jjkdk0ZCX3  Whitehall_Township_Police (@Whitehall_PD) June 13, 2023

This is a breaking news post that will be updated as more information becomes available.

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Glenn Epps can be reached at gepps@lehighvalleylive.com or glenn_epps_on Twitter.
Donald Trump became the first former president to face a judge on federal charges as he pleaded not guilty in a Miami courtroom Tuesday to dozens of felony counts accusing him of hoarding classified documents and refusing government demands to give them back.

The history-making court date, centered on charges that Trump mishandled government secrets that as commander-in-chief he was entrusted to protect, kickstarts a legal process that will unfold at the height of the 2024 presidential campaign and carry profound consequences not only for his political future but also for his own personal liberty.

Trump approached his arraignment with characteristic bravado, posting social media broadsides against the prosecution from inside his motorcade en route to the courthouse and insisting  as he has through years of legal woes  that he has done nothing wrong and was being persecuted for political purposes. But inside the courtroom, he sat silently, scowling and arms crossed, as a lawyer entered a not guilty plea on his behalf in a brief arraignment that ended without him having to surrender his passport or otherwise restrict his travel.

The arraignment, though largely procedural in nature, was the latest in an unprecedented reckoning this year for Trump, who faces charges in New York arising from hush money payments during his 2016 presidential campaign as well as ongoing investigations in Washington and Atlanta into efforts to undo the results of the 2020 race.

Always in campaign mode, he swiftly pivoted from the solemn courtroom to a festive restaurant, stopping on his way out of Miami at Versailles, an iconic Cuban spot in the citys Little Havana neighborhood where supporters serenaded Trump, who turns 77 on Wednesday, with Happy Birthday. The back-to-back events highlight the tension for Trump in the months ahead as he balances the pageantry of campaigning with courtroom stops accompanying his status as a twice-indicted criminal defendant.

Yet the gravity of the moment was unmistakable.

Until last week, no former president had ever been charged by the Justice Department, let alone accused of mishandling top-secret information. The indictment unsealed last week charged Trump with 37 felony counts  many under the Espionage Act  that accuse him of illegally storing classified documents in his bedroom, bathroom, shower and other locations at Mar-a-Lago and trying to hide them from the Justice Department as investigators demanded them back. The charges carry a yearslong prison sentence in the event of a conviction.

Former President Donald Trump prays with pastor Mario Bramnick, third from right, and others at Versailles restaurant on Tuesday, June 13, 2023, in Miami. Trump appeared in federal court Tuesday on dozens of felony charges accusing him of illegally hoarding classified documents and thwarting the Justice Department's efforts to get the records back.AP Photo/Alex Brandon

Trump has relied on a familiar playbook of painting himself as a victim of political persecution. He attacked the Justice Department special counsel who filed the case as a Trump hater, pledging to remain in the race and scheduling a speech and fundraiser for Tuesday night at his Bedminster, New Jersey, club.

Smith attended Tuesdays arraignment, sitting in the front row behind his team of prosecutors.

The court appearance unfolded against the backdrop of potential protests, with some high-profile backers using barbed rhetoric to voice support. Though city officials said they prepared for possible unrest, there were few signs of significant disruption.

Trump didnt say a word during the court appearance, other than to occasionally turn and whisper to his attorneys who were seated on either side of him. He fiddled with a pen and clasped his hands on the table in front of him as the lawyers and the judge debated the conditions of his release.

While he was not required to surrender a passport  prosecutors said he was not considered a flight risk  the magistrate judge presiding over the arraignment directed Trump to not discuss the case with certain witnesses. That includes Walt Nauta, his valet who was indicted last week on charges that he moved boxes of documents at Trumps direction and misled the FBI about it.

Nauta did not enter a plea Tuesday because he did not have a local lawyer with him.

Trump attorney Todd Blanche objected to the idea of imposing restrictions on the former presidents contact with possible witnesses, noting they include many people close to Trump, including staff and members of his protection detail.

Many of the people he interacts with on a daily basis  including the men and women who protect him  are potential witnesses in this case, Blanche said.

Trump, who has repeatedly insisted that he did nothing wrong, showed no emotion as he was led by law enforcement out of the courtroom through a side door.

Even for a man whose presidency and post-White House life have been defined by criminal investigations, the documents probe had long stood out both because of the volume of evidence that prosecutors had seemed to amass and the severity of the allegations.

A federal grand jury in Washington had heard testimony for months, but the Justice Department filed the case in Florida, where Trumps Mar-a-Lago resort is located and where many of the alleged acts of obstruction occurred.

Though Trump appeared Tuesday before a federal magistrate, the case has been assigned to a District Court judge he appointed, Aileen Cannon, who ruled in his favor last year in a dispute over whether an outside special master could be appointed to review the seized classified documents. A federal appeals panel ultimately overturned her ruling.

Its unclear what defenses Trump is likely to invoke as the case moves forward. Two of his lead lawyers announced their resignation the morning after his indictment, and the notes and recollections of another attorney, M. Evan Corcoran, are cited repeatedly throughout the 49-page charging document, suggesting prosecutors envision him as a potential key witness.

In the indictment the Justice Department unsealed Friday most of the charges  31 or the 37 felony counts  against Trump relate to the willful retention of national defense information. Other charges include conspiracy to commit obstruction and false statements.

The indictment Friday accuses Trump of illegally retaining national security documents that he took with him from the White House to Mar-a-Lago after leaving office in January 2021. The documents he stored, prosecutors say, included material on nuclear programs, defense and weapons capabilities of the U.S. and foreign governments and a Pentagon attack plan, prosecutors say. He is accused of showing off some to people who didnt have security clearances to view them.

Beyond that, according to the indictment, he repeatedly sought to obstruct government efforts to recover the documents, including by directing Nauta to move boxes and also suggesting to his own lawyer that he hide or destroy documents sought by a Justice Department subpoena.

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One Slate Belt township is considering whether to create its first-ever municipal sewer authority.

Upper Mount Bethel Townships supervisors voted Monday to advertise that the board is considering creating an authority that would oversee proposed sewer and wastewater operations.

The township currently does not have its own sewer and wastewater system. Most properties in the township have on-lot septic or cesspool systems and private wells.

River Pointe Commerce Park, a proposed 800-acre industrial and commercial complex in the township, has presented plans to create a wastewater system for its development.

The property is bordered by River Road, Potomac Street and Route 611.

The current plan is to build 12 buildings that would total nearly 6 million square feet and employ 4,000 people, according to the developer.

The developer has presented plans to install sewers and build a wastewater treatment plant on the site, which also may include the use of drip irrigation fields.

A special township planning commission meeting is scheduled for 7 p.m. Thursday at the municipal office at 387 Ye Olde Highway, during which River Pointe representatives will discuss water and sewer issues for the development.

River Pointe representatives have said in the past that there are several options regarding an operational authority for the proposed sewer and wastewater system.

One option would be to bring in a third-party wastewater management company. Another option would be for the township to oversee operations directly or through an authority.

Under Pennsylvania law, a municipal authority can operate as a separate governmental entity than the municipality and can handle issues like financing for its public works. The authoritys specific powers would be established by bylaws instituted by the township.

The township is required to conduct a public hearing regarding the proposed authority. A hearing has not been scheduled yet. The earliest it could take place legally would be during a special meeting at the end of July. The hearing also may be scheduled for the regular supervisors meeting in August or some other date.

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Gov. Josh Shapiro said Wednesday that crews will work 24 hours a day in Philadelphia to reopen a collapsed section of an important East Coast highway, but he wouldnt estimate how long it will take to get traffic flowing through an artery that is critical to commerce.

Investigators continued to look into why a truck hauling gasoline went out of control on an off-ramp and flipped on its side, igniting a fire early Sunday that caused the collapse of the northbound lanes of Interstate 95 and severely damaged the southbound lanes.

Shapiro, appearing at a news conference with transportation officials and labor leaders, repeatedly declined to give a time estimate to reopen the roadway.

Were going to get this job done as quickly as possible, Shapiro said, noting that I-95 is a key part of our economy.

Crews will not immediately rebuild the bridge, which is roughly 100-feet (30 meters) long and 150 feet (46 meters) wide. Instead, workers will fill the gap by piling many tons of recycled glass aggregate into the underpass area, bringing it up to surface level and then paving it over so that three lanes of traffic can reopen each way, Shapiro said.

After that, a replacement bridge will be built next to it to reroute traffic while crews excavate the fill to restore the exit ramp, officials said.

Shapiro said unionized workers will work nonstop until the section of I-95 is repaired. He insisted that the plan is safe.

Demolition was expected to finish Thursday, and trucks hauling aggregate could arrive the same day, officials said.

Meanwhile, the collapse is snarling traffic in Philadelphia as the summer travel season starts, upending hundreds of thousands of morning commutes, disrupting countless businesses and forcing trucking companies to find different routes.

The Biden administration is pledging its aid. U.S. Senators Bob Casey and John Fetterman, and Congressman Brendan Boyle announced Wednesday the Federal Highway Administration approved $3 million in emergency relief to PennDOT for I-95 repairs.

The funding can be used for emergency repairs needed to restore essential traffic and other preliminary work. A final estimate of reconstruction has not been released by PennDOT.

For now, I-95 is closed in both directions. The elevated southbound portion of I-95 was being demolished, as well as the northbound side, officials say.

The disruption is likely raise the cost of consumer goods because truckers must now travel longer routes, U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said.

Of the 160,000 vehicles a day that travel that section, 8% are trucks, Buttigieg said.

Police say the driver died in the accident. The Philadelphia medical examiner identified him Tuesday night as Nathan Moody, 53.

State police officials said the trucking company had contacted them and has been cooperating, but declined to identify the company or say whether it was properly licensed for hauling gasoline.

Authorities say the driver was headed northbound on his way to deliver fuel to a convenience store when the truck lost control on a curving off-ramp, landing on its side and rupturing the tank.
Mountmellick citizens in Laois have woken up to find a landmark missing from the town centre.

Early on Wednesday morning, June 14, the 65ft steel column that transformed into a Christmas tree, was removed by cranes.

The present structure had stood for 40 years after replacing a timber pole in the 1980s. It is renowned throughout Ireland and beloved by Mountmellick people both at home and abroad.

However the tower had been deemed unsafe in an engineer's report, commissioned by the local volunteer committee who were concerned for public safety. The steel structure was found to be corroded beyond repair.

"For health and safety reasons based on the findings of the engineering report, the structure had to be removed. There was simply no alternative. Following consultation with Laois County Council and other stakeholders, this took place this morning," Mountmellick Christmas Tree Committee announced.

The committee is working hard to come up with an exciting alternative Christmas spectacle for the town however, one that will consume less electricity but still represent the town proudly.

Their exciting new plans have been revealed exclusively to the Leinster Express / Laois Live (more below photos).

Pictures below courtesy of Mountmellick Christmas Tree Committee.

Committee Chairperson is Cathy Bishop.

We commissioned an engineering inspection in March which was carried out by Dr Tom Callanan of Infrastruct Asset Management Services Ltd. He and his team produced a substantial 40 page report. The findings and recommendations were clear: the tree column has reached the end of its service life.

The report found: "heavy corrosion with section loss on the stiffener plates near the bottom of the shaft. Heavy corrosion with section loss on the plate. Heavy deterioration with section loss at connections between the square hollow box sections. Cracking in the concrete pad at the base.

Further tests were carried out on ultrasonic thickness testing, portable harness testing, targeted endoscopic inspection, and ground penetrating radar surveys.

"The conclusions and recommendations were unequivocal- the pillar has reached the end of its service life. It is no longer suitable for supporting any additional imposed loads and no access on the structure can be permitted."

With health and safety their primary concern, members immediately contacted Cllr Paddy Bracken, who then facilitated a meeting with Edmond Kenny, Executive Engineer at Laois County Council.

The pole came down quicker than expected, gone before 7am on Wednesday morning.

The process was expected to take up to half of the working day, with the square cordoned off since the previous evening for safety.

The committee has revealed an ambitious plan to carry on the Christmas tradition into the future.

"The Mountmellick Christmas Tree Committee is proud to announce the start of a major project to replace the current Christmas tree structure in Mountmellicks Georgian OConnell Square. The design concept began today with the removal of the column which has been in place since 1983," they state.

The 2022 lighting period had been "fraught with electrical problems".

"The mechanism is analogue and energy-hungry. Married with the findings of the report, the committee members see this as the ideal opportunity for change."

The replacement of the tree next Christmas will involve not one but three real trees. Then it will be a countdown with two the following year and one in 2025 before a new permanent sculpture is installed by Christmas 2026.

Chairperson Cathy Bishop described their plans.

"We can assure the public that there will be a temporary tree in the square for the next three Christmases. We are in the design process with stakeholders. We hope to uses local suppliers for the real trees, with classic white lights and lots of elements to make O'Connell Square a festive centrepiece, with the involvement of the community.

"The new design will require grant approval. What will go up will be climate aware, and we can going to ensure it will be the first Christmas tree of its kind in the country, serving as an example for energy efficiency.

We fundamentally understand the significance of the tree in the hearts and minds of the community.

"We ask that they bear with us in the knowledge that the ultimate design that will eventually replace it, will be a 21st century, climate-friendly spectacle; one which will transition into an aesthetically-pleasing sculptural piece for the other months of the year, she said.

Cllr Paddy Bracken recounts the history of the beloved Christmas tree and crib.

"The first tree came into the square in 1956. That tree was cut locally in the woods, brought into town on a pony and cart, placed in a barrel and adorned with 30 lights. In the intervening years, the committee members have continued to be creative with this town treasure. That's why I am delighted to see the spirit of innovation continue, he said.

Committee Treasurer Criona Buggy is carrying on the involvement of the Lynch family. She is the daughter of Ger Lynch and niece of Brian Lynch, the founding members who retired in recent years after a lifetime of producing the tree and Santa's gifts to the town's children in the local hall.

During the 1980s, it was the tallest Christmas tree in Europe. To a certain generation, ourselves included, this claim to fame instilled huge pride and fostered a sense of place. It is key to Mountmellicks sense of identity. We are intent on continuing within that tradition. We are excited for the future of the tree, she said.

The Christmas Tree Committee wish to thank Laois County Council representatives Paul McLoughlin (Senior Engineer), Simon Walton (Director of Services), Bill Dempsey, (Area Roads Overseer), and Edmond Kenny for their expert guidance and cooperation.

The members are very appreciative of the direct involvement of Cllr Bracken and the local Garda Siochana, and of the residents and business-owners in OConnell Square for their patience and understanding.

Key to our decision was the work of the team at Infrastruct AMS Ltd. The report is of huge significance. It is not just a scientific document; It is also a social document, one which will form part of the future heritage narrative of the tree. Not only that, Dr Callanan did all of his work pro bono, Ms Bishop said.

Dr Callanan a Portlaoise native now living in Mountmellick, is one of thousands who came to see the tree as a child, inspiring him not to charge the committee who rely on public collections to run the tree.

It's such a good cause and worth the time," he said.

The committee said that without his gesture, they would have had to fundraise to pay for the report, estimated into the thousands.

We recommend his company not only on that basis, but also for his professionalism, amenability and expertise. We are indebted to him, Cathy Bishop said.
If money can be found to give an 80,000 pay rise given to Ireland's highest-paid civil servant then funds can also be located to pay more to retained firefighters in Laois, according to the Sinn Fein TD Brian Stanley.

The Laois Offaly representative drew the comparison when addressing the Minister for Housing Darragh OBrien in the Dail. he also gave examples of the human impact on firefighters and their families in a speech.

Dep Stanley supports retained firefighters in their campaign and industrial action for better pay and conditions.

We are taking the retained firefighters and their families for granted. The Government needs to put a realistic offer on the table. The two counties I represent, namely, Laois and Offaly, are completely dependent on retained firefighters. I met delegates yesterday from all the stations in the county and they outlined the crisis.

"This is not just the crisis of the firefighters but the crisis that exists in trying to get people into the service and keep people in it. They expressed enormous frustration at the lack of progress," he said.

The TD said he and others had tried to get the Government to act before the industrial action started. He said the model is out of date and a report given to Government confirms this.

"The retained firefighter model as constructed is no longer sustainable. On top of the recruitment crisis, the report found that 60% of the retained staff are considering leaving within the next two years. In some fire stations in Laois-Offaly, the numbers are down to five members and this is compromising staff safety, he said.

He said he knows people working in the fire services who have to walk away from special family celebrations.

Some of my friends are in the fire service and they have missed communions. I know of a member who was at a meal following his child's communion when his bleeper went off. He is in a station where there are five. Up he had to get with the suit on him so he could tog out to go fight a fire. That is not good enough, because they cannot get time off," he said.

The Secretary General of the Department of Health received a pay rise of 81,000 when he moved from the Department of Expenditure to the Department of Health in 2021. Dep Stanley alluded to the contrast between this and firefighters in his speech.

"The last thing I will say is about going outside pay agreements. Will the Government stop talking about that, for God's sake?

"A senior civil servant got a rise of 80,000. What pay agreement does that comply with? How does that work? I have never had that explained to me in this House or anywhere else. Other senior civil servants are lining up for it. If they can get it, surely to God we can do something for the people who are on 90 cent an hour and look after them. We need to do it and it needs to be done soon, he said.

He called for a realistic offer must be put on the table to avert this action from escalating further.

"If we are going to attract new people into the service, we have to deal with retention. It is impossible to recruit people as it is and we are asking people to be on call 24-7, 340 days of the year. I heard the Taoiseach tell my party leader earlier that staff numbers will be increased by 20%.

"They will not be, because we will not be able to get people. There were posters outside some of the stations in Laois trying to recruit people and the authorities cannot get them. The simple facts are the Government must deal with this issue. It cannot keep kicking the ball around on this one and passing the buck, he said.

Dep Stanley said people will not take up posts because of the terms and conditions in place. He said it is important there are proper rosters and proper pay and conditions put on the table.
A RETIRED RTE cameraman who sexually assaulted his teenage step-daughter 30 years ago in an egregious breach of trust has been jailed for 12 months.

Tony Byrne, aged 66, of Carriglea Court, Firhouse, Dublin 24, was found guilty by a jury last month of one count of sexually assaulting Donna McCarthy, then Byrne, at the same address on May 10, 1992.

Ms McCarthy previously waived her right to anonymity to allow Byrne to be named.

The court was also told that Byrne retired last year and had worked as a cameraman for RTE and Virgin Media.

Finalising the sentence this Wednesday, Judge Elma Sheahan noted that while Byrne denied the charge, gave evidence and instructed counsel during the trial, he now accepts the verdict of the jury and has offered an apology to Ms McCarthy.

The judge said she hoped Ms McCarthy receives some measure of comfort from Byrne's acceptance of the verdict and his apology even at this late stage.

Referring to the victim impact statement, the judge said Ms McCarthy had suffered above and beyond the assault itself and feels the loss of her close family.

Ms McCarthy has lost more than the peace of mind and innocence she was entitled to as a teenager, Judge Sheahan added.

She said this was an egregious breach of trust because Ms McCarthy had believed Byrne to be her biological father. Judge Sheahan noted that Byrne was in truth, her de-facto father.

She handed Byrne a 14-month prison sentence, with the final two months suspended to acknowledge the remorse expressed.

At an earlier sentencing hearing, Detective Garda Aine Bolton told Fiona Crawford BL, prosecuting, that the victim made a complaint to gardai in October 2019, in which she said she was sexually assaulted by Byrne at the family home when she was 16.

During a previous hearing, the court heard that Ms McCarthy felt uncomfortable in the family home before the incident due to comments Byrne made when her mother wasn't present.

On the night in question, Ms McCarthy had gone home after attending a christening party at a neighbour's house. Byrne was downstairs in the sitting room, while her mother returned to the neighbour's house.

The victim went to her bedroom, then Byrne came upstairs and got into the bed beside her. He put his arm around her, then put his hand on her knee before moving it up her leg. He touched her in the area of her vagina and breasts outside her clothing.

The victim got out of bed and ran to the neighbour's house, crying and upset. She told her mother and another person that Dad got into bed with me. Her mother then took her home.

The court heard there was conversation in the house the next morning, during which Byrne got upset. The victim remained in the family home until she was 21, but relationships were strained.

The court heard Ms McCarthy thought Byrne was her father; however, a DNA test showed this was not the case. A victim impact statement was handed to the court but not read aloud.

Byrne gave a voluntary interview to gardai, during which he answered some questions. Det Gda Bolton agreed with Ms Crawford that Byrne suggested to gardai that the complaint was revenge on him and her mother.

She agreed with James Dwyer SC, defending, that while Byrne denied the complaint, he cooperated with gardai. She also accepted Byrne apologised to Ms McCarthy the day after this incident and became upset when he learnt she had been upset. She agreed that Byrne then continued to have a role in the victim's life.

Detective Garda Bolton also confirmed that Byrne has been in custody since the end of the trial and has not been the subject of similar investigations.

Mr Dwyer told the court that Byrne is a father-of-four, and three of his children and his wife, who is the mother of Ms McCarthy, were in court to support him.

A letter from Byrne was read to the court, in which he said he accepts the jury's verdict and apologised to Ms McCarthy. A number of references from other family members and friends were also handed into the court.

Mr Dwyer told the court that this was a very serious offence due to the breach of trust and age disparity between his client and the victim. However, he suggested it was a one-off offence in an otherwise blameless life.

Mr Dwyer acknowledged his client had not entered a guilty plea, but told the court there are significant factors that can be taken into consideration as mitigation.

He asked Judge Sheahan to consider his client's expressions of remorse, family support and work record. His client is a community man and is otherwise someone of good character who will be added to the sex offenders register, defence counsel said.

At this Wednesday's hearing, Judge Sheahan said she would take into consideration as mitigation Byrne's expressions of remorse, the support of his wife and family, his work history and his previous good character.

She noted he also has the support of friends, though she suggested some testimonials were from people, outside the immediate family, who were unaware that Byrne now accepts the sexual assault occurred as described in Ms McCarthy's evidence.

Judge Sheahan noted that the most significant mitigation of a guilty plea was not available in this case and that the maximum sentence open to the court is five years.

She said the aggravating factors include the breach of trust and the age disparity between Byrne and the victim.

She set a headline sentence of 18 months, which she reduced to 14 months taking the mitigation into account. She backdated the sentence to the date Byrne entered custody.

Judge Sheahan said the court considered the custodial threshold had been reached in this case. She noted that the trial process is challenging and a deeply upsetting experience which the victim in this case had to go through and would have added to the harm experienced.

She added that Ms McCarthy's participation in the trial speaks volumes of her strength in the face of the defence mounted.
A farewell gathering will be held for Christy Dignam in the Finglas area of Dublin on Saturday before his private funeral.

The rock legend, diagnosed with a rare blood cancer in 2013, died peacefully at home on Tuesday in the loving care of his family, according to a funeral notice.

It said: The charismatic frontman of Aslan truly earned his place as an Irish rock legend, winning accolades and drawing him into the collective hearts of the nation, while remaining true to his Finglas roots.

Christys songs and voice provided the backdrop to successive generations enraptured by his lyrics, his passion, and his stage presence.

Modest and down-to-earth, Christy was as comfortable and happy singing at small intimate gigs as he was to packed venues.

The notice said Dignam was a general supporter of countless charity events and often turned up at the bedsides of admirers who were ill.

It added: Christys loss leaves a void that will be impossible to fill.

He is survived by his beloved wife Kathryn, his darling daughter Kiera, grandchildren Cian, Ava and Jake, son-in-law Darren Moran, sisters and brothers Bernadette, Deirdre, James, Brian, Therese, Jackie and Eddie, extended family, fellow Aslan members, neighbours, friends and all who knew and loved him.

The farewell gathering, featuring a video tribute, will take place in Farnham Drive, opposite Erins Isle GAA club, at about 10am.
A school in Portlaoise is the first in Laois to receive an Irish Heart Foundation award after its students were trained in the lifesaving skill of cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR).

Dunamase College was given the award as part of the charitys national CPR 4 Schools programme, which recognise schools, teachers and students for remarkable efforts in CPR promotion and training.

The charity is creating a generation of life savers by training post-primary school students around the country to perform CPR and respond in a cardiac emergency.

They are also taught how to use an AED (defibrillator) and respond when someone is choking.

Around 86% of post-primary schools in Ireland are now trained in CPR.

Katherine Scott is the Acting Children and Young People Programme Manager with the Irish Heart Foundation.

We are delighted to award Dunamase College with their CPR 4 Schools Award in recognition of their dedication in providing lifesaving CPR training to their students and staff.

Over 70% of cardiac arrests happen in a domestic setting. We know schools are an ideal place to educate young people in CPR and reduce the incidences of death from cardiac arrest.

All schools have done tremendous work in creating awareness and taking the fear out of lifesaving.

CPR is a lifesaving skill that everyone can learn, and this programme is available to every post primary school in Ireland, equipping young people with the skills and confidence to perform it.

We would like to train more post-primary schools and are encouraging teachers to attend our free training courses, she said.

So far, 2,499 teachers in 627 post-primary schools around the country have taken part in the CPR 4 Schools programme and learned how to deliver CPR, giving the programme a reach of over 350,000 post-primary students.

These schools have been recognised for taking the programme into the heart of their schools and giving students the opportunity to learn the vital lifesaving skill.

All post-primary school teachers are encouraged to attend the free training. The CPR 4 Schools programme is easy to run, is designed to embed within the school curriculum and takes one hour to train a class.

In a joint statement, the two teachers at Dunamase College who taught the CPR module, Angela Goucher and Siobhan Holland, said the students were now equipped with a skill for life.

Our transition year students embraced our goal to train all students in Dunamase College in CPR, they said.

We feel that their dedication has had a huge community impact  not just our school community but also within the town of Portlaoise and county.

They are now equipped with a skill they can carry for life, an awareness of AEDs and how to help in emergencies.

The success of the programme is reflected in the confidence and self-efficacy all of our students have gained. They have become fantastic ambassadors for the CPR4Schools programme.

We are very proud of all our students and are delighted in what they have achieved, said the teachers

Post-primary school teachers interested in attending can register by emailing schools@irishheart.ie .

To find out more about CPR 4 Schools, visit the Irish Heart Foundations website, www.irishheart.ie/cpr4schools
YEREVAN, JUNE 14, ARMENPRESS. On June 15, the representatives of the international diplomatic corps accredited in Armenia will visit the part of Yeraskh, in the direction of which the Azerbaijani side resorted to aggression, ARMENPRESS reports, Foreign Minister of Armenia Ararat Mirzoyan announced during the question-and-answer session with members of the government in the National Assembly.

The Foreign Minister considered it remarkable that the EU monitoring mission visited that place, that part of Yeraskh. "Tomorrow, at our invitation, representatives of the international diplomatic corps accredited in the Republic of Armenia will also be present there. We will certainly keep the issue in the center of their attention," said Mirzoyan.

Earlier, it became known that on June 14, around 11:45, the Armed Forces of Azerbaijan opened fire in the direction of the metallurgical plant being built with foreign investments in Yeraskh, as a result of which 2 foreign citizens were injured.
Three Kildare organisations among recipients of RTE Toy Show Appeals Grants to help transform young lives in every county across the island of Ireland.

The lives of children across Ireland will be improved in multiple ways through 147 RTE Toy Show Appeal grants announced today, and which were made possible by the generosity of viewers of last Novembers Late Late Toy Show.

The response once again from Late Late Toy Show viewers to the appeal will help transform the lives of 1.2 million children, young people and their families, with every county on the island benefitting from grants totalling almost 4million.

Charity partner Community Foundation Ireland, which manages the grant process on behalf of RTE and its viewers, says that the competition for funding across the sector is intense, given the impact of cost of living on donations across the sector. The range of projects receiving funding are indicative of the range of challenges that children can face, but also of the innovative, practical and really valuable work being done by charities large and small, that are helping to make a difference.

Grants are being provided under three main areas of support:

Addressing Essential Needs assists those children in every country who face the greatest challenges. Projects include: afterschool care to children at risk of food poverty, improving the lives of children in emergency accommodation (Galway), and the development of specialist resources for children with Down Syndrome.

Health and Wellbeing focuses on supporting children facing living with health challenges or disabilities. In total over 1.9M is being awarded this year to provide health, disability supports, mental wellbeing and therapy services for more than 100,000 children and their families. Grants include funding a developmental trauma interventions for the Irish Foster Care Association, supports for children with a cancer diagnosis (Cavan), therapeutic care services (Kerry) and monthly home care support hours for life limited children (nationwide).

Creativity and Play will bring colour, creativity and fun into young lives all over Ireland, many of whom have faced serious adversity. Examples include: Exploring the World of Languages is a programme which will engage pre-school children (nationwide), the provision of musical instruments for children traumatised by the war in Ukraine (Mallow), the upscaling of a palliative care unit (Cork), and the creation of the first accessible surf centre for children with disability (Donegal).

Full details of all 147 Grants can be accessed here:

RTE-Toy-Show-Appeal-2023- Grants.pdf (communityfoundation.ie)

Announcing the grants Dee Forbes, outgoing Director-General of RTE said:

Childrens voices have always been at the very core of The Late Late Toy Show. Thanks to the incredible generosity of our viewers, thousands of children are now being supported in so many different ways. To everyone who donated a huge thank you; this will help so many young lives in the year ahead and is a remarkable testimony to Irelands renowned generosity.

Denise Charlton, Chief Executive of Community Foundation Ireland added:

The RTE Toy Show Appeal continues to make an enormous contribution to our mission of Equality for All in Thriving Communities. Over three-years with the distribution of 17.6 million in total viewers have impacted on young lives in every part of our country. Childrens lives are being transformed thanks to the generosity shown by family, friends and neighbours who respond during the Toy Show to ensure the magic continues all year round.
Seven men have been arrested by gardai investigating the activities of a criminal gang operating in the west of Ireland.

The arrests were made this Wednesday morning during a garda operation involving gardai from the Mayo/Roscommon/Longford division and Galway division.

"The operation involved 85 gardai with assistance provided by a number of national units including the Armed Support Unit, the Air Support Unit and the Garda Dog Unit," said a garda spokesperson.

According to the Garda Press Office, the operation was carried out with the purpose of targeting the activities of criminal gangs operating in both Mayo and Galway.

A number of properties were searched in Ballinrobe, County Mayo while further properties were searched in the Ballybane and the Bohermore areas of Galway City.

A total of seven men were arrested. Two are aged in their mid-40s, four in their 20s and an adult in his teens.

All seven are detained at garda stations in Mayo for offences which include serious assault, violent disorder, possession of weapons and drugs offences.

Investigations are onoing
Congratulations to Fr Pat Lennon, on the celebration of his Golden Jubilee in St. Marys Church, Legga, Co. Longford last Sunday, June 11.

Fr Pat was appointed to Kiltoghert Parish following his ordination in 1973, where he spent five years before being sent to Zambia for seven years.

On return from Zambia, Fr Pat served in both Athlone and Ballinahowen until 1998, when he was to return to Africa (Zimbabwe) for a further seven years working as a missionary priest.

The homilist at his Jubilee Mass was Fr Brendan OSullivan who served in our parish also, before being appointed as Parish Priest of Leamonaghan Parish in Ballinahowan, in 2019.

Both priests were very popular while serving the parishioners of the Leitrim, Carrick and Jamestown areas.

Following a concelebrated Mass, celebrations continued in the Latin School Community Centre, in the townland of Moyne, Co. Longford.

The famous Latin School became known as a prep school for the priesthood and produced 563 priests and five Bishops in one hundred years, most of them from Leitrim, Longford and Cavan. We wish Fr Pat an abundance of blessings, good health and happiness in the years ahead
The Irish Heart Foundation has presented two Leitrim schools with awards for training students in the lifesaving skill of cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR).

Ballinamore Community School and Lough Allen College, in Drumkeeran, both received CPR 4 Schools awards, which recognise schools, teachers and students for remarkable efforts in CPR promotion and training.

They were presented recently as part of the Irish Heart Foundations national CPR 4 Schools programme, in which 86% of post-primary schools in Ireland are now trained.

The charity is creating a generation of life savers by training post-primary school students around the country to perform CPR and respond in a cardiac emergency, use an AED (defibrillator) and respond when someone is choking.

Katherine Scott, Acting Children and Young People Programme Manager with the Irish Heart Foundation, said: We are delighted to award Ballinamore Community School and Lough Allen College their CPR 4 Schools Award in recognition of their dedication in providing lifesaving CPR training to their students and staff.



CAPTION: The Irish Heart Foundations Kate Cummins (second left) present Ballinamore College teachers Denise Stenson, Kevin Nolan and Seamus Mullen with their schools CPR 4 Schools award.

Over 70% of cardiac arrests happen in a domestic setting. We know schools are an ideal place to educate young people in CPR and reduce the incidences of death from cardiac arrest.

All schools have done tremendous work in creating awareness and taking the fear out of lifesaving.

CPR is a lifesaving skill that everyone can learn, and this programme is available to every post primary school in Ireland, equipping young people with the skills and confidence to perform it.

We would like to train more post-primary schools and are encouraging teachers to attend our free training courses.

So far, 2,499 teachers in 627 post-primary schools around the country have taken part in the CPR 4 Schools programme and learned how to deliver CPR, giving the programme a reach of over 350,000 post-primary students.

These schools have been recognised for taking the programme into the heart of their schools and giving students the opportunity to learn the vital lifesaving skill.

All post-primary school teachers are encouraged to attend the free training. The CPR 4 Schools programme is easy to run, is designed to embed within the school curriculum and takes one hour to train a class.

Post-primary school teachers interested in attending can register by emailing schools@irishheart.ie. To find out more about CPR 4 Schools, visit the Irish Heart Foundations website, www.irishheart.ie/cpr4schools.
Lilia Chanysheva stands in a cage during a hearing in a courtroom of the Kirovskiy District Court in Ufa, Russia, on June 14, 2023. AP

An ally of jailed Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny was sentenced on Wednesday, June 14, to seven and a half years in prison on "extremism" charges as Moscow cracks down on dissent during its military campaign in Ukraine.

Lilia Chanysheva, 41, was sentenced in the city of Ufa, the capital of the central Bashkortostan Republic, where she headed Navalny's regional headquarters. Ufa's Kirovsk district court said it found her guilty of creating an "extremist organization" and sentenced her to seven years and six months in a penal colony.

Chanysheva's sentencing came as Russia's Ukraine offensive drags into its second year, with most Kremlin critics in exile or behind bars. From prison, Navalny has called her one of his best political coordinators and said authorities saw her as a major threat, saying that one investigator told him she was considered a "Navalny in a skirt."

"I should be free because my work is completely legal," a smiling Chanysheva said after the verdict, in a video released by Navalny's spokeswoman Kira Yarmysh.

Chanysheva had worked for major companies including Deloitte before joining Navalny's team in 2017. She was detained in November 2021 and was the first Navalny associate to stand trial on charges of creating an "extremist organization." She is also one of the few high-profile women in the Russian opposition that is dominated by men.

Navalny's team said Chanysheva's long prison sentence was the authorities' punishment for her "legal political activities, for investigations" Prosecutors had requested a 12-year prison term. Speaking in court in May, she asked the judge to release her. "If you jail me for 12 years, I won't have time to give birth to a child," she said at the time. "Give me a chance to become a mom."

Navalny said in March that Chanysheva swapped "a successful career" for a chance to work as head of his political office in one of Russia's most corrupt regions, where she ruffled many feathers. "They hated her terribly," he wrote this year, referring to the authorities.

Navalny, 47, is serving a nine-year sentence on embezzlement and other charges that supporters say is punishment for challenging President Vladimir Putin. He is set to go on trial in a new "extremism" case and faces at least 30 years in prison.

Read more Article reserve a nos abonnes Alexei Navalny faces 30 years in prison in new trial
LETTER FROM NEW DELHI

FILE - A cheetah jumps inside a quarantine section before being relocated to India, at a reserve near Bella Bella, South Africa, September 4, 2022. DENIS FARRELL / AP

The program is off to a rocky start. Backed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the occasion of the 75th anniversary of India's independence, and given a great deal of media coverage, the reintroduction of cheetahs to the country is taking a turn for the worse. The once very common feline officially disappeared from the sub-continent in 1952 due to overhunting and habitat loss. The last specimen was killed by a maharaja, Ramanuj Pratap Singh Deo.

On September 17, 2022, eight felines from Namibia were relocated to Kuno National Park in Madhya Pradesh, in central India, an unfenced region rich in grasslands and forests covering 750 square kilometers, surrounded by cattle-herding villages. This is the first experience of transferring wild cheetahs outside the African continent, so it is being closely monitored. The transfer, carried out under the supervision of a team of 24 vets, biologists and wildlife experts, involved meticulous preparations and a two-day journey. The cheetahs were transported in a Boeing 747 from Windhoek to Gwalior, then by helicopter to Palpur, to be unloaded 8,000 kilometers away from their natural savannah, fitted with a transmitter collar.

The project to establish a sustainable cheetah population in India was launched in 2009 under the government of Manmohan Singh of the Congress party, but Modi has made it personal. The release was organized on the prime minister's 72nd birthday. Dressed in an explorer's jacket, wearing a hat and sunglasses, he personally opened the door to the felines. The operation, which cost 910 million rupees ($11.4 million), was largely funded by Indian Oil. The state-owned company has pledged to contribute more than 500 million rupees ($6.3 million) to the project over the next five years.

Deadly heatwave

The eight felines first had to acclimatize in a protected and confined area, before being dispersed throughout the 750 square kilometers of natural habitat where leopards and striped hyenas already live. A further 12 cheetahs arrived from South Africa in February. In total, India has already welcomed 20 felines. However, three adults and three cubs have died in the last eight months. Indian-born cheetah cubs couldn't withstand the May heatwave and died from dehydration.

Reintroducing species is an extremely difficult undertaking that inevitably involves losses. From the outset, conservationists have described the project as a "vanity," pointing out that the African cheetah  a similar but distinct subspecies to the critically endangered Asian cheetah, now only found in Iran  is not native to the Indian subcontinent. In their view, the country should protect its own wildlife. It is still home to many endangered species, including lions, tigers, elephants, leopards and bears, whose habitats are threatened by the destruction of the ecosystem.

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THE LIVES of children across Ireland and Limerick will be improved in multiple ways through 147 RTE Toy Show Appeal grants announced this Wednesday, and which were made possible by the generosity of viewers of last Novembers Late Late Toy Show.

Nine Limerick organisations were among the recipients - Learning Hub Limerick, Hospital Family Resource Centre, Dochas Midwest Autism Support, Dyspraxia DCD Ireland, Southill Family Resource Centre, Children's Grief Centre, Irish Chamber Orchestra, St Gabriel's Foundation and Limerick Youth Service. The total going to Limerick groups is 203,000.

The response once again from Late Late Toy Show viewers to the appeal will "help transform the lives of 1.2 million children, young people and their families, with every county on the island benefitting from grants totalling almost 4million".

Announcing the grants Dee Forbes, outgoing director-general of RTE said: Childrens voices have always been at the very core of The Late Late Toy Show. Thanks to the incredible generosity of our viewers, thousands of children are now being supported in so many different ways. To everyone who donated a huge thank you; this will help so many young lives in the year ahead and is a remarkable testimony to Irelands renowned generosity.

Denise Charlton, chief executive of Community Foundation Ireland added: The RTE Toy Show Appeal continues to make an enormous contribution to our mission of Equality for All in Thriving Communities. Over three-years with the distribution of 17.6 million in total viewers have impacted on young lives in every part of our country. Childrens lives are being transformed thanks to the generosity shown by family, friends and neighbours who respond during the Toy Show to ensure the magic continues all year round.

Charity partner Community Foundation Ireland, which manages the grant process on behalf of RTE and its viewers, says that the competition for funding across the sector is intense, given the impact of cost of living on donations across the sector.

The range of projects receiving funding are indicative of the range of challenges that children can face, but also of the innovative, practical and really valuable work being done by charities large and small, that are helping to make a difference.

Grants are being provided under three main areas of support:

Addressing Essential Needs assists those children in every country who face the greatest challenges. Projects include: afterschool care to children at risk of food poverty, improving the lives of children in emergency accommodation (Galway), and the development of specialist resources for children with Down Syndrome.

Health and Wellbeing focuses on supporting children facing living with health challenges or disabilities. In total over 1.9M is being awarded this year to provide health, disability supports, mental wellbeing and therapy services for more than 100,000 children and their families. Grants include funding a developmental trauma interventions for the Irish Foster Care Association, supports for children with a cancer diagnosis (Cavan), therapeutic care services (Kerry) and monthly home care support hours for life limited children (nationwide).

Creativity and Play will bring colour, creativity and fun into young lives all over Ireland, many of whom have faced serious adversity. Examples include: Exploring the World of Languages is a programme which will engage pre-school children (nationwide), the provision of musical instruments for children traumatised by the war in Ukraine (Mallow), the upscaling of a palliative care unit (Cork), and the creation of the first accessible surf centre for children with disability (Donegal).
A STUDENT-staff team at one local university has received more than 5,000 in special funding for a project they are working on.

A team from Limerick School of Art and Design (LSAD) at Technological University of the Shannon (TUS) has been awarded funding under the new N-TUTORRTransforming Learning initiative.

LSAD students Glen OSullivan, Zishu Deborah Gao and Camille Perlada, who are from Limerick city, are members of the team awarded funding for a project entitled Co-Designing LGBTQ+ Assets as Situated Practice.

The aim of their project is to further develop equality, diversity and inclusion principles within a module for Masters students who are doing the Interdisciplinary Design programme at TUS.

The N-TUTORR funding grants have been awarded to 131 projects across the seven institutions including TUS. More than 650,000 is being awarded under the programme, with each project receiving up to 5,000 in funding.

The announcement of the funded projects took place at an event in Dublin and is funded by the European Union - NextGenerationEU programme

The Limerick project will be in collaboration with the LSAD at TUS Makerstation and the LGBTQ+ Allies Staff Network.

The Recovery and Resilience Facility is the largest component of NextGenerationEU, the European Unions response to the global pandemic. The aim is to help repair the economic and social damage brought about by the pandemic and to prepare for a post-Covid Europe that is greener, more digital, more resilient and fit to face the future.

Ireland is expected to receive more than 900 million in grants over the lifetime of the EUs Recovery and Resilience Facility, which was developed under the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (NRRP) by the Government to allow access to funding.
A NOTORIOUS road junction in Limerick, where nearly thirty collisions took place over a span of 15 years, has undergone a remarkable 6.5 million transformation to enhance road safety.

The newly completed N24 Bearys Cross Road Improvement Scheme was officially opened by Mayor of the City and County of Limerick, Councillor Francis Foley, marking a significant milestone in the region's efforts to address traffic hazards.

The project aimed to rectify the issues identified at the original junction connecting the N24 Tipperary Road and R513 to Caherconlish. Data obtained from the Road Safety Authority (RSA) and Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII) revealed that two fatal collisions occurred in the vicinity between 2005 and 2014. Subsequently, from 2014 to 2020, an additional twenty-seven collisions transpired, with three resulting in injuries and the remainder causing only material damage.

Funded by TII as part of Project Ireland 2040, the reconfiguration of the junction includes the construction of a roundabout situated approximately 150 meters southeast of the original junction on the N24. Additionally, 400 meters of the R513 were realigned, and a Cul de Sac access was created for properties located on the old R513.

The scheme, which received Part VIII Planning Consent in November 2017, underwent the approval process by An Bord Pleanala in 2021. Sorensen Civil Engineering Ltd, awarded the construction contract in August 2022, commenced work before the end of the same month.

Despite initially having a 12-month program, the project opened to traffic in March 2023, achieving a four-month improvement over the original timeline. Limerick City and County Council expressed gratitude to local councillors, affected landowners, the community, and all stakeholders for their cooperation and support, ensuring the successful delivery of the scheme.

Mayor of the City and County of Limerick, Councillor Francis Foley, emphasised the significance of collaboration between state bodies and local communities in achieving impactful development, stating: "This is a hugely important development, and it again shows the importance of positive collaboration between State bodies and local communities to deliver results."

He added, "Bearys Cross is now safer for motorists, though I would urge drivers not to become complacent and always drive with care."

Minister of State at the Department of Transport, Jack Chambers TD, attended the official opening and praised the road improvement scheme for addressing long-standing safety concerns. Minister Chambers said: "This road improvement scheme is very welcome as it helps to address long-standing concerns about road safety at Bearys Cross. Two fatal crashes and 27 other collisions over 15 years are a very poor safety record."

Brian Kennedy, Director of Transportation and Mobility at Limerick City and County Council affirmed: "It is much safer, and traffic flow has been greatly improved" due to the implementation of the new roundabout and road layout.
During the five-sided meeting held in Moldova, the leaders of Armenia and Azerbaijan recognized each other's territorial integrity. Armenia has accepted Artsakh as a constituent part of Azerbaijan, with Nikol Pashinyan being the first Armenian leader to make such a statement, and the EU hopes that official Baku will receive this message and pay more attention to the rights and security issues of the people of Nagorno-Karabakh.

June 14, 2023, 09:39 We hope the message from the Armenian side will be a stimulus, pushing negotiation process on a positive path - Borrell

STEPANAKERT, JUNE 14, ARTSAKHPRESS: EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell said during the discussion on "Relations between Armenia and Azerbaijan and the situation in Nagorno-Karabakh and the Lachin Corridor" in the European Parliament.

"We hope that the message of the Armenian side will be an incentive, pushing the negotiation process to a positive direction," Borrell said.

The head of EU diplomacy also highly appreciated the role of the Russian peacekeeping troops in Nagorno-Karabakh, which, according to him, is an important factor in the resolution of the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict.
CONTRACTORS will officially hand over the revitalised O'Connell Street to the council by this weekend.

Councillors were told in a private briefing that after more than two years of construction work, construction personnel will largely vanish from the city centre's main thoroughfare, which has undergone a 9.1m revamp.

Wider footpaths have been put in place to facilitate people gathering, on-street trading and 'spill-out zones' from shops and cafes.

Street furniture and plants have been provided, while dedicated cycle lanes are in place. At present, there's a bus lane and one lane of general traffic down the thoroughfare.

This could change, however, if National Transport Authority (NTA) plans to introduce a dedicated two-way bus corridor go ahead.

There has been criticism of the length of time the project has taken to complete from a number of quarters - including notably Limerick Chamber, which represents many of the traders along the route.

Work began in June 2021 and was scheduled to complete last November. Instead, it's taken more than two years to get to this stage.

Amid this timeframe, councillors were invited to a briefing. A lot of detail was gone through, said metropolitan district leader Cllr Olivia O'Sullivan who chaired it, It took more than two-and-a-half hours, and was a good opportunity to get into the nitty gritty.

One thing which emerged from the meeting is the fact the local authority is seeking funding from the government to have a three-person crew dedicated to keeping O'Connell Street clean.

Until then, the local authority will be ensuring its own crew keeps the thoroughfare clean and free of debris.

One councillor said there had been complaints about the condition of the granite.

There was a common theme around how dirty it is, not from litter, but from the straining on the granite. That basically we need to be assured it was going to be power-washed and the staining comes off, said the councillor, who did not wish to be named.

Councillor O'Sullivan said 500,000 earmarked for the artwork proposed for the chicane in the main thoroughfare had timed out, meaning if a fresh project is required there, a new stream of funding would need to be sought.

Councillor Sarah Kiely called for a pedestrian crossing linking Bedford Row and Thomas Street to be reinstalled.

It's understood that a safety audit will take place to look at this.

She said the O'Connell Street project has been the perfect storm, pointing out it took place initially against the backdrop of the Covid-19 pandemic, problems in the building materials supply chain, and a lack of communication from the local authority.

But we are hoping now we can move on, let business get back to normal, and get people back into our city, concluded the City East member.

Limerick City and County Council did not return a request for comment.
THE Museum of Literature Ireland (MoLI) has won the Europa Nostra Award in the Citizens Engagement and Awareness Raising category.

Alongside the other winners, MoLI will be presented with the award in Venice this September.

The museum was singled out by the Europa Nostra jury for its work as a heritage project fostering social cohesion, inclusion, multicultural dialogue and nurturing a sense of place and belonging.

Described as the European Commissions most important cultural heritage awards, the Europa Nostra Awards identify best practices in the conservation and enhancement of tangible and intangible cultural heritage each year.

Sharing the news, MoLIs Director, Simon OConnor, commented: The founding patrons and partners in UCD and the National Library of Ireland had the ambition and vision to create a major literary institution in the Universitys original home that would open reading and writing to all audiences. We have never taken achieving that ambition for granted, and welcoming visitors from every imaginable walk of life to this spectacular facility has been at the centre of our work."

President of University College Dublin, Professor Orla Feely, added: This award recognises the great contributions that MoLI has made to the cultural heritage of Dublin, Ireland and Europe in the few short years since it opened its doors to the public. It is clear proof of what can be achieved when two national institutions with an exciting shared vision and ambition  in this case, the National Library of Ireland and University College Dublin  join forces towards a common goal.

The museum is also eligible for an additional Europa Nostra Public Choice Award. You can vote for MoLI here.
A rally was held outside the gates of Leinster House calling on the Dail to support the passage of a People Before Profit (PBP) Bill for the national minimum wage for young workers.

The rally, which preceded debate on the Bill within the Dail, was attended by PBP politicians, trade unions and student groups.

The Bill would amend the National Minimum Wage Act 2000 to end what the party calls minimum wage pay discrimination for workers under the age of 20.

The national minimum wage is 11.30 euro for people aged 20 and over but for people under the age of 20 the legal minimum wage can be as low as 7.91 euro per hour.

People Before Profit TD Paul Murphy said the Bill would end the perverse, discriminatory and exploitative situation whereby those under the age of 20 are legally allowed to be paid less than the minimum wage.

We know that the minimum wage is completely inadequate to survive on given that we are in a cost-of-living crisis.

15,000 workers are paid even less than minimum wage purely because they are younger than 20.

Jamie Mac Giolla Bhain, sustainability officer for the Irish SecondLevel Students Union, said he was working at age 16.

I wasnt being paid the same as my co-workers who were over the age of 20.

For that period of time (until they turn 20), young people are discriminated against in the workplace when it comes to their rates of pay.

Union of Students in Ireland vice president for campaigns Ross Boyd said a lot of students have to work part-time or full-time jobs on lower than the minimum wage to afford their education.

Why are young workers being treated differently just for their age?

The Government proposes to delay the reading of the Bill for 12 months with Minister of State Neale Richmond saying this would allow for the Low Pay Commission to continue examining sub-minimum rates.

He said recommendations would then be made for the retention or abolition of those rates.

It is important that we give the Low Pay Commission the time and space to carry out this review.

When we discuss the minimum wage it is important that we recall the work that has been done and progress made.

In 2011, the minimum wage was 7.65 an hour. Today the full rate stands at 11.30  a 7.8% increase this year alone.

He said a living wage would be achieved by 2026 at the latest.
A teenage boy has been arrested on suspicion of murder following an incident in the Ongar area of Dublin.

A man aged in his 40s was taken to Connolly Hospital, Blanchardstown, after being assaulted on Tuesday evening but he was pronounced dead.

The deceased has been named as Aaron Keating.

The teenager is currently detained under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act 1984 at a Garda station in west Dublin.

The Garda investigation remains ongoing and an incident room has been established at Blanchardstown Garda station under the direction of a senior investigating officer.

A family liaison officer has been appointed to the mans family.

A post-mortem examination is being carried out by the State pathologist.

Gardai are continuing to appeal for anyone with information about the alleged assault to come forward, and anyone with video footage  including from a dashcam  is asked to make this available to them.

Anyone who was in the vicinity of Main Street, Ongar, on Tuesday between 6.30pm and 7pm is asked to contact Blanchardstown Garda station on 01 666 7000, the Garda Confidential Line on 1800 666 111, or any Garda station.
Independent TD Catherine Connolly has accused the Government of a complete failure to reserve and protect records held by religious organisations pertaining to victims of institutional abuse.

Speaking during Leaders Questions, Ms Connolly said if State apologies were to mean anything to survivors and victims of horrific abuse, they had to be followed with action.

She distinguished between so-called private records and the public files in the possession of the State which were due to be made available in a central repository at the site of a former Magdalene Laundry at Sean McDermott Street in Dublin.

She said she disagreed with the description of some records as private.

Ms Connolly said there had been no attempt by Government to take action and bring in legislation to protect the records and make them available.

She cited legal action taken by the Christian Brothers against the survivor of the Glin industrial school over records he held about the institution.

She called on Government to build trust by getting these records from the religious organisations.

Ms Connolly said the report of the Commission Of Investigation Into Mother And Baby Homes had encouraged these organisations to make data public.

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar said work had advanced on creating the repository for public records.

With regards to privately held records, Mr Varadkar said a working group had been established to examine options to preserve them.

He said that group was due to report to Government in the near future.

Ms Connolly said it was grotesque and an obscenity to distinguish between public and private records, given the State had supervised and funded these institutions and schools.

Mr Varadkar said there was a difference between publicly held files and private records.

But he said in some circumstances people did have certain rights to access information under privacy and data protection legislation.

I appreciate what youre talking about is more than that, he said.

It is about giving people access to those records about them, making sure theyre not destroyed, and making sure theyre held in a way people can access them.

The Taoiseach said while he had been briefed on the matter previously, he had not anticipated the question on Wednesday and would provide a more comprehensive response to Ms Connolly by the end of the week.
Drugs worth more than two million euro were seized and seven people arrested following several searches across various locations in Dublin.

Two men were subsequently charged by gardai.

The intelligence-led Garda operations, carried out in three Dublin locations on Wednesday and Thursday, were targeting drug trafficking networks operating internationally.

On Wednesday, Gardai searched a residential premises in Beaumont, Dublin 9, and found a number of bottles of wine and champagne.

Following a technical examination, it was suspected the seized bottles contained cocaine in liquid form.

The cocaine seized is estimated to have a street value in excess of 150,000 euro.

A man aged in his 20s was arrested at the scene on suspicion of drug trafficking. He was charged by gardai on Thursday evening and is due to appear before the criminal courts of justice in Dublin on Friday morning.

In another operation undertaken on Wednesday, members of the Garda National Drugs & Organised Crime Bureau and a Special Crime Task Force intercepted a vehicle travelling on the M50 motorway.

The investigation team also searched locations in the Dublin 2 area and in Palmerstown, Dublin 20.

In the course of these searches, the investigation team located and seized substances believed to include cannabis, cocaine and heroin. These are now subject to a forensic examination.

It is currently estimated that the street value of the drugs seized is over two million euro.

A substantial quantity of cash, the extent of which is to be established, was also located and seized. Gardai believe it is the proceeds of drug trafficking.

Gardai also seized equipment used for counting money and vacuum packing money and drugs, along with communications devices and a substantial quantity of documentation.

Five men all aged between their 20s and 40s, were arrested on suspicion of involvement in drug trafficking, and were detained pursuant to drug trafficking related legislation at various Garda stations in Dublin.

One of the men, aged in his late 20s, was charged on Thursday night and is also due in court on Friday

A sixth man, aged in his 30s, was arrested on Thursday as part of a follow-up operation in the Dublin 2 area.

This suspect was also arrested on suspicion of drug trafficking and is currently detained at Donnybrook Garda Station.

Assistant Commissioner John ODriscoll, who is heading up Garda initiatives designed to tackle organised and serious crime said the seizures and arrests were significant.

The outcome of operational activity undertaken by the Garda National Drugs and Organised Crime Bureau, supported by a number of other specialised units within the Garda Siochana, over the past twenty-four hours, is very significant and reflects exceptional policing skills along with dedication and bravery on the part of the personnel involved, he said.

Arising from the global aspect of the drug supply networks that deliver drugs to cities and towns in Ireland, Northern Ireland, the UK and elsewhere in Europe, the Garda Siochana has forged particularly strong and productive relationships with law enforcement entities in many countries across a number of continents.

He said that Gardai and Irish citizens reap the benefits of the Garda Siochanas outreach at a global level.

Large quantities of drugs have been seized, along with a significant quantity of money suspected to be proceeds of drug trafficking.

Persons believed to operate at a significant level within the world of organised crime have been identified and arrested. A drug trafficking route has been identified and disrupted and a new method of concealing controlled substances has been identified and exposed, he said.
Lincoln University of Missouri has achieved 10-year reaccreditation by the Higher Learning Commission (HLC). The HLC, one of the leading accrediting bodies in the United States, has recognized Lincoln for its continued dedication to maintaining high educational standards and ensuring student success. The final report from the HLC found the University met all criteria for accreditation, reaffirming its accredited status until 2032-2033.

HLC accreditation signifies that an institution meets or exceeds rigorous standards of quality and integrity in its educational programs and services.

We are grateful to the Higher Learning Commission and its Institutional Actions Council for their decision on the continued accreditation of Lincoln University, said Lincoln University President Dr. John B. Moseley. HLC lists education as a public purpose among its values, and this accreditation means Lincoln University is successfully fulfilling our purpose. Our entire University played a role in this reaffirmation, and we are proud of the work we have done together.

A 12-month undertaking, the reaccreditation process involved extensive self-study, collaboration, and engagement with the university community. The Lincoln University HLC preparation team members included co-chairs Beth Nolte and Dr. Aimee Busalacki, along with Dr. Jennifer Benne, Blaine Bredeman, Dr. Zakiya Brown, Dr. Stephanie Clark, Olivia Hetzler, Dr. Jennifer McCord, Dr. Matthew McGraw, Jay Rozema, Dr. Homero Salinas-Gonzalez, Stacey Schulte, and Michelle Wilson. The team sought input from faculty, staff, students, alumni, and other stakeholders and gathered evidence of its ongoing commitment to continuous improvement and fulfillment of its mission  to provide a diverse population access to excellent educational opportunities through teaching, research, and extension services within a nurturing, student-centered environment.

Lincoln then presented a comprehensive report and evaluation of its mission, governance, academic programs, faculty qualifications, student services, and institutional effectiveness to the HLC for review. During a site visit to the Jefferson City, Missouri, campus in February, the visiting HLC team met with faculty, staff and students to determine if the university is meeting the five HLC criteria: mission; integrity (ethical and responsible conduct); teaching and learning regarding quality, resources and support; teaching and learning regarding evaluation and improvement; and institutional effectiveness, resources, and planning.

We look forward to even greater success over the next 10 years, Moseley said. Lincoln University remains committed to upholding the HLCs standards of excellence and continuous improvement as we provide quality, affordable education and support student success.

Lincoln has been accredited by the HLC since 1926.

The Lincoln women's outdoor track & field team finished eighth in the nation at the 2023 NCAA Division II Championship meet. The men's team finished fourth in the nation.
Summer research in Mozambique! Supported by a Fulbright Award, LU Associate Professor of Political Science Dr. Brian Norris is conducting research this summer to deepen the understanding of the challenges faced by impoverished communities and explore potential strategies for improvement. The impoverished state of Mozambique serves as a significant backdrop for his study, which focuses on the lack of basic services in rural areas, such as clean water, electricity, healthcare, and transportation. Dr. Norris is conducting interviews with public servants responsible for managing these services in approximately four rural areas, aiming to understand their challenges, identify successful initiatives, and highlight areas in need of improvement. He also engages with community leaders, including traditional tribal and religious figures, to gather their perspectives.

Click to view more photos from Dr. Norriss first 22 days in Mozambique.

Egidio Chaimite, a researcher at the Institute for Economic and Social Studies (IESE), plays a crucial role in shaping policy debates and providing insightful analysis on politics and social trends. IESE stands out as a dissenting voice, offering excellent analysis that helps navigate the complexities of their country. Researchers like Egidio serve as valuable resources to Dr. Norris, providing practical assistance and helping him gain a deeper understanding of the intricacies involved.

Traditional hereditary leaders in a rural community outside Changara. Being fluent in Portuguese, Mozambique's official language, Norris can directly communicate with interviewees. For those who speak indigenous languages, interpreters facilitate effective communication.

Dr. Norris with a school director and teacher in rural school outside Changara.

Traditional hereditary leader in rural community outside Changara.

Health post in rural community outside Changara.

Traditional house in rural community outside Changara.

Community radio is an extremely important source of information for people in rural areas.
During the day and in the evening on Tuesday, the armed forces of Azerbaijan violated the ceasefire in the northern, eastern, and southwestern directions of the line of contact with Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh)and by using small arms.

June 14, 2023, 09:54 Artsakh Defense Army: Azerbaijan violated ceasefire, used small arms

STEPANAKERT, JUNE 14, ARTSAKHPRESS: The Armenian side has no losses, the Artsakh Defense Ministry said in a statement.

This ceasefire violation was reported to the command of the Russian peacekeeping contingent in Artsakh.

As of 9:30am Wednesday, the situation on the line of contact is relatively stable.
BENGALURU : Limited partners in the Asia-Pacific region are more optimistic about their venture capital portfolios over the next one year compared to those investing in the North America or Europe, as the West struggles with macroeconomic headwinds and higher interest rates.

LPs who have invested in the APAC region expect fewer down rounds of startups they have stakes in, compared to their peers invested in the US and Europe, showed a report by London-based private equity firm Coller Capital.

About 85% of North American LPs expect their VC portfolios to see a down round, while among European LPs, 72% expect a reduction in valuation of firms in their investment portfolios. As for APAC LPs, 59% expect decline in valuations, indicating that even as LPs across key regions expect valuations to be hit going forward, those in Europe or North America see a greater impact of the overall macroeconomic downturn on their investments.

The report also noted that with the weakness in business operations, about two-fifths of LPs across the board expect their general partners to draw down less money over the next two years.

While the report didnt specify why investors expect weakness in drawdowns, it points to the anticipation of weaker deal flows going ahead. Among European investors, 40% expect less drawdowns by GPs, followed by 38% of North American LPs. Among Asia-Pacific LPs, 35% of the total surveyed expect less withdrawals by their GPs.

However, there is optimism among LPs as more than 57% view 2023 and 2024 solid vintage years for the growth of North American private equity play, while more than half expect a stronger outcome for Europeans LPs in these two years, the report showed. Investors views are more balanced on the outlook for private equity in Asia-Pacific.

Markets have been going through a long, challenging winter; so, its good to see that investors are upbeat on the outlook for private capital and see signs of spring ahead," Jeremy Coller, chief investment officer, Coller Capital, said.

However, in view of the ongoing economic downturn and increasing cases of compliance lapses among startups, the report showed that LPs across regions have raised their due diligence on potential fund investments compared to the last two years.

While nearly half of North American LPs have raised their levels of due diligence, the tightening of this process has seen the steepest rise among European LPs as 72% of the total surveyed said they increased their level of due diligence on new investments.

Similarly, European LPs, along with tighter due diligence, also led among global peers in terms of hiring professionals who are dedicated towards examining the adherence to ESG (environmental, social and governance) norms within their organizations.

The importance of ESG within private equity is still being taken seriously by LPs, despite the Anti-ESG movement in the US," the report noted.

About 75% of European investors already have dedicated ESG professionals, followed by 38% in the APAC region. North American LPs, however, lag, as only 21% of the total surveyed have hired such personnel.
Exactly three years back on June 14, 2020; Sushant Singh Rajput was found dead at his Bandra residence in Mumbai. On his death anniversary, fans have generously posted on social media to show their solidarity and dedication for the Bollywood actor.

Three years on, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has neither filed a charge-sheet nor officially closed the case. The investigation into the murder case, which was initially registered by the Bihar Police in 2020, continues to be shrouded in secrecy as the central agency refrains from divulging any details regarding its progress.

3 Years Of Injustice To Sushant. Black Day 14 June. Miss you real hero Sushant Singh Rajput," wrote a fan who apparently believes that the actor was murdered.

Sushant Singh Rajput was gifted & impossible to forget. We are keep him alive till the end of this case & beyond. Were not letting the incident die off," wrote another fan exhibiting similar emotions.

...today marks the black day in Indian judicial system too because it denied an innocent from his basic fundamental right of justice & above all it is happening in a democratic country where we say law is equal for all (sic)," came from another.

After Sushant had been found hanging at his home, the local Bandra police initially recorded an Accidental Death Report (ADR) and conducted interviews with numerous individuals, including prominent film stars and producers. Subsequently, the post-mortem report corroborated the notion of suicide.

However, the case has garnered substantial attention and public interest, with various theories surrounding the actor's alleged murder gaining traction on social media platforms in the aftermath of his demise.

These speculations were further fueled by allegations suggesting a connection between Sushant Singh Rajput's death and the tragic demise of his former assistant, Disha Salian, on June 8, 2020. Nevertheless, the Mumbai police, in their investigation, found no evidence to support claims of foul play.
The potential equity infusion in Vodafone Idea Vodafone Idea Ltd comes as a breather amid increased possibility of the telecom sector moving towards a duopoly. According to an Economic Times report, Vodafone Idea proposes to infuse a total equity of 14,000 crore in the near term as part of its business revival plan. Existing promoters Aditya Birla Group Aditya Birla Group and UKs Vodafone Group Plc will soon invest 2,000 crore, after already having invested 5,000 crore in 2022. The remaining quantum would be raised through other lenders. Recall that in the March quarter (Q4FY23) earnings call, Vodafone Idea had said that it is in discussions with three potential lenders for fund raise.

Shares of the company rose by 7% in early trading hours on Wednesday, but the stock gave up some of the gains later, and closed nearly 3% higher. True, the news is sentimentally positive, but investors will wait to see results. Vodafone Ideas earlier plans to raise funds have not fructified, unfortunately. But an actual fund raise is crucial to boost investors confidence and revive its business. Given this, the quantum of capital raise would be closely watched," said Vivekanand Subbaraman, analyst at Ambit Capital.

View Full Image Graphic: Mint

As on 31 March, Vodafone Ideas cash & cash equivalents, and net debt were 230 crore and 2.09 trillion, respectively.

In this backdrop, the success of a fund raise is critical as the slower deployment in 5G capital expenditure (capex) is putting the company on the backfoot with bigger peers Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel Ltd already rolling out 5G services.

Vodafone Idea continues to be on a weaker footing in the industry. Take the adjusted gross revenue (AGR) data from Telecom Regulatory Authority of India, for instance. As the chart alongside shows, Airtel and Jios AGR market shares (including income from national long distance) are on an uptrend while that of Vodafone Idea has dropped. In Q4, it was at a multi-quarter low even as the company has recovered some lost market share in metros.

Overall, the AGR growth in the telecom industry slowed down last quarter due to muted subscriber addition and absence of tariff hikes. The year-on-year growth in Q4 stood at 9% versus 15% in Q3.

To be sure, tariff increases are necessary for a re-rating in the telecom stocks. During the Q4 earnings call, Vodafone Idea said it will not be able to take the lead on tariff hikes, but would follow any tariff improvement actions by the market leaders. However, the possibility of hikes appears slim. Rising competitive intensity (Reliance Jios aggressive family postpaid plans and unlimited 5G data offerings) to attract higher value subscribers and several key state/general elections over the next 12 months would likely delay tariff hike to June 2024 (after general elections)," said analysts at Kotak Institutional Equities in a report on 13 June.

But unless tariff hikes occur, the sectors revenue growth in FY24 is likely to be muted. The significant amount of cash required (for Vodafone Idea) to service debt leaves limited upside opportunities for equity holders, despite the high operating leverage opportunity from any Arpu increase," said analysts from Motilal Oswal Financial Services in a report on 13 June. Arpu is average revenue per user. Kotaks analysts said the telecom industrys implied Arpu in Q4 stood at 166 and has only now inched up above the pre-RJio launch (June 2016) levels. The delay in tariff hikes will hurt the cash strapped Vodafone Idea the most, although it may lead to continued market share gains for Airtel and Jio at the formers expense. Vodafone Ideas shares are down 22% from the 52-week high of 10.10 apiece in September.
Shares of InterGlobe Aviation (IndiGo) rose over a per cent in morning trade on BSE on Wednesday (Jun 14) after the company said in a response to the domestic stock exchanges that it did not have any idea about the co-founder Rakesh Gangwal and his company selling their stake.

The stock suffered losses in the last two trading sessions after reports emerged that IndiGo's co-founder Rakesh Gangwal and his family were likely to sell between 5 per cent and 8 per cent stake in InterGlobe Aviation, worth up to 75 billion rupees ($909.58 million).

The BSE and NSE had sought clarification from the company with respect to this news. On June 13, the company said in a BSE filing that it did not receive any such information and was not made aware by the co-founder of their intention to sell their stake.

"We would like to state that the company has not received any such information nor has the company been made aware by the co-founder of their intention to sell their stake," IndiGo clarified.

Read more: IndiGo says not aware of co-founder Gangwal family's stake sale plans

In September 2022, Gangwal and his family sold a 2.8 per cent stake or 1.08 crore shares in InterGlobe Aviation through a block deal via two separate transactions. In February, Sobha Gangwal cut her stake in the company by over 4 per cent.

In February 2022, Gangwal resigned from the board as a non-executive, non-independent director. The company's board had then unanimously approved the appointment of its co-founder Rahul Bhatia as the managing director.

According to the shareholding pattern data on BSE, Rakesh Gangwal and his wife, Shobha Gangwal, held 13.23 per cent and 2.99 per cent respectively in InterGlobe as of March 31. Their Chinkerpoo Family Trust held a 13.50 per cent stake in the company as of the end of the March quarter of FY23.

Gangwal co-founded IndiGo with Bhatia in 2005. IndiGo is now the largest airline in India with a fleet of over 300 aircraft, cornering a 57.5 per cent market share in domestic air traffic.

IndiGo shares have gained significantly in the last one year. The stock is up nearly 35 per cent in the last tone year against a 19 per cent gain in the equity benchmark Sensex.

The stock traded 1.16 per cent higher at 2,366 on BSE around 10:15 am.

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New Delhi: In a significant bureaucratic reshuffle, the government on Tuesday announced the appointment of 15 senior officers to various central ministries and departments. Sudhansh Pant, a 1991-batch Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer from the Rajasthan cadre, has been appointed as the new health secretary, replacing Rajesh Bhushan who retires on 31 July.

Pant, currently serving as the secretary in the Ministry of Ports, Shipping, and Waterways, will take on the role of Officer on Special Duty (OSD) in the Department of Health and Family Welfare before assuming the position of secretary in the ministry, according to an order issued by the Department of Personnel & Training (DoPT).

Meanwhile, TK Ramachandran, chairman of VO Chidambaranar Port Trust in Tuticorin, has been appointed as the Secretary of the Ministry of Ports, Shipping, and Waterways, succeeding Pant in his previous role.

Chanchal Kumar, managing director of National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation Ltd, has been named as the new civil aviation secretary.

The officer will join as officer on special duty, ministry of civil aviation, in the rank and pay of secretary to the government of India on August 1, 2023 and take over as secretary, ministry of civil aviation, vice Rajiv Bansal, lAS (NL:88) upon his superannuation on August 31, 2023," the order read.

Pankaj Agrawal, additional secretary and director general (acquisition) in the Ministry of Defence, has been chosen as the new power secretary. Agrawal will take over as secretary of the Ministry of Power upon the retirement of Alok Kumar at the end of this month.

Among other key appointments, Atal Dulloo, a senior bureaucrat, will become the secretary of the Department of Border Management in the Ministry of Home Affairs, succeeding Dharmendra S. Gangwar upon his superannuation on June 30.

Rameshwar Prasad Gupta, a retired 1987-batch Gujarat-cadre IAS officer, has been appointed as the chairman and managing director of the Solar Energy Corporation of India Ltd. on a contract basis for two years.

Additionally, Bharat Lal, the current Director General of the National Centre for Good Governance, will assume the position of secretary general at the National Human Rights Commission for a period of one year, succeeding Devendra Kumar Singh.

The reshuffle also includes the appointment of Debashree Mukherjee as the secretary of the Department of Water Resources, River Development, and Ganga Rejuvenation, replacing Pankaj Kumar upon his superannuation on September 30.

Other notable appointments include Rajat Kumar Mishra as the secretary of the Department of Fertilizers, Subhas Chandra Lal Das as the secretary of the Ministry of Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises, and Nivedita Shukla Verma as the secretary of the Department of Chemicals and Petro-Chemicals.

Vibhu Nayar, currently serving as additional secretary and financial advisor in the Ministry of External Affairs, has been appointed as the tribal affairs secretary. Nayar will join as OSD in the Ministry of Tribal Affairs on November 1, 2023, and assume the role of secretary upon the retirement of Anil Kumar Jha on November 30.

The appointments committee of the Cabinet has also approved the in-situ upgrading of two officers to the rank and pay of secretary. Pramod Kumar Tiwari, director general of the Bureau of Indian Standards, and Vijay Kumar, additional secretary in the Ministry of Cooperation, have been granted the position of special secretary.
The government has lowered import duty on refined soyoil and refined sunflower oil to 12.5% from 17.5%, which will come into effect from Thursday, according to a government notification.

With this, now all crude oils I.e., crude palm oil, sunflower oil and soya oil will attract 5% import duty meaning a total tax incidence of 5.5%. In case of refined edible oil, effective import duty is 13.75%, whereas their refined oil will attract 12.5% import duty plus 10% cess on import duty.

The move has been taken to keep the price of edible oil under check. Even with lesser duty difference between crude and refined soya and sun oils, chances of shipment of refined soyoil or sunflower oil is not commercially viable but may have some temporary sentimental impact on market," Executive Director of the Solvent Extractors Association of India (SEA) B.V Mehta told Mint.

During November to April, imports of palm products sharply increased due to price parity and reported at 4.9 million tonnes (MT) compared to 3.2 MT in the corresponding period last year. The share of palm oil increased to 61% from 49% while soft oils import reduced. However, in the last two months, shipments of sunflower and soybean oils sharply increased and reported in the first half of the current oil year (November-October) at 3.1 MT as against 3.3 MT last year. The share of soft oils dropped to 39% from 51%, according to SEA.

As per the latest data by SEA, Indias April import of vegetable oils (edible and non-edible) was down 10% on month, while palm Oil import fell 31% to 505,000 tonnes. However, soybean oil import was up 1% to 262,000 tonnes and Sunflower oil import went up 68% to 249,000 tonnes because of over supply at the lowest international price compared to soybean oil and crude palm oil.

The landed price of crude palm oil (CPO) at Mumbai port is quoted at $860 a tonne as on 2 June against $1,557 last year during the same time; crude soyoil at $970 compared to $1,686 and sunflower oil at $860 as against $1,941 per tonne. On the other hand, prices of refined soyoil are at 90,000 per tonne and sunflower oil at 92,000 a tonne. During the corresponding period last year, refined soyoil prices were at 1.4 lakh and sunflower oil at 1.7 lakh per tonne, as per the SEA data.

The government cut import duties on crude palm, soybean and sunflower oils in September last year and in December, it extended the concessional duties on edible oils till 31 March 31 next year.

India is the worlds largest buyer of vegetable oils and relies heavily on imports for about 60% of its annual consumption of 24 MT. Out of the total imports of 14 MT Indias edible oil annually, the share of crude and refined oil is 75% and 25% respectively.
As Gujarat braces for Cyclone Biparjoy 's landfall on Thursday, India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued a flood alert for a few districts.

IMD said, Kutch, Devbhoomi Dwarka, Jamnagar districts in Gujarat may get over 20 cm of rainfall on June 15 which could lead to low-lying flooding

The weather office also noted that Cyclone Biparjoy is likely to cause extensive damage in the state. The districts that are likely to be most impacted include Kutch, Devbhumi Dwarka and Jamnagar.

"Its damaging potential could be extensive," IMD Director General Mrutyunjay Mohapatra said at a press conference.

"We won't be surprised if these areas record more than 25 cm of rainfall. Usually, they do not receive such intense precipitation at this time of the year. Therefore, there is a risk of flooding in the low-lying areas," he cautioned.

The IMD official also reiterated that gusty winds and rain may cause extensive damage to standing crops, houses, roads, electricity and communication poles, and flooding of escape routes.

"Up to six-metre-high tidal waves are likely to inundate low-lying areas of Saurashtra and Kutch coasts. We have recommended evacuation of the population in such areas and action is being taken," Mohapatra said.

Biparjoy weakened from an extremely severe cyclone to a very severe cyclone on Tuesday. It is predicted to cross Saurashtra and Kutch in Gujarat and the adjoining Pakistan coasts between Mandvi in Gujarat and Karachi in Pakistan near the Jakhau Port (Gujarat) around the evening of June 15 as a very severe cyclonic storm with a maximum sustained wind speed of 125-150 kmph.

Sea conditions are phenomenal (waves could be 10 to 14 metres high) in the northeast and the adjoining east-central Arabian Sea. The IMD has recommended total suspension of all activities, including oil exploration, ship movement and fishing, until June 15.
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Tuesday informed that his government is working on tackling the water crisis in the national capital and it will be resolved in the next 2-3 years.

In a press conference at Delhi Secretariat, Kejriwal said that the water production in the Union Territory (UT) has increased from 850 million gallons per day in 2015 to 1,000 MGD in 2023. The Chief Minister added that his government has set an ambitious target to increase the water production capacity to a range of 1,200-1,300 MGD and the people of Delhi will not face any issues after this goal is achieved.

CM Kejriwal informed that the Delhi Government will install tube-wells in areas where water tables are high, enabling water extraction on a large scale. Furthermore, an attempt will also be made to increase the groundwater level by rejuvenating lakes with treated sewage treatment plant water.

Kejriwal informed that the recharged water would also undergo treatment in the RO plants before being supplied to the households. He also added that all the sewage treatment plants in Delhi are undergoing comprehensive upgrades in order to mitigate pollution and promote water resource management.

The Chief Minister also unveiled a One Time Settlement Scheme for the people of Delhi on Tuesday. He noted that out of the 27.6 lakh domestic water metres in the city, there are arrears on 11.7 lakh water bills. Underlining the need for the scheme, Kejriwal said, "Due to some reason or the other, the people residing in these 11.7 lakh households have refused to pay their bills. The total amount that these bills add up to is 5,737 crore. If we tried to fix all these bills and get into the reasons for the anomaly, then it would take us over 100 years to sort this out. So, it was not possible to do that. Therefore, we have come out with a one-time settlement scheme for such households.,"

CM Kejriwal expressed the belief that the one-time settlement scheme will go on to benefit most of the consumers in a major way.

(With inputs from agencies)
New Delhi: As cyclone Biparjoy heads for landfall on the Gujarat coast on 15 June, power grid and oil rig operators in the region are rushing to minimize the impact on their operations.

A top official with a power transmission company, who did not want to be named, said that stakeholders in the power segment are prepared and are following the standard operating procedure for such events as directed by the Central Electricity Authority (CEA) and National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA).

Power transmission companies including state-run Power Grid Corp are in touch with the Union ministry of power over the required preparedness, said people in the know.

Oil producers including state-run ONGC having rigs in the Arabian Sea are also preparing for the landfall of the cyclone. We are evacuating the non core personnel from the drill ships in Arabia sea," said an ONGC official.

The power ministry in a statement said that Power Grid is closely monitoring the weather conditions and its transmission system regularly, and 24X7 control rooms have been set up at Manesar and Vadodara.

The ministry also said that the National Load Despatch Centre (NLDC) is continuously monitoring the grid supply for variations in load or generation to take timely action to ensure stable operation of the grid and also for alternative supply through other transmission lines in the best possible manner.

The Indian Coast Guard evacuated 50 personnel from an oil rig off Gujarats coast named Key Singapore, which is owned by Dubai-based Shelf Drilling and is working for Cairn Oil & Gas. Acknowledging the rescue efforts, the ministry of petroleum and natural gas tweeted: Splendid teamwork by @IndiaCoastGuard @DghIndia & @IndianOilcl in evacuating 50 personnel from Key Singapore, a Vedanta Oil Rig, off Dwarka Coast. More than 12 sorties through #CycloneBiparjoy shows commitment of @DefenceMinIndia safeguarding citizens always #CycloneBiparjoy."

The rescue efforts and preparedness gain significance after 86 workers in the Arabian Sea died during Cyclone Tauktae in May 2021, leading to suspension of three officials of ONGC.

Queries sent to ONGC and Power Grid remained unanswered till press time.

Mrutyunjay Mohapatra, director-general of India Meteorological Department (IMD) on Tuesday told reporter that Biparjoy may cause extensive damage and it is likely to impact Kutch, Devbhoomi Dwarka, and Jamnagar the most. The cyclone could lead to extremely heavy rainfall (over 20 cm) at isolated places in Kutch, Devbhoomi Dwarka and Jamnagar districts.

Biparjoy is predicted to cross Saurashtra and Kutch coasts between Mandvi and Karachi near the Jakhau Port (Gujarat) on 15 June as a very severe cyclonic storm with a maximum sustained wind speed of 125-150 kmph.
India's export of fuel products, such as jet fuel and diesel to European countries has sharply surged despite Russia's invasion of Ukraine. According to a report by Times of India, the export of fuel has shot up from 1.1 million barrels in January 2022 to 7.4 million barrels in April this year.

The rise in export coincides with the increased import of Russian oil by India.

India is one of the top importers of crude oil from Russia. India's oil import from Russia has gone up from 1.7 million barrels to 63.3 million barrels since the conflict in Ukraine.

Russia was the major supplier of fuel products to the EU before the sanctions opened the market for Indian refiners in a big way. The EU has refrained from buying crude and refined fuels and products from Russia. Therefore countries like India are playing bigger roles in bridging the gap by buying Russian oil on the one hand and increasing the supply of refined products to the EU on the other.

According to the daily, Reliance Industries and Roseneft-owned Nayara have been major exporters to the EU and the US.

Notably, India extended restrictions on the export of diesel and gasoline in April this year to ensure the availability of refined fuels for the domestic market.

India, the world's third-largest oil consumer, imposed a windfall tax on refined fuel exports last year and mandated that companies sell the equivalent of 50% of their gasoline exports and 30% of their diesel exports domestically in the current fiscal year to March 31.

New Delhi issued the rare restrictions after private refiners Reliance Industries and Nayara Energy, key Indian buyers of discounted Russian supplies, began reaping major profits by aggressively boosting fuel exports instead of domestic sales.

That forced state refiners to fill the void and meet demand at home by selling fuels at government-capped lower prices.
Azerbaijan doesnt generally seek to fully cut off its relations with Iran but is rather aiming to push Iran to launch the Rasht-Astara section of the North-South corridor and build the 162km long railway, according to expert on Iran Harut Artin Arakelyan.

June 14, 2023, 12:02 Iran to compete with Israel for influence in Azerbaijan, says expert

STEPANAKERT, JUNE 14, ARTSAKHPRESS-ARMENPRESS: Azerbaijan has already reached its goal since Russia and Iran have already agreed to invest joint resources for launching that section, Arakelyan said, speaking about the prospects of the reopening of the Azerbaijani embassy in Tehran.

Nasser Kanaani, the official representative of the Iranian foreign ministry, earlier said that the Tehran-Baku negotiations are now shifting from the phase of tensions to the phase of discussing the reopening of the Azerbaijani embassy in Tehran.

Iran is displaying unique diplomacy, its not in a hurry, allowing time to solve many issues. Nonetheless, for strengthening control against Azerbaijan and bringing it on its side, meeting Baku halfway in regional logistic issues will definitely be used in Irans foreign policy as an important direction. The parties will achieve the reopening of the Azerbaijani embassy to be directly interlinked with the launch of the North-South corridor through Azerbaijani territory, Arakelyan said.

The expert said the discussions on reopening the Azerbaijani embassy in Tehran were definitely expected. Moreover, this isnt mainly Azerbaijans desire, because the goal of its sponsors, especially Israel, is to spread anti-Iranian sentiments. Thats why Iran continues to conduct military exercises, because the drills basically have a preventative nature.

Nevertheless, according to Arakelyan, there will still be some feuds between the two countries especially in the media sector because Irans rivals Israel and the UK have great influence over Azerbaijan, and they will try to limit Irans aspirations in the South Caucasus, but if Iran were to normalize its relations with Azerbaijan it would thus strengthen its positions in the region.

According to Arakelyan, Iran will nonetheless not succeed in completely bringing Azerbaijan on its side and keeping control over it, thus it will seek to treat it as a colleague, preventing the influence especially from Israel, which is attempting to develop good-neighborly ties with all neighbors of Iran and create obstacles for Tehran in the region.

Its not like Iran is silently looking at this all, Tehran recently showcased its air defense arsenal, ballistic missiles with a range of 1400 kilometers. Iran is simultaneously strengthening its positions in Lebanon, Syria and Iraq, showing that it can successfully counter Israel and compete against it also for expanding its zones of influence in Azerbaijan. By cooperating, the Iranian and Azerbaijani governments will be able to silence anti-Iranian elements in Azerbaijan, the expert said.

If Azerbaijan-Iran relations get normalized, Armenia will also have a lever in terms of suppressing Azerbaijans encroachments by establishing closer ties with Iran, thus regional stability stems from Armenias vital interests, the expert added.
NEW DELHI : In a significant move to enhance the strategic partnership between India and Brazil, a Parliamentary goodwill delegation led by Union minister of parliamentary affairs, coal & mines Pralhad Joshi visited Brazil from 11-13 June, 2023, the ministry of parliamentary affairs said. The visit, commemorating 75 years of diplomatic relations between the two nations, aimed to strengthen bilateral ties and foster cooperation in various fields.

G Srinivas, IAS, secretary, ministry of parliamentary affairs, highlighted the importance of this goodwill delegation, stating, This marks the first Goodwill Delegation of Parliament, reflecting the deep significance India attaches to its relations with Brazil, a strategic partner since 2006." The visit underscored the mutual commitment to bolstering the diplomatic relationship between the two countries.

During the visit, the delegation paid homage to the busts of Mahatma Gandhi, the Father of the Nation, symbolizing the shared democratic values and peace between India and Brazil. The busts, situated in the heart of the city parks of Brasilia and Rio de Janeiro, served as a reminder of the enduring bond between the two nations.

On June 13, the delegation held a productive meeting with Rodrigo Otavio Soares Pacheco, the president of the federal senate, the upper house of the Brazilian Parliament. The exchange during the meeting highlighted the growing strategic partnership between India and Brazil, characterized by mutual understanding and cooperation.

Pacheco expressed his gratitude and accepted the invitation from the minister to visit India, leading a delegation of parliamentarians, further strengthening the ties between the two nations.

The delegation also had a significant interaction with Senator Nelson Trad, President of the India-Brazil Friendship Front, and other prominent members of the Front. This engagement laid the groundwork for further deepening the diplomatic ties and promoting collaboration between India and Brazil.

Furthermore, the delegation had a productive meeting with Marcos Pereira, Deputy President of the Congress, and Federal Deputy Vinicius Carvalho, President of the India-Brazil Parliamentary Friendship Group, along with several distinguished members. These discussions aimed to foster closer cooperation and explore avenues for collaboration in various fields of mutual interest.

According to the ministry, both sides expressed satisfaction over the remarkable increase in bilateral trade over the past two years. Bilateral trade surged by an impressive 115%, reaching US$15.20 billion in 2022 from US$7.05 billion in 2020. This emphasis on strategic trade expansion reflects the shared commitment of India and Brazil to forge a mutually beneficial partnership, driving economic development and reinforcing diplomatic ties.

During the course of the visit in both Rio de Janeiro and Brasilia, minister Joshi met with members of the Indian community residing in Brazil. He updated them on Indias swift socio-economic development, highlighting the various policy initiatives by the government that have contributed to this progress. The meetings offered an opportunity for community members to better understand and connect with the ongoing growth story of India, further strengthening the bond between the Indian diaspora and their motherland.

Ambassador Suresh Reddy acknowledged the significance of the Parliamentary Goodwill Delegations visit, remarking, This visit marks a significant step in the rich history of India-Brazil bilateral relations. It reinforces our shared commitment to democratic values and paves the way for enhanced collaboration in various fields." He also expressed his optimism that the visit would facilitate future visits of Parliamentary delegations from the Brazilian Senate and Congress to India, fostering greater cooperation between the two nations.
The Reserve Bank of India ( RBI ), in a recent announcement,has stated that it does not have any immediate plans to introduce distinct regulations governing the activities of social media influencers in the financial market s. The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), according to Governor Shaktikanta Das , already has measures in place to address this issue.

"The RBI is not planning to issue any separate guidelines to regulate financial market influencers since the Sebi is already doing so," PTI quoted Das as saying.

SEBI, the sector watchdog, has been actively considering directives to restrict the influence of financial influencers, such as brokers and mutual funds, in order to combat the proliferation of financial advice disseminated through social media platforms.

Also Read: Relief for fintechs as RBI okays default guarantee with a cap

While SEBI has expressed its intention to introduce regulations since January 2022, no official guidelines have been issued thus far. Nonetheless, the organisation has been taking selective action against individuals involved in manipulative practices.

Notable instances include the identification of market abuse through Telegram stock recommendations in January 2022, the clampdown on Youtubers in March 2023, and the recent imposition of fines on influencer PR Sundar in May 2023 for alleged violations of investment adviser norms.

PR Sundar, a prominent Youtuber and options trader, has settled the case by paying a fine of 6.5 crore and accepting a one-year ban from the market. This landmark action marks SEBI's first enforcement against a financial influencer.

SEBI's investigation revealed that Sundar operated the website www.prsundar.blogspot.com, where he offered advisory services packages. Payments for these services were collected through a payment gateway linked to the bank account of Mansun Consultancy, a firm in which Sundar is a co-promoter. SEBI found that the company engaged in securities activities without a registered investment advisory business, contravening norms.

To resolve the case, Sundar, Mansun Consultancy, and co-promoter Mangayarkarasi Sundar have agreed to pay 46.80 lakh and disgorge 6 crore, representing the profits earned from advisory services and associated interest.

Also Read: Respite for real estate after RBIs pause; here are 7 stocks that are attractive

Recently, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman also addressed the concerns related to financial influencers and cautioned about the dangers posed by Ponzi apps offering financial solutions.

The Advertising Standards Council of India has laid down guidelines for influencers, who can influence purchasing and investing decisions.

In March 2022, the Australia Securities & Investment Commission asked social media influencers to have a licence to give financial advice, with violators facing a jail term and stiff fines.

Abusive market practices are prohibited under the provisions of the SEBI Act of 1993 and the SEBI (prohibition of fraudulent & unfair trade practices relating to securities market) regulations 2003.

Section 12 A of the SEBI Act prohibits any action of commission or omission relating to securities or issues, via any scheme or device amounting to deceptive practices, fraudulent trade practices, unfair trade practices or manipulative trade practices (collectively referred to as abusive market practices).

(With PTI inputs)
The Enforcement Directorate arrested Tamil Nadu Electricity Minister V. Senthil Balaji in a money-laundering case on Wednesday early morning. The arrest came after an 18-hour questioning at Senthilbalaji's residence in Chennai, according to a report by The Hindu.

Following the questioning, at 2 a.m. Wednesday, Senthil Balaji was taken in a car for a medical checkup at Government Multi Super Specialty Hospital in Chennai. Three vehicles carrying documents followed them. Ministers Udhayanidhi Stalin, M. Subramanian, and E.V. Velu visited the hospital, while Minister Sekar Babu stated that Senthil Balaji is unconscious and under ICU observation. N.R. Elango, a DMK Rajya Sabha MP and senior advocate, claimed that the family members and others were not informed by the ED officials about Senthilbalaji's arrest. A team of Rapid Action Force (RAF) has been deployed at Omandurar Government Medical College in Chennai Senthil Balaji was taken for medical examination to the healthcare facility. Meanwhile, heavy security has been deployed near Karur bus stand.

The ED had launched searches at locations linked to Balaji at Chennai, Karur and Erode on Tuesday as part of probe into money laundering. The action came months after the Supreme Court allowed a police and ED probe into an alleged cash for jobs scam against the DMK strongman.

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and DMK president and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin dubbed it an intimidation tactic by the Narendra Modi Government.

This is a revengeful act. The Union government is doing many wrong things against states where there is a non-BJP government like in West Bengal, Delhi and here, Tamil Nadu minister Ponmudi said.

Last month, the Income-tax department too had searched people close to Balaji in the stat

Balaji, a senior DMK leader from Karur, also holds the Prohibition and Excise portfolio.

(This is developing news. More details are awaited)
Three Canadian provinces - British Columbia, Ontario and Saskatchewan - made nominations under the Provincial Nominee Program (PNP), a system designed to attract and select immigrants who can contribute to the local economy. It's important to note that Quebec and Nunavut have their own separate immigration programs.

British Columbia (BC) conducted four draws, inviting a total of more than 157 candidates. The draws targeted individuals in the Skilled Worker or International Graduate streams of the BC PNP, including those in the Express Entry pool. The largest draw invited 112 candidates with tech occupations and a minimum Skills Immigration Registration System (SIRS) score of 90. The other three draws required minimum SIRS scores of 60 and targeted early childhood educators, healthcare workers, and candidates in other priority occupations.

Ontario, on June 5, issued 278 notifications of interest to candidates in the Express Entry French-Speaking Skilled Worker stream of the Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program (OINP). The province held two draws under this stream, one for candidates in Health, Education, and Finance occupations, and another for those in Tech, Trades, and Other Priority occupations. The CRS scores for nominees ranged between 312 and 487.

Saskatchewan conducted its first draw of the month on June 8, inviting 500 candidates under two programs of the Saskatchewan Immigrant Nominee Program (SINP). The draw included 268 Express Entry candidates and 232 candidates from the Occupations-in-Demand stream. Candidates were selected based on their occupations matching specific National Occupation Classification (NOC) codes, and all of them needed a minimum score of 69 and Educational Credential Assessments.

These recent draws align with the updates made to the federal Express Entry system. The introduction of category-based selection allows candidates with work experience in select occupations to have an advantage, in addition to having a high Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score.
Pakistan's Balochistan province has declared a state of emergency in its coastal areas as Cyclone Biparjoy brews in the Arabian Sea and approaches the Makran belt. The state of emergency was declared by Balochistan Chief Minister Mir Abdul Quddus Bizenjo and Section 144 has also been imposed.

According to a report in The Express Tribune, all departments and law enforcement agencies have been put on high alert to deal with the impending threat, and the leaves of government employees in the Makran belt have been cancelled.

Also Read: Cyclone Biparjoy LIVE

CM Bizenjo has ordered the commissioners of the Makran and Kalat divisions to increase coordination in order to avoid any untoward incident. He has also directed concerned departments to engage with the fishermen who have extensive knowledge of the sea.

According to a report in ARY News, the Sindh government has cancelled and postponed all examinations and other educational activities in Karachi from 14 June due to the threat of Cyclone Biparjoy.

Furthermore, Sindh Information Minister Sharjeel Inam Memon had earlier informed that 58,895 people had been evacuated from the districts of Badin, Sujawal and Thatta.

Cyclone Biparjoy has continued to move north-northwest over the past six hours and is now about 380 kilometres south of Karachi and 390 kilometres south of Thatta, according to the Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD).

"Maximum sustained surface winds are 140-150 Km/hour gusts 170 Km/hour around the system centre and sea conditions being phenomenal around the system centre with maximum wave height 30 feet," ARY News quoted PMD as saying

Cyclone Biparjoy is expected to track northwards until June 14, then turn northeastwards and cross between Keti Bandar and the Indian coast of Gujarat on June 15.

Dust/thunderstorms with few heavy rains along with gusty winds of 60-80 km/h are likely to affect Karachi, Hyderabad, Tando Muhammad Khan, Tando Allayar, Shaheed Benazirabad and Sanghar districts from June 14-16.

(With inputs from ANI)
A group of Indian Americans has organised the inaugural Hindu-American Summit for political engagement, scheduled to take place at the US Capitol Hill on June 14. The summit aims to highlight the concerns and issues faced by the Hindu community, seeking the attention and support of lawmakers.

Romesh Japra, the founder and chairman of American4Hindus, expressed his enthusiasm for this groundbreaking event, emphasising the significance of Hindu-American leaders and organisations uniting for a political cause. He acknowledged the immense contributions of the Hindu community in various domains, such as culture, society, and economics, but acknowledged a relative lack of engagement in politics.

The summit aspires to rectify this disparity by convening 130 prominent figures and leaders from 20 Hindu and Indian organisations. Among the distinguished attendees will be Kevin McCarthy, the Speaker of the US House of Representatives, alongside many other esteemed representatives.

Japra hopes that the presence and words of these influential political figures will inspire and encourage leaders to actively participate in the political arena and instil a similar enthusiasm in the younger generation, ANI reported.

Expressing excitement over Prime Minister Narendra Modi's forthcoming visit to the United States in June, Japra underscored the impact of Modi's global presence, applauding his efforts in putting India on the world map.

Japra stressed that such achievements serve as a catalyst for Hindu-Americans and Indian Americans to exert a more significant influence within their local communities.

An array of Congressional leaders, representing both Democrats and Republicans, will also address the conference, further underscoring the bipartisan support and recognition of the Hindu-American community.

The summit seeks to foster dialogue and engagement, ensuring that the voices of the Hindu community are heard, and their issues addressed by policymakers.

(With ANI inputs)
The Netherlands, in a significant effort to combat the escalating rates of skin cancer, has decided to provide its citizens with free sun protection this summer. The government aims to make sun cream easily accessible to everyone, removing any obstacles such as cost or inconvenience. To achieve this, sun cream dispensers will be placed in schools, universities, festivals, parks, sports venues, and other public spaces across the country, according to The Guardian.

Inspired by Australia's successful "slip, slop, slap" campaign, which emphasises wearing protective clothing, applying sunscreen, and donning a hat, Dutch authorities hope to transform the act of using sun cream into an automatic and unquestioned habit.

The campaign was launched at a festival in Breda over the weekend, marking the start of a nationwide initiative. The Venlo-Venray hospital, in collaboration with state health insurers, plans to fund sun cream provision in 120 primary schools across multiple municipalities.

Medical experts have witnessed a troubling surge in skin cancer cases in recent years. Sun cream has been proven to be the most effective defence against this disease, making it crucial for children to establish a habit of applying it from an early age, similar to the ritual of brushing teeth.

Jacco Knape, a councillor from the seaside town of Katwijk, expressed the town's commitment to the health of its residents. He emphasised the importance of sun protection, particularly in a region like Katwijk, where sun exposure is above average, as per the publication.

Skin cancer rates have been steadily increasing throughout Europe over the past two decades. Neighbouring Germany has seen a staggering 55% rise in skin cancer-related deaths since 2001, according to the Federal Office of Statistics.

By addressing this alarming trend, considerable savings can be achieved in healthcare expenses. The proactive measures taken by the Netherlands highlight the nation's dedication to safeguarding public health.

As unseasonably high temperatures persist across central Europe, Poland, France, and Germany are among the countries experiencing extreme heat. Conversely, Nordic and Mediterranean regions are experiencing cooler temperatures compared to the usual climate for this time of year.

With the implementation of free sun protection and the encouragement of responsible sun exposure practices, the Netherlands aims to protect its citizens and reduce the incidence of skin cancer in the long run.
A child was arrested after allegedly shooting a teacher at an elementary school in the northeastern Bosnian city of Lukavac on Wednesday, officials and the family of the victim said.

The incident comes a month after a 13-year-old gunned down 10 people -- including nine fellow classmates -- at an elementary school in neighbouring Serbia's capital Belgrade.

"The child, who is not yet 14, is under police supervision in the premises of the Lukavac Police Department, while firearms and other discarded items are secured until the investigation begins," the interior ministry of Tuzla canton said.

Local media reports described the suspect as a former student who had recently transferred to another school.

The wounded person is an English teacher who also worked as an assistant principal of the school, the father of the victim Ismet Osmanovic told local broadcaster N1.

"The operation is still ongoing. Doctors told me he was stable," said Osmanovic.

According to the hospital in the nearby city of Tuzla, the victim in the shooting had sustained "gunshot wounds to the neck".

"The patient was intubated and he is being operated on," the University Clinic Centre of Tuzla said in a statement, according to local media.

Gun ownership is high in Bosnia -- which suffered a brutal war in the 1990s that claimed some 100,000 lives.

According to the Small Arms Survey research group, approximately 31 out of every 100 citizens owns a gun in the Balkan nation.
Former US president Donald Trump can continue his campaign for 2024 presidential elections even if he has been indicted for illegally retaining classified government documents after leaving office in 2021. The US president Tuesday, pleaded not guilty to 37 federal felony counts related to his mishandling of classified documents at the federal court in Miami, Florida.

Trumps indictment in the classified government documents case was the second criminal case filed against him. In early April, he surrendered to authorities in New York and appeared in state court to face 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in the first degree. He pleaded not guilty to those charges.

On May 9, the former US president was found liable in a civil case brought by columnist E Jean Carroll, who claimed he raped and defamed her. Trump denied all her allegations. The jury did not find that he raped Carroll, but did find that he sexually abused her. He was ordered to pay her roughly $5 million.

The three cases raise an intriguing question about his bid to retake the White House in 2024: Can he still become the US president if he's convicted in New York or Florida, or now that he's been found liable in the Carroll case?

The short answer, from a legal perspective, is yes, according to experts.

The experts say none of the charges would bar the former US president from taking office even if he is convicted. A trial would take place many months from now, and Trump can freely campaign during this time.

Nothing stops Trump from running while indicted, or even convicted," CNN reported quoting Richard Hasen, a law professor from University of California, Los Angeles.

The US Constitution requires only three things of the candidates: A candidate must be a natural-born citizen, at least 35 years old and a resident of the US for at least 14 years.

There are a few other Constitutional restrictions that can block a person from running for president  but they don't apply to the former president

It's pretty widely accepted that the list of qualifications in the Constitution is exclusive  that is, Congress or states can't add qualifications to those listed in the Constitution," said Derek Muller, a law professor at the University of Iowa, before Trump's indictment.

"It's something that really doesn't affect your ability to run as a candidate, to appear on the ballot, or to even win the election," CBS News reported quoting Muller.

"If you're convicted of a felony and incarcerated, you can't vote, but you can win the election. The point is, there were meant to be very few qualifications, and it was meant to be left to the voters or the state," Muller said.

In the wake of the January 6 attack on the Capitol, some House Democrats introduced a bill seeking to bar Trump from holding office again by invoking the 14th Amendment, which bars anyone who has "engaged in insurrection or rebellion" or "given aid or comfort" to enemies of the US after having taken an oath to support the Constitution.

That bill never made it out of the House of Representatives before Republicans took control in January.

Trump also faces several other criminal investigations on the state and federal levels that could complicate his ability to campaign for the nomination. But none of those cases would technically prevent him from running for or winning the White House, even if he is ultimately convicted, the report said.

(With agency inputs)
The global economy is going through an economic slowdown following a series of interconnected events like the covid pandemic, Russias invasion of Ukraine, high inflation, geopolitical tension and disruption of supply chains. Growth in global goods trade is seen slowing to 1.7% in 2023 from 2.7% in 2022, according to the World Trade Organization (WTO).

India seems to be doing well in this uncertain situation. It is one of the fastest growing economies in the world, predicted to expand around 6% in 2023-24, while the global economy grows around 2.8%. In 2022-23, India exported goods and services worth $766 billion. It plans to hit its export aim of $2 trillion well before its 2030 deadline.

A key driver of Indias sustained high growth has been the e-commerce sector. In 2022, India was ranked the fourth-largest e-commerce market, with a predicted compounded growth of 13.9% between 2023 and 2027. In 2021, more than 348 million users transacted online and nearly 140 million shopped online. According to Invest India, Indias cross-border trade in e-commerce will reach an annual gross merchandise value of $350 billion by 2030. E-commerce is proving to be a saviour amid supply-chain disruptions by providing livelihood to sellers and enabling consumers across the world to buy products at competitive prices.

Realizing the benefits of linking exporters to e-commerce platforms, the Foreign Trade Policy (FTP) 2023 has a dedicated chapter to facilitate e-commerce exports. It offers a range of trade facilitation measures to e-commerce exporters, including extending all scheme benefits to e-commerce exports and increasing the value limit of exports through courier services from 5 lakh to 10 lakh per consignment. The FTP also announced special outreach and training activities for micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME) engaged in e-commerce exports. MSMEs accounted for almost half of Indias total exports in 2020-21, and are increasingly using e-commerce platforms to widen their reach locally and abroad. With online marketplaces such as Amazon and Snapdeal, MSMEs have been able to sell their products to customers across the world. Going online has helped MSMEs cater to a larger customer base, thereby increasing their revenues and profits. The government wants their share of exports to rise to 60%, which can be achieved by onboarding them onto online platforms.

The positive impact of the Digital India initiative, especially the digital penetration it enabled in Tier 2 and 3 cities, will likely also be a game changer, along with the government focus on the digital inclusion of MSMEs. Digitalization has led to the growth of technology startups. India has become the third largest startup ecosystem in the world after the US and China, with over 80 startup unicorns in the services sector.

Online retail opportunities have encouraged the emergence of a large number of entrepreneurs. Several e-commerce companies have been assisting sellers on their platforms with counsel, training and incubation support. Sellers on such platforms also receive assistance with functions such as cataloguing, marketing, branding, account management, consumer and business insights, logistics and warehousing. With access to significant customer data like orders placed, time spent browsing a particular page and purchases made over a period, businesses have been able to modify their marketing and product development strategies. The combination of e-commerce and digital penetration has made marketing and advertising affordable for local small players, thus lowering their overall cost of operations.

The growth of e-commerce has been amplified by initiatives such as Make in India and the production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme that aim to make India a global manufacturing hub. Even more encouraging is the fact that e-commerce platforms are investing heavily in developing logistics and storage capacity. With continued efforts by the government to increase logistical efficiency and reduce costs through the PM GatiShakti National Master Plan and the National Logistics Policy, India is becoming an attractive investment destination for international businesses. The FTP 2023 further sets the stage to facilitate exports through e-commerce and enhance global reach. For example, Indian companies on Amazon surpassed $5 billion in cumulative exports between 2015 and 2022. This can increase manifold if a few pending issues are sorted out. The value limit on exports though courier, for example, must be entirely removed.

In the present adverse global environment, government policies have been moving in the right direction, supporting inclusive growth and exports. The Prime Minister has described this decade in India as a techade", as we see digital adoption rise and encompass domestic and global trade networks. More and more businesses will join digital platforms and MSMEs need training to be able to use these to their advantage. In this area, there is significant scope for public-private partnerships and alliances across companies. These can support Indias journey towards high and inclusive growth in an uncertain global situation.

Arpita Mukherjee is a professor at the Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations (ICRIER).
The next round of talks between the foreign ministers of Armenia and Azerbaijan, scheduled for this week in Washington D.C, was postponed due to scheduling issues. US Department of State spokesman Matthew Miller informed this at Tuesdays Department press briefing.

June 14, 2023, 10:47 US State Department: Armenia, Azerbaijan FMs Washington talks delayed due to scheduling issues

STEPANAKERT, JUNE 14, ARTSAKHPRESS: It was reported earlier that the next round of talks between the FMs of Armenia and Azerbaijan, scheduled for June 12 in Washington, was postponed at the request of Baku.

"This meeting unfortunately couldnt go forward 100 percent due to scheduling issues, and we look forward to rescheduling it as soon as we can," Miller said.

As the representative of the US State Department noted, the parties continue to pursue a peaceful dialogue for the South Caucasus region, and Washington believes direct dialogue is key to resolving the remaining issues.

"We believe an agreement is within reach," added the US State Department spox.
On 2 March 1955, Claudette Colvin, a 15-year-old African- American school student, boarded a segregated public bus in Montgomery and took a window seat near the exit door. The driver asked her to vacate the seat for a Caucasian passenger standing nearby. She refused. Police officers dragged her out of the bus and placed her in jail. Nine months after this incident, Rosa Parks too refused to vacate her bus seat. The Montgomery bus boycott ensued and the rest is history. Many a small event has sparked big movements.

The #MeToo movement brought into focus the issue of sexual harassment and abuse of women in the workplace. The movement did create reverberations in many workplaces in India. For the past few months, women wrestlers have been protesting against sexual harassment. Will this lead to any significant changes in India?

Even as women demanded their rightful place in society and workplaces, there were always places that were considered bastions of male dominance. Wrestling akharas have been among those places where the males physical strength, his big differentiator over women, was always on display. The fact that recent voices of protest against sexual harassment have come from the sidelines of these very akharas is significant. This is much like bearding the lion in his den.

This rising power of women has been a trend for some time. This decade began with the arrival of a significant data point. As per the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, as of 2020, 50.04% of American jobs, excluding farm workers and the self-employed, were held by women. This significant inflexion point might be more profound than another departure that was noted in 1956. For the first time in the history of the US economy, white-collar workers, those involved in technical, managerial and clerical work, outnumbered blue-collar workers that year. Harvard sociologist Daniel Bell called this the beginning of the end of the industrial economy and the emergence of a new post-industrial society. Womens dominance in the labour market could have much wider impact than the emergence of post-industrial knowledge economy. Indeed, the former is facilitated by the latter.

With Indian women constituting less than 25% of the organized labour force, one might wonder whether Indian women will ever come to attain equality with men at the workplace. In 1950, women constituted only 29.6% of the US workforce. The 1950s was the peak of the industrial era, a period when physical strength was in high demand. So men always had an advantage over women in the workplace. But with the emergence of the knowledge economy, women are on an equal footing with men. The ability to use ones brain is all that matters in todays knowledge economy.

In the US, women continued to make big strides in the knowledge economy also because they are better equipped than men with the most important requirement for the knowledge economy: education. For every two men who graduate from college in the US, three women are completing their graduation.

How are Indian girls performing on the educational front? There are some very interesting data points emerging from Kerala, the forerunner of several initiatives in the Indian educational sector. According to Economic Review 2021, in tenth standard only 49% of students are girls. But out of all students enrolled in various arts and science colleges in Kerala, an impressive 65.3% are girls. At the graduate level, engineering is the only field of study where female admissions at 41.8% are lower than of males. But when we consider the much higher pass percentage of girls in the engineering stream, this difference is nullified. Does this trend reflect in other states of India too?

Latest data from the All India Survey on Higher Education (AISHE) 2020-2021 report released by the Union ministry of education provides some interesting data points. Uttar Pradesh has the highest student enrolment in India. What is more interesting is that 50.9% of them are girls. Karnataka is another state where the proportion of girls enrolled, at 50.2%, is higher than boys. In Tamil Nadu, the percentage of girls in colleges is very close to that of boys. Indias gross enrolment ratio (GER) in higher education, calculated for 18-23 years age group, is 27.1. Our GER for males is 26.9. For females, it is 27.3. This growing gender gap in higher education might turn out to be one of the most transformative trends of our time.

But will men take a loss of thousands of years of dominance without resistance? Very unlikely. As women look for equally qualified partners, a male dominated society will likely place impediments in womens freedom of choice. Men will react violently when women walk out on them. In the Malayalam language, a new word theppu has emerged to denote girls walking out on boys. The emergence of womens power could run into resistance in multiple ways.

The women wrestlers protest is not a random event. It has emanated from whats often seen as a citadel of male superiority. This protest is backed by the confidence of an ever-growing number of educated women in India and the opportunities that a knowledge economy has to offer them for economic independence. Much like Claudette Colvins courageous act in the US, the women wrestlers protest in India will mark yet another significant moment in the journey of Indian women forward.

Biju Dominic is chief evangelist, Fractal Analytics, and chairman, FinalMile Consulting.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) said on Wednesday that Tamil Nadu minister Senthil Balaji, who has been arrested and sent to judicial custody in a money laundering case, allegedly "misused" his position for illegal gratification and "engineered" a job racket scam in the state transport undertakings during 2014-15. The ED has also alleged that candidates made payments through his associates, claiming they were kickbacks.

The ED has termed him the prime suspect" in the cash-for-jobs scam in West Bengal. The law enforcement agency has also stated in the court that unaccounted cash deposits worth 1.60 were made into the accounts of Senthil Balaji and his wife.

Senthil Balaji, 47, was raided and arrested under the criminal sections of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) by the ED. Those close to him were also raided, which were denounced as intimidation politics" by the Centre.

Later, Senthil Balaji was admitted to a government hospital in the city after he complained of uneasiness. Following his admission, he underwent a coronary angiogram. He was advised for immediate bypass surgery.

Senthil Balaji was later sent to judicial custody by a Sessions Court till June 28. In its statement, the ED called Senthil Balaji a prime suspect" in the cash-for-jobs scam. It said Senthil, misused his office for illegal gratification and engineered a job racket scam in MTC/TNSTCs."

The case goes back to the time when Senthil Balaji was state transport minister in the AIADMK government during 2011-15.

The irregularities occurred in the state-run Metropolitan Transport Corporation (MTC) and Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation (TNSTC).

According to the reports, he, along with his brother R V Ashok Kumar, PA B Shanmugam and a person identified as M Karthikeyan, "conspired" with the managing directors of all state transport undertakings (STU) and other officers of transport corporations to obtain "illegal gratification" from candidates to recruit them as drivers, conductors, junior assistants, junior engineer and assistant engineer in the transport corporation (during 2014-15).

The ED has alleged that the entire appointment process was made in a fraudulent and dishonest manner and only in accordance with the lists provided by Shanmugam, R V Ashok Kumar, M Karthikeyan, as per the directions of Balaji."

(With agency inputs)
India-Africa trade will cross $100 billion soon, according to Indias External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar. Speaking at the CII-EXIM Bank Conclave on the India-Africa Growth Partnership, Jaishankar stated that trade between India and the African continent had jumped to $98.billion in 2022-23 as compared to a sum of $89.6 billion the previous year.

Indias top diplomat also spoke of Indias robust development partnership with the continent. India, Jaishankar said, had extended over USD 12.37 billion in concessional loans to Africa. India has completed 197 projects, 65 are under execution and 81 are in the pre-execution stage.

Drinking water, irrigation, rural solar electrification plants and rural sugar and textile factories are part of Indias development outreach to the continent. Jaishankar also pointed to Inias medical support to numerous African nations during the pandemic as a case of Indias continued outreach to the country. He also spoke of how Indian and African nations worked together during the pandemic to go to the World Trade Organisation for vaccine access.

For India, the rise of Africa is key to global rebalancing." Jaishankar said.

India is also interested in building capacity in Africa, he added. He added that India had provided scholarships to 42,000 students from the continent since 2015, including some senior leaders.

Looking forward, Jaishankar expressed the hope that the African Continental Free Trade Area Agreement, which was signed in 2021, would provide a filip to Indian companies looking to work in Africa.

He added that India was among the top five large investors in Africa. France, America, the United Kingdom and China were the other top investors in the continent.
The World Blood Donor Day is celebrated every year on June 14 to thank the altruistic acts of selflessness of voluntary blood donors and celebrate life and humanity. Blood is the most precious gift that anyone can give to another person  the gift of life. A decision to donate blood can save a life, or even several lives, if the blood is separated into its components  red cells, platelets and plasma  which can be used individually for patients with specific conditions.

However, blood donation can also come with its own set of benefits for donors. Blood donation can help reduce excess iron levels in the blood thereby preventing hemochromatosis, a condition which can increase risk of cardiovascular diseases including heart attack and stroke. This can help with early detection of certain health conditions, such as anaemia or infectious diseases, which may otherwise go unnoticed.

World blood Donor Day Theme 2023

The slogan or theme of the World Blood Donor Day 2023 is "Give blood, give plasma, share life, share often." The theme highlights the importance of giving blood or blood plasma regularly to create a safe and sustainable supply of blood and blood products that can be always available, all over the world, so that all patients in need can receive timely life saving treatment.

History of World Blood Donor Day

In 2004 World Blood Donor Day was first distinguished by the WHO. In the 58th World Health Assembly, 2005 it was declared as an annual global event to raise awareness about the importance of blood donation.

The history of blood donation goes far back to ancient times. In written history, English physician Richard Lower is most remembered for his pioneering work on blood transfusion and the function of the cardiopulmonary system, which he described in his book Tractatus de Corde. He was the first one to examine the science of blood donation with animals and he managed to successfully transfuse blood between two dogs with no appreciable ill effects.

But WHO decided to celebrate the birthday of Karl Landsteiner as World Blood Donor day. Landsteiner was Austrian American immunologist, pathologist. He was awarded Nobel Prize in 1930 for his works on blood group and development of modern blood transfusion system.

Blood donation significance

The importance of donating blood is not only to save the lives of thousands of people who are deprived of life, but also to save the lives of many more who are affected by various diseases and help them to fight numerous illnesses.

Blood donation does not cause weakness. As per published literature, Blood volume (plasma) is replenished within 24-48 hours. Red blood cells are replenished in 3-4 weeks in healthy adults after donation.

Blood donation benefits

Blood donation has profound health benefits. It not only does it provide essential support in medical emergencies, patients undergoing surgeries, cancer treatments, but it also holds significant advantages for the donors themselves.

Regular blood donation helps maintain healthy iron levels in the body, reducing the risk of conditions like hemochromatosis. This protects the body against cardiovascular diseases and minimises heart attack risks.

Blood donation help with early detection of certain health conditions, such as anaemia or infectious diseases

After donating blood, the body produces new cells to enhance overall health and works towards replacing the volume of blood lost within 48 hours of donation.

Most of the people who donate their blood tend to recover fast from their diseases and even live a longer life, it also helps in weight loss and in maintaining healthy liver reduces risk cancer.
Phosphorus, a key chemical element for many biological processes, has been found in icy grains emitted by Enceladus, the small moon of Saturn, into space and is likely abundant in its subsurface ocean, a new study published in journal Nature reported.

An international team of researchers, featuring Frank Postberg, a planetary scientist at Freie Universitat Berlin, Germany and Dr. Christopher Glein from the Southwest Research Institute in San Antonio, Texas, has unearthed a piece of crucial evidence hinting at the existence of an essential life element beneath the icy shell of Saturns moon, Enceladus.

NASAs Cassini, a space probe launched to scrutinize Saturn and its extensive system of moons and rings, has delivered crucial insights over its 13-year journey. Data retrieved from Cassini has played an instrumental role in this discovery.

Phosphorus, the least abundant of the essential elements necessary for biological processes, hadnt been detected until now. The element is a building block for DNA, which forms chromosomes and carries genetic information, and is present in the bones of mammals, cell membranes, and ocean-dwelling plankton. Phosphorus is also a fundamental part of energy-carrying molecules present in all life on Earth. Life wouldnt be possible without it.

We previously found that Enceladus ocean is rich in a variety of organic compounds," said Frank Postberg, who led the new study, published on Wednesday, June 14, in the journal Nature.

But now, this new result reveals the clear chemical signature of substantial amounts of phosphorus salts inside icy particles ejected into space by the small moons plume. Its the first time this essential element has been discovered in an ocean beyond Earth."

Dr. Glein also shed light on the astonishing concentration of phosphates within Enceladuss waters. We found phosphate concentrations at least 100 times higher in the moons plume-forming ocean waters than in Earths oceans," he said.

With this finding, the ocean of Enceladus is now known to satisfy what is generally considered to be the strictest requirement for life. The next step is clear  we need to go back to Enceladus to see if the habitable ocean is actually inhabited."

This key ingredient could be abundant enough to potentially support life in Enceladus ocean; this is a stunning discovery for astrobiology and a major step forward in the search for life beyond Earth."

Glein stressed that life has not been found on the moon  or anywhere else in the solar system beyond Earth: Having the ingredients is necessary, but they may not be sufficient for an extraterrestrial environment to host life. Whether life could have originated in Enceladus ocean remains an open question."

The research, published in the journal Nature as Detection of Phosphates Originating from Enceladus Ocean," includes contributions from scientists across ten global institutions.
A discussion on "Relations between Armenia and Azerbaijan and the situation in Nagorno-Karabakh and the Lachin Corridor" was held in the European Parliament.

June 14, 2023, 10:49 State terrorism by Azerbaijan has not led to any sanctions by the European Council, Francois Xavier Bellamy

STEPANAKERT, JUNE 14, ARTSAKHPRESS: During the question-and-answer session, MEP Francois Xavier Bellamy strongly criticized Azerbaijan's blockade of the Lachin Corridor, which led to a humanitarian crisis in Nagorno-Karabakh.

"The Court of Justice has condemned the blockade by Azerbaijan, but this state terrorism has not led to any sanctions by the Council, and the Commission seems unable to properly condemn this very serious violation of the fundamental rights of the people of Nagorno-Karabakh," the MEP said.

Referring to the MEPs observations, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell emphasized. "Azerbaijan's unilateral decision to install this checkpoint completely contradicts efforts to build trust between the parties."

Borrell emphasized that the Lachin Corridor is outside the geographical area of responsibility of the EU monitoring mission.

"There are territories, border areas with Armenia, from where it can be seen what is happening in the Lachin Corridor, but the corridor itself is outside the jurisdiction of the mission and their area of responsibility. Now we are trying to find a solution for this specific problem," Borrell said.

As for the inactivity mentioned by the MEPs, Borrell emphasized that a very important meeting between the French President, the German Chancellor, the President of the European Council and leaders of Armenia and Azerbaijan took place in Moldova recently. In addition, according to Borrell, another meeting with Charles Michel is planned in Brussels in July.

According to Josep Borrell, efforts are being made to resolve the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict, the parties have also expressed readiness to continue negotiations.
A new package of US military aid to Ukraine, worth $325 million, includes 25 armored vehicles, the Pentagon has said in a statement, Tass informs.

June 14, 2023, 12:57 New package of US military aid to Ukraine includes 25 armored vehicles  Pentagon

STEPANAKERT, JUNE 14, ARTSAKHPRESS: The delivery will include 15 Bradley Infantry Fighting Vehicles and 10 Stryker Armored Personnel Carriers among other items, the statement says.

Earlier, a spokesperson for the US Department of State said Washington would provide Kiev with additional munitions for National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile Systems (NASAMS); Stinger anti-aircraft systems; Javelin anti-armor systems; Tube-Launched, Optically-Tracked, Wire-Guided (TOW) missiles; AT-4 anti-armor systems; Bradley Infantry Fighting Vehicles and Stryker Armored Personnel Carriers; 155mm and 105mm artillery rounds; over 22 million rounds of small arms ammunition and grenades; additional ammunition for High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS); demolition munitions for obstacle clearing; tactical secure communications support equipment as well as spare parts and other field equipment.
Photo by the Office of Chattanooga Mayor Tim Kelly. Mayor Kelly and Mayor Bova at the 2023 Cities Summit of the Americas.
Two foreign nationals were wounded on Wednesday when Azerbaijani military forces opened fire at a steelworks which is under development with foreign investments in the Armenian village of Yeraskh. The shooting occurred around 11:45, June 14.

June 14, 2023, 12:27 Two foreigners wounded by Azerbaijan army shooting at Armenias Yeraskh village

STEPANAKERT, JUNE 14, ARTSAKHPRESS:''The MoD Azerbaijan disseminated disinformation at around 11:30am Wednesday, claiming that the Armenian Armed Forces opened fire at the Azerbaijani combat positions near Yeraskh village.

And at around 11:45am, Azerbaijani side opened firein the same directionat the metallurgical plant being built in Yeraskh with foreign investment, in the wake of which two foreign citizens were wounded,'' the defense ministry said.
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Local homeowners living in one of Longford's most densely populated towns have slammed as utterly shocking a local authority decision to grant planning for a near 150m high wind turbine.

Residents from the Lissanore area of Edgeworthstown took aim this week at Longford County Council's planning department to grant approval for the structure which, when built, will exceed the Dublin Spire.

Council chiefs gave the green light last Thursday to Dublin based firm Natural Forces Renewable Energy Ltd to erect the turbine subject to 16 conditions.

The decision was made despite several submissions and a petition containing the signatures of over 200 local residents.

I am shocked, completely and utterly shocked, said one incensed local homeowner.

This thing is nearly 500ft high and people will be able to see it for a 20km radius when it is constructed.

The local resident, who asked for her name not to be published, told of how the harsh realities facing one of Longford's fastest growing towns.

We will get all the flicker and noise, she said. I am still reeling from the shock of it all.

She explained how her family moved to the area seven years ago, hoping to set up home after relocating from England.

We lived in a very built up area and we moved to Edgeworthstown as my daughter was going to school, she said.

We saw it (Edgeworthstown) as quiet, completely different from England and then boom, this happens and everything changes.

Local Councillor Paul Ross said he was acutely aware of the unease being felt by locals in the wake of the news, but said the process was far from a done deal.

Residents have contacted me with legitimate concerns in relation to the erection of a wind turbine in the area, he said.

It (development) is subject to the rigours of planning and historically we have seen in Longford wind turbine applications are very contentious and invoke strong feelings from local residents. Going by historical reference in Longford, these applications have all been successfully appealed to An Bord Pleanala.

Residents now face a race against time to lodge an appeal with the aformentioned State planning authority.

Appeals to the independent planning body must be made within four weeks from when a decision is made at local authority level.

That's what we are trying to do now, contact a planner to take on our case and submit an appeal because we have less than four weeks, she added.
Health Minister Stephen Donnelly is coming under renewed scrutiny over his handling of the funding requirements of Longford's pharmacy sector.

The Irish Pharmacy Union (IPU) has said the sector is rapidly losing faith in Mr Donnelly and his departments ability to utilise pharmacies appropriately and is now campaigning for meaningful engagement.

Pharmacist Paula Reilly (pictured) of Reillys Totalhealth pharmacy in Longford called into question Mr Donnelly's response to growing fears over the long term sustainability facing the sector.

Pharmacies have endured a 14 year long pay freeze at the hand of the government, she said.

They provide vital healthcare services on behalf of the state and while costs increase dramatically the fees received for doing this work are lower now than in 2009.

We are reaching the point where the future viability of many pharmacies is coming into question.

Ms Reilly said she and those within the industry had been left baffled by the Fianna Fail minister's lack of consultation , accusing the Wicklow TD of blatant discrimination.

She said: Minister Donnelly is legally obliged to review pharmacy services and funding by the end of June 2023. Despite this deadline there has been zero engagement from the Minister.

Commenting on this lack of engagement by the Minister, Paula Reilly said, The majority of pharmacies are small and family-owned businesses, they rely on state income. It is incredulous that less than a month before the Minister must decide on their future he has not engaged with the sector in any way.

The IPU has accused the Minister of discriminating against the pharmacy profession.

Ms Reilly said: Community Pharmacy is now the only healthcare sector that has had no pay restoration since the financial crisis. There is no reason for this blatant discrimination, and it needs to change.

Goodwill among pharmacies has been eroded according to the IPU.

Despite being ignored by the Minister, community pharmacies have consistently delivered, they continue to provide a first-class service to patients.

The accessibility of the pharmacy sector papers over the numerous cracks in the healthcare system. Nowhere was this more evident than during the COVID pandemic when pharmacists stood up to the plate with the delivery of vaccines, she added.
Community, Charity & Cause

By Chris Boyle Published: June 14 2023

The Jacobs Light Humanitarian Award honors Policemen, Firemen, EMS, Veterans and Active Military whose contributions help make Long Island such a wonderful place to live.

The American Airpower Museum will host a special FREE breakfast awards program on Tuesday, June 20, 2023, in honor of two Long Island heroes. The Jacobs Light Humanitarian Award will be presented to local heroes Stephen G. Stiller (posthumously), and to Suffolk County Sheriff Errol D. Toulon.

The Jacobs Light Humanitarian Award honors Policemen, Firemen, EMS, Veterans and Active Military, whose contributions to society help make Long Island such a wonderful place to live. The Jacobs Light Awards and Breakfast is sponsored by The Stephen Siller Tunnel to Towers Foundation, Catholic Health of Rockville Centre, and Bristal Assisted Living of Long Island, who will provide breakfast for our guests.

An FDNY Firefighter from Rockville Centre, Nassau County, Siller laid down his life saving others at the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001. Tunnel to Towers CEO Frank Siller, formed the foundation in loving memory of his late kid brother Stephen G. Siller. Errol D. Toulon Jr. was elected Sheriff of Suffolk County in 2017. The first African American elected official to hold a nonjudicial countywide office in Suffolk County history, this popular Sheriff was re-elected to a second term on November 2, 2021.

The award is named after U.S. Army Specialist Jacob Fletcher, who lost his life in Iraq. Concerned about his fellow soldiers, Fletcher asked his mother Doreen Kenny to send extra care packages he could give them. Even after Fletcher lost his life, she continued sending care packages to soldiers for 10 years, and Jacobs Light program coordinator Hubert Johnson continues her mission to this day. Contact him at (631) 413-5322 or johubert01@gmail.com. Assisting Johnson is Legislator Leslie Kennedy, (631) 854-7245, (631) 854-3735 or Leslie.Kennedy@suffolkcountyny.gov.

Our featured speaker Jack Oehm, a retired Battalion Chief of the FDNY and Board Member for Tunnels to Towers, will describe the Foundations mission to support first responder families and disabled veterans. The public is encouraged and welcome to attend this totally FREE breakfast program. Come celebrate with prominent elected officials and heroes from Nassau and Suffolk Counties. But, be advised that since space is limited, please email Erika.Hershberger@suffolkcountyny.gov today to reserve a seat!

The American Airpower Museum is an aviation museum located on the landmarked former site of Republic Aviation at Republic Airport, Farmingdale, NY. The Museum maintains a collection of aviation artifacts and an array of aircraft spanning the many years of the aircraft factory's history. The Museum is a 501(c)(3) Nonprofit Educational Foundation Chartered by the New York State Board of Regents.
Crime

By Chris Boyle Published: June 14 2023

Johnnie Funderburke Faces Life in Prison at Sentencing.

Suffolk County District Attorney Raymond A. Tierney today announced that Johnnie Funderburke, 38, of Bellport, was convicted after a jury found him guilty of numerous drug and weapons charges, and for selling narcotics to an undercover officer.

This defendant attempted to push deadly drugs into our Suffolk County communities, said District Attorney Tierney. The possibility of the defendant receiving a life sentence should send a clear message that if you sell drugs in Suffolk County, you will be held accountable, and the penalties will be severe. I commend the Suffolk County Police Departments Narcotics Section for their hard work on this case.

The evidence at trial established that on June 15, 2021, Funderburke sold heroin to an undercover detective from the Suffolk County Police Departments Narcotics Section. On June 22, 2021, and June 24, 2021, the defendant also sold heroin and cocaine to the same undercover detective.

On July 6, 2021, members of the Suffolk County Police Department executed a search warrant of Funderburkes residence, and recovered fentanyl, heroin, cocaine, methamphetamine, amphetamine, two digital scales, cash, and a loaded 9 mm pistol.

On June 12, 2023, Funderburke was found guilty after a jury trial heard before Acting Supreme Court Justice, the Honorable Anthony S. Senft, Jr. to the charges of:

One Count of Criminal Possession of a Controlled Substance in the Second Degree, a Class A felony;

Five counts of Criminal Sale of a Controlled Substance in the Third Degree, a Class B felony;

Six counts of Criminal Possession of a Controlled Substance in the Third Degree, a Class B felony;

One count of Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Second Degree, a Class C violent felony;

One count of Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Third Degree, a Class D felony;

Two counts of Criminal Possession of a Controlled Substance in the Fifth Degree, a Class D felony; and

One count of Criminal Possession of a Controlled Substance in the Seventh Degree, a Class A misdemeanor.

Funderburke has multiple prior felony convictions including Attempted Robbery in the Second Degree and Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Third Degree from 2007, and Attempted Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Second Degree in 2011.

He is due back in court on July 12, 2023 for sentencing, and faces life in prison. Funderburke is being represented by Christopher Brocato, Esq.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant District Attorneys Dana Gremaux and Lauren Golombek of the Narcotics Bureau, with investigative assistance by the Suffolk County Police Departments Narcotics Section.
Sports & Recreation

By Ls Cohen Published: June 14 2023

The Long Island Ducks infielder Daniel Murphy has been purchased by the Los Angeles Angels.

Infielder Daniel Murphy has been purchased by the Los Angeles Angels organization, according to a statement released by The Long Island Ducks. He will report to the teams Triple-A affiliate in Salt Lake, Utah.

Daniel made the most of his time with the Ducks, said Ducks president and general manager Michael Pfaff. We want to thank him for his hard work with the Flock, congratulate him on this exciting opportunity and wish him the best of luck with the Angels.

Murphy played in 37 games with the Ducks. He departs tied for fourth in the Atlantic League with 47 hits, sixth in batting average (.331) and 10th in on-base percentage (.410), all of which lead the Flock. He compiled a 16-game hitting streak from May 16-June 1, the longest hitting streak by a Duck this season, and a 19-game on-base streak from May 12-June 1.

The 38-year-old becomes the second member of the 2023 Ducks to have his contract purchased by a Major League organization. He joins right-handed pitcher Brett Kennedy, whose contract was purchased by the Cincinnati Reds on May 13 and went to Triple-A Louisville.

Murphy has 12 seasons of Major League experience in his professional career, including the New York Mets, Washington Nationals, Chicago Cubs and the Colorado Rockies. The three-time National League All-Star has played in 1,452 big league games, posting a .296 batting average with 138 home runs and 735 RBIs.
Local News

By Chris Boyle Published: June 14 2023

Agreement With CSEA Will Provide 12 Weeks of Fully Paid Parental Leave to More Than 52,000 Employees.

Governor Kathy Hochul today announced expansion of New York's nation-leading initiative to offer 12 weeks of fully paid parental leave benefits to more than 80 percent of the state workforce, fulfilling her State of the State commitment. As part of the Governor's ongoing support for New York workers and their families, this historic shift means that the majority of State workers will have access to this crucial benefit for the first time in State history. "No one should have to choose between a paycheck and caring for their newborn child," Governor Hochul said. "In my State of the State, I put forward a nation-leading proposal to offer fully paid parental leave benefits to New York State employees  and today we are making good on that promise. By extending fully paid parental leave to over 80 percent of State employees, New York is leading by example and providing a critical line of support for hardworking families." Today, the Governor announced an agreement with the three largest State unions to expand paid parental leave. The Governor announced a signed agreement with the Civil Service Employees Association, which represents New York State workers in a variety of roles, to expand paid parental leave to more than more than 52,000 employees. The Governor also announced pending contract agreements with the Public Employees Federation, representing public employees with professional, scientific, and technical titles, and the United University Professions, representing workers in higher education, which include fully paid parental leave benefits for members. If ratified, workers will be eligible to receive 12 weeks of fully paid leave to use for bonding with a newborn, fostered, or adopted child. Despite the well-documented positive benefits of paid parental leave to maternal and infant health, as well as family economic security and workforce retention, the United States is the only developed country in the world without a national paid parental leave policy. New parents and caregivers depend on a patchwork of various federal, state, and local leave policies, in addition to any employer-sponsored benefits. Governor Hochul first announce d this initiative as part of her 2023 State of the State address. Once the union contracts are ratified, more than 140,000 union employees will join the 10,000 unrepresented New York State employees who became eligible following a February policy bulletin by Governor Hochul. Office of Employee Relations will continue to engage remaining State unions on extending this benefit to their employees through collective bargaining. Governor Hochul also announced that the New York State Department of Labor (DOL) will develop and launch a statewide paternity leave awareness campaign, as recommended by the 2023 Gender Wage Gap Report. The campaign will aim to normalize paternity leave by raising awareness about the benefits available to new and expectant fathers and highlighting how paternity leave can positively impact families and the career and salary prospects of women earners. See example of DOL paternity leave awareness campaign video here. New York has long led on parental and family leave benefits, enacting the statewide Paid Family Leave law in 2016. In 2021, Governor Hochul signed legislation expanding the law to include caring for a seriously ill sibling.

Civil Service Employees Association President Mary E. Sullivan said, "This agreement recognizes that anyone who has the opportunity to become a parent either through childbirth, adoption or fostering should be allowed to spend the time to strengthen parental-child bonds without worrying about the economic impact of being on unpaid leave. Paid parental leave will be another great benefit for our union members across New York State and we are thankful that Governor Hochul is staying true to her commitment to make this happen. While much of the United States is far behind other countries regarding paid family and parental leave policies, New York has definitely taken a step in the right direction."

Public Employees Federation President Wayne Spence said, "PEF is grateful to the Governor for agreeing to add paid parental leave for hard-working New York parents to our contract. This new benefit will help the State attract and retain professionals, knowing they can spend time with their family and not worry about balancing their work and home lives during those precious first few months."

United University Professions President Frederick E. Kowal, Ph.D. said, "Paid parental leave will provide a huge boost for working families, allowing them to care for and bond with their new children without worries about losing pay to stay home and be part of this magical experience. Paid parental leave will help draw the best and the brightest to SUNY and will be a powerful retention tool that will keep our talented, dedicated members in our classrooms, on our campuses and in our teaching hospitals. Our governor understands the importance of paid parental leave, and we thank her for spearheading the effort to bargain this important new benefit with state unions."

New York State Department of Labor Commissioner Roberta Reardon said, "By removing financial barriers and ensuring time for bonding with their newborns, the expansion of New York's paid parental leave program empowers parents to embrace this transformative journey without sacrificing their economic security. This bold step reaffirms Governor Hochul's commitment to supporting working parents and recognizing the invaluable role they play in shaping our future. We stand united in our mission to build a society where every family can thrive, and this benefit is a giant leap towards that vision."

New York State Office of Employee Relations Director Michael Volforte said, "Paid parental leave will make a significant difference to working families by helping parents care for their children without the fear of losing a paycheck. Under Governor Hochul's leadership, I'm pleased that we were able to extend this meaningful benefit to additional state employees and I look forward to continuing to work with our union partners to extend fully paid parental leave to the New York State workforce."

New York State Civil Service Commissioner Timothy R. Hogues said, "Expanding paid parental leave to more of New York State's workforce will provide much needed support for our dedicated public servants as they provide for their children. This marks the latest step Governor Hochul is taking to help bolster and support the public workforce."

State Senator Neil Breslin said, "Working New Yorkers should feel secure in the knowledge that they can care for a new family member without having to put their financial solvency at risk, and this trailblazing expansion of paid parental leave extends that peace of mind to over 150,000 state employees who serve our communities every day. I applaud Governor Hochul and our public employee unions  CSEA, PEF, and UUP  for centering the needs of parents and children in these collective bargaining agreements."

A Better Balance, Co-Founder and Co-President Sherry Leiwant said, "A Better Balance is proud to lead on fighting for paid leave for workers throughout the country and we applaud the Governor's expansion of paid leave for state workers. We look forward to working together to ensure that New York continues to be a leader in making sure all workers have sufficient paid leave to protect their health and the health of their families."
The Iraqi people step up to the plate, and more Red-on-Red fighting

Further details emerge about the developing rifts between the native elements of the Iraqi insurgency and al Qaeda and their Islamist allies. Army Major General Rick Lynch, the spokesman for Multinational Force Iraq, acknowledged the infighting has occurred in Anbar province; Many times these citizens are urged by their local tribal leaders to rid the area of the insurgent influence In Fallujah and Ramadi, citizens have established checkpoints to keep insurgents out and six al Qaeda leaders have been killed in the area since September.

According to Maj. Gen. Lynch, the increase in tips from over a year ago has skyrocketed by 240 times the number reported last year. The Department of Defense reports Iraqi civilians provided more than 1,300 tips to coalition and Iraqi Security Forces That is a huge improvement from the 47 tips received in January 2005 Of all the valid calls received by the Ministry of Interiors national tips hotline, 98 percent provided actionable intelligence Most calls are about terrorist activity but calls also come in about kidnapping, murder and other criminal activity.

Knight Ridder Newspapers indicates that neighborhood watches are forming in the Baghdad neighborhood of Hai al-Salam, which consists of Shiite Muslims, Sunni Muslims and Christians. The increase in kidnappings, assassinations and random violence pushed the residents to band together across sectarian lines and defends their neighborhoods. When the Iraqi Army and police were unable to provide the security needed for the neighborhood, the residents of Hai al-Salam erected roadblocks and checkpoints and put neighborhood men to work as guards.

Omar at Iraq the Model reports the Karabala tribe is continuig to negotiate with the Iraqi government and U.S.; This afternoon sheikh Usama al-Jadaan the chief sheikh of Karabla tribes said in a TV interview that theyre getting close to cut a deal with the US and Iraqi authorities; the deal includes gradual withdrawal of US forces from Anbar, freeing a certain number of Iraqi security detainees and rebuilding the police force of the province with recruits exclusively from the local population with a total of up to 11,300 men. In return the tribes will form teams of tribal fighters to deal with al Qaeda cells that are present inside the territories of Anbar as well as sealing the borders with Jordan, Syria and Saudi Arabia.

The Times Online provides further reasons for the rift between the insurgency and al Qaeda in Anbar, and states the murder of Sheikh Naser Abdul Karim al-Miklif and the suicide bombing against Iraqi police recruits in early January were critical in turning the Sunni tribes against al Qaeda (note that we mentioned the murder of Sheikh al-Miklif and three other prominent Anbar sheikhs, and the impact of the suicide bombing in Ramadi, in January).

While these events certainly played a large role in the finalization of the resistance to al Qaeda, there have been numerous incidents of infighting, or red-on-red, during the prior year. The native elements of the insurgency, while no great fan of the foreign militaries in Iraq, have grown tired of al Qaedas attempts to impose harsh Shariah law and cleanse the cities of the unpure  Shiites who a re often friends and family of the Sunni populations. Nor are they fond of al Qaedas attempts to extort locally run criminal enterprises (a major source of income in along the western Euphrates River Valley), cutting the crime syndicates profits by over half. Intimidating and murdering tribal leaders crossed the line.

The fact that there are disagreements between al Qaeda and the insurgents and local tribal leaders shows the serious flaws in al Qaedas strategy in Iraq. The Sunnis in western Iraq should be al Qaedas ideal allies  they both want to expel the United States from Iraq and fear a Shiite-dominated central government. But al Qaeda, and Zarqawi in particular, assumed the mass slaughter of Iraqi, particularly Shiites, would create a civil war, and the imposition of the horrific band of Taliban like rule, would prove to be a winning strategy. Zarqawi has shown an unwillingness to move beyond his narrow version of Salafi Islam and make concessions to retain allies, and this is cost al Qaeda dearly.

The newly created Mujahedeen Shura Council, which is comprised of al Qaeda in Iraq and six small Islamist groups (Victorious Army Group, the Army of al-Sunnah Wal Jamaa, Ansar al-Tawhid Brigades, Islamic Jihad Brigades, the Strangers Brigades, and the Horrors Brigades) has made yet another appeal for the insurgency to unite under its banner. So far there are no new takers.

Osama bin Laden once said when people see a strong horse and a weak horse, by nature, they will like the strong horse. Zarqawi is by no means defeated in Iraq, and can still muster the strength to commit acts of terror, but it seems clear at this point his horse is viewed more like a nag than a thoroughbred.

Bill Roggio is a Senior Fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and the Editor of FDD's Long War Journal.

Are you a dedicated reader of FDD's Long War Journal? Has our research benefitted you or your team over the years? Support our independent reporting and analysis today by considering a one-time or monthly donation. Thanks for reading! You can make a tax-deductible donation here.
Despite its latest steps, the West is very afraid about the possibility of a new large-scale war or a nuclear disaster, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said in an interview with the 60 Minutes talk show on Rossiya-1 television, Tass informs.

June 14, 2023, 17:36 West very afraid new, large-scale war will break out, Lukashenko says

STEPANAKERT, JUNE 14, ARTSAKHPRESS: "I have met with people playing an important role in this, who make radical, drastic and final decisions in the event of an `if," Lukashenko said. "What they fear most is a nuclear disaster, and they have been sincere about this. They are afraid of using nuclear weapons in Ukraine. Its only natural," he added.

Minsk does not want things to play out that way either, Lukashenko assured. "We are not seeking that either, and we, too, are afraid. Because this, experts say, could cause a global catastrophe, and this planet may deorbit, if all these weapons explode," he maintained.

According to Lukashenko, Russia may use nukes, if the enemy invades its territory or if this act of aggression threatens the existence of the state. He urged talks as long as there is an opportunity for them, but the West, he said, has been banning Ukraine from engaging in any.

"I am confident and I have it on good information that the overwhelming majority in Ukraine, including the military who has been fighting and getting killed over there, would like to stop this war now," the Belarusian leader maintained. "But then there are those hyped-up top-level officials led by [Ukrainian President] Volodya Zelensky. He is a `hero now, touring the globe. He is being kissed, hugged and all that. I thought he was smarter," Lukashenko lamented.
On June 10, mosques operated by Islamic Jihad held open registration for Palestinian youth to attend military training camps in the Gaza Strip. The camp is called Revenge of the Free, which is the name given by Islamic Jihad to the latest conflict with Israel in May 2023. According to Islamic Jihad, the camp started on June 12 and will last for two weeks.

Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad, including other militant organizations have held summer camps for more than ten years in Gaza, often publishing propaganda videos showing children undergoing military training.

While Palestinian militant organizations often tout the camps as a place to promote religious and recreational activities for children and teens, they are primarily used to indoctrinate jihadist ideology, including the armed struggle against Israel. Also, the camps are a promotional tool for Palestinian youth to join armed militant organizations, some of whom are classified as a foreign terrorist organization by the U.S. government. FDDs Long War Journal has tracked the recruitment of children by Palestinian armed groups such as Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad, and Mujahideen Brigades.

Despite the camps drawing criticism, Palestinian militant organizations continue to organize them yearly. The indifference to the condemnation was evident during the opening ceremony of a Hamas-run summer camp in 2021. Citing United Nations resolution 45/130, a Hamas spokesperson stated the group is guaranteed under international law to self-defense, including armed resistance.

What we are doing in these camps is like all the peoples who are, and were, under occupation and persecution, where international law guarantees them the right to self-determination, self-defense, and resisting the occupier by all means available, including armed resistance under United Nations General Assembly resolution 45/130, the spokesperson stated.

Actors such as Hezbollah and the Houthis also target children and teenagers for potential recruitment. For example, in 1985, Hezbollah established a youth organization called the Imam al-Mahdi Scouts Association, which is often used as a stepping stone to join its so-called military wing. Mahdi scouts receive military training, are indoctrinated in greater jihad, and are taught about the armed struggle against Israel.

Much like their Resistance Axis counterparts in Gaza, the Houthis in Yemen holds yearly summer camps under the guise of educating children on religious teachings and identity. Critics say the camps radicalize and indoctrinate minors so that they can prepare them to become soldiers.

Other armed organizations, such as the Turkistan Islamic Party, have been accused of training children in military camps in northwestern Syria. In 2016, the Islamic State in Afghanistan established military training camps for children to wage jihad.

Joe Truzman is a contributor to FDD's Long War Journal.

Are you a dedicated reader of FDD's Long War Journal? Has our research benefitted you or your team over the years? Support our independent reporting and analysis today by considering a one-time or monthly donation. Thanks for reading! You can make a tax-deductible donation here.
By Catherine Sas, K.C.

Special to The Post

Today, June 14, 2023, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC), the Honorable Sean Fraser, did something truly honorable for international students in Canada who have been victims of immigration fraud by unscrupulous representatives - he introduced a policy directing immigration officers and Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) officers to grant a temporary resident permit to students who have actually studied in Canada and were clearly unaware of the improper actions of their representatives.

Many news stories over the past months have reported about approximately 700 international students who learned, only after they have completed their studies and applied for permanent residence (PR) in Canada, that their initial study permits were issued based upon fraudulent acceptance letters from an educational institution provided to them by their immigration consultant. Several stories also highlighted that many students were being issued removal orders and being deported from Canada for misrepresentation.

(For our other blogs about misrepresentation in the Canadian immigration process please see this link: https://canadian-visa-lawyer.com/?s=misrepresentation)

Make no mistake, misrepresentation is a serious problem in Canadas immigration program and the penalties for either direct or indirect misrepresentation are harsh - a person must depart Canada and face a five-year ban from applying to return to Canada. Please note the distinction - it is a ban from applying to return to Canada - and not just returning to Canada. For persons from countries who require visas to come to Canada, the misrepresentation penalty can extend for much longer than five years as immigration officers take dishonesty in our immigration program extremely seriously and often wont grant visas to those persons who seek to return to Canada after five years.

The life of an international student is not an easy one. In addition to being separated from their families and adapting to a new country and culture and sometimes a new language, the cost of their studies in Canada is generally three times that of which Canadian students pay. This puts considerable pressure on themselves and their families to afford them the opportunity to gain a Canadian education and ultimately Canadian permanent residence.

The relief that Minister Fraser is providing to these students who have genuinely pursued their post secondary education in Canada is to confirm that they will not be deported from Canada and will be able to obtain a temporary resident permit (TRP) allowing them to remain lawfully in Canada and also obtain work permits while their status is reviewed. What is a TRP? A TRP is a discretionary permit that an officer can grant that overcomes an inadmissibility, such as coming to Canada on a fraudulent document to allow them to remain in Canada with valid status. It is a powerful tool in an IRCC or CBSA officers arsenal to overcome situations of injustice or hardship adversely affecting a foreign national in Canada.

International students contribute much to Canada both in the cultural fabric of our communities and their contribution to the economy both during and after completing their studies. They have the opportunity to become familiar with the Canadian way of life while at the same time obtaining their education which enhances their ability to better integrate into the workforce upon graduation. Minister Frasers announcement today recognizes the value that international students bring to Canada and addresses the injustice that these students are facing through no fault of their own. Thank you Minister Fraser for doing the right thing for our international students!

For the full announcement see: https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/news/2023/06/statement-from-minister-fraser-concerning-reports-of-international-student-fraud.html

Catherine Sas, K.C. has over 30 years of legal experience. She provides a full range of immigration services and is a leading immigration practitioner (Lexpert, Whos Who Legal, Best Lawyers in Canada). Go to canadian-visa-lawyer.com or email catherine@sasanding.com.
The Bank of Spain has issued a report into the imbalance between housing supply and demand and its relationship with prices. This indicates that housing prices will continue to show resistance to falling because of factors such as the shortage of new construction.

A key recommendation is to review policies regarding developable land in order to stimulate the building of homes so that this can respond more quickly to existing needs. One of the regions with the greatest resistance is the Balearics, where there are great difficulties in terms of supply being adjusted to demand. The situation, in the Bank's view, will worsen because of population growth.

As things are, the building of new homes on the islands will be insufficient, which is why the Bank strongly urges a review of developable land policies in order to expand the possibilities of building.

The Bank is essentially echoing views of the Balearic property sector. Representatives such as the president of the Proinba developers association, Luis Martin, have been "tearing their hair out" in attempting to increase the amount of developable land.

The sector is hopeful that the change in government in the Balearics will enable an increase. However, the Partido Popular's manifesto didn't contemplate the type of revision that the sector and the Bank of Spain are urging. The PP's line is to make the most of existing construction through incentives and facilities for placing it on the market and without the need to consume more territory through a reclassification of land. The PP advocate incentives for owners, rental aid, reformulating density indices, simplifying administrative procedures and converting large premises and old houses.
Manchester, VT (05254)

Today

A clear sky. Areas of smoke and haze are possible, reducing visibility at times. Low 57F. Winds SSE at 5 to 10 mph..

Tonight

A clear sky. Areas of smoke and haze are possible, reducing visibility at times. Low 57F. Winds SSE at 5 to 10 mph.
Beautiful indeed and of great importance is the vocation of all those who aid parents in fulfilling their duties and who, as representatives of the human community, undertake the task of education in schools. This vocation demands special qualities of mind and heart, very careful preparation and continuing readiness.

When the board of trustees at St. Albert the Great Academy embarked on the journey of forming a new Catholic elementary school in Auburn, they knew that this statement would be the encouragement they would need to overcome many obstacles. Relying on the virtues of faith, hope and love, they opened a school in the middle of a pandemic when Catholic churches and schools were declining in numbers and closing. They relied on faith to be open to this call of leadership and trust in Him. They relied on hope when most thought that Catholic education could not sustain itself here and schools did not know when they would be allowed to open for in-person learning in 2020. They relied on love to commit to open for the first 30 students knowing that God will send the families that needed St. Alberts the most. And He did. We opened our doors with 95 students! Beyond these virtues, this board possesses prudence and it is prudence that continues to carve out each day a path to GREAT-ness.

Prudence is the virtue that enables us to discern what our true good is in all circumstances and to choose the means to achieve it. Therefore, acts of prudence include both a judgment on the most appropriate ways of achieving a particular good and the command to carry out those acts. Prudence is based on the memory of the past, the knowledge of the present and, as far as possible, foreseeing the consequences of our decisions. It indicates the right measure of the other virtues, between excess and defect; between exaggeration and deficiency or mediocrity.

It is prudence that planted the first seed as small as a mustard seed that has now grown into a tree  a good tree  and continues to grow more limbs. With time, the limbs have become sturdy to carry the academic and social emotional needs of its students and families. Its good to remember where the first seed came from and to thank God for a solid beginning. Its also beautiful to witness the new sprouts coming.

The Hillbilly Thomists sing a song called "The Good Tree." The lyrics were inspired by the Bible verse Luke 6:44, when Jesus teaches that a tree is known by its fruit. The lyrics start with this:

You can't gather grace

From a bramble bush

Or pick a fig from thorns

Oh, would I like to be

Oh, to be a good tree

Some fall in the rocks

On the beaten path

Some sink into great soil

From a tiny seed

Grows a good tree

Like a cedar high

And mustard wide

Where all of the birds

Of the air can hide

Find rest inside

Oh, a good tree

For every tree is known by its own fruit. The "fruit" at St. Alberts today is a growing school with teachers who are qualified for their vocation in their desire to be a witness to the Gospel truths as well as certified by solid training programs and master's programs. Our enrollment increases every year by 10% with a retention rate in the 90th percentile. This upcoming year we will have two preschool classrooms with the goal to have two kindergarten classrooms the following year. We have restored and revived two Catholic school buildings. We have successfully given academic support and services to children needing specialized education, and encouraged students to push themselves to higher than grade level academics. Living by example, we are implementing a leadership program rooted in virtue next year for our upper grades called Quest. Our students will embark on learning leadership skills, putting service projects together and venturing out into our community for learning as well as for action.

The beauty of the "Good Tree" that has been planted in prudence is that, when it is time, you can lean against it for support and each and every limb, branch and twig will hold you upright. In our slogan, You were made for GREATness," we will strive for nothing less: GREATness of mind, GREATness of body and GREATness of soul for each member of our community. Join us on this Quest, find support under "The Good Tree" and watch your children grow in GREATness at St. Albert the Great Academy!
The Philippine-Korean Youth Forum (PKYF) 2023, with the theme "CROSSOVER: Reimagining and Embracing the Future", is a student-run forum organized by the University of the Philippines Arirang. The forum aims to connect and encourage collaboration between Filipino and Korean youth through a variety of educational and cultural activities.

PKYF strives to cross over barriers in language and physical interaction to form relationships, attain new knowledge, and exchange ideas and solutions as we embark on the future. With these, the forum aims to forge connections and collaborations between people, in hopes that this will enlighten the youth and help them reimagine and embrace the future as the world shifts to the new normal with lesser hindrances in communication.





The forum will be composed of different topics of discussion under four (4) tracks, namely:

Culture & Tourism

Economy and Trade

Art & Media

Governance & Diplomacy





Each track has two (2) specific topics that will serve as the foundation for the keynote lectures, interactive workshops, and plenary sessions. These topics will be about the pressing issues and/or topics that South Korea and the Philippines have in common. These are specified and elaborated each in the following page to give an overview of what the delegates can look forward to.





July 5, 12, 19, 26

Keynote Lectures

July 7, 14, 21, 28

Interactive Workshops and Plenary Sessions

August 5

In-person Culmination Event







They are now looking for individuals who will take part as delegates in this year's Philippine-Korean Youth Forum. Be ready to listen and learn from experts, connect and collaborate with Filipino and Korean youth, and broaden your network and knowledge in various fields such as Culture and Tourism, Economy and Trade, Art and Media, Governance and Diplomacy.





application kit  HERE. Make sure to read ALL the instructions in the form carefully. Access the. Make sure to read ALL the instructions in the form carefully.




Transmission operator National Grid Corp. of the Philippines said Wednesday it expects power supply to remain stable for the rest of the year, barring any unforeseen technical glitches.

Outlook base case, meaning assuming no issues, we should be clean and clearAll other things being equal, we dont see any more [alerts] for the year..because of lower demand, [and] its colder, NGCP spokesperson Cynthia Perez-Alabanza said during the Kapihan sa Manila Bay forum.

Alabanza said while she could not make assurances because of some unplanned occurrences, she remains hopeful and positive that there will be no supply issues in the coming months.

Meanwhile, Alabanza said the P52-billion Mindanao-Visayas Interconnection project would deliver the full 450-megawatt capacity by the third quarter.

Right now transfer capacity is at 122.5 MW. Were hoping to double that before the end of the month to 225 MW. Were hoping to bring that up to 225 by the end of the month and by the third quarter it will be at full capacity, she said.

NGCP energized the MVIP on April 30, a landmark undertaking connecting the power grids of Visayas and Mindanao.

The MVIP will provide a more reliable and sustainable transmission service and promote energy resource sharing.

Were very confident it will be finished this year and deliver the full capacity of 450 MW. We will make sure it will be completed by third quarter, Alabanza said.

NGCP assistant vice president Redi Remoroza said that aside from MVIP, other projects are expected to be operational this year.

These include critical projects such as the Hermosa-San Jose 500kV Transmission Line Project and Cebu-Negros-Panay Stage 3 Backbone Project.

NGCP has so far invested P300 billion since 2009 in a total of 3,729 circuit-kilometers of transmission lines, 28 new substations and an additional 31,190MVA of transformer capacity.

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Nairobi, Kenya  The death toll in an investigation linked to a Kenyan cult that practised starvation to meet Jesus Christ has surpassed 300 after 19 new bodies were found Tuesday, a senior official said.

Police believe most of the bodies found in a forest near the Indian Ocean town of Malindi belong to followers of Paul Nthenge Mackenzie, a taxi driver-turned-preacher who has been in police custody since April 14.

He is due to face charges of terrorism in the case which has rocked the east African nation.

The death toll has now risen to 303 after the 19 bodies were exhumed, regional commissioner Rhoda Onyancha said.

The toll remains provisional, and the authorities in the East African country fear the true number of dead could be much higher.

The search for mass graves is still under way in the Shakahola forest, where the first victims  some dead, others alive but weakened and emaciated  were discovered on April 13.

Since then, the series of grim discoveries has revealed a macabre scandal, dubbed the Shakahola forest massacre.

Investigations have been extended beyond the original 325 hectares to cover almost 15,000 hectares. More than 600 people have been reported missing by concerned relatives.

Police believe that most of the bodies exhumed were those of followers of the Good News International Church, an evangelical sect founded in 2003 by the self-proclaimed pastor Mackenzie, who advocated fasting until death in order to meet Jesus.

The 50-year-old founder of the Good News International Church turned himself in on April 14 after police acting on a tip-off first entered Shakahola forest.

While starvation appears to be the main cause of death, some of the victims  including children  were strangled, beaten or suffocated, according to chief government pathologist Johansen Oduor.

 Attempted suicide 

Questions have been raised about how Mackenzie, a father of seven, managed to evade law enforcement despite a history of extremism and previous legal cases.

The horrific saga has stunned Kenyans and led President William Ruto to set up a commission of inquiry into the deaths and a task force to review regulations governing religious bodies.

Another pastor accused of links to Mackenzie and to the bodies found in the forest was released on bail at a court hearing.

Ezekiel Odero, a high-profile and wealthy televangelist, is being investigated on a raft of charges including murder, aiding suicide, abduction, radicalisation, crimes against humanity, child cruelty, fraud and money laundering.

In all, at least 35 people suspected of involvement have been arrested, according to police who say 95 of the churchs followers have been recovered alive since the start of operations.

On Monday, 65 of them were brought before a court in the city of Mombasa to face charges of attempted suicide, because they refused to eat or drink.

Prosecutors have asked that they be detained, so that they can be examined and forced to eat.

A court decision is expected on Thursday.

The death cult case has rekindled debate on the regulation of religious worship in this predominantly Christian country, which has 4,000 churches, according to official figures.

Interior Minister Kithure Kindiki has announced that the authorities were going to turn the Shakahola forest into a place of remembrance so that Kenyans and the world will not forget what happened.

str-sva/pvh/gw

 Agence France-Presse

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Vienna, Austria  An Austrian woman is being investigated for attempted murder and torture of her 12-year-old son after locking him in a small dog cage and exposing him to sub-zero temperatures, authorities said Tuesday.

The case caused a public outcry in Austria when it was made public earlier this week following a decision by the Supreme Court of Justice in late May to reject the womans complaint against being held in custody for several months.

The 32-year-old woman is still remanded in custody and the investigation is expected to wrap up by late summer, with a possible indictment, Johann Baumschlager, police spokesman of Lower Austria province told AFP on Tuesday.

The woman has been in pre-trial detention in Krems, west of Vienna, since November last year, after a social worker had called an ambulance to the house on 22 November to have the comatose and hypothermic boy she found there taken to hospital.

Austrian authorities, which sent the social worker to the house, had reportedly been tipped off by the boys father, who lives separately.

The hospital filed a criminal complaint, triggering the womans arrest on the following day.

The woman is suspected of having doused her son with cold water several times a day while opening the apartments windows for several hours amid sub-zero temperatures, causing his body temperature to drop to 26.8 degrees Celsius.

Due to being severely malnourished, the boy fell into a coma, resulting in an acute life-threatening condition before rescue services were notified by the social worker, the Supreme court decision said.

The woman allegedly tortured her son from early September to the end of November 2022 by repeatedly beating and starving him, tying him up, locking him in a dog crate, and pouring water over him.

The physical condition of the boy has meanwhile improved, but from a psychological point of view he is still devastated, Baumschlager told AFP.

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An investigation with Boston Police is underway after a student from a school in Dorchester physically assaulted a staff member Tuesday morning, which led to hospitalization, police said.

At around 11:33 a.m., during lunch, a paraprofessional at the school overheard a student saying something inappropriate to another student, so he approached the student about what he said, according to a Boston police report.

After words were exchanged, the student pushed the paraprofessional, who stepped back. The student then pushed him again and grabbed a hold of the front of his shirt and would not let go, police said.

At this point it took three to four staff members to get the student off of the staff member as he continued to hold onto his shirt. After some time, several staff members were able to pull the student off of the paraprofessional, who fell onto the floor during the assault and was left unconscious for one to two minutes.

After regaining consciousness, the paraprofessional drove himself to the hospital with another staff member.

The paraprofessional suffered from possible head injury and a chipped tooth, and reportedly did not remember what happened once he got to the hospital.

Interim Head of the School Stephanie Sibley sent a letter out to the Henderson School Community, and stated the student involved will face disciplinary action in accordance with the BPS Code of Conduct, additional disciplinary action from law enforcement is also possible.

Henderson Schools superintendent, Mary Skipper, sent out a statement calling the incident unacceptable and that social workers would be on site today to provide support.

Last year, a 17-year-old student was charged with assault and battery on a person over 60 causing serious bodily injury after beating her 61-year-old principal Patricia Lampson from the Henderson School in 2021.

The student knocked Lampson unconscious and she was brought to the hospital with non-life threatening injuries.

We are sharing this important update with you as part of our commitment to open communication and transparent, said Sibley in her letter. Please know the safety and security of all students and staff is one of our most important priorities.
Editors note: This article contains a description of someone who died by suicide.

The man whose body was found on Interstate 93 in Medford on Tuesday is believed to have leaped from an overpass before he died, Massachusetts State Police said on Tuesday.

Evidence collected from Tuesdays incident indicated to investigators that the man intentionally jumped from the overpass onto I-93 below, state police said in a statement, adding he was also likely hit by at least one car.

The body was found south of Exit 21 by state troopers at around 4:30 a.m., state police said. Both right travel lanes on the southbound side approaching Exit 21 were closed to investigators until around 9:15 a.m.

The Massachusetts Department of Transportation told commuters to expect heavy delays. Assistant secretary of media relations for MassDOT Jacquelyn Goddard said that traffic was backed up for 10 miles due to the closures approaching the Medford and Somerville line. Regional roadside message boards have been installed as far north as the border with New Hampshire to alert drivers about the I-93 lane closures, she said.

The slowdown caused by the crash resulted in delays of up to an hour and a half, according to Google Maps. Medford resident Andrew Martinez and his wife said they were taking surface streets to leave their home not far from Roosevelt Circle.

Martinez, a Los Angeles native, said it resembled that citys traffic. Traffic cleared up once they got past Assembly Row, Martinez later said on his commute.

Traffic from surface streets in Medford after a crash on Interstate 93 snarled traffic on Tuesday. Courtesy of Rachel Valerio.

Theres definitely a lot of frustration this morning, he said as car horns blasted around him.

State police said no further information would be released barring any unforeseen developments.

If you or someone you know is thinking about suicide, you are not alone.
School officials in Ludlow declined to take up a controversial book policy for a vote.

At a crucial moment during Tuesday nights meeting, the member who introduced the policy was met with silence after he made a motion to vote. Without a second member in support of a vote, the policy will not be adopted and is effectively scrapped for now.

The policy, introduced by member Joao Dias, aimed at giving the School Committee final approval for what books appear on the shelves of the school districts libraries. Currently, the school districts superintendent makes the final decision on what books are purchased, a common practice across the state.

An attempt to table a vote on Tuesday failed after Ron Saloio, a supporter of Diass library proposal, suggested the committee take more time to study the policy. Three members voted against the motion to table a vote and, ultimately, Diass motion to vote on the actual policy failed to garner a second member to support it  a necessary step that effectively killed the proposal.

Library Materials  IJL, would have provided the criteria for the selection, removal, and replacement of library materials in the school district.

Chairman Jeffery Laing, the member who sets the agenda, stated he would not be interested in revisiting the proposal during his tenure as head of the board and stated the current policy will remain in place.

I believe we have riled our community as much as we possibly could and in my time as chairman we will likely not be dealing with the library policy, Laing said.

Read more: Controversial book policy in Ludlow up for a vote Tuesday

Tuesdays public comment was divided among residents who were opposed to the policy and an organized group that advocated for the policy using Biblical passages and adopting religious reasons.

Rev. Steven Craft, who writes on his website he is from Lexington, gave a fiery reading of the Bible, but it was unclear how it related to the book policy.

One School Committee member questioned how many members of the religious group lived in Ludlow.

Im really questioning the other people who came here with those lovely Bible passages, how many of them actually really reside in Ludlow, member Sarah Bowler said. Its easy enough for me to pull up Bible passages that are inappropriate as well.

Bowler also referenced how a Utah school district recently banned the Bible from middle school and elementary school libraries in the wake of a GOP-backed sensitive materials law passed two years ago.

As for Diass proposal, it seems unlikely to come back up until after the next election cycle.

Ludlow School Committee members Ron Saloio and Joao Dias were pushing for a new library policy for the district on Tuesday, June 13, 2023.

Our community has been through enough with this library proposal, Laing wrote in a statement. I am asking the parents to exercise the current Parents Rights library policy that they fought for just a few years back.

Laing also made clear that parents who claimed that there are pornographic books in schools were not accurate.

When it comes to pornography, in every state, it is illegal to distribute pornography to minors, and why would we be making a new policy on it if its already against the law? Laing said. Because the word pornography does not relate to this. It is what is used to outrage people  it is the only way to get people to come here is if you outrage them.
City

 Brendon I. Smith, 31, transient, Auburn, was charged June 2 with petit larceny.

 Trevias T. Smith, 18, 65 Wall St., Auburn, was charged June 4 with third-degree criminal mischief.

 Austin R. Knapp, 30, 46 Orchard St., Apt. 1, Auburn, was charged June 5 with third-degree burglary and two counts of petit larceny.

 Thomas E. Ivery, 19, 5 Eastern Parkway, Sennett, was charged June 5 with fourth-degree criminal possession of a weapon, second-degree menacing and endangering the welfare of a child.

 Sean M. Helmick, 37, 96 Osborne St., Left Apt., Auburn, was charged June 6 with petit larceny.

 Charles A. Jones, 33, 41 Steel St., Auburn, was charged June 7 with fourth degree criminal mischief, criminal obstruction of breathing and third-degree menacing.

 Mark R. Cicora, 57, 101 N. Lewis St., Auburn, was charged June 7 with second-degree criminal trespass, endangering the welfare of a child and fourth-degree criminal mischief.

 Jaden S. Foresman, 19, 4 Lawton Ave., Auburn, was charged June 7 with fourth-degree criminal mischief.

 Moriah A. Heath, 23, 1 Orchard St., Apt. B, Auburn, was charged June 8 with second-degree assault.

 Ryan M. Wilson, 37, 46 Orchard St., Auburn, was charged June 8 with fourth-degree criminal possession of stolen property.

 Daniel P. Miller, 39, 314 Longbranch Circle, Liverpool, was charged June 8 with second-degree attempted rape.

 Wilfredo Flores-Acevedo, 36, 215 Genesee St., Auburn, was charged June 9 with driving while intoxicated-first offense, aggravated driving while intoxicated and alcohol-cannabis in motor vehicle on highway, third-degree criminal possession of a weapon and making a punishable false written statement.

 Shawn D. Buck, 47, 19 McMaster St., Auburn, was charged June 10 with second-degree strangulation and endangering the welfare of a child.

 Tiffany A. Skarr, 33, 13 Rock Ave., Auburn, was charged June 10 with seventh-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance.

 Tyrone S. Davis, 27, 1001 Court St., Syracuse, was charged June 12 with second-degree aggravated harassment, two counts of aggravated family offense, two counts of second-degree criminal contempt and three counts of first-degree criminal contempt.

 Anthony M. Colon, 25, 6557 Mullen Drive, Aurelius, was charged June 13 with aggravated family offense and second-degree criminal contempt.

County

 Michelle A. DeLap, 58, 5994 E. Lake Road, Owasco, was charged June 2 with driving while intoxicated-first offense and operating a motor vehicle with a blood-alcohol content of at least .08%.

 Samantha L. Schwarting, 32, 7469 County House Road, Sennett, was charged June 6 with endangering the welfare of a child.

 Sydney L. Chase, 7445 County House Road, Sennett, was charged June 6 with aggravated family offense and second-degree criminal contempt.

 Kevin J. Schwarting, 36, 7469 County House Road, Sennett, was charged June 7 with endangering the welfare of a child.

 Michael A. Pealo, 29, 63 Van Anden St., Auburn, was charged June 7 with seventh-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance.

 Tyrone C. Alexander, 61, 3365 E. Genesee St., Sennett, was charged June 7 with second-degree criminal nuisance.

 Brian S. Neilson, 41, 2189 Morris Drive, Seneca Falls, was charged June 9 with second-degree attempted rape.

 Matthew R. Jones, 47, 2717 E. Brutus St., Apt. 102, Weedsport, was charged June 11 with aggravated driving while intoxicated, driving while intoxicated first offense, alcohol-cannabis in motor vehicle on highway and aggravated unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle.

 Daniel W. Beck, 29, 3576 Koenig Point Drive, Owasco, was charged June 12 with driving while intoxicated-first offense, operating a motor vehicle with a blood-alcohol content of at least .08% and alcohol-cannabis in motor vehicle on highway.

State

 Kirk W. Lawler, 60, Auburn, was charged June 3 with driving while intoxicated-first offense and operating a motor vehicle with a blood-alcohol content of at least .08%.

 Michael D. McCarthy, 39, Auburn, was charged June 3 with operating a motor vehicle with a blood-alcohol content of at least .08%, driving while intoxicated-first offense, aggravated driving while intoxicated with a child and four counts of endangering the welfare of a child.

 Cody M. Fiduccia, 30, Cato, was charged June 5 with second-degree criminal contempt.

 Kevin R. Gulliver, 35, Moravia, was charged June 5 with second-degree criminal contempt.

 Jack Lay, 25, Syracuse, was charged June 3 with fourth-degree grand larceny and fifth-degree conspiracy.

 Jerry P. Gordon, 54, Massena, was charged June 6 with third-degree assault.

 Andrea N. Jordan, 40, Auburn, was charged June 8 with second-degree criminal trespass.

 Anthony M. Colon, 25, Auburn, was charged June 8 with third-degree unauthorized use of a vehicle.

 Reimy N. Pena-Vargas, 29, Vargas, was charged June 10 with first-degree criminal contempt.

 Shawn M. Bennett, 25, Cato, was charged June 10 with third-degree assault, fourth-degree criminal mischief and endangering the welfare of a child.

 Tavis D. Mclaurin, 42, Syracuse, was charged June 11 with third-degree robbery.

 Tayonna Q. Albert, 26, Syracuse, was charged June 11 with third-degree robbery.
Thousands of people came to one location of Antiques Roadshow at Old Sturbridge Village on June 13, ready to get their antiques and collectibles appraised.

As a part of the PBS series 28th season tour, seven camera crews were spread across the historical site to film ordinary peoples items filled with history.

The process to get an appraisal recorded is selective, according to the series executive producer, Marsha Bemko.

Only a select few items will catch the eye of the production crew, ready to take their items from the historical site to television. However, up to 3,000 ticket holders are promised appraisals on their miscellaneous items, whether televised or not.

Heres how that process works.

Upon entry to the Antiques Roadshow grounds, ticket holders will go to an area known as triage. This area serves as a way to categorize dozens of different items ranging from collectibles, furniture, textiles, folk art and more.

It is there that appraisers will help guests figure out which category of expertise they should take their one or two items to for appraisal.

MassLive brought their own item  Bruce Springsteen cassette tapes  to test out the process. See MassLives TikTok of the steps to take below.

Once given a category booth to head to, guests will be met with experts in the field to further evaluate the item. MassLive was directed to collectibles.

From there, you are met with an appraiser who will ask for the background and any known history behind the item  where its from, how was it obtained and so on.

If extra research online is required upon assessing the item, the appraiser will do so.

Finally, you are given a price based on their expert opinion. The cassette tapes were worth between $40 to $60.

The trip to Sturbridge comprises three hour-long episodes, which will air on PBS sometime between January and May of 2024.

The next stop of Antiques Roadshow will be in Anchorage, Alaska. The show has a policy to not return to the same city for filming for at least five years. Antiques Roadshow has visited 110 U.S. cities across its 28 seasons, in addition to Toronto, Canada.
LONGMEADOW  The greatest medical discoveries of our time involved deadly, high stakes risks. Yet doctors persisted. The result? Miraculous discoveries that save so many lives today, according to bestselling author Dr. Andrew Lam.

Lam details the worlds pivotal medical moments in his latest book The Masters of Medicine: Our Greatest Triumphs in the Race to Cure Humanitys Deadliest Diseases, which launched in April.

The Masters of Medicine provides readers with an in-depth look at the determination  and sometimes mistakes or luck  that produced such discoveries as the heart transplant, insulin and penicillin.

In a book tour that doesnt take him too far from his work in Springfield and home in town, Lam chats about his two-and-a-half-year journey to uncover the specifics about the medical professionals who risked it all on the cutting edge of medicine.

Born in Philadelphia and raised in Illinois, Lam attended medical school at the University of Pennsylvania, and took specialty training in ophthalmology and retina surgery at the Wills Eye Hospital in Philadelphia. Before becoming a physician, Lam studied U.S. and East Asian military history and relations, and earned a history degree from Yale University.

Local surgeon and professor

Lam is a local surgeon who practices with New England Retina Consultants in Springfield and is a professor at the University of Massachusetts Medical School. Hes also an attending surgeon at Baystate Medical Center, where most of the research for his book was conducted.

At a book talk held at the Storrs Library in May, Lam said the inspiration to write his latest book came during the early days of the pandemic.

Like a lot of doctors and first responders, I was quite worried about bringing COVID home to my family, so I semi-quarantined at home and stayed in a guest bedroom, Lam said. I had far more time than usual to read, and I started reading about the history of cardiology, and then the discovery of insulin, and I was hooked. I felt these incredible stories of unsung medical heroes had to be shared.

Other works that intertwine Lams passion for medicine and history include the Amazon bestseller Saving Sight, Two Sons of China, Foreword Reviews Gold Winner for War and Military in 2014, and a finalist for the Massachusetts Book Award, Repentance.

Heart attacks, diabetes, infection, cancer, trauma

Patrons who attend Lams book chats can expect to hear and discuss highlights from the medical fights against heart attacks, diabetes, infection, cancer, trauma and infant mortality, as the doctor explains how the past is preface to the discoveries of tomorrow.

In a funny, thought-provoking and matter-of-fact way, Lam tells the tales of embattled mavericks who endured mockery and sometimes risked their own lives to invent the lifesaving cures we depend on today.

His research took him to June 10, 1948, before the advent of the heart-lung machine. It was a time when surgeons lost many cardiac patients on the operating table.

One desperate heart surgeon, Dr. Charles Bailey, was conducting experimental heart surgery to correct mitral stenosis, using a finger in the dike approach first employed by a battlefield surgeon, Dr. Dwight Harken. Harken treated with servicemen with grievous chest wounds during World War II.

Bailey was determined to use Harkens method, even though all six of the wartime doctors prior attempts failed.

Precious seconds

The finger-plugging technique was intended to provide precious seconds to pass sutures in a patients left atrium and limit blood loss during surgery.

People already called Bailey the butcher behind his back, because of his own fatal surgeries that had claimed the lives of four people. Despite that and a medical establishment that rebuffed him, Bailey persisted.

Bailey decided to schedule two operations on the same day  one in the morning at Philadelphia General and another in the afternoon at Episcopal Hospital, Lam said. This way, even if his first patient died, he hoped to start the second case before news traveled across town and someone stopped him.

The first patient at Philadelphia General died on the table, but 24-year-old Constance Warner survived the second surgery at Episcopal.

Warners breathing improved, and by the fourth post-operative day, she was walking. Bailey was elated, Lam said. Warner ultimately lived to age 62.

More book chats

Harken and Bailey were pioneers of cardiac surgery who failed more often than they succeeded, Lam said.

Seventy-five years ago, their perseverance produced a crucial milestone, Lam said. We owe a debt to them, and their courageous patients whose sacrifices continue to serve us all.

The book tour for Masters of Medicine already has visited the Longmeadow Adult Center, The Odyssey Bookshop in South Hadley and the Forbes Library in Northampton.

Future book talks include events at the Enfield Public Library in Enfield, Connecticut, on June 15 at 6:30 p.m., the South Hadley Public Library in South Hadley on July 19 at 6:30 p.m., the Agawam Public Library in Agawam on Sept. 20 at 7 p.m. and the Springfield Jewish Community Center in Springfield on Oct. 5 at 7 p.m.
A former bank manager in Boston stole $121,000 in customer funds, according to acting U.S. Attorney Joshua S. Levys office.

Nathan Wadsworth, 32, of Syracuse, N.Y., pleaded guilty to one count of bank fraud Thursday, according to Levys office. He was charged May 17.

The 32-year-old started his job as a branch manager for PNC Bank in June 2020. Starting around March 2021, officials claim he used his position to identify dormant accounts of foreign account holders. Hed then transfer the funds in those accounts to a new account he opened in the customers names. Officials claim hed then move the funds to his own accounts for personal use.

Overall, officials said he stole about $121,000 in customer funds.

All the funds have since been repaid to the affected customers, Levys office said.

A bank fraud charge could include a sentence of up to 30 years in prison, five years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000.

Wadsworth is scheduled sentencing for Sept. 7.
As we approach the Juneteenth holiday on June 19, MassLive asked readers and staff to identify people who are emerging Black leaders throughout the state, working to make a difference in their own area of interest, be it politics, education, business or the arts.

These are people our readers have identified as inspirational, who may be doing good acts for their communities. They are being recognized for their accomplishments, leadership and commitment to inspire change.

Giselle Gaines is the community development manager at Sevita Health. (Hoang 'Leon' Nguyen / The Republican)

Giselle Gaines

Age: 38

Community: Springfield

Her story: Nearly eight years ago, Gaines was a stay-at-home mom raising four children with autism. As her children were entering school, Gaines tirelessly advocated for them to get the best education the district could offer. However, Gaines  whose father is African American and whose mother is Puerto Rican  felt as if she needed to do more to help other children with autism in schools.

I decided to go out and build the world I wanted for them as adults, so I started volunteering and meeting people, Gaines said.

In 2016, Gaines began working as a Community Coordinator for Women, Infants, and Children, a nonprofit program that provides healthy food and nutritional education to families in need. During that same year, she participated in Leadership Pioneer Valley, a regional leadership organization, where she learned to foster her professional skills.

Gaines said her career took off once she joined the healthcare field working with adults with different abilities. Now as a Community Development Manager for Sevita, Gaines works to bring accessible care to adults in need.

As medical needs arise, that isnt always easy for the adult or their family caregivers, Gaines said. It is my joy to help young adults, and seniors live a life with purpose and find services in their communities.

Gaines is also a board member for Shes Local Inc., a nonprofit dedicated to uplifting women in New England. According to Gaines, the nonprofit is about reducing the opportunity gap so all women can come together to thrive.

In her own words: My advice is to bet on you and follow your passion. You will never know where it might lead you to. Build meaningful relationships because, together with the right people, change will happen. Always be yourself and permit yourself to dream big.

What Juneteenth means to her: Juneteenth means to me freedom.

Each day, we will introduce more leaders, and were always open to hear about more inspiring people. If youd like to suggest someone else who should be recognized, please fill out this form.
A Harvard Medical School morgue manager was indicted in connection with stealing and selling body parts, according to a federal indictment.

Cedric Lodge, 55, stole dissected portions of cadavers that were donated to the school, such as heads, brains, skin, bones and more, according to court documents. He then took them to his home in New Hampshire, officials claim.

The indictment, which was filed in U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, stated it started in 2018 and continued until March 7.

Using social media, Lodge and his wife, Denise Lodge, sold the stolen body parts, court documents read.

Court documents claim Katrina MacLean, of Salem, Joshua Taylor, of Pennsylvania, and others purchased the body parts and they were shipped through the mail. Although sometimes, court documents said, MacLean and Taylor were allowed inside the morgue to choose what remains to purchase.

MacLean sold the stolen remains at Kats Creepy Creations, officials said.

The indictment specifically states Harvard Medical School employees are not allowed to remove, keep, or sell any human remains, in whole or in pat, belonging to a donated cadaver.

In October 2020, MacLean purchased two faces for $600 from Lodge, the indictment states. Taylor sent Denise Lodge $1,000 with the memo head number 7, documents state. He later sent another $200 with a memo that read, braiiiiiins.

MacLean sold some of the human remains to Jeremy Pauley, of Pennsylvania, officials said.

She shipped human skin to Pauley so he could tan the skin to create leather, the indictment reads. He sent the tanned human skin back to MacLean in Massachusetts around Aug. 15, 2021. More skin was sent to Pauley around Sept. 20, 2021, according to officials.

She confirmed Pauley got the skin because she wanted to make sure it got to you and I dont expect agents at my door, the indictment states.

From Sept. 2018 through July 2021, Taylor sent 39 payments through PayPal to Denise Lodge. It totaled $37,355.56, according to the indictment. Pauley sent MacLean about $8,800 through PayPal, officials said. And Pauley sent Taylor $40,049.04 through PayPay, court documents state.

Some crimes defy understanding, said United States Attorney Gerard M. Karam. The theft and trafficking of human remains strikes at the very essence of what makes us human. It is particularly egregious that so many of the victims here volunteered to allow their remains to be used to educate medical professionals and advance the interests of science and healing. For them and their families to be taken advantage of in the name of profit is appalling. With these charges, we are seeking to secure some measure of justice for all these victims.
After it was announced that six individuals, including Cedric Lodge, the former manager for Harvard Medical School, would be charged with trafficking stolen human remains, Harvard addressed the matters in a statement.

It is with profound sadness and distress that we write to share with you that federal authorities have accused a former Harvard Medical School employee of having engaged in activities that are morally reprehensible, reads the statement.

Lodge and his wife, Denise, from Goffstown, New Hampshire  along with Katrina MacLean from Salem, Massachusetts, Joshua Taylor from West Lawn, Pennsylvania, and Mathew Lampi from East Bethel, Minnesota  were indicted by a federal grand jury on charges of conspiracy and interstate transport of stolen goods, according to a statement from United States Attorney Gerard M. Karam in the Middle District of Pennsylvania.

Officials say they are all a part of a nationwide network of people who bought and sold human remains stolen from Harvard Medical School and an Arkansas mortuary.

Read more: Harvard Medical School morgue manager indicted in connection with stealing body parts

An indictment says that from 2018 through 2022, Cedric Lodge stole organs and other body parts that had been donated for medical research purposes to Harvard University in Cambridge before they were supposed to be cremated. At times, Lodge would move the remains from Harvard to his home in Goffstown, New Hampshire, and then sold them to MacLean, Joshua Taylor, and others through arrangements on social media and phone, according to the U.S. Attorneys office.

MacLean and Taylor were sometimes allowed to enter Harvards morgue and choose what body parts they wanted to purchase, officials said. Sometimes Taylor moved the stolen parts back to Pennsylvania, or Lodge shipped the remains to Taylor and others who were out of state, and in return would make a profit by reselling the stolen body parts, according to officials.

In a statement, Harvard Medical School said they are working with information supplied by federal authorities while also examining their own records  particularly on donor remains that were sent to be cremated and when Lodge was on campus  in order to determine which anatomical donors might have been impacted.

We are so appalled that something so disturbing could happen on our campus  a community dedicated to healing and serving others, read Harvard Medical Schools statement. The reported incidents are a betrayal of HMS and, most importantly, each of the individuals who altruistically chose to will their bodies to HMS through the Anatomical Gift Program to advance medical education and research.

Some crimes defy understanding, said United States Attorney Gerard M. Karam. The theft and trafficking of human remains strikes at the very essence of what makes us human. It is particularly egregious that so many of the victims here volunteered to allow their remains to be used to educate medical professionals and advance the interests of science and healing. For them and their families to be taken advantage of in the name of profit is appalling. With these charges, we are seeking to secure some measure of justice for all these victims.

The maximum penalty under federal law for this offense is 15 years of imprisonment and a fine, according to the attorneys office.

Currently, the U.S. Attorneys Office will reportedly continue to attempt to identify victims and contact as many of the victims families affected by this case as possible. If an individual or family member has been impacted by the conduct charged in these indictments and information, contact the United States Attorneys Offices Victim and Witness Unit at usapam-victim.information@usdoj.gov or 717-614-4249.
Families of those whose body parts were stolen from Harvard Medical School will be contacted by the United States Attorneys Office, the office said Wednesday.

Harvard Medical School morgue manager Cedric Lodge, 55, is accused of stealing dissected portions of cadavers that were donated to the school, such as heads, brains, skin, bones and more, according to court documents. He then took them to his home in New Hampshire and sold them, officials claim.

Read more: Harvard Medical School morgue manager indicted in connection with stealing body parts

The indictment, which was filed in U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, stated it started in 2018 and continued until March 7.

The United States Attorneys Office has and will continue to attempt to identify and contact as many of the victims and victims families affected by this case as possible, the office said.

Additionally, the office asked that if anyone believes they or a family member may have been affected by the conduct charged in these indictments and information, to contact the Victim and Witness Unit at usapam-victim.information@usdoj.gov or 717-614-4249.

The indictment specifically states Harvard Medical School employees are not allowed to remove, keep, or sell any human remains, in whole or in part, belonging to a donated cadaver.

For some, after the remains were used at Harvard, they were to be returned to the family, according to court documents.

Some crimes defy understanding, said United States Attorney Gerard M. Karam. The theft and trafficking of human remains strikes at the very essence of what makes us human. It is particularly egregious that so many of the victims here volunteered to allow their remains to be used to educate medical professionals and advance the interests of science and healing. For them and their families to be taken advantage of in the name of profit is appalling. With these charges, we are seeking to secure some measure of justice for all these victims.

Christopher Nielsen, the inspector in charge of the Philadelphia Division of the Postal Inspection Service, called it an unconscionable act.

Robbing families of the remains of their loved ones is an unconscionable act and confounds our collective sense of decency, he said.

Court documents claim Lodge and his wife, Denise Lodge, used social media to sell the stolen body parts.

Katrina MacLean, of Salem, Joshua Taylor, of Pennsylvania, and others purchased the body parts and they were shipped through the mail, according to court documents. Although sometimes, court documents said, MacLean and Taylor were allowed inside the morgue to choose what remains to purchase.

MacLean sold the stolen remains at Kats Creepy Creations, officials said.

In October 2020, MacLean purchased two faces for $600 from Lodge, the indictment states. Taylor sent Denise Lodge $1,000 with the memo head number 7, documents state. He later sent another $200 with a memo that read, braiiiiiins.

MacLean sold some of the human remains to Jeremy Pauley, of Pennsylvania, officials said.

She shipped human skin to Pauley so he could tan the skin to create leather, the indictment reads. He sent the tanned human skin back to MacLean in Massachusetts around Aug. 15, 2021. More skin was sent to Pauley around Sept. 20, 2021, according to officials.

She confirmed Pauley got the skin because she wanted to make sure it got to you and I dont expect agents at my door, the indictment states.

From September 2018 through July 2021, Taylor sent 39 payments through PayPal to Denise Lodge. It totaled $37,355.56, according to the indictment. Pauley sent MacLean about $8,800 through PayPal, officials said. And Pauley sent Taylor $40,049.04 through PayPay, court documents state.

The defendants violated the trust of the deceased and their families all in the name of greed, said FBI Special Agent in Charge Jacqueline Maguire. While todays charges cannot undo the unfathomable pain this heinous crime has caused, the FBI will continue to work tirelessly to see that justice is served.
A spokesperson for Heywood Hospital said the hospital will step up its safety measures after one of its nurses was stabbed by a patient while providing care for him on Monday night.

At around 8 p.m. on June 12, the Gardner Police Department responded to a call that a nurse had been stabbed at the hospital, located at 242 Green St.

Police said the person whod been stabbed was part of the nursing staff at the hospital, and that theyd been brought to UMass Memorial Hospital in Worcester to be treated for their injuries. The nurses condition was not immediately available.

Dawn Casavant, head of communications for the hospital, said the hospital was focusing on taking care of its entire community in light of the incident.

We are solely focused on stepping up on all safety measures, and really mostly concerned about supporting our staff and our patients and making sure that its a safe environment to work and receive care, Casavant told MassLive.

The spokesperson stated the hospital will eventually provide a formal written statement in regards to the stabbing.

A suspect identified as David Nichols, a 76-year-old Greenville, New Hampshire man, was arrested at the hospital and charged with assault and battery with a deadly weapon and attempting to commit a crime.

Nichols appeared in Gardner District Court on Tuesday. WCVB reported prosecutors stated in court the nurse came into his room and was tending to the mans nasal tubes attached to an oxygen tank after the monitor cords were disconnected.

Prosecutors said the man grabbed the female nurse by the neck, the outlet reported, and stabbed her with a pocket knife. Another person came into the room, the outlet reported from court, and used a trash can as protection as they got the man to drop the knife.

As a result of the altercation, prosecutors said the nurse had a 3-inch cut on her neck that came close to her carotid artery, the outlet reported.

Nichols was arraigned via video from his hospital bed in Heywood Hospital, the outlet reported, and held for his charges on $100,000 bail. He will appear again in court on July 14.

According to his attorney, the 76-year-old man is being treated for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and lung cancer, is in hospice care and has about six months to live, the outlet reported.
For only the third time ever, New Jersey will celebrate Juneteenth as a state holiday on Friday.

But the federal holiday for Juneteenth  which celebrates the end of slavery in the U.S.  will be Monday.

That means state courts and offices, including MVC office sites, will be closed Friday. And while it will be normal business for state government Monday, the federal holiday means federal courts, mail delivery, and other federal services will pause.

The reason? New Jersey passed the state holiday before the federal government did. And state leaders decided it should have a fixed day every year: the third Friday of June.

The federal holiday is celebrated on June 19 itself, unless its a weekend. (Last year the June 19 fell on a Sunday so it was recognized on a Monday.)

Former state Senate President Stephen Sweeney, the main sponsor of New Jersey law, told NJ Advance Media last year that top lawmakers never expected the federal government to make Juneteenth a U.S. holiday as well. Gov. Phil Murphy signed it into law in September 2020, and the first state holiday was in 2021.

Sweeney said at the time leaders wanted to make it a real holiday, with it always being a three-day weekend, rather than a rolling date.

Read more: Justin Haynes puts Springfield on the fashion map

At the time, there was a huge amount of unrest in the country, and doing this made all the sense in the world to me, Sweeney said of the holiday. It was out of respect to people.

President Joe Biden signed the law making Juneteenth a federal holiday in June 2021.

Juneteenth remembers June 19, 1865, when Gen. Gordon Granger and Union soldiers brought news of the Emancipation Proclamation to enslaved people in Galveston, Texas, and declared that all people held in slavery in Confederate states must be freed. They were the last slaves to learn of their freedom because Texas was a remote state.

NJ Advance Media staff writer Brent Johnson contributed to this report.

Matt Arco may be reached at marco@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter at @MatthewArco.
Abyssinia Haile, a rising senior at Minnechaug Regional High School, has already been many firsts: one of the first Black editors-in-chief of her schools newspaper; her schools first Black female class president; and the first Black female state president of the Massachusetts Association of Student Councils. But as she applies to become another first  the first in her family to go to college in the U.S.  a major obstacle sits before her: an impending decision by the U.S. Supreme Court.

Experts believe that the court is poised this month to end affirmative action for college admissions, which has allowed institutions to consider race among other factors when offering admission to students.

Haile, who hopes to get into the highly selective Georgetown University, is among many students of color worried that the decision may lock her out.

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If we look at history, it took hundreds of years for many top 20 universities to open their doors to Black students, Haile said. And even then, there are so many complexities when it comes to the adversities that we are faced with when applying to these schools. Most of us arent legacies, have access to college counselors or the resources to forge these connections between prestigious universities.

The impending Supreme Court decision stems from two lawsuits filed by the conservative nonprofit Students for Fair Admissions against Harvard University and the University of North Carolina. In each suit, the plaintiff claims that the elite colleges admissions practices which consider an applicants race were racially discriminatory.

Edward Blum, the conservative legal strategist and president of the Students For Fair Admissions, argues that policies that consider race as a factor have no place in college admissions. Blum  and his supporters  believe that race-conscious admissions place either unfair advantages or disadvantages toward an applicant based on race. Instead of affirmative action, Blum believes colleges and universities should be using more merit-based systems where students are admitted solely on their academic qualifications.

In poll after poll, significant majorities of Americans oppose the use of race as a factor in college admissions. Edward Blum

In poll after poll, significant majorities of Americans oppose the use of race as a factor in college admissions, Blum said in a statement to MassLive. It is our hope the justices end these unfair and illegal admissions practices.

Both colleges have defended their admissions policies, stating they consider multiple factors in a students background, never solely relying on race. Although the lowers courts have ruled in favor of the universities, experts believe the majority conservative Supreme Court will rule against race-conscious admissions, a move that would almost certainly reduce the chances of acceptance for many students of color at competitive schools.

The goal behind race-conscious admissions  commonly known as affirmative action  is to take into account the historical discrimination thats hindered the progress of people of color in the United States. Proponents of race-conscious admissions argue that by giving preferential treatment to people of color, colleges can help create more equal opportunities for marginalized groups.

The precedent as it stands now for allowing the consideration of race is based on the idea that diversity is a value for all students on college campuses. That it is good, said James Murphy, the deputy director of Education Reform Now, an education advocacy group. It enriches the learning environment and experience of all students to go to a college with a diverse student body and thats, thats essentially the legal justification for considering race, to ensure diverse campuses.

Students of color also face specific challenges.

As one of the few Black students in school, Haile said shes had to face stereotypes associated with the color of her skin. According to state statistics, Hailes school has only 4% Black students.

While progressing through her high school career, Haile found the more advanced the class she took, the less diverse the classroom was. In Hailes Advance Placement language class, she is only one of two Black students.

And though she excels in both her extracurriculars and her academics  Haile is a straight-A student  she said she still feels people judging her based on her race.

Theres always going to be the people who believe that the reason like Im not able to do these things is because of the color of my skin, she said. At the same time, just being a person of color, you just kind of feel intimidated ... Like, wow, all these people around me are different than me, and theyre doing great things. How can I stand out?

Haile said a ban on race-conscious admissions wouldnt take into account those challenges she has risen above.

At the same time, the end of affirmative action would also disproportionately affect highly selective colleges, according to Murphy. Schools like Harvard University, known for their incredibly low acceptance rates, rely on race-conscious admissions to form a diverse student body. Without this practice, there will be a significant decline in the enrollment of students of color at elite schools, according to a study from Georgetown University.

Research from David Card, an economist from the University of California Berkeley, found that banning race-conscious admissions at Harvard would result in a substantial decline in the schools minority population. Cards findings  which are based on data from the class of 2019  show that Harvards Black student enrollment would plummet from 14% to 6%, while its Hispanic enrollment would drop from 14% to 9%. Meanwhile, white student enrollment would jump from 40% to 48%.

What about class-conscious admissions policies?

As the Supreme Court decision approaches in a matter of weeks, some in the higher education sphere have proposed that colleges use class-conscious admission practices as a way to diversify their student body. Proponents of class-conscious admissions argue that by giving preference to low-income students elite schools could produce as much racial diversity as they do with race-conscious admissions.

However, class-conscious admissions actually resulted in fewer students of color on campus when it was tried in Michigan.

In Michigan, after Proposal 2, a ballot initiative that sought to ban affirmative action in public universities was passed in 2006, Black and Native American student enrollment sharply declined. The University of Michigan system saw Black student enrollment fall from 7% in 2006 down to nearly 4% in 2021. In that same time span, Native American enrollment went from 1% to 0.11%, according to an amicus brief the university system filed to the Supreme Court last year.

It kind of backfires because youre still leaving out people who still deserve the same access, but arent able to get that just because of stuff that they cant control. Abyssinia Haile

To counter the notable drop in students of color on campus, the university system invested in a range of outreach programs designed to bring more low-income students onto campus. Although, the University of Michigan pulled in more low-income students, Black and Native American student enrollment still lagged behind.

For Jonathan P. Feingold, an associate professor at Boston University School of Law, schools like the University of Michigan serve as a cautionary tale for colleges substituting race with class.

Feingold, who researched colleges that place greater preference on class than race in their admissions process, argued that practice is a form of intersectional color blindness, which disregards the hardships attached to the several facets of peoples identities, according to a paper he authored.

If were not careful, advocating for and implementing admissions policies that attend to class, but dont attend to race can in a relative sense, privilege low-income white Americans relative to middle-class students of color, and  in ways that we often dont see  can actually benefit wealthy students or students from wealthy families and elite institutions, Feingold said.

While class-conscious admissions policies can help increase access to college for low-income students, they dont take into account the experiences of students of color who are also economically disadvantaged. By solely focusing on class, colleges may overlook additional barriers students of color face due to their race.

Haile said that she does understand the notion behind class-conscious in college admissions, but believes that it wouldnt work out well in practice.

It kind of backfires because youre still leaving out people who still deserve the same access, but arent able to get that just because of stuff that they cant control, Haile said.

Giving students a fair assessment

The growing wealth gap in the United States highlights the double jeopardy students of color face when applying to colleges. Although theres a higher percentage of low-income households among Black and Hispanic people compared to white households in the U.S., there are still more low-income white people overall.

Decades of racial segregation have forced low-income Black and Hispanic Americans to neighborhoods with higher concentrations of poverty than their white peers. According to a study from The Century Foundation, Black and Hispanic people are three times and two times more likely to live in a neighborhood with at least a 40% poverty rate than a poor white person.

These neighborhoods also tend to have underfunded schools. Research shows that poor districts serving mainly students of color receive $1,600 less per student compared to the national average. Meanwhile, similar districts serving poor white students receive nearly $130 less.

And students of color in these underfunded schools are more likely to struggle academically, making it harder for them to enter highly-selective schools.

If the goal is an individualized admissions process, where were really giving every student a fair assessment of their academic talent and potential, then we should be accounting for all of the variables that either are going to act as tailwinds or headwinds and classes one race as another, Feingold said. And given that race and racism operate in ways that overlap with but are different from class advantage or disadvantage, we cant do the work of race or that variable simply by focusing on class.

Ideally, colleges should be focusing on diversifying their student body by factoring both race and class in their admissions processes, Murphy said. But, as the expected ruling from the Supreme Court would strip away one of the most effective tools for elite colleges to diversify their student body, Murphy expects colleges to continue with practices that already helped them build diverse classes.

However, the real question, he said, is whether elite schools like Harvard are willing to take bolder moves like getting rid of legacy admissions and early admissions practices that disproportionately benefit affluent white applicants.

Keeping a legacy preference on the books when there are so few spots and so many qualified students competing for them would be a clear declaration that a college actually does not care about diversity, Murphy said.

In 2021, Amherst College decided to end legacy admissions for applicants, citing that the practice, inadvertently limits educational opportunity. However, other elite schools in Massachusetts have been slow to follow in Amherst Colleges footsteps.

Haile is eager to apply to Georgetown University, as the schools academic reputation and Washington, D.C., location can help her in her goals to pursue a career in international relations and politics.

But Haile said she has a lot to offer her prospective school, as well. When there is diversity on campus, it can lead to a healthy exchange of ideas and interests in different cultures  it can help students understand how different people think in different ways.

As for now, Haile is still eager to apply to Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. Haile plans on entering international relations and politics, and its important for her to go to a school where there is a healthy exchange of ideas and interests in different cultures, she said. When colleges emphasize diversity, it can help students understand how different people think.

That metacognitive way of thinking just helps you become better people overall, Haile said. Were more empathetic, better understanding of others, and in that way we can all start to tackle those social issues in our society together and become a more collective force.
Two Syracuse men are facing criminal charges after allegedly stealing multiple credit cards from a purse last month and using them to buy gift cards, the Elbridge station of the New York State Police said.

A purse containing credits cards, cash and multiple personal belongings was reported stolen from a car on Kingston Road in the village of Elbridge May 24, state police said. It was later determined Jack Lay, 25, and Hser Ku Htoo, 19, went to a Target retail store in Fairmount and a Walmart in east Syracuse and bought multiple $100 Visa gift cards that same day.

Lay, who was arrested June 3, and Htoo, who was arrested Monday, were both charged with fourth-degree grand larceny, a class E felony, and fifth-degree conspiracy, a misdemeanor.
Lawyers representing a Middleborough seventh-grader argued Tuesday in a federal court in Boston that the student should be allowed to wear a shirt denying nonbinary gender identities in class while his free speech lawsuit against school leadership is underway.

The shirt at the center of the legal challenge, worn by Nichols Middle School student Liam Morrison on a March school day, read There are only two genders.

School leaders said the shirt violated the student dress code. Morrison declined a request to change clothing and was ultimately sent home with his parents, according to the lawsuit.

On a school day several weeks later, Morrison wore a shirt in protest that read There are censored genders, with the word censored covering the word two. He was also asked to change that t-shirt, the lawsuit says.

The legal challenge was filed in May in United States District Court by the Alliance Defending Freedom and the Massachusetts Family Institute on behalf of Morrison, alleging that the town of Middleborough and school leadership violated the boys constitutional right to free speech.

Public school officials cant force Liam to remove a shirt that states his position when the school lets every other student wear clothing that speaks on the same issue, said Logan Spena, an attorney for the Alliance Defending Freedom, a conservative legal nonprofit.

He called the schools decision a gross violation of the First Amendment.

Attorneys for the town of Middleborough and school leaders did not respond to a request for comment by email.

School officials contested in court filings and in emails to Morrisons parents that the boy was never disciplined for his T-shirt, and that he was given the option to change clothing before he was sent home.

Middleborough Superintendent Carolyn Lyons told Morrisons parents in an email shared with the court that the boys T-shirt was inappropriate for school and targeted students on the basis of gender identity.

According to an affidavit from middle school Interim Principal Heather Tucker, Morrison was permitted to wear other clothing demonstrating his political views, including a shirt with the Libertarian slogan Dont Tread on Me and another shirt that read Lets Go Brandon, a euphemism for a vulgar chant about President Joe Biden.

On Tuesday, Spena argued in the Boston federal court for a preliminary injunction in the case that would allow Morrison to wear the T-shirt while the case proceeds.

Students dont give up their free speech when they walk into the school building and we hope the court will recognize that and allow Liam to wear his shirt for the rest of the school year, Spena said in a statement to MassLive following Tuesdays hearing.

The lawsuit, which comes amid a wide-ranging and volatile debate over gender identity and the rights and treatment of transgender people, has drawn coverage nationally from Fox News and internationally from the United Kingdom tabloid The Daily Mail.

The suit names as defendants the town of Middleborough, the town school committee, Lyons and Tucker.
Orla OBrien, an associate research scientist at the New England Aquarium, was already having a great Sunday coasting on a plane over the ocean off Nantucket, leading her aerial survey team when she saw four marine animals shed never seen before in her career.

Several whales had already been spotted by OBrien and her team at the beginning of the day on June 11, including a fin whale mother and calf along with humpback whales bubble-feeding  which OBrien said was really exciting and cool to see.

Four killer whales spotted Sunday south of Nantucket during a New England Aquarium aerial survey. Photos by New England Aquarium, taken on surveys of southern New England wind energy areas and surrounding waters

But during the second half of the day, OBrien said the team had seen less animals as they moved east, and were 40 miles south of Nantucket on their second-to-last track line when another researcher on board saw two splashes just ahead of the plane.

It was a pod of killer whales  an adult male, adult female and two juveniles, OBrien said.

We were [already] seeing cool things, but then to see a group of killer whales... First of all, it was my first time ever seeing one, OBrien shared.

You just dont see them that often on the East Coast, even doing the kind of work that we do. Its not usual. It was just really, really exciting, and we felt really lucky, OBrien said, adding the clear weather allowed for good aerial shots, and that the team was able to observe the orcas for a little while.

Initially I could just see two splashes ahead of the plane, said Katherine McKenna, assistant research scientist, who first spotted the killer whales.

Four killer whales spotted Sunday south of Nantucket during a New England Aquarium aerial survey. Photos by New England Aquarium, taken on surveys of southern New England wind energy areas and surrounding waters

As we circled the area, two whales surfaced too quickly to tell what they were. On the third surfacing, we got a nice look and could see the tell-tale coloration before the large dorsal fins broke the surface.

Killer whale sightings are a rare sighting in Massachusetts and in the western Atlantic, OBrien said, as there simply arent many of the animals populating the waters. The four whales spotted were traveling south.

The only known killer whale to frequent North Atlantic waters, a lone orca named Old Thom, was last spotted in Massachusetts off of Cape Cod in May 2022, OBrien said, as was another pair later in the month. Old Thom is always seen alone, OBrien said, and is often in the Gulf of Maine or in the Bay of Fundy.

In total, OBriens team saw almost 150 whales and dolphins during the seven-hour flight on June 11, including 62 bottlenose dolphins, 23 fin whales including the mother and baby, 20 humpback whales bubble feeding and five minke whales.

Four killer whales spotted Sunday south of Nantucket during a New England Aquarium aerial survey. Photos by New England Aquarium, taken on surveys of southern New England wind energy areas and surrounding waters

OBrien has been conducting surveys for the NEAQ for the past five years of her offshore work career, and said she and her team flies the surveys south of New England, near Marthas Vineyard and Nantucket, several times a month. The team commonly sees bottlenose dolphins and a variety of other non-killer whales, including humpback, fin and right.

The surveys are to collect data on all marine animals by monitoring populations, identifying species and watching trends NEAQ said, with a focus on protected species of whales and sea turtles.
Agawam police are asking for the publics help in finding a suspect accused of robbing a 74-year-old this past weekend.

Police released security footage of a suspect in an assault and battery and an attempted unarmed robbery of a 74-year-old man.

Police are searching for a suspect accused of robbing a 74-year-old in Agawam Sunday morning. 6/11/23.Agawam Police Department

Authorities said the incident occurred at 40 Springfield St. Sunday, June 11 at around 8:30 a.m.

Police ask anyone who knows the suspects whereabouts to contact Agawam police detectives at 413-786-1717.
An artist from Salem who has been accused of buying and selling stolen body parts had posted on Instagram about having a real human skull and offering to sell human body parts to the public, in a picture with one of her creations from February 2020.

Katrina MacLean, the bone art, doll-creating and oddity-collecting artist behind Kats Creepy Creations, was named in an indictment against Cedric Lodge, who officials said supplied MacLean and others with the body parts, according to court documents.

Read more: Harvard Medical School morgue manager indicted in connection with stealing body parts

The indictment against Lodge, which was filed in U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, stated the body part-stealing scheme started in 2018 and continued until March 7.

Lodge is a 55-year-old Harvard Medical School morgue manager, and officials said he stole dissected portions of cadavers that were donated to the school, such as heads, brains, skin, bones and more, according to court documents. He then took them to his home in New Hampshire, officials claim.

Officials stated Lodge allowed MacLean and another named in the indictment, Pennsylvania man Joshua Taylor, to enter the morgue and choose the body parts MacLean and Taylor wanted, or that Lodge would ship them parts by mail.

The indictment also named Denise Lodge as a defendant in the case along with Cedric, MacLean and Taylor, and stated MacLean had sold body parts to Pennsylvania man Jeremy Pauley.

MacLean was vocal about her artwork on social media and especially on Instagram, where she routinely sold the baby dolls she reworked, according to a comment she responded to on her account.

The Salem artist also sold her art at oddities markets and expos, she had said, and had two cases at Witch City Consignment and Thrift in the city. Additionally, she is the curator of Freaks Antiques Uniques, a pop-up dark art and oddities market located in Salem, according to her account.

MacLean often posted before-and-after images depicting dolls repainted and dressed in various ways, including with dark coloring around their eyes, blood streaked on their bodies, those made to look dead, clown-style makeup and chilling expressions.

In a post on Feb. 9, 2020, during the time MacLean was believed by officials to be receiving and selling human body parts from Lodge, the Salem woman posted an image of a reworked, killer clown-style doll with a skull between its fingers.

The caption on her post read, Throwback to the set of Hubie Halloween. This doll has been sold and yes that is a real human skull. If youre in the market for human bones hit me up!

Even after the FBI searched MacLeans home in March, according to multiple reports, MacLean continued to post on her Instagram about her reworked dolls and bone art with no apparent signs of issues happening in her personal life. Her most recent post was May 28.

In several other posts, MacLean gave insight into who she is as a person.

From a March 23, 2020 post, MacLean said, Meet the maker! Im Kat, I like to turn regular porcelain dolls into nightmare fuel. I started painting horror dolls back in September of 2018 in an attempt to decorate the store windows @witchcitythrift.

Everyone wanted to buy the dolls so I began selling them..... I have sold 239 dolls since then! I also make dark art, bone art, human bone jewelry and shadowboxes, the post went on.

I joke with my friends and say that my super power is the ability to creepify Art and creating is my passion and my therapy. I am also the curator of Freaks Antiques and Uniques dark art and oddity market in Salem MA. Please give my page a follow @freaksantiquesuniques to check out our talented crafters, vendors, artists and creators, MacLean said.

Thanks for supporting my twisted creations and I look forward to meeting more of you at upcoming events! Thanks for reading, please share my page with your friends! the post stated.

People in MacLeans comment sections were generally supportive of her work, with users commenting heart-eye emojis, inquiring about purchasing her pieces, calling the artwork incredible, amazing, and MacLean passionate.

In the indictment, officials allege MacLean purchased two human faces for $600 from Lodge in October 2020. MacLean sold some of the human remains to Jeremy Pauley, of Pennsylvania, officials said.

She shipped human skin to Pauley so he could tan the skin to create leather, the indictment reads. He sent the tanned human skin back to MacLean in Massachusetts around Aug. 15, 2021. More skin was sent to Pauley around Sept. 20, 2021, according to officials.

She confirmed Pauley got the skin because she wanted to make sure it got to you and I dont expect agents at my door, the indictment states. Pauley sent MacLean about $8,800 through PayPal, officials said.

In total, the court documents stated tens of thousands of dollars had been transacted between the defendants and Pauley throughout the entire operation. This included Taylor sending 39 payments through PayPal to Denise Lodge to total $37,355.56, and Pauley sending Taylor $40,049.04 through PayPal, court documents stated.
People who came into contact with a woodchuck at John George Ice Cream are being urged by Dartmouth officials to see a doctor about a possible rabies infection, the citys board of health announced on Tuesday.

The woodchuck was around the ice cream shop at around 5 p.m., officials said. They suggest contacting the Massachusetts Department of Public Health or that people reach out to their healthcare provider for a rabies exposure risk assessment as soon as possible.

Woodchucks are considered high-risk animals for transmitting rabies, Dartmouth officials said. The rabies virus infects the central nervous system of mammals, ultimately causing disease in the brain and death, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Wild animals like bats, raccoons, skunks, and foxes are usually found with rabies, but any mammal can be diagnosed with the virus, the CDC added. Rabies post-exposure prophylaxis, or PEP, must be quickly administered to prevent disease after rabies exposure.

Any person who has contact with saliva through a bite or a scratch, or if saliva gets into a fresh wound, or the eyes, nose or mouth, can be exposed to the virus, the board of health said.

To contact the Massachusetts Department of Public Health, call 617-983-6800 at any time.
Editors note: The following commentary was written by leaders of business groups in Massachusetts,, including Diana Szynal, president of the Springfield Regional Chamber of Commerce; Rick Sullivan, president and CEO of the Western MA Economic Development Council; and Jonathan Butler, president and CEO of 1Berkshire.

The Massachusetts Chambers Policy Network is deeply concerned that a routine audit found that the Department of Unemployment Assistance (DUA) wrongly used $2.5 billion in federal money to fund state unemployment benefits during the previous administration. The Healey administration is now working with the federal Department of Labor on how to rectify the error.

We appreciate the timely communication and transparency of the Healey administration regarding the discovery of this error and the proactive and cooperative dialogue with the business community. As policymakers uncover more details about this discrepancy and shift their focus to solutions, the MA Chambers Policy Network strongly encourages policymakers to hold employers harmless in any remedial action necessary.

In our main streets, downtowns, and business hubs across the state, only employers pay for unemployment benefits through billions of taxes paid into the Unemployment Trust Fund. The COVID-19 pandemic, and the resulting high jobless rates due to government-mandated shutdowns, put enormous strain on the states unemployment insurance (UI) system. Through a combination of ongoing employer payments, federal loans, and federal funding, Massachusetts distributed over $34 billion in benefits to claimants during the heights of the pandemic.

To repay federal loans, Massachusetts issued bonds that will be repaid through COVID-19 UI assessments on employers over the next decade, in addition to normal UI taxes. Employer assessments form the financial support to the states unemployment insurance system and are already paying for the impacts of the pandemic.

As small to large businesses navigate the challenges of this post-pandemic recovery, they should reasonably expect that the department can administer the system in a responsible and transparent method.

Massachusettss unemployment insurance system already ranks worst in the nation by the Tax Foundation, before considering recent revelations of fraudulent claims, overpayments and accounting errors.

This is a significant competitive disadvantage for current and future employers operating in Massachusetts and management reforms are long overdue. Our businesses are the engine of our economy, and they depend on a functioning and effective system, not one with a history of fraud and poor communication.

We acknowledge that the Healey administration inherited this problem, and we look forward to working collaboratively on solutions. While the business community will collaborate, we urge policymakers to focus on solutions that will not place the burden of replenishing the Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund on employers who have already borne the burden from errors and government-mandated shutdowns.

Importantly, we urge the administration to take this opportunity to reimagine the Department of Unemployment Assistance and audit its activities, including its ability to prevent fraud, accurately determine eligibility, and communicate to the business community and other stakeholders in a clear, timely, and transparent manner.

Reviewing the agency and making long-needed improvements will send a positive signal to the business community and help restore trust in the states UI system.

The Massachusetts Chambers of Commerce Policy Network is a group of 10 large regional chambers of commerce representing over 10,000 employers and millions of workers and customers.
Police arrested a man who authorities said was found driving around a Western Massachusetts town in a fake cop car with a loaded gun, a tactical vest and other police-style tools.

A Bernardston police officer spotted a suspicious car driving around the town Tuesday evening, the department wrote in a statement.

The sedan had a police-like white and black color palette and flashing lights on its roof. The officer stopped the car and arrested the operator.

A man was accused of driving around Bernardston in a fake cop car, armed with a real gun, tactical vest, knives and other police-style equipment. 6/13/23.Bernardston Police Department

Authorities said the operator was dressed in a tactical vest with a police-style badge pinned to the front. He was also armed with a loaded handgun, knives, handcuffs and other police equipment, they said.

A man was accused of impersonating a cop in Bernardston. Police arrested him in a fake cop car and said they found a loaded handgun, knives and other police-style equipment. 6/13/23.Bernardston Police Department

The Bernardston Police Department has not released the name of the man accused of impersonating an officer. However, the department said hes previously attempted to impersonate police in New Hampshire.

Officials said the man is being held pending a dangerousness hearing.
Federal transportation officials dealt a major blow to a voter-approved Massachusetts law boosting access to motor vehicle telematic data, warning that the measure on the states books poses significant safety concerns.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration on Tuesday effectively told major automobile manufacturers not to comply with the states right to repair update because it conflicts with federal vehicle safety law, which takes precedence.

The law, which sailed to success in 2020 with 75 percent of voters in support, requires manufacturers of cars sold in Massachusetts to make telematic maintenance and repair data available to owners and independent shops.

Supporters view it as an update to a 2012 right to repair law that will give individual consumers and smaller repair businesses access to modern vehicle diagnostics, thereby providing owners more options than going directly to an authorized dealer -- which is often more expensive -- when they need vehicle work done.

But NHTSA Assistant Chief Counsel for Litigation and Enforcement Kerry Kolodziej told nearly two dozen companies that the Massachusetts law explicitly requires them to provide the ability to send commands in their data access, which federal regulators said could allow for remote manipulation of steering, acceleration, braking and air bags.

A malicious actor here or abroad could utilize such open access to remotely command vehicles to operate dangerously, including attacking multiple vehicles concurrently, Kolodziej wrote in a letter filed in federal court. Vehicle crashes, injuries, or deaths are foreseeable outcomes of such a situation.

Complying with the Massachusetts requirement to open remote access to telematic data would conflict with obligations manufacturers already face under federal law, which preempts the state law, Kolodziej said, adding that MHTSA expects vehicle manufacturers to fully comply with their Federal safety obligations.

NHTSAs involvement might alter the fate of the law, which has been mired in legal battles since it secured victory at the ballot box. The final decision rests with U.S. District Court Judge Douglas Woodlock.

Manufacturers challenged the law in federal court soon after the measure passed, and Woodlock in June 2021 held a bench trial. That month, attorneys for the federal government said in a court filing that the United States takes no position at this time on whether the Massachusetts law was preempted by the National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act.

For more than two years since then, parties have been waiting for Woodlock to make a ruling on whether the law can stand.

Attorney General Maura Healey at first agreed not to enforce the law while it remained in limbo, and her successor Andrea Campbell in March signaled she planned to begin enforcement on June 1.

Dealerships are now required to inform buyers if a new vehicle uses telematics systems, and the AGs office has begun accepting complaints.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration declined the opportunity to express, and prove, its concerns at trial, choosing to weigh in only by letter two years later, said Pat Moore, the first assistant attorney general in Campbells office. We look forward to NHTSAs explanation of precisely what has changed, and we will then evaluate our next steps.

NHTSA had mostly been a spectator during the court proceedings, but the agency had previously gotten involved to voice concerns when the law was still just a proposal.

In July 2020, about four months before the question went before voters, NHTSA wrote to Massachusetts lawmakers reviewing the initiative petition and said the remote vehicle access it outlined may potentially pose an unreasonable risk to safety.

Tommy Hickey, executive director of the Right to Repair coalition that led the successful ballot question campaign, blasted NHTSAs latest intervention as unsolicited, unwarranted, and counterproductive.

NHTSAs letter is irresponsible, having been transmitted without any new evidence and after the conclusion of the federal trial, despite having been asked by the judge to participate in the court proceeding and declining, Hickey said in a statement. NHTSAs letter fails to acknowledge the evidence and testimony presented at the trial that demonstrated the viability and security of an open access platform. This is yet another delay tactic the manufacturers are using to thwart the will of their customers, Massachusetts voters who voted 75-25 in favor of their right to get their car repaired where they choose. The FTC, the Biden Administration, and many members of Congress have all come out in support of Right To Repair.
A severe thunderstorm is expected to bring hail and high winds to several Western Massachusetts towns and cities Wednesday, according to forecasters.

The National Weather Service issued a severe weather warning to Springfield, Chicopee, Holyoke, Northampton, Westfield and surrounding municipalities up until 5 p.m. Wednesday. People are urged to take shelter under a steady structure as quarter-sized hail and 60 mph winds are predicted to come with the thunderstorm.

Severe Thunderstorm Warning including Chicopee MA, Holyoke MA and Northampton MA until 5:00 PM EDT pic.twitter.com/RugF0RAFQY  NWS Boston (@NWSBoston) June 14, 2023

Central Massachusetts, south Boston, northern Connecticut and Rhode Island are also expected to see this severe weather Wednesday evening, forecasters said, offering a map showing what parts of the state could be impacted most.

Meteorologists said people may see hailstones as big as 1 inch in diameter, along with the potential for winds bringing down trees and power lines during Wednesdays storm.

[Wednesday Morning Update] Scattered thunderstorms expected this afternoon, some of which may be severe. The biggest threat would be from damaging winds and hail. https://t.co/aqcnsXsREM #MAwx #CTwx #RIwx  pic.twitter.com/rwusGSfaiF  NWS Boston (@NWSBoston) June 14, 2023

Forecasters issued a hazardous weather outlook for northern Connecticut, all of Massachusetts east of Berkshire County and Rhode Island. The outlook reminded which areas of southern New England could see severe weather, but had no guidance past Wednesday into next Tuesday as hazardous weather is not expected at this time.

The risk of flooding is possible but not very likely. Its not likely for tornadoes to develop, forecasters said. Temperatures are expected to reach the mid- to high-70s, while the Connecticut River and Merrimack valleys could hit the low 80s.
A detention hearing originally scheduled for Wednesday at Worcester Federal Court for Mateo Ventura, a Wakefield man accused of raising money for the Islamic State of Iraq and as-Sham or ISIS, was pushed back just over a week by a federal judge.

Magistrate Judge David H. Hennessy on Wednesday allowed for an in-person detention hearing for Ventura to instead be held on June 22 at noon after he received a preliminary hearing waiver signed by Ventura and his attorney, Cara McNamara, court records said. They asked Hennessy for a continuance on the detention hearing.

Ventura was again placed in the custody of U.S. marshals, court documents said.

Ventura, 18, faces one count of knowingly concealing the source of material support or resources to a foreign terrorist organization, according to the criminal complaint against him. Authorities said Ventura participated in a gift card fraud scheme and used the profits to support ISIS, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Massachusetts Joshua Levys office said June 8.

According to the criminal complaint, Ventura began communicating with an undercover FBI informant in August 2021, indicating he wanted to make hijrah which FBI Special Agent Paul Lagno noted in the complaint references joining the fight with ISIS overseas.

Lagno wrote that Ventura sent the informant a recording of himself pledging allegiance to Abu Ibrahim Al-Hashimi Al-Qurashi, then the leader of ISIS.

The interactions began when Ventura, who turned 18 earlier this year, was still underage, according to the complaint. Lango wrote that Ventura sent $965 to support the terror group before his 18th birthday, and an additional $705 as an adult.

A spreadsheet included in the complaint shows most of the donations came from Google Play gift cards, with lesser amounts as Amazon, Play Station and Steam gift cards.

Ventura appeared in federal court on June 8, where Hennessy ordered a public defender be appointed to represent him. He was arrested that same day.
The 238 new state troopers who graduated from the New York State Police Academy's Basic School include three from Cayuga County.

Christopher Cady, of Cato, John Germano, of Auburn, and Kyle Teachout, of Auburn, are among the state police's newest troopers. The graduation ceremony was held Wednesday at the Empire State Plaza Convention Center in Albany.

Cady, Germano and Teachout will be assigned to Troop E, a 10-county area in the Finger Lakes region that includes all of Cayuga County. Eighteen of the new troopers will start their careers with Troop E.

"After months of intense classwork, vigorous training and perseverance, the 212th Basic School join the ranks of one of the finest police agencies in the world," said Steven Nigrelli, acting superintendent of the New York State Police. "This graduation is the culmination of six-plus months of hard work, determination and unwavering commitment."

Four awards were presented at the ceremony. Trooper Michael Ziamandanis, of Albany, won the academic achievement award. Before joining the state police, Ziamandanis was a biotech production specialist for Regeneron Pharmaceuticals.

The firearms proficiency award was presented to Trooper Kevin Fisher, of Rome. He is a former patrolman with the Rome Police Department. Trooper James Hennessy, of Tappan, won the Investigator Joseph T. Aversa Physical Fitness Award. He is a former New York City police officer who had the highest score during physical agility testing.

The student representative is Trooper Martin Szostak, who lives in Shokan. He joined the state police after serving with the New York City Department of Environmental Protection as a detective specialist.

Gov. Kathy Hochul, who addressed graduates at the ceremony, lauded the new class of state troopers for committing to public service.

"The members of the New York State Police put their lives on the line each day to keep the rest of us safe, and on behalf of all New Yorkers, I want to thank the graduates for their hard work and perseverance  and welcome them to the long gray line," she said.

The new troopers, who will report for field duty on June 21, increase the state police's ranks to 4,781 members.
Travelers flying out of Worcester Regional Airport have a chance to get to NYC in a snap on a Delta Air Lines plane, the airport announced this week.

The airport is offering two round-trip tickets to fly domestically to any of the 48 contiguous United States as part of Worcester Summer Getaway with Delta, according to the sweepstakes website.

Read more: Spirit Airlines adds new nonstop flight at Bradley International Airport

The sweepstakes launched on Monday and will last until Monday, July 24, the airport said, and is available only for legal residents of Massachusetts who are 21 years and older. Massachusetts Port Authority, Delta or advertiser Marden-Kane, Inc. employees and/or their families are not eligible to enter.

To enter the sweepstakes, visit www.orhsummersweeps.com and follow the instructions, including submitting your full name, address, city, state, zip code, mobile phone number and a valid email address. Those who enter must indicate they have read, accept and agree to the official rules.

On July 25, a random drawing will be conducted by an independent administrator. The winner will be subject to eligibility verification and compliance with official rules.

To enter online, the sweepstakes submission form will ask for your first and last name, email address, phone number, address, city and zip code. You must be a Massachusetts resident to enter.

Once you certify that you are 21 years or older and have checked off the acceptance of Massachusetts Port Authority Privacy Policy, you will have entered the contest.

To enter your name, fill out the form at the link here. For more information on the rules of the contest, check out the sweepstakes at the link here.

MassLive reached out to the Massachusetts Port Authority for comment.

In March, Worcester Regional Airport ran a similar contest for Worcester-area educators to win two free roundtrip tickets ahead of National Teachers Appreciation Day on May 2. The Massachusetts Port Authority and JetBlue collaborated in running that contest.

On May 2, Christopher Plucinski-Taylor, an instructor at Worcester Technical High School, and Dierdra Cahill, an educator at Blackstone Valley Regional Vocational Technical High School, were announced as the winners in those sweepstakes.
A RENOWNED British landscape artist is seeking the help of the public to locate a sketch book of drawings which he lost after leaving them on the top of his car before driving off.

Alan Cotton, who is one of Britain's most distinctive landscape artists, was in Westport last week gathering new drawings along the west of Ireland for his next West End Exhibition with David Messum Fine Art, in St James, London.

Alan and his wife Tricia were staying in the Westport Country Lodge Hotel in Aughagower and on the morning of Wednesday, June 7, he placed his drawing book on the top of his car while loading other things. He forgot to take the book off the roof, and then drove off towards Westport.

An hour later, he discovered the book was missing and despite retracing his steps he was unable to find it.

Speaking to The Mayo News from his home in Devon, Alan said that he hopes that someone may have seen the book on the side of the road and be able to return it to him.

It was a very stupid thing to do. I put it on the roof and simply drove off. You would think that if you retraced your steps very quickly you would find it but I did not. The hotel staff also had a look along their road without success so we are guessing someone must have picked it up.

I was absolutely devastated and now that I am back home in Devon, I am still feeling deeply distressed by the loss. I know it is a long shot but if someone local saw it and picked it up I would be thrilled if they did. It was my stupidity really but we all make mistakes, he explained.

As well as containing new sketches, the book also contains 'many precious drawings' from an expedition to Everest in 2011 with the explorer, Sir David Hempleman-Adams which are of sentimental value to him.

The drawings were done above Everest Base Camp at freezing temperatures, below 20 degrees, wearing silk gloves and working for short periods because of the intense cold. I am unlikely ever to return to Tibet so the drawings are irreplaceable.

If anyone has found a large black drawing book with a ring binder, containing over 50 drawings of Mount Everest, I would be so thrilled and grateful to have it back again and I will be offering a reward for its safe return, he said.

Alan explained that the reason he brought the book to Ireland was because there were still a lot of blank pages left and he was going to fill them up with drawings of the west of Ireland. The drawings form the basis of the paintings which are done in his Devon studio and were to be used as part of his next exhibition to take place in London in September.

I have painted in Ireland a lot over the years. I have mostly painted around Dingle but I have painted a lot around Donegal too. One of the reasons we like going to Ireland is because of the people who are a friendly bunch. We absolutely love it, the culture, the music, the Guinness, everything, we love it, he said.

Anyone who may have found Alan's drawing book around Aughagower is asked to email him alancotton1@btinternet.com or contact The Mayo News office on 098 25311.
Building stronger, healthier communities requires deliberate and conscientious action every day to improve individuals lives. Every time a person goes to a doctor for a checkup or gets important immunizations or screenings, health outcomes improve  and communities grow stronger for it. Ensuring people have access to quality, affordable health coverage is one of the most important ways to help us all accomplish this goal.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, enrollment in Medicaid surged 30% to more than 90 million people across the U.S., according to the Kaiser Family Foundation. In New York State alone, Medicaid and Child Health Plus enrollment increased 23.4% to about 9 million people.

Those 90 million people will need to act soon to keep their health coverage. In December 2022, Congress passed the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023, which ends the continuous enrollment condition for the Medicaid, Child Health Plus, Essential Plan, and Managed Long Term Care programs. This means most New York State residents who have coverage through these plans will need to update their eligibility information as part of the renewal process over the next 12 months, depending on their coverage end dates. This is a major change from the past three years, when coverage was extended automatically with no action needed.

At Fidelis Care, we serve more than 2 million members across the state who will be affected by this change. We believe every individual deserves access to quality, affordable health coverage that protects their physical and mental health and financial stability. Studies show that people who are uninsured are less likely to seek preventive care services, which could lead to undiagnosed illnesses and poor health outcomes. Its also likely the people who lose coverage would disproportionately affect those most vulnerable and communities of color. That is why we want to ensure our members and other impacted New Yorkers are aware of this process and the proactive steps they must take to keep their coverage without interruption.

I encourage anyone with Medicaid, Essential Plan, Child Health Plus, or Managed Long Term Care coverage to take the following steps:

Update your contact information with the agency that you enrolled with (such as NY State of Health, your Local Department of Social Services, or NYCs Human Resources Administration) to ensure you receive the latest updates.

Look for notices from the agency that you enrolled with and follow any next steps promptly. For example, you may be asked to respond with updated financial and family information by a specific deadline.

Contact your health insurance plan. At Fidelis Care, our Member Retention team is available to help members if they have any questions or need assistance with the renewal process. The Fidelis Care team can be reached at 1-866-435-9521, by visiting one of our Community Offices or StreetSide RVs, or by going to fideliscare.org/renew.

As a physician, my job is to protect my patients and support their overall health and well-being. I encourage Medicaid, Essential Plan, Child Health Plus, and Managed Long Term Care beneficiaries to take steps to ensure they keep their current health coverage, or have the tools and resources necessary to identify other appropriate coverage that best suits their needs.

After all, their physical and mental health depend on it.
Hemodialysis is the process of filtering the blood through an artificial kidney (dialyzer), while peritoneal dialysis filters the blood through the patients own peritoneum. Hemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis are the two forms of dialysis. With the aid of a dialyzer membrane, hemodialysis cleans the blood of toxins and excess fluid before reintroducing it to the body. The peritoneum is used as a dialysis membrane in peritoneal dialysis, a process that cleans the blood. Dialysis is the standard treatment for patients with chronic kidney disease, and restoration of normal kidney function requires a transplant.

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Hemodialysis and Peritoneal Dialysis Market Drivers

Growth in the worldwide hemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis market is anticipated to be fueled by new product introductions from market leaders, mergers and acquisitions, and other attempts by manufacturers to remain viable and competitive in the industry. Fresenius Medical Care AG & Co., one of the industrys top players, is only one example. KGaA is concentrating on new product introductions and acquisitions. In October 2018, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) recommended hemodiafiltration (HDF) over high-flux hemodialysis (HD) for UK patients with end-stage renal illness. Fresenius Medical Care agreed with this advice. As a result, the need for hemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis is anticipated to increase worldwide.

Also, in November of 2018, Fresenius Medical Care and Humacyte, Inc. formed a strategic collaboration. HUMACYL, created by Humacyte, is being studied as a potential vascular access for hemodialysis. In addition, Fresenius Medical Cares 6008 CAREset bloodstream system for hemodialysis was honoured with the Red Dot Award: Product Design in April 2018. In addition, in 2017 Fresenius Medical Care entered into a purchase agreement to acquire NxStage Medical, Inc. (NxStage), a medical technology and Services Company based in the United States. B. NxStage Medical Inc.s bloodlines division, which does business as Medisystems, was sold to Braun Medical Inc. As of 2017, NxStage Medical, Inc. claimed the American market. The System One has been approved by the FDA for use in unaccompanied home hemodialysis. Over the projected period, these factors are likely to boost the worldwide hemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis market.

Growth in the global hemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis market is likely to be slowed by strict regulatory rules for the approval and manufacturing, reimbursement, and risks and problems associated with dialysis treatment.

Hemodialysis and Peritoneal Dialysis Market Regional Analysis

The market for hemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis in North America is anticipated to remain dominating worldwide over the forecast period. Growth in the worldwide hemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis market is anticipated to be supported by the presence of major manufacturers and by a rising number of dialysis operations. It was reported in 2017 by the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) that over 661,000 Americans were dealing with kidney failure, with 468,000 requiring dialysis treatment. The expansion of the hemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis markets in North America has been facilitated by these elements.

Hemodialysis and Peritoneal Dialysis Market Key Players

Fresenius Medical Care AG & Co. is a major player in the international hemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis market. KGaA, Diaverum Germany GmbH, Nikkiso Co., Ltd., Nipro Corporation, DaVita Healthcare Partners, Inc., Baxter International, Inc., Nipro Corporation, and Nikkiso Co. , NxStage Medical, Inc., and N.A.S.H.I. Ltd.

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Hemodialysis and Peritoneal Dialysis Market Taxonomy

The market for hemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis worldwide is divided based on product type, application, end user, and region

By Product Type:

Device Machines Water Treatment System Dialyzer Others

Consumables

By Procedure:

Hemodialysis Conventional Hemodialysis Nocturnal Hemodialysis Short Daily Hemodialysis

Peritoneal Dialysis Continuous Ambulatory Peritoneal Dialysis (CAPD) Automated Peritoneal Dialysis (APD)



By End User:

Hospitals

Home Care Setting

Others

By Region:

North America

Europe

Middle East

Latin America

Asia Pacific

Africa

Table of Contents with Major Points:

Executive Summary

Introduction

Key Findings

Recommendations

Definitions and Assumptions

Executive Summary

Market Overview

Definition of Hemodialysis and Peritoneal Dialysis Market

Market Dynamics

Drivers

Restraints

Opportunities

Trends and Developments

Key Insights

Key Emerging Trends

Key Developments Mergers and Acquisition

New Product Launches and Collaboration

Partnership and Joint Venture

Latest Technological Advancements

Insights on Regulatory Scenario

Porters Five Forces Analysis

Qualitative Insights Impact of COVID-19 on Global Hemodialysis and Peritoneal Dialysis Market

Supply Chain Challenges

Steps taken by Government/Companies to overcome this impact

Potential opportunities due to COVID-19 outbreak

Conclusion

Appendix

Data Sources

Abbreviations

Disclaimer

TOC Continued!

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A ureteral stent is a slender tube inserted into the ureter to facilitate with the draining of urine from the kidney and to promote healing and urine drainage following surgery related to kidney stones or the kidney itself. Ureteral stents are designed to keep the ureters open, which are slender and flexible tubes that typically responsible for transporting urine from the kidneys to the bladder. These medical devices are utilized to either prevent or treat ureteral obstructions. Different types of ureteral stents are available, such as the double pigtail suture stent (PSS), which has a hydrophobic coating to decrease encrustation and biofilm formation and the multiloop ureteral stent that is meant to provide temporary drainage of urine from the kidney to the bladder.

According to projections, the global market for ureteral stents is expected to reach a worth of US$ 498.2 million by 2022 and is anticipated to demonstrate a CAGR of 5.6% from 2022 to 2030.

The rising prevalence of kidney disorders is anticipated to fuel the growth of the global market for ureteral stents during the projected duration.

The global market for ureteral stents is anticipated to experience growth during the projected period due to the rising prevalence of kidney diseases. As an example, the United States Renal Data System (USRDS) has reported that nearly 786,000 people in the US suffer from end-stage renal disease (ESRD), with 71% of them requiring dialysis and 29% requiring a kidney transplant. The incidence of ESRD in the United States has increased by 2.3% from 2017 to 2018, with 131,636 cases being diagnosed in 2018. While the unadjusted ESRD occurrence per million has risen by 1.5% between 2017 and 2018, the adjusted ESRD occurrence per million has only increased by 0.2%.

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The growth of the global market for ureteral stents is anticipated to be driven during the projected duration by the rise in product approvals from regulatory authorities.

The global market for ureteral stents is predicted to experience growth during the projected timeframe due to the rise in product approvals by regulatory agencies. An example of this is Allium Medical, an Israeli medical device firm specializing in minimally invasive solutions and technologies, which announced on May 14, 2018 that it had obtained regulatory clearance from the China Food and Drug Administration (CFDA) to sell its range of urological systems in China. As part of an exclusive strategic partnership with a distribution company is poised to benefit from this regulatory approval.

Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic:

The growth of the global ureteral stents market is likely to be hindered by the COVID-19 pandemic, as surgeries are being delayed or postponed. An article published in the scientific journal PLOS ONE on July 6, 2021, noted the impact of COVID-19 on elective surgeries in Finland, indicating a significant decrease in the number of elective surgeries during the first wave of the pandemic in March 2020. Waiting times for gastrointestinal and genitourinary disorders and neoplasms were also longer in 2020.

Restraints:

The anticipated hindrance to the growth of the global market for ureteral stents during the projected duration is due to product recalls initiated by regulatory authorities or industry players. An example of this is the recall made by Coloplast Corp. on November 12, 2019, of their Biosoft Duo Double Loop Ureteral Stent Kit and Vortek Double Loop Ureteral Stent Kit. This recall was due to the potential for pouches from this batch becoming unsealed, which could compromise the sterility of the device. The lack of sterility in the device increases the patients risk of infection.

Regional Analysis:

The global market for ureteral stents is classified based on geographic regions such as Africa, Latin America, Asia Pacific, North America, Europe, and the Middle East.

The ureteral stents market is anticipated to experience profitable growth in North America due to the rising occurrence of chronic kidney disorders in the area. As an example, in 2021, chronic kidney disease affected approximately 15% of the adult population, or 37 million people, in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Additionally, CKD occurs more frequently in adults over the age of 65 (38%) than in those aged 4564 (12%) or 1844 (6%) years old. In the United States, CKD is slightly more common in women (14%) than in men (13%).

Prominent players:

Merit Medical Systems

Medline Industries, LP.

Boston Scientific Corporation

TAEWOONG

Allium Ltd.

Applied Medical Resources Corporation

Braun Melsungen AG

Pnn Medical A/S

Cook

Coloplast Corp.

Olympus America

Becton, Dickinson and company

Biomerics

Teleflex Incorporated

Richard Wolf GmbH

HydrUStent SA

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Report Attribute Details The market size value in 2023 US$ 498.2 Mn The revenue forecast in 2030 US$ 828.4 Mn Growth Rate CAGR of 5.6% The base year for estimation 2022 Historical data 2017  2021 Forecast period 2023  2030 Growth Drivers: Increasing incidence of kidney diseases

Increasing product approvals by regulatory authorities Restraints & Challenges: Product recall of ureteral stents

Table of Contents with Major Points:

Executive Summary

Introduction

Key Findings

Recommendations

Definitions and Assumptions

Executive Summary

Market Overview

Definition of Ureteral Stents Market

Market Dynamics

Drivers

Restraints

Opportunities

Trends and Developments

Key Insights

Key Emerging Trends

Key Developments Mergers and Acquisition

New Product Launches and Collaboration

Partnership and Joint Venture

Latest Technological Advancements

Insights on Regulatory Scenario

Porters Five Forces Analysis

Qualitative Insights Impact of COVID-19 on Global Ureteral Stents Market

Supply Chain Challenges

Steps taken by Government/Companies to overcome this impact

Potential opportunities due to COVID-19 outbreak

Conclusion

Appendix

Data Sources

Abbreviations

Disclaimer

TOC Continued!

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by Fern Siegel , June 14, 2023

Hotel Tango Distillery has launched its fourth annual pride series bottle packaging for June, created by agency-of-record Young & Laramore.

The product launch is being supported by organic social media.

Though some brands have come under fire for supporting the gay community, this veteran-owned spirits brand has been a sponsor or partner with Indy Pride for the last several years.

For every bottle of Hotel Tango Pride sold, the brand donates $1 to the Modern Military Association of America, the nation's largest organization of LGBTQIA+ service members, military spouses, veterans, their families and allies.

Brazilian artist Jun Ioneda created the 2023 design that salutes "Fervo e Luta," Brazilian saying among the LGBTQIA+ community, loosely translated as: "To party is to fight/resist."

Y&L also used open-source WebAR triggered by a QR on the tag to create an AR experience for users.

A core part of what makes Hotel Tango who we are is our inclusive spirit: We welcome all and serve all," said Travis Barnes, founder-CEO at Hotel Tango Distillery.

"Fervo e Luta" reminds us that even though we need to be strong and serious about important matters for our community, it's equally important that we let ourselves enjoy life at its best," said Ioneda.

Hotel Tango unveiled its new product line  toasted marshmallow bourbon Shmallow and blueberry gin Navyberry  in March.

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by Laurie Sullivan @lauriesullivan, June 14, 2023

Google will release two campaign options in the next few months. Both are powered by artificial intelligence (AI) and deploy dynamic creative features allowing advertisers to make it easier to drive demand from the middle of the funnel all the way to purchase.

The products -- Demand Gen, and Video View -- were announced at Google Marketing Live earlier this year.

Demand Gen -- scheduled for a global release in beta this August -- was designed for social buyers to find and convert consumers with immersive, relevant, and visual creatives that grab the attention of consumers and promote action in the moment.

Platforms include Gmail, feeds, YouTube, YouTube Shorts, and more. These products reach more than 3 billion monthly users as they stream, scroll, and connect across Googles platforms.

Demand Gen also aims to make it easier to bring image and video assets into Google Ads and preview how they will look before running. Advertisers also can pair creatives with lookalike segments based on a brands audience list.



Optimizing conversions and max clicks bidding allows advertisers to create campaigns based on specific goals, according to Vidhya Srinivasan, vice president and general manager of Google Ads.



He provided an example in which an advertiser may choose to drive conversions with existing customers by offering a discount on a new product line -- or generate demand by driving new lookalike audiences to a site with a special offer to join your brands subscription program.

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As one of the first Demand Gen advertisers, digital marketing agency Arcane has seen success with an entirely new perspective. Anselme Langle, media consultant at Arcane, a Labelium Group company, said we're now looking beyond performance from format to format and instead comparing it to all social players.



Video View campaigns run across multiple types of YouTube inventory simultaneously. With this campaign, advertisers will have access to in-stream, in-feed, and YouTube Shorts.

Research shows 87% of consumers believe YouTube helps make purchase decisions faster, according to data from Google and Ipsos.

In another example, Samsung Germany wanted to engage with a target Gen Z audience during the peak holiday season. The company said it significantly increased views and achieved 94% incremental reach while reducing CPMs and generating best-in-class consideration lift. It used Video View campaigns.
by Ray Schultz , June 13, 2023

Penske Media Corp. will today launch a new media brand focused on health: Flow.

The aim is to snare pharmaceutical advertising dollars, Axios reports.

Flow will cover health and wellness subjects like reproductive health, menopause, pelvic health, brain and heart health and diseases such as cancer, migraines and autoimmune disease, Axios writes.

Appearing under the companys She Media portfolio, the new franchise will include a website, a periodic digital magazine feature and live events.

The project is being headed by Samantha Skey, CEO of She Media.

According to Axios, She Media has created a $10 million media match program, called the Flow Fund. It will match advertiser investments in health and wellness content.
by Ray Schultz , June 13, 2023

The Virginian Review is doubling down on local coverage as it approaches its centennial, in line with the wishes of its subscribers.

On Tuesday, June 13, 2023, youll see the Virginian Review newspaper return to only reporting on local news from Alleghany and Bath counties, Scot Refsland, publisher.i

Refsland adds, We are decoupling the West Virginia Daily News and The Virginian Review. We understand and wholeheartedly agree with your desire to see more local news in our publication.

Local news has been a focus of the publication since its founding in 1914.

By refocusing our coverage on local news, we aim to strengthen the connection between members of our community and provide a platform for stories that matter most to you, Refsland concludes.
" " Jason Fisher, head mechanic at Gosford Classic Car Museum, drives a 1966 Amphicar 770 in the Sydney Harbour, Feb. 2, 2018, in Sydney, Australia. James D. Morgan/Getty Images

It hardly needs saying that amphibious motor vehicles like the 1961-1968 Amphicar have not exactly been common over the years. There are several reasons, including certain design compromises dictated by their dual-purpose nature and, typically, a resulting purchase price much higher than that of comparable cars or boats.

But the Amphicar is an exception. Introduced by inventor Hans Trippel at the 1959 Geneva Salon, it saw fairly high production  3,770 units  over a relatively lengthy period: eight years. And it was successfully marketed in both Europe and the United States at a price that was surprisingly reasonable for a machine that could do almost everything but fly.

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Unfortunately, that price was so reasonable that the venture could never fly very far, but it has left us with an appealingly versatile little vehicle that had come into its own as a bona fide collectible within two decades.

The Amphicar may have been the most commercially successful amphibian but it was far from the first. That honor likely goes to a 20-ton steam-powered monster built by Oliver Evans of Philadelphia way back in 1803. That same year, he drove his alarming contraption over a mile and a half of the city's streets and down to the banks of the Delaware River.

Of course, he didn't stop at the water's edge but drove right in and went to work. This work was accomplished by a dredge mounted on the wide-beamed, scow-like body.

Christened "Orukter Amphibolus," this vehicle ably fulfilled Evans' contractual assignment, which was to dredge space for a number of the Quaker City's first docks in what was to become a major harbor. Little more was heard of it after that.

More than a century later  in 1917, to be exact  William Mazzei of Seattle, Washington, designed an amphibious car of more normal size and put together a company to produce it. Called "Hydrometer," a name more appropriate for a measuring instrument than a car, it was powered by a conventional internal-combustion engine supplied by Continental.

Contemporary accounts describe the Hydrometer (some sources list the name as "Hydromotor") as looking more like a boat than a car, but it did have four wheels and was said to have been capable of 60 mph on land and 25 mph on water, the latter no doubt exaggerated.

That same year, George Monnot of Canton, Ohio, announced his "Hydrocar," a car/truck combination with a steering wheel at each end and a four-cylinder Hercules engine.

Monnot tried to interest the U.S. Army in his rig for all-purpose use in World War I, but it was rendered unnecessary by the end of hostilities the following year. By that time there was no money left for pursuing the civilian market.

Perhaps the most famous automotive amphibian was the one that did see action, though in a later conflict: World War II. Of course, we're talking about the four-wheel-drive Schwimmwagen derived from the land-only Kubelwagen ("bucket car"), the equivalent to the American Jeep in the army of Nazi Germany's Third Reich.

Both were designed by the renowned Dr. Ferdinand Porsche along principles he'd established with the "people's car" project so beloved by Adolf Hitler. Though neither vehicle was a "Volkswagen" in the strict sense, they're usually considered as such because they were produced at the huge new Wolfsburg factory that Hitler had erected before the war to build the little low-price car we've come to know as the Beetle.

VW thus deserves credit for the first mass-produced amphibian, and the Schwimmwagen was indeed turned out in large numbers during the war years. Some found their way into private hands once peace returned, while others were avidly studied by motor manufacturers on both sides of the Atlantic.
by Colin Kirkland , June 14, 2023

In collaboration with Snap Inc.s AR Enterprise Services (ARES) division, which helps companies integrate Snap AR into their own channels, Verizon is installing interactive, physical augmented reality Mirrors at two major music festivals this summer to promote its +play subscription platform.

Verizon, the first telecommunications partner of Snaps recently launched ARES division, and the first to launch an AR Mirror campaign, debuted the interactive experience at New York's Governors Ball music festival from June 9-11, with plans to install additional Mirrors at the Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival in Tennessee from June 15-18.

When festivalgoers see the full-size AR Mirrors, they will be invited to try out custom AR Lenses built specifically for these activations. The Lenses will highlight unique features from Snapchat's subscription offering Snapchat+ as well as festival-specific AR creative, the company states.

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Mirrors will also include a QR code festivalgoers can scan to unlock three free months of Snapchat+ through Verizon +play.

Jill Popelka, Snaps head of ARES, said that this collaboration aims to showcase the way AR Mirrors can provide on-the-ground, immersive experiences for brands.

The collaboration falls under Verizon and Snaps 5G innovation partnership, which focuses on unlocking next-generation content experiences for Snapchatters and is powered by Verizon's 5G Ultra Wideband Network.

Prior to the Governor's Ball experience, Verizon and Snap worked together with the New York Hall of Science to launch an interactive and educational 5G AR experience that taught New Yorkers about the infrastructure powering their city.
by Colin Kirkland , June 14, 2023

Twitter has been evicted from its office in Boulder, Colorado. The social messaging network owned by Elon Musk owes three months' rent, court documents show.

On Tuesday, a judge ordered a sheriff to return possession of Twitter's office to the landlord.

Court documents show that the Chicago-based landlord who owns the Twitter office in Boulder has been drawing rent payments from a $968,000 letter of credit handed over in February 2020.

The money ran out in March of this year. Twitter has not paid the landlord since.

The landlord brought the issue to court in May. At the end of the month, a judge issued an order calling on the sheriff to assist in evicting Twitter before the end of July.

Twitter's Boulder offices once had more than 300 employees -- a number that has been almost halved since Musk's takeover in October, which resulted in 87 terminations and 38 voluntary resignations, according to a notice to the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment in November.

In addition to the eviction lawsuit, Boulder's Avalanche Commercial Cleaning sued Twitter in the same court last month, asking for $93,500 for alleged unpaid invoices.
by Steve McClellan @mp_mcclellan, June 14, 2023

Stagwells Doner Partners Network is launching a new integrated media offering, Doner Media.

The new offering is being led by industry veteran Jennifer Villamil, most recently head of media at The Many.

For Doner the new setup marks the agencys return to an integrated creative/media offering.

After being acquired by MDC Partners around a decade ago, Doners then media department was spun from the agency and into MDCs media agency Assembly.

That was 2015. In late 2019 MDC, then led by Mark Penn, formed a creative agency hub called the Doner Partners Network led by CEO David DeMuth. (MDC and Stagwell merged in 2021).

In addition to Doner the hub brought together digital influencer marketing and PR offering Veritas, shopper marketing agency 6Degrees Integrated Communications; Yamamoto, a brand and advertising agency based in Minneapolis and Chicago and several other agencies.

Now the hub has a media offering as well via the newly-created unit. Doner Media will provide media planning & buying, audience and communications planning, creative testing, optimization, and real-time reporting.

By re-launching our media practice, we can tap into our deep data resources and creative spirit to build more integrated and impactful work, said DeMuth.

In addition to The Many, Villamil, an 18-year agency veteran has served at Cramer-Krasselt and Publicis Groupe, where she developed award-winning go-to-market strategies for clients like P&G, Walmart, Allstate and Discover.

Villamil will be supported by a leadership team including Kent Weaver, senior vice president/Head of Integrated Media Strategy, and a longtime Starcom executive with expertise in CPG, retail, healthcare and technology.

Also part of the leadership team: Mark Aguinaldo, SVP, Head of Data and Analytics, who joins from AbbVie and Epsilon, with experience on global campaigns in automotive, retail, pharma, telecom, B2B, banking and others; Jennifer Schulties, SVP, Head of Activation who joins from Assembly Global and brings experience in digital, experiential and B2B.
The New York Times, Wednesday, June 14, 2023 5:32 PM

ome physicians find that ChatGPT improves their ability to communicate empathetically with patients. "

In one survey, 85% of patients reported that a doctors compassion was more important than waiting time or cost," per The New York Times. "Enter chatbots, which doctors are using to find words to break bad news and express concerns about a patients suffering, or to just more clearly explain medical recommendations."

Read the whole story at The New York Times 
Beijing (Gasgoo)- Geely Automobile Research Institute and Linglong Tire jointly announced the establishment of the "Geely Engineering Center & Linglong Technology Center TIH Laboratory" on June 13.

Inauguration ceremony; photo credit: Linglong Tire

Linglong Tire, founded in 1975, is a globally recognized Chinese tire manufacturing company. With seven R&D facilities, seven production bases, and over 18,000 employees worldwide, Linglong Tire has built a diversified brand portfolio catering to the differentiated global market. Its tire products are extensively utilized in passenger cars, commercial vehicles, and construction machinery.

The collaboration between Linglong Tire and Geely has laid a solid foundation for their comprehensive strategic partnership, which spanned over a decade long. To further enhance the overall performance of Geelys vehicles, the two companies have embarked on deeper cooperation, including the TIH (Tuning In House) project, which is an indoor virtual development solution jointly developed by Linglong Tire and Geely.

The TIH project utilizes tire modeling software such as F-tire, MF-tire, and Virtual Tire to simulate the tire's performance on real vehicles through computer simulations. This approach provides a more realistic, safe, environmentally friendly, and efficient simulation effect.

By employing virtual development and calibration of tires, the TIH project significantly reduces the tire matching project development cycle and lowers associated costs. Compared to traditional development methods, virtual development reduces development iterations, enhances individual tire testing quality, and resolves the issue of prolonged tire development cycles caused by imbalanced VD performance (steering control, ride comfort) and NVH performance.
Beijing (Gasgoo)- Chinese ICT giant Huawei has recenlty acquired a total of 21 "Wenjie"-related trademarks, which is the Chinese name of Huawei and SERES Groups premium new energy vehicle brand AITO, according to the information from the China National Intellectual Property Administration.

AITO Wenjie M5; photo credit: AITO

The transfer was made by Beijing Yong'an Shida Kemao Co., Ltd. and Beijing Kechuang Huidai Kemao Co., Ltd. The trademark categories cover scientific instruments and transportation tools, indicating that Huawei is likely to use the name "Wenjie" in future electronic products, automobiles, and transportation-related fields.

In response to the trademark acquisition, Huawei stated that its commitment to working together with automakers to build excellent vehicles remains unchanged, emphasizing that Huawei will not engage in car manufacturing itself.

In December 2021, Chongqing Sokon Industry Group (later renamed as SERES Group) and Huawei jointly launched the AITO brand. Under this partnership, SERES is responsible for the entire lifecycle experience of vehicle development, manufacturing, and service, while Huawei actively participates in product definition, vehicle development, and channel sales. Huawei's deep involvement enables joint quality control and marketing with SERES.

In the same month, the first model under the AITO brand, the AITO M5, was launched. The car proudly displays the AITO logo on the front and rear, with " (Chinese character of Wenjie) M5" placed on the right side of the rear. This naming convention continues with subsequent AITO models, such as the all-electric version of the Wenjie M5, the Wenjie M7, and the recently unveiled Wenjie M9.

As an ICT player, Huaweis involvement in automaking can be concluded into three cooperation modes, HUAWEI Inside (like the ARCFOX S HI model), HUAWEI Smart Selection (like the SERES SF5 model), and general auto parts supply (HarmonyOS, and domain controllers).

In addition to SERES, Huawei has also established HUAWEI Smart Selection partnerships with Chery Automobile and JAC Group. Furthermore, its collaboration with BAIC Group has transitioned from the HUAWEI Inside model to the HUAWEI Smart Selection model. With these partnerships, Huawei's Smart Selection automotive business now boasts four major vehicle manufacturers as partners.

While the transfer of the "Wenjie" trademark to Huawei's ownership is not directly linked to the partnerships with Chery, BAIC, and JAC, insiders suggest that "Wenjie" will become the unified naming convention for collaboration models with these automakers.
Shanghai (Gasgoo)- Dongfeng Motor Corporation, a leading Chinese automobile manufacturer, announced a few days ago via its WeChat account that the engineering prototype of its Venucia hydrogen fuel cell passenger car made its debut. The automaker plans to deliver 10 mass-produced units of this vehicle for demonstration operation by the end of 2023.

Dongfeng Motor has introduced several technology brands in the field of hydrogen energy, namely, Dongfeng Qingzhou fuel cell vehicle and power platform, Dongfeng Qingyuan fuel cell system, and Qingxin fuel cell stack. Besides, it has established advanced electrochemical labs and fuel cell development capabilities. Furthermore, the automaker have independently developed medium- and high-power hydrogen fuel cell systems, continually investing in key resources such as bipolar plates, membrane electrode assemblies, and hydrogen storage cylinders.

Photo credit: Dongfeng Motor

The Venucia hydrogen fuel cell passenger car project is the first collaborative endeavor involving Guangzhou Huadu City Construction Investment Co., Ltd., Dongfeng Technology Center, Dongfeng Motor Company Limited, and LAN-YOU Mobility. The project spans several aspects including vehicle development and manufacturing, hydrogenation, hydrogen usage, after-sales support, and demonstration operation. It has the distinction of being the first to achieve demonstration operation of hydrogen fuel cell vehicles in Huadu District, Guangzhou city.

Photo credit: Dongfeng Motor

Dongfeng Motor emphasized that the unveiling of the first batch of Venucia hydrogen fuel cell car engineering prototypes signals an essential milestone in its hydrogen energy R&D, as well as in relevant promotion and application. It anticipates successful results from the subsequent demonstration operation, looking forward to achieving new breakthroughs in the field of hydrogen energy, and making a significant contribution to the technological leap of Dongfeng.
On May 29, the Flagstaff Police Department responded to a reported sexual assault. On June 2, they asked for the publics help locating a white Ford Mustang convertible with a brown soft top and two stripes down the middle of the hood, because the owner of the vehicle was wanted for questioning.

That case is still open. No arrests have been made.

According to data provided by the Flagstaff Police Department, at least 45 sexual assaults were reported in the Flagstaff city limits in 2022. Between January and March of 2023, nine sexual assaults were reported.

Flagstaff Police spokesperson Jerry Rintala said sexual assaults are some of the most unreported crimes.

Its a very serious issue and we always take it very seriously, and its important. They are investigated fully, Rintala said. I was speaking with detectives for some background, I was advised that the on-the-streets, snatch-and-grab sex assault does occur, statistically not as often as when it [the suspect] is somebody the victim knows. That also, unfortunately, hinders peoples want to come forward.

Sienna St. Johns is a registered nurse and credentialed sexual assault nurse examiner at Northern Arizona Care and Services After Assault (NACASA) at North Country HealthCare.

This year, I think between all of our clinics, we are around 70-75 cases. Were not even through half the year, St. Johns said. She said during 2020 and 2021, NACASA saw a big dip in the number of recorded sexual assaults, but she thinks the drop-off didnt necessarily mean there were fewer crimes committed, simply that there were fewer crimes reported.

During the height of the pandemic, NACASAs outreach efforts slowed to a halt. In an average year, St. Johns' team might have had the opportunity to table at community events or work with partnering organizations to help survivors understand their options and assuage their fears. In 2020 and 2021, they werent getting myth-busting information out to the community, and St. Johns believes the data reflects the impact of reduced messaging.

In order to become a credentialed sexual assault nurse examiner, St. Johns attended hours of rigorous training, has to regularly update her knowledge, and took a comprehensive test to earn her credential.

Before going through that process, she said she wasnt clear on how rape kits worked. She thought for a time that they were administered by the police  which is a pretty common belief.

At NACASA, all exams and services offered to a survivor are done by a registered nurse, not a police officer, in a clinic-style environment at North Country HealthCare.

[You dont know] what a person has experienced in their life. Whether they or friends or family members have had bad experiences with law enforcement or if theyre from a group that does not expect to be treated well by law enforcement," St. Johns said. "I think that can be a big barrier [to reporting]. I want to be getting the word out that this is entirely patient-centered, patient-led, and also were nurses. Were not detectives, were not police officers.

NACASA can see adults and adolescents ages 13 and up.

When a survivor arrives at North Country HealthCare after a sexual assault, a nurse like St. Johns will give them the option of entering quietly through the employee entrance.

From the moment they walk in the door, St. Johns said, the survivor is 100% in control.

One of the misconceptions is if you report, you legally have to have a forensic exam, or if you have a forensic exam, you legally have to do all the parts of it. You dont. Its all about consent and its all about being very focused on the patient, St. Johns said.

After a trauma, restoring autonomy to a victim can be critical.

Victims over the age of 18 do not have to press charges or report their assault to the police. However, the process is still time-sensitive. St. Johns said a victim should come to NACASA within 120 hours, or five days, of an assault.

At that point, a nurse can still collect evidence  including DNA, with the patients consent.

We can collect evidence. We can turn it over to the jurisdiction where the assault happened for storage, St. Johns said. That gives them [the survivor] time to decide whether or not they want to report. Sometimes they do change their mind. It just takes some time to talk it over with a trusted friend or family member, time to get over the shock of what happened. Sometimes they wait a little while and something will inspire or prompt them, and theyll realize they would like to report.

I think weve seen that a lot in the media. For them to know that even if theyre not reporting, that evidence is collected and its in one place where they can access it.

She hopes by coming in early, patients can gain some peace of mind knowing that their options are open.

Still, the goal of a forensic exam does not have to be evidence collection. In fact, in NACASAs view, the exam is about the patient, not the [evidence] box.

We want to do as good a job as we can collecting evidence, packaging and preserving that evidence, but our first task and our number one loyalty is to the patient. If they dont want swabs collected, we dont collect swabs. If they only want us to examine certain parts of their body and not others, thats fine, St. Johns said.

So why come in for an exam at all if youre certain you dont want to press charges? St. Johns said theres a number of reasons. A nurse at NACASA will check a survivors vitals, making sure there arent any injuries that require immediate attention or a higher level of treatment.

A NACASA nurse can also provide preventative care to patients  offering things like emergency contraception and antibiotic treatments to prevent sexually transmitted infection when appropriate.

We can also give recommendations on wound care, injury care, post-strangulation care and genital injury care. A lot of the recommendations we give, because were discharging the patient, are things they can do for themselves at home, and recommendations on when theyll need follow-up sooner or later. We also talk to them about what the red flags are -- what things would make them want to go to urgent care, or make a next-day appointment with their doctor or go to the emergency department, St. Johns said.

She said a nurse at NACASA is a safe person to talk to, a person who can help a patient begin to understand some of the mental, emotional and physical effects of trauma.

We talk about the resources available to them, but we also talk about the fact that theres no one right way to react after trauma. They might find themselves reacting in an entirely different way than they thought they might," she said. "We want to reassure them theres not a right way to be a victim. People deal with these things in different ways, and we encourage them to reach out to their sources of support and rely on the community care thats available to them."

NACASA, St. Johns insisted, is also a safe and non-judgmental place.

We tell people they should just be as easy on themselves as they can. This is in no way their fault. This happened entirely because someone else decided their consent didnt matter, St. Johns said. That mental and emotional teaching and that compassionate nursing support, hopefully makes things a little bit brighter in a dark time.

NACASA works closely with Victim Witness and community care providers that provide services up to and including acupuncture for post-trauma support. Referrals, like exams in the case of adult victims, are done with the patients consent.

Recently, NACASA received grant funding from the Assistance League of Flagstaff to further support victims in material ways. They keep gas cards, gift cards for food, toiletries and clothing on hand to give out.

Sometimes victims have to travel to Flagstaff for an exam; other times theyre visiting the area or hoping to leave town to clear their head. A slice of the patients St. Johns sees are either unhoused or face housing insecurity. In all of those cases, she said, a gas card, toothbrush or warm clothing can offer a much-needed leg up.

St. Johns said the last few months have been fairly busy, but tourist season and summer are unpredictable. Reliably, between freshman orientation and Thanksgiving Break  often referred to as "the red zone"  she said her office can expect to see more sexual assault victims coming in, particularly from the NAU campus.

Women in college are almost three times more likely to be victims of sexual assault than other women their age according to the Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network (RAINN). Their data also indicates 26.4% of female and 6.8% of male undergraduate students have experienced rape or sexual assault through physical force, violence or incapacitation.

I think it might be a prevalent thought with college-age people who are here to have a good time, that if they drink too much and something happens to them that its partially their fault," St. Johns said. "I really want to, as often as I can, make the point that its not what you wore. Its not what you drank. Its not who you danced with. Its nothing except the fact that someone else decided that your consent was not worthwhile. You were in the presence of a predator, and theres no way you could have known that beforehand.

During an exam, if a patient believes they might have been a victim of drug or alcohol facilitated sexual assault the nurse can take a blood or urine sample to store as evidence.

Things metabolize at different rates. Alcohol is the most prevalent drugs used in drug-facilitated sexual assault. There may be nothing that wasnt expected there, but that doesnt mean that a crime wasnt committed. If a person was beyond the ability to consent and someone used that to prey on them, its still a crime. I think a lot of people, especially younger people dont fully realize that, St. Johns said.

College students are at high risk of sexual assault, but St. Johns said people who use drugs regularly are vulnerable too.

There are communities that I think arent being reached and arent aware of the services, so I would like to do a lot more outreach in conjunction with harm reduction and get the information to people that use drugs. If they want to come to us, without reporting and have a non-judgmental compassionate exam, were available for them, St. Johns said.

She added that NACASA is working on learning more about how to better help members of the LGBTQ+ community.

I dont think forensic nursing has done a good enough job reaching out to trans and other gender non-conforming people. I think the LGBTQIA and two-spirit community, in general, has had to face a lot of stigma from medicine. From people in medical professions. Also, going back to the fact that a lot of people arent clear on how connected we are with law enforcement. Those communities have had historically negative relationships with law enforcement, she said. One of my personal goals is to do more outreach into these communities. We are taking part in three different pride events this month.

She added that NACASA is seeking education led by trans and non-binary people. Theyre asking for victim pronouns and preferred names, and hoping to ensure that every patient, regardless of their identity, can confidently and safely seek care.

If you believe you may have been a victim of sexual assault or intimate partner violence, call 928-527-1900. If you would like to connect with NACASA resources, visit them online, in person at 2920 N. Fourth St. Flagstaff, AZ 86004 or call 928-522-9460. Sexual assault can also be reported directly to the police, via 911.
According to a report by the Ministry of Civil Affairs, marriage registrations in China, on a continuous decline in the past nine years, reached its lowest point since 1986 last year with just 6.833 million couples registering. Marriage, as a crucial component of social life, is an important indicator of how society and culture are evolving.

Economic factors are largely responsible for the declining marriage registrations. In recent years, soaring housing and living costs have increased the financial burden on young people. The rising costs associated with owning a house, raising children, and supporting a family have made marriages more challenging.

Particularly in first-tier cities, the high cost of living and fiercely competitive work environments have compelled many young individuals to postpone their marriage plans. They instead prioritize on achieving economic independence and career development rather than rushing into the institution of marriage.

As social perspectives become more open and diverse, the traditional views on marriage are being challenged. An increasing number of individuals are now focusing on self-fulfillment, personal happiness, and egalitarian partner relationships, rather than perceiving marriage as an obligatory life choice.

The young are making quality, stable and happy marriage a priority. Unlike in the past, instead of blindly following societal norms, the young are first ensuring there is mutual understanding and strong emotional foundations.

Women's empowerment and enhanced consciousness about gender equality have also made women more independent in their marriage choices, instead of getting married just because it is there.

Although the decline in marriage registrations is triggering a series of social changes, it is not entirely negative. On the contrary, it reflects the progress and diversity of marriage concepts within Chinese society. People now lay greater emphasis on personal happiness and spiritual fulfillment within marriages, transcending traditional role expectations and social validation. Traditional marriage models are gradually being challenged as people seek more realistic and diverse understandings.

The decline in marriage registrations also presents certain challenges. The stability of marriage and the social cohesion it fosters may be affected, particularly in the context of an aging population and declining birth rates.

However, this does not imply that marriage has lost its significance; rather, it calls for a reevaluation and broader acceptance of diverse perspectives. It is necessary to address the economic pressures and improve the quality of life for young people. Only by creating a more supportive social environment and promoting inclusive values can the development of marriage be facilitated and personal happiness be achieved.
The Air Force is deploying F-22 Raptors to U.S. Central Command's area of responsibility -- ranging from the Middle East to central and south Asia -- as Russian continues to provoke American jets as well as allies and partners in the area.

Deployment of the F-22s from the 94th Fighter Squadron out of Langley Air Force Base in Virginia was announced in a Central Command press release Wednesday. Officials said it is in direct response to "increasingly unsafe and unprofessional behavior by Russian aircraft" in the area. The number of F-22s being sent to the region was not announced.

"Russian Forces' unsafe and unprofessional behavior is not what we expect from a professional air force," Gen. Erik Kurilla, head of U.S. Central Command, said in the release. "Their regular violation of agreed-upon airspace deconfliction measures increases the risk of escalation or miscalculation."

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The move comes after several high-profile incidents between Russian and U.S. aircraft in the region, and even near the U.S., over the last few months.

On May 11, North American Aerospace Defense Command identified and intercepted six Russian aircraft operating in airspace near Alaska. The Russian aircraft included Tu-95 bombers, Il-78 tankers and Su-35 fighters.

On April 2, a Russian Su-35 conducted an "unsafe and unprofessional intercept" with a U.S. F-16 Fighting Falcon that was operating in coalition-controlled airspace over Syria, according to an Air Force press release and video of the incident.

A little more than two weeks later, on April 18, Air Forces Central released another video showing footage of a Russian Su-35 that violated coalition force airspace in Syria and "the Russian pilot maneuvered unprofessionally within 2,000 feet of U.S. aircraft."

In an April 19 press release, Air Forces Central officials said that coalition and partner forces had been attacked by militia groups on the ground and also detailed that armed Russian fighter aircraft flew over their positions 26 times from March 1 to April 19.

"Over the course of my career, I have not seen this kind of disregard for agreed-upon protocols and deconfliction rules," Lt. Gen. Alexus Grynkewich, the 9th Air Force (Air Forces Central) commander, said in a press release. "It's concerning because it increases the risk of miscalculation, and given incidents like the MQ-9 intercept and subsequent downing over the Black Sea, it's not the kind of behavior I'd expect out of a professional air force."

In March, two Russian fighter jets caused an Air Force MQ-9 drone to crash in international waters during their attempt to intercept the remotely operated aircraft over the Black Sea.

The cost of an MQ-9, according to an Air Force fact sheet, is upward of $56 million.

U.S. Air Forces in Europe and Air Forces Africa regularly send unmanned aircraft over Europe as well as "sovereign territory and throughout international airspace" as allowed by host nations and international laws, a March press release detailed.

Moscow has historically viewed the Black Sea as a key geopolitical element to its military and economic success and often sees any NATO or U.S. involvement in the area as a threat to those goals.

Russia's Black Sea fleet, which is based on the Crimean peninsula that was annexed from Ukraine in 2014, has built up its forces over the years in a show of strength in the region. Three NATO countries -- Romania, Bulgaria and Turkey -- have coastlines on the Black Sea.

-- Thomas Novelly can be reached at thomas.novelly@military.com. Follow him on Twitter @TomNovelly.

Related: Russian Jet Bumps Air Force Drone over Black Sea, Causing Unmanned Aircraft to Crash
The Maryland man accused of fatally shooting three people  including a father and son  suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder and had recently stopped taking his medication, his lawyer revealed.

Charles Robert Smith is facing three counts of second-degree murder, three counts of first-degree assault and three counts of attempted murder, as well as use of a handgun in the commission of a crime. He appeared in court on Tuesday by way of video from the Jennifer Road Detention Center and was ordered held without bond, WBAL-TV reported.

During the short hearing, defense attorney Mark Howes told the court that Smith was diagnosed with PTSD after serving in the military, which included a tour in Afghanistan. Howes noted that his client was on five different types of medication, all of which he stopped taking in the days before the deadly attack.

Officers with the Annapolis Police Department responded to reports of a mass shooting on Sunday around 7:50 p.m. They found three people dead and three injured on the scene.

Three Hispanic men were killed: Nicholas Mireles, 55, of Odenton; his son Mario Antonio Mireles Ruiz, 27, of Annapolis; and Christian Marlon Segovia, 25, of Severn, officials said. The others wounded in the shooting were stable Monday afternoon.

According to charging documents released this week, Mario Mireles was hosting a party, but left at one point to settle a parking dispute unfolding at a neighboring home. Smiths mother had called the city and complained about a vehicle blocking her driveway, the documents said.

During the subsequent argument, Smith allegedly pulled out a gun, and shot Mario Mireles and Segovia.

Smith then stood over Mario Mireles and shot him several more times, according to charging documents obtained by WBAL-TV.

When others from the party came outside, Smith went inside his house, retrieved a rifle and allegedly fired shots outside a window, killing Nicolas Mireles.

Smith surrendered to authorities without incident and both weapons were recovered from the scene.

2023 New York Daily News. Visit nydailynews.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
Junior Reserve Officers Training Corps units that have failed to quickly report allegations of sexual assault to the Pentagon would be suspended from the program under a bill being pushed by a group of top Senate Democrats.

The bill, dubbed the JROTC Safety Act, comes after reports that instructors engaged in widespread sexual misconduct against high school cadets in a program meant to instill leadership skills and citizenship values in teenagers.

The JROTC program is meant to show the next generation the best of what our nations military has to offer, not be a place where young people have to fear harassment or assault from their instructors, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., the lead sponsor of the bill, said in a statement to Military.com.

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The bill, she added, will ensure accountability for schools that fail to report abuse in the program and increase oversight of our agencies in charge.

The bill is also being sponsored by Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., who caucuses with Democrats and chairs the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pension Committee, and Sen. Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii.

A spokesperson for Warren, who chairs the Senate Armed Services Committee's personnel subcommittee, told Military.com the legislation is one of her priorities for this year's National Defense Authorization Act, or NDAA. The committee is scheduled to debate its version of the bill next week.

Allegations of sexual assault in the JROTC program first came to light in a 2022 New York Times investigation that found at least 33 JROTC instructors had been criminally charged with sexual crimes in the past five years.

Spurred by the Times report, the House Oversight Committee launched its own investigation that uncovered that 60 instructors had been accused of sexual misconduct in that same time frame. Of those, allegations against 58 instructors were substantiated by local law enforcement or school officials.

Then, in a letter earlier this year to Warren and other senators, the Pentagon revealed that, over the last 10 years, military officials have received 114 allegations of instructors committing violence, sexual abuse or sexual harassment against JROTC cadets.

At Warren and other lawmakers' request, the Government Accountability Office is also investigating the JROTC program.

The JROTC program is a partnership between the Defense Department, the military branches and high schools around the country, with more than 3,000 units nationally. Unlike the college-level ROTC program, there is no requirement to serve in the military after JROTC, but many participants do go on to join the military or the college program -- a potentially important pipeline to military service at a time when the armed forces are struggling to recruit young people.

JROTC instructors are mostly retired officers, though it is possible for active-duty officers to be assigned to the program. The instructors are employees of the high school, meaning allegations of misconduct are investigated by local law enforcement or the schools rather than the military. But federal law calls for Defense Department oversight of the program.

The Pentagon has vowed to step up its oversight in the wake of the sexual assault findings.

"We also think that we need to take a hard look at our current background investigation process regardless of whether that individual had a background investigation recently conducted while they were in service, and that we need to look even beyond our traditional background investigation to see if there's other tools that we need to add to that, such as potentially social media checks to make sure that we get a 360-degree look at those that we are putting in a leadership role to some of our most vulnerable and young Americans," Stephanie Miller, deputy assistant secretary of defense for military personnel policy, said at a Senate hearing last year.

Under the bill being introduced Wednesday, the Pentagon would have to suspend any JROTC unit that fails to notify it and the U.S. Department of Education of any allegations of sexual harassment or abuse within 48 hours of the school receiving it.

The Pentagon would also have to conduct climate surveys to better understand and address discrimination in JROTC programs; certify that any school with a JROTC program has a process for students to report Title IX violations, and training for students on sexual assault and harassment prevention and reporting; and submit annual reports to Congress on discrimination and harassment in the programs.

The New York Times has also reported that some schools have made JROTC programs mandatory for their students. Warren's bill would prohibit schools from enrolling students in the program without "informed consent" and require the Pentagon to suspend any units that have forced students to join.

-- Rebecca Kheel can be reached at rebecca.kheel@military.com. Follow her on Twitter @reporterkheel.

Related: 60 Junior ROTC Instructors Accused of Sexual Misconduct in Past Five Years, Investigation Finds
The Pentagon has revised its narrative of what happened during a helicopter incident in northeastern Syria that left 22 service members injured over the weekend.

A spokesman for the Pentagon said that "while the issue is still under investigation, the current understanding is the crash occurred while landing at a staging base, not during takeoff."

Pentagon spokeswoman Sabrina Singh told reporters at a briefing Tuesday that an MH-47 Chinook had a problem with one rotor, causing a hard landing during takeoff.

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The updated message also noted that "the number of injured personnel medically evacuated is updated from 10 service members to 15." A total of 22 service members were injured in the incident, according to the initial statement made by U.S. Central Command.

Neither the Pentagon nor Central Command has offered any further information on the nature of the injuries or what branch the injured service members belong to.

Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany confirmed to Military.com in an email Tuesday that it received injured service members from the incident but did not provide a total number.

The Pentagon has framed the change in detail and increased casualty figures as a correction.

Central Command has recently faced scrutiny over the accuracy of its statements about other operations in the region.

In early May, the command said it carried out a drone strike that it claimed killed a senior al-Qaida leader -- the terrorist group responsible for the September 2001 attacks on the U.S. -- in northwest Syria. Later reporting by The Washington Post, however, forced the command to walk that claim back.

An investigation is now underway to determine whether the U.S. killed a civilian.

The corrected account of the Chinook incident also comes after the Pentagon and the Biden administration had to do an about-face on Wall Street Journal reporting that came out last week claiming China operated a spy base in Cuba.

Asked about it last Thursday, the Department of Defense's top spokesman, Brig. Gen. Patrick Ryder, told reporters that, "based on the information that we have ... that is not accurate."

Ryder went on to say that "we are not aware of China and Cuba developing any type of spy stations separately" and that he was unaware of any efforts by China to set up a base anywhere else in the region.

On Sunday, The Associated Press, citing an unnamed White House official, said The Wall Street Journal report was indeed accurate and that a Chinese base has been on the island since at least 2019.

On Tuesday, Singh said that Ryder's comments were "not an attempt to mislead reporters by any means."

Singh went on to say that Ryder's comments were "directly referring to The Wall Street Journal report that had come out earlier that afternoon or morning" and not the idea of a Chinese spy base in Cuba.

-- Konstantin Toropin can be reached at konstantin.toropin@military.com. Follow him on Twitter @ktoropin.

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COLUMBUS  The man controlling the Union Pacific Big Boy 4014 steam locomotive as it cruised from Columbus to Fremont on Sunday took a few minutes during a stop in Columbus to speak with the Fremont Tribune about the historic train and its symbolism and meaning to eager fans along the tracks.

Union Pacifics Ed Dickens Jr., the manager of the Big Boy 4014 and senior engineer on the locomotives operating crew, said he is blessed and thankful to be able to take part in the trains journey from Wyoming to Omaha, where it will be parked for the duration of the College World Series.

As the massive locomotive sat in both Columbus and Fremont, Dickens looked out from a window in the main cab of the steam behemoth and exchanged words with excited onlookers, smiled copiously and waved to those in the crowd.

Q: Workers are busy around the engine doing tasks and work; what are they doing?

Dickens: We are servicing the locomotive. That is what the railroad did back when this technology reigned supreme on the Union Pacific railroad. (It was done) about every 60 or 80 miles in the old days. They had a little bit better grease than we have today. The stream locomotive has a lot of logistics, a lot of fuel, a lot of water, maintenance  not so much adjustments, but inspections. When you look at all the moving parts on a locomotive like this  there are a lot of nuts and bolts and a lot of safety wires. There is just a lot to this complex mechanism.

Q: Can you describe the Big Boy 4014 steam locomotive?

Dickens: This locomotive is 610 tons. Just to give some perspective  the locomotive that you see behind us, the locomotive back there, it weighs one-third of what this does. This locomotive weighs three times that monster back there. It is also 7,000 horsepower, 17 feet tall and the engine and (cab) are 135 feet long. That locomotive, along with our conventional locomotives, are about 74 feet long.

Q: Why were the Big Boy model locomotives built?

Dickens: These locomotives were very purpose-built to solve a problem the railroad had. Railroads are always looking for the latest and most efficient technology. Back in the 1930s and moving into the 1940s, the railroads were at capacity at various parts of the railroad. They could not build more track, and they had to get a bigger locomotive that could physically carry more tonnage. The Big Boy was the solution to that problem.

Q: There are thousands of excited onlookers here, what does it mean to be a part of this journey?

Dickens: It is such a privilege for all of us. As you look out in the crowd, you can see so many people  look at the smiling faces. They really enjoy the ambience of the steam locomotive. The whistle, everything you are experiencing, they are experiencing it on a different level  the sights, the sounds, the smells. You can feel this thing rolling into town. It is a real privilege for all of us, we have great support back at our headquarters in Omaha. We are the folks that are on the locomotive, and we get a lot of smiles, a lot of thanks and a lot of waves. But the credit goes to all of the men and the women of Union Pacific who are standing behind us, making it happen.

Q: The excitement in the crowd is very evident, with toddlers, teens, adults and elderly present to see the train. What does that excitement mean to you?

Dickens: It really is fascinating. This is the machine that kinds of bridges all the generations. It brings people together. It unites people. We are united in a happy cause. The cause of celebrating history. The cause of celebrating the Union Pacific and this big, massive locomotive. It is so neat to see when the older generation is bringing their grandchildren down. They could not wait. I bet they were all excited when they got up this morning, because they were going to take their children and grandchildren to see something they remember from when they were kids.

Photos: Union Pacific 'Big Boy' 4014 steam locomotive visits region Big Boy 22 big boy steam locomotive train 18 big boy 9 big boy 7 big boy 36 big boy 369 Big Boy 3 big boy 14 big boy 19 big boy 13 big boy 10 big boy 4 big boy 11 big boy 5 Big Boy 12
A soldier who went missing during a training exercise at Fort Jackson is dead, the U.S. Army said Wednesday.

Staff Sgt. Jaime Contreras, 40, was found unresponsive at about 11:20 p.m. Monday, Army officials said at a news conference.

The Army said it was not able to provide information about Contreras cause of death because it is still under investigation.

Contreras family has been notified and an investigation is underway, the Army said. Both Fort Jackson officials and the Armys Criminal Investigation Division are looking into Contreras death.

Were all deeply saddened by this loss, Fort Jacksons commanding officer Brig. Gen. Jason Kelly said Wednesday at the news conference.

Kelly said that Contreras was participating with the U.S. Army Drill Sergeant Academy as it conducted routine land navigation training. Contreras, a member of the 82nd Airborne Division from Las Vegas, was a drill sergeant candidate, according to the Army. He was beginning the eighth week of his ten week training, Kelly said.

The exercise started at about 10 a.m. Monday, according to Kelly.

Contreras was supposed to return at 1 p.m., but did not show, according to Kelly. A search was underway by 2 p.m.

The search was conducted on Fort Jackson grounds, but the area where the training was held was close to the posts perimeter, according to Fort Jackson spokeswoman LA Sully. The training course covers about 1,500 acres, Kelly said.

Contreras was found about 50 meters away from the training course, John Ferrell, director of emergency services at Fort Jackson, said.

However, that is very unforgiving terrain, Ferrell said.

It is not uncommon for soldiers to wander off the course, Ferrell said.

Along with the Army, Kelly said the Richland County Sheriffs Department, the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division and the South Carolina Army National Guard assisted with the search.

I want to express my personal gratitude to our community partners for their offering during this difficult time, Kelly said. Weve got extremely close bonds here in the Midlands and these relationships proved extremely beneficial during this time.

Contreras was located using air and ground resources as well as by tracking his cell phone, which he had with him during the training, Ferrell said.

Contrerass class of drill sergeant candidates had previously completed the course in pairs the Friday before his death, the Army said. The candidates were training on the course individually when Contreras went missing.

A memorial service is being planned, Kelly said.

Fort Jackson is the nations largest military basic training base with more than 50,000 recruits assigned there each year.

2023 The State. Visit thestate.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
The commanding general of the Army's Fort Sill in Oklahoma was relieved of command Tuesday, service officials confirmed to Military.com.

Maj. Gen. Kenneth Kamper, an artillery officer who also commanded the U.S. Army Fires Center of Excellence, was fired after being suspended in February amid allegations he repeatedly skirted hunting rules on base, according to multiple sources familiar with the investigation, though Military.com has not reviewed any documentation involved in the case.

Gen. Gary Brito, commander of the Army's Training and Doctrine Command, or TRADOC, relieved Kamper "due to loss of trust and confidence in his ability to command," Army spokesperson Cynthia Smith told Military.com in a statement. The boilerplate reason for the firing is provided to the press for virtually any officer who is relieved of command.

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Kamper is awaiting reassignment. He did not immediately return a request for comment.

Fort Sill has been hosting Ukrainian troops training on the Patriot missile system since January, the only such training on U.S. soil. Kamper's termination is not related to that training and should not have any significant impact on it, sources familiar with the investigation have told Military.com.

"Neither the investigation activities, nor leadership change, will have any impact on the operations at, or missions of, Fort Sill," Smith said in the statement.

Army firings of general officers are usually meant to be low profile, as opposed to some other services that publicize terminations.

Brig. Gen. Shane Morgan, deputy commander of the base's field artillery school, will continue to serve as the interim commander until Kamper's replacement has been selected.

Kamper took over as commander of Fort Sill in February 2020. Before that, he served as deputy commanding general for the III Armored Corps at Fort Cavazos, Texas. He was commissioned in 1989 from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point.

Fort Sill is home to some 20,000 troops and serves as the Army's home of long-range artillery training, which is expected to become more key to the service in the coming decade as it shifts training and doctrine from combating terrorism to conventional warfare.

-- Steve Beynon can be reached at Steve.Beynon@military.com. Follow him on Twitter @StevenBeynon.

Related: Sources: Fort Sill Commander Suspended from Duty for Allegedly Breaking Hunting Rules on Base
SEOUL, South Korea  South Korea filed a 44.7 billion won ($35 million) damage suit against North Korea on Wednesday for blowing up a joint liaison office just north of their border in 2020, which highlighted a revival of tensions between the rivals following the collapse of larger nuclear talks between the U.S. and North Korea.

The symbolic lawsuit filed with the Seoul Central District Court comes amid a prolonged freeze in diplomacy and growing concerns over North Koreas nuclear weapons and missile programs. South Korea had until this Friday to claim damages, when a three-year statute of limitations over the incident would expire.

Koo Byoungsam, spokesperson for Seouls Unification Ministry, which handles relations with North Korea, described the North's detonation of the building as an unlawful and violent act that breached previous agreements between the countries and fundamentally damaged the foundation of mutual respect and trust.

There's no clear way for South Korea to force North Korea to pay if it is found liable for damages. Koo said the lawsuit, the first ever filed by South Koreas government against North Koreas government, was aimed at beating the statute of limitations and preserving South Koreas legal right to compensation.

In June 2020, North Korea used explosives to blow up the South Korean-built liaison office in the North Korean border town of Kaesong after criticizing South Koreas failure to stop North Korean defectors from flying anti-North propaganda leaflets across the border using balloons. North Korea shut down the office in January 2020 as it closed its borders over coronavirus concerns, and the building was empty at the time of the detonation.

The building's destruction, which was seen as a calculated display of anger to pressure Seoul over deadlocked nuclear negotiations with Washington, posed a serious setback to efforts by then-South Korean President Moon Jae-in, a liberal, to engage with the North.

Moon met North Korean leader Kim Jong Un three times in 2018 while helping set up Kims first summit with then-U.S. President Donald Trump in June that year. However, the diplomacy derailed after a second Kim-Trump summit in February 2019 at which the Americans rejected North Korea's demand for major sanctions relief in exchange for a partial surrender of its nuclear capabilities.

Tensions have further increased in past months as Kim used distractions created by Russias war on Ukraine to increase weapons tests, including the firing of around 100 missiles since the start of 2022. Kim has accompanied the tests with a new nuclear doctrine that authorizes preemptive strikes on rivals in a broad range of scenarios in which the North may perceive its leadership is under threat.

Current conservative South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, who has been labeled a traitor by North Korean state media, has departed from Moons dovish policies and taken a harder stance on the North. Yoon has expanded the countrys military training with the United States while seeking stronger assurances from the Biden administration that the United States would swiftly and decisively use its nuclear weapons to protect South Korea in the event of a North Korea nuclear attack.

Meanwhile, South Koreas spy agency said it has detected signs that North Korean government-backed hackers were trying to steal people's personal details through a phishing website mimicking Naver, South Koreas biggest website.

The National Intelligence Service warned internet users to check whether they are accessing Naver through the correct domain address, naver.com. The agency didnt specify whether it had confirmed actual data breaches through the fake site.
With a career like Cormac McCarthy's, it's unsurprising that his military service is summed up in just one or two lines in any biography or obituary one might read. Before becoming a Pulitzer Prize-winning author, McCarthy joined the U.S. Air Force in 1953 after dropping out of college.

He served four years; two of those were spent in Alaska, where he hosted a radio show. He also "read a lot of books very quickly" to fight the boredom and monotony of his Air Force life. McCarthy was famously reluctant to do interviews, or to reveal much in the interviews he agreed to.

It's possible that without those formative years spent counting down the tedious days of his post-Korean War enlistment that he might never have read some of the authors who clearly shaped his work, like Herman Melville, Fyodor Dostoyevsky and especially William Faulkner.

By the time of McCarthy's death, the author's body of work included 12 books (including nonfiction work), two plays, three screenplays and three short stories. Six of his works were later adapted into movies, including "The Road," "No Country for Old Men" and "Child of God." He died on Tuesday, June 13, 2023, at home in Santa Fe, New Mexico, at age 89.

Cormac McCarthy was born in Providence, Rhode Island, in 1933. By the time he was 4, his family had relocated to Tennessee, where his father was a high-ranking lawyer for the Tennessee Valley Authority, a Depression-era government program designed to develop critical infrastructure in the region.

The McCarthys were a well-to-do family, but Cormac (whose birth name was Charles) didn't feel at home with the elites of Knoxville. After graduating from high school, he attended the University of Tennessee for two years before dropping out to join the Air Force in 1953. In 1957, his service was over, and he returned to UT for another stab at college.

His second shot didn't pan out, either, but he did discover "a knack for language." It was at the University of Tennessee that he published his first works, a series of short stories for a student magazine. After dropping out the second time, he moved to Chicago. Like many veterans pursuing their goals, he worked a side job to make money. McCarthy's gig was at an auto parts store.

The novel that came from his time in Chicago was 1965's "The Orchard Keeper," published when he was 32 years old. It was well-received and even won a William Faulkner Foundation Award, but it didn't pay the young author's bills for long.

"I knew I could write. I just had to figure out how to eat while doing this," he later told The New York Times.

After publishing "The Orchard Keeper," McCarthy traveled around the country and later Europe. Living on the proceeds from his first book, along with literary grants, he was married and divorced, and then married again. He wrote his second book, "Outer Dark," while living on Ibiza, an island in the Mediterranean.

He moved back to Tennessee, where he lived in "total poverty" in a barn with his second wife. His wife would divorce him, but he published his third novel, "Child of God," from the barn. Both books received generally good reviews, but his third one led to writing a screenplay for an episode of the PBS TV series "Visions."

Through 1991, he published "Suttree," a semi-autobiographical novel, and "Blood Meridian, or the Evening Redness in the West." His books garnered widespread acclaim from other authors, but didn't sell more than 5,000 copies, leading some to call him the "best unknown novelist in America."

Then, in 1992, he published "All the Pretty Horses," which both won awards and became a New York Times bestseller. The nearly 60-year-old McCarthy continued writing books, but in 2000, "All The Pretty Horses" was adapted into a film starring Matt Damon and directed by Billy Bob Thornton. Hollywood took notice.

"No Country for Old Men," which McCarthy wrote in 2005, was adapted for the screen by Joel and Ethan Coen in 2007 and won four Oscars, including for Best Picture. "The Road," his Pulitzer Prize-winning novel written in 2006, was adapted in 2009. His 2006 play "The Sunset Limited" was adapted in 2011. In 2013, actor-writer James Franco turned McCarthy's 1973 novel "Child of God" into a movie.

In 2012, McCarthy wrote the screenplay for "The Counselor," which was directed by Ridley Scott ("Black Hawk Down"). Despite his critical success and Hollywood fame, McCarthy had no interest in spending time talking about writing or writers. His real passion was science, and he came to work at New Mexico's Santa Fe Institute (SFI), a nonprofit theoretical research facility.

His work as a trustee at SFI came to influence his later works, which include "The Kekule Problem," a nonfiction exploration on the origin of language and the unconscious. His 2022 books "The Passenger" and "Stella Maris" are filled with the kind of theoretical ideation that fascinated him at the SFI.

In a 2009 interview with The Wall Street Journal, McCarthy summed up his life's work and his take on his own success:

"If you're good at something, it's very hard not to do it. In talking to older people who've had good lives, inevitably half of them will say, 'The most significant thing in my life is that I've been extraordinarily lucky.' And when you hear that, you know you're hearing the truth."

-- Blake Stilwell can be reached at blake.stilwell@military.com. He can also be found on Twitter @blakestilwell or on LinkedIn.

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A year ago this week, south-central Montana was having a typical June. Fishermen lined the banks of the rivers, the campgrounds were filled, and pretty mountain towns like Red Lodge swelled with tourists and their money.

And then, in the early morning darkness of June 13, all hell broke loose.

A rare combination of hot weather and torrential rain across the high country washed all of the snowpack out of the mountains at once. Rivers unable to contain the torrents of water exploded over their banks, washing away whatever had been in their path  roads, bridges, homes, cars, and livestock.

In Red Lodge the snowmelt shot through town like it had been fired from a water cannon, is how one reporter put it. Homes, businesses and hotels anywhere near Rock Creek filled with rocks and mud and garbage. Broadway Avenue, the main drag through town, carried so much rock and debris that when the water finally receded the street looked like a riverbed.

In Fromberg, the Clarks Fork of the Yellowstone River gobbled up farmland, swamped a trailer park and re-routed irrigation canals. Some of the residents washed out of their homes never returned.

A man living along the Yellowstone River in Park City watched the river coming for him. When he heard water running below the floorboards of his living room, he started throwing his possession out of a window and then jumped. From his lawn, he watched his home teeter, tear in half and then go under the water.

And then everything was closed or canceled while the cleanup, which is still going on, got underway.

When the flood passed through Billings, witnesses stood along the bluffs above the Yellowstone River marveling at the size of the river. It rose to more than 16 feet, a full foot higher than ever before. But, aside from about $500,000 damage to the citys water treatment plant, Billings got off easy.

Federal and state disaster officials, along with politicians, fanned out across the most damaged areas with promises of financial aid. That aid came  millions and millions of dollars  but it came in slowly, in lower amounts than was needed and in many cases with so much red tape that some people just gave up on it.

On Tuesday, Montana Sen. Jon Tester marked the floods anniversary with a long list of the federal relief money spent on recovery  nearly $1 billion.

More than $30 million went to road and highway repair. Another $40 million helped with repairs in the Custer Gallatin National Forest. And, Yellowstone National Park received $916 million, Tester said.

Still, our work is far from over, he said.

It will be a long time before south-central Montana fully recovers from the catastrophic floods.

Two weeks ago, one Red Lodge resident taking a break during the welcome return to town of the Montana Renaissance festival, said her basement still smells like mud and rotten wood. Everything in her house the water touched had to be thrown away, and much of it hasnt yet been replaced.

But, this is how we live here. We live in a place with rivers and forests and mountains and bears and snow and cold. It comes with some tradeoffs, she said. And, I guess, its worth it.

Photos: One year after the devastating Red Lodge floods Historic flooding devastates Red Lodge One year after the devastating Red Lodge flood Red Lodge floods before and after Severe flooding devastates Red Lodge One year after the devastating Red Lodge flood Red Lodge floods before and after Severe flooding devastates Red Lodge One year after the devastating Red Lodge flood Red Lodge floods before and after Severe flooding devastates Red Lodge One year after the devastating Red Lodge flood Red Lodge floods before and after Historic flooding devastates Red Lodge One year after the devastating Red Lodge flood Red Lodge floods before and after Severe flooding devastates Red Lodge One year after the devastating Red Lodge flood Red Lodge floods before and after Severe flooding devastates Red Lodge One year after the devastating Red Lodge flood Red Lodge floods before and after Severe flooding devastates Red Lodge One year after the devastating Red Lodge flood Red Lodge floods before and after Historic flooding devastates Red Lodge One year after the devastating Red Lodge flood Red Lodge floods before and after Severe flooding devastates Red Lodge One year after the devastating Red Lodge flood Red Lodge floods before and after
TODAY: Nogosek has elected to become a free agent after turning down the outright assignment, according to multiple reports.

JUNE 13: The Mets have sent a pair of recently-designated relievers through waivers. Veteran righty Tommy Hunter has been released, while right-hander Stephen Nogosek was sent outright to Triple-A Syracuse, tweets Anthony DiComo of MLB.com.

Hunter appeared in 14 games for the Mets this season after cracking the roster out of Spring Training. He allowed just under seven earned runs per nine innings over 23 2/3 frames. Home runs were the biggest culprit, as Hunter surrendered six longballs in 106 batters faced. He had a similarly high home run rate in 22 1/3 innings last year but found more success keeping runs off the board in 2022.

While it hasnt been a banner season for the 36-year-old, hes been an effective middle innings arm for the bulk of his career. Hunter has consistently shown excellent control, and this seasons 4.7% walk rate remains stellar. Hes only punched out 18.9% of opponents but had a decent 23.4% strikeout percentage a season ago. He figures to land a minor league deal elsewhere now that hes back on the open market.

Nogosek cleared waivers after a similar start to the year. The out-of-options hurler posted a 5.61 ERA across 25 2/3 frames. Hes also allowed a half-dozen homers, though Nogoseks strikeout and walk numbers (21.2% and 11.9%, respectively) are each above Hunters rates.

This is the second time the Oregon product has gone unclaimed on waivers in his career. The Mets also successfully outrighted him over the 2019-20 offseason. Hed therefore have the right to decline the assignment in favor of free agency.
The Orioles announced a last-minute move before tonights matchup with the Blue Jays. Catcher Mark Kolozsvary has been selected onto the big league roster while first baseman Ryan Mountcastle is headed to the 10-day injured list, retroactive to June 10, due to vertigo. In order to clear a 40-man roster spot, Baltimore designated minor league righty Noah Denoyer for assignment.

Kolozsvary is in position to make his Os debut. Baltimore claimed him off waivers from the Reds at the start of the offseason. A few weeks later, they successfully passed him through waivers to keep him in the organization. Hes made 20 appearances for their top affiliate in Norfolk, hitting .162/.250/.265 with 26 strikeouts and five walks.

The 27-year-old backstop has never been much of an offensive threat. Hes a career .171/.283/.290 hitter at the Triple-A level. His glove secured him a 10-game MLB audition with Cincinnati last season. Itll similarly land him at least a brief look in Baltimore behind Adley Rutschman and James McCann.

Mountcastle hasnt played since August 8 because of an illness. Teams can backdate an IL placement for a maximum of three days. The Os have decided to give the righty-swinging infielder at least another week to sort through vertigo symptoms that have apparently been plaguing him. It has been a tough season for Mountcastle, who carries a career-worst .227/.264/.421 batting line through 261 trips to the plate. Ryan OHearn and Josh Lester have gotten first base looks in his absence recently.

Denoyer landed a 40-man roster spot early last offseason. The 65 hurler would otherwise have been eligible for the Rule 5 draft. Hed been coming off a 2.89 ERA showing across three minor league levels and the Os were evidently concerned another team would take a shot on him as an MLB middle reliever.

His results have backed up this season, his first full year in Norfolk. Denoyer has tallied 30 1/3 innings across 14 outings (four starts), typically working 2-3 frame stints. Hes managed a 5.04 ERA. Thats largely a reflection of a massive spike in free passes. After walking just 6.1% of opponents last season, he has walked over 15% of batters faced this year. Denoyers 23.3% strikeout percentage and 48.8% ground-ball rate are still solid, but the newfound control issues pushed him off the roster.

Baltimore will trade him or put him on waivers within the next week. Hes in his first of three option years, so any team that takes a shot on him could keep him in the upper minors for the foreseeable future if theyre willing to put him on the 40-man.
HARPER WOODS, MI -- A 25-year-old Clinton Township woman is in custody after she allegedly hit and killed a man on I-94 Tuesday night, before fleeing the scene and eventually assaulting two police officers. According to the Michigan State Police, the suspect -- who has not been identified pending formal charges -- was traveling eastbound on the highway around 10:22 p.m. when she hit a man who was changing a tire on the side of the road.

The victim -- identified only as a 23-year-old Roseville man -- was on the right shoulder when he and his vehicle were hit by the suspect. The victim was pronounced dead at the scene and police determined the suspect had run away from the area, which was near 8 Mile Road and Vernier.

Shortly after police arrived on the scene, Harper Woods Police alerted MSP that a suspect was in custody following a brief foot chase. MSP said along with charges connected to the crash, the suspect is also facing charges related to her injuring a Harper Woods police officer and biting an MSP trooper while in custody.

Formal charges are expected as part of the ongoing investigation and prosecutor review.

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Hospital administrators are often asked to address workforce shortages with a mixture of immediate and long-term solutions. On Wednesday, Billings Clinic announced a win for the long game  the hospitals Psychiatry Residency Program was granted independent accreditation.

The program has the capacity to take on three new residents per year of training for a total of 12 students in the program. It is the first psychiatry residency in Montana and remains the only professional training program for future psychiatrists in the state, according to a press release from Billings Clinic.

We are excited and honored to achieve this accreditation from the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education, Jared Bozeman, M.D., Billings Clinic Psychiatry Residency Program Director, said. It speaks to the quality of our planning team as well as the dedication from our psychiatry faculty and leadership. With the ever-growing need for those working in the psychiatry field we look forward to training the next generation of psychiatrists right here in Montana.

Having the accreditation, granted by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME), means Billings Clinic will be solely responsible for managing the program. Previously, a partnership with the University of Washington had backed the residency.

The ACGME is an independent national organization providing oversight of professional education standards needed to prepare physicians for practice, according to the press release.

The hope is that training medical students in Montana will result in physician retention once they reach full licensure. Montana has a particularly good track record on this front with 65.8% of residents opting to practice in the state following their training.

The UW partnership allowed Billings Clinic representatives to take greater advantage of the universitys WWAMI program, which aims to address rural provider shortages by recruiting medical students with personal ties to the Mountain West. The program is named for each of the participating states  Washington, Wyoming, Alaska, Montana and Idaho.

WWAMI also fosters a number of clinical rural tracks that send students to remote areas in each state.

Montana welcomes about 30 WWAMI students every year for clinical rotations. And for the residency program, WWAMI directed two psychiatry students to Billings who expressed an interest in practicing in underserved, rural states.

These kinds of partnerships are a common occurrence for WWAMI representatives who provide guidance and support for the hospital as it builds up an adequate program. In other words, the goal has always been to set Billings Clinic free to run the program on its own.

At one point, high turnover in the Billings Clinic psychiatry department became a concern. Inconsistent faculty and leadership has the potential to negatively affect the education for the trainees, according to a September interview with a representative from WWAMIs academic and regional affairs office.

However, UW continues to have a positive relationship with Billings Clinic and will engage in partnerships into the future.

In the Wednesday press release, Billings Clinic spokesperson Zach Benoit addressed some recent challenges including the closure of the hospital's Psychiatric Stabilization Unit (PSU) in December.

The PSU provided the only mental health stabilization services in the Billings area, but because of staffing shortages, PSU providers were redirected to other, stressed areas of the hospital.

The emergency department in particular has experienced increase strain due to the statewide mental health crisis. The ED is often a patients first point of contact when experiencing a psychiatric episode.

In an effort to offset the shortage of providers, Billings Clinic has engaged a psychiatric telehealth service that provides around-the-clock consultations to adult patients during inpatient hospital stays. This allows Billings Clinic providers to continue focusing on patients in the ED, the behavioral health clinic and inpatient psychiatric center.

Billings Clinic continues to see record numbers of patients seeking mental health care, including an increase of roughly 20% in total patient volumes, since 2018. This includes an annual average of more than 22,700 patient encounters across all mental health services, Benoit said in the press release.

The residency program was financed through a $3 million grant awarded from The Leona M. and Harry B Charitable Trust as well as $2.8 million in philanthropic support coordinated by the Billings Clinic Foundation.

There will be some additional costs to the hospital as it works to maintain the program including expenses associated with administration and faculty, as well as research and some travel and temporary lodging for incoming residents, Benoit said.
ROSCOMMON TOWNSHIP, MI -- A 3-year-old Roscommon Township child is in good health after being rescued Monday by a trooper with the Michigan State Police and his K9 partner. According to the Roscommon County Sheriff, police were called to a home on Woodland Drive near Snowbowl Road by the childs mother, who said her toddler had been missing for about 20 minutes.

Deputies with the RCS arrived on scene and called for assistance from other agencies in the region as the home is located in a remote area with plenty of woods and swamps. Multiple K9 officers were dispatched to the scene ,along with a Michigan State Police drone and a Michigan State Police Aviation Unit.

Among those searching were MSP Trooper Adam Whited and his K9 partner, Loki. After having searched for approximately three miles, Loki picked up on a scent and led Whited to an area roughly a half-mile away from the childs residence. Whited soon spotted the child and carried them back to where the waiting deputies were located. The child was barefoot when they were rescued, but appeared to be in good health otherwise.

EMS worked examined the child before they were reunited with their mother.

The Roscommon County Sheriffs Office thanked the MSP along with Houghton Lake Ambulance and Roscommon Township Fire for their assistance in the search.

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DETROIT  An elderly Michigan woman died in a house fire early Wednesday in Detroit, authorities said. Her home had security bars on every window.

The fire started around 3 a.m. at a home on Orleans Street on the citys east side, WXYZ Detroit reports. The woman, who was in her 90s, lived alone.

The Detroit Fire Department is investigating to determine the cause of the fire and where in the home it started, the report said. Its also unclear whether there were functional smoke detectors in the house.

Bars on the windows may have hindered the womans escape and should serve as a warning, said Fire Chief James Harris. He recommends that residents minimize security bars to select windows and doors.

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MIO, MI -- A former Tecumseh High School principal, who lost his job in 2022 related to less than professional conduct, is now accused of assaulting and injuring a seventh-grader while working at his previous job with Mio AuSable Schools in 2018.

A federal civil lawsuit filed Thursday, June 8, claims Dennis Niles, who worked as principal of Mio AuSable middle and high schools from 2018 to 2020, punched and body-slammed Kobi LeDuc before choking the student while he was face down on the ground for nearly five minutes.

The physical altercation occurred after Niles searched LeDucs locker and found a suspected marijuana pipe, said LeDucs Southfield-based attorney Dustin Hoff. The attorney said LeDuc, now 18, was a student with special needs.

Mr. Niles grabs him by the throat and basically does a UFC move where he flips him over onto the ground, puts a knee to his upper-back and the other teacher just sits there and kind of watches, Hoff said.

MLive has been unable to reach Niles for comment and there is no attorney listed as representing him in online court records.

The video shows LeDuc struggling to pull his backpack from the principals grasp. The man in the video, who is identified as Niles by Hoff, then pushes LeDuc against the bank of lockers. LeDuc reacts by punching Niles, who spins LeDuc and slams him to the ground. LeDuc appears to throw several more punches while being pinned to the ground by Niles and another teacher, Timothy Miller, who is also a named co-defendant in the lawsuit.

Following the incident, the school board expelled LeDuc and the Oscoda County Prosecutors Office criminally charged LeDuc with assault, although a jury found LeDuc not guilty in August 2019, Hoff said. Since LeDuc was a minor at the time, the court records are sealed and MLive was unable to substantiate the outcome of the criminal prosecution.

The civil lawsuit is seeking a settlement in excess of $75,000 and also names Miller, the school board and district administration as defendants.

As a result of actions and inactions by defendants Mio AuSable School District and Mio AuSable Board of Education in failing to develop and implement appropriate guidelines, regulations, training, and staff education, defendants Dennis Niles and Timothy Miller applied unconstitutional and reprehensible force upon (the student) that resulted in unconsciousness, hemorrhaging, bruising, mental anguish, and a violation of his rights under the United States Constitution and Michigan law, the lawsuit states.

Related: Tecumseh principal placed on paid leave

The altercation started when school surveillance video shows Niles searching LeDucs locker, Hoff said. Niles then put items back in the locker and calls LeDuc out of his classroom.

Niles is almost goading him, like, Is there anything in here I need to know about ... ' and then Kobi comes toward him and when he comes toward him thats when the altercation starts, Hoff said.

Video shows Kobi walk away when Niles begins searching the backpack. Kobi punches a locker, turns around and walks quickly toward Niles in an attempt to snatch his backpack.

The lawsuit includes images of the alleged assault that depicts two people in the schools hallway kneeling over LeDuc with a time stamp of 3:15 p.m. on Nov. 19, 2018.

During a search of Kobi LeDucs locker, defendant Dennis Niles slammed (the student) into a locker and then placed Kobi LeDuc in the prone position while kneeling on him, with his knee forcefully into his back and chest, pressing against his back with such force that he was deprived of oxygen and lost consciousness, according to the lawsuit.

The lawsuit states Niles had a history of physically assaulting and abusing children under his care as the principal. To support that claim, Hoff submitted a video taken by onlookers of Niles with two girls in headlocks, which Hoff said was recorded by multiple students. The video is not available in online records and Hoff declined to release it to MLive, citing theres a possibility the students depicted are still minors.

Related: Tecumseh principal reassigned for less than professional conduct

After leaving Mio AuSable Schools, Tecumseh Public Schools hired Niles in 2020. That district placed Niles on paid leave in May 2022 while it investigated various misconduct allegations.

The investigation included an incident that a police report reviewed by MLive referred to as a borderline assault, although Niles has never been criminally charged.

Related: Former principal paid $80,000 to leave

The district removed Niles as principal and named him the director of operations in July 2022 with a nearly $10,000-per-year pay cut. The decision raised concerns from some residents who questioned if the job reassignment was a proper remedy for his conduct. Weeks later, on July 28, the Tecumseh School Board voted to approve a separation agreement with Niles that paid the ousted principal $80,000.

MLive requested comment from the Mio AuSable Schools superintendent and school board members.

MLive confirmed Niles is facing no criminal charges related to the incident in the lawsuit.

LeDucs mother considered filing a civil lawsuit once her son was found not guilty at his criminal trial in 2019, but never proceeded due to health concerns, Hoff said. LeDuc filed the lawsuit days after his 18th birthday.

Read the full lawsuit:

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DETROIT  A Michigan man has been sentenced to up to 15 years in prison for stealing and torturing his ex-girlfriends dog.

After a series of stalking incidents, Julius Holley, of Detroit, broke into his ex-girlfriends home during October 2022. He stole and damaged property and took her Yorkshire Terrier mix dog. He then recorded himself beating and torturing the dog and sent the videos to the woman.

Holley later abandoned the dog in a bucket next to a house. The animal was taken from that location by Michigan Humane to protect it from future abuse. The dog is alive today.

When the case garnered media attention, Holley fled the state. He was extradited from Ohio in late 2022 and has been in custody since then.

Holley pleaded guilty to first-degree animal torture with a habitual fourth offender enhancement in May. He was sentenced this week to five to 15 years in prison and reserved restitution. He is also prohibited from owning any animal and from contacting the human victim in this case.

Holley has a history of violence against multiple women, including convictions for criminal sexual conduct and domestic violence dating back to 1992.

The case against Holley is part of a partnership between the Department of Attorney General and Michigan Humane to investigate and prosecute animal abuse crimes.

In Michigan, a person who tortures or kills a pet with the intent to cause mental suffering or distress to another person, or to exert control over another person, is guilty of a felony punishable by up to 10 years in prison. The law recognizes the connection between animal abuse and domestic violence.

Michigan Humane provides the Safety Net pet fostering program for people who need a safe place to temporarily house their pets. People in need of the service, or those looking to volunteer to foster animals in these situations, can call Michigan Humane at 866-648-6263.

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ISLE ROYALE, MI - The effort to rebuild wolf packs on Michigans remote Isle Royale National Park continues to gain momentum, with researchers annual study showing an increase in the number of wolves and new pups born, along with a sharp decline in the number of moose.

Results of the 2023 Winter Study were released today by Michigan Technological University. It puts the rising wolf population at 31  up three wolves compared to 2022  and with up to four litters of pups born on the island in the last year. Observations by the research team earlier this year also show up to five female wolves could be having pups this season  a further push to bring the islands predator-prey narrative back into balance.

Meanwhile, researchers said the islands moose population has dropped by 379 animals. And while wolves are killing a chunk of these moose, the majority of them are dying of starvation, the study showed. The observed moose calf population is also at its lowest recorded rates.

Tracking the steady uptick in recent wolf pup litters alone shows the success of the wolf translocation program. Begun in 2018, the effort by the National Park Service was meant to replenish the predator population on the island that had seen its once-healthy wolf packs fall victim to inbreeding and disease, and dwindle to just two non-breeding wolves. At the same time, an explosion in the moose population meant this parks balsam fir wilderness was being overbrowsed by hungry moose.

The first new wolves were trapped and brought over from Minnesota, and then more were translocated from Canada and Michigans Upper Peninsula.

No wolf litters were recorded on the island from 2015 to 2018. But months after the first new wolves arrived, a litter was born in 2019. There were two litters born in 2020 and another two in 2021. In the last year, researchers have seen evidence of three and very likely four litters of pups. Some of those pups have survived into this year.

The reproductive success of the wolf population has steadily increased over the last five years. The majority of wolves in the population were all born on the island, said Sarah Hoy, co-leader of the Isle Royale wolf-moose study and a research assistant professor in Michigan Techs College of Forest Resources and Environmental Science.

Isle Royale wolves on the run through the snow in the winter of 2023. Photo provided by Sarah Hoy and Rolf Peterson, courtesy of Michigan Technological University.

The Isle Royale wolf and moose study is entering its 65th year. It is the worlds longest-running predator-prey study and takes place on this remote island archipelago in Lake Superior, about 60 miles from the Upper Peninsulas mainland. Supported by Michigan Tech, researchers visited Isle Royale to do the animal counts from late January through early March. They flew in planes and counted moose and wolves from the air. Others used cross-country skis and snowshoes to record observations on moose and do fieldwork on the ground. Along with Hoy, the studys co-leaders are John Vucetich and Rolf Peterson.

The moose populations decline, while dramatic, is not unprecedented in the face of a growing number of predator packs. Year over year, moose numbers declined about 28% this year. The moose population dropped from 1,346 to 967, researchers said of the downward trend.

Starvation appears to be a more important cause of mortality than predation, Hoy said.

The most recent peak year for the islands moose population was 2019, when they clocked in at 2,060 wilderness-munching animals roaming the island known for its hiking trails and gorgeous views. When the newly-introduced wolves began gaining a claw-hold, the moose numbers began dropping. Since 2019, moose numbers have shrunk by 54%, researchers said.

A collared moose on Isle Royale. Photo provided by Sarah Hoy and Rolf Peterson, courtesy of Michigan Technological University.

Fascinating Pack Dynamics. In a somewhat unexpected twist, about half of Isle Royales wolves have organized into two distinct packs on the east and west sides of the island. But the other 15 wolves seem to have set themselves up into smaller groups and even some lone wolves that associate casually with one or more of these mini-packs.

Prior to the translocation of wolves to Isle Royale in 2018, the wolf population most commonly consisted of three stable packs and a small number of lone wolves, Vucetich explained. By contrast, over the past 12 months the population appears to be characterized by three to four reproducing groups, of which only two seem to have well-established territories, and many wolves that are not closely associated with an established pack.

Taken in January 2023, this photo shows wolves from the East Pack shortly after they killed a moose near the shoreline by Isle Royale's Chippewa Harbor. That morning, all 11 members of the East Pack were resting in small clearings on a ridgetop. Photo provided by Sarah Hoy and Rolf Peterson, courtesy of Michigan Technological University.

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SENEY, MI - More than a month after one of the worlds oldest common loons was injured and vanished from a wildlife refuge in Michigans Upper Peninsula, the bird was spotted back in the refuge this week - and he might not be swimming alone.

The male loon known to researchers as ABJ, which turns 36 this month, was spotted Sunday by an eagle-eyed visitor to the Seney National Wildlife Refuge. The loon was identified by its faded red and green leg bands.

ABJ was last seen in mid-May at the refuge. He had been injured, likely in a territorial fight with another loon over his ex-longtime mate, Fe. ABJ had a broken beak, which researchers said would likely make feeding at Seneys ponds difficult. They suspected he flew away looking for other places where it was easier for him to snag a meal. But they suspected hed be back - and they were right.

Damon McCormick of Common Coast Research & Conservation shared the big news on ABJs return on Seneys social media page:

A visitor to the refuge spotted him along the Marshland Wildlife Drive, superficially looking none the worse for wear, and suggesting that in his foraging strategies he has adapted to life with a damaged bill.

Surprisingly, he was observed with a second loon, and in a location - the western end of E Pool - that this spring was the established territory of another color-marked Seney male, a 16 year-old known as Blue Nevada. It is possible that, against expectation, ABJ has designs on more than just solitary feeding this season; we hope to know more soon.

ABJ and Fe have been in a bit of a loon love triangle for the last couple breeding seasons after their 25 years as a couple came to an abrupt end last year.

In July 2020, a week-old chick rides on Fe's back while ABJ displays the colored plastic leg bands that allow for the identification and long-term monitoring of individual loons.

Loon Love Triangle in the U.P.

What had been a loon pairing for the record books soured last spring when the worlds oldest loon couple broke up after 25 years together. Researchers last year documented how Fe, now 37, found a new mate and hatched a chick on I Pool - one of the many lettered pools and wetland areas within Seney. Meanwhile, ABJ retreated as a loner to the nearby H Pool.

There may have been some Tinder-type meet-ups between the two ex-partners last season, but when the loons returned to Seney earlier this spring, Fe again chose an unbanded male loon as her partner after some bird drama. This left an injured ABJ to try to fend for himself on another pool.

Meanwhile Fe was on the refuges I Pool earlier this season, nesting with her new beau and awaiting her next batch of record-breaking loon chicks. If Fe has one or two chicks that successfully hatch this month, they would be Fes 41st and 42nd confirmed offspring. And this would extend Fes own record for Common Loon lifetime productivity.

Rough Way to Get a Meal

Researchers said ABJ was seen diving underwater - apparently trying to eat - right after his injury at Seney. But then the loon left.

McCormick earlier said ABJ likely relocated to an inland lake nearby, or even Lake Michigan, which is more than 20 miles south of Seney. In those places, the loon could find things like perch and pike that he could have an easier time eating than what the pools at Seney offer.

The waters at Seney have a lot of Brown Bullheads, a type of catfish that have long, thick whiskers around their mouth. This means loons - who swallow their food whole - have to work harder to eat this fish. They have to pluck out all the whiskers first. With his broken bill, its likely not something ABJ would be able to do.

McCormick described it this way: Refuge loons, who swallow their prey whole, do not like these nuisance barbels, and upon catching a mature bullhead will first remove them via a series of stabbing and pulling actions with their bill. With no arms with which to firmly grasp the fish, this is a specialized skill that Seney loons acquire over time.

Over the years, researchers have seen ABJ deftly catching these bullheads and teaching his young chicks how to remove the whiskers, also called barbels.

During his years of invariable productivity with Fe, in late summer and early fall, with one of his large chicks begging for food, ABJ was fond of catching a bullhead and compelling the ravenous juvenile to watch as he methodically detached both barbels before serving up the dish to his offspring; after multiple rounds of this silent instruction, ABJ would then switch to severing only one barbel before offering the fish, compelling his chick to tackle the other unsavory whisker.
WASHINGTON D.C. -- The Department of Education confirmed this week that student loan payment will resume for millions of borrowers starting in October, according to Politico. The resumption of payments was agreed to as part of the debt-ceiling bill which was signed into law earlier this month was negotiated by President Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy.

Payments on student loans have been suspended since March 2020 thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Along with payments restarting in October, interest on those loans will begin accruing on Sept. 1, well before the first payments will be due from borrowers. An Education Department spokesperson told Politico that borrowers will be notified as to when the exact due dates for repayment will resume.

And while the suspension of payments cannot be extended again, officials with the Education Department are considering other ways to ease the burden on borrowers. Although no officials decisions have been made, one of the options that has been suggested is a grace period that wouldnt penalize late payments, but would allow for interest to continue to accrue.

The resumption of loan payments does not have anything to do with the Biden administrations plan to forgive up to $20,000 in student loan debt. That plan -- which was announced last year -- calls for $10,000 in forgiveness for individuals who make less than $125,00 a year and up to $20,000 for those who received Pell Grants.

However, that plan has been challenged in court and a ruling from the Supreme Court is expected before it goes on break. The court typically goes on break in mid-to-late June, but it is unknown when exactly that break will being this year.

It is unclear how a ruling in favor of the Biden plan would impact the resumption of payments for those who are expected to begin paying again in October.
MACKINAC ISLAND, MI - Sitting at the eastern edge of the Straits of Mackinac, Mackinac Island is known for offering its visitors big helpings of shoreline eye candy. Waterfront views are everywhere as you pedal around the island. Even most street-ends offer peeks of blue as youre walking downtown.

While there are a handful of waterfront restaurants on Mackinac, only one makes you feel like youre sitting right on the edge of the Straits. Mission Point Resorts newly renovated Round Island Kitchen offers an up-close view like no other. Its wall of windows overlooking the water opens up a wide-angle panorama of two Great Lakes. The entrance to Lake Huron is on the east side, while Lake Michigan and the iconic Mackinac Bridge are to the west.

The vantage point offers a prime viewing spot for huge freighters motoring past this sprawling resorts Great Lawn dotted with its signature Adirondack chairs on the islands sunrise side.

Even if youve seen it before, this years view is even more expansive thanks to a huge construction project that dressed Round Island Kitchen in a whole new color palette and a full-on waterfront feel.

It used to be when you walked in, you couldnt see the water because there was a very large fireplace right in the middle of the room, said Liz Ware, vice president of sales and marketing for the resort, and the daughter of owner Denny Ware. Removing the fireplace immediately opened up the view. Now people sitting anywhere in the restaurant can get that lovely waterfront vista, not just those seated near the newly-built round bar.

People were afraid that we were doing too much, and that it wasnt going to be right, but when you walk in, and you look out, and you see the Straits of Mackinac and a freighter going by and its wide-open space ... its amazing.

Mission Point Resort's newly renovated Round Island Kitchen has a wide-open view of Lake Huron and the Straits of Mackinac area. Photo provided by Michigan Sky Media.

The Mission Point team had a busy winter - and it shows. It was one of Mackinacs biggest off-season construction projects, with work crews ripping out flooring, installing new features and furniture, and hauling stones from miles away on the island using horse-drawn drays.

When the Ware family opened the resort for the 2023 season in late April, they unveiled several spaces with new looks, including a redesigned Main Lobby that features a huge, inviting space theyre calling the islands newest living room.

Round Island Kitchen at Mission Point Resort pictured on Mackinac Island on May 24, 2023. The restaurant and bar has incredible views of Lake Huron and passing freighters. (Neil Blake | MLive.com)Neil Blake | MLive.com

Some highlights, as explained by the Mission Point team:

Farm-to-Ferry Dining at Round Island Kitchen: Just steps away from the Main Lobby and new living room space, the popular Round Island Kitchen has a new round bar framed by the spots amazing waterfront view.

The round bar optimizes the seating for guests to enjoy the incredible lake views. In keeping with the commitment to using Michigan-based companies when possible, Grand Rapids Chair Company was chosen to build custom tables and chairs for the restaurant. The beautiful log design of the ceiling is now a focal point with the light, bright colors of the fabrics, flooring and painted walls.

Some of the photos shown here were taken by Its Wonderful Photography and Michigan Sky Media.

The newly-refurbished Round Island Kitchen at Mission Point Resort. Photo provided by Mission Point and It's Wonderful Photography.

Expanded outdoor seating: Diners can also enjoy expanded al fresco seating on the restaurants patio under state-of-the-art heated pergolas that can detect rain and close the louvers when necessary. These enhancements will allow guests to enjoy the propertys farm-to-ferry dining, handcrafted from the freshest of ingredients brought to the island via ferry from local Michigan farmers, such as Open Sky Farms, Carrick Farms, Massey Fishery and Griffin Beverage Company.

See MLives video of Liz Ware talking about all the 2023 renovations here:

Ordering a drink at the bar and settling in to freighter-watch or people-watch is a great way to cap an island afternoon. Try the Spicy Mango Margarita, some of their house-made sangria, or celebrate the day with a Cherry Prosecco Smash, which swirls dark cherries, agave, lemon juice and prosecco into vodka.

If youre there for a meal, youll find new and delicious items on the Round Island Kitchens menu. Some highlights:

Breakfast lovers and Eggs Benedict fans might zero in on the Northern Michigan Benny, which pairs poached eggs with smoked whitefish and a dill hollandaise on a toasted English muffin. Or the Croque Madame, which layers local grilled ham, an egg and gruyere cheese on toasted brioche bread.

For snackers, the Parmesan Truffle Fries were a big hit on a recent trip. And charcuterie lovers will find all kinds of fun surprises tucked into The Pretzel Board.

The tulips at Mission Point Resort are pictured on Mackinac Island on May 24, 2023. The resort is located east of downtown on the sunrise side of the island. (Neil Blake | MLive.com)Neil Blake | MLive.com

Headed to Mackinac Islands Mission Point Resort? Some fun things to know before you go:

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Juneteenth is almost here which means many people throughout Michigan are gearing up to celebrate the holiday on Monday, June 19.

This is the third year Juneteenth has been recognized as a federal holiday after President Joe Biden signed legislation establishing it in 2021.

Juneteenth commemorates June 19, 1865 when Union Army Maj. Gen. Gordon Granger announced emancipation to Texas slaves. This announcement came two and a half years after President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation which freed all enslaved people within the Confederacy.

Many people are planning to commemorate Juneteenth not only on Monday, but during the days leading up to the holiday with marches, flag raisings, celebrations and parades.

Discover what Juneteenth events are going on throughout Michigan with the links below:

Grand Rapids:

How to celebrate Juneteenth 2023 in Grand Rapids

Muskegon:

Where to celebrate Juneteenth 2023 in Muskegon County

Ann Arbor:

Where to celebrate Juneteenth in Washtenaw County

Flint:

Heres a look at Juneteenth celebrations in Flint, Genesee County

Kalamazoo:

10 ways to celebrate Juneteenth around Kalamazoo in 2023

Saginaw:

Juneteenths rise as a holiday will keep Saginaw busy with events this week

Jackson:

Panels, plays and music: Heres where to celebrate Juneteenth in Jackson County

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LIVINGSTON COUNTY, MI - Livingston County leaders are cracking down on what kinds of events can be advertised by public bodies under the countys jurisdiction after a newsletter appearing on its website promoted Pride Month.

The restrictions sparked backlash from residents who called them a disservice to the LGBTQ+ community and a roadblock to providing much-needed services. But Republican Livingston County Commissioner Wes Nakagiri, who brought forward the limitations, insists theyre not targeted at any particular group.

I didnt think it was appropriate that these events be promoted under the banner of the county, just like I wouldnt be supportive of the county promoting (National Rifle Association) events, or the county supporting or promoting Proud Boys events, he said during the county boards Monday, June 12 meeting.

By a voice vote, the all-Republican board passed a resolution sponsored by Nakagiri that prohibits any entity appointed by the county board from promoting events or activities that are not clearly within the scope of the particular entitys mission.

At issue was a newsletter published on May 25 by the Livingston County Human Services Collaborative Body, a 26-member planning group that coordinates services ranging from support for the homelessness to mental health care.

The publication included a half-page listing of 2023 Pride events from the Livingston Diversity Council and Pride Alliance of Livingston, including a rainbow reception, Pride parade and trivia night.

Nakagiris resolution stated that promoting private events is unacceptable, and the events didnt involve coordinating health and human services across systems, as is the Human Services Collaborative Bodys mission.

A celebration, if you will, a party that was advertised in the newsletter doesnt fit into the mission, he said in an interview with MLive/The Ann Arbor News.

That logic doesnt sit right with Nicole Matthews-Creech, executive director of the nonprofit Livingston Diversity Council, the group behind the promotion and whose roots go back to a Howell cross-burning incident in the late 1980s and efforts to combat the history of the Ku Klux Klan in Livingston County.

Read more: A tale of two towns: Newest racial incident has Howell facing its past

While she said she couldnt speculate on the intentions behind the resolution and whether it was aimed at restricting specifically LGBTQ+ events, Matthews-Creech said in an interview with MLive/The Ann Arbor News that she found the measure questionable.

The Pride events are a time where LGBTQ+ community members are connected with services, from support for food insecurity, domestic violence or disability, she said, in line with the mission of the Human Services Collaborative Body. The body has previously promoted similar activities, she said.

The restriction of access to resources is a really slippery slope, Matthews-Creech said.

Livingston County residents, including members of the Human Services Collaborative Body, also showed up at Mondays meeting to criticize the restrictions, some saying they would only send the message that Livingston County is a place unwelcoming of LGBTQ+ people.

The issue could have been resolved through discussion with the bodys executive committee, said Stacy Farrell, who fills a citizens seat with the group and called the measure an iron-fist resolution.

Im sure you can see how offensive this is to the folks actually doing the work in the community, Farrell said.

Livingston County Community Mental Health Executive Director Connie Conklin, also a member of the body, said the collaborative structure is a model in Michigan and helps avoid duplication of services. The resolution limits the ability to share information with community members and could make it harder to recruit and retain staff to fill provider positions in the county, she said.

Along with the needs that have been expanded, so has the diversity of our community, but you will only see what youre looking for. As human services agencies we must pivot to meet the needs of all the people in our community, she said.

Other county residents, like Jenn Slack, shared difficult experiences as members of the LGBTQ+ community in Livingston County. I go to events like Pride to make sure kids do not feel the way I felt when I grew up here. No kid deserves to feel like they have to live in fear, like they have to hide a part of themselves, Slack said.

Ahead of the vote on the measure, Nakagiri said he the resolution was being misrepresented, adding it didnt single out Pride events. He is strongly opposed to the county opposing events from any private entity, he said.

While some of his fellow commissioners questioned the wisdom of making county policy in response to a specific incident, a motion to table the resolution failed, and it passed with a majority in favor on a voice vote.

As of Tuesday morning, the Human Services Collaborative Body newsletter is still available on Livingston Countys website. County Administrator Nathan Burd wrote in an email that the resolution did not require its removal, and it will apply to publications going forward.

He will serve as the point of contact for questions from boards and committees over what it applies to, Burd said.

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FLINT, MI  Two men charged in connection with the death of a Burton teen in what authorities previously described as a fatal game of Russian roulette pleaded guilty Tuesday afternoon in Genesee County District Court.

Denver Aaron-Joshua Diffin, 21, and Carter Joseph-William Gorham, 20, each appeared before District Court Judge G. David Guinn Tuesday, June 13, and pleaded guilty as charged to involuntary manslaughter, a 15-year felony, in the October 2020 death of 17-year-old Zander Smith.

While neither defendant pulled the trigger of the gun that was used in Smiths death, prosecutors said the defendants aided and abetted Smiths reckless use of a firearm when he shot and killed himself.

The defendants said they were drinking alcohol and smoking marijuana when they, along with Smith and a third co-defendant, Damean Randall Thompson, were together on Oct. 24, 2020, at a home in Burton.

Earlier in the day, the teens had been shooting the handgun. The defendants said they knew the gun was operable and that ammunition was available but were unaware it was loaded at the time Smith was holding it.

Both men said they did not take the gun when Smith was playing with it and did not stop him from messing with it.

As a result of allowing him to keep handling the gun, Smith ended up shooting himself, according to Tuesdays testimony.

Both Diffin and Gorham were previously scheduled for pleas before Circuit Court Judge Elizabeth A. Kelly in April following an agreement that would have seen both receive Holmes Youthful Trainee status.

However, their cases were remanded to district court when a factual basis could not be reached at part of the plea.

HYTA is a discretionary sentence where a person who pleads guilty to a crime committed while they were 17-20 years old may, with the youths consent and without entering an adjudication of guilt, be assigned the status of a youthful trainee.

The person may be placed on probation or committed to jail or prison. Once this period is successfully completed, the court will dismiss the charge.

If the person fails to successfully complete the terms of probation, the judge may terminate HYTA status, enter an adjudication of guilty and sentence the defendant.

Thompson has already pleaded guilty in exchange for HYTA consideration. He was scheduled for sentencing before Kelly on Monday, but the hearing was adjourned as those involved in the case waited to see what came from Tuesdays hearing with his co-defendants.

The three defendants were charged after Burton police officers responded Oct. 24, 2020, to a reported shooting in the 1400 block of South Packard Avenue. They found Smith unresponsive after suffering a lone gunshot wound to his head.

Police determined Smith, along with three other teens, had been playing Russian roulette.

Both men will remain free on bond ahead of their sentencing date, which is scheduled for Aug. 7 before Kelly.

Read more at The Flint Journal:

Burton police investigate teens death in Russian roulette game

Second Michigan teen arraigned on manslaughter charge in Russian roulette death of friend

Father says it makes no sense not charging adult in teens Russian roulette death at Burton home
FLINT, MI -- The cost of settling a sweeping racial discrimination and sexual harassment lawsuit against the city of Flint has risen past the half-million-dollar mark after the City Council agreed to settle the last five claims on Monday, June 12.

Initially filed by 17 current or former city employees, the 2019 Genesee Circuit Court lawsuit accused the city, former Police Chief Tim Johnson, and former Flint Human Resources Director Makini Jackson of wrongdoing.

All but one of the plaintiffs in the lawsuit are white, according to court records, and each of the plaintiffs alleged they were either demoted, discriminated against during the hiring process or harassed for being white.

Mondays action settled the claims of former police sergeants Esther Campbell ($75,000), Troy Simpson ($30,000) and Dominic Tefft ($30,000); Carissa Dotson, a former account supervisor ($29,000); and Katheleen Villareal, who applied for a deputy treasurer position after working as an assistant operation supervisor ($25,000).

In January, five other original defendants also agreed to settle their cases for $360,000.

The City Council agreed to settle the last five claims after consulting with attorneys in a closed session on Monday. Had they not settled the case, the city faced the prospect of defending itself against claims of widespread racial discrimination inside City Hall during the tenure of former Mayor Karen Weaver.

The lawsuit claims the city made hiring decisions based on race, retaliated against employees who raised objections, and condoned sexual harassment -- particularly in the police department.

The largest known settlement in the case to date involved former police officer Mary Buszek, who settled her portion of the case for $175,000 in January.

Buszek, a white woman who was hired as a police officer in 1998, alleged she was sexually harassed by two high-level officials within the police department.

After she refused sexual advances, the lawsuit claims, Buszek was unfairly disciplined and was investigated by the city for an anonymous complaint that she had been rude while at work.

In 2018, she and other white police officers were reassigned from the departments Detective Bureau to patrol, the lawsuit says, and one month later, Buszek was suspended based on an allegation that she assaulted another officer.

Campbell, a white woman who received the largest settlement on Monday, said she was hired to work for the city in 1996 and achieved the rank of sergeant, working with the Crime Area Target Team.

The lawsuit claims she was removed from her position in February 2018 and assigned to a much less recognized or prestigious position in the department. It says she excelled in her work despite significant racially derogatory comments and criticisms from African American supervisors and co-workers.

After Campbell was removed from one case, a police captain allegedly told her, a whitey shouldnt be investigating this case.

The city has declined to comment on the case.

The council approved the settlement in a 6-0 vote on Monday with council member Jerri Winfrey-Carter (Ward 5) abstaining from the vote.

Council members Eric Mays (Ward 1) and Quincy Murphy (Ward 3) were not present for the vote.

Winfrey-Carter said she preferred not to vote on all the settlements in a single vote.

Read more at The Flint Journal:

Flint to pay $360K to settle sexual harassment, racial discrimination claims

17 sue Flint on claims of sexual harassment, race discrimination

Feuding Flint City Council takes a break from itself -- cancels two June meetings

Want more Flint-area news? Bookmark the local Flint news page or sign up for the free 3@3 Flint daily newsletter.

Their lawsuit alleges widespread racial discrimination inside City Hall during the tenure of former Mayor Karen Weaver, claiming the city made hiring decisions based on race, retaliated against employees who raised objections, and condoned sexual harassment, particularly in the police department.

All but one of the 17 employees who joined in the lawsuit are white, according to court records, and each alleged they were either demoted, discriminated against during the hiring process, treated unfairly or harassed on the job.

In January, the city settled with five employees
GRAND RAPIDS, MI  A man who as a teenager orchestrated an armed robbery that resulted in the shooting death of a local restaurant manager was given a chance at parole when a judge gave him a reduced prison sentence.

Cody Jerome Skaggs was serving a life sentence on a second-degree murder charge for his role in the 1996 killing of 31-year-old Richard Morris, the night manager at Lennies Place in Wyoming. Skaggs was 16 at the time.

Yet in 2012, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that a mandatory life sentence was cruel and unusual punishment for a juvenile. The court ordered juveniles be resentenced.

Skaggs, now 43, appeared before Kent County Circuit Judge J. Joseph Rossi on Wednesday, June 14, for his resentencing hearing. Rossi gave Skaggs a reduced sentence of 25-75 years in prison on the murder charge with credit for 8,845 days  or about 24 years  already served.

Even though I know its been a number of years since this happened, it still weighs on me, Skaggs said. I cant bring anyone back, but its been on my mind and conscious.

Skaggs was one of three people charged in the killing. He worked in the kitchen at Lennies Place but was fired about two weeks before the robbery, according to stories in MLive/The Grand Rapids Press archives.

Ricardo Malloy, then-19, and Chauncy Mahone, then-16, were Skaggs two accomplices in the July 13, 1996 attack inside the Wyoming restaurant. Investigators said it was Skaggs idea to rob the restaurant, and he enlisted the two other suspects to help.

That night, Malloy confronted Morris in a basement office and shots rang out after Morris lunged at Malloy.

The robbers then stepped around the fallen man to scoop up money. A few minutes later, they fled the restaurant and pedaled away.

The way you can right the wrong is to do the best you can in life going forward, Rossi told Skaggs on Wednesday at sentencing.

Out of the trio of men, Skaggs is the only one still lodged in a state prison. Mahone was discharged from parole in 2021 and Malloy a year later, according to the Michigan Department of Corrections.

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GRAND RAPIDS, MI  Amid heightened concerns about homelessness, the Grand Rapids City Commission has approved $500,000 to provide temporary housing for 44 unhoused residents who congregate downtown on Monroe Center  the areas main retail corridor  and Louis Campau Promenade.

The funds were approved on the same day the commission received a presentation on a pair of ordinances that would penalize harassing someone near an ATM or bus stop, and for storing personal property at parks or on sidewalks. The ordinances were crafted in response to concerns, raised by the downtown business community in December, about aggressive panhandling, public urination, street fights and people laying in business doorways.
ST. JOSEPH COUNTY, MI - A motorcyclist was killed in a June 10 crash in a St. Joseph County township, state police said.

Troopers responded to reports of a single-vehicle crash on a private property in Maystead Road in Burr Oak Township just north of the Michigan-Indiana border, said the Michigan State Police in a June 13 release.

The driver, a 60-year-old Sturgis man, lost control of his motorcycle and struck a tree head-on, police said. The man was declared dead at the scene, police said.

A passenger was taken to Bronson Hospital with injuries that were not life-threatening, police said.

The driver was not wearing a helmet at the time of the crash, police said. Neither drugs nor alcohol are considered factors in the crash, police said.

The crash remains under investigation. Michigan State Police received assistance from Burr Oak Fire Department and Lifecare Ambulance.

Want more Kalamazoo-area news? Bookmark the local Kalamazoo news page or sign up for the free 3@3 Kalamazoo daily newsletter.

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BEAVERTON, MI  In his younger years, Scott W. Eckert battled drug addiction and was often absent from his daughters lives, his work taking him beyond his native Michigan for months at a stretch. Over the past decade, Eckert was committed to making amends, overcoming his substance abuse and emerging as a pillar in his family.

He had a lot of guilt from not being around all the time and having a drug addiction, said his daughter, 33-year-old Crista Eckert. He felt like he didnt do what he should have as a father. A week before my dad died, he called and asked if he was a good dad. Hes asked me that a few times in the last year. He just wanted to know if he was good. I made sure he knew how proud I was every day.

Mending relationships with his daughters and becoming a daily presence in his grandchildrens lives, Eckert also grew into an animal lover and a fixture of his local church. In his spare time, he used his innate creativity to convert a school bus into a RV, in which he planned to see the country with his family.

I was excited for the years to come, for our future, Crista said.

So proud was she of her fathers changed ways, Crista named the youngest of her five children after him. Considering her fathers past, bestowing his name on her own son was not something she took lightly.

I never felt he deserved that, but my last child I named after him because we finally had the relationship that I wanted, she said. He couldnt have been more proud. He was thrilled, more than thrilled.

Daily, Scott Eckert would videochat with his 2-year-old grandson, Henry Scott Brown, whose first name comes from his paternal grandfather.

In the week since Eckert was shot to death inside his Beaverton home, the toddler has yet to grasp the reality of his grandfathers passing. The boy keeps picking up the phone, still expecting to see his grandfathers face, hear his grandfathers voice.

He says, I wanna talk to Grandpa. He wants to talk to Papa, Papa, Papa, said Crista Eckert.

About 4:30 a.m. on June 6, police responded to a home invasion and shooting inside Eckerts home on Lot 50 within Lakefront Estates, a mobile home park at 385 W. Brown Road. Eckerts girlfriend was also assaulted during the incident but survived.

A potential suspect was arrested in neighboring Isabella County a few hours later, though he has yet to face charges related to the homicide as of June 13. Police have released no additional details.

The home of Scott W. Eckert within Lakefront Estates in Beaverton, within Gladwin County. Eckert was fatally shot inside his residence the morning of June 6, 2023.

Crista Eckert, often laughing through her tears as she recalled her father, said she is at a loss to make sense of the killing.

When I got the phone call, I thought I was in a nightmare, she said. I still have a hard time wrapping my mind around it. I could see this happening to him during his drug days, but not now.

Scott Eckert was born in Blue Lake but grew up in Holton Township, on Michigans west side. There, he developed an addiction to methamphetamines and later moved to Beaverton in hopes of getting clean, as a relative would employ him at a business there and provide a sober environment.

Over the years, he fathered three daughters, Crista being the oldest. He would often work in construction and logging, his jobs taking him away from Michigan for months.

Eckert attained sobriety about 10 years ago, allowing him to foster better relationships with his family.

They were the best years I had with him, Crista said. I have five kids and my dad was not always there for me when I was younger, but he was always there for my kids and he was there for me with them.

Crista talked with her father every day and they began collaborating on turning a school bus  which they bought last year in Chicago  into an RV. Eckert was inspired by Skooliepalooza, a community-driven event that self-describes as a gathering of people who live and travel in converted school buses (skoolies), vans and other nomadic vehicles.

Eckerts work on the conversion was nearly done when he was killed, Crista said.

The day before he died, he sent me pictures of the stove he had just put in it, she said. He had so much fire underneath him. Hed been calling us, asking if we were ready to go to the U.P. That was going to be our first trip. He couldnt wait.

Eckert was also a rock and heavy metal aficionado, his favorite band being Metallica. He had a harsh sense of humor and was passionate about Native American history and culture.

After living in Florida for a few years, Crista Eckert moved back to Michigan to be near her father, she said.

Once he got sober, me and my dad were best friends, she said. I could tell him anything. I knew my dad wasnt going to judge me. Thats the one thing about it, I always had a friend, somebody I could call and count on to give me the best advice I could get. Hed be soft and gentle with me but serious.

Previously not a religious man, Eckert began attending Beaverton Church of The Nazarene, even getting baptized a few months ago. He would often pass out food at the church and would bring along his now-13-year-old granddaughter, Kiley Gonzalez, her mother said.

Eckert also at one point took in a cat named Baby, whose hind legs were paralyzed.

He was very protective of that cat, Crista said. He was very nurturing and would put diapers on her, with a hole cut out of her tail. She served him perfectly with her name, as was definitely my dads baby.

About a year ago, Crista and her kids moved from Beaverton to Twin Lake. Wanting to let Kiley finish the school year in Beaverton, Crista allowed her to live with her grandfather for a few months.

When she was there, he felt like he had a job to do, Crista said.

As a result of how close she got to her grandfather in those months, Kiley is taking his death the hardest of Cristas children. At nighttime, she listens to an audio recording of her grandfathers voice on repeat.

Its just him saying, Grandchildren, I love you, and he singles each one of them out, Crista said. Its comforting to hear that. At the end of the day, he loved being a grandpa and he never failed at it.

Through all the ups and downs, the challenges and past angers, Crista said her father proved there is always room for growth and improvement.

I saw a completely different person in the end than what I saw 15 years prior, she said. I was angry with him because of the drugs. I keep trying to tell myself, In the last 10 years, he has really gotten to bond with my kids.

Though she doesnt know many of the circumstances of her fathers death, she said his girlfriend told her he was in bed when he heard an intruder making noise. The intruder told him not to move, then shot him, she said.

She has been in regular contact with a detective on the case, she added. She prays the person arrested in Isabella County, whose name she did not recognize, is indeed her fathers killer.

Im at a loss for words because of it, she said. I cant sleep. I want closure.

Her fathers body released into her care on June 12, Crista said the plan is for Hall-Kokotovich Funeral Home in Gladwin to handle services, the specifics of which are pending. One of her sisters plans to wear a black dress with patches of band names and logos sewn onto it, she said.

Dad would frickin dig that, Crista said with a chuckle. He would be so proud.

Her fathers body will be cremated, his ashes then be a fixture on his skoolie RV, which the family plans to name Dads Oasis and take on numerous excursions around the country.

He wanted to travel the world, to do everything and see everything once, and he wanted do it with his family, Crista said. Its going to be a family bus and well keep a special little spot for his ashes. His name, his memory, wont be forgotten by anybody in this family. His memory is going to be just as much alive as when he was here.

Want more Bay City- and Saginaw-area news? Bookmark the local Bay City and Saginaw news page or sign up for the free 3@3 daily newsletter for Bay City and Saginaw.

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With a new heart, Chris Kowalski traveled to Montana from Michigan in 2016. He participated in the 2018 Transplant Games of America and hiked at Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming.

I could go up trails I couldnt before because I was so short of breath, it was just ridiculous how long it would take me to go to the top, Kowalski said. After the transplant, it was a true blessing that I was able to do such things.

But only a year later, Kowalski, 59, of Grandville had to undergo a procedure to correct a blockage in the new heart. The condition put him back on the organ waiting list, where hes remained since December 2019.

Its scary, Kowalski said. At any time, I hate to say it, but sudden cardiac death is a reality for me.

Kowalski is one of 2,400 Michigan adults who are hoping to receive an organ transplant that could potentially save their lives as the state struggles to secure people willing to donate.

To increase the number, legislation pending in the state house, sponsored by Rep. Felicia Brabec, D-Pittsfield Township, would allow people to join the registry through their annual tax returns.

Related: Michigan organ donor registry growing at slowest pace since its creation

About 95% of organ donors now register through the Secretary of State, but when the COVID-19 pandemic hit, protocol changes at offices led to a reduction in in-person appointments and a new policy allowing for more online license renewals resulted in fewer people signing up to be donors.

Theres no way to say it hasnt affected people, but we werent pinpointed, Kowalski said. That wasnt the goal, it was to protect people. We just were just one of the groups that had to be able to pay for it.

Kowalski has suffered from heart problems since a bout of the flu in 1999 led to viral cardiomyopathy, a heart disease that makes it harder for blood to pump to the rest of the body.

He has dealt since with issues putting him at risk of heart attack; open heart surgeries to implant a pacemaker and a defibrillator; and a routine of medications and hospital visits. It has cost Kowalski, who works in medical billing, thousands in out-of-pocket costs.

In 2014, he started experiencing a high heart rate. He said his heart could sometimes reach up to 200 beats per minute, well above the 60 to 100 resting rate for an average adult.

To keep Kowalski alive, doctors attempted to regulate his condition with more medication and additional procedures  once, he crashed on the table.

When we came out of that one, we just decided that transplant was the next avenue to pursue, Kowalski said.

There is no exact timeline for when vital organs like kidney, liver, heart, lungs or pancreas will become available as the supply of donated organs doesnt always meet demand.

Theres always a need, said Bruce Nicely, vice president of clinical operations for Gift of Life Michigan, the states organ and tissue procurement program.

One donor can provide up to eight life-saving organs, but how long someone waits on the transplant list depends on several factors: a recipients compatibility with the donor, the severity of the recipients medical condition, the recipients availability and the distance between the donors hospital and the recipients hospital.

After deciding to go forward with a heart transplant, Kowalskis medical team at Spectrum Health in Grand Rapids increasingly worried about keeping his other organs healthy to get him to the point of transplant, he said.

In the meantime, he was given a left ventricular assist device, or L-VAD. It consists of a computer controller, a utility belt and batteries that help his heart carry blood to the rest of his body.

Kids loved it, Kowalski said. Theyd say Oh, you look like Iron Man!

Unfortunately, he developed a chest staph infection, and the need for a new heart became more urgent. As his doctors weighed options, a nurse delivered news.

She says, Well, we actually got you a heart, Kowalski said. I was like, are you serious?

Kowalski received a heart transplant in April 2016 that, momentarily, changed his way of life.

He was able to return to his beloved Montana, where he had settled since moving from his hometown as a teenager and before his medical condition sent him back to Michigan.

While organ transplants are an effective intervention, Nicely said, theres a 100% chance a persons body will try to fight off the new organ because it receives it as a foreign entity.

The rejection is managed very effectively by the transplant specialists who take care of those patients after transplant, Nicely said. So, theres a constant evaluation looking for the level of rejection, and an adjustment of their medications... just to keep it all smooth and steady.

When Kowalski received his heart transplant, about 58% of adults in Michigan were registered organ donors. In 2023, that number has dropped 2%.

Across the country, more than 50% of heart transplant recipients lives are extended by at least seven years, a 2019 study reports, but the success rate of repeated transplantation is somewhat diminished.

I just put my faith in a higher power and leave it at that because I cant afford to waste time and worry, Kowalski said. Worry doesnt do any good.

Both Nicely and Kowalski emphasized the importance of educating people about organ donation.

A volunteer for Gift of Life Michigan, Kowalski visits schools and groups talking about the organization and what organ donating means. He works to dispel myths possibly preventing people from becoming donors. Most commonly, people think doctors wont try to save their lives if they are donors.

That is totally false because the people trying to save you have no clue if youre an organ donor, he said. That is not done by the hospital, the hospital will contact Gift of Life after death.

Kowalski remembers his organ donor fondly and believes he is helping carry on the donors legacy. He connected with the donors relatives and attended a family birthday party about a year ago.

Two years ago, he helped start a Detroit Red Wings charity game. Proceeds go to organ donors, their families and volunteers.

The gratitude is there, he said. Some of us dont know how to put it into words. Its really tough. As a donor, youve changed lives. Some people dont know how to deal with that. On the other side, some families dont know how to deal with that either.

While he waits for another heart, Kowalski keeps relatively active playing pickleball, cornhole and bowling while enjoying life with his wife, Jane.

To people considering becoming organ donors, Kowalski says its important to think about the lives they would change.

Even if its one person, thats huge because youre also extending their time with family and friends.

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The Recording Academy, which organizes the Grammy Awards, announced that it will be adding three new award categories in 2024.

These new categories are Best African Music Performance, Best Alternative Jazz Album, and Best Pop Dance Recording.

Additionally, the Producer of the Year and Songwriter of the Year categories will be moved to the General Field, allowing all Grammy voters to vote in those categories.

The new categories were approved by the Recording Academys Board of Trustees at its meeting held in May.

The CEO of the Recording Academy, Harvey Mason Jr., said the changes demonstrate the organizations commitment to representing diverse and evolving musical genres.

"The Recording Academy is proud to announce these latest Category changes to our Awards process. These changes reflect our commitment to actively listen and respond to the feedback from our music community, accurately represent a diverse range of relevant musical genres, and stay aligned with the ever-evolving musical landscape," Recording Academy CEO Harvey Mason jr. said.

"By introducing these three new categories, we are able to acknowledge and appreciate a broader array of artists - and relocating the Producer Of the Year and Songwriter Of The Year categories to the General Field ensures that all our voters can participate in recognizing excellence in these fields, Mason continued.

We are excited to honor and celebrate the creators and recordings in these categories, while also exposing a wider range of music to fans worldwide, said the CEO as quoted by the Academys news release on Tuesday, June 13.

The new categories will expose more music to audiences and honor more creators.

The Best African Music Performance category will recognize recordings that feature unique musical styles from across Africa, including genres like Afrobeat, Afro-pop, Ethio jazz, and South African hip hop.

The Best Pop Dance Recording category will recognize upbeat, danceable pop songs with a focus on vocals, melody, and electronic instrumentation.

The Best Alternative Jazz Album category will recognize genre-blending jazz albums that incorporate contemporary production techniques and blend jazz with genres like R&B, hip hop, classical, pop, and electronic music.

The Recording Academy considers proposals to update award categories, procedures, and eligibility guidelines from music industry members year-round.

An awards and nominations committee made up of Grammy voters from different genres then reviews the proposals annually.

The Recording Academy is excited about the changes that will debut at the 2024 Grammy Awards.

The organization said it will release more details about the awards show, described by them as Musics Biggest Night, when they become available.
14.06.2023 LISTEN

A Kumasi-based businessman of international repute, Alhaji Musa Abubakari has said the country stands a better chance to rebuild the economy if the citizens choose visionary, focused, responsible, disciplined and selfless leaders to manage its affairs.

According to the businessman who doubles as the Managing Director of Basfam Company Ltd in Kumasi, he disagrees with the notion that Ghana is poor.

Speaking to this correspondent in an exclusive interview, Alhaji Abubakari said Ghana is blessed with natural resources like gold, oil, bauxite, cocoa, manganese, diamond, timber among others that could undoubtedly enrich the country's population.

Alhaji Abubakari who is also the Southern Sector Chief distributor of Tamanaa Rice Company Ltd's rice products, observed that all natural resources are underutilized bringing nothing except poverty and hunger.

The outspoken businessman who also acts as Chairman of the Muslims Executive Foundation (MEF) a pro-Islamic movement in Kumasi lacks serious leaders who have the country at heart.

"Our leaders today like free free things and don't want to work hard to archive positive results for the nation. Craving for quick monies and external loans have become their stock in trade, putting behind them, the good policies that could address the problems of the people," he stated.

To reverse the trend the businessman urged leaders to be proactive, change their mindsets and find better solutions to the challenges confronting the country for the benefit of all.
Founder and leader of the Life Assemblies Worship Centre in Kumasi in the Ashanti region, Rev Christian Kwabena Andrews popularly known as Osofo Kyiriabosom has asked the founder of the Perez Chapel International Charles Agyin-Asare to ignore Nogokpo.

The chiefs and people of Nogokpo in the Volta Rgion gave Archbishop Charles Agyin-Asare a 14-day ultimatum to appear before them for describing the town as a "demonic headquarters."

But commenting on a Kumasi-based Hello FM on its morning show Osofo Kyiriabosom asked Bishop Agyin Asare never to appear before Nogokpo.

Osofo Kyiriabosom said his reputation as a powerful man of God will be damaged if he honours the invitation.

"The power of God supersedes the powers of the Nogokpe shrine, therefore as a true representative of God, Charles Agyin-Asare should know where he stands and ignore the shrine.

"You will disgrace the priesthood if you honour the invitation. Allow them to challenge God and see the consequences," Osofo Kyiriabosom stated.

Citing a case to buttress his claim, Osofo Kyiriabosom indicated that he had the same encounter in Kumasi about two years ago when the traditional priests of the Antoanyamaa invited him to appear before their shrine over a comment he made against the deity.

The man of God said he flatly rejected the invitation based on a belief that God is more powerful than any shrine.

According to him, his action incurred the wrath of the Antoanyamaa priests who invoked curses on him.

Osofo Kyiriabosom added that two years after the encounter nothing has happened to him as his church continue to grow from strength to strength due to the power of God upon him.
A nonresident hunter alerted conservation officers from the Idaho Department of Fish and Game after mistakenly killing a grizzly bear.

According to a news release from the agency, the unidentified hunter, who is cooperating with an investigation, was hunting north of Upper Priest Lake in the Idaho Panhandle and mistook the animal for a black bear. Grizzly bears are listed as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act and cannot be hunted in the lower 48 states. Black bears are classified as a big game animal in Idaho and can be hunted in the spring and fall.

Idaho has small grizzly bear populations in and around the Selkirk and Cabinet mountains in far northern Idaho and adjacent to Yellowstone National Park in eastern Idaho. Grizzlies occasionally wander into the Clearwater Region, part of the Bitterroot Recovery Zone in central Idaho, which has been identified as having habitat suitable for the great bears.

On June 1, a coalition of conservation groups sent letters to Idaho Fish and Game and the Wyoming Game and Fish Department urging the wildlife management agencies to adopt rules that would require black bear hunters to take and pass a bear identification course.

Montana has such a course. Idaho has bear identification material on its website, and in its big game hunting regulation booklet the state lists hunting units where grizzlies are or may be present.

The groups, which include the Moscow-based Friends of the Clearwater, would like the two states to go further and said cases of mistaken identity are too common. It happened 14 times between 2010 and 2022 in the Greater Yellowstone Region, they said. Then in May, a Wyoming man shot and killed a grizzly he allegedly mistook for a black bear. The man, who turned himself in, was charged with killing or taking a grizzly without license or authority, according to a report in the Cowboy State Daily.

In 2007, a hunter from Tennessee shot and killed a grizzly bear in the upper reaches of Kelly Creek, a tributary to the North Fork of the Clearwater River in Idaho. That hunter also believed he was shooting at a black bear and turned himself in.

All hunters are responsible for knowing their target, but wildlife managers have a heightened obligation when they allow black bear hunting in grizzly country, said Lizzy Pennock, carnivore coexistence attorney at WildEarth Guardians in a June 1 news release. Licensing bear hunters without certifying their ability to differentiate between a grizzly bear and a black bear is simply reckless  Wyoming and Idaho should require this common-sense measure to curtail these senseless deaths.

Jeff Juel, of Friends of the Clearwater, said simple steps like an identification test would help protect grizzlies and serve to educate hunters about the bears.

Without knowing what happened and what that persons level of experience was, it couldnt have hurt to have somebody go through a class on how to identify grizzly bears, he said of the incident near Priest Lake. Even in the process of doing that they might gain some appreciation of the species, what its about and the role it fills.

Idahos bear identification material is available at idfg.idaho.gov/hunt/bear-info/overview.
13.06.2023 LISTEN

Deputy National Communications Officer for the National Democratic Congress ( NDC), Malik Basintale has criticized President Akufo-Addos reaction towards the Mempeasem chief.

He stated that the President could have better demonstrated some level of decorum in registering his displeasure at the action of the chief at the said event.

The Deputy Communications Officer of the NDC believes chastising the chief as though he was a child was totally unnecessary.

Speaking on the issue on June 13 2023,TV3 New Day Morning Show with Roland Walker in reaction to the viral video, Malik Basindale made the following remarks.

We were trained that even when an elderly person goofs in public, you dont look into his eyes and tell him you have lied, you dont attack and criticize him just the way you want to do, this is a traditional ruler for God sake, this is a man who came with an entourage, this is a man who leads the sovereignty of a section of the state, just because the man may have aired in your opinion, you think that the best way to vent and be angry and demonstrate in public as if the man was some child or some small boy.

According to him, the President acted same in the Upper East Region by disrespecting the people of the region and Ghanaians at large by addressing the crowd while standing on the Ghana Flag.

Let me remind you of something, that in the Upper East Region, he stood on the Ghana flag and addressed the crowd, he stated.

In a viral video from the 2023 edition of the Green Ghana Day Celebration, which was organized at the University of Ghana, the President was seen angrily directing the Greater Accra Regional Minister, Henry Quartey, to order the chief to stand up and observe the national anthem.

The chief was seated while the national anthem was being observed by the patrons including the President.

In an apology letter, the chief explained that he was unable to stand for the national anthem due to ill health.

He said he didn't stand to observe the national anthem because he was weak.
Malik Basintale, the Deputy Communications Officer of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) has stated that President Akufo-Addo cannot act as if he is God.

He said the President must show dignity and respect and stop his fury at Chiefs.

The Deputy Communications Officer argued that even the Almighty God allows people to even sit and pray to Him.

In reaction to a viral video from the 2023 edition of the Green Ghana Day Celebration, which was organized at the University of Ghana, the President was seen angrily directing the Greater Accra Regional Minister, Henry Quartey, to order the Chief of Mempeasem to stand up and observe the national anthem.

The Chief of Mempeasem was seated while the national anthem was being observed by those present including the President.

Malik Basintale asserts the Chief symbolizes a group of people and as such deserves much respect.

In exception to people who are sick and are willing to pray to him, he says if you cannot stand, you should sit and pray to him, he will still accept it, President Akufo-Addo is not and cannot be greater than God Almighty, this is a man who is highly respectable, this is a man who is highly respected in his community, this is a man who leads a greater section of people in the community and in fact protects the sovereignty of people in this state if anybody can be declared as unpatriotic, I dont think its any chief in this country, he stated.

He added that this issue could have been treated with calm but the consistency to which the President continues to disrespect traditional rulers must be called to order.

You see, I would have allowed this to slide, but it keeps repeating itself and the extent to which President Akufo-Addo disrespects and disregards chiefs in this country must be called to order.

You remember an Aflao Chief asked President Akufo-Addo to complete and open the E-block, what was the response to him, President Akufo-Addo cheekily told him, that if he had guts and he had balls, he should move on and open that particular E-block, that was the response of President Akufo-Addo, he emphasised.
Sudan's army chief is not ready to meet the enemy general he's been at war with for eight weeks, a government official said Tuesday after a regional bloc proposed a face-to-face encounter between the two.

At a summit held in Djibouti on Monday, the East African Inter-Governmental Authority on Development (IGAD) announced it would expand the number of countries tasked with resolving the crisis, with Kenya chairing a quartet including Ethiopia, Somalia and South Sudan.

Sudanese army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and his former deputy Mohamed Hamdan Daglo, known as Hemeti, have been at war since April 15 after they fell out in a power struggle following a 2021 coup that derailed Sudan's transition to democracy.

A draft communique of the IGAD meeting released by the office of Kenyan President William Ruto said the quartet leaders would "arrange (a) face-to-face meeting between (Burhan and Daglo)... in one of the regional capitals."

The Sudanese government official, not authorised to speak to the media, told AFP that, "in the current circumstances Burhan will not sit at the same table as Hemeti," who commands the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces.

The two generals early in the war described each other as criminals, and both sides have failed to respect multiple truces.

On June 1 the United States imposed sanctions on the two warring groups, but fighting has continued, including in Khartoum on Tuesday where witnesses reported artillery strikes in the north of the capital and its suburbs.

More than 1,800 people have been killed since battles began, according to the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project (ACLED).

Fighting has forced nearly two million people from their homes, including 476,000 who have sought refuge in neighbouring countries, the United Nations says.

A record 25 million people -- more than half the population -- are in need of aid and protection, according to the UN.

Prior to the announcement of the IGAD quartet, the president of South Sudan, Salva Kiir, had led the regional bloc's committee on Sudan, which did not include Ethiopia.

Sudan's foreign ministry said Tuesday that it had reservations about some points in the IGAD statement, and the Sudanese delegation demanded that Kiir stay on as head of the committee.
The United States plans to rejoin Unesco, the United Nations' cultural organisation, five years after the previous administration withdrew its membership over funding requirements and alleged bias against Israel.

The US wants rejoin the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation from July, director-general Audrey Azoulay announced on Monday after receiving word from President Joe Biden's White House.

She called it "a strong act of confidence" in Unesco's mandate to promote international cooperation on culture, education and science.

The US has not been a member of the organisation since the end of 2018, and has not contributed to its budget since 2011.

The country stopped funding Unesco under then president Barack Obama after its other members voted to admit Palestine. A longstanding US law forbids government financing for any UN agency that accepts a Palestinian state as a full member.

Under former president Donald Trump, the US withdrew from Unesco altogether over what it called "continuing anti-Israel bias"  as well as millions of dollars of back payments that it owed.

Over 550 million owed

The current US administration has proposed a financing plan that covers not only their resuming membership fees from July 2023 but also their arrears, "which are considerable", Azoulay told RFI.

"It's excellent news for everyone," she told RFI's Nicolas Falez. "The return of the US as a full member, with its financial obligations."

Prior to 2011, the US contributed nearly a fifth of Unesco's total budget. It's not yet clear whether it has offered to pay the full amount missing for the past 12 years, which is estimated to come to more than 550 million.

Its funding proposal is subject to approval by the 193 members of Unesco. China's representative called for the agency to demand the arrears in full, saying that "being a member of an international organisation is a serious issue".

"We also hope that the US will shoulder its international responsibilities and fulfill its obligations and assure its sincerity to comply with international rules and respect international rule of law," said the Chinese ambassador to Unesco, Jin Yang, who declared that the country's withdrawal had negatively impacted the agency's work.

Soft power

For the US, too, "not being at the table has had a cost," Unesco's Azoulay told RFI.

In its formal request to rejoin, she said, the US cited Unesco's role in setting international standards on "strategic and emerging issues" such as artificial intelligence.

American officials have warned that staying away from Unesco would allow China  Unesco's largest remaining funder  to call the shots on AI, tech education and other key areas, giving its competitor an advantage.

"When we're not at the table shaping that conversation and so actually helping to shape those norms and standards, well, someone else is. And that someone else is probably China," US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said last year.

More broadly, Unesco provides a valuable opportunity to exercise soft power, according to Annick Cizel, a specialist on US foreign policy and international relations at the Sorbonne Nouvelle University in Paris.

Rejoining will allow the US to advocate for science, education and individual liberties amid the rise of disinformation and authoritarianism, notably in China and Russia, she told RFI, saying: "Unesco is in a sense a platform for democracy."

For Biden, heading into a presidential election next year, it is also a chance to distinguish his administration from Trump and others on the right who have pushed to restrict what can be taught in schools and universities in the US itself, Cizel pointed out.

Middle East question

Israel, which pulled out of Unesco shortly after the US, has no objections to its ally rejoining, Blinken has said.

According to Azoulay, who took over the agency in 2018, Washington noted that since then "we have managed to reach consensus on resolutions relating to the Middle East".

"As for Israel, our door is open," she added.

The US had already set the wheels in motion last December when members of Congress from both parties voted for new legislation that authorises funding to Unesco to resume.

It will be the second time that the US has quit Unesco and later come back.

President Ronald Reagan withdrew US membership in 1984 on the grounds of "poor management and values opposed to our own"  only to rejoin in 2002 under George W. Bush, who needed international allies as he prepared to launch the war in Iraq.
14.06.2023 LISTEN

The Deputy National Communications Officer of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), Malik Basintale has expressed his dissatisfaction with President Akufo-Addo's handling of the chief of Mempeasem, Nii Torgbor Obodai Ampaw, who did not stand when the Ghana National Anthem was being sung at the Green Ghana celebration.

During a discussion on TV3's 'New Day' morning show monitored by ModernGhana News, the NDC deputy National Communications officer emphasised the importance of respecting an old tradition where elders, particularly those in positions of authority, deserve to be treated with dignity and respect, even if they make a mistake.

We were taught from a traditional home that even when an elderly man goofs in public, you dont look in his eyes and tell him you have lied. Or you dont attack or criticise him just the way you want to do in public. This is a traditional ruler for Gods sake, he stated.

Mr Basintale criticised the President for publicly venting his anger and demonstrating his disagreement with the traditional ruler as if he were dealing with a child.

This is a man who came with an entourage. This is a man who leads a section of the sovereignty of the state. And just because the man may have erred in your opinion, you think that the best way to address it is to vent your anger and demonstrate it publicly as if the man were some child or some small boy, he expressed.

To back his point, Mr Basintale recalled an incident involving President Akufo-Addo.

He noted that the President at an event in the Upper East Region was seen standing on the Ghana flag while addressing a crowd.

Mr Basintale argued that if the President truly believes in the patriotism he claimed, he would have asked the organisers of the event to treat the national flag with respect.

He said, Let me remind President Akufo-Addo that in the Upper East Region, he stood on the Ghana flag and addressed the crowd. If he were so patriotic as he claimed he would have told them that the Ghana flag he was to stand on was unpatriotic so they should take it.

Mr. Basintale noted that the President was not harrassed when he denigrated the national flag.

If anybody had corrected him the way and manner in which he corrected this particular chief, I dont think that person would still be walking a free man in this country. Is it because hes Commander in Chief? Or is it because he has all the power to do whatever he wants to do? he expressed.
14.06.2023 LISTEN

Sylvester Tetteh, the Member of Parliament for Bortianor-Ngleshie-Amanfro is urging the Ghanaians and the New Patriotic Party (NPP) Caucus to support the presidential bid of Alan Kyerematen.

The Bortianor-Ngleshie-Amanfro MP said Alan's track record of success in public service is proof of his trustworthy persona.

Speaking in an interview on Metro TV Ghana on June 13, Sylvester Tetteh said, We are actually losing confidence in the Ghanaian modern politics, so we need a new face, a new dawn that people will say we are losing interest but for the sake of this man that has held public office that nobody can appoint accusing fingers at him."

He noted that nobody can point accusing fingers at Alan Kyerematen as he is someone who has built his credibility in politics.

He added, He is a man Ghanaians can trust, Ghanaians are waiting for Alan Kyerematen to be the next president so if you are an NPP person and you are going to the polls, dont think about yourself as a delegate, think about yourself as the seventeen million Ghanaians that will be going to the polls in December 2024.

I am an NPP delegate, all of us put together, about two hundred and thirty thousand, will be making a decision for 5million or six million NPP supporters, beyond the six million there are seventeen million Ghanaians who will decide the next president of the republic so ask yourself, is your decision reflective of the larger Ghanaian population, if not change your mind and vote for Alan Kyeremanten.
Managing editor of the Insight Newspaper, Kwesi Pratt Jnr. has expressed his disapproval of public or civil servants who endorse political aspirants hoping to be given party positions.

He slams Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) of state agencies who openly declare support for their candidates.

Kwesi Pratt Jnr. called on public officers to refrain from such practices, emphasizing that those in public office should maintain neutrality and stop meddling in politics even if they have personal preferences or affiliations.

"When you hold a public position, you are supposed to serve the entire country, regardless of political affiliation. It becomes important to tone down your political leanings," he stated during an interview on Peace FM's "Kokrokoo" morning show monitored by ModernGhana News.

According to Kwesi Pratt Jnr., Public servants or civil servants should not declare their party affiliations, and doing so should result in resignation.

He criticized the partisanship by some civil servants, stating, "It goes against the civil service code and all the norms that I know. In the past, you would be dismissed if you engaged in such behavior because you are expected to be neutral given your job responsibilities."

He further stressed the need to prevent civil and public servants from openly participating in partisan activities.

"Civil and public servants should be stopped from engaging in open partisanship, he advised.
Senegal's government began blocking several digital platforms  including Facebook, WhatsApp, Instagram, Telegram and YouTube  in certain areas on 1 June. Days later, it extended the disruptions to all mobile internet and several television stations.

The social networks were shut down for two days. This was followed by a four-day mobile internet shutdown.

Given that nearly all Senegalese internet users access it through their mobile phones, these moves constituted a near total block on digital communications and information. Internet penetration in Senegal has exploded in recent years. A decade ago, only 13% of the population was online. By 2021, a majority (58%) were. Social media powers many small businesses .

The moves come after serious political unrest . At least 16 people have been killed and hundreds arrested in protests in Dakar, Ziguinchor and other areas following the conviction of opposition leader Ousmane Sonko.

Supporters of Sonko's Patriots of Senegal party criticised the charges brought by the public prosecutor as politically motivated. Sonko was acquitted of rape and convicted of immoral behaviour.

In justifying the internet blockages, interior minister Antoine Felix Abdoulaye Diome cited threats of fake news.

This is not the first time the Senegalese government has disrupted access to the internet. It did so in 2021 , when protests erupted following Sonko's arrest. In that case, the shutdowns lasted only a few hours.

Internet shutdowns in Africa are increasingly common. Disruptions were documented in 11 African countries in 2022, and six between January and May 2023. Recent cases include Ethiopia, Libya, Sudan and Zimbabwe.

Every country with an internet shutdown since January 2022 has had a worse record than Senegal on protecting civil liberties, as assessed by Freedom House. Senegal has been seen as a relative bright spot of democratic development on the continent.

However, recent years have brought warning signs. Opposition leaders have been barred from contesting elections by court cases which may have been politically motivated. Opposition-leaning voters have claimed they have been disenfranchised .

Recent violence and the government's shutdown of the internet are certain to heighten fears of democratic backsliding.

Public reactions

Restricting the internet is sure to carry costs.

Firstly, international and domestic groups focused on civic freedoms have condemned the shutdowns. Amnesty Senegal has called them contrary to international law and said they cannot be justified by imperatives of security.

Secondly, there will be financial costs  for the country as well as for individuals. A total shutdown could cost the Senegalese economy almost US$8 million per day. In addition, disrupting digital communications during times of crisis has costs for the population. Individuals need to be able to contact and locate family and friends, determine zones of safety, and make arrangements for transport, food, water and medical care.

The damage to livelihoods is significant.

Thirdly, the shutdowns could arouse public ire.

President Macky Sall's government might be concluding that any popular backlash will be concentrated among segments of the population already favourable to the opposition, namely urban, underemployed youth.

By clamping down, his hope was to limit protests, while not eroding his base support.

Senegalese opinion on this question, at least in principle, is rather closely divided. According to a nationally representative survey conducted by Afrobarometer, a nonpartisan, pan-African public opinion research organisation, in December 2020-January 2021, only 54% of Senegalese respondents agreed with the statement that

Unrestricted access to the internet and social media helps people to be more informed and active citizens, and should be protected.

But 42% agreed with an alternative option, that:

Information shared on the internet and social media is dividing Senegalese, so access should be regulated by the government.

While this question is not about shutdowns specifically, it provides insight into the Senegalese public's general inclinations about government involvement in this area.

According to Afrobarometer, those who report using digital media on at least a weekly basis are more supportive of unrestricted access than those who do not, 59% to 47%. Urban-dwellers are more supportive than rural-dwellers (58% to 50%), and men are slightly more supportive than women (55% to 52%).

We also see that support for unrestricted internet increases with education  49% with no formal schooling supported it, while 58% with secondary education or higher did. And youth aged 18-35 are more supportive of unrestricted internet than those over 46 are (54% to 48%).

Those who report having protested in the past are more supportive of unrestricted internet than those who have not (61% to 52%). Finally, of those who said they would vote for Sonko in the next election, an overwhelming 70% favoured unrestricted internet. A bare majority (53%) of Sall's supporters did.

The figures suggest that those who support unrestricted access are from the same demographics most likely to be taking to the streets  young, urban males who are digitally literate, and frustrated by their inability to convert their educational attainment to gainful employment.

Read more: Restricting digital media is a gamble for African leaders

.

A risky gambit

Independent observers like Freedom House have characterised Senegal as one of Africa's most stable electoral democracies and highlighted its relatively independent media and free expression.

The Parti Socialiste, which had ruled since independence in 1960, was ousted through peaceful elections in 2000 . Another incumbent lost in similar fashion in 2012.

But Senegal's hard-fought reputation as a democratic beacon is beginning to erode. The background to the events of the past two weeks is that President Sall is considering seeking a third term next year, which many say would be unconstitutional.

Sall is therefore surely watching his support among young, urban Senegalese. His predecessor, Abdoulaye Wade, came to power in 2000 on a wave of support from this cohort, but lost to Sall 12 years later as that support eroded.

Sall, whose support in Dakar plummeted from 74% in 2012 to 49% in 2019, fears the same fate. Sonko, with his base in the disaffected urban youth, appeared to be just the type of candidate who could stifle Sall.

The challenge for Sall's government, though, is that any short-term benefits that come from limiting protests could be outweighed by a further hardened and expanded opposition among urban youth.

Harms to the economy could soften support more broadly. Any further erosion of support among crucial demographics could prove ruinous for him and his allies.

Jeff Conroy-Krutz does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

By Jeff Conroy-Krutz, Associate Professor of Political Science, Michigan State University
Managing Editor of the Insight newspaper, Kwesi Pratt Jnr has urged delegates of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) to cast a good vote during the party's primaries.

Mr Pratt said delegates must consider the general interest of Ghanaians as they make their choice.

The NPP is scheduled to hold a Special Delegates Congress in August, with the aim of cutting the long list of candidates vying for the party's flagbearer position from ten to five.

Following the special congress, the five selected candidates will proceed to the main congress, where the party will elect its presidential candidate.

During a discussion on Peace FM's "Kokrokoo" morning show monitored by ModernGhana News, Kwesi Pratt encouraged the delegates to choose a leader who they believe will genuinely improve the lives of Ghanaians.

"They should cast a good vote, and if the NPP wants to have a successful election, the most important thing is for them to think about Ghana, not just their party... A good vote is one that enhances the development of Ghana. A good vote is one that will result in an honest President who will be truthful to the people. A good vote is one that will bring about improvements in their lives," Mr Pratt stated.

Among the ten candidates are Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, former Trade Minister Alan Kwadwo Kyerematen, former Agriculture Minister Dr. Afriyie Akoto, Member of Parliament for Assin Central Kennedy Agyapong, former Energy Minister Boakye Agyarko, former Railways and Development Minister cum Attorney General Joe Ghartey, and others.
Pupils of Duose Basic School in the Wa West District of the Upper West Region have been relieved.

They no more have teaching and learning under trees thanks to Fidelity Banks Orange Impact Initiative.

The Fidelity Bank Ghana has constructed and handed over a fully furnished six-unit classroom block to Duose community.

Under its Orange Impact Initiative to mark the banks 15th anniversary, the Fidelity Bank earmarked 15 schools, including the Duose D/A Basic School, to benefit from customized facility and resource upgrades as part of its efforts to provide quality education infrastructure to deprived communities.

The newly-constructed six-unit classroom block, including office space, was installed with solar-powered electricity to enhance the teaching and learning of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in the school.

The classroom block would now house pupils of Basic One to Basic Six who, hitherto, received academic instructions under shades and trees.

The Headmaster of Duose D/A Basic School, Mr Abubakari Mubarik expressed optimism that the intervention would help improve teaching and teaching in the community and also enhance the academic performance of the pupils.

He said the intervention was timely to salvage them from always closing school early due to bad weather conditions, during rainy seasons.

Sometimes, the community members would even come and tell us that they see most of our teachers outside, [but, it is] because we dont have classrooms, we have our classes under mango trees.

When they come we explain to them, but they dont always take it lightly on us, because they feel that we are not doing our work well, he said.

He noted that confrontation between teachers and parents will end as they now have conducive classroom environments to carry out their teaching and learning activities.

Speaking at the ceremony to hand over the facility, the Managing Director of Fidelity Bank, Mr Julian Kingsley Opuni, said education was the foundation block in building productive nations.

He added that Fidelity Bank aimed to improve access to formal education through the provision of infrastructure.

As a bank, we are an integral part of the ecosystem that drives development. The challenges of the community in which you operate should be reflected in the way you operate. If the community develops, the bank develops, he explained.

He urged the community members to ensure the maintenance of the facility to last long and benefit many children in terms of access to quality education.

The Wa West District Chief Executive (DCE), Madam Vida Diorotey expressed appreciation to the Management of Fidelity Bank for the timely completion of the school infrastructure to complement governments efforts.

She said the Wa West District was grappling with infrastructural challenges and commended the bank for the intervention while she called on other organizations to support the district with more infrastructure.

The intervention, which forms part of the banks social corporate responsibility (CSR), also saw the renovation of the Kindergarten (KG) block in the community.

Present at the ceremony included the Wa West District Director of Education, the Upper West Regional Commander, the chief of the community and others.
A former University of Mary student accused of making a campus bomb threat in February has pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge and been sentenced to probation.

Chase Hoechst, 19, initially was charged with felony terrorizing, which carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison. He pleaded not guilty in March and was set to go to trial on Wednesday. He pleaded guilty Tuesday to a reduced charge of misdemeanor reckless endangerment, which carries a potential punishment of about a year behind bars.

Prosecutors requested 1  years of supervised probation with 40 hours of community service. The defense asked for less probation with more community service hours.

South Central District Judge Bruce Romanick sentenced Hoechst to about a year of unsupervised probation and 100 hours of community service. Hoechst will write an apology letter to the university and the Burleigh County Sheriffs Department, and he is required to undergo a psychiatric evaluation.

Romanick also ordered a deferred imposition of sentence, which means the offense will stay off Hoechst's record if he stays out of trouble during his probationary period.

The FBI notified the sheriffs department on Feb. 17 of a message stating, Im going insane ... I planted pipe bombs in the caf bathrooms. The message was sent on a social media platform called Yik Yak. The app meant for college students allows users to send out anonymous messages to other users within a 5-mile radius.

Hoechst had sent the message the day before. His attorney, Justin Vinje, in court on Tuesday said that the message was due to Hoechsts frustration with the university changing his dorm room situation and that Hoechst did not mean any harm. The message was intercepted by Yik Yak before it was posted and reported to authorities.

The university on Feb. 17 held a shelter-in-place for about an hour and 40 minutes while deputies searched the campus. No explosives were found. Hoechst contacted authorities when he realized they were looking for him, according to Vinje.

Hoechst in court on Tuesday apologized for his actions and said he never meant any harm.
She Leads Advocates in the Upper West Region have identified that skyrocketing prices of sanitary pads have forced many young females in the region to return to primitive ways of managing menstrual flows.

According to the advocates, the number of girls who were reversing back to high-risk indigenous ways of managing their menstrual periods has increased lately due to the high cost of sanitary pads.

The She Leads Advocates, under the aegis of Community Aid for Rural Development (CARD Ghana), made this known in Wa during a Girls Meet Up With Mentors session held with political leaders over the weekend.

During the Meet Up, the advocates presented fact sheets on situational analysis, potential health risks and psychological effects associated with the increasing prices of sanitary pads.

"Newer and newer girls are subscribing to the use of rag cloths, tissue and cement papers due to the current outrageous prices of pads in the local market," Miss Alice Sienso read the situational analysis.

She continued, "Sadly, however two of the alternatives above are of great threat to the healthy growth and development of adolescent girls in the region and for that matter need to be attended to.

"We stand the risk of recording increased reproductive health infections if these adopted indigenous methods particularly are not checked among vulnerable girls in the region."

The Advocates further revealed that a number of girls skip school during their menstruation periods due to their inability to appropriately manage the menstrual flows.

"Now, our concern centers around the physical changes that take place in the pad. The red blood we all know during menstruation turns brown and black on the pad when the pad is overused in the day.

"Clearly, the physical changes in colour may have some other transitions we cannot possibly see with our eyes. But sometimes, the reactions that further generate rashes around the reproductive organ suggest that there are more likely higher infections than just the physical rashes seen in that situation," Miss Aabidat Mohammed read portions of the potential health risks.

"Honorable guests, it is not an easy decision to make when you know the blood is about to flow, yet you don't have pad and don't wish to skip school either. In the process of getting a solution to this dilemma, girls fall victims to some of the juicy offers most likely to address the situation. That is how some of them ended with these complicated social problems like teenage pregnancy," Miss Fareeda Amankwa-Gabbey read portions of the psycho-socio-economic effects.

The She Leads Advocates added that the situation of increasing prices of sanitary goods has led to the "exploitation of girls' vulnerability" as the young girls are forced to sleep with males in order to secure at least a pack of sanitary pad.

"We therefore stand in solidarity with the many vulnerable girls and their myriad challenges to call on government to as a matter of urgency evade taxes on sanitary pads so as to mitigate the agony and psychological trauma that comes with the struggle for sanitary pads among vulnerable girls in the country today," she appealed.

The Advocates averred that the exemption of taxes on sanitary pad was the only sure way to reduce the ever-increasing frustrations associated with managing menstrual flows among vulnerable girls and young women in Ghana.

Miss Khalida Seidu, the Upper West Regional Deputy Women's Organizer of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), in her address, said the call for tax exemption on sanitary pads was genuine. She added that the national women's wing of the NDC was already pushing same demand on government to remove the taxes on sanitary pads.

Meanwhile, the advocates filed a petition to the Wa Central Member of Parliament, Dr Hassan Rashid Pelpuo, appealing to his office to table concerns of young people, thus the removal of 20% import duty and 15% import VAT on sanitary products, on the floor of parliament for consideration by the house.

Support the She Leads Advocates and Department of Gender Wa to set up a Sanitary Pad Bank for the Wa Methodist School for the Blind to aid girls to have access to sanitary pads during their menstruation, the petition noted.

The petition was received by Mr Issahaku Nuhu Putiaha, a former Municipal Chief Executive of Wa Central, on behalf of the MP.
Police in Canadian city of Mississauga have recovered eight stolen vehicles, including two Mercedes makes and six Honda CRV models, estimated to be worth approximately $650,000 in total.

The cars were being shipped to Ghana. Several of the cars have since been returned to their owners, while the police have issued a call for more information.

Ghana is fast becoming a destination for stolen cars, especially from Europe and America. An investigation by Mariana van Zeller for the National Geographic Channel exposed a sophisticated car smuggling syndicate traced to Ghana.

In December 2022, the Economic and Organized Crime Office (EOCO) retrieved 37 vehicles suspected to have been stolen from the United States of America (USA) and Canada. The operation, carried out in collaboration with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), was based on an intelligence-led approach.

The vehicles were recovered from garages in Ghana on December 9, 2022, and the suspects have since been questioned and granted bail.

The Ghanaian syndicate is considered to be at the pinnacle of the international car theft ring, making the most money from a criminal enterprise that sees cars belonging to people in America stolen and shipped over six thousand miles away from their owners.
The Ministry of Sanitation and Water Resources, led by Cecilia Abena Dapaah, has launched the Ghana Water, Sanitation and Hygiene Sector Development Programme (GWASHSDP).

The event also saw the unveiling of a 168-page book which has the plan in detail on Tuesday, June 13, at the Kempinski Hotel in Accra.

The ambitious 10-year plan aims to achieve universal basic Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) services in the country by 2030 and safely manage sanitation services by 2040.

The World Bank is funding the programme, which will be implemented through collaborations with the private sector.

The Minister expressed hope that the partnership will be sustained in future efforts, including planning, implementation, monitoring, and evaluation of the programme.

Delivering a keynote address at the launch, Mrs Abena Dapaah emphasized the importance of collective commitment and sustained actions from all stakeholders, including service providers, local government authorities, civil society organisations and development partners.

The Minister also urged everyone to contribute to making the programme's goals a reality.

We hope this partnership and high level of participation from all actors will be sustained in all future endeavours including the planning, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of the Ghana Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene sector Development Programme, said the minister in her keynote address.

She continued, Our primary goal is to stop open defaecation and ensure basic sanitation service to all by 2030; and continu- ously work towards safely managed sanitation service by 2040. This vision requires collective commitment and sustained actions from all, especially, various service providers, local government authorities, government, civil society and development partners.

The Sanitation Minister emphasized that with continued commitment and collaboration from all stakeholders, the country is well-positioned to achieve its ambitious goals and improve the quality of life for millions of Ghanaians.

The launch of the GWASHSDP, according to the lead actors, marks a significant milestone in Ghana's efforts to improve water, sanitation, and hygiene services for its citizens.

At the launch were various stakeholders and partners from both the public and private sectors.

The 168-page document in brief:

The GWASHSDP 2021-2030 provides a framework for inclusive sector planning, implementation, monitoring, evaluation, and reporting for sustainable and universal WASH services.

It seeks to address key sector challenges through strategic planning, institutional development, and system strengthening while encouraging wider stakeholder participation in the planning, implementation, monitoring, and reporting processes.

The programme has six key components, including water resources management and water supply, environmental sanitation, WASH in institutions, institutional development and sector strengthening, management and organization of the GWASHSDP, and the cost of the programme.

The estimated annual cost to achieve the targets is approximately US$1.7 billion.

The GWASHSDP aims to achieve national, regional (Africa), and global visions, goals, and targets for integrated water resources management and sustainable WASH services for everyone in Ghana by 2030.

This includes reducing man-made actions that affect the quantity and quality of surface and underground water resources and ensuring adequate and quality water resources for domestic, agricultural, industrial, and energy use.

To achieve the overall objectives and targets of the GWASHSDP, the leadership and coordination roles of the Ministry of Sanitation and Water Resources and other agencies must be strengthened.

The programme also emphasizes the need for behavioural changes relating to hygiene promotion, accountability, and transparency at all levels of programme management.
In a world that keeps changing by the minute, surrounded by inequality and deprivation, education has appeared to be the only safest window through which the most deprived but determined minds can fly, and explore beyond their immediate horizon.

Here in Ghana, the northern sector appears to be the most challenged in terms of educational infrastructure.

Schools up north are characterized by lack of adequate desks, classrooms, TLMs, teachers, and others, despite enough evidence of the readiness of the children to learn.

That is why the Umbrella for the African Child (UTAC) and Akua Kids Foundation passionately took it upon themselves to travel to the East Mamprusi District of the North-East Region to provide some solutions.

The Umbrella for the African Child (UTAC) produced a documentary in 2021 exposing the deplorable state of the schools in Ghana's North-East Region.

As a result, 10 standard desks (3 seats) were donated to two primary classes (Primary 2 and 6), and 15 benches were given to two kindergarten classrooms in the villages of Soasobigi and Kukugbini.

The group also gave Namenboku MA Junior High School a book shelf filled with 43 children's picture books.

Since then, the group has collaborated with additional partners (Akua Kids Foundation, Smiles Africa, and Magho Foundation) to increase literacy in the North East of Ghana, offer teaching support, assist children with their learning, and establish reading clubs in schools with the goal of transforming East Mamprusi into a land of readers.

Umbrella for the African Child, Akua Kids Foundation, and Smiles Africa conducted the First Reading Competition in theEast Mamprusi District, on June 5, 2023.

The district arranged this competition to demonstrate its ongoing support for raising the literacy and reading levels of its youth.

Seven schools from five villages; Namenboku, Keptritinga, Namasim, Dindani, and Sakogu participated in the competition.

Dindani Junior High School, Namasim Junior High School, Sakogu Roman Catholic Junior High School, Namenboku Junior High School, English Arabic Junior High School, and Confidence Preparatory School were among the participating schools.

Wanimpa Hamida, Baba Mohammed, Imor Yussif, Laale Hanshaw, Caleb James Owiredu, Musah Abdul Hanan, Seidu Haadi, Abdulai Samnatu, Gumah Anthony, Mohammed Aminatu, Yandam Barnabas, and Langbon Hamida represented their respective schools.

Among the several dignitaries who graced the event was a representative from the Ghana Education Service's District Office, Gambaga, Mr. Adongo Charles.

In his speech, he underscored the importance of instilling the discipline of reading in children or students at an early age as the key to unlocking their potential.

How acknowledged that while reading proficiency among students in rural areas is already low, the efforts of UTAC and the Akua Kids Foundation to improve the situation.

He urged educators to sustain the reading initiative in their respective schools at least every term, if not every month.

In order to help their children's learning process, he recommended that parents monitor their children's reading at home and provide them with the required reading resources.

In his closing remarks, Mr. Adongo Charles thanked the organizations and asked for the initiative to be expanded to include other rural areas in the municipality.

The participants expressed excitement about the reading initiative.

Caleb James Oweridu from Sakogu Roman Catholic Junior High School won the competition with 18.73%, followed by Wanimpa Hamida from Namenboku M/A Junior High School in second with 18.7%, Laale Hanshaw from Confidence Preparatory School in third with 17.5%, and Baba Mohammed from Namenboku M/A Junior High School in fourth with 16.3%.

This was the first reading competition in the East Mamprusi District.

Speaking in an interview, the winner of the competition, Master Caleb James Owiredu, said he has always loved reading, and anytime I read, I feel brave and bold. Reading helps me to be confident, and I encourage my fellow students to take up that habit of reading as it will help them to be bold.

Chief Wanimpa Mohammed, a Sub-chief of the Sakogu traditional territory, expressed his gratitude to the organizations for the initiative as he believes it will encourage more pupils to develop love for reading.

One of the event's organizers, Mr. Mensah, said "I think certain aspects of rural education must improve in order to raise school participation and performance.

Even if industrialization and economic progress are benefits of urbanization, Ghana should strike a balance between urban and rural schooling if we are serious about achieving quality education.

He also expressed gratitude to the Sakogu chief, the participating communities, and the instructors for their involvement in making the programme a success.
The inaugural Sankalp West Africa Summit was held from June 12-13 at the University of Professional Studies, Accra (UPSA) in Accra.

Per details shared on the organizers website, the summit convened over 300 entrepreneurs, investors, business leaders and policymakers to discuss strategies for catalyzing entrepreneur-led development in West Africa.

In her opening remarks, Arielle Molino, Associate Vice President of Intellecap and Head of Sankalp Africa, said for over a decade Sankalp in East Africa has demonstrated the ability to drive action and influence outcomes, and now with our 1st Sankalp West Africa Summit 2023 were very excited to bring the Summit along with our partners.

A panel discussion focused on promoting entrepreneurship in Africa.

Moderated by Ghanaian media personality Anita Erskine, panelists included Dr. Yakama Jones of Sierra Leone, Mr. Kwasi Korboe and Carol Annang of Invest in West Africa.

Mr. Korboe said, There has to be a deeper engagement between public and private sector to be able to map up strategies to identify and solve issues affecting the African continent. Citizens must also engage in healthy activism to influence government policies to help them achieve their aim.

According to Dr. Jones, The notion of leave no one behind must be mainstream, especially in policy making and innovative designs. Engagement must be more intentional and must be clear on what the global aspirations are so we can work together to achieve them.

On her part, Mrs. Annang suggested, There is the need to bridge the gap between the formal and informal enterprises. We must come together as Africans to speak one voice of sustainable growth.

The summit also featured the Sankalp West Africa Awards to recognize outstanding entrepreneurs. The Ecosystem Award went to PAD-UP CREATIONS of Nigeria.

Shaq Express of Ghana received the second runner-up award while Kitovu Technology of Nigeria was first runner-up.

The overall Sankalp Enterprise Award went to Green Afro-Palms (GAP) of Ghana, co-owned by Ing. Kwame Ababio.

Mr. Ababio, speaking on his motivational factor said, I was influenced by the zeal of making West Africa reclaim its first spot in palm oil production. My intention is to empower society.

Speakers at the event urged governments to support African businesses and youth to work to address poverty.

The Sankalp West Africa Summit highlighted the need for stakeholders to collaborate to enable entrepreneur-led development and achieve prosperity in West Africa.
A former Community Policing Assistant (CPA) who was stationed at the Koforidua Central Police Station has been nabbed by residents of Daasebere Estate in the New Juaben South Municipality of the Eastern Region.

The former CPA, who was identified as Theophilus by police personnel, was rescued in the early hours of Tuesday after being caught trying to cut electricity service cables on a pole in the community.

A young man who was on his way to work raised an alarm after seeing the alleged thief up the pole. The alleged thief almost stabbed the young man with a knife, but the screams of the young man caught the attention of a security guard who joined in to apprehend him.

When Citi News arrived at the scene, the youth of the area had beaten the young man and tied him to the very pole he had climbed to cut off the wires.

Even though the suspect gave his name as Acheampong Emmanuel, a police patrol team which came around quickly identified him and called him by his real name, Theophilus, before taking him away.

Benjamin Appiah, the Assemblyman for the Old Estate West electoral area, spoke to Citi News about the recent activities of criminals in the area.

Our main issue is the stealing of items in our community. It has been going on often, and when we catch them, we turn them into the police. We are trying to protect the community. This morning I was called that another thief had been caught and beaten, and was tied to a tree. We came and rescued him, so I called the police to assist me. This is about the 4th or 5th time a thief has come here to steal. We have about three or four girls here who have been wounded with knives by thieves after snatching their phones. I dont like it when thieves are caught by residents and beaten, he explained.

Meanwhile, some residents of the area who have been sharing some horrifying experiences with criminals have called on the Ghana Police Service to intensify their patrols day and night.

We are appealing to the police to intensify patrols here, they said.

Citi News can also confirm that two suspects who were arrested last week Friday by the Nyamekrom Community watchdog committee after breaking into a home in the area are at the intensive care unit of the Eastern Regional Hospital in Koforidua receiving treatment.

The two suspects, who are part of a group of criminals operating with a motorcycle and terrorizing residents in the area, were arrested by the community watchdog committee who had laid an ambush.

The Assemblyman for Nyamekrom Electoral area, Nana Boaheng Enoch, who told Citi News that he has been targeted by the criminals, says the watchdog group will stop at nothing to get rid of criminals in their neighbourhood.

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Former Attorney General and Member of Parliament for the Bolgatanga East constituency, Dominic Ayine has rubbished Ken Kuranchies suit challenging the eligibility of former President John Dramani Mahama to contest the 2024 General elections.

He has planted confusion in his own mind and the Supreme Court jurisdiction is not needed in this one, Mr. Ayine told Umaru Sanda Amadu on Eyewitness News on Citi FM.

He further questioned the understanding of Mr. Kuranchie, Editor-in-chief of the Daily Searchlight newspaper, on the constitutional provision of the eligibility of persons that aspire to serve the country as president.

I have read through the writ and to be honest with you, aside from the fact that it is poorly drafted, it is a non-issue because if you read the language of the constitution, it is very clear that a person is entitled to two terms when elected president of the republic, and now he is saying that the fact that the constitution says that you cannot go more than two terms, then it means that the person who has done one term cannot be re-elected into office again.

If the makers of the Constitution had wanted to limit such persons from seeking re-election, then they would have said that a person is entitled to not more than two consecutive terms so basically what the plaintiff is seeking to do is to invite the Supreme Court to read the word consecutive into the language of the constitution and I think it is not something the Supreme Court will be very willing to do even though I cannot say with exactitude.

Mr. Kuranchie filed the suit on June 12 at the Supreme Court challenging the former presidents eligibility to contest the 2024 presidential polls .

Mr. Kuranchie is seeking a declaration that upon true and proper Interpretation of Article 66 (1) of the 1992 Constitution, clearly stipulates the number of years of a presidential term to be four years.

He is also seeking a declaration that on a true and proper interpretation of Article 66 11) and (2) of the 1992 Constitution, a person seeking a second presidential term must be a sitting president.

A declaration that on a true and proper interpretation of Article 62 of the 1992 Constitution, a former President of Ghana is not qualified to seek election as President of Ghana.

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The Minister for Trade and Industry, Hon Kobina Tahir Hammond, has said the Sissala West District in the Upper West is yet to benefit from the One District One Factory (1D1F) policy, because no business promoter has expressed interest in establishing a factory in the District.

According to the Minister, till date no investor has approach the Ministry and expressed in undertaking any investment project in the District.

The New Patriotic Party (NPP) as part of its campaign in 2016, promised to ensure they establish a factory in all districts in Ghana.

It is close to seven years since the NPP assumed power, and the Trade and Industry Minister, K.T Hammond told Parliament that the IDIF is a public-private partnership and so far no one has come up with a proposed project in the Sissala West.

He was responding to a question posed by the Member of Parliament for the Constituency, Hon. Mohammed Adams Sukparu.

The MP wanted to know when the Sissala West District will get its share of the factories per the government policy.

Mr Speaker, I rise to ask the Minister for Trade and Industry what plans the Ministry has to ensure that the people of Sissala West benefit from the 1D1F program?, he quizzed the Minister.

In his response, the Minister said, the One District One Factory (1D1F) program is a

demand-driven initiative facilitated by the Government to assist the

private sector to establish at least one manufacturing enterprise in each of the 261 Districts of the country.

Mr. Speaker, unfortunately to date, no private sector promoter has expressed interest in establishing a 1D1F factory in the Sissala West Municipality. We would entreat the Hon. Member to identify and

encourage a potential 1D1F Business Promoter to invest in the Municipality, Mr.Hammond said.

But Hon Sukparu said he is disappointed in the Ministers answers as he failed to explain to the people of Sissala West why the government failed to fulfill its 2016 campaign promises to establish a factory in each of the Districts in the country.

According to him, it was incumbent on the government to provide the enabling environment for the private sector, and wondered if the government was not been deceptive.

He said the Sissala enclave is one of the biggest Maize farming area which serves as a food basket to the nation but could also be raw materials for some factories.

The MP, therefore called on the government to take the initiative to ensure the road network is improved, availability of health facilities and supply of good drinking water to entice investors.

In his considered view, the governments failure to provide such necessities contributed to the lack of interest by investors to channel their resources into the area.

He spoke to the Media after posing his question in parliament.
The Defence and Interior Committee of Parliament has called for a probe into the recent shooting incident that occurred at Bortianor in the Greater Accra Region a few days ago.

This comes on the back of a request by the Member of Parliament (MP) for the area, Sylvester Tetteh, together with other MPs for an enquiry into the matter.

Second Deputy Speaker of Parliament, Andrew Amoako Asiamah, who assigned the committee noted it has until month ending to conclude investigations.

We are making the referral to the committee of the Defence and Interior, and we are asking the leadership of the Constitutional and Parliamentary Affairs to also join the Defence and Interior Committee and report back by the end of this month, he said.

The Constitutional, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs are also expected to collaborate with the Defence and Interior Committee to aid with the probe.

We are asking the leadership of the Constitutional and Parliamentary Affairs to also join the Defence and Interior Committee and report back by the end of this month, Mr Asiamah said.

A recent police operation in Bortianor, a suburb in the Greater Accra region, led to the death of about five suspected armed robbers and land guards.

The suspects according to a statement from the police were killed in a shootout.

The incident occurred on Thursday, 8 June 2023.

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The death toll from a Nigeria riverboat disaster has risen to 106 people as rescue teams continued to search for more survivors, police said on Wednesday.

The boat, carrying around 250 passengers travelling from a wedding, capsized in the early hours of Monday in north-central Kwara state.

The accident was the latest boat tragedy in Nigeria, where river capsizes are common due to overloading, poor safety and heavy flooding in the rainy season.

"One part of the boat by the engine side collapsed where water penetrated the boat, which ultimately led to the boat capsizing," Kwara police spokesman Okasanmi Ajayi said in a statement.

"All efforts to draw the attention of the villagers hosting the wedding ceremony for assistance by the persons in the boat proved abortive, leading to the deaths of about one hundred and six people."

On Tuesday, 103 people had been reported dead. More than half of the victims were from one village.

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu offered his condolences to the families of the victims on Wednesday, and said his government would look to improve inland water transport safety.

"I am deeply saddened by the news of the tragic boat accident that claimed the lives of our people in Kwara State. That the victims were guests at a wedding ceremony made the unfortunate accident more painful," he said in a statement.

The Kwara State governor's office said the victims had been returning from a wedding ceremony to Kwara's Patigi district.

River travel is a popular form of transport in Nigeria, but accidents are also unfortunately common.

Last month, 15 children drowned and two dozen others went missing after their overloaded boat capsized in northwest Sokoto State as they collected firewood.

Almost a year earlier, another 29 children from a nearby village drowned in the same river as they were also on a trip to gather firewood for their families.

During huge flooding in the rainy season last December, at least 76 people drowned when their boat sank in a swollen river in southeastern Anambra State.

Nigeria's waterways authority has tried in the past to prohibit night-time sailing on rivers to prevent accidents and says overloading vessels is a crime, but crews often break regulations.
Smoke from wildfires raging in Canada once again reduced air quality across North Dakota on Wednesday.

Hundreds of wildfires have burned across Canada this spring, scorching more than 12 million acres, prompting the evacuations of thousands of people and sending dense smoke across that country and the U.S., as far as the East Coast. Smoky skies were prevalent across North Dakota during parts of May, and smoke reduced visibility in several areas again Wednesday.

Much of the smoke was in higher elevations. Ground-level impacts were worst in the north central and eastern parts of North Dakota. Air quality in the Bottineau, Devils Lake, and Red River Valley regions was rated as "unhealthy" or "unhealthy for sensitive groups" at various times throughout the day, according to AirNow, a partnership of many federal and state agencies including the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Air quality throughout western North Dakota including Bismarck was mostly rated "moderate."

"We may see some air quality issues over the next few days across the Upper Midwest, especially the eastern Dakotas through Minnesota and northern Wisconsin and upper Michigan due to some of the lower level smoke from numerous fires burning across northern and northwestern Ontario," AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Brett Anderson said.

Nearly all of northern Minnesota was considered to have unhealthy air Wednesday, and that state's Pollution Control Agency issued an air quality alert for the region.

The smoke is expected to dissipate by Friday due to a combination of storms and shifting winds, according to AccuWeather. The National Weather Service reports that thunderstorms are expected Wednesday night across western North Dakota, while storms are possible Thursday for the rest of the state.

However, wildfires north of the border are expected to remain a problem in coming months, according to Natural Resources Canada.

We are already seeing one of the worst wildfire seasons on record, and we must prepare for a long summer," Steven Guilbeault, Canada's minister of environment and climate change, said in a recent statement.

Smoky skies in North Dakota are likely to be an off-and-on issue in North Dakota, according to Ryan Mills, manager of ambient air monitoring for North Dakota's Department of Environmental Quality.

"It seems these fires are in areas not easily accessible for fire crews," he said. "One source even said that this may be a problem until the snow comes this fall. Only a guess at best; pray for some heavy rains in the short term."

DEQ advised residents -- especially the elderly, young children and people with respiratory conditions -- to consider limiting prolonged outdoor activities in smoky areas.

Extremely small particles of ash and soot, known as particulate matter, were increasing due to the smoke, according to DEQ. Particulate matter can irritate the respiratory system, especially for those who suffer from lung conditions or allergies.

People reacting to smoke to the extent that it affects breathing are advised to seek immediate help from a medical provider.

General health-related smoke questions can be directed to the state Health and Human Services Operating Center at 701-328-0707.

DEQ also offered these tips for dealing with the smoke:

Stay inside with windows and doors closed until smoke levels subside.

Reduce outside physical activity.

Set air conditioning units and car vent systems to "recirculate" to prevent outside air from moving inside.

Information on wildfires and air quality is on the DEQ website, at bit.ly/3OhrD7E. The EPA's map of fire and smoke conditions is at https://fire.airnow.gov/. The AirNow mobile phone app, and many other weather apps, also include air quality information. Wildfire smoke pattern predictions can be found at https://firesmoke.ca/forecasts/current/.
Former Secretary of the defunct Inter-Ministerial Committee on Illegal Mining, Charles Bissue has called for calm following the announcement by the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) labelling him a wanted man.

Mr. Bissue is under investigation by the OSP over corruption and corruption-related offences in relation to the work of the dissolved IMCIM.

On Tuesday, June 13, the OSP issued an alert declaring Charles Bissue as a wanted man.

Charles Cromwell Nanabayin Onuawonto Bissue is wanted by the #OSP on Corruption and corruption-related offences regarding the activities and expenditure of the dissolved Inter-Ministerial Committee on Illegal Mining (IMCIM), a post on the Twitter page of the OSP said.

Speaking to Asempa FM in an interview, Charles Bissue described the declaration of the OSP as unfortunate, lamenting that he is shocked he is being treated as a fugitive although he has not run away.

I am within the jurisdiction, it is unfortunate that my photos have gone out as though I were a fugitive but that is not the case, he lamented.

According to Charles Bissue, he is ready to respond to the Office of the Special Prosecutor and will visit the office to avail himself for the ongoing investigations.

So everyone should calm down. I will go so that the truth is revealed, he said.
Former Ghana Ambassador to India, Sam Pee Yalley has said former President John Dramani Mahama has been targeted in what he described as media conspiracy.

According to him, his research revealed that the media dented the image of former President John Dramani Mahama with allegations of corruption and incompetence 614 times.

He made this revelation in reaction to the recent suit filed by Managing Editor of the Searchlight Newspaper Ken Kuranchie against the former President over his validity to contest in the 2024 general elections.

Newspaper analysis, in 2015 to 2022, he [Mahama] has been sighted as corrupt and incompetent for over six hundred and fourteen times, I did the analysis, you know me I do a lot of research. Six hundred and fourteen times because somebody just said incompetent, both content and front page, the number of times incompetent John Dramani Mahama, corrupt John Mahama.

Mahama has been a victim of media conspiracy, you see some media men are so quick, even to announce his defeat in elections when those are not the election result, Sam Pee Yalley said during a discussion on TV3 New Day on Wednesday, June 14.

Managing Editor of the Daily Searchlight, Kenneth Agyei Kuranchie has filed a suit against John Dramani Mahama second coming.

He is seeking the Supreme Court to make a declaration on a true and proper interpretation of Article 66 (1) of the 1992 Constitution the number of years of a presidential term in Ghana is four years.

Among other things, he also wants; A declaration that upon a true and proper interpretation of Article 66 (1) and (2) of the 1992 Constitution, a person seeking a second presidential term must be a sitting president.

An order directed at [John Mahama] to fully disclose to Parliament the terms of his engagements with Parliament as flagbearer of a political party.
14.06.2023 LISTEN

Member of Parliament (MP) for Builsa South, Dr. Clement Apaak has hit out at Kenneth Kuranchie, the Editor-in-Chief of the Daily Searchlight for filing a suit against ex-President John Dramani Mahama.

Mr. Kuranchie in a suit filed at the Supreme Court is seeking interpretation on whether former President John Mahama can seek re-election.

The Editor-in-Chief of the Daily Searchlight is of the view that the leader of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) does not qualify to run for president again.

Through his suit, he is seeking; A declaration that on a true and proper interpretation of Article 66 (1) and (2) of the 1992 Constitution, a person seeking a second presidential term must be a sitting president.

A declaration that on a true and proper interpretation of Article 62 of the 1992 Constitution, a former President of Ghana is not qualified to seek election as President of Ghana.

Sharing his view on the suit, Dr. Clement Apaak has indicated that it is dead on arrival.

According to Ken Kuranchie is only doing the bidding of his NPP party because the party is scared of John Dramani Mahama.

This lawsuit cant stand in the way of the peoples choice. It only confirms what Ghanaians know, your (NPP) morbid fear of JM, the Builsa South MP stated in a Tweet.

Dr. Apaak added, He will win with a Parliamentary majority because he offers a superior alternative to your corrupt, reckless, galamsey, family/friends governance.
14.06.2023 LISTEN

NDC Holland Chapter hosted a 3-Day Conference in Amsterdam between 9th and 11th June 2023. The conference with the theme: "The Role of NDC in Diaspora Towards The Victory of 2024" saw more than 15 countries of NDC Chapters converging at the capital of The Netherlands. This historical event and the first of its kind in the history of NDC was graced by His Excellency President John Dramani Mahama, as the Special Guest of Honour. Also in attendance were the General Secretary, Honourable Fifi Fiavi Kwetey and lots of other national executives. Qualitatively if not quantitatively, the 3-day conference was one of the successful conferences ever held in Diaspora. The Holland Chapter has set the pace for the next diaspora conference, and I hope other diaspora chapters will emulate our example.

On behalf of our Chapter Executives, the Branch Executives and Members, I would like to thank our Presidential Candidate and the Leader of our party, His Excellency President John Dramani Mahama, for honouring our invitation. His Excellency President John Dramani Mahama is the first NDC Presidential Candidate ever to have visited The Netherlands. Despite his tight schedules, he proved our sceptics wrong and demonstrated to us that he has what it takes to be a good leader and an aspirimg President of Ghana. NDC Holland Chapter and European Chapters are grateful for his spectacular performance in Amsterdam. Together with our diaspora chapters, we will support our party, both financial and logistics, to wrestle power from the inept, corrupt, scandalous and nepotistic NPP regime. We will make sure that His Excellency John Mahama becomes the next President of Ghana on 7 January 2025.

I also thank our General Secretary, Honourable Fifi Fiavi Kwetey; and Honourable Alex Segbefia, Director of IRD, who were in town a day ahead of the programme to assist us during the final arrangements. We thank the two for the wonderful job they did throughout the programme. We also thank Dr. Karl-Mark Arhin, Deputy Director, IRD; Dr. Carlos Ahenkora; Mr. Felix Kwakye Fosu; Mr. Stan Dogbe and all the entourage who traveled all the way from Accra to grace this occasion.

We were overwhelmed by certain personalities who were invited at the last-minute during the Fundraising Dinner and yet they did not let us down. It is upon this that I express my heartfelt gratitude to the Chairman of the occasion, Mr. Abeiku White; the Chairlady; and the Vice- Chairlady, Ms. Gifty Wadieh, who on that short notice contributed generously to support our fundraising event. I also thank other contributors who made the event more interesting.

I would also like to thank our German counterparts who helped us in planning the conference right from day one when we had the nod. We thank their Chapter Executives and all their members. We hope to reciprocate this gesture somewhere next year, all things being equal. Vielen danke, kameraden. We also thank our Belgium Chapter, UK/Ireland Chapter,

Switzerland Chapter, France Chapter, Italy Chapter, Austria Chapter, USA Chapter, Spain Chapter, and all other Chapters. Their participating and contribution will go down on records. And we will be more than ready to assist them whenever they need us.

I also thank all the media houses, from Germany and The Netherlands, who made this conference, trend across the globe. Our sincere thanks go to the traditional Chiefs, Queens, Moslem and Ewe Communities who honoured our invitation. I also thank all NDC members back home in Ghana, who also publicised our conference on their various platforms and media.

Finally, I thank the companies who supported us financially. Many thanks to our Executives, our Planning Committee, MCs, patrons and past executives, and Ghanaian folks in The Netherlands. I thank you all, and may God replenish whatever you spent on us.

Long live NDC Long live Ghana Eye zu, eye za.

Signed

Lewis Kwame Addo Communications Officer NDC Holland Chapter Amsterdam.

0031685863638
In this episode, it is necessary to recapture the major salient points I made in my previous write-ups to give my readers some understanding of the complexities surrounding the search for the next President. My first point was on the Constitution and the power it entrusts to one person  the President, as a major setback in our search for true democracy.

John Adams (from President Jefferson's letters) states that power must never be trusted without check but unfortunately Ghanaians have inherited a Constitution that has entrusted absolute power to one man without the necessary checks and balances.

The separation of powers that ensures democratic governance does not exist and the President and his followers always have a field day. As a nation, we abhor dictatorship but in reality the constitution has turned this country into a one man show.

I pointed out that POLITICAL PARTIES are used as tools by individuals to achieve their political ambitions and after elections they are abandoned. I observed that millions of supporters are deceived to believe that the leaders introduced at the various congresses are their true leaders but in reality they are not. The reason being that the Presidential candidates are not NURTURED, NOMINATED or OWNED by the political parties. The candidates present themselves as individuals who seek to lead their political parties. Mr. Alan Kyeremateng remarked that the NPP has no message. He would not have dared to make that statement if he had been nominated by the party. Ironically, when the Governments don't perform well, it is the respective political party that is bashed.

A political party is defined as a group of persons organized to acquire and exercise political power. To achieve the objective, money is needed to organize, acquire and exercise the political power.

Unfortunately, the two main political parties, the NPP and NDC do not have money to run their own affairs. It is the individual presidential candidates who seek and find the money needed to run the political parties, presidential campaigns internally and at the national levels. Consequently, when the aspirants succeed, they exercises absolute political power and the political parties play second fiddle. This defeats the purpose of party politics and weakens the role a political party plays in governance.

I am not against individuals seeking to achieve their political ambitions but my beef is the erosion of the power of political parties.

Once a political party achieves electoral victory, the question arises as to how much influence the party has over the Government. Political parties present aspirants as their leaders and plead the support of Ghanaians for their election. Political parties are therefore answerable to Ghanaians for the conduct and performance of the leaders. Parties must be seen as more important than individuals and the victory at the elections must be taken as party's victory and not that of the individual.

Unfortunately this has not been the case since he who pays the piper calls the tune. If political parties cannot wield any control over their governments, then our democracy is a fallacy.

Ghana needs a President who can carry his Party along otherwise the belief that a political party is in power is false.

The importance of close collaboration between the government and party, is the key to successful governance and gives true meaning to party politics. It kills apathy, provides the necessary checks and balances, removes disappointments among the rank and file and creates enthusiasm among the party faithful.

I observed that the quality of the president to be elected determines the fate of the nation in every four years and therefore as citizens we should not play politics with it.

The country is politically polarized between the NDC and NPP and therefore when it comes to elections, followers of these parties vote blindly without due diligence.

We fail to acknowledge that the election of that President will affect all of us be it NDC or NPP supporter. It is therefore important that in the election of the President, we abandon sycophancy, money, material gain and vote consciously for a candidate with unblemished character irrespective of the candidate's party.

Lord Acton said power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. So in effect, all our Presidents through no fault of theirs have the tendency to become corrupt when they assume power because they have absolute power.

This becomes more disturbing when viewed against the background of the Presidency being the source of funding for campaigns and management of political parties. The President in order to meet this huge financial need may resort to some unethical means to find the money. Some of his actions may include giving major appointments to people not necessarily on merit but to those who might have contributed financially to the campaign or who will respond to Presidential needs favorably. Criticisms to his actions may not be questioned.

Lee Kuan Yew, the late leader of Singapore said the worst disease in the world today is corruption.

In Ghana, it has become a way of life and the only important factor that has undermined our development. We talk about it, we participate in it and encourage it. Institutions of governance whose responsibilities are to check corruption and other vices are themselves corrupt. So we need to elect a leader who can make these institutions work. Finding ONE person with zero tolerance for corruption irrespective of his political coloration is what we need. Preferably, a konongo kaya president who will not sit down and allow others around him, ministers and other high ranking appointees to amass wealth.

Luckily, with all the dirt being thrown at Dr. Bawumia, his attackers are silent on his incorruptible credentials and I dare say that amongst the current contestants, Dr. Bawumia stands tall.

The economic crisis demands a candidate who is capable of reversing the trends. New ideas and methods are required to solve many of the economic factors that have bedeviled the economy for many years. The old campaign messages of promising cash, food and jobs are outmoded. Subsides have weakened our economy for a very long time and we need to reverse it. The energy sector has challenges. We are unable to collect the cost of production of our utility services especially electricity and water from consumers. We need new approaches to improve our internal revenue collection and many more.

The solution to the crisis does not require a know all President simply because Ghana is endowed with intellectuals and technocrats in every field of economic endeavor who are readily available to advise the President. We have digitalized some administrative processes including payment of bills and we need to reduce human involvement and errors to curtail corruption. Any candidate who has demonstrated in the past corrupt, arrogant and dishonest tendencies does not deserve our votes.

The World Bank Country Director Mr. Pierre Frank Laporte says Ghana saw the most dangerous contract agreements between2012 and 2016 and says they were the worse the world may ever see. These Agreements, Power Purchase (PPA) and Independent Power Producers (IPP) compelled Ghana to pay GHC12 billion for power produced but not consumed. President Mahama signed these agreements during the dumsor era. The ex-president is seeking re-election in 2024, promising to introduce new approaches to poultry farming and silent on how the GHC15 million Asongtaba guinea fowls flew to Burkina Faso during his reign. Eii asem beba dabi.

I discussed generational problems which require generational leaders to find solutions instead of some septuagenarians whose priority suggest the rejuvenation of their grey hairs. The wind of change blowing across the country politically favors the younger generation of aspirants. We are in the digital age and majority of our population are below the age of 55 years whose understanding of issues are more digital. We therefore need a leader with digital mentality to solve digital problems and not android. Most of the older generation seeking to become Presidents must examine themselves and realize that they cannot be part of the solution. As my beloved late JH Mensah, a former Finance Minister of NPP said check yourselves.

What confronts us today is moral decadence especially corruption which has affected the fabric of society. Our sense of patriotism, honesty and integrity is very low. Ghana does not lack the intellectual capacity to find solutions to our problems however, we lack the discipline, commitment and moral courage to implement the solutions.

All we need is the election of ONE person from 33 million people, who must be disciplined, incorruptible, honest and humble with high sense of integrity. He must be a konogo kaya President who would not sit down and watch those around him and appointees to amass wealth. I know it is a daunting task but we need it to progress as a nation.

YES, It is possible. Elect Dr Bawumia.

By Brig-Gen (Rtd) J. Odei
Its often said that when you are looking for a place to hide anything from the African, and theres a book, look no further. Put and hide it inside the book and the African would never find it.

Now, this is the most wicked satirical comment that can be attributed to Africans. But exactly what Kenneth Kwabena Agyei Kuranchie has done in filing one of the most mischievous and contemptuous case to the Supreme court of Ghana seeking to disqualify the nations elixir of hope  former President Mahama  from rescuing the nation from the unfolding economic disaster. He knew nobody would want to open the Constitution. How gullible can Ghanaians be?

Fellow Ghanaians, on the disqualification of presidential candidates, the last time I checked, as a student of the 1992 Constitution of the Republic of Ghana, no where did the sacrosanct document mention or state, that if someone hates a presidential candidate of a certain political party, he or she can put together a complete gibberish to the apex court of the land in order to disqualify them. Neither does Article 62(2), 68 (2-9) nor 66 (3) debars a former president from contesting for the presidency. Kenneth was simply engaging in a legal Sakawa and fraud!

What amazed me the most is the failure of Kenneth to invoke Article 69 of the Constitution which underscores the removal of the president in times of economic mess like this. Why couldnt Kenneth look beyond Article 68 and find below Article 69 Clause 1 (b) which states: to have conducted himself (the president) in a manner-

i. which brings or is likely to bring the high office of President into DISREPUTE, RIDICULE or CONTEMPT; or

ii. prejudicial or INIMICAL to the ECONOMY or the SECURITY of the State.

Was Kenneth living under a rock when President Akufo Addo plagiarized the speech which brought the office of the president into disrepute? What about the economic Armageddon we are facing? Is that not ridiculous, contemptuous, inimical enough to have triggered a suit against the president to vacate the presidency with immediate effect? Hmm.

But you see, the case filed by Kenneth Kwabena Agyei Kuranchie against former President John Dramani Mahama, and by the grace of God, an incoming president come January 7 2025, is nothing but a classic case of "ex facie curiae"  a contempt of the Supreme court outside courtroom  and he must be penalized to deter other legal morons and charlatans of his kind in the nearest future.

Say what you like, clearly, as we draw closer to the 2024 general elections, the desperation, frustration translated into envy, hatred, and outright enmity by the governing New Patriotic Party, NPP, towards the admirable former Gentleman of the Republic of Ghana, H.E former President Mahama, keeps manifesting in many forms and sizes. And the most latest lunacy laced by envy is what anybody can best describe as a miscarriage of legal knowledge on the part of the said Kenneth Kwabena Agyei Kuranchie, who is basically interpreting the Constitution of Ghana on behalf the Judiciary and dictating that to the highest court of the land - the Supreme Court. He seeks to disqualify the indefatigable flagbearer of the National Democratic Congress, because he hates to see Mr. Mahama at the helm of the affairs of Ghana again.

In hindsight, what Mr. Kuranchie has done is a plain contempt of the Supreme court. And Article 126 has endowed the Superior court to let citizens face the full weight and vindictive rigors of the law if any citizen decides to usurp the judiciary role of the highest adjudicatory body of Ghana.

While this is a clear mark of infantilism of the law, I think hatred, envy, and enmity for the former President have blinded the Plaintiff into committing this legal suicide. The case is uncooked on arrival. Not well thought through.

Apparently, the fundamental argument the Plaintiff, Mr. Kuranchie is making, and seeking to have former President Mahama disqualified for contesting the 2024 presidential election by the supreme court, bothers on what is known in legal gymnastics as "stare decisis" in Latin, which is translated as "stand by things decided" - a judicial precedence. Basically.

I don't know whether Mr. Kuranchie is a law practitioner or a student, either of them, he is pretty bad at it. Aside the fact that the legal lilliputian has committed a serious contempt of the Supreme court for interpreting the Constitution for it to grant him his desired verdict, Mr. Kuranchie doesn't know that the fact that there's no legal precedent yet about something, even if it exists in the constitution, doesnt warrant the disqualification of that thing and pronounce it null and void.

The 1992 Constitution states, in Article 66, that presidents shall have a term of four years. Clause 2 of the same Article (66) specifically stipulates that no president shall exceed two terms in office.

However, because the constitution refers to presidents or individuals occupying the seat of the presidency, Mr. Kuranchie decides to disqualify a former President whose terms of office have not yet elapsed. Meanwhile, no where in the Constitution does it state that former presidents with expired terms of office are the same as those former presidents who still have valid terms of office. Does the Constitution say that?

As a result, Kenneth Kwabena Agyei assumes that because Ghana has never witnessed a former President with valid term of office to enable him or her seek to be president again, if there's a former President who still has more terms of office, he must be treated like those former presidents whose terms of office have expired per article 66 (2).

That is, in Ghana, there's no precedence to a former president relying on Article 66 Clause 2 to contest. Therefore, Mr. John Dramani Mahama should be disqualified according to Kenneth.

What a tragic-comical and most useless case ever filed accentuated by frustration? Mr. Kuranchie must be sick in the head.

In fact, the specific Article which deals with qualifications of presidents (Article 62), no where does it mention or state that a person shall not qualify to contest for the presidency if he or she is a former President.

Indeed, article 62 has a correlation with Article 94 which is also specific about qualifications of Members of Parliament (MP). The correlation between them is borne out of the fact that, for a person to qualify as president, he or she should be qualified to be an MP. Again, the constitution has been silent whether a former President can become an MP or not. But does it mean its not possible if Akufo Addo wants to serve Abuakwa South again after vacating the presidency in January 2025?

Perhaps, the correlation between Articles 68 and 98 would expose the suit against former President Mahama by Kenneth Kwabena Agyei as ill-prepared and mischievous. I don't know which legal hole Kenneth crawled out with this complete balderdash, but what is obvious is that, he must have not made good use of the departments of the law profession before presenting this useless piece to the apex court. And I foresee the Supreme court throwing such a nonsense out with penalties for contempt. Mr. Kenneth must also read the Constitution thoroughly before committing a legal blunder of such proportion next time.

If attention is paid closely to Articles 98 and 68, both Articles are making reference to Article 71 on the issues of Determination of Certain Emoluments. Just as we saw Articles 62 and 94 on the eligibility requirements for president and MP respectively. And Clauses 2 of each (98 and 68) forbid MPs and presidents of holding certain offices unless approved by Parliament in the case of a former President, and the Speaker, in the case of an MP.

However, a Member of Parliament who wishes to contest for the presidency does so after seizing to be an MP and yet is still entitled to his emoluments. And he must become a Flagbearer of a political party first. Why then can't a former president still occupy an office other than for the State then, especially if he is a former President with unexpired term of office?

Kenneth interestingly argued and declared that former President Mahama be disqualified because of Article 68 (2 through 9).

For him, the fact that 68 (2) wants former presidents to hold no office in any establishment except for the State, being a Flagbearer of a political party is of self-serving and profiteering, therefore, the former President be disqualified. But, Article 55 (3) of the Constitution states that "Subject to the provisions of this article, a political party is free to participate in shaping the political will of the people (public), to disseminate information on political ideas, social and economic programmes of a national character (the State),..."

The national character here refers to the State. This means that a former president who has not elapsed his terms of office and acting in the capacity of a Flagbearer of a political party is occupying an office of the State since opposition political parties are key in the function of the State, democracy, and in national discourse.

Be that as it may, if we choose to follow the logic of Kenneth, that because Article 62 (2) requires a former president not to occupy an office other than the State's, it's clear that no where does the Constitution specify that a former president who still hasn't elapsed his terms of office is part of former presidents who have elapsed their terms of office per Clause 2 of Article 62.

Therefore, for avoidance of any doubt, the Constitution which grants two terms of office in one breath in Article 66 (2) to individuals seeking to be president, cannot take away the rights of former presidents with unfinished terms of office to occupy offices other than for the State. Especially, offices in the political discourse of the country.

Therefore, President Mahama is not bound by the same law, which binds on presidents who have expired or finished terms of office, to seek parliamentary approval to occupying offices other than the State's as a half-finished former President. Let alone disqualifying him.

Hence, it cannot be proper interpretation of Article 62 (2 through 9) to disqualify Mr. Mahama of being eligible to serve as a Flagbearer of main opposition party - alternative government as Kenneth prematurely concluded.

With the above arguments, I believe the Supreme court would throw out this uncalculated case and declare it of no legal effect. Both the letter and spirit of the Constitution is very sound on this matter. President Mahama is a former President with unfinished terms of office and he must not be treated by the Constitution as former presidents with expired terms of office.
From the year 2002 when the International Labour Organization launched the World Day Against Child Labour (WDACL), June 12 has always been earmarked to focus attention on the global extent of child labour and the action and efforts needed to eliminate it. This year, Ghana commemorated WDACL with the theme; Intensify Action Against Child Labour; Do it fast, do it now.

This years WDACL event was held in a small rural community called Ntowkrom in the Ayensuano District of the Eastern Region. The strategic positioning of the community served as a nectar to draw nearby communities to the program most of who witnessed at first-hand, what the experts say about child labour. I doff my hat to the school children (our major stakeholders in the fight against child labour) for showing up in their numbers.

The event was graced with the presence of high-profile dignitaries from; UNICEF, World Bank, World Cocoa Foundation, International Cocoa Initiative (ICI), Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), Minerals Commission, WinRock International, Child Research for Action and Development Agency (CRADA) etc. This years event was held against the backdrop of the problem of eliminating child labour which is still looming. No doubt, we are yet to cross the Rubicon- which is to meet the target to end child labour in all its forms by 2025.

The theme for this year is timely because it resonates like a war cry. Intensify Action Against Child Labour; Do it fast, do it now. This implies that the battle lines are drawn and all that is needed is a well-calculated strategy and precision to conquer the global enemy. We need not look too far to strengthen our offensive capabilities that can liberate every Ghanaian from the captivity of not knowing more about child labour. The strategy which also gives us a tactical advantage is measured by the numerous information centres dotted across the country. Regrettably, what we associate these information centres with is the loud at times disturbing airing of funeral announcements and the sale of local drugs which have taken over their usage. Obviously, they can serve a very useful purpose in meeting the elimination of child labour objectives when it comes to extensive public education which inevitably, has to drive our approach.

For example, their operators could be contracted to play regular recordings of the basic concepts of child labour with catchphrases and slogans and I believe peoples attitudes will change after hearing the same message for the umpteenth time. I am personally, of the view that not much has been done in terms of public education on the issue which to me holds the key to eliminating child labour.

Aside information centres, electronic media particularly television and radio and other social media platforms can also be involved. Their publicity strength which lies in educating, informing and entertaining the public has to be mobilized in the crusade. From my last count, there are almost 200 local channels in Ghana. My estimation might not be accurate but the point is there are lots of TV channels which can even make it easier to fight this particular ill of society once we adopt a common approach. This should involve tapping sharp minds to create catchy and compelling content for our TV and radio programmes and by this, I believe the narratives on child labour would no longer be ambiguous.

Essentially, children, our major stakeholders should also be involved deeply in this fight. Who knows, the creative solutions they can provide if we add the elimination of child labour to the curriculum taught in schools? This will also be a major factor in raising a generation who are abreast with child labour and its consequence to a nation.

The solidarity messages from partners delivered at the function pointed to the need to act differently and collaborate effectively to yield different results. But a statement by one of the speakers from ICI had an impression on me To succeed in our fight, every single Ghanaian needs to have a common understanding of the basic concept of child labour I believe this should be the first line of action. Being part of the CRADA team, I was honoured to be present at this program where I could relate field experiences to what the Government of Ghana and Developing partners are collaborating to do to support and sustain the fight against child labour.

I wish to commend the Ministry of Employment and Labour Relations (MELR) and Child Labour Unit (CLU) for all the hard work they put into producing an updated and effective manual for tackling child labour in Ghana - Ghana Accelerated Action against Child Labour. This is going to serve as a common guide for all stakeholders in tackling child labour. Moreso, I commend MELR and CLU for choosing the Ayensuano District as the venue for this years program. Child Labour is rife in the Eastern Region, especially in the cocoa growing areas, where children are used to working severely on farms, especially during the harvest season.

With what we have achieved as a country, Ghana stands a chance to raise the hopes of the world because we have made remarkable progress and what we are left to do is not beyond us.

It is essential to add that the school childrens contribution to the program was massive; cultural display, poem recitals, displaying placards with heartfelt messages and the drama which vividly explained the concept of Child Labour all contributed to the success of the program. This could be the dress rehearsal of a national awareness creation program outdoored at the National Theatre  A project Im planning to execute soon.

Our children are looking up to us. May it be said of us, that this is the generation that ended child labour.

By: Yaw Oku-Ampofo Anakwah

The author works with Child Research for Action and Development Agency (CRADA) as a Field Officer/Consultant
The United Nations has announced that a record 110 million people worldwide have been forcibly displaced from their homes, branding the massive upsurge an "indictment" of the world.

According to the UNHCR  the UN refugee agency  Russia's war in Ukraine, refugees fleeing Afghanistan and the fighting in Sudan have pushed the total number of refugees forced to seek shelter abroad, and those displaced within their own countries, to an unprecedented level.

The UNHCR said in its annual report released Wednesday, that by the end of last year, 108.4 million people were displaced.

The Global Trends in Forced Displacement report underlines that the number was up 19.1 million from the end of 2021  the biggest-ever increase since records began back in 1975.

Since then, the eruption of the conflict in Sudan has triggered further displacement, pushing the global total to an estimated 110 million by May.

UNHCR chief Filippo Grandi told a press conference in Geneva, "We have 110 million people that have fled because of conflict, persecution, discrimination and violence, often mixed with other motives  in particular the impact of climate change.

"It's quite an indictment on the state of our world," he added.

Numbers likely to increase

Of the 2022 global total, 35.3 million were refugees who fled abroad, with 62.5 million internally displaced.

There were 5.4 million asylum-seekers and a further 5.2 million other people  predominantly from Venezuela  needing international protection.

"My fear is that the figure is likely to increase," said Grandi.

He said the swelling displacement this year was being increasingly met with "a more hostile environment, especially when it comes to refugees, almost everywhere".

"Leadership is about convincing your public opinion that there are people that deserve international protection," he said.

The UN High Commissioner for Refugees noted that around 76 percent of refugees fled to low- and middle-income countries, while 70 percent stayed in neighbouring countries.

Door must 'remain open'

Grandi said Britain's plans to send asylum-seekers to Rwanda for adjudication was "not a good idea".

He said the US case was more complex, but added: "We are worried ...about denial of access to asylum in the United States."

Under tougher new US rules, asylum-seekers are supposed to set up an interview appointment through a smartphone application or processing centres Washington plans in Colombia, Guatemala and other countries.

Grandi welcomed the European Union's steps towards a pact on asylum and migration, calling it a good attempt to balance tensions surrounding the issue, and "relatively fair" to people on the move.

Under pressure to reduce migrant arrivals, EU governments last week agreed on steps to fast-track migrant returns to their countries of origin or transit countries deemed "safe".

Grandi said the way to address the flow of people coming to Europe was to start much further upstream on refugees' long journeys.

However the door to asylum in the EU, the United States and Britain "needs to remain open...People need to be able to seek asylum where they feel safe."

And he added: "Asylum seekers should not be put in jail. Seeking asylum is not a crime."
14.06.2023 LISTEN

Three pupils of the Beginners Education Complex in the Amansie Central of the Ashanti Region have been burnt to death.

This was after a 207 bus caught fire.

The incident occurred at Huu at about 4pm on Tuesday, June 13.

Six school children joined the 207-passenger bus at Huu after their school bus broke down.

They were heading to Edwenase when the vehicle caught fire.

Some passengers on board managed to escape.

Three out of the six schoolchildren got stuck in the bus and burnt to death.

We just saw the bus in flames, and within seconds, it intensified because the bus was carrying some petroleum products.

We joined hands to rescue all passengers on board, but we lost 3 of the kids. The children are all from Edwenase but attend school at Huu, an eyewitness, Francis Osei told 3news.com

The deceased is aged between 5 and 7 years.

-3news.com
WIABOMAN is a small community located in the Greater Accra Region of Ghana; and is situated southwest of Accra, the countrys capital.

Residents of Wiaboman are mainly fishermen and fishmongers who ply their trade in neighbouring communities as well as other parts of the city, while a few do white-collar jobs in the main townships of the city, as do those who have their own businesses.

Given the rise in urbanisation in recent years, the community has seen an influx of more people from various parts of the country who have traveled far and near Accra, seeking greener pastures.

This has resulted in an exponential increase in residential apartments and other structures put up for rent in the area.

Displacement of People

Like many communities along the coastal areas in Ghana, there has been the incidence of displacement of people living close to the sea. This, studies have confirmed, is as a result of a rise in sea levels due to climate change.

People of Wiaboman, have, in recent years, seen the sea invade their homes and business centers while they look on helplessly.

In an interaction with some residents, they said although similar events have happened in the past, these only happened once in a long while. However, the frequency with which these do occur in recent times is unprecedented.

Government Interventions

Aware of the severity of this phenomenon, successive governments, have invested heavily in providing some solutions to it, with the chief intervention being the sea defence wall project.

Indeed, this intervention has proved helpful in reducing the rate at which the sea wades into settlements nearer the shore, thus reducing the frequency of displacements in such communities.

However, there are still some communities which are yet to fully benefit from the sea defence wall initiative and Wiaboman is one of such communities.

Impact On Wiaboman

Some parts of the community's coastline have a well-fitted sea defence wall in place, so high that one would not even see the sea from ground level.

In sharp contrast, one can see on the other side, the sea in all its might and beauty  due to the lack of a sea defence wall there.

Residents in this part of town have had to remain in a constant state of alertness at all times.

Their woes are exacerbated by the fact that the rainy season has started, and given the irregularity of the rain patterns  which is also due to climate change  residents are left at the mercy of the rains and sea.

As a city on its own  with its own 'supermarkets' and 'malls'; hotels and guesthouses; night clubs and others  life in Wiaboman comes to a halt whenever the sea decides to pay a visit through the unwalled parts  which is usually an unwelcome one. Also, anytime it rains heavily, the town gets flooded.

It was discovered, on a visit to that community, that there were no proper drainage systems for those living close to the sea and as such, after the rains have stopped and the sea water has receded, large amounts of water are still left in people's homes and compounds for days and weeks.

It was also discovered that a number of buildings under construction were left unattended to, and have been engulfed by water.

Resident's Concerns

As to whether or not residents would like to leave the place for better places in other parts of the city, most of the residents have been silent on this by refusing to grant interviews except a few.

We have been living here for quite a long time now. Over here, the rent is cheaper than in other parts of Accra. Accommodation in Accra is very expensive and given the current economic conditions we find ourselves in, it is difficult to think of leaving here, shares Sam Allotey, a resident.

According to a few residents who agreed to grant interviews on condition of anonymity, they said they would rather choose to live in the same area, even with the sea entering their homes which comes occasionally, than to pay exorbitantly for accommodation elsewhere.

Rising Sea Levels

According to studies, rising sea levels are due to a combination of melt water from glaciers and ice sheets and thermal expansion of seawater as it warms.

Ghana has no ice on its seas or anywhere on its marine landscape. However, it is suffering dearly, from the severe impact of climate change in many ways.

The cost of the sea defence wall project runs into hundreds of millions of United States dollars (US$) and government is saddled with the responsibility of providing the funds for this all-important project.

While the residents of Wiaboman and other coastal communities of Ghana, which suffer same fate continue to pray for clear weather at all times, efforts must be made by all stakeholders to deal with, and curb the continuing menace of sea water gushing into communities once and for all.

This report is produced in fulfilment of the UNESCO and CIJ London Climate Change in News Media project facilitated by the Centre for Journalism Innovation and Development (CJID).

The sea defence wall between the sea and people's homes on one part of Wiaboman.

A view of Wiaboman from the top of the sea defence wall.

A combination of rain and sea water engulf people's homes for days and weeks in Wiaboman.

-DGN online
North Dakota oil production grew by 1% in April after a 3% drop in March, the Department of Mineral Resources said Tuesday. Natural gas production increased by 2% in April.

April oil production averaged 1.13 million barrels per day, up from 1.12 million barrels per day in March, according to preliminary figures. The all-time high was 1.52 million barrels per day in November 2019. The state's figures lag two months as officials collect and analyze data from energy companies.

State Mineral Resources Director Lynn Helms said April's production numbers were good considering the cold spell that North Dakota encountered that month.

He also expressed satisfaction with progress on abandoned well plugging and reclamation as well as industry efforts to combat wasteful natural gas flaring.

He expressed some concern over volatility in oil prices due to global economic issues.

Saudi Arabia cut its monthly oil production earlier this month. This had a smaller effect on oil markets than Helms said he would have expected.

The market said meh, and that is really kind of surprising, Helms said.

West Texas Intermediate crude, the U.S. oil pricing benchmark, was trading near $67 per barrel on Tuesday, compared with an average of $79 in April and $73 in March. The all-time high was $134 in June 2008.

The state's drilling rig count has fallen to 38 due to road restrictions as well as company mergers and acquisitions but is expected to return to the mid-40s, and continue to gradually increase over the next two years, according to Helms.

He believes a planned arrival of oil workers from Ukraine will help improve the states numbers in the latter half of the year.

If this workforce program works as well as we hope, were going to see that rig count bounce back, and that adds a lot of dollars to North Dakotas economy, he said.

The North Dakota Petroleum Council in April announced the hiring of former Lt. Gov. Brent Sanford to be project manager of Bakken Global Recruitment of Oilfield Workers, or GROW, a new initiative to bring workers to the oil field through immigration, focusing initially on Ukrainians.

Plugging and reclamation

The state also is continuing the plugging and reclamation of orphaned oil wells, which are abandoned wells without a responsible operator, likely due to a bankruptcy.

This is made possible with $25 million in funding from the federal Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. With this money the state plans to plug 88 wells and reclaim 139 sites.

The first reclamation crew went out in late May. The state has plugged 29 of the 88 wells, according to Helms.

Thats going to allow us really to bring all of this orphan well stuff to a close over the next five to 10 years, he said.

Natural gas

Helms praised industry efforts at reducing the wasteful flaring of natural gas due to a lack of pipeline infrastructure and processing capacity. Producers had a 95% capture rate across the state in April. Capture in the Bakken was at 96%, which is the second time the state has reached this level. The state target is 91%.

Gas capture reached 98% on the Fort Berthold Reservation in April -- an improvement for an area where Helms said the industry has previously encountered difficulties in building infrastructure to reduce flaring.

We have never seen 98% in gas capture before, he said.

These numbers are especially impressive considering the current price of natural gas, according to Helms.

The price of natural gas delivered to Watford City has fallen to its lowest level since the third quarter of 2020 because of an oversupply in the Midwest, according to Mineral Resources.

Helms expressed frustration at the limitations in getting more natural gas to market.

Two projects are set to carry North Dakota gas produced in the Bakken to the Cheyenne hub on the Wyoming-Colorado border, according to North Dakota Pipeline Authority Director Justin Kringstad. One is a project by TC Energy and Kinder Morgan; it's expected to be in service by March 2026. The other, a WBI system, is expected to be online late this year, according to Kringstad.
Ghana and other African countries are well positioned to tap into the multi-million-dollar Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) Market due to the availability of raw materials on the continent, The International Air Transport Association has said.

Africa is ideal for this; the continent is almost set up to do it. But is not something you can start tomorrow. It is not like digging up oil and refining it, it takes effort, IATAs Vice President for Africa and the Middle East, Kamil Al Awadhi, told AviationGhana on the sidelines of the 79th IATA AGM held in Istanbul last week.

Overall renewable fuel production is estimated to reach at least 69 billion liters (55 million tonnes) by 2028. Sustainable Aviation Fuels (SAF) will comprise a portion of this growing output which is being achieved through new renewable fuel refineries and the expansion of existing facilities. Importantly, the expected production has a wide geographic footprint.

Trends supporting this optimistic outlook are already visible. In 2022, SAF production tripled to some 300 million liters (240,000 tonnes) and project announcements for potential SAF producers are rapidly growing.

IATA counts over 130 relevant renewable fuel projects announced by more than 85 producers across 30 countries. Each of these projects has either announced the intent or commitment to produce SAF within their wider product slate of renewable fuels.

Typically, there is a 3 5-year lag between a project announcement and its commercialization date. This implies that further renewable fuel capacity out until 2030 could still be announced over the following years.

If renewable energy production reaches 69 billion liters by 2028 as estimated, the trajectory to 100 billion liters (80 million tonnes) by 2030 would be on track. If just 30% of that produced SAF, the industry could achieve 30 billion liters (24 million tonnes) of SAF production by 2030.

At present, it is expected that 85% of future SAF volume over the next five years will be derived from just one of nine certified pathways, being Hydrotreated Esters and Fatty Acids (HEFA), which is dependent on limited availability of feedstock such as waste fat, oil and grease feedstocks (FOGs, recognized by industry as second-generation feedstock).

In Ghana and many West African countries, the raw materials for SAF production such as: cooking oil, plant oils, wood chips, treated straw, algae, municipal waste, waste gases and agricultural residue, are largely available.

For nearly two decades, Ghana has experimented with the production of plant-based sustainable fuels mainly from the Jatropha plant. The technology developed so far, has been only able to produce bio diesel for use by small scale agro processing machines.

The setting up of waste treatment plants in Accra and Kumasi by the Jospong Group of Companies, holds a lot of promise for Ghana to venture into the production of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF).

The raw materialsorganic and in-organic wasteabounds in a country struggling to contain and properly dispose or reuse the millions of tons of municipal waste across the country.

Extant studies show that in Ghana, about 12,710 tons of solid waste is generated daily. The capital city, Accra, generates as much as 15,000 tons of solid waste per day. A research on the waste composition of Ghanas solid waste in 2020 show that it is predominantly organic (60%), plastic (14 %), paper (5%), metals (3%) and glass (3%)

Indeed, the start of the generation of organic fertilizer out of the segregated organic waste at the Jospong Groups waste treatment plants in Accra, holds a lot of promise for future SAF production.
Hostilities between rival military parties in Sudan had claimed more than 600 lives by May 2023.

The infighting has mostly been between the Sudanese Armed Forces loyal to Abdel Fattah al-Burhan , Sudan's current military ruler, and the Rapid Support Forces , a paramilitary force led by his deputy Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, Hemedti .

Sudan and Nigeria have regional and geographical connections, especially through Chad, which is a neighbour to both.

As I have previously noted , the fallout of the crisis in the Lake Chad Basin region, of which Nigeria is a core member, directly affects the country's peace and security.

Nigeria is duty bound to respond to the unfolding situation, considering the 5,500 Nigerian nationals and the over 5 million Sudanese of Nigerian origin in Sudan.

Aside from helping the Nigerians trapped in Sudan, Nigeria needs to offer relief and assistance because a spiralling Sudan will have an impact on Nigeria's own peace.

As an international security expert with a regional focus on west Africa, I argue that without Nigeria's input, the prospects of lasting peace in Sudan remain elusive, as no other country in Africa has what it takes to fill this role.

Sudan could experience a prolonged conflict that the sub-region cannot afford to manage. The situation in Sudan offers Nigeria an opportunity to reassert a leadership role. Nigeria also has the legitimacy and recognition to take the lead on providing an African solution to an African problem.

Nigeria's regional role

Nigeria dominates the west African sub-region. It has the largest population in Africa at over 213 million people , and the largest economy by gross domestic product at US$440.8 billion as of 2021.

With an estimated total military personnel of 215,000, of which 135,000 are active , Nigeria has the most formidable military force in west Africa.

A recurring argument is that given Nigeria's current economic woes, which include a rising debt profile , it may not be able to take the leadership role. If it doesn't, who will, and what would the implications be?

A history of interventions

Nigeria has a record of intervening to achieve stability in west Africa. It did this during the first (1989-1996) and second (1999-2003) Liberian civil wars, and Sierra Leone's civil war (1991-2002) . In both cases, Nigeria played a leading role in restoring peace and security.

Nigeria's decision at the time reflected a willingness to avert a regional humanitarian crisis and the potential spillover effects of armed conflicts.

Nigeria has also helped to sustain democratic rule in west Africa. A case in point was Cote d'Ivoire , where after a disputed election, Laurent Gbagbo refused to hand over power to Alassane Ouattara.

In 2016, following Yahyah Jammeh's refusal to relinquish political power in The Gambia, Nigeria mobilised regional support. This regional intervention led to the emergence of Adama Barrow as president. Nigeria also contributed to the 4,000 troops who remained in The Gambia.

In July 2022, Nigeria waded in on the crisis between Mali and Cote d'Ivoire over detained soldiers.

Sudan's impact on Nigeria

The situation in Sudan has already led to a worsening humanitarian crisis in the region. The UN refugee agency recently noted that 55,000 people have fled from Sudan to Chad.

With a 1,300km border between Sudan and Chad, the unfolding situation could lead to an influx of small and light arms and displaced people, which could worsen the situation in the Lake Chad Basin and the Sahel regions.

For Nigeria, this would mean increased pressure on infrastructural facilities arising from the arrival of refugees.

There is also the possibility of an upswing in violence if foreign terrorist fighters from across the Sahel region seek new recruits and safe havens.

For Nigeria, this would be one trouble too many. The country's security forces have been stretched responding to multiple security threats at home.

What Nigeria should do

Mediation: the United States is attempting to play the role of a mediator but the chances of it brokering a peace deal are slim.

Citizens in west African states like Mali and Burkina Faso see the west, including France, as part of the problem rather than the solution.

A state-led mediation effort from an African regional power like Nigeria offers a better chance at acceptability and recognition. It avoids the suspicion that comes with the involvement of western powers.

Nigeria should send a special envoy to Sudan and rally continental efforts through the African Union.

Effective manning of entry points: Nigeria needs to guard potential illegal entry points and use aerial surveillance.

Nigeria's Immigration Service and its National Identity Management Centre must also be ready for rapid documentation of foreign nationals finding their way into the country.

Refugee management: emergency refugee camps will be needed to accommodate refugees from the war in Sudan.

Provision of relief materials: the Nigerian Air Force should be willing to airlift medical and relief materials into Sudan. Nigeria's vast experience in this regard would make a difference on the ground.

Way forward

As a regional leader, Nigeria must not sit by at a time of turbulence such as this.

Doing so widens the existing policing gap across the region, especially since France's exit from Mali.

Nigeria's foreign policy actions and inaction will be closely watched. The unfolding situation in Sudan reinforces the need for Nigeria to come up with an articulate grand strategy that reflects its position and national interests in a complex and fast-changing region.

Folahanmi Aina does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

By Folahanmi Aina, Associate Fellow, Royal United Services Institute
Sam Pee Yalley, a former Ambassador of Ghana to India, has given a stern warning to Ken Kuranchie.

He is also urging the National Democratic Congress (NDC) to defend newly elected flagbearer John Dramani Mahama by all means necessary from distractors.

This comes after the Managing Editor of the Searchlight Newspaper Mr. Ken Kuranchie filed a suit at the Supreme Court challenging the validity of Mahama to contest in the 2024 General Elections.

Speaking on the TV3 New Day Show on Wednesday, June 14, Sam Pee Yalley said even though the case has already been brought before the court, John Dramani Mahama has the full backing of the NDC Caucus.

I wish him well in court but he should know that over six million people voted for John Mahama almost equal to President Akufo-Addo, the difference is about five hundred.

"We also have six million plus people, so NDC is not a party anybody should toy with, thats the point I want to establish.

The NDC went to Congress recently and overwhelmingly elected John Mahama, we have a duty to protect our leader by any means legal, Sam Pee Yalley stressed.

Kenneth Kuranchie is seeking the apex court to make a declaration on a true and proper interpretation of Article 66 (1) of the 1992 Constitution the number of years of a presidential term in Ghana is four years.

Among other things, the Managing Editor of the Daily Searchlight also wants A declaration that upon a true and proper interpretation of Article 66 (1) and (2) of the 1992 Constitution, a person seeking a second presidential term must be a sitting president.

An order directed at [John Mahama] to fully disclose to Parliament the terms of his engagements with Parliament as flagbearer of a political party.
The Overlord of the Gonja Kingdom, Yagbonwura BII Kunto Jewu Soale has called on parliament to ensure LGBTQ+ is not legalised in the country.

According to him, our ancestors wont forgive us if the country sits and watch for LGBTQ+ to become an accepted practice.

Our ancestors will never forgive us should we sit aloof and allow such a decision to be taken by the lawmakers to affirm LGBTQ.

I am certain that, Ghanas 8th Parliament of the Fourth Republic will unanimously disapprove the LGBTQ+ bill, Yagbonwura BII Kunto Jewu Soale said when he received Speaker of Parliament Alban Bagbin at his private residence in Damongo as part of Parliaments 30th-anniversary celebrations.

During the engagement, the Speaker of Parliament reiterated his support for the anti-gay bill.

He stressed that he will rather die than witness the legalisation of LGBTQ+ in the country.

I have said it and will say it again that I will rather perish than see the LGBTQ+ bill approved under my watch though I dont have a voting right.

I administer the affairs of the House and I can assure you and the good people of Ghana that the LGBTQ+ bill will never be sanctioned to be in Ghana, Alban Bagbin said.

Ghanas anti-gay bill called the Promotion of Proper Human Sexual Rights and Ghanaian Family Values Bill, 2021 is currently at the consideration stage in Parliament.

The Bill is sponsored by eight members of Parliament from both the Majority and Minority side of Parliament.

The Bill when passed into law will make LGBTQ+ and its related activities illegal in the country.
Army warplanes bombed the Sudanese city of El Obeid Wednesday, as the country prepared to mark two months since a power struggle between rival generals plunged the country into devastating conflict.

Since April 15, the regular army headed by Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces commanded by his former deputy Mohamed Hamdan Daglo have been locked in urban combat that has left whole neighbourhoods of the capital Khartoum unrecognisable.

The fighting quickly spread to the provinces, particularly the flashpoint western region of Darfur, and has now killed at least 1,800 people, according to the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project (ACLED).

On Wednesday, the regular army carried out "air strikes for the first time in El Obeid," the capital of North Kordofan state, 350 kilometres (220 miles) south of the capital, which has been "surrounded by the RSF since the war began," witnesses told AFP.

Nationwide, some 2.2 million people have fled their homes, more than one million of them escaping Khartoum, according to the International Organisation for Migration.

Sudan's warring generals - Mohamed Hamdan Daglo (L), commander of the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, and regular army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan. By Ashraf SHAZLY, Akuot Chol (AFP)

Of those, more than 528,000 have sought refuge in neighbouring countries, according to the UN agency.

Those that remain have run out of "food, water and medicine," Khartoum resident Ahmed Taha told AFP.

"We have nothing left. The entire country has been completely devastated. Everywhere you look, you'll see where bombs have fallen and bullets have struck. Every inch of Sudan is a disaster area."

US and Saudi mediation efforts are at a standstill after the collapse of multiple ceasefires in the face of flagrant violations by both sides.

"We think we've given them every shot," a senior US State Department official said on Tuesday.

Aid agencies have pleaded for the opening of humanitarian corridors to allow assistance in and fleeing civilians out but to no avail.

Sudanese wait for hours for a truck to deliver cooking gas in the city of Wad Madani, southeast of Khartoum. By - (AFP)

Entire districts of Khartoum no longer have running water, mains electricity is only available for a few hours a week and most hospitals in combat zones are not functioning.

A record 25 million people -- more than half the population -- are in need of aid, according to the UN.

"We have been suffering and suffering and suffering the scourge of this war for two months," said Khartoum resident Soha Abdulrahman.

'Crimes against humanity'

The conflict's other main battleground Darfur -- home to around a quarter of Sudan's population -- was already scarred by a two-decade war that left hundreds of thousands dead and more than two million displaced.

A hospital lies abandoned in the West Darfur state capital El Geneina after many aid facilities in Darfur's cities are ransacked. By - (AFP/File)

Amid what activists have called a total communications "blackout" in large parts of the region, hundreds of civilians have been killed in the current fighting.

Homes and markets have been burnt to the ground, hospitals and aid facilities looted and more than 149,000 sent fleeing into neighbouring Chad.

The head of the UN mission in Sudan, Volker Perthes, said Tuesday there was "an emerging pattern of large-scale targeted attacks against civilians based on their ethnic identities, allegedly committed by Arab militias and some armed men" in RSF uniform.

If these reports are verified they "could amount to crimes against humanity", he said.

Daglo's RSF have their origins in the Janjaweed militias which ousted strongman Omar al-Bashir unleashed on ethnic minorities in the region in 2003, drawing charges of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity.

The paramilitaries remain highly mobile and adept at the sort of urban combat that has gripped Khartoum and Darfur's cities but the regular army has so far enjoyed a virtual monopoly of the skies.

Sudanese civilians who have sought refuge from the fighting in Darfur gather for an aid distribution in neighbouring Chad. By Gueipeur Denis SASSOU (AFP/File)

However, an army official said Wednesday that the RSF had begun using "drones", which an RSF source said they had obtained "from commandeered army centres".

Both sources spoke to AFP on condition of anonymity because they are not authorised to speak to the media.

According to a military analyst from the region who requested anonymity for his safety, the RSF "might have obtained them from the Yarmouk" weapons manufacturing and arms depot complex, which they overran just days after the collapse of US and Saudi-brokered ceasefire talks.
In light of the removal of fuel subsidies, Nigerians require psychological support.

President Bola Admed Tinubu, you made it clear to Nigerians that your decision to end a well-liked gasoline subsidy would, in the short term, place an additional burden on citizens. This burden includes a variety of stressors that have put many people in frustrating situations, as well as situations that can result in emotional or psychological suffering.

Mr. President these stressors like some of the effects of subsidy removal include sudden life changes as many could be struggling with financial problems, sudden debt, residential insecurity, work-related stress due to transportation problems, conflicts with families, relationship issues, romantic partner issues when money is low, or social isolation, and feeling of fear, apprehension, and uncertainty. These are short term stressors which could contribute to chronic frustrations and more significant emotional difficulties. Mr. President this is where Psychologists comes in.

The National Mental Health Act of Nigeria is now a law, which is a positive thing because for the previous 60 years, mental health policies and practices were based on the Lunacy Act of 1958.

The Nigerian psychiatrists, who are medical professionals with a focus on mental health, are primarily responsible for this new mental health law. The majority of the time, they use psychiatric or psychotropic drugs to treat mental diseases.

Mr. President, you might want to be aware that the Nigerian Council for Psychologists bill, which the national legislature passed in 2019 and which would have provided guidelines for psychologists and the services they offer, has not been signed into law by President Muhammadu Buhari.

You were quite correct, Mr. President, when you said, I admit that the decision will impose extra burden on the masses of our people. I feel your pain, you are implying the negative impacts of gasoline subsidies. Youre using a lot of psychological jargon when you said, you understand the people's pain.

Psychologists, who have a wide variety of knowledge and concentrate largely on engaging in a discourse about urgent needs, are more well prepared to provide situational care and assistance than psychiatrists, who are mostly educated to have the appetite for prescribing psychotropic or psychiatric medicines. Medication is not the first line of defense for Nigerians who are suddenly suffering from situational stress brought on by specific events like the elimination of gasoline subsidies.

Many Nigerians who are going through challenging or unpleasant circumstances ought to receive psychological assistance.

Many Nigerians require psychological talks when dealing with challenging or unpleasant circumstances.

Psychologists who are known for giving their patients more time and freedom to learn about or cope with stressful conditions would teach and show distressed Nigerians effective coping mechanisms. Wherever the client is, at home, at work, at a park, on the street, or in the office, they will meet them and provide guidance on stress-reduction techniques. Utilizing a variety of techniques, such as tests to evaluate their intelligence, personality, and emotions to learn more about how they feel, think, and behave, you can assist them in determining the problem.

Once a psychologist has assisted you in identifying the precise situations or events that are the source of your stress, they will arm you with the knowledge and skills you need to develop a plan of action that is intended to directly address the problem. When acting as a client's therapist, psychologists frequently seek their consent before contacting friends, family, or other trustworthy individuals to offer further emotional support and understanding. Psychologists employ what I called showing the way by long-term talk and empathic support with their clients.

Mr. President, discussing one's concerns can help to minimize the burden caused by subsidy effects, which will ultimately free up money for expenses related to a dependable supply of power, public transit, healthcare, and other infrastructure-related expenses. Without immediately relying on psychiatric drugs, psychologists can help patients manage their unpleasant thoughts, uncomfortable emotions, and negative spirits. Medicines are not always necessary when discussing techniques for calming your body and mind.

President Tinubu, you are aware of the benefits of counseling, support, and additional coping mechanisms that are appropriate to an individual's needs in order to reduce situational stress without using drugs. You are an American-educated person with unwavering liberal democratic and social values.

The truth is that psychologists are case managers who can advocate for distressed Nigerians and inform them of the necessary palliatives, or actions or policies, that will be put in place to provide relief or support to individuals or groups affected by this stressful fuel subsidy situation or abrupt policy change. In order to help disadvantaged households or individuals deal with the abrupt stressors brought on by the elimination of fuel subsidies, psychologists will work with the government to raise awareness of the suffering of Nigerians and the urgent need for swift financial support and public transit. Psychologists serve as advocacy experts as part of their clinical and social missions, whereas psychiatrists often treat patients' problems with prescription medications.

It's time to acknowledge the necessity of the Psychology Bill, Mr. President. Though they both often play significant roles in the field of mental health, psychologists and psychiatrists in Nigeria must work together as colleagues without excessive competitiveness or power struggles.

Psychologists place a strong emphasis on prevention, taking proactive measures to help Nigerians stop or decrease serious issues before they arise. Nigerian culture has long been shaped by psychiatry as a result of its colonial background. However, because of recent developments, Nigeria now needs social development as well as educated, healthy Nigerians who can uphold the nation's high standard of living.

Make Nigerian psychologists a formal and legal element of these national missions, Mr. President, if you want greater assistance while in office.
14.06.2023 LISTEN

Police brutality has become a concerning issue as reports of extrajudicial killings by law enforcement agencies continue to surface. The growing number of incidents involving the unjustified killing of unsuspecting civilians by the police raises alarming concerns. For instance, news emerged of police officers in Bortianor allegedly killing five suspected thieves. At the same time, another incident reported the deaths of nine land guardians at the hands of the police in Tuba, Greater Accra, Ghana. While some may perceive these acts as necessary for eliminating criminals and maintaining societal order, the recent instances of police murdering unsuspecting citizens raise alarm and cast doubt on their commitment to upholding human rights.

The question arises whether police are authorized to engage in acts of murder. The use of excessive force by law enforcement is strictly regulated by international standards. The United Nations Basic Principles on the Use of Force and Firearms (BPUFF) is a crucial international document that governs the appropriate use of force by the police. According to these principles, the use of excessive force is only permissible as a last resort, under specific circumstances. Unfortunately, a significant number of reported police homicides fail to meet the expectations outlined by BPUFF.

It is imperative to thoroughly investigate the underlying reasons for these recent police murders. While citizens deserve protection from criminals, it is unjustifiable to treat suspected robbers solely as targets for brutality. The alarming violation of the right to life by the police raises concerns about the professionalism of our law enforcement agencies.

In situations where the police are the sole witnesses to the confrontations or killings, it becomes difficult to ascertain whether their actions were indeed a last resort. The evaluation of human rights violations perpetrated by the police becomes essential. Failure to address these violations could perpetuate a culture of impunity, enabling the continuation of these unwarranted killings under dubious justifications. Police must provide evidence that their actions were genuinely necessary, mainly when there is insufficient proof to support their claims.

In today's progressive society, human liberties are regarded as sacred and fundamental. It is regressive for the police to resort to opening fire on individuals without attempting to apprehend them, resulting in their unjustifiable deaths merely to create a report. Such actions not only violate the principles of our society but also undermine the essence of humanity itself.

The widespread occurrence of police brutality represents a grave violation of human rights. Law enforcement agencies must be held accountable for their actions, and investigations should be conducted to determine the circumstances leading to these killings. Upholding human rights and ensuring that the police adhere to international standards are essential steps towards a just and equitable society.

Isaac Ofori

(Demographer, Social Activist, Human Rights Advocate, Educationist)
14.06.2023 LISTEN

Former Deputy General Secretary of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Samuel Koku Anyidoho has taken to his social media once again to tease former President John Dramani Mahama.

In a post on Wednesday, June 14, the sidelined member of the largest opposition party praised ex-President John Agyekum Kufuor for what he described as living a dignified life after retirement.

Comparing Kufuor to Mahama as former presidents, Koku Anyidoho described Mahama as a greedy person busily chasing another term to serve as president.

Nkrumahs Ghana currently has only 2 living ex-Presidents. While Prez Kufuour is living a dignified retirement life & being honored internationally, asimasi is enjoying pension benefits, still greedily looking for another term, has been being sued,& will end up in court, Koku Anyidoho said in his Tweet.

This is not the first time Samuel Koku Anyidoho has made a post to attack former President John Dramani Mahama.

Although he insists he has no hatred for the former President, he does not shy away from throwing jabs at the least opportunity.
iShares MSCI Japan ETF (NYSEARCA:EWJ  Get Rating) was the target of unusually large options trading on Tuesday. Stock investors purchased 61,142 call options on the company. This is an increase of approximately 621% compared to the typical daily volume of 8,480 call options.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On iShares MSCI Japan ETF

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of iShares MSCI Japan ETF by 106,674.5% in the 4th quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 14,687,895 shares of the exchange traded funds stock valued at $799,609,000 after purchasing an additional 14,674,139 shares in the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. lifted its stake in shares of iShares MSCI Japan ETF by 34.1% in the 1st quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 12,571,252 shares of the exchange traded funds stock valued at $737,807,000 after acquiring an additional 3,199,658 shares during the last quarter. TD Asset Management Inc lifted its stake in shares of iShares MSCI Japan ETF by 307.4% in the 4th quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 6,499,796 shares of the exchange traded funds stock valued at $353,849,000 after acquiring an additional 4,904,496 shares during the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of iShares MSCI Japan ETF by 755.5% in the 4th quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 4,175,671 shares of the exchange traded funds stock valued at $227,324,000 after acquiring an additional 3,687,586 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE lifted its stake in shares of iShares MSCI Japan ETF by 22.8% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 3,869,675 shares of the exchange traded funds stock valued at $227,111,000 after acquiring an additional 718,292 shares during the last quarter.

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iShares MSCI Japan ETF Price Performance

NYSEARCA:EWJ traded up $0.90 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $63.51. 10,622,559 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,805,100. The business has a 50 day moving average of $59.69 and a 200 day moving average of $57.56. The company has a market capitalization of $10.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.76 and a beta of 0.68. iShares MSCI Japan ETF has a 1-year low of $47.64 and a 1-year high of $63.83.

About iShares MSCI Japan ETF

iShares MSCI Japan ETF (the fund), formerly Ishares Msci Japan Index Fund, is an exchange-traded fund. The Fund seeks to provide investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of publicly traded securities in the Japanese market, as measured by the MSCI Japan Index (the Index).

Further Reading

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Medical Properties Trust, Inc. (NYSE:MPW  Get Rating) was the recipient of some unusual options trading on Tuesday. Investors purchased 128,547 call options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 98% compared to the average daily volume of 65,034 call options.

Medical Properties Trust Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MPW traded up $0.09 on Tuesday, hitting $9.31. The companys stock had a trading volume of 22,244,916 shares, compared to its average volume of 15,391,858. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $8.28 and a 200 day simple moving average of $10.23. Medical Properties Trust has a 1 year low of $7.10 and a 1 year high of $17.36. The company has a market capitalization of $5.57 billion, a PE ratio of 18.60, a PEG ratio of 0.58 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 2.15 and a quick ratio of 2.15.

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Medical Properties Trust Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 13th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, June 15th will be issued a $0.29 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 14th. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 12.47%. Medical Properties Trusts payout ratio is currently 232.00%.

Institutional Trading of Medical Properties Trust

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI raised its holdings in shares of Medical Properties Trust by 59.8% in the 1st quarter. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI now owns 19,000 shares of the real estate investment trusts stock valued at $156,000 after acquiring an additional 7,113 shares in the last quarter. Atomi Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Medical Properties Trust during the 1st quarter valued at about $1,172,000. Level Four Advisory Services LLC increased its position in shares of Medical Properties Trust by 120.2% during the 1st quarter. Level Four Advisory Services LLC now owns 66,433 shares of the real estate investment trusts stock valued at $546,000 after purchasing an additional 36,260 shares during the last quarter. Arete Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Medical Properties Trust during the 1st quarter valued at about $85,000. Finally, Advisory Services Network LLC increased its position in shares of Medical Properties Trust by 101.8% during the 1st quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC now owns 123,399 shares of the real estate investment trusts stock valued at $1,014,000 after purchasing an additional 62,236 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.31% of the companys stock.

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. Raymond James dropped their price target on Medical Properties Trust from $18.00 to $16.00 and set a strong-buy rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Medical Properties Trust from $14.00 to $12.00 and set a neutral rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 3rd. Truist Financial upped their price target on Medical Properties Trust from $8.00 to $9.00 in a research report on Friday, March 31st. Wells Fargo & Company assumed coverage on Medical Properties Trust in a research report on Wednesday, April 19th. They set an equal weight rating and a $9.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Barclays dropped their price target on Medical Properties Trust from $14.00 to $12.00 and set an overweight rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 5th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $13.23.

Medical Properties Trust Company Profile

(Get Rating)

Medical Properties Trust, Inc is a self-advised real estate investment trust, engages in the investment, acquisition, and development of net-leased healthcare facilities. Its property portfolio includes rehabilitation hospitals, long-term acute care hospitals, ambulatory surgery centers, hospitals for women and children, regional and community hospitals, medical office buildings, and other single-discipline facilities.

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The prospect of a Canadian utility company siting a small nuclear reactor just a stones throw from the North Dakota border has come as a surprise to state officials and local landowners.

But the power such a project could bring may be welcome.

Its a very positive development, Jody Gunlock said of the possibility that SaskPower will build a nuclear power plant across the border from Noonan, a town in Divide County in the states far northwest corner.

Gunlock, who ranches near the border and also serves as Divide Countys emergency manager, is eager to hear more, not just about SaskPowers plans, but about the possibility of North Dakota planning its own small modular nuclear reactors.

Sheri Haugen-Hoffart, one of three commissioners serving on the North Dakota Public Service Commission, said the North Dakota News Cooperative's query was the first shed heard of the project. Gov. Doug Burgums office indicated that the Department of Commerce had communications with SaskPower and others regarding small modular reactors -- known as SMRs -- at a recent energy conference in Atlanta.

According to Commerce, much of the discussion about nuclear power at the conference revolved around the fact that either the U.S. or Canada will need at least 10 years from initial study to finalized buildout, even for SMRs, said Burgum spokesperson Mike Nowatzki, adding that the state is unaware of any SMR planning for North Dakota.

Victor Schock, director of public utilities at the PSC, said he was prompted to research the project after the inquiry for this story and said SaskPower hadnt reached out to state authorities about the plans.

Not that they would necessarily need to since theyre really outside our jurisdiction, but that wouldnt necessarily prevent us from intervening in a proceeding they may have up there either, Schock said. If were concerned about safety on our side of the border, it would be potentially worthwhile to intervene and raise some concerns.

SaskPower is narrowing down potential sites for the location of a GE-Hitachi BWRX-300 small modular reactor, with one possible location in the Estevan region and the other near Elbow, which is about an hour northwest of Regina.

Site selection should be finalized by the end of 2024, with licensing finished by 2029, Darcy Holderness of SaskPower said in an online presentation earlier this month.

An operating reactor wouldnt be in place until the mid-2030s, he said, and the site picked could possibly host at least an additional reactor after the initial project is approved.

Eagerness for reliable power

Gunlock spent time at the Defense Nuclear Weapons School in New Mexico and led the 55th Civil Support (WMD) response team at the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport during his time in the U.S. Army, so he is familiar with both the potential opportunities and dangers of nuclear material.

If you want clean, carbon-free energy and want reliable energy thats there all the time, youve got to go nuke, he said, adding that the intermittency of wind and solar reduce reliability, plus they take up much more space than a small nuclear reactor.

If it was up to me and they came and asked if they could put a nuke on my property, Id say yes, build that, Gunlock said.

Divide County Commissioner Isaac Jacobs and his brother, Morgan, own a farm right next door to the Noonan Port of Entry. Isaac had already heard of the project from Canadian radio broadcasts, and shared thoughts similar to Gunlocks. He calls nuclear the cleanest, most efficient and most readily available source of energy.

Its been around for a long time, he said. So why arent we using it?

Morgan had a slightly different take, saying he wouldnt be opposed to nuclear if it benefited the local community in some way but that if all we could get is the risk of something going wrong, Id be opposed to such a project.

Based on transmission infrastructure already under discussion, one future benefit for North Dakota could be power delivered from Canada. Plans for two 230 kilovolt transmission lines extending from Wheelock and the Tande-Neset areas into Canada are in the works.

Basin Electric Power Cooperative will be the transmission owner of the lines, Basin spokesperson Andrew Buntrock said. The project is part of nearly $700 million in line improvements planned for the state, with this one slated to improve power transferability between the two countries.

SaskPower has not discussed its nuclear power plans with the cooperative and the transmission development has no relation to that project, Basin Electric's communications manager Lindsey Chumley told The Tioga Tribune.

Weve identified that the proximity to the U.S. border will require some consideration, though to date, we have not had any direct communications with representatives in North Dakota or in other American jurisdictions regarding our SMR development project, said Scott McGregor, a media relations representative of SaskPower.

McGregor said that the planned transmission line could enable the potential export of power generated from an SMR, but the scope of import and export arrangements has not been finalized.

A nuclear powered future?

Plans for small modular nuclear power projects arent just in the works north of the border.

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission in January certified designs on the first small modular nuclear reactor in the U.S. -- a 50 megawatt unit built by Oregon-based NuScale Power to be located near Idaho Falls, Idaho.

Another project in the works is the Bill Gates-backed TerraPower small modular reactor that will replace the Naughton coal plant near Kemmerer, Wyoming, an effort that has been funded with nearly $2 billion by Congress.

Other small modular reactors in the pipeline include potential sites in Ohio, Texas and Washington state. No such plans exist in North Dakota, but recently passed House Resolution 3034 directed the Legislature to consider studying the feasibility of advanced nuclear energy development and transmission in the state.

Legislative Management approved the study on May 25; it will be on the agenda of members of an Energy Development and Transmission Committee in the next two years.

This study is a vital first step to future-proof our energy industry, said Rep. Corey Mock, D-Grand Forks, who sponsored the study bill.

Mock said it is important to consider nuclear power as coal-fired power plants age and reach the end of their life cycle, especially considering the average age of facilities in the state is over 45 years old.

Advanced nuclear power may be the critical piece that makes North Dakota a perpetual leader in American energy production, Mock said, adding that if it eventually replaces some coal-fired power, it could breathe new life into coal country.

Xcel Energy, which testified in support of the bill and already has two nuclear power plants in Minnesota, is also working with NuScale to support its Idaho development and sees potential for advanced nuclear in North Dakota and across the region, senior media relations manager Kevin Coss said.

Schock said small modular reactor discussions have come up over the years at the PSC, but concerns have been raised. North Dakota would want to have a cost-effective, developed technology ready to deploy instead of trying out something new, he said. Another aspect is long term storage of spent nuclear fuel, which has been a costly regulatory problem for other nuclear power providers.

That said, nuclear will likely need to be on the table in the coming years.

Theres really no future reliable energy that can happen without that piece of the puzzle, Schock said, mentioning that renewable energy resources, natural gas and battery storage cant fully ensure grid reliability. Nuclear is a good way to get over that hump, as long as you can become okay with the risks associated with it.

Alan Ahn, a climate and energy fellow specializing in nuclear power at the center-left think tank Third Way, said interest has been increasing in nuclear energy around the country, particularly in coal-to-nuclear transitions.

For areas that could see coal-fired power shut down in the future, small modular nuclear reactors could be a way to transition to another energy source that can use existing infrastructure from cooling water to transmission lines to the plants themselves.

The primary interest that were hearing from other states like West Virginia, for example, is that a lot of the skills in an existing coal workforce are translatable or could be converted to that of an advanced reactor plant with modest or minimal retraining, Ahn said.

Obviously its a huge benefit for the clean energy transition for reducing greenhouse gas emissions, but then you can also preserve the socio-economic fabric of a community, Ahn said. If you were to replace the generation from a coal plant with the equivalent amount of wind turbines and solar, there wouldnt necessarily be the same jobs in that geographic location."
Altrinsic Global Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Perusahaan Perseroan (Persero) PT Telekomunikasi Indonesia Tbk (NYSE:TLK  Get Rating) by 31.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 14,864 shares of the utilities providers stock after buying an additional 3,574 shares during the quarter. Altrinsic Global Advisors LLCs holdings in Perusahaan Perseroan (Persero) PT Telekomunikasi Indonesia Tbk were worth $355,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC lifted its position in shares of Perusahaan Perseroan (Persero) PT Telekomunikasi Indonesia Tbk by 5.5% during the 4th quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC now owns 67,403 shares of the utilities providers stock worth $1,608,000 after buying an additional 3,526 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in shares of Perusahaan Perseroan (Persero) PT Telekomunikasi Indonesia Tbk by 7.2% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 17,600 shares of the utilities providers stock worth $420,000 after buying an additional 1,179 shares in the last quarter. UBS Group AG lifted its position in shares of Perusahaan Perseroan (Persero) PT Telekomunikasi Indonesia Tbk by 3.4% during the 4th quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 74,583 shares of the utilities providers stock worth $1,779,000 after buying an additional 2,465 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Perusahaan Perseroan (Persero) PT Telekomunikasi Indonesia Tbk by 121.8% during the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 17,346 shares of the utilities providers stock worth $414,000 after buying an additional 9,525 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of Perusahaan Perseroan (Persero) PT Telekomunikasi Indonesia Tbk by 62.0% in the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 132,156 shares of the utilities providers stock worth $3,152,000 after purchasing an additional 50,578 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 4.04% of the companys stock.

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Perusahaan Perseroan (Persero) PT Telekomunikasi Indonesia Tbk Trading Down 0.5 %

NYSE:TLK opened at $27.93 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. The stock has a market capitalization of $25.15 billion, a PE ratio of 18.87 and a beta of 0.63. The firms 50 day moving average is $28.04 and its 200 day moving average is $26.26. Perusahaan Perseroan has a 12 month low of $23.02 and a 12 month high of $31.95.

Perusahaan Perseroan (Persero) PT Telekomunikasi Indonesia Tbk Increases Dividend

Perusahaan Perseroan (Persero) PT Telekomunikasi Indonesia Tbk ( NYSE:TLK Get Rating ) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 28th. The utilities provider reported $0.45 EPS for the quarter. The company had revenue of $2.53 billion for the quarter. Perusahaan Perseroan (Persero) PT Telekomunikasi Indonesia Tbk had a net margin of 14.21% and a return on equity of 14.51%.

The business also recently declared an annual dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 17th. Investors of record on Thursday, June 15th will be issued a $1.1296 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 14th. This is a boost from Perusahaan Perseroan (Persero) PT Telekomunikasi Indonesia Tbks previous annual dividend of $0.81. Perusahaan Perseroan (Persero) PT Telekomunikasi Indonesia Tbks payout ratio is 51.35%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, StockNews.com cut shares of Perusahaan Perseroan (Persero) PT Telekomunikasi Indonesia Tbk from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report on Tuesday, May 30th.

Perusahaan Perseroan (Persero) PT Telekomunikasi Indonesia Tbk Profile

(Get Rating)

PT Telkom Indonesia (Persero) Tbk is a holding company, which engages in the provision of telecommunications, information, and technology services. It operates through the following segments: Mobile, Consumer, Enterprise, Wholesale and International Business (WIB), and Others. The Mobile segment provides mobile voice, SMS, value added services and, mobile broadband.

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Shares of Fortis Inc. (NYSE:FTS  Get Rating) have been given an average rating of Hold by the eleven research firms that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, four have assigned a hold recommendation and one has assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $58.75.

FTS has been the subject of several recent research reports. StockNews.com initiated coverage on Fortis in a research report on Thursday, May 18th. They set a hold rating for the company. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a sector perform rating and set a $65.00 price target on shares of Fortis in a research report on Friday, March 24th.

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Hedge Funds Weigh In On Fortis

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of FTS. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Fortis by 3.9% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 17,872,872 shares of the utilities providers stock valued at $678,990,000 after buying an additional 675,957 shares during the period. FIL Ltd increased its holdings in Fortis by 11.7% during the 1st quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 15,423,380 shares of the utilities providers stock worth $655,622,000 after purchasing an additional 1,613,888 shares during the period. 1832 Asset Management L.P. increased its holdings in shares of Fortis by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 9,519,651 shares of the utilities providers stock valued at $381,167,000 after acquiring an additional 58,862 shares during the last quarter. Scotia Capital Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Fortis by 2.6% in the 1st quarter. Scotia Capital Inc. now owns 7,317,543 shares of the utilities providers stock valued at $309,959,000 after acquiring an additional 186,241 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mackenzie Financial Corp increased its holdings in shares of Fortis by 10.6% in the 1st quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 5,854,350 shares of the utilities providers stock valued at $248,841,000 after acquiring an additional 558,947 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 49.59% of the companys stock.

Fortis Trading Down 0.9 %

Fortis stock opened at $42.69 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25. Fortis has a 52 week low of $34.76 and a 52 week high of $48.22. The company has a market capitalization of $20.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.56 and a beta of 0.44. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $43.83 and a 200 day moving average price of $41.85.

Fortis (NYSE:FTS  Get Rating) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 3rd. The utilities provider reported $0.67 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts consensus estimates of $0.61 by $0.06. Fortis had a return on equity of 6.63% and a net margin of 12.42%. The firm had revenue of $2.45 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.25 billion. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Fortis will post 2.17 EPS for the current year.

About Fortis

(Get Rating)

Fortis Inc operates as an electric and gas utility company in Canada, the United States, and the Caribbean countries. It generates, transmits, and distributes electricity to approximately 443,000 retail customers in southeastern Arizona; and 102,000 retail customers in Arizona's Mohave and Santa Cruz counties with an aggregate capacity of 3,328 megawatts (MW), including 68 MW of solar capacity and 250 MV of wind capacity.

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Citizens Financial (OTCMKTS:CIWV  Get Rating) is one of 127 publicly-traded companies in the BanksRegional industry, but how does it compare to its peers? We will compare Citizens Financial to similar businesses based on the strength of its valuation, analyst recommendations, risk, dividends, earnings, profitability and institutional ownership.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Citizens Financial and its peers gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

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Gross Revenue Net Income Price/Earnings Ratio Citizens Financial N/A N/A 37.48 Citizens Financial Competitors $2.09 billion $494.96 million 573.72

Citizens Financials peers have higher revenue and earnings than Citizens Financial. Citizens Financial is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than its peers, indicating that it is currently more affordable than other companies in its industry.

Profitability

Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets Citizens Financial N/A N/A N/A Citizens Financial Competitors 23.84% 10.28% 0.96%

Dividends

This table compares Citizens Financial and its peers net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

Citizens Financial pays an annual dividend of $0.28 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.3%. Citizens Financial pays out 47.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. As a group, BanksRegional companies pay a dividend yield of 2.7% and pay out 28.8% of their earnings in the form of a dividend. Citizens Financial lags its peers as a dividend stock, given its lower dividend yield and higher payout ratio.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

5.6% of Citizens Financial shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 45.8% of shares of all BanksRegional companies are held by institutional investors. 13.2% of shares of all BanksRegional companies are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current ratings for Citizens Financial and its peers, as reported by MarketBeat.

Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score Citizens Financial 0 0 0 0 N/A Citizens Financial Competitors 997 3015 2943 23 2.29

As a group, BanksRegional companies have a potential upside of 47.50%. Given Citizens Financials peers higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Citizens Financial has less favorable growth aspects than its peers.

Summary

Citizens Financial peers beat Citizens Financial on 10 of the 10 factors compared.

Citizens Financial Company Profile

(Get Rating)

Citizens Financial Corp. operates as the bank holding company for Citizens Bank of West Virginia, Inc. that provides retail, secondary market, and commercial loan services to consumers and businesses in West Virginia. It provides various deposit products, including checking accounts, savings accounts, money market accounts, IRAs, and certificates of deposit. The company also offers loan products comprising auto, personal, RVS and camper, motorcycles, boats, and ATVS; and commercial loans, such as term loans, lines of credit, real estate loans, and government guaranteed loans, as well as home loans and home equity; debit and credit cards; insured cash sweep and CDARS; and remote deposit and safe deposit box services. In addition, it provides investment products, such as managed and brokerage accounts, 401K, simple and SEP IRAS, traditional and ROTH IRA, smart529 plans, insurance, and fixed and variable annuities; investment services, including retirement planning, estate planning, asset allocation, and college savings; and trust services. Further, the company offers online banking, mobile and telephone banking, mobile deposit, bill pay, notary, ATM, coin counter, night deposit drop, foreign currency, credit card processing, and other services, as well as wire transfers and digital wallet services. The company was founded in 1924 and is headquartered in Elkins, West Virginia.

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Armadale Capital Plc (LON:ACP  Get Rating)s stock price hit a new 52-week low on Wednesday . The company traded as low as GBX 1.16 ($0.01) and last traded at GBX 1.16 ($0.01), with a volume of 341880 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at GBX 1.28 ($0.02).

Armadale Capital Trading Down 8.7 %

The businesss 50 day moving average price is GBX 1.41 and its two-hundred day moving average price is GBX 1.60. The company has a market capitalization of 6.84 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -17.75 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 11.23, a quick ratio of 41.47 and a current ratio of 15.53.

Armadale Capital Company Profile

(Get Rating)

Armadale Capital Plc, an investment company, focuses on natural resources projects in Africa. It holds 100% interest in the Mahenge Liandu Graphite project located in Tanzania. The company was formerly known as Watermark Global Plc and changed its name to Armadale Capital Plc in July 2013. Armadale Capital Plc was incorporated in 2005 and is headquartered in Esher, the United Kingdom.

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BlackRock Floating Rate Income Strategies Fund, Inc. (NYSE:FRA  Get Rating) saw a large growth in short interest in the month of May. As of May 31st, there was short interest totalling 136,000 shares, a growth of 136.9% from the May 15th total of 57,400 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 152,500 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 0.9 days.

BlackRock Floating Rate Income Strategies Fund Price Performance

FRA traded up $0.02 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $12.06. 122,589 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 135,487. The companys 50 day simple moving average is $11.76 and its 200 day simple moving average is $11.69. BlackRock Floating Rate Income Strategies Fund has a 1-year low of $10.92 and a 1-year high of $12.79.

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BlackRock Floating Rate Income Strategies Fund Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.117 per share. This is a boost from BlackRock Floating Rate Income Strategies Funds previous monthly dividend of $0.11. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 14th. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 11.64%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On BlackRock Floating Rate Income Strategies Fund

About BlackRock Floating Rate Income Strategies Fund

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. CWM LLC grew its stake in BlackRock Floating Rate Income Strategies Fund by 59.5% in the 1st quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,738 shares of the investment management companys stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 1,021 shares during the period. Belpointe Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in BlackRock Floating Rate Income Strategies Fund in the 4th quarter valued at $36,000. DT Investment Partners LLC acquired a new stake in BlackRock Floating Rate Income Strategies Fund in the 4th quarter valued at $49,000. Wolverine Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in BlackRock Floating Rate Income Strategies Fund by 73.1% in the 3rd quarter. Wolverine Asset Management LLC now owns 4,460 shares of the investment management companys stock worth $49,000 after buying an additional 1,884 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Captrust Financial Advisors acquired a new stake in BlackRock Floating Rate Income Strategies Fund in the 2nd quarter worth about $71,000.

(Get Rating)

BlackRock Floating Rate Income Strategies Fund, Inc operates as a closed-end investment fund. It intends to provide shareholders with high current income and such preservation of capital as is consistent with investment in a diversified, leveraged portfolio consisting of floating rate debt securities and instruments.

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Shares of Canadian Zinc Co. (TSE:CZN  Get Rating) traded up 9.1% on Monday . The company traded as high as C$0.12 and last traded at C$0.12. 122,370 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 21% from the average session volume of 154,194 shares. The stock had previously closed at C$0.11.

Canadian Zinc Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 867.15, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a current ratio of 0.67. The company has a market capitalization of C$43.93 million and a P/E ratio of -3.24. The businesss 50-day moving average is C$0.12.

Canadian Zinc Company Profile

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Canadian Zinc Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the exploration and development of natural resource properties in Canada. The company's principal project is the Prairie Creek mine, a zinc-lead-silver property located in the Northwest Territories. It also owns a mineral land package in central Newfoundland, which comprises lead, copper, silver, gold, and zinc deposits.

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Firsthand Capital Management Inc. reduced its stake in Cloudflare, Inc. (NYSE:NET  Get Rating) by 11.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 80,000 shares of the companys stock after selling 10,000 shares during the period. Cloudflare makes up approximately 4.2% of Firsthand Capital Management Inc.s portfolio, making the stock its 6th biggest position. Firsthand Capital Management Inc.s holdings in Cloudflare were worth $3,617,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of NET. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans acquired a new position in Cloudflare in the 4th quarter valued at about $725,000. TD Asset Management Inc grew its position in Cloudflare by 4.2% in the 4th quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 52,073 shares of the companys stock valued at $2,354,000 after acquiring an additional 2,088 shares in the last quarter. M&T Bank Corp grew its position in Cloudflare by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 10,651 shares of the companys stock valued at $502,000 after acquiring an additional 236 shares in the last quarter. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ grew its position in Cloudflare by 19.4% in the 4th quarter. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ now owns 51,456 shares of the companys stock valued at $2,326,000 after acquiring an additional 8,364 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec acquired a new position in Cloudflare in the 3rd quarter valued at about $658,000. 69.97% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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Insider Transactions at Cloudflare

In other news, CFO Thomas J. Seifert sold 5,218 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.03, for a total transaction of $313,236.54. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 61,355 shares in the company, valued at $3,683,140.65. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, CFO Thomas J. Seifert sold 5,218 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.03, for a total transaction of $313,236.54. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 61,355 shares in the company, valued at $3,683,140.65. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Thomas J. Seifert sold 15,000 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.57, for a total value of $803,550.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 61,355 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $3,286,787.35. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 431,529 shares of company stock worth $26,149,296 over the last 90 days. 15.99% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Cloudflare Price Performance

Several equities analysts have weighed in on NET shares. William Blair reaffirmed an outperform rating on shares of Cloudflare in a research report on Wednesday, April 19th. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on Cloudflare in a research report on Tuesday, February 14th. They set a sell rating and a $51.00 price objective for the company. UBS Group initiated coverage on Cloudflare in a research report on Monday, June 5th. They set a sell rating and a $55.00 price objective for the company. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on Cloudflare from $65.00 to $55.00 in a research report on Friday, April 28th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald lowered their price objective on Cloudflare from $65.00 to $50.00 in a research report on Friday, April 28th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Cloudflare presently has an average rating of Hold and an average price target of $60.80.

Shares of NYSE NET opened at $67.74 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 4.40, a quick ratio of 4.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.20. Cloudflare, Inc. has a twelve month low of $37.37 and a twelve month high of $80.99. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $58.18 and a two-hundred day moving average of $54.50. The stock has a market cap of $22.48 billion, a P/E ratio of -117.14 and a beta of 0.99.

Cloudflare (NYSE:NET  Get Rating) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 27th. The company reported ($0.10) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts consensus estimates of ($0.08) by ($0.02). Cloudflare had a negative net margin of 18.05% and a negative return on equity of 25.10%. The firm had revenue of $290.18 million during the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $290.96 million. On average, research analysts forecast that Cloudflare, Inc. will post -0.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Cloudflare Profile

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CloudFlare, Inc operates as a cloud services provider that delivers a range of services to businesses worldwide. The company offers an integrated cloud-based security solution to secure a range of combination of platforms, including public cloud, private cloud, on-premise, software-as-a-service applications, and IoT devices.

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Shenzhou International Group (OTCMKTS:SHZHY  Get Rating) and Albany International (NYSE:AIN  Get Rating) are both consumer non-durables companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their risk, analyst recommendations, dividends, institutional ownership, earnings, valuation and profitability.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

99.9% of Albany International shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.8% of Albany International shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

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Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent ratings for Shenzhou International Group and Albany International, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score Shenzhou International Group 0 0 0 0 N/A Albany International 0 2 1 0 2.33

Profitability

Albany International has a consensus target price of $105.33, suggesting a potential upside of 15.21%. Given Albany Internationals higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Albany International is more favorable than Shenzhou International Group.

This table compares Shenzhou International Group and Albany Internationals net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets Shenzhou International Group N/A N/A N/A Albany International 8.96% 14.14% 7.38%

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Shenzhou International Group and Albany Internationals gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

Gross Revenue Price/Sales Ratio Net Income Earnings Per Share Price/Earnings Ratio Shenzhou International Group N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A Albany International $1.06 billion 2.69 $95.76 million $3.03 30.17

Albany International has higher revenue and earnings than Shenzhou International Group.

Summary

Albany International beats Shenzhou International Group on 8 of the 8 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Shenzhou International Group

(Get Rating)

Shenzhou International Group Holdings Limited, an investment holding company, engages in manufacturing, processing, and selling knitwear products. It produces and sells sportswear, casual wear, and lingerie wear. The company is also involved in the import and export of commodities; quality check of garments; print and sale of knitwear products; trading and retail businesses; aircraft leasing; and property management and leasing activities. It has operations in Mainland China, European Union, the United States, Japan, and internationally. The company was incorporated in 2005 and is based in Kowloon, Hong Kong.

About Albany International

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Albany International Corp., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the textile and materials processing business. The company operates in two segments, Machine Clothing (MC) and Albany Engineered Composites (AEC). The MC segment designs, manufactures, and markets paper machine clothing for use in the manufacturing of papers, paperboards, tissues, towels, nonwovens, building products, tannery, and textiles. This segment offers forming, pressing, and drying fabrics, as well as process belts; and engineered fabrics. The AEC segment 3D-woven and injected composite components for aircraft engines composite airframe and engine components for military and commercial aircraft. It operates in the United States, Switzerland, Brazil, China, France, Mexico, Italy, and internationally. The company was incorporated in 1895 and is headquartered in Rochester, New Hampshire.

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Canadian Western Bank (OTCMKTS:CBWBF  Get Rating) is one of 127 publicly-traded companies in the BanksRegional industry, but how does it compare to its competitors? We will compare Canadian Western Bank to related businesses based on the strength of its earnings, risk, analyst recommendations, profitability, dividends, institutional ownership and valuation.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

38.6% of Canadian Western Bank shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 44.4% of shares of all BanksRegional companies are held by institutional investors. 14.0% of shares of all BanksRegional companies are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

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Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current ratings for Canadian Western Bank and its competitors, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score Canadian Western Bank 0 2 1 0 2.33 Canadian Western Bank Competitors 799 2433 2474 25 2.30

Profitability

Canadian Western Bank presently has a consensus target price of $31.00, indicating a potential upside of 67.12%. As a group, BanksRegional companies have a potential upside of 25.32%. Given Canadian Western Banks stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, research analysts plainly believe Canadian Western Bank is more favorable than its competitors.

This table compares Canadian Western Bank and its competitors net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets Canadian Western Bank N/A N/A N/A Canadian Western Bank Competitors 22.61% 10.03% 0.97%

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Canadian Western Bank and its competitors top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

Gross Revenue Net Income Price/Earnings Ratio Canadian Western Bank N/A N/A 6.87 Canadian Western Bank Competitors $1.33 billion $330.27 million 561.22

Canadian Western Banks competitors have higher revenue and earnings than Canadian Western Bank. Canadian Western Bank is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than its competitors, indicating that it is currently more affordable than other companies in its industry.

Dividends

Canadian Western Bank pays an annual dividend of $0.78 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.2%. Canadian Western Bank pays out 28.9% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. As a group, BanksRegional companies pay a dividend yield of 2.6% and pay out 27.0% of their earnings in the form of a dividend.

Summary

Canadian Western Bank competitors beat Canadian Western Bank on 10 of the 13 factors compared.

Canadian Western Bank Company Profile

(Get Rating)

Canadian Western Bank provides personal and business banking products and services primarily in Western Canada. The company offers current, savings, notice, cash management, US dollar, and chequing accounts, as well as organization, business trust, and trust fund investment accounts. It also offers commercial lending and real estate, and equipment financing and leasing products; agriculture lending products; mortgages; lines of credits; registered retirement savings loans; consolidation, and vehicle loans; and credit cards. In addition, the company offers cash management services; life and disability insurance products; and ATM, mobile, and online banking services, as well cheque order services. Further, it provides investment products comprising guaranteed investment certificates, US dollars investments plans, registered retirement income funds, tax-free savings accounts, registered education savings plans, and mutual funds, as well as personal and business planning services. Canadian Western Bank was founded in 1984 and is headquartered in Edmonton, Canada.

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Devon Energy Co. (NYSE:DVN  Get Rating) was the recipient of unusually large options trading on Wednesday. Investors bought 66,692 put options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 40% compared to the average volume of 47,550 put options.

Devon Energy Stock Performance

Shares of Devon Energy stock traded down $1.44 on Wednesday, hitting $48.95. The stock had a trading volume of 10,779,736 shares, compared to its average volume of 9,307,244. Devon Energy has a 52-week low of $44.03 and a 52-week high of $78.82. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. The stock has a market cap of $32.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5.32, a P/E/G ratio of 0.15 and a beta of 2.33. The companys 50 day moving average price is $50.65 and its 200 day moving average price is $55.79.

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Devon Energy (NYSE:DVN  Get Rating) last posted its earnings results on Monday, May 8th. The energy company reported $1.46 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.39 by $0.07. Devon Energy had a return on equity of 47.42% and a net margin of 31.39%. The business had revenue of $3.82 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.82 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.88 EPS. The businesss quarterly revenue was up .3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that Devon Energy will post 6.39 EPS for the current year.

Devon Energy Cuts Dividend

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 15th will be issued a $0.72 dividend. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.88%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 14th. Devon Energys payout ratio is currently 8.72%.

DVN has been the subject of a number of research reports. Evercore ISI dropped their price objective on Devon Energy from $80.00 to $52.00 in a research note on Tuesday, March 14th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on Devon Energy from $52.00 to $49.00 and set an equal weight rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 19th. Bank of America dropped their price objective on Devon Energy from $67.00 to $60.00 in a research note on Tuesday, May 9th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on Devon Energy from $75.00 to $71.00 in a research note on Monday, May 22nd. Finally, Barclays dropped their price objective on Devon Energy from $82.00 to $67.00 in a research note on Friday, March 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the companys stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $67.39.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Dennis C. Cameron sold 8,292 shares of Devon Energy stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.97, for a total transaction of $414,351.24. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 218,418 shares in the company, valued at $10,914,347.46. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.63% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Devon Energy

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. EP Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Devon Energy during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $906,000. Level Four Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in Devon Energy by 0.7% during the 1st quarter. Level Four Advisory Services LLC now owns 51,749 shares of the energy companys stock valued at $2,619,000 after acquiring an additional 337 shares during the last quarter. Kennedy Investment Group increased its position in Devon Energy by 51.2% during the 1st quarter. Kennedy Investment Group now owns 15,649 shares of the energy companys stock worth $792,000 after purchasing an additional 5,299 shares during the period. Coastline Trust Co increased its position in Devon Energy by 25.6% during the 1st quarter. Coastline Trust Co now owns 55,308 shares of the energy companys stock worth $2,799,000 after purchasing an additional 11,270 shares during the period. Finally, Fortis Group Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Devon Energy during the 1st quarter worth approximately $586,000. 78.08% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Devon Energy

(Get Rating)

Devon Energy Corporation, an independent energy company, explores for, develops, and produces oil, natural gas, and natural gas liquids in the United States. It operates in Delaware, Anadarko, Williston, Eagle Ford, and Powder River Basin. The company was incorporated in 1971 and is headquartered in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.

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FARGO  North Dakota and Montana officials are joining forces to establish the region as a technology hub, a designation that could mean millions in federal development dollars.

Representatives of the Montana Chamber of Commerce as well as business, higher education and government officials from the state met last week with North Dakota counterparts during the Midwest Ag Summit at the Red River Valley Fairgrounds in West Fargo.

Their purpose: the formalization of a two-state partnership to develop a consortium that is being called the Headwaters Tech Hub.

The consortium will compete with other consortia across the country to become one of 20 such organizations that will be recognized by the recently formed federal Tech Hubs Program.

The program was authorized by the CHIPS and Science Act and is a key part of President Joe Biden's "Investing in America" plan to stimulate private sector investment and revitalize American manufacturing.

Once established, the Headwaters Tech Hub plans to pursue a Phase 1 tech hub designation and a Strategy Development grant from the U.S. Department of Commerce, with the aim of later securing a $50 million to $75 million Phase 2 Tech Hub Implementation Grant, according to information provided by the Montana Chamber of Commerce.

A total of about $500 million is expected to be distributed among the first five to 10 tech hubs to receive implementation grants from the federal government, and an additional $10 billion is to be appropriated over the next decade to fund a total of 20 tech hubs, according to the Montana Chamber.

The Headwaters Tech Hub will know by the end of the year if it will receive an implementation grant, according to Matthew Olson, director of the Montana Chamber of Commerce and a tech hub lead in the regional effort to gain federal recognition.

Successful applicants for the Tech Hubs Program will pursue "specific, impactful diversity and inclusion strategies that accelerate innovation and growth and increase the equity, accessibility, and diversity of the innovation economy," including good and accessible jobs, according to a U.S. Economic Development Administration fact sheet.

The Tech Hubs Program will also focus on geographic diversity, including both rural and urban areas, according to the fact sheet.

The main goal of the Headwaters Tech Hub will be to aid companies that apply advanced sensors and unmanned and autonomous vehicles in key industries for the region, including forestry, agriculture and construction, according to a statement released by the Montana Chamber of Commerce.

Federal tech hub funding would act as a catalyst to increase the speed at which new technologies go from the laboratory to the market, the Chamber added.

Todd O'Hair, president and CEO of the Montana Chamber, said in the statement he was excited to lead the Montana delegation's visit to West Fargo.

"The regional tech hub program provides a great opportunity to expand production into new technologies, create good-paying Montana jobs and lower our dependence on foreign suppliers," O'Hair said, adding that the program would also mean significant investment in research and commercialization in the two states.

Applications for Phase 1 of the tech hub selection process are due Aug. 15, with selection for Phase 2 sites to be decided by this fall, according to the Montana Chamber.

Only state proposals that are selected as technology hubs in Phase 1 will be permitted to apply for Phase 2 funding.
DoubleVerify (NYSE:DV  Get Rating) had its target price upped by stock analysts at Royal Bank of Canada from $34.00 to $48.00 in a report released on Wednesday, The Fly reports. Royal Bank of Canadas target price suggests a potential upside of 31.76% from the stocks current price.

Other analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on DoubleVerify from $26.00 to $30.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a report on Thursday, March 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on DoubleVerify from $29.00 to $33.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research note on Thursday, March 2nd. Loop Capital lifted their price objective on DoubleVerify from $32.00 to $35.00 in a research note on Thursday, March 2nd. JMP Securities reissued a market outperform rating and issued a $35.00 target price on shares of DoubleVerify in a report on Thursday, March 16th. Finally, Truist Financial lifted their price objective on DoubleVerify from $37.00 to $38.00 in a report on Thursday, May 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the companys stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $35.73.

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DoubleVerify Price Performance

DV opened at $36.43 on Wednesday. DoubleVerify has a 1 year low of $20.28 and a 1 year high of $36.95. The company has a market capitalization of $6.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 125.63 and a beta of 0.82. The firms fifty day moving average price is $31.00 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $27.53.

Insiders Place Their Bets

DoubleVerify ( NYSE:DV Get Rating ) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 10th. The company reported $0.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts consensus estimates of $0.04 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $122.59 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $117.93 million. DoubleVerify had a return on equity of 5.91% and a net margin of 10.64%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.03 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that DoubleVerify will post 0.35 EPS for the current year.

In other DoubleVerify news, insider Andrew E. Grimmig sold 40,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.52, for a total transaction of $1,220,800.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 55,964 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $1,708,021.28. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, insider Andrew E. Grimmig sold 40,000 shares of the firms stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.52, for a total transaction of $1,220,800.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 55,964 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,708,021.28. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Nicola T. Allais sold 1,607 shares of the firms stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.16, for a total value of $42,039.12. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 56,883 shares in the company, valued at $1,488,059.28. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 85,917 shares of company stock valued at $2,501,225. Company insiders own 3.27% of the companys stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. BlackRock Inc. lifted its stake in DoubleVerify by 53.9% in the 1st quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 16,536,887 shares of the companys stock worth $498,587,000 after purchasing an additional 5,794,567 shares in the last quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in DoubleVerify by 17.3% in the 4th quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 7,103,585 shares of the companys stock worth $155,995,000 after purchasing an additional 1,045,501 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of DoubleVerify by 20.7% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 6,003,821 shares of the companys stock valued at $164,205,000 after buying an additional 1,030,783 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its position in shares of DoubleVerify by 32.7% during the 2nd quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 5,229,072 shares of the companys stock valued at $118,543,000 after buying an additional 1,289,415 shares during the period. Finally, 1832 Asset Management L.P. raised its position in shares of DoubleVerify by 95.0% during the 1st quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 3,524,100 shares of the companys stock valued at $106,252,000 after buying an additional 1,717,000 shares during the period. 90.21% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

DoubleVerify Company Profile

(Get Rating)

DoubleVerify Holdings, Inc provides a software platform for digital media measurement, data, and analytics in the United States and internationally. Its solutions provide advertisers unbiased data analytics that enable advertisers to increase the effectiveness, quality and return on their digital advertising investments.

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Echo Street Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC  Get Rating) by 9.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,365,990 shares of the utilities providers stock after acquiring an additional 113,620 shares during the period. Echo Street Capital Management LLC owned about 0.43% of WEC Energy Group worth $128,075,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its holdings in WEC Energy Group by 18.5% during the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 75,940 shares of the utilities providers stock worth $7,120,000 after acquiring an additional 11,855 shares in the last quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. grew its holdings in WEC Energy Group by 84.9% during the 4th quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 270,615 shares of the utilities providers stock worth $25,373,000 after acquiring an additional 124,253 shares in the last quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC grew its holdings in WEC Energy Group by 39.5% during the 4th quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC now owns 6,535 shares of the utilities providers stock worth $613,000 after acquiring an additional 1,852 shares in the last quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC grew its holdings in WEC Energy Group by 6.7% during the 4th quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 147,817 shares of the utilities providers stock worth $13,859,000 after acquiring an additional 9,344 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dfpg Investments LLC acquired a new position in WEC Energy Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $220,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.05% of the companys stock.

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Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on WEC. Mizuho raised shares of WEC Energy Group from a neutral rating to a buy rating and set a $98.00 price target for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on WEC Energy Group from $99.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a report on Wednesday, April 19th. Evercore ISI reduced their price target on shares of WEC Energy Group from $98.00 to $91.00 in a research report on Friday, June 9th. StockNews.com began coverage on shares of WEC Energy Group in a research report on Thursday, May 18th. They set a sell rating on the stock. Finally, 888 reaffirmed a maintains rating on shares of WEC Energy Group in a report on Wednesday, May 3rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the companys stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, WEC Energy Group currently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average price target of $99.27.

Insider Activity at WEC Energy Group

WEC Energy Group Price Performance

In other WEC Energy Group news, Director Ulice Payne, Jr. sold 1,500 shares of the firms stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $94.36, for a total transaction of $141,540.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 21,503 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,029,023.08. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink . Company insiders own 0.34% of the companys stock.

WEC Energy Group stock traded up $1.42 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $91.70. The companys stock had a trading volume of 369,658 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,360,794. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a current ratio of 0.75. WEC Energy Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $80.82 and a fifty-two week high of $108.20. The firm has a market capitalization of $28.93 billion, a PE ratio of 21.09, a P/E/G ratio of 3.39 and a beta of 0.41. The stocks 50 day simple moving average is $93.05 and its 200 day simple moving average is $93.40.

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC  Get Rating) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 1st. The utilities provider reported $1.61 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.58 by $0.03. WEC Energy Group had a net margin of 14.10% and a return on equity of 11.60%. The firm had revenue of $2.89 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $2.90 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.79 earnings per share. The businesss revenue for the quarter was down .7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that WEC Energy Group, Inc. will post 4.6 earnings per share for the current year.

WEC Energy Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 1st. Investors of record on Friday, May 12th were paid a $0.78 dividend. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.40%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 11th. WEC Energy Groups dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 72.90%.

About WEC Energy Group

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WEC Energy Group, Inc is a holding company, which engages in the generation and distribution of electricity and natural gas. It operates through the following segments: Wisconsin, Illinois, Other States, Electric Transmission, Non-Utility Energy Infrastructure and Corporate & Other. The Wisconsin segment refers to the electric and gas utility operations.

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Ensign Energy Services Inc. (OTCMKTS:ESVIF  Get Rating) saw a large increase in short interest in May. As of May 31st, there was short interest totalling 927,400 shares, an increase of 113.1% from the May 15th total of 435,200 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 14,200 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 65.3 days.

Ensign Energy Services Stock Performance

Shares of ESVIF stock remained flat at $1.53 on Tuesday. 68,600 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 10,925. The companys fifty day moving average price is $1.80 and its 200 day moving average price is $2.33. Ensign Energy Services has a 12-month low of $1.46 and a 12-month high of $3.27.

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Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on shares of Ensign Energy Services from C$5.00 to C$4.00 in a research note on Tuesday, May 9th. TD Securities lowered their target price on Ensign Energy Services from C$6.00 to C$5.50 in a research note on Tuesday, May 9th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price target on Ensign Energy Services from C$4.50 to C$4.00 in a research report on Tuesday, May 9th.

About Ensign Energy Services

Ensign Energy Services, Inc engages in the provision oilfield services to the crude oil and natural gas industries. It operates through the following geographical segments: Canada, United States, and International. Its services include drilling, directional drilling, and well servicing. The company was founded on March 31, 1987 and is headquartered in Calgary, Canada.

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Equinox Partners Investment Management LLC increased its position in Kosmos Energy Ltd. (NYSE:KOS  Get Rating) by 5.8% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 1,578,200 shares of the oil and gas producers stock after acquiring an additional 87,000 shares during the quarter. Kosmos Energy comprises approximately 18.6% of Equinox Partners Investment Management LLCs investment portfolio, making the stock its 2nd largest holding. Equinox Partners Investment Management LLCs holdings in Kosmos Energy were worth $10,037,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of KOS. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its position in Kosmos Energy by 143.6% during the 1st quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 3,579 shares of the oil and gas producers stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 2,110 shares in the last quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. bought a new stake in Kosmos Energy during the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Captrust Financial Advisors boosted its position in Kosmos Energy by 50.1% during the 1st quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 4,394 shares of the oil and gas producers stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 1,467 shares in the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Kosmos Energy during the 1st quarter valued at $45,000. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Kosmos Energy during the 2nd quarter valued at $65,000. Institutional investors own 87.13% of the companys stock.

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Insider Buying and Selling at Kosmos Energy

In other Kosmos Energy news, Director Deanna L. Goodwin sold 112,000 shares of Kosmos Energy stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $6.69, for a total transaction of $749,280.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 99,532 shares in the company, valued at approximately $665,869.08. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 1.79% of the companys stock.

Kosmos Energy Stock Performance

KOS stock traded down $0.22 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $6.22. The stock had a trading volume of 2,466,154 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,711,462. The stock has a market cap of $2.86 billion, a PE ratio of 9.91, a P/E/G ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 2.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.52, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a current ratio of 0.71. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $6.64 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $6.86. Kosmos Energy Ltd. has a 52-week low of $4.64 and a 52-week high of $8.55.

Kosmos Energy (NYSE:KOS  Get Rating) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 9th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.16 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts consensus estimates of $0.19 by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $393.87 million for the quarter. Kosmos Energy had a net margin of 15.16% and a return on equity of 51.10%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Kosmos Energy Ltd. will post 1.07 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently commented on KOS. Barclays decreased their price objective on Kosmos Energy from $10.75 to $10.00 and set an overweight rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 15th. TheStreet upgraded Kosmos Energy from a c rating to a b- rating in a report on Tuesday, May 23rd. StockNews.com began coverage on Kosmos Energy in a report on Thursday, May 18th. They set a sell rating for the company. Bank of America lowered Kosmos Energy from a buy rating to a neutral rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $10.00 to $9.60 in a report on Tuesday, February 28th. Finally, Peel Hunt began coverage on Kosmos Energy in a report on Friday, March 10th. They set an add rating and a $8.94 price objective for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $154.71.

Kosmos Energy Profile

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Kosmos Energy Ltd. engages in the exploration, development, and production of oil and gas. The firms assets include production offshore Ghana, Equatorial Guinea and the U.S. Gulf of Mexico, as well as a gas development offshore Mauritania and Senegal. It also maintains a sustainable exploration program balanced between proven basin infrastructure-led exploration, emerging basins, and frontier basins.

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Extra Space Storage (NYSE:EXR  Get Rating) was upgraded by investment analysts at Evercore ISI from an underperform rating to an outperform rating in a report released on Monday, The Fly reports. The brokerage currently has a $164.00 price target on the real estate investment trusts stock. Evercore ISIs price objective would indicate a potential upside of 12.48% from the companys previous close.

A number of other equities analysts also recently issued reports on the company. Raymond James raised Extra Space Storage from an outperform rating to a strong-buy rating and set a $185.00 price target for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 4th. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on Extra Space Storage from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a hold rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 8th. StockNews.com initiated coverage on Extra Space Storage in a research note on Thursday, May 18th. They issued a hold rating for the company. KeyCorp reduced their price objective on Extra Space Storage from $190.00 to $172.00 and set an overweight rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 5th. Finally, Bank of America initiated coverage on Extra Space Storage in a research note on Monday, May 8th. They issued a buy rating for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the companys stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Extra Space Storage currently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average price target of $172.11.

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Extra Space Storage Stock Performance

Shares of EXR opened at $145.81 on Monday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $151.51 and a 200 day moving average price of $154.28. The company has a quick ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.82. The company has a market capitalization of $19.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.95 and a beta of 0.54. Extra Space Storage has a 52-week low of $139.97 and a 52-week high of $216.52.

Insider Buying and Selling

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Extra Space Storage

In related news, CEO Joseph D. Margolis sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $160.07, for a total transaction of $800,350.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 15,144 shares in the company, valued at $2,424,100.08. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link . 1.55% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in EXR. American National Bank raised its holdings in shares of Extra Space Storage by 271.7% in the 4th quarter. American National Bank now owns 171 shares of the real estate investment trusts stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares during the period. First Horizon Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Extra Space Storage by 1,272.7% in the 1st quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 151 shares of the real estate investment trusts stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 140 shares during the period. Money Concepts Capital Corp purchased a new position in shares of Extra Space Storage in the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV raised its holdings in shares of Extra Space Storage by 262.0% in the 1st quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 181 shares of the real estate investment trusts stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 131 shares during the period. Finally, CNB Bank purchased a new position in shares of Extra Space Storage in the 1st quarter worth about $32,000. 95.32% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Extra Space Storage Company Profile

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Extra Space Storage Inc, headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah, is a self-administered and self-managed REIT and a member of the S&P 500. As of December 31, 2022, the Company owned and/or operated 2,338 self-storage stores in 41 states and Washington, DC The Company's stores comprise approximately 1.6 million units and approximately 176.1 million square feet of rentable space.

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First Manhattan Co. decreased its holdings in shares of Raytheon Technologies Co. (NYSE:RTX  Get Rating) by 4.3% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 1,105,315 shares of the companys stock after selling 50,025 shares during the quarter. First Manhattan Co.s holdings in Raytheon Technologies were worth $111,549,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Fred Alger Management LLC raised its position in shares of Raytheon Technologies by 13.9% during the 4th quarter. Fred Alger Management LLC now owns 21,281 shares of the companys stock valued at $2,148,000 after acquiring an additional 2,600 shares during the last quarter. Financial Freedom LLC bought a new stake in shares of Raytheon Technologies in the 4th quarter valued at $144,000. Flaharty Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Raytheon Technologies in the 4th quarter valued at $203,000. Fortis Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Raytheon Technologies in the 4th quarter valued at $104,000. Finally, Alta Fox Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Raytheon Technologies in the 4th quarter valued at $8,970,000. Institutional investors own 78.83% of the companys stock.

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Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently commented on RTX shares. Susquehanna upped their price objective on shares of Raytheon Technologies from $116.00 to $117.00 in a research report on Wednesday, April 26th. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Raytheon Technologies from $106.00 to $113.50 in a research note on Wednesday, April 26th. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on shares of Raytheon Technologies from $106.00 to $115.00 in a research note on Wednesday, April 26th. StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Raytheon Technologies in a research note on Thursday, May 18th. They issued a buy rating for the company. Finally, Wolfe Research raised shares of Raytheon Technologies from a peer perform rating to an outperform rating and set a $117.00 target price for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 12th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the companys stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Raytheon Technologies has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $111.88.

Raytheon Technologies Stock Down 1.0 %

Shares of Raytheon Technologies stock traded down $1.02 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $98.67. 721,267 shares of the companys stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,424,448. The company has a 50 day moving average of $97.88 and a two-hundred day moving average of $98.46. Raytheon Technologies Co. has a fifty-two week low of $80.27 and a fifty-two week high of $108.84. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44. The stock has a market cap of $144.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.58, a P/E/G ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 0.99.

Raytheon Technologies (NYSE:RTX  Get Rating) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 25th. The company reported $1.22 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts consensus estimates of $1.13 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $17.21 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.98 billion. Raytheon Technologies had a net margin of 8.08% and a return on equity of 9.81%. The companys quarterly revenue was up 9.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.15 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Raytheon Technologies Co. will post 5.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Raytheon Technologies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 18th will be issued a $0.59 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 17th. This represents a $2.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.39%. Raytheon Technologiess dividend payout ratio is currently 62.93%.

Raytheon Technologies Company Profile

(Get Rating)

Raytheon Technologies Corporation, an aerospace and defense company, provides systems and services for the commercial, military, and government customers worldwide. It operates through four segments: Collins Aerospace, Pratt & Whitney, Raytheon Intelligence & Space, and Raytheon Missiles & Defense.

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Flow Traders U.S. LLC acquired a new stake in shares of iShares MSCI Australia ETF (NYSEARCA:EWA  Get Rating) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 1,660,639 shares of the exchange traded funds stock, valued at approximately $36,916,000. iShares MSCI Australia ETF accounts for approximately 1.9% of Flow Traders U.S. LLCs holdings, making the stock its 8th largest holding. Flow Traders U.S. LLC owned 1.96% of iShares MSCI Australia ETF as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in EWA. Equitable Holdings Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of iShares MSCI Australia ETF by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. Equitable Holdings Inc. now owns 59,472 shares of the exchange traded funds stock valued at $1,167,000 after acquiring an additional 490 shares in the last quarter. Laffer Tengler Investments lifted its holdings in shares of iShares MSCI Australia ETF by 41.7% during the 4th quarter. Laffer Tengler Investments now owns 1,727 shares of the exchange traded funds stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 508 shares in the last quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC lifted its holdings in iShares MSCI Australia ETF by 3.9% in the 4th quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 14,587 shares of the exchange traded funds stock worth $324,000 after buying an additional 545 shares in the last quarter. Family Firm Inc. lifted its holdings in iShares MSCI Australia ETF by 4.5% in the 3rd quarter. Family Firm Inc. now owns 16,153 shares of the exchange traded funds stock worth $317,000 after buying an additional 691 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Advisor Group Holdings Inc. lifted its holdings in iShares MSCI Australia ETF by 7.1% in the 4th quarter. Advisor Group Holdings Inc. now owns 18,551 shares of the exchange traded funds stock worth $413,000 after buying an additional 1,228 shares in the last quarter. 60.63% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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iShares MSCI Australia ETF Stock Performance

EWA stock traded up $0.23 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $22.96. The stock had a trading volume of 375,336 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,040,499. iShares MSCI Australia ETF has a 1-year low of $19.19 and a 1-year high of $25.22. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $22.89 and a 200 day moving average price of $23.10.

iShares MSCI Australia ETF Company Profile

iShares MSCI Australia ETF (the Fund), formerly iShares MSCI Australia Index Fund, is an exchange-traded fund (ETF). The Fund seeks to provide investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, of publicly traded securities in the Australian market, as represented by the MSCI Australia Index (the Index).

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Fred Alger Management LLC lowered its position in shares of Visa Inc. (NYSE:V  Get Rating) by 20.6% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 1,219,551 shares of the credit-card processors stock after selling 317,111 shares during the quarter. Visa comprises approximately 1.4% of Fred Alger Management LLCs investment portfolio, making the stock its 11th largest position. Fred Alger Management LLCs holdings in Visa were worth $253,374,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates bought a new stake in Visa in the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. JDM Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in Visa in the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. McElhenny Sheffield Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Visa in the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Financial Freedom LLC bought a new stake in Visa in the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, St. James Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Visa by 58.7% in the 4th quarter. St. James Investment Advisors LLC now owns 219 shares of the credit-card processors stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.87% of the companys stock.

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Analysts Set New Price Targets

V has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Truist Financial increased their price target on Visa from $260.00 to $270.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 26th. Barclays raised their target price on Visa from $270.00 to $272.00 in a research report on Monday, May 1st. Oppenheimer upped their price target on shares of Visa from $237.00 to $248.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 19th. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Visa from $270.00 to $273.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 26th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of Visa from $253.00 to $263.00 in a research report on Wednesday, April 26th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $260.08.

Insider Buying and Selling

Visa Price Performance

In related news, CFO Vasant M. Prabhu sold 40,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $231.36, for a total transaction of $9,254,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 73,638 shares of the companys stock, valued at $17,036,887.68. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link . In other Visa news, CFO Vasant M. Prabhu sold 40,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, April 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $231.36, for a total transaction of $9,254,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 73,638 shares in the company, valued at $17,036,887.68. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website . Also, insider Tullier Kelly Mahon sold 54,146 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $232.55, for a total transaction of $12,591,652.30. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 26,674 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $6,203,038.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here . Over the last quarter, insiders sold 116,277 shares of company stock worth $27,018,374. 0.21% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Shares of NYSE V traded up $1.67 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $225.07. The companys stock had a trading volume of 1,058,978 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,184,396. The firm has a market capitalization of $421.63 billion, a PE ratio of 29.87, a P/E/G ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 1.50 and a quick ratio of 1.50. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $228.82 and a two-hundred day moving average of $222.46. Visa Inc. has a 52 week low of $174.60 and a 52 week high of $235.57.

Visa (NYSE:V  Get Rating) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 25th. The credit-card processor reported $2.09 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts consensus estimates of $1.97 by $0.12. Visa had a return on equity of 50.21% and a net margin of 50.95%. The firm had revenue of $7.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.79 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.79 earnings per share. The businesss quarterly revenue was up 11.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Visa Inc. will post 8.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Visa Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 1st. Investors of record on Friday, May 12th were given a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 11th. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.80%. Visas dividend payout ratio is 24.06%.

Visa Company Profile

(Get Rating)

Visa Inc operates as a payments technology company worldwide. The company operates VisaNet, a transaction processing network that enables authorization, clearing, and settlement of payment transactions. It also offers credit, debit, and prepaid card products; tap to pay, tokenization, click to pay; Visa Direct, a real-time payments network; Visa B2B Connect, a multilateral B2B cross-border payments network; Visa Treasury as a Service, a cross-border consumer payments business; and Visa DPS that provides a range of value added services, including fraud mitigation, dispute management, data analytics, campaign management, a suite of digital solutions, and contact center services.

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Gluskin Sheff & Assoc Inc. lowered its position in shares of Canadian Pacific Kansas City Limited (NYSE:CP  Get Rating) (TSE:CP) by 41.0% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 388,755 shares of the transportation companys stock after selling 270,064 shares during the quarter. Canadian Pacific Kansas City comprises approximately 1.6% of Gluskin Sheff & Assoc Inc.s investment portfolio, making the stock its 16th largest position. Gluskin Sheff & Assoc Inc.s holdings in Canadian Pacific Kansas City were worth $28,986,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CP. BDO Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Canadian Pacific Kansas City by 928.6% in the 4th quarter. BDO Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 360 shares of the transportation companys stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 325 shares in the last quarter. Romano Brothers AND Company bought a new stake in Canadian Pacific Kansas City in the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Canadian Pacific Kansas City in the 3rd quarter worth about $29,000. Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA bought a new position in Canadian Pacific Kansas City during the 4th quarter valued at about $42,000. Finally, WJ Interests LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Canadian Pacific Kansas City during the 4th quarter valued at about $43,000. 72.31% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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Canadian Pacific Kansas City Stock Performance

NYSE:CP opened at $77.01 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $78.84 and a 200 day moving average price of $77.89. The company has a current ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. Canadian Pacific Kansas City Limited has a 12-month low of $65.17 and a 12-month high of $83.44. The stock has a market capitalization of $71.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.50, a P/E/G ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 1.02.

Canadian Pacific Kansas City Cuts Dividend

Canadian Pacific Kansas City ( NYSE:CP Get Rating ) (TSE:CP) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 26th. The transportation company reported $0.63 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.70 by ($0.07). The company had revenue of $1.68 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $1.78 billion. Canadian Pacific Kansas City had a return on equity of 9.53% and a net margin of 40.22%. Equities research analysts forecast that Canadian Pacific Kansas City Limited will post 3.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 30th will be given a dividend of $0.141 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 29th. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.73%. Canadian Pacific Kansas Citys payout ratio is 18.54%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CP has been the subject of several research reports. StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Canadian Pacific Kansas City in a report on Thursday, May 18th. They set a hold rating for the company. Argus upgraded shares of Canadian Pacific Kansas City from a hold rating to a buy rating and set a $92.00 target price for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on Canadian Pacific Kansas City in a report on Tuesday, June 6th. They set a buy rating on the stock. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on Canadian Pacific Kansas City in a report on Tuesday, April 18th. They issued an outperform rating for the company. Finally, Scotiabank raised Canadian Pacific Kansas City from a sector perform rating to a sector outperform rating in a report on Wednesday, March 15th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $89.40.

Canadian Pacific Kansas City Profile

(Get Rating)

Canadian Pacific Kansas City Ltd. provides rail freight transportation services. It offers rail services linking Canada, the United States and Mexico. The company was founded on June 22, 2001 and is headquartered in Calgary, Canada.

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Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK  Get Rating) SVP Frank C. Kulaszewicz sold 7,729 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $310.00, for a total value of $2,395,990.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 13,660 shares of the companys stock, valued at $4,234,600. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

Rockwell Automation Stock Performance

ROK stock traded up $5.69 on Tuesday, reaching $315.47. The companys stock had a trading volume of 931,313 shares, compared to its average volume of 724,491. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 52 week low of $190.08 and a 52 week high of $315.80. The company has a market capitalization of $36.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 1.42. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $280.51 and a two-hundred day moving average of $278.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 0.73.

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Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK  Get Rating) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 27th. The industrial products company reported $3.01 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts consensus estimates of $2.60 by $0.41. The firm had revenue of $2.28 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.09 billion. Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 42.15% and a net margin of 15.82%. The firms revenue for the quarter was up 25.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.66 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 12.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Rockwell Automation Dividend Announcement

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Rockwell Automation

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 11th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 14th will be given a dividend of $1.18 per share. This represents a $4.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.50%. Rockwell Automations dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 41.55%.

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. New Hampshire Trust acquired a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. MinichMacGregor Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation during the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Neo Ivy Capital Management acquired a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation during the 2nd quarter valued at $29,000. Clear Street Markets LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation during the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, Delta Asset Management LLC TN acquired a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation during the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.66% of the companys stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently weighed in on ROK shares. Mizuho boosted their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $260.00 to $270.00 in a report on Friday, April 28th. Sanford C. Bernstein upped their target price on Rockwell Automation from $250.00 to $290.00 in a report on Thursday, May 11th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their target price on Rockwell Automation from $272.00 to $273.00 and gave the company a hold rating in a report on Wednesday, April 12th. StockNews.com started coverage on Rockwell Automation in a report on Thursday, May 18th. They set a buy rating for the company. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on Rockwell Automation from $250.00 to $262.00 in a report on Friday, April 28th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the companys stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Rockwell Automation currently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average target price of $271.67.

About Rockwell Automation

(Get Rating)

Rockwell Automation, Inc engages in the provision of industrial automation and information services. It operates through the following segments: Intelligent Devices, Software and Control, and Lifecycle Services. The Intelligent Devices segment combines a portfolio of smart products that create the foundation of an agile, resilient, and sustainable production system.

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North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum on Tuesday signed an executive order formally authorizing the deployment of about 100 state National Guard soldiers to the southern border.

Burgum earlier this month announced his intention to send the troops. Since then he has announced a bid for the Republican endorsement for president, and made national security one of three focuses of his campaign, along with the economy and energy policy.

Soldiers with the Wahpeton-based 188th Engineer Company will deploy in support of Texas' Operation Lone Star. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott launched it in 2021, saying that the Biden administration was essentially welcoming illegal immigration. Several Republican governors are sending soldiers at Abbott's request through the Emergency Management Assistance Compact, which facilitates state-level mutual aid nationwide. Burgum cited "drug trafficking, human trafficking and other transnational criminal activity" for his support.

Critics have questioned the effectiveness of the multibillion dollar Texas operation. Democratic President Joe Biden in May announced plans to send 1,500 active-duty troops to the border to free up U.S. Customs and Border Protection workers to focus on fieldwork.

The deployment for the North Dakota soldiers will last about 30 days and end in August. The Office of the Adjutant General will request $2.2 million to fund it through the state Emergency Commission, which approves funding requests between legislative sessions.

About 125 members of the Guards Bismarck-based 1st Battalion, 112th Aviation Regiment are already aiding efforts to secure the border. They deployed last fall, following 125 members of the Bismarck-based 957th Engineer Companys Multi-Role Bridge Company who returned last September after assisting Customs and Border Protection for about a year.
Liberty All-Star Growth Fund, Inc. (NYSE:ASG  Get Rating) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest during the month of May. As of May 31st, there was short interest totalling 162,300 shares, a growth of 559.8% from the May 15th total of 24,600 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 165,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.0 days.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in ASG. Concourse Financial Group Securities Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Liberty All-Star Growth Fund by 68.9% during the 4th quarter. Concourse Financial Group Securities Inc. now owns 5,146 shares of the investment management companys stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 2,099 shares during the last quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC bought a new position in Liberty All-Star Growth Fund during the 4th quarter valued at $37,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. bought a new position in Liberty All-Star Growth Fund during the 4th quarter valued at $39,000. Virtu Financial LLC acquired a new position in Liberty All-Star Growth Fund during the 4th quarter worth $54,000. Finally, American Institute for Advanced Investment Management LLP bought a new stake in shares of Liberty All-Star Growth Fund in the 1st quarter worth about $55,000. 11.43% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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Liberty All-Star Growth Fund Price Performance

ASG traded up $0.02 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $5.34. 15,259 shares of the companys stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 174,606. Liberty All-Star Growth Fund has a 1 year low of $4.82 and a 1 year high of $6.90. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $5.11 and a 200 day moving average price of $5.16.

Liberty All-Star Growth Fund Announces Dividend

Liberty All-Star Growth Fund Company Profile

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 5th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 21st were paid a dividend of $0.11 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 20th. This represents a $0.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 8.24%.

(Get Rating)

Liberty All-Star Growth Fund, Inc operates as a closed-end investment fund/investment trust. Its investment objective is to seek long-term capital appreciation through investment primarily in a diversified portfolio of equity securities. The company was founded on March 14, 1986 and is headquartered in Denver, CO.

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StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Magellan Midstream Partners (NYSE:MMP  Get Rating) in a research report report published on Sunday. The firm issued a hold rating on the pipeline companys stock.

A number of other analysts have also recently commented on MMP. US Capital Advisors cut shares of Magellan Midstream Partners from an overweight rating to a hold rating in a research note on Friday, May 19th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Magellan Midstream Partners from $59.00 to $60.00 in a research report on Tuesday, April 18th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered shares of Magellan Midstream Partners from an outperform rating to a sector perform rating and increased their price objective for the company from $59.00 to $66.00 in a research report on Wednesday, May 17th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered shares of Magellan Midstream Partners from a buy rating to a hold rating and increased their price objective for the company from $61.00 to $64.00 in a research report on Thursday, May 18th. Finally, TD Securities lowered shares of Magellan Midstream Partners from a hold rating to a tender rating and increased their price objective for the company from $55.00 to $67.50 in a research report on Tuesday, May 16th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average target price of $59.75.

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Magellan Midstream Partners Stock Performance

Shares of MMP stock opened at $59.36 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $12.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.77 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.96, a current ratio of 0.97 and a quick ratio of 0.44. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $58.04 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $54.32. Magellan Midstream Partners has a one year low of $44.79 and a one year high of $64.42.

Magellan Midstream Partners Cuts Dividend

Magellan Midstream Partners ( NYSE:MMP Get Rating ) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 4th. The pipeline company reported $1.32 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts consensus estimates of $1.21 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $869.70 million during the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $731.28 million. Magellan Midstream Partners had a net margin of 33.72% and a return on equity of 57.78%. The companys revenue for the quarter was up 28.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.08 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Magellan Midstream Partners will post 5.05 EPS for the current year.

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 8th were issued a $1.0475 dividend. This represents a $4.19 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.06%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 5th. Magellan Midstream Partnerss dividend payout ratio is currently 76.04%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Magellan Midstream Partners

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Magnolia Capital Management Ltd. boosted its holdings in Magellan Midstream Partners by 0.9% during the 1st quarter. Magnolia Capital Management Ltd. now owns 21,156 shares of the pipeline companys stock worth $1,148,000 after acquiring an additional 190 shares during the last quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Magellan Midstream Partners by 0.9% during the 1st quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 22,923 shares of the pipeline companys stock worth $1,244,000 after acquiring an additional 194 shares during the last quarter. Colonial River Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Magellan Midstream Partners by 3.0% during the 1st quarter. Colonial River Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,685 shares of the pipeline companys stock worth $363,000 after acquiring an additional 195 shares during the last quarter. FLC Capital Advisors boosted its holdings in Magellan Midstream Partners by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. FLC Capital Advisors now owns 24,890 shares of the pipeline companys stock worth $1,250,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Finally, M&R Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Magellan Midstream Partners by 7.3% during the 1st quarter. M&R Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,925 shares of the pipeline companys stock worth $159,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. 51.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Magellan Midstream Partners

(Get Rating)

Magellan Midstream Partners LP engages in the transportation, storage, and distribution of petroleum products and crude oil. It operates through the following segments: Refined Products and Crude Oil. The Refined Products segment consists of an approximately 9,800-mile refined petroleum products pipeline system with 54 terminals and two marine storage terminals.

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Monarch Mining Co. (TSE:GBAR  Get Rating) shares shot up 11.1% on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as C$0.05 and last traded at C$0.05. 146,000 shares traded hands during trading, an increase of 65% from the average session volume of 88,456 shares. The stock had previously closed at C$0.05.

Monarch Mining Stock Performance

The stock has a market cap of C$12.19 million, a P/E ratio of -0.12 and a beta of 2.88. The firms 50-day moving average is C$0.06 and its two-hundred day moving average is C$0.06. The company has a quick ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 0.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 40.66.

About Monarch Mining

(Get Rating)

Monarch Mining Corporation, a gold mining company, engages in the exploration and development of mining properties in Canada. It owns 295 square kilometers of mining assets, including the Beaufor mine, Croinor property, McKenzie property, Swanson property, and Beacon Mill. The company was incorporated in 2020 and is headquartered in Saint-Sauveur, Canada.

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Navidea Biopharmaceuticals, Inc. (NYSEAMERICAN:NAVB  Get Rating) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest during the month of May. As of May 31st, there was short interest totalling 881,100 shares, a growth of 1,888.9% from the May 15th total of 44,300 shares. Currently, 3.7% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 2,170,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 0.4 days.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Navidea Biopharmaceuticals in a report on Monday. They issued a sell rating on the stock.

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Institutional Inflows and Outflows

An institutional investor recently raised its position in Navidea Biopharmaceuticals stock. Renaissance Technologies LLC raised its stake in shares of Navidea Biopharmaceuticals, Inc. (NYSEAMERICAN:NAVB  Get Rating) by 264.5% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 238,133 shares of the biopharmaceutical companys stock after purchasing an additional 172,800 shares during the quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC owned 0.74% of Navidea Biopharmaceuticals worth $62,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Institutional investors and hedge funds own 5.55% of the companys stock.

Navidea Biopharmaceuticals Stock Performance

NYSEAMERICAN NAVB opened at $0.09 on Wednesday. Navidea Biopharmaceuticals has a 52-week low of $0.07 and a 52-week high of $0.84. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $0.18 and a 200-day moving average of $0.24. The stock has a market cap of $2.73 million, a PE ratio of -0.15 and a beta of 1.36.

Navidea Biopharmaceuticals (NYSEAMERICAN:NAVB  Get Rating) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, March 21st. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.11) EPS for the quarter.

Navidea Biopharmaceuticals Company Profile

(Get Rating)

Navidea Biopharmaceuticals, Inc engages in the development and commercialization of precision immunodiagnostic agents and immunotherapeutic. It operates through the following segments: Diagnostics, Therapeutics, and Corporate. The company was founded in 1983 and is headquartered in Dublin, OH.

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StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of New Concept Energy (NYSEAMERICAN:GBR  Get Rating) in a research report released on Saturday morning. The brokerage issued a sell rating on the stock.

Separately, TheStreet raised New Concept Energy from a d+ rating to a c rating in a research report on Thursday, April 6th.

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New Concept Energy Price Performance

Shares of GBR stock opened at $1.18 on Friday. New Concept Energy has a fifty-two week low of $0.91 and a fifty-two week high of $2.31. The stocks 50-day moving average is $1.05 and its two-hundred day moving average is $1.14. The firm has a market cap of $6.06 million, a P/E ratio of 40.35 and a beta of 0.62.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

New Concept Energy ( NYSEAMERICAN:GBR Get Rating ) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, March 21st. The company reported $0.01 earnings per share for the quarter. New Concept Energy had a return on equity of 2.66% and a net margin of 66.11%. The company had revenue of $0.06 million for the quarter.

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Virtu Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of New Concept Energy during the 1st quarter valued at about $95,000. Renaissance Technologies LLC acquired a new position in shares of New Concept Energy during the 2nd quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Millennium Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of New Concept Energy by 129.4% during the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 24,068 shares of the companys stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 13,576 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 5.81% of the companys stock.

About New Concept Energy

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New Concept Energy, Inc engages in the provision of real estate rental services. It also maintains property and liability insurance intended to cover claims for its real estate and corporate operations. The company was founded in 1978 and is headquartered in Dallas, TX.

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Nordea Bank Abp (OTCMKTS:NRDBY  Get Rating) was the recipient of a large decline in short interest in May. As of May 31st, there was short interest totalling 31,500 shares, a decline of 30.6% from the May 15th total of 45,400 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 210,500 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 0.1 days.

Nordea Bank Abp Stock Down 1.6 %

OTCMKTS:NRDBY traded down $0.17 on Wednesday, reaching $10.48. The stock had a trading volume of 54,454 shares, compared to its average volume of 118,386. The company has a 50-day moving average of $10.70 and a 200 day moving average of $11.14. The company has a current ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 1.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.90. The stock has a market cap of $37.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.72 and a beta of 1.07. Nordea Bank Abp has a 12-month low of $8.33 and a 12-month high of $12.92.

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Nordea Bank Abp (OTCMKTS:NRDBY  Get Rating) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 27th. The company reported $0.33 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts consensus estimates of $0.26 by $0.07. Nordea Bank Abp had a return on equity of 14.35% and a net margin of 28.51%. The firm had revenue of $3.13 billion during the quarter. On average, research analysts predict that Nordea Bank Abp will post 1.42 earnings per share for the current year.

Nordea Bank Abp Increases Dividend

About Nordea Bank Abp

The business also recently declared a dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 27th were given a dividend of $0.7152 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 24th. This represents a dividend yield of 6.4%. This is an increase from Nordea Bank Abps previous dividend of $0.49. Nordea Bank Abps dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 56.80%.

(Get Rating)

Nordea Bank Abp engages in the provision of banking and financial services. It operates through the following segments: Personal Banking, Business Banking, Large Corporates and Institutions, and Asset and Wealth Management. The Personal Banking segment offers the household customers financial services and solutions through internet and mobile bank, over the phone, online meetings, and branch offices.

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Shares of PetroChina Company Limited (OTCMKTS:PCCYF  Get Rating) rose 0.7% during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $0.72 and last traded at $0.71. Approximately 394,819 shares were traded during trading, an increase of 31% from the average daily volume of 302,446 shares. The stock had previously closed at $0.71.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, HSBC raised PetroChina from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report on Tuesday, April 11th.

PetroChina Stock Performance

The company has a 50 day moving average price of $0.67.

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Primavera Capital Acquisition Co. (NYSE:PV  Get Rating) traded up 0.6% during trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $5.30 and last traded at $5.14. 87,784 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 15% from the average session volume of 103,184 shares. The stock had previously closed at $5.11.

Primavera Capital Acquisition Stock Performance

The stock has a 50 day moving average of $5.41 and a 200-day moving average of $6.44. The firm has a market capitalization of $277.35 million, a P/E ratio of 15.64 and a beta of 0.01.

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Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Basso Capital Management L.P. purchased a new position in shares of Primavera Capital Acquisition during the first quarter worth about $121,000. Hsbc Holdings PLC purchased a new position in shares of Primavera Capital Acquisition during the first quarter worth about $18,415,000. Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. L.P. grew its holdings in shares of Primavera Capital Acquisition by 473.5% during the first quarter. Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. L.P. now owns 122,235 shares of the companys stock worth $1,202,000 after purchasing an additional 100,922 shares in the last quarter. Nomura Holdings Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Primavera Capital Acquisition by 10.7% during the first quarter. Nomura Holdings Inc. now owns 377,118 shares of the companys stock worth $3,711,000 after purchasing an additional 36,441 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new position in shares of Primavera Capital Acquisition during the first quarter worth about $185,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 49.98% of the companys stock.

Primavera Capital Acquisition Company Profile

Primavera Capital Acquisition Corporation does not have significant operations. It intends to effect a merger, share exchange, asset acquisition, share purchase, reorganization, or other similar business combination with one or more businesses in consumer companies China. The company was incorporated in 2020 and is based in Central, Hong Kong.

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Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW  Get Rating) had its price objective lifted by BMO Capital Markets from $253.00 to $269.00 in a note issued to investors on Monday, The Fly reports. BMO Capital Markets target price would suggest a potential upside of 8.82% from the companys previous close.

SHW has been the topic of a number of other reports. StockNews.com began coverage on Sherwin-Williams in a report on Thursday, May 18th. They set a buy rating on the stock. Mizuho increased their price target on Sherwin-Williams from $263.00 to $268.00 in a research report on Wednesday, April 26th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Sherwin-Williams from a hold rating to a buy rating and increased their price target for the company from $240.00 to $275.00 in a research report on Wednesday, May 24th. Barclays raised their price objective on Sherwin-Williams from $220.00 to $240.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 27th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price objective on Sherwin-Williams from $260.00 to $265.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 27th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $259.58.

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Sherwin-Williams Price Performance

Shares of NYSE SHW opened at $247.19 on Monday. Sherwin-Williams has a 1-year low of $195.24 and a 1-year high of $265.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.03, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 0.57. The businesss fifty day moving average price is $231.53 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $232.99. The firm has a market capitalization of $63.75 billion, a PE ratio of 30.33, a P/E/G ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 1.07.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Sherwin-Williams ( NYSE:SHW Get Rating ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 25th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.04 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts consensus estimates of $1.84 by $0.20. The company had revenue of $5.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.14 billion. Sherwin-Williams had a return on equity of 86.29% and a net margin of 9.41%. The companys quarterly revenue was up 8.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.61 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that Sherwin-Williams will post 8.7 EPS for the current year.

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. EP Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Sherwin-Williams during the first quarter valued at approximately $473,000. Level Four Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in Sherwin-Williams by 3.8% during the first quarter. Level Four Advisory Services LLC now owns 1,216 shares of the specialty chemicals companys stock valued at $273,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. Empower Advisory Group LLC acquired a new position in Sherwin-Williams during the first quarter valued at approximately $72,375,000. Arete Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Sherwin-Williams during the first quarter valued at approximately $315,000. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its position in Sherwin-Williams by 10.6% during the first quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 1,819,336 shares of the specialty chemicals companys stock valued at $408,929,000 after purchasing an additional 174,384 shares during the last quarter. 76.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Sherwin-Williams

(Get Rating)

The Sherwin-Williams Co engages in the development, manufacture, distribution, and sale of paint and coatings. It operates through the following segments: America Group, Consumer Brands Group, and Performance Coating Group. The America Group segment manages the exclusive outlets for Sherwin-Williams branded paints, stains, supplies, equipment, and floor coverings.

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Thai Oil Public Company Limited (OTCMKTS:TOIPF  Get Rating) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest during the month of May. As of May 31st, there was short interest totalling 339,700 shares, an increase of 98.7% from the May 15th total of 171,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 400 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 849.3 days.

Thai Oil Public Price Performance

TOIPF stock remained flat at $1.30 during midday trading on Tuesday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $1.48 and a 200-day simple moving average of $1.49. Thai Oil Public has a twelve month low of $1.30 and a twelve month high of $1.30.

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Thai Oil Public Company Profile

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Further Reading

Thai Oil Public Company Limited, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the oil refining and distribution, petrochemicals, lube base oil, and other businesses in Thailand and internationally. It operates through Oil Refinery, Lube Base Oil Refinery, Petrochemical, Power Generation, Marine Transportation Services, Solvent, Ethanol, and Others segments.

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A crash at the intersection of two highways in Ward County killed a Montana man.

A pickup driven by 57-year-old Marc Horning, from Stevensville, Montana, collided with a semitrailer driven by 57-year-old Scott Graff, of Bismarck, at the intersection of U.S. Highway 83 and state Highway 23. Horning failed to yield, according to the Highway Patrol.
Standard AVB Financial Corp. (OTCMKTS:STND  Get Rating)s share price passed below its 200-day moving average during trading on Monday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $33.00 and traded as low as $32.99. Standard AVB Financial shares last traded at $33.00, with a volume of 18,900 shares trading hands.

Standard AVB Financial Stock Up 0.1 %

The companys fifty day moving average is $33.00 and its two-hundred day moving average is $33.00.

Standard AVB Financial Company Profile

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Standard AVB Financial Corp. operates as a bank holding company for Standard Bank PaSB that provides financial services to individuals, families, and businesses. It offers various deposit accounts, including savings accounts, certificates of deposit, money market accounts, commercial and regular checking accounts, and individual retirement accounts.

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WPP (NYSE:WPP  Get Rating) was upgraded by stock analysts at StockNews.com from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note issued on Monday.

Separately, Credit Suisse Group raised shares of WPP from a neutral rating to an outperform rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 22nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $1,001.29.

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WPP Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE WPP opened at $55.05 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91. WPP has a 52 week low of $39.67 and a 52 week high of $64.07. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $56.03. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 1.36.

Institutional Trading of WPP

WPP Company Profile

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WPP. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its holdings in shares of WPP by 187.0% during the 3rd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 617 shares of the business services providers stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 402 shares in the last quarter. Financial Management Professionals Inc. bought a new stake in shares of WPP during the 1st quarter valued at $28,000. Belpointe Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of WPP during the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Zions Bancorporation N.A. boosted its holdings in shares of WPP by 78.8% during the 4th quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. now owns 642 shares of the business services providers stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 283 shares in the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new position in WPP in the 1st quarter worth about $34,000. Institutional investors own 3.79% of the companys stock.

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WPP plc, a creative transformation company, provides communications, experience, commerce, and technology services in North America, the United Kingdom, Western Continental Europe, the Asia Pacific, Latin America, Africa, the Middle East, and Central and Eastern Europe. The company operates through three segments: Global Integrated Agencies, Public Relations, and Specialist Agencies.

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Aua Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Vanguard FTSE Emerging Markets ETF (NYSEARCA:VWO  Get Rating) by 4.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 9,149 shares of the exchange traded funds stock after acquiring an additional 391 shares during the quarter. Aua Capital Management LLCs holdings in Vanguard FTSE Emerging Markets ETF were worth $357,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Ambassador Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Vanguard FTSE Emerging Markets ETF by 63.7% in the 4th quarter. Ambassador Advisors LLC now owns 2,967 shares of the exchange traded funds stock valued at $116,000 after buying an additional 1,154 shares in the last quarter. Aspen Grove Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Vanguard FTSE Emerging Markets ETF in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $459,000. Aspire Private Capital LLC grew its stake in shares of Vanguard FTSE Emerging Markets ETF by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. Aspire Private Capital LLC now owns 129,669 shares of the exchange traded funds stock valued at $5,054,492,748,000 after buying an additional 4,130 shares in the last quarter. Aureus Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Vanguard FTSE Emerging Markets ETF by 17.8% in the 4th quarter. Aureus Asset Management LLC now owns 73,497 shares of the exchange traded funds stock valued at $2,865,000 after buying an additional 11,104 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Auto Owners Insurance Co bought a new stake in shares of Vanguard FTSE Emerging Markets ETF in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $51,092,000.

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Vanguard FTSE Emerging Markets ETF Stock Performance

Shares of NYSEARCA VWO opened at $41.31 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $73.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.00 and a beta of 0.69. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $40.16 and a 200 day simple moving average of $40.34. Vanguard FTSE Emerging Markets ETF has a 52 week low of $34.88 and a 52 week high of $43.22.

Vanguard FTSE Emerging Markets ETF Profile

The Fund seeks to track the performance of the FTSE Emerging Markets All Cap China A Inclusion Index, that measures the return of stocks issued by companies located in emerging market countries.

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Vedanta Resources plc (LON:VED  Get Rating) shares crossed above its two hundred day moving average during trading on Monday . The stock has a two hundred day moving average of GBX 832.60 ($10.42) and traded as high as GBX 838 ($10.49). Vedanta Resources shares last traded at GBX 832.60 ($10.42), with a volume of 162,101 shares traded.

Vedanta Resources Trading Up 0.9 %

The firms 50-day simple moving average is GBX 832.60 and its 200 day simple moving average is GBX 832.60.

About Vedanta Resources

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Vedanta Resources plc operates as a diversified natural resources company in India, Zambia, South Africa, Namibia, the United Arab Emirates, Ireland, Australia, and Liberia. It primarily produces zinc, lead, silver, copper, iron ore, and aluminum deposits. The company also explores for, extracts, and processes minerals, as well as oil and gas.

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John Bean Technologies Co. (NYSE:JBT  Get Rating)  Equities researchers at Zacks Research decreased their Q3 2023 earnings per share estimates for shares of John Bean Technologies in a report released on Thursday, June 8th. Zacks Research analyst M. Das now expects that the industrial products company will earn $1.41 per share for the quarter, down from their previous forecast of $1.44. The consensus estimate for John Bean Technologies current full-year earnings is $5.34 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for John Bean Technologies FY2023 earnings at $5.31 EPS and Q4 2024 earnings at $1.73 EPS.

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John Bean Technologies (NYSE:JBT  Get Rating) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 26th. The industrial products company reported $0.94 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.72 by $0.22. John Bean Technologies had a return on equity of 18.50% and a net margin of 5.87%. The business had revenue of $529.50 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $513.54 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.87 EPS. The businesss quarterly revenue was up 12.9% on a year-over-year basis.

John Bean Technologies Stock Up 1.5 %

JBT has been the subject of several other reports. StockNews.com started coverage on John Bean Technologies in a research note on Thursday, May 18th. They issued a hold rating for the company. TheStreet downgraded John Bean Technologies from a b rating to a c+ rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 25th.

NYSE JBT opened at $121.58 on Monday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $107.25 and a 200 day moving average price of $103.48. John Bean Technologies has a one year low of $81.59 and a one year high of $122.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a current ratio of 1.40. The company has a market cap of $3.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.80, a P/E/G ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 1.41.

John Bean Technologies Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 8th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 25th were issued a $0.10 dividend. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.33%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, May 24th. John Bean Technologiess payout ratio is currently 9.80%.

Insider Buying and Selling at John Bean Technologies

In other John Bean Technologies news, Director Caroline Maury Devine sold 300 shares of the companys stock in a transaction on Monday, March 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $102.17, for a total value of $30,651.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 45,249 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,623,090.33. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.96% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On John Bean Technologies

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of John Bean Technologies by 1,700.0% during the 4th quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC now owns 270 shares of the industrial products companys stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 255 shares during the period. Money Concepts Capital Corp purchased a new position in John Bean Technologies during the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Belpointe Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in John Bean Technologies by 124.0% during the 1st quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC now owns 392 shares of the industrial products companys stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 217 shares during the period. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new position in John Bean Technologies during the 1st quarter valued at about $59,000. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its holdings in John Bean Technologies by 26.1% during the 1st quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 642 shares of the industrial products companys stock valued at $70,000 after acquiring an additional 133 shares during the period. 98.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

John Bean Technologies Company Profile

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John Bean Technologies Corporation provides technology solutions to food and beverage industry and equipment and services to air transportation industries in North America, Europe, Middle East, Africa, Asia Pacific, and Latin America. The company operates through two segments: FoodTech and AeroTech. It offers value-added processing that includes chilling, mixing/grinding, injecting, blending, marinating, tumbling, flattening, foaming, portioning, coating, cooking, frying, freezing, weighing, and inspection.

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Companies across industries are asking for safe and reliable ways to use ChatGPT-like services, creating an opportunity for software developers far beyond generative-AI leaders such as OpenAI and Alphabet Inc.s Google, a tech executive said.



Indias Happiest Minds Technologies Ltd. is planning to hire 1,300 software engineers, the IT services firms biggest staff growth push ever, as it builds out its artificial intelligence business to cater to clients in sectors such as education and health care seeking to tap the emerging technology, co-founder Joseph Anantharaju said in an interview. It now employs about 5,000 people.



Happiest Minds is also in partnership talks with OpenAI backer Microsoft Corp. for better access to ChatGPT, Anantharaju said, as it seeks an edge over rivals in Indias massive IT industry. While AI still accounts for a small portion of Happiest Minds sales, it is one the fastest-growing segments for the 12-year-old company.



The firm, which gets its revenue from helping companies digitize their services, is building tools that run on top of ChatGPT, customized to its clients needs, he said. These include safeguards to allow businesses to use ChatGPT without sharing proprietary data and intellectual property, a major privacy concern for its customers.



Clients want to make the best use of ChatGPT, Anantharaju said. We have started demonstrating these add-on capabilities to our clients.



Another Happiest Minds tool can detect emotions in AI-generated podcast scripts and read the text out loud like a human would, rather than doing it in a monotone robotic voice, said Chief Technology Officer Sridhar Mantha.



To be sure, itll take time to see how Happiest Minds bet will play out as competitors too are jumping into the AI frenzy. We will have to wait for at least 10 months to get more clarity, said Piyush Pandey, an analyst at Yes Securities. The AI push definitely has a lot of potential, but bigger companies with more resources might be able to build on it faster.



Happiest Minds has weathered a global slowdown in the technology industry relatively well, said Pandey, who recommends buying the shares. Its stock has climbed about 20% from a March low, outperforming Indias IT giants Tata Consultancy Services Ltd. and Infosys Ltd.



Happiest Minds was co-founded by Ashok Soota, a tech industry pioneer who has headed three outsourcing companies. The shares have risen more than five-fold since its initial public offering in September 2020.
Well-known investor Ashish Chugh and market veteran Madhusudan Kela's wife Madhuri Madhusudan Kela bought shares in Cravatex and Sangam India, respectively, while Ashish Kacholia has pared more stake in D-Link India via open market transactions on June 14.



Veteran investor Ashish Chugh has bought 15,000 equity shares, which is equivalent to 0.58 percent of the total shareholding in Cravatex, the retail, brand licensing, distribution and sourcing company. These shares were purchased at an average price of Rs 326.71 per share.



Cravatex shares recorded stellar performance on the same day, rising 15.5 percent to Rs 370.25. In October last year, footwear retail chain Metro Brands acquired a 100 percent shareholding of Cravatex Brands, which has an exclusive long-term license with the Italian sportswear brand FILA, owns sportwear brand Proline, and represents other international brands.



Among other deals, market veteran Madhusudan Kela's wife Madhuri Madhusudan Kela has bought additional 8.4 lakh shares or a 1.67 percent stake in Sangam (India), the textiles and apparels company, at an average price of Rs 268 per share.



However, non-resident Indian investor Satpal Khattar has sold 9 lakh shares in the company at an average price of Rs 268.04 per share.



Click Here To Know All Bulk Deals



Madhuri Madhusudan Kela held 4.18 percent stake in Sangam (India), while the shareholding by Satpal Khattar in the company was 1.89 percent or 9.47 lakh shares as of March 2023.



Sangam (India) shares, too, were in action, rising 17.6 percent to Rs 334.15 on the NSE.



V-Mart Retail was also in focus, as foreign portfolio investor Amansa Holdings has purchased additional 3.37 lakh equity shares or a 1.7 percent stake in small size hypermarket chain V-Mart Retail at an average price of Rs 1,990 per share, which amounted to Rs 67.22 crore.



Amansa Holdings already held a 6.83 percent stake in the company. The stock jumped 6 percent to Rs 2,100.



Click Here To Know All Big Shark Portfolios



However, foreign portfolio investor T Rowe Price International Discovery Fund sold 3.77 lakh shares in V-Mart at an average price of Rs 1,990.43 per share. T Rowe held a 2.07 percent stake or 4.08 lakh shares in the company.



D-Link India was down nearly 4 percent to Rs 225. Ace investor Ashish Kacholia has sold further 3.69 lakh equity shares in the networking products manufacturer at an average price of Rs 227.91 per share.



Ashish had sold 1.94 lakh shares at an average price of Rs 228.5 per share on June 7 as well, while as of March 2023, his shareholding in the company was 2.11 percent or 7.5 lakh shares.



AAVAS Financiers was also in focus, as Smallcap World Fund Inc has sold 12.84 lakh equity shares or a 1.6 percent stake in Jaipur-based housing finance company at an average price of Rs 1,349.94 per share. The stake sale was worth Rs 173.43 crore.



AAVAS Financiers closed flat at Rs 1,350.40.



Welspun India shares fell 2.2 percent to Rs 93.35. Foreign portfolio investor Infinity Holdings has offloaded 94.88 lakh shares or 0.96 percent stake in the textile business company at an average price of Rs 93.61 per share.



However, Europe-based financial services group Societe Generale was the buyer for some of those shares in Welspun, acquiring 50 lakh shares or half a percent stake at an average price of Rs 93.5 per share.



Aurionpro Solutions was locked in a5 percent upper circuit at Rs 953.55, wherein Sumeet Nagar's Malabar India Fund has bought 2.63 lakh shares or 1.15 percent stake at an average price of Rs 880.23 per share.



However, foreign portfolio investor Indusvaley Holdings Pte Ltd sold 2 lakh shares in the technology company at an average price of Rs 881.38 per share. It held a 2.61 percent stake or 5.95 lakh shares in the company as of March 2023.



Central Depository Services shares corrected more than 3 percent to close at Rs 1,014. The BSE (Bombay Stock Exchange) has sold 47.44 lakh equity shares or a 4.5 percent stake in CDSL at an average price of Rs 985.98 per share, amounting to Rs 467.74 crore. The exchange had held a 20 percent stake in CDSL as of March 2023.



ICICI Prudential Technology Fund was the buyer for some of those shares, purchasing 5.28 lakh shares in CDSL at an average price of Rs 985 per share.
Shares of Fiem Industries fell over 3 percent on June 14 reacting to a fire mishap that took place around noon on June 13 in one of the companys units in Haryana. A fire accident took place in one building of Unit-7, situated at Plot No 1915, Phase -V, Rai Industrial Estate, in Sonipat, Haryana, the company said in an exchange filing.



At 9:29 am, shares of the automotive lighting manufacturer were trading at Rs 1778.75, down 2.4 percent on the BSE.



Fortunately, no humans were hurt and the fire was brought under control within a few hours with the assistance of fire tenders. However, there was some damage to buildings, machinery, stocks, and furniture, the company added.



Fiem Industries is currently evaluating the extent of the damage caused by the fire and has started the necessary procedures to make an insurance claim since the company's assets are adequately insured.



Catch up on all LIVE stock market updates here



To prevent any disruptions in the supply to their valued original equipment manufacturer (OEM) customers, the company is arranging the delivery of products from another building within the same unit, as well as from other units. Additionally, the company will take prompt and appropriate actions to ensure that the affected part of the unit resumes functioning as soon as possible, Fiem Industries added.



The financials



Fiem Industries is debt free as of March 2023. It is confident of outperforming the industries on revenue growth. The companys order book as of June 2023 stood at Rs 950 crore.



Consolidated net sales fell 11 percent YoY to Rs 436.25 crore, whereas net profit rose 13 percent to Rs 38.03 crore.



The on-year decline in quarterly sales is due to a decline in production of key customers of FIEM Industries. FY23 revenues grew nearly 18 percent to Rs 1,830 crore. Meanwhile, margin expansion in mainly due to some price escalation received from the customers, analysts said.



Disclaimer: The views and investment tips expressed by experts on Moneycontrol.com are their own and not those of the website or its management. Moneycontrol.com advises users to check with certified experts before taking any investment decisions.
Oberoi Realty stock may have remained flat for the past month but domestic broking firm Motilal Oswal sees a 16 percent upside on the back of new launches lined up in the current financial year.



It expects the company to log bookings of Rs 5,600 crore in FY24. A part of this sum, Rs 2,600 crore will come from new projects, Oberoi Realty chief financial officer Saumil Daru told Motilal Oswal.



The brokerage has retained a "buy" call on the stock with a target price of Rs 1,140.



Oberoi Realty plans to launch the first phase of its flagship project in Thane in the current financial year. The project has a Gross Development Value (GDV) of Rs 6,200 crore. GDV is the projected value of a property once it is completed, Motilal Oswal said in a report released on June 14.



Oberoi Realty plans to develop a school, hotel, group housings, retail destinations and is expected to be monetised in 20 years.



The developer was looking at another project in Thane, with a GDV of Rs 2,200 crore. The real estate companys ongoing project in Goregaon will have a GDV of Rs 3,200 crore. Other ongoing projects are expected to generate Rs 1,500 crore of cash annually in the next four-five years, analysts at Motilal Oswal said.



Also read Buy Oberoi Realty; target of Rs 1229: YES Securities



Land acquisition



Oberoi Realty is expected to complete a transaction of around 50 acres in Gurugram. It is also in talks to purchase land in Mumbais Andheri, however, the deal may take time as the parcel is part of the Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Association redevelopment zone.



The company has delayed the launch of Commerz III, a mall in Mumbais Borivali to HY25 from FY24. The mall will be functional from FY25 and has the potential to generate Rs 2,500 crore in rent annually.



In the March quarter of FY23, Oberoi Realtys net profit increased 81 percent to Rs 1,904 crore from the year-ago quarter.



At 12.07 pm, the stock was trading at Rs 986 on the National Stock Exchange, up 0.2 percent from the previous close.



Disclaimer: The views and investment tips expressed by experts on Moneycontrol.com are their own and not those of the website or its management. Moneycontrol.com advises users to check with certified experts before taking any investment decisions
Here is a collection of the most important stories this evening:



Mankind, P&G and Alkem shine as healthcare stocks grab the biggest pie of MF investments in May



Mutual funds (MFs) net-bought stocks worth Rs 2,900 crore through their core equity schemes during May, with the healthcare sector grabbing the biggest pie, according to Emkay Alternative and Quantitative Research's Monthly Institutional Flow Tracker. Healthcare got the most inflows at Rs 1,900 crore, with a significant portion directed towards three stocks, the report revealed. Read more here.



Zoho to take on OpenAI, Google with new AI model, Sridhar Vembu overseeing project



"We have been working on artificial intelligence for a decade now. When customers needed ChatGPT integration, we gave them that by integration with 13 of our apps as we announced recently," Praval Singh, vice president of marketing and customer experience, Zoho said in Delhi on June 14. Read more here.



Mutual funds may not get holdings waiver post HDFC Bank - HDFC merger: Report



India's markets regulator is unlikely to give special exemption to mutual funds if they breach the norms for maximum permitted holdings in a security after the merger of HDFC Bank and HDFC, two sources with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters. Read more here.







Lithuania nails SpiceJet after inspection, fresh insolvency cases in English courts



Two aircraft-leasing companies have obtained summary judgment totalling over $15 million against SpiceJet in the high court in London in May 2023. Moneycontrol can also confirm that there are, at least, three more cases lodged in the commercial courts of London against SpiceJet which are currently in different stages. This also includes a claim filed by a Turkish company. Read more here.



Tata Consumer Products sees strong break out, analysts expect it above Rs 1,000



On the technical charts, the share has decisively broken out of a long downward-sloping resistance trendline adjoining the highs of September 7, 2021, and September 14, 2022. Also, there was a breakout of the horizontal resistance trendline adjoining multiple touchpoints. Read more here.



Googles abuse of dominant position: CCI moves SC against NCLAT order



The Competition Commission of India (CCI) has filed an appeal in the Supreme Court against the judgment of the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) in a case pertaining to Google's abuse of its dominant position and imposition of Rs 1,338 crore penalty on the US tech giant by the CCI. Read more here.



Cyclone Biparjoy: 50,000 shifted to temporary shelters in Gujarat; Heavy rains, strong winds lash Saurashtra-Kutch



With the cyclone barrelling towards the Gujarat coast, parts of the Saurashtra-Kutch region received heavy rains accompanied by strong winds. Nine talukas in Devbhumi Dwarka, Jamnagar, Junagadh, Porbandar and Rajkot districts received more than 50 mm of rainfall in the 24 hours ending on Wednesday morning. Read more here.
A woman thought to be dead turned out to be very much alive, a fact established when she began knocking on the inside of the coffin in which she was to be buried. The Associated Press today posted video of Montoya's unexpected revival, embedded below.

76-year-old Bella Montoya was rushed to Martin Icaza Hospital in Babahayo, Ecuador, after coming around at her own wake, and local authorities launched an investigation into how, exactly, she was declared dead. She remains in intensive care, according to Ecuador's Health Ministry, which said she suffered cardio-respiratory arrest, had not responded to resuscitation efforts, and that a doctor on duty had "confirmed" their death.

"Currently, the patient remains intubated in the Intensive Care Unit of the hospital," the ministry posted to Facebook.




The National Pension System Tier-II Tax Saver Scheme (NPS  TTS), which was introduced three years ago for central government employees, is yet to gain subscribers' attention.



The Assets Under Management (AUM) for this scheme stood at just Rs 12.5 crore as of March 2023, according to data provided by the Handbook of NPS 2023.



NPS offer two types of accounts: Tier - I and II. Tier I is a mandatory retirement account, whereas Tier II is a voluntary saving account. The Tier-I account of NPS is a contribution account to build a retirement corpus, from which one can get an annuity after 60 years of age. Contributions to a Tier-I account are eligible for deduction under Sec 80C. The Tier-II account is an investment account where any surpluses or money required in the short term can be parked and withdrawn at will. There is no tax advantage for the money parked in a Tier II account, says Suresh Sadagopan, founder, Ladder 7 Financial Services.



The Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA) and the government have been proactive in setting up NPS is one of the best retirement cum investment products for the Indian citizens.



In September 2020, the government introduced another variant of account NPSTTS, which is available only for central government employees having an active Tier I account. Any central government subscriber can invest in a Tier-II tax saver scheme and avail tax benefits on investments up to Rs 1.5 lakh under section 80C.







A short lock-in period



NPS-TTS has a lock-in period of three years. Each fresh investment is calculated separately for three years lock-in period. Calculation of lock-in period will be based on the date of investment in scheme, says Sumit Shukla, MD & CEO - Axis Pension Fund.



NPSTTS is one of the few investment products in the 80C basket with a shorter lock-in period of three years. While the other instruments in the basket such as National Savings Certificate (NSC), tax-saving bank fixed deposit and Public Provident Fund (PPF) have much longer lock-in periods between 5 and 15 years. But it matches with the Equity-Linked Savings Scheme (ELSS) which also has a lock-in period of three years.



Also read: NPS Equity funds shine, but struggles to beat broader indices



However, the 80C tax benefit may not be a big deal for many investors, as it is easier to meet the required quantity of Rs 1.5 lakh in a financial year with so many other eligible instruments in the crowded 80C bucket.



A fixed-income heavy fund option



However, its fixed-income heavy fund option makes NPSTTS unattractive. While the regular Tier-I and Tier-II accounts allow investors to choose between active or auto investment options, NPS-TTS comes up with a single investment option that invests 10-25 percent in equity and the rest in debt instruments. It is particularly suitable for conservative investors and maintains a debt-oriented investment strategy, with a modest allocation of 10-25 percent in equity, says Nehal Mota, Co-Founder & CEO, Finnovate, a hybrid financial fitness platform.



ELSS schemes score over NPSTTS due to equity-heavy portfolios that can generate a higher return over the long run.



Currently, all 10 pension fund managers offer the NPS-TTS option to central government employees. Among them, HDFC Pension, SBI Pension and LIC Pension have managed the largest corpus of Rs 4 crore, Rs 3.7 crore and Rs 1.4 crore, respectively.



Also see: 70% of NPS annuity subscribers choose single life policy to pass on principal to nominee: PFRDA



In NPS, unlike the all-citizen model, the investment choice with higher equity allocation is not available for central government employees. In TierI account too, the central government employees are currently offered only four fund options viz, default fund option (which invests up to 15 percent in equity), Scheme G (nil equity exposure), Scheme LC 50 (up to 50 percent in equity) and Scheme LC 25 (up to 25 percent in equity).



Ambiguity in tax implication



One of the other reasons for the low investor participation is ambiguity in the tax implication on the withdrawal amount from the NPS-TTS account. In the case of the Tier-I retirement account, the tax rules on withdrawal are clear. Since there is no formal notification from the government on how NPS Tier-II gains will be taxed on redemption, tax experts are divided on how the gains are taxed.



Shukla of Axis Pension Fund says on redemption of NPS-TTS, indexation benefits may apply on the capital gain.



Abhishek Soni, CEO & Co founder of Tax2win, a Fisdom company, says, The NPS Tier-II account withdrawal is considered part of the subscriber's total taxable income. The tax liability on the withdrawal amount depends on the subscriber's income-tax slab rates. The withdrawal is added to the subscriber's total income and taxed at the applicable income-tax slab rates."



No withdrawal is allowed in NPS-TTS during the lock-in period of 3-years. However, in the case of the death of the subscriber, the corpus can be withdrawn by the nominee or legal heir.



Also read: NPS assets at Rs 9 lakh cr, subscriber base at 6.3 cr as of March 2023: PFRDA



The NPS has become one of the preferred retirement options in India, thanks to its defined contribution pension structure, low cost, transparency, hassle-free operation, better-performing fund options and tax advantages. The NPS was first introduced for central government employees who joined the service on or after January 1, 2004. Thereafter, state governments followed suit and then it was extended to all citizens from May 1, 2009. The total number of subscribers in NPS (excluding Atal Pension Yojana) grew significantly to 1.73 crore as of March 2023.
Union Minister R K Singh has urged International Solar Alliance (ISA) to promote grid-scale solar energy projects in African countries to help them get green funds. The minister made the remarks during a bilateral discussion with a French delegation that called upon him on Tuesday, a statement from the power ministry said. The minister emphasized the need for the ISA to take up more solar energy projects, especially in Africa. "The ISA should set up a de-risking mechanism and should also tap more green funds and thus promote grid-scale solar energy projects in the African continent," the statement quoted him as saying. He pointed out that economically strong countries will find renewable energy funds themselves, while the economically weak countries would need green funds. "We will have to help such countries who need funds." The two sides also discussed the idea of holding a conference by ISA in Kenya. Singh told the visiting delegation that despite India's per capita emissions being one third of the global average, the country is the fastest in energy transition. About 43 per cent of India's capacity today is non-fossil fuels based, and the country has committed to reducing emission intensity by 45 per cent by 2030. India is going to be a world leader in green hydrogen and the country is adding renewable energy capacity at a fast pace, which will also help bring down the cost of energy in due time, he informed the delegation.

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Bengaluru recorded the highest year-on-year (YoY) growth in warehousing transactions across the top eight cities at 25 percent at 7.4 million square feet (msf) in the financial year 2022-23 (FY23), according to a report by Knight Frank. The India Warehousing Market Report  2023 noted that the transaction volumes in secondary markets have more than doubled to 13.7 msf compared to pre-pandemic levels.



The annual transaction volume in the primary market has grown from 46.4 msf in FY19 to 51.3 in FY23. However, it recorded a slight change of 0.1 percent between the last two years, the report showed.



"While primary markets have maintained their demand volumes, the secondary market has increased its share further despite e-commerce slowing down. However, the scale and investor interests continue to be in the primary market," Vivek Rathi, Director of Research at Knight Frank, told Moneycontrol.



Secondary markets include Tier II and Tier II cities such as Lucknow, Bhubaneshwar, Indore, and Patna, among others.



The compound annual growth rate (CAGR) over the years FY17 to FY23 was 24 percent. Mumbai, Bengaluru, and Kolkata witnessed record-high volume of transactions in FY23, the report added.



Bengaluru demand remains robust



The Third-Party Logistics (3PL) sector accounted for 45 percent share of the warehousing transactions, followed by manufacturing at 26 percent and fast-moving consumer durables (FMCD) with a 14-percent share in FY23.

However, the e-commerce sector witnessed a significant decrease in the share of transaction volumes at 4 percent in FY23, down sharply from 17 percent in FY22.



However, a similar trend was noticed across the primary cities, where the share of the e-commerce industry dropped by 71 percent to 3.4 msf in FY23 from 11.6 msf in the previous year due to the excess capacity built during the pandemic period to meet the surge in consumption. However, 3PL demand remained robust, up by 34 percent in FY23.



Macro outlook



Gulam Zia, Senior Executive Director of Advisory and Valuation, Knight Frank, said that while absorption remained unchanged, the new supply of warehousing shrank across the country.



The manufacturing sector also experienced a significant rise in demand, with 23 percent YoY growth.



Riding on increased consumer demand in the post-pandemic era, the retail sectors share spiked to 11 percent in FY22 from 4 percent in FY21. This increase in demand has sustained in FY23 with retail sector occupiers taking up 13 percent of the total space transacted. Another 13 percent of the volume transacted came from end-use involving some form of manufacturing activity in sectors like automobile, FMCG, and FMCD.



Secondary markets on the rise



Lucknow led in terms of annual transacted volumes at almost 2 msf and Visakhapatnam experienced the highest growth at 265 percent in FY23.



"The fact that transaction volumes in these secondary markets have grown robustly while the eight primary markets saw demand remain stable in YoY terms underscores the increasing traction in these emerging warehousing markets," the report concluded.
The Delhi Development Authority (DDA), on June 14, approved the launch of Phase IV of its online First-Come, First-Served (FCFS) housing scheme for 5,000 flats, under which the Authority will permit homebuyers to book a flat in the locality and floor of their choice by paying a token booking amount.



Initially, approximately 5,000 flats of different categories will be offered under the scheme, and more flats will be added as per demand, it said.



Also Read: Delhi Development Authority to sell penthouses with golf course view in Dwarka



It said that the scheme will be formally launched on June 30 this year. In this housing scheme, the DDA has decided to allow individuals to apply for flats even if they or their family members already own a flat or plot of land in Delhi.



Also Read: DDA expected to launch housing scheme for 23,000 flats in June



The approval to launch the housing scheme was granted at the DDAs board meeting on June 14, chaired by Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena, who is also the chairman of the Authority.



"In line with the Prime Ministers vision of Housing for All, the Authority on June 14 gave approval for the launch of phase IV of the DDAs online First Come, First Served (FCFS) housing scheme. The scheme is to be launched on June 30, 2023. Initially, approximately 5,000 flats of different categories will be offered, and more flats will be added as per demand from time to time," the Authority said in a statement.



The Authority noted that it was the first time that DDA was offering Middle Income Group (MIG) flats in Dwarka and Narela and High Income Group (HIG) flats in Jasola, apart from Low Income Group (LIG) and Economically Weaker Section (EWS) flats in Rohini, Narela, Siraspur, and Loknayakpuram under the FCFS housing scheme.



It said that DDA, for the first time, will be issuing online system-generated demand letters immediately after the payment of the registration amount is confirmed. Based on the feedback from the previous schemes, DDA has invested funds in improving the infrastructure of these localities, including connectivity.



To keep the houses affordable for the general public at large, DDA has retained the cost of most of the EWS and LIG flats at the same level that was prevailing at the time of the Special Housing Scheme, 2021.



In the scheme of 2021, flats in the EWS category were offered in a price range of Rs 7.91 lakh to Rs 12.42 lakh, while flats in the LIG category were available for Rs 15 lakh to Rs 25 lakh.



Also Read: DDA conducts draw of lots for 1,093 flats for JJ dwellers of Jailorwala Bagh



DDA, the agency designated to manage land and build houses in the national capital, has an inventory of about 40,000 unsold flats in Narela, Dwarka, and Jasola. Most of the units are meant for the EWS and are located in Narela, in north Delhi.
In a relief for homebuyers, the Karnataka Real Estate Regulatory Authority (KRERA) has directed a Bengaluru-based developer of an unregistered project to completely refund about Rs 39.6 lakh to a person who had booked a flat in the developers project.



The project, Richmond Pride Phase II, located close to Anekal in southern Bengaluru, was to have been completed within March 2015, including the grace period.



However, KRERA noted that the developer, Richmond Builders Pvt Ltd, has not only failed to hand over possession but also failed to complete the project, the order dated June 7 said.



The developer has also built extra floors, thus deviating from the approved sanction plan of ground plus three floors.



Despite several homebuyers' requests to cancel the sale agreement and refund the amount paid, the developer failed to take action.



It was then that the buyer moved KRERA for relief.



KRERA finding



KRERA noted that currently, the project is not registered under the state regulatory body. This was despite the body passing an interim order last September asking the developer to register the project.



The authority cited a 2019 Supreme Court order regarding Imperia Structures Ltd and Anil Patni where the court relied on Section 18 of the central Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2016. The section clarifies that if the promoter fails to deliver on the promises, the allottees can withdraw from the project.



The authority also referred to another Supreme Court civil appeal between Newtech Promoters and Developers Pvt Ltd and Uttar Pradesh government where the court held that in such cases the homebuyers can claim a complete refund.



"The homebuyers have paid a substantial amount to the developer and thus are entitled to claim the refund back," the order said.



Advocates say that in rare cases, the authority passes such orders for unregistered projects to protect buyers rights.



"Homebuyers are entitled to remedies under the RERA provisions even for unregistered projects. However, the promoters in the majority of these cases contest RERA's jurisdiction in these situations," Akash Bhatia, an advocate, said.



For example, in January the Karnataka High Court quashed a KRERA order that asked the developer, Provident Housing, to refund the entire booking amount to a homebuyer for an unregistered project following a dispute over the title of the land. The judgment said that KRERA had no jurisdiction over projects granted partial occupancy certificate before the central act became law.
The Delhi Development Authority (DDA) has decided to offer the residents of the Signature View Apartment housing complex, which was declared "structurally damaged" by IIT-Delhi, two options  buyback, or reconstruction of the flats at the same site, the Authority noted.



The Authority said that it will also pay rent to those residents who opt for reconstruction of flats, during the period of construction.



The decision was taken on June 14 at the board meeting of the DDA, which was chaired by Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena, who is also the chairman of the Authority.



Around 1,600 people live in the Signature View Apartments housing complex, which is located in north Delhis Mukherjee Nagar. The society comprises 12 towers.



Also Read: Delhi's Signature View Apartments residents demand fair compensation, seek clarity over redevelopment



The Authority noted that approval has been given for an effective solution for the residents of Signature View Apartment, where DDA will offer two options to the allottees or residents of the housing complex.



"One of the options is direct buyback of the flats wherein DDA will pay back the cost of capital paid by allottees along with interest plus the stamp duty paid at the time of registration. The other option is the reconstruction of the flats, vide which DDA will provide newly built flats at the same place with the same specifications. However, better amenities and civic services will be provided in accordance with the Unified Building Bye Laws (UBBL) in vogue. Further, the facilitation amount towards rent would also be paid during the construction period until the time the offer letter is issued to all the allottees," the DDA said in a statement.



The apartment complex was built between 2007 and 2010 and allotted to the residents in 20112012. But in just a few years, the buildings became structurally unsafe. Construction-related issues started surfacing in 2012-13, soon after the society became operational. This forced the residents to complain to the DDA.



Also Read: Signature View Apartment case: DDA asks CBI to register FIR against 39 officers, contractors



The IIT-Delhi study conducted in 202122 at the behest of the DDA made a recommendation to "vacate and dismantle" the buildings immediately. On complaints by the residents regarding the poor condition of the buildings, LG Saxena, on January 24 this year, ordered the DDA to redevelop the housing complex and register FIRs against erring officials and contractors.
Smartphone company Realme co-founder Madhav Sheth on Wednesday announced that he has resigned from the company after five years of stint to start a new venture related to exports.



With Sheth's resignation, the company's founder Sky Li will take additional charge of its India business.



"Goodbye can be disheartening, but the world is too small until we meet again. Farewell for now, but our paths may cross again soon, and that's something to look forward to building a better and bigger me," Sheth said in a social media post. Sheth was serving as Vice President of Realme and President of Realme International Business Group and often shared that he co-founded Realme in India.



Realme is a subsidiary of the Chinese smart devices maker group BBK Electronics. Sheth's exit comes at a time when smartphone sales have been under pressure.



According to market research firm International Data Corporation's (IDC) Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker report, smartphone shipments fell to a four-year low of 31 million in the first quarter and the overall smartphone market is expected to see a flat growth this year. Realme smartphone shipment during the reported quarter plunged by more than half to 2.9 million units from 6 million units in the March 2022 quarter.



"After a fantastic journey, I am stepping down from my role at realme and I am ready to embark on new adventures. The Government of India has taken many steps towards enhancing Indian exports for many years and I am happy to be a part of this and support the government's plan. After a long conversation with Sky Li and also with his support, it's time for me to contribute my share to the country's export business," Sheth said. During his regime, Realme started exporting smartphones from India to Nepal.



In a tweet, founder Li said, "Thank you for your invaluable contributions, Madhav! Thank you for your uncompromising trust, accompanying me every step of the way from the very beginning. Although I'm reluctant to see you go, you have my confidence that you'll bring great contributions to India's export market". The company, in a statement, said that Realme has achieved remarkable milestones, solidifying its position as one of the fastest-growing smartphone brands worldwide under the leadership of Sheth.



"We extend our warmest wishes to Madhav for a successful future ahead. While we bid farewell to Madhav, we want to assure our customers, partners, and stakeholders that realme's operations will continue seamlessly," a Realme spokesperson said.
Sajjan Jindal, chairman and managing director of JSW group of companies, is reportedly set to own between 45 and 48 percent of carmaker MG Motor India, which is a wholly owned arm of the Shanghai-headquartered SAIC Motor, according to the Economic Times. His majority acquisition would make the company into an Indian entity, with the dealers and Indian employees owning around 5-8 percent. The parent company, SAIC, will hold on to the remaining percentage, the ET report cited multiple sources in the know. Also Read: MG Motor aims to boost local manufacturing & investment in India, plans IPO by 2028 This acquisition plan will ensure that at least 51% of the company will be in Indian control, while the Chinese will become a minority partner with a maximum holding of 49%. The report also mentioned that JSW group's listed entities  JSW Steel and JSW Energy  will not have any exposure to this venture. Also Read: Appoint Indians as CEOs, COOs', Centre tells Chinese handset manufacturers As part of this transition, the top management and board of the company will have a larger share of Indians. This potential acquisition comes at a time when the Indian government has reportedly asked Chinese smartphone makers to appoint Indian chief executive officers, chief operating officers, chief financial officers, and chief technical officers for their Indian operations. Additionally, the government has also directed them to appoint Indian contract manufacturers, expand local manufacturing down to the component level through joint ventures with Indian businesses, and hire local distributors. At present, there are Chinese distributors for some of these companies that are operating in India.

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Lightspeed-backed edtech startup FrontRow is considering a potential sale or even a shutdown in the worst-case scenario, people aware of the matter told Moneycontrol, months after the company laid off 75 percent of its staff and said it would start from scratch.



The companys backers including Lightspeed Venture Partners are looking for potential acquirers for the company, the people said, requesting anonymity. If these talks fall through, the company might mull a shutdown, the people added.



Entrackr was the first to report the development.



FrontRow has struggled to find a product-market fit despite multiple attempts, which led to the company contemplating these decisions.



We (founders and investors) had always set a June date for taking a step back and reflecting on the pilots we're running and while we've made a ton of progress, and have a CM positive (albeit very small scale business), we're having multiple conversations on what's the best place for the company, including whether the market is large enough to support an independent player or whether this fits better within a larger multi category company. We will be figuring this out over the next couple of months, said the edtech startup's co-founder Ishaan Preet Singh.



Singh said that after three to four experiments, the company concluded that it is not the right market for such solutions and it is too early.



The Bengaluru-based company was founded in 2020 by Shubhadit Sharma, Mikhil Raj, and Ishaan Preet Singh and counts Elevation Capital, Lightspeed India, Eight Roads Ventures, GSV Ventures among others, along with Unacademy's Gaurav Munjal as its backers.



Frontrow had raised $14 million as a part of its Series A round in September 2021.



After two rounds of layoffs in May and October 2021, the company was left with about 35-40 employees. Singh said the company is supporting some of these employees to find another job.



We have also kept the team in the loop here, and are helping some of them find alternate jobs if they'd like. This isn't a capital or runway question (we have over 3 years of runway), it's more about making sure that when you raise capital with a vision of building a large scale business, you are honest on whether that's doable in a particular market as you learn more, he added.



Front Row offered an e-learning platform for comedy, sports, creative arts, and hobbies. In October, Singh admitted that the business model could not scale and that the growth till now came as the company doubled down on its marketing and sales headcount, which did not fructify.
Sequoia Capital's Managing Partner Roelof Botha said that Sequoia Capital India and Southeast Asia flourished under the leadership of Shailendra Singh, instilling confidence in the management of the arm, a week after hiving off it as a separate entity.



Sequoia India and SEA have flourished under Shailendras (Singh) leadership and we are proud of the portfolios scale, quality and strength. Operating as an independent firm will provide more flexibility to further strengthen the market leadership position, said Botha.



Botha also said that India, the world's third-largest startup ecosystem, is currently among the most vibrant markets in the world and he is excited for Peak XV, the new avatar of Sequoia Capital India, as they double-down on the region.



"17 years ago Sequoia saw an opportunity in India as a promising market for startups and entrepreneurship. Since then Sequoia India has been instrumental in cultivating the startup ecosystem in the country, which has become one of the most vibrant in the world. I am very excited for Shailendra and the Peak XV team as they continue to double down on the region," he added.



Botha's comments follow Silicon Valley investor and CEO of Social Capital Chamath Palihapitiya's remarks, where he voiced disbelief at Sequoia's decision to exit the Indian market.



Palihapitiya said that while he could understand Sequoia's decision to exit from China since the country is largely uninvestable for the next 30-40 years, he was surprised about why they would allow India to leave.



On June 6, Sequoia announced a split which created three units  Sequoia Capital US and Europe under Roelof Botha; the India and Southeast Asia firm, which has been rebranded as Peak XV Partners, under Shailendra Singh; and the China firm, now called HongShan, under Neil Shen.



In an interview to Moneycontrol, Singh had said the domestic team was now large enough to venture out on its own and invest in India, where the ecosystem will be parallel to that of the US in the next 5-10 years.



"My team and I believe that we will have parallel ecosystems of software companies, development tools companies, infrastructure, and cloud computing, all built by Indian brands. And that's our biggest common brand conflict. If it was one or two deals a year, we could deal with the conflict. But if this conflict is a weekly issue for us. It's a big issue," Singh had said while explaining the split.



Things are already looking good for Peak XV, which marked its first cash exit by selling its remaining stake in Go Fashion, the parent company of Go Colors.



In November 2014, Peak XV (formerly called Sequoia Capital India and Southeast Asia) had invested around $10 million in the womens legwear maker and has now exited the company with a whopping return of $150 million, translating to a 15-16X multiple on the original investment, at an internal rate of return (IRR) of 43 percent, Moneycontrol had reported earlier.



Singh had also said that the profit-sharing agreement between the VC firms will be dissolved which meant the entire sum would now go to the revamped Peak XV team.
The latest bodies recovered at a doomsday cult in Kenya push the death toll there past 300, reports ABC News. Authorities warn that the death toll will end up much higher and have the cult's alleged leader, a former taxi driver named Paul Nthenge Mackenzie, in custody.

The search for mass graves is still underway in the Shakahola forest, where the first victims  some dead, others alive but weakened and emaciated  were discovered on April 13. Since then, the series of grim discoveries have revealed a macabre scandal, dubbed the "Shakahola forest massacre". More than 600 people have been reported missing by concerned relatives. Police believe that most of the bodies exhumed were those of Good News International Church followers, an evangelical sect founded in 2003 by the self-proclaimed "pastor" Mackenzie, who advocated fasting until death in order to "meet Jesus".

Starvation is the reported cause of death in most cases, but this is not a case of mass suicide: a government pathologist told media that many of the victims were beaten and choked to death. The Sunday Times reported that children were targeted first.

Mr Katana  who is helping police with the investigation  also described to the Sunday Times the alleged brutal treatment of the children, saying they were shut in huts for five days without food or water. "Then they wrapped them in blankets and buried them, even the ones still breathing," he was quoted as saying. It is alleged that the cult followers were told they would reach heaven faster if they starved to death.

The BBC also found Mackenzie's archived sermons.
Shares of mining conglomerate Vedanta rose nearly 2 percent after the Anil Agarwal-owned company received a royalty payment from subsidiary Hindustan Zinc Limited, which helped its parent shave off some of its debt. Hindustan Zinc paid a royalty of 1.7 percent of the annual revenue to Vedanta, which was passed on to the UK-based holding company Vedanta Resources Limited, reports cited Vedanta Resources' management as telling bondholders at the annual investor call earlier this week. As of 11 am, the stock was trading 1.64 percent up at Rs 282.50 on BSE. In the first quarter, locally listed Vedanta paid a higher royalty fee of 3 percent against last year's 2 percent, Vedanta Resources' management told bondholders. Vedanta Resources used the royalty fee helped redeem $500 million, 7.125 percent bonds due on May 31. A royalty payment is made by a third party to the owner of patent or a brand for using that product or the brand. This is the first time Hindustan Zinc has paid a royalty. Follow our live blog for all market action CreditSights said Vedanta Resources is expected to successfully service its debt maturities in the next 12 months. However, it is watchful of the refinancing risk for $4.2 billion term debt due in FY24 and has cautioned of execution risks, while the inability to tie up funds for late FY24 would pose downside risks. As of April 2023, Vedanta Resources' gross debt stood at $6.8 billion, down from $7.8 billion at the end of March 2023 and $9.7 billion in March 2022. Disclaimer: The views and investment tips expressed by experts on Moneycontrol are their own and not those of the website or its management. Moneycontrol advises users to check with certified experts before taking any investment decisions.

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Zurich Insurance Group is in talks to buy up to 51% of India's Kotak General Insurance, two sources with direct knowledge of the matter said, a deal that would mark its first major bet on the fast-growing South Asian insurance market.



Backed by Asia's richest banker Uday Kotak, the early-stage negotiations value the Indian company at around $800 million, and Zurich Insurance has expresed interest in both a minority stake of 49% or taking up a majority 51% stake, the sources said.



The stake the Swiss insurer wants to secure will be worth around $400 million, they said.



Kotak is still evaluating offers, including from other investors, but it prefers retaining "control of the company" after the stake sale, the first source said.



A spokesperson for Zurich, one of Europe's largest insurers, said "as a matter of principle, we don't comment on market rumours and speculations." Kotak General Insurance, which is fully-owned by Indian banking giant Kotak Mahindra Bank, did not respond to Reuters queries.



While the Kotak insurance unit's interest in selling a stake has been reported earlier, its talks with Zurich, the potential deal size and valuation are being reported for the first time.



More than 30 companies operate in India's general insurance market, where annual premium collections grew 11% to reach $26.7 billion in 2021-22, helped by rising financial literacy and income levels, CareEdge Ratings said in a report.



Many in India still consider health insurance, for example, as a tax savings tool. CareEdge added that India remains a vastly underpenetrated market with non-life insurance penetration of 1% in 2021, compared with the global average of 4.1%, highlighting "the potential of the industry."



Already, foreign companies such as Germany's Allianz and South Africa's Lombard have general insurance partnerships with Indian banking or financial groups.



The first source said Kotak, which is a relatively smaller general insurance player, is holding stake sale talks as it hopes to get an investor who can help them "turn around the business and grow faster".



The Kotak unit reported a loss of $10 million and clocked a premium income of $91.35 million in 2021-22, when bigger rival HDFC Ergo garnered $1.66 billion.



One industry executive in Europe, who is not aware of the current deal talks, said Zurich has for several years evaluated the India market, where businesses are generally more profitable and have better margins than those in Europe.



In 2017, Zurich said it wanted to grow its presence in markets such as China and India, where it can "compete without being a dominant player". The company operates in more than 200 countries and provides life insurance as well as for health and cars.



India in 2021 relaxed foreign investment rules for the insurance sector, allowing companies to acquire majority stakes of up to 74%, from 49% earlier.
Two aircraft-leasing companies have obtained summary judgment totalling over $15 million against SpiceJet in the high court in London in May 2023. Moneycontrol can also confirm that there are, at least, three more cases lodged in the commercial courts of London against SpiceJet which are currently in different stages. This also includes a claim filed by a Turkish company.



The development comes in the wake of Wilmington Trust SP Services (Dublin) filing insolvency plea in the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) against SpiceJet. Wilmington Trust, just like the two companies, GASL Ireland Leasing A-1 Limited and VS MSN 36118 CAV Designated Company, had also got a summary judgment in the high court in London in July 2021.



It is likely that these two companies  who had filed separate cases  could also approach NCLT seeking SpiceJets insolvency. In fact, the proceedings in the commercial court in London reveal that VS MSN could have got default judgment but instead sought a summary judgment to facilitate taking legal steps in India against the airline. A default judgment is given when a defendant fails to perform certain required tasks or fulfil mandatory conditions, whereas, a summary judgment can be obtained on the merit of the case, but without a full trial. The former is comparatively easier to obtain and set aside, but the latter can only be set aside on appeal.



MoneyControl has exclusive details of how SpiceJet initially refused to acknowledge service, had to face the ignominy of its legal team coming off record due to non-payment of fees, sought adjournments on the basis of having no legal representation, and made deliberate attempts to delay courts timetable. All this and much more could not grant them any reprieve from the high court in London.



GASL Ireland Leasing A-1 Limited v SpiceJet



This case pertains to the lease of a Boeing 737-800 aircraft by SpiceJet in May 2017. In February 2022, GASL obtained summary judgment for outstanding rent in the sum of $5,334,121.25 (which remains unpaid), but continued to pursue SpiceJet claiming non-compliance with aircraft Redelivery Conditions.



After non-payment of rent by SpiceJet, GASL requested that the aircraft be redelivered in the Republic of Ireland. Instead, SpiceJet made it available to GASL at Bengaluru from where it was flown by GASL to Lithuania for maintenance and inspections. Since there was a dispute between both the sides on whether the aircraft met the Redelivery Conditions they sent their experts to prepare a report.



In Lithuania, the aircraft was inspected for GASL by Peter Bull, an experienced aircraft maintenance engineer and by a representative of SpiceJet. Bull took over 1,800 pictures and produced a voluminous report on the condition of the aircraft, which was produced in court. The condition of the cabin and flight deck was described by Bull as one of the worst I have seen in relation to an in service aircraft which had been presented for redelivery. Bull also gave evidence that the aircraft was not repainted as required by the Redelivery Condition.



SpiceJet, on the other hand, did not submit any report from its expert who inspected the aircraft at Lithuania. This was pointed out by GASLs barrister Philip Shepherd, KC, who argued that the reason SpiceJet did not submit their experts report was because it would not have supported the airlines case that the aircraft met Redelivery Conditions. The court accepted Bulls evidence in full and entered judgment against SpiceJet in the amount of $8,490,312.39.



As the case progressed, the law firm representing SpiceJet came off record for non-payment of fees. At one stage, this was advanced by the airline to seek adjournment on the grounds that they did not have legal representation. SpiceJet sought to adjourn this trial on the basis that it needs time to find and brief new solicitors. However, there was no evidence from SpiceJet as to what steps (if any) had been taken to find legal representatives noted Justice Foxton in his judgment dated 10 May 2023. It has been a hallmark of the case to date that SpiceJet has sought to delay the timetable whenever possible.



Not surprisingly in the last stages of this case they remained unrepresented, but that did not stop the court from giving out its judgment.



VS MSN vs SpiceJet



In April 2018, SpiceJet entered into an agreement with VS MSN to lease a Boeing 737-700 for 96 months. In the backdrop of Covid-19, there were payment defaults and in November 2020, the parties entered into a rent deferral agreement. A total of $1,657,376 was waived under the agreement and further arrangements were agreed which laid down payments in monthly instalments during 2021.



But continued non-payment by SpiceJet left over $4 million outstanding by September 2022. Accordingly, VSN approached the high court in London seeking payment of the outstanding dues. At the beginning, SpiceJet failed to even acknowledge service.



The defendant buried their head in the sand, ignored our notices and claims which we made in September 2022, said Cleon Catsambis, representing VS MSN during a hearing on May 5, 2023. There were some extended arguments on how to work out the accrued rentals, interest payments and other technical details. Thomas Munby, KC, representing SpiceJet characterised VS MSNs application for a summary judgment as having their cake and eating it too. The claimant cant get summary judgment just by pleading, Munby told the court.



The main contention between both the parties was the one related to future rentals. VS MSN claimed that in the event of a default, they are automatically entitled to payment of all sums up to the date of redelivery under the Lease, May 3, 2026. This meant that once the aircraft is redelivered and there are no dues outstanding, the airline would be repaid any money paid in excess.



SpiceJet disputed that VS MSN had any such entitlement pertaining to future rentals. The airline challenged the construction of the clause put forward by the claimant, and argued that the wording made it uncertain. Deputy Judge Charles Hollander accepted that the wording of the future rental clause was unsatisfactory, but concluded: The fact that it is a draconian provision is hardly unusual in a list of remedies in an aircraft lease drafted for the protection of the lessor. Where there has been an Event of Default it is not particularly unlikely that the lessor would wish to secure future payments by advance payment, the monies being repayable after redelivery and full payment.



Accordingly, VS MSN was awarded a summary judgment to the tune of $5,890,000.
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Wednesday held talks with US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan with a focus on preparing for Prime Minister Narendra Modi's upcoming state visit to Washington.



The top Biden administration official arrived here on Tuesday on a two-day visit for talks with NSA Ajit Doval, Jaishankar and some other senior Indian officials ahead of Modi's trip.



Jaishankar said global strategic developments also figured in his talks with Sullivan.



"Great to meet US NSA @jakesullivan46 in South Block today morning. Our conversation focused on preparing for PM @narendramodi's upcoming US visit. Also discussed global strategic developments from the perspective of our partnership," Jaishankar tweeted.



NSA Doval and Sullivan on Tuesday unveiled an ambitious roadmap for Indo-US collaboration in seven specific high-technology areas, including semiconductors, next-generation telecommunication, artificial intelligence and defence.



After the roadmap was unveiled at an event, Sullivan, referring to Modi's visit to Washington, said both sides are looking at "deliverables" to address issues that have stood in the way of maximising the full potential of cooperation between the two sides.



"They are fundamentally designed to remove those obstacles in defence trading, in hi-tech trade, in investment in each of our countries, in taking away obstacles that have stood in the way of better collaboration among our scientists and researchers, in stimulating greater access for our students going both ways, for Americans coming to India, for Indians coming to the US," he.



The roadmap for collaboration was announced at the second Track-1.5 dialogue on Initiative on Critical and Emerging Technologies (iCET) that was organised by industry chamber CII.



In a major move, President Joe Biden and Prime Minister Modi announced in May last year the US-India initiative on Critical and Emerging Technology (iCET) to elevate and expand the strategic technology partnership and defence industrial cooperation between the two countries.



The formal movement on the framework took place in January.



The iCET is expected to forge closer linkages between the government, academia and industry of the two countries in areas such as artificial intelligence, quantum computing, 5G and 6G, biotech, space and semiconductors.



In his remarks at the Track 1.5 dialogue, Doval said significant progress has been achieved after the launch of the iCET around six months back and that it will serve as a platform to address regulatory barriers and related issues.
The Enforcement Directorate has arrested T Venkatram Reddy, a former promoter of the Deccan Chronicle Holdings Limited (DCHL), as part of a money laundering investigation linked to an alleged bank fraud case, official sources said on Tuesday. Reddy was taken into custody under the Prevention of Money Laundering (PMLA) by the federal agency's Hyderabad office, they said. The agency had said in 2020 that its probe found that "the three promoters of DCHL namely P K Iyer, T Venkatram Reddy and T Vinayakravi Reddy hatched a well planned conspiracy and manipulated the balance sheets of the company inflating the profits-advertisement revenue and grossly under-stated the financial liabilities of the company to paint a rosy picture for years to cheat the banks and its shareholders." The company, at that time, was stated to be under corporate insolvency resolution process. A resolution plan for only Rs 400 crore has been approved by the NCLT. The total loan fraud committed by DCHL and its promoters is estimated to be at Rs 8,180 crore, the agency had said. The ED filed a PMLA case against the firm and its promoters in 2015 after studying a CBI FIR registered to investigate the alleged bank loan default.

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Prime Minister Narendra Modis upcoming visit to Washington on June 22 has prompted the US State Department, Pentagon, and White House to refocus on the SeaGuardian drone that India had expressed interest in.



The US has asked India to show progress on the deal for as many as 30 arm able MQ-9B SeaGuardian drones made by General Atomics, two sources told Reuters. General Atomics specialises in developing and manufacturing unmanned aerial vehicles for surveillance purposes.



India has long expressed interest in buying large armed drones from the United States. But bureaucratic stumbling blocks have hampered a hoped-for deal for SeaGuardian drones that could be worth $2 billion to $3 billion for years, the Reuters report adds.



Also Read | US corporate sector upbeat about India ahead of PM Modi's visit



A sticking point could be that India is seeking for equipment components to be domestically manufactured. Notably, the country is at present leasing the MQ-9Bs as part of an intelligence-gathering operation.



So, what is a SeaGuardian drone? We explain.



The MQ-9B SeaGuardian is a drone satellite that can monitor the horizon for over 30 hours in all weathers. It can also safely integrate into civil airspace and monitor naval areas, as per information on the General Atomics Aeronautical Services website.



The patrolling device has in-built wide-area maritime radar, an automatic identification system, electronic support measures, and a self-contained anti-submarine warfare (ASW) kit.



Users can configure the MQ-9B to include sonobuoy management and control system (SMCS) and sonobuoy dispenser system (SDS), it added. It allows SeaGuardian operators to deploy, monitor and control sonobuoys from a single remotely piloted aircraft system (RPAS). A sonobuoy detects underwater sounds and transmits them by radio.



Also Read | PM Modi's visit: US looks to convey India-US relationship is of 'positive strategic consequence'



The SeaGuardian has 4 SDS pods enabling it to hold and dispense up to 40 A size or 80 G size sonobuoys. In its standard configuration, SeaGuardians range encompasses a mission radius of 1,200 nautical miles (~2222.4 km), says the website.



The website mentions that the SeaGuardian can be configured to conduct intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) maritime operations for disaster relief, search and rescue, law enforcement, anti- submarine warfare, anti-surface warfare, airborne mine counter measures, long range strategic ISR, and over-the-horizon targeting among others.



The Quad grouping of countries  Australia, India, Japan and the US  all operate, or have operated, the MQ-9B SeaGuardian. Besides these, the US Air Force and US Customs and Border Protection, the Italian Air Force, and the Royal Air Force, Australia and Belgium have also expressed interest in the SeaGuardian, according to the UK Defence Journal.
In a fresh incident of violence in the strife-torn Manipur, the official residence of the state's industry minister and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Nemcha Kipgen was set on fire on June 14, reports said.



The minister's house, which was set ablaze, is based in the Lamphel area of Imphal West district. There were no injuries or casualties reported as the residence was empty when the incident took place, the reports added.



The security forces have launched a search operation to nab those behind the incident, NDTV reported. According to India Today NE, the house was set on fire at around 6:30 pm.



The incident comes a day after nine people were killed in arson attacks in Khamenlok village under the Kangpokpi district.



Kipgen, whose residence was set ablaze, is among the 10 MLAs of Manipur who belong to the tribal Kuki community. The community has been allegedly involved in a clash with the valley-based Meitei community over the past one-and-half month. She currently represents the Kangpokpi constituency in the state assembly.



Kipgen was also among the 7 Kuki MLAs of BJP, who in May had called for the ouster of Chief Minister N Biren Singh and sought separate administration for the Kuki-dominated areas.



Manipur has been caught in violence since May 3, after a 'Tribal Solidarity March' was organised in the hill districts to protest against the Meitei's demand for inclusion in the Scheduled Tribes list.



Nearly 100 people have lost their lives so far and over 300 have been left injured, as per the official data. Around 1,500 people from the state have taken refuge in neighbouring Nagaland.




The Tamil Nadu government on Wednesday withdrew the general consent to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to carry out a probe in the state, joining a list of non-BJP ruled states who have done so earlier. The move comes on a day when state Electricity and Prohibition and Excise Minister V Senthil Balaji was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate, a central probe agency, in a money laundering case. A Home Department release here said that according to a specific provision of the the Delhi Special Police Establishment Act, 1946 (Central Act XXV of 1946) the CBI has to secure prior permission from the state government concerned before going there to conduct a probe. "The Tamil Nadu government has today issued orders withdrawing the general consent given to certain types of cases in 1989 and 1992 under the aforesaid rule. Accordingly, the CBI has to henceforth get the Tamil Nadu government's prior approval for conducting investigation in the state," it said. The release pointed out that West Bengal, Rajasthan, Kerala, Mizoram, Punjab and Telangana have already issued a similar order.

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Describing the India-US ties as a "partnership like no other", the Indian envoy here has said the US has the necessary capital and the technology know-how while India offers both the scale and the talent which make this relationship a stock which anyone can bet on.



The remarks by India's Ambassador to the US Taranjit Singh Sandhu came during his address to the annual India Ideas Summit of the US India Business Council.



"The tagline for the India-US relationship, which I like the most, is "a partnership like no other!", And you may think, that this is what, good diplomats say, about every relationship. Believe me: this is unique!" Sandhu said in his address to the Indian and American corporate leaders.



"United States has the necessary capital and the technology know-how while we offer, both the scale and the talent. This is a stock, which anyone would, bet on!" Sandhu said.



Over the last six months, there has been a flurry of activities in the bilateral ties.



"You take any day, there is a delegation from India in the US or an American visitor in India. Even as I speak, NSA Jake Sullivan is in New Delhi," he said.



There is an "unmistakable energy", a drive and a desire to get things done across sectors, he said.



"It was just in the end of January this year, in this very building, the two NSAs (Sullivan and Ajit Doval) along with the Commerce Secretary (Gina) Raimondo, spoke about the complementarities, in our vision, at the iCET (Initiative of Critical and Emerging Technology) Roundtable where we discussed, the need for our strategic, commercial and scientific worlds, to converge. India-US Initiative, on Critical and Emerging Technologies, has been a game changer, in our partnership," Sandhu said.



"Needless to say, all of this leads up to the historic visit of the Prime Minister (Narendra Modi) to Washington DC. In about a week from now, PM Modi will be received, by President (Joe) Biden at the White House, for a State Visit. This will be, only, the third time, in our independent history, that India's leader is accorded, this honour by a US President," said the Indian Ambassador.



It will also be a rare occasion, where the Prime Minister will address, a joint session of the Congress, for the second time, joining a select group of world leaders, and the only Indian leader, to do so, twice, he told the audience. there will also be other important engagements, he added.



"Last time when my Prime Minister addressed the US Congress, in 2016, he spoke about overcoming, the hesitations of history. It is a measure, of how far we have come, in these last seven years, we have fixed our gaze, firmly on the future, building our cooperation, from the seas to the stars," he said.



Without mentioning any country in his speech, Sandhu urged American companies to reduce their dependence on China.



"Geopolitics has taught us, the follies of over-dependence, on single geographies. We ended up here, because we played short balls; took decisions, which were easy," he said.



"We need to diversify; build resilient, reliable, and sustainable, supply chains. We have already seen many US companies take advantage of the opportunity, of PLI (Production Linked Incentive) Schemes in India, including most recently Apple, and its supplier Foxconn. It is estimated that by 2025, one out of every 4 iPhones in the world will be manufactured in India. We need more such stories," Sandhu said.
Ahead of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's state visit to Washington, the Biden administration is pushing New Delhi to cut through its own red tape and advance a deal for dozens of U.S.-made armed drones, two people familiar with the matter said.



India has long expressed interest in buying large armed drones from the United States. But bureaucratic stumbling blocks have hampered a hoped-for deal for SeaGuardian drones that could be worth $2 billion to $3 billion for years.



U.S. negotiators are counting on Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's White House visit on June 22 to break the log jam.



Since the date for Modi's visit was fixed, the U.S. State Department, Pentagon and White House have asked India to be able to "show" progress on the deal for as many as 30 armable MQ-9B SeaGuardian drones made by General Atomics, two sources said.



Modi and Biden are also expected to discuss co-production of munitions and ground vehicles, like armored personnel carriers, while Modi is in Washington, the sources said.



Spokespeople for the White House, Department of State and the Pentagon declined to comment on the negotiations.



U.S. President Joe Biden has made deepening ties with India a cornerstone of his policy to counter China's growing influence, placing special attention this year on collaboration between the world's two largest democracies on advanced military technologies, despite their lack of a formal security alliance.



New Delhi, which often prizes its non-alignment in conflicts between great powers abroad, has frustrated Washington by maintaining some defense and economic ties with Russia after the invasion of Ukraine.



Breaking India's bureaucratic log jam on drones hinges on an internal meeting to generate an "Acceptance of Necessity" document, an Indian precursor to a formal "Letter of Request" which kicks off the foreign military sale process. As of Tuesday, the sources did not know if the New Delhi had generated the necessary internal document.



"That's gonna be a decision that the government of India needs to make,"d said a senior Biden administration official. "We think it would be good for them to go through with the purchase of MQ-9s. But those decisions are sort of more in the hands of India than they are of us."



The topic was expected to be on the agenda as Biden's national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, arrived in New Delhi on Tuesday to finalize preparations ahead of Modi's visit.



As of last week, India's defense ministry had still not made up its mind about the number of drones it wants to buy, according to a person familiar with the discussions. Earlier, the number was pegged at 30, but that was later revised to 24, and then further down to 18 last month. Sources cautioned that none of the numbers were final.



India is also seeking components of the equipment to be domestically manufactured, something that could complicate any deal.



The Quad grouping of countries - the United States, India, Australia and Japan - all operate, or have operated, the MQ-9B SeaGuardian. Currently, India is leasing MQ-9Bs as part of an intelligence-gathering operation.
Kevan Atteberry, the man behind Microsoft's much mocked anthropomorphic paperclip assistant, Clippy, never anticipated the notoriety his creation would achieve. A children's book writer and illustrator, Atteberry operated a graphic design company in the 1990s when he landed a contract with Microsoft.

In this Great Big Story video profile, we learn his task was to create characters for Microsoft Bob, a software designed to assist first-time computer users. The project failed, but the concept of assistive characters carried over to Microsoft Office, resulting in an exhaustive process that saw the creation of 260 designs narrowed down to 10 characters, including Clippy (aka Clippit).

Love it or hate it, Atteberry's simple paperclip stood out from the rest. Social psychologists at Stanford University even studied these characters to find out which was the most likable and trustworthy. Clippy ended up being the favorite and became the go-to helper in Microsoft Office.

The video also talks about how Clippy wasn't always popular. Many users found him annoying and wanted to turn him off. But, Atteberry looks back fondly on the experience, noting that Clippy has opened up many opportunities for him.(Neatorama)
The entire business model of cryptocurrencies is at risk of falling apart, and Wall Street firms couldnt be any happier.



Now that the US Securities and Exchange Commission has decided to regulate a range of widely traded digital coins as securities, and sued two of their largest trading venues for peddling them without first registering the tokens with the authority, there is a good chance that blockchain leadership may finally pass over to regulated banks.



From the perspective of financial stability, a change of guard will be welcome. Crypto exchanges burst through a gap left unplugged by Satoshi Nakamoto. In his 2008 white paper, the pseudonymous founder of the Bitcoin network didnt suggest an obvious way for people to swap their dollars and euros for decentralised currencies. Digital-asset bourses, which allowed people to do that and more, morphed into shadow banks, offering

traders leverage of up to 125 times on their investment, while being sparsely regulated all along.



If crises of liquidity and solvency in the crypto industry havent yet threatened mainstream finance, thats only because of their limited linkages. Its only a matter of time, however, before the two get more closely intertwined. Some of that commingling may well happen outside the US. Even as the SEC was tightening the screws, a Hong Kong lawmaker took to Twitter to invite virtual-asset trading operators to come to the city, which pushed ahead with a new regulatory regime on June 1. Hong Kongs crypto-hub ambitions have Beijings quiet backing.



Ultimately, though, the thinking in Washington will prevail, as no financial center of repute will want to risk its stability for the sake of additional business. And the regulatory mood in the US is pretty clear. While Ripple Labs Inc and its top executives were accused by the SEC in late 2020 of selling XRP tokens without registering them, it was Sam Bankman-Frieds FTX, the most spectacular of last years crypto debacles, that made a major crackdown inevitable. It arrived this month with the SEC suing Binance Holdings Ltd and Coinbase Global Inc.



Following the lawsuits, banks are withdrawing support from Binances US site, whose customers will no longer be able to bring in or take out dollars. Binance.US, which has described the SECs civil action as unjustified and vowed to fight it, will transition to a crypto-only exchange.



Meanwhile, Coinbase, which has denied the SECs allegations that it has acted as an exchange, broker-dealer and clearinghouse  all without registering with the agency for any of those roles  is under pressure from state regulators whore demanding that the biggest US crypto exchange halt its staking program. Staking is a service that channels capital for decentralised finance, or DeFi, projects, by giving investors a passive income for locking their crypto assets via self-executing software known as smart contracts.



The overall message from authorities is this: Investors should be gradually pushed out of the unregulated corners of the cryptocurrency

world without depriving them of the efficiencies of decentralised ledgers, smart contracts or some other vaunted innovation. Let the average retail customer of a bank put a portion of her deposits on the blockchain. As long as a well-regulated depository institution channels those savings, there will be no reason to worry about additional systemic risk. Returns for investors will come not from excessive leverage but fractionalisation. Investing opportunities typically reserved for wealthy private-banking clients will become available to mass-market customers.



This fits well with the Bank for International Settlements vision of a unified ledger. Central-bank digital currencies will sit in one part of the ledger, while bank-deposit coins will be housed in another. Behind another partition will lie all the real-world assets one could buy  stocks, bonds, apartments, toll roads  in tokenised forms. The whole thing will be analogous to a smartphone, where all applications use the same programming environment. Just as a picture taken by the phones camera has no problem being read by a social-media app, money would move seamlessly between compartments of the unified ledger, and go into all kinds of utilities dreamed up by the private sector.



Mainstream finance, supervised by national monetary authorities, has long viewed the crypto industry as fundamentally unstable and socially useless. Unregulated exchanges, stablecoins resembling money-market funds and speculative altcoins (stuff other than Bitcoin and Ether) have undoubtedly pioneered many blockchain applications. Going forward,

licensed financial institutions like JPMorgan Chase & Co may as well take control of the technology. After all, tokenised customer deposits will offer all the functionalities of programmable money. So why not promote them in smart contracts, as an alternative to stablecoins like Circle Internet Financial Ltds USDC?



Authorities can at times lose control of depositary institutions, as we saw with the multiple US bank failures this year. Still, the risks are largely known, which isnt the case with digital assets. Now that the US regulators are determined to check the unbridled growth of crypto, Wall Street can move in with tokenised versions of its own traditional products  starting with the humble bank deposit.



Andy Mukherjee is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist covering industrial companies and financial services in Asia. Views are personal and do not represent the stand of this publication.



Credit: Bloomberg
Sam Altman, chief executive of OpenAI, was in India last week, and met Prime Minister Modi and other officials at the PMO. The 38-year-old chief of the company that released ChatGPT has met with officials in several countries as he attempts to shape the conversation around AI governance. Notably, he was in the EU before India, another jurisdiction that is discussing AI regulation. The EU recently passed a negotiation mandate for a proposed EU Act and India may include AI regulation in the proposed Digital India Act.

Sam Altmans visit and public comments in India have elicited mixed reactions from different groups of people. Importantly, he called for more nuance in the conversation around AI regulation and said that larger AI companies could be regulated but smaller companies and startups should be exempted from scrutiny.

Graded Approaches In Tech Regulation

More obligations on bigger companies and less regulation for smaller companies is not new. There are several examples of such an approach in India and in other jurisdictions. The 2021 Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code created a new category of intermediaries called significant social media intermediaries, that have more than 50 lakh registered users. They are subject to additional content filtering, user verification, and grievance redressal obligations.

The Digital Services Act in the EU created a class of very large online platforms (VLOP) that have more than 45 million weekly active users and very large online search engines. They must follow additional transparency requirements, and disclose more information publicly on algorithmic processes for content recommendation and moderation after the law comes into effect.

The approach of grading platforms on the basis of user thresholds do not address regulatory objectives effectively. Threshold-based regulation for social media platforms sought to curb virality of violent or harmful content. But, harmful content often circulated in echo chambers like 4chan in the United States or the Bulli Bai app in India. Further, EUs VLOP lists included Wikipedia, which follows a distinct content moderation practice from other social media platforms. Volunteers moderate content on Wikipedia while automated mechanisms and content policies moderate content on other platforms like Facebook and Twitter.

Not As Simple As Big Vs Small

A graded approach for AI regulation that simply segregates the big from the small is likely to ignore key technical nuances like in case of the EU list, or prove to be ineffective. To address this, it is necessary to unpack AI regulation from both ends.

At one end, regulators need a better understanding of AI architecture to understand what can be regulated. At the other end, it is also important to understand how startups deploy AI and Indian use-cases of AI.

For instance, a large food delivery platform like Swiggy or Zomato may integrate Generative AI into their chatbot but it is unlikely to be fed training data that could potentially produce harmful content. Similarly, a small startup trained on police records to do checks on prospective new tenants moving into an apartment complex is likely to reproduce biases present in the training data.

Dont Rush Into Regulation

To this end, it is important to nuance the conversation on big vs small, and look for an approach that identifies harmful use of AI. The proposed EU Act is a step towards this direction because it correctly identifies use-cases like police facial recognition for further scrutiny.

The latest amendments to the Intermediary Guidelines also follow this principle because it segregates online games that involve money from other online games. Online games that involve money require additional verification and the verification mechanism will weed out illegal betting and gambling applications that lead to harms like financial addiction, and money laundering.

India must strike the right balance between harm reduction and innovation in the case of AI governance. It is important to be patient, understand nuances of the underlying technology and study use-cases in India.

More research on AI technology and a market study of AI use-cases should be the first milestones for Indias AI regulation journey. Any impulse to hurry the process might backfire and stifle innovation as a consequence.

Varun Ramdas is a technology policy researcher working at the intersection of emerging technology, public policy and society. Views are personal and do not represent the stand of this publication.
Meta guru says ChatGPT-style AI is out-of-date



"Today AI and machine learning really sucks. Humans have common sense, machines don't," Yann LeCun told reporters at a Meta launch event in Paris.



The chief scientist for Facebook-owner Meta on June 13 said that generative artificial intelligence (AI), the technology behind ChatGPT, was already at a dead end, instead promising new AI resembling human rationality.

LeCun spoke as Meta announced its latest AI project -- called image-based Joint Embedding Predictive Architecture, or JEPA. The project seeks to move beyond ChatGPT-like generative AI and give machines the ability to conceptualise abstract ideas and not just regurgitate what exists online.







Tech Mahindra CEO takes up challenge to build India's own AI tool, says 'important for nation building'



His latest statement followed his response to OpenAI CEO Sam Altmans comments indicating that India is not ready to try and build an AI tool like ChatGPT.



Tech Mahindra CEO CP Gurnani is all for an AI push. He believes it is not artificial intelligence, but "augmented intelligence" that will help the company push the frontiers of technology for nation building.

Tech Mahindras AI think-tank is in action already. We will work with academia and government to figure out how we can apply human and machine intelligence to boost innovation and transform India, one industry at a time, he added.







Microsoft adds voice chat support for Bing AI on desktop



To start with, Microsoft supports five languages for voice chat with more on the way.



To use voice input, just press the microphone icon in the Bing AI chat box. This now brings the desktop version of Bing AI to parity with mobile version, which has had the option for voice input for a while.

Microsoft acknowledged this by saying, "We know many of you love using voice input for chat on Mobile", and suggested a fun phrase to kick your voice input experiments off with, "How much wood could a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood?.
Mistral AI, the French technology and Artificial Intelligence start-up has raised 105 million euros in just one month. The company formed by former Meta and Google AI researchers is working on creating generative AI like OpenAI.



The Paris-based company acquired the largest-ever funding in Europe in its first round. Sources close to the company confirmed to the Financial Times that this funding values Mistral AI at 240 million euros creating strong competition against the US-based companies OpenAI, backed by Microsoft, and DeepMind by Google.



The company is founded by former researcher at DeepMind Arthur Mensch with former Meta researchers, Timothee Lacroix and Guillaume Lample.



There is a rising awareness of the fact that this technology is transformative and Europe needs to do something about it, Mensch was quoted as saying in the report.



Leading the Mistral AIs first round are Lightspeed Venture Patners, Snapchat, Epic Games and StabilityAI. Other shareholders include Businessmen Xavier Niel and Rodolphe Saade, JCDecaux Holding, Italy's Exor Ventures and Belgian firm Sofina. Former Google CEO Eric Schmidt is also a shareholder in Mistral AI, as reported by Reuters.



According to the Financial Times, Mistral AI early next year will launch its first product, a new Large Language Model and generative AI similar to ChatGPT.



Antonio Moyroud, partner at Lightspeed Ventures told the Financial Times that there are only 80-100 people with such expertise and assures that the teams success at the initial funding stage is a reflection of their expertise.



We just need to demonstrate how beneficial it would be, for once, to be in control of our own destiny in terms of technology in Europe, Jean-Charles Samuelian-Werve, an adviser to Mistral AI, said.



Europe has already been focusing on AI by working on guidelines for its usage.
Google is getting more strict about its return-to-office mandate, telling employees that badge tracking and noted attendance will be included in their performance reviews. According to a CNBC report, Google will crack down on employees who are not following its three-days-a-week-in-office policy as the tech giant seeks to foster in-person collaboration after the pandemic.



Google was one of several companies that adopted a remote work model during the start of the Covid-19 pandemic. It later revised the policy, telling employees to work from office for at least three days a week.



Last week, Google updated its hybrid work policy again to crack down on employees who are not showing up to office. The company will now track employee badges to check how often employees come to office. Moreover, in-person attendance will be included as a factor in performance reviews.



Employees who had earlier received the all-clear to work fully remotely may also have their status reevaluated, according to CNBC.



there's just no substitute for coming together in person, chief people officer Fiona Cicconi wrote while announcing the updated policy.



Check my work, not my badge



Google employees are not pleased about the companys U-turn on remote work. Posts on an internal site called Memegen reveal their dissatisfaction with the new rules on attendance.



If you cannot attend the office today, your parents should submit an absence request, reads one popular meme posted by an employee. The meme shows a picture of Fiona Cicconi in front of a chalkboard.



Another employee exhorted the company to check my work, not my badge.



Concern is also high among staffers who changed cities or moved states after they were told they could work remotely.



A spokesperson for Google said that badge data collected is aggregated for company leaders as Google has transitioned fully to a hybrid work week.



Now that weve fully transitioned to the hybrid work week, company leaders can see reports showing how their teams are adopting the hybrid work model, the spokesperson said in an emailed statement.
A Chinese airline is facing public backlash for its new policy of suspending cabin crew members if their weight exceeds the permissible limit.



Chinese carrier Hainan Airlines introduced its weight reference standard in early June, whereupon it quickly went viral on social media, according to Global Times. The new guidelines specified body size and weight control standards for female flight attendants at different levels.



The airline earlier said it would suspend female flight attendants if their weight exceeded the standard limit, before clarifying that the new policy would be applicable to all cabin crew irrespective of gender.



The standard weight for Hainan Airlines crew will be calculated based on their height. The standard weight calculation formula of female flight attendants is "height (cm) -110 = standard weight (kg). So, if a flight attendant measures 158 cm (5.1 feet), they would be required to maintain a weight of 48 kg.



Hainan Airlines guidelines further said that crew members who are less than 5% over the weight limit would be monitored by the company each month to ensure they dont gain weight. Female crew members who are 10% overweight will face immediate suspension and will be put on a weight reduction plan.



The Chinese airline confirmed to CNN that it had issued a weight reference standard but clarified that it would apply to all crew members, not just females.



The standard is based on the standard human body weight reference and matched with the healthy weight range measurement for the crew the airline said, adding that the guidelines would help better manage the crews health, physical shape and posture.



This is intended to advocate healthy living habits and maintain a good professional image and healthy physique by anchoring the reference target, rather than passively waiting for individual crew members physique to change significantly and then affect safety service work, the airline said.
Central Bank of India and lessors such as SMBC Afro Engine Leasing, Bluesky 19 Leasing Company Limited, and Bluesky 31 Leasing Company Limited have filed new applications in Go First's insolvency plea at the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT).



These applications, along with the applications of lessors such as Jackson Square Aviation, Engine Lease Finance B.V, and BOC Aviation, are all likely to be heard by the NCLT on June 15.



Central Bank of India, which is a part of the Committee of Creditors of Go First has moved an application under Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 to replace the interim resolution professional and appoint a resolution professional.



On June 5, the NCLT sought the response of Go First's interim resolution professional (IRP) in applications by three lessors to exempt them from the moratorium as they had terminated their leases prior to the moratorium order.



On the same day, aircraft lessor Jackson Square Aviation Ireland Limited urged the tribunal to pass an interim order directing the IRP not to use the aircraft until the disposal of the application. Engine lessor Engine Lease Finance B.V argued that their application was for the return of engines and they wished to inspect them in the meantime.



Aircraft lessor BOC Aviation told the court that they had filed an application seeking an exemption from the insolvency process, as they had terminated leases before NCLT admitted the plea for insolvency.



The IRP argued that the aircraft are the core of Go First's business, and the company cannot be run as a going concern if the aircraft are taken away.



These applications by lessors have been filed pursuant to the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal's (NCLAT) May 22 order, which upheld Go First's insolvency and directed the lessors to file an appropriate application at the NCLT to ascertain the status of leases terminated prior to the airline being admitted to insolvency.



The appellate tribunal also granted liberty to the Interim Resolution Professional (IRP) to move an application at the NCLT with respect to the claims of both parties relating to the aircraft in question.



On May 10, the principal bench of NCLT at Delhi admitted Go First's voluntary plea to initiate an insolvency resolution process.



The tribunal appointed an IRP while suspending the board and putting a moratorium on the debt-ridden airline's financial obligations.



Founded by billionaire Nusli Wadia, Go First, formerly known as GoAir, filed for bankruptcy on May 2, blaming US engine maker Pratt & Whitney for grounding half of its fleet due to faulty engines.



The ultra-low-cost airline has liabilities worth around Rs 11,000 crore.
On June 12, a vacation bench of the Supreme Court vacated the Delhi High Courts order that stayed the ban on bike taxis in the capital.



As a consequence of this order, the apex court has virtually imposed a ban on bike taxis in Delhi, which was originally (WORD MISSING) by the capitals transport department. The apex court passed the order despite being told by Rapido and Uber that many individuals driving bike taxis may lose their livelihoods.



Moneycontrol explains why the Supreme Court set the order aside and what the status of bike taxis is in other states.



Where are bike taxis legal, and where are they not?



Bike taxis are legal in states that have a policy for the registration of two-wheelers as taxis, while in states that do not have such a policy, they are illegal. In this case, the Delhi governments argument was that they would soon be implementing a policy for the registration of two-wheelers as taxis. In the absence of a policy for the registration of two-wheelers as taxis, they cannot ferry passengers for a fee without permission or a licence.



Some states in India have been permitting bike taxis for quite some time. For instance, bike taxis have been legal in Goa since 1981. Since then, over 12 states, including Punjab, Haryana, Bihar, Jharkhand, and Madhya Pradesh, have come up with policies for the registration of two-wheelers as taxis.



However, this policy is at different stages of deliberation in many states, including Maharashtra and Karnataka.



What was the transport departments order?



On February 19, 2023, the transport department of the government of the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi issued a public notice prohibiting the use of two-wheelers by aggregators.



According to the order, the use of two-wheelers having a private registration mark or number to ferry passengers on hire is illegal and is in violation of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988. The order also said that using private vehicles to ferry passengers is a commercial activity and cannot be done with private registration.



The order specifically noted that some digital platforms are facilitating such operations by offering bookings through an app. Aggregation of this form is also in contravention of the provisions of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988.



Aggregators such as Rapido, Uber, and Ola connect the end-user of a bike taxi with the drivers and take a commission for the same.



The transport department also sent show-cause notices to Rapido and Uber in February 2023.



Delhi High Courts order



Aggregators Rapido and Uber approached the Delhi High Court, challenging the validity of the order of the transport department. During the hearing at the Delhi High Court, the NCTs government informed the court that it was framing a policy for the registration of aggregators that is likely to be implemented by the end of July.



However, in May 2023, the court stayed the transport departments order and noted that the stay would operate only until the Delhi governments policy is implemented and notified.



Aggregators taken to Supreme Court



The Delhi government moved the Supreme Court against the order of the Delhi High Court. In the SC, the NCT government contended that without obtaining a proper licence or permit, the aggregators were plying non-transport vehicles for hire, and this was in violation of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988.



The aggregators argued that in spite of the central government coming up with a policy on the operation of aggregators in 2020, the Delhi government has not yet come out with their own policy, and under such circumstances, the aggregators were left with no option but to run their business. Thus, they argued that Delhi HC was justified in staying the operation of the ban. The aggregators further argued that the livelihoods of many bike taxi operators could be in danger if the ban was brought back.



The Union government also informed the SC that an aggregator was required to obtain a licence to operate bike taxis.



The court thus concluded that an interim order staying the ban on bike taxis was not required to be passed considering that Delhi was already in the process of finalising the policy. The court further noted that since the bike taxi operators were not the petitioners in the court but the aggregators had moved the plea, their case cannot be put forth by the aggregators.



Thus, the apex court vacated the Delhi High Courts stay on the ban on bike taxis.
Newly appointed Twitter CEO Linda Yaccarino shared her vision for the platform and her commitment to transforming it into a global town square for open dialogue and the exchange of information in her first email to employees and later in a long Twitter thread. Yaccarino drew parallels to Elon Musk's transformative efforts in space exploration and electric vehicles, emphasizing the need for a similar revolution in the digital realm.



Yaccarino stated in an email to employees, later shared as a thread, "Twitter is on a mission to become the world's most accurate real-time information source and a global town square for communication. That's not an empty promise. That's OUR reality."



She highlighted the importance of freedom of expression and the empowerment of voices that can shape the world we live in. Yaccarino said she believes that Twitter 2.0 has the potential to bring people together, bridge divides, and drive positive change on a global scale.



The success of Twitter 2.0 is all of our responsibility. We need to think big. We need to transform. We need to do it all together, she tweeted.



She added: Its rare to have the chance to put a new future into the hands of every person, partner, and creator on the planet. Thats exactly why Im here  with all of YOU.



Read the full thread:



Hello Twitter.

People keep asking me: Why Twitter?

So, Ill tell you.

 Linda Yaccarino (@lindayacc) June 12, 2023

Taking over from Elon Musk, who had a tumultuous tenure as CEO, Yaccarino faces the challenge of addressing the issues that plagued the platform during Musk's leadership. Musk's sudden shifts in strategy and controversial decisions, such as reinstating controversial accounts and loosening moderation, alienated advertisers and caused revenue to plummet.



During Musk's initial 25 days at the helm, half of Twitter's top 100 users abandoned the platform, and revenue reportedly fell by a significant 40% year over year in December 2022. While Musk claimed that the advertisers he drove away have since returned, leaked internal documents obtained by The New York Times suggested that Twitter's ad revenue was down 59% year over year, and the platform struggled to meet sales projections in the US.



Another misstep under Musk's leadership was the decision to monetize verification by removing blue check marks from legacy accounts unless they paid a monthly fee. This move was met with widespread ridicule, and even celebrities found themselves with check marks they did not want to pay for. These challenges now fall into Yaccarino's hands.



'First day in the books': New Twitter CEO Linda Yaccarino takes charge



Yaccarino, a veteran of the advertising industry who previously led NBCUniversal's $13 billion global ad business, brings valuable experience to her new role. She played a pivotal role in the company's foray into streaming and has a track record of selling digital-video ads. However, whether she can translate Musk's ambitious vision into a moneymaking reality remains uncertain.
Mumbai Police's Traffic Control Branch has declared 'No Honking Day' to be observed on June 14 to address noise pollution and its detrimental effects on public health and the environment. For this, the police are urging motorists to positively respond to this initiative by refraining from blowing their horns. Unnecessary honking causes harm to the environment and also adversely affects human health. The Traffic Control Branch, Mumbai has decided to observe 'No Honking Day on Wednesday, June 14, 2023, to curb the trend of honking among motorists. We urge motorists to positively respond to 'No Honking Day' by not honking the horns of their vehicles," Deccan Herald reported the police as saying. The Mumbai Police has also issued a word of caution for violators who engage in needless blaring of their vehicle horns. They will face action under the Motor Vehicles Act and the Environment Protection Act. Mumbai ke joint police commissioner traffic Mr. Pravin Padwal ka elan , 14 June .No Honking Day #mumbai pic.twitter.com/JjT9BBTi0d  Saeed Hameed (@urdujournosaeed) June 12, 2023 The Joint Commissioner of Mumbai Police (Traffic), Pravin Padwal, said that it is an awareness drive to curb noise pollution and refrain from unnecessary honking. We want the motorists to support us and observe June 14 as No Honking Day, he told Business Standard. In a statement, the Traffic Control Branch said,We urge all the drivers and riders in Mumbai city, except ambulances, fire brigades, and other vehicles on emergency duties, not to honk the horns of their vehicle on 14 June 2023 and other days as well." Read more: Mumbai police urge automakers to lower decibel limit of vehicle horns

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At a time when classified information is again in the news it might be worth remembering a different example of someone keeping  and then releasing  classified information. On June 13, 1971, the New York Times published documents from the secret Report of the Office of the Secretary of Defense Vietnam Task Force under the headline, "Vietnam Archive: Pentagon Study Traces 3 Decades of Growing U.S. Involvement." Liberated by Daniel Ellsberg from his RAND Corporation office, the report covered sixteen years of Indo-China war policy, from 1945 to 1967, specifically concerning the Vietnam War. The report, known as The Pentagon Papers, revealed how multiple administrations lied to the American public about the scope and logistics of the war effort, counterinsurgency tactics, and the justifications for the war. The deception began with the lies and misinformation concerning the Gulf of Tonkin Incident from Secretary of Defense Robert S. McNamara.

As this extensive and revealing report on the 50th Anniversary of the Gulf of Tonkin Incident by the New York Times explains, "Lies like McNamara's were the rule, not the exception, throughout America's involvement in Vietnam. The lies were repeated to the public, to Congress, in closed-door hearings, in speeches, and to the press. The real story might have remained unknown if, in 1967, McNamara had not commissioned a secret history based on classified documents  which came to be known as the Pentagon Papers.

Releasing the documents changed Daniel Ellsberg's life, the direction of US foreign policy, and trust in politicians. Ellsberg was persecuted, prosecuted, and targeted by powerful political forces. Ellsberg told his story in Secrets: A Memoir of Vietnam and the Pentagon Papers. "The document set in motion a chain of events that ended not only the Nixon presidency but the Vietnam War. In this remarkable memoir, Ellsberg describes in dramatic detail the two years he spent in Vietnam as a U.S. State Department observer, and how he came to risk his career and freedom to expose the deceptions and delusions that shaped three decades of American foreign policy. The story of one man's exploration of conscience, Secrets is also a portrait of America at a perilous crossroad."

For more, check out the documentary The Most Dangerous Man in America. The trailer is available here.

Click here for a clip from the documentary The Fog of War: Eleven Lessons from the Life of Robert S. McNamara, where McNamara admits that the incident used to justify the US official entrance into the Vietnam War "didn't happen."

"We're Going to Publish," is an Oral History of the Pentagon Papers compiled and edited by the New York Time.
Reddit CEO Steve Huffman has warned employees against wearing company merchandise in public amid the ongoing blackout that has shut down large sections of the website. The blackout is a result of thousands of Reddit discussion forums protesting the companys increased API pricing for third-party apps.



Thousands of Reddit discussion forums have gone dark this week to protest a new policy that will charge some third-party apps to access data on the site, leading to worries about content moderation and accessibility.



In an internal memo sent on Monday afternoon, which was seen by The Verge, Reddit CEO Steve Huffman said the company had not seen any significant revenue impact from the blackout and that like all blowups on Reddit, this one will pass as well.



Huffman, however, did ask employees to please be mindful of wearing Reddit gear in public.



Some folks are really upset, and we don't want you to be the object of their frustrations, he wrote.



Full memo here makes clear that Reddit isnt backing down from its API changes. Language from Huffman implies there is tremendous pressure to boost revenue (company recently did layoffs) pic.twitter.com/bf5t2eiSJK

 Alex Heath (@alexeheath) June 13, 2023



The new fees are part of broader changes to Reddit's API, or application programming interface, that the company announced recently.



Organizers of the blackout, which began Monday, say Reddit's changes threaten to end key ways of historically customizing the platform -- which relies heavily on the work of volunteer moderators. Subreddit mods often use tools outside of the official app to keep their forums free of spam and hateful content, for example, as well as improve accessibility, as per the Associated Press.



More than 8,000 subreddits were dark as of Tuesday afternoon, according to a tracker and live Twitch stream of the boycott. Participants ranged from small forums to large communities with tens of millions of subscribers.



(With inputs from AP)
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Amazon Web Services, the world's largest cloud computing provider, is considering using new artificial intelligence chips from Advanced Micro Devices Inc, though it has not made a final decision, an AWS executive told Reuters.



The remarks came during an AMD event where the chip company outlined its strategy for the AI market, which is dominated by rival Nvidia Corp.



Despite AMD disclosing some technical specifications for an AI chip coming later this year that could in some ways beat Nvidia's best current offerings on some metrics, the news sent shares down after AMD did not disclose a flagship customer for the chip.



In interviews with Reuters, AMD Chief Executive Lisa Su outlined an approach to winning over major cloud computing customers by offering a menu of all the pieces needed to build the kinds of systems to power services similar to ChatGPT, but letting customers pick and choose which they want, using industry standard connections.



"We're betting that a lot of people are going to want choice, and they're going to want the ability to customize what they need in their data center," Su said.



While AWS has not made any public commitments to use AMD's new MI300 chips in its cloud services, Dave Brown, vice president of elastic compute cloud at Amazon, said AWS is considering them.



"We're still working together on where exactly that will land between AWS and AMD, but it's something that our teams are working together on," Brown said. "That's where we've benefited from some of the work that they've done around the design that plugs into existing systems."



Nvidia does sell its chips piecemeal but is also asking cloud providers if they are willing to offer an entire system designed by Nvidia in a product called DGX Cloud. Oracle Corp is Nvidia's first partner for that system.



Brown said AWS had declined to work with Nvidia on the DGX Cloud offering.



"They approached us, we looked at the business model, and it didn't make a lot of sense," Brown said.



Brown said that AWS prefers to design its own servers from the ground up. AWS started selling Nvidia's H100 chip in March, but as part of systems of its own design.
A boat returning from a wedding capsized in northern Nigeria, killing at least 103 people, including children, officials said Tuesday.



Residents and police were still searching for dozens of people who were on the overcrowded boat that capsized early Monday on the Niger River in the Pategi district of Kwara state, which is 160 kilometers (100 miles) from Ilorin, the state capital, according to police spokesman Okasanmi Ajayi. He said 100 people had been rescued so far.



Most of those who drowned were relatives from several villages who attended the wedding together and partied late into the night, according to Abdul Gana Lukpada, a local chief. They arrived at the ceremony on motorcycles but had to leave on the locally made boat after a downpour flooded the road, he said.



The boat was overloaded and close to 300 persons were in it. While they were coming, the boat hit a big log inside the water and split into two, said Lukpada.



The wedding was held in the village of Egboti in the neighboring Niger state, said Usman Ibrahim, a resident. Because the accident happened at 3 a.m., it was hours before many people knew what had happened, he said.



As the passengers drowned, villagers nearby rushed to the scene and managed to rescue about 50 at first, Lukpada said, describing early efforts to rescue the passengers as slow and very difficult.



As of Tuesday afternoon, officials and locals were still searching for more bodies in the river, which is one of Nigerias largest. Police spokesman Ajayi said the rescue operation would continue through the night until Wednesday.



Locals said it was the deadliest boat accident they have seen in many years.



By Tuesday evening, all of the bodies recovered so far had been buried, most near the river, in accordance with local customs, Lukpada said.



Kwara Gov. Abdulrahman Abdulrazaqs office issued a statement expressing sadness for the families of those killed and saying that he continues to monitor the rescue efforts already mounted since Monday night in search of possible survivors.



Boat accidents are common in many remote communities across Nigeria where locally made vessels are commonly used for transport. Most accidents are attributed to overloading and the use of poorly maintained boats.
China's foreign minister Qin Gang told U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken in a phone call on Wednesday that the U.S. should stop interfering in the country's affairs, state media reported. In the call, Qin said the United States should respect China's core concerns such as the Taiwan issue, according to CCTV.

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Donald Trump can continue his campaign for another term in the White House even as the beleaguered former US president has been indicted for illegally retaining classified government documents after leaving office in 2021.



Trump, 77, on Tuesday, pleaded not guilty to 37 federal felony counts related to his mishandling of classified documents at the federal courthouse in Miami, Florida.



It marks the first time federal charges have been brought against a former president. This indictment is the second criminal case filed against Trump, the frontrunner for the Republican Party's nomination in the 2024 presidential election.



In early April, Trump surrendered to authorities in New York and appeared in state court to face 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in the first degree. He pleaded not guilty to those charges also.



On May 9, Trump was found liable in a civil case brought by columnist E Jean Carroll, who claimed he raped her and defamed her. Trump denied those allegations. The jury did not find that he raped Carroll, but did find that he sexually abused her, and ordered him to pay her roughly USD 5 million.



The three cases raise an intriguing question about his bid to retake the White House in 2024: Can he still become the US president if he's convicted in New York or Florida, or now that he's been found liable in the Carroll case? The short answer, from a legal perspective, is yes, according to experts.



None of the charges would bar Trump from taking office if he is convicted. A trial would take place many months from now, and Trump can freely campaign during this time.



"Nothing stops Trump from running while indicted, or even convicted," the University of California, Los Angeles law professor Richard Hasen told CNN.



The Constitution requires only three things of the candidates: A candidate must be a natural-born citizen, at least 35 years old and a resident of the US for at least 14 years.



There are a few other Constitutional restrictions that can block a person from running for president but they don't apply to Trump.



It's pretty widely accepted that the list of qualifications in the Constitution is exclusive that is, Congress or states can't add qualifications to those listed in the Constitution," said Derek Muller, a law professor at the University of Iowa, before Trump's indictment.



"It's something that really doesn't affect your ability to run as a candidate, to appear on the ballot, or to even win the election," he was quoted as saying by CBS News.



"If you're convicted of a felony and incarcerated, you can't vote, but you can win the election. The point is, there were meant to be very few qualifications, and it was meant to be left to the voters or the state," Muller said.



In the wake of the January 6 attack on the Capitol, some House Democrats introduced a bill seeking to bar Trump from holding office again by invoking the 14th Amendment, which bars anyone who has "engaged in insurrection or rebellion" or "given aid or comfort" to enemies of the US after having taken an oath to support the Constitution.



That bill never made it out of the House of Representatives before Republicans took control in January.



The former president also faces several other criminal investigations on the state and federal levels that could complicate his ability to campaign for the nomination. But none of those cases would technically prevent him from running for or winning the White House, even if he is ultimately convicted, the report said.



Incumbent US President Joe Biden, a Democrat, has already announced his bid for the White House for a second time.



The next presidential election is scheduled for November 5, 2024.
On the eastern side of Bengaluru, the city sometimes called the Silicon Valley of India, sits a campus housing three cube-like glass buildings. Each is 10 stories high, with facades glistening in the strong South Asian sun.



These are the offices of Goldman Sachs Group Inc., home to about 8,000 workers, the banks largest venue outside New York. When Goldman set up in the city in 2004, it had roughly 300 people mainly providing IT and other support. Now, its workers are quants and software engineers, building systems for everything from making trades to managing risk.



Across India, the offices set up by multinationals to provide cheap operational support are taking on more sophisticated roles. While the shift has been underway for years, recent economic data highlight a rapid service-sector expansion that many attribute to the offices known as global capability centers.







These GCCs now account for more than 1% of Indias gross domestic product. But the boom also creates challenges, both for the companies and the cities that host them. Finding qualified employees is becoming more difficult, pushing salaries up, while offshoring may become politically sensitive again in the US presidential race.



Over the last 30 years, while China specialized in becoming the worlds factory, India specialized in becoming the worlds back office, said Duvvuri Subbarao, a former governor of the Reserve Bank of India. Over the years, India moved up the value chain, he said. But it cant take its comparative advantage for granted.



India has roughly 1,600 of the centers, more than 40% of the number worldwide, according to Nasscom, a trade body for the countrys technology industry. Dotted around Bengaluru, formerly known as Bangalore, are the offices of luxury retailer Saks Fifth Avenue Inc., aircraft-engine maker Rolls-Royce Holdings Plc, US bank Wells Fargo & Co. and Japanese e-commerce firm Rakuten Group Inc. Some 66 global companies set up their first GCC in India in 2022. Even the lingerie brand Victorias Secret & Co. has a Bengaluru GCC.







The offices generated about $46 billion in combined revenue in the fiscal year ended March, more than the output of Nepal.



The qualities that turned India into the worlds back office starting decades ago are propelling GCCs metamorphosis: a vast pool of young people, an education system that emphasizes science and technology, and the lower staffing costs that made India attractive in the first place. Add an unforeseen catalyst: the pandemic, which convinced decision-makers jobs can be done anywhere, including far-flung shores.



Indias story starts with its demographics and its talent, said Gunjan Samtani, the country head of Goldman Sachs Services Pvt, the entity that operates the banks GCCs in India. A software engineer by trade, he still codes from time to time. What brought us here even two decades back was our ability to get access to technology and talent.



Last year, a mysterious surge appeared in the countrys economic data. Services exports rose to a record for December, leading economists to speculate why. The trend continued. They climbed to about $323 billion in the fiscal year ended March, up 27% from the year before. Analysts reached the same conclusion: It was the GCCs.



Global capability centers have been driving the exuberance in services exports, Pranjul Bhandari, HSBC Holdings Plcs chief economist for India and Indonesia, and colleagues wrote in a report in March, calling it a meaningful shift in Indias economy.



Its significance went beyond the boost in output. The increase helped narrow the countrys current account deficit, which in turn could support a rupee thats been depreciating for years.



It was an important moment for a business thats been in the making for decades. Global capability centers trace their roots to the 1980s, when Texas Instruments Inc. established a facility in Bengaluru. India took off as an outsourcing hub in the 1990s, when airlines, technology companies and firms including American Express Co. and General Electric Co. set up centers in the country. The facilities took over business processes including accounting, payroll and customer support, with lower labor expenses allowing companies to cut costs.







The multinationals soon saw they could use their India offices for more than back-office functions. Today, they often handle core operations, such as inventory management or purchasing, while also using AI and other advanced technologies to improve how businesses run.



Retailer Target Corp. is working on new systems for order collection and shipping. At Goldman, engineers have helped develop a trading system called Atlas for quant clients with latency in microseconds. Theyve also expanded a commodities platform called Janus, which provides data analytics.



The conversation has changed completely, said Sindhu Gangadharan, senior vice president and managing director of SAP Labs India Pvt. Cost is a beautiful advantage that we have, but thats not the conversation starter like it was 20 years back.







SAP Labs India is now responsible for almost 40% of software firm SAP SEs global research and development and a quarter of its patents annually, Gangadharan said. Goldmans GCCs carry out more than 120 global functions across engineering and business operations. JPMorgan Chase & Co. employs more than 50,000 people at GCCs in five locations across India, in areas including quant research, data science and cloud computing.



GCCs are now following a very different path, said Lalit Ahuja, the founder and chief executive officer of ANSR Inc., a consultancy that has helped clients establish more than 100 of the centers in India. He says he sets up two every month and has never been busier.



The pandemic changed everything by making remote work more acceptable, Ahuja said. The industry came of age in the last few years, he said.



One of Indias biggest attractions is its supply of workers. In April, it overtook China as the worlds most populous country. Its now home to almost a fifth of humanity, and more than half its population is under 30, with a median age of 28. That compares to 38 in both the US and China.







In a nation obsessed with education, many parents want their children to take subjects that will help them get good jobs and careers. Some 34% of students study science, technology, engineering or mathematics at university, the highest among major economies, according to Unesco Institute for Statistics data.



And these days, Indias thriving startup scene is also a boon for companies setting up GCCs and seeking people to hire. India has about 90,000 startups, the third-biggest number of any country in the world.



But the surge in GCCs is making it harder to find employees and creating a need to pay them more. Companies are forming ties with academia to develop hiring pipelines. SAP Labs India has a partnership with engineering school Birla Institute Of Technology and Science, Pilani. Goldman runs an annual contest called GS Quantify for students to find solutions to real-world financial problems. Samtani says the bank gets job applications from more than 1,100 campuses in 20 states.



The war for talent definitely exists, SAP Labs Indias Gangadharan said.



Even before competition for staff intensified, companies needed to spend much time training new hires, according to Dileep Mangsuli, executive director and head of the development center at Siemens Healthineers AG, a medical-technology company involved in imaging and diagnostics, which now does half its software and digital-services R&D in India. Good jobs exist in the country, but the booming education industry often doesnt adequately prepare people to do them.



The employability of new graduates is still a challenge, he said. Till theyre trained and retrained and many times trained, they dont become employable.



As GCCs use more advanced technologies, theyre also finding it harder to find staff. An example is artificial intelligence. India has about 416,000 AI workers, far short of the more than 1 million it will need by 2026, according to Nasscom.



Making the most of Indias demographic advantages will require significant investments and government attention, said Partha Iyengar, the country leader for research at Gartner Inc. in India. Only 30%-40% of graduates in India are employable, he estimates. Not enough attention is being given to this, given the massive scale of intervention required, he said. If that is not done on a war footing, the demographic dividend can very easily and quickly turn into a demographic disaster.



The boom is also adding to challenges for Indias cities, especially Bengaluru.



Home to about 30% of the countrys GCCs, Indias tech capital is constantly congested. As work continues on expanding the metro system, large stretches of the city are dug up, resulting in long traffic jams. Last year, torrential rain caused floods across key roads, forcing chief executive officers to ride to work on tractors.



Multinationals are setting up in other places. Hyderabad, a city of more than 10 million people about 570 kilometers north of Bengaluru, is emerging as a popular location. Goldman opened its second India GCC there in 2021 with a focus on consumer-banking services and business analytics. Pune, about 150 kilometers southeast of Mumbai, is another favored destination, as are some areas near New Delhi.



Another risk is that Donald Trump will revive his campaign against offshoring of jobs as he runs for president again in 2024. Data sovereignty  another argument for keeping jobs at home  could also become an issue.



Still, Nasscom estimates India will have at least 1,900 GCCs by 2025, and annual revenue from the industry will increase to as much as $60 billion. India can overcome the geopolitical challenges because such a large talent pool is not available elsewhere, said K S Viswanathan, the trade bodys vice president of industry initiatives.



At Goldman, Samtani shares the optimism. He points out the bank had one managing director in the city in 2004. Today, in Bengaluru and Hyderabad, 58 people have reached the coveted rank.



If India is not part of the talent story for any firm globally, theyre missing something, he said.
At least 79 migrants drowned early on Wednesday and hundreds more were feared dead or missing after their overloaded boat capsized and sank in open seas off Greece, in one of Europe's deadliest shipping disasters.



As a painstaking search for survivors continued, a European rescue support charity said it believed around 750 people were on board the 20-30 metre-long (65-100 foot) vessel.



Greek authorities said it was too soon to speculate on the number.



Alarm Phone, which operates a trans-European network supporting rescue operations, said it received alerts from people on board a ship in distress off Greece late on Tuesday, subsequently losing contact.



"According to the people, there were 750 people on board We now hear reports of a shipwreck and fear they are true," it said on Twitter.



The U.N.'s International Organization for Migration said in a tweet that initial reports suggested up to 400 people were on the boat.



Greek authorities said it was unclear how many the vessel was carrying when it went under, and that 104 people had been rescued by midday.



"It is not safe to give a number. We do not know how many people were in the hold," coast guard spokesperson Nikos Alexiou told Greece's MEGA TV.



"There were too many people on the outer deck. It was full."



The boat's occupants had refused an offer of help late on Tuesday, the coast guard added.



Greece is one of the main routes into the European Union for refugees and migrants from the Middle East, Asia and Africa. Most cross over to Greek islands from nearby Turkey.



But since the previous conservative government of Kyriakos Mitsotakis introduced tougher surveillance at the country's migrant camps, increasing numbers have chosen to make a longer, more dangerous journey from Turkey to Italy via Greece.



State broadcaster ERT said the boat that sank was en route for Italy, having set sail from the Libyan town of Tobruk, which lies south of the Greek island of Crete. Greek authorities did not confirm the vessel's departure port.



The shipwreck is the deadliest off Greece this year, and among the worst in Europe. In February, 96 people died when their wooden boat smashed into rocks on Italy's Calabrian coast during a storm.



The Greek migration ministry blamed international smuggling networks for putting migrants' lives at risk, while Filippo Grandi, the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees, called on governments to work together on creating safe pathways for people fleeing poverty and war.



INTERNATIONAL WATERS



The Greek coast guard said the boat was first spotted late on Tuesday by EU border agency Frontex in international waters around 50 miles (80 km) southwest of the southern Greek coastal town of Pylos.



Italian authorities then alerted Greece to the vessel's presence, and the Greek coast guard approached it and offered help.



The large number of migrants on its outer deck "refused assistance and stated their desire to continue their voyage," the coast guard said.



A few hours later, the vessel began veering from side to side before capsizing around 2 a.m. on Wednesday and then sinking, a government official said.



Broadcaster ERT said most of those on board were young men in their 20s. A shipping ministry official who spoke on condition of anonymity said most were from Egypt, Syria and Pakistan.



Survivors were taken to the town of Kalamata and are expected to be moved from there to a camp outside Athens, the migration ministry said.



Greece was at the frontline of Europe's migration crisis of 2015-16, when nearly 1 million people arrived on its islands from Turkey before heading north to wealthier European states.



Numbers have fallen dramatically since a 2016 deal struck between Brussels and Ankara to stem the flows. Mitsotakis' government said its tougher stance, which also included more border patrols, had helped keep arrivals low.



Greece is currently led by a caretaker administration ahead of a national election on June 25 that the conservatives are expected to win.



About 72,000 refugees and migrants have arrived so far this year in Europe's frontline Mediterranean countries, according to United Nations data, with the majority landing in Italy and around 6,500 in Greece.



Nearly 1,000 people are estimated to have died or gone missing in the Mediterranean this year, according to the U.N.
Jurors in a civil trial recently found that Donald Trump sexually assaulted writer E. Jean Carroll in a New York City department store and libeled her, putting him on the hook for $5m in financial compensation. Trump immediately repeated the libels at a bizarre pro-Trump "Town Hall" on CNN which hastened the professional demise of CNN president Chris Licht. Now a judge is allowing Carroll to pursue a new $10m claim against the former president, after she amended her lawsuit to include his latest attacks.

On May 9, a Manhattan jury ordered Trump to pay Carroll $2 million for battery and $3 million for defamation over Trump's October 2022 denial. Carroll then sought to amend the defamation lawsuit she filed in 2019, after Trump told a White House reporter that the rape never happened and that Carroll was not his "type." The revision sought to incorporate the jury verdict, as well as insults Trump lobbed a day later in a CNN town hall, where he called Carroll's account "fake" and labeled her a "whack job."

Remember that Carroll was fired by Elle Magazine for accusing Trump of the crime a jury found him liable for. She lost a lucrative gig at the top of the New York magazine business to tell the truth about him, and he owes her.
In Lake Barrington, Illinois, a 62-year-old man "had a dream that someone was breaking into his home." In the dream, he responded by grabbing his .357-caliber revolver and firing at the intruder. The problem though is that the gun he reached for was real even though the prowler wasn't. The result was a nightmare.

"When he fired, he shot himself and apparently woke up from the dream," reported the sheriff's office.

The bullet went through his leg and into the bed. First responders stopped the bleeding with a tourniquet and fortunately nobody else was injured.

From NBC News:
June 14, 2023

Astroturfing For More War In Ukraine

Fellaraktar@fellaraktar - 14:46 UTC  May 29, 2023 As a British citizen I want to say that arming Ukraine is the single best use of tax payer money for decades My only criticism is that the west arent sending enough, fast enough Ukraine is paying for political posturing with the lives of their sons and daughters Do more now

---

Karen Goetz @KarenGoetz362 - 22:18 UTC  May 29, 2023 As a German citizen I want to say that arming #Ukraine is the single best use of tax payer money for decades. My only criticism is that the west aren't sending enough, fast enough. Ukraine is paying for political posturing with the lives of their sons and daughters. Do more now!

---

Oksanna Oricia ( )  @Roxanne_Oricia - 1:46 UTC  May 30, 2023 As a  #Canadian I want to say that arming #Ukraine is the single best use of taxpayer money in decades. My only criticism is that the west isnt sending enough, FAST enough. Ukraine is paying for political posturing with the lives of their sons & daughters.

#ArmUkraineNow 

---

Thomas C. Theiner @noclador - 4:57 UTC  May 30, 2023 As an Italian citizen I want to say that arming Ukraine is the single best use of taxpayer money for decades.

My only criticism is that the west arent sending enough, fast enough.

Ukraine is paying for political posturing with the lives of their sons and daughters.

Do more now!

---

brit engr   @brit_engr - 8:15 UTC  May 30, 2023 As a British citizen, I want to say that arming Ukraine is the single best use of taxpayer money for decades.

My only criticism is that the West arent sending enough, fast enough.

Ukraine is paying for political posturing with the lives of their sons and daughters.

Do more now!

---

bitiv @bitiv30 - 9:29 UTC  May 30, 2023 As a #Romanian citizen, I want to say that arming #Ukraine is the single best use of taxpayer money for decades. My only criticism is that the West isnt sending enough, fast enough. Ukraine is paying for political posturing with the lives of its sons and daughters. Do more now!

---

Anne @KidsFromUkraine  @AnneFella - 17:03 UTC  May 30, 2023 As a #Dutch citizen I want to say that arming #Ukraine is the single best use of taxpayer money in decades. My only criticism is that the west isnt sending enough, FAST enough. Ukraine is paying for political posturing with the lives of their sons & daughters. #ArmUkraineNow

---

Thibaud Ochem @Thibaud_Ochem - 18:51 UTC  May 30, 2023 As a  citizen I want to say that arming #Ukraine is the single best use of taxpayer money 4 decades. My only criticism is that the West isn't sending enough, fast enough.is paying 4 political posturing with the lives of their sons & daughters. Do more now! #weapons4Ukraine

---

MH @Mickhavoc - 1:14 UTC  May 31, 2023 As a Canadian citizen I want to say that arming #Ukraine is the single best use of taxpayer money for decades. My only criticism is that the west aren't sending enough, fast enough. Ukraine is paying for political posturing with the lives of their sons and daughters. Do more now

---

Bogdan Stech @BogdanStech - 22:07 UTC  May 31, 2023 As a #Poland citizen, I want to say that arming #Ukraine is the single best use of taxpayer money for decades. My only criticism is that the West isnt sending enough, fast enough. Ukraine is paying for political posturing with the lives of its sons and daughters.

---

Well, by now you will have understood the idea ...

There are many more such tweets.

In total I count more than one hundred by various NAFO troll accounts. All the tweets were issued between May 29 and June 6.

This is astroturfing on a fairly sophisticated level:

Astroturfing is the practice of hiding the sponsors of a message or organization (e.g., political, advertising, religious or public relations) to make it appear as though it originates from and is supported by grassroots participants. It is a practice intended to give the statements or organizations credibility by withholding information about the source's financial backers. The term astroturfing is derived from AstroTurf, a brand of synthetic carpeting designed to resemble natural grass, as a play on the word "grassroots". The implication behind the use of the term is that instead of a "true" or "natural" grassroots effort behind the activity in question, there is a "fake" or "artificial" appearance of support.

I wonder whose taxpayer money gets wasted on it.

Yesterday the Russian President Vladimir Putin had a public talk with war correspondents. Yekaterina Agranovich, a blogger, asked him about 'western' propaganda and the people deceived by it. Putin responded:

The information space is a battlefield, a crucial battlefield. So, if someone uploads or writes something and provides an address, this is one thing. However, if there is no address and it is not clear who is writing or speaking, this is a completely different story. You and I are well aware that you can post things online using well-known technical means, and you can make it look like millions of people have seen these videos and commented on them when in fact there is just one person behind it who simply uses modern technology to replicate it endlessly. But, of course, there certainly are people who have a certain frame of mind, and they can express their point of view. What can we do to oppose this? I think this audience will know what I mean. This can and should be countered not so much by restrictions or administrative or law enforcement constraints, but by effective work in the information environment on our part. And I am really counting on your help.

Well, he did not talk to me. And no, I do not post at Moon of Alabama to help Russia or Putin, but to lay things out as I see them. If that is at times consistent with whatever this or that other public person says, it is likely to be a coincidental and temporary state.

---

Hat tip: Syriacide

Posted by b on June 14, 2023 at 13:20 UTC | Permalink

Comments

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The latest few tweets from Georgia congressperson Marjorie Taylor Greene are devoid of fact. These tweets are so full of falsehoods and intended to rile people that I wonder who is stupid enough to get angry along with her?

Greene is mourning a dead successionist, blaming the January 6th insurrection on BLM, insisting President Biden has taken a huge bribe, and of course, lamenting the now literal trials of Donald J. Trump. Everything is pure conspiracy theorist gold, which is the fool's variety. Political speech is protected, but Greene is trying hard to incite the violence Trump wants.

Take a look:

https://twitter.com/RepMTG/status/1668769347320381440

Greene is also imagining Trump is some incredible broker of peace:

https://twitter.com/RepMTG/status/1668826501892931585

I gather that what Greene communicates in these rants is "code" for her Q-Anon-loving fanbase. This garbage pushes buttons they like to push, all the while saying nothing. Must raise a lot of money tho.
Kyle Griffin is the recipient of Michigan Technological Universitys 2023 Distinguished Teaching Award in the Teaching Professor/Professor of Practice/Assistant Professor category.

Kyle Griffin is an assistant teaching professor of chemical engineering. He received his bachelors in chemical engineering and his Ph.D. in agricultural and biological engineering from the University of Florida. He specializes in bioprocess engineering (solving problems with systems involving living cells) and anaerobic digestion (breaking down organic materials with bacteria in zero-oxygen environments) and teaches courses in material and energy balances, thermodynamics and process control.

"The fact that Kyle earned this distinction in his first year as a faculty member at Michigan Tech is incredibly impressive. From the moment he joined MTU, Dr. Griffin has given his passion, energy and time in support of student learning. The subjects he teaches contain difficult concepts that simply have to be mastered. I am very glad to have him as a member of our faculty." Janet Callahan, dean of the College of Engineering

Q: Do you have a favorite course to teach?

KG: Chemical Process Control is my favorite course to teach. The goal of the course is to use computer systems to automatically control the output of a chemical engineering process by altering the input to the process. I like to describe it as the math behind how the heating system in your home knows when to turn on or off based on the temperature you set on the thermostat. The methods used in the course are a bit different than common methods used in most chemical engineering courses, and I think thats what makes it unique, interesting and fun to teach.

Q: How would you describe your teaching style?

KG: Ill start with authenticity. I am my authentic self whether Im in the classroom or at the grocery store, and I want my students to see that. I tell stories. I ask open-ended questions before class to get the students talking, like Whats your favorite kind of pie? I show pictures of my dog. I make jokes. These things start a rapport between me and my students and show them that Im not some enigma, but just a normal person like them. This also helps remove the layer of fear some students have of asking their professor a question or coming to office hours. I want my students to feel comfortable asking me questions (thats why Im here, after all), and opening up a little as my authentic self really helps accomplish this.

I love to incorporate anecdotes with the material I teach. Its a great way to ground seemingly complex concepts in reality while also adding some humor. There are so many topics that can be connected to everyday situations that students are familiar with, and making those connections helps them grasp the material. Something as simple as connecting automatic process control with the common experience of trying to get the water temperature in a hotel shower to the Goldilocks Temperature. It doesnt seem connected at first glance, but its an almost one-to-one connection that nearly everyone has experienced.

It hasnt been that long since I was in the same classes they were, so Im able to envision how my lectures will be experienced from their shoes. This is a massive advantage for me as a teacher, as it is easy for me to break down my lectures to the right level for my students as if I was the student. I am a proponent of teaching as you would like to be taught, and that transfers into my teaching style. I also care very deeply about my students and am cognizant that my class is not the only thing going on in their lives. While I do set expectations and boundaries as the professor, I also give my students some say in things, such as letting them choose an exam date from a set of dates. This prevents scheduling my exams on the same day as exams in other classes and lets the students know that I care and am trying to work with them and not overload them.

"Dr. Kyle Griffin has an easy-going demeanor but brings a level of enthusiasm to the classroom which is truly contagious. He incorporates an excellent blend of traditional conceptual learning and applications of those concepts through examples. Students are encouraged to solve problems by logging on to their computers in real time during the applications toward problem-solving. This is a great way to keep the students engaged while demonstrating the use of technology  an impressive approach." Pradeep Agrawal, chair of the Department of Chemical Engineering

Q: What instructional methods or philosophies do you use to be successful?

KG: My main instructional method is to first teach a topic, then apply it to a few examples. You can teach theory all day long, but for a lot of people, myself included, the real understanding comes from application. I have had great success in first working through an example with the class as a whole, then having the class break into small groups and work on a similar problem before coming back together as a class and having the students walk me through the problem as they solved it. This provides the students an opportunity to try working through problems on their own or with a classmate in a low-stakes environment, instead of trying a problem for the first time on something worth a grade, like homework. Having the students walk me through the problem solution also lets them explain what they did verbally, which is a lot more difficult than just solving a problem on paper. If a student can explain a solution verbally, they are almost certainly understanding the process on a deeper level than just writing down the solution. I also like to provide hands-on opportunities for learning. The Chemical Process Control course has a lab component, and with the wonderful facilities we have in our department, I can physically show the students nearly every concept we discuss in lecture, while also letting them get their hands dirty.

Q: What do you think makes for a successful learning experience?

KG: The biggest factor is making connections between the lecture material and the real world. I can talk about a proportional-integral-derivative (PID) controller all day long, but what do these things mean, really? What do they look like and how do they behave in reality? Being able to show students these pieces of equipment and let them use them in a lab environment really enhances the learning experience for them. The topics we discuss can seem esoteric on paper, but when the students can sit down and see how they look and work in the lab and can play with them, they begin to realize that the equations we learned arent just math equations, theyre born out of real, natural processes and they have meaning.

Distinguished Teaching Award Since 1982, the annual Michigan Tech Distinguished Teaching Award has been awarded in two categories: Associate Professor/Professor and Teaching Professor/Professor of Practice/Assistant Professor. The award nomination and review processes are student-driven; finalists are selected based on student ratings regarding quality of instruction. Winners receive $2,500 and a plaque at an awards dinner sponsored by the Office of the President in the fall.

Q: What are the biggest challenges you face in your work and how do you address and/or overcome those challenges?

KG: The courses I teach include some complex topics, and trying to figure out how to explain these topics in a way that students will understand is probably my biggest challenge. Usually, a textbook will have a good explanation of a topic thats great to use as a basis for my explanation in lecture, but occasionally I will come across something that the textbook just does not explain well. In those situations, I turn to other textbooks or the internet to find supplements that can help clarify complicated topics or methods.

Another challenge I face is finding good practice problems. While I do write my own practice problems frequently, it is also nice to have some textbook practice problems that are already worked out and tested. The issue is when textbooks jump from simple problems to difficult, exam-level problems without having many in-the-middle problems that work well as practice problems. I end up having to comb through most problems to figure out if theyre the right difficulty level for the situation or if I can modify them to be so.

Q: What drew you to study chemical engineering as an undergrad?

KG: I always enjoyed math when I was growing up and was part of the Mu Alpha Theta math teams at my middle and high school. We used to go to math competitions on Saturdays! I also learned that my dad has never met a problem he couldnt solve, and over the years I picked up problem-solving and repair skills just by working with him. On top of that, I always enjoyed building things, so I knew I would go into some sort of engineering field for college. In high school, I took Chemistry and enjoyed it so much that I took AP Chemistry. Then I thought, Hey, I can combine math, chemistry and building things if I pursue chemical engineering, so maybe I should choose that. That ended up being the right choice, because Ive had a deep love of the field ever since I began studying it.

Q: Who (or what) inspired you to become a teacher?

KG: When I was in college at the University of Florida, I spent five years as a training supervisor in the Academic Technology branch of the universitys IT department. I ended up really enjoying teaching new student employees in a professional setting. I had already decided to go to graduate school, but didnt know exactly what I wanted to do after that, and that job opened my eyes to the possibility of teaching. Then in graduate school, I learned from and was a teaching assistant (TA) for my main Ph.D. advisors, Dr. Pratap Pullammanappallil and Dr. Spyros Svoronos. Their genuine love of the material they teach and the way they teach was very formative for me as a teacher. Toward the end of my Ph.D. program, Dr. Svoronos recruited me to teach a few sections of his Process Control lab, which was my first real experience as a teacher leading a class, as opposed to just being a TA. I enjoyed the experience so much  and at that point, teaching as a career was pretty much a sealed deal for me.

Q: What opportunities does this award open up for you?

KG: I would say it supercharges my inspiration and motivation. Im incredibly honored (and still a bit shocked) to receive this award after only my first year as an assistant teaching professor. Im beyond touched that I was able to make enough of an impact on my students that they helped me win this award. I really couldnt have done this without them, and I cannot thank them enough for their kindness. This award has me motivated to keep working hard to inspire future students, while also inspiring me to grow as a teacher and try new things in the classroom to make the learning experience I provide for students the best it can possibly be.

Michigan Technological University is a public research university founded in 1885 in Houghton, Michigan, and is home to more than 7,000 students from 55 countries around the world. Consistently ranked among the best universities in the country for return on investment, Michigans flagship technological university offers more than 120 undergraduate and graduate degree programs in science and technology, engineering, computing, forestry, business and economics, health professions, humanities, mathematics, social sciences, and the arts. The rural campus is situated just miles from Lake Superior in Michigan's Upper Peninsula, offering year-round opportunities for outdoor adventure.
According to the most recent numbers from the Bureau of Justice Statistics, in 2020, 1 in 66 adult U.S. residents, some 3,890,400 people, were on either parole or probation, two forms of community supervision. In 2020, the total parole population amounted to about 862,100 people. In the same year, "The Sentencing Project produced a 50-state survey of departments of corrections that revealed that more than 55,000 Americans are incarcerated in state and federal prisons with no chance of parole, reflecting a 66% rise in people serving LWOP since 2003." One in four are over 60, while 47% are over 50. Pennsylvania has the higher per capita rate of people incarcerated for life without parole, with over five-thousand persons. No Way Home is a soon to be released documentary presented by the Amistad Law Project about life without parole in Pennsylvania.

"No Way Home traces the story of Lorraine Haw, known as Mrs. Dee Dee, as she grapples with the trauma of living on both sides of the epidemic of gun violence in Philadelphia. Earlier in life, Mrs. Dee Dee's younger brother was shot to death in his apartment complex after an argument over a gold necklace turned fatal. Years later, still reeling from the tragic death of her brother, she was devastated to see her son sentenced to mandatory life without parole in prison. A leader in the movement to end mass incarceration in Pennsylvania, Mrs. Dee Dee's story reflects the experiences of thousands of people in Pennsylvania who simultaneously sit on both sides of the gun violence epidemic: having lost loved ones to gun violence and also having lost loved ones to the carceral system."

Click here for the trailer.

Centering their work in Pennsylvania, The Amistad Law Project was "Founded in October 2014and works to abolish death by incarceration and longterm sentences, create alternatives to policing and get our communities the material resources and political power they need to thrive. We are an organization founded by Black feminists that believes in building powerful multi-racial alliances against systemic oppression. There are a very small number of people at the top who reap the benefits of this system, but there are many of us."
Looks like someone can't take a joke in Arizona's House of Representatives. Or a bunch of humorless Republican lawmakers, that is  who tried to expel a Democratic lawmaker for hiding the Bible as a prank. Instead, in a tight 30-28 vote, the hot-headed Representatives managed to censure Rep. Stephanie Stahl for her "flagrantly offensive" actions, dramatically calling her prank a "desecration" of scripture.

The mischievous Stahl admitted (after caught on a hidden camera) to hiding the Bibles which are offered on tables in the House lounge three times, under couch cushions and once inside a refrigerator. She later said she was playfully making a point on the separation of church and state and protesting "against the weaponization of religion in politics," according to NPR.

But many Republicans were outraged by what they called the "desecration" of scripture  some commented that they may have unknowingly sat on the Bible when it was hidden under seat cushions. "To do so is flagrantly offensive, and something the House needs to take seriously," said Rep. Justin Heap, one of three Republicans who filed an ethics complaint against Stahl Hamilton over the incidents. Still, the vote fell well short of the two-thirds majority needed to kick a member out of the House. Democrats and four Republicans rejected the motion to expel. The Tuesday votes followed a full-blown investigation into the matter, even after Hamilton was caught, admitted to and apologized for her actions. The committee's unanimous seven-page report cast doubt on the sincerity of the apology, as well as Stahl Hamilton's characterization of her actions as a "joke."

The ethics committee report laughably argued that "her actions would have been equally offensive and disrespectful if it had been the Book of Mormon, Qur'an, or any other religious text." Religious texts that, according to NPR, do not exist in Arizona's House lounge.
Rep. Paul Gosar (R-AZ) doesn't want to be called a "Nazi" or a "white supremacist," he wrote in his newsletter. He also warned his readers about a top-secret deep state government program that labels Christians, Republicans, and conservatives as "Nazis" and "white supremacists."

If he's not a Nazi or white supremacist, he sure does seem to enjoy surrounding himself with them. From TPM:

Since he took office in 2011, Gosar has associated with a variety of far right, white supremacist, and militant groups in the U.S. and abroad. Gosar appeared at the "America First" conference hosted by [Nick] Fuentes  who regularly uses racial slurs and praises Hitler  on two separate occasions. Gosar's links to the far right have also included promotion of extremist activists and websites through his official social media channels and newsletter. Earlier this month, TPM detailed substantial evidence indicating Gosar's digital director, Wade Searle, is behind an online persona known variously as "Chikken" and "ChickenRight" that Fuentes has called one of "the strongest soldiers of the movement." Our report also highlighted links between an intern in Gosar's office and the "Chikken" posts, which included comments attacking Jews, Black people, and Asians.

Here are a few fun facts about Gosar:
Sacramento, California restaurant Taqueria Garibaldi was busted for mistreating workers by refusing to pay overtime, threatening employees around their immigration status, dipping into the tip pool to pay managers, and insisting employees confess their "workplace sins" to a hired "priest." From ABC10:

The employee said the person told workers to "get the sins out" and confess if they'd stolen from the employer, been late for work or had bad intentions for their employer.

The Department of Labor says the employer agreed to a consent judgment, which ordered Che Garibaldi and its owners and operators to pay $140,000 in back wages and damages to 35 employees.

"Under oath, an employee of Taqueria Garibaldi explained how the restaurant offered a supposed priest to hear their workplace 'sins' while other employees reported that a manager falsely claimed that immigration issues would be raised by the department's investigation," said Regional Solicitor of Labor Marc Pilotin in San Francisco. "This employer's despicable attempts to retaliate against employees were intended to silence workers, obstruct an investigation and prevent the recovery of unpaid wages."
Tuolumne County District Attorney's Office Logo View Photo

Sonora, CA  The Tuolumne County District Attorneys Office is releasing information about a case in which a man fled shortly before being convicted of a COVID relief scam.

District Attorney Cassandra Jenecke reports that 43-year-old Michael Marques, along with an unidentified individual who is now deceased, had forged numerous documents to illegally receive $22,500 in COVID rent relief money from the State of California. The investigation commenced after Margues was pulled over for an unrelated traffic stop, and was suspiciously found with a large amount of cash. The scheme was uncovered during an investigation by the Tuolumne County Sheriffs Office.

As the jury deliberated just over a month ago, on May 9, following a two-day trial, Marques was equipped with an ankle monitor and allowed to leave the courthouse. After the parties were advised that a verdict was reached, the Tuolumne County Probation Department received an alert that the ankle monitor was tampered with (and removed).

The verdict was announced with Margues absent, and he remains at large today. A no-bail bench warrant has been issued for his arrest. He faces a maximum sentence of six years in prison.

Being that he is still wanted, we requested the earlier booking photo of Marques from the Tuolumne County Sheriffs Office, but the department stated that they cannot release it because it was not a violent felony arrest.
You only have a few more days to experience the Chairy Orcharda public art installation that doubles as park and hangout space in Denton, Texasbefore it closes permanently on June 18.

Local Profile, Texas describes the free, eclectic, artistic, DIY outdoor space and also provides photos, so you can see what it looked like in its glory days:

The Chairy Orchard isn't like any orchard we've ever been to! This orchard isn't filled with fruit trees, but chairs  but don't try to pick them!



The orchard was created by two women known as Judy and Ann, who are now dubbed, "The Chairy Fairies." The orchard shows off their huge collection of chairs of all types, sizes and shapes.



(Be sure not to miss The Locks of Love Chairish Wall, where couples can secure locks as declaration of their love.)

The Chairy Orchard announced the closing on its Facebook page:

Well folks, all good things must come to an end, and we are sad to announce that we will be closing the Chairy Orchard on Sunday, June 18th. Our instances of vandalism have continued to increase with stolen items, smashed chairs and broken windows in our free libraries, probably caused by late-night visitors after the park is closed. The Chairy Orchard was started by two neighbors who are now in their 80s, and they always said they would close it when it was no longer fun to maintain. Beginning now, please come get a favorite chair to remember your special times at this place. Please only take a chair and not any other exhibits- we are looking for unique places around Denton for some of our more iconic pieces. We'll keep the Chairy Orchard Facebook page active for the time being for people to post photos and memories of their time at the CO. Also, we do have our Venmo account open if you choose to donate. We will need to pay a service for debris removal after the 18th. Thanks for your support for the last 8 years. We've loved sharing this special place with people from all over the world.

They also provided a great update: Denton Parks and Rec will be taking some of the biggest and most famous itemsthe big Papa Bear chair, the Locks of Love Chairish Wall, and morefrom the Orchard and placing them in parks around the city of Denton.

I'm glad that the spirit (and some of the material substance) of the Chairy Orchard will live on!
Florida scientist resurfaces after breaking record of living underwater Anadolu Agency

Developing countries have hit the financial rocks FT

Climate

#COVID19

From Bad to Worse Science. From April, still germane. The deck: How the avian flu must change before it can trigger a human pandemic.

China?

Myanmar

India

New Not-So-Cold War

South of the Border

Turmoil risks financial stability Peru long took for granted Associated Press

Biden Administration

The Supremes

2024

Spook Country

Digital Watch

Healthcare

Sports Desk

Guns

Book Nook

Digital dollar complex situation, US treasury head says Anadalu Agency

Imperial Collapse Watch

Class Warfare

US Has 12 Or More Alien Spacecraft, Say Military And Intelligence Contractors Public

Antidote du jour (via):

See yesterdays Links and Antidote du Jour here.
Life Storage plans to cut 116 local jobs, as the Amherst-based company prepares to be acquired by Extra Space Storage.

The job cuts would represent about 47% of the self-storage companys local workforce of 248, according to a filing with the state Labor Department on Tuesday. Life Storage said the employee separations will occur from July 20 to Aug. 3.

The companys local operations are headquartered at 6467 Main St. Utah-based Extra Storage is in the midst of completing a deal for Life Storage presently valued at $11.5 billion.

Shareholders of the two companies are scheduled to vote on the acquisition on July 18. The deal is expected to be completed soon after that, Life Storage said in a regulatory filing.

Extra Space Storage indicates some local jobs will remain after Life Storage merger is done While the fate of Life Storage's local administrative operations remains unclear with a merger on the horizon, the company acquiring Life Storage is showing interest in retaining at least some local jobs.

Extra Space plans to keep nearly 88% of Life Storages workforce company-wide, and to maintain the Amherst offices, said McKall Morris, an Extra Space spokeswoman.

We anticipate having enough employees in Buffalo to keep that office open and functional there. The plan is to keep that as a regional office and have that open.

In its annual report, Life Storage said, as of the end of 2022, it had more than 400 employees at its headquarters in support functions including accounting, human resources, customer care and management information systems.

The impact on the local workforce has been a lingering question ever since Life Storage announced it was being acquired by Extra Space, due to potential overlap in jobs between the two publicly traded companies.

Some of Extra Spaces positions are required to be based at the companys Salt Lake City headquarters, Morris said. And the company is also eliminating some senior-level roles due to duplication.

In April, Life Storage shared with employees details of its change in control severance and retention plan in the event there is not a go-forward position for them with Extra Space.

And in May, Life Storage employees were notified that Extra Space would reach out to schedule interviews with employees they are interested in for short- or long-term employment opportunities.

Life Storage deal is a win for its shareholders Scale is important because the self storage industry is so highly fragmented, dominated by mom-and-pop operators.

Life Storage traces its roots to 1982, and was formerly known as Sovran Self Storage. The company went public in 1995 and changed its name to Life Storage in 2016.

The deal will create the nations largest self-storage company. Extra Space currently is the second-biggest firm, with an 8.8% market share, while Life Storage is tied for third-biggest, with a 4.4% market share.
NATO Defence Ministers are meeting in Brussels on Thursday and Friday to prepare for the Vilnius Summit in July. Previewing the meeting on Wednesday (14 June 2023), NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said that ministers would address stepping up support for Ukraine, and strengthening deterrence and defence including with new regional plans.

Addressing Ukraines ongoing counter-offensive, the Secretary General said: It is still early days, and we do not know if this will be a turning point of the war, but we see that the Ukrainians are making advances and liberating more land. We know that the more gains Ukraine makes, the stronger their hand will be at the negotiating table. The more gains Ukraine makes, the more likely it will be that President Putin realises he cannot win on the battlefield, but has to negotiate a just peace. The ministerial will begin with a meeting of the NATO-Ukraine Commission, preceded by the Ukraine Defence Contact Group, led by the United States.

Ministers are expected to agree on establishing a new NATO Maritime Centre for the Security of Critical Undersea Infrastructure within MARCOM, the NATO Maritime Command in the UK. Defence Ministers will also meet with meet with small, medium and large defence producers from across the Alliance, and will review a new Defence Production Action Plan. The plan aims to rapidly address shortfalls in Allied stocks, building on 1 billion dollars in joint procurement just for 155mm ammunition underway this year by the NATO Support and Procurement Agency. Allies have now completed an exceptional review of national capability targets for battle-decisive munitions, and ministers are expected to increase the targets substantially.

Allies will also address a renewed Defence Investment Pledge for the Vilnius Summit, with 2% of GDP on defence as a floor, not a ceiling.

The Nuclear Planning Group will also convene during the ministerial to discuss the nuclear aspects of the current security environment, and consider the ongoing adaptation of NATOs nuclear deterrence, said Mr Stoltenberg.

This will be the last meeting of NATO Defence Ministers before the Vilnius Summit on 11 and 12 July.


DIGITAL PRISON: ALDI grocery stores in London now requiring digital, cashless purchases

The coming cashless society is making headway in Greenwich, London, where an ALDI grocery store is no longer accepting cash: Customers must pay for everything digitally using a smartphone.

A man who was visiting London for the night uploaded video footage of the location that quickly went viral. He says he tried to purchase food at the ALDI only to learn that in order to even just enter the store he had to download the company's app on his phone.

"I drop into the local Aldi's, only to be told that in order to enter the store I have to download an app and scan a QR code," the man tweeted. "Resist this BS. Resist digital ID. Resist app-based everything. Be pro-human!"

ffs... So I'm in London overnight, and I'm trying to buy some food I drop into the local Aldi's, only to be told that in order to enter the store I have to download an app and scan a QR code Resist this BS Resist digital ID Resist app-based everything Be pro-human! pic.twitter.com/dyt7Jnux1G  #FtheWEF till the day I die (@NEOintheMCR) June 8, 2023

(Related: Last year, dozens of Whole Foods Market stores in California launched a cashless payment system allowing customers to make purchases with just the palm of the hand.)

Going cashless is the next step towards the Mark of the Beast

In the above video, you can see that the ALDI location in question set up large plastic barriers preventing people from entering the store without first scanning an app on their smartphones  Amazon Fresh markets in the United States, by the way, have a similar setup at their store entries.

"Now, this looks to me like the beginning stages of the digital prison that we keep talking about," the man in the video states after scanning the app in order to enter the ALDI store.

Just like at Amazon Fresh, the ALDI location the man visited does not require customers to go through a checkout line at the end. Since there are cameras all over the store watching people's every move, customers are able to just walk out of the store and get charged automatically for whatever they put in their cart.

For alcohol purchases, ALDI customers are able to use facial recognition technology that estimates one's age based on appearance. If the person meets the minimum threshold, he or she can walk out with a bottle of Jack Daniels without ever having to be verified by an actual human being.

It appears as though not all ALDI stores across the United Kingdom are set up this way, and perhaps the Greenwich location depicted in the above video is just a pilot store for this kind of technology. Brits now have the choice to vote with their wallets  or in this case, their smartphones  by choosing not to support a cashless paradigm.

"Well, it's just time for the British public to give Aldi the ol' Target treatment," one commenter wrote about how customers can choose to boycott the ALDI location in question. "Put 'em out of business."

Another wrote that the goal of Big Brother is "to chip your hands"  smartphones are just the next stepping stone towards putting a digital implant in every person's body, allowing them to buy and sell without cash.

"They will offer $100 in food stamps for people to receive it, like the pizza coupons for getting the covid vaccine," this person added, referencing Revelation 13 which talks all about the Mark of the Beast.

The latest news about the elimination of money and the transition to cashless can be found at MoneySupply.news.

Sources for this article include:

NewsWars.com

NaturalNews.com
ECOTERRORISM CLAIM: Explosive ammonium nitrate stolen from California-bound train may have been used to ignite Canada wildfires

The wildfires sweeping through much of Canada's pristine forests may have been intentionally set off using 60,000 pounds of explosive ammonium nitrate that went missing from a train bound for California last month.

This is according to analysts, including Josh Sigurdson of "World Alternative Media," who presented evidence strongly pointing toward the possibility that the fires were a premeditated act of arson.

"This makes a lot of people wonder exactly what is going on and who benefits," noted Sigurdson.

Most of the world's attention has been focused on the more than 400 wildfires engulfing the eastern Canadian province of Quebec. The smoke and particulate matter from there were blown south toward New England and much of the American East Coast.

Sigurdson noted that the fires occurring in Canada have bathed much of the Northeastern U.S. in "a very strange orange color, as we've seen, in places like New York City."

Coincidentally, Sigurdson noted that this is the exact color of ammonium nitrate when it burns, as is evidenced by the color of the plumes of smoke in Beirut following the massive explosion in Beirut, which was blamed on the 3,000 tons of ammonium nitrate being stored in a warehouse near the epicenter of the accident.

Sigurdson further speculated that the ammonium nitrate used to start these so-called wildfires may have been taken from the U.S., when over 60,000 pounds of the chemical suddenly disappeared from a train departing Cheyenne, Wyoming and heading to California. (Related: Terror act in the works? 60,000 lbs of EXPLOSIVE ammonium nitrate MISSING from California-bound train.)

But Sigurdson makes it very clear that this is just one of the leading theories for how the fires started, noting that Canada and the U.S. have seen a lot of fires started by left-wing arsonist groups like the Black Bloc and Antifa.

Satellite imagery shows wildfires happen simultaneously

Another significant evidence of the wildfires being a planned attack, which Sigurdson said is meant to spur action against so-called climate change, is the fact that satellite imagery shows that all of the fires occurred at the same time.

Naturally, mainstream media outlets all over the U.S. and Canada were quick to denounce such claims as so-called "conspiracy theories." The news division of Canada's main public broadcaster is even spreading videos all over social media to debunk these claims.

"This is actually really common imagery when it comes to lightning-ignited wildfires," said Johanna Wagstaffe, a meteorologist and seismologist and news anchor for CBC News in Canada, referring to some of the common videos spreading online showing the wildfires being spotted by satellite imagery happening at the same time.

"So, when a front rolls through bringing those lightning strikes, that's the spark for new fires. But those thunderstorms often come with rain, so that means these fires are smoldering at first."

"But because this year, our fuels in this area [Quebec] were so particularly dry, they can sort of hunker down until the right trigger comes into play. And that trigger is often daytime heating and the diurnal impacts of afternoon winds kicking in," she added. "Once that dryness reaches that critical point, all of the fires are able to spread at the same time, being picked up by the afternoon winds that supply oxygen. It's those same winds that cause that smoke to spread."

Other outlets like the Associated Press and USA Today have published their own articles debunking the claims. These two outlets have focused on footage of firefighters conducting from a helicopter a planned burn in northeastern British Columbia, with the planned ignition supposedly meant to stop the fires from spreading by starving them of fuel.

Learn more about false flag incidents at FalseFlag.news.

Watch this episode of "World Alternative Media" as host Josh Sigurdson speculates on whether the ammonium nitrate that went missing in a California train was used to start the massive wildfires in Canada.

This video is from the World Alternative Media channel on Brighteon.com.

More related stories:

New York City's air quality reaches "hazardous" level  one of the worst recorded in decades.

US government says "Russia" will soon attack power grid, which means the Deep State is planning another false flag attack on America.

Prather Point: Deep State intel community now running new FALSE FLAG ops  Brighteon.TV.

18-inch pipe bomb found near railroad tracks in Philadelphia neighborhood.

Sources include:

Brighteon.com

CBC.ca 1

CompoundChem.com

CBC.ca 2

APNews.com

USAToday.com
Asian-American student has near-perfect SAT score and a 4.65 GPA, gets ugly shock after applications to elite universities

Ask Asian children who their harshest critics are, and you will invariably get some answer involving mom, dad, or both.

(Article by Bryan Chai republished from WesternJournal.com)

Bad news for Asian-Americans across the United States  they wont be finding much reprieve from school administrators and staff at the university level.

Look no further than the curious case of 18-year-old Jon Wang, a Florida native sporting some impressive academic marks.

According to Fox News, Wang scored a sterling 1590 out of 1600 on his SAT exam (many Asian parents would probably be mad about him being 10 points short of a perfect score) and earned an eye-popping 4.65 high school GPA, thanks to advanced classes that enable students to achieve GPAs higher than the 4.0 associated with straight As.

Given those marks, and the fact that Wang doesnt appear to have any character or criminal issues, you would think one of the admissions departments at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, California Institute of Technology, Princeton, Harvard, Carnegie Mellon University or the University of California, Berkeley, would give Wang the time of day.

Dr. Peter McCullough: Understand Spike Shedding Before Its Too Late

You would think wrong.

Wang told Fox that he was rejected by all of them.

So, what gives? What possible explanation could be provided that would explain why Wang couldnt make the cut?

Meet Jon Wang, an 18-year-old Chinese-American from Florida. He was rejected by 6 elite schools despite scoring 1590 on the SAT (out of 1600) and having a 4.65 GPA. "They all told me that it's tougher to get in, especially as an Asian American," Jon told Fox News. pic.twitter.com/2no0r2h9Qj  Caleb Parke (@calebparke) June 9, 2023

Wang has one idea why  and its one that he was warned about when he began the application process.

In short, Wang blames the paradoxically named affirmative action that is neither affirming nor helpful for his issues.

Wang told Fox that when he began applying for school, his friends and counselors warned that its tougher to get in, especially as an Asian-American.

Apparently, the color of Wangs skin and ethnic background (his parents are both first-generation Chinese immigrants) matters to schools  and not in the good way that skin color and ethnicity usually matter when discussing minorities.

Thats because, for all intents and purposes of affirmative action, you may as well take away the Person of Color qualifier from Asian Americans.

Look no further than the loaded language used by CNN to describe the fact that Asian-Americans make up nearly 28 percent of Harvards admitted class of 2026: Demographically Overrepresented.

Why does demographic representation matter when it comes to (what should be) an educational meritocracy?

(Also, how incredibly offensive is it to all parties involved that schools are apparently saying that the only way for certain people of color to succeed in school is for other people of color to be artificially tamped down?)

Regardless, according to simulations run by the advocacy group Students for Fair Admissions, Wangs Asian background reduced his chances of getting into the school of his choice by about 75 percent.

I gave them my test scores, and then they mustve ran the model on that [they] told me I had a 20 percent chance of getting accepted to Harvard as an Asian-American and a 95 percent chance as an African-American, Wang told Fox.

Speaking of Students for Fair Admissions, if that group sounds at all familiar to you, thats because it is involved in two separate, but related cases involving Harvard and the University of North Carolina, and both of those cases are currently sitting in front of the Supreme Court.

In the Harvard case specifically, according to CNN, Students for Fair Admissions is alleging that the school discriminates against Asian-American by, effectively, holding them to a different standard than other applicants.

Indeed, there has always been something that has felt a bit off about affirmative action.

Apart from the obvious offensiveness of it all, in what world does it make sense to minimize academic merit in  academia?

It makes no sense, its backward, and its the kind of nonsense that Students for Fair Admissions is trying to eliminate, with the ultimate goal of overturning the 2003 precedent case of Grutter v. Bollinger, which found that schools using race as a factor in admissions was not unconstitutional.

Depending on how these Harvard and UNC cases go with SCOTUS, that goal could be closer to fruition than ever.

And if that precedent case is overturned, students of all races and ethnic backgrounds can focus solely on their academics when trying to get into institutes of higher education, as opposed to things that are literally out of their control.

Anyone who complains about that clearly doesnt care about students or universities.

Read more at: WesternJournal.com
Illegal aliens are destroying farmland and threatening U.S. food supply, warns RFK Jr.

As they continue to flood across the southern border like locusts, illegal alien "migrants" are trampling under foot food crops on farms along the United States-Mexico border, 2024 presidential hopeful Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has warned.

A threat to America's food supply, these illegals are taking full advantage of the recent expiration of Title 42, a covid-era policy invoked by the Trump administration to stem the flow of illegal aliens into the country during the "pandemic."

Kennedy met with farmers along the border in Yuma, Ariz., who told him that they are losing thousands of dollars due to illegals destroying food crops during their quest to resettle in America.

"I met with local farmers Cory Mellon, Alex Mueller, Hank Auza, and Robert Barkley in Yuma, Arizona. Yuma County provides 90 percent of the green leafy vegetables, like iceberg lettuce, arugula, spinach, and broccoli, to American tables between November and April," Kennedy stated.

(Related: After vising the southern border, Kennedy also revealed that pregnant American women are being turned away from delivery rooms because such facilities are filled to the brim with pregnant migrants occupying all the beds.)

America is now an overpriced, third world dump

Last year, one farmer along the U.S.-Mexico border had to plow under 88 acres of broccoli and personally absorb the $10,000 per acre cost after illegals urinated and defecated in the irrigation water. Had those crops been sold, they could have harmed the public with feces contamination.

Besides ruining crops, illegal aliens also impose untold economic burdens on Americans, especially poorer Americans whose quality of life is deteriorating at warp speed due to the government's relentless assault on the country's white population.

In Yuma, the local hospital system is so overloaded with illegals that taxpaying Americans can barely get any medical care. Over in El Paso, Tex., housing prices are also skyrocketing due to the influx of illegals.

At the current time, the median sale price for a home in the United States exceeds $400,000. Nobody except for the wealthy and those with lavish pensions can afford such prices, unless you are a multi-family migrant entourage pooling your cash together to cram into a single dwelling unit.

For anyone who is not already taken care of financially speaking, including pretty much all young people in America, it is no longer affordable to even live in the United States they grew up in. Meanwhile, illegals are flooding into the country by the millions and receiving free everything.

"In El Paso, the median home price has reached close to $250,000, while five years ago the median home price was $150,000," reports explain.

It should be noted that Alejandro Mayorkas, the Biden regime's head of Homeland Security, infamously promised to "fundamentally transform" the U.S., which we know from observation means eradicating all the white people and replacing them with illegals and other non-whites.

"And he has little concern for the costs to U.S. farmers," one commenter added about the priorities of Mayorkas in this fundamental transformation.

"Illegal aliens don't care about our country and will turn the U.S. into the s***holes they left," wrote another. "Stopping illegal aliens from coming in and mass deportation of those already here has to be priority number one or we're done."

Another wrote that billionaire eugenicist Bill Gates is now the largest private owner of farmland in the U.S., right next to communist China which owns more than 200,000 acres of farmland. In other words, America is already done  it will just take some time for the entire house of cards to tumble.

The latest news about the dissolution of America under globalist tyranny can be found at InvasionUSA.news.

See more news about RFK, Jr. at RFK.news

Sources for this article include:

Breitbart.com

NaturalNews.com
WASHINGTON (AP)  As a Black student who was raised by a single mother, Makia Green believes she benefited from a program that gave preference to students of color from economically disadvantaged backgrounds when she was admitted over a decade ago to the University of Rochester.

As a borrower who still owes just over $20,000 on her undergraduate student loans, she had been counting on President Joe Biden's promised debt relief to wipe nearly all of that away.

Now, the student loan cancellation plan has been dismantled by the U.S. Supreme Court, which on Thursday struck down affirmative action in college admissions. Both policies disproportionately help Black students. To Green and many other people of color, the efforts to roll them back reflect a larger backlash to racial progress in higher education.

I feel like working people have been through enough  I have been through enough, said Green, a community organizer. From a pandemic, an uprising, a recession, the cost of living price going up. I deserved some relief.

The rulings could also have political consequences among a generation of young voters of color who took Biden at his word when he campaigned on canceling debt.

Despite todays upsetting ruling, we demand that the Biden Administration delivers on the promise of student loan debt relief, said NAACP President Derrick Johnson, in a statement. Education has long been regarded as a path toward generational wealth, economic liberation, and securing the American dream. Lets be clear  student debt is killing that dream.

The president's plan forgave up to $10,000 in federal student debt for borrowers, and doubled the debt relief to $20,000 for borrowers who also received Pell Grants. About half of the average debt held by Black and Hispanic borrowers would have been wiped out, according to the White House.

Six Republican-led states filed a legal challenge questioning whether the president, a Democrat, had authority to forgive the debt. On Friday, the Supreme Court held the administration needed Congress endorsement before undertaking so costly a program.

Biden later Friday announced a new plan to cancel student debt, using a different justification from the one struck down earlier in the day. It uses a provision of the Higher Education Act allowing the education secretary to waive student loans. The plan would likely face another legal challenge.

In the affirmative action cases, the court was considering the use of race-conscious admissions policies that many selective colleges have used for decades to help build diversity on their campuses. The cases were brought by a conservative activist who argues the Constitution forbids the use of race in college admissions.

Together, the cases are crushing to Black Americans, the Rev. Al Sharpton said.

The reality is race plays a factor in admissions, from pre-K to post-doctorate, and institutions just saw their best tool for fairness outlawed, Sharpton said.

On student loans, Sharpton said: Generations of Black youth were sold a bill of goods that higher education was a pathway out of poverty  only to be saddled with crushing debt that never lets them see their dreams fully realized.

Both cases focused on policies that address historic racial disparities in access to higher education, as Black borrowers tend to take on disproportionately more debt to afford college, said Dominique Baker, an education policy professor at Southern Methodist University.

Backlash to racial progress tends to follow periods of social change and advancement, Baker said. In a study published in 2019, Baker found states were more likely to adopt bans on affirmative action when white enrollment at public flagship universities dropped.

These are policy tools that have an explicit aim around reducing the power of white supremacy, Baker said. The two court challenges, she said, can be seen as linked backlash to two attempts towards racial justice.

Green, who grew up in a low-income household in Harlem, New York, graduated from Rochester with about $40,000 in federal loan debt. Some of that was erased under a public service forgiveness program when she completed two terms with Americorps, and she whittled it down further with monthly installments until the government paused repayment due to the pandemic. Payments will restart Oct. 1.

Green said she sees both court cases as connected to conservative attacks on diversity, equity and inclusion programs. Critics say opposition to such programs is rooted in questions of fairness and in white grievances over the advancement of nonwhite people.

This is white supremacy at work, Green said. This is a long tactic of conservative, white supremacist-leaning groups to use education and limit Black peoples access to education, as a way to further control and oppress us.

In the 1960s and 1970s, many colleges developed affirmative action plans to address the fact that many predominantly white schools struggled to attract people from historically disadvantaged and underrepresented communities. Policies were also created to promote greater inclusion of women.

Since the late 1970s, the Supreme Court had three times upheld affirmative action in college admissions on grounds that institutions have a compelling interest to address past discrimination that shut nonwhite students out of higher learning. Justices had also agreed with arguments that more diverse student bodies promoted cross-racial understanding.

Some students and advocates worried about how the ruling would affect diversity on campuses.

Tarina Ahuja, a rising senior at Harvard College, said being part of a diverse student body has been a crucial part of her undergraduate experience. She recalled classes where students discussed their lived experiences on topics such as police violence, colonialism and labor movements  discussions that would have fallen flat without a diverse range of student perspectives.

In anticipation of a ruling against race-conscious admissions, some colleges have been considering adding more essays to get a better picture of an applicants background  an approach seemingly endorsed by Thursday's Supreme Court ruling. Others have been planning to boost recruiting in racially diverse areas. But in states that have already banned affirmative action, similar efforts at selective colleges have largely failed to maintain diversity gains.

Jonathan Loc, a graduate student at Harvard who helped organize teach-ins in support of affirmative action, said that for students of color, it's impossible to speak about their lives without mentioning race, whether through hardships faced or simply their pride in their cultural heritage.

I grew up as the son of refugees in a low-income community and a single-parent family burdened with the model minority myth, he said. But I think that that kind of narrative also helps me to be an Asian American focused on racial justice, focused on making sure that everyone who has a unique story related to their racial background or any background has that story heard.

It will be important for colleges to find ways to show they see the students as more than a number on paper, said Damon Hewitt, president and executive director of the Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under Law.

We need the schools to say, 'Look, the court says we cant consider race, but we still see you,' said Hewitt, whose organization defended affirmative action before the Supreme Court in October.

Editor's note: A previous version of this story misstated the restart of student loan payments. They start on Oct. 1.

The Associated Press education team receives support from the Carnegie Corporation of New York. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

Annie Ma and Aaron Morrison are members of AP's Race and Ethnicity team. Follow Ma on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/anniema15. Follow Morrison on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/aaronlmorrison.
INSANE: Parents who dont affirm childrens transgenderism will be charged with CHILD ABUSE under amended California state bill

A recently amended state bill in California seeks to charge parents who do not "affirm" their children's transgenderism with "child abuse."

Introduced by Democrat State Rep. Lori Wilson, Assembly Bill (AB) 957 seeks to include "affirming" a child's sexual transition to the Golden State's standard for parental responsibility and child welfare. If passed, AB 957 will deem parents who refuse to affirm the insanity of transgenderism guilty of child abuse.

Initially introduced back in February, AB 957 required courts to consider whether a child's parents were "gender-affirming" in certain custody cases. But in June, openly gay State Sen. Scott Wiener introduced an amendment that completely rewrites California's standard of childcare. His inclusion of transgender ideology as part of the health, safety and welfare of the child altered the definition and application of the entire California Family Code. (Related: Pediatricians want parents to leave the room while they groom children for transgenderism.)

Wiener's amendments will empower California courts with complete authority  as outlined in Section 3011 of the state's Family Code  to remove a child from a parent's home if the latter disapprove of LGBT ideology. It will also potentially expand the range of organizations allowed to provide "evidence" of gender "non-affirmation" to California courts.

Activist organizations claiming to provide services to victims of sexual assault or domestic violence would be able to report parents for gender "abuse." This opens the possibility of a child reporting their parents to a local LGBTQ+ organization, such as a Gay-Straight Alliance club at school, who could then report the parents for child abuse.

The bill's far-reaching implications have also raised concerns about the state infringing on parental rights and religious freedom. Schools, churches, hospitals and other organizations interacting with children must agree with whatever "gender" children claim they are under the new law  with charges of child abuse awaiting those who insist on reality.

Parental rights advocates and experts slam AB 957

But according to AB 957's critics, the measure lacks clear definitions of what would constitute "non-affirming" behavior regarding a child's gender. They zoomed in on the bill's intrusion on parental rights.

Jay Richards, the director of the Heritage Foundation's Richard and Helen DeVos Center for Life, Religion and Family, dubbed AB 957 a "grotesque violation" of both children's and parent's rights.

San Francisco attorney Erin Friday, who also serves as the co-lead of the Our Duty parent coalition, expressed her concerns. She said: "When you say that gender affirmation is in the child's best interest for health, safety, and welfare, it takes nothing to say [non-affirmation] is now abuse because you're 'not taking care of the [child's] health, safety, and welfare' if you're not affirming them."

The Washington Free Beacon's Susannah Luthi looked at the unclear definition of "non-affirming behavior." She wrote: "The bill makes no distinctions regarding the age of a child, how long a child has identified as transgender, or affirmation of social transition versus medical sex-change treatments."

Facts Law Truth Justice founder Nicole Pearson, meanwhile, condemned the bill's unconstitutionality, emphasizing the lack of opportunity for parents to be heard. She told the Daily Signal: "This bill makes law that failure to affirm your child's identity is child abuse. This will be a final, legal determination without any evidence supporting a hearing with notice or the opportunity to be heard."

Transhumanism.news has more stories about the leftist espousal of destroying parental rights in the name of LGBT.

Watch this clip discussing AB 957 and its stance on "non-affirming parents."

More related stories:

Consequences: From transgenderism to trans-whateverism.

California parents speak out after teachers brainwash their 12-year-old child into transgenderism, call CPS on parents for using wrong pronouns.

California parents speak out against sexual predator public school teachers caught grooming children into transgenderism.

Transgenderism being WEAPONIZED to divide parents in custody and divorce battles... as children pay the price for chemical castrations and genital mutilations.

Authors warn: Transgenderism is "confusing people about the nature of reality" and victimizing children.

Sources include:

WND.com

FreeBeacon.com

TheDailySignal.com

Brighteon.com
The censorship hegemon must be stopped

One year ago, I joined the states of Missouri and Louisiana and several other co-plaintiffs to file a suit in federal court challenging what journalist Michael Shellenberger has called the censorship-industrial complex . While much of the press cooperated with the states censorship efforts and has ignored our court battle, we expect that it will ultimately go to the Supreme Court, setting up Missouri v. Biden to be the most important free speech case of our generationand arguably, of the past 50 years.

(Article by Aaron Kheriaty republished from TabletMag.com)

Prior government censorship cases typically involved a state actor unconstitutionally meddling with one publisher, one author, one or two books, a single article. But as we intend to prove in court, the federal government has censored hundreds of thousands of Americans, violating the law on tens of millions of occasions in the last several years. This unprecedented breach was made possible by the wholly novel reach and breadth of the new digital social media landscape.

My co-plaintiffs, Dr. Jay Bhattacharya and Dr. Martin Kulldorff, and I were censored for content related to COVID and public health policy that the government disfavored. Documents we have reviewed on discovery demonstrate that government censorship was far more wide-ranging than previously known, from election integrity and the Hunter Biden laptop story to gender ideology, abortion, monetary policy, the US banking system, the war in Ukraine, the US withdrawal from Afghanistan, and more. There is hardly a topic of recent public discussion and debate that the US government has not targeted for censorship.

Jacob Seigel, Matt Taibbi, and other investigative reporters have begun to document the anatomy of the censorship leviathan, a tightly interconnected network of federal agencies and private entities receiving public funding  where much of the censorship grunt work is outsourced. The industrial in censorship-industrial complex should be understood literally: censorship is now a highly developed industry, complete with career-training institutions in higher education (like Stanfords Internet Observatory or the University of Washingtons Center for an Informed Public), full-time job opportunities in industry and government (from the Virality Project and the Election Integrity Partnership to any number of federal agencies engaged in censorship), and insider jargon and euphemisms (like disinformation, misinformation, and malinformation which must be debunked and prebunked) to render the distasteful work of censorship more palatable to industry insiders.

Our lawyers were in court last week arguing for a preliminary injunction to halt the activities of the censorship machine while our case is tried. I will spare you a full account of the governments endless procedural wrangling, obfuscation, attempts to hide, delays, and diversionary tactics in this case  futile efforts to dodge even the most legally straightforward aspects of discovery, such as our request to depose former Biden Press Secretary Jen Psaki. So far, the government has been caught hiding discovery materials, which the judge chastised them about before ruling against their motion to dismiss, reminding the government that the limited discovery so far would widen once the case went to trial.

The governments lawyers were not able to block the deposition of Anthony Fauci, however, who had to answer some pointed questions about his COVID policies for the first time under the threat of the penalty of perjury. Dr. Fauci seemed to suffer from a strange syndrome of sudden-onset amnesia during his deposition, as I have described elsewhere.

Government censorship was far more wide-ranging than previously known

But aside from these procedural scuffles, the more important aspects of this case are the government censorship activities we have already exposed. For example, our documents demonstrate how a relatively unknown agency within the Department of Homeland Security became the central clearinghouse of government-run information control  an Orwellian Ministry of Truth. My fellow citizens, meet the Cybersecurity Infrastructure Security Agency better known as CISA  a government acronym with the same word in it twice in case you wondered about its mission.

This agency was created in the waning days of the Obama administration, supposedly to protect our digital infrastructure against cyberattacks from computer viruses and nefarious foreign actors. But less than one year into their existence, CISA decided that their remit also should include protecting our cognitive infrastructure from various threats.

Cognitive infrastructure is the actual phrase used by current CISA head Jen Easterly, who formerly worked at Tailored Access Operations, a top secret cyber warfare unit at the National Security Agency. It refers to the thoughts inside your head, which is precisely what the governments counter-disinformation apparatus, headed by people like Easterly, are attempting to control. Naturally, these thoughts need to be protected from bad ideas, such as any ideas that the people at CISA or their government partners do not like.

More on Disinformation in America

In early 2017, citing the threat from foreign disinformation, the Department of Homeland Security unilaterally declared federal control over the countrys election infrastructure, which had previously been administered at the local level. Not long after that, CISA, which is a subagency of the DHS, established its own authority over the cognitive infrastructure by becoming the central hub coordinating the governments information control activities. This pattern was repeated in several other government agencies around the same time (there are currently a dozen federal agencies named among the defendants in our suit).

So, what exactly has the government been doing to protect our cognitive infrastructure? Perhaps the best way to wrap your head around the actual operations of the new American censorship leviathan is to consider the vivid analogy offered by our brilliant attorney, John Sauer, in the introduction of our brief for the injunction. This is worth quoting at length:

Suppose that the Trump White House, backed by Republicans controlling both Houses of Congress, publicly demanded that all libraries in the United States burn books criticizing the President, and the President made statements implying that the libraries would face ruinous legal consequences if they did not comply, while senior White House officials privately badgered the libraries for detailed lists and reports of such books that they had burned and the libraries, after months of such pressure, complied with those demands and burned the books. Suppose that, after four years of pressure from senior Congressional staffers in secret meetings threatening the libraries with adverse legislation if they did not cooperate, the FBI started sending all libraries in the United States detailed lists of the books the FBI wanted to burn, requesting that the libraries report back to the FBI by identifying the books that they burned, and the libraries complied by burning about half of those books. Suppose that a federal national security agency teamed up with private research institutions, backed by enormous resources and federal funding, to establish a mass-surveillance and mass-censorship program that uses sophisticated techniques to review hundreds of millions of American citizens electronic communications in real time, and works closely with tech platforms to covertly censor millions of them.

The first two hypotheticals are directly analogous to the facts of this case. The third, meanwhile, is not a hypothetical at all; it is a description of the Election Integrity Partnership and Virality Project.

The censorship activities of the nations largest law enforcement agency, which it terms information warfare, have turned the FBI, in the words of whistleblower Steve Friend, into an intelligence agency with law enforcement powers. But there is no information warfare exception to the constitutional right of free speech. Which other federal agencies are involved in censorship? Besides the ones you might suspect  the DOJ, NIH, CDC, Surgeon General, and the State Department  our case has also uncovered censorship activities by the Department of the Treasury (dont criticize the feds monetary policies), and yes, my friends, even the Census Bureau (dont ask).

In prior precedent-setting cases on censorship, the Supreme Court clarified that the right of free speech guaranteed by the Constitution exists not just for the person speaking but for the listener as well: We all have the right to hear both sides of debated issues to make informed judgments. Thus all Americans have been harmed by the governments censorship leviathan, not just those who happen to post opinions or share information on social media.

The judge presiding over the case, Terry Dougherty, asked on Friday in court if anyone had read George Orwells 1984 and whether they remembered the Ministry of Truth. Its relevant here, he added. It is indeed time to slay the governments censorship leviathan. I hope that our efforts in Missouri v. Biden prove to be a crucial first step in this project to restore our constitutional rights.

Read more at: TabletMag.com
The U.K. is taking steps to move away from routinely prescribing puberty blockers for children who experience gender dysphoria.

The National Health Service (NHS) decision follows an independent review conducted by Dr. Hilary Cass, which highlighted "the significant uncertainties surrounding the use of hormone treatments." (Related: Puberty blockers are QUACK medicine backed by nothing chemical child abuse is now demanded by LGBT pushers conspiring with evil doctors.)

According to the NHS, the organization "will only commission puberty-suppressing hormones as part of clinical research" instead of routinely prescribing the medication to children. The organization plans to conduct targeted stakeholder testing on an interim clinical commissioning policy, which proposes that outside of a research setting, puberty-suppressing hormones should not be routinely commissioned for children and adolescents with gender incongruence/dysphoria.

In addition to this policy change, NHS England has established a new national Children and Young People's Gender Dysphoria Research Oversight Board. The board has approved the development of a study examining the impact of puberty-suppressing hormones on gender dysphoria in children and young people with early-onset gender dysphoria. The establishment of this board reflects a commitment to investigating the effects of puberty blockers thoroughly.

The NHS aims to adopt a holistic, multidisciplinary approach to assessing and addressing the needs of individuals with gender dysphoria. An integrated multidisciplinary team will determine the most appropriate clinical pathway involving the child or young person and their family.

Puberty blockers may cause permanent damage

The decision by the NHS and the establishment of the oversight board signal a welcome shift in approach. These moves suggest that European countries such as the U.K., Finland, and Sweden recognize that using puberty blockers and other forms of gender-affirming care may not be the all-encompassing solution for gender dysphoria. Concerns have been raised regarding the potentially irreversible harm caused by these treatments, leading to severe consequences in adulthood.

Ken Ham, the CEO of Answers in Genesis (AiG), a Christian apologetics organization, expressed his concerns about the dangers of hormone therapies. Ham emphasized the health risks of puberty blockers, including decreased bone density leading to fractures, osteoporosis, permanent infertility, chronic back pain and potential cognitive issues.

Ham also pointed out that there is nothing "safe and reversible" with puberty blockers.

"That's just puberty blockers. That doesn't include the surgeries  like mastectomies  these children and teens are increasingly funneled into," Ham stated. "It's a horrifying world of pain and lifelong dependence on the medical community," he said. "It's all very new. We don't know the long-term consequences of all this, yet the experiments on a generation of kids enthusiastically continue.

Investigative journalists Megan Twohey and Christina Jewett shed light on the permanent damage that gender-affirming hormone therapies and surgical procedures may leave to children.

They cited the cases of three children, aged 11 to 13, who had undergone puberty blockers as part of their gender dysphoria treatment. While using these blockers has been promoted as safe and reversible, the investigative journalists indicated in their piece that reviews of scientific papers and interviews with over 50 medical professionals and experts worldwide pointed to potentially adverse effects.

Head over to GenderConfused.com for more stories about gender-related medical interventions.
The Global Preparedness Monitoring Board (GPMB), a body convened by the World Health Organization (WHO), has called for a global pandemic simulation.

The proposed simulation exercise would involve Members of the States and key stakeholders, assessing the draft accord and International Health Organization (IHR) amendments before finalization and adoption in 2024. It is expected to take place later this year, offering insights into the strength, equity, coherence and accountability mechanisms of the proposed treaty and amendments.

Joy Phumaphi, the co-chair of the GPMB, emphasized the urgency of testing the new terms. "We feel very strongly that we cannot wait for the next emergency to find out how well the pandemic accord and the IHR amendments will work; we need to know now," Phumaphi said. She proposed that member states, along with other key stakeholders, participate in the simulation exercise based on the draft accord and amendments later this year.

During the assembly, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the head of the WHO, also stressed the importance of commitment from the present generation to such an accord, highlighting the devastating impact of the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. (Related: Study finds US hospitals are not prepared for the next pandemic.)

He even warned that the next pandemic was inevitable, urging countries to take immediate action. "If we do not make the changes that must be made, then who will? And if we do not make them now, then when?"

NGOs and health experts protest against negotiations behind closed doors

While negotiations among 194 nations have been ongoing to centralize pandemic-related actions within the WHO, the process has taken place behind closed doors in Geneva.

In April, delegates from the U.S., along with their Chinese counterparts, agreed to keep the new IHR private from the public. As a response, several nonprofit organizations and health experts voiced their protest against the secrecy through a letter addressed to Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra and Secretary of State Antony Blinken.

"The attempt to create a veil of secrecy now surrounding the substantive and technical text-based negotiations on the WHO pandemic treaty sets a dangerous precedent for norm-setting at the multilateral level," they wrote. "It also undermines trust in the process at a time when attacks on the WHO and on the pandemic accord are increasing."

Similarly, Ambassador Pamela Hamamoto, a U.S. representative, stated: "At this stage, I have some concern about sharing the draft to all stakeholders given where we are in the process."

Amid the controversy, the GPMB released its Manifesto for Preparedness, emphasizing the need for a coordinated approach to pandemic prevention, preparedness and response (PPPR) involving all countries, international and regional organizations, financial institutions and the private sector.

Its vision aligns with the concept of "One Health," which broadens the scope of the pandemic response, including various factors such as farming, poverty, and climate change. These factors can either contribute to or exacerbate outbreaks and impact people's overall health.

David Bell, a public health physician and former WHO staff member specializing in epidemic policy, explained that "One Health" encompasses anything in the biosphere that affects human well-being. The current negotiated terms aim to expand the WHO's mandate and grant it the authority to respond not only to actual pandemic emergencies but also to perceive pandemic threats.
Yuval Noah Harari says non-organic entities and emotionless algorithms will soon dominate Earth  in other words, AI TAKEOVER is coming soon

An Israeli-born World Economic Forum (WEF) member and lead adviser to Klaus Schwab by the name of Yuval Noah Harari is eager to see the world taken over by "non-organic entities" and "emotionless algorithms," meaning no more humans and lots and lots of artificial intelligence-driven (AI) robots ruling the world.

In an interview, Harari explained that over the next several decades, Earth will become populated "or even dominated" by entities that are not organic, meaning they are not created by God. "They don't breathe; they don't have emotions," Harari said excitedly to the interviewer.

"The potential of AI is much, much bigger than any historical revolution  it's really a biological revolution," he went on to state, claiming that up until now, all life is organic  but soon that will no longer be the case. "This is at least an idea of inorganic lifeforms. That's the biggest thing that's happened on Earth in over four billion years."

Harari is a believer in Darwinian evolution, which he claims occurred through natural selection. But with AI, there is an "intelligent design" that supersedes even what God Almighty is able to do, according to Harari.

"Here we have intelligent design  but not the intelligent design of the creation that's in the Bible, a real intelligent design," Harari stated arrogantly. "We are designing the AI, and then the AI will design maybe the next generation of AI, so it's a completely different kind of process."

(Related: Last year, Harari announced that he and his globalist buddies have created a "technological Noah's Ark," also known as transhumanism, that will help them escape the mass extinction event they are trying to unleash.)

Homosexuality is "natural" because otherwise it wouldn't be possible, according to Harari

Using the example of how bank loans are processed today not by actual humans but rather by computer algorithms, Harari explained how the future of the planet involves robots and computers replacing all humans  a new kind of evolution, in his view.

"It's very practical: today when you apply to the bank for a loan and the bank basically lets an algorithm design your fate, and the algorithm says 'no, don't give this lady a loan.' And you ask the bank why, and they say they don't know; the algorithm said no," Harari said.

"Even the people who designed the algorithm don't understand the decision that it is making."

Over the last 20 years, Harari went on to reveal, the smartest people in the world have been working on "the problem of how to hack human beings and control them through the screens, through the smartphones.

"I'm no match to them," he says. "If I give them access, they win."

Smartphones, it turns out, were designed as spying devices to monitor people 24 hours a day, seven days a week, without the need for actual human agents from the government to keep an eye on people. Harari spoke all about this, using the KGB as an example from the past of how things had to be done before the age of computers and AI and smartphones.

On the topic of homosexuality and other LGBT lifestyles, Harari believes that they are all natural in any shape or form they take because if they were not, then such acts and behaviors would not even be possible.

"If homosexuality was against nature, it just couldn't exist," Harari argues. "Things against nature are, for example, driving faster than the speed of light. You don't need human rules against them, they just can't happen  it's impossible."

The latest news about the AI takeover of the world can be found at Transhumanism.news.

Sources for this article include:

Infowars.com

NaturalNews.com
Arson is the likely cause of Quebec wildfires, not carbon emissions

Environment "experts" are claiming that the early-season wildfires across Quebec are caused by carbon emissions.

Edward Struzik, a fellow at Queen's Institute for Energy and Environmental Policy at Queen's University in Canada, claimed that record heat and drought continue to warm the planet and trigger wildfires. "The fire season is also lasting longer now because of climate change. Spring is coming weeks earlier and fall is coming weeks later. More time for the fires and grasslands to burn," Struzik told CBS News.

Environment Minister Steven Guibeault tweeted: "The ongoing wildfires remind us that carbon pollution carries a cost on our society, as it accelerates climate change."

Former Principal Secretary Gerald Butts tweeted that the clusters of blazes are worse because of the conditions in the forest. "The conditions are caused by climate change. No individual cigarette causes cancer  40 years of smoking does," Butts said.

However, Twitter account Wide Awake Media linked a satellite video from the College of DuPage Meteorology Department showing that the fires that erupted in the Canadian province all mysteriously started at the exact same time on June 2.

According to a report from the Toronto Sun, the local police are investigating the possibility that the smoke creating poor air quality and making downtown skylines disappear may have been the result of arson. "There is an investigation because the cause is suspect," said media officer Hugues Beaulieu.

Moreover, Quebec fires are not the only outbreaks to have suspicious origins. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) have arrested several arsonists, who have been charged with lighting fires across several Canadian provinces, including Nova Scotia, Yukon, British Columbia and Alberta.

Albertan John Cook has been arrested and charged with 10 counts of arson after setting a string of wildfires in and around Cold Lake, a hamlet near Edmonton. Also, he was charged with setting fire to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in Cherry Grove, Alberta. Still, mainstream media outlets as well as "climate alarmists" continue to blame the origins of the wildfires on climate change.

Canada is enduring its most destructive start to wildfire season, with about 4.8 million hectares (11.86 million acres), which is larger than the Netherlands, already burnt. The Quebec fires alone have caused mass evacuations and have burned through millions of acres of land.

Smoke shrouds Alberta as firefighters try to control Quebec blaze

Meanwhile, wildfires flared again in the main oil-producing province of Alberta shrouding most of the skied in the Western Canada province as firefighters in Quebec doused some of the worst fires, allowing thousands of evacuees to return home.

"If you look at western Canada, it's completely covered by the smoke," federal meteorologist Gerald Cheng told reporters on Monday, June 12. "The risk for smoke is very high because the winds are really transporting the smoke throughout Alberta today and even into Tuesday."

The fires in Alberta are sending plumes of smoke eastward over prairie provinces Saskatchewan and Manitoba, Reuters reported. Environment and Climate Change Canada's Air Quality Health Index put the Alberta provincial capital Edmonton and oil sands hub Fort McMurray in the "high risk" category. (Related: New York City's air quality reaches "hazardous" level  one of the worst recorded in decades.)

Nearly 5,000 firefighting personnel have been deployed in Alberta, Nova Scotia and Quebec. Canadian Defense Minister Anita told a briefing on Monday that more army members will be deployed to Edson.

Canada's forestry industry was forced to shut down sawmills, driving up lumber prices and setting production back for months just as housing construction has slowed due to higher costs and a tight labor market.

Climate.news has more stories related to climate alarmists like the people who blame carbon emissions for the wildfires in Quebec.

Watch the video below about the Federal Aviation Administration grounding all flights at LaGuardia Airport in New York City due to the Canadian wildfire smoke.

This video is from Alex Hammer's channel on Brighteon.com.

More related stories:

Federal government started massive fire in New Mexico, then asked victims to cover part of the damage.

Wildfire plumes worldwide are contributing to ozone pollution and harming air quality.

Prolonged exposure to air pollution triggers inflammation, appearance of cancer-related genes.

Scientific evidence refutes media / politicians' climate wildfire claims: 'Less fire today than centuries ago'  wildfires are NOT due to 'climate change'  book excerpt.

Sources include:

CBSNews.com

Weather.COD.edu

Twitter.com

TorontoSun.com

LifeSiteNews.com

Reuters.com

Brighteon.com
Exec with Ukrainian energy firm Burisma made several recordings of Joe and Hunter Biden in alleged bribery scheme as insurance policy

If our justice system still functions and what Sen. Charles Grassley (R-Iowa) said on the floor of the Senate on Monday is true, then Joe Biden and his son Hunter Biden will be looking at some serious jail time.

If it doesn't, then they won't.

During a floor speech, Grassley said that an executive with Ukrainian energy company Burisma, who is alleged to have made payments to Joe Biden and Hunter Biden, kept 17 audio recordings of his conversations with them as an "insurance policy." Grassley referred to an FBI FD-1023 form, which the bureau briefed congressional lawmakers on, to support his statement.

He "revealed what was said to be a redacted reference in the FBI-generated FD-1023 form alleging a criminal bribery scheme between then-Vice President Joe Biden and a foreign national that involved influence over U.S. policy decisions," Fox News reported, adding:

Fox News Digital exclusively reported on the contents of the form last week. The FD-1023 form, dated June 30, 2020, is the FBI's interview with a "highly credible" confidential source who detailed multiple meetings and conversations he or she had with a top Burisma executive over the course of several years, starting in 2015. Fox News Digital has not seen the form, which is redacted, but it was described by several sources who are aware of its contents.

Grassley noted that the FD-1023 document contains a redacted reference indicating that the Burisma executive possesses fifteen audio recordings of phone calls between himself and Hunter Biden. Additionally, Grassley stated that the document states the executive also has two audio recordings of phone calls between himself and then-Vice President Joe Biden.

Grassley, during his Senate speech, blasted the FBI for refusing to comply with the House Oversight Committees subpoena, saying Congress "still lacks a full and complete picture with respect to what that document really says."

"Thats why its important that the document be made public without unnecessary redactions for the American people to see," he said. "Let me assist for purposes of transparency."

"The 1023 produced to that House Committee redacted reference that the foreign national who allegedly bribed Joe and Hunter Biden allegedly has audio recordings of his conversations with them," Grassley continued. "17 total recordings."

"According to the 1023, the foreign national possesses 15 audio recordings of phone calls between him and Hunter Biden," Grassley said. "According to the 1023, the foreign national possesses two audio recordings of phone calls between him and then-Vice President Joe Biden."

Grassley went on to say that the recordings were "allegedly kept as a sort of insurance policy for the foreign national in case he got into a tight spot."

"The 1023 also indicates that then-Vice President Joe Biden may have been involved in Burisma employing Hunter Biden," Grassley noted.

The Iowa Republican went on to demand, "what if anything has the Justice Department and FBI done to investigate?"

"The Justice Department and FBI must show their work," Grassley said. "They no longer deserve the benefit of the doubt."

Last week, the FBI presented the document on Capitol Hill in response to a subpoena issued by House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer. However, instead of handing over the document, the FBI briefed both Comer and committee Ranking Member Jamie Raskin, a Democrat from Maryland, on the form inside a Sensitive Compartmented Information Facility (SCIF) located on Capitol Hill.

Frustrated by the lack of document handover, Comer threatened to hold FBI Director Christopher Wray in contempt of Congress.

As an additional accommodation, the FBI later arranged for the FD-1023 form to be viewed by all members of the Oversight Committee in a secure setting on Capitol Hill. However, despite that effort, the committee still does not have physical possession of the document.

Time for people to be impeached.

Sources include:

FoxNews.com

NaturalNews.com
VIRGIN BIRTH: American crocodile isolated in reptile park for 16 years lays clutch of eggs

Scientists have confirmed a virgin birth in crocodiles for the first time in history. A female American crocodile that had been isolated for 16 years in a reptile park was recently discovered to have laid a clutch of eggs.

The crocodile was placed in captivity at Parque Reptilandia in Costa Rica in 2002 at the age of two. She remained alone for the next 16 years  until January 2018, when she was discovered harboring a clutch of 14 eggs in her enclosure.

The virgin birth, scientifically referred to as "facultative parthenogenesis," is a form of asexual reproduction and has been documented in several other species that typically reproduce sexually, such as in several species of sharks, lizards, snakes and birds  including the endangered California condor  mostly in captivity. But until now, it had never been recorded among the Crocodilia order, which includes crocodiles and alligators as well as caimans and gharials.

Facultative parthenogenesis, which usually results in female offspring, is thought to be triggered in several specific situations, including when there aren't any males around. This is why these kinds of virgin births are often reported in captive animals that are typically kept in single-sex enclosures.

But the scientists analyzing the Costa Rican crocodile's parthenogenesis noted that such virgin births may also be more common in species on the brink of extinction. (Related: Endangered reptile species being sold as pets could be in danger of extinction, warn scientists.)

Fetus in virgin birth crocodile egg genetically identical to its mother

In a study published in the journal Biology Letters, the team that investigated the crocodile's facultative parthenogenesis found that seven of the 14 eggs that she laid were viable, so the zoo's caretakers carefully incubated these eggs to ensure their survival. Unfortunately, all of the eggs were lost, prompting the caretakers to open the eggs about three months after they were discovered.

Six of the eggs were indiscernible. One egg contained a fully-formed, albeit non-viable, crocodile fetus. Genetic analysis revealed that the fetus was genetically identical to its mother, showing no evidence of input from any males.

This lack of genetic diversity means that individual animals born from parthenogenesis are unable to adapt to changing conditions and do not have the unique combination of genes from two parents that give them more chances of growing up to be healthy members of their species.

Lead researcher Warren Booth, a professor at Virginia Tech's Department of Entomology, expressed his disappointment that the egg failed to hatch. However, he noted that offspring born through facultative parthenogenesis often exhibit abnormalities and struggle to survive. He and his team noted that further investigations need to be conducted into possible instances of facultative parthenogenesis in animals not in captivity.

Booth also said that the discovery of a virgin birth in a crocodile means facultative parthenogenesis has now been found in both birds and crocodilians, suggesting that both species groups may have a common evolutionary origin. Birds and crocodilians are the only living representatives of archosaurs, a group that also included dinosaurs and pterosaurs

"This new evidence offers tantalizing insights into the possible reproductive capabilities of extinct archosaurian relatives of crocodilians, notably the Pterosauria and Dinosauria," the researchers wrote.

For more articles about weird facts in evolutionary history, check out WeirdScienceNews.com.

Watch this video to learn more about parthenogenesis in animals.

This video is from the channel Cory Barbee on Brighteon.com.

More related stories:

Study: 360M-year-old fossil from Ireland proves plants are capable of self-defense.

Giant flying insect discovered at Arkansas Walmart actually from the Jurassic era.

Experts think there are more GIGANTIC ANIMALS on Earth yet to be discovered.

Cold-blooded: Ron Gollobin never afraid to hunt snakes in swamps and crocodiles in the city.

Ancient reptilian vegetarians: Scientists discover fossilized teeth of extinct crocs that dined on plants.

Sources include:

LiveScience.com

Phys.org

Brighteon.com
Data privacy concerns raised as analysis finds China-based developers were responsible for TikToks code

Recent revelations regarding the involvement of Chinese software developers in writing the code for the social media platform TikTok have raised concerns about data security and potential influence operations conducted by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).

The Australian business-focused newspaper, the Australian Financial Review, received a sample of the code indicating that engineers at ByteDance, TikTok's Chinese parent company, are linked to the software development of the app. While the code is generally obfuscated, the sample appears to control the broadcasting and moderation of live streaming on the platform.

The code sample revealed that at least a dozen email addresses with usernames were associated with ByteDance. Open-source intelligence verified that many of these developers are based in mainland China. Some of the usernames and emails were found in posts seeking assistance in fixing code issues or contacts for engineer and developer job ads. (Related: Experts warns TikTok is spyware for the Chinese regime.)

With the enactment of the Chinese National Intelligence Law in 2017, which mandates organizations and citizens to assist national intelligence efforts, concerns have grown regarding potential data access by the CCP.

James Paterson, Australian Shadow Minister for Home Affairs and Cyber Security, argued that the code sample provides further evidence that TikTok is developed and managed in China and grants the CCP the ability to access user data from its one billion global users.

"They could be compelled at any time to hand that data over to the Chinese government or make changes to the algorithm to please the CCP," warned Paterson. "And we would never know about it because they would be required to keep it all a secret."

He expressed concern that such access could suppress content critical of the CCP, promote content that aligns with the party's narrative, or create division and conflict in democratic societies.

TikTok Australia denied security threat but didn't deny relationship with China

TikTok Australia General Manager Lee Hunter denied the claims of security risks and expressed disappointment in the decision to ban TikTok on Australian government devices.

"We are extremely disappointed by this decision, which, in our view, is driven by politics, not by fact," said Hunter. "We are also disappointed that TikTok, and the millions of Australians who use it, were left to learn of this decision through the media, despite our repeated offers to engage with the government constructively about this policy."

"Again, we stress that there is no evidence to suggest that TikTok is in any way a security risk to Australians and should not be treated differently to other social media platforms," he added.

What this statement did not include is a denial that TikTok's employees in China are responsible for the coding process. A company spokesperson merely emphasized that its product development and engineering teams are spread worldwide, including in the U.S., the U.K., Ireland, Singapore and China, and that changes to the code are tracked and reviewed by multiple teams outside of the communist nation.

"TikTok denies they would ever hand over data to the Chinese Communist Party, but this is very hard to believe, given their national security laws," said Paterson.

Learn more about government surveillance programs at Surveillance.news.

Watch this video to know more about the spyware the CCP forces on TikTok to infiltrate and surveil America.

This video is from the channel Chinese Taking Down Evil CCP on Brighteon.com.

More related stories:

Anti-TikTok legislation a thinly-disguised Patriot Act for the internet.

US spy chiefs now support ban on China state app TikTok but don't want to reign in Big Tech that spies on Americans.

Congress bans TikTok on official devices, calls app a security risk.

Taiwan bans TikTok from government devices, mulls nationwide prohibition.

Chinese agents caught using TikTok to manipulate midterm election in favor of Democrats.

Sources include:

TheEpochTimes.com 1

AFR.com

Brighteon.com
FDA panel unanimously supports new RSV antibody drug for infants

A panel of independent advisors to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has thrown its support behind a new preventive antibody treatment for respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) in newborns and infants.

All 21 members of the FDA's Antimicrobial Drugs Advisory Committee (AMDAC) unanimously voted in favor of the monoclonal antibody nirsevimab on June 8. The committee agreed that the benefits of nirsevimab exceed the dangers in preventing RSV infections for newborns and infants in their initial RSV season. With the AMDAC's decision, nirsevimab is closer to receiving final regulatory approval.

In a separate 19-2 vote, the AMDAC supported the monoclonal antibody's use in children aged up to two years who are are vulnerable to serious disease through their second RSV season. While the FDA is not required to follow the panel's advice, it usually does so.

Nimish Patel, a member of the AMDAC, described nirsevimab as "probably the closest thing to an RSV vaccine that we have, and it really moves the field forward." Patel, a professor of clinical pharmacy at the University of California, San Diego, added that the once-seasonal dosing schedule is a "huge advance."

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), RSV is a common respiratory virus that normally causes mild, cold-like symptoms, from which most individuals recover in a week or two. Nevertheless, the illness can be severe for some, along with infants and older adults.

RSV is the most frequent cause of bronchiolitis and pneumonia in children younger than one year old in America, and is also the major cause of hospitalization in the same age group in the nation. Among children under five years old, the virus results in up to 80,000 hospitalizations and up to 300 deaths a year in the country with most people infected at the age of two.

Big Pharma on a roll with RSV "treatments"

Nirsevimab  sold under the commercial name Beyfortus  is made by the Anglo-Swedish drug manufacturer AstraZeneca and marketed by the French drug firm Sanofi. It is already authorized for use in Canada, the United Kingdom and the European Union.

"Nirsevimab builds on AstraZeneca's strong science, leadership in RSV and commitment to addressing the needs of the most vulnerable," said Iskra Reic, AstraZeneca executive vice president for vaccines and immune therapies.

At present, palivizumab  sold under the brand name Synagis  is the only authorized preventive treatment in the U.S. against RSV for infants. Targeted to pre-term infants or high-risk infants and children, the drug gives short-term protection and is provided as monthly injections.

On the other hand, nirsemivab is a long-acting treatment scheduled to be offered once every RSV season to prevent infection. Considering it is a monoclonal antibody, nirsevimab is not cited as a vaccine. In the event that it is approved, nirsevimab would be the first preventive treatment intended to protect all newborns and infants in their initial RSV season.

An increase in the number of children afflicted with RSV in America was reported in late 2022, leaving several hospitals across the country overwhelmed.

The AMDAC's endorsement of nirsevimab came a few weeks after a separate FDA panel endorsed Pfizer's maternal RSV vaccine. The FDA's Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee (VRBPAC) gave its thumbs up to the New York-based drug company's injection intended to protect newborns from RSV, despite worries that it could lead to premature births. (Related: Big Pharma companies racing to be the first to launch an approved RSV vaccine.)

However, it remains unknown how nirsevimab works in infants whose mothers were injected with the RSV vaccine. Dr. Karen Kotloff, another member of the AMDAC, said: "There will need to be studies that are done to figure out when one is more useful than the other."

Visit BigPharmaNews.com for more stories about drug companies developing "treatments" for RSV.

Watch Jefferey Jaxen and Del Bigtree discussing the FDA's VRBPAC pushing the RSV vaccine for pregnant mothers on "The HighWire."

This video is from the Scriptural Scrutiny channel on Brighteon.com.

More related stories:

Emergency rooms packed with children sick with RSV due as amoxicillin shortage rages.

THE NEXT VAX: Big Pharma pushing to release ANOTHER mRNA "vaccine", this one for RSV (respiratory syncytial virus).

Oxford suspends trial of AstraZeneca vaccine on children amid fears of its link to deadly blood clots.

First RSV emergency declared as Pfizer and GSK race to get vaccines approved.

Sources include:

TheEpochTimes.com

NBCNews.com

Brighteon.com
A Buffalo man who killed a bystander in a double shooting has pleaded guilty to first-degree manslaughter, Erie County District Attorney John J. Flynn announced.

Victor M. Cramer-Williams, 28, faces a maximum of 25 years in prison when he returns for sentencing July 24 before Erie County Court Judge James Bargnesi.

Prosecutors said Cramer-Williams fired several shots at a 47-year-old man in an apartment in the 200 block of Auburn Avenue, west of Grant Street, in Buffalo on the night of Jan. 25, 2022, and struck not only his intended victim, but also a woman who was present.

Both were taken to Erie County Medical Center, where Erica M. Ralston, 37, of Buffalo, died Feb. 8. The man was treated and recovered.

Cramer-Williams fled the scene, prosecutors said, and was taken into custody after a chase April 14, 2022, by Buffalo police, the U.S. Marshals Violent Fugitive Task Force and the FBI Safe Streets Task Force after he was located at a home on West Utica Street.

Prosecutors said that during the chase he threw away a black bag which contained an illegal pistol. He then fought with officers and was tased during his arrest.

 Dale Anderson
U.S. investigators say covid came from classified bioweapons program at Wuhan lab

A newreport claims that the Chinese military was genetically manipulating the world's deadliest coronaviruses to create a new mutant virus right around the time the Wuhan coronavirus (Covid-19) appeared seemingly out of nowhere.

Citing hundreds of documents as evidence, including "previously confidential reports, internal memos, scientific papers and email correspondence that has been obtained through sources or by freedom of information campaigners in the three years since the pandemic started," the Times dropped a major bombshell that was also confirmed by investigators at the United States State Department who specialize in China, emerging pandemic threats, and biowarfare.

Claiming to be "the first significant U.S. inquiry into the origins of the Covid-19 outbreak," the Times report debunks the myth that covid came from bat soup sold at a Wuhan wet market. That theory, which was heavily pushed at the start of the "pandemic," is now thoroughly debunked.

(Related: Check out what EcoHealth Alliance whistleblower Dr. Andrew Huff had to say to Mike Adams about DARPA, bioweapons, and their ties to Wuhan.)

What do you think: Is covid China's fault?

It does appear, though, that the coronaviruses that Wuhan scientists were manipulating at the time when covid emerged did come from bat caves in southern China. And the U.S. government funded the research via a New York-based "charity" whose president was a British-born and educated zoologist.

That scientist shared "cutting-edge virus manipulation techniques" with the Wuhan researchers, who apparently tampered with it in an effort to build a bioweapon. Then, out of nowhere, covid appeared right on schedule following the Event 201 pandemic simulation staged by billionaire eugenicist Bill Gates.

The initial cover story for all the coronavirus manipulation research taking place in Wuhan was that it was necessary to help "science develop vaccines." Later, the story changed to one where people had supposedly died from symptoms similar to SARS after entering a mineshaft in Mojiang in Yunnan province, resulting in the need for more research.

The mineshaft incident occurred prior to covid with the circulating strain at that time being recognized as "the only members of Covid-19's immediate family known to have been in existence pre-pandemic."

It was around this time that "the trail of papers starts to go dark," according to one U.S. investigator who says "that's exactly when the classified program kicked off."

"My view is that the reason Mojiang was covered up was due to military secrecy related to [the army's] pursuit of dual use capabilities in virological biological weapons and vaccines," this same investigator told the Times.

It was the Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV) that then reportedly took the Mojiang strain and started trying to manipulate it to make it more transmissible to humans. This is how covid is believed by some to have gotten itself out there following a "lab accident" that resulted in a "leak."

"It has become increasingly clear that the Wuhan Institute of Virology was involved in the creation, promulgation and cover-up of the Covid-19 pandemic," one of the investigators further said, noting that researchers working on the experiments had to be hospitalized in November 2019 with covid-like symptoms.

"We were rock-solid confident that this was likely Covid-19 because they were working on advanced coronavirus research in the laboratory. They're trained biologists in their thirties and forties. Thirty-five-year-old scientists don't get very sick with influenza."

There is also alleged evidence to show that scientists throughout Asia "who have close relationships with the Wuhan Institute of Virology" were working on Covid-19 "vaccines" long before the "pandemic" appeared.

"They told me it is their belief that there was vaccine research going on in the fall of 2019, pertinent to Covid-19 vaccination," one of the investigators added.

The latest news about the covid scam can be found at Plague.info.

Sources for this article include:

ZeroHedge.com

NaturalNews.com
Russian soldiers show off captured Western tanks, U.S.-made Bradley Fighting Vehicles, as trophies

The war between Russia and Ukraine continues to drag on and is now in its 16th month and shows no signs of letting up.

And while lots of videos have been posted to social media regarding destroyed and captured Russian equipment, a new video has surfaced wherein Russian troops show off captured Ukrainian equipment referred to as "trophies." And worse, the gear is Western-made.

According to the Russian Defense Ministry (MoD), their troops have reportedly seized NATO-supplied armored vehicles in the Zaporizhia region. The vehicles were apparently abandoned by retreating Ukrainian soldiers, the report said.

The MoD released footage showing Russian troops inspecting the captured German-made Leopard 2 main battle tank and US-produced Bradley infantry fighting vehicles, which were found to be in relatively good condition, with some still having their engines running. The Russian military has referred to these Western-supplied heavy armored vehicles as "our trophies."

?The Russian Ministry of Defense just released footage of captured Ukrainian Bradley infantry fighting vehicles and a Leopard 2 tank. pic.twitter.com/S0ZYy4c6Cb  Michael A. Horowitz (@michaelh992) June 13, 2023

One Russian soldier can be seen in the video stating, "This [explicit] hardware is not as scary as it seemed." He then picks up a rocket-propelled grenade launcher which was left atop what appears to be a U.S.-made Bradley Fighting Vehicle.

The Russian MoD statement declared that the condition the Ukrainian equipment was found in "indicates the rapid pace of the engagement and the abandonment of the battle-ready hardware by the Ukrainian armed forces," according to a statement in state media. And Agence France Presse reported that "The Defense Ministry said several of the captured vehicles had working engines, suggesting that the battles they were involved in had been short and that Ukrainian troops had 'fled' their offensive positions."

Following reports last week of the Russian military destroying a Leopard 2 battle tank and several other NATO-supplied vehicles, including Bradleys, the recent development showcases Moscow's eagerness to present evidence of disabled and damaged Western heavy weaponry. It remains somewhat unclear whether the footage released on Tuesday depicts a fresh batch of destroyed vehicles or if it pertains to the same incident from last week, Zero Hedge reported.

Tyler Rogoway, who is the editor-in-chief of The War Zone, which is part of The Drive, wrote:

Ever since more advanced NATO armor was possibly in the works for Ukraine, I stressed that we will be seeing burned out/destroyed examples, potentially a lot of them, and that is going to be the reality that may be a tough pill to swallow for some.

These things are not invincible by any means, and NATO fights with them in complex combined arms manner that helps maximize their advantages and minimize their vulnerabilities.

This is just the beginning. We will see many more destroyed western main battle tanks and armored fighting vehicles. Russia will learn how to best effectively attack them based on Ukraine's tactics and Ukraine will learn how best to preserve them while using them effectively. This happens beyond accelerated training. Lessons learned the hard way, in blood.

If you were not expecting this, you have listened to the wrong perspectives, and this is just the beginning.

"Unseating an enemy force that had over a year to prepare for just this battle was never going to be some cakewalk. Anyone who pushed that idea is not living in reality," Rogoway added. "Time will tell how this all plays out, but dead armor, including advanced western types, is going to be a common facet of this offensive, not some stunning exception."

Nevertheless, the Biden regime -- backed by congressional Democrats who used to hate endless wars -- says it won't be deterred from continuing to supply taxpayer bought-and-paid-for equipment to a foreign country at war.

The U.S.-backed Voice of America reported Monday, "The United States is providing up to $325 million in additional military aid for Ukraine, a U.S. defense official tells VOA."

Sources include:

VOANews.com

ZeroHedge.com

Twitter.com
Science says theres NO EVIDENCE supporting transgender drugs, surgeries

Evidence continues to mount showing that there isof any benefits stemming from the transgender mutilation and pharmaceutical drugging of children.

Despite constant claims from the LGBT industry that cutting off children's body parts and giving them gender-bender pharmaceutical drugs is helping these little ones to "heal" and become their "true selves," the overwhelming body of science points to the exact opposite being true.

"Gender-affirming care," as the left deceptively calls it, is creating more health problems, both mental and physical, in people who fall for it. And once the process is complete, a child can never go back to being his or her true biological self, which in turn leads to more depression and, in some cases, suicide or even homicide.

Much of the science exposing these truths is coming from across the pond in Europe where authorities are coming to grips with the fact that destroying children's bodies with drugs and surgery is not producing a better society, nor is it helping gender dysphoric individuals to overcome their mental illness.

(Related: Many leftists consider it "hate" to oppose the transgender mutilation of children.)

Rachel Levine, Biden's HHS head, says questioning transgender ideology is the same as "murder"

Prior to 2006 when the so-called Dutch Protocol was introduced in Europe, the prescription of hormones to children to halt puberty was an extremely rare occurrence. It only started to become more accepted in the mid-1990s when Dutch clinicians surmised that drugging children was okay since doing so was reversible  or so they claimed.

Much of Europe is rejecting said protocol in the modern age because there is simply no evidence to suggest that transgender mutilation and drugging is helping children with gender dysphoria. We now know that pre-pubescent hormone drugging is not reversible, which is why practices are changing over there.

Over here, conversely, fake president Joe Biden and his LGBT-infested cabinet are aggressively pushing transgender mutilation on American children, claiming it will help them to feel more comfortable in their own bodies.

Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Rachel Levine, a biological male who plays dress up as a makeup-caked woman, insists that children should be mutilated and drugged on demand. Levine also claims that questioning such practices is tantamount to murder, having stated:

"The language of medicine and science is being used to drive people to suicide [...] There is no argument among medical professionals  pediatricians, pediatric endocrinologists, adolescent medicine physicians, adolescent psychiatrists, psychologists, etc.  about the value and the importance of gender-affirming care."

As you can see, Europe's values are still more morally intact than America's values under Biden, Levine, and the true puppet master: Barack Hussein Obama, who really got the ball rolling in trans-ifying the nation with the help of his "wife" Michelle.

No matter what these sexual deviants try to claim otherwise, puberty blockers are not reversible. Once a child undergoes the process, there is no reversing it as the damage is permanent.

Furthermore, the long-term effects of transgender drugging remain unknown. What will become of all these "trans" children's bodies once they grow into full adulthood? Will their bodies even work? What about their mangled reproductive organs and even waste elimination functions?

A better name for such "treatments" is life-ruining care, not "gender-affirming" care. Even if their mutilated bodies could still be salvaged, their brains will be long gone due to the devesting impact of these drugs on cognition and mental capacity.

"Systematic reviews of evidence conducted by public health authorities in Finland, Sweden, and England concluded that the risk / benefit ratio of youth gender transition ranges from unknown to unfavorable," a recent paper published in the journal Current Sexual Health Reports concluded.

Transgender mutilation is all the rage in today's America. To keep up with the latest, visit Transhumanism.news.

Sources for this article include:

LifeSiteNews.com

NaturalNews.com
Ways to keep indoor air clean when theres wildfire smoke in your area

Breathing in wildfire smoke can have immediate health effects , including an asthma attack, chest pain, coughing, fast heartbeat, headaches, irritated sinuses, runny nose, scratchy throat, shortness of breath and wheezing, stinging eyes, tiredness and trouble breathing normally.

Children, older adults, pregnant women and people with preexisting respiratory and heart conditions may be more likely to get sick if they breathe in wildfire smoke.

Government officials and healthcare professionals encouraged New Yorkers to stay home and avoid going outside to protect themselves as New York Citys air quality remained unhealthy due to Canadian wildfires. (Related: California wildfire smoke may have contributed to over 1,000 deaths - so far.)

But the advice to stay home isn't enough without paying attention to the quality of air indoors. Here are some steps individuals can take to improve the air quality in their homes and keep indoor air as clean as possible:

Keep your windows and doors closed

Make sure your windows and doors are shut to prevent ash and smoke from getting inside your home and reduce your exposure to harmful air pollution. You can stuff rags, sheets or towels to block air coming from the sides of windows or the bottom of doors.

Monitor indoor air quality

Using air monitor devices is recommended because sometimes the air quality inside can be just as bad or even worse than that outside.

An air quality monitor is a device that measures the particulate matter within the air at its location, explained Dr. Stephanie Christenson, an assistant professor in the division of pulmonary, critical care, allergy and sleep medicine at the University of California in San Francisco (UCSF). An air quality monitor typically has different meters within it  some have three and others are four  that assess oxygen content, carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide and volatile gasses inside the house.

Use an air purifier

A high-quality air purifier, such as those that contain high-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filters, can be very effective at keeping your inside air clean.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) suggests running your air cleaner on the highest setting to reduce air pollution by at least half. You can create your own if you can't find an affordable air cleaner.

Experts advise against using ionic purifiers as they can do more harm than good. They can create ozone (another air pollutant) and are often more expensive.

Set your air conditioning system to cycle fresh air

Many window air conditioner units filter the indoor air as it is cooled and will provide some reduction in indoor wildfire smoke. The effectiveness depends on what type of air system you have in your home  "the higher the Minimum Efficiency Reporting Values (MERV) rating, the better the filtration will be," according to Dr. Mike Van Dyke of the Department of Environmental and Occupational Health at the Colorado School of Public Health.

If you have forced air or a central heating and cooling system, keep the air con on to help recirculate the air and filter out the harmful particles in the wildfire smoke; if you have an HVAC system, set it to recirculate mode; if you have a window unit, turn off the outdoor air intake damper; if you cannot turn off the outdoor air intake damper, turn the entire AC unit off as you dont want it pulling smoky air into your home; and don't use outdoor mounted evaporative coolers if you have one as these can bring large quantities of outdoor air into the home.

Reduce air pollution indoors

Avoid activities that can create finer particles and worsen your indoor air quality, such as vacuuming and cooking with gas, propane and wood-burning stoves.

Vacuuming generates a large amount of airborne dust, which requires air flow and dilution to dissipate. Its best to vacuum when you can open the windows. Burning methane indoors, meanwhile, releases the pollutants nitrogen dioxide and carbon monoxide, which are harmful to health.

Also avoid using aerosol products, smoking cigarettes and lighting candles or incense indoors.

Wear a face mask

A high-quality face mask secured tightly to your face can prevent you from breathing in pollutants during long periods of time outdoors when the Air Quality Index (AQI) exceeds 150, or if you have pre-existing respiratory or cardiovascular issues, says Van Dyke.

Air out your house when the air quality improves

When the hazardous smoke blows away and the air is clean again, youll want to freshen your indoor air.

Take advantage of days where the Air Quality Index is 50 or lower and open the windows.

Opening your doors and windows to clean outdoor air will very quickly remove air pollutants.

Watch the following video to learn how to keep your air quality safe as Canada's wildfire smoke spreads.

This video is from the Daily Videos channel on Brighteon.com.

More related stories:

Wildfire plumes worldwide are contributing to ozone pollution and harming air quality.

Just one day of bad air can negatively affect children's health, caution scientists.

Report: 4 in 10 Americans breathe polluted air.

Sources include:

CDC.gov

TheCity.NYC

AsthmaAndAllergyFriendly.com

Healthline.com

Brighteon.com
What they dont want you to know about lab-grown meat

While the fake meat industry is being touted as an environmentally friendly and sustainable way to feed the world, the true intent is to recreate the kind of global control that Monsanto and others achieved through patented GMO (genetically modified organism) seed development.

(Article by Dr. Joseph Mercola republished from TakeControl.Substack.com)

Researchers at the University of California, Davis (UC Davis) warn there are major environmental downsides to lab-grown meat. According to their cradle-to-gate life cycle analysis, the lab-grown meat industry produces up to 25 times more CO2 than traditional animal husbandry, which nullifies the core ideological foundation upon which the industry is built.

Each kilo of cultured meat produces anywhere from 542 pounds (246 kilos) to 3,325 pounds (1,508 kg) of carbon dioxide emissions, making the climate impact of cultured meat four to 25 times greater than that of conventional beef.

At present, most cultured meat companies still use fetal bovine serum (FBS) as the growth medium, which is obtained from unborn calves that are cut out of the womb and drained of their blood while still alive. Hence, most claims of cultured meat being animal-free or free of animal cruelty are false.

Mission Barns is developing imitation bacon made from a mix of cultured meat, cell-cultured pork fat and pea protein. Have the pigs from which the cell samples are taken been treated with mRNA vaccines, and if so, is the cultured pork and pork fat safe to eat?

While the fake meat industry is being touted as an environmentally friendly and sustainable way to feed the world, the true intent is to recreate the kind of global control that Monsanto and others achieved through patented GMO seed development.

In the end, lab-created meats are worse for the environment than livestock and will undoubtedly deteriorate human health to boot, just like GMO grains have.

Lab-grown meat is worse for environment than cattle

As reported by the San Francisco Chronicle, researchers at UC Davis warn there are major environmental downsides to lab-grown meat that arent part of the conversation or the decision-making process.

According to their cradle-to-gate life cycle analysis, the lab-grown meat industry produces up to 25 times more CO2 than traditional animal husbandry, which nullifies the core ideological foundation upon which the industry is built.

As noted by the authors, investors have poured billions of dollars into animal cell-based meat (ACBM) sector based on the theory that cultured meat is more environmentally friendly than beef. But that hype is primarily based on flawed analyses of carbon emissions.

The primary sources of CO2 emissions are the purification processes, which require fossil fuels. The bacteria used to produce the meat releases endotoxins, and these must be eliminated from the growth medium or else the cells wont reproduce properly.

As noted by the authors:

Animal cell culture is traditionally done with growth medium components which have been refined to remove/reduce endotoxin. The use of these refinement methods contributes significantly to the economic and environmental costs associated with pharmaceutical products since they are both energy and resource intensive.

Based on this assessment, each kilo of cultured meat produces anywhere from 542 pounds (246 kilos) to 3,325 pounds (1,508 kg) of carbon dioxide emissions, making the climate impact of cultured meat four to 25 times greater than that of conventional beef.

Sham claims based on nonexistent technologies

The UC Davis life cycle analysis also points out that several estimates of ACBM climate impacts are dependent on novel technologies that either do not exist yet or are unlikely to work.

For example, some have proposed growing cyanobacteria hydrolysate in open concrete ponds to then be harvested, sterilized, hydrolyzed and used as an animal cell growth medium. The problem is that this technology is not currently used, nor is it one that is currently near feasibility, the authors note.

In short, the claims propping up the cultured meat industry are a sham, as the idea that cultured meat is a greener option is based on nonexistent technologies rather than the technologies that are in use.

Previous research also pokes holes in environmental claims

Other studies have also been critical of the ACBM industrys claims. For example, a 2019 article in the journal Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems found that were the world to make the transition to cultured meat, its impact on global warming might initially appear to be beneficial. However, over time, cultured meat production would result in greater warming.

As concluded by the authors:

Under continuous high global consumption, cultured meat results in less warming than cattle initially, but this gap narrows in the long term and in some cases, cattle production causes far less warming, as CH4 emissions do not accumulate, unlike CO2 

We conclude that cultured meat is not prima facie climatically superior to cattle; its relative impact instead depends on the availability of decarbonized energy generation and the specific production systems that are realized.

False claims are par for the course

Despite analyses such as these, youd be hard-pressed to find a cultured meat company that doesnt claim to generate less greenhouse gas emissions than animal agriculture, although some simply talk in circles around it. Take Mission Barns, for example.

Mission Barns makes imitation bacon and meatballs by mixing pea protein with cultured meat and pig fat produced by cell culture to give the meat the flavor and aroma of real pork. Its website makes the following sustainability claim:

Animal agriculture generates more greenhouse gas emissions than all transportation combined and is a major driver of deforestation and waterway pollution. Cultivated meat is much kinder to nature  using less resources to preserve our planet.

Note that theyre not actually making any direct environmental claims about their own cultured meat. Instead, they argue that animal farming generates more greenhouse gases than transportation, which is irrelevant when it comes to determining which of two options  farming or lab-created meat  is better for the environment.

If animal farming generates more greenhouse gases than transportation, then lab-created meats generate more greenhouse gases than transportation as well, and likely several times more.

It sounds good, though, and its confusing enough that most readers wont realize that they just told you nothing about their own sustainability.

Are animals harmed in the making of fake meat?

Mission Barns also claims that no animals are ever harmed in its cultured meat process. All that is required to grow the meat, they say, is a small sample [of fat cells] from a pig, which isnt harmed by the biopsy and goes on to live a normal, healthy life. The question is, what are the collected cells grown in?

Cultured or cell-based meats must be grown in a nutrient-rich media, and most are still using FBS, which is obtained from unborn calves that are cut out of the womb and drained of their blood while still alive.

FBS has long been used in science as its the perfect growth medium. So far, FBS has been considered a byproduct of conventional meat production. Supposedly, cows are not specifically impregnated to harvest the calves for FBS; rather, the calves are sacrificed whenever a random pregnant cow is slaughtered for meat.

However, unless FBS is abandoned across the cultured meat industry, its easy to foresee a future in which cows are raised and impregnated simply to supply the fake meat industry with FBS, which takes both food waste and animal cruelty to entirely new levels.

Animal cruelty on steroids

One could argue that the fake meat industry is already promoting a more obscene form of animal cruelty than animal farming in general, seeing how the increased need for FBS will require more pregnant cows to be slaughtered.

Are we absolutely sure that cows arent being impregnated and calves sacrificed just to satisfy this ever-growing need for FBS? As reported by Nutraceuticals World:

Given the essential role of FBS in the production process, many of the soon-to-market cultured meats will not truly be completely animal-free or cruelty-free. Rapid growth of cultured meat would drive greater demand for FBS.

Several companies, notably Meatable and Future Meat, have introduced alternative growth techniques that do not require FBS. For now, however, FBS-based growth stimulation is still the norm, and it somewhat taints the claim that cultured meat is totally humane.

In 2018, Mission Barns CSO David Bowman argued that fetal bovine serum is a non-starter because the process is unsustainable. It requires the slaughter of at least as many cows as are slaughtered now, he said.

At the time, Bowman predicted that Mission Barns would, in due time, have media recipes developed in-house that are patented.

The question is, has the company invented a new media or are they still using FBS? Its no animal harm claim really hangs on that detail, and Ive not been able to confirm it either way.

What ChatGPT says about FBS and its use

On a side note, a member of my team recently chatted with ChatGPT about the use of FBS in the cultured meat industry. Here are a few of the Q & As from that session.

Question  There are many articles about cultured meats utilizing serum from bovine fetus to grow the cultures, is that true?

ChatGPT  As of my knowledge cutoff in September 2021, the information regarding the use of bovine fetal serum in the production of cultured meats is accurate.

Traditional methods of cultivating animal cells for laboratory purposes, including the production of cultured meats, often rely on the use of fetal bovine serum (FBS) or bovine serum as a growth medium. FBS contains various growth factors and nutrients necessary for the cells to proliferate.

However, its important to note that the field of cultured meat is rapidly evolving, and researchers are actively exploring alternative methods to reduce or eliminate the dependence on animal-derived components.

The use of FBS raises ethical concerns, as it involves extracting blood from unborn calves. Moreover, it adds to the cost and scalability challenges of cultured meat production.

In recent years, significant progress has been made in developing serum-free or animal-free alternatives for cell culture in the cultured meat industry. Scientists are exploring plant-based and synthetic growth media that can provide the necessary nutrients for cell growth.

These efforts aim to make cultured meat production more sustainable, scalable, and free from animal-derived inputs.

Question  What is the process used to purify the serum from the fetal blood?

ChatGPT  The process of purifying FBS from fetal blood typically involves several steps to separate and isolate the serum from other components. While specific protocols may vary, here is a general overview of the process:

Collection  Fetal bovine blood is collected from the fetuses of slaughtered cows. The blood is typically obtained by dissecting the fetus and collecting it through a process called exsanguination. Clotting and separation  The collected blood is allowed to clot at room temperature or in refrigerated conditions. During this time, the blood naturally coagulates, forming a gel-like substance known as a clot. The clot contains red blood cells, white blood cells and other cellular components. Centrifugation  The clot is then subjected to centrifugation, a process that involves spinning the sample at high speeds. This separates the serum, which is the clear, liquid portion, from the clot and cellular debris. The centrifugation process relies on the principle of density differences to isolate the serum. Filtration  To further remove any remaining cellular debris or impurities, the serum is often filtered through fine filters. This step helps achieve a more purified serum by removing particulates and unwanted substances. Sterilization  The purified serum may undergo sterilization processes, such as filtration through sterilizing-grade filters or heat treatment, to ensure the removal of any potential microorganisms or contaminants that could compromise the quality and safety of the serum.

The resulting purified FBS is then typically processed into small aliquots, frozen and stored at low temperatures to maintain its stability and quality until it is ready for use as a growth medium in cell culture, including cultured meat production.

Its important to note that specific protocols and variations can exist depending on the manufacturer or supplier of FBS. The purification process may also include additional steps or modifications based on the intended use and quality requirements of the serum.

Question  Are the calves aborted?

ChatGPT  In the context of using FBS for cell culture, the serum is typically collected from bovine fetuses obtained from pregnant cows at slaughterhouses. The fetuses are not intentionally aborted for the purpose of FBS production. Instead, they are collected as a byproduct of the meat industry.

During the process of slaughtering pregnant cows, the fetuses are removed and their blood is collected. This blood is then processed to extract the serum, which contains the necessary growth factors and nutrients for cell culture. The use of FBS has been a longstanding practice in biomedical and biotechnological research.

Question  So in order to create cultured meats, they are dependent on the meat industry to process aborted fetal calves to extract blood from them?

ChatGPT  I apologize if my previous response caused any confusion. To clarify, the use of FBS in cell culture, including the production of cultured meats, does involve obtaining blood from bovine fetuses. However, the collection of FBS is not directly linked to intentional abortions.

The source of FBS is primarily derived from pregnant cows that are already being slaughtered for meat production purposes. The collection of FBS occurs during this process as a byproduct, rather than being the primary objective. The fetuses are not intentionally aborted for the sole purpose of FBS extraction.

Question  How is the abortion not intentional if the mother of the calf is killed?

ChatGPT  I apologize for any confusion caused by my previous responses. When pregnant cows are slaughtered for meat production, the collection of FBS occurs as a result of that process. The intent of the slaughter is to obtain meat from the cows, not specifically to harvest the fetal blood. The fetuses are not intentionally aborted in order to collect FBS.

During the slaughter process, if a cow happens to be pregnant, the fetuses are removed as part of the overall procedure. It is this fetal blood that is then collected and processed to obtain FBS. The intention behind the slaughter is for meat production, and the collection of FBS is a byproduct of that process.

Question  So, its an accidental abortion?

ChatGPT  Yes, in the context of FBS collection, it could be referred to as an accidental abortion  The collection of FBS from these fetuses is considered a byproduct of the meat industry, rather than an intentional abortion for the purpose of FBS extraction.

Question  So, the cultured meat industry is dependent on the accidental abortions of calves in the meat processing industry?

ChatGPT  In the current state of the cultured meat industry, the use of FBS as a growth medium does rely on the collection of fetal blood from pregnant cows slaughtered for meat production.

However, its important to note that this reliance on FBS and its association with the meat industry is a matter of convenience and tradition rather than a fundamental requirement for cultured meat production  While FBS is currently commonly used, the industry is actively seeking alternatives to move towards a more sustainable and ethical approach.

Question  It sounds like alternatives for FBS dont currently exist, so that is all hypothetical.

ChatGPT  While alternatives to FBS are being actively researched and developed, it is true that as of my knowledge cutoff in September 2021, serum-free or animal-free alternatives for FBS in cultured meat production are not yet widely available or commercially implemented.

However, its worth noting that scientific advancements are being made in this area  Although the widespread adoption of these alternatives may still be in progress, it is not accurate to say that all efforts to find alternatives to FBS are purely hypothetical. There is ongoing research and development in this field, and the cultured meat industry is actively working towards reducing reliance on animal-derived inputs such as FBS.

Its advisable to consult more recent sources or updates in the cultured meat industry for the most up-to-date information on the progress of serum-free or animal-free alternatives to FBS in cultured meat production.

Question  Ongoing research is still a hypothesis and no alternative currently exists.

ChatGPT  You are correct that ongoing research and development of alternatives to FBS in cultured meat production does not guarantee the immediate availability of viable alternatives. While efforts are being made, the implementation and commercialization of these alternatives are still in progress.

As of my knowledge cutoff in September 2021, serum-free or animal-free alternatives to FBS are not yet widely utilized in the cultured meat industry. While there are promising developments and ongoing research, it is accurate to say that no widely accepted and commercially available alternative to FBS currently exists.

Question  What viable options are close?

ChatGPT  Since my knowledge cutoff in September 2021, there have been advancements in the research and development of alternatives to FBS in cultured meat production. While no widely accepted and commercially available alternative exists yet, several potential options have shown promise and are being actively explored. Here are a few notable examples:

Plant-based media  Researchers are investigating the use of plant-based extracts and formulations as a substitute for FBS. Plant-derived growth factors and nutrients can provide the necessary components for cell culture. Examples include soy protein, yeast extracts and plant-derived growth factors. Animal-free synthetic media  Synthetic media formulations, composed of chemically defined nutrients, are being developed to support cell growth in cultured meat production. These synthetic alternatives aim to provide precise control over nutrient composition and eliminate the need for animal-derived components. Recombinant proteins  Recombinant proteins, produced through genetic engineering techniques, are being explored as a potential alternative to FBS. These proteins can be designed to mimic the growth factors present in FBS and support cell growth in a serum-free environment. Cell-based approaches  Another avenue of research involves developing cell-based approaches to generate the necessary growth factors and nutrients. This includes genetically engineered cells that produce the required factors or utilizing animal cells that can secrete the necessary components for culture media.

Are mRNA-treated swine used in cultured pork?

One last question I have is, are the pigs from which Mission Barn takes its samples treated with mRNA vaccines?

In a May 11, article, I pointed out that pork producers in the U.S. and Canada have been using customizable mRNA-based vaccines on their herds since 2018, and the only part of this gene-based vaccine technology that has been approved is the mRNA platform itself.

All customized mRNA injections created using this platform are untested.

The safety is assumed, based on a single study involving 748 piglets, which were given two doses of an unspecified mRNA Sequivity injection. Of those, 29.8% suffered a serious adverse event, including 24 deaths.

When adding together death, anorexia (wasting) and unthrifty (failure to thrive), 11.5% of the animals were lost to vaccine injury. Thats a loss of more than 1 out of 10 animals, which hardly seems safe.

Moreover, there are no safety studies at all related to human consumption of Sequivity-treated animals, let alone meat grown from mRNA-treated cells.

Health authorities insist there are no problems associated with eating mRNA-treated meat, but they have absolutely no evidence to back that up. Its pure conjecture based on unproven assumptions.

Meanwhile, recent research shows Pfizers and Modernas mRNA COVID-19 shots are heavily contaminated with simian virus 40 (SV40) promoters that, for decades, have been suspected of causing cancer in humans, and theoretically can modify the human genome.

Are animal mRNA shots also contaminated with SV40? If so, is it possible that these and/or other DNA contaminants might modify the swine genome? And if so, what do we end up with if cells from genetically modified swine are used to grow meat?

I have no answers to any of these questions at the moment, and thats why Mission Barns fake bacon concerns me, even if they dont use FBS.

Mission Barns states that no antibiotics were ever used, but what about vaccines, mRNA gene therapies in particular? Overall, the fake meat industry has a long way to go before all relevant questions are answered.

Until then, I recommend avoiding not only all cultured meats but all conventional pork as well, seeing how mRNA gene therapy is allowed even in organic pork.

Read more at: TakeControl.Substack.com
Right Now with Ann Vandersteel: WHO forming new entity to detect infectious diseases worldwide  Brighteon.TV

According to Zelenko Freedom Foundation (ZFF) Co-Chair Ann Vandersteel, the World Health Organization (WHO) is forming a new global entity in partnership with private organizations and major countries to detect infectious diseases around the world

"The WHO is partnering with key countries on all continents and private entities  to form a new global organization to monitor, identify and track diseases," she remarked during the June 5 episode of her program "Right Now with Ann Vandersteel" on Brighteon.TV.

Vandersteel disclosed that the Rockefeller Foundation is one of the entities involved. However, she also noted that it remains unclear whether the London-based Wellcome Trust is a partner. The website for the WHO's Hub for Pandemic and Epidemic Intelligence (HPEI) does not name the global health body's partners.

Nevertheless, Vandersteel pointed out that the move demonstrates a lack of openness, transparency and integrity on the WHO's part. She said a small group of people at the World Health Assembly (WHA) that a select group of undisclosed partners will have total global control over the prediction data and information of future pandemics. (Related: Ron Armstrong: The WHO wants MORE AUTHORITY in all future pandemics.)

WHO head can declare pandemics on a whim

According to Vandersteel, the WHO and Rockefeller Foundation's initiative involves a "global pandemic radar" that reaches every corner of the planet to detect infectious diseases as they appear. The foundation announced its partnership with the global health body in a May 23 press release. As part of the partnership, the foundation invested $5 million in partners working with the WHO for disease surveillance.

WHO Assistant Director General Dr. Chikwe Ihekweazu said: "The Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19 pandemic underscored that disease surveillance, collaboration between stakeholders, and data sharing were absolutely essential ingredients for health security  and the global community was unprepared. With the increasing threats from climate change, we are excited to partner with the Rockefeller Foundation to usher in a new era of global collaboration in pandemic intelligence."

"Climate change is increasing both the risk of another global pandemic and the need to collaborate and share data. Fortunately, the [HPEI] is already making us smarter and safer by helping track threats, find solutions and connect countries and continents," said Rockefeller Foundation President Dr. Rajiv Shah.

But according to Vandersteel, the May 23 announcement left no doubt that the new HPEI is focused on pandemics purportedly being caused by "climate change." She also pointed out that the WHO director-general  currently Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus  could declare "pandemics" on a whim in the name of health, environment and climate.

The Brighteon.TV host ultimately remarked that the WHO and its partners have not been given the authority to make decisions on behalf of the entire world. She lamented how the global health body and its allied globalist institutions have excluded the more than eight billion people in the world from having any say. Moreover, Vandersteel also questioned who is really controlling the data that would be used to declare a global pandemic.

Follow MedicalTyranny.com for more news about the World Health Organization.

Watch the June 5 episode of "Right Now with Ann Vandersteel" below. Tune in to "Right Now with Ann Vandersteel" every weekday at 8-8:30 p.m. on Brighteon.TV.

More related stories:

Right Now with Ann Vandersteel: US funnels $1B per year to WHO, says James Roguski  Brighteon.TV.

Our sovereignty at stake: Republicans push back against WHO plan to implement "global governance" during emergencies.

Is the WHO planning to unleash climate lockdowns as the next "pandemic?"

WHO declares end to COVID-19 global public health emergency after its fraudulent policies destroyed lives and economies.

Biological warfare expert warns: WHO will lower humans to the status of animals to gain more control.

Sources include:

Brighteon.com

RockefellerFoundation.org
Thousands of dead fish along the Texas gulf coast have been reported over the weekend in a case previously thought as mysterious.

Local officials asserted the 'fish kills' event was likely caused by low dissolved oxygen caused by warming ocean temperatures. Other theories point out algae for such oxygen-depriving phenomenon.

Officials have warned residents to stay out of the beach, particularly along the Brazoria County coastline in Texas due to 'increased bacteria levels.' The fish death toll is expected to increase in the coming days.

In the past, similar incidents have been reported in other parts of the world either due to human-induced marine pollution or climate change-driven ocean warming.

Dead Fish Texas Gulf Coast

Texas residents were urged by local authorities to stay out of the coastline following the discovery of a colossal number of dead fish along Brazoria County during the weekend. Now, officials and AccuWeather meteorologists have provided insights as what is behind the mass fish deaths, according to AccuWeather on Tuesday, June 13.

The U.S. weather forecasting company described the number of dead fish in "biblical proportions" as the waters in the Gulf of Mexico was covered with seemingly countless fish carcasses. Authorities linked the cause of deaths due to lack or absence of oxygen in the sea. While assertions have been made, it is still unclear if marine debris or pollution, as well as algae, also contributed to the event.

Also Read: Piles of Dead Fish Removed from River Border Between Germany, Poland

Probable Causes

The Texas Parks & Wildlife (TPWD) Kills and Spills Team reported "low dissolved oxygen" was behind the swarms of dead fish, citing that both natural and anthropogenic factors could cause the event, in what some people deemed as an ecological disaster.

In terms of human activities, nutrient run-off from agriculture and those coming from treated and untreated sewage waste are major contributors the depletion of oxygen in coastal waters, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) says.

The IUCN calls such phenomenon as 'ocean deoxygenation' which drives the over-enrichment of waters with nutrients. According to the organization, the world's oxygen content in the ocean has decreased by approximately 2% since the mid-20th century. It adds the amount of ocean waters depleted of oxygen has quadrupled since the 1960s.

Meanwhile, the low dissolved oxygen can also be caused excessive algae growth due to the presence of phosphorus, as well as nitrogen. Dissolved oxygen is consumed when algae die and decompose, according to the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency.

Fish Kill Events

Fish kill events and other deaths of marine animals have been linked to various environmental factors, in addition to anthropogenic causes.

In Australia, a related event caused the deaths of millions of fish in the lower Darlin-Baaka River near Menindee. This succeeded an earlier incident in the same area in 2019 when a million fish died due to drought conditions, according to The Guardian.

Related Article: Mass Die-Off Blocks Waterway with Millions of Dead Fish -Australia
Ancient human migration to Australia was a result of a failed population in Laos, according to a new study. This came after scientists found inside a Laotian cave containing human fossils, the earliest evidence of its kind about the inquiry of how humans set foot in Australia.

To clarify, Laos is only a transit point since the new research suggests that first humans ended up in Australia due to their potential failure to settle in some parts of Southeast Asia at first.

Archeologists, anthropologists, and other scientists have long asserted that Africa is the cradle of civilization, a notion that tells us that the origin of modern humans started in the said continent. As our ancestors decided to migrate to different parts of the world, some ended up settling in different regions, with cases of success or not.

For Australia, the study tells us that our ancestors ventured further into the unknown due to circumstances yet to be known.

The setting for such migration dates back tens of thousands of years ago, a time when now-extinct mammals and some other animals roamed Australia. These people called "Aboriginal Australians" were the first people that arrived in the country long before the colonization of the British Empire. Now, scientists are digging deeper into the past, even into the ancestors of the Aboriginals.

When Did Humans First Get to Australia?

In the past, various perspectives clashed about the origins of the first Australians. During the 1980s and 1990s, the two main perspectives were based on the 'Out of Africa' and 'Multiregional' models. However, there is a new and prevailing consensus now that all modern humans descended from a Homo sapiens population in Africa and migrated around the world, the Australian Museum stated.

In the 'Out of Africa' model, the first humans reportedly colonized Australia through Southeast Asia, using it as a bridge and habitat to reach the country, according to the museum. The dominant thought about this migration is that ancient humans used coastal areas only in Southeast Asia to navigate their way to Australia. Yet, the new study mentioned earlier in this article showed that humans also traverse the forest and even caves during their migration journey.

Also Read: Ancient Crops Shed Light on Madagascar Migration Mystery

Ancient Human Migration

In the study published in the journal Nature Communications on Tuesday, June 13, researchers found the said human fossil evidence of our human ancestors who were making their way into mainland Southeast Asia toward Australia approximately 86,000 years ago.

The evidence consists of two human fossils. It aged between 86,000 and 68,000 years ago. The research team used five different dating techniques to determine their age. Still, one thing is clear the ancient migrants used the Tam Pa Ling Cave in Laos, where the fossilized bones were found, as a shelter.

Previous research found similar human fossils, including two jawbones, dating back 70,000 to 46,000 years ago, which were shipped in the United States before being returned to Laos, according to Science Alert.

Related Article: Sunken Islands Explain Ancient Migration with an Interesting History
Despite repeated warnings, a diver continues to stroke and pet a sea lion pup, alarming officials. Reminders on how visitors should behave near seal and sea lion pups are frequently given by both wildlife officials and conservationists.

Man caught on camera petting sea lion pup in La Jolla https://t.co/UwhEoienLT via @CBS8  Witchy Fandom Ph (@WitchyFandom_ph) June 13, 2023

Disturbing a Sea Lion Pup

Concerns among conservationists have been raised by a video showing a diver petting a young sea lion on a Californian beach.

A man was spotted squatting down next to a sea lion pup at San Diego's La Jolla beach and patting the animal. He can hear the coast guard telling him to get away from the sea lion in the distance but ignores them.

Both harbor seals and California sea lions are indigenous to the west coast of North America, and both species have made La Jolla their nesting grounds. Around 100 seals and 150 to 200 sea lions, with seasonal peaks, are present.

Effects on Wildlife

Marine mammals are looking for a place to recuperate and replenish their energy when they are not in the water, according to the CEO of the Marine Mammal Care Center, John Warner. People's interactions with the pup may cause stress, which can impair their immune systems or cause mother seals or sea lions to flee from pups or tumble off cliffs.

Moving away from people can lead to the animals wasting valuable energy reserves and upsetting the newborn pups' necessary feeding regimens. Every pup's feeding is timed by its mother to ensure that it receives all the calories and nutrients it needs to give it the best chance of survival, according to Sue Sayer of the Seal Research Trust in the UK.

According to Carol Toye of the Sierra Club Seal Society in San Diego, a mother's attachment with her pup may be broken by people approaching or touching it, which may cause the mother to abandon it.

Effects on Humans

The risk of handling wild animals extends to people. According to Warner, animals may harbor a variety of pathogens and germs that can cause life-threatening illnesses. When provoked, wildlife is also more prone to bite or act unfavorably against humans.

Visitor Decorum and Some Reminders

This part of La Jolla is a popular destination for tourists from all over the world, yet it is also an urban setting where it is challenging to effectively manage human-animal relations, Newsweek reports.

The Marine Mammal Protection Act, a federal statute, protects sea lions and seals in the United States by outlawing harassment of the creatures, according to NOAA Fisheries.

Nursing and feeding occur in distinct areas for California sea lions. A mother sea lion will nurse her young for one to two days before leaving it on land to accompany her to feeding grounds at sea. She feeds for two to five days, then comes back to nurse. The pup doesn't eat when the mother isn't there. Until they wean their pups, females maintain a cycle of spending several days at sea and several days nursing on land. Sea lions and seal pups on the shore should not be approached, NOAA Fisheries reported.

Also Read: Malama Hawaiian Monk Seal Killer Bounty at $5000 -NOAA

Mother harbor seals stay close to their young because they prefer familiar surroundings. Lone puppies take a nap on the sand, control their body temperatures, and learn how to get by without feeding. Some individuals won't survive since it's risky and difficult. Leaving puppies alone gives them the best opportunity. Mothers stay away from people and animals, coming back at night to nurse.

Officials advise that for 24 hours, keep 100 yards away from seal pups on the beach before determining whether they are stranded. Interaction with people or animals results in hunger and abandonment. Zoonotic illnesses are contagious, as well, making interactions with pets also ill-advised. Aggression, harm, or even death can result from feeding seals.

Also, seals are more susceptible to boats due to increased human interaction. If the pup is unable to return, it may experience distress, according to the Coastal Interpretive Center.

Related Article: Newborn Bison Calf Euthanized After Interaction with Yellowstone National Park Visitor
More Yellowstone wildlife is being harassed by visitors prompting officials to hunt the offenders. Meanwhile, the park reminds the public of its rules.

Every year, more than 3 million individuals visit the stunning Yellowstone National Park. They go hiking, see the well-known geysers, and, if they're lucky, spot some amazing animals.

Incredible Yellowstone Wildlife

More park visitors are showing their appreciation towards Yellowstone's wildlife in their social media posts.

PetHelpful says that going to Yellowstone is already such an amazing experience, but seeing this in real life must be a whole other level. It added that the babies are the most precious thing. This is the website's reaction to a TikTok video of what they dubbed a "bison traffic jam."

Reactions to the video included some platform users being emotional at the occurrence of the bison traffic jam, which they could only describe as "majestic." As amazing as it is to witness animals thus close up, PetHelpful said that it serves as a crucial warning to everyone who visits national parks not to approach wildlife.

Wildlife Harassed by Visitors

Recently, a lady made news for aggressively approaching a bison in Yellowstone so she could snap a picture. She may be seen lying down near the bison in the footage. Visitors are advised by the National Park Service to keep at least 25 feet between them and big beasts. According to PetHelpful, getting any closer can seem intimidating to them and be quite harmful. On another occasion, a guy jumped out of his car to scream at and chase a bear in or near Yellowstone National Park. If found, he could spend six months in jail and pay a $5,000 fine.

Facebook Error

According to Morgan Warthin, a spokeswoman for Yellowstone National Park, they are aware of this terrible occurrence and are looking into it. She said that they are unsure whether the event took place in Yellowstone National Park. The self-incriminating viral films, according to Rob Wallace, a former officer with the US Department of the Interior, which is in charge of the Park Service, may aid in an investigation and possible prosecution, Cowboy State Daily reports. Also Read: Box Turtle Sightings Increase as Nesting Season Starts in Tennessee, Officials Discourage Human Interference Tourons of Yellowstone published a video of the man online and acknowledged that it was unable to confirm the individual's precise position. The video was also shared by Cowboy State Daily. Commenters were unreserved in their judgment of the individual whose acts, wherever they took place, were careless. Most comments advocated for the bear to attack its assailant. Some people foresaw the man's unavoidable prison sentence and fine. The remaining natural environment in our country is not something that Americans deserve, according to another. As if that weren't awful enough, the Tourons of Yellowstone Instagram feed has photos of the same "touron" harassing another black bear.

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The bear was not as fearful in the second video as it was in the first. The second bear made a fake charge, which caused its assailant to return to his car, USA Today reports.

Related Article: Newborn Bison Calf Euthanized After Interaction with Yellowstone National Park Visitor
Whos looking out for No. 1?

Rest assured that state legislative leaders Andrea Stewart-Cousins, Carl Heastie and their respective Democratic majorities in the Senate and Assembly are on the case.

Just dont make the mistake of thinking that you, the average citizen, are the No. 1 theyre looking out for.

The blatant gutting of a campaign finance reform law last week to make it easier for Albanys finest to keep their jobs  and harder for voters to get viable Election Day choices  makes clear who legislators consider their top priority.

News flash: Its not you.

The only positive thing citizens can take from this slap in the face to democracy is that the Senate vote was so close. Immediately after the vote, a Senate official announced the tally as 32-31 to weaken reform, before the count was changed to 34-29.

John Kaehny, the executive director of Reinvent Albany who helped blow the whistle on what legislators were up to as the session wound down, said reformers actually had the votes to kill the rollback until some last-minute arm-twisting by Senate Democratic leaders as the vote was being taken. He said three senators, whom he would not name, changed their votes even though staffers had given assurances that they would not weaken the public funding system set up just last year.

The 2022 reform tried to lessen the impact of big money in state politics by setting up a public funding program in which small donations of up to $250 to state candidates would be matched on ratios of anywhere from 6-1 to 12-1, depending on the office and the amount raised.

The bill passed last week undercuts that reform by eliminating the $250 cap so that donations of any size are eligible for public matching funds on the first $250. It also raises the threshold for both the number of in-district donors and the total contributions a candidate must raise in order to qualify for the matching funds. Both moves will significantly tilt the playing field toward incumbents, giving voters fewer viable choices.

I dont think anyone outside of the Legislature supported the bill that they passed, Kaehny said, citing the number of newspaper editorial boards and good-government groups that came out vehemently against what one senator dubbed the incumbent re-election protection act.

In one respect, New York Democrats preoccupation with their own survival makes sense  and could even be seen as a form of legislative self-defense for the state.

The combination of in-your-face Southern state gerrymanders by GOP-controlled legislatures, and the fact that a similar Democratic effort here was thwarted by judges more conscientious than those elsewhere, helped elect just enough New York Republicans to throw control of the House of Representatives to the GOP. Well all live with the consequences of that.

But that does not justify joining a race to the bottom when it comes to democratic principles. It does not justify giving voters less of a voice by making elections less fair and giving the average challenger less of a chance against an incumbent enjoying all the advantages of an officeholder.

This regressive bill is now in the hands of Gov. Kathy Hochul and will seriously test the theory that electing more women matters because females govern differently. Albanys infamous three men in a room form of governing in which the governor, Senate majority leader and Assembly speaker controlled all significant outcomes has been transformed into two-women-and-a-man in the room. The fact that one of those women, Stewart-Cousins, would go along with what could only be considered business as usual does not inspire confidence that this is a new Albany.

A Hochul veto, on the other hand, would provide a denouement that would be the best of both worlds. For one thing, it would preserve the reforms that voters deserve. At the same, foiling this Legislature backsliding would highlight for the public once again  as if more proof is needed  just where too many legislators primary interest really lies.
The British Ministry of Defence has confirmed that trials of Thales' Apollo uncrewed surface vessel took place in December 2022. The Royal Navy Maritime Autonomous System Trials Team (MASTT), with support from Thales, conducted the trials off Weymouth Bay. Representatives from the UK Naval Authority and Technology Group (NATG) and the Mine Hunting Capability team from the Ministry of Defence were present to observe and approve the trials.

Follow Navy Recognition on Google News at this link

RNMB Apollo is one of the two pre-production Uncrewed Surface Vessels delivered to the Royal Navy and Marine nationale (French Navy) in December 2021 as part of the joint UK-France Maritime Mine Counter Measures (MMCM) programme which will bring autonomous mine hunting capability to the two respective Fleets (Picture source: Thales/Ewan Lebourdais)



The objective of the program is to develop cutting-edge maritime mine warfare capabilities, which will position the UK and France as leaders in naval autonomous systems technology. By employing uncrewed mine clearance platforms, the Royal Navy (RN) can effectively maintain open shipping lanes without exposing sailors or crewed platforms to potential threats.

Equipped with a combination of advanced sensors, including radar, LIDAR, and electro-optical and infrared cameras, the vessel's position was continuously communicated to the command and control center through a secure communications network. This connection allowed the command and control software to integrate the sensor data into a coherent tactical picture using Thales MCube mission management software. It also facilitated the detection, tracking, and appropriate response, including remotely controlled avoidance maneuvers, towards other vessels.

In operational service, these vessels will have the capability to operate in national waters or be rapidly transported by air to mine-infested areas or to secure sea lines of communication. They will demonstrate high levels of reliability, autonomy, and cybersecurity. These vessels can be deployed and operated from both ship and shore bases, providing flexible and efficient capabilities.

RNMB Apollo is one of the two pre-production Uncrewed Surface Vessels delivered to the Royal Navy and the Marine nationale (French Navy) in December 2021 as part of the joint UK-France Maritime Mine Counter Measures (MMCM) program, which aims to introduce autonomous mine hunting capability to both fleets.

With the contract now in its production phase, Thales is actively collaborating with the customers to deliver full operating capability to both nations by 2024.

Alex Cresswell, Chief Executive and Chairman of Thales UK, commented, "These trials represent a significant milestone in certifying autonomous maritime systems for operational use. They are a crucial step towards gaining trust in uncrewed vessels within a complex program. The trial serves as a critical remote operation milestone towards achieving autonomous mine hunting."

Gwendoline Blandin-Roger, Managing Director of Underwater Systems at Thales, expressed pride in supporting the Royal Navy and the Marine nationale in mine warfare, surface ship, and underwater operations. She emphasized Thales' commitment to bringing these game-changing autonomous systems into operational service.
Samantha North was frustrated to learn that one person was killed and 11 others were hurt when a tour boat tipped over Monday in the Lockport Cave.

That is because, North told The Buffalo News, eight years earlier, she was on the same floating underground tour when the same boat overturned, pitching her group into the chilly waters.

Cause sought after Lockport cave tour boat overturns, killing 1 and injuring 11 Twenty-nine people were on the boat at the time it overturned, Lockport Mayor Michelle Roman said at a news conference Monday afternoon at City Hall, including 28 hospitality workers from across Erie County and one staffer.

I was having flashbacks, said North, then a recreation attendant for what is now Our Lady of Victory Human Resources, which set up the 2015 tour.

No one was seriously hurt in the earlier incident, which did not receive public attention at the time, but was confirmed Tuesday by an OLV spokesman.

It now raises questions about the safety of the Lockport Cave & Underground Boat Tour operation.

Lockport city officials on Monday had said the boat ride attraction had operated without issue since it opened in the mid-1970s.

This was not safe before. Dont say the boat never capsized before. It did, said Sheri Scavone, whose son, then 15 years old, was on the 2015 tour.

The latest incident remains under investigation. Authorities late Tuesday released the name of the drowning victim, Harshad Shah, 65, longtime president of the Budget Host Inn in Niagara Falls.

Anthony Gruppo, funeral director of M.J. Colucci & Son Niagara Funeral Chapel, corroborated the news first reported by WGRZ-TV. Officials previously said his wife, Kaminiben Shah, also was on the boat and was injured in the accident.

Also, new details have emerged about Mondays capsizing and the dramatic rescue effort in the dimly lit channel along the Erie Canal.

Everybody

was panicking

The call for help came to 911 at 11:28 a.m. Monday: A boat loaded with 29 people had overturned in the Lockport Cave.

Twenty-eight of the 29 people aboard at the time were hospitality workers from across Niagara County and one tour staffer. They were part of a tour set up by Destination Niagara USA to show off Lockport attractions.

Crews from five fire units arrived at the scene in under a minute.

Commanding the operation was Assistant Fire Chief Jon Fredrickson. Officials said he was met by the owner of the underground attraction, who told them about the capsized boat.

Working with the Lockport Police Department, emergency responders established two routes to get to the stranded passengers.

Everybody was panicking, everybody was yelling real loud, Elizabeth Morrissette said in an interview with Good Morning America on Tuesday.

By the time I realized what happened, the boat was on top of me. And I couldnt find any air pockets or anything. And Im just trying to breathe because Im underwater, her husband, Dan, another passenger, said on the program.

One group of rescuers went to the normal docking area inside the cave, where they inflated a rescue boat and launched. Firefighters paddled their way 300 feet to the capsized craft.

Rescuers used sledgehammers, crowbars and an inflatable raft at Lockport Cave A day after the tragic incident at the popular Niagara County tourist attraction that claimed one life and left 11 people injured, Lockport fire officials released new details of the frantic rescue effort.

A second group used sledgehammers and crowbars to create a hole closer to where the boat was, fire officials said.

Some passengers were found clinging to the top of the overturned boat.

The first responders rescued 16 people using the two routes.

Twelve people were tall enough to be able to walk through the waterway back to the dock area on their own, the Fire Department said in a statement.

Eleven were taken to a local hospital for treatment of mild injuries.

In addition, a Lockport police officer who raced into the water to assist victims was evaluated for hypothermia.

Officials said the drowning victim  later identified as Shah  became trapped under the boat and was dead by the time he was pulled from the waters.

Local, state and federal agencies are investigating what caused the craft to overturn.

The federal Occupational Safety and Health Administrations investigation of the incident is ongoing, although OSHA officials are no longer on site, a spokesperson said.

There doesnt appear to be any record of OSHA having inspected the Lockport Cave & Underground Boat Tour prior to yesterdays incident.

The boat tour remains closed under further notice.

Its been an attraction since the 70s, without incident, Lockport Mayor Michelle Roman said at Mondays news conference. They are going to do a full and thorough investigation. If it is unsafe, then it will not be running.

It happened before

North and Scavone said they couldnt believe city officials described Mondays incident as the first of its kind.

On Sept. 2, 2015, clients and employees from what was then Baker Victory Services were on the boat tour when their craft capsized, North recalled Tuesday, an incident confirmed by OLV spokesman John Pitts.

North said 32 people  about half teenage clients and half Baker Victory Services staff like her, along with one operator  were on the boat.

They werent offered life jackets prior to boarding the craft, she said.

The boat overturned at the rides midpoint, she said, when passengers were directed to stand up, turn around and sit on the opposite bench for the return trip to the spot where the boat tour begins and ends.

The boat started to feel unbalanced, she said, and it completely overturned after frantic passengers moved from one side to the other in a failed attempt to redistribute their weight.

The water was chilly, maybe 45 degrees, and it was as deep as 12 feet, North said.

The passengers were on their own in getting out, she said.

It seemed like it took forever, she said, and she never saw any police or firefighters at the scene.

Scavone said her son remains traumatized by what happened that day.

He remembers every detail, she said. He will not go into anything like a cave or a closed-in area.

She said her son helped someone who was struggling in the water get to safety.

My kid actually saved another kid who didnt know how to swim, Scavone said.

The teens and employees lost cellphones, purses and items of clothing. North said she walked with one shoe on for the rest of the day.

North and Scavone said they were reimbursed for their lost belongings, but they dont know whether the incident was investigated.

Pitts, the spokesman for Our Lady of Victory Human Services, said he didnt know whether or how the 2015 incident was formally reported.

Romans assistant said the mayor would not answer further questions about Mondays incident. She did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment about the 2015 capsizing.

The co-owners of the attraction, Tom Callahan and Clancy Burkwit, have not responded to messages from The News.

North said she vowed never to ride the tour boats again following the 2015 incident, and she was surprised to learn the ride was still in operation.

I thought our incident stopped that, she said.

Scavone said not nearly enough was done in response to the earlier capsizing.

Something needs to change, she said. If it had changed then, maybe someone wouldnt have died yesterday.

News Staff Reporter Grant Ashley contributed to this report.
Flags are powerful symbols. Communication is a powerful tool. If these two elements had been combined in a productive way in Hamburg earlier this month, an unnecessary conflict between town leadership and local veterans might have been avoided.

When it raised the Pride flag on its Town Hall flagpole on June 2, Hamburg was following the example of other area municipalities, including Buffalo, in recognizing the month of June as a time to honor and celebrate LGBTQ+ people. Unfortunately, according to a June 9 News report, when the Pride flag was raised, a POW/MIA flag was taken down. The POW/MIA flag was adopted in 1972 to recognize American prisoners of war, those missing in action and other U.S. personnel still unaccounted for from the Vietnam War and other conflicts.

Hamburg Supervisor Randy Hoak said the flag was tattered and needed to be replaced. On June 5, the POW/MIA flag was replaced and now flies, along with an American flag and a Pride flag.

Problem solved? Not quite. Local veterans were unaware of the reason for the damaged flags removal and assumed the Pride flag was replacing it. And even with the flag back in place, some dont like its positioning with a Pride flag underneath it. There was even a physical contretemps prior to the POW/MIA flags restoration, when, according to Hoak, Gerald Welsted, a former commander of Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 1419, slapped the town supervisor on the arm after a profanity-laced outburst.

None of this needed to happen. The VFW post ought to have been informed of the need to replace the flag. It may have been possible to raise a fresh POW/MIA flag on the same day as the Pride flag.

Its also unclear why a June 10 protest still needed to take place more than a week after the restoration of the flag and assurances that no disrespect was intended.

Both of these flags represent closely held allegiances and decades of advocacy. To fly them in conjunction with the American flag demonstrates that Hamburg values freedom, tolerance and the willingness to stand up for those principles.

Diana Patton, a former U.S. Navy hull technician and transgender veteran, had a heartfelt take on the situation. Patton said the POW/MIA flag is very important to her, because her grandfather was a POW three times during World War II. And the Pride flag means just as much to her because, as she also said, veterans served and fought for others to have the freedom to express who they are.

Both flags are deeply instilled with meaning for people across America. They deserve thoughtful, respectful handling.

...

Whats your opinion? Send it to us at lettertoeditor@buffnews.com. Letters should be a maximum of 300 words and must convey an opinion. The column does not print poetry, announcements of community events or thank you letters. A writer or household may appear only once every 30 days. All letters are subject to fact-checking and editing.
By Online Desk

HYDERABAD: Kontham Tejaswini Reddy, a 27-year-old woman from Hyderabad who had gone to London to pursue her Master's degree, was stabbed to death in Wembley on Tuesday.

Tejaswini had been studying at the University of Nottingham and was sharing an accomodation. She had finished her Masters two months ago and was planning to return home.

One of her flatmates, a Brazilian man who had recently moved in, stabbed her to death, her family was informed.

A 28-year-old Indian woman living in the flat was also injured in the fatal attack but her injuries were not "life-threatening".

The motive behind the crime was unknown.

Two people -- a 24-year-old man and a 23-year-old woman -- had originally been arrested at the scene on suspicion of murder. The woman was later allowed to leave.

Police also arrested a 23-year-old suspect in Harrow later on Tuesday.

#ARREST | We previously published an appeal to locate a 23-year-old man following the murder of a woman in #Wembley earlier today.



He was arrested in #Harrow at around 18:00hrs today and has been taken into custody.



Thank you for the RTs.  Brent MPS | North West BCU (@MPSBrent) June 13, 2023

Detective Chief Inspector Linda Bradley, from the Met's Specialist Crime Command, was quoted in an official release as saying, "This has been a fast-moving investigation and I would like to thank the public for sharing our appeal for information about this man. He is now in custody. I recognise the significant concern this incident has caused in the community and I would like to reassure the public that a dedicated team of detectives are working to establish what happened. "Local officers will remain in the area over the coming days to respond to any concerns."

A post-mortem will be conducted later.

HYDERABAD: Kontham Tejaswini Reddy, a 27-year-old woman from Hyderabad who had gone to London to pursue her Master's degree, was stabbed to death in Wembley on Tuesday. Tejaswini had been studying at the University of Nottingham and was sharing an accomodation. She had finished her Masters two months ago and was planning to return home. One of her flatmates, a Brazilian man who had recently moved in, stabbed her to death, her family was informed.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); A 28-year-old Indian woman living in the flat was also injured in the fatal attack but her injuries were not "life-threatening". The motive behind the crime was unknown. Two people -- a 24-year-old man and a 23-year-old woman -- had originally been arrested at the scene on suspicion of murder. The woman was later allowed to leave. Police also arrested a 23-year-old suspect in Harrow later on Tuesday. #ARREST | We previously published an appeal to locate a 23-year-old man following the murder of a woman in #Wembley earlier today. He was arrested in #Harrow at around 18:00hrs today and has been taken into custody. Thank you for the RTs.  Brent MPS | North West BCU (@MPSBrent) June 13, 2023 Detective Chief Inspector Linda Bradley, from the Met's Specialist Crime Command, was quoted in an official release as saying, "This has been a fast-moving investigation and I would like to thank the public for sharing our appeal for information about this man. He is now in custody. I recognise the significant concern this incident has caused in the community and I would like to reassure the public that a dedicated team of detectives are working to establish what happened. "Local officers will remain in the area over the coming days to respond to any concerns." A post-mortem will be conducted later.
Rajesh Kumar Thakur By

Express News Service

NEW DELHI: Now, Central officials and employees will be allowed to take a Y-Break (Y for yoga) on the office chairs in their offices to de-stress themselves in between working hours. Ahead of International Yoga Day on June 21, the Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions has passed an order to all Central ministries and departments to take the Y-Break whenever they feel the need to loosen up themselves during duty.

In its order dated June 12, the ministry has directed to ensure proper implementation and promotion of the first-of-its-kind Y-Break at office chairs protocol at workplaces. The Y-Break at Workplaces was introduced by the Ministry of AYUSH. The feedback of the protocol has been very encouraging. The Morarji Desai National Institute of Yoga, Ministry of AYUSH has added new features for the officials, who owing to their busy schedule, cannot go out and practice yoga, the order stated.

The government through its order has stated clearly that the officials can now benefit themselves while sitting in their office chairs by practising a short-duration yoga protocol namely Y-Break@workplace yoga at the chair to refresh, de-stress and refocus.

A senior official of the Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions, preferring anonymity, said that short-duration yoga at workplaces consists of various easy-to-do postures like stretching the body in at chair, walking inside the room, arms-stretching and others which make the practitioner feel de-stressed instantly. It includes easy yoga asanas (postures), pranayama (breathing techniques) and dhyana (meditation) and walking for 100 steps, he said.

The order has also shared resources and internet links elaborating on short-duration yoga practices and protocols, which can be incorporated by officers and employees at their desks. Ministries and departments have also been asked to work with attached offices and subordinates under their control in this regard.

NEW DELHI: Now, Central officials and employees will be allowed to take a Y-Break (Y for yoga) on the office chairs in their offices to de-stress themselves in between working hours. Ahead of International Yoga Day on June 21, the Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions has passed an order to all Central ministries and departments to take the Y-Break whenever they feel the need to loosen up themselves during duty. In its order dated June 12, the ministry has directed to ensure proper implementation and promotion of the first-of-its-kind Y-Break at office chairs protocol at workplaces. The Y-Break at Workplaces was introduced by the Ministry of AYUSH. The feedback of the protocol has been very encouraging. The Morarji Desai National Institute of Yoga, Ministry of AYUSH has added new features for the officials, who owing to their busy schedule, cannot go out and practice yoga, the order stated. The government through its order has stated clearly that the officials can now benefit themselves while sitting in their office chairs by practising a short-duration yoga protocol namely Y-Break@workplace yoga at the chair to refresh, de-stress and refocus.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); A senior official of the Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions, preferring anonymity, said that short-duration yoga at workplaces consists of various easy-to-do postures like stretching the body in at chair, walking inside the room, arms-stretching and others which make the practitioner feel de-stressed instantly. It includes easy yoga asanas (postures), pranayama (breathing techniques) and dhyana (meditation) and walking for 100 steps, he said. The order has also shared resources and internet links elaborating on short-duration yoga practices and protocols, which can be incorporated by officers and employees at their desks. Ministries and departments have also been asked to work with attached offices and subordinates under their control in this regard.
By PTI

KOLKATA: The CBI has summoned the principal secretary of West Bengal school education department to appear before it in connection with the ongoing probe into the irregularities in recruitment in state government jobs, an official of the probe body said on Wednesday.

Manish Jain has been asked to appear before the central probe agency's officers at its city office on Thursday morning, he said.

Jain's name surfaced during the interrogation of the arrested former state minister Partha Chatterjee.

When the bureaucrat appears before the CBI on Thursday it will be his second appearance before the probe agency in the same case.

Manish Jain has been asked to come to our office for questioning tomorrow for the ongoing investigation of the recruitment scam. Our officers are ready with a few sets of questions, the CBI official said.

There is ample evidence that Jain was aware that there were some irregularities in the recruitment process, he said.

Mr Jain will be questioned specifically about his involvement. There are several files where his signatures have been found, proving that he had knowledge about the irregularities in the recruitment process, the official said.

Jain was summoned and questioned for more than five hours during his last appearance at the CBI office last year.

KOLKATA: The CBI has summoned the principal secretary of West Bengal school education department to appear before it in connection with the ongoing probe into the irregularities in recruitment in state government jobs, an official of the probe body said on Wednesday. Manish Jain has been asked to appear before the central probe agency's officers at its city office on Thursday morning, he said. Jain's name surfaced during the interrogation of the arrested former state minister Partha Chatterjee.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); When the bureaucrat appears before the CBI on Thursday it will be his second appearance before the probe agency in the same case. Manish Jain has been asked to come to our office for questioning tomorrow for the ongoing investigation of the recruitment scam. Our officers are ready with a few sets of questions, the CBI official said. There is ample evidence that Jain was aware that there were some irregularities in the recruitment process, he said. Mr Jain will be questioned specifically about his involvement. There are several files where his signatures have been found, proving that he had knowledge about the irregularities in the recruitment process, the official said. Jain was summoned and questioned for more than five hours during his last appearance at the CBI office last year.
By Express News Service

BHOPAL: A massive blaze, which erupted at the six-storied state government building in Bhopal on Monday afternoon gutting a major portion of the property on the top four floors, was doused after 17 hours on Tuesday morning.

According to Bhopal Municipal Corporation (BMC) fire officer Rameshwar Neel, more than 35 fire tenders from Bhopal and adjoining Raisen district were pressed into service at Satpura Bhawan throughout Monday-Tuesday night.

The fire, which erupted prima facie due to a possible electric short circuit in an air conditioner on the third floor at 4pm on Monday, was controlled by midnight. But it was completely doused by 9am on Tuesday. The third and the fourth floor of the building bore the worst impact of the blaze, with nearly the entire property, including files and furniture being gutted, Neel added.

Neel added that had there been a proper passage for the fire tenders inside the six-decade-old building premises (located close to the state secretariat), the fire couldve been doused by Monday evening.

CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan, who briefed PM Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Monday evening, had sought Indian Air Forces help in dousing the fire. Columns of the Indian Army and CISF were pressed into action.

There was no human casualty or injury in the blaze as thousands of employees were evacuated safely. The CM has already formed a four-member panel headed by additional chief secretary (ACS-Home) Rajesh Rajoura to probe the blaze, particularly its cause.

The probe panel, which has started its probe from Tuesday, has been asked to submit its report within three days. While a holiday was declared on Tuesday for employees working in offices located in the fire-hit building, alternative arrangements for shifting the operations of the concerned offices elsewhere will be finalised by Tuesday evening, state home minister Narottam Mishra said on Tuesday.

BHOPAL: A massive blaze, which erupted at the six-storied state government building in Bhopal on Monday afternoon gutting a major portion of the property on the top four floors, was doused after 17 hours on Tuesday morning. According to Bhopal Municipal Corporation (BMC) fire officer Rameshwar Neel, more than 35 fire tenders from Bhopal and adjoining Raisen district were pressed into service at Satpura Bhawan throughout Monday-Tuesday night. The fire, which erupted prima facie due to a possible electric short circuit in an air conditioner on the third floor at 4pm on Monday, was controlled by midnight. But it was completely doused by 9am on Tuesday. The third and the fourth floor of the building bore the worst impact of the blaze, with nearly the entire property, including files and furniture being gutted, Neel added.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); Neel added that had there been a proper passage for the fire tenders inside the six-decade-old building premises (located close to the state secretariat), the fire couldve been doused by Monday evening. CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan, who briefed PM Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Monday evening, had sought Indian Air Forces help in dousing the fire. Columns of the Indian Army and CISF were pressed into action. There was no human casualty or injury in the blaze as thousands of employees were evacuated safely. The CM has already formed a four-member panel headed by additional chief secretary (ACS-Home) Rajesh Rajoura to probe the blaze, particularly its cause. The probe panel, which has started its probe from Tuesday, has been asked to submit its report within three days. While a holiday was declared on Tuesday for employees working in offices located in the fire-hit building, alternative arrangements for shifting the operations of the concerned offices elsewhere will be finalised by Tuesday evening, state home minister Narottam Mishra said on Tuesday.
Rajesh Asnani By

Express News Service

JAIPUR: The Rajasthan BJP held a Maha Gherao at the state secretariat in Jaipur on Tuesday on the issue of corruption and paper leaks during the Gehlot governments tenure. These issues are said to be critical to the BJPs assault on the ruling Congress before the assembly elections. In the protest, BJP workers and leaders clashed with the Jaipur police leading to water canons being showered at the protestors.

The BJP has become especially enthusiastic after the ED lodged a case last week in the paper leak issue in the state which has seen the arrest of 60 people by state SOG including an RPSC member appointed by CM Ashok Gehlot.

The major demonstration against the Congress government, on the issue of paper leaks, corruption, and law and order in the state was led by BJP State President CP Joshi and Leader of Opposition Rajendra Rathore. During the protest, BJP workers attempted to lay siege to the government secretariat in Jaipur. Despite their attempts to break through the barricades, the protesters were unsuccessful.

JAIPUR: The Rajasthan BJP held a Maha Gherao at the state secretariat in Jaipur on Tuesday on the issue of corruption and paper leaks during the Gehlot governments tenure. These issues are said to be critical to the BJPs assault on the ruling Congress before the assembly elections. In the protest, BJP workers and leaders clashed with the Jaipur police leading to water canons being showered at the protestors. The BJP has become especially enthusiastic after the ED lodged a case last week in the paper leak issue in the state which has seen the arrest of 60 people by state SOG including an RPSC member appointed by CM Ashok Gehlot. The major demonstration against the Congress government, on the issue of paper leaks, corruption, and law and order in the state was led by BJP State President CP Joshi and Leader of Opposition Rajendra Rathore. During the protest, BJP workers attempted to lay siege to the government secretariat in Jaipur. Despite their attempts to break through the barricades, the protesters were unsuccessful. googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); });
Shruti Kakkar By

Express News Service

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Tuesday pushed top lawyers  Abhishek Singhvi, Siddharth Luthra, Siddharth Dave and Anjana Prakash  to cede turf during summer break with a view to providing an opportunity to young lawyers to argue before the highest court.

Refusing to hear arguments of the four senior counsels, a vacation bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Ahsanuddin Amanullah said, We wont hear a senior counsel.

When senior advocate Singhvi mentioned a matter related to Zydus Wellness Ltd for urgent hearing, the bench said, Mr Singhvi, you are mentioning before a vacation bench. We wont hear a senior counsel. Please ask your advocate on record to mention.

The second incident happened shortly after when Senior Advocate Anjana Prakash attempted to mention a matter before the same bench. Asking the senior counsel to give opportunities to senior counsels to enhance their skills, Justice Nath said, What are you doing here on vacation? We wont hear you. We will hear the counsel next to you.

Apart from the bench encouraging junior counsels to mention the matters, the court also adopted the same approach while hearing matters. While senior advocate Siddharth Dave was arguing a bail matter, the bench said, We cannot hear senior counsels.

Interestingly, the courts firm stand of only allowing instructing counsels to argue resulted in Suneetha Narredy, daughter of deceased YS Vivekananda Reddy, arguing the plea challenging the anticipatory bail granted to MP YS Avinash Reddy by Telangana HC herself. Refusing to allow senior advocate Siddharth Luthra to argue the matter, the bench said, You will put us in trouble for discriminating. You cannot argue, you may only assist.

This is not the first time that the top courts vacation bench had taken this view. Earlier in May, a vacation bench led by Justice JK Maheshwari had refused to grant senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi the liberty to mention a case. We will record what you say. But as per the vacation norms, juniors are to be sent in listed mentioning, the court had said.

Junior gets a chance

Interestingly, the firm stand by the Supreme Court vacation bench of only allowing instructing counsels to argue resulted in Suneetha Narredy, daughter of deceased YS Vivekananda Reddy, arguing the plea challenging the anticipatory bail granted to MP YS Avinash Reddy by Telangana High Court herself.

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Tuesday pushed top lawyers  Abhishek Singhvi, Siddharth Luthra, Siddharth Dave and Anjana Prakash  to cede turf during summer break with a view to providing an opportunity to young lawyers to argue before the highest court. Refusing to hear arguments of the four senior counsels, a vacation bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Ahsanuddin Amanullah said, We wont hear a senior counsel. When senior advocate Singhvi mentioned a matter related to Zydus Wellness Ltd for urgent hearing, the bench said, Mr Singhvi, you are mentioning before a vacation bench. We wont hear a senior counsel. Please ask your advocate on record to mention.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); The second incident happened shortly after when Senior Advocate Anjana Prakash attempted to mention a matter before the same bench. Asking the senior counsel to give opportunities to senior counsels to enhance their skills, Justice Nath said, What are you doing here on vacation? We wont hear you. We will hear the counsel next to you. Apart from the bench encouraging junior counsels to mention the matters, the court also adopted the same approach while hearing matters. While senior advocate Siddharth Dave was arguing a bail matter, the bench said, We cannot hear senior counsels. Interestingly, the courts firm stand of only allowing instructing counsels to argue resulted in Suneetha Narredy, daughter of deceased YS Vivekananda Reddy, arguing the plea challenging the anticipatory bail granted to MP YS Avinash Reddy by Telangana HC herself. Refusing to allow senior advocate Siddharth Luthra to argue the matter, the bench said, You will put us in trouble for discriminating. You cannot argue, you may only assist. This is not the first time that the top courts vacation bench had taken this view. Earlier in May, a vacation bench led by Justice JK Maheshwari had refused to grant senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi the liberty to mention a case. We will record what you say. But as per the vacation norms, juniors are to be sent in listed mentioning, the court had said. Junior gets a chance Interestingly, the firm stand by the Supreme Court vacation bench of only allowing instructing counsels to argue resulted in Suneetha Narredy, daughter of deceased YS Vivekananda Reddy, arguing the plea challenging the anticipatory bail granted to MP YS Avinash Reddy by Telangana High Court herself.
Express News Service

KALABURGI: The All India Congress Committee (AICC) President Mallikarjun Kharge has condemned the arrest of Tamil Nadu Electricity Minister of DMK V. Senthil Balaji in the wee hours of Wednesday by the Enforcement Directorate.

Speaking in a press conference here, Kharge wanted to know whether ED thought that Senthil Balaji would escape if waited till morning for the arrest. "Why did the ED hurry to arrest Senthil Balaji?" he questioned.

"Perhaps the union government wanted to break the opposition unity by indirectly threatening the leaders of opposition parties who were coming together. But we will not buckle into such pressure tactics," he said.

ALSO READ | Senthil Balaji seems to have undergone mental and physical torture: Stalin

Kharge also criticized the union government for its mishandling of the Manipur violence incident. If the government acted well in time, it could have prevented this huge human loss and property loss. It is a clear case of negligence by the union government; he alleged. Kharge, who is also the leader of the opposition party in the Rajya Sabha said that he has written a letter to the president of India to speak with the Prime Minister and other concerned ministers and ask them to compensate the people for their loss in the violence. But so far he has received no letter from the government, he said.

To a question, Mallikarjun Kharge said that the Congress Party is making all preparations to face the Assembly Elections in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, and Meghalaya.

ALSO READ | ED raids place linked to TN electricity minister V Senthil Balaji, DMK gets opposition cover

"We are certain that the Congress party will form the government on its own. AICC has alerted all the Pradesh Congress Committees of election-bound states. The Party will make 5 guarantees similar to the ones in Karnataka," the AICC President said.

When asked whether the Congress will adopt the Karnataka model in those States too, the AICC President said that each state will have its own model depending on the needs of those States. We will win in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Chhattisgarh and will give a tough fight in Meghalaya, he said.
Jaison Wilson By

Express News Service

NEW DELHI: The Delhi High Court on Wednesday granted a custody parole of six hours to Ibrahim Puthanathani, the national coordinator of the banned Popular Front of India (PFI), to attend his daughter's wedding on June 18 in Kerala.

A vacation bench of Justice Jasmeet Singh and Justice Vikas Mahajan disposed of Puthanathanis plea to grant him interim bail for 30 days. The bench extended the earlier four-hour custody parole to six hours.

"Since the applicant has to go to Kerala where the marriage of his daughter is scheduled for June 18 and the expenses are to be borne by the applicant, we are inclined to extend the custody parole from four hours to six hours," the court said.



The PFI leader from Kerala, who is facing charges under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) registered by the National Investigation Agency (NIA), was approaching the high court against a trial court order of May 24, which allowed him the relief of four hours custody parole.

During the hearing, his counsel Advocate Kartik Venu argued that his client will not be a mere spectator of the wedding and will have to perform his duties before and after the marriage.

"I cannot be a flight risk for attending my daughters wedding, Puthanathani argued.

Opposing the PFI leader's submissions, NIA argued that as per applicable rules, custody parole cannot be granted for a period beyond six hours.

In April 2021, a case was filed against Puthanathani and several other PFI leaders for alleged involvement in a criminal conspiracy hatched by persons associated with the PFI to raise and collect funds from within India and abroad for committing acts of terror in various parts of India.

In a press release, NIA had earlier stated that its probe revealed that PFI cadres were being systematically trained in the use of weapons in the guise of Physical Education(PE) classes in different parts of India and that Puthanathani had designed the Syllabus for the Advanced Physical and Arms training courses.

A large number of alleged PFI activists were detained or arrested in several states during the massive raids last year preceding the nationwide ban imposed on September 28, 2022.

NEW DELHI: The Delhi High Court on Wednesday granted a custody parole of six hours to Ibrahim Puthanathani, the national coordinator of the banned Popular Front of India (PFI), to attend his daughter's wedding on June 18 in Kerala. A vacation bench of Justice Jasmeet Singh and Justice Vikas Mahajan disposed of Puthanathanis plea to grant him interim bail for 30 days. The bench extended the earlier four-hour custody parole to six hours. "Since the applicant has to go to Kerala where the marriage of his daughter is scheduled for June 18 and the expenses are to be borne by the applicant, we are inclined to extend the custody parole from four hours to six hours," the court said. The PFI leader from Kerala, who is facing charges under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) registered by the National Investigation Agency (NIA), was approaching the high court against a trial court order of May 24, which allowed him the relief of four hours custody parole.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); During the hearing, his counsel Advocate Kartik Venu argued that his client will not be a mere spectator of the wedding and will have to perform his duties before and after the marriage. "I cannot be a flight risk for attending my daughters wedding, Puthanathani argued. Opposing the PFI leader's submissions, NIA argued that as per applicable rules, custody parole cannot be granted for a period beyond six hours. In April 2021, a case was filed against Puthanathani and several other PFI leaders for alleged involvement in a criminal conspiracy hatched by persons associated with the PFI to raise and collect funds from within India and abroad for committing acts of terror in various parts of India. In a press release, NIA had earlier stated that its probe revealed that PFI cadres were being systematically trained in the use of weapons in the guise of Physical Education(PE) classes in different parts of India and that Puthanathani had designed the Syllabus for the Advanced Physical and Arms training courses. A large number of alleged PFI activists were detained or arrested in several states during the massive raids last year preceding the nationwide ban imposed on September 28, 2022.
South Africa: Deputy President calls on investors to not abandon SA

Deputy President Paul Mashatile has urged investors to continue investing in the country as more needs to be done to change the fortunes of the economy and create enough jobs to absorb new labour market entrants.

More than ever before, the Government and the business sector must work together to fund and invest in projects that can generate both income and profit and unearth investment opportunities in the country, the Deputy Minister said on Wednesday.

Virtually addressing the Ninety One Global Investment Summit, Mashatile commended the sector for its continued investments in youth development initiatives as demonstrated through the Youth Employment Stimulus (YES) initiative as well as investment in improving access to clean, reliable water in the country.

We must work together to build and strengthen our economy. We must find real-world solutions to the burning issues of poverty, unemployment and inequality that confront us as a people.

In this regard, we urge you to work with us through Infrastructure South Africa to partner on our infrastructure portfolio. Including partner with the Department of Water to invest in water infrastructure so as to avoid another crisis in that sector, the Deputy President said.

Through Operation Vulindlela, the Department of Water and Sanitation is working towards resolving 80% of water-use licences as requested by mining companies within 90 days.

We assure you that there are many investment prospects in South Africa. Investors may consider investing in industries such as manufacturing, agribusiness, transport and logistics, the ocean economy, the digital economy, and renewable energy. As a matter of urgency, solving the energy crisis remains at the top of our agenda as Government, Mashatile said.

He said government wants to work together with business to work to stabilise the energy supply by fixing Eskom and improving the availability of existing supply as well as enabling and accelerating private investment in generation capacity.

Moreover, the partnership could collaborate on accelerating the procurement of new capacity from renewables, gas, and battery storage; unleash businesses and households to invest in rooftop solar, and fundamentally transform the electricity sector to achieve long-term energy security.

Equally, Government continues to rapidly implement the Integrated Resource Plan 2019 by procuring additional energy capacity through renewable energy procurement programmes, the Deputy Minister said.

In addition, the following measures have been taken and will continue to be taken:

Releasing further bid windows on an accelerated basis. Bid Window 7 should be released this month for 5000 MW of solar PV and wind, further RFPs for 1200 MW of battery storage, and 3000 MW of gas, and preparatory work should be undertaken to explore a "mega bid window" or rolling bid window.

Procured emergency power solutions. A Ministerial Determination has been issued and a procurement and funding strategy has been developed.

Cross-border power purchases from neighbouring countries. A Ministerial Determination has also been issued to secure 1000 MW of additional power from Mozambique, which could be made available within 6 months of the PPA signature. The Minister of Electricity has already concluded an agreement with his counterpart in Mozambique in this regard.

We are also intensifying our investment drive and eliminating the red tape across the government. We must improve the time it takes to make decisions, this include the issuing of business licences and general approvals. In this regard, The Presidency has established a 'red tape team' to facilitate business operations.

The government is also reducing bureaucracy through the simplification of administrative procedures. That when the private sector interacts with government agencies, businesses must navigate intricate and time-consuming administrative procedures. We must reduce unnecessary red tape, the Deputy Minister said.

Just Energy Transition

While South Africa works towards a just energy transition, government will not abandon the existing base-load energy sources with speed.

However, as work towards the just transition, we will not transition in darkness. It would be irresponsible of us, given our current energy supply challenges, to simply abandon the existing base-load energy sources with haste and no guarantees for our economys long-term energy security.

Through the Just Energy Transition Partnership, we are demonstrating our collective dedication to easing the negative effects of the energy transition on South Africa's economy, workforce, and communities, Mashatile said.

The Just Energy Transition Plan guides the nation's transition from fossil fuels to a sustainable and equitable energy system, without occasioning a bloodbath of job losses.

Our Just Energy Transition Investment Plan for the five years from 20222027 outlines the scale of need and the investments required to meet the decarbonisation commitments in our Nationally Determined Contribution, which outlines the rate at which South Africa intends to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and represents South Africa's fair contribution to the Paris Agreement goals, the Deputy Minister said.  SAnews.gov.za

This story has been published on: 2023-06-14. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
Designate focal person for senior citizen concerns, Tolentino urges new health chief

MANILA - Senator Francis 'TOL' N. Tolentino urged newly appointed Health Secretary Teodoro Herbosa to designate a focal person within the Department of Health (DOH) that will focus on handling the welfare of the country's senior citizens.

"Mayroon ba po talagang (in-charge) para sa senior citizens? Ito yung tao na focal person natin para sa ating mga senior citizens?" Tolentino asked Herbosa during the senator's weekly radio program on DZRH.

Tolentino in February filed Senate Bill No. 1799 or the proposed "Comprehensive Senior Citizen Welfare Act." Under the said bill, the DOH in coordination with local government units (LGUs), non-government organizations (NGOs) and people's organization (POs) for senior citizens shall institute a national health program and shall provide an integrated health service for the elderly.

Tolentino explained that there should be a designated official in-charge within the DOH hierarchy that will solely focus on health and welfare of Filipinos aged 60 years old and above to ensure their well-being, considering various morbidity/comorbidity that could occur in that life period.

Herbosa, for his part, admitted that there is currently no one in charge when it comes to handling senior citizen concerns based on the DOH's organizational chart, but the former National Task Force adviser concurred to Tolentino's suggestion that there should be a focal person on the said matter.

"Hiningi ko yung organizational functional chart nila ngayon. Wala e. Alam ko kasi mayroon iyan. In fact, ako iyon eh (dati), ako yung in-charge undersecretary for seniors and mga persons with disability kaya ako yung pinupuntahan ng mga organizations at tinututukan iyan. Hindi ko ngayon mahanap iyan eh," said Herbosa.

According to Herbosa, one of his priority reforms to be implemented is the suggestion raised by Tolentino considering that "senior citizens are the ones with higher morbidity."

"Ilalagay ko na iyan at priority ko po iyan kasi ako po ay isang senior citizen at kailangan nila ng tulong... sila yung mas maraming iniinom na gamot, sila yung mas kailangan madalas bantayan, sila yung nagkaka-stroke, nagkaka-heart attack, at iyon yung mga top diseases, causes of death natin e. So, I think it's very important," the cabinet official stressed.
News / Local

by Staff reporter

Late former President Robert Mugabe's older son, Robert Mugabe Junior was Wednesday issued with a warrant of arrest after he skipped trial for an assault offence.Mugabe, who is believed to be 31, landed in the dock for allegedly slapping one Robert Karimbika when he had visited a friend, Simbiso Nkatazo in Strathaven suburb, Harare February this year.According to court papers, when he arrived at Nkatazo's place, Mugabe left his driver seated in his car.In his absence, Mugabe's driver reportedly instructed Karimbika to clean his boss's car.It is alleged Mugabe later returned to find Karimbika cleaning but accused him of urinating on his vehicle."The accused alleged that the complainant was urinating on his motor vehicle, but the complainant tried to explain his version to the accused person."However, the accused person did not listen but came closer to the complainant and slapped him once on the left side of his cheek," reads court papers.Karimbika was rescued from further assault by Mugabe's driver.Mugabe, who is not new to controversy, was also, in the same incident, accused of damaging Nkatazo's vehicles and other property worth US$12,000 while drunk.On this incident, Mugabe was seen leaving court in the company of his lawyer Ashiel Mugiya who said his client was advised to discuss the matter with his friend at home.He is not the first of the two Mugabe sibling brothers to be issued with a warrant of arrest over an incident involving violence.His younger brother, Bellarmine Chatunga was also issued with an arrest warrant April this year after skipping court over a case in which he allegedly confronted Home Affairs Minister Kazembe Kazembe's driver and smashed the car's window panel before assaulting him.Chatunga, 25, was arrested with accomplice, Tatenda Chinyuku for the violent act against one Lazarus Pairemanzi.Pairemanzi is employed by Learbridge Technology Pvt Ltd, a company owned by Kazembe.
By PTI

NEW DELHI: The Enforcement Directorate has arrested T Venkatram Reddy, a former promoter of the Deccan Chronicle Holdings Limited (DCHL), as part of a money laundering investigation linked to an alleged bank fraud case, official sources said on Tuesday.

Reddy was taken into custody under the Prevention of Money Laundering (PMLA) by the federal agency's Hyderabad office, they said.

The agency had said in 2020 that its probe found that "the three promoters of DCHL namely P K Iyer, T Venkatram Reddy and T Vinayak Ravi Reddy hatched a well-planned conspiracy and manipulated the balance sheets of the company inflating the profits-advertisement revenue and grossly under-stated the financial liabilities of the company to paint a rosy picture for years to cheat the banks and its shareholders.

" The company, at that time, was stated to be under corporate insolvency resolution process. A resolution plan for only Rs 400 crore has been approved by the NCLT. The total loan fraud committed by DCHL and its promoters is estimated to be at Rs 8,180 crore, the agency had said.

The ED filed a PMLA case against the firm and its promoters in 2015 after studying a CBI FIR registered to investigate the alleged bank loan default.

The company had submitted false and fabricated balance sheets concealing its actual borrowings from Canara Banks corporate lending branch in Secunderabad, and from other banks; and had also alienated the security hypothecated/mortgaged to Canara Bank. The total loss allegedly caused to Canara Bank is to the extent of 357.77 crore (approx) as of 08.09.2012, as per the FIR by CBI in the case.

ALSO READ: CBI books Deccan Chronicle chairman for cheating

NEW DELHI: The Enforcement Directorate has arrested T Venkatram Reddy, a former promoter of the Deccan Chronicle Holdings Limited (DCHL), as part of a money laundering investigation linked to an alleged bank fraud case, official sources said on Tuesday. Reddy was taken into custody under the Prevention of Money Laundering (PMLA) by the federal agency's Hyderabad office, they said. The agency had said in 2020 that its probe found that "the three promoters of DCHL namely P K Iyer, T Venkatram Reddy and T Vinayak Ravi Reddy hatched a well-planned conspiracy and manipulated the balance sheets of the company inflating the profits-advertisement revenue and grossly under-stated the financial liabilities of the company to paint a rosy picture for years to cheat the banks and its shareholders.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); " The company, at that time, was stated to be under corporate insolvency resolution process. A resolution plan for only Rs 400 crore has been approved by the NCLT. The total loan fraud committed by DCHL and its promoters is estimated to be at Rs 8,180 crore, the agency had said. The ED filed a PMLA case against the firm and its promoters in 2015 after studying a CBI FIR registered to investigate the alleged bank loan default. The company had submitted false and fabricated balance sheets concealing its actual borrowings from Canara Banks corporate lending branch in Secunderabad, and from other banks; and had also alienated the security hypothecated/mortgaged to Canara Bank. The total loss allegedly caused to Canara Bank is to the extent of 357.77 crore (approx) as of 08.09.2012, as per the FIR by CBI in the case. ALSO READ: CBI books Deccan Chronicle chairman for cheating
R Sivakumar By

Express News Service

CHENNAI: While the arguments on the bail application filed by Senthil Balaji, Tamil Nadu Minister for Electricity, Excise and Prohibition were progressing in the principal sessions court, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) moved a petition seeking 15 days of custody of the minister for interrogation over the money laundering case.

However, principal sessions judge S Alli adjourned the hearing on the custody petition to June 15, 2023, directing the minister's counsel to file a reply.

She reserved the orders on the bail application and the plea for granting interim bail and shifting Senthil Balaji to a private hospital for performing heart surgery.

Appearing for the Minister, senior counsel, and DMK's Rajya Sabha Member NR Elango blamed the ED for subjecting him to 'tremendous harassment' for a period of 22 hours from the time he was kept confined at 7 am on Tuesday to 2 am on Wednesday when the formal arrest was effected.

He said the investigating agency had failed to follow the procedures of arrest as it did not furnish the grounds of charges, the arrest memo was not served and the family members were not duly informed.

ALSO READ | Kejriwal, Omar Abdullah, D Raja slam Tamil Nadu minister's arrest by ED

"Any deviation of the provisions of section 41 A to 60 A of CrPC will vitiate the arrest. And so, the arrest is illegal and it cannot be given a clean certificate by the court," Elango said, seeking to reject the remand order.

Saying that medical examinations held by the doctors of Omandurar super-speciality Hospital and the ESI hospital have revealed three blocks in the heart and needed surgery, he prayed for the court to order shifting the minister to Kauvery Hospital for surgery.

"He was subjected to tremendous harassment for 22 hours. His life is in danger," he said.

Attributing the political motive behind the swooping down of the ED ahead of the 2024 general elections to the Lok Sabha, Elango said the Central agency did not want to interrogate him in 2021 when the ECIR was registered.

ALSO READ | TN minister Senthil Balaji to be sent to judicial custody for 14 days

He also opposed setting up an independent team of doctors to examine Senthil Balaji as proposed by Additional Solicitor General (ASG) ARL Sundaresan.

The latter appearing for the ED, assisted by special public prosecutor N Ramesh, denied the charges of non-compliance with the procedures for the arrest.

Grounds were informed to him but he refused to receive the summons and arrest memo; his wife did not attend phone calls but they are saying the arrest was not intimated, the ASG said.

He contended that the provisions of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) will not be applicable to the case on hand wherein the special act (PMLA) has come into play, and the bail cannot be granted without giving the opportunity to the public prosecutor to oppose it.

He also said there is no provision for an interim bail in the relevant act for the case booked under PMLA.

Earlier, Alli visited Omandurar Hospital and ordered the remand of Senthil Balaji till June 28.

High Court judge recuses

Earlier in the day, Elango sought the division bench of Justices M Sundar and R Sakthivel of Madras High Court, to take up a habeas corpus petition (HCP) moved by Senthil Balaji's wife Mekala. The bench said it would take it up post-lunch session if the numbering formalities are completed.

However, when the matter came up after lunch, Justice Sakthivel had recused from the bench. Subsequently, Elango approached the Chief Justice for assigning a judge to be part of the bench to hear the matter.

It was not pressed later since the remand order was passed by the principal sessions judge.



CHENNAI: While the arguments on the bail application filed by Senthil Balaji, Tamil Nadu Minister for Electricity, Excise and Prohibition were progressing in the principal sessions court, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) moved a petition seeking 15 days of custody of the minister for interrogation over the money laundering case. However, principal sessions judge S Alli adjourned the hearing on the custody petition to June 15, 2023, directing the minister's counsel to file a reply. She reserved the orders on the bail application and the plea for granting interim bail and shifting Senthil Balaji to a private hospital for performing heart surgery.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); Appearing for the Minister, senior counsel, and DMK's Rajya Sabha Member NR Elango blamed the ED for subjecting him to 'tremendous harassment' for a period of 22 hours from the time he was kept confined at 7 am on Tuesday to 2 am on Wednesday when the formal arrest was effected. He said the investigating agency had failed to follow the procedures of arrest as it did not furnish the grounds of charges, the arrest memo was not served and the family members were not duly informed. ALSO READ | Kejriwal, Omar Abdullah, D Raja slam Tamil Nadu minister's arrest by ED "Any deviation of the provisions of section 41 A to 60 A of CrPC will vitiate the arrest. And so, the arrest is illegal and it cannot be given a clean certificate by the court," Elango said, seeking to reject the remand order. Saying that medical examinations held by the doctors of Omandurar super-speciality Hospital and the ESI hospital have revealed three blocks in the heart and needed surgery, he prayed for the court to order shifting the minister to Kauvery Hospital for surgery. "He was subjected to tremendous harassment for 22 hours. His life is in danger," he said. Attributing the political motive behind the swooping down of the ED ahead of the 2024 general elections to the Lok Sabha, Elango said the Central agency did not want to interrogate him in 2021 when the ECIR was registered. ALSO READ | TN minister Senthil Balaji to be sent to judicial custody for 14 days He also opposed setting up an independent team of doctors to examine Senthil Balaji as proposed by Additional Solicitor General (ASG) ARL Sundaresan. The latter appearing for the ED, assisted by special public prosecutor N Ramesh, denied the charges of non-compliance with the procedures for the arrest. Grounds were informed to him but he refused to receive the summons and arrest memo; his wife did not attend phone calls but they are saying the arrest was not intimated, the ASG said. He contended that the provisions of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) will not be applicable to the case on hand wherein the special act (PMLA) has come into play, and the bail cannot be granted without giving the opportunity to the public prosecutor to oppose it. He also said there is no provision for an interim bail in the relevant act for the case booked under PMLA. Earlier, Alli visited Omandurar Hospital and ordered the remand of Senthil Balaji till June 28. High Court judge recuses Earlier in the day, Elango sought the division bench of Justices M Sundar and R Sakthivel of Madras High Court, to take up a habeas corpus petition (HCP) moved by Senthil Balaji's wife Mekala. The bench said it would take it up post-lunch session if the numbering formalities are completed. However, when the matter came up after lunch, Justice Sakthivel had recused from the bench. Subsequently, Elango approached the Chief Justice for assigning a judge to be part of the bench to hear the matter. It was not pressed later since the remand order was passed by the principal sessions judge.
T Muruganandham By

Express News Service

CHENNAI: The AIADMK-BJP spat escalated further on Tuesday with the district secretaries meeting chaired by Edappadi K Palaniswami condemning BJP state president K Annamalai for his remarks on former chief minister J Jayalalithaa.

Annamalai, however, stood his ground saying he had not said anything contrary to the truth.

Significantly, the AIADMK resolution targeted only Annamalai and not the BJP. Former minister CVe Shanmugam said, Annamalai and BJP are different entities since Annamalai has his own agenda.

A resolution adopted at the meeting said that while BJP leaders had high regard for Jayalalithaa, Annamalai had made unacceptable remarks about her with an ulterior motive.

The resolution also described Annamalai as an immature politician without experience.

The resolution said BJP leaders like AB Vajpayee and LK Advani, senior leaders of various political parties and chief ministers had great respect for Jayalalithaa and Prime Minister Narendra Modi himself had called on Jayalalithaa at her residence.

Jayalalithaa was instrumental in the BJP becoming a ruling party at the Centre in 1998. After 20 years, the BJP could reopen its account in TN Assembly with four MLAs only because of AIADMKs support, the resolution added.

Sources said all district secretaries vehemently opposed Annamalais remarks and that the ties with the BJP should be reconsidered if the partys national leadership fails to take action against Annamalai for his remarks.

Criticising Annamalai, Shanmugam said, Annamalai has no locus standi to criticise our leader since he has taken money and admitted people with criminal background into the BJP. Even his own party functionaries are levelling corruption charges against him. If anyone had been punished for corruption, it was a leader in BJP. But at that time, Annamalai was not in the party.

Shanmugam also said if Annamalai did not like the alliance with AIADMK, he should have made it clear when BJP national leaders Amit Shah and JP Nadda said the ties would continue. Meanwhile, AMMK general secretary TTV Dhinakaran and VK Sasikala also took exception to Annamalais remarks.

Replying to the AIADMK resolution, Annamalai said in a statement that a few former ministers had expressed views against him without understanding his interview properly and that he did not want to respond to them.

In every election, those who came to power ruled the state by promising freebies, spending money during elections so that they can swindle people in the next five years. Through this, they have kept the poor and downtrodden people always poor. I hate this kind of politics, Annamalai said.

Stating that he had not said anything contrary to truth in his interview, Annamalai asserted: Corruption-free Tamil Nadu is my goal and I dont want to mortgage my dreams and the future of the state for short-term political gains.

BJP state vice presidents Karu Nagarajan and Thirupathy Narayanan took exception to the remarks of Shanmugam and Sellur K Raju.

CHENNAI: The AIADMK-BJP spat escalated further on Tuesday with the district secretaries meeting chaired by Edappadi K Palaniswami condemning BJP state president K Annamalai for his remarks on former chief minister J Jayalalithaa. Annamalai, however, stood his ground saying he had not said anything contrary to the truth. Significantly, the AIADMK resolution targeted only Annamalai and not the BJP. Former minister CVe Shanmugam said, Annamalai and BJP are different entities since Annamalai has his own agenda.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); A resolution adopted at the meeting said that while BJP leaders had high regard for Jayalalithaa, Annamalai had made unacceptable remarks about her with an ulterior motive. The resolution also described Annamalai as an immature politician without experience. The resolution said BJP leaders like AB Vajpayee and LK Advani, senior leaders of various political parties and chief ministers had great respect for Jayalalithaa and Prime Minister Narendra Modi himself had called on Jayalalithaa at her residence. Jayalalithaa was instrumental in the BJP becoming a ruling party at the Centre in 1998. After 20 years, the BJP could reopen its account in TN Assembly with four MLAs only because of AIADMKs support, the resolution added. Sources said all district secretaries vehemently opposed Annamalais remarks and that the ties with the BJP should be reconsidered if the partys national leadership fails to take action against Annamalai for his remarks. Criticising Annamalai, Shanmugam said, Annamalai has no locus standi to criticise our leader since he has taken money and admitted people with criminal background into the BJP. Even his own party functionaries are levelling corruption charges against him. If anyone had been punished for corruption, it was a leader in BJP. But at that time, Annamalai was not in the party. Shanmugam also said if Annamalai did not like the alliance with AIADMK, he should have made it clear when BJP national leaders Amit Shah and JP Nadda said the ties would continue. Meanwhile, AMMK general secretary TTV Dhinakaran and VK Sasikala also took exception to Annamalais remarks. Replying to the AIADMK resolution, Annamalai said in a statement that a few former ministers had expressed views against him without understanding his interview properly and that he did not want to respond to them. In every election, those who came to power ruled the state by promising freebies, spending money during elections so that they can swindle people in the next five years. Through this, they have kept the poor and downtrodden people always poor. I hate this kind of politics, Annamalai said. Stating that he had not said anything contrary to truth in his interview, Annamalai asserted: Corruption-free Tamil Nadu is my goal and I dont want to mortgage my dreams and the future of the state for short-term political gains. BJP state vice presidents Karu Nagarajan and Thirupathy Narayanan took exception to the remarks of Shanmugam and Sellur K Raju.
Yeshi Seli By

Express News Service

NEW DELHI: Indias development partnership with Africa will have a strong focus on digital and green issues, healthcare, food security and water, said External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Wednesday. For India, the rise of Africa is key to geopolitical rebalancing, he added.

Jaishankar was speaking at the 18th CII EXIM Bank India Conclave on the India-Africa Growth Partnership.

Referring to the significant growth in India-Africa bilateral trade flows, Jaishankar said that the implementation of the Africa Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) will pave the way for increased investments by Indian companies in Africa. India is already among the top five large investors in Africa and I am confident that this will grow in the coming times," he added.

Meanwhile, the Vice President of Zimbabwe CGDN Chiwenga said that it was a boon to have deep bilateral relations amidst geopolitical tensions and pandemic.

"The implementation of the AfCFTA would trigger investments, and develop the tourism sector, agriculture and manufacturing, said Chiwenga.

The Deputy Prime Minister of Republic of Congo Vital Kamerhe Lwa Kanyiginyo said that Congo has been preserving its forest cover, rich with mineral resources and has the potential to generate hydropower which can be utilised for accelerated development. He welcomed Indian businesses to participate in construction of rail lines and highways connecting the remotest areas of the African continent.

"India staunchly supports Africas fight against colonialism and our ties are not transactional. The rise of Africa is key to global rebalancing," said Jaishankar while addressing the conclave.

India has battled at the WTO with their African partners for accessibility of vaccines and now it is extending support and expertise in imparting high level education in Africa by setting up IITs. India is expected to inaugurate the first foreign campus of the IIT in Tanzania for which Jaishankar will travel there. India is also imparting tele-education to African youth and is among the top five investors in Africa.

"India has always stood by its friends in times of need and has supported countries like Mozambique, Mauritius and Madagascar. We are keen to share our experience with Africa for clean energy," Jaishankar added.

NEW DELHI: Indias development partnership with Africa will have a strong focus on digital and green issues, healthcare, food security and water, said External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Wednesday. For India, the rise of Africa is key to geopolitical rebalancing, he added. Jaishankar was speaking at the 18th CII EXIM Bank India Conclave on the India-Africa Growth Partnership. Referring to the significant growth in India-Africa bilateral trade flows, Jaishankar said that the implementation of the Africa Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) will pave the way for increased investments by Indian companies in Africa. India is already among the top five large investors in Africa and I am confident that this will grow in the coming times," he added.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); Meanwhile, the Vice President of Zimbabwe CGDN Chiwenga said that it was a boon to have deep bilateral relations amidst geopolitical tensions and pandemic. "The implementation of the AfCFTA would trigger investments, and develop the tourism sector, agriculture and manufacturing, said Chiwenga. The Deputy Prime Minister of Republic of Congo Vital Kamerhe Lwa Kanyiginyo said that Congo has been preserving its forest cover, rich with mineral resources and has the potential to generate hydropower which can be utilised for accelerated development. He welcomed Indian businesses to participate in construction of rail lines and highways connecting the remotest areas of the African continent. "India staunchly supports Africas fight against colonialism and our ties are not transactional. The rise of Africa is key to global rebalancing," said Jaishankar while addressing the conclave. India has battled at the WTO with their African partners for accessibility of vaccines and now it is extending support and expertise in imparting high level education in Africa by setting up IITs. India is expected to inaugurate the first foreign campus of the IIT in Tanzania for which Jaishankar will travel there. India is also imparting tele-education to African youth and is among the top five investors in Africa. "India has always stood by its friends in times of need and has supported countries like Mozambique, Mauritius and Madagascar. We are keen to share our experience with Africa for clean energy," Jaishankar added.
Namita Bajpai By

Express News Service

LUCKNOW: After the successful culmination of the ongoing G-20 Development Ministers meeting in Varanasi, the delegates, accompanied by External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, visited the spiritual Buddhist site of Sarnath on Tuesday.

The foreign delegates saw the ancient monument, Dhamek Stupa, and museum among others during their visit. The Uttar Pradesh government had also designated 115 guides who were accompanied the foreign delegates.

During the Sarnath tour, the foreign delegates performed parikrama of the 43.6 m high and 28 m wide Dhamek Stupa. A cultural programme was also organised later, after which all the guests left for Delhi.

Earlier, the G20 Development Ministers Conference in Varanasi adopted an ambitious seven-year action plan presented by India to accelerate progress on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by the G20 countries.

Besides, another document was accepted in the meeting with the aim of increasing cooperation and partnership regarding sustainable lifestyles for meeting climate change goals. The outcome of the document adopted will be presented for consideration by G-20 leaders at the Leaders Summit to be held in New Delhi on September 9 and 10 in 2023.

LUCKNOW: After the successful culmination of the ongoing G-20 Development Ministers meeting in Varanasi, the delegates, accompanied by External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, visited the spiritual Buddhist site of Sarnath on Tuesday. The foreign delegates saw the ancient monument, Dhamek Stupa, and museum among others during their visit. The Uttar Pradesh government had also designated 115 guides who were accompanied the foreign delegates. During the Sarnath tour, the foreign delegates performed parikrama of the 43.6 m high and 28 m wide Dhamek Stupa. A cultural programme was also organised later, after which all the guests left for Delhi. Earlier, the G20 Development Ministers Conference in Varanasi adopted an ambitious seven-year action plan presented by India to accelerate progress on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by the G20 countries.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); Besides, another document was accepted in the meeting with the aim of increasing cooperation and partnership regarding sustainable lifestyles for meeting climate change goals. The outcome of the document adopted will be presented for consideration by G-20 leaders at the Leaders Summit to be held in New Delhi on September 9 and 10 in 2023.
Dilip Singh Kshatriya and Jitendra Choube By

Express News Service

AHMEDABAD/NEW DELHI: The Gujarat government has evacuated more than 20,000 people from low-lying areas as cyclone Biparjoy is expected to cross the Saurashtra and Kutch beaches around Jakhau Port on June 15 as a very severe cyclonic storm with maximum sustained winds of 125-135 kmph gusting to 150 kmph.

The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) has warned that the cyclone will create havoc in the coastal areas of Gujarat. Kutch, Devbhoomi Dwarka and Jamnagar districts are expected to be hit the hardest.

Trains were halted in cyclone-affected areas. According to Sumit Thakur, CPRO, Western Railways, No passenger train is operating at present in the Saurashtra-Kutch region. 69 trains have been cancelled and 55 have been either short-terminated or short-originated.

Four flights were cancelled on Tuesday at Bhavnagar Airport owing to severe weather. Union Home Minister Amit Shah chaired a review meeting on the preparedness to face challenges posed by the impending cyclone. Gujarat CM Bhupendra Patel and MPs from eight likely affected districts in the state participated in this.

The state government evacuated those residing within 5 kilometres of the Gujarat shore. If necessary, those within 10 kilometres of the coast may be relocated over the next two days. We have shifted 20,580 people from Gujarats coastal districts and moved them to relief camps, said C C Patel, director of relief for the state government.

The Indian Coast Guard has evacuated 50 people from Oil Rig Key Singapore. The re-curving cyclone has changed its path five times. The IMD expects a change in its path in another two days. IMD cannot predict the precise landfall. As per the current assessment, it would be near Jakhau port in Gujarat, between Mandvi (Gujarat) and Karachi (Pakistan).

Fortifying disaster management

The Centre has announced three major schemes worth I8,000 crore to boost disaster response:

Rs 5,000 cr project to expand and modernise fire services across the states

Rs 2,500 cr project to reduce the risk of urban flooding in the seven most populous metros

Rs 825 cr National Landslide Risk Mitigation Project for Landslide Mitigation in 17 states and UTs

AHMEDABAD/NEW DELHI: The Gujarat government has evacuated more than 20,000 people from low-lying areas as cyclone Biparjoy is expected to cross the Saurashtra and Kutch beaches around Jakhau Port on June 15 as a very severe cyclonic storm with maximum sustained winds of 125-135 kmph gusting to 150 kmph. The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) has warned that the cyclone will create havoc in the coastal areas of Gujarat. Kutch, Devbhoomi Dwarka and Jamnagar districts are expected to be hit the hardest. Trains were halted in cyclone-affected areas. According to Sumit Thakur, CPRO, Western Railways, No passenger train is operating at present in the Saurashtra-Kutch region. 69 trains have been cancelled and 55 have been either short-terminated or short-originated. Four flights were cancelled on Tuesday at Bhavnagar Airport owing to severe weather. Union Home Minister Amit Shah chaired a review meeting on the preparedness to face challenges posed by the impending cyclone. Gujarat CM Bhupendra Patel and MPs from eight likely affected districts in the state participated in this.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); The state government evacuated those residing within 5 kilometres of the Gujarat shore. If necessary, those within 10 kilometres of the coast may be relocated over the next two days. We have shifted 20,580 people from Gujarats coastal districts and moved them to relief camps, said C C Patel, director of relief for the state government. The Indian Coast Guard has evacuated 50 people from Oil Rig Key Singapore. The re-curving cyclone has changed its path five times. The IMD expects a change in its path in another two days. IMD cannot predict the precise landfall. As per the current assessment, it would be near Jakhau port in Gujarat, between Mandvi (Gujarat) and Karachi (Pakistan). Fortifying disaster management The Centre has announced three major schemes worth I8,000 crore to boost disaster response: Rs 5,000 cr project to expand and modernise fire services across the states Rs 2,500 cr project to reduce the risk of urban flooding in the seven most populous metros Rs 825 cr National Landslide Risk Mitigation Project for Landslide Mitigation in 17 states and UTs
Rajesh Asnani By

Express News Service

JAIPUR: The Rajasthan government has suspended seven officials including an IAS and IPS officer for allegedly getting into a brawl at a hotel in Ajmer district on Monday. Though the officials denied that they misbehaved or manhandled the hotel staff, the government took quick action once CCTV footage of the incident was recovered.

In their complaint, the hotel staff alleged that the officials were drunk and beat them with sticks. The video footage which was captured by CCTV cameras soon went viral on social media. The officials had reached the hotel past midnight and allegedly wanted to force the hotel staff to serve them food.

IPS officer Sushil Kumar Vishnoi and IAS officer Girdhar who is the Ajmer Development Authority Commissioner are the two senior officials who have been suspended for allegedly having a liquor party in a car and assaulting hotel staff. Along with them, five other government employees have also been suspended for the incident which occurred at Hotel Makrana Raj located on the Ajmer Highway.

A complaint was given by the hotel owner in the matter. It is alleged that the group was intoxicated during the uproar in the restaurant. The brawl happened at around 2 am on Monday morning.

Along with the IAS and IPS officers, ASI Ruparam of Gegal police station, constable Gautam, Mukesh Yadav, constable Mukesh Jat of Tonk and junior assistant Hanuman Prasad of tehsil in Tonk district have also been suspended.

In his complaint, the hotel owner Mahendra Singh alleged that Sushil Bishnoi along with his associates came to the hotel in a private vehicle and asked an employee sitting outside the hotel in a vest why he was sitting there. In response, the employee said, I am from the hotel staff and we are going to sleep. After this, the IPS officer slapped him. Later, officials accompanying the IPS officer started abusing and fighting with the hotel staff and then fled.

However, once the hotel owner was informed about the incident by the staff, he lodged a complaint with the Gegal police station. IPS officer Sushil Bishnoi has been appointed OSD of the newly formed Gangapur district in the state by the state government. Earlier, he was posted as Additional SP City Ajmer.

On Sunday, the IPS officer was given a farewell party at a city restaurant. After the party was over, he reached the hotel to have dinner with some friends.

The Rajput community, including hotel owner Mahendra Singh, have submitted a memorandum to RTDC chairman Dharmendra Rathore who in turn informed CM Ashok Gehlot and Ajmer Range IG about the incident. After this, the Personnel Department took action and suspended all the officials.

Meanwhile, action has also been taken by the police department in this matter and the case investigation has been handed over to the ADG Vigilance. On the instructions of DGP Umesh Mishra, ADG Vigilance Biju George Joseph has been entrusted with the investigation of the case. It is believed that action may be taken against more police personnel once the probe by the ADG is completed.

JAIPUR: The Rajasthan government has suspended seven officials including an IAS and IPS officer for allegedly getting into a brawl at a hotel in Ajmer district on Monday. Though the officials denied that they misbehaved or manhandled the hotel staff, the government took quick action once CCTV footage of the incident was recovered. In their complaint, the hotel staff alleged that the officials were drunk and beat them with sticks. The video footage which was captured by CCTV cameras soon went viral on social media. The officials had reached the hotel past midnight and allegedly wanted to force the hotel staff to serve them food. IPS officer Sushil Kumar Vishnoi and IAS officer Girdhar who is the Ajmer Development Authority Commissioner are the two senior officials who have been suspended for allegedly having a liquor party in a car and assaulting hotel staff. Along with them, five other government employees have also been suspended for the incident which occurred at Hotel Makrana Raj located on the Ajmer Highway.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); A complaint was given by the hotel owner in the matter. It is alleged that the group was intoxicated during the uproar in the restaurant. The brawl happened at around 2 am on Monday morning. Along with the IAS and IPS officers, ASI Ruparam of Gegal police station, constable Gautam, Mukesh Yadav, constable Mukesh Jat of Tonk and junior assistant Hanuman Prasad of tehsil in Tonk district have also been suspended. In his complaint, the hotel owner Mahendra Singh alleged that Sushil Bishnoi along with his associates came to the hotel in a private vehicle and asked an employee sitting outside the hotel in a vest why he was sitting there. In response, the employee said, I am from the hotel staff and we are going to sleep. After this, the IPS officer slapped him. Later, officials accompanying the IPS officer started abusing and fighting with the hotel staff and then fled. However, once the hotel owner was informed about the incident by the staff, he lodged a complaint with the Gegal police station. IPS officer Sushil Bishnoi has been appointed OSD of the newly formed Gangapur district in the state by the state government. Earlier, he was posted as Additional SP City Ajmer. On Sunday, the IPS officer was given a farewell party at a city restaurant. After the party was over, he reached the hotel to have dinner with some friends. The Rajput community, including hotel owner Mahendra Singh, have submitted a memorandum to RTDC chairman Dharmendra Rathore who in turn informed CM Ashok Gehlot and Ajmer Range IG about the incident. After this, the Personnel Department took action and suspended all the officials. Meanwhile, action has also been taken by the police department in this matter and the case investigation has been handed over to the ADG Vigilance. On the instructions of DGP Umesh Mishra, ADG Vigilance Biju George Joseph has been entrusted with the investigation of the case. It is believed that action may be taken against more police personnel once the probe by the ADG is completed.
By PTI

NEW DELHI/SRINAGAR: Tamil Nadu Electricity Minister V Senthil Balaji's arrest by the Enforcement Directorate has drawn sharp reactions from several opposition leaders, who accused the ruling BJP of targeting rival party leaders.

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, CPI general secretary D Raja and former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister and National Conference leader Omar Abdullah are among those who have slammed the Tamil Nadu minister's arrest.

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) arrested Balaji under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA)after a long session of questioning, officials said, even as the 47-year-old minister was admitted to a city government hospital after he complained of uneasiness.

Addressing a press conference, Kejriwal and Raja on Wednesday condemned Balaji's arrest saying Opposition-ruled states were being targeted by central probe agencies like CBI and ED.

"CBI and ED should be renamed as 'BJP's Army'. We condemn the raid and arrest of a minister in Tamil Nadu. The manner in which the arrest has been made is also very objectionable," Kejriwal said.

"ED and CBI are not going after corrupt people anymore, all corrupt people are getting refuge in BJP," the AAP leader said.

"There was a time when these investigative agencies were respected.

When they used to raid somewhere or arrest someone, it seemed that person must have done something wrong.

Today, these agencies have become only political weapons of BJP," he said.

Kejriwal added that BJP would still not win any seats in Tamil Nadu.

Raja, meanwhile, pointed out that the raid took place a few days after Union Home Minister Amit Shah claimed the BJP would win 25 Lok Sabha seats during a visit to Tamil Nadu.

"It's highly objectionable that ED can go inside the Secretariat. If the BJP thinks they can win seats in Tamil Nadu by doing this, they are living in a fool's paradise. Tamil Nadu will not allow BJP," he said.

"After the Karnataka elections, the discontent of people against BJP is visible, and the BJP has become desperate.

That is why they are doing unconstitutional things," he added.

Meanwhile, Jammu and Kashmir-based National Conference (NC) and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) also condemned the arrest and said they stood in solidarity with the DMK and Balaji.

NC vice president Omar Abdullah slammed ED sleuths' "behaviour" during the arrest.

"Tell me in which state has this not happened and which political party has not faced it.

It has become a small price we pay for being in politics," Abdullah told reporters at Magam in central Kashmir Budgam district.

"We strongly condemn the way they (ED personnel) behaved with the minister.

Today the medical reports show that he has three main arteries are blocked and he needs a bypass surgery.

I think the central government and these agencies should rethink about their behaviour," Abdullah added.

NC spokesperson Imran Nabi Dar said there was a growing concern over the "escalation in targeting" of opposition leaders.

On being asked if the ED action on Balaji was part of a pattern, which included the questioning of NC president Farooq Abdullah, Dar said it was a "political witch-hunt".

"If there was any micro-element of involvement of Abdullah, there would have been enough evidence to chargesheet him, but there is none.

If the agencies have anything substantial with them, they should bring it to the public domain," he said.

"But, when it is a political witch-hunt, the NC will always raise its voice because this is a concern that actually targets the democracy, the very basic routes of democracy in the country," the NC spokesperson said.

The PDP said central agencies were first "weaponised" in J&K and later replicated in the rest of the country.

PDP spokesperson Najmus Saqib said the central government has become a threat to its own institutions.

"This is for the first time in the history of India that we see a government becoming a threat to its institutions," Saqib said.

Saqib also said that the BJP's earlier call for a "Congress-mukt Bharat" has now extended to eliminating "every regional party and all kinds of opposition".

"There is a serious assault on every institution and this is a make-or-break moment for India.

If there is a serious recession in the democratic ideals of the country, I think, we are in for big trouble," he added.

NEW DELHI/SRINAGAR: Tamil Nadu Electricity Minister V Senthil Balaji's arrest by the Enforcement Directorate has drawn sharp reactions from several opposition leaders, who accused the ruling BJP of targeting rival party leaders. Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, CPI general secretary D Raja and former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister and National Conference leader Omar Abdullah are among those who have slammed the Tamil Nadu minister's arrest. The Enforcement Directorate (ED) arrested Balaji under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA)after a long session of questioning, officials said, even as the 47-year-old minister was admitted to a city government hospital after he complained of uneasiness.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); Addressing a press conference, Kejriwal and Raja on Wednesday condemned Balaji's arrest saying Opposition-ruled states were being targeted by central probe agencies like CBI and ED. "CBI and ED should be renamed as 'BJP's Army'. We condemn the raid and arrest of a minister in Tamil Nadu. The manner in which the arrest has been made is also very objectionable," Kejriwal said. "ED and CBI are not going after corrupt people anymore, all corrupt people are getting refuge in BJP," the AAP leader said. "There was a time when these investigative agencies were respected. When they used to raid somewhere or arrest someone, it seemed that person must have done something wrong. Today, these agencies have become only political weapons of BJP," he said. Kejriwal added that BJP would still not win any seats in Tamil Nadu. Raja, meanwhile, pointed out that the raid took place a few days after Union Home Minister Amit Shah claimed the BJP would win 25 Lok Sabha seats during a visit to Tamil Nadu. "It's highly objectionable that ED can go inside the Secretariat. If the BJP thinks they can win seats in Tamil Nadu by doing this, they are living in a fool's paradise. Tamil Nadu will not allow BJP," he said. "After the Karnataka elections, the discontent of people against BJP is visible, and the BJP has become desperate. That is why they are doing unconstitutional things," he added. Meanwhile, Jammu and Kashmir-based National Conference (NC) and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) also condemned the arrest and said they stood in solidarity with the DMK and Balaji. NC vice president Omar Abdullah slammed ED sleuths' "behaviour" during the arrest. "Tell me in which state has this not happened and which political party has not faced it. It has become a small price we pay for being in politics," Abdullah told reporters at Magam in central Kashmir Budgam district. "We strongly condemn the way they (ED personnel) behaved with the minister. Today the medical reports show that he has three main arteries are blocked and he needs a bypass surgery. I think the central government and these agencies should rethink about their behaviour," Abdullah added. NC spokesperson Imran Nabi Dar said there was a growing concern over the "escalation in targeting" of opposition leaders. On being asked if the ED action on Balaji was part of a pattern, which included the questioning of NC president Farooq Abdullah, Dar said it was a "political witch-hunt". "If there was any micro-element of involvement of Abdullah, there would have been enough evidence to chargesheet him, but there is none. If the agencies have anything substantial with them, they should bring it to the public domain," he said. "But, when it is a political witch-hunt, the NC will always raise its voice because this is a concern that actually targets the democracy, the very basic routes of democracy in the country," the NC spokesperson said. The PDP said central agencies were first "weaponised" in J&K and later replicated in the rest of the country. PDP spokesperson Najmus Saqib said the central government has become a threat to its own institutions. "This is for the first time in the history of India that we see a government becoming a threat to its institutions," Saqib said. Saqib also said that the BJP's earlier call for a "Congress-mukt Bharat" has now extended to eliminating "every regional party and all kinds of opposition". "There is a serious assault on every institution and this is a make-or-break moment for India. If there is a serious recession in the democratic ideals of the country, I think, we are in for big trouble," he added.
By PTI

CHANDIGARH: Activists of some Khaps and farmers on Wednesday blocked the Rohtak-Delhi national highway in Jhajjar district as part of a 'Haryana Bandh' call given to support protesting wrestlers, farmers, and other issues.

Ramesh Dalal, a senior leader of the Bhumi Bachao Sangharsh Samiti outfit, led the protesters who squatted on NH-9 in Bahadurgarh and imposed a blockade.

Arpit Jain, Superintendent of Police Jhajjar, told PTI that they were trying to persuade the protesters to lift the blockade.

Dalal told reporters at the site that as part of his outfit's Haryana Bandh call, 25 demands had been raised, including justice for wrestlers protesting against outgoing Wrestling Federation of India chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, loan waiver for farmers, the legal guarantee of crop MSP and enhanced compensation for land.

ALSO READ | Protesting farmers keep national highway in Haryana's Kurukshetra shut for second day

Meanwhile, in most parts of Haryana, the call for the strike evoked no response and life remained normal.

In Bahadurgarh and adjoining Rohtak, there was an additional deployment of police.

A few days ago, a meeting had been convened by some Khaps backed by farmer outfits at the Mandothi toll plaza in Jhajjar where the strike call was given to support the demands.

The Bhumi Bachao Sangharsh Samiti is an outfit fighting for the land rights of farmers

CHANDIGARH: Activists of some Khaps and farmers on Wednesday blocked the Rohtak-Delhi national highway in Jhajjar district as part of a 'Haryana Bandh' call given to support protesting wrestlers, farmers, and other issues. Ramesh Dalal, a senior leader of the Bhumi Bachao Sangharsh Samiti outfit, led the protesters who squatted on NH-9 in Bahadurgarh and imposed a blockade. Arpit Jain, Superintendent of Police Jhajjar, told PTI that they were trying to persuade the protesters to lift the blockade.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); Dalal told reporters at the site that as part of his outfit's Haryana Bandh call, 25 demands had been raised, including justice for wrestlers protesting against outgoing Wrestling Federation of India chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, loan waiver for farmers, the legal guarantee of crop MSP and enhanced compensation for land. ALSO READ | Protesting farmers keep national highway in Haryana's Kurukshetra shut for second day Meanwhile, in most parts of Haryana, the call for the strike evoked no response and life remained normal. In Bahadurgarh and adjoining Rohtak, there was an additional deployment of police. A few days ago, a meeting had been convened by some Khaps backed by farmer outfits at the Mandothi toll plaza in Jhajjar where the strike call was given to support the demands. The Bhumi Bachao Sangharsh Samiti is an outfit fighting for the land rights of farmers
Ramashankar By

Express News Service

PATNA: A 40-year-old man allegedly killed his wife and three daughters and hanged himself from a tree in Bihar's Khagaria district early on Wednesday.

The incident took place around 1.30 am at Ekania village under Mansi police station in the district. Munna Yadav slit the throat of his wife Pooja Devi (32) with a sharp-edged weapon when she was asleep. The couple had an altercation over Pooja's insistence to surrender in the murder case lodged against him in

October 2022.

Munna later killed his three daughtersSuman Kumari (18), Aanchal Kumari (16) and Roshani Kumari (15) with the same weapon. The daughters were sleeping on the rooftop of the building. He also made an abortive attempt to kill his two sonsAnkit Kumar (12) and Aditya Kumar (10), who managed to escape.

Munna later died by suicide by hanging himself from a tree. The bodies of the victims were recovered early on Wednesday morning and sent to Khagaria sadar hospital for post-mortem. The police seized the weapon used in the crime from the spot.

The deceased's sons told the police that they escaped from the house when they spotted their father with a sharp-edged weapon in his hand. He was hitting my sisters one after another with the same weapon. We hid ourselves in another room and saved our lives, the two sons said.

On getting information, Khagaria superintendent of police rushed to the spot and inquired about the incident. While four members of a family have been killed the fifth one killed himself by suicide. Further investigation is on, he added.

Locals told the investigating officials that Munna was booked in the murder case in October last year. Since then he was evading arrest. His wife was pressuring Munna to surrender in the court, which he declined, said a neighbour.

Khagaria sadar sub-divisional police officer (SDPO) Sumit Kumar said that a forensic team has been requisitioned from Bhagalpur to collect scientific evidence from the site of occurrence.

Ankit and Aditya told the police that their father had reached the house on Tuesday evening. Since he is evading arrest in the murder case, my mother asked him to surrender in the court, which led to an altercation, they revealed. Munna's elder brother Bimal Yadav is currently lodged in Khagaria divisional jail in the murder case in which Munna was evading arrest.

PATNA: A 40-year-old man allegedly killed his wife and three daughters and hanged himself from a tree in Bihar's Khagaria district early on Wednesday. The incident took place around 1.30 am at Ekania village under Mansi police station in the district. Munna Yadav slit the throat of his wife Pooja Devi (32) with a sharp-edged weapon when she was asleep. The couple had an altercation over Pooja's insistence to surrender in the murder case lodged against him in October 2022. Munna later killed his three daughtersSuman Kumari (18), Aanchal Kumari (16) and Roshani Kumari (15) with the same weapon. The daughters were sleeping on the rooftop of the building. He also made an abortive attempt to kill his two sonsAnkit Kumar (12) and Aditya Kumar (10), who managed to escape.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); Munna later died by suicide by hanging himself from a tree. The bodies of the victims were recovered early on Wednesday morning and sent to Khagaria sadar hospital for post-mortem. The police seized the weapon used in the crime from the spot. The deceased's sons told the police that they escaped from the house when they spotted their father with a sharp-edged weapon in his hand. He was hitting my sisters one after another with the same weapon. We hid ourselves in another room and saved our lives, the two sons said. On getting information, Khagaria superintendent of police rushed to the spot and inquired about the incident. While four members of a family have been killed the fifth one killed himself by suicide. Further investigation is on, he added. Locals told the investigating officials that Munna was booked in the murder case in October last year. Since then he was evading arrest. His wife was pressuring Munna to surrender in the court, which he declined, said a neighbour. Khagaria sadar sub-divisional police officer (SDPO) Sumit Kumar said that a forensic team has been requisitioned from Bhagalpur to collect scientific evidence from the site of occurrence. Ankit and Aditya told the police that their father had reached the house on Tuesday evening. Since he is evading arrest in the murder case, my mother asked him to surrender in the court, which led to an altercation, they revealed. Munna's elder brother Bimal Yadav is currently lodged in Khagaria divisional jail in the murder case in which Munna was evading arrest.
News / National

by Staff reporter

PARLIAMENT has approved bilateral air trade agreements with 13 nations, Transport minister Felix Mhona has said.Mhona said the agreements were in terms of section 327 of the Constitution.The minister said this while raising a motion on the ratification of bilateral air services agreements with other countries.Mhona said Zimbabwe signed the agreements with Qatar, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Mozambique, Jordan, Turkey, Sri Lanka, Singapore, Gabon, Rwanda, Seychelles, Ethiopia and Iraq."Whereas section 327(2)(a) of the Constitution of Zimbabwe provides that any convention, treaty or agreement acceded to, concluded or executed by and under the authority of the President with other foreign States or governments or international organisations shall be subject to approval by Parliament," Mhona said."The Republic of Zimbabwe, through the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructural Development concluded bilateral air service agreements with Qatar, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Mozambique, Jordan, Turkey, Sri Lanka, Singapore, Gabon, Rwanda, Seychelles, Ethiopia and Iraq Zimbabwe is desirous to ratifying the said agreements, now therefore, in terms of section 327(2)(a) of the Constitution of Zimbabwe, this House resolves that the aforesaid bilateral air trade agreements are hereby approved for ratification."An air trade agreement, sometimes called an air service agreement, is a bilateral agreement to allow international commercial air transport services between signatories.The bilateral air service agreements allow the designated airlines of the signatory countries to operate commercial flights that cover the transport of passengers and cargo between those two countries.This comes as the Civil Aviation Authority of Zimbabwe is pursuing new air service agreements to increase the number of airlines flying into the country.
By ANI

NEW DELHI: Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge slammed the late-night arrest of Tamil Nadu Electricity Minister Senthil Balaji by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) saying that it is "nothing but political harassment and vendetta" by the central government.

"Congress President Shri @kharge condemns the late-night arrest of Tamil Nadu Electricity Minister Shri V. Senthil Balaji by the ED. This is nothing but political harassment and vendetta by the Modi govt. against those opposed to it. None of us in the Opposition will be intimidated by such brazen moves," Kharge said in a press statement released by the Congress.

Congress President Shri @kharge condemns the late-night arrest of Tamil Nadu Electricity Minister Shri V. Senthil Balaji by the ED.



This is nothing but political harassment and vendetta by the Modi govt. against those opposed to it. None of us in the Opposition will be pic.twitter.com/RLzKDae5cA June 14, 2023

Meanwhile, Congress MP Karti Chidambaram pointed out that these raids by the central agencies are only for 'optics' and it does not help in collating 'evidence'.

"All these @dir_ed raids on functionaries of political parties opposed to the @BJP4India are only for optics & voyeuristic pleasure of a few, it in no way aids in collating "evidence" in the "alleged" case. Events of 2016 (ADMK)raids in 2023 in the Secratariat Office, seriously?" he tweeted.

All these @dir_ed raids on functionaries of political parties opposed to the @BJP4India are only for optics & voyeuristic pleasure of a few, it in no way aids in collating evidence in the alleged case. Events of 2016 (ADMK)raids in 2023 in the Secratariat Office, seriously?  Karti P Chidambaram (@KartiPC) June 14, 2023

Tamil Nadu Minister V Senthil Balaji broke down while being taken into custody by the ED officials for questioning in connection to an alleged money laundering case in the early hours of Wednesday. This was after his residence was raided by the ED on Tuesday.

READ MORE: ED raids place linked to TN electricity minister V Senthil Balaji, DMK gets opposition cover

ALSO READ: Senthil Balaji seems to have undergone mental and physical torture: Stalin

The ED brought Balaji to Omandurar government hospital in Chennai for medical examination amid tight security when the high drama was witnessed outside the hospital. Balaji could be seen crying in pain while lying in the car as his supporters gathered there to protest against the ED action.

NEW DELHI: Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge slammed the late-night arrest of Tamil Nadu Electricity Minister Senthil Balaji by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) saying that it is "nothing but political harassment and vendetta" by the central government. "Congress President Shri @kharge condemns the late-night arrest of Tamil Nadu Electricity Minister Shri V. Senthil Balaji by the ED. This is nothing but political harassment and vendetta by the Modi govt. against those opposed to it. None of us in the Opposition will be intimidated by such brazen moves," Kharge said in a press statement released by the Congress. Congress President Shri @kharge condemns the late-night arrest of Tamil Nadu Electricity Minister Shri V. Senthil Balaji by the ED. This is nothing but political harassment and vendetta by the Modi govt. against those opposed to it. None of us in the Opposition will be pic.twitter.com/RLzKDae5cAgoogletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); });  Congress (@INCIndia) June 14, 2023 Meanwhile, Congress MP Karti Chidambaram pointed out that these raids by the central agencies are only for 'optics' and it does not help in collating 'evidence'. "All these @dir_ed raids on functionaries of political parties opposed to the @BJP4India are only for optics & voyeuristic pleasure of a few, it in no way aids in collating "evidence" in the "alleged" case. Events of 2016 (ADMK)raids in 2023 in the Secratariat Office, seriously?" he tweeted. All these @dir_ed raids on functionaries of political parties opposed to the @BJP4India are only for optics & voyeuristic pleasure of a few, it in no way aids in collating evidence in the alleged case. Events of 2016 (ADMK)raids in 2023 in the Secratariat Office, seriously?  Karti P Chidambaram (@KartiPC) June 14, 2023 Tamil Nadu Minister V Senthil Balaji broke down while being taken into custody by the ED officials for questioning in connection to an alleged money laundering case in the early hours of Wednesday. This was after his residence was raided by the ED on Tuesday. READ MORE: ED raids place linked to TN electricity minister V Senthil Balaji, DMK gets opposition cover ALSO READ: Senthil Balaji seems to have undergone mental and physical torture: Stalin The ED brought Balaji to Omandurar government hospital in Chennai for medical examination amid tight security when the high drama was witnessed outside the hospital. Balaji could be seen crying in pain while lying in the car as his supporters gathered there to protest against the ED action.
Yeshi Seli By

Express News Service

NEW DELHI: Ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modis upcoming state visit to the US next week, US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, who is in Delhi on an official visit, met Prime Minister Narendra Modi and National Security Advisor Ajit Doval on Tuesday.

Glad to receive Jake Sullivan. We reviewed our progress under the India-US Initiative on Critical and Emerging Technologies (iCET) and other issues of bilateral cooperation. I look forward to meeting President Joe Biden during my upcoming visit to the US, said PM Modi.

Sullivan is on an official visit at the invitation of Ajit Doval and is accompanied by a delegation of senior US government officials. The India-US initiative on iCET is going to emerge as one of the very important pillars in the India-US bilateral strategic partnership. iCET is not a government-to-government arrangement alone, but a collaborative initiative of industry, academia, research bodies and think tanks, all making an endeavour to see India and the US in a higher orbit, said Doval.

The two NSAs have engaged regularly in extensive discussions on a broad bilateral, regional and global agenda. The current visit, which comes in the run-up to PM Modis visit to the US, will give them the opportunity to continue their high-level dialogue, which will include a review of the robust and multi-faceted cooperation between the two countries as well as a survey of the India-US global strategic partnership.

The US and India are poised to lead in the clean energy transformation, shore up and diversify global semi-conductor supply chains and supply chains in other critical goods and lead the revolution in AI, advanced computing, biotech and quantum, said Sullivan.

Following the launch of the India-US Initiative on iCET by PM Modi and President Biden on the sidelines of the QUAD Summit in Tokyo on May 24, 2022, the two NSAs have also driven a concerted effort between the two countries to engage on the identified areas of collaboration, including Artificial Intelligence, quantum computing, semiconductors, telecommunications, defence and space.

Meanwhile, the two NSAs had restricted discussions on regional and global issues of mutual interest. They also attended the second Track 1.5 dialogue on iCET organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry. The first edition of this dialogue had been held by the US Chamber of Commerce in Washington, D.C. on January 30, 2023. The NSAs met the participants at the dialogue, which included leading representatives of academia and industry from both countries. Sullivan is also expected to meet External Affairs Minister, Dr S Jaishankar.

NEW DELHI: Ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modis upcoming state visit to the US next week, US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, who is in Delhi on an official visit, met Prime Minister Narendra Modi and National Security Advisor Ajit Doval on Tuesday. Glad to receive Jake Sullivan. We reviewed our progress under the India-US Initiative on Critical and Emerging Technologies (iCET) and other issues of bilateral cooperation. I look forward to meeting President Joe Biden during my upcoming visit to the US, said PM Modi. Sullivan is on an official visit at the invitation of Ajit Doval and is accompanied by a delegation of senior US government officials. The India-US initiative on iCET is going to emerge as one of the very important pillars in the India-US bilateral strategic partnership. iCET is not a government-to-government arrangement alone, but a collaborative initiative of industry, academia, research bodies and think tanks, all making an endeavour to see India and the US in a higher orbit, said Doval.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); The two NSAs have engaged regularly in extensive discussions on a broad bilateral, regional and global agenda. The current visit, which comes in the run-up to PM Modis visit to the US, will give them the opportunity to continue their high-level dialogue, which will include a review of the robust and multi-faceted cooperation between the two countries as well as a survey of the India-US global strategic partnership. The US and India are poised to lead in the clean energy transformation, shore up and diversify global semi-conductor supply chains and supply chains in other critical goods and lead the revolution in AI, advanced computing, biotech and quantum, said Sullivan. Following the launch of the India-US Initiative on iCET by PM Modi and President Biden on the sidelines of the QUAD Summit in Tokyo on May 24, 2022, the two NSAs have also driven a concerted effort between the two countries to engage on the identified areas of collaboration, including Artificial Intelligence, quantum computing, semiconductors, telecommunications, defence and space. Meanwhile, the two NSAs had restricted discussions on regional and global issues of mutual interest. They also attended the second Track 1.5 dialogue on iCET organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry. The first edition of this dialogue had been held by the US Chamber of Commerce in Washington, D.C. on January 30, 2023. The NSAs met the participants at the dialogue, which included leading representatives of academia and industry from both countries. Sullivan is also expected to meet External Affairs Minister, Dr S Jaishankar.
By PTI

NALIYA: As Cyclone Biparjoy barrels towards the Kutch coast in Gujarat, the government said they have so far evacuated nearly 37,800 people living near the sea in eight districts of the state.

The powerful cyclone will make landfall near Jakhau port on the evening of June 15, according to India Meteorological Department (IMD).

VSCS (very severe cyclonic storm) BIPARJOY over the Arabian Sea moved north-northwestward and lay centred at 2.30 IST of 14th June, about 280 km WSW of Jakhau port. To cross near Jakhau Port (Gujarat) by the evening of 15th June as VSCS, IMD said in the latest post.

Cyclone Warning for Saurashtra & Kutch Coasts: RED MESSAGE. VSCS BIPARJOY at 0530IST of today over NE Arabian Sea near lat 21.9N & long 66.3E, about 280km WSW of Jakhau Port (Gujarat), 290km WSW of Devbhumi Dwarka. To cross near Jakhau Port (Gujarat) by evening of 15June as VSCS. pic.twitter.com/DQPh75eXwY  India Meteorological Department (@Indiametdept) June 14, 2023

Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel visited the state governments emergency operations centreon Tuesday night for a review of the preparedness, it said.

The Gujarat government said in a release that they have so far evacuated 37,794 people living along the coastline.

The government said 17 teams of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and 12 of the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) are on standby in the districts of Devbhumi Dwarka, Rajkot, Jamnagar, Junagadh, Porbandar, Gir Somnath, Morbi and Valsad.

The army is also prepared to assist in relief efforts and has stationed flood relief columns at strategic locations. The army has coordinated its plans with the civil administration and the NDRF.

The cyclone has extensive damaging potential and is likely to impact Kutch, Devbhumi Dwarka and Jamnagar districts the most, IMD has said.

The state government is aiming to evacuate people residing within 10 km from the shore, said an official. So far, one fatality related to the cyclone has been recorded, he said. Evacuation operations will continue on Wednesday, officials said.

The cyclone is likely to hit the shore near Jakhau port between Mandvi in Kutch and Karachi in Pakistan with sustained wind speeds of 125-135 kmph, gusting to 150 kmph on Thursday evening (June 15).

The met department has predicted extremely heavy rainfall accompanied by strong winds in coastal parts of the Saurashtra-Kutch region, especially in the districts of Kutch, Porbandar and Devbhumi Dwarka.

After it makes landfall and weakens, Biparjoy is likely to remain north-eastward and is expected to move towards extreme south Rajasthan. It is expected to bring heavy to very heavy rain in north Gujarat between June 15-17.

Fishing activities have been suspended till June 16, ports are shut and ships are anchored as the sea turned turbulent and weather became inclement with extremely heavy rainfall and strong winds in the region due to the approaching cyclone.

Otherwise, a bustling shipping hub, the Jakhau port on Tuesday looked like a haunted jetty following the evacuation of its entire human population.

The Western Railway has taken precautionary measures to ensure the safety of passengers and train operations. As a result, 69 trains have been cancelled, 32 trains have been terminated short of their destination, and 26 trains have originated short of their source.

In a virtual meeting on Tuesday, Union Home Minister Amit Shah asked the Gujarat government to make arrangements for moving people living in sensitive places to safer locations and ensure all necessary services like electricity, telecommunication, health and drinking water, said an official statement.

ALSO READ: Cyclone Biparjoy: Authorities face reluctance of villagers in coastal Kutch as evacuation on in full swing

NALIYA: As Cyclone Biparjoy barrels towards the Kutch coast in Gujarat, the government said they have so far evacuated nearly 37,800 people living near the sea in eight districts of the state. The powerful cyclone will make landfall near Jakhau port on the evening of June 15, according to India Meteorological Department (IMD). VSCS (very severe cyclonic storm) BIPARJOY over the Arabian Sea moved north-northwestward and lay centred at 2.30 IST of 14th June, about 280 km WSW of Jakhau port. To cross near Jakhau Port (Gujarat) by the evening of 15th June as VSCS, IMD said in the latest post.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); Cyclone Warning for Saurashtra & Kutch Coasts: RED MESSAGE. VSCS BIPARJOY at 0530IST of today over NE Arabian Sea near lat 21.9N & long 66.3E, about 280km WSW of Jakhau Port (Gujarat), 290km WSW of Devbhumi Dwarka. To cross near Jakhau Port (Gujarat) by evening of 15June as VSCS. pic.twitter.com/DQPh75eXwY  India Meteorological Department (@Indiametdept) June 14, 2023 Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel visited the state governments emergency operations centreon Tuesday night for a review of the preparedness, it said. The Gujarat government said in a release that they have so far evacuated 37,794 people living along the coastline. The government said 17 teams of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and 12 of the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) are on standby in the districts of Devbhumi Dwarka, Rajkot, Jamnagar, Junagadh, Porbandar, Gir Somnath, Morbi and Valsad. The army is also prepared to assist in relief efforts and has stationed flood relief columns at strategic locations. The army has coordinated its plans with the civil administration and the NDRF. The cyclone has extensive damaging potential and is likely to impact Kutch, Devbhumi Dwarka and Jamnagar districts the most, IMD has said. The state government is aiming to evacuate people residing within 10 km from the shore, said an official. So far, one fatality related to the cyclone has been recorded, he said. Evacuation operations will continue on Wednesday, officials said. The cyclone is likely to hit the shore near Jakhau port between Mandvi in Kutch and Karachi in Pakistan with sustained wind speeds of 125-135 kmph, gusting to 150 kmph on Thursday evening (June 15). The met department has predicted extremely heavy rainfall accompanied by strong winds in coastal parts of the Saurashtra-Kutch region, especially in the districts of Kutch, Porbandar and Devbhumi Dwarka. After it makes landfall and weakens, Biparjoy is likely to remain north-eastward and is expected to move towards extreme south Rajasthan. It is expected to bring heavy to very heavy rain in north Gujarat between June 15-17. Fishing activities have been suspended till June 16, ports are shut and ships are anchored as the sea turned turbulent and weather became inclement with extremely heavy rainfall and strong winds in the region due to the approaching cyclone. Fisherman warning for the next 5 days. #fisherman #warning #Weather #India #IMD@DDNewslive @ndmaindia @airnewsalerts @moesgoi pic.twitter.com/h05tr91C7w  India Meteorological Department (@Indiametdept) June 13, 2023 Otherwise, a bustling shipping hub, the Jakhau port on Tuesday looked like a haunted jetty following the evacuation of its entire human population. The Western Railway has taken precautionary measures to ensure the safety of passengers and train operations. As a result, 69 trains have been cancelled, 32 trains have been terminated short of their destination, and 26 trains have originated short of their source. In a virtual meeting on Tuesday, Union Home Minister Amit Shah asked the Gujarat government to make arrangements for moving people living in sensitive places to safer locations and ensure all necessary services like electricity, telecommunication, health and drinking water, said an official statement. ALSO READ: Cyclone Biparjoy: Authorities face reluctance of villagers in coastal Kutch as evacuation on in full swing
By PTI

BHOPAL: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will virtually address BJP leaders and workers across 10 lakh booths in the country on June 27 from Bhopal, a senior party leader said on Wednesday.

MP Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) unit president VD Sharma said 2,500 leaders of the party from various states will attend this event.

"The prime minister will reach Bhopal on June 27 and flag off Vande Bharat Express. He will address BJP workers from 10 lakh booths across the country virtually," said Sharma, the Lok Sabha member from Khajuraho.

ALSO READ | BJP, Congress vie for tribal votes in Mahakoshal region in poll-bound MP

Sharma claimed 38 lakh workers from 64,100 booths in Madhya Pradesh will also take part in this program.

"If the prime minister allows, we will hold a roadshow in Bhopal," he said.

He said the PM will also visit Dhar on June 27.

The election in BJP-ruled Madhya Pradesh is due later this year.

BHOPAL: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will virtually address BJP leaders and workers across 10 lakh booths in the country on June 27 from Bhopal, a senior party leader said on Wednesday. MP Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) unit president VD Sharma said 2,500 leaders of the party from various states will attend this event. "The prime minister will reach Bhopal on June 27 and flag off Vande Bharat Express. He will address BJP workers from 10 lakh booths across the country virtually," said Sharma, the Lok Sabha member from Khajuraho.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); ALSO READ | BJP, Congress vie for tribal votes in Mahakoshal region in poll-bound MP Sharma claimed 38 lakh workers from 64,100 booths in Madhya Pradesh will also take part in this program. "If the prime minister allows, we will hold a roadshow in Bhopal," he said. He said the PM will also visit Dhar on June 27. The election in BJP-ruled Madhya Pradesh is due later this year.
By Express News Service

CHENNAI: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Wednesday arrested Tamil Nadu Electricity Minister V Senthil Balaji under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) after a long session of questioning.

However, the Tamil Nadu minister has been hospitalised in the ICU of a government hospital here early on Wednesday after he complained of uneasiness during ED raids at his premises on June 13.

Initially, Senthil Balaji was taken into custody by the ED after 18 hours of questioning by the Central agency. It is learnt that while he was being taken into custody at 2 am, the minister complained of chest pain and was taken to the multi-speciality hospital in Omandurar Estate.

Meanwhile, Chief Minister MK Stalin huddled with senior colleagues and legal experts at his residence about the next course of action. Since Senthil Balaji is holding key portfolios that need constant monitoring, the portfolios are likely to be given to one or two senior ministers in the cabinet until Balaji is out of the legal hurdles he is facing. There are chances that Senthil Balaji may continue as a minister without portfolio for some time and depending on what the legal turns the case against him takes in the coming days.

#WATCH | Tamil Nadu Electricity Minister V Senthil Balaji breaks down as ED officials took him into custody in connection with a money laundering case and brought him to Omandurar Government in Chennai for medical examination pic.twitter.com/aATSM9DQpu

According to reports, Balaji was being taken to the central agency's office in Nungambakkam for further interrogation. But within a few seconds, the situation changed as he was seen screaming in pain holding his chest. TV visuals showed Balaji being uneasy while being brought to the hospital in the wee hours of this morning. The DMK minister was seen in the very same dress he wore when he returned to his home on Tuesday morning after hearing the news about ED officials were searching his house.

The arrest sparked concern in the DMK camp as ministers, PK Sekar Babu, and Udayanidi Stalin rushed to the hospital to meet the minister. Sekar Babu claimed there were 'symptoms' Balaji has been 'tortured.'

After visiting Senthil Balaji at the hospital, HR and CE minister Sekar Babu said that the electricity minister was unconscious. "He didn't respond despite calling his name several times. There is swelling on his leg. The state he was brought to the hospital shows there are human rights violations," Sekar Babu said.

He also alleged that the enforcement directorate, CBI and the income tax department are acting at the behest of the central government against those opposing the bad politics of the central government.

"Several leaders, including chief ministers of other states and the parliamentary opposition leader, condemning the union government shows there is opposition centrally. DMK government, led by MK Stalin, will face the problem legally. More than a minister, Senthil Balaji is a DMK worker. The CM will fight for every DMK worker to save him and all actions will be taken based on his guidance," the DMK minister told media persons.

Law minister S Reghupathy, who visited the hospital, also said there was no clarity if Balaji has been arrested. He questioned the need for the ED raids at Balaji's house running non-stop for hours.

DMK advocates, who visited the hospital, demanded the ED officially make it clear immediately whether Balaji has been arrested or not.

Meanwhile, V Ananda Kumar, the nodal officer at the Omandurar hospital, said that Senthil Balaji is being treated for blood pressure and variations in the ECG and added that there were no external injuries to the Electricity Minister. "After Covid-19, several patients come with the complaint and there is a standard operating procedure for such cases. While we are investigating if he has been tortured, there are no external injuries," he added.

The arrest comes after Supreme Court, had last month, allowed police and ED to probe into an alleged cash-for-jobs scam against Balaji, who also holds the Prohibition and Excise portfolio.

Senthil Balaji was the transport minister in the AIADMK government, led by the late J Jayalalithaa, between 2011 and 2015. There were complaints against him, in which it was alleged he had received huge amounts as bribes from various persons for appointing them as drivers and conductors in the transport corporation.

The ED conducted the searches under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). Last month, the Income Tax department too had searched Balaji's close aides in the state.

The searches are also happening in the wake of Union Home Minister Amit Shah's visit on Sunday. The visit was marred by controversy when street lights went off outside Chennai airport. Balaji has termed it accidental.

(With additional inputs from PTI)

CHENNAI: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Wednesday arrested Tamil Nadu Electricity Minister V Senthil Balaji under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) after a long session of questioning. However, the Tamil Nadu minister has been hospitalised in the ICU of a government hospital here early on Wednesday after he complained of uneasiness during ED raids at his premises on June 13. Initially, Senthil Balaji was taken into custody by the ED after 18 hours of questioning by the Central agency. It is learnt that while he was being taken into custody at 2 am, the minister complained of chest pain and was taken to the multi-speciality hospital in Omandurar Estate.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); Meanwhile, Chief Minister MK Stalin huddled with senior colleagues and legal experts at his residence about the next course of action. Since Senthil Balaji is holding key portfolios that need constant monitoring, the portfolios are likely to be given to one or two senior ministers in the cabinet until Balaji is out of the legal hurdles he is facing. There are chances that Senthil Balaji may continue as a minister without portfolio for some time and depending on what the legal turns the case against him takes in the coming days. #WATCH | Tamil Nadu Electricity Minister V Senthil Balaji breaks down as ED officials took him into custody in connection with a money laundering case and brought him to Omandurar Government in Chennai for medical examination pic.twitter.com/aATSM9DQpu  ANI (@ANI) June 13, 2023 According to reports, Balaji was being taken to the central agency's office in Nungambakkam for further interrogation. But within a few seconds, the situation changed as he was seen screaming in pain holding his chest. TV visuals showed Balaji being uneasy while being brought to the hospital in the wee hours of this morning. The DMK minister was seen in the very same dress he wore when he returned to his home on Tuesday morning after hearing the news about ED officials were searching his house. The arrest sparked concern in the DMK camp as ministers, PK Sekar Babu, and Udayanidi Stalin rushed to the hospital to meet the minister. Sekar Babu claimed there were 'symptoms' Balaji has been 'tortured.' After visiting Senthil Balaji at the hospital, HR and CE minister Sekar Babu said that the electricity minister was unconscious. "He didn't respond despite calling his name several times. There is swelling on his leg. The state he was brought to the hospital shows there are human rights violations," Sekar Babu said. He also alleged that the enforcement directorate, CBI and the income tax department are acting at the behest of the central government against those opposing the bad politics of the central government. "Several leaders, including chief ministers of other states and the parliamentary opposition leader, condemning the union government shows there is opposition centrally. DMK government, led by MK Stalin, will face the problem legally. More than a minister, Senthil Balaji is a DMK worker. The CM will fight for every DMK worker to save him and all actions will be taken based on his guidance," the DMK minister told media persons. Law minister S Reghupathy, who visited the hospital, also said there was no clarity if Balaji has been arrested. He questioned the need for the ED raids at Balaji's house running non-stop for hours. DMK advocates, who visited the hospital, demanded the ED officially make it clear immediately whether Balaji has been arrested or not. Meanwhile, V Ananda Kumar, the nodal officer at the Omandurar hospital, said that Senthil Balaji is being treated for blood pressure and variations in the ECG and added that there were no external injuries to the Electricity Minister. "After Covid-19, several patients come with the complaint and there is a standard operating procedure for such cases. While we are investigating if he has been tortured, there are no external injuries," he added. The arrest comes after Supreme Court, had last month, allowed police and ED to probe into an alleged cash-for-jobs scam against Balaji, who also holds the Prohibition and Excise portfolio. Senthil Balaji was the transport minister in the AIADMK government, led by the late J Jayalalithaa, between 2011 and 2015. There were complaints against him, in which it was alleged he had received huge amounts as bribes from various persons for appointing them as drivers and conductors in the transport corporation. The ED conducted the searches under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). Last month, the Income Tax department too had searched Balaji's close aides in the state. The searches are also happening in the wake of Union Home Minister Amit Shah's visit on Sunday. The visit was marred by controversy when street lights went off outside Chennai airport. Balaji has termed it accidental. (With additional inputs from PTI)
By PTI

NEW DELHI: The Ukrainian president's chief of staff, Andriy Yermak, has briefed NSA Ajit Doval on the current situation in his country in view of the continuing Russian offensive and sought India's support for the Ukrainian peace formula.

In a statement, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy's office said on Wednesday that Yermak, in his phone conversation with Doval, discussed preparations for a 'Global Peace Summit' besides pitching for consolidation of global support for the Ukrainian peace plan.

The phone conversation came three weeks after Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Zelenskyy held talks on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Hiroshima.

In the meeting, Modi had conveyed to the Ukrainian President that India will do everything possible to find a solution to the Ukraine conflict.

"The main topic of the conversation was the implementation of the Ukrainian peace formula, in particular, the consolidation of international support for the Ukrainian peace plan and the possibility of India joining the implementation of its individual points," the statement issued on Wednesday said.

ALSO READ | At least 6 killed in Russian missile attack on Zelenskyys hometown; several trapped in rubble

"In this context, the parties discussed preparations for the Global Peace Summit. Andriy Yermak emphasized the need to involve the widest range of countries, including the Global South," it said.

It said the recent events have once again proved that the Ukrainian peace formula is more relevant than ever for both Ukraine and the entire world.

"We are actively working with partners to prepare the Global Summit on implementing the formula. We expect India to take part in it," the head of the presidential office noted.

The statement said Yermak briefed Doval on the current situation on the "frontline" as well as on "Russia's ongoing missile and drone" attacks against Ukrainian cities and civilians.

ALSO READ | Ukraine says it retakes seven villages from Russian forces

It claimed Yermak discussed with Doval coordination for the "implementation of the agreements reached by Volodymyr Zelenskyy following the talks with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his participation in the G7 Summit."

Yermak also raised the blowing up of the Kakhovka Dam on the Dnipro River last week and called on India to join the international community in its efforts to eliminate the consequences of this "man-made disaster", the statement said.

"This is one of the largest modern-day crimes of ecocide. The aggressor has caused an unprecedented man-made, environmental, and humanitarian disaster," it said.

NEW DELHI: The Ukrainian president's chief of staff, Andriy Yermak, has briefed NSA Ajit Doval on the current situation in his country in view of the continuing Russian offensive and sought India's support for the Ukrainian peace formula. In a statement, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy's office said on Wednesday that Yermak, in his phone conversation with Doval, discussed preparations for a 'Global Peace Summit' besides pitching for consolidation of global support for the Ukrainian peace plan. The phone conversation came three weeks after Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Zelenskyy held talks on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Hiroshima.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); In the meeting, Modi had conveyed to the Ukrainian President that India will do everything possible to find a solution to the Ukraine conflict. "The main topic of the conversation was the implementation of the Ukrainian peace formula, in particular, the consolidation of international support for the Ukrainian peace plan and the possibility of India joining the implementation of its individual points," the statement issued on Wednesday said. ALSO READ | At least 6 killed in Russian missile attack on Zelenskyys hometown; several trapped in rubble "In this context, the parties discussed preparations for the Global Peace Summit. Andriy Yermak emphasized the need to involve the widest range of countries, including the Global South," it said. It said the recent events have once again proved that the Ukrainian peace formula is more relevant than ever for both Ukraine and the entire world. "We are actively working with partners to prepare the Global Summit on implementing the formula. We expect India to take part in it," the head of the presidential office noted. The statement said Yermak briefed Doval on the current situation on the "frontline" as well as on "Russia's ongoing missile and drone" attacks against Ukrainian cities and civilians. ALSO READ | Ukraine says it retakes seven villages from Russian forces It claimed Yermak discussed with Doval coordination for the "implementation of the agreements reached by Volodymyr Zelenskyy following the talks with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his participation in the G7 Summit." Yermak also raised the blowing up of the Kakhovka Dam on the Dnipro River last week and called on India to join the international community in its efforts to eliminate the consequences of this "man-made disaster", the statement said. "This is one of the largest modern-day crimes of ecocide. The aggressor has caused an unprecedented man-made, environmental, and humanitarian disaster," it said.
Narendra Sethi By

Express News Service

DEHRADUN: Amid a controversy over an attempt to abduct a minor in Purola, Uttarkashi, the Purola Pradhan Sangathan has announced a mahapanchayat on June 15.

In response to the controversy over the announcement of the mahapanchayat, All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) president Asaduddin Owaisi reacted sharply and demanded the state government to immediately ban the mahapanchayat.

The BJP hit back, saying Owaisis advocacy of love jihad and land jihad was unacceptable in Devbhoomi. The party strongly objected to Owaisis statement on the exodus of a particular community.

Owaisi is neither an acceptable leader of the Muslim community nor a supporter, he does vote bank politics everywhere by spreading hatred, the partys state media in-charge Manveer Singh Chauhan told this newspaper. Efforts to change the demography in the state will not be allowed to succeed in any way. His venomous vocabulary cannot spoil the peaceful atmosphere of Devbhoomi, added Chauhan.

Tension between the two communities in the state over the issue of love jihad has been steadily rising following a tweet by AIMIM national president Asaduddin Owaisi. Strongly reacting to Purolas announcement, the Muslim community has also called for a mahapanchayat in Dehradun on June 18.

Uttarkashi Superintendent of Police Arpan Yaduvanshi told this newspaper, Section 144 has been imposed in the district. No person violating the law can be exempted. We have tried to find a solution through talks with representatives of various organisations and the aim is to maintain peace, he said.

Speaking to TNIE, Swami Darshan Bharti, founder of Devbhoomi Raksha Abhiyan, which is organising the mahapanchayat, said, We stand by our earlier resolve and have appealed to the people of Uttarakhand not to rent out their houses and shops to people from the Muslim community.

Uttarkashi BJP district president Satyendra Rana said: Devbhoomi has a culture of hospitality tradition and such heinous acts will not be tolerated here at any cost. The way the campaign of Love Jihad is going on under one agenda, the citizens and the party here will completely destroy it.

Zahid Malik, district president of the BJPs minority cell, who has left Purola town, has alleged that during a protest in Purola on May 27, locals used abusive language against women of a particular community.

This has been denied by the people of a particular community living in Purola itself. In a memorandum to SDM Purola on Monday, Bale Khan, Mohammad Ashraf and Javed, belonging to the Muslim community of Purola, said Zahid Maliks allegations, circulated through a video message on social media, were completely false, alleging that women from their community were mistreated during the protest.

Additional Director General of Police (Law and Order) V Murugesan, in a virtual meeting, directed all superintendents of police to keep a close watch on law and order in their respective districts.

For many decades we people of different communities have been living as a family with mutual brotherhood and complete harmony in Uttarakhand, this is the first time, such an unfortunate atmosphere has been seen, Abdul Wahab, a resident of ISBT Azad Nagar, said.

DEHRADUN: Amid a controversy over an attempt to abduct a minor in Purola, Uttarkashi, the Purola Pradhan Sangathan has announced a mahapanchayat on June 15. In response to the controversy over the announcement of the mahapanchayat, All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) president Asaduddin Owaisi reacted sharply and demanded the state government to immediately ban the mahapanchayat. The BJP hit back, saying Owaisis advocacy of love jihad and land jihad was unacceptable in Devbhoomi. The party strongly objected to Owaisis statement on the exodus of a particular community.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); Owaisi is neither an acceptable leader of the Muslim community nor a supporter, he does vote bank politics everywhere by spreading hatred, the partys state media in-charge Manveer Singh Chauhan told this newspaper. Efforts to change the demography in the state will not be allowed to succeed in any way. His venomous vocabulary cannot spoil the peaceful atmosphere of Devbhoomi, added Chauhan. Tension between the two communities in the state over the issue of love jihad has been steadily rising following a tweet by AIMIM national president Asaduddin Owaisi. Strongly reacting to Purolas announcement, the Muslim community has also called for a mahapanchayat in Dehradun on June 18. Uttarkashi Superintendent of Police Arpan Yaduvanshi told this newspaper, Section 144 has been imposed in the district. No person violating the law can be exempted. We have tried to find a solution through talks with representatives of various organisations and the aim is to maintain peace, he said. Speaking to TNIE, Swami Darshan Bharti, founder of Devbhoomi Raksha Abhiyan, which is organising the mahapanchayat, said, We stand by our earlier resolve and have appealed to the people of Uttarakhand not to rent out their houses and shops to people from the Muslim community. Uttarkashi BJP district president Satyendra Rana said: Devbhoomi has a culture of hospitality tradition and such heinous acts will not be tolerated here at any cost. The way the campaign of Love Jihad is going on under one agenda, the citizens and the party here will completely destroy it. Zahid Malik, district president of the BJPs minority cell, who has left Purola town, has alleged that during a protest in Purola on May 27, locals used abusive language against women of a particular community. This has been denied by the people of a particular community living in Purola itself. In a memorandum to SDM Purola on Monday, Bale Khan, Mohammad Ashraf and Javed, belonging to the Muslim community of Purola, said Zahid Maliks allegations, circulated through a video message on social media, were completely false, alleging that women from their community were mistreated during the protest. Additional Director General of Police (Law and Order) V Murugesan, in a virtual meeting, directed all superintendents of police to keep a close watch on law and order in their respective districts. For many decades we people of different communities have been living as a family with mutual brotherhood and complete harmony in Uttarakhand, this is the first time, such an unfortunate atmosphere has been seen, Abdul Wahab, a resident of ISBT Azad Nagar, said.
By PTI

KOLKATA: Violence continued to rock parts of West Bengal over the filing of nominations for the July 8 panchayat poll for the fifth consecutive day on Wednesday, as activists of the ruling TMC and opposition parties.

Clashes were reported in parts of South 24 Parganas and Bankura districts prompting the police to use force to disperse the mobs.

Supporters of Indian Secular Front (ISF) and TMC clashed in Bhangore area of South 24 Parganas, nearly 30 km from Kolkata.

A huge police contingent was rushed to the spot, which resorted to baton charge to control the situation.

Bombs were hurled and several cars were ransacked as supporters of the two parties tried to stop each other from filing nominations.

Several activists belonging to the two parties were injured, the police said.

ISF MLA from Bhangore, Naushad Siddique, went to meet Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee in the afternoon to brief her about the situation in his constituency.

The legislator, however, could not meet Banerjee due to her "pressing engagements" and left.

"I had come here to meet Banerjee at the state secretariat and inform her about the situation in Bhangore where opposition candidates were threatened and stopped from filing nominations. But since she was busy, I could not meet her," Siddique told reporters.

A senior official at the Chief Minister's Office told PTI that the meeting could not be held because of Banerjee's pressing engagements.

When contacted, a senior officer of Bhangore Police Station said that they were yet to arrest anyone for the clashes there.

Similar scenes were witnessed in Canning area of the district, as miscreants alleged to be members of dissident groups of the TMC tried to stop the filing of nomination of the party's official candidates.

The miscreants hurled bombs and threw stones towards the Rapid Action Force (RAF) personnel and the police fired tear gas shells to quell the situation.

The SDPO of Canning was injured in the attack as police detained around seven people for their alleged involvement in violence, an official said.

Officials said that in Bankura' Indas area, BJP activists clashed with the TMC supporters outside the nomination filing centre.

Supporters of both groups came to blows and pelted each other with stones, even as police tried to control the situation in the area, which is about 135 km from the city.

Police later detained at least three persons from Indas in connection with the violence in Bankura district, he added.

Since the beginning of nomination filing on June 9, violence has marred the nomination filing process in various parts of the state, with the opposition - BJP, Congress and CPI (M) accusing the TMC of using muscle power to stop candidates of opposition parties from filing nominations.

"The TMC goons unleashed violence since last night to stop our candidates from filing nominations," ISF leader and Bhangore MLA Naushad Siddique said.

TMC state spokesperson Kunal Ghosh dismissed the allegations and claimed: "The ISF is trying to unleash violence in the area."

The TMC also asked the opposition parties to release its candidates' list and said that if needed, it will help them to file their nominations.

The state's three-tier panchayat election encompassing a significant electorate of approximately 5.67 crores, will exercise their franchise to choose representatives for nearly 74,000 seats in zilla parishads, panchayat samiti, and gram panchayats.

The Calcutta High Court on Tuesday ordered the requisition and deployment of central forces for the rural poll but refused to consider the plea for extending the time for filing of nominations and left it to the discretion of the State Election Commission.

KOLKATA: Violence continued to rock parts of West Bengal over the filing of nominations for the July 8 panchayat poll for the fifth consecutive day on Wednesday, as activists of the ruling TMC and opposition parties. Clashes were reported in parts of South 24 Parganas and Bankura districts prompting the police to use force to disperse the mobs. Supporters of Indian Secular Front (ISF) and TMC clashed in Bhangore area of South 24 Parganas, nearly 30 km from Kolkata.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); A huge police contingent was rushed to the spot, which resorted to baton charge to control the situation. Bombs were hurled and several cars were ransacked as supporters of the two parties tried to stop each other from filing nominations. Several activists belonging to the two parties were injured, the police said. ISF MLA from Bhangore, Naushad Siddique, went to meet Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee in the afternoon to brief her about the situation in his constituency. The legislator, however, could not meet Banerjee due to her "pressing engagements" and left. "I had come here to meet Banerjee at the state secretariat and inform her about the situation in Bhangore where opposition candidates were threatened and stopped from filing nominations. But since she was busy, I could not meet her," Siddique told reporters. A senior official at the Chief Minister's Office told PTI that the meeting could not be held because of Banerjee's pressing engagements. When contacted, a senior officer of Bhangore Police Station said that they were yet to arrest anyone for the clashes there. Similar scenes were witnessed in Canning area of the district, as miscreants alleged to be members of dissident groups of the TMC tried to stop the filing of nomination of the party's official candidates. The miscreants hurled bombs and threw stones towards the Rapid Action Force (RAF) personnel and the police fired tear gas shells to quell the situation. The SDPO of Canning was injured in the attack as police detained around seven people for their alleged involvement in violence, an official said. Officials said that in Bankura' Indas area, BJP activists clashed with the TMC supporters outside the nomination filing centre. Supporters of both groups came to blows and pelted each other with stones, even as police tried to control the situation in the area, which is about 135 km from the city. Police later detained at least three persons from Indas in connection with the violence in Bankura district, he added. Since the beginning of nomination filing on June 9, violence has marred the nomination filing process in various parts of the state, with the opposition - BJP, Congress and CPI (M) accusing the TMC of using muscle power to stop candidates of opposition parties from filing nominations. "The TMC goons unleashed violence since last night to stop our candidates from filing nominations," ISF leader and Bhangore MLA Naushad Siddique said. TMC state spokesperson Kunal Ghosh dismissed the allegations and claimed: "The ISF is trying to unleash violence in the area." The TMC also asked the opposition parties to release its candidates' list and said that if needed, it will help them to file their nominations. The state's three-tier panchayat election encompassing a significant electorate of approximately 5.67 crores, will exercise their franchise to choose representatives for nearly 74,000 seats in zilla parishads, panchayat samiti, and gram panchayats. The Calcutta High Court on Tuesday ordered the requisition and deployment of central forces for the rural poll but refused to consider the plea for extending the time for filing of nominations and left it to the discretion of the State Election Commission.
S Kumaresan and C Shivakumar By

Express News Service

CHENNAI: V Senthil Balaji's arrest in the wee hours of Wednesday has thrust the spotlight back on the Tamil Nadu Electricty Minister who has been dogged by controversy over the years.

Originally named Senthil Kumar, he was born into a farmer's family in Rameshwarapatti near Karur in 1975. During his studies at Government Arts College, Karur, he became an active member of the Vaiko-led MDMK, a splinter group of the DMK, in 1994.

Initially drawn to numerology and astrology, Senthil Kumar changed his name to Senthil Balaji. After experiencing dissatisfaction with MDMK district members, he switched allegiances to the AIADMK in 2001 when the party was in power. Soon after joining the AIADMK, he secured a district-level position in the party's student wing.

Impressed by his dedication and involvement in politics, the AIADMK fielded him as a candidate for the Karur assembly constituency in 2006. In this election, he defeated the influential politician Vasuki Murugesan, who served as the Karur DMK district secretary.

His performance as a first-term MLA impressed the party leadership and he was again given the ticket to contest in the Karur assembly constituency in the 2011 elections, emerging victorious once more.

ALSO READ | ED raids place linked to TN electricity minister V Senthil Balaji, DMK gets opposition cover

Following his second electoral triumph, Senthil Balaji was appointed as the Minister of Transport in the J Jayalalithaa cabinet in 2011. During this period, he also served as the district secretary of the AIADMK, organising events within the district. However, due to serious allegations against him, he was removed from the cabinet and relieved of his party position in July 2015.

Despite these setbacks, Senthil Balaji managed to get the ticket for the Aravakuruchi constituency in the 2016 assembly polls and was elected for a third consecutive term. Subsequently, following the demise of former Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa and the split within the AIADMK, he aligned himself with TTV Dhinakaran's faction. Alongside 17 other MLAs, he met the Governor to seek the dismissal of the then Chief Minister, Edappadi K Palaniswami. Consequently, he faced disqualification by the Speaker of the assembly.

Realising the limited political prospects within the TTV Dhinakaran-led AMMK, Senthil Balaji decided to switch loyalties to the DMK in December 2018. He contested and won the by-election for the Aravakuruchi assembly constituency on a DMK ticket in 2019. Additionally, he played a pivotal role in securing numerous seats for the DMK in the rural local body elections held in 2020. Once again, he was nominated by the DMK for the Karur assembly constituency in the 2021 elections and emerged victorious.

In the cabinet led by Chief Minister M K Stalin, Senthil Balaji was entrusted with the Electricity and Excise Department portfolios.

Balaji continued to prove himself as an able organiser. A former DMK district secretary told The New Indian Express, Senthil Balaji has always been known for organising grand events, whether he was in the AIADMK, AMMK or DMK. He was the first person to conduct a meeting of DMK president MK Stalin at 530 places in the district through video-conferencing. He joined the DMK along with 50,000 members and conducted a government function in Karur district and other Kongu regions for providing government welfare measures to one lakh people in a single function.

But, Balaji was haunted continuously by the cash-for-jobs scam dating back to 2014.

It has been alleged that aides of Balaji took cash from aspirants for jobs in the Metropolitan Transport Corporation. While jobs were allegedly given to those who paid up, some were kept pending in view of the impending elections with the promise of accommodating them thereafter.

ALSO READ | Old video surfaces of TN CM Stalin criticising Senthil Balaji's 'corruption, land grabbing'

In 2018, four complaints were filed against Balaji and others, and an FIR was filed against them on charges of cheating, criminal breach of trust and criminal intimidation. The following year, the case was investigated and a charge-sheet filed before a special court for MPs and MLAs. In 2021, Balaji approached the Madras High Court to quash the FIRs. He submitted that he had entered into a settlement with 13 aspirants, who were arrayed as witnesses in the case, and returned their money. Accepting it, the judge quashed the proceeding of the special court. However, the police and others challenged it and filed an appeal in the Madras High Court.

Meanwhile, the Enforcement Directorate took cognisance of the case and registered four cases in connection with the scam, naming Balaji as an accused in them. Further, the ED issued summons to Balaji and others for an inquiry. Challenging the summons, Balaji again approached the Madras High Court, contending that there were no jurisdictional facts for the ED to initiate any proceedings under the PMLA. Allowing his petition, in September 2022, a bench stayed the FIRs and quashed the summons issued by the ED. In swift retaliation, the ED challenged the high courts order before the Supreme Court.

In October last year, a Supreme Court bench, headed by then Justice S Abdul Nazeer, set aside the order of the high court and restored the criminal complaint against Balaji and others.

Meanwhile, the ED had completed its probe and filed charge-sheets in all the cases. Challenging it, Balaji again approached the high court. On October 31, 2022, a single judge observed that there were irregularities in the investigation conducted by the ED.

Further, the judge directed the ED to conduct a fresh investigation into two cases. Challenging the single-judge order for a fresh investigation, the ED filed an appeal before the Supreme Court. A few victims and Arappor Iyakkam, an NGO that campaigns against corruption, also filed an appeal challenging the Madras High Court order.

A bench of the Supreme Court, on May 16, refused to discharge Balaji in the cash-for-jobs scam and set aside a 2022 Madras High Court order for a fresh investigation against the minister and others in the case. The Supreme Court granted the state police two months time to complete the investigation and submit the final report. It also directed the Enforcement Directorate (ED) to continue its probe into

the charges under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).

CHENNAI: V Senthil Balaji's arrest in the wee hours of Wednesday has thrust the spotlight back on the Tamil Nadu Electricty Minister who has been dogged by controversy over the years. Originally named Senthil Kumar, he was born into a farmer's family in Rameshwarapatti near Karur in 1975. During his studies at Government Arts College, Karur, he became an active member of the Vaiko-led MDMK, a splinter group of the DMK, in 1994. Initially drawn to numerology and astrology, Senthil Kumar changed his name to Senthil Balaji. After experiencing dissatisfaction with MDMK district members, he switched allegiances to the AIADMK in 2001 when the party was in power. Soon after joining the AIADMK, he secured a district-level position in the party's student wing.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); Impressed by his dedication and involvement in politics, the AIADMK fielded him as a candidate for the Karur assembly constituency in 2006. In this election, he defeated the influential politician Vasuki Murugesan, who served as the Karur DMK district secretary. His performance as a first-term MLA impressed the party leadership and he was again given the ticket to contest in the Karur assembly constituency in the 2011 elections, emerging victorious once more. ALSO READ | ED raids place linked to TN electricity minister V Senthil Balaji, DMK gets opposition cover Following his second electoral triumph, Senthil Balaji was appointed as the Minister of Transport in the J Jayalalithaa cabinet in 2011. During this period, he also served as the district secretary of the AIADMK, organising events within the district. However, due to serious allegations against him, he was removed from the cabinet and relieved of his party position in July 2015. Despite these setbacks, Senthil Balaji managed to get the ticket for the Aravakuruchi constituency in the 2016 assembly polls and was elected for a third consecutive term. Subsequently, following the demise of former Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa and the split within the AIADMK, he aligned himself with TTV Dhinakaran's faction. Alongside 17 other MLAs, he met the Governor to seek the dismissal of the then Chief Minister, Edappadi K Palaniswami. Consequently, he faced disqualification by the Speaker of the assembly. Realising the limited political prospects within the TTV Dhinakaran-led AMMK, Senthil Balaji decided to switch loyalties to the DMK in December 2018. He contested and won the by-election for the Aravakuruchi assembly constituency on a DMK ticket in 2019. Additionally, he played a pivotal role in securing numerous seats for the DMK in the rural local body elections held in 2020. Once again, he was nominated by the DMK for the Karur assembly constituency in the 2021 elections and emerged victorious. In the cabinet led by Chief Minister M K Stalin, Senthil Balaji was entrusted with the Electricity and Excise Department portfolios. Balaji continued to prove himself as an able organiser. A former DMK district secretary told The New Indian Express, Senthil Balaji has always been known for organising grand events, whether he was in the AIADMK, AMMK or DMK. He was the first person to conduct a meeting of DMK president MK Stalin at 530 places in the district through video-conferencing. He joined the DMK along with 50,000 members and conducted a government function in Karur district and other Kongu regions for providing government welfare measures to one lakh people in a single function. But, Balaji was haunted continuously by the cash-for-jobs scam dating back to 2014. It has been alleged that aides of Balaji took cash from aspirants for jobs in the Metropolitan Transport Corporation. While jobs were allegedly given to those who paid up, some were kept pending in view of the impending elections with the promise of accommodating them thereafter. ALSO READ | Old video surfaces of TN CM Stalin criticising Senthil Balaji's 'corruption, land grabbing' In 2018, four complaints were filed against Balaji and others, and an FIR was filed against them on charges of cheating, criminal breach of trust and criminal intimidation. The following year, the case was investigated and a charge-sheet filed before a special court for MPs and MLAs. In 2021, Balaji approached the Madras High Court to quash the FIRs. He submitted that he had entered into a settlement with 13 aspirants, who were arrayed as witnesses in the case, and returned their money. Accepting it, the judge quashed the proceeding of the special court. However, the police and others challenged it and filed an appeal in the Madras High Court. Meanwhile, the Enforcement Directorate took cognisance of the case and registered four cases in connection with the scam, naming Balaji as an accused in them. Further, the ED issued summons to Balaji and others for an inquiry. Challenging the summons, Balaji again approached the Madras High Court, contending that there were no jurisdictional facts for the ED to initiate any proceedings under the PMLA. Allowing his petition, in September 2022, a bench stayed the FIRs and quashed the summons issued by the ED. In swift retaliation, the ED challenged the high courts order before the Supreme Court. In October last year, a Supreme Court bench, headed by then Justice S Abdul Nazeer, set aside the order of the high court and restored the criminal complaint against Balaji and others. Meanwhile, the ED had completed its probe and filed charge-sheets in all the cases. Challenging it, Balaji again approached the high court. On October 31, 2022, a single judge observed that there were irregularities in the investigation conducted by the ED. Further, the judge directed the ED to conduct a fresh investigation into two cases. Challenging the single-judge order for a fresh investigation, the ED filed an appeal before the Supreme Court. A few victims and Arappor Iyakkam, an NGO that campaigns against corruption, also filed an appeal challenging the Madras High Court order. A bench of the Supreme Court, on May 16, refused to discharge Balaji in the cash-for-jobs scam and set aside a 2022 Madras High Court order for a fresh investigation against the minister and others in the case. The Supreme Court granted the state police two months time to complete the investigation and submit the final report. It also directed the Enforcement Directorate (ED) to continue its probe into the charges under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
By Express News Service

CHENNAI: A medical bulletin from the Omandurar hospital said that Minister for Electricity, Prohibition and Excise duty Senthil Balaji (47) underwent a coronary angiogram at 10.40 am on Wednesday. It revealed triple vessel disease, for which CABG-Bypass Surgery is advised at the earliest, it added.

The minister complained of chest pain while being taken for investigation by the Enforcement Directorate (ED). The medical report will also be sent to All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) by the ED to ask their opinion, said sources.

The minister was arrested in connection with the cash for jobs scam when he was the transport minister during AIADMK regime in 2011-15. CM MK Stalin visited Senthil Balaji at the hospital. Ministers PK Sekar Babu, M Subramanian and Udhayanidhi Stalin are still in the hospital.

According to the doctors, Senthil Balaji complained of chest pain and discomfort and there were variations in his ECG.

When Senthil Balaji was taken in a car probably the one used by the ED officials, initially, it was believed that he was being taken to the ED office in Nungambakkam for further interrogation. But within a few seconds, the situation changed as Balaji was seen screaming in pain holding his chest. He was seen in the very same dress he wore when he returned to his home on Tuesday morning after hearing the news about ED officials were searching his house.

CHENNAI: A medical bulletin from the Omandurar hospital said that Minister for Electricity, Prohibition and Excise duty Senthil Balaji (47) underwent a coronary angiogram at 10.40 am on Wednesday. It revealed triple vessel disease, for which CABG-Bypass Surgery is advised at the earliest, it added. The minister complained of chest pain while being taken for investigation by the Enforcement Directorate (ED). The medical report will also be sent to All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) by the ED to ask their opinion, said sources. The minister was arrested in connection with the cash for jobs scam when he was the transport minister during AIADMK regime in 2011-15. CM MK Stalin visited Senthil Balaji at the hospital. Ministers PK Sekar Babu, M Subramanian and Udhayanidhi Stalin are still in the hospital. googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); According to the doctors, Senthil Balaji complained of chest pain and discomfort and there were variations in his ECG. When Senthil Balaji was taken in a car probably the one used by the ED officials, initially, it was believed that he was being taken to the ED office in Nungambakkam for further interrogation. But within a few seconds, the situation changed as Balaji was seen screaming in pain holding his chest. He was seen in the very same dress he wore when he returned to his home on Tuesday morning after hearing the news about ED officials were searching his house.
News / National

by Staff reporter

Tormented legislator Job Sikhala clocks one full year under pre-trial detention this Wednesday, becoming the second sitting opposition legislator to endure lengthy imprisonment since 2000.Commonly described as a political prisoner by his party and civil society, the Zengeza West lawmaker was arrested 14 June last year charged with obstructing the course of justice and violence incitement.The charges stem from wild scenes of politically motivated violence that rocked Nyatsime area in Chitungwiza in the aftermath of Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) activist Moreblessing Ali's cruel murder weeks before.The veteran politician's many attempts to secure bail have routinely been turned down by the country's courts on the ostensible reason he had propensity to commit similar offences.Sikhala's long incarceration has all but cost him his political career as he has not been able to attend parliament since his arrest and may not be part of the 2023 election candidates.The politician has also lost potential earnings from his job as a lawyer.Sikhala was on May 3 this year convicted for the crime of obstructing the course of justice and remains in custody for two other charges of incitement to commit violence and disorderly conduct."The conviction and sentencing of Job Sikhala is a travesty of justice and a shocking demonstration of the growing crackdown on peaceful dissent, especially on opposition leaders and party members in Zimbabwe," said Flavia Mwangovya, Amnesty International's Deputy Director for East and Southern Africa.Sikhala will go down as the second opposition lawmaker to endure lengthy imprisonment after founding MDC MP for Chimanimani Roy Bennett was jailed one year for bashing then justice minister Patrick Chinamasa in house bust-up back in 2004.The incident came after a heated debate during which Chinamasa described Bennett's white ancestors as "rapists", "murderers" and "thieves" who stole black-owned land.Bennett was jailed at the behest of then Speaker of parliament, Emmerson Mnangagwa, who is now Zimbabwe's president.Mnangagwa banned the courts from hearing his application to have the sentence set aside insisting the matter should be concluded in terms of parliamentary procedures which insulated the house from judicial scrutiny.Coincidentally, Sikhala has taken the punitive punishment under Mnangagwa.
C Shivakumar By

Express News Service

CHENNAI: Tamil Nadu Electricity Minister V Senthil Balaji was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) after a long session of questioning. The Minister will have to be produced before a judicial magistrate for being taken into custody once medical tests are favourable. It is not known whether he will be taken to New Delhi or kept in local custody.

It is learnt that based on the prima facie evidence, the statement of the minister was recorded after which he was arrested. While the enforcement directorate was taking him to a magistrate to get his custody, the minister complained of chest pain and he was taken to Omandurar Hospital.

Usually, there have been many high-profile cases where in people complain of health issues. The investigating agencies ensure all such issues are cleared before taking the person into custody.

While it is not clear whether Balaji would be taken to New Delhi or may be taken into local custody. It is learnt that the magistrate will have to take a decision in this regard. It also depends on the importance of the case.

The arrest comes after a bench of the Supreme Court, on May 16, refused to discharge Balaji in the cash-for-jobs scam and set aside a 2022 Madras High Court order for a fresh investigation against the minister and others in the case. The high court order had the effect of nullifying a Supreme Court judgment of September 8, 2022, which had restored the criminal case against the minister. The Supreme Court has granted the state police two months time to complete the investigation and submit the final report. It also directed the Enforcement Directorate (ED) to continue its probe into the charges under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).

The court had allowed the appeals filed by the ED and allowed the investigating agency to proceed further from the stage at which their hands were tied by the impugned order. "Once a piece of information relating to the acquisition of huge amount of illegal gratification in the matter of public employment has come into the public domain, it is the duty of the ED to register an information report," the court observed.

Under Balajis tenure as transport minister during the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) rule, recruitment for the post of reserve crew drivers, crew conductors, junior tradesmen (JTM), junior assistants (JA) and junior engineers was announced in November 2014. Aides of Balaji allegedly took cash from the aspirants for jobs in the Metropolitan Transport Corporation. While jobs were allegedly given to those who paid up, some were kept pending in view of the impending elections with the promise of accommodating them thereafter.

In 2016, following the death of then-CM J. Jayalalithaa, Balaji moved out with the breakaway T.T.V. Dhinakaran faction. Distraught job aspirants stepped up the demand for return of their money. In 2018, four complaints were filed against Balaji and others, and an FIR was filed against them under Sections 406 (criminal breach of trust), 420 (cheating) and 506 (criminal intimidation) of the Indian Penal Code. The following year, the case was investigated and a charge-sheet filed before a special court for MPs and MLAs.

In 2021, Balaji approached the Madras High Court to quash the FIRs filed against him. He submitted that he had entered into a settlement with 13 aspirants, who were arrayed as witnesses in the case, and returned their money. Accepting it, the judge quashed the proceeding of the special court. However, the police and others challenged it and filed an appeal in the Madras High Court.

Meanwhile, the ED took cognisance of the case and registered four cases in connection with the scam, and named Balaji as an accused in of them. Further, the ED issued summons to Balaji and others for an inquiry. Challenging the summons, Balaji again approached the Madras High Court, contending that there were no jurisdictional facts for the ED to initiate any proceedings under the PMLA.

Allowing his petition, in September 2022, a bench of Justices T. Raja and K. Kumaresh Babu stayed the FIRs and quashed the summons issued by the ED. In swift retaliation, the ED challenged the high courts order before the Supreme Court. In October last year, a Supreme Court bench, headed by then Justice S. Abdul Nazeer set aside the order of the high court and restored the criminal complaint against Balaji and others.

Meanwhile, the ED had completed its probe and had filed charge-sheets in all the cases. Challenging it, Balaji again approached the high court. On October 31, 2022, a single judge observed that there were irregularities in the investigation conducted by the ED and that it had overlooked certain crucial aspects. Further, the judge directed the ED to conduct a fresh investigation into two cases registered against the minister.

Challenging the single judge order for a fresh investigation, the ED filed an appeal before the Supreme Court. A few victims and Arappor Iyakkam, a NGO that campaigns against corruption, also filed an appeal challenging the Madras High Court order. While a few cases were listed before Justice Krishna Muraris bench, other matters related to the cash-for-jobs cases were listed before the bench headed by Justice Ramasubramanian. Objecting to this, Balaji approached the Supreme Court, seeking an order for the cases to be heard by a single set of judges. Acting on this, Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud formed a special bench comprising both Justices Murari and Ramasubramanian. The special bench, which had reserved the order last month, heard the case on a daily basis and delivered its May 16 order.

CHENNAI: Tamil Nadu Electricity Minister V Senthil Balaji was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) after a long session of questioning. The Minister will have to be produced before a judicial magistrate for being taken into custody once medical tests are favourable. It is not known whether he will be taken to New Delhi or kept in local custody. It is learnt that based on the prima facie evidence, the statement of the minister was recorded after which he was arrested. While the enforcement directorate was taking him to a magistrate to get his custody, the minister complained of chest pain and he was taken to Omandurar Hospital. Usually, there have been many high-profile cases where in people complain of health issues. The investigating agencies ensure all such issues are cleared before taking the person into custody.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); While it is not clear whether Balaji would be taken to New Delhi or may be taken into local custody. It is learnt that the magistrate will have to take a decision in this regard. It also depends on the importance of the case. The arrest comes after a bench of the Supreme Court, on May 16, refused to discharge Balaji in the cash-for-jobs scam and set aside a 2022 Madras High Court order for a fresh investigation against the minister and others in the case. The high court order had the effect of nullifying a Supreme Court judgment of September 8, 2022, which had restored the criminal case against the minister. The Supreme Court has granted the state police two months time to complete the investigation and submit the final report. It also directed the Enforcement Directorate (ED) to continue its probe into the charges under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). The court had allowed the appeals filed by the ED and allowed the investigating agency to proceed further from the stage at which their hands were tied by the impugned order. "Once a piece of information relating to the acquisition of huge amount of illegal gratification in the matter of public employment has come into the public domain, it is the duty of the ED to register an information report," the court observed. Under Balajis tenure as transport minister during the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) rule, recruitment for the post of reserve crew drivers, crew conductors, junior tradesmen (JTM), junior assistants (JA) and junior engineers was announced in November 2014. Aides of Balaji allegedly took cash from the aspirants for jobs in the Metropolitan Transport Corporation. While jobs were allegedly given to those who paid up, some were kept pending in view of the impending elections with the promise of accommodating them thereafter. In 2016, following the death of then-CM J. Jayalalithaa, Balaji moved out with the breakaway T.T.V. Dhinakaran faction. Distraught job aspirants stepped up the demand for return of their money. In 2018, four complaints were filed against Balaji and others, and an FIR was filed against them under Sections 406 (criminal breach of trust), 420 (cheating) and 506 (criminal intimidation) of the Indian Penal Code. The following year, the case was investigated and a charge-sheet filed before a special court for MPs and MLAs. In 2021, Balaji approached the Madras High Court to quash the FIRs filed against him. He submitted that he had entered into a settlement with 13 aspirants, who were arrayed as witnesses in the case, and returned their money. Accepting it, the judge quashed the proceeding of the special court. However, the police and others challenged it and filed an appeal in the Madras High Court. Meanwhile, the ED took cognisance of the case and registered four cases in connection with the scam, and named Balaji as an accused in of them. Further, the ED issued summons to Balaji and others for an inquiry. Challenging the summons, Balaji again approached the Madras High Court, contending that there were no jurisdictional facts for the ED to initiate any proceedings under the PMLA. Allowing his petition, in September 2022, a bench of Justices T. Raja and K. Kumaresh Babu stayed the FIRs and quashed the summons issued by the ED. In swift retaliation, the ED challenged the high courts order before the Supreme Court. In October last year, a Supreme Court bench, headed by then Justice S. Abdul Nazeer set aside the order of the high court and restored the criminal complaint against Balaji and others. Meanwhile, the ED had completed its probe and had filed charge-sheets in all the cases. Challenging it, Balaji again approached the high court. On October 31, 2022, a single judge observed that there were irregularities in the investigation conducted by the ED and that it had overlooked certain crucial aspects. Further, the judge directed the ED to conduct a fresh investigation into two cases registered against the minister. Challenging the single judge order for a fresh investigation, the ED filed an appeal before the Supreme Court. A few victims and Arappor Iyakkam, a NGO that campaigns against corruption, also filed an appeal challenging the Madras High Court order. While a few cases were listed before Justice Krishna Muraris bench, other matters related to the cash-for-jobs cases were listed before the bench headed by Justice Ramasubramanian. Objecting to this, Balaji approached the Supreme Court, seeking an order for the cases to be heard by a single set of judges. Acting on this, Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud formed a special bench comprising both Justices Murari and Ramasubramanian. The special bench, which had reserved the order last month, heard the case on a daily basis and delivered its May 16 order.
By Express News Service

CHENNAI: DMK president and Chief Minister MK Stalin condemned the arrest of Minister V Senthil Balaji by the Enforcement Directorate and said that the DMK will face the cases against Balaji legally and the party cannot be cowed down by such intimidating tactics.

"It seems Senthil Balaji has been subjected to mental and physical torture and he was pressured to the extent that he suffered chest pain. Now he is in the Intensive Care Unit," he alleged in a statement.

Meanwhile, along with Udhayanidhi Stalin and senior cabinet colleagues, the chief minister called on Senthil Balaji at the Omandurar multi-super speciality hospital and enquired about his health.

In his statement, the chief minister asked: Even after Balaji said he would cooperate with the ED inquiries, why should the ED torture him? Why did the ED officials treat Senthil Balaji in an inhuman manner violating the legal process needed for such inquiries? "The cruel way of thinking of those who unleashed officials has come out. Senthil Balaji will face the case legally. People are watching these repressive tactics and they will teach a befitting lesson in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

The chief minister also said the ED officials entered the state secretariat without any permission, where the government's secret files are maintained and enacted a drama in the chamber of Senthil Balaji in the disguise of inquiry. "They tried to show that ED searches could be carried out in the state secretariat itself," he added.

Earlier, Chief Minister MK Stalin went into a huddle with senior colleagues and legal experts at his residence about the next course of action. Since Senthil Balaji is holding key portfolios that need constant monitoring, the portfolios are likely to be given to one or two senior ministers in the cabinet until Balaji is out of the legal hurdles he is facing. There are chances that Senthil Balaji may continue as a minister without a portfolio for some time and depending on what the legal turns the case against him takes in the coming days.

CHENNAI: DMK president and Chief Minister MK Stalin condemned the arrest of Minister V Senthil Balaji by the Enforcement Directorate and said that the DMK will face the cases against Balaji legally and the party cannot be cowed down by such intimidating tactics. "It seems Senthil Balaji has been subjected to mental and physical torture and he was pressured to the extent that he suffered chest pain. Now he is in the Intensive Care Unit," he alleged in a statement. Meanwhile, along with Udhayanidhi Stalin and senior cabinet colleagues, the chief minister called on Senthil Balaji at the Omandurar multi-super speciality hospital and enquired about his health. googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); In his statement, the chief minister asked: Even after Balaji said he would cooperate with the ED inquiries, why should the ED torture him? Why did the ED officials treat Senthil Balaji in an inhuman manner violating the legal process needed for such inquiries? "The cruel way of thinking of those who unleashed officials has come out. Senthil Balaji will face the case legally. People are watching these repressive tactics and they will teach a befitting lesson in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. The chief minister also said the ED officials entered the state secretariat without any permission, where the government's secret files are maintained and enacted a drama in the chamber of Senthil Balaji in the disguise of inquiry. "They tried to show that ED searches could be carried out in the state secretariat itself," he added. Earlier, Chief Minister MK Stalin went into a huddle with senior colleagues and legal experts at his residence about the next course of action. Since Senthil Balaji is holding key portfolios that need constant monitoring, the portfolios are likely to be given to one or two senior ministers in the cabinet until Balaji is out of the legal hurdles he is facing. There are chances that Senthil Balaji may continue as a minister without a portfolio for some time and depending on what the legal turns the case against him takes in the coming days.
By PTI

COLOMBO: A group of Sri Lankan Army doctors have set a Guinness World Record by removing the world's largest kidney stone, surpassing the previous record registered by Indian doctors in 2004.

The stone, removed early this month at the Colombo Army Hospital, is 13.372 centimetres long and weighs 801 grams, a statement by the Army said on Tuesday.

According to the existing Guinness World Records, the erstwhile largest kidney stone in the world, around 13 centimetres, was found in India in 2004, while the heaviest kidney stone, weighing 620 grams, was reported in Pakistan in 2008.

Confirming the record, the Guinness World Record said, "The largest kidney stone is 13.372 cm (5.264 in), and was removed from Canistus Coonghe (Sri Lanka) in Colombo, Sri Lanka, on 1 June 2023.

"It added that the previous record of 13 cm had not been surpassed since 2004. Consultant Urologist Lieutenant Colonel (Dr) K Sutharshan, Head of Genito Urinary Unit at the hospital, led the surgery together with Captain (Dr) WPSC Pathirathna and Dr Thamasha Premathilaka. Colonel (Dr) UALD Perera and Colonel (Dr) CS Abeysinghe also contributed during the surgery as Consultant Anaesthetists," the Sri Lanka Army statement said.

COLOMBO: A group of Sri Lankan Army doctors have set a Guinness World Record by removing the world's largest kidney stone, surpassing the previous record registered by Indian doctors in 2004. The stone, removed early this month at the Colombo Army Hospital, is 13.372 centimetres long and weighs 801 grams, a statement by the Army said on Tuesday. According to the existing Guinness World Records, the erstwhile largest kidney stone in the world, around 13 centimetres, was found in India in 2004, while the heaviest kidney stone, weighing 620 grams, was reported in Pakistan in 2008.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); Confirming the record, the Guinness World Record said, "The largest kidney stone is 13.372 cm (5.264 in), and was removed from Canistus Coonghe (Sri Lanka) in Colombo, Sri Lanka, on 1 June 2023. "It added that the previous record of 13 cm had not been surpassed since 2004. Consultant Urologist Lieutenant Colonel (Dr) K Sutharshan, Head of Genito Urinary Unit at the hospital, led the surgery together with Captain (Dr) WPSC Pathirathna and Dr Thamasha Premathilaka. Colonel (Dr) UALD Perera and Colonel (Dr) CS Abeysinghe also contributed during the surgery as Consultant Anaesthetists," the Sri Lanka Army statement said.
By AFP

BEIJING: US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, on Wednesday, called for open lines of communication as he spoke with China's foreign minister, ahead of planned face-to-face discussions in Beijing.

Relations between the world's two largest economies have tanked in recent years over Taiwan, trade and human rights, among a litany of other issues.

Blinken is due in Beijing on Sunday for talks aimed at calming nerves, after a previously planned visit was abruptly cancelled in February.

In his call with Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang, which took place Wednesday Beijing time, Blinken said they "discussed ongoing efforts to maintain open channels of communication as well as bilateral and global issues".

State Department spokesman Matthew Miller also said Blinken had stressed "the importance of maintaining open lines of communication to responsibly manage the US-PRC relationship to avoid miscalculation and conflict".

Blinken "made clear the US would continue to use diplomatic engagements to raise areas of concern as well as areas of potential cooperation", Miller said.

A Beijing readout of the call struck a more confrontational tone, reporting that Qin had warned that relations between the two countries had faced "new difficulties and challenges" since the beginning of the year.

"It's clear who is responsible," Qin said, according to the Chinese foreign ministry.

"China has always viewed and managed China-US relations in accordance with the principles of mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and win-win cooperation put forward by President Xi Jinping," he added.

Blinken in Beijing

Blinken's planned visit to Beijing would be the first trip by a top US diplomat to China since his predecessor Mike Pompeo in October 2018.

Presidents Joe Biden and Xi met in Bali in November and agreed to try to prevent tensions from soaring out of control, including by sending Blinken to Beijing.

But Blinken abruptly cancelled a trip scheduled in early February after the United States said it detected -- and later shot down -- a Chinese surveillance balloon flying over the US mainland.

The two sides have more recently looked again to keep tensions in check, including with an extensive, closed-door meeting between Biden's national security advisor, Jake Sullivan, and senior Chinese diplomat Wang Yi in Vienna last month.

Biden has sought limited areas for cooperation with China, such as climate change, in contrast with the more fully adversarial position adopted at the end of the administration of his predecessor Donald Trump. But the two countries remain deeply at odds over many issues.

The White House last week accused China of operating an intelligence unit in Cuba for years and upgraded it in 2019 in an effort to enhance its presence on the Caribbean island.

A base in Cuba, which lies 90 miles (150 kilometres) off Florida's southern tip, would be viewed in Washington as a direct challenge to the continental United States.

Asked about the base at a regular press briefing, Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said he was "unaware of the situation" before criticising US policy on Cuba.
India, UAE set target of USD 100 billion for trade in non-petroleum products by 2030

New Delhi, June 12: India and UAE on Monday agreed to set a target of USD 100 billion of trade in non-petroleum products by 2030 from the USD 48 billion at present.

India, UAE set target of USD 100 billion for trade in non-petroleum products by 2030

Union Commerce Minister said that India and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) have agreed to more than double the trade in non-petroleum products by 2030, read a Ministry of Commerce and Industry press release.India and UAE successfully held the 1st Meeting of the Joint Committee (JC) of the India-UAE CEPA. During the JC, both sides, inter-alia, reviewed the bilateral trade under the CEPA, agreed to operationalize the established committees/sub-committees/technical council under the CEPA, agreed on mutual exchange of preferential trade data on a quarterly basis for effective monitoring of the CEPA.Both countries discussed various matters related to the implementation of the Agreement and agreed on addressing any issue that may potentially act as a hindrance to CEPA implementation or its usage by businesses on both sides, agreed on the creation of a new sub-committee on Trade in Services, and also agreed to set-up a UAE-India CEPA Council (UICC) as a B2B collaboration mechanism, with a focus on MSMEs and start-ups, for building greater economic linkages and optimizing CEPA benefits.Both sides also exchanged views on WTO matters. The 13th Ministerial Conference of the WTO (MC13) is scheduled to be held in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, during the week of 26 February 2024, added the release.A high-level delegation from the UAE, comprising senior officials of the Government of UAE and representatives from the business community of the UAE, led by Dr Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi, Minister of State for Foreign Trade of the UAE, visited India on 11-12 June 2023.The agreed minutes of the 1st Meeting of the Joint Committee (JC) of the India-UAE Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement was signed between the two sides in the presence of the Ministers today, added the release.During the JC, both sides agreed to operationalize the established committees, sub-committees and technical council under the India-UAE CEPA. Furthermore, they also decided to set up a UAE-India CEPA Council (UICC) as a B2B collaboration mechanism, focussing on start-ups and MSMEs.Dr Zeyoudi called on Piyush Goyal, Union Minister of Commerce and Industry Minister. The visit also marked the India leg of the 1st Anniversary of the Implementation of the India-UAE Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA). Both the Ministers addressed a Joint Press Conference on the achievements and the successful conclusion of the 1st meeting of the Joint Committee, added the release.Both the Ministers addressed a Joint Press Conference on successfully concluding the first meeting of the Joint Committee. They also participated in a B2B event organized by the Department of Commerce in partnership with the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII)."The initial gains have already started accruing from the Agreement with bilateral trade between India and the UAE growing at around 16.5 per cent and touching an all-time high of around USD 84.84 billion during FY 2022-23," Union Commerce Minister emphasized during the meeting.Piyush Goyal also said that India's exports to the UAE had witnessed a 12 per cent growth and reached USD 31.6 billion in 2022-2023.ANI13 June 2023

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Chandigarh University offers support to 700 Indian students facing deportation from Canada

PRNewswire, Chandigarh, June 13: Chandigarh University (CU) chancellor, Satnam Singh Sandhu announced that the Chandigarh University will offer every kind of help to the 700 Indian students - who have fallen prey to fake college admission offer letters by the fraudulent consultants - if they are deported from Canada.

Chandigarh University offers support to 700 Indian students facing deportation from Canada

Sandhu said this during the varsity's annual convocation that was held on Friday at the campus premises. "Our government is working closely with their counterparts in Canada to resolve the issue which we are hopeful will happen soon," he said while talking to the media.Left in the lurch, 700-odd Indian students, mostly from Punjab, are facing deportation from Canada after the authorities in the country found their admission offer letters to be fake.Satnam Singh Sandhu said, "The university will provide every possible help to these students if they are deported. We will give them admission and enroll them in the same batches. Their credit score mapping will be carried out properly so that the credits earned by them in their previous institutions are not wasted. Bridge courses will also be offered to them if any gap is found during the credit score mapping. The university will make sure that they do not face any loss."Sandhu also said that if these students are deported, later the university will also assist them in pursuing their study abroad dreams in legitimate ways."We understand the situation they are facing right now in the foreign country. We can feel their pain and stand with their families back in India," said Satnam Singh Sandhu, adding that the university is also exploring starting a helpline number for the affected students and their families.Meanwhile, more than 1400 students were awarded undergraduate and postgraduate, and Ph.D. degrees during the annual convocation held at CU on Friday. The convocation ceremony was attended by former president of India Ram Nath Kovind as chief guest.Chandigarh University is a NAAC A+ Grade University and an autonomous educational institution approved by UGC and is located near Chandigarh in the state of Punjab. It is the youngest university in India and the only private university in Punjab to be honoured with A+ Grade by NAAC (National Assessment and Accreditation Council). CU offers more than 109 UG and PG programs in the field of engineering, management, pharmacy, law, architecture, journalism, animation, hotel management, commerce, and others. It has been awarded as The University with Best Placements by WCRC.Website(Disclaimer The above press release has been provided by PRNewswire. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of the same)ANI13 June 2023

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The IISC Skill Development Centre in Challakere has Received an Advanced Technology-based Aerospace Autoclave from KRR

NewsVoir, Chennai, June 13: Indian Institute of Science - Challakere (SDC) campus received a state-of-the-art autoclave for its Aerospace division.

The IISC Skill Development Centre in Challakere has Received an Advanced Technology-based Aerospace Autoclave from KRR

The Skill Development centre, a product of a unique collaboration between HAL and IISc, will impart high end skills in manufacturing, including in the aerospace sector. The goal of the SDC is to create a large pool of trained personnel to address vital skill development gaps in our country, crucial for economic growth and self-sufficiency. It conducts hands-on workshops covering areas such as , Internet of Things (IoT), and CNC machining. One of the significant facilities in the SDC is the Advanced Composite Fabrication Testing and Evaluation laboratory, which includes an aerospace grade commissioned by Chennai based KRR Engineering Private Limited.The equipment was handed over to Challakere Campus by K R Ramaswamy, the Chairman of KRR Engineering Private Limited, in the presence of Dr. J Ramaswamy Setty, Chief Scientist of the National Aerospace Laboratory (NAL). Dr. M R Bhat, Chief Research Scientist of IISC's Department of Aerospace Engineering, accepted the equipment on behalf of the institution and made it available to the students and technicians of the division through IISC's Skill Development Centre. This will greatly enhance the capabilities of the students and technicians and enable them to conduct advanced research and on hand skill development in the field of aerospace grade composite manufacturing.Prof. Raghunandan Professor Emeritus who was instrumental in building the IISc Challakere campus, Prof. D N Rao Convener of SDC Challakere Campus, Dr. Subba Reddy, Convener SDC, Challakere Campus graced the occasion. Deivanai Ramaswamy, Director Finance, Sri Sakthivel Ramaswamy CEO and team of KRR Engineering were present at the event. Prof. Raghunandan and Dr. M R Bhat thanked KRR for realizing this advanced facility of aerospace grade for the HAL-IISc Skill Development Center.It is noteworthy that KRR Engineering Private Limited is the first indigenous manufacturer of autoclaves in India. Previously, autoclaves were imported, but KRR has successfully developed indigenous technology in collaboration with the National Aerospace Laboratory (NAL). The technology transfer was completed in 2018, and KRR is currently responsible for the marketing and manufacturing of autoclaves.This achievement represents a significant milestone in the manufacturing capability of aerospace-grade autoclaves in India. It showcases the country's progress in developing advanced research infrastructure and highlights the collaboration between academia, industry, and research institutions in pushing the boundaries of aerospace research and development.(Disclaimer The above press release has been provided by NewsVoir. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of the same)ANI13 June 2023

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Jitan Ram Manjhis son Santosh Kumar Suman resigns from Nitish cabinet

Patna, June 13: Santosh Kumar Suman, Bihar Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe Welfare Minister and son of Hindustani Awam Morcha (HAM) patron Jitan Ram Manjhi on Tuesday resigned from the state cabinet.

Jitan Ram Manjhi's son Santosh Kumar Suman resigns from Nitish cabinet

Suman and his father met with state Finance Minister Vijay Kumar Chaudhary and discussed the seat sharing formula for half an hour which was not agreed to. Hence, Suman immediately resigned from the post of cabinet minister."A mega meeting of opposition leaders is scheduled on June 23 and we are not invited. They are not recognising our party, so how could we stay here," Suman said.The move is being considered as a big jolt to Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's efforts for opposition unity ahead of the mega meeting in Patna. A total of 18 parties will be invited for the mega event but HAM led by Manjhi is not invited for it.However, coming out from the residence of Chaudhary, Manjhi claimed "The negotiation is currently underway and if Nitish Kumar accepts our demands, we are with him and the Mahagathbandhan."When Suman came out from the residence of Chaudhary, he said that he had given his resignation to him.Ganesh Prajapati, the media coordinator of the HAM, has also confirmed that Suman has resigned from the Nitish Kumar cabinet.Prajapati said that Manjhi was demanding five Lok Sabha seats for HAM in the general elections in 2024 while JD(U) leaders are pressurising him to merge his party with their party. "This has led to conflict and our leader has resigned from the post of cabinet minister," Prajapati said.The HAM has four MLAs and one MLC Suman.Earlier, Manjhi had met Nitish Kumar as well as Union Home Minister Amit Shah.Following the resignation of Suman, Lesi Singh, the cabinet minister in Nitish Kumar government and JD(U) leader said "The Nitish Kumar government is not affected by such resignation. Leaders come and go during elections. Nitish Kumar had sacrificed his chief minister post and given it to his (Suman's) father (Manjhi). What would be a bigger sacrifice than that."Jama Khan, another minister in Nitish cabinet said "Our government has seven-party Mahagathbandhan. If any trivial dispute takes place, we will sort out such problems. The bigger question here is to save the country."IANS13 June 2023

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News / National

by Staff reporter

I was interviewed by @SABCNews's foreign editor @Sophie_Mokoena on the political situation in Zimbabwe against the backdrop of the November 2017 military coup, and in light of the harmonised general election set for 23 August 2023. Herewith is the full interview, which was pic.twitter.com/gnnhXBRMHf  Prof Jonathan Moyo (@ProfJNMoyo) June 13, 2023

ZIMBABWE will approach this year's general elections without a formidable opposition to challenge the hegemony of Zanu-PF giving the revolutionary party an advantage, exiled former cabinet minister Jonathan Moyo has said.The country is heading towards general elections slated for August 23, pitting Zanu-PF's leader President Emmerson Mnangagwa against main opposition Citizens Coalition for Change's (CCC) Nelson Chamisa.In an interview aired on South Africa's public broadcaster's SABC Full View programme, Moyo criticised the opposition which he said is weak ahead of the August 23 polls.
Thailand reports 15 dengue deaths, cases at 3-yr high

Bangkok, June 13: Amid a concerning increase, Thailand has reported 15 dengue deaths since January this year, with 19,503 cases marking a three-year high, according to government officials.

Thailand reports 15 dengue deaths, cases at 3-yr high

The infection rate in 2023 is 4.2 times higher than last year, Xinhua news agency quoted deputy government spokeswoman Traisuree Taisaranakul as saying.On average, around 900 infections and one death were recorded each week, with most dengue cases found in the capital of Bangkok and five other provinces, according to Traisuree.She noted that the public health ministry expects to see more dengue patients during the rainy season between June and August before the number of cases starts to decline in September.The ministry's Department of Disease Control (DDC) said majority of the cases were occurring among children aged between 5 and 14.Anyone who suspects they may be infected should seek medical attention and avoid taking over-the-counter treatments, said DDC director-general Thares Krasanairawiwong.To curb the spread of this mosquito-borne disease, the agency urges the public to keep their communities clean and help eliminate mosquito breeding sites.IANS13 June 2023

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Former US NSA visits Taiwan with think tank

Taipei City, June 13: Former US Deputy National Security Advisor Matt Pottinger is leading a Washington-based think tank to Taiwan, where he will meet with President Tsai Ing-wen and other senior officials to discuss regional security issues, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) announced, according to Focus Taiwan.

Former US NSA visits Taiwan with think tank

Pottinger, chairman of the Foundation for Defence of Democracies (FDD) China Programme, will also meet with National Security Council Deputy Secretary-General Hsu Szu-chien and Deputy Foreign Minister Roy Lee during their visit, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a press statement.Pottinger's group will also visit the Ministry of National Defence, Coast Guard Administration, and Ministry of Digital Affairs to exchange perspectives on national security and strategy, digital resilience, and information security concerns, according to MOFA, as reported by Focus Taiwan.Focus Taiwan is a part of the Central News Agency (CNA), the national news agency of the Republic of China (ROC).Other delegation members include FDD CEO Mark Dubowitz and Jacob Nagel, a senior fellow at FDD who previously served as head of Israel's National Security Council and as acting national security advisor to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, among other positions, according to Focus Taiwan.Pottinger worked at the White House for four years in senior positions on the National Security Council staff, notably as deputy national security advisor from 2019 to 2021. He was responsible for coordinating the whole scope of US national security policy in that capacity.ANI13 June 2023

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EAM Jaishankar and G20 delegates visit Holy site of Sarnath

Varanasi, June 13: External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar visited the sacred Buddhist temple of Sarnath in Varanasi alongwith the G20 delegates. The G20 delegates are present in Varanasi to attend G20 Development Ministers' Meeting that was held on Monday.

EAM Jaishankar and G20 delegates visit Holy site of Sarnath

EAM Jaishankar along with the G20 delegates visited Sarnath on Tuesday. This is the third day that the G20 delegates are present in Varanasi. The Development Ministers' Meeting was a three-day long event that started on Sunday.On Sunday, a day before the DMM, the delegates to the G20 Development Ministers' Meeting and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar took part in the Ganga Arti ritual at the Dashashwamedh Ghat in Varanasi.The smooth glistening pillar established by Emperor Ashoka in 273-232 B.C. marks the foundation of the Buddhist Sangha, and the Lion Capital atop this pillar is now India's National Emblem.Earlier, the delegates were welcomed in a traditional way at Namo Ghat. Seeing the cultural artists dance, the delegates also shook a leg. Following this, they boarded the cruise vessel and reached Dashashmaved Ghat. During the Aarti, there was a special Shankhnaad for the guests.A day after the official event of the Development Minister's Meeting took place, the delegates were taken to see the ancient and archaeological site of Sarnath.The archaeological remains of Sarnath started attracting scholars in the 19th century. In the recent past, the Sarnath Circle of Archaeological Survey of India has been taking care of the excavation work in Sarnath.The Archaeological site showcases the grandeur of ancient times. An open exhibition of structures like Mulagandha Kuti Vihar remains, Dharmrajika Stupa remains, Dhamek Stupa, Ashokan Column, monuments, relics, and monasteries from the Mauryan period are showcased here.Sarnath, 10km from Varanasi, is one of the most revered Buddhist pilgrimage centres. It is believed that after attaining Enlightenment at Bodh Gaya, it was here that Lord Buddha preached his first sermon, sanctified as Maha Dharm Chakra Parivartan.The great Dhamekh Stupa and several other structures stand testimony to the importance the place enjoyed at that time.The Chaukhandi Stupa is the place where, during his first visit to Sarnath, Lord Buddha met his first five disciples.The area is a treasure trove of archaeological findings such as Dharmrajika Stupa and Mulgandhkuti Vihar.ANI14 June 2023

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Visit of senior military, civilian students of National Defence College to UK demonstrates deep relationship between Indian, UK forces

London, June 13: The annual visit of senior military, and civilian students of the National Defence College to the UK demonstrates the longstanding deep relationship between Indian and UK forces.

'Visit of senior military, civilian students of National Defence College to UK demonstrates deep relationship between Indian, UK forces'

"The @DefenceHQ was pleased to host the annual visit of senior military and civilian students of the National Defence College. The visit was a further demonstration of the longstanding deep relationship between India and UK forces," tweeted the official account of UK in India's Defence Adviser, Brigadier Nick Sawyer.Meanwhile, as UK Development Minister Andrew Mitchell attended the G20 Development Ministerial Meeting in Varanasi on Monday, new climate and tech partnerships were announced to benefit all by tackling global challenges, informed the British High Commission in India.Mitchell joined India and G20 partners in calling for reinvigorated efforts to meet the UN's Sustainable Development Goals.The new UK support includes funding for a tech start-up focusing on sustainable agriculture, including through growing vegetables in an environmentally-friendly way, as per an official release by British High Commission.UK's International Development Minister Andrew Mitchell is in India for the G20 starting Monday - and to boost UK-India cooperation on development including through climate and tech partnerships.He reinforced at the gathering in Varanasi how the UK's partnerships and investments are having a multiplier effect in tackling the biggest shared challenges of today - including climate change, poverty and food insecurity.ANI14 June 2023

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US NSA calls on PM Modi, says Biden looks forward to his state visit

New Delhi, June 13: US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan on Tuesday called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi and conveyed him that US President Joe Biden is looking forward to welcome him on his forthcoming state visit scheduled from June 21-25.

US NSA calls on PM Modi, says Biden looks forward to his state visit

Official sources said that Sullivan briefed Modi on the progress in various sectors of bilateral cooperation during the meeting.PM Modi has also expressed satisfaction at the growing and deepening comprehensive global strategic partnership between India and the US.He also said that he too is looking forward to a productive visit and an engaging conversation with President Biden on bilateral, regional and global issues of mutual interest.Earlier Sullivan, who is on an official visit to India from June 13 to 14, met his Indian counterpart Ajit Doval.He is in India on Doval's invitation and is accompanied by a delegation of senior US government officials and leaders of US industry.The two NSAs have engaged regularly in extensive discussions on a broad bilateral, regional and global agenda.The current visit, which comes in the run-up to Modi's state visit to the US, will give them the opportunity to continue their high-level dialogue, which will include a review of the robust and multi-faceted cooperation between the two countries as well as a survey of the India-US global strategic partnership.Earlier on Tuesday, the two NSAs met for restricted discussions on regional and global issues of mutual interest, an official statement issued by the Ministry of External Affairs said.Later in the evening, they attended the second Track 1.5 dialogue on India-US Initiative on Critical and Emerging Technologies (iCET) organised by industry body Confederation of Indian Industry.They expressed satisfaction at the progress made under iCET during the occasion and encouraged stakeholders on both sides to strive for technology value chain partnerships, that would lead to co-development and co-production of high technology products and services in both countries.Source said that during the visit, Sullivan will also meet External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar and other dignitaries.IANS14 June 2023

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Pulkit Samrat, Ali Fazal, Richa Chadha: Fukrey cast, reunites

Mumbai, June 13: As 'Fukrey' will clock 10 years on Wednesday, the star cast of the comedy film 'Fukrey', comes together to celebrate 10 years of 'Fukrey'.

Pulkit Samrat, Ali Fazal, Richa Chadha: 'Fukrey' cast, reunites

Actors Pulkit Samrat, Manjot Singh, Varun Sharma, Ali Fazal and Richa Chadda marked their presence at the fan screening, leaving netizens nostalgic.Richa looked beautiful as the actor can be seen dressed in a black casual outfit.On the other hand, Ali, Varun, Pulkit and Manjot Singh donned a printed grey t-shirt with 'Jugaadu' written on it.The star cast can be seen having a lot of fun. 'Fukrey' team's reunion left fans nostalgic.'Fukrey' was released on 14 June 2013, and its sequel was released on December 8, 2017. The film became widely popular because of its storyline depicting twisted and delectably uproarious take on the shortcuts the youth of today and of course the soundtrack.The film also stars Varun Sharma, Pulkit Samrat, Pankaj Tripathi and Manjot Singh in the lead roles.Both the previous sequels were declared hits and received massive responses from the audiences. Actor Ali Fazal, who appeared in the first two instalments of the hit franchise, will not be seen in the third instalment.Recently, Ali issued a statement, confirming his exit from the franchise.He said he did not work in 'Fukrey 3' due to a scheduling conflict with the 'Mirzapur 3' season. He also hinted at his return to the franchise in the future.ANI14 June 2023

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CoWIN is safe and secure, many interests want to undermine it: Rajeev Chandrasekhar

Thiruvananthapuram, June 13: Union minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar on Tuesday reiterated that there was no breach in the CoWIN app and the platform remains safe and secure. He added that allegations of data breaches were a continued pattern of people trying to undermine the strong digital infrastructures in India.

CoWIN is safe and secure, many interests want to undermine it: Rajeev Chandrasekhar

"There are many forces, there are many interests in the world that want to undermine Cowin, create question marks about CoWIN. Therefore, I believe yesterday's breach or alleged breach of Cowin was one more instance of people trying to target the Cowin app," Chandrasekhar told ANI.He said Indian CERT (Indian Computer Emergency Response Team), the agency that is tasked to dealing with cyber security breaches, is, however, investigating the alleged breach matter."Telegram BOT (in question) was not from the CoWIN app. It was certainly data that was either fake, false, or had been collected from other sources by some third-party threat actor and the Cowin app, as has been reaffirmed by the health minister and the ministry, is completely safe and secure and has not been breached," he added.On Monday, there were some media reports claiming the breach of data of beneficiaries who have received COVID vaccination through the app.Certain posts on the social media have claimed that using a Telegram (online messenger application) BOT, the personal data of individuals who have been vaccinated is being accessed. It was reported that the BOT has been able to pull individual data by simply passing the mobile number or Aadhaar number of a beneficiary.CoWIN was developed and is owned and managed by the Ministry of Health.ANI14 June 2023

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Jugaadu boys are back: Varun Sharma-Pankaj Tripathi starrer Fukrey 3 gets new release date

Mumbai, June 13: After prolonged anticipation, the makers of the comedy film 'Fukrey 3' announced the new release date.

Jugaadu boys are back: Varun Sharma-Pankaj Tripathi starrer 'Fukrey 3' gets new release date

Taking to Instagram, Varun Sharma treated fans with a video along with the announcement of a new release date.The video showcased a glimpse of the 'Fukrey' and 'Fukrey Returns' clips and ended with 'Fukrey 3' release date.Sharing the video, he wrote, "The Jugaadu boys are back on 1st Dec 2023 at cinemas near you. #Fukrey3."As soon as the video was posted, fans and industry friends chimed in the comment section.One of the users wrote, "Waiting."A user asked about Ali Fazal who played the role of Zafar in the previous installments of Fukrey.Another commented, "Zafar bhaii kaha haiiii...?""Bhai wait ni hora ab chuche bhai ki movie jo aari h," another comment read.Celebrating its 10th anniversary, 'Fukrey 3' is set to hit the big screens on December 1, 2023, much to the delight of fans worldwide.Both 'Fukrey' and 'Fukrey Returns' had audiences in splits and emerged as super hits at the box office in 2013 and 2017, respectively.Both the previous sequels were declared hits and received massive responses from the audiences. Actor Ali Fazal, who appeared in the first two instalments of the hit franchise, will not be seen in the third instalment.Ali issued a statement, confirming his exit from the franchise. He informed that he did not work in 'Fukrey 3' owing to a scheduling conflict with 'Mirzapur 3' season."So Zafar aayega ya nahi? Sab yahi puch rahe hain baar baar.sorry saathiyon, iss baari nahi! Zafar bhai ko kabhi kabhi Guddu bhaiya bhi banna padhta hai. Aur do universes overlap ho jaate hain kabhi kabhi. Once a fukra always a fukra so i am around. . . But I won't be coming on screen for the third outing of the Fukras, Bholi and Panditji! I would have wanted to be part of it but time and schedules didn't allow me to," Ali said.He also hinted at his return to the franchise in future."I will be back in the future at some juncture, maybe sooner than you expect. Zafar will be back after a small detour to entertain you guys," Ali added.Pulkit Samrat, Varun Sharma, Richa Chadha, Manjot Singh, and Pankaj Tripathi star in 'Fukrey 3'.The film is directed by Mrighdeep Singh Lamba and produced under the esteemed banner of Excel Entertainment by Ritesh Sidhwani and Farhan Akhtar.To commemorate the journey of the underdog franchise, the makers hosted a special screening of the original 'Fukrey' film, allowing fans to relish the nostalgia and celebrate this momentous occasion.At the fan screening, actors Pulkit Samrat, Manjot Singh, Varun Sharma, Ali Fazal and Richa Chadda marked their presence at the fan screening.Richa looked beautiful in a black casual outfit.On the other hand, Jugaadu boys Ali, Varun, Pulkit and Manjot Singh were seen twinning in a printed grey t-shirt with 'Jugaadu' written on it.The star cast can be seen posing and indulging in fun banter, leaving their fans nostalgic.Since its inception in 2013, 'Fukrey' has captured the hearts of audiences as one of Hindi cinema's most beloved desi comedy franchises. The film introduced a lineup of iconic characters like Choocha, Hunny, Pandit Ji, Bholi Punjaban, Lali, and more, all of whom are set to reunite on screen for 'Fukrey 3'.There have been several delays for 'Fukrey 3'. The movie's initial release date was September 7--was intended to conflict with Shah Rukh Khan's Jawan. After that, it was pushed to November 24 and now it will hit the theatres on December 1.ANI14 June 2023

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Ajit Doval, an international treasure...: US Ambassador to India Eric Garcetti

New Delhi, June 13: US Ambassador to India Eric Garcetti on Tuesday lauded National Security Advisor Ajit Doval, calling him an international treasure.

Ajit Doval, an international treasure...: US Ambassador to India Eric Garcetti

Highlighting Doval's humble origins as a village boy from Uttarakhand, the envoy said, "India's NSA has not only become a national treasure but an international treasure".The envoy also expressed admiration for the strong foundation between the United States and India."When I look at the foundation between the United States and India, it is so strong, it is so clear that Indians love Americans and Americans love Indians," Garcetti said at the United States-India initiative on Critical and Emerging Technologies (iCET) meet in Delhi.Praising India's advancements in digital payments and financial technology, the US Ambassador said "When I look at digital payments and financial technology that India has, we have rocked the world. A 'tea wala' in a village makes sure that she gets direct payment from the government on her phone, a 100 per cent of each one of those rupees."He said he recently had dinner with a group of multi-faith leaders in India, one of them said "We hear all these talks about 4G, 5G and 6G, but here in India we have something more powerful than that-'Guruji'.Meanwhile, National Security Advisor of the US Jake Sullivan who is on a two-day India visit on Tuesday met his Indian counterpart Ajit Doval and discussed regional and global issues of mutual interest.Sullivan is accompanied by a delegation of senior US government officials and leaders of US industry during his visit. His visit to the national capital comes in the run-up to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's upcoming state visit to the US.The two national security advisers had restricted discussions earlier in the day to discuss topics of common interest. Later that day, they both attended the second Track 1.5 discourse on it, which the Confederation of Indian Industry hosted.The first edition of this dialogue was organised by the US Chamber of Commerce in Washington, DC on January 30 this year, the release of Ministry of External Affairs said.During the visit, NSA Sullivan will also meet with External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar and other dignitaries of the Government of India, the official press release of the Ministry of External Affairs said.Earlier, US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin and National Security Advisor Ajit Doval met each other in New Delhi and discussed Indo-Pacific, and cooperation in specific niche technologies in maritime, military and aerospace domains.According to government officials, the two leaders also spoke on the greater transfer of technology, co-production and building indigenous capacities in line with India's Make in India and Aatmanirbhar Bharat initiatives.Additionally, US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin and NSA Ajit Doval stressed that nations in several regions, including the Middle East, South Asia, South East Asia, and the Indo-Pacific retain their freedom of action in line with their national priorities and are not coerced into poor choices.Austin, who arrived in India concluded a roadmap for Defence Industrial Cooperation with Defence Minister Rajnath Singh.ANI14 June 2023

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Karnataka: CM Siddaramaiah sets three-month deadline to install MRI scanning and dialysis units in taluk, district hospitals

Bengaluru, June 14: Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Tuesday instructed officials to take necessary steps to strengthen the health system of the state through the National Health Mission and set a deadline of three months for setting the anomalies.

Karnataka: CM Siddaramaiah sets three-month deadline to install MRI scanning and dialysis units in taluk, district hospitals

Siddaramaiah took top Health Department officials to task over slackness in achieving the objective of National Health Mission which is reflected in the lack of specialised doctors and inadequate installation of MRI and dialysis machines in taluk and district hospitals, said an official statement.He directed officials that technicians should be appointed to provide all these services and MRI, scanning and dialysis machines should be installed in all taluk hospitals in three months.He identified the campaign's shortcomings and gave clear instructions that they should be rectified before the next meeting, the statement added.The Chief Minister noticed that the grant of the National Health Mission was not spent on time. Under this scheme, there is a shortage of 52 per cent of specialist doctors, a 31 per cent shortage of MBBS doctors and an 18 per cent shortage of nursing staff. He also instructed the officers to look into increasing their salaries and filling up posts, the official release said.The Chief Minister directed the commissioner of the department to ensure the achievement of the set targets and to spend the funds on time.The Chief Minister also heard the grievances of the officials including the appointment of five MDs for the corporation in the last year. The Chief Minister assured that this will not happen during the Congress government and also suggested that the Managing Director of the Corporation should serve for at least 2 years."How is it possible to provide good health care to poor people if special services like MRI scanning and dialysis are not provided in taluk and district government hospitals?" he asked.The Chief Minister warned that if this situation continues, the authorities will be held responsible. The Instructions are given by the CM after reviewing the performance of Suvarna Arogya Suraksha Trust, said the statementANI14 June 2023

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News / National

by Staff reporter

MultiChoice's latest annual results show its pay-TV service DStv lost South African subscribers between 31 March 2022 and 31 March 2023.Its subscribers declined from 8.16 million to 8.016 million between these two dates  a reduction of roughly 144,000 or 1.8%.Between the two previous years, 2021 and 2022, the decline was much lower  from 8.177 million to 8.16 million  a loss of about 17,000 year-end subscribers.Before these decreases, DStv was adding subscribers every year.While the latest decline is noteworthy, MultiChoice emphasizes a 90-day active subscriber number as the primary measurement of the size of its customer base.It first introduced this method in 2020, reporting the number of subscribers active within a three-month period instead of the number of paying customers on the last day of its financial year.Nevertheless, it has included its year-end subscriber numbers in each report.The graph below shows how DStv's subscriber numbers changed from March 2018 to March 2023.DStv's 90-day active subscribers in South Africa increased from 9 million to 9.3 million between the 2021/2022 and 2022/2023 financial years, a jump of 3%.MultiChoice said the actual 90-day active subscribers added were around 290,000.However, out of the three main segments that make up its customer base, only the entry-level Mass-market customers grew climbing 10% from 4.9 million to 5.3 million.These customers are subscribed to entry-level packages like EasyView, Access, and Family, which are much cheaper than higher-end bouquets in the Mid-market and Premium segments.Each of these segments saw a reduction of about 100,000 90-day active subscribers.It is possible that some of these subscribers migrated to cheaper packages in the other segments, rather than dropping DStv altogether.In the Mid-Market segment  which includes Compact and Commercial packages  90-day active subscribers dropped from 2.8 million to 2.7 million, a 3% decline.On the Premium and Compact Plus packages that fall under the Premium segment, DStv lost 6% of its customers, resulting in a drop from 1.4 million to 1.3 million.While the broadcaster has been bleeding customers in this top-end segment for several years, this drop comes close to its worst yet  the 8% decline from its 2020/2021 financial year.However, in that instance, Covid-19 was believed to have played a role in consumers' cost-cutting.The charts below show how DStv's 90-day active subscriber base changed between its 2022 and 2023 financial years.MultiChoice said load-shedding was a major reason for the disconnect between its 90-day and year-end subscriber numbers."There was a noticeable increase in churn when load-shedding reaches stage 4 and above, even when consumers have disposable income," it stated.It said the higher 90-day active subscriber figure shows customers still value the DStv product, while the 140,000 decline in year-end subscriber numbers showed customers were more selective when they signed up to avoid periods of excessive load-shedding.The overall result of the above is a 5% decline in the blended average revenue per user (ARPU) of all DStv customers from R269 to R256.Despite acquiring customers in the Mass-market, DStv's ARPU of R96 in this segment has also come down.This suggests a trend of customers within this segment who are downgrading from the more expensive entry-level packages to cheaper ones.The graphic below from MultiChoice provides details about the key ARPU drivers at DStv.Outside of South Africa, MultiChoice increased its customer count  both in terms of year-end and 90-day active subscribers.Year-end subscribers in the Rest of Africa (RoA) grew from 8.48 million to 9.29 million, a 10% jump.On a 90-day active basis, RoA subscribers increased by 11%, going from just over 12.79 million to more than 14.20 million.However, the RoA division generated only around half the revenue of the South African business  R22.95 billion against R41.96 billion and a fraction of the trading profit  R898 million versus R8.49 billion.Despite having more subscribers than the South African business, RoA contributed a blended ARPU of $7.3 (R136), 47% less than the South African ARPU.
Fathers Day 2023: Unique ways to pamper your dad

New Delhi, June 13: Father's Day is a perfect opportunity to express our love and appreciation for the unsung heroes in our lives. Even if your dad insists he doesn't want anything for Father's Day, it's still important to show your appreciation and love for him. Small gestures and thoughtful gifts can go a long way in expressing your gratitude. Father's Day is coming on 18 June 2023, and it's a time to let him know how much he means to you and how grateful you are for his love and support. Here are some unique ways to pamper your dad.

Father's Day 2023: Unique ways to pamper your dad

Prepare a special breakfastCooking for your dad is a wonderful idea to start Father's Day with a heartfelt note. Find out your dad's favourite breakfast dishes and consider adding a personal touch to the meal. If possible, get the whole family involved in preparing the breakfast. This not only lightens the workload but also adds a sense of togetherness and shows your dad the collective effort to make his day special. Remember, it's not about being a culinary expert, but about the love and effort you put into making your dad feel appreciated.Wellness packageA wellness retreat will help him unwind and rejuvenate. Consider his preferences, such as a meditation retreat or a spa resort with various relaxation treatments. Remind your father to fully immerse himself in the retreat and encourage him to disconnect from work and daily responsibilities, allowing him to fully relax and rejuvenate.Get creativeSelect a few meaningful and memorable old photos that hold significance and evoke nostalgia for both you and your dad. Try to recreate the original setting or background of the image. Once you have recreated the photos, share them on social media. Reflect on the memories, laugh about how things have changed, and appreciate the timeless bond between you and your dad. It is a heartfelt and meaningful way to honor the past and create new memories in the present.House partyInvite family members or friends to participate in the party. Ask each participant, including your dad, to prepare their best jokes or games. Create a friendly competition by taking turns like telling the jokes and rating them based on humour and cheesiness. You can have a judging panel or involve everyone in the room to vote. Designate a prize for the winner. The true prize, of course, is the laughter and joy shared during the tournament.A day of his favourite activitiesPlan a day tailored to your dad's hobbies and passions. Take the time to understand his interests and choose activities that he truly enjoys. Whether it's cricket or a relaxing picnic, make sure the day revolves around what your dad loves. Show your active participation and genuine interest in his hobbies, making the day all the more special for him. Don't forget to Capture the memories by taking photos or videos throughout the day to commemorate the experience.Remember, the most important aspect is to show your love, appreciation, and gratitude towards your father. Customize your celebration to his preferences and interests; he will surely feel cherished on this special day.ANI14 June 2023

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Time has come to expand UN Security Council with India as a permanent member: Rajnath Singh

New Delhi, June 14: Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Tuesday reiterated India's position of making the UN decision-making bodies, including the Security Council (UNSC), more reflective of the demographic realities of the world. The Minister said this while he was addressing a special commemorative seminar organised by the Indian Army to celebrate 75 years of UN Peacekeeping in New Delhi.

Time has come to expand UN Security Council with India as a permanent member: Rajnath Singh

"When India, the most populous nation, does not find a seat as a permanent member of the UNSC, it tends to undermine the moral legitimacy of the UN. Therefore, the time has come for making the UN bodies more democratic and representative of the current realities of our age," Rajnath Singh said.Rajnath Singh has also called for innovative approaches and enhanced cooperation among responsible nations to ensure the safety and effectiveness of United Nations (UN) Peacekeepers who are deployed in violence-hit regions to maintain stability, prevent conflicts and facilitate the restoration of peace.Rajnath Singh highlighted the fast-evolving challenges being faced by the peacekeepers and stressed the need to invest more in training, technology and resources for their safety and productivity. He also advocated for the meaningful participation of women in peacekeeping operations, emphasising that their unique contribution during missions in conflict-affected areas must be recognised.Rajnath Singh commended the role of UN peacekeeping operations and explained the enthusiastic global support for such missions through the economic concept of 'externalities'."When there is a conflict, it is harmful to the directly involved actors. Moreover, it has negative externalities for those involved indirectly. There is a plethora of negative externalities that have emanated out of the recent Russia-Ukraine conflict. It has led to the food crisis in various African and Asian countries and has fueled an energy crisis in the world," the Defence Minister said."A conflict at a particular place or region creates ripple effects that adversely impact the whole world. So, the rest of the world becomes a stakeholder in resolving the conflict and restoring peace. This is because peace has a positive externality. When conflicting parties restore peace, they benefit in terms of human lives saved, higher economic growth achieved, etc. The rest of the world also benefits as peace fosters stability and encourages economic growth," he added.Rajnath Singh said that the positive externality of peace and the negative externality of war drives the UN, along with the responsible nations, to act towards resolving any conflict. This action is manifested in terms of deployment of UN peacekeeping missions in conflict zones, he said.India has a rich legacy of contribution to UN Peacekeeping operations and is one of the largest contributors of troops. It has contributed approximately 2.75 lakh troops to peacekeeping missions so far, with around 5,900 troops currently deployed in 12 UN missions. Since its first commitment to Korea in 1950, Indian troops have supervised complex, unmanageable peace operations, earning universal admiration for their professional excellence.The Defence Minister expressed gratitude to all the Indians who have served or are currently serving as UN peacekeepers. "Our courageous soldiers, police personnel and civilian experts have demonstrated exceptional dedication and unwavering commitment to the cause of peace. They have selflessly served in some of the most challenging and dangerous environments, embodying the spirit of peacekeeping and upholding the principles enshrined in the UN Charter. Their unwavering commitment, professionalism and sacrifices inspire us all," he said.Rajnath Singh extended his condolences to the families who have lost their loved ones in the line of duty and offered them the Government's support. He called for honouring the sacrifices of the peacekeepers by building a more just, peaceful and inclusive world. "Let us renew our commitment to promoting dialogue, understanding and cooperation among and within the nations. Together, we can build a future where every individual can live in peace, harmony and with dignity," he added.In his opening remarks, Chief of the Army Staff General Manoj Pande highlighted India's contribution to the cause of UN Peacekeeping. He stated that India has close to 5,900 peacekeepers serving around the world on various peacekeeping operations, including female engagement teams in UN Organisation Stabilisation Mission in Congo (MONUSCO) and UN Interim Security Force for Abyei (UNISFA), besides women staff officers and military observers.The Chief of the Army Staff also underlined the vitality of the UN Peacekeeping amidst the new and complex security challenges which continue to emerge and the readiness of the Indian Army to fulfil the country's responsibility and commitment to the UN, in close partnership with fellow states.On the occasion, the Defence Minister also unveiled a pictorial compilation of India's rich and remarkable peacekeeping journey. On the sidelines, a photo exhibition, showcasing the country's peacekeeping history, was organised. The permanent Representative of India to the UN Ruchira Kamboj addressed the event through a video message. Chief of Defence Staff General Anil Chauhan, UN Resident Coordinator for India Shombi Sharp and senior officers of the Ministry of Defence and Ministry of External Affairs were also among those who attended the event.The seminar included an overview of Indian UN Peacekeeping by the officials of the Indian Army; an address on the historical assessment of the Indian Army in UN Peacekeeping by Former Head of Mission and Force Commander, UN Protection Force and Padma Bhushan Awardee Lt Gen Satish Nambiar (Retd).The ideation session moderated by former Vice Chief of the Army Staff Lt Gen Philip Compose (Retd) included an exchange of ideas by former Permanent Representative of India to the UN Ambassador Shri Asoke Mukerji; UN Resident Coordinator for India Mr Shombi Sharp; Former Force Commander MONUSCO and UN Mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea (UNMEE) and former Military Adviser to UN Secretary-General Maj Gen Patrick Cammaert (Retd) on the topic of the relevance of UN Peacekeeping Operations in evolving world order.The International Day of UN Peacekeepers is observed on May 29 every year to honour the professionalism, dedication and courage of those serving in UN peacekeeping operations and remember those who have laid down their lives for the cause of peace.ANI14 June 2023

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UN official lauds ERCs humanitarian, developmental role in Syria

Abu Dhabi, June 13: Muhannad Hadi, United Nations (UN) Assistant Secretary-General and Regional Humanitarian Coordinator for the Syrian Crisis, commended the humanitarian and developmental efforts of the Emirates Red Crescent (ERC) in Syria, especially in response to the effects of the earthquake that hit the country in February.

UN official lauds ERC's humanitarian, developmental role in Syria

He also highlighted the importance of the relief activities and programmes implemented by the organisation in Syria, which is facing significant humanitarian challenges.Hadi praised the ERC as a key humanitarian partner of the international organisation in the region and thanked it for its efforts to ease the suffering and enhance the living conditions of earthquake victims in various Syrian areas.He also commended the ERC's fieldwork in Syria and its effective and responsible efforts to address the humanitarian crisis in the country.Hadi made this statement today while visiting the ERC's headquarters, where he was received by Hamoud Abdullah Al Jubaibi, ERC Secretary-General, and his deputies.The two sides discussed areas of coordination in Syria and ways of boosting their partnership to address the many challenges facing the Syrian people.They also agreed on the need to strengthen the cooperation and exchange expertise between the ERC and UN humanitarian organisations operating in Syria, to fulfil the aspirations of both sides during the recovery and rehabilitation phase.The ERC is a key humanitarian partner of the UN in the region, Hadi said, adding that the purpose of his visit was to discuss the current humanitarian situation in Syria and evaluate the work of UN humanitarian agencies in the country.Al Jubaibi expressed his appreciation for Hadi's visit to the ERC, stressing that their meeting would result in further cooperation and coordination between the two parties.The ERC values its partnerships with international humanitarian organisations and aims to join forces for the sake of humanity and major humanitarian causes, he said, affirming that the humanitarian situation in Syria requires such actions to support development and reconstruction efforts in earthquake-affected areas.He also briefed Hadi on ERC's efforts in the humanitarian relief field in Syria. (ANI/WAM)ANI14 June 2023

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Japans upper house panel delays vote on defence spending bill

Tokyo, June 14: A Japanese House of Councillors committee has cancelled a vote on a bill for securing funds for measures to strengthen defence capabilities, delaying the schedule to Thursday at the earliest.

Japan's upper house panel delays vote on defence spending bill

The main opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan (CDPJ) rejected a plan proposed by the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and its junior Komeito coalition ally to vote on the bill at the Committee on Financial Affairs of the upper house of the Diet, the country's parliament, within the day.The CDPJ also threatened to submit a motion to dismiss Yasuyuki Sakai, chairman of the committee, if he decides to put the bill to vote on the day using his authority. The LDP then presented a plan to debate and vote on the bill on Thursday, while the CDPJ on Tuesday said the plan will be considered by opposition parties.The bill, which has already been approved at the lower house, is aimed at securing funding to boost Japan's defence spending in and after fiscal 2024 through such means as spending reforms, using surplus from financial results and establishing a new fund from non-tax revenue, including that from sales of state properties and provisions from special accounts, Xinhua news agency reported.The CDPJ and other opposition parties, including the Japan Innovation Party, the Japanese Communist Party and the Democratic Party for the People, oppose the bill.--IANBSint/khz/IANS14 June 2023

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1.5 TW of wind, solar capacity needed each year by 2030 to meet 1.5 degrees limit

New Delhi, June 14: A new analysis which applies sustainability limits and minimises the need for carbon dioxide removal (CDR) finds new wind and solar needs to be installed five times faster by 2030 at a rate of 1.5 TW a year to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius.

1.5 TW of wind, solar capacity needed each year by 2030 to meet 1.5 degrees limit

Global wind and solar capacity needs to increase to around 10 TW by the end of this decade, up from 2 TW in 2022. This is achievable if the recent acceleration in capacity additions is maintained."Everyone from the EU to the COP Presidency is calling for a global renewables target, but this must be based on the safest route to net zero. We've shown that if the world accelerates new wind and solar fivefold to at least 1.5 TW a year by 2030 while cutting fossil use by 40 per cent, we won't have to rely on potentially unsustainable amounts of carbon dioxide removal in the future," says Claire Fyson, Head of Policy at Climate Analytics.The study distils key milestones the international community needs to meet by 2030 to keep warming below 1.5 degrees, including rapidly scaling up renewables this decade to 70 per cent of the global power mix, cutting greenhouse gas emissions by 8 per cent a year to halve global emissions by 2030, and a 34 per cent cut to global methane emissions over this critical decade for climate action.Methane emissions in the energy sector would need to fall even faster, by 66 per cent."Our method takes only the latest global pathways with the most up-to-date information on technologies and costs. We know wind and solar can scale quickly and undercut fossil fuels on price. Our analysis shows they can do much of the heavy lifting so urgently needed this decade, so let's fast-track their rollout," says Neil Grant, Energy and Climate Analyst at Climate Analytics.Not all pathways in the IPCC AR6 database are fully compatible with the Paris Agreement. The study's method focuses on the latest 1.5-aligned pathways that integrate sustainability constraints, filtering out older analyses and those that rely too heavily on risky assumptions.As a result, the study finds just 0.1 per cent of global power would come from CCS by 2030.IANS14 June 2023

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Vaccine inequity behind 50% of global Covid deaths: Study

New York, June 14: Better access to vaccines could have prevented more than 50 per cent of Covid-19 deaths in 20 lower income countries, scientists contend in a new study.

Vaccine inequity behind 50% of global Covid deaths: Study

The study, published in the journal Nature Communications, showed that an estimated 518,000 deaths could have been averted if the 20 countries in the study, including Kenya, Afghanistan and Bolivia, had the same access to vaccines as the US.Delayed vaccination campaigns also meant that some of the countries extended "non-pharmaceutical interventions" such as school, restaurant and business closures for longer periods of time than higher income countries, said Professor Alessandro Vespignani at Northeastern University in the US.The estimation that "thousands and thousands" of lives were lost to vaccine inequity was a "punch in the stomach", Vespignani said.In the study, a team of scientists used a computational epidemic model to estimate how many deaths would have been averted in the 20 countries, if they had received the Covid-19 vaccines at the same time as the US and other high income countries and in comparable quantities.The results estimated that more than 50 per cent of deaths that occurred in the analysed countries could have been averted."For more than half of the countries, the percentage of deaths averted exceeds 70 per cent, with peaks above 90 per cent for Afghanistan and Uganda," the paper said.In a second "what if" scenario, the team also looked at what would have happened if the nations had received the vaccines earlier, but in no greater amount."Even without increasing the number of doses, we estimate an important fraction of deaths (6 per cent to 50 per cent) could have been averted".The team said that while health agencies such as the Covid-19 Global Vaccine Access (COVAX) programme anticipated the problem and tried to address it but failed to do so in time,.In addition, shortage of frontline health workers, limited funding and lack of infrastructure for vaccine delivery acted as barriers to accelerated vaccine delivery in low and lower middle income countries.Besides being "very costly in terms of life," vaccine inequity encourages the circulation of pathogens in countries where a large percentage of people are not inoculated, Vespignani said.The scientists called for development of a system for timely vaccine doses and ease of delivery, both logistic and manufacturing capacity, in the case of another pandemic.IANS14 June 2023

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Thought leaders of India International Delegation Reaffirms India-UAE Ties, strengthens economic partnership

SRV Media, New Delhi, June 14: Thought Leaders of India attained a milestone in strengthening the bonds between Abu Dhabi and India through a CXOs delegation to UAE on 3-4 May, 2023.

Thought leaders of India International Delegation Reaffirms India-UAE Ties, strengthens economic partnership

The delegation held a series of focused, high-profile dialogues with thought leaders and decision-makers from UAE.The delegation was the second in the series of international visits organized by TLOI. It was organized in collaboration with the Abu Dhabi Chamber of Commerce and Industry and comprised prominent business leaders, professionals, and representatives.The visit proved to be an immense success in enhancing cooperation between Abu Dhabi and India.Rishi Kapoor, Partner and Business Head, Sapphire Connect, highlighted the success of their recent international delegations. After the success of the first TLOI delegation to Vietnam, United Arab Emirates was identified as the destination for the visit in May due to the strong economic synergy and socio-cultural affinity between India and UAE.The delegates interacted with business leaders, students, and academic community, fostering valuable discussions and exchange of ideas. Kapoor reiterated the intent to organize regular delegations for the members of Thought Leaders of India to provide further opportunities for business collaboration and knowledge sharing.The highlight of the visit was the Abu Dhabi - India CXO Round Table, a pivotal event chaired by Dr Tayeb A. Kamali, Chairman of the Board at the prestigious Abu Dhabi School of Management (ADSM). The round table provided a platform for engaging discussions and strategic dialogues, focusing on building partnerships and collaboration between the two countries. It offered a unique opportunity for business and thought leaders from both nations to exchange ideas, explore business prospects, and identify avenues for mutual growth.Speaking to the media on their return to India, Kapoor mentioned that the visit would not have been possible without the invaluable support, heart-warming hospitality and cooperation of the Abu Dhabi Chamber of Commerce and Industry. He expressed special gratitude to Saeed Sultan Aldhaheri, Board Member, ADCCI, whose guidance and expertise had been instrumental in the successful visit. He further highlighted the inputs and support from Saleem V.I and Dr Loay S. Elsin DBA, MEng, PMP throughout the visit.Thought Leader member Atul Madan, CEO, Mystique Group shared - "It was a wonderful experience for all the delegates traveling to Abu Dhabi as a part of the UAE CXO Round Table organised by TLOI. Right from all the arrangements, coordination to the sessions - everything was well organised. We had a very meaningful session with the Abu Dhabi Chambers of Commerce represented and hosted by Dr. Tayeb Kamali, who along with his team were very hospitable and forthcoming to meet this delegation led by Thought Leaders of India Team. The interaction with the post graduate students of Abu Dhabi School of Management was also very meaningful and interesting. More than anything else, I thought it was also a great opportunity to get to know our Indian members (delegates) better and we developed good camaraderie. Looking forward to such platforms in the future."During their stay, the Indian business delegation had the privilege of interacting with the faculty and students of the Abu Dhabi School of Management (ADSM). This interactive session aimed to inspire and guide the students, providing insights on leadership, overcoming challenges, and embracing failures as opportunities for growth. The delegation also had the honor of visiting the iconic Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque, an architectural marvel that symbolizes the UAE's rich heritage and cultural diversity.A momentous occasion was the attendance of the Indian business delegation at the 20th Sheikh Khalifa Excellence Award (SKEA) Ceremony, held under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Mohammad Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the President of the UAE. The ceremony, graced by Sheikh Khaled Bin Mohammad Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, recognized outstanding achievements in various fields and celebrated excellence as a driving force for progress.Member of Thought Leader Ankit Agarwal, Managing Director Alankit Limited said - "The visit to the UAE as part of TLOI delegation was a truly remarkable experience, characterised by warm hospitality and fruitful discussions. We look forward to nurturing these connections and building long-lasting business relations for mutual growth and success."While returning Rishi Kapoor, Partner and Business Head sapphire Connect quoted "The visit of the International Delegation of Members to Abu Dhabi marks another milestone in strengthening the bonds between Abu Dhabi and India. Through collaborative efforts and initiatives, we aim to forge lasting partnerships that will contribute to economic growth, knowledge exchange, and cultural understanding between our nations".(Disclaimer The above press release has been provided by SRV Media. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of the same)ANI14 June 2023

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Announcing Flytxts Generative AI for digital product design

PRNewswire, Mumbai, June 14: Flytxt, a leading provider of AI-powered SaaS for Customer Lifetime Value (CLTV) maximisation, launched a Generative AI that assists digital product designers.

Announcing Flytxt's Generative AI for digital product design

This first-of-its-kind application of Generative AI solves a critical pain point faced by digital businesses worldwide -- design of well-performing products faster and at scale."Achieving product-market fit in volatile markets is a challenge, as the ease of adoption of digital products also lowers switching costs for customers. Generative AI is well suited to solve this challenge. It can programmatically evaluate several potential product designs to find the best match," said Dr Vinod Vasudevan, CEO of Flytxt.Flytxt's Generative AI can optimise price points, product attributes, bundling options, and associated benefits to meet business objectives like increasing revenue, retention, or margin.Generative AI has been mostly used for creating original multimedia content and enabling intelligent conversations as in tools like ChatGPT. Flytxt's innovative application of Generative AI will open up new possibilities for product managers to bring in innovations in product design and ensure higher success rate."Flytxt foresees widespread applicability of Generative AI in many Customer Experience workflows like product and campaign design," continued Dr Vinod Vasudevan, CEO of Flytxt. "We will continue to integrate powerful AI capabilities like Generative AI into our solutions to help users make accurate decisions that impact long term value creation."Furthermore, Flytxt Generative AI adds the ability to explain the decisions made by the AI. This transparency allows product managers to critically review the reasons behind the AI-recommended design, before they decide to approve and launch the product in the market.is the trusted technology partner of 70+ digital enterprises across more than 50 countries, as well as of top CX platform vendors for Customer Lifetime Value (CLTV) maximisation. Its award-winning, proprietary CLTV AI has been designed and trained using real-world insights and patterns from more than a billion consumers and trillions of data points. The firm has a corporate office in Dubai, global development centers in India and presence in Mexico, The Netherlands, Malaysia, Colombia, Czech Republic, Spain and Kenya.(Disclaimer The above press release has been provided by PRNewswire. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of the same)ANI14 June 2023

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The top 5 must-watch movies in the Pride Month

New Delhi, June 14: It is the perfect time to check out the wide variety of LGBTQ+ films in honour of Pride Month. Over the years, the film industry has produced several exceptional queer-centred films that have touched viewers, prompted discussions, and helped to advance an inclusive culture. These five videos are a must-watch for everyone who identifies with this community or who considers themselves an ally and captures the universal language of love in a beautiful way.

The top 5 must-watch movies in the Pride Month

'Paris is Burning' (1990)The breakthrough film 'Paris is Burning' by Jennie Livingston offers a vibrant and compelling glimpse of New York City's ball culture in the late 1980s. In the ballroom scene, the film shows the inventiveness, persistence, and sense of community among Latino and Afro-American LGBTQ+ individuals. The movie not only champions the idea of uniqueness, but it also highlights the issues brought on by the intersectionality of identities.'Pride' (2014)'Pride', a moving comedy-drama from director Matthew Warchus based on a true story, is set in 1984 during the UK miners' strike. The film follows an unforeseen relationship between a small Welsh mining community and a group of LGBT activists. The movie 'Pride' is an excellent illustration of how acceptance, tolerance, and the ability to rise above prejudice can be tremendous forces. This film serves as a timely reminder that cooperation may overcome differences that at first seem insurmountable because of its great ensemble cast and upbeat atmosphere. It has a great cast all together and a happy vibe.'Carol' (2015)The 1950s are the setting of Todd Haynes' visually stunning and captivating film 'Carol'. This film adaption of Patricia Highsmith's novel 'The Price of Salt' centres on an illicit relationship between two women named Carol and Therese. Cate Blanchett and Rooney Mara give a fascinating performance that explores the themes of love, longing, and the daring to challenge social rules while capturing the complexities of desire and cultural restraints.'Moonlight' (2016)The Oscar-winning masterpiece 'Moonlight' by Barry Jenkins is a breathtaking and in-depth examination of identity, sexuality, and self-discovery. The three-part movie follows the hardships of Chiron, a young Afro-American man, as he comes to terms with his sexuality. "Moonlight" leaves a lasting impression on the spectator by showcasing the power of empathy, resiliency, and the complexities of love through superb acting and stunning cinematography.'Call Me by Your Name' (2017)Luca Gudadagnino's calming coming-of-age tale, 'Call Me By Your Name', is set in Northern Italy in the summer of 1983. Elio (Timothee Chalamet), a 17-year-old child, and Oliver (Armie Hammer), a more senior PhD student staying with his family, form a strong bond that is explored in the film. Outstanding performances by Timothee Chalamet and Armie Hammer brilliantly depicted the challenges of sexual exploration and the fleeting nature of genuine love.(IANSlife can be contacted at ianslife@ians.in)IANS14 June 2023

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Ghost hospitals in Balochistan illustrate callousness of public health system

Paris, June 14: Baloch Voice Association, an NGO based in Paris, while citing a World Health Organisation (WHO) report have raised concerns about deteriorating health facilities in Balochistan.

Ghost hospitals in Balochistan illustrate callousness of public health system

President of the Baloch Voice Association, Munir Mengal took to his Twitter to voice the worries surrounding the public health system in Balochistan.He tweeted, "As per World Health Organization (WHO) Report on Balochistan has claimed more than 250 ghost hospitals only papers. It was revealed that 257 health centres exist only in files, 656 health centres are partially functioning and out of 1661 health facilities half are closed.""In Balochistan, 250 government ghost hospitals have been revealed which exist only on paper, not a single brick has been laid on the ground. In Balochistan, there are 1,661 hospitals, primary health centres, and rural health centres in the official documents of the health depart," he added.He also emphasised that 250 medical centres were not built but were limited only to papers causing severe problems for the patients."Interestingly, 250 medical centres have not been built but are only limited to papers, while 656 medical centres are in which the facilities are only nominal and the patients are facing serious problems," his tweet concluded.This is not the only problem being faced by Balochistan. The province earlier saw a shortage of medical supplies.The Leishmania epidemic, which spread in one of the districts of Pakistan's Balochistan, went out of control and affected poor people of different ages in the region. Due to the sudden increase in the number of affected victims, the medicine and injection supplies kept with the local hospitals fell short.According to Dr Nasrullah, health officer of Kalat district, more than 600 Leishmania patients were registered. He further said that since the number of affected individuals was quite high, the quantity of medical supply provided by the government was insufficient. They even made an appeal to the Health Department and government in this regard but did not receive any response.He even warned the government that if the disease is not controlled timely, it is liable to spread to other regions as well. The rapid spread of this sand fly-borne disease can be attributed to the last year's flood situation.After failing to anticipate the situation beforehand after the floods, the government went on the back foot and asked for help from international organizations like WHO and UNICEF. A free ration camp was organized by the Al-Khidmat Foundation (affiliated to Jamaat-e-Islami and JuD) in the port city of Gwadar, Balochistan which was just another photo ops session by the administration and the NGO wherein 500 needy people who were selected to receive the ration package were asked to leave the package and return home empty-handed after the photo session was over.According to locals, they felt very disrespected and mocked by the administration.ANI14 June 2023

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by Staff reporter

The Zimbabwe National Army (ZNA) is gravely concerned by the rising number of civilians impersonating soldiers using stolen army IDs and fake army fatigues to fleece hard-earned money and valuables from unsuspecting people.Seven people countrywide have recently been arrested for these offences, ZNA spokesperson and director Public Relations Colonel Alphios Makotore yesterday"The Zimbabwe National Army is greatly concerned over the increasing number of civilians arrested by Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) and Zimbabwe Military Police (ZMP) officers for impersonating military members for purposes of fleecing money from unsuspecting ordinary people," he said."The bogus soldiers are using stolen and fake military identity cards. These alleged criminals also use stolen military uniforms to dupe and rob people of their property and money."To date, he said, Wiseman Makombe of Tafara in Harare, Priviledge Mapfumo of Tynwald South in Harare, Bornface Chinhano of Glenwood Park in Harare, Tafadzwa Mukuze of Mutare, Learnmore Ngwenyaya of Kuwadzana in Harare, Ngonidzashe Samuel Mapfumo of Harare and Bornface Muzambe Mashingaidze of Rujeko Township in Chinhoyi have been arrested for impersonating soldiers.Some of the arrested suspects will be appearing before the courts while others are still under police investigations.The public, he said is therefore warned to be alert in order to avoid being conned by such bogus soldiers who are on the prowl."The ZNA would like to strongly warn the public to desist from dealing with anyone they suspect to be a bogus soldier. The Criminal Law and Codification Act states that impersonating a police officer, peace officer or public official is an offence," he said.Members of the public are advised to report anyone found to be unnecessarily flashing their military identity card or in possession of military uniforms to the nearest police station or the Zimbabwe Military Police using the hotlines, 0712 842 318 and 0777 258 410.Colonel Makotore said the public can also effect a citizen's arrest and hand over the culprits to the relevant authorities.
PM Modi redefined Indias foreign policy, exposed Pak; ended uncertainty in J&K

Srinagar, June 14: Bold decisions taken by the political leadership and India remaining steadfast in its resolve to eliminate terrorism have redefined the country's foreign policy during the nine years of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's rule.

PM Modi redefined India's foreign policy, exposed Pak; ended uncertainty in J&K

For 70-years no government in the Centre could take a call on Article 370 -- a temporary provision in the Constitution which provided special status to Jammu and Kashmir. However, the dispensation led by Prime Minister Modi exhibited the political will and the courage to scrap the so-called special status of Jiamp;K on August 5, 2019, to pave the way for complete integration of the Himalayan region with the Union of India.The move led to reestablishing stability and curbing the influence of Pakistan sponsored cross-border terrorism, which marred Jiamp;K for 30-long years.By eliminating the Article 370, the Centre addressed the vulnerability that Pakistan exploited for years and delegitimized terrorism.After revocation of the Article 370 Pakistan left no stone unturned to garner support against India's decision but the international community didn't pay any attention towards the tantrums thrown by Pakistan.Many countries around the world have understood India's perspective on the issue, and have denounced Pakistan for sponsoring terror for all these years.Terrorism can't be kept asidePM Modi-led regime has made it clear that India would not tolerate cross-border terrorist activities and it cannot keep aside terrorism to improve ties with Islamabad under its neighbourhood first policy.Pakistan has been told in clear terms that if it wants to take the relations forward, it has to stop sponsoring terror.Terrorists and separatists in Jiamp;K have been pushed to the wall. Ugly face of Pakistan has been exposed before the world.The revocation of Article 370 has marked a significant victory for national security in India.Pertinently, after the outbreak of Pakistan-sponsored insurgency in Jammu and Kashmir in 1990, Pakistan saw Article 370 as a point of vulnerability to target India.It used this provision to fuel separatist sentiments and support terrorism to create chaos and uncertainty in the region.The revocation of Article 370 punctured false narratives propagated by Pakistan and its stooges in Jammu and Kashmir. The move unveiled Pakistan's involvement in supporting terrorism and separatist activities. By eliminating the special status, India has challenged and refuted the baseless claims of Pakistan.Since the abrogation of Article 370, Jammu and Kashmir has witnessed not only developmental initiatives but also the benefits of globalization that the rest of the country experiences. The integration has provided new opportunities for economic growth, infrastructure development, and enhanced connectivity, benefiting the people of Jammu and Kashmir.Pak's real face exposedBy exposing Pakistan's real face to the world, India has garnered international support in its war against terrorism. The government's proactive approach has showcased India's determination to prioritize national security while seeking peaceful relations with its neighbours.By eliminating the provisions of Article 370 that Pakistan exploited, India has dealt a strong blow to cross-border terrorism and emphasized the importance of tackling this global menace.The international community's support and the benefits of development and globalization in Jiamp;K have validated the significance of the decision taken by New Delhi.For over three decades, Pakistan has been actively involved in the tumultuous region of Kashmir, employing various tactics to ensure a state of uncertainty and chaos. Through its proxies and stooges, Pakistan played a central role in perpetuating violence, providing arms, ammunition, and training to terrorists, enticing local youth into joining their ranks, and using hawala channels to fund separatists and stone pelters.This calculated interference inflicted immense suffering on the people of Jammu and Kashmir (Jiamp;K), forcing them to live under constant state of threat and intimidation.Pakistan's use of terrorism as an instrument of state policy in Kashmir is no secret. The terror groups sponsored by it targeted innocent civilians, security forces, and public infrastructure.Pakistan consistently encouraged infiltration across the Line of Control (LoC), facilitating the entry of terrorists into Jammu and Kashmir. This resulted in a vicious cycle of violence, leading to the loss of countless lives and widespread destruction.Pakistan systematically indoctrinated young minds and used them as cannon fodder in its proxy war.Through a combination of misinformation, propaganda, and promises of the so-called 'Azadi', Pakistan misled Kashmiri youth and pushed them towards the graveyards.Using Hawala channels and other clandestine means, Pakistan injected substantial amounts of money into the region, enabling separatists to sustain their propaganda and activities. It exacerbated the volatile situation on the ground by creating an atmosphere of unrest and public disorder.Pak actions evoke condemnationAfter the scrapping of Article 370, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar, other leaders and officials have exposed Pakistan at every forum.They have brought the actions of India's rogue neighbour into the notice of the international community. Their hard work has paid the dividends as the actions of Pakistan have evoked widespread condemnation.The United Nations and various countries have repeatedly called for Pakistan to end its support for cross-border terrorism and engage in meaningful dialogue with India for maintaining peace in the region.The protracted conflict being kept alive by Pakistan has hindered the prospects of economic cooperation in South Asia.G20 in Srinagar, big defeat for PakThe recently held G20 summit in Srinagar, Jiamp;K's summer capital, has proven to be a big defeat for Pakistan on the diplomatic front. Barring China and Turkey none of the participant countries paid any heed towards the vicious propaganda launched by India's neighbour.The delegates hailed the efforts of the government to develop the Himalayan region and extended full support to India's G20 presidency.In a nutshell, the PM Modi-led regime has defeated Pakistan on all fronts. It has lost the proxy war which it sustained for three decades.Terrorism in Jiamp;K is on its last legs and the ones who used to propagate Pakistan's cause don't exist anymore.Jammu and Kashmir is no longer a conflict zone. During the past three years it has been rebuilt and the region's potential has been explored fully.Security situation has improved as millions of tourists have visited the region since August 5, 2019. A common man has heaved a sigh of relief and has silently endorsed all the decisions taken by the Centre.Not only has the foreign policy been redefined, PM Modi and his trusted lieutenant Union Home Minister Amit Shah have written a new chapter in Jiamp;K's history.IANS14 June 2023

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Its another game, another Test, so it is starting from scratch: Steve Smith ahead of clash against England at Edgbaston

Birmingham, June 14: Australian batter Steve Smith, who will come to bat at the Birmingham ground after a long gap, talked about his batting practice for the Ashes and said he likes to bat in the nets till he gets his rhythm.

It's another game, another Test, so it is starting from scratch: Steve Smith ahead of clash against England at Edgbaston

The Ashes series between Australia and England will start on Friday at Edgbaston."I just didn't feel in sync. I didn't have any rhythm. It just didn't feel right. I normally don't stop batting in the nets until I feel in good rhythm...and it can change from different conditions as to what I'm trying to actually feel," he said, according to cricket.com.au.The star batsman said he persisted with his practice and got into the groove."But on this occasion, I felt like I was just getting my weight through the ball, leaving well and hitting the ball in the middle of the bat as consistently as possible. That's what I had been looking for and when I finally found it, I kept it going for a while. I batted for about ten minutes more to feel the groove, feel that I'm in a good place, and then that was about it," he said."I think I hit 15 or 20 more balls where I wanted to, I saw them all well, moved well and then I was like 'all right, I'm ready'. I think you can draw on what you've done at places before," Smith added.He also talked about each innings being a new beginning."I feel that back home when I play at the SCG for instance, I've done well there so I have confidence initially going in there that I've done well on that surface before. So I'll have that no doubt at Edgbaston. But ultimately it's another game, another Test, so it is starting from scratch," he said.Smith returned to Test cricket after a long break in the World Test Championship and scored 155 runs in two innings. His knock in the first innings played a major role in Australia's victory over India.Australia squad for Ashes Pat Cummins (c), Scott Boland, Alex Carey (wk), Cameron Green, Marcus Harris, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis (wk), Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Mitch Marsh, Todd Murphy, Matthew Renshaw, Steve Smith (vc), Mitchell Starc, David WarnerEngland squad Ben Stokes (c), James Anderson, Jonathan Bairstow, Stuart Broad, Harry Brook, Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Dan Lawrence, Jack Leach, Ollie Pope, Matthew Potts, Ollie Robinson, Joe Root, Josh Tongue, Chris Woakes, Mark Wood.ANI14 June 2023

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MP Govt to give 9,000 e-scooty to students who topped Class 12 board exam

Bhopal, June 14: Madhya Pradesh Government on Wednesday decided to give e-scooty to 9,000 students, including both boys and girls, who secured first position in the Class 12 board examination.

MP Govt to give 9,000 e-scooty to students who topped Class 12 board exam

The decision was taken by Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, who chaired a cabinet meeting at Mantralaya in the state capital on Wednesday.After the meeting, State Home Minister Narottam Mishra briefed mediapersons about the various vital decisions taken by the Council of Ministers."During the meeting, the council of ministers approved giving e-scooty to the 9000 students who secured first position in all government higher secondary schools in the state. In the areas where e-scooty is not available, normal scooty will be provided to the students," Mishra said.CM Chouhan has given the order to open the process of transfers of employees and officers within the districts from June 15 to 30 in the state, he said.The Cabinet also approved the cooperative policy and with this Madhya Pradesh has become the first state in the country to approve it."This policy will pave the way for making cooperatives a mass movement in the state. The committees will be formed in new areas and new employment opportunities will also be generated," said the Home Minister.Mishra further said that the Council of Ministers approved the proposal for amendment in Chief Minister Youth Internship for Professional Development Program (CMYIPDP) in the meeting.The cabinet also approved the increase in the income limit from Rs 6 lakh to Rs 8 lakh for scholarships for SC/ST students.In another decision, the Cabinet approved 29 new groups of tap-water schemes and passed Rs 15,995.98 crores for it."The cabinet also agreed to increase the prize money given by the state government to medal recipients in the Shaurya Alankaran series, who are permanent residents of Madhya Pradesh," said the minister.The Council of Ministers also has given permission to guarantee payment security for Omkareshwar Floating Solar Project in the meeting, Mishra added.ANI14 June 2023

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2,000-bed hospital to come up in Hyderabad, CM says efforts on to strengthen healthcare

Hyderabad, June 14: Telangana celebrated Health Day on Wednesday as part of its formation day celebrations by laying foundation stone for 2,000-bed facility at Nizam's Institute of Medical Sciences (NIMS) in Hyderabad.

2,000-bed hospital to come up in Hyderabad, CM says efforts on to strengthen healthcare

Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao laid foundation stone for Dashabdi block which will be constructed at a cost of Rs. 1,571 crore.CM KCR, who also launched KCR Nutrition Kits scheme, said the government will continue its efforts to strengthen the healthcare sector and make it a role model for the country.He stated that the performance of the doctors, nurses and senior officials of the state's Health Department during Corona was admirable. KCR said that, "In order to provide the best services to the people, we should be ready to face any pandemic like Corona."He said that when the condition of patients infected with corona in private hospitals worsened, they sent patients to Gandhi Hospital. He said Gandhi Hospital's doctors saved the lives of such patients.The Chief Minister suggested the Health department to improve Public Relations (PR) and prepare plans to ensure the doctors and medical staff reach out to people extensively.He said the bed strength in NIMS has increased from 900 to 1500. With the construction of the new block, another 2,000 beds will be added."We are building big hospitals in the state. We are also building a super specialty hospital like no other in the world in Warangal," he said.Four super specialty hospitals will come-up in four sides of Hyderabad under Telangana Institute of Medical Sciences (TIMS).He claimed that the excellent medical services right are available in the state and there is no need for anyone to go abroad for treatment.The chief minister formally launched the distribution of nutrition kits to pregnant women. He listed out steps taken by the government in the last nine years to improve healthcare services in the state.The Chief Minister pointed out that 70 per cent of deliveries are taking place in government hospitals against 30 per cent earlier. Maternal mortality and infant mortality has come down.Health minister Harish Rao pointed out that the allocation for the health sector in 2014 was Rs.A 2,100 crores and it went up to Rs. 12,367 crores in 2023-24.He claimed that the bed capacity in government hospitals across the state has gone up from 17,000 to 50, 000. "We have increased the number of oxygen beds to 50,000. We have set up our own 550 tonne oxygen producing plants without depending on the Centre," he said.IANS15 June 2023

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Zanu-PF political agents and activists offloading campaign regalia from a big truck into smaller vehicles pic.twitter.com/PIrmBkMh0R  Bulawayo24 News (@Bulawayo24News) June 14, 2023

Zanu-PF political agents and activists offloading campaign regalia from a big truck into smaller vehicles ready for a massive distribution exercise of the material ahead of general elections in August.Zimbabwe's ruling party is largely funded through membership contributions, which are little, state funding, corporate support and foreign financial backing, which is illegal.Zimbabwean political parties secretly get foreign funding behind the scenes, which violates the Political Parties (Finance) Act.
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Champaign firefighter Tad Worley finishes picking up debris from a two-vehicle accident Tuesday at the intersection of Green and McKinley in Champaign. Champaign and Illinois State Police were on the scene, which had Green Street closed in both directions just west of Prospect Avenue.
'I would like to know all the facts of a situation ... and be able to evaluate. ... I do not know that at this time, so I do not want to accept this resignation until I have all the facts.'
Rantoul Village Administrator Scott Eisenhauer, currently on administrative leave after being arrested earlier this month for domestic battery, has hired Champaign attorney James Martinkus. The village board has opted not to accept his resignation until the criminal matter is resolved.
News / National

by Staff reporter

The spoor of the stray lion observed near the school

Fear gripped teachers and students at Mpasikwe Primary School in Filabusi after a lion that was reported to be on the loose in the Matabeleland South area was said to have killed a cow near the school.There were also reports suggesting there could in fact be more than one lion on the prowl taking from the spoor observed at the scene of the dead beast.A teacher at the school sent a message to parents warning them of the danger of students getting attacked while walking home."Greetings parents. We are at the scene where the lion was seen. The lion's spoor is there and we have taken pictures."We're currently looking at the ox that was attacked by the lion."We're going to warn students to be careful especially those who walk back home by themselves with particular reference to those going to areas such as Maruvamba."The spoor seems to be headed towards Tshazi Secondary school going on to Zhulube area," said the teacher via WhatsApp.Authorities in Insiza Tuesday warned the community to be on the lookout for the fierce man eater after earlier reports suggested it had attacked a donkey.Zimparks spokesperson Tinashe Farawo said Wednesday rangers were still on the hunt for the lion."We can confirm that our officers are on the ground tracking the problem animal."We are encouraging communities to minimise movements at night," he said.
A molecule found in the venomous toadfish Thalassophryne nattereri has proved capable of controlling lung inflammation and could be the basis for a more effective asthma drug. The research was supported by FAPESP and conducted by scientists at Butantan Institute in Sao Paulo, Brazil. An article describing the results is published in the journal Cells.

A welter of fish species live in freshwater, seawater and a mixture of the two, and some of them are venomous. They have spines or stingers connected to venom glands, which are a kind of pouch full of molecules, large and small, that are toxins. For these fish, venom is a defensive weapon against predators.

T. nattereri is a case in point. It is a small fish that inhabits calm shallow coastal waters in North and Northeast Brazil. Fishermen call it niquim, an Indigenous word for fish. Its venom apparatus consists of two dorsal and two lateral spines covered by a membrane connected to the venom glands at the base of the fins. When the spine penetrates the victim, the integumentary sheath enclosing the gland presses out the venom into the duct. When stepped on or touched, the animal defends itself by injecting venom, causing intense pain, wounds that swell, and potentially necrosis.

"We started studying the venom of T. nattereri in 1996 because we wanted to analyze its toxins in order to develop a treatment for people injured in accidents," said Monica Lopes-Ferreira, a biologist at the Center for Research on Toxins, Immune Response and Cell Signaling (CeTICS), one of the Research, Innovation and Dissemination Centers (RIDCs) funded by FAPESP.

"We were surprised to discover a small molecule, a peptide, that our studies here at the laboratory showed to have anti-inflammatory properties. An entirely novel molecule no one had ever discovered," said Lopes-Ferreira, who has a PhD in immunology from the University of Sao Paulo (USP) and postdoctoral studies in biochemistry and pharmacology at Butantan Institute.

According to the article, mice treated with TnP (T. nattereri peptide) displayed no airway hyperreactivity or lung remodeling. The TnP acted systemically on secondary lymphoid organs and locally on the lungs, inhibiting production of cytokines Th2 and Th17. It also prevented hyperplasia of mucus-producing cells and decreased the thickening and deposition of sub-epithelial collagen. "Our results showed TnP to be a candidate molecule for treatment of airway remodeling associated with inflammatory diseases such as asthma," the authors write.

Many diseases cause inflammation. We chose asthma to test TnP using animal models in the laboratory and concluded that it was safe and efficacious. It improved the lung inflammation caused by asthma. This is a Brazilian discovery and we've taken care to protect it by filing for a patient. We now mean to continue with the research. The more we discover, the more we'll know about the diseases TnP can treat. It will also be very important to partner with a pharmaceutical company that wants to invest in TnP so that a medical drug can be developed." Monica Lopes-Ferreira, Biologist at the Center for Research on Toxins, Immune Response and Cell Signaling

A study supported by FAPESP and reported in October 2016 found that T. nattereri has a molecule with potential action against sclerosis. The results of the study, which was also conducted under the aegis of CeTICS, were published in the journal Toxicon.
Synthetic biologists have become increasingly creative in engineering yeast or bacteria to churn out useful chemicals -; from fuels to fabrics and drugs -; beyond the normal repertoire of microbes.

But a multi-university group of chemists has a more ambitious goal: to retool the cell's polypeptide manufacturing plants -; the ribosomes that spin amino acids into protein -; to generate polymer chains that are more elaborate than what can now be made in a cell or a test tube.

The $20 million research enterprise centered at the University of California, Berkeley, is now reporting significant progress toward that goal, as evidenced by three new papers that tackle three major hurdles: how to reprogram cells to supply the ribosome with building blocks other than the alpha-amino acids that make up all proteins today; how to predict which building blocks make the best substrates; and how to tweak the ribosome to incorporate these novel building blocks into polymers.

The ultimate goal of the National Science Foundation Center for Genetically Encoded Materials (C-GEM) is to make the translation system fully programmable, so that introducing mRNA instructions into the cell along with new building blocks -; not the alpha-amino acids found today -; will allow the ribosome to produce an unlimited variety of new molecular chains. These chains could form the basis for new bio-materials, new enzymes, even new drugs.

The papers, appearing in the journals Nature Chemistry and ACS Central Science, are the beginning of a playbook for reengineering the cellular synthetic machinery to produce never-before-seen polymers, including bio-polymers and circular polymers, which are called peptide macrocycles, with predetermined or completely unforeseen applications.

C-GEM is working to biosynthesize molecules that have never before been made in a cell and that are designed to have unique properties. The tools could be applied broadly by polymer chemists, medicinal chemists and biomaterials scientists to generate bespoke materials with new functions. The ultimate goal is to expand the function and versatility of proteins and polypeptides, as both materials and pharmaceuticals." Alanna Schepartz, C-GEM director, the T.Z. and Irmgard Chu Distinguished Chair in Chemistry and professor of molecular and cell biology at UC Berkeley

One example, she said, would be to program the ribosome to synthesize a polymer that is a cross between spider silk -; one of the toughest natural proteins -; and nylon, a polymer now made in chemical reaction chambers. While spider silk can now be made in genetically engineered microbes, the technology C-GEM is developing could allow similar microbes to make an infinite variety of polymers blending the building blocks of silk and nylon, all of them new to chemists and with unique properties. The technology could also be used to make protein-like polymers more resistant to heat than natural proteins.

A powerful aspect of a programmable ribosome machine that can synthesize polymers is that it allows researchers to evolve the polymers to perfect their activity, just as proteins have evolved over hundreds of millions of years to improve the fitness of cells and organisms.

"We've had protein polymers evolving on the planet for billions of years, but we've been restricted in what those polymers are because the building blocks are the same 20 amino acids," said Jamie Cate, UC Berkeley professor of chemistry and of molecular and cell biology. "If we can develop a system where you can actually apply evolution to these new polymers, then it's like a platform that anybody who has a creative idea can use to evolve a polymer to something they want."

Such a system builds on the directed evolution of protein enzymes for which Frances Arnold, a UC Berkeley alumna, received the 2018 Nobel Prize in Chemistry.

"It's a step beyond what Frances Arnold did in developing directed evolution," Cate said. "She developed directed evolution for proteins. What we're trying to do is set up a way that you could do this for polymers never before evolved in nature."

Engineering an entirely new ribosome

In all cells, proteins are assembled by a nanomachine, the ribosome, that accepts instructions from an RNA molecule called messenger RNA (mRNA) -; mRNA is akin to a working copy of a gene's DNA code -; and reads those instructions to assemble a protein, amino acid by amino acid. Amazingly, the linear protein chain almost always folds into a well-defined 3D structure, ready to serve its evolved purpose: as an enzyme to catalyze reactions in the cell, as a structural component of the cell, or as a regulator of other cellular activities.

Ten years ago, retooling this complex nanomachine seemed impossible. But Schepartz's tenacity in pushing for a project to accomplish this goal resulted in C-GEM, which is three years into its first five-year funding cycle.

One of the center's goals is to supply the ribosome with building blocks -; so-called monomers -; other than alpha-amino acids. To achieve this goal, the C-GEM team focused on the enzymes that load amino acid monomers onto transfer RNA (tRNA), the molecules that ferry amino acids to the ribosome. Each tRNA is bar-coded to indicate which of the 20 amino acids it carries.

As reported in a Nature Chemistry paper published June 1 and co-authored by Schepartz and graduate students Riley Fricke and Cameron Swenson, the team discovered that one family of tRNA synthetases could load tRNA with four different non-alpha-amino acids. One of these was a building block of various polyketide therapeutics, including the antibiotics erythromycin and tetracycline.

"We identified enzymes that load tRNAs with monomers that differ structurally from anything that has been loaded on a tRNA before," Schepartz said. "One of the monomers is a precursor that could be used to assemble polyketide-like molecules. Scientists have been trying for decades to reengineer polyketide synthase modules to generate libraries of natural products. These studies have taught us a ton about the sophistication of these modules, but the engineering part has been very hard."

The novel monomers were willingly accepted by the native ribosome in the bacteria E. coli, demonstrating that it's possible to incorporate different types of chemistries into the normally all-amino acid protein polymer.

"Antibiotic resistance is an enormous problem," she added. "If we could help solve that problem by generating novel molecules whose functions encode unique modes of action, that would be an enormous contribution."

In a second paper, which appeared May 30 in ACS Central Science, lead author and postdoctoral fellow Chandrima Mujumdar, along with Cate and Schepartz, used cryogenic electron microscopy (cryo-EM) to obtain detailed structures of three related monomers -; none of them alpha-amino acids -; bound to the E. coli ribosome. The details show how these monomers bind -; though much more poorly than do amino acids -; and provide hints on how to alter the monomers or the ribosome to improve the ribosome's ability to use them to build novel polymers.

In a third paper, which appeared June 12 in Nature Chemistry, Cate, Schepartz and lead author Zoe Watson, a postdoctoral fellow, report the cryo-EM structure of the E. coli ribosome while binding normal alpha-amino acids. For this paper, the team collaborated with the company Schrodinger Inc. of San Diego, which uses computers to model protein binding. Ara Abramyan of Schrodinger used the cryo-EM structure as a starting point to run metadynamic simulations to help understand which non-natural monomers will react in the ribosome's catalytic center -; the peptidyl transferase center (PTC) -; and which will not.

Schepartz and Cate emphasized that all of these tweaks to the ribosomal system must work inside a living cell independently of the normal ribosomes so that the production of new polymers does not interfere with the day-to-day protein production necessary for life.

"We want enzymes -; synthetases -; and ribosomes that could be used in a cell, because that's how this work will be scalable," Schepartz said. "That goal requires robust ribosomes, great enzymes and a lot of understanding about the chemistry of how these complex molecular machines work. It's a hard problem, but lots of fun. And we get to expose students and postdocs to some really great science."

Among the authors are C-GEM investigators Matthew Francis of UC Berkeley, Scott Miller of Yale University, Abhishek Chatterjee of Boston College, Bhavana Shah and Zhonqi Zhang of Amgen Inc., and C-GEM managing director Sarah Smaga. Schepartz is also a member of the Chan Zuckerberg Biohub and the California Institute for Quantitative Biosciences (QB3). Cate is a member of the Innovative Genomics Institute. Both Schepartz and Cate are faculty scientists at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.
A new study suggests the number of deaths due to sickle cell disease is 11 times higher than what is indicated from mortality data sources alone. Sickle cell disease is not just underdiagnosed, but it also increases risk of infection and of death from conditions like stroke, heart problems, kidney problems, and pregnancy complications. This means that the doctor taking care of a sickle cell disease patient who died from stroke may not even know that person had sickle cell disease or may not know that sickle cell disease can cause stroke, both of which could lead the doctor to not list sickle cell disease as a cause of death for that person.

When other sources of data on prevalence and birth incidence were combined with mortality data in epidemiological modeling, in 2021, the "total mortality burden" of sickle cell disease was 373,000 deaths, compared to 34,600 sickle-cell-only deaths, or "cause-specific deaths." The increase was especially pronounced in South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa, where the fatality figures were 67 times higher and nine times higher, respectively.

The study analyzed global health data from 2000 to 2021 and is published today in The Lancet Haematology journal. The research is part of the Global Burden of Disease 2021 study coordinated by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) at the University of Washington's School of Medicine.

Our research reveals the stark reality that sickle cell disease is far deadlier than its textbook description. The number of babies born with sickle cell disease is rising, which means a very difficult early childhood. Patients are more susceptible to infections and other severe conditions, so early detection is key for treatment." Dr. Nicholas Kassebaum, Senior Author, Adjunct Associate Professor at IHME

In 2021, half a million babies were born with sickle cell disease, and more than three-quarters of these births were in sub-Saharan Africa. Under the analysis of total mortality burden (including secondary conditions), sickle cell disease was the 12th leading cause of death globally for children under the age of 5 years. However, total sickle cell disease mortality burden was among the top three causes of death in Portugal, Jamaica, Libya, Oman, and San Marino.

"Improved data collection is critical to tracking progress on sickle cell disease. In order to overcome this data limitation, instead of using mortality data alone to estimate total sickle cell disease deaths, we used a mathematical algorithm that also takes input data from birth incidence, survival over time, and prevalence, and ensures these measures are internally consistent," explains Azalea Thomson, first author and IHME researcher on the Neonatal and Child Health Team. "By making use of all available data, we were able to strengthen our understanding of the true burden of sickle cell disease and better contextualize it alongside other leading causes of death. For example, in 2021, in kids under 5 years in sub-Saharan Africa, total sickle cell disease deaths exceeded those from malnutrition, measles, or syphilis."

The research also underscores the need for policymakers and public health advocates to address the largely underrecognized burden of sickle cell disease. Universal newborn screening, case monitoring through public registries, and early intervention treatment can alleviate suffering for some 8 million people living with sickle cell disease.

"Universal newborn screening is essential for early diagnosis and management of sickle cell disease," says Dr. Theresa McHugh, scientific writer at IHME who focuses on neonatal and child health. "In low- and middle-income countries, the newborn screening process is fragmented. In the US, newborn screening is universal, but a national registry does not yet exist. Increased global awareness and adoption of health policies that expand neonatal screening and make treatment more accessible will go a long way in improving health outcomes."

The study was funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. The study team included researchers from IHME and GBD 2021 collaborators from around the world.
In a recent study published in the eBioMedicine Journal, researchers performed a longitudinal observational cohort study among 120 males in Belgium.

The study aimed to analyze the impact of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection on semen quality parameters, including sperm concentration, motility, and morphology.

Study: SARS-CoV-2 infection reduces quality of sperm parameters: prospective one year follow-up study in 93 patients. Image Credit: Rost9/Shutterstock.com

Background

Studies have detected SARS-CoV-2 in the testis of deceased coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients and even during the acute infection phase. Semen is uninfectious on average 21 days after SARS-CoV-2 infection; thus, the risk for sexual transmission of SARS-CoV-2 is low during this time window.

However, due to a lack of longitudinal studies, short- and long-term effects of SARS-CoV-2 on sperm quality and subsequent effects on male fertility remain largely unknown.

Further, research has established that millions of meiotic reduction divisions occur in men daily, producing gametes even in an environment lacking immune protection; thus, male gametes are more susceptible to viral infections than female gametes.

A perturbation in the meiotic reduction division during gametogenesis due to a viral infection momentarily ceases spermatozoa production, resulting in a compromised sperm concentration on average 43 days post-infection. Thus, another strategy is needed to protect or inactivate these gametes.

Moreover, in men, not only during sperm production but after sperm production, some viruses, e.g., the Zika virus, could gain access to the spermatozoa, which compromises the embryo.

A recent study showed that SARS-CoV-2's presence in the testis, even after recovery from COVID-19, could alter protein-coding genes in spermatozoa and transfer them to the embryo.

About the study

In the present study, researchers recruited males aged 18 to 70 who had confirmed COVID-19 in Belgium between March 2020 and June 2020 or August 2020 and February 2021.

Of 120 patients recruited in this study, 93, 42, nine, three, and two patients had two, three, four, five, and six control visits, of which 242 were post-COVID-19. During each follow-up visit, the team collected a fresh sperm and blood sample from each participant. Further, the team used the World Health Organization (WHO) criteria to assess sperm quality. They quantified the deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) fragmentation index (DFI) and the high-density stainability (HDS), and IgA- and IgG-anti-sperm antibodies (ASA).

For moving spermatozoa, the researchers used mixed antiglobulin reaction (MAR) tests to detect IgA and IgG. The team used light microscopy to determine the proportion of motile sperms with attached latex particles.

In addition, they recorded the location on the spermatozoan, head, midpiece, or tail, where the latex particles attached. The researchers tested all post-COVID-19 sperm samples for SARS-CoV-2 ribonucleic acid (RNA) with the SpermCOVID test, for which the detection limit was two SARS-CoV-2 RNA copies per ml.

They graded the motility of each spermatozoon into three categories, Grade A, B, and C, where the last category of sperm was immotile. While Grade A spermatozoa showed progressive motility and moved actively, linearly, or in a large circle, Grade B sperm swam in small circles but showed no progressive motility.

The synthesis of Apale-spermatogonia that become committed to meiosis and enter active spermatogenesis takes 16 days of the seminiferous epithelium cycle that constantly releases spermatozoa. Also, a spermatogenic wave lasts 74 days, followed by an epididymal transit that lasts 12 days.

The researchers hypothesized that a perturbation in any of these processes due to SARS-CoV-2 infection would manifest as a reduced spermatozoa output that becomes apparent as a proportional difference between peak and bottom sperm concentration even after several days of COVID-19 onset.

This difference and other estimated sperm parameters served as a substitute when evaluating the impact of the SARS-CoV-2 infection on sperm parameters of all 93 patients who attended at least two follow-up visits.

The researchers calculated the time difference (in days) between the first SARS-CoV-2 positive reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) (day zero) and the date of ejaculation on each of the 242 visits. They also determined, for each participant, the number of days post-infection when the sperm concentration was lowest or highest.

Furthermore, the researchers analyzed the effect of the SARS-CoV-2 infection across different rounds of spermatogenesis, totaling to 102-days. Finally, they calculated how many sperm parameters returned to normal, i.e., baseline values post-SARS-CoV-2 infection, and implicated these findings with the spermiogenesis cycle phase.

Results

Of all parameters, sperm concentration was dependent on the spermatogenic cycle. Recovery of the different sperm parameters varied between patients; however, it took more than one-year post-SARS-CoV-2 infection in some cases and depended on the patient's initial immune response. Also, peak progressive sperm motility post-COVID-19 depended on the patient's antibody response. However, the authors did not detect a decline in sperm concentration maxima during anytime post-COVID-19, further indicating that viral infection impacts the reduction division process.

Every participant had a unique sperm production maximum, reflecting their efficiency in producing spermatocytes from spermatogonia. So, once the external influence declined, sperm concentrations returned to the maximum baseline value.

Patients producing both IgA/IgG-ASA had the fastest complete recovery, while patients without these antibodies could not completely recover. It could be due to a declining immunological response and its waning effect on spermatozoa.

Furthermore, the study data showed that fever did not reduce sperm concentration post-SARS-CoV-2 infection but the immune response afterward.

Perhaps IgA and IgG recognize the SARS-CoV-2 receptor angiotensin-converting enzyme-2 (ACE2); thus, they attached themselves to the spermatozoa tail where ACE2 was present.

Conversely, lethal sIgG-N in blood only correlated with higher DFI, consistent with reports that the antibodies are either protective or harmful.

In symptomatic COVID-19 patients who recovered, lowered hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) serum levels inhibited Apale-spermatogonia divisions, crossed the blood-testis barrier, and became spermatocytes, resulting in a lower sperm concentration.

For ejaculated spermatozoa between days zero and 43 post-infection, elevated HDS and DFI rendered the spermatozoa inactive.
A new study from Australia, New Zealand and Germany published in the New England Journal of Medicine raises important questions about the success or otherwise of emergency medicine.

The study examined the drug tranexamic acid, which is commonly used to limit bleeding during surgery. However, its usefulness in emergency settings as a pre-emptive strike in life-threatening bleeding has been controversial, and recent studies have provided contradictory results about whether or not it saves lives or causes dangerous blood clotting.

The Pre-hospital Antifibrinolytics for Traumatic Coagulopathy and Haemorrhage (PATCH-Trauma) Study was designed to solve this dilemma. Led by Monash University and the Australian and New Zealand Intensive Care Society Clinical Trials Group, it is one of the largest clinical trials ever conducted where treatment was given at the roadside, in an ambulance or in a helicopter prior to reaching hospital.

It involved 1310 severely injured patients treated by 15 ambulance services and 21 trauma centres in Australia, New Zealand and Germany, taking eight years to complete.

In addition to all the usual care, patients were randomly assigned to receive pre-hospital tranexamic acid or an inactive placebo. The results showed that for every 100 patients allocated to receive tranexamic acid, there were approximately four extra survivors at six months, but all were severely-disabled and highly-dependent on carers.

The lead investigator, Professor Russell Gruen, now Dean of the College of Health and Medicine at the Australian National University, described this as a landmark study in trauma care. "It shows it's not enough to find out only whether treatments save lives or not  quality of life and the long-term outcomes of care also matter," Professor Gruen said.

Monash University Professor Stephen Bernard, Medical Advisor to Ambulance Victoria and lead for the Australian arm of the study, praised the ambulance services involved.

The PATCH-Trauma Study is further proof that ambulance professionals can conduct rigorous clinical trials in very sick patients and in extremely challenging circumstances." Stephen Bernard, Professor, Monash University

As to whether tranexamic acid should be used for trauma patients, Professor Gruen is circumspect. "Because the drug needs to be given before severely injured patients can make an informed decision, further work is needed to see if we can identify patients who are more likely to survive with a favorable functional outcome if they are given tranexamic acid," he said. "However, the PATCH-Trauma Study gives us confidence that critical care is possible well before patients get to hospital."
The NHS will be "flying blind" in its attempts to meet its legal, and moral, obligation to eliminate ethnic inequalities in health and care until longstanding problems with the quality of ethnicity data are resolved, warns an expert in The BMJ today.

Inequalities in health and care between ethnic groups have been documented for decades, explains Sarah Scobie at the Nuffield Trust. But she argues that analysis by broad ethnic groups (white, Asian, black, and mixed) can mask substantial variation within them.

An accompanying infographic presents some of these disparities across a range of measures throughout the life course.

In the UK, there are stark and persistent inequalities in stillbirths and infant death rates for Asian, black, and mixed ethnic groups compared with white people, but this pattern is not consistent across all measures, she explains.

For example, death from any cause ("all cause mortality") in England and Wales for people aged 10 and over between 2017 and 2019 was higher for the white ethnic group (1,058 per 100,000 population) than the black African group (645 per 100,000 population), according to data from the Office for National Statistics.

Wide variations in patterns of illness are also apparent, she adds. For instance, contacts with mental health services are lowest for Asian groups, but these groups have higher rates of cardiovascular disease.

And while evidence shows that health services have responded for some conditions, such as cardiovascular disease, she notes that there are persistent inequalities in mental health, and maternal and infant mortality, with black groups having the worst outcomes, pointing to entrenched challenges.

She explains that the causes of ethnic inequality are multifaceted and include inequalities in socioeconomic status and the effects of structural racism, affecting access to jobs, housing, and other resources, as well as differences in where people live, with ethnic groups concentrated in cities. For example, a fifth (20%) of Asian and black children are born in the most deprived 10% of neighbourhoods, compared with 12% of white children.

Ethnic inequalities are also intrinsically linked to deprivation, and there are major differences within broad ethnic groups, she adds. For example, only 7% of children of Indian ethnicity are eligible for free school meals, the lowest of any group, whereas 29% of children of Bangladeshi ethnicity are eligible. The group with the highest proportion of eligible children is white travellers of Irish heritage (63%), compared with 22% for white British children.

Scobie acknowledges that there are big gaps in what we know about ethnic variations in health, such as access to planned care and for some parts of the life course, including in young adults and for end-of-life care.

The stark differences in the health effects of the covid-19 pandemic drew attention to longstanding ethnic inequalities, giving hope that these would receive a stronger focus in health policy. But momentum to tackle health inequalities seems to be stalling."

And while NHS England has adopted an approach to tackle inequalities that considers ethnic and socioeconomic differences, as well as other protected characteristics, vulnerable groups and clinical areas, Scobie believes that "longstanding problems with the quality of ethnicity data hamper progress to understand and tackle ethnic inequalities across healthcare."

"Until this changes, the NHS will be "flying blind" in its attempts to meet its legal, and moral, obligation to eliminate ethnic inequalities in care," she concludes.

A linked opinion article asks: How can we make better use of ethnicity data to improve healthcare services?
Funding announced today by the Ontario Institute for Cancer Research (OICR) will help six Ontario-based research teams pursue their ultimate goal of improving the lives of people with cancer.

Funding comes through OICR's Innovation to Implementation (I2I) program, which aims to help ensure new discoveries about preventing, diagnosing and treating cancer are adopted into healthcare policy and clinical practice.

Every cancer researcher wants their work to have an impact on patients, but there are a lot of challenges that must be overcome before a promising idea in the lab can have a meaningful impact in the clinic. That's why OICR is proud to support these talented Ontario researchers bring potentially life-changing innovations to the people who need them." Dr. Christine Williams, OICR's Executive Vice President and Head of Implementation Science

"It's very exciting to see OICR fund these projects," says Carol Gordon, a member of OICR's Patient and Family Advisory Council who helped review I2I applications. "They all address important topics from a patient's perspective, including personalized medicine, accessible genetic testing, quality of life and patient engagement."

First launched in 2022, I2I awards support the uptake of new cancer tools and knowledge for the benefit of cancer patients. The awards are part of OICR's Implementation Science program, which emphasizes ways to assess, test and implement research discoveries into Ontario's healthcare system.

"The Ontario government is committed to advancing new discoveries in cancer research by supporting entrepreneurs who have developed innovative technologies, treatments and tools to help cancer patients," said Jill Dunlop, Minister of Colleges and Universities. "These six projects all have the potential to improve cancer patients' lives, by providing personalized care and treatments, and by making genetic testing faster and more accessible to all Ontarians."

The six research projects funded as part of the 2023 I2I awards will receive up to a total of $200,000 each over the next two years. They include investigations into new tools to diagnose cancer, new approaches to evaluate emerging cancer technologies and ways to ensure all communities have access to new discoveries.

Dr. David Berman of Queen's University created a system to objectively grade bladder cancer so that it can be treated more effectively. 'High-grade' and 'low-grade' bladder cancers are treated very differently, but the process to determine grading is highly subjective. Expert pathologists will disagree on cancer grades in 20 to 40 per cent of cases. With I2I funding, Berman and colleagues will test a computer-aided grading system for bladder cancer based on quantitative measures and work with industry, academic and patient partners to help it make it available to clinicians.|



"Having an objective, quantitative way to grade bladder cancers will help urologists provide personalized care matched to their patients' individual risks."  Dr. David Berman

Dr. Anthony Nichols of Lawson Health Research Institute and London Health Sciences Centre is developing a molecular test to predict how patients with HPV-related head and neck cancers, the fastest rising cancers in North America, will respond to treatment. Standard treatment for these cancers is high doses of chemotherapy and radiation, which carry significant side effects, so it's important to know which patients will benefit from treatment and which patients could be spared unnecessary side effects. Nichols and colleagues will use their I2I award to confirm that their test is accurate and explore how it could be integrated into clinical care.



"With head and neck cancers on the rise, it's more important than ever to know which therapies work for which patients, so they can get the best chance of survival with the least amount of side effects."  Dr. Anthony Nichols

Dr. Rola Saleeb of St. Michael's Hospital, a site of Unity Health Toronto, is exploring the use of a new tool to standardize genetic testing for glioma, the most common type of brain cancer. This technology uses a more affordable DNA sequencing technology and could make genetic testing more accessible. Existing genetic tests are done using large, expensive equipment that isn't available in all laboratories, meaning tests are often sent away to other labs and patients must wait weeks for results before they can begin treatment. OICR funding will allow Saleeb and colleagues to develop a single test that looks for all relevant glioma biomarkers and runs on the nanopore sequencing platform, which costs only about $1,000 and can fit on a desktop.



"We want to help bring molecular testing into every laboratory so that clinicians everywhere have the information they need to set their patients on the right course of treatment."  Dr. Rola Saleeb

Dr. Yvonne Bombard of the University of Toronto and St. Michael's Hospital, a site of Unity Health Toronto, is investigating how to make genetic services for cancer more equitable for all people across Ontario. Genetic testing can help identify people at high risk of developing cancer so they can be screened earlier and treated more effectively should cancer develop. But racialized communities have a more difficult time accessing genetic services and getting a definitive diagnosis, in part because most genetic research is done on people of European ancestry but also because of the barriers built into our healthcare system. With funding from OICR, Bombard and colleagues will interview people from diverse backgrounds as well as genomics researchers, healthcare providers and other stakeholders to identify barriers to accessing genetic services and work together with racialized communities on strategies to overcome them.



"Cancer Genetic services can't reach their full potential until they reach everyone; we are hoping to understand the barriers that currently prevent racialized communities from accessing them. This is an important first step to mitigating these barriers and improving care and health outcomes for all Ontarians."  Dr. Yvonne Bombard

Dr. Kelvin Chan of Sunnybrook Research Institute is studying the impact of CAR-T cell therapy on quality of life for patients with lymphoma. CAR-T cell therapy shows a lot of promise in treating blood cancers like lymphoma and works by training the body's immune cells to find and kill cancer. But it is very costly to manufacture and administer, making it difficult for regulators to measure its cost-effectiveness and manage access. In their I2I study, Chan and colleagues will ask lymphoma patients about their quality of life before and after undergoing CAR-T cell therapy so that their experiences can be factored into policy decisions surrounding this potentially life-changing new treatment.



"To fully understand the impact of CAR-T cell therapy, and the potential impact of public reimbursement for it, we need to understand how it affected the lives of the people who have first-hand experience with it." -- Dr. Kelvin Chan

Dr. Kednapa Thavorn of The Ottawa Hospital and the University of Ottawa is exploring how patient voices can improve economic evaluation  an important part of how health systems assess the value of new technologies. In an earlier OICR-funded study, Thavorn and colleagues invited patients and caregivers to provide input on the financial benefits and burdens of CAR T-cell therapy, a groundbreaking immunotherapy that has delivered promising results for people with blood cancers. This new I2I study will engage a broader range of stakeholders, including patients, researchers and policymakers, to identify barriers that prevent patient engagement in economic evaluations and recommend ways to involve patients more meaningfully.



"Patients know the true costs of having cancer and of undergoing cancer treatment, and therefore should be involved in any discussion about the economic value of a new treatment."  Dr. Kednapa Thavorn

These projects will build on and inform many other OICR initiatives, including a made-in-Canada approach to CAR-T cell therapy, and a platform to track hereditary cancers in Ontario and unify genetic testing. Altogether, they underscore OICR's commitment to developing powerful and cost-effective solutions that improve the lives of people affected by cancer.
News / National

by Staff reporter

THE voters' roll which is in a shambles and the persistent refusal by the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (Zec) to release the electronic version for audit have dented the credibility of the 23 August general elections at a time the eyes of the international community are on Zimbabwe after the disputed 2018 polls.During the recent inspection of the voters' roll, several Citizens' Coalition for Change (CCC) senior officials revealed that their names had been struck off the roll at their original polling stations and transferred to wards far from their usual polling stations without their consent.In Bulawayo, former CCC treasurer-general David Coltart reported he, family members and a domestic worker could not find their names at the station where they have always voted. They only found out that they had been transferred to another ward after making considerable effort to get to the bottom of the matter.The opposition party's former deputy president and former Industry Mcinister Professor Welshman Ncube made similar reports together with the party's lawmaker Nicole Watson. Some people could not find their name on the voters' roll and eventually gave up in frustration, meaning they will not vote.This disenfranchisement dents the credibility of the elections. While some eminent citizens came out openly protesting this development, many ordinary citizens did not have the energy or resources to check where they had been transferred to.Some are likely not to vote, given that they do not know the polling stations or wards they were transferred to. This is already clear evidence that some voters will be disenfranchised which, in turn, renders the polls unfair.The numerous errors and discrepancies in the voters' roll deviate from constitutional standards. The opposition CCC in a letter of complaint to Zec last week, said it had noted serious anomalies on the voters' roll from a reflective sample across all the 10 provinces.The opposition party said one of the key errors it noted was the missing names of prospective voters, some of whom had previously cast their votes in the 2018 general elections and even in the March 2022 by-elections.The party demanded an urgent meeting with Zec over the anomalies."Registered voters that had been appearing on the BVR online inspection platform are suddenly missing their names from the current online platforms and the voters' roll under inspection. The voters' roll under inspection seems not to be synchronised with the new delimitation boundaries. Resultantly, prospective voters have been displaced from their wards of residence."Some registered voters have been moved several kilometres away from their polling stations and even to different wards, a deviation from what Zec indicated to stakeholders that it will re-organise the delimitation boundaries using polling areas," said the CCC.Zec has also persistently refused to release the electronic voters' roll for easier audit by stakeholders, including candidates in the 23 August elections. Zec's actions are contrary to the country's constitution as section 21(1) stipulates that "every voters' roll and every consolidated roll shall be a public document and open to inspection by the public, free of charge, during office hours at the office of the commission or the registration office where it is kept."The discrepancies on the voters' roll have already courted the concerns of foreign nations such as the United States, further undermining the credibility of the elections.At the end of last month, Elaine French, the charge d'affaires at the US embassy in Harare, had to be summoned by the ministry of Foreign Affairs following a tweet posted on the embassy's official handle encouraging people to go and inspect the voters' roll after an outcry over the missing names of top CCC officials.French met Rofina Chikava, the acting permanent secretary in the ministry of Foreign Affairs. After the meeting, Meg Riggs, spokesperson of the US embassy, said America will continue to urge peace, transparency and inclusivity in Zimbabwe over the coming weeks, months and years as it stands by "our values of peace, transparency and inclusivity in electoral processes."Riggs said all Zimbabweans deserve a chance to choose their future in free and fair elections. "We strongly support a transparent and peaceful process that reflects the will of the people of Zimbabwe," she said.Professor of world politics at the University of London's School of Oriental and African Studies, Stephen Chan, told The NewsHawks that the credibility of the next elections would be judged by how Zec conducts processes such as management of the voters' roll."Every voters' roll in Zimbabwean electoral history has contained glitches. What is deeply concerning, however, is the refusal to release the electronic roll. It is the electronic version which is most susceptible to alteration in the case of a very tight election," he said.Political analyst Vivid Gwede also pointed out that elections cannot be described as free and fair if the voters' roll is at the centre of a dispute."Holding elections with a voters' roll that is being kept a secret is contrary to international best practices and recommendations made by observers such as the African Union in 2018."Moreso, if it turns out that significant errors will be discovered on the day of polling; that would be a sure way of denting the elections' credibility. This is why Zec must release an auditable and electronic voters' roll to civil society and political parties to have a look at it as well as help with technical advice and inputs," he said.Political anaIyst Rashweat Mukundu told The NewsHawks that the actions of Zec on the voters' roll essentially undermine the transparency and freeness of the August elections."Zec has either acted unprofessionally and intransigently in denying the opposition and civil society access to the voters' roll. And worse off, citizens who are finding their names missing are not finding any immediate relief, but rather promises that this and that will be done."So, there is every reason to believe that the voters' roll is now a key cog in the potential rigging of elections in connivance with Zec, Zanu-PF and the security sector in Zimbabwe," he said.Mukundu however said citizens must go and vote and not be distracted from doing so by contentions over the voters' roll."Zec needs to come out clean, otherwise what essentially we are facing is an election that is not free and fair. Regardless, citizens must push for Zec to correct anomalies. Citizens must still go out and vote and see what happens at the end of the day," he said.
A new study by investigators from Mass General Brigham has found that a brief, simulated task of navigating a phone menu can detect the earliest changes in daily functioning in people at risk of developing Alzheimer's disease. Investigators found that an older adult's performance on the test, which can be completed in a matter of minutes, was associated with the hallmarks of Alzheimer's disease pathology, including amyloid and tau depositions in the brain. The findings, which were published in the Journal of Alzheimer's Disease, could help inform prevention trials testing treatments for Alzheimer's disease before pronounced symptoms of cognitive decline begin.

This test is a more objective assessment of an aspect of daily functioning as opposed to our typical way of using a questionnaire filled out by somebody who knows the individual well. The implication is we may in fact detect a clinically meaningful change much earlier than we anticipate." Gad Marshall, M.D., senior author on the paper and neurologist and the Director of Clinical Trials at the Center for Alzheimer Research and Treatment at Brigham and Women's Hospital (a founding member of the Mass General Brigham healthcare system)

To conduct their study, Marshall and co-authors, including Mass General Brigham investigators in the Departments of Neurology at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) and Brigham and Division of Geriatric Psychiatry at McLean Hospital, used the Harvard Automated Phone Task (APT). This test includes three tasks an older person may encounter on a phone menu, including refilling a prescription, calling a health insurance company to select a new primary care physician, and handling a banking transaction. The test, which was developed and validated at the Center for Alzheimer Research and Treatment at the Brigham and MGH, asks participants to navigate an interactive voice response system to complete these tasks. The participants and their study partner, who is someone who knows them well, also completed other assessments about a variety of daily activities, followed by standard cognitive testing and brain scans that show amyloid and tau pathology in different regions of the brain.

Just under a third of the participants who were clinically normal (without cognitive impairment) showed evidence of elevated amyloid and tau in their brain and had trouble with the more challenging tasks of the daily functioning assessment. This is notable because most people with Alzheimer's disease will start with short-term memory difficulties, word-finding difficulties, and issues with sense of direction. They may also have decreased motivation, depression, irritability, and anxiety.

The authors note the assessment only represents a small part of daily functioning that not everyone utilizes. The study was also limited by a lack of diversity among the participants: 86 percent of the participants were white, and 97 percent were non-Hispanic. Future studies will be needed to determine if these findings may be replicated in more representative study populations and if, over a longer period, associations with difficulty completing the simpler tasks emerge.

One of the strengths of the study is that most participants can complete the tasks on their own, outside of a clinical setting. The authors conclude that assessing daily functioning in a more sensitive way, such as the APT, may identify Alzheimer's disease before a patient develops more pronounced cognitive changes.

"Although these findings are preliminary, they signal that there is an association between an objective measurement of instrumental activities of daily living (i.e., the Harvard APT task) and the interaction of tau and amyloid in a sample of cognitively normal older adults," said Chris Gonzalez, M.S., a first author on the study, former research assistant in the Department of Neurology at Brigham, and a fourth-year PhD student in clinical neuropsychology at Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science. "Having a task like the Harvard APT could better capture an individual's overall ability to complete complex everyday tasks rather than the questionnaires that are given to patients and their informants to better understand the preclinical stages of Alzheimer's disease."
The Bhopal gas explosion in 1984-;one of India's worst industrial disasters-;may have heightened the risk of disability and cancer in later life among future generations, curbed their educational attainment, and prompted a fall in the proportion of male births the following year, suggests research in the open access journal BMJ Open.

The disaster is likely to have affected people across a substantially more extensive area than previous evidence suggested, say the researchers.

During the incident, toxic methyl isocyanate gas leaked from a pesticide plant near the city of Bhopal, spreading up to 7 km and exposing more than half a million people to the gas, killing 30,000 people. But research suggests that even those not directly exposed to the gas were affected.

Health consequences among the hundreds of thousands of survivors were wide ranging. But it's not clear if the effects extended across generations, so a team of US researchers looked at the potential impact on children born to women survivors of Bhopal.

They drew on health and education data from the fourth wave of India's National Family Health Survey (47,817 people born between 1960 and 1990 and living in Madhya Pradesh in 2015) and the 1999 Indian Socio-Economic Survey (13,369 people living in Madhya Pradesh) to estimate the health effects of the gas leak among 15-49 year olds living in Madhya Pradesh in 2015-16 as well as their children (1260) born between 1981 and 1985.

Analysis of the data showed there were long term, intergenerational effects. Men who were in the womb at the time and whose mothers lived close to Bhopal-;within 100 km-;were more likely (1 percentage point-;over twice the baseline rate of 0.04%) to have a disability that affected their employment 15 years later.

More than 30 years later, men who had never moved also had a 27-fold higher risk of cancer and 2 fewer years of education than adults born before or after the disaster and who lived further away.

The sex ratio of births in 1985 also changed among children born up to 100 km away from the incident, suggesting that the effects of the disaster may have been more widespread than previously thought.

Among women living within 100 km of Bhopal the proportion of male births fell from 64% between 1981 and 1984 to 60% in 1985. But there was no difference in the sex ratio among women who lived more than 100 km away during the same period.

This finding is consistent with male fetuses being more affected by external stressors, say the researchers.

They acknowledge certain limitations to their findings, including the inability to assess the exact range of exposures to the toxic gas or the potential impact of migration and deaths attributable to the explosion, all of which may have affected their estimates.

Nevertheless, they conclude: "These results indicate social costs stemming from the Bhopal gas disaster that extend far beyond the mortality and morbidity experienced in the immediate aftermath.

"Moreover, our results suggest that the Bhopal gas disaster affected people across a substantially more widespread area than has previously been demonstrated."

They add: "The evidence presented in this paper starkly highlights the long-term, inter-generational health and human capital effects of the Bhopal gas disaster, and underscores the need for ongoing survivor support, as well as robust regulatory protection."
In a groundbreaking development that has brought waves of relief to Bengalurus tech community, the strenuous daily commute from tech parks to metro stations has been streamlined, making it a breeze for the citys hardworking professionals.

The newly implemented initiative aims to address the longstanding concern of traffic congestion and the challenges faced by techies in reaching metro stations. The government have unveiled a well-thought-out plan that includes a number of actions to improve connectivity and lessen the pressure on commuters.

Under this transformative plan, dedicated shuttle services have been introduced, effectively linking prominent tech parks to nearby metro stations. The strategically placed shuttle stops ensure quick and convenient access for employees, significantly reducing travel time and minimizing the hassles of navigating through congested roads.

The introduction of these shuttle services is a testament to the relentless efforts of the Bengaluru Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC) in collaboration with tech companies and city authorities. This symbiotic partnership has worked towards a common goal of improving the quality of life for the teeming tech workforce.

The seamless integration of tech parks and metro stations is just one aspect of the broader vision to enhance Bengalurus public transportation system. Authorities have further outlined plans to expand the existing metro network, introducing new lines that will cover more areas and provide greater connectivity options for residents and commuters alike.

Also Read: Bengaluru Metro: Four New Metro Lines to Ease Traffic Woes by November

This transformation is a significant milestone for Bengaluru, which is known as the Silicon Valley of India. It reaffirms the citys commitment to fostering a conducive ecosystem for its vibrant tech community, attracting top talent, and facilitating their professional growth.

With the successful implementation of this commuter-friendly plan, Bengaluru sets an example for other cities grappling with similar transportation challenges. It highlights the power of collaborative efforts between government bodies, corporations, and citizens in creating sustainable solutions that enhance the overall well-being of the community.

As Bengaluru continues to evolve and adapt to the changing needs of its populace, the city stands poised to achieve even greater milestones in its journey towards becoming a global tech hub, setting benchmarks in urban development and public transportation.
The Noida Metro Rail Corporation (NMRC) Tuesday said it would re-start the free e-rickshaw service between the Aqua Line and the Blue Line metro stations here from June 14.

However, the service, which was stopped last month would resume with a modified route, the NMRC said.

The dedicated walkway is blocked due to the construction of the foot over bridge connecting Sectors 51 and 52. This has stopped free e-rickshaw services being operated jointly by NMRC and DMRC," NMRCs Managing Director Ritu Maheshwari said.

Also Read: Ghaziabad Metro: DMRC to Connect Noida Sector 62 and Vaishali Stations, Details Inside

But with due diligence considering commuter needs, especially children and old age persons the e-rickshaw service is being restored with possible modified routes. Passengers can now take an e-rickshaw from both stations Sector-52 to Sector-51 from June 14," Maheshwari said.

She said the Noida Authority, which is building the foot overbridge, is also taking action to cover available footpaths for pedestrians between these two stations.

Meanwhile, an official said the foot overbridge is expected to be ready by 2024 and civil works on the project have already started while tenders for electrical works are yet to be floated.

Separately, a skywalk connecting the two stations is in the offing but is getting delayed on the end of a private firm which has been allotted the land between the two stations.

The demand for a skywalk and hassle-free interchange between the Blue Line and the Aqua Line stations has been a long pending issue for commuters.

The Aqua Line, connecting Noida and Greater Noida, has a daily average ridership upwards of 40,000, according to NMRC.
We all want money-saving and investment tips in todays world. Sometimes financial services come in handy and sometimes, we get some financial literacy through YouTube videos. But beyond growing our net worth and increasing our corpus, we should also carefully define how we think about money. And Edelweiss CEO and MD, Radhika Gupta has come to our rescue.

Radhika Gupta recently shared the top five money lessons she wants to teach her child first. The head of the Mumbai-based investment and financial services company, Gupta has a son named Remy Gupta Moniz, and she has already disclosed that she has set up an index fund for him. On Sunday, she tweeted, Five thoughts about money that I want my child to learn first."

Gupta first tweeted that money does have a real purpose. It enables you to fulfil your dreams, it makes the little and big things in life easier. It adds comfort, and it enables moments of joy, for you and the people who care for you. So earning money and saving money is important," she added.

She said that money cannot define us and we should never let it affect our sense of self-worth or our confidence. Never let it affect how you are and behave with others either, because people are more than their bank balance," she wrote.

Emphasising the significance of gratitude Radhika said, You have more than I did and I have more than my parents did because each generation has worked hard. Use what you have to take another leap, to take risks, to create opportunities that we never had," she tweeted.

As part of her fourth tip on her Twitter thread, she wrote, Greed takes you down. Finance is one of the best-paid industries in the world, yet the biggest and best fall hard because of greed. Know the value of enough" and never take a shortcut to earn money. It can never be worth it."

Radhika Gupta concluded, saying we should focus on managing our biggest asset which is our talent. She tweeted, Your parents have earned a living managing money. But first, focus on managing your biggest asset- your talent, and you are playing in one of the best markets in the world- India. Learn to read, write, think, fall, rise, dream, create and build."
7th Pay Commission: The Odisha government has announced a four per cent hike in dearness allowance (DA) for its employees and pensioners. The DA for employees and pensioners has been increased to 42 per cent from the existing 38 per cent.

The increased DA will be applicable with retrospective effect from January 23 this year and the employees will receive the amount with their June salary, according to a statement issued by the Chief Ministers Office on Tuesday.

A total of 7.5 lakh employees and pensioners will get the benefit.

Recently, Jharkhand and Himachal Pradesh also announced their salary hikes for their government employees and pensioners.

DA Hike For Central Govt Employees Likely

The Centre is also likely to hike dearness allowance (DA) next month, July 2023, thus raising their salaries, according to media reports. The DA hike is likely to be 3-4 per cent, to compensate central government employees and pensioners for rising prices.

The DA is hiked twice a year  January and July. The last hike was announced in March 2023, which became effective from January 1, 2023. In the hike, the DA was raised by 4 per cent to 42 per cent.

Now, according to the reports, the central government might decide to hike DA by 4 per cent, following which the DA will increase to 46 per cent.

Dearness allowance (DA) is given to government employees, while dearness relief (DR) is for pensioners. According to the official data, there are 47.58 lakh central government employees and 69.76 lakh pensioners. After the upcoming DA hike, these employees and pensioners will be benefitted.

The DA is given to employees based on the basic pay of the employees, while the DR is given on the basis of a basic pension.

How Is DA Hike Calculated?

The central government revises the DA and DR for employees based on a formula. Following is the formula:

Dearness Allowance Percentage = ((Average of All-India Consumer Price Index (Base Year 2001=100) for the past 12 months -115.76)/115.76)x100.

For Central public sector employees: Dearness Allowance Percentage = ((Average of All-India Consumer Price Index (Base Year 2001=100) for the past 3 months -126.33)/126.33)x100.
The overall average airfares on ten domestic routes, including Delhi-Srinagar, are on the decline, and the trend is likely to continue in the coming weeks also, according to an analysis based on data compiled by aviation regulator DGCA.

In recent weeks, there has been a surge in airfares on certain routes, mainly due to a capacity crunch and suspension of operations by crisis-hit Go First.

Against this backdrop, concerns have been expressed in various quarters, and the civil aviation ministry on June 6 asked airlines to devise a mechanism to ensure reasonable pricing of air tickets.

Also Read: No Plan To Regulate Airfares, Airlines Asked To Exercise Moderation In Ticket Pricing

An analysis of airfares based on a select week-on-week comparison for a period till July 13 showed that the average ticket prices are on the decline.

The data has been compiled by the tariff monitoring unit of the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA).

The ten routes are Delhi-Srinagar, Srinagar-Delhi, Delhi-Leh, Leh-Delhi, Mumbai-Delhi, Delhi-Mumbai, Delhi-Pune, Pune-Delhi, Ahmedabad-Delhi and Delhi-Ahmedabad.

Sources at the ministry said the overall average airfares are on the decline in these routes, except that on the Mumbai-Delhi route.

The surge in airfares has been mainly witnessed on routes that were operated by Go First, which has not flown since May 3.

On June 5, during a meeting chaired by Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia, airline representatives were asked to self-regulate fares, and also put in place a mechanism to ensure reasonable pricing of air tickets.

Airfares are deregulated in India.

A ministry official on Tuesday said there are no plans for regulating the fares and that introducing fare caps on various routes will lead to market distortion.

In a series of tweets on Monday, Scindia said fares have been reduced by up to 60 per cent and are likely to decline further on certain routes that had seen an increase in fares.

He also said DGCA is closely monitoring the situation.

This is no ordinary situation for civil aviation. After two years of ZERO flights taking off due to COVID-19, the sector, GLOBALLY is now faced with tough supply chain challenges (also the primary reason for grounding of Go First fleet).

And so, airlines are unable to induct aircraft immediately. However, we had foreseen the issue long back, and had pro-actively liberalised the wet lease policy," Scindia had said on Monday.

Wet lease policy refers to the leasing of aircraft by airlines wherein crew, among others, are provided by the lessors concerned. It is usually done as a short-term measure to address capacity constraints.
India achieved all-time-high exports of seafood both in terms of volume and value (both dollar and rupee) during the financial year 2022-23, according to the official data. The country shipped 17,35,286 MT of seafood worth Rs 63,969.14 crore (US$ 8.09 billion) during the year, despite several challenges in its major export markets like the US.

During the FY 2022-23, the export improved in quantity terms by 26.73 per cent, in rupee terms by 11.08 per cent, in US$ terms by 4.31 per cent. In 2021-22, India had exported 13,69,264 MT of seafood worth Rs 57,586.48 crore ($7,759.58 million)," the Ministry of Commerce & Industry said in a statement.

Frozen shrimp remained the major export item in terms of both quantity and value, while the US and China turned out to be the major importers of Indias seafood. Frozen shrimp, which earned Rs 43,135.58 crore ($5481.63 million), retained its position as the most significant item in the basket of seafood exports, accounting for a share of 40.98 per cent in quantity and 67.72 per cent of the total US$ earnings. Shrimp exports during the period increased by 1.01 per cent in rupee value.

The overall export of frozen shrimps during 2022-23 was pegged at 7,11,099 MT. USA, the largest market, imported (2,75,662 MT) of frozen shrimp, followed by China (1,45,743 MT), European Union (95,377 MT), South East Asia (65,466 MT), Japan (40,975 MT), and the Middle East (31,647 MT).

The export of black tiger (BT) shrimp increased by 74.06%, 68.64% and 55.41% in quantity, Rupee value and US$ terms respectively in 2022-23. BT shrimp exported to the tune of 31,213 MT worth Rs 2,564.71 Cr (US$ 321.23 million). Japan turned out to be the major market for Black Tiger shrimp with a share of 25.38% in terms of US$ value, followed by the European Union (25.12%) and USA (14.90%). The Vannamei shrimp exports declined in 2022-23 compared to 2021-22 by 8.11% from US$ 5234.36 million to US$ 4809.99 million.

Frozen Fish, the second largest exported item, fetched Rs. 5,503.18 Cr. (US$ 687.05 million) accounting for 21.24% in quantity and 8.49% in US$ earnings. This year the export of Frozen fish has increased by 62.65%, 58.51% and 45.73% in Quantity, Rupee and US$ value terms respectively.

Under Other items, the third largest export basket worth US$ 658.84 million, Surimi fetched Rs. 2,013.66 crore (US$ 253.89 million), frozen Octopus fetched Rs. 725.71 crore (US$ 91.74 million), Surimi Analogue products fetched Rs. 558.51 crore (US$ 70.35 million), canned products fetched Rs. 326.48 crore (US$ 41.56 million), frozen lobster fetched Rs. 215.15 crore (US$ 27 million), along with other products.

As for overseas markets, USA continued to be the major importer of Indian seafood in value terms with an import worth US$ 2,632.08 million, accounting for a share of 32.52 per cent in terms of US$ value. Exports to the US declined by 21.94% in US$ terms due to sluggish demand.

China emerged as the second largest seafood export destination from India in terms of Quantity and US$ both with an import of 4,05,547 MT worth US$ 1,508.43 million. The European Union continued to be the third largest destination with an import of 2,07,976 MT worth US$ 1,263.71 million.
The National Testing Agency has released provisional answer key for CSIR UGC NET 2022. The provisional answer key is released for the December, 2022 - June 2023 entrance examination. Students who appeared in the examination can check answers from official website, csirnet.nta.nic.in. Further the agency has opened objection window from today, June 14 till June 16, 2023. Candidates who feel unsatisfied with any answer in the released answer key can raise objections and submit a fee amount of Rs 200 per objection. The processing fee is non- refundable.

CSIR UGC NET 2022: Steps to raise objections

Step 1- Visit the official website, csirnet.nta.nic.in

Step 2- On the homepage, under the latest news updates, a candidate can find the option of correction window. Students have to select CSIR NET December 2022  June 2023 Correction Window.

Step 3- A new tab will open

Step 4- Select the link mentioned on the page which writes CSIR NET December 2022  June 2023 Correction Window.

Step 5- A new tab will open and where only registered candidates can sign up and raise objections.

Step 6- A student has to mention application number and password which was set by the candidate while registration. Also mention the security pin displayed on the screen.

Step 7- Verify the details.

Step 8- Select on the submit option.

Step 9- A new tab will open where students have to select the answer to which they want to raise objections. Follow the same method for all the objections.

Step 10- Complete the process by submitting the processing fees that is Rs 200 for each objections.

Step 11- You can also download the receipt for future references.

It has to be remembered that these objections will be discussed with a subject expert panel. After the results are declared no further queries related to answer key will be entertained. Hence, it is an opportunity for the students to raise objections till June 16.

CSIR UGC NET is held to determine the eligibility of Indian nationals for Junior Research Fellowship (JRF), lectureship (LS), and assistant professor across universities and colleges in India. The total test papers include chemical sciences, earth, atmospheric, ocean, and planetary sciences, life sciences, mathematical sciences, and physical sciences. The medium of the paper will be English and Hindi.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Wednesday arrested Tamil Nadu Electricity Minister V Senthil Balaji under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), official sources told PTI, making him the first minister in the M K Stalin-led government to face such an action from a central agency. Balaji was arrested after a long session of questioning, they said, even as the 48-year-old minister was admitted to a city government hospital after he complained of uneasiness.

He is likely to be produced before a special court later where the agency will seek his custody. Chief Minister Stalin, who had already slammed the ED raids against Balaji on Tuesday as intimidation politics", went into a huddle with his senior party colleagues today following the ministers arrest.

The ED had launched multi-city searches in the state on Tuesday at the premises linked to the DMKs Karur strongman as part of the probe into money laundering. The action came months after the Supreme Court allowed a police and ED probe into an alleged cash for jobs scam against him.

Earlier, he was hospitalised after complaining of uneasiness, DMK leaders said. State Minister P K Sekar Babu claimed there were symptoms that Balaji has been tortured. TV visuals showed Balaji being uneasy while being brought to the Government Medical College, Omandurar Government Estate in the city.

He is in the ICU. He was in an unconscious state and did not respond when we called him by his name. He is under observationthere is a swelling near his ear. Doctors say there is variation in his ECG (electrocardiogram) these are symptoms of torture," Babu told reporters.

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Tuesday carried out searches at the premises in Chennai and Karur of V Senthil Balaji, Tamil Nadus minister for electricity, prohibition, and excise.

Last month, the income tax department too had searched people close to Balaji in the state.

Responding to Tuesdays development, the minister said he was ready to extend full cooperation" to the investigating agency.

The searches were carried out under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), sources said.

Whats the case?

The Supreme Court in May allowed police and ED to investigate an alleged cash-for-jobs scam against the DMK strongman.

Balaji was the transport minister in the AIADMK government, led by the late J Jayalalithaa, in 2011-15. It was alleged that he received kickbacks from various persons for appointing them as drivers and conductors in the transport corporations.

Three FIRs were registered against Balaji and later charge sheets were filed against him, which were pending before a special court for the trial of criminal cases connected to MPs and MLAs.

The ED registered a PMLA case against Balaji and others in July 2021 and took up the investigation.

Who is Balaji?

V Senthil Balaji began his public service as a local body member in 1997.

As a cadre of Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, he was elected to the Karur constituency in the 2006 assembly elections.

He was Tamil Nadus transport minister from 2011 till 2015 when he was dropped from the cabinet.

He was elected as an MLA from the Aravakurichi constituency in 2016.

After the demise of J Jayalalithaa, he played a key role in saving the government.

When the AIADMK separated into factions, he supported TTV Dhinakaran.

On September 18, 2017, 18 MLAs were disqualified by speaker P Dhanapal for their petition to then governor Banwarilal Purohit to change the chief minister.

Balaji then joined the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) on December 14, 2018.

He was made a district secretary and later was announced as by-election candidate for the Aravakurichi constituency. He became an MLA for the fourth time on May 23, 2019.

Balaji won the assembly elections held in April 2021 and has been serving as minister for electricity, prohibition, and excise in the MK Stalin government.

PTI contributed to this report
News / National

by Staff reporter

Zengeza West legislator, Job Sikhala, has completed a full year in remand prison with members of the Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) demanding his release.Sikhala was arrested on June 14 last year on charges of incitement to commit violence and disorderly conduct stemming from his attendance at the funeral of Moreblessing Ali, a CCC activist, who had been missing for three weeks before her mutilated body was discovered on June 11, 2022.The legislator is being held at Chikurubi Maximum Security Prison in Harare.Human rights lawyer and member of CCC, David Coltart, noted that Sikhala remains in unlawful solitary confinement at Chikurubi Maximum Prison."Any lawyer worth his or her salt will confirm what a travesty this is," he said and lamented that the international community and churches were not too vocal about Sikhala's unfair detention."The only greater shame than Sikhala's detention is the relative silence of churches and the international community. It is an utter disgrace that democrats and people of faith have been so muted in their criticism of this appalling injustice."Hwange Central MP and CCC member, Daniel Molokele, also called for people to make every Wednesday, "a Wiwa Wednesday" in honour of the jailed legislator."Today marks a full year since Sikhala was unfairly and unjustly incarcerated. Free Job Sikhala now," he said.On its Twitter page, CCC bemoaned how Sikhala had spent 365 days in jail on pretrial detention, despite no evidence showing his guilt."Although bail is a constitutional entitlement, he has been denied it several times. Sikhala is being prosecuted for representing Moreblessing Ali who was brutally murdered by a member of Zanu-PF. Let's continue to demand his release as he is innocent," said the party.On May 3, 2023, Sikhala was convicted of obstructing justice and was given a wholly suspended six months sentence with an option of paying US$ 600 or spending six months in jail.Sikhala's trial was linked to a video posted on the internet in which he is accused of saying that the ruling Zanu-PF party had killed Ali.He denied making the video and an expert witness testified in court that the footage had been tampered with.However, following his conviction and sentencing, Sikhala remained in custody, as he awaits trial for two other charges of incitement to commit violence and disorderly conduct.Sikhala becomes the second opposition lawmaker to endure lengthy imprisonment after founding MDC MP for Chimanimani Roy Bennett was jailed one year for assaulting then justice minister Patrick Chinamasa in Parliament in 2004.
Tamil Nadu Electricity Minister V Senthil Balaji was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) after 18 hours of interrogation.

The extensive questioning took place at the Ministers official residence on Tuesday, while simultaneous raids were conducted at his home and office. Although the official statement from the central probe agency regarding the reason for Balajis arrest is yet to be released, it is speculated to be connected to a money laundering case involving a job racket that occurred during his tenure as a Minister in the former AIADMK government led by the late Chief Minister J. Jayalalithaa from 2011 to 2015.

Amid the development, lets take a look at famous government recruitment scams which have come up over the years:

WBPSC Scam

In November 2021, Justice Abhijit Gangopadhyay, a single bench, issued an order for a preliminary inquiry by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) into alleged irregularities regarding the appointment of Group D staff in state-run schools under the West Bengal Board of Secondary Education (WBBSE).

The order was passed by Justice Abhijit Gangopadhyay during the hearing of a petition filed by job aspirants who claimed that the appointments were made after the recruitment panel for Group D staff in state-run schools had already expired. Initially, the petitioners presented a list of 25 individuals who were allegedly recruited illegally. Subsequently, they claimed that more than 500 additional appointments were made in a similar manner, as per a report by Indian Express.

In response, the WBBSE submitted an affidavit to the court asserting that all appointments were made based on recommendations by the West Bengal School Service Commission (WBSSC). However, the commission itself submitted an affidavit stating that after May 4, 2019, when the panel for the Group D staff requirement had expired, no recommendation letters were issued by them.

The scam exposed leaked question papers, impersonation, and widespread corruption in the recruitment procedure. Former State Education Minister Partha Chatterjee, along with several officials of the School Education Department, including MLA Manik Bhattacharya, are currently in custody due to their alleged involvement in the scam.

Maharashtra Recruitment Scams

The Maharashtra government was recently been hit by a series of recruitment scams, according to a report by Indian Express, with five consecutive incidents coming to light. These scams involved various fraudulent activities such as paper leaks and manipulation of answer sheets in government recruitments.

As a result of the investigations conducted by the cyber crime sleuths from Pune City Police, a total of 31 individuals, including senior government officials, middlemen, private entities responsible for recruitment processes, and candidates, were arrested. Additionally, assets worth over Rs 6 crore, believed to have been illegally acquired by the main culprits of the racket, were confiscated, as per the report.

The series of scams began with a probe into a paper leak in the recruitment process for Group D employees in the Health Department, which led to the arrest of several high-ranking officials in the department.

This was followed by an investigation into a question paper leak in the recruitment process of the Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority (MHADA). The leak was detected on December 10, just two days before the scheduled exam on December 12, resulting in the cancellation of the examination, the report said.

Subsequently, the investigators uncovered a significant scam involving tampering of marks in the Teachers Eligibility Test (TET) exams conducted in 2019 and 2018.

The most recent scam to be exposed was a paper leak in the Group C recruitment process of the Health Department, which took place during the examination held on October 24.

BSSC Exam Scam

The BSSC Exam Scam uncovered extensive corruption within the government job recruitment process in Bihar. The investigation exposed instances of leaked question papers, impersonation, among other illegal activities.

In 2017, Patna police had filed a charge sheet against eight individuals, which includes suspended IAS officer Sudhir Kumar, in relation to the scam.

Sudhir Kumar, a senior officer from the 1982-batch of the Bihar cadre, held the position of chairman of the BSSC when the question papers were leaked, just before the second phase of the examination that was originally scheduled for February 5, according to a report by Telegraph.

Vyapam Scam

The Vyapam scam, also known as the Madhya Pradesh Professional Examination Board scam, first came to light in 2013. The scam involved candidates bribing officials and manipulating exams by employing imposters to write their answer sheets. The fraudulent activities associated with the scam started as early as 1995 and implicated politicians, senior officials, and businessmen, as per a report by Indian Express.

In 2015, the Supreme Court ordered the CBI to take over the investigation of the Vyapam scam, recognizing the need for a thorough and impartial inquiry into the matter.

REET Scam

A controversy arose when reports surfaced regarding irregularities and paper leaks in various examinations conducted in Rajasthan. The first instance involved the Junior Engineer (JEN) exams held in November 2020, while the second instance concerned the Sub-Inspector (SI) and Rajasthan Eligibility Examination for Teachers (REET) exams conducted in September 2021.

Following the irregularities in the SI exam, including cheating allegations, seventeen individuals, including the principal of a private school, were arrested in Bikaner and Jaipur for their alleged involvement, according to a report by The Wire.

However, the government faced significant backlash due to the REET exam fiasco, despite the state governments implementation of extensive security arrangements to prevent irregularities.
Authorities in Queensland are currently conducting an investigation into a potential serial crocodile killer. The investigation was initiated following an anonymous phone call taking responsibility for the decapitation of two crocodiles found in the far north region of the state over the past two months, The Guardian reported.

Amid the curious development, lets take a look at the case and the psychology behind such acts:

Crocodiles Decapitated

David White, a local crocodile tour operator, received the call from an unidentified individual shortly after he discovered the severed head and spine of a female saltwater crocodile named Lizzie. Lizzie, who was approximately 40 years old, had been under Whites observation for over 20 years. Her remains were found on the banks of the Daintree River in May.

He said, I am the apex predator now, I killed a crocodile, White told the publication.

White expressed his deep fondness for Lizzie, the decapitated female crocodile found on the banks of the Daintree River. Lizzie was named after Queen Elizabeth due to her peculiar habit of waving like the queen, White explained.

According to White, the anonymous caller confessed to decapitating both Lizzie and another larger crocodile discovered decomposing in Cow Bay in April. In the Cow Bay incident, the crocodiles head was taken while the body was left behind.

While the exact cause of Lizzies death is still being investigated, White believes that the clean removal of her head and spine indicates human involvement, the report said.

The Queensland environment department spokesperson stated on Friday that authorities are examining the potential connection between these two incidents. They expressed concerns that these protected animals are being deliberately targeted and killed, raising alarm about the deliberate harm inflicted on these creatures.

About Saltwater Crocodiles

The saltwater crocodile, scientifically known as Crocodylus porosus, is a species of crocodilian that inhabits saltwater environments, brackish wetlands, and freshwater rivers. Its natural range extends from the east coast of India across Southeast Asia and the Sundaic region to northern Australia and Micronesia. Currently, the saltwater crocodile is classified as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List since 1996, indicating that it is not at immediate risk of extinction.

Historically, the saltwater crocodile was heavily hunted for its valuable skin across its entire range until the 1970s. This exploitation posed a significant threat to its population.

During the 1940s, 50s, and 60s, there was extensive harvesting of the Saltwater Crocodile population in northern Australia. The severe decline in their numbers prompted the implementation of management measures by both the individual states and the Commonwealth government. In 1970, the Saltwater Crocodile received full protection in Western Australia, followed by protection in the Northern Territory in 1971 and in Queensland in 1974, as per a report by the DCCEEW, Australia.

Before Humans, Its Always Animals

In addition to their brutal acts against numerous individuals, many serial killers share another disturbing characteristic: a history of animal abuse, according to a report by A&ETV.

The FBI has noted a strong correlation between cruelty towards animals and interpersonal violence between humans.

Serial killers often engage in the torture or killing of small animals from a young age, and individuals who commit child abuse or domestic violence frequently harm pets within the household as well. John Thompson, the deputy executive director of the National Sheriffs Association, highlighted in a 2016 interview that if someone is causing harm to an animal, there is a high probability that they are also inflicting harm on a human, the report said.

Dr Chris Hensley, an associate professor of criminal justice at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga told A&E that individuals who harm animals often target those they perceive as weaker. Many serial killers experience feelings of rejection from their parents or someone they have an emotional attachment to, whether real or perceived.

Instead of directing their anger towards the person who rejected them, they may choose to exert power and control over something they perceive as weaker, often animals. Harming animals becomes a way for them to assert dominance and establish a sense of power. This behavior reflects their underlying psychological dynamics and the desire to exert control in a situation where they feel vulnerable or rejected.
Even as Cyclone Biparjoy looks set to make landfall off Gujarat coast in a few hours, there was a social media storm in the state after a newly constructed bridge on Mindhola river in Valod taluka of Tapi district collapsed on Wednesday morning. The bridge was yet to be inaugurated.

On Wednesday evening, according to a government statement, chief minister Bhupendra Patel took serious note of the incident and ordered the suspension of the executive engineer, deputy engineer, and assistant engineer with immediate effect.

The prima facie probe suggests that low-quality material was used in the construction of the bridge and therefore CM Bhupendra Patel decided to take stern action against the concerned officers and suspended three officials," the government statement said. Government also decided to blacklist the Akshay Construction (Surat) engaged in the construction of the bridge and initiate the process to recover the amount from the agency."

According to locals, at around 7 am, the middle part of the bridge which connects Mayapur village in Valod taluka to Degama village in Vyara taluka of Tapi district collapsed into the river.

In October 2022, a pedestrian suspension bridge over the Machchu River in Morbi town of Gujarat collapsed, killing over 135 people.
Mumbai-based actor Chrisann Pereira, who was arrested in the United Arab Emirates on charges of drug possession and lodged at a jail, was acquitted by a Sharjah court on Tuesday. The 27-year-old Sadak 2 actress is expected to return to India in three to four days.

Pereira was jailed after she was found allegedly carrying drugs hidden in an award trophy.

Times of India quoted some sources as saying that even though Pereira was released by law enforcement authorities in April, the court was waiting for the Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) report to set her free.

The Mumbai police submitted a fact-finding report before the UAE authorities. The Sharjah court has asked the law enforcement officials to hand over Pereiras passport.

If everything goes well, she will book her flight tickets as soon the authorities hand over the passport to her," a source was quoted as saying by TOI.

Two men had allegedly cheated Pereira by planting drugs on her and sending her to Sharjah under the pretext of an audition" while promising her a role in a Hollywood web series. She was apprehended at the Sharjah airport on April 1 after a small quantity of a drug was found concealed in a memento which one of the accused had given to her to hand it over to someone in the UAE.

After her arrest, the accused  Ravi Bobhate and Anthony Paul  allegedly demanded Rs 80 lakh from her mother to rescue her, the official had told news agency PTI.

Her mother then approached the Mumbai Police who arrested the duo and booked them for cheating. The Mumbai Police does not suspect a drug syndicate involvement but only Pauls revenge tactics" against all the victims with whom he had some or other problems.

The Mumbai Police had sent the case-related documents to the authorities concerned who went through the case details following which Pereira was released.

Pereira has played roles in films like Sadak 2", Batla House", web-series Thinkistan", several stage plays, and lives in Borivali suburb with her family.

(with inputs from PTI)
Avtar Singh Khanda, handler of arrested Khalistan supporter Amritpal Singh, has died in UK, with top intelligence sources telling CNN-News18 that the cause of his death was blood cancer.

The UK-based head of Khalistan Liberation Force died at Birmingham City Hospital at around 12:45 am (IST) on Thursday, sources said.

Khanda was hospitalised in London after he was diagnosed with blood cancer on Wednesday, where he was put on life support.

Sources said Khandas body got poisoned as a clot burst due to the cancer.

Avtar Singh Khanda had groomed Amritpal and also propped him up in Punjab as the leader of Waris Punjab De after its founder Deep Sidhus death.

He was arrested in the UK for pulling down Indias national flag at the embassy in London.

Khanda, accused of training Sikh youths on how to make live bombs and handling of IEDs, was in the early stages of blood cancer.

Khanda was reportedly the head of the London unit of the Khalistan Liberation Force (KLF) and was the son of KLF terrorist Kulwant Singh Khukhrana.

Amritpal was arrested from Punjabs Moga district on April 23. He and his associates were booked under several criminal cases related to spreading disharmony among classes, attempting to murder, attacking police personnel, and creating obstructions in public servants lawful discharge of duty.
As Gujarat braces for the impact of extremely severe cyclonic storm Biparjoy, over 37,000 people have already been move to safety from eight districts of Gujarat. Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel held a high level meeting with all the top officials of the state government on Tuesday night.

Several emergency measures have been put into service by the Gujarat government, officials said.

Cyclone Biparjoy LIVE Updates

A total of 37,794 people have been shifted to safe places in eight districts. They are - Kutch, Porbandar, Junagadh, Jamnagar, Devbhoomi-Dwarka, Gir-Somnath, Morbi and Rajkot. In Kutch, more than 40 thousand food packets-two thousand kilograms of milk powder-45 thousand tetrapacks of milk were prepared to be distributed to the needy people," an official of the Gujarat government said.

Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel on Tuesday evening reached the state emergency operation centre in Gandhinagar where he was briefed by senior officials including the chief secretary on the updated information about the situation and coastal areas of the state due to the impending threat of very severe cyclonic storm Biparjoy.

Several measures have been taken by the government till now. currently, 15 teams of NDRF and 12 teams of SDRF have been deployed. Moreover, 115 teams of Roads and Buildings Department, 597 teams of Power Department are on standby for possible disaster roadblocks, repairs and restoration against adverse effects of power supply.

Further, 167 JCB-R30 dumpers, including 94 machinery-vehicles, are equipped with Road-Makan Department. Four chief district health officers (CDHOs) - one principal medical officer-joint director of Animal Husbandry were deployed to maintain health facilities in Kutch in a potentially dire situation.

Regarding the preparedness of the health department, Chief Secretary said that the department has arranged the quantity of necessary medicines and other materials. As many as 521 PHCs, CHCs, hospitals in these districts have been equipped with health-saving drugs, equipment, generators. A total of 239 ambulances are also available, including 157 ambulance services in flood prone areas.

The state government said that the Energy Department has kept a total of 889 teams on standby, including 597 in eight potentially affected districts. It has also kept vigilance that the power supply from 6950 feeders of these eight districts is not affected.

A total of 4,050 hoardings have been removed in eight districts of this coastal area as a precautionary measure. The services of satellite phones, ham radio operator, G-SWAN network have also been kept ready as part of vigilance to meet the impact of communication system due to heavy rain or storm, mobile service operators have also been told to operate alternative towers as part of vigilance, said the Chief Secretary.
India generated an income of USD 7,400 million through medical tourism over the last decade, and the figure is expected to rise to USD 43,500 million in the next 10 years, officials said on Wednesday.

The health sector in India has seen many private investments in the past five years, they said at the Indian Chamber of Commerce-organised BIMSTEC Health Forum here.

Among the issues discussed by the delegates were the inclusion of mental health under overall health, focus on universal health coverage, telemedicine, information sharing, human capital exchange and collaborative opportunities.

Because BIMSTEC nations are sensitive to climate change, coordination between the commercial and public healthcare sectors, as well as the government, is required to effect good change while keeping the environment in mind, an official said.

Medical tourism is a recognised export from two BIMSTEC members  India and Thailand.

A partnership with the Thai government has also been proposed to adopt Swastha Sathi facilities (West Bengal governments healthcare scheme) and come up with a progressive plan in medical insurance, the officials said.

The Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) is a regional organisation that was established in 1997.

The region has a combined population of over 1.68 billion people and a GDP of around USD 2.88 trillion.
Upset over the recently successful G20 meet in Kashmir, Pakistan-based terrorist group Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) wants to revive major terror activities in the Valley, according to top intelligence sources.

In a chatter intercepted by the intelligence agencies, the LeT wants to infiltrate cadres for long-term penetration.

ALSO READ | Despite Threats from Pakistani Dogs ADG CRPFs Message to Team on Success of G20 Srinagar Meet

As part of the plan, terrorist Sajid Jatt instructed two foreign terrorists from South Punjab Pakistan to carry out specific attacks in Badgaum and other areas of Central Kashmir. They were sent with arms and ammunition, including AK-47 and grenades, said intelligence agencies.

The infiltration attempt was foiled on Tuesday and the two were killed in an encounter by the Indian Army at the LoC near Lashdat, Machhal area of Kupwara district.

Intelligence agencies told CNN-News18 that the Pakistan Army was on the backfoot after the crisis at home and they want to divert attention to these kind of attacks, so that they look local in India.

WHAT HAS BEEN RECOVERED FROM ELIMINATED TERRORISTS

AK 47: 2

AK Mag: 4

AK ammunition: 48 rounds

Hand grenades: 4

Pouches: 1

Eatables and cigarette packets

THE G20 MEET

The three-day-long meet from May 22-24 was the first big event to be organized in Kashmir after the abrogation of Article 370 in 2019.

After the successful completion of the G20 Summit in Srinagar last week, News18 had reported how a top officer of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), who is heading the most sensitive zone in J&K, congratulated his entire team and units for accomplishing an incident-free event.

I have no words to express my gratitude to the entire rank and file for having accomplished an absolutely incident-free event, read the official communication sent on behalf of Additional Director General (ADG) of CRPF Nalin Prabhat, a senior IPS officer of 1992 batch from Andhra Pradesh cadre.

ALSO READ | Opinion | Naya Kashmir Shines on the Global Stage

My congratulations for a job well done, despite the threats issued by Pakistani dogs. My heart swells with pride for being a member of this team, which has ensured that the Tricolour flies in splendid majesty across the Valley. I am supremely confident that this fine team will continue to squarely fight all enemies and ensure that the nations writ prevails over all challenges, he said.
Read more

Cyclone Biparjoy LIVE Updates: The India Meteorological Department (IMD) issued a red alert for the Saurashtra and Kutch coasts of Gujarat with cyclone Biparjoy (pronounced as Biporjoy) nearing the state as a very severe cyclonic storm. The weather department said cyclone Biparjoy is very likely to move nearly northeastwards and cross Saurashtra and Kutch and adjoining Pakistan coasts between Gujarats Mandvi and Pakistans Karachi near Jakhau Port by the evening of June 15.

Ahead of Biparjoys anticipated landfall near Jakhau port in Gujarats Kutch district, authorities took swift action and relocated over 50,000 people to temporary shelters from coastal areas.

Meanwhile, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said he spoke to chiefs of all three armed forces and assured that the forces are ready to provide all possible assistance.

The name Biporjoy was given by Bangladesh and is a Bengali word that means disaster, danger. The naming of Cyclone Biparjoy was done as per the decree issued by the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO).

Teams from the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) were placed on standby, in addition to joint relief efforts organized by the Army in coordination with civil administration and the National Disaster Response Force.

A total of 37,794 people have been shifted to safe places in eight districts. They are  Kutch, Porbandar, Junagadh, Jamnagar, Devbhoomi-Dwarka, Gir-Somnath, Morbi and Rajkot. In Kutch, more than 40 thousand food packets-two thousand kilograms of milk powder-45 thousand tretapacks of milk were prepared to be distributed to the needy people, an official of the Gujarat government said.

Strategic flood relief columns have been strategically positioned by the Army, ready to respond to the situation. During a virtual meeting aimed at assessing the preparedness for the cyclone, Union Home Minister Amit Shah directed the Gujarat government to facilitate the relocation of residents residing in vulnerable areas to safer regions, while ensuring the provision of essential services such as electricity, telecommunication, healthcare, and clean drinking water.

The meeting was attended by Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel, two Union ministers, several Gujarat ministers and MPs, MLAs and officials from eight districts that are likely to be affected by the cyclone. We have already started evacuating people residing near the coast who are likely to be affected the most during the landfall. So far, various district administrations have shifted nearly 30,000 people to temporary shelters, said State Commissioner of Relief, Alok Kumar Pandey.

Western Railway has announced the cancellation or short-termination of approximately 95 trains in the Biparjoy-affected regions of Gujarat until June 15, according to an official statement.

The state government is aiming to evacuate people within 10 km of the coast, he said, adding that so far one fatality related to the cyclone has been recorded. Ahmedabad IMD director Manorama Mohanty said the cyclone is likely to cross between Mandvi in Kutch and Karachi in Pakistan near Jakhau port with 125-135 kmph wind speed gusting to 150 kmph on the evening of June 15.

A warning has been issued for extremely heavy rainfall accompanied by strong winds in coastal parts of the Saurashtra-Kutch region, especially in the districts of Kutch, Porbandar and Devbhumi Dwarka, she said. After it makes landfall and weakens, the movement of the cyclone is likely to remain north-eastward and it is expected to move towards extreme south Rajasthan. It will bring heavy to very heavy rain in north Gujarat till June 15-17, Mohanty said.

Fishing activities have been suspended till June 16, ports are shut and ships are anchored as the sea turned very rough and weather became inclement with extremely heavy rainfall and strong winds in the region due to the approaching cyclone. The sea will remain very rough to high till Jun 14, increasing to high to phenomenal on June 15, Mohanty said.

Pandey said the government is constantly working to ensure that there is no loss of life due to the weather phenomenon. He said the rescue operation is being carried out in two phases, with people residing 0 to 5 km from the seashore to be shifted first. Thereafter, people living within a distance of 5 to 10 km from the coast will be moved to safer places, with priority to be given to children, pregnant women and the elderly.

The government said 17 teams of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and 12 of the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) are on standby in affected districts of Devbhumi Dwarka, Rajkot, Jamnagar, Junagadh, Porbandar, Gir Somnath, Morbi and Valsad. The Western Railway has so far cancelled 69 trains and decided to short-terminate 32 and short-originate 26 trains as a precautionary measure to ensure the safety of passengers as well as train operations.

As the sea turned rough, the Indian Coast Guard (ICG) evacuated 50 personnel from an oil rig located 40 km off the Dwarka coast in an overnight operation involving ALH aircraft and ship Shoor amid inclement weather conditions due to the cyclone, the maritime agency said on Tuesday. The Army also rehearsed flood relief columns and kept them ready at strategic locations.

Army authorities have jointly planned relief operations with civil administration as well as NDRF. The interaction has given all agencies involved in disaster management a platform to share their best practices and gain from each other, stated a defence release. Resources have also been made available from neighbouring Rajasthan to ensure that casualties are avoided or remain minimum due to gusty winds and heavy rainfall, it said.

Shipping activities at the countrys largest public sector port in Kandla were shut following the cyclone warning and around 3,000 people, including workers there, have been shifted to safer places, officials said. As the state stepped up relief and rescue operations, CM Patel has appealed to citizens to cooperate with the administration for their own safety and security.

In a virtual message, he said the government has planned rescue, relief and rehabilitation with zero casualty approach and appealed to the citizens to follow the instructions of the administration. Union ministers Mansukh Mandaviya reviewed preparatory measures at Bhuj in Kurch.

Apart from him, four Union ministers are fanned out in the districts likely to be impacted by the cyclone to coordinate with the state administration for relief and rescue operations. As hundreds of people are being evacuated from coastal villages in Kutch district, authorities are facing a challenge as many villagers are reluctant to leave their livestock and belongings behind.

In Ashirwada village, located 5 km away from the coast in Kutch, people agreed to move out only after police and revenue officers held meetings to convince them.

People are being evacuated in buses and private vehicles. At least 78 people have been shifted to Jakhau primary school, which is converted into a shelter, from various villages so far. Residents of Mohadi village, located on the coastline, are also evacuated. They are provided shelter in a cement company.
Purola, an otherwise small calm hill town nestled in the Uttarkashi district of Uttarakhand, is tense ahead of the Mahapanchayat (mass gathering) called by the right-wing organisations on June 15. Police are checking every vehicle leading towards Purola, and the local administration has clamped Section 144 while issuing a stern warning.

We wont allow anyone to conduct Mahapanchayat, said Teerth Pal, Assistant District Magistrate, Purola. However, the locals are refusing to soften stand. News18 team at ground zero saw that local traders were holding a meeting to discuss the issue.

In the last few days, violent images and videos from Purola have left many baffled.

In fact, an alleged love jihad case involving two youths  one of them to be a Muslim  caught while eloping with a minor local girl on May 26 resulted in mass protests. Next, some posters appeared in the town asking Muslim traders to leave, and many of the terrified ones have left. One of them, Shakeel Ahmad, a septuagenarian, who has been running a cloth shop at Purola for the last four decades, has returned to Dehradun.

We had good relations with the locals. Its politics that has made things worse, Shakeel says, while also expressing discontent on the recent tweet of Asaduddin Owaisi over Purola.

"Muslims are aghast that the community is being targeted for the alleged criminal act committed by one among them, and that their Pasmanda identity and allegiance to the BJP have failed to insulate them from the Hindutva brigades manufactured fury. Truly, the BJPs Pasmanda Asaduddin Owaisi (@asadowaisi) June 12, 2023

In fact, not just Purola, but at least six other incidents in the last two weeks in the Garhwal region has played catalyst in already tense air.

Purola MLA Durgeshwar Lal said that to the best of my knowledge, no Mahapanchayat will be held, though locals are agitated and they have right to raise voice against attempts to dent their cultural identity.

Meanwhile, 52 former bureaucrats in a letter to states chief secretary SS Sandhu asked to ban the proposed mass gathering.

It is a mystery to us as to why, despite information being available in the public domain, the criminal campaign against minority communities underway since May 26, 2023 has seen no action whatsoever being taken by the administration beyond the registration of a case against unknown persons after posters were put up, the letter read.

The ruling BJP reacted strongly on the letter of retired bureaucrats. Senior party MLA Munna Singh Chauhan asked why the babus never reacted on the condition of Hindus in states like West Bengal and in Pakistan.

If we will not care about our girls, then who else will? Chauhan asked. The Congress, however, felt otherwise.

The government must listen to the former bureaucrats. BJP must stay away from forcing political agenda ahead of the Lok Sabha polls, said former minister Pritam Singh.

Earlier this week, Muslim representatives from BJP, Congress and BSP called on chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami requesting latter to intervene.
Zubiri Files Senate Resolution Honoring Sen. Rodolfo Biazon

Senate President Juan Miguel "Migz" Zubiri filed today Senate Resolution No. 652, honoring Senator Rodolfo "Pong" Biazon and expressing the Senate's sympathy on the passing of the veteran legislator.

Biazon was a three-term Senator (1992 to 1995, 1998 to 2004, and 2004 to 2010) and a two-term member of the House of Representatives, representing the lone district of Muntinlupa (2010 to 2013 and 2013 to 2016).

He was also a Chief-of-Staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP). He passed away last June 12, at age of 88.

In the resolution, Zubiri described Biazon as "a steadfast champion of decent and affordable housing and of security and defense."

The Senate President likewise lauded the late Senator for spearheading the passage of landmark measures such as the Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act of 2003, the Rental Reform Act of 2002, the Comprehensive and Integrated Shelter Finance Act of 1994, the AFP Modernization Act, the act amending Presidential Decree No. 1752 to make membership in the PAG-IBIG Fund mandatory; and the Home Guaranty Corporation Act of 2000.

During his stint in the Senate, Biazon had chaired the Senate Committee on National Defense and the Senate Committee on Security and Urban Planning, Housing, and Resettlement.

"I had the good fortune of working closely with Senator Pong Biazon on measures such as the Magna Carta for Homeowners and Homeowners Associations, and I saw firsthand how meticulous and hardworking he was, as a legislator," recalled Zubiri, who became a senator in 2007, when Biazon was still in office.

"I imagine that comes from his military background. He was extremely disciplined and intentional in everything he did, and he set a standard for us younger lawmakers to aspire to."

The resolution is not the only honor that the decorated military-man-turned-legislator will be receiving from the Senate.

Per tradition, a necrological service will be held in the Senate for him on 19 June 2023.
News / National

by Staff reporter

The Public Service Commission (PSC) has raised concern that a few people in Matebeleland South are utilising its online portal for government jobs.The concern was contained in a report tabled at the Gwanda Rural District Council full council meeting held last week.The online registration system is run via the PSC Human Resources Management Information System (HRMIS) which is being implemented under the national E-Government online services and hosted on the government of Zimbabwe E-service portal Zim-connect.According to the Human capital development sub-committee report presented by Gwanda District Development Coordinator, Thulani Moyo most people in rural areas face several challenges amongst them, data challenges."It is a new committee chaired by the Public Service Commission, its mandate is to register all those with form 4 who either passed or not, registration can be done online or individuals approach the office with hard copies. Challenges are that when registering online, people in the rural setup have no special phones and data, some can afford but most of them cannot afford the phones and data thereby failing to navigate the system," said Moyo.He said the Commission was receiving applications mostly from Harare."Option two is that they submit the original copies together with the photocopies to the offices. All those with Ordinary levels whether passed or not but it only needs someone who can understand English."
Cyclone Biparjoy reportedly forced an IndiGo airplane, flying from Lucknow, to land in Rajasthans Udaipur instead of its scheduled arrival in Mumbai. The situation turned heated when agitated passengers of flight 6E 2441 created a ruckus as they were left in the lurch at Udaipur airport for hours.

According to a report in Hindustan Times, the flight departed from Lucknow Airport at 11.10 am and was scheduled to land in Mumbai at 1.15 pm. However, the aircraft did two go-arounds before the pilot decided to divert to Udaipur airport.

The flight returned to Mumbai only at 8 pm, after the pilot was changed on account of passengers creating a ruckus at the airport in Rajasthan, the report stated.

Quoting its sources, HT stated that the Mumbai ATC attributed the diversion to gusty winds due to the impact of Cyclone Biparjoy on the Gujarat coast. The passengers, however, claimed that the pilot aborted two attempts to land in Mumbai, and a third attempt to land in Udaipur before the aircraft safely touched down at Udaipur Airport.

ALSO READ | Delhi-Mumbai Flight Ticket: Airfares Goes as High as Rs 14K Between Two Cities

The report stated that the passengers, after landing, demanded that the airline change the pilot and stayed put in the aircraft. Some took to Twitter with complaints to civil aviation minister Jyotiraditya Scindia and the regulator, DGCA.

@JM_Scindia Flight 6e 2441 is diverted to Udaipur fr mumbai. #Indigo asking to either deboard at Udaipur or keep waiting indefintely till they hv new pilot.I request you to kindly direct them to redirect the flight to lucknow from where it took off. A concerned parent@DGCAIndia Vineet Saxena (@_India1st) June 13, 2023

One Ajay Kapoor tweeted, Flight Indigo 6E 2441 (Lko to Mumbai) not able to land in Mumbai due to poor management of Indigo Team. There are chances either Airbus malfunctioned or pilot not able to handle Intervention needed.

A Lucknow University professor, Vivek Sahai, did not want the airplane to land in Mumbai at all. IndiGo 6e2441 flight from Lucknow to Mumbai was diverted to Udaipur today Now they are again trying to fly back in this bad weather Request the authorities to fly back to Lucknow.. daughter inside the planekindly help (sic)," he wrote on Twitter.

This is Indigo Flight #6E2441.Left for Mumbai from Lucknow at 1110 and was suppose to reach at 1315, got diverted to Udaipur and landed at 1515, all passengers still sitting in the aircraft with no clear information.This is really disgraceful @IndiGo6E @JM_Scindia pic.twitter.com/DddNAHDLeb Jaspreet Singh (@Jaspreet68BJP) June 13, 2023

The HT report quoted another passenger, Saurabh Singh Kaushik, as saying: The pilot made two failed attempts at Mumbai Airport and one at Udaipur Airport. The flight touched down at Mumbai Airport, and he took off again. Even in Udaipur where there was no question of bad weather, he failed to land in the first attempt. Thats why all of us decided not to fly with the same pilot. It took three hours for the airline to agree and change the pilot, and we landed back in Mumbai around 8 pm."

Saurabh Chapdia, a 35-year-old businessman, was quoted: We have never faced this in so many years of travel. We could clearly see that the flight touched down on the runway and took off again. A similar thing happened in Udaipur. Like a fruit falling from a tree, the aircraft came down and did a hard landing. It was a tough situation, and it is Gods grace that we landed safely."

The report also mentioned a data from Flightradar24.com that showed the flight climbed down to 7,000 ft when it turned around and continued downwards till 300 ft before diverting to Udaipur Airport.

Capt Mohan Ranganathan, aviation safety consultant and former instructor pilot of Boeing 737, after watching the playback of the flight on flightradar24.com, was quoted as saying that the pilot had made one attempt and gone around. He has entered a holding pattern north of Mumbai before diverting," he added.

A spokesperson for Indigo said, Due to bad weather, the pilot could not land in Mumbai and decided to go to UdaipurAfter landing in Udaipur, he said he was fatigued and hence asked for crew replacement. This took some time and the flight left after 6 pm."

Cyclone Biparjoy Causes Inconvenience to Mumbai Flyers

Two days ago, several flights were delayed at the Mumbai airport after the temporary closure of the main runway due to inclement weather". Passengers were forced to wait for hours on Sunday night as the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said that cyclone Biparjoy has turned into an extremely severe cyclonic storm.

As passengers started complaining, Air India had put out a statement saying some of its flights running from Mumbai will be delayed due closure of runway 09/27 because of inclement weather.

IMPORTANT INFORMATION:Inclement weather conditions and the temporary closure of Runway 09/27 at the Mumbai airport, in addition to other consequential factors beyond our control have resulted in delays and cancellation of some of our flights. We regret the inconvenience caused  Air India (@airindia) June 11, 2023

IndiGo, while replaying to a passenger on Twitter, said, the agony as flight delays are equally troublesome for us. It is only under extremely uncontrollable situations were compelled to make such changes in the schedule. We look forward to your kind understanding.

Akasa Air regretted the inconvenience caused to a passenger abs said flight QP 1367 Mumbai-Bengaluru was delayed due to air traffic congestion at Mumbai airport.
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Wednesday released photos of 45 individuals involved in the attack on the Indian High Commission in London on March 19 and requested the assistance of the public in identifying these perpetrators.

REQUEST FOR IDENTIFICATION/INFORMATION On 19.03.23 these persons were involved in an attack on the High Commission of India, London. They caused grievous injury and disrespected the Indian National Flag. If anyone has any information about them, please Whatsapp/DM @+917290009373, NIA said in a tweet.

REQUEST FOR IDENTIFICATION/INFORMATIONOn 19.03.23 these persons were involved in an attack on the High Commission of India, London. They caused grievous injury and disrespected the Indian National Flag If anyone has any information about them, please Whatsapp/DM @+917290009373 pic.twitter.com/Rhy93cFJjA  NIA India (@NIA_India) June 14, 2023

This comes a few days after NIA recently released five CCTV footage of the attack on the Indian High Commission organized by Khalistan supporters.

In the videos, individuals accused of the attack can be seen gathering outside the Indian Embassy and subsequently launching an assault. They were seen carrying religious flags and shouting slogans, as captured in the footage.

Following the protest staged by pro-Khalistani activists" at the Indian High Commission in London on March 19, where the national flag was pulled down, the Special Cell of the Delhi Police registered a First Information Report (FIR).

#WATCH | United Kingdom: Khalistani elements attempt to pull down the Indian flag but the flag was rescued by Indian security personnel at the High Commission of India, London.(Source: MATV, London) (Note: Abusive language at the end) pic.twitter.com/QP30v6q2G0  ANI (@ANI) March 19, 2023

The case was later taken over by the NIA after the Union Home Ministry directed the Delhi Police to initiate legal action.

The FIR was filed under pertinent sections of the Indian Penal Code, the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, and the Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act. An investigation has been launched in connection with the incident.

In response to the protest, the Indian government summoned the British Deputy High Commissioner, seeking an explanation for the lack of security during the demonstration.

The British High Commissioner to India, Alex Ellis, condemned the incident as disgraceful" and totally unacceptable." I condemn the disgraceful acts today against the people and premises of the @HCI_London- totally unacceptable," he had tweeted.

I condemn the disgraceful acts today against the people and premises of the @HCI_London - totally unacceptable. Alex Ellis (@AlexWEllis) March 19, 2023

Later in a phone call with British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, PM Narendra Modi raised the issue of the security of Indian diplomatic establishments and called for strong action against anti-India elements by the UK Government.
In a scene straight out of a Bollywood movie, a Bihar native saw a man with long dingy bread and dirty clothes near a momos stall in Noidas sector 50. While having the dumplings, he saw the shopkeeper berating the beggar-like man. He jumped to his rescue, only to find that the man was his brother-in-law who was assumed to be dead.

The man with long dingy bread was identified as Bhagalpur resident Nishant Kumar, who went missing on January 31, 2023. Filing a complaint at Sultangunj police station, the mans father, Sachidanand Singh, accused his brother-in-law Ravi Shankar Singh and his father-in-law Naveen Singh of kidnapping Nishant.

A report in Dainik Jagran stated that Nishant had gone missing from his in-laws home in Sultanganjs Gangania village. Five months later, he was found by Ravi Shankars youngest brother in Noidas sector 50 when a momo stall owner was driving out the beggar-like" man.

Ravis brother then told the shopkeeper to give him a plate of momos and he will pay for him. During this time, when the man was asked about his details, he replied his name is Nishant and he has a house in Sultanganjs Dhruvganj Navgachia. On hearing this, Ravis brother was left in shock.

The Danik Jagran report stated that the Bihar resident then took a picture of Nishant and sent it to his family members. Meanwhile, he also informed the police who arrived at the spot and took them to Noida Sector 113 police station.

Police officer Jitendra Singh said that since a case has been registered in Sultanganj police station in the matter, Nishant will be handed over to the family after proper verification. The man was later handed over to Bihar Police and presented before a court.

The report quoted officer Singh as saying that the polices beat team had been seeing the man begging and eating at the same spot for the last 15 days. The officer added that the man looked weak and seemed mentally unstable. Nishant was later sent to Bhagalpur with his acquaintances living in Noida.

According to the Dainik Jagran report, Nishant was married to Ravi Shankars sister Pallavi on April 27, 2022. He reportedly worked at a bank in Mumbai along with his wife. Pallavi, however, returned home for the festival of Teej. During this time, Pallavis younger brother was also slated to get married. Ravi Shankar had then called up Nishant and apparently sent flight tickets for the wedding ceremony at their home.

Nishant, however, disappeared a day after the wedding. His parents had alleged that Pallavis family had kidnapped him over a dowry dispute. Nishants father even wrote to DIG and SSP for legal action. The SSP had reportedly constituted an SIT in the matter.
Even as the State Election Commission (SEC) has imposed Section 144 within one km of panchayat election nomination centres to prevent crowding, the Opposition has alleged violence at the centres in various parts of West Bengal. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Wednesday evening lodged a complaint that the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) was flouting the law.

News18 visited a centre at Baruipiur Panchayat Samithy to check whether the SECs rules are being followed. As News18 vehicle was heading towards the office, workers were seen everywhere. With or without flags in their hands, they were standing in groups. Some police personnel were present, but we did not see any attempt by the police to remove them.

When News18 team started working there, the police jumped into action trying to disperse the crowd.

Kutubuddin, a local ruling party leader came out from the crowd and told News18, Our supporters are more, we cant help it, so there is crowd. Everyone wants to be part of this nomination procedure. The government has done so much work, which is why we are coming with so many people.

Another party worker told News18: We have always held rallies and come for nomination. Understand peoples emotions. The opposition has no himmat, they dont have supporters.

Reports say that such instances are being reported in other places too.

In Bhangar in South 24 Paraganas and Murshidabad, there is resistance by the Congress. Hence, the conflict is more, a Congress leader told News18.

Reports also came from Bhangar that despite announcements from the BDO office about section 144, political supporters were gathering in hordes.
In a shocking incident, a man was arrested in the Diu Daman and Dadra Nagar Haveli for allegedly killing his wife, and chopping his 15-year-old daughter before dumping the pieces into a canal in Union Territorys Silvassa area.

The accused has been identified as a 52-year-old businessman Yogesh Mehta, who killed his 43-year-old wife Reshma in a fit of rage following an argument, according to a report by the Times of India.

Mehta reportedly then killed his younger daughter, when she tried to save her mother, in the presence of the couples 18-year-old elder daughter who has learning disabilities.

As per the report, the divyang girl was able to confirm some sketchy details of the crime to cops.

The accused reportedly first approached the police on Monday evening to report that his wife had been murdered. However, upon interrogation, Mehta broke down and confessed to his crime. However, the accused is not revealing the exact details of both murders.

The exact time and date of the crimes are not known yet, however, police suspect that the minor was killed on June 10, after which her chopped body parts were thrown in Demni Canal near Dadra village.

Police has recovered a few body parts a day later on June 11 from the canal. The search is still on for the missing remains.

According to the report, Mehta, who has a yarn business, has properties in Silvassa and Navsari that he has rented out by developing chawls, and is in good financial condition.

Mehta used a hammer to kill both women and later chopped his daughters body using a knife, TOI reported quoting police.

The hammer used in the crime has been recovered, while the search is still on for the knife.

In prima facie, it was found that the couple quarrelled regularly and had even approached police in the past seeking divorce but reconciled after counselling

They were married for around 20 years and had two daughters aged 18 and 15 years.
The Vishva Hindu Parishad has decided to go ahead with its call to hold a mahapanchayat, defying the prohibitory orders imposed by the Uttarkashi district in Purola. There is communal tension in parts of Uttarkashi over an alleged case of so-called love jihad, where two men were arrested  one of whom is Muslim and the other Hindu  for abducting a minor Hindu girl.

Despite the prohibitory orders, Hindu outfits are adamant about holding the mahapanchayat in which local residents will also take part. Some families of the Muslim community have already left the region while others have been asked to leave by Hindu outfits before the mahapanchayat. There were posters pasted outside the shops of traders from the minority community to leave or face consequences otherwise.

A number of petitions have been filed before the Supreme Court to stop the mahapanchayat as it could disrupt social peace and harmony in the area. Petitioners, however, have been asked to move the high court.

The VHPs working president, Virender Rawat, said the Hindutva outfit will hold the mahapanchayat as it was necessary to raise concerns related to the Hindu community. We will do it in accordance with the law although the venue and time is not yet decided, he said.

The district administration has imposed Section 144, which prohibits a gathering of more than five persons. Flag marches were also conducted as a peace-building exercise from time to time.

District and police administration are also organising peace committee meetings to stop the outfits from holding the mahapanchayat. Police have orders to take strict action against fringe elements.

Additional forces are also on alert in case a law and order situation arises in Uttarkashi. News18 took note of numerous checkpoints in the entry to the district.

We have been asked not to let any member of any organistion to enter Purola to disrupt peace or take part in the mahapanchayat, a local police officer said.

The situation is tense in Purola, Barkot, Naugaon in Uttarkashi. Local residents have claimed that there are outsiders living illegally in the region and they wanted a proper verification of those from the Muslim conmmunity.

We did not ask anyone to leave. They left as they were residing illegally, said the leader of a Hindu outfit.

The high court will be hearing petitions against the mahapanchayat on Thursday.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has a high-profile and packed schedule during his upcoming state visit to the US where he would be part of at least a dozen important events and could also hold select conversations with top American CEOs as well as some prominent members of the US Congress.

This is Modis first state visit to the US.

PM Modi will reach New York on June 21 where he will lead an International Yoga Day function at the UN Secretariat to mark a strong statement of Indias traditions that have been adopted by the world. He will later proceed that day to Washington where a private dinner with the Bidens is likely.

The next morning, the PM will receive an official welcome at the south lawn of the White House followed by bilateral meetings, delegation-level talks and the press statements by the leaders. The ceremonial reception and banquet for Modi will see the presence of a number of prominent guests.

The highlight of the PMs trip will be his address to the US Congress for the second time after one in 2016. The PM may also interact with some members of the US Congress.

Another key event will be at the John F. Kennedy Centre where PM Modi will make an important speech at an event being organised by the US-India Strategic Partnership Forum (USISPF). Prominent people from all walks of life, including top American CEOs, will be present at the event. PM Modi could also meet select CEOs for conversations.

A luncheon meeting with the US State department and a key diaspora event is also on the cards during the PMs visit. The PM would hence be making various speeches during his US visit, covering various aspects and highlighting the India success story and how the country has grown in terms of economy, digital payment infrastructure and recovery from the Covid pandemic.

Talks on defence and tech and certain key agreements are expected during the bilateral meetings.
Ira Trivedi, a prominent author and proponent of yoga, and Madhu Mantena, a renowned film producer, celebrated their marriage at a reception attended by a host of celebs. Numerous Bollywood stars attended the spectacular event, which was held at an opulent location in Mumbai. They brought their own sense of gloss and glamour to the already magnificent event. Alaya F, a gifted and energetic guest who brought her charm and elegance to the event, was among the stars present.

When it comes to her daring fashion sense and sartorial choices, Alaya Furniturewalla doesnt need an introduction. She has always worn some gorgeous outfits. The actress looks stunning in her fashionable attire, which includes short bodycon gowns and elaborate lehengas. She recently made the Manish Malhotra collection black saree her outfit of choice, and it made her appear every bit the diva that she is. The actress from Freddy shared a few photos of herself dressed in a wonderful black saree and an equally gorgeous blouse. Alaya F was wearing a pallu and border that were exquisitely embellished on an all-black saree.

The actress donned a bikini top with the attire, which was embroidered precisely like the pallu. The sequined blouse had a plunging neckline and added lots of glitz. Alayas dress was finished by a lovely floral necklace and matching earrings. Her makeup was immaculate, including soft smoky eyes, blush, flawless contouring, and wicked lipstick. Her hair was left untangled.

Alaya was seen in the supernatural thriller movie U-Turn in the meantime. The movie is a remake of the Shraddha Srinathstarring Kannada film U-turn. Srikant Bollas biopic is also available on Alaya. Bollant Industries was established by Srikanth Bolla, who is blind. The actors Jyotika and Rajkummar Rao will also have major roles in the movie.
When stepping into the world of hair care, one common question arises: how frequently should you wash your hair? While there isnt a one-size-fits-all answer, experts agree that it largely depends on your individual needs and hair type. According to the American Academy of Dermatology (AAD), the frequency of hair washing should be determined by the amount of oil your scalp produces.

Dr. Joshua Zeichner, the director of cosmetic and clinical research in dermatology at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City, explains, If you have oily hair, it is perfectly safe and appropriate to wash your hair daily. However, for individuals with dry hair or a sensitive scalp, a different approach may be necessary. Dr. Zeichner advises, If you have dry hair or a sensitive scalp, you certainly can space out hair washing as needed." When it comes to different hair types and conditions, there are specific considerations to keep in mind regarding the frequency of washing.

Lets delve into some of these factors:
Rare blood types are rare as the name suggests. They have a less occurrence in the general population, making them harder to find in times of medical emergencies. AB negative, B negative, and O negative are those rare blood groups.

For these rare blood groups, the significance of blood donation becomes crucial. By donating blood, individuals contribute to saving lives and improving healthcare outcomes for patients who require transfusions. Every donation can make a significant difference, especially for those with rare blood types who heavily rely on the generosity of donors.

Dr Shailesh Shetty S, Consultant, Emergency Medicine, Aster CMI Hospital, says, Blood type prevalence varies across populations and geographic regions. While many people are familiar with the basic blood types (A, B, AB, and O), rare blood types pose unique challenges in maintaining an adequate blood supply for those in need. Understanding these rare blood types and encouraging regular blood donation can save lives and ensure the availability of diverse blood types when emergencies arise. Blood type O is the most common [63% worlds population] throughout the world. Rh+ blood is much more common than Rh- blood. A person can only give blood to someone with compatible blood antigens. People with Rh- blood can give blood to both Rh- and Rh+ recipients. However, those with Rh+ blood cannot give to Rh- recipients. AB negative is the rarest of the eight main blood types - just 1% of our donors have it.

The rarity of a blood type is determined by the presence or absence of certain antigens on the surface of red blood cells. Dr Hari K, Consultant Physician, Apollo Clinic, T Nagar, Chennai explains some examples of rare blood types:

AB Negative (AB-): AB- is considered to be the rarest blood type in the world, with less than 1% of the global population having this blood type.

B Negative (B-): B- is also relatively rare, with only about 2% of the population having this blood type.

A Negative (A-): A- is less common than A positive, with around 6% of the population having this blood type.

AB Positive (AB+): While AB+ is rarer than the other positive blood types, it is still more common than the negative types mentioned above. Approximately 3-4% of the global population has AB+ blood.

A1B Negative (A1B-): A1B- is a relatively rare blood type, occurring in about 1% of the population. It is formed when a person has both A and B antigens on their red blood cells and lacks the Rh factor.

Bombay Blood Group (Oh): The Bombay blood group is extremely rare and is found in a very small number of individuals, primarily in India.

What makes these blood groups rare?

Despite being rare, demand for AB-negative blood is low and we dont struggle to find donors with AB-negative blood. However, some blood types are both rare and in demand. This includes the Ro subtype, which is often used to treat people with sickle cell, only 2% of donors have it but demand for it is increasing by 10-15% each year.

Dr Shailesh Shetty S discusses how the combination of being rare and sought after makes people with these blood types very important donors.

O- is a universal donor, which means that a person with this blood type can donate to anyone. A rare blood is on the basis of the blood group and below-given characteristics:

One that is found in a frequency of 1 : 1000 random samples in a given population.

From a blood transfusion point of view, rare blood is the one with red cells lacking a high-frequency blood group antigen.

Besides, blood that lacks multiple common antigens may also be considered as rare since such donors blood may be useful for the transfusion recipient who has developed multiple antibodies to the corresponding antigen.

The following are rare blood types we have encountered over a period in India:

Bombay (Oh) phenotype

- D -/- D -

In(a+b-)

Co(a-b-)

A host of weaker variants of A, B and H antigens

I-i-

CdE/CdE (ryry)

Mg

Can synthetic blood be an alternative?

Dr Anoop P, Consultant Hematologist, Aster RV Hospital, Bangalore, says, Blood is an extremely useful natural resource in the treatment of sick patients. Extensive global research has still not been successful in manufacturing safe and cost effective synthetic blood. On most occasions, medicines cannot be a substitute for blood products. Hence donation of blood often saves lives, especially if you are a rare blood group donor.

Among Asians, AB and Rh negative blood groups are uncommon. Mismatched blood donation can worsen a patients condition and is not an option. Timely availability of rare blood group units can be very challenging and can directly impact treatment outcomes. Awareness of the importance of blood availability can potentially motivate young donors," adds Dr Anoop P.

Importance of Blood Donation

Blood donation plays a crucial role in maintaining public health and saving lives. Blood transfusions are essential for patients undergoing medical treatments such as surgeries, organ transplants, cancer treatments, and trauma care. Many medical conditions require regular blood transfusions to manage or cure them. Individuals with conditions like thalassemia, haemophilia, sickle cell disease, and certain types of cancer rely on blood transfusions as part of their treatment plans. Accidents, natural disasters, and other emergencies often result in a sudden and significant need for blood. In such situations, access to an adequate blood supply can be critical for treating injuries and saving lives, states Dr Hari K.

In India, there is a need for blood every two seconds and to make this situation concerning, India has the highest number of anemic patients. Blood donations are important for individuals who require transfusion during surgeries, accidents, cancer treatments, and/or other emergencies. An adequate supply of blood is required during organ transplantations and complex surgeries too.

The dependability on voluntary blood donors is high since the blood supply has to be consistent, there is no substitute for blood or plasma and it has a limited shelf-life. From the donor perspective, there are several health benefits of blood donation such as it stimulates new blood cell production, and lowers the risk of cardiovascular disease and cancers. It also helps in overall good health. The utmost reason, the immense satisfaction of extending a helping hand in the critical times cannot be ignored," signs off Dr Shailesh Shetty S.

Blood donation is an act of generosity that strengthens the community. By giving blood, you contribute to the well-being of others and promote a sense of solidarity. Blood donation also raises awareness about the importance of voluntary donations and encourages others to participate in this lifesaving act.
Opinion / Columnist

For more details please call/whatsapp +263772278161 of chair@zict.org.zw

On the 23rd of August 2023, Zimbabwe will be having its national election and history indicates that Zimbabwe's elections are marred with violence, intimidation and censorship. With over four billion people worldwide now using the internet and Zimbabwe being classified as Africa's first digital economy, restricting the internet would seem to be at odds with these figures. Over the years countries like Togo, Burundi, Chad, Mali, Guinea, Uganda and Republic of Congo have restricted access to the internet during election time. This is becoming more common in some African countries, where governments have sometimes shut down or restricted the internet and access to social media platforms.The common motive behind censoring of the internet and access to social media is often political, whether under the guise of 'preventing election day chaos', like we saw in the Republic of Congo or completely controlling what information citizens have access to, such as in North Korea.By controlling the internet, ruling parties can quash dissident activity and monitor online communications. Governments are then able to extend a greater hold over what people say and do, and often, how they vote.Thankfully, long-lasting and widespread internet censorship is no longer possible with the easy access to virtual private networks (VPNs). VPN can provide and maintain internet connectivity for users even in times of crisis and political upheaval.With the right VPN, users can route their internet connection through an encrypted tunnel to a separate server located in another country that is outside of local censorship. But how do you know which VPN is best for defeating internet censorship? Let's take a quick look at the key things to keep in mind when searching for a VPN to bypass government-imposed blocks to the internet so that you can obtain crucial information without fear of government interference.Government internet censorship occurs on a much larger scale. Large-scale internet censorship usually refers to government-perpetrated blockages that prevent internet users from accessing certain websites, online services and social media platforms. These websites, online services and social media platforms are usually perceived by certain governments as threats to their political influence and their nation's public order. Governments typically use three methods to censor online content from users: DNS filtering, IP address blocking, and deep packet inspection.In cases where internet access is blocked, use a VPN service provider that can maintain encrypted communications even under the duress of these aforementioned censorship methods. Unfortunately, some governments that censor online content may simply shut down the internet in their country altogether, rather than target specific URLs. In this situation, a VPN will not work. This most commonly occurs in countries with few internet service providers. In Zimbabwe, our financial services, local mobile applications and payment platforms run on the internet.In order to bypass government-imposed internet blocks a VPN needs to rely on a VPN server. VPNs that are installed on your internet-connected device must communicate with a VPN server to route your device traffic to the website it is trying to access. Once you begin using a VPN that routes your traffic to a VPN server, websites that you access will only be able to see the IP address of your server rather than the address of your actual internet-connected device.Under certain circumstances you may find that a government is blocking your access to specific websites and applications. In this case VPNs will provide you with access to alternative networks that are not being blocked. And because your device IP address is not being routed to the site you want to access you also reduce your risk of falling prey to cyberattacks such as ransomware. Even though your personal information remains private while using a VPN it is important that you choose a VPN provider that explicitly outlines their commitment to combating cyberattacks from malicious threat actors.A good VPN provider is able to shield users from hackers and cyber attacks and breaches which have been increasing in regularity over the years and especially among single users. This is because hackers understand that single users are unlikely to have ample protection against cyberattacks.In the event where a national government is trying to block a specific website or app you can use a VPN to access another network where there is no block bypassing censorship attempts. It is important to consider that there are different types of VPN server hosting solutions that interact with your VPN as you search for a VPN provider. These solutions vary in terms of operating costs, bandwidth the number of supported users and location so decide on the solution that is best for you while you shop around for a VPN.When choosing a VPN provider to overcome censorship it is important that you choose a provider that prioritizes privacy and freedom of data communication. VPNs should enable you with unlimited internet browsing that is free and easy to use. Such a VPN means you do not need to weigh the pros and cons of your provider when it is necessary for you to access online content.From there you should then search for a provider that lets you download their VPN across multiple platforms. This allows users to download a VPN from alternative platforms should their primary platform become blocked.Additionally, your VPN of choice should make it difficult for your connections to become blocked by using multiple VPN protocols. Ultimately your VPN should make it easy for you to secure the information that you transmit online while avoiding malicious censorship. A VPN provider that includes the above elements as part of their service can help you maintain your freedom of information and ability to share your ideas, your news and your opinions without fear of censorship.Internet censorship imposed by certain governments threatens the fundamental promise of the Internet to enable free and open transmission of data and communications. But with a reliable VPN provider, users can maintain their internet connectivity even in times of great political upheaval. The right VPN can bypass government-imposed blockages to online content without compromising the safety and privacy of its users.The best VPN providers not only ensure stable and consistent access to online content, but also protect users from malicious cyber criminals who propagate cyber breaches and attacks such as ransomware. When searching for a VPN provider to defeat internet censorship, ensure that you choose a service that prioritizes your privacy and freedom of online communications.Your provider should also allow you to download their VPN across multiple platforms should one or more platforms go offline and become unavailable. Additionally, make sure that your VPN makes it difficult for your internet connections to become blocked by small and large-scale censoring authorities by using multiple VPN protocols.In Zimbabwe, it is legal to use VPNs, even service providers recommend the use of VPN for more online privacy and protection against cybercriminals and hackers. DO NOT WAIT UNTIL YOUR INTERNET IS BLOCKED DOWNLOAD YOUR VPN NOW.
When it comes to beach destinations in the United States, its easy to get caught up in the well-known coastal hotspots. However, beyond the popular names like Malibu and Miami, hidden gems are waiting to be discovered. These unexplored beaches offer a sense of tranquility and wonder that will leave you spellbound. If youre yearning for a unique and enchanting coastal escape, weve curated a list of six captivating beaches that are off the beaten path. Get ready to be captivated and pack your beach essentials for an unforgettable adventure!

Sand Hollow State Park, Utah

Discover a hidden gem tucked away amidst the majestic red rocks of southern Utah. Sand Hollow State Park is a captivating destination that offers an unparalleled beach experience. With its vast reservoir of sparkling turquoise waters, this oasis beckons you to indulge in a variety of water activities, from swimming and paddleboarding to thrilling cliff jumps. As you soak up the sun, youll be surrounded by awe-inspiring desert landscapes, creating a perfect blend of adventure and tranquility.

Discover a hidden gem tucked away amidst the majestic red rocks of southern Utah. Sand Hollow State Park is a captivating destination that offers an unparalleled beach experience. With its vast reservoir of sparkling turquoise waters, this oasis beckons you to indulge in a variety of water activities, from swimming and paddleboarding to thrilling cliff jumps. As you soak up the sun, youll be surrounded by awe-inspiring desert landscapes, creating a perfect blend of adventure and tranquility. Assateague Island, Maryland, and Virginia

Step away from the hustle and bustle of everyday life and immerse yourself in the unspoiled splendour of Assateague Island. Spanning across the states of Maryland and Virginia, this pristine barrier island is renowned for its untouched beaches, diverse wildlife, and the enchanting sight of wild horses roaming freely. Embark on scenic nature trails, paddle through serene waters on a kayak, or simply unwind on the undisturbed sandy shores while relishing the untamed beauty of this coastal paradise.

Step away from the hustle and bustle of everyday life and immerse yourself in the unspoiled splendour of Assateague Island. Spanning across the states of Maryland and Virginia, this pristine barrier island is renowned for its untouched beaches, diverse wildlife, and the enchanting sight of wild horses roaming freely. Embark on scenic nature trails, paddle through serene waters on a kayak, or simply unwind on the undisturbed sandy shores while relishing the untamed beauty of this coastal paradise. Cumberland Island, Georgia

Escape to a tranquil haven nestled off the Georgia coast and uncover the hidden beauty of Cumberland Island. Secluded from bustling city life, this pristine paradise captivates visitors with its untouched beaches, scenic dunes, and lush maritime forests. Delve into history as you explore the historic ruins of the Dungeness Mansion, adding a touch of intrigue to your island adventure. With no paved roads or commercial developments, Cumberland Island offers a truly immersive experience in natures embrace.

Escape to a tranquil haven nestled off the Georgia coast and uncover the hidden beauty of Cumberland Island. Secluded from bustling city life, this pristine paradise captivates visitors with its untouched beaches, scenic dunes, and lush maritime forests. Delve into history as you explore the historic ruins of the Dungeness Mansion, adding a touch of intrigue to your island adventure. With no paved roads or commercial developments, Cumberland Island offers a truly immersive experience in natures embrace. Second Beach, Washington

Located within the Olympic National Park, Second Beach is a hidden gem on Washingtons stunning coastline. Accessible via a scenic hike through lush rainforests, this secluded beach rewards visitors with dramatic sea stacks, tide pools teeming with marine life, and stunning sunsets. Whether youre camping nearby or embarking on a day trip, Second Beach promises an unforgettable coastal adventure.

Located within the Olympic National Park, Second Beach is a hidden gem on Washingtons stunning coastline. Accessible via a scenic hike through lush rainforests, this secluded beach rewards visitors with dramatic sea stacks, tide pools teeming with marine life, and stunning sunsets. Whether youre camping nearby or embarking on a day trip, Second Beach promises an unforgettable coastal adventure. Cape San Blas, Florida

Escape the crowded beaches of Florida and discover the untouched beauty of Cape San Blas. Located on the Gulf Coast, this hidden paradise offers miles of pristine, white sandy beaches and emerald-green waters. With a laid-back atmosphere, its the perfect destination for beachcombing, fishing, kayaking, or simply soaking up the sun while relishing in the tranquil surroundings.

Escape the crowded beaches of Florida and discover the untouched beauty of Cape San Blas. Located on the Gulf Coast, this hidden paradise offers miles of pristine, white sandy beaches and emerald-green waters. With a laid-back atmosphere, its the perfect destination for beachcombing, fishing, kayaking, or simply soaking up the sun while relishing in the tranquil surroundings. Ruby Beach, Washington

Ruby Beach showcases the rugged beauty of the Pacific Northwest. Famous for its stunning sea stacks, tide pools, and driftwood-strewn shores, this unspoiled beach provides endless opportunities for photography, beachcombing, and immersing yourself in the untamed coastal ambience.
Battery-operated automobiles will be available inside Veermata Jijabai Bhosale Udyan and Zoo as an extra facility for kids, seniors, and people with special needs. The choice was made during a visit to the zoo by Mumbais Guardian Minister, Deepak Kesarkar, who gave the order to set up facilities for such guests.

Four battery-powered vehicles will be used inside the zoo starting next month. Senior citizens, youngsters between the ages of 3 and 12, and those with special needs will have access to this facility between the hours of 9.30 am and 6 pm. A maximum of 8 people can ride in each vehicle at once. The collectors office will supply the money for these automobiles. According to a civic official, the pricing for these automobiles has not yet been determined.

ALSO READ: Navi Mumbai International Airport To Open In 2024; Everything You Need To Know

In recent years, the Byculla Zoo, also known as Rani Baug, has undergone renovations. The penguin exhibit has consistently been the most popular with visitors. Along with them, the exhibit featuring a pair of Bengal tigers and a crocodile has drawn thousands of tourists during summer break. Spread across 53 acres, it becomes challenging for seniors, kids, and people with disabilities to see all the exhibits in a single day. They will feel relieved having access to the battery-operated vehicle facilities, according to a zoo official.

Around 4,000 people visit the zoo on average throughout the workweek, and 10,000 people do so on weekends. While January 1 saw the 32,820 footfall record breaking day.
Following the massive success of the first two Drishyam films, the makers are now geared up for the third instalment of the suspense thriller. Now, the latest development suggests Drishyam 3 will go on the floor in 2024 and the plan is to release both Hindi and Malayalam versions together on the same date. Back in 2013, Mohanlal and Jeethu Joseph made Drishyam in Malayalam, and eventually, the story was adopted in Tamil, Telugu, and Hindi with actors Kamal Haasan, Venkatesh, and Ajay Devgn respectively. Later, the sequels were also released. While the Malayalam and Telugu versions streamed on digital platforms, the second part of the Hindi remake had a blockbuster theatrical release in 2022.

A report by Pinkvilla mentioned that the Hindi and Malayalam writers are working together on Drishyam 3 which is currently in the development stage. The portal quoted a source as saying, Abhishek Pathak and his team of writers have cracked a basic core plot for Drishyam 3, which Jeethu Joseph and his team loved. They have taken the idea from the team of Hindi Drishyam and are now working towards developing it into a screenplay for Drishyam 3."

The report added that both the teams (Hindi and Malayalam) are collaborating together in order to shoot the films simultaneously. It was also revealed that the idea is to release them together across India. While viewers in Kerala will watch the Malayalam one with Mohanlal, others across the country can enjoy Ajay Devgns Hindi version. There is also a possibility that once the screenplay is finalised, even the producers of the Telugu adaptation can join in this strategy to release on the same date.

The idea behind releasing all versions at the same time is to give the audience a spoiler-free experience. The power of Drishyam rests in suspense, and as it has happened in the past, there is a section that has already seen the version that arrives first. Everyone working on Drishyam wants to provide the best experience to its audience, and not spoil the twists and turns. Drishyam 3 will be the final film of the franchise and what better than having an experience of chills and thrills without having an idea of what next, the person close to the development was quoted as saying.

Drishyam follows the journey of a man who tries to save his family after a series of incidents threaten to destroy their lives.
The celebrations are in full swing in the Deol house! Bollywood actor Sunny Deols son Karan is all set to tie the knot with his childhood sweetheart Drisha Acharya on June 18 in an intimate ceremony. The two reportedly got engaged on the wedding anniversary of grandparents Dharmendra and Prakash Kaur. Now, in the latest development, veteran actor Dharmendra said that he has decided to give his grandsons pre-wedding functions a miss and will only be attending the wedding ceremony. Explaining why he took this decision, he told ETimes, Let the children have fun. If I am around, they are likely to get inhibited. I do not want them to miss out on any of the fun.

Dharmendra gave his blessings to the couple and also revealed how Karan Deol had informed the family members about his decision to marry Drisha. The veteran actor revealed that Karan first told his mother Pooja Deol about it, who then told Sunny before the news finally came to him.

Talking about the wedding, Dharmendra had previously said, I am very happy for Karan and Drisha. They have all my blessings. I welcome the new addition to the Deol family.

While the videos of Sunny Deol, Abhay Deol and Bobby Deol having fun at Karans pre-wedding festivities are already making rounds, a new video of grooms dad Sunny Deol dancing on Morni Banke" has taken social media by storm. Dressed in black shirt and blue denim, Sunny looks happy on the occasion of his sons wedding.

Take a look at the video here:

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Celeb Tadka (@celeb_tadka)

As per a report by India Today, Karan-Drishas Sangeet, Mehendi, and Haldi will take place between June 15 and June 17, and the couple will tie the knot on June 18. The Deol family have also planned a reception for the couple post the wedding for the industry friends to attend.

While Karan Deol made his acting debut with 2019 film Pal Pal Dil Ke Paas and has also worked with uncle Abhay Deol in 2021 film Velle. Karans soon-to-be wife Drisha Acharya is a fashion designer and great-granddaughter of Bimal Roy.
South Korean actor Song Joong-ki has welcomed his first baby, a boy, with wife Katy Louise Saunders. The actor confirmed the news on his fancafe after the news of his babys arrival was leaked. Song Joong-ki confirmed that he and Katy welcomed the baby in Italy, his wifes hometown and that the mother and thier child are healthy.

As translated by fanclubs, Song Joong-ki wrote, Hi, this is Joong-ki. I wonder how everyone is doing? As you all know, I finished filming the movie My Name is Loh Ki Wan in Hungary. I was honoured to go to Cannes with the movie Hwaran (Hopeless). Im still so happy that every moment of the festival feels like a dream. I wanted to tell you one more dream, its a news, so I came to say hello."

Im in Italy now. I finally have my baby here in Rome, my wifes hometown. Hes a healthy son. The baby and the mother, they are very healthy and I am taking care of my family with a grateful heart. My biggest dream was to have a happy family. It is the most precious gift for us as a couple. Thanks to your support, this great day has come to our life. Thank you," Song Joong-ki added. He went to thank his fans. He also reportedly shared the first photo.

As the message is already leaked to the media, I'm sharing translations of #SongJoongKi's message in his fancafe about his baby boy's birth https://t.co/eKsWRezaU9 pic.twitter.com/VuyzJCshSY Song JoongKi  Fan Only (@sjkwings1985) June 14, 2023

Song Joong-ki surprised fans in January by announcing his wedding to Katy and revealing that they are expecting their first baby together. We naturally dreamed of creating a happy family together. We have put in much effort to keep each others promises, and we are sincerely thankful as a new life has come to us, he said at the time.

Congratulations, Song Joong-ki!
Kriti Sanon and Sara Ali Khan joined Rhea Chakraborty to remember Sushant Singh Rajput on his death anniversay. It has been three years since the actor died. Sushant was found dead in his Mumbai house on June 14, 2020, and his demise rocked the country. While fans mourn his death and remember him fondly, Kriti took to her Instagram Stories and shared a cryptic post seemingly about Sushant.

The actress, who is currently busy with the promotions of her upcoming film Adipurush with Prabhas, took to her Instagram Stories and shared a red heart emoji. Although she did not take Sushants name, fans understood that it was dedicated to Sushant. For the unversed, Kriti and Sushant worked together on Raabta (2017). Although the film did not perform well, the actors developed a strong and close bond on the sets of the film.

Meanwhile, Sara Ali Khan also remembred Sushant. Her first co-star in the Bollywood, Sara worked with Sushant on Kedarnath. The actress took to Instagram and shared photos from their first trip to the shooting location. In the first photo, the duo was seen seated in a helicopter, posing for a quick photo. In the second, they were busy reading their lines and preparing for a scene.

Sharing the photos, Sara wrote, On our way to Kedarnath for the first time. On my way to shoot for the first time. And I know neither are ever going to feel the same again. But somewhere between action, cut, sunrise, rivers, clouds, moonlight, Kedarnath and Allah Hoo I know youre there. Keep shining amongst your stars

From Kedarnath to Andromeda."

Sushant Singh Rajput was found hanging in his flat in suburban Bandra on June 14, 2020. Starting with the Mumbai Police, the Enforcement Directorate (ED), Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) were brought in to investigate various angles in the death of Sushant Singh Rajput. Rhea was arrested by the NCB in September 2020 in a drug case linked with Sushant Singh Rajputs death. After spending one month in Mumbais Byculla jail, she was released on bail in October 2020.

DISCLAIMER: This news piece may be triggering. If you or someone you know needs help, call any of these helplines: Aasra (Mumbai) 022-27546669, Sneha (Chennai) 044-24640050, Sumaitri (Delhi) 011-23389090, Cooj (Goa) 0832- 2252525, Jeevan (Jamshedpur) 065-76453841, Pratheeksha (Kochi) 048-42448830, Maithri (Kochi) 0484-2540530, Roshni (Hyderabad) 040-66202000, Lifeline 033-64643267 (Kolkata).
A State visit to the US and an address to a joint session of the US Congress by Prime Minister Narendra Modi marks a major advance in India-US ties. India and Modi are being wooed by the Biden administration to an unexpected degree. Ties have no doubt been expanding on many fronts in recent years  defence, economy, people to people  with regular exchanges at the leadership level bilaterally or in multilateral forums. This has given certain political stability to ties despite lobbies in the US that continue to promote negative perceptions of India.

That policymakers and opinion makers outside the government in the US would find a way to balance out their different agendas for India and a deeper strategic partnership with India could be pursued could not be assumed. To what extent policymakers and opinion makers are at different ends of the same spectrum is a different matter, given the working of the US system with its close nexus between different parts of the larger US establishment, with movement from think tanks, business, academia, law firms and even the media to government and vice versa.

India has been under attack ever since PM Modi came to power, and especially during his second term, by the major organs of the US media, the think tank community, India experts, the academic milieu, the human rights organisations, those involved in democracy promotion and religious freedom, and so on. The progressive wing of the Democratic Party has targeted India on minority and religious freedom issues in the US Congress. The US Commission on International Religious Freedom has been traducing India in the way the OIC has been doing, with the same robust and dismissive response from the Indian government.

The State Department has been critical of India in its reports on human rights in India. Unprecedentedly, Secretary Antony Blinken himself commented in March 2023 while releasing the State Departments annual human rights report that the US was monitoring a rise of human rights abuses by some government, police and prison officials in India.

Beyond all this, US criteria, as the worlds foremost power with a natural tendency to dominate, of forging close partnerships with other countries different from that of a country like India with its historical experience of the West, of US policies over decades sought to curb Indias rise, Indias long-standing strategic partnership with Russia and membership of groups formed to promote multipolarity such as BRICS and SCO, not to mention New Delhis attachment to strategic autonomy.

The US notion of partnership is one that gravitates towards an alliance or at least a coalition of the willing in military operations, whereas, for India, partnerships can be multiple, even with countries that may be adversarial to each other, if that accords with its legitimate national interest. This is not fence sitting as US international relations experts are inclined to think, but an effort to balance Indias enlightened self-interest and act as a bridge wherever possible. The recommendation by a US Congressional Committee to strengthen NATO Plus consisting of Japan, Australia, New Zealand, South Korea and Israel by including India stems from the US view of what should be a veritable partnership. External Affairs Minister, S Jaishankar has rightly rejected this on the ground that the NATO template doesnt apply to India.

Both India and the US are therefore showing a great deal of pragmatism in coming closer together to meet shared challenges on which their views may not be identical but increased understanding now exists that India needs the US as a partner for its rise and the US sees the need to keep a rising India on its side in the years ahead.

Many positives in India-US ties have already been achieved, which explains the US gesture to the Indian prime minister. India was declared a Major Defence Partner (MDP) of the US, it has signed all the defence-related foundational agreements, the armed forces of the two countries are exercising regularly, the naval Malabar exercises now include both Japan and Australia and have become more complex in scope and are also being held in the western Pacific. India now has a 2+2 (Foreign and Defence ministers) dialogue with the US. India has already acquired over $20 billion worth of American arms.

India is also deepening its commitment to the Quad and fully endorses the Indo-Pacific concept. India and the US have forged two additional Quads in West Asia  the I2U2 comprising India, Isreal, the US and UAE, and the other comprising India, the US, Saudi Arabia and UAE.

During the Ladakh crisis, the US provided intelligence and some high-altitude clothing to India. It has criticised Chinas aggressive moves in Ladakh and reiterated its recognition of Arunachal Pradesh as part of India.

If some issues remain on the trade side, the two-way trade in goods and services has reached US $190 billion, making US Indias biggest economic partner. The Ministerial level India-US Commercial Dialogue was held in March 2023.

During US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austins recent visit to India, an agreement seems to have been reached on a set of specific proposals that would give India access to cutting-edge US technology. Efforts in this direction have not produced the expected results so far because of the maze of stringent legislative and administrative hurdles that exist in the US system which have proved difficult to navigate. The US has long claimed that India has now the same status as a NATO country in terms of technology transfer. This is not quite true as more agreements need to be signed before India becomes eligible for a real transfer of technology. It has now been decided to start negotiations on the Security of Supply Arrangement and Reciprocal Defence Procurement Agreement.

India had already received Strategic Trade Authorisation tier 1 status in 2018 which would allow it to receive licence-free access to a wide range of military and dual-use technologies. India signed the Industrial Security Annexe in 2019 to allow industry-to-industry cooperation. In May 2023, India and the US held the Inaugural India-US Advanced Domains Defence Dialogue to strengthen partnerships in new defence domains, with emphasis on space and Artificial Intelligence. A new initiative has also been launched by the defence heads called INDUS-X, which stands for enhanced strategic and defence partnership between India and the US.

In May 2022, PM Modi and President Biden had announced the US-India Initiative on Critical and Emerging Technologies to expand the strategic technology partnership and defence-related industrial cooperation between governments, businesses and the academic institutions of the two countries in areas such as AI, quantum computing, 5G/6G, biotech, space, and semi-conductors. Following this, in January 2023, the National Security Advisors of India and the US led the inaugural meeting of the iCET in Washington DC where it was agreed to resolve issues related to regulatory barriers and business and talent mobility through a standing mechanism under the iCET.

In June this year, the inaugural India-US Strategic Trade Dialogue was held in Washington DC which focused on ways in which both governments could facilitate the trade of technologies, in critical domains already identified by reviewing relevant export control regulations, with the objective of building and diversifying resilient supply chains, for which best practices on multilateral export control regimes will be shared and industry will be made more aware of these regimes. The US is concerned about leakage to Russia of the technologies it shares with India and has emphasised the need to scrutinise Indian companies that may help Russia in illicit procurement and transferring technology for use in the Ukraine conflict. The introduction of the export control element in these technology transfer dialogue risks delaying progress, as intensive discussions and a further change of regulations on our side will be required.

The US government has given clearance to General Electric to develop in cooperation with India with full transfer of technology the GE F414-INS6 jet engine for Indias Tejas Mk II Light Combat Aircraft and AMCA Mk I. This transfer will obviously be in phases with the hot engine technology, which is the core technology  if it is eventually shared  left to the last no doubt. The US Congress is yet to clear the project.

Assuming everything proceeds as expected there is undoubtedly much more openness on the US side to build technology ties with India  putting together partners, negotiating terms, assessing the economic viability of projects, agreeing on IPRs etc will be a long-haul process. While we are on the right track, we should have a realistic view of the speed at which we can move together.

Kanwal Sibal is a former Indian Foreign Secretary. He was Indias Ambassador to Turkey, Egypt, France and Russia. The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not represent the stand of this publication.
As the race to Indias 2024 Lok Sabha polls begins, Congress internecine and facetious efforts to score political brownie points by latching onto any opportunity to appease their hard-left and liberal voter base have taken pace. In a recent interview with the news show Breaking Points with Krystal and Saagar, former Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey, in an embellished fiction, juxtaposed India and Turkey while alleging that the micro-blogging site received many threats from the Indian government during the farmers protests to take down posts and restrict accounts of particular journalists that were critical of the government.

Dorsey, who was excommunicated from Twitter in 2021, said, India, for example, is one of the countries that had many requests around farmer protests and around particular journalists who were critical of the government. It manifested in ways such as: We will shut Twitter down in India, which is a very large market for us; We will raid the homes of your employees, which they did; and this is India, a democratic country.

Even for Twitter, its a little too rich and a little too late! The former CEOs tall claims can bite the dust considering the recent years when he and his company courted headlines for everything political. Big Techs inherent ideological left-proclivity and its profound influence on public discourse are not disputed. Not even by Jack!

In an interview with CNN in 2018, Dorsey admitted the already-obvious fact that Twitter, like most of its counterparts in Silicon Valley, has more Left-leaning employees. However, Jack added that political bias does not influence how Twitter determines what is and is not appropriate behaviour on the platform.

However, Jacks shallow words were reflected in the companys ignorance by appointing Raheel Khursheed and Mahima Kaul as Twitter India heads. On February 19, 2011, Raheel tweeted: Those of you who expect Kashmir to be yoursin India or Pakistanwhen was the last time you did anything about it? Other than loudly claiming it? On September 18, 2011, Mahima Kaul tweeted: Guess well find out about damage (earthquake)/floods/bombs if the news gets their heads out of modis ass. On February 6, 2012, Khursheed tweeted: U say Narendra Modi for PM? I say Narendra Modi in jail for being a mass murderer. These tweets of the then-Twitter India bosses should suffice to demonstrate the public display of the insolency and scorn these chaps had for the ruling Indian government and the serving PM of India.

Not to forget, in June 2021, Twitter displayed an incorrect map of India depicting Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh as separate countries but removed it later, facing national ire, censure, and government attention. In the past, Jack too has had a vivid history of anti-Hindu actions, including posing for an infamous picture in November 2018 with a Hinduphobic placard that said, Smash Brahminical patriarchy! The placard promotes hate speech and targets an unassuming community, and his ignorant apology for being clueless about the contents of the posters makes it worse. More recently, Twitter briefly removed the blue tick verification badge from the personal accounts of many Indian dignitaries, such as Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, and several senior RSS functionaries, including its chief, Mohan Bhagwat.

Refuting all allegations against the Central government, Rajeev Chandrasekhar, Union Minister of State for Electronics and Information Technology, said, Twitter under Dorsey and his team committed repeated and continuous violations of Indian law. Matter-of-factly, they were in non-compliance with the law repeatedly from 2020 to 2022, and it was only in June 2022 that they finally complied. No one went to jail, nor was Twitter shut down.

Dorseys Twitter regime had a problem accepting the sovereignty of Indian law. It behaved as if the laws of India did not apply to it. India, as a sovereign nation, has the right to ensure that its laws are followed by all companies operating in India. During the protests in January 2021, there was a lot of misinformation and even reports of genocide that were fake, added Chandrasekhar.

More often than not, Twitter has failed to act on requests filed by the Indian police and the Indian government to take down child pornography. Responding to Jacks claims, Priyank Kanoongo, National Commission for Protection of Child Rights, said, During Jack Dorseys tenure, Twitter had become a den of paedophiles. Child Sexual Abuse Materials (CSAM) were available in abundance. Dorsey is a criminal, and that is why hes speaking against the judicial system.

Twitters new CEO, Elon Musk, confirmed the interference of the social media giant in the elections through its content moderation policies. Throughout the 2020 United States elections, Twitter unilaterally censored and shadow-banned the campaign tweets of former President Donald Trump, including suppressing and policing conservative voices. Just ahead of the 2020 presidential elections, Twitter heavily censored the New York Posts story on Hunter Biden, President Joe Bidens son, but never restricted any similar news against Trump. In fact, suspending the then-ruling right-wing president Donald Trump seems nothing short of waging a war against the state.

The prognosis from the echo chambers of the Congress party and liberal voices claims subjugation of free speech and the rise of fascism in India under the Modi government. However, the San Francisco-headquartered company was repeatedly and deliberately flouting Indias new IT rules, which required significant social media companies to establish a mechanism to address grievances and resolve complaints from users or victims. Consequently, the social media giant was ordered to comply with Indias new IT rules by the venerable Karnataka High Court when the former approached the latter opposing the IT laws.

Its no surprise that Congress leaders have picked sides with an arrogant conglomerate that has been at loggerheads with the Indian government over failing to adhere to and subsequently disrespecting the law of the land in which the company operates while vehemently opposing tooth and nail another conglomerate just because it is Indian and not training its gun against the BJP. This surely kills irony a thousand times, if not more.

To quote evolutionary anthropologist Avi Tuschman: If you are not a liberal when youre 20, you have no heart. If youre not a conservative by the time youre 30, you have no brain. Jack Dorsey needs to comprehend this and reconcile with his age. He is no more in his 20s. He cant be ignorant and arrogant in his public behaviour.

Yuvraj Pokharna is an independent journalist and columnist. He tweets with @iyuvrajpokharna. Views expressed are personal.
Ram and Upasana are a real couple goals. They are a real example of a contemporary Indian marriage, having been married for 11 years, carving out their own unique personalities, and coming together as a couple with those personalities. They have been married for 11 years as of today, June 14, and we take you on a journey down memory lane with 11 adorable pictures!
I will do politics my own way, retorted Tamil Nadu BJP president K Annamalai after the AIADMK adopted a resolution against him for his remarks that former chief ministers of the state were convicted in corruption cases. The AIADMK, in its resolution, stated that Annamalais statements have hurt the party cadre and that J Jayalalithaa was instrumental in helping the BJP come to power in 1998.

Annamalai, in his rebuttal, said: I entered politics on getting inspired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. My only wish and aim is to turn Tamil Nadu, which is the corruption capital of India, into a corruption-free state. Nobody can teach me how to treat our alliance partners and its leaders. I am well aware of the alliance dharma.

The BJP leader added that his statement was taken out of context and refused to respond to the AIADMK  which called Annamalai an inexperienced and irresponsible" leader  in a similar manner.

Many former ministers have spoken regarding me without even properly understanding the context. I dont want to degrade myself and criticise them like they did. I dont mind making corrections if someone pinpoints mistakes in my interview (to a national daily). But at the same time, just because we are in an alliance, they cannot expect us to talk only about what they (AIADMK) want. I am here to do politics according to my conscience, Annamalai said in a statement.

The war of words between the allies escalated on Monday with the AIADMK threatening to cut ties with the BJP if Annamalai continues to target party icons. AIADMK added that the BJP made inroads in the 2021 state assembly polls only because of its support.

Home Minister Amit Shah had recently visited the state and urged people to vote for the NDA in 2024 Lok Sabha polls, saying he was hopeful that the NDA would win at least 25 seats. So far, the minister has maintained that the BJP-AIADMK alliance is intact and will continue in the upcoming elections.

The Tamil Nadu BJP chief appears to be standing his ground on his comments about former chief minister Jayalalithaas culpability in the eyes of law, an irksome point in the legacy of the AIADMK icon.

While his comments have understandably infuriated party cadre, Annamalais firm attitude in the face of the backlash holds him up well as a bold politician.

However, politics is all about appearing firm while ensuring hidden leeway for flexibility.

Annamalai appears to have not thought through the repercussions of his words on the future of the BJP-AIADMK alliance.

While it is clear he is the blue-eyed boy of the Modi-Shah leadership of the BJP, alliance equations and electoral winnability are real-world compulsions that even the BJP high command is not immune to.

In the coming months, Shah might directly deploy Annamalai for seat-sharing talks with the AIADMK leadership  with the very politicians at odds with him.

What would Annamalai do then, is the moot question.
Opinion / Columnist

I am dismayed with the talk of Kasukuwere being even discussed as a potential Presidential contender in the August 2023 Zimbabwean elections. What disturbs me more is talk from even organizations like ZANU PF saying they are ready to battle it out with Kasukuwere. As usual, I always ask basic questions:How is ZANU PF ready to compete with a supposed criminal who has a warrant of arrest over his head and is on the run?Is Kasukuwere insinuating that running for the President's office absolves him of his crimes? Is running for office now the quickest way to subvert the Judiciary process?How in the world will a country operate under a supposed criminal who found a backdoor to drop his crimes and ascend to the highest office in the country?Why do politicians always take Zimbabweans for fools?
Rajasthan BJP chief C P Joshi slammed the Congress government in the state on Wednesday, claiming that it neither has a policy nor a leader and hence, will not retain power after the Assembly polls due by the year-end.

Joshi alleged that Congress formed its government in the state on the basis of lies and did not honour the promises it had made to people four-and-a-half years ago.

The Congress neither has a policy nor a leader. This government will not repeat it, but people will delete it. The people of the state have made up their mind," he told reporters at a press conference in Sikar.

Joshi claimed that both Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot and his government have great affection for the Mughals. He said Gehlot feels pain when lessons on Mughal invaders are removed from the school syllabus.

When the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) removed the lessons on Mughal invaders from the syllabus and added a lesson on our glorious warriors, this government dumped 1.5 crore textbooks," the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader said.

He said the Gehlot government did not waive farm loans and increased the electricity tariff, adding that the rates of diesel, petrol and electricity are the highest in Rajasthan.

If the Congress government wants to provide relief to people, it should return the money looted" from them in the last four-and-a-half years, he added.

Meanwhile, BJP national secretary Alka Gurjar alleged that the policies of the Congress have always been divisive.

She accused the grand old party of indulging in the politics of appeasement and class discrimination.

The policies of the Congress have always been divisive. It indulges in the politics of appeasement and class discrimination," Gurjar told a press conference in Jaipur.

She claimed that the condition of those belonging to the Other Backward Classes (OBC) in the state is the worst, whereas the government at the Centre led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi has made them strong socially, educationally and economically during its nine-year tenure.
Amid the ongoing uproar over the images of Aurangzeb being shared online, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray celebrated his 55th birthday by cutting a cake that carried the infamous Mughal rulers picture.

The cake with Mughal emperor Aurangzeb and a loudspeaker imprinted on it was brought to the MNS leader by his supporters from Raigad, ANI reported.

In a dramatic ceremony, the video of which has gone viral, Raj Thackeray, known for his fierce pro-Hindu rhetoric, took a knife and symbolically cut Aurangzebs throat (in the image imprinted on the cake) amid cheers and clapping by the gathering.

#WATCH | Maharashtra | A cake, depicting Aurangzeb on one side and a loudspeaker on the other, was cut at the residence of MNS chief Raj Thackeray in Mumbai, on his birthday today. (Video: MNS) pic.twitter.com/g2SLBPSZEu  ANI (@ANI) June 14, 2023

This comes as Maharashtra is already reeling from a controversy related to Aurangzebs images going viral on social media.

Tension gripped Kolhapur last week after two men allegedly put 18th-century Mysore ruler Tipu Sultan and Mughal emperor Aurangzebs image along with an offensive audio message as their social media status.

The next day, the police had to disperse hundreds of protesters after they hurled stones during a demonstration at Shivaji Chowk.

The cake carried pictures of loudspeakers as well, a symbol which has largely been associated with Raj Thakcerays campaign against Azan being played in loudspeakers in Maharashtra.

The use of loudspeakers, especially during Azan - the Muslim call for prayer, has been a huge and contentious issue in Maharashtra politics with leaders like Devendra Fadnavis and even Uddhav Thackeray being vocal about it.

It has previously led to clashes and unrest in several parts of the state.
BJP chief J P Nadda Wednesday accused Congress leader Rahul Gandhi of trying to tarnish the countrys image on foreign soil with his recent remarks on Indian democracy and reminded him that it was his grandmother Indira Gandhi who had imposed the Emergency.

Nadda was addressing a rally here as part of the BJPs Maha Jan Sampark programme to mark the completion of nine years of the Narendra Modi government at the Centre.

Earlier, the BJP president made similar remarks at a rally in Himachal Pradeshs Kullu district. In Hoshiarpur, he also listed the work of the Modi government, saying the kind of work done in the past nine years was never done in 70 years in the country.

Nadda said it was only his party which has an ideology and which is a cadre-based party while the rest of the political outfits lack any ideology. It is sad to say that when Modi ji is brightening the image of India worldwide, our Rahul Gandhi, Yuvraj of Congress, is hell-bent upon trying to tarnish the image of the country," he said.

Nadda said Rahul Gandhi is stating in London that Indian democracy is in danger. Will they (Britishers) save it who ruled us (India) for 200 years? And will he save it (democracy) whose grandmother imposed the Emergency," he said. You speak about democracy whose words were rebuked by the court and even then, the public listens to you and tolerates you. What could be bigger than this in a democracy? asked Nadda.

The BJP chief was referring to Gandhis remarks made in London in March this year. The former Congress president had alleged that the structures of Indian democracy are under brutal attack".

In Himachals Kullu, Nadda said the person whose grandmother, Indira Gandhi, had imposed an Emergency in the country and muzzled democratic voices is talking about threats to democracy during his foreign visits and meeting people who are opposed to India.

Nadda also attacked Gandhi for allegedly making fun of Indian culture as he was referring to the Sengol which has now been installed in the new Parliament building. He said Sengol, which is the symbol of service, unity and rashtradhram was kept as a walking stick at Anand Bhawan when it was given to Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru.

Attacking the previous Congress-led UPA government, he said there was policy paralysis, not taking any policy decisions was their policy then. The Congress only believed in atkana, latkana aur bhatkana (stalling, delaying and misleading), he said.

After 2014 when Narendra Modi became the Prime Minister, the country not only progressed, but the work culture also changed, Nadda said. The change from politics of vanshvaad (dynasty) and vote bank to vikasvaad (development-oriented) and report card politics was the result of this change in the work culture under the leadership of PM Modi, he said.

The BJP chief lauded the PM for raising the stature of the country worldwide. He also cited that Papua New Guinea Prime Minister James Marape had touched the feet of Modi when he landed there, saying it was not a small incident.

PM Modi was conferred with the highest honour of Fiji, said Nadda while adding that US President Joe Biden invited PM Modi for a state dinner.

Touching upon another issue, Nadda said it was the Modi government which set up a special investigation team to probe the 1984 anti-Sikh riots.

He also spoke about the opening of the Kartarpur corridor for facilitating devotees to visit a gurdwara in Pakistan and abolishing the goods and services tax on langar (community kitchen).

Nadda further said the Modi government is working for the welfare of the poor, the deprived, farmers, the youth and other sections of society.

He further said the countrys economy surpassed the UK and became the fifth-largest economy under the leadership of PM Modi. In 2014, 92 per cent of mobile phones were imported, especially from China and now 97 per cent of mobile phones are being manufactured in India.

Prominent among those who were present on the occasion included Union ministers Gajendra Singh Shekhawat and Som Parkash, Punjab BJP chief Ashwani Sharma, and senior party leaders Sunil Jakhar and Manpreet Singh Badal.
It cannot be denied that Telangana Congress has a spring in its step after the partys recent assembly election victory in neighbouring Karnataka. It seems to have given a boost to the morale of the cadre here. Two tall leaders, Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka and Komatireddy Venkata Reddy, came together during a padayatra recently and declared that the partys victory in the Telugu state was certain. A change in tactic by the ruling Bharat Rashtra Samithi, with its leaders attacking the Congress and not the BJP, has given rise to speculation that the pink party may have already dismissed the saffron outfit as a worthy opposition in the state. Further, rumours about discontent in the BJP local unit seem to be favouring the grand old party.

In such a scenario, there is another manoeuvre that state Congress leaders want to pull off to ride this positive wave: make party general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra contest from Medak. Her grandmother, former PM Indira Gandhi, had contested from this seat in 1980 during the general elections and the result was spectacular. The Congress had won 41 out of the 42 Lok Sabha seats in united Andhra Pradesh that year. The cadre here believes that Priyanka too can pull off such a feat next year.

Speaking to News18, Shyam Mohan Anantula, chairman of the Intellectual Cell of the Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee, said: The Congress is the only party in the opposition that has a grassroots-level presence in the state. BRS is losing its appeal due to rampant corruption and other empty promises. Our party has a traditional voter base among the OBC and SC communities. Rahul Gandhis Bharat Jodo Yatra and Priyankas appeal, combined with the victory in Karnataka, are turning the wind in favour of the Congress. When Indira Gandhi contested the general elections from Medak in 1980, there was a landslide victory. You can imagine the kind of influence that Indira ji had over the electorate. We believe that Priyanka ji has the same aura and charisma."

Congress leader Ananthula Madan Mohan was instrumental in making Indira Gandhi contest from Medak, he added. He was the founding president of Telangana Praja Samiti. In 1970, he contested a bypoll from Siddipet and won. Later, he joined the Congress and served as a minister in the cabinets of Marri Chenna Reddy, PV Narasimha Rao, Bhavanam Venkatarama Reddy, and others. He, along with other Congress leaders, had convinced Indira ji to contest from Medak," he said.

The matter has been discussed in the state unit and TPCC president Revanth Reddy has suggested that, if not Medak, Priyanka must consider contesting from any Lok Sabha seat in Telangana.

A letter to this effect has been written to party chief Mallikarjun Kharge and copies have been sent to Sonia, Rahul, Priyanka, and other state leaders.

Giving more reasons why Priyanka should contest from Telangana, 62-year-old Anantula said: Sonia ji is considered Telangana Thalli (mother) because it is due to her efforts that Andhra Pradesh was bifurcated. In that connection, Priyanka ji is the daughter of Telangana and she has a strong appeal here."
Recently, one trend has taken over the Chinese social media by a storm. It involves American food. The idea behind this is that Chinese people eat spiceless American style lunches in order to inflict self torture. Deemed as Lunch of Suffering, Chinese people would make American style salad, or grilled chicken, but without any spice. However, there is much more to it.

According to a report by the South China Morning Post, it started in late May when a Chinese woman in Switzerland posted a video of a European woman while riding a train. In the video, the European woman was seen assembling her lunch, which solely contained a bag of lettuce" and slices of ham."

Also Read: Earthquake in Delhi: Memes Rock Twitter As Delhiites Experience Yet Another Tremor

This sparked discussion on Chinese social media. Many Chinese media outlets published articles on the same. Not only this but they also asked experts for their opinion. With that, many social media users continued to reveal the rabbit food" lunches that they saw daily.

However, many people turned this discussion into reality. Most of them were young people and they felt like this method of eating was convenient to cook after a long day, reports SCMP. A Chinese blogger wrote that they used to love watching cooking videos and trying out new recipes," but eventually found it too tiring. They further added, As a laborer, I dont have much free time after work.

However, one Twitter post which is currently going viral contains screenshots about the same and the commentary depicts the complete opposite of what has been said till now.

There's a new trend in China where people make and eat spiceless "white people lunch", as form of self torture.And their commentary has me crying  pic.twitter.com/aRfK3VStaD  Del Walker (@TheCartelDel) June 13, 2023

Xiaohongshu, which happens to be Chinas lifestyle sharing app saw photos and videos of people making their own white people lunch. According to SCMP, one Chinese blogger referred to these types of meals as the lunch of suffering." One user on the app suggested that if such a meal is to extend life, what is the meaning of life?" Also, a Weibo user captioned a photo of a tray of crackers, cheese, and meat saying, The point of the white peoples meal is to learn what it feels like to be dead, but Ive taken two bites and it was so bad it made me realize how alive I am."

The term white people lunch also went trending on Twitter.

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Balis governor has announced a ban on tourist activities in the mountains with immediate effect following a rise in incidents of violations of sacred peaks by misbehaving tourists.

The island has announced a blanket ban on all activities like mountain climbing and hiking on all of Balis twenty-two mountains, including iconic Mount Batur and Mount Agung.

These mountains are sacred and revered. If their sanctity is damaged, it is the same as degrading the sacredness of Bali, Governor Wayan Koster said at a news conference adding that all popular activities were no longer allowed for both foreign and domestic tourists.

The ban comes after groups of foreigners have been deported in the recent months and banned from returning to Indonesia for six months by authorities, CNN reported.

This ban is in effect forever and is not only for foreign tourists but also domestic tourists and local residents (with the exception of) religious ceremonies or the handling of natural disasters, he said.

Bali, known as the island of the Gods, is one of the worlds most popular tourist destinations, ranked high on global travel polls.

However, foreign tourists have been regularly found misbehaving and testing the patience of locals.

Earlier in April, Indonesia mulled imposing a tax on tourists following a series of controversial incidents involving badly behaved foreigners.

In March, Governor Koster announced ban on tourists renting motorbikes, following several accidents and influencers performing reckless stunts.

Tourists were not only found posing naked for social media photos at sacred sites but also indulge in rash driving or driving without a helmet or a licence.

In 2021, a pornographic video was filmed on Mount Batur, an active volcano popular among climbers and one of Balis most sacred spots. Earlier this year, a Russian tourist was deported from Bali after posting a photograph of himself half-naked atop Mount Agung, Balis highest peak, considered sacred to Hindus.

However, the move has triggered huge concerns for local communities and business whose livelihoods are directly connected to the mountains and tourism on the island.

But the Governors order would require an official approval from the local parliament to be enacted as a law.

Indonesian government officials said that the ban was still premature and under discussion. Tourism Minister Sandiaga Uno said, The issue of banning people from climbing mountains is still being discussed with several regional unit heads in the Bali regional government.

He added that once the order is finalized, it will be announced by the governor of Bali.

Bali is a famous tourist destination and is widely popular for its surfing spots, emerald green rice terraces and nightlife. The island drew 6.2 million foreign visitors a year before Covid pandemic and tourism was estimated to contribute about 60 percent of the islands economy.
Donald Trump, former US president arraigned in the classified documents case, accused his successor, US President Joe Biden of getting him arrested on false and fabricated charges while addressing supporters on Tuesday (local time) in New Jersey.

READ: Donald Trump Classified Documents Case: A Timeline of Events Leading to Former US Prezs Indictment

Today we witnessed the most evil and heinous abuse of power in the history of our country. Very sad thing to watch, a corrupt sitting president had his top political opponent arrested on fake and fabricated charges of which he and numerous other presidents would be guilty, right in the middle of a presidential election in which hes losing very badly, Trump told his supporters at his resort in Bedminster, New Jersey.

The former president was presented with 37 counts under seven charges in front of a magistrate judge at a Miami courthouse. Trump pleaded not guilty to all the charges.

Donald Trump on Tuesday became the first former president to face federal charges and he was arrested and booked along with his co-defendant and close aide, Walt Nauta.

A special counsel probe was launched 10 months ago after the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) found classified documents in his Florida mansion.

He appeared before a magistrate judge to be formally presented with 37 counts under seven charges brought by the special probe on Tuesday (local time).

READ: Trumps Secret Docs Case: What Happened at Miami Courthouse and Whats Next?

The Biden administration is accusing the former president of violating the Espionage Act and other laws when he removed classified documents upon leaving office in 2021 and also accused him of not giving those up to the National Archives.

The US government, which has not prosecuted a former president before, accuses the businessman-turned-politician of conspiring to thwart investigators and sharing national security secrets with people who do not have the required qualifications.

However, his supporters greeted him with raucous applause when he addressed them from his summer resort. He also met supporters at Cafe Versailles, a renowned Cuban restaurant in the heart of Little Havana.

Weve got a government thats out of control, Trump said, before shouting Food for everyone leaving all customers and staff pleased. Trump also celebrates his 77th birthday on Wednesday.

The US government recovered more than 300 documents with classified markings from Donald Trump. The case first came into the list after officials found that his correspondence with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un was missing.

These records are written by the top national security and law enforcement agencies such as the CIA and NSA and also contain information about military and nuclear capabilities of the United States and foreign countries, including plans on how the US will retaliate against a foreign attack.

The indictment also includes photos of how Trump stored those documents at his Palm Beach residence. While some boxes were found overturned at a storage room in Mar-a-Lago, with its contents spilling on the floor, some boxes of records were stacked in a ballroom and in a bathroom and shower.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken will seek to reduce the chances of miscalculation on a rare visit to Beijing, officials said, but both sides expect long-term tensions to fester.

The State Department confirmed that Blinken will travel this weekend to Beijing on the first trip by a top US diplomat in nearly five years, rescheduling a visit that was scrapped in February as the United States said it detected a Chinese spy balloon.

Ahead of the trip, Blinken spoke by telephone with Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang and stressed the importance of maintaining open lines of communication to responsibly manage" the relationship, State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said.

Relations between the worlds two largest economies have tanked in recent years over Taiwan, trade and human rights, among a litany of other issues.

Daniel Kritenbrink, the top State Department official for East Asia, said that the United States was realistic" about what Blinken could achieve.

Were not going to Beijing with the intent of having some sort of breakthrough or transformation," Kritenbrink told reporters.

Instead, Blinken is coming with a sincere desire to manage our competition in the most responsible way possible."

The United States hopes the trip will, at a minimum, reduce the risk of miscalculation so that we do not veer into potential conflict."

US policymakers across party lines have spoken of China as the foremost US competitor, even as President Joe Biden also focuses on countering Russia over its invasion of Ukraine.

We know efforts to shape or reform China over several decades have failed," said Kurt Campbell, who leads Asia policy at the White House.

We expect China to be around  to be a major player  on the world stage for the rest of our lifetimes," he told reporters.

New difficulties

Despite extending an invitation to Blinken, China struck a confrontational tone in a readout of the call, saying that Qin had warned that relations between the two countries had faced new difficulties and challenges" since the beginning of the year.

Its clear who is responsible," Qin said, according to the Chinese foreign ministry.

China has always viewed and managed China-US relations in accordance with the principles of mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and win-win cooperation put forward by President Xi Jinping," he added.

Campbell said the United States also expected more provocative steps" by China over Taiwan, the self-governing democracy claimed by Beijing.

China has accused the United States of stirring up trouble in Taiwan through arms sales and visits by senior lawmakers  allegations rejected by Washington, which says it seeks to preserve the status quo by helping Taipei defend itself.

Kritenbrink said he expected candid" exchanges in Beijing over Taiwan and on Chinas relationship with Russia, as Washington presses for Beijing not to send arms to Moscow.

First trip since Trump years

Blinken will be the first secretary of state to visit Beijing since a brief 2018 stop by Mike Pompeo, who later led Donald Trumps fierce approach against China including over the Covid-19 pandemic.

Biden and Xi met in Bali in November and agreed to try to prevent tensions from soaring out of control, including by sending Blinken to Beijing.

But Blinken abruptly cancelled a trip scheduled in early February after the United States said it detected  and later shot down  a Chinese surveillance balloon flying over the US mainland.

The two sides have more recently looked again to keep tensions in check, including with an extensive, closed-door meeting between Bidens national security advisor, Jake Sullivan, and senior Chinese diplomat Wang Yi in Vienna last month.

In contrast with Trump, Biden has sought limited areas for cooperation with China, such as climate change. But points of tension keep rising.

The White House last week accused China of operating an intelligence unit in nearby Cuba for years and upgrading it in 2019  when Trump was in office  in an effort to enhance its presence on the Caribbean island.

Asked about the base, Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said he was unaware of the situation" before criticizing US policy on Cuba.

Even while backing diplomacy with Beijing, the United States has been stepping up relations with neigboring countries.

US forces have expanded their presence in southern Japan and the northern Philippines  both strategically close to Taiwan  and Blinken will return to Washington for a state visit next week by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Chinas Foreign Minister Qin Gang held a phone call with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Wednesday and said that that relations between the two countries were facing new difficulties and challenges".

Since the beginning of the year, Sino-American relations have faced new difficulties and challenges," Qin said during phone call with Blinken, according to a Chinese foreign ministry.

Qin reiterated Chinas firm stance on core concerns like Taiwan and said that Beijing has always viewed and handled the relationship with mutual respect, peaceful coexistence, and win-win cooperation proposed by Chinese President Xi Jinping.

He further said that since the beginning of this year, China-US relations have faced new difficulties and challenges and added Its clear who is responsible."

#Breaking: Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Qin Gang held a phone conversation on Wednesday with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken at the latter's request, clarifying China's firm stance on core issues, emphasizing that the US should stop interfering in China's pic.twitter.com/dD1PZyZMOS Global Times (@globaltimesnews) June 14, 2023

The Chinese Foreign Minister said that the US should stop interfering in Chinas internal affairs and stop harming Chinas sovereign security and development interests vis-a-vis the conflict over Taiwan.

The call between the two diplomats comes ahead of an expected visit by Blinken to China on Sunday.

Presidents Joe Biden and Xi Jinping earlier met in Bali in November last year and agreed to try to stop high tensions from soaring out of control, including by sending Blinken to Beijing.

However, Blinken abruptly cancelled his scheduled trip in February after the US said it detected and shot down a suspected Chinese spy balloon flying over the US mainland.

But the two sides have more recently looked again to keep tensions in check including with an extensive, closed-door meeting between Bidens national security advisor Jake Sullivan and top Chinese diplomat Wang Yi in Vienna last month.

Tensions have risen sharply between the worlds two largest economies in recent years, especially over Taiwan, the self-governing democracy that Beijing claims and has not ruled out seizing by force.
A section of Indian Amercians are coming together for the first time to host a Hindu-American Summit for political engagement at the US Capitol Hill on Wednesday (local time).

The group wants to bring the issues faced by the American Hindu community to the fore. Romesh Japra, who is the founder and chairman of Americans4Hindus, told news outlet ANI that it is the first time the Hindu-American leaders as well as the organisations are gathering for a summit.

US House Speaker Kevin McCarthy and top Republicans and Democrats are also expected to attend the summit.

For the very first time, we are doing a Hindu-American Summit for political engagement. Our community has been involved in so many things  cultural, social, economic, religious, spiritual, and all kinds of programs but in politics we were way, way behind, Japra was quoted as saying by news agency ANI.

Japra pointed out that despite the community contributing to American academia, science and medicine, it has not be able to emulate the same success in politics.

(This is) the first time we are getting all the leaders, the Hindu-American leaders as well as the organisations. The 20 different organisations getting together, 130 people and we have Kevin McCarthy who is the speaker of USA and many many other representatives, who are going to join us, inspire all these leaders to get engaged politically also, and get their children, the next generation involved in the political arena as well, Japra was quoted as saying by ANI.

Japra also said that the community is excited for Prime Minister Narendra Modis state visit. He said PM Modi gives his group a lot more encouragement. He said that the Indian-American community must be able to emulate what Prime Minister Modi has done.

The Hindu-American Summit, hosted by the recently formed Americans4Hindus Political Action Committee (PAC) in collaboration with over 20 other diaspora organisations, will be held at the US Capitol to bring the Hindu communitys issues to the attention of American lawmakers, ANI said in its report.

At least 130 Indian American leaders from Florida, New York, Boston, Texas, Chicago and California are attending the event to represent 20 Hindu and Indian organisations.
COVID Ont Liquor Laws 20200715

By David Clement

Last month, on World No Tobacco Day, federal Minister of Mental Health and Addictions Carolyn Bennett announced on Twitter that Canada would become the first country in the world to mandate that each individual cigarette sold carry a warning label, mirroring what consumers already see on the front of the pack. This would seem to be the end of the road in terms of warning labels for tobacco: there really isnt much left to put a label on  unless someone can figure out a way to make exhaled cigarette smoke spell out C-A-N-C-E-R.

Unfortunately for consumers, this push doesnt end with tobacco. There is a very active lobby for tobacco-style health warnings on alcohol, too. What started in Ireland is slowly spreading in Canada, with regional health authorities and groups like the Canadian Centre for Substance Use and Addiction (CCSA) advocating mandatory health warnings.

The issue here isnt whether or not consumers should be given the facts about when drinking can be harmful to your health. The issue is whether they are presented in a truthful manner that realistically explains how drinking can cause negative health outcomes.

Those lobbying for enhanced warnings invariably quote the relative rather than absolute risk of drinking. For example: Fourteen drinks a week for women increases the risk of breast cancer by 27 per cent. Taken at face value that is a jarring figure, one that will likely spook some drinkers. To many people, it will sound as if drinking two drinks a day produces a 27 per cent chance of developing breast cancer.

But looking at that increase in absolute rather than relative terms, starting with the baseline risk for each illness, communicates a very different and much less shocking message. Using the CCSAs own data, breast cancer is responsible for 17.3 premature deaths for every 100,000 Canadian women, which is a baseline of 1.7 one-hundredths of a per cent. A 27 per cent increase in that risk takes it to 22 premature deaths for every 100,000 women, or 2.2 one-hundredths of a per cent, which is still very small.

That extra risk  which is from drinking 14 drinks a week, remember  is similar to the breast cancer risk associated with taking birth control, as pointed out by Chris Snowdon from the Institute for Economic Affairs. Understandably, the researchers who studied that slight change in risk arising from use of the pill concluded that Such risks need to be balanced against the benefits of using contraceptives during the childbearing years. For hundreds of millions of women, avoiding an unwanted pregnancy evidently is more than worth the small change in breast cancer risk.

For men, the same relative risk versus absolute risk difference holds true. Take colorectal cancer, for example. It accounts for 13.9 premature deaths for every 100,000 men. According to the CCSA, men drinking 14 drinks per week increase their risk of colorectal cancer by 20 per cent. But again, when looking at absolute risk, 14 drinks per week shifts the baseline risk from 13.9 deaths per 100,000 to 16.7  an increase of 2.8 deaths per 100,0000. In terms of percentages, the increase is 2.8 one-hundredths of a per cent.

Ironically, the CCSAs report contains a piece of information that fundamentally undermines the no safe use narrative that it and other temperance groups are pushing. For men, consuming up to seven drinks per week actually reduces the risk of premature death from intracerebral hemorrhage, ischemic stroke and ischemic heart disease. This is important because ischemic heart disease is responsible for 47.5 premature deaths per 100,000 men. Seven drinks per week lowers the risk of premature death from ischemic heart disease by five per cent, moving that baseline figure down to 45.12, a decrease of 2.38 deaths per 100,000.

Heart disease is the largest premature killer of men among all 19 health issues evaluated in the CCSA report. It accounts for more premature deaths in Canada than liver cirrhosis, liver cancer, colorectal cancer, and oral cancer combined. Should the health benefits from reducing its deadliness not also be included on a health information label?

There are two different ways to inform consumers about the risks associated with drinking. One is with the largest, scariest number the data will sustain that while technically true doesnt do much to educate consumers or encourage informed choices. The other is giving consumers the full depth of absolute risk information available. Better yet, we can communicate this information to consumers without following the tobacco playbook, which falsely equates smoking and drinking. Europe has already started this process, where beverage alcohol can have a QR code on the bottle that links to information about nutrition and alcohol risks and abuse. Given that the program is still new, we dont have data on how frequently it is used, but it is a good step forwards for consumers wanting more information.

More information is generally a good thing for consumers, but only when that information isnt misleading  which is what cancer warnings on bottles would be.

David Clement is North American Affairs Manager with the Consumer Choice Center.
French President Emmanuel Macron said he will meet with Tesla CEO Elon Musk on Friday, the second time in just over a month, to promote France as a possible site for one of the electric vehicle (EV) makers factories as well as to discuss tech regulation.

France has been courting Chinese EV giant BYD and Tesla to build factories in the country, officials had previously told Reuters but is competing with other EU countries such as Spain, which is in talks with Tesla too, a source told Reuters.

Im going (into that meeting) with an agenda," Macron told reporters as he visited the VivaTech summit in Paris, Frances biggest tech fair, which Musk will visit on Friday.

Were going to talk about artificial intelligence, in which he is involved, social media, regulation framework And then Ill also talk to him about cars, batteries, to promote French and European attractiveness," Macron said.

Asked specifically whether he was hoping to secure a Tesla gigafactory, Macron said: Its up to the company to look at these different issues in Europe. So well be selling France" as an investment destination.

France has been catching up with other European nations in its goal to become a hub for the electric vehicle industry, thanks to generous subsidies and a more business-friendly environment and aggressive lobbying since Macron took power.

Its northern region has attracted four gigafactory projects, the first one inaugurated last month by a consortium including Peugeot-owner Stellantis, Mercedes-Benz and French oil major TotalEnergies.

Earlier today, the French minister for digital affairs Jean-Noel Barrot told CNBC: It will be great to have a Tesla factory in France. There has been a lot of effort and energy to make sure this is possible and this can happen."

Barrot added that France also has invested in an entire sector of electric batteries" and will try to convince Musk that France is the best possible place in Europe to establish the next Tesla factory."

Musk, who met Macron and Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire on May 15, said then he was confident Tesla would make significant investments" in France in the future, but did not provide a timeline.

France previously tried to convince Musk to build a gigafactory in the country, but he chose Germany for his only such plant in Europe so far.

($1 = 0.9232 euros)
Devotees of former Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi flocked to Milan Wednesday to say farewell at a state funeral for the controversial billionaire, which closes a 30-year chapter in the countrys history.

The ceremony for Berlusconi, who died Monday aged 86, will be held in the citys Gothic Duomo cathedral and thousands of the tycoons supporters gathered in the square in front, ready to watch live on giant screens.

Berlusconi is my first and last political love. Its a very sad day for Italy," Luigi Vecchione, a 48-year-old textile worker from the northern Piedmont region, told AFP.

He was a charismatic leader who created jobs and had empathy for everyone. He will be missed," he said, as he joined the crowds, sporting a large red heart on his black T-shirt.

Berlusconi, adored and loathed by Italians in equal measure, had been ill for several years, though he remained the official head of his right-wing Forza Italia party, a member of Prime Minister Giorgia Melonis coalition government.

Lucia Diele, 30, from Puglia in Italys south, described Berlusconi, who entered politics in 1994 and went on to be prime minister three times, as the greatest politician in the history of Italy".

He leaves a huge void that will be impossible to fill. Giorgia Meloni is a great prime minister, but no one will take Silvios place," she said, as the crowds chanted Berlusconis name.

Italian President Sergio Mattarella, Meloni and fellow coalition partner Matteo Salvini, head of the far-right League, were set to attend the funeral, while the European Union will be represented by its economy commissioner Paolo Gentiloni.

Great man

Large wreaths in the colours of the Italian flag were displayed outside the Duomo, where the ceremony was to begin at 3:00 pm (1300 GMT), presided over by Archbishop Mario Delpini.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbans office said he would be present. Qatars Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani was also expected, Italian media reported.

The longest-serving premier in Italys post-war history, and re-elected to the Senate last year, Berlusconi was famed for his controversial gaffes on the international stage.

He counted President Vladimir Putin among his friends  but the Russian leader is subject to an international arrest warrant and cannot travel to Italy.

Amateur photographer Gianfranco Diletta, 65, said he had come to immortalise this mass phenomenon".

I never voted for Berlusconi, who embodied for Italy the modern populism of the 1990s and was a friend of Putins to the end, a strategic error which put Italys national security in danger," he said.

Berlusconi is survived by his 33-year-old girlfriend, Marta Fascina, with whom he held a fake wedding last year and who was at his bedside as he succumbed to a rare type of blood cancer.

She is expected to be joined in the front pews by at least one of Berlusconis two ex-wives and his five children, some of whom helped run his empire, recently estimated to be worth around $7 billion.

You were a great man and an extraordinary father to our children," his first wife Carla DallOglio wrote in a eulogy Tuesday.

Extreme

Flags were lowered to half-mast on all public buildings from Monday in tribute to a leader whose influence extended well beyond politics, thanks to his extensive TV, newspaper and sporting interests.

Parliament was suspended for three days and the government declared a national day of mourning for Wednesday  the first time for an ex-prime minister.

The decision was criticised by Berlusconis detractors, who accused him of cronyism, corruption and pushing through laws to protect his own interests.

Senator Andrea Crisanti said he was strongly against" such national honours for someone who had no respect for the state", pointing to Berlusconis definitive conviction for tax fraud in 2013.

Rosy Bindi, former head of the Antimafia Commission, said it was inopportune" for a person as divisive as Berlusconi", and the Repubblica daily said the institutional shutdown" was extreme" and compared it to Britains protocol for Queen Elizabeth IIs death.

Berlusconi built a pharaoh-inspired marble mausoleum at his villa in Arcore, near Milan, to house his family and friends when they die.

His family planned to cremate his remains and place his ashes in the mausoleum, Italian media reported.
London police made the third arrest in connection with the stabbing of a 27-year-old student from Hyderabad at her residence in Neeld Crescent, Wembleyon on Tuesday.

Kontham Tejaswini, who was pursuing higher education in London, was allegedly attacked by a Brazilian man in north London at around 10 pm on Tuesday.

London | Third arrest made in connection with the fatal stabbing in Neeld Crescent, WembleyA Telugu girl - identified as Tejaswini Reddy - who had gone to London for higher studies, was stabbed to death. pic.twitter.com/uGTSpwNe7g  ANI (@ANI) June 14, 2023

The other accused had recently moved into the shared accommodation, where Tejaswini lived with her friends, less than a week ago, the victims cousin Vijay claimed.

The Metropolitan Police had earlier released the image of Brazilian national Keven Antonio Lourenco De Morais to seek the publics help in tracing the suspect. Keven, 23, has now been arrested from Harrow on suspicion of murder and taken into custody, the Met Police said.

#ARREST | We previously published an appeal to locate a 23-year-old man following the murder of a woman in #Wembley earlier today. He was arrested in #Harrow at around 18:00hrs today and has been taken into custody. Thank you for the RTs.  Brent MPS | North West BCU (@MPSBrent) June 13, 2023

Two other people, a 24-year-old man and a 23-year-old woman, were arrested at the scene on suspicion of murder. While the man remains in custody, the woman has been released without further action, the police said, according to news agency PTI.

Tejaswinis family members in Brahmanapalle in Hayathnagar said they were informed about the attack on Wednesday and she died during the treatment for stabbing. She had gone to the UK in March 2022 to pursue Masters.

A post-mortem examination is scheduled, following which the police will formally release her identity.

According to a report on BBC, another woman, aged 28, was also attacked apart from Tejaswini at the crime scene. But she was rushed to the hospital and said to be in a stable condition.

Police officers were called to Neeld Crescent in Wembley, north London on Tuesday to reports of a double stabbing.

This has been a fast-moving investigation and I would like to thank the public for sharing our appeal for information about this man. He is now in custody, said Detective Chief Inspector Linda Bradley, from the Mets Specialist Crime Command.

I recognise the significant concern this incident has caused in the community and I would like to reassure the public that a dedicated team of detectives are working to establish what happened. Local officers will remain in the area over the coming days to respond to any concerns," she said.
The US Presidential Elections candidate Vivek Ramaswamy has emerged as a vocal proponent of pardoning former US president Donald Trump if the latter is jailed in the classified documents case.

Another contender Nikki Haley seemed open to the idea last week but has somewhat shifted her stance on the issue.

Multimillionaire tech entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy challenged incumbent president Joe Biden as well as other contenders to issue a pardon after Donald Trump left the federal courthouse where he pleaded not guilty to the 37 counts under seven charges for mishandling classified documents and allegedly putting US national security in jeopardy.

I challenge every US Presidential candidate to join me in standing for TRUTH. Commit to pardon Donald Trump for these federal charges on Day 1, or explain why you wont. No one should hide. Not Biden. Not DeSantis. Not Haley. Not Pence. Not RFK. Not Scott. Not anyone. Principles pic.twitter.com/qYP3fUrE5R Vivek Ramaswamy (@VivekGRamaswamy) June 13, 2023

We need to declare independence from our donor class in the Republican Party, Ramaswamy proclaimed. If youre not going to pardon Donald Trump in January 2025, you deserve to say why, and we will hold you accountable.

I challenge every US Presidential candidate to join me in standing for TRUTH. Commit to pardon Donald Trump for these federal charges on Day 1, or explain why you wont. No one should hide. Not Biden. Not DeSantis. Not Haley. Not Pence. Not RFK. Not Scott. Not anyone. Principles over politics, Ramaswamy said.

The former president became the first American president - former or sitting - to be slapped with federal criminal charges Tuesday. He, however, said the entire probe and the trial is a political witch hunt.

Nikki Haley teased that she would be inclined to pardon him. The former South Carolina governor and a former staffer of the Trump administration also distanced herself from the actions of her former boss.

Haley said if the allegations were right, then the former president was reckless with US national security.

When you look at a pardon, the issue is less about guilt and more about whats good for the country. And I think it would be terrible for the country to have a former president in prison for years because of a documents case. So I would be inclined in favour of a pardon, Haley told conservative journalists Clay Travis and Buck Sexton at their radio show.

Both Republican contenders and fellow contender Ron DeSantis also remained open to the idea of pardoning Donald Trump, with the exception of Republican candidates Asa Hutchinson and Chris Christie.
Canadian authorities on Wednesday said that the Indian students, who were trapped in an alleged immigration scam, will not be immediately deported as their well-being is countrys topmost priority."

Immigration Minister Sean Frasier in a statement said that Canada Border Services Agency has been instructed to investigate these cases and students who genuinely fell victim to the fraud will not face immediate deportation.

I issued a statement regarding the distressing situation faced by international students with fraudulent acceptance letters. Your well-being remains our priority, and were taking action to address this issue. https://t.co/ofd3r8IDqG See below for a summary of our measures. pic.twitter.com/E0ILgmRaZL Sean Fraser (@SeanFraserMP) June 14, 2023

I understand that this situation is distressing for those affected by unscrupulous actors, and I want to assure them that their well-being is of paramount importance. As a result, I have already struck a task force of my officials and have asked them to work closely with the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) to identify the victims of fraud; that is, those students who came to study here in Canada and did exactly that," the statement read.

I want to make it clear that international students who are not found to be involved in fraud will not face deportation," it added.

The statement comes after several Indian students in Canada facing the prospect of deportation on charges of obtaining visas using fake admission letters reportedly have received stay orders" from Canadian authorities.

India had repeatedly been urging Canadian authorities to be fair and take a humanitarian approach since the students were allegedly victims of some corrupt agents.

Earlier, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau also acknowledged the need for fair treatment of the students.

(With agency inputs)
More than 100 people died in north central Nigeria after a boat carrying families returning from a wedding sank in a river, police and local authorities said on Tuesday.

The river boat was ferrying people in Kwara State from neighbouring Niger State, local state police and the state governors office said, without giving details of the cause.

So far we have 103 people dead and over 100 rescued from the boat accident," Kwara State police spokesman Okasanmi Ajayi told AFP by telephone.

Search and rescue is still ongoing which means the toll is likely to rise."

Kwara State governors office said the victims had been returning from a wedding in Niger State to Kwaras Patigi district.

River boat accidents are common in Nigeria, usually caused by overloading of vessels, poor maintenance, disregard for safety regulations and heavy flooding during the rainy season in Africas most populous country.
Cormac McCarthy, the Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist who in prose both dense and brittle took readers from the southern Appalachians to the desert Southwest in such novels as The Road, Blood Meridian and All the Pretty Horses, died Tuesday. He was 89.

Publisher Alfred A. Knopf, a Penguin Random House imprint, announced that McCarthy died of natural causes at his home in Santa Fe, New Mexico.

For 60 years, he demonstrated an unwavering dedication to his craft, and to exploring the infinite possibilities and power of the written word, Penguin Random House CEO Nihar Malaviya said in a statement. Millions of readers around the world embraced his characters, his mythic themes, and the intimate emotional truths he laid bare on every page, in brilliant novels that will remain both timely and timeless, for generations to come.

McCarthy, raised in Knoxville, Tennessee, was compared to William Faulkner for his expansive, Old Testament style and rural settings. McCarthys themes, like Faulkners, often were bleak and violent and dramatized how the past overwhelmed the present. Across stark and forbidding landscapes and rundown border communities, he placed drifters, thieves, prostitutes and old, broken men, all unable to escape fates determined for them well before they were born. As the doomed John Grady Cole of McCarthys celebrated Border trilogy would learn, dreams of a better life were only dreams, and falling in love an act of folly.

Every mans death is a standing in for every other, McCarthy wrote in Cities of the Plain, the trilogys final book. And since death comes to all there is no way to abate the fear of it except to love that man who stands for us.

McCarthys own story was one of belated, and continuing, achievement and popularity. Little known to the public at age 60, he would become one of the countrys most honored and successful writers despite rarely talking to the press. He broke through commercially in 1992 with All the Pretty Horses and over the next 15 years won the National Book Award and the Pulitzer, was a guest on Oprah Winfreys show and saw his novel No Country for Old Men adapted by the Coen brothers into an Oscar-winning movie. Fans of the Coens would discover that the films terse, absurdist dialogue, so characteristic of the brothers work, was lifted straight from the novel.

The Road, his stark tale of a father and son who roam a ravaged landscape, brought him his widest audience and highest acclaim. It won the 2007 Pulitzer Prize for fiction and was selected by Winfrey for her book club. In his Winfrey interview, McCarthy said that while typically he didnt know what generates the ideas for his books, he could trace The Road to a trip he took with his young son to El Paso, Texas, early in the decade. Standing at the window of a hotel in the middle of the night as his son slept nearby, he started to imagine what El Paso might look like 50 or 100 years in the future.

I just had this image of these fires up on the hill  and I thought a lot about my little boy, he said.

He told Winfrey he didnt care how many people read The Road.

You would like for the people that would appreciate the book to read it. But, as far as many, many people reading it, so what? he said.

McCarthy dedicated the book to his son, John Francis, and said having a child as an older man forces the world on you, and I think its a good thing. The Pulitzer committee called his book the profoundly moving story of a journey.

It boldly imagines a future in which no hope remains, but in which the father and his son, each the others world entire, are sustained by love, the citation read in part. Awesome in the totality of its vision, it is an unflinching meditation on the worst and the best that we are capable of: ultimate destructiveness, desperate tenacity, and the tenderness that keeps two people alive in the face of total devastation.

After The Road, little was heard from McCarthy over the next 15 years and his career was presumed over. But in 2022, Knopf made the startling announcement that it would release a pair of connected novels he had referred to in the past: The Passenger and Stella Maris, narratives about a brother and sister, mutually obsessed siblings, and the legacy of their father, a physicist who had worked on atomic technology. Stella Maris was notable, in part, because it centered on a female character, an acknowledged weakness of McCarthys.

I dont pretend to understand women, he told Winfrey.

His first novel, The Orchard Keeper  written in Chicago while he was working as an auto mechanic  was published by Random House in 1965. His editor was Albert Erskine, Faulkners longtime editor.

Other novels include Outer Dark, published in 1968; Child of God in 1973; and Suttree in 1979. The violent Blood Meridian, about a group of bounty hunters along the Texas-Mexico border murdering Indians for their scalps, was published in 1985.

His Border Trilogy books were set in the Southwest along the border with Mexico: All the Pretty Horses (1992)  a National Book Award winner that was turned into a feature film; The Crossing (1994), and Cities of the Plain (1998).

McCarthy said he was always lucky. He recalled living in a shack in Tennessee and running out of toothpaste, then going out and finding a toothpaste sample in the mailbox.

Thats the way my life has been. Just when things were really, really bleak, something would happen, said McCarthy, who won a MacArthur Fellowship  one of the so-called genius grants  in 1981.

In 2009, Christies auction house sold the Olivetti typewriter he used while writing such novels as The Road and No Country for Old Men for $254,500. McCarthy, who bought the Olivetti for $50 in 1958 and used it until 2009, donated it so the proceeds could be used to benefit the Santa Fe Institute, a nonprofit interdisciplinary scientific research community. He once said he didnt know any writers and preferred to hang out with scientists.

The Southwestern Writers Collection at Texas State University-San Marcos purchased his archives in 2008, including correspondence, notes, drafts, proofs of 11 novels, a draft of an unfinished novel and materials related to a play and four screenplays.

McCarthy attended the University of Tennessee for a year before joining the Air Force in 1953. He returned to the school from 1957 to 1959, but left before graduating. As an adult, he lived around the Great Smoky Mountains before moving West in the late 1970s, eventually settling in Santa Fe.

His Knoxville boyhood home, long abandoned and overgrown, was destroyed by fire in 2009.
Children have often been prone to bullying, especially in their schools. Sadly, Princess Kate was not immune to bullying during her own childhood.

Kate Middletons very unhappy experiences being bullied at school has had a big impact on how her children will be educated, a Royal expert has claimed.

This also includes hers and Prince Williams decision to not Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis to a boarding school despite the prevalence of boarding among British Royals, Marie Claire reporter.

The Prince and Princess of Wales have made it clear that their young family will, as far as possible, come first and that includes sending all three to day school, rather than having them as boarders away from home," Jennie Bond, Former BBC royal correspondent Jennie, told OK!

The Princess of Wales didnt have an easy time as a student at an independent boarding school, Downe House, where she was reportedly bullied when she was around 11-years-old. The bad experience had led to her leaving the school and getting admitted to another college.

Catherine had a very unhappy time at Downe House in her first two terms and was bullied quite badly before she left and moved to Marlborough College," Bond continued.

This has completely influenced the way she wants her children to be educated, coupled with her belief and research into early years development," Bond added.

The bullying was one of the reasons why Kate Middleton is often seen in the carpool line to pick up her children from Lambrook School.

This isnt the first time that there have been reports of Kate getting bullied at Downe House.

Royal expert Katie Nicholl in her book Kate: The Future Queen said that Kate was unfortunately targeted because she started there at 13 instead of at 11 and because she was a day pupil" instead of a boarder.

She was also targeted for being especially slender and a head taller than her peers," she added.

Reports also said that King Charles wanted his grandchildren to be brought up in a different way to how he was.

I think King Charles is very keen that his grandchildren dont make the mistakes that I think he feels he made, particularly, Professor Chandrika Kaul said on a Channel 5 documentary.

What I think he wants to do is try and help these young grandchildren grow up in as normal a way as possible and create more fully rounded human beings who are unafraid of their emotions," she added.
A shark that attacked and killed a Russian tourist in Egypts Red Sea is set to be mummified and displayed in an Egyptian museum.

23-year-old Vladimir Popov was eaten alive by a shark off a beach at an Egyptian resort in Hurghada earlier this month. The video of the attack had grabbed attention after it went viral on social media where Popov can be heard screaming, Papa, save me!".

Video footage of the incident was widely circulated on social media in Egypt, showing a person struggling to escape from the shark.

As informed by the probing officials, the shark attacked Popov while he was swimming at a resort beach location, situated along the Red Sea.

The shark was caught and dragged to land by boat and brutally beaten to death on the shore in Hurghada.

Some of the Russian mans body parts were recovered inside the sharks stomach, while the rest were recovered by fishermen from the sea.

Reports said that specialists at Egypts Institute of Marine Sciences and the Red Sea Reserves have begun the embalming process to prepare the shark to be placed in the institutes museum.

After the embalming process is completed, the mummified shark will be on display in the institutes museum.

Egypts environment ministry said a team had captured the shark to inspect it", saying it had displayed abnormal behaviour resulting in the incident".

The shark was handed over to researchers to find out the causes of its behaviour and identify whether the animal is related to one that caused several previous accidents.
The head of the Ukrainian presidents office called Indian national security advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval seeking Indias backing for the Ukrainian Peace Formula. Ukrainian presidents chief of staff, Andriy Yermak said he and Doval discussed preparations for the Global Peace Summit and urged Doval regarding the need to involve the widest possible range of countries, including nations from the Global South.

Following the implementation of the agreements reached by @ZelenskyyUa as a result of negotiations with Prime Minister of India @narendramodi, had a telephone conversation with National Security Adviser to Prime Minister of India Ajit Kumar Doval. pic.twitter.com/hHYoyqrKig Andriy Yermak (@AndriyYermak) June 13, 2023

Recent events have once again proved that the Ukrainian Peace Formula is more relevant than ever - for both Ukraine and the whole world. We are actively working with partners to prepare the Global Summit on the implementation of the formula. We expect India to take part in it, a press release by the Ukrainian Presidential Office said.

This is the fourth time Yermak spoke to NSA Doval this year regarding the Ukrainian Peace Plan and the war in Ukraine. Yermak dialled Doval in February seeking Indias support for the Ukrainian Peace Plan. The matter was also discussed on the sidelines of the G7 Summit in Japan when Prime Minister Narendra Modi met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky for the first time since the onset of war. Both Yermak and Doval were part of the delegation. Earlier, both interlocutors spoke on January 25.

Yermak said he briefed NSA Doval on the current situation on the frontline and highlighted the rising number of Russian attacks of Ukrainian infrastructure and cities.

Yermak also raised the issue of blowing up the Kakhovka Dam on the Dnipro river last week and requested him to join international efforts to condemn Russia for the alleged act.

Kakhovka Dam, which holds as much water as Great Salt Lake of Utah, has been breached, severely flooding adjoining areas and triggering an ecological disaster forcing millions to flee. Russia and Ukraine have blamed each other of carrying out the blast which led the dam to breach.

Yermak alleged that by blowing up the Kakhovka hydroelectric power plant neighbour Russia committed a deliberate terrorist act and another war crime.  This is one of the largest modern crimes of ecocide. The aggressor has caused an unprecedented man-made, environmental and humanitarian disaster, as well as created a threat of a nuclear accident at the largest nuclear power plant in Europe, Zaporizhzhia NPP, he further added.
Over the past year, Cheshires Planning and Zoning Commission engaged in a lengthy debate on how best to approach the question of commercial cannabis.

With the guidance of Town Planner Michael Glidden, Commissioners participated in several workshops about the current state of the law and their own options and obligations. However, it was after listening to community testimony at a well-attended public hearing on May 8 that a majority of Commissioners concluded that commercial cannabis was neither desired nor desirable for Cheshire.

That was what members explained on Monday, June 12, when the PZC voted overwhelmingly to prohibit commercial cannabis operations in town, with only Commissioner John Kardaras holding out in favor of a limited retail zone.

We put a lot of time and effort into coming to a consensus, Kardaras remarked, about the possibility of allowing retail within a narrowly-defined industrial zone.

However, several Commissioners once again pointed to the unanimous public testimony against permitting commercial cannabis as what ultimately swung their votes.

Since we had the workshops, we had the public hearing and we had 100% opposition, commented Commissioner Jeff Natale. I agree with you (Kardaras), we did a lot of work in the workshops, but a lot of work has been done since then.

Glidden had prepared five separate motions for the PZC to consider, with approaches ranging from permitting cannabis as of right now in a commercial zone to allowing retail in narrowly-defined areas, to outright prohibition. Rather than vote on each, Glidden suggested a straw poll among the Commissioners to determine which option they were leaning toward.

Not allowing retail was the clear favorite among the members, who then voted on that motion.

The new regulations will go into effect on July 1.

Under Cheshires current regulations, micro-cultivation, which is defined as a facility between 2,000 and 10,000 square feet that is used as a growing space, is still permitted, subject to licensing and other applicable laws and regulations.

While the potential sales tax revenues of 3% on cannabis sales have likely enticed some communities, Commission Chair Earl Kurtz III stated that Connecticuts restrictions on ways that towns can spend that money didnt sit well with him.

We dont need it in town. Theres plenty of places you can go if you need (cannabis), he added.

Everybody that came from the public was against it completely, I felt, said Commissioner Robert Brucato.

I dont think I can vote for my town to have an activity that arguably violates federal law, added Commissioner Louis Todisco.

Commissioner Casey Downes also endorsed the cannabis ban, saying, Until the public hearing I would not have done that. I would have supported (the limited retail).

Natale mentioned that he supported Downess rationale. We are here to represent the public.

Connecticut became the 19th state to legalize cannabis for adults age 21 and older in June of 2021. However, sales were permitted until the beginning of this year, when retailers were allowed to open their doors for the first time. At the time, Gov. Ned Lamont, who signed the law in 2021, stated that the purpose of legalizing recreational cannabis was to create a safer, regulated product for consumers.

In the winter of 2022, the PZC voted in favor of a moratorium regarding recreational sales. The moratorium was to have expired next month. During that time, the PZC looked for input from the general public, including the May public hearing. While Commissioners expressed regret that more members of the public had not attended the hearing or made their feelings known, those who did speak out all expressed opposition.

Were going to pass over a Rubicon here if we approve the sale of cannabis in the town of Cheshire, warned resident Vincent Flynn, at the May 8 meeting.
Ahead of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modis state visit to Washington, the Biden administration is pushing New Delhi to cut through its own red tape and advance a deal for dozens of U.S.-made armed drones, two people familiar with the matter said.

India has long expressed interest in buying large armed drones from the United States. But bureaucratic stumbling blocks have hampered a hoped-for deal for SeaGuardian drones that could be worth $2 billion to $3 billion for years.

U.S. negotiators are counting on Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modis White House visit on June 22 to break the log jam.

Read More: PM Modi to Make State Visit to US: What it Means and How it is Different | Explained

Since the date for Modis visit was fixed, the U.S. State Department, Pentagon and White House have asked India to be able to show" progress on the deal for as many as 30 armable MQ-9B SeaGuardian drones made by General Atomics, two sources said.

Modi and Biden are also expected to discuss co-production of munitions and ground vehicles, like armored personnel carriers, while Modi is in Washington, the sources said.

Spokespeople for the White House, Department of State and the Pentagon declined to comment on the negotiations.

U.S. President Joe Biden has made deepening ties with India a cornerstone of his policy to counter Chinas growing influence, placing special attention this year on collaboration between the worlds two largest democracies on advanced military technologies, despite their lack of a formal security alliance.

New Delhi, which often prizes its non-alignment in conflicts between great powers abroad, has frustrated Washington by maintaining some defense and economic ties with Russia after the invasion of Ukraine.

Breaking Indias bureaucratic log jam on drones hinges on an internal meeting to generate an Acceptance of Necessity" document, an Indian precursor to a formal Letter of Request" which kicks off the foreign military sale process. As of Tuesday, the sources did not know if the New Delhi had generated the necessary internal document.

Thats gonna be a decision that the government of India needs to make," said a senior Biden administration official. We think it would be good for them to go through with the purchase of MQ-9s. But those decisions are sort of more in the hands of India than they are of us."

The topic was expected to be on the agenda as Bidens national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, arrived in New Delhi on Tuesday to finalize preparations ahead of Modis visit.

Read More: Biden Aide Jake Sullivan Heads to India to Prep for PM Modis US Visit

As of last week, Indias defense ministry had still not made up its mind about the number of drones it wants to buy, according to a person familiar with the discussions. Earlier, the number was pegged at 30, but that was later revised to 24, and then further down to 18 last month. Sources cautioned that none of the numbers were final.

India is also seeking components of the equipment to be domestically manufactured, something that could complicate any deal.

The Quad grouping of countries - the United States, India, Australia and Japan - all operate, or have operated, the MQ-9B SeaGuardian. Currently, India is leasing MQ-9Bs as part of an intelligence-gathering operation.
After Donald Trump pleaded not guilty on Tuesday to charges in the classified documents case, he went straight to a Cuban restaurant and told a group of his supporters: Its a rigged deal here. We have a rigged country."

Shortly after the court appearance, the former US Presidents motorcade halted at Cafe Versailles, a renowned Cuban restaurant in the heart of Little Havana.

During a stop at Versailles, a Cuban restaurant, Trump told supporters that the United States was rigged," corrupt" and in decline."

WATCH: Former President Donald Trump torches rigged" system after pleading not guilty in classified documents case. https://t.co/G2jfILMiPW pic.twitter.com/MBCDvIcVOa Fox News (@FoxNews) June 13, 2023

Weve got a government thats out of control," he said. Floridas Cuban-American community is a substantial Republican voting bloc in the politically competitive state.

During his visit, Trump declared, Food for everyone," leaving the owner and attendees pleasantly surprised. The unexpected stop marked a special prelude to Trumps upcoming 77th birthday celebration tomorrow.

Trump has repeatedly proclaimed his innocence and accuses Democratic President Joe Bidens administration of targeting him.

Trumps plea, entered before US Magistrate Judge Jonathan Goodman in a federal court in Miami, sets up a legal battle likely to play out over coming months as he campaigns to win back the presidency in a November 2024 election.

Read More: Who is Walt Nauta? How Trumps White House Valet Became Co-conspirator in Secret Docs Case

Trumps aide Walt Nauta, who is also charged in the case, appeared in court alongside Trump but will not have to enter a plea until June 27 because he does not have a local lawyer.

He, too, was released without having to post bond and was ordered not to talk to other witnesses.

It was the second courtroom visit for Trump in recent months. In April, he pleaded not guilty to state charges in New York stemming from a hush-money payment to a porn star.

Trump is the first former president to be charged with federal crimes.

(With inputs from Reuters)
Protesters, supporters and journalists from around the world were gathered Tuesday outside the courthouse in downtown Miami where former President Donald Trump was scheduled to make his first appearance on criminal charges that he improperly held on to classified documents.
A US Army base in western Louisiana was renamed Tuesday to honor Sgt. William Henry Johnson, a Black hero of World War I who received the Medal of Honor nearly a century later. Fort Johnson had previously been named after a Confederate commander, Leonidas Polk. The renaming is part of the militarys efforts to address historic racial injusticework that included changing the names of nine Army posts that commemorated Confederate officers, the AP reports.

"Sgt. William Henry Johnson embodied the warrior spirit, and we are deeply honored to bear his name," said Brig. Gen. David Garner, the commanding general of the Joint Readiness Training Center at Fort Johnson. While serving on the front lines of France in 1918, Johnson fought off a German night raid near the Argonne Forest, according to the National Museum of the United States Army. Johnson was wounded 21 times while beating back the attacking forces. He also prevented a wounded Black comrade from being taken prisoner when, after running out of grenades and ammunition, he killed two German soldiers with his knife.

"His frantic attacks broke the German morale and the enemy raiding party retreated," the Army museum's biography of Johnson says. He survived the war, and former President Theodore Roosevelt named him one of the five bravest Americans to serve in the conflict. He insisted he was no hero, and the Army biography quotes him as saying, "There wasnt anything so fine about it. Just fought for my life. A rabbit would have done that." His brave actions were recognized nearly a century later when he was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor in 2015 "for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty."

However, Johnson's actions were not recognized by the Army, which denied him a disability allowance and did not award him a Purple Heart. Due to his injuries, he struggled after returning home to Albany, New York, and died of a heart condition in 1929. He was 32 years old. The current process of renaming nine Army posts marks the first time bases will be named after Black soldiers and women. Earlier this month, Fort Bragg in North Carolina became Fort Liberty. Fort Benning in Georgia was renamed Fort Moore last month. (Read more US Army stories.)
UPDATE

Jun 14, 2023 5:31 PM CDT

Joceyln Chia says it is "ridiculous" for Malaysian police to get Interpol involved in their investigation of a joke she made about missing flight MH370. The American comedian tells the BBC that she joked about the flight in a New York City comedy club and a clip posted on social media was "out of context." "Americans can appreciate humor that is harsher, edgier, and more in-your-face, as compared to in Asia where the stand-up comedy scene is still in its early days," she says. "You won't find a lot of edgy comedy in Asia." She says she wishes she "could have seen the face of the Interpol officer who received this request." Interpol, contradicting claims made by Malaysian police, says it has not received a request for assistance.

Jun 14, 2023 1:31 AM CDT

US comedian Jocelyn Chia has come under fire in Malaysia after a joke she made about MH370, the Malaysia Airlines flight that went missing in 2014 and which has never been found, and now the country wants Interpol to get involved in its investigation of the comic. Chia, who is American-Singaporean and held dual citizenship until adulthood, is a "prominent performer" in New York, where she made the joke during a stand-up set, the BBC reports. Referring to the rivalry between Singapore and Malaysia, Chia said that while Singapore is now a "first-world country," Malaysia is still "developing" and its airplanes "cannot fly."
Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker on Monday signed into law a bill that he says will make Illinois the first state in the nation to outlaw book bans, the AP reports. Illinois public libraries that restrict or ban materials because of partisan or doctrinal disapproval will be ineligible for state funding as of Jan. 1, 2024, when the new law goes into effect. We are not saying that every book should be in every single library, said Illinois Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias, who is also the state librarian and was the driving force behind the legislation. What this law does is it says, lets trust our experience and education of our librarians to decide what books should be in circulation.

The new law comes into play as states across the US push to remove certain books in schools and libraries, especially those with LGBTQ+ themes and by people of color. The American Library Association in March announced that attempts to censor books in schools and public libraries reached a 20-year high in 2022twice as many as 2021, the previous record. Illinois legislation responds to disturbing circumstances of censorship and an environment of suspicion, said Deborah Caldwell-Stone, director of the American Library Associations Office for Intellectual Freedom and executive director of the Freedom to Read Foundation.

To be eligible for state funds, Illinois public libraries must adopt the American Library Associations Library Bill of Rights, which holds that materials should not be excluded because of the origin, background, or views of those contributing to their creation, or subscribe to a similar pledge. Despite Giannoulias' assertion that this should not be a Democrat or Republican issue, lawmakers' approval of the bill splintered across party lines, with Republicans in opposition.

(Read more Illinois stories.)
Atomic Wallet Users Lose Over $100 Million In Crypto Breach

Source: Pexels.com

Digital asset tracking firm, Elliptic, has revealed that losses suffered by users of Atomic Wallet have escalated to more than $100 million.

It appears that over 5,500 wallets linked to this crypto storage platform have been compromised.

We have received reports of wallets being compromised. We are doing all we can to investigate and analyse the situation. As we have more information, we will share it accordingly.



For any questions and concerns, contact [email protected]  Atomic - Crypto Wallet (@AtomicWallet) June 3, 2023

Despite the magnitude of the breach, Atomic Wallet has yet to provide an explanation for the losses.

The company, which acknowledged the reports of compromised wallets via a June 3rd tweet, confirmed that fewer than 1% of its users were affected. This equates to about 5,000 users given the company's claim to have around five million clients. But, in the volatile realm of cryptocurrency, even such a small percentage can translate to significant monetary losses.

Lazarus Connection: North Korea Rears Its Head Once More

Elliptic, known for its advanced tracking and security analysis in the crypto space, has indicated that the Lazarus Group is behind this breach.

The Lazarus Group, which is allegedly connected to North Korea, has an infamous reputation in the crypto community, having stolen over $2 billion in digital assets across multiple attacks.

If the attribution stands, this will be the first major crypto theft linked to the group since the $100 million Horizon Bridge exploit in June 2022.

Since then, Elliptic has been working relentlessly to recover the stolen assets. Collaborating with numerous investigators and exchanges worldwide, the company has managed to trace and freeze more than $1 million in stolen assets.

In response to these events, renowned cybersecurity and crypto expert, Dr. Sarah Brown, commented, "This recent breach is a stark reminder of the ongoing risks in the cryptocurrency market. It also illustrates the essential need for advanced security protocols and constant vigilance on the part of all stakeholders.

The crypto industry, while offering immense possibilities, is still a field where security breaches can lead to significant financial losses."

She further emphasized, "The swift response and efforts of digital forensics companies like Elliptic, in tracking and freezing stolen assets, show that we are becoming more adept at navigating these challenges.

"Nonetheless, individual users need to stay informed and cautious, especially in choosing their storage platforms and exchanges."

Atomic Wallet Goes Dark As Clients Wait And Hope

Those affected have taken to social media to voice their dismay both at the theft and at Atomic Wallet's apparent lack of action and communication in the aftermath of the breach.



I'm a teacher. my life savings was stolen from me! "1%" makes it feel like its no big deal -I just want you to know that that 20k may feel small to you, but it was years of work to me.I don't feel like you are even worried about me. I've received a couple emails, nothing more.  Brittiney Boyle (@brittineyb2012) June 9, 2023

@AtomicWallet any update today !!

it's been a week already that our money has been stolen because of your security beginner, patiently waiting for our money to come back.  Oussamax (@Oussamax_Crypto) June 10, 2023

It's very frustrating when I think about stolen money with no updates. https://t.co/masI14x0QV  Muhammad Madni (@Muhamma54523585) June 11, 2023

Navigating the Crypto Underworld: The Garantex Exchange

Interestingly, the measures taken following the Horizon heist to freeze the stolen funds last year seem to have triggered a shift in the perpetrator's tactics.

North Korea has now turned to the Russian-based exchange, Garantex, to launder the illicitly gained assets. Notably, Garantex was sanctioned by the US Department of the Treasury in April 2022 for its role in facilitating the laundering of funds derived from ransomware and darknet markets.

Despite the sanctions, the exchange continues to function.

Thanks to Elliptic's exhaustive research and unique intelligence on crypto wallets used by Garantex, customers can steer clear of transacting with this sanctioned entity.

The cybersecurity firm's response to this incident serves as a strong testament to the digital forensics capabilities available in the crypto space, helping to maintain trust in an industry that's still gaining its footing in the mainstream market.

CryptoNews.com has reached out to Atomic Wallet and Eliptic for comment.
A woman who failed to accept that her affair with a married man was over showed up in disguise at the home of his wife, then proceeded to stab her with a carving knife she'd hidden in a bouquet of flowers. Clare Bailey of the UK, who pleaded guilty to attempted murder after the attack last year, has been sentenced to 22 years and four months in prison, North Yorkshire Police announced Friday. "This was a horrific attack on an innocent and blameless lady who is now unable to feel safe in her own home, work, or spend time independently with her children, as a result," said Senior Investigating Officer Jonathan Sygrove. He said the victim, identified as 43-year-old Emma, was hospitalized for more than a month with injuries to her neck, chest, stomach, and arms. "All she did was open the front door to her home," Sygrove noted.

Bailey, 44, had called in sick to work on June 23, 2022, per the York Press. According to police, she drove about 140 miles from her home in the West Midlands town of Dudley to the victim's home in Harrogate, North Yorkshire, stopping at a grocery store along the way to purchase flowers. She then rang the doorbell of the victim's home holding the bouquet, inside of which she'd concealed a large carving knife. "These are for you," Emma recalled the stranger concealed in a red wig, face mask, and sunglasses saying as she opened her door. Just as Emma noticed the handle of a knife, Bailey began her attack. Emma said her 14-year-old daughter answered her cries for help. "I honestly don't think I would still be here if she hadn't been home that day," she said.

Bailey ultimately fled and drove home, where she was arrested in the early hours on June 25. "It soon became clear the level of planning Bailey had put in place and the little regard she had for anyone getting in the way of what she wanted," said Sygrove, per the police release. Police determined the woman had had an affair with Emma's husband, though the relationship "had ended several months before the offense took place, something which Bailey had struggled to accept." Stating the obvious, Emma noted, "This was not a normal reaction to someone breaking up a relationship." She added she underwent extensive surgery but is "still in pain every day" and needs crutches or a wheelchair to get around, per CBS News. "I've lost all my independence," she said. "I have just lost my whole life really." (Read more attempted murder stories.)
The four children who survived 40 days in the Amazon rainforest after their plane crashed in the Colombian jungle were fleeing their home region in southern Colombia at the time. That's according to Manuel Ranoque, the father of the two youngest children, who are ages 5 and 1, the New York Times reports. He says an armed group known for recruiting children by force had taken control of the region, and the family feared for their kids, all of whom are from the Huitoto Indigenous group. They were on the plane with their mother and two other adults, all of whom were killed (though their mother apparently survived a few days).
Starbucks must pay $25 million to a former regional manager fired because she is white, a federal jury ruled Monday. Shannon Phillips, who oversaw 100 stores in four states, was relieved from her position in the weeks after what Starbucks CEO Kevin Johnson called a "reprehensible" incident at a Philadelphia location in April 2018. Two Black men who were waiting for a third person to arrive had asked to use the restroom without placing an order and were refused. Eventually, they were asked to leave. When they declined, a manager called police, resulting in the men's arrests. The incident prompted intense backlash and protests . Starbucks ultimately closed all 8,000 US stores for racial bias training and changed its policy so that a purchase wasn't required to use a store bathroom.

In the aftermath, Phillips said she was asked by a Black supervisor to suspend a white manager who oversaw stores in Philadelphia, though not the location where the incident occurred, because of allegations that the man engaged in discriminatory conduct, per the New York Times. Phillips said she resisted because she knew the allegations to be untrue and was subsequently fired. She said she was given no comment on her job performance but simply told that "the situation is not recoverable." In her initial lawsuit, she said Starbucks "took steps to punish white employees who had not been involved in the arrests, but who worked in and around the city of Philadelphia, in an effort to convince the community that it had properly responded to the incident," per Quartz.

In court, Starbucks argued Phillips failed as a leader. But Paul Sykes, the manager of the Philadelphia location where the incident occurred, who'd promoted the employee who called police, testified that he'd faced no discipline, per Law.com. The Black man argued his race protected him, while Phillips' was her downfall in this case. The federal jury in New Jersey unanimously sided with Phillips, deciding Starbucks violated her federal civil rights and state laws against racial discrimination, and awarded her $600,000 in compensatory damages and $25 million in punitive damages. Her lawyer will also seek $3 million for past and future lost pay, plus $1 million to cover legal fees, to be awarded at a later date, per Law.com. (Starbucks agreed to pay the college tuitions of the arrested men.)
A Canadian school's track-and-field meet turned distressing for one young athlete after an attendee accused her of being a boy. The incident, first reported in Castanet , took place Thursday at Kelowna's Apple Bowl Stadium, where Heidi Starr's 9-year-daughter was preparing to compete in the meet's fourth grade shot-put event, Starr tells the local news outlet. "As my daughter was preparing to get up and throw, a man came out of the crowd, stepped forward, and walked [toward] a parent volunteer and said, 'This is a girls eventwhy are boys throwing?" Starr tells the CBC . Starr was initially confused, per CTV , until she realized the man was pointing at her child, a girl with a short pixie haircut.

Starr says the man, the grandfather of another competitor, also thought another little girl with short hair was a boy. She notes that when she tried to correct him, he insisted her child and the other girl were either boys or transgender and demanded to see a certificate proving her daughter was a girl. Starr adds that the man's wife then jumped into the fray, screaming that she and her ex-wife, Kari Starr, were "genital mutilators" and "groomers." Starr says her daughter was in tears for the rest of the day, her birthday. She also says her daughter thinks she would've placed in her event had the man not been yelling about her.

The man, since identified as Josef Tesar, is now denying Starr's account of what happened to Castanet. Tesar says he walked up to an official to quietly ask if the event was co-ed, and that Starr was the one who approached him yelling and cursing, asking him if he wanted "to see [the girl] naked" or inspect her genitals. "I said, 'No, the certificate is OK,'" he tells Castanet. He says he's not sorry for asking whether the event was co-ed, and that Starr and her ex-wife made up "lies and hate toward us." His wife, Krista Tesar, denies using the words "genital mutilator" or "groomer," but concedes she may have yelled something like "F--- off."

Kevin Kaardal, superintendent of Central Okanagan Public Schools, says the Tesars have been banned from any future school events taking place on district property. "We expect that adults who are invited to celebrate student success govern their behavior and conduct themselves with the civility and respect we expect from students," he notes in a statement. "This kind of hate is not acceptable or welcome in British Columbia," David Eby, British Columbia's premier, tweeted Tuesday. "Let's keep calling out transphobia when we see it." (Read more transphobia stories.)
Late last year, California's Ventura County acquired a new state-of-the-art helicopter to be used in search and rescue operations by the county's Aviation Unit. As a heart-stopping video that emerged last week shows, that chopper is already paying off big time. The footage originally released on the division's Twitter account Friday shows the helicopter hovering over the ocean as crew members pull up an 18-year-old woman who'd driven her car off the Pacific Coast Highway earlier that day, reports NBC News .

According to the California Highway Patrol, the woman had been driving her Mercedes along the highway north of Malibu just after 1pm Friday when her car went off the road for reasons unknown. The vehicle went tumbling down onto the rocks below and flipped over, per authorities. They say the woman was able to get out of the car on her own but couldn't get back up the bluffs.

The video shows the helicopter lingering "dizzyingly above the coast," per NBC, with one rescuer peering downward to the shoreline below, where the woman was waiting near crashing waves. Viewers see just the lower part of the first rescuer's body, as well as their hand holding on to the hoist line as it pulls up another crew member tethered to the woman's stretcher. She was taken to a local hospital with major injuries, the CHP notes. (Read more rescue stories.)
Americans in the Deep South might want to find a nice Yankee cousin to visit for a couple of days, because the weather is looking to be, shall we say, unpleasant? As Weather.com reports, a strong jet stream is ripping through the region starting Wednesday, bringing with it severe thunderstorms, large hail, high winds of up to 80mph, and possible tornadoes. In the line of fire: southern Arkansas, northern Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, northern Florida, and southern South Carolina, though ABC News notes that the "bull's-eye" for the weather pattern runs from Jackson, Mississippi, to Montgomery, Alabama, to Albany, Georgia.

Also on the menu for the Lower Mississippi Valley is a possible derecho, or straight-line storm, which tends to be devastating to trees, power lines, buildings, and the like. Flash flooding is also possible, particularly in southeast Alabama and southwest Georgia. It's expected to also be unbearably hot: ABC notes that a heat wave is running from Florida to Louisiana to Texas, where temps are supposed to hit 98 in Austin and 110 in Laredo, with a heat index of 119. Those temperatures are predicted to continue into Friday. (Read more severe weather stories.)
The European Parliament voted to approve the EU AI Act Wednesday, which the AP reports puts what would be some of the first major AI regulations just a few steps away from becoming law. The Washington Post reports the act would place "unprecedented restrictions" on companies' use of AI. Under the act, AI systems would be classified as one of four levels of risk, from minimal (think uses involving video games or spam filters) to unacceptable. Those deemed as presenting "unacceptable" risksthe Post gives predictive policing tools, which use data to classify who will commit crimes, as an examplewould be banned.

Particular scrutiny would fall on uses that could lead to human harm, like AI systems involved in running critical infrastructure. The New York Times reports that before AI systems could go live, their makers would have to complete risk assessments, a process the paper likens to the drug approval process. The legislation would also requiring content created by chatbots like ChatGPT to be labeled, and would require companies to document and publish summaries of what copyrighted data it used to train their AI systems.

As the AP explains, that would enable content creators to know whether "their blog posts, digital books, scientific articles, or songs have been used to train algorithms that power systems like ChatGPT. Then they could decide whether their work has been copied and seek redress." Tech companies counter that such a requirement is "technically infeasible," per the Times.

The Times reports the EU is paces ahead of the United States when it comes to such regulations; indeed, these were first proposed in 2021. Sen Chuck Schumer told the Post it'll likely be fall before lawmakers are ready to consider legislation. A final version of the AI Act is expected to pass by year's end. (Read more artificial intelligence stories.)
Kevin Spacey's trial on sexual assault charges in the UK begins later this monthand the actor is aiming to make a comeback as soon as it's over. "I know that there are people right now who are ready to hire me the moment I am cleared of these charges in London," he told Germany's ZEITmagazin in an interview published Wednesday. "The second that happens, theyre ready to move forward." Spacey is due to appear at Westminster Magistrates' Court in London Friday ahead of a trial set to begin June 28, per the Hollywood Reporter . He faces 12 charges connected to alleged sexual assaults on three men.

Last year, a jury in Manhattan sided with Spacey in a sexual assault lawsuit from actor Anthony Rapp. Spacey believes he will prevail in the British criminal trial as well. "The moment scrutiny is applied, these things fall apart," he told ZEITmagazin. "Thats what happened in the Rapp trial, and thats what will happen in this case." Spacey told the publication that he's "still processing" the fallout from accusations made early in the #MeToo movement, when he was abruptly dropped from House of Cards, reports NBC.

"It's a time in which a lot of people are very afraid that if they support me, they will be canceled," Spacey said. The actor, whose trial is expected to last around four weeks, predicted that the allegations would be forgotten a decade from now. "My work will live longer than I will, and thats what will be remembered," he said. (In January, Spacey made his first public appearance since 2017.)
Pleas from pastors whose churches are being expelled because they're led by women failed to persuade Southern Baptists to reverse their decision. Delegates made the expulsions from the denomination final at their annual convention in New Orleans, the New York Times reports, despite emotional speeches from the leaders of the two congregations. Rick Warren, who founded Saddleback Church in Southern California, told the delegates that famed evangelist Billy Graham had once said his daughter, Anne, was "the best preacher" in the Graham family.

"No one is asking any Southern Baptist to change their theology," Warren said. "I am not asking you to agree with our church. I am asking you to act like Southern Baptists who have historically 'agreed to disagree' on dozens of doctrines in order to share a common mission." Fern Creek Baptist Church in Louisville was the other congregation ousted, with more than 90% of delegates voting for removal. Nearly as many voted to kick out Saddleback, the second-largest church in the denomination. The votes were taken Tuesday and announced Wednesday.

The margins surprised Fern Creeks pastor, the Rev. Linda Barnes Popham, who also addressed the meeting. "I thought there were more people left in the Southern Baptist Convention who support the autonomy of the local church, if not women in ministry," she said. Baptist churches are independent, per the AP, but the convention can rule them "not in friendly cooperation"which expels them. It's apparently the first time a congregation has been kicked out for having a female pastor, though the denomination's theological statement says the office is for qualified men. Warren told delegates that statement is 4,032 words. "Saddleback disagrees with one word," he said. "Thats 99.99999999% in agreement! Isnt that close enough?" The crowd roared "No!" (Read more Southern Baptist Convention stories.)
Some people suffer from sleepwalking; an Illinois man apparently has a problem with sleepshooting. Police say 62-year-old Lake Barrington resident Mark Dicara dreamed that someone had broken into his home and he shot the "intruder," CBS reports. He woke uppresumably abruptlyto find that he had shot himself in the leg with his .357 Magnum. "The round discharged from the firearm went through Dicaras leg and lodged itself into Dicaras bedding," police said in a press release . "Fortunately, the round did not travel through a shared wall with Dicaras neighbors."

Police said that when they arrived at the scene on April 10, Dicara was losing a "significant amount of blood." He was hospitalized and officers confirmed there had been no burglary attempt. Dicara was arrested after investigators discovered that his Firearm Owners Identification card had been revoked. Police did not disclose the reason why the card, which is mandatory for gun owners in the state, was revoked. Dicara has been charged with two felonies: possession of a firearm without a valid FOID card and reckless discharge of a firearm. He was arrested on Monday and released after posting $150,000 bond, Fox 32 reports. (Read more strange stuff stories.)
Brazil Central Bank Unveils CBDC, Tokenization Events  Digital Real Rollout Imminent?

Source: monticellllo/Adobe

Brazils Central Bank, the Banco Central do Brasil (BCB), has unveiled a roadmap of events ahead of the nations CBDC rollout.

In an official BCB release, the bank stated that it would also begin assessing the possibility of enabling the launch of tokenized assets.

The BCB unveiled a list of monthly webinars as part of its digital real platform development.

The events will run until November and will see the bank, fintech experts, and BCB partners discuss CBDC rollouts, as well as the results of the BCBs own digital real pilot.

The pilot is now moving into advanced stages ahead of a slated rollout next year.

Several high-profile companies were unveiled as digital real partners last month.

These include the crypto-keen neobanking unicorn Nubank.

A small number of domestic crypto firms were also included as consortium members.

Policy-making working groups will also meet until November to discuss tokenized assets and CBDC-related matters.

The BCB said the groups would look to compare the Brazilian experience with international scenarios.

They also want to study of the impact of the use of distributed ledger technology and blockchain technology on services and markets.

And the central bank said it wanted the groups to examine the cybersecurity credentials of existing tokenization solutions.

Bitcoin prices versus the fiat BRL over the past month. (Source: XE.com)

Brazil Central Banks CBDC and Tokenization Plans

The working groups will also be tasked with examining the legal framework surrounding tokenization and the eventual proposal of regulatory amendments.

A discussion forum with other regulators and market participants was also touted.

Academic, industry insiders, regulators, and international organizations will be invited to contribute to the webinars and meetings, the bank said.

The central bank has previously stated that it wants to launch a digital fiat in 2024 following its behind-closed-doors pilot.

The bank has also promised that its CBDC will differ from others by aiming to aid domestic startups.

The BCB said that while other banks CBDC projects are focusing on retail markets, the Brazilian token will foster new business in the financial services sector.
Fairbanks, AK (99707)

Today

Mostly cloudy this morning. A few showers developing during the afternoon. High 78F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 30%..

Tonight

Mostly cloudy skies this evening. A few showers developing late. Low 61F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 30%.
European Central Bank Would Need To Set Limits on Use of Digital Euro Under Draft Proposal: Bloomberg

Source: Adobe

The European Unions executive branch will unveil plans for a digital euro that would require the European Central Bank to set limits on its use, according to a report from Bloomberg News .

The ECB would have to decide on the instruments needed to ensure financial stability, according to a draft European Commission proposal on setting up a digital euro obtained by Bloomberg.

With a view to ensuring the stability of the financial system, the availability of credit and the transmission of monetary policy, the use of the digital euro as a store of value may be subject to limits, the draft proposal said, according to Bloomberg.

European Union finance ministers will meet on Thursday in Luxembourg to discuss the project, according to Bloomberg.

The EU is contemplating launching the central bank digital currency and launched an investigation phase in October 2021.

That phase is expected to conclude in October of this year, according to the ECBs website .

We are looking at how a digital euro could be designed and distributed, as well as the impact it could have on the market. Then, we will decide whether to start the process of actually developing it, the ECB said.

Around the world

The US Treasury is also actively looking into the potential of a US CBDC, most recently focusing on privacy, an official said on Tuesday .

Some US politicians, including Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, have argued that a CBDC would violate privacy and said it promotes  government-sanctioned surveillance .

Advocates say CBDCs can provide better financial services to their citizens.

Elsewhere eleven countries so far have launched a CBDC and all G7 economies have moved into the development stage of a CBDC, according to the Atlantic Council .

Now 114 countries, representing over 95 percent of global gross domestic product, are exploring a CBDC, when in May 2020, only 35 countries were considering it, the council said.
TDT | Manama

The Daily Tribune  www.newsofbahrain.com

The Manama Gold Festival 2023 second edition, under the patronage of Tourism Minister Fatima Bint Jaffer Al Sairafi, came to a successful close yesterday.

Bahrain Tourism and Exhibitions Authority (BTEA) board members, Souq Al Manama development committee members, representatives of the business community, and gold traders attended the closing ceremony held at Bab Al Bahrain.

This years edition witnessed a huge success, with 5,543 shoppers recorded over the course of 45 days, representing 61 nationalities worldwide, up 257% from 1,549 shoppers from 12 nationalities the previous year.

From April 13 to May 31, the festival hosted five weekly draws on a total of 62 raffle prizes, along with two grand prizes and 13 weekly winners.

It featured 416 gold, jewellery, and pearl shops in Souq Al Manama, up from 203 shops in the first version of 2022, a 105% increase.

This years festival provided weekly, instant, and grand prizes, as well as informative and artistic installations about Bahraini gold history by Bahraini artists and designers.

In addition to organising a pop-up market, including F&B trucks, women's outwear vendors, and wood crafts vendors.

Workshops were held specialising in gold, its types, price, raw gold, the art of goldsmithing, the art of designing and applying jewellery in the classroom, and 3D-style drawing on paper.

The festival also hosted live music shows featuring The Brother Guitarists, Hazem Alrawas, Silvia Saad, Abdulla Haji, Noor Albasri, and Basma Osman.

Positive impact

"We are delighted to bring the second edition of the Manama Gold Festival 2023 to a successful conclusion that has a positive impact by adding more splendour and glows to Souq Al Manamas long-standing genuineness with its renowned trade and tourist history," Al Sairafi said.

"The festivals success story will undoubtedly pave the way towards achieving the tourism strategy 2022-2026 and accelerating tourism development strides, which in turn will boost this promising industrys contribution to the national economy."

Dr. Nasser Qaedi, CEO of BTEA, said: "We are pleased with the success of this festival, recording a high level of visitors attending this years festival from locals, expats, and tourists from around the globe."

The festival grossed around BD4 million with over 8,400 receipts, a 220% increase from BD1.25 million in 2022.

These overwhelming factors reflect the excellent reputation of Bahraini gold and jewellery and their ultimate desirability among shoppers.

We at BTEA recommit to adopting innovative and out-of-the-box tourism offerings to diversify tourism products in order to attract more tourists and new markets."

Impressive outcome

Nabeel Al Zain, Bahrain Gold Association Chairman, said: "We are thrilled with the festivals impressive outcome this year.

The BD4 million spent mirrors Manama Golds amazing achievement, drawing many buyers and tourists and playing a vital role in gold trade recovery in one of the oldest and most genuine markets regionally and globally."

We are looking forward to enhancing our cooperation with BTEA to sustain and develop this festival for many years to come."

Sayed Fadhel Sharaf, Souq Al Manama development committee member and "Hekayat Al Manama" initiative founder, said: "The Manama Gold Festival has been a valuable addition to the Manama Souq that markedly helped this historic market to recover with diverse shopping options, primarily the well-known Bahraini gold and jewellery."

We highly appreciate the Ministry of Tourism and BTEAs relentless efforts to level up Bahrains tourism, which will positively affect the Manama Souq development process."

There are 32 gold shops sponsoring the festivals prizes this year, mainly: Malabar Jewellery, Jumbo Gold, Alseef Jewellery, Mashallah City, Altawheed Jewellery, Alhashimi Pearls, Aljasrah Jewellery, Alsharhan Pearls, Niyaz Pearls, Manama Pearl, Bin Naser Jewellery, Alnafeeseh Jewellery, Tbabat Al Bahrain Jewellery, and Bahar Jewellery.
AFP | Washington

The Daily Tribune  www.newsofbahrain.com

The US is increasingly frustrated with Sudans warring generals and will decide in the coming days with its partners how to proceed on mediation, officials said yesterday.

We think weve given them every shot, a senior State Department official said on condition of anonymity. The US, which has led negotiations with the Saudis in their port city of Jeddah, has offered to the generals a way forward that doesnt involve achieving an outcome thats based on violence or military dominance.

They are clearly not taking advantage of the format that weve given them, the official told reporters. The United States is consulting with Saudi Arabia and other Arab and African states about the next way forward.

I think well come forward with a recommended approach in the next few days. The US and Saudi Arabia had already warned on Saturday that they could suspend mediation efforts after the collapse of multiple ceasefires. Violence erupted in mid-April between the Sudanese army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, which refused to integrate as part of a plan to transition to civilian rule.

I think a real question that were facing is how much more mileage do we think you might get out of Jeddah on that step-by-step approach? another US official said. More than 1,800 people have been killed and nearly two million displaced by the fighting, according to the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project.

Saudi Arabia yesterday also announced an international conference next week to gather aid pledges for Sudan. The US has employed sanctions and other tactics to pressure Sudanese army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and his former deputy turned rival Mohamed Hamdan Daglo.
This years annual celebration of LGBTQ+ Pride during the month of June has a decidedly different tone. Due to recent political and social backlash, the celebratory nature has become a bit more subdued and more intently focused on education, history and advocacy for the community.

This shift is abundantly clear in the Penny Gallerys annual Prisms and Pride exhibition, which is a highlight of Carlisle Pride.

That is not to say that there is any lack of joy, color and love. Fifteen artists shared 20 pieces of art that inspire, educate, as well as honor LGBTQ+ folks. The gathering of artists included in this years exhibit communicates the positive and inspiring messages of Pride Month while reinforcing the cultural importance of the contributions of the LGBTQ+ community.

Carol Reeds mixed media installation titled Glowing with Pride encourages the LGBTQ+ community to shine wherever they are. She celebrates the vibrant spirit and the multifaceted nature of LGBTQ+ identity with a series of hanging lanterns, each of which is unique and perfect in its imperfections like each person. Reed shares that she hopes, the light shed by these lanterns will serve as a symbol of hope, acceptance and enlightenment.

Katie Sebastians The Kiss extols passion that knows no boundaries. The intricately cut and layered multi-colored cardstock creates an almost sculptural portrayal of an intimate moment between two people, without regard to gender or orientation. It simply and beautifully expresses the intense feeling of an embrace.

In a series of three copperplate etchings, Henry Pluta examines the intersection of the spiritual and the profane. Confessional, (He Has no name) and Hymns IV blend religious iconography and an intense interest in the physical form. Plutas works subvert traditional notions of desire, suffering and submission while expertly detailing the Classical male nude.

Fight for the Right (to Exist) from Max Donnelly is a digital creation that unabashedly encourages the trans community to stand up and fight for themselves. A fist bursts through the paint-splattered paper as a symbol of defiance in the face of opposition.

The right of trans folks to exist as our true selves is an invaluable part of human diversity, Donnelly echoed the same spirit with which the Pride movement was founded. We challenge societal norms, educate others and pave the way for a more inclusive and equitable future. Our fight is not just for ourselves  it is a fight for justice, equity, and ultimately the fundamental dignity of all people.

LGBTQ+ history is the inspiration for a trio of Raku ceramics by Liz Roderick. Purposely referencing the flower code, an element of queer history, Roderick hopes to inspire viewers to learn more about the queer backstory and the fight for acceptance and equality. A female form with the imprint of lavender in Ode to the Lavender Menace, a small vase for Flowers for Dorothy, and the miniature lamp of Night of Green Carnations were done in a Raku style firing, with a mix of glazes designed to create rainbow effects.

Since the pieces were created with fire and come out in a blaze of color, it was noted that fire always leaves a mark. Roderick states that this work was inspired by the resiliency of the queer community and all the ways in which we find light within our struggles.

Lee Rowleys Conflicted is a digital print of a torso that has been torn in half and scorched. The torso is divided, representing masculine and feminine halves. Though the halves of the figure appear to fit together, they are separated in a way that imparts a feeling of incompatibility, perhaps referring to the feeling of gender dysphoria that is often referred to within the transgender community.

Alison Rosens Banned Book Breastplate, composed of brass, plastic and resin, is a tribute to all authors, especially those authors who identify as LBGTQ+, who put their personal stories out to the world and support those who struggle and triumph. With all the controversy both locally and nationally regarding the proposed and actual censorship of books, especially those with LBGTQ+ themes, Rosens defiant celebration of the power of books is particularly poignant.

The 2023 edition of Prisms & Pride is reflective of the many facets of Pride month. From the celebration of the arts created for and by the LGBTQ+ community, to communicating the importance of advocacy for the rights of that same community, the Penny Gallery has assembled an exhibition of which it should be proud.

Visitors to the Penny Gallery are invited to vote for the Peoples Choice Award Winner from the group of artists represented in Prisms & Pride. The artist earning the most votes by the end of June will win a week-long solo exhibit in the Penny Gallery in 2024. Additionally, in support of the local LGBTQ+ community, the Penny Gallery will be donating the 25% sales commission to the YWCA of Carlisle and Cumberland Countys Rainbow Collective during the exhibition.

Prisms & Pride is on exhibit through July 1 at the Penny Gallery. The Pond Artist Studios & Penny Gallery is located at 32 W. Pomfret St., Carlisle. Entrance to the gallery is free and open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Thursdays and Fridays and 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturdays. For more information, visit thepennygallery.com or call 717-245-0382.
VANCOUVER, BC, June 14, 2023 /CNW/ - C21 Investments Inc. (CSE: CXXI) (OTCQX: CXXIF) ("C21" or the "Company"), a vertically integrated cannabis company, today announced the filing of its audited financial statements and management discussion and analysis for its fiscal year ended January 31, 2023 on SEDAR. The Company's audited fiscal year end are prepared in accordance with U.S. Generally Accepted Accounting Principles ("GAAP"). All currency is reported in U.S. dollars.

Audited Fiscal Year Financial Highlights (February 1, 2022 to January 31, 2023):

Revenue of $28.9 million  down 12% year-over-year; state of Nevada cannabis sales were down 16% over the comparative period 1

 down 12% year-over-year; state of cannabis sales were down 16% over the comparative period Net Income from Continuing Operations of $1.4 million (increase of $0.4 million from unaudited results reported in the June 2, 2023 news release)

Earnings Per Share from Continuing Operations of $0.01

Gross Margin of 46.4%; Adjusted Gross Profit Margin 2 of 49.0%

of 49.0% Adjusted EBITDA 2 of $7.4 million  a 26% EBITDA Margin

of  a 26% EBITDA Margin Cash Flow from Operations of $6.0 million  a fourth consecutive year of positive quarterly Free Cash Flow 2

 a fourth consecutive year of positive quarterly Free Cash Flow Total Liabilities reduced by $4.1 million ( $0.3 million further reduction from unaudited results reported in the June 2, 2023 news release)

Senior Note reduced by $6.1 million , with remaining balance fully retired as of June 1, 2023

Changes to the Unaudited Year End Financial Results previously released on June 2, 2023:

The Company previously disclosed its unaudited financial results for the year ended January 31, 2023 in its June 2, 2023 news release (the "Prior News Release"). There have been no changes to Revenue, Gross Profit, Income from Operations, adjusted EBITDA2, or Cash Flow from Operations in the audited financial results as compared to the unaudited financial results disclosed in the Prior News Release.

There are no material changes from the unaudited financial results disclosed in the Prior News Release other than the adjustments to Net Income from Continuing Operations and Net Income in the current period due to the tax provision changes previously disclosed in the Prior News Release and the news release dated June 6, 2023. Changes to the Prior News Release's Income Statement and Balance Sheet for the current and the comparative previous period are listed below as well as highlighted in red in the summary tables provided.

The British Columbia Securities Commission ("BCSC") issued a cease trade order (the "CTO") on June 6, 2023 in respect of the Company's securities in connection with the delay in the Company filing its audited consolidated financial statement for the year ended January 31, 2023, annual management's discussion and analysis for the same period and management certifications of annual filings (collectively, the "Annual Filings"). The Company has provided notice to the British Columbia Securities Commission ("BCSC") of the completion of the Annual Filings and has been informed that the CTO will be revoked June 15, 2023.

"We are pleased to announce the release of our audited year-end financial statements. We appreciate the patience of our shareholders during this delay while our tax provision changes for our previous fiscal year were corrected and restated," stated CEO and President, Sonny Newman.

_______________________________ 1 State of Nevada Cannabis Tax Revenue: https://tax.nv.gov/Publications/Cannabis_Statistics_and_Reports/ 2 "Free Cash Flow", "Adjusted Gross Profit", "Adjusted Gross Profit Margin" and "Adjusted EBITDA" and are non-GAAP measures. See "Non-GAAP Measures" below for a discussion of such non-GAAP measures and a reconciliation to the closest comparable GAAP measures.

Non-GAAP Measures:

C21 reports its financial results in accordance with GAAP and uses a number of financial measures when assessing its results and measuring overall performance. Some of these financial measures and ratios are not calculated in accordance with GAAP. The Company refers to certain Non-GAAP financial measures such as "Free Cash Flow", "Adjusted Gross Profit", "Adjusted Gross Profit Margin" and "Adjusted EBITDA". These measures do not have any standardized meanings prescribed by GAAP and may not be comparable to similar measures presented by other issuers. The Company considers these measures to be an important indicator of the financial strength and performance of its business. The Company believes the adjusted results presented provide relevant and useful information for investors because they clarify the Company's actual operating performance, make it easier to compare the Company's results with those of other companies and allow investors to review performance in the same way as the management of the Company. Since these measures are not calculated in accordance with GAAP, they should not be considered in isolation of, or as a substitute for, the Company's reported results as indicators of the Company's performance, and they may not be comparable to similarly named measures from other companies. The tables below provide reconciliations of Non-GAAP measures to the most directly comparable GAAP measures.

"Free Cash Flow" is defined as Cash Provided by Operating Activities from Continuing Operations in a period minus capital expenses of property and equipment. Management believes that Free Cash Flow, which measures our ability to generate additional cash from our continuing business operations, is an important financial measure for use in evaluating the Company's financial performance. Free Cash Flow should be considered in addition to, rather than as a substitute for, consolidated net income as a measure of our performance and net cash provided by operating activities as a measure of our liquidity.

Free Cash Flow:

Fiscal Year Ended January 31, 2023

January 31, 2022







Cash Provided by Operating Activities from

Continuing Operations 5,971,267

8,438,609 Purchase of Property and Equipment (442,285)

(2,562,304) Free Cash Flow 5,528,982

5,876,305

"Adjusted Gross Profit" and "Adjusted Gross Profit Margin" are defined as Gross Profit and Gross Profit Margin adjusted for certain material non-cash items including the one-time relief of fair value of inventory on acquisition, non-cash write downs of inventory, non-recurring expenses related to the strategic maintenance of cultivation facilities and other one-time adjustments to gross profit that management does not believe are reflective of ongoing operations.

Adjusted Gross Profit:

Fiscal Year Ended January 31, 2023

January 31, 2022







Gross Profit 13,401,146

18,809,985 Gross Profit Margin % 46.4 %

57.0 % Production curtailment, non-cash inventory

adjustments 759,000

- Adjusted Gross Profit 14,160,146

18,809,985 Adjusted Gross Profit Margin% 49.0 %

57.0 %

"Adjusted EBITDA" is defined as EBITDA (earnings before depreciation and amortization, depreciation and interest in cost of sales, income taxes, and interest) less accretion, loss from discontinued operations, one-time transaction costs and all other non-cash items. The Company has presented "Adjusted EBITDA" because its management believes it is a useful measure for investors when assessing and considering the Company's continuing operations and prospects for the future. Furthermore, "Adjusted EBITDA" is a commonly used measurement in the financial community when evaluating the market value of similar companies.

Adjusted EBITDA:





FY2023

Q4

Q3

Q2

Q1



Jan 31, 2023

Jan 31, 2023

Oct 31, 2022

Jul 31, 2022

Apr 30, 2022 Net Income (Loss) $ 293,211 $ (2,119,159) $ 248,507 $ 1,857,043 $ 306,820





















Interest expenses, net

456,691

60,530

98,657

133,455

164,049 Provision for Income Taxes

2,809,768

672,164

1,154,189

485,152

498,263 Depreciation and Amortization

1,365,018

340,664

341,782

341,286

341,286 Depreciation and Interest in COGS

812,367

203,091

203,093

203,091

203,092 EBITDA $ 5,737,055 $ (842,710) $ 2,046,228 $ 3,020,027 $ 1,513,510 Change in fair value of derivative liabilities

(742,483)

14,830

(127,813)

(629,500)

- Share based compensation

209,441

20,803

31,788

54,064

102,786 Loss from discontinued operations

1,088,329

713,712

(11,154)

(344,554)

730,325 One-time special project costs

345,790

-

206,459

89,331

50,000 Production curtailment, non-cash

inventory adjustments

759,000

1,012,000

(253,000)

-

- Other gain/loss

49,722

18,723

13,173

21,972

(4,146) Adjusted EBITDA $ 7,446,854 $ 937,358 $ 1,905,681 $ 2,211,340 $ 2,392,475

FYE Balance Sheet Summary:

(US$) January 31, 2023 January 31, 2022 Assets



Cash 1,891,772 3,067,983 Inventory 4,173,573 4,054,473 Other current 2,677,027 3,162,018 Current Assets 8,742,372 10,284,474 Fixed Assets/Goodwill/Intangibles, deferred tax 49,569,032 51,559,976 Total Assets 58,311,404 61,844,450





Liabilities



Accounts payable 2,921,426 2,508,869 Promissory note  current portion 2,026,667 6,080,000 Income taxes payable 7,736,858 4,870,170 Other notes, current lease, deferred tax etc. 2,289,316 2,515,077 Current Liabilities 14,974,267 15,974,116 Lease liabilities 8,554,702 8,953,425 Promissory note - 2,026,667 Derivative liability and other 467,359 1,161,640 Total Liabilities 23,996,328 28,115,848





Shareholders' Equity 34,315,076 33,728,602 Total Liabilities and Shareholders' Equity 58,311,404 61,844,450

FY Financial Summary:



FY 2023

FY 2022 (US$) January 31, 2023

January 31, 2022 Revenue 28,888,410

32,982,976 Cost of Sales 15,487,264

14,172,991 Gross Profit 13,401,146 46.4%

18,809,985 57.0% Gross Margin%





Total Expenses 9,445,908

9,055,175 Income from Operations 3,955,238

9,754,810 Adjusted EBITDA2 7,446,854 25.8%

12,443,162 37.7% EBITDA Margin%







Changes to the Unaudited Year End Financial Results:

Audited Balance Sheet (as at year ended January 31, 2023)

Current Assets  decrease of $0.18 million

Total Assets  decrease of $0.16 million

Current Liabilities  decrease of $0.25 million

Total Liabilities  decrease of $0.25 million

Equity  increase of $0.09 million

Equity + Liability  decrease of $0.16 million

Audited Income Statement (year ended January 31, 2023)

Revenue, Gross Profit, Income from Operations - No change

Net Income from Continuing Operations  increase of $0.4 million

Net Income  increase of $0.2 million

Comparative Year Audited Balance Sheet (as at Jan 31, 2022):

Current Assets  no change

Total Assets  decrease of $0.01 million

Current Liabilities  increase of $0.11 million

Total Liabilities  increase of $0.11 million

Equity  decrease of $0.12 million

Equity + Liability  decrease of $0.01 million

Comparative Year Audited Income Statement (ended January 31, 2022)

Revenue, Gross Profit, Income from Operations - No change

About C21 Investments Inc.

C21 Investments Inc. is a vertically integrated cannabis company that cultivates, processes, and distributes quality cannabis and hemp-derived consumer products in the United States. The Company is focused on value creation through the disciplined acquisition and integration of core retail, manufacturing, and distribution assets in strategic markets, leveraging industry-leading retail revenues with high-growth potential multi-market branded consumer packaged goods. The Company owns Silver State Relief and Silver State Cultivation in Nevada, including legacy Oregon brands Phantom Farms, Hood Oil and Eco Firma Farms. These brands produce and distribute a broad range of THC and CBD products from cannabis flowers, pre-rolls, cannabis oil, vaporizer cartridges and edibles. Based in Vancouver, Canada, additional information on C21 can be found at www.sedar.com and www.cxxi.ca.

Neither the Canadian Securities Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the Canadian Securities Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

SOURCE C21 Investments Inc.

For further information: Investor contact: Investor Relations, [email protected], +1 833 289-2994; Company contact: Michael Kidd, Chief Financial Officer and Director, [email protected]
Living Carbon is a startup funded with $36 million that just planted a forest of genetically modified trees to absorb more carbon. Living Carbon is a San Francisco-based biotechnology company that produced genetically modified poplars. The new tress are intended to be a large-scale solution to climate change.

The companys researchers used a crude technique known as the gene gun method, which essentially blasts foreign genes into the trees chromosomes. In formal letters to the USDA the company explained what it was doing; the agency replied that, because the resulting trees had not been exposed to and did not contain genes from a plant pest, they were not subject to regulations. The Environmental Protection Agency regulates biotech plants that produce their own pesticides, and the Food and Drug Administration examines anything humans might consume. Living Carbons trees do not fit into either of these categories, so they could be planted without any further formal studies.

Donald Ort is a University of Illinois geneticist whose plant experiments helped inspire Living Carbons technology. Ort says that greenhouse results may or may not translate to success in the real world. In 2019, Dr. Ort and his team announced that they had genetically hacked tobacco plants to photosynthesize more efficiently. Normally, photosynthesis produces a toxic byproduct that a plant must dispose of, wasting energy. The Illinois researchers added genes from pumpkins and green algae to induce tobacco seedlings to instead recycle the toxins into more sugars, producing plants that grew nearly 40 percent larger. There are 3 trillion trees in the world. If trees were 40% larger then they would absorb about a trillion extra tons of CO2. This would offset all of the extra CO2 that is still in the atmosphere since the start of the industrial revolution started over 150 years ago.

Modifications have improved how the trees conduct photosynthesis.

Co-founder Patrick Mellor was researching whether trees could be engineered to produce decay-resistant wood. He joined with Ms. Hall who was working at OpenAI. They recruited Yumin Tao, a synthetic biologist who had previously worked at the chemical company DuPont. He and others retooled Dr. Orts genetic hack for poplar trees. Living Carbon then produced engineered poplar clones and grew them in pots.

I, Brian Wang, personally met Patrick Mellor at a workshop to brainstorm how to use trees and plants to offset climate change.

The modified poplar trees grew more than 53 percent faster than non-modified ones over five months in the greenhouse. [Enhanced photosynthetic efficiency for increased carbon assimilation and woody biomass production in hybrid poplar INRA 717-1B4]

Research Conclusions

The application of synthetic biology techniques in woody plant species for photosynthesis enhancement with the goal of greatly enhancing trees ability to draw down atmospheric CO2 has not been reported prior to this work. Here, from two separate growth experiments we demonstrated the successful introduction of a photorespiration bypass pathway into a tree species, resulting in increased biomass for the first time. A lead transgenic event with successful expression of the bypass pathway genes showed increased photosynthetic efficiency, leading to 35%53% more above-ground dry biomass accumulation over four months of growth in a controlled environment, equivalent to 17%27% more CO2 fixation from the air. To our knowledge, this is the first time such engineering has been attempted in a tree species for the purpose of carbon drawdown. Our results provided a proof of concept for photosynthesis enhancement in trees and opened the door for engineering trees to help combat climate change. Biological systems are powerful when it comes to carbon drawdown and storage, but at the same time, are complex. It is a challenging goal to engineer trees to make a meaningful impact on climate change. Utilization of the growing knowledge base to test potential biotechnology strategies in trees is a good start.

The gene gun-modified poplars avoided a set of federal regulations of genetically modified organisms that can stall biotech projects for years.

They planted 5000 modified trees on the land of Vince Stanley. He is a farmer with 25,000 forested acres in Georgias pine belt. Living Carbons elite seedlings will allow him to grow bottomland trees in 25-30 years instead of 50-60 years.
During his speech at the international festival Europalia in Brussels and at the solemn event celebrating Georgia's Independence Day, Prime Minister Irakli Gharibashvili expressed that all efforts are dedicated to Georgia's goal of joining the European Union. He emphasized that regaining Georgia's position among European nations has been a dream cherished by generations of Georgians, and the country is prepared to undertake all necessary measures to turn this dream into reality.According to Gharibashvili, Georgia has emerged as one of the leaders among the countries aspiring to become members of the European Union."Indeed, over the past decade, we have accomplished historically significant tasks, including signing the association agreement, obtaining a visa-free regime with the European Union, establishing a free trade agreement, and emerging as one of the leading countries aspiring to join the European Union. The European Union's granting of the prospect of EU membership to Georgia stands as the greatest foreign policy achievement in our nation's modern history. Following this decision, we will spare no effort to attain EU candidate status by the end of the year, marking the beginning of a new phase of Georgia's Western integration.With utmost responsibility, I reiterate our commitment to implementing all priority recommendations of the European Commission and securing candidate status. We have never wavered from our chosen path, and we will ensure that nothing obstructs Georgia's democratic, European, and prosperous future. Our history, culture, values, and recent accomplishments have equipped us to face the challenges on our journey toward the EU.The geographical position of Georgia has contributed to the rich history of our people, being at the crossroads of great empires and the boundary between Europe and Asia, Eastern and Western civilizations. Although we have often found ourselves as targets in these conflicts, throughout the centuries, they have only strengthened our nation, shaping our identity and values. It is from this unique historical experience that our desire to join the European Union stems. This confidence propels us forward on this path, even when few believed in our ability to achieve it," stated Gharibashvili.Shalva Papuashvili, the Chairman of the Parliament of Georgia stated that the opposition seeks to hinder Georgia from achieving its desired status by hoping for a deterioration in the country's situation. According to him, their ultimate goal is to generate unrest and seize power.Papuashvili stated that notable progress in the implementation of the 12 recommendations has been observed globally, and there is widespread recognition that the denial of the status to one of the top three countries constituted a significant injustice."Now the question is whether the European Union will be able to correct this injustice. After the decision made in Strasbourg regarding Mikheil Saakashvili, I had expected that some European parliamentarians would apologize to the Georgian people for those resolutions where they directly blamed Georgia, as if torture were taking place in this country and its rights were being violated. Unfortunately, I was disappointed. Instead of apologizing for the misinformation, we heard the same misinformation being repeated. It is disheartening that some MEPs remain stubborn in their own mistakes, while others persist in their actions," Papuashvili said.
SCRANTON  A former manager at the Harvard Medical School morgue, his wife and three other people have been indicted in connection with the theft and sale of human body parts, federal prosecutors in Pennsylvania announced Wednesday.

Cedric Lodge, 55, of Goffstown, New Hampshire, stole dissected portions of cadavers that were donated to the school in the scheme that stretched from 2018 to early 2023, according to court documents. The body parts were taken without the schools knowledge or permission, authorities said, adding that the school has cooperated with the investigation.

Lodge sometimes took the body parts  which included heads, brains, skin and bones  back to his home where he lived with his wife, Denise, 63, and some remains were sent to buyers through the mail, authorities said. Lodge also allegedly allowed buyers to come to the morgue to pick what remains they wanted to buy.

Bodies donated to Harvard Medical School are used for education, teaching or research purposes. Once they are no longer needed, the cadavers are usually cremated and the ashes are returned to the donors family or buried in a cemetery.

In a message posted on the schools website entitled An abhorrent betrayal, deans George Daley and Edward Hundert called the matter morally reprehensible. They said Lodge was fired May 6.

We are appalled to learn that something so disturbing could happen on our campus  a community dedicated to healing and serving others, the deans wrote. The reported incidents are a betrayal of HMS and, most importantly, each of the individuals who altruistically chose to will their bodies to HMS through the Anatomical Gift Program to advance medical education and research.

The indictment charges the Lodges and three others  Katrina Maclean, 44, of Salem, Massachusetts; Joshua Taylor, 46, of West Lawn, Pennsylvania; and Mathew Lampi, 52, of East Bethel, Minnesota  with conspiracy and interstate transport of stolen goods. It was not known Wednesday if any of the defendants has retained a lawyer who could comment on their behalf.

According to prosecutors, the defendants were part of a nationwide network of people who bought and sold remains stolen from the school and an Arkansas mortuary. The Lodges allegedly sold remains to Maclean, Taylor and others in arrangements made through telephone calls and social media websites.

Taylor sometimes transported stolen remains back to Pennsylvania, authorities said, while other times the Lodges would mail remains to him and others. Maclean and Taylor resold the stolen remains for profit, authorities said.

Denise Lodge made her initial court appearance Wednesday in federal court in Concord, New Hampshire, and was released on personal recognizance bail, WMUR-TV reported. She declined comment as she left the courthouse.

Cedric Lodge was scheduled to make his initial court appearance later Wednesday.

Two other people have previously been charged in the case.

Jeremy Pauley, age 41, of Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania, allegedly bought some remains from Candace Chapman Scott, of Little Rock, Arkansas, who allegedly stole them from a mortuary where she worked. Authorities have said Scott stole body parts from cadavers she was supposed to have cremated, and that many of the bodies had been donated to and used for research and educational purposes by a medical school in Arkansas.

East Pennsboro Township Police arrested Pauley after body parts were discovered in his Enola home in August 2022.

Pauley allegedly sold many of the stolen remains to other people, including individuals, including Lampi. Pauley and Lampi bought and sold from each other over an extended period of time and exchanged more than $100,000 in online payments, authorities said.

Scott and Pauley have both pleaded not guilty.
Retail thefts are on the rise. Some do it discreetly and others are downright brazen, like a couple walking out of Target with shopping carts 




Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu of Lagos State has felicitated with his predecessor, Akinwunmi Ambode on his 60th birthday.





Sanwo-Olu said Ambode dedicated his life to service of Lagos State as a civil servant and governor.





Recall that Ambode did one term as a governor of Lagos State before falling out with his then political godfather, President Bola Tinubu.





Ambodes fallout with Tinubu and some political stakeholders in Lagos led to the emergence of Sanwo-Olu in 2019.





However, Sanwo-Olu said Ambode made positive and significant impacts in some sectors during his tenure as Lagos State governor.





Tweeting, the governor said his predecessor worked for the continuous growth and development of Lagos State.





According to Sanwo-Olu: On behalf of my dear wife, Ibijoke, the government and good people of Lagos State, I join family, friends and political associates of my predecessor, former Governor Akinwunmi Ambode to congratulate him on his 60th birthday.





Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode dedicated his young and adult life to the service of Lagos State, first as a civil servant and later as the 14th Governor of our dear State.





As Council Treasurer, Auditor General for Local Government, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Finance and Accountant-General of Lagos State, he displayed a high level of integrity, dedication and professionalism to service in the public sector.





He recorded same achievements as Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Finance and as the States Accountant General.





He also made positive and significant impacts in some sectors during his tenure as Lagos State Governor, working for the continuous growth and development of our State.





I wish His Excellency, former Governor Akinwunmi Ambode a happy birthday and pray that he witnesses many more fruitful years in good health. Amen.




Borno South Senator, Ali Ndume has described the confession of Senator Adamu Muhammad Bulkachuwa, as courageous.





Ndume said people who have connections with court justices would be tempted because the system is compromised.





Featuring on Channels Televisions Politics Today, Ndume said people will pressure those linked to judges.





According to Ndume: People are caught in between what is right and social, my first wife is a high court judge. When people know your wife is a judge, they pressure you.





We are all humans. It depends on how strong you are to stand against these things. When the system is compromised, you will be tempted.





But, I like his courage of confessing publicly, I think it will help people, system to look inward and when you see that what you did is wrong, the best thing is to say Im sorry. Maybe, that will help others to do the same.





During the valedictory session of the 9th assembly, Bulkachuwa, had bragged how he influenced the decision of his wife, Zainab Bulkachuwa, a retired Justice of the Appeal Court.





Bulkachuwa bowed out of the bench after clocking the statutory retirement age of 70 years for justices of the Appeal Court in 2020.




Former President Goodluck Jonathan has disclosed the agenda of his meeting with President Bola Tinubu.





The two men met inside the Presidential Villa, Abuja, on Tuesday.





Speaking with newsmen afterwards, Jonathan said he met with Tinubu to brief him about the planned constitutional referendum in Mali.





Jonathan is a special envoy of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and is leading the mediation mission in Mali.





The West African country will conduct a referendum on a new constitution on June 18. It will be a precursor to the long-awaited elections scheduled for February 2024.





I came to brief the president on the activities of some continental and subcontinental bodies. You know, I am the ECOWAS mediator for Mali and the chairman of the West African Elders Forum.





So, there are certain issues bordering on the continent and the sub-region that I discuss with various presidents, Jonathan said.




President Bola Tinubu says he is ready to work with the members of the just inaugurated 10th national assembly.

On Tuesday, Godswill Akpabio, senator representing Akwa Ibom north-west, was elected as the senate president, while Tajudeen Abbas, lawmaker representing Zaria constituency of Kaduna, became the speaker of the house of representatives.





The ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) had endorsed Akpabio and Abbas for the roles of the leadership of the new assembly.





In a statement released shortly after the election, the president said while he is prepared to work with the lawmakers, there may be disagreements.





As your president, I am prepared to transparently work with the national assembly. Nigerians expect distinguished senators and honourable members to make laws and carry out oversight duties that will enhance the performance of government to achieve successful outcomes including improving their quality of life, he said.

In the course of our work together, disagreements may occur. When we disagree it will not be out of malice, ill-will and the quest to diminish the institution of the national assembly or any individual member.

Our people across the length and breadth of our country expect so much from us. They want us to lift their economic burden. They want us to eliminate insecurity so our farmers in rural communities can go to their farms and produce the food we eat.





Our people look up to us to change the fortune of our country for good and remove all barriers that impede progress. All of these we can make happen with dedication and commitment. We can only achieve all the good things we promised during our campaigns when we work together in harmony but with respect for our respective prerogatives and in the best interest of our country.












Simon Ekpa, a popular Biafra agitator, and Separatist on Wednesday announced a weeklong sit-at-home to demand the immediate release of Nnamdi Kanu, the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra.





Ekpa, the Finland-based lawyer and Prime Minister of the Biafra Republic Government in Exile in a statement disclosed that there will be a sit-at-home from July 3rd to 10th, 2023.





He noted that there will be a break on 6th July.





Ekpa stated that the sit-at-home was necessary for the immediate release of Nnamdi Kanu and in preparation for Biafras referendum.





He urged all market leaders, companies and individuals in the southeast to comply.





The Biafra Republic Government In-Exile (BRGIE) and Biafra De Facto Government-In-Homeland wish to notify Biafrans that there will be sit-at-home civil disobedience starting from 3rd July 2023 to 10th July 2023. There will be a break on 6th July 2023, where all Biafran markets will be open.





The sit-at-home is for the following reasons:





Demand the immediate and unconditional release of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, who remains illegally detained at the DSS dungeon; In preparation for Biafras self-referendum; To further put the world on notice that Biafrans are taking their future into their own hands; To demonstrate that the Biafra Republic Government In Exile remains the only legitimate government to whom the Biafran people listen and are loyal; To invalidate the illegitimacy of those who parade themselves as Nigerias representatives within the Biafran territory.





The sit-at-home will therefore take place in the following order: Monday 3rd July 2023 to Wednesday 5th July 2023, there will be total lockdown in Biafraland; Thursday 6th July 2023 (Break), all Biafran markets will open; Friday 7th July 2023 to Monday 10th July 2023, there will be total lockdown in Biafraland.





We hereby call on all market leaders to strictly adhere to this order and treat it with utmost seriousness. We also call on all oil companies operating in the Biafran territory to shut down oil exploration on these dates to avoid the anger of the Biafran people, which may come with heavy consequences, stated.




Former President Donald Trump has been arrested at the federal courthouse in Miami. He will soon face charges related to mishandling classified documents.

During the proceedings on Tuesday, deputy marshals took electronic copies of his fingerprints.





However, they did not take a mugshot of Trump because he is easily recognizable, as reported by CNN.





Trumps assistant and co-defendant, Walt Nauta, has also been arrested, fingerprinted, and subjected to standard legal procedures.





These criminal charges, pertaining to the mishandling of classified documents as declared by the Justice Department, significantly increase the legal risks faced by the leading contender for the 2024 Republican Party nomination.





Trump is confronted with 37 felony charges. These allegations assert that he unlawfully retained national defense information and engaged in the concealment of documents in violation of laws related to tampering with witnesses during the Justice Departments investigation into the materials.





The hearing scheduled for Tuesday will serve as both an initial appearance and an arraignment for Trump. During this hearing, he will have the opportunity to enter his plea in the case.





Lawyers representing Trump and his co-defendant, Walt Nauta, must make appearances in court on their behalf, according to Florida rules. Newsnow.co.uk
Cumberland County commissioners last week approved a $1.2 million project to modernize the software the tax administration office uses to track property value assessments.

The commissioners agreed to pay $500,000 of the project costs out of the $25 million in American Rescue Plan Act funds they had set aside in November to support facility upgrades and to offset county revenue lost during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The remaining $700,000 will come out of the county general fund, including an estimated $300,000 in payments spread out over four years to subscribe to more modern, user-friendly software.

In 2000, Cumberland County started using a Computer Assisted Mass Appraisal platform developed by Evaluator Services and Technology Inc. of Middletown.

Since it was installed, there has not been a significant update, and the software is nearing end of its life. In recent years, the local company has been sold to Vision Government Solutions of Hudson, Massachusetts, which offers the enhanced software.

The county plans to contract with Vision in July with the project to start up in August, Chief Assessor Cathy Waters told the commissioners. Testing and training could start next spring in the lead-up to the platform going live in July 2024, she said.

The map appraisal platform is used to generate billing information, manage assessment appeals and to notify property owners of any change in assessed value, Waters said. There are 100,712 taxable parcels in the county, including 2,082 new parcels since 2019.

Were growing, said Justin Smith, geographic information systems manager for the county. We have a lot of parcels, and theres a lot of information to attribute per parcel.

The goal is to modernize the platform, streamline the workflow and improve the technology for internal and external data sharing, Waters said. The current platform uses a complex sequence of keyboard strokes for data entry.

Theres a steep learning curve, Smith said. Its bewildering to me sometimes what screen I have to look at.

This limited interface creates problems for a busy office. For one thing, the current platform does not allow staff to cut and paste redundant material from one entry to the next.

Whenever we get a new subdivision, we may have anywhere from 10 to 100 new lots to add to the system, Waters said. We have to enter every single parcel, manually, one at a time.

Assessors in the field use graph paper to sketch out building features and floorplans as one method to determine the assessed value of a property, Smith said. However, the current platform cannot handle complex geometry and is limited in its ability to replicate these drawings.

The assessors are collecting good information, but with a system that gives them the worst output, he said. Its good information in, garbage out. Were struggling with these inefficiencies. This new system would help us streamline with digital tools.

The Vision software will allow assessors to use a tablet to input sketch plans directly into the system along with photographs of the property, GPS coordinates and property dimensions using a laser measuring tool. Instead of hauling a pile of paperwork to a work site, assessors would have mobile access to information on property record cards, building permits and other documents necessary for fieldwork.

Prior to taking the vote to approve the project, Commissioner Chairman Gary Eichelberger asked whether county staff sought competitive pricing from vendors other than Vision.

Last year, we were looking at Tyler [Technologies] as well, Smith said. Tyler is a significant player in the county assessment system field. While similarities exist in pricing, county staff heard that Vision had better customer service, Smith said.

Besides, it would be very difficult to change vendors since software tied to map appraisal platforms is highly dependent on valuation formulas that are proprietary to software companies, he said.

Though Vision bought out Evaluator Services and Technology, the formulas are similar enough to allow for a smooth transition, Smith said. That would not be the case if the county switches to a different vendor.

We have 938 neighborhoods in the county, Smith said. Each neighborhood has a different rate. A one-acre property in one neighborhood is not valued the same as a one-acre property in a different neighborhood.

The Vision software will also make it easier for the public to have internet access to self-service tools and for taxing authorities like school districts and municipalities to receive streamlined reports and responses to queries.

Eichelberger asked whether this enhanced access would require those outside agencies to obtain special training or software to interface with the Vision platform.

We would certainly be managing their migration to the new system, Smith said.




President Bola Tinubu has been urged to pardon embattled Yoruba Nation agitator, Sunday Adeyemo, popularly known as Igboho.





Popular Fuji musician, King Wasiu Ayinde Marshal aka K1 De Ultimate, said Igbohos pardon would enable him return to Nigeria.





K1 De Ultimate made the appeal during a live performance while singing about the need for Nigeria to be at peace.





He urged Tinubu to harmonise all interests, premising his argument on Nigerias unity.





According to the musician: Asiwaju, please anyone who has offended you, kindly forgive them. Irrespective of their tribes  Yoruba, Igbo, Hausa  we need to embrace ourselves.





Akanbi, please let Sunday Igboho come back home, hes one of our own. Omo eni o sedi bebere, ka fi ileke si idi omo elomi meaning, One cannot say because ones daughter has ample buttocks, he would put the waist beads on another mans daughter.





Please, when Tinubu settles properly in office, kindly resolve this grey area. Let Sunday Igboho return to his root. Likewise, other agitators from various regions, call their leaders to a roundtable discussion.





I know it is what you can do, and you can do it.





In July 2021, Interpol arrested Igboho at Cadjehoun Airport in Cotonou, Benin Republic, after he escaped from Nigeria following a manhunt from the Department of State Services, DSS.





DSS had declared him wanted for allegedly stockpiling weapons in his Soka residence in Ibadan, Oyo State.





The secession agitator was detained in a prison in the Benin Republic but was released in March 2022 to get medical attention on the condition that he would not leave the West African country.





Since his release, Igboho has remained confined within Cotonou.
The Kuje Correctional Centre has presented to the Zuba Magistrate Court, the medical report of the psychiatric evaluation of Obiajulu Ujah.

The citizen, regarded as a supporter of Labour Party (LP) presidential candidate Peter Obi, caused a stir at the Abuja airport on March 31.

Ujah was ejected from a Lagos-bound Ibom Air flight after vociferously opposing the May 29 inauguration of President Bola Tinubu.

Upon his arraignment in April, he was sent to prison for one month to enable medical experts to determine the state of his mental health.

The medical report signed by the Kuje Prison Chief Medical Officer (CMO) suggests Ujah has a mental disorder, PRNigeria reported on Tuesday.

At the last sitting at the FCT Magistrate Court in Zuba, Magistrate Abdulazeez Ismail Muhammad subpoenaed the Controller General of the Nigerian Correctional Service (NCoS).

Also summoned was the Kuje Correctional Centre CMO to provide his opinion in writing as to the state of mind of Ujah, who is said to be mentally-challenged.

With the report now tendered before the court, Ujah will know his fate at the next hearing in the matter adjourned to the 15th day of June, 2023.




The Nigerian stock market surged to its highest level since July 2008 on Tuesday, the first trading day since the suspension of Godwin Emefiele as the governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) by newly-elected President Bola Tinubu.

Some market analysts have speculated that the surge is linked with investors optimism that the ouster of the CBN governor is a signal of coming monetary policy reforms.





According to Bloomberg, the main index of the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) rose 2.7 percent to above 57,437 points, taking the year-to-date gains of the market to 11.8 percent, almost double the six percent return on the MSCI index.





Reacting to the development, Tajudeen Ibrahim, head of research at Chapel Hill Denham, said the rally is a reflection of optimism over the policy signals from the president.

An improvement in the economy will enhance the performance of companies operating in the market, Ibrahim told Bloomberg.





Meanwhile, the NGX Banking Index soared 8.5 percent to 570.64, the biggest advance in more than eight years.





The exchange rate convergence is expected to lead to improvement in liquidity in the foreign currency market and will increase trading activities for the banks, Ibrahim said.





Last Friday, Tinubu suspended Emefiele and directed that he transfers his responsibilities to the deputy governor, operations directorate.





Folashodun Adebisi Shonubi, the deputy governor, is expected to act as the CBN governor pending the conclusion of an investigation ordered by the president into Emefieles activities.





The Department of State Services (DSS) later announced that Emefiele is currently in its custody for some investigative reasons.
Kemi Pinero, counsel to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), says the Labour Party (LP) is unnecessarily stalling the presidential election petition tribunal.

INEC announced Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC) winner of the presidential election on March 1.

Dissatisfied with the results, Atiku Abubakar, presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and Peter Obi, presidential candidate of the LP, headed to court to challenge the outcome.

Speaking during proceedings on Wednesday, Livy Uzoukwu, lead counsel for the LP, said the office of the INEC chairman has refused to supply the party with documents requested for evidence.

The office of the INEC chairman has consistently refused to comply with providing documents even with the subpoena issued, in spite of the efforts of the bailiff, Uzoukwu said.

He noted that he had met with the INEC lead counsel but did not have a copy of the subpoena to hand over at the time.

I intend to send it to him once Im done with this proceeding. Im confident that he will do the needful for us to continue tomorrow, Uzoukwu added.

However, Pinero dismissed Uzoukwus comments, saying it was a tactic to adjourn the proceedings.

Pinero said there was no subpoena issued, adding that INEC had adequately responded to subpoenas issues by other parties and had no reason to neglect the LP.

A subpoena was not refused. PDP served subpoenas and we have responded to that. It is clear that this is becoming a habit that they (LP) like to whip, its a pattern, Pinero said.

Dont use INEC as a whipping board, if they (LP) have nothing else to do they should just say it. We are not going to oppose your adjournment.

This habit is showing that youre only stalling the case. Youve only called two witnesses out of the 50 witnesses you said you would call and it has been two weeks since tribunal started.

I just want to make it clear that it is not correct that the INEC chairman refused to respond to the subpoena. The chairman of INEC has no interest whatsoever. So its very unfair and uncharitable.
Ali Ndume, senator representing Borno south district, says President Bola Tinubu sneaked out to beg some lawmakers to support his preferred candidates for the 10th national assembly leadership positions.

Speaking on Tuesday in an interview with Channels Television, Ndume said the president deployed his foot soldiers to deliver his preferred candidates.

Earlier, Godswill Akpabio, the senator representing Akwa Ibom north-west, was elected senate president after polling 63 votes to defeat his challenger, Abdulaziz Yari, who scored 46 votes.

Barau Jibrin, a senator from Kano, was declared deputy senate president.

For the house of representatives, Tajudeen Abbas, a lawmaker representing Zaria constituency in Kaduna, was elected speaker, while Benjamin Kalu from Abia state, was declared deputy.

The new leaders of the national assembly got the backing of the national leadership of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and Tinubu.

Reacting to the development, Ndume said the president is an experienced politician, adding that he convinced many lawmakers to support his preferred candidates.

When I contested last time (2019), everybody was on the other side because the party and president endorsed Ahmad Lawan, he said.

It is almost a repetition of the same thing, the party and the president had a preferred candidate but this president (Tinubu) is an experienced politician who has played a lot of politics.

He deployed his foot soldiers to complement our (campaign team of Akpabio) efforts and that made a difference. The vice president assisted us.

He called some people. He even went to some people. It is politics. He sneaked out to visit some people and begged them to support. He has his reasons and there were convincing.
President Bola Tinubu has ordered a thorough investigation into the death of scores in a boat accident in Kwara.

About 100 persons returning from a wedding event died after the boat conveying them capsized in Egbu village, in the Patigi LGA of the state.

The boat was reportedly overloaded.

The victims including women and children  were said to be returning to their base in Patigi from Egboti, a community in Niger state.

In a statement on Wednesday signed by Abiodun Oladunjoye, state house director of information, President Tinubu expressed sadness over the accident.

The president said his administration will look into the challenges of inland water transportation in the country to ensure that safety and operational standards are strictly adhered to.

I am deeply saddened by the news of the tragic boat accident that claimed the lives of our people in Kwara state. That the victims were guests at a wedding ceremony made the unfortunate accident more painful, the president said.

My heartfelt sympathy and condolences to the families and friends of victims of the tragic mishap.

I also sympathise with the government and people of Kwara state over the accident. May all loved ones find comfort.

The Kwara state government and relevant federal agencies should work together to unravel the immediate and remote causes of this unfortunate accident. Immediate relief and necessary assistance should also be provided to the survivors and families of victims.
Senator representing Ekiti Central Senatorial District and the Deputy Director-General of the Akpabio/Barau campaign, Senator Michael Bamidele Opeyemi, on Tuesday revealed that Senators in the camp of the now Senate President, Godswill Akpabio made it to the National Assembly complex as early as 4 a.m. to avert a repeat of the 2015 confused election that produced Senator Olubukola Saraki as Senate President.

The Ekiti lawmaker made this known at a reception organized in his honour after being sworn-in, stating that in 2015, senators loyal to the former Senate President, kept vigil in the National Assembly Complex with a plan to install Saraki, while other lawmakers who opposed him at that time didnt know and proceeded to the International Conference Centre for an engagement with the former President Muhammadu Buhari, only for the election to have taken place with Saraki as President of the Senate.

According to him, things became so unclear that those at the forefront of the campaign for Akpabio could not sleep in the last 48 hours, adding that the immediate past Senate President, Ahmad Ibrahim Lawan, had to intervene.

We entered the National Assembly Complex around 4 a.m. in order to avert what happened in 2015. The victory wouldnt have been possible if not for the efforts of the immediate past Senate President.

Meanwhile, immediate past Senate President described Bamidele as the pillar of the ninth Senate, commending him for his contributions to nation building. He added that the Ekiti lawmaker has handled cases for his office in the last four years successfully.

Lawan said: We have become a family as we continue another four years in the Senate and beyond.

Other prominent personalities at the reception are Ajero of Ijero-Ekiti, Adebayo Adewole, Oluyin of Iyin Ekiti, Ajakaye among others.

Opeyemi thanked the royal fathers that came from the Ekiti Central Senatorial districts for their presence at the reception.
A 55-year-old man sexually assaulted a teenage boy in a parked car near the Brigantine Observation Tower in Atlantic County early Saturday, authorities said.

Thomas G. Aljian Jr. of the Manahawkin section of Stafford is charged with child endangerment and sexual assault of a person who is at least 13 years old but less than 16 years old, Brigantine police said in a statement Tuesday.

An officer on patrol at 4 a.m. saw the vehicle parked behind the tower and observed suspicious activity inside the car, Brigantine police said in a statement.

When the officer approached, the teen ran off, officials said. Police gave chase, but the teen wouldnt provide his name or age when he was tracked down near the Brigantine sea wall.

Police said Aljian, the second occupant of the vehicle, was sent on his way after he was identified as the cars owner.

Later, police learned the teens age and the investigation revealed Aljian sexually assaulted the boy prior to the officers arrival, authorities said.

Aljian turned himself in Tuesday and was charged before being sent to the Atlantic County jail, police said. No attorney information was immediately available for Aljian.

BreakingAC.com, a local news site, reported Aljian is an attorney. Brigantine police declined to confirm his profession or answer any additional questions.

A message left for Aljian at a law firm was not immediately returned.

Anyone with information about the incident is asked to contact Detective James Powderley at 609-266-7600 ext. 270 or at jpowderley@brigantinebeachnj.com.

Jeff Goldman may be reached at jeff_goldman@njadvancemedia.com.

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A new group has joined the search for a New Jersey girl who disappeared more than 3 1/2 years ago.

The Florida-based Anti-Predator Project says it will investigate the case of Dulce Maria Alavez, who was 5 years old when her mother reported her missing from a Bridgeton park on Sept. 16, 2019.

The groups co-founder and president, Trent Steele, described his organization as a fully licensed, non-profit private investigation firm staffed with volunteers who bring an array of experience from work in law enforcement, the military and the intelligence community.

We specialize in all things human trafficking- and missing children-related, Steele said. Between everybody on our team, weve got well over a couple hundred years of missing children and human trafficking and organized crime case experience between us.

On the day she vanished, Dulce and her family were visiting Bridgeton City Park after stopping for ice cream. Her mother, Noema Alavez Perez, said she remained in the car with her younger sister, while Dulce and her 3-year-old brother, Manny, ran off to a playground about 30 yards away.

When Alavez Perez went looking for the kids a short time later, she said she found only Manny.

A sprawling investigation has yielded no evidence of what happened to Dulce and a $75,000 reward remains unclaimed.

Detectives have conducted hundreds of interviews and visited or communicated with law enforcement officials in 11 states and Mexico, according to investigators.

Volunteers supporting Dulces family recently reached out to the Anti-Predator Project for help and Steele took on the case, saying he plans to contact local investigators soon to introduce his group and see how they can help.

Were in the very early stages of this, Steele said. Weve gone over the case file. Weve had the initial meeting with the family. Were going to start our process of reaching out to law enforcement and seeing what we can do to assist them.

As a nonprofit group, the Anti-Predator Project has access to technology to aid in the search at a lower cost than law enforcement, Steele said.

However, most of the groups work wont take place behind a computer screen, Steele added.

The reality is that a lot of these cases, and Dulces is no different, really come down to just good old-fashioned detective work, he said. Knocking on doors, talking to people, putting things together and analyzing a lot of things that probably didnt make sense at first, but now they do.

Theres a good chance that in the next 90 days or so, people in Bridgeton will see me and a couple of members of our team up in town talking to some people, Steele added.

In 2021, authorities released age-progression images (left, center) of how Dulce Maria Alavez may appear as a 7-year-old. She was 5 (right) when she disappeared from a Bridgeton City Park on Sept. 16, 2019. Her 9th birthday was in April.

After leaving his job with a defense contractor, Steele said he worked in foster care and, in that role, assisted many teenage human trafficking victims.

Their stories were absolutely horrific, Steele recalled. That experience drove him to found the Anti-Predator Project with his wife in 2011. Collaborating with people he had met in his career, they built a group that not only investigates, but also trains law enforcement officers in how to handle human trafficking cases, he said.

The entire operation, which relies on fundraising, is made up of volunteers, Steele said. No one the group assists receives a bill.

Weve got currently 37 open cases that span 15 states and four countries, he said. Everybody on my team, all of us are still working other jobs. Ive got two other jobs aside from this that I work. All the money that we raise, everything we do, that goes directly back in to helping these families.

Brenda Trinidad, who leads a volunteer group supporting Dulces family, hopes Steeles group can make a difference.

They work with Homeland Security, they have ex-FBI agents, they have everything that they need to be able to bring her home. Thats their goal anyway, she said, adding that Dulces mom is thankful for the assistance.

She was super-excited about that. She doesnt refuse any kind of help that comes along. She feels real confident with these people and she feels like they have an understanding to her situation, Trinidad said.

Steele acknowledged the challenges of cracking tough cases like Dulces.

Sometimes I feel like were a doctor that only gets terminal patients. We dont get a lot of easy cases, he said. We get a lot of the very complex cases. Obviously, Dulces case falls into that category. Sometimes were able to make things work and sometimes we hit the same walls as everybody else.

The group has had many successes.

We actually just brought back a young lady thats been missing from Florida since 2013 from Mexico. Thats a win, Steele said, noting that he cannot identify the woman because of the ongoing sensitive nature of the case. Her return was documented in a video posted to the organizations Facebook page with some faces blurred to protect identities.

Weve been involved in quite a few high-profile cases. Were involved in the Alicia Navarro case in Arizona, he added. Alicia was 14 years old when she vanished from her home in Glendale, Arizona, on Sept. 15, 2019, just a day before Dulce disappeared. Alicia left a note saying she would return, but her family fears she was lured away by someone she met online, according to media reports.

In cases like Dulces, the general public often grows frustrated with local investigators when answers dont come quickly, Steele said, but outside observers may not be aware of whats happening behind the scenes.

Nine times out of 10, law enforcement has something in their back pocket that theyre not telling everybody  that theyre kind of waiting for the other shoe to drop, so to speak, before they do something, he said. Its not that law enforcements not working on the case, they just have to do it very quietly.

His group doesnt storm into an ongoing investigation, Steele said. They plan to reach out to local police and not step on whatever theyre doing or step on their toes, he said.

Investigators have repeatedly said they believe Dulce is still alive and have found no proof of her death. They insist the case remains a priority.

With the Anti-Predator Project joining the effort, Trinidad sees an opportunity to send an important message to those responsible for Dulces disappearance.

I hope that this organization does stand their ground, she said. Thats what Dulce needs. When theres a huge organization backing up this child, my hope is that the abductor says, Damn, theyre not stopping. And that that will put some fear into the abductor.

Anyone with information about Dulces disappearance is asked to contact authorities via one of these options:

Bridgeton Police: 856-451-0033

Cumberland County Prosecutors Office: 856-453-0486

New Jersey State Police: 609-882-2000, ext. 2554

FBI: 1-800-CALL-FBI. Select option 4, then option 8.

Anonymous tips may be sent to Bridgeton Police at bpdops.com/tips or to the prosecutors office at njccpo.gov/tips.

14 1 / 14 Dulce Maria Alavez's 9th birthday celebration in Bridgeton, April 23, 2023

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Matt Gray may be reached at mgray@njadvancemedia.com.
Nora Caliguri Pagel takes the train to work from her home in Metuchen all the time.

She treasures the ride to New York, which provides 38 minutes of morning buffer time before everything happens.

Everything being the responsibilities of her job as creative director of Authentic Lifestyle Products, a company that brings clothing designs, including activewear, to market for private and branded labels.

But last spring, she got a call to come to the city for a different reason.

They wanted her back.

They was Project Runway, the reality show that made an instant celebrity of Caliguri Pagel, one of the young designers who competed in the shows first season almost 20 years ago.

I was just so surprised, she tells NJ Advance Media.

Caliguri Pagel is now 40. Her brunette mohawk has long since been replaced by stick-straight blond hair.

Nora Caliguri Pagel tackles a challenge in "Project Runway All-Stars." The show took her back to Mood, the New York fabric store where she bought materials for the competition nearly 20 years ago.Zach Dilgard | Bravo

Over the years, she had stopped following the reality series.

Its funny, I dont have cable, she says.

But Caliguri Pagel is back in the fray with 13 designers from various seasons as Bravos Project Runway All-Stars, the 20th season of the show, premieres 8 p.m. ET Thursday, June 15 (streaming the next day on Peacock).

Project Runway debuted in 2004 as a new kind of reality show, a competition wholly devoted to fashion design (with a side of drama). The format caught on in a major way. Soon, it seemed like everyone was watching.

With each challenge, Caliguri Pagel, then known as Nora Caliguri, and her peers were trying to  in the words of mentor Tim Gunn  make it work.

From left: "Project Runway" winner Jay McCarroll and contestants Caliguri Pagel (then Nora Caliguri) and Kara Saun (runner-up) in 2005.Scott Wintrow | Getty Images

She was sent home from the competition about midway through, coming in eighth after her wedding dress design failed to impress the judges. Jay McCarroll was crowned top designer.

Project Runway aired on Bravo through 2008, then moved to Lifetime from 2009 to 2017 and returned to Bravo in 2019. Gunn and original host Heidi Klum left the show for Amazons Making the Cut.

Original judge Nina Garcia, editor-in-chief of Elle magazine, is joined by designer Brandon Maxwell and Elaine Welteroth, former editor-in-chief of Teen Vogue. Since 2019, the shows mentor has been season four (2007) winner Christian Siriano, a breakout talent whose designs are regularly worn by celebrities.

Lifetime aired all-star seasons of Project Runway, but this is Bravos first. The winner receives $250,000, a mentorship with the Council of Fashion Designers of America and a feature in Elle.

In the "All-Stars" premiere, Caliguri Pagel has to create a look based on the wedding dress design that sent her home from the competition in the first season of "Project Runway."Zach Dilgard | Bravo

Guest judges include Alicia Silverstone (Clueless), Emmy winner Billy Porter (Pose), designer Zac Posen, Emmy-winning writer and producer Lena Waithe, celebrity stylist Law Roach, and model-actors Paulina Porizkova and Julia Fox.

Caliguri Pagels fellow season one contestant, runner-up Kara Saun, is also back. They embrace their shared history by sitting together as they work.

Nora has not changed in 18 years, the Los Angeles costume designer says after Caliguri Pagels mannequin takes a tumble.

They even swap models when Sauns doesnt match her vision for an ocean-inspired dress (in memory of her mother, who was from Cape May).

Caliguri Pagel lives in Metuchen with her husband and two children.

When she first signed on for the show, she was 21, fresh from studying fashion at Brooklyns Pratt Institute.

From left: Austin Scarlett, Robert Plotkin, host Heidi Klum, Nora Caliguri Pagel (then Nora Caliguri), Alexandra Vidal and Audrey Chihocky toast the first season of "Project Runway" in 2005.Shawn Ehlers | WireImage

I didnt really have many responsibilities at that point other than just trying to get a job, says the designer, who hailed from Cheshire, Connecticut. Living with friends because her lease was up, she was just trying to not have to go back to Connecticut.

Her father questioned her decision to appear on the show (We laugh about that ... years later, she says). But she made friends and got invited to fashion shows at Bryant Park.

I just remember it being a blast, Caliguri Pagel says.

She had a sense that Project Runway was special during filming. Still, she didnt expect the show to inundate pop culture the way it did, well before social media and streaming were competing for audience.

Christian Siriano, the winner of the fourth season of "Project Runway," is the mentor on "All-Stars."Heidi Gutman | Bravo

People would recognize me, which was really crazy, she says.

At Pratt, Caliguri Pagel had interned for Authentic Lifestyle Products. After the show, the company asked her back. Shes been there ever since, hiring and managing designers and collaborating with brands like Kenneth Cole, Champion, and Kendall + Kylie (the Jenners).

I stuck around and now Im an executive, so it works out, she says.

Returning to TV, she brought season one souvenirs: her workspace name tag and a key to the first Project Runway apartment.

In the premiere, shes asked to reimagine the rose-dotted wedding dress that got her eliminated  a daunting prospect. She hadnt sewn a gown in nearly a decade.

I just hope that I am an inspiration to people getting back into what you love, she says. Because I think its really important.

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Amy Kuperinsky may be reached at akuperinsky@njadvancemedia.com and followed at @AmyKup on Twitter.
Farmington Police have charged a woman with felony burglary, misdemeanor stealing, misdemeanor tampering with a motor vehicle, and trespassing. According to a Farmington Police Department probable cause statement, on May 27, police were called to a home in the 400 block of Sixth Street for a burglary.

The homeowner told police she was at home when a woman later identified as Cheri Beyersdofer, 31, of Farmington allegedly entered her residence through an unlocked back door. Police were told Beyersdofer was wearing all black and carried a black bag. The homeowner reportedly told police she was able to push Beyersdofer out the back door after announcing she was armed. Beyersdofer allegedly ransacked and stole items from the homeowners garage before entering the home.

The statement says while police were investigating the burglary, a woman called and said an unfamiliar woman was sitting in her car outside her home on Boyce Avenue. When police responded, they were reportedly able to determine the unfamiliar woman in the car was Beyersdofer. In the car with Beyersdofer was a black and green bag that allegedly contained merchandise connected to a theft that had occurred earlier in the day on Perrine Road.

According to police, Beyersdofer admitted to stealing the merchandise in the bag. A witness to the theft of the merchandise in the bag reportedly recognized Beyersdofer from a photo. The homeowner on Sixth Street also allegedly recognized Beyersdofer from a photo as the woman who had entered her home.

After initially appearing at the St. Francois County Courthouse on May 30, Beyersdofer waived initial arraignment, and a preliminary hearing was scheduled for Thursday. Beyersdofer is out on bond with special conditions, including GPS monitoring, blood, breath, and urinalysis test, and no contact with alleged victims.

A review of Beyersdofers case history on Missouri Case Net shows several drug-related convictions and a peace disturbance conviction. All of the convictions resulted in fines and/or probation. Beyersdofer was not on probation at the time of the burglary.
Attention local Michael Jackson impersonators  MJ is looking for new talent.

The team behind the Tony-winning Broadway musical about Michael Jackson is going to be holding open auditions in Newark and Orlando.

MJ The Musical, directed and choreographed by Tony winner Christopher Wheeldon with a book written by Pulitzer Prize winner Lynn Nottage, opened in 2022 at Neil Simon Theatre in New York.

The jukebox musical delivers performances of Jackson hits including Beat It, Smooth Criminal, Billie Jean, Human Nature, Black or White and Wanna Be Startin Somethin.

At 22, Myles Frost, who originated the role of Jackson in the production, became the youngest individual actor to win the Tony for best actor in a musical.

Elijah Johnson, 24, currently stars as Jackson in the Broadway show, which also won Tonys for best choreography, lighting and sound design. The musical was nominated for a total of 10 Tonys.

Producers Lia Vollack, John McClain and John Branca are looking for actors to play two roles: MJ and Little Michael.

In an announcement Tuesday, they said performers who are cast in the show will be future replacements for actors playing these roles in both the Broadway production and touring companies of the show.

The national tour of MJ starts August in Chicago. MJ will also come to Londons Prince Edward Theatre in March 2024, with Frost heading up the show.

The Newark audition will be Sunday, June 25 at NJPAC (1 Center St.) from 1 to 4 p.m.

Actors are advised to get ready for the auditions by preparing a Michael Jackson or Jackson 5 song.

For those who cant attend the audition in person, email audition@mjthemusical.com for information on video submissions.

Auditions will also be hosted in Orlando Sunday, June 17, from 4 to 6 p.m. at Orlando Repertory Theatre (1001 E. Princeton St.).

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Amy Kuperinsky may be reached at akuperinsky@njadvancemedia.com and followed at @AmyKup on Twitter.
Boardwalk lemonade  one of 17 foods that should be banned in New Jersey  is generally grim stuff. It starts with a wan-looking wedge of lemon in cups arrayed despondently at a food stand. Add water, sugar and ice and you have the boardwalks most iconic  and overrated  beverage. Youd do better bringing your own lemons, water and sugar and making it yourself. Think of all the money youd save.

Finding good lemonade on the boardwalk is akin to finding life on Mars. But youll find it at Pucker in Asbury Park, the Jersey Shores best boardwalk lemonade; only Bobs Lemonade in Ocean City comes close. Both ended up on my best boardwalk food ranking.

Pucker, located in a shipping container, is celebrating its 15th summer on the boardwalk. The owner is Kristina Bannon. Good luck getting inside lemonade info from her.

I cant give you the step-by-step (process); Ill go out of business, she complains good-naturedly. Squeeze lemon, add sugar and water, then shake, she explains. Our motto is keep it simple.

The sugar is not just any old sugar, although she is reluctant to name the kind or brand. The water is filtered water on tap. And the lemons? Dont get her started on lemons.

Pucker is located in a shipping container on the Asbury Park boardwalk (Peter Genovese I NJ Advance Media for NJ.com)

The ones that look the prettiest arent always the best, Bannon, 44, begins. When shopping, she looks for lemons that are not too hard; the ones that are beat up are often better. The ones that look too perfect, I dont know if theyve been genetically modified or theyre just for the supermarket. I kind of like the uglier, the better.

I am committed to my lemons," she adds, laughing.

And her ice. She gets it from Ice King in Tinton Falls, which makes a mere 250,000 pounds of ice a day. Its like hospital ice, so good," she explains. Like chip ice thats soft and chewable."

Some customers, though, are not impressed with their first sip of Puckers lemonade. with such comments as, This is the worst lemonade Ive ever had."

Bannon doesnt take it personally.

It comes down to where theyre from, what theyre used to having," she says. If you grew up on Country Time lemonade, it would be super-duper sweet. If youre getting fresh-squeezed lemonade, youre getting a real taste of a lemon, which is tangy."

Brothers Tim and Tom Sandberg enjoy a lemonade at Pucker after their epic bike ride from St. Paul, Minn. (Peter Genovese I NJ Advance Media for NJ.com)

She calls her employees lemonistas," the lemony version of baristas. Bannon also owns Tonys, a sausage and cheesesteak Asbury boardwalk stand; her mom, who grew up on Mulberry Street in New York Citys Little Italy, runs Tonys stand at Englishtown Auction. There are also four Tonys food trucks, which appear at 80 or so festivals around the state annually.

Pucker was not an overnight sensation; it took five years for the business to get really established, according to Bannon. Seasonal businesses  Pucker is open from early May to early October  are not the faint-hearted, she says. Besides classic lemonade, Pucker offers mango, strawberry and blood orange lemonade, plus hand-cut fries.

Bannons first customers on a recent Thursday? Brothers Tim and Tom Sandberg, who ended their 1,420 mile, 25-day bike ride from St. Paul, Minn. to the Atlantic Ocean on the Asbury Park boardwalk.

When Tom and I were 18 and 19, we rode our bikes from St. Paul to San Diego," Tim explained. I retired this January and decided to do a ride to the Atlantic Ocean to complete a 43-year transcontinental journey. My wife urged Tom to join me because she did not want me doing it alone."

And why Asbury Park for the end point?

It was the closest route to the ocean and I am a big Bruce Springsteen fan," he replied.

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Peter Genovese may be reached at pgenovese@njadvancemedia.com. On Twitter, @petegenovese. On Instagram, @peteknowsjersey and @themunchmobile.
A federal jury on Monday ordered Starbucks to pay $25.6 million to a white former regional manager from Gloucester County who claimed the company fired her after fallout from the arrests of two Black men.

Shannon Phillips, a 13-year-employee from Woolwich, was terminated a month after the men were arrested at a Philadelphia store that was within her region, according to the suit filed Oct. 28, 2019, in U.S. District Court.

The jury found that Starbucks violated the federal civil rights of the former manager. The jury also found the company violated a New Jersey law that prohibits discrimination based on race.

Phillips was awarded $600,000 in compensatory damages and $25 million in punitive damages, according to The New York Times.

The jury rejected Starbucks claim that the manager had been fired for being ineffective at her job.

A spokesperson for Starbucks did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the award. Phillips attorney did not return calls or an email seeking comment.

According to media reports about the incident, the men were sitting inside a Starbucks in Rittenhouse Square in Philadelphia on April 12, 2018. They were waiting for a white friend when an employee allegedly called police because they had not ordered anything.

The men were handcuffed and taken to a police station, where they were released without charges, according to media reports.

Starbucks later reached a financial settlement with the men, according to the suit.

The lawsuit claimed that although Phillips was not near the store at the time of the arrests, she was the director of operations for a region encompassing Philadelphia, South Jersey, Delaware and parts of Maryland.

Phillips was not involved in the arrests in any way, the suit states.

When the arrests made national headlines, Phillips worked with her superiors and subordinates on a crisis management plan to ensure the safety of workers and employees, the suit states.

The lawsuit said Starbucks fired Phillips on May 9, 2018, after she defended a white district manager who had been falsely accused of race discrimination.

A vice president of operations for Starbucks, who is Black, allegedly fired Phillips by telling her only that the situation is not recoverable, according to the lawsuit.

Anthony G. Attrino may be reached at tattrino@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @TonyAttrino. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
A crucial vote on the local approval of a Hoboken cannabis applicant was put off Monday night, but the setback appears to be only temporary.

The city council was set to vote on approving Village Hoboken, a prospective dispensary planning to set up shop on Washington Street between Fifth and Sixth streets. But the vote, which would potentially allow Village to apply for state approval, was pulled from the agenda before the meeting.
A 34-year-old driver was arrested following a three-vehicle crash in Highland Park that killed two occupants in another vehicle on Tuesday

Abeer Viriani was charged with aggravated manslaughter and two counts of vehicular homicide following the 5:30 p.m. crash at the corner of Route 27 and North 10th Street, the Middlesex County Prosecutors Office said Wednesday.

Viriani, of the Iselin section of Woodbridge, struck two other vehicles. Two people in one of the cars  Easton, Maryland, residents Peter Palmer, 75 and Carol Paul, 77, were pronounced dead at the scene.

Viriani and the driver of the third vehicle were treated for minor injuries at an area hospital. Authorities didnt describe how the crash took place, though WABC-7 called it a head-on collision.

Viriani was then sent to the Middlesex County jail ahead of a first appearance in court. Attorney information wasnt immediately available.

Anyone with information or surveillance footage of the area is asked to call Highland Park police officer Kevin Garrity at 732-572-3800 or Det. Matthew Colonna of the Middlesex County Prosecutors Office at 732-745-3354.

Jeff Goldman may be reached at jeff_goldman@njadvancemedia.com.

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Flag Day 2023 is Wednesday, June 14, 2023.

The annual holiday celebrates the symbolism and history behind the American flag each year on the anniversary of the American flags official creation on June 14.

Flag Day is a celebration of the American flag that occurs every year on June 14 to remember when the Continental Congress introduced our countrys first flag as the official American flag on June 14, 1777.

The Continental Congress introduced the American flag in the middle of the Revolutionary War at a time when each colony or special interest had its own flag.

The Declaration of Independence made the introduction of a universal American flag necessary.

Congress made a resolution on June 14, 1777, outlining the purpose for a united American flag for the 13 colonies: The flag of the United States shall be thirteen stripes, alternate red and white, with a union of thirteen stars of white on a blue field 

In 1885, a school teacher named Bernard J. Cigrand encouraged his students to reflect on the symbolism behind the American flag.

Eventually, he came up with a proposal to establish an annual observance for the nations flag and penned an article called the Fourteenth of June in the Chicago Argus newspaper. To this day, he is regarded as the Father of Flag Day.

Since then, there have been 27 different versions of the American flag, and stars have been added as states joined the Union.

The flag in its current state dates back to July 4, 1960 when Hawaii was officially recognized as the 50th state on the American flag.

On May 30, 1916, President Woodrow Wilson established a national Flag Day on June 14.

President Harry Truman signed legislation in 1949 proclaiming Flag Day as a national holiday, although it was never considered an official federal holiday.

Many Americans celebrate Flag Day by displaying the red, white, and blue flags with 50 stars and 13 stripes in front of homes and businesses.

Some towns and cities hold parades and other events to celebrate the flag, and the American flag is flown at all government buildings.

Flag Day is not an official federal holiday, but its observance is proclaimed every year by the president of the United States.

Two states also celebrate it as a state holiday. Pennsylvania established June 14 as a state holiday recognizing Flag Day, and New York recognizes the second Sunday every June as a state holiday in honor of Flag Day.

Businesses and government offices will remain open in New Jersey and across the country.

Schools and the U.S. Postal Service will also remain open, and mail service will run as usual.

Flag Day was not included in the 1968 Uniform Holiday Act. This legislation that laid out the framework for the 11 official federal holidays and three-day weekend holidays we currently celebrate.

Are there any online sales during Flag Day?

Yes, there are plenty of online sales during Flag Day.

Noteworthy online shopping deals worth checking out right now include:

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Katherine Rodriguez can be reached at krodriguez@njadvancemedia.com. Have a tip? Tell us at nj.com/tips.
I just discovered that the state Senate has had a second reading of Senate Bill 234/Assembly Bill 5281, which would eliminate a law enforcement entity in New Jersey.

This legislation would eliminate the position of constable, and is a response to a 2021 report issued by the New Jersey Commission of Investigation (SCI), Abusing the Badge, which contends that the locally appointed constables are outdated and are trained insufficiently, if at all.

Actually, the point is, there is not a whole lot of information available on constables, other than that they have similar duties and responsibilities to county sheriffs officers.

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Since colonial days, there have been sheriffs and constables, long before the title of police officer was established. In fact, the term cop COP actually means constable on patrol, and under New Jersey law, law, this is where police get their authority. Under N.J. statute Section 40A:14-152, Members and officers (of a police force) shall have powers of peace officers and constables.

So, if you eliminate the constabable position, it could be interpreted as stripping police officers of their authority to enforce laws.

But what do you expect when 65 lawmakers violated their oath to the Constitution by voting to void the U.S. Supreme Courts N.Y. v. Bruen decision that opened concealed carry permits to more individuals? The New Jersey law made practically any location other than the firearm owners home a prohibited firearm area. Do you think this would keep New Jersey citizens safe? I dont, because criminals dont obey laws. Thats why they are criminals, and we need more not fewer  law enforcement officers.

So instead of eliminating constables, do what other states like Delaware and Pennsylvania have done: require specific, recurring constable training/. One such bill in New Jersey is A-863.

Brian A. Crist, Pennsville

Democrats demolish rail-line alternatives

I loved Beverly Donofrios recent letter (Make the bus the boss for mass transit) about the the proposed Glassboro-Camden light-rail line and why improved bus service would better serve our communities.

Donofrio is lucky she lives in Pitman. Her borough council, with the mayor casting a tie-breaking vote, came out against the GCL in 2022. I live in Mantua Township, where an all-Democrat township committee approved a resolution in 2009 supporting the project, without any input from township residents or having a completed environmental impact study to review. It makes you wonder who Mantua committee members are there to serve.

The GCL is the only option offered to Gloucester County residents for commuter transit because of the infamous Delaware River Port Authority, the lead agency for the light-rail line. The DRPA boards New Jersey appointees all serve at the pleasure of the George Norcross IIIs Democrat political machine. My guess is that its interests will make more money by handing out the GCL contracts. They get left off of the money train if express electric buses  the better option are chosen.

Mantua residents are being offered a petition to sign to force our committee members  some of whom have privately spoken out against the project  to put a question on Novembers ballot aimed at opposing the GCL. If it succeeds, elected officials will be forced at least to listen to the will of the people they took an oath to serve.

Some other towns governing bodies along the proposed route are also on record opposing the line.

Carol Rhodes, Barnsboro

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I so miss Succession, the HBO drama about the insanely wealthy family with the sniveling, greedy kids and the completely amoral father. These were bad guys that you loved to hate. Oh, and what fantastic wealth porn. The only way the Roys traveled was on their private jet, expansive yacht or chauffeur-driven limo.

The affection TV viewers had for this totally worthless and filthy rich family likely provides at least one explanation for why Christies excoriation of Jared Kushner was our most popular Opinion piece this week. I mean this wasnt a slight diss by our former governor, it was a full-on takedown of one of New Jerseys wealthiest and most dastardly families.

Christie, never the one to mince words, makes it clear that Jared, in his mind, is corrupt. The grift in this family is breathtaking. Its breathtaking, Christie says theatrically. Jared Kushner and Ivanka Kushner walked out of the White House and two months later they get $2 billion from the Saudis?

Columnist Tom Moran then lays out the filthy deeds committed by Charlie Kushner, Jareds daddy. These are the completely amoral crimes that landed Charlie in prison courtesy of then-U.S. Attorney Christie.

Corrupt father, loving son who wants to be just like dad? Actually, the Kushners story might make a juicier tale for TV than the Roys or the Murdochs. And Christies narration would be scrumptious. But until HBO, or Max, buys the rights you can check out this sordid story in Morans column.

Here are some other compelling issues we wrote about in this weeks Opinion section:

Has the superintendent of Newark schools lost his mind? | Editorial: Why would he ask Newark locals, among the neediest people in the state, to pay this bill? Why would he ask Newark locals, among the neediest people in the state, to pay this bill?

Newark Superintendent Roger Leon is proposing a more than $2 billion bond to fix all the schools in his district, paid for by local taxpayers. And that is truly mystifying: This is an obligation that New Jerseys Supreme Court has quite clearly laid at the feet of state taxpayers. Newark Public Schools

Trump toadies Christie and Pence seek presidency? No thanks | Letters: Where were these guys in 2020, as tens of thousands of Americans were dying from COVID-19 and Trump said everything was under control? Where were these guys in 2020, as tens of thousands of Americans were dying from COVID-19 and Trump said everything was under control?

Where were Pence and Christie in 2018 during the Helsinki summit, when Trump sided with Vladimir Putin instead of his own intelligence officials? Where were they when Trump callously separated infants from their parents when they desperately sought asylum in the United States?

Reverse Robin Hood: N.J. tax plan robs the poor, gives to the rich | Opinion: Why should the income taxes of a 30-year-old waitress living with her child in a small apartment go to subsidize the property ownership of a person with a multi-million-dollar home? Why should the income taxes of a 30-year-old waitress living with her child in a small apartment go to subsidize the property ownership of a person with a multi-million-dollar home?

As a state, we should address the concerns of seniors priced out of their homes and low- and middle-income families evicted due to outrageous rent increases.

Thanks to the drunk and rowdy kids, summer at the Jersey Shore this year could be a real riot | Mulshine: When the state Legislature legalized marijuana, they prohibited cops from searching kids; As a result Shore towns were hit with riots over Memorial Day weekend When the state Legislature legalized marijuana, they prohibited cops from searching kids; As a result Shore towns were hit with riots over Memorial Day weekend

Down in Cape May County, the mayors of Ocean City and Sea Isle City called a news conference to complain about bad behavior in their towns, which are usually among the most placid on the Shore. Cape May County Prosecutor's Office

Management would like you to pretty please come back to the office | Sheneman: Dont forget your employee ID Dont forget your employee ID

Why promote a healthy work-life balance when you can force workers to show up and look busy? If an employee is meeting expectations, why do we expect them to sit in meetings?
Enjoying our photo galleries? NJ.com is offering a new benefit to subscribers: Free, high-res photo downloads  as well as the option to purchase keepsakes at a 50% discount.

The NJ Army Tank Pull, an event intended to raise funds and support for veterans in need, returned to Clifton for the 13th year.

The annual event, hosted by the New Jersey Knights of Columbus, Catholic Charities, Diocese of Paterson, and veteran partners from throughout New Jersey, took place on Clinton Avenue on Sunday, June 11.

Since its start, the NJ Army Tank Pull has raised $1.8 million to support veterans.

The Tank Pull Challenge presents participants with a physical test of endurance as they join forces to overcome the seemingly insurmountable task of moving an immovable object  an 80,000-pound tank mounted on a flatbed truck. The event serves as a rallying cry for competitors to embrace the challenge and defy the impossible. Teams from corporate and nonprofit sectors participated in this years event.

The block-long event area was closed to traffic. Representatives from various veterans groups from across New Jersey were present, raising awareness for their respective causes.

Proceeds from the event will benefit Catholic Charities Veterans Services, dedicated to assisting homeless veterans or those at risk of homelessness. Additionally, funds raised will support organizations including the Independence Corps, Paramus Veterans Home, Clifton Cares, Clifton Veterans Association, Wreaths Across America, Welcome Home Vets NJ, and the NJSOSVETS.

The event also featured the presentation of the 2 Sean V. Hughes Memorial Scholarships to graduating seniors.

We are honored to collaborate with the Knights of Columbus for the New Jersey Army Tank Pull, said Scott Milliken, CEO of Catholic Charities Diocese of Paterson. This event holds great significance as we come together to express our gratitude to those who have served our great nation.

The NJ Army Tank Pull is a momentous celebration of our country, our veterans, and those who make a meaningful difference in their lives, said Chris Brancato, Catholic Charities Development director.

This event provides a tremendous opportunity to express our gratitude to the men and women who fought for our flag and freedom, said John Hughes, the event founder and co-chair. It brings us joy to support and give back to our veterans.

Hughes added, Less than one percent of the population in this country serve in the military and they put their lives at risk not knowing what the end result will be of their service. We need to be there to support them. For 13 years, the New Jersey Army Tank Pull has raised $1.8 million for veterans including those who have been wounded in combat. We are grateful to the City of Clifton, and our many sponsors, volunteers, and supporters who have made it all possible. Hughes is an U.S. Army National Guard veteran, who served in the military during the Vietnam War.

Brancato noted, A record 48 teams came out to the Knights of Columbus/Catholic Charities, New Jersey Army Tank Pull. This event is a celebration and commemoration of those who have served our country. Thousands of individuals show their support for Tank Pull through attending or contributing and by doing so are also showing support for our nation. We are grateful to everyone who gave their time and treasures in any way and are looking forward to the 14th annual Tank Pull next year!

Although this years event is over, donations continue to be accepted at www.tankpull.org. Veterans and others in need of help may contact Catholic Charities at info@ccpaterson.org.

Quickest Pull Time

Pullin Badgers (IBEW 94) 6.10 seconds NFL Alumni 7.10 seconds IBEW Local 743 7.42 seconds

Lowest Team Weight

Operation Sisterhood 176 lbs Vergona Crane Co. Inc 184 lbs NJSOSVETS 206 lbs

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A scathing 15-page letter from Gov. Phil Murphy called an environmental assessment about New Yorks proposed congestion pricing fee to enter Manhattans central business district fundamentally flawed for discounting increased pollution and other harmful effects on New Jersey.

In the letter, Murphy urged the Federal Highway Administration not to issue a final Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI) that would allow the congestion pricing program to be implemented next year and to require a more stringent Environmental Impact Statement study be conducted that would likely push that start date back.

Congestion pricing would charge a toll to enter Manhattan south of 60th Street, that could range from a low of $9, with no exemptions or credits for bridge and tunnel tolls, to a high of $23, that would provide toll credits for the three Hudson River crossings and other toll bridges. The plans goals are to reduce traffic, congestion on Manhattan streets. It is projected to raise an estimated $1 billion for MTA subways, buses and commuter railroads.

If a congestion pricing plan proceeds, it could prompt an NJ Transit fare increase to cover the additional estimated $22 million cost for the agencys commuter buses to enter the city, Murphy wrote. NJ Transit buses only marginally touch the central business district before entering the Port Authority Bus Terminal, he argued.

Of the seven congestion pricing fee scenarios, two exempt all buses and one only exempts commuter buses. Four have no cap on the number of times a bus can be charged a fee for entering the central business district, according to the Environmental Assessment. Failing to provide a commuter bus exemption contradicts a policy rationale of congestion pricing, encouraging use of mass transit.

The final congestion pricing plan fees, exemptions and credits for tolls paid at Hudson and East River crossings is up to a traffic mobility review board that will make final recommendations to the MTAs Triborough Bridge and Tunnel Authority. Elected officials have complained that New Jersey has no representation on that board.

The allNew York makeup of the review board, including two current and three former members of the MTA board, demonstrates that the deck is stacked against New Jersey, the governor wrote.

The MTA did not answer a request to respond to the governors letter.

While preliminary congestion pricing reports recommended credits for Lincoln and Holland Tunnel tolls to be applied to the congestion fee, a decision to do the same for the George Washington Bridge tolls is up to the review board.

Murphy and members of New Jerseys congressional delegation have called for GWB toll credits. Only one of the tolling scenarios calls for GWB toll credits. However, more exemptions and toll credits drives the congestion fee higher, according to the proposal.

The environmental assessment said that NJ Transit bus ridership would only increase by 0.5% to 1.1% under congestion pricing. But Murphy disputed that figure because no New Jersey transportation agency, including NJ Transit had been consulted by the MTA, he wrote.

While Murphy reiterated previous comments about that he supports the concept of congestion pricing to reduce traffic, pollution and crashes, he said this plan is primarily a revenue raiser for the MTA. While congestion pricing plans in London, Singapore and Stockholm reduced traffic by 10% to 30% in congestion zones and increased mobility, New Yorks plan only reduces traffic by 5% to 10% under two different toll scenarios, Murphy said, citing FHWA figures.

New Jersey roads will be adversely affected, our vulnerable communities will be exposed to more congestion and air quality issues and our state services will be strained, he said. The stakes of getting this plan right could not be higher for New Jersey or the region.

Murphy cited the lack of mitigation proposed by the MTA to deal with increased traffic on the George Washington Bridge and in North Jersey caused by drivers diverting around the congestion zone. The MTA environmental assessment said roughly 90% of New Jersey commuters take public transit to the central business district.

While concluding congestion pricing would benefit regional air quality by reducing criteria pollutants in the 12-county study area, the MTA environmental assessment said it could increase pollution in three New York counties and Bergen. While the MTA offered $130 million to mitigate the effects of predicted air pollution increases in the Bronx from traffic, no mitigation was offered for affected New Jersey communities. Measures offered for the Bronx included $25 million for asthma treatment, the New York Time reported.

Murphy also mentioned the adverse economic impact of a congestion fee on several groups of people including those on fixed incomes coming to New York for medical reasons, low income workers who cannot change their travel time due to work schedules and low income transit riders who could be affected by a potential fare hike.

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Larry Higgs may be reached at lhiggs@njadvancemedia.com.
Juneteenth  commemorating July 19, 1865, when freed slaves in Galveston, Texas, learned the Civil War was over and they were free, two months after the Confederacy had surrendered  was made a federal holiday on June 17, 2021.

Missouri joined 48 other states and the District of Columbia and designated it as a state holiday during 2021's legislative session.

Locally, the city of Farmington will be open, but Juneteenth will be observed and offices will be closed on Monday by:

Federal courts

Federally-funded offices and programs

State courts

State-run offices

Madison County government

St. Francois County government

City of Bismarck

City of Bonne Terre: Monday's trash will be picked up Wednesday

City of Desloge: Monday's trash will be picked up on Tuesday

City of Fredericktown

City of Leadwood

City of Park Hills: Monday trash pick-up will run on Tuesday

Mineral Area College

Originating in Galveston, Texas, Juneteenth has been celebrated annually on June 19 in various parts of the U.S. since 1865, according to Wikipedia. Juneteenth's commemoration is on the anniversary date of the June 19, 1865, announcement of General Order No. 3 by Union Army general Gordon Granger, proclaiming freedom for enslaved people in Texas, which was the last state of the Confederacy with institutional slavery.
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Watertown, NY (13601)

Today

Sunny. Areas of smoke and haze are possible, reducing visibility at times. High 78F. Winds W at 5 to 10 mph..

Tonight

Clear skies. Low 59F. Winds light and variable.
Preliminary data from the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) shows turkey hunters checked 41,970 birds during Missouris 2023 regular spring turkey season, April 17 through May 7. Top regular season harvest counties were Franklin with 973 birds harvested, Callaway with 801, and Osage with 792.

Young turkey hunters also harvested 2,566 turkeys over the youth weekend, April 1 and 2, bringing the overall 2023 spring turkey harvest to 44,536  the highest harvest total since 2016.

Stable, though still lower than the ideal, hatches each of the past three years and excellent spring turkey hunting weather likely contributed to this years higher harvest total, said MDC Wild Turkey Biologist Nick Oakley. The 2023 harvest was 23 percent higher compared to 2022 and it was 19 percent higher than the average over the previous five years.

Last year, young turkey hunters harvested 2,894 turkeys over the spring youth season and hunters harvested 33,359 during the regular spring season for a 2022 spring season total harvest of 36,253.

Get more information on this years spring turkey harvest numbers by county at https://extra.mdc.mo.gov/widgets/harvest_table/.

See more information on turkey harvest numbers for past seasons online at https://huntfish.mdc.mo.gov/hunting-trapping/species/turkey/turkey-reports/turkey-harvest-summaries-past-seasons.

For more information about turkey hunting in Missouri, visit MDC online at https://huntfish.mdc.mo.gov/hunting-trapping/species/turkey.
Starbucks caused a stir last fall when the Seattle-based coffee giant shuttered its New Orleans flagship location at the corner of Canal Street and St. Charles Avenue, citing security concerns among the factors for the closure.

Now, New Orleans-based French Truck Coffee is taking over the space at 700 Canal St., in the ground floor of the historic Pickwick Club building.

It's opening its own coffee shop here over the summer, and to French Truck Coffee founder Geoffrey Meeker, its also making a statement.

I believe in New Orleans with all of its challenges, but more importantly all of the amazing things our city has: the people, the culture and the history, said Meeker. We say in our business, It takes good people to make good coffee. In New Orleans, it takes good people to provide New Orleans hospitality. Thats what this city has, and we will be highlighting it in a way that big corporations simply dont understand.
In this Dec. 13, 2012, photo, a customer stops at a Bank of America ATM office in Boston. Bank of America, the countrys second largest bank, plans to move into the New Orleans market by the end of 2025, according to an American Banker report.(AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
The proliferation of surveillance cameras and the General Assemblys decision to treat attempted catalytic converter theft as a felony appear to have dealt a blow to Brian Charles Tichner. The 33-year-old Dyke resident pleaded guilty Tuesday to a single grand larceny count as part of plea deal after he was accused in February of stealing the pricy parts from two automobile exhaust systems.

The court accepts the plea, said Charlottesville Circuit Judge Claude Worrell, as Tichners parents looked from the gallery at their shackled son.

Arrest records accused Tichner of stealing a catalytic converter from the vehicle of a woman named Hedi Miller on Feb. 3 and from a man named Brent Ryder on Feb. 6. While University of Virginia police were investigating those cases, they heard from Albemarle County officer J. Steiff.

Steiff was dispatched to the Bonefish Grill in the Hollymead Town Center on Feb. 10 to meet with a manager named Michael Newman about an attempted converter theft.

Mr. Newman saw the suspect under the vehicle with a Sawzall and thought that seemed odd, Steiff wrote in her criminal complaint.

Steiff noted that surveillance video showed a fleeing sedan bearing Florida license plates and two men inside. When Steiff shared the information with local law enforcement colleagues, he learned that Tichner was about to be arrested in his home county of Greene for the converter thefts that UVa was already investigating.

UVa Police Chief Tim Longo, who urged Charlottesville to install more surveillance cameras when he was the chief of the city police department, told a town hall audience in April that UVa now has about 2,000 such devices.

UVa cameras played a role in the recent arrest and conviction of scooter thief Chelsea Steiniger and in the recent arrest of a Madison County man accused of stealing textbooks from an engineering building.

Private cameras have been said to have played a role in bringing arrests in the debilitating shooting of a teen outside of Christians Pizza on 14th Street on Dec. 18 as well as the Oct. 23 killing of a man gunned down outside Lucky Blues bar on the Downtown Mall.

Steiff noted that Tichner waived his right against self-incrimination and readily admitted to a Greene County investigator that he and a friend were the perpetrators of the attempted converter theft near the Bonefish Grill.

Defendant was very polite and cooperative, the local magistrate noted.

The Charlottesville plea agreement appears to drop the Feb. 6 incident to focus on the one that damaged a womans car three days earlier.

She wasnt out any money, said Charlottesville Commonwealths Attorney Joe Platania. Insurance covered the damage.

But for Tichner, the damage is mounting.

He faces drug possession and paraphernalia charges from a January arrest in Greene, as well as a charge of feloniously eluding police in that incident.

He wants to get help with his alcohol and drug problem, his lawyer Anthony Martin told the court.

A woman sitting beside Tichners parents in the gallery pulled her pink shirt up over her face in an attempt to restrain her sobs and departed the courtroom before the proceeding concluded. Tichner, who has let his beard grow bushy and who shaved off his tousle of sandy blonde hair since a February court appearance in another case, also shed a few tears during Tuesdays hearing.

Tichners lawyer asked that any court-ordered pre-sentencing report investigate whether his client might be eligible for the Community Corrections Alternative Program, or CCAP, which steers some convicts away from jail and into substance treatment, education and vocational training.

Judge Worrell noted that the plea agreement would cap any active sentence at 12 months, and that the guidelines call for any sentence between zero jail time and two years, 10 months.

Worrell set the sentencing for August 31. Tichner still faces the Albemarle charge from the Bonefish Grill incident as well as assorted charges in Greene County.

#

Correction: the original version of this article referred to Steiff with the wrong pronoun. This story has been corrected.
I oppose clemency for all of these offenders who were given valid death sentences by juries of their peers," Landry said in a statement. "My office will formally oppose their applications.

Landry's opposition highlights the political pressure surrounding the applications. Edwards, a Democrat, is set to leave office early next year, leaving what's seen as a limited window for the prisoners' attorneys to argue their cases before his term closes.

If Edwards grants the requests, it would mark a major shift in the way Louisiana regards the death penalty. The avowedly Catholic governor, who descends from a long line of parish sheriffs, had long held his tongue about the practice. But in the final months of his governorship, Edwards recently came out in full-throated support of abolishing capital punishment.
Rep. Steve Scalise, R-Jefferson, shakes hands with Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-Bakersfield, Calif., after nominating him for the third round of votes for Speaker of the House on the opening day of the 118th Congress at the U.S. Capitol, Tuesday, Jan. 3, 2023, in Washington.
The Charlottesville police are investigating a reported Saturday night break-in and burglary at the Alpha Sigma Phi house on Rugby Road in Charlottesville near the University of Virginia.

Brothers at the fraternity house told The Daily Progress that several thousand of dollars worth of goods had been stolen from the property, including clothing, cash, a camera and a PlayStation 5.

The city police said that some of the items have been returned after authorities discovered them in a residence in the 1400 block of Forest Ridge Road roughly 2 miles away in the citys Fifeville neighborhood.

Police said the items were discovered while they were arresting a suspect Monday on an unrelated, nonviolent charge from another jurisdiction.

Police said they arrested one Lamar Ragland, 36, of Charlottesville at the residence on charges of vehicle theft and larceny.

At the time of Raglands arrest there were other individuals at the Forest Ridge residence, whose involvement in the reported burglary is now under investigation, police said.

Charlottesville police said they are currently reviewing security camera footage that shows two unknown suspects enter through the houses side door at about 11: 30 p.m. Saturday, making multiple trips out the front door carrying various items until about 5 a.m.

No residents were inside the house at the time, brothers said.

Ben Walker, a rising fourth-year at UVa and brother of Alpha Sigma Phi, said he returned to the house on Sunday to see that the previously locked door to his room was ajar. Two backpacks, a camera, multiple articles of clothing and around $150 in cash were missing from his room.

Other fraternity brothers reported missing clothes and items of value, including speakers and a PlayStation 5.

Security camera footage from Monday morning at 6:30 a.m. showed two individuals trying to enter through the same door, which had since been locked, according to Nick Flora, a rising third-year at UVa and the fraternity president. Flora said he called the police at around 7 a.m. after checking the footage that morning.

Walker said he was not sure if the houses side door, which has a deadbolt, had been previously unlocked or if someone had unlocked the door. There was no sign of forced entry, according to police, although Walker noted damage to the door frames and locks of individual rooms.

After reviewing security footage, Walker said two individuals had been at the house Friday afternoon on the back porch of the house sort of scoping it out. The backdoor has a coded lock, he noted.

People are aware that UVa students have left for the year, Charlottesville police Sgt. Ronald Stayments told The Daily Progress. With many residences unoccupied, crimes of opportunity can occur.
The Port of New Orleans' proposed new layout for its Louisiana International Terminal, a $1.5 billion downriver container terminal that is to be built at Violet, in St. Bernard Parish. The changes from the original layout, which include keeping the St. Bernard Highway running along the Mississippi River, were to assuage concerns raised by parish residents.
For more than two years, the most important position in Charlottesville government has not been permanently filled. But that could change very soon.

After months of searching for a new city manager, City Council has narrowed its search down to three possible candidates, councilors told The Daily Progress on Tuesday.

Hopefully well be able to make a decision in the next few weeks, said Council Member Michael Payne.

City Council is not releasing the names of the three candidates because it does not want to endanger those individuals relationships with their current employers. Mayor Lloyd Snook has only offered clues about the candidates so far.

Some are Black, some White, some male, some female. All come with extensive experience at or near the top of significant Virginia jurisdictions, he told The Daily Progress. They all have experience and come with great recommendations so I feel confident well get the type of person we need.

Filling the city manager role  and keeping it filled  will be no small feat. Charlottesville has had six interim or full-time city managers since 2018.

That long list does not include a candidate who accepted the position but pulled out before actually starting the job.

It was an environment where the city was a place where people didnt want to come to work and they perceived a lot of professional risk before taking on the job, Payne said.

Former City Manager Chip Boyles alluded to that environment when he resigned from the job in October 2021, citing public vitriol in his resignation letter.

Public disparagement, from community members and former Mayor Nikuyah Walker, had begun to negatively effect [sic] my personal health & well-being, Boyles wrote.

After years of turmoil, councilors expressed hope that the new manager  whomever it may be  will bring permanence and longevity to the position.

Snook was unwilling to estimate when City Council will make its final selection.

We have a lot of talking to do amongst ourselves. We want make sure we get the decision right, he told The Daily Progress.

Snook added that City Council has had a survey commissioned to gauge the feelings of senior officials in City Hall. That survey will be among the input councilors consider to inform their ultimate choice.

Current interim City Manager Michael Rogers is an employee of the Robert Bobb Group, a Washington-based consulting firm.

That hire was made because, according to Payne, the city government was in a state of crisis.

It was sort of an emergency situation, because there was no one internally in the city and no candidates who wanted to take on the job because it was too risky, he said.

Outsourcing to a consulting group, Payne said was, a solution to ensure we could continue basic operations.

The city manager role is so vital because while the city council sets policies, a city manager is required to actually implement them. Council may have a vision, but its up to a manager to turn that vision into reality.

Executing new initiatives, running public work, holding meetings  even the most essential parts of government become difficult to deliver without a city manager.

Only three council members need to agree on a candidate in order to make the official hire, but Payne said he hopes all five members are able to reach a unanimous decision, because its helpful for the city manager to have the full support of council.

Council will be meeting privately on Friday to discuss the candidates as they draw closer to making a final decision.
Valparaiso's police force, like most others across the Region, is fully equipped with body cameras, and the move has been a positive one for officers.

"Officers have found they provide great assistance while responding to all calls for service, as they assist in documenting investigations and provide a resource for reporting of police activities," Capt. Joe Hall said. "Officers have developed a confidence in the use of all video collection, as it allows for transparency of their actions, which often provides a full picture of the events that have transpired."

The department has about 50 body cameras in operation, as well as dashboard cameras in each of its 47 patrol vehicles.

"They have proven to be a valuable tool in identifying training needs and in investigating any complaint that may be filed against an officer," he said.

Hall said the cameras are part of the transition into modern policing.

Few agencies remain camera shy Data gathered from October 2022 to May 2023 shows of the 142 agencies that answered questions on camera availability or use, 93 said they had both body and dashboard cameras for at least one of their members and vehicles.

Data gathered from October 2022 to May 2023 shows of the 142 agencies that answered questions on camera availability or use, 93 said they had both body and dashboard cameras for at least one of their members and vehicles.

The entire patrol division at the Porter County Sheriff's Department is outfitted with body cameras, and cameras in vehicles face forward and to the rear where people sit, Sgt. Benjamin McFalls said.

"It's a great and invaluable tool," he said. "Not only used in court, but also used for us if there's a citizen complaint on one of our officers.

"We will continue to be transparent and build trust in our community."

One of Lake County's largest departments will implement body cameras within the next few months.

The Gary Police Department is in the process of outfitting all officers with body cameras, Maj. Chief Jerry Williams said. The agency received the cameras in early March and is teaching officers how to use the technology.

The body cameras have been a long time coming. Mayor Jerome Prince created a Police Reform Commission in the wake of George Floyd's murder in Minneapolis. One of the commission's recommendations was for all officers to receive body cameras and Tasers. Acquiring funding proved to be the biggest challenge.

The city applied for and was granted $88,000 through Indiana's Local Body Camera Grant program in April 2022. Williams said they bought 110 cameras, which will outfit the patrol division.

In April, Gary police announced a $1 million federal grant for dash cameras. Williams said they are aiming to purchase about 100 cameras.

After many years of debate, Portage police began using body cameras in November as part of an initiative by Chief Mike Candiano.

Financial difficulties were at the root of the challenge to obtain the cameras.

"We believe these cameras will be beneficial to the public, to our officers and to the criminal justice system as they will provide an accurate record of what an officer is seeing and doing during the course of their duties," Candiano said.

The cameras are mounted inside the officers uniform shirt or outer ballistic vest carrier. They can be manually activated by the officer, or automatically when an accelerometer picks up that an officer is running or draws a firearm from its holster.

A safety feature activates the camera and sounds an alarm to other on-duty officers if the device senses that an officer is lying on the ground for a lengthy time in case of an injury or medical emergency.

The city bought the cameras using the $8.3 million it received through the American Rescue Plan Act, police reported. Each of the 45 officers within the patrol division have been outfitted.

How long video footage is stored depends on the circumstances of the call, Lt. Rob Maynard said. If an officer is out on a call that is "inconsequential," the footage deletes after 30 days.

Video from misdemeanor arrests is saved for three years, and from felony arrests for seven years. Footage from arrests related to homicides, rapes and other high-class felonies is legally required to be saved for an indefinite time.

The department previously had dash cameras in officers' squad cars but stopped using them in 2008 because of poor quality, Maynard said.

Hobart is one of Northwest Indiana's more sizable cities, with a population of slightly under 30,000 as of the 2020 U.S. census. However, it is one of NWI's cities that hasn't implemented body cameras.

Police Chief Garrett Ciszewski said the city has yet to get body cameras because of the sizable cost.

"Body cams are a great tool," he said. "They're just cost-prohibitive."

Ciszewski said the first quote the Hobart Police Department received for 50 body cameras was close to $500,000. They've explored available grants for body cameras, which would cover about $2,000 for each camera.

"That only covers about $100,000 of the $500,000 needed to make this project happen," he said.

The department has a few dash cameras, but if they were to go the "camera route," he'd prefer to purchase body cameras.

The cost of storing the camera footage is the highest, Ciszewski said, which is another financial barrier to getting body cameras.

Ciszewski said he thinks there is some apprehension among his officers related to implementation of body cams, but some want them in case a false complaint were to be filed against them.

"If they're in a situation that gets questioned by the public, they want to show they've done the right thing."

As previous law enforcement said, body cameras help increase transparency between law enforcement officers and their communities. According to data from Hobart police, 11 complaints of excessive use of force have been filed since 2017, and none was sustained. When Hobart police investigate complaints, Ciszewski said, they talk to everyone involved in the incident and evaluate an officer's history. Oftentimes, they are able to find footage from Ring cameras or security cameras outside businesses.

Ciszewski, who has been chief since January 2022, said getting body cameras is something he is trying to make a priority.

"When the city feels like it's a priority," he said, "it's probably when it will happen."
A Gary woman who shot her neighbor's pregnant sister in the thigh during an argument is entitled to no reduction in her four-year prison term, according to the Indiana Court of Appeals.

Pamela L. Hunter, 43, pleaded guilty last year to battery resulting in serious bodily injury, a level 5 felony, in exchange for prosecutors dismissing eight other felony charges connected to the April 14, 2021, shooting, including unlawful possession of a firearm by a serious violent felon, records show.

The plea agreement capped Hunter's maximum prison sentence at four years but left the final sentencing decision to Lake Superior Judge Samuel Cappas.

Cappas ordered Hunter to serve four years, according to court records.

In her appeal, Hunter argued it was inappropriate for Cappas to sentence her to the maximum permitted under the plea agreement and asked the court to immediately release from her incarceration to serve the remainder of her sentence on probation.

The appeals court unanimously rejected Hunter's request after considering the nature of the offense and the character of the offender.

Specifically, Chief Judge Robert Altice Jr. said Hunter chose to engage and remain in an argument with her neighbor and fired a handgun, at least twice, while a crowd of some 40 people, including children, was assembled nearby preparing to attend a funeral.

Records show at least two people were injured in the shooting, including a woman who was seven months pregnant, and several children who witnessed it continue to struggle emotionally. Hunter also subsequently engaged in a standoff with Gary police.

"The nature of the offense does not warrant revision of Hunter's four-year sentence," Altice said.

Likewise, Altice said Hunter's extensive criminal history, including multiple felony convictions, repeated community corrections violations, possessing a handgun as a convicted felon, and the finding that she's moderate risk to reoffend weigh against reducing her sentence.

"The record before us does not indicate that Hunters character warrants sentence revision. In sum, Hunter has failed to establish that her four-year sentence is inappropriate," Altice said.

Hunter still can ask the Indiana Supreme Court to consider reviewing and revising the length of her prison term.

Otherwise, her earliest possible release date, assuming good behavior, is Oct. 3, 2025, according to the Indiana Department of Correction.

Gallery: Recent arrests booked into Lake County Jail Matthew Roggenkamp Ruben Vega III Jordan Picotte Rakeem Pippins Victor Odgen Matthew Moses Thomas Murray Kurt Gonzalez II Anthony Green Robert Hollis Johnny Jones Kenny Flagg Jr. Howard Geib Jr. Keith Cales Daniel Dillman Robert Allison Lavonya Banks Jacob Pritt Joshua Pritt Danny Serrano Jr. Michael Valdez Mary Powers Bryan Oparka Vishad Patel Latrice McNeil Edwin Negron Oscar Martinez Ocampo Devonte Gipson Bryne Manns Edgar Martinez Martin Cruz Jr. Bianca Dominguez Anthony Combs Jr. Cachun Combs Jr. Dameka Ali William Alms Jesse Argandona Ryan Vaughn Allan Triplett David Roper Louwon Scott Lamont Murdaugh Delvin Perkins Timothy Pettis Matthew Midkiff Christopher Lanman Christopher Hedges Misti Harbison Kenneth Babiarz Shawntina Beatty Timothy Brown Marcos Gutierrez Shannon Alelunas Gabriel Washington Keorra Wilson Jesus Salas Jr. Clarence Sistrunk Richard Vinet Jr. Sadat Wade Lavell Nylon David Pitts Robert Moore Asia Munford-Winters George Lowe Jr. Michael Malkowski Raul Mendoza Carlos Larrea Jessica Hegwood Jerome Kusbel Llewain Hardin Keith Gardenhire Yancey Gray Lorenzo Crooks Marko Duric Carlos Castillo Brandon Cramer Brayan Benavides Acevedo Erica Brooks Daniel Castaneda Jr. Cordaryl Bell William Barnes
HAMMOND  The estate of a man who died at the Lake County Jail in March is suing the county over claims the jail staff force-fed him while he was on a hunger strike and failed to monitor him afterward, leading to his death, according to a lawsuit filed Tuesday.

Donald Chatman Jr., 20, was found unresponsive March 1 on the floor of his jail cell. At the time, Lake County Sheriff Oscar Martinez Jr. said he was taken to a hospital where medical professionals tried to revive him, but were unable to do so. However, the suit said when Chatman was found by staff he was "cold to the touch," indicating that his body had been there for some extended period of time after he died. His death was ruled an accident from choking by the Lake County coroner's office.

The suit states Chatman was experiencing "serious mental illness" when he was arrested February 15. After his arrest, he went on a hunger strike as a result of his mental illness. Per a court order, a psychiatrist requested he receive Haldol, an antipsychotic medication, with the hope it would change his mind about eating.

Chatman was then force-fed by jail staff and left alone and unmonitored, both of which caused him to choke, the suit alleges.

"The Correctional and Medical defendants acted recklessly, and/or objectively unreasonably, and/or with deliberate indifference to Donald Chatmans physical health and wellbeing when they failed to properly monitor his force-feeding, and then apparently left him unattended, whereupon he choked on food and died," the suit said.

The civil rights suit, filed by Attorney Richard Dvorak, claims excessive force and deliberate indifference were exhibited by the defendants. Chatman's estate also requests monetary damages.

Lake County, Martinez, John Doe Sheriff's Employees, John Doe Correctional Health Indiana employees and Correctional Health Indiana are listed as defendants.

Gallery: Recent arrests booked into Lake County Jail Matthew Roggenkamp Ruben Vega III Jordan Picotte Rakeem Pippins Victor Odgen Matthew Moses Thomas Murray Kurt Gonzalez II Anthony Green Robert Hollis Johnny Jones Kenny Flagg Jr. Howard Geib Jr. Keith Cales Daniel Dillman Robert Allison Lavonya Banks Jacob Pritt Joshua Pritt Danny Serrano Jr. Michael Valdez Mary Powers Bryan Oparka Vishad Patel Latrice McNeil Edwin Negron Oscar Martinez Ocampo Devonte Gipson Bryne Manns Edgar Martinez Martin Cruz Jr. Bianca Dominguez Anthony Combs Jr. Cachun Combs Jr. Dameka Ali William Alms Jesse Argandona Ryan Vaughn Allan Triplett David Roper Louwon Scott Lamont Murdaugh Delvin Perkins Timothy Pettis Matthew Midkiff Christopher Lanman Christopher Hedges Misti Harbison Kenneth Babiarz Shawntina Beatty Timothy Brown Marcos Gutierrez Shannon Alelunas Gabriel Washington Keorra Wilson Jesus Salas Jr. Clarence Sistrunk Richard Vinet Jr. Sadat Wade Lavell Nylon David Pitts Robert Moore Asia Munford-Winters George Lowe Jr. Michael Malkowski Raul Mendoza Carlos Larrea Jessica Hegwood Jerome Kusbel Llewain Hardin Keith Gardenhire Yancey Gray Lorenzo Crooks Marko Duric Carlos Castillo Brandon Cramer Brayan Benavides Acevedo Erica Brooks Daniel Castaneda Jr. Cordaryl Bell William Barnes
By Wang Yanfang

"I have worked in the village for over 400 days, given villagers lectures about agricultural science, and helped them increase crop output and create a better living environment," described Wang Mingyang, a postgraduate from Beijing-based China Agricultural University (CAU), in Gusheng village of Dali, Yunnan province. "During this time, their care for me and sharing of their past experiences added up, which enabled me to integrate textbook knowledge with practical experience in the fields and has also ignited my passion for contributing to building up China's strength in agriculture and for devoting my youth to speeding up the rural revitalization."

Wang is one of the students participating in a program which was set up by the College of Resources and Environmental Sciences of the CAU, known as the "Science and Technology Backyard." The program dispatches students to the frontlines of agricultural production. Postgraduate students with the program will spend one-third of their postgraduate time in classrooms and the other two-thirds in the field.

Through the program, mentors and students spend time with local farmers, giving them instructions, showing them practical demonstrations, and providing technical services that cover the whole industry chain in order to realize a multi-win goal.

Postgraduates from the China Agricultural University apply new technologies and plant new varieties of crops, helping to solve challenges faced by residents of Xihuaizhuang village in Yongledian township, Beijing's Tongzhou district, 10 kilometers away from the capital's beltway highway. The university launched the "Science and Technology Backyard" program, and Xihuaizhaung is one of 139 villages involved in the program among 24 provincial-level regions across the country. Under the guidance of their mentors, they have helped the villagers double their collective income and brought new hope for the development of local industries in the village. [Photo by Wang Yanfang/China.org.cn]

Started in 2009 by Professor Zhang Fusuo, the program at first aimed to promote the application of scientific and technological advances on the frontlines. Now its goals, besides those mentioned above, have been added to training high-level agricultural talents and serving rural and agricultural modernization, which continues to make progress in these areas, according to the college.

Green agricultural development, which needs a profound change in people's attitude to agriculture, will make a major contribution to accelerating the modernization and sustainable development of agriculture. One of the main features of modern agriculture is eco-environmental protection. Therefore, green development is a strategic choice.

Over these years, the program has introduced over 200 green agricultural production techniques to the agricultural frontlines, and two articles have been published in the science journal Nature.

Hao Jiaxuan, another student in Gusheng village, studies how to improve the environment of Erhai Lake, facing the village. He promotes healthier lifestyles among villagers, which means teaching them to reduce their intake of salt and fats and to eat more green vegetables and fruits. This in turn should help to reduce high nitrogen and phosphorus in the area's wastewater, which cause algae to grow faster than ecosystems can handle.

"At the beginning, the villagers did not quite understand our efforts to instruct them to classify garbage and change their lifestyle," said Hao, "but after six months, villagers began to enjoy the benefits of a healthier lifestyle and gave us more and more support."

"At present, mentors and students from over 20 institutes are stationed in the village. Besides the tutors with CAU, I can receive diversified guidance from tutors with other institutes, and I think that is one of the reasons why I achieved something good," added Hao.

More than 700 postgraduate students have passed through the program, which has also provided support for the cultivation of over 3,000 postgraduates with 68 institutes across the country.

According to the college, they aim to promote green development and surmount hurdles and innovate technologies with local farmers for the purpose of forming simple, easy, and reproducible approaches to increasing crop output and providing scientific and technological support for green agricultural development.

A postgraduate from the China Agricultural University livestreams and promotes products from Xihuaizhuang village in Yongledian township, Beijing's Tongzhou district, 10 kilometers away from the capital's beltway highway. [Photo by Wang Yanfang/China.org.cn]

Since the beginning of the program, the university has developed 139 Science and Technology Backyard projects in 24 provincial-level regions across the country, according to Xinhua News Agency.

Overseas students have also joined the program to learn about the technologies involved so that they can contribute to agricultural development in their hometowns. In 2022, a demonstration village for agricultural development and poverty reduction under the backyard program was unveiled in Malawi, according to People's Daily. In the village, students seek technological innovations and conduct demonstrations and experiments together with local farmers in a bid to improve farmers' agricultural production skills and increase crop yields.

China feeds nearly one-fifth of the world's population with less than 9% of the world's arable land. These words were once known by every Chinese person and urged them on. In the new era, the country's millennia-old agricultural civilization has shined new light on these processes.

China.org.cn, June 12, 2023

China.org.cn
Summertime in Corvallis brings local musicians out to play in the park.

The Corvallis Community Bands free summer concert series starts next week with a sea-themed performance. Other themes this season include Broadway classics, a childrens concert, and music of the British Isles.

The concerts start at 7:30 p.m. every Tuesday from June 20 to Aug. 29 in Central Park. Rehearsals begin an hour beforehand and are open to the public. The band returned to live concerts in 2022 after the pandemic forced cancellations and a shift to video performances for the previous two seasons.

We have some amazing soloists who will be coming, Sarah Grotelueschen said. Its always inspiring to listen to them.

Hanging out in the park on a summer evening has its draw too. Grotelueschen described a laid-back environment where people can enjoy sitting out on the grass in beautiful weather as music carries across Central Park.

The Tuesday shows can draw as many as 500 visitors, according to the groups website.

Grotelueschen is president of the Corvallis Community Bands board of directors, and she plays French horn with the group. Part of her work includes listening to her bandmates  not just when theyre performing, but also getting feedback about the boards leadership and diversity of representation.

We get positive feedback both from the musicians and the community, she said. Weve attracted a lot of newer, younger folks this year.

The Corvallis Community Band traces its roots to the 1920s and was reformed in 1976 for the local celebration of the U.S. bicentennial, according to its website. The group has carried on ever since, rehearsing weekly and performing several concerts. The weekly summer concerts date back to 1980.

The board starts recruiting in January for conductors who are interested in leading the summer concerts. Theres a list of previous conductors to draw from, and sometimes new talents step up for a shot. Conductors can pull from the bands music library or bring in material theyve licensed.

When it comes to band members, anyone who plays at a high school level is welcome to join, Grotelueschen said, noting the group has a presence on Facebook and online, and at concerts they invite people to join them.

People have a love for making music, Grotelueschen said. Its an opportunity to continue lifelong learning about their instruments and themselves, and to make beautiful music together.
CROWN POINT  Trial proceedings continued on Tuesday in the rape case against a Kouts man, who allegedly sexually assaulted his co-workers wife in June 2020.

Roger Mashburn, 29, was charged in August 2020 with rape, a level three felony, and battery, a B-level misdemeanor. If convicted, rape charges carry a sentence of up to 16 years in prison.

Charging documents described how on June 14, Mashburn stayed the night at his co-workers Crown Point apartment located on Main Street after spending the afternoon drinking and hanging out with the man and his wife.

The man testified in court that he and Mashburn were acquaintances. He said he invited Mashburn over that afternoon because he knew Mashburn didnt have a lot of people to hang out with.

The three hung out and drank for a while by the couples apartment complex pool, and then later continued upstairs in the couples apartment. The man and his wife decided to invite Mashburn to spend the night at their apartment because they didnt want him driving home under the influence.

The womans husband had gone to bed, but she went back into the living room to watch T.V. because she couldnt sleep, her husband testified in court on Tuesday.

Around midnight on June 15, while the womans husband was passed out in the other room, Mashburn allegedly approached the woman while he was naked, pinned her down by the throat and wrists and raped her, according to charging documents.

The woman told police that during this incident, Mashburn put his hand over her mouth and told her Dont say a word, charges stated.

Mashburns defense attorney Lonnie Randolph highlighted the officers handling of the case, and the womans disposition after the alleged assault when he questioned a police officer on the stand on Tuesday.

Randolph noted that there was nothing in the officers report that indicated that the woman appeared distressed or even scared.

Prosecutor Tara Villarreal rebutted, and said trauma doesnt look the same for each person.

The woman told her husband about the purported assault in a text message, which was shown by prosecutors in court on Tuesday. In the messages, the woman wrote to her husband Honestly I told him no so many times, according to screenshots shown in court.

I didnt want to believe it, but my wife does not lie to me, the womans husband told jurors on Tuesday.

He said that after he found out, he told Mashburn I know what happened while the two were working together, and Mashburn didnt say anything.

He said he hasnt seen Mashburn since June 15, not even at work. Charging documents show that after police attempted to make contact with Mashburn, they found that he changed his phone number, quit his job and fled the state.

The man told jurors on Tuesday that he and his wife had a happy, normal marriage until this incident the summer of 2020. He said since his wife was assaulted, their anxiety-levels and married life havent been the same.

Randolph tried to poke holes in the mans characterization of his marriage during cross examination.

He asked the man if at work he ever complained about his wifes drinking, or said that her drinking was causing troubles in their marriage.

The man said he didnt discuss marital troubles at work, but might have mentioned his wifes drinking. He added that, at the time, she was struggling with postpartum depression, which exacerbated her drinking habits.

Mashburns trial is set to continue on Wednesday in Judge Salvador Vasquezs courtroom.

Gallery: Recent arrests booked into Lake County Jail Matthew Roggenkamp Ruben Vega III Jordan Picotte Rakeem Pippins Victor Odgen Matthew Moses Thomas Murray Kurt Gonzalez II Anthony Green Robert Hollis Johnny Jones Kenny Flagg Jr. Howard Geib Jr. Keith Cales Daniel Dillman Robert Allison Lavonya Banks Jacob Pritt Joshua Pritt Danny Serrano Jr. Michael Valdez Mary Powers Bryan Oparka Vishad Patel Latrice McNeil Edwin Negron Oscar Martinez Ocampo Devonte Gipson Bryne Manns Edgar Martinez Martin Cruz Jr. Bianca Dominguez Anthony Combs Jr. Cachun Combs Jr. Dameka Ali William Alms Jesse Argandona Ryan Vaughn Allan Triplett David Roper Louwon Scott Lamont Murdaugh Delvin Perkins Timothy Pettis Matthew Midkiff Christopher Lanman Christopher Hedges Misti Harbison Kenneth Babiarz Shawntina Beatty Timothy Brown Marcos Gutierrez Shannon Alelunas Gabriel Washington Keorra Wilson Jesus Salas Jr. Clarence Sistrunk Richard Vinet Jr. Sadat Wade Lavell Nylon David Pitts Robert Moore Asia Munford-Winters George Lowe Jr. Michael Malkowski Raul Mendoza Carlos Larrea Jessica Hegwood Jerome Kusbel Llewain Hardin Keith Gardenhire Yancey Gray Lorenzo Crooks Marko Duric Carlos Castillo Brandon Cramer Brayan Benavides Acevedo Erica Brooks Daniel Castaneda Jr. Cordaryl Bell William Barnes
GARY  After six years of state control, Gary residents are ready to have more of a say in their school district.

Over a dozen residents submitted applications to the Gary Common Council in the hopes of being selected for the city's newly-created schoolboard. The five-member, appointed school board was established when Gov. Eric Holcomb signed Senate Enrolled Act 327 into law May 5. The legislation authorizes the mayor of Gary to appoint one school board member, the Gary Common Council to select another and gives three picks to the Indiana secretary of education, who must appoint at least one Gary resident, one resident of Gary or Lake County, and a final member from anywhere. The school board will eventually replace the Indiana Distressed Unit Appeals Board, or DUAB, as the school district's governing body.

MGT Consulting and DUAB have run the Gary Community School Corp. since 2017. The former elected school board was dissolved after it spent $21.5 million more than the district took in, racked up $103 million in debt, frequently struggled to make payroll, stiffed vendors, routinely failed to remit to the IRS tax payments withheld from employee paychecks and fell $3 million behind on paying employee health insurance premiums.

Vanessa Allen-McCloud, school board candidate and president and CEO of the Urban League of NWI said the school district is in the midst of a "critical transition period to bring local control back to the city of Gary."

The Gary Common Council began accepting school board applications in May. To be considered, candidates had to be Gary residents, had to submit a resume and a letter of intent, and had to attend the June 12 Boards and Commissions Committee meeting. The council received 15 applications, however five candidates did not attend the meeting.

Councilmembers asked applicants about their vision for the future of the school district, what qualities they would like to see in a new superintendent and about any applicable skills they might have.

Councilwoman Lori Latham, D-at-large, said she was at the Indiana State Legislature when Senate Enrolled Act 327 was being discussed. During the hearing, Latham said people questioned whether Gary had enough qualified candidates for an elected school board.

"I am so happy and proud that today we showed we have an outstanding number of qualified, committed, well-intentioned residents in the city who are more than qualified to serve on our school board," Latham said, thanking all the applicants.

Council President William Godwin, D-1, echoed Latham's sentiment, adding that assuming "a place like Gary doesn't have the talent is absolutely false."

No official action was taken during the Monday meeting; Godwin said the council hopes to make a decision during its June 20 meeting. He also encouraged all applicants that are not selected to "stay involved" in city government and in the school system.

The school board is slated to be created July 1 and will be initially tasked with advising the districts emergency manager. It will take full control, including the power to appoint a superintendent, on July 1, 2024, or a later date when DUAB certifies Gary schools no longer are financially distressed.

After relentless cost-cutting and right-sizing along with the extra financial resources obtained through a successful voter referendum in 2020, Gary schools have a $1.3 million annual operating surplus, has paid off all but $66 million in debt, and has a five-year financial plan in place to maintain solvency and stability.

In May it was announced that Paige McNulty, the Gary School Corp.'s current emergency manager, will step down June 30. Mike Raisor, MGT Consulting's senior vice president of education solutions, will become the district's next manager.

In a statement to the Times, Indiana Department of Education spokesperson Christina Molinari said the IDOE has begun interviewing applicants and will likely make a final selection "in the coming weeks." The IDOE is still accepting applications; interested candidates can email bmurphy@doe.in.gov.

Both state Rep. Ragen Hatcher, D-Gary, and Vernon Smith, D-Gary, attended the Monday committee meeting. Godwin thanked the lawmakers for the role they played in crafting the legislation that created the appointed school board.

School board applicants included Vanessa Allen McCloud, Glenn Johnson, Dwight Porter, Greg Easton, Myles Tolliver, Kathy Grimler, Mary Ann Canty Reedus, LaTasha Hall, Jacquese White and Jonathan Boose. Louis M. T. Tatum, Robert Buggs Sr., Richard Hayes, Bryan Cossey and Terry McQuay also applied for the school board, but did not attend the Monday meeting.

Tolliver said he would like "to see the school system thrive and go back to what is used to be."

Also during the Monday committee meeting, councilmembers interviewed candidates for the Gary Public Transportation Corp., or GPTC, Board and the Redevelopment Commission.

The seven-member GPTC Board includes three members appointed by the mayor and four appointed by the Common Council. Current board member Joi Whiteside applied as did Mary Ann Canty. Richard Hayes and Bryan Cossey applied for the board, but were not present during the meeting.

The Gary Redevelopment Commission, or RDC, consists of five members; three are appointed by the mayor and two are appointed by the Common Council. Applicants included; Adam Hall, Markael Watkins, Travis Williams, Tashaun Brown, LaJuan Clemons Sr., Jacquese White, Roosevelt Dixon and current RDC member Jeremiah King. Richard Hayes and Bryan Cossey also applied, but were not present during the Monday meeting.

Gallery: New furniture for kids at Glen Park Academy Gary Community School Corp. students returned to their classrooms after winter break to a surprise Tuesday: brand-new furniture. Glen Park Academy New Furniture.jpg A classroom at Glen Park Academy for Excellence in Gary, decked out Tuesday with brand-new furniture. Glen Park Academy New Furniture 2.jpg Staff rolls brand-new furniture into Glen Park Academy for Excellence on Tuesday. Buildings throughout the Gary school district received new f Glen Park Academy New Furniture 3.jpg Gary Community School Corp. officials said that Tuesday was the first time in decades that many schools in the district received new furniture. Glen Park Academy New Furniture 4.jpg Students sit in a classroom Tuesday at Glen Park Academy for Excellence in Gary. Students returned from the holiday break to brand-new furniture. Glen Park Academy New Furniture 5.jpg New tables on Tuesday at Glen Park Academy for Excellence in Gary. Gallery HTML code
Several students from City Baptist School in Hammond were taken to a Chicago hospital Tuesday afternoon after the bus they were riding in was involved in an accident on the inbound Dan Ryan Expressway.

The school said six students were on the bus, and all were taken to a hospital for observation. Both the Illinois State Police and Chicago Fire Department said five students were transported by CFD ambulance after the "single vehicle rollover crash."

City Baptist announced Wednesday afternoon that all the students were released from the hospital Tuesday evening and had returned home.

The fire department said the driver refused medical treatment at the scene.

Illinois State Police said officers responded to the accident, which occurred around 35th Street in the local lanes of northbound Interstate 94, at about 2:30 p.m. Two lanes were closed to traffic for about one hour as a result of the accident.

"The crash investigation is ongoing and no further information is available at this time," ISP said Wednesday morning.

City Baptist is operated by First Baptist Church of Hammond.

Gallery: Recent arrests booked into Lake County Jail Matthew Roggenkamp Ruben Vega III Jordan Picotte Rakeem Pippins Victor Odgen Matthew Moses Thomas Murray Kurt Gonzalez II Anthony Green Robert Hollis Johnny Jones Kenny Flagg Jr. Howard Geib Jr. Keith Cales Daniel Dillman Robert Allison Lavonya Banks Jacob Pritt Joshua Pritt Danny Serrano Jr. Michael Valdez Mary Powers Bryan Oparka Vishad Patel Latrice McNeil Edwin Negron Oscar Martinez Ocampo Devonte Gipson Bryne Manns Edgar Martinez Martin Cruz Jr. Bianca Dominguez Anthony Combs Jr. Cachun Combs Jr. Dameka Ali William Alms Jesse Argandona Ryan Vaughn Allan Triplett David Roper Louwon Scott Lamont Murdaugh Delvin Perkins Timothy Pettis Matthew Midkiff Christopher Lanman Christopher Hedges Misti Harbison Kenneth Babiarz Shawntina Beatty Timothy Brown Marcos Gutierrez Shannon Alelunas Gabriel Washington Keorra Wilson Jesus Salas Jr. Clarence Sistrunk Richard Vinet Jr. Sadat Wade Lavell Nylon David Pitts Robert Moore Asia Munford-Winters George Lowe Jr. Michael Malkowski Raul Mendoza Carlos Larrea Jessica Hegwood Jerome Kusbel Llewain Hardin Keith Gardenhire Yancey Gray Lorenzo Crooks Marko Duric Carlos Castillo Brandon Cramer Brayan Benavides Acevedo Erica Brooks Daniel Castaneda Jr. Cordaryl Bell William Barnes
WINFIELD  The towns new comprehensive master plan is now part of its history going forward into the next 10 to 20 years.

The Town Council at its meeting Tuesday adopted the master plan, which can be used in future development of a town ranked as the ninth fastest growing community in the state.

Winfield is a gem, Veridus Group representative Jack Woods said.

Woods, a Veridus Group project analyst, and Alaina Shonkwiler, Veridus Group director of community and economic development, have been working on the master plan since early this year.

Town officials late last year hired Veridus, an Indianapolis-based company, for $50,000 to draft a new comprehensive master plan for the community.

Shonkwiler said the last time the town had any type of master plan in place was 2007, and given the growth in the community, a comprehensive plan was very much needed to guide it in the next 10-20 years.

Woods said six focus areas were identified based on community feedback and findings from previous phases of the planning process.

Those focus groups are: land use, economic development, housing and neighborhoods, transportation, parks, recreation, open space, and natural resources and infrastructure.

Goals are listed under each of the focus groups, such as under housing, which lists as its goal: provide high quality housing that reinforces and expands existing residential offerings to add value and promote sustainability.

Shonkwiler said information for the plan was gathered from two public workshops and an online survey.

We are now at conclusion, she said.

Woods said the study, which is incorporated in the plan, examined the composition of the towns population.

Though younger overall when compared to county and state statistics, Winfield has a lower percentage of residents in the 25-34 age bracket which represents an age group starting a family or buying homes, he said.

So planning efforts may want to consider strategies that help Winfield attract more residents in this adult age group in regard to housing stock and amenities, he said.

Some other statistics Woods presented under data analysis: 74% of Winfield homes are valued at $250,000 from 2000 to 2020 statistics; the towns housing stock mostly consists of owner-occupied units or 84% of all housing units; and median household income for residents is over $115,000 annually or almost twice as large as the median income of both Lake County and Indiana.

Town Council officials, including president Tim Clayton, had only good things to say about the final plan.

This is a great little tool for us, Clayton said.

Town Councilman Zack Beaver also praised the final plan.

Its refreshing for us. It backs up what we were doing, Beaver said.

A snapshot of the town shows that Winfield has increased in population by 212% between 2000 and 2020, with it ranking ninth-largest in growth rate for a town or city in Indiana.

Winfield, incorporated as a town in 1993, had a population of 2,298. That figure increased to 4,383 in 2010 and to 5,987 in 2019.

In the 2020 U.S. Census the town of Winfields population was listed as 7,000.
MERRILLVILLE  It was an informative gathering as the Merrillville Police Department hosted its inaugural Community Night recently at the Dean and Barbara White Community Center.

The event gave residents the opportunity to directly ask questions to Merrillville Police administration and to learn how the Police Department operates.

Officers from the various police units participated in the program during a meet-and-greet session that took place outside of the Community Center. The event also included a K-9 demonstration from K-9 Goose and his handler, Officer Lance Schmidt. Many watched as Officer Jacob Shrewsbury donned a bite suit to show how Goose can apprehend a suspect.

Merrillville Police Chief Kosta Nuses said a main focus of the Community Night was to engage residents and strengthen relationships with the community, and the Police Department will schedule more Community Night programs throughout the year.

Nuses said by working as a team, it will help make Merrillville safer.

He explained Merrillville consists of about 33 square miles, and Census figures show there are 36,000 residents in the municipality.

Merrillville is a very big community, Nuses said.

The Merrillville Police Department has 61 officers, and about 65% of the force is devoted to patrol.

Patrol, of course, is the backbone, thats the cars you see all the time, Nuses said.

He said one of the biggest hurdles the Police Department faces is manpower. Merrillville, like many other area police departments, could use more officers on its force, but there are a variety of factors preventing the town from adding to the Police Department.

When Merrillville incorporated as a town more than 50 years ago, the founders of the municipality didnt anticipate the vast residential, commercial, and industrial growth that would occur over the decades. Because of that, the Towns operating budget didnt keep pace with the physical growth of the community.

Nuses also said there arent as many law enforcement recruits as there once was.

Although there is a manpower shortage, Nuses said his officers do a great job handling calls for service, which can range from 100 to 150 calls in a 24-hour period.

Id put up my whole department against anybody with the amount of work that they can do and how successful we are with investigations and how successful we have been catching the bad guys and bad girls, Nuses said.

Many residents at Thursdays event inquired how they can assist the Police Department.

Nuses said the best way to help officers is by staying vigilant and reporting suspicious activity when its observed.

Nuses said there have been occasions in which people have waited 20 to 30 minutes to report an incident, and sometimes they post it on social media instead of reaching out to police.

Thats very difficult for us to try and catch up, Nuses said. If theres an emergency situation, residents should always call 911. Residents can also visit https://secure.coplogic.com/dors/startreport/300007935 to file police reports online. Nuses said the site can be used to report a variety of cases such as batteries, custodial issues, harassment, fraud, accidents, thefts, lost property, and protective orders.
Jurisdiction in the case of an Ohio teenager charged with making threats to Porter County schools earlier this year has been waived to adult court, a Porter County magistrate ruled in an order dated Tuesday.

Ryan Krajewski, a 17-year-old Ohio resident currently being held at the Porter County Juvenile Center, is charged with impersonating a public servant and intimidation.

Juvenile Court Magistrate Kristen Mulligan agreed with the prosecutions argument that Krajewskis alleged offenses, committed when he was 16, were heinous or of an aggravated character, and were part of a repetitive pattern of offenses that leave him beyond rehabilitation under the juvenile justice system in light of his 27 months on probation in Medina County, Ohio, for charges including inducing panic.

The juvenile continued to engage in unlawful behavior involving computers and telecommunications despite the services and supervision through Medina County Probation and the additional therapeutic services obtained by parents for the juvenile, the prosecutor stated in the findings of fact endorsed by the magistrate.

The Porter County charge of impersonating a public servant stems from a Jan. 4 call to Valparaiso police reporting a supposed shooting, according to a charging document. Officials said Krajewski falsely portrayed himself as a special agent with the FBI during that call.

Krajewski is further charged with two counts of intimidation, which are felonies in adult court, in relation to threats he allegedly made to several area schools early this year.

Krajewski allegedly contacted Valparaiso High School on Jan. 9 and reported a bomb in the building, and then called in another threat to the school Jan. 17.

On Jan. 26, Krajewski allegedly made threats to schools in Valparaiso, Portage, Wheeler, Union Township and Washington Township. He threatened to use a weapon or weapons of mass destruction to commit mass murder at Valparaiso and Portage high schools, according to the charges.

Krajewski was arrested Jan. 26 in Ohio.

All the threats he is accused of making proved to be noncredible, officials have said, but the threats sent schools scrambling into lockdown or lockout status.

The Jan. 9 call to Valparaiso High School resulted in a lockdown and early release of students, police said. A false threat of violence Jan. 17 at the same school triggered a lockout response from police and disrupted school operations.

The Portage Police Department said in a social media post at the time that the local high school had received an anonymous phone call in which a person threatened violence later in the day, prompting its lockdown.

Wheeler High School had also implemented a lockout in response to the threats, officials said.

Krajewski will continue to be housed at the Porter County Juvenile Detention Center, unless hes transferred to an adult facility as the result of a hearing on the matter, or hes released on bond set by Porter Superior Court, according to Tuesdays order.
Emily Lynen, 29, and Amber Lynen, 35, had every intention of having sex on their wedding night.

Alas. After the two exchanged vows on Oct. 21, 2021, in Pasadena, Calif., the wedding party stayed out at a bar until late. Just as the couple was undressing in their hotel room, Amber Lynens maid of honor, best friend and brothers girlfriend knocked on their door  and proceeded to climb into bed with the newlyweds. The visitors stayed for two hours of chatter.

The couple, who live in Cincinnati, took the thwarted plans in stride. Honestly, the story of everyone ending up in our bed is a great story, said Emily Lynen, a program manager. (Amber Lynen is a litigation paralegal.) Its a memory that I will always laugh about. She added, We have the rest of our lives ahead for a night of sex.

Picture the wedding night, as popular culture has often dictated it: The vows have been exchanged, the champagne flutes are empty and the guests are gone. The newlyweds retreat to their private quarters  finally  for the exhilarating consummation of their marriage. Right?

Wrong  sometimes.

Across cultures, the wedding night has risen to such mythic expectations that even the term wedding night has become winkingly interchangeable with sex. It can be a night shrouded in mystery  and sometimes disappointment, either owing to anticipation, anxiety or good old-fashioned exhaustion.
Neither a drop of rain nor a cloud of wildfire smoke could keep more than 100,000 fans from flocking to the Governors Ball Music Festival over the weekend at Flushing Meadows Corona Park in Queens.

Waves of revelers, festooned in rose-colored tutus, elaborately designed fishnets and oversize cowboy hats, filed into the event held this past Friday, Saturday and Sunday. They thrashed to Odesza and Diplo; bounced to Lizzo and Kendrick Lamar; and swayed to Haim and Omar Apollo across three different stages in the green fields encircling the iconic Unisphere, the 140-foot-tall ball fit for  a ball.

On the first day of the festival  enveloped by a gray haze, either from the Canadian wildfire smoke, the pyrotechnics, the cigarettes or some combination of all three  music lovers, in between vape hits and beer sips, discussed their outfit inspirations and favorite performances.
The actress Riley Keough has agreed to provide Priscilla Presley, her grandmother and the former wife of Elvis Presley, with a lump-sum payment as part of a settlement that will resolve a dispute over control of the family trust, according to court documents made public on Tuesday.

Lawyers for the parties had sought to keep details of their agreement confidential, but the papers list what appears to be a payment of $1 million.

In the 95-page filing, Ms. Keough also agreed to pay as much as $400,000 to cover Ms. Presleys legal fees related to the petition Ms. Presley filed earlier this year, challenging the validity of a 2016 document that removed her as an official of the entity known as the Promenade Trust. With the settlement, Ms. Keough will become the sole trustee of that financial instrument established by her mother, Lisa Marie, who died in January.

Ms. Keough also agreed to retain Ms. Presley as a special adviser to the trust, for which she would be paid an undisclosed annual amount for 10 years, or until her death, whichever came first.
Young Bangladeshi Americans are making inroads into politics, most notably with the election of Shahana Hanif, a daughter of Kensington, to the City Council in 2021. Ms. Hanifs victory, at age 30, made her the first woman to represent the district, as well as the first Muslim woman and one of the first two South Asians on the council.

It was Ms. Hanif who requested the intersections new name. She also co-sponsored a resolution to make Feb. 21 Mother Language Day, in tandem with a holiday in Bangladesh commemorating protesters who fought for Bengali as a state language in the 1950s, when the area was part of Pakistan.

Ms. Hanifs family history illustrates how Bangladeshi Kensington came to be. Her father arrived in the early 80s and worked his way up in construction and restaurants, and came to own a local mainstay, Radhuni Sweets & Restaurant, which is now run by others.

Her experiences in the neighborhood drove her to make sure that all members of the community feel welcome in its public spaces. While the corner is often a male-dominated space, she and other Bangladeshi American women have carved out their own places there.

I grew up like, Wear a shawl over your chest, look down. There was a script, Ms. Hanif said. And I think many of us did not follow that script and pursued our own paths in an interesting, unique way.

In recent years, Bangladeshis have come to the United States, as so many other migrants, after a perilous journey through Latin America. Some hope to apply for asylum; some are looking for a way to earn money to send home; some simply seek a better life.



Many of the Bangladeshis in Kensington hail from rural areas around the Bay of Bengal: Noakhali, Chittagong and Sandwip. Among them is Mir Hossain, 47. He arrived five years ago, after he said he was attacked for his political allegiances.

Mr. Hossain found the building blocks of his new life on the corner in Kensington, drawing on his years of experience in metalwork.

Mr. Hossain crossed through 19 countries on his monthslong journey to Brooklyn. He flew from the Middle East to South America and then trekked on foot through the Darien Gap, which divides Colombia and Panama, picking up work along the way when he could.

His bet seems to be paying off. He received asylum, and then a green card. He landed his apartment and jobs through connections he made on the corner, and went from day laborer to subcontractor. Now he picks up other workers from the corner in his Ford F-150 truck.

But still, something is missing. His wife and two children remain in Dhaka. He hopes they will be able to join him in Brooklyn soon.



I dont sleep well, he said. I miss my family.

Kensingtons gathering spaces have also become crucial networking opportunities for the growing number of young Bangladeshi men working for food delivery apps like Seamless and DoorDash, a path that became more lucrative during the pandemic.

Many deliverymen zip around wealthier areas like nearby Park Slope during the dinner rush, and then head to Kensington for their own meals.

Working for the apps can offer more flexibility than construction. But the potential for danger is constant: accidents, terrible weather and crime, all without the protections offered by steady employment.

In October 2021, a Bangladeshi deliveryman named Sala Miah was fatally stabbed during a robbery at a Manhattan park where he had stopped to rest after a long shift. Mr. Miahs funeral was held at one of several Bangladeshi mosques in Kensington. He was 51.

Rubel Uddins younger brother, Tarek Aziz, was killed in 2021 when he hit a patch of gravel while riding his scooter delivering a late order. It was hot out the day of the accident, and he wasnt wearing a helmet.



In our life we are being tested, said Mr. Uddin, who is 34. Everything is temporary.

When his mother calls from Bangladesh, she begs her son to stop doing delivery work.



Although Mr. Uddin remains deeply depressed about his brothers death, he has continued because he needs the income. He uses a car now instead of a moped.

Mr. Uddin lives with six other men in a three-bedroom apartment in East New York crowded with plants that remind him of the verdant village he left a decade ago. His roommates work delivery, drive taxis or do construction, and they all pay rent to a fellow Bangladeshi who owns the building.

They do their shopping in Kensington, as well as Bangladeshi shops in Jackson Heights and Ozone Park, and he appreciates the sense of community. But he is weighing his limited options, and considering leaving New York.

Others also still dream of home. Motiul, 54, who asked that his last name not be used because of his legal status, arrived in New York as a cargo ship crewman in 2018 with $100 in his pocket. He headed straight to the home of a Bangladeshi friend in Kensington, and he stayed after his short-term visa expired.



His story harks back to some of the earliest Bangladeshis in New York, who came in the 1920s as ship jumpers, men who worked on ships and stayed in the city once they docked here.

These days, Motiul mostly renovates building exteriors, working on scaffolding on high floors, which can net him as much as $350 a day. He also traveled to Philadelphia to work for a Bangladeshi contractor there. But work is excruciatingly slow  sometimes only a couple of days a month  and the cost of living is high.

His mind is back in his small town in the Jessore District, where renovations are underway on his family home. He oversees the process from afar, instructing workers in the brick-pointing techniques he has learned in New York. His wife and three grown children have urged him to return.



They say I have done enough for them, he said.

Some women in the community are pushing to create new opportunities for themselves, but also to preserve their language and culture, especially for Bangladeshi children growing up in a diverse, fast-moving city.



Farojan Saeed, 28, moved to New York in 2016 to join her husband, Syed Rehan, who works in technology.

Now Ms. Saeed teaches dance at a local public school and at the Bangladesh Institute of Performing Arts, which promotes Bengali arts and language and holds classes in the neighborhood. She also works as an intake coordinator for a home health care company.

Her husband has been living for more than 20 years in the same small apartment in Kensington, which they now share with his parents.

Ms. Saeed wants to buy a house, but real estate in Kensington has become far too expensive. She is considering Jamaica, Queens, where the performing arts institute has another outpost.

Annie Ferdous helped found the Bangladesh Institute of Performing Arts in the early 90s. She is trying to carve out a space inside a conservative culture where dance is often frowned upon. Some see it as incompatible with their interpretation of Islam.

Ms. Saeed also faced opposition as she was growing up, from relatives on her mothers side who frowned upon dance. But her father pushed for her to be allowed to pursue her art, which she calls her first love.

With other public spaces so dominated by men, Ms. Ferdous sees it as vital that women gather to keep their traditions alive. She calls it constructive adda.



Those of us who can, if we lead the path and move forward, then a few others will think, Let me also, we have a space, she said.

The neighborhood buzzed at the end of Ramadan, as Bangladeshis from around the city gathered to worship, do charitable works and break their fasts each night. The faithful filled nearly a whole block of McDonald Avenue during Eid al-Fitr.

Mr. Mahmud, the journalist, was among them. As men greeted one another with warm hugs after the service, he said it felt like home.
Wednesday

"Ma and Me: A Memoir," 10:30 a.m., Corvallis Museum, 411 SW Second St. Putsata Reong will speak about her memoir, which examines her Cambodian heritage, Corvallis childhood, journalism career, coming-out story and the weight of inherited trauma and filial duty.

Live music by the Flatt Stanley Incident, 6 to 8 p.m., Common Fields, 545 SW Third St., Corvallis. Free admission.

Willamette Innovators Network, 6 p.m., Old World Deli, 341 SW Second St., Corvallis. Information: www.oldworldcenter.com.

Thursday

Summer Reading Program kickoff, 11 a.m., Lebanon Public Library, 55 Academy St. Matt Baker Comedy + Stunt Show, followed by lunch at noon.

Corvallis Arts Walk, 4 to 8 p.m., downtown. Galleries, studios, arts and crafts stores and pop-ups host art-related events and demonstrations. A map is available at www.corvallisartswalk.com.

Reception, 5:30 to 7 p.m., main gallery, The Arts Center, 700 SW Madison Ave., Corvallis. For the exhibit "Pacific Waters," which runs through Saturday, July 22, and features art by Mary Frisbee Johnson, accompanied by works of Oregon State University student composers.

Live music by Dennis Monroe's Funked Up Blues Jam, 7 to 10 p.m., Old World Deli, 341 SW Second St., Corvallis. Information: www.oldworldcenter.com.

"Music in the Park," 6 p.m., Philomath City Park, 299 S. 23rd St. Live jazz and funk by the Root Vegetables.

Friday

Live music by the Flatt Stanley Incident, 7 to 10 p.m., Old World Deli, 341 SW Second St., Corvallis.

Saturday

Artists' surplus art supply sale, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Brownsville Art Association, 255 Main St. Artists will sell supplies they are no longer using. Information: 541-915-8777.

Live music by Ceili of the Valley, 10 a.m. and noon, Scio Saturday Market, Scio Fairgrounds, 38764 N. Ash St. Audience participation follows.

Open house, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., Historic Fiechter House, William L. Finley National Wildlife Refuge, 26208 Finley Refuge Road, Corvallis. Every Saturday through Sept. 2. Walk through one of the oldest buildings in Benton County and a great example of a pioneer house. New this year: Period furniture and household treasures from the Rathbun family are on display.

Discovery Day, 1 to 3 p.m.; meet at the Thompson Shelter, Avery Park, 1200 SW Avery Park Drive, Corvallis. A guided walk, talking about the park's natural features, plants and animals. Learn about the Marys and Willamette rivers confluence, and the park as a confluence of people and place, history and progress. Sponsored by the Corvallis Parks & Recreation Department.

Contra dance, 7 to 10:30 p.m., Gatton Hall, First Congregational United Church of Christ, 4515 SW West Hills Road, Corvallis. Alan Snyder/Carol Thor with Laurel Thomasr.

Live music by the Jeanne Gregg Band, 7 to 10 p.m., Old World Deli, 341 SW Second St., Corvallis.

Majestic Aerial Arts presents "Sea of Dreams," 7:30 p.m., Majestic Theatre, 115 SW Second St., Corvallis. Host Petunia Rufflebottom will lead the audience on a nautical-themed showcase of aerial and other bodily arts. Performers will show off their skills with aerial silks, lyra, chair acrobatics and siren songs. Admission: $14 for students and seniors, $16 for adults; visit www.majestic.org.

Sunday

Sunday Brunch with Revel'n, 10 a.m. to noon, Old World Deli, 341 SW Second St., Corvallis. Live music.

"Sounds of Summer Sundays," 5 to 7:30 p.m., Airlie Winery, 15305 Dunn Forest Road. Live music by the Cooper Hollow Jazztet. Admission: $10; tickets at www.airliewinery.com.

Monday

Linn Benton NAACP Juneteenth Celebration, 4 to 7 p.m., Corvallis Community Center, 2601 NW Tyler Ave. All are invited to join in celebrating freedom and community. Black-Owned Business Expo showcasing the talents and products of local entrepreneurs; meet the NAACP committees; community fair of local resources, arts and crafts activities for all ages; Build Your Own Library book giveaway; free food from Black-Owned restaurants; music by DJ Kirkwood; and more. Information: info@naacpcorvallisbranch.com.

Open auditions for "Cabaret," 6:30 to 9 p.m. Monday and Tuesday, June 19 and 20, Majestic Theatre, 115 SW Second St., Corvallis.

Tuesday

"Rain or Shine Outdoor Storytime," 10 a.m. Tuesdays through Aug. 15, children's patio, Lebanon Public Library, 55 Academy St. Lunch served at 10:45.

 Mid-Valley Live
Laura Carlin Mattiacci, a lawyer for Ms. Phillips, said she and her client were very pleased with the unanimous verdict, adding that she proved by clear and convincing evidence that punitive damages were warranted under the New Jersey law.

A Starbucks spokeswoman declined to comment.

At the time of the episode, Ms. Phillips oversaw about 100 stores in Philadelphia, South Jersey, Delaware and parts of Maryland. She had been promoted to the job in 2011 after what she called her exemplary performance in six years as a district manager in Ohio.

Ms. Phillips said in the suit that Starbucks, as part of its damage-control effort after the arrests, had sought to punish her and other white employees in and around Philadelphia even if they had not been involved in the events that led to the police being called.

Ms. Phillips said she had thrown herself into the companys efforts to restore its credibility and had sought to support hourly workers, organizing managers to staff stores and cover for employees who were scared to run a gantlet of protesters.

Amid the image-burnishing campaign, Ms. Phillips said one of her superiors, a Black woman, told her to suspend a white manager who oversaw stores in Philadelphia, though not the one in Rittenhouse Square, because of allegations that he had engaged in discriminatory conduct  allegations that Ms. Phillips said she knew to be untrue.
The waters off New Zealand 25 million years ago were home to early baleen whales, megatooth sharks and human-size penguins. Now researchers are adding a bizarre dolphin to the mix that may have used tusklike teeth to thrash prey into submission.

The dolphins nearly complete skull was collected in 1998, from a cliff side in the Otago region of New Zealands South Island. The specimen ended up in the University of Otago Geology Museums collection. Two decades later, Amber Coste, who was completing her Ph.D. in paleontology, stumbled upon the strange skull.

Mentally, I just couldnt figure out what could possibly need teeth like that, Dr. Coste said.

The fossil dolphins dentition was unlike anything seen in living cetaceans. While modern dolphins are armed with a snoutful of cone-shaped teeth perfectly calibrated to snap up fish, this creature possessed several large teeth that protruded out of the end of its snout. Instead of tapering downward into fangs, these teeth were splayed out horizontally like the blade of a spade.

In a paper published Wednesday in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B, Dr. Coste and her colleagues described the snaggletoothed dolphin as a unique species, Nihohae matakoi. The curious cetaceans genus, Nihohae, is a combination of the Maori words for teeth and slashing.
A Los Angeles City Council member was charged on Tuesday with embezzlement, perjury and conflict of interest, becoming the latest in a procession of elected city leaders to have been accused of corruption.

Prosecutors said that Curren Price, 72, a former state legislator who has represented South Los Angeles on the City Council for a decade, voted on projects that benefited developers who paid his wifes consulting business a total of more than $150,000 between 2019 and 2021. The allegations were tied to three counts of perjury and two counts of conflict of interest.

Mr. Price was also accused of improperly receiving almost $34,000 in medical coverage for his current wife while he was still legally married to another woman, resulting in five embezzlement charges.

This alleged conduct undermines the integrity of our government and trust in our elected officials, George Gascon, the Los Angeles County district attorney, said in a statement. We will continue to work tirelessly to root out corruption at all levels.
The first-ever arraignment of a former president on federal charges coincided with the first public encounter between the two men, Mr. Trump and Mr. Smith, at the center of the Mar-a-Lago documents case. The two did not say a word to each other. But these most dissimilar of adversaries are locked in a legal battle with immense political and legal implications for a polarized nation.

Mr. Trumps body language in the courtroom suggested he understood the gravity of the situation. A former president who thrives on being in control seemed uncomfortable with having so little as a defendant.

Mr. Trump, who has denounced his indictment as a witch hunt and called Mr. Smith a thug, did not say a word at the hearing. Nor did the magistrate judge, Jonathan Goodman, ask him a single question, as sometimes happens in criminal arraignments.

Mr. Trump has promised to have more to say later. Several of his political aides were seen outside the courthouse mixing with a small but vocal group of supporters, who were shouting their support over the chopping of a helicopter hovering above.

Inside, the hearing itself was a quiet and strikingly civil affair.

The former president, flanked by his two lawyers, Christopher M. Kise and Todd Blanche, waited patiently for at least 15 minutes for Judge Goodman to enter the courtroom. While Mr. Kise absorbed himself in paperwork, Mr. Trump and Mr. Blanche leaned in close to whisper in each others ears, once or twice sharing a laugh. The former president seemed for a moment or two to be at ease.
In an unusual, wide-ranging interview with war correspondents and military bloggers, President Vladimir V. Putin on Tuesday portrayed the Russian military as standing firm against the long-anticipated Ukrainian counteroffensive and suggested that the conflict was fulfilling the goals he set initially.

The enemy did not succeed in any of the sectors, Mr. Putin said of the Ukrainian offensive that has been rolling out over recent days, instead suffering huge losses compared with relatively few for Russia. In terms of tanks, for example, he said that Ukraine had lost 160 compared with 54 for Russia, adding that some of the latter could be repaired. His claims could not be independently confirmed.

Mr. Putin touched on virtually every aspect of the conflict in recent weeks. He chose a format he has rarely used, allowing 18 reporters to inquire about the war for more than two hours in a style reminiscent of his annual Direct Line performance, when he answers questions for hours from all over the country.

Russia did not need to draft more new soldiers because it had attracted about 156,000 contractors or other volunteers since January, he said, on top of the 300,000 drafted last year.
The Southern Baptist Convention, a denomination that is often a bellwether for evangelical America, has expelled five churches from the convention this year over their appointment of women as pastors.

The move to enforce a strict ban against women in church leadership comes as some evangelicals fear a liberal drift in their congregations and a departure from Scripture.

Two of the expelled churches, Fern Creek Baptist Church in Louisville, Ky., and Saddleback Church in Southern California, appealed to the denominations annual convention in New Orleans, but their appeals were overwhelmingly rejected in voting whose results were announced Wednesday.

At the same time, ultraconservatives were moving to amend the S.B.C. constitution to further restrict the role of women in leadership, by stating that a church could be Southern Baptist only if it does not affirm, appoint or employ a woman as a pastor of any kind.
Russian air forces and artillery weapons struck back against advancing Ukrainian troops on Tuesday, hammering them in the area of several southern villages that the Ukrainian Army had retaken over the past week in the opening phase of Kyivs counteroffensive.

The attack reduced one village to ruins and came on the same day that a Russian missile strike killed at least 11 people in Kryvyi Rih, the hometown of President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine, which lies about 100 miles from the eastern front line.

Thunderstorms had swept over southern Ukraine before the Russian attack on the villages, muddying terrain and complicating operations for both armies, which have been locked in fighting at multiple points as Ukrainian troops have tested Russian defenses along the front.

Conflicting claims made it difficult to assess the situation on the battlefield, but President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia, speaking to Russian war correspondents and military bloggers, acknowledged that his forces had suffered some losses in June, including 54 tanks. He denied Ukraines assertions of progress on the battlefield, though, insisting that its military had lost hundreds more tanks and vehicles than Russia with no gains to speak of.
So thats about 30 years ago. Thats the way its been for me when it comes to his writing. It makes an impression, leaves a mark, leaves me somehow changed, such that I can look back now, from my 50s, and remember where I was when I was reading his novels, and what I felt when I finished one for the first time.

He may not be the kind of writer that everyone would take to. But for me, he represents what writing and storytelling are capable of in terms of the alchemy by which words can grip, mold, and change you and how you see the world. What a writer.  Milan Karol, Baltimore, Md.

I read The Road in one sitting, overnight, and it has never left me. I remain haunted by that vision, forever.  Diana Dubrawsky, Silver Spring, Md.

Goodbye to one of the all-time greats. If I had to choose one book to carry in my broken shopping cart through a postapocalyptic world it would be Suttree, a book that gets better each time you read it.  Yoav Grunstein, New York, N.Y.

I discovered Cormac McCarthys books when I was pregnant with my daughter, and remember vividly how incredibly affecting Blood Meridian was. Maybe it was the hormones, but I felt the prose was lyrical and shifting in an interesting way, even as it described horror.
I have sometimes liked to imagine the hours in a day, or a week or a month, like swaths of fabric hanging in a clothing shop. Some are coarse and practical, others stretchy and deliciously frivolous. Some are filmy, made to be worn with weightless ease.

The most elastic that hours have ever felt to me was on Saturday afternoons when I was a child. My family observed the Sabbath, which meant that from sundown on Friday until sundown on Saturday we abstained: from driving and typing, from music and phone calls, from handling computers and spending cash. All those rules meant that time could seem like a problem in need of solving. There was too much of it and too little to do, the minutes seeming to multiply like pasta in Strega Nonas pot. I disappeared into the worlds of Fudge, Matilda and James with his giant peach. I put on productions of Peter Pan, in which I cast myself as Peter, Wendy and Captain Hook, and my little brother as the crocodile.

I stopped keeping the Sabbath when I left home for college. There was no ceremony that accompanied the shift; it was a choice as swift as a pajama-themed party the first Friday night of college and a Monday exam that meant hitting the library on Saturday. There was so much to do that time no longer felt stretchy. It was denim, or leather, or like those American Apparel sweetheart dresses we wore out on weekends, the hours reminding me of their constrictive seams.

I was transported back to those childhood Sabbath afternoons recently, as I read two new books that ask us to question what we do with our time. One was The Good Enough Job, by Simone Stolzoff, a journalist and designer; the other was All the Gold Stars, by Rainesford Stauffer, also a journalist. Stolzoffs book considers what our days and weeks might feel like if we didnt place careers at their center. Stauffers probes how we might trade professional ambitions for a different kind of striving  for friendships, communities, even leisure.
Ivan Menezes, who as chief executive of the spirits corporation Diageo used his canny understanding of the drinking public to help the company grow into a global colossus, died on June 7 in London. He was 63.

The cause was complications of emergency surgery for a stomach ulcer, a Diageo spokesman said.

Diageo is omnipresent in the world of alcohol, selling more than 200 brands in more than 180 countries, including Smirnoff vodka, Tanqueray gin, Johnnie Walker Scotch, Captain Morgan rum and Guinness beer. In some spirit categories it has the largest global net sales.

Mr. Menezes (pronounced muh-NAY-zess) was trained in marketing and closely studied consumer sentiment. To him, spirits provided what he called accessible luxury to customers  a dram of the good life even in an unstable economy.

The example I like to use is, if you are an average New Yorker, it may be tough to spend a night at the Four Seasons, Mr. Menezes said in an interview with The New York Times in 2005, but you could walk into the Four Seasons bar and enjoy a glass of Johnnie Walker Blue Label on the rocks.
With respect to Mr. Hoggs As I See It: Why Benton County bond measure failed (May 24), Measure 2-140 did not fail because it did not reflect community desires.

The reality is that we have a population of people who need to be removed from society for periods of time. So we need a big new jail. What we have problems with are the following:

1. The cost of this jail was wildly out of line with national averages. A proposed prison for Washington, D.C., for 4,000 to 6,000 inmates, would cost between $400 and $750 million. This means the cost of a 120-bed jail (what Benton County proposed) should be about $13.8 million (which is also the national average for a 40,000-square-foot jail). But Benton Countys proposed jail was $64 million. Why?

2. Jail, by definition, is relatively short-term. The idea that we could address mental health and substance issues and job skills during these short durations is not only wishful thinking, it is a waste of time and money. Those problems require long-term, consistent work, things that jail cannot provide.

3. Allocating a pittance toward homeless services fooled no one. A bigger jail will help remove some of the chronic offenders from city streets and parks. Right now, the homeless act with impunity, because they face no repercussions for their ongoing bad choices.

Its time we spare the good citizens of Corvallis, who pay for the streets, sidewalks and parks of the city, some of the abuse, trash, fires, open-air drug use and assaults on people and property that now occur daily.

We cannot solve homelessness, but we can certainly do a much better job at mitigating the harm that the homeless do to our community.

4. No more special ballots. Oregon used to have a law (Measure 47) that required a double majority (at least 50% turnout) for special levies. That measure was effectively repealed in 2008 by Measure 56, which exempted levies placed on May or November ballots from the double majority.

We are long overdue for bringing back the double-majority law, so that a dedicated minority doesnt adversely affect the finances of the majority for decades to come.

5. Last, the majority of Benton County citizens fall into the middle class. And we middle-class people are tired of being looked at as an unlimited font of public money. We are being levied and assessed at an unreasonable rate.

Over 40% of my monthly water bill is made of taxes to support various city and county programs. We have levies for the library, for schools, for public safety (clearly that one is a big fail!); all of this on top of my property taxes, which have doubled in less than 20 years.

The county and city have repeatedly demonstrated an inability (or unwillingness) to live within their means. Until they can do so, every levy, assessment and tax gets a firm no from me.

Show us a budget that actually makes cuts to nonessential things. One that occasionally says to taxpayers, We made some cuts, so this year, your property taxes will not increase.

If the county wants to understand why the measure failed, talk with regular people and listen when we tell you we feel overtaxed, overstressed and taken advantage of. Do some things that benefit the large but struggling middle class.

If you want the middle to continue subsidizing both the poor and the rich, then you need to recognize that we can only go so far under the whip. Every now and then, give us a carrot and a sugar cube.
Mr. Yasukochi said that was partly because of what was sometimes described in the industry as extend and pretend. Banks are reluctant to seize nonperforming properties because of the commitment required to finding tenants and because they would often be taking over the property at a loss. Instead, they reach accommodations with their borrowers and try to wait out the crisis in hopes that the market will turn around.

Will the delaying tactics work? It depends how long you can pretend for, Mr. Yasukochi said.

In many cases, retailers in urban centers are voluntarily choosing to depart. In San Francisco, Nordstrom said it would close its longtime store at San Francisco Centre in August, which will leave the mall 45 percent empty. Anthropologie closed the downtown location it had for two decades in May.

In New York, Neiman Marcus closed its Hudson Yards store  its only one in Manhattan  in July 2020, after a bankruptcy and a little over a year after its grand opening. In downtown Seattle, Nike shuttered the NikeTown store in January that it had operated since 1996. The outdoor retailer REI said it would close the store its had in downtown Portland for two decades when its lease expired early next year.

Foot traffic is slowly recovering in downtowns, but for many retailers sales havent come back to prepandemic levels, making it unsustainable to continue paying the high rents in prominent downtown centers.

Westfield isnt the first mall owner to decide to leave a longtime downtown shopping center. Last year, Brookfield Property Partners relinquished Chicagos Water Tower Place, the mall that anchors the Magnificent Mile, an upscale commercial district. The shopping district had grappled with lower foot traffic and noticeable retail vacancies since the start of the pandemic. More than half of the space in Water Tower Place is vacant, including an anchor store location that was a Macys until 2021, according to Cushman & Wakefield.
It is one of the most significant remaining flows of money from the United States to Russia, and it continues despite strenuous efforts among U.S. allies to sever economic ties with Moscow. The enriched uranium payments are made to subsidiaries of Rosatom, which in turn is closely intertwined with Russias military apparatus.

The United States reliance on nuclear power is primed to grow as the country aims to decrease reliance on fossil fuels. But no American-owned company enriches uranium. The United States once dominated the market, until a swirl of historical factors, including an enriched-uranium-buying deal between Russia and the United States designed to promote Russias peaceful nuclear program after the Soviet Unions collapse, enabled Russia to corner half the global market. The United States ceased enriching uranium entirely.

The United States and Europe have largely stopped buying Russian fossil fuels as punishment for the Ukraine invasion. But building a new enriched uranium supply chain will take years  and significantly more government funding than currently allocated.

That the vast facility in Piketon, Ohio, stands nearly empty more than a year into Russias war in Ukraine is a testament to the difficulty.
An unavoidable tension surrounds this years United Nations-sponsored climate talks in November: They will take place in the oil-rich United Arab Emirates, and the most important role at the talks is held by the man who heads the national oil company.

The executive, Sultan al-Jaber, and other representatives of the Emirates have argued that they have a game changing plan to fight climate change by welcoming oil and gas companies from around the world to participate more fully in the talks. In other words, invite the producers of the fuels that cause the majority of global warming as key players in developing a plan to slow the warming.

In an interview, Majid al-Suwaidi, an Emirati diplomat who will also play a major role at the climate talks, known by the acronym COP28, said, We need to engage the people who have the technical know-how, the skills, the technology  and, by the way, the people who provide jobs  in a conversation about how they transform.

To activists who have attended these conferences for years, that notion sounds far-fetched. Its just like how tobacco lobbyists need to be kept out of conversations about cancer prevention, said Catherine Abreu, who heads Destination Zero, a network of nonprofits working on climate issues.
Did you have a sense that the smoke in New York was going to be as bad as it was?

On Tuesday, we started looking at the forecast models. The high resolution model only goes out 18 hours, so you only start to get a glimpse. Then the National Weather Service forecasters were mentioning it. By Wednesday morning, as soon as the sun rose, there was this huge concentration of smoke. The models were showing it staying together as this big, dense mass, and moving.

It actually arrived about three hours earlier than I expected. The fact you could see this mass of smoke moving like a blob was freaky. The time-lapse Earth camera we very quickly put out was apocalyptic. Its like putting on a giant Instagram filter, or in this case it was like you photoshopped out all the buildings.

Are there any ideas you have for different ways to cover weather events as they become more consistent and impactful?

Our weather team likes to work with all the teams across the board at The Times. We dont like to keep things to ourselves. Thats what makes us dynamic. Our team has already been working hand in hand with the folks that have built our wildfire tracker. Air quality and the smoke forecast are all products that came out of this group. Weve been thinking through how we cover this better, how we inform our readers, how we give them something tangible and how we explain how that affects them.

As we move forward, were going to encourage even more group collaboration. Every fire, every situation is different. Even when these fires burn in the middle of nowhere, the smoke impacts somebody.
Mr. Adams on Tuesday angrily rebuffed the notion that he was facing a staff exodus, and accused the journalists who cover him of existing in a narrative-generating bubble. He noted that he oversaw more than 300,000 employees, and said that the high-level departures represented just a fraction of the city work force.

And were saying, is everybody running for the door? he said. No, everybody is running to do their job.

Reached by phone on Tuesday afternoon, Ms. Sewell declined to comment on her exit.

Deputy Mayor Banks said in a text that any suggestion of meddling was untruthful gossip and to call him for comment when you get a quote from Commissioner Sewell.

Max Young, the mayors communications director, who will step down this summer, attributed the spate of departures to the unusually stressful nature of government work these days.

This is an unprecedented moment in New Yorks history and we should acknowledge that everyone who works in public service is under tremendous pressure to manage myriad crises, Mr. Young said. People will leave, but one thing remains the same: our commitment to handling the crises we inherited, turning this city around, and improving the lives of all New Yorkers.
It is hard to imagine a case that places more pressure on the functioning of the jury  or that more dramatically illustrates its unique value. The case against Mr. Trump does not just put a question of national security in the hands of the jury. It puts in its hands a case that is unprecedented, involving a former  and perhaps future  leader of the nation. The security policy stakes are high. The political stakes may be higher.

The jury systems constitutional authority makes it, at its best, an essential check on government overreach. In a case like this, its democratic legitimacy also gives it a better chance than any other governing institution to render a judgment that can withstand the political firestorm ahead.

Leaving such a consequential judgment up to ordinary citizens may seem jarring in a political culture accustomed to assuming national security is best reserved to the most expert, most secretive corridors of military and intelligence agencies in and around Washington. Jury trials are, after all, the opposite of this. Neither juries nor judges  especially in courts outside Washington  are known for their national security expertise. And like any jurors, those in Mr. Trumps case will bring with them their own partisan political views that might shape their interpretation of evidence. Jury decision-making is never without risk, and rarely more so than it will be here.

Jury trials are also necessarily public. The Constitution gives every defendant the right to confront the evidence against him, and for juries to have any basis for deciding the case, they generally have to see that evidence as well. This creates obvious problems when the key evidence against the defendant involves documents that the government argues should never see the light of day.

The indictment unsealed on Friday lists government records describing American nuclear and other weapons capabilities, potential vulnerabilities of the United States and its allies to military attack, and U.S. plans for potential response to a foreign attack. This information goes to the heart of the nations ability to defend itself. They are documents of the very highest sensitivity.
Alas, Mr. McCarthy is far from alone in debasing himself for the benefit of the former president. So on the occasion of Mr. Trumps second not-guilty plea in three months, after he was arrested and arraigned on the charges on Tuesday in a Miami federal court, lets take apart the two most common, and most absurd, defenses of his behavior.

Selective Prosecution. This is the witch hunt narrative that has animated the Republican Party for years. In this account, the deep state has always had it in for Mr. Trump, targeting him for things that other officials, especially Democrats, get away with. If youre Donald Trump, theyre going to come get you for anything, Byron Donalds, a Florida congressman, said on CNN on Tuesday. But if youre Hillary Clinton or Joe Biden, theyre going to investigate very, very slowly, and lets see where it actually ends up. This is an upside-down way of looking at whats happened over the past several years.

Its true that Mr. Biden was found to have classified documents from his time as a senator and as vice president in his personal possession, too, some stored in his Delaware garage. Same with former Vice President Mike Pence. In both cases, the removal of secret material after their terms ended was apparently inadvertent, and there was no indication that either man even knew he possessed the documents. Both men cooperated with authorities, immediately returning the documents to their rightful owner, the federal government. Even so, Mr. Bidens attorney general, Merrick Garland, quickly appointed a special counsel to look into the presidents documents case.

In contrast, it has taken the government more than a year to get the hundreds of classified documents Mr. Trump took from the White House. First the government asked politely, then it issued subpoenas, and finally it executed a search warrant. Even now, it would be foolish to assume that everything in Mr. Trumps possession has been turned over. The indictment charges him with multiple acts of obstruction, including instructing his personal aide Walt Nauta to move boxes around in order to hide them from his own lawyers, and later suggesting to one of his lawyers that the lawyer pluck out any documents that might get Mr. Trump in trouble.

And what of Mrs. Clinton, against whom Mr. Trump still seems to believe he is running, seven years later? It has become an article of faith among Republicans, both the Lock her up crowd and the supposedly more serious ones, that Mrs. Clinton committed a major crime by using a personal email server to conduct government business while she was secretary of state. Even Chris Christie, the former New Jersey governor who plays one of the few responsible politicians in the modern G.O.P., called the allegations against her damning.
To the Editor:

Re Trump Thrives in a Broken System. Hell Get Us There Soon, by Thomas L. Friedman (column, June 14):

Mr. Friedman is exactly right. We are approaching a most dangerous moment. Donald Trump will finally be tried in a federal court of law after being indicted. His lifetime of avoiding comeuppance for outrageous behavior is over.

We have to believe that nobody  nobody meaning even an ex-president and possible future president  is above the law.

Even though we will trust in the courts to carry out the legal process, a very serious monkey wrench has been thrown into the mix. Almost beyond belief, Judge Aileen M. Cannon has been randomly selected to preside over the court proceedings.

Based on her strange and creative rulings in his favor several months ago related to the F.B.I.s search of Mar-a-Lago, Mr. Trump has finally found a judge he dare not slander and demean, as he has consistently done in cases in which he has lost.
Milligan, Wasserman continued, could reverberate across the Deep South leading to the creation of new Black-majority, strongly Democratic seats in multiple states.

While more districts in other states could be added, depending on the outcome of further litigation, The Cook Report changed the solid R ratings of two Alabama and two Louisiana districts to tossup and the tossup rating of a Democratic-held seat in North Carolina to lean D.

If Democrats can gain five seats, it will critically affect the balance of power in Washington.

I turned to a number of scholars and analysts to ask how they thought this might play out.

Nicholas Stephanopoulos, a law professor at Harvard and an expert on election law, wrote by email that Milligan is significant both substantively and politically:

First, it means that Section 2 remains fully operative as a bulwark against racial vote dilution; second, it signals to conservative lower courts that they need to rule in favor of plaintiffs on facts like those in Milligan; third, it takes off the table arguments that Section 2 must be narrowly construed to avoid constitutional problems; and fourth, if Section 2 is constitutional, so should be other laws targeting racial disparities.

In terms of political consequences, Stephanopoulos continued,

Its near certain that Alabama will have a new Black opportunity (and Democratic) district by 2024, and this is also likely in Georgia and Louisiana. There may now be successful Section 2 claims in Texas, too. Milligan further complicates the looming Republican partisan gerrymander in North Carolina. And Milligan weakens Floridas defense for eliminating a Black opportunity district around Jacksonville, which hinges on race-conscious districting being unconstitutional. Put it all together and at least two to three, and quite possibly more, congressional districts are likely to change hands because of Milligan.

Richard Pildes, a professor of constitutional law at N.Y.U., stressed the political importance of the Alabama decision in an email: Even though Milligan merely affirms the legal status quo, its going to have much more practical significance than that might suggest.

In light of Milligan, Pildes continued,

It is likely, at a minimum, that a new Voting Rights Act district will be created in Alabama, Louisiana and Georgia before 2024. Lower courts have found already that the current maps in those states likely, or do, violate Sec. 2. In Texas, its possible one or more new Hispanic V.R.A. districts will have to be created. Before Milligan, there were suits pending in other states as well; it remains to be seen whether courts find it possible to create reasonably configured V.R.A. districts in these other states.

One of the reasons the Milligan case will be politically consequential, Pildes argued, is that it comes at a time when a confluence of at least four political and technological developments will make its practical effect significant.

First, technological advances, as used in the Milligan case, make it easier to find new V.R.A. districts that can be reasonably configured. Second, minority-preferred candidates can win with lower minority voting-age populations (falling from estimates as high as 65 percent in the 1990s to below 45 percent now), which means more minority voters are available to create additional V.R.A. districts. Third, the private bar has become extremely well resourced to pursue these cases. Fourth, the debates over partisan gerrymandering in the last decade brought many new strong social scientists into this area, in which expert analysis of maps and voting patterns plays a critical role.

Pildes contended that the following excerpt from Chief Justice John Robertss majority opinion is particularly important because it rejects the argument that race-based remedial districting is unconstitutional:

Alabama further argues that, even if the 15th Amendment authorizes the effects test of Section 2, that Amendment does not authorize race-based redistricting as a remedy for Section 2 violations. But for the last four decades, this court and the lower federal courts have repeatedly applied the effects test of Section 2 as interpreted in Gingles and, under certain circumstances, have authorized race-based redistricting as a remedy for state districting maps that violate Section 2.

In that context, Roberts continued, we are not persuaded by Alabamas arguments that Section 2 as interpreted in Gingles exceeds the remedial authority of Congress.
This maternal wisdom proved painfully on point for poor Jeb. And, several years on, the Republican Party has gone all in on trashing professional politicians  or pretty much anyone with a clue about or an interest in how government works. The more ignorant and unqualified you are, the more the base loves you. (See: Marjorie Taylor Greene.)

Still, no one is entitled to any elective office by virtue of their birth. That said, there is a case to make in appreciation of candidates who hail from families that take public service seriously and who are familiar with the weird world of politics. Exhibit A is Nancy Pelosi, the most formidable and effective House speaker in more than 60 years, who learned much about her craft growing up in a local Democratic dynasty in Baltimore.

Plenty of Americans follow their families into a particular field, be it the military, law enforcement, teaching, acting or journalism. So if George P. Bush wants to run for this or that office in his home state of Texas, more power to him. And if voters choose to smack him down, as they did in the Republican primary for state attorney general last year, good on them. (Although sticking with Ken Paxton instead? Really?)

But there is a dark side to all of this. Certain dynastic players can begin to feel  and behave  as though they are entitled to elected office, treating the honor as if it is not something to be earned so much as handed down like a family heirloom or a dry-cleaning business. That way inevitably leads to trouble.

Just as problematic, and far more common, is when voters treat a well-known political name as a substitute for seriously vetting a candidates fitness for office. As one poll respondent mused to CNN about the colorful Mr. Kennedy: I liked his dad (R.F.K.) and his uncle (J.F.K.) a lot. I would hope he has a similar mind-set. Woo, boy. Cross your fingers that this voter does some due diligence before casting a ballot.
The stalled-out Oregon Legislature prompted by a Republican walkout in the Senate has local social service agencies on edge about funding for this coming fiscal year.

Leaders of local support agencies recently warned Corvallis officials about hard times coming if state politicians cant work a deal.

Its likely to mean more people on the streets and more tents in parks, at least in the near term, they say.

Legislation anticipated to support homeless services and housing crisis solutions  among other bills  have failed to advance following a walkout by Oregon Senate Republicans that has put the Legislative session on pause indefinitely.

Compromises at the national level on the federal debt ceiling add to the problem, according to Pegge McGuire, Community Services Consortium executive director.

Almost all of our federal funding has been cut significantly, and the vast majority of that is housing-related, McGuire said at a Corvallis City Council meeting June 5. So, its also rental assistance funding, utility bill payment assistance. Our clients are going to be demanding funds that we just dont have.

With pandemic-era funding dried up, Community Services Consortium is down to half the budget it had in 2020, McGuire said, adding most of that money is passed through to such local partners as Unity Shelter, which operates several homeless shelter programs in Corvallis.

McGuire said whatever city resources are available for social assistance would be important in light of the financial crunch on local providers.

We are just not going to have funds to help, she said.

The effects of reduced services are expected to hit Unity Shelter in the next week, Executive Director Shawn Collins said in an interview. He gave similar testimony to McGuires at the council meeting, noting the bulk of Unity Shelter funding in recent years  state and federal grants  filters down from Community Services Consortium.

If we were to continue to operate at our current level, we would be out of money effectively by the end of July, Collins said. We need to make substantial changes in operations and expenses.

That means slashing monthly costs by around half, Collins said, to stretch what Unity Shelter has reserved until September in hopes funding will eventually come through. But its not clear to Collins what the real timeline for funds might be or even how much will be approved.

Focused on emergency shelter and transitional housing, Unity Shelter operations include The Mens Shelter, SafePlace, Room at the Inn and Third Street Commons. Staffing and operational changes are coming to all the programs.

To stay afloat, Collins said hes forced to lay off staff members and reduce shelter capacity. While the hygiene center at The Mens Shelter will stay open, the actual shelter program will be combined with the all-women shelter Room at the Inn, though men and women will have separate spaces.

Its definitely going to be painful, Collins said, adding Room at the Inn will have to close during the daytime and change its meal schedule under the staffing cuts.

The sudden, dramatic changes signal instability to the homeless community relying on local social services providers. Collins acknowledged that with fewer services and staff, it is likely more people will fall through the cracks and go unaided.

Collins said the board's and leadership team's decision to make cuts was made with heavy hearts knowing the impact they would have on people, both those they serve and those who keep Unity Shelter going.

This is not a simple decision for us, he said. Its really a matter of trying to change operations so that we can protect the most vulnerable people for as long as possible.

Experts, volunteers, policymakers and those on the streets tend to agree that homelessness numbers are rising in the mid-Willamette Valley. Attempts to count homeless populations likely miss the mark due to factors including volunteer availability and reluctance to be documented.

Recent counts showed 347 people without housing in Benton County, 143 of them living unsheltered. The vast majority were from Corvallis. Linn County saw 413 without housing, 235 with no shelter, mostly congregated in Albany.

Senate Republicans have indicated they could return to the Legislative session to approve certain bipartisan bills and budgets, but Democrats have said time is fleeting to pass budgets, and a special session may be necessary to ensure all funding is approved.
Lets assume, because it seems like a reasonable assumption, that we have not reached the end of the indictments that will be handed down against Donald Trump. Lets assume that either the case in Georgia, where he is being investigated for election tampering, or the special counsels continuing investigation in Washington, will yield a prosecution related to his conduct between the November 2020 election and the riot on Jan. 6.

In that case, Trumps various indictments would double as a road map to his presidency and his era  each fitting with a different interpretation of the Trump phenomenon, and only together giving the fullest picture of his times.

The first indictment, New Yorks case against Trump for campaign finance violations related to his alleged affair with the adult thespian Stormy Daniels, fits neatly into the narrative of the Trump era thats often called anti-anti-Trump. This interpretation concedes, to some degree at least, Trumps sleaziness and folly, but then it invariably insists that his enemies in the American establishment are actually more dangerous  because theyre protecting democracy by trampling its norms, embracing conspiracy theories and conducting pointless witch hunts.

Its hard to imagine a better illustration of the anti-anti-Trumpist case than an ideological prosecutor in a Democratic city indicting a former president on a charge considered dubious even by many liberal legal experts. Norms, indeed: The Stormy Daniels case looks like Resistance theater, partisan lawfare, exactly the kind of overreach that Trumps defenders insist defines the entirety of anti-Trumpism.
An absurd question keeps nagging at me: Could an inmate in a federal prison get a leave to attend his own presidential inauguration?

I wonder about that because Trump seems to be moving simultaneously in two opposing and irreconcilable directions. First, it seems increasingly plausible that he will become the first former president to be convicted of a felony. Second, he also seems increasingly likely to win the Republican nomination for president, with the betting markets also giving him about a 22 percent chance of going on and actually being elected president.

Any defendant must be presumed innocent until proven guilty. But some smart lawyers believe that for Trump, the peril is extreme, as one former federal prosecutor put it. Trumps own attorney general William Barr said, If even half of it is true, then hes toast.

Trump could, of course, catch a break. The evidence from his own lawyer could be declared inadmissible in trial, or maybe the trial judge will allow stalling tactics by the defense, or maybe a die-hard sympathizer on the Florida jury will refuse to convict. But Trump could eventually be indicted in four separate criminal cases, and with so many cases swirling about, the odds increase that he may find himself convicted of at least some felonies.

He would be a first offender, and its not certain that he would do prison time. Officials so far have been very deferential toward Trump: He hasnt been handcuffed or subjected to a mug shot.
Quantum computers today are small in computational scope  the chip inside your smartphone contains billions of transistors while the most powerful quantum computer contains a few hundred of the quantum equivalent of a transistor. They are also unreliable. If you run the same calculation over and over, they will most likely churn out different answers each time.

But with their intrinsic ability to consider many possibilities at once, quantum computers do not have to be very large to tackle certain prickly problems of computation, and on Wednesday, IBM researchers announced that they had devised a method to manage the unreliability in a way that would lead to reliable, useful answers.

What IBM showed here is really an amazingly important step in that direction of making progress towards serious quantum algorithmic design, said Dorit Aharonov, a professor of computer science at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem who was not involved with the research.

While researchers at Google in 2019 claimed that they had achieved quantum supremacy  a task performed much more quickly on a quantum computer than a conventional one  IBMs researchers say they have achieved something new and more useful, albeit more modestly named.
Theres a new tech titan in town and hes preparing to enter the pantheon. How do we know?

Well, Jensen Huang, the chief executive of Nvidia, has the company: He co-founded Nvidia in 1993, and the market cap is now about $950 billion, though at the end of May it was briefly in the $1 trillion club, putting it in a similar league to Apple, Alphabet and Amazon.

He has the product: a data processing chip that is key to A.I. development, which is to say, the life of ChatGPT and Bard, which is to say, the current paradigm shift.

And he has the look: a black leather jacket he wears every time he is in the public eye, most often with a black T-shirt and black jeans.

Mr. Huang wore a black leather jacket when he was on the cover of Time as one of its men of the year in 2021. A black leather jacket during his keynote speeches at multiple GTC developer conferences since 2018. To deliver the 2023 World ITF keynote and the 2023 Computex 2023 keynote. He even identified himself, back in a Reddit AMA in 2016, as the guy in the leather jacket.
The European Union took an important step on Wednesday toward passing what would be one of the first major laws to regulate artificial intelligence, a potential model for policymakers around the world as they grapple with how to put guardrails on the rapidly developing technology.

The European Parliament, a main legislative branch of the European Union, passed a draft law known as the A.I. Act, which would put new restrictions on what are seen as the technologys riskiest uses. It would severely curtail uses of facial recognition software, while requiring makers of A.I. systems like the ChatGPT chatbot to disclose more about the data used to create their programs.

The vote is one step in a longer process. A final version of the law is not expected to be passed until later this year.

The European Union is further along than the United States and other large Western governments in regulating A.I. The 27-nation bloc has debated the topic for more than two years, and the issue took on new urgency after last years release of ChatGPT, which intensified concerns about the technologys potential effects on employment and society.
Generative artificial intelligence is set to add up to $4.4 trillion of value to the global economy annually, according to a report from McKinsey Global Institute, in what is one of the rosier predictions about the economic effects of the rapidly evolving technology.

Generative A.I., which includes chatbots such as ChatGPT that can generate text in response to prompts, can potentially boost productivity by saving 60 to 70 percent of workers time through automation of their work, according to the 68-page report, which was published early Wednesday. Half of all work will be automated between 2030 and 2060, the report said.

McKinsey had previously predicted that A.I. would automate half of all work between 2035 and 2075, but the power of generative A.I. tools  which exploded onto the tech scene late last year  accelerated the companys forecast.

Generative A.I. has the potential to change the anatomy of work, augmenting the capabilities of individual workers by automating some of their individual activities, the report said.
Google was charged on Wednesday with violating European Union antitrust laws by using its dominance in online advertising to undercut rivals, the latest in a string of cases around the world that strike at the core of the internet giants business model.

The case was brought by the European Commission, the executive branch of the 27-nation European Union, and is the fourth time Google has been charged with violating European antitrust laws in recent years. In this instance, the European Union accused Google of abusing its control of the market for buying and selling online advertising.

The U.S. Justice Department brought similar charges against Google in January, accusing the company of illegally abusing a monopoly over the technology that powers online advertising. Britains antitrust authority has also been investigating Googles advertising practices.

The outcomes of the cases could have significant implications for Googles parent company, Alphabet, which reaped most of its $60 billion in profit last year from advertising. Advertising underpins nearly all of Googles most popular services, including search, email, maps and Android, and allows the company to offer them for free.
A group of 17 music publishers sued Twitter on Wednesday, accusing it of copyright infringement on about 1,700 songs, and is seeking as much as $250 million in damages, the latest headache for the social media platform owned by Elon Musk.

The publishers filed the suit in Federal District Court in Nashville, saying Twitter violated copyright law by allowing users to post music to the platform without permission. Negotiations between Twitter and the music industry to put broad licensing agreements into place had broken down months ago.

Twitter stands alone as the largest social media platform that has completely refused to license the millions of songs on its service, David Israelite, the president of the National Music Publishers Association, a trade group, said in a statement.

Twitter and Mr. Musk did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

The suit detailed what the publishers say is Twitters failure to police rampant infringement of music copyrights on the service. It pointed to specific tweets in which music has been used without permission, including a post about Rihannas song Umbrella that included what the suit said is two minutes of the songs music video. The post had 221,000 views and 15,000 likes, the suit said, but not the permission of the songs publishers.
Aileen M. Cannon, the Federal District Court judge assigned to preside over former President Donald J. Trumps classified documents case, has scant experience running criminal trials, calling into question her readiness to handle what is likely to be an extraordinarily complex and high-profile courtroom clash.

Judge Cannon, 42, has been on the bench since November 2020, when Mr. Trump gave her a lifetime appointment shortly after he lost re-election. She had not previously served as any kind of judge, and because about 98 percent of federal criminal cases are resolved with plea deals, she has had only a limited opportunity to learn how to preside over a trial.

A Bloomberg Law database lists 224 criminal cases that have been assigned to her, and a New York Times review of those cases identified four that went to trial. Each was a relatively routine matter, like a felon who was charged with illegally possessing a gun. In all, the four cases added up to 14 trial days.

Judge Cannons suitability to handle such a high-stakes and high-profile case has already attracted scrutiny amid widespread perceptions that she demonstrated bias in the former presidents favor last year, when she oversaw a long-shot lawsuit filed by Mr. Trump challenging the F.B.I.s court-approved search of his Florida home and club, Mar-a-Lago.
The Biden administration has been negotiating quietly with Iran to limit Tehrans nuclear program and free imprisoned Americans, according to officials from three countries, in part of a larger U.S. effort to ease tensions and reduce the risk of a military confrontation with the Islamic Republic.

The U.S. goal is to reach an informal, unwritten agreement, which some Iranian officials are calling a political cease-fire. It would aim to prevent a further escalation in a long-hostile relationship that has grown even more fraught as Iran builds up a stockpile of highly enriched uranium close to bomb-grade purity, supplies Russia with drones for use in Ukraine and brutally cracks down on domestic political protests.

The broad outlines of the talks were confirmed by three senior Israeli officials, an Iranian official and a U.S. official. American officials would not discuss efforts to win the release of prisoners in detail, beyond calling that an urgent U.S. priority.

The indirect talks, some occurring this spring in the Gulf Arab state of Oman, reflect a resumption of diplomacy between the United States and Iran after the collapse of more than a year of negotiations to restore the 2015 nuclear deal. That agreement sharply limited Irans activities in exchange for sanctions relief.
Krisjanis Karins, the American-born prime minister of Latvia, argued that the only chance for peace in Europe is when Ukraine will be in NATO. Speaking Wednesday at a strategy conference in Riga, he said that any other outcome means inevitably Russia will come back.

The hope in the push is that once Ukraine is a full member of the alliance, Russia would not dare to try to topple the government in Kyiv because an attack on one NATO country is considered an attack on them all. Ukrainian membership has become a consuming debate, both in Europe and inside the Biden administration, according to one senior U.S. official who is deeply involved in the discussions.

Only Germany has sided fully with Mr. Biden, though some of the other 29 allies have their own quiet doubts about Ukraines readiness to fully join the alliance  and the risks that NATO nations could get sucked directly into a conflict with Russia in the future.

In a blur of memos and meetings, several American officials, led by Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken, appear to have taken the position that the Biden administration will be forced to be more specific about Ukraines path to membership, even if no date can be agreed upon in the middle of a war that has no clear end in sight.
The News

The State Department announced on Wednesday that Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken planned to leave on Friday for a visit to Beijing to stress to Chinese officials the importance of maintaining open lines of communication to responsibly manage the relationship between the two nations.

Mr. Blinken also plans to raise bilateral issues of concern, global and regional matters, and potential cooperation on shared transnational challenges, the State Department said.

The trip is one that Mr. Blinken had to reschedule after canceling a planned visit on the day of his departure in early February, when a Chinese spy balloon flying over the United States caused a political and public uproar. He plans to meet with officials for two days in Beijing before flying to a conference in London focused on the reconstruction of Ukraine.
The satisfaction is nearly universal, but comes with a queasy aftertaste: Democrats are relishing the possibility that Donald J. Trump will get his comeuppance at last. But when the mocking laughter fades, in its place remains a much more lasting anxiety. What will this do to the country?

While President Biden and his top allies have largely stayed silent about Mr. Trumps indictment, rank-and-file Democrats were far more eager to talk, responding with a mix of jubilation and deep apprehension about how the federal prosecution of a former president and current White House candidate could convulse American politics.

Interviews this week with more than 60 Democratic members of Congress, state legislators, liberal activists and party officials found near-universal agreement that Mr. Trump deserved to face federal charges for his handling of classified documents, but a notable divide over whether the indictment was good for the country or even for their party.

I dont want to see this chaos machine do any more damage to the country, to hurt any more people, Representative Greg Landsman of Ohio, a moderate freshman from Cincinnati, said in an interview Tuesday, referring to the former president. Democrats, Republicans, independents, everyone has to sort of take a disposition of seriousness.
Contrary to the recent reporting, President Trump has a number of very good options that hes considering and will take his time to make an informed decision, Mr. Kise said. There are a number of excellent lawyers that are not only willing, but very interested in working with him on this case.

Mr. Kise said his own job was to provide advice and counsel to my client.

The one unusual aspect of Mr. Trumps case will be its pacing.

Prosecutors working for the special counsel Jack Smith will most likely seek to drive the case forward quickly, all too aware that the prosecution is playing out as Mr. Trump pursues his presidential campaign. Mr. Trumps lawyers will surely try to slow the case down, perhaps with an eye toward dragging it out until after the 2024 election. That has been Mr. Trumps M.O. in nearly every legal case he has faced over the years, and this one is not likely to be an exception.

Mr. Trump is expected to continue with a fairly steady stream of political events in the coming months, although the needs of the court calendar in the Florida case will in some ways dictate his actions. Unlike when Mr. Trump chose to opt out of personally appearing at the civil rape and defamation trial brought against him in New York by the writer E. Jean Carroll, he is unlikely to be permitted the same flexibility by the federal judge who hears his criminal case in Florida.

At this point, it remains unclear whether Mr. Trump will attend the first Republican primary debate, which is scheduled for Aug. 23 in Milwaukee.

But if he does show up, he will almost certainly be pressed about his indictments  not only by the moderators but also by the other candidates. Mr. Trump is also facing the prospect of charges concerning election interference from the district attorney in Fulton County, Ga., and from Mr. Smith concerning similar efforts to thwart the transfer of power after he lost the 2020 election.
Former President Donald J. Trump faces 37 federal charges that could send him to prison for the remainder of his life, but its the rest of the Republican field thats in the most immediate political trouble.

Advisers working for Mr. Trumps opponents are facing what some consider an infuriating task: trying to persuade Republican primary voters, who are inured to Mr. Trumps years of controversies and deeply distrustful of the government, that being criminally charged for holding onto classified documents is a bad thing.

In previous eras, the indictment of a presidential candidate would have been, at a minimum, a political gift for the other candidates, if not an event that spelled the end of the indicted rivals run. Competitors would have thrilled at the prospect of the front-runners spending months tied up in court, with damaging new details steadily dripping out. And they still could be Mr. Trumps undoing: If he does not end up convicted before November 2024, his latest arrest is not likely win him converts in the general election.

But Mr. Trumps competitors  counterintuitively, according to the old conventional political wisdom  are actually dreading what threatens to be an endless indictment news cycle that could swallow up the summer. His rivals are desperate to get media coverage for their campaigns, but since the indictment became public last Thursday, as several advisers grumbled, the only way they can get their candidates booked on television is for them to answer questions about Mr. Trump.
Throughout the inquiry into former President Donald J. Trumps handling of classified material, his insular world at Mar-a-Lago was rife with intrigue, anxiety and competing motives as investigators sought testimony and evidence from some of his closest aides, advisers, lawyers and even members of his Secret Service detail.

Now, with Mr. Trump under federal indictment and with people who currently, or used to, work for him seen as potential prosecution witnesses, the pressure on those around him  both at Mar-a-Lago in Florida and at his summer residence in Bedminster, N.J.  has only increased.

Mr. Trump is in the position of waging a presidential campaign and preparing a defense at the same time. Complicating matters, he has been forbidden from discussing the latter with a number of people who could presumably help him with the former, some of whom are no doubt wondering who is saying what to the government as they go about their jobs.

In court in Miami on Tuesday, the federal magistrate judge who handled Mr. Trumps arraignment ordered the former president not to discuss the case with his co-defendant and personal aide, Walt Nauta, saying that any communications about it would have to go through their lawyers.
The day before former President Donald J. Trump was arraigned on federal charges, he gave an interview to Americano Media, a conservative Spanish-language broadcaster in South Florida, and described his indictment as a regression of democracy.

Minutes before he pleaded not guilty in a Miami courtroom on Tuesday, his spokeswoman told reporters that the episode was something you see in dictatorships like Cuba and Venezuela.

After he left the courthouse, Mr. Trump went directly to a popular Cuban restaurant in Little Havana and prayed with supporters.

As he mounts his political defense against a 37-count indictment, Mr. Trump has repeatedly invoked corruption and dysfunction in Latin American governments, casting himself in the role of oppressed political dissident.
Even President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine now says so: The countrys long-awaited counteroffensive to retake Russian-occupied territory has begun. After months of defending against a barrage of airstrikes, Ukraine is on the offense, looking for vulnerabilities along the 600-mile front line and even launching strikes on Russian soil.

But after days of sometimes intense battles, it has been difficult to figure out the state of play in Ukraine. Why do we not have a better idea of whether the counteroffensive is succeeding? Its complicated, for a number of reasons related to how wars are fought. Heres why.

Offense is harder than defense.

Military history has long shown that it is much harder to take territory than it is to defend it. This is partly why Russian troops did not make it to Kyiv, Ukraines capital, last year after President Vladimir V. Putin sent them across the border.

Their convoys got bogged down and became sitting ducks for Ukrainian troops armed with shoulder-fired missiles. Their air force largely cowered at the border because of Ukraines mobile air defenses, and their inability to conduct combined arms warfare (when all parts of the military know what the others are doing and coordinate) meant Mr. Putins plans to take the entire country have not come to fruition.
The vote was taken by raised ballot with no official tally, and the results appeared to be somewhat narrow. Officials rejected a move for a hand count and then broke for lunch.

The constitutional amendment threatens to unleash a crisis for the denomination ahead of next years final vote. Bart Barber, who was re-elected president of the S.B.C. on Tuesday, acknowledged that the faction pushing for the change was poised to file complaints against every church that they believed violated the tightening standards  potentially an estimated 1,900 churches who have women pastors.

But, he said, Even with these changes, they have to be applied church by church, and Southern Baptists have a history of being judiciously careful when they look at specific circumstances.

The decision comes after the ejection this year of five churches with women as pastors. On Tuesday, the convention cast votes against readmitting the two churches that appealed that decision, rejecting impassioned pleas from the leaders of Saddleback Church in Southern California, one of the denominations largest churches, and Fern Creek Baptist Church in Louisville, Ky.

The dramatic clash over the place of women in leadership is the result of moves by an ultraconservative wing of the S.B.C. to reverse what it sees as a liberal drift. More than 90 percent of the delegates voted in favor of Fern Creeks expulsion, and almost as many voted to confirm the removal of Saddleback, which was founded by the prominent preacher and author Rick Warren.
Its hard to escape the glare from big cities and metro areas to see all the wonder that the skies have to offer, but several national parks are looking to serve as better windows into the cosmos.

Light pollution obscures the views of the stars and planets, making it more challenging for people to marvel at them in the dark skies. To celebrate such cosmic views, several national parks are organizing stargazing festivals or star parties that can help visitors enjoy the pristine glittering skies this summer and fall.

Several national parks have been designated so-called dark-sky sites, which means they have exceptionally high-quality night conditions to see the stars without the glare from nearby cities. The designation, given by the International Dark-Sky Association, a nonprofit group in Tucson, Ariz., is meant to support the protection of those optimal sky-viewing conditions.

Ann Congdon, president of Skys the Limit Observatory & Nature Center, which helps organize the Night Sky Festival at the Joshua Tree National Park in California, said: Its critical to make people aware that the dark night sky is a precious natural resource that cant be taken for granted.
One of Guatemalas most high-profile journalists was convicted on Wednesday of money laundering and sentenced to up to six years in prison, in a trial denounced by human rights and free speech advocates as another sign of the deteriorating rule of law.

The journalist, Jose Ruben Zamora, was tried on charges of financial wrongdoing that prosecutors say focused on his business dealing, not his journalism. He was acquitted of blackmail and influence peddling, and fined about $40,000.

Mr. Zamora was the founder and publisher of elPeriodico, a leading newspaper in Guatemala that regularly investigated government corruption, including accusations involving the current president, Alejandro Giammattei, and the attorney general, Maria Consuelo Porras.

For activists defending press freedom and civil rights in Guatemala, Wednesdays verdict and sentencing, delivered by a panel of judges, was another blow to the countrys wobbly democratic health, as the government and its allies have taken repeated aim at key institutions and independent news outlets.
Chinas top leader, Xi Jinping, met with the president of the Palestinian Authority, Mahmoud Abbas, in Beijing on Wednesday, as Mr. Xi pushes to expand Chinas influence in the Middle East and cast his country as an alternative to the United States for leadership in global diplomacy.

In the lead-up to Mr. Abbass four-day visit, which began on Tuesday, Chinese officials had repeatedly suggested that China could help pave the way for peace talks between Israel and the Palestinian Authority. The Chinese state media had also fiercely criticized the United States for failing to broker a settlement between the two.

And on Wednesday, Mr. Xi put forward a three-part proposal for a two-state solution to the conflict, according to the state media. The plan appeared largely similar to a proposition that Mr. Xi had put forward in 2013, which failed to achieve any breakthroughs.

Justice must be returned to Palestine as soon as possible, Xinhua, the state news agency, reported Mr. Xi as saying. China is willing to play a positive role in helping Palestine achieve internal reconciliation and promote peace talks.
Bolsonaro is now set to face trial next week over his electoral fraud claims.

Other examples of this pattern arent hard to find. In Venezuela, a series of corruption scandals opened a power vacuum that Hugo Chavez easily filled with populist appeals, leading to to an authoritarian government that, by the time of his death, oversaw a country racked by crises. In Guatemala, after a corruption investigation forced President Otto Perez Molina out of office in 2015, he was replaced by Jimmy Morales, a charismatic television comedian with no political experience who ran on the slogan not corrupt, nor a thief, as president. When the U.N.-backed group that had investigated Molina began looking into Morales as well, he expelled it from the country.

The United States has not had a massive corruption scandal that sent politicians to courtrooms and jail cells and decimated faith in its political parties. But, as I discussed in columns in April and May, Trump rose to power after the Republican Party was profoundly weakened by other factors, including campaign finance laws that allowed big-money donors to circumvent the party, and the rise of social media that meant the party was no longer a gatekeeper for press and messaging access.

That kind of institutional weakness creates an opening for outsider politicians who might once have been kept out of politics by robust political parties. But more specifically, it also privileges a certain type of candidate, who has celebrity name recognition (perhaps a celebrity entertainer like Morales, a famous businessman like Berlusconi, or one like Trump, who bridges both worlds), charisma, and a willingness to win votes and headlines by embracing positions that would be taboo for mainstream candidates.

Unfortunately, it is rare for such politicians to also be good at building new, strong institutions to replace those whose decay enabled their rise to power.

In Italy, Berlusconi presided over and helped maintain decades of weak coalition governments and political turmoil, not to mention the multiple corruption scandals he landed in. And that chaos looks set to outlive him.
Famous for its gilded furnishings, ceremonial gowns and archaic procedures, Britains House of Lords holds the dubious distinction of being the worlds largest legislature outside China.

Now, the unelected second chamber of the British Parliament has found itself at the center of an acrimonious rift over efforts by former Prime Minister Boris Johnson to add his friends and allies to its already swollen ranks.

Like all departing prime ministers, Mr. Johnson was entitled to nominate candidates for resignation honors, which also include knighthoods. But when three people on his nominees list did not make the final cut, he accused the current prime minister, Rishi Sunak, of blocking them.

One of those disappointed  Nadine Dorries, a former cabinet minister  claimed she was obstructed by posh boys because of her working-class background. And when Mr. Sunak said in public that Mr. Johnson had lobbied him to overturn the way nominees were vetted and approved, Mr. Johnson retorted that this was rubbish.
ISTANBUL  High-level talks on Wednesday in Turkey aimed at bridging differences over Swedens application to join NATO ended with no progress being announced.

Before the meeting, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey showed little sign publicly of easing his opposition to the Nordic nations membership, a dispute that has strained his ties with Western allies amid the war in Ukraine.

The talks between Mr. Erdogan and senior officials from Finland, Sweden and NATO were the first since the Turkish president secured re-election last month, and Turkeys allies were watching closely for signs that Mr. Erdogans position on Swedens application  which he has so far blocked  has changed.

After the meeting, the Turkish government said in a statement that the discussions would continue, while Swedens chief negotiator, Oscar Stenstrom, told reporters that Turkey is not ready to make a decision yet. There was no date set for another meeting.
BERLIN  Germany unveiled its first comprehensive national security strategy on Wednesday, an effort to address Germanys priorities and ambitions in a Europe transformed by Russias invasion of Ukraine.

The strategy was announced as part of the new governments coalition agreement when Chancellor Olaf Scholz took office in December 2021. But the war in Ukraine has since heightened Germanys sense that it had become vulnerable to new military, economic and geopolitical threats, including climate change.

Germanys security environment is undergoing profound change and we are living through a watershed era, a Zeitenwende, or turning point, the paper says. With Russias threat to European security, and China seen as a complicated competitor, systemic rival but still a necessary partner, the paper says, we are redoubling our efforts with a view to keeping our country secure and free.

Mr. Scholz praised the papers effort to combine foreign, domestic and economic priorities, calling it a big, big change in the way we deal with security issues. But while the publication of the document was largely welcomed, some analysts said it lacked detail, especially on how its ambitions would be funded.
June 14, 2023

At least 79 people drowned in the Mediterranean Sea after a large boat carrying migrants sank early Wednesday, the Greek authorities said, in the deadliest such episode off the countrys coast since the height of the 2015 migration crisis.

More than 100 people were rescued, but the Greek Coast Guard warned that the death toll would probably increase.

What happened?

The boat foundered on Wednesday about 50 miles southwest of Pylos, a city in southern Greece. A day earlier, Greek officials were alerted to the boats unusual movements, according to a statement from the Greek Coast Guard, which said that the boats crew had declined assistance offered by the authorities.

The cause of the sinking was unclear as of Wednesday afternoon. A Greek Shipping Ministry official said that the boat was traveling to Italy from Tobruk, Libya.
An effort to resolve a dispute over the future of Israels judiciary, an issue that has divided the country for months, suffered a major blow Wednesday after a dramatic showdown in Parliament over a committee that picks the nations judges.

Opposition leaders said they were withdrawing from negotiations with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahus far-right government, pausing talks, for at least a month, aimed at reaching a compromise over a contentious plan to overhaul the judicial system.

The announcement was prompted by a move by Mr. Netanyahu to disrupt a vote in Parliament that would choose members of the committee that selects new judges. That process is at the heart of the dispute over the judicial system, and the opposition had hoped it would remain untouched while the negotiations were ongoing.

The events underscored how the governments plan remains a powder keg despite Mr. Netanyahus decision to suspend it in late March after months of protests, opposition from within the military and nationwide strikes.
Israeli military prosecutors will not pursue criminal charges against soldiers who detained and gagged a 78-year-old Palestinian American man and then left him unconscious in a building site shortly before he was pronounced dead.

The Israeli Army announced on Tuesday that soldiers involved in the detention of the man, Omar Assad, 78, during an early-morning operation in January 2022 in a village in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, would only face internal disciplinary measures.

The army said in a statement that those measures had already been taken against some of the soldiers who acted in a manner that did not correspond with what is required. But it said that no causal link was found between the errors in the conduct of the soldiers and Assads death.

Mr. Assads death set off an outcry. Scores of Palestinians are killed each month in the West Bank, often during gun battles between the Israeli Army and armed Palestinian groups, but few of those incidents garner international attention.
Two allies of Russias most prominent opposition leader, Aleksei A. Navalny, were sentenced to years in prison on Wednesday, in a sign of an escalating crackdown on dissent in the country.

Lilia Chanysheva, the head of Mr. Navalnys office in the central Bashkortostan region, and her former colleague, Rustem Mulyukov, are the first of Mr. Navalnys team to be convicted of charges related to national security since the Russian government declared his grass-roots anti-corruption group an extremist organization in 2021.

Mr. Navalny himself, who has been jailed since 2021 for fraud and contempt of court, is on trial for similar charges, in a case that is widely expected to significantly extend his nine-year prison term.

A court in the city of Ufa sentenced Ms. Chanysheva to seven and a half years in prison for participating in an extremist organization. Mr. Mulyukov received two and a half years for similar charges.
Its not every day that Britains Parliament discusses daytime television.

But the resignation of the anchor Phillip Schofield, after admitting to a relationship with a much younger man employed by the same show, has dominated British news coverage for weeks, fueling tabloid headlines but also raising questions about workplace ethics.

On Wednesday, executives from ITV, Britains largest ad-supported network, insisted in front of a parliamentary committee that they had done all they could to investigate persistent rumors about a star who repeatedly denied inappropriate behavior.

Nobody here, or on the management board, would ever turn a blind eye to something as serious as this, Carolyn McCall, the networks chief executive, told the House of Commons culture, media and sport select committee.

Inquiries among other employees failed to produce proof, she said, adding: With evidence we would have been able to launch a formal investigation because the imbalance of power, the imbalance of dynamics in that relationship makes it deeply inappropriate.
The practice of defacing military positions and occupied homes with graffiti is not uncommon. During two decades of the United States muddled counterinsurgency wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, portable toilets strewn across the constellation of bases were a focal point of wartime musings. Many scribbles focused on genitalia, specific military units, bad officers and the desire to go home.

Much of the writing in the bar in Velyka Komyshuvakha struck a decidedly different tone. The barely legible scrawls focused on dehumanizing Ukrainians, a grim staple of warfare, and reinforced that the Kremlin wants to stamp out Ukraine and its culture as part of its invasion.

Behind us the house is burning  well let it burn  one more-one less, one phrase on the wall said.

It was awful, said Svitlana Mazurenko, one of the 70 or so current residents of Velyka Komyshuvakha, which once had around 500 people before many fled. She had read the writings in September, days after the Russians retreated, and confronted the text again last month as she helped clean up the bar, known among locals simply as The Bar.
In an unusual, wide-ranging interview with war correspondents and military bloggers, President Vladimir V. Putin on Tuesday portrayed the Russian military as standing firm against the long-anticipated Ukrainian counteroffensive and suggested that the conflict was fulfilling the goals he set initially.

The enemy did not succeed in any of the sectors, Mr. Putin said of the Ukrainian offensive that has been rolling out over recent days, instead suffering huge losses compared with relatively few for Russia. In terms of tanks, for example, he said that Ukraine had lost 160 compared with 54 for Russia, adding that some of the latter could be repaired. His claims could not be independently confirmed.

Mr. Putin touched on virtually every aspect of the conflict in recent weeks. He chose a format he has rarely used, allowing 18 reporters to inquire about the war for more than two hours in a style reminiscent of his annual Direct Line performance, when he answers questions for hours from all over the country.

Russia did not need to draft more new soldiers because it had attracted about 156,000 contractors or other volunteers since January, he said, on top of the 300,000 drafted last year.

Trying to make the best of the fact that Russia had suffered repeated setbacks with both men and weaponry, he suggested that the country had learned valuable lessons on how to better organize its armed forces.

He admitted that the cross-border attacks from Ukraine by Russian partisans had been damaging, suggesting with some bravado that Russia might have to carve out an exclusion zone on the Ukrainian side of the border to prevent its artillery from reaching into Russia.

At one point he also suggested that the Russian Army might have to again march on Kyiv, the Ukrainian capital. Russian forces were driven out of Kyiv after failing to take it as promised in just a few days after the full-scale invasion in February 2022, and lost a wide stretch of the area around the eastern city of Kharkiv to a Ukrainian offensive last fall.

To Nikolai Petrov, a seasoned political analyst, the entire effort sounded as though Mr. Putin was trying to demonstrate that he was a commander in chief fully in control of the facts on the ground. More important, Mr. Petrov speculated that the remarks could be a prelude to seeking negotiations by implying that the Ukrainian counteroffensive was doomed.

Given that the general public trusts the correspondents and bloggers far more than the Ministry of Defense, his choice of interlocutors, along with throwing out details like the number of Russian tanks destroyed, was intended to build a semblance of evenhanded analysis, Mr. Petrov said.

There is no reason for him to be so public and to give such detailed explanations unless he was trying to address a Western or Ukrainian audience, he said. The very idea is to demonstrate that he is the commander in chief who knows everything about everything.

Mr. Putin claimed that Russia was doing a great job of demilitarizing Ukraine despite its Western backers. He admitted to various bits of information that had been an open secret before, like the pardons he was issuing for convicts who had fought for the Wagner private military group.

Much of what he said was not new, such as threatening to pull out of a deal that has allowed Ukraine to export millions of tons of grain from its Black Sea ports, despite Russias control of the waterways, saying that he was only doing it because so much of the world needed the grain.

He noted that military production had increased 2.7 times, and in some cases was 10 times greater, he said, using a somewhat odd anecdote to illustrate their quality. A T-90 Russian tank that hit a land mine had emerged unscathed, even though the person inside took such a hard hit that he died, Mr. Putin said.

In latest chapter of the feud between Sergei K. Shoigu, the minister of defense, and Yevgeny V. Prigozhin, the pugnacious founder of the Wagner private military force, Mr. Prigozhin rejected a call by the Defense Ministry for all such organizations to sign contracts by July 1. The move was considered an effort by the ministry to extend some control over such forces, which are technically illegal in Russia, while also granting them full military benefits.

Mr. Putin said he backed the call for paramilitary organizations to sign such contracts. Mr. Petrov, the analyst, suggested that the president was using Mr. Prigozhin as a foil, making the president seem the more temperate figure as the mercenary commander repeatedly calls for escalating attacks against Ukraine and putting the economy on a war footing. It is his style before any negotiation to let his guy say something horrible in order to look better, Mr. Petrov said.

Alina Lobzina contributed reporting.
As the 2018 West Fire swept through Alpine, Calif., a small town in the foothills east of San Diego, firefighters were stationed in front of Emily Zieglers house, where she lives with her husband and three children.

The fire claimed dozens of homes in its path, but the familys house  which includes a garage and a granny flat on more than two acres near Cleveland National Forest  was unscathed.

Securing affordable homeowners insurance, however, has become a challenge. The familys policy with USAA doubled to $8,000 last year, and when Ms. Ziegler called other insurers in search of a better deal, they all gave her the same advice: Hold on tightly to your existing policy.

There is a limited number of people who will write insurance in our area, and they will only write it for a limited number of homes, said Ms. Ziegler, 44, a forensic psychologist. I dont have any other options.
At least two people in India were killed and dozens were injured after Cyclone Biparjoy made landfall in the western part of the country near the border with Pakistan, knocking out power in more than 4,000 villages, damaging roads and uprooting trees, the authorities said on Friday.

Officials viewed the relatively low death toll as a result of mass evacuations ahead of the storm: Over 100,000 people in India and over 70,000 in Pakistan were moved from vulnerable areas. In India, the authorities said they had evacuated 100,000 people.

The storm, which had lingered for days over the Arabian Sea, was weakening after it made landfall on Thursday night in the western Indian state of Gujarat, near the town of Naliya. By Friday night, Biparjoy was forecast to become the equivalent of a tropical depression, the India Meteorological Department said in a bulletin.
John Bianchi

FINN Partners promotes John Bianchi to partner, head of editorial services for the FINN health practice. Bianchi joined FINN in 2014. Before that, he served as interim communications director at The New York Times. He has also held leadership roles at Goodman Media International and The National Audubon Society. Bianchi began his career as a media relations specialist in television news, serving at CBS News, CNN and NBC News. Many of the worlds most prominent health leaders trust John to elevate their voice and help them take a stand on some of the biggest issues of our time, said FINN managing partner, global health practice leader Fern Lazar. As a leader in our purpose-driven agency, John is dedicated to making a difference in the world by helping clients convey important ideas with clarity, persuasiveness, and compassion.

Neda Whitney

Ring Concierge, a bridal and fine jewelry e-commerce brand, hires Neda Whitney, who was previously head of marketing of the Americas at Christies, as its first CMO. At Christies, Whitney oversaw the creative, content and strategy teams. She also guided the auction houses entry into the NFT market and led marketing for its $1.6 billion sale of the Paul G. Allen Collection. Before joining Christies in 2021, Whitney was senior vice president and managing director of client services at ad agency R/GA, working with such clients as Tiffany & Co., LOreal, Unilever, ESPN and Amazon. At Ring Concierge, Whitney will be tasked with boosting the brands marketing and communications strategy and developing its creative department.

Natalia Barclay,

Haley Walker

Crowe PR ups Natalia Barclay to senior director of integrated public relations and marketing, and Haley Walker to director of integrated marketing. Barclay will oversee Crowes client services organization, as well as continuing to counsel on integrated public relations and marketing strategies for clients across all of Crowe PRs divisions, including consumer goods, healthcare and technology, and hospitality. She joined the agency in 2019 as a group manager. Walker, who joined the agency in 2021, will spearhead the companys consumer goods business unit, as well as continuing to support the spirits, technology, apparel and accessory roster.


Riverside Co. Wants Vaccination PR Wed., Jul. 19, 2023 Riverside County, which is home to 2.4M southern Californians, is looking for a firm to develop a public health campaign that emphasizes the importance of getting COVID-19 and flu vaccinations.
THE filthy condition of the footpaths in Tullamore was a matter of concern at the June meeting of Tullamore Municipal District.

The newly elected Cathaoirleach, Councillor Declan Harvey said, ''this is one that is going around at the moment and everybody is on about it... the cleaning of the paths. They are absolutely in a terrible way, in O'Connor Square and down the town. I know the weather has been good, but if you can get the lads out maybe they would give them a quick clean,'' he said

Councillor Sean O'Brien, who is also a member of the Tullamore Tidy Towns committee, agreed.

''They are getting very dirty looking. There are different factors. On Colmcille Street it looks like one of the restaurants is dragging bags out which are leaking. It's the same in O'Connor Square we need to engage with these people,'' he said.

At one time he said there was great cooperation between businesses and they cleaned outside their premises.

''They need to accept responsibility,'' he added.

Councillor Neil Feighery said he had been in Dublin last week and in different areas where ''councils have massive budgets for street cleaners.'' Still there was ''staining on Stephen's Green and Grafton street. It comes down again to people just throwing litter on the ground.''

Responding Senior Executive Engineer John Connelly said, ''to be honest when you have a long period of dry weather it happens every time. As soon as there is a shower of rain it will clean. We don't have the resources to start power washing the whole town. The rain will deal with a lot of it,'' he assured.

Senior Executive Officer Jean Ryan said they might look at issuing some letters to businesses in cooperation with the Chamber of Commerce. She said it had been done before and ''things did improve. We might look at that again,'' she said.
A MAN with an address in Tullamore was disqualified from holding a driving licence for three years during last weeks Tullamore District Court sitting.

Grzegorz Duman, Tinnycross, Tullamore was charged with drink driving on September 29, 2019 at Tinnycross, Tullamore.

Sgt James OSullivan told the court that gardai stopped Mr Duman when they saw him making an incorrect driving procedure. He was taken to the Garda Station where a blood sample was taken which showed 208 micrograms of alcohol per 100 millilitres of blood.

The defending solicitor Donal Farrelly told the Judge that his client is 48 years of age, is Polish, has two children and works as a farm labourer. He asked the Judge to postpone the disqualification because it is very busy on the farm at the moment. He added that Mr Duman has been living in Ireland for sixteen years.

Judge Andrew Cody commented that it was 'a significant reading'. Mr Farrelly pointed out that his client had had a very good record until now.

The Judge convicted and fine 300. He said the disqualification will come into effect from September 30.
PRIMARY school teachers from County Offaly recently joined teaching colleagues from across the region for a Food Dudes Presentation Day at The Killeshin Hotel, Portlaoise to celebrate the achievements of 540 schools that have completed their three-year participation in the award-winning Food Dudes Programme.

The three-year curriculum-linked programme includes a year of intervention, followed by two in-school Food Dudes Weeks, aimed at promoting health eating habits amongst primary school children. The healthy eating programme encourages children to eat more fresh produce and is based on repeated tastings of fresh fruit and vegetables, rewards and positive role models.

A new and improved Food Dudes programme is currently being rolled out in schools and includes new varieties of fruits and vegetables, additional tasting days, new eco-friendly rewards, as well as new teaching and learning materials which include videos, recipes and a range of bilingual activities.

The Food Dudes Presentation Days provide teachers with an opportunity to network and feel part of a community of change. Ideas about ways in which the Food Dudes programme can be integrated into the curriculum and daily routines are shared, and peer to peer support is encouraged.

There are currently 1,700 primary schools engaged in the three-year Food Dudes programme, creating a movement of life-long change embedding healthy eating within the school and wider community in a way that promotes healthy eating habits amongst children, helps to reduce obesity rates, and improve overall wellbeing. Over the lifetime of Food Dudes, over 3,300 primary schools and more than one million pupils have taken part.

The Food Dudes Healthy Eating Programme is managed by Bord Bia in Ireland and is funded by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine with support from the European Union under the School Fruit and Vegetables Scheme. The programme was first developed by the Food Activity Research Unit, School of Psychology at Bangor University, Wales.

More information about the Food Dudes Programme can be found atwww.fooddudes.ie.
Housing experts have called on the Government to establish a national and sustainable home-building agency.

A report says the proposed agency should be a State developer, construction and retrofitting business and centre of expertise which would directly build, refurbish and retrofit social and affordable homes in Ireland.

The paper setting out the proposal has been jointly authored by housing researchers Dr Rory Hearne and Phil Murphy.

It provides 10 key arguments in favour of setting up a national sustainable home-building agency, sets out why it is needed, and provides some ideas for how it might work in practice.

Speaking at a webinar, hosted by Maynooth University Social Sciences Institute, to launch the policy proposal, Dr Hearne said: We are in the midst of the worst housing crisis since the foundation of the state.

The lack of homes is jeopardising the economy, limiting business, and threatening the ability of key public services to operate.

Furthermore, it is resulting in a level of social trauma that is completely unacceptable in one of the wealthiest countries in the world.

He said housing supply is falling and last month was the eighth consecutive month that activity in the construction sector fell, as shown by the construction index.

Dr Hearne added that new home commencement figures show that housing output will fall this year to just 27,000 units, down from 30,000 in 2022.

This is market failure. The private market is not delivering homes on the scale or speed required to meet the needs of Irish economy or society.

But it is also State failure. Successive governments have reduced the States own capacity to deliver housing, and handed housing supply over to the market.

Dr Hearne said the proposed Homes for Ireland agency would be set up to employ directly all the expertise required to deliver housing, from preparation, planning and architectural design to financing and building.

He added that the current budget surplus should be used to set to the agency.

Homelessness campaigner Father Peter McVerry said: The housing system is clearly dysfunctional and has been for the past 15 years at least.

Tweaking a system based on the market isnt working. We need a new and more radical approach.

The proposal for a national home-building agency will be vigorously opposed by some political and business interests but needs to be widely discussed and debated.

It has the potential to transform and resolve the housing crisis.
THREE women and two men appeared before Tullamore District Court this morning (Wednesday, June 14) after being arrested in Dublin yesterday.

Marek Puska (34), Lubomir Puska (35) and Lucia Istokova (34), whose addresses cannot be published by order of the court, are accused of failing to disclose information to gardai on a date unknown between two dates last year.

Jozefina Grundzova (33) and Viera Gazoiva (38) are both accused of impeding the apprehension or prosecution of a person.

Judge Michelle Finan also made an order prohibiting the publication of their addresses.

Detective Garda Colin O'Leary told the court that when Lubomir Puska was arrested and charged he replied after caution: I understand what you said and I thank you.

Marek Puska was arrested by Detective Sergeant Caroline Lyng and she said his reply after caution was: It is out of my hands to say anything about that.

The other gardai who gave evidence of arrest, charge and caution were Detective Garda Shane Jennings, Detective Garda Alan Burke and Detective Garda David Harney.

Judge Finan was told the DPP had directed all five be tried by indictment and she remanded them on bail to appear in court again for service of books of evidence on July 26 next.

A Slovakian language interpreter was in court to assist the accused people.

Bail was agreed on condition they all surrender their passports or travel documents but the court was told by Sergeant James O'Sullivan that Jozefina Grundzova and Marek Puska said they had lost theirs.

Judge Finan ordered that the travel documents be surrendered by both those defendants within 72 hours and if that condition of the bail was breached, it would be open to the prosecution to apply for a revocation of bail.
Irish Rail has apologised to a pensioner who had to stand and eventually sit on the floor of a train to and from Dublin.

The pensioner who wishes to remain anonymous had gone to Dublin to undergo a medical procedure on his face. He was unable to get a seat when he boarded the train in Tullamore along with his Carer.

On his way back from Dublin following his hospital visit his face was heavily bandaged. However, once again he could find no seat and ended up sitting on the floor of the train between carriages.

He had to get up and down when people were passing.

Councillor Declan Harvey said he was furious over the matter and said it was a very poor indictment on Irish Rail and those able bodied who didn't offer him their seat.

A spokesperson for Irish Rail has said, ''firstly I would like to apologise to this customer for any distress caused.There was an onboard customer service officer on the service from Tullamore to Dublin and they would have been very happy to help this person to find his seat.

On the return journey the service did not have an onboard customer service officer, but this service did not have many bookings and there would have been ample seats available.''

Cllr Harvey said there didn't seem to be any CSO (Customer Services Officer) around to help him.

''Irish Rail shouldn't be selling tickets if the train is booked out, or they should at least inform people the train is booked and they may have to stand. Other than that they should put on extra carriages. My biggest concern is, it is a health and safety matter, nowhere else are you allowed to have overcrowding. That man had to stand the whole way down and his face all bandaged up.

Some of the staff should have seen this man and put him into priority seating or someone could have at least offered him a seat,'' fumed Cllr Harvey.

''Irish Rail need extra carriages at busier times of the day. They should advertise that all the seats are sold and there is standing room only. I have been on to Irish Rail to express our concerns. I have also been in touch with the Minister's office and I will inform Deputy Barry Cowen of the situation,''he added.
From Beggar Rehab To Metro Train: Tamil Nadu's Growth Saga In Karunanidhis Reign

Chennai

oi-Oneindia English Desk

The long reign of Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) in Tamil Nadu is generally seen with language affiliation, opposition to Hindi imposition, champion of reservation etc. But the credit for changing the State's infrastructure to a modern one goes to the party's regime only. From the development of industries to the development of technologies, the foundation for the scientific progress was laid down by former Chief Minister Muthuvel Karunanidhi.

Karunanidhi had been the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu for five times. He had also won the Legislative Assembly elections 13 times. He became the Chief Minister for the first time in 1969 after the death of Annadurai. He fought Assembly elections for first time in 1957 from Kulithalai constituency and won. His party members consider him as the "modern architect" of Tamil Nadu.

First reign (1969-76)

Karunanidhi's first reign was from 1969 to 1976. During this period, he introduced the beggars' rehabilitation scheme and also established the Slum Clearance Board. He empathetically took these actions after seeing the poor citizens sleeping on platforms and roads.

Tamil Nadu Water Supply and Drainage Board also came into being during this period. He also started the Tamil Nadu Adi Dravidar Housing and Development Corporation for the purpose of construction of concrete houses for Adi Dravidars. Moreover, he created a separate ministry for upliftment of the backward classes.

The most famous policy action during this period was the nationalisation of the mass surface transport system. This particular policy action brought all the bus transports under the administrative control of Tamil Nadu government. Next, he introduced a scheme for rural electrification also.

Being a representative of farmers of delta region, Karunanidhi introduced an Act for the tenancy rights of agricultural workers. To end the dominance of landlords in agricultural sector, he introduced a 15-acre land-ceiling limit. The implementation of this land reform resulted in the recovery of 1,78,880 acre. The surplus land was handed over to 1,37,236 farmers.

Some other notable policy actions during his first reign include the conversion of hand-pulled rickshaws to cycle rickshaws, giving government job to the legal heir of deceased government employee on compassion grounds and the introduction of SIPCOT industrial parks.

Golden period (1989-91)

This period was considered to be the 'golden period' for government employees. Karunanidhi fixed the salary of State government employees equal to that of their Central government counterparts. He also introduced allowances like Pongal bonus.

During this period, Karunanidhi introduced the Hindu Succession (Tamil Nadu Amendment) Act, 1989, giving property rights to women. It set an example for the whole country to implement reforms like this.

In addition, he introduced the Moovalur Ramamirtham Ammaiyar Ninaivu marriage assistance scheme. As per the scheme, financial assistance of Rs 5,000 was given in 1989, Rs 10,000 was given in 1996, Rs 15,000 was given in 2006 and Rs 20,000 was given in 2007.

Other noteworthy policy actions of this period include introduction of Dr. Muthulakshmi Reddy Maternity Benefit scheme, creation of women self-help groups throughout the State and the introduction of 20% separate reservation for Most backward classes like Vanniyar and Denotified tribes.

However, the most significant policy action of this period was the scheme for the provision of free electricity to farmers. It was praised to be one of the unique schemes introduced by a State government in the country.

Tech development (1996-2001)

This period marked the establishment of Tidel park in Chennai. Through the creation of a separate Department for Information technology, Tamil Nadu had gained significance in the field of technological development during this period. This paved the way for foreign companies to come to Tamil Nadu and for the creation of computer related employment opportunities to thousands of youngsters in foreign countries.

Apart from creating revolution in technology sector, Karunanidhi also provided free bus passes to students. In addition to this he provided rights to women which included 33% reservation for women in the local government setup and 15% reservation for rural women in vocational colleges.

The other significant policy actions of this period include erection of 133-ft Thiruvalluvar statue, desilting of rivers and ponds, establishment of High Court Bench in Madurai, etc. The biggest achievement during this period was the establishment of Asia's biggest bus terminal in Koyambedu, Chennai.

More development (2006-11)

After coming to power in 2006, he waived cooperative loans of worth 7,000 crore for around 22,40,739 families. Next, he granted crop loans of worth Rs 8,838.06 crore to 36,71,372 farmers. Apart from this, he gave a compensation amount of worth Rs 974 crore to 9,01,643 farmers. He shocked everyone by waiving the interest amount of loans taken till 31st March 2006 by Adi Dravidar farmers from Tamil Nadu Adi Dravidar Housing Development Corporation (TAHDCO) amounting to Rs 5.25 crore.

During this period, Karunanidhi decided to give 1,72,80,000 free colour television sets with the budget outlay of about Rs 3,742 crore. It was a head-turner moment in India. Before the end of his reign, 1,62,59,526 colour television sets were distributed. The credit goes to DMK and Karunanidhi alone.

That apart, he gave gas connection along with free gas stoves to 29 lakh families with a budget of about Rs 661 crore. He gave 2.13 lakh acre as free land to 1.79 crore poor agricultural workers. He ordered to give nutritious food to 73 lakh children and students who are between the age of 2 and 15 years. Along with the nutritious food, he also ordered to give eggs 5 days a week. For children who don't eat eggs, bananas were asked to provide.

Next, he repealed the TESMA and ESMA Acts which was introduced during ADMK reign with the intention to suppress the government employees. He also gave them the allowances which were stopped by ADMK. He implemented the recommendations of 6th Pay Commission in Tamil Nadu from June 1, 2006, with an annual additional expense of Rs 5,155.79 crore. The implementation resulted in the sanction of Rs 11,093 crore balance amount to government teachers. He cancelled the Prohibition of Forcible Conversion of Religion Act, which was introduced during ADMK's reign.

Free houses for poor families

He gave free house site pattas to approximately 8,30,495 poor families. He became the reason for the growth of confidence among students by cancelling the entrance exams for vocational courses and by providing free bus passes annually to 24,82,000 school students and 4,35,000 college students. Additionally, he built 6 new medical colleges in Viluppuram, Thiruvarur, Dharmapuri, Sivaganga, Perambalur and Thiruvannamalai. Varumun Kappom Thittam was implemented again and it proved beneficial for 1,70,50,085 poor persons in 18,742 camps.

Under Kalaignar Kapitu Thittam (Chief Minister's Comprehensive Health Insurance scheme), 1.34 crore families were registered. As per the scheme, many life saving surgeries were conducted for 3,03,328 poor persons at the cost of Rs 781.4 crore. He established a world-class Anna Centenary Library in Kotturpuram, Chennai, at the cost of Rs 179 crore. He provided 3% separate internal reservation for Arunthathiyars and 3.5% separate internal reservation for Muslims.

As a major highlight, he introduced the Chennai Metro Rail project with the financial assistance of Rs 14,600 crore from Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA). In total, 104 such policy actions were implemented during Karunanidhi's reign.

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Story first published: Wednesday, June 14, 2023, 15:30 [IST]
OPINION: Optimism In US-China Ties Distant

Feature

lekhaka-Jagdish N Singh

US President Joe Biden and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping may be meeting in San Francisco in November. But it would be naive to be optimistic about US-China relations in the near future. The current standoff over a meeting of their foreign and defence ministers is still to be resolved for any meaningful dialogue between the two nations.

Will US President Joe Biden and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping be meeting at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Leaders' Summit to be held in San Francisco in November this year?

Observers say indications are Presidents Biden and Xi would avail of the opportunity. The other day, US Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Daniel Kritenbrink and Senior Director for China in the US National Security Council Sarah Beran met Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Ma Zhaoxu and Director of the North American and China's Oceanic Affairs Department Yang Tao in Beijing. Their meeting went off fine. The two sides agreed to maintain open lines of communication and build on their recent high-level diplomacy. Reports suggest that Director of the Central Intelligence Agency William Burns also travelled to Beijing for some secret meetings with Chinese intelligence officials.

There has been a lot of friction between the United States and China in the recent years. Washington has been sceptical about growing ties between China and Russia, including the potential of Beijing sending direct aid to Russia in its ongoing invasion of Ukraine.

Recently, the US has accused the Chinese forces of "unsafe" and "unnecessarily aggressive" manoeuvres in the Taiwan Strait and the South China Sea. Last week ,there was a near collision between a Chinese warship and an American Navy guided-missile destroyer in the region. The US has been concerned about China's increasing presence in these areas. In February this year, an American fighter jet downed a Chinese surveillance balloon off the coast of South Carolina.

Besides, the Biden administration has put export controls on advanced chipmaking technology to China. It has also persuaded Japan and the Netherlands to block the sale of chip equipment to China. In retaliation, Beijing has cracked down on US chipmaker Micron Technology.

But all this is unlikely to hinder the meeting between the two leaders in San Francisco. Both the Presidents are for engagement between the two nations. During a press conference at the conclusion of the Group of Seven annual leaders meeting in Hiroshima (Japan) last month, President Biden expected an imminent thaw in relations with China. Presidents Biden and Xi agreed in their first in-person meeting last November in Bali, on the sidelines of the G20 summit, to decelerate tensions and manage their competition "responsibly."

No wonder, the talks between Washington and Beijing have already resumed on several fronts. Last month, US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan and top Chinese diplomat Wang Yi met in Vienna. The month also saw US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo meet her Chinese counterpart Wang Wentao in Washington.

It would, however, be hard to expect the Biden-Xi meeting would yield any major positivity in ties between the two powers. The approaches of the two towards each other are poles apart. Biden is never weary of saying he seeks "competition, not conflict" with China. Chinese President Xi does not seem to care. In February this year, Xi said at his armed forces' operational command centre, "[T]he entire military must... concentrate all energy on fighting a war, direct all work toward warfare and speed up to build the ability to win." Also, Chinese defence spending has now grown by 5.1 per cent to $293 billion. Beijing is aiming to integrate artificial intelligence in its command and control structures. It is investing heavily in new fleets of warships and warplanes.

Since the start of his presidency, Biden has talked to Xi four times by phone or video. This has not helped. Xi aims to upturn the existing regional order in Asia. He has warned the United States consistently against crossing China's red lines over Taiwan.

Beijing today aims to retake Taiwan over time. It has been taking every opportunity to move towards that. China has conducted a decades-long military build-up to create a military force capable of retaking the island by force. It has removed its previous reassurances to Taiwan about its future position in a united China, such as not stationing Chinese troops on the island.

The observers add it would be naive to be optimistic about US-China relations in the near future. The current standoff over the meetings of US Foreign and Defence Secretaries Antony Blinken and Lloyd Austin with their Chinese counterparts is yet to be resolved for a meaningful dialogue between the two nations.

In February this year, Secretary Blinken scrapped a trip to China after a Chinese spy balloon flew through the US airspace. The other day, Defense Secretary Austin was in Singapore to attend the Shangri-La Dialogue. There, he sought a meeting with Chinese Defence Minister General Li Shangfu but in vain.

(Jagdish N. Singh is a senior journalist based in New Delhi. He is also Senior Distinguished Fellow at the Gatestone Institute, New York)

Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are the personal opinions of the author. The facts and opinions appearing in the article do not reflect the views of OneIndia and OneIndia does not assume any responsibility or liability for the same.

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Story first published: Wednesday, June 14, 2023, 10:17 [IST]
6,500 Millionaires Likely To Leave India This Year. Here's Why

India

oi-Madhuri Adnal

India is expected to witness an exodus of 6,500 high-net-worth individuals (HNWIs) this year, making it the second-ranked country for millionaire outflows after China, according to the Henley Private Wealth Migration Report 2023. Despite the significant number, experts suggest that India's position is improving compared to last year's outflow of 7,500 millionaires, as the nation continues to produce more new millionaires than it loses.

The migration of millionaires has been steadily increasing worldwide, with an estimated 122,000 and 128,000 millionaires expected to migrate in 2023 and 2024, respectively, according to Dr. Juerg Steffen, CEO of Henley & Partners. The report describes them as people with an investable wealth of USD 1 million (approx. Rs 8.2 core) or more.

Where are Indian millionaires relocating?

Various factors contribute to the migration trend from India, including prohibitive tax legislation and complex rules concerning outbound remittances, which are often subject to misinterpretation and abuse, according to Sunita Singh-Dalal, Partner at Hourani.

Where are they relocating?

Dubai and Singapore remain popular destinations for wealthy Indian families, with Dubai offering attractive benefits such as its government-administered global investor 'Golden Visa' program, favorable tax environment, robust business ecosystem, and safety.

The report predicts that Australia will witness the highest net inflow of millionaires in 2023, with 5,200 individuals expected to migrate to the country. The UAE will welcome 4,500 new millionaires, Singapore is predicted to have a net inflow of 3,200 HNWIs, while the US will add 2,100 people to its millionaire club. Switzerland, Canada, Greece, France, Portugal, and New Zealand also feature in the top 10 countries for net HNWI inflows.

Which countries will lose the highest number of millionaires in 2023?

Russia is expected to witness the departure of 3,000 HNWIs, placing it in the fourth position, followed by Brazil with 1,200. Hong Kong, South Korea, Mexico, South Africa, and Japan complete the top 10, with 1,000, 800, 700, 500, and 300 HNWIs expected to leave, respectively.

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Story first published: Wednesday, June 14, 2023, 16:40 [IST]
Arrested TN Minister Advised To Undergo Bypass Surgery At Earliest

India

oi-Madhuri Adnal

Arrested Tamil Nadu Minister V Senthil Balaji has undergone coronary angiogram and has been advised bypass surgery at the "earliest", the hospital treating him said on Wednesday.

Balaji "underwent coronary angiogram at 10.40 am" on June 14, a medical bulletin issued by the Director of the Tamil Nadu Government Multi Super Speciality Hospital, Omandurar Estate, said. "Coronory angiogram revealed triple vessel disease for which CABG (coronary artery bypass graft) - bypass surgery is advised at the earliest," it said.

The Minister was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate in connection with a money laundering case earlier in the day.

Senthil Balaji Arrested: What Is The Tamil Nadu Job-For-Cash Scam All About?

The arrest came hours after Tamil Nadu's Chief Minister MK Stalin criticised the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for their alleged backdoor tactics against political rivals, the ED conducted raids on premises connected to Balaji in Chennai, Karur, and Erode as part of an ongoing investigation.

Balaji's official residence in Chennai and his office at the state secretariat were among the premises raided.

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ED was expected to seek Balaji's custody after producing him before a special court later on Wednesday.

News agency PTI quoted Balaji's ministerial colleague P K Sekar Babu citing symptoms that suggested Balaji was tortured. It cited TV visuals and said Balaji was uneasy while being hospitalised. Babu told reporters that Balaji was admitted to an Intensive Care Unit. "He was in an unconscious state and did not respond when he called him by his name. He is under observation... there is swelling near his ear... doctors say there is variation in his ECG [electrocardiogram]... these are symptoms of torture."

State law minister S Reghupathy, who visited the hospital, questioned the need for raiding Balaji's house non-stop for hours.

Udhayanidhi Stalin was also among the Cabinet ministers who visited Balaji in the hospital even as central paramilitary personnel were deployed there.

Who Is Tamil Nadu Minister V. Senthil Balaji?

Allegations against Balaji trace back to his tenure as the transport minister in the previous All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) government from 2011 to 2015. It is alleged that significant amounts of money, amounting to crores of rupees, were extorted from candidates in exchange for promised employment opportunities. Despite purportedly paying bribes, many candidates were not provided the promised jobs.

Following the demise of former Chief Minister J Jayalalitha in 2016, Balaji resigned from the AIADMK and subsequently joined the ruling Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) party in December 2018.

In May, the Supreme Court granted the Enforcement Directorate (ED) permission to continue its money laundering investigations into the alleged scam. This decision overturned a previous order by the Madras High Court in 2022.

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Story first published: Wednesday, June 14, 2023, 12:55 [IST]
BJP Terms It 'Drama' As TN Minister Breaks Down In ED Custody

India

oi-Madhuri Adnal

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Tuesday arrested Tamil Nadu minister V Senthil Balaji under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) after a long session of questioning in connection with a money laundering case.

Tamil Nadu BJP vice president Narayanan Thirupathy termed it a "complete drama" by the ruling DMK and said it was the duty of Balaji to cooperate with the law enforcement agency.

"Much drama, screenplay, and dialogues are happening today in Tamil Nadu. This is not good for Tamil Nadu or DMK. I demand CM MK Stalin to dismiss Senthil Balaji from his ministry immediately and ask him to cooperate with the probe," Thirupathy told ANI.

WATCH | DMK's Senthil Balaji Breaks Down Post ED Arrest; Admitted To Hospital

Balaji broke down as ED officials took him into custody in connection with a money laundering case and brought him to Omandurar Government in Chennai for medical examination.

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The agency had launched multi-city searches in the state on Tuesday at the premises linked to the DMK's Karur strongman as part of the probe into money laundering. The action came months after the Supreme Court allowed a police and ED probe into an alleged cash for jobs scam against him.

Earlier, he was hospitalised after he complained of uneasiness, DMK leaders said. State Minister P K Sekar Babu claimed there were 'symptoms' that Balaji has been 'tortured.' TV visuals showed Balaji being uneasy while being brought to the Government Medical College, Omandurar Government Estate in the city.

TN minister Udhayanidhi Stalin was among the cabinet ministers who visited the hospital. Meanwhile, central paramilitary personnel were posted at the hospital.

The ED had launched searches at locations linked to Balaji at Chennai, Karur and Erode on Tuesday as part of probe into money laundering. Balaji was earlier with the AIADMK and had been Transport Minister in the late Jayalalithaa-led Cabinet.

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Story first published: Wednesday, June 14, 2023, 9:25 [IST]
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Cyclone Biparjoy: 30,000 People From Coastal Districts Shifted; Army Plans Relief Measures With NDRF

India

oi-PTI

Authorities on Tuesday shifted 30,000 people from coastal areas to temporary shelters two days before powerful cyclone Biparjoy's expected landfall near Jakhau port in Gujarat's Kutch district.

An official said several NDRF and SDRF teams are on standby. Simultaneously, Army authorities have jointly planned relief operations with civil administration and National Disaster Response Force.

The Army has kept flood relief columns ready at strategic locations.

In a virtual meeting to take stock of the cyclone preparedness, Union Home Minister Amit Shah asked the Gujarat government to make arrangements for moving people living in sensitive places to safer areas and ensure all necessary services, such as electricity, telecommunication, health and drinking water.

The meeting was attended by Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel, two Union ministers, several Gujarat ministers and MPs, MLAs and officials from eight districts that are likely to be affected by the cyclone.

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''We have already started evacuating people residing near the coast who are likely to be affected the most during the landfall. So far, various district administrations have shifted nearly 30,000 people to temporary shelters,'' said State Commissioner of Relief, Alok Kumar Pandey.

The state government is aiming to evacuate people within 10 km of the coast, he said, adding that so far one fatality related to the cyclone has been recorded.

Ahmedabad IMD director Manorama Mohanty said the cyclone is likely to cross between Mandvi in Kutch and Karachi in Pakistan near Jakhau port with 125-135 kmph wind speed gusting to 150 kmph on the evening of June 15.

A warning has been issued for extremely heavy rainfall accompanied by strong winds in coastal parts of the Saurashtra-Kutch region, especially in the districts of Kutch, Porbandar and Devbhumi Dwarka, she said.

''After it makes landfall and weakens, the movement of the cyclone is likely to remain north-eastward and it is expected to move towards extreme south Rajasthan. It will bring heavy to very heavy rain in north Gujarat till June 15-17,'' Mohanty said.

Fishing activities have been suspended till June 16, ports are shut and ships are anchored as the sea turned very rough and weather became inclement with extremely heavy rainfall and strong winds in the region due to the approaching cyclone.

''The sea will remain very rough to high till Jun 14, increasing to high to phenomenal on June 15,'' Mohanty said.

Pandey said the government is constantly working to ensure that there is no loss of life due to the weather phenomenon.

He said the rescue operation is being carried out in two phases, with people residing 0 to 5 km from the seashore to be shifted first. Thereafter, people living within a distance of 5 to 10 km from the coast will be moved to safer places, with priority to be given to children, pregnant women and the elderly.

The government said 17 teams of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and 12 of the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) are on standby in affected districts of Devbhumi Dwarka, Rajkot, Jamnagar, Junagadh, Porbandar, Gir Somnath, Morbi and Valsad.

The Western Railway has so far cancelled 69 trains and decided to short-terminate 32 and short-originate 26 trains as a precautionary measure to ensure the safety of passengers as well as train operations.

List Of Trains Cancelled Due to Cyclone Biparjoy

As the sea turned rough, the Indian Coast Guard (ICG) evacuated 50 personnel from an oil rig located 40 km off the Dwarka coast in an overnight operation involving ALH aircraft and ship 'Shoor' amid inclement weather conditions due to the cyclone, the maritime agency said on Tuesday.

The Army also rehearsed flood relief columns and kept them ready at strategic locations.

''Army authorities have jointly planned relief operations with civil administration as well as NDRF. The interaction has given all agencies involved in disaster management a platform to share their best practices and gain from each other,'' stated a defence release.

Resources have also been made available from neighbouring Rajasthan to ensure that casualties are avoided or remain minimum due to gusty winds and heavy rainfall, it said.

Shipping activities at the country's largest public sector port in Kandla were shut following the cyclone warning and around 3,000 people, including workers there, have been shifted to safer places, officials said.

As the state stepped up relief and rescue operations, CM Patel has appealed to citizens to cooperate with the administration for their own safety and security.

In a virtual message, he said the government has planned rescue, relief and rehabilitation with zero casualty approach and appealed to the citizens to follow the instructions of the administration.

Union ministers Mansukh Mandaviya reviewed preparatory measures at Bhuj in Kurch.

Apart from him, four Union ministers are fanned out in the districts likely to be impacted by the cyclone to coordinate with the state administration for relief and rescue operations.

As hundreds of people are being evacuated from coastal villages in Kutch district, authorities are facing a challenge as many villagers are reluctant to leave their livestock and belongings behind.

In Ashirwada village, located 5 km away from the coast in Kutch, people agreed to move out only after police and revenue officers held meetings to convince them.

''We are shifting people to shelters which can withstand the impact of the cyclone. We are taking care of them by providing them food and other basic things,'' an official told PTI.

People are being evacuated in buses and private vehicles. At least 78 people have been shifted to Jakhau primary school, which is converted into a shelter, from various villages so far.

Residents of Mohadi village, located on the coastline, are also evacuated. They are provided shelter in a cement company.
Hyderabad Girl Stabbed To Death In London Planned To Marry This Year

India

oi-Prakash KL

The marriage was on the cards for the Hyderabad girl who was killed by a Brazilian national in London on Tuesday.

The woman, whose name is Kontham Tejaswini as per the reports in the Indian media, had informed her parents that she would tie the knot this year once she returns to India. The news of her death has now left her family "heartbroken."

She was supposed to return to India in May this year, her father said.

"We came to know about the incident this morning. We don't know when it happened. We got the information that she is serious and in hospital," PTI quoted Tejaswini's father as saying. She had gone to London three years ago to do an MS course, he added.

In August 2022, Tejaswini had come to Hyderabad and returned to London the next month. "We were planning to conduct her marriage. She said she would return after the alliance is finalised. She had resigned from her temporary job and said she will come back after working for another month," he said.

The 27-year-old Indian-origin woman was stabbed to death in north London at a residential property in Neeld Crescent, Wembley. "Officers attended along with the London Ambulance Service and two women were treated for stab injuries," the Met Police said in a statement.

A second woman, aged 28 and also unnamed, was taken to hospital with stab injuries that were later assessed as not life-threatening. Two other people, a 24-year-old man and a 23-year-old woman, were arrested at the scene on suspicion of murder. While the man remains in custody, the woman has been released without further action, the police said.

Detective Chief Inspector Linda Bradley, from the Met's Specialist Crime Command, said, "This has been a fast-moving investigation and I would like to thank the public for sharing our appeal for information about this man. He is now in custody," "I recognise the significant concern this incident has caused in the community and I would like to reassure the public that a dedicated team of detectives are working to establish what happened. Local officers will remain in the area over the coming days to respond to any concerns," she added.

Meanwhile, the victim's uncle has requested the government to make necessary arrangements to bring her body from the UK to Hyderabad.
IMD Issues Alert for Cyclone Biparjoy: Check Latest Update Here

India

oi-Madhuri Adnal

The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued an alert in view of very severe cyclonic storm Biparjoy. This powerful cyclone is expected to make landfall between Mandvi in Gujarat and Karachi in Pakistan, near the Jakhau Port in Gujarat, tomorrow noon. With maximum sustained wind speeds of 125-135 kmph and gusts reaching up to 150 kmph, Biparjoy poses a significant threat to the region.

In viewof the cyclone's impact, the IMD has forecasted prolonged rainfall over coastal areas of Gujarat from June 14 to 16. Furthermore, the border between Gujarat and Rajasthan is expected to experience very heavy rains from June 16 to 18. Residents are advised to take necessary precautions and stay updated on the latest weather bulletins.

Meanwhile, other parts of India are also bracing for severe weather conditions. Widespread rainfall, accompanied by isolated heavy to very heavy falls, is anticipated across northeastern, eastern, and southern India in the coming days.

List Of Trains Cancelled Due to Cyclone Biparjoy

Specifically, regions such as Kutch, Devbhumi Dwarka, Porbandar, Jamnagar, Rajkot, Junagarh, and Morbi districts of Saurashtra & Kutch are likely to witness light to moderate rainfall, with heavy to very heavy and extremely heavy falls at isolated places on June 14. The intensity of rainfall is expected to escalate on June 15, with heavy to very heavy rainfall at a few locations in Kutch, Devbhumi Dwarka, Jamnagar, Porbandar, Rajkot, Morbi, and Junagarh districts of Gujarat. Additionally, Saurashtra and north Gujarat regions are expected to experience isolated heavy to very heavy rainfall.

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As the monsoon progresses, north Gujarat and adjoining south Rajasthan can expect light to moderate rainfall on June 16, with heavy to extremely heavy rainfall at isolated places.

Furthermore, widespread rains and thunderstorms are predicted in various regions, including the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Northeast India, Sub-Himalayan West Bengal, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Coastal Karnataka, Goa, and Lakshadweep.

Specific areas such as Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, and Meghalaya may witness heavy to very heavy rainfall at isolated places. Bihar, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu-Kashmir, and Ladakh could experience scattered showers and isolated thunderstorms. Gangetic West Bengal, Odisha, Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Interior Karnataka, and Andhra Pradesh may receive isolated rainfall, with a chance of lightning.

High Tide Waves Triggered By Cyclone Biparjoy Hit Gujarat, Mumbai

With the cyclone Biparjoy and the widespread monsoon activity, citizens across the affected regions are advised to stay cautious, heed official warnings, and remain updated on the evolving weather conditions.

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Story first published: Wednesday, June 14, 2023, 9:50 [IST]
Indias Seafood Exports Touch All-Time High This Fiscal

India

oi-Sanjeev Nayak

India has achieved an all-time high exports of seafood both in terms of volume and value by shipping 17,35,286 MT of seafood worth Rs 63,969.14 crore during the financial year 2022-23, despite the several challenges in its major export markets like the US.

During the fiscal, the export improved in quantity terms by 26.73% and in rupee terms by 11.08%. In 2021-22, India had exported 13,69,264 MT of seafood worth Rs 57,586.48 crore, according to a Union Ministry of Commerce & Industry release.

Frozen shrimp remained the major export item in terms of both quantity and value while US and China turned out to be the major importers of India's seafood. Frozen shrimp, which earned Rs 43,135.58 crore, retained its position as the most significant item in the basket of seafood exports, accounting for a share of 40.98% in quantity and 67.72% of the total earnings. Shrimp exports during the period increased by 1.01% in rupee value.

The overall export of frozen shrimps during 2022-23 was pegged at 7,11,099 MT. The US imported (2,75,662 MT) of frozen shrimp, followed by China (1,45,743 MT), European Union (95,377 MT), South East Asia (65,466 MT), Japan (40,975 MT) and the Middle East (31,647 MT).

The export of 'black tiger' (BT) shrimp increased by 74.06% and 68.64% 55.41% in quantity and rupee value respectively. BT shrimp exported to the tune of 31,213 MT worth Rs 2,564.71 crore. Japan turned out to be the major market for the BT variety with a share of 25.38% in terms of value, followed by European Union (25.12%) and US (14.90%).

6,500 Millionaires Likely To Leave India This Year. Here's Why

Similarly, frozen fish, the second largest exported item, fetched Rs 5,503.18 crore, accounting for 21.24% in quantity terms. This year the export of frozen fish has increased by 62.65% and 58.51% in quantity and rupee value terms, respectively. Export of frozen cuttlefish pegged at 54,919 MT, showed a growth of 14.09 % in rupee value and earned Rs 2,353.34 crore.

Under other items, the third largest export basket, Surimi fetched Rs 2,013.66 crore, frozen octopus fetched Rs 725.71 crore, Surimi Analogue products fetched Rs 558.51 crore, canned products fetched Rs 326.48 crore and frozen lobster fetched Rs 215.15 crore.

Frozen Squid, the fourth largest export item, fetched Rs 3,593.75 crore, accounting for 4.83 per cent share in quantity. Export of dried items pegged at 2,52,918 MT, showed a tremendous growth of 243.27% in quantity terms and earned Rs 3,080.92 crore. Under this basket, dried fish and shrimp meal together contributed $307.96 million and dried fish maws fetched $24.88 million.

Export of chilled items, which is considered as a promising sector, also increased by 12.63 % in Quantity terms. Export of live Items pegged at 7,824 MT, showed a growth of 24.53% in rupee value. Growth is observed in the unit values of frozen squid (7.13%), frozen cuttlefish (13.33%), chilled items (7.19%) and live items (3.90%).

As for overseas markets, US continued to be the major importer of Indian seafood in value terms with an import worth $2,632.08 million, accounting for a share of 32.52 % in terms of US$ value. Exports to the US declined by 21.94% in US$ terms due to sluggish demand. Frozen shrimp continued to be the principal item exported to US with a share of 92.70% in US$ terms. Exports of BT shrimp to US increased by 4.06% in quantity terms and 0.26% in rupee terms.

China emerged as the second largest seafood export destination from India in terms of quantity and value terms with an import of 4,05,547 MT, accounting for 23.37% share in quantity terms. Exports to China market grew by 51.9% in quantity and 32.02% in rupee terms.

Frozen shrimp, the major item of exports to China, had a share of 35.94% in quantity and 60.92% in US$ value while the frozen fish had a second most share of 34.88% in quantity and 18.56% in terms of US$ value out of the total exports to China. Frozen shrimp and frozen fish to China has shown positive growth by quantity and value both.

The European Union continued to be the third largest destination with an import of 2,07,976 MT worth US$ 1,263.71 million. In this market, frozen shrimp is the major item of exports, registering an increase of 15.12% and 7.20% in rupee and dollar value, respectively. Unit value in this market shown a growth of 3.77%

South East Asia is the fourth largest market with an import of 4,31,774 MT worth US$ 1191.25 million. Frozen shrimp is the major item of exports, with 15.16% share by quantity and 35.17% by US$ value with growth of 46.08%. Frozen fish, the second major item of exports, with 36.02% share by quantity and 20.57% by US$ value with growth of 46.84%.

Japan continued to be the fifth largest importer with a share of 6.29% in quantity and 5.99% in US$ value terms with a growth of 9.99 %. Frozen shrimp continued to be the major item of exports to Japan with percentage share of 71.35% and growth of 5.26% in US$ value.

Exports to the Middle East by quantity were 77,677 MT worth US$ 330.68 million. This market showed a growth of 32.95% in quantity, 17.33% in rupee and 9.09% in US$ terms, the release added.

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Story first published: Wednesday, June 14, 2023, 17:14 [IST]
Mumbai Murder Accused Manoj Sane Talked To Multiple Women On Chat App, Brought Pesticides

India

oi-Madhuri Adnal

In yet another revelation in the Saraswati Vaidya murder case, the accused, Manoj Sane, apparently brought pesticides from a plant nursery in the western suburb of Borivali, Mumbai. While Sane maintains that his partner, Saraswati, took her own life by consuming the pesticide, the exact motive remains shrouded in mystery.

On Tuesday afternoon, Sane was taken to the Bharat Ratna Late Pandit Bhimsen Joshi (Tembha) Civil Hospital in Bhayandar for medical tests. However, the police have not disclosed the specific nature and reason behind these examinations.

According to the police, Sane now expresses remorse for his heinous act of murdering Saraswati. His claim that she poisoned herself was proved fake after evidence from his mobile phone revealed searches for various types of poisons. Sane had earlier claimed that he had planned to commit suicide.

High Tide Waves Triggered By Cyclone Biparjoy Hit Gujarat, Mumbai

Furthermore, investigators found that Sane had been engaging in conversations with multiple women on a chat app.

Following DNA tests conducted by the police, the dismembered body parts of Saraswati were handed over to her sisters, who performed her final rites. The gruesome discovery was made on June 7 in a flat located in Geeta Nagar, Mira Road.

Meanwhile, the Mira-Bhayandar, Vasai-Virar police in Maharashtra have recorded the statements of more than 20 persons in connection with the sensational discovery of the chopped, pressure-cooked and roasted body parts of a 32-year-old woman from a flat on the outskirts of Mumbai, as reported by PTI.

Victim Saraswati Vaidya's live-in partner Manoj Sane (56) has been arrested for allegedly killing her and dismembering the body in their 7th-floor rented apartment in Mira Road of Thane district. Sane has been remanded in police custody till June 16.

According to Jayant Bajbale, deputy commissioner of police - Zone I, the process of recovery of materials in the case is underway. They have recorded the statements of 20 persons so far, he said. DNA samples of Vaidya and her near ones have been collected for matching. Police on Monday handed over her remains to her sisters who performed Vaidya's last rites, the official said.

Mumbai Murder Accused Brought Nilgiri Oil, Took Pics After Chopping Live-In Partner

Chats and call records of the accused and victim are also being examined, said officials. It is suspected that the murder took place on June 4, though it came to light on June 7 when the police broke open the door of the couple's flat at Akashdeep building in Mira Road (East) after neighbours complained of a foul smell emanating from there.

Sane, who worked at a ration shop, has claimed that Vaidya committed suicide by drinking poison and he only tried to dispose of her body by chopping it up. The accused also allegedly told police that he was HIV-positive and never had any physical relationship with Vaidya. He has also claimed that Vaidya was his wife and not his live-in partner.

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Story first published: Wednesday, June 14, 2023, 10:35 [IST]
J&K: Four terrorists arrested after gunfight with security forces in Kupwara

Nine Dead As Fresh Violence Breaks Out In Manipur

India

oi-Deepika S

At least nine people were killed and 10 others injured in a gunfight that erupted in Agijang village on the border between Imphal East and Kangpokpi districts on Tuesday.

A group of armed assailants surrounded the villagers of the Khamelok area bordering Imphal East district and Kangpoki district and launched the attack at around 1 am, the police said. The injured have been rushed to a hospital in Imphal.

The area lies along the borders of the Meitei-dominated Imphal East district and tribal-majority Kangpokpi district.

On Monday night nine people were injured in a gunfight in the Khamenlok area in exchange of fire between militants and village volunteers.

The security forces also exchanged fire with Kuki militants at Phougakchao Ikhai in Bishnupur district on Tuesday, they said.

The Kuki militants were trying to make bunkers close to Meitei localities when they were challenged by security forces resulting in the exchange of fire. Meanwhile, the district authorities have cut short the curfew relaxation hours from the usual 5 am to 6 pm in Imphal East and Imphal West to 5 am to 9 am.

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At least 100 people lost their lives and 310 others were injured in the ethnic violence between Meitei and Kuki community people in Manipur that broke out a month ago. Army and para-military personnel were deployed to restore peace in the state.

Curfew remains in force in 11 of the 16 districts of Manipur, while internet services are suspended in the entire northeastern state.

Clashes first broke out on May 3 after a 'Tribal Solidarity March' was organised in the hill districts to protest against the Meitei community's demand for Scheduled Tribe (ST) status.

While Meiteis constitute about 53 per cent of Manipur's population and live mostly in the Imphal Valley. Tribals Nagas and Kukis include another 40 per cent of the population and reside in the hill districts.

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Story first published: Wednesday, June 14, 2023, 12:00 [IST]
SC Refuses To Hear Plea To Stop 'mahapanchayat' In Uttarakhand Town

India

oi-PTI

The Supreme Court on Wednesday refused to entertain a plea seeking to prevent a 'mahapanchayat' called by Hindu outfits in Uttarakhand's Purola against what they termed as incidents of ''love jihad,'' while prohibitory orders were imposed in the town by the local administration.

The 'mahapanchayat' is slated to take place in Purola town on Thursday though the administration has not given permission to it.

Communal tension has been brewing in Purola and some other towns of Uttarkashi district after two men, one of them Muslim, allegedly tried to abduct a Hindu girl on May 26.

Though the girl was rescued and the accused sent to judicial custody, local trade bodies and right wing Hindu outfits have run a sustained campaign against ''love jihad'' in Purola and the neighbouring towns, including Barkot, Chinyalisaur and Bhatwari.

In the Supreme Court, a vacation bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Ahsanuddin Amanullah asked advocate Sharukh Alam to avail remedy available in law and granted her liberty to approach the high court or any other authority concerned on a plea to prevent the 'mahapanchayat' and registration of an FIR against hate speeches allegedly targeting members of a particular community. ''We are not short circuiting the legal process. There is a high court and district administration, you can approach them. Maintaining law and order is the responsibility of the state government, why do you think no action will be taken if matter is brought to its notice. You should have faith in the high court'', the bench said. Alam stated that posters and letters have been written asking members of a particular community to leave Uttarkashi and despite their being a continuing mandamus in the matter of hate speeches that police have to register an FIR suo motu, no action has been taken. ''The material suggests that FIR needs to be registered under UAPA. A mahapanchayat is scheduled to be held on June 15 and they have given an ultimatum to district administration to remove members of a particular community by June 15'', Alam said.

Delhi Murder Accused Has No Regret, Bought Knife To Kill Girlfriend From Uttarakhand

Ahead of the mahapanchayat, Purola Sub Divisional Magistrate Devanand Sharma said prohibitory orders banning the assembly of four or more people under Section 144 will remain in force till June 19. Section 144 has been imposed in Purola as there could be an attempt by people to disrupt peace, he said.

Right wing Hindu outfits, including the Vishwa Hindu Parishad, Bajrang Dal and Devbhoomi Raksha Abhiyan, have given a call for the mahapanchayat on Thursday against ''love jihad''. ''Love jihad'' is a term often used by BJP leaders and right wing activists to allege a ploy by Muslim men to lure Hindu women into religious conversion through marriage.

Apart from the abduction bid reported from Purola on May 26, another failed abduction attempt of two minor sisters of Nepali origin by a man called Nawab was reported on June 8 from Arakot area of Uttarkashi district. The accused in both cases were booked under section 363 (abduction) of the IPC and the POCSO Act. Over 40 shops run by Muslims in Purtla have not opened even a fortnight after the abduction attempt. Posters asking alleged perpetrators of ''love jihad'' to leave the town or face consequences had also appeared on shops run by Muslims last week.

Uttarkashi District Magistrate Abhishek Rohilla and SP Arpan Yaduvanshi met officials and all sections of people in Purola on Monday and appealed to them to maintain peace. Muslim Seva Sangathan, an organisation fighting for the rights of Muslims, has also given a call for holding a mahapanchayat in Dehradun on June 18. Muslim bodies like Uttarakhand Waqf Board and state Haj committee have appealed to the chief minister to take stringent action against ''anti-social'' elements trying to derail peace in the hills and protect Muslims who have been living in Purola for generations.

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Story first published: Wednesday, June 14, 2023, 15:08 [IST]
Who Is Sanjay Mishra, The ED Chief Known For Sending 15 Big Politicians To Jail?

Senthil Balaji Arrest: List Of Prominent Leaders Under ED Scanner

India

oi-Deepika S

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) arrested Tamil Nadu Minister Senthil Balaji under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act in Chennai in the wee hours of Wednesday.

The arrest comes after nearly 10 hours of questioning and raids at the DMK leader's premises in Chennai, Karur, and his office at the Secretariat.

Balaji's arrest also comes two weeks after the income-tax (I-T) department conducted an eight-day raid at over 40 places across Tamil Nadu linked to the minister and his supporters.

The job-for-cash scam case dates back to 2011-2015 when Balaji was the transport minister during Jayalalithaa's rule. Balaji allegedly took money from job aspirants seeking appointments in the state transport department.

With the arrest, Senthil Balaji became the first minister in the M K Stalin-led government to face such an action from a central agency. This is also the first high-profile arrest in Tamil Nadu in nearly five to six years.

While the DMK has accused the Centre of a political vendetta, the agency maintains that Balaji was arrested based on the evidence against him.

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The arrest of Senthil Balaji has brought the spotlight back on the Enforcement Directorate of India. The centrally-run anti-corruption watchdog has arrested many opposition leaders in recent times. Here are a few of many such cases.

Manish Sisodia

In a major setback to the ruling Aam Aadmi Party, the ED arrested senior party leader Manish Sisodia on money laundering charges in connection with its probe into the alleged Delhi liquor policy scam. The agency alleged Sisodia was evasive in his replies and was not cooperating in the probe.

Satyendra Jain

AAP leader Satyendra Jain was arrested by the ED in May in relation to a money laundering case. He has been named in a prosecution chargesheet along with his wife Poonam Jain.

Sanjay Raut

In April last year, the ED arrested Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut in a money laundering case linked to alleged irregularities in the redevelopment of a Mumbai 'chawl'. The ED has also accused Raut of trying to tamper with the evidence and influence key witnesses.

Partha Chatterjee

In 2022, the ED arrested West Bengal Industries and Commerce Minister and senior Trinamool Congress leader, Partha Chatterjee, in connection with irregularities in recruitment to the West Bengal School Service Commission. Chattterjee had been the Minister of State Education Department when the alleged irregularities occurred.

Nawab Malik

Last year, Nawab Malik who is a senior leader of the Nationalist Congress Party was arrested in connection with a money laundering case linked to Dawood Ibrahim.

DK Shivakumar

In 2019, Karnataka Congress Chief D K Shivakumar was arrested by the ED over charges of alleged tax evasion and 'hawala' transactions worth crores from unexplained sources.

Prominent leaders like Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, Farooq Abdullah, Ajit Pawar, Anil Purab, Karti Chidambaram have also been questioned by the ED in various cases.
Senthil Balaji Arrested: What Is The Tamil Nadu Job-For-Cash Scam All About?

India

oi-Deepika S

After hours of interrogation, Tamil Nadu Power and Excise Minister V Senthil Balaji was arrested in the early hours of Wednesday in connection with an alleged money laundering case related to a job racket.

Following his arrest, Balaji complained of chest discomfort and was taken to the Government Multi Super Specialty Hospital in Chennai at around 2.30 am for a medical checkup.

High drama prevailed outside the hospital as the DMK leader was seen crying in pain while lying in a car as his supporters gathered there to protest against the ED action.

Opposition leaders have come out strongly condemned the ED action and criticised the Union government for targeting non-BJP party leaders.

Who Is Tamil Nadu Minister V. Senthil Balaji?

What is the money laundering case against Senthil Balaji?

The money laundering case against Senthil Balaji dates back to 2011 to 2015 when he was the Minister of Transport in the Jayalalithaa-led AIADMK regime.

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It was alleged that during his tenure as transport minister, Balaji allegedly took money in the appointment of drivers, conductors and engineers in the transport department. It was alleged that Balaji cheated people by taking money and not giving them work.

Following the complaint, a case was registered under the Cheating, Conspiracy, and Prevention of Corruption Act in 2015. Notably, the name of Minister Senthil Balaji was not mentioned in the First Information Report.

Later, a case was filed in the High Court to include Minister Senthil Balaji in the money laundering case. Following the High Court's order, the Central Crime Branch police filed a chargesheet naming Senthil Balaji and 40 others including his brother Ashokumar, brother-in-law Karthik and officials of the Transport Corporation.

Senthil Balaji moved the Madras High Court seeking to quash the cases filed against him while the case was being heard in a special court that hears cases against members of the legislature and parliament. The High Court ordered a stay of criminal proceedings against Senthil Balaji after the court was informed that a compromise was reached between the accused and the petitioners.

WATCH | DMK's Senthil Balaji Breaks Down Post ED Arrest; Admitted To Hospital

However in May, the Supreme Court allowed a police and ED probe into an alleged cash for jobs scam against him.

Following the top court orders, the ED had launched multi-city searches in the state on Tuesday at the premises linked to the DMK strongman in the job-for-cash scam.

Senthil Balaji is the first minister in the M K Stalin-led government to face such an action from a central agency.

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Story first published: Wednesday, June 14, 2023, 11:40 [IST]
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Vendetta Politics: Kharge Condemns Tamil Nadu Minister's Arrest

India

oi-Deepika S

Congress Chief Mallikarjun Kharge on Wednesday condemned the late-night arrest of Tamil Nadu Electricity Minister V Senthil Balaji by the Enforcement Directorate.

Kharge described the raids as a form of the Union government's harassment and intimidation.

"This is nothing but political harassment and vendetta by the Modi government against those opposed to it. None of us in the Opposition will be intimidated by such brazen moves," Kharge said in a statement.

"They only reinforce its determination and resolve to continue its democratic struggle against the anti-people policies of the Modi government," they added.

On Tuesday, the ED conducted searches at the official residence of Balaji and at the office of the minister in the Secretariat.

TN CM MK Stalin Likely To Meet Senthil Balaji At Hospital at 10 am Today

The action came months after the Supreme Court allowed a police and ED probe into an alleged cash for jobs scam against him.

Following the arrest, the ED took Balaji to the Omandurar government hospital in Chennai for a medical assessment after he complained of uneasiness.

State Minister P K Sekar Babu claimed there were 'symptoms' Balaji has been 'tortured.'

"He is in the ICU. He was in an unconscious state and did not respond when he called him by his name. He is under observation... doctors say there is variation in his ECG (electrocardiogram)... there are symptoms of torture," Babu told reporters.

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Story first published: Wednesday, June 14, 2023, 10:29 [IST]
The Biden Administration Calls Topless LGBTQ Activists at the White House 'Disrespectful' and 'Inappropriate,' Yet They Remain Silent on Drag Queens Reading to Children at Elementary Schools and Public Libraries

NEWS PROVIDED BY

Christian Defense Coalition

June 14, 2023



WASHINGTON, June 14, 2023 /Standard Newswire/ -- Faith and human rights organization says the White House is being "hypocritical" and having a "double standard." While the Biden Administration calls being topless at the White House "inappropriate" they refuse to say drag queens reading to young children is "inappropriate" or "disrespectful."





Drag queen reading to young children at a public library.



Here is what the White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters about the incident;

"The behavior was simply unacceptable. We've been very clear about that. It was unfair to the hundreds of attendees who were there to celebrate their families.



"So, you know, we're going to continue to be clear on that. ... It's not appropriate. It's disrespectful. The individuals in the video won't be invited to future events."

Rev. Patrick Mahoney, Director of the Washington, D.C. based Christian Defense Coalition, comments;

"While the Biden Administration called the actions of topless LGBTQ activists 'disrespectful' and 'inappropriate' and banned them from the White House, they refuse to make the same comments regarding drag queens reading to young children at elementary schools and public libraries.



"If President Biden is 'protecting' the White House from this kind of inappropriate behavior, why isn't he protecting and respecting America's children and families from similar inappropriate behavior?



"Does the White House deserve more respect and protection than our children?



"Finally, could you imagine the uproar from the Biden Administration if public libraries and elementary schools started banning drag queens like the White House just banned LGBTQ activists?"

For more information or interviews please contact

Rev. Patrick Mahoney at 540.538.4741



SOURCE Christian Defense Coalition



CONTACT: Rev. Patrick Mahoney, 540-538-4741




WATCH: A TN Woman Kills Dies By Throwing Herself In Front Of A Bus

WATCH | DMK's Senthil Balaji Breaks Down Post ED Arrest; Admitted To Hospital

India

oi-Madhuri Adnal

Tamil Nadu Power and Excise Minister V Senthil Balaji was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Wednesday following an investigation into a money laundering case.

Following his detention in the early hours of Wednesday, the ED took Balaji to the Omandurar government hospital in Chennai for a medical assessment after he complained of uneasiness.

State Minister P K Sekar Babu claimed there were 'symptoms' Balaji has been 'tortured.'

TV visuals showed Balaji being uneasy while being brought to the Government Medical College, Omandurar Government Estate in the city.

#WATCH | Tamil Nadu Electricity Minister V Senthil Balaji breaks down as ED officials took him into custody in connection with a money laundering case and brought him to Omandurar Government in Chennai for medical examination pic.twitter.com/aATSM9DQpu  ANI (@ANI) June 13, 2023

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"He is in the ICU. He was in an unconscious state and did not respond when he called him by his name. He is under observation... doctors say there is variation in his ECG (electrocardiogram)... there are symptoms of torture," Babu told reporters.

#WATCH | Rapid Action Force deployed at Omandurar government hospital in Chennai, where Tamil Nadu Electricity Minister V Senthil Balaji has been brought for medical examination



ED took him (Senthil) into custody last night in connection with a money laundering case. https://t.co/Oe4crk8Ota pic.twitter.com/l0Mh8W2uWj  ANI (@ANI) June 14, 2023

The ED had launched searches at locations linked to Balaji at Chennai, Karur and Erode, on Tuesday, months after the Supreme Court allowed police and ED probe into an alleged cash for jobs scam against the DMK strongman.

Balaji was earlier with the AIADMK and had been Transport Minister in the late Jayalalithaa-led Cabinet. TN minister Udhayanidhi Stalin was among those who visited the hospital.
Who Is Sanjay Mishra, The ED Chief Known For Sending 15 Big Politicians To Jail?

Who Is Tamil Nadu Minister V. Senthil Balaji?

India

oi-Madhuri Adnal

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Wednesday arrested Tamil Nadu Electricity Minister V Senthil Balaji under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), making him the first minister in the M K Stalin-led government to face such an action from a central agency.

Who is V. Senthil Balaji??

Born on 21 October 1975 in the Karur district of Tamil Nadu, Balaji currently serves as the Minister for Electricity, Prohibition & Excise in the Government of Tamil Nadu. He is a dedicated member of the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) party and has been actively involved in the political landscape as a Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) in Tamil Nadu since 2021. Balaji's political career spans several successful electoral victories, with his initial election to the Tamil Nadu legislative assembly taking place in 2006. He has since been re-elected in 2011, 2016, and 2021, showcasing his consistent support among constituents.

WATCH | DMK's Senthil Balaji Breaks Down Post ED Arrest; Admitted To Hospital

Balaji pursued his higher education at the Government Arts College, Karur, where he graduated with a degree in Commerce.

He embarked on his political journey in 1997, initially serving as a local body member. Balaji's ascendancy to the Tamil Nadu legislative assembly occurred in 2006, representing the Karur constituency.

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Notably, he assumed the position of Minister for Transport in the AIADMK government, led by the late Jayalalithaa, in 2011. However, he faced a cabinet removal in July 2015. Undeterred, Balaji secured his re-election to the Tamil Nadu legislative assembly in 2016, this time representing the Aravakurichi constituency. Following the unfortunate demise of Jayalalithaa, he played a pivotal role in maintaining the stability of the AIADMK government.

During the factional split of the AIADMK in 2017, Balaji aligned himself with the faction led by Edappadi K. Palaniswami. The year 2021 marked another electoral victory for Balaji, as he was re-elected from the Karur constituency. Subsequently, in May 2021, he was appointed as the Minister for Electricity, Prohibition & Excise in the AIADMK government, headed by Palaniswami.

IT Raids At Locations Linked To TN Minister Senthil Balaji; DMK Workers Clash With Officials

While V. Senthil Balaji's political career has garnered attention, he has also faced controversy. Accusations of corruption and abuse of power have been leveled against him. Additionally, his assertive and outspoken demeanor has drawn criticism.

Nevertheless, Balaji maintains a strong support base among his followers. His popularity stems from his unwavering pro-Tamil stance and dedication to the welfare of the people of Tamil Nadu, which has resonated with many constituents.
Indian-origin MP in Canada Slams Pro-Khalistani Posters; says Snakes In Our Backyard Raising Their Heads

Canada Will Not Deport 700 Indian Students For Now

International

oi-Prakash KL

In a relief to Indian students who are facing deportation from Canada over fake admission letters, the Canadian authorities on Wednesday said that they will not be sent back to India immediately.

Sean Fraser, the country's immigration minister, said that a task force has been formed to look into each case, NDTV reported.

"Only those candidates found genuine or victims of a fraud will be allowed to stay in Canada. But those found to be guilty will be prosecuted under the Canadian law," he said.

The government of Canada, last week, decided to postpone the deportation of 700 Indian students after hundreds of students, mostly from Punjab, hit the streets.

India has repeatedly been urging Canadian authorities to be fair and take a humanitarian approach since the students were allegedly victims of some agents.

As many as 700 Indian students are facing deportation from Canada after the authorities in that country found "admission offer letters" to educational institutions to be fake. The matter came to light in March when these students applied for permanent residency in Canada.

However, Canadian parliamentarians across political parties have spoken in support of the students.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau had also assured the 700 Indian students that the government will evaluate each case and the victims of fraud will have an opportunity to demonstrate their situation and present evidence to support their case.

"We are deeply aware of cases of international students facing removal orders over fraudulent college acceptance letters. To be clear, our focus is on identifying the culprits not penalising the victims," the IANS quoted Trudeau as saying during a parliament debate on Wednesday.
Corrupt Sitting President: Trump Slams Biden In First Speech After Court Appearance

International

oi-Deepika S

In his first public speech after the court appearance in Miami, Former United States President Donald Trump has labelled Joe Biden "the most corrupt president in history".

Trump also pleaded not guilty to dozens of criminal counts of mishandling some of the US government's most sensitive secrets.

"Today we witness the most evil and heinous abuse of power in the history of our country. The very sad thing to watch, a corrupt sitting president had his top political opponent arrested on fake and fabricated charges of which he and numerous other presidents would be guilty," said Donald Trump.

Trump Leaves Courthouse After Pleading Not Guilty

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"This is called election interference and yet another attempt to rig and steal a presidential election. More importantly, it's political persecution, like something straight out of a fascist or a communist nation. This day will go down in infamy and Joe Biden will forever be remembered as not only the most corrupt president in the history of our country, but perhaps even more importantly, the president, who, together with a band of his closest thugs, misfits, and Marxists, tried to destroy American democracy," he said.

The Republican had encouraged supporters to show up at the federal courthouse -- and hundreds did -- while the 2024 presidential candidate fired off a few posts on his social media app, calling it a "WITCH HUNT" and "ONE OF THE SADDEST DAYS IN THE HISTORY OF COUR COUNTRY".

The case is loaded with political implications for the 76-year-old Trump, who currently holds the dominant spot in the early days of the 2024 Republican presidential primary.

The arraignment, though largely procedural in nature, is the latest in an unprecedented public reckoning this year for Trump, who faces charges in New York arising from hush money payments during his 2016 presidential campaign as well as ongoing investigations in Washington and Atlanta into efforts to undo the results of the 2020 race.
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Japan: 2 dead after shooting at army training range

International

dwnews-DW News

A Japanese soldier has been arrested for allegedly shooting and killing two and injuring one of his colleagues at an army base, officials said on Wednesday.

The suspect, identified as an 18-year-old serving in the Japan Self-Defence Force (SDF), was apprehended on suspicion of attempted murder.

According to local law enforcement, the alleged perpetrator was immediately apprehended by fellow soldiers at the scene.

The suspect "fired a rifle at the victim with the intent to kill", a police spokesman told the French news agency AFP.

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Aerial footage aired by local media displayed a gathering of military personnel and civilians near an emergency vehicle while the police maintained roadblocks in the vicinity.

Army investigating incident

Hirokazu Matsuno, the Chief Cabinet Secretary, said the incident unfolded at approximately 9 a.m. local time at an SDF shooting range where several soldiers were participating in a training exercise in Hino City, located in the Gifu prefecture.

Japan's army verified that two of the injured individuals were pronounced dead upon arrival at a hospital.

An SDF spokesperson said a total of eight shots were fired during the incident.

Specific details are still being investigated, an army official said.

Local media NHK confirmed that there were no reports of any civilian casualties.

An aerial photo shows Japan Ground Self Defense Force personnel and office officers near Hino Kihon ShagekijoAn aerial photo shows Japan Ground Self Defense Force personnel and office officers near Hino Kihon Shagekijo

An SDF spokesperson said a total of eight shots were fired during the incident.

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Recent incidents of violence shake Japan

Japan, with strict gun control laws, has been known for its safety, but recently some high-profile incidents of violence have rattled the Asian country.

During an election campaign event in April, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida narrowly escaped harm when a suspect hurled a pipe bomb.

In July 2022, former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was assassinated by a shooter using a homemade firearm.

Source: DW
Trump's Classified Documents Case: What Happened In The Courtroom?

International

oi-Prakash KL

Former US President Donald Trump on Tuesday pleaded not guilty to 37 charges related to the alleged mishandling of classified documents. His lawyers have asked for a jury trial during Trump's arraignment at a federal courthouse in Miami.

"We most certainly enter a plea of not guilty," Trump's attorney Todd Blanche said.

He was arrested after surrendering to federal authorities at the Miami courthouse and the booking process took around 10 minutes, according to a report in NBC News.

Prior to the arraignment, deputy marshals booked Trump and took electronic copies of his fingerprints, according to a CNN report. However, his mugshot was not taken considering he is easily recognisable. His aide and co-defendant Walt Nautu has also been arrested, fingerprinted and processed.

In The Courtroom

He entered the courtroom around 2.45 pm (15 minutes before the scheduled start time). The former President was seen frowning at some points and was looking down toward the floor for most of the hearing, according to a report in ABC News.

Trump sat next to his co-defendant, Walt Nauta and waited quietly for the judge's arrival.

Trump was prohibited from engaging in direct communication with any witnesses regarding the case, except by means of legal representation.

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Nauta refrained from entering a plea due to the absence of local representation. His next court appearance is scheduled for June 27.

During the hearing, Trump never glanced back at Special Counsel Jack Smith.

Apart from whispering to his attorneys, who were seated beside him in court, Trump remained silent without making any statements regarding the case or addressing the court. Throughout the proceedings, he appeared glum, occasionally crossing his arms, slouching in his chair, and fidgeting, Washington Post reported.

Donald Trump and his aide Walt Nauta were both granted release on personal surety bonds.

No monetary payment or collateral was demanded from either individual for their release. Furthermore, no travel restrictions or passport surrender requirements were imposed, which are measures sometimes taken in cases where defendants may be considered flight risks.
With Chinese Influence Growing, US Intends To Join Back UNESCO

International

oi-Sanjeev Nayak

In view of China's rising influence in the policy making of United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO), the United States is moving to rejoin the UN's cultural agency from next month, four and half years after it left the organisation.

The US, along with Israel, had withdrawn from UNESCO in December 2018 accusing the body of bias against Israel. Moreover, they had stopped funding the organisation after it voted to include Palestine as a member-state in 2011. The US was a founding member of UNESCO when it was established in 1945 with Paris as its headquarters.

US officials said that the decision to return was motivated by the concern that China is filling the gap left by the US in UNESCO policy-making, notably in setting standards for artificial intelligence and technology education around the world.

It was not the first time the US deserted the agency. It had withdrawn in 1984 too in protest against alleged financial mismanagement and perceived anti-US bias, returning almost 20 years later in 2003 under President George W. Bush, who then said the agency had undertaken needed reforms. While it stopped funding in 2011, Barack Obama was the President.

Expressing its intention to join back the UN agency, the US Department of State has said that it welcomes "the way in which UNESCO had addressed in recent years emerging challenges, modernised its management, and reduced political tensions."

Gujarat's Sun Temple, Vadnagar town make it to UNESCO heritage sites List

However, Washington has to cough up more than $600 million as outstanding dues it was supposed to pay at the time of quitting under President Donald Trump. The US was one of the biggest donors of the organisation with one-fifth of the agency's funding coming from it alone.

Moreover, it will have to face a vote by the UNESCO member-states, which it expects to pass easily. The proposed plan must now be submitted to the General Conference of UNESCO member-states for approval. Some member-states have already called for an extraordinary session to be held soon to decide on the matter.

Welcoming the US back, UNESCO Director General Audrey Azoulay said in a statement that "it is a strong act of confidence in UNESCO and in multilateralism." US Deputy Secretary of State for Management and Resources Richard Verma submitted a letter last week to Azoulay formalising the plan to rejoin.

In the letter, Verma has noted the progress in depoliticising debate about the Middle East and reforming the agency's management. Azoulay has worked to address those concerns since her election in 2017, and that appears to have paid off.

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Mumbai: Harrison Ford takes on a daring stunt in 'Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny' - his epic finale as the legendary archaeologist-adventurer. Created by Steven Spielberg and George Lucas in the 1980s, Harrison Ford debuted as the archaeologist in 'Indiana Jones: The Raiders of the Lost Ark' and has done four more films with the franchise since then.

This time, the actor will be seen performing a daring stunt involving a fleet of rickshaws, as he is chased by a bunch of enemies in an Indian city.

Directed by James Mangold, best known for his work in films such as 'Walk the Line', 'The Wolverine', 'Logan' and 'Ford v Ferrari', the latest instalment of the franchise promises to deliver an exciting experience as Mangold has decided to rely more on practical effects instead of CGI.

One of the scenes which will stand out is an old Indiana Jones racing through the bustling and busy streets of an Indian city while being chased and even shot at by his pursuers.

The filmmakers developed an approach to the physical action with stunt coordinator Ben Cooke ('Jurassic World: Dominion', 'Casino Royale'), to keep the stunts as grounded and real as possible and to keep the more derring-do feats from not becoming too far over the top.

This approach was extended to most of the stunt work including the rickshaw scene. It involved tiny vehicles and essentially motorised rickshaws, bolting through the winding streets with motorcycles trailing behind. Roughly, over a dozen rickshaws were employed for this sequence, thereby adding an authentic touch to the whole chase.

The rickshaw stunt is high on adrenaline as amid the casual banter, there is a very real sense of tension and danger, adding to the believability of the scene. The scene leads up to Indiana Jones and his companions plummeting down a set of steep stairs, with the rickshaws miraculously coming to a rest at the bottom, leaving its occupants shaken, tired and in awe that they are still alive.

Mangold has said that the majority of the human action in the film is genuine, as he wanted the stunts to feel more real, showing the dedication of his team. "Almost all the human action in the movie is for real," Mangold said.

Adding to it, Ford said, "I think it's very important to maintain a human scale to action. Too much of something is too much. When you're able to keep it to a physical reality with some embellishments, that feels real and more visceral for the audience."

While 'Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny' is fashioned to be a promising addition to the iconic franchise, the movie received a five-minute standing ovation at the Cannes Film Festival. 'Indiana Jones: The Dial of Destiny' will release theatrically across India on June 29 in English, Hindi, Tamil and Telugu.

(With IANS inputs)
A new report from the University of Maryland, somewhat misleadingly reported on here, draws on a database of 3,023 "radicalized offenders" or committers of "extremist crimes." The database, specifically "contains deidentified individual-level information on the backgrounds, attributes, and radicalization processes of over 3,200 violent and non-violent extremists who adhere to far-right, far-left, Islamist, or single-issue ideologies in the United States covering 1948-2021."

I take this database to be of no value in determining what percentage of mass shooters, for example, hold any "extremist" ideology, because every single person in the database does hold at least one. But it can tell us, for example, that of those who hold any such ideology and have plotted "mass casualties" "" that is, plotted to kill four or more people "" a small number have been "far left," three times that many have been "Islamist," and almost twice that many have been "far right."

We also learn that from 1990 to 2022 some 25% of those who plotted mass-casualty crimes in the United States (outside of wars, of course) were past or current members of the U.S. military. The producers of the report note that this is "more than three times that of military service in the general adult population, which is estimated at 8 percent."

That figure (25%) is lower than the figure of 32% "" and earlier 36% "" that I have derived from a different database. One reason is that I've looked only at males aged 18 to 59, since that covers most mass shooters and allows a less dramatic comparison to 14.76% of the general population of that sex and age who have been in the military. I've also looked only at those who killed four or more people, not those who only plotted doing so. But whether a military background is over twice as common or over three times as common in mass killers as in the general population, the difference is significant, and almost certainly not a mere correlation. We are talking, after all, about training in mass killing being a factor in mass killing. It would be very difficult to find a stronger example of a likely causal factor.

The report mentioned above is the first on this topic in any U.S. media outlet in many years. It's found in Task & Purpose. It begins: "Military service 'is the single strongest individual-level predictor' if someone will carry out or plan to carry out a mass casualty event, researchers have found." I'm pretty sure this is a misleading claim. What the University of Maryland report claims is that of the people in the database of extremist criminals, military so-called service is the single strongest individual-level predictor of whether someone plotted to kill at least four people. I can't know what this tells me about the general population without knowing how many people commit mass murder without an "extremist ideology" and how many of them have been in the military. It's possible that holding a far right ideology is a stronger predictor than a military background. It's almost certain that being male is a stronger predictor than a military background.

But what we do know "" what is not misleading "" is that among the people in the database, it matters less whether they've had mental health issues, whether they've been a member of an isolated clique, whether they are a lone offender, whether they have a criminal history prior to "radicalization," what their age is, whether they are married, whether they have kids, whether they have advanced education, whether they have stable employment, or whether they have a history of substance abuse. It matters more "" in determining the likelihood that they are a plotter of a mass casualty crime rather than some lesser crime "" whether they have been in the U.S. military.

But here's the really interesting part, the report's recommendations:

"As our previous research on the link between extremism and the U.S. military shows, service members and veterans are not more likely to radicalize to the point of violence than members of the general population. However, this research brief illustrates that when service members and veterans do radicalize, they are more likely to plan for, or commit, mass casualty crimes, thus having an outsized impact on public safety."

In other words, veterans and members of the U.S. military are more likely to be mass shooters, not because they are more likely to adopt an "extremist ideology" "" the whole point of the database "" but for some other reason. I'm guessing it's having been trained and conditioned to engage in mass shooting, and having been praised for it. In any case, the recommendation one would expect to follow the above sentences would be to keep people out of the military. Keeping people out of "far right" groups, and maybe some other groups too, might be helpful as well, but those are not conclusions that come out of this report. Much less would one expect the report to recommend merely keeping extremists out of the military or military members out of extremism, since we've seen no evidence for the relevance of that, and it's pointlessly narrow anyway. But, wouldn't you know it, this is what comes next:

"These types of crimes are more likely to draw significant attention, negatively impacting the public's trust in the military, while also harming the reputation of veterans and making it harder for the DoD to maintain a cohesive force and recruit the next generation of service members. Based on this research, START and We the Veterans recommend that DoD work in concert with elected representatives, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), Veteran Service Organizations (VSOs), and community partners to implement a public health informed strategy to address extremism in the ranks."

Not only is the recommendation to keep members of the military out of extremism, but its "task and purpose" is public relations for the military, not the priorities of public safety. Clearly this recommendation is not data driven, but a result of an utter inability to draw the obvious conclusion, namely that people should be kept out of the military. Not only is the public relations justification shameful, but it's also pointless, as the same impact can be had "" and is being had "" by media outlets simply ignoring such information altogether. Why worry that mass shooters being disproportionately veterans makes the military look bad if I and the University of Maryland and Task & Purpose are the only three entities to have ever mentioned it out loud?

Needless to say, statistically, virtually all veterans are not mass shooters. But that can hardly be the reason for not a single news article ever mentioning that mass shooters are over twice (or three times) as likely to be veterans as the general population. After all, statistically, virtually all males, mentally ill people, domestic abusers, Nazi-sympathizers, loners, and gun-purchasers are also not mass-shooters. Yet articles on those topics proliferate like NRA campaign bribes.

There seem to me to be two key reasons that a sane communications system would not censor this topic. First, our public dollars and elected officials are training and conditioning huge numbers of people to kill, sending them abroad to kill, thanking them for the "service," praising and rewarding them for killing, and then some of them are killing where it is not acceptable. This is not a chance correlation, but a factor with a clear connection.

Second, by devoting so much of our government to organized killing, and even allowing the military to train in schools, and to develop video games and Hollywood movies, we've created a culture in which people imagine that militarism is praiseworthy, that violence solves problems, and that revenge is one of the highest values. Virtually every mass shooter has used military weaponry. Most of those whose dress we are aware of dressed as if in the military. Those who've left behind writings that have been made public have tended to write as if they were taking part in a war. So, while it might surprise many people to find out how many mass shooters are veterans of the military, it might be hard to find mass shooters (actual veterans or not) who did not themselves think they were soldiers.

We've developed a culture dedicated to praising and glorifying participation in war. It need not even be a conscious decision, but a journalist convinced that militarism is laudable would assume it was irrelevant to a report on a mass shooter and, in addition, assume that it was distasteful to mention that the man was a veteran. That sort of widespread self-censorship is the only possible explanation for the whiting out of this story.

The phenomenon of shutting down this story does not exactly require a "motive," and I would like to recommend to reporters on mass shootings that they, too, devote a bit less energy to the often meaningless hunt for "a motive," and a tad more to considering whether the fact that a shooter lived and breathed in an institution dedicated to mass shooting might be relevant.
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Yes indeed. The upper crust of German Jewry supported Hitler even after he had laid out what he would do the Jews, given the chance.

(Image by Wikipedia (commons.wikimedia.org), Author: Unknown author of dust jacket; Adolf Hitler author of volume) Details Source DMCA



"Either this nation shall kill racism, or racism shall kill this nation." (S. Jonas, August, 2018)

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Sen. Tim Scott and the several other "non-white" candidates for the Republican Presidential nomination find themselves in an interesting position. The Republican Party has been running on racism ever since Nixon announced the "Southern Strategy" in 1969, and on a type of racism, that is xenophobia (very "Trumpy," of course), since its founding in 1856 when certain elements of the "Know-Nothings" joined it from the start. As it happens, in this election season, several persons who are not "white" by the current definition, like Sen. Tim Scott and former Gov. Niki Haley, are in the running for the nomination in the Republican primaries.

They have sketched out a very interesting description of racism within their party and in refence to their own backgrounds. Sen. Scott, reflecting the view of most of his comperes in this regard, has said that the United States has been a racist nation, and talked about racist struggles that ancestors of his had. But, and it is a big BUT, according to Scott neither the nation nor his party is racist now.

Well, Senator Scott, and Gov. Haley (who holds to the same position), and Mr. Ramaswamy (who may or may not hold to it), you might want to take a look at an organization that existed in Nazi Germany before the Nazi takeover on Jan. 30, 1933, right up until the passage of the "Nuremberg Laws" in 1935. Among other things, that set deprived German Jews of their citizenship.

I have previously published a column on an organization colloquially known as "Jews for Hitler," on Buzzflash.com (as well as on OpEdNews, about four years ago: Click Here. Since the topic --- a segment of society that is the target of a political party organizes in support of that party --- is indeed very much current, I thought to re-run that column in this space. I doubt that Scott, Haley, and etc. will pay any attention to it, but readers of OpEdNews.com might once again find it to be of interest.

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"Jews for Hitler? You must be kidding." That's a question that I have come across on a number of occasions as I have studied the history of Nazi Germany over a period of many years. And yes, indeed, there were Jews for Hitler. There were not too many of them. And certainly many Jews who were living in Germany when Hitler was appointed as Chancellor by President Paul von Hindenburg on Jan. 30, 1933 and then was given dictatorial powers via the "Enabling Act" by the German Reichstag on March 23, 1933, were from those moments on afraid for their employment, their property, and civil rights they may have had under the predecessor Weimar Republic and eventually their lives.

But "Jews for Hitler" there were, and organized too, primarily in an organization called "The Association of German National Jews." As described by the relevant entry in Wikipedia:

The Association of German National Jews (German: Verband nationaldeutscher Juden) was a German Jewish organization during the Weimar Republic and the early years of Nazi Germany that eventually came out in support of Hitler".

It was founded in 1921 by Max Naumann who was chairman until 1926 and again from 1933 to 1935 when the association was dissolved. Politically, the association was close to the national conservative and monarchist German National People's Party which, however, refused affiliation with the Association.

The goal of the Association was the total assimilation of Jews into the German Volksgemeinschaft, self-eradication of Jewish identity, and the expulsion from Germany of the Jewish immigrants from Eastern Europe. [Pro-Nazi German Jews had a particular interest in that one. Sound familiar?] Naumann was especially opposed to Zionists and Eastern European Jews, the former he considered a threat to Jewish integration and to be carriers of a "racist" ideology serving British imperial purposes, while he saw the latter as racially and spiritually inferior. . . .

Among other things, after the Nazis took over, the Association issued a manifesto that stated that the Jews were being fairly treated. [This was at a time, in the summer of 1933, that Jews were already being subject to various types of repression which was being reported abroad by various Jewish organizations and denied as the equivalent of "Fake News" by the Nazi government.]

In 1934 the group made the following statement:

"We have always held the well-being of the German people and the fatherland, to which we feel inextricably linked, above our own well-being. Thus, we greeted the results of January, 1933 [positively], even though it has brought hardship for us personally.' "

A possible reason why some German Jews supported Hitler may have been that they thought that his anti-Semitism only was for the purpose of "stirring up the masses'" . . .

Despite their extreme patriotism, the German government did not accept their goal of assimilation. The Association of German National Jews was declared illegal and dissolved on 18 November 1935. Max Naumann was arrested by the Gestapo the same day and imprisoned at the Columbia concentration camp. He was released after a few weeks, and died of cancer in May 1939.

But why might certain German Jews have been supporters of the Nazis and Hitler, especially since anti-Semitism, very loud anti-Semitism, had been central to Nazi doctrine since the predecessor to the Party had been formally organized in 1919? Well, there is the motivation noted in the Wikipedia excerpt just above. The Prussian Empire had been among the first nations in Europe to grant Jews full civil rights. There had been Jewish generals in the Prussian army in World War I.

So, it has been reported, there was an increasing feeling among the upper levels of German Jewry along the lines of "We are Germans ; nothing will happen to us. As for those Jews in the Communist and Socialist Parties, let him go after them. They are our enemies too." Furthermore, while Jews were generally not among the major elements of the German ruling class in heavy industry, they were major factors in real estate, banking, retail, and publishing. Those Jews did not like the trade unions and other anti-Nazi organizations any more than the Nazis did. Of course, what happened to those German Jews who did not manage to emigrate in the early days of the Nazi regime is well-known.

And so, if you have read this far, you know where I am going with this. While, as far as I know, there is certainly no organization in the U.S. equivalent to the Association of German National Jews, there are, without naming names, as the New York Times' Paul Krugman has pointed out numbers of Jews who are prominent financial supporters of our very own fascist President. And there are Jews who are important policy-makers and enablers of Trump as well as prominent propagandists for him. [Just as there are replaced non-Whites, like Scott, in the Republican Party.]

But, some ask, is Trump an anti-Semite? Well, without going into the current litany of his anti-Semitic tropes/concepts (like the concept of Jewish "dual loyalty," see The Protocols of the Elders of Zion ), the thought first popped into my head when a couple of years ago, Trump was straight-out asked "are you an Anti-Semite?" "How could I be," he responded, "some of my best children are Jews." Just like the "some of my best friends are Jews" trope that I heard when I was much younger, when anti-Semitism was much more open in this country that it is now. And do you really need much more than an indicator of his now-classic "good people on both sides" to the Charlottesville marchers chanting "Jews will not replace us." [It is notable that in one of the very first foundering messages Trump sent out after the indictments were handed down ("Statement from Donald J Trump, the 45th President of the United States), the magic words "Soros-backed prosecutor" appear."]

As Professor Krugman pointed out in the column cited above: "anyone Jewish has to be completely ignorant of history not to know that when bigotry runs free, we're always next in line for persecution." Anti-Semitism has been the fallback doctrine-of-hatred since St. Augustine codified it for use by the Catholic Church back in the 5th century. But the German Jews who supported Hitler thought that they were "different," even as anti-Semitism was at the center of Nazi doctrine. But of course, for the Nazis they weren't. And so, they were lumped in with all the other Jews, and pretty quickly too (the Nuremberg Laws depriving Jews of German citizenship being invoked in 1935).

Right now, the Jewish supporters of Trump obviously like at least some of what he is doing, This may include the development of, by definition, concentration camps for various categories of immigrants and potential immigrants. (How ironic is this?)

Knowing what happened to the Jewish supporters of Hitler in Nazi Germany will not have one whit of effect upon the beliefs and actions of the Jewish supporters of Trump and enablers of Trumpite 21st-century fascism. But among the Jewish opponents of Trump, it is very important to be aware of those developments in Germany, almost a century ago, so that comparisons can be drawn as appropriate.

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Post Note on Anti-Semitism in current U.S. Politics. To the extent that word "Soros" (signifying George Soros) indicates/signifies political anti-Semitism, it is now firmly in place, at least in the Trump (the currently dominant) wing of the Republican Party. Just randomly, in one of the very first fundraisers post-indictment that Trump sent out he referred to the "Soros-funded" New York State prosecutor Alvin Bragg. At the demonstration outside the Miami courthouse where Trump was to be indicted there were large pro-Trump flags flying that associated a very angry looking portrait of George Soros flanked by, of all things, the Hammer and Sickle (which is really odd, because Soros was a well-known opponent of the Soviet Union). (One does have to wonder who thinks these flags up, who pays for them and where they are made.)

Post Note, II : With The Trump Indictments, Sen. Scott, Gov. Haley, and several other notable Republicans are trying to put some space between themselves and Trump on that issue (https://www.nytimes.com/2023/06/14/us/politics/trump-indictment-republican-rivals.html). It's tough; a real challenge. The name "Hillary," in the "whaddabout" category, keeps coming up.

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Steven Jonas, MD, MPH, MS is a Professor Emeritus of Preventive Medicine at StonyBrookMedicine (NY) and author/co-author/editor/co-editor of over 35 books. In addition to his position on OpEdNews.com as a "Trusted Author," he is a regular contributor to BuzzFlash.com. His own political website, stevenjonaspolitics.com , is an archive of the 1000 or so political columns he has published since 2004, with the current columns being added to it as they appear. He was also a career triathlete, 36 seasons, 256 multi-sport races, and writer on the sport (books and articles). He now is officially retired from racing.

Among Dr. Jonas' books of note on political science and history are: Ending the 'Drug War'; Solving the Drug Problem: The Public Health Approach , Brewster, NY: Punto Press Publishing, (Brewster, NY, 2016, available on Kindle from Amazon, and also in hardcover from Amazon ) ; a "future history" of the United States (originally published in 1996) entitled The 15% Solution: How the Republican Religious Right Took Control of the U.S., 1981-2022 (Third Version published by Trepper & Katz Impact Books, Punto Press Publishing, 2013, Brewster, NY, and available on Amazon).

His most recent book-set is Trump's Presidential Years: As They Happened, 2015-2021 . It is in six volumes, consisting of the 191 columns Dr. Jonas published on Trump, primarily on OpEdNews.com and BuzzFlash.com , from "Hair Trump or Herr Trump?" (10-6-15) to "Xenophobia and Racism: They're in the Republican Party's DNA" (3-19-21). The six volumes are each available separately on Kindle (2022), under "Trump's Presidential Years: As they happened, 2015-2021."

Dr. Jonas has a blind-copy distribution list for his columns. If you would like to be added to it, please send him an email at sjtpj|AT|aol.comEmail address.

(Article changed on Jun 13, 2023 at 6:43 PM EDT)

(Article changed on Jun 14, 2023 at 4:51 PM EDT)
This piece was reprinted by OpEd News with permission or license. It may not be reproduced in any form without permission or license from the source.



The Joker In Chief

(Image by prompthunt) Details DMCA



In June of 2021, U.S. President Joseph Biden signed into law the federal holiday of "Juneteenth" (yep, they actually made up a word). Juneteenth, auspiciously, is to commemorate "the end of slavery". However, slavery is still legal, quite so, in the United States, which is why Juneteenth is a joke. It is a joke, because it is a lie. A blatant lie; and an insult to boot.

You see, if you are incarcerated you are a slave. Legally, a slave. The disproportionate number of incarcerated individuals look just like those other slaves of yore (yorn). The 13th Amendment of the United States Constitution legalizes slavery to this very day. Most so-called Americans are not only unaware of this fact they, worse, do not care. Even if one attempts to enlighten them they will continue to act as though "the Atlantic slave trade" and, thusly, slavery of Alkebulanians, is some bygone era in which the supreme white man erred; but his supremacy fixed it. Move on, Negro. Get over it.

I am rather notorious for stating that the only thing worse than willful ignorance is when it marries, and fornicates with, willful apathy. For their offspring is a child named stupidity; and stupid people are the most dangerous animals on planet earth. I suspect I am even more notorious now.

The 13th Amendment states, in no uncertain terms, "Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction."

Not funny, that.

The vast majority of States do not recognize "Juneteenth". I once had to file a lawsuit against an employer who refused to recognize MLK Day and demanded that I show up at the office. It is a holiday approached with apathy at best and virulent, purposeful, activist disregard at worst. To this very day, MLK Day is insignificant compared to other "holidays". In fact, I know of quite a few people who have stated that they make it their business to unrecognize the day.

Juneteenth, is Joketeenth .

Rather than some pathetic, politically expedient, bullshit holiday or appointing a symbolic black woman to the " supreme court", Joe Biden, and the United States, can just impress the hell out of me by formally apologizing, in front of the whole world, for the enslavement, genocide, continued brutalization and marginalization of my people. Why does that not happen?
Aleister CrowleyEnglish magician and founder of the religion of Thelemahas been admired as a powerful theorist and practitioner of what he called Magick, and reviled as a spoiled, abusive buffoon. Falling somewhere between those two camps, we find the opinion of Crowleys bitter rival, the Irish poet William Butler Yeats, who once passionately wrote that the study of magic was the most important pursuit of my life.. The mystical life is the center of all that I do and all that I think and all that I write.

Crowley would surely say the same, but his magic was of a much darker, more obsessive variety, and his success as a poet insignificant next to Yeats. Crowley was jealous, argues the blog Rune Soup, He was never able to speak the language of poetic symbol with the confidence of a native speaker in the way Yeats definitely could. In a 1948 Partisan Review essay, literary critic and Yeats biographer Richard Ellmann tells the story differently, drily reporting on the conflict as its participants saw itas a genuine war between competing forms of practical magic.

Having been ejected from the occult Theosophical society for his magical experiments, writes Jamie James at Laphams Quarterly, Yeats joined the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, an even more exotic cult, which claimed direct descent from the hermetic tradition of the Renaissance and into remote antiquity. At various times, the order included writers Arthur Machen and Bram Stoker, Yeats beloved Irish revolutionary Maud Gonne, and famous magicians Arthur Edward Waite and Crowley. (Just below, see a page from Yeats Golden Dawn journal. See several more here.)

When Crowley showed a tendency to use his occult powers for evil rather than for good, Ellmann writes, the adepts of the order, Yeats among them, decided not to allow him to be initiated into the inner circle; they feared that he would profane the mysteries and unleash powerful magic forces against humanity. Crowleys ouster lead to a confrontation in 1900 that might make you thinkdepending on your frame of referenceof the warring magicians on South Park or of Susanna Clarks Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell, or both. Crowley refused to accept their decision, writes Ullmann, and after some astral attacks on Yeats,

. in Highlanders tartan, with a black Crusaders cross on his breast Crowley arrived at the Golden Dawn temple in London. Making the sign of the pentacle inverted and shouting menaces at the adepts, Crowley climbed the stairs. But Yeats and two other white magicians came resolutely forward to meet him, ready to protect the holy place at any cost. When Crowley came within range the forces of good struck out with their feet and kicked him downstairs.

This almost slapstick vanquishing became known as the Battle of Blythe Road and has been immortalized in a publication of that very name, with accounts from Crowley, Yeats, and Golden Dawn adepts William Westcott, Florence Farr and others. But the war was not won, Ellmann notes, and Crowley went looking for convertsor victimsin London, while Yeats attempted to stop him with the requisite spells and exorcisms. One such spell supposedly sent a vampire that bit and tore at his flesh as it lay beside Crowley all night. Despite Yeats supernatural interventions, one of Crowleys targets, a young painter named Althea Gyles, was finally forced to give way entirely to his baleful fascination.

Ellmanns both humorous and unsettling narrative shows us Crowley-as-predator, a characterization the wealthy Englishman had apparently earned, as responsible governments excluded him from one country after another lest he bring to bear upon their inhabitants his hostile psychic ray. [Brenda Maddox at The Guardian gives a slightly different account of the Battle, in which Yeats, with a bouncer, saw him off the premises, called in the police and ended up (victorious) in court. ] Yeats and the other members distaste for Crowley surely had something to do with his predatory behavior. But the rivalry was also indeed a poetic one, albeit extremely one-sided.

As Crowley biographer Lawrence Sutin writes, the earnestness of the young Crowley could not compensate, in Yeats mind, for the technical difficulties and rhetorical excesses of his verse. Yeats opinion infuriated Crowley, who indulged in the magic of projection, writing What hurt him [Yeats] was the knowledge of his own incomparable inferiority. Crowleys remarks are both ridiculous, Sutin comments, and apply far more convincingly to Crowley himself. Nevertheless, Crowleys Magick, continued to make Yeats uneasy, and he may have invoked Crowley in his famous line about the rough beast slouching toward Bethlehem in 1919s The Second Coming.

While the magical battle between them might provoke more laughter than curiosity about their different brands of magic, Sutin notes a crucial difference that distinguishes the two men: whereas Crowley placed himself in the services of the Antichrist the savage God of the new cycle, Yeatss fidelity was to the old king, to that unfashionable gyre. The gyre, so central an image in The Second Coming, stands for Yeats theory of time and history, and it belongs to an old mysticism and folklore that for him were synonymous with poetry.

Crowley viewed the occult as a source of personal powerhis revelations filled books devoted to explaining the philosophy of Thelema (Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law. Love is the law, love under will);  Yeats was certainly more of an organization man in his occult activities, writes Maddox, and sought to practice magic as a holistic activity, fully integrated into his social, political, and aesthetic life. His public philosophy, as he called it, writes James, propounds an extraordinarily convoluted system that aims to integrate the human personality with the cosmos.

To understand Crowleys magical thinking, we can probably skip his poetry and attempt as best we can to the decipher his several arcane, technical books full of invented terms and symbols. To understand Yeats, as much as thats possible, we need to read his poetry, the purest expression of his mystical system and symbolic thought.

via Metafilter

Related Content:

Aleister Crowley: The Wickedest Man in the World Documents the Life of the Bizarre Occultist, Poet & Mountaineer

Rare 1930s Audio: W.B. Yeats Reads Four of His Poems

W.B. Yeats Poem When You Are Old Adapted into a Japanese Manga Comic

Josh Jones is a writer and musician based in Durham, NC. Follow him at @jdmagness
Guyanas mobile network operators welcomed with open arms the governments decision to abolish taxes on mobile phones, in a bid to spur growth in the telecoms sector.

Guyana Telephone and Telegraph Company (GTT), Digicel Guyana, and ENet issued a joint statement hailing the decision by describing it as a significant step towards improving information access. The operators also said the governments decision will transform the communications sector by enabling wider connectivity access for users to tap into educational tools, business opportunities and foster personal growth.

Looking ahead, the operators pledged to work with the government to revise prices to reflect the abolition of the tax.

The Guyanese government announced on Friday (June 9) the removal of taxes and duties on mobile phones, it came into effect on Monday (June 12), reported Guyana Times.

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A $15,000 reward has been offered by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Portland Police Bureau to find out who shot and killed a Portland man last year.

Geavauntae Sherman, 22, was gunned down June 20, 2022, at Raymond City Park, while attending his sisters birthday party. Authorities believe an argument broke out near the party and Sherman was shot by a man from another group in the park.

Geavauntae Sherman was celebrating his little sisters birthday when he was killed in the middle of a Portland city park, said Kieran L. Ramsey, special agent in charge of the FBI Portland field office.

An argument that began over playground equipment ended in loss of life, he said. Its been nearly a year, and we know there were dozens of witnesses in the park that evening. We need those witnesses to come forward with any details they remember.

He said anyone with information can contact the FBI Portland Field Office at (503) 224-4181, an FBI office, the nearest American Embassy or Consulate. Tips can also be submitted at tips.fbi.gov.

 Tom Hallman Jr

503-221-8224; thallman@oregonian.com; @thallmanjr

Our journalism needs your support. Please become a subscriber today at OregonLive.com/subscribe
A man arrested Tuesday in connection with a series of robberies in North Portland has been identified as Louis Daniel Santiago, 18, the Portland Police Bureau reported.

Santiago was taken into a custody after an intensive search involving numerous specialty units, including the K9 Unit.
This graduation season, The Oregonian/OregonLive is offering a perk exclusively for subscribers: Log in, click on the photo gallery to see if we photographed your favorite graduate, and choose Get Photo to download free print-quality images or order prints.

Milwaukie High School and Milwaukie Academy of the Arts held their 2023 graduation ceremonies Monday evening at Providence Park in downtown Portland.

Hundreds of students, family members, friends and loved ones alike gathered in the warm June weather to celebrate the graduates as they complete a high school journey that included a pandemic, post-pandemic and return of hopeful joy as they head onto their next chapter.

Thanks to Milwaukie High School, Milwaukie Academy of the Arts and North Clackamas School District for having us out to the ceremony. Look for more photos from other schools at oregonlive.com/education.

MORE: Hillsboro High School graduation

 Sean Meagher | @seanspix on Instagram
A Multnomah County jury slapped PacifiCorp with nearly $18 million in punitive damages on Wednesday, adding to a growing and potentially historic financial toll from a wildfire class action lawsuit that could have a financially devastating impact on Oregons second-largest utility.

The jury determined that PacifiCorps conduct over Labor Day 2020 was reprehensible and showed a reckless and outrageous indifference to the wellbeing of residents of the communities ravaged by four fires that weekend.
Mike McCarter

McCarter, who leads the Greater Idaho movement as president of Citizens for Greater Idaho, lives in LaPine.

Can we talk? Or do we not do that anymore?

Democrat and Republican. Progressive and conservative. Cosmopolitan and cowboy. Dont we all need to talk more? To listen more? To take the time to understand perspectives which are not our own? More talking doesnt guarantee we will agree. But we could learn from each other.

Should the Oregon-Idaho border be shifted westward, almost to Bend, allowing eastern Oregonians to become western Idahoans? Twelve Oregon counties have voted in support of local ballot measures to advance the idea.

The counties of Klamath, Lake, Harney, Malheur, Grant, Baker, Jefferson, Sherman, Wheeler, Morrow, Union and Wallowa are frustrated enough with the domination of urban legislators and urban governors that they want state lines to be adjusted so they will become part of Idaho. They know it wont happen unless Oregon elected officials agree, and Congress approves it as well. We understand Democratic (and some Republican) politicians may be skeptical. So, we are asking the Oregon Legislature to hold a hearing to talk about it.

Oregon is pulling in opposite directions. We dont just disagree on how to implement goals; we disagree on what those goals should be. In the Greater Idaho movement, we believe we are offering a win-win solution to these tensionsa solution that allows the diverse sides of Oregon flourish in their respective, unique ways.

Currently, senators primarily representing eastern and southern Oregon are gridlocking the Legislature. Its safe to assume that voters from these areas will keep sending legislators to the Legislature who are willing to continue this policy in upcoming years. Also, a judge elected by eastern Oregonians is blocking a statewide gun control law from going into effect. Polling shows that western Oregonians would like to change all this.

The 22 Oregon counties that, in whole or in part, comprise the Greater Idaho vision are, collectively, a huge drain on the state budget. The average northwestern Oregon resident subsidizes those in the eastern and southern Oregon counties by $363 annually, according to a thorough independent economic analysis funded by the Claremont Institute, a think tank that promotes Americas foundational doctrines. Do you enjoy paying for that? Not many do  a 2022 SurveyUSA poll that we sponsored found that only 3% of northwestern Oregon voters think that keeping these counties in Oregon is worth that cost.

Considering that 12 Oregon counties voted for their elected officials to pursue this question, shouldnt those elected officials  shouldnt all elected officials  explore this issue?

Last February, the Idaho House of Representatives passed a nonbinding bill that authorizes Idaho to begin talks with Oregon about the possibility of moving the state line. The frustration of eastern Oregonians is reinforced because Idaho legislators are currently more responsive than Oregon legislators are.

The Legislature has an opportunity this session to rectify this perception and hear from Oregon voters, taxpayers and property owners who earnestly believe difficult problems might need difficult solutions.

Last November, Senate President Rob Wagner said he will make sure that Oregonians across the state feel represented. Okay, Sen. Wagner and House Speaker Dan Rayfield, lets talk. Lets discuss the sources and solutions to the discontent in eastern Oregon. Lets discuss the pros and cons, the feasibility and the precedents for the solution eastern Oregon is voting for.

In her inaugural remarks, Gov. Tina Kotek said, we can only deliver results on our complex problems by listening, digging into the details, and forming solutions together. Governor, the Greater Idaho movement accepts your offer. Tell us where and when, and we will be there.

The poll mentioned above found that 68% of northwestern Oregonians believe that the state should at least consider it. So, lets explore this option together  lets talk about it. Ask us the tough questions, and well share what weve learned.

Sign up for our free Oregon Opinion newsletter. Email:


The advocacy of Oregonians across the political spectrum is being held hostage by elected officials, both Republican and Democrat, and yes, Independents.

Hundreds of citizens from every part of Oregon have made a trip to Salem in the past months to testify on bills important to them. Thousands more spent personal time sending emails, making calls and writing letters to editors pressing their case for specific bills. Nonprofit staff, faith leaders, educators, health providers and fire and police personnel took precious time from jobs, often not reimbursed, to ensure their communities were heard.

Do the Republican senators boycotting floor votes have any respect for those voices? Citizenry are encouraged to speak up, to become advocates, to be politically active. And this is how were treated? I understand the Democratic leadership has been backed into a corner and feels the need to stand firm, but they need to know this isnt working for Oregons people. Gov. Tina Kotek has an opportunity to show leadership by demanding compromise. For heavens sake, if President Joe Biden and Speaker Kevin McCarthy can resolve a potential crisis, why cant Kotek and Senate Republican Leader Tim Knopp?

Julie Young, Portland

To read more letters to the editor, go to oregonlive.com/opinion.
In November, Oregon voters fed up with what had become an almost annual tradition of Republicans blocking bills from passing by leaving the state Capitol voted overwhelmingly to punish any lawmaker who skipped more than nine days of work.

Measure 113, a constitutional amendment to bar lawmakers with 10 or more unexcused absences from serving another term, passed with more than 68% of the vote statewide, winning a majority in all but two counties. Proponents thought it would end  or at least shorten  attempts by minority party lawmakers to shut down legislative action to block unwanted bills.

By all accounts, the effort failed. Ten conservative lawmakers  a third of the Senate  blew past their nine allowed absences in mid-May, and some have racked up more than 20, with the June 25th end of the legislative session looming. At least one didnt plan on running for reelection, and others bet on courts agreeing with their assessment that the voter-approved Measure 113 was unconstitutional.

Now, a majority of legislative Democrats have a new plan. A bill that will be introduced Wednesday by state Reps. Khanh Pham of Portland and David Gomberg of Otis would ask voters to change the Constitution once more, bringing Oregon in line with almost all other state legislatures that only require a simple majority of lawmakers to conduct business.

I think the voters were clear with Measure 113 that they didnt want any more walkouts, Pham told the Capital Chronicle. They wanted legislators to do their job. Clearly, its not been having the intended impact that that people were hoping for, and so now were trying to make sure that voters will is being honored by actually getting to something that will hopefully get at the root cause and hopefully be more effective.

The measure addresses a quirk in Oregons Constitution, left over from when the states founders copied about half the text from Indianas Constitution in 1857. It required a two-thirds quorum in the House and Senate.

Only Indiana, Oregon, Tennessee and Texas require two-thirds of representatives or senators to be present to conduct business, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures, though the Vermont House and Wisconsin House and Senate require two-thirds and three-fifths quorums, respectively, to vote on any bill raising taxes. Democrats in the minority in Oregon in 2001, Indiana in 2011 and Texas in 2003 and 2021 walked out to block votes on redistricting plans, anti-union legislation and election legislation, while Oregon Republicans have walked out five times since 2019.

The possibility of Pham and Gombergs proposal passing this year is a long shot. While the two insisted in an interview late last week that they werent giving up on the legislative session, Senate Republicans have threatened to only return on the final day, dooming nearly all bills. The two sides have been involved in intense negotiations in recent days to end the stalemate.

And even if the walkout ends, the measure will be introduced just 11 days before the sessions constitutional deadline. That leaves little time for lawmakers to hold hearings and solicit public opinion, let alone vote on the proposal.

Theres a week left, but in legislative time thats a lifetime, Gomberg said. Anything could happen in a week.

ONGOING CONVERSATION

Pham, meanwhile, said she sees the measure as an opening salvo in a conversation that will continue over the next year. She intends to bring the issue back in the month-long 2024 legislative session if it doesnt succeed this year.

If we want to be able to honor the will of voters, have our democracy actually functioning, we need to address this arcane requirement that is clearly not helping us meet this moment that were in, she said. Im going to have to keep bringing it up, and this is just the start of an ongoing conversation.

The pair described themselves as a bit of an odd couple. Pham, 44, was a community organizer before she was elected to represent Southeast Portlands Jade District, with a large population of immigrants and other people of color. Shes one of the Legislatures most progressive members.

Gomberg, 70, spent 35 years as a small business owner and represents a rural swing district along the central coast. He works frequently and closely with Republicans, including leading recent budgets dedicated to rural infrastructure.

Gomberg said he understood the impulse to use any tools available to stop a bill from moving forward. As much as he disagrees with the Republican walkout and wishes it were over, he doesnt blame Republicans for using their ability to shut down the session.

This is a larger question, he said. Its a question about what tools should be available. Should you be able to stop the entire process because of your strong feelings about those one or two or three heartfelt issues? For me the answer to that is no.

As of Tuesday, 27 of 35 House Democrats and 14 of 17 Senate Democrats had signed on as co-sponsors of the measure. Top leaders in the House and Senate had not, but Pham said she had spoken with Speaker Dan Rayfield of Corvallis and Majority Leader Julie Fahey of Eugene and they supported introducing the bill. A spokeswoman for Fahey and House Democrats said Fahey supports having a conversation.

No Republicans have signed onto the measure, though Gomberg said some Republicans privately told him they supported the idea.

DEMOCRATIC LEADERS, UNIONS DEFEND MEASURE 113

As the Senate GOP walkout continued over the past month, Democratic leaders and union officials have been hesitant to say whether a new amendment for a simple majority was necessary. Instead, they insisted, Measure 113 needs time to play out.

We already gave the voters a chance to tell us what they want, and they want people to get to work, Senate Majority Leader Kate Lieber, D-Beaverton, told the Capital Chronicle in an interview on May 7.

On May 17, two weeks into the walkout, Gov. Tina Kotek told reporters that she didnt support a new constitutional amendment for a simple majority quorum but that her opinion could change depending on how the walkout went.

I think Oregon voters were very clear they supported that approach, she said, referring to the 10-day limit on unexcused absences. We should see how that works, and if its not working to disincentivize this behavior, then well have to go on to something else.

The next day, once nine Republican senators and independent Sen. Brian Boquist had made themselves ineligible to serve another term, Senate President Rob Wagner insisted during a press conference that Measure 113 had indeed had an effect.

They are making a choice to not come back to the Legislature, to not be able to file for reelection, and that is going to have a profound impact on people as they approach their future in legislative service and to the folks that are going to be returning to this next election cycle, he said. So in terms of not having an impact, I think it has a huge impact in terms of how people think about their public service.

And on May 24, nearly a week after the 10 senators became ineligible to serve another term, Melissa Unger, executive director of the union that represents state employees and a key force behind Measure 113, said the walkout didnt prove the measure failed. Service Employees International Union Local 503 and other unions and groups aligned with Democrats in pushing Measure 113 and said it polled better than other possible solutions to the walkout problem.

We do think that well see what happens after Measure 113 actually has a full impact and people cant run for reelection, Unger said. Because we do think that Oregonians were really clear that they wanted people to show up for their jobs.

-- Julia Shumway, Oregon Capital Chronicle

The Oregon Capital Chronicle, founded in 2021, is a nonprofit news organization that focuses on Oregon state government, politics and policy.
The Oregon Government Ethics Commission gave the go-ahead for formal ethics investigations into six Oregon Liquor and Cannabis Commission managers who set aside hard-to-find bourbon for themselves.

Investigators with the ethics commission carried out preliminary reviews of each employees conduct, finding they had potentially violated multiple state ethics rules.
Portland Commissioner Carmen Rubio abruptly shelved a plan to rework the fees the city charges private utilities on Tuesday following intense criticism from the telecommunications industry.

The plan had been due for a City Council vote Wednesday. Rubio said she pulled her proposal because colleagues on the Portland City Council were proposing amendments that would have reduced what companies pay to lay utility lines and build cell towers in the public right of way.
A 3,000 acre brush fire, now dubbed the Hat Rock fire, ignited in Umatilla County on Tuesday morning in Juniper Canyon.

Hat Rock State Park is under Level 2 (be set) evacuation orders, and the fire is now spreading through Juniper Canyon toward the Washington state line, officials said.

Fire crews responded to the brush fire on U.S. 730 near Oregon 37, approximately 9 miles northeast of Hermiston, just before 11 a.m.

A helicopter was sent from La Grande to drop water on the blaze. The Walla Walla Fire Department and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service are assisting Umatilla fire crews.

As areas of Oregon declare the beginning of fire season, officials warn residents to prepare and familiarize themselves with evacuation procedures.

Oregon fire officials and Gov. Tina Kotek predicted a more tame wildfire season than previous years, but they warned that hot weather conditions will continue to present wildfire risks.

Hot and dry weather paired with strong winds last year extended the fire season into fall, and led to dangerous bouts of unpredictability in fire growth. Similar conditions may return this summer, officials said.

A large portion of Umatilla County is currently under a red flag warning due to a predicted cold front that could bring strong westerly winds with low humidities, according to the National Weather Service. It will remain in effect until 9 p.m. Tuesday.

 Austin De Dios; adedios@oregonian.com; @austindedios; 503-319-9744
Thursday 15 June 2023 11:49am

Boosted by social media, racism, and burgeoning inequality, populism is proving a major challenge for liberal democracies in the 21st century.

While populist politicians like Trump and Bolsonaro have been the subject of significant coverage, the international and transnational impacts of the populism phenomenon have received much less attention, a point the 2023 Otago Foreign Policy School hopes to address.



Professor Robert Patman

Co-director Professor Robert Patman hopes the School will shed some light on the linkages between populist politicians, alerting us to common trends that have implications for New Zealand.

It is clear populist movements and leaders identify with each other and often support each other in election campaigns, such as Nigel Farage demonstrating his solidarity with Donald Trump in the 2016 and 2020 elections, and it is evident that many of the demands voiced by populist parties and leaders have a foreign policy or international component, Professor Patman says.

The School, a joint venture between Otago and the University of Kiel, Germany seeks to address this anomaly by considering four inter-related themes:

The common language and narratives of populism

The recurrent causes and drivers of populism (Islamophobia after 9/11, the impact of the 2008/9 global financial crisis, burgeoning inequality, and the effects of the digital revolution, including the rise of social media)

The use of case studies to illustrate the populist experience in India, Brazil, USA , Japan, Germany and New Zealand

, Japan, Germany and New Zealand The uneasy relationship between populism and the international rules-based order

About 150 people are expected to attend the three-day event, which will bring together academics, journalists, diplomats and members of the general public interested in the nexus between populism and global politics.

The School brings together an extraordinary cast of international and national specialists on populism, and it is a range of views and perspectives that many New Zealanders would not have encountered before, Professor Patman says.

Included in the strong and distinguished line-up are New Zealand Foreign Minister, Nanaia Mahuta, and speakers from Canada, Australia, Germany, Turkey, UK , Brazil, Sri Lanka and New Zealand.

Events details

Otago Foreign Policy School  Populism and Global Politics, 30 June2 July 2023, University of Otago.

https://events.otago.ac.nz/otago-foreign-policy-school-2023

For more information, please contact

Ellie Rowley

Communications Adviser

University of Otago

Mob +64 21 278 8200

Email ellie.rowley@otago.ac.nz
Khartoum, Sudan (PANA) - The United Nations on Tuesday presented a somber picture of the overall war situation in the Sudan, urging immediate action to end the suffering of civilians, not only in the capital, Khartoum, but in other areas eclipsed from the media coverage
New York, US (PANA) - UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres has expressed his deep concern about the ongoing violence in Darfur in Sudan, near the border with Chad, where unofficial reports talk about hundreds of people massacred on ethnic basis and the town cut off from the rest of the world without water, electricity, health service or communication
Essity to Sell Its Operations in Russia

In 2022, Essity's net sales in Russia amounted to approximately 2% of the Group's total net sales. In 2022, Essity's net sales in Russia amounted to approximately 2% of the Group's total net sales.

June 12, 2023 - Essity announced that it has entered into an agreement for the sale of its operations in Russia.

Essity said that it has signed an agreement with a buyer and the transaction has now been approved by the Russian authorities. The transaction is expected to be finalized during the second quarter of 2023.

Essity began work in April 2022 to exit the Russian market and in 2022 an impairment was carried out of the company's assets in Russia of approximately SEK 1.7 billion.

In 2022, Essity's net sales in Russia amounted to approximately 2% of the Group's total net sales.

The total earnings impact will be reported when the transaction is finalized, but is not expected to have a material financial impact.

According to a report published in 2022 by Interfax, Essity has three factories in Russia. It acquired a factory to produce sanitary and hygienic products in Svetogorsk in the Leningrad region in 1998. Today the factory produces an assortment of paper products for the brands Zewa and Tork.

In addition, two factories were opened in the Tula region in 2010, one in Sovetsk where paper products for the brands Zewa and Tork are produced and the other in Venyov where personal hygiene products are produced, including diapers for children for the brand Libero, adult diapers for the brand Tena, and Libresse sanitary pads.

Headquartered in Stockholm, Sweden, Essity is a global producer of consumer tissue, professional and personal hygiene and health products.

SOURCE: Essity
Founded in 2020, Modellfabrik is a society for research and development for sustainable paper technologies. It conducts basic research in the field of emission-free paper production. Founded in 2020, Modellfabrik is a society for research and development for sustainable paper technologies. It conducts basic research in the field of emission-free paper production.

Metsa Tissue Joins "Modellfabrik Papier in Duren" Research Network in Germany

June 13, 2023 - Metsa Tissue announced that it will become a shareholder of "Modellfabrik Papier in Duren," in Germany, effective July 1, 2023.

Founded in 2020, Modellfabrik is a society for research and development for sustainable paper technologies. It conducts basic research in the field of emission-free paper production. The primary goal is to achieve 80% energy savings in paper production and climate neutrality by 2045 and thus CO2-neutral paper production. This is intended to make an active contribution to achieving the Paris Climate Agreement and to safeguard Germany as an industrial location.

As an official shareholder, Metsa Tissue is now part of an interdisciplinary research network of industry and academia in Germany, in addition to Finland, where Metsa Tissue is headquartered.

"Sustainability is a fundamental strategic pillar at Metsa Tissue and Metsa Group," said Alexander Deutschle, Director R&D Metsa Tissue. "Our involvement in the Modellfabrik Papier in Duren is an active contribution to a carbon-neutral society and a more sustainable future. As an international manufacturer of tissue products and greaseproof papers, we can contribute our expertise and work together with the highly experienced network from research and industry to research the low-energy, resource-saving paper production of tomorrow."

Since its founding, Modellfabrik is currently working on four research projects financed from its own resources.

Michael Barth, Vice President Operations, Metsa Greaseproof Papers, explained, "As a shareholder of the Modellfabrik Papier in Duren, we not only have the opportunity to actively shape the challenges of climate-neutral paper production through modern research. We are also strengthening the Duren area, which is still Germany's largest paper location. Through the research network, we are securing the competitiveness of Germany as an industrial location and also local jobs in the long term."

Pascal Stephan, VP Production, Metsa Tissue Kreuzau mill, added, "For Metsa Tissue, being part of this research network is an important step. It shows that we take climate change very seriously as a company and are aware of our responsibility as a paper manufacturer. It is important for us to proactively address the challenges of climate-neutral paper production."

By 2025, a new modern building for the Modellfabrik Papier is to be built at Duren, which will meet the research mission as well as the latest ecological standards. In the future, innovative solutions for paper production  also for other industries with similar challenges  will be developed there.

Metsa Tissue is one of the leading tissue paper suppliers in Europe to households and professionals, and one of the leading greaseproof paper suppliers globally. Its brands are Lambi, Serla, Mola, Tento, Katrin and SAGA.

SOURCE: Metsa Tissue
Photo: (Photo : Eduardo Munoz Alvarez / Getty Images)

An unsettling incident unfolded at a playground in Massachusetts, where two children sustained burn injuries following an acid attack on the playground slides.

The authorities in Longmeadow, located just south of Springfield, are actively searching for suspects after a call was made to report a suspicious substance found on the slides at Bliss Park Playground.

In a news release on Monday, June 12, the Longmeadow fire department revealed that the material on the slides was determined to be "acidic in nature" after firefighters conducted an examination.

The Acid Attack Left Burn Injuries

The hazmat team, summoned to the scene, identified the chemical poured on the slides as muriatic acid, a commonly used substance for pool cleaning and disinfection.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, muriatic acid, also known as hydrochloric acid, is a key component in various commercial chemicals utilized for tasks such as pool cleaning, refining processes, metal treatment, and the production of numerous products, including dyes, plastics, polymers, and fertilizers.

However, it is crucial to handle it with caution, as direct contact can cause severe burns to the skin and eyes, and its vapors have the potential to harm the respiratory system.

As per NBC News, the young victims, who suffered burn-like injuries, were immediately attended to by Longmeadow EMS crews after leaving the park.

It was discovered that the perpetrators gained access to the acid by breaking into a room in the basement of a pool building.

To reach the chemicals, they climbed two fences and utilized a ventilation shaft for entry. The fire department emphasized that the pool chemicals had been stored appropriately in a secure area.

Authorities suspect that the assailants may have incurred acid burns to their hands or arms, and their clothing might exhibit signs of degradation due to contact with the corrosive substance.

To swiftly apprehend the culprits responsible for this heinous act, multiple agencies, including the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection, are collaborating in the ongoing investigation.

The Massachusetts State Police crime lab has gathered various pieces of evidence, some of which have been forwarded for forensic analysis and fingerprinting.

Longmeadow officials have also enlisted the services of a contractor to clean the affected playground area.

Read Also: England's NHS Delays Routine Offering of Puberty-Blocking Drugs To Minors, Calls for More Evidence

Massachusetts Playground Closed for Child Safety

According to USA Today, while the playground area has been temporarily fenced off for thorough cleaning, the rest of Bliss Park remains accessible to the public.

Authorities are urging anyone with information about the incident to come forward and assist the Longmeadow Police in their efforts to solve the case.

As the investigation progresses, community members and parents are anxiously awaiting updates on the identification and apprehension of the perpetrators.

The acid attack on the Massachusetts playground has raised concerns about the safety and security of recreational spaces for children.

Local officials and community leaders have expressed their determination to enhance security measures, ensuring that such incidents do not recur.

The incident serves as a stark reminder of the importance of maintaining vigilance and safeguarding public spaces where children gather to play.

As the investigation into this unsettling acid attack continues, it is essential for individuals to remain vigilant and report any suspicious activities they witness.

The Longmeadow Fire Department, in collaboration with law enforcement agencies, is committed to bringing those responsible to justice.

With an ongoing investigation and collaborative efforts from various agencies, the authorities are determined to apprehend the perpetrators behind this act of violence.

The incident serves as a reminder of the need for heightened security measures and vigilance in public spaces, ensuring the safety and well-being of children at all times.

Related Article: New York City's Food Delivery Workers To Earn Higher Minimum Pay Per Hour With New Rate
Photo: (Photo : ERNESTO BENAVIDES/AFP via Getty Image)

Mourners in Ecuador were taken aback when they heard peculiar noises emanating from a coffin during a funeral service. What seemed like a scene out of a horror movie turned out to be a shocking reality as Bella Montoya, a retired nurse who had been declared dead, was discovered to be alive and breathing. According to NBC, this astonishing incident occurred after Montoya was believed to have suffered a stroke and cardiac arrest, according to her family and officials.

Gilberto Barbera, Montoya's son, recounted the unnerving experience to The Associated Press, stating, "It gave us all a fright." He explained that his 76-year-old mother had been unconscious when the family rushed her to Hospital Martin Icaza de Babahoyo in the central city of Babahoyo. Despite attempts at resuscitation, the attending doctor declared her deceased, as confirmed by a statement from the Ecuadorian health ministry.

Family's Horror: Mysterious Noises Emanate from Coffin, Revealing Woman's Alive State

In a state of mourning, Montoya's family took her to the funeral home on the same day, but they soon heard mysterious sounds emanating from her coffin during the wake. Barbera recalled, "There were about 20 of us there. After about five hours of the wake, the coffin started to make sounds. My mom was wrapped in sheets and hitting the coffin, and when we approached, we could see that she was breathing heavily."

According to The Guardian, the startling turn of events was captured on video immediately after the shocking discovery. The footage showed a coffin resting on the floor of a modest, sparsely furnished, light-blue room, adorned with a silver crucifix and a pedestal fan. Inside the open casket, a frail-looking woman with gray hair could be seen moving her mouth while two men supported her head.

With the realization that Montoya was still alive, she was swiftly transported back to the Hospital Martn Icaza de Babahoyo. The health ministry released a statement, describing her condition as "unstable." Barbera, however, expressed concerns about her prognosis, stating that the doctors had not given them much hope.

In response to the incident, the health ministry took immediate action by forming a committee in collaboration with other government agencies to investigate the premature declaration of death. Such a mistake raises questions about the protocols and procedures followed by medical professionals and highlights the importance of ensuring accuracy in determining a person's vital signs.

Read Also: Four Kids Orphaned After Father Allegedly Shoots His Wife and Commits Suicide

Medical Mistake: Investigation Launched as Woman Mistakenly Declared Dead and Almost Buried

Ecuador's public healthcare system offers universal coverage, aiming to provide comprehensive medical services to its population. Despite being a middle-income country, Ecuador has earned recognition for its healthcare system's efficiency. The Bloomberg Health-Efficiency Index ranks it among the top 50 globally, taking into account factors such as government spending and life expectancy.

Following the shocking incident on Friday, the health ministry sought to reassure the Ecuadorian population by affirming its commitment to providing health services at all levels of care. The incident serves as a reminder of the complexities and challenges faced by healthcare professionals and the need for continuous improvement in medical practices and standards.

As Montoya continues her battle for recovery, her case sheds light on the importance of accurate diagnosis, thorough examination, and vigilant monitoring in medical settings. It also prompts a broader conversation about the quality of healthcare systems worldwide and the measures in place to prevent similar incidents from occurring in the future.

In the wake of this extraordinary event, it is crucial for authorities to conduct a thorough investigation and implement the necessary changes to prevent such misdiagnoses. The wellbeing and safety of patients must remain the utmost priority, ensuring that every individual receives the highest standard of care throughout their medical journey.

Related Article: Mom's Decomposing Body with Maggots Prevented an Open Casket Wake; Family Sues NY Funeral Home
Photo: (Photo : JOSEPH PREZIOSO / Getty Images)

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is set to convene a meeting on Thursday to deliberate on updates for the next round of COVID boosters, with a particular emphasis on targeting XBB strains that may circulate in the coming fall.

The FDA's crucial decision-making process aims to ensure that drug manufacturers have sufficient time to produce the updated shots.

Drawing inspiration from the annual flu shot selection process, scientists will assess the prevalent strains and make informed predictions about the most prominent ones to be included in the vaccine.

FDA Evaluates the Need for Updated COVID Boosters

According to Politico, in their ongoing efforts to combat the evolving landscape of COVID-19, the FDA is gearing up for its second update to the COVID vaccines.

Previously, in December 2020, the FDA authorized the initial versions of the vaccines, which solely targeted the original coronavirus strain.

Last year's update granted authorization for shots designed to tackle the original strain, along with the BA.4 and BA.5 omicron subvariants, although these strains are no longer in circulation within the United States.

With the new round of updates on the horizon, the FDA's focus now turns to addressing the XBB strains.

These variants, originating from two omicron subvariants and first surfacing in October, have continued to emerge since last fall.

As of the latest data from the CDC, XBB.1.5 is currently the dominant strain in the United States, accounting for approximately 40% of all new COVID cases.

Following closely are XBB.1.16, nicknamed "Arcturus" on social media, and XBB.1.9.1, comprising approximately 18% and 12% of new cases, respectively.

Fortunately, the XBB strains have not caused a surge in cases comparable to previous variants.

In their briefing documents released on Monday, FDA scientists highlighted the importance of redesigning boosters to specifically target the circulating omicron sublineages more closely.

Real-world studies have revealed that the current updated boosters in use in the U.S. do offer protection against XBB.1.5, albeit with lower antibody levels compared to the immunity conferred against BA.4 and BA.5.

According to Reuters, based on these findings, the scientists recommend an updated strain composition for COVID-19 vaccines to enhance their effectiveness during the 2023-2024 vaccination campaign.

Read Also: Michigan State University Reveals Memorial Plan for Victims of February Mass Shooting

Determining the Specific XBB Lineage for Boosters

The World Health Organization (WHO), following suit, recommended in May that the forthcoming round of COVID boosters focus on XBB subvariants.

According to NBC News, echoing this sentiment, the European Medicines Agency also endorsed the WHO's recommendation in June.

Notably, the WHO traditionally offers recommendations for the annual flu vaccine, which countries, including the United States, typically adhere to.

The FDA's Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee, composed of knowledgeable experts, will play a crucial role in the decision-making process.

During Thursday's meeting, the committee members will deliberate on which particular XBB lineage should be incorporated into the vaccine.

However, it remains uncertain if the updated vaccines will be recommended for everyone in the upcoming fall.

In parallel, the CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices is scheduled to convene next week to discuss updated COVID boosters, along with other vaccine-related matters.

Regarding the composition of the new vaccines, the inclusion of the original coronavirus strain, identified in late 2019, remains undecided.

The WHO proposed a monovalent vaccine approach, targeting only one circulating strain, while FDA scientists also mentioned the idea in their briefing documents.

Dr. Isaac Bogoch, an infectious disease specialist at the University of Toronto, questions the added benefit of including the original strain given the substantial divergence of current circulating strains from the original variant.

As the FDA advisers gather on Thursday, their discussions will shape the future of COVID boosters, aiming to tackle the emerging XBB strains and ensure the ongoing protection of the population against the ever-evolving landscape of the virus.

Related Article: New York City Passes Bill for Transparent Hospital Pricing: Healthcare Accountability and Consumer Protection Act
Photo: (Photo : Bill Pugliano / Getty Images)

A heartbreaking incident unfolded in the quiet neighborhood of Rolling Oaks on Sunday evening when a 2-year-old child died in an accidental shooting involving an unsecured firearm in Michigan.

Local authorities responded to a distressing report of a shooting at approximately 6 p.m., according to a statement released by the Howell Police Department.

The tragic incident occurred after the young child gained access to an unsecured firearm, resulting in an unintended discharge, as the police statement revealed.

Emergency services swiftly transported the victim to a nearby hospital, where, devastatingly, the child was pronounced dead.

Unsecured Firearms' Alarming Accidental Shootings Involving Children

In the wake of this devastating event, as per NBC News, both the Howell Police Department and the Livingston County Sheriff's Office have remained tight-lipped, refraining from providing additional details about the incident.

This silence has left the community grappling for answers and seeking a better understanding of what transpired that led to such a tragic loss.

Regrettably, incidents involving children accessing unsecured firearms are not uncommon, and the consequences can be devastating.

Shockingly, nearly every day, there is a report of a child shooting themselves or others due to unsecured firearms, as reported by the gun-violence prevention nonprofit Everytown for Gun Safety.

According to ABC, Everytown data collected between 2015 and 2022 revealed that at least 895 children under the age of 5 and preschoolers had the ability to shoot themselves or others, resulting in injuries or fatalities for at least 933 children.

These staggering figures serve as a grim reminder of the urgent need for enhanced firearm safety measures, especially in households with young children.

The Howell shooting incident comes in the wake of recent legislative efforts in Michigan aimed at addressing firearm safety concerns.

Less than two months ago, Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer signed bills into law establishing safe storage requirements for firearms.

The new legislation mandates that firearms be stored unloaded and securely locked with locking devices or in locked boxes when children are likely to be present.

Governor Whitmer emphasized the significance of these actions during the bill signing ceremony, expressing that the implementation of universal background checks and secure storage requirements is a crucial and overdue measure that will effectively protect lives by preventing firearms from falling into the possession of criminals, domestic abusers, and children within households.

Read Also: 19-Year-Old Tanishq Mathew Abraham Makes History as Youngest Ph.D. Graduate in Biomedical Engineering

Gun Safety and the Protection of Children

CBS reported that according to Everytown for Gun Safety, firearms remain a leading cause of death for children under the age of 18 in the United States, with unintentional shootings accounting for 5% of annual gun-related deaths among children 17 and younger.

These statistics underscore the critical need for increased awareness and responsible firearm ownership, particularly when children are present in households.

As the investigation into the Howell shooting continues, the heartbreaking loss of a 2-year-old child serves as a somber reminder of the devastating consequences that can result from unsecured firearms.

The circumstances surrounding the incident remain unclear, including whether the child was supervised at the time.

While authorities work diligently to uncover the facts, this tragic event should prompt renewed efforts to prioritize gun safety, ensuring that firearms are responsibly stored and secured, thereby preventing further accidents and safeguarding the lives of innocent children.

Related Article: Family Fun on Father's Day: 10 Ideas for Enjoyable, Memorable Moments

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Photo: (Photo : Porapak Apichodilok from Pexels)

Swimming is one of the most beneficial activities for all ages, so it's easy to decide that your young children should be introduced to the water as early in life as possible. The American Academy of Pediatrics now says that kids as young as one year old can safely begin to learn to swim, while some of the professional schools in the USA providing swimming lessons for babies have found great success with specialized introductions from just a few months old.

Drowning is the water subject that no one likes to think about, but the fact is that it's the most common cause of accidental death for children in the first four years of life. So, trying to "drown-proof" a child is a big thought in the back of every new parent's mind. The problem is that the majority of incidents happen in buckets and tubs up until the age of four, and only in swimming pools from ages after that.

There are two schools of thought about the best way to introduce babies and very young children to the water, and two types of actual schools that exist for this. One type is the traditional swimming school, and the other is what we might call survival swim lessons, which relies on self-rescue.

The question many parents have to ask themselves is, are we teaching kids to survive in accidental exposure to water, or are we teaching them to love the water as a fun environment, and to turn into water babies?

The swimming schools and the survival schools both assert that there's no such thing as drown-proofing a child, since accidents and panic continue to happen. Parents must simply be constantly vigilant at all times.

Given all this, how should parents choose to introduce their children to the water?

The Two Baby Swim Methods

"Survival swim lessons" deliberately tip or entice a baby into the swimming pool, and insist that the parent stay out of the water on the edge. With an instructor close by, the baby eventually floats on its back and waits for rescue.

By contrast, the regular swimming schools insist on having the parent in the water with the infant during its first stages of learning to teach a love of the water in the security of the arms of their parent. This seems the most crucial difference for parents to consider: do you want to be separated from your baby during this moment of insecurity, or do you want to be right there holding and engaging with your baby while they learn a new skill, as you have been since birth (and before) every step of the way?

Survival swim lessons say that an infant introduced into water will overcome fear by discovering that they can float. The swimming school says that there is no need to discover this fact in a potentially trauma-inducing way, especially when a method exists that uses loving support.

Science, meanwhile, has no clear way to resolve this debate, since a formal clinical trial would require a cohort of babies who by definition cannot volunteer. So as parents, we are left to our own choices.

Childhood trauma can be a very elusive thing, something that can last for the entire life of the individual, and often not be recognized for decades. And while the survival swim schools cite millions of successful water introductions, testaments also exist from parents whose child was badly traumatized by self-rescue methods, sometimes developing a clear aversion to water, and sometimes reacting in other ways.

Pros and Cons

Separation from the parent during a plunge into water may be the very first time a baby has been separated from its parent, and learning water survival may not be the best time for this to happen for the child. It's a tough-love approach, and parents must decide if love will conquer the toughness. In the traditional swimming classes, this dilemma never occurs, and the approach to water ability happens gradually and always with parental support.

Waiting to be rescued in the survival school strikes many people as counter-productive: the back float is not the same as swimming, and the swimming school teaches a baby not only to float but also to maneuver independently, and how to get into and out of the water.

The survival swim lessons typically include sessions of about 10 minutes, over a period of 4-6 weeks, and then the treatment is ended. By contrast, swimming schools have much longer sessions, in graduated classes that form a coherent curriculum aimed at the child becoming an accomplished swimmer.

The survival school says that muscle memory has been established during this short exposure. The swimming schools question if this muscle memory lasts very long (as long as childhood trauma?), and point out that this alone doesn't turn any child into an accomplished swimmer.

The swimming schools develop learned skills in children that are enthusiastically embraced and that build on previous development to get ever better and more accomplished in the water. This is a result that can keep the individual in a physically beneficial activity for a lifetime, even into old age.

Conclusion

Many parents will sign their kids up for survival swim lessons without knowing that there are completely alternate ways to teach them to be comfortable in the water. Since everyone agrees that there can be no such thing as "drown-proofing," the question arises, what goal is a parent looking for with swim lessons? It seems logical that the only goal worth pursuing in the water is to learn how to be safe around all bodies of water, entering only when given permission, and propelling to safety while enjoying the healthy experience.

The choice as parents is ours to make.
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I published a new article in Meridian Magazine yesterday, and I hope that somebody, somewhere, will read it: Did Christ Visit England?

Our superb Latter-day Saint guide here in the United Kingdom, Peter Fagg, shared a couple of quotations with us a few days back that, with his kind help, I want to share with you. The first comes from President Lorenzo Snow. On 1 January 1901, in the Tabernacle of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Salt Lake City, President Snow delivered a Greeting to the World at special Centennial Services to mark the beginning of the twentieth century. Among other things, he said the following:

As a servant of God I bear witness to the revelation of His will in the nineteenth century. It came by His own voice from the heaven, by the personal manifestation of His Son, and by the ministration of holy angels . . . He will assuredly accomplish His work, and the twentieth century will make its advancement towards the great consummation. Every unfoldment of the nineteenth century in science, in art, in mechanism, in music, in literature, in poetic fancy, in philosophical thought, was prompted by His Spirit, which before long will be poured out upon all flesh that will receive it.

And, truly, the nineteenth century was marked by spectacular and increasingly rapid progress in many areas, not least among them steamships, the railroad, telegraphy, the rise of mass media, the invention of the telephone, and so forth. James Clerk Maxwell laid the foundation for modern physics and engineering. (See my recent blog entry Science and Religion: A Great Scottish Example. ).

The emergence of photography and the development of recording devices made it possible to preserve the past in a way that had never before been possible. Consider, for example, the remarkable fact that we are actually able to listen to a great apostolic missionary, a veteran of the mission of the Twelve to England who had been called to the apostleship by the Prophet Joseph Smith in 1839, as he bears his testimony in his own voice: It can be heard at Richard Neitzel Holzapfel and Steven C. Harper, This Is My Testimony, Spoken by Myself into a Talking Machine: Wilford Woodruffs 1897 Statement in Stereo. For background, see Richard Neitzel Holzapfel and Stephen H. Smoot, Wilford Woodruffs 1897 Testimony.

And we should not neglect achievements in literature by such writers as William Blake (on whom see my already mentioned article in Meridian Magazine, Did Christ Visit England?) and William Wordsworth (see my recent blog entry titled Intimations of Antemortality). In this regard, a passage from Prometheus Unbound: A Lyrical Drama in Four Acts, by the tragically short-lived English poet Percy Bysshe Shelley (1792-1822), is worthy of note. It is the second passage that Im borrowing for today from Peter Fagg. Said Shelley: The great writers of our own age are, we have reason to suppose, the companions and forerunners of some unimagined change in our social condition or the opinions which cement it. The cloud of mind is discharging its collected lightning, and the equilibrium between institutions and opinions is now restoring or is about to be restored.
A flagbearer hopeful of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Dr. Owusu Afriyie Akoto, has told world leaders and captains of industry to divert a chunk of their investments into Ghana and Africas agricultural sector for good returns.



Ghana and Africa, he noted, are the worlds biggest hope for global food security by 2050, hence an investment in the continents agricultural sector is the surest bet one can ever make on his or her investment.



He has therefore assured them of Ghana and for that matter the rest of Africas readiness to provide them with the conducive and enabling environment for their investment.



Ghana and Africa are ready to receive your investment in this era of our agricultural transformation, he noted.



Delivering his keynote address as the Special Guest of Honor at the African Investors Council Forum in Turkey on Tuesday, June 6, 2023, under the theme Agricultural Development and Investment Opportunities in Africa (Ghana as a case study), Dr. Akoto said Ghana and Africa possess the greatest potentials to feeding 9.7billion people globally by 2050.



This, he said, could be achieved if Ghana and Africa are able to align themselves properly by strengthening all sectors of their economies and transforming agriculture sustainably, believing that the transformational drive could propel the continent to be the driving force in an emerging economic order in the areas of Food, Renewable Energy, Water and Big Data.



According to Dr. Akoto, despite the impacts of COVID-19 and the effects of climate change on agricultural production as well as political unrest across the continent, macroeconomic instability, and the raging debt crisis that many African governments face, the agricultural sector offers immense and significant opportunities for transforming Africas economy from a net importer of food to the provider of food to the rest of the world.



According to analysis by McKsiney, if agricultural development gets the necessary financial investment, smallholders across Africa could produce two to three times more cereals and gains. In turn, this would add 20% more cereals and grains to the current worldwide annual output of 2.6billion tones.



With a strong belief that Africa could become the food basket to the rest of the world, Dr. Akoto went on to challenge all African governments, the private sector and anyone who has a stake in the economic development of Africa, to explore a new strategy to unlock the wealth of the continent for the direct benefit of the people in a meaningful and sustainable way.



It is time we stop perceiving Africa as a potential investment destination but as an actual investment choice for Regional Trade and Foreign Direct Investments. It is time to create more mutually beneficial opportunities for trade, investment and collaboration with the African continent. To achieve this would require collaboration and political will of international actors to provide a level playing field in global trade  making it more fair and mutually rewarding, he asserted.



Zero in on Ghana as the best destination of choice for investors, the former Food and Agricultural Minister highlighted the strong foundation he has laid for the West African nations agricultural sector, combining policies with regulations to achieve sustained rapid economic growth.



Under my tenure as the Minister for Food and Agriculture in Ghana, in 2019, I initiated the establishment of the Tree Crop Development Authority under an Act of Parliament, Act 1010. The Tree Crop Development Authority (TCDA), established in 2020, seeks to coordinate and promote the development of six tree crops  cashew, rubber, oil palm, coconut, mango and Shea. The goal of the Authority is to develop, produce, and distribute the selected cash crop seedlings to farmers so as to produce and generate a combined potential of export earnings between US$6 to US$12 billion per year after 8-10 years of implementation. At their full development, the additional US$6 to US$12 billion per year in earnings can substantially increase the less than US$2billion annual earnings from cocoa, the current highest foreign exchange earner for Ghana for over a century, he emphasized.



Dr. Akoto further took his audience through the establishment of the National Cocoa Rehabilitation Program which was designed to put in measures to support the private sector to scale up cocoa production, expand local cocoa processing, promote market expansion of the export of cocoa products into new markets and for vigorous promotion to boost domestic and international consumption.He also spoke highly of the construction of Greenhouse Training Centers with attached commercial units at Dawhenya, Akumadan and Bawjiase for the training of 537 youth in high-quality vegetable production.



"The creation of a Poultry Development Authority, Grains Development Authority (yet to be passed by Parliament) and the Horticultural Development Authority (at Cabinet) and a proposed legislation requiring all commercial banks to increase loanable funds to agriculture and its value chains are all veritable initiatives under my tenure to make the Agric sector the brain hub to achieve Ghanas economic independence and in other words wean itself from excessive borrowing . The recent experiences from Ghana clearly indicate that prioritizing public resources to promote agriculture in general and the interest of smallholdings can yield very positive results in the effort to transform the Agricultural sector in African economies. These positive impacts open up new investment opportunities in agro-processing and other businesses down the value chain. Serving the burgeoning domestic urban and export markets should generate the foreign exchange and domestic revenues needed to fund industry, education, health, roads and other infrastructure, he posited.



Invest in women in agriculture



Dr. Akoto, who is also a former two-time Member of Parliament for Kwadaso in the Ashanti Region said for agriculture to experience exponential growth in the African continent, much will depend on women who contribute to over 70% of food production.



He has therefore, charged African governments to prioritize investing in women in the agriculture sector.

Source: Peacefmonline.comn









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Former Secretary to the Inter-Ministerial Committee on Illegal Mining (IMCIM), Charles Bissue, has been declared wanted by the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) after failing to respond to an invitation.



The invitation is in relation to an ongoing investigation into suspected corruption within the dissolved IMCIM.



The Office of the Special Prosecutor views his failure to honour the invitation as a significant obstruction to the investigation and has thus declared him wanted.



The Office of the Special Prosecutor views his failure to honour the invitation as a significant obstruction to the investigation and has thus declared him wanted.



Mr. Bissue, who recently filed a writ at the High Court in Accra to prevent the OSP from prosecuting him, failed to honour the invitation sent by the Special Prosecutor.



The investigation is focused on alleged corruption involving the disbanded IMCIM.



In December 2022, Mr. Bissue initiated legal proceedings by issuing a Writ of Summons and Statement of Claim against the OSP and two others after the OSP announced the conclusion of investigations into corruption allegations made by Tiger Eye P.I. and Anas against him.



In January 2023, Mr. Bissue amended the writ and filed an injunction to restrain the OSP from further investigating and prosecuting him.











Source: graphiconline.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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In a bid to bolster the government's Green Ghana initiative, Vodafone Ghana embarked on a tree planting exercise, demonstrating its commitment to environmental preservation.



The event, held on June 9, 2023, at Accra Girls SHS, was attended by a diverse group of participants, including VGMA Green Award winner Worlasi, staff of Ayawaso North Municipal Assembly, Agro Ecom, staff of the Vodafone Ghana Foundation, the HR Director of Vodafone Ghana, Hannah Ashiokai Akrong, and the Director for Legal and External Affairs at Vodafone Ghana, Preba Greenstreet.



Preba Greenstreet emphasised the company's dedication to environmental stewardship. "As custodians of our planet, we have a solemn duty to protect and preserve it. Vodafone's nationwide presence provides us with an opportunity to demonstrate our commitment to sustainability and to actively contribute to greening

Ghana," she said.



Preba further highlighted the company's vision of providing environmental benefits wherever it operates. "We aim to plant trees that will offer shade, sustenance, and fruits, contributing to a greener Ghana, cleaner air, beautiful scenery, and improved mental health," she added.



The event also saw the participation of Accra Girls SHS, represented by Assistant Head of Administration, Gladys Kuetuadu. She revealed that the high school has been actively involved in the Green Ghana initiative since its inception. "We have successfully maintained 90% of our trees," she proudly announced, expressing optimism about the partnership with Vodafone Ghana to expand the country's green cover.



Ms. Kuetuadu also appealed to the Vodafone Ghana Foundation to assist in refurbishing the school's ageing structures to prevent the need for new construction that could lead to the uprooting of mature trees and the destruction of the school's virgin forest.



C2 General



Vodafone Ghana's commitment to environmental sustainability is not new. Since 2016, the company has been actively involved in protecting lands from degradation and exploitation through its Green Awards initiative which include recognising artistes who promote the green agenda at the Vodafone Ghana Music Awards, digitalising its top-up process to the point where, as of 2022, the company has ceased scratch card production entirely. Vodafone Ghana has also adopted about 45 plots of land, the largest the be adopted by any corporate entity in Ghana to ensure the sustainability of the Achimota forest.



Additionally, Vodafone Ghana's solarisation efforts are supporting the environment by reducing greenhouse gas emissions. The company has started with the solarisation of two key exchanges in Accra  Dansoman and Achimota.



The solarisation projects are part of Vodafone Ghana's strategy to take full control of its electricity requirements, manage them more efficiently, and reduce costs.

Source: Peacefmonline.com









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A GROUP of heavily armed robbers have snatched a pickup vehicle at gunpoint from a driver, took away an amount of GH39,000 and later dumped the car and fled.



The vehicle, with registration number GT 9163-21, belongs to Zonda Tech Ghana Company Ltd, and it was reportedly snatched from the driver at the entrance of the company at Sabin Akrofrom at 11pm on June 4, 2023.



The driver and another person onboard the vehicle were said to have driven the car all the way from Tema to the Ashanti Region and they were entering the companys premises when the hoodlums struck.



Four men, who were wielding sophisticated weapons, suddenly ordered the occupants of the vehicle, including the driver, to alight from it or be shot.



Out of panic, the occupants of the vehicle, reportedly alighted from the car and left behind a staggering amount of GH39,000 and one iPhone.



On the 04/06/23 at 2315 hrs Bright Acheampong of Adjamasu and Yan Xing the branch manager of Zonda Tech Ghana Company Ltd at Sabin Akrofrom and the former reported to Trede Police that, on the 04/06/23, he drove the company car Danfin Zonda Pickup No GT 9163-21 from Tema and when they reached the entrance of the company at 2300 hrs and while waiting for the security guard to open the gate, four men appeared from the darkness of which three of them were holding pump action guns each.



They dragged them from the vehicle and sped off with GH39,000.00 and one iPhone which was in the vehicle, the Asokwa Divisional Police document indicated.



The police were informed about the incident and a lookout message was quickly sent out by Ashanti Regional Control Room.



Later on, a combined team of patrol men were able to find the vehicle abandoned at a spot at Patase in Kumasi, but the GH39,000 was stolen from the vehicle. The phone was, however, found in the vehicle.



No arrest has been made yet as police investigations were still ongoing when this report was being filed.















Source: Daily Guide









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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Four suspects have been arrested by the police in the relation to a viral victim in which a female victim is being abused.



The Police has confirmed that the incident happened at Kupelga in the Upper East Region.



The suspects have been named as Awizore Amolt, 38, Akolbila Asorwogo, 19, Akolbila Ben, 21 and Atibila Aladago, 37.



They were arrested following a police intelligence operation Tuesday morning [June 13, 2023].



The four suspects are currently in Police custody and assisting the investigation while efforts continue to arrest other accomplices to face justice, the police said in a statement.



Meanwhile, the police said it is in touch with the victim and her family, adding that arrangements have been made for a Police clinical psychologist to provide her psycho-social support.



In the said viral video, some people were seen abusing the victim.



She went through such an ordeal because she was accused of killing her husband.



Read the full post below:



POLICE UPDATE ON VIRAL VIDEO ON ABUSE OF FEMALE VICTIMThe Police have arrested four suspects at Kupelga in connection with the viral video in which a female victim is seen being subjected to inhumane and degrading treatment by a group of people.The suspects, Awizore Amolt, Akolbila Asorwogo, Atibila Aladago and Akolbila Ben, were arrested in a Police intelligence operation in the early hours of today, 13th June 2023, following a preliminary investigation into the said video.The four suspects are currently in Police custody and assisting the investigation while efforts continue to arrest other accomplices to face justice.Meanwhile, we are in touch with the victim and her family and arrangements have been made for a Police clinical psychologist to provide her psycho-social support.

Source: graphiconline.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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Secretary to the defunct Inter-Ministerial Committee on Illegal Mining (IMCIM), Charles Bissue, has been declared wanted by the Office of the Special Prosecutor.



The declaration was made due to Mr. Bissues failure to appear and answer questions regarding the ongoing investigation into suspected corruption within the dissolved IMCIM.



Mr. Bissue recently filed a writ at the High Court in Accra in an attempt to prevent the Office of the Special Prosecutor from prosecuting him.



This legal action was in response to the ongoing investigation into alleged corruption involving Prof. Kwabena Frimpong Boateng, the Chairman of the IMCIM.



Sources say Bissue was supposed to appear in court yesterday but was conspicuously absent.

In the writ, Mr. Bissue disclosed that he had received a letter from the Office of the Special Prosecutor, which considered him a necessary person for the investigation and requested his presence for an interview.



However, he failed to honor that invitation.



Furthermore, despite several adjournments in the legal proceedings, Mr. Bissue has not taken any action on the injunction application filed by him. According to the Office of the Special Prosecutor, Mr. Bissues failure to honour the invitation is a significant hindrance to the investigation and has led to his declaration as wanted.



This development is yet another indication of the government of Ghanas commitment to fighting corruption and ensuring that the rule of law is upheld. It is expected that Mr. Bissue will heed the call of the Office of the Special Prosecutor and avail himself for questioning.





Source: Vincent Kubi/Daily Guide









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WILLIAMSPORT  A man that police in Bradford County say was in possession of counterfeit $100 bills when arrested turned out to be a suspect in a Florida bank robbery.

Stormy Chris Randall Giddens Jr., 46, was arrested in Towanda on March 1 after police said they had received information he might possess counterfeit bills.

He was wearing the same clothing as the man caught on surveillance video demanding money in a Truist bank branch in Valrico, Florida, on Feb. 10, Towanda Chief Randy Epler said Wednesday.

Until then, the Hillsborough County Sheriffs Department did not have a name for their bank robbery suspect, he said.

Giddens was not charged in Bradford County but was extradited to Florida where he is being held in lieu of $50,000 bail on a robbery charge. A pretrial conference is scheduled July 11.

The Secret Service took over the investigation of the counterfeit bills, a large quantity of which Epler said were found in Giddens belongings. The bills contained just four different serial numbers, he said.

A U.S. Middle District grand jury Tuesday indicted him on a charge of possessing counterfeit obligations or securities. A forfeiture clause in the indictment indicates a printer was seized.

Reportedly he had been passing the fake bills on his trip to Bradford County where he has relatives, Epler said.

A bail reduction motion filed in Florida states that Giddens has lived in Hillsborough County in the Tampa area his entire life and had been doing home construction.

He is accused there of entering a Truist Bank in Valrico carrying a bag that appeared to be a pipe bomb.

He demanded money but left before getting any, leaving the bag behind, authorities said.

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A father hit his teenage daughter with a beer bottle and then left her and her siblings alone in a Pennsylvania hotel room littered with drugs, according to media reports.

The incident occurred around 9:30. p.m. Monday at a Red Roof Inn on Street Road in Bensalem, according to reports from 6ABC and Fox29.

Juan Vega Figueroa, 35, of Chester, got into an argument with his 15-year-old daughter and then hit her with a bottle, police said.

He then fled the scene, leaving the teen and his two other children, ages 12 and 16, alone in the hotel room, police told the news outlets.

Officers responding to the scene seized 110 baggies of suspected fentanyl in the room, as well as an extended Glock magazine loaded with 10 live rounds.

The children were turned over to Bucks County Children and Youth Services, where their grandmother took custody of them.

Figueroa is facing charges of Simple Assault and Endangering the Welfare of Children. A warrant has been issued for his arrest.

Anyone with information is asked to call police at 215-633-3719.

READ MORE: Driver in I-95 crash died of head trauma, thermal injuries: reports
One woman was killed and two other people have been hospitalized as the result of a shooting in Allegheny County on Tuesday.

The incident occurred in the 2500 block of Allequippa Street in Oakland, at a little before 9:30 p.m., according to reports from WPXI and TribLive.

Police arriving on the scene found two women were shot, according to reports. One of them, later identified by the county medical examiner as Tanika Paul, 29, of Pittsburgh, was taken to a hospital where she died. The second was hospitalized in stable condition.

A man who was also shot drove himself to the hospital. He is currently in critical condition, the news outlets said.

Police told WPXI that the shooting was not random, but the result of an argument that ended in gunfire.

Anyone with information about the event is asked to call Pittsburgh Police at 412-323-7900.
Clay, N.Y.  A woman killed in a hit-and-run Thursday night was walking along the road in Clay to avoid taking a ride with a man who had been drinking, according to the Onondaga County, N.Y., district attorney.

That man stands charged with being the driver who killed her.

Madison Faltisco, 22, of Liverpool, was seen on video walking along the shoulder of Oswego Road Thursday night, said Tom Newton, a spokesperson for the Onondaga County sheriffs office.

She walked because she was concerned about her co-workers drinking and didnt want to get in the car with him, according to DA William Fitzpatrick.

The co-worker, Joshua Schiano, 23, of Clay, has been charged with manslaughter.

On Thursday night, Faltisco was with Schiano at The Gathering Lounge at 7871 Oswego Rd., Newton said. Faltisco and Schiano were co-workers at Smokey Bones in Clay, a friend of Faltiscos told syracuse.com.

The friend said Faltisco contacted her around 9 p.m. Faltisco told her she was at a bar with Schiano and asked if the friend wanted to come hang out. The friend declined but offered them a ride later. Faltisco declined the ride.

Faltisco made three calls to the friend shortly before the hit-and-run, but the friend didnt get the calls.

Around 10:40 p.m., Schiano was driving the vehicle that hit Faltisco near the Seneca Savings branch at 7799 Oswego Rd., Sheriff Toby Shelley said. Thats less than a mile from the bar.

Minutes later, Schiano got into another accident in front of a thrift store at 7595 Oswego Rd. A caller to 911 told dispatchers a driver who was possibly drunk had hit poles holding up the thrift stores sign.

The second crash caused Schianos car to catch fire, Newton said.

A 22-year-old woman died after she was hit by a car on Oswego Road in Clay, New York, Thursday night and found dead on Friday, June 9, 2023. Officers said the car fled the scene. (Darian Stevenson | dstevenson@syracuse.com)

After the crash, Schiano was taken to a hospital, but was in police custody under suspicion of driving while intoxicated, Newton said. Schiano did not suffer serious injuries, deputies said.

Schiano didnt tell investigators that he had hit someone before the second crash, Newton said.

Faltiscos body was found seven hours later.

Schiano was charged with second-degree manslaughter, second-degree vehicular manslaughter and leaving the scene of a fatal vehicle accident, Newton said.

Newton said authorities are still waiting on toxicology reports to determine Schianos blood alcohol level that night.

A memorial on Oswego Road in Clay, New York, on Monday, June 12, 2023 left in memory of Madison Faltisco, 22, who was killed by a hit-and-run driver. (Rick Moriarty |rmoriarty@syracuse.com)

Schiano was arraigned Friday night. A judge set bail at $500,000 bond or $250,000 cash, according to jail records. He was in jail as of Monday afternoon.

Faltisco was a 2018 graduate of the Institute of Technology at Syracuse Central. Her bright light was extinguished much too soon, her obituary said.

Staff writer Darian Stevenson covers breaking news, crime and public safety. You can reach her at dstevenson@syracuse.com
Oysters that were harvested in 2022 in Korea have made people sick recently and the FDA is warning restaurants and retailers not to sell them.

The frozen raw oysters in half shell were harvested between Feb. 10 and Feb. 24, 2022; and April 13 and April 14, 2022, and exported by Dai One Food Company in Korea, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said.

The company has recalled oysters from Designated Area II, including lot numbers D021031, D021041 and D020481.

The FDA said five customers who ate raw oyster shooters at a restaurant in Hawaii on May 10, 2023, became ill. Samples tested positive for norovirus. Another five illnesses were reported by people who ate raw oysters in Minnesota on June 3 and 4 of this year. The oysters were exported by Dai One Food Company.

Norovirus, the FDA said, infection symptoms are diarrhea, vomiting, nausea and stomach pain. Symptoms begin to develop from 12 to 48 hours after consumption and last from one to four days. Infections are more frequent in children, the elderly and people with weakened immune systems.

Last year, the FDA and U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, investigated an outbreak of more than 300 cases of norovirus in the United States and Canada, also linked to raw oysters.

According to the CDC, norovirus is the leading cause of foodborne illness in the United States.

READ MORE: Texas Pete buffalo wing sauce recalled because label mixup fails to note allergen.
Theres nothing quite like waking up during the summertime and hearing the cheerful chirping of birds.

And if you find yourself a lover of watching our avian friends, theres a city in Pennsylvania thats the seventh best in the U.S. to do so.

Lawn Love conducted and published a study which found the top cities for birdwatching in the country.

In creating this study, Lawn Love researchers first established four main categories on which to grade cities: Access; Bird Variety; Popularity; and Conservation. Relevant metrics  Number of Audubon Centers and Sanctuaries; Number of Nests Found in 2023; and Number of Birding Organizations among them  were then mixed in for final rankings.

It was Philadelphia that snatched up that seventh overall spot, ranking seventh also in just the Conservation as well.

(Philadelphia wasnt the only Pennsylvania city to get a mention on the list; should one scroll down to the 52nd overall spot, one would find Pittsburgh.)

As far as top three cities go, those would be, in ascending order: Houston, Texas; San Diego, Calif.; and New York, N.Y.

Soaring to the top overall and in Access and Conservation is New York, reads the study. The Big Apple boasts the most Audubon centers and sanctuaries, birding organizations, and bird nests found so far this year.

NYC also ties with San Diego (No. 2) and Denver (No. 16) for the most birdwatching groups.

As far as the worst cities that birdwatchers should try to avoid, those were found to be Olathe, Kansas; Montgomery, Ala.; and Kansas City, Kansas in dead last.
Charges might be filed against a man who interrupted a childrens track-and-field event last week and verbally accosted a young girl, accusing the 9-year-old of being transgender, according to news sources.

The incident occurred in Kelowna, British Colombia, Canada, and has drawn national attention and condemnation from the premier of the province.

The young girl competing in the track meet last Thursday was not transgender but was attacked because of she had a pixie haircut, according to reports from Newsweek, USA Today and Kelownanow.com.

It all started when Heidi Starr of Kelowna attended the school district-sponsored event along with her ex-wife, Kari Starr, and their daughter, whose name has not been made public.

The fourth-grade girls at the event were taking turns participating at shotput when a grandfather in the crowd interrupted and stood in front of them, confronting one of the organizers, shouting: This is a girls event. Why are you letting boy throw?

The man began to cause a scene. Heidi Starr told USA Today that the man pointed at her daughter and another girl with short hair, asking why they are letting boys participate in the all-girls event and that they should be disqualified from competing in the event.

Heidi Starr immediately defended her child and told the man that the child was indeed a girl.

And he said, Oh yeah, a girl, and he put finger quotes up in the air and said a girl, and he looked at them and he said, If theyre not boys, theyre trans, Starr said to the outlet.

The mans wife joined the altercation and began screaming at Starr and her ex-wife as well, according to reports.

The man even asked Starr for a certificate of proof that her daughter was biologically female, but not before the couple began hurling defamatory insults at Starr and her ex-wife.

His wife started screaming that my ex-wife and I were genital mutilators, pedophiles and groomers, and he demanded certificates confirming that my daughter was born female, she said to news outlets.

Although the man was asked to leave, he refused. Other parents shouted for the man to leave as well. Organizers eventually moved the event, but the man was said to have followed and stared them down until the event was over.

Organizers then walked the couple and their granddaughter to their car to ensure he left before Heidi Starr and her family were able to leave.

The event negatively impacted Starrs daughter, who shook and cried. Additionally, her daughter said that had the man not interrupted, she wouldve won the competition, according to reports.

At first, Starr and the other parents didnt think to contact authorities but now, she said shes pressing charges.

According to a statement from the Central Okanagan School District, the man has been banned from future school events and his granddaughters school for life.

The person(s) who accosted the student and family was not from one of our Central Okanagan Public Schools. In response, the District has worked with other local schools to identify the person(s) and we are taking steps to formally ban them from any District property or events, Superintendent of Schools and CEO Kevin Kaardal said to Newsweek in a statement.

The safety of our students and staff is our top priority, which includes protecting human rights and ensuring safe, inclusive places to learn and work. We expect that adults who are invited to celebrate student success govern their behavior and conduct themselves with civility and respect.

Read More:
As construction equipment hammered away on the fire-damaged southbound lanes of I-95 in north Philadelphia, U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg pledged financial and technical support to replace an overpass that severed a vital highway.

While officials have not identified the driver of the tank truck involved in the Sunday crash that led to the collapse, several Philadelphia media outlets said family members identified the driver as Nathaniel Nate Moody, 53, of Philadelphia. Police could not be reached Tuesday to confirm the drivers identity.

Several family members told NBC Philadelphia that Moodys regular route driving a gasoline tanker for Wawa, which took him in and around the I-95 ramp all the time where the crash happened. The father of three and Army veteran had a spotless driving record, family members told the TV station.

Pennsylvania Transportation Secretary Mike Carroll said the driver was northbound trying to navigate the curve, lost control of the vehicle, landed on its side and ruptured the tank, the Associated Press reported.

Buttigieg made a brief statement after meeting with city and state officials and taking a tour of the crash site, which has now become a construction zone as machines pounded away at the fire damaged southbound lanes of I-95.

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, left, meets with Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney at the scene of a collapsed elevated section of Interstate 95, in Philadelphia, Tuesday, June 13, 2023. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)AP

Gov. Josh Shapiro signed a disaster declaration Monday that allocated $7 million in emergency funding and clears the way for asking for federal assistance. President Joe Biden spoke to Schapiro Tuesday about the federal governments commitment to provide whatever resources are needed to repair I-95 safely and efficiently, state officials said.

Carroll said demolition of the collapsed roadway has begun and is expected to be completed in four to five days. Photos showed about a quarter of the damaged roadway has been removed from I-95 south. The overpass had been rebuilt in 2016 and that section of I-95 carries 160,000 vehicles daily, officials said.

This screen grab from video provided by WPVI-TV/6ABC shows the collapsed section of I-95 as crews continue to work on the scene in Philadelphia, Monday, June 12, 2023. (WPVI-TV/6ABC via AP)

Carroll told the Associated Press said he expects to release a replacement plan on Wednesday for the roughly 100-foot-long section of I-95.

Larry Higgs may be reached at lhiggs@njadvancemedia.com.
Flag Day 2023 is Wednesday, June 14, 2023.

The annual holiday celebrates the symbolism and history behind the American flag each year on the anniversary of the American flags official creation on June 14.

What is Flag Day? Why do we celebrate it?

Flag Day is a celebration of the American flag that occurs every year on June 14 to remember when the Continental Congress introduced our countrys first official flag on June 14, 1777.

The Continental Congress introduced the American flag in the middle of the Revolutionary War at a time when each colony or special interest had its own flag.

The Declaration of Independence made the introduction of a universal American flag necessary.

Congress made a resolution on June 14, 1777, outlining the purpose for a united American flag for the 13 colonies: The flag of the United States shall be thirteen stripes, alternate red and white, with a union of thirteen stars of white on a blue field 

In 1885, a school teacher named Bernard J. Cigrand encouraged his students to reflect on the symbolism behind the American flag.

Eventually, he came up with a proposal to establish an annual observance for the nations flag and penned an article called the Fourteenth of June in the Chicago Argus newspaper. To this day, he is regarded as the Father of Flag Day.

Since then, there have been 27 different versions of the American flag, and stars have been added as states joined the Union.

The flag in its current state dates to July 4, 1960, when Hawaii was recognized as the 50th state on the American flag.

How is Flag Day celebrated today?

On May 30, 1916, President Woodrow Wilson established a national Flag Day on June 14.

President Harry Truman signed legislation in 1949 proclaiming Flag Day as a national holiday, although it was never considered an official federal holiday.

Many Americans celebrate Flag Day by displaying the red, white, and blue flags with 50 stars and 13 stripes in front of homes and businesses.

Some towns and cities hold parades and other events to celebrate the flag, and the American flag is flown at all government buildings.

Is Flag Day an official holiday? Will government offices and businesses be open?

Flag Day is not a federal holiday, but its observance is proclaimed every year by the president of the United States.

Two states also celebrate it as a state holiday. Pennsylvania established June 14 as a state holiday recognizing Flag Day, and New York recognizes the second Sunday every June as a state holiday in honor of Flag Day.

Businesses and government offices will remain open across the country. The U.S. Postal Service will also remain open, and mail service will run as usual.

Why was Flag Day never a holiday?

Flag Day was not included in the federal 1968 Uniform Holiday Act. This legislation that laid out the framework for the 11 official federal holidays and three-day weekend holidays we celebrate.

Katherine Rodriguez can be reached at krodriguez@njadvancemedia.com.
EMPORIUM, Pa.  A female suspect has been taken into custody in a shooting in the district attorneys office in a rural central Pennsylvania county, state police said Wednesday.

Troopers were called at about 3 p.m. Wednesday to the Cameron County district attorneys office in Emporium, state police said.

Police said the victim is believed to have sustained non-life-threatening injuries, and the shooting appears to be an isolated incident although the circumstances are being investigated.

Police said a woman who left in a vehicle after the shooting was later taken into custody. No charges were immediately announced.

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By William Lambers

We must keep supporting Ukraines war victims after the massive flooding caused by the explosion at the Kakhovka hydroelectric power plant dam. Our actions can bring aid and give hope to Ukrainians suffering from Russias brutal invasion.

Thousands of families in the Kherson region of Ukraine are living a nightmare of suddenly losing their homes from rising waters. And landmines from the battlefields are now floating in the water. The flooding is the latest destruction caused by Russias unprovoked assault on its smaller neighbor Ukraine. Its a senseless and unnecessary war that Russia must end by withdrawing all its troops from Ukraine.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres says flooding in Ukraine is yet another example of the horrific price of war on people. The floodgates of suffering have been overflowing for more than a year. That must stop. Attacks against civilians and critical civilian infrastructure must stop.

Each of us can help by donating to Ukraine relief and being an advocate for humanitarian aid and peace. Its our tradition as a nation. During World War II, as we fought Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan, we were also helping war victims.

The National War Fund, which started in 1942, sent aid to countries in need like Britain and France. Malnourished children in Norway, who were living under harsh German occupation, received milk at school because Americans were donating. Today, it is Ukraine that needs the help as its people struggle to save their country from Russias continuing attacks.

Relief agencies are hard at work trying to aid Ukraine. They need our steady support both in terms of donations but also writing letters to Congress asking them to continue support for Ukraine.

Fabrice Martin, Country Director for the charity CARE in Ukraine, says, CARE-Teams and its partners are responding quickly, but we need more financial assistance to help the most vulnerable and provide lifesaving equipment and aid. Resources are needed in so many places in the world right now that humanitarian organizations are having trouble supplying all their missions. 

Donations need to increase to match the vast needs. The UN World Food Program (WFP) gets a large supply of wheat from Ukraine for its relief work in Yemen, Somalia and other countries. This latest flooding has damaged crops in South Ukraine and that is bad for the whole world.Each of us can do something to sustain Ukraines families.

You can donate to CARE, WFP, Save the Children, UNICEF, Catholic Relief Services and so many other agencies that need funding. Our actions can bring food, shelter and hope to Ukraines victims and show they are not forgotten. We must keep up the support until Russia realizes the horror and futility of war and ends the invasion of Ukraine. Then a peace can be forged.

As UN SecretaryGeneral Antonio Guterres says Above all, I appeal for a just peace in line with the UN Charter, international law and the resolutions of the General Assembly.

Your actions today can make a powerful difference in saving Ukraine.

William Lambers partnered with the UN World Food Program on the book Ending World Hunger. "
By Caroline Petrow-Cohen, The Dallas Morning News (TNS)

WASHINGTON  Donald Trump meets the constitutional requirements to become president  hes a natural born U.S. citizen over age 35 whos been living in the country for at least 14 years.

Legally, his multiple indictments, including federal charges related to classified documents that could lead to prison time, wouldnt stop him.

Trump could run for president from behind bars, and its been done before.

Eugene V. Debs made his fifth run for president as the Socialist Party nominee in 1920 while serving a 10-year sentence for encouraging resistance to World War I.

It is perfectly legal to run for president if youre under indictment, if youre on trial, even if youre in prison. Nothing bars you from doing that, said Chris Edelson, a government professor at American University who specializes in presidential power under the Constitution.

Debs collected just 3% of the vote nationwide from behind bars.

If Trump won a second term from prison, it would be so unprecedented that experts arent sure what would happen.

He could attempt to pardon himself  though presidents have clemency power only over federal crimes. That wouldnt help if hes convicted in New York, where he was indicted two months ago on 34 counts related to hush money paid to porn star Stormy Daniels during the 2016 campaign.

It would be inconvenient to say the least if Trump was re-elected president while serving time in prison, University of Texas at Austin government and law professor Jeffrey Abramson said by email. Trump would immediately pardon himself of any federal convictions, even though the issue of whether a president can self-pardon has never been determined.

Its also possible that a prison sentence would be delayed or suspended.

Theres two competing principles, Edelson said. You cant really be president from prison. You cant accomplish both things, so the conclusion might be that ones got to give.

A display seen outside the Wilkie D. Ferguson Jr. U.S. Courthouse, Tuesday, June 13, 2023, in Miami. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)AP

Although Trump technically could run for president from prison, and serve both time and country, the way his trials likely will play out means he likely wont have to.

Trumps trial in the hush money case is set for March 2024, but even if convicted, hes not likely to serve time for those crimes, Edelson said.

Theres more risk of prison time in the federal documents case, he said. That trial has not been scheduled yet.

Even if somehow there was a quick trial and a guilty verdict in the sentence, there would be an appeal, Edelson said. I dont expect theres any scenario where he would be in prison before the election.

The legal battles could certainly hamper Trumps ability to barnstorm the country for votes, and provide ammunition to political adversaries. At the very least hes going to be involved in preparations related to the trial, Edelson said. How does that affect ones ability to campaign, just as a logistical matter?

If Trump campaigned and won, he would likely use his power as president to shut down the prosecution against him, Edelson said.

Theres another looming risk.

None of the charges Trump faces would automatically preclude his election. But special counsel Jack Smith is still reportedly investigating the ex-presidents role in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. Fourteen defendants have been convicted of sedition or pleaded guilty to that charge.

A sedition conviction does bar someone from holding government office under Section Three of the 14th Amendment, which concerns insurrection or rebellion. The provision was designed to keep Confederate officials out of power after the Civil War.

Absent that sort of charge and conviction, winning the presidency would likely make all of Trumps other criminal troubles disappear, Edelson said.

The prospect of that is dizzying, he said. It means that you can escape criminal liability not because youre innocent, but simply because you win an election.
Pennsylvanias long-term care facilities face a slew of issues, including staffing and budgetary shortages, that brought frontline caregivers to the state Capitol on Wednesday to ask lawmakers to more funding.

Long-term care needs a long-term solution and thats continued investment, Medicaid reimbursement and $99.1 million in [next] years state budget, just $12.50 per resident per day, said Zachary Shamberg, president and CEO of the Pennsylvania Health Care Association, a statewide advocacy group for long-term care providers and residents.

This years state budget included a welcomed 17.5% increase in the daily payment toward long-term care residents covered by Medicaid, the first boost in a decade. That combined with federal American Rescue Plan Act funding provided a total of $515 million for long-term care programs.

But long-term care providers say thats not enough to support the projected 66% growth in the commonwealths age 65 and older population in the next 15 years.

If 2022 was about survival, then 2023 is about sustainability, Shamberg said. Who will continue to care?

Shamberg spoke at a press conference with House Republican Leader Bryan Cutler of Lancaster County, and Rep. Patty Kim D-Dauphin and Cumberland counties. Both representatives emphasized the staffing crisis in long-term care facilities.

We need to do a better job of making sure there is a career pathway that is easily taken, and for healthcare workers not to have to make the choice of Do I work or do I go to school? Cutler said.

The Pennsylvania Health Care Association is asking for more state funding to increase the reimbursement of residents reliant on Medicaid and help with staffing shortages.

The problem is not getting better, and in the meantime its getting more expensive. Compassion does not pay the bills, Kim said. It comes down to investing in our workers to make sure that they feel valued and that they can pay for the things that are going on at home.

The COVID-19 crisis saw many long-term care workers walk away from the field, because of concerns about the virus and vaccine mandates.

Noelle Kovaleski has worked in long-term care since she was 15 and is now a nursing home administrator in Lackawanna County. During the COVID-19 crisis, Kovaleski worked for 82 days straight, often 12 to 16 hour days, but said that she feels more pressure now than she did in 2020.

Every day I fear that I am not going to have enough staff to care for my residents. I fear that the staff that I do have will resign to do more lucrative opportunities with less stress and responsibility, Kovaleski said. I worry that I cannot continue to keep up with the wages that my competitors are offering, and I spend sleepless nights trying to figure out how I can get through the next day.

When long-term care facilities dont have enough staff to meet government-mandated requirements, they have to buy more staff from a staffing agency. Kovaleski said that staffing agencies may charge more than double of what the hourly rate is for staff such as registered nurses. This means that long-term care facilities have to shell out more than $40 an hour extra for agency staff.

You just have to do it because you have to meet those ratios, Kovaleski said.

Aside from a budget stipend, Shamberg said the Pennsylvania Health Care Association said talks with legislators have been very, very positive and found it encouraging Cutler and Kim took the time to participate in their news conference.

In politics today we dont see a lot of bipartisan support, Shamberg said. To see leaders from both parties advocating for long-term care and for our most vulnerable population, thats fantastic.

Read more on PennLive:

Who gets Fido in the divorce? Bill seeks to help judges decide who gets custody of pets

How a landmark school funding lawsuit is shaping Pa. state budget negotiations
After making a late switch into Pennsylvanias 10th Congressional District race in 2022, Rick Coplen is getting into the 2024 campaign cycle early.

Coplen, of Carlisle, formally announced Tuesday night he will seek the Democratic nomination for the 10th District seat currently held by U.S. Rep. Scott Perry, a conservative champion who currently serves as chair of the House Freedom Caucus.

Coplens first task?

Convincing Democratic voters to give him that chance.

Twice in the last three years hes been unable to get out of Democratic Party primaries, losing by small margins to more progressive candidates in a bid for a state senate seat in 2020, and then in the race for the Pa. 10th in 2022.

Hell have a contest in this round, too, as the 2022 10th District primary winner Shamaine Daniels, a Harrisburg attorney and city council member, announced her plan to run in 2024 earlier this spring.

In last years race, Coplen ran strongly in his home base of Cumberland County, but Daniels did the same in Dauphin County, which has the largest share of the Democratic base in the district. The two fought almost to a draw in York County.

What makes this time different?

Coplen says time, for one thing.

In 2022, both Coplen and Daniels jumped into the U.S. House race in March, after a surprising decision by former Pennsylvania Auditor General Eugene DePasquale - the 2020 Democratic nominee - that he would not run.

This year, the retired Army officer said, theres time for a more fully-developed campaign.

We have a lot more time to prepare to run a really full-blown Congressional race, Coplen said. A lot more time to perfect our message. A lot more time to raise money.

Coplen said he will use this time to pay particular attention to try to make himself better known in parts of the district where he is least known, especially in Daniels home turf of Harrisburg.

That means the primary may have elements of a rematch, Coplen said, but its not a rerun.

As for Perry, he has not officially announced plans for 2024, but a statement issued Tuesday from campaign spokesman Matt Beynon certainly showed that all systems are pointing to a run for a seventh term for the York County Republican.

Congressman Perry fights every day on behalf of the people of southcentral Pennsylvania, and hes confident that his record of accomplishment will once again be rewarded by voters when they head to the polls next November, Beynon said.

A West Point graduate, Coplen served in combat with the 82nd Airborne Division in Panama, as a V Corps peacekeeping soldier in Bosnia, and as a 2nd Infantry Division soldier on the Korean DMZ.

More recently, he has worked as a teacher and facilitator at the U.S. Army War College. Coplen has also served since 2015 on the Carlisle school board, and has been active in the community through the Carlisle Rotary Club and serves on the board of Carlisles Employment Skills Center.

He and his wife also co-own and operate Rendezvous Run Farm, which boards and trains horses.

Perry has kept the 10th U.S. House District has been tantalizingly out of reach for Democrats in the last three election cycles.

Aside from the 1st District seat in Bucks County, the 10th - a state capital region seat including all of Dauphin County, most of Cumberland County, and about half of York County - generally rates as the next best chance for Democrats to flip a Republican-held seat in Pennsylvania.

But Daniels was unable to do that in 2022, despite a series of revelations in the prior two years about Perrys active role in some of former President Donald J. Trumps efforts to cling to office despite his 2020 defeat to Joe Biden.

One thing Coplens supporters said then and repeated this week is they see Coplen as the kind of centrist Democrat who stands the best chance of pulling votes from independents and Republican voters who are put off by Perrys actions in the wake of the 2020 presidential election.

This year, Democratic voters will have nearly a year to figure it out. The 2024 primary is expected to be held in April.
Meteorologists confirmed a tornado -- possibly the first in the central Pennsylvania region for 2023 -- touched down in York County on Monday afternoon.

According to the National Weather Service, an EF0-level tornado developed at 1:30 p.m. in Conewago Township, with winds reaching close to 75 mph.

Meteorologists said the tornado crossed over Cloverleaf Road and traveled for almost half a mile. The storm caused a few trees to be uprooted between Cloverleaf and Kern roads before lifting at 1:32 p.m. There were no reports of injuries.

The most recent tornado in Pennsylvania landed in a Berks County borough on April 26. Meteorologists said the EF-1 tornado with 90 mph winds caused minor damage.

An EF0-level tornado is considered to be on the weaker end of the scale, as most tornadoes in that category move between 65 and 85 mph, according to National Weather Service.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, not shown, meets with the Mayor of Markham, Frank Scarpitti in Markham, Ont., on Friday, April 29, 2022;Scarpitti says that his municipality and the nine others of York Region should be consolidated into one. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Nathan Denette
A wildfire burning west of Chibougamau, in northern Quebec, is shown in a June 4, 2023, handout photo. Quebec officials say the amount of rain that fell in the northern part of the province where wildfires continue to burn was not significant enough to stamp out the blazes. THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO-SOPFEU, Audrey Marcoux, *MANDATORY CREDIT*
MONTGOMERYAs the states population ages, the Alabama Department of Human Resources is seeking adult foster homes to help protect and care for vulnerable adults at risk for mistreatment.

Adult foster care enables at-risk elderly and disabled adults to stay in homes instead of institutional settings when relocation is necessary to keep them safe.

More than 600 vulnerable adults in Alabama are placed somewhere other than their own homes because of a high risk for abuse, neglect and exploitation. Many require the services of facilities like nursing homes, but some are better suited for homes within their communities. To serve those individuals, DHR hopes to recruit at least one adult foster home in each of Alabamas 67 counties. The state currently has 21 adult foster homes.

Having more adult foster homes will promote greater independence and a better quality of life for vulnerable adults who require minimal care, said Alabama DHR Commissioner Nancy Buckner. We encourage Alabamians with space in their homes to give adult foster care a try and experience the life-changing rewards firsthand.

This program serves adults who can live safely in a home environment but need help or supervision with daily activities. Most have been victimized by family members or caregivers in the past.

Valinda Young, an adult foster care provider in Enterprise, said watching the growth of the adults in her care has been the highlight of her two years in the program.

Since the ladies arrived in my home, they all have shown dramatic improvement, Young said. All had been very much at risk for abuse and neglect before, but they do not have to worry about that anymore. We all work together and support each other like one big family.

Nearly 18% of Alabamians are 65 or older, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. The elderly population has continued to expand in recent years, running parallel to increasing reports of adult abuse, neglect and exploitation.

DHRs Adult Protective Services Division received 12,033 reports statewide in fiscal year 2022, an increase of nearly 115% in the past 10 years.

Gov. Kay Ivey proclaimed June 15 World Elder Abuse Awareness Day in Alabama to raise awareness about the problem.

Those interested in becoming adult foster care providers are encouraged to contact a county DHR office. More information, including eligibility requirements, is available at dhr.alabama.gov/AFC.

DHR also reminds the public to report suspected adult abuse, neglect and exploitation by calling the Adult Abuse Hotline at 1-800-458-7214, emailing aps@dhr.alabama.gov or contacting a county DHR office.

Warning signs include:

Increased fear or anxiety;

Isolation from friends or family;

Withdrawal from normal activities;

Unusual changes in behavior or sleep;

Unexplained injuries, bruises, cuts or sores;

Unsanitary living conditions and poor hygiene; and,

Unusual or sudden changes in financial spending patterns, wills or other important documents.
Ontario hospital workers, not including registered nurses, are set to get an additional 3.75 per cent and 2.5 per cent in wage increases over two years. A sign directing visitors to the emergency department is shown at CHEO, Friday, May 15, 2015 in Ottawa. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld
(TTCO) - Tiep theo loat bai Lo dien 5 ngan hang cho vay sai nguyen tac, TTC cong bo Ket luan cua Thanh tra Chinh phu ve truong hop ngan hang B. Theo o, ngan hang nay a co loat sai pham nhu cho khach hang vay khi am von chu so huu, khong co tai san bao am...




Barca is one of a few racers, like Hattie Harnden, coming from a cross-country racing background (not BMX) and making the transition over to enduro racing. This season, the Czech racer nabbed a 6th place finish at Blue Derby, Tasmania, to back up two top-ten finishes in 2022.



Team Challenge One works closely with

If you missed the launch of the Burn , there are number of details that grab our attention. The first would be the kinematics of the Burn's dual-link design. With a leverage ratio that begins at 3.5:1 and ends all the way down at 2:1, it's no surprise to see Barca running DVO's Jade X coil-sprung damper. Unno suggests running the 165mm rear wheel travel at a deep 35% sag. Unno also built in a high anti-squat figure of 120% when sitting at one-third of the travel.Barca is one of a few racers, like Hattie Harnden, coming from a cross-country racing background (not BMX) and making the transition over to enduro racing. This season, the Czech racer nabbed a 6th place finish at Blue Derby, Tasmania, to back up two top-ten finishes in 2022.Team Challenge One works closely with Emilio Capaldi of Capaldi Suspension tuning to modify her setup depending on the given track conditions. Likewise, the chainring size, tire specifications, and choices for inserts varies at each EDR stop.

Barca Prudkova



Age: 26

Nationality: Czech

Height: 173 cm / 5' 8

Weight: 54 kg / 119 lb

Instagram: @teamchallengeone

26Czech173 cm / 5' 854 kg / 119 lb

Just before the race in Pietra Ligure, we tested both shock types. The Topaz air shock is more for flow trails and JadeX coil shock is better for big drops and jumps and rocky sections. I personally prefer an air shock - it's more like the XCO suspension, but for this race I have a stiffer coil shock adjusted exactly to my feel. It helps me in the pumptrack sections and to absorb rocky sections.  Barca Prudkova

UNNO Burn Details



Frame: UNNO Burn, size 2, 165mm travel

Fork: DVO Onyx 170mm travel, 62 psi

Shock: DVO JadeX 230x65mm, 400 lb/in spring

Wheels: We Are One Composites w/ Industry Nine Hydra hubs

Tires: Michelin Wild Enduro Front - 29x2.4", 16 PSI / 27.5x2.4", 19 PSI

Inserts: Cushcore Pro F/R

Shifting: Shimano XTR shifter and derailleur w/ Benozzi Fastlight cage, Taya TOLV chain

Crankset: Shimano XTR 170mm, Renthal 1XR 34T ring w/ Ochain R

Pedals: HT T2

Brakes: Shimano XTR w/203mm Galfer Shark rotors and pads

Controls: Renthal Fatbar Carbon35 Lite 30mm rise, Apex 40mm stem, Traction Aramid, SendHit Nock V2 handguards

Post & saddle: KS LEV Carbon 150mm

Weight: 15kg / 33lb

More info: unno.com

UNNO Burn, size 2, 165mm travelDVO Onyx 170mm travel, 62 psiDVO JadeX 230x65mm, 400 lb/in springWe Are One Composites w/ Industry Nine Hydra hubsMichelin Wild Enduro Front - 29x2.4", 16 PSI / 27.5x2.4", 19 PSICushcore Pro F/RShimano XTR shifter and derailleur w/ Benozzi Fastlight cage, Taya TOLV chainShimano XTR 170mm, Renthal 1XR 34T ring w/ Ochain RHT T2Shimano XTR w/203mm Galfer Shark rotors and padsRenthal Fatbar Carbon35 Lite 30mm rise, Apex 40mm stem, Traction Aramid, SendHit Nock V2 handguardsKS LEV Carbon 150mm15kg / 33lb

The stem is slammed on top of the headset top cap that feeds the cables in through the 120mm tall head tube. There are also a few spare parts stashed on the bike. A quick-link for the chain is taped to the cables and zip ties are tucked into the bottom of the steer tube.

Protecting the silver paint and clearcoated carbon finish is a tailored protective kit from Ride Wrap. At 173cm tall, Barca is running the S2 size frame with a 470mm reach and a 40mm length stem.

A side-load cage cradles a water bottle between the nearly parallel top and down tubes.

The seat tube is just as long as it looks at 460mm.

Up front, there's a 170mm DVO Onyx with a 44mm offset. The pressure is set to 62 psi, rebound is 8 clicks from closed, low speed is 4 clicks out, and high-speed compression is wide open.

Barca is running a 400 spring with the rebound 2 clicks from closed and the bladder pressure is set to 170 PSI.

SendHit Nock V2 handguards help to protect brake levers in two ways; reduce the levers from rotating on the bar in the event of a crash, and to also ward off pesky branches that might try to grab them unexpectedly.

A 35mm diameter Renthal Fatbar Lite carbon bar with slide-on grips is an interesting combo - control and cush.

Ochain's latest "R" version of their chain damper allows you to externally adjust the degrees of float. Barca has that set to the 9-degree setting and is running a 36-tooth chain ring - beastly!

Benozzi Engineering's Fast Light derailleur cage offers more ground clearance than the stock Shimano XTR one and the large wheel is said to reduce drag.

A Taya TOLV chain adds to the unique parts list. HT's T2 enduro clipless pedals tie into the paint scheme well.

The de-badged We Are One Composites rims are two different widths to tune the tire profile; 27mm wide on the rear wheel and 30mm up front. At the center are 32-hole Industry Nine Hydra hubs.

Barca is running the lighter casing Michelin Wild Enduro "Front" tire with taller lugs than the "Rear" specific version. The rear caliper is tucked neatly inboard and still runs on a regular 148mm-wide rear hub. Galfer 203mm Shark rotors are bolted up front and rear with G1652 E-bike specific pads in the Shimano XTR calipers.

By far one of the wildest and least common bikes seen on the Enduro World Series, or anywhere for that matter, has to be the Unno Burn. This bike in particular belongs to Barca Prudkova of Team Challenge One and takes a boutique frame to the next level with build that includes components like DVO suspension, a chain damping device, and an aftermarket derailleur cage with oversize jockey wheels - this isn't a cookie cutter bike build from the usual brands.
Ren Lin was one of the more colorful personalities on Day 2, often engaging his tablemates in conversation and jokes.

It got serious, though, when he ended up in a hand against Jans Arends in a battle of the blinds.

Lin, who was in the small blind, completed the bet to 250,000 and Arends checked behind.

The dealer placed K26, and the action heated up after Lin led out with 250,000. Arends raised to 800,000, which put Lin in the tank.

Lin alternated glances at the monitor, which scrolled payouts above the table. He then methodically counted out his chips, while using two time bank chips. As the dealer began counting down on the second time bank extension, Lin moved all in for his remaining 3,900,000 and Arends called to put Lin at risk.

Ren Lin: J6

Jans Arends: KQ

Arends top pair had the lead, and Lin needed a lot of help to improve. The dealer, though, ran out 7 on the turn and 9 on the river.

Lin was eliminated in eighth place for $284,979.
Another high-stakes tournament has reached the final table and another familiar face will be returning to the spotlight with a big stack. Jans Arends has made the final six in the second straight high-roller event, but this time will enter as the overall chip leader. Event #29: $100,000 High Roller has reached its final day at the 2023 World Series of Poker and a star-studded lineup is ready to play for the $2,576,729 first-place prize.

Arends is coming off a third-place finish in Event #23: $50,000 High Roller, falling just short of his second career gold bracelet and his first one on the live felt. However, the Dutchman is back for redemption and looking to cash in on the lion's share of the prizepool that is still up for grabs. Arends is widely known as one of the best online players but has recently transferred his skills to the live felt and it's paying off for him.

He will have his work cut out for him when the final six return with many bracelet winners still in the hunt and looking to make their mark in poker history.

Final Table Seat Draw

Seat Player Country Chip Count Big Blinds 1 Cary Katz United States 12,775,000 51 2 Jans Arends Netherlands 16,625,000 67 3 Biao Ding China 8,800,000 35 4 Adrian Mateos Spain 7,175,000 29 5 Chance Kornuth United States 4,600,000 18 6 Jeremy Ausmus United States 5,750,000 23

Cary Katz currently sits alone in second place with a stack of 12,775,000 after a roller coaster of a day. Katz was the chip leader along with a short stack on multiple occasions but finished on a high and will be looking to nab his first piece of jewelry at the WSOP tomorrow.

Biao Ding sits in third place with a stack of 8,800,000 and is the only other player at the table without a gold bracelet. Ding has flown under the radar thus far but has himself right in the thick of things at the business end of the tournament.

The other three players don't need any introduction. With 12 WSOP bracelets between them and tens of millions of dollars on their resumes, they will be looking to hunt down the competition when the action gets underway. Adrian Mateos (7,175,000), Jeremy Ausmus (5,750,000), and Chance Kornuth (4,600,000) are in the hunt again and by no means out of this competition yet.

Day 2 Action

There were 35 players who returned to their seats from Day 1, and they were joined by 15 late entries starting with a fresh stack of 600,000 chips. That brought the total number of entries to 93, smashing the number of 62 in the previous year. A total prize pool of just under $9 million was created, with over $2.5 million going to the winner tomorrow.

With a good portion of the field holding under 20 big blinds to begin the day, the action was furious in the opening levels. Some of the late entries included Phil Ivey, Andrew Robl, Chamath Palihapitiya, and recent $50,000 High Roller champion Leon Sturm, all of who failed to make a deep run on Day 2.

The field was dwindled down to just 26 players on the first break of the day, and the money bubble loomed upon returning to the felt with just 14 places paid. Once down to the final two tables (16 players), the hand-for-hand portion of the tournament began. Stephen Chidwick was the first to bow out when his ace-king was no match for the pocket tens of Ren Lin.

On the stone-cold bubble, there were a couple of short stacks at risk of not making the money, including Jonathan Jaffe. After a raise and three-bet in front of him, Jaffe stuck in the last of his chips from the big blind only to find himself dominated by the big stack of Arends. Jaffe was ousted on the money bubble, and the remaining 14 players were all guaranteed a min-cash of $171,034.

Jonathan Jaffe eliminated on the money bubble

It was time for the short stacks to do their magic, but there were no tricks to be played on this day. In a streamline to the payout desk, 2021 WSOP champion Koray Aldemir, Yang Wang, John Kincaid, David Peters, Kristen Foxen, and Punnat Punsri all fell just short of the official final table.

Lin did most of the heavy lifting, building a stack near the top of the leaderboard just behind Mateos. However, the final table was not kind to the GGPoker ambassador as he doubled up Kornuth and was then bounced by Arends shortly after. With seven players remaining and the dinner break fast approaching, there was a discussion as to whether or not they wanted to keep playing.

Katz had a dinner reservation at Nobu and invited the remaining players to join him at the end of the level. However, after Justin Bonomo shoved all in on the button, Katz called to put him at risk and the two players were flipping. Bonomo was unable to connect with the board and Katz was able to send everyone on an extended dinner break until Wednesday, June 14, when the action will resume.

Final Table Results and Payouts

Rank Player Country Prize 1st $2,576,729 2nd $1,592,539 3rd $1,142,147 4th $833,854 5th $619,919 6th $469,464 7th Justin Bonomo United States $362,279 8th Ren Lin China $284,979

The final six players will return to the felt at the Horseshoe feature table, where the action will be live-streamed on PokerGO. The cards will go in the air at 12 p.m. noon PDT while the live stream will be on a 60-minute delay. There will be roughly 12 minutes remaining in Level 21 with the blinds at 125,000/250,000 with a 250,000 big blind ante. The levels will continue to be 40 minutes in length until a champion is crowned.

The PokerNews live reporting team will be here to bring you all of the live updates in sync with the live stream to avoid spoilers, so be sure to tune in for all of the exciting action.
The second bounty event at the 2023 World Series of Poker at the Horseshoe and Paris Las Vegas begins today with Event #35: $10,000 Secret Bounty No-Limit Hold'em.

This is a brand new event for the WSOP and is expected to have a great turnout. If the success of the million dollar bounty is any indication, this may also break records. This years winner of Event #3: $1,000 Mystery Millions, Tyler Brown, took home a first place prize of $1,000,000. Will the winner of the Secret Bounty fetch a similar top prize? Only time will tell.

Along with a huge prize pool, one lucky player will also get to claim the glory of the very first bracelet in this event. Shaun Deeb just won his sixth bracelet last night. Will he fire away at the secret bounty in hopes of winning number seven? Will Josh Arieh enter and take his shot at tying Deeb's new bracelet count? All these questions will be answered and more. Don't miss your shot at one of the top prizes or top bounties.

Cards will be in the air at 12 p.m. local time and players start with 60,000 in tournament chips. Blinds start at 100/200 with a 200 big blind ante and levels will be 40 minutes, with a 15-minute break at the conclusion of every three levels. There will be a 60-minute dinner break after Level 9 ( 6:30 p.m.). Late registration ends after 12 levels ( 7:30 p.m.) and players will restart Day 2 at 12 p.m. local time on Thursday, June 15th.

Stay tuned into PokerNews for all the updates on the secret bounty right from the tournament floor.
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Donald Trump chose to give a political speech after being arraigned on federal charges and some of the statements that he made will likely be used against him at trial.

There were two relevant moments that were bad for Trumps legal defense:

Trump called the government documents his presidential papers:

Trump calls the government documents that he stole his presidential papers, "Threatening me with 400 years in prison for possessing my own presidential papers, which just about every other president has done." pic.twitter.com/ECkz3V91vF  Sarah Reese Jones (@PoliticusSarah) June 14, 2023

Trump said:

Charging a former president of the United States under the Espionage Act of 1917 It wasnt meant for this. An act for a crime so heinous that only the death penalty would do and threatening me with 400 years in prison for possessing my own presidential papers, which just about every other president has done. Is one of the most outrageous and vicious legal theories ever put forward in an American court of law. The Espionage Act. Has been used to go after traitors and spies. It has nothing to do with a former president, legally keeping his own documents as president, a law that applies to this case is not the Espionage Act, but very simply the Presidential Records Act.

None of what Trump said is true or correct. He doesnt seem to know what the Presidential Records Act is, or that it applies to sitting presidents, and the legal requirement to preserve all documents while in office. Trump also argued that the government documents are his personal presidential papers, which they are not. Classified documents are not presidential papers.

Trump also claimed that the DOJ staged the photographic evidence:

Trump claims the DOJ photographic evidence was staged. pic.twitter.com/iAc2yEUzBK  Sarah Reese Jones (@PoliticusSarah) June 14, 2023

If Trumps lawyers are going to argue in court that the physical evidence against him was staged, Judge Cannon might buy it, but an appeals court wont. Trump also made lots of what about claims involving Hillary Clinton and Joe Biden, with the main point being that Biden was the real corrupt person here, not Donald Trump, which isnt a compelling argument when the scoreboard reads Trump 71 felony charges Biden 0.

The Bedminster fiasco was the sort of speech that Trump would give in the past, and it would be chalked up to his lying himself into a state of delusion, but just like how he defamed E. Jean Carroll on CNN after losing a defamation lawsuit, Trump still hasnt realized that what he says can and will be used against him.

Each time Trump speaks, he takes another step closer to federal prison.
Laman Ismayilova

Chairman of the Azerbaijan State Tourism Agency Fuad Naghiyev and the Israeli Minister of Tourism Haim Katz have discussed the current state of Azerbaijani-Israeli tourism relations ties.

The sides touched upon the activities of the Azerbaijan Tourism Board's office in Tel Aviv and exchanged views on increasing the number of direct flights between the two countries, student exchange programs, cooperation in B2B (business to business) and B2C (business to consumer) formats and other issues, Azernews reports.

It was proposed to invite a delegation of Israeli companies to Azerbaijan for a study tour in order to attract investment in the tourism sector of the Azerbaijan's liberated territories.

Within the framework of the visit, an event dedicated to Azerbaijani tourism was held in Tel Aviv, organized by the State Tourism Agency, the Azerbaijan Tourism Board and Azerbaijan Airlines CJSC (AZAL).

Around 70 travel companies and representatives of the Israeli media, as well as representatives of hotel and travel companies that are members of the Azerbaijan Hotel Association (AOA) and the Azerbaijan Travel Agencies Association (ATAA) attended the event, aimed at showcasing the country's tourism opportunities.

In his speech, Fuad Naghiyev noted that such events, which serve as a platform for strengthening bilateral contacts and business ties, also symbolize the constantly developing friendly relations between the two nations.

He outlined that the expansion of tourism ties with Israel, support for new cooperation initiatives and assistance in mutual promotion of the tourism potential of the two countries are the main goals of the State Tourism Board.

The Azerbaijani Ambassador to Israel Mukhtar Mammadov recalled the official visit of Israeli President Yitzhak Herzog to Azerbaijan last month.

During the visit, President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev and Israeli President Yitzhak Herzog discussed the issues of increasing the level of mutual tourist flow.

Stressing that successful cooperation ties have been established between the two states in a number of areas, the ambassador expressed confidence that the opening of the Azerbaijani embassy in Israel will contribute to the deepening and development of bilateral relations in the tourism field.

AZAL Sales and Partnerships Director Chingiz Mursalov said that starting from June 28, the number of flights from Baku to Tel Aviv will be increased.

He also announced the acquisition of new aircraft for the convenience of flights and the provision of quality passenger service.

These steps are being taken to increase the flow of tourists between Azerbaijan and Israel, to open opportunities for guests to get acquainted with the unique culture, history and sights of the two countries.

Azerbaijan's tourism products and AZAL flight destinations were also presented as part of the event. The meeting participants also got acquainted with the photo exhibition "Azerbaijan through the eyes of Israeli photographers".

In 2022, the number of tourists from Israel to Azerbaijan quadrupled compared to the previous year and amounted to 23,935 people

In the first five months of 2023, the number of Israeli citizens visiting Azerbaijan increased by 70 percent compared to the same period last year and reached 8,611 people.

Currently, direct flights from Tel Aviv to Baku are operated seven times a week.
Welcome to this weeks edition of Lets Talk, where we dive into the secrets of creating an impressive website that will help your small business thrive in todays technological age.

Whether youre a budding entrepreneur or an established business owner, having a captivating online presence is essential to captivate your audience.

Gone are the days of boring, static web pages. The digital landscape now calls for dynamic interfaces that engage users and make a lasting impression. Designing and developing such a website might seem daunting, but fear not! Our experts are here to guide you and provide valuable tips to help you create an amazing website.

In this edition, we will explore the key elements that contribute to an exceptional website. From strategic planning to engaging content and seamless user experiences, we will uncover the secrets that can transform your website into a true masterpiece.

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Shaun Broughton, Managing Director, APAC and Japan at Shopify

Shaun Broughton, Managing Director, APAC and Japan at Shopify

Overcoming the obstacles of web design skills and development expertise is now easier than ever. User-friendly website builders empower entrepreneurs to effortlessly and cost-effectively construct their own websites from scratch. These intuitive platforms offer templates, customisable features, and scalable options to expedite the website creation process.

The foundation of a successful website lies in delivering an exceptional user experience (UX). This entails implementing engaging content features, such as visually appealing product images, informative descriptions, and compelling customer testimonials that build trust. Aesthetics also plays a key role, where customisable themes, templates and branding elements can be used to create a visually appealing and cohesive design to create an engaging and memorable interface.

Platforms like Shopify provide businesses with invaluable resources for businesses to improve their online presence. With built-in SEO features, analytics tools, and social media integration, businesses are able to monitor website performance, make data-driven decisions, and effectively engage with their target audience.

Ricky Blacker, Senior Sales Engineer and WordPress Evangelist, WP Engine

Ricky Blacker, Senior Sales Engineer and WordPress Evangelist, WP Engine

Establishing and maintaining a strong online presence is fundamental for small businesses looking to keep up with market competitors. With more companies relying on multiple channels, its important to build a comprehensive digital presence that unifies and complements all  this starts by creating a website.

Small businesses must create and maintain a website that customers can easily navigate. Consumers should be able to immediately identify the brand style and personality through the webpage design. Next, the layout should be simple and user-friendly to demonstrate product and service quality. Finally, the website must be optimised for a fast and secure experience.

Investing in a managed web hosting platform can provide stability, ease of use and speed. Leveraging WordPress with its thousands of themes, plugins and page building blocks enables businesses to use default brand elements like fonts and layouts for consistent brand messaging, and create effective search engine optimisation (SEO), making it easier for loyal customers to find you while attracting new business. With these options available, it is possible to create the recognition and online presence you envision effortlessly, regardless of your coding skills.

Investing in a platform that can manage and automate website maintenance, personalisation and SEO relieves pressure and allows small businesses to invest that back into doing what they do best.

Elise Balsillie, Head of Thryv Australia

With so many small businesses investing in social media marketing, it can feel like having a business website is unnecessary but the truth is your website is an imperative tool in establishing your online presence and engagement with customers.

Having a website provides a go-to place for your marketing efforts and helps you promote your business, sell your services and stand out from the competition. But it takes more than just throwing your information online to build a business website that becomes the go-to place for your current and potential customers.

When it comes to building a website and your online presence, there are three things to consider:

Design by experience  your customers first impression of your business occurs long before you even realise it. Consider its design, mobile friendliness, speed, information and call-to-action. Content that attracts customers  by offering new and useful content often, you can increase your relevancy and your search engine rankings. Content such as blog posts, articles, podcasts, videos and infographics can go a long way in getting eyes on your website. Call-to-action (CTA)  if your business website doesnt include ways to move a visitor towards a sale, youre missing out on opportunities. CTAs tell website visitors what to do next. And when they do, that click-through conversion helps your click-through rate, which further boosts your search engine ranking.

Getting your website right is a solid foundation for the rest of your marketing efforts, so consider it a cornerstone in your overall business strategy.

Tim Plummer, Chief Technology Officer, The Big Smoke Media Group

For small businesses, an effective online presence should be anchored by a clear and consistent brand identity that threads throughout all digital channels. A successful brand identity promotes client recognition, customer loyalty and should reflect your businesss values and personality.

Start your website journey by choosing a website platform that suites your requirements, budget and skillset. WordPress, Shopify & Squarespace are great options to consider. Each of these platforms offer intuitive templates, helping you create a site that mirrors your brands ethos and style.

A well-structured website with easily accessible contact information, products or services is essential. Dedicate an About Us page to tell your brands story, strengthening a connection with your audience.

To keep customers engaged, create a blog on your website, set up a newsletter, and /or create active social media profiles, injecting your brands unique voice into every post. Regular content updates on your website will improve SEO rankings and foster a sense of community with your existing and potential customers.

Incorporate customer feedback loops for continuous improvement and to show your audience that their voice matters. Ultimately, your website is a round-the-clock sales tool, so invest wisely to reflect your brand authentically.

Nickie Scriven, Founder and CEO of Chief Meta Chicks and Alchemy8

Before creating a website, small businesses should ensure they have an impactful brand identity, including logo, brand colours, fonts, imagery and tone of voice. They also need a clearly articulated brand strategy that defines their mission, vision, values, and unique selling proposition.

Once in place then its time to create the website. For those less tech-savvy or find it overwhelming, engaging a website designer or agency is wise. At Alchemy8 we build websites for clients on Webflow, Squarespace and Wix. These platforms are brilliant for small businesses as, once we hand over the site, our clients can easily edit and update copy and images as they please, without incurring ongoing maintenance costs.

With the brand identity established, the most important thing to remember is creating a seamless and engaging user experience. This requires planning the consumer journey through your site:

What do you want people to know and think?

How do you want to move them along the path of the purchase?



When people land on your home page, they should instantly identify the need your business solves and be guided through your content such that they become familiar and confident in your offering. The use of testimonials, use cases and Buy / Join buttons will allow you to move them along the path to purchase or capture their information for follow-up.

Gary Williams, CEO, Skin Virtue

Creating a website and establishing an online presence is essential for any small business to compete in todays market. Heres how to get a dynamic website:

Determine your brand: Identify its voice, message and your unique selling proposition to guide your websites content and design. Choose a domain name: This is the web address, such as skinvirtue.com.au. Choose a name thats easy to remember and represents your brand. Find a hosting service to provide the server space for your website to run. Website builder: Many website builders can help you create a professional-looking website without coding skills. Popular options include Wix, Squarespace, Shopify and WordPress. Design: Use your brands colours and imagery to create a visually appealing website. Make sure your website is mobile-friendly and easy to navigate. Compelling content: Your website content should be clear, concise and engaging. Highlight your products or services and provide useful information to potential customers. Optimise for search engines: Use keywords and phrases relevant to your business to improve your search engine ranking. Social media: Use social media platforms to promote your brand and engage with customers. Track website analytics: Understanding user behaviour helps you make informed decisions about marketing strategies and website improvements.

Vikki Maver, Founder and Strategic Director, Refresh Marketing

Vikki Maver, Founder and Strategic Director, Refresh Marketing

Ah, websites in the small business world. Ive seen it go wrong too many times to count.

While some businesses overinvest unnecessarily, others underinvest  putting their brands reputation on the line, thinking they can get away with a quick DIY job. And where do they often skimp? On the content, of course. So dont run off and spend your entire budget on a beautiful looking website  only to plonk in some scrambled words as a mere afterthought.

People visit your website to decide whether to do business with you. And that means your written message must be clear, distinctive  and compelling. If it leaves visitors dazed and confused, your prospects will click away in a heartbeat. Poof. Gone.

And beware: rehashing old brochure content wont cut it. Writing for the web demands a very specific approach. Whats that? It needs to be easy to scan, reader-focused, crisp and concise, and Google-friendly.

Finally, steer clear of buzzwords, cliches and the oh-so-predictable boast-fest. The last thing people want is a narcissistic sales pitch. So what do they want? Connection. Human connection. Dive them something real to help them like (and remember) your business. And that means bringing the names, faces and stories of your small business to the fore.

Daniel Stoten, Executive Chairman of Localsearch

Daniel Stoten, Executive Chairman of Localsearch

Establishing a digital presence is a key part of creating a strong online brand identity. Firstly, work towards creating content that aligns with your brand, engaging current and potential audiences. Find your voice and be consistent with it. To make lives easier for SMBs, you can create content calendars designed to keep your platforms alive and vibrant with interesting and engaging content.

A visually-appealing, user-friendly, and SEO-optimised website are also key ingredients in housing and promoting your content  these allow you to reach potential customers within the market while establishing your identity to attract new ones.

The next step is amplifying your brand identity through social media and Google search by utilising targeted ads with both Google and Meta. We recommend not having all your eggs in one basket; market using organic and paid content to engage with your potential customers wherever they are online. Doing this will help reinforce brand recall and positive sentiment.

Pulkit Agrawal, Managing Director, UR Digital

The importance of a strong online presence cannot be overstated for the success of any small business. Being the founder and director of a small business myself, Ive seen firsthand how transformative a well-crafted online presence can be. Here are essential tips for small businesses to create their website and engage customers:

Defining brand identity : Before diving into website development, it is vital to define your brand identity. Clearly articulate your unique selling proposition, target audience, and key brand attributes.

: Before diving into website development, it is vital to define your brand identity. Clearly articulate your unique selling proposition, target audience, and key brand attributes. User-friendly website design : Design a visually appealing website that is easy to navigate, and mobile-friendly. Use high-quality images, a clean layout, and intuitive navigation to provide a seamless user experience. Incorporate your brand colours, fonts, and imagery to establish a strong visual identity.

: Design a visually appealing website that is easy to navigate, and mobile-friendly. Use high-quality images, a clean layout, and intuitive navigation to provide a seamless user experience. Incorporate your brand colours, fonts, and imagery to establish a strong visual identity. Implementing SEO optimisation : Optimise your website to improve its visibility on search engines. Conduct keyword research, optimise meta tags, headings, and content, and build quality backlinks. Collaborating with an SEO agency can provide professional guidance and support in this area.

: Optimise your website to improve its visibility on search engines. Conduct keyword research, optimise meta tags, headings, and content, and build quality backlinks. Collaborating with an SEO agency can provide professional guidance and support in this area. Regular updates and maintenance: Maintain an up-to-date website by regularly updating content, ensuring security, and optimising performance. Regularly monitor website analytics to gain insights and make data-driven improvements.

Nadean Richards, CEO and Co-Founder, One Fine Collective

Its never been easier than now to launch your business online  platforms like Shopify and Squarespace make it super easy to build your own website with free templates, and social media is free. But before you start, youll need to set the foundations!

Firstly, do a deep dive into your target audience  who are they, what do they want in your product or service, and what keywords are they searching for online to find brands like yours? Making your website as SEO-juicy as possible will help you to rank organically in Google and give you a leg up on your competitors. Research your favourite brands and see what they do best. Is their UX best in class? Why and how can you replicate that? What plugins do they use and research whats available in the market and has the best reviews. Before you go live, get feedback from your colleagues/ family + friends to make sure your website is easy to navigate and prioritise the mobile experience. This has to be first and foremost to ensure your conversions are maximised.

Your branding is super important  dont skimp here. First impressions count, and Id recommend working with a professional graphic designer + photographer to create brand guidelines and a visual look and feel for your business that can extend through your website, your social media channels, and all other offline areas of your business.

Jye Smith, Founder and Managing Director, DOUBLESTAR CO

Jye Smith, Founder and Managing Director, DOUBLESTAR CO

Your website is the only team member that works in your business 24/7. Investing in brand and identity is a crucial, essential step for small businesses when creating a website and differentiating yourself in the market.

Creating a website is an art and a science that requires careful planning, thorough research, and beautiful execution. The first step for small businesses is to define their brand strategy, identity and personality, values, and beliefs. This will guide the rest of the process and help you choose the right inspiration. Next, research outside your category for inspiration  look at brands from different industries, cultures, and time periods. Ask yourself what these brands do well and what makes them unique  then from your research, look for patterns. Are there any common themes or techniques that stand out  and can you apply these techniques and patterns to your website while still maintaining a unique experience?

Olivia Jenkins, Founder, Olivia Jenkins Consulting

Its never been more important to ensure you have an online presence that effectively represents your small business. Competition is fierce with businesses becoming increasingly more aggressive when it comes to their marketing strategies.

Heres some tips to supercharge your online presence:

Conduct thorough market research to ensure you truly understand your target audience including their pain points, wants, needs and how you can solve their problems. Ensure your website has clear concise messaging to convince your customers that your products can solve their problems and take them from their current state to their desired after state. Invest in high-quality imagery that accurately depicts the products you are aiming to sell to allow customers to get a feel for their efficacy. Emphasise social proof throughout the website by featuring five-star reviews, testimonials, before and afters plus any other social proof that will ensure customers view your store as trustworthy. Ensure you have a robust email marketing strategy including a pop-up with a clear CTA and automation series for abandoned cart and welcome series to maximise customer lifetime value.

By following these steps, businesses can have a website that drives business growth in the digital landscape.

Aprille Lim, CEO and Founder at Seaquatix

Aprille Lim, CEO and Founder at Seaquatix

Being the founder of a small business myself, in the beginning, I started by using platforms like Squarespace which allowed me to easily create a website and online store with beautifully designed pre-made templates that made the website look premium.

Creating a strong brand is everything when first entering the market  and first appearances do count  as everyone tends to judge your brand based on how your website looks. In terms of creating an online pressence to engage with customers, the strategy for Seaquatix was to invest in high-quality images of our waterproof cases in both real-life and aspirational settings, as well as build up a bank of user generated content. From there, we cultivated an all-year round summer vibe that was consistent online and on social, and with the help of a few key brand ambassadors pushing this out to their audience, we were able to build our tribe. Today, we are one of Australias leading brands for waterproof case and sand-proof towels.

Ange Chappel, Founder, Mind The Sip

Before building a website, clearly define your brand identity, including your target audience, unique selling points, and key messages. This will help you create a website that effectively represents your business.

Select a website platform that suits your needs. Consider factors such as ease of use, customisation options, and scalability.

Once you have those steps sorted, youre ready to start bringing your website together:

Create a visually appealing and user-friendly website that aligns with your brand. Ensure that your website design adapts to different screen sizes and devices. This is crucial for engaging with mobile users.

Craft compelling and informative content that reflects your brands voice. Provide details about your products or services and consider including a blog section to share industry insights or useful tips. Use high-quality images and videos to enhance the visual appeal.

Incorporate features on your website that allow customers to engage with your business. This may include contact forms, live chat support, social media integration, or customer reviews/testimonials. Encourage visitors to sign up for newsletters or follow your social media accounts for ongoing engagement.

Implement search engine optimisation (SEO) techniques to improve your websites visibility in search engine results. Conduct keyword research to identify relevant terms and incorporate them naturally into your website content. Optimise meta tags, headers, and URLs for better search engine rankings.

Regularly monitor your websites performance using tools like Google Analytics. Analyse visitor behaviour, track conversions, and identify areas for improvement. This data will help you make informed decisions to optimise your online presence.

Regularly update your website with fresh content. This demonstrates that your business is active and encourages repeat visits.

Joanne Swadling, Managing Director, Shop Naturally Pty Ltd

After spending a decade running a web design agency before my 14 years running an online store where I still look after our web presence, I can tell you the most important thing to consider is to start on the right platform, on a budget, so you can scale at a later date without having to change platforms. Shop Naturally did 2 e-commerce platform swaps in our 14 years and each time we did, our search engine rankings suffered and took time to recover. Unless youre developing a high-end online store, my recommendation is to use Word Press. It can easily scale, has many plugins to expand the functionality, including an ecommerce plugin, WooCommerce. To engage your customers, use quality photographs and get your marketing message right from the start. Your mission isnt to stand up and say, we have this widget to sell you. Your mission is to stand up and say, you have a problem, and our widget will help you solve it. Dont just make your site and forget it, it needs to have fresh content on it thats relevant to your audience, even if its not always about your own business.

Hamish Anderson, Managing Director, Three Piece Marketing

The key to launching a successful website for all brands  irrespective of size  is to first know who they are and what they stand for. No one goes into business to be the same as everybody else. The key is to drill down and tap into what makes the brand unique. This will give them insight into what they need to convey and in turn, this will fuel the creative direction and the content required for all marketing collateral, inclusive of the website.

When it comes to the website itself, stay on-brand, and make sure you are giving visitors the experience they would expect of your brand. Make it easy for people to get to where you want them to go on the site and limit how much work they have to do. Reading up on the importance of click rate optimisation is invaluable.

Lastly, make sure you consider search optimisation from the outset. This aspect of your digital marketing will make it easier for people to find you and importantly, to get to the right pages easily.

Kate Musgrove, Managing Director, Asia Pacific, Bazaarvoice

Kate Musgrove, Managing Director, Asia Pacific, Bazaarvoice

If you go to a restaurant and its hard to order and the chairs are uncomfortable, it probably wasnt a great experience and youd be unlikely to go back. The same can be said for a website.

To create an engaging website that really encompasses your brand identity there are 4 key points to keep front of mind:

Keep your website user-friendly: Your site should be natural and user-friendly. Dont send your visitors on a scavenger hunt, present them what they need with a clear, visually appealing design thats easy to navigate. Post relevant, up to date content: If your site is full of content that your target audience can relate to, youre more likely to keep them engaged. Keep your blogs, tutorials and FAQs up to date! Optimise your product pages: Provide detailed and informative product descriptions that accurately portray your products features, benefits, and overall value so your customers feel confident in your business. Use User Generated Content: Leverage those customer videos and reviews so you can use the power of social proof to engage with your consumers and audience.

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A federal judge has ruled in favor of E. Jean Carroll and allowed her to amend her defamation complaint to include comments made by Trump at his CNN town hall.

The ruling:

GRANTED! Federal court allows E. Jean Carroll to amend her defamation complaint against Donald Trump to include his vile statements on CNN's Town Hall. On the same day Trump was arrested. Beauty. pic.twitter.com/4aj7ysUBib  Don Lewis (@DonLew87) June 13, 2023

Carroll is seeking additional defamation damages for comments made by Trump about her at his CNN town hall. Instead of backing off after he lost the first defamation lawsuit against Carrol, Trump doubled down by going on national television and attacking her.

The CNN town hall was a bust for everyone who was involved. The special didnt deliver big ratings for the network. It got former CNN boss Chris Licht fired, and Trump is now facing additional damages in the E. Jean Carroll lawsuit.

Trump spent Tuesday being arrested and arraigned in Miami on 37 federal counts related to violations of the Espionage Act and obstruction of justice, and somehow his day managed to get even worse.

If it seems like the roof is caving in on Trump, that is exactly what is happening. Decades of potentially criminal behavior seem to be catching up to him, and it is fitting that E. Jean Carroll could be the topper to one of the worst days of Donald Trumps life.
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A coalition of House Republicans and Democrats came together to kill a resolution that would have censured Rep. Adam Schiff.

A resolution to table the censure resolution passed 225-196-7 with 20 Republicans joining Democrats to kill the bid to censure Rep. Schiff.

Video:

House Democrats and Republicans kill effort to censure Adam Schiff 225-196-7. pic.twitter.com/NudO17SFVu  Sarah Reese Jones (@PoliticusSarah) June 14, 2023

This was not the first attempt to censure Rep. Schiff to get revenge for Trump. In 2019, House Republicans tried to censure Schiff and lost.

The resolution read:

If it is determined by an investigation conducted by the committee on ethics that Representative Schiff laid, made misrepresentations and abused sensitive he should be fined in the amount of $16 million. One, the House of Representatives censures and condemns Adam Schiff, Representative 30th congressional district that is not be fitting and elected member of the House of Representatives. Two, Representative Schiff will present himself in the well of the House of Representatives for the pronouncement of creance sur. Three, Representative Schiff will be sense occurred and four, the Committee of Ethics shall conduct an investigation for lies and abuse of sensitive information.

Trump and his MAGA House loyalists were again denied their revenge on Rep. Schiff for daring to lead the first impeachment of Donald Trump. Kevin McCarthy took the unprecedented step of blocking Schiff from the House Intelligence Committee.

Adam Schiff is one of the leading candidates for the US Senate in California, so it looks like he may have the last laugh by getting promoted to the Senate while Kevin McCarthy and those who tied their fortunes to Trump lose their majority in 2024.
A Clearwater post office will be temporarily relocated after a Tuesday morning fire.

The post office at 4425 Jefferson Davis Highway will be temporarily housed in another building until further notice due to a fire in its current location, according to a media release from the United States Postal Service.

The post office will be relocated for the safety of customers and employees, the release said.

The fire occurred around 4 a.m. Tuesday at the post office located at strip mall in Clearwater, according to Corey Ray, public information officer for the Charlotte Field Office of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

Ray said the ATF and the U.S. Postal Inspections Service are helping local agencies investigate the fire.

Retail and P.O. services for the Clearwater Post Office will be available at the Bath Post Office at 3880 Road, Bath, during business hours.

Services will be available Monday through Friday from 9:30 a.m. to noon and 1 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.

On Saturday, services will be provided from 8:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. Services will not be available on Sunday.

A photo ID is needed for customers to pick up P.O. Box mail. For more information, call 800-ASK-USPS (1-800-275-8777).
Susan See and her husband, James, own and operate two Nothing Bundt Cake franchises  one in Aiken and the other in Evans, Georgia.

A former attorney, See spoke to the Rotary Club of Aiken on Monday at Newberry Hall about what it takes to a successful entrepreneur.

Ive tried to narrow it down to three areas that I found were very important to me, she said. First off, youve got to surround yourself with like-minded people. Theyve got to believe that you can do it, and theyll guide you to do it.

The group, in Sees opinion, should include a lawyer and a good, good CPA (certified public accountant), she told the Rotarians, along with a great family and great friends, who encourage you, who love you and who remain positive, even if you have a meltdown.

No. 2, according to See, is to find a business that you are passionate about, that you believe in with your whole heart and soul.

For anyone who decides to go the franchise route, it is important to select a good one that works, one that really trains you and will give you the resources that you need, See said. The reason people choose a franchise is that it already should be a successful model. Theyve already figured it all out for you, and youve just got to follow it. Ive seen owners who do not follow it and, unfortunately, it hasnt worked out as well.

Sees third recommendation was to pray, pray and then pray some more.

She added that she and her husband have no doubt in their minds that Nothing Bundt Cakes was a career option that God sent to us.

Aikens Nothing Bundt Cakes is in the Shoppes at Whiskey.

There are more than 500 Nothing Bundt Cakes bakeries in this country and Canada, See said.
Through selling clothes, making cards and launching a GoFundMe page, the Aiken community is supporting a 13-year-old girl.

It's even embraced the hashtag #ashtonstrong to rally around Ashton Rickard, who was shot last week.

Ashton was shopping with her mother at Walmart when a man shot her. Police have not identified a motive.

Police later arrested 32-year-old Stephen Christopher Foreman of Aiken, who was charged with attempted murder and possession of a weapon during a violent crime. He is detained without bond at the Aiken County jail.

In 2019, Foreman was arrested for kidnapping after he held members of his family captive. In 2021, he pled guilty to pointing and presenting a weapon, before he was sentenced to mental health court.

Show of support

Ashtons grandmother, Debby Jordan, started a GoFundMe page to help cover medical costs. As of Tuesday morning, the page has reached $3,805 of its $100,000.

To support the GoFundMe campaign, visit gofundme.com/f/mznbz-with-medical-cost.

In addition to a GoFundMe Page, several businesses such as Vikkis A Unique Boutique and SoulShine Yoga and Fitness are stepping up to help.

Residents also started a meal train for the family, which is asking people to donate gift cards from local restaurants and DoorDash and Uber.

MERCY Church located on 2700 Whiskey Road will have a blood drive to support Ashton. The blood drive will take place from noon to 6 p.m. Saturday at the Family Life Center at the church.

After coming back from a trip and getting a call about the shooting, Vikki Woody, owner of Vikkis A Unique Boutique began to think of something that the whole community could get behind.

We are offering our support by having Fashion for Ashton, she said.

She said 25% of the proceeds from the clothes sold will go to Ashtons family.

Woody said it was a way for her and the community to support the family in something that was a little less stressful.

Woody said Aiken residents have been very supportive.

I am a mom and it just hit me and I was trying to think of something that we can do so we can show support, said Dawn Billeci, owner of SoulShine Yoga and Fitness.

Billeci said she originally wanted to do a meal train with other local businesses, but decided to make cards instead while making it kid-friendly.

I started with my own kids and we can write a poem," she said.

The cards will be collected Thursday at American Legion Post 26 from 5 to 6:30 p.m. during a yoga and mindful resilience class. The class is usually open only to military, first responders and their families, but the Thursday class will be open to the public as a way for the community to come together, as they move past a tragic event.

I just wanted to do something to lift peoples spirits up, she said.

She said Aiken has been supportive during a difficult time and the post she saw on social media said that all 50 states are praying for Ashton.

She said the goal of the event is to offer space for the community to share the love for Ashton and her family, so it can create a ripple effect of healing and kindness within the community.

I think it is beyond our community that people are coming together and just sending them their thoughts and prayers because how could they not be on your mind after what happened.

Fashion for Ashton will take place at both Vikkis locations, 1501 Whiskey Road and 1032 Pine Log Road, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and online.

Billeci said anyone who wants to send cards before Thursday's event can email Dawn@SoulshineYogaAndWellness.com.

To support the meal train, visit mealtrain.com/trains/kwrd6d.
COLUMBIA  A federal court win by hardline conservatives in the South Carolina House allows them to raise money and campaign against their Republican colleagues, likely raising GOP infighting in the Statehouse to unseen levels.

The June 13 ruling by U.S. District Judge Cameron Currie puts the Freedom Caucus on par with major-party caucuses in its ability to raise and spend money, potentially resulting in more well-funded challengers to House GOP incumbents they perceive as not faithful enough.

"This was an across-the-board win for us," said Rep. R.J. May, a founder of the group that formed last year as a faction of the House Republican Caucus.

The ruling "was very forceful against the use of government to silence political opposition," he said. "Now with that ruling in hand, we are able to fight back."

May, who runs campaigns for a living, said the group will get to work setting up bank accounts and raising money "as soon as possible."

The ruling means he no longer needs to turn away potential candidates wanting to run under the Freedom Caucus banner, he said.

Whether the GOP-led House Ethics Committee will appeal the ruling is not known.

"We'll huddle up and discuss our options," said its chairman, Rep. Jay Jordan, R-Florence.

The lawsuit was filed against the 10-member Ethics Committee that's evenly divided among Republicans and Democrats. But it was aimed squarely at members of the Caucus' own party.

Currie's order bars the committee from enforcing 17-year-old state campaign laws that put the Freedom Caucus into the category of a restricted "special interest" caucus which hit them with certain speech limitations "as well as limitations on donations, solicitations, accepting gifts, and expenses," she wrote.

She agreed those limitations violate the group's constitutional rights  both free speech guaranteed in the First Amendment and equal protection in the Fourteenth Amendment.

Rep. Micah Caskey, a frequent critic of the Freedom Caucus, said the ruling gives blanket permission for free-for-all elections that legally skirt state campaign laws, having an impact far broader than the Freedom Caucus.

"They can spend unlimited money, and there's no restriction on what a special interest caucus is, so there's nothing to stop me from starting a caucus only I join," said Caskey, R-West Columbia, who's also a member of the Ethics Committee.

"We clearly have a gaping hole in our campaign finance law," he continued. "You don't have to pretend at all. Just create a 'whatever' caucus."

Caskey said he's not defending laws written years before his arrival but rather criticizing how the Freedom Caucus challenged them.

"My objection to all of this is that these charlatans ran to a federal district court judge rather than legislate a right answer," he said. "They invited a judge to blast a hole in our ethics laws."

May countered by saying the ruling only allows what major-party caucuses already do, nothing more.

Currie discounted similar arguments in her ruling.

"The court acknowledges state interests in preventing corruption, increasing transparency into the electoral process and holding candidates, elected officials and donors accountable," she wrote. "However, defendants have not come forward with any argument or evidence to support different requirements for different sets of legislators.  A legitimate concern about corruption, without showing show others could not be similarly corrupted, is insufficient."

There are already 15 special interest caucuses in the House, including a separate Democrat-run Freedom Caucus created by House Minority Leader Todd Rutherford earlier this year to counteract the hardline conservative caucus. The two often go at each other on Twitter.

The opinion distinguishes the two as the May Freedom Caucus and the Rutherford Freedom Caucus.

Other groups listed in the ruling include the Sportsman's Caucus, the S.C. Energy Caucus, and the socially conservative Family Caucus, which led the Legislature's anti-abortion efforts.

It was a quick outcome for a federal lawsuit filed just a few months ago.

Currie denied the Ethics Committee's request for a "discovery" process that would require the Freedom Caucus to provide information on how it currently operates, saying that's unnecessary.

A non-trial judgment is warranted, she wrote, because Freedom Caucus members face "credible threat" of being punished for asserting their constitutional rights.

Like much of the state ethics code, a violation of the restrictions is a misdemeanor punishable by up to a year in jail or up to a $5,000 fine. Public reprimands and expulsion are also possibilities, Currie wrote.

While other special interest caucuses exist, the Freedom Caucus' split from the larger House GOP Caucus marks a first.

Sixteen of the caucus' 18 members are not part of the majority caucus. That's because they refused to sign rules the GOP caucus adopted during an organizational session after the November election that gave Republicans a supermajority advantage.

The rule that caused the schism bans members from participating in "campaign activities of any kind" against a fellow caucus member.

May said multiple GOP leaders in the Legislature  he declined to name anyone  have threatened to run primary opponents against Freedom Caucus members, and the ruling allows them to defend themselves.

House Majority Leader Davey Hiott, R-Pickens, said he knows of no such threat.

"It's easy to make accusations," he said. "Our goal is to protect our members."

As for what the ruling could mean for 2024 GOP primaries, he added, "We don't intend for it to get nasty, but we will defend members of the caucus 100 percent."
The Albanese government has recently made a significant decision regarding the provision of financial advice in Australia.

In response to the Quality of Advice Review findings conducted by Michelle Levy, a partner at Allens, the government has determined that superannuation funds will play a central role in offering financial guidance to their members. This move aims to address the needs of the majority of Australians whose financial advice requirements are relatively straightforward.

During a closed-door meeting organised by the Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia (ASFA), Financial Services Minister Stephen Jones conveyed the governments expectation for super funds to take on a more prominent and effective role in delivering financial advice. Minister Jones emphasised the importance of these funds expanding their services to better serve the needs of their members.

At present, superannuation funds are limited in the scope of advice they can provide. They are primarily restricted to offering simple advice, and the cost of such advice is collectively shared among all fund members. However, it has been observed that a significant portion of members do not take advantage of this service.

Minister Jones highlighted the pressing need for more retirement income advice, especially for the approximately 5 million Australians who are either retired or approaching retirement. Unfortunately, due to the high cost associated with obtaining financial advice, many individuals in this demographic are unable to access the guidance they require.

In response to this issue, the government has accepted one of the recommendations put forth in the review. This recommendation aims to facilitate individualized financial advice for super fund members by allowing funds to charge members individually for tailored guidance based on their specific circumstances. This change is expected to make financial advice more accessible and affordable for members, ensuring that they receive the support they need as they plan for their retirement.

The Australian Institute of Superannuation Trustees (AIST) has expressed its support for the Australian governments decision to grant superannuation funds greater flexibility in offering financial advice to their members.

CEO of AIST, Eva Scheerlinck, emphasized the significance of the governments announcement, particularly for the more than 12 million Australians who hold superannuation accounts, including the five million individuals who are either retired or approaching retirement age.

Scheerlinck commended the government for accepting the recommendation from the Quality of Advice Review to remove restrictions on collective charging for financial advice. This change is expected to improve the accessibility and affordability of advice for consumers while ensuring adequate protection from potential harm.

While acknowledging the effectiveness of recent reforms in enhancing consumer protection, Scheerlinck highlighted that the quality of advice plays a crucial role in determining the financial outcomes for super fund members. As custodians of Australians retirement savings, super funds not only manage and invest these funds but also provide advice to their members. However, their ability to assist has been limited by existing constraints.

According to the Ministers observations, only 26 per cent of super fund members actively seek financial advice despite the suitability of these funds to meet their needs safely. AIST, as the leading body representing the $1.9 trillion profit-to-member sector, appreciates the governments decision to allow funds to expand their role and better serve their members interests.

Scheerlinck further emphasized that understanding the complex dynamics between superannuation and the age pension can be challenging, and the proposed changes will enable funds to assist their members more effectively, especially as millions of Australians approach retirement.

Additionally, Scheerlinck noted the importance of the government providing legal clarity for funds regarding collective charging for advice. The cost of financial advice has been a barrier for many Australians, and this move is expected to address the issue by making advice more accessible to a wider population.

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Moncks Corner, SC (29461)

Today

A few clouds. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 74F. Winds SW at 10 to 15 mph..

Tonight

A few clouds. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 74F. Winds SW at 10 to 15 mph.
A new commercial center with several tenants already lined up, including a restaurant, is under development in West Ashley while another new dining venue is on the way, two sweet shops are in the works and a pair of new jewelry stores soon will open in downtown Charleston.

Charleston-based developer Adams Property Group recently broke ground on a 38,000-square-foot retail and medical complex at 1198 Bees Ferry Road near Hunt Club Run. A little more than half has been leased.

Among the new tenants will be Kickin' Chicken's sixth Charleston-area restaurant, a nail spa, Southside Animal Hospital, Pediatric Dentistry and Charleston Oral and Facial Surgery, according to a spokeswoman for the developer. Other spaces remain available.

Construction on the four-building center across from Main Road is expected to be completed by December. A grand opening is planned for next spring.

What's cooking?

In the Point Hope neighborhood on the Cainhoy peninsula, a Mexican restaurant soon will be added.

Blue Tequila leased 4,000 square feet at 834 Foundation St. off Clements Ferry Road north of Daniel Island, according to Hannah Kamba of the commercial real estate firm Coldwell Banker Commercial Atlantic, who represented the tenant.

An opening time frame has not been announced for the new restaurant. Blue Tequila has another location in Goose Creek.

On the way

In Dorchester County and Charleston, new sweet treat shops are on the way.

A Columbia contractor recently filed a project commencement notice to build a Dunkin' location at 5992 W. Jim Bilton Blvd. in St. George. The property is owned by an affiliate of Wheeler Real Estate Investment Trust, a publicly traded shopping center investor based in Virginia Beach, Va.

Also, The Pie King plans to open June 17 at Citadel Mall. It will offer fruit and meringue pies as well as chicken pot pies.

Also in the mall, Collector's Corner plans to expand into a larger space with more items to collect, trade and share.

In the works

In downtown Charleston, a new dining venue is being proposed.

An architect representing property owner HTA 39 Broad Street LLC at 39 Broad will ask the city's Board of Zoning Appeals June 20 for a special exception to allow a restaurant with 793 square feet of indoor space and 580 square feet of outdoor space. The request includes allowing a residential unit on the upper three floors.

The city requires 15 off-street parking spaces for the site. The owner is requesting two spaces in addition to 10 grandfathered by the previous office user.

Also on the board's agenda, fast-food restaurant Wendy's at 343 Folly Road on James Island wants to expand its operating hours until 2 a.m. from the current midnight closing time.

New bling

Two new jewelry stores are opening in downtown Charleston.

On June 15, designer Natalie Holst will mark the opening of her flagship Holst + Lee shop at 17 State St. The store will be open noon-7 p.m. with the grand-opening celebration 3-7 p.m.

On June 23, jewelry chain from Laguna Beach in south California will bring its 50th store to downtown Charleston.

Gorjana will occupy a 1,350-square-foot shop at 418 King St.

The retailers plans to offer items ranging from plated to fine necklaces, earrings, bracelets and other products. In-store stylists will offer help with curated layers and complimentary engraving for online orders.

It's the company's first location in South Carolina, according to co-founder Gorjana Reidel. The company said it supports charitable causes in the communities it serves.

Burger bulldozing

A former fast-food restaurant on the peninsula soon could meet the wrecking ball.

The city's Board of Architectural Review considered a request June 14 for final approval to demolish the former Burger King at 7 Cherry St. off Cannon Street near the medical district. The property owner is the South Carolina Federal Credit Union. Plans for the site have not been disclosed.

Giving back

Chicken restaurant chain Bojangles will give $1 from the sale of each limited-edition "Star-Spangled Big Bo Box" to Folds of Honor through July 30. Customers can also round up purchases to the nearest dollar to support the nonprofit campaign.

Folds of Honor offers scholarships to families of fallen or disabled first responders in addition to military members.

As part of the campaign, the Charlotte-based company will bring a patriotically decorated ambulance to Charleston on June 15 as it tours the Southeast. The Bo Heroes Mobile will stop at selected military bases, fire stations and police stations offering free chicken, biscuits and tea.
COLUMBIA  The Fort Jackson soldier who went missing June 12 during a training exercise was found dead later that evening.

Staff Sgt. Jaime Contreras' cause of death is under investigation by the Army Criminal Investigation Division, Brig. Gen. Jason Kelly, the base's commander, said during a June 14 news conference.

Kelly declined to comment on whether there were any signs of foul play.

Contreras was found unresponsive not far outside the boundaries of the base's land-navigation course, a training site where soldiers must use a map, compass and other navigation tools to find their way along a route, Kelly said.

The 40-year-old drill sergeant candidate from the 82nd Airborne Division at Fort Liberty in North Carolina, formerly Fort Bragg, had just begun the eighth week of his 10-week training course.

Contreras started the land navigation course with 98 other drill sergeant candidates, all of whom were expected to complete it separately, at 10 a.m. June 12. When he hadn't returned by 2 p.m., an hour after he was expected back, drill sergeant leaders, Richland County Sheriff's Department deputies and South Carolina Law Enforcement Division officers began to search the 1,500-acre training site and found him around 11:15 p.m.

After searching the area by land and air, officials used pings from his cellphone, which he still had with him, to locate his body, which was about 160 feet from the boundary of the site, which butts up against the edge of Fort Jackson's base.

"This is not uncommon to have somebody wander off the land nav course," John Ferrell, director of the base's emergency services, said, though no other deaths have happened on the course as far as Ferrell was aware.

At least four recruits died at Fort Jackson between 2020 and 2022, two of whom were found unresponsive in their barracks. In one case, a recruit died after being injured on the rifle range; in another, a recruit died after collapsing during physical training.
CHAPIN  On a sunny summer morning on the shores of Lake Murray, Dale Gibson, an educator with the S.C. Department of Natural Resources, asked a group of three dozen women whether they drive the family boat.

Almost all of them raised their hands.

"But how many of your husbands let you dock the boat?" Gibson asked. One and a half timid hands went up.

Although they're completely competent, many women take a backseat to their spouses when it comes to operating boats, said Lake Murray Association President Debi Lafayette. The Lake Murray Association's June 13 "Ladies on the Lake" event, put on with DNR and the Lake Murray Power Squadron, is aimed at squashing this problem.

"And if you're like me, your husband is not the person to teach you," Lafayette joked.

The program is aimed at giving women confidence at the helm and helping maintain safe boating practices on Lake Murray.

It comes just days after the S.C. House passed a bill that would help regulate boating in the state.

"Ladies on the Lake" was founded nearly two decades ago, after a woman was caught stranded when her husband had a heart attack while fishing on Lake Murray. Because she did not know how to operate the boat and get her husband help, he passed away.

The program takes women through rounds of driving and docking boats, driving boat trailers and kayaking. The women also take a boating safety course which teaches regulations on lifejackets, right-of-way and what safety tools are required on board a boat.

"There seems to be a growing interest in boating," said Debra Allen, a past commander of the Power Squadron. "So, we're trying to get people to be better educated because statistics show that educated boaters are less likely to get in accidents."

This year's event comes soon after the S.C. House approved a bill requiring South Carolinians born on or after July 1, 2007, to take a boating safety course administered or approved by the Department of Natural Resources and receive a boating safety certificate before operating a boat with a 10-horsepower engine or above. The bill is awaiting Gov. Henry McMaster's approval.
COLUMBIA  Dozens of people in Mexico were lured to South Carolina to work for a Lexington County agricultural labor company, which forced them to work long hours, denied pay they had been promised and confiscated their passports and immigration documents, according to statements made in federal court June 13.

One prosecutor described their situation as a "lockdown," with an employer threatening workers with a firearm and locking doors on workers' housing. Several workers reportedly escaped, some hiding in bushes as they waited for a ride to pick them up.

Around 55 people were lured in to work for Balcazar Nature Harvesting, which provided seasonal labor to South Carolina farms. The company was run by Enrique Balcazar, a Mexican national, but was under the name of his 21-year-old daughter Elizabeth. She is a U.S. citizen.

U.S. District Court Judge Sherri Lydon sentenced Enrique Balcazar to 40 months in prison for labor trafficking as well as confiscating the workers' passports and immigration documents. He will likely be deported to Mexico after his release.

Elizabeth Balcazar was sentenced to three years of supervised release for her role in recruiting workers under false pretenses. Her attorney, Will Lewis of the Columbia-based Richardson Thomas law firm, said she will not serve a prison sentence because she provided substantial assistance to investigators.

The judge also ordered that Balcazar Nature Harvesting pay more than $500,000 in restitution to the 55 victims. One victim will receive $11,000 from Enrique Balcazar. Funds from his seized bank accounts will also be credited toward the restitution payments.

The company was started in 2021. Since Elizabeth Balcazar is a U.S. citizen and her father is not, she traveled to Mexico to recruit workers under the H-2A program, which allows temporary agricultural employment in the U.S. for foreign workers.

Many workers came for seasonal jobs to support their families back in Mexico, said assistant U.S. Attorney Carrie Fisher Sherard, who prosecuted the case alongside assistant U.S. Attorney Elliott Daniels.
NEWRY  If drivers can turn their eyes from the mountain-backed lake view going across the dam on S.C. Highway 130, the smokestack of Newry Mill sits on the southern shore of what is now Lake Keowee.

It has been there since 1893 amid the heyday of cotton milling, the creation of the lakes and the eventual shuttering of an industry, followed by decades of graffiti and decay.

Now it has a $60 million second chance.

If developers had been even one year later starting the nearly decade-long restoration, co-owner Shelby Dodson said the mills deterioration would have made it unsalvageable. Instead, the roof was replaced, windows updated and integral supports shored up for another 100 years of use.

Rather than a sign of local cotton being turned to fabric, the smokestack and bell tower in Newry now signal 79 one-of-a-kind apartments with original wooden beams and nearly floor-to-ceiling windows.

It took eight years from the time Dodson and Mark Peters of M. Peters Group first began chasing the project until move-in day for renters. The project involved rehabbing the former mill site and constructing an apartment building that blends with the historic nature of the site and its waterfront surroundings.

They managed to purchase the communitys general store and post office, repurposing those to continue serving Newry residents of decades or days. Boiler plates were turned into statement art and the turnstile entry into a light fixture.

Many talked about saving Newry Mill, but consistent fires, defacing and a local tradition to bring home a brick after trespassing made locals doubtful anyone could succeed at what Peters and Dodson have now accomplished.

People thought we were mad when we came out here and were like, Were going to do this, Dodson said. They would come out and see the location, see the shape the mill was in. It was really difficult to convince people we werent completely crazy.

Tight-knit community

Newry Mill, which former Charleston Mayor William Courtenay named for his Irish homeland, was said to be one of the finest mill sites, according to news articles at the time. Courtenay built 1,500 houses, a store, a post office, church and the cotton mill on the banks of the Little River. It was built in 1893 and ran its last load of cotton in 1975.

With only two roads into the community, it was  and still is  intentional when someone comes to Newry.

That offered it a bit of protection that other mills in the area werent afforded as they crumbled over the years.

I think this is one of the most preserved examples of textile sites, of a true textile building from the late 1800s that we were able to save, and probably one of the most preserved examples of a textile community, Peters said. I thought it was a little gem.

Thats how the Newry Historical Society described the community as well when it formed in the early 2000s to protect the mill from being demolished. Once it was realized that the mill couldnt be torn down to repurpose the bricks  they were made on-site from clay on the banks of the Little River  the society lost its steam, former president Herschel Harper said.

Particularly if they had worked in the mill, that was an emotional thing to see it deteriorate before their very eyes, Harper said. Because of that isolation, there was a cohesive element among the people who lived there and grew up there. All those children went to the same school  thats one of the few buildings that no longer exists  and the same doctor, and shopped at the same store.

Newrys residents have had construction crews as neighbors for over three years and have mixed feelings about the redevelopment, in particular due to the amount of traffic that will wind up on many of their dead-end roads.

While shes excited for the cafe, lifelong resident Molly Williams isnt ready to embrace all the change that will come with hundreds of new residents.

The only traffic Ill really see is when Im leaving and Im not excited about it, the 20-year-old said.

M. Peters partner Jennifer Gosnell equated the restoration to a child being born for Newry.

We hope that, in the end, it will bring the residents some joy and be like a pregnancy thing  worth the labor pains to get the end result, she said. Its really the materiality and the monumental scale of something like this. You cant recreate it."

Securing financing for the property took up the bulk of the eight-year process, Mark Peters said. Construction was a breeze once they finally got to that point.

There were environmental concerns, historical hoops to jump through and several tax credits to research, Dodson added. The end result has been worth all the work, she said, to see the vision finally come to life and the first residents move in.

I dont think anyone other than Mark, with his engineering background, would have even endeavored to save it, she said. Its nice to sort of bring the life back to it.

Newry Mills new building  called the Abney in honor of Newrys second owners  has 118 apartments of various sizes to accommodate different lifestyles and needs. The complex features a pool, workout facility in the former steam room, river access, rooftop deck, and walking trails open to the public.

The first residents moved into Abney in early June. The original mill, named the Courtenay building after Newrys founder, is expected to be available in mid-August.
Summerville, SC (29483)

Today

Scattered thunderstorms early, then partly cloudy after midnight. Gusty winds and small hail are possible. Low 76F. Winds SW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 40%..

Tonight

Scattered thunderstorms early, then partly cloudy after midnight. Gusty winds and small hail are possible. Low 76F. Winds SW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 40%.
Kingstree, SC (29556)

Today

A few clouds. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 72F. Winds WSW at 5 to 10 mph..

Tonight

A few clouds. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 72F. Winds WSW at 5 to 10 mph.
In coordination with the Republic of Korea, the United States is again targeting the malicious cyber activities of the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea, the DPRK.

On May 23, the U.S. Treasury Department announced sanctions on four entities and one individual for hiding revenue and engaging in extensive illicit and IT worker operations to finance the regimes unlawful weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missile programs.

According to a March 2023 UN Panel of Experts report cited by the Treasury Department, in 2022 DPRK cyber actors stole more virtual currency than in any previous year, with estimates ranging from $630 million to over $1 billion.

To combat such activity, the United States designated Pyongyang University of Automation, one of the DPRKs premier cyber instruction institutions. Among its trainees are cyber actors who go on to work for cyber units tied to the Reconnaissance General Bureau, the RGB, the countrys primary intelligence entity.

Also designated was the RGB-controlled Technical Reconnaissance Bureau and its subordinate cyber unit, the 110th Research Center. The Technical Reconnaissance Bureau leads the DPRKs development of offensive cyber tactics and tools and operates several departments, including those affiliated with the U.S. designated Lazarus Group, which was responsible for the largest virtual currency heist to date, stealing about $620 million in virtual currency.

The United States, as well as the ROK, also designated the DPRK-based Chinyong Information Technology Cooperation Company and one of its representatives, Kim Sang Man, who operates in Vladivostok, Russia. Chinyong and Kim were sanctioned because of their connection to the DPRKs IT workers activities.

The DPRK generates significant revenue through deployment around the world of thousands of highly skilled IT workers who fraudulently obtain employment with companies, including in the technology and virtual currency industries. The revenue generated by these workers contributes to the DPRKs unlawful WMD and ballistic missile programs.



As Treasury Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Brian Nelson wrote in a statement, The United States and its partners remain committed to combatting the DPRKs illicit revenue generation activities and continued efforts to steal money from financial institutions, virtual currency exchanges, companies and private individuals around the world.
State lawmakers earmarked $30 million for raising S.C. Highway 22 in the budget they adopted this month, but Horry County officials fear the project would cause unintended environmental harm, potentially leading to worse flooding in certain areas.

The intent of the project is to elevate the highway above the level of Hurricane Florences historic 2018 flood. In the aftermath of that disaster, floodwater covered many roads in Horry, including S.C. 22. While lifting the road might seem like a safeguard, county officials maintain such a project would create numerous challenges.

It needs to stay like it is, said County Councilman Danny Hardee, whose district covers northwestern Horry and was hit hard by Florence. To spend millions raising it, which builds a bigger dam and backs the water up  I think were wasting our money.

Both county officials and lawmakers acknowledge that $30 million would be just the initial allocation for a project that, if launched, would require hundreds of millions more. Critics question the wisdom of tying up $30 million on a project thats based on a storm that was a historical outlier. At best, they said, the funding would go to a study that simply explains the devastating consequences and astronomical price tag of raising the road.

I dont think theres been a lot of engineering (research thats) looked at that, said County Councilman Mark Causey, whose district covers Loris and Longs. Staff has a lot of concerns, and that is a potential problem.

County officials outlined their flooding concerns in a memo written last month by David Gilreath, the assistant county administrator over infrastructure and regulation. It was included in an email sent to area officials that was obtained by The Post and Courier.

Riverine flooding in a coastal plain subject to tidal influences is a complex issue to put it mildly, Gilreath wrote. If actions are taken to begin the elevation of Hwy 22, there must be a detailed study completed to ensure we do not experience significant unintended consequences.

County officials acknowledge that Hurricane Florence left the area in a vulnerable spot. After making landfall in North Carolina, the storm slowly backed over Horry, dumping more than 23 inches of rain in some areas.

Flooding soon cut off key access routes, including S.C. 9, S.C. 905 and S.C. 22. The water rose so high near the U.S. 501 Bypass that county, state and federal officials built temporary dams to keep the water off the road. At one point, officials worried about losing access to the county. They even discussed a catastrophic plan that called for dividing the county into five sectors and flying in food and supplies to residents in each zone.

As Gilreath noted in his memo, raising S.C. 22 would be a significant benefit should these extreme floods ever occur again.

On the other hand," he wrote, "elevating Hwy 22 could also have significant impacts to river flood elevations both upstream and downstream of Hwy 22.

Specifically, Gilreath pointed out the same challenge that Hardee highlighted: its possible to build up the road in a way that would essentially create a higher dam, causing flooding upstream.

This area is already sensitive to flooding and has suffered greatly from flooding in the last decade, Gilreath wrote.

He noted that if the current road bed is altered to allow more water to flow downstream, that could worsen flooding in the other direction.

The project would also impact the countys flood zones, according to the memo.

Both FEMA and Horry County Supplemental Flood Zones would need to be revised, Gilreath wrote. Making changes to infrastructure that could affect so many in such a large way must be done with great care.

County officials pointed out that building up a road based on a historic storm would exceed the S.C. Department of Transportations design standards, meaning the cost of the project could far outweigh the benefits.

There are likely many other potential impacts, Gilreath wrote. We have been asked over the last several years to evaluate many different types of mitigation strategies. Changing the characteristics of any of our river crossings probably causes us the most concerns.

The county has reviewed the possibility of increasing the flow at each river crossing. They came to the same conclusion. When the river swells, there would be new impacts.

If you increase the cross flow capacity of a given crossing you improve flooding upstream and worsen flooding downstream, Gilreath wrote. If all of the crossings received cross flow capacity enhancements areas downstream of Conway would be impacted significantly. No mitigations to offset this increase in flooding have been identified to date.

County officials have been searching for flood mitigation options. In August, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers launched a three-year, $3 million study of Horry Countys riverine flooding. The purpose of the study is to find mitigation projects that would qualify for federal funds. The Corps is holding public meetings this week to get input from residents and explain its research.

State lawmakers are aware of the countys concerns about raising S.C. 22. Sen. Greg R-Hembree, R-Little River, said a study would need to be done to determine if the project is even feasible.

Theres an analysis that needs to take place, he said. Is it the right, the wise, best way to tackle this issue?

Should a study show the project isnt feasible, then Hembree said he would like to see those dollars pay for other maintenance on S.C. 22.

"(S.C.) 22's starting to show some wear and tear," he said. "It's not a brand new road anymore."

While he understands the countys position, Hembree does see value in the S.C. 22 project. He said this funding is simply a starting point.

Its a real public safety issue, he said. If we dont deal with it now and it happens again, the questions going to be Well, why didnt you guys take care of this? "

Yet County Council members said they would rather see the $30 million spent on other local road needs, such as adding turn lanes on S.C. 90. The state budget does include $5 million for S.C. 90 improvements and another $5 million for permitting and engineering for the Southern Evacuation Lifeline (SELL), a proposed road and bridge project linking the South Strand with the western side of the county.

Local officials remain wary of dumping any dollars into a project with potentially dire consequences.

If any characteristics of Hwy 22 are changed, the state and the county would be blamed for any flooding event after the changes," Gilreath wrote, "whether they are justified or not."
CONWAY  A woman who abandoned her newborn son in the woods outside Conway more than a decade ago is scheduled to be sentenced this week for voluntary manslaughter.

Jennifer Sahr, now 35 years old and living in Florida with a husband and two children, is scheduled to be sentenced in a third-floor courtroom at the Horry County Government and Justice Center on June 15.

Sahr entered an Alford plea at a September 2022 hearing after reaching an agreement with state prosecutors and her defense team. In an Alford plea, defendants maintain their innocence but admit that the prosecution's evidence would likely result in a guilty verdict if brought to trial.

Sahr faces up to 30 years in prison after waiving her constitutional right to a jury trial and agreeing to be sentenced by Circuit Court Judge Paul Burch, who will decide her fate.

For me, we have done our part and argued our case, 15th Judicial Circuit Solicitor Jimmy Richardson said ahead of sentencing. I am glad to see it coming to an end for the dad.

Sentencing in the case  where authorities at the onset could not determine the parents of the newborn who was found off S.C. 544 in 2008 and later named Baby Boy Horry  was delayed during the September hearing by Burch, who requested a pre-sentence investigation.

The judge said this is a unique case, noting Sahrs two children and the effect of any punishment on their lives.

Yes, theres got to be some punishment, Burch said in September. Theres got to be a dose of mercy. But these two children are the most important people on the face of the earth.

Local authorities investigated the cold case for over a decade before announcing that scientific evidence provided them with a new lead, resulting in the March 2020 arrest of Sahr by federal marshals in the North Myrtle Beach area.

The State Law Enforcement Division confirmed at the time that Sahr was the boy's biological mother from a supplied DNA sample, according to Horry County authorities.

During the September hearing, it was revealed that in December 2008, when Sahr was named Jennifer Rickel and a student at Coastal Carolina University, utility workers found a box in a wooded area off the highway. Inside they found a tote bag containing the body of the infant child.

The state argued the infant was alive when he was born while Sahrs defense said there is no clear evidence to make such a confirmation.

Baby Boy Horrys father Ronald Woodham III told the court in September that his world stopped spinning when he learned he was the infants dad.

Sahr, who has remained on house arrest in Florida, was given an opportunity to address the court at the end of the September hearing.

I will live with it for the rest of my life, she said.

Baby Boy Horry is buried at Hillcrest Cemetery near Coastal Carolina University where a headstone was erected in his honor. For years, Horry County Coroner Robert Edge held a memorial service for the infant.
6:30 a.m.

Palmetto roses rest on the dashboard of Jonzetta Taylors white Nissan transport van, which is parked outside her mother's home in West Ashley. Boxes of benne wafers, sauces and spices fill the back. You can smell them from outside the vehicle. The sun has barely risen.

Taylor drives across the Ashley River bridge onto the Charleston peninsula. She passes Colonial Lake and Broad Street's mansions on her way into the heart of Charleston's historic district. Its a commute shes made nearly every day since 1996, when she took over the family business.

Taylor parks at one of the last stalls at the Charleston City Market.

The Market is one of the city's most popular tourist attractions, but at this hour it's mostly empty, save for a gentleman who sweeps beneath one of the dark-green wooden tables. Taylor walks past the building's brick pillars onto its concrete floor. Fans above rotate full speed as they dangle from wooden trusses. As Taylor shuffles boxes to set up, you hear seagulls, palmetto leaves rustling in the wind and a few car engines.

Taylor is 55 years old and wears a red-and-white Tommy Hilfiger shirt, white jeans and red Chuck Taylor sneakers. She sets up a wooden stand and places bottles of sauce in it, including ones called Slap yo Mama, and Burn Baby Burn. Next to them, she places a few books about African American food and culture, and then a black-and-white photo of her late grandfather, Walter Wright. Her grandfather started selling fruits and vegetables here in 1910.

This quiet time gives her a chance to reflect.

She thinks of her mother, Edna Taylor, after whom the business is named. Edna still helps Taylor come up with recipes for new spice blends. Theres a wide variety: Lowcountry Chicken features chicken powder, garlic, onions, black pepper, bell pepper and sea salt. Sexy & Sassy Garlic mixes garlic, parsley, cayenne, oregano, basil, tomatoes, celery, salt and onions.

She thinks about her brothers. One lives in Greenville. He helps out when he can. Two others are dead.

In this quiet moment, before the area opens to throngs of tourists, merchants and carriage tours, Taylor centers herself. She prays and listens to the gospel song Hide Me. She asks for Gods protection. She prays for patience as she prepares to encounter customers and vendors, many of whom are respectful and some who are not.

You see, Taylors business  Ednas Lowcountry: A Taste of Charleston  is among the markets longest-running vendors. Her business also is one of the few remaining African American businesses here. The markets clientele and vendors have grown increasingly White, Taylor notes. This shift coincided with a wave of gentrification that washed through peninsular Charleston.

Taylor began helping with the family business in the 1970s when she was 4 years old. Back then, the City Market was run mostly by Black vendors who sold meats, fruits and vegetables. The space wasnt well-kept, she recalls. The floors were dirty. There were no fans, heating units or restrooms.

It looked like a slaves market, she says.

That moniker has been somewhat confusing. Like Taylor, many people from Charleston have heard that the City Market was the site of slave auctions. But the truth is more nuanced, historians say. The market opened in 1807 as a place where enslaved Blacks were allowed to sell goods on behalf of their White owners. In fact, slaves could sell enough goods to buy their freedom, historians say.

Fast forward centuries later, the market is a busy attraction for tourists looking for a taste of Lowcountry food and culture.

But many times, customers carry their bias and prejudices with them, Taylor says. Like the time a White father tried to chastise Taylor because she told his son to stop punching holes in her spice packages.

Or the time a young White woman asked her to speak Gullah for a friend.

Or the time she got into an argument with a vendor selling Confederate memorabilia.

Or the time she politely asked a group of White women to move because they were blocking customers from her booth, to which a woman yelled you dont speak to me like that and called the attention of a nearby police officer.

Her voice rises as she recalls these encounters. But they probably pale in comparison to what her mother and grandfather endured, she said.

She sets aside these feelings. You don't make money if you're angry with your customers.

As the market nears opening time, she puts on her sunglasses with star-shaped frames. She smiles.

9 a.m.

Vendors fill their tables with items. A few customers are already walking through the aisles. A cool breeze sweeps through the stalls. Sounds of horse hoofs hitting pavement echo, as carriage tours make their way down the street.

As Taylor makes some final adjustments, she speaks with assistant manager Nick Kawczynski as he does his daily walk-through. Clutching a wooden clipboard and a green highlighter, Kawczynski marks every table that has not been yet claimed. Those empty by 9 a.m. are available to temporary vendors.

A man next to Taylors booth arranges necklaces, bracelets and earrings on a table. Another vendor across the aisle hangs custom T-shirts.

After chatting with Kawczynski, she turns her attention to a group of African American tourists visiting from Atlanta. One asks about a civil rights history book. Another buys a bag of Carolina Gold rice, one of Taylors most popular products. The rice, recently featured on Netflixs High on the Hog, is a Lowcountry staple.

A White woman with long blond hair stops by. Wearing a blue dress, she approaches Taylors stand. She picks up the bag of rice and pulls out a $20 bill from her Louis Vuitton wallet.

Tourists arent the only visitors to her booth.

A homeless woman stops by. Taylor hands her a plate of plastic-wrapped food. A few minutes later, a man she calls Cuz says hello. He tells Taylor his son is graduating college.

Taylors booth is more than just a business. Its a gathering place for all people to talk about culture and history and race.

1:37 p.m.

The market is in full swing.

The smell of approaching rain mixes with scents of spices, barbecue and horse manure. Fronds in palmetto trees dance in the wind. Cars with Uber and Lyft stickers pick up passengers.

Several hundred feet from Taylors booth, a handful of people stand at the Port of Call Food and Brew Hall for a midday meal.

Outside the food hall, a White man with dreadlocks sings Jamaican tunes.

Back at Taylor's booth, a young man clutching palmetto roses stops by. Taylor has a cooler full of sodas and a box filled with chips. The young man grabs a drink and places a dollar on the table. Taylor looks at him and nods.

They're a common site in the marketboys and young men who have woven palmetto fronds into roses. They walk through the area, hawking the roses to tourists. Taylor has heard other merchants call these youths "trash." This upsets her. What if one of the young men was her son or nephew?

Some of the rose peddlers are problematic, she acknowledges. Some are even dangerous. But many also come from troubled homes and are simply trying to make a few bucks.

Taylors approach is to help them when she can, and stay out of their way.

3 p.m.

Taylor begins to load the cardboard boxes with her products. She has had a good run today. She'll spend the next couple of hours packing up before heading back across the Ashley River.

Selling in the market is not easy, but it's worth it, she says.

She and her family have seen so many changes in the market. Back in the 1990s, rental fees ran about $500 a month. Now they're between $1,200 and $1,500, she says. If she quit, she figures a White vendor will likely replace her.

Like the city around it, the market has seen its own form of gentrification.

It begins to rain.

One day several decades ago, her mother, Edna, had been wrapping up amid an afternoon torrent. She only made 25 cents that day. While trying to leave, Edna dropped the quarter in the light flood, never to be seen again.

The story reminds her about how far her family has come.

Her grandfather, Walter, could have given up.

But he stayed.

Her mother, Edna, couldve shut the business down, but she didnt.

Jonzetta Taylor won't quit either.
It was summertime on Folly Beach, and Cary Lynch had just moved with her husband and infant son to the island, which attracts tourists for its pristine beaches, lively bars and funky vibes.

I was in a pretty good place, Lynch recalled. It was summertime and I had a small child. We'd just moved to Folly Beach, and we went to the beach all the time.

Lynch, on the morning of July 25, 2019, stepped into her yard on West Ashley Avenue and headed toward the ocean with her dog. What began as a mundane summer morning, Lynch explained to a judge in Charleston County's General Sessions Court June 14, ended in every womans worst nightmare come to life.

Lynch gave The Post and Courier permission to use her name. The newspaper otherwise does not publish the names of victims of sexual assault.

On the beach she encountered Patrick Hennessey Michaels, a 34-year-old Greenville man vacationing on Folly Beach with his mother. The 6-foot tall man, who wore a t-shirt as a makeshift turban, had followed her from her street. He approached Lynch and ominously told her I was sent here by the high one, according to court documents. She walked away, but he pursued her.

Lynch hurried home, cutting through neighbors' yards. She dialed 911 begging for help as she tried to catch her breath from a bathroom inside her home. After a short time, she believed she was safe and emerged from the bathroom.

The tall, odd man stood before her.

Lynch, 42, calmly recalled in a downtown Charleston courtroom what happened next. She wore a black dress, tan stilettos and a tightly pulled back bun.

Michaels forced her inside the bathroom, where he choked her, almost squeezing the life out of her thin body. He threatened to kill her and sexually assaulted her. Lynch said her vision started to go black and she believed she would die. In that moment, all she could think about and see was her 2-year-old son.

The assault, according to court documents, lasted almost seven minutes before Folly Beach police officers busted into the bathroom, where they observed the defendant with his hands around the victim's neck and his pants down.

Michaels was arrested and taken to jail. Lynch suffered bruises inside and outside of her body and strangulation marks. For years, she's experienced nightmares, panic attacks, self-doubt and anxiety, she said.

Today it ends here for me, Lynch stated. Im free and hes not.

"So many women have never been afforded this type of opportunity," she continued, addressing the court. "I'm doing it for the women who are too terrified to speak and for the women who never made it out of that bathroom."

Circuit Judge Jennifer McCoy sentenced Michaels to 60 years in state prison after the defendant pleaded guilty to first-degree attempted criminal sexual conduct, first-degree burglary and kidnapping. Each charge carries a maximum penalty of 30 years in prison. Michaels, now 38, has served nearly four years while jailed.

McCoy called Lynch the "strongest victim" she's seen in her career so far and the case one of the most egregious.

Michaels, who watched the proceedings on video from the county jail, said he did not wish to speak. His attorney, Rodney Davis, of the Charleston County Public Defenders Office, said his client does not have a violent history and is remorseful. The attorney quoted a report that found the attack was an acute psychotic episode.

The report is a court-ordered forensic mental health evaluation from November 2021. It describes Michaels' extensive history of mental illness and drug abuse. The court found Michaels incompetent to stand trial but accepted his guilty pleas after he was restored to competency at the South Carolina Department of Mental Health.

That Michaels has mental illness is sad, but it does not explain his behavior, according to 9th Circuit Solicitor Scarlett Wilson, who cited the "hundreds of thousands, if not millions of people in this country" who suffer from mental illness but are not violent.

Wilson, who prosecuted the case, asked the court to impose the most severe sentence allowed under law. "Her home was her sanctity," Wilson said.

The sentence prompted hugging and crying in the courtroom from Lynch, her husband and other family members. Asked what it meant to her, she paused. She took a big inhale and breathed out a big exhale.

It was so meaningful and so powerful and so validating, Lynch said.
CLOVER  As residents pour into York County, Clover School District has proposed its most recent solution to alleviate the overcrowding in its hallways: Building an eighth elementary school.

The consideration comes seven months after residents narrowly approved a $156 million bond to finance a new 2,100-student high school.

But school officials now say they need another $55 million for a new elementary school  or they won't be able to keep up with rising population numbers as residents flock to the eastern part of the district on Lake Wylie.

By 2026, the district expects to surpass its capacity of elementary school students.

"We're at a critical juncture," Superintendent Sheila Quinn told the board June 12.

For this project, though, district officials will not pursue a bond referendum or raise taxes. Instead, they will borrow money from the state to fund $55 million over a three-year period.

The board will make a final decision June 26 on if and how they will build a new elementary school.

"While elementary schools are not cheap, it's the most cost-effective option rather than Band-Aid the other," Quinn said, "because you're going to have come back at some point and build an elementary school."

It is Clover's most recent potential project in a line of large-scale, multimillion-dollar requests over the past few years. In 2021, the district asked for a $197 million bond to build a second high school and an eighth elementary school. Voters overwhelmingly rejected the request, 79 percent to 21 percent.

After eliminating the elementary school, officials returned last November with a $156 million bond that would build a new high school. It narrowly passed, 51 percent to 49 percent. The new high school is set to open by 2026. It also allowed for the school's ninth grade academy, located in Clover High School, to transform into a new and third middle school.

Despite the influx in cash and new buildings, officials insist they still need an elementary school. And they argue that they need to construct it now, before the 2026 school year, when the district estimates it will reach its current cap on elementary school students.

"We do not have any funds just sitting around waiting to do that," Quinn said. "We have to think about how to generate those funds."

In recent years, Clover has experienced some of the sharpest growth in South Carolina. Located just south of the North Carolina border, Clover saw its population from 2020 to 2022 rise from 6,675 to 7,405. That 11 percent increase was the 10th highest in the state.

The largest growth for the school district has come to the east of town along Lake Wylie. From 2000 to 2020, the unincorporated Lake Wylie area saw a 46 percent jump in population, which tripled to above 12,000. Given its placement near the water, proximity to Charlotte and lower state taxes, Lake Wylie has attracted people from across the country. Nearly 80 percent of its residents were born outside of South Carolina.

The rapid growth previously forced York County Council to place a 16-month moratorium on new subdivisions and apartment complexes, along with commercial and residential rezoning requests, until 2021.

As the area's population has increased, attendance in the district has climbed with it, adding nearly 800 students over the past three years.

Elementary schools have especially felt the strain, reaching 88 percent capacity. Nearly 200 students entered the district annually over the last three years, the district said. In that time, Bethany Elementary has already surpassed its capacity, forcing 35 kids to attend nearby Larne Elementary.

According to district projects, that number will only increase.

By 2026, Clover estimates nearly 2,661 residential units and 514 elementary students will move into the area, based on the district's 2020 Tishler-Bise Impact Fee Study.

Other school districts have attempted different methods to deal with the growth in York County. Fort Mill School District, for example, home to the third fastest-growing town in South Carolina, implemented an enrollment freeze in February. Districts including Fort Mill, York and Clover, have petitioned  and, in some cases, succeeded  to implement impact fees on new developments.

During a special trustee meeting June 12, district officials presented a number of solutions, including the expansion of elementary schools, creation of mobile units and the redevelopment of the district's resource center.

District officials, though, says they can't afford to dance around the issue. Their schools are about to exceed capacity  and they need a new elementary school to fix it.
Some members of Charleston City Council squealed when they saw the price for reviving a dead pig.

And apparently they arent hog wild about any of the other options, either.

That leaves the fate of West Ashleys Sumar Street redevelopment plan murky for another week, and thats too bad. Because this is more important than some folks realize.

You see, the trajectory of revitalization in the biggest area of Charleston hinges on this decision. Not that youd know it from councils response.

Back in April, several council members said $45 million was way too much to spend on a redevelopment of the three-acre site of that old Piggly Wiggly off Sam Rittenberg Boulevard.

Which is kind of on-brand for the citys historical treatment of West Ashley.

A little background: The city bought the site of the former grocery store years ago, at the demand of local residents, to keep it from becoming a convenience store. People who live in the area argued that the property, as the gateway to the citys largest population hub, deserved something more substantial.

So the city contracted with a developer who came up with a design for West Ashleys first significant municipal services building, along with neighborhood meeting space, a public park and some room for small businesses and restaurants.

Which, not coincidentally, is exactly what surveys showed West Ashley residents want there.

So thats what architects designed  along with underground parking to make the most of a tight space. But evidently that seemed too extravagant for a part of town that doesnt even rate a Logans or Bonefish Grill.

Council members demanded the developer give them some more, uh, cost-effective options.

Well, a City Council committee saw the cheaper options on Monday  and didnt have much to say. Probably because they also saw how public opinion is running on this.

At a packed-house public meeting last week, residents were given three choices. 1) The current design. 2) The same development, only smaller, with a multistory parking deck that might save $8 million to $9 million  but unsurprisingly eats up much of the open space. 3) A development with about one-third the building space and a huge surface parking lot.

The results were telling: 72% voted to stick with the underground parking. Charles Smith, a member of the West Ashley Revitalization Commission since its inception, says theres a reason for so much community unanimity these days.

We have accepted less than the best for long enough, Smith says. This is a gateway project that sets the bar for everything that comes after it.

Hes right, and heres an example. Right now, the owner of Ashley Landing Shopping Center  which sits next to the Sumar Street site  is planning to move its Publix into the strip center across the parking lot and replace the grocery store with apartments.

Residents rightly worry about the developer getting all that right for the neighborhood. The city, Smith says, needs to set the example.

How can we ask that developer to bring their A-game to that site if were not willing to bring our A-game next door?

Yep. And all this will have a cascading effect down Sam Rittenberg Boulevard and along Savannah Highway. Smith notes the West Ashley Revitalization Commission understands the area is destined for more urban-level density, but would like to keep it in the areas currently covered in old, needing-to-be-replaced strip malls.

You know, instead of building them farther out and adding to everyones commute.

But some folks on council, which never blinks at spending twice as much on grout for the Italian marble at the Gaillard, are trying to be cheap here.

And it all seems to revolve around the difference in cost for underground parking versus a parking garage. But its not that big a deal.

The citys portion of this redevelopment would be paid for with parking revenue and tax-increment financing  the same model considered for the infrastructure at Union Piers redevelopment. Can you imagine asking downtown residents to accept a cheaper alternative?

Youd get laughed out of the room, Smith notes.

Well, Charlestons biggest population center deserves no less.

The councils Committee on Real Estate heard the options on Monday, but didnt recommend one plan over another. The usually plain-spoken council members didnt really say much of anything that suggested how they feel about this latest development. What's that mean?

Well, it means the showdown at next weeks City Council meeting could go any number of ways.

But you can bet if they send the developer back to the drawing board, literally, it will only bolster the perception that Charlestons biggest community is considered its least important.

And that's why we can't have nice things.
Although most people dont need a liberal arts degree, global competition and changes in the workplace mean some kind of post-secondary credential has become essential for almost everyone, and getting that requires at least a GED and in many cases a high school diploma. Read moreEditorial: Charter schools are supposed to be innovative; SC school for dropouts sure is
Charleston, SC (29403)

Today

Isolated thunderstorms during the evening. Mostly cloudy skies after midnight. Low 79F. Winds SW at 10 to 15 mph. Chance of rain 30%..

Tonight

Isolated thunderstorms during the evening. Mostly cloudy skies after midnight. Low 79F. Winds SW at 10 to 15 mph. Chance of rain 30%.
HARTSVILLE  The largest grant in Hartsvilles history is expected to push the city forward.

Hartsville received $8.5 million from the South Carolina Infrastructure Investment Program with an additional $500,000 supplied by the city and matched by the program. The city also supplied $1 million, bringing the total to $10 million.

The money will be used to upgrade the wastewater treatment plant and build a new water tank.

We can ensure the growth of the city for decades to come, that's the main impact, City Manager Daniel Moore said.

Upgrades to the plant and construction of a new water tank are large-scale projects. Some of the upgrades and construction are once-in-a-career opportunities, Moore said. Despite the scale, Hartsvilles grant-funded projects must be completed by 2026.

We dont see them as challenges, we see them as opportunities, said Michelle Byers Brown, the city's director of tourism and communications.

The citys water treatment plant processes local sewer and that of McBee and other small towns and communities around Hartsville. Like landfills or paper cups, wastewater treatment plants can only reach a certain capacity before they begin to overflow or malfunction.

Several million additional gallons of capacity will be available upon the completion of the project. More capacity means more space for residential and commercial newcomers in the city.

Large businesses in the area could choose to expand or the city could take on more industry, thanks to the increase in capacity, Moore said.

Hartsvilles iconic egg-shaped water tower has been operating for more than 80 years and has earned its retirement, Moore said. A new tank will ensure that water remains clean and drinkable in the city.

Sewer and infrastructure and water, those things are so critical to anything, Moore said. When they go bad, bad things happen.

Just over 200 towns, cities and counties statewide were awarded grants of varying amounts to help upgrade or build new infrastructure.

Areas that received grants will put their projects up for bid in the coming months to find contractors and engineers suitable for the work they need done. Most of the work the grants will fund is specialized, Moore said, so there will likely be competition in securing a bid.

Hartsville doesnt have to worry about that.

The city is fully funding the engineering cost. So instead of having to put it out for a bid, we can select an engineer, Moore said.

The ability to skip the bidding process also allows the city to bypass the approval process required for engineers. If grant recipients use grant money to hire an engineer, the engineer must be approved by the Rural Infrastructure Authority, the sponsor of the grant.

Avoiding that process means Hartsville is about six months ahead of other grant recipients, Moore said. Stepping out ahead will give the city more room to meet the 2026 project completion deadline.

Hartsville has other upgrades and grant applications planned. Upgrading the Piratesville Splash Pad and streetscaping downtowns Sixth Street are part of the citys goals for the next few years.

Everything's intentional, Brown said. Intentional to build community.

Hartsvilles engineer for the grant-funded projects must be selected by June 2024 and all projects must be complete by 2026. More grant applications and revitalization efforts are already in the works.
The United States has taken additional action to combat Russias malign influence in Moldova.

Throughout February and March 2023, thousands of demonstrators participated in anti-government protests in the Moldovan capital of Chisinau and other major cities.

The United States has designated seven leading members of a Russian intelligence-linked group and one entity for their role in destabilizing operations in Moldova and other countries to weaken support for democratic governance.

The individuals that were designated today were part of a plot to capitalize on protests in Chisinau that were designed to seize the Moldovan Government House and conduct an opposition meeting, National Security Coordinator for Strategic Communications John Kirby told reporters. These actors provoked, trained, and oversaw groups in democratic countries that conduct anti-government protests, rallies, marches, [and] demonstrations.

In a statement, the Treasury Department said that the February and March protests in Moldova were organized by the fugitive oligarch Ilan Shore, whom the United States had previously designated for having been responsible for, or complicit in interference in a United States or other foreign government election on behalf of the Russian government. As the White House noted in a March 10, 2023 statement, capitalizing on the Moldovan protests was an effort to foment a manufactured insurrection against the Moldovan government.

The designated individuals are part of a large global information operation connected to the Russian Federation that targets Ukraine, countries bordering Ukraine, including Moldova, Balkan countries, the European Union, the United Kingdom and the United States.

The designated individuals - Konstantin Prokopyevich Sapozhnikov, Yury Yuryevich Makolov, Gleb Maksimovich Khloponin, Svetlana Andreyevna Boyko, Aleksey Vyacheslavovich Losev, Vasily Viktorovich Gromovikov, and Anna Travnikova - are all members of this Russia-connected malign influence group.

Aleksey Losevs workshop Perko Julleuchter was also designated.

The U.S. action comes after the European Council and Canada sanctioned several individuals for engaging in destabilizing activities against the Moldovan government.

The sanctions shine a light on Russias ongoing covert efforts to destabilize democratic nations, said Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Brian Nelson. The United States remains committed, along with the EU, to target individuals who engage in such activities against the government of Moldova.
FLORENCE  Education, mental health and home rehabilitation will be the United Way of Florence County's focus, President Cameron Packett said.

Packett discussed the organization's move to a collective impact model from the United Way/Community Chest model at the organization's June 13 third annual Awards and Allocation Luncheon at St. Luke Lutheran Church in Florence.

The United Way of Florence County also recognized its major supporters during the 2022-23 fund-raising campaign.

The United Way of Florence County announced its decision to move toward the collective impact model in June 2022. In the past 12 months, the organization has conducted a needs assessment survey and community meetings.

The United Way received more than 700 survey responses and more than 100 people attended community meetings conducted during a six-month period, Packett said.

"Using that input along with Florence County data, we were able to complete phase 1 of the transition and determine our focus areas," Packett said.

In education, the United Way will focus on early childhood education and activities for youth. Preparing children under 4 to read was a major concern of survey participants. Activities for youth were another big concern, she said.

Extensive research shows brain development is critical in the first few years of life, Packett said. Early childhood education can have lasting effects on future learning, health and success in life.

Mental health will be another focus, Packett said.

Drug overdose deaths in the county increased 147% between 2019 and 2021. The county also ranks fourth highest in the state for opioid hospitalizations. One in 5 adults in Florence County have been diagnosed with depression.

The United Way also will promote home rehabilitation and basic needs, she said.

Home rehabilitation needs have increased 13% since 2021, but there are no services available in Florence County to address this need, Packett said.

Nearly 42% of renters in Florence County struggle to pay their rent. Safe, accessible housing was a major concern in the survey.

United Way Board of Directors Secretary MacKenzie Webb said the focus areas reflect the the county's most pressing needs as United Way of Florence County moves toward a more strategic funding model.

Webb also is chair of the collective impact task force.

"The task force has taken a very hands-on approach to this work, and we believe we have set targets that can make a lasting difference in the lives of the people we are here to serve," Webb said.

The three focus areas are a major milestone in the United Way's transition to a collective impact model, Packett said.

"While there is still much work to be done, it's important to acknowledge that so much has been accomplished in getting to this point. We're deeply grateful to our board members for their support, task force members for their efforts and community members for their input," she said.

The next step is working with experts and community leaders to create comprehensive solutions, she said.

At the luncheon, County Administrator of Florence County Kevin Yokim discussed the four levels of giving and four levels of rewards.

The first two levels involve reluctant givers who are motivated by guilt -- a feeling their co-workers and bosses expect them to give. The next two levels understand the joy of giving. They enjoy the good feelings giving creates, Yokim said.

The four rewards of giving are what the individual recipent gets, what the giver receives, a lasting legacy and the impact on the overall community, he said.

"Because of all of you who give to the United Way, how many lives have been changed," he said.

United Way of Florence County Campaign Chair Jeanette Altman announced the top two givers in each level and other awards at the luncheon.

PGBA/BCBS was the top giver. Honda of South Carolina was a platinum level giver  more than $70,000.

McLeod Health and Assurant were the two largest donors at the gold level -- $40,000 to $69,999. Pepsi of Florence and the city of Florence were the top donors in the silver level  $10,000 to $39,999.

Nucor/Vulcraft and Crescent Partners of Raymond James were the two largest donors at the bronze level  $5,000 to $9,999.

Richard Harrington and Roger Hux and Julia Krebbs were the top individual donors.

The Campaign Advancement Award went to Pepsi of Florence. Field Fasteners received the Live United Award and QVC, Inc. received the Partnership Award.
PR-Inside.com: 2023-06-14 22:31:38

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VANCOUVER, BC and KIBBUTZ YIFAT, ISRAEL / ACCESSWIRE / June 14, 2023 / Beyond Oil Ltd. (CSE:BOIL)(OTCQB:BEOLF) ("Beyond Oil" or the "Company"), a food-tech innovation company extending the life of frying oil, reducing costs and waste, is pleased to announce that further to the news release dated February 9, 2023, in which the Company announced the appointment of Mr. Erez Winner to the board of directors (the "Board"), the Board has granted Mr. Winner an option to acquire 200,000 common shares ("Shares") at an exercise price of C$0.75 per Share for a period of five years. These options will vest in equal portions over a period of three years with the first tranche vesting on the date hereof and subsequent tranches on the annual anniversaries of the initial tranche. Mr. Winner has not previously been granted any options.About Beyond Oil Ltd.Beyond Oil develops and manufactures an innovative, proprietary, and patented product designed to extend the life of frying oil while preserving the oil's quality and nutritional value. The unique product integrates into the existing filtration systems of both commercial and industrial fryers, reducing oil costs, helping create healthier food, decreasing waste, and increasing sustainability. For more information visit: www.beyondoil.co ContactsJonathan OrCEO and Co-founder1-647-691-9801info@ beyondoil.co Caroline SawamotoInvestor Relations1-647-691-9801ir@ beyondoil.co Forward Looking Statement and InformationThe Canadian Securities Exchange has in no way passed upon the merits of the Company and has neither approved nor disapproved the contents of this press release. Neither the Canadian Securities Exchange nor the Market Regulator (as that term is defined in the policies of the Canadian Securities Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. This press release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the securities laws. Words such as "expects," "anticipates," "intends," "plans," "believes," "seeks," "estimates" and similar expressions or variations of such words are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are not historical facts, and are based upon management's current expectations, beliefs and projections, many of which, by their nature, are inherently uncertain. Such expectations, beliefs and projections are expressed in good faith. However, there can be no assurance that management's expectations, beliefs and projections will be achieved, and actual results may differ materially from what is expressed in or indicated by the forward-looking statements. In addition, we cannot assure that any patent will issued as a result of a pending patent application or, if issued, whether it will issue in a form that will be advantageous to us. Forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual performance or results to differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking statements. For a more detailed description of the risks and uncertainties affecting the Company, reference is made to the Company's reports filed from time to time at www.sedar.com . Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date the statements are made. The Company assumes no obligation to update forward-looking statements to reflect actual results, subsequent events or circumstances, changes in assumptions or changes in other factors affecting forward-looking information except to the extent required by applicable securities laws. If the Company does update one or more forward-looking statements, no inference should be drawn that the Company will make additional updates with respect thereto or with respect to other forward-looking statements. References and links to websites have been provided as a convenience, and the information contained on such websites is not incorporated by reference into this press release. The Company is not responsible for the contents of third-party websites.SOURCE: Beyond Oil Ltd.
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VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / June 14, 2023 / Camino Corp. (TSXV:COR) (OTC PINK:CAMZF) (WKN:A116E1) ("Camino" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that it has entered into a Definitive Agreement ("Agreement") with Nittetsu Mining Co., Ltd. ("Nittetsu") for its Los Chapitos copper exploration project ("Los Chapitos" or the "Project") in Peru.Under the terms of the agreement, Nittetsu can earn a 35% interest in the Project by making payments and expenditures totalling CAD $10,100,000 over three years. Proceeds will be applied towards exploration, infill drilling, and metallurgical and engineering studies. After successful completion of the earn-in period, the Project will become a Joint Venture, whereby Camino will hold a 65% interest, remain operator of the Project, and retain 50% of the production off-take."Nittetsu is an experienced copper mining operator and a partner that is focussed on funding our Los Chapitos Project towards a development decision," said Jay Chmelauskas, President and CEO of Camino. "We plan to continue to explore our property to expand the known zones of copper mineralization to determine a potential mine size. We have known the Nittetsu team for over two years, and we believe that our partnership will realize the best development opportunity and value creation at Los Chapitos." Key Terms:Payment to Camino of CAD $100,000 completed in February 2023.Nittetsu to pay Camino CAD $1,000,000 within 5 business days.Nittetsu to incur earn-in expenditures of CAD $9,000,000 over a 3-year period to earn a 35% project interest in the Los Chapitos Project with no accruing interest rights.First installment payment of CAD $1,500,000 to be made within 5 business days.Upon completion of the 35% interest acquisition by Nittetsu, a Joint Venture between parties will be established.Camino to remain the operator of the Project.Off-take on commercial basis to be shared 50% by each party.Exploration programs to begin immediately at the Los Chapitos Project."Our partnership with Nittetsu is another step towards developing our copper platform at Camino," said Keith Peck, Executive Chairman of Camino. "The advancement of Los Chapitos with Nittetsu will complement our other active corporate development activities to seek more advanced stage copper projects ahead of a strong copper market." "Our partnership objective with Camino is to advance the Los Chapitos copper project towards a pre-feasibility study over our initial investment period," said Shinichiro Mita, General Manager of Nittetsu. "We see strong geological and development potential at Los Chapitos and a dedicated group at Camino that is committed to develop a copper business with us." Exploration is expected to commence immediately in June to complete the plan for the first six-month instalment period. The initial exploration program is planned to consist of mapping, geophysics, and road access to identify and prepare high-priority drilling targets. In addition, the Company is anticipating the receipt of an expanded EIA permit that will open more than 6,012 hectares for exploration drilling (see press release February 8, 2023).The Los Chapitos Project is located in the IOCG belt of the Coastal Cordillera of northern Chile and southern Peru. The Mina Justa IOCG copper mine is located approximately 100 km north of Los Chapitos in southern Peru and is notably one of the world's newest large scale copper producers behind Quellaveco (Peru) and Kamoa-Kakula (DRC). Other major deposits in this IOCG belt include Mantoverde (Chile) and Candelaria (Chile) and there are dozens of other smaller scale copper deposits (see Figure 1).Figure 1. Copper rich IOCG deposits extending through southern Peru and northern Chile.About Nittetsu Mining Co., Ltd.Nittetsu is a Japanese corporation listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange with 84-year history as a mining and trading company. Nittetsu is the operator of the Atacama Kozan mine located in the prolific Candelaria-Punta del Cobre copper district which is known to host IOCG type ore deposits. In addition, Nittetsu has made a decision to start construction of its 80% owned Arqueros copper mine in Chile. Nittetsu has expertise in processing, distributing, importing, and exporting copper and other mineral products. Other businesses include: purchasing and distributing coal and petroleum products; developing and distributing equipment, machinery and environment-related products; real estate; power generation using renewable energy; the supply and sale of electricity; and mining and distributing industrial minerals including limestone.About Camino CorporationCamino is a discovery and development stage copper exploration company with a portfolio of projects located in Peru. The Company is focused on advancing its high-grade Los Chapitos copper project through to resource delineation, new discoveries and development. Camino has also permitted the Maria Cecilia copper porphyry project for a planned exploration drilling program. In addition, the Company has increased its land position at its copper and silver Plata Dorada project. The Company seeks to acquire a portfolio of advanced copper assets that have the potential to deliver copper into an electrifying copper intensive global economy. For more information, please refer to Camino's website at www.caminocorp.com ON BEHALF OF THE BOARDFor further information, please contact:/S/ "Jay Chmelauskas"Camino Investor RelationsPresident and CEOinfo@ caminocorp.com Tel: (604) 493-2058Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.Cautionary Note Regarding Forward Looking Statements: Certain disclosures in this release constitute forward-looking information. In making the forward-looking disclosures in this release, the Company has applied certain factors and assumptions that are based on the Company's current beliefs as well as assumptions made by and information currently available to the Company. Forward-looking information in the release includes the prospectivity of future exploration work at Los Chapitos, and the completion of a pre-feasibility study. Although the Company considers these assumptions to be reasonable based on information currently available to it, they may prove to be incorrect, and the forward-looking information in this release is subject to numerous risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause future results to differ materially from those expressed or implied in such forward-looking information. Such risk factors include, among others, the ability of the
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The company will showcase the first wireless, scalable, off-the-shelf co-culture solution at ASM Microbe 2023 in Houston, TX June 16th-18thCHARLOTTESVILLE, VA / ACCESSWIRE / June 14, 2023 / Cerillo, a biotechnology company at the forefront of developing advanced research platforms for the study of the microbiome, will host demonstrations of the company's new co-culture duet system at ASM Microbe 2023 from June 16-18th in Houston, Texas at booth #704. Attendees can learn more and register for live demos at: https://info.cerillo.bio/asm2023 Cerillo's Co-Culture Duet SystemCerillo's co-culture system will enable researchers to observe and study individual microbial populations in real-time and measure the growth of one microbial population alongside other populations. The system's porous barrier can physically isolate populations while maintaining fluidic contact, allowing researchers to mimic natural microbiome conditions and study the interactions between microorganisms.The co-culture system is also scalable since it can be read in multiple microplate readers, each wirelessly connected to the company's analytic software. This wireless feature can also help researchers capture and analyze growth data as it happens, enabling them to monitor and adjust their experiments in real-time.Until now, researchers faced the constraints of limited off-the-shelf co-culture options, demanding substantial investments of time and resources in developing custom systems for their studies. "Cerillo is dedicated to liberating microbiome researchers from the constraints of conventional laboratory technologies," says Eric Mayton, CEO of Cerillo. "Our new co-culture system is a game-changer, since it is the world's first scalable, user-friendly, and cost-effective co-culture system." ApplicationsCerillo's co-culture system enables researchers to:Mimic natural conditions: Microorganisms in the environment often exist in complex communities, where they interact with each other. Cerillo's co-culture system allows researchers to mimic these natural conditions and study the interactions between microorganisms.Improve understanding of microbial interactions: Cerillo's co-culture system can provide insight into how microorganisms interact with each other. For example, one microorganism may produce a compound that benefits another microorganism, or one microorganism may inhibit the growth of another. These interactions can be difficult to study in isolation.Identify novel compounds: Our system can also be used to identify novel compounds that are produced by microorganisms. For example, one microorganism may produce a compound that is only active in the presence of another microorganism.Develop new therapies: Cerillo's co-culture system can be used to screen for potential therapeutics by testing the ability of a compound to inhibit the growth of a pathogenic microorganism in the presence of a beneficial microorganism.Features and Benefitsmultiplexed plate accommodates 18 duetsphysically accessible wells enable population sampling during and after experimentscompatible with other automation systems, giving you the freedom and flexibility to run additional assays on different platformseffective for quick proofs-of-concept, and also preconfigured for higher-throughput work, making it suitable for a wide range of experiment typesscalable, enabling high-throughput experiments for faster results and comprehensive data analysissmall and robust to harsh conditions of incubators and anaerobic chamberseasily access your data without physical contact with your plate reader and manual memory cardsAbout CerilloCerillo is a biotechnology company at the forefront of microbiome research and innovation with a mission to develop cutting-edge solutions that enable in-depth exploration and analysis of the microbiome.The company's flagship offering is a wireless device platform, which seamlessly connects microplate readers to advanced analytic software. This integration allows for real-time visualization of growth curves, providing researchers with valuable insights into the dynamics of microbial populations. By capturing and analyzing growth data as it happens, scientists can make informed decisions, accelerate research, and optimize experimental outcomes.Cerillo's mission is to make microbiome engineering more accessible and available to a wider range of researchers than ever before. In order to achieve this, we're breaking down barriers to entry such as the high cost of equipment, scalability, and portability. For more information visit our website www.cerillo.bio Media Contact:Meghan O'Sullivanmeghan@ cerillo.bio Sales:Mike Fitzpatrickmike@ cerillo.bio SOURCE: Cerillo
PR-Inside.com: 2023-06-14 03:33:56

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AUSTIN, TX / ACCESSWIRE / June 13, 2023 / CIPHER-CORE, Inc., (OTC PINK:CFCI) a company that provides end-to-end protection technology for communication systems, remote authentication technology for IoT systems and Crypto Cash technology.Mr. Takatoshi Nakamura, CEO and President attended the Digital Currency Conference (DCC) May 17 through May 19, 2023 in Mexico City. Seventy-one organizations from 33 countries focused on technology and design aspects of both Central Bank and Private Digital Currencies. It was successful to join DCC and introduce our products for the future of Digital Currencies with the participants at this conference.The first day of the Conference, Digital Currency Fintech Innovation showcased the most outstanding start-up Fin-Techs, several innovation hubs within established commercial banks, and organizations with digital currency innovation.Ten innovative companies were selected to make a presentation of their projects. CIPHER-CORE, Inc., Mr. Nakamura was one of the ten selected companies who highlighted the following for the executives of the central banks and the companies.1. Why our product is different from existing solutions:Our product is the world's first application of unbreakable complete cipher technology based on "Information-theoretic security" to CBDC. This is the world's first and only technology and Product that realizes the "digital cash" ideal for CBDC in retail.2. Why we think we can make a difference in the digital currency area:First, for retail CBDC, it is the world's one and only solution to realize "digital cash". On the other hand, for wholesale CBDC, since it will always use some kind of network, we are able to provide a solution that can eliminate "man-in- the-middle" attacks, for which there is no Fundamental solution even today, by applying complete ciphers.Mr. Nakamura joined the various presentations performed by the Banks and other companies and events arranged by the DCC pursuant to the program.Mr. Nakamura spoke directly about CIPHER's unique technologies for CBDC with 11 executives of the central banks, all of whom indicated their great interest in his proposal and willingness to proceed with opportunities.Investor Relations:Claire SingletonTel: 801-580-9928Email: clairesingleton@ aol.com URL: http://www.ciher-core.com/en SOURCE: Cipher-Core, Inc.
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LAS VEGAS, NV / ACCESSWIRE / June 14, 2023 / Cytta Corp (OTCQB:CYCA) (the "Company") is excited to announce the successful installation of the IGAN 2.0 AIMS (Actionable Intelligence Management System) in both the City of Victoria Texas, and City of Hoover, Alabama Police Departments, expanding the national network of IGAN connected first responders.IGAN 2.0 AIMS is a highly secure, SaaS-based advanced system that offers real-time, integrated communications for multiple video and voice devices. This innovative system integrates various video and audio streams, including drones, body cams, fixed cameras, and cell phones, providing law enforcement with real-time situational awareness and actionable intelligence to enhance their operations.Following productive discussions and product demonstrations, both police departments have made the decision to adopt our IGAN 2.0 AIMS service. Leveraging the SaaS nature of our product, the installation process was conducted remotely, allowing for quick and seamless implementation. Within minutes, each department's IGAN service became fully operational. Cytta is now providing comprehensive operational training to ensure the seamless integration of IGAN into the day-to-day operations of each department.The IGAN platform equips law enforcement officers with crucial data to make informed decisions on-site, enhancing the safety and security of their communities. Moreover, IGAN's integration within local Police Departments or Sheriff's Offices paves the way for the inclusion of all public and private schools through our C.A.R.E.S. (Crisis Assistance and Response for Emergency Situations) school incident management system, further reinforcing safety measures for all our school children.Cary Campbell, CEO of Cytta Corp., expressed enthusiasm for the police departments' forward-thinking approach and their confidence in the capabilities of IGAN 2.0 AIMS. Campbell stated, "We look forward to the deploying and utilization of the IGAN 2.0 AIMS within these departments, further expanding our network of police departments and sheriffs utilizing our technology nationwide." Cytta's IGAN platform is a fully integrated multimedia connectivity platform, incorporating advanced features such as "advanced interactive mapping" and AI intelligence capabilities. This empowers first responders, real-time crime centers, and fusion centers to collaborate effectively based on previously unattainable actionable information. IGAN has been proven successful in critical situations such as hostage-taking, search-and-rescue missions, felony-in-progress incidents, fugitive apprehension, building and home searches, and warrant-based apprehensions.About Cytta Corp.Cytta Corp (OTCQB:CYCA) is a leading provider of software technology that revolutionizes the integration, streaming, transfer, and storage of video and audio data. The Company's proprietary IGAN 2.0 AIMS (Actionable Information Management System) offers real-time integration of video and audio streams, enabling improved collaboration and providing ongoing, relevant, actionable intelligence. Cytta's SUPR ISR (Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance) codec delivers real-time compression of video streams with ultra-low latency, even in low bandwidth environments. By developing innovative software solutions with advanced video compression and intelligence-gathering capabilities, Cytta Corp addresses real-world challenges in large markets.For more information, please visit Cytta Corp's website and the Cytta Corporate Video Channel on YouTube to view recent corporate discussions.Contact Us:Cytta CorpPhone: 855-511-IGAN (4265)info@ cytta.com Gary Campbell, CEODirect (702) 900-7022 (or message)Gary@ cytta.com Natalia Sokolova, COODirect: (424) 333-0595 (or message)Natalia@ cytta.com Gary Brown, VP Product ManagementDirect (469) 301-5501 (or message)GaryBrown@ Cytta.com SOURCE: Cytta Corp.
PR-Inside.com: 2023-06-14 23:20:33

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JERSEY CITY, NJ / ACCESSWIRE / June 14, 2023 / EQUATOR Beverage Company (OTCQB:MOJO) has implemented substantial measures to enhance the simplicity and efficiency of its capital structure, with the objective of establishing a transparent and easily comprehensible framework for its shareholders and potential investors.To achieve this, the company has taken several actions. Firstly, it has eliminated its Preferred Class B stock, which previously amounted to 10,000,000 shares as of March 2019. Additionally, two reverse stock splits were carried out: a 10-to-1 split on April 2, 2013, and a 2-to-1 split on July 5, 2022. As a result of these actions, the Company's outstanding share count now stands at 16,503,796 shares.In line with its commitment to transparency, EQUATOR has revised its corporate bylaws, significantly reducing the number of authorized shares from 200,000,000 to 20,000,000, representing a notable 90 percent decrease as of July 5, 2022.Moreover, the company has made the decision to cancel all outstanding warrants and options, and there are no plans to issue any additional ones in the coming years.Demonstrating its dedication to transparency and commitment to shareholder value, EQUATOR has engaged in private transactions since 2018 to acquire 1,521,574 common shares adjusted for splits up to the present day. These initiatives underscore the company's focus on establishing a simplified and easily understood capital structure for its stakeholders, all while prioritizing their best interests.The below table shows the repurchases by year adjusted for splits.EQUATOR Beverage CompanyCommon Stock RepurchasesJanuary 1, 2019 to June 14, 2023As of June 14, 2023, EQUATOR Beverage Company maintains a well-defined capital structure. The company has authorized a total of 20,000,000 shares, out of which 16,503,796 shares have been issued and are currently outstanding. Among these outstanding shares, 12,657,157 are restricted for sale, while 3,846,639 shares are unrestricted for sale. Notably, 2,552,454 shares are held by the Depository Trust Company (DTC).In line with its commitment to maximizing shareholder value, EQUATOR Beverage Company has outlined its plan to execute a share buyback program throughout 2023. This strategic initiative aims to decrease the number of outstanding shares, thereby enhancing the value of each share held by the company's shareholders. By implementing these measures, the company seeks to generate long-term shareholder value while maintaining a transparent and straightforward capital structure.For additional information, contact Glenn Simpson CEO EQUATOR Beverage Company at 929 264 7944 Stock Symbol: MOJOImportant Cautions Regarding Forward Looking StatementsThis press release contains forward-looking statements within the definition of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended and such section 21E of the Securities Act of 1934, amended. These forward-looking statements should not be used to make an investment decision. The words 'estimate,' 'possible' and 'seeking' and similar expressions identify forward- looking statements, which speak only as to the date the statement was made. The company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether because of new information, future events, or otherwise. Forward-looking statements are inherently subject to risks and uncertainties, some of which cannot be predicted, or quantified.Future events and actual results could differ materially from those set forth in, contemplated or underlying the forward-looking statements. The risks and uncertainties to which forward- looking statements are subject include, but are not limited to, the effect of government regulation, competition and other material risk.Related Links: https://equatorbeverage.com/ Contact:Glenn Simpson, Chairman & CEOPhone Number: 917 574 1690SOURCE: EQUATOR Beverage Company
Highlights

Project is part of REPowerEU - the plan to eliminate dependence on fossil-fuel imports.

The loan will co-finance the construction of 22 renewable energy plants in Spain, Portugal and Germany with a total installed capacity of 2.2 GW.

70% of the plants will be deployed in rural areas, areas affected by the industrial transition to net zero and cohesion regions.

Installations will provide green energy equal to the average annual energy consumption of more than 1,000,000 households.

The European Investment Bank (EIB) and Iberdrola have signed a new financing agreement worth 1 billion to fast forward the energy transition in Europe by building an extensive network of 19 solar power plants and 3 onshore wind farms in Spain, Portugal and Germany.

With a total installed capacity of 2.2 GW, the projects envisage a joint investment of more than 1.7 billion, which will accelerate the energy transition and boost supply security, climate action and social cohesion in Europe.

The operation is part of the EIB's financing package in support of REPowerEU, the EU plan to strengthen Europe's energy autonomy.

In addition, the project will have an innovation component, as it will facilitate the integration of renewables into grids, undoubtedly one of the great challenges in achieving Europe's climate objectives. Some of the photovoltaic projects will include hybridization with wind power and battery systems for energy storage. Hybrid systems generate solar energy when the sun shines and wind energy when the wind blows, with integrated systems complementing each other and sharing the same connection point to guarantee a more stable supply to the grid. Energy storage is a fundamental pillar of the energy transition by adding flexibility to the generation of renewable energy and allowing a better integration into the system.

The agreement was signed in Madrid by EIB Vice-President Ricardo Mourinho Felix and Executive Chairman of Iberdrola Ignacio Galan.

The new installations will provide green energy equal to the average annual energy consumption of more than 1,000,000 households and they will be mostly located in cohesion regions, where per-capita-income is lower than EU average, underlining EIB's commitment to equitable growth and the convergence of living standards. The investments made under this agreement will boost economic growth and employment in the regions where these renewable energy facilities are installed. These new projects will also support the national energy plans of the three countries, and help Iberdrola achieve its 2040 net zero emissions target.

"This major financing agreement covering three countries highlights the EIB's continued firm commitment to accelerating the energy transition in Europe and to ensuring access to affordable, clean power for all Europeans," said EIB Vice-President Ricardo Mourinho Felix. "This is a strategic objective for the European Union and the EIB that will not only contribute to climate change mitigation, but also to the EU's energy security and strategic autonomy. As the horrific war in Ukraine has shown, sustainable energy and energy security are two sides of the same coin. To achieve them both, it is vital that we collaborate with companies in the European energy sector such as Iberdrola."

Executive Chairman of Iberdrola Ignacio Galan added that "As one of the main partners of the EIB, it is a pleasure for us to have the Bank support again through this loan, which represents a significant contribution to accelerate Europe's energy independence -in line with the REPowerEU Plan of the European Union-, achieve climate objectives, and continue creating economic growth and employment in the continent."

The EIB and energy security

In 2022, the EIB Group committed financing more than 17 billion for the energy transition in Europe. As this is a top priority for the EU climate bank, Spain received a record 3.1 billion in financing for sustainable energy and natural resources projects in the same year, making it the second largest beneficiary of financing in the EU. This figure confirms the Group's commitment to ensuring access to sustainable energy at a time of great uncertainty. These investments are helping Europe weather the crisis triggered by the abrupt cut in gas supplies in the aftermath of Russia's unjustified attack against Ukraine.

In October 2022, the EIB Board of Directors decided to raise the Group's clean energy financing volumes to unprecedented levels in support of the REPowerEU objective of ending Europe's dependence on Russian fossil fuel imports. Over the next five years, an additional 30 billion will be invested on top of the EIB's already robust support for the EU energy sector. The financing pledged under REPowerEU is expected to generate an additional 115 billion in investment by 2027, thus making a substantial contribution to Europe's energy independence and to the EIB Group's target of mobilising 1 trillion in climate finance this decade.

Spain is set to play a key role in the deployment of REPowerEU and in helping the EIB Group see through its overarching long-term commitment to sustainable energy. This can be seen in the financing granted for projects such as Iberdrola, as well as other renewable energy, energy efficiency, and energy storage and network projects in Spain that have received EIB financing.

Find out more about the EIB's support for the energy sector here.

Iberdrola's commitment to renewables and sustainable financing

The operation is part of Iberdrola's commitment to help decarbonise the planet. As part of this strategy, the company plans to invest more than 47 billion between 2023 and 2025 to promote the energy transition, employment and net zero emissions.

Iberdrola continues to move forward with its sustainability strategy, which is based on the electrification of the economy through sustainable energies, and oriented towards combating climate change and creating wealth and jobs in the regions where it operates. This funding will enable the company to further strengthen its position in sustainable financing with more than 48 billion in ESG operations signed, of which 17.6 billion in green bonds.

The projects funded with this kind of financing are in line with the following UN Sustainable Development Goals on which Iberdrola is focusing: SDG 7 (affordable and clean energy) and SDG 13 (climate action).

Background information

About the EIB

The European Investment Bank Group (EIB Group) formed by the European Investment Bank (EIB) and the European Investment Fund (EIF) reported another year of excellent results in Spain, with record support for climate action and environmental sustainability projects and 9.9 billion of total financing signed in 2022.

About Iberdrola

Iberdrola is the largest energy company in Europe by market capitalization and one of the two main energy companies in the world, a leader in renewables, which is leading the energy transition towards a low-emissions economy. The group supplies energy to nearly 100 million people and develops its renewable, network and commercial activities in Europe (Spain, the United Kingdom, Portugal, France, Germany, Italy and Greece), the United States, Brazil, Mexico and Australia and maintains markets such as Japan, Taiwan, Ireland, Sweden and Poland, among others, as growth platforms.

With a workforce of 40,600 people and assets of more than 154,600 million, in 2022 it obtained revenues of almost 54,000 million, a net profit of 4,340 million and a tax contribution of 7,500 million euros in the countries where it operates. The company contributes to maintaining 400,000 jobs in its supply chain, with annual purchases of 17,800 million in 2022. A benchmark in the fight against climate change, it has allocated more than 140,000 million euros in the last two decades to build a sustainable energy model, based on solid environmental, social and governance (ESG) principles.
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The Empathy Firm's Michelangelo System revolutionizes content repurposing by combining AI and human elements, transforming podcast appearances into a formidable branding engine with optimal efficiency and effectiveness.LAKE MILLS, WI / ACCESSWIRE / June 13, 2023 / In the rapidly evolving world of personal branding, The Empathy Firm, co-founded by brothers Gavin Lira and Grant Lira, is making waves with the launch of their innovative, AI-driven system, The Michelangelo System. This cutting-edge approach leverages the power of artificial intelligence to help busy founders and high-level executives generate leads and build a strong, authentic brand in a faster, more cost-effective manner, while maximizing the value of their podcast appearances.The Empathy Firm specializes in securing media coverage, particularly podcasts, for their B2B clients. Podcasts offer a unique opportunity for business leaders to showcase their expertise and build their personal brand. Podcast appearances are typically most effective when the content from the episode is repurposed afterward. Until the recent developments in AI, content was typically repurposed manually because the AI that was available couldn't do adequate job. This is where The Michelangelo System revolutionizes the process, utilizing new AI technology to convert it into various content formats that engage their target audience while preserving the authenticity of the business leader's voice.The process begins with booking the client on a podcast. After the recording, a publicist from The Empathy Firm, co-founded by Grant Lira & Gavin Lira, uses an array of AI tools to create a wide range of content from the podcast. These tools include Descript, which removes filler words and adjusts audio quality; Munch, which identifies the best short-form video content; ChatGPT, which generates engaging social media captions, Tweets, LinkedIn posts, and blog articles based on the transcript; and Swell AI which creates in-depth article summaries from podcast recordings, which can then be published in various media outlets. This comprehensive approach ensures that the client's message reaches more of their intended audience and reinforces their brand across multiple platforms.In addition to this, The Michelangelo System creates "How To" videos for YouTube that target the client's audience. Descript is used to find and clip relevant sections of the podcast where the guest provides an in-depth explanation on a topic, relevant to what their target audience would look up on YouTube for a "How To" video. After this, ChatGPT generates an engaging title and description based on the transcript. This approach helps businesses rank on YouTube for specific search terms, providing evergreen client acquisition opportunities and establishing their authority within their niche.Another aspect of The Michelangelo System involves using Swell AI to generate in-depth article summaries from the podcast. These summaries are then published in various media outlets and turned into blog posts using ChatGPT. Over time, this strategy can drive organic inbound traffic to the client's website, attract potential customers, and further strengthen their brand. The press gained from this also helps with positioning and allows them to leverage these features it in their sales cycle to close more deals.Within The Michelangelo System, the AI tool, Munch, plays a crucial role in maximizing the value of podcast appearances. This AI-powered tool analyzes the podcast recording to identify the most engaging and impactful segments, perfect for repurposing as short-form video content. Once these segments are selected, Munch automatically generates captions for the video, making them more accessible and engaging for viewers on platforms like TikTok, Instagram Reels, Facebook Reels, YouTube Shorts, Snapchat Spotlight, and LinkedIn. By utilizing Munch, The Empathy Firm ensures that their clients' unique insights and messages are effectively communicated in easily digestible, shareable video snippets, contributing to the growth of their personal brand and overall online presence.The final part of The Michelangelo System is the podcast itself, which allows clients to reach a new audience and showcase their expertise for 30-60 minutes. This exposure helps solidify the power of their brand, increases acquisition effectiveness, and fosters trust among potential clients.The Empathy Firm, is set apart from other PR firms not just from their innovative approach, but for their commitment to social responsibility and their impressive achievements. They recently launched a charitable initiative called "Podcasts for a Purpose," which provides a meal to a person in need for every podcast booked for their clients. This initiative reflects the core values of The Empathy Firm and resonates with clients who value conscious capitalism as well. Both Gavin Lira and Grant Lira have been featured in prestigious publications such as Forbes and Entrepreneur, showcasing their expertise in personal branding and leveraging media. Gavin Lira has also delivered a TEDx Talk as well, further demonstrating their authority in the field and their dedication to making a positive impact on the world.When we take a step back and look at the Michelangelo System, it helps create a comprehensive, multi-channel personal branding strategy tailored to the unique voice and expertise of each client. By leveraging advanced AI tools and the expertise of The Empathy Firm, the Michalengo System transforms podcast appearances into a powerful branding engine, generating a wide range of content, from short-form video clips to insightful blog posts and newsworthy articles. This approach not only increases the online visibility and authority of clients in their respective industries but also drives organic traffic, fosters trust among potential customers, and ultimately contributes to the long-term success and growth of their businesses. The Michelangelo System is truly a testament to the power of combining AI with human expertise to revolutionize the world of personal branding.About The Empathy FirmThe Empathy Firm, co-founded by Gavin Lira and Grant Lira, is a leading brand and marketing agency that specializes in securing media coverage, particularly through podcasts, for their B2B clients. Their AI-driven solutions enable busy founders and executives to generate leads, build authentic brands, and optimize the value of podcast appearances, revolutionizing the industry with their innovative strategies and expertise.Media ContactGrant Liragrant@ empathyfirm.com 6085094540SOURCE: The Empathy Firm
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NOORDWIJK, THE NETHERLANDS / ACCESSWIRE / June 14, 2023 / Leaders from worldwide technology and distribution companies gathered this week for the 13th annual GTDC Summit EMEA conference, hosted by the Global Technology Distribution Council. This year's executive forum explored many of the IT industry's top challenges and brightest prospects, with insight from respected economists, researchers, futurists, and other experts and authorities.With the rapid advances in technologies and delivery models, vendors and solution providers are increasingly looking to IT distributors for guidance, support and resources for their clients. "Innovation is a key sales driver and rising value proposition for the channel as businesses struggle to keep pace with increases in labor costs, global competition, and regulatory compliance," said Frank Vitagliano, CEO of the GTDC. "While organizations rely on IT solutions and technology providers to address those concerns and meet other critical objectives, distributors are a force behind the scenes. They deliver more technology options, services and support capabilities than ever before." Vitagliano highlighted the evolution of distributors from their core pick, pack and ship roles to even more comprehensive responsibilities as channel orchestrators. "All the investments in digital platforms, marketplaces, and emerging technology practices are coming into their own today, simplifying go-to-market strategies and expanding the reach for vendors and solution partners. Alliances with hyperscalers and expansion of sustainability-related offerings will further boost the value of distribution in the IT ecosystem." He shared details of the recently introduced GTDC Innovation Enablement Guide to illustrate some of the many ways channel partners can scale emerging technologies' success. "Distributors are force-multipliers in the adoption process, providing vendors with the support, resources and visibility required to thrive in the channel." The free GTDC report is available to download now.Additional Insight from the 2023 EventThe future of technology was a prevalent topic of discussion at Summit EMEA. Speakers and moderators highlighted key areas of opportunity for the IT industry and channel, from digital transformation and cybersecurity to environmental sustainability and artificial intelligence. The 2023 sessions included:Vitagliano moderated a strategic investment panel with senior distribution executives: Alessandro Cattani, CEO of the Esprinet Group; Anton Herbst, Executive Advisor of Tarsus; and Patrick Zammit, President, EU and APAC of TD SYNNEX.Futurist Gerd Leonhard shared his insight on emerging tech and how the world can harness its power for the greater good. With the ethical and legal concerns around AI and other cutting-edge solutions, persevering in an age of renewable and machine technologies could be a challenge for everyone, including channel partners.Dave O'Callaghan, Managing Partner of Vation Ventures, moderated a discussion on distribution investments and their effects on vendors and other channel partners today. Other contributors to that conversation included Gianluca Guasti, GM, Value Business & Marketing, Computer Gross Italia; Clive Fitzharris, CEO of DCC Technology; and Klaus Schlichtherle, CEO of Infinigate. Jan Willem Velthuijsen, Chief Economist at PWC examined the current financial environment in EMEA and explored the factors that could positively and negatively impact the IT industry.The next global event, GTDC Summit North America, will be held February 7-9, 2024, at the Mission Pacific & Seabird Resort in Oceanside, CA. More details will be available soon.About the GTDCThe Global Technology Distribution Council is the industry consortium representing the world's leading tech distributors. GTDC members drive an estimated $160 billion in annual worldwide sales of products, services and solutions through diverse business channels. GTDC conferences support the development and expansion of strategic supply-chain partnerships that continually address the fast-changing marketplace needs of vendors, end customers and distributors. GTDC members include AB S.A. (WSE: ABPL), Almo Corporation, Arrow Electronics (NYSE: ARW), CMS Distribution, Computer Gross Italia (MI: SES), D&H Distributing, ELKO, Esprinet ( PRT.MI) , Exclusive Networks (EPA: EXN), Exertis, Infinigate, Ingram Micro, Intcomex, Logicom (CSE:LOG), Siewert & Kau, SiS Technologies (HKSE: 0529), Tarsus, TD SYNNEX (NYSE: SNX), TIM AG and Westcon-Comstor.CONTACT:Taylor Gaines(813) 727-6871tgaines@ commcentric.com SOURCE: CommCentric Solutions
PR-Inside.com: 2023-06-14 15:13:38

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MILWAUKEE, WI / ACCESSWIRE / June 14, 2023 / Inspire Health Tech Partners, LLC, an AI-based insurance data services company, today announced a unique collaboration with QuinStreet, Inc., a leader in performance marketplaces and technologies for the financial services and home services industries, to harness the power of artificial intelligence (AI) to simplify and improve the complex Medicare shopping process.This partnership will be launched in 2023 to Medicare beneficiaries across the country via QuinStreet's web property insure.com . Through the new, easy-to-use online experience, seniors will be able to opt into answering a few simple questions about their medical conditions, medications, preferred physicians, and lifestyle. This service, empowered by Inspire Health Tech's unique API, will present plan recommendations in order of expected out-of-pocket costs. This personalized view then enables the consumer to connect to an agent or insurance company that represents the plan or plans in which they've expressed interest. Insure.com will offer seniors a better Medicare shopping experience."More and more, seniors go online to learn about their Medicare options. Most sites which pretend to be offering self-service simply grab the consumers' info and sell it to many agents, and the consumer gets calls and emails for weeks, even months," says Farzin Espahani, QuinStreet's GM and Head of Health and Medicare. "We believe our collaboration with Inspire Health Tech enables us to offer more to the consumer - a personalized, unbiased shopping experience. In this way, we will be helping them to pre-educate and express interest in certain plans before speaking to a licensed agent." Mr. Espahani believes the insure.com experience will also result in subsequent benefits to the licensed insurance agent. "Consumers who have done personalized research will be much closer to a decision. Further, since consumers have been more actively involved, they will be more confident in their plan choice which will help the agent retain that business down the road." Data and AI from Inspire Health Tech helps make it happen.Inspire Health Tech is behind the scenes of this user experience, helping to match each consumer to plans using AI and predictive analytics. "I've been involved in the leads business for many years and I've seen the problem first-hand. Consumers - especially seniors - are often mistreated in the name of maximizing short-run profits. We founded IHT to help the Medicare consumer, pure and simple," says Mark Seghers, CEO & Co-Founder of Inspire Health Tech. "IHT's MediPro platform helps companies configure their own unique, personalized experiences for their valuable prospects. With their new release of insure.com , QuinStreet as an industry leader has designed an amazing and unique experience that demonstrates real respect to its visitors, helping them find the right plan based on their unique situation and then, upon their approval, connecting them to the right representative for that plan." Mr. Seghers believes AI can lead the way to a better insurance shopping experience. "This annual enrollment period, I would send any senior friend or family member to insure.com . I believe it's important to be informed - and to know a little bit about your options before you talk to an agent." To learn more about Inspire Health Tech's products and services, please visit http://www.InspireHT.com About Inspire Health Tech Partners, LLCHeadquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Inspire Health Tech provides unique AI, data services, consulting and development to forward-thinking Medicare marketers and agencies. In addition to Medicare, IHT is adding under-65 health products to its platform to broaden its services to marketers committed to helping consumers.Contact InformationRandall BennettCo-Foundermark@ inspireht.com 414-379-7401SOURCE: Inspire Health Tech
PR-Inside.com: 2023-06-14 15:45:29

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NEW YORK, NY / ACCESSWIRE / June 14, 2023 / Scott+Scott Attorneys at Law LLP ("Scott+Scott"), an international shareholder and consumer rights litigation firm, is reminding investors that the deadline to move for lead plaintiff in a securities class action lawsuit against Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. (NYSE:CRL) ("Charles River" or the "Company") and certain other defendants (collectively, "Defendants") is July 18, 2023.CLICK HERE TO RECEIVE ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ABOUT THIS CLASS ACTIONThe action, which was filed in the U.S. District Court for Massachusetts asserts claims under 10(b) and 20(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the "Exchange Act") on behalf of a Class consisting of all persons who purchased or otherwise acquired Charles River common stock between May 5, 2020 and February 21, 2023, inclusive (the "Class Period"), and who were damaged thereby (the "Class").Charles River provides research tools and support services for drug discovery and development.On February 22, 2023, Charles River revealed that it had received a subpoena from the U.S. Department of Justice ("DOJ") relating to an ongoing investigation into the supply chain and illegal importation of non-human primates for research. The Company noted that it was suspending shipments of primates from Cambodia, which would negatively impact its earnings for the year and would reduce revenue growth by 200 basis points to 400 basis points.On this news, Charles River's stock price fell $24.51, or 10%, to close at $219.09 per share on February 22, 2023, on unusually heavy trading volume.The complaint filed in this class action alleges that throughout the Class Period, Defendants failed to disclose to investors: (1) that Charles River had engaged in illegal activity with respect to its importation of non-human primates for research; (2) that, as a result, Charles River was at a heightened risk of criminal and regulatory investigation by, inter alia, the U.S. Department of Justice; and (3) that, as a result, Charles River would be forced to suspend shipments of primates from Cambodia, among other things.Lead Plaintiff DeadlineThe Lead Plaintiff deadline in this action is July 18, 2023. Any member of the proposed Class may seek to serve as Lead Plaintiff through counsel of their choice, or may choose to do nothing and remain a member of the proposed Class.What You Can DoIf you purchased Charles River common stock during the Class Period, and suffered damages, realized or unrealized, you are encouraged to contact Scott+Scott attorney Jonathan Zimmerman at (888) 398-9312, or jzimmerman@ scott-scott.com , for more information.About Scott+Scott Attorneys at Law LLPScott+Scott has significant experience in prosecuting major securities, antitrust, and employee retirement plan actions throughout the United States. The firm represents pension funds, foundations, individuals, and other entities worldwide with offices in New York, London, Amsterdam, Connecticut, Virginia, California, and Ohio.Attorney AdvertisingCONTACT:Scott+Scott Attorneys at Law LLPJonathan Zimmerman(888) 398-9312jzimmerman@ scott-scott.com SOURCE: Scott+Scott Attorneys at Law LLP
PR-Inside.com: 2023-06-14 19:45:27

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NORTHAMPTON, MA / ACCESSWIRE / June 14, 2023 / Leidos:Leidos employees and family members participating in the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention's Hike for Hope event in Huntsville, Alabama.Leidos has joined the fight against adolescent suicide and depression, a growing public health crisis in America.Why you should know: May was Mental Health Awareness Month, and many organizations including Leidos were stepping up efforts to make a difference surrounding the teenage mental health crisis.The data says: According to the most recent data, intentional self-harm is the third-leading cause of death among teenagers, behind only homicide and unintentional injury.Earlier this year, the CDC published results from its annual Youth Risky Behavior Survey, which showed teen girls and teens who identify as LGBTQ+ are experiencing unprecedented levels of mental distress:"More than 1 in 4 girls reported they seriously considered attempting suicide in 2021, up significantly from 2011," the report states. "More than 1 in 10 girls reported they attempted suicide in 2021, also increasing significantly over the decade.""In 2021, almost half of LGBTQ+ students seriously considered attempting suicide, nearly 1 in 4 attempted suicides, and nearly 3 in 14 reported persistent feelings of sadness or hopelessness.""There is a mental health crisis in America as millions are seeking help," says Dr. Christianne Esposito-Smythers, Professor of Psychology at George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia. "The system is overwhelmed with patients having limited options and experiencing long waits in addition to high costs, insufficient insurance coverage and limited information about available services." Leidos impact: Leidos supports a number of causes related to teenage depression as part of its Mission for the Mind campaign:Leidos is a Presenting Sponsor for all four of this year's National Capital Area Out of the Darkness Walks, hosted by the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (ASFP).The company has partnered with EVERFI to bring digital mental health and wellness education to middle school and high school students across West Virginia and Maryland.Leidos supports the Women's Center, which provides free and reduced cost support for mental health and domestic violence. The Women's Center recently launched a teenage resiliency program, which over the past year has provided nearly 350 adolescents with nearly 4,000 hours of trauma mental health counseling.Leidos supports GMU's Center for Psychological Studies which provides accessible mental health services and helps train the next generation of therapists.Leidos supports the National Military Family Association (NMFA) and its Operation Purple Camps designed to help support the mental well-being of military children by giving them a free week of camp to connect with other military kids.Leidos hosted a number of activities this month in honor of Mental Health Awareness Month.The company hosted a screening and discussion of the new film, "Hiding in Plain Sight: Youth Mental Illness." Presented by legendary documentary filmmaker Ken Burns, the film explores the challenges of youth mental illness in the U.S. and features stories from more than 20 young people who live with mental health conditions.Leidos will present "Mission Critical: Prioritizing Mental Health for Military Service Members and their Families," a panel discussion about the challenges of delivering and accessing mental health resources for military servicemembers and their families.Most importantly: If you're having suicidal thoughts, there are people who want to help you. You can speak to someone at the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255 (TALK). You can also find help from the American Foundation of Suicide Prevention. If you're a veteran in crisis, please contact the Veterans Crisis Line."Remember, you're not alone," says Dr. Robyn Mehlenbeck, a clinical psychologist at George Mason. "There's support available for both teenagers and their families. By prioritizing mental health throughout the year, we can create a more supportive environment for the younger generation, ensuring they receive the care they need." Please contact the Leidos media relations team for more information.View additional multimedia and more ESG storytelling from Leidos on 3 blmedia.com Contact Info:Spokesperson: LeidosWebsite: https://www.3blmedia.com/profiles/leidos Email: info@3 blmedia.com SOURCE: Leidos
PR-Inside.com: 2023-06-14 20:01:28

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El Carlito Begins Distribution Across Greater HoustonKATY, TX / ACCESSWIRE / June 14, 2023 / No Label Brewing Co., a leading craft brewery located in Katy, Texas, is celebrating yet another milestone in its brewing journey. The brewery's esteemed El Carlito beer has once again been awarded high accolades, this time taking home the Silver Medal in the Wheat & Ryes category at the prestigious 2023 Fredericksburg Craft Beer Competition.El CarlitoEl Carlito wins at the 2023 Fredericksburg Craft Beer Competition "We are overjoyed and truly honored to see El Carlito recognized once again at the Fredericksburg competition," said No Label's Co-owner, Tom Paynter. "This award is a testament to our commitment to craft quality, authentic, and flavorful beers. Every can of El Carlito echoes our dedication to the craft of brewing, and we're incredibly grateful that this passion continues to resonate with both the judges and beer enthusiasts." This recent accolade adds to El Carlito's decorated honors list. The beer has previously been awarded the 2021 US Open - Bronze Medal, 2022 Texas Craft Brewer's Cup Bronze Medal, and a Bronze Medal at the 2023 New York International Beer Competition. "El Carlito, much like this brewery, may be small and unassuming, but it casts a large shadow - a true underdog beer, just at 8.3%."Moreover, this latest achievement for El Carlito follows a successful streak for No Label Brewing Co. Over the past two years, the brewery has brought home an impressive 20 Craft Beer Marketing Awards, 3 Texas Craft Brewer's Cup medals, 4 Fredericksburg Craft Beer Competition awards, 4 New York International Beer Competition awards, one US Open medal, and one World Beer Cup.To share this multitude of award-winning brew with the broader Houston area, El Carlito will now be available at HEB and Total Wine stores across the region. No Label Brewing Co. is thrilled to expand its distribution, ensuring that more Texans can experience the award-winning, rich flavor profile of El Carlito."No Label Brewing Co. stands for quality, innovation, and authenticity," added Paynter. "We aim to create beers that not only taste great but also represent the best of Texan brewing. Every award we receive fuels us to keep pushing the envelope, exploring new flavors, and celebrating the rich tradition of craft brewing in Texas." About No Label Brewing Co.Founded in the heart of Katy, Texas, No Label Brewing Co. is a family-owned craft brewery dedicated to creating distinct, high-quality beers. By blending tradition, creativity, and a profound love for brewing, No Label Brewing Co. has firmly established itself as a cornerstone in the Texas craft beer community, garnering recognition at both the national and international levels for its exceptional beers. "Despite all of our recent achievements, rest assured that we have no idea what we're doing. We're kids in the candy store and that candy is beer." Contact InformationTom PaynterCreative Director, Co-Owner, Director of Thingstom@ nolabelbrew.com 2817482498SOURCE: No Label Brewing Co.
PR-Inside.com: 2023-06-14 01:45:17

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PPR Capital Management has been named one of the Best Places to Work in the small company category by the Philadelphia Business Journal. PPR's CEO, Steve Meyer, expressed pride and gratitude for the recognition, highlighting the team's efforts in growing the company over the past 16 years and creating a thriving work environment.BERWTYN, PA / ACCESSWIRE / June 13, 2023 / PPR Capital Management ("PPR"), a leading private equity real estate fund manager, today announced that the firm was honored by the Philadelphia Business Journal as one of the Best Places to Work in the small company category. The firm was selected to the shortlist from an esteemed group of nearly 100 firms in the region.Annually, the Philadelphia Business Journal recognizes the region's top employers through its Best Places to Work program, independently measuring each company's culture and taking into consideration compensation, benets, and trust in senior leadership.Steve Meyer, PPR's Chief Executive Officer, expressed gratitude for this nomination by stating, "We are proud of this independent recognition as it reflects the entire team's efforts in growing and evolving our firm over the past 16 years. The quality of our employees is unmatched and with a culture of collaboration with each other, our clients, and trusted partners, PPR has created a thriving, enjoyable and successful work environment while also providing financial wellness to our investors and making a positive social impact on the communities in which we live, work, and invest." The top three companies of the 96 surveyed will be revealed in a special print edition of the Philadelphia Business Journal in late July.About PPR Capital ManagementPPR Capital Management is a private investment firm, specializing in institutional mortgage notes and commercial real estate. Since 2007, PPR's experienced team has enabled investors to access an investment fund with a sizeable scale, high-quality assets, and economic-based portfolio management. Adhering to a strong set of core values, PPR's goal is to deliver risk-adjusted passive returns while improving communities nationwide. For more information about PPR Capital Management and its investment strategies, please visit https://pprcapitalmgmt.com Media Contact:Chris Van Horncvanhorn@ pprcapitalmgmt.com (877) 395-1290SOURCE: PPR
PR-Inside.com: 2023-06-14 17:01:18

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PROVO, UT / ACCESSWIRE / June 14, 2023 / Rich Galgano, a notable entrepreneur and investor, has acquired a majority stake in BRANDefenders, the leading reputation branding firm headquartered in Utah. Galgano is a marketing visionary who has made a name for himself in the business world. Rich is the co-founder and CEO of Bolingbrook-based Windy City Wire (WCW), established in 1994 with the mission of revolutionizing the wire and cable industry, by catering to customer needs and providing superior service. The acquisition ushers in an exciting new era for BRANDefenders, and will provide the company with the means to expand its operations and continue to provide clients with superior reputation management, content marketing, and brand positioning services.Under the terms of the acquisition, the company board has chosen to keep Devin W. Johnson as President and CEO of BRANDefenders. Johnson will also remain an owner of the company, and continue to lead the business strategically and as a company board member. Additional strategic investors have joined the acquisition, bringing with them additional expertise and resources to help BRANDefenders realize its full potential.Galgano stated that BRANDefenders has a strong reputation for assisting businesses of all sizes in establishing and maintaining a strong online brand presence. "I'm excited to join forces with Devin and the rest of the team in order to build on this success and take the company to the next level." BRANDefenders specializes in positioning brands online, working with businesses of all sizes and with individuals. With a historical focus on search engine optimization (SEO), reputation management, and content marketing, future plans for the company will fast track Johnson's strategic vision, and include new insights from new investors. The company has earned a reputation for delivering exceptional results across a variety of industries, including healthcare, finance, and e-commerce.Johnson stated, "I'm thrilled to have Rich as a partner in this endeavor." "His knowledge and experience will be indispensable as we continue to grow and expand our operations. Rich has a zeal for getting things done and helping to transform brands. For me personally, he's like having a second set of hands, with corporate expertise to execute and think strategically, which will help BRANDefenders continue to reach new heights." The acquisition will provide BRANDefenders with access to new markets to expand its operations and customer base, and continue providing clients with premium brand positioning services. To support its growth, the company intends to hire additional personnel and invest in new technology and resources. Several new service offerings were set to launch soon, which will certainly benefit from this recent acquisition.For additional information about BRANDefenders, please visit www.brandefenders.com Contact Information:Media TeamBRANDefenders(888) 501-1288pr@ brandefenders.com SOURCE: BRANDefenders
PR-Inside.com: 2023-06-14 15:01:17

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VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / June 14, 2023 / Rock Edge Resources Ltd. (the "Company" or "Rock Edge") (CSE:REDG) is pleased to announce that the Company has acquired additional land after concluding its 2023 field program on their Pag North property (the "Property") located 30 km southeast of Longlac, Ontario. The Property has been mapped and sampled for its rare-element pegmatite-hosted mineralization and gold potential.Prospecting has uncovered several pegmatite dykes ranging in size from 0.5 to 15 m or more. Overburden stripping will need to be completed to determine actual widths. The pegmatites are typically white to yellowish in colour. Quartz and plagioclase graphic crystal intergrowth with subordinate muscovite (sometimes abundant), tourmaline, biotite and garnet are recognizable minerals in outcrop with possible beryl and a black mineral possibly identified as tantalite or columbite. These are favourable indicator minerals for possible fractionating rare-element pegmatites from a fertile parental melt. Analytical results will be needed to confirm rare-element levels. Sampling has been completed utilizing a rock saw.The following salient features gained from the boots-on-the-ground field program underpin the potential of the Property to host rare-element pegmatite-hosted mineralization:A total of 241 waypoints collected, with 54% of those being pegmatites.A total of 144 samples were taken, with 72% of those comprising rock saw channel samples of pegmatites.Of the pegmatite channel samples, 29% ranged between 0.5 to 1.0 m wide.Pegmatite dyke geometry has been documented with widths between 10 cm and 30+ m wide traceable along strike up to 200 m in length.Pegmatites are typically yellowish to white in colour with quartz and white feldspar graphic crystal intergrowth and contain coarse muscovite, tourmaline, biotite, garnet, possible beryl or apatite and a black mineral thought to be tantalite or columbite. These are favourable indicator minerals for possible fractionating rare-element pegmatites from a fertile parental melt (Breaks et al., 2003). Analytical results will be needed to confirm rare-element levels. Charles Desjardins, CEO of Rock Edge, states, "We are incredibly excited about the Pag North property's immense potential. With these additional claims, Rock Edge looks to expand on Pag North's recently concluded exploration, which uncovered a high percentage of pegmatite samples, and their mineralogical characteristics underscore the untapped opportunities within this area. Pag North could be a game-changer for our Company representing a significant milestone in our quest to secure valuable lithium mineral resources." The TransactionRock Edge acquired an additional 12 claims (244 cells) from two third parties, Gravel Ridge Resources Ltd. and 1544230 Ontario Inc. (collectively the "Vendors") for an aggregate cash payment of $12,200. Subject to an amending agreement dated June 12, 2023, between the Vendors and the Company, the additional claims will be added to Schedule "A" and subject to the terms and conditions of the original Purchase Option Agreement Pagwachuan Lithium, dated February 6, 2023, between the Vendors and the Company.Maun Lithium PropertyThe Maun Lithium Property consists of 51 mining claims totaling 1,454 hectares. The property straddles the terrane boundary between the East Wabigoon and English River subprovinces. These terrane boundaries are integrally related to the location of northwestern Ontario lithium deposits and occurrences, as they act as deep-seated sutures for parental granitic melts (Breaks et al., 20031). The Maun Lithium Property is located approximately 2.3 km east of Superb Lake.Terrier Lithium PropertyThe Terrier Lithium property consists of 19 mining claims totaling 2,636 hectares. The property lies 8 km north of the English River-East Wabigoon terrane boundary. The property is located along the edge of a muscovite-bearing granitic pluton, a peraluminous S-type fertile parental granite (Breaks et al., 20031) and in contact with metasediments. Metasediments make excellent exo-contact hosts for rare-element pegmatites fractionating from a fertile granitic parent (Breaks et al., 20031). An east-trending structural feature mapped by the OGS transects the property providing possible pathways for parental granitic melts. Reconnaissance mapping by the Ontario Department of Mines in 1931 along river and lake systems identified several pegmatites hosted within muscovite-bearing granites and metasediments. Some of these occurrences are located on the Terrier Lithium Property. Diamond drilling by Anaconda Mining in 1956 investigating iron formations to the north of the property noted white pegmatites containing garnet, tourmaline, muscovite and some instances fluorite with downhole intervals up to 30 m (OGS assessment file 42L10NE0004). These minerals are good indicators of fractionation from a fertile parental granite (Breaks et al., 20031). Anaconda did not assay the pegmatites.Superb Lake Lithium PropertyThe property consists of approximately 2,378 hectares land in the O' Sullivan Lake / Maun Lake area of the Thunder Bay Mining District of Northwestern Ontario, Canada. Geologically, the property is situated in the eastern part of Wabigoon Subprovince of the Superior Geological Province. The Superb Lake area has historical exploration work carried out since the 1950s with the discovery of lithium along the shores of Superb Lake. The Superb Lake pegmatite has a minimum outcrop exposure of a strike length of 16 m, and its width varies from 2.5 m at the shoreline to a maximum of 3.7 m, where an old blast pit was excavated. The results of four samples taken in 2020 from spodumene-rich part indicate lithium oxide (Li2O) values in the range of 1.77 % to 4.03%, and from December 14, 2022, a recorded surface channel #3 of 2.47% Li2O over 3.2 m, which includes 5.84% Li2O over 1.1 m.Val-d'Or East Lithium PropertyThe property is located approximately 65km southeast from The NAL Lithium Processing Plant (A Piedmont/Sayona Joint Venture), which just announced it produced its first batch of spodumene concentrate (SC6) and 30km southwest of Val-d'Or, a logistics hub for mining service. Currently, three lithium refiners are in the works, with Sayona planning to commission a refinery that will output Lithium Hydroxide, located approximately 70km southeast of the property. Additionally, there is a third refinery planned by Nameska near Becancour, about 200km southeast of the Rock Edge's Val d'Or East Lithium Project.The property is contiguous to Sayona Mining Limited's (ASX: SYA) Property and to Brunswick exploration property. The Property lies chiefly on the metagraywacke
PR-Inside.com: 2023-06-14 15:16:18

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Schneider ElectricSix global partners recognized for outstanding performance in decarbonizing their own operations and that of their customersBOSTON, MA / ACCESSWIRE / June 14, 2023 / Schneider Electric, the leader in the digital transformation of energy management and automation, announced the six global winners of the inaugural Schneider Electric Sustainability Impact Awards. Among 241 submissions, the winners were distinguished by their pioneering decarbonization efforts, both within and beyond their organizations.Launched in 2022, the Schneider Electric Sustainability Impact Awards celebrates leaders that prioritize innovation and decarbonization. Partners are afforded the opportunity to enter in two categories. The first, "Impact to My Company" recognizes those who exhibit outstanding sustainability leadership in their own operations. The second, "Impact to My Customers" rewards those who demonstrate exceptional sustainability leadership by helping customers achieve their decarbonization goals.Entrants were assessed based on their successful implementation of innovations, products and digital solutions to electrify operations, reduce energy supply, increase operational efficiency, and embrace circularity across the value chain. Winners are accorded significant benefits, including global visibility, a valuable credential, and new business opportunities. The awards also provide a first of its kind educational program for partners in the industry.Sustainability Impact Awards 2023 WinnersCategory One: Impact to my CompanyHewlett Packard Enterprise, United States is focused on transitioning to clean energy alternatives through a hybrid approach that includes renewable assets, power purchase agreements, green tariff programs, and green contracts. They are implementing transportation strategies such as modal shifts, zero- and low-emission vehicles, and sustainable aviation fuels to reduce their carbon footprint. The company also uses green materials and product design, implements packaging innovation, meets sustainability standards, offers transparency on environmental impact, and reduces waste at all their sites.Boer (Wuxi) Power System Co., Ltd, China has established decarbonization targets as part of its sustainability journey and embraced electrification and digitalization to build resilient operations, including a smart forklift scheduling management system that helps improve production efficiency. The company's headquarters has a 1.5MW photovoltaic rooftop and an ENP-B charging station that lays the foundation for the further popularization of electric vehicles.Michael Smith Switchgear, United Kingdom and Ireland is committed to sustainability in all aspects of its business, having achieved carbon-neutral status. To reduce energy consumption and use of raw materials, the company has digitized operations, adopted electric vehicles, and installed LED lighting and solar panels. The company is sourcing alternative materials for products and consolidating deliveries to reduce their carbon footprint. Future plans also account for a rainwater storage system and a green roof.Category Two: Impact to My CustomersRamboll, Finland is a multidisciplinary engineering, design, and consultancy company that operates in 35 countries and employs 17,000 people globally. The company designs sustainable energy-based solutions for customers' building service systems and power distribution systems, including electrification of heating systems with heat pump and solar power solutions in buildings and urban sites. The company integrates EcoStruxure solutions across connected products to allow data-enabled decision making and performance management.Faith Technologies Incorporated (FTI), United States is a national leader in electrical planning, engineering, design, and installation. It helps customers achieve their sustainability goals with its Path to Smarter Energy process, which involves gathering energy usage data, identifying ways to conserve energy, determining whether on-site renewable generation is a viable option, and integrating energy storage to achieve net-zero carbon emissions. The company also installs EcoStruxure solutions to simplify and digitize customers' power distribution to protect people, safeguard assets, and maximize business continuity and performance.Ad-Sol Nissin Corporation, Japan is Schneider's only system integrator partner in Japan. The company has introduced EcoStruxure solutions to their customer, the largest electric utility company in Japan, to support its implementation of a regional microgrid business. The company is also helping another customer to optimize production management in its automobile manufacturing processes and provides consulting services for carbon-neutral platforms to other industries, including railway companies."Now is the time to address the global energy crisis - it's our top priority. However, we cannot accelerate decarbonization efforts and achieve net-zero goals alone; we must rely on our ecosystem of partnerships", Rohan Kelkar, EVP for Global Power Products at Schneider Electric said. "Through the Schneider Electric Sustainability Impact Awards, we acknowledge and highlight the valuable contributions made by our partners worldwide towards decarbonizing not only their own operations but also their customers'. We value the opportunity to learn from one another and congratulate these winners for their exceptional commitment towards making a positive impact. We hope that in sharing their stories, they will serve as inspiration to organizations worldwide embarking on their decarbonization journey." View additional multimedia and more ESG storytelling from Schneider Electric on 3 blmedia.com Contact Info:Spokesperson: Schneider ElectricWebsite: https://www.3blmedia.com/profiles/schneider-electric Email: info@3 blmedia.com SOURCE: Schneider Electric
RUTH, Nevada  KGHMs Robinson copper and gold operation is developing a solar farm and is adding years to the life of the 120-year-old mine following an exploration summit that looked at how to take us through the next decade, Robinson General Manager Amanda Hilton said.

Now, were well into the 2030s, she said.

The assurance that the mine can continue at least that long means new and advanced equipment, extended employment for the 605 people working at Robinson, and continued support for Ely, which is seven miles east of the mine, while the little town of Ruth is nearly at the mines entrance.

Darek Huebner, the senior mine manager, said Robinson is getting or recently acquired a host of mining gear as it looks to the extended future. Its really an exciting time here.

Robinson commissioned a Caterpillar 7495 electric shovel this year and has ordered five new 240-ton Komatsu haul trucks coming this year and six next year, and has one autonomous drill rig for blasting operating now and will commission two more autonomous drill rigs this summer. Robinson also has a new loader and a new dozer.

The new shovel that loads 82-90 tons per pass replaced a couple of Hitachi hydraulic shovels, said Hilton. She added that Robinson currently has 38 haul trucks, and a portion of the new fleet will be replacement trucks.

The new equipment is a significant investment in the future of the mine, she said. Robinson is considered one of KGHMs core assets.

KGHMs solar investment at Robinson is for a facility on 15 acres of one of the waste rock dumps to provide a portion of the power used in operations, and construction on that project will start this summer. There will be 4,446 solar panels producing 3 megawatts of electricity.

I really like that this facility is on previously disturbed land, Hilton said.

She said the solar site will have battery storage to provide electricity to the mine without Robinson needing to share that power on the energy grid, although Robinson is working with Mt. Wheeler Power. The solar project will provide about 10% of the mines power consumption.

The solar production will help reduce the mines carbon footprint and will help meet KGHMs goals for carbon reduction, Hilton said.

A lot of stakeholders are very excited about this, she said during a mine tour, also stating that the parent, Poland-based KGHM, has specific goals for reducing the carbon footprint.

Another investment in the future for Robinson and in Ely is a $500,000 contribution for a new learning center for children ages 6 weeks to 5 years old. Robinsons donation was seed money, but there have been donations from a lot of community entities, she said.

The center to be located at the old Murray School will provide childcare, and plans call for it to open by the end of this year.

This will be the only year-round licensed facility in the community, and I believe it will be transformational, Hilton said, explaining that she believes the center will open new opportunities for people in White Pine County to work at the mine or other businesses within the community.

The new childcare center also may help with recruiting employees who would need to relocate to White Pine County. She said the most difficult positions to fill are for electricians and skilled mechanics. A lot of employees are long-term, however, and a quarter of them have more than 15 years of employment at Robinson.

The copper mine has recently adopted more benefits to entice and keep employees, and Hilton said one of those is paid parental leave for mothers and fathers. Already, five employees have taken advantage of the program that started in January.

Robinson also is offering sabbaticals to salaried employees after four years of employment. They can take four weeks after four years, five weeks after eight years, and max out at eight weeks to to give employees time to disengage, rest up and pursue hobbies, Hilton said.

As an example, she said one employee is planning to volunteer for rescue work at disaster sites during his sabbatical.

All employees are eligible for another perk  up to 12 hours per year of pay to volunteer in the community, except not for religious or political events.

We want our employees involved in the community, Hilton said. Its a great mine because of the people we have here.

The biggest challenge is housing, or the number of doors, as she puts it.

Pete Quintana, the process manager for Robinson, said he has been at the mine since 2015 and up until three months ago lived in the historic town of Ruth near the mine and enjoyed the five-minute drive to work. Robinson still owns homes in Ruth built about 10 to 15 years ago and rents them to employees.

In addition to employee recruitment challenges, Robinson has been dealing with volatile costs and fuel supply issues, Hilton said.

Robinson production

Robinson produced more than 103 million payable pounds of copper and 40,000 ounces of gold in 2022. The concentrate of copper and gold is trucked to Wendover, Utah, where Robinson has a facility to load the concentrate onto train cars.

Most of our shipment goes to the Port of Vancouver in Washington, and some is shipped to intercontinental smelters, Hilton said.

Robinson contracts with AGL Trucking to haul the concentrate to Wendover. On average there are 20 trucks a day leaving the mine.

Were very optimistic about the copper price and the demand for copper, Hilton said.

The molybdenum is produced intermittently and is put into super sacks. Quintana said those sacks hold 3,000 pounds of molybdenum, which is trucked to a customer in Pennsylvania. The price is up, at around $40 a pound.

Ore is being mined from the Ruth Pit, but later mining will move back to the Liberty Pit and the Tripp-Veteran Pit. Huebner said the extension of the three pits will increase the mine life.

Quintana said there have been a lot of improvements at the mill for processing the ore, although there has been difficult-to-treat ore coming through since last August.

Operators in the control room oversee the automated system that uses a flotation process, and Hilton said there is a lot more automation in place now than a decade ago. There are 36 employees in the processing group, in addition to 25 mechanics for the concentrator.

The laboratory is part of the processing department, and the employees assay ore, do sample preparations and run special tests. Felicia Faris, the lead trainer in the lab, said samples start in the prep room and go through a drying oven.

There also is a wet lab that she described as acid digestion of samples that breaks down the samples to liquid form, and there is the fire assay room and an atomic absorption machine for analyzing copper, iron, zinc, molybdenum, and showing how much usable gold and silver is in the ore.

Reclaimed water from the tailings storage facility on site is used in processing at the mill, and the current permit for the facility continues for another six years, Quintana said. Robinson is already working toward a new permit, he said.

Hilton said another solar farm may be constructed on the tailings facility after its life ends.

Robinson is currently dewatering thousands of gallons per minute to keep the pits dry, but most of that water goes to the mill. Robinson also has a discharge permit for Gleason Creek that flows to Ely. Hilton said the discharged water meets drinking water standards.

Mining history

Underground mining began in the Ruth Pit in 1900, and Robinson miners continue to uncover remnants of those early mining days as they remove ore from the open pit. Recently, an old underground site with rail ties appeared in mid-April.

Sometimes we catch them in the crusher, Quintana said of the old mining relics, like railroad ties, old nuts and bolts, and clamps.

Hilton said when we hit old workings, we know the grade is good, because the old-time miners were good at spotting deposits.

Huebner, who started at Robinson in January, coming from Nevada Gold Mines operations, said he is impressed with the longevity of the mine. Its history.

As a side note, author Stephen King wrote the book Desperation that features the old shaft at the Ruth Mine. The book was published in 1996.

Over the years, Robinson has operated under different owners, including Kennecott Copper, which bought Robinson in 1958 and operated it until 1978 when low copper prices led to mine closure. Small gold mining operations were on site from 1978 to 1991, and Magma Copper bought Robinson in 1990. BHP bought out Magma in 1996 and operated the mine until 1999, when low prices led to another shutdown.

Quadra Resources bought the mine in 2004 from BHP, and KGHM acquired Robinson in 2012 from Quadra, but Hilton has been at Robinson since 2004, starting in accounting and later beginning on a career-development path that led to lots of finance roles and to leading the mine maintenance department.

She became general manager in 2017, holding a job that for years was held only by men. She is now general manager for all the companys U.S. operations, including in Nevada, Arizona and Utah.

Its important to be a role model and help our industry progress, said Hilton, who is past chairman of the Nevada Mining Association and was featured in a Mining Hall of Fame exhibit in Colorado last year on women in the mining industry.

Robinsons safety manager, Bob Dechant, is proud of the mines safety record, with more than 2.3 million workforce hours without a lost-time accident, and he said there is a health and safety committee made up of employees nominated by their peers.

There also are 38 employees on the mine rescue team, including trained emergency medical technicians, and Dechant said the 25 to 35 embedded contractors, such as those with Caterpillar and Komatsu, are part of the safety effort.

Any safety problems they have, we own as well, he said.

Robinson has won the Nevada Excellence in Mine Reclamation Award and is preparing an application for another award. The submission will be of the recent reclamation work on D Pad, a historical gold heap leaching facility.

The reclamation awards committee consists of representatives from the Nevada Division of Environmental Protection, the Nevada Department of Wildlife, the Bureau of Land Management, the U.S. Forest Service and the Nevada Division of Minerals.

Hilton said Robinson has responsibility for the sins of the past on the property where mining has been occurring for more than a century. Current operations dont require leach pads, but Alta Gold leached for gold at Robinson, and old waste dumps werent reclaimed.

We want our property to be a model for environmental stewardship, Hilton said.

Huebner said Robinson does some backfilling of the open pits.

The mine is on roughly 10,000 acres, with 80% of the land package private and 20% public. 
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RENO, NV / ACCESSWIRE / June 14, 2023 / Sertis ( https://www.sertisins.com) , a trailblazing managing general agency (MGA) specializing in multifamily property insurance, has officially commenced operations in 15 states and the District of Columbia, introducing revolutionary solutions to the multifamily insurance market. Currently servicing Arizona, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Maryland, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Utah, Virginia, Washington, and Washington, D.C., Sertis stands at the vanguard of the industry with an ambitious expansion plan slated for 2024.Corp LogoSertis MGA LogoMark Gardella, CEO of Sertis, expressed his excitement over the company's launch during a period of unprecedented pricing challenges for property owners. "We are enthusiastic about bringing new property and general liability capacity to the market at this crucial time," Gardella says. He emphasizes the company's unflagging commitment to the multifamily industry, coupled with its proprietary risk management platform, as distinctive assets that set Sertis apart from competitors.In a bid to redefine risk assessment and pricing in the multifamily industry, Sertis is introducing a proprietary risk management platform designed to curb loss and revolutionize insurance underwriting. Developed in partnership with Leonardo247 ( https://leonardo247.com) , the Live Risk Indicator (LRI) is an innovative scoring system that gauges the likelihood of insurance loss using exclusive, real-time operational risk data and property attributes. This pioneering tool places Sertis at the forefront of a fundamental shift in how multifamily portfolios are underwritten."The LRI marks a significant departure from traditional risk assessment methodologies, revolutionizing the norms of the industry," elaborates Gardella. "The LRI score, reflecting operational behaviors and safety practices, allows Sertis to provide favorable terms and conditions to multifamily portfolios that are committed to superior risk management." Sertis partners with retail brokers to support their clients' long-term risk management needs, reflecting the company's focus on collaboration and client success.About SertisA contemporary managing general agency (MGA) specializing in insuring owner and professionally managed multifamily properties across 15 states and the District of Columbia. Sertis offers a comprehensive package (property, general liability, and equipment breakdown) of coverages tailored to meet our clients' needs. We collaborate with our broker partners to help their clients control their rising insurance costs by assisting them in deploying industry-leading risk mitigation practices and products. At Sertis, we embrace innovation and leverage our expertise to navigate the ever-evolving landscape of multifamily property insurance.Contact InformationMark GardellaCEOmgardella@ sertisins.com 833 273 7847SOURCE: Sertis, Inc.
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- Gold Halo Award recipient for Best Education Initiative- Civic 50 Honoree for the third consecutive year- Ranked among the top three automakers in 2023 Axios Harris PollCAMDEN, NJ / ACCESSWIRE / June 14, 2023 / Subaru of America, Inc. today celebrated three recent prestigious honors exemplifying the company's commitment to corporate citizenship and social impact through its Subaru Love Promise initiatives. Along with the 2023 Engage for Good Gold Halo Award for Best Education Initiative for the Subaru Loves Learning program, Subaru was recognized as a Civic 50 2023 Honoree for the third year in a row, and also ranked 16th among the most visible brands in America on the 2023 Axios Harris Poll 100 Reputation Rankings."We're incredibly honored by these recognitions and awards as we continue our work to be More Than a Car Company," said Alan Bethke, Senior Vice President of Marketing at Subaru of America, Inc. "For years, on both a national and local level, our employees, retailers, and charitable partners have helped communities across the country by supporting the causes and issues that impact them most. Acknowledgements like these are a great reminder of the importance of continuing this work together." The Halo Awards, presented by Engage for Good, celebrates companies that have made a significant impact through cause marketing and social impact programs. Subaru was honored with the 2023 Gold Halo Award for Best Education Initiative in recognition of its commitment to supporting education and its partnership with AdoptAClassroom.org . Specifically, through the 2022 Subaru Loves Learning initiative, Subaru and 621 participating retailers helped alleviate teachers' financial burden by donating $3.3 million to 652 high-needs schools and 5,699 teachers across the United States. The Subaru Loves Learning initiative not only involves financial donations but also includes in-person events where Subaru retailers deliver supplies to local schools year after year.In addition to the Gold Halo Award, Subaru was recently recognized as a Civic 50 Honoree for the third consecutive year. The Civic 50 Award highlights the 50 most community-minded companies in the United States each year and has served as a national standard since its inception in 2012 for superior corporate citizenship, spotlighting companies that use their resources to improve the quality of life in the communities where they operate. The inclusion of Subaru in this esteemed list reaffirms its dedication to making a positive difference.Subaru was also ranked among the top three automakers on the 2023 Axios Harris Poll 100 Reputation Rankings of the most visible brands in America. The Axios Harris Poll 100 is a trusted measure of the reputation of companies that resonate most with the American public. The high placement of Subaru on this list underscores the company's strong reputation among consumers."These accolades highlight Subaru's ongoing efforts across the country to contribute meaningfully to the communities where we live and work," said Shira Haaz, Head of Corporate Responsibility. "We're thankful to our partners, retailers, and of course our employees, for giving us the opportunity to progress alongside them as we work together to fulfill the Subaru Love Promise." To learn more about Subaru Love Promise, please visit subaru.com/love-promise ###About Subaru of America, Inc.Subaru of America, Inc. (SOA) is a wholly owned subsidiary of Subaru Corporation of Japan. Headquartered at a zero-landfill office in Camden, N.J., the company markets and distributes Subaru vehicles, parts and accessories through a network of more than 630 retailers across the United States. All Subaru products are manufactured in zero-landfill plants and Subaru of Indiana Automotive, Inc. is the only U.S. automobile manufacturing plant to be designated a backyard wildlife habitat by the National Wildlife Federation. SOA is guided by the Subaru Love Promise, which is the company's vision to show love and respect to everyone, and to support its communities and customers nationwide. Over the past 20 years, SOA and the SOA Foundation have donated more than $300 million to causes the Subaru family cares about, and its employees have logged nearly 88,000 volunteer hours. As a company, Subaru believes it is important to do its part in making a positive impact in the world because it is the right thing to do. For additional information visit media.subaru.com . Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.Diane AntonCorporate Communications Manager(856) 488-5093danton@ subaru.com Adam LeiterCorporate Communications Specialist(856) 488-8668aleiter@ subaru.com Subaru Receives Trifecta of Prestigious Recognitions Noting Commitment to Corporate Citizenship and Social ImpactView additional multimedia and more ESG storytelling from Subaru of America on 3 blmedia.com Contact Info:Spokesperson: Subaru of AmericaWebsite: https://www.3blmedia.com/profiles/subaru-america Email: info@3 blmedia.com SOURCE: Subaru of America
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HAMILTON, MA / ACCESSWIRE / June 14, 2023 / Military Service Day is a day-long exhibition of vintage military vehicles, equipment, military reenactors, speakers, both veterans and academics - and other veteran-related attractions, held on the grounds of the home of one of America's most famous and celebrated families, the Patton family.The Homestead was the Patton family home for over 90 years. General George S. Patton (WWII), his son General George Smith Patton IV (Korea, Vietnam), and his wife Joanne Holbrook Patton, an ARMY Social Services innovator during the Vietnam War, all called this historic property home.WHAT: Family Outdoor Movie Night at Patton Homestead8th Annual Military Service Day (MSD) at Patton HomesteadWHERE: Patton Homestead, 650 Asbury Street, Hamilton, MassWHEN: Family Outdoor Movie Night, Friday, July 14, 2023, 8pm! Military displays! Open 6:30pm-9:30pmMilitary Service Day, Saturday, July 15, 2023, from 10:00am to 4:00pm, rain or shine!COST: Free admission both dates, family friendlyPARKING: Off street, Patton Homestead, $10.00 voluntary parking donation to A.P. Gardner AmericanLegion, Post 194, Hamilton, Mass. Police details will be on hand to assist visitorsEVENT:Mission: Share military histories as a positive community engagement to benefit education and awareness of service of all kinds.NEW for a second year! Family outdoor movie night Friday July 14, 2023, 8pm:Family outdoor movie FUN on the Patton Homestead "great lawn." The children's animated PG movie THE INCREDIBLES from Pixar. The movie will be shown on a big screen and is free. Family friendly refreshments will be available. Also, in the Patton Homestead meadow, historic military camps and displays will be set-up as a preview to the next day's exciting Military Service Day event. Friday night open 6:30pm-9:30pm. Movie starts at 8pm.Military Service Day Saturday July 15, 2023, 10am to 4pm you will see hear, and meet:SPEAKERS:Ms. Helen Ayer Patton, Major General George Smith Patton IV and Joanne Holbrook Patton daughter, General Patton's WWII granddaughter. Ms. Patton is an international veterans, military history advocate, and MSD event ambassador.BRIGADIER GENERAL JOSEPH F. MORRISSEY JR. is the Assistant Adjutant General for Massachusetts Air National Guard, Joint Force Headquarters, Hanscom Air Force Base, Bedford, Massachusetts. He is the principal advisor to The Adjutant General (TAG), Air Component Commander, and Land Component Commander in the administration, coordination, planning, development, and execution of all Air National Guard and National Guard Joint Staff programs. General Morrissey ensures the preparation of the 9,000 soldiers and airmen of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts for contingency operations in both federal and state emergencies.Colonel Geoffrey Love: Lieutenant Colonel Geoffrey Love is the director of historical services for the Massachusetts National Guard and curator of the Massachusetts National Guard Museum in Concord. He has served as a soldier, NCO, and officer in the Army and the Army National Guard for 35 years in the field artillery and logistics branches. His education and interest in historical research and archival practice led to his current assignment, where he has the rewarding task of living up to the motto of the Massachusetts National Guard Museum, "Preserve, Educate, Inspire."Mr . Amanullah Rahmani, Liaison, translator, Afghan National Development Strategy (ANDS). Prioritized local needs and provided vital information to the US military based on local communities' urgent needs and how to win the hearts and minds of Afghan locals during Operation Enduring Freedom. Ongoing responsibilities included efforts to stop insurgent/Taliban not to further destabilize the areas and targeted districts. This strategy helped draft the US long term strategy for Afghanistan. Immigrated to USA 2015.Mr. Peter Vicaire is a US VA Tribal Government Relations Specialist who works with tribal governments located in the Northeast, the Upper Midwest, and the Northern Plains. Native American US Military Veteran histories and service.EXHIBITS: WWII US 1943 M4A Sherman Tank and US WWII 1945 Chafee Tank, WWII German Panzer STUG tanks and operating, driving demonstrations.USCG Jayhawk helicopter landing pending mission approval or mission re-direct day of event, weather. Time to be announced 24hrs before event, see Facebook.Massachusetts State Police EC135 Airbus Helicopter landing pending weather, mission change, K9 Units, Bomb Disposal Unit and Dive Recovery Team. Time to be announced 24hrs before event, see Facebook.Massachusetts National Guard, 155MM Artillery, Mobile Command Unit, MP Unit, Troop Transport vehicles, Bomb Disposal Unit personnel-robot, and more.(75) Military re-enactors, equipment displays, demonstrations, memorabilia, historic military vehicles including a half-track, heavy trucks, artillery.The Boston Park Mounted Rangers and MA State Police Mounted Patrol Unit representation.Food truck vendors serving family friendly lunches and treats including Joe is on a Roll, Ben & Jerry's ice cream truck! Picnic tables available.EVENT CONTACT:Peter GwinnProducer & Outreach Liaisonpetergwinnimc@ gmail.com Mobile: 978-317-1234Web site and video: http://www.apgardnerposthamilton.org/military-day/ Additional location video: https://youtu.be/4OsvvAME6HQ Find MSD on Facebook as American Legion: Post 194 (Hamilton MA)SOURCE: Military Service Day
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ROCK HILL, SC / ACCESSWIRE / June 14, 2023 / Tomorrow is a major deadline for nonprofit organizations to file their tax returns with the IRS. An organization may have a June 15th deadline if they operate on a fiscal tax year ending in January or filed an extension Form 8868 for their December 15, 2022 deadline. Organizations that have obtained tax-exempt status through the State of California are also required to file Form CA 199.The IRS now requires that all tax-exempt organizations file these returns electronically. Using an IRS-authorized e-file provider is vital to ensure that 990 returns are filed with accuracy and security.Tax990 provides a simple and secure 990 e-filing solution! Nonprofit organizations and tax professionals that file on their behalf can easily e-file Form 990, 990-EZ, 990-N, 990-PF, 990-T, CA-199, and 8868 with Tax990.When e-filing with Tax990, organizations can take advantage of many unique features:Live, dedicated customer support is available by phone, email, or live chat.Form-based or interview-based filing methods.Copy data from federal returnsThe ability to add team members to manage filing from a single account.An internal audit feature that reviews returns for errors.Automatic updates on the IRS status of the return.Share returns with board members as needed for review and approval.Attach required 990 Schedules for free.Correct and retransmit rejected returns to the IRS at no additional cost.SOC-2 certifiedTax professionals can take advantage of key features designed for efficient filing at any volume. This includes bulk upload options, discounted prepaid credits, and more.As tomorrow is the deadline, many organizations may file an extension with the IRS to request additional filing time of up to 6 months. This is an automatic extension that the IRS will approve as long as it is filed with accurate information, by the deadline (tomorrow). Tax990 supports the extension Form 8868 and enables their clients to file it easily. Please note that Form 8868 can only be filed by an organization once per tax year.Tax990 also offers a pricing package that allows organizations to purchase both an extension Form 8868 and their 990 return at a discounted rate. The cost of the extension is free when the 990 is purchased up-front. This means when the organization's extension period ends in 6 months, the 990 return is already paid for, and the organization can simply complete and transmit it to the IRS. Tax990 is also SOC-2 and HackerSafe certified, meaning filers never have to worry about data security.Additionally, Tax990 provides excellent customer support throughout the filing process. Our team offers extended support hours around major 990 filing deadlines. The team can be reached by phone, email, and live chat.When asked about tomorrow's deadline, Agie Sundaram, CEO and Co-founder of SPAN Enterprises (the parent company of Tax990), responded by stating, "It's always a huge day for nonprofits whenever there is a 990 deadline, and tomorrow is no different. Our goal is to help nonprofits get done with their Form 990 and back to their important work as quickly and easily as possible. Our team is prepared to assist clients throughout the day to ensure they are able to meet their deadlines. We encourage every organization that is still seeking a solution for meeting tomorrow's deadline to get started with Tax990 today. We offer an affordable solution that is both secure and user-friendly, with advanced features that cannot be found elsewhere." Organizations can begin filing their 990 returns now at tax990.com About Tax990Tax 990 is the premier, IRS-authorized e-file provider of nonprofit tax forms. Tax990 provides solutions for nonprofits that are required to file Forms 990-EZ, 990, 990-N, 990-PF, 990-T, 1120-POL, 8038-CP, California Form CA-199, and Extension Form 8868 with the IRS. With advanced features and affordable pricing, the goal of Tax990 is to help nonprofits file easily, so they can continue to keep doing good.About SPAN EnterprisesBased in Rock Hill, South Carolina, SPAN Enterprises has been developing industry-leading software solutions for IRS e-filing and business management tools for over a decade.The SPAN Enterprises portfolio of products includes TaxBandits, Tax990, ACAwise, ExpressExtension, 123PayStubs, and TruckLogics.For any media inquiries, please reach out to Gerald Withers, Content Writer at gerald@ spanenterprises.com SOURCE: SPAN Enterprises
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May 2023 Highlights (in USD):Confirmed Customer Orders: $8,214,053.Confirmed Sales Orders: 277.New Customer Conversions: 49.Total Throughput: 37,973,945 cans.Decoration Throughput: 5,092,044 cans.Filling Throughput: 3,395,893 cans.Printed Sleeve Throughput: 4,227,921 sleeves.Brokering Throughput: 25,258,087 cans.Plant Utilization: 41%.VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / June 13, 2023 / Wildpack Beverage Inc. (TSXV:CANS) (OTC PINK:WLDPF) ("Wildpack Beverage" or the "Company") a leading middle market co-packer of canned goods announced impressive performance (all currency amounts in USD) for the month of May 2023. The Company reported a record confirmed customer orders amounting to $8,214,053, with confirmed sales orders reaching 277. Additionally, Wildpack Beverage achieved 49 new customer conversions.Throughout May, Wildpack Beverage demonstrated its operational excellence by achieving a total throughput of 37,973,945 cans, showcasing its commitment to meeting customer demands. The Company decorated 5,092,044 cans with its captivating branding and filled 3,395,893 cans. Moreover, Wildpack Beverage printed 4,227,921 sleeves and brokered 25,258,087 cans. At the end of May, Wildpack Beverage's printing division ranked #1 in the North America South West region, #1 across all of North America and #2 Worldwide by Hewlett Packard for commercial print volume. Of these achievements total throughput and brokered cans were new monthly records, highlighting the Company's dedication to efficient high-volume production.With plant utilization reaching a record 41%, Wildpack Beverage continues to maximize its operational capacity and leverage its two key operating sites in Las Vegas and Baltimore. The Company has maintained its focus on operational efficiency, ensuring a smooth transition during the relocation process of one of its co-packing lines. By effectively managing its operations, Wildpack Beverage has sustained strong relationships with its existing customer base while continuing to attract new customers."We are thrilled to see our strong performance in May and continued trend of improvement across key leading and lagging indicators," said Mitch Barnard, CEO of Wildpack Beverage. "Our commitment to operational excellence and customer satisfaction remains unwavering. As we continue to navigate our facility transition and planned build out, we are confident in our ability to deliver outstanding products and services to our growing valued customers." Bi-Weekly MCTO UpdateWildpack Beverage is providing this status update in accordance with its obligations under National Policy 12-203 - Management Cease Trade Orders ("NP 12-203"), which require the Company to provide bi-weekly updates until such time as the Company is current with its filing obligations under Canadian securities laws.As previously announced, the Company was granted a management cease trade order ("MCTO") upon application to the British Columbia Securities Commission (the "BCSC") on May 2, 2023. The MCTO restricts the Company's Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer from trading in the Company's securities, but does not affect the ability of other shareholders, including the public, to trade in securities of the Company. The Company has appointed Davidson and Company LLP as its auditor, and is working diligently to promptly facilitate the audit of its annual financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2022. The Company expects to file its annual financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2022, the related management discussion and analysis, and the related CEO and CFO certificates (the "Required Filings") by June 30, 2023.The Company confirms that since the date of the Default Announcement on April 18, 2023: (i) other than as described above, there has been no material change to the information set out in the Default Announcement that has not been generally disclosed; (ii) there has been no failure by the Company in fulfilling its stated intentions with respect to satisfying the provisions of the alternative information guidelines set out in NP 12-203; (iii) there has not been any other specified default by the Company under NP 12-203; and (iv) there is no other material information concerning the affairs of the Company that has not been generally disclosed. The Company confirms that it will continue to satisfy the provisions of the alternative information guidelines under NP 12-203 by issuing bi-weekly default status reports in the form of news releases for so long as it remains in default of the above-noted filing requirements.Per: "Mitch Barnard"Mitch BarnardChief Executive Officer and DirectorFor further information, please contact us at:invest@ wildpackbev.com orElijah ClareVice President, Investor Relationselijah@ wildpackbev.com AdvisorsFasken Martineau DuMoulin LLP is the legal advisor to Wildpack Beverage Inc.Visit our investor website at:About Wildpack BeverageWildpack Beverage provides beverage manufacturing and packaging to the middle market by providing sustainable aluminum can filling, decorating, packaging, brokering, sleeve/label printing services, and logistics to brands throughout the United States. Wildpack Beverage currently operates indirectly through its wholly owned subsidiaries and out of six facilities in Baltimore, Maryland; Grand Rapids, Michigan; Atlanta, Georgia; Longmont, Colorado; Sacramento, California; and Las Vegas, Nevada with a focus on digital innovation and green ready-to-drink packaging. Wildpack Beverage commenced trading on the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol "CANS" on May 19, 2021.Cautionary Statement on Forward-Looking InformationThis news release may contain "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities laws, including, but not limited to, statements with respect to the timing, review, completion and filing of the Required Filings, Wildpack Beverage's plans, investments, anticipated revenue from manufacturing agreements, plans to build additional facilities, financial performance and operating performance, anticipated growth in co-packing business, the estimation of revenue, the timing and targets of M&A activity, costs, future capital expenditures, and the success of scaling up production. Forward-looking statements are based upon a number of estimates and assumptions that, while considered reasonable by management, are inherently subject to significant business, economic and competitive risks
The National Agency for Food and Drugs Administration and Control (NAFDAC) says it has commenced an investigation into findings by DUBAWA and PREMIUM TIMES about a popular herbal product, Baba Aisha Herbal Medicine.

The PREMIUM TIMES investigation, which was published on Saturday, 10 June, shed light on the content, safety and regulatory framework guiding the production and sale of the herbal product consumed by many Nigerians.

After a five-month-long probe, PREMIUM TIMES found that the product, which carries two invalid NAFDAC registration numbers, is a huge safety risk to users.

Extensive laboratory analysis also indicates that continuous consumption of the concoction could lead to acute kidney, lung and liver injuries.

The investigation placed NAFDAC in the spotlight as members of the public questioned how the producer got his initial registration done without meeting basic requirements, among other infractions.

NAFDAC launches investigation

In an official response to PREMIUM TIMES on Wednesday, NAFDAC said it has immediately commenced an investigation into the findings by this newspaper.

The commission noted that its Investigation and Enforcement Directorate (I&E) had commenced enforcement actions on Baba Aisha Herbal medicine and other products with expired licenses.

The report on Baba Aisha Herbal preparation is a new case. The I&E has commenced investigation on the case. Preliminary findings revealed that the product was registered by NAFDAC but the registration license has long expired. The company is yet to initiate any process for renewal of their product license as at the time of this report.

Enforcement actions have commenced immediately for any of these products with expired licenses still in circulation for public consumption, the letter sent to this newspaper reads in part.

NAFDAC promised to update this newspaper on its findings.

The commission also revealed that it recently investigated another product by Baba Aishas Sacra Multi-Links Limited.

The Investigation and Enforcement Directorate (I&E) had worked on another product by Baba Aisha Herbal Medicines  Hajia Ayisha special snuff AK 47 in April 2023.

The commission did not provide further details on the product and findings from its investigation.

Unanswered questions

NAFDACs attempt to follow up on the investigation still leaves several questions begging for answers.

For instance, the commission failed to provide an explanation for the shady process of registering the herbal product in 2018.

Our investigation revealed that Sacra Multi-links Limited did not fulfil the basic requirements to qualify for NAFDAC registration, yet it was registered. These basic requirements include registration of the business name with the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC), registration of the business name with the Trademark Registry, and submission of an assessment report from a quality control laboratory, among others.

During the investigation, this newspaper requested these documents from NAFDAC but the commission failed to provide any.

Also, the commission failed to confirm whether it approved the advertisement used in selling the product or not.

The advert, according to NAFDACs Herbal Medicine and Related Products Advertisement Regulations gazetted in 2021, ought to be approved by the agency before use.

The regulation states that such ads shall not state or imply that any herbal medicine is safe or has guaranteed efficacy or special status.

It noted further that such ads should not contain false or misleading information, vague, unsubstantiated statements, suggestions of superiority over other products, or any claim of a universal cure.

Meanwhile, Nigerians have called on NAFDAC to take decisive action on the herbal product including the imposition of an immediate ban on the product.

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Over the years, the National Assembly has become what many describe as a retirement home for former governors.

Like the ex-governors, former ministers also jostle to move to join the Red Chamber after their stay in office.

Although no law in Nigeria disqualifies them from seeking to be senators, several analysts believe the former governors and ministers have now made it a tradition to retire to the Senate to remain relevant within the corridor of power.

Unlike state governors whose tenure in office has a constitutional limit of eight years  four years per term  which is renewable, senators have no term limits.

In the 9th Senate, whose life expired on 11 June, there were 14 former governors.

During the 2023 general elections, some then-serving governors and former governors failed in their bids to switch to the Senate, including those who had to defect to other parties to get the tickets for the 25 February National Assembly election.

Some of the then-serving and former governors who failed to win the general elections include Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi (Enugu  Enugu North District), Samuel Ortom (Benue  Benue North-West District), Okezie Ikpeazu (Abia  Abia South District), and Simon Lalong (Plateau  Plateau South District).

Others are Atiku Bagudu (Kebbi  Kebbi Central District ), Darius Ishaku (Taraba  Taraba South District), Ben Ayade (Cross River  Cross River North District), and the first civilian Governor of Enugu State, Chimaroke Nnamani (Enugu East District) of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

However, at the 25 February National Assembly elections, 14 former governors secured seats in the 10th Senate. Similarly, six former ministers also won seats in the Red Chamber, although four of them are also former governors.

There are 109 senators in the Nigerian Senate. Each of the 36 states of the federation has three senators while one senator comes from Abuja, the countrys seat of power.

Ex-governors elected in the 10th Senate

Adams Oshiomhole

Mr Oshiomhole is a former two-term governor of Edo State between 2008 and 2016.

He once served as the National President of the Nigerian Labour Congress from 1999 to 2007. The position shot him into national prominence.

Apart from being a former governor, Mr Oshiomhole is also a former national chairman of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), serving from 24 July 2018 to 16 June 2020, when he was suspended from office by the Court of Appeal in Abuja.

He hails from Iyamho, a community in Etsako West Local Government Area of Edo State, south-south Nigeria.

The 71-year-old won the Senate seat for Edo North Senatorial District, for the first time, under the platform of the APC, defeating his former political associate and incumbent senator for the district, Francis Alimikhena.

Mr Alimikhena had defected to the PDP where he picked his ticket for the senate election after losing the APC ticket to Mr Oshiomhole.

The former governor, Mr Oshiomhole, was born a Muslim but was led into Christianity by his late wife, Clara, who died of cancer a few years ago. Now a Catholic, his adopted Christian name is Eric.

Dave Umahi

Mr Umahi was a two-term governor of Ebonyi State, south-east Nigeria between 2015 and 2023.

The former governor had participated in the APC presidential primaries where he polled 38 votes to come a distant sixth in the election won by the former Lagos State Governor, now the countrys 16th elected President, Bola Tinubu.

He returned to pick the APC ticket for Ebonyi South after his failed presidential bid. The ticket was initially held in trust for him by his younger brother, Austin, who had won the first primaries conducted by the party and monitored by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

The younger brother, Austin, had stepped down from the race under the APC ticket, apparently to pave the way for the former governor to have an opportunity to pick the partys ticket, which he did in a rescheduled primary of the party.

But Ann Agom-Eze, an aspirant who came second in the first APC primary for the district, sought to be declared the partys candidate for the district.

Mrs Agom-Eze argued that there was no need for another primary, stating that since the winner of the said primary, Austin, withdrew, she should have been declared the candidate of the party because she was the runner-up in the said primary.

However, after a prolonged battle in various courts, INEC recognised Mr Umahi as the candidate for the district, from where he was subsequently elected as a first-timer at the 10th Senate.

Aminu Tambuwal

Mr Tambuwal was elected governor of Sokoto State in 2015 on the platform of the APC but was re-elected in 2019 on the ticket of the PDP following his defection in 2018.

The former governor was elected a fresh senator for Sokoto South on the platform of the PDP, defeating Ibrahim Danbaba, the incumbent who had defected from the PDP to the APC.

Although a first-timer in the Senate, Mr Tambuwal is not new to the National Assembly having been a member of the House of Representatives between 2003 and 2015, which culminated in his election as the Speaker of the House between 2011 and 2015.

He served as the Deputy Chief Whip of the House between 2007 and 2011.

The 57-year-old participated in the PDP presidential primaries of 2018 where he came second behind Atiku Abubakar.

He also participated in the 2022 presidential primaries of the party but stepped down at the convention ground to support Atiku, who again won the shadow election, beating former Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, to the second position.

Abubakar Sani Bello

Mr Bello served two terms as governor of Niger State between 2015 and 2023. He won the Niger North Senate seat under the APC in the 2023 general election.

The former governor is the son of a former military governor of old Kano State, Sani Bello, a colonel.

He had defeated the incumbent senator for the district, Aliyu Abdullahi, in the APC primary. Mr Abdullahi who was serving his second term in the Senate, failed to win the ticket of the party for the third term. He came a distant second to Mr Bello in the primary of the party.

Ibrahim Danwkambo

Mr Danwkambo was a two-term governor of Gombe State from 2011 to 2019 under the platform of the PDP.

The former governor was elected senator for Gombe Central North District in 2023, defeating the incumbent, Seidu Akali, of the APC.

The 61-year-old politician had contested the senate election in 2019 after his tenure as governor but lost to Mr Akali.

He served as the accountant-general of the federation between April 2005 and January 2011, when he resigned his position to start his campaign for election as governor of the state. He had earlier served as the states accountant-general from 1999 to 2005.

Abdulaziz Yari

Mr Yari served two terms as governor of Zamfara State between 2011 under the platform of the now default All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) and in 2019 under the platform of the APC, following the merger of the ANPP and several other opposition parties to form the now ruling APC in 2014.

The former governor won the Zamfara West seat in the 2023 general election under the APC.

After his tenure as governor in 2019, Mr Yari ran for the senate and won with a wide margin on the partys platform. However, his election and those of other APC candidates in the 2019 general election in the state were nullified by the Supreme Court on the ground that they were not validly nominated through party primaries.

Thus, all the victories recorded by the APC in the 2019 general elections were ceded to the PDP which came second, based on the Supreme Court ruling.

Mr Yari almost ditched the party at the height of the crisis rocking the APC in the state.

Political observers in the state believe his APC senate ticket for Zamfara West was part of the rapprochement deals from the former governor of the state, Bello Matawalle, to make him (Yari) remain in the party.

Mr Yari was defeated in the race for the presidency of the 10th Senate on Tuesday.

Gbenga Daniel

Mr Daniel was a two-term governor of Ogun State. He served between 2003 and 2011 on the platform of the PDP.

In the 2003 governorship election, he defeated the incumbent Olusegun Osoba of the now-defunct Alliance for Democracy.

The former governor won the Ogun East Senate seat in the 2023 election to reactivate his political career after a lull playing at the periphery, following his exit from office as governor in 2011.

Since the end of his tenure as governor, he had been in political limbo until February 2021 when he moved to the APC from the PDP.

Analysts say his securing the APC ticket suggested that the partys power brokers still need his services. Mr Daniel is close to the incumbent governor of the state, Dapo Abiodun, who won a second term. Messrs Abiodun and Daniel come from the same district.

Aliyu Wammako

Mr Wammako, a former two-term governor of Sokoto State, is the undisputed leader of the APC in the state. He served as the governor of the state between 2007 and 2015.

In 2023, the former governor was re-elected senator for Sokoto North District, defeating his closest opponent and the then deputy governor of the state, Muhammad Dan Iya of the PDP.

He was first elected as a senator in 2015 and re-elected in 2019.

Orji Kalu

Mr Kalu, the Chief Whip in the 9th Senate, was reelected in 2023 from the Abia North District. Despite the hurdles of being in the opposition in Abia, the then-PDP state, the senator showed he knew how to win elections for himself.

A former governor of Abia State for two terms between May 1999 and May 2007, Mr Kalu left the PDP following a rift with then President Obasanjo, to form the defunct Progressive Peoples Alliance (PPA) in 2007.

After leaving office as governor in 2007, he failed to win other public offices until he joined the APC in November 2016.

Among other former governors in the race for the Senate Presidents seat, Mr Kalu has the longest-running corruption case. He had been charged, tried, jailed, and still faces the prospect of a fresh trial.

His case traces back to his days as governor. EFCC filed money laundering charges against him within a month of his stepping down on 29 May 2007 from an office that clothed him with immunity from prosecution.

In the charges filed against him in June 2007, EFCC accused him, along with his co-defendants, of diverting over N3.2 billion from Abia State coffers.

After years-long stalling of the case, the Supreme Court on 18 March 2016 cleared the legal encumbrances for his trial to begin.

The trial began afresh at the Federal High Court in Lagos. As the trial grew in intensity, Mr Kalus chances of a political comeback also dwindled. Mr Kalu made the deft move of joining the APC in November 2016.

His defection, well received within APC, drew criticism from the Nigerian public.

Mr Kalu, who backed the failed bid of the outgoing Senate President, Ahmad Lawan, to pick the APCs presidential ticket last year, said it was his turn to lead the Senate. But he dropped out before the election on Tuesday which produced Mr Akpabio as the Senate President.

Ibrahim Gaidam

Mr Gaidam won the Yobe East District election in 2023 under the APC platform, for a second term.

He was first elected to the Senate to represent the district in 2019.

He served as governor of Yobe State from January 2009, following the death of Governor Mamman Ali in Florida of a liver problem. Abubakar Ali, brother of Mamman Ali, was named as the new deputy governor. Mr Gaidam completed the tenure for his joint ticket with the deceased governor in 2011.

He was elected, the same year, and served as governor for two terms between 2011 and 2019- and thus earned the spectacular credit of being the longest-serving governor of the state  10 years  to date.

Seriake Dickson

Popularly called the contriman governor, Seriake Dickson returned to the senate in 2023 as a second-timer. This was after serving two terms as governor of Bayelsa State on the platform of the PDP between 2012 and 2020.

He was first elected to the Senate in an October 2020 by-election from the Bayelsa West District. The seat became vacant after the occupant was sworn in as the states deputy governor.

Before his election as the governor of the oil-rich state, he had served as a member of the House of Representatives in the sixth Green Chambers.

Ex-ministers who became senators in the 10th Assembly

Godswill Akpabio

Mr Akpabio, a lawyer, served as a two-term Governor of Akwa-Ibom State between 2007 and 2015 under the platform of the PDP.

He would later win the Senate seat of Akwa-Ibom North-West District under the partys platform in 2015 when he left office as the governor of the oil-rich state.

In August 2018, he defected to the ruling APC, which had the majority in the House, where he was serving as minority leader.

The senator was later appointed Minister of Niger Delta Affairs by former President Muhammadu Buhari.

The former governor served as minister between August 2019 and June 2022, when he resigned from the position to contest in the APC presidential primaries.

He would step down on the night of the presidential primary for the eventual winner and now President, Mr Tinubu.

Mr Akpabio, subsequently re-contested and again won the Senate seat for the Akwa-Ibom North-West District under the APC.

In May, the then President-elect, Mr Tinubu, proposed Mr Akpabio as senate president which was ratified by the National Working Committee (NWC) of the APC, days later, amidst stiff opposition from some senators and regions demanding the position. He was elected to the position on Tuesday.

Mr Akpabio was under investigation by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on accusations that he diverted over N100 billion during his time as governor of Akwa-Ibom State. He is yet to be charged, however.

The former minister was summoned by members of the House of Representatives, in May 2020, over the misappropriation of over N40 billion.

Ikra Aliyu

Mr Aljyu served as minister of state for information and communication during the administration of former President Goodluck Jonathan, between 2011 and 2015.

He was a member of the PDP, but switched to the ruling APC, following PDPs defeat in the 2015 presidential election.

In 2022, he returned to the PDP, under which he won the Zamfara Central District election in 2023, defeating his APC counterpart, Garba Marafa, who represented the district between 2011 and 2019.

In December 2022, the former minister was arrested by police in the state and arraigned before the Zamfara State Upper Sharia Court 11 for the alleged destruction of APC campaign billboards and other properties.

He was remanded in prison for about two weeks until he was granted bail.

Abdulhamid Madori

Mr Madori was elected senator for Jigawa North-east District under the APC platform in 2023, defeating former deputy governor and senator, Ubali Shitu of the PDP.

He was appointed as minister of state for power and steel under the administration of former President, Olusegun Obasanjo in 2005. He later served as the countrys ambassador to Turkey under the administration of Mr Jonathan between 2011 and 2015.

The former minister was a political godson to the former governor of the state, Sule Lamido. But he fell out of favour with Mr Lamido following his (Madori) failure to clinch the PDP governorship ticket ahead of the 2015 election in the state.

His defection in 2015 from the PDP to the opposition APC at the time angered Mr Lamido, whom he accused of imposing the partys candidate, Ibrahim Ringim, on them.

Abba Moro

Mr Moro was reelected senator for Benue South District in 2023 under the platform of the PDP. He was first elected into the Red Chamber in 2019, replacing former Senate President, David Mark.

The new senator had served as minister of interior between 2011 and 2015 under Mr Jonathan.

Mr Moro was the PDP candidate for the 2007 governorship in Benue State but lost to the opposition.

In 2014, during his time as minister, he supervised the infamous recruitment exercise that led to the death of at least 15 young Nigerians. The poorly planned exercise by the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) caused the deaths of applicants across Nigeria. The applicants died in stampedes caused by the poor organisation of the recruitment tests in Abuja and other cities.

Apart from the deaths of the applicants, Mr Moro and others were also accused of defrauding the applicants of hundreds of millions of naira and are being prosecuted by the anti-graft agency, EFCC.

The then NIS chief, David Paradang, not only accused Mr Moro of supervising the recruitment, he was a prosecution witness and told the court how Mr Moro allegedly violated a presidential directive after the recruitment.

Adamu Aliero

Mr Aliero was the Kebbi State Governor between 1999 and 2007 under the PDP platform. He recently had issues with the current governor, Atiku Bagudu, which precipitated his loss in the APC primary for Kebbi Central District. But that did not cripple his ambition as he defected to the PDP and subsequently won in the general election.

Mr Aliero was appointed minister of the Federal Capital Territory by former President Umaru Musa YarAdua in December 2008. He left office as minister in March 2010 when the then-acting President Jonathan dissolved his cabinet.

Mr Alieros senate election victory in 2023 meant he is returning to the Red Chamber for the fourth time, making him one of the longest-serving in the state.

Danjuma Goje

Mr Goje finished his tenure as the governor of Gombe State in 2011- after serving for two consecutive terms from 2003, under the PDP platform.

He was first elected senator for Gombe Central district on the PDP ticket in 2011. In 2014, he dumped the PDP for the APC, under which he was reelected senator for the district in 2015, 2019 and 2023.

He had earlier served as minister of state for power and steel from 1999 to 2001 under former President Obasanjo.

In May this year, he was controversially expelled from the APC by the state chapter of the party on allegations of anti-party activities. His expulsion was, however, rescinded by the partys NWC a few days later.

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The presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi, on Wednesday, informed the Presidential Election Petition Court in Abuja that INEC chairman, Mahmood Yakubu, has been evading service of a subpoena on him.

Mr Obi wants Mr Yakubu to testify before the five-member panel of the court concerning his petition challenging President Bola Tinubus victory in the 25 February election.

His claim that Mr Yakubu was evading service of a subpoena came barely 24 hours after the lawyers to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and its presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, also signalled that they would be bringing the INEC chair to testify in court on the subpoena. Mr Yakubu was scheduled to testify in their case on Thursday.

Mr Obis legal team, led by Livy Uzoukwu, has been at loggerheads with Nigerias electoral commission over their inability to access electoral documents to aid their case.

The presidential candidate and his party, the Labour Party, in their joint petition, urged the court to nullify Mr Tinubus victory owing to INECs alleged fraudulent activities during the disputed presidential election.

At the resumed hearing on Wednesday, Mr Obis lawyer, Livy Uzoukwu, said the office of the electoral umpires chairman declined to accept a subpoena served on Mr Yakubu to produce some documents before the court.

Mr Uzoukwus disclosure came about after Mr Obis legal team exhausted electoral documents it was tendering before the court.

He said the team would have loved to continue with tendering of more documentary evidence but for the refusal of Mr Yakubus office to accept a subpoena served on him to produce some documents.

They blamed the INEC boss for hindering the progress of their suit.

INEC denies Mr Obis claim

Reacting to Mr Uzoukwus claim, INECs lawyer, Kemi Pinheiro, asked Mr Obis legal team to stop blaming the electoral commission for its tardiness in conducting the case.

Mr Pinheiro, a SAN, said it had become Mr Uzoukwus strategy to blame respondents in the petition for their inability to prosecute their case diligently.

It has become a habit. Whenever they want to seek an adjournment, they look for somebody to whip. It cannot be true that the office of the INEC Chairman refuses a subpoena.

Dont use INEC as a whipping boy. If they have nothing else to do today, they should just stay so. It is their day. It is not correct that the office of INEC Chairman refused to accept a subpoena, Mr Pinhero told Mr Uzoukwu.

Background

Since the court began substantive hearing of Mr Obis petition against Mr Tinubus victory on 30 May, his lawyers have largely tendered documentary evidence as exhibits to support their case.

The evidence so far comprised electoral documents like results sheets and Bimodal Voters Accreditation System (BVAS) machines reports, amongst others that were used in the conduct of the presidential election.

During the pre-hearing session of the court, which lasted two weeks, Mr Obi indicated that he would call 50 witnesses to substantiate his claims of electoral malpractices against INEC and Mr Tinubu.

But Mr Obi has only called two witnesses as the 23 June deadline for prosecuting his case inches close.

The court gave him three weeks to assemble witnesses and tender documents to prove his case/

Afterwards, the court adjourned further hearing in the suit until Thursday.

His case is the only of the three filed in court to challenge Mr Tinubus victory in the February election.

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The joint ticket between Godswill Akpabio and Barau Jibrin, for the Senate Leadership, became a reality on Tuesday after they were elected the president and deputy president of the 10th Assembly of the Senate.

Mr Jibrin who represents Kano North Senatorial District, emerged as the deputy president of the 10th Senate unopposed while Mr Akpabio polled 63 votes to defeat a former governor of Zamfara State, Abdulaziz Yari, who got 46 votes.

The election result was announced by the Clerk of the National Assembly, Sani Tambuwal. He said 107 of the total 109 senators voted.

Mr Jibrin was a top contender for the senate president position before his party, the All Progressives Congress (APC), anointed Mr Akpabio as its preferred candidate.

Earlier, Mr Jibrin told reporters that he ought to have challenged Mr Akpabio, but he decided to obey the decision of the party to allow for inclusiveness.

Mr Jibrin was generally regarded as the preferred governorship candidate of the APC in the just concluded election until he was replaced by Nasiru Gawuna, who was the immediate past deputy governor of the state following intense lobbying.

Some political analysts still believe that the failure of the APC in Kano was due to its failure to present Mr Jibrin as its governorship candidate.

The concession made to Mr Jibrin for agreeing to relinquish the governorship ticket to Mr Gawuna was that he would replace the immediate past governor of the state, Abdullahi Ganduje, as the partys senatorial candidate of Kano North district.

A testament to Mr Jibrins popularity in the zone was when he polled 234,652 votes to defeat the candidate of the New Nigeria People Party, (NNPP) Abdullahi Baffa, who scored 177,014 votes.

Mr Jibrin was first elected into the upper legislative chamber in 2015 and re-elected in 2019 and 2023 respectively. He previously served as a member of the House of Representatives, for the Tarauni Federal Constituency at the beginning of the Fourth Republic in 1999.

Born in the ancient city of Kano, Mr Jibrin holds a bachelors degree in accounting, a masters degree in Financial Management and Pricing, a masters degree in Management, and a Master of Business Administration (MBA). He also holds a degree in Financial Management for Business Decisions from Cornell University, United States.

A former Chairman of the Kano State Investment and Properties Ltd, and Commissioner of Science and Technology in the state, Mr Jibrins popularity cut across districts in Kano. He served as a representative of the lower chamber for Kano Central before moving to Kano North where he was elected as senator thrice.

During his term in the House of Representatives and the three terms in the Senate, Mr Jibrin sponsored many bills and motions.

He was a strong supporter of a bill to build the Federal University of Education Technology in Bichi, Kano State. He also sponsored bills to establish the Federal Polytechnic Kabo where his father was born.

Mr Jibrin introduced another bill in 2020 to create the North West Development Commission to address gaps in infrastructural development in the region. He was named Northern Senator of the Year by the Nigerian Senate Press Corps in 2017.

While in the House of Representatives, he chaired the House Committee on Appropriations and was a member of the House Committee on Power. He was also the chairman House Committee on Appropriation for the 9th Senate.

He also performed critical roles in several development projects while serving on the Niger Delta, Industries, Land Transportation, and Appropriations Committees and holds the national honour of the Commander of the Order of the Niger (CON).

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The Nigeria Governors Forum (NGF) has congratulated Godswill Akpabio and Tajudeen Abass on their emergence as President of the Senate and Speaker House of Representatives, respectively.

The Chairman of the forum, Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq of Kwara State, expressed their felicitation in a statement issued by his Chief Press Secretary, Rafiu Ajakaye, on Tuesday in Ilorin.

Mr AbdulRazaq congratulated Barau Jibrin and Benjamin Kalu on their emergence as Deputy Senate President and Deputy Speaker, respectively.

The popular choices of the new Senate President and the Rt. Honourable Speaker of the House of Representatives as well as their deputies, underscored the confidence that their colleagues reposed in them and their abilities to work in harmony with the other arms of government for the development of our country.

We look forward to working with the new leadership on different issues of national interest.

We wish them Gods guidance and protection as they lead their colleagues in the 10th National Assembly to champion a vibrant legislative agenda that complements the Renewed Hope agenda of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and other subnational governments across Nigeria, he said.

(NAN)

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Official data shows that from January to April this year, the total import and export volume between China and members of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) hit 4.12 trillion yuan (about $576.06 billion), up 7.3 percent year on year, accounting for 30.9 percent of China's total foreign trade import and export volume.

The RCEP agreement was signed on Nov. 15, 2020 among its 15 participating countries including China, Australia, Japan, South Korea, New Zealand, and 10 ASEAN countries, and entered into force on Jan. 1, 2022.

Xu Lina, a spokesperson for Chinese supermarket brand Wumart, said as the RCEP is fully implemented, the prices of imported goods purchased by Wumart in RCEP member countries are expected to be cheaper and customs clearance further shortened.

Imported goods from RCEP countries in Wumart supermarkets include New Zealand milk, Malaysian snacks, facial cleanser from South Korea, and Thai durian.

From January to May this year, Shanghai Customs issued a total of 34,300 RCEP certificates of origin with a value of 11.772 billion yuan (about $1.64 billion).

Shanghai Sunho Aluminium Foil Co., Ltd., an enterprise benefiting from the RCEP, can produce 83,000 metric tons of high-end ultra-thin double-zero aluminum foil annually, of which about 70 percent are for export, widely used in the packaging of food, beverages and medicine.

"We applied 1,058 RCEP certificates of origin with a total value of $67 million last year. After the full implementation of the RCEP this year, our products will be more quickly exported to RCEP countries with lower prices," said Mei Xiaojun, head of the companys foreign trade department.

With the certificate of origin, enterprises can enjoy tariff reductions equivalent to five percent of the commodity value, which has lowered export costs and helped gain more overseas orders, Mei added.

In order to ensure that foreign trade enterprises can benefit from the RCEP agreement and work more efficiently, China Customs has established a targeted service system, optimizing customs clearance procedures and reducing related costs to help enterprises expand the RCEP market.

For example, Qingdao Customs in Shandong Province customizes plans for import and export enterprises to ensure they can benefit more from the RCEP agreement.

"After the RCEP came into effect, Qingdao Customs found that we didn't enjoy enough preferential treatment through data analysis, so it formulated a plan to help us apply for tariff concessions from RCEP countries, said Wang Jiashun, who is in charge of international business at a food company in Qingdao.

It is estimated that this year, raw materials like pineapple and pineapple juice imported from ASEAN countries will increase by more than 15 percent year on year, while foreign exports are expected to increase by 10 to 15 percent, Wang added.

Meanwhile, customs also explained the RCEP tariff policies to help enterprises optimize their export layout while some even promoted self-service printing and intelligent verification of certificates of origin to help enterprises reduce costs.

Data shows that in the first five months of this year, ASEAN was China's largest trading partner, and the total trade value between the two sides reached 2.59 trillion yuan, up 9.9 percent year on year, which has highlighted the dynamism brought to foreign trade by the RCEP.

Liu Yu, who works for Alibaba International Station, said in May this year, customer exports via the platform to RCEP member countries increased rapidly year on year. Among them, exports to Australia, Japan and the Philippines increased by more than 15 percent year on year, and to Singapore by nearly 30 percent year on year.

In addition to increased export destinations, the RCEP has deepened cooperation between Chinese and foreign companies.

For example, the production workshops of Nanning Qiaohong New Materials Co., Ltd have been busy since the beginning of this year due to increasing export orders, with the operating rate remaining at over 90 percent.

"Nanning Customs told us that tariffs on our dust-free paper can be cancelled from the previous 15 percent when entering the Philippine market due to the RCEP agreement," said Lu Qi, deputy general manager of the company.

The RCEP has also promoted the deep integration of the regional industrial chain supply chain, said Lu, adding that the company can carry out more in-depth cooperation with its partners within this chain.
Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu has congratulated his predecessor, Akinwunmi Ambode, on the occasion of the latters 60th birthday.

The governor, in a congratulatory message posted via Twitter on Wednesday by his media adviser Gboyega Akosile, described Mr Ambode as a seasoned administrator who contributed his knowledge and expertise to the growth of the public service in Lagos State.

Mr Ambode lost his second-term bid to Mr Sanwo-Olu in the APC primary in 2018.

The governor said his predecessor contributed immensely as a former accountant-general as well as governor to the growth and development of Lagos State in different capacities, especially in the finance sector.

On behalf of my adorable wife, Ibijoke, the government and good people of Lagos State, I join family, friends and political associates of my predecessor, former Governor Akinwunmi Ambode, to congratulate him on his 60th birthday, the governor was quoted as saying.

Mr Akinwunmi Ambode dedicated his young and adult life to the service of Lagos State, first as a civil servant and later as the 14th Governor of our dear Lagos State.

As Council Treasurer, Auditor General for Local Government, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Finance and Accountant-General of Lagos State, he displayed a high level of integrity, dedication and professionalism to service in the public sector.

He recorded the same achievements as Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Finance and as the States Accountant General.

Mr Sanwo-Olu also commended Mr Ambode for making positive and significant impacts in some sectors during his tenure as the state governor.

I wish His Excellency, former Governor Akinwunmi Ambode, a happy birthday and pray that he witnesses many more fruitful years in good health. Amen, he said.

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The Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), Lucky Irabor, has charged troops of Operation Udoka to redouble their efforts and flush out the remaining criminals in the South-east.

The Nigerian military and other security agencies have been battling insecurity in South-east Nigeria caused mainly by the pro-Biafra agitation led by the outlawed group, Indigenous People of Biafra.

You are mandated to flush out the criminal elements disturbing the peace and socio-economic well-being of the Southeast, Mr Irabor, a general, said while addressing the troops drawn from the military and para-military security formations.

The CDS gave the address at the headquarters of the 82 Division of the Nigerian Army, Enugu, on Tuesday.

Mr Irabor said the Commander-in-Chief, President Bola Tinubu, commended the troops for their doggedness so far in the operation.

He appreciated the troops of the operation, which was launched towards the end of January 2023, for a very successful operation leading to violence-free, fair and credible elections in the South East.

From the briefs I have been receiving from the General Officer Commanding 82 Division, who is the overall Commander of the Operation and other field commanders, I am proud of your conduct during the general elections.

I say well done to you for your effectiveness and commitment that led to a resounding success during the general elections.

However, it is not over yet, I want you to redouble your efforts and get ready for more serious work to see that pockets of insecurity in the South-east by criminal elements are totally checked, he said.

The CDS said that the recent move by Governor Peter Mbah of Enugu State and, by extension, other governors of the South-east to stop the illegal sit-at-home order must be supported by all.

According to him, this move will stop the monumental socio-economic, cultural and relationship losses incurred by the regions people.

He said: I am using this medium to call on the people of Enugu State and the South-east that they should not allow any criminal enterprise space to operate within Enugu State and the South-east any more.

READ ALSO: Nigerian military to partner Enugu govt on insecurity

They should join efforts with members of the security agencies to defile illegal order of sit-at-home in the region.

I am counseling the criminals to desist from the illegal and criminal enterprise of keeping people down on the guise of sit-at-home.

Mr Irabor said the sit-at-home order does not do anybody any good; there are avenues that the aggrieved can channel any grievance.

(NAN)

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The Chief of Defence Staff, Lucky Irabor, has pledged the Nigerian militarys readiness to partner with the Enugu State Government to ensure security in the state.

Mr Irabor, a general, spoke on Tuesday during a courtesy visit to Governor Peter Mbah of the Enugu State at the Government House, Enugu.

The chief of defence staff said the military authorities were impressed by the bold security measures so far taken by the governor in the state.

He assured that they would play their part in encouraging socio-economic development in Enugu by improving the security situation in the state.

He said he was in the state to review the impact of the security efforts in the state.

Your bold statement on security synchronises with our efforts towards ending insecurity, he said.

We are here to assure that the armed forces and security agencies will give you all the needed support, Mr Irabor stated.

He appealed to traditional rulers in the state, civil society organisations and town union leaders to work in synergy with the governor and security agencies to ensure the security of people in the state.

Mbah speaks

Responding, Mr Mbah commended the military for the partnership, describing insecurity as the big elephant in the room.

The governor stressed that the security challenge in the state was a major obstacle to realising his administrations agenda to raise the states economy from the current $4.4 billion to $30 billion.

We cant adopt the present financing model if we must grow the economy exponentially. It has to be private sector-driven and one of the indicators of ease of doing business is security. We have to secure our state, ensure our people work five days a week in order to convince them of our states viability, he said.

The governor indirectly referenced the Monday sit-at-home order usually enforced by a faction of the outlawed Indigenous People of Biafra across the state and the South-east of Nigeria.

Mr Mbah had announced a ban on the sit-at-home in the state, although the civil action has continued to hold in the state despite the ban.

He had, on 10 June, met with some community leaders, religious and student leaders, bank heads and security agencies, among others and sought their support to resist the civil action.

The leaders agreed to support him in ending the recurring civil action in the state.

So, we are glad to have you and all the security agencies as our partner, and you have assured us that your men will sustain the efforts to improve the security of lives and property in our state, Mr Mbah told the military chief.

Market, religious leaders, others speak

In their separate remarks, the representatives of the community and religious leaders, as well as educational institutions, pledged to mobilise their members to defile the sit-at-home order in the state, pointing out that the observance of the civil action was affecting their economy.

We have agreed amongst ourselves, as traders in Enugu State, to open our markets from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily, including Mondays.

It is our duty too to make our people come out (for business) by sensitising and educating them on the gains of working and trading on Mondays, Stephen Aniagu, the president of Enugu State Amalgamated Traders Association, said.

On his part, the Chairperson of the State Traditional Rulers Council, Lawrence Agubuzu, said the traditional rulers have confidence in the militarys capacity to provide security across the country.

Mr Agubuzu, who spoke on behalf of other traditional rulers, urged the military to rise to the challenge of insecurity in the country, given that state governors were not vested with the power to control the armed forces.

Also speaking, the Chairperson of Christian Association Nigeria in Enugu, Emmanuel Ede, reiterated the readiness of the Christian community in the state to partner with the government in ensuring security in the state.

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The Federal Ministry of Health has asked Nigerians participating in the 2023 Hajj to take some precautionary measures due to the outbreak of Anthrax disease in some West African countries.

The alert was issued on Wednesday by Saidu Dumbulwa, NAHCONs commissioner for health.

According to the statement, Anthrax, a bacterial infection primarily affects animals and man, has been discovered in Ghana, Burkina Faso and Togo.

Some of the symptoms of the disease include cough, fever and muscle aches.

The alert explained that though the disease is non-contagious, man can get infected by coming in contact with an infected animal or contaminated animal products.

As a precaution, Nigerian pilgrims have been warned against consuming contaminated hide and skin, meat and milk exported from the listed countries.

Over 96,000 pilgrims from Nigeria are participating in the 2023 Hajj in Saudi Arabia.

Full alert

To AIl

All Medical Team Members.

NAHCON staff

Pilgrims

OUTBREAK OF ANTHRAX AND PUBLIC HEALTH IMPLICATION ON HAJJ

(INTERNATIONAL HEALTH REGULATION)

The Federal Ministry of Health has just been informed by the Federal Ministry of Agriculture on the outbreak of Anthrax in some neighbouring countries within West African sub-region specifically Ghana, Burkina Faso and Togo.

Anthrax is a zoonotic disease, a bacterial infection primarily affects Animals and Man.

Anthrax spores are naturally found in the soil and commonly infect domestic and wild animals.

They are non-contagious, but man can get infected by coming in contact with an infected animal or contaminated animal products.

The disease has flu-like symptoms such as cough, fever and muscle aches. If not diagnosed and treated early can lead to pneumonia, sever lung problems, difficulty in breathing, shock and death. However, being a bacterial disease its respond to Antibiotics.

Its primarily an Animal disease, non-vaccinated animals with Anthrax can easily transmit to man through Inhalation of Anthrax spores or consumption of Anthrax products such as hide and skin, meat and milk.

To this end, the Federal Ministry of Health is inclined to advice that intending pilgrims and pilgrims in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to desist from consumption of hides (Ponmo) smoked meat, bush meat until situation is brought under control as they pose serious risks to the pilgrims.

We are also mindful and concerned of the fact that Pilgrims and traders from Southwestern states bordering Togo Republic might likely export such Animal products.

Therefore, all medical personnel of NMT are required to note the observation and advise accordingly where necessary as preventive measure.

Dr Saidu Ahmed Dumbulwa

Hon.Comm, Health NAHCON/FMOH.

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A day after signing into law a bill providing interest-free loans to Nigerians willing to acquire tertiary education but unable to afford fees, President Bola Tinubu on Tuesday met with the leadership of various Nigerian student bodies.

In a tweet via the Presidents Twitter handle- @OfficialABAT, Mr Tinubu described the meeting with the student leaders as invigorating, noting that they welcomed the new law and that his administrations proactive approach to the fuel subsidy issue was welcome.

This is as PREMIUM TIMES is billed to hold a Twitter Space  an audio conversation via Twitter  a social media platform, on Wednesday, 15 June.

The Twitter Space, part of the newspapers public engagement efforts on contemporary issues of national interest, has been scheduled to hold between 6 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.

About the Act

Mr Tinubu assented to the Access to Higher Education Act (2023), providing legal backing for the Education Loan Fund, which would provide students with loans to pay tuition in public tertiary institutions.

The bill has previously met stiff opposition from student bodies such as the National Association of Nigerian Students and workers unions, who described it as an attempt by the government to wash its hands off the funding of the university.

Tertiary education in Nigeria is primarily subsidised depending on the governments handout to continue running effectively.

For years, the inadequate funding by the government has caused disagreement between workers unions and the government, resulting in industrial unrest.

Stakeholders have cited the industrial crises across many campuses as reasons for the poor ranking of Nigerias tertiary institutions globally.

Meeting student leaders

On Tuesday, Mr Tinubu received the representatives of the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), the National Association of University Students (NAUS), the National Association of Colleges of Education Students (NACES) and the National Youth Council of Nigeria (NYCN) at the Presidential villa.

This afternoon, I enjoyed an invigorating meeting with the leadership of a few of the most prominent national student bodies in the country. Representatives of the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), the National Association of University Students (NAUS), the National Association of Colleges of Education Students (NACES) and the National Youth Council of Nigeria (NYCN) were in attendance, he wrote.

Their support of the Access to Higher Education Act as well as this governments proactive approach to the fuel subsidy issue, was most welcome.

The President also said his government will prioritise youth empowerment and social justice through meaningful inclusion in governance.

He also promised affordable access to quality education and the creation of gainful opportunities across all sectors of the economy.

PT Twitter Space

The PREMIUM TIMES Twitter Space, tagged PT Space, is a forum to appraise contemporary issues bimonthly.

Apart from using the platform to set an agenda for the government and other relevant stakeholders on pertinent issues, the platform has also enabled Nigerians to address their concerns and resolve issues such as challenges with international passport processes, and National Identity Number (NIN), among others.

On Wednesday, participants, including the leadership of the students bodies, workers unions and rights campaigners such as the National Vice President of the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU), Abdssobur Salaam, shall participate as panellists.

To give context to the law as envisioned by its sponsor and immediate past Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, his former Special Assistant on Electronic and New Media, Somoye Basit, will join the conversation as a panelist.

The topic of the conversation is: Workability and Sustainability of Students Loan Scheme in Nigeria.

The session will be moderated by the newspapers head of the Development Desk, Mojeed Alabi.

Mr Alabi doubles as the chairman of Education Writers Association of Nigeria (EWAN)  a group of journalists across print, online and broadcast media platforms who report education in the country.

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The members of the 8th Jigawa State House of Assembly on Wednesday elected Haruna Aliyu of the All Progressive Congress (APC) as the new speaker of the assembly.

The lawmakers also elected Sani Isyaku, from Gumel constituency, as the deputy speaker. The election was conducted during the inauguration of the new assembly members.

The election kicked off after the member representing Mallamadori Constituency, Hamza Ibrahim, nominated Mr Aliyu for the speakership position.

He was seconded by Muhammed Ibrahim, a member representing Birnin Kudu Constituency.

Both the speaker and his deputy, who were elected unopposed, were sworn in by the Clerk of the House, Musa Abubakar.

The election of the new speaker also maintained the APC zoning arrangement in the state with the speaker from Miga Local Government Area of the South-west district, the governor, Umar Namadi, and his deputy, Aminu Usman, came from Jigawas northeast and North-west senatorial districts, respectively.

However, the lawmakers went against the direction of the leadership of the party in the state, who had endorsed the immediate past speaker, Idris Garba, to be reelected as the speaker.

After the inauguration of the eighth Assembly, the new speaker adjourned the sitting to 23 June without electing other new principal officers.

The position of the majority leader of the house and the Chip Whip was also reportedly nominated by the APC leadership.

The state APC Chairman, Aminu Sani, did not attend the inauguration of the assembly.

PREMIUM TIMES reported how some members of APC from Jahun Local Government Area staged a protest at the Jigawa State House of Assembly over the nomination of Mr Garba as the new speaker for the house.

The protesters barricaded the entrance to the complex, demanding that the speakership of the house should be given to a new person, not Mr Garba, who was the immediate past speaker of the house.

Mr Garba was the speaker for seven years.

PREMIUM TIMES gathered that the lawmakers objected to Mr Garbas leadership and opted for Mr Aliyu in their quest for new leadership and the overall interest of top APC chieftains Mr Garbas constituency, Jahun.

In the 30-member assembly, the APC has 29 members, while the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has a member.

The inauguration ceremony was attended by the governor and his deputy, and the Secretary to the state government, Bala Ibrahim, among other former members of the house.

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Edwin Clark, a former federal commissioner of information, has accused the immediate past Governor of Delta State, Ifeanyi Okowa, of misappropriating over N1 trillion of the 13 per cent oil derivation fund for the state.

The 13 per cent derivation fund comes from the federation account to oil-producing communities through state governments as contained in section 162 (2) of Nigerias 1999 Constitution (as amended).

Mr Clark considered a leader and influential voice in South-south Nigeria, spoke when he appeared as a guest on Arise TVs The Morning Show on Wednesday.

The former federal commissioner alleged that Mr Okowa misappropriated the funds during his time as governor of Delta State.

How I found out about the misappropriation

Mr Clark, who leads the Pan Niger Delta Forum (PANDEF), said he and others had been blaming the federal government for the lack of development in the South-south without knowing that the governors in the region have been stealing the money for the regions development.

The immediate past Governor of Rivers State, Nyesom Wike, had in November 2022 revealed that the federal government had paid a backlog of oil derivation funds to the oil-producing states in the country.

Shortly after Mr Wikes revelation, Garba Shehu, the spokesperson to then President Muhammadu Buhari, released details of the funds released to nine oil-producing states, with Delta State said to have received the highest allocation totalling N296.63 billion.

Mr Clark said the revelations prompted him to confront Mr Okowa, through a letter, to account for the funds.

He (Okowa) said he had been spending the money. The answer they gave me was that they spent N5 billion on paying pensioners. How does that come under 13 per cent? Mr Clark said.

And they also spent the money building a university in Okowas village.

The former federal commissioner said he was dissatisfied with the former governors response and had to hire a lawyer who obtained, from the accountant generals office, the certified copy of all the derivation funds paid to the state from 2007 to December 2022.

The one paid to Delta State came to N1.767 trillion, he said.

The PANDEF leader said the law establishing the Delta State Oil Producing Areas Development Commission (DESOPADEC) noted that 50 per cent of the 13 per cent should be given to the DESOPADEC. However, the governor held the whole funds.

DESOPADEC is an interventionist agency established to manage a 13 per cent oil derivation fund to drive infrastructural development of the oil-producing communities in the state.

Instead of paying 50 per cent (of the N1.760 trillion) to the DESOPADEC as provided by the law, which is automatic, he (Okowa) now held the 13 per cent fund- the entire money, dishing out instalmentally and approving every contract the DESOPADEC had awarded, he said.

Letter to Okowa and EFCC

Mr Clark said he wrote a second letter to Mr Okowa and also copied the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) complaining that the governor had floated a private commercial bank, Premium Bank, which he allegedly used to lodge all the derivation funds.

I also mentioned in the letter that he (Okowa) has 13 companies. I told him he put the 13 per cent (derivation funds) into these 13 companies and let him deny it.

So, Okowa has embezzled our money. Its not even accounted for in his annual budget, Mr Clark stated, pointing out that embezzlement had made some governors wealthier than their states.

He did not, however, mention if the EFCC responded to his letter.

When reminded by one of the programme anchors, Reuben Abati, that Mr Okowa had denied ownership of the Premium bank, Mr Clark said the former governor lied, insisting that he knew the banks history.

Why we opposed Atiku-Okowa ticket

Mr Okowa was the running mate to the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, Atiku Abubakar, who hails from Adamawa, a state in North-east Nigeria.

Mr Clark accused Mr Okowa of betraying the Southern Nigerians and People from Middle Belt by accepting to be Atikus running mate and spending Delta States funds on their campaigns despite a decision by Southern and Middle Belt leaders against the north-producing president in 2023.

But he (Okowa) violated it. He was very happy going about (as Atikus running mate), claiming that he is Igbo man, Mr Clark said, explaining that Mr Okowas alignment with Atiku, a northerner, made them oppose their ambition.

Okowa replies Clark

When contacted by PREMIUM TIMES on Wednesday, Charles Aniagwu, who served as the commissioner for information under Mr Okowas administration, denied the allegations.

Mr Aniagwu said Mr Clark belongs to a different political persuasion at the moment and that his partisan consideration was influencing his views.

Everything he (Clark) mentioned in that interview is not the true position of things. When you have 13 per cent derivation coming into an oil-producing state, that is part of the revenue they use in running the state, he claimed.

It is not 13 per cent for oil-producing communities. It is for the state; otherwise, we would have elevated it to the level of oil-producing families.

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The Ondo State Acting Governor, Lucky Aiyedatiwa, has broken the silence on the issues in the state government over the ill health of the governor, Oluwarotimi Akeredolu.

Mr Aiyedatiwa assumed office as acting governor on Tuesday after the House of Assembly confirmed receipt of a notice from the governor asking his deputy to assume the role.

Mr Akeredolu, according to state officials, is proceeding on leave to rest and take care of his health abroad.

But Mr Aiyedatiwa, in a statement on Wednesday, said rumours of conflicts within the state executive council were unfounded.

He said he had noted the concerns of residents about governance in the state, as well as the rumours and insinuations making the rounds.

Let me aver without mincing words that rumour about the disruption of government activities are misplaced and only arose as a result of impatience and lack of proper understanding of the running of the government machinery, the acting governor said.

In any case, such misrepresentations and apparently baseless allusions are to be expected when political gladiators, by their activities in the build-up to party primaries and gubernatorial elections in any state, try to heat the polity. Ondo State cannot be an exception.

It is, therefore, essential to assure our people that governance is on course in the State. Mr Governor has laid a solid foundation for One Administration in the State, and there is, undoubtedly, no politically debilitating division in the government. Arakunrin Oluwarotimi Odunayo Akeredolu, SAN, CON, my boss, is a revered democrat who has consistently demonstrated his respect for the Rule of Law and the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as Amended).

It should be recalled that by his usual practice, he has always transmitted power to the Deputy Governor whenever he proceeds on annual vacation. This is what he has again re-enacted by transmitting power to proceed on a medical vacation.

Mr Aiyedatiwa further noted that people, whenever the need arises, find time to rest and take care of their health when medically challenged.

He assured that the State Executive Council and the Parliament would continue to enjoy a mutually beneficial relationship in the duties to move the State forward.

We, therefore, enjoin the good people of Ondo State and all friends of our dear Sunshine States not to relent in their prayers for Mr Governors quick recovery so that he can resume duty after his medical vacation, to continue with his good works for the betterment of Ondo State in particular and Nigeria at large, Mr Aiyedatiwa said.

I cannot but enjoin the political class to be guided by good conscience in the pursuit of ambition to sustain the atmosphere of peace and unfettered development that we have witnessed in our dear State in the last six years.

Service to our people should, consequently, be the ultimate goal of our politicking. The sustained welfare of our people, the success of our administration and the victory of our great party in successive elections should, therefore, be our guiding principles. Our administration shall neither be deterred nor distracted. Furthermore, let me assure you that the State Government will continue to uphold and pursue the constitutional primary responsibility of government to secure the lives and property of the people of the State. We are fully committed to the mandate we are holding in trust for the good people of Ondo State.

On behalf of Mr Governor, l thank our people in Ondo State for your prayers, loyalty and support while also urging you to continue to keep calm and be law-abiding as the State Government remains focused and committed to the delivery of dividends of good governance to all.

Mr Aiyedatiwa was in the spotlight as reports of squabbles over who ran the state government in Mr Akeredolus absence raged.

Stories about his alleged wife battery coincided with calls by opposition parties to transmit power to him as acting governor in view of the Governors health situation.

He had denied the allegations, and calm seems to have returned to the governors office.

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The National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON) has disclosed that about 75 pregnant pilgrims have been referred to hospitals in Makkah and Medina for urgent medical attention.

The commission said despite an awareness campaign against pregnant women embarking on Hajj, many had ignored the counsel by sneaking into Hajj.

Usman Galadima of the Nigerian medical team disclosed this on Wednesday during a chat with journalists in Makkah.

Mr Galadinma said due to the physical demand of Hajj, pregnant women are urged not to attend. He noted that even the weather condition is not ideal for pregnancy.

He said 30 women were referred to hospitals in Madina, while another 45 have been referred in Makkah.

We have had cases of advanced pregnancy. We have seen a case of seven months pregnancy that had to be admitted. We have those who had to be taken to Womens Hospital in Makkah here for admission and urgent care.

This is despite our cautionary call against pregnant women coming into the Kingdom (Saudi Arabia). This is because of the physical exhaustion and the tendency to have complications associated with such.

We advised against pregnant women coming to Hajj. We have had so many cases of pregnant women coming for the Hajj. We have had so many referrals. In Medina, we have referred more than 30. In Makkah, we have referred up to 45, he said.

Mr Galadinma also disclosed that the medical team is having major challenges with pilgrims with chronic diseases like diabetes and high blood pressure because many did not come to hajj with their medications.

He said in some instances, officials at the airports in Nigeria confiscated the drugs, thereby denying the patients their medications. He explained that as long as prescribed medications are packed in their original packs, Saudi authorities wont confiscate them.

He added that the NAHCON clinics had recorded an increase in pilgrims admitted over lack of access to prescribed drugs.

We have been managing those with chronic illnesses like diabetics, and hypertensionsome of them dont come with their drugs despite our efforts on enlightenment.

Once they see medication in original packs, they wont take it away from them. But I understand that these drugs were confiscated at the Nigerian end, this is wrong.

A traveller should be able to travel with their drugs once there is a prescription, once they are in their original packs. Many of them have come without their drugs. We have seen many patients with high blood sugar requiring admission. he said.

Millions of Muslims from countries around the world are participating in the 2023 Hajj. Over 96,000 pilgrims from Nigeria are expected to participate in the pilgrimage.

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We need to demonstrate true commitment to values and ideals underpinning democracy, including diversity and inclusive participation, justice and fairness, freedom of expression, independence of the judiciary, and press freedom. We need to protect those who hold power to account, including the media and other civil society organisations. We need to empower more media groups to provide accurate, non-partisan information.

In the past year, two major African regional economic hubs, Kenya and Nigeria, have conducted highly scrutinised elections. Nigeria only recently inaugurated Bola Ahmed Tinubu after a hotly contested electoral process in March. Kenyas William Samoei Ruto has served for almost a year now. As these administrations settle into leadership, I laud the various successes in their electoral processes: we saw more young people come out in the polls in Nigeria, and more women elected in Kenya.

However, Im concerned about the polarising narratives which drove both elections, and how this affected the participation, or lack thereof, of key demographics. Thus, two key questions which should seriously be considered as Kenya and Nigeria move on: Are the two countries poised to provide a conducive environment for the civic participation of youth and women, and how did unhealthy information systems affect the polls?

These elections recorded gains for some historically underrepresented groups. Young Kenyans successfully contested for office, including a 24-year-old legislator and a 31-year-old senator. Three individuals living with disabilities were elected. Three women were voted into the Kenyan Senate. 30 women were elected as MPs, up from 23 in 2017, and seven governors, up from three in 2017. This shows a small shift to diverse political representation in Kenya.

Only 18 women legislators were elected across various national representative seats in Nigeria this year. The West African country failed to produce a female governor or President. Nigeria has a lot of work to do to ensure more women are elected into public office. Rwanda and Kenya provide a good example of an effective tool  gender quotas, which are enshrined in the constitution.

A recent Africa No Filter research shows that narratives on social media and pop culture heavily influence young Africans. It is now up to states, funders, and communicators to invest in continuous research and initiatives geared at better understanding, influencing, and empowering this important demographic to take up leadership, including in civic and political spaces.

All states in Nigeria recorded less than 40% turnout at the polls. This is an especially dismal participation, since young people saw the elections as a gateway out of the myriad social and economic problems of the country. They used social media to mobilise for participation in the polls, and elected three legislators who are in their 20s  some of the youngest political leaders the country has seen.

These early anecdotal observations demonstrate the power of the youth as a constituency in the future of democratic societies. Beyond the cliche that the youth are the future of Africa, what are we doing to tap into this base to build a future that Kenya and Nigeria  and Africa as a whole  can be proud of? I acknowledge Nigerias legislative efforts at building diverse political leadership. The Not Too Young To Run bill enacted in 2018 lowered the age required for Nigerians to seek political office. With the evident desire of, and interest from young Africans, its time to further interrogate how best to reach them. A recent Africa No Filter research shows that narratives on social media and pop culture heavily influence young Africans. It is now up to states, funders, and communicators to invest in continuous research and initiatives geared at better understanding, influencing, and empowering this important demographic to take up leadership, including in civic and political spaces.

As digital platforms allowed youths to mobilise, lets reckon with the harm caused online during these polls. In both instances, politicians and their supporters weaponised information, thereby creating instances of tension. Nigeria bore the brunt of negative ethnic and religious political rhetoric during the campaigns, the elections and post-election periods. Misinformation, misogyny, and other divisive narratives spread online, and went largely unaddressed by the major tech platforms. Kenyas charged history with post-election violence, spurred on by misinformation and ethnically divisive politics, did not halt politicians and tech platforms from tapping into deadly tropes in last years elections. Women politicians were particularly targeted online and offline. It is unacceptable that tech platforms prioritise profit over peoples lives by monetising the spread of lies, hate and abusive content. Kenya and Nigerias new leadership must act swiftly to deter these practices by enacting laws that can hold tech platforms to account and truly protect these platforms users.

Indeed, these elections have evinced the need to be intentional about inclusive participation in public discourses and leadership  especially of the youth, the largest yet most underrepresented group. We need intentional investment in civic education, and we need the media industry to shape these positive narratives.

Electoral processes are effective when there is space for debate on the basis of accurate information to aid the decision-making of voters. This is why the independent media plays a central role in democracy. That Kenya and Nigeria have not provided conducive environments for the media to thrive goes against the principles of democracy. There were instances of government shutting down the media in Nigeria for airing opposition and dissenting voices. Kenyan journalists faced attacks online and offline while covering the campaigns. For these two countries whose media have played critical roles in consolidating their democracies, this should not be so.

Indeed, these elections have evinced the need to be intentional about inclusive participation in public discourses and leadership  especially of the youth, the largest yet most underrepresented group. We need intentional investment in civic education, and we need the media industry to shape these positive narratives.

We need to demonstrate true commitment to values and ideals underpinning democracy, including diversity and inclusive participation, justice and fairness, freedom of expression, independence of the judiciary, and press freedom. We need to protect those who hold power to account, including the media and other civil society organisations. We need to empower more media groups to provide accurate, non-partisan information. We must have better policies and regulations to ensure technology works for, and not against, democracy and its allied processes and institutions. It is time to build a truly representative political leadership. Governance can no longer be an exclusive club.

Toyin Akinniyi is director, Africa at Luminate.

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Washington's $43.7b expenditure far exceeds that of other nations: Report

The United States spent $43.7 billion on nuclear weapons in 2022, more than all of the other nuclear-armed states combined, according to Geneva-based International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons, or ICAN.

In its fourth annual report on global nuclear weapons spending, the ICAN, a global civil society coalition, said that global spending on nuclear weapons has increased for the third year in a row as the nine nuclear-armed states  US, Russia, China, the United Kingdom, France, India, Pakistan, Israel, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea  continued to modernize and expand their arsenals.

The report, titled "Wasted: 2022 Global Nuclear Weapons", shows that the nine countries spent $82.9 billion on nuclear weapons last year, of which the private sector earned at least $29 billion.

Russia spent 22 percent of what the US did and China spent just over a quarter of the US total, at $11.7 billion.

The report says that private companies continue to benefit from nuclear weapons spending and lobby to maintain nuclear weapons. In the United States and France alone, the companies which received contracts in 2022 spent $113 million on efforts to lobby their governments.

Think tanks also benefit from the corporate interests as nuclear weapon producing companies, nuclear-armed governments and those in nuclear alliance spent $21-36 million, funding the 10 most prominent think tanks researching and writing about nuclear weapons in nuclear-armed states, according to ICAN.

It lists US-based think tanks Atlantic Council, Brookings Institution, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, Center for a New American Security and Center for Strategic and International Studies for receiving the most funding.

Rising trend

The ICAN report, released on Monday, coincided with a report on the same day by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, or SIPRI, which shows that the number of operational nuclear weapons started to rise as the countries' long-term force modernization and expansion plans progressed.

The SIPRI Yearbook 2023 said the nine nuclear-armed states continued to modernize their nuclear arsenals and several deployed new nuclear-armed or nuclear-capable weapons systems in 2022.

Of the total global inventory of an estimated 12,512 warheads in January, about 9,576 were in military stockpiles for potential use, 86 more than in January 2022.

Of those, an estimated 3,844 warheads were deployed with missiles and aircraft, and around 2,000, nearly all of which belonged to the US or Russia, were kept in a state of high operational alert, meaning that they were fitted to missiles or held in air bases hosting nuclear bombers, according to SIPRI.

The US has 5,244 nuclear weapons, while Russia has 5,889.Together they account for almost 90 percent of all nuclear weapons.

The report says the US and the UK both declined to release information to the public concerning their nuclear forces in 2022, which they had done in previous years.

"In this period of high geopolitical tension and mistrust, with communication channels between nuclear-armed rivals closed or barely functioning, the risks of miscalculation, misunderstanding or accident are unacceptably high," SIPRI Director Dan Smith said in a news release.

"There is an urgent need to restore nuclear diplomacy and strengthen international controls on nuclear arms," he said.

Asked about the SIPRI report and China's nuclear arsenal at a daily press briefing in Beijing on Monday, Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said that China is committed to a defensive nuclear strategy and keeps its nuclear capabilities at the minimum level required by national security and does not target any country.

"We have honored our pledge to 'no first use' of nuclear weapons at any time and under any circumstances and unconditionally not to use or threaten to use nuclear weapons against non-nuclear weapon states or nuclear-weapon-free zones," he said.

"China is the only nuclear weapon state to have adopted such a policy. China will stay committed to safeguarding its legitimate security interests and upholding world peace and stability," Wang said.
The number of identified areas of clusters across Nigeria without access to the telecommunications services has been reduced by 53.1 per cent as at the end of 2022.

The Executive Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Communications Commission, Prof. Umar Garba Danbatta, disclosed this at a recent telecoms industry stakeholders forum in Yenagoa, Bayelsa state, according to a statement by Reuben Muoka, the Director, Public Affairs of NCC.

Danbatta, who was represented at the forum by the Head, Pre-Licensing at the Commission, Usman Mamman, said from 207 clusters of access gaps in 2013, the industry has witnessed a reduction to 97 as of end 2022 by bridging 110 clusters of access gaps, representing a 53.1 per cent reduction.

He said by implication, the number of Nigerians who fell within the access gap which were estimated at 37 million in 2013 has been reduced to 27 million, following increased access to telecoms services by those hitherto not digitally included.

Access gaps refer to the cluster of communities or grouped areas in different parts of the country that are bereft of access to telecom services and till date, the NCC has reduced clusters of access gap by more than half.

Danbatta said, We have worked tirelessly to ensure we bring telecom services to people living in rural, unserved, and underserved areas of this country, totalling 37 million people courtesy of the consultancy that was conducted in 2013.

By 2019, we had succeeded in reducing the clusters of access gaps to 114 through the deployment of the necessary infrastructure needed to bring services to people living in rural, unserved and underserved areas of the country. The deployment of infrastructure is in terms of base transceiver stations, which resulted in the reduction of Nigerians in those clusters from 37 million to 31 million in 2019.

By 2022, we have reduced the clusters of access gaps to 97 from 207 in 2013. The number of Nigerians again have come down from 37 million in 2013 to 27 million as we speak. We achieved this by deploying, from 2009 to 2011, a total of 79 new base transceiver stations, he said

Danbatta stated that in 2013 to 2018, the telecom sector also witnessed the deployment of additional 124 base transceiver stations while from 2019 to 2022, a total of 364 base transceiver stations were deployed.

So far, the total number of base transceiver stations we have deployed to date between the time the access gaps were identified till the end of 2022 are 567, he said.

While describing the reduction in access gap so far as a landmark, Danbatta, however, said the Commission will not rest on its oars as it thrives to ensure that the remaining 27 million Nigerians, who currently lack access to telecoms services, are provided with services.

Meanwhile, the EVC said part the regulatory interventions of the Commission to bridge the remaining 97 access across the country to provide ubiquitous connectivity in all the nooks and crannies of Nigeria are the issuance of the Mobile Virtual Network Operator (MVNO) Licences and the deployment of Fifth Generation (5G) networks, among others.

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The Police Command in Kwara has confirmed that 103 persons died in a boat accident at Egbu village, in Patigi Local Government Area of Kwara.

The spokesperson of the Command, Ajayi Okasanmi, confirmed the incident on Tuesday.

The deceased reportedly met their end after the boat conveying them while returning from a marriage ceremony capsized.

The tragic incident has cast an ominous cloud of sorrow and despair on the village.

Mr Okasanmi said the names of the survivors would be published soon.

The Transition Implementation Committee Chairman in Patigi, Mohammed Liman, put the number of passengers that died in the accident at 110.

Mr Liman, while quoting from a statement by one Bala Mohammed, a community leader in the area, said, About 110 people died in the boat mishap in our area.

Were going to tell you about the tragedy and unforgettable memory that occurred to my people from our village and other neighbouring villages close to us.

Our village people went to a wedding ceremony in another village called Gboti and the boat carried about 270 people, and almost 110 people were lost.

This is an unforgettable memory and tragedy in the history of our village, he said.

In his reaction, the Speaker of Kwara House of Assembly, Yakubu Danladi-Salihu, sympathized with the Etsu Patigi, Ibrahim Umar Bologi II, and the people of Patigi over Mondays boat mishap.

In a statement by the Speaker on Wednesday, he condoled the families of the dead and identified with those still missing, praying to God to forgive the deceased and give the families the fortitude to bear the loss.

READ ALSO: 15 people die in Kebbi boat mishap

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the boat conveying people from Egboti in Niger State en route to Kpada in Patigi Local Government Area of Kwara, capsised on Monday night, leaving several people dead and others still missing.

Our heart goes out to the people of Patigi, especially those in Ebu, Dzakan, Kpada, Kuchalu, and Sampi over the boat mishap that claimed dozens of lives and left others missing.

We also condole the Etsu Patigi over the unfortunate development; we pray to Allah to grant the deceased eternal rest and give their families fortitude to bear the loss, he said.

The Speaker also tasked the Fire Service and the rescue team to do everything possible to ensure the recovery of those still missing alive.

(NAN)

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Governor Francis Nwifuru of Ebonyi State has cautioned against incessant congratulatory visits to elected and appointed government functionaries in the state.

Mr Nwifuru made the disclosure on Tuesday while swearing in the new Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Grace Umezurike, a professor.

The governor, who also swore in Emmanuel Echiegu as his new chief of staff, said that government activities would peak after the commissioners inauguration.

We will hit the ground-running and stop visitations which we have used the past two weeks to do.

It is time to face governance as time waits for no one.

We mean business and must deliver our promises to the people as contained in the manifesto of the All Progressives Congress (APC), he said.

He said that his government has the capacity to deliver good governance and pay attention to the women in fulfilment of its campaign promises.

I assure the new SSG of my cooperation as women have become the fulcrum of my administration.

This is unusual but it is a good development for the state, he said.

Mr Nwifuru acknowledged that he had surprised many people with the mode of his appointments but urged for more patience.

The people who did not get the appointments they sought should continue their earnest prayers as they can still be appointed, he said.

ALSO READ: Ebonyi gets first female SSG

The governor disclosed that he would swear in commissioners of his administration on Tuesday, 20 June

Mrs Umezurike, the new SSG, thanked the governor on behalf of others for the appointments, pledging that they would not disappoint the state.

You have given us the opportunity to learn and the fact is that life itself is a learning process, she said.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the governor also swore in Mathias Adum as his principal secretary and Timothy Nwachi as the deputy chief of staff, among other aides.

(NAN)

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Secretary of the Ho Chi Minh City Party Committee Nguyen Van Nen (R) and Communist Party of Cuba (PCC) Central Committee member and First Secretary of the Havana Party Committee Luis Antonio Torres Iribar. (Photo: SGGP)



He made the statement on June 12 during a reception for Communist Party of Cuba (PCC) Central Committee member and First Secretary of the Havana Party Committee Luis Antonio Torres Iribar, who is on a Vietnam visit.

According to Mr. Nen, in recent years, the two countries have always maintained high-level visits to each other to tighten ties. Meanwhile, with its role as the economic, cultural and educational center of the country, with its potential and advantages, Ho Chi Minh City is always ready to play a pivotal role in promoting economic cooperation between Vietnam and Cuba; ready to coordinate, share experiences, expand investment cooperation with Cuban localities, and encourage organizations, businesses and people of Ho Chi Minh City to strengthen friendly exchanges and cooperation with Cuba.

Appreciating the development guidelines of the Cuban Party and Government, as well as empathizing with the challenges that Cuba is facing, he expressed his belief that the Cuban Government can promote the spirit of solidarity and creativity to overcome the challenges. Ho Chi Minh City always wishes to share and cooperate with Cuba to implement plans and goals for both sides to achieve many successes.

He added that the two sides need to promote their inherent advantages such as training high-quality medical human resources of Cuba and high-tech agriculture of Ho Chi Minh City, as well as increased connection in tourism.

Mr. Luis Antonio Torres Iribar affirmed that Cuba and Vietnam always have sincere and good feelings for each other. Recalling the immortal words of leader Fidel Castro "For Vietnam, Cuba is willing to shed blood", he emphasized that this spirit continues to be passed on to generations of leaders and people.

With the special friendship built by the two leaders Fidel Castro and Ho Chi Minh, he said he wished to further promote cooperation in many fields between the two countries and localities, including Havana and Ho Chi Minh City.

Emphasizing that Vietnam is Cuba's second largest trading partner and Asia's largest investor in Cuba and the only partner authorized to develop industrial infrastructure in the Mariel Special Economic Zone, the Third Secretary La Habana City Party Committee affirmed that Cuba prioritizes cooperation with Vietnam in all fields, including food production.

Cuba is looking forward to more businesses from Vietnam and Ho Chi Minh City to invest in fields where Cuba has needs and Vietnam has strengths such as agricultural production, food, aquaculture, wholesale and retail, education, healthcare and tourism.

According to Mr. Luis Antonio Torres Iribar, Cuba is willing to share its experience in health development with Vietnam. On this occasion, he also thanked the authorities and people of Ho Chi Minh City for helping Cuba both materially and spiritually during Cuba's difficulties, and affirmed that strengthening the special relationship between the two countries has always been Cuba's top priority./.
An increasing integration of electronics in the automobile industry is anticipated to drive the growth of the global electronic protection device coatings market during the forecast period from 2023 to 2032. The Asia-Pacific region is projected to grow at a tremendous CAGR by 2032.

PORTLAND, Ore., June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Allied Market Research has recently published a report, titled, "Electronic Protection Device Coatings Market By Chemistry (Parylene, Urethene, Acrylic, Silicone, and Epoxy), and Application (Aerospace and Defence, Automotive, Power and Renewable Energy, Consumer Electronics, Industrial, Medical, and Others): Global Opportunity Analysis and Industry Forecast, 2023-2032". According to the report, the global electronic protection device coatings market generated $1.1 billion in 2022, and is anticipated to generate $1.9 billion by 2032, witnessing a CAGR of 5.6% from 2023 to 2032.

Request PDF Brochure: https://www.alliedmarketresearch.com/request-sample/75150

Prime Determinants of Growth

Over the years, there has been an increase in the integration of electronics in the automobile industry. As a result, there is an increase in demand for electronic protection device coatings which is predicted to be one of the important factors driving the growth of the global electronic protection device coatings market in the forecast timeframe. However, the high cost of electronic protection device coatings market may hamper the electronic protection device coatings market growth in the coming period. On the contrary, increasing demand for electronic products from the consumer electronics industry is expected to offer remunerative opportunities for expansion of the electronic protection device coatings market in the 2023-2032 forecast period.

Report Coverage and Details:

Report Coverage Details Forecast Period 20232032 Base Year 2022 Market Size in 2022 $1.1 billion Market Size in 2032 $1.9 billion CAGR 5.6 % No. of Pages in Report 280 Segments covered Chemistry, Application, and Region Drivers Increasing integration of electronic devices in the automobile industry The growing demand for advanced driver-assistance systems (ADAS), infotainment systems, powertrain control modules in vehicles Opportunities The growing demand for electronic products in the consumer electronics industry The rising trend to use electronic protection device coatings for protecting electronic circuits from moisture, dust, chemicals, abrasion, and other outside influences Restraints High cost of electronic protection device coatings

COVID-19 Scenario:

The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic has had a negative impact on the growth of the global electronic protection device coatings market. The lockdowns and travel restrictions hampered the global supply chains of consumer electronics industry which brought down the demand for electronic protection device coatings.

Also, the lockdowns and travel restrictions affected the automobile manufacturing industry which affected the integration of electronic devices in different vehicles and reduced the growth rate of the market.

The electronic protection device coatings market is, however, projected to show steady growth in the future due to increasing demand for electronic protection device coatings to protect electronic devices from moisture, dust, chemicals, abrasion, and other outside influences and increase their efficiency and output.

Chemistry: Acrylic Sub-segment Projected to be Highly Dominant During the Forecast Period

The acrylic sub-segment accounted for the highest electronic protection device coatings market share in 2022 and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 5.9% during the forecast period. In the last few years, there has been an overall increase in the demand for water-based acrylic coatings and low volatile organic compound (VOC) formulations due to their reduced environmental impact. This growth in demand and usage of acrylic coatings is predicted to boost the sub-segment's growth by 2032.

Application: Automotive Sub-segment to be Flourish Immensely by 2032

The automotive sub-segment generated the highest market share in 2022 and is predicted to grow at a CAGR of 6.4% by 2032. There has been an increasing integration of advanced electronic products by almost all automotive companies in their respective vehicles which is predicted to boost the sub-segment's growth by 2032.

Region: Asia-Pacific Market to be One of the Fastest Growing by 2032

The Asia-Pacific region accounted for the highest share in the global electronic protection device coatings market in 2022 and is expected to rise at the highest CAGR of 5.9% during the forecast period. The increasing demand for consumer electronics and the growing expanse of the automobile industry are expected to be the two main growth drivers of the market in Asia-Pacific region by 2032.

Want to Access the Statistical Data & Graphs, and Key Players' Strategies: https://www.alliedmarketresearch.com/purchase-enquiry/75150

Leading Players in the Electronic Protection Device Coatings Market:

Electrolube

Electronic Coating Technologies

P2i Ltd.

Aculon

Specialty Coating Systems Inc.

ENDURA

3M

MATERIAL SCIENCES CORPORATION

ABB

Henkel Corporation

The report provides a detailed analysis of the key players of the global electronic protection device coatings market. These players have adopted different strategies, such as new product launches, collaborations, expansion, joint ventures, agreements, and others to increase their market share and maintain their dominance in different regions. The report is valuable in highlighting business performance, operating segments, product portfolio, and strategic moves of market players to showcase the competitive scenario.

Key Benefits For Stakeholders:

This report provides a quantitative analysis of the electronic protection device coatings market segments, current trends, estimations, and dynamics of the electronic protection device coatings market analysis from 2022 to 2032 to identify the prevailing electronic protection device coatings market opportunity.

Electronic protection device coatings market research is offered along with information related to key drivers, restraints, and opportunities.

Porter's five forces analysis highlights the potency of buyers and suppliers to enable stakeholders make profit-oriented business decisions and strengthen their supplier-buyer network.

In-depth analysis of the electronic protection device coatings market segmentation assists to determine the prevailing market opportunities.

Major countries in each region are mapped according to their revenue contribution to the global electronic protection device coatings market.

Electronic protection device coatings Market player positioning facilitates benchmarking and provides a clear understanding of the present position of the market players.

The report includes the analysis of the regional as well as global electronic protection device coatings market trends, key players, market segments, application areas, and market growth strategies.

Electronic Protection Device Coatings Market Key Segments:

By Chemistry:

Parylene

Urethene

Acrylic

Silicone

Epoxy

By Application:

Aerospace and Defence

Automotive

Power and Renewable Energy

Consumer Electronics

Industrial

Medical

Others

By Region:

North America (U.S., Canada , and Mexico )

(U.S., , and ) Europe (U.K., Germany , France , Italy , Spain , Russia , Netherlands , Belgium , Poland , and Rest of Europe )

(U.K., , , , , , , , , and Rest of ) Asia-Pacific ( China , Japan , India , South Korea , Australia , Malaysia , Thailand , Philippines , Indonesia , and Rest of Asia-Pacific )

( , , , , , , , , , and Rest of ) LAMEA ( Latin America , Middle East and Africa )

Procure Complete Report (280 Pages PDF with Insights, Charts, Tables, and Figures) @ https://bit.ly/3oSzD4N

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NOT FOR RELEASE, PUBLICATION OR DISTRIBUTION, IN WHOLE OR IN PART, DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY, TO ANY PERSON LOCATED OR RESIDENT IN ANY JURISDICTION WHERE TO DO SO WOULD CONSTITUTE A VIOLATION OF THE RELEVANT LAWS OF SUCH JURISDICTION.

THIS ANNOUNCEMENT IS FOR INFORMATION ONLY AND IS NOT AN OFFER TO PURCHASE OR A SOLICITATION OF AN OFFER TO SELL ANY SECURITIES.

LYSAKER, Norway, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Aker BP ASA (the "Company") announced today the results of its previously announced tender offer for cash (the "Any and All Tender Offer") of any and all of its 3.000% Senior Notes due 2025 (the "2025 Notes").

The Any and All Tender Offer was made upon and was subject to the terms and conditions set forth in the Offer to Purchase dated June 7, 2023 (the "Offer to Purchase"). Capitalized terms used in this announcement but not defined herein have the meanings given to them in the Offer to Purchase.

The Any and All Tender Offer expired as of 5:00 p.m., New York City time, on June 13, 2023 (the "Any and All Expiration Date"). As of the Any and All Expiration Date, $403,532,000 in aggregate principal amount of the 2025 Notes, representing approximately 80.71% of the aggregate principal amount outstanding of the 2025 Notes, were validly tendered and not validly withdrawn. The Company has accepted for purchase all 2025 Notes that were validly tendered and not validly withdrawn as of the Any and All Expiration Date. This amount excludes $1,150,000 aggregate principal amount of Notes tendered pursuant to the guaranteed delivery procedures described in the Offer to Purchase, which remain subject to the holders' performance of the delivery requirements under such procedures. The Any and All Guaranteed Delivery Expiration Date is 5:00 p.m., New York City time, on June 15, 2023 (the "Any and All Guaranteed Delivery Expiration Date").

In accordance with the terms of the Any and All Tender Offer, the withdrawal deadline was 5:00 p.m., New York City time, on June 13, 2023. As a result, tendered 2025 Notes may no longer be withdrawn, except in certain limited circumstances where additional withdrawal rights are required by law (as determined by the Company).

As a result of the foregoing, the capped maximum amount for the cash tender offer (the "Capped Tender Offers" and together with the Any and All Offer, the "Offers") by the Company in relation to its 2.875% Notes due 2026 and its 2.000% Notes due 2026 (with Lundin Energy Finance B.V. as original issuer) (together, the "Capped Tender Offer Notes" and together with the 2025 Notes, the "Notes") is approximately $611.2 million of aggregate purchase price and will be subject to the Applicable Priority Levels and proration in respect of the Capped Tender Offers as defined in the Offer to Purchase and as amended in the announcement dated June 8, 2023. The Company reserves the right, in its sole and absolute discretion, to purchase the Capped Tender Offer Notes in excess of or below the Capped Maximum Amount, subject to applicable law.

As previously announced, registered holders of the 2025 Notes ("Holders") who validly tendered and did not validly withdraw their 2025 Notes at or prior to the Any and All Expiration Date and whose 2025 Notes (including 2025 Notes delivered by the Any and All Guaranteed Delivery Expiration Date in respect of which a notice of guaranteed delivery was delivered at or prior to the Any and All Expiration Date) are accepted for purchase and payment pursuant to the Any and All Tender Offer, will receive the Total Consideration (as defined below) with respect to the 2025 Notes, plus Accrued Interest (as defined below) on the Any and All Settlement Date. The "Any and All Settlement Date" is expected to be June 16, 2023, unless extended by the Company.

The "Total Consideration" for each U.S.$1,000 principal amount of 2025 Notes validly tendered and accepted for payment pursuant to the Any and All Tender Offer (including 2025 Notes delivered by the Any and All Guaranteed Delivery Expiration Date in respect of which a notice of guaranteed delivery was delivered at or prior to the Any and All Expiration Date) was determined in the manner described in the Offer to Purchase at the Any and All Price Determination Time. The "Any and All Price Determination Time" for the 2025 Notes was 11:00 a.m., New York City time, on June 13, 2023. The table below sets forth the calculation of the Total Consideration for each U.S.$1,000 principal amount of 2025 Notes:

Title of

Security CUSIP/ISIN Principal

Amount

Outstanding(1) Principal

Amount

Tendered and

Accepted(2) Principal

Amount

Tendered using

guaranteed

delivery

procedures Principal Amount

Outstanding after

acceptance of the

2025 Notes

validly tendered(2)(3) Total

Consideration(3), (4) Aker BP ASA

3.000% Senior Notes due 2025

(the "2025

Notes") 00973RAE3 /

US00973RAE36 R0139KAA8 /

USR0139KAA80 $500,000,000 $403,532,000 $1,150,000 $96,468,000 $960.67





















Notes: (1) As of the commencement date of the Any and All Tender Offer. (2) Excluding principal amount of Notes tendered using guaranteed delivery procedures. (3) As at the Any and All Expiration Date. (4) For each U.S.$1,000 principal amount of 2025 Notes validly tendered and accepted for payment pursuant to the Any and All Tender Offer. Does not include Accrued Interest (as defined below).

Holders will also receive with respect to any 2025 Notes validly tendered and accepted for purchase in the Any and All Tender Offer (including 2025 Notes delivered by the Any and All Guaranteed Delivery Expiration Date in respect of which a notice of guaranteed delivery was delivered at or prior to the Any and All Expiration Date) accrued and unpaid interest on such 2025 Notes from, and including, the last interest payment date applicable to such 2025 Notes to, but not including, the Any and All Settlement Date ("Accrued Interest").

DEALER MANAGERS

Citigroup Global Markets Limited Citigroup Center Canada Square, Canary Wharf London, E14 5LB United Kingdom Attention: Liability Management Group Europe: +44 20 7986 8969 U.S. Toll-Free: +1 (800) 558 3745 U.S.: +1 (212) 723 6106 Email: [email protected] Credit Agricole Securities (USA) Inc. 1301 Avenue of the Americas, 8th Floor New York, New York 10019, United States of America Attention: Liability Management Tel (U.S. Toll Free): +1 (866) 807-6030 Email: [email protected] DNB Markets, Inc. 30 Hudson Yards, 81st Floor, New York, New York, 10001 United States of America Attention: Bond Sales Desk Tel: +1 212 681 3800 [email protected] ING Financial Markets LLC 1133 Avenue of the Americas, New York, New York 10036 United States of America Attention: Liability Management U.S.: + 1 (646) 424 8972 Email: [email protected] J.P. Morgan Securities LLC 383 Madison Avenue New York, New York 10179 Attention: Liability Management Group Collect: +1 (212) 834-4045 Toll-Free: +1 (866) 834-4666 MUFG Securities Americas Inc. 1221 Avenue of the Americas, 6th Floor

New York, New York 10020 Attention: Liability Management U.S.: +1 (212) 405-7481 Toll-Free: +1 (877) 744-4532 Europe: +44 207 628 5555 / +33 1 70 91 42 55 Email: [email protected]

THE INFORMATION AND TENDER AGENT

D.F. King & Co., Inc.

48 Wall Street, 22nd Floor

New York, New York 10005

Banks and brokers call:

(212) 269-5550

All others call toll free:

(800) 549-6864

Email: [email protected]

The Offer to Purchase and any other relevant notice and documents with respect to the Offers are available at www.dfking.com/aker, operated by the Information and Tender Agent for the purpose of the Offers.

OFFER RESTRICTIONS

General

This announcement is not an Offer to Purchase any Notes or a solicitation of an offer to sell any Notes. The Offer is being made solely by means of the Offer to Purchase. Neither the Company, the Dealer Managers nor the Information and Tender Agent makes any recommendation as to whether Holders should tender any or all of their Notes for payment pursuant to the Offers.

The distribution of this announcement and the Offer to Purchase is restricted by law in certain jurisdictions. Persons into whose possession this announcement or the Offer to Purchase comes are required by the Companies, the Dealer Managers and the Information and Tender Agent to inform themselves of and to observe any such restrictions.

Neither this announcement nor the Offer to Purchase constitutes, nor may they be used in connection with, an offer to buy Notes or a solicitation to sell Notes by anyone in any jurisdiction in which such an offer or solicitation is not authorized or in which the person making such an offer or solicitation is not qualified to do so or to any person to whom it is unlawful to make an offer or a solicitation. Neither the Company, the Dealer Managers nor the Information and Tender Agent accepts any responsibility for any violation by any person of the restrictions applicable in any jurisdiction.

European Economic Area

The Offers are not being made in any Member State of the European Economic Area, other than to persons who are "qualified investors" as defined in Regulation (EU) No 2017/1129 (as amended, the "Prospectus Regulation"), or in other circumstances falling within Article 1(4) of the Prospectus Regulation. This EEA selling restriction is in addition to any other selling restrictions set out in this Offer to Purchase.

United Kingdom

The communication of this announcement and the Offer to Purchase by the Company and any other documents or materials relating to the Offers is not being made, and such documents and/or materials have not been approved, by an authorized person for the purposes of section 21 of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (the "FSMA"), as amended. Accordingly, such documents and/or materials are not being distributed to, and must not be passed on to, the general public in the United Kingdom. The communication of such documents and/or materials as a financial promotion is only being made to those persons in the United Kingdom falling within the definition of investment professionals (as defined in Article 19(5) of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (Financial Promotion) Order 2005 (the "Order")), persons who are within Article 43(2) of the Order, persons who are qualified investors of the kind described in Article 49(2)(a) to (d) (high net worth companies, unincorporated associations, etc.), persons who otherwise fall within an exemption set forth in the Order such that section 21(1) of the FSMA does not apply or any other persons to whom the Offers may otherwise lawfully be made under the Order and all other applicable securities laws.

Italy

None of the Offers, the Offer to Purchase or any other document or materials relating to the Offers have been or will be submitted to the clearance procedures of the Commissione Nazionale per le Societa e la Borsa ("CONSOB") pursuant to Italian laws and regulations. The Offers are being carried out in Italy as exempted offers pursuant to article 101-bis, paragraph 3-bis of the Legislative Decree No. 58 of 24 February 1998, as amended (the "Financial Services Act") and article 35-bis, paragraph 4 of CONSOB Regulation No. 11971 of 14 May 1999, as amended. Holders or beneficial owners of the Notes that are located in Italy can tender Notes for purchase in the Offers through authorized persons (such as investment firms, banks or financial intermediaries permitted to conduct such activities in the Republic of Italy in accordance with the Financial Services Act, CONSOB Regulation No. 16190 of 29 October 2007, as amended from time to time, and Legislative Decree No. 385 of 1 September 1993, as amended) and in compliance with applicable laws and regulations or with requirements imposed by CONSOB or any other Italian authority.

Each intermediary must comply with the applicable laws and regulations concerning information duties vis-a-vis its clients in connection with the Notes and/or the Offers.

France

The Offers are not being made, directly or indirectly, to the public in the Republic of France ("France"). Neither this announcement nor the Offer to Purchase nor any other document or material relating to the Offers has been or shall be distributed to the public in France and only (i) providers of investment services relating to portfolio management for the account of third parties (personnes fournissant le service d'investissement de gestion de portefeuille pour compte de tiers) and/or (ii) qualified investors (investisseurs qualifies), acting for their own account, with the exception of individuals, within the meaning ascribed to them in, and in accordance with, Articles L.411-1, L.411-2 and D.411-1 of the French Code monetaire et financier, and applicable regulations thereunder, are eligible to participate in the Offers. This announcement, the Offer to Purchase and any other documents or offering materials relating to the Offers have not been and will not be submitted for clearance to nor approved by the Autorite des Marches Financiers.

Belgium

Neither this announcement nor the Offer to Purchase nor any other documents or materials relating to the Offers have been submitted to or will be submitted for approval or recognition to the Belgian Financial Services and Markets Authority (Autoriteit voor financiele diensten en markten / Autorite des services et marches financiers) and, accordingly, the Offers may not be made in Belgium by way of a public offering, as defined in Articles 3 and 6 of the Belgian Law of 1 April 2007 on public takeover bids as amended or replaced from time to time. Accordingly, the Offers may not be advertised and the Offers will not be extended, and neither this announcement nor the Offer to Purchase nor any other documents or materials relating to the Offers (including any memorandum, information circular, brochure or any similar documents) have been or shall be distributed or made available, directly or indirectly, to any person in Belgium other than "qualified investors" in the sense of Article 10 of the Belgian Law of 16 June 2006 on the public offer of placement instruments and the admission to trading of placement instruments on regulated markets, acting on their own account. Insofar as Belgium is concerned, this announcement and the Offer to Purchase have been issued only for the personal use of the above qualified investors and exclusively for the purpose of the Offers. Accordingly, the information contained in this announcement and the Offer to Purchase may not be used for any other purpose or disclosed to any other person in Belgium.

Switzerland

Neither this announcement, the Offer to Purchase nor any other offering or marketing material relating to the Notes constitutes an offer or solicitation to purchase or invest in the Notes described herein. The Notes may not be publicly offered, sold or advertised, directly or indirectly, in, into or from Switzerland and will not be listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange or on any other exchange or regulated trading facility in Switzerland. Neither the Offer to Purchase nor any other offering or marketing material relating to the Offer to Purchase or this announcement or the Notes constitutes a prospectus or a key information document within the meaning of articles 35 and 58 of the Swiss Financial Services Act ("FinSA"), and neither this announcement, nor the Offer to Purchase nor any other offering or marketing material relating to the Offer to Purchase or the Notes may be publicly distributed or otherwise made publicly available in Switzerland. In particular, none of this announcement, the Offer to Purchase or any other document produced in connection with this announcement, the Offer to Purchase or the Notes have been or will be approved by a Swiss review body (Prospektprufstelle) according to article 52 FinSA, or by the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority FINMA under the Swiss Collective Investment Schemes Act.

Norway

This announcement and the Offer to Purchase has not been and will not be filed with or approved by the Norwegian Financial Supervisory Authority (Nw. Finanstilsynet), the Oslo Stock Exchange (Nw. Oslo brs) or any other regulatory authority in Norway. The Notes have not been offered or sold and may not be offered, sold or delivered, directly or indirectly, in Norway, unless in compliance with Chapter 7 of the Norwegian Securities Trading Act of June 29, 2007 No. 75 (Nw. verdipapirhandelloven) and secondary regulations issued pursuant thereto, as amended or replaced from time to time (the "Securities Trading Act"). Accordingly, this announcement and the Offer to Purchase may not be made available nor may the Notes otherwise be marketed and offered for sale in Norway other than in circumstances that are deemed not to be a marketing of an offer to the public in Norway in accordance with the Securities Trading Act.

SOURCE Aker BP ASA
A secure and reliable solution for investors seeking seamless conversions between fiat currencies and digital assets

SINGAPORE, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Amber Group, a leading provider of digital wealth management and crypto liquidity solutions, remains committed to providing uninterrupted on/off ramp services for its clients despite the US banking crisis and tightened regulations. As many crypto firms struggle to maintain fiat on/off-ramps, Amber Group continues to operate from a position of strength in the global market, offering secure and reliable access to digital assets through its solidified fiat on/off ramp services.

Amber Group Fiat On/Off Ramps

While cryptocurrencies continue to gain traction as an asset class, the gap between crypto and fiat worlds remains a significant obstacle to mainstream adoption. The recent closure of major crypto-friendly banks, such as Signature Bank and Silicon Valley, has made it even more challenging for investors to access digital assets reliably or affordably. Amber Group's uninterrupted on/off ramps offer a seamless solution to this issue, providing investors with a bridge between the traditional financial world and the rapidly evolving digital asset landscape.

Through its fiat on/off ramp solution, Amber Group enables investors to convert between USD fiat and digital assets at competitive exchange rates and with low transaction fees. VIP clients can even enjoy fee discounts. Additionally, Amber Group provides quick access to funds, settling transactions instantly or within 24 hours, allowing users to move their funds between fiat and crypto without lengthy processing times. To provide a secure and dependable platform, Amber Group has partnered with fully licensed and regulated banking providers, offering investors a trusted choice.

Annabelle Huang, Managing Partner at Amber Group, said, "At Amber Group, we recognize the crucial role that crypto-fiat solutions play in advancing the digital asset industry, particularly during these challenging times. We are proud to continue offering seamless on/off ramp services to our clients, despite the ongoing challenges in the crypto market. With this continuity, we aim to offer an even more secure and reliable gateway to digital assets, facilitating ease of access to this rapidly evolving asset class."

About Amber Group

Amber Group is a leading crypto finance services provider, specializing in digital wealth management and crypto-native liquidity solutions. The firm offers a comprehensive range of digital asset services, spanning liquidity provisioning, trading, financing, and investing. It is backed by prominent investors including Fenbushi, Sequoia, Paradigm, Tiger Global, Dragonfly, Pantera, Coinbase Ventures, and Blockchain.com.

SOURCE Amber Group
Coalition provides businesses with platform to urge Congress to increase investment in water infrastructure and ensure access to safe, reliable and affordable water for all



WASHINGTON, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The American Business Water Coalition (ABWC), established to address the critical need for more federal investment into our nation's water infrastructure, has officially launched. Our wastewater, drinking water and stormwater infrastructure are essential for the protection of human and environmental health, and provide for the economic prosperity and the high quality of life we enjoy. It is estimated that restoring the country's water system to meet the needs of the population will cost at least $1 trillion over the next 25 years. Without a dramatic increase in federal investment, every business in America is at major risk, as illustrated in 2019 when water service disruptions resulted in a $51 billion economic loss for just 11 water-reliant industries.

ABWC will serve as a platform for participating businessesand the utilities that serve them to urge Congress and the Administration to increase investment in water infrastructure, and foster relationships between businesses and their local utilities. The coalition's executive team, led by Mae Stevens, senior vice president at Banner Public Affairs (Banner) and chair of the Banner Water Infrastructure Practice, will provide members with the lobbying, public relations, digital, social and design tools and services needed to advocate for building modern and resilient water infrastructure in America.

"Every business is dependent on our nation's water infrastructure, and underinvestment is costing American businesses every day," said Stevens. "The federal government currently pays less than five percent of the investment into our nation's water infrastructure, leaving the other 95 percent of investment to come from the general public. 83 percent of water utilities in the U.S. believe that they cannot maintain a state of good repair without external funding. We need Congress and the Administration to recognize how widespread this situation is and provide adequate funding for this life-sustaining sector. That is why we have launched ABWC: to provide our nation's businesses with a platform to advocate for infrastructure that underpins the entire economy."

Founding members of ABWC include:

Jacobs Louisville MSD (member of the advisory council) Seattle Public Utilities (member of the advisory council) Sewerage & Water Board of New Orleans (member of the advisory council)

"Investing in water infrastructure in strategic and innovative ways can help us tackle climate change, lift up communities, protect public health, create jobs and strengthen the economy," said Susan Moisio, global water market director of Jacobs, a Fortune 500 company. "Jacobs is joining ABWC to help raise awareness for and attain the infrastructure funding needed to secure water for our nation's future."

"Louisville MSD is a key provider of three services in one utility  wastewater collection and treatment, stormwater management, and flood protection," said Tony Parrott, CEO of Louisville MSD. "Without these services people cannot live, work, or play in our community. From a business perspective, economic growth and vitality cannot be achieved sustainably without what we do. Louisville MSD is excited to participate in the American Business Water Coalition as a way to bring more voices of advocacy to a dialogue on water infrastructure needs and legislative support."

"Seattle Public Utilities serves 1.5 million customers every day, and we believe in fostering healthy people, environment, and economy," said Andrew Lee, general manager and CEO of Seattle Public Utilities. "We support a strong infrastructure system to serve our customers and the greater public. We look forward to working with the American Business Water Coalition to elevate much-needed investments in our nation's water infrastructure. The coalition's launch is a positive opportunity for our utility and other water utilities across the country."

"Sewerage & Water Board of New Orleans (SWBNO) provides our community with drinking water, stormwater and wastewater services, all of which are critical for the city of New Orleans to function and prosper," said Ghassan Korban, executive director of SWBNO. "Adequate federal funding would make it much easier to provide these services without disruption to the businesses and people of New Orleans 365 days a year. We are thrilled to join ABWC as a member of the advisory council to help voice these concerns and raise awareness of water infrastructure needs."

Current and future ABWC members will have opportunities to help secure long-term water infrastructure funding, which, once achieved, would create 800,000 new jobs. To learn more about the coalition's offerings and objectives, please visit the website, found here.

About American Business Water Coalition

The American Business Water Coalition is a group of water-reliant businessesfrom manufacturing to energy to tech and beyond. The coalition provides a platform for businesses across the country to urge Congress and the Administration to increase investment in water infrastructure, and foster relationships between businesses and their local utilities. Learn more about the coalition here: https://www.businesswatercoalition.com/

About Banner Public Affairs

Banner Public Affairs executes winning strategies to achieve the unexpected and avoid the predictable. Our bipartisan team of experienced lobbying, public relations, and digital professionals provides best-in-class counsel and executes long-term growth strategies with a short-term hustle, problem-solving mindset. With a track record of victories, Banner is a natural and sought-after partner for the big moments. Banner is headquartered in Washington, D.C. and with offices in St. Louis, Denver, Chicago, San Francisco and Los Angeles.

SOURCE American Business Water Coalition
Renowned women's ready-to-wear brand chooses Infor CloudSuite Fashion ERP to modernize its entire information system and provide a global supply chain, with an omnichannel approach

RUEIL MALMAISON, Paris, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Infor, the industry cloud company, today announced that Anne Fontaine, a women's ready-to-wear and accessories brand known for its white blouses marketed with noble materials (such as silk, lace, linen or cotton) and numerous finishing details, has just opted for Infor CloudSuite Fashion, an enterprise resource planning (ERP) solution specifically designed for the fashion, textile and luxury industries. This choice is part of a vast project to modernize the company's information system, with the aim of introducing OMS (Order Management System) functionalities, i.e. automated tracking and management of sales, orders, inventory and order fulfillment, all with a view to creating a truly omnichannel customer experience.

With 350 employees and sales of 60 million, the company is present in Asia, the United States and Europe through subsidiaries and some 50 boutiques,mainly in its own name. All Anne Fontaine's creations are designed in France, in the founder's Honfleur workshop, and each of her inspirations begins with a simple sketch on paper. Capturing the elegance and sophistication of Parisian women, her creations are characterized by impeccable attention to detail, exceptional materials and flawless craftsmanship.

Ari Zlotkin, CEO of Anne Fontaine, comments: "Our brand has been gradually built up over time and, as our needs evolved, our system became increasingly obsolete. Today, manufacturing is at the heart of the issues facing brands, and we want to quickly gain in efficiency by equipping ourselves with a modern, scalable ERP solution."

Anne Fontaine called on Prodware, a true partner in the digital transformation of companies, to identify all of the company's needs and select various suppliers. The Infor solution was chosen at the end of 2022, in view of its functional richness and its ability to evolve in the multi-tenant cloud for greater modularity and interoperability (notably with marketplaces). The rollout of Infor CloudSuite Fashion is scheduled for the end of 2023 in France and the United States, then progressively in other countries, all within a high-availability cloud environment hosted by AWS (Amazon Web Services). ELCIMAI Group, a long-standing Infor integrator partner, will conduct the implementation.

Bruno Kientzel, managing director of ELCIMAI Business Solutions, comments: "This is a particularly ambitious digital transformation project in the Infor cloud, with a very broad application and geographical scope at the outset, the first batch integrating logistics flows for 16 subsidiaries in 13 countries, and the implementation of international finance for seven subsidiaries in four countries. Added to this is the integration of almost 50 boutiques, checkout management, five marketplaces, an e-commerce site, PLM (product lifecycle management), a warehouse management system in the U.S. and the dematerialization of supplier invoices. This project is in line with our strategy of carrying out significant international digital transformation projects based on the Infor CloudSuite."

Philippe Maillet, Infor's sales director for channel in France & Iberia, comments: "Infor's solution enables fashion brands to manage all their activities  accounting, production, purchasing, inventory and warehouse management  within a single, integrated solution and, de facto, to manage all their intersubsidiary flows, as well as localization and compliance obligations at country level."

The company is also working on other parallel projects, such as implementing a new customer relationship management (CRM) system, and developing interfaces between Infor's solution and other applications: These include C-DESIGN PLM software (which organizes product development data into a single, reliable interface for monitoring the progress of a collection), the Magento e-commerce platform, Yourcegid Retail Y2 store management and omnichannel control software, and, eventually, a solution for dematerializing invoices.

Zlotkin concludes: "We are enthusiastic and eager to have access to all these modern tools, which should enable us not only to improve performance and customer satisfaction, but also to develop our market share by increasing our online sales, thanks to an accurate, real-time view of our stocks. The development of e-commerce is one of our main concerns, although all the points, such as CRM, PLM and tax compliance, should also contribute to the success of this project."

Learn more about Infor CloudSuite Fashion: https://www.infor.com/products/cloudsuite-fashion

About Anne Fontaine

Anne Fontaine is a French ready-to-wear brand founded in 1993. It offers a complete wardrobe centered around the white shirt, accompanied by a line of accessories. The brand embodies fashion and femininity as well as a synergy between creation and technical knowledge and artisanship. Anne Fontaine has grown to become an internationally recognized luxury label, serving clients in Europe, the United States and Asia. The brand has over 200 employees worldwide and offers its creations in more than 50 boutiques. Visit https://www.annefontaine.fr/

About ELCIMAI Group

Founded 30 years ago by Pascal Denier, the ELCIMAI Group, headquartered in France, is a diversified holding company organized around 2 divisions:

-A professional real estate division (design and construction of new buildings and refurbishments) and environmental, industrial and logistics consultancy. ELCIMAI has the architects, engineers and design offices needed to design and build complex buildings, as well as consultants working in a wide range of private and public sectors.

-An IT division with two business lines addressing different markets: a software publisher dedicated to the worlds of banking, mutual insurance, provident societies and insurance, and an ESN (Entreprise de Services Numeriques) business line: ERP and specific solutions integration, application outsourcing for the banking, mutual insurance, insurance, industry, logistics/distribution and associated services markets (local authorities, EPICs, business support, etc.). ELCIMAI has been an Infor partner since 1999.

The complementary nature of its offerings enables it to respond to large-scale projects involving major organizational and productivity challenges, both in France and abroad. The ELCIMAI Group employs nearly 400 people at 14 sites across France.

About Infor

Infor is a global leader in business cloud software specialized by industry. We develop complete solutions for our focus industries. Infor's mission-critical enterprise applications and services are designed to deliver sustainable operational advantages with security and faster time to value. Over 60,000 organizations in more than 175 countries rely on Infor's 17,000 employees to help achieve their business goals. As a Koch company, our financial strength, ownership structure, and long-term view empower us to foster enduring, mutually beneficial relationships with our customers. Visit www.infor.com.

Media contact:

Richard Moore

Senior PR Director, EMEA,

[email protected],

+447976111243

Copyright 2023 Infor. All rights reserved. The word and design marks set forth herein are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of Infor and/or related affiliates and subsidiaries. All other trademarks listed herein are the property of their respective owners. www.infor.com



SOURCE Infor
AMSTERDAM, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Flytxt, a leading provider of AI-powered SaaS for Customer Lifetime Value (CLTV) maximisation, launched a Generative AI that assists digital product designers. This first-of-its-kind application of Generative AI solves a critical pain point faced by digital businesses worldwide  design of well-performing products faster and at scale.

Flytxt Generative AI programmatically evaluates several potential product designs to find the best match.

"Achieving product-market fit in volatile markets is a challenge, as the ease of adoption of digital products also lowers switching costs for customers. Generative AI is well suited to solve this challenge. It can programmatically evaluate several potential product designs to find the best match," said Dr. Vinod Vasudevan, CEO of Flytxt.

Flytxt's Generative AI can optimise price points, product attributes, bundling options, and associated benefits to meet business objectives like increasing revenue, retention, or margin.

Generative AI has been mostly used for creating original multimedia content and enabling intelligent conversations as in tools like ChatGPT. Flytxt's innovative application of Generative AI will open up new possibilities for product managers to bring in innovations in product design and ensure higher success rate.

"Flytxt foresees widespread applicability of Generative AI in many Customer Experience workflows like product and campaign design," continued Dr. Vinod Vasudevan, CEO of Flytxt. "We will continue to integrate powerful AI capabilities like Generative AI into our solutions to help users make accurate decisions that impact long term value creation."

Furthermore, Flytxt Generative AI adds the ability to explain the decisions made by the AI. This transparency allows product managers to critically review the reasons behind the AI-recommended design, before they decide to approve and launch the product in the market.

About Flytxt

Flytxt is the trusted technology partner of 70+ digital enterprises across more than 50 countries, as well as of top CX platform vendors for Customer Lifetime Value (CLTV) maximisation. Its award-winning, proprietary CLTV AI has been designed and trained using real-world insights and patterns from more than a billion consumers and trillions of data points. The firm has a corporate office in Dubai, global development centers in India and presence in Mexico, The Netherlands, Malaysia, Colombia, Czech Republic, Spain and Kenya.

Photo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2096852/Flytxt_Generative_AI.jpg

Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2096851/Flytxt_Logo.jpg

SOURCE Flytxt
Vietnamese stall at the festival (Photo: VOV)

The annual festival aims to strengthen cultural exchange and help local people to gain greater insights into people and various nations from around the world.

At the festival, visitors had the opportunity to enjoy traditional dishes and impressive cultural performances by countries from around the world.

The Vietnamese Embassy in the Czech Republic in collaboration with TAMDA FOODS Company introduced traditional Vietnamese dishes such as fried spring rolls, southern Vietnamese beef noodles, and bun cha (vermicelli with grilled pork and fresh herbs) at the event.

Vietnam stall was decorated with traditional conical hats and the national flag, which were warmly received by many visitors.

Many Czech visitors expressed their impression on other aspects of traditional Vietnamese culture, especially local conical hats.

The participation of the Vietnamese Embassy in this festival has contributed to improving the culture and image of the nation to both the Czech community and international friends./.
512 Young PSFCU Members Receive A Total of $550,000 in Scholarships

BROOKLYN, N.Y., June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- This year's scholarship program of the Polish & Slavic Federal Credit Union saw scholarships awarded to a record number of 512 young members of the Credit Union, with a total value of $550,000. In this edition of the PSFCU scholarship program, 324 high-school graduates and 188 college students were awarded. The winners received scholarships up to $5,000. In total, since the first edition of the program in 2001, our Credit Union has awarded scholarships to more than 6,000 students for a total of more than $7 million. Scholarship recipients received their awards at two ceremonies held on Saturday, June 3 in Chicago, IL and on Wednesday, June 7 in New York City.

2023 PSFCU Rising Star, Kaeyra, reached Top 20 of this years edition of ABCs American Idol (PRNewsfoto/Polish & Slavic Federal Credit Union) 512 students received scholarship in the total amount of $550,000 (PRNewsfoto/Polish & Slavic Federal Credit Union) Chicago scholarship ceremony was held in the exhibit hall of the Polish Museum of America (PRNewsfoto/Polish & Slavic Federal Credit Union)

"Today's event is a prime example of the fact that our Credit Union is more than a bank," PSFCU President/CEO Bogdan Chmielewski said at the scholarship ceremony in New York. "The scholarship program is what sets us apart from commercial banks and other financial institutions. You would be hard pressed to find another financial institution or credit union that allocates so much to support the younger generation."

A ceremony to award scholarships to students from the Mid-West region was held in the exhibition hall of the Polish Museum in America. Ambassador of the Republic of Poland to the U.S. Marek Magierowski was a special guest at the ceremony. "I am very pleased that I was able to participate in this ceremony. This is a very commendable initiative of the Credit Union. I do hope this is a long-term project, because investing in our youth is the best investment we can make," Ambassador Magierowski said commenting on the event. In his speech, he also reminded young people that, aside from successes, life also consists of failures and it is very important to be able to recover from such failures and to learn from them.

Ambassador Krzysztof Szczerski, Permanent Representative of the Republic of Poland to the United Nations, was the keynote speaker at the New York ceremony, which was held at The Bowery Ballroom. Ambassador Szczerski was very impressed by the achievements of PSFCU scholarship recipients. Addressing them directly he said: "Do more than you think you can achieve. It is always worthwhile to aim higher and achieve more than seems possible."

During the ceremony, a special PSFCU Rising Star scholarship was also presented. This year's recipient of this award was Caroline Baran of Algonquin, IL. The young artist, who performs under the artistic pseudonym Kaeyra, reached the Top 20 of this year's edition of American Idol.

In addition, after a three-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic, ten young PSFCU members participated in the Presidential Internship - a study tour of Poland organized in cooperation with the Chancellery of the President of the Republic of Poland Andrzej Duda. The internship is an integral part of the PSFCU Scholarship Program and this year was held for the fourth time.

The PSFCU Scholarship Program was established in 2001 and since then, including this year's 23rd edition, more than 6,000 young people have received a PSFCU scholarship, with the total amount of scholarship funds reaching over $7 million.

About the PSFCU

Founded in 1976 by a group of Polish immigrants to help other ethnic Poles obtain mortgages, the Polish & Slavic Federal Credit Union now has 21 branches in New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Illinois, a Mortgage Center in New Britain, CT and an operations center in Fairfield, NJ. In addition, PSFCU offers mortgage loans on properties located in the states of Florida and Indiana. Credit Union members can access our services through our Online Banking, accessible through our www.psfcu.com website or through our mobile app. Through its scholarship program, PSFCU has thus far granted over seven million dollars to over 6,000 students. The nearly 47-year-old credit union has over $2.5 billion in assets and serves over 114,000 members.

SOURCE Polish & Slavic Federal Credit Union
IRVINE, Calif., June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Electronic Manufacturing Company Ark Electronics recently announced the opening of its new European office in Bordeaux, France, headed by Thierry Basse.

The operational base will support clients with end-to-end manufacturing & engineering solutions, including high-quality PCB Assembly, streamlined Electronics Manufacturing Services, and award-winning design and engineering. As VP of Sales and Business Development  Europe Region, Thierry will work with both the North American leadership group and manufacturing teams in China. Thierry has more than 30 years of experience in the world of electronics manufacturing and services, in particular in R&D, NPI, DFX, Account & Global Program Management, and Marketing & Sales for global companies.

"Our most recent expansion provides on-continent support for those European EMS customers who seek the best of both worldsEnglish-speaking, convenient, responsive customer service; coupled with low-cost, high quality, high-volume, China-based production," said Scott Wiley, President and CCO of Ark Electronics USA.

"I am very pleased to promote Ark Electronics to support current European challenges, including Energy Transition, Sustainable Mobility, Digital Transformation, and Digital Inclusion and Equity," said Thierry. "After visiting our factory in China, I was impressed by their high level of quality, information security, health & safety, and environmental standards"

Ark Electronics is a global Electronics Manufacturing Services (EMS) provider serving leading consumer electronics, mobile communications, automotive, and industrial IoT companies. Ark Electronics combines technical expertise with agile manufacturing and supply chain processes, enabling its customers to create original products and solutions at scale. The company's China-based factory network, supported by North American leadership , provides customers the simplicity of dealing with a US team while enjoying high-quality, low-cost-country manufacturing.

For more information, please visit: ArkElectronics.com

Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1275406/Ark_Electronics_Logo.jpg

SOURCE Ark Electronics
LONDON, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- A new, cutting-edge technology that will allow industries to deploy their own private, flexible, and secure 5G networks across their business areas is being developed by a consortium of companies from the UK.

The Secure 5G project is building a flexible platform that will enable companies to roll out and maintain their own quantum-safe private networks, with targeted applications for Industry 4.0, mobile edge computing (MEC), the Internet of Things (IoT) and highly secure environments, such as defence. The aim of Secure 5G is to reduce costs, while accelerating the pace of innovation, enabling faster roll-out of services and more secure communications via a UK sovereign supply chain.

The project, funded through the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, involves a team from Compound Semiconductor Applications (CSA) Catapult, Lime Microsystems Ltd, Slipstream Engineering Design Ltd and Arqit.

Open radio access networks (RAN) resulting from the project are providing a more open and accessible 5G network architecture, improving competition, network flexibility and reducing costs.

More and more network operators and enterprises are choosing to deploy Open RAN 5G networks as it prevents being locked in to using large vendors who currently offer highly proprietary solutions, whilst at the same time diversifying the supply chain and enabling more innovative and integrated technologies.

As Open RAN mobile networks become more prevalent, larger, more complex there is a need for solutions that are inherently more secure, while offering a level of flexibility which enables them to adapt to emerging threats with far greater agility.

The platform developed through the Secure 5G project brings together a radio frequency (RF) power amplifier (Slipstream Engineering Design) with open-source network-in-a-box solution (Lime Microsystems), underpinned by a quantum-safe symmetric key agreement platform (Arqit) and state-of-the-art test and evaluation support (CSA Catapult).

Secure 5G aims to bring many suppliers into the Open RAN ecosystem, diversifying and democratising 5G deployment using cost effective, programmable radio modules. The project also aims to empower network owners with the flexibility to maintain and upgrade services by running their applications at the very edge of the network, which could be anything from secure on-premises file sharing through to low latency machine learning.

The flexibility and reconstruction of the system, coupled with processing power that is powerful enough to run resource intensive apps, will allow for further developments in hardware and services by the wider UK telecoms supply chain.

The project will finish in June 2023 with the aim of commercialising the technology shortly afterwards.

Minister for Data and Digital Infrastructure, Sir John Whittingdale, said:

"Harnessing the UK's innovation and technological expertise will deliver the world-leading digital infrastructure that is so fundamental to growing our economy. The Secure 5G project will pave the way for more secure and competitive telecoms networks in the UK, benefiting industries across the board.

"This cutting-edge technology will accelerate that process while cutting business costs, boosting communications security, and supporting UK supply chains."

Dr Ebrahim Bushehri, Lime Microsystems CEO, commented:

"With the frequency bands allocated for mobile private networks (MPNs) varying from country to country, we see a significant opportunity for software-defined radios (SDR) and wideband PA technologies for frequency agile Radio Access Networks, which is at the heart of Secure 5G. The use of general-purpose processor (GPP) plus commodity Linux O/S platform meanwhile, has accelerated the integration of cutting-edge quantum-safe cryptography, providing an ideal solution for MPN deployments worldwide."

Dr Mike Roberts, Technical Director and Co-founder of Slipstream Engineering Design said:

"Slipstream Design has been delighted to secure funding as part of this consortium to support our research and development activity in the telecommunications sector. As an SME it was a major boost and allowed us to conduct highly innovative 5G product development with the backing of government. Power efficient, wideband operation is an area that constrains the flexibility of current telecommunication hardware. We aim to break through this technology barrier to enable wider network coverage in a more efficient and agile way."

Sarah Gregory, Commercial Director of Slipstream Engineering Design said:

"We have felt privileged to work alongside the other consortium members as well as DCMS in a truly collaborative project. The resulting wideband power amplifier technology developed by Slipstream Design has the potential to optimise radio unit hardware, reducing the need for variants in a way that speaks to the sustainability aims of the telecommunications sector."

David Williams, Arqit Founder, Chairman and CEO said:

"Arqit recently Co-authored the GSMA whitepaper on post quantum security and we are pleased to deploy our unique symmetric key agreement platform into this 5G project. Technology models for 5G and IoT are evolving rapidly but the edge cannot be secure without a new approach to encryption. Arqit delivers that."

Nick Singh, Chief Technology Officer at CSA Catapult, said:

"We were very pleased to participate in the Secure 5G project. Secure 5G will accelerate the pace of innovation and further enable secure communications via a UK sovereign supply chain. The technology developed by the consortium will accelerate Open-RAN through a powerful, secure and scalable 5G solution to meet the UK's future communications needs. CSA Catapult's role in the project was to provide state-of-the-art test and evaluation support. We look forward to seeing the commercialisation of this technology and the impact it makes to the wider UK telecoms supply chain."

Notes to Editors

About Arqit

Arqit supplies a unique quantum safe encryption Platform-as-a-Service which makes the communications links or data at rest of any networked device or cloud machine secure against current and future forms of attack  even from a quantum computer. Arqit's product, QuantumCloud, enables any device to download a lightweight software agent, which can create encryption keys in partnership with any number of other devices. The keys are computationally secure, optionally one-time use and zero trust. QuantumCloud can create limitless volumes of keys in limitless group sizes and can regulate the secure entrance and exit of a device in a group. The addressable market for QuantumCloud is every connected device. Arqit was recently awarded the Innovation in Cyber award at the UK National Cyber Awards and Cyber Security Software Company of the Year Award at the UK Cyber Security Awards. www.arqit.uk

SOURCE Arqit Quantum Inc
DUBLIN, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- FlowForma the leading provider of enterprise-class, no code process automation tools for Microsoft 365, is excited to continue building momentum in the automotive manufacturing and retail space by empowering new customer Jacksons CI Ltd. to overcome process challenges within their organization using the award-winning FlowForma Process Automation tool.

Olivia Bushe, Chief Executive Officer, FlowForma

An industry currently seeing increased demand for digitalization tools, the automotive sector is doubling down on automation to gain a competitive advantage and benefit from technology to digitalize critical business processes at scale across multiple divisions. Maintaining a competitive advantage amongst peers allows businesses to move ahead of rivals to drive and accelerate business growth, whilst creating a culture of continuous improvement and innovation.

The 3-in-1, 100% no code, FlowForma Process Automation tool is empowering business users with forms, workflow, and document generation to rapidly digitalize simple and complex business processes with speed and flexibility, with minimal training required or IT involvement. Leveraging the power of cloud-based digitalization tools has seen a significant increase in efficiency, visibility, and employee/supplier experiences.

Jacksons CI Ltd. have shifted their digital transformation projects into gear by utilizing the award-winning, 100% no code, FlowForma Process Automation tool to digitalize tasks such as: Pre-Service Recall Checks, Stock Warranty Recall Process, Quality Checks, and more, ultimately saving days for employees and stakeholders across all departments to complete processes spanning multiple locations.

Olivia Bushe, Chief Executive Officer, FlowForma commented: "We are delighted to assist Jacksons CI Ltd. on their roadmap to digital transformation. The automotive industry is seeing a significant shift in demand for process digitalization tools, to encourage seamless multi-site process optimization, engage external users such as suppliers and manufacturers in processes, and eliminate the risk associated with paper-based tasks. With increased competition and customer expectations, the automotive sector is keen for better all-round visibility, productivity, and positive customer outcomes."

Supporting Resources:

Learn how automotive organizations in 2023 can digitalize at scale, drive savings, better customer experiences and sustainability in our latest infographic: https://www.flowforma.com/why-its-vital-to-advance-your-process-automation-plan-and-how-to-triumph

To find out how the FlowForma Process Automation tool works visit: www.flowforma.com/how-it-works

T o download a free 14-day trial of FlowForma Process Automation visit: http://www.flowforma.com/start-your-flowforma-trial

To learn more about FlowForma Process Automation, book a demo with one of our experts: http://www.flowforma.com/book-a-demo

About FlowForma

FlowForma, the leading provider of Process Automation tools for Microsoft Office 365 is revolutionizing the automotive industry with an innovative approach to developing award-winning products that empower users to create and streamline processes smarter and faster, utilizing the familiar SharePoint platform, without any coding.

FlowForma is a Microsoft Gold Partner with over 200,000 global users of its product. Headquartered in Dublin, Ireland, with offices in New York, Boston, and London, FlowForma is motivated by its values to innovate, evolve, and achieve with employees, customers, and partners.

For further information or a 14-day free trial, visit www.flowforma.com.

Contact Details

For further press information please contact Conor McGrath, Senior Digital Marketing Executive at FlowForma:

Email: [email protected]

Telephone: +353 (0)1 5369 679

Photo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2099953/Olivia_Bushe.jpg

Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/715823/FlowForma_Logo.jpg

SOURCE FlowForma
Equicorp Partners LLC Aims to be Sole Franchisee in Market and Pioneer of the New Market Stewardship Program

ATLANTA, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Batteries Plus , the world's leading specialty battery franchise, recently welcomed its latest signed agreement to secure an 80-mile radius around the Atlanta market. This deal represents the brand's strong presence in the region as well as a roadmap for sustained success for years to come.

Inking this unique deal with Batteries Plus is Equicorp Partners LLC, a juggernaut in franchise restaurant concepts for nearly 30 years with brands including Arby's, Popeyes, Cinnabon, and more. The group plans to have 35 total Batteries Plus stores in the Atlanta market, beginning with the 17 existing locations and over a dozen new territories currently being considered for future development. Equicorp is also partnered with Freeman Spogli & Co., the private equity firm that acquired majority interest of Batteries Plus in 2016.

"We're thrilled to develop Atlanta into a Batteries Plus-powered city," said Greg Belatti, Partner and Counsel at Equicorp. "Being a strong franchisee is important to us and with Batteries Plus we can not only help bring reliable expertise and power services to the residents and businesses of Atlanta, but we can also build the brand's reputation, while providing opportunities for a number of talented, customer focused team members."

"We always strive to maintain exceptional support of our franchisees and this transaction is a great example of the level of direct support our franchisees receive from us and how a program such as this one can be replicated in other markets," added Joe Malmuth, Chief Franchising Officer. "This is just the beginning of a new development strategy for Batteries Plus, and I couldn't be happier to have Atlanta as the inaugural city of the program, with Equicorp as our franchising partner."

This agreement is the very first deal under Batteries Plus's new Market Stewardship Program. This program hybridizes what is typically found in Master Franchise (MFA) and an Area Development (ADA) Agreements, allowing Equicorp to have franchise oversight on the entire market. Batteries Plus had never offered an MFA or ADA to any previous franchisees, further marking the Market Stewardship Program as a milestone initiative for the company.

"This is an exciting deal for us because it's the first of its kind for Batteries Plus," said Jon Sica, Chief Business Officer of Batteries Plus. "There are over 6 million people in and around Atlanta and this deal gives us the potential to power devices, homes, businesses, schools, hospitals, and more, with a large base of retail stores, over 100 trusted associates and commercial sales and service centers with an extremely reliable franchise partner."

With over 800 store locations in operation and development nationwide, Batteries Plus has also carved out a unique niche in the industry with its 'plus' services  including cell phone repair and key fob replacement . Positioned for the battery-powered future, Batteries Plus was ranked on Franchise Times Top 400 list, coming in at #130. Plus, for the 30th year in a row, the brand ranked on Entrepreneur Magazine's Franchise 500 list, climbing 53 spots over last year's rank and even becoming one of only 49 franchise brands to be inducted into Entrepreneur's Franchise 500 Hall of Fame. To learn more about Batteries Plus, visit batteriesplusfranchise.com .

ABOUT BATTERIES PLUS:

Batteries Plus, founded in 1988 and headquartered in Hartland, WI, is a leading omnichannel retailer of batteries, specialty light bulbs and phone repair services for the direct-to-consumer and commercial channels. The retailer also offers key programming, replacement and cutting services. Through a nationwide network of stores, the company offers a differentiated value proposition of unrivaled product selection, in-stock availability and customer service. Batteries Plus is owned by Freeman Spogli, a private equity firm based in Los Angeles and New York City. To learn more about one of Forbes' Best Franchises to Buy in America, visit https://www.batteriesplusfranchise.com .

MEDIA CONTACT: Danny Stewart, Fishman Public Relations, [email protected] or 847-945-1300 ext. 266

SOURCE Batteries Plus
CHARLES TOWN, W.V., June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- (OTC:PTBS)  BCT-Bank of Charles Town, also known as The Community's Bank, recently announced scholarship awards for: Robert "Bob" F. Baronner, Jr. Scholarship, Robert W. McCormick Full Ride Scholarships, Paul & Margaret Dorsey Music Scholarship, Tom Mentzer Scholarships, and S. Katherine Boxwell & Edwin P. Churchill Scholarships. As Trustee for the scholarships, BCT awarded $290,200 to local high school students to seek post-secondary education.

"We are honored to be Trustee for these generous scholarships awarded to local students," stated Alice P. Frazier, President and CEO of BCT. "I am inspired by these local students whose educational aspirations are certain to impact our local communities for the better."

Scholarships presented for the 2023-2024 academic year:

Robert "Bob" F. Baronner Jr. Scholarship

$10,000 ($2,500 per year for 4 years)

Noah C. Alcantara  Washington High School/ Shepherd University

Robert W. McCormick Full Ride Scholarships

Two students were selected to receive this prestigious full-ride scholarship:

Kaitlyn M. Baker  Washington High School/ Marshall University/$80 ,000

 Washington High School/ ,000 Hannah M. Goode  Jefferson High School / WVU / $80,000

Paul & Margaret Dorsey Music Scholarship

$3,000 (one-time amount):

Ellen M. Kemp  Jefferson High School / WVU

Tom Mentzer Scholarships

$300 each (one-time amount):

Matthew G. LaBombard  Jefferson High School / Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University

 / Zander C. Lamp  Washington High School/ George Washington University

 Washington High School/ Meghan B. Letterman  Jefferson High School / University of Rhode Island

 / Dana N. Spencer  Washington High School/ University of Nebraska

S. Katherine Boxwell & Edwin P. Churchill Scholarships

Total $116,000:

Noah C. Alcantara  Washington High School/ $1,000 annually for 4 years/ Shepherd University

 Washington High School/ annually for 4 years/ Elliot C. Ferguson  Hampshire High School/ $2,500 annually for 4 years/ Marshall University

 Hampshire High School/ annually for 4 years/ Madelyn R. Fisher  Keyser High School / $2,500 annually for 4 years/ Potomac State College

 / annually for 4 years/ Justin K. Gottlieb  Jefferson High School / $2,500 annually for 4 years/ Columbia University

 / annually for 4 years/ Sara L. Munson  Musselman High School / $4,000 annually for 4 years/Hood University

 / annually for 4 years/Hood University Noel L. Rochette  Petersburg High School/ $2,500 annually for 4 years/Fairmont State University

 Petersburg High School/ annually for 4 years/Fairmont State University Chloe A. Thomas  Martinsburg High School / $5,000 annually for 4 years/ WVU

 / annually for 4 years/ Sarah L. Weatherholt  Moorefield High School/ $5,000 annually for 4 years/Potomac College then WVU

 Moorefield High School/ annually for 4 years/Potomac College then Chloe E. Westfall  Frankfort High School/ $4,000 annually for 4 years/ Shepherd University

About BCT

Founded in 1871, BCT - Bank of Charles Town, also known as The Community's Bank, is a wholly owned subsidiary of Potomac Bancshares, Inc. (OTC:PTBS). With approximately $792 million in assets as of March 31, 2023, the Company conducts operations through its main office, an additional eight branch offices, and two loan production offices. BCT's offices are located in Jefferson and Berkeley Counties (WV), Washington County (MD), and Loudoun and Stafford Counties (VA). The Bank provides various banking products and services including free access to over 55,000 ATMs through the Allpoint network plus online and mobile banking for individuals, businesses, and local governments. The Bank also offers commercial lines and term loans, residential and commercial construction, commercial real estate loans and agricultural loans. The Residential Lending division offers secondary market and portfolio mortgage loans, one-time close construction to perm loans, as well as home equity loans and lines of credit. For over 65 years, BCT Wealth Advisors has provided financial management, investment, trust, and estate services to its clients. BCT was voted "Best of the Best" winner in the 2022 Journal-News Readers' Choice Awards in three categories: Bank, Loan Services, and Financial Planning. In 2019, 2020, and 2021 the Bank was named a "Best Bank To Work For" by American Banker.

The Company's shares are quoted on the OTC Pink Sheet marketplace under the symbol "PTBS." For more information about Potomac Bancshares, Inc., and the Bank, please visit our website at www.mybct.bank.

SOURCE BCT - Bank of Charles Town
BANGALORE, India, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The Beauty Devices Market is Segmented by Type (Cleansing Devices, Oxygen and Steamer, Dermal Rollers, Acne Removal Devices, Hair Removal Devices), by Application (Beauty Salon, Household): Global Opportunity Analysis and Industry Forecast, 2023-2029. It is published in Valuates Reports under the Make-Up & Cosmetics category.

The global Beauty Devices market was valued at USD 62630 Million in 2022 and is anticipated to reach USD 179080 Million by 2029, witnessing a CAGR of 16.0% during the forecast period 2023-2029.

Major Factors Driving the Growth of Beauty Devices Market:

Rising at-home beauty treatment demand, technological advancements that make these products more effective and convenient, consumer awareness of skincare and personal grooming, social media marketing of these products, the ability to customize treatments to individual needs, rising disposable income that encourages increased spending on personal care, and the growth of distribution channels are all factors driving the market for beauty devices.

Download Free Sample: https://reports.valuates.com/request/sample/QYRE-Auto-27Y11980/Global_Beauty_Devices

TRENDS INFLUENCING THE GROWTH OF BEAUTY DEVICES MARKET:

Consumer knowledge of skincare and cosmetic procedures has significantly increased. People are searching for efficient answers to deal with their particular skin troubles as they become more aware of the value of appropriate skincare regimens. In line with the expanding trend of self-care and personal grooming, beauty gadgets give customers the ease of receiving professional-caliber treatments in the comfort of their own homes. This factor is expected to drive the growth of the Beauty Devices Market.

Consumers may do beauty treatments at home with the ease and affordability of using beauty equipment. People may now invest in gadgets that provide salon-like outcomes for a variety of aesthetic issues, such as washing, hair removal, acne treatment, and anti-aging, rather than depending entirely on salon visits. The move towards at-home beauty treatments offers convenience in terms of scheduling and privacy while also saving time and money. his factor is expected to drive the growth of the Beauty Devices Market.

The market for beauty devices has expanded significantly as a result of technological improvements. Manufacturers are always coming up with new ideas and creating products that offer greater functionality, performance, and user experiences. These technical developments have improved the efficiency, use, and accessibility of beauty equipment for a larger customer base. This factor is expected to drive the growth of the Beauty Devices Market.

For manufacturers of cosmetic products, customization practices have created new market prospects. The ability to obtain skin-specific therapy at dermatological clinics, beauty salons, and beauty clinics is one way that personalization trends have an influence on consumers of beauty goods. These beauty treatment facilities employ cutting-edge software, such as the WaySkin app, which incorporates artificial intelligence (AI), to identify different skin types and concerns, monitor post-treatment results, compare skin health, and look before and after operations. These programs also let the user keep track of their pH, texture, moisture content, pigmentation, and oiliness. These applications suggest to users the goods and therapies they should use to maintain healthy skin. This factor is expected to drive the growth of the Beauty Devices Market.

View Full Report: https://reports.valuates.com/market-reports/QYRE-Auto-27Y11980/global-beauty-devices

BEAUTY DEVICES MARKET SHARE ANALYSIS:

With a 38% market share, North America is the region with the largest market for beauty devices. With a market share of around 26%, Europe is a laggard.

The major producers are Carol Cole (NuFace), YA-MAN, FOREO, Home Innovations, Philips, Panasonic, Nu Skin Enterprises, L'Oreal (Clarisonic), Conair, MTG, Hitachi, Remington, Kingdom, Tria, and Quasar MD, among others. The top 3 businesses had around 18% of the market.

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Key Companies:

Procter & Gamble

Philips

Panasonic

Nu Skin Enterprises

L'Oreal (Clarisonic)

Conair

MTG

Hitachi

Remington

YA-MAN

FOREO

Home Skinovations

Carol Cole (NuFace)

(NuFace) KAKUSAN

Quasar MD

Kingdom

Tria.

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SIMILAR REPORTS

- Colonic Cleansing Devices Market

- Acne Removal Gel Market

- Home Hair Removal Devices Market

- Multi-Functional Beauty Devices Market

- At-Home Beauty Devices Market

- Skin Care Tools and Beauty Devices Market

- At-Home Light Therapy Devices Market

- Electronic Beauty Device Market

- The global cosmetics ODM market size is projected to reach USD 10140 million by 2027, from USD 6760 million in 2020 at a CAGR of 5.6% during 2021-2027.

- The global cosmetics market size was valued at USD 380.2 Billion in 2019 and is projected to reach USD 463.5 Billion by 2027, registering a CAGR of 5.3% from 2021 to 2027.

- Makeup Brushes market size is estimated to be worth USD 1918.5 million in 2022 and is forecast to a readjusted size of USD 2600.4 million by 2028 with a CAGR of 5.2% during the review period.

- Vegan Cosmetics market size is projected to reach USD 21780 million by 2028, from USD 15960 million in 2021, at a CAGR of 4.5% during 2022-2028.

- Beauty Tools market was valued at USD 2189 million in 2020 and is expected to reach USD 3269.3 million by the end of 2027, growing at a CAGR of 5.8% during 2021-2027.

- Premium Beauty Tools Market

- Natural and Organic Beauty Products Market

- Private Label Cosmetics and Packaging Market

- The global cosmetic packaging market was valued at USD 34,322.7 million in 2020, and is projected to reach USD 55,899.2 million by 2030, registering a CAGR of 4.8% from 2021 to 2030.

- Handheld Ultrasonic Beauty Device Market

- Radio Frequency Beauty Instrument Market

- The global Auto Beauty market size is projected to reach USD 12050 million by 2027, from USD 8445 million in 2020, at a CAGR of 5.2% during 2021-2027.

- Smart Beauty Devices Market

- Consumer Beauty Devices Market

- Red and Blue Light Beauty Devices Market

- Beauty Nutrition Market

- The Indonesia skin care products market was valued at USD 9,758 million in 2019, and is expected to garner USD 14,716 million by 2027, registering a CAGR of 7.5% from 2021 to 2027.

- Female Cleaning Facial Mask Market

- Online Beauty and Personal Care Products market size is estimated to be worth USD 52260 million in 2022 and is forecast to a readjusted size of USD 174790 million by 2029 with a CAGR of 18.6% during the forecast period 2023-2029.

- Cosmetics Private Label and Contract Manufacturing Market

- Snail Skin Care Product Market

- Medical Beauty Equipment And Consumables Market

- Exosomes Skincare Market

Click here to see related reports on Beauty devices market

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SOURCE Valuates Reports
WUHAN, China, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- On June 9, 2023, the Synthetic Biology Technology Development Summit was held in Wuhan Optics Valley. The Summit was hosted by China Biotech Fermentation Industry Association and jointly undertaken by CABIO Biotech (Wuhan) Co., Ltd., Hubei Society for Microbiology and Wuhan Society for Microbiology. Yan Xingchun, Director of Construction and Financing Division, Optics Valley Biolake; Yu Xuejun, chairman of China Biotech Fermentation Industry Association, Yi Dewei, chairman of CABIO, and relevant leaders of Wuhan Biological Office jointly unveiled the Summit Forum and delivered speeches.

The Summit responded positively to the national "14th Five-Year Plan" and invited top experts and scholars in the field of synthetic biology from various sectors to share and discuss cutting-edge synthetic biology technologies, and to jointly explore the direction of industrialization. On the morning of June 9, renowned scholars including Yuan Yingjin, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and professor at Tianjin University, Wu Jiong, a foreign academician of the Russian Academy of Engineering, CEO of Suzhou Everhealth Sciences Co., Ltd., distinguished professor at Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University, and Huang Fenghong, director of the Oil Crops Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences gathered at the forum from various scientific research institutions nationwide to discuss topics such as the application of synthetic biology, bio-manufacturing, and the opportunities and challenges of human health in the future.

As the main organizer of this Synthetic Biology Technology Development Summit, CABIO is one of the earliest high-tech enterprises engaged in the production of polyunsaturated fatty acids and fat-soluble nutrients by microbial synthesis in China. CABIO has always believed that the bio-economy will become a keyword for social and economic development, and has put forward a roadmap and strategy for the development of synthetic biology within the company.

In recent years, CABIO has actively laid out synthetic biology, and built eight platforms, including biological information and biological computing platform, gene synthesis and gene editing platform, intelligent fermentation and metabolism fine regulation platform, efficient intelligent separation and refining platform and biotechnology achievements pilot transformation platform, among others. These platforms have enabled the creation of a bio-manufacturing technology chain with synthetic biology at its core, providing strong support for the development of new product pipelines. After many years of accumulation, CABIO has established a synthetic biology research lab and developed different chassis expression systems from various sources. This enables precise gene editing, multi-gene fragment assembly and co-expression, yeast genome rearrangement, and high-throughput screening and testing of strains.

With a focus on creating applications, CABIO has leveraged its existing synthetic biology technology platform to develop high value strategic products such as 2'-fucosyl lactose (2'-FL), 3'-sialic acid lactose (3'-SL), 6'-sialic acid lactose (6'-SL) and Lacto-N-neotetraose (LNnT). The project "Key Technology Development of Astaxanthin Synthesis by Artificial Yeast", developed in cooperation with Tianjin University, has entered the pilot stage and successfully produced astaxanthin bacteria, laying the foundation for industrialization. Similarly, the "Construction of -arbutin Synthetic Strain Based on Bacillus licheniformis", completed in cooperation with Hubei University, has achieved an industry-leading level in substrate conversion efficiency and is currently preparing for a pilot test. In terms of the product layout for HMOs, CABIO has begun researching their efficacy and exploring possible mechanisms.

CABIO will capitalize on the opportunity of the new technological revolution, utilizing synthetic biology as the technical foundation, focusing on cutting-edge biotechnology, and continuously exploring the boundless possibilities in this field. Our aim is to empower life nutrition and health with biotechnology.

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2099880/image_5019520_24606393.jpg

SOURCE CABIO Biotech (Wuhan) Co, Ltd
Top Black-marketing leaders to take the international stage and hold discussions with influentials like Spike Lee and Byron Allen to increase awareness of persistent diversity issues in the world's C-suites

BOCA RATON, Fla., June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, Black Executive CMO Alliance (BECA)  an organization founded in 2021 to amplify the voices of Black CMOs and CxOs and create more opportunities and access  announced its return to Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity, June 19-23. A delegation of 18 BECA Members and seven BECA Future Leaders will lead discussions centered around the influence of the Black consumer, the measurable impact for brands  and how organizations can prepare and support rising Black talent.

"BECA's return to Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity is proof of the continued need and purpose of our organization. We're building on last year's momentum by bringing our thoughts, ideas, and experiences to the forefront of the minds of those attending the international event," said Jerri DeVard, BECA Founder. "This month we're returning with more Members and a new cohort of Future Leaders from The BECA Playbook program. I am excited to show new curated content and identify even more supporters and allies for BECA's mission. Diversity spurs creativity, influence, and change  our alliance looks forward to continuing these actions globally."

The need for support of top Black marketers to ascend to the C-suite and maintain their positions while harnessing the power of diverse consumers is clear. As companies slash internal DEI programs and the associated budgets and teams, the percentage of CMOs and CxOs who identify as ethnically and racially diverse remains low. This fact alone demonstrates the important need for organizations like BECA to elevate Black marketing leaders, as they are often more adversely affected by these reductions.

At Cannes, BECA aims to engage key organizational stakeholders and influencers to continue to elevate its efforts. In complementing Cannes Lions' DEI initiatives, BECA will underscore the urgency and responsibility for organizations and brands to continue to push for greater action and accountability.

Cannes-attending BECA Members and Future Leaders represent the best of the best marketing talent from a wide range of companies, including AT&T, Autodesk, Deloitte, Ecolab, General Motors, GroupM, Johnson & Johnson, Jordan Brand, Levi Strauss & Co., Logitech, Marriott, Mars Wrigley NA, Omnicom PR Group, Progressive, 72andSunny, Taco Bell, Unilever, Vice Media and Zaia Ventures. Ascential, owner of Cannes Lions, is sponsoring the attendance of BECA's Future Leaders as part of its partnership commitment.

"Cannes Lions is committed to providing a global platform for diverse voices and perspectives, and creating an environment that promotes inclusion. BECA's continued participation at the 70th edition of Cannes Lions is very much a part of that mission," said Simon Cook, CEO, Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity. "We are proud to sponsor the attendance of some of the world's best and brightest up-and-coming Black marketing leaders from The BECA Playbook program and look forward to following their journeys as they begin to shape the next 70."

Two teams of BECA Future Leaders were selected to attend and present their winning presentations at Cannes. These presentations are anchored in innovation and leverage AI and the growing importance of this emerging technology. BECA Future Leaders are looking to shape the future of marketing by implementing systems that improve data and measurement by analyzing pre- and post-campaign performance to help drive more successful future marketing campaigns.

Join BECA Future Leaders at the following sessions, to learn more:

The Black Effect: Diversity as a Game Changer for Brands (BECA Future Leaders, Team Black Effect)

Monday, June 19 , 10:30  11:00 am local time ( 4:30 pm  5:00 pm EST ), Location: The Forum, Palais I (Main Stage)

, 10:30  local time (  ), Location: The Forum, Palais I (Main Stage) Thursday, June 22 , 10:00  10:30 am local time ( 4:00 pm  4:30 pm EST ), Location: The Female Quotient Equality Lounge

The Future is Black: The Next Generation of Talent Can't Wait (BECA Future Leaders, Team Onyx)

Monday, June 19 , ( 1:30 pm - 2:00 pm local time ( 7:30 pm  8:00 pm EST ), Location: CC:DC Inkwell Beach

, ( local time (  ), Location: CC:DC Inkwell Beach Tuesday, June 20 , 4:30 pm  5:00 pm local time ( 10:30 pm  11:00 pm EST ), Location: MediaLink Beach

For more on events and the full festival schedule, visit https://www.canneslions.com/festival . For more information on BECA, visit www.blackexec.com and follow the Black Executive CMO Alliance on LinkedIn , Instagram , Facebook , and Twitter , using the hashtag #BECAxCANNES.

About the Black Executive CMO Alliance (BECA)

The Black Executive CMO Alliance (BECA) is a 501c3 non-profit founded in 2021 to champion diversity at the corporate leadership level, provide a vibrant forum for collaboration and networking among Black CxO marketing leaders, and create opportunity, access and change through mentorship of current and next generation Black marketing leaders.

Press Contacts:

Rachel Hopkins

[email protected] | +01-412-519-9040

Shenikwa Carr

[email protected] | +01-972-849-5607

SOURCE Black Executive CMO Alliance (BECA)
To celebrate the launch of Blue Bunny Soft scoopables - a new take on soft serve - the brand is launching a contest to find The Softest Dad in America

CHICAGO, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Everyone knows a dad who isn't afraid to show his soft side. This summer, Blue Bunny is celebrating their new Soft scoopables , a new take on soft serve that is easy to scoop straight from the freezer, by honoring dads with a soft side in search of The Softest Dad in America.

To celebrate the launch of Blue Bunny Soft scoopables - a new take on soft serve - the brand is launching a contest to find The Softest Dad in America Blue Bunny Soft scoopables is a new take on soft serve that is easy to scoop straight from the freezer

Launching in time for Father's Day and running through July 6, ice cream lovers can nominate the dads and father figures in their lives who really let their guard down to be a little goofy, a little funny, and yes, a little soft. These are the dads who've mastered the French braid, know how to loosen up their hips for a viral internet dance, aren't afraid to shed a tear at their child's recital, and can teach you how to throw a perfect spiral while baking a perfect cake. A soft dad knows that when he shows his soft side, the whole family has more fun.

There is no better way for The Softest Dad in America to tell the world about his crowning achievement than with The Softest Throne in America. This ultra soft, ultra comfortable, ultra nap-able Blue Bunny Soft Recliner worth up to $15,000 can be decked out with various bells and whistles that dad can choose from, such as a mini freezer in the back to hold Blue Bunny Soft scoopables, a secret compartment for snacks, extra width to fit more family members, a leg warmer foot rest, and white noise speakers for when he is "just closing my eyes". This ultimate throne can be tailored to dad's every whim!

In addition, the Top 10 finalists, including The Softest Dad in America, will receive a Summer's worth of Blue Bunny Soft Scoopables to enjoy with their families which will be awarded through a $250 gift card.

"Blue Bunny's purpose is to champion fun and make everyday uplifting, and we're doing just that by celebrating dads who embody those values," said Jeremy Hrynewycz, brand marketing director at Blue Bunny. "We are looking forward to celebrating all of the fatherly figures that aren't afraid to bring more fun to their families' daily lives by showing their soft side!"

From June 14-July 6, ice cream lovers can nominate dads (or father figures) with a soft side by visiting bluebunny.com/softestdad or on Instagram and TikTok by posting a photo or video that shows off the nominated Dad's soft side and tag it with #BBSoftestDadContest. Click here for full Official Rules. Ten finalists will be chosen to receive a summer's worth of Blue Bunny Soft scoopables. The public will then be able to vote from July 27-30 for which of the finalists they think should be named The Softest Dad in America. The winner will be announced on July 31.

Learn more about The Softest Dad In America contest by visiting bluebunny.com/softestdad .

About Blue Bunny

For more than 80 years, Blue Bunny has been crafting delicious dairy desserts made with fun, fresh ingredients. Today, Blue Bunny offers over 75 varieties of frozen treats. Blue Bunny continues to innovate, bringing playfully indulgent frozen treats to freezers across the country, most recently with their perfectly indulgent Mini Bars and new take on soft serve  Twist Cones and Soft scoopables. You can find fan favorites, like the Mini Swirls cones, their signature Bunny Tracks scoopables, and their award-winning Load'd Sundaes packed with tons of mix-ins, on shelves or being served near you! For more information, visit BlueBunny.com .

About Wells Enterprises

Wells Enterprises, Inc. is the largest privately held ice cream manufacturer in the United States. Founded in 1913 by Fred H. Wells and run by the Wells family for generations, the company is an independent operating company of the Ferrero Group, one of the global leaders in sweet packaged foods.

Wells produces more than 200 million gallons of ice cream per year and distributes products in all 50 states. Wells manufactures its signature brand Blue Bunny, lower-calorie Halo Top, the iconic Bomb Pop, and Blue Ribbon Classics.

Wells employs nearly 4,000 ice cream aficionados across the country. The company is headquartered in Le Mars, Iowa, where Wells has made Le Mars the "Ice Cream Capital of the World'' as the largest manufacturer of ice cream in one location. Wells operates two manufacturing plants in Le Mars, Iowa, a manufacturing plant in Dunkirk, New York, and a manufacturing facility in Henderson, Nevada. Learn more at www.wellsenterprisesinc.com .

SOURCE Blue Bunny
Rena Murshud

Russian President Vladimir Putin appointed Mikhail Yevdokimov Ambassador to Azerbaijan, dismissing Mikhail Bocharnikov from this post, Azernews reports.

The relevant decrees of the head of the Russian Federation are published on the official portal of legal information.

Mikhail Bocharnikov has been the Russian Ambassador to Azerbaijan since 2018.

Mikhail Evdokimov was born in 1959. He has the diplomatic rank of Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary. Since 2011, he has served as director of the first department of the CIS countries of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation, responsible for multilateral cooperation in the association area.

In 1981 he graduated from the Moscow State Institute of International Relations (MGIMO University) of the USSR Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Since the same year, he has been working in the system of the Foreign Ministry in various diplomatic positions in the central office and abroad.

In 1996-1997, he headed a section of the Department of Economic Cooperation of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation, in 1997-2001 he served as a senior adviser to the Permanent Mission of Russia to the UN Office and other international organizations in Geneva.

In 2001-2002, he worked as the head of a section of the Department for European Cooperation of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in 2002-2011 - as deputy director of the same department.

In May-November 2011, he held the position of Deputy Director, and since November 2011 - Director of the First Department of the CIS countries.

In 2018, M. Evdokimov was awarded the diplomatic rank of Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary.

Speaks English and French.
A tourist visits a museum displaying the history of Palace Museum antiques moved there during World War II in southwest China's Chongqing, June 10, 2023. The museum is located in a former foreign firm, where nearly 4,000 cases of antiques were stored during wartime.

The items from the Palace Museum, also known as the Forbidden City, were moved to Chongqing in late 1930s when Japanese troops invaded Beijing.

During the Japanese bombing of Chongqing in the following years, the foreign firm placed a Swedish flag on the roof, which protected the building from being targeted.

After the war ended in 1945, the antiques were returned to Beijing. (Xinhua/Huang Wei)

Tourists visit a museum displaying the history of Palace Museum antiques moved there during World War II in southwest China's Chongqing, June 10, 2023. The museum is located in a former foreign firm, where nearly 4,000 cases of antiques were stored during wartime.

The items from the Palace Museum, also known as the Forbidden City, were moved to Chongqing in late 1930s when Japanese troops invaded Beijing.

During the Japanese bombing of Chongqing in the following years, the foreign firm placed a Swedish flag on the roof, which protected the building from being targeted.

After the war ended in 1945, the antiques were returned to Beijing. (Xinhua/Huang Wei)

Tourists visit an exhibition at a museum displaying the history of Palace Museum antiques moved there during World War II in southwest China's Chongqing, June 9, 2023. The museum is located in a former foreign firm, where nearly 4,000 cases of antiques were stored during wartime.

The items from the Palace Museum, also known as the Forbidden City, were moved to Chongqing in late 1930s when Japanese troops invaded Beijing.

During the Japanese bombing of Chongqing in the following years, the foreign firm placed a Swedish flag on the roof, which protected the building from being targeted.

After the war ended in 1945, the antiques were returned to Beijing. (Xinhua/Liu Chan)

Tourist select souvenir at a cafe of a museum displaying the history of Palace Museum antiques moved there during World War II in southwest China's Chongqing, June 10, 2023. The museum is located in a former foreign firm, where nearly 4,000 cases of antiques were stored during wartime.

The items from the Palace Museum, also known as the Forbidden City, were moved to Chongqing in late 1930s when Japanese troops invaded Beijing.

During the Japanese bombing of Chongqing in the following years, the foreign firm placed a Swedish flag on the roof, which protected the building from being targeted.

After the war ended in 1945, the antiques were returned to Beijing. (Xinhua/Huang Wei)

Tourists select souvenir at a cafe of a museum displaying the history of Palace Museum antiques moved there during World War II in southwest China's Chongqing, June 10, 2023. The museum is located in a former foreign firm, where nearly 4,000 cases of antiques were stored during wartime.

The items from the Palace Museum, also known as the Forbidden City, were moved to Chongqing in late 1930s when Japanese troops invaded Beijing.

During the Japanese bombing of Chongqing in the following years, the foreign firm placed a Swedish flag on the roof, which protected the building from being targeted.

After the war ended in 1945, the antiques were returned to Beijing. (Xinhua/Chu Jiayin)

Tourist rest at a cafe of a museum displaying the history of Palace Museum antiques moved there during World War II in southwest China's Chongqing, June 10, 2023. The museum is located in a former foreign firm, where nearly 4,000 cases of antiques were stored during wartime.

The items from the Palace Museum, also known as the Forbidden City, were moved to Chongqing in late 1930s when Japanese troops invaded Beijing.

During the Japanese bombing of Chongqing in the following years, the foreign firm placed a Swedish flag on the roof, which protected the building from being targeted.

After the war ended in 1945, the antiques were returned to Beijing. (Xinhua/Huang Wei)

A tourist visits a museum displaying the history of Palace Museum antiques moved there during World War II in southwest China's Chongqing, June 10, 2023. The museum is located in a former foreign firm, where nearly 4,000 cases of antiques were stored during wartime.

The items from the Palace Museum, also known as the Forbidden City, were moved to Chongqing in late 1930s when Japanese troops invaded Beijing.

During the Japanese bombing of Chongqing in the following years, the foreign firm placed a Swedish flag on the roof, which protected the building from being targeted.

After the war ended in 1945, the antiques were returned to Beijing. (Xinhua/Chu Jiayin)

Tourists visit a museum displaying the history of Palace Museum antiques moved there during World War II in southwest China's Chongqing, June 10, 2023. The museum is located in a former foreign firm, where nearly 4,000 cases of antiques were stored during wartime.

The items from the Palace Museum, also known as the Forbidden City, were moved to Chongqing in late 1930s when Japanese troops invaded Beijing.

During the Japanese bombing of Chongqing in the following years, the foreign firm placed a Swedish flag on the roof, which protected the building from being targeted.

After the war ended in 1945, the antiques were returned to Beijing. (Xinhua/Huang Wei)

People enjoy a concert in celebration of the second anniversary of the opening of a museum displaying the history of Palace Museum antiques moved there during World War II in southwest China's Chongqing, June 10, 2023. The museum is located in a former foreign firm, where nearly 4,000 cases of antiques were stored during wartime.

The items from the Palace Museum, also known as the Forbidden City, were moved to Chongqing in late 1930s when Japanese troops invaded Beijing.

During the Japanese bombing of Chongqing in the following years, the foreign firm placed a Swedish flag on the roof, which protected the building from being targeted.

After the war ended in 1945, the antiques were returned to Beijing. (Xinhua/Huang Wei)

This photo shows the scenery seen from a museum displaying the history of Palace Museum antiques moved there during World War II in southwest China's Chongqing, June 12, 2023. The museum is located in a former foreign firm, where nearly 4,000 cases of antiques were stored during wartime.

The items from the Palace Museum, also known as the Forbidden City, were moved to Chongqing in late 1930s when Japanese troops invaded Beijing.

During the Japanese bombing of Chongqing in the following years, the foreign firm placed a Swedish flag on the roof, which protected the building from being targeted.

After the war ended in 1945, the antiques were returned to Beijing. (Xinhua/Chu Jiayin)

This photo shows a museum displaying the history of Palace Museum antiques moved there during World War II in southwest China's Chongqing, June 10, 2023. The museum is located in a former foreign firm, where nearly 4,000 cases of antiques were stored during wartime.

The items from the Palace Museum, also known as the Forbidden City, were moved to Chongqing in late 1930s when Japanese troops invaded Beijing.

During the Japanese bombing of Chongqing in the following years, the foreign firm placed a Swedish flag on the roof, which protected the building from being targeted.

After the war ended in 1945, the antiques were returned to Beijing. (Xinhua/Huang Wei)

This photo shows an exterior view of a museum displaying the history of Palace Museum antiques moved there during World War II in southwest China's Chongqing, June 12, 2023. The museum is located in a former foreign firm, where nearly 4,000 cases of antiques were stored during wartime.

The items from the Palace Museum, also known as the Forbidden City, were moved to Chongqing in late 1930s when Japanese troops invaded Beijing.

During the Japanese bombing of Chongqing in the following years, the foreign firm placed a Swedish flag on the roof, which protected the building from being targeted.

After the war ended in 1945, the antiques were returned to Beijing. (Xinhua/Chu Jiayin)

This photo shows an exterior view of a museum displaying the history of Palace Museum antiques moved there during World War II in southwest China's Chongqing, June 10, 2023. The museum is located in a former foreign firm, where nearly 4,000 cases of antiques were stored during wartime.

The items from the Palace Museum, also known as the Forbidden City, were moved to Chongqing in late 1930s when Japanese troops invaded Beijing.

During the Japanese bombing of Chongqing in the following years, the foreign firm placed a Swedish flag on the roof, which protected the building from being targeted.

After the war ended in 1945, the antiques were returned to Beijing. (Xinhua/Huang Wei)

Tourists visit a museum displaying the history of Palace Museum antiques moved there during World War II in southwest China's Chongqing, June 10, 2023. The museum is located in a former foreign firm, where nearly 4,000 cases of antiques were stored during wartime.

The items from the Palace Museum, also known as the Forbidden City, were moved to Chongqing in late 1930s when Japanese troops invaded Beijing.

During the Japanese bombing of Chongqing in the following years, the foreign firm placed a Swedish flag on the roof, which protected the building from being targeted.

After the war ended in 1945, the antiques were returned to Beijing. (Xinhua/Huang Wei)

A tourist visits a museum displaying the history of Palace Museum antiques moved there during World War II in southwest China's Chongqing, June 10, 2023. The museum is located in a former foreign firm, where nearly 4,000 cases of antiques were stored during wartime.

The items from the Palace Museum, also known as the Forbidden City, were moved to Chongqing in late 1930s when Japanese troops invaded Beijing.

During the Japanese bombing of Chongqing in the following years, the foreign firm placed a Swedish flag on the roof, which protected the building from being targeted.

After the war ended in 1945, the antiques were returned to Beijing. (Xinhua/Chu Jiayin)

Tourists visit a museum displaying the history of Palace Museum antiques moved there during World War II in southwest China's Chongqing, June 10, 2023. The museum is located in a former foreign firm, where nearly 4,000 cases of antiques were stored during wartime.

The items from the Palace Museum, also known as the Forbidden City, were moved to Chongqing in late 1930s when Japanese troops invaded Beijing.

During the Japanese bombing of Chongqing in the following years, the foreign firm placed a Swedish flag on the roof, which protected the building from being targeted.

After the war ended in 1945, the antiques were returned to Beijing. (Xinhua/Huang Wei)

Editor: Zhang Zhou
Three-Year Research Program to Provide Insights into How Large Multinationals Can Unlock Data and the Power of AI to Drive Business Value

BMC Joins Oxford Future of Marketing Initiative (FOMI) to address some of the most difficult and complex business and marketing challenges

HOUSTON, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- BMC, a global leader in software solutions for the Autonomous Digital Enterprise, announced a strategic relationship with the University of Oxford Said Business School that includes membership in the Oxford Future of Marketing Initiative (FOMI) and a three-year innovation research project. The research will investigate the unique challenges and trade-offs faced by large multinational organizations in highly regulated industries while identifying best practices for unlocking the business value of data by leveraging AI.

"In today's data-driven economy, large multinationals are increasingly recognizing the potential value of data for driving business growth, enhancing operational efficiency, and improving the decision-making process," stated Pinar Ozcan, Ph.D., Professor of Innovation, Said Business School, the University of Oxford. "We look forward to collaborating with BMC on this research project to uncover the different approaches and best practices that organizations can adopt to derive value from their data and AI."

Organizations face multiple challenges in leveraging their data due to the varying data formats and structures, hindering data integration and analysis. Organizations must navigate complex data privacy regulations, data protection laws, and industry-specific guidelines in highly regulated industries like finance and healthcare. Achieving compliance requires substantial resources and expertise to ensure that data collection, storage, and sharing align with legal and ethical requirements. Through this research initiative, BMC and the University of Oxford Said Business School will identify the challenges organizations face using existing data and acquiring new data to drive business value while recommending best practices organizations can embrace to overcome those obstacles.

"We're thrilled to collaborate with the University of Oxford Said Business School on a joint, impactful innovation research program and their Future of Marketing Initiative," said Ram Chakravarti, senior vice president, and CTO at BMC. "We anticipate the in-depth interview-based research will uncover findings that have yet to be identified through other research efforts, and we look forward to using this data to more fully understand how to support our customers and partners as they navigate the journey to better realize the value of their data. Involvement in FOMI gives us not only incredible access to industry thought leadership and scientific, evidence-based research, but also highlights our shared value to have a real impact and influence on the business world."

"Our business school is at the intersection of academia and the business world, and I'm delighted to welcome BMC to the Oxford Future of Marketing Initiative as we work together to understand what drives brand growth in the digital age," said Andrew Stephen, L'Oreal Professor of Marketing and Deputy Dean, Said Business School, the University of Oxford.

Additional Resources



Learn more about how profitable outcomes are linked to data-driven maturity

Discover what it takes to be an Autonomous Digital Enterprise

Read about the Oxford Future of Marketing Initiative (FOMI)

About BMC

BMC works with 86% of the Forbes Global 50 and customers and partners around the world to create their future. With our history of innovation, industry-leading automation, operations, and service management solutions, combined with unmatched flexibility, we help organizations free up time and space to become an Autonomous Digital Enterprise that conquers the opportunities ahead.

BMC, BMC Software, the BMC logo, and other BMC marks are the exclusive properties of BMC Software, Inc. and are registered or may be registered with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office or in other countries.

Copyright 2023 BMC Software, Inc.

BMCRun and Reinvent

www.bmc.com

Editorial contact:

Sheila Watson

BMC

[email protected]

SOURCE BMC Software, Inc.
670hp Supercharged Fastback Auctions LIVE Prime Time National TV Saturday June 24th

TULSA, Okla., June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Brand New Muscle Car is pleased to announce that the one and only all-new 1968 Ford BULLITT Mustang Fastback it has ever built will cross the auction block on LIVE national television in prime time on the FYI Cable Network Saturday, June 24th at Barrett Jackson Las Vegas. This all-new 670hp supercharged 5.0 Coyote Officially Licensed Brand New Muscle Car 1968 Ford BULLITT Mustang fastback was hand-built from the ground up in 2020 only 1,100 miles ago. This one-of-a-kind build started as an all-metal Ford-Licensed body shell with all new parts at the world-famous Brand New Muscle Car facility of MotorTrend TV fame in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Every nut and bolt is brand new. This is not a kit car or special construction vehicle. This beautiful beast is titled and registered as a 1968 Ford Mustang.

Brand New $250k 670hp Supercharged 1968 BULLITT Mustang Auctions LIVE Barrett Jackson Las Vegas Saturday June 24th, 2023 Tweet this 1968 Ford BULLITT Mustang Fastback 670hp Supercharged Build goes to Barrett Jackson Las Vegas 2023 Auction in prime time national television on Saturday, June 24th. All-new, all-metal hand built by Brand New Muscle Car of Tulsa, Oklahoma. www.brandnewmusclecar.com.

"We here at Brand New Muscle Car couldn't be more proud of all the incredible customer-designed "bespoke" muscle cars and other vehicles we build but this particular Mustang RestoMod should be one of the best looking and best performing cars in the auction this time around. It took more than a year and 1,500 labor hours to complete. This isn't someone's backyard build. This is a professional build, by a team of people who have restored and built hundreds of Mustangs and many other cars over the decades, and professionally dyno tuned for maximum performance. The fit and finish is second to none and far better than back in the day. This is a $250,000 build and it will only go up in value over time. Why not have a Mustang that looks old, but drives new? That's BNMC," exclaimed, David Miller, Founder of Brand New Muscle Car.

This amazing supercar features a brand new 670hp supercharged 5.0 Coyote Ford Performance crate engine and Ford 6R80 6-speed automatic transmission with manual "Sport Mode" shift capable LOKAR auto shifter dressed out like the movie-correct manual shifter. This world-class professional custom built and extremely powerful Mustang RestoMod is dangerously fun. Be warned. BULLITT features numerous movie-correct and special items, including Ford Highland Green Axalta paint, custom matte finish clear, blacked out 1967 insert grille, emblem and lettering delete, turn signal flat hood, stainless steel dual exhaust without chrome tips, 17x8 matte black painted wheels, 235/45R17 tires, black deluxe wood accent panel interior, black leather wrapped aluminum Shelby steering wheel, factory seats in leather, 3-point seat belts, matte black gas cap, trunk mounted battery, early 1968 Mustang quarter panel reflectors, and classic California JJZ109 license plate. This car also features optional upgrades such as Heidts Independent Front Suspension (IFS), power rack & pinion steering, frame connectors, 4-link rear suspension, Ford 9-inch rear end, 3.50 gears, adjustable coilover shocks, and Wilwood 4-wheel DISC brakes. It's also equipped with Vintage Air A/C, RetroSound stereo, Bluetooth, XM Satellite, tilt steering column, all-new wiring and plumbing, stainless-steel fuel and brake lines, high-capacity aluminum radiator and electric fans, seam sealing, and sound deadening. Includes a framed movie poster with autographs and photos from Steve McQueen, Official Licensed BNMC Certificate & VIN plate, and start-to-finish build book. Look for Lot 768.

About Brand New Muscle Car

If having a classic car that no one else in the world has appeals to you then you've found the right company! Welcome to Brand New Muscle Car, where you can order your favorite classic muscle car hand built with all new parts just as YOU want it! We'll restore, build or customize just about anything! "BNMC is THE ORIGINAL Scratch Muscle Car Builder"

Copyright  2023 Brand New Muscle Car - www.brandnewmusclecar.com

Contact:

David W. Miller II

Brand New Muscle Car

Unique Customs & Restoration Tulsa

324 E. Kenosha Street

Broken Arrow, OK 74012

918.439.3333

918.607.8191 Mobile

[email protected]

SOURCE Brand New Muscle Car
ZURICH, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Switzerland is home to a globally unique life science cluster. In addition to multinational companies like Novartis and Roche, this encompasses a dense network of startups and SMEs. Its renowned universities, strong intellectual property protection and strategic location in the middle of Europe have made Switzerland a preferred site for global and regional pharma headquarters. There is a strong ecosystem in place that feeds a dynamic talent pool and provides companies with an important advantage: All parts of the value chain  from R&D to manufacturing, through to commercialization  can be accessed in one location.

SWITZERLAND  A THRIVING HUB FOR PERSONALIZED HEALTH Tweet this Healthtech in Switzerland

At the same time, the pragmatic and business-friendly legislation has attracted fastgrowing tech companies that develop high-quality "Swiss made" products. For companies who wish to quickly and easily bring new innovations in personalized health to market, Switzerland offers the ideal environment.

THE ADVANTAGES OF SWITZERLAND

1. High Innovation Output

A steady stream of highly qualified talent and scientists in Switzerland make a significant contribution towards developing new medicines. The framework conditions are also in place: The Swiss healthcare system supports the introduction of new medicines and, in doing so, offers companies access to a sophisticated test and sales market.

Why Switzerland:

Switzerland is among the countries with the highest spending on R&D in relation to its GDP with private companies contributing almost two-thirds. This pays off: For over a decade, the country has been topping the Global Innovation Index (WIPO), which compares 132 countries worldwide.

is among the countries with the highest spending on R&D in relation to its GDP with private companies contributing almost two-thirds. This pays off: For over a decade, the country has been topping the Global Innovation Index (WIPO), which compares 132 countries worldwide. The two Swiss polytechnics ETH Zurich and EPFL and other firstclass Swiss research facilities regularly rank among the best in the world (QS World University Ranking, Shanghai Jiao Tong Ranking, THE University Ranking).

and EPFL and other firstclass Swiss research facilities regularly rank among the best in the world (QS World University Ranking, Shanghai Jiao Tong Ranking, THE University Ranking). In terms of the number of patent applications per capita, Switzerland occupies a leading position on the European Patent Index 2021 (EPO). Switzerland's strengths lie in the fields of health technologies and biotechnology. Its effective and modern patent protection enables the pharmaceutical industry to invest profitably in R&D of innovative medicines.

occupies a leading position on the European Patent Index 2021 (EPO). strengths lie in the fields of health technologies and biotechnology. Its effective and modern patent protection enables the pharmaceutical industry to invest profitably in R&D of innovative medicines. The close relationship between science and industry in Switzerland is unique. Established research institutes drive innovation together with companies and institutions. Each institute at university and college level has a coordination office for cooperation with the private sector. The Swiss Innovation Promotion Agency Innosuisse makes significant financial contributions to R&D projects in which companies cooperate with non-profit research organizations.

2. Life Sciences Value Chain in One Place

With its long tradition in life sciences and a strong infrastructure in advanced manufacturing, Switzerland offers a dense and experienced network of peers, universities and suppliers over a geographically manageable terrain. It is precisely because Switzerland is a small country that industry benefits from this experienced cluster along the entire value chain to develop, produce and market new products and services all in one place.

Why Switzerland:

With its unique ecosystem of innovative startups, multinational pharmaceutical giants such as Roche, Novartis, Bayer or Abbott and world leading research institutes and hospitals, the Basel Area is continuously growing its network of digital health innovators. The DayOne initiative aims to foster collaboration across disciplines and industries in precision medicine and digital health. Basel is the host city of Intelligent Health AI and the BioDataWorld Congress, two of the world leading conferences for health data science.

is continuously growing its network of digital health innovators. The DayOne initiative aims to foster collaboration across disciplines and industries in precision medicine and digital health. Basel is the host city of Intelligent Health AI and the BioDataWorld Congress, two of the world leading conferences for health data science. Stretching from the Canton of Valais to Geneva and as far north as Neuchatel and Bern, Switzerland's Health Valley is a dense network of more than 1,000 companies and 35,000 talents collaborating with 500 research labs to further life sciences. Campus Biotech in Geneva is a center of excellence for research in biotechnology. Biopole Lausanne is an innovation-oriented life sciences campus comprising an incubator, StartLab and a digital health program. In Valais, BioArk supports SMEs and startups in transforming their projects into industrial and commercial reality and in developing their business. The Swiss Institute for Translational and Entrepreneurial Medicine (sitem-insel) in Bern works on unlocking "bench to bedside" innovation.

of Valais to and as far north as Neuchatel and Health Valley is a dense network of more than 1,000 companies and 35,000 talents collaborating with 500 research labs to further life sciences. Campus Biotech in is a center of excellence for research in biotechnology. Biopole Lausanne is an innovation-oriented life sciences campus comprising an incubator, StartLab and a digital health program. In Valais, BioArk supports SMEs and startups in transforming their projects into industrial and commercial reality and in developing their business. The Swiss Institute for Translational and Entrepreneurial Medicine (sitem-insel) in works on unlocking "bench to bedside" innovation. While the Greater Zurich Area is home to large pharmaceutical companies like Biogen, Johnson & Johnson, or Amgen, its ecosystem offers a fertile environment especially for early-stage life sciences companies. In the Bio-Technopark, for instance, over 50 companies and many institutions have settled on an area of 55,000m. These include startups such as Cutiss, Biognosys and Neurimmune, Roche with its Innovation Center, or DiNAQOR with its gene therapy platform. Companies also benefit from the proximity to ETH Zurich and the University of Zurich , who support research activities such as NEXUS, Wyss Zurich, Loop Zurich, or the Zurich-Basel Personalized Health Alliance.

3. Strategic Location in the Heart of Europe

With its strong life sciences clusters and a business-friendly environment, Switzerland has become a favored headquarter location for pharmaceutical companies expanding into Europe for the first time. Its thriving ecosystem provides partnering and licensing opportunities, and the country's geographical position helps access the European market efficiently.

Why Switzerland:

Free trade agreements with the EU/EFTA and 43 other countries, including China , Canada , and Japan , provide access to the most important export markets.

, , and , provide access to the most important export markets. Switzerland offers direct access to Europe , its main trade partner. Various agreements to liberalize the market create almost equal access to the European single market. These agreements make it easy for companies from Switzerland to tap into a market of almost 500 million consumers.

offers direct access to , its main trade partner. Various agreements to liberalize the market create almost equal access to the European single market. These agreements make it easy for companies from to tap into a market of almost 500 million consumers. Switzerland shares a border with three of the four largest European markets: Germany , France and Italy . Their languages are also national languages of Switzerland , which many inhabitants speak fluently in addition to English. Because it provides great diversity within a very small area, Switzerland is also perfectly suited as a test and sales market.

shares a border with three of the four largest European markets: , and . Their languages are also national languages of , which many inhabitants speak fluently in addition to English. Because it provides great diversity within a very small area, is also perfectly suited as a test and sales market. With Roche and Novartis, headquartered both in Basel , two out of the top five global pharma players call Switzerland their homebase.

4. First-Class Technology

Swiss authorities are pragmatic and business-friendly, which has led to pioneering regulations in the field of emerging technologies such as blockchain, robotics, or AI. This has attracted global talent and fast-growing tech companies that develop high-quality products.

Why Switzerland:

Swiss products and services have enjoyed a very good reputation around the world for a long time. Customers associate Swissmade products with reliability, the highest quality, longevity and technological superiority. The same is valid for Swiss-made software and algorithms.

Proximity to cutting-edge research is one important reason why renowned technological companies such as Google, IBM, Sony or Microsoft run their AI research from Switzerland . This paves the way for innovative partnerships that combine a traditionally strong life sciences cluster with top notch expertise in artificial intelligence.

. This paves the way for innovative partnerships that combine a traditionally strong life sciences cluster with top notch expertise in artificial intelligence. As a result of the high quality of life and excellent working conditions, Switzerland is highly attractive for foreign qualified staff and managers. The presence of regional headquarters and global AI labs further fuels a talent pool that is highly sought after.

Case Studies

Sophia Genetics , based in the Canton of Vaud, was founded in 2011 as a spin-off of EPFL. Through its AI platform it established the world's largest data-driven medicine community network and now serves more than 1,000 hospitals worldwide.

, based in the of Vaud, was founded in 2011 as a spin-off of EPFL. Through its AI platform it established the world's largest data-driven medicine community network and now serves more than 1,000 hospitals worldwide. Operating from the Switzerland Innovation Park Basel Area at the Novartis Campus , innovative startups use machine learning and AI to develop monitoring platforms such as Holmusk that develops data-driven digital therapies to treat a variety of disorders focusing on mental and neurological illnesses, Rekonas enabling EEG diagnosis, or Zoundream that translates newborn cries to detect pathologies.

at the , innovative startups use machine learning and AI to develop monitoring platforms such as Holmusk that develops data-driven digital therapies to treat a variety of disorders focusing on mental and neurological illnesses, Rekonas enabling EEG diagnosis, or Zoundream that translates newborn cries to detect pathologies. The Zurich startup Ava has created a wristband that provides women with information on their most fertile days by measuring physiological parameters. Ava was launched in the USA in July 2016 and is now available in 36 countries. In 2019, the startup became part of the Tech Tour Growth list of the 50 tech companies with the greatest growth potential in Europe . In December 2020 , Ava became the first wearable fertility tracker to receive FDA clearance.

startup Ava has created a wristband that provides women with information on their most fertile days by measuring physiological parameters. Ava was launched in the in and is now available in 36 countries. In 2019, the startup became part of the Tech Tour Growth list of the 50 tech companies with the greatest growth potential in . In , Ava became the first wearable fertility tracker to receive FDA clearance. MindMaze is a global leader in brain technology. Its healthcare division is addressing some of the most challenging problems in neurology, including strokes, Alzheimer's and Parkinson. Founded in 2012 in Lausanne ( Canton of Vaud), it became the first Swiss tech unicorn and now has offices in several countries.

is a global leader in brain technology. Its healthcare division is addressing some of the most challenging problems in neurology, including strokes, Alzheimer's and Parkinson. Founded in 2012 in Lausanne ( of Vaud), it became the first Swiss tech unicorn and now has offices in several countries. BC Platforms is a global leader in healthcare data management, analytics and access. The company has global operations with its headquarters in Zurich, Switzerland , research and development in Finland , and sales and marketing in Boston , London and Singapore .

is a global leader in healthcare data management, analytics and access. The company has global operations with its headquarters in , research and development in , and sales and marketing in , and . Geneva University Hospital became the first hospital in Europe to utilize IBM's AI technology Watson to optimize therapeutic options for patients.

became the first hospital in to utilize IBM's AI technology Watson to optimize therapeutic options for patients. Healios and RC2NB , a leading neuroscience research center at the University Hospital of Basel, have entered into a multi-year development partnership to further develop and validate digital biomarkers in multiple sclerosis. As a result, dreaMS, a software used as medical device, will be available soon.

and , a leading neuroscience research center at the University Hospital of Basel, have entered into a multi-year development partnership to further develop and validate digital biomarkers in multiple sclerosis. As a result, dreaMS, a software used as medical device, will be available soon. Align Technology is a leading medical device company in the dental industry. The combination of digital treatment planning and mass customization of aligners developed by Align has revolutionized the orthodontic industry. In 2020, the company moved its regional headquarters from Amsterdam to Rotkreuz ( Canton of Zug). The new office with over 150 employees opened in January 2020 and also serves as R&D hub.

https://businesslocation.swiss/

Business Location Switzerland

Business Location Switzerland is a collaboration among key stakeholders across Switzerland to recruit businesses from North America with a focus on the personalized health space. In the U.S., we have locations in Washington, DC, New York, NY, Austin, TX, San Francisco, CA and Los Angeles, CA.

SOURCE Business Location Switzerland
IRVIVE, Calif., June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Cardiovascular health technology company, CardieX Limited , is pleased to announce it has been selected as part of MedTech Innovator's 2023 Accelerator Cohort.

MedTech Innovator is recognized as the world's largest accelerator of medical technology companies. More than 1,150 companies applied to participate in the 2023 Accelerator program (the Program) with CardieX one of just 60 selected for the cohort following a detailed selection process conducted over four months.

The company was chosen for its innovative arterial health monitors designed to improve patient care. CEO of CardieX Craig Cooper commented:

"All of us at CardieX are thrilled with the announcement. The selection is a strong endorsement of our team's innovative solutions to improve outcomes in patients with vascular disease."

"We look forward to collaborating with industry leaders throughout the program to further our mission of becoming a global leader in vascular health."

The MedTech Innovator Accelerator Program is a four-month program featuring medical device, diagnostic and digital health companies from around the world. The program provides selected companies with unparalleled access to leading medtech manufacturers, healthcare providers, investors and other industry stakeholders. CardieX will have the opportunity to showcase its arterial health monitors and digital solutions to influential figures in the healthcare and medtech industries.

The program launches on June 14-15 with the Innovator Summit, an exclusive event held in Mountain View, California. It culminates at the MedTech Conference on October 9-11.

Throughout the 2023 program, MedTech Innovator will award a total of $800,000 in non-dilutive funding to winners of various competitions.

For more information, visit cardiex.com , and MedTech Innovator 2023 Cohort .

About CardieX

CardieX is a health technology company focused on devices & solutions for the world's largest population health disorders. Its ATCOR subsidiary is a world leader in the monitoring of vascular biomarkers for clinical trials and health care research based on the Company's "gold standard" SphygmoCor central blood pressure technology. CardieX's CONNEQT subsidiary develops and markets medical devices, digital solutions, and wearables for home health, remote patient monitoring, and decentralized clinical trials.

SOURCE CardieX Limited
CHARLOTTE HAS DECODED HER EXPERT ARTISTRY AND LEVERAGED THE POWER OF AI INTO HER NEW APP TO DELIVER YOUR PERSONALISED BEAUTY WARDROBE AT THE CLICK OF A BUTTON.

FROM YOUR PERFECT SHADE MATCHES AND AN IMMEDIATE SKIN REVIVAL ROUTINE IN 60 SECONDS*, TO A BEAUTY VIDEO LIBRARY OF HOW-TOS, TIPS AND TRICKS, THE APP IS EXPERT ARTISTRY AT YOUR FINGERTIPS!

EVERYONE, EVERYWHERE CAN NOW HAVE THE TOOLS TO LOOK AND FEEL THEIR MOST BEAUTIFUL AND CONFIDENT EVERYDAY - IT'S EASY BEAUTY FOR YOU, AVAILABLE FOR DOWNLOAD NOW!

Download the NEW! Charlotte Tilbury App here - https://open.charlottetilbury.com/y4tp/g6nnjkur

LONDON, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Charlotte Tilbury, founder of Charlotte Tilbury Beauty, has launched her first-ever app, designed to revolutionize beauty and use the power of technology to bring Charlotte's innovation and easy to choose, easy to use products to everyone, everywhere!

CHARLOTTE TILBURY LAUNCHES HER FIRST-EVER APP!

The app is a living manifestation of Charlotte's mission to democratize and simplify beauty for all. Designed for everyone everywhere, no matter their level of beauty expertise, the Charlotte Tilbury app is an interactive platform that harnesses the power of Charlotte's artistry expertise, plus the power of best-in-class artificial intelligence to educate, inspire, and reward new and existing customers.

Charlotte Tilbury MBE, Founder, President, Chairman and Chief Creative Officer, said:

"My app is like having me in your pocket - 24/7 - so that everyone, everywhere, can download beauty confidence! It's a beauty tech world-first, the only place you can access a truly immersive and empowering beauty experience all in one app!

"It's always been my mission to democratize and decode beauty and skincare, and this incredible app achieves this - it's expert artistry at your fingertips!! This has been years in the making - the tech has finally caught up with my vision to make easy beauty for you!! It's powered by my years of expertise and my unique artistry algorithm, backed by data science and customer insight. It takes all my knowledge, secrets, tips and tricks from my 30-year career with how-to tutorials delivering easy beauty for everyone - unlocking all my backstage secrets, exclusive behind-the-scenes content, and app-only product drops.

"It's a truly immersive and empowering beauty experience, home to my pro-beauty and pro-skin analysis tech tools, helping you build your personalized beauty wardrobe and routine - all powered by AI + deep learning.

"It's my one tap wonder to instant beauty magic!!"

The Charlotte Tilbury Beauty app delivers incredible innovation throughout the entire customer journey:

PERSONALISED BEAUTY WARDROBE IN YOUR POCKET: Get your perfect shade matches and your immediate personalized skin revival routine in under 60 seconds!* Powered by AI, Charlotte's advanced pro-beauty tech tools will give you the best skincare, complexion, and color products tailored to your skin tone and skin needs! It's like having instant access to Charlotte's expertise for every step of your beauty journey!





Get your perfect shade matches and your immediate personalized skin revival routine in under 60 seconds!* Powered by AI, Charlotte's advanced pro-beauty tech tools will give you the best skincare, complexion, and color products tailored to your skin tone and skin needs! It's like having instant access to Charlotte's expertise for every step of your beauty journey! APP-ONLY EXCLUSIVES: Downloading Charlotte's app will unlock first access to shop all new! beauty secrets before anyone else! It's an exclusive beauty treasure chest of viral, sell-out sensations, back-in-stock icons, new beauty secrets and app only drops.





Downloading Charlotte's app will unlock first access to shop all new! beauty secrets before anyone else! It's an exclusive beauty treasure chest of viral, sell-out sensations, back-in-stock icons, new beauty secrets and app only drops. LEARN HOW TO APPLY LIKE A PRO : Discover Charlotte's first ever beauty video library, home to all of her how-to tutorials and quick application tricks. See the incredible transformations as you watch, learn and brush along! Whether you are a beauty novice or expert, there are videos for everyone! Plus, unlock access to never seen before, exclusive app only content!





: Discover Charlotte's first ever beauty video library, home to all of her how-to tutorials and quick application tricks. See the incredible transformations as you watch, learn and brush along! Whether you are a beauty novice or expert, there are videos for everyone! Plus, unlock access to never seen before, exclusive app only content! ALL ACCESS RED CARPET CONTENT: Get the looks straight from the red carpet and runway! Discover how to get my iconic red carpet looks worn by celebrities and supermodels. You can watch exclusive behind the scenes footage and easily shop the product to recreate the look at home!





Get the looks straight from the red carpet and runway! Discover how to get my iconic red carpet looks worn by celebrities and supermodels. You can watch exclusive behind the scenes footage and easily shop the product to recreate the look at home! CONFIDENCE BUILDING AFFIRMATIONS : Delivering Charlotte's mission to make everyone feel beautiful from within, you can start your day with mood-boosting affirmations! A daily dose of positivity to spread confidence, happiness, love and luck to conquer your world!





: Delivering Charlotte's mission to make everyone feel beautiful from within, you can start your day with mood-boosting affirmations! A daily dose of positivity to spread confidence, happiness, love and luck to conquer your world! QUICK + EASY SHOPPING ON-THE-GO: Shopping for beauty on-the-go has never been easier! Enjoy exclusive first access to Charlotte's new innovations and app-only beauty secrets, magical loyalty rewards and so much more!

Corinne Suchy, Chief Growth and Technology Officer at Charlotte Tilbury Beauty, said:

"Charlotte Tilbury Beauty goes beyond being an industry leading beauty brand - it is a technology company revolutionizing the beauty industry! Inspired by Charlotte's industry-disrupting vision, we love to find that line where technology is indistinguishable from magic, and we will only continue to bring our customers and community incredible innovation!

"Our goal has always been for our community to feel like they are engaging 1-2-1 with Charlotte, because there is nothing quite like experiencing her energy and her expertise first- hand! We created this app because we truly want everyone, everywhere to feel they are in her makeup chair experiencing the power of her artistry and confidence-boosting positivity.

"We want to reach those customers around the world, of all ages, genders and backgrounds, who haven't felt that professional makeup artistry or expert skincare advice is accessible to them  Charlotte's app is for both the beauty beginner who wants to unlock their beauty confidence and understand what their beauty wardrobe of skincare and makeup looks like and for our engaged community which wants to discover even more of Charlotte's expert artistry!"

"We say that this app is like having Charlotte in your pocket. It's instant access to all of her beauty tips and tricks which can unlock your beauty confidence and is designed to make your beauty experience as easy and personal as possible. We use the power of technology and the power of beauty to bring Charlotte's innovation and easy to choose, easy to use mantra to life!

"Charlotte's creative vision has always transcended multiple dimensions and worlds, across the digital, the virtual and the physical realms. Charlotte's app is her vision powered by the latest technology which allows us to push the boundaries of creativity, storytelling, and interactivity and create deeper relationships with our customers and new relationships beyond our community."

Notes to Editor:

Charlotte's app is available in 34 countries including Mainland UK, Northern Ireland, Guernsey, Jersey, Isle of Man, US, Canada, Republic of Ireland, Spain, Germany, Italy, The Netherlands, Australia, Hong Kong, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Greece, Hungary, Latvia, Lichtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Montenegro, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Sweden, Switzerland and France.

Available in five languages (English, French, German, Italian, Spanish) and five currencies (GBP, USD, EUR, CAD, AUD).

*To learn more about how Charlotte Tilbury Beauty collects and processes your personal information, including the images you provide in the Pro Skin Analysis Tool and the Foundation Finder Tool, please see our Biometric Processing Notice and Privacy Policy [https://www.charlottetilbury.com/us/help/biometric-processing-notice]. Your results may be affected by the quality of the image submitted, i.e., lighting, or camera quality.

About Charlotte Tilbury Beauty:

Launched in September 2013 by iconic Beauty Entrepreneur Charlotte Tilbury MBE, Charlotte Tilbury Beauty was born out of Charlotte's long-held desire to empower everyone to feel like the most beautiful version of themselves, helping people around the world gain the confidence to achieve their biggest and boldest dreams.

All of Charlotte's products are her beauty secrets from over 29-years of working in fashion, editorial, runway and red carpet bottled. Offering a wide range of skincare and makeup items, suitable for all skin tones, shades and types, the products aim to beautify and improve the look of skin, using ingredients of the highest quality, formulated in specialist factories worldwide and presented in a distinctive range of sophisticated and luxurious packaging. Market first innovation is key, working with world-leading laboratories on advancements in technology, research-powered formulas and breakthrough ingredients. Charlotte Tilbury Beauty has accumulated over 500 industry awards to date, and continues to break records across regions, channels and categories.

Charlotte Tilbury Beauty continues to break records across regions, channels, and categories. The company now employs over 2,000 people globally and sells over 500 products across color, complexion, and skincare. Charlotte Tilbury has a physical presence in over 20 global markets, is available in 41 countries via charlottetilbury.com, and has over 2000 points of distribution worldwide including department stores and travel retail. In recent years, the brand has opened distribution in a range of new markets including China, Korea, Thailand, India, Australia, and New Zealand.

Media Contact:

[email protected]

SOURCE Charlotte Tilbury
DUBAI, UAE, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- 'Climate x' Leadership Training Program is now accepting applications from college students around the globe. Prospective students can sign up at http://climatexleadership.gauc.net/. The application closes by June 30th, 2023.

'Climate x' Leadership Training Program Welcomes College Students Worldwide

Strategically supported by UNFCCC, UNESCO and the global partners, and co-hosted by Global Alliance of Universities on Climate (GAUC) and Asian Universities Alliance (AUA), this training program aims to equip the next generation with the skills to become future climate leaders. It emphasizes a synergistic approach, bringing together esteemed educational resources and offering an innovative curriculum.

A paradigm shift in development

The transition towards a carbon-neutral economy entails more than just moving away from fossil fuels. It is "a paradigm shift in development, which will give rise to a new model of modernization that can benefit the world and contribute to a green and prosperous future," said Lord Nicholas Stern, Chair of the Grantham Research Institute at LSE and Chair of the Academic Committee of GAUC.

This paradigm shift is accompanied by profound changes in the job market, bringing forth brand new requirements and opportunities. "Today's youths are the leaders and pillars of tomorrow, and regardless of their future careers, they must consider carbon neutrality a common cause," stated Dr. WANG Binbin, the Executive Secretary-General of GAUC.

Themed as 'Climate x', the training program highlights the transformative impact of climate change and its close interconnection with other UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Building upon the success of the 2022 'Climate x' training pilot, which was exclusive to students at GAUC member universities, the 2023 training program aims to help more young people seize the opportunities brought by the paradigm shift and contribute to the realization of a net-zero future by opening enrollment to college students worldwide.

Prestigious education by 28 universities and beyond

Given that the United Arab Emirates (UAE) will host the 2023 UN Climate Change Conference (COP28), GAUC has established a strategic partnership with the Asian Universities Alliance (AUA), an alliance comprising 15 member universities across Asia, to co-host the training program.

By expanding upon GAUC's existing network of member universities, this partnership brings the unique climate change challenges faced by the continent into focus while maintaining a comprehensive global perspective. Throughout the training program, experts from the member universities of GAUC and AUA will collaborate to deliver lectures and workshops, focusing on the synergy between climate change and GAUC's annual key topics, namely the synergy between climate change and clean power, health, disaster, and sustainable fashion.

Furthermore, thanks to its extensive global partner network, the training also features diverse workshops, panel sessions, and extracurricular lectures presented by guest speakers from UN-affiliated organizations, industry, NGOs, civil society, and more.

Raise from trainees to future climate leaders

To empower students to transition from learners of climate knowledge to leaders of climate actions, the training program adopted a 'Train the Trainer' approach through a '1+3' module. Within the module, 1 refers to the online coursework that spans one month in July; 3 symbolizes the three hybrid events that enrolled students are required to complete from August to November, to put their leadership skills and climate knowledge into practice. The third event is acknowledged as the youth-led event of the 2023 Global Youth Climate Week (the Week), a mechanism that GAUC and over 100 global multi-stakeholders co-initiated in 2022.

Upon fulfilling the requirements of the 1+3 module, students will be certified by GAUC and AUA as 'Climate x' Trainers. 'Climate x' Trainers who demonstrate exceptional leadership and dedication during the Week, which is scheduled from November 20th to 24th this year, will receive the additional honor of 'Climate x' Pioneer. The 'Climate x' Pioneers will also have the opportunity to be selected for the COP28 GAUC Youth Delegation and bring the highlights of youth climate actions to the forefront of global climate change governance at COP28 in Dubai.

For the detailed schedule of the 'Climate x' Leadership Training Program, please visit: https://gauc.net/.

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2101448/Climate_x__Leadership_Training_Program_Welcomes_College_Students_Worldwide.jpg

SOURCE Global Alliance of Universities on Climate
Stacey Doherty Joins Growing Consultancy as Senior Vice President of Marketing

INDIANAPOLIS, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Core BTS, a full-service digital transformation consulting firm, has named Stacey Doherty as its Senior Vice President of Marketing. Doherty joins Core from ConvergeOne, where she spearheaded strategic branding and marketing initiatives.

A seasoned marketing leader with more than 20 years of experience, Doherty has a proven track record of driving brand awareness and demand through the design and execution of integrated marketing programs.

Core BTS, a full-service digital transformation consulting firm, welcomes Stacey Doherty as its SVP of Marketing. Tweet this

"Stacey's industry background and experience guiding brands through market expansion makes her uniquely qualified to lead Core BTS through its next phase of growth," said Kevin Thimjon CEO at Core BTS. "As organizations continue their journey along the digital transformation continuum, Stacey will help us showcase how we simplify technical complexity, drive business outcomes, and enable change."

As the Senior Vice President of Marketing, Doherty will lead a results-oriented marketing team with responsibility for go to market strategy execution, demand generation, product marketing, public relations, partner marketing, and brand development and advocacy.

"I am excited to join Core BTS and to be a part of a dynamic team committed to excellence," said Doherty. "I look forward to working with my team to evolve the value proposition we take to the market and help more clients experience the power of digital transformation."

Doherty holds a B.S. in Marketing from Northern Illinois University and is a proud member of Chief, a network of female executives designed to elevate more women into positions of leadership and influence.

Doherty joins an expanding team of industry innovators at Core BTS including recent additions William Volovnik - Vice President of Cisco Alliances, David Tavolaro - Vice President of Partner Alliances, and Perry Thompson - Managing Director of Technology Strategy. With the addition of their collective knowledge and strategic expertise, Core BTS is poised for further growth and brand expansion.

About Core BTS

Core BTS is a full-service digital transformation consultancy helping organizations solve their most pressing challenges by delivering integrated solutions that connect people, processes, and technology to defined business outcomes. Committed to meeting organizations wherever they are at on their journey, our team delivers integrated solutions that connect people, processes, and technology along the digital transformation continuum. We are proudly owned by Nomura Research Institute , a global provider of consulting services and system solutions. Discover more at https://corebts.com/ .

SOURCE Core BTS
The global cruise tourism market is expected to grow primarily due to increasing demand for luxury experiences of cruise tourism. Ocean cruise sub-segment is expected to flourish immensely. The market in the North America region is predicted to grow at a high CAGR by 2031.

NEW YORK, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Global Cruise Tourism Market Forecast Analysis:

As per the report published by Research Dive, the global cruise tourism market is expected to register a revenue of $13,641.4 million by 2031 at a CAGR of 10.4% during the forecast period 2022-2031.

Segments of the Cruise Tourism Market

The report has divided the cruise tourism market into the following segments:

Cruise Type : river cruise, ocean cruise, expedition cruise, theme cruise, adventure cruise, and others

: river cruise, ocean cruise, expedition cruise, theme cruise, adventure cruise, and others Ocean Cruise Most dominant by 2031

The ocean cruise sub-segment is expected to be dominant by 2031 owing to growing popularity of themed cruises such as adventure cruises, music cruises, or culinary cruises.

Most dominant by 2031 The ocean cruise sub-segment is expected to be dominant by 2031 owing to growing popularity of themed cruises such as adventure cruises, music cruises, or culinary cruises. Duration : 1-3 days, 4-6 days, 7 days, 8 to 13 days, 14 days, 15-20 days, and more than 21 days

: 1-3 days, 4-6 days, 7 days, 8 to 13 days, 14 days, 15-20 days, and more than 21 days 7 Days High growth rate by 2031

The 7 days sub-segment is predicted to have a significant CAGR in the 2022-2031 timeframe. The rising income levels of people across the world are expected to augment the growth rate of the market in the 2022-2031 timeframe.

High growth rate by 2031 The 7 days sub-segment is predicted to have a significant CAGR in the 2022-2031 timeframe. The rising income levels of people across the world are expected to augment the growth rate of the market in the 2022-2031 timeframe. Passenger Age : less than 12 years, 13-19 years, 20-29 years, 30-39 years, 40-49 years, 50-59 years, and above 60 years

: less than 12 years, 13-19 years, 20-29 years, 30-39 years, 40-49 years, 50-59 years, and above 60 years 40-49 Years Highest market share in 2021

The 40-49 years age group tends to be more financially stable and can afford the higher-end cruises that offer more amenities and services. The financially stable nature of this age group is predicted to push the growth rate of the sub-segment.

Highest market share in 2021 The 40-49 years age group tends to be more financially stable and can afford the higher-end cruises that offer more amenities and services. The financially stable nature of this age group is predicted to push the growth rate of the sub-segment. Region : North America , Europe , Asia-Pacific , and LAMEA

: , , , and LAMEA North America  Significant market share in 2021

The rapidly increasing popularity of cruising as a vacation option is predicted to help the market in this region to grow at a significant CAGR in the forecast period.

To get access to the Complete PDF Sample of Cruise Tourism Market Click Here!

Dynamics of the Global Cruise Tourism Market

The growing demand for luxury experiences of cruise tourism is expected to make the cruise tourism market a highly profitable one in the forecast period. Additionally, growing disposable incomes of global populations is predicted to propel the market forward. However, according to market analysts, safety and security concerns over cruise tourism might become a restraint in the growth of the market.

Growing tendency of travellers for seeking unique and memorable experiences is predicted to offer numerous growth opportunities to the market in the forecast period. Moreover, rising consumer demand for cruise tourism is expected to propel the cruise tourism market forward in the coming period.

COVID-19 Impact on the Global Cruise Tourism Market

The Covid-19 pandemic disrupted the routine lifestyle of people across the globe and the subsequent lockdowns adversely impacted the industrial processes across all sectors. The cruise tourism market, too, faced a similar fate. The travel restrictions put in place by several countries drastically reduced the demand for cruise tourism which affected the growth rate of the market significantly.

Check out COVID-19 Impact on Cruise Tourism Market. Connect with an Expert Analyst or Schedule a call

Key Players of the Global Cruise Tourism Market

The major players of the market include

Ambassador Cruise Holidays Limited

Cosmos Tours Ltd

Norwegian Cruise Line

AmaWaterways

Kerala Shipping and Inland Navigation Corporation Ltd.

Silversea Cruises

Carnival Corporation & plc

Mediterranean Shipping Company S.A.

Seabourn Cruise Line

Ponant

These players are working on developing strategies such as product development, merger and acquisition, partnerships, and collaborations to sustain market growth.

For instance, in March 2023, the Saudi Arabian government, announced that had signed an acquisition agreement to acquire Genting Hong Kong's World Dream cruise ship. The Saudi Arabian government stated this acquisition as a part of its plans to expand the tourism industry of the country and diversify the tourism options available in the country.

Request Customization of Cruise Tourism Market Report as per your Definition and Format & Avail of Amazing Discount

What the Report Covers

Apart from the information summarized in this press release, the final report covers crucial aspects of the market including SWOT analysis, market overview, Porter's five forces analysis, market dynamics, segmentation (key market trends, forecast analysis, and regional analysis), and company profiles (company overview, operating business segments, product portfolio, financial performance, and latest strategic moves and developments.)

More about Cruise Tourism Market:

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About Research Dive

Research Dive is a market research firm based in Pune, India. Maintaining the integrity and authenticity of the services, the firm provides the services that are solely based on its exclusive data model, compelled by the 360-degree research methodology, which guarantees comprehensive and accurate analysis. With an unprecedented access to several paid data resources, team of expert researchers, and strict work ethic, the firm offers insights that are extremely precise and reliable. Scrutinizing relevant news releases, government publications, decades of trade data, and technical & white papers, Research dive deliver the required services to its clients well within the required timeframe. Its expertise is focused on examining niche markets, targeting its major driving factors, and spotting threatening hindrances. Complementarily, it also has a seamless collaboration with the major industry aficionado that further offers its research an edge.

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BETHESDA, Md., June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The Oakleaf Group, a leading provider of advisory services and solutions for the mortgage and financial services industries, is pleased to announce the appointment of David Steel as Managing Director of Risk Management and Litigation Support Advisory. In his new role, Mr. Steel will spearhead the development of Oakleaf's Risk Management Practice and drive the expansion of the company's litigation support advisory business.

With extensive experience in the financial services industry, Mr. Steel brings expertise in credit risk underwriting, enterprise risk management, portfolio management, business strategy, restructurings, and arbitrations. Prior to joining Oakleaf, he successfully de-risked an $8.3 billion reinsurance portfolio as a consultant for American Overseas Re. He also served as Chief Risk Officer for a major US bank's life and annuity reinsurance venture, leading the establishment of an ERM framework, underwriting guidelines, and corporate governance policies and procedures.

While leading RAM Reinsurance Company Ltd, Mr. Steel managed a $49 billion portfolio of global financial guaranty reinsurance, overseeing a successful restructuring and refocusing on property casualty reinsurance. He has held senior positions at Hanovertrade, ACE Capital Re Inc., GE Capital/Financial Guaranty Insurance Company, and Lehman Brothers.

"We are thrilled to welcome David to Oakleaf," said Bruce Legan, Oakleaf President. "David's remarkable track record and deep expertise will be instrumental in strengthening our capabilities and driving our continued success. We are confident that his leadership and strategic vision will further enhance our client offerings and solidify our position as a trusted advisor in the financial services sector."

David Steel expressed his enthusiasm for his new role, stating, "I'm excited to collaborate with the talented team at Oakleaf and leverage our deep industry expertise to deliver innovative solutions that address the evolving challenges of our clients. Together, we will continue to drive excellence in risk management and provide exceptional value to our clients."

About Oakleaf

Oakleaf is a mortgage consulting firm specializing in regulatory compliance, loan review, risk analytics, financial modeling, and litigation support services solely for the mortgage and financial services industries. Our seasoned practitioners utilize their vast experience and domain knowledge to provide the insights, perspectives, and tailored solutions necessary to meet our clients' business needs and solve their most complex problems. Our combination of subject matter expertise, client-focused approach, and commitment to excellence has made Oakleaf a trusted leader in the industry for 15 years. For more information, visit www.oakleaf.com and follow Oakleaf on LinkedIn.

Media Contact:

Tara Johnston

[email protected]

SOURCE The Oakleaf Group
SANTA BARBARA, Calif., June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- It was recently revealed that Tesla's Full Self-Driving and Autopilot software has been involved in 736 crashes since 2019, according to analysis of National Highway Traffic Safety Administration data, far exceeding the number of crashes in previous reported statistics.

A crash involving a Tesla Model Y on North Carolina Highway 561 and seventeen-year-old Tillman Mitchell in March 2023 is one of the crashes revealed in the new analysis, highlighting a concerning array of safety defects in Tesla's self-driving software. Tesla's self-driving software failed to stop for the school bus with its stop sign extended and lights flashing which Mitchell was disembarking, leaving Mitchell hospitalised. This follows public safety group The Dawn Project publishing a full-page advertisement in The New York Times in November 2022 highlighting the dangers of Tesla Full Self-Driving after safety tests revealed that it will drive around a stopped school bus with its stop sign extended and lights flashing, failing to obey school zone speed limits.

Dan O'Dowd, Founder of The Dawn Project commented: "Seven months ago, I took out a full-page ad in the New York Times pointing out to Tesla that it could kill a child getting on or off a school bus. But Elon did nothing and now Tillman Mitchell is badly injured and hospitalised. I also showed them tests where Full Self-Driving would run over a child crossing the road. I offered them any assistance they needed to reproduce our tests.

According to a June 10, 2023, Washington Post article, on March 15, 2023, a Tesla running FSD ran down a child getting off a school bus whose lights were flashing and whose stop sign was extended.

It's very simple. If Tesla cannot teach its Full Self-Driving car to stop for a school bus with its light flashing and stop sign extended, along with fixing many other safety critical safety defects that The Dawn Project has identified, it should not be allowed to sell it to the public."

Dan O'Dowd is an entrepreneur and CEO with over 40 years' experience in designing and writing secure, safety-critical software. Dan has built operating systems for the U.S. military's fighter jets and some of the world's most trusted organizations such as NASA, Boeing, and Airbus.

In 2021 Dan O'Dowd founded The Dawn Project, which campaigns to ensure all software in safety-critical infrastructure is secure and to make computers safe for humanity. The first danger The Dawn Project is tackling is Elon Musk's reckless deployment of unsafe Full Self-Driving cars on our roads.

To view The Dawn Project's recent Super Bowl ad highlighting the dangers of Full Self-Driving, please click here. The ad was broadcast during Super Bowl LVII on Sunday 12 February 2023 across California, Texas, Georgia, New York, Florida and Washington D.C.

For a full report of The Dawn Project's safety tests of Tesla Full Self-Driving, please see here.

To view The Dawn Project's full-page ad in The New York Times highlighting the dangers of Tesla Full Self-Driving after safety tests revealed that it will drive around a stopped school bus with its stop sign extended and lights flashing, and fails to obey school zone speed limits, please see here. The ad was published in The New York Times on Sunday 20 November 2022.

SOURCE The Dawn Project
This aerial photo taken on June 13, 2023 shows a view of Qiangjiao Town of Ninghai County, east China's Zhejiang Province. Qiangjiao is a marine peninsula town with rich natural and tourism resources. In recent years, the local government has made great efforts to promote all-in-one tourism, connecting islands, scenic spots, and villages, and has launched coastal tourism attractions, effectively boosting rural revitalization. (Xinhua/Weng Xinyang)

This aerial photo taken on June 13, 2023 shows people visiting a flower field in Qiangjiao Town of Ninghai County, east China's Zhejiang Province. Qiangjiao is a marine peninsula town with rich natural and tourism resources. In recent years, the local government has made great efforts to promote all-in-one tourism, connecting islands, scenic spots, and villages, and has launched coastal tourism attractions, effectively boosting rural revitalization. (Xinhua/Weng Xinyang)

People rest at a beverage shop in Qiangjiao Town of Ninghai County, east China's Zhejiang Province, June 12, 2023. Qiangjiao is a marine peninsula town with rich natural and tourism resources. In recent years, the local government has made great efforts to promote all-in-one tourism, connecting islands, scenic spots, and villages, and has launched coastal tourism attractions, effectively boosting rural revitalization. (Xinhua/Weng Xinyang)

People visit a flower field in Qiangjiao Town of Ninghai County, east China's Zhejiang Province, June 13, 2023. Qiangjiao is a marine peninsula town with rich natural and tourism resources. In recent years, the local government has made great efforts to promote all-in-one tourism, connecting islands, scenic spots, and villages, and has launched coastal tourism attractions, effectively boosting rural revitalization. (Xinhua/Weng Xinyang)

A woman livestreams at a flower field in Qiangjiao Town of Ninghai County, east China's Zhejiang Province, June 13, 2023. Qiangjiao is a marine peninsula town with rich natural and tourism resources. In recent years, the local government has made great efforts to promote all-in-one tourism, connecting islands, scenic spots, and villages, and has launched coastal tourism attractions, effectively boosting rural revitalization. (Xinhua/Weng Xinyang)

A worker of a homestay prepares a paddle board for a customer in Qiangjiao Town of Ninghai County, east China's Zhejiang Province, June 12, 2023. Qiangjiao is a marine peninsula town with rich natural and tourism resources. In recent years, the local government has made great efforts to promote all-in-one tourism, connecting islands, scenic spots, and villages, and has launched coastal tourism attractions, effectively boosting rural revitalization. (Xinhua/Weng Xinyang)

People rest at a coastal coffee shop in Qiangjiao Town of Ninghai County, east China's Zhejiang Province, June 12, 2023. Qiangjiao is a marine peninsula town with rich natural and tourism resources. In recent years, the local government has made great efforts to promote all-in-one tourism, connecting islands, scenic spots, and villages, and has launched coastal tourism attractions, effectively boosting rural revitalization. (Xinhua/Weng Xinyang)

The owner of a coffee shop makes coffee for customers in Qiangjiao Town of Ninghai County, east China's Zhejiang Province, June 12, 2023. Qiangjiao is a marine peninsula town with rich natural and tourism resources. In recent years, the local government has made great efforts to promote all-in-one tourism, connecting islands, scenic spots, and villages, and has launched coastal tourism attractions, effectively boosting rural revitalization. (Xinhua/Weng Xinyang)

Tourists disembark from a ship after offshore sightseeing in Qiangjiao Town of Ninghai County, east China's Zhejiang Province, June 12, 2023. Qiangjiao is a marine peninsula town with rich natural and tourism resources. In recent years, the local government has made great efforts to promote all-in-one tourism, connecting islands, scenic spots, and villages, and has launched coastal tourism attractions, effectively boosting rural revitalization. (Xinhua/Weng Xinyang)

Editor: Zhang Zhou
WESTBOROUGH, Mass., June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- EG America, a leading convenience, coffee, fuel, and food service retailer, today announced it raised $636,000 in its most recent fundraising campaign for the American Cancer Society. Throughout the month of May, guests donated $1, $5 or an amount of their choosing during checkout when they visited any of EG America's more than 1700 stores nationally, including Cumberland Farms, Fastrac, Kwik Shop, Certified Oil, Turkey Hill, Loaf 'N Jug, Minit Mart, Quik Stop, Sprint Food Stores, and Tom Thumb.

American Cancer Society logo (Left to right: Anthony Marino (American Cancer Society), Louise Santosuosso (American Cancer Society), Michelle Wolf (America Cancer Society), Danielle Maxwell (American Cancer Society), Craig Callahan (American Cancer Society), Sandra Tierney (EG America), Jon Arnold (EG America), Caroline Taitelbaum (EG America), Nick Unkovic (EG America))

"We are incredibly grateful for the continued generosity of EG America and its guests for their support of our important mission, and through their partnership, we'll be able to invest greater resources into the fight against cancer nationwide," said Anthony Marino, Executive Vice President of the American Cancer Society.

All proceeds from the fundraiser are going towards the American Cancer Society's mission to offer life-saving programs, research, and services that will help patients and families impacted by cancer with the vision of ending cancer for everyone. This year's "Fuel The Hope for Change" campaign specifically focuses on essential advocacy, research, and patient support programs. On June 13th, members of EG America leadership presented a check to representatives from the American Cancer Society as follows: Anthony Marino, Executive Vice President - Northeast Region; Louise Santosuosso, Vice President of Development  New England; Danielle Maxwell, Senior Director, Corporate Relations; Craig Callahan, Director, Corporate Relations; and Michelle Wolf, Senior Program Manager, Corporate Account Operations.

"As cancer impacts so many people, either directly or indirectly, our partnership with the American Cancer Society helps us do our part in raising funds to find a cure for this terrible disease," said Caroline Taitelbaum, President of EG America. "We owe the tremendous success of this fundraiser to the generosity of our guests, whose unwavering support is so crucial to achieving meaningful progress towards ending cancer."

About EG Group

Founded in 2001 by the Issa family, United Kingdom-based EG Group is a leading convenience retailer which has established partnerships with global brands. The business has an established pedigree of delivering world-class Grocery & Merchandise, Foodservice and Fuel offer.

EG Group currently employs in excess of 50,000 colleagues working in more than 6,300 sites across USA, UK & Ireland, Continental Europe and Australia.

Zuber Issa CBE and Mohsin Issa CBE, founders and co-CEOs, EG Group, were honoured in the Queen's Birthday Honours List 2020 for their contribution to business and charity. They were also jointly named the 2018 EY Entrepreneur of the Year in the UK.

Further information at www.eg.group

About the American Cancer Society

The American Cancer Society is a leading cancer-fighting organization with a vision to end cancer as we know it, for everyone. For more than 100 years, we have been improving the lives of people with cancer and their families as the only organization combating cancer through advocacy, research, and patient support. We are committed to ensuring everyone has an opportunity to prevent, detect, treat, and survive cancer. To learn more, visit cancer.org or call our 24/7 helpline at 1-800-227-2345. Connect with us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram

The American Cancer Society does not endorse any product or service.

Contact:

Emma Braun

617-337-9521

[email protected]com

SOURCE EG Group
MAYFIELD HEIGHTS, Ohio, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Elk & Elk Co., Ltd. is honored to be named as one of the 2023 Best Employers in Ohio by Best Companies Group in partnership with Crain's Cleveland Business and Crain's Content Studio-Cleveland.

This statewide survey and awards program aims to acknowledge and celebrate the exceptional workplaces in Ohio. These businesses contribute to the state's economy, workforce, and local businesses. The 2023 Best Employers in Ohio list comprises 60 companies recognized for outstanding work environments.

Elk + Elk Recognized as One of Ohio's Best Employers in 2023

"We celebrate employee tenure annually in our office as the best reflection of employee experience, culture and office performance," said Elk + Elk manager partner Jay Kelley. "Our current average employee tenure is 11 years. We value each as coworker, team member and family."

The 2023 Best Employers in Ohio program's initial phase assesses workplace policies, practices, philosophy, systems, and demographics. This portion accounted for approximately 25 percent of the overall evaluation. The second phase involves an employee survey to gauge the employee experience. This stage constituted approximately 75 percent of the total evaluation. Combined scores then determined final rankings.

For more information about the Best Employers in Ohio program and to view the complete list of recognized companies, visit here.

About Elk + Elk

The Elk + Elk personal injury law firm represents clients in cases throughout Ohio. The firm has 19 trial attorneys with experience in motor vehicle collisions, medical malpractice, nursing home neglect, defective products, workplace accidents, and premises liability. Elk & Elk Co., Ltd. has offices located at 6105 Parkland Boulevard, Suite 200, Mayfield Heights, Ohio 44124 and locations throughout Ohio, including Cleveland, Columbus, Cincinnati, Akron, Canton, Dayton, Toledo, and Youngstown. For more information, visit elkandelk.com.

SOURCE Elk + Elk
Iconic sweet baked goods brand becomes first to feature NaviLens technology on packaging

ISLANDIA, N.Y., June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Entenmann's fans are in for a real delight! The iconic sweet baked goods brand is transforming its line of Entenmann's Minis to Entenmann's Baker's Delights, now a permanent addition to its portfolio of delicious products. With the same great Minis taste and individually-wrapped packaging for freshness and convenience on the go, Entenmann's Baker's Delights were developed to fit the busy lifestyles of consumers, while satisfying sweet cravings anytime and anywhere.

Entenmann's Baker's Delights Mini Crumb Cakes

Grounded in consumer insights, the transition to Baker's Delight's was implemented to meet the needs of consumers within the sweet baked good snacking category and to ensure the name, branding and positioning reinforce the equity and heritage of the Entenmann's brand to a new generation of consumers.

"As a brand founded by an authentic baker who took joy in baking for others, we wanted to ensure the new look and feel of Baker's Delights remained true to the brand's roots while allowing us to authentically connect with and be present in the everyday lives of our consumers," said Catherine Danielowich, Senior Brand Manager at Entenmann's. "The use of 'baker' in the name reinforces the brand's heritage and high-quality products made with care, while "delights" emulates a positive taste experience and appreciation for those everyday moments where consumers are looking for a delicious, fresh, and convenient snack."

In addition to a new name, logo and overall look and feel, Entenmann's is proud to integrate NaviLens Technology on its retail boxes, which helps visually impaired people find products by hearing their name, nutrition and allergen information, allowing them to shop more independently. Users can download the NaviLens GO App from the App Store or Google Play. As part of Grupo Bimbo's greater commitment to inclusivity, Entenmann's is the first sweet baked goods brand to partner with NaviLens on this technology.

Available now in a variety of classic flavors ranging from Crumb Cake and Brownie Chocolate Chip to Apple Snack Pies, Entenmann's Baker's Delights are high-quality snacks with care, plus, they're just the right portion size. Each box comes with six to eight individually-wrapped mini snacks, making them the perfect uplifting treat for any time of day.

Entenmann's Baker's Delights are available at most major retailers, along with Entenmann's product lineup of donuts, crumb cake, cookies and more. To learn more about Entenmann's Baker's Delights and where to buy them, visit https://www.entenmanns.com/en/brand/bakers-delights. Entenmann's goes great with people.

For high-res visual assets, click here.

About Entenmann's Bakery

Entenmann's history dates back 125 years to 1898 when William Entenmann opened his first bakery in Brooklyn, New York. By the 1960s the company was selling delicious donuts throughout the New York metropolitan area; by the 1970s it began selling nationwide. Today, the Entenmann's portfolio includes over 100 different baked goods in the U.S., including donuts, snack cakes and pies, cakes, cookies and more, providing a wide variety of delicious baked goods to choose from that everyone can enjoy.

About Bimbo Bakeries USA

Bimbo Bakeries USA (BBU) is a leader in the baking industry, known for its category leading brands, innovative products, freshness and quality. Our team of 20,000+ U.S. associates operates more than 50 manufacturing locations in the United States. Over 11,000 distribution routes deliver our leading brands such as Arnold, Artesano, Ball Park, Bimbo, Boboli, Brownberry, Entenmann's, Little Bites, Marinela, Mrs Baird's, Oroweat, Sara Lee, Stroehmann and Thomas'. BBU is owned by Mexico's Grupo Bimbo, S.A.B de C.V., the world's largest baking company with operations in 33 countries.

SOURCE Entenmanns
EV automakers, biogas producers meet with the White House on pending Renewable Fuel Standard 'eRIN' proposal

WASHINGTON, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- More than a dozen automakers and biogas producers recently urged the Biden Administration to finalize the proposed 'eRINs' program under the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's ("EPA") Renewable Fuel Standard ("RFS"). In the June meeting, led by Bridge to Renewables, Inc. ("BTR"), the stakeholders present expressed broad and robust support for the White House Office of Management and Budget to finalize EPA's proposal such that eRIN generation may begin in 2024.

BTR submitted one of the first registration applications to generate eRINs in 2015 and has continuously engaged the EPA in the development of regulations for the program. The company's Chief Executive Officer, Jack Barrow, released the following statement:

More than a dozen automakers and biogas producers recently urged the Biden Administration to finalize the proposed 'eRINs' program. Tweet this

"The EPA's long-awaited eRINs program, as proposed last year, would undoubtedly result in meaningful emissions reductions from the transportation and energy industries. It would support the transition to electric vehicles and encourage the capture and productive use of methane at existing landfills and farms across the U.S. The program would also be complementary to other important policies recently proposed by the Biden Administration and would help the White House achieve its climate goals more broadly. Congress has long intended for electricity to be actively included in the RFS as a transportation fuel, and finalizing the eRINs program, a tool readily available to the EPA, should not be further delayed. BTR strongly encourages the Biden Administration to include eRINs in the final rule on June 21st to realize all of the program's potential benefits beginning in 2024."

ABOUT BTR

Bridge to Renewables, Inc. (dba "BTR") is on a mission to maximize the environmental impact of every electric vehicle, everywhere. Since its founding in 2015, BTR has been one of the earliest supporters of the eRINs program and has continuously engaged the EPA in developing its regulations. The Company provides an industry-leading platform that empowers electric vehicle manufacturers, fleet operators, charging station networks, and renewable energy generators to work together to reduce emissions and to participate in low carbon and renewable transportation fuel programs, like the eRINs program and California's Low Carbon Fuel Standard program. Through these new and innovative strategic partnerships, BTR supports its clients in electrifying and decarbonizing the transportation sector. For more information, visit: www.btr.energy.

Media Contact: Ashley P. Beaty

[email protected]

(202) 674-5305

SOURCE BTR Energy
DUBLIN, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The "Europe Embedded Finance Business and Investment Opportunities - 50+ KPIs on Embedded Lending, Insurance, Payment, and Wealth Segments - Q1 2023 Update" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.

Embedded Finance industry in the region is expected to grow by 35.6% on annual basis to reach US$46.964.4 billion in 2023.



The embedded finance industry is expected to grow steadily over the forecast period, recording a CAGR of 25.4% during 2023-2029. The embedded finance revenues in the country will increase from US$46.964 billion in 2023 to reach US$134.874 billion by 2029.



Across Europe, retailers are looking at embedded finance as an opportunity to drive revenue and accelerate business growth. E-commerce platforms and distributors are offering financial products, such as credits, loans, and even debit cards, to their customers. With more and more consumers changing the way they source financial services and moving out of traditional banking channels, the trend is projected to further accelerate in Europe.



Furthermore, with innovative embedded finance platforms making integration of regulated products into the customer journey as simple as creating an online account, the embedded finance industry is projected to record significant growth. As the appetite for embedded finance continues to grow, the mergers and acquisition trends are also expected to gain momentum in the European market from the short to medium-term perspective.



Fintech firms are launching embedded finance products amid growing demand in Europe



As more businesses seek to add another revenue source to their core business operations, firms are increasingly adding embedding financial services into their products and services. Amid the growing demand for such solutions, fintech firms are launching new products in the market. For instance,

In October 2022, Adyen, the Dutch fintech firm, announced the launch of new embedded finance products, Capital and Accounts. Capital allows digital platforms to offer finance solutions to businesses. The credit availability is based on historic payment data. On the other hand, Accounts allow users to run their finances on platforms where they do their business, while also allowing them to receive the funds instantaneously.

With the demand for working capital growing among businesses, especially for small and medium-sized enterprises, the author expects the Capital product launched by Adyen to gain widespread adoption among businesses across the region. Several players are competing for market share in the B2B embedded lending space, including MarketFinance and Amazon. The entry of Adyen into the space will further boost the competitive landscape in the European market from the short to medium-term perspective.



The demand for embedded finance is growing across Europe in the mobility sector



Embedded finance has shown growing prominence across different industry verticals. To drive customer loyalty, revenue streams, and customer basket, businesses across verticals have adopted embedded finance solutions. From the short to medium-term perspective, businesses in the mobility sector are also projected to follow suit, as the consumer appetite to access such services is growing in the mobility sector.

According to a report from Solaris and the Handelsblatt Research Institute, more than a third of the consumers in Germany, France, Italy, and Spain, open accounts and apply for credit with mobility brands. Italy has taken the lead over other countries in terms of consumers willing to use embedded finance services from mobility providers. This is followed by Spain, Germany, and France. In Germany, the trend is much higher among consumers aged 25 - 34.

Amid the growing trend, pay33, the Germany-based e-mobility payments firm, entered into a strategic collaboration with Swan, the embedded finance provider, in December 2022. Under the partnership, the firms will launch payment-enabled mobility cards for the e-mobility market. Furthermore, pay33 will also provide its users with a smart account, thereby bringing embedded financial services to the mobility sector.

From the short to medium-term perspective, more such strategic collaborations are expected to take place in the mobility sector. This will keep supporting the growth of the industry across the European region over the next three to four years.



Travelers are demanding embedded insurance services from their travel-based booking platforms in Europe



The pandemic has reiterated the need for insurance policies among consumers in Europe. With travel activities being the major source of Covid-19 infection, more and more travelers bought insurance to keep them protected in case of potential infection. This led to the demand for embedded insurance services and the trend has continued to grow ever since the pandemic outbreak.



As a result of this growing demand, more insurtech firms are launching embedded insurance products in the region. In November 2022, VisitorsCoverage, the travel insurtech firm, launched an embedded software-as-a-service to cater to the growing demand for insurance among travelers. Owing to its convenience, automated claim processing, reliable services, and instant fixed pay-outs, the demand is projected to further continue over the next three to four years.



Furthermore, the pent-up travel demand is projected to drive more revenue for travel booking platforms that offer embedded insurance services. Consequently, the author expects more players to offer such solutions on their platforms in Europe from the short to medium-term perspective.



This report provides regional insights into key trends and drivers along with a detailed data centric analysis of market opportunities in embedded finance industry at regional and country level.



Region and countries included in this report are:



1. Europe Embedded Finance Business and Investment Opportunities

2. Austria Embedded Finance Business and Investment Opportunities

3. Belgium Embedded Finance Business and Investment Opportunities

4. Denmark Embedded Finance Business and Investment Opportunities

5. Finland Embedded Finance Business and Investment Opportunities

6. France Embedded Finance Business and Investment Opportunities

7. Germany Embedded Finance Business and Investment Opportunities

8. Greece Embedded Finance Business and Investment Opportunities

9. Ireland Embedded Finance Business and Investment Opportunities

10. Israel Embedded Finance Business and Investment Opportunities

11. Italy Embedded Finance Business and Investment Opportunities

12. Netherlands Embedded Finance Business and Investment Opportunities

13. Poland Embedded Finance Business and Investment Opportunities

14. Russia Embedded Finance Business and Investment Opportunities

15. Spain Embedded Finance Business and Investment Opportunities

16. Switzerland Embedded Finance Business and Investment Opportunities

17. United Kingdom Embedded Finance Business and Investment Opportunities



For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/e3j41m

About ResearchAndMarkets.com

ResearchAndMarkets.com is the world's leading source for international market research reports and market data. We provide you with the latest data on international and regional markets, key industries, the top companies, new products and the latest trends.

Media Contact:

Research and Markets

Laura Wood, Senior Manager

[email protected]

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SOURCE Research and Markets
Entrepreneur Of The Year celebrates ambitious entrepreneurs who are building a better world

MONTCLAIR, N.J., June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Ernst & Young LLP (EY US) today announced that Giuseppe Incitti, CEO of Sitetracker was named an Entrepreneur Of The Year 2023 New Jersey Award winner. The Entrepreneur Of The Year Awards program is one of the preeminent competitive awards for entrepreneurs and leaders of high-growth companies. Mr. Incitti was selected by an independent judging panel made up of previous award winners, leading CEOs, investors and other regional business leaders. The candidates were evaluated based on their demonstration of building long-term value through entrepreneurial spirit, purpose, growth and impact, among other core contributions and attributes.

"Being included among the many impressive finalists in the New Jersey area is a humbling experience," said Incitti. "Winning the prestigious EY Entrepreneur Of The Year award is a testament to the hard work and dedication of the 350 members of the Sitetracker team focused on our mission to accelerate the transition to a fully connected and sustainable future."

For nearly four decades, EY US has honored entrepreneurs whose ambition, courage and ingenuity have driven their companies' success, transformed their industries and made a positive impact on their communities. Entrepreneur Of The Year Award winners become lifetime members of a global, multi-industry community of entrepreneurs, with exclusive, ongoing access to the experience, insight and wisdom of program alumni and other ecosystem members in over 60 countries  all supported by vast EY resources. Since 1986, the Entrepreneur Of The Year program has recognized more than 11,000 US executives.

As a New Jersey award winner, Incitti is now eligible for consideration for the Entrepreneur Of The Year 2023 National Awards. Under Incitti's leadership, Sitetracker finished 2022 with nearly 50% year-over-year revenue growth due to an almost 50% increase in new customers and expanded agreements from more than 65% of its existing customer base. Additionally, the company launched several new offerings specific to the telecom and energy markets, completed a new round of equity and debt financing totaling $96M and strengthened its team by adding seasoned industry talent with decades of combined telecom and energy expertise.

The Entrepreneur Of The Year program has honored the inspirational leadership of entrepreneurs such as:

Andreas Bechtolsheim and Jayshree Ullal of Arista Networks

and of Arista Networks Daymond John of FUBU

of FUBU Hamdi Ulukaya of Chobani, Inc.

of Chobani, Inc. Holly Thaggard and Amanda Baldwin of Supergoop!

and of Supergoop! Howard Schultz of Starbucks Coffee Company

of Starbucks Coffee Company James Park of Fitbit

of Fitbit Jodi Berg of Vitamix

of Vitamix Joe DeSimone of Carbon, Inc.

of Carbon, Inc. Kendra Scott of Kendra Scott LLC

of Kendra Scott LLC Reid Hoffman and Jeff Weiner of LinkedIn Corporation

and of LinkedIn Corporation Sheila Mikhail of AskBio

Sponsors

Founded and produced by Ernst & Young LLP, the Entrepreneur Of The Year Awards include presenting sponsors PNC Bank, N.A.; SAP America; and the Kauffman Foundation. In New Jersey, sponsors also include DLA Piper; Marsh & McLennan; and Cresa Global.

About Entrepreneur Of The Year

Entrepreneur Of The Year is the world's most prestigious business awards program for unstoppable entrepreneurs. These visionary leaders deliver innovation, growth and prosperity that transform our world. The program engages entrepreneurs with insights and experiences that foster growth. It connects them with their peers to strengthen entrepreneurship around the world. Entrepreneur Of The Year is the first and only truly global awards program of its kind. It celebrates entrepreneurs through regional and national awards programs in more than 145 cities in over 60 countries. National Overall Award winners go on to compete for the World Entrepreneur Of The Year title. Visit ey.com/us/eoy.

About EY Private

As Advisors to the ambitious, EY Private professionals possess the experience and passion to support private businesses and their owners in unlocking the full potential of their ambitions. EY Private teams offer distinct insights born from the long EY history of working with business owners and entrepreneurs. These teams support the full spectrum of private enterprises including private capital managers and investors and the portfolio businesses they fund, business owners, family businesses, family offices and entrepreneurs. Visit ey.com/us/private.

About EY

EY exists to build a better working world, helping create long-term value for clients, people and society and build trust in the capital markets.

Enabled by data and technology, diverse EY teams in over 150 countries provide trust through assurance and help clients grow, transform and operate.

Working across assurance, consulting, law, strategy, tax and transactions, EY teams ask better questions to find new answers for the complex issues facing our world today.

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. Information about how EY collects and uses personal data and a description of the rights individuals have under data protection legislation are available via ey.com/privacy. EY member firms do not practice law where prohibited by local laws. For more information about our organization, please visit ey.com.

About Sitetracker

Sitetracker powers the rapid deployment of tomorrow's infrastructure. The global leader in deployment operations management software, Sitetracker helps innovative companies like British Telecom, Zayo, Vantage Towers, Nextera, Dominion Energy, ChargePoint, Honeywell, and Southern Company plan, deploy, and manage millions of sites and assets representing over $150 billion in portfolio holdings. By giving telecommunications, utility, smart cities, and energy teams a cloud-based solution that works easily and effectively, Sitetracker accelerates the transition to a fully connected and sustainable future. Deploy what's next. For more information, please visit www.sitetracker.com.

SOURCE Sitetracker
WASHINGTON, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The following statement was issued by Dan Stein, president of the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR) in response to the announcement by the House Homeland Security Committee that they are launching an investigation into DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas for dereliction of duty:

"On February 2, 2021, Alejandro Mayorkas took an oath to 'faithfully discharge the duties of the office' he was about to enter. Two and a half years later, it is patently evident that not only is Mr. Mayorkas not faithfully discharging his duties as Secretary of Homeland Security, but that he never had any intention of doing so.

"As Secretary, Mayorkas has refused to carry out his duties to enforce our nation's immigration laws or secure our borders, resulting in an unprecedented humanitarian and national security crisis. Moreover, he has openly defied numerous court rulings ordering him and his department to enforce those laws.

"His actions have empowered and enriched international criminal cartels that engage in the abhorrent trade of smuggling and trafficking human beings, often with tragic consequences. Additionally, those cartels smuggle lethal narcotics, responsible for the deaths of more than 100,000 Americans each year, across the borders he refuses to protect. At the same time, his defiance of our laws and his oath of office are imposing unsustainable burdens on communities all across the United States, costing American taxpayers additional billions of dollars.

"All the while, Secretary Mayorkas has lied to the American people, and under oath to Congress, by repeatedly declaring that our borders are under control, even as the people who work for him concede they are not.

"It is time for Alejandro Mayorkas to be held accountable for his dangerous dereliction of his duties and his oath of office as Secretary of DHS. We commend the House Homeland Security Committee, which has direct oversight of his department, for initiating this investigation into his actions. If the Committee concludes that he is in dereliction, the next step must be to begin impeachment proceedings against him.

"The job of the DHS Secretary is to uphold our laws. Under Secretary Mayorkas, DHS has consistently subverted them."

Contact: Ron Kovach, 202-328-7004 or [email protected].

ABOUT FAIR

Founded in 1979, FAIR is the country's largest immigration reform group. With over 3 million members and supporters nationwide, FAIR fights for immigration policies that serve national interests, not special interests. FAIR believes that immigration reform must enhance national security, improve the economy, protect jobs, preserve our environment, and establish a rule of law that is recognized and enforced.

SOURCE Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR)
LAS VEGAS, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Prominent leaders of the Filipino American community are calling for justice and proactive safety measures for the elderly man who was attacked on May 30, as well as urgent steps to end the alarming rise in Asian hate crimes. The elderly Filipino American man, 75-year-old Amadeo Quindara, is living in fear for his life and safety as the attacker was recently released from jail and apparently continues to pose a threat to him. The perpetrator has only been charged with a misdemeanor and not for assault.

The attack comes at a time when there is an alarming surge in hate crimes against Asian Americans nationally, and as Nevada's Filipino American population is growing rapidly. There was a disturbing 167% increase in anti-Asian hate crimes during the first year of the pandemic alone, according to the FBI. There are now approximately 170,000 Filipino Americans in Nevada, who fill vital roles working in the healthcare industry, education, small business, and every profession and cross section of society. Below are statements from prominent leaders of the Filipino American community:

"When Filipino Americans heard about this brutal attack, we took it very personally, because the first thought we had was 'That could have been my dad'," said Jacque de Joya, President of the National Federation of Filipino American Associations (NaFFAA)  Nevada. "In the Filipino American community, we're very family-oriented, and we revere our elders. So we felt like our own father had been attacked  it hit us right in our hearts. These kinds of hate crimes, which have been skyrocketing against Asian Americans, are absolutely unacceptable, especially here in our Las Vegas community. Justice has not been served for Mr. Quindara, and elected officials and law enforcement have taken this crime too lightly. Mr. Quindara is in imminent danger of being attacked again, so it is extremely important to issue a restraining order against his attacker immediately to ensure his safety. We also need officials to prioritize the safety of all Nevadans against hate crimes. All of us must come together across racial lines to increase understanding, education and compassion, and take real steps to end these terrible acts of violence. We are calling for action from our justice system and local government officials, as justice delayed is justice denied. NaFFAA Nevada is in solidarity with the rest of the Filipino American organizations and other organizations in our state."

"This attack, and the rise in Asian Hate crimes in general, are so heartbreaking because this is America, where everyone is supposed to be welcome," said Gloria Caoile, Co-Founder of the National Federation of Filipino American Associations. "Filipino Americans are part of the tapestry of many communities that make Nevada thrive and grow. We're nurses, teachers, small business owners, and work hard in many other professions. We are essential to the life of our city and state, but right now the Filipino American community is being treated as if we don't count and don't matter. I was a union leader for decades, and in the labor movement we have a saying, 'An injury to one is an injury to all.' This issue is about making sure that every Nevadan has safety and respect, starting with Mr. Quindara."

"The attack on Mr. Quindara is part of the disturbing rise in anti-Asian hate from unprincipled politicians who are trying to scapegoat groups for their own political gain," said Grace Vergara-Mactal, Executive Director of Nevada's largest healthcare and public service union, SEIU Local 1107. "What politicians need to realize is that their rhetoric has real-world consequences and causes real pain  both physical and emotional. Our union represents thousands of Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander members who are essential to our communities throughout Nevada and the nation. They work in home care agencies, hospitals, the tourism industry, local government and many other fields. We will not accept being targeted or victimized, and as an anti-racist organization, we will not stand on the sidelines. Along with our community partners, we will redouble our fight for justice and safety for all."

The National Federation of Filipino American Associations (NaFFAA)  Nevada represents the over 170,000 Filipinos in the state. Nationally, NaFFAA works on behalf of the 4 million Filipinos across the United States, and their mission is to promote the welfare and well-being of Filipino Americans by amplifying their voices, advocating on behalf of their interests, and providing resources to facilitate their empowerment.

SEIU Nevada Local 1107 is the largest healthcare and public service union in the state, representing nearly 20,000 workers. SEIU represents thousands of Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander members whose work is essential for our communities throughout Nevada and the nation. Together, SEIU 1107 members fight for good union jobs, quality services and a better quality of life for all working Nevadans.

Contact: Dave Bates, 347-865-8038, [email protected]

Carrie Jacobs, 405-992-3665, [email protected]

SOURCE National Federation of Filipino American Associations - Nevada; SEIU Local 1107
VANCOUVER, BC, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ - First Mining Gold Corp. ("First Mining" or the "Company") (TSX: FF) (OTCQX: FFMGF) (FRANKFURT: FMG) is pleased to announce the voting results from the Company's annual general meeting of shareholders held in Vancouver on June 14, 2023 (the "2023 AGM").

A total of 287,460,981 common shares of First Mining were represented at the 2023 AGM, representing 35.59% of the Company's outstanding common shares as at the record date of April 26, 2023. Shareholders voted in favour of all matters brought before the meeting. All five director nominees listed in the Company's management information circular dated May 1, 2023 were elected as follows:

Election of Directors

Director Nominee Votes For % For Votes Withheld % Withheld Keith Neumeyer 197,101,436 98.22 % 3,561,776 1.78 % Raymond Polman 197,301,885 98.32 % 3,361,327 1.68 % Daniel W. Wilton 195,524,445 97.44 % 5,138,767 2.56 % Richard Lock 186,279,528 92.83 % 14,383,684 7.17 % Leanne Hall 196,194,338 97.77 % 4,468,874 2.23 %



Appointment of Auditor

Outcome of the Vote Votes For % For Votes Withheld % Withheld Carried 284,310,865 98.93 % 3,061,116 1.07 %



Detailed voting results for the meeting are available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.

About First Mining Gold Corp.

First Mining is a gold developer advancing two of the largest gold projects in Canada, the Springpole Gold Project in northwestern Ontario, where we have commenced a Feasibility Study and permitting activities are on-going with a draft Environmental Impact Statement ("EIS") for the project published in June 2022, and the Duparquet, Pitt Gold, Duquesne and Porcupine East Gold Project in Quebec, a collection of advanced-stage development assets located on the Destor-Porcupine Fault Zone in the prolific Abitibi region. First Mining also owns the Cameron Gold Project in Ontario and a portfolio of gold project interests including the Pickle Crow Gold Project (being advanced in partnership with Auteco Minerals Ltd.), the Hope Brook Gold Project (being advanced in partnership with Big Ridge Gold Corp.), and a large equity interest in Treasury Metals Inc.

First Mining was established in 2015 by Mr. Keith Neumeyer, founding President and CEO of First Majestic Silver Corp.

ON BEHALF OF FIRST MINING GOLD CORP.

Daniel W. Wilton

Chief Executive Officer and Director

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This news release includes certain "forward-looking information" and "forward-looking statements" (collectively "forward-looking statements") within the meaning of applicable Canadian and United States securities legislation including the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date of this news release. Forward-looking statements are frequently, but not always, identified by words such as "expects", "anticipates", "believes", "plans", "projects", "intends", "estimates", "envisages", "potential", "possible", "strategy", "goals", "opportunities", "objectives", or variations thereof or stating that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will" be taken, occur or be achieved, or the negative of any of these terms and similar expressions.

Forward-looking statements in this news release relate to future events or future performance and reflect current estimates, predictions, expectations or beliefs regarding future. All forward-looking statements are based on First Mining's or its consultants' current beliefs as well as various assumptions made by them and information currently available to them. 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. Forward-looking statements reflect the beliefs, opinions and projections on the date the statements are made and are based upon a number of assumptions and estimates that, while considered reasonable by the respective parties, are inherently subject to significant business, economic, competitive, political and social uncertainties and contingencies. Such factors include, without limitation the Company's business, operations and financial condition potentially being materially adversely affected by the outbreak of epidemics, pandemics or other health crises, such as COVID-19, and by reactions by government and private actors to such outbreaks; risks to employee health and safety as a result of the outbreak of epidemics, pandemics or other health crises, such as COVID-19, that may result in a slowdown or temporary suspension of operations at some or all of the Company's mineral properties as well as its head office; fluctuations in the spot and forward price of gold, silver, base metals or certain other commodities; fluctuations in the currency markets (such as the Canadian dollar versus the U.S. dollar); changes in national and local government, legislation, taxation, controls, regulations and political or economic developments; risks and hazards associated with the business of mineral exploration, development and mining (including environmental hazards, industrial accidents, unusual or unexpected formations, pressures, cave-ins and flooding); the presence of laws and regulations that may impose restrictions on mining; employee relations; relationships with and claims by local communities, indigenous populations and other stakeholders; availability and increasing costs associated with mining inputs and labour; the speculative nature of mineral exploration and development; title to properties.; and the additional risks described in the Company's Annual Information Form for the year ended December 31, 2022 filed with the Canadian securities regulatory authorities under the Company's SEDAR profile at www.sedar.com , and in the Company's Annual Report on Form 40-F filed with the SEC on EDGAR.

First Mining cautions that the foregoing list of factors that may affect future results is not exhaustive. When relying on our forward-looking statements to make decisions with respect to First Mining, investors and others should carefully consider the foregoing factors and other uncertainties and potential events. First Mining does not undertake to update any forward-looking statement, whether written or oral, that may be made from time to time by the Company or on our behalf, except as required by law.

SOURCE First Mining Gold Corp.
This year's list comprises the city from each U.S. state most likely to support the wellbeing of multigenerational families.

NEW YORK, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, Fortune Well launched its second Fortune 50 Best Places to Live for Families ranking, which this year showcases the city in each U.S. state where multigenerational families are most likely to have access to critical resources, community support, and financial well-being. Two cities, Olathe, KS, and Iowa City, IA, made the list for the second year in a row.

Cambridge, MA, Portsmouth, NH, and Silver Spring, MD, are the top cities on the 2023 Fortune 50 Best Places to Live for Families list.

This March, a Harris poll conducted on behalf of Fortune found that nearly half of Americans plan to move within the next two years. The Fortune 50 Best Places to Live for Families list will give those movers a sense of where they may be most likely to thrive. In her introduction to the list, Fortune reporter Alexa Mikhail explains that an uptick in remote work and relocations out of major metropolitan areas during the COVID-19 pandemic have since contributed to an uptick in loneliness. Cambridge, MA, the top ranked city on the list, even incentivizes residents to host block parties and get to know their neighbors.

U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy confirmed this at the Fortune Brainstorm Health conference in April, stating, "The pandemic has had a number of invisible costs in our country, and the increase in loneliness, the increase in mental health strain, these are part of those costs."

Mikhail writes: "For those who have recently relocated, finding a better community or area and being closer to support systems were among the most important considerations when choosing where to live. For those who plan to move within the next two years, 79% reported nearby support systems as a top factor."

Of the 2023 list, Fortune Wellness Editor Jennifer Fields says, "Last year we focused on the 25 places most able to support multigenerational families, regardless of location. This year, as part of Fortune's ongoing commitment to meeting our readers where they are, we decided to showcase 50, giving working professionals a sense of where their families may be best supported, regardless of their state of residence."

The top 10 Fortune Best Places to Live for Familiesthe U.S. cities most likely to feature such support systems are:

Cambridge, MA Portsmouth, NH Silver Spring, MD Tualatin, OR Middletown, DE Olathe, KS Eastvale, CA Wellington , FL Greenburgh, NY Fitchburg, WI

See all of the Fortune 50 Best Places to Live for Families here.

Fortune Well is presented by CVS Health.

Methodology for the 2023 Fortune 50 Best Places to Live for Families List

To select the Best Places to Live for Families in each state, Fortune evaluated nearly 1,900 cities, towns, suburbs, exurbs, villages, and townships that had approximately 20,000 residents across all 50 states in the U.S. This range provided a broad universe of places that offered high-quality amenities in communities with a hometown feel.

To help thoroughly analyze each place, Fortune reviewed more than 200,000 unique data points across five broad categories:

Education

Aging resources

General wellness

Financial health

Livability

This ranking focused on multigenerational families, many of whom are shouldering the responsibilities of raising their own children while caring for aging parents. With their needs in mind, Fortune paid particular attention to factors that met the unique challenges of this cohortsuch as the quality of local public schools, graduation rates, nearby college affordability, the number of quality nursing homes, assisted living communities, home health care agencies, risk of social isolation among older residents, and access to solid health care providers.

To ensure the winning places were cities and towns where residents could afford to buy homes without breaking the bank, Fortune eliminated locales with home sale prices that were more than twice as high as the state median and/or more than 2.75 times higher than the national median.

Additionally, Fortune wanted to highlight places that offered diverse neighborhoods. To that end, Fortune's staff compared the racial breakdown of each place against state benchmarks, eliminating any place that was 75% less diverse than the state medians. Fortune also incorporated socioeconomic, religious, and ethnic diversity into its data collection process.

Where our data comes from

To build this ranking, Fortune worked with several critical data partnersincluding Caring.com, CVS Health, GreatSchools, Healthgrades, IneedanA.com, Sharecare, and Witlyticthat helped provide information about more than 110 separate data categories for each place used in our comprehensive evaluation process.

Fortune also sourced data from America's Health Rankings, ATTOM Data Solutions, the Council for Community and Economic Research, the School Finance Indicators Database, Everytown Gun Law Rankings, Homeland Infrastructure Foundation, Integrated Postsecondary Education System, Johns Hopkins University Data Archive, Kaiser Family Foundation, Realtor.com, SchoolDigger, and STI: Popstats.

In addition to private-sector data, Fortune relied on information from federal agencies such as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, the Environmental Protection Agency, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the National Center for Education Statistics, the National Center for Health Statistics, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the U.S. Census Bureau, and the U.S. Department of Education.

About Fortune

The Fortune mission is to change the world by making business better. We achieve that by providing trusted information, telling great stories, and building world-class communities. We measure performance by rigorous benchmarks. And we hold companies accountable. Our goal is to make Fortune a force for good through its second century and beyond. For more information, visit www.fortune.com.

Media Contact: Alison Klooster

Director of Communications

+1-646-437-6613

[email protected]

SOURCE FORTUNE Media
This undated file photo shows a rock painting featuring animal figures in Jiayuguan City, northwest China's Gansu Province.

Gansu Province has set up a digital image database for rare and precious rock paintings at its 72 cultural relic sites, local authorities said.(Dunhuang Academy/Handout via Xinhua)

LANZHOU, June 12 (Xinhua) -- Northwest China's Gansu Province has set up a digital image database for rare and precious rock paintings at its 72 cultural relic sites, local authorities said.

"We spent over a year collecting high-precision data and recording information such as the surrounding environment and geographical location of the rock paintings," said Ding Xiaosheng, deputy director of the cultural relics digitalization institute of the Dunhuang Academy.

The rock paintings on Yumu Mountain, most of which feature well-preserved animal figures, can be traced back to the Stone Age.

The provincial cultural relics bureau approved the digital project in 2021, assigning the Dunhuang Academy to carry out the work.

So far, 72 rock painting sites have been discovered in Gansu, mostly distributed in deep mountains, the Gobi Desert, or valleys that are seldom visited by people.

Among them, the rock paintings in Heishan Mountain depict the living scenes of the ancient Qiang ethnic group, such as hunting, horse riding and archery, in the Hexi Corridor, part of the ancient Silk Road in northwest China.

"Rock paintings are vivid historical records that reflect the lifestyles of ancient people," said Qiu Jian, deputy head of the provincial cultural relics bureau. "They are an invaluable cultural heritage of humanity."

The protection of rock paintings and carvings is a matter of global concern. At present, there is a lack of effective, natural scientific and technological means to prevent their disappearance.

"The digital archives can provide basic data support for future research, protection and utilization of the rock paintings in Gansu," Ding said.

This undated file photo shows a rock painting featuring dancers in Jiayuguan City, northwest China's Gansu Province.

Gansu Province has set up a digital image database for rare and precious rock paintings at its 72 cultural relic sites, local authorities said.(Dunhuang Academy/Handout via Xinhua)

This undated file photo shows a rock painting featuring animal figures in Subei Mongolian Autonomous County, northwest China's Gansu Province.

Gansu Province has set up a digital image database for rare and precious rock paintings at its 72 cultural relic sites, local authorities said.(Dunhuang Academy/Handout via Xinhua)

Editor: ZAD
Challenges Voters to 'Act Like Southern Baptists'

NEW ORLEANS, June 13, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Pastor Rick Warren, founder of Saddleback Church, best-selling author of The Purpose Driven Life and Coordinator of the global Finishing the Task coalition, today delivered an impassioned appeal from the Convention floor the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) Annual Meeting in New Orleans.

In his highly anticipated remarks, Warren boldly asked more than 12,000 SBC voting Messengers to overturn a ruling to disfellowship the Church he pastored for 43 years after ordaining three women as pastors. The results of the hand-counted ballots are expected to be announced from the platform at 8:43 am CDT tomorrow. Pastor Warren will give his response and answer questions from credentialed press at a Media Availability at 9:05 am CDT, available to the public via livestream at www.SBCStand.com .

"For 178 years, the SBC has been a blend of at least a dozen different tribes of Baptists," Warren explained. "If you think every Baptist thinks like you, you're mistaken. But we share a mutual commitment to the inerrancy and infallibility of God's Word, and to the Great Commission of Jesus.

Warren then challenged his denominational peers, "No one is asking any Southern Baptist to change their theology. I am not asking you to agree with our church. I am asking you to act like Southern Baptists who have historically 'agreed to disagree' on dozens of doctrines in order to unify around a common mission.

"Since Baptists have always allowed disagreement on dozens of doctrines  including the essential doctrines of salvation, why should this one issue cancel our fellowship?" Warren challenged. "In 2013, when Calvinists were under fire, Baptists agreed to disagree, and the split was averted. Now ten years later, will we treat egalitarian Baptists with the same grace we showed the Calvinists?

"We should remove churches for all kinds of sexual sin, racial sin, financial sin and leadership sin  sins that harm the testimony of our Convention," Warren continued. "But the 1,928 churches with women on pastoral staff have not sinned. If doctrinal disagreements between Baptists are considered sin, we ALL get kicked out! You'll never get 100% of Baptists to agree 100% on 100% of every doctrine.

"That's why our constitution says churches must closely identify not completely identify with our confession. The Baptist Faith and Message is four thousand and thirty-two words. Our church disagrees with only one word. That's 99.99% in agreement. Isn't that close enough?"

Warren concluded his remarks by calling upon his peers to vote "no," indicating that Saddleback Church is in friendly cooperation with the SBC and should not be disfellowshipped from the Convention with which it was founded.

Following Warren's abbreviated remarks when he reached the allotted time, Al Mohler, President of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary responded. Mohler initiated the campaign against Saddleback Church two years ago in launching his failed bid for President of the SBC.

"In the year 2000, the words 'the office of pastor is limited to men as qualified by Scripture' was inserted because 30 years ago this issue threatened to tear this denomination apart," Mohler said. "The definition of 'friendly cooperation' came down to the fact that it was an issue that would endanger the cooperative cohesion and faithfulness of the church, of the Southern Baptist Convention.

This is the first time in SBC history for Messengers to vote on whether to disfellowship a church from the Convention.

To learn more about the nature and background of Rick Warren's appeal, its implications and the reasons he is advocating for renewal, revitalization and revival within the SBC, visit SBCStand.com .

About Pastor Rick Warren

Rick Warren is the founding Pastor of Saddleback Church in Southern California, which grew to more than 30,000 weekly attendees across 19 locations, including four international campuses and via streaming online, hosting listeners from around the world. He currently serves as Coordinator of Finishing the Task , a global coalition of churches, denominations, Christian organizations, mission agencies and media working together toward the Great Commission goal of ensuring that everyone everywhere has access to a Bible, a believer and a body of Christ by 2033 A.D., which will be the 2,000th anniversary of Jesus' resurrection and the foundation of the Christian church.

In May 2023, Warren was installed as first-ever Chancellor of Spurgeon's College of London , the leading evangelical college in the United Kingdom, founded by esteemed Baptist preacher Charles Haddon Spurgeon.

Warren has a Bachelor of Arts degree from California Baptist College, a Master of Divinity from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas, and a Doctor of Ministry from Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena, California.

MEDIA CONTACT:

A. Larry Ross, [email protected]

SOURCE Pastor Rick Warren
Freedom Financial Holdings Receives Highest Rank of Any DC Metro Bank Holding Company and the Fourth Highest Rank in Virginia

FAIRFAX, Va., June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Freedom Financial Holdings, Inc. (OTCQX FDVA), (the "Company" or "Freedom"), is thrilled to announce that it was recognized by American Banker as one of the top performing bank holding companies with under $2 billion in assets in the United States. Freedom received the highest rank of any bank holding company in the DC Metro area, was the fourth highest ranked bank holding company in the state of Virginia and was 99th in the overall nationwide list. Freedom's significant climb in rank since 2021 is especially significant given the exceptionally challenging environment in 2022.

The American Banker publishes the list of the top 200 performing publicly traded banks and holding companies with under $2 billion in assets annually. The Capital Performance Group compiles and analyzes the data provided by S&P Global Market Intelligence which utilizes Security and Exchange Commission filings. The top 200 banks had a median return on average equity of 14.16%, compared with 11.67% for all publicly traded banks in the asset class. The three-year average for this figure was 12.6% for the top performers which is more than 2 percentage points higher than their peers. Freedom Financial Holdings, Inc. and other top performers were recognized for their lower efficiency ratios, higher net interest margins, and stronger median net loan growth than the group of all publicly traded community banks. In addition, Freedom and other top performers, had a higher percentage of core deposits to total deposits and slightly lower cost of funds than the peer group.

"We are very excited to receive such distinguished recognition from the American Banker. Our talented colleagues worked hard in 2022 to drive our financial performance during a period of dynamic change in the economy and banking industry. Our company's branch-light, tech enabled business model and differentiated client strategy has enabled these results and resiliency. I am grateful for our clients, colleagues and communities for supporting our efforts to grow the company and produce strong results for shareholders. We look forward to building on our success as we remain focused on serving entrepreneurs and small businesses in the vibrant Northern Virginia/Washington, DC market," said Joe Thomas, President and CEO.

About Freedom Financial Holdings, Inc.

Freedom Financial Holdings, Inc. is the holding company of The Freedom Bank of Virginia, a community bank with locations in Fairfax, Reston, Chantilly, Vienna, and Manassas, Virginia. The Freedom Bank of Virginia also has a mortgage division headquartered in Chantilly, Virginia and an SBA division headquartered in Harrison, NY. For information about deposits, loans and other services, visit the website at www.freedom.bank.

Contact:

Joseph J. Thomas

President & Chief Executive Officer

Phone: 703-667-4161

Email: [email protected]

SOURCE Freedom Financial Holdings
Award Honors Philadelphia's Top CEOs & C-Level Executives

PHILADELPHIA and WILLOW GROVE, Pa., June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Titan CEO today has named Gary Pudles, President & CEO of AnswerNet , a 2023 Philadelphia Titan 100 . This marks the 2nd consecutive win for Pudles, who was also recognized by the organization in 2022 as a Philadelphia Titan of Industry.

Gary Pudles, AnswerNet President & CEO, Named 2023 Philadelphia Titan 100 Tweet this Gary Pudles, AnswerNet President & CEO, Named 2023 Philadelphia Titan 100

The Titan 100 program recognizes Philadelphia's top 100 CEOs and C-level executives who demonstrate exceptional leadership, vision, and passion. Collectively the 2023 Philadelphia Titan 100 and their companies employ upwards of 93,000 individuals and generate over $33 billion dollars in annual revenues. This year's honorees will be published in a limited-edition Titan 100 book and profiled exclusively online. They will also be honored at an awards ceremony, and will be given the opportunity to interact and connect multiple times throughout the year with their fellow Titans, both locally and nationally.

"The Titan 100 are shaping the future of the Philadelphia business community by building a distinguished reputation that is unrivaled and preeminent in their field. We proudly recognize the Titan 100 for their successes and contributions. We know that they will have a profound impact that makes an extraordinary difference for their customers and clients across the nation," says Jaime Zawmon, President of Titan CEO.

In 1998, Mr. Pudles purchased a small telemessaging call center, investing in his interest and experience in telecommunications technology, data and people management. The company would grow, and by 2000, Pudles' business, AnswerNet , became the largest telemessaging & call center business in the country. Under his leadership, the company continued to expand throughout 2021 and 2022 with 17 successful business acquisitions. Today, AnswerNet is a thriving global organization with over 30 offices in 20 states and two Canadian provinces. The company also has teams in South Africa, Columbia, Mexico, Guatemala and the Philippines.

"I am extremely honored to be recognized again this year as a 2023 Philadelphia Titan of Industry. Becoming a Titan 100 for the first time last year gave me an amazing opportunity to meet and interact with so many influential leaders throughout the Philadelphia region," said Pudles. "Through the Titan events and online community, I have found a great place to share ideas, successes, and challenges outside of the traditional CEO groups. I look forward to building upon these wonderful relationships in 2023."

Mr. Pudles will be honored at the annual Titan 100 awards celebration on September 21st, 2023, at "The Drexelbrook" located in Drexel Hill, PA. From hosting American Bandstand with Dick Clark to surviving a 1978 fire, the Drexelbrook has changed and evolved for more than 70 years to best suit the community as a private club, hotel, and event center. This unique cocktail-style awards event will gather 100 Titans of Industry and their guests for an evening unlike anything that exists in the Philadelphia business community.

About AnswerNet

Headquartered in Willow Grove, PA, AnswerNet is a full-service provider of inbound, outbound, automated, and BPO call center services. Founded in 1998, the company has over 30 sites with 2,000 full-time employees across the U.S. and Canada. Specialty divisions include Agriculture, Nonprofit, Education, Appointment Setting, Energy, and Third-Party Verification.

Contact: Lynette Byrnes

[email protected]

SOURCE AnswerNet
With child malnutrition on the rise, and growing challenges to global immunization coverage, new research could protect the most vulnerable.

MADRID, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, and the Eleanor Crook Foundation (ECF) announced at the Global Vaccine Impact Conference a US$2 million joint investment in the NutriVax Project, an integrated nutrition and immunization research partnership. Each organization will contribute US$1 million to this innovative project, which will integrate life-saving interventions that traditionally have been separate  delivery of immunizations and malnutrition prevention products. Research funded by this investment has the potential to be ground-breaking for continuous improvement in countries hit by the double burden of malnutrition and low vaccination coverage.

The NutriVax Project will include a randomized control trial in Nigeria. Research , including field experience from ALIMA, suggests that offering nutritional supplementation may serve as an incentive for caregivers to bring their children to health centers for routine vaccinations. The trial funded by ECF and Gavi will provide communities with small-quantity lipid-based nutrient supplements, or SQ-LNS, which are nutrient-rich pastes that can be mixed with foods for infants and young children at home. These revolutionary supplements have been designed to prevent undernutrition and, paired with vaccinations, could have the potential to exponentially increase the number of lives saved.

Vaccine-preventable illnesses and malnutrition cause millions of child deaths each year, and a dangerous cycle exists between the two that markedly increases the risk of child mortality. Through the NutriVax Project, ECF and Gavi aspire to achieve more together than what is possible alone, reaching a vulnerable cohort of children in need of both vaccines and malnutrition prevention.

"Malnutrition services and immunization are already two of the very best buys in global development, especially when it comes to preventing children from dying," says William Moore, CEO of ECF. "There is some evidence that malnutrition interventions can be combined with vaccination services to save more lives and increase demand for vaccines. The Eleanor Crook Foundation is excited to join forces with the Gavi Alliance to test this innovative bundle at scale."

A strong result from this trial would prove that pairing nutritional supplementation with vaccines is both cost-effective and exponentially life-saving  potentially optimizing how the global community comes together to save lives.

"Given the serious disruptions caused by the pandemic, this is the time to invest better and smarter, as countries gradually find ways to restore and strengthen immunization, nutrition and other essential services," said Guillaume Grosso, Director of Sovereign & Private Sector Engagement, Donor Relations & Campaigns at Gavi. "We are proud to partner with ECF to generate evidence around cost-effective ways to drive the big catch-up in immunization via nutritional services in Nigeria."

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION:

Read more on the Eleanor Crook Foundation website

About the Eleanor Crook Foundation (ECF) :

The Eleanor Crook Foundation is a growing U.S. philanthropy fighting to end global malnutrition through research, policy analysis, and advocacy. For 25 years, the Foundation has worked to scale improved solutions to child malnutrition with the ultimate goal of saving children's lives and enabling them to excel in school, work, and beyond.

About Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance :

Created in 2000, Gavi is an international organization  a global Vaccine Alliance, bringing together public and private sectors with the shared goal of saving lives and protecting people's health by increasing equitable and sustainable use of vaccines.

CONTACT INFORMATION:

Eleanor Crook Foundation

Lesly McNitt, Senior Director of U.S. Advocacy and Communications

[email protected]

SOURCE The Eleanor Crook Foundation
PHOENIX and TUCSON, Ariz., June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Gibson (www.theGibsonEdge.com), an employee-owned, top-100 independent insurance agency, is pleased to announce Kylie Staples as Arizona Market and Sales Leader. She is an experienced consultant with a demonstrated history of supporting organizations as they navigate their risk and health & benefits. As market leader, she will be responsible for driving strategy, executing growth plans, and managing client relationships, all while leading the Arizona team.

"Alex [Rodriguez] and I are both incredibly excited to welcome Kylie to Gibson. Her impressive background aligns perfectly with our goals and will strengthen our capabilities in Arizona. We are confident that Kylie's leadership will foster growth for our quickly expanding team," says Mike Petefish, Arizona Benefits Consultant at Gibson.

"The incredibly talented people, with their can-do attitudes and infectious positivity, are what excite me most about joining the Gibson team," says Staples. "They are innovative, community and values-oriented, agile, collaborative, and get things done-- just what the Arizona market needs!"

Prior to joining Gibson, Staples spent over 10 years in the health and benefits space, both on the carrier and broker side. She has in-depth property and casualty experience, as well. Most recently, Staples served as Vice President, Strategic Relationship Manager in the Arizona market at Aon, representing health and benefits, risk, retirement, and human capital solutions. She has worked with numerous private and public sector clients over the years and has extensive knowledge of health funding approaches, wellness, consumer engagement strategies, long-term cost control techniques, and vendor management. She also is experienced with private equity-backed companies, PEO exits, transactions, and M&A solutions.

Staples is extremely involved in her community, serving on the board of the Arizona Foundation for Women, member of the Alliance of M&A Advisors, and a member of the SHRM Executive Network. She is the founder of HR in the Valley and Arizona Women in M&A and Private Equity.

About Gibson: Gibson is a team of advisors and consultants with a passion for helping leaders look beyond what others see and get to the proactive side of insurance. As an employee-owned company, they're driven by relationships with clients, employees, and the community. Their first office in northern Indiana was opened in 1933, and as their reach grew, so did the Gibson team. Today, they serve both local and national clients from offices in Indiana, Michigan, and Arizona.

SOURCE Gibson
LIMASSOL, Cyprus, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Global advertising and CPA network Adsterra is expanding its footprint in Latin American countries, particularly Brazil.

The company has been on the market for 10 years, and during this time, it has acquired a huge number of clients from the LATAM region and Brazil.

Adsterra is Broadening its reach in Brazil

On average, Adsterra's monthly traffic volumes in LATAM reach 4 billion impressions, while Brazil accounts for approximately 1.5 billion monthly impressions.

Adsterra became a partner in two leading affiliate marketing conferences in Brazil and hired local managers as part of its regional expansion. In May and June 2023, Adsterra participated in two huge LATAM events: Afiliados Brasil 2023 (May 25-27) and SiGMA Americas 2023 (June 15-17).

The company not only participated in the exhibitions but also publicly presented the capabilities of its platform for Brazilian publishers and affiliate managers through speeches at both conferences.

The speakers included Tarcio Santos, Adsterra's Marketing Lead in Brazil, and Mikhail Zhukov, Head of CPM Department (Advertisers).

"Adsterra offers its clients from Brazil a vast amount of direct clean traffic from all over the world, which demonstrates high conversion rates for traditionally popular verticals in Brazil, such as I-gaming, eCommerce, Software & Utilities, Apps, eSports, Finance, and others. Additionally, Adsterra's flagship advertising format, Social Bar, allows the creation of ad teasers, banners, and video teasers for any of the mentioned verticals (even without the assistance of a manager)," explained Mikhail Zhukov, Head of CPM Department (Advertisers).

For the convenience of clients from Brazil, Adsterra has a user-friendly automated onboarding tour through the personal account. Additionally, the company regularly publishes useful articles and materials in Portuguese on its blog and social media channels.

The company intends to continue expanding its presence in the Brazilian region while improving its product to provide greater convenience and efficiency for Brazilian clients.

About Adsterra

Adsterra has been developing a tech-driven, market-leading advertising network to bring together advertisers and publishers across the globe since 2013. Its AI-powered solutions serve for frictionless matching of advertisements to traffic sources. Along with developing adtech solutions such as a proprietary stack of ad formats (Social Bar,) Adsterra focuses on the utmost customer service quality, evolving its in-house Partner Care Program based on the accessibility of competent, industry-specific support for every partner.

Adsterra Media Contact

Catherine Tarasova

Tg: @catichee

[email protected]

adsterra.com

Photo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2102260/Adsterra.jpg

SOURCE Adsterra
DUBLIN, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The "Global Real-Time Payment Market 2023" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.

Real-time payments are steadily gaining momentum as a preferred payment system

The outbreak of the pandemic led to a shift in the way consumers and businesses globally made payments, thereby increasing the dependence on newer payment methods such as BNPL, one-click payments as well as real-time payments. Real-time payment systems offer benefits in terms of cost reductions and payment success rates to consumers and businesses alike.

Thus, the market size of real-time payments is forecasted to see a double-digit CAGR from 2022 through 2028, with the value reaching billions of euros by 2028, as spelt out by this report. Large firms are also modernizing their payment ecosystem to further streamline instant transfers, thus as of July 2022, close to three-quarters of firms globally using real-time payment system regarded their capabilities as highly important.

The introduction of Zengin in Japan prompted other countries globally, especially India, Brazil, Singapore, Thailand, Australia, and the UK among others to implement their own instant payment systems. While UPI in India and PIX in Brazil are the frontrunners in the usage of instant payment systems, countries in other regions such as MENA, Africa, and Latin America are also catching up.

For instance, in Australia, the New Payments Platform (NPP) has had more than a billion transfers representing a value of trillions of euros since its launch. Likewise, PromptPay, the real-time payments system in Thailand saw a value of transactions amounting to certain billion euros as of October 2022, according to data cited in the latest report.

Unlike other nations where real-time payment solutions emerged due to the collective efforts of the government and the central bank, Colombia's real-time payment system, Transfiya developed as a result of private arrangements to support the country's financial inclusion goals and has seen constant growth since its launch.

Furthermore, CliQ in Jordan, Fawri+ in Bahrain, and GhIPSS Instant Pay, in Ghana are some other instant payment systems worldwide that are seeing growth in adoption and usage.

Despite slow growth of the real-time payment infrastructure in Europe, countries in the region are taking steps to encourage usage and adoption

The payment landscape in Europe changed with the launch of SEPA in 2008, which led to the smooth functioning of credit transfers as well as a direct debit in the EU.

To encourage the growth of alternative payment methods such as real-time payments, the ECB launched the TARGET Instant Payment Settlement Scheme and later the SEPA Instant. However, the adoption and usage of SEPA Instant in Europe varied across nations.

For instance, Luxembourg, Malta, and Italy were the top 3 nations in Europe with the highest share of respondents claiming access to SEPA Instant, and Greece has the lowest share of respondents having access to the system, as per this new report.

Germany, on the other hand, had the highest number of participants in both SEPA and SEPA Instant and the number of real-time payment transfers is forecasted to grow at a double-digit CAGR between 2021 and 2026, reaching a number in billions as of 2026. To encourage the growth of SEPA Instant, banks offering SEPA will also be obliged to provide SEPA Instant services in Europe.

Additionally, in countries such as Netherlands, the share of real-time payment transactions in terms of volume is forecasted to witness a rise of several percentage points by 2026. The real-time payment system of Russia, SBP, also showed constant progress in the volume and value of transactions from Q1 2021 to Q2 2022, according to the publication.

Questions Covered

What is the forecasted total value of real-time payments globally by 2028?

What is the forecasted number of transfers via real-time payments in India as of 2026?

as of 2026? What were top advantages of real-time payments in the U.S. as of June 2022 ?

? Which were the top 3 countries in Europe with the highest share of respondents to whom SEPA instant was available as of June 2022 ?

with the highest share of respondents to whom SEPA instant was available as of ? What is the forecasted share of real-time payments in terms of value in Brazil by 2026?

Key Topics Covered:

1. Management Summary

2. Global

Real-Time Payment Market Overview and Developments, January 2023

Real-Time Payment Market Size, in USD billion, 2022 & 2028f

Total Value of Savings for Consumers and Businesses Facilitated by Real-Time Payments Across 30 Key Markets, in USD billion, 2021 & 2026f

Total GDP Facilitated by Real-Time Payments Across 30 Markets, in USD billion, 2021 & 2026f

Share of Large Firms Using Real-Time Payments and That Consider the Capability Highly Important, in %, July 2022

Share of Companies That Plan to Expand Their RTP Capabilities in the Next 12 Months or Are Already Doing So, in %, July 2022

Share of Companies Viewing Real-Time Payments As Important for Receiving Payments, by Revenue, in %, July 2022

3. Asia-Pacific

3.1. China

Total Number of Real-Time Transactions, in billions, 2022 & 2027f

3.2. India

Total Number of Real-Time Transactions, in billions, 2022 & 2027f

Volume of UPI-Based Real-Time Payment Transactions, in billions, January - June 2022

Total Value of Transactions via UPI, in INR billion, January - June 2022

3.3. Japan

Zengin System Overview, January 2023

Volume of Small-Value Transactions in Zengin Core Time System, in thousands, & Value of Small Transactions, in JPY million, & Year-On-Year Change, in %, January - October 2022

3.4. South Korea

Total Number of Real-Time Transactions, in billions, 2022 & 2027f

3.5. Australia

Overview of New Payments Platform (NPP), January 2023

Share of PayID Users Who Use It at Least Once a Week, in %, May 2022

Top Reasons for Registering PayID, in % of PayID Users, May 2022

Total Number of Real-Time Transactions, in billions, 2022 & 2027f

3.6. Singapore

Overview of Fast and Secure Transfer (FAST) & PayNow, January 2023

Breakdown of Transaction Volume, by Payments Instrument, in % of Total Payment Transaction Volume, 2022 vs 2027f

Breakdown of Spending Value, by Payments Instrument, in % of Total Payment Spending Value, 2022 vs 2027f

3.7. Thailand

Volume of PromptPay Based Real-Time Payment Transactions, in millions, May - October 2022

Value of PromptPay Based Real-Time Payment Transactions, in THB billion, May - October 2022

3.8. Malaysia

Overview of Payments Network Malaysia Sdn Bhd (PayNet), January 2023

Total Number of Real-Time Transactions, in billions, 2022 & 2027f

3.9. Philippines

Overview of InstaPay, January 2023

Total Value of Transactions via InstaPay, in PHP trillion, January - November 2021 vs January - November 2022

3.10. Sri Lanka

Real-Time Payment Market Overview, January 2023

Share of Participants in Real-Time Gross Settlement (RTGS), by Value & by Volume, in % of RTGS Transactions, Q2 2022

4. North America

4.1. USA

Total Number of Real-Time Transactions, in billions, 2022 & 2027f

Share of Companies That Use Real-Time Payments, in %, June 2022 & 2024f

& 2024f Top Business Outcomes Enabled by Real-Time Payments, in % of Financial Professionals, June 2022

Top Challenges That Financial Professionals Face While Introducing Real-Time Payments, in % of Financial Professionals, June 2022

Top Advantages of Real-Time Payments, RTP Leaders vs RTP Laggers, in % of Financial Professionals, June 2022

4.2. Canada

Breakdown of Transaction Volume, by Payments Instrument, in % of Total Payment Transaction Volume, 2022 vs 2027f

Breakdown of Spending Value, by Payments Instrument, in % of Total Payment Spending Value, 2022 vs 2027f

5. Europe

Real-Time Payment Market Overview and Developments, January 2023

P27 Payment Service Overview, January 2023

Share of SEPA Instant Credit Transfer Volume, in % of All SEPA Credit Transfer, Q4 2021-Q3 2022

Share of Respondents That Have Access to Instant Payments, by Country, in %, June 2022 (1 of 3)

(1 of 3) Share of Respondents That Have Access to Instant Payments, by Country, in %, June 2022 (2 of 3)

(2 of 3) Share of Respondents That Have Access to Instant Payments, by Country, in %, June 2022 (3 of 3)

(3 of 3) Number of Participants of SCT Inst Scheme vs SCT Scheme & Adherence Status, in %, June 2022 (1 of 3)

(1 of 3) Number of Participants of SCT Inst Scheme vs SCT Scheme & Adherence Status, in %, June 2022 (2 of 3)

(2 of 3) Number of Participants of SCT Inst Scheme vs SCT Scheme & Adherence Status, in %, June 2022 (3 of 3)

6. Latin America

7. Middle East

8. Africa

A selection of companies mentioned in this report includes

Cobro Digital (CoDi)

Dana

DuitNow

InstaPay

JoPACC

JustPay

LankaPay

Line Pay

LinkAja

Ottocash

PayNet

PayNow

PayShap

PayTo

PIX

PLIN

PromptPay

ShopeePay

Yape

Zengin

For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/b2xb29

About ResearchAndMarkets.com

ResearchAndMarkets.com is the world's leading source for international market research reports and market data. We provide you with the latest data on international and regional markets, key industries, the top companies, new products and the latest trends.

Media Contact:

Research and Markets

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Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/539438/Research_and_Markets_Logo.jpg

SOURCE Research and Markets
BEIJING, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- In early summer, the state-owned Xinhua forest farm in Linhe district, Bayannur, North China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, is lush with greenery, casting a shade on the sand.

These seemingly ordinary trees have been gazed upon by Xi Jinping, general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, Chinese President and chairman of the Central Military Commission, for a long time.

On June 6, Xi went to the Xinhua forest farm, where he learned about the development of the Three-North Shelterbelt Forest Program (TSFP).

After over 40 years of unremitting efforts, China has made remarkable achievements in preventing and controlling desertification, and realized a historic transformation from "sand forcing humans to retreat" to "trees forcing sand to retreat" in key areas, Xi said at a symposium during his inspection.

China, as a populous country with a 5,000-year history, is one of the countries that are most severely affected by desertification. Fortunately, "greenery" has become a common sight in China's desert areas in the recent past.

In 1978, the Chinese government made a significant decision to build the TSFP to slow down desertification and improve the ecological environment, which opened the largest artificial ecological forest belt construction in human history.

Desertification has been reduced, the damage caused by wind, sand and soil erosion has been effectively curbed, the legal system for preventing and controlling desertification has been increasingly improved, and remarkable results have been achieved for the benefit of the people. This combination of efforts has created the "spirit of Three-North" and set an international example for ecological governance, Xi said.

Looking back at the four-decade-long struggle between China and the desert, the Chinese people increasingly understand the significance of this example meaning: Countless afforestation and sand control movements have persisted in combining government leadership with public participation, hard work with scientific adherence, and ecological governance with improving people's livelihoods.

Countless ordinary Chinese farmers, grassroots government officials, and ecologists have been working tirelessly for decades in desert areas, as they believe that the desert holds the key to ecological governance and poverty alleviation. They also believe that one day, China will confidently participate in the global efforts of controlling desertification with scientific solutions for sand management with Chinese characteristics.

Historical vision

These days, Xinhua forest farm is a hive of activity with the forestry workers happily performing their tasks.

Xi's concern for the plants in the forest, and his words of encouragement for the cause of sand control, motivated those who were present for the president's visit.

"The achievements of our struggle over the past decades can be reviewed by President Xi, which is an affirmation of our work, and it is our pride to turn the sandy, barren waste and salt marsh into woodland and fertile fields," Du Wenhua, head of the Xinhua forest farm, told the Global Times.

The Xinhua forest farm was established in 1960. "In the 1970s, during spring and autumn, sandstorms would fill the sky and bury newly sprouted crops. It would take three or four attempts to successfully grow crops," recalled Du.

Located in the hinterland of the Hetao Plain, the forest farm is an important grain and oil production base in China. "In order to protect farmland, it is necessary to control sand," Du pointed out.

A 20-meter-tall poplar tree in the farm is Du's "old friend" as it was planted in 1978, the year when the TSFP initiated.

In that year, with project support and state investment, the forest farm started to introduce excellent tree species from abroad and carry out large-scale afforestation and sand control in combination with local species.Under the successive struggles of three generations of foresters, a total of 39,000 mu (about 2,600 hectares) of forestation was carried out, 4.3 million trees were planted, and the area of sand shrunk from 21,500 mu in the 1960s to 0.5 million mu. The forest coverage rate increased from 25.6 percent in 2012 to 65 percent today, the Global Times learned from publicity department authority of the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region.

Now, clusters of white flowers can be seen in the forest farm. That's the sophora alopecuroides, Du introduced. "Farmers often say 'where the sophora alopecuroides grow, you can open up the land to grow crops,' which reflects that the soil conditions in our farm have been greatly improved."

Du noted that at present, the focus of forest farm employees has shifted from afforestation to forest tree care and management, and their income is gained in various ways such as seedling rearing, forest tree protection, and seed breeding, so as to achieve the sustainable and high-quality development of forest farms.

The Xinhua forest farm is a vivid portrayal of desertification control and afforestation in China. There are 292 state-owned forest farms like this in Inner Mongolia. From 1978 to 2020, the region has completed 119 million mu of the TSFP construction tasks, accounting for 25.1 percent of the country's efforts.

Recently, the Xinhua forest farm and the Desert Forestry Experimental Center of the Chinese Academy of Forestry signed a comprehensive strategic cooperation agreement to jointly build a demonstration forest farm to jointly strengthen the comprehensive prevention and control of desertification, and promote the construction of TSFP.

The TSFP, which stretches for more than 4,400 kilometers from east to west, was launched in 1978 when the curtain of reform and opening-up was lift, and the CPC set its sights on the year 2050 for this project. This demonstrates the Party's strategic foresight and historical vision, Du said.

"We foresters will continue to work hard to build a more unbreakable 'Great Green Wall' and ecological security barrier in northern China,"Du said, in a firm voice.

Lovely 'fools' in desert

If you were to paint a portrait of the people living in China's desert regions, it would undoubtedly include elements such as tanned skin, rough hands, and a stubborn determination to challenge the desert. Baoxiulan, the deputy Party secretary of Baotou village in Naiman Banner, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, fits all of these characteristics.

"I would rather die in planting trees than let the sand bully us to death!" The 50-year-old Mongolian told the Global Times.

Since she was 23, Baoxiulan has been planting trees in the desert. Today, she has led villagers to plant over 3 million trees on a total area of 29,000 mu.

"In the past, we had to find our house in the sand; now, our house is located deep in the oasis," she said proudly.

In 1993, after getting married, Baoxiulan moved to Baotou village located on the northern part of the village which itself traverses a large python-like desert, and there the wind rages all year round. There were only a few dozen old elm and willow trees that had survived over the years. Faced with such a harsh living environment, Baoxiulan conceived the idea of planting trees to prevent sand erosion.

She used money earned from selling cattle to buy 1200 poplar saplings and planted them in front of her house, and due to good rainfall that year, the survival rate of the saplings was more than 90 percent, which gave Baoxiulan the firm determination and confidence to control the sand.

In 1995, Baoxiulan contracted 2,500 acres of sandy land. During the initial planting days, Baoxiulan and her husband were seen as "fools" by the villagers: They sat on sand mounds every day, eating dry food and drinking cold water in the wilderness, to prevent the saplings from being eaten by grazing cattle. When the planted saplings were buried under sand by gusts of wind, they dug them out and replanted them. They persisted day after day until 2005, when the barren land finally turned green.

In the process of combating desertification, Baoxiulan became more deeply aware that in order to change the face of the home, it was not enough to rely on herself. Therefore, she went from house to house to guide the villagers on how to plant trees. Under her influence and encouragement, most people in Baotou village followed her example and planted trees, and the ecological environment of their hometown significantly improved.

Baoxiulan's persistence for many years had made her a "silly woman" in the eyes of the villagers but she has since transformed into a recognized leader in wealth generation. As the sand dunes were increasingly covered with shoots, Baoxiulan was elected as Party secretary of her village in 2013.

Seizing the opportunity of the gradual increase of state subsidies for farmers and herdsmen, she shifted the focus of her work to increasing the income of villagers and led villagers to raise cattle on a large scale. By the end of 2019, all the 110,000 mu of the sandy area in Baotou village had been managed, the amount of livestock breeding had also increased 10-fold, with the per capita annual income of the village in the tens of thousands of yuan ($1400).

Baoxiulan firmly believed that a major ecological project such as the construction of TSFP can only be done under the leadership of the CPC. Under the leadership and call to action of the CPC, there are many such "fools" who have continued to work hard, and their efforts have yielded many harvests.

If the greenery in China's deserts today could talk, it would be full of tales. From the early 1980s, six villagers in Gulang county, Northwest China's Gansu Province, at the southern edge of the Tengger Desert, went into the desert to set up a collective forest and managed to transform 75,000 mu of quicksand in a decade. Wang Youde has spent 30 years leading workers in building a green barrier 47-kilometer-long from east to west and 38-kilometer-wide from north to south along the Mu Us Desert, effectively preventing the desert from encroaching further south or expanding westward.

"The people have actually seen the great changes in the land they lived on now enthusiastically participate in the action of afforestation, and support the great decision of the CPC to build the TSFP," Baoxiulan said.

A constant source of fresh energy

In the past, the older generation of planters in China tirelessly guarded the deserts, where vast expanses of "incurable" sand dunes finally gave way to hope through their efforts. This hope not only lies in the growth of saplings into trees, but also in the increasing number of knowledgeable young people to continue the efforts of the older generation in the desert, making the development of advanced desertification control technologies the main theme of their youth.

"I am a fourth-generation desertification control worker in the Kubuqi Desert. Fortunately, the 10 years I have worked in the desert coincide with China's entry into the New Era, where ecological civilization construction has been placed at an unprecedentedly high level," said Li Ting, technical manager of the Engineering and Technology Department of Elion Resources Group (Elion), told the Global Times.

In 2014, Li came to the Kubuqi Desert after graduating from university, and in 10 years, Li and his colleagues have carried out mapping work on more than 1 million mu of sand.

Cars have blown tires, people have rolled off dunes, and feet have suffered from an eruption of blisters... Li admitted that he has encountered a great number of difficulties while working in the desert in the past.

With the progress of science and technology, Li finally bid farewell to the era of mapping on foot. In 2017, the company purchased surveying drones, and since then, Li only needs to fly drones into the desert to complete the mapping work.

In the past, forestry workers described that "planting a tree need to bow three times." Long-term bending in the sand to dig pits, plant trees, and water them has left many tree planters with waist pain, but today, with the continuous iteration of afforestation technology, such as drone planting, the ecological governance process has made remarkable strides forward, Li noted.

Thanks to the continuous efforts of the technicians, the survival rate of Li's company's tree planting has increased from 20 percent more than 30 years ago to 90 percent today, and the vegetation coverage of the Elion Resources Group's contracted area in Kubuqi Desert has increased from less than 3 percent more than 30 years ago to 65 percent now.

"Workers should base their research on the realities of our country, turn the real knowledge acquired from practice into their theses, and become the true PhDs and experts that the Party and the people need," Xi said during the inspection at the Xinhua forest farm.

Today, young people bring fresh energy to the Kubuqi Desert every year. These sand control professionals are setting up tents and doing experiments in the no-man's land, learning from how the desert functions like the people in the sand area and combining theory with practice.

They are proud of the fact that every disappearing desert and every new oasis they witness is a link in the chain of destiny of the global village.

During the 2022 China-Arab States Summit, Elion signed a cooperation agreement with the Saudi Vegetation Development and Desertification Control Center to help Saudi Arabia plant 10 billion trees. Currently it is launching the cultivation of 100 million heat- and drought-tolerant saline-alkali seeds in Saudi Arabia. At the same time, Elion is actively exploring the promotion of the Kubuqi sand control model to Mongolia and other countries along the route of the Belt and Road Initiative, Li said.

Through decades of continuous efforts, several generations of young people in China have worked out a desertification control plan with Chinese characteristics that can be extended to the world. This plan has crossed continents and oceans, bringing confidence and well-being to people in countries and regions suffering from sandstorms.

The greenery in China's deserts today is full of wonder and hope, Li believed that such wonderful stories and experience will spread all over the world in near the future.

SOURCE Global Times
CHICAGO, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Sisram Wellness Center is excited to announce the grand opening of its flagship facility in downtown Chicago. The center offers a comprehensive range of advanced medical aesthetic services in skin health, beauty, and wellness. With a team of highly skilled professionals, licensed practitioners, and skin health specialists, Sisram Wellness Center is committed to providing exceptional care tailored to everyone's unique needs and concerns.

Visitors to Sisram Wellness Center can expect a wide range of services, including solutions for common aesthetic concerns such as acne, scars, skin discoloration, hair removal, skin tightening, cosmetic injections and more. The center also offers treatments for hair restoration and provides a range of health and wellness services for both men and women.

"At Sisram Medical, our mission is to drive the progress of our field and nurture the growth of our ecosystem by providing evidence-based solutions that prioritize the patient's experience," emphasized Lior Dayan, President and CEO of Sisram Medical. "Through integrating trusted brands like Alma, within the framework of Sisram Wellness Center, we strive to gather valuable insights from end-users, placing their needs and aspirations at the forefront. The grand opening of our flagship establishment in Chicago is a momentous step towards our strategic goals, and we are thrilled to embark on expanding Sisram Wellness Center to other prominent cities across the globe in the coming years."

Sisram Wellness Center has been meticulously developed to provide exceptional premium services within a cutting-edge facility, staffed by a highly skilled team. Keith Adams, President of Alma, a Sisram Medical Company, expressed his warm welcome to the Chicago community. "The center has been thoughtfully designed as an immersive experience center, allowing our clients to be the first to explore and benefit from our groundbreaking solutions as they are introduced to the market. With state-of-the-art technology and the unmatched expertise of our team, Sisram Wellness Center is poised to establish itself as the premier destination for skin health, beauty, and wellness services in Chicago."

Jeffrey Hsu, MD, Medical Director and Dermatologist at Sisram Wellness Center, expressed his pride in being part of the Sisram Wellness Center family. "Our highly qualified and trained medical staff are dedicated to delivering exceptional care and helping our patients achieve their skin health and wellness goals," said Dr. Hsu.

The grand opening of Sisram Wellness Center represents an exciting milestone for both the company and the Chicago community. By combining cutting-edge technology, expert care, and a nurturing environment, the center aims to become a trusted destination for individuals seeking to enhance their health and wellbeing.

For more information about Sisram Wellness Center, please visit www.swc-chicago.com. Media inquiries and interview requests can be directed to [email protected].

About Sisram Wellness Center:

Sisram Wellness Center is a premier healthcare and wellness facility located in downtown Chicago. The center offers advanced aesthetic services and personalized care to address the unique needs of each individual. With a team of highly skilled professionals, Sisram Wellness Center is committed to providing exceptional and evidence-based care to enhance overall wellbeing.

Contact:

Company: Sisram Wellness Center

Email: [email protected]

Website: www.swc-chicago.com

Instagram: @swc_chicago.com

SOURCE Sisram Wellness Center
AUSTIN, Texas, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Group1, a leading company in Potassium-ion battery technology, today announced it has signed a technology license agreement with Sharp Corporation for alkali ions battery technology. This agreement grants Group1 exclusive rights to Sharp's patent portfolio related to Potassium based cathode materials, enabling the next generation of sustainable, efficient, and cost-effective batteries.

Potassium Prussian White (KPW), a focus of Group1 and part of the licensed portfolio, is a 4V cathode material and stands out for being free of critical minerals such as Lithium, Cobalt, and Nickel, enabling sustainable Potassium-ion batteries (KIBs). This substantial advantage over traditional Lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) mitigates dependence on critical minerals, addressing supply chain risks and environmental concerns.

Nearly all the precursor materials required for KPW production can be sourced within North America. This strategic advantage establishes a domestic supply chain, reinforcing American energy security and presenting a transformative opportunity for American energy storage leadership.

Moreover, KPW is compatible with commercial graphite anodes and organic electrolytes, allowing for seamless integration into existing LIB manufacturing processes. This practical and economical solution addresses the increasing demands of LIB manufacturing while offering comparable energy density and safety to Lithium Iron Phosphate (LFP) based LIBs.

This agreement with Sharp advances Group1's IP leadership. It expands on their existing license agreement with the University of Texas at Austin for KIB technology developed in the labs of 2019 Chemistry Nobel laureate Prof. JB Goodenough. This combination solidifies Group1's position as the global leader in KIB technology.

"We are extremely pleased to announce that Group1 has secured a leading portfolio of key intellectual properties related to KIB materials technology to develop high-performing, safe, and sustainable alternatives to LIBs. We strongly believe that the combination of licensed technology and internally developed IP on all aspects of KIB technology enables Group1 to bring KIB technology to our customers to be used as a "drop-in" at existing LIB manufacturing," said Dr. Yakov Kutsovsky, Executive Chairman and Chief Scientific Officer of Group1.

About Group1

Founded in 2021 and based in Austin, TX, Group1 is an engineered materials company focusing on the commercialization of Potassium-ion batteries. The company is revolutionizing the energy industry by enabling sustainable, efficient, and cost-effective energy storage -- expanding beyond the limitations of Lithium-ion batteries while building on the best of Lithium-ion technologies.

Email: [email protected]

Website: www.group1.ai

SOURCE Group1
This aerial photo shows the night view in Chongqing's Opening Port Heritage Park in southwest China's Chongqing, June 9, 2023. A three-floor western building covered by traditional Chinese roof ridges glimmers in Chongqing's Opening Port Heritage Park on the south bank of Yangtze River in southwest China's Chongqing Municipality.

Built in 1896 by British businessman Archibald John Little, the structure once operated as a renowned foreign firm in Chongqing. The Little firm was also the first foreign firm in Chongqing when Chongqing opened its port.

Little spoke Chinese and was well versed in China's culture. He played an important role in promoting commercial and cultural exchanges between China and the West more than 100 years ago.

The old site of the foreign firm has been listed as cultural relic under municipal protection by Chongqing. In October 2020, the local government decided to restore the site to refresh the century-old structure.

With the building successfully repaired, the local government has developed it into a history museum. (Xinhua/Liu Chan)

Tourists take photos in Chongqing's Opening Port Heritage Park in southwest China's Chongqing, June 9, 2023. A three-floor western building covered by traditional Chinese roof ridges glimmers in Chongqing's Opening Port Heritage Park on the south bank of Yangtze River in southwest China's Chongqing Municipality.

Built in 1896 by British businessman Archibald John Little, the structure once operated as a renowned foreign firm in Chongqing. The Little firm was also the first foreign firm in Chongqing when Chongqing opened its port.

Little spoke Chinese and was well versed in China's culture. He played an important role in promoting commercial and cultural exchanges between China and the West more than 100 years ago.

The old site of the foreign firm has been listed as cultural relic under municipal protection by Chongqing. In October 2020, the local government decided to restore the site to refresh the century-old structure.

With the building successfully repaired, the local government has developed it into a history museum. (Xinhua/Liu Chan)

A tourist takes photos in Chongqing's Opening Port Heritage Park in southwest China's Chongqing, June 9, 2023. A three-floor western building covered by traditional Chinese roof ridges glimmers in Chongqing's Opening Port Heritage Park on the south bank of Yangtze River in southwest China's Chongqing Municipality.

Built in 1896 by British businessman Archibald John Little, the structure once operated as a renowned foreign firm in Chongqing. The Little firm was also the first foreign firm in Chongqing when Chongqing opened its port.

Little spoke Chinese and was well versed in China's culture. He played an important role in promoting commercial and cultural exchanges between China and the West more than 100 years ago.

The old site of the foreign firm has been listed as cultural relic under municipal protection by Chongqing. In October 2020, the local government decided to restore the site to refresh the century-old structure.

With the building successfully repaired, the local government has developed it into a history museum. (Xinhua/Liu Chan)

This photo shows the site of the former Little firm in Chongqing's Opening Port Heritage Park in southwest China's Chongqing, June 10, 2023. A three-floor western building covered by traditional Chinese roof ridges glimmers in Chongqing's Opening Port Heritage Park on the south bank of Yangtze River in southwest China's Chongqing Municipality.

Built in 1896 by British businessman Archibald John Little, the structure once operated as a renowned foreign firm in Chongqing. The Little firm was also the first foreign firm in Chongqing when Chongqing opened its port.

Little spoke Chinese and was well versed in China's culture. He played an important role in promoting commercial and cultural exchanges between China and the West more than 100 years ago.

The old site of the foreign firm has been listed as cultural relic under municipal protection by Chongqing. In October 2020, the local government decided to restore the site to refresh the century-old structure.

With the building successfully repaired, the local government has developed it into a history museum. (Xinhua/Huang Wei)

This aerial photo shows tourists enjoying the night view in Chongqing's Opening Port Heritage Park in southwest China's Chongqing, June 9, 2023. A three-floor western building covered by traditional Chinese roof ridges glimmers in Chongqing's Opening Port Heritage Park on the south bank of Yangtze River in southwest China's Chongqing Municipality.

Built in 1896 by British businessman Archibald John Little, the structure once operated as a renowned foreign firm in Chongqing. The Little firm was also the first foreign firm in Chongqing when Chongqing opened its port.

Little spoke Chinese and was well versed in China's culture. He played an important role in promoting commercial and cultural exchanges between China and the West more than 100 years ago.

The old site of the foreign firm has been listed as cultural relic under municipal protection by Chongqing. In October 2020, the local government decided to restore the site to refresh the century-old structure.

With the building successfully repaired, the local government has developed it into a history museum. (Xinhua/Liu Chan)

A tourist watches a music show in Chongqing's Opening Port Heritage Park in southwest China's Chongqing, June 9, 2023. A three-floor western building covered by traditional Chinese roof ridges glimmers in Chongqing's Opening Port Heritage Park on the south bank of Yangtze River in southwest China's Chongqing Municipality.

Built in 1896 by British businessman Archibald John Little, the structure once operated as a renowned foreign firm in Chongqing. The Little firm was also the first foreign firm in Chongqing when Chongqing opened its port.

Little spoke Chinese and was well versed in China's culture. He played an important role in promoting commercial and cultural exchanges between China and the West more than 100 years ago.

The old site of the foreign firm has been listed as cultural relic under municipal protection by Chongqing. In October 2020, the local government decided to restore the site to refresh the century-old structure.

With the building successfully repaired, the local government has developed it into a history museum. (Xinhua/Chu Jiayin)

Tourists visit the site of the former Little firm in Chongqing's Opening Port Heritage Park in southwest China's Chongqing, June 9, 2023. A three-floor western building covered by traditional Chinese roof ridges glimmers in Chongqing's Opening Port Heritage Park on the south bank of Yangtze River in southwest China's Chongqing Municipality.

Built in 1896 by British businessman Archibald John Little, the structure once operated as a renowned foreign firm in Chongqing. The Little firm was also the first foreign firm in Chongqing when Chongqing opened its port.

Little spoke Chinese and was well versed in China's culture. He played an important role in promoting commercial and cultural exchanges between China and the West more than 100 years ago.

The old site of the foreign firm has been listed as cultural relic under municipal protection by Chongqing. In October 2020, the local government decided to restore the site to refresh the century-old structure.

With the building successfully repaired, the local government has developed it into a history museum. (Xinhua/Liu Chan)

This aerial photo shows the site of the former Little firm in Chongqing's Opening Port Heritage Park in southwest China's Chongqing, June 10, 2023. A three-floor western building covered by traditional Chinese roof ridges glimmers in Chongqing's Opening Port Heritage Park on the south bank of Yangtze River in southwest China's Chongqing Municipality.

Built in 1896 by British businessman Archibald John Little, the structure once operated as a renowned foreign firm in Chongqing. The Little firm was also the first foreign firm in Chongqing when Chongqing opened its port.

Little spoke Chinese and was well versed in China's culture. He played an important role in promoting commercial and cultural exchanges between China and the West more than 100 years ago.

The old site of the foreign firm has been listed as cultural relic under municipal protection by Chongqing. In October 2020, the local government decided to restore the site to refresh the century-old structure.

With the building successfully repaired, the local government has developed it into a history museum. (Xinhua/Huang Wei)

A tourist watches a tea art show in Chongqing's Opening Port Heritage Park in southwest China's Chongqing, June 9, 2023. A three-floor western building covered by traditional Chinese roof ridges glimmers in Chongqing's Opening Port Heritage Park on the south bank of Yangtze River in southwest China's Chongqing Municipality.

Built in 1896 by British businessman Archibald John Little, the structure once operated as a renowned foreign firm in Chongqing. The Little firm was also the first foreign firm in Chongqing when Chongqing opened its port.

Little spoke Chinese and was well versed in China's culture. He played an important role in promoting commercial and cultural exchanges between China and the West more than 100 years ago.

The old site of the foreign firm has been listed as cultural relic under municipal protection by Chongqing. In October 2020, the local government decided to restore the site to refresh the century-old structure.

With the building successfully repaired, the local government has developed it into a history museum. (Xinhua/Liu Chan)

This aerial photo shows the site of the former Little firm in Chongqing's Opening Port Heritage Park in southwest China's Chongqing, June 9, 2023. A three-floor western building covered by traditional Chinese roof ridges glimmers in Chongqing's Opening Port Heritage Park on the south bank of Yangtze River in southwest China's Chongqing Municipality.

Built in 1896 by British businessman Archibald John Little, the structure once operated as a renowned foreign firm in Chongqing. The Little firm was also the first foreign firm in Chongqing when Chongqing opened its port.

Little spoke Chinese and was well versed in China's culture. He played an important role in promoting commercial and cultural exchanges between China and the West more than 100 years ago.

The old site of the foreign firm has been listed as cultural relic under municipal protection by Chongqing. In October 2020, the local government decided to restore the site to refresh the century-old structure.

With the building successfully repaired, the local government has developed it into a history museum. (Xinhua/Liu Chan)

Tourists visit the Chongqing's Opening Port Heritage Park in southwest China's Chongqing, June 9, 2023. A three-floor western building covered by traditional Chinese roof ridges glimmers in Chongqing's Opening Port Heritage Park on the south bank of Yangtze River in southwest China's Chongqing Municipality.

Built in 1896 by British businessman Archibald John Little, the structure once operated as a renowned foreign firm in Chongqing. The Little firm was also the first foreign firm in Chongqing when Chongqing opened its port.

Little spoke Chinese and was well versed in China's culture. He played an important role in promoting commercial and cultural exchanges between China and the West more than 100 years ago.

The old site of the foreign firm has been listed as cultural relic under municipal protection by Chongqing. In October 2020, the local government decided to restore the site to refresh the century-old structure.

With the building successfully repaired, the local government has developed it into a history museum. (Xinhua/Liu Chan)

Tourists visit the the site of the former Little firm in Chongqing's Opening Port Heritage Park in southwest China's Chongqing, June 9, 2023. A three-floor western building covered by traditional Chinese roof ridges glimmers in Chongqing's Opening Port Heritage Park on the south bank of Yangtze River in southwest China's Chongqing Municipality.

Built in 1896 by British businessman Archibald John Little, the structure once operated as a renowned foreign firm in Chongqing. The Little firm was also the first foreign firm in Chongqing when Chongqing opened its port.

Little spoke Chinese and was well versed in China's culture. He played an important role in promoting commercial and cultural exchanges between China and the West more than 100 years ago.

The old site of the foreign firm has been listed as cultural relic under municipal protection by Chongqing. In October 2020, the local government decided to restore the site to refresh the century-old structure.

With the building successfully repaired, the local government has developed it into a history museum. (Xinhua/Liu Chan)

This aerial photo shows the site of the former Little firm in Chongqing's Opening Port Heritage Park in southwest China's Chongqing, June 10, 2023. A three-floor western building covered by traditional Chinese roof ridges glimmers in Chongqing's Opening Port Heritage Park on the south bank of Yangtze River in southwest China's Chongqing Municipality.

Built in 1896 by British businessman Archibald John Little, the structure once operated as a renowned foreign firm in Chongqing. The Little firm was also the first foreign firm in Chongqing when Chongqing opened its port.

Little spoke Chinese and was well versed in China's culture. He played an important role in promoting commercial and cultural exchanges between China and the West more than 100 years ago.

The old site of the foreign firm has been listed as cultural relic under municipal protection by Chongqing. In October 2020, the local government decided to restore the site to refresh the century-old structure.

With the building successfully repaired, the local government has developed it into a history museum. (Xinhua/Huang Wei)

This stitched aerial photo shows tourists enjoying the night view in Chongqing's Opening Port Heritage Park in southwest China's Chongqing, June 9, 2023. A three-floor western building covered by traditional Chinese roof ridges glimmers in Chongqing's Opening Port Heritage Park on the south bank of Yangtze River in southwest China's Chongqing Municipality.

Built in 1896 by British businessman Archibald John Little, the structure once operated as a renowned foreign firm in Chongqing. The Little firm was also the first foreign firm in Chongqing when Chongqing opened its port.

Little spoke Chinese and was well versed in China's culture. He played an important role in promoting commercial and cultural exchanges between China and the West more than 100 years ago.

The old site of the foreign firm has been listed as cultural relic under municipal protection by Chongqing. In October 2020, the local government decided to restore the site to refresh the century-old structure.

With the building successfully repaired, the local government has developed it into a history museum. (Xinhua/Liu Chan)

This aerial photo shows tourists enjoying the night view in Chongqing's Opening Port Heritage Park in southwest China's Chongqing, June 9, 2023. A three-floor western building covered by traditional Chinese roof ridges glimmers in Chongqing's Opening Port Heritage Park on the south bank of Yangtze River in southwest China's Chongqing Municipality.

Built in 1896 by British businessman Archibald John Little, the structure once operated as a renowned foreign firm in Chongqing. The Little firm was also the first foreign firm in Chongqing when Chongqing opened its port.

Little spoke Chinese and was well versed in China's culture. He played an important role in promoting commercial and cultural exchanges between China and the West more than 100 years ago.

The old site of the foreign firm has been listed as cultural relic under municipal protection by Chongqing. In October 2020, the local government decided to restore the site to refresh the century-old structure.

With the building successfully repaired, the local government has developed it into a history museum. (Xinhua/Liu Chan)

A tourist visits the site of the former Little firm in Chongqing's Opening Port Heritage Park in southwest China's Chongqing, June 9, 2023. A three-floor western building covered by traditional Chinese roof ridges glimmers in Chongqing's Opening Port Heritage Park on the south bank of Yangtze River in southwest China's Chongqing Municipality.

Built in 1896 by British businessman Archibald John Little, the structure once operated as a renowned foreign firm in Chongqing. The Little firm was also the first foreign firm in Chongqing when Chongqing opened its port.

Little spoke Chinese and was well versed in China's culture. He played an important role in promoting commercial and cultural exchanges between China and the West more than 100 years ago.

The old site of the foreign firm has been listed as cultural relic under municipal protection by Chongqing. In October 2020, the local government decided to restore the site to refresh the century-old structure.

With the building successfully repaired, the local government has developed it into a history museum. (Xinhua/Liu Chan)

Editor: JYZ
Experienced software industry veterans to build new company through acquisitions and organic growth

CHICAGO, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- GTCR, a leading private equity firm, today announced that it has entered into a partnership with Matt DiMaria, Adam Ragauskis, Chris Loeper, Kurt Nelson, and Daniel Bohannon to form Stelao LLC ("Stelao" or the "Company"). Based in Nashville, TN, Stelao will seek to partner with companies as part of a strategy to build a leading enterprise software platform enabling data-driven customer experiences and measurable outcomes.

The formation of Stelao is supported by GTCR's Leaders Strategy approach, which involves partnering with exceptional management leaders in its core domains to identify, acquire and build market-leading companies through transformational acquisitions and organic growth. GTCR has successfully applied The Leaders Strategy for several decades and maintains a culture of partnership with management teams as they build strategically attractive businesses over time.

The Stelao leadership team has a proven track record of building and transforming enterprise software businesses. Prior to forming Stelao, they comprised the executive management team at Mindful, a private equity-backed leader in enterprise callback technology. As Chief Executive Officer, Chief Financial Officer, Chief Revenue Officer, Chief Marketing and Product Officer, and Vice President of Engineering, respectively, the team strategically transformed Mindful's product line and enhanced key operations to build a market leading customer experience software business. Following this successful transformation, through both organic growth and M&A investments, Mindful was sold to Medallia in 2022.

Mr. DiMaria is a successful software executive with more than 30 years of industry experience. Prior to Mindful, he was CEO of Eyefi, a cloud photo storage and processing service provider sold to Ricoh Corporation. Previously, he was EVP and GM of Roxio Products Group, a division of Roxio-Corel, a digital media authoring business.

"We are excited to build a market-leading enterprise software company in partnership with GTCR," said Mr. DiMaria. "GTCR has deep domain expertise in software, a track record of creatively building companies in the space, and shares our view of what constitutes an attractive enterprise software platform."

"GTCR's formation of Stelao with Matt, Adam, Chris, Kurt and Daniel is another excellent example of The Leaders Strategy and builds on our history of successful investments in software," added Stephen Master, Managing Director at GTCR. "Matt and his team have identified a very attractive theme in delivering excellent and measurable customer outcomes, and we look forward to actively working together to find companies to partner with in this space."

About GTCR

Founded in 1980, GTCR is a leading private equity firm that pioneered The Leaders Strategy  finding and partnering with management leaders in core domains to identify, acquire and build market-leading companies through organic growth and strategic acquisitions. GTCR is focused on investing in transformative growth in companies in the Business & Consumer Services, Financial Services & Technology, Healthcare and Technology, Media & Telecommunications sectors. Since its inception, GTCR has invested more than $24 billion in over 270 companies, and the firm currently manages more than $35 billion in equity capital. GTCR is based in Chicago with offices in New York and West Palm Beach. For more information, please visit www.gtcr.com. Follow us on LinkedIn.

About Stelao

Stelao is a partnership between Matt DiMaria, Adam Ragauskis, Chris Loeper, Kurt Nelson Daniel Bohannon, and GTCR. Stelao's mission is to build a leading enterprise software business that enables data-driven customer experiences and measurable outcomes. For more information, please contact us at [email protected]. Please visit www.stelao.com. Follow us on LinkedIn.

GTCR

Andrew Johnson

212.835.7042

[email protected]

Stelao

Kurt Nelson

[email protected]

SOURCE GTCR
The event took place at the highest inhabited point in Romania - the Omu Hut, at an altitude of 2507m ;

It is the first and largest mountain expedition in the world to bring together such a large number of medical professionals;

BUCHAREST, Romania, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- MedLife, the leader of the private medical services market in Romania, organised on Saturday, June 10, the largest medical expedition to Omu Peak setting a GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS title for the "Largest human image of a human chromosome". Nearly 800 doctors, nurses, psychologists, pharmacists and other medical and support staff formed on the top of the mountain the largest human image of a human chromosome in the colors of the Romanian national flag.

GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS title set by a Romanian medical company GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS title set by a Romanian medical company GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS title set by a Romanian medical company

"On the cliff of Omu Peak, near the oldest stone hut in Romania, at an altitude of over 2500 m, our colleagues wrote history. It turned out that no dream is too big for us, and an amazing number of medical professionals believed in it, all volunteered for it. We overcame the weather challenges, we overcame physical limitations and together we broke a world record.", said Nicolae Marcu, Director of Health and Operations at MedLife.

The safety of all participants has been a top priority for the organisers. Therefore, a group of 40 professional guides, experienced people who have coordinated countless national and international expeditions, led by David Neacsu, the mountaineer who led the first all-Romanian expedition to Everest in 2003, accompanied the participants of the medical expedition to Omu Peak. Among the other famous names who accompanied the expedition were Horia Colibasanu and Marius Gane, perhaps the most successful Romanian climbers to reach peaks above 8000 m.

Despite the erratic weather, 756 medical and support personnel reached the summit. Guinness World Records representative, Pravin Patel, who climbed the route to Omu Peak, confirmed the record for the largest image of a human chromosome. The previous record was set in 2019 and belonged to a group of 415 people from India.

"I am grateful to have been part of this officially amazing experience. There are a number of conditions that need to be met for this record and you have succeeded in breaking the original record by creating the largest human image of a human chromosome," said Pravin Patel, Guinness World Records representative, when presenting the certificate.

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2101973/MedLife_SA_1.jpg

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2101974/MedLife_SA_2.jpg

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2101975/MedLife_SA_3.jpg

SOURCE MedLife SA
Members of the healthcare and public service union, SEIU 1107, helped lead the fight for the Juneteenth holiday, which is critical for acknowledging the injustices faced by Black Americans and creating dialogue about policy solutions moving forward

LAS VEGAS, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The members of Nevada's largest union of healthcare and public service workers, SEIU Local 1107, are celebrating the passage of Juneteenth as a state holiday. The Nevada Assembly passed Assembly Bill 140 by 40 to 1, the state Senate passed the bill by 19 to 2, and Gov. Lombardo signed it into law on June 8. Juneteenth, also known as Freedom Day, celebrates the day on June 19, 1865 when many of the last enslaved people were emancipated.

The following statement is from Grace Vergara-Mactal, Executive Director, and Michelle Maese, President, of SEIU Local 1107:

"For months now, the healthcare and public service workers of SEIU Local 1107 have been helping to lead the fight in the state legislature to make Juneteenth  Freedom Day  a state holiday on June 19. This has been a priority for our union because our members are disproportionately people of color, and we believe we must build understanding, unity and solidarity across racial lines to win good jobs and a fair economy for all working people. So we are thrilled that the State Senate and Assembly overwhelmingly approved this historic bill and Governor Lombardo signed it into law.

"Juneteenth celebrates the day in 1865 when many of the last enslaved people were emancipated. Establishing Juneteenth as a state holiday is a long overdue recognition of the historic oppression that Black Americans have faced and creates opportunities for dialogue about concrete policy solutions to address injustices moving forward. Black Nevadans continue to struggle with serious disparities in a wide range of areas, including housing, education, income and healthcare. For instance, 21% of Black Nevadans are stuck in poverty, and Black women are much more likely to die from childbirth.

"We are deeply grateful to Assemblywoman Claire Thomas, Senator Pat Spearman and Governor Lombardo for their support. We also thank our community partners who testified in support of the bill. We will now seek to make Juneteenth a paid holiday in all our union contracts with employers.

"The Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr. said 'True peace is not merely the absence of tension; it is the presence of justice.' Together with our allies, we will continue to build our movement to make justice more present in our communities, our state and our nation."

SEIU Nevada Local 1107 is the largest healthcare and public service union in the state, representing nearly 20,000 workers. Together, SEIU 1107 members fight for good union jobs, quality services and a better quality of life for all working Nevadans.

Contact: Dave Bates, 347-865-8038, [email protected]

Carrie Jacobs, 405-992-3665, [email protected]

SOURCE SEIU Local 1107
HANGZHOU, China, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- World-leading smart solar + storage solution provider and microinverter manufacturer Hoymiles has launched its HMS-1000W microinverter series at Intersolar Europe in Munich, Germany. Designed for mini PV systems, such as balcony solar, the model is integrated with industry+ grade Wi-Fi module that ensures exceptional connectivity. No complex wiring and external gateway products required, the new microinverters are set to make it easier for homeowners to go solar and facilitate balcony solar installation in Europe.

What's unique about the HMS-W microinverters?

The HMS-1000W series, covering power options from 600W to 1000W, is Hoymiles' latest 2-in-1 Wi-Fi integrated microinverter released in Europe.

Super-easy installation

With the built-in Wi-Fi module, the microinverters can be directly connected to the internet for remote monitoring of operational data, without setting up a gateway product as with traditional solar installations.

Users can also choose to directly connect their phone to the microinverter to view all the system details without registration.

In particular, the microinverters allow users to adjust output power to suit their needs under different conditions.

Unmatched reliability for durable performance

Adopting an industry+ grade Wi-Fi module and a pre-attached antenna, the HMS-1000W microinverters are also noted for unmatched reliability.

The module endures temperatures of up to 105C, way higher than the highest internal temperature of microinverters when they are working, offering a stronger internet connection that never fails. The IP67 waterproof rating makes the microinverter well-suited for outdoor use.

How HMS-1000W microinverters help with balcony solar?

Coming with two input channels, the microinverters can be connected to two PV modules, making them a cost-effective choice for balconies which are usually space-limited.

When paired with Hoymiles HMS Field Connector and Plug and Play Cable (integrated with a Schuko plug), the compliant microinverter can be directly connected to a socket (so-called "plug-in solar"), eliminating complex wiring and making solar installation extremely easy. In addition, the cable length is fully customizable so that users can get the layout best suited to their needs.

"The HMS-W series of microinverter is a simple and tailored solar solution in response to the large demand for balcony solar in Europe", explained Hoymiles Product Director Steven Zhang. "We have maintained a long-standing reputation in Europe, especially Germany, and we believe the latest product will make going solar easier for our European customers and reinforce our position in the years to come."

Five power options of HMS-W series: HMS-600W-2T

HMS-700W-2T

HMS-800W-2T

HMS-900W-2T

HMS-1000W-2T

About Hoymiles

Founded in 2012, Hoymiles is a global MLPE (Module-Level Power Electronics) solution provider, specializing in module-level microinverters, storage systems and rapid shutdown systems. With a vision of a clean, sustainable future, the company strives to drive innovation in the smart energy industry with its high-performance, accessible products. Hoymiles is empowering homeowners and professionals in more than 120 countries and regions to join the journey to true open energy.

For more information, please visit: https://www.hoymiles.com/

Media Contact:

Joseph pan

[email protected]com

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2098649/HMS_W_microinverter.jpg

SOURCE Hoymiles Power Electronic Inc
CHICAGO, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- According to Arizton's latest research report, the Europe elevator and escalator market will grow at a CAGR of 4.75% during 2022-2029.

To Know More, Download the Free Sample Report: https://www.arizton.com/request-sample/3832

Europe Elevator and Escalator Market Report by Arizton

The demand for vertical transportation equipment is set to soar as governments increase their investments in public and private infrastructure alongside energy-efficient housing renovation projects that receive support from EU funding. This surge in demand has prompted the European Lift Association (ELA) to collaborate with policymakers in establishing a suitable framework to facilitate the transition towards energy-efficient lifts. ELA is actively lobbying the European Commission (EC) to include lifts, escalators, and moving walks in the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD), aiming to make a tangible contribution towards the EU's ambitious goals.

According to industry projections, the installed base of elevators in Europe is expected to reach a staggering 7,525.4 thousand units by 2029. The growth of the elevator and escalator industry can be attributed to factors such as migration patterns and the increasing demand for vertical cities, which aligns with the evolution of the construction sector. Additionally, Europe is taking a leading role in the decarbonization of buildings, driven by the implementation of advanced building regulations, stimulus programs, and growing customer demand.

Europe Elevator and Escalator Market Size (Volume)

Installation Base

New Installation Type

Modernization (In Billion)

Maintenance (In Billion)

Europe Elevator Market Size (Volume)

Installation Base

New Installation Type

Modernization & Maintenance (In Million)

Europe Escalator Market Size by Volume

Installation Base

New Installation Type

Modernization & Maintenance (In Million)

Europe Elevator and Escalator Market Report Scope

Report Attributes Details Market Size by New Installations (2029) 210.2 thousand units Market Size by New Installations (2022) 151.9 thousand units CAGR (2022-2029) 4.75 % Market Size by Installed Base (2029) 7,708.4 thousand units Market Size by Modernization (2029) USD 8646.4 Million Base Year 2022 Forecast Year 2023-2029

Buy the Report Now: https://www.arizton.com/market-reports/europe-elevator-and-escalator-market

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About 63% of Germany's present building was constructed before 1979, and all these buildings might require upgradation or remodeling. Since most of them are older buildings, elevators are not installed in most of the buildings. Such factors will create an opportunity for the vertical transport industry and contribute to the Europe elevator and escalator market. Installing a Microlift, also commonly known as a dumbwaiter or a kitchen lift, can make even the smallest team super-efficient, especially for food orders that need to stay warm and be delivered quickly. Staff shortages and the need to balance have created a demand for microlifts in the UK.

Moreover, USD 220.3 million loans will support KONE's research and development for more energy-efficient elevators, escalators, auto walks, automatic doors, intelligent technologies, and solutions for people flow. The project will increase the European Union industry's technology leadership and competitiveness. The USD 220.3 million loans signed today between the EIB and Finland Based KONE Corporation will support research and development in innovation. This will improve the safety and functional performance of KONE's product range while at the same time reducing the carbon footprint of KONE's solutions by improving the energy efficiency of the products and services and, consequently, of the buildings where they will be used. In cooperation with ELA, the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI) has developed a smart lift IoT system standard coupled to the one Machine-to-Machine (M2M)platform. Still, the drawback is that this platform is currently not commonly compatible with popular BMS interfaces and does not yet address the variety of lift functionality. To overcome these drawbacks, telecom experts must become more aware of the requirements of the lift and escalator world, in the same way, that the lift experts must become more aware of modern telecom and interoperability methodologies.

Adoption of BIM methods in Public buildings has been mandated in the United Kingdom and the Netherlands According to the European directive 2014/24/EU. The UK government is intensely supportive of BIM technologies.

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Vendor Insights

KONE is collaborating with Louvre Hotels Group, the second-largest hotel group in Europe and a subsidiary of Jin Jiang International, to equip the first smart hotel in Europe with the Smart Inside label in Lyon, France.

In October 2022, TKE launched EOX, a new energy-saving and digital elevator platform. EOX features low-consumption belt traction technology, optimized energy-saving features such as an eco-mode that learns and adjusts to traffic patterns, and a regenerative drive that feeds energy back into the building. Its lighter weight contributes toward a lower carbon footprint, and less fuel required for transport to client sites will result in an over 10% reduction in CO2 emissions on average. In addition, it will require up to 28% less energy to move the elevator in the shaft. EOX is also manufactured at TK Elevator's European factories that run on 100% renewable electricity and will have a Class A energy efficiency rating. A dashboard in the customer portal provides complete transparency about the elevator's energy consumption and savings daily, monthly, and yearly.

Otis, TKE, Schindler, and KONE are the top 4 major OEMs in the Europe elevator and escalator market, with a share of 54%.

Otis invested USD 22 million in the San Sebastian factory dedicated to quality manufacturing and continued support of the skilled workforce in Spain.

Key Vendors

Otis

TK Elevator

Schindler

KONE

Mitsubishi Electric

Fujitec

Hyundai Elevator

Hitachi

Orona Elevators

Titan Elevators

KOHLER Elevator GmbH

KLEEMANN

Alimak

Stannah Lifts Holdings Ltd.

GMV Lifts

Cibes Lift Group

Excelsior Elevator

Wittur Elevator Components

Doppler Lifts

AKE Elevators and Escalators

Ascensores Carbonell

SJEC

Morris Vermaport Limited

Pickering Lifts

Elevator Market Segmentation by

Machine Type

Hydraulic and Pneumatic

Machine Room Traction

Machine Room Less Traction

Others

Climbing



Elevators



Industrial Elevators

Carriage Type

Passenger

Freight

Capacity

2-15 Persons

16-24 Persons

25-33 Persons

34 Persons and Above

End-User

Commercial

Residential

Industrial

Others

Public Transit



Institutional



Infrastructural

Escalator Market Segmentation by

Product Type

Parallel

Multi Parallel

Walkway

Crisscross

End-User

Public Transit

Commercial

Others

Institutional Sector



Infrastructure



Industrial

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SOURCE Arizton Advisory & Intelligence
Dallas-Based Boutique Wealth Management Firm Selected for DEI, Service Categories and Digital Marketing Campaign of the Year

DALLAS , June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Prospera Financial Services, Inc. ("Prospera"), a wealth management firm supporting a nationwide network of independent financial advisors, today announced it has been selected as a 2023 WealthManagement.com Industry Awards finalist in the Diversity, Equity & Inclusion, Digital Marketing Campaign of the Year and Service division for broker-dealers with fewer than 1,000 advisors. In its ninth year, the "Wealthies" is the first awards program of its kind to honor outstanding achievements by companies, organizations and individuals that support financial advisor success.

Prospera's BRIDGE mentorship program is one of three finalists in the Diversity, Equity & Inclusion category. The BRIDGE program is structured to pair employees of different departments and experience levels together in a mentorship relationship. The program has been adopted by nearly 30% of the firm and provides a way for mentees to gain industry knowledge, understand Prospera culture and build a wider network of contacts within the organization.

The firm was one of two Service finalists. Prospera's Virtual Service Associate (VSA) Program allows its financial advisors to work with a dedicated Prospera employee, serving as a remote service associate for their individual practices. VSAs act as an extension of an advisor's team and are trained in Prospera software, policies and procedures. The program provides flexibility to advisors through the option of outsourcing their support needs without hiring a full-time employee, while maintaining quality service through an associate trained and affiliated directly with Prospera.

"Our VSAs offer advisors the freedom of support for their business without the added responsibility of managing payroll, PTO, benefits and the other intricacies that come with having staff," said Tarah Williams, President & COO at Prospera. "The VSA program has been successful in supporting our advisors  and moreover their clients  which allows for true independence."

Prospera also received recognition for its Success Your Way campaign in the Digital Campaign of the Year category for broker-dealers under 1,000. The multi-pronged approach was crafted using themes cultivated from the firm's financial advisors. The campaign's impact led to a considerable increase in social media engagement and followers over its eight-month period  and also involved comprehensive materials, such as companion videos, emails and brochures.

The WealthManagement.com Industry Awards recognizes firms who demonstrate outstanding achievement in support of financial advisor success. Finalists had to define their initiative goals, results and how this elevated their advisor's experience. Winners will be announced at a Sept. 7 gala in New York.

Prospera is a seven-time Industry Award winner and was honored in 2015, 2019, 2020, 2021, and most recently in 2022 in the Practice Management category and CEO of the Year.

About Prospera Financial Services

Founded in 1982, Prospera Financial Services, Member FINRA, SIPC and a registered investment advisory, offers the flexibility and resources only found at some of the nation's largest broker-dealers. Headquartered in Dallas, Prospera was named Broker-Dealer of the Year by Investment Advisor Magazine in 2009, 2010, 2012, 2014, 2015, 2018 and 2019. Prospera is a 7-time winner and 9-time finalist for WealthManagement.com's Industry Awards as well as a ThinkAdvisor Luminaries award winner in its inaugural year. The firm supports independent financial advisors nationwide. For more information about Prospera, visit www.joinprospera.com.

About WealthManagement.com

WealthManagement.com, an Informa business, provides everything wealth professionals need to know to stay knowledgeable about the industry, build stronger relationships, improve their practice, and grow their business  all from one site. Learn more about the WealthManagement Industry Awards at Events.WealthManagement.com.

Media Contacts

Donald Cutler or Lorene Yue

Haven Tower Group LLC

424 317 4864 or 424 317 4854

[email protected] or [email protected]

SOURCE Prospera Financial Services
Receives Court Approval for "First Day" Motions

Secures Interim Approval to Access New Debtor-in-Possession Financing to Support Ongoing Business Operations

Continues to Provide Innovative Products and High-Quality Home Goods Without Interruption

DOWNERS GROVE, Ill., June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Instant Brands (the "Company"), maker of consumer favorites like Instant Pot, Corelle, Pyrex, Snapware, CorningWare, Visions and Chicago Cutlery, today announced that is has received approvals from the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas for its "First Day" motions related to the Company's voluntary Chapter 11 petitions filed on June 12, 2023. Notably, the Court authorized the Company on an interim basis to access and use financing from its existing lenders provided under (i) a $125.0 million debtor-in-possession asset-based revolving credit facility, and (ii) a $132.5 million debtor-in-possession term loan credit facility, up to $100 million of which will be immediately funded on an interim basis.

The interim approvals granted by the Court enable the Company to continue:

Paying employee wages and benefits without interruption;

Paying vendors, suppliers and distributors in full under normal terms for goods and services provided on or after the filing date; and

Providing housewares and appliance products under its iconic brands.

"We want to thank our lenders and all advisors for working with us and supporting us with new financing," said Ben Gadbois, President and CEO of Instant Brands. "While we continue our efforts to strengthen our financial position, this court-approved financing gives us the ability to continue to provide all of our great products to consumers around the world during this process."

The Company also reiterated that entities located outside of the United States and Canada are not included in the Chapter 11 filings. Instant Brands continues to operate as usual in Asia, the UK, Europe, Middle East, Australia and New Zealand regions, as well as provide consumers with the iconic housewares and kitchen appliances through all the usual sales channels. The Company's mission to provide innovative products that deliver amazing culinary experiences for all consumers remains unchanged.

Chapter 11 is a legal tool in the United States that enables companies to continue operating as they strengthen their financial positions in an efficient and orderly manner. It is different from restructuring or administration processes in other countries and does not mean the Company is going out of business.

Additional information regarding the Company's court-supervised process is available at Instant Brands' restructuring website, InstantBrandsRestructuring.com. Court filings and other information related to the proceedings are available on a separate website administered by the Company's claims agent, Epiq, at https://dm.epiq11.com/InstantBrands, by calling Epiq toll-free at (888) 290-5211 (or (503) 694-4156 for calls originating outside of the U.S.), or by sending an email to [email protected].

Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP is serving as Instant Brands' legal counsel, Guggenheim Securities, LLC is serving as investment banker, and AlixPartners is serving as restructuring advisor.

About Instant Brands

Instant Brands designs, manufactures and markets a global portfolio of innovative and iconic consumer lifestyle brands: Instant, Pyrex, Corelle, Corningware, Snapware, Chicago Cutlery, ZOID and Visions. With people-first and purpose-driven solutions in mind, Instant Brands is reimagining how people live, eat, connect, and play inside the homeand in the spaces where people gather. The Company is headquartered in Downers Grove, Ill., and employs more than 2,000 people across four continents. Today, Instant Brands' products are in millions of homes worldwide. For more information visit Instant Brands or join the community at LinkedIn, Instagram, and Facebook.

Media Contact

[email protected]

or

Aaron Palash / Rose Temple / Rachel Goldman

Joele Frank Wilkinson Brimmer Katcher

212-355-4449

SOURCE Instant Brands
HALTON HILLS, ON, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ - Intlvac Thin Film, a Canadian advanced manufacturing company that has a thirty-year history in the thin film deposition and materials science industry with clients in the aerospace & defence, medicine, telecommunications, energy, optics and photonics industries is expanding its research and development capabilities at its corporate headquarters in Canada.

Intlvac Thin Film is enhancing its research and development capabilities in Canada and has numerous available positions," announced Intlvac Thin Film President Dino Deligiannis. "Our technology and systems for aerospace & defence and energy markets have been selling well and are creating new opportunities for us. Our team has been working together for decades to advance thin film deposition, ion beam etching deposition, thin film coatings and Ion sources for surface modifications. We are launching new capabilities and systems at an accelerated pace as we are in a growth phase for the company so we have begun hiring PhDs as Research Engineers to lead and expand our infrared (IR) coating capabilities," explained Mr. Deligiannis.

"Our Research Engineers are responsible for optical and compositional characterization of Zinc sulfide (ZnS), Germanium (Ge), Zinc Selenide (ZnSe), Magnesium fluoride (MgF) and other Infrared (IR) materials with applications and core capability in the 3-5m and 8-12m infrared wavelength regions to meet customer needs," outlined Mr. Deligiannis.

"Our recent research and development efforts and expenditures have resulted in commercial success as our Diamond Like Carbon (DLC) coating capabilities are finding applications and are in demand in the defence industry. Back in May, we were able to showcase our Diamond Like Carbon and specialized thin film coatings and systems at the SPIE Defense and Commercial Sensing show. Moving forward we are launching our high-quality, customized vacuum systems for the hydrogen fuel cell industry at the end of this month in the USA and in September in Germany," explained Mr. Deligiannis.

Intlvac Thin Film will be exhibiting at the Hydrogen Expo in Houston, Texas on June 28th and 29th and the Hydrogen Technology Expo in Germany on September 27th and 28th.

About Intlvac Thin Film:

Intlvac Thin Film is a Canadian advanced manufacturing company that supplies Systems for High Vacuum Thin Film Deposition & Ion Beam Etching/Deposition, Thin Film Coatings, and Ion Sources for surface modification. Intlvac has been a driving force in the thin film deposition and materials science industry for the past thirty years. The company has customers in the aerospace & defence, medicine, telecommunications, energy, optics and photonics industries. Corporate headquarters is in Halton Hills, Ontario, Canada and the company has a US subsidiary in Fort Collins, Colorado to support clients in the United States.

For more information about Intlvac Inc. please visit https://intlvacthinfilm.ca

SOURCE Inltvac Thin film
New data shows trust gap wider among female physicians and those working in not-for-profit healthcare organizations.

BRENTWOOD, Tenn., and CHICAGO, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Barely half of physicians trust that their organization's leaders are honest, transparent and making good decisions for patients and the organization, according to a new survey from national healthcare strategic communications consultancy Jarrard Inc.

The growing physician shortage and increasing burnout are well documented. The Jarrard research digs deeper to uncover how physicians feel about the leadership teams making the operational and financial decisions that affect the clinical workforce  decisions that either address or contribute to burnout.

Physicians expressed an overwhelming desire for more transparency from hospital leaders on issues that affect them. Tweet this

"Healthcare leaders, like clinicians and staff, are mission-oriented individuals committed to caring for their communities and supporting caregivers," said Jarrard Inc. President and Co-Founder Anne Hancock Toomey. "Leaders are navigating myriad hard choices to chart a path forward for their organization. The challenges of that necessary work can keep well-intentioned leaders from fully engaging physicians  and others  seeking to understand those decisions and how they affect everyone involved. That lack of relationship leads to mistrust and perceptions that leaders are withholding information."

The survey asked:

Do physicians trust that their leadership teams are making good decisions for patients and the organization?

Who do physicians trust most within their organization?

How much loyalty do physicians feel towards their team and their organization?

What do physicians want to see from leadership teams to build trust?

The findings fall into three themes and demonstrate a marked gap between physicians and healthcare executives, which leaves provider organizations vulnerable to physicians leaving due to ongoing burnout or pursuit of a work environment where they feel more engaged.

The Trust Gap

Only 36 percent of physicians at not-for-profit organizations agree that their leaders are honest and transparent. Across all types of organizations, nearly half of physicians trust their physician peers the most. CEOs, CMOs, department heads and other leaders lag far behind. At not-for-profit organizations, physicians are 18 points more likely than those at investor-owned providers to say they trust their peers the most (40 percent vs. 58 percent), but only one third as likely to say they trust their CEO the most (6 percent vs 18 percent).

These findings reinforce the importance of encouraging and creating space for physicians to cultivate relationships with their teams and their organization's leadership. Stronger relationships within teams can increase satisfaction and pride, which in turn can reduce turnover and improve the patient experience.

The Engagement Gap

Barely six in ten physicians agree that their organization's leaders are doing a good job supporting them. Fully one third of physicians referenced "transparency" when asked what would help increase their trust in their organization's leaders. They also said engagement efforts  including "more authentic two-way communication" with leadership and an environment conducive to building relationships with colleagues  are as important as operational considerations, such as easier access to needed supplies, medication and patient data.

The Gender Gap

Trust in leadership is markedly lower among female physicians. Only 42 percent of those surveyed say they have a lot or a great deal of trust that their leaders are honest and transparent, compared to 55 percent of male peers. Consistent with this, male physicians are three times more likely to cite their CEO as the most trusted person in their organization, while female physicians are 13 points more likely to point to physician peers. Barely half of female physicians agree that their leaders are doing a good job supporting them.

"Efforts to support and advance female physicians and other underrepresented groups are critical to fulfilling the mission of providing equitable care," Toomey said. "This also pays dividends in patient care, as many are seeking a female physician."

Stabilizing and strengthening the healthcare workforce has been a priority of provider organizations for decades.

"Critically," Toomey said, "physicians we surveyed expressed an overwhelming desire for more transparency from leaders about issues within hospitals and health systems that affect their work."

About Jarrard Inc.

With offices in the healthcare hubs of Nashville and Chicago, Jarrard Inc. is a specialized healthcare consulting firm devoted to helping leaders during high-stakes moments of change, challenge and opportunity. The firm uses the power of communications, marketing and political strategy to help clients achieve their most important goals. Jarrard Inc.'s mission is to make healthcare better through its work. Founded in 2006, the firm has worked with more than 1,000 clients in 45+ states and served as a communications advisor on more than $75 billion in announced M&A and partnership transaction communications. The firm focuses on change management, issues and advocacy, and strategic positioning. Jarrard Inc. is a division of Chartis, one of the nation's leading healthcare advisory firms.

For more information, visit jarrardinc.com or follow on LinkedIn.

Full survey results can be found here.

SOURCE Jarrard Inc.
Iryna Mudra, Deputy Minister of Justice of Ukraine

The full-scale military aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine in February 2022 came as a shock to the whole world. The event struck the world with its cruelty and cynical violation of generally accepted norms of international law. But there is another reason for the shock: the lack of ready-to-use tools to respond.

Attempts by the international community to act by persuasion after the occupation of Crimea in 2014 did not lead to a solution to the issue, but to an even greater escalation. In addition, the nuclear status of the Russian Federation and its inclusion in the very heart of the deterrence system - the UN Security Council - also influenced.

The world faced a situation where one country unleashed a bloody war against its neighbor for no reason, and it is impossible to resist this, guided by previously adopted rules. That is why the rules should be revised. One of the main changes should be the renewal of the very principle of bringing to responsibility, and especially in terms of compensation for damages.

From reparations to a compensation mechanism

The idea of war reparations frightens the world community with the prospect of revanchist sentiment. In many ways, these are the consequences of the agreements after the First World War, which, through a chain of events, led to the next global war. This development of events does not suit anyone. On the other hand, there is an example of Soviet military aggression against Afghanistan, when the aggressor lost de facto, but de jure remained undefeated, which did not allow the demand for reparations or compensation.

The world community is now aware of the above mentioned risks and is actively cooperating in the search for new forms of cooperation to compensate for losses from aggression by the Russian Federation in the future. The first stage of this process was the actual recognition of the ineffectiveness of existing international legal instruments.

Even before the events of 2022, it was clear that the Russian Federation would block any decisions of the UN Security Council if they forced the Russian Federation to pay compensation. And this significantly limits the toolkit for responding. For example, in the issue of compensation, Ukraine is based on a similar case of the Iraq-Kuwait war. However, then in 1991, the UN Compensation Commission with a mandate to determine the amount and implement compensation payments by Iraq for the damage caused to Kuwait by a military invasion was established on the basis of UN Security Council Resolutions No. 687 and No. 692. Now this is impossible due to Russia's abuse of the right of veto in the UN Security Council.

Now the creation of the Compensation Mechanism and, in particular, the International Register of Damage was recommended in the Resolution of the UN General Assembly of November 14, 2022. The key here is the advisory nature of the decision of the General Assembly. And although there are already positive changes (On May 17, at the Summit of the Council of Europe, in the presence of the heads and government representatives of almost 50 states, the Treaty on the establishment of the International Register of Damage with headquarters in The Hague was signed), the problem of implementing decisions and filling the compensation fund remains. Today, public international law, the entire UN system is based on categories that were fundamental until recently. In particular, on the concept of sovereign immunity. However, the situation after February 24, 2022 has shown that these principles can only be applied to a country that does not violate them.

This means that it is necessary to introduce a new principle of compensation for damage caused by military aggression. The determining factor in this case should be a change in the very principle of not recognizing the very fact of aggression.

Ukraine understands the complexity of implementing such an approach, in contrast to the existing classical principles of public international law, however, the world community today has no other mechanism, method, approach to cover the damage caused by the aggressor country.

In proposing the principle of Talion, which should be applied without a judicial decision against the aggressor country, obliging the aggressor to comply with such a decision, we must find a basis that would allow the application of this principle. Given the protracted military aggression, it seems correct, in contrast to the generally accepted principle of the presumption of innocence, in the case of military aggression, to speak of the principle of the presumption of guilt of the aggressor.

Such a combination of the principles of compensation for damage caused by military aggression with the principle of guilt of the aggressor country itself should create a dualistic model of influence. This is what will make it possible in the future to ensure the deterrence of the country from a potential war, on the one hand, and provide ways to compensate countries that have suffered from such aggression.

Compensation mechanism device

First of all, we should talk about the procedure for fixing or confirming such damage in order to establish an indisputable connection or the root cause of such damage in the actions of the aggressor country or its military. Damage assessment should be based on collectively approved methods.

At the moment, the International Register of Damage in The Hague has already been registered and will soon begin full-fledged work. The Government of the Netherlands, as host, has already voted to place the Register in The Hague, and the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe has authorized the establishment of the Register under the auspices of the Council of Europe. (On May 17, at the summit of the Council of Europe, in the presence of the heads and government representatives of almost 50 states, the Treaty on the establishment of the International Register of Damage with headquarters in The Hague was signed).

The multilateral international treaty with the UN member states that supported the relevant resolution of the General Assembly on the establishment of the International Compensation Mechanism was launched. Such an agreement will create a Compensation Commission, the main task of which will be to consider the applications of persons affected by the war, and a Fund will be created, from which, in fact, payments will be made. Ukraine proposes that the Fund, first of all, be filled with the assets of the Russian Federation, sanctioned citizens and legal entities of the Russian Federation, which are in the jurisdictions of the countries that are parties to the international treaty. And decisive action is required on this issue. Now some countries are concerned about the prospect of setting a precedent that would put their own assets at risk by opening them up to demands for compensation for past conflicts in which they have been involved. However, the Ukrainian side insists that we are talking about applying such an approach to countries that do not respect the principles of international law.

In the event of aggression, states may impose obligations on the aggressor arising from measures taken in accordance with the UN Charter for the purpose of maintaining international peace and security. And such measures could once again be the confiscation of assets belonging to the aggressor. The state that committed the aggression is not entitled to enjoy the legal advantages that every state can usually derive from public international law. In the context of seizing the assets of individuals under sanctions, there is some progress. For example, the arrest of Boeing 787-8 and Gulfstream G650ER aircraft, which are owned by Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich through front companies. A judge in New York issued a warrant for their arrest due to the fact that the aircraft were delivered in violation of the sanctions. Similar work is being done in Europe - we know about the arrest of luxury mansions and yachts. But there is practically no progress in the issues of confiscation of state assets.

Today, any aggressor country, including the Russian Federation, relies on its jurisdictional immunity of the state as an independent participant in a specific legal process. In other words, any legal proceedings without the consent of the state itself are unacceptable and impossible. In particular, the notion of state immunity is based on the principle that a sovereign state is not subject to the authorities of other states.

The principle of state immunity is based on the concept of sovereign equality enshrined in the UN Charter (1945) and disclosed in the Declaration of Principles of International Law (1970). Although the very concept of sovereign equality arose much earlier. This principle applies both to the legislative and executive, and to the judicial jurisdiction of a foreign state. In fact, at present there is no single world practice for resolving issues related to the application of the concept of state immunity. Part of the burden falls on national legislation.

But, even if you strictly follow the letter of the law, then immunity is applied in court proceedings, but not in administrative ones. What Ukraine proposes, namely: the creation of an administrative body - the Compensation Commission to consider applications from war victims and the payment of compensation according to the decisions of the commission from compensationbringing to responsibility - compensation should prevent the repetition of such actions in the future. The situation in Ukraine requires a change in the fundamental paradigm of international public law, approaches to determining the moment when the responsibility of the aggressor arises in the form of compensation for damage and harm. The mechanisms of the international legal order should play a preventive role against any aggressor in the commission of certain actions aimed at military aggression against other countries.

Such an approach can be implemented if the act of aggression itself is recognized as sufficient to launch mechanisms for the arrest and confiscation of the assets of the aggressor country, as well as its citizens involved in the outbreak of hostilities and supporting them.

The principle of guilt and just retribution

Since, in the event of aggression by the Russian Federation, the latter actually commits a war crime, the international community should take as a basis the ancient Lex talionis, the so-called Talion principle, which is also the principle of equivalent retribution, for retaliatory actions. At the same time, it should be applied to the assets of the aggressor to cover and compensate for losses caused by the very fact of the country's aggression against another subject of international law.

The Compensation Mechanism proposed by our country is a multilateral agreement between partner countries where there are frozen assets of the aggressor. We are talking about an extrajudicial method of obtaining compensation, since no judicial decision that could be, was or will be taken in Ukraine or in any other country in the world under any jurisdiction is unlikely to be executed against the aggressor country, at the expense of the assets of the Russian Federation - should not affect the issue of sovereign immunity.

In this matter, it is important to understand that there is a European Court of Justice. Persons under sanctions can apply to it and try to appeal the decision: both the imposition of sanctions itself and the confiscation of assets if they were seized not because of a criminal offense. In both cases, the consideration of claims may take years and drag out the issue of compensation to Ukraine. In order to reduce such precedents, changes are needed in the national laws of the partner countries. Ukraine has already done work in this direction - the Law on Civil Confiscation was adopted, which makes it possible to significantly simplify the procedure. If in European countries such issues are regulated by the Constitution, then constitutional changes may also be required.

Unfortunately, today there is no judicial or legal institution in the world capable of making a decision and obliging Russia to pay compensation for all the losses caused by it as a result of military aggression on the territory of our country. In Ukraine, a working group has developed a mechanism that will help restore justice. However, its effective work will require political will and legal legitimation in partner countries.
Drawing on the talents of activists and justice-impacted individuals, the campaign will address the stigma faced by those with records and impart the need for expanded access to career opportunities for this population.

BOSTON, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Jobs for the Future (JFF), a national nonprofit driving transformation in the American workforce and education systems has launched an advocacy art campaign that calls on policymakers to remove barriers for the more than 70 million Americans who have a criminal record. In partnership with Amplifier , a nonprofit design lab that builds art and media experiments to support social movements, the campaign has been created to reach audiences across the nation and will feature original art from impactful activists in the social justice space.

Jobs for the Future (JFF)

"One-in-three people in our country have a record and are permanently punished long after they have completed their sentences," said Brandi Mandato, senior director of JFF's Center for Justice & Economic Advancement . "Our political, economic, and social systems are designed to prevent people with records from advancing in their careers and in their lives. When we normalize opportunity for people with records, we are removing these systemic barriers and setting people up for economic success."

Rooted in the Center's recently-published policy framework, the #NormalizeOpportunity campaign uses portrait art and poetry to amplify the stories of three icons who have been incarcerated and have achieved economic success through fair chance pathways. The framework" Normalizing Opportunity: A Policy Agenda to Promote Economic Advancement for People With Criminal Records "details actions that federal, state, and local leaders can take to overhaul the complex web of rules and regulations that permanently penalize people with records and exclude them from pursuing quality jobs they are qualified for or can learn to do.

Those profiled in the campaign - all of whom are available for comment - include Susan Burton , John Gargano , and Mac Phipps all of whom have had unique experiences navigating the justice system and building meaningful careers during their reentry processes. These individuals have demonstrated the limitless potential of people who have been impacted by incarceration and what they can achieve when barriers are removed and opportunities are accessible. Artist and activist Brandan " BMIKE '' Odums has been commissioned to create a series of paintings and acclaimed writer Jazmine Williams will author poetry that share the stories of these leaders. The full collection of artwork created for the campaign can be viewed at www.amplifier.org .

"Amplifier is excited to be part of this mission for change," said Cleo Barnett, creative director for the nonprofit. "As an organization, we promote social change, but it is rare that we get the chance to work with an organization like JFF to actually push for policy change. This is a very exciting opportunity for us."

The art campaign will launch June 14 in New Orleans while JFF hosts its annual Horizons summit, an event that welcomes more than 1,000 guests and provides a national platform for ideas and actions to advance equitable economic advancement for all people. The campaign also will be disseminated to audiences nationwide with a targeted focus in New York and Louisiana and will compliment JFF's groundbreaking policy work in the field of fair chancesometimes referred to as second chanceopportunities.

"Through this art campaign, we aim to humanize the people impacted by the permanent punishment our systems place on people with records," said Lucretia Murphy, vice president at JFF and director of the Center. "It is time policymakers and communities understand that these individuals are real people with real families from real communities. By sharing the stories of these amazing individuals, it is our hope that others will share their stories so we can change the narrative around people with records."

In the United States, more than 600,000 people are released from prison every year and face barriers to employment and economic mobility. Through its Center for Justice & Economic Advancement, JFF's #NormalizeOpportunity campaign raises awareness of the economic needs of people with records and pushes for changes that start behind the walls. In addition to its policy work, the Center provides a fair chance employer training program and works with education institutions to ensure prison education programs are accessible and inclusive of the needs of a changing workforce. For more information on this work and the Center for Justice and Economic Advancement, please visit jff.org .

About Jobs For the Future:

Jobs for the Future (JFF) drives transformation of the U.S. education and workforce systems to achieve equitable economic advancement for all. We do this by designing solutions, scaling best practices, influencing policy and action, and investing in innovation. www.jff.org

About Amplifier: Amplifier is a nonprofit media lab that creates art and media experiments to amplify the most important movements of our times. We design and distribute art that engages people in the creation of a more just, inclusive and sustainable future.



Our campaigns promote critical thinking and build compassion, capturing the attention of mass audiences and providing pathways for direct action to solve some of humanity's most challenging issues. Our current portfolio includes augmented reality storytelling, an education network that reaches over a million students nationwide, and partnerships with global allies that allow the work to reach hundreds of millions, changing not just hearts and minds, but policy and practice. More information can be found at Amplifier.org.

SOURCE JFF
Center launches as JFF releases preliminary survey data which finds a majority of workers feel they need new skills and training to prepare for AI's future impact.

BOSTON, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Jobs for the Future (JFF), a national nonprofit that drives transformation in the U.S. education and workforce systems, today announced the launch of its new Center for Artificial Intelligence & the Future of Work. This center will play an integral role in JFF's mission and newly announced 10-year North Star goal to help 75 million people facing systemic barriers to advancement work in quality jobs. As AI's explosive growth reshapes every aspect of how we learn, work, and live, this new center will serve as a nexus of collaboration among stakeholders from every part of the education-to-career ecosystem to explore the most promising opportunitiesand profound challengesof AI's potential to advance an accessible and equitable future of learning and work.

"While we have yet to realize the full impact of AI on the workforce, we must be proactive in harnessing its power and maximizing its potential to help people advance economically," said Maria Flynn, JFF's president and CEO. "JFF's Center for Artificial Intelligence & the Future of Work will catalyze these efforts and ensure that workers of all backgrounds and experiences as well as businesses thrive in this rapidly emerging landscape."

In a forthcoming survey commissioned by JFF and conducted by Morning Consult, workers recognized the importance of skills related to AI. While only 1 in 10 workers said they are currently experiencing AI at workreceiving AI training, using it in their role, or seeing AI-related staffing changesover half feel they need to gain new skills as a result of AI's impact (58%), but a majority do not trust their employer to support them in understanding AI (88%). JFF believes it is important to move quickly, responsibly leverage AI to accelerate progress toward achieving its North Star and identify concrete ways to support workers and learners in the near term.

"No industry will be untouched by AI. Its potential is limitless and its power still to be seen, so it's essential for those of us who are committed to harnessing AI for good to ensure it is used ethically," said Howard Boville, JFF board member and head of IBM Cloud Platform. "JFF has a tremendous track record in incubating cutting-edge innovations that drive economic advancement. As a JFF board member, I applaud this new center and I see a great opportunity for JFF to leverage their expertise in developing insights, connecting decision makers, and shaping policy around AI to empower workers and learners, employers, educators, and entrepreneurs for years to come."

JFF's new Center for Artificial Intelligence & the Future of Work's initial focus will include cross-sector convenings, research, and insights to identify best practices for leveraging AI to accelerate skill development, improvements in job quality, and economic advancement. The center will focus on connecting policy with practices that are grounded in equitable applications of AI so all learners and workers can gain access to and benefit from this fast-spreading technology. By deploying JFF's cross-sector networks and convening power, the center will facilitate knowledge sharing and scalable solutions that drive positive outcomes for people and businesses.

The center will be incubated under JFFLabs, the innovation lab of JFF that provides the infrastructure to bring solutions from ideation to national-scale social impact. JFFLabs' proven model of insights, incubation, and investment provides robust market analysis, identifies emerging trends, and invests in promising innovators to create, test, and scale transformative models that drive equitable economic advancement. Other incubated practice lines within JFFLabs include climate innovation and lifelong learning.

"Economic equity is, finally, about human potentialthe opportunity for each and every one of us to thrive. It is our responsibility to harness AI with purpose and care," said Kristina Francis, executive director of JFFLabs. "As we incubate new capabilities at JFFLabs, we will work across JFF and the field to discover, learn, iterate, and carefully integrate AI into existing systems while exploring how new models help realize AI's fullest potential."

Alex Swartsel, a managing director at JFFLabs, will lead the Center for Artificial Intelligence & the Future of Work. This builds on her current portfolio within JFFLabs including several extended reality (XR), immersive learning, and AI-related projects and partnerships with organizations such as Intel, Meta, and Unity. Swartsel will guide the center's foundational efforts, working closely with JFF's practice and center leaders to cultivate strategic partnerships and drive effective portfolio management.

The launch of the Center for Artificial Intelligence & the Future of Work reaffirms JFF's commitment to fostering inclusive economic growth and preparing workers for the jobs of the future. By leveraging AI's potential and addressing its challenges, JFF and its partners aim to create a workforce and education ecosystem that thrives in the age of AI.

For more information about the Center for Artificial Intelligence & the Future of Work please visit www.jff.org/ai.

About Jobs for the Future:

Jobs for the Future (JFF) drives transformation of the U.S. education and workforce systems to achieve equitable economic advancement for all. www.jff.org

SOURCE JFF
Two-day inaugural event will convene tech startups and venture capital investors in Cleveland Oct. 11  12, 2023

CLEVELAND, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- JumpStart Ventures is introducing Ohio VC Fest, a multi-faceted event bringing together tech founders, investors, corporate leaders and entrepreneurs to amplify tech-based innovation across Ohio. The two-day event will be held at the Marriot Key Tower Downtown Cleveland on Oct. 11-12, 2023.

JumpStart Ventures announces Ohio VC Fest, bringing together tech founders, investors, corporate leaders and entrepreneurs to amplify tech-based innovation across Ohio.

The summit aims to establish valuable connections between investors, entrepreneurs and potential clients to attract capital, create partnerships and accelerate economic growth throughout Ohio. The summit will highlight key technologies and industries, critical to Ohio's economic vitality including enterprise SaaS, healthcare, fintech and manufacturing.

"Ohio's venture capital and startup ecosystems have grown substantially over the past decade," said JumpStart Ventures CEO Ray Leach. "We look forward to showcasing and accelerating this momentum by hosting an annual event where VCs and entrepreneurs can come together to learn, establish connections and discover new partnership opportunities. We're excited about the potential to increase collaboration across the state and elevate Ohio as a formidable technology hub."

Attendees will have the opportunity learn from industry leaders and cutting-edge startup companies while participating in inspiring sessions and engaging networking opportunities. The summit will also feature exclusive one-on-one meetups curated to establish a strong match between investors and founders.

The event, presented by JumpStart Ventures, is hosted in partnership with other Ohio-based venture investors including Rev1 Ventures and CincyTech. The event is made possible thanks to sponsors including KeyBank, Thompson Hine LLP and other organizations committed to advancing innovation throughout the region.

The vision for future Ohio VC Fests is to travel annually to various cities throughout the state, celebrating the unique attributes Ohio's diverse urban and rural ecosystems. The inaugural Ohio VC Fest, held in Cleveland on Oct. 11  12, will leverage shared and collaborative opportunities with the Forbes 30 Under 30 event taking place Oct. 8  11 throughout Cleveland.

Ticket prices will range from $49 - $199 and will be available for purchase soon. Speakers, keynotes and sponsorships are being finalized, attendees can learn more and sign up for the most up-to-date information at the official event website: OhioVCFest.com.

About JumpStart Ventures

JumpStart Ventures is a division of JumpStart Inc. investing in Seed and Series A-stage technology startups throughout Ohio and beyond. With four investment funds under management, the organization provides a continuum of capital to startup founders as they move through critical growth phases. Financial returns generated by JumpStart Ventures help strengthen the competitiveness of Ohio's VC ecosystem, increasing capital access and resource connections for early-stage companies. As one of Ohio's most active seed-stage investors, the organization's investment activities have generated 2.5X+ returns-to-date via nationally recognized exits. To learn more, visit JumpStart.VC.

SOURCE JumpStart Ventures
WASHINGTON, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, June 14, at the National Press Building in Washington, DC, Kazakhstan Human Rights Lawyer Yevgeniy Yavorskiy gave a press conference on the status of his client Arman Dzhumageldiev, who has been detained and subject to mistreatment for more than a year.

Kazakhstan Human Rights Lawyer Yevgeniy Yavorskiy Gives Press Conference in Washington, DC

Briefing reporters on the arrest and treatment of Dzhumageldiev in prison, Yavorskiy showed reporters security camera footage of Dzhumageldiev's arrest. The video showed law enforcement brutally beating him after he cooperated with their orders. The video then showed law enforcement forcing a weapon into Dzhumageldiev's hand while he was unconscious.

A reporter asked Yavorskiy what concrete steps the US could take to address gross human rights violations in Kazakhstan.

"Kazakhstan poses as a country where human rights are protected," Yavorskiy said. "I think the situation would improve if the United States was raising these issues in international organizations."

Yavorskiy also urged the U.S. State Department to push Kazakhstan into making positive shifts. He noted that Kazakhstan's constitution includes the right to a fair trial and the presumption of innocence, but that these elements were being routinely disregarded.

Yavorskiy said Dzhumageldiev has been imprisoned by Kazakh authorities for the last 17 months. Yavorskiy said he has been denied any access to his client on the basis of "legal nonsense" that the authorities believe that he is "trying to create a positive image of Arman."

Yavorskiy said Dzhumageldiev acted honorably during the January 2022 protests in Kazakhstan, seeking to calm the demonstrators, and urging them to practice nonviolence and abstain from illegal acts. "This is completely the opposite of what he was accused of," Yavorskiy said.

Yavorskiy said the legal inquiry into Dzhumageldiev's case has been closed, but that no date or clarity has been provided on the next steps in his case. Yavorskiy said the case already has been tainted because Kazakhstan's attorney general went on television and declared Dzhumageldiev guilty before the investigation even started.

"You cannot declare someone guilty without a court verdict," Yavorskiy said. "It is a violation of the Kazakhstan Constitution."

Yavorskiy said he would continue to seek justice for his client and for others facing misjustice by corrupted Kazak law enforcement and legal authorities. He said he loved his country and wanted it to live up to its ideals as a place where human rights are respected.

This material is distributed by Geopolitical Solutions LLC. on behalf of the Law Offices of Yavorskiy and Partners. Additional information is available at the Department of Justice, Washington, DC.

SOURCE Law Offices of Yavorskiy and Partners
NEW YORK, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ --With the participation of each of its Houses and the active support of ALL, its vibrant LGBTQIA+ employee resource group, Kering Americas will celebrate Pride Month 2023 as an official sponsor of NYC Pride and participate for the first time in the NYC Pride March on June 25th under the theme Strength in Solidarity.

"Together with NYC Pride, we are proud to march hand-in-hand to celebrate our collective strength and resilience, and to reinforce our dedication to creating a world that supports inclusion, diversity, equity, and authenticity," says Laurent Claquin, President of Kering Americas. "As a best-in-class employer for the LGBTQIA+ community, we are embracing this moment to cultivate community and champion Kering's deeply held values."

Kering's commitment to LGBTQIA+ employees extends well beyond Pride Month. As part of achieving the goals of its 2025 Sustainability Strategy, Kering devised several policies and practices dedicated to fostering a culture of support, respect and belonging for all. Kering stands as a leading advocate for LGBTQIA+ equality in the workplace:

The Human Rights Campaign Foundation named Kering Americas in its 2021 and 2022 "Best Places to Work for LGBTQ Equality" lists for its integration of LGBTQIA+-friendly workplace policies in the United States and advocacy of LGBTQIA+ inclusion in workplaces abroad.

lists for its integration of LGBTQIA+-friendly workplace policies in and advocacy of LGBTQIA+ inclusion in workplaces abroad. Kering's Group-wide, ground-breaking Baby Leave is a parental policy that provides 14 weeks of paid leave to all new parents, including every family type, regardless of gender and geographic location. Kering believes in everyone's fundamental rights to starting a family in the best conditions, and this policy ensures LGBTQIA+ employees enjoy the same benefits.

that provides 14 weeks of paid leave to all new parents, including every family type, regardless of gender and geographic location. Kering believes in everyone's fundamental rights to starting a family in the best conditions, and this policy ensures LGBTQIA+ employees enjoy the same benefits. Kering signed the Friends of the Court amicus brief which called for the federal protection of LGBTQIA+ civil rights for equal employment, housing, healthcare, and education opportunities in the United States .

amicus brief which called for the federal protection of LGBTQIA+ civil rights for equal employment, housing, healthcare, and education opportunities in . Kering is a founding signatory to the UN Standards of Conduct for Business , which addresses workplace discrimination against LGBTQIA+ individuals.

, which addresses workplace discrimination against LGBTQIA+ individuals. Kering is a founding signatory of the Open to All pledge coalition dedicated to creating a welcoming environment in the fashion industry to protect against discrimination.

pledge coalition dedicated to creating a welcoming environment in the fashion industry to protect against discrimination. ALL, which was founded in 2019 as an inclusive internal group for the LGBTQIA+ community and its supporters at Kering, looks to connect and educate by raising awareness and organizing activities internally and externally. ALL has more than 1,000 ambassadors based in countries around the world, including the United States , Brazil , Italy , France , United Kingdom , and Australia .

By fostering a welcoming and supportive environment for LGBTQIA+ employees, Kering sustains a culture that values inclusivity and empowers the unique perspectives of diverse voices. It also creates a sense of belonging and safety, allowing all employees to thrive and be their authentic selves at work.

About Kering

Kering is a global Luxury group that manages the development of a series of renowned Houses in Fashion, Leather Goods and Jewelry: Gucci, Saint Laurent, Bottega Veneta, Balenciaga, Alexander McQueen, Brioni, Boucheron, Pomellato, Dodo and Qeelin, as well as Kering Eyewear. By placing creativity at the heart of its strategy, Kering enables its Houses to set new limits in terms of their creative expression while crafting tomorrow's Luxury in a sustainable and responsible way. We capture these beliefs in our signature: Empowering Imagination. In 2022, Kering had over 47,000 employees and revenue of 20.4 billion.

SOURCE Kering
Keyes Coverage continues growth in Florida enhancing services and experience

TAMARAC, Fla., June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Keyes Coverage, a leading insurance agency in South Florida, is excited to announce the recent acquisitions of Bogani Insurance Solutions, LLC, and Providing Life & Health, LLC, and certain Harbour Insurance assets f/k/a Bill Daly Insurance. The addition of these agencies brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to Keyes Coverage, reinforcing the company's commitment to delivering exceptional insurance solutions to its clients. By joining forces, Keyes Coverage strengthens its position in the insurance market and enhances its ability to serve the diverse needs of individuals and businesses throughout Florida.

David Ragno, CEO & Partner of Keyes Coverage, expressed his enthusiasm about the acquisitions, stating, "We are thrilled to welcome these agencies to the Keyes Coverage family. These new partnerships bring a wealth of industry expertise, enabling us to provide our clients with even more comprehensive and tailored insurance solutions."

The acquisitions pave the way for Keyes Coverage to enhance its life insurance offerings with a broader range of products and enhanced technologies. Through these strategic opportunities, Keyes Coverage aims to stay at the forefront of the insurance industry, consistently offering innovative solutions that meet the evolving needs of its clients. "Their desire to solely focus on what is in the best interest of the client, is aligned with the corporate mindset and values of Bogani Insurance" said Rick Bogani of Bogani Insurance Solutions. "With our combined markets and desire to find the absolute best value for the client, I am confident we can continue to grow our book together."

Keyes Coverage is committed to ensuring a seamless transition for the clients as they have in recent acquisitions throughout Florida. Clients can expect the same exceptional service they have come to know and trust, now backed by the collective expertise and resources of Keyes Coverage.

About Keyes Coverage

Keyes Coverage has been serving the South Florida community since 1975. We specialize in corporate property and casualty and personal lines insurance. The agency employs over 80 people in its state-of-the-art, 20,000 square foot office building in Tamarac, FL and provides top-notch service and individualized solutions to its clients. For more information, please visit: www.keyescoverage.com. Keyes Coverage is a platform partner of Keystone Agency Partners ("KAP").

About Keystone Agency Partners

Keystone Agency Partners is a rapidly growing insurance brokerage platform that acquires and partners with independent insurance agencies throughout the United States. KAP provides best-in-class services and capital investment that unlocks potential and delivers outsized and profitable growth within its platform agencies. Keystone Agency Partners was founded in 2020 in partnership with Keystone Insurers Group, Inc. and affiliates of Bain Capital, LP. For more information, please visit: www.keystoneagencypartners.com.

Media Inquiries

David Ragno, Keyes Coverage CEO & Partner

[email protected]

(954) 724-7000 ext. 2243

SOURCE Keyes Coverage
ARLINGTON, Va., June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Kinetica , the database for time & space, today announced that it has expanded its partner ecosystem in the United States, Europe and Asia to help meet the growing demand for its real-time, vectorized, analytic database for time-series and spatial workloads. The company added strategic global systems integrators to its partner roster, including Expero , Riskfuel and Semantic AI . This partner program expansion comes after the company announced record business momentum of 90% Annual Recurring Revenue (ARR) growth, Net Dollar Retention Rate (NDRR) of 163%, and doubling of its customer base.

"Kinetica is experiencing booming demand for its real-time, vectorized, analytic database as businesses fuse and analyze their massive geospatial and time-series data in real-time to support new application areas. One of the ways we're addressing this interest is by expanding our network of top-tier channel partners," said Nima Negahban, Cofounder and CEO, Kinetica. "The combination of our partners' deep domain expertise and Kinetica's advanced analytic database is helping organizations across industries from financial services and telecommunications to health and safety and automotive obtain key insights to preempt fraud, provide better cell service, boost the customer experience, provide new data driven services, and much more."

This partner program expansion comes after Kinetica announced 90% Annual Recurring Revenue (ARR) growth. Tweet this

Kinetica's partner program connects resellers, systems integrators and service providers with complementary technology solutions and services with new prospects to deliver unparalleled domain knowledge to one of the most exciting and impactful areas of enterprise technology. New partnerships have recently been formed with the following service providers to help businesses realize the full potential of location intelligence:

Expero - Expero is a software innovation company that partners with organizations to solve their complex business challenges quickly, raising the bar high on end-to-end solutions and intuitive user experience for highly complex or regulated industries, such as Financial Services, SLED, Energy, Telco and Healthcare. The Expero CoNNected software suite includes pre-built workflows, visualizations, and analytics tools accelerating our customer's time to market.

"By combining our worldwide reach and market leading expertise with Kinetica's database supporting multiple genres of analytics across graph, time-series, and spatial, we are able to simplify the data stack and increase analytic agility for our clients," said Sebastian Good, CEO, Expero.

Riskfuel - Riskfuel is transforming market risk management for banks and insurance companies. Calculations that normally take hours or days can now be completed in seconds with Riskfuel technology, giving its clients full insight into their risk at all times.

Ryan Ferguson, founder and CEO of Riskfuel, said, "We're excited to join forces with Kinetica. Kinetica has a track record of enabling our capital markets customers to build highly performant custom time series analytics. Their focus on performance pairs well with the pricing models accelerated by Riskfuel."

Semantic AI  Semantic AI fuses, analyzes, and visualizes datafrom any sourceto empower government and commercial organizations to harness the value of their ever-changing data ecosystem and create context from chaos. Whether it is eliminating fraud, protecting from cyber security threats, preventing regulatory fines, or personalizing information for customers, Semantic AI's Cortex Enterprise Intelligence Platform (Cortex EIP) is purpose-built to augment human cognition by gathering disparate data into a single platform. Cortex EIP stitches together all data sources to show the who, what, when, where, how, and why they are connected. For over two decades, Semantic AI's mission continues to make humans, not machines, smarter so they can form extraordinary business decisions.

According to Jim Ford, President & Chief Strategy Officer of Semantic AI, "With Kinetica, as a component in our embedded analytics platform, we can stitch together all relevant data sources to show customers who, what, when, where and how they are connected, and perform real-time analysis on large, streaming spatial data sets to uncover previously hidden connections and discover insights that produce deeply informed business decisions at speed and scale on dynamic map data."

About Kinetica

Kinetica is the creator of the only distributed, fully vectorized, analytical database for complex real-time workloads. Many of the world's largest companies across the public sector, financial services, telecommunications, energy, healthcare, retail, automotive and beyond rely on Kinetica, including the US Air Force, Ford, Citibank, T-Mobile, and others. Kinetica is a privately-held company, backed by leading global venture capital firms Canvas Ventures, Citi Ventures, GreatPoint Ventures, and Meritech Capital Partners. Kinetica has a rich partner ecosystem, including AWS, Microsoft, NVIDIA, Intel, Dell, Tableau, and Oracle. For more information and to try Kinetica, visit kinetica.com or follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter .

SOURCE Kinetica
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SAN FRANCISCO, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The global learning management system market size is expected to reach USD 70.83 billion by 2030, expanding at a CAGR of 19.5% from 2023 to 2030, according to a new report by Grand View Research, Inc. Key factors driving the market growth are big data, artificial intelligence (AI), e-learning, blended learning, and mobile learning; these new e-learning trends offer substantial opportunities. Advanced technology, such as 3D pictures of organs and live interaction with experts, have increased clinical and medical e-Learning performance.

Key Industry Insights & Findings from the report:

The solution segment dominated the market with over 67% in 2022. Learning management system solutions can be personalized to meet the specific needs of learners, providing a more engaging and practical learning experience.

The on-premise segment dominated the market with over 49% share in 2022. With an on-premise LMS, all the data related to learners, courses, and activities are stored locally on the organization's servers. This provides greater control over the data and ensures that sensitive information is not exposed to external threats.

The corporate segment is expected to show significant growth over the forecast period. LMS provides a centralized platform for managing all training activities, including course creation, delivery, and learner progress tracking. This can save time and improve efficiency by eliminating the need for multiple systems and manual processes.

North America accounted for the highest share, with more than 38% of the global revenue in 2022 owing to the increasing use of mobile devices and the need for mobile learning solutions in the region.

Read full market research report, "Learning Management System Market Size, Share & Trends Analysis Report By Component, By Deployment, By Enterprise Size, By Delivery Mode, By End-user (Academic, Corporate) And Segment Forecasts, 2023 - 2030", published by Grand View Research.

Learning Management System (LMS) Market Growth & Trends

The learning management system (LMS) is also used in retail for product marketing, sales development, product training, recruitment, and communication. Education systems must improve engagement between students, teachers, and parents to make learning delightful. For instance, in June 2021, PowerSchool, a provider of a cloud-based learning management system (LMS) for K-12 education, launched PowerSchool Unified Classroom 2021, The K-12 LMS software, which helps in reporting tools, student assessment, behavior management, and more programs that improve the teaching and learning.

Due to COVID-19, the mass lockdown positively impacted the market due to increased demand for e-learning across several countries. Several governments and educational institutions began using learning management systems like google classroom, zoom meetings, and many more platforms during this time to bridge the education and knowledge transfer gap. Following the lockdown, these investments and support for online classes have continued to grow, as many nations have seen the massive benefits of e-learning platforms such as LMS solutions for the future of education.

For instance, in March 2023, KlickData AB (publ), an IT and services company, announced the release of a business-class version of the AI-bot ChatGPT within their KLMS platform. The new version offers several benefits, including boosting productivity for content producers, enhancing the user experience of ChatGPT for C-level executives, modifying, fact-checking, personalizing, enhancing, and Grammarly correcting the AI-bot responses and follow-up requests without the botheration of copy-pasting and waiting.

Virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) in education gives a fabricated reality; AR gives a genuine picture with a better view. These technologies broaden the scope of learning surroundings from K-12 classrooms to medical colleges by reducing walls enhancing collaboration, physical space, and hands-on learning, and providing personalized learning approaches to help students of all levels. Technologies have now opened doors for new knowledge, and AR & VR technology gives some virtual live experience; the technology understands the concepts more clearly. To stay competitive, the major competitors in the LMS industry are improving EdTech technology. For instance, in October 2021, Blackboard Inc. merged with Anthology Inc., a player in offering higher education software solutions to support their entire learning lifecycle. The aim of this initiative is the combination will produce the most intact and up-to-date EdTech ecosystem at a global scale for education.

The cloud segment has acquired a significant market. The increased mobile and distributed workforce users encourage the demand for e-learning or online training in the academic and commercial sectors. Further, the cost benefits and availability of technological advancements in e-learning platforms have encouraged users to upgrade from the traditional LMS to a further contemporary LMS. Most industries are increasing the adoption of e-learning on their own devices, which is a growing inclination toward the cloud deployment model, and growing usage of machine learning (ML) and artificial intelligence (AI) in LMS. The LMS market will witness massive success soon due to several governments' increased spending on IoT technology.

Learning Management System (LMS) Market Segmentation

Grand View Research has segmented the global learning management system (LMS) market based on component, deployment, enterprise size, delivery mode, end-user, and region:

Learning Management System (LMS) Market - Component Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2017 - 2030)

Solution

Services

Learning Management System (LMS) Market - Deployment Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2017 - 2030)

Cloud

On-premise

Learning Management System (LMS) Market - Enterprise Size Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2017 - 2030)

Small & Medium enterprise

Large enterprise

Learning Management System (LMS) Market - Delivery Mode Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2017 - 2030)

Distance Learning

Instructor-led Training

Blended Learning

Learning Management System (LMS) Market - End-user Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2017 - 2030)

Academic

K-12



Higher Education

Corporate

Healthcare



Banking, Financial Services, and Insurance (BFSI)



IT and Telecommunication



Retail



Manufacturing



Government & Defense



Others

Learning Management System (LMS) Market - Regional Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2017 - 2030)

North America

U.S.



Canada

Europe

U.K.



Germany



France

Asia Pacific

China



Japan



India



South Korea



Australia

Latin America

Brazil



Mexico

Middle East & Africa (MEA)

& (MEA) Kingdom of Saudi Arabia



UAE



South Africa

List of Key Players in the Learning Management System (LMS) Market

Cornerstone

Blackboard Inc.

D2L Corporation

PowerSchool

Instructure, Inc.

Adobe

Oracle

SAP

Moodle

McGraw Hill.

Xerox Corporation

Check out more related studies published by Grand View Research:

Social And Emotional Learning (SEL) Market - The global social and emotional learning market size is expected to reach USD 12.90 billion by 2030, according to a new report by Grand View Research, Inc. The industry is anticipated to expand at a lucrative CAGR of 24.3% from 2023 to 2030. Social and emotional learning (SEL) is a process through which all adults and young people apply and acquire the necessary attitudes, knowledge, and skills to manage emotions, develop healthy identities, achieve collective and personal goals, show empathy for others, and make caring and responsible decisions.

- The global social and emotional learning market size is expected to reach by 2030, according to a new report by Grand View Research, Inc. The industry is anticipated to expand at a lucrative CAGR of 24.3% from 2023 to 2030. Social and emotional learning (SEL) is a process through which all adults and young people apply and acquire the necessary attitudes, knowledge, and skills to manage emotions, develop healthy identities, achieve collective and personal goals, show empathy for others, and make caring and responsible decisions. Technical And Vocational Education Market - The global technical and vocational education market size is anticipated to reach USD 1.43 trillion by 2030, according to a new report by Grand View Research, Inc. The industry is expected to expand at a CAGR of 9.8% from 2022 to 2030. The increasing use of technology in education and the rising demand for job-relevant skills in various sectors are expected to propel industry growth. Technical and vocational education provides support services for the educational sectors that are both instructional and non-instructional. The widespread use of the internet has demonstrated that e-education continues to proliferate and has a lot of untapped potential that could alter the industry's performance.

- The global technical and vocational education market size is anticipated to reach by 2030, according to a new report by Grand View Research, Inc. The industry is expected to expand at a CAGR of 9.8% from 2022 to 2030. The increasing use of technology in education and the rising demand for job-relevant skills in various sectors are expected to propel industry growth. Technical and vocational education provides support services for the educational sectors that are both instructional and non-instructional. The widespread use of the internet has demonstrated that e-education continues to proliferate and has a lot of untapped potential that could alter the industry's performance. Smart Education And Learning Market - The global smart education and learning market size is expected to reach USD 680.1 billion by 2027, according to a new report by Grand View Research, Inc. The market is anticipated to witness a CAGR of 17.9% from 2020 to 2027. Demand for smart education and learning solutions is increasing among the growing population in corporate and academic sectors, owing to benefits such as improved education quality and easy access to educational content. Increasing adoption of consumer electronics, such as smartphones, e-readers, laptops, and e-learning applications, has altered conventional education methodology and has enhanced the efficiency of an individual to learn. Additionally, there are enormous opportunities for advancements in the market, owing to improved internet accessibility.

Browse through Grand View Research's Next Generation Technologies Research Reports.

About Grand View Research

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SOURCE Grand View Research, Inc.
Urges Passage of Bills to Improve Infant Health, Prevent Maternal Deaths

ARLINGTON, Va., June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- In testimony before Congress today, March of Dimes Senior Vice President and Chief Medical and Health Officer Dr. Elizabeth Cherot sounded the alarm on the nation's maternal and infant health crisis, saying that supporting women before, during and between pregnancies is integral to improving health outcomes for them and their babies. Cherot called for lawmakers to take swift action to pass critical legislation that can help address this public health crisis.

Testifying before the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Health, Cherot pointed to a recent report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) that shows the number of U.S. women dying from pregnancy-related issues continues to climb. The report shows that 1,205 deaths were reported in 2021, reflecting an increase of nearly 89% in the maternal mortality rate since 2018.

Alongside this news, Cherot noted that "the number of women who experience pregnancy-related complications, or severe maternal morbidity, is increasing at a troubling rate." She also warned that the state of infant health mirrors that of maternal health, saying recent preliminary data from CDC showing a 1% dip in the preterm birth rate, while promising, still means that 1 in 10 babies are born too sick and too soon.

What's more, Cherot said persistent disparities exist across key maternal and infant health indicators. Black and Native American women 62% more likely to give birth prematurely, and their babies have a mortality rate double that of the White population.

Cherot urged lawmakers to take immediate action on the following legislation:

The PREEMIE Reauthorization Act of 2023 (H.R. 3226) which represents the federal government's commitment to preventing preterm birth and its consequences. This legislation reauthorizes CDC's highly successful Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System or PRAMS. It also provides for a new study by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine to examine the societal costs, the impact of social factors, and gaps in public health programs related to preterm birth.

(H.R. 3226) which represents the federal government's commitment to preventing preterm birth and its consequences. This legislation reauthorizes CDC's highly successful Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System or PRAMS. It also provides for a new study by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine to examine the societal costs, the impact of social factors, and gaps in public health programs related to preterm birth. The Preventing Maternal Deaths Reauthorization Act of 2023 (H.R. 3838), which strengthens and expands federal support for Maternal Mortality Review Committees (MMRCs). MMRCs play an invaluable role in identifying maternal deaths, analyzing the factors that contributed to maternal deaths, and translating the lessons learned into policy changes.

To read the full text of Cherot's written testimony, click here.

ABOUT MARCH OF DIMES

March of Dimes leads the fight for the health of all moms and babies. We support research, lead programs and provide education and advocacy so that every family can have the best possible start. Building on a successful 85-year legacy, we support every pregnant person and every family. To learn more about March of Dimes, please visit marchofdimes.

SOURCE March of Dimes Inc.
Ukraine and partners must ensure that Russian terror becomes impossible, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in a video message on Tuesday, referring to a missile attack on Kryvy Rih that killed 11 people.

"This afternoon, the rescue and rubble removal operations in Kryvy Rih after a terrorist missile attack have been completed. Unfortunately, 11 people were killed, including one child," he said.

"This deliberate Russian strike on an ordinary city only proves a simple truth once again: together with our partners, we must ensure such physical conditions that make Russian terror impossible," the president said.

"The first is our sky shield. A sufficient number of air defense systems of sufficient capacity. Plus modern fighter jets. When the Russian ability to attack our cities and villages is physically limited by our sky shield, only then will the terrorist state realize that there are no alternatives to peace for all Ukrainians and defeat for Russia," he said.

"The second is the destruction of the basis for terror, for the production of new missiles by a terrorist state. Unfortunately, Russia still has the ability to obtain critical components for missile production from companies around the world, including companies from some partner countries," he said.

"If we take, for example, one of the missiles that hit Kryvy Rih today, about 50 components in it - mostly microelectronics - were produced in other countries," the president said.

"And today, representatives of our state met with diplomats from the respective countries. All partners have a list of companies that supply Russia with components for murder. This list is available. Everyone in the world also understands how Russian terrorists are trying to deceive the world. And we are waiting for conclusions and swift action to stop Russian missile terror," Zelenskyy said.

"Ukraine has imposed sanctions on all companies in Russia that produce missiles. Such complete sanctions should be imposed globally against all of them. Every way of circumventing sanctions should be appropriately punished at the global level as well," he said.
DOWNERS GROVE, Ill., June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Markem-Imaje, part of Dover (NYSE: DOV) and a global provider of end-to-end supply chain solutions and industrial marking and coding systems, today announced the launch of the SmartDate Xtra 3530.

The SmartDate Xtra 3530 ribbon, which complements Markem-Imaje's existing SmartDate Xtra 3750 ribbon, is engineered to print on paper-based substrates, including coated, uncoated, glossy, and rough papers. This new grade of wax and resin thermal transfer ribbon was designed to meet the increasing demand within the food and beverage, pharmaceutical and other industries for durable code printing on more environmentally friendly flexible film packaging.

"The SmartDate Xtra 3530 ribbon has been designed to address the growing challenge of manufacturers to find a high-quality, environmentally-friendly coding solution that can print durable and legible codes onto rough films and papers," said Alicia Tissot, Global Product Communications Manager at Markem-Imaje. "We are excited to introduce a product that delivers excellent print quality on paper-based flexible packaging while ensuring durable codes from the production line until purchase by the end customer."

For more information visit, please visit https://bit.ly/3FXjbp9.

About Markem-Imaje:

Markem-Imaje, a wholly owned subsidiary of the US-based Dover Corporation is a trusted world manufacturer of product identification and traceability solutions, offering a full line of reliable and innovative inkjet, thermal transfer, laser, and print and apply label systems. Markem-Imaje provides global reach to over 50,000 customers with 30 subsidiaries, 6 technology centers, several equipment repair centers and manufacturing plants with the most comprehensive marking and coding portfolio available in the marketplace. Visit www.markem-imaje.com for further information.

About Dover:

Dover is a diversified global manufacturer and solutions provider with annual revenue of over $8 billion. We deliver innovative equipment and components, consumable supplies, aftermarket parts, software and digital solutions, and support services through five operating segments: Engineered Products, Clean Energy & Fueling, Imaging & Identification, Pumps & Process Solutions and Climate & Sustainability Technologies. Dover combines global scale with operational agility to lead the markets we serve. Recognized for our entrepreneurial approach for over 65 years, our team of over 25,000 employees takes an ownership mindset, collaborating with customers to redefine what's possible. Headquartered in Downers Grove, Illinois, Dover trades on the New York Stock Exchange under "DOV." Additional information is available at dovercorporation.com .

Markem-Imaje Contact:

Viktor Hermansson

+34 627 80 86 10

[email protected]

Dover Media Contact:

Adrian Sakowicz, VP, Communications

(630) 743-5039

[email protected]

Dover Investor Contact:

Jack Dickens, Senior Director, Investor Relations

(630) 743-2566

[email protected]

SOURCE Dover
LONDON, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- A new 7mn Maths Excellence Fund (the 'Fund') has launched with support from founding donors XTX Markets and The Hg Foundation. The fund will be managed by Ark Ventures, a charity with an outstanding record in incubating and scaling education initiatives.

The Fund has been established to support schools in England to improve attainment and progression in maths from 11-16 and 16-18 years of age, increasing the number of students who are on track to succeed in A-level maths and beyond, with a focus on students from disadvantaged backgrounds.

The Fund draws on the Maths Excellence Pathways report, recently published by XTX Markets and the University of Nottingham. This longitudinal study examined which groups of students excel in maths, including where they join and leave the 'excellence pathway'. It highlighted major disparities. For example, 74% of the most advantaged students stay on the excellence pathway from 11-16, compared with only 49% of students on free school meals.

The Fund will focus on evidence-led programmes that provide wide-ranging support to groups of schools in regions across England. The Fund will make available up to 7mn for programme delivery, plus additional funding for an independent evaluation. Funding will be deployed over a period of five academic years, with delivery beginning in 2024/25.

The Fund is expecting to award contracts to between three and six delivery partners, which may include charities, multi-academy trusts, universities, local authorities or companies. Applications opened in June 2023 and contracts with delivery partners will be finalised by November 2023. The Fund will be overseen by an Advisory Board comprising education sector experts, including Professor Andy Noyes and Professor Becky Francis CBE, CEO of the Education Endowment Foundation.

XTX Markets has committed the first 5mn in funding with The Hg Foundation committing a further 2mn. XTX Markets and The Hg Foundation will work closely with Ark Ventures to ensure that the Fund focuses on students from disadvantaged backgrounds, and that the resulting programmes are independently evaluated and can be scaled in future.

Ben Cartledge, Director at Ark Ventures, commented: 'This is an incredible commitment from XTX Markets and The Hg Foundation. The Maths Excellence Fund will boost improvements in maths by investing in ideas for maths education in England to drive systemic change. Ark Ventures is looking forward to working alongside the Fund's partners to deliver its aims and cannot wait to see the applications from a range of organisations coming in.'

James Turner, Chief Executive at The Hg Foundation, commented: 'We are delighted to be working on this new programme to help more pupils, especially those from low-income homes, to achieve at the highest levels in maths, which is a great foundation for future careers. By working over the long term with expert partners, and through schools and teachers, we hope the Fund will not only have a positive impact on thousands of young people, but also leave a legacy of knowledge and practice that will help many others.'

Simon Coyle, Head of Philanthropy at XTX Markets, commented: 'The Maths Excellence Pathways report shows that, when students from disadvantaged backgrounds are supported to excel in maths from 11 to 16, they are disproportionately likely to progress to maths degrees. The Maths Excellence Fund exists to help schools provide more students with those opportunities, and to develop effective programmes that can be expanded nationally in the future.'

About the Maths Excellence Fund:

The Maths Excellence Fund has been established to support schools to improve student attainment and progression in maths from ages 11 to 16 and 16 to 18, increasing the number of students on track to succeed in A-level maths and beyond.

The Fund supports schools to help students join and stay on the maths excellence pathway. It has a particular focus on improving attainment and progression for high-attaining and high-potential students from disadvantaged backgrounds.

The Fund is a collaboration between XTX Markets, The Hg Foundation and Ark Ventures, which will be managing the Fund and the delivery of its activities.

Charities, muti-academy trusts, universities, local authorities or companies are invited to apply to the Fund via its funding round.

The Fund also welcomes interest from organisations that would like to learn more about the Fund's objectives and explore opportunities to collaborate.

For more information: www.mathsexcellencefund.org

About Ark Ventures:

Ark Ventures, part of the Ark education charity, has incubated, launched and scaled initiatives that tackle issues across education and society, both in the UK and across the world; all have the potential to deliver widespread system change. The charity also works with ventures that are mission aligned, aim to bring about systemic change, and are run by exceptional people, where the prime beneficiaries are pupils, families and teachers in Ark schools or in equivalent circumstances.

Ark Ventures is managing the Maths Excellence Fund, including the commissioning and evaluation of programmes, to help ensure that the Fund achieves its long-term aim of transforming maths attainment in England.

About XTX Markets:

XTX Markets is a leading algorithmic trading firm which partners with counterparties, exchanges and e-trading venues globally to provide liquidity in the Equity, FX, Fixed Income, Futures and Commodity markets. XTX has over 200 employees based in London, Paris, New York, Mumbai, Yerevan and Singapore.

The company's corporate philanthropy focuses on STEM education and maximum impact giving (alongside an employee matching programme). Since 2017, XTX has donated over 80 million to charities and good causes, establishing it as a major donor in the UK and globally. Over the past year, the XTX Markets' Academic Sanctuaries Fund has delivered 10.1mn in funding for academic sanctuaries projects. This includes direct funding for studentships, fellowships and research positions for 336 people across 45 institutions globally. It also includes funding for 13 innovation projects in the UK and Ukraine, which will reach hundreds more people.

About The Hg Foundation:

The Hg Foundation's vision is that the tech workforce of the future harnesses the talents of all, regardless of background. It does this by supporting education and employment-based programmes across the UK, USA and Europe where it can demonstrate measurable, long-term and scalable impact and make a difference to those that need it most. To date it has committed $14m to programmes that will reach 10,000 young people and adults from under-represented backgrounds. The Hg Foundation is registered Charity no. 1189216. Find out more at: https://www.thehgfoundation.com/

SOURCE Maths Excellence Fund
Leading Pediatric Osteosarcoma Nonprofit to Present $600,000 to 7 Scientists on June 24 to Find Kinder Treatments for Patients

BARNARD, Vt., June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- MIB Agents , a leading pediatric osteosarcoma nonprofit dedicated to Making It Better for its community of patients, caregivers, doctors, and researchers, announced today that since its inception in 2016, it has awarded over $1.5 million to scientists across the country through its OutSmarting Osteosarcoma grant program. The OutSmarting Osteosarcoma grants are supported by MIB Agents Family Funds, osteosarcoma patients and families who raise funds in honor of an OsteoWarrior, a patient currently battling osteosarcoma or an OsteoAngel, a loved one who has passed.

As part of MIB Agents' FACTOR Conference in Atlanta, Georgia, this June, the nonprofit will award $600,000 in grants to 7 scientists dedicated to moving osteosarcoma cancer research forward, marking the most money raised to date by MIB Agents' Family Funds. Osteosarcoma is an aggressive, malignant, primary bone cancer affecting 800-900 people in the U.S. each year and is the most common bone cancer affecting children and young adults.

"OutSmarting Osteosarcoma is more than a grant program; we are fostering collaboration between patient families and researchers to move research forward toward improving treatment for this disease and finding a cure together," said Ann Graham, Founder and Executive Director of MIB Agents. "MIB Family Funders selflessly put aside their own suffering to help others who are yet to be diagnosed. They remain engaged past survivorship or even the passing of their own child to help ensure that no other child should suffer the way their own child did."

The OutSmarting Osteosarcoma grant represents a partnership between the scientific and patient community with patients and their families funding much-needed research. Patients participate in MIB Agents' robust scientific review process alongside scientists, clinicians and researchers, offering a voice on how research will impact patient outcomes."

The OutSmarting Osteosarcoma 2023 grant recipients receiving $100,000 each for research will be awarded to:

Shahab Asgharzadeh , MD | Children's Hospital Los Angeles

, MD | Children's Hospital Los Angeles Robert J. Canter , MD | UC Davis Comprehensive Cancer Center

, MD | UC Davis Comprehensive Cancer Center Heather Gardner , DVM, PhD | Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University | Granted because of Annaleigh and Fishin' For The Cure

, DVM, PhD | Cummings | Granted because of Annaleigh and Fishin' For The Cure Ryan D. Roberts , MD, PhD | Abigail Wexner Research Institute at Nationwide Children's Hospital | Granted by Fishin' For The Cure

, MD, PhD | Abigail Wexner Research Institute at Nationwide Children's Hospital | Granted by Fishin' For The Cure Sam Volchenboum, MD, PhD | The University of Chicago | Granted because of Annaleigh

Recipients receiving a $50,000 Young Investigator grant include:

Amanda Marinoff , MD | University of California, San Francisco | Granted because of Charlotte

, MD | | Granted because of Marta Roman Moreno , PhD | University of California, San Francisco | Granted because of Sydney

"It is very important to us to be involved in the review process and to play a part in choosing the OutSmarting recipients," said Sarah and Greg Kaplan, parents of OsteoAngel Sydney. "As a patient family, we have a very different perspective than researchers, doctors and others in the medical field and we feel our input makes the process more well-rounded and impactful. On behalf of our beautiful daughter Sydney, we are honored to be able to help support research that will help other kids and families currently in the fight as well as those in the future."

On June 22-24, MIB Agents will host its annual FACTOR conference in Atlanta where clinicians, researchers, industry partners, survivors, patients and bereaved families will come together to discuss progress in osteosarcoma research, officially award the OutSmarting Osteosarcoma grants, and connect the scientific and patient community to collaborate.

"We were terrified when our 16-year-old daughter, Annaleigh, was diagnosed with osteosarcoma. The terror increased when we learned that just 8% of cancer research funding goes to childhood cancer, and an even smaller percentage to osteosarcoma," said Debi Grilo, mom of OsteoAngel Annaleigh. "Before Annaleigh died, she expressed that she did not want anyone to suffer the way she did, and we feel compelled to carry on in her memory. We are inspired by MIB Agents' commitment to Making It Better for OsteoWarriors, like our daughter. These kids need a champion in their corner, and MIB Agents is!"

To learn more about MIB Agents, the OutSmarting Osteosarcoma grant program or to make a donation toward pediatric osteosarcoma research, please click here.

About MIB Agents

Founded in 2012, MIB Agents is a leading pediatric osteosarcoma nonprofit dedicated to making it better for our community of patients, caregivers, doctors, and researchers through programs, education, and research.

Media Contact:

Kelly Maicon

[email protected]

919.741.9784

SOURCE MIB Agents
SYOSSET, N.Y. , June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Micro Merchant Systems, Inc., developer of the PrimeRx pharmacy technology management system has been recognized for "Achievement in Product Innovation" and awarded a bronze Stevie Award in the 2023 American Business Awards competition.

PrimeRx is a leading pharmacy management system that offers comprehensive functionality and adds efficiency across all pharmacy workflows. The system is highly user-friendly and intuitive, and can be customized for each pharmacy's unique requirements.

"We are honored to be selected for this prestigious award, which recognizes our success in developing innovative solutions for the pharmacy industry" said Micro Merchant Systems CEO Ketan Mehta. "For more than 30 years our goal has been to add efficiency to pharmacy workflows, so pharmacists can have more time for one-on-one patient interactions," he added.

Micro Merchant Systems was evaluated by a panel of independent judges who cited the company for the scope of its solutions, innovation, and responsiveness to pharmacy needs. "Your nomination has left me thoroughly impressed," noted one judge.

The Stevie Award program was launched in 2002 as a way to highlight and honor achievements of organizations and professionals throughout the world. The American Business Awards is a division of the Stevie program, and honors organizations operating withing the United States. This year more than 3,700 nominations were submitted to the American Business Awards competition, representing organizations of all sizes and a multitude of industries.

"The American Business Awards honor individuals and businesses that are truly at the top of their game, and we are honored to be in such esteemed company," Mehta added.

Micro Merchant System will join other honorees at a gala ceremony scheduled for June 13 in New York City.

Micro Merchant Systems is a leading pharmacy technology company and has been committed to addressing the needs of independent pharmacies for more than 30 years. Over 4,000 pharmacies throughout the United States and Puerto Rico trust Micro Merchant Systems to add efficiency and automation to core workflows and processes. All pharmacy types  single store, multi-store, compounding, long-term care, clinic, 340B, specialty, enterprise  rely on Micro Merchant Systems for innovative solutions that keep pace with rapidly-changing needs.

Stevie Awards are conferred in eight programs: the Asia-Pacific Stevie Awards, the German Stevie Awards, the Middle East & North Africa Stevie Awards, The American Business Awards, The Stevie Awards competitions receive more than 12,000 entries each year from organizations in more than 70 nations. Honoring organizations of all types and sizes and the people behind them, the Stevies recognize outstanding performances in the workplace worldwide. Learn more about the Stevie Awards at http://www.StevieAwards.com .

Michele Daniels

Micro Merchant Systems, Inc.

(516) 408-3992

[email protected]com

SOURCE Micro Merchant Systems
"If you can't show it on TV and can't air it on the radio, it shouldn't be in the classroom!"

AUSTIN, Texas, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Moms For America, a nationwide network of hundreds of thousands of moms, played an instrumental role in securing passage of HB 900, the READER Act (also known as the FCC Standard Bill), in Texas. The new law requires schools to adhere to the same standards of decency that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) imposes on television and radio programming. The bill is also being considered by other state legislatures all over the country.

Kimberly Fletcher, the founder, president, and CEO of Moms For America, met with John Rich in January to discuss ways to protect children from indecency being put forth in classrooms. During that conversation, John observed that many of the things children encounter in the classroom aren't even allowed on TV or radio, and that led directly to the FCC Standard Bill being presented to Texas State Representative Jared Patterson by Moms For America.

"This is just common sense: If you can't show it on TV and can't air it on the radio, it shouldn't be in the classroom," said country music superstar John Rich, a member of the Moms For America Advisory Board. "I hope the success of this bill in Texas will inspire other state lawmakers to follow suit, and I'm extremely grateful for all the work Moms For America has done to get this bill passed."

Moms For America worked closely with Texas lawmakers throughout the process since January while contending with the vocal and occasionally disruptive opposition of radicalized LGBTQ groups.

"We've literally had parents escorted out of school board meetings in handcuffs for reading the materials available to our children in school libraries, and the reason given was that they weren't allowed to say those things in a televised public forum," Fletcher noted. "If you can't say it in a school board meeting, our children certainly shouldn't be exposed to it in the classroom or the library.

"I want to thank Rep. Patterson, Gov. Abbott, and our Texas Moms For America who worked so hard to make this a reality," Fletcher said.

Founded in 2004, Moms for America is a national, non-profit 501c3 educational corporation rooted on the principles of liberty and virtue our nation was founded on, and focused on promoting these principles, values, and virtues in the home and family, particularly through the women and mothers of America.

To learn more about Moms for America, please visit momsforamerica.us. You can follow MFA on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.

SOURCE Moms For America
Lawsuit alleges negligent misconduct for causing a mental health crisis among youth

SAN DIEGO, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Frantz Law Group announces that the Montgomery County Public School District joined 500 school districts nationwide in a lawsuit filed in Federal District Court in San Francisco against Meta, TikTok, Snap, YouTube, and other social media companies. In the lawsuit the plaintiff school districts allege that these companies are knowingly causing emotional harm to children through their platforms.

Photo provided by Frantz Law Group (PRNewsfoto/Frantz Law Group)

With over 160,550 students in 210 schools, the Montgomery County Public School District is the largest school district in the state of Maryland. The lawsuit alleges that various social media companies have caused a mental and emotional health crisis marked by higher proportions of anxiety, depression, thoughts of self-harm, body dissatisfaction, disordered eating behaviors, and low self-esteem among children and students. Many are further subjected to often harmful, exploitative and addictive content that encourages disorderly behavior, unhealthy social comparison, and cyberbullying. This litigation seeks to provide the funding and staffing resources needed to mitigate the damage that school districts are currently encountering.

In May of this year, U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy issued a new Advisory on Social Media and Youth Mental Health, in which he states, "there is growing evidence that social media use is associated with harm to young people's mental health." The Advisory cites research finding that one-third or more of girls aged 11-15 say they feel "addicted" to certain social media platforms, that 46% of adolescents aged 13-17 said social media makes them feel worse, and that 64% of adolescents are "often" or "sometimes" exposed to hate-based content through social media. The Advisory also points to studies that show "a relationship between social media use and poor sleep quality, reduced sleep duration, sleep difficulties, and depression among youth."

Moreover, in October 2021, former Meta employee Frances Haugen testified before Congress that Meta's own internal research indicated how harmful their products are to the mental health of child users and, in particular, teenage girls.

About Frantz Law Group, APLC

Frantz Law Group is an award-winning personal injury, wrongful death, catastrophic injury, trucking litigation, mass torts, and class action law firm that has been serving clients for over 43 years. The firm has secured over 60 multimillion-dollar individual settlements and has helped secure several multibillion-dollar settlements with co-counsel that has benefited thousands of FLG clients (case results depend on their specific facts).

Frantz Law Group successfully represents nearly 1,000 school districts in 38 states with respect to the anti-vaping JUUL litigation. Despite the proposed partial settlement with JUUL Labs, Inc., Frantz Law Group continues its litigation against Altria and other defendants responsible for causing the vaping epidemic.

Frantz Law Group has been ranked Tier 1 in U.S. News  Best Lawyers "Best Law Firms" from 2010-2023 for mass tort litigation/class actions - plaintiffs. James P. Frantz is a fellow and associate of the American Board of Trial Advocates, is AV rated by Martindale-Hubbell, is a 20-year Special Master appointed by the State Bar of California and a 20-year Master in The Enright Chapter, American Inns of Court. For more information, please visit https://www.frantzlawgroup.com

Media contact: [email protected]

SOURCE Frantz Law Group
Premier industry survey also displays that, on average, RE/MAX teams are far more productive than teams at other brands.

DENVER, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- RE/MAX proudly announces another remarkable achievement, as thousands of its agents have been recognized as "America's Best" on the RealTrends + Tom Ferry America's Best Real Estate Professionals List. An impressive 4,117 RE/MAX professionals qualified for the honor, which is based on 2022 productivity. RE/MAX agents also stood out in the recently released RealTrends + Tom Ferry The Thousand ranking  an elite subset of America's Best.

Of the nearly 28,000 agents who applied for recognition as an "America's Best," almost one out of every seven is affiliated with RE/MAX, underscoring the network's undeniable impact on the industry.

America's Best grouped teams into four categories based on number of team members. When all teams qualifying by transaction sides are combined by brand, RE/MAX teams have a higher sides-per-agent average among brands qualifying at least 100 teams for transaction sides.

The 1,347 qualifying RE/MAX teams of all sizes averaged 21.6 sides per agent, compared to the average for competitor teams of 13.3 sides. RE/MAX teams also had the highest sides-per-agent average in three of the four team categories: 28.6 for Small, 19.1 for Medium, and 16.7 for Large.

"We are incredibly proud of these RE/MAX agents for being recognized as the best" said Nick Bailey, RE/MAX, LLC President and CEO. "This honor is a testament to their unwavering commitment to excellence and their dedication to providing exceptional service. It underscores our brand's ongoing position as the best option for productive professionals."

Known as a home of top-producers, RE/MAX equips agents to thrive in a competitive marketplace by offering comprehensive support and resources. The network offers industry-leading educational programs through RE/MAX University, cutting-edge technology platforms such as the recently launched MAX/Tech powered by kvCORE, and a global referral network of professionals with a presence in more than 110 countries and territories.

RealTrends + Tom Ferry's America's Best Real Estate Professionals is the industry's largest ranking of agents specifically based on homes sold. Eligibility for the America's Best ranking required individual agents to close at least 40 transaction sides or $16 million in sales volume in 2022, while teams had to close at least 60 transaction sides or $24 million in sales volume.

About the RE/MAX Network

As one of the leading global real estate franchisors, RE/MAX, LLC is a subsidiary of RE/MAX Holdings (NYSE: RMAX) with more than 140,000 agents in over 9,000 offices and a presence in more than 110 countries and territories. Nobody in the world sells more real estate than RE/MAX, as measured by residential transaction sides. RE/MAX was founded in 1973 by Dave and Gail Liniger, with an innovative, entrepreneurial culture affording its agents and franchisees the flexibility to operate their businesses with great independence. RE/MAX agents have lived, worked and served in their local communities for decades, raising millions of dollars every year for Children's Miracle Network Hospitals and other charities. To learn more about RE/MAX, to search home listings or find an agent in your community, please visit www.remax.com. For the latest news about RE/MAX, please visit news.remax.com.

SOURCE RE/MAX, LLC
Muon Space establishes communications and confirms health of first mission just two years after company's founding

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif., June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Muon Space , a climate satellite company revolutionizing the way Earth is monitored from space, is pleased to announce the successful deployment of the company's first satellite, MuSat-1. The ESPA-class spacecraft, which launched on SpaceX's Transporter-8 mission from Vandenberg Space Force Base in Calif. on Monday, June 12, is Muon Space's first satellite on orbit and an important step towards its Climate Constellation, which will use a new generation of sensors to monitor Earth's climate and ecosystems.

Muon Space successfully launches first satellite, MuSat-1, paving the way for future Climate Constellation.

"This launch is a testament to the incredible team we've assembled here at Muon Space who have designed, built, and now launched an ESPA-class spacecraft in less than two years," said Jonny Dyer, CEO of Muon Space. "MuSat-1 is just the beginning as we push the limit of smallsat technology to produce actionable climate data on a global scale."

Muon Space's Climate Constellation will dramatically improve temporal cadence and sampling, producing sub-hourly global measurements. MuSat-2 and MuSat-3 are close behind - establishing a regular launch cadence to enable a growing constellation for Climate Intelligence data. Each satellite carries next-generation sensors that will provide transformative, actionable insights on Earth's vital signs and the fingerprints of a changing planet.

"We were able to design, build, and launch a mission on an incredibly short timeline because we relied on a 'fail fast' approach to the spacecraft design," added Paridhi Desai, MuSat program lead. "We went through multiple design iterations for all subsystems and are gratified to see how well our platform is operating in space. The communication with MuSat-1 helps us accelerate our development of upcoming satellites in the constellation."

Muon Space's MuSat-1 lifted off Monday at 02:35 PM PST. MuSat-1 was deployed at 03:41 PM PST and first contact with the satellite was achieved approximately six minutes after deployment from the ground station in Gavle, Sweden. Engineering telemetry indicates the spacecraft is operating as planned and is in a good state of health.

About Muon Space

Founded in 2021, Muon Space is launching a new generation of smallsats and sensors to monitor Earth's climate and ecosystems with unprecedented fidelity. Muon Space's state-of-the-art facility in the heart of Silicon Valley is optimized for manufacturing spacecraft and integrating payloads at scale. Regular launches beginning in June, 2023 provide ever-increasing data sets addressing important geophysical and environmental applications and a platform to deliver new technologies to space. Muon Space's experienced science and engineering teams are uniquely suited to deliver the most exquisite and reliable remote sensing solutions at the speed and scale required to address our most urgent climate challenges.

For more information on Muon Space, visit: https://www.muonspace.com/

SOURCE Muon Space
MURFREESBORO, Tenn., June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Clarke Law Firm, a prominent criminal defense law firm in Murfreesboro, Tennessee, is exploring the potential of artificial intelligence (AI) in the legal field. Attorney David Clarke, well known for his expertise in criminal defense, is closely examining the use of AI technology in legal research and its potential to assist in writing motions and briefs.

Murfreesboro TN Criminal Defense Attorney David Clarke David Clarke - Defense Attorney of Murfreesboro Tennessee

As the legal landscape continues to evolve, advancements in AI technology have sparked curiosity within the legal community. Recognizing the potential benefits of AI in streamlining legal processes, Attorney Clarke is taking a proactive approach to integrating this emerging technology into his practice. "I like the topic and thinking about the outlook for the future of my practice with respect to artificial intelligence," says Clarke.

Defense attorney Clarke aims to leverage AI to enhance his Murfreesboro-based firm's efficiency and effectiveness without sacrificing the necessity of a personal relationship between attorney and client as well as between an attorney and the broader legal community such as prosecutors, judges, and courthouse personnel.

Can AI Be My Associate?

One area where AI shows great promise is in legal research. On average, lawyers commit about 20% of their total work time to research. However, new associates right out of law school spend around 35% of their time doing research for the law firm partners or the primary attorney they are assigned to. Sometimes paralegals are tasked with research as well.

The vast amount of information available to support defensive strategies and precedents can be overwhelming for legal professionals to sort through efficiently. By employing AI-powered tools and algorithms, Attorney Clarke hopes to streamline the research process, saving valuable time and resources that he can devote to his clients instead. With the appropriate prompts, he hopes AI can quickly analyze vast databases, identify relevant cases, and provide comprehensive legal insights, allowing him to make more informed decisions and build stronger cases.

Writing Using AI Has Potential

In addition to legal research, the Clarke Law Firm has researched the potential of AI in writing motions and briefs. Crafting persuasive legal arguments requires extensive knowledge of the law, case precedents, and compelling language. While AI can draft documents, it cannot replace the expertise and creativity of a skilled attorney.

Clarke says, "AI, like any technology, can be useful and helpful when used appropriately. However, AI has its limitations and cannot replace a human attorney. Recently, an attorney in New York learned this lesson the hard way. The New York attorney had ChatGPT draft a brief that he filed with the court. After the brief was filed, opposing counsel attempted to look up several of the cases cited in ChatGPT's brief only to realize that six of the cases cited did not exist and were completely fabricated by the AI."

Human Intelligence Versus Artificial Intelligence

Clarke understands the difference between the human aspect versus the artificial element.

"A significant amount of criminal defense is personal relationships, i.e. knowing and having experience with the prosecutor who you are dealing with, knowing and having experience with the judge who you are dealing with, which AI cannot do," emphasizes Clarke.

He points out that while AI technology offers exciting possibilities, it should never replace the human element of legal practice. The personalized attention, strategic thinking, and empathy attorneys provide to their clients are invaluable and irreplaceable. AI should be viewed as a tool to enhance legal services, enabling attorneys to dedicate more time to client communication, case strategy, and courtroom advocacy.

As the Clarke Law Firm delves into the exploration of AI, Murfreesboro criminal defense attorney David Clarke remains dedicated to upholding the highest standards and ethics of the legal profession. By embracing innovative technologies, he strives to give his clients a competitive advantage in criminal defense cases.

For more information about the Clarke Law Firm and its exploration of AI in the legal field, please contact David Clarke, Esq. Clarke Law Firm 201 East Main Street, Suite 405, Murfreesboro, TN 37130 Phone: (615) 796-6299 Email: [email protected] Website: www.murfreesborolawyernow.com/

Media Contact:

Chris Moreno

[email protected]

207-332-3306

SOURCE The Clarke Law Firm
CHARLOTTE, N.C, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The Smithsonian is coming to North Carolina! North Carolina Humanities is now accepting applications from small-town and rural communities to participate in the 2024 - 2025 statewide tour of Voices and Votes: Democracy in America, a traveling exhibition from the Smithsonian Institution. To learn more visit nchumanities.org.

"Voices and Votes: Democracy in America" will tour April 2024 - January 2025.

Our democracy demands action, reaction, vision, and revision as we continue to question how to form "a more perfect union." From the revolution and suffrage to civil rights and casting ballots, this exhibit explores how everyone in every community is part of this ever-evolving story  the story of democracy in America.

NC Humanities will select six communities in North Carolina to host the exhibit during this traveling, statewide tour, April 2024 - January 2025. Small-town and rural museums, libraries, community venues, and other eligible cultural nonprofit organizations are invited to apply. Applications are due July 31, 2023.

Selected host sites will receive the Voices and Votes exhibit for approximately six weeks, rent-free. They will also receive up to $5,000 in grant funding to support the design and implementation of public programs, events, companion exhibits, and resources that enhance the exhibit's themes.

Organizations that wish to apply to host Voices and Votes: Democracy in America are encouraged to review NC Humanities' Request for Proposals for full details. To learn more, register for one of our upcoming informational program webinars, and apply please visit nchumanities.org.

Voices and Votes is based on a major exhibition currently on display at the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History in Washington, D.C. called American Democracy: A Great Leap of Faith. Voices and Votes has many dynamic features including historical and contemporary photos; educational and archival video; engaging multimedia interactives with short games and additional footage, photos, and information; and historical objects like campaign souvenirs, voter memorabilia, and protest material. In 2024 Voices and Votes is nationally touring in Florida, New York, North Carolina, and Oklahoma.

For more information, please visit https://nchumanities.org.

About North Carolina Humanities: Through public humanities programs and grantmaking, North Carolina Humanities connects North Carolinians with cultural experiences that spur dialogue, deepen human connections, and inspire community. North Carolina Humanities is a statewide nonprofit and affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities. To learn more, visit www.nchumanities.org.

About the exhibit: Voices and Votes: Democracy in America is part of Museum on Main Street (MoMS), a collaboration program between the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service (SITES), state humanities councils across the nation, and local host institutions. It is based on an exhibition by the National Museum of American History. North Carolina Humanities has worked with SITES for over a decade to bring MoMS exhibitions to North Carolina's small towns and rural communities. Support for MoMS has been provided by the U.S. Congress.

SOURCE North Carolina Humanities
Missile attack on Odesa results in three people killed, 13 injured  Pivden task force

The Russians attacked Odesa with four Kalibr missiles, as a result of the shelling, three people were killed, and 13 were injured, the Pivden task force reported.

"According to updated data, the enemy launched four Kalibrs on Odesa from a ship in the Black Sea.

In one of the districts of Odesa, a fire on an area of 350 square meters broke out.

An evacuation is underway. Medical workers provide assistance to the victims.

As a result of the air battle and the blast wave, a business center, an educational institution, a residential complex, catering establishments and shops in the city center were damaged. Initially, six people were injured.

A missile hit in a warehouse of one of the retail chains, it destroyed a building of 1,000 square meters and provoked a fire on an area of 400 square meters.

"Three employees of the warehouse were killed, seven were injured," the report said.

Debris clearing continues. There may be people under them.
LONDON, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- NewComma , a groundbreaking social media platform empowering African and Black creatives, has successfully closed its pre-seed funding round in partnership with SFC Capital, the UK's leading early-stage investment firm. The funding will accelerate NewComma's tech development, and empower African/Black creatives to reshape the global creative industry.

Copyright: NewComma, 2023

With thousands of users on the platform, NewComma provides them a digital space to showcase their portfolios, connect with professionals, and explore job opportunities. Employers can discover exceptional talent while ensuring diversity in global companies with budget-friendly data-driven recruitment tools.

"NewComma presents a unique opportunity to transform the African creative industry," says Ed Stevenson, Investment Executive at SFC Capital. "We were impressed by NewComma's innovative approach and passion for empowering African/Black talent, combined with their understanding of the market's potential, it convinced us to support their vision."

By 2030, young Africans are projected to comprise 42% of the global youth population, necessitating the establishment of supportive structures. Especially as Africa's digital economy expands and remote work becomes more prevalent.

Natalie Narh, CEO and Co-Founder of NewComma, asserts, "When people talk about Africa today, they often refer to immense opportunities that lie ahead. We believe Africa is now." Nigel Atta-Mensah, NewComma's COO and Co-Founder, adds, "African governments need to create 18 million new jobs annually to accommodate the ambitious population entering the workforce; by nurturing creatives into the formal sector, we can provide countless opportunities."

To learn more about NewComma and hire diverse creative talent, visit newcomma.com .

Boilerplate:

NewComma empowers African creatives through a disruptive social media platform that offers showcasing, networking, and job opportunities. With digital portfolios and data-driven recruitment tools, it revolutionises hiring globally. By fostering connectivity and growth in the African creative industry, NewComma empowers talent and drives innovation across the continent and its diaspora.

SFC Capital is the UK's most active seed-stage investor, providing seed capital and support to promising British startups. By combining our leading investment funds with our angel syndicate, we have created a unique model that provides investors with diversified exposure to high-potential SEIS and EIS-qualifying businesses. Since 2012, SFC has invested in over 450 startups and partnered with the likes of British Business Investments to support innovation across all UK regions. To learn more about what we do and see our portfolio, visit sfccapital.com .

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2096765/NewComma.jpg

SOURCE NewComma
NOBO was recognized as the fastest-growing private company in the Boulder Valley with above $22M revenue by BizWest's Mercury 100.

Boulder, Colo., June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- NOBO, a leading vertically integrated multistate cannabis operator, today announced that it made BizWest's Mercury 100 list of the fastest-growing companies in Colorado for 2022. The Mercury 100 event hosted by BizWest took place on June 8th where the fastest-growing private companies in Boulder County and Northern Colorado were honored for their continued growth over two years in their respective industries. As the only cannabis company to make the list, NOBO was recognized for its continued expansion with 667% revenue growth between 2020 and 2022.

Compiled by BizWest's research department, the Mercury 100 list is ranked by percentage revenue growth over a two-year period. The 100 companies are divided into 5 "flights" with a total of 10 companies per flight; flights are based on total annual revenue. The 10 companies in each of the five flights are then ranked by their percentage of revenue growth over a two-year period, with the top five in each flight being introduced at the Mercury 100 event.

NOBO was recognized as the fastest-growing private company in the Boulder Valley with above $22M revenue by BizWest's Mercury 100 Tweet this

"NOBO is truly honored to make the Mercury 100 list this year. We set out to build a company that redefines the cannabis industry and paves the way as more states legalize cannabis. Our goal is to create the highest quality of products and deliver them to the broadest range of consumers. We cultivate to exacting standards which our customers recognize. This award demonstrates our success in building a foundation for many years to come," states Alan Bonsett, CEO at NOBO. "Boulder County and Colorado continue to be known as the leaders in how to develop and grow cannabis companies that shape the industry while playing a part in the communities in which we operate."

Out of the 10 competing companies in the top category, NOBO was ranked number one with 667% growth between 2020 and 2022, which is an outstanding accomplishment. The growth for NOBO is attributed to attention to detail and being able to take advantage of new market opportunities in very competitive and regulated markets. The passion to take customer feedback and produce sought-after products contributed to NOBO's rapid revenue acceleration and shows no signs of slowing down.

Contact:

NOBO

Daniel Paul

[email protected]

310-210-2109

SOURCE NOBO, Inc.
Nudge Security launches employee offboarding automation playbook to eliminate 90% of the time and effort required to offboard employees' cloud and SaaS access, including shadow IT.

AUSTIN, Texas, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- A recent survey of 375 IT professionals by Nudge Security revealed that 70% of organizations have experienced the impacts of incomplete employee offboarding: business disruption, security incidents, wasted SaaS spending, and retained access. At the same time, organizations spend an average of 5 hours per employee just to identify and deprovision their access to cloud and SaaS applications.

To address these challenges, Nudge Security introduced today new employee offboarding automation capabilities that eliminate 90% of the time and effort it takes to offboard employees' cloud and SaaS access, including unsanctioned or "shadow IT" accounts. Leveraging the platform's unique ability to continuously discover and inventory all cloud and SaaS access, Nudge Security's new step-by-step employee offboarding playbook allows IT administrators to orchestrate and automate onerous and often overlooked tasks. This includes automatically resetting passwords for unmanaged SaaS accounts that are not in the organization's identity provider (IdP) or single-sign on (SSO) system.

Nudge Security automates the hardest parts of offboardingnamely finding and revoking shadow SaaSfor modern IT ops. Tweet this

The playbook helps to turn hours of manual IT effort into to an estimated 30 minutes or less by:

Providing a continuous inventory of an employee's entire cloud and SaaS footprint as well as authentication methods (SSO, OAuth, username / password) for each account

Automatically resetting passwords for unmanaged SaaS accounts to prevent any unauthorized access

Transferring ownership of critical resources like cloud accounts, registered domains and corporate social media handles to avoid disruption and orphaned accounts

Reviewing app-to-app OAuth integrations to ensure continuity of business-critical processes and automations

Orchestrating engagement with applications' business owners to reclaim unused licenses and avoid wasted SaaS spending

"With so much volatility in the labor market, IT organizations are under immense pressure to maintain smooth business operations during workforce transitions while also ensuring that all access to corporate data and applications is known, accurate, and secure at all times," said Russell Spitler, CEO and co-founder of Nudge Security. "By automating the hardest parts of employee offboardingnamely finding and revoking access to unmanaged SaaSwe're helping IT organizations to modernize their operations for the demands and realities of modern work."

To learn more, join Nudge Security on LinkedIn Live , Thursday, June 15, 2023 at 11am CT. Also, register for the live webcast, "Automate tedious IT offboarding tasks with Nudge Security" on Thursday, June 22, 2023 at 1pm CT.

About Nudge Security

Nudge Security helps highly distributed organizations manage SaaS security and governance at scale by working with employees, not against them. Founded in 2021 by Jaime Blasco and Russell Spitler and backed by Ballistic Ventures, Nudge Security was named a "Cybersecurity startup to watch in 2023" by CSO Magazine and a "Most promising early-stage startup" SC Awards finalist. Learn more at www.nudgesecurity.com and follow the Nudge Security Twitter account and the Nudge Security LinkedIn page .

SOURCE Nudge Security
Industry award highlights contract packer's success through leading-edge technology

TORONTO, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ - Nulogy , a leading provider of supply chain collaboration solutions, was announced alongside Metro Supply Chain as recipients of this year's Top Supply Chain Projects Award by Supply & Demand Chain Executive. This award profiles innovative industry projects designed to automate, optimize, streamline and improve the supply chain.

Headquartered in Canada, Metro Supply Chain manages 14 million square feet in almost 100 sites across North America and Europe with a team of 6,000.

SDCE Top Supply Chain Projects 2023 (CNW Group/Nulogy Corporation) Metro Supply Chain (CNW Group/Nulogy Corporation)

"Metro Supply Chain is pleased to receive this recognition from Supply and Demand Chain Executive," said Cathie Wood, Vice President Contract Packaging Services, Metro Supply Chain. "We are proud of our growth and the work we have done to become an avid adopter of cutting-edge solutions in our industry."

"It is a privilege to be recognized alongside Metro Supply Chain," said Jason Tham, CEO, Nulogy. "This recognition is further motivation to continue innovating our platform to demonstrate the value of digitalized, collaborative supply chains."

"From demand planning and forecasting to implementing the ultimate in warehouse automation, the past 12 months has seen companies within the supply chain and logistics space upgrade, enhance, adopt and adapt in order to achieve greater efficiency along the chain," says Marina Mayer, Editor-in-Chief of Supply & Demand Chain Executive and Food Logistics. "That's why it's important today's supply chains run on collaboration."

"Companies partnered to implement each others' software and technology and work smarter, together. And, it's these partnerships that have enabled many supply chain organizations to better manage inventory, reduce costs, retain employees, track data and analytics and build resilience for whatever disruptions may lie ahead," Mayer adds.

View the full list of Top Supply Chain Projects winners, and visit www.SDCExec.com/awards to learn more about upcoming Supply & Demand Chain Executive awards.

About Metro Supply Chain

For almost 50 years, Metro Supply Chain has been partnering with some of the world's fastest-growing and global brands to drive impactful and sustainable business outcomes through innovative, end-to-end supply chain solutions. The largest privately owned provider of integrated supply chain solutions in Canada, it manages almost 100 sites across North America and Europe with a team of 6,000 employees. In 2023, Metro Supply Chain received the prestigious Best Managed Companies award for its strategic expertise, culture of innovation and commitment to its people and local communities.

Metroscg.com

About Nulogy

Nulogy, a leading supplier of digital supply chain solutions, enables customers and their supplier communities to collaborate on a multi-enterprise platform in order to deliver with excellence to an ever-changing consumer market. Nulogy's cloud-based platform optimizes upstream supply ecosystems composed of brand manufacturers, contract manufacturers and packagers, third party logistics providers, raw material and packaging suppliers to accelerate supply chain responsiveness and collaborate at the speed of today's market.

Nulogy.com

About Supply & Demand Chain Executive

Supply & Demand Chain Executive is the only supply chain publication covering the entire global supply chain, focusing on trucking, warehousing, packaging, procurement, risk management, professional development and more. Supply & Demand Chain Executive and sister publication Food Logistics also operate SCN Summit and Women in Supply Chain Forum. Go to www.SDCExec.com to learn more.

SOURCE Nulogy Corporation
VANCOUVER, BC, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ - Numinus Wellness Inc. ("Numinus" or the "Company") (TSX: NUMI) (OTCQX: NUMIF), a mental health care company advancing innovative treatments and safe, evidence-based psychedelic-assisted therapies, today announced the appointment of Nikhil Handa as Chief Financial Officer, effective June 15, 2023, following a thorough executive search. Current Chief Financial Officer, John Fong, will be stepping down effective end of day today to focus on family health matters. Mr. Fong will remain involved with the Company during the incoming CFO transition period to ensure a seamless transfer of responsibilities.

"We're thrilled to welcome Nikhil to Numinus as our new CFO," said Payton Nyquvest, Founder and CEO. "Nikhil has a proven background in driving financial and operational results, and also brings a wealth of corporate development and capital markets experience. These skills will be a tremendous asset as Numinus embarks on its next phase of growth."

Mr. Nyquvest continued: "I would like to personally thank John for his commitment and dedication to Numinus the last four years. John had an instrumental role in helping take Numinus public and developing key processes and talent within our finance team. Numinus remains steadfastly supportive of John and his family, and wish all of them well."

Most recently, Mr. Handa was CFO at The Supreme Cannabis Company, Inc. ("Supreme") (previously TSX:FIRE), where he led finance, investor relations and corporate development. At Supreme, Mr. Handa led the restructuring of the company to focus on profitable growth, and was responsible for executing the sale of Supreme to Canopy Growth Corporation. Prior to this, he led finance at Well.ca, a leading digital health and wellness company. In that role he led the finance function, provided leadership across various aspects of operations and drove key strategic initiatives including the sale of Well.ca to McKesson Canada. Over the course of his career, Mr. Handa also held a variety of senior finance and operational roles at Restaurant Brands International. Mr. Handa was part of the mergers and acquisition group of RBC Capital Markets, where he helped advise the management teams and board of directors of private and public companies on various types of transactions across Canada, the U.S., and globally.

About Numinus

Numinus Wellness Inc. (TSX: NUMI) helps people to heal and be well through the development and delivery of innovative mental health care and access to safe, evidence-based psychedelic-assisted therapies. The Numinus model - including psychedelic production, research and clinic care - is at the forefront of a transformation aimed at healing rather than managing symptoms for depression, anxiety, trauma, pain and substance use. At Numinus, we are leading the integration of psychedelic-assisted therapies into mainstream clinical practice and building the foundation for a healthier society.

Learn more at www.numinus.com and follow us on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Forward-looking statements

Statements and other information contained in this press release about anticipated future events constitute forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are often, but not always, identified by the use of words such as "seek", "anticipate", "believe", "plan", "estimate", "expect" and "intend" and statements that an event "may", "will", "should", "could" or "might" occur or other similar expressions. Forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in the forward-looking statements, including but not limited to the risks set forth in the Company's annual information form dated December 12, 2022 and available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. Forward-looking statements are based on estimates and opinions of management at the date the statements are made. The Company does not undertake any obligation to update forward-looking statements even if circumstances or management's estimates or opinions should change except as required by applicable laws. Investors should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements.

SOURCE Numinus Wellness Inc.
Traveler count highest for a single month since ONT's return to local ownership

ONTARIO, Calif., June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Southern California's Ontario International Airport (ONT) welcomed nearly 557,000 passengers in May, the highest number in a single month since the airport returned to local ownership more than six years ago, officials announced.

The May total represents a nearly 7.3% increase overall. The number of domestic passengers grew by 4% to more than 522,000 while international air travel more than doubled to 34,310.

Southern California's Ontario International Airport welcomed nearly 557,000 passengers in May.

The previous single month high was reported in October 2022, when 541,000 passengers flew into or out of ONT.

Year to date, the number of passengers increased by 13.2%, to 2.4 million overall. The number of domestic passengers rose by 10.5% to nearly 2.3 million, while international travelers increased almost by 90%, to more than 138,000.

"Ontario continues to set an example in the aviation industry as an airport that has not only recovered from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, but is setting record highs in passenger volume," said Atif Elkadi, chief executive officer, Ontario International Airport Authority (OIAA). "May was a new high-water mark for passenger travel through Ontario in a single month since the airport's transfer to local ownership in 2016. Our airline partners and customers can rest assured that we are always ready and able to welcome even more passengers while continuing to deliver an airport experience that meets and exceeds expectations."

Passenger Totals May 2023 May 2022 Change YTD 2023 YTD 2022 Change Domestic 522,623 502,242 4.06 % 2,291,829 2,073,322 10.5 % International 34,310 16,843 103.7 % 138,879 73,143 89.9 % Total 556,933 519,085 7.29 % 2,430,708 2,146,465 13.2 %

Ontario's success story was noted this week by the Los Angeles Business Journal.

Shipments of commercial freight and mail totaled more than 61,000 tons, a decrease of 8.3%. Over the first five months of the year, cargo volume declined by 9.6% to 304,000 tons compared with the same period last year. Decreases in cargo volume persist as a result of global economic conditions.

Air cargo (tonnage) May 2023 May 2022 Change YTD 2023 YTD 2022 Change Freight 56,667 62,460 -9.27 % 281,021 313,088 -10.2 % Mail 4,761 4,557 4.47 % 23,465 23,628 -0.7 % Total 61,428 67,017 -8.34 % 304,486 336,715 -9.6 %

About Ontario International Airport

Ontario International Airport (ONT) is the fastest growing airport in the United States, according to Global Traveler, a leading publication for frequent fliers. Located in the Inland Empire, ONT is approximately 35 miles east of downtown Los Angeles in the center of Southern California. It is a full-service airport which offers nonstop commercial jet service to nearly two dozen major airports in the U.S., Mexico, Central America and Taiwan. More information is available at www.flyOntario.com. Follow @flyONT on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram

About the Ontario International Airport Authority (OIAA)

The OIAA was formed in August 2012 by a Joint Powers Agreement between the City of Ontario and the County of San Bernardino to provide overall direction for the management, operations, development and marketing of ONT for the benefit of the Southern California economy and the residents of the airport's four-county catchment area. OIAA Commissioners are Ontario City Councilmember Alan D. Wapner (President), Retired Riverside Mayor Ronald O. Loveridge (Vice President), Ontario City Council Member Jim W. Bowman (Secretary), San Bernardino County Supervisor Curt Hagman (Commissioner) and retired business executive Julia Gouw (Commissioner).

OIAA Media Contact:

Steve Lambert (909) 841-7527 [email protected]

SOURCE Ontario International Airport
At SIGGRAPH 2023, researchers set to debut inventive computational solutions that easily, efficiently overcome complex challenges in physical world

CHICAGO, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The vast field of computer graphics and interactive techniques spans the gamut of industries, from gaming and film to biomedical and manufacturing. The core of SIGGRAPH 2023, the 50th iteration of an annual global  and marquis  conference for the brightest and most inventive minds in the field, is a platform to share and showcase the bold, innovative research and products that are changing  and improving  the way we live, work, and play.

Left: They densely pack the benchmark into a cuboid with a packing density of 35.77%. The packing is free of interlocking. Right: An in-focused view highlighting densely packed objects. Dense, Interlocking-free and Scalable Spectral Packing of Generic 3D Objects  2023 Cui, Rong, Chen, Matusik Semantics and Scheduling for Machine Knitting Compliers  2023 Lin, Narayanan, Ikarashi, Ragan-Kelley, Bernstein, McCann Beyond Chainmail: Computational Modeling of Discrete Interlocking Materials  2023 Tang, Coros, Thomaszewski

Research expected to debut as part of the conference's Technical Papers program are "ones to watch"  exciting new technologies, ideas, and algorithms that span all areas of graphics and interactive techniques. Particularly noticeable this year is the emergence of research methods that extend beyond the digital world and address creation of real-life content.

"A lot of research in computer graphics has been about determining the best way to visualize various real-world phenomena using computers, and in doing so, there are often details that are elided to fit such complicated things into the computational framework," says Jenny Lin, a lead author of one of the featured new research projects that will be showcased at SIGGRAPH 2023. Lin and her collaborators have devised a formal semantics framework for machine knitting programs, applying mathematics to describe anything a knitting machine can make.

"Going from virtual representations to the physical world involves addressing details that we often take for granted when going about our daily lives," she adds. "There's a very natural connection between these two directions, and there's something very gratifying about using the language of computers to understand and improve something as tactile and grounded as knitting."

This year, computer scientists, artists, developers, and industry experts around the world will convene 610 August in Los Angeles for SIGGRAPH 2023. As a preview of the Technical Papers program, here is a sampling of three novel computational methods and their unique approaches to real-world applications.

Equipped to Make It Fit

Additive manufacturing, better known as 3D printing, brings digitally designed products to life. It allows for unprecedented freedom of 3D geometries and it gives manufacturers the ability to produce parts on demand, and locally. With 3D printing, supply chain management can be simplified, and it is easier to transition from engineering iterations to full manufacturing.

3D printing is undergoing a transition from being a prototyping technology to being a manufacturing technology. However, the main roadblock is the overall cost of the manufactured part. 3D printing hardware, materials, and human labor all drive the cost of the technology. The drive for higher cost efficiency requires printing in batches where parts are tightly packed in the 3D printer's build volume to maximize the number of printed parts per batch. One of the main limitations of this process is the limited utilization of the build volume due to the computational complexity of the packing process.

In a collaboration between MIT and Inkbit, a 3D manufacturer specializing in polymer parts, researchers are addressing the complex problem  and headache  of digitally packing many parts in a single container with multiple constraints. To date, many part models are virtually placed in the printing tray, also referred to as "nesting", and the printer executes the job printing the whole tray. The problem with this process is that the container isn't densely packed and there isn't an efficient method to automate and ensure the 3D printers are printing the maximum volume of parts in a designated container.

The team of researchers, led by Wojciech Matusik, CTO at Inkbit and professor of electrical engineering and of computer science at MIT, developed a novel computational method to maximize the throughput of 3D printers by packing objects as densely as possible and accounting for interlocking-avoidance (between many parts with different shapes and sizes) and scalability. Their approach leverages the Fast Fourier Transform, or FFT, a powerful algorithm that has made it possible to quickly perform complex signal processing operations that were previously impossible or prohibitively expensive.

Coupled with FFT, "our work is making the individual placement of a 3D part into a partially filled build volume as fast as possible," says Matusik. "Our algorithms are not only extremely fast but they can now achieve print volumes with much higher densities (40% or more). The higher print efficiency will unlock lower cost of parts manufactured."

The lead author Qiaodong Cui is set to present the new work at SIGGRAPH 2023. The team also includes Victor Rong of MIT, and Desai Chen, research engineer at Inkbit. Visit the team's page for the full paper and video.

The Refined Knitting Machine

Some may say that knitting is a relatively easy technique, or craft, to learn  and could even serve as a relaxing stress-reducer. Automating the needle-and-yarn technique with machine knitting is well established in the fashion and textiles industries. This has seen a recent surge in popularity due to increased understanding of the scope and complexity of the objects  fabrics, patterns  that can be automatically generated.

While the technique of knitting has been automated, the systems are still struggling with the ability to support everything that a knitting machine can make, as well as generate precisely what a user wants. To date, say the researchers, there is no such system that guarantees correctness on the complete scope of machine knitting programs.

A multi-institutional team of computer scientists from Carnegie Mellon University, MIT, and University of Washington, have created a novel computational framework to optimize machine knitting tasks. Their formal semantics for the low-level Domain Specific Language used for knitting machines provides a sophisticated definition of correctness on the exponentially large space of knitting machine programs.

The researchers applied knot theory to develop their new framework and addressed the key properties humans care about in knitting that are poorly captured by existing concepts from knot theory. To that end, they devised an extension to knot theory called "fenced tangles" as a mathematical basis for defining machine knit object equivalence.

Our method "can describe anything a knitting machine can make: not just your standard sweaters and hats, but also dense, shaped structures useful in architecture, and multi-yarn structures that allow for colorwork and soft actuation," says Jenny Lin, the paper's lead author and PhD student at Carnegie Mellon in the lab of James McCann, assistant professor of robotics at Carnegie Mellon and another author of the work.

She adds, "This is important, because as we develop more nuanced systems for generating more complicated knitting machine programs, we can now always answer the question of whether two machine knit objects  the object you want and the object your program makes  are truly the same."

As a proof of concept, the team has implemented a foundational computational tool for applying program rewrites that preserve knit program meaning. This approach could be expanded for characterizing machine knitting to hand knitting, which is both more flexible and variable as a fabrication technique.

The team behind "fenced tangles" also includes Vidya Narayanan, applied scientist at Amazon who was advised by James McCann at Carnegie, Yuka Ikarashi, PhD candidate at MIT Computer Science & Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, Jonathan Ragan-Kelley of MIT Computer Science & Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, and Gilbert Bernstein, assistant professor of computer science and engineering at University of Washington, and they will present their work at SIGGRAPH 2023. The paper and team page can be found here.

Linked and Characterized

Medieval chainmail armor, small metal rings linked together in a pattern to form a mesh, have been used for thousands of years as protective gear for soldiers in battle. Picture a knight in their metal "suit" wearing chainmail armor as an additional layer of protection. Fast forward to the wide landscape of materials and fabrics in the modern era and chainmail-like materials remain a physical structure that is challenging to computationally represent, accounting for all of its unique mechanical properties.

An international team of researchers from ETH Zurich in Switzerland and Universite de Montreal in Canada draws inspiration from medieval chainmail armor, generalizing it to the concept of discrete interlocking materials, or DIM.

"These materials possess remarkable flexibility, allowing them to adapt to necessary shapes, while also demonstrating impressive strength beyond a certain range of deformation," says Pengbin Tang, the lead author of the research and PhD student advised by Bernhard Thomaszewski, a senior scientist at ETH Zurich and adjunct professor at the Universite de Montreal.

"These unique properties make DIM attractive in robotics, orthotics, sportswear and many other areas of application," adds Stelian Coros, collaborator and head of the computational robotics lab (CRL) at ETH Zurich.

The researchers have developed a method for computational modeling, mechanical characterization, and macro-scale simulation of these 3D-printed chainmail fabrics made of quasi-rigid interlocking elements (the connectivity of rings or links in chainmail-like material).

A key challenge the new method addresses is accurately representing the deformation limits the quasi-rigid fabric exhibits when it bends and folds and adopts different shapes. Unlike conventional elastic materials, the mechanics of DIM are governed by contacts between individual elements. Their particular structure leads to extremely high contrast in deformation resistance. To obtain the deformation limits from a given DIM, the researchers' developed a computational approach involving thousands of virtual deformation tests across the entire deformation space.

The novel method offers an intuitive, systematic way for macro-mechanical characterization which can pave the way to using DIM for garment design, note the researchers. Their analysis has largely focused on kinematic motion and, consequently, doesn't consider friction nor elastic deformations in the structure. In future work, an extension of their macro-scale model could account for internal friction to simulate friction-dominated scenarios as well as explore geometric detail at the element level, which may be important for additional applications.

Pengbin Tang is excited to present this work at SIGGRAPH 2023. View the paper and video on the team page.

Each year, the SIGGRAPH Technical Papers program spans research areas from animation, simulation, and imaging to geometry, modeling, human-computer interaction, fabrication, robotics, and more. Visit the SIGGRAPH 2023 website to learn more about the program and for registration details.

About ACM, ACM SIGGRAPH, and SIGGRAPH 2023

ACM, the Association for Computing Machinery, is the world's largest educational and scientific computing society, uniting educators, researchers, and professionals to inspire dialogue, share resources, and address the field's challenges. ACM SIGGRAPH is a special interest group within ACM that serves as an interdisciplinary community for members in research, technology, and applications in computer graphics and interactive techniques. The SIGGRAPH conference is the world's leading annual interdisciplinary educational experience showcasing the latest in computer graphics and interactive techniques. SIGGRAPH 2023, the 50th annual conference hosted by ACM SIGGRAPH, will take place live 610 August at the Los Angeles Convention Center, along with a Virtual Access option.

SOURCE SIGGRAPH 2023
Federal Funding Increases Fuel Research Progress and Help Improve Patient Outcomes

LOS ANGELES, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The Pancreatic Cancer Action Network (PanCAN), a leading pancreatic cancer patient advocacy organization, today launched its Call on Congress Day campaign, part of its annual advocacy strategy to mobilize pancreatic cancer survivors, caregivers and supporters from around the United States to urge their members of Congress to increase the federal research investment for the world's deadliest cancer. This year, advocates are asking Congress to increase the investment in the dedicated Pancreatic Cancer Research Program at the Department of Defense (DOD) from $15 to $20 million and secure $50.924 billion for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) base budget, including $9.988 billion for the National Cancer Institute (NCI).

To demonstrate how simple it is to take action by calling members of Congress to make these asks, Star Trek actress, 19-year pancreatic cancer survivor, and PanCAN advocate, Kitty Swink, recorded herself making calls to the offices of her three members of Congress.

Pancreatic cancer is the world's toughest cancer and is on track to become the second leading cause of cancer-related death in the United States. It demands urgent action to save lives. Given few effective treatments and no standard early detection test, research funding continues to be critical in the fight against this challenging disease -- and approximately 80% of funding comes from the federal government, highlighting the importance of the efforts of PanCAN and its advocates.

"While the political discourse in this country often continues to be divided down party lines, increasing federal research investment for deadly diseases like pancreatic cancer is a bipartisan issue and we're grateful to have champions in Congress on both sides of the aisle," said Julie Fleshman, JD, MBA, president and CEO of PanCAN. "Pancreatic cancer does not discriminate. We urge Congress to make this vital research a priority in order to fuel progress and improve outcomes for patients."

To demonstrate how simple it is to take action by calling members of Congress to make these asks, Star Trek actress, 19-year pancreatic cancer survivor, and PanCAN advocate, Kitty Swink, recorded herself making calls to the offices of her three members of Congress. The videos, shared on PanCAN social media, encourage other advocates to join the movement and make their voices heard. Also, for the first time this year, advocates can join a virtual PanCAN Action Chat to make calls to Congress in community with one another, connecting their passion and actions as a united group.

Thanks to PanCAN and its advocates, the federal research investment in pancreatic cancer at the NCI has steadily grown over the last two decades. In 1999, when PanCAN was founded, the investment was just $17.7 million. By 2018 (the latest data available), it had grown to $182.1 million. This funding has had a significant impact on the five-year pancreatic cancer survival rate which increased from just 4% in 1999 to 12% this year. PanCAN and its advocates have an ambitious goal of increasing the five-year survival rate to 20% by 2030.

To learn how to Call on Congress today to accelerate progress, go to pancan.org/calloncongressday.

About the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network

The Pancreatic Cancer Action Network (PanCAN) leads the way in accelerating critical progress for pancreatic cancer patients. PanCAN takes bold action by funding life-saving research, providing personalized patient services and creating a community of supporters and volunteers who will stop at nothing to create a world in which all pancreatic cancer patients will thrive. For 18 years in a row, PanCAN has earned a Four-Star Rating from Charity Navigator  the highest rating an organization can receive. This rating designates PanCAN as an official "Give with Confidence" charity, indicating strong financial health, ongoing accountability and transparency.

Media Contact:

Jillian Scholten

Public Relations Senior Manager, PanCAN

310-706-3360

[email protected]

SOURCE Pancreatic Cancer Action Network
Matt Grow joins as President of Biopharma and Chief Business Officer

BOSTON, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- PathAI, a leading provider of AI-powered pathology tools to advance precision medicine, today announced that Matt Grow has joined as president of biopharma and chief business officer. The role will support PathAI's expanding biopharma commercial organization with a focus on the company's growing algorithm product suite and end-to-end clinical trial service offering for biopharma partners across all stages of drug development.

With more than 20 years of experience in biopharma business development, Grow brings a wealth of expertise to PathAI. Prior to joining PathAI, he held key leadership roles at PPD and Thermo Fisher Scientific, where he served as senior vice president, global head of biopharma business development and was instrumental in driving growth and building strategic partnerships in the biopharmaceutical industry.

"We are thrilled to have Matt join the PathAI team as president of biopharma and chief business officer," said Andy Beck, M.D., Ph.D., chief executive officer and co-founder of PathAI. "His deep expertise in biopharma business development and commercial operations will be instrumental in driving growth and building strategic partnerships. We look forward to his leadership and contributions to the company's success."

As a strategic partner to the CEO and executive team, Grow will lead and manage the overall strategic direction and operations of PathAI's BioPharma division, including business development, marketing and sales, and the BioPharma Lab operations.

"I have been supporting biopharma in this industry for over twenty years and I am energized by the PathAI end-to-end portfolio and how the technology is advancing drug development. I am thrilled to be joining such a strong team," Grow said. "PathAI's services and products are very impressive and address key pain points that customers face in clinical development by unlocking value, accuracy, and repeatability for late stage clinical trials and patients. As the portfolio continues to evolve, PathAI is strengthening its position to address the precise needs of each customer throughout the drug development spectrum. My goal is to ensure that we do this most effectively."

About PathAI

PathAI is the only AI-focused technology company to provide comprehensive precision pathology solutions from wet lab services to algorithm deployment for clinical trials and diagnostic use. Rigorously trained and validated with data from more than 15 million annotations, its AI-powered models can be leveraged to optimize the analysis of patient samples to improve efficiency and accuracy of pathology interpretation, as well as to better gauge therapeutic efficacy and accelerate drug development for complex diseases.

PathAI, which is headquartered in Boston, MA, and operates a CAP/CLIA-certified laboratory in Memphis, TN, is proud to have a team of 600+ innovative thinkers from around the globe. For more information, please visit www.pathai.com.

Media Contact

Maggie Naples

SVM Public Relations and Marketing Communications

[email protected]

(401) 490-700

SOURCE PathAI
The deployment is a major milestone for the advancement of digital payment security in the Kingdom.

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Saudi Arabia's PayTabs Group, the region's award-winning payment solutions provider, today announced a strategic agreement with Modirum  a global brand with a track record of delivering effective 3D secure solutions for over 20 years.

The alliance between the two firms aims to offer flexible, robust, and cost effective EMV 3D secure authentication solutions for PayTabs merchants, banks, and processors across the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

The alliance between PayTabs Group and Modrium aims to offer flexible, robust, and cost effective EMV 3D secure authentication solutions for PayTabs merchants, banks, and processors across the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. (PRNewsfoto/PayTabs Group, Saudi Arabia)

With cybercriminals on the lookout for security lapses, one of their favorite targets is collecting sensitive payment information of online shoppers. The biggest benefit of 3D secure payments is that it prevents any payment fraud or identity theft for both the end customer and merchants. According to a report by Deloitte, several organizations in the Middle East are struggling with online payment fraud, especially since the pandemic hit.

Modirum's 3DS solutions make it possible for PayTabs as a payment processor to offer authentication and verification of users' identity. This ensures secure and seamless digital payments across all devices such as desktops, laptops, tablets, and mobiles. The software security solution also aims to prevent card fraud on merchants' websites and e-stores offering ecommerce vendors peace of mind.

Certified for Verified by Visa and Visa Secure, MasterCard SecureCode, American Express Safekey, Union Pay and various other card schemes, the solution from Modirum also offers PayTabs merchants multiple integration options and APIs to ensure secure end to end transaction processing.

Commenting on the partnership, Jari Heikkinen, CEO of Modirum said, "We are delighted to be working with PayTabs, the leading payment company in Saudi Arabia. Our 3D Server Solution is in use globally and recognized as one of the best in the industry by merchants, payment gateway companies and acquirers. We are proud that PayTabs chose to partner with us in this highly dynamic market and we look forward to continued growth in the region."

While at the PayTabs Group HQ in Saudi Arabia, Abdulaziz Al Jouf, founder, and CEO of the PayTabs Group added, "Together with Modirum, we are committed to elevating digital payments on Saudi soil by offering millions of ecommerce merchants, globally certified 3D Secure solutions. This partnership marks a new dimension in payment security and is one step closer in the Saudi Kingdom's vision 2030 to digitize the economy and payment ecosystem."

About PayTabs

The PayTabs Group is an award-winning payments solutions powerhouse founded by Saudi entrepreneur Abdulaziz Al Jouf.

Having processed the first live payment gateway transaction in 2014, today PayTabs processes transactions in multiple currencies and markets, swiftly and securely. By providing the infrastructure for B2B payment solutions, including digital invoicing for businesses, QR code, social media payments, point of sale and switching platforms, PayTabs facilitates seamless e-commerce and social commerce solutions for merchants and super merchants.

Over a decade, PayTabs has custom built and exported a full stack of game changing solutions. These include mobile applications, hospitality, governmental, education, airline, travel, transport, and biller solutions, to interlink the multi-billion-dollar enterprise market chain in the region.

In 2021, PayTabs launched PT Touch, the rst soft POS solution in the MENA market to transform smart phones into merchant point of sale (POS) terminals. In 2022, PayTabs made a leapfrog move to pioneer next generation payments, by launching its home owned, globally validated unified payments and transaction processing platform -PayTabs SwitchOn. PayTabs unified payment processing orchestration enables governments and large-scale originations to become independent payment platforms to serve their industries.

In 2022, the company acquired Turkiye's social commerce platform Paymes to complement its existing retail portfolio. In early 2023, PayTabs received payment gateway certification from Saudi Payments.

PayTabs has dedicated offices in the GCC including the UAE & Saudi Arabia and presence in many other locales including Turkey, India, and Egypt. The company is an equal opportunities employer with a multi-cultural team. For more milestones visit https://site.paytabs.com/en/

About Modirum

Modirum is a global leader in 3-D Secure technologies and services. Founded in Helsinki in 1998. Modirum offers a complete range of 3-D Secure solutions for Issuers, Acquirers, Processors, Payment Service Providers and Merchants to authenticate, secure and process online payments.

Modirum software and services are used by customers in over fifty countries worldwide. Modirum software is certified to the latest requirements from EMVCo and the major Payment Systems, and our hosting facilities are audited annually for PCI 3DS and PCI DSS compliance.

Our expertise in this domain is widely recognized in the industry and we now offer expert consulting services to our client base to optimize their use of 3D secure solutions.

Modirum have personnel located in seventeen countries, with our hosting centres located in Norway and Estonia.

We have sales offices in Estonia (Tallinn), UK (London), Cyprus (Larnaca), United Arab Emirates (Dubai) and the USA (California). Our support and development offices are in Estonia, Finland, Greece, India, Kenya, Nigeria, Philippines, Pakistan, Singapore, South-Africa, Ukraine, and the USA.

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2099897/PayTabs.jpg

SOURCE PayTabs Group, Saudi Arabia
The Collegium of the High Anti-Corruption Court (HACC) has sentenced of former judge of the Dniprovskiy District Court of Kyiv, Mykola Chaus, to ten years in prison with seizure of property and deprivation of the right to hold certain positions for a period of three years, the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office (SAPO) of Ukraine reports on Wednesday.

The verdict can be appealed within 30 days to the HACC Appeal Chamber.

In turn, the Anti-Corruption Action Centre recalls that in 2016, NABU detectives exposed a judge for receiving a $150,000 bribe. According to the prosecutor's office, Chaus hid the bribe "in a businesslike way" in jars. Chaus buried one of them under the fence of his wife's land, and left the other in a Toyota Land Cruiser Prado car, registered to his mother. Chaus allegedly received the money for delivering the "necessary" verdict in the interests of defendant Svitlana Sasevych.

Chaus himself insisted that he did not take a $150,000 bribe, it was a loan for the construction of a house.

After the investigation began, Chaus managed to leave Ukraine. In November 2016, the judge was put on the international wanted list. Subsequently, he was found in Moldova, where he asked for political asylum. In April 2021, Chaus's lawyers stated that their client had been kidnapped, but a few months later he suddenly appeared in a village in Vinnytsia region.

The case has been heard at the HACC since November 2021. At first, Chaus was under house arrest, then the judges set a bail of UAH 717,900, which his wife made.
Posting is intended to share useful information and highlight the level of housing needs

HARRISBURG, Pa., June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency today announced the posting of current profile data for all the state's counties that will be useful for a wide variety of audiences. The new, online county profile document devotes a page to each of the state's counties and covers its residents' income levels, demographics, transportation usage, access to technology, employment levels, and, of course, its housing resources and affordability.

The 67 county profiles are now available on the PHFA website. Click on the bottom bullet on the webpage to view the profile data.

"This county data is part of our Comprehensive Housing Study that we are currently updating in partnership with the University of Pennsylvania," said PHFA Executive Director and CEO Robin Wiessmann. "Of course, we find the housing data of the most significance. But a variety of useful data is provided on demographics, employment and more that researchers and the public should find helpful and interesting."

The housing portion of each county's profile covers things like the median gross rent, the rent burden for residents and the homeownership rate. Color bar charts are provided that illustrate housing affordability for renters and homeownership affordability for people at different income levels. In some of the tables, data from 2010 are provided so that changes over the past decade can be noted. For some of the data, the state average is provided as a point of comparison.

This up-to-date county data should be of interest to housing researchers, developers, local municipal officials, community revitalization organizations and other stakeholders interested in gaining insight into the status of housing affordability at the county-level.

People wanting to know more about this county profile document can contact Bryce Maretzki at PHFA by calling (717) 780-1867 or by email at [email protected].

About PHFA

The Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency works to provide affordable homeownership and rental housing options for older adults, low- and moderate-income families, and people with special housing needs. Through its carefully managed mortgage programs and investments in multifamily housing developments, PHFA also promotes economic development across the state. Since its creation by the legislature in 1972, it has generated more than $17.1 billion of funding for more than 192,816 single-family home mortgage loans, helped fund the construction of 103,328 rental units, distributed approximately $239 million to support local housing initiatives, and saved the homes of more than 50,660 families from foreclosure. PHFA programs and operations are funded primarily by the sale of securities and from fees paid by program users, not by public tax dollars. The agency is governed by a 14-member board.

Media contact:

Scott Elliott

717-649-6522 (cell)

[email protected]

SOURCE Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency
WARSAW, Poland, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- PKO Bank Polski, the largest universal bank in Central and Eastern Europe, develops an innovative system of value-added services (VAS) in the form of a generally accessible and easy API. In this way, the Bank wishes to expand the VAS offer available in the mobile application and on-line. Such approach to value-added services is innovative on the world scale.

The Bank has announced that suppliers of services from various industries and start-ups will be able to connect to the bank easily via the innovative VAS platform. The Bank intends to cooperate with suppliers of audio-books, real property management and streaming services to deliver new digital solutions for the clients.

Via the mobile IKO application and the iPKO website, our clients can handle official affairs, top-up their phones, buy public transport tickets, pay for parking or highway toll. Thanks to the Value-Added Services platform, we would like to create a new value for our clients and make new digital services available for our clients even faster," said Katarzyna Dziwulska, Managing Director for the Digital Strategy and Transformation Division in PKO Bank Polski

The Value-Added Services is a solution facilitating and accelerating integration of value-added services for the eco-system developed by PKO Bank Polski. It allows for repeated addition of subsequent non-financial services and products and provides the Bank with foundations for value-added services marketplace.

Technological solutions applied by us to make it easier for the supplier to connect their product or service to our system and are unique on the world scale. Thanks to the open API cloud-based platform, integration with the Bank does not require considerable financial outlays and lasts merely a few weeks. We would like to be an attractive partner for cooperation for companies offering modern services from various industries. Thanks to our scale of operation, we are a new outlet market for their products and services, with markedly lower costs of customer sourcing," said Radosaw Janusz, Director of the Value-Added Services Development and E-commerce Office in PKO Bank Polski.

PKO Bank Polski is the leader of mobile banking in Poland. It services approximately 12 million clients, while its mobile IKO app has been activated 7.7 million times. The Bank occupies the top position in the newest Finnoscore ranking assessing the digital maturity of 230 banks.

SOURCE Bank PKO BP
Three 'nutty' new captains take the helm of the famous traveling NUTmobile

AUSTIN, Minn., June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The Planters NUTmobile, the world-famous 26-foot traveling nut on wheels, is once again taking America's salty streets by storm with a new trio of dedicated Peanutters at the helm.

"Tree Nut" Tania Castro, right, "Cashew" Katie Chesebro, left, and Mason Macadamia Mulrooney comprise the brands 10th class of Peanutters and the third crew to captain the NUTmobile since Hormel Foods Corporation (NYSE: HRL) acquired the Planters brand in June 2021. Fans can ask to have the NUTmobile stop at their events, such as youth sporting events, neighborhood block parties, 5K races and other fun activities, by submitting a request at RequestTheNutmobile.com. Hormel Foods corporate logo

"Tree Nut" Tania Castro, "Cashew" Katie Chesebro and Mason "Macadamia" Mulrooney comprise the brand's 10th class of Peanutters and the third crew to captain the NUTmobile since Hormel Foods Corporation (NYSE: HRL) acquired the Planters brand in June 2021. The three new Peanutters spent the last two weeks at the company's world headquarters in Austin, Minn., and on June 9, their nutty, yearlong megatour of the country officially began.

"Being a Peanutter is truly a one-of-a-kind experience," said Teagan Zelle, communications manager and NUTmobile coordinator at Hormel Foods. "They not only carry on the Planters brand legacy, but they also bring joy, a few Planters product samples, and of course the iconic Mr. Peanut to communities and people across the nation. We 'pe-CAN'T' wait to see what this year has in store for Class 10!"

Over the next 12 months, fans can ask to have the NUTmobile stop at their events  such as youth sporting events, neighborhood block parties, 5K races and other fun activities  by submitting a request at RequestTheNutmobile.com.

"I can't wait to represent the Planters brand on this east-to-west 'shell' of a journey!" Mulrooney said. "I'm beyond grateful for the opportunity to share the joy of the NUTmobile with people across the country. It's going to be the thrill of a lifetime!"

Be sure to keep an eye out for Mr. Peanut and the NUTmobile on social media. Follow along on Twitter (@NUTmobile_Tour), Instagram (@plantersnutmobileofficial) and TikTok (@plantersnutmobile).

ABOUT HORMEL FOODS  Inspired People. Inspired Food.

Hormel Foods Corporation, based in Austin, Minn., is a global branded food company with over $12 billion in annual revenue across more than 80 countries worldwide. Its brands include Planters, SKIPPY, SPAM, Hormel Natural Choice, Applegate, Justin's, WHOLLY, Hormel Black Label, Columbus, Jennie-O and more than 30 other beloved brands. The company is a member of the S&P 500 Index and the S&P 500 Dividend Aristocrats, was named on the "Global 2000 World's Best Employers" list by Forbes magazine for three years, is one of Fortune magazine's most admired companies, has appeared on the "100 Best Corporate Citizens" list by 3BL Media 13 times, and has received numerous other awards and accolades for its corporate responsibility and community service efforts. The company lives by its purpose statement  Inspired People. Inspired Food.  to bring some of the world's most trusted and iconic brands to tables across the globe. For more information, visit www.hormelfoods.com and http://csr.hormelfoods.com/.

Contact: Hormel Foods

Media Relations

507-434-6352

[email protected]

SOURCE Hormel Foods Corporation
The partnership will provide critical data for Space Insights, and demos will be available at InfoComm 2023

SANTA CRUZ, Calif. and AUSTIN, Texas , June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- HP | Poly, a leading provider of pro-grade audio and video solutions, and Vyopta, a leader in digital collaboration and experience optimization, have partnered to provide data to offer customers actionable insights that will inform decisions to optimize space and technology utilization. The new functionality will be available in both companies' booths at InfoComm 2023 on June 14-16 at the Orange County Convention Center.

"As companies return to the office, there's a need for data-driven insights that help address evolving workplace needs," said Robert Manassero, Director of Product Management, HP | Poly. "We're happy to be partnering with Vyopta to build and launch this functionality in North America to empower our joint customers as they seek to optimize workplace designs to enhance employee experiences in the era of hybrid work."

The data provided by Poly Lens API and Vyopta's Spaces Insights platform will help organizations optimize their workplaces from both a real estate and physical standpoint as employees return to the office. It will identify where new endpoints need to be  providing opportunities to reduce square footage where it is unused, and potentially dividing up meeting space to allow for more meeting options.

"We're thrilled to work with Poly to integrate this critical endpoint data into our algorithm to uncover how meeting rooms are used both in and outside of calls," said Alfredo Ramirez, CEO, Vyopta. "We're looking forward to using this never-before-available data to provide customers with actionable insights that will enable organizations to make faster and more accurate decisions to get the most out of their technology and space investments, while providing quality collaboration user experience."

The companies will be demonstrating the new functionality for the first time during InfoComm 2023 in their respective booths (Poly in booth 3460 and Vyopta in booth 2380) located inside the Conferencing & Collaboration Pavilion, Exhibit Hall Level 2.

Related:

About HP

HP Inc. (NYSE: HPQ) is a global technology leader and creator of solutions that enable people to bring their ideas to life and connect to the things that matter most. Operating in more than 170 countries, HP delivers a wide range of innovative and sustainable devices, services and subscriptions for personal computing, printing, 3D printing, hybrid work, gaming, and more. For more information, please visit: http://www.hp.com.

About Poly

Part of HP's portfolio of hybrid work solutions, Poly creates premium audio and video products so you can have your best meeting -- anywhere, anytime, every time. With Poly, you'll do more than just show up, you'll stand out. For more information visit www.Poly.com .

About Vyopta Incorporated

Vyopta , a leader in digital user experience management for collaboration, has helped 40 million people collaborate better. Its Technology Insights and Space Insights applications have helped identify and address over 9 million issues. Vyopta helps organizations deliver the best UC user experience and optimize their UC and real estate investments. Hundreds of organizations worldwide spanning 20+ industries use Vyopta.

SOURCE Vyopta Inc
ATLANTA, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Pye-Barker Fire & Safety  the largest private full-service and fully integrated fire protection, life safety and security services provider in the United States  has acquired Bamford, Inc., a full-service fire sprinkler company and a mainstay in Nebraska for 65 years. This addition marks another milestone for Pye-Barker's geographic footprint as the company enters its 36th state. Pye-Barker continues to invest in acquiring premier fire protection, life safety and security businesses on its mission to becoming the largest single-source provider in the United States.

"As we move into our 36th state, our success has come from uniting like-minded business owners who share our values." Tweet this Ray Wright, Vice President of Pye Barkers Sprinkler Division, visits with Donna Bamford of Bamford, Inc.

Jim and Donna Bamford started Bamford, originally called Bamford Plumbing and Heating, in 1958 as a one-man operation. That business grew into what Bamford, Inc., is today  the premier full-service fire sprinkler company serving central and western Nebraska. Headquartered in Kearney, Nebraska, Bamford's experienced team inspects, tests, maintains, installs and fabricates high-quality fire sprinkler systems and provides backflow testing.

"I wish Pye-Barker the best and trust them to continue the relationships  both internal and external  that we have built over many years," said Donna Bamford, Co-Founder and Owner at Bamford.

"We couldn't be more grateful to the Bamford family for putting their trust in us to carry on their legacy and the business they've built," said Bart Proctor, CEO of Pye-Barker. "As we move into our 36th state, our success has come from uniting like-minded business owners like the Bamford family who share our values and commitment to customer care."

Bamford's team of highly skilled technicians will continue to serve customers in Nebraska.

About Pye-Barker Fire & Safety

Pye-Barker Fire & Safety is the U.S. leader in fire protection, life safety and security systems. Founded in 1946, Pye-Barker is the largest private single-source provider of testing, maintenance and installation of fire detection systems, fire alarms, extinguishers, fire suppression and sprinkler systems, security and monitoring services for businesses nationwide. The company operates over 160 locations and puts significant focus on customer experience and training, competitive benefits and a caring work environment for its 5,000 team members.

Contact:

Rod DiBona

COO, Pye-Barker Sprinkler Division

605.348.2342

[email protected]

SOURCE Pye-Barker Fire & Safety
SUN PRAIRIE, Wis. , June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Boys and Girls Clubs of Dane County recognizes QBE North America for supporting its mission with a gift of $25,000. The donation will help enable Boys & Girls Clubs of Dane County to further its efforts to promote preschool and school-age children's emotional and social development, in addition to their academic achievement.

The official $25,000 check presentation from QBE North America to Boys and Girls Clubs of Dane County.

QBE's support of Boys & Girls Clubs of Dane County has been instrumental in the organization's mission to empower and uplift youth in the community. Since 2019, QBE has demonstrated its commitment by providing over $50,000 in financial support. QBE's involvement has been vital, especially during the Club's relocation to Sun Prairie, as QBE played a crucial role in the expansion effort and the successful completion of the construction project in 2020. Moreover, QBE's dedication extends beyond financial contributions. In 2022 alone, QBE employees volunteered their time to more than 50 shifts, significantly impacting the well-being of staff and families of the organization. Additionally, two of QBE's employees Joy Matthews and Nicole Lemke, serve on the Sun Prairie Boys & Girls Club Action Council, where they actively contribute to supporting the organization's annual needs.

"Support from partners like QBE North America enables Boys and Girls Clubs of Dane County to fulfill its vision to transform children's lives and make them realize their true potential," said Michael Johnson, President and CEO of Boys and Girls Clubs of Dane County.

"We truly appreciate QBE North America's valuable donation as we work together to ensure the Dane County youth have a bright and prosperous future," added Jake Brown, Assistant Vice President of Operations of Boys and Girls Clubs of Dane County.

On May 31, QBE North America was pleased to host a pizza party onsite at Boys and Girls Clubs of Dane County for the children's enjoyment.

"Our organization's focus is on creating strong, resilient and inclusive communities," said Joy Matthews, Vice President, Total Rewards of QBE North America. "We select our long-term partnerships carefully so that we help people to help themselves, such as through education and raising awareness around risks so that people and communities are better equipped to protect themselves."

About QBE North America

QBE North America is a global insurance leader helping customers solve unique risks, so they can stay focused on their future. Part of QBE Insurance Group Limited, QBE North America reported Gross Written Premiums in 2022 of $7.27 billion. QBE Insurance Group's results can be found at qbe.com. Headquartered in Sydney, Australia, QBE operates out of 27 countries around the globe, with a presence in every key insurance market. The North America division, headquartered in New York, conducts business primarily through its insurance company subsidiaries. The actual terms and conditions of any insurance coverage are subject to the language of the policies as issued. QBE insurance companies are rated "A" (Excellent) by A.M. Best and "A+" by Standard & Poor's. Additional information can be found at qbe.com/us or follow QBE North America on LinkedIn and Facebook.

About Boys and Girls Clubs of Dane County

Boys and Girls Clubs of Dane County is a local not-for-profit youth development organization serving thousands of youths in 12 locations, including eight school-based sites and four traditional Club sites including the McKenzie Regional Workforce Center. The Clubs fuel kids with the inspiration to dream and teach them the skills to achieve when they're most impressionable through quality programs in five core areas: Character & Leadership Development; Education & Career Development; Health & Life Skills; The Arts; and Sports, Fitness & Recreation. See the impact they make in the life of each Club member here: www.bgcdc.org.

SOURCE QBE North America
New rail ticketing platform offers access to US, Canada, UK and European rail bookings in local currencies and with zero foreign exchange transaction fees

LONDON, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- International rail ticketing platform, Rail Online, launches officially today in the USA and Canada.

Rail Online is a new rail booking platform, offering fairer fares for American and Canadian passengers, with carrier fare price matching, instant refunds on e-tickets and, most importantly, no foreign currency transaction fees, with customers able to book in local US or Canadian dollars.

RAIL ONLINE LAUNCHES IN NORTH AMERICA (PRNewsfoto/Rail Online)

Founded in 2019 by Australian tourism & transport expert, James Dunne, Rail Online allows North American travellers to book UK, European, and North American rail travel via one single platform.

Customers can currently book tickets with Amtrak (US), VIA Rail (Canada), National Rail (UK), and SCNF (France, including Eurostar), with further networks to follow, including Trenitalia (Italy), which will be introduced to the platform in the coming weeks.

Eurail passes, for travel itineraries across Europe, are also currently available to book via the Rail Online website.

Rail Online is committed to maximising convenience for customers whilst also eliminating the paper waste associated with rail travel, delivering e-tickets for both domestic and international travel direct to the customer within minutes of booking.

"We are proud to be launching into the important North American market," says Rail Online Founder and CEO, James Dunne. "Following a successful launch in Australia, New Zealand and more recently, the UK, we are now attracting customers from the USA, Canada and throughout Europe.

"With the aim of becoming the ticketing platform of choice for travellers from North America, we made sure that payment for bookings made in both countries is taken in local currency, meaning no foreign exchange transaction fee."

"The Rail Online launch is just the beginning of a bigger, longer-term, and exciting travel tech offering that we will be working towards over the coming two to three years. In the shorter term, we will be introducing new rail network connections and new features as we continue our global roll-out, so watch this space!"

Passionate about providing the best travel experience possible for the customer - from ticket purchase to end destination - Rail Online is led by a core team of travel and rail industry experts with a combined experience of over 65 years.

Providing 24-hour customer service thanks to offices in the UK and Australia, Rail Online tickets can be purchased online at rail.online

Notes to Editors:

 James Dunne, CEO and founder of Rail Online is available for comment or interview on request.

For further press information:

Anna Nyman | Elsa Findlay | Julie Aguilera

Rooster PR

T: +44 (0)20 3440 8930

E: [email protected]

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2101617/Rail_Online.jpg

Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2101616/4087098/Rail_Online_Logo.jpg

SOURCE Rail Online
Building a Diverse and Skilled Solar Workforce for a Sustainable Future

CHICAGO, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Reactivate, a mission-driven renewable energy company, celebrated the graduation of its first cohort from the Building Equity in Solar Training (B.E.S.T.) program on Friday, June 9th. This significant milestone signifies the successful completion of a sixteen-week hands-on training program for 12 individuals from the Chicagoland area, with a 100% completion rate. The program has equipped graduates with the necessary skills and certifications for a career in solar energy installation and the general building trades. The graduation ceremony brought together partners, community leaders, and industry professionals to acknowledge the graduates' achievements and highlight the program's commitment to equity and job placement.

Building Equity in Solar Training (B.E.S.T.) Cohort

"This was a once-in-a-lifetime occurrence for me, as I never imagined an opportunity like this would come my way. It took me 39 years, but I found my calling with solar," expressed Lance G., a graduate of the B.E.S.T. program. "This program has brought me so much joy and helped me find something I can be passionate about. It's not just a job; it's a career I want to share with others. Today, we hold various certifications that make us more marketable than ever, and I know I'm prepared for whatever life has in store for me next."

B.E.S.T. stands out by integrating standardized skills training, certifications, equity commitments, and support services to revolutionize the renewable energy sector. Reactivate launched the program in February 2023 in partnership with GRID Alternatives, Solar Energy International, Jobs for the Future, and local partners Elevate and Community and Economic Development Association of Cook County (CEDA). B.E.S.T. offers comprehensive training in solar energy installation and the building trades, encompassing various skills such as solar photovoltaic system installation, OSHA 30 certification, hands-on experience, NABCEP preparation and exam, powered industrial vehicle training, as well as essential skills development in leadership, teamwork, financial literacy, and workplace etiquette.

Addressing the audience, Shuron W., a graduate of the B.E.S.T. program expressed gratitude, saying, "You have given us an incredible opportunity that we did not take lightly. Your passion for solar has given us a whole new perspective, and we now understand that solar is the future. Regardless of the path each of us chooses in the solar industry - whether it's becoming pro-installers, researchers, electricians, instructors, inspectors, or sales consultants - we are now equipped and prepared for the present and future that revolves around solar." She emphasized the significance of the achievement and extended appreciation to all those who played a role in shaping their journey.

B.E.S.T. provides wraparound support services to ensure the success of its participants. The program offers paid training with materials provided, assistance with transportation and childcare, dedicated tutoring and counseling, bilingual support (English/Spanish), and guidance with job placement and transitioning to apprenticeships. The program's commitment to equity extends to individuals without a high school degree and justice individuals, as they are also offered enrollment options in the program. B.E.S.T. provides access to free computers and Wi-Fi hotspots, ensuring that all participants have the necessary resources to thrive.

The graduation ceremony also featured testimonials by program instructors Steve Marchese, Director of Training and Development at CEDA, and James McKinney, Technical Instructor at CEDA, who praised the dedication and commitment of the graduates. The keynote was delivered by Utopia Hill, CEO of Reactivate, emphasizing the importance of addressing environmental justice, inclusivity, and the future of renewable energy careers. Hill highlighted the ecological crisis and the opportunity it presents to create a more equitable and sustainable world by embracing principles of environmental justice, inclusivity, and empowering marginalized communities. The keynote called for unity and action in transitioning to renewable energy as a beacon of hope for mitigating the climate crisis and fostering economic growth.

"Graduates, this is your call to action. Its about recognizing the impacts of pollution, climate change and environmental degradation disproportionately affect marginalized communities," said, Utopia Hill. "Let us be the driver of change and let your actions be the embodiment of hope. Inclusive environmentalism recognizes the interconnectedness of social justice and environmental issues and acknowledges that a just transition to a sustainable future must also be must also be a just transition for all."

"Jobs for the Future is working to ensure that people from communities that have disproportionately felt the negative effects of the carbon-based economy will have access to employment and wealth-building opportunities in the green economy," said Brianne McDonough, Director of Career and Learning Pathways. "Designed for equity B.E.S.T. aligns opportunities to high-demand pathways in the green jobs sectors in solar installation, EV charging and energy. The strength of this program demonstrates the need to expand the program nationally to create an accelerated pathway for learners and workers to gain skills in clean energy."

Reactivate is actively collaborating with its partners to secure additional funding sources and aims to scale the B.E.S.T. program nationwide. The goal is to offer year-round cohorts that will empower thousands of individuals across the country with the skills and opportunities for prosperous careers in the renewable energy industry. To get involved or donate, visit our website and submit an inquiry form. https://www.reactivate.com/get-in-touch

About Reactivate

Reactivate, a mission-driven renewable energy company, founded by Invenergy and Lafayette Square, develops, owns, and operates renewable energy projects to improve the lives of people in low-to-moderate income and energy transition communities across the country. Reactivate's primary focus areas are community solar, small-scale utility, and next generation projects. Reactivate creates positive social and environmental impact in underserved communities by delivering renewable energy, environmental benefits, job opportunities, energy cost savings and opportunities for minority and women-owned businesses. Learn more about Reactivate by visiting www.reactivate.com.

About GRID Alternatives

Renewable energy can drive economic growth and environmental benefits in communities most impacted by underemployment, pollution and climate change. GRID Alternatives is a leader in helping economic and environmental justice communities get clean, affordable renewable energy, transportation, and jobs. Internationally, our energy access work is lighting up off-grid communities in Nepal, Nicaragua, Mexico, and with Tribal Nations and communities. GRID envisions a rapid, equitable transition to a world powered by renewable energy that benefits everyone. For more information, visit www.gridalternatives.org.

About Solar Energy International

Solar Energy International (SEI) empowers students, alumni, and partners to expand a diverse, inclusive, well-trained, and educated solar electricity workforce. Our aim is to promote sustainable economic growth, mitigate climate change, and support energy independence. For more information, visit https://www.solarenergy.org.

About Jobs for the Future

Jobs for the Future (JFF) drives transformation of the U.S. education and workforce systems to achieve equitable economic advancement for all. As part of this mission, JFF strives to serve those most impacted by future climate change  including creating opportunities for upskilling and creating pipelines to diversify the climate workforce. For more information visit www.jff.org .

About Elevate

Elevate is a nonprofit organization that works nationally and is headquartered in Chicago. Elevate designs and implements programs to ensure that everyone has clean and affordable heat, power, and water in their homes and communities no matter who they are or where they live. For more information, visit www.Elevatenp.org.

About Community and Economic Development Association of Cook County

The Community and Economic Development Association of Cook County, Inc. (CEDA) is one of the largest private, nonprofit Community Action Agencies in the country, serving residents throughout Cook County, Illinois. CEDA seeks to empower individuals, families, and communities facing poverty to secure a better quality of life. For more information, please visit www.cedaorg.net.

SOURCE Reactivate
Standalone store dedicated to providing used gear for REI members to help keep outdoor products in circulation and support the co-op's 2030 climate commitments

SEATTLE, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Specialty outdoor retailer REI Co-op will open a Re/Supply store dedicated to used gear and apparel in Clackamas, Oregon in late August 2023. Located in Clackamas Town Center, the 16,113 square-foot store will open a few doors down from the co-op's existing store that has served the outdoor community since 2007. The new location will join the co-op's Re/Supply store in Manhattan Beach, California, which opened in 2020.

REI Re/Supply rendering of new location in Clackamas, Oregon opening August 2023.

"As a member-owned co-op, we have a responsibility to preserve the long-term health of the planet," said Bob Cagle, REI regional director. "Our Re/Supply offering reimagines the lifecycle of outdoor products and helps keep gear where it belongsout on trails, waterways and other natural places. Opening a Re/Supply store in the community builds on the popularity of our used program that is enjoyed by many Oregonians."

Access to the program is a benefit of co-op membership. In the Portland market there are more than 303,000 active members. Anyone can purchase a lifetime membership to the co-op for a one-time fee of $30, which grants access to not just the Re/Supply program, but discounts on shop services and experiences, free flat-tire repair (labor only) and ski waxing, an annual Co-op Member Reward of 10% back on eligible purchases, and more.

The selection at REI Clackamas Re/Supply will be focused on providing members with access to high-quality, used, outdoor gear and apparel at great prices. The selection will change frequently and be made up of lightly used products that the company receives through the typical returns process as well as items received through trade-in programs.

This store builds upon the co-op's long history of encouraging the exchange of used gear amongst its members. REI offered used outdoor gear to co-op members for more than 60 years through its well-known "garage sale" events at retail stores across the country. In 2018, REI innovated within its used business to launch a used-specific e-commerce site, trade-in program, and used gear offering for sale in most retail locations. In 2022, more than one million used products were sold through REI's Re/Supply omni-channel offering. REI's investment in Re/Supply aligns with the co-op's 2030 climate goals to de-couple business growth from carbon impact. Buying used instead of new typically avoids carbon emissions of 50% or more based on REI's estimate of preparing used gear for sale versus making new gear.

Once open in late August 2023, REI's Re/Supply location in Clackamas will join the co-op's other eight retail stores in Oregon.

Join the REI Re/Supply team

REI expects to hire approximately 25 employees for the new Re/Supply in Clackamas. Candidates interested in joining the team can apply online at REI.com/jobs and learn about the general hiring timeline. Candidates can set a job alert on the co-op's career site to be notified when positions post. All employees will receive a wide variety of benefits, including generous product and service discounts, competitive pay and retirement contributions. REI employees also enjoy unique perks, such as two paid annual "Co-op Way Days" that allow them to enjoy their favorite outdoor activity and an additional paid day off on Black Friday to encourage all employees to #OptOutside. REI is committed to building a diverse and inclusive workplace that enables a life outdoors for everyone. The co-op seeks candidates who demonstrate shared values of diversity, equity, inclusion, and antiracism.

About the REI Co-op

REI is a specialty outdoor retailer, headquartered near Seattle. The nation's largest consumer co-op, REI is a growing community of 21.5 million members who expect and love the best quality gear, inspiring expert classes and trips, and outstanding customer service. REI has 181 locations in 42 states and the District of Columbia. If you can't visit a store, you can shop at REI.com, REI Outlet or the REI shopping app. REI isn't just about gear. Adventurers can take the trip of a lifetime with REI's active adventure travel company that runs more than 100 itineraries across the country. In many communities where REI has a presence, professionally trained instructors share their expertise by hosting beginner-to advanced-level classes and workshops about a wide range of activities. To build on the infrastructure that makes life outside possible, REI invests millions annually in hundreds of local and national nonprofits that create access toand stewardthe outdoor places that inspire us all.

Note: For more information about REI Co-op Member Reward, visit https://www.rei.com/membership/co-op-member-reward. A 10% Co-op Member Reward is typical but not guaranteed. An REI Co-op Member Reward is based on eligible net qualified purchases, which exclude REI Outlet items, sale and clearance items, discounted items, gift cards, REI adventure travel, REI classes or day trips, Re/Supply used gear, service fees (e.g., rentals, labor, shop services), membership fee, postage, event passes/tickets and registrations, government agencies, REI Cooperative Action Fund donations, shipping charges, return labels, exchanges, sales tax.

SOURCE REI Co-op
On Tuesday, June 13, Russian invaders fired at a forestry vehicle in Sumy region, the press service of the Sumy regional prosecutor's office reports.

"According to the investigation, on June 13, 2023, using methods of warfare prohibited by international law, they fired at a UAZ vehicle moving through the territory of the Seredyno-Buda territorial community. As a result of the shelling, according to preliminary data, six people, including two civilians and four forestry workers, received injuries incompatible with life," the message says.

Criminal proceedings have been initiated under Part 2 of Article 438 (violation of the laws and customs of war, combined with premeditated murder) of the Criminal Code of Ukraine.
An increase in awareness among organizations regarding the benefits of the revenue assurance system and the rise in consciousness of organizations to detect and prevent revenue leakage by improving and automating their traditional revenue assurance monitoring process is expected to drive the growth of the global revenue assurance market during the forecast period. The Asia-Pacific region is projected to garner the highest revenue by 2031.

PORTLAND, Ore., June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Allied Market Research published a report, titled, "Revenue Assurance Market by Component (Solutions and Services), by Deployment Type (Cloud, On-Premise), by Application (BFSI, Telecom And IT, Government, Hospitality, Others): Global Opportunity Analysis and Industry Forecast, 2021-2031". According to the report, the global revenue assurance market generated $507 million in 2021 and is anticipated to generate $1.3 billion by 2031, witnessing a CAGR of 10.0% from 2022 to 2031.

Prime Determinants of Growth

Revenue assurance is a method used by enterprises to discover, analyze, reduce, and prevent revenue loss through a variety of measures. Its goal is to limit the probability of losses due to mistakes, negligence, or fraud. It also assists firms in identifying chances to boost sales and profitability. The rising demand for revenue assurance solutions in the telecommunications industry is the factor predicted to boost the growth of the global revenue assurance market during the forecast period. However, the high expense of revenue assurance systems may restrict the market growth. Moreover, the increasing usage of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) in revenue assurance solutions presents new opportunities for the revenue assurance market in the coming years.

Download Sample Report: https://www.alliedmarketresearch.com/request-sample/15580

Report Coverage & Details:

Report Coverage Details Forecast Period 20222031 Base Year 2021 Market Size in 2021 $507 million Market Size in 2031 $1,300 million CAGR 10.0 % No. of Pages in Report 220 Segments covered Component, Deployment Type, Application, and Region. Drivers Increasing demand from telecom service providers to reduce revenue losses caused by errors, fraud, and system inefficiencies Growing demand for advanced analytics and big data solutions to manage and analyze the huge amounts of data created in the telecom business Rising attention to improve customer experience and lowering customer turnover through the identification and resolution of billing and service quality concerns Opportunities Development of revenue assurance solutions based on AI and machine learning Growing usage of revenue assurance systems by businesses Restraints High costs of installing revenue assurance solutions

Covid-19 Scenario

The COVID-19 has had a significant impact on the growth of the global revenue assurance market. Due to the pandemic, remote access and management of cloud-based revenue assurance solutions are in higher demand. This has accelerated the adoption of digital technologies, including cloud-based revenue assurance solutions, as companies sought to reduce costs and improve operational efficiency.

The pandemic also highlighted the significance of revenue assurance in controlling cash flows and preventing leakages, driving up the demand for revenue assurance solutions in industries, such as healthcare and retail. This has fueled the revenue assurance market growth amidst the pandemic period.

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Solutions Sub-Segment to Maintain its Leadership Status throughout the Forecast Period

Based on component, the solutions sub-segment held the highest share of the revenue assurance market in 2021rand is estimated to maintain its leadership status throughout the forecast period. This sub-segment is projected to manifest the highest CAGR of 10.1% from 2022 to 2031, owing to the rise in revenue assurance solutions such as risk management, fraud detection, and revenue recovery. These solutions are used by companies across a range of industries, including banking, telecommunications, healthcare, and retail.

On-premise Sub-segment to Generate Largest Revenue by 2031

Based on deployment type, the on-premise sub-segment held the highest share of the revenue assurance market in 2021. This industry's success is primarily due to the remarkable security it provides. Critical data can be stored on-premises without requiring third-party access. Although the growing popularity of the cloud framework, many businesses may continue to rely on on-premise solutions. However, the cloud sub-segment is projected to manifest the highest CAGR of 10.3% from 2022 to 2031. The transformation from on-premise to cloud-based technology is likely to open an enormous number of opportunities in the coming years. Operators can handle revenue and fraud more quickly and efficiently by using cloud-based revenue assurance solutions.

Telecom & IT Sub-segment to Maintain its Lead Position by 2031

Based on application, the telecom & IT sub-segment accounted for the largest share of the revenue assurance market in 2021 and is projected to maintain its lead position during the forecast period. This sub-segment is projected to manifest the highest CAGR of 10.3% from 2022 to 2031, owing to the increasing revenue leaks in the telecom industry. Advanced technologies, such as the internet, mobile applications, and social media are pushing telecom companies to develop innovative technology and enhance their services. This has increased the demand for revenue assurance solutions that can assist telecom companies in staying ahead of the competition and meeting regulatory obligations.

North America Region to Maintain its Dominance by 2031

Based on region, North America held the highest share of the revenue assurance market in terms of revenue in 2021 and is likely to dominate the market during the forecast period. This dominance is majorly because of the growth in the favorable business environment, strong consumer backing, continuous innovative initiatives, and technology spending in the North America region. However, the Asia-Pacific region is expected to witness the fastest CAGR of 10.5% from 2022 to 2031. Due to the rapid development of the telecom industry and the rising uptake of cutting-edge technologies in the Asia-Pacific region, there is growing demand for revenue assurance solutions.

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Leading Market Players: -

SUBEX

Nokia

Cartesian, Inc

Itron Inc.

SANDVINE

PROFIT INSIGHT

Sagacity Solutions

Sigos GmbH

Tata Consultancy Services Limited

Adapt IT Holdings Limited

The report provides a detailed analysis of these key players in the global revenue assurance market. These players have adopted different strategies such as new product launches, collaborations, expansion, joint ventures, agreements, and others to increase their market share and maintain dominant shares in different regions. The report is valuable in highlighting business performance, operating segments, product portfolio, and strategic moves of revenue assurance market players to showcase the competitive scenario.

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SOURCE Allied Market Research
Retain an independent financial advisor to review strategic options including a sale

Remove value-destructive poison pill and shift antiquated focus from production to profitability

Overhaul management incentivization and compensation structure to be aligned with the interests of shareholders

NEW YORK, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Riposte Capital, LLC, one of the largest shareholders of SilverBow Resources, Inc. (NYSE: SBOW), owning approximately 7.5% of the Company's outstanding common stock (directly and through convertible swaps), today sent the following letter to SilverBow's Board of Directors.

Riposte was compelled to publicly share the letter following the Company's repeated refusal to take simple and decisive actions to unlock shareholder value, including the removal of the industry's only poison pill, which has been widely criticized by the investment community. Notably, the Company unilaterally extended its poison pill immediately after its most recent annual meeting, affording shareholders no rationale for the action and no opportunity to vote on the matter.

SilverBow Resources, Inc.

920 Memorial City Way, Suite 850

Houston, TX 77024

Attention: Board of Directors

Dear Sean and Members of the Board,

As one of the largest shareholders in SilverBow Resources, Inc. ("SilverBow" or the "Company" or "you"), owning (directly and through convertible swaps) approximately 7.5% of the Company's outstanding common stock, we are writing to reiterate the concerns that we have expressed previously, while also highlighting the opportunities before you. We are particularly concerned that you have adopted corporate governance practices prejudicial to the interests of your shareholders, including being the only public E&P company with a poison pill in place, with the express intent of discouraging third party expressions of interest in acquiring the Company  why else adopt a poison pill?

Riposte Capital, its clients and/or its affiliates (collectively, "Riposte" or "us" or "we") have invested in SilverBow based on our belief that, if properly managed (from a financial, operational and governance perspective), the Company has the ability to be a cash-generative and profitable business  which would ultimately deliver significant value to shareholders. SilverBow has a small, but well-situated asset base across key parts of the Eagle Ford's gas and oil windows, with close proximity to the Gulf Coast markets. We believe you are also well situated to have flexibility to pivot between oil and gas, giving you the opportunity to optimize returns by reacting to varying market conditions.

A fair value for SilverBow today, based on peer multiples, should be in the range of $34-36 a share, materially higher than the current $26 per share market price. However, your path to realizing long-term value seems to be jeopardized by self-imposed execution risk. The management team continues to put obstacles in the Company's pathway to success. The clearest illustration of this is a stock which currently trades at a 40% discount to peers with EV/EBITDA multiple of a mere 1.9X!

In the view of Riposte, the principal impediment to realizing SilverBow's potential is your ongoing shareholder rights plan (the "Pill"). Your Pill prevents any investor from owning more than 15% of SilverBow's common stock, has isolated the Company and continues to destroy value. The existence of this Pill has been widely criticized by investors and Institutional Shareholder Services, a leading proxy and corporate governance advisory firm. While the Pill was originally of a limited duration (and set to expire before the 2023 annual meeting of shareholders), you unilaterally extended it. You provided no rationale for the decision and, most importantly, no opportunity for shareholders to vote on the matter.

It is clear to us that you are afraid that shareholders would not support the Pill, just as many of them voted against re-electing your slate of Directors. Cumulatively, the Pill plus a staggered Board of Directors plus an inability of shareholders to even call for a Special Meeting of Shareholders may help the management team sleep soundly, but it does not evidence good corporate governance or consider the best interest of the Company's shareholders. Above all, the poison pill prevents shareholders from exercising their right to participate in the strategic decision-making process of the Company.

Your action at the annual meeting was not about advancing the best interests of the Company. We believe the action intentionally sought to take SilverBow out of the acquisition game and eliminate market interest in the Company. Despite a wave of logical consolidation across similarly situated companies in your space, coupled with challenges faced by sub-scale platforms such as SilverBow, it is obvious that the Company doesn't want potential acquirers even looking your way.

Compounding your self-inflicted challenges, SilverBow still operates an antiquated E&P business model that has proven itself to be value destructive for shareholders. While the industry now stresses profitability and alignment with shareholders' interests, SilverBow emphasizes production solely for production's sake. We would be left wondering why the Company would employ this obsolete strategy, but the reasoning is plain to see  your CEO's compensation, which exceeds 1% of SilverBow's market cap, is tied to production incentive bonuses, and your Board of Directors is primarily compensated in cash rather than shares. There is no management or directorial alignment with shareholder interests.

The current strategy determined by the Board of Directors and management has siloed SilverBow and backed the Company into a corner. The Company has limited opportunity to build a sustainable E&P platform without further acquisitions, and even there you are highly disadvantaged given the Company's lack of scale and financial profile. SilverBow's depressed share price precludes the use of stock as a currency. It would be irresponsible to issue new equity at the current valuation, and your balance sheet affords limited flexibility to add further debt. Likewise, your prospects for creating shareholder value on a stand-alone basis are limited by modest free cash flow, a relatively illiquid float, and an inability to even initiate a stock buyback program due to restrictions in your credit agreements.

As a result, SilverBow's stock price is languishing and meaningfully underperforming relevant indices and peers. It is widely recognized that SilverBow trades lower than its peer set on an earnings or production basis. The Company's share price is down more than 40% over the past 12 months.

As significant and constructive shareholders, who recognize the strong value of your assets across an important basin, we encourage management and the Board of Directors to act decisively through the following actions:

Adopt a governance model that would make the Company attractive to prospective shareholders. The first step should be to immediately remove the Pill.

Retain an independent financial advisor to review strategic options for the business including actively soliciting potential acquirers.

Pivot the Company's focus from production volume alone to profitability  and return cash to shareholders via a dividend. This would most efficiently be achieved, in the near term, by laying down one of SilverBow's rigs, which would generate hundreds of millions of dollars in free cash flow.

Overhaul the management incentivization and compensation structure to be aligned with the interests of shareholders.

Our observations and recommendations should not come as any surprise to you. While our conversations to date have been cordial and you have said the right things, you have not taken the actions that are necessary to best position SilverBow for success, either on a stand-alone basis or as a potential acquisition target that could receive a full and fair valuation.

We look forward to your response.

Sincerely,

/s/ Khaled Beydoun

Riposte Capital

About Riposte Capital

Riposte Capital is an SEC Registered Investment Advisor based in New York City. The equity strategy was launched in 2013 and is primarily focused on cyclical industries.

Riposte Contact:

Jeremy Goodman

Head of Business Development

+44 (0) 7788 567 913

[email protected]

Media Contact:

Ross Lovern

Kekst CNC

212.521.4800

[email protected]com

SOURCE Riposte Capital
The Ultimate Guide for Evaluating your ATS Vendor

SINGAPORE, June 13, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The world we live in is constantly changing. With each new generation coming into the workforce, candidate expectations are evolving. Delivering an exceptional candidate experience is critical for organizations to attract and convert the very best candidates to employees. However, delivering a premium candidate experience is really hard to do. It requires several stakeholders within the organization to seamlessly interact, evaluate and paint a consistent picture. Top talent demands top experience. Prioritizing an ATS that delivers a premium candidate experience is imperative for transformative hiring outcomes.

hrtech, the Singapore-headquartered HR Technology Advisory & Consulting firm, collaborated with RippleHire to launch 'The Ultimate Guide for Evaluating your ATS Vendor'. This HR guide addresses the challenges faced by the Talent Acquisition teams and helps them identify the purpose and process behind buying the best-fit ATS. RippleHire is a cloud-based hiring platform that enables TA teams to identify and acquire quality talent effortlessly. It has served organizations from various industries - Mphasis, Axis Bank, Tata Steel, LTIMindtree, HDFC Life, Aditya Birla Group, Quest Global, and more.

Delivering an exceptional candidate experience is critical for organizations to attract top talent. This guide shares success stories and methods to identify the right Applicant Tracking System (ATS) to deliver a premium candidate experience; Driving transformative hiring outcomes. This guide underlines the fact that the user experience of your ATS will determine your adoption and hiring success thereby bringing good talent to your doorstep, driving business outcomes.

It covers all the fundamentals of an ATS, including its purpose, use, benefits and the various hurdles that await Talent Acquisition teams in their recruitment journey. It also provides in-depth insights into the working mechanism of an ATS along with the recruitment tech stack. This HR Guide speaks the language of numbers and facts. Every section is supported by thorough research and statistics to verify the authenticity of the guide content.

This HR Guide will also serve as a literal guide for TA teams in their quest to identify and buy the right-fit ATS for their organization. It not only explains the purpose behind buying an ATS but also lists the features that are critical to seamless recruitment workflow management and enhance the candidate experience. What makes this HR Guide a must-have is the exhaustive list of questions that you must ask the ATS vendor to verify the authenticity and the product quality before making the purchase.

"Recruiters are superheroes. They help you land your first job and progress through your career. At the pace at which the world of talent is evolving, recruiters need superpowers (smart solutions) to efficiently deliver value to their organisations. At RippleHire, we build products that equip them with the armor they need to do their best work. Our cloud-based hiring solutions keep up with the constantly evolving candidate expectations and market trends. A smart ATS is like a powerful weapon in the recruiter's arsenal. If used correctly, it takes away the transactional elements of their work, and empowers them to focus on strategically delivering the required talent outcomes.

This guide, put together in partnership with the hrtech team helps TA leaders to understand the importance of investing in an ATS to drive TA transformation, and to take their talent acquisition process to the next level." Keerthi Kariappa, Chief Customer Officer, RippleHire spoke about the potential of this HR Guide.

"There are no second thoughts about the value a smart ATS can provide to organizations in their efforts to optimize and streamline the hiring process. ATS tech is truly an essential aspect of every TA team. Moreover, with the world shifting towards remote and hybrid work models, ATS becomes the first key touchpoint to a great candidate experience. This HR Guide captures the purpose of an ATS and highlights its role in enhancing CX and driving better business outcomes." Sriram Iyer, Founder & CEO, hrtech shares his two cents on why organizations need an ATS to grow faster.

About RippleHire

RippleHire exists to make recruiting effortless, human and delightful. Since 2012, we have served over 800k+ users across 35 countries with our gamified referral and talent acquisition cloud platform.

Our intelligent end-to-end ATS helps you to efficiently hire the right talent, enabling you to deliver best in class experience to both - recruiters as well as candidates. It is deep in thought, simple to use and powerful to govern. Our customers build a powerful hiring engine on our enterprise platform. An engine that helps you deliver top line growth. We have helped our customers achieve 4.7/5 candidate experience and a 4.5/5 recruiter experience.

RippleHire Referrals is a market leader in referral technology. Known as the category creator, Ripplehire Referrals helps companies transform their referral program from a reactive channel to a proactive sourcing channel, driving improved time to hire and quality of hire.

About hrtech

We are a Singapore-headquartered HR Tech Advisory & Consulting firm, enabling Workplace & Workforce Transformations to deliver strong Business & HR outcomes. Our singular vision is to create a tech-driven and data-centric HR ecosystem for driving successful Workplace & Talent Transformations that will enable organisations to grow and HR teams to become strategic business partners. We help Indian enterprises in identifying the right-fit HR Tech solutions for solving their business challenges, leveraging our partnership with best-in-class HR Tech product providers.

SOURCE hrtech.sg
Label Redesign Highlights Terroir and Riboli Family's Commitment to Quality

PASO ROBLES, Calif., June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Riboli Family Wines, family-owned and operated since 1917, announces the launch of elegant, all-new packaging for its 90+ Point, award-winning San Simeon portfolio. As a top wine of the Riboli Family, one of California's oldest winemaking families, San Simeon wines are the product of generations of experience and passion. The portfolio is 100% estate-grown from certified sustainable vineyards and vinified in the family's certified sustainable winery in Paso Robles. The best lots are hand-selected, representing the pinnacle of vineyard-to-bottle winemaking. The wines are highly terroir-driven, shaped by the Pacific Ocean's unique influence, and the new packaging brings this and Riboli's commitment to quality into greater focus.

San Simeon Portfolio

San Simeon wines are named after a rugged area of California coastline, home to the prestigious winemaking regions of Monterey and Paso Robles. The name, San Simeon, pays homage to the town of San Simeon - renowned for its rugged coastline and the cool sea air which influences our vineyards. To continue celebrating the region, Riboli Family Wines plans to open a new tasting room dedicated to San Simeon on Vineyard Drive in the prestigious Willow Creek district in 2024.

"We are very excited about the new label design," says Anthony Riboli, 4th generation winemaker. "We felt it was time to elevate the label to match the quality in the bottle while keeping our connection to the ocean. These wines are crafted to provide a sense of place that can only be defined as 'refined and respected', and this is the next evolution of that promise."

The new packaging brings a bolder look through clean lines and showcases an embossed gold foil trident emblem. New vintages with the new labels began shipping in March and have been making their debut on store shelves and in restaurants across the country. These wines include San Simeon's 2022 Grenache Rose, 2022 Sauvignon Blanc, 2022 Viognier, and 2021 Chardonnay. The brand's website has been updated to reflect the new label.

San Simeon's portfolio of premium wines also includes Cabernet Sauvignon, Pinot Noir, Syrah, Petite Sirah, and Merlot, as well as premium bottlings of Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon and a Bordeaux-style blend named Stormwatch. Consumers can look for the new label on the red wines by the end of summer.

ABOUT RIBOLI FAMILY WINES

Riboli Family Wines, family-owned since 1917, celebrates over a century crafting award-winning wines. Winner of Wine Enthusiasts' 2018 "American Winery of the Year", Riboli Family Wines includes Riboli Estates Group  a portfolio of estate-based brands sourced from the family's 1,800 acres of sustainably farmed vineyards in Paso Robles, Monterey, and Napa Valley  as well as Stella Rosa, the #1 Import Brand in the US[i]. With an affinity for business and innovation, the 3rd and 4th generations of the Riboli Family continue to lead the industry and push the boundaries of winemaking and the wine drinking experience. For more information, please visit www.riboliwines.com.

[i] Source: Impact Databank 2022. Based on retail value

Press Contact:

Nadea Mina, Vice President, Benson Marketing Group

[email protected]

SOURCE Riboli Family Wines
TEMPE, Ariz., June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Schwab Advisor Services in partnership with the Charles Schwab Foundation is providing generous support in the launch of a new ASU W. P. Carey School of Business finance lab. The Charles Schwab Foundation Financial Access and Research (FAR) Lab will contribute to the W. P. Carey community through increased financial access and literacy tools, experiential learning opportunities for students, and timely and relevant information for student asset managers.

(PRNewsfoto/W. P. Carey School of Business )

"We are honored to be partnering with Arizona State University to empower the next generation of changemakers in the financial services industry," said Bernie Clark, head of Schwab Advisor Services. "The University Grant Program will provide its students with the resources and experiences needed to succeed in their chosen profession and increase access to the industry."

The five-year gift includes support for outfitting a state-of-the-art lab space with access to innovative tools and subscription-based data sets. This immersive on-campus experience will allow W. P. Carey students and others in the ASU community to prepare for wide-ranging careers in finance  including banking, asset management, advisory, and corporate finance functions.

A devoted and well-equipped lab space deepens the opportunities available for students who arrive with an intent to pursue finance, as well as sparks interest for those without prior finance exposure, thereby enabling a better understanding of the opportunities available and skills required in the financial services sector across a diverse student body. Renovations for the space are scheduled to begin this fall, with a grand opening expected in fall 2024.

"The generous gift from our partners at Schwab is key in building an innovative and accessible finance lab for W. P. Carey students. This space will provide outstanding learning opportunities for our students, while training them to meet organizational needs in financial services firms immediately upon graduation," says Ohad Kadan, Charles J. Robel Dean and W. P. Carey Distinguished Professor.

W. P. Carey has the No. 16 finance program for undergraduates in the country, as ranked by U.S. News & World Report. As of Spring 2023, more than 1,600 W. P. Carey students are majoring in finance and will directly benefit from the outcomes of this partnership.

About the W. P. Carey School of Business

The W. P. Carey School of Business at Arizona State University is the largest and one of the top-ranked business schools in the United States. The school is internationally regarded for its research productivity and its distinguished faculty members. Students come from more than 100 countries and W. P. Carey is represented by alumni in over 160 countries. Visit wpcarey.asu.edu.

For more information/media contact:

Shay Moser, W. P. Carey School of Business

[email protected]

SOURCE W. P. Carey School of Business at Arizona State University
SEOUL, South Korea, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Seegene Inc. (KQ096530), a leading South Korean company which provides a total solution for PCR molecular diagnostics, announced an agreement with Werfen, a worldwide leader in Specialized Diagnostics, to advance discussions on the expansion of its current collaboration for the Spanish and Portuguese marketplaces through Seegene's OneSystem Business. The collaboration will consist of the joint development of syndromic qPCR assays suitable for the Spanish and Portuguese healthcare systems, including assays for sexually transmitted infections and drug resistance. Seegene has a long-term relationship with Werfen, based in Barcelona, Spain. The companies are discussing the co-development of qPCR assays at Werfen's OEM Technology Center in Llica dAmunt, Barcelona, Spain.

These discussions follow an agreement Seegene reached in March with Israel's top diagnostic company, Hylabs.

Seegene's OneSystem Business aims to share: its syndromic quantitative PCR technologies, and Seegene's digitalized development system (SGDDS) which enables less experienced researchers to develop assays. Additionally, Seegene will provide automated manufacturing technologies to produce syndromic PCR assays compatible with Seegene's standardized OneSystem instruments.

Through this partnership, Spain and Portugal will have the technology and know-how to develop and manufacture syndromic qPCR assays, establishing infrastructure that will enable a rapid response to future pandemics without relying on foreign products and resources.

The ultimate goal of OneSystem Business is to create a world free from all diseases, including cancer and infectious diseases, not limited to humans but all organisms. To achieve this goal, Seegene is building an open innovation global network where scientists from all countries can join forces to develop syndromic quantitative PCR assays tailored to local needs.

"We will share our PCR technologies and know-how with any company in any country wishing to develop syndromic quantitative PCR assays," said Dr. Jong-Yoon Chun, CEO of Seegene. "We aspire to develop PCR diagnostic assays for all diseases so that the world free from diseases would come closer," he added.

"We are excited about the possibility of strengthening our partnership with Seegene, and we look forward to developing assays which are tailor-made for Spain and Portugal," said Jose Luis Zarroca, Chief Operating Officer, OEM at Werfen.

Seegene is continuously seeking additional partners from other European countries to join its global network and expects subsequent agreements to be signed throughout this year to speed up the expansion of Seegene's OneSystem Business.

Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1357790/Seegene_logo_Logo.jpg

SOURCE Seegene Inc.
SCRANTON, Pa., June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- A negligence and product liability lawsuit seeking compensatory and punitive damages has been filed in federal court against gunmaker Sig Sauer by a retired Philadelphia police SWAT member who was seriously wounded last year when his "dangerously defective" P320 pistol "drop-fired" without his hand on the weapon. The complaint was filed yesterday on behalf of police Lieutenant James Hall (Ret.) by attorneys from Saltz Mongeluzzi Bendesky. The law firm now represents more than 85 Sig Sauer P320 victims/plaintiffs across the country.

Lt. James Hall (Ret.)

Sig Sauer was allegedly aware that its P320 pistols were prone to "drop-firing", a defect causing a dropped gun to fire, resulting in devastating injuries. At that point, Sig Sauer faced a crucial corporate decision: whether to issue a recall of the weapons to alert customers of the defect and remove them from the market. The complaint (Hall v. Sig Sauer, Inc. / US District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, 3:23-cv-00978-KM) alleges that Sig Sauer decided not to issue a recall, leaving customers throughout the country, and their families, friends, and the public, at risk of the known hazard.

Sig Sauer instead issued what it termed a "Voluntary Upgrade", where customers could return their P320s for company-modified versions. Despite identifying the drop-fire hazard and redesigning the weapon, Sig Sauer astonishingly told its customers the P320 was still safe in its current configuration and design. It is believed that less than 10% of P320 owners opted for the "Voluntary Upgrade." Pre-suit investigation revealed that many users, including Lt. Hall, did not know about the "Voluntary Upgrade" notice, and those that did were misled by Sig Sauer into believing the upgrade was not necessary.

Lt. Hall, a Schuylkill County resident, is a 25-year veteran of the Philadelphia police force who specialized in SWAT tactical operations. He has always greatly respected firearms safety and purchased the P320 because he thought the gun would protect him, not endanger him. His incident occurred when the gun fell from his waist to the ground and discharged a bullet that struck his upper right arm and shoulder, shattering his bones. He was rushed emergently to the hospital, and spent the next 63 days in medical facilities fighting for his life. He underwent several surgeries and developed serious infections in and around the surgical sites and gunshot wounds. Tragically, there are still eight bullet fragments in his surgically repaired shoulder that may never be able to be removed.

Saltz Mongeluzzi Bendesky attorney Robert W. Zimmerman, said following the filing, "Lt. Hall dedicated his life to protecting and serving his community. He retired with honor, and like many retired law enforcement officers, purchased a pistol for personal protection. Tragically, Sig Sauer left a minefield of defective guns in our communities rather than issuing a safety recall of the weapon when it learned of the dangers. We have seen again and again that Sig Sauer failed to act to protect the many law enforcement officers, federal agents and civilians that have been victimized by the P320. This case is another stark reminder that inaction has consequences."

Attorney Larry Bendesky, of SMB, noted the latest filing comes on the heels of the two mass action filings by his firm against Sig Sauer on behalf of 40 un-commanded gunshot victims across the country. "Sig Sauer was aware of the danger the P320 posed to users through drop-fires. Customers trusted that Sig Sauer would deliver a safe product that would keep them safe, yet Lt. Hall and others were left endangered by this gun."

Incredibly, Sig Sauer continues to defiantly assert that somehow the owners-victims  their customers  are responsible for getting shot. We intend to prove that Sig Sauer's inadequate design has caused these tragedies."

The complaint states, "Sig Sauer manufactures the only single-action pistols on the market that are not equipped with any form of external manual safety."

Besides a copy of the newly-filed lawsuit, additional related information on the Sig Sauer litigation  and the gun's troubled history - can be found at www.smbb.com/SigSauer.

CONTACT: Robert W. Zimmerman/ [email protected] / 215-575-3898; or Steph Rosenfeld/[email protected]/ 215-514-4101

SOURCE Saltz Mongeluzzi Bendesky P.C.
DUBLIN, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The "Simulation Software and Services Market - Forecasts from 2023 to 2028" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.

The simulation software and services market is projected to grow at a CAGR of 8.35% from a market size of US$8.528 billion in 2021 to reach US$14.953 billion by 2028.



Simulation software and services refer to computer programs and services that allow users to model and simulate real-world scenarios in a virtual environment. These tools can be used for a wide range of purposes, such as product design, testing, training, and research. Simulation software typically involves the use of mathematical models and algorithms to replicate the behavior of physical systems or processes.

This can include anything from the movement of individual particles in a fluid to the behavior of complex systems like electrical grids or transportation networks. Simulation services, on the other hand, are typically provided by third-party companies that specialize in simulation and modeling. These services can range from basic consulting and training to more advanced simulation work, such as custom model development or simulation-based optimization. Simulation software and services can be valuable tools for a wide range of industries and applications, helping to reduce costs, improve efficiency, and increase safety and performance.



The simulation software and services market is driven by the growing demand for simulations, safety concerns, and investments by the governments.

The use of simulation software in product design and development has become increasingly important in recent years. This is due to the increasing complexity of products, as well as the need to reduce development costs and shorten time-to-market. Simulation software allows designers and engineers to test products and systems in a virtual environment before building physical prototypes, enabling them to identify and correct issues early in the development process. This can result in significant cost savings and reduced time-to-market, as well as improved product performance and safety.

The use of simulation for safety and risk management is driven by a number of factors, including increasing regulatory requirements, rising public concern over safety issues, and the growing recognition of the importance of risk management for business continuity and reputation. Simulation is becoming an increasingly important tool for identifying potential risks and hazards in various industries, such as transportation, manufacturing, and energy. For example, in the automotive industry, simulation can be used to test the safety of vehicles in various crash scenarios.

Market Developments:

Keysight Technologies unveiled the PathWave Advanced Design System which is an electromagnetic (EM) simulation for circuit designers in June 2022. It streamlines the incorporation of simulation and multi-technology circuit assembly into business electronic design automation (EDA) design workflows. The interactive EM simulator RFPro, which is integrated with PathWave ADS, has improved simulation performance, which enables quick design adjustment and optimization.

In July 2022, KBC Advanced Technologies Ltd. announced a partnership with Computing in Technology (CiT), a prominent provider of simulation software for simulating various polymer processes. This partnership, which drew on more than 50 years of simulation software experience, combined the CiT Predici modeling software with the KBC Petro-SIM simulation platform and an automated digital twin simulator to produce a comprehensive solution that decreases the risks and experimentation time associated with scaling up polymer processes.

Operators can use both steady-state and dynamic models to simulate the complete refinery-petrochemical-polymer supply chain and anticipate yield, polymer characteristics, and emissions. Furthermore, with the help of the solution, KPIs can be manually monitored and recorded, and plant performance can be enhanced with automated digital twins.



Based on end-user, the simulation software and services market is expected to witness positive growth in the healthcare segment.



The simulation software and services market in the healthcare sector is driven by the increasing demand for simulation in medical education and training, the rising adoption of simulation in patient safety and risk management, and the growing use of simulation in medical device development and testing. It has several applications ranging from medical education and training to patient safety and risk management as well as medical device development and testing.



North America accounts for a major share of the simulation software and services market. The Middle East and Africa market is expected to grow steadily during the projected period.



Based on geography, the simulation software and services market is segmented into North America, South America, Europe, the Middle East and Africa, and Asia Pacific. North America is a significant region for the simulation software and services market, driven by the strong presence of key players and the high adoption of simulation in various industries, such as aerospace, defense, and automotive as well as efforts by the government to promote simulations. The U.S. Department of Defense is one of the major customers of simulation software and services in North America and has a budget of over $700 billion for 2020, which includes funding for simulation and training activities.



The Middle East and Africa region is a growing market for simulation software and services, driven by the increasing adoption of simulation in industries such as oil and gas, construction, and transportation. The United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia are the largest markets in the region. The government of Saudi Arabia has launched the Vision 2030 initiative, which includes a focus on developing a knowledge-based economy, including investments in technology and innovation. This is expected to drive demand for simulation software and services in the region.



Market Segmentation:

By Solutions

Software

Services

By Deployment

Cloud

On-premise

By End-Users

Automotive

Aerospace

Healthcare

Education

Electricals and Electronics

Others

By Geography

North America

USA

Canada

Mexico

South America

Brazil

Argentina

Others

Europe

United Kingdom

Germany

France

Italy

Spain

Others

Middle East and Africa

and Saudi Arabia

UAE

Others

Asia Pacific

China

Japan

India

South Korea

Australia

Singapore

Indonesia

Taiwan

Others

Key Topics Covered:



1. INTRODUCTION



2. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY



3. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY



4. MARKET DYNAMICS



5. SIMULATION SOFTWARE AND SERVICES MARKET BY SOLUTIONS



6. SIMULATION SOFTWARE AND SERVICES MARKET BY DEPLOYMENT



7. SIMULATION SOFTWARE AND SERVICES MARKET BY END-USERS



8. SIMULATION SOFTWARE AND SERVICES MARKET BY GEOGRAPHY



9. COMPETITIVE ENVIRONMENT AND ANALYSIS



10. COMPANY PROFILES



Companies Mentioned

ANSYS Inc.

The AnyLogic Company

Synopsis Inc.

Siemens

Simio LLC

Bentley Systems Inc.

SolidTrust (Ninos IT Solution Pvt. Ltd.)

Lanner Group Ltd.

Autodesk Inc.

Altair Engineering Inc.

For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/h9x2ol

About ResearchAndMarkets.com

ResearchAndMarkets.com is the world's leading source for international market research reports and market data. We provide you with the latest data on international and regional markets, key industries, the top companies, new products and the latest trends.

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Research and Markets

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SOURCE Research and Markets
CHUZHOU, China, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Solar N Plus New Energy Technology Co., Ltd. (Solar N Plus), a manufacturing expert of TOPCon technology, is proud to announce that it has received the prestigious Dun & Bradstreet (D & B) 4A1 rating, indicating its excellent financial strength and credit condition. This recognition further solidifies the company's position as a reliable and credible player in the solar energy industry.

D & B has been a leading global provider of business decisioning data and analytics for almost 200 years, and their renowned rating system assesses enterprises' financial strength and credit condition. According to the Business Information Report for Solar N Plus, provided by D&B, the company has been awarded the prestigious D&B Rating of 4A1. This rating indicates a robust financial position, with a tangible net worth ranging from 85,000,000 to 449,000,000. Furthermore, Solar N Plus has received a composite credit appraisal of 1, signifying a high level of creditworthiness. Overall, Solar N Plus belongs to the esteemed Quality Group, showcasing its industry-leading performance.

"D & B is one of the most reputable global business credit reporting agencies, and its reports have long been a crucial reference for numerous financial institutions in assessing corporate credit and risk," said Ashley Wang, General Manager of International Sales and Marketing at Solar N Plus, "Achieving such a high rating is closely tied to Solar N Plus's unwavering focus on sustainable development, stable operations, and strong financial health."

Solar N Plus is dedicated to continuously enhancing the value of its solar products, earning trust from global customers and third-party organizations. In the future, Solar N Plus will continue to collaborate with global partners to accelerate the global adoption of clean energy, contributing to the low-carbon transition.

About Solar N Plus

Solar N Plus is an experienced manufacturer and provider of solar cells and modules. With a strong focus on innovation and sustainability, the company offers efficient and reliable solutions for the renewable energy market.

For more information, please visit www.solarnplus.com

SOURCE Solar N Plus New Energy Technology Co., LTD
CHARLOTTE, N.C., June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- SPATCO Energy Solutions ("SPATCO"), a forward-thinking infrastructure services provider of innovative turnkey solutions for petroleum, environmental and EV market segments, completed the acquisition of MSCS Ltd., a Dallas-based petroleum services company providing construction, installation and maintenance services. The acquisition expands the Company's geographic footprint into Texas after its January 2023 acquisitions of McKinney Petroleum Equipment and Petro Supply. The combined entity now has over 820 employees across 30 offices in 15 states.

"With this partnership comes the opportunity for entry into the highly active Texas market" said SPATCO CEO John Force Tweet this SPATCO Energy Solutions Continues Expansion with Acquisition of MSCS Ltd. in Texas

For the past 26 years, MSCS has provided customers with high-quality construction and petroleum equipment repair services throughout Texas, supported by a team of highly skilled, factory-trained technicians. MSCS' services include repair, maintenance and installation of the preeminent brands of equipment used today, as well as general contracting with extensive experience in field service station construction, fuel system installation, tank removal and tank testing. MSCS is well entrenched in the high-growth market of Texas  with operations in Dallas, Fort Worth, San Antonio and Houston  providing the ideal launchpad for SPATCO's expansion into the state.

MSCS CEO Mark Spenrath will join SPATCO's leadership team and continue to lead and grow the Texas market. Mark commented, "Joining ranks with SPATCO will be advantageous for both the MSCS team and our customers, as the partnership will enable us to expand our service offerings and accelerate our growth with the support of the combined organization. We are thankful to find a partner that shares our cultural values and commitment to customer service excellence. We look forward to being a part of SPATCO's continued growth for years to come."

"The team at SPATCO is excited to welcome Mark and the entire MSCS team as we begin the next chapter of the platform's story," said SPATCO CEO John Force. "With this partnership comes the opportunity for entry into the highly active Texas market, as well as potential for future EV innovation as the state continues to invest significantly in its infrastructure. Additionally, as we've grown, our customer base has continued to evolve with blue-chip national and super regional chains  the very same set of customers with which MCSC is proud to do business. These tenets make for what I am confident will be a successful partnership for all involved  especially our customers and key vendor partners."

Investments such as these accelerate SPATCO's long-term strategy focused on growth both organically and through additional acquisitions. Kian Capital is SPATCO's lead investor along with co-investors RF Investment Partners, Apogem Capital and New Canaan Funding. Robinson, Bradshaw & Hinson, P.A. acted as Kian's legal advisor, and financing for the transaction was provided by Byline Bank.

About MSCS Ltd.

MSCS is a petroleum services company providing construction, installation and maintenance services. Since 1997, MSCS has provided petroleum service customers with high-quality repair and construction services throughout Texas, supported by a team of highly skilled, factory-trained technicians. MSCS' services include repair and maintenance on the preeminent brands and makes of equipment used today, as well as general contracting with extensive experience in field service station construction, fuel system installations, tank removals and tank testing. To learn more, visit www.mscsltd.com.

About SPATCO Energy Solutions

SPATCO is a forward-thinking supplier, installer and maintenance provider of innovative turnkey solutions for fueling stations and EV-charging infrastructure. Headquartered in Charlotte, NC, SPATCO has 26 additional office locations with service and support across the United States. The company is one of Dover Fueling Solutions' largest distributors of Wayne products and offers complete environmental compliance, assessment and remediation services. With over 88 years of experience, SPATCO employs a differentiated service-oriented model on behalf of a diverse and longstanding customer base that includes national and regional convenience store operators, major oil companies, commercial fleet and military fueling facilities, national and regional trucking companies, regional oil jobbers and commercial bulk petroleum plants. To learn more, visit www.spatco.com.

About Kian Capital Partners

At Kian, we forge partnerships to ignite growth and build enduring value. Our goal is to provide flexible financial resources and additional operational horsepower to scale lower-middle-market businesses, realize aspirations and deliver long-term investment returns through genuine partnership. Proud to be recognized on Inc.'s Founder-Friendly Investors list for three consecutive years, Kian is a private investment firm with $825 million of capital under management and a focus on four core industry sectors: consumer, services, value-added distribution and specialty manufacturing. Our team of seasoned investors has over 100 years of collective experience providing transformational capital solutions and board-level strategic and operational guidance to founder/owner operated businesses. To learn more, visit www.kiancapital.com.

Contact Information

Inquiries

Tonia Ballard

Vice President

[email protected]

T 704.596.4373

SOURCE SPATCO Energy Solutions
Ukraine's Security Service exposes Kyiv company that helped sub-sanctioned Rosatom build five NPPs in different countries

The Security Service of Ukraine has exposed a large-scale scheme to circumvent anti-Russian sanctions, organized by the Kyiv Central Design Bureau of Valves: on suspicion of complicity with the aggressor state, the company's general director and two of his subordinates have been arrested, the Security Service has reported.

According to a report from the Security Service of Ukraine on its Telegram channel on Wednesday, this design bureau is a monopoly in the development, mass production, and supply of pipeline valves for nuclear power plants.

Before February 2022, according to the Security Service, the company exported its products to the Russian Federation through its own dealer in Moscow.

"The main customer was the Russian state corporation Rosatom, which uses Ukrainian pipeline fittings for the construction of power units at five nuclear power plants in different countries," the Security Service said.

The Security Service said: "The Kyiv bureau continued this cooperation even after the full-scale invasion, a ban on the export of goods to the customs territory of the Russian Federation, and the imposition of sanctions against Rosatom.

According to the Security Service, a scheme to circumvent sanctions restrictions was developed.

"Fictitious customers of Ukrainian products were controlled foreign companies. When leaving Ukraine, the goods were "re-registered" to the actual recipients  companies controlled by Rosatom that are building nuclear power plants. That is, after crossing the border, the goods went "along the new route," the Security Service said.

At the same time, Rosatom representatives certified pipeline fittings manufactured in Kyiv online.

According to operational data, since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, the dealers have carried out 16 export operations in favor of Russia valued at about UAH 42 million.

Based on the collected evidence, the Security Service investigators notified the director general of the Kyiv Bureau and two of his subordinates about the suspicion under Article 111-2 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (complicity with the aggressor state).

During the searches, documents, computer equipment, and means of communication with evidence of illegal activity were confiscated from the defendants.

The court chose them as a custody status of detention without the right to bail. The offenders face up to 12 years in prison.

An investigation is ongoing to ascertain all the circumstances surrounding the crime and bring other participants in the deal to justice.
MENLO PARK, Calif., June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Enable Medicine announced today that Dr. Thomas Montine has joined its Scientific Advisory Board . Dr. Montine joins eight other leaders in the fields of artificial intelligence, drug development, and oncology on the Advisory Board. Dr. Montine is the Chair of the Department of Pathology at Stanford University where he is the Stanford Medicine Endowed Professor in Pathology and is on the Board of Directors of Stanford Health Care.

Thomas Montine, MD, PhD

"Dr. Montine's expertise comes at a pivotal moment as we expand our platform capabilities into AI-powered digital pathology and eventual companion diagnostic applications," said Dr. Aaron Mayer, Chief Scientific Officer and Co-founder of Enable Medicine. "Dr. Montine will play an instrumental role in the successful deployment of our AI tools in both clinical and research settings. We share a vision of pathologists in the loop, as these tools enhance, but do not replace, expert human ability. We are thrilled to welcome him to our Scientific Advisory Board."

Prior to his time at Stanford, Dr. Montine was the Chair of the Department of Pathology at the University of Washington and the Director of the University of Washington Alzheimer's Disease Research Center, which was one of the original 10 Alzheimer's Centers in the United States. He was also the founding Director of the Pacific Udall Center, a NIH-awarded center of excellence in Parkinson's disease research.

Dr. Montine is among the top recipients of NIH funding for all Department of Pathology faculty in the United States. He was the 2015 President of the American Association of Neuropathologists and led or co-led recent NIH initiatives to revise diagnostic guidelines for Alzheimer's disease (NIA), develop research priorities for the National Alzheimer's Plan (NINDS and NIA), and establish research priorities for Parkinson's Disease (NINDS).

About Enable Medicine

Enable Medicine harnesses the revolutionary capabilities of AI to provide cutting-edge insights into biology and medicine. Our groundbreaking platform unlocks the power of generative biological search, enabling researchers to ask and answer complex questions about human disease in ways never before possible. Our global network of partners, including top academic institutions and pharmaceutical companies, leverages the platform to guide novel drug target discovery, identify biomarkers, and develop optimal treatment strategies.

For more information, visit us at enablemedicine.com and follow @EnableMedicine .

SOURCE Enable Medicine
New incentives and differentiated regulatory pathways proposed to reduce health inequities faced by ultra-rare disease communities

NEEDHAM, Mass., June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Stealth BioTherapeutics Inc. (the "Company" or "Stealth BioTherapeutics"), a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on the discovery, development, and commercialization of novel therapies for diseases involving mitochondrial dysfunction, today provided key takeaways from a presentation by Reenie McCarthy, the Company's Chief Executive Officer, at the World Orphan Drug Congress USA, held May 23-25 in Washington, D.C. In the presentation, entitled "Opportunities and Challenges in Ultra-Rare Drug Development," McCarthy referenced the Company's Barth syndrome development program as a case study to highlight the need for new incentives and differentiated ultra-rare regulatory pathways to reduce health inequities faced by patients with ultra-rare diseases. Barth syndrome is an ultra-rare disease that affects approximately 250 people worldwide. The Company recently announced its partnership with Pharmanovia to advance its Barth syndrome program in Europe and MENA.

Abe is one of just 130 children and young adults in the U.S. (and less than 250 people worldwide) currently living with Barth syndrome, an ultra-rare, life-threatening, genetic disease. We are honored to share this familys video highlighting their personal experience and the hope they hold for Abes future.

Experience the full interactive Multichannel News Release here: https://www.multivu.com/players/English/9176651-stealth-biotherapeutics-highlights-ultra-rare-disease-drug-development/

"We stand by our commitment to the Barth syndrome community to deliver the first potential treatment option for this ultra-rare and life-threatening cardio-skeletal disease," said McCarthy. "We have experienced firsthand the unique clinical, regulatory, and financial challenges of developing new medications for ultra-rare diseases. By sharing our learnings with regulators, policymakers, other drug developers and patient advocacy, we hope to ensure that people living with ultra-rare diseases can have a fighting chance at treatments that enable them to live healthier lives."

Key points from the presentation included:

More than 90 percent of rare diseases do not have a single FDA-approved treatment. 1 New incentives for ultra-rare diseases 2 may be needed: Wall Street views rare diseases that affect fewer than 10,000 individuals (for small molecules) or fewer 1,000 individuals (for gene therapies) as uninvestable. 3

New incentives for ultra-rare diseases may be needed: Wall Street views rare diseases that affect fewer than 10,000 individuals (for small molecules) or fewer 1,000 individuals (for gene therapies) as uninvestable. Small biotechnology companies remain more active in ultra-rare drug development than large pharmaceutical companies, increasing funding uncertainty and need for incentives particularly in challenging capital markets 4 .

. FDA regulations do not distinguish between rare and ultra-rare diseases in applying regulatory flexibility despite the significantly increased risk of Type 2 error  the risk of not approving an effective drug  in ultra-rare diseases. Perspectives on flexibility and review pathways can vary between centers, divisions, and even clinical reviewers. Decisions on when and how to apply flexibility are often made ad hoc 5 .

. Strong and unrelenting patient advocacy support is critical to ultra-rare development efforts.

The accelerated approval pathway for ultra-rare diseases presents opportunities, challenges, and the potential for positive change.

Given the challenges faced by ultra-rare disease drug developers and the significant unmet need faced by patients living with these conditions, innovative incentives and policies should be put in place to motivate industry support of ultra-rare therapeutic development. Reforms proposed during the presentation included:

The FDA should define a patient population threshold for ultra-rare diseases that entitles these diseases to maximum regulatory flexibility, reducing likelihood of Type 2 error without setting a precedent for larger diseases. Regulatory flexibility measures for ultra-rare diseases may include:

Not requiring ultra-rare drugs approved under Subpart H (accelerated approval) to have a post-marketing study underway or fully enrolled prior to approval. In ultra-rare diseases, this requirement further stresses the already challenging value proposition for ultra-rare disease drug development by requiring significant at-risk investment in a post-marketing trial predicated on uncertain regulatory approval and can also cause an approval delay of more than 2.5 years.



Utilizing intermediate clinical endpoints, which can be measured earlier than irreversible morbidity or mortality, to support post-marketing efficacy for drugs approved under the accelerated approval pathway.



Embracing acceptability of real-world evidence (including registries) and natural history controls to support ultra-rare approvals and post-marketing commitments.

The FDA's Center for Drug Evaluation and Research (CDER) Accelerating Rare Disease Cures (ARC) initiative should be expanded to improve cross-Agency oversight and consistency of ultra-rare decision-making.

The priority review voucher incentive should be expanded to ultra-rare diseases as a joint patient-taxpayer-pharma solution to rationalize more investment in our most vulnerable patients.

"With 85 percent of affected individuals dying before the age of five, the Barth syndrome community is keenly aware of the severe cost of delaying treatment or denying an approval," stated McCarthy. "For these individuals  and those with other ultra-rare diseases  we need creative solutions to drive innovation."

About Barth Syndrome

Barth syndrome is an ultra-rare genetic condition characterized by cardiac abnormalities often leading to heart failure and reduced life expectancy, exercise intolerance, muscle weakness and fatigue, recurrent infections, and delayed growth. Barth syndrome occurs almost exclusively in males and is estimated to affect one in 200,000 to 400,000 individuals worldwide. There are currently no FDA- or EMA-approved therapies for patients with Barth syndrome.

About Stealth

The Company is a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on the discovery, development, and commercialization of novel therapies for diseases involving mitochondrial dysfunction. Mitochondria, found in nearly every cell in the body, are the body's main source of energy production and are critical for normal organ function. Dysfunctional mitochondria characterize a number of rare genetic diseases and are involved in many common age-related diseases, typically involving organ systems with high energy demands such as the eye, the neuromuscular system, the heart and the brain. The Company has a deep pipeline of novel mitochondria-targeted compounds under evaluation as therapeutic product candidates.

Media Relations

Anna Stallmann Communications

Anna Stallmann

[email protected]

______________________ 1 NORD Avalere Report: ORPHAN DRUGS IN THE UNITED STATES: An Examination of Patents and Orphan Drug Exclusivity, 2021. 2 FDA does not define "ultra-orphan"; in Europe, it is considered to apply to diseases with a prevalence of <1 in 50,000, National Institute for Clinical Excellence. NICE Citizens Council Report Ultra Orphan Drugs. London, NICE, 2004. 3 Ritu Baral, Testimony at 2 28 2023 Rare Disease Congressional Caucus (at 21:50). 4 Yates, Hinkel, Clin Transl Sci. 2022. 5 Isakov et al., MIT.edu, 2016; Janiaud et al., Annals of Internal Medicine, 2021.

https://www.multivu.com/players/English/9176651-stealth-biotherapeutics-highlights-ultra-rare-disease-drug-development/docs/WorldOrphanDrug_1685979981912-173284468.pdf

SOURCE Stealth BioTherapeutics Inc.
- Gold Halo Award recipient for Best Education Initiative

- Civic 50 Honoree for the third consecutive year

- Ranked among the top three automakers in 2023 Axios Harris Poll

CAMDEN, N.J., June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Subaru of America, Inc. today celebrated three recent prestigious honors exemplifying the company's commitment to corporate citizenship and social impact through its Subaru Love Promise initiatives. Along with the 2023 Engage for Good Gold Halo Award for Best Education Initiative for the Subaru Loves Learning program, Subaru was recognized as a Civic 50 2023 Honoree for the third year in a row, and also ranked 16th among the most visible brands in America on the 2023 Axios Harris Poll 100 Reputation Rankings.

"We're incredibly honored by these recognitions and awards as we continue our work to be More Than a Car Company," said Alan Bethke, Senior Vice President of Marketing at Subaru of America, Inc. "For years, on both a national and local level, our employees, retailers, and charitable partners have helped communities across the country by supporting the causes and issues that impact them most. Acknowledgements like these are a great reminder of the importance of continuing this work together."

The Halo Awards, presented by Engage for Good, celebrates companies that have made a significant impact through cause marketing and social impact programs. Subaru was honored with the 2023 Gold Halo Award for Best Education Initiative in recognition of its commitment to supporting education and its partnership with AdoptAClassroom.org. Specifically, through the 2022 Subaru Loves Learning initiative, Subaru and 621 participating retailers helped alleviate teachers' financial burden by donating $3.3 million to 652 high-needs schools and 5,699 teachers across the United States. The Subaru Loves Learning initiative not only involves financial donations but also includes in-person events where Subaru retailers deliver supplies to local schools year after year.

In addition to the Gold Halo Award, Subaru was recently recognized as a Civic 50 Honoree for the third consecutive year. The Civic 50 Award highlights the 50 most community-minded companies in the United States each year and has served as a national standard since its inception in 2012 for superior corporate citizenship, spotlighting companies that use their resources to improve the quality of life in the communities where they operate. The inclusion of Subaru in this esteemed list reaffirms its dedication to making a positive difference.

Subaru was also ranked among the top three automakers on the 2023 Axios Harris Poll 100 Reputation Rankings of the most visible brands in America. The Axios Harris Poll 100 is a trusted measure of the reputation of companies that resonate most with the American public. The high placement of Subaru on this list underscores the company's strong reputation among consumers.

"These accolades highlight Subaru's ongoing efforts across the country to contribute meaningfully to the communities where we live and work," said Shira Haaz, Head of Corporate Responsibility. "We're thankful to our partners, retailers, and of course our employees, for giving us the opportunity to progress alongside them as we work together to fulfill the Subaru Love Promise."

To learn more about Subaru Love Promise, please visit subaru.com/love-promise.

About Subaru of America, Inc.

Subaru of America, Inc. (SOA) is a wholly owned subsidiary of Subaru Corporation of Japan. Headquartered at a zero-landfill office in Camden, N.J., the company markets and distributes Subaru vehicles, parts and accessories through a network of more than 630 retailers across the United States. All Subaru products are manufactured in zero-landfill plants and Subaru of Indiana Automotive, Inc. is the only U.S. automobile manufacturing plant to be designated a backyard wildlife habitat by the National Wildlife Federation. SOA is guided by the Subaru Love Promise, which is the company's vision to show love and respect to everyone, and to support its communities and customers nationwide. Over the past 20 years, SOA and the SOA Foundation have donated more than $300 million to causes the Subaru family cares about, and its employees have logged nearly 88,000 volunteer hours. As a company, Subaru believes it is important to do its part in making a positive impact in the world because it is the right thing to do. For additional information visit media.subaru.com. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Diane Anton

Corporate Communications Manager

(856) 488-5093

[email protected]

Adam Leiter

Corporate Communications Specialist

(856) 488-8668

[email protected]

SOURCE Subaru of America, Inc.
Teads leverages the largest dataset of attention and context, to offer clients unparalleled audience insights and support campaign optimization.

NEW YORK, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Teads, the global media platform, has announced the release of attention metrics in Teads Ad Manager (TAM), its dynamic programmatic buying platform. This integration makes Teads the first platform to embed Lumen's attention measurement natively and gives clients the ability to measure attention similarly to how they measure viewability. This integration marks one year since the launch of Teads Attention Program, an incubator for innovation, which fueled hundreds of tests with Lumen and other partners in the program. The addition of attention metrics to Teads Ad Manager gives advertisers a one-touch system for measuring and optimizing attention, simplifying an otherwise complex process.

Mike Follett, Managing Director, Lumen Research said: "With the release of attention metrics, Teads has consolidated its position as the easiest, and most widely used system of its kind globally. Now self-serve clients using Teads Ad Manager can measure attention in their campaigns with one click, gaining unprecedented insights into performance by leveraging Lumen's cutting-edge attention models."

Teads has announced the release of attention metrics in Teads Ad Manager, its dynamic programmatic buying platform. Tweet this

By clicking on the 'attention' button within TAM, campaigns are automatically tagged with the Lumen tag, giving advertisers valuable insights on the amount of attention received by their ads, and empowering them to identify the drivers of attention, optimize their campaigns and drive impactful results. These metrics also offer simplicity and sustainability, as they are inherently cookieless and provide a scalable solution for measuring ad effectiveness. Since the launch of our offering, there has been a significant adoption among TAM clients, with Lumen attention measurement being utilized by 20% of their activities on TAM.

Damien Prybis, Head of Digital Trading, OMD France said: "Attention metrics are a key turning point in a more performance driven media planning, and the next step forward for brands seeking an even more clear view on where they should focus their media investment. The introduction of Teads attention metrics brings unparalleled ease in gaining deeper insights into our audiences, enabling us to drive more audience engagement and leverage those invaluable learnings to craft compelling content that captivates and connects."

With 1,236 active agencies and 3,349 active advertisers in 74 markets, Teads has established itself as the leading global end-to-end platform with the largest database of attention insights in the world. Currently, billions of impressions are reported and tagged, all supported by the unmatched scale and user-friendly features offered by Teads Ad Manager. This has translated directly into business results, such as a recent campaign in which a brand achieved remarkable success by strategically leveraging high-attention media across all channels, resulting in a remarkable 42% stronger lift compared to Teads' in-store visitation benchmarks, highlighting the impact of Teads' vast collection of attention insights. Teads is continuing to raise the bar on executional excellence for clients and partners, by continuing to explore new ways to make campaigns more actionable driving business results.

Caroline Hugonenc, Senior Vice President, Research & Insights, Teads said: "By utilizing the largest database of cases combining attention and outcomes on live campaigns, Teads has built an experience that allows clients to easily link attention to outcomes. The integration with Lumen is unparalleled - the deepest and easiest to use - and has produced the largest dataset of its kind in the world. We are proud of the monumental milestones we have achieved, with 103 advertisers onboarded and over 200 campaigns run since the launch of TAM, but this is only the beginning."

About Teads

Teads operates a leading, cloud-based, omnichannel platform that enables programmatic digital advertising across a global ecosystem of quality digital media. As an end-to-end solution, Teads' modular platform allows partners to leverage buy-side, sell-side, creative, data and AI optimization technologies.

For advertisers and their agencies, Teads offers a single access point to buy the inventory of many of the world's best publishers and content providers. Through exclusive global media partnerships, Teads enables advertisers and agencies to reach billions of unique monthly users in brand safe, responsible advertising environments, while improving the effectiveness and efficiency of digital ad transactions.

Teads partners with the leading marketers, agencies and publishers through a team of 1,200+ people in 50 offices across more than 30 countries.

Contacts

George Cabico / Mike Heusner

The Right Now PR for Teads

[email protected] / [email protected]

SOURCE Teads
BEIJING, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- On June 6, 2023, the 31st China International Information and Communication Exhibition, also known as PT EXPO CHINA, organized by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and hosted by Genertec PTAC, ended at the China National Convention Center after three days of activities. As one of the largest and most significant annual events in the information and communication industry, PT EXPO CHINA is an essential window and platform to gather wisdom from all parties, foster industry development, and showcase various accomplishments. The forum, which plays a crucial role in enhancing the sense of responsibility, mission, and urgency for the entire industry, reinforces how IT development should chart the path for modernization, informatization, industrial development, consensus on industry construction, breakthroughs in core technologies, and high-level opening up to the outside world.

Exhibition site

Among the officials who attended the forums and visited the exhibitions were: Jin Zhuanglong, Minister of Industry and Information Technology; Zhang Yunming, Vice Minister; Jin Wei, deputy mayor of Beijing; Lv Shiming, member of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, and vice chairman of the China Disabled Persons' Federation; Zhao Zhiguo, chief engineer of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology; Gao Dongsheng, chief economist; Ke Ruiwen, chairman of China Telecom; Dong Xin, general manager of China Mobile; Liu Liehong, chairman of China Unicom; Yu Xubo, chairman of Genertec; Zhang Dongchen, chairman of China Satellite Network; Song Qizhu, chairman of China Broadnet; and Zhang Zhiyong, chairman of China Tower.

The forum, themed "Accessible ICT Infrastructure and Promising Digital Intelligence," covered over 40,000 square meters and attracted approximately 400 companies and organizations worldwide. Renowned domestic and international enterprises, including China Telecom, China Mobile, China Unicom, Genertec, China Broadcasting, China Tower, China Electronics Technology Group Corporation, China Information Technology, China Satcom, Huawei, ZTE, Ericsson, Nokia Bell, Intel, Alibaba, Ant Group, Inspur, H3C, Unisoc MediaTek, and Hengtong Group exhibited a wide range of cases and scenarios, demonstrating the result of significant and far-reaching ICT accomplishments in core technology research and development, broadband network construction, digital industrialization, and industrial digital transformation. The enterprises also showcased applications of representative technologies like 5G in the major areas of industrial manufacturing, healthcare, and education. By the end of the forum, 190,000 visitors, including over 70 government delegations and nearly 50 central enterprise groups, had been received. The exhibitions became a gathering of accomplishments, a reservoir of ideas, and a venue for intimate dialogue, attracting talents from all directions and highlighting the surging power of technological innovation.

The ICT China High-level Forum, one of the forum's highlights, closely monitors industry trends and market insights. Over 40 conference forums were organized, covering hot topics, including 5G, GPON, Gigabit Passive Optical Networks, artificial intelligence, industrial internet, quantum computing, network security, digital healthcare, and emergency communication. Keynote speeches were delivered by high-level academicians, including Wu Hequan, Wang Maohua, Zhang Ping, Zheng Weimin, and Zhang Hongke, from the Chinese Academy of Engineering and Liu Zhongfan and Yin Hao from the Chinese Academy of Sciences. The over 900 guests gathered to discuss and envision the industry's development prospects announced over 20 achievements, contributing to the creation of a smart digital era.

Furthermore, over 3,000 domestic and foreign media outlets provided comprehensive and multi-angle coverage of the forum. In particular, the Meetings CCTVExplore Exhibitions event was synchronously broadcasted on the various CCTV official channels and platforms, attracting over 4 million views by the end of the forum. Meanwhile, the hashtag #China International Information and Communication Exhibition on Douyin (TikTok) garnered over 7 million exposures.

The 31st edition of PT EXPO CHINA steadfastly adhered to the principle of Chinese characteristics with an international perspective. It testified to the rapid development of the information and communication industry, offering an exquisite display, exchange, cooperation, and sharing platform for the entire industry. The forum fully reflected the latest innovations and development in the information and communication field, significantly promoting global exchanges and cooperation in the information and communication sector.

The 32nd PT EXPO China will hold at China National Convention Center in 2024. We look forward to meeting you!

SOURCE PT Expo China
NEW YORK, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The most exclusive waterfront event space in Manhattan is The Water Club - the best place anywhere in the world to experience The Macy's 4th of July Fireworks show happening again this year!

Our glamorous & iconic private events venue is atop the East River, in midtown Manhattan and hosts unparalleled prime viewing for New York's greatest live fireworks show. This year's pyrotechnics display will happen directly in front of us - at 30th Street, on the river, in the greatest city in the world. Follow us on Instagram @waterclubnyc

Fourth of July at The Water Club in New York City

Fourth of July 2023 at the Water Club in New York City .

The Water Club is a private event venue beyond your wildest dreams. Set your sights this 4th of July for a very special evening of dinner & cocktails on the East River in New York City. You will witness this year's enormous Macy's spectacle from five barges lighting up the NYC skyline with a fireworks production beyond anything you could imagine.

The Water Club events team is currently taking reservations for each of our gorgeous event rooms, both indoor and on our stunning rooftop terraces. Reservations can be made by calling 212.683.3333 for this "one night only" immersive experience, which includes an elaborate & festive dinner, premium open bar at the most fabulous waterside location anywhere in New York City and the chance to experience this sensational fireworks show with front row access. The Macy's fireworks extravaganza is a night in NYC that you will absolutely remember long after the evening is over.

RESERVATIONS

Guests must be over the age of seven years old, we do not offer children's pricing.

Doors will open at 6:00pm and the fireworks are scheduled for 9:00pm .

and the fireworks are scheduled for . Please note the FDR Highway is closed on the 4th of July beginning at 3:00pm .

. *Please keep in mind that our venue does NOT have an elevator to the second floor.

Once your ticket is purchased we will email you a confirmation of receipt.

*This is a ticketed celebration held at The Water Club. 500 E 30th St NY, New York, 10016.

Reservations may be made by calling our events department at 212.683.3333

Happy Independence day! We look forward to celebrating this year's Macy's Fourth of July festivities with you at The Water Club.

SOURCE The Water Club
The Nostromo IceBrick energy storage system will reduce energy costs and greenhouse gas emissions and help the hotels achieve their aggressive climate goals

BEVERLY HILLS, Calif., June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The Beverly Hilton and the Waldorf Astoria Beverly Hills , two of California's most iconic luxury hotels and champions for the environment, together with Nostromo Energy (TASE: NOST), provider of breakthrough energy storage solutions for commercial buildings, announced today the launch of Nostromo's sustainable energy storage system serving the two adjacent hotels. The system is designed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and enable the hotels to reach their sustainability goals while saving on energy costs. This project with hotel ownership and leading real-estate asset management groups Alagem Capital Group and Cain International marks the first hospitality industry partnership using Nostromo's innovative technology.

During peak hours, air conditioning in commercial and industrial buildings accounts for approximately half of California's energy demands. Fortunately, these buildings have the potential to reduce their demand from the electric grid during peak times by installing energy storage solutions. Energy storage not only lowers the building's energy costs and carbon emissions, but also enables more EV charging capacity, and provides resilience during extreme weather. By charging the storage systems with clean energy and using it when the grid-power is fossil-based, buildings are able to reduce the grid's reliance on fossil fuels and drastically cut carbon emissions.

"We are proud to partner with Nostromo to bring cutting-edge green technology to The Beverly Hilton," said David Ecija, General Manager of The Beverly Hilton. "This partnership is an extension of our history as forward-thinking property, focused on the future and what is good for our community."

The 1.4 megawatt-hour energy storage system installed inside The Beverly Hilton, and also serving the adjacent Waldorf Astoria Beverly Hills, will supply energy for cooling at less than 50% of its current cost and reduce CO 2 emissions by 150-200 metric tons annually, or more than 5,000 metric tons for the life of the system. The IceBrick system will charge using power from the grid at times when renewable energy levels are high, to freeze water into ice, then use the ice in the late afternoon and evening, when power demand reaches its highest levels, to provide energy for cooling instead of using fossil-based energy from the grid in the late afternoon.

"We are thrilled that ownership of leading brand hotels such as The Beverly Hilton and Waldorf Astoria Beverly Hills are adopting Nostromo's energy storage technology, demonstrating how buildings can play significant role in integrating renewables and improving resilience of the grid in California and nationwide, while cutting their energy costs," said Yoram Ashery, CEO of Nostromo. "We look forward to partnering with more like-minded ownership and management of commercial buildings, in the hospitality realm and other sectors."

"As owner of leading hospitality properties including the Waldorf Astoria Beverly Hills, Alagem Capital Group has always been committed to incorporating the most advanced and innovative technologies to make our properties role models for sustainability," said David Alagem, Vice President, Lifestyle, Branding and Technology of Alagem Capital Group. "We are thrilled to be the first in the United States to install the Nostromo's ice energy storage technology, which we believe opens new opportunities for building owners to take leadership roles in advancing new ways to manage energy demand. This is a significant step towards achieving our goal of creating a more sustainable future for generations to come."

"We are excited to announce our partnership with Nostromo and their innovative Icebrick technology, a water-based energy storage solution. This innovative technology and partnership are the first of its kind in the US, and will enable us to reduce our carbon footprint while also saving on our energy bills," said Larry Green, Managing Director at Cain International."Together, we're building a sustainable future with cost-effective and flexible energy storage solutions that benefit building owners, the grid, and the environment. With this partnership, One Beverly Hills further confirms our investment in a sustainable future and commitment to being the benchmark for environmental sustainability by bringing together multiple technologies to aggressively lower emissions and energy consumption. "

About Nostromo

Nostromo Energy's ice-based energy storage solution is redefining energy storage for commercial and industrial buildings, helping them become sustainable energy storage assets, and reduce energy costs and carbon emissions. The Nostromo IceBrick system uses ice to store energy when electricity prices are low and renewable energy is abundant, and discharge the energy to avoid purchasing electricity that is carbon intensive and expensive. In this way, Nostromo helps accelerate the renewable revolution and paves the way to a carbon free electric grid, while offering a safe, clean and financially beneficial system to building owners. The IceBrick is non-flammable, modular and compact, easily retrofitted to existing commercial and industrial buildings. To learn more about Nostromo, visit www.nostromo.energy .

About Alagem Capital Group

Alagem Capital Group is a holding company based in Beverly Hills, California established to pursue various investment opportunities. Alagem Capital Group is led by Beny Alagem, who serves as its Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. Mr. Alagem is an entrepreneur whose business activities have spanned a nearly four-decade career in such diverse industries as computers, telecommunications, technology, and real estate. Alagem Capital Group's current investment focus is in the real estate and hospitality industries.

About The Beverly Hilton

Opened in 1955 by distinguished hotelier Conrad Hilton, The Beverly Hilton, a Forbes Four-Star hotel, is owned by the Los Angeles-based, Oasis West Realty, LLC and managed by Hilton Worldwide (NYSE: HLT). Nestled at the crossroads of the iconic Wilshire and Santa Monica Boulevards, the hotel combines the excitement of Hollywood with the prestige of Beverly Hills. In 2020, The Beverly Hilton completed a transformative, multi-million dollar renovation encompassing all guest rooms, suites, and public spaces, ushering in a reimagined and contemporary look. With more than 60,000 square feet of indoor and open-air event space, The Beverly Hilton boasts the most technologically advanced meeting space of its kind in the country. The hotel's renowned International Ballroom plays host to glamorous annual events including the Golden Globe Awards Show, Oscar Nominee Luncheon, Pre-GRAMMYs Gala, and the Milken Institute's Global Conference. For more information, please visit www.beverlyhilton.com or call 310.274.7777.

Media Contacts:

Chaya Zabihi

GK for Nostromo

[email protected]

Veronica Werhane, Account Director

The Brandman Agency for The Beverly Hilton

[email protected]

SOURCE Nostromo
SWOG Cancer Research Network joins Caris' extensive network of leading cancer institutions and research consortia committed to improving patient outcomes through innovations in precision medicine

IRVING, Texas, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Caris Life Sciences(Caris), the leading molecular science and technology company actively developing and delivering innovative solutions to revolutionize healthcare, announced today that SWOG Cancer Research Network has joined the Caris Precision Oncology Alliance (POA). The POA is a growing network of leading cancer centers and research consortia across the globe that collaborate to advance precision oncology and biomarker-driven research, with its members working together to establish and optimize standards of care for molecular testing through innovative research to improve clinical outcomes for cancer patients. POA members are uniquely positioned to leverage Caris' highly sophisticated AI bioinformatics and machine learning capabilities across the company's massive clinico-genomic database to enable innovative research to improve clinical outcomes for cancer patients.

SWOG Cancer Research Network is a global oncology research community of over 18,000 members in 45 states and 10 countries who design and conduct publicly funded clinical trials. SWOG trials have led to the approval of 14 cancer drugs, changed more than 100 standards of cancer care, and saved more than 3 million years of human life. The group is a member of the National Cancer Institute's National Clinical Trials Network and the NCI Community Oncology Research Program, and is a major part of the cancer research infrastructure in the U.S. and the world. Since its founding in 1956, SWOG has established a rich trove of resources. Its online clinical trial and publications search tool includes more than 1,400 trials and over 4,000 trial publications and presentations. SWOG's biorepository includes more than 1.1 million blood, tissue, and other biological samples. All of these resources are publicly available in order to advance cancer research worldwide.

"SWOG Cancer Research Network is excited to join the Caris Precision Oncology Alliance," said Charles D. Blanke, M.D., group chair of the SWOG Cancer Research Network. "SWOG brings unique value to this collaboration, including our vast biorepository of specimens linked to clinical data, which are ideal for research to identify biomarkers that will improve treatments for our patients."

"These are exciting times for Caris and the POA. Welcoming SWOG Cancer Research Network to the growing Caris POA network is a big milestone destined to help all patients diagnosed with cancer," said Chadi Nabhan, M.D., MBA, FACP, Chairman of the Caris Precision Oncology Alliance. "The expansion of the POA to include SWOG Cooperative Group speaks to our dedication to collaborate with cutting-edge scientists and leaders to identify relevant trials whereby sequencing biorepository specimens can lead to new information that transforms how we approach and treat various cancers. SWOG and the Caris POA have the same vision of transforming cancer care through precision oncology studies and research."

The Caris Precision Oncology Alliance includes 85 cancer centers, research networks, and academic institutions. These institutions have early access to the extensive database and artificial intelligence platform within Caris to establish evidence-based standards for cancer profiling and molecular testing in oncology. By leveraging the comprehensive genomic, transcriptomic and proteomic profiling available through Caris molecular profiling, Caris seeks to provide this network with the ability to prioritize therapeutic options and determine which clinical trial opportunities may benefit their patients. POA members are also able to integrate with a growing portfolio of biomarker-directed trials sponsored by biopharma. Additionally, POA member institutions have access to the most comprehensive clinico-genomic database in the industry, which includes matched molecular and clinical outcomes data from more than 390,000 patients, covering over 1 million data points per patient.

About Caris Life Sciences

Caris Life Sciences (Caris) is the pioneer in precision medicine and leading molecular science and technology company actively developing and delivering innovative solutions to revolutionize healthcare and improve patient outcomes. Through comprehensive molecular profiling (Whole Exome and Whole Transcriptome Sequencing) and the application of advanced artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning algorithms, Caris has created the large-scale clinico-genomic database and cognitive computing needed to analyze and unravel the molecular complexity of disease. This convergence of data and machine learning provides an unmatched resource and the ideal path forward to conduct the basic, fundamental research to accelerate discovery for detection, diagnosis, monitoring, therapy selection and drug development to improve the human condition.

With a primary focus on cancer, Caris' suite of market-leading molecular profiling offerings assesses DNA, RNA and proteins to reveal a molecular blueprint that helps patients, physicians and researchers better detect, diagnose and treat patients. The company's latest advancement, Caris Assure, is a blood-based, circulating nucleic acids sequencing (cNAS) assay that combines comprehensive molecular analysis (Whole Exome and Whole Transcriptome Sequencing from blood) and serial monitoring  making it the most powerful liquid biopsy assay ever developed.

Headquartered in Irving, Texas, Caris has offices in Phoenix, New York, Tokyo, Japan and Basel, Switzerland. Caris or its distributors provide services in the U.S., Europe, Asia and other international markets. To learn more, please visit CarisLifeSciences.com or follow us on LinkedIn.

About SWOG Cancer Research Network

SWOG Cancer Research Network is part of the National Cancer Institute's National Clinical Trials Network and the NCI Community Oncology Research Program and is part of the oldest and largest publicly funded cancer research network in the nation. SWOG has more than 18,000 members in 45 states and 10 countries who design and conduct clinical trials to improve the lives of people with cancer. SWOG trials have led to the approval of 14 cancer drugs, changed more than 100 standards of cancer care, and saved more than 3 million years of human life. Learn more at swog.org, and follow us on Twitter.

Caris Life Sciences Media Contact:

Lisa Burgner

[email protected]

214.294.5606

SWOG Cancer Research Network Media Contact:

Frank DeSanto

[email protected]

210.718.2941

SOURCE Caris Life Sciences
ABU DHABI, UAE, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The Department of Health  Abu Dhabi (DoH), the regulator of the healthcare sector in the Emirate, signed a Declaration of Collaboration with Mass General Brigham's International Center for Genetic Disease (iCGD). The agreement signed is intended to advance life sciences across three strategic pillars including clinical and translational research, capacity building and technology transfer and commercialisation. Leveraging the Emirate's advanced genomics capabilities, the agreement seeks to expand research into the domain of genomic medicine and prioritised global genetic diseases in areas such as rare diseases, oncology, neurology, as well as cardiovascular and metabolic diseases. The collaboration aims to enhance access to innovative solutions and treatments for patients in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and beyond.

DoH with iCGD (PRNewsfoto/The Department of Health - Abu Dhabi)

In the presence of H.E. Mansoor Al Mansoori, Chairman of the Department of Health  Abu Dhabi and Dr. Alireza Haghighi, Founding Director of the International Center for Genetic Disease, the Declaration of Collaboration was signed by Dr. Asma Ibrahim Al Mannaei, Executive Director of Research and Innovation Centre at the Department of Health  Abu Dhabi and by Dr. Paul Anderson, Interim Chief Academic Officer of Mass General Brigham on behalf of iCGD and Mass General Brigham.

Dr. Asma Ibrahim Al Mannaei said: "Our collaboration with iCGD reaffirms our deep commitment to improving people's lives in the UAE and beyond. By leveraging the Emirate's advanced infrastructure, we seek to boost clinical research and advance gene therapy to improve healthcare outcomes today and for generations to come. Abu Dhabi continues to set the stage for a future driven by innovation and technology, reinforcing its position as a leading destination for healthcare and life science."

The research collaboration will focus on analysing whole genome sequencing data of the Emirati Genome Programme  the world's largest genomics programme  and on translational studies to develop novel therapies such as gene therapies and other effective interventions. Both parties will also explore opportunities to establish joint laboratories and genetic screening programmes in Abu Dhabi to support the discovery of genomic solutions that address international health challenges and needs.

Dr. Paul Anderson, Interim Chief Academic Officer of Mass General Brigham, commented: "Mass General Brigham is at the global forefront of scientific innovation and medical progress. Genomic medicine is a pivotal focus for us, serving to translate ground-breaking scientific advances into actionable diagnostics and treatments. Through our research collaboration with the Abu Dhabi Department of Health we intend to leverage our collective knowledge, experience, and expertise to further advance biomedical science and enhance public health. Our iCGD provides an excellent platform to achieve this goal."

Reflecting on this collaboration, Dr. Alireza Haghighi, Founding Director of the iCGD, stated: "We anticipate that the collaboration between the Mass General Brigham iCGD and the Abu Dhabi DoH will lead to improvements in clinical diagnosis and more effective disease prevention and management strategies. We are truly excited about the potential of this collaboration to advance medical science and believe that our combined impact will resonate beyond the UAE's borders, benefiting medical science globally".

To learn more, visit: https://www.doh.gov.ae/en/Abu-Dhabi-a-regional-life-science-hub

About Department of Health  Abu Dhabi (DoH):

The DoH is the regulatory body of the Healthcare Sector at the Emirate of Abu Dhabi and ensures excellence in healthcare for the community by monitoring the health status of the population. DoH defines the strategy for the health system, monitors and analyses the health status of the population and performance of the system. In addition, DoH shapes the regulatory framework for the health system, inspects against regulations, enforces standards, and encourages adoption of world-class best practices and performance targets by all healthcare service providers in the Emirate. DoH also drives programmes to increase awareness and adoption of healthy living standards among the residents of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi in addition to regulating scope of services, premiums and reimbursement rates of the health system.

For further information on DOH, visit https://www.doh.gov.ae/ and follow on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn and YouTube.

Media Contact: Rania El Kebbe, 00971551038650, [email protected]

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2102161/The_Department_of_Health_Abu_Dhabi.jpg

SOURCE The Department of Health - Abu Dhabi
The indexing and querying protocol for organizing blockchain data transitions to Arbitrum to reduce gas fees, increase transaction speed, and onboard new network participants

SAN FRANCISCO, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The Graph, the indexing and query protocol for organizing blockchain data, begins the final phase of its integration onto Arbitrum, the leading Layer 2 (L2) scaling solution built on Ethereum. Through its transition to Arbitrum One, The Graph lowers gas fees, accelerates transaction speeds, and increases the accessibility to participate on the protocol.

The transition, which was voted on and passed by network participants in a Graph Improvement Proposal (GIP), focuses on serving network participants seeking an improved network experience and reduced cost of participation. Today marks the beginning of Phase Three - a full migration to the Arbitrum network. A three-phase plan was initiated in 2022, with initial deployment as Phase One, followed by the enabling of protocol rewards on a Layer 2 during Phase Two. During the transition, ecosystem participants continued working and supporting developers on the Ethereum network.

Tegan Kline, CEO of Edge & Node, commented on today's news: "The Graph users have continually searched for solutions to improve gas efficiencies and enhance other aspects of the network. After careful consideration of all options on the market, the ecosystem selected Arbitrum as the Layer 2 scaling solution that will bring speed and affordability to protocol developers and network participants. Arbitrum boasts a vibrant ecosystem and cutting edge technology that will enable unprecedented access to blockchain data."

Beginning today, protocol users will be presented with an option to transition to Arbitrum across The Graph's suite of products. Protocol rewards will continue to gradually shift from Ethereum to Arbitrum, and over time, will transition entirely to Arbitrum. Core developers of The Graph are building L2 Transfer Tools for network participants to ensure a smooth transition.

Benefits of the migration to Arbitrum will be available immediately. Delegators are able to delegate The Graph's native token, GRT, with increased efficiency thanks to lower gas fees made available on Arbitrum. Indexers are encouraged to embrace the transition as indexing rewards are enabled on Arbitrum and can receive up to 300x lower gas fees when claiming GRT rewards.

Offchain Labs CEO, Steven Goldfeder, added: "Blockchain data is a key component powering the next iteration of innovation in web3. With The Graph fully operating on Arbitrum, Arbitrum users can take advantage of data accessibility  this is an exciting milestone for both The Graph and Arbitrum communities, as well as the broader Ethereum ecosystem."

The Graph and Arbitrum will be celebrating the milestone moment during an event at the House of Web3 in San Francisco this evening. The event will be livestreamed here: https://lvpr.tv?v=e5d5og0p7gg5xoe6

About The Graph Foundation

The Graph Foundation facilitates growth for The Graph Network. The Graph Foundation is overseen by the Technical Council. Edge & Node, StreamingFast, Semiotic Labs, The Guild, Messari and GraphOps are seven of the many organizations within The Graph ecosystem.

About Arbitrum

Arbitrum is a suite of secure scaling solutions for Ethereum, originally developed by Offchain Labs and now governed by The Arbitrum Foundation, overseeing the support and growth of the Arbitrum network and its community while remaining at the forefront of blockchain adoption. An Optimistic Rollup, Arbitrum One provides ultra-fast, low-cost transactions with security derived from Ethereum. Launched in August 2021, the Arbitrum One mainnet beta is EVM-compatible to the bytecode level and has 65%+ TVL in the L2 segment. In August 2022, Arbitrum One upgraded to Nitro tech stack, enabling fraud proofs over the core engine of Geth compiled to WASM.

Press Contact

[email protected]

SOURCE The Graph Foundation; Arbitrum Foundation
Rena Murshud

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's first state visit to Azerbaijan after being elected as president has ended. In addition to discussing many important issues, serious messages were also given to other countries. It is no coincidence that during the Turkish President's stay in Baku, the Iranian Foreign Ministry voiced its proposal regarding the restoration of frozen diplomatic relations. This can be considered as a serious reaction of the Iranian side to the processes.

According to the political analyst Sadraddin Soltan, head of the Middle East Research think tank, Iran's initiative is related to its intolerance to accept Turkiye's growing influence in the region.

"The Turkish president's statement regarding the visit to Baku and the opening of the Zangazur Corridor certainly worries Iran. Because Iran is one of the countries that does not want the opening of the corridor," the expert said.

In his comment for Azernews, Sadraddin Soltan also shed some light on the Iranian official's statement regarding the re-opening of the embassy.

"The statement regarding the reopening of the embassy are a continuation of the Iranian government's policy of restoring and developing relations with neighboring and other Muslim countries. Because the Iranian authorities have always engaged in illegal disruptive activities against neighboring and non-neighboring countries. The regime pretends to have good relations with Muslim countries from now on. In this regard, Iran's desire to restore relations with Azerbaijan stems from the jealousy of the Turkish leadership regarding the state visit to Azerbaijan," S.Soltan added.

The think tank head also spoke about the prospects of Iran's future cooperation with Azerbaijan in large-scale projects, including in the field of diplomacy.

"Earlier, it was proposed that the Iranian side could participate in many projects, for example, hydrocarbon projects passing through the territory of Azerbaijan, including the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan main oil and gas export pipeline. In the present case, it is not possible for Iran to participate in big projects such as TAP, TANAP, TransCaspian. For this, Iran must comply with some conditions. She should normalize relations with Azerbaijan, stop disruptive activities in the region, and most importantly, she should follow the offers and conditions of the Western bloc, led by the United States. In addition, the Iranian side should abandon its suspicious nuclear program, cooperate with the International Atomic Energy Agency and provide transparency in this regard. The Iranian side must respect human rights and territorial integrity of the neighboring states such as Syria, Iraq, Yemen, Palestine, Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, etc. and stop the interference. Besides, its disruptive and terrorist activities must be stopped in Central Asia. The attitude towards Israel and the US should change. If these conditions are met, Iran can participate in regional energy projects. Even new energy project lines can pass in their region. In the near future, as long as the regime in Iran is in power, it is very unlikely that Iran will participate in regional projects," the expert said.

He also touched upon the cooperation between Iran and Armenia in the field of energy and noted that in the current situation, Iran does not have the potential to supply Iran with energy.

"There is an agreement between Iran and Armenia in this direction. Iran provides natural gas to Armenia, and Armenia provides electricity to Iran in return. For this, Armenia plans to build power plant blocks in the territory of the country. The existing Metsamor Nuclear Power Plant is not large enough to export enough electricity to Iran. The reason is that the country that built the nuclear power plant is Russia, and secondly, Russia is not interested in working with the current government in this direction. The unstable position of the political power of Armenia hinders investment flow in this country. For this reason, the probability of not only mutual implementation of the project being talked about, but also its implementation in general is close to zero. Because currently, there is no country that provides financial aid to Armenia, whose political and economic power is at risk."

In conclusion, the expert talked about the negotiations between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Azerbaijan and Iran. He noted that if Iran does not accept Baku's conditions, it is impossible to melt the frozen diplomatic relations between the two countries.

"Negotiations are being conducted between Azerbaijan and Iran's MFA in various directions. Iran's ambassador to Azerbaijan, Abbas Mosevi, held meetings with various state institutions in Baku and tried to show goodwill towards Azerbaijan, but official Baku does not trust Iran's approach. Because Iran did not accept a number of conditions offered by Azerbaijan. Ensuring the security of Azerbaijan's embassies in Iran, investigating the terrorist crime committed in January, even presenting this terrorist act under the name of "family issue", as well as putting pressure on the country through the "Huseiniyyun" terrorist organization created by the IRGC, reduces Azerbaijan's trust in Iran," the expert underlined.
During the night, the Russians attacked Ukraine with four Kalibr missiles, as well as ten drones, in total, 12 targets were eliminated over Ukraine, the Air Force of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reported on Wednesday morning.

"On the night of June 14, 2023, the Russian invaders launched a missile attack on military and infrastructure facilities in Ukraine with air and sea-based cruise missiles, as well as kamikaze attack drones," the report says.

It is noted that from the Black Sea, the enemy launched a strike with four Kalibr cruise missiles in the direction of Odesa region. Three missiles were shot down, one hit a civilian object.

In addition, from the eastern coast of the Sea of Azov, the Russians attacked with ten Shahed-136/131 Iranian attack drones in the southeast direction.

Nine were shot down.

"From Rostov region, the invaders attacked with six X-22 air-launched cruise missiles from four long-range Tu-22M3 bombers. The attack was carried out in Donetsk region. The consequences are being specified," the report says.

In general, the forces and means of the Air Force, in cooperation with the air defense of the components of the Ukrainian Defense Forces, during this night attack destroyed 12 air targets: three Kalibr cruise missiles and nine Shahed-136/131 Iranian attack drones.
MEDFORD, Ore., June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Two and a half decades after their very first espresso drink was served with a signature chocolate-covered espresso bean on top, The Human Bean is celebrating its 25th anniversary this June.

On June 15, 1998 The Human Bean drive-thru opened for the very first time in Ashland, Oregon. And on that day a very special thing happened  the first drinks were served with a signature chocolate-covered espresso bean on top as a way of saying thank you for stopping by. Millions of chocolate-covered espresso beans later, The Human Bean is still using the gesture as a guide  that a little goes a long way, and we can always choose to be Kind Human Beans!

With a motto of "a little kindness goes a long way," The Human Bean has grown from a single drive-thru location in southern Oregon to over 300+ locations open or in development across over 25 states throughout the U.S. Franchise partners cite the company's core values of quality, community and integrity as the ingredients that have brewed the brand's quarter-century success.

"After seeing their passion for the company and tasting the incredible coffee, we were hooked," says Laura Stark, Texas franchise owner. "We knew we wanted to be a part of this amazing company. The Human Bean doesn't make you feel like you are a number. You feel like family."

As part of the celebration, The Human Bean recently launched a new website with easily-findable nutrition information, an online store, highlights of annual giveback campaigns, and vibrant photos of new speciality drinks and classic favorites.

Interested future franchisees are also invited to drink in the new, separate franchise-focused website with information about getting started (from site selection to operations) and accessing the suite of support tools from The Human Bean corporate team.

"We're ready to help at any stage," says COO, Scott Anderson. "Every applicant speaks with a founder during the development phase, and other franchise owners always offer their support, too. It's a really special community, and our partners who have grown with us are a big part of this 25-year milestone."

Every visit to The Human Bean in June is an opportunity to grab a limited-edition Happy Birthday sticker to join the festivities, while supplies last.

About The Human Bean

With a passion for creating happy 'Human Beans', the company's drive-thrus around the U.S. have established a reputation for friendly baristas, high-quality coffee, and innovative flavors. The Human Bean opened its first drive-thru espresso stand in Ashland, Oregon in 1998, and currently supports over 300 locations open or under development in 20 states.

Learn more at thehumanbean.com .

SOURCE The Human Bean
The Pioneering Women-Founded Wine Company Expands Role in Wine Industry Through Partnership with Gen Z Beverage Start-Up

OAKLAND, Calif., June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The McBride Sisters Wine Company (MSWC) today announces its first joint venture, a partnership with entrepreneur Jess Druey and her wine brand Whiny Baby. The collaboration between Robin McBride, Andrea McBride John and Druey formalizes the McBride Sisters Wine Company's production and distribution of the Whiny Baby collection of wines on a national scale and through direct consumer sales via www.whinybaby.com . The brand will formally launch via direct-to-consumer sales this July and will begin entering national retail accounts in October.

MSWC's joint venture with Whiny Baby significantly augments production capacity and national distribution for the start-up brand following its successful California launch of Whiny Baby wines in 2022. Whiny Baby will have access to the MSWC's substantial network and will benefit from the trailblazing women-founded brand's established relationships with national retailers, buyers and hospitality partners.

It will enter the market with three distinct bottlings: "Obsessed," a vibrant and fruity red wine; "Unwind," a white wine defined by a citrusy freshness; and "OMG!?!?," a lightly-bubbly rose, all sourced from California vineyards and certified Carbon Neutral.

Druey created Whiny Baby as a cheeky answer to the demand for brands offering a sense of connection, particularly among Gen Z consumers. Embracing the allegation that her generation is comprised of "whiny babies" seeking attention, Druey imagined a wine brand that sparks conversation and cultivates connection, primarily through authentic representation and a relaxed approach to connecting consumers with wines that suit their lifestyles.

The partnership took shape when Druey contacted Andrea and Robin, inspired by their own tenacity and role as trailblazing women in the wine business. Her relentless pursuit got the attention of the McBride Sisters, who, having established the country's largest Black- and women-founded wine company, were in a position to advise Druey on strategy and growth.

"After successfully marketing the first vintage of Whiny Baby to California consumers in 2022, I was thirsty for a better understanding of the wine industry to help me plan the future of the brand," says Druey. "I'd discovered the McBride Sisters Wine Company and with no other industry contacts, made it my mission to learn what I could from them. I did not stop until I got their attention," she continues. "I can't count the number of Instagram DMs, notes on LinkedIn and shot-in-the-dark emails I sent, all of which were worth it, given this fantastic partnership."

Of their first joint venture, Andrea McBride John reflects, "Jess has followed her instincts and created a California wine brand that captures exactly what Gen Z wants from a wine brand and the overall wine experience through a vision focused on community. She's a fearless and determined entrepreneur, and we are thrilled to support her in her growth and evolution of the brand, breaking all the old-school wine rules and having too much fun along the way."

Robin McBride notes, "Jess' vision and tenacity reminded us so much of ourselves when we first started in the wine business. We were incredibly inspired by her unapologetic viewpoints and goal of serving the Gen Z community of which she's a part." Encouraging consumers to follow along on Whiny Baby's Instagram page, @whinybaby, she continues, "We're witnessing the start of the Gen Z revolution that's here for good and we're excited to support this effort and welcome it in the world of wine."

Through Whiny Baby, Druey and the McBride Sisters are creating a unique wine experience that prioritizes play in everyday life, one which sparks dialogue through interactive write-on, peel-away labels and "conversation caps," crown caps whose undersides are printed with questions and conversation-starters. The brand's mantra, "Don't stay bottled up," calls consumers to own their self-expression, a value as authentic to the Gen Z consumer as it is to the McBride Sisters themselves, whose dynamic brands, including Black Girl Magic wines and SHE CAN Wines, each speak to consumer communities.

For more information on Whiny Baby, please visit www.whinybaby.com , or follow Jess Druey @whinybaby as she visits key cities to kick off the brand's national distribution this summer and fall. For more information on the McBride Sisters Wine Company, please visit www.mcbridesisters.com .

About Whiny Baby:

Whiny Baby is wine without the fuss! We reimagine the drinking and wine discovery experience through connection-based consumption and believe that choosing a wine doesn't need to be intimidating, confusing, or even hard to pronounce! It can (and should) be fun, easy, and engaging. We prioritize play everyday, with easy to drink and thoughtfully made wine in playful, interactive bottles, designed to uplift the mood and spark conversation, whatever the occasion. We believe in connection based consumption and wine as a powerful gathering tool, bringing people and ideas together to create the best experiences. From polling to decide on flavor blends and artwork, to sharing every part of the Whiny Baby journey with our family on socials, we invite our customers to be consultants in shaping the Whiny Baby brand together with us along the way. We can't wait to hear what you have to say. DON'T STAY BOTTLED UP! For more information visit www.whinybaby.com or follow us @whinybaby.

About the McBride Sisters Wine Company:

McBride Sisters Wine Company was founded by sisters, Robin McBride and Andrea McBride John, who believe wine companies should be accessible, sustainable, socially conscious and culturally aware. We are the largest Black-owned and largest all women-founded wine company in the United States. Our mission is to transform the industry, lead by example and cultivate community, one delicious glass at a time. We produce wine across two hemispheres, from premier coastal winemaking regions which are at the root of our story - where Andrea and Robin each grew up - in Aotearoa New Zealand and the Central Coast of California. We offer a unique portfolio of leading brands; McBride Sisters Collection, Black Girl Magic Wines, and SHE CAN Wines and spritzers. We are Wine for the New World. For more information, please visit mcbridesisters.com or follow along on Instagram at @mcbridesisters, @mcbridesisterscollection, @blackgirlmagicwines and @shecanwines.

Enjoy Responsibly.  2023 McBride Sisters Wine Company, San Luis Obispo, CA

SOURCE McBride Sisters Wine Company
The Coal to Clean Credit Initiative (CCCI), a consortium of global experts, is developing a world-first carbon credit methodology and starting a consultative process this month.

The methodology will be presented as soon as COP28 and transactions for coal-to-clean credits could be signed in 2024, following its accreditation.

CCCI aims to apply this methodology to catalyze the just transition of coal-fired power plants in emerging economies across the world over the coming years, avoiding the planned release of millions of tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) into the atmosphere.

The Rockefeller Foundation and Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet (GEAPP) will be supported by implementing partner South Pole, with technical and convening expertise from RMI and Climate Policy Initiative (CPI).

NEW YORK, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The Rockefeller Foundation and Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet (GEAPP) announced the Coal to Clean Credit Initiative (CCCI) will set a new comprehensive standard for the use of carbon finance to incentivize a just transition away from coal-fired power plants to renewable energy in emerging economies. This initiative, which is supported by Climate Policy Initiative (CPI), RMI, and South Pole, will begin running a consultative process to develop the methodology this month, setting a global benchmark for carbon-financed coal transition projects. The Rockefeller Foundation and GEAPP plan to present CCCI's methodology during the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP28) in Dubai with the endorsement of a leading carbon standard.

"Emerging and developing countries have the right to create opportunity, jobs, and electricity for their people without triggering a climate emergency," said Dr. Rajiv J. Shah, President of The Rockefeller Foundation. "The Coal to Clean Credit Initiative can help these countries retire coal plants and replace them with cleaner power, which can avoid tens of millions of tons of emissions per plant while still unlocking opportunity for people."

Over 90% of coal plants are shielded from competition due to regulation or long-term contracts that guarantee their returns, resulting in many coal plants having no financial motivation to retire early. In response, the CCCI is designing a methodology that can be used to develop a world-first project approach to accelerate the managed and equitable phase-out of coal plants and incentivize their full or partial replacement with clean power this decade.

The revenue generated from selling the CCCI's 'coal-to-clean' credits could provide incentives for coal plant owners to change course and invest in renewable energy, while also generating funding to support the transition of workers and communities away from coal-fired power.

CCCI has developed a detailed concept, with input from a technical advisory group of leading experts, and identified real-world cases that are most suitable for the generation of coal-to-clean credits. CCCI's ambition is to begin signing transactions as soon as 2024 and to apply the methodology to as many plants as possible this decade, avoiding millions of tons of planned carbon dioxide emissions.

Led by GEAPP, CCCI has secured a high-level partnership with the Republic of Indonesia to develop a roadmap for the generation of coal-to-clean credits for the managed and equitable phase-out of coal plants, and has begun scoping work in South Africa and Vietnam for similar partnerships.

"The JETP Indonesia Secretariat welcomes the Coal to Clean Carbon Initiative. We view this as a real opportunity to support one of the key priorities JETP Indonesia, namely the early retirement of coal power plants," said Edo Mahendra, Head of Indonesia's JETP Secretariat. "The task may be daunting, but with the right level of international support and political commitment that you have from the Government of Indonesia, we can collectively prove that accelerating the retirement of coal power plants can be made possible."

With the right kinds of investment and support, affected communities will have a critical role to play in the transition from coal to clean power. CCCI's just transition plans will be developed in partnership with local communities for each project. These include routes to new employment, entrepreneurship, and reskilling to ensure that the needs of coal workers and local communities are kept at the forefront throughout.

"By 2030 the cost of renewables will undercut fossil fuels almost everywhere, enabling an estimated 25 million secure jobs in Asia and Africa alone. GEAPP is proud to support countries such as Indonesia, whose request to participate in the Coal to Clean Credit Initiative will place them at the forefront of energy transition and carbon market development," said Simon Harford, CEO of GEAPP. "This initiative is important not only because it creates financial incentives for emerging economies to rapidly transition from coal to renewable energy but does so in a just way to ensure jobs and livelihoods are properly accounted for as each project develops and scales."

The Rockefeller Foundation and GEAPP will be supported by implementing partner South Pole, with technical and convening expertise from RMI and CPI. Together, they are focused on ensuring that it is established according to the highest level of environmental integrity, technical best-practice, and credible, cross-societal stakeholder engagement.

The aim is that CCCI will set a new benchmark for carbon-financed coal transition projects and accelerate the global coal-to-clean transition. By providing a nearer-term opportunity at the project level, CCCI's methodology aims to align with jurisdictional approaches and system-level decarbonization. CCCI is therefore exploring an innovative, system-integrated project approach to mobilizing carbon finance to accelerate the managed and equitable phase-out of coal plants, and incentivizing their full or partial replacement with clean power.

CCCI's project approach recognizes that coal plants are strategic assets operating within a national power system, and that their accelerated retirement requires careful consultation with national authorities and consideration and evaluation of the system-wide impacts. CCCI will also be intentionally designed to integrate with existing and future compliance markets and the voluntary market.

For this reason, CCCI complements other carbon market and public climate finance initiatives that are focused on delivering this same ambition, while working on an accelerated transition timeline. For example, CCCI could help to unlock the private finance needed for larger-scale initiatives, such as Just Energy Transition Partnerships (JETPs). It will also promote broader carbon market development, by growing the supply of high-integrity credits and setting clear standards for buyers.

Over the course of the coming months, CCCI will continue to share expertise with stakeholders and other coal transition initiatives, including the carbon standards, international finance institutions, and other organizations working on financial mechanisms. Stakeholders are welcomed to engage with CCCI's local consultations and stakeholder learning sessions on the transition from coal to clean power. CCCI will also continue to exchange its expertise with stakeholders in developing this new benchmark for coal-to-clean projects.

''If we are to avoid the threat of over 2 degrees Celsius of global warming, we must provide a credible pathway for coal plants in emerging economies to transition sooner,'' said Dr. Joseph Curtin, Managing Director for Power and Climate at The Rockefeller Foundation. "Tens of millions of tons of carbon dioxide emissions can be avoided if just one plant is retired and replaced by cleaner power decades ahead of its planned closure. Realizing this benefit requires compelling incentives and additional finance.''

About the Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet

The Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet (GEAPP) is an alliance of philanthropy, governments in emerging and developed economies, and technology, policy, and financing partners. Our common mission is to enable emerging economies to shift to a clean energy, pro-growth model that accelerates universal energy access and inclusive economic growth, while supporting the global community to meet critical climate goals during the next decade. As an alliance we aim to reduce 4 gigatons of future carbon emissions, expand clean energy access to one billion people, and enable 150 million new jobs. With philanthropic partners, IKEA Foundation, The Rockefeller Foundation, and Bezos Earth Fund, GEAPP works to build the enabling environment, capacity, and market conditions for private sector solutions, catalyse new business models through innovation and entrepreneurship, and deploy high-risk capital to encourage private sector solutions, and assist just transition solutions. For more information, please visit www.energyalliance.org and follow us on Twitter at @EnergyAlliance.

About The Rockefeller Foundation

The Rockefeller Foundation is a pioneering philanthropy built on collaborative partnerships at the frontiers of science, technology, and innovation that enable individuals, families, and communities to flourish. We make big bets to promote the well-being of humanity and make opportunity universal and sustainable. Our focus is on scaling renewable energy for all, stimulating economic mobility, and ensuring equitable access to health care and nutritious food. For more information, sign up for our newsletter at www.rockefellerfoundation.org and follow us on Twitter @RockefellerFdn.

SOURCE The Rockefeller Foundation
Strong showing follows the expansion of the agency's growth marketing services and reinforces the impact of integrated campaigns

BOSTON, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Integrated marketing and public relations agency Three Rings Inc. today announced it won 10 times at the 2023 Bell Ringer Awards. This accomplishment comes on the heels of last week's announcement of the agency's expanded growth marketing services.

Eight different Three Rings client account teams won awards in nine different categories. The winning entries included silver and bronze bells for digital/printed collateral; bronze bells for television news placement; one-time special event; B2B rebranding; B2B social media; and merit awards for trade media placement; series of placements; byline article placement; and corporate social responsibility campaign.

"The most gratifying part is that so many client teams won a range of awards showcasing our media, branding, social media and content capabilities," said Three Rings Principal Doug Broad. "The number and diversity of awards really is a testament to the creativity and experience of our team and their ability to drive impactful results for clients ranging from startups to the world's largest corporations."

In add to the Bell Ringer awards, Three Rings was also recently named to Inc. Magazine's List of the fastest-growing private companies in the Northeast, was a PRWeek finalist for "Outstanding Boutique Agency" and won six platinum MarCom Awards.

About Three Rings Inc.

Three Rings Inc. provides a full spectrum of PR, brand marketing, growth marketing and content services to technology clients worldwide. The company combines a comprehensive array of expert skills, with a highly flexible business model that enables clients to shift services, priorities and geographies on demand. This delivers superior results for clients while also providing a dynamic work environment for employees. Three Rings is based in Boston with additional operations across the US, UK and the EU.

SOURCE Three Rings Inc.
LINCOLN, Calif., June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Author Laura Leone couldn't be happier seeing Amazon screenshots showing her latest Kindle edition book Conscious Kid-Adventures with Zane: Imagine & Create reaching bestseller status in several categories in the U.S., Italy and the United Kingdom.

Sparkling with a whimsical character-based storyline taking young readers on a captivating mindfulness and meditation adventure, it also made top 100 in Germany. She plans to soon release a Spanish edition and is working on a STEM based space book in her series.

Photo Credit: Courtesy of TransMedia Group (PRNewsfoto/TransMedia Group)

Besides her role as best-selling author, she is a publisher and cosmetics entrepreneur, the founder and CEO of Starseed Metaphysical Shop LLC.

The daughter of a Mexican immigrant, and proud mom to her 5-year-old son, Laura served six years in the United States Air Force.

Something she is most passionate about is bringing metaphysical awareness to youth by creating whimsical storylines in her latest book featuring an author-led audio meditation and engaging coloring book activities, designed to nurture children's well-being.

Motivated by her own experiences and desire to provide a mindful activity for her child during lockdowns, Laura established Starseed Metaphysical Shop Publishing.

Laura's best seller is available at lauraleoneauthor.com, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Google Books, and Apple Books. You can listen to the Conscious Kid-Adventures Meditation on YouTube.

Leone created Starseed Cosmetics when she realized there was a need for vegan and cruelty-free cosmetics.

"Laura's journey is an inspiring story, an uplifting testament to her visionary spirit, from air force to author, publisher, cosmetics entrepreneur. She is a gemstone within a mine of coal and we're blessed to represent her," said her agent, Adrienne Mazzone, President of Madden Talent.

"Laura's ever expanding creative vision made her realize the need for vegan and cruelty-free cosmetics," said Mazzone, leading her to create Starseed Cosmetics," a brand committed to providing high-quality vegan cosmetic options to conscientious consumers.

With an array of Starseed and DNA origins ranging from Native American to European and Egyptian, Leone offers unique blend of experiences and perspectives. She's an underwriter of critically-acclaimed television show, "Steel the Spotlight," hosted by William Steel, star of hit reality show "Inmate to Roommate" on A&E network.

"Leone is professionally certified in metaphysical arts such as Akashic records, chakra healings and concurrent lives," said Tom Madden, CEO, TransMedia Group.

Media contact: Adrienne Mazzone 561-908-1683;

[email protected].

SOURCE Laura Leone
Innovation to treat injured soldiers on the battlefield

The Army teams up with NHS Blood and Transplant

4.9 million to support clinical trials in the UK

BOSTON, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- An innovative project to rapidly deliver blood and plasma to injured soldiers is set to save lives in warzones. The UK Ministry of Defence's Blood Far Forward programme aims to deliver blood and plasma within 30 minutes of injury to soldiers in active warzones.

Dried plasma  which helps the blood to clot  will decrease the Army's reliance on frozen plasma which has to be thawed, taking longer to administer, and could be used by NHS Air Ambulances in the future.

UK Army & NHSBT Dry Plasma Development Contract Awarded to Velico Medical

In the warzone most deaths occur within 60 minutes due to catastrophic injury, head injury or major haemorrhage. Early provision of plasma with red cells dramatically reduces mortality from major haemorrhage.

Frozen plasma currently takes an average of 20 minutes to thaw and transporting it poses major logistical challenges, including requiring a freezer and specialist equipment.

In contrast, dried plasma can be stored at room temperature and can be used by the medic when needed.

The Army has now funded NHS Blood and Transplant to find a way to manufacture dried plasma for use on military operations.

At present, the Army sources dried plasma from NATO partners, which subject to significant worldwide demand. Sourcing it from the UK will ensure the Army has adequate supply that is not reliant on other countries.

The project will also enable single units of plasma to be produced without the need of complex facilities and placed in more convenient, plastic bags.

Technological resources for the project will be provided by Velico Medical, who have been contracted by NHSBT to work in collaboration with NHS scientists, including the process of gaining regulatory approval.

UK Minister for Defence People, Veterans and Service Families, Dr Andrew Murrison said:

"We're always striving to improve our ability to treat trauma in the field, and catastrophic injuries that require acute medical attention in adverse environments, including the battlefield, are some of the most challenging.

"Treating people quickly and near to the point of injury is so often critical. That's why spray dried plasma is such an important step forward."

UK Health Minister Neil O'Brien said:

"This project has the potential to save soldiers' lives by treating significant blood loss with plasma.

"We are continuing our history of health innovation on the battlefield and investing in cutting-edge treatments by delivering plasma made in the UK to the front line.

"We work best when we're working together and this project is the perfect example of the government, NHS Blood and Transplant, the Army and medical technologists collaborating to deliver transformative care to people when they need it."

Major General Tim Hodgetts, Surgeon General and Master General of the Army Medical Services, said:

"The Army's leadership in developing a sovereign capability for dried plasma will save the lives of injured Service Personnel on operations, whilst securing our own national supply chain for what is a critical product in high international demand."

Rebecca Cardigan, Head of NHS Blood and Transplant's Component Development Laboratory, said:

"Plasma saves lives every day, by treating massive blood loss. We're now researching and developing a world class dried plasma product which will not only save the lives of the Army's battlefield casualties but could one day be used in civilian care where there are also logistical challenges, such as by Air Ambulance crews."

Richard Meehan, President and CEO of Velico, said:

"Spray-dried plasma is not only highly innovative, but it will change the course of transfusion medicine. We are excited and looking forward to work with our UK champions, in bringing our technology one step closer to changing lives in real-time."

The cost of the project is 4.9 million and will involve clinical trials in the UK. It is expected the resulting product will also benefit the NHS.

Notes to Editors

The UK has a track record of innovation in the field of blood supplies to the battlefield. During World War Two, 300,000 units of dried plasma were manufactured in Cambridge and supplied most of the allies. The Blood Far Forward programme is part of the work the Army's Futures Directorate is doing to improve battlefield logistics. This includes the Army Warfighting Experiment and the Human Machine Teaming project which is bringing robotics and autonomous systems into the Army by 2025. The project will be delivered over the course of three years. NHS Blood and Transplant is a joint England and Wales Special Health Authority which provides the blood, plasma and platelet donation service for England and the organ donation service for the UK. Velico Medical, Inc. is a private US medical technology company, committed to the mission of eliminating preventable death from bleeding. Headquartered in Beverly, Massachusetts , USA. Velico personnel have substantial expertise and experience in transfusion medicine and medical device development. In support of its mission, Velico is developing partnerships with civilian, government and military blood center leadership, trauma surgeons, emergency medical physicians, military medics and first responders worldwide. Velico's development program has been funded in whole or in part with Federal funds from the US Department of Health and Human Services; Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response; Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority, under contract number 75A50121C00059.

SOURCE Velico Medical, Inc
Following UPSIDE's historic FDA "green light" in 2022, UPSIDE Foods today announced another historic milestone - label approval for its cell-cultivated chicken

With this label approval, UPSIDE has one remaining step in the regulatory review process before it can start commercial production and sales - a USDA Grant of Inspection (GOI) for its Engineering, Production, and Innovation Center (EPIC)

BERKELEY, Calif., June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- UPSIDE Foods, the leading cultivated meat, poultry and seafood company, announced today that it obtained label approval for its cultivated chicken from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). With an approved label in hand, UPSIDE Foods is now working with USDA to obtain a Grant of Inspection (GOI) for its Engineering, Production, and Innovation Center (EPIC), the last remaining item in the pre-market regulatory process before the company can commercially produce and sell its cultivated chicken in the United States. The label uses the term "cell-cultivated chicken."

UPSIDE Foods' Cultivated Chicken (Label Approval)

As a cultivated meat product grown directly from real animal cells, UPSIDE's Chicken is subject to the same labeling requirements as conventionally-produced meat products. UPSIDE Foods has now demonstrated full compliance with all pre-market requirements for labeling and can begin commercial production and sales as soon as it obtains a GOI from USDA. UPSIDE's chicken will proudly bear the USDA mark of inspection on its packaging after it passes USDA inspection.

"The USDA's approval of our label marks a major step forward towards our goal of creating a more humane and sustainable food system," said Dr. Uma Valeti, CEO and Founder of UPSIDE Foods. "We're excited to continue working with the USDA to achieve our next milestone: a Grant of Inspection (GOI) for our facility. Obtaining the USDA's GOI will clear the way for commercial production and sales and allow us to bring our delicious UPSIDE chicken to consumers for the first time."

After completing the next and final regulatory step, UPSIDE's cultivated chicken will be launched in limited quantities through select restaurant partners, starting with three-Michelin star Chef Dominique Crenn's restaurant Bar Crenn in San Francisco. Launch details will be shared at a later date, including information on how to be among the first to try UPSIDE's cultivated chicken. Follow UPSIDE Foods on Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook and sign up for UPSIDE's newsletter to stay up-to-date.

This announcement comes after a series of milestones as UPSIDE Foods approaches commercialization, including receiving the world's first "green light" for cultivated meat from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), a $400M Series C placing the company's valuation at over $1 billion, and the expansion of its product portfolio to include ground cultivated meat products. In addition, UPSIDE will continue its work with FDA and USDA to bring its next consumer products to market, including sausages, nuggets, and dumplings.

About UPSIDE Foods

Based in Berkeley, CA, UPSIDE Foods grows meat, poultry and seafood directly from animal cells. These products are not vegan or vegetarianthey are delicious meat, made without the need to raise and slaughter billions of animals. Founded as the world's first cultivated meat company in 2015, UPSIDE Foods has achieved numerous industry-defining milestones, including being the first company to produce multiple species of meat (beef, chicken and duck), and to receive a "green light" from FDA for a cultivated meat product. The company believes that people shouldn't have to choose between the foods they love and a thriving planet, and is working to build a better food system with access to delicious, humane, and sustainable meat, poultry, and seafood. UPSIDE Foods has won various industry awards, including New York Times' Good Tech Awards, FastCo's Next Big Thing in Tech, and the Best and Brightest Companies to Work For in the Nation by the National Association for Business Resources. UPSIDE Foods has raised a total of $608 million, including from the Abu Dhabi Growth Fund (ADG), Baillie Gifford, Bill Gates, Cargill, Future Ventures, John Doerr, John Mackey, Kimbal and Christiana Musk, Norwest, Richard Branson, Softbank, Temasek, Threshold, Tyson Foods, and others. For more information, please visit www.upsidefoods.com.

Media Contact

Brooke Whitney

[email protected]

SOURCE UPSIDE Foods
RIO DE JANEIRO, June 13, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Vale S.A. ("Vale") announces the expiration of the previously announced offer to purchase (the "Offer") with respect to any and all outstanding 6.250% Guaranteed Notes due 2026 (the "2026 Notes") issued by its wholly owned subsidiary, Vale Overseas Limited ("Vale Overseas" or the "Offeror").

Vale also announces the expiration date result of the Offer as of the Any and All Expiration Date (as defined below) as set forth in the table below, including the aggregate principal amount of 2026 Notes validly tendered and accepted in such Offer, and the aggregate principal amount of 2026 Notes reflected in notices of guaranteed delivery delivered at or prior to the Any and All Expiration Date:

Issuer Title of Security CUSIP / ISIN Nos. Principal

Amount

Outstanding Consideration(1) Principal

Amount

Tendered(2) Principal

Amount

Accepted(2) Principal Amount

Reflected in Notices of

Guaranteed Delivery Vale Overseas 6.250%

Guaranteed Notes

due 2026 CUSIP: 91911TAP8

ISIN: US91911TAP84 US$745,441,000 US$1,041.55 US$274,819,000 US$274,819,000 US$11,129,000

____________________________________ (1) Per $1,000 principal amount. All holders of 2026 Notes accepted for purchase will also receive accrued and unpaid interest on 2026 Notes validly tendered and accepted for purchase from and including the applicable last interest payment date up to, but not including, the Any and All Settlement Date (as defined below). (2) The amounts do not include the principal amount of 2026 Notes with respect to which holders have delivered notices of guaranteed delivery.

The Offer was made upon the terms and subject to the conditions set forth in the offer to purchase dated June 7, 2023 (the "Offer to Purchase") relating to the 2026 Notes and the accompanying notice of guaranteed delivery. The Offer expired at 5:00 p.m., New York City time, today (the "Any and All Expiration Date"). The settlement date with respect to the Offer is expected to occur on June 16, 2023 (the "Any and All Settlement Date").

In order to be eligible to participate in the Offer, holders of 2026 Notes who delivered notices of guaranteed delivery prior to the Any and All Expiration Date must deliver such 2026 Notes no later than 5:00 p.m., New York City time, on June 15, 2023 (the "Guaranteed Delivery Date"), pursuant to the Guaranteed Delivery Procedures (as defined in the Offer to Purchase).

The Offeror's obligation to accept 2026 Notes tendered in the Offer is subject to the terms and conditions of the Offer to Purchase. On the terms and subject to the conditions set forth in the Offer to Purchase, the Offeror has accepted for purchase all of the 2026 Notes validly tendered and expects to accept all of the 2026 Notes validly delivered on or prior to the Guaranteed Delivery Date pursuant to the Guaranteed Delivery Procedures.

The aggregate principal amount of 2026 Notes that will be purchased by the Offeror on the Any and All Settlement Date is subject to change based on deliveries of 2026 Notes pursuant to the Guaranteed Delivery Procedures. The aggregate principal amount of 2026 Notes accepted and expected to be accepted in the Offer, excluding any premium and accrued and unpaid interest, will be approximately US$285,948,000.

All conditions described in the Offer to Purchase that were to be satisfied or waived on or prior to the Any and All Expiration Date have been satisfied.

Vale has retained BMO Capital Markets Corp., Citigroup Global Markets Inc., J.P. Morgan Securities LLC, and Scotia Capital (USA) Inc. to serve as dealer managers ("Dealer Managers") and D.F. King & Co., Inc. to serve as tender and information agent for the Offer ("D.F. King"). The Offer to Purchase and any related supplements are available at the D.F. King website at www.dfking.com/vale. The full details of the Offer, including complete instructions on how to tender Notes (as defined in the Offer to Purchase), are included in the Offer to Purchase. Holders of Notes are strongly encouraged to carefully read the Offer to Purchase, including materials incorporated by reference therein, because they will contain important information. Requests for the Offer to Purchase and any related supplements may also be directed to D.F. King by telephone at +1 (212) 269-5550 or +1 (800) 591-8263 (US toll free) or in writing at [email protected]. Questions about the Offer may be directed to BMO Capital Markets Corp. by telephone at +1 (212) 702-1840 (collect) or +1 (833) 418-0762 (US toll free), Citigroup Global Markets Inc. by telephone at +1 (212) 723-6106 (collect) or +1 (800) 558-3745 (US toll free), J.P. Morgan Securities LLC by telephone at +1 (212) 834-4045 (collect) or +1 (866) 834-4666 (US toll free) and Scotia Capital (USA) Inc. by telephone at +1 (212) 225-5559 (collect) or +1 (833) 498-1660 (US toll free).

This news release is for informational purposes only and is neither an offer to purchase nor a solicitation of an offer to sell any securities. The Offer was made only by, and pursuant to the terms of, the Offer to Purchase. The Offer was not made in any jurisdiction in which the making or acceptance thereof would not be in compliance with the securities, blue sky or other laws of such jurisdiction. In any jurisdiction where the laws required the Offer to be made by a licensed broker or dealer, the Offer was made by the Dealer Managers on behalf of the Offeror. None of the Offeror, D.F. King, the Dealer Managers or the trustee with respect to the Notes (as defined in the Offer to Purchase), nor any of their affiliates, made any recommendation as to whether holders should have tendered or refrained from tendering all or any portion of their Notes in response to the Offer. None of the Offeror, D.F. King, the Dealer Managers or the trustee with respect to the Notes, nor any of their affiliates, have authorized any person to give any information or to make any representation in connection with the Offer other than the information and representations contained in the Offer to Purchase.

Gustavo Duarte Pimenta

Executive Vice President, Finance and Investor Relations

For further information, please contact:

[email protected]

Ivan Fadel: [email protected]

Mariana Rocha: [email protected]

Luciana Oliveti: [email protected]

Pedro Terra: [email protected]

This press release may include statements that present Vale's expectations about future events or results. All statements, when based upon expectations about the future, involve various risks and uncertainties. Vale cannot guarantee that such statements will prove correct. These risks and uncertainties include factors related to the following: (a) economic, political and social issues in the countries in which we operate, (b) the global economy, (c) commodity prices, (d) financial and capital markets, (e) the mining and metals businesses, which are cyclical in nature, and their dependence upon global industrial production, which is also cyclical, (f) regulation and taxation, (g) operational incidents or accidents, and (h) the high degree of global competition in the markets in which we operate. To obtain further information on factors that may lead to results different from those forecast by Vale, please consult the reports Vale files with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Brazilian Comissao de Valores Mobiliarios (CVM), and in particular the factors discussed under "Forward-Looking Statements" and "Risk Factors" in Vale's annual report on Form 20-F.

SOURCE Vale S.A.
Commercial Real Estate Developer Honored for Industry Leadership; Outstanding Quality of Projects and Services; Community Support

WASHINGTON, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- NAIOP, the Commercial Real Estate Development Association, has selected VanTrust Real Estate, LLC (VanTrust) as its 2023 Developer of the Year  the association's highest honor. The award will be presented during NAIOP's CRE.Converge conference in Seattle this October.

"We at VanTrust are extremely proud to be recognized by NAIOP as the Developer of the Year for 2023, and we would like to thank NAIOP for this honor. This award is a testament to the commitment of our employees, who consistently strive to exceed expectations through a strong set of guiding values and a commitment to the communities we serve. This, we believe, is what distinguishes VanTrust and enables us to develop with a difference," said Dave Harrison, president, VanTrust.

Established in 2010 as a full-service real estate development firm with a regional focus and a national reach, VanTrust has grown to become one of the nation's largest privately held commercial real estate companies. VanTrust primarily develops for the Van Tuyl family, as well as select relationship-based partnerships and select fee-based development services for clients. Headquartered in Kansas City, Missouri, with offices in Dallas; Phoenix; Columbus, Ohio; and Jacksonville, Florida, the company offers a wide range of services, including acquisitions, development, asset enhancement, and design and construction oversight.

The company has experienced rapid growth since its inception. VanTrust has developed more than 61 million square feet of office, industrial, multifamily, mixed-used, science + technology, and hospitality projects nationwide. Through the strong leadership of the Van Tuyl Companies, VanTrust has developed more than $6 billion worth of product. The company's project starts in 2022 surpassed $1.3 billion.

Among VanTrust's core priorities is to serve as responsible stewards of the communities in which it operates, focusing efforts on building stronger, healthier communities and delivering developments that form an integral part of these communities. Through its charitable contributions, VanTrust helps improve areas of community revitalization, education, infrastructure, economic impact, financial literacy, community health and human services, and the arts.

"We believe that supporting our communities both financially and with our time and energy improves the quality of life for our clients, business associates, our employees and those living and working around us. Contributing to those in need is consistent with our company values, makes sense for our business, and is the right thing to do," said Harrison.

From land acquisition to development and operations management, VanTrust is dedicated to working with its clients to identify measures that reduce environmental impact. Team members and clients incorporate sustainable strategies across their portfolio through innovation and adaptation.

"On behalf of NAIOP, we are honored to recognize the tremendous achievements of VanTrust as our 2023 Developer of the Year. The company has been incredibly successful and effectively navigated challenges by adapting to the market and leading with an entrepreneurial and nimble approach," said Marc Selvitelli, CAE, NAIOP president and CEO. "The company's commitment to its employees, clients and communities is impressive."

VanTrust and its employees are active in NAIOP across several association chapters, including NAIOP Arizona, NAIOP Central Ohio, NAIOP Northeast Florida, NAIOP North Texas and NAIOP Southern Nevada.

Since 1979, the NAIOP Developer of the Year award has been presented to a development company that best exemplifies leadership and innovation in the commercial real estate industry. VanTrust was selected from an impressive slate of nominees and was evaluated by a team of seasoned developers on the following criteria: outstanding quality of projects and services; active support of the industry through NAIOP; financial consistency and stability; ability to adapt to market conditions; and support of the local community.

About NAIOP

NAIOP, the Commercial Real Estate Development Association, is the leading organization for developers, owners, investors and related professionals in office, industrial, retail and mixed-use real estate. NAIOP provides unparalleled industry networking and education and advocates for effective legislation on behalf of our members. NAIOP advances responsible, sustainable development that creates jobs and benefits the communities in which our members work and live. For more information, visit naiop.org.

About VanTrust Real Estate, LLC

VanTrust Real Estate, LLC is a full-service real estate development company. The company acquires and develops real estate assets for the Van Tuyl family portfolio and offers a broad range of real estate services including acquisition, disposition, development, development services, corporate services, and asset management. Product types include office, industrial, multifamily, science + technology and mixed-use. VanTrust works nationally with regional offices in Columbus, Dallas, Phoenix, and Jacksonville with its headquarters in Kansas City, Missouri. For more information, visit www.vantrustre.com.

SOURCE NAIOP
HOUSTON, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Venus Aerospace, a Houston-based hypersonic startup enabling cost-effective one-hour global transport, welcomes the new addition of Airbus Ventures to its team of investors.

Venus Aerospace welcomes the new addition of Airbus Ventures to its team of investors. Tweet this Venus Aerospace RDRE Test, Spaceport Houston Venus Aerospace RDRE Test, Spaceport Houston

"Venus has developed the world's first liquid-propellant rotating detonation rocket engine (RDRE) with a double-digit percentage increase in efficiency over standard regular engines, making the hypersonic economy possible," remarks Venus Aerospace CEO and co-founder Sassie Duggleby, who goes on to say, "We're delighted to bring Airbus Ventures into the Venus family and look forward to growing our collaboration as we harness the future of hypersonic flight."

Venus has been awarded contracts with NASA and US Defense Agencies to accelerate the development and transition of its RDRE technology to enhance existing government missions. The company's advancements can also enable more efficient travel in and through space.

"We are thrilled to welcome Sassie, Andrew, and the entire Venus team into the Airbus Ventures portfolio. In the world of RDREs, their pioneering approach - designing, building, and demonstrating the first liquid, storable-propellant fueled rotating detonation rocket engine - unlocks advanced aircraft capabilities and opens new vistas on our whole planetary system," praises Airbus Ventures Managing Partner Thomas d'Halluin. "Venus' compact, low mass, high efficiency engine capability will have an immediate impact on lunar and martian landers, space mobility and logistics, and deep space mission proposals. Here on Earth today, we will see unprecedented performance gains for drones of all kinds, and more practical and faster-than-anticipated opportunities for ultra-high-speed passenger and cargo rocket plane flights."

"With the strong support of Airbus Ventures now joining our investor syndicate, our next round will let Venus take the final step from lab to prototype as we fly our drone to Mach 3 under RDRE power, says Dr. Andrew Duggleby, CTO and co-founder. "This will include long-duration engine runs this summer at Spaceport Houston, as well as the design, build, and flight of our drone with the broader Venus team and our incredible partners."

In Spring 2022, the company raised its $20M Series A, led by Prime Movers Lab, to fund engine development and subscale initial flight testing for building its Mach 9 hypersonic drone and Mach 9 spacecraft, both capable of one-hour global travel.

About Venus Aerospace

Headquartered in Houston, Texas, Venus Aerospace is a startup aerospace company focused on engineering the future of hypersonic flight. An expert team of PhD's, rocket scientists, and engineers taking on the biggest challenges in aerospace at Mach 9 speed, Venus is making one-hour global transport possible to connect the world and make it safer.

About Airbus Ventures

Headquartered in Silicon Valley, with offices in Toulouse and Tokyo, Airbus Ventures is a fast-moving, early-stage venture capital company that independently funds and supports startups set to shift both the aerospace industry and our planetary system to a sustainable future. Airbus Ventures has helped aspiring innovators reach new dimensions of achievement since 2015.

Media Contacts

For Venus Aerospace:

Stephanie Gracia

Director of Communications

[email protected]

For Airbus Ventures:

Orli Robin

Head of Strategy and Communication

[email protected]

SOURCE Venus Aerospace
The Ukrainian Defense Forces continue their offensive operation, with partial success, Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Maliar said.

"Over the past 24 hours: Bakhmut direction - in different areas we advanced 200-500 m. In the Zaporizhia direction, we advanced 300-350 m. Our troops are moving in conditions of fierce fighting, aviation and artillery superiority of the enemy," she wrote on the Telegram channel.

The department noted that in the Berdiansk direction, fighting continues near Makarivka.

In the Mariupol direction, battles continue in the areas of Novodanylivka and Novopokrovske.

Maliar also noted that the enemy is suffering losses both in manpower and in equipment and weapons. For example, yesterday the enemy lost an artillery battery of self-propelled guns, two electronic warfare systems, a concentration of automotive equipment (up to ten units), a radar complex for reconnaissance and fire control and an air defense system.
BUFFALO, N.Y., June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- VeriTX Corp., a startup data assurance technology firm, announced today that it has been awarded a patent for its revolutionary Galactic Extrusion Manufacturing Solution (GEMS). The patent, which was granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office, recognizes the unique and innovative nature of GEMS, which allows for the production of high-quality, space-grade components using advanced 3D printing technology.

GEMS is a game-changing technology that enables the production of complex, custom-designed components in space. Using a proprietary process that combines 3D printing and extrusion technology, GEMS can create parts that are stronger, lighter, and more durable than traditional manufacturing methods. This breakthrough technology has the potential to revolutionize the aerospace industry, enabling faster, more cost-effective, and more sustainable space exploration.

VeriTX Corp., a data assurance company, recently released their flagship data integrity monitoring solution Fortis for monitoring data at rest and in motion. Data integrity is essential for data centric businesses relying on AI, ML, manufacturing, and decision-making analytics. Fortis prevents users or devices like GEMS on Earth or in space from consuming corrupted, manipulated, or poisoned data.

"We are thrilled to receive this patent award for GEMS," said VeriTX Corp. CEO Col James Allen Regenor, USAF (ret). "This is a major milestone for our company and a testament to the hard work and dedication of our team. GEMS has the potential to transform the way we manufacture in space, and with Fortis, we can ensure that critical data is protected and secure throughout the process."

For more information about VeriTX Corp., GEMS, and Fortis, please visit www.veritx.com and www.fortisdatasecurity.com.

About VeriTX Corp.: a data assurance company, recently released their flagship data integrity monitoring solution Fortis for monitoring data at rest and in motion. Data integrity is essential for data centric businesses relying on AI, ML, manufacturing, and decision-making analytics. Fortis prevents users or devices like GEMS on Earth or in space from consuming corrupted, manipulated, or poisoned data.

Media Contact: Tamara Colbert, c: 626-244-5571, e: [email protected]

SOURCE VeriTX
Vero will be honored as an "Innovative Supplier" at Premier's Annual Breakthroughs Conference and Exhibition (BREAKTHROUGHS 2023) taking place June 20-22 in Nashville, TN

ATLANTA, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- VERO Biotech Inc., a commercial-stage healthcare business dedicated to neonatal intensive care and the acute care hospital community, today announced that it will be honored during Premier, Inc.'s annual supplier Innovation Celebration at the 2023 Breakthroughs Conference and Exhibition.

VERO Biotech's GENOSYL Delivery System (DS) will be recognized as a "Technological Breakthrough." VERO Biotech's GENOSYL DS  the first tankless nitric oxide delivery system approved by the FDA  will be one of only seven innovations honored during Premier's supplier Innovation Celebration, which recognizes groundbreaking healthcare technologies that have been launched throughout the year and the ways these products are helping to improve the health of communities.

VERO Biotech's GENOSYL Delivery System recognized as a "Technological Breakthrough" by Premier, Inc. Tweet this

"We are honored to receive this recognition from Premier. We are deeply committed to continued innovation so that we may better serve patients, respiratory therapists, and healthcare providers." said Brent V. Furse, CEO and President, VERO Biotech.

Premier is a leading healthcare improvement company, uniting an alliance of approximately 4,400 U.S. hospitals and 250,000 other providers to transform healthcare. With integrated data and analytics, collaboratives, supply chain solutions, consulting and other services, Premier enables better care and outcomes at a lower cost.

GENOSYL DS is the first tankless inhaled nitric oxide delivery system approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Inhaled Nitric Oxide dilates pulmonary blood vessels and may be used to improve oxygenation in neonates with hypoxic respiratory failure and pulmonary hypertension. Unlike tank-based systems, GENOSYL DS generates and delivers iNO at the bedside using a small disposable cassette. This eliminates the need for hospitals to manage large, cumbersome tanks, helps to simplify clinical workflow, and streamlines patient care.

About GENOSYL

Indication

GENOSYL (nitric oxide) gas, for inhalation, is indicated to improve oxygenation and reduce the need for extracorporeal membrane oxygenation in term and near-term (>34 weeks gestation) neonates with hypoxic respiratory failure associated with clinical or echocardiographic evidence of pulmonary hypertension in conjunction with ventilatory support and other appropriate agents.

Important Safety Information

GENOSYL is contraindicated in the treatment of neonates dependent on right-to-left shunting of blood.

in the treatment of neonates dependent on right-to-left shunting of blood. Abrupt discontinuation of GENOSYL (nitric oxide) gas, for inhalation may lead to worsening oxygenation and increasing pulmonary artery pressure.

Methemoglobin levels in the blood increase with the dose of nitric oxide; following discontinuation or reduction of nitric oxide, methemoglobin levels return to baseline over a period of hours.

Methemoglobin, NO2, and PaO2 should be monitored during nitric oxide administration.

In patients with pre-existing left ventricular dysfunction, GENOSYL may increase pulmonary capillary wedge pressure leading to pulmonary edema.

The most common adverse reaction is hypotension.

Nitric oxide donor compounds may have an additive effect with GENOSYL on the risk of developing methemoglobinemia.

GENOSYL must be administered using a calibrated GENOSYL Delivery System. Only validated ventilator systems or nasal cannulas should be used in conjunction with GENOSYL.

About GENOSYL DS

GENOSYL DS is a tankless system engineered with redundant backup features that delivers a constant concentration of inhaled nitric oxide gas to patients with an easy-to-use interface and portability features. This proprietary delivery system eliminates the need for large nitric oxide tanks and the associated logistical burden. GENOSYL DS recently received FDA approval for its innovative dual-cassette design and secondary adaptive sensor technology to further optimize patient care.

About VERO Biotech

VERO Biotech Inc. is a privately held company headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia focused on saving lives, alleviating suffering, and improving health economics in the neonatal intensive care and the acute care hospital communities.

Forward Looking Statements

This press release and any statements of representatives of VERO Biotech Inc. related thereto that are not historical in nature contain, or may contain, among other things, certain "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements may include, without limitation, statements with respect to VERO Biotech's plans, objectives, projections, expectations and intentions and other statements identified by words such as "projects," "may," "will," "could," "would," "should," "believes," "expects," "anticipates," "estimates," "seeks," "intends," "plans," "potential" or similar expressions, including statements with respect to the potential benefits, advantages or market opportunity of the products. These statements are based upon the current beliefs and expectations of VERO Biotech's management and are subject to significant risks and uncertainties. Actual results may differ significantly from those set forth in the forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements involve certain risks and uncertainties that are subject to change based on various risk factors (many of which are beyond the control of VERO Biotech).

For information, please visit www.vero-biotech.com or contact Ziad Mohamed at [email protected].

SOURCE VERO Biotech Inc.
The global veterinary dental equipment market is driven by increase in prevalence of dental diseases in animals such as gum disease, endodontic disease, periodontic disorders, surge in number of veterinary clinics & hospitals, and rise in awareness among pet owners regarding dental health.

PORTLAND, Ore., June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Allied Market Research published a report, titled, "Veterinary Dental Equipment Market by Product (Hand Instruments, Equipment and Consumables), by Animals (Large Animals and Small Animals), by End Users (Veterinary Hospitals, Veterinar Clinics and Others): Global Opportunity Analysis and Industry Forecast, 2023-2032". According to the report, the global Veterinary Dental Equipment Market valued at $306.01 million in 2022 and is estimated to reach $537.46 million by 2032, exhibiting a CAGR of 5.8% from 2023 to 2032.

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Prime determinants of growth

Rise in demand for specialty veterinary care, the surge in technological advancement and increase in number of key market players that manufacture dental equipment for animals drive the growth of the global veterinary dental equipment market. However, high cost of veterinary dental equipment is hampering the veterinary dental equipment market growth. On the contrary, rise in awareness of dental health for animals and increase in adoption of small animals such as dogs, cats, and rabbits lead to increase in demand for veterinary dental equipment that are anticipated to create new opportunities for the growth of market during the forecast period.

Report coverage & details:

Report Coverage Details Forecast Period 20232032 Base Year 2022 Market Size in 2022 $306.01 million Market Size in 2032 $537.46 million CAGR 5.8 % No. of Pages in Report 230 Segments covered Products, Animals, End User, and Region. Drivers Surge in pet ownership Rise in demand for specialty veterinary care Technological advancement in veterinary dental equipment Opportunities Rise in pet insurance coverage Restraints High cost of veterinary dental equipment



Covid-19 Scenario

The global veterinary dental equipment market was negatively impacted during the pandemic, owing to a decrease in demand for non-essential veterinary services, including dental procedures.

Moreover, many manufacturers of veterinary dental equipment had also been impacted by the pandemic, with some facing reduced production capacity or temporary shutdowns.

The veterinary dental equipment market is expected to recover in the post-pandemic period, driven by factors such as the increasing demand for pet care and the rising awareness of the importance of dental health in pets.

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The products segment to maintain its leadership status throughout the forecast period

Based on product, the equipment segment held the highest market share in 2022, accounting for more than two-fifths of the global veterinary dental equipment market revenue and is estimated to maintain its leadership status throughout the forecast period, owing to rise in adoption of this devices for diagnosis and treatment of pets. However, hand instruments segment is projected to manifest significant growth with a CAGR of 6.6% from 2023 to 2032, owing the use of hand instruments in majority of the dental procedures.

The small animals' segment to maintain its leadership status throughout the forecast period

Based on animals, the small animals segment held the highest market share in 2022, accounting for more than three-fifths of the global veterinary dental equipment market revenue and is estimated to maintain its leadership status throughout the forecast period. This segment is projected to manifest a fastest CAGR of 6.1% from 2023 to 2032, owing to significant increase in pet ownership, particularly for small animals like cats and dogs. However, the large animals' segment is projected to manifest a significant CAGR of 5.2% from 2023 to 2032, owing to the growing adoption of large animals such as cows, buffaloes, horses and various others has led to increase the risk of dental disorders which increases the demand for veterinary instruments, equipment and consumables that propels the growth of the market.

The veterinary hospital segment to maintain its lead position during the forecast period

Based on end users, the veterinary hospitals segment accounted for the largest share in 2022, contributing to nearly half of the global veterinary dental equipment market revenue, as preference of large number of pet owners. This segment is projected to manifest a fastest CAGR of 6.3% from 2023 to 2032. However, the veterinary clinics segment is expected to portray a significant CAGR of 5.5% from 2023 to 2032. This is owing to the increase in pet population driving the need for veterinary clinics across the world.

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North America to maintain its dominance by 2032

Based on region, North America held the highest market share in terms of revenue in 2022, accounting for more than two-fifths of the global veterinary dental equipment market revenue and is likely to dominate the market during the forecast period. The veterinary dental equipment market is mainly driven by the high number of domestic pets such as dogs and cats. The upsurge in healthcare expenditure in the emerging economies is anticipated to offer lucrative opportunities for market expansion. However, the Asia-Pacific region is expected to witness the fastest CAGR of 7.0% from 2023 to 2032 and is likely to dominate the market during the forecast period, owing to the large number of cattle ownerships especially in countries like India and rise in number of key players manufacturing veterinary dental equipment.

Leading Market Players: -

Planmeca OY

Acteon group ltd.

Integra LifeSciences

Johnson & Johnson

Midmark Corporation

Cislak Manufacturing Inc.,

MAI, Animal Health

Eickemeyer Veterinary Equipment Inc

Dentalaire International

iM3Vet Pty Ltd.

The report provides a detailed analysis of these key players of the global veterinary dental equipment market. These players have adopted different strategies such as new product launches, collaborations, expansion, joint ventures, agreements, and others to increase their market share and maintain dominant shares in different regions. The report is valuable in highlighting business performance, operating segments, product portfolio, and strategic moves of market players to showcase the competitive scenario.

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SOURCE Allied Market Research
Vitra and Herman Miller partner with the Eames Office to launch a limited-edition Eames Fiberglass Chair hand painted with the artwork of artist Saul Steinberg; only 500 pieces will be offered

ZEELAND, Mich., June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- On June 14, 2023, Vitra and Herman Miller, in partnership with the Eames Office, will release a limited edition of 500 Eames Fiberglass Armchairs featuring the hand-painted cat originally sketched by renowned midcentury artist and Eames friend Saul Steinberg.

Staged at the Eames House, Pacific Palisades, California  Eames Foundation, 2023 |  Vitra | Photo: Florian Bohm (Studio AKFB) | The Saul Steinberg Foundation/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York

Upon their debut in 1950, the Eames Shell Chairs were the world's first industrially mass-produced chairs with the seat and backrest formed from a one-piece shell. Resting on a variety of different bases, the curved, organically shaped shells offer a sensation of free-floating lightness unlike anything experienced before.

Shortly after Charles and Ray Eames developed the Shell Chairs, their good friend, artist and architect Saul Steinberg, came to visit the Eames Office in Venice, California at 901 Washington Boulevard. Steinberg had already made a name for himself with his humorous and occasionally provocative drawings of people and animalsespecially catswith which he repeatedly traversed the boundaries of traditional media.

During his visit to the Eames Office, Steinberg spontaneously picked up a brush and drew a number of lively figures on the furniture, floors and walls of the studio. Steinberg was particularly taken with the newly designed Shell Chairs and drew flowing lines on a succession of chairs. A small, imaginative cosmos of characters and animals took shape within the Eames Office premises, and Charles and Ray Eames and several Eames Offices employees enthusiastically documented the spectacle with a series of photographs.

One of the drawn figures was a sleeping cat: Steinberg had it take a nap in one of the armchair shells. Relaxed, with its eyes closed, it seems to have found the perfect spot to rest and remain united with the chair forever.

From this universe of expressive drawings, only two vintage specimens still exist today: the cat on the armchair shell and part of a female nude, also on an armchair shell. The chair with the cat is owned by the Eames Office and archived in the Eames Institute; the chair with the female nude is on permanent loan from the Eames Office to the Vitra Design Museum.

Now, in a special collaboration between Vitra, Herman Miller, and the Eames Office, 500 limited-edition fiberglass armchairs with an exact replica of Steinberg's original drawing will be available. For this purpose, the original chair at the Eames Institute was digitally scanned to create a 3D file. The data was used to create an exact template, which makes it possible to apply Steinberg's drawing to the fiberglass shell as faithfully as possible. The artwork is then applied manually on each individual shell by an artist, using paint which has also been painstakingly evaluated to be as close as possible to the original. Once the cat drawing has been applied, the shells are hand numbered, sealed with a protective lacquer and given an authenticity certificate and co-branded with Herman Miller and Vitra logos.

"This collaboration brings to the foreground the joy and optimism that Charles and Ray Eames consistently brought to their work. We are delighted to partner with Vitra and the Eames Office to bring some of this pleasure to the present day."  Ben Watson, President, Herman Miller.

The Eames Fiberglass Armchair with Steinberg Cat is limited to 500 pieces. These limited-edition chairs will be available to buy online at vitra.com and store.hermanmiller.com on June 14, 2023, at 12:00PM EST, and on hermanmiller.co.jp on June 15, 2023, at 12:00PM JST.

The Steinberg Cat is used with permission of The Saul Steinberg Foundation.

Famed worldwide for giving graphic definition to the post-war age, Saul Steinberg (19141999) had one of the most remarkable careers in American art. While renowned for the covers and drawings that appeared in The New Yorker for nearly six decades, he was equally acclaimed for the drawings, paintings, prints, collages, and sculptures he exhibited internationally in galleries and museums.

300 of the limited-edition chairs will be available in Europe and the Middle East through Vitra. Pricing for each market is available upon request. A pre-register link for these markets will be available shortly on Vitra.com.

and the through Vitra. Pricing for each market is available upon request. A pre-register link for these markets will be available shortly on Vitra.com. 180 of the limited-edition chairs will be priced at $2,500 USD and available in North America through Herman Miller .

and available in through . 20 of the limited-edition chairs will be priced at 328,000 JPY and available in Japan through Herman Miller .

About Herman Miller

Over the last century, Herman Miller has been guided by a commitment to problem-solving designs that inspire the best in people. Along the way, Herman Miller has forged critical relationships with the most visionary designers of the day, from mid-century greats like George Nelson, the Eames Office, and Isamu Noguchi, to research-oriented visionaries like Robert Propst and Bill Stumpfand with today's groundbreaking studios like Industrial Facility and Studio 7.5. From the birth of ergonomic furniture to manufacturing some of the twentieth century's most iconic pieces, Herman Miller has pioneered original, timeless design that makes an enduring impact, while building a lasting legacy of design, innovation, and social good. Herman Miller is a part of MillerKnoll, a collective of dynamic brands that comes together to design the world we live in. For more information, visit hermanmiller.com/about.

About Vitra

Vitra is guided by the idea of linking great designers with the company's technical and cultural know-how to create relevant products and concepts for homes, offices and public spaces. Developed and engineered in Switzerland, these products are used by architects, planners, corporations and private citizens around the world to create inspiring environments.

Vitra's portfolio includes great classics of the twentieth century. Yet classics were not always classics  they started out by breaking conventional rules. In this spirit, Vitra works with contemporary designers to develop innovative solutions to old and new problems. Now in its third generation as a family company, Vitra aims to establish and maintain long-term relationships with designers, customers and employees. In keeping with this goal, product longevity has been a defining principle of the company from the beginning. For more information, visit www.vitra.com.

About Eames Office

Charles and Ray Eames founded their Los Angeles-based design practice Eames Office in 1941, producing significant contributions to the various mediums of architecture, furniture design, film, textiles, toys, exhibitions, and beyond. Through their work and its ongoing impact, the Eames Office reconceived the concept of a design studio in terms of philosophy, work ethic, and process. Since Charles' passing in 1978 and Ray's passing in 1988, the Eames Office has continued its mission as led by the next generations of the Eames family.

Today, the Eames Office remains dedicated to communicating, preserving, and extending the work of Charles and Ray Eames as a manifestation of one broad, all-encompassing goal: enriching and positively impacting people's lives and environments. The Eames Office believes that as beautiful as the objects are, the ideas behind them are just as beautifuland essential to share. To carry out its mission, Eames Office works closely with authorized manufacturers to introduce their designs to new generations through educational programs, curated exhibitions and brand collaborations.

Website: eamesoffice.com | Instagram: @eamesoffice  2023 Eames Office, LLC

SOURCE Herman Miller
More Patients Added to Phase 1 Trial Following Encouraging Early Results

ROCHESTER, Minn., June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Vyriad, Inc., announces an expansion of a Phase 1 investigator-initiated trial at Mayo Clinic evaluating the safety and efficacy of Voyager-V1 (VSV-hIFNbeta-NIS) in patients with peripheral T-cell lymphoma (PTCL) following encouraging initial results1. Voyager-V1 is an investigational therapy being co-developed with Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc., to treat patients with recurrent or treatment resistant cancers. It is an oncolytic virotherapy designed to target and dissolve cancer cells and stimulate the patient's immune system in hopes of preventing recurrence.

"The expansion of this Phase 1 program is an important step toward delivering targeted genetic medicines to patients with resistant PTCL," said Stephen J. Russell, MD, Ph.D., Vyriad's chief executive officer and chief scientific officer. "Early Phase 1 results offered an indication that a single infusion of Voyager-V1 has the potential to provide significant benefit to patients with PTCL, a cancer with a generally poor prognosis."

PTCLs comprise a diverse group of uncommon and aggressive diseases in which the patient's T cells become cancerous. PTCLs are a varied group of diseases that are not well understood. Techniques to distinguish and study the various subtypes of PTCL have only recently been developed.2 Current first-line therapies for patients with PTCL can be curative, but most patients will experience a recurrence of the disease.

Funding for the trial is provided by Regeneron, the National Institutes of Health, and Vyriad. The trial is being conducted at Mayo Clinic Rochester and Mayo Clinic Arizona. For more information on the Phase 1 study please visit Clinical Trials.Gov/study/NCT03017820.

About Vyriad, Inc.

Vyriad is a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing virus-based therapeutics, focusing initially on proprietary oncolytic virus therapies for the treatment of cancers with significant unmet needs. Our lead platforms, derived from either vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV) or measles virus, are being evaluated in ongoing Phase 1-2 clinical trials addressing multiple cancer types. Vyriad is a privately held company based in Rochester, Minnesota. For more information, visit www.vyriad.com.

1 5 of 9 patients experienced positive results in a trial published by Cook et al. Blood Advances. 2022. Clinical activity of single-dose systemic oncolytic VSV virotherapy in patients with relapsed refractory T-cell lymphoma.

PMID: 35175355

2 Peripheral T-Cell Lymphoma Facts. Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.

This communication contains information about an investigational product. This product is limited by Federal (U.S.) law to investigational use only. Vyriad makes no claims regarding the safety or effectiveness of the unapproved investigational product. The intent of providing this information is to convey research and development initiatives underway at Vyriad.

Contact:

Scott Beck

Chief Operating Officer

[email protected]

SOURCE Vyriad, Inc.
Affordable Apartments House Women and Children

WESTERLY, R.I., June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The Washington Trust Company ("Washington Trust"; "the Bank") today announced that the Washington Trust Charitable Foundation donated $20,000 to McAuley Ministries to fund renovations of two apartments at McAuley Village in Providence, RI. The apartments provide safe, affordable, supportive housing for single homeless mothers and their children. Washington Trust is also an annual sponsor of McAuley House's "Lunch on Us" program, where a team of bank employees volunteer to serve a free meal to McAuley House guests. Washington Trust's Barbara K. Hart, Senior Vice President, Senior Credit Officer, serves on the McAuley House Board of Directors.

Washington Trust President & Chief Operating Officer, Mary Noons greets a McAuley Village guest.

"We value our relationship with McAuley Ministries and are pleased thatthrough volunteerism, board leadership, and corporate givingwe have been able to make a difference in the lives of our neighbors in need," stated Edward O. "Ned" Handy III, Washington Trust Chairman and Chief Executive Officer.

"We truly appreciate Washington Trust's continued corporate giving and leadership, especially as the need for affordable and safe housing is at a critical stage," stated Barbara Haynes, McAuley House Executive Director.

Washington Trust executives, including Mary E. Noons, Washington Trust's President and Chief Operating Officer, recently visited McAuley Village to meet with residents and tour the renovated apartments. In addition to housing, McAuley Village offers comprehensive services, including on-site childcare, educational support, housing advocacy, job readiness training, financial literacy, parenting classes, and more. To donate, volunteer, or receive information about McAuley Ministries programs, contact Barbara Haynes at 401-941-9013 x303 or [email protected].

ABOUT WASHINGTON TRUST

Founded in 1800, Washington Trust is the oldest community bank in the nation and one of the Northeast's premier financial services companies. Washington Trust offers a full range of financial services, including commercial banking, mortgage banking, personal banking and wealth management and trust services through its offices located in Rhode Island, Connecticut and Massachusetts. The Washington Trust Company is a subsidiary of Washington Trust Bancorp, Inc., (NASDAQ: WASH). Additional information on Washington Trust can be found at washtrust.com.

SOURCE The Washington Trust Company
Collaboration blends legendary Chicago-based innovation with authentic Los Angeles art and car culture

ADDISON, Ill., June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Renowned car care brand Turtle Wax has joined forces with internationally acclaimed artist and avid car enthusiast, Mister Cartoon, to combine their mutual love for cars, culture and design in a new collection of premium products: The Art of Car Care line. Specially formulated for automotive enthusiasts of all kinds, The Art of Car Care line is the culmination of a meticulous collaborative process between Turtle Wax engineers and Mister Cartoon. Together they created a range of interior and exterior solutions tailored to Mister Cartoon's specifications for any and all drivers.

Turtle Wax and Mister Cartoon launch The Art of Car Care product line Turtle Wax and Mister Cartoon launch The Art of Car Care product line

The Art of Car Care line is a fresh take on what car care traditionally looks like, balancing premium products that can enhance any vehicle with upscale artistic inspiration from the automotive and lowrider communities of Los Angeles, the epicenter of car culture and a place where Mister Cartoon is a long-time participant and key figure.

"Growing up in Los Angeles, I saw firsthand how cars truly become an extension of who you are, and presentation is everything when you pull up to a spot," shares Mister Cartoon. "Keeping your car fresh and clean gives you confidence, and I saw an opportunity to team with Turtle Wax to emphasize how car care is an art that connects people on all levels."

Each The Art of Car Care product features exclusive, eye-catching labels that were completely hand-drawn by Mister Cartoon in his trademark style. The collection as a whole underscores the idea that car care is a form of art, both inside and out, no matter the car or surface and allows any car enthusiast to view their car in the lens of a canvas.

"My passion for cars is what drives my art. When I was young, I started airbrushing street fantasy murals featuring cars as a way to get involved in the scene. Now I'm able to build and paint my own custom cars, and my mural collection has been featured in art shows internationally. Each The Art of Car Care bottle should be thought of as a work of art in itself, and it's cool that these products will be in the hands of car heads across the country," shares Mister Cartoon.

"Our new product line, made in partnership with Mister Cartoon, seamlessly blends cars, lifestyle and art in a way that's unique, yet authentic, speaking to both Turtle Wax and Mister Cartoon's roots in the automotive community," said Daren Herbert, Chief Marketing Officer at Turtle Wax. "This is a true collaboration, and we couldn't have thought of a better partner to share the rich history of the Los Angeles car scene, and Chicano culture, than Mister Cartoon."

The Art of Car Care collection includes wash, wax and air care products. Seven wash and wax products will be available online starting June 14 at TurtleWax.com, MisterCartoon.com and OReillyAuto.com. The products will hit shelves at O'Reilly Auto Parts stores first, starting June 28.

All Tire Clean & Prep: Deep-cleaning foam and optical brighteners leave tires looking like new and prepped for dressings. Dissolves brake dust, grease, grime, road film and soils.

Deep-cleaning foam and optical brighteners leave tires looking like new and prepped for dressings. Dissolves brake dust, grease, grime, road film and soils. All Wheel Cleaner: Acid-free, color-changing formula quickly and safely dissolves brake dust, contaminants and iron particles. Safe for all painted, clear coat finishes, polished metal, chrome wheels and more.

Acid-free, color-changing formula quickly and safely dissolves brake dust, contaminants and iron particles. Safe for all painted, clear coat finishes, polished metal, chrome wheels and more. Tire Shine: Provides a deep black, wet-look shine that lasts for weeks with water-resistant polymers and protection against drying, fading and cracking.

Provides a deep black, wet-look shine that lasts for weeks with water-resistant polymers and protection against drying, fading and cracking. Slick Wash & Wax: Slick, swirl-resistant wash with thick foam that adds protection and high-shine to car exteriors.

Slick, swirl-resistant wash with thick foam that adds protection and high-shine to car exteriors. Quick Detailer: Swirl-resistant, streak-free carnauba and ceramic blend delivers incredible depth-of-shine and durable protection. Can use without water in between car washes to safely remove light dust, dirt and road grime.

Swirl-resistant, streak-free carnauba and ceramic blend delivers incredible depth-of-shine and durable protection. Can use without water in between car washes to safely remove light dust, dirt and road grime. LVP (Leather Vinyl Plastic): Non-greasy ceramic formula safely cleans, conditions and protects interior surfaces against drying, fading and UV damage.

Non-greasy ceramic formula safely cleans, conditions and protects interior surfaces against drying, fading and UV damage. Interior & Exterior Protectant: Non-greasy, long-lasting deep, rich shine, infused with ceramic polymers to repel, protect and add clarity to plastic, rubber and vinyl surfaces  inside and outside the car.

Turtle Wax and Mister Cartoon are also taking automotive odor elimination to new grounds with a line of auto foggers that will be available at TurtleWax.com, MisterCartoon.com and OReillyAuto.com starting June 14, with in-store availability at O'Reilly Auto Parts starting June 28. The collection also includes a hanging air freshener, which is available now exclusively at AutoZone stores.

So Fresh Auto Foggers: An odor eliminator and fabric refresher with exclusive technology that removes the toughest odors caused by smoke, mildew, pets, food, spills and more. Available in four unique scents that were developed hand-in-hand with Turtle Wax and Mister Cartoon: New Ride, Clean Blast, Sunset Peach and Midnight. Plus, you can get an exclusive Stay Lucky fogger only at O'Reilly Auto Parts.

An odor eliminator and fabric refresher with exclusive technology that removes the toughest odors caused by smoke, mildew, pets, food, spills and more. Available in four unique scents that were developed hand-in-hand with Turtle Wax and Mister Cartoon: New Ride, Clean Blast, Sunset Peach and Midnight. Plus, you can get an exclusive Stay Lucky fogger only at O'Reilly Auto Parts. Hanging Air Freshener: A long-lasting odor eliminator with an original Mister Cartoon lifestyle design featuring Our Lady of Guadalupe . This AutoZone-exclusive is designed to last longer than other paper air fresheners and is available in a 3-pack, with more scents and designs to come.

For more information about Turtle Wax, visit www.TurtleWax.com and follow on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to stay up to date with the latest and greatest from the brand. And, visit www.MisterCartoon.com and follow him on Instagram at @MisterCToons.

*Source: NPD RTS 12 months ending Dec. 2022.

About Turtle Wax

The Turtle Wax story started with the launch of the first-ever bottled car wax in 1944. More than 75 years later, the 'Most Innovative Brand in Car Care' is still capturing the attention of the auto appearance industry with a cross-category assortment of No. 1 selling products. With product distribution in more than 120 countries, the Turtle Wax brand resonates around the globe, but the brand's heart remains in its hometown of Chicago, where award-winning innovation is developed to this day. Turtle Wax also believes in supporting the future generation of car detailers and provides training and educational opportunities through the established Healy Family Scholarship Program. For an inside look at the brand's breakthrough product development process or how Turtle Wax supports car culture worldwide, visit TurtleWax.com.

About Mister Cartoon

Born and raised in Los Angeles, Mister CARTOON was immersed in art from an early age. He began his career as a graffiti artist before branching into murals, album covers, logos, and now most famously known for his tattoos. His richly detailed, hand-rendered designs pull much of their inspiration from the Los Angeles of CARTOON's youth. CARTOON's work has helped bridge the gap between those hardscrabble beginnings and the style's current popularity. CARTOON has gained a worldwide following from his tattooing, with a clientele that includes the likes of Eminem, Travis Barker, Christina Aguilera, Dr. Dre, 50 Cent, Lewis Hamilton and Snoop Dogg. He's attracted a diverse and devoted fan base for his work in other media as well. The result has been highly acclaimed gallery appearances and art shows in London, Paris, Tokyo, and beyond, as well as activations alongside global brands like Nike, Netflix, Apple, Louis Vuitton and the Los Angeles Dodgers. Service to the community has been an essential part of CARTOON's career, where he is active in outreach programs, sharing his knowledge with young people and devoting time to many community-based initiatives.

Media Contact: Tim Klein, Zeno Group, [email protected]

SOURCE Turtle Wax
Dozens of top artists lead Atlantic City event in July

ATLANTIC CITY, N.J., June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- ZAZA Festival, the most anticipated new festival celebrating global music culture, is coming to Bader Field in Atlantic City on July 15th and 16th 2023. The inaugural ZAZA Festival will feature performances by Latto, DaBaby, Afro B, DJ Aktive, Freeway, Beanie Sigel, DJ Diamond Kuts, M11SON, Nisa F, Junius Bervine, Titus Showers, Jermaine Dolly and Mona Mee  with more top artists to be announced.

Just as artists drop surprise albums, the first ZAZA Festival will launch in 31 days to bring top artists of the moment to their fans  right now.

"We couldn't wait to introduce ZAZA Festivals to the world. This immersive music event will connect artists and fans through cutting-edge technology like never before," said Joe Callahan, ZAZA Festival Founding Partner.

ZAZA's inaugural event will debut the world premiere of Burna Boy's BRKFST metaverse series along with a mobile, immersive element for fans from every corner of the world to experience music together. Fans should visit zazamusicfestivals.com for information about the festival and artist lineup, with more information about the virtual experience to come.

The Atlantic City dates are the first in an anticipated series of live and streaming events by the ZAZA brand in cities across the globe celebrating a new movement of music culture. ZAZA is reinventing the way that artists and fans engage. For the first time ever, respect for artists and their fans will be the central component of a live music festival.

Artists and fans will have the option to receive their own unique, secure link to share with their networks and make a commission from the sale of each ticket. The first 200 fans who purchase tickets through a specific artist will be entered to win access to the VIP Backstage Lounge.

"Bridging the gap with artists and fans resonates with me and brought me to ZAZA Festivals. Being able to introduce the music culture through new technology, along with treating artists and fans fairly - it's history-making," said Promis, ZAZA Festival Talent Coordinator.

A portion of ZAZA tickets will support the World Education Initiative (WEI), a nonprofit organization dedicated to the critical mission of educating young women in rural Africa. WEI works directly with leaders and educators at schools in rural Africa to fund tuition and board for girls in these communities who otherwise would not have access to a formal education.

Tickets are on sale now for the two-day festival. One-day and two-day ticket passes are available at zazamusicfestivals.com. Additional artists in the lineup will be released via social media.

"This is how I recharge my soul, by being a part of ZAZA, and watching the world's greatest musicians and creatives come together for a great cause," said Tony Moore, who has built his career working with some of the top artists and movie stars globally.

ZAZA Festivals is produced by a team led by Franck Francois, collectively boasting decades of experience from Broadway shows to major concerts. They have produced festivals such as Ultra Music Fest, Calle Ocho Music Festival and Bonnaroo and concert tours for Yo Gotti, The Beach Boys, Dave Matthews Band, Metallica, and many more. Event planning, design and decor are being handled by Isha Ahijo and the team at ikhan events, Ahijo's Philadelphia-based luxury event & floral design firm.

For more information about ZAZA Festivals go to zazamusicfestivals.com and follow @zazafestivals on Instagram for the latest lineup announcements and festival news.

About ZAZA Festival

ZAZA Festivals feature the most influential artists across various genres of music. The fully immersive experiences connect artists and fans - wherever they are in the world. ZAZA is a biblical name, meaning movement and belonging to all. Music has a history of affecting change. The ZAZA movement will respect artists and their fans, while improving the end-to-end live music experience. Let music light the way.

Media Contact

For interviews and press passes, contact:

ZAZA Festivals Team

www.zazamusicfestivals.com/contact

SOURCE ZAZA Festivals
SHANGHAI, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- ZTO Express (Cayman) Inc. (NYSE: ZTO and HKEX: 2057), a leading and fast-growing express delivery company in China ("ZTO" or the "Company"), today announced that each of the following proposed resolutions submitted for shareholder approval has been adopted at its annual general meeting of shareholders held in Hong Kong today:

as an ordinary resolution, to receive and consider the audited consolidated financial statements of the Company and the report of the auditor of the Company for the year ended December 31, 2022 ; as an ordinary resolution, to re-elect Mr. Hongqun HU as executive Director, subject to his earlier resignation or removal; as an ordinary resolution, to re-elect Mr. Xing LIU as non-executive Director, subject to his earlier resignation or removal; as an ordinary resolution, to re-elect Mr. Frank Zhen WEI as independent non-executive Director, subject to his earlier resignation or removal; as an ordinary resolution, to authorize the Board to fix the remuneration of the Directors; as an ordinary resolution, to re-appoint Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu as auditor of the Company to hold office until the conclusion of the next annual general meeting of the Company and to authorize the Board to fix its remuneration for the year ending December 31, 2023 ; as an ordinary resolution, to grant a general mandate to the directors to issue, allot, and deal with additional Class A Ordinary Shares of the Company not exceeding 20% of the total number of issued and outstanding shares of the Company as at the date of passing of this resolution; as an ordinary resolution, to grant a general mandate to the directors to repurchase Class A Ordinary Shares of the Company not exceeding 10% of the total number of issued and outstanding shares of the Company as at the date of passing of this resolution; and as an ordinary resolution, to extend the general mandate granted to the directors to issue, allot and deal with additional Class A Ordinary Shares of the Company by the aggregate number of the Class A Ordinary Shares repurchased by the Company.

About ZTO Express (Cayman) Inc.

ZTO Express (Cayman) Inc. (NYSE: ZTO and SEHK: 2057) ("ZTO" or the "Company") is a leading and fast-growing express delivery company in China. ZTO provides express delivery service as well as other value-added logistics services through its extensive and reliable nationwide network coverage in China.

ZTO operates a highly scalable network partner model, which the Company believes is best suited to support the significant growth of e-commerce in China. The Company leverages its network partners to provide pickup and last-mile delivery services, while controlling the mission-critical line-haul transportation and sorting network within the express delivery service value chain.

For more information, please visit http://zto.investorroom.com.

Safe Harbor Statement

This press release contains statements that may constitute "forward-looking" statements pursuant to the "safe harbor" provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements can be identified by terminology such as "will," "expects," "anticipates," "aims," "future," "intends," "plans," "believes," "estimates," "likely to," and similar statements. Statements that are not historical facts, including statements about ZTO's beliefs, plans, and expectations, are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements involve inherent risks and uncertainties. Further information regarding these and other risks is included in ZTO's filings with the SEC and the HKEX. All information provided in this press release is as of the date of this press release, and ZTO does not undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statement, except as required under applicable law.

For investor inquiries, please contact:

ZTO Express (Cayman) Inc.

Investor Relations

E-mail: [email protected]

Phone: +86 21 5980 4508

SOURCE ZTO Express (Cayman) Inc.
FT. LAUDERDALE, Fla., June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Zulu Pods, Inc. (ZPI) has been awarded a Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) contract from the Department of the Navy. The objective of the project is to develop new and innovative lubricating fluid supply/delivery system technologies for rolling element bearings in small Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) engines and/or attritable/expendable weapon systems to replace current architectures  thereby reducing overall system weight, cost, complexity, and maintenance requirements/burden due to fluid leaks and lubricant shelf life during extended storage.

The award will allow ZPI to continue development and subscale testing of their pod technology in tandem with small engine Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) to support technology transitions and future commercialization within both the military and commercial small UAV markets. Tweet this Zulu Pods - Self Energized Packaged Oil Delivery Systems for Limited Life Engines

While numerous efforts have been made into enabling oil-free technologies and alternative bearings, rolling element bearings utilizing fluid lubrication remain prevalent within U.S. Navy platforms. Fluid-lubricated rolling element bearings provide excellent load-carrying capacity, low friction operation, and damping properties when properly lubricated. Novel delivery methods for lubricants could allow for realization of the advantages of rolling element bearings without the drawbacks of the supporting hardware typically required to provide lubrication supply.

Traditional flow-through and recirculating rolling element bearing lubrication systems which utilize pressurized oil and/or fuel require parts such as supply/scavenge pumps, reservoirs, sumps, plumbing/pipes, and seals, which can account for up to 30% of overall propulsion system weight, volume, and cost in small limited-life engines. In addition, the shelf-life limitations of lubricants used in these systems (such as oil, fuel-oil mixtures, grease) can lead to corrosion or increased maintenance actions during long-term storage. Innovative technologies which enable replacement of traditional lubrication schemes for small, limited-life engines and attritable weapon systems are being sought to reduce total system ownership cost.

The Zulu Pod is the world's first modular fluid delivery system that combines the function of a reservoir, pump, and nozzle into a single, self-contained, self-pressurized, and hermetically sealed packaged oil delivery system. The Zulu Pod is lighter, placed right in the working zone of the engine bearing or gear compartment, and meters the minimum amount of lubrication required for optimal performance. Zulu Pods can be used for primary lubrication on limited life engines, backup lubrication during a loss of lubrication event, or supplemental lubrication to extend oil interruption capability.

The award will allow ZPI to continue development and subscale testing of their pod technology in tandem with small engine Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) to support technology transitions and future commercialization within both the military and commercial small UAV markets.

About Zulu Pods, Inc.

Headquartered in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, ZPI is a company that is committed to providing high quality, novel fluid delivery solutions that radically simplify mechanical systems architecture to reduce weight, cost, complexity and improve performance. Their first patent was filed in December 2020. In August 2022, ZPI opened their vertically integrated R&D facility near UMASS Amherst.

SOURCE Zulu Pods
During the day, the defense forces attacked places of concentration of the Russian army 13 times from aviation, hit anti-aircraft missile systems four times, eliminated two enemy UAVs, according to the report of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

"During the day, the aviation of the defense forces carried out 13 strikes on enemy personnel concentration areas and four on enemy anti-aircraft missile systems. Also, our defenders destroyed two enemy operational-tactical UAVs Orlan-10," the summary says.

According to the General Staff, units of missile troops and artillery during the day hit the control point, eight areas of concentration of enemy personnel, weapons and military equipment, three ammunition depots, an anti-aircraft missile system, seven artillery units in firing positions, two air defense systems and an enemy electronic warfare station.
IAEA head remains in Ukraine, issue with his postponed visit to Zaporizhia NPP should be resolved soon  Energy Minister

The visit of Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Rafael Grossi to Russian-occupied Zaporizhia Nuclear Power Plant (NPP), scheduled for Wednesday, has been postponed due to safety concerns, Energy Minister Herman Haluschenko said.

"Grossi is in Ukraine. The issue of his visit to ZNPP should be resolved in the coming days. I cannot assess the situation, military operations are underway, and the military is assessing the situation. This is responsibility for life," he told journalists on Wednesday.

Haluschenko also said he hopes for Grossi's visit to ZNPP.

"There is hope that the occupiers will give the IAEA some adequate answers to questions about what is happening at the plant," Haluschenko said.

He also said that during the visit it was planned to rotate the agency's mission at the plant with an increase in its personnel from four to six people.

As reported, Grossi arrived in Ukraine yesterday and held a meeting with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Today he was supposed to visit ZNPP.
If you were looking for the Charlestown Democratic Town Committee website and ended up here, try this





Got news tips, gossip, suggestions, complaints?E-mail us: progressivecharlestown@gmail.com We strive to avoid errors in our articles. Our correction policy can be found here
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg says that consultations on exactly how the prospect of Ukraine's membership will be spelled out in the final documents of the alliance summit to be held in Vilnius in July are still ongoing, but he is convinced that the allies will be able to find a good solution.

At a press conference in Brussels on Wednesday, answering the question whether the allies agreed on the words to be used in Vilnius regarding Ukraine's membership in the alliance, which would go further than the statement dated 2008, the Secretary General said that their consultations are underway. He didnt reveal the details so as not to complicate the consultations. However, he said that the allies have come to agreement on many provisions regarding Ukraines membership in NATO.

Stoltenberg stated that, first of all, the allies agreed that the doors of NATO are open, which was demonstrated by the invitation to Finland and Sweden at the last summit in Madrid last year. The Secretary General also said that they agreed that Ukraine would be a member of the alliance repeating this this again and again. And, thirdly, they all agree that it is Ukraine and NATO allies who will decide when the time comes for Ukraine to become a member of the alliance. According to Stoltenberg, it is more important that they agreed on the fact that now the most urgent task is to ensure that Ukraine wins as a sovereign and independent state.

He also indicated that he expects the allies to approve a multi-year program at the summit, under which Kyiv will be assisted in the transition from Soviet standards to NATO standards, which will make Ukraine fully compatible with NATO.
Chandigarh, June 13 : Prompted by "indifference" of the state government in furnishing information sought by him, Punjab Governor Banwari Lal Purohit has written a letter to Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann reminding him of the dereliction of constitutional duty.

Quoting the relevant portion of orders of the Supreme Court which were passed on the petition of the state government, the letter reads: "It would be necessary to underscore that both the Chief Minister and the Governor are constitutional functionaries who have specified roles and obligations earmarked by the Constitution. The Governor has a right to seek information from the Chief Minister in terms of Article 167 (b) on matters relating to the administration of the affairs of the state and proposals for legislation." "Once such information is sought, the Chief Minister is duty bound to furnish it. The tones and tenor of the tweet and the letter by the Chief Minister leave much to be desired. Not furnishing the information which was sought by the Governor would be plainly in dereliction of the constitutional duty which is imposed on the Chief Minister in terms of Article 167 (b)," it added.

The Governor reminded the Chief Minister that the information sought through his various letters is "yet to be furnished", which is dereliction of constitutional duty as observed by the Supreme Court.

The Chief Minister shared a post on his twitter handle on Monday, claiming the Governor used "my government" in his address in the Budget Session of Punjab Assembly after being reminded by him.

To this, the Governor wrote that he "instantly accepted the suggestion, while delivering the speech itself" whereas the Chief Minister has been indifferent to the orders of the Supreme Court which were passed about four months ago.

Citing a video recording, the Chief Minister said the Governor had started his speech with "my government" but however when a hue and cry was made by opposition without any logic, he preferred to use the word "government" only.

Mann said that, however, when he reminded the Governor about the judgement given by the Supreme Court, he changed his stance and used "my government" only.

He said the video recording from the records of Punjab Vidhan Sabha is a proof that the Governor is having a "hostile approach" towards the elected state government.
New Delhi, June 13 : A tribunal has asked the Centre and the Delhi governments to establish an effective system for verifying doctors and taking action against individuals, who falsely present themselves as qualified doctors and provide incorrect treatment ("quacks") to accident victims.

A Motor Accident Claims Tribunal (MACT) was hearing the compensation claim petition filed by Deepak Kumar, who met with an accident in May 2013.

As he had suffered 52 per cent disability in his right upper limb, Presiding Officer Ekta Gauba Mann ordered the National Insurance Company Ltd to pay Rs 31.71 lakh as compensation to Kumar.

While addressing the claim, the MACT also sought police action against a quack who posed as a doctor, administered medication to the victim, and issued fraudulent medical bills.

Upon reviewing Kumar's original medical bills, the tribunal discovered that the doctor who had treated him had passed away over seven years ago and deemed this fact as "peculiar" and "alarming".

"It is a very strange fact that the petitioner has been treated from May 15, 2013, to October 16, 2013, by the doctor but the said doctor had expired more than 7 years ago," it said.

"This is a most dangerous act. It requires to be dealt with by an iron hand as the quack is playing with the life of accident victims which could be saved during the first golden hours if proper medical treatment is given to the victim," the court said.

The tribunal further stated that a copy of this order should be sent to the Union Health Ministry and the Delhi Health Department, instructing them to establish an appropriate mechanism to verify and take action against quacks endangering public safety.

While the tribunal posted the matter for next hearing on July 9, it said that a copy of the order be sent to the chief metropolitan magistrate, requesting action by the SHO of Prashant Vihar against the impostor.
New Delhi, June 13 : The Congress is planning to hold a joint rally of party President Mallikarjun Kharge and senior leader Rahul Gandhi in poll-bound Madhya Pradesh in the coming days, party sources said on Tuesday.

The proposal to hold a joint rally of the two senior Congress leaders came a day after the party's General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra kicked off her election campaign in Jabalpur.

Sources said that looking at the grand success of Priyanka Gandhi's public meeting in Jabalpur, "we are planning to organise a joint rally of Kharge and Rahul Gandhi in the Bundelkhand region in July".

A final call on the date and the venue will be decided in coming days, sources said.

Priyanka Gandhi addressed her first public meeting in Jabalpur on Monday with five promises on the lines of Himachal Pradesh and Karnataka, where Congress won the recent Assembly elections.

Her rally also indicated that the Congress will corner the ruling BJP highlighting scams, especially the alleged corruption in the Mahakal Lok corridor project.

Like during the 2018 Assembly elections, the Congress has once again promised to wave farmers' loans if it returns to power in the state under the leadership of Kamal Nath.

Priyanka Gandhi on Monday announced financial schemes of Rs 1,500 per month to women, LPG cylinder at subsidised rate of Rs 500, along with cheaper electricity.

She promised to provide Rs 1,500 to women (with certain conditions) under the proposed scheme 'Nari Samman Yojana' to counter the BJP's 'Ladli Behna Yojana' that was launched by Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan recently.

Similarly, subsidised cooking gas will counter Prime Minuter Narendra Modi's flagship 'Ujjawala Yojana' launched in May 2016.

The Congress also made another major announcement of implementing the Old Pension Scheme (OPS) to gain support of the state government employees and their families in the run-up to the upcoming elections.

"The Congress government in Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh and Chhattisgarh has restored OPS. Our government in Karnataka has also cleared the five guarantees (the poll promises made by the party )," Priyanka Gandhi said in Jabalpur.
New Delhi, June 14 : Ahead of Cyclone Biprajoy making landfall in Gujarat, Union Home Minister Amit Shah held a meeting to review the preparedness with Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel and emphasised on "zero casualty".

Shah chaired the virtual meeting, attended by Patel, Union Ministers Mansukh Mandaviya and Parshottam Rupala, several Gujarat ministers, MPs, MLAs, the Chief Secretary and District Magistrates, Union Home Secretary, Director General of India Meteorological Department (IMD), Member Secretary, National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) and senior officers of Ministry of Home Affairs.

During the meeting, Shah said that our aim is to ensure 'zero casualty' and minimize the possible damage caused by the cyclonic storm 'Biparjoy'.

He said that there is a need to act swiftly on the important directions given by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during a review meeting chaired by him on June 12.

Shah said that the Centre has deployed adequate number of NDRF teams for relief and rescue operations.

Along with this, units and assets of Army, Navy, Air Force and Coast Guard have been deployed for help as per requirements, he said.

He also said that Ministry of Home Affairs and state government control room is monitoring the situation round the clock and all the agencies of the Centre are prepared to deal with any emergency situation. Shah also assured all possible help to the state government.

He also asked the state government to make arrangements to move people living in sensitive places to safer places and ensure all necessary services like electricity, telecommunication, health, drinking water. He said that the preparedness should be such that in case of any damage, these services can be restored immediately.

Amit Shah also directed to ensure mobile and landline connectivity and alternate arrangements for electricity in all hospitals. He said that the storm is expected to bring 8-10 inches of rain, which may cause flood in Kutch and Saurashtra and stressed upon the need to review the necessary preparations to deal with it.

He also asked to make all necessary arrangements around Somnath and Dwarka temple. He said that as per the directions given by the Prime Minister, the safety of animals and trees in Gir forest should also be ensured.

Shah also asked MPs and MLAs of Gujarat to make people aware about the threat of the cyclone in their respective areas and help them.

Meanwhile, the Director General of the IMD apprised Shah about the current status of extremely severe cyclonic storm 'Biparjoy' over eastcentral Arabian Sea.

He said that it is very likely to move nearly northward till June 14 morning, then move north-northeastwards and cross Saurashtra and Kutch and adjoining Pakistan coasts between Mandvi (Gujarat) and Karachi (Pakistan) near Jakhau Port (Gujarat) by noon of June 15 as a very severe cyclonic storm with maximum sustained wind speed of 125-135 kmph gusting to 150 kmph.

Gujarat Chief Minister also briefed Shah about the preparedness and measures being taken by the local administration to protect the population residing in the expected path of the cyclonic storm.

Patel said that fishermen have been advised not to venture out into the sea and those at sea have been called back to land.

"A total of 21,595 boats, 27 ships and 24 large ships have been berthed so far. A list of sensitive villages has been prepared for the purpose of evacuation," he said.

Patel also informed that 450 hospitals have been identified in the areas likely to be affected by the storm and the supply of essential medicines has been ensured.

The Chief Minister further said that adequate shelters have also been arranged and 597 teams have been deployed to ensure power supply.

He also said that 18 teams of NDRF and 12 teams of SDRF have also been deployed.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
New Delhi, June 14 : The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has filed an FIR against a woman and a private computer institute for allegedly cheating in NORCET-4 recruitment examination conducted by AIIMS Delhi.

A senior CBI officer said that Naval K. Vikram, Associate Dean, Examination Section, AIIMS, had filed a complaint suspecting that a candidate named Ritu, a resident of Haryana, was involved in cheating during the exam.

"The FIR states that unfair means were used by Ritu or on her behalf through the computer system at Gan Jyoti Institute of Management and Technology to cheat in the NORCET-4 recruitment examination held on June 3," read a statement.

The examination section of AIIMS conducted the NORCET-4 recruitment examination on June 3 for all AIIMS, including AIIMS Delhi, four Central government hospitals in Delhi, and NITRD across the country.

On the evening of June 5, some tweets were noticed claiming leakage of the NORCET-4 question paper in the morning shift.

"Based on the analysis of the screenshots 9of the tweets), it was found that a candidate named Ritu had applied for NORCET-4 recruitment examination. She was allocated a centre at Gian Jyoti Institute of Management and Technology in Mohali, Punjab. An inquiry should be initiated into the matter," said the statement.

The CBI has lodged an FIR against Ritu and Gian Jyoti Institute of Management and Technology, and unknown others.
Sultanpur, Uttar Pradesh, June 14 (IANS/ 101 Reporters) "He won the election and disappeared. We never saw him in our village, leave alone doing something for our betterment." Bilal A Khan

Sultanpur, Uttar Pradesh, June 14 (IANS/ 101 Reporters) "He won the election and disappeared. We never saw him in our village, leave alone doing something for our betterment." A resident of Koiripur nagar panchayat in Sultanpur district of Uttar Pradesh, Rauchi Devi (42) did not mince words when narrating the tale of neglect that haunted a local primary health centre (PHC). Her anger was directed against former nagar panchayat chairman Sudhir Sahu, whose tenure ended recently.

Rauchi's daughter-in-law Zriya Devi (19) recently faced a pregnancy-related complication, and lack of facilities at the PHC exacerbated the ordeal. She had to be rushed to the community health centre (CHC) in Chanda, located eight km away. Though Zriya delivered a baby boy there, further issues made them visit a private hospital.

"The doctors in the CHC said the newborn had water in the belly. The CHC was not equipped to treat the condition, so we had no choice but to rely on a private hospital in Chanda," said Rauchi, whose husband and son work as labourers.

A poll plank According to the 2011 Census, Koiripur nagar panchayat has a population of 8,927. Sahu, who once again stood for the chairman's post in the election held on May 10 and 11, said the electoral rolls had 7,800 voters this time.

His contender and newly-elected chairman Kasim Raeen told 101Reporters that the majority of the population in Koiripur town lived below the poverty line. "They are the ones who have been suffering badly due to the poor state of affairs at the PHC for over a decade now," he said.

No wonder why the issue played out during the nagar panchayat polls this time. "We were all fed up with the PHC issue. Since we realised that Sahu will not do anything, we ditched him. What is the point in giving vote to a person who does not care for the people," Rauchi asked.

Ideally, a PHC should have one MBBS doctor, two to three female staff to treat women, especially those pregnant, hospital beds, facilities for basic check-up and an out-patient department. As per the Indian Public Health Standards (IPHS) guidelines, a PHC caters to a population of 20,000 in hilly, tribal or difficult areas and 30,000 in plain areas. One MBBS medical officer and six indoor/observation beds are required. It acts as a referral unit to the CHC for six sub-centres also.

In Koiripur, however, the PHC building is so shabby that doctors are scared of working there. Portions of the ceiling may come off any time. "We have medicines for basic issues, say cold, cough and wounds. Equipment for medical check-ups are not available," Dr Sunil Kumar, the medical officer at the facility since September 2022, told 101Reporters.

The PHC has a large room with a few beds to admit patients, but there is no facility for treatment. "Even if things were in place, no patient would be admitted here because of the ramshackle building. Parts of the ceiling fall off quite often," added Dr Kumar, a Bahraich native.

He claimed lack of amenities affected the doctors equally and that he had written to the competent authorities about the issues. "There is no drinking water facility. We buy it on our own. The toilet is in such a bad condition that we cannot use it." Along with Dr Kumar, a homeopathic doctor also works there.

"Healthcare is a big issue here and people have been demanding that the PHC be equipped. But I do not think that was the reason for my defeat," said Sahu, when asked whether he lost the election due to the poor condition of the PHC.

Elaborating further, he said: "The PHC building was a private property with a monthly rent of Rs 1. Consequently, even the government could not do anything to improve its condition. It took me almost a year to make it a non-rental property and hand it over to the government." Sahu informed that the health department was in the process of initiating repair works. "I have been in contact with the authorities concerned earlier. Though I am not the chairman now, I am from the Bharatiya Janata Party, which is in power in the state. I will continue to make efforts to make the PHC facilities better," he said.

District Chief Medical Officer Dr DK Tripathi was aware of the condition of Koiripur PHC, but did not comment on the timeframe for repairs or the expenses involved. "The building needs reconstruction. We have asked the junior engineer concerned to make an estimate. I cannot say how long it will take to resolve the issue," Tripathi said. Meanwhile, Sahu estimated that around Rs 1 crore would be required to repair and equip the PHC with necessary medical facilities.

Few and far At present, people of Koiripur have no choice but to visit Chanda CHC for medical care. Many try to avoid treatment as expenses are high. Mithailal has been facing respiratory issues for the last three years, but has visited the CHC only twice. Neither did he think about getting a better treatment elsewhere as he could not afford the medical expenses.

"The doctor at the CHC suggested medicines for 10 days. It should be given free of cost to the patients, but there was no stock. When I went to a private pharmacy, I found the medicine would cost Rs 3,000 for 10 days. It was not at all affordable. So, I ended up consulting a local doctor (quack), who suggested a medicine costing Rs 500 to 700 a month," he said.

Mithailal does not breathe normally and cannot stand for 10 to 15 minutes as his legs shake. "I have not been working for the last three years. My sons are in their early 20s; they do earn a little through construction labour. Both could study only up to class 8," he lamented.

Saroj Kumari did not follow the treatment suggested by the doctor at the CHC when she learnt that the medicine would cost Rs 700 a week. "My son had mucus build-up in throat. The PHC doctor referred us to the CHC, where medicines were not available at the pharmacy. Since I did not have Rs 700 to buy medicine from outside, we avoided treatment." "We are seven members in the family and there is only one breadwinner," added Saroj, whose son Tirbahavan Kumar (21) seemed weak and malnourished.

If private pharmacies are not affordable, how can private hospitals be? Rauchi claimed her grandson was admitted in the private hospital in Chanda for three days, and the bill came to Rs 16,000. "For us, having this much money at once is a luxury in itself. What my husband and son earn is barely sufficient to put food on the table for all seven in our family. We had no option but to borrow money. We do not know when we will repay it," exclaimed Rauchi.

Asked why they did not visit the district hospital in Sultanpur, she said it was 40 km away and would involve similar expenses. "Admitting the baby in the district hospital means we have to arrange accommodation for three to four days. We also have to buy food thrice a day. We have children at home too." Pinning hopes on the new chairman Raeen, Rauchi said, "We have high expectations from him. He was once in that post and he did a lot for us." Meanwhile, Raeen said he had raised the PHC issue during the poll campaign. "Now that people have elected me, my foremost priority will be to get the PHC fully functional. I will talk to the authorities concerned and request them to expedite the process." ( is a Sultanpur-based freelance journalist and a member of 101Reporters, a pan-India network of grassroots reporters)
Kabul, June 14 : A total of 531 Afghan refugees have returned from Pakistan in the last two days, the Taliban-led government in Kabul announced on Wednesday.

The Ministry for Refugees and Repatriation said that more than 2.5 million registered Afghan refugees reportedly have been living in Pakistan and about the same number in Iran, reports Xinhua news agency.

A couple of weeks ago, the state-run Bakhtar news agency reported the return of more than 60,000 Afghan refugees from Iran since January.

The Taliban government has urged Afghan refugees living abroad to return home and contribute to rebuilding their war-torn country.
Damascus, June 14 : The Syrian army confirmed that a fresh Israeli missile attack was launched on Wednesday against military sites in the capital Damascus, seriously injuring a soldier.

The missiles came from the direction of the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, hitting sites southwest of Damascus, causing damage, said the army in a statement.

It added that the Syrian air defence system intercepted some of the missiles, reports Xinhua news agency.

Meanwhile, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights war monitor said the attack hit weapon depots run by the Lebanon-based Hezbollah militant group.

For years, Israel has carried out attacks against what it has described as targets for Iran-backed Shia fighters in Syria, hitting airports and military bases alleged to house weapon shipments for the fighters.
Mumbai, June 14 : Actor Ram Charan, who swayed the audience with his work in Oscar-winning 'RRR', is celebrating 11 years of marital bliss with his wife Upasana Kamineni Konidela on Wednesday.

The two got hitched on June 14, 2012 in a big fat wedding. The ceremony was attended by the hot shots of the film industry. And now, the two are set to embrace parenthood as they're about to welcome their baby.

Hi Charan and Upsy !



On this special day, we wish you both a happy wedding anniversary,



You both have made us proud and happy beyond measure 



As you step into the journey of parenthood, we wish you all the best,

May your love for your child be a story that others will love pic.twitter.com/1bSPrRv3UO  Chiranjeevi Konidela (@KChiruTweets) June 14, 2023

On the occasion of their 11th anniversary, Ram's father and Telugu megastar, Chiranjeevi Konidela took to Twitter to extend his best wishes for the couple as he showered his blessings on them.

The megastar tweeted: "Hi Charan and Upsy! On this special day, we wish you both a happy wedding anniversary. You both have made us proud and happy beyond measure. As you step into the journey of parenthood, we wish you all the best. May your love for your child be a story that others will love to attest. Love and blessings, Mom and Appa."

Meanwhile, on the work front, Ram will soon be seen in the tentatively titled 'RC 15'.

-- Syndicated from IANS
Ukraine will assist in the creation of infrastructure for the functioning of the production enterprise of the Irish-based Kingspan Group, Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said.

"The Irish company Kingspan Group is implementing a major investment project in Ukraine worth more than $280 million. We discussed with the company's management the details of its implementation in accordance with the law on state support of investment projects with significant investments. The government office of UkraineInvest is helping with the project," Shmyhal wrote on the Telegram channel.

The prime minister noted that an important element of the project is the creation of more than 700 jobs.

"Kingspan is one of the largest investors that came to Ukraine during the full-scale Russian invasion. The group is a world leader in the production of high-tech energy-efficient construction materials. Ukraine will need them to restore destroyed housing, industrial facilities and other infrastructure. This will also increase production process standards in Ukraine to the level of the best world practices," Shmyhal said.
New Delhi, June 14 : Minister for Power and New and Renewable Energy R K Singh has urged the International Solar Alliance (ISA) to take up more solar energy projects in Africa.

"The economically strong countries will find the renewable energy funds themselves, while the economically weak countries would need green funds. We will have to help such countries who need funds," Singh said during a meeting with Chrysoula Zacharopoulou, French minister of state for development, Francophonie and international partnerships, attached to the minister for Europe and foreign affairs.

India is the president and France is the co-president of the ISA.

The two sides observed that almost half of the African continent does not have access to electricity. Noting that alongside energy transition, the focus has to be also on ensuring energy access as well, Singh highlighted the need to help the ISA forge ahead in this direction sources privy to development said.

They also observed that Africa does not have a problem of decarbonisation as access to electricity is very limited at present and in this scenario, getting access through solar energy is the cheapest and the simplest option, Power Minister said.

Singh also emphasised on the need for green energy insurance, payment security mechanism and debt financing.

"Once established, these funds will grow, due to contributions and interest payments. In India too, our investment is coming because of a fund we set up as a payment security mechanism," the Minister said.

He further said that the ISA should set up a de-risking mechanism and should also tap more green funds and thus promote grid-scale solar energy projects in the African continent.

The two sides also took note of the success of Kenya in renewable energy and discussed the idea of holding a conference by ISA in Kenya.

The minister told the visiting delegation that even though India's per capita emissions are one third of the global average, the country is the fastest in terms of energy transition.

He informed that while 43 per cent of India's capacity today is from non-fossil fuels, it has committed to reducing the emission intensity by 45 per cent by the year 2030.

Singh added that India is going to be a world leader in green hydrogen and that the country is adding renewable energy capacity at a fast pace, which will also help bring down the cost of energy in due time.

The meeting had taken place on June 13.
New Delhi, June 14 : The Congress on Wednesday once again trained its guns at the BJP-led Centre over the fresh killings in violence-hit Manipur, saying the agony of the people of northeastern state is the nation's pain, "but clearly not the Prime Minister's as he continues to maintain silence".

Congress general secretary communications in-charge Jairasm Ramesh targeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and said, "The agony of the people of Manipur continues unabated. Their agony is the nation's pain but clearly not the PM's - he continues to maintain silence. HM's belated visit and outsourced interventions to Assam CM are not having any significant impact." His remarks came after at least 11 people were killed and 23 others injured when suspected militants attacked the Khamelock village in Manipur.

A police official said that heavily armed militants attacked the village late on Tuesday night and fired at the villagers with automatic weapons killing nine people on the spot and injuring 23 others, including women.

Two people succumbed to their injuries during treatment.

Manipur has witnessed devastating ethnic violence since May 3, killing over 120 people and injuring more than 350, besides destroying thousands of houses, large numbers of private and government vehicles and properties.
New Delhi, June 14 : The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) said on Wednesday that it has arrested a senior auditor and a data entry operator, both working in the accounts office of the CDA (Navy) in Visakhapatnam, along with two private individuals, including a contractor, in connection with a bribery case.

A senior CBI official said that a case was registered against Telikicherla Ramana Kumar, the senior auditor, and Besetti D Danti Nokeswara Rao, the data entry operator, on allegations of bribery.

The senior auditor had allegedly demanded a bribe of Rs 26,000 from Bhanupratap Yadav, the contractor, in order to clear pending bills amounting to Rs 26 lakh. Yadav sent Rs 26,000 through his representative to the accused.

The CBI set a trap and arrested the senior auditor and the data entry operator while they were accepting the bribe. Subhash Mishra, the representative of the contractor, was also apprehended while making the payment. Subsequently, the contractor himself was also caught.

Searches were conducted at the premises of the accused, leading to the recovery of certain incriminating documents.

All the four arrested individuals were produced before the Court of Principal Special Judge for CBI Cases in Visakhapatnam and remanded to fourteen days in judicial custody.
Hyderabad, June 14 : A 27-year-old woman from Hyderabad, Kontham Tejaswini Reddy, has been stabbed to death in London's Wembley.

Tejaswini Reddy had gone to London for higher studies. According to information received by her family here on Wednesday, she was stabbed to death by her Brazilian flatmate on Tuesday.

The woman's family resides in Sriram Nagar in the Turkayamjal area in Hyderabad.

Tejaswini had completed her Masters two months ago and was planning to return home.

She was sharing a flat in Neeld Crescent, Wembley with three others including a Brazilian, who had recently moved in.

Another flatmate, a 28-year-old woman, was injured in the attack by the Brazilian man. She is stated to be out of danger. The motive behind the crime was not known.

Police have arrested the 24-year-old Brazilian. Another suspect was also detained for questioning.

Tejaswini's family has appealed to the Centre, and the Telangana government to help in bringing home her mortal remains.
The names of CBI and ED should be changed to 'BJP, says Kejriwal. Image Source: IANS News

The names of CBI and ED should be changed to 'BJP, says Kejriwal. Image Source: IANS News

New Delhi, June 14 : Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday accused the Bharatiya Janata Party-led Central government of misusing the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) by targeting the opposition leaders.

During a meeting with CPI general secretary D Raja and others, Kejriwal sought their support against the Central government's ordinance and accused it of using the CBI and the ED as tools for political purposes.

Kejriwal tweeted, "The names of CBI and ED should be changed to 'BJP Sena.' There was a time when these investigative agencies were respected. Whenever they conducted raids or made arrests, it appeared that the person must have done something wrong. Today, these agencies have become mere political weapons of the BJP." Kejriwal also criticized a provision in the Union government's ordinance that allows them to establish commissions and boards for the Delhi government.

"If that's the case, then why hold elections? The people of Delhi have decisively defeated BJP three times. They were only given 3 out of 70 seats once, and 8 seats in another election. The BJP was even defeated in the MCD. If they can't win, they want to control Delhi through backdoor tactics," Kejriwal said.

During the event, D Raja referred to Kejriwal as his great friend and expressed support for Kejriwal's stance on how the rights of Delhi are being undermined by the ordinance.

"Our party stands with Arvind Kejriwal on this issue, opposing the Union government's ordinance. The Union government is undermining the fundamental principles of democracy," said Raja.
Hyderabad, June 14 : Cyberabad police have arrested Tollywood film producer Sunkara Krishna Prasad Chowdary allegedly for drug peddling, officials said on Wednesday.

The police seized 90 sachets containing 82.75 grams of cocaine, nearly Rs 2 lakh in cash, a car and four mobile phones from his possession.

Officials said that personnel of Special Operations Team (SOT Madhapur) and Rajendranagar police arrested Chowdary on Tuesday when he was peddling drugs near Kismatpur X Roads under the limits of Rajendranagar police station.

According to police, Chowdary is native of Bonakal Mandal in Khammam district of Telangana. He completed his B.Tech (Mechanical) and later worked as Director (Operations) in Indian Institute of Aeronautical Engineering and Technology at Pune.

In 2016, he left the job and entered the film industry.

He was the producer of Kabali movie in Telugu. He was also the distributor for several Telugu and Tamil movies including Sardar Gabbarsingh, Seetamma Vakitlo Sirimalle Chettu and Kanitan (Arjun Suravaram), but he did not get the expected profits.

Chowdary later moved to Goa and started OHM Club there.

According to police, the accused used to consume drugs with friends and celebrities coming from Hyderabad to his club in Goa. Due to loss in business, he returned to Hyderabad in April 2023. While coming to Hyderabad, he procured 100 sachets of cocaine from a Nigerian, Petit Ebuzer alias Gabrial, a resident of Goa and absconding in a drug peddling case.

He allegedly used 10 sachets for self-consumption and for selling to his friends.

On Tuesday, he was apprehended while he was allegedly trying to sell cocaine.

Chowdary has been booked under Sections 21(b) read with 8(C) of NDPS Act.
New Delhi, June 14 : Bharatiya Janata Party IT cell head Amit Malviya on Wednesday said Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M. K. Stalin, as Leader of Opposition, had promised the state's voters to send Electricity Minister Senthil Balaji to jail. Now when the ED has arrested Balaji, why is Stalin complaining and approaching other "corrupt" leaders for support.

Malviya was reacting to the political slugfest over the arrest of Balaji by the Enforcement Directorate in connection with alleged money laundering.

Sharing a part of the speech of Stalin when he was the Leader of Opposition, Malviya tweeted: "M K Stalin, as Leader of Opposition, accused Senthil Balaji of looting, corruption, abduction, land grabbing and promised the voters to jail him. ED has now arrested Balaji." "After all, this is what Stalin wanted. Why then complain now and run to other corrupt leaders for support?" After Balaji was arrested, all opposition leaders, including Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, NCP chief Sharad Pawar, Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee, AAP convenor Arvind Kejriwal, CPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury have slammed the Modi government.

After Stalin thanked the opposition leaders for their support, Malviya reminded the Tamil Nadu chief minister of his earlier statement.
New Delhi, June 14 : While donating blood is a selfless act and a humanitarian gesture, it also helps improve the health of the donor, said experts here on World Blood Donation Day on Wednesday.

The World Blood Donation Day is celebrated around the world on June 14 to raise global awareness of the need for safe blood and blood products, and to express gratitude for blood donors for their voluntary life-saving gift.

Healthy adults above 18 years of age can donate blood once every three months. Donating blood can help in the early detection of certain health conditions, such as anaemia or infectious diseases, which may otherwise go unnoticed.

Regular blood donation is also linked to lower blood pressure, helps maintain healthy iron levels in the body, and lowers risk for heart attacks, the experts said.

"Blood donation has numerous health benefits for the donor. It reduces the risk of heart disease, lowers the risk of cancer, improves blood flow, leads to early detection of disease through health screening before donating blood, enhances psychological well-being, regulates iron levels in the body, and monitors your general health status," Dr Rajiv Tomer, Blood Bank, Ujala Cygnus Group of Hospitals, told IANS.

It is estimated that someone in India needs blood every two seconds. With India poised to become the most populous country in the world now, access to safe blood is critical.

Over 12,000 people die every day in the country due to the non-availability of blood. In many cases, people who need transfusions do not have timely access to safe blood. This makes blood donation a life-saving exercise.

The theme this year is 'Give Blood, Give Plasma, Share Life, Share Often'. It holds tremendous relevance, especially for patients requiring life-long transfusion support.

"Even a single person's blood donation can make a large difference in the lives of individuals battling conditions like thalassemia, sickle cell disease, or certain types of cancer depend on regular blood transfusions to sustain their health," Dr. Kalpana Velaska, Senior Consultant & Head Transfusion Medicine, NH SRCC Children's Hospital, told IANS.

"By donating blood and blood products, we offer these patients a lifeline, replenishing their depleted supply of red blood cells, platelets, granulocytes, stem cells, coagulation factors etc. Moreover, plasma donations are crucial for patients who require specialised treatments like immunoglobulin therapies," she added.

However, the experts also underlined the importance of safe blood transfusion practices. They stressed on the importance of embracing screening technologies like Nucleic acid testing (NAT) testing which is a crucial step toward ensuring the safety and integrity of our blood supply.

"The safety of blood needs immediate attention, and issues need to be addressed like Transfusion Transmitted Infections (TTIs) which come with blood transfusions concerning the overall healthcare system," Dr Seema Sinha, HOD - Transfusion Medicine, Fortis Hospital Noida, told IANS.

"It is crucial to safeguard the health of those who depend on transfusions and medical treatments. Prioritising the mandatory implementation of such screening technologies, proper storage and transportation conditions are paramount in safeguarding the purity and safety of donated blood. By doing this, decision-makers can foster a resilient healthcare system for generations to come," she added.
Hyderabad, June 14 : Union Home Minister Amit Shah's visit to Telangana on Thursday has been postponed, BJP leaders said.

State BJP President Bandi Sanjay Kumar said due to severe cyclonic conditions on the west coast, especially in Maharashtra and Gujarat, as well inland in Rajasthan, Shah's visit has been postponed.

Amit Shah was scheduled to arrive in Hyderabad on Wednesday and address a public meey in Khammam on Andhra Pradesh.

He was also scheduled to meet leaders of BJP's state unit in Hyderabad to discuss the party's preparations for coming Assembly elections in the state.

The new date for the public meeting will be announced later.

Bandi Sanjay tweeted that as the NDRF teams are already deployed, under the guidance of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Amit Shah is personally monitoring the rescue operations, he was confident that the emerging situation would be effectively tackled to ensure the safety of each and every citizen.

He said that the new date for public meeting will be announced soon.
New Delhi, June 14 : Research into universal influenza vaccines is gaining precedence, with several candidates entering clinical development, according to a report on Wednesday.

Interim results from a recent study on influenza vaccine effectiveness (VE) estimations for the 2022-2023 season across six European countries has found VE to be only 27-44 per cent for influenza and above -- 50 per cent for influenza B, highlighting a longstanding unmet need for more effective seasonal influenza vaccines.

The current influenza vaccines only provide protection against a limited number of strains, with the strains predicted to be dominant in the upcoming season selected for inclusion in the vaccines, said the report by GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company.

"The concept of a universal influenza vaccine is that it provides more durable protection against a wider variety of influenza strains than quadrivalent influenza vaccines, including unanticipated strains," said Nusrat Haque, Infectious Disease Analyst at GlobalData, in a statement.

"In an ideal scenario this should eliminate the need to develop influenza vaccines on an annual basis, freeing up resources and saving patients from the inconvenience of annual vaccinations. Ultimately one of the biggest benefits of a universal influenza vaccine is that it could help to contain a potential pandemic," he added.

Some vaccine candidates have already reached clinical development. For example, UK-based Imutex's FLU-v has demonstrated positive results in protecting against the intranasal challenge of wild-type (H1N1)pdm09 influenza A virus in a Phase IIb trial.

In addition, France-based Osivax's OVX-836 provided protective efficacy in reducing influenza-like-illnesses, confirmed by polymerase chain reaction (PCR), in a Phase IIa trial, and is being evaluated in further Phase II studies.

"GlobalData estimates that in 2022 the lab-confirmed seasonal influenza mortality rate across all ages was 1.24 per 100,000 in the US. However, a universal vaccine that confers immunity against a wide range of influenza strains could drastically reduce the influenza-related hospitalisation and mortality," Haque said.

The first mRNA-based universal vaccine, H1ssF-3928 mRNA-LNP, which was designed by the Vaccine Research Centre (VRC) of the US National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), has also recently advanced to Phase I clinical development in America.

The vaccine will be tested for safety and immunogenicity against an approved quadrivalent seasonal influenza vaccine.

"The advantage of designing an mRNA-based universal influenza vaccine is that it could potentially be tested and produced quickly on a large scale, resulting in faster distribution to larger numbers of patients," Haque said.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 14. The Association of Banks of Azerbaijan (ABA) and the International Finance Corporation (IFC) signed a memorandum of cooperation, Trend reports.

The document was signed by ABA Executive Director Yunus Abdulov and IFC Regional Manager in the South Caucasus Ivana Fernandes Duarte.

The document covers cooperation in the field of environmental, social and corporate governance, as well as ensuring financial stability in Azerbaijan.

A memorandum of understanding was also signed between the Association of Banks of Azerbaijan and the Union of Participating Banks of Turkiye on June 13. Within the framework of this cooperation, the parties aim to organize joint events, as well as developing the financial sector.
London, June 14 : Vodafone and CK Hutchison on Wednesday entered into binding agreements to merge Vodafone UK and 3 UK, with the former holding a 51 per cent stake and CK Hutchison 49 per cent.

Current Vodafone UK CEO Ahmed Essam will become CEO of the joint business, and 3 UK CEO Darren Purkis will take on the CFO role.

Vodafone Group Chief Executive Margherita Della Valle described the merger of Vodafone UK and Three UK as being "great for customers, great for the country and great for competition".

"It's transformative as it will create a best-in-class 5G network, offering customers a superior experience. As a country, the UK will benefit from the creation of a sustainable, strongly competitive third scaled operator - with a clear 11 billion pounds network investment plan - driving growth, employment and innovation," Della Valle added.

The combined business will invest 11 billion pounds in the UK over 10 years to create one of Europe's most advanced standalone 5G networks, in full support of UK government targets.

"From day one, millions of customers of Vodafone UK and Three UK will enjoy a better network experience with greater coverage and reliability at no extra cost, including through certain flexible, contract-free offers with no annual price increases, and social tariffs," the companies said in a statement.

By having a best-in-class 5G network in place sooner, the merger will deliver up to 5 billion pounds per year in economic benefit by 2030, create jobs and support digital transformation of the UK's businesses.

Every school and hospital in the UK will have access to standalone 5G by 2030.

"No cash consideration to be paid, with the Vodafone UK and Three UK businesses contributed with differential debt amounts at completion to achieve MergeCo ownership of 51:49 between Vodafone and CK Hutchison," said the statement.

These are expected to amount to more than 700 million pounds of annual cost and capex synergies by the fifth full year post-completion, with an implied NPV of over 7 billion pounds.

The transaction is expected to close before the end of 2024, subject to regulatory and shareholder approvals.

"Together, we will have the scale needed to deliver a best-in-class 5G network for the UK, transforming mobile services for our customers and opening up new opportunities for businesses across the length and breadth of the UK," said Canning Fok, Group Co-Managing Director of CK Hutchison.
Kochi, June 14 : A lower court in Kerala has issued summons to the Lakeshore Hospital in Kochi as well as eight doctors over a complaint alleging illegal organ transplantation.

"The magistrate is required to apply his mind as to whether sufficient ground for proceeding exists in the case or not. The formation of such an opinion is required to be stated in the order itself. The order is liable to be set aside if no reasons are given therein while coming to the conclusion that there is a prima facie case against the accused. No doubt, that the order need not contain detailed reasons," the court said.

This case surfaced when a doctor from Kollam, S. Ganapathy filed a complaint after coming to know from a newspaper about an organ transplant done in 2009 from a brain dead teenager who had met with a very serious accident.

"The patient was first admitted to a hospital in Kothamangalam and was later shifted to the Lakeshore Hospital. The doctor who referred the patient to the Lakeshore Hospital had previously worked there, where the patient was declared brain dead. Following this, his kidneys and liver were harvested," said Ganapathy, who made detailed inquiries into what happened and then filed the complaint.

The recipient was a foreign national.

"I find that there is a prima face case and sufficient grounds for proceeding in respect of offences u/s. 18, 20 and 21 of the Transplantation of Human Organs Act, 1994 (pre-amended), against all accused", read the court order.

Meanwhile the family of the patient is also alarmed by the turn of events and is waiting, while Ganapathy is sure that he is on the right path.

But the hospital stands firm that it has done no wrong and is ready to prove its position in the court.
Mumbai, June 14 : Bollywood actor Aditya Roy Kapur, who will be soon seen in the upcoming streaming release 'The Night Manager Part 2', has started shooting for his next film 'Metro... In Dino' at Mumbai's Film City in the Goregaon area.

'Metro... In Dino', which also stars Sara Ali Khan, is being directed by Anurag Basu, who is known for films like Gangster', 'Barfi', 'Murder', 'Jagga Jasoos' and 'Ludo'. The film marks another collaboration between Anurag and music composer Pritam.

While the movie is an ensemble drama, as per sources, the director will first focus on the track of Aditya and Sara Ali Khan's characters. Aditya will be collaborating with Anurag Basu post the success of Ludo.

A source revealed, "Aditya began with an emotional sequence. Anurag has lined up the most challenging scenes at the start, with Sara expected to join the project later this week." The Film City stint will be a week-long affair, following which Aditya will dive into the promotions of 'The Night Manager Part 2'. The actor wants to finish it before starting another project because it is a consuming role.
New Delhi, June 14 : Cyclone Biparjoy has picked up speed after re-curving and is now lying very close to the coast of Gujarat.

It is likely to make landfall by the evening on Thursday, Mahesh Palawat, Vice President, Meteorology and Climate Change, Skymet Weather, said on Wednesday.

It can cause heavy to very heavy rainfall over southwest Rajasthan as well, and thereafter its impact could be seen in Uttarakhand, southern Haryana, Delhi-NCR and western Uttar Pradesh.

Palawat told IANS that as Biparjoy moves further closer to the coast, it has started losing its intensity and will continue to weaken further as it encounters dry winds from Rajasthan and Sindh region of Pakistan.

"Presently, it is moving at a speed of 180 kmph, but at the time of landfall, the wind speed would be around 130-140 kmph," he said.

The coastal areas are being evacuated as cyclone Biparjoy approaches Gujarat. It will also be accompanied by strong storm surges, increasing the threat of flash floods and inundation.

Regarding its impact on Gujarat, Palawat said that while most parts of the state will see heavy rains, the northwestern parts of Gujarat would feel the maximum impact.

Places such as Rann of Kutch, Naliya, Bhuj, Kandla, Gandhidham and Mandvi would be most affected, he said.

While cyclone Biparjoy will weaken further after the landfall, it would be strong enough to leave a massive trail of destruction, Palawat warned.

On its impact on other places, the met official said that by June 16, Biparjoy will reach Rajasthan as a weakened system with the strength of a depression.

"It is expected to cause heavy to very heavy rainfall over southwest Rajasthan, with a wind speed of 80-90 kmph. Thereafter, it would further move up and may travel to Uttarakhand. We can expect rains of varied intensity from June 18-20 over southern Haryana, Delhi-NCR, and western Uttar Pradesh," Palawat forecast.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has spoken to the three service chiefs and reviewed the preparations of the forces to deal with the impact of Biparjoy.

After reviewing the preparations, Singh said the armed forces are ready to provide every possible assistance to the civil authorities in tackling any situation or contingency.

Meanwhile, according to a report titled "Changing status of tropical cyclones in the north Indian Ocean", the frequency, duration and intensity of cyclones in the Arabian Sea have increased significantly.

The intensity of cyclones has increased in the Arabian Sea by about 20 per cent (post-monsoon) to 40 per cent (pre-monsoon).

There has been a 52 per cent increase in the number of cyclones in the Arabian Sea, while very severe cyclones have increased by 150 per cent.

"The oceans have become warmer on account of climate change. In fact, a recent study shows that the Arabian Sea has warmed up by almost 1.2-degree Celsius since March, thus the conditions are very much favourable for the rapid intensification of the system so it has potential to sustain the strength for a longer period," said Raghu Murtugudde, professor, Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Science, University of Maryland and IIT Bombay.

"Climate models are unable to pick up this rapid intensification of cyclones because they do not include ocean conditions properly and that is their limitation. Cyclones nowadays can retain their energy for quite a long number of days. One example of this trend was Cyclone Amphan which continued to travel over land as a strong cyclone and resulted in massive devastation.

"As long as oceans are warm and winds are favourable, cyclones will retain their intensity for a longer period," said Roxy Mathew Koll, Climate Scientist at the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology and Lead IPCC Author.
Mumbai, June 14 : Actress Dia Mirza's web series 'Kaafir' will complete four years of its release on June 15.

Ahead of the show's 4th anniversary, the actress looked back at the series and shared that the character of Kainaaz Akhtar played by her in the show is still a part of her, especially Kainaaz's devotion to her daughter.

The series continues to be a fan favourite, and many tell Dia how much the character of Kainaaz Akhtar touched their hearts and stirred their conscience.

Dia said: "I have travelled a very long distance with Kainaaz, and as I said four years ago, discovering her within was an incredible experience. She is still a part of me, and now as a mother, I identify with her devotion to her daughter even more deeply." The 2019 web television series directed by Sonam Nair, and written by Bhavani Iyer, follows Kainaaz Akhtar, a woman from Pakistan occupied Kashmir, who winds up on the Indian side of the Line-of-Control, and is held prisoner on suspicion of being a militant.

Kainaaz gives birth to a child while spending seven years in imprisonment. She and her daughter are helped by an Indian journalist, who seeks to bring them justice.

The series is inspired by the true story of Shehnaz Parveen. It also stars Mohit Raina.

The actress further mentioned: "As an actor, it is important for me to do work that has some substance and meaning, serves a purpose, and brings people together in a positive way. This story was a powerful reminder that no matter which side of the border we may inhabit, we are all human beings who experience the fundamental emotions of love, grief, loss, and hope in the same way." Kainaaz for Dia is a symbol of someone who dealt with immense pain with unwavering determination and optimism.

"While preparing for the role, it was very challenging to read up on individuals who had endured similar injustices. Such parts also give you a perspective of the vastness of human suffering and the pointlessness of hate. 'Kaafir' to me will always represent a beacon that compels us to look at each other in a new light, as human beings and not through filters of religion and nationalities," the actress concluded.
Srinagar, June 14 : Lieutenant General Rajiv Ghai on Wednesday assumed command of the strategic Kashmir-based Chinar Corps.

A Defence Ministry statement said, "On taking over the command, he paid homage at the Chinar Corps Memorial at Badami Bagh Cantonment in Srinagar.

"The Lieutenant General addressed and interacted with the troops of Chinar Corps and exhorted them to continue to work with unflinching dedication and perseverance in pursuit of peace and stability in Kashmir.

"He encouraged all ranks to take additional steps required to connect with the citizens in order to jointly work towards peace and development.

According to the statement, Lieutenant General Ghai, an alumnus of the Indian Military Academy, Dehradun, was commissioned in December 1989 into the Kumaon Regiment and has had an illustrious military career spanning 33 years during which he has held varied prestigious command, staff and instructional appointments.

"As Colonel General Staff, he has served in the Division deployed for Counter Insurgency Operations in J&K and Brigadier at Military Operations Directorate in Army Headquarters. In his command tenures, he has commanded a Battalion in the Western Sector followed by command of a Brigade and a Division on the Northern Borders.

"He is a postgraduate from the Defence Services Staff College, Wellington (Tamil Nadu), and has done Higher Command Course, Army War College, Mhow, and National Defence College, New Delhi. Prior to this appointment, Lieutenant General Rajiv Ghai held an important appointment in Northern Command as Major General General Staff," the statement said.

On assuming command, Lt Gen Ghai conveyed his greetings to the citizens of Kashmir.

"He reiterated his commitment to closely work with various instruments of civil administration and society to further the cause of peace and prosperity in Kashmir. He expressed hope at the improved security parameters in the Valley and is optimistic that even the ceasefire agreement along the Line of Control will further enable improvement of the overall security situation.

"He called for the civil society to come forward and jointly work with the security forces to address the scourge of terrorism.

"Lieutenant General Ghai said that, together with the support of all community members, Kashmir will move a step closer to its glorious past while leaping forward in the development barometers," the statement said.
Mumbai, June 14 : The trailer of the upcoming romantic comedy drama 'Tiku Weds Sheru' starring Nawazuddin Siddiqui and Avneet Kaur in lead roles was unveiled on Wednesday.

The trailer showcases the story of two aspiring actors who get married.

As per the trailer, the movie looks rather like a mix of a Bollywood rom-com with black comedy, having a bit of a similarity to 'Delhi Belly'.

Somewhat satirical in nature, the movie is also well produced with great lighting and sound design. The dialogues in the trailer are also lighthearted, and the one which sticks out most is, "Big risk, big life. No risk, no life", said by Nawaz.

The movie, while having a solid story, does not seem to take itself too seriously with the actors clearly having a good time.

The official synopsis of the movie reads: "Sheru and Tiku are marginalised souls from the underprivileged strata of society. They are ambitious for a better life, but life has different plans for them. Shiraz, popularly known as Sheru, hails from Bhopal, a small-town in India. Sheru comes to Mumbai in search of a better life.

Being semi-literate, Sheru works as a pimp for a local don, Shahid Bhai, and also as a junior artiste as a decoy job, where he finds girls for his pimping business. He risks everything to win the confidence of his boss to be promoted as an equal partner. Tiku lives with her large conservative Muslim family in Bhopal. What follows when they come together is a set of hilarious situations which sometimes put them on the edge."

Directed and co-written by Sai Kabir, and produced by Kangana Ranaut, 'Tiku Weds Sheru' will release on Prime Video on June 23.

-- Syndicated from IANS
Patna, June 14 : RJD national President Lalu Prasad Yadav on Wednesday slammed the raid and arrest of Tamil Nadu Minister Senthil Balaji as another example of vendetta politics by the BJP-led Centre.

"Not shocked and surprised to see yet another act of vendetta by the union government and its agency against TM minister Thiru Senthil Balaji.

"Till 2024 general election, this shall continue. Make no mistake. We shall fight. We shall win. In solidarity with Thiru and MK Stalin," he tweeted.

Meanwhile, his son and Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Yadav, while reacting to the incident, said: "This will continue and it may be possible that I would be charge sheeted in a case. CBI or ED may come to us before June 23", referring to the date of the planned mega opposition meet in Patna.

"At present, my name is not included in the charge sheet in the case but they may add my name in the supplementary charge sheet. It will continue till Lok Sabha election 2024. We are not afraid of it. The CBI and ED raided my places several times but they found nothing. As long as they conduct raids on me I would become more stronger," he added.
Patna, June 14 : Bihar Rural Development Minister Sharvan Kumar on Wednesday said that Jitan Ram Manjhi's decision to separate his Hindustani Awam Morcha from the the state's ruling Mahagathbandhan is wrong.

"Jitan Ram Manjhi has not given jolt to the Mahagathbandhan but he gave himself a jolt with the decision to separate his party from Mahagathbandhan. His decision would prove to be a self-goal for himself," Kumar said, a day after Manjhi's son Santosh Kumar Suman resigned as a minister in the Nitish Kumar-led government.

"During his good times, he (Manjhi) roams here and there but when he faces tough situations, Nitish Kumar helps him. Nitish Kumar has given respect to Jitan Ram Manjhi, his son and his party so much that no one could do it.

"We are preparing for the opposition unity in the country and our goal is to defeat BJP in the 2024 Lok Sabha poll. People will come and go. It happened at a time of elections. We are not bothering about anyone leaving us," Kumar added.
Bhubaneswar, June 14 : The opposition parties in Odhisa, including the BJP and the Congress, on Wednesday slammed the Biju Janata Dal (BJD)-led government over the frequent power cuts in different parts of the state during the peak summer season.

The state BJP launched a two-day protest in front of the offices of Tata Power at different places, while the Congress said that it will gherao the GRIDCO office on June 19 to protest against the erratic power supply.

The BJP leaders and workers staged protests before the offices of Tata Power in Bhubaneswar, Cuttack and other cities. The protests will continue on Thursday as well.

"The state government claims that Odisha is a power-surplus state. Then why is the power not reaching the people? Who is consuming the power," asked a protesting BJP worker.

BJP state general secretary Prithiviraj Harichandan said that people are facing a lot of difficulties due to the frequent power cuts, as the government has no control over the power distribution system.

"We are holding protests to raise the voice of the people against the government and Tata Power over frequent power cuts across Odisha. Tata Power should also face the public ire for the power disruptions," he said.

Meanwhile, to counter BJP's protest, the ruling-BJD also staged protest demonstrations before the Raj Bhawan over hike in LPG cylinder price.

BJD leaders and activists also submitted a memorandum to the President of India through the Governor demanding immediate reduction in LPG price.

BJD leader Srimayee Mishra said that the price of a domestic gas cylinder was Rs 410 in 2014, which has gone up to Rs 1,130 now, thus impacting household budgets significantly.

Similarly, the Ujwala scheme has become a dark scheme as the beneficiaries are unable to refill their cylinders, Mishra said.

"The poor women are going back to using wooden chulha. The BJD will continue to protest the hike in gas prices if the Center does not reduce the same immediately," Mishra added.

On BJD's counter protest, Harichandan said, "By holding protest against LPG price hike, the ruling BJD proved that it is protecting Tata Power and no one can point fingers at the company even though it exploits people." Meanwhile, the President of Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee (OPCC), Sarat Pattanayak, alleged that the state government is exploiting the people with high power tariff and frequent disruptions in electricity supply.

He said that Rs 20,000 crore was allotted by the Centre and state for power infrastructure development in Odisha. However, a total amount of Rs 5,000 crore was given to Tata Power and no one knows about the remaining Rs 15,000 crore, Pattanayak claimed.

The Congress leader demanded the state government to publish a white paper on the issue, giving details about the amount provided and utilised for the development of the power sector.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 14. Turkiye and Azerbaijan, taking an important position in world geography and history, are, as the great leader Heydar Aliyev said, "one nation, two states", the chief adviser to the President of Turkiye Yalcin Topcu told reporters, Trend reports.

"Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, after being re-elected as head of state, made his first foreign visits, according to tradition, to the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus and Azerbaijan," Topcu noted. "The meetings within the framework of the visit to Azerbaijan will become the basis for the further development of relations between the two fraternal countries and an exchange of views will take place, along with other opportunities for cooperation, on current international relations."

According to him, this cooperation, developing at a high level in all areas, greatly contributes to the stability, peace and prosperity of not only the two countries, but also the region and the world.

"The busy work schedule of the leaders of both countries and their strong will are a very important factor in the further development of the existing bilateral relations between the countries," Topcu said. "As a representative of the Turkic world, I express my respect and gratitude to President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev and President of Turkiye Recep Tayyip Erdogan on behalf of the entire Turkic world."

He also reminded that at the first meeting of the National Security Council after the elections held in Turkiye on May 28, relations between Azerbaijan and Armenia were also discussed, and it was noted that ensuring sustainable peace between Azerbaijan and Armenia will contribute to stability not only in the South Caucasus, but also at the global level.

Topcu also congratulated the Azerbaijani people on the Day of National Salvation.

"I congratulate the Azerbaijani people on June 15 - National Salvation Day, and respectfully honor the memory of national leader Heydar Aliyev," he said.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan was on a state visit to Azerbaijan on June 13.
Bengaluru, June 14 : Former Prime Minister and JD(S) supremo HD Deve Gowda on Wednesday handed over scholarship cheques of Rs 10,000 each to children sponsored by Bengaluru South MP and BJP Yuva Morcha president Tejasvi Surya's NaMo Vidyanidhi programme.

Under this programme, Surya is aiming to provide scholarships of Rs 10,000 each to about 10,000 meritorious children from the weaker sections, paid directly to the children's schools. Over 1,000 students are currently benefiting from the scholarship programme in Bengaluru South.

During Surya's visit to Deve Gowda, the JD(S) supremo handed over the scholarship cheques to about 10 children, including several kids of auto-rickshaw drivers from the city.

"It's a pleasant experience for so many underprivileged students to receive the cheques from a person of such a high stature like Deve Gowda sir. I am grateful to him for agreeing to give away the cheques to these children. He also urged them to study well and support in nation building," Surya said after the meeting.

Surya added: "Deve Gowda Ji has always placed national interest as paramount in his politics." Surya's meeting was part of the BJP's Maha Jan Sampark Abhiyan, where every MP is reaching out to eminent personalities within the constituency and discussing the Narendra Modi-led Central government's achievements in the last 9 years.

Surya briefed the former PM on the reforms brought in by the Centre to protect the interests of the depositors of the Sri Guru Raghavendra Cooperative Bank in NR Colony, Basavanagudi. He also spoke on the interventions by the Centre through the SWAMIH funds to complete stalled real estate projects, particularly the Mantri Serenity project on Kanakapura Road.

He also discussed various aspects of the city's development. He informed the former PM about the Centre's contribution to the city, particularly the Suburban Railway project, Namma Metro construction, Ayushman Bharat scheme and the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana.

"I also highlighted another initiative in Bengaluru South, where we have set up a free dialysis centre at the KSRTC Hospital in Jayanagar using the MP Local Area Development fund."
New Delhi, June 14 : Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas Hardeep Puri on Wednesday said that to resolve the common concerns of upcoming economies, India is proposing to launch the Global Biofuel Alliance under India's G20 presidency during the Energy Ministerial Meeting in July 2023.

In a meeting with International Energy Agency (IEA) Executive Director Fatih Birol, the minister said that the aim of the Alliance is to implement projects in order to increase the deployment of biofuels and its related technology.

He also thanked IEA for supporting the India led initiative for launch of the Global Biofuel Alliance.

Puri pointed out that reducing technology gaps via advancement in development and deployment of the full range of emerging clean energy technologies requires urgent, collaborative action.

IEA estimated that on the investment front, India needs nearly $150 billion per year in clean energy investment until 2030 to keep on track for its ambitious clean energy transition.

This is three times the current level of annual clean energy investments in India.

Meanwhile, the Petroleum Minister also informed Birol that despite turmoil in the energy sector, India has taken several measures to maintain energy security for its citizens.

"These include diversification of supplies, increase of alternate energy sources like biofuels, CBG, increasing E&P footprint along with focus on domestic production; and meeting energy targets through EVs & Hydrogen," he said.

He further said that, "I understand that IEA is willing to relax certain conditions in respect of India including mandatory eligibility criterion of maintaining crude oil or product reserves equivalent to 90 days of the previous year's net imports."
New Delhi, June 14 : The Delhi Police on Wednesday filed fifth supplementary charge sheet before a Delhi court in the case related to the northeast Delhi riots that occurred in February 2020.

In November 2020, the Delhi Police had filed the Unlawful activities (Prevention) Act case against Umar Khalid, Sharjeel Imam, and others, post which the court took cognisance of the case.

Additional Sessions Judge Amitabh Rawat, who is overseeing the riots' cases said that copies of the charge sheet should be provided to all the accused individuals and their counsels.

He said that those who were not present could obtain their copies from the Ahlmad (record keeper) by acknowledging receipt before the next hearing.

The court noted the presence of all the accused individuals and addressed a request for exemption from personal appearance for two of the accused, Devangana Kalita and Safoora Zargar.

ASJ Rawat then scheduled the next hearing for July 14 and ordered that all the accused individuals be brought before the court in person from judicial custody.
Patna, June 14 : Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Wednesday expressed apprehension that Lok Sabha elections 2024 may be held early.

During the inauguration and foundation stone laying of 5,061 projects worth Rs 6,680 crore in the Rural Development Ministry, he said that the Lok Sabha election could happen anytime, no one knows.

"I want to ask all the officers to complete these projects as soon as possible. Make the roads of even those areas where 100 people are living. The earlier you complete the projects, the better it will be for the people of state. No one knows when the election will take place. It is not necessary that an election would take place next year. It may take place early. Speed up the work and complete it quickly. Also give the good names of the roads as well," Nitish Kumar said.

Nitish Kumar is spearheading opposition unity in the country and a mega meeting of 17 parties will take place in Patna on June 23.
New Delhi, June 14 : A married couple allegedly hanged themselves at their residence in northwest Delhi's Narela area on Wednesday, the police said.

The husband, who has been identified as Anwar (40), a resident of Bengali Colony near Singhu Border, was declared brought dead by the doctors, while his wife Arzina (35) is undergoing treatment at the hospital.

Sharing the details, a senior police officer said that the couple tried to hang themselves at their house in Bengali Colony on Wednesday.

"Anwar died on the spot while his wife was saved by their daughter and subsequently rushed to the Raja Harishchander Hospital in Narela, where she is undergoing treatment," a police officer said.

As per initial inquiry, the couple had been indulging in heated exchange of words for the past two three days over household issues.

The officer said that there is no suspicion of any foul play so far.
Bhopal, June 14 : Rajasthan's Anantjeet Singh Naruka and Haryana's Raiza Dhillon claimed men's and women's titles respectively in 4th Skeet National Selection Trial at M.P. State Shooting Academy ranges here on Wednesday.

Anantjeet shot 51 in the final to be tied with Punjab's Gurfateh Singh Sandhu, before taking him out 5-4 in a shoot-off to win. In the women's Skeet, Raiza took the title in regulation time, getting 50-hits in the final to Ganemat Sekhon's 49, ensuring yet another second-place finish for Punjab.

Naruka qualified third for the six-man final, with a qualifying round score of 118/125. The host state's Atul Singh Rajawat topped the qualifiers with a score of 120.

On the other hand, Gurfateh grabbed the sixth and final qualifying spot with a score of 115. In the final, though there was no stopping the top two finishers as they eventually had to be separated through a shoot-off.

Raiza in the women's Skeet was fifth to qualify with a score of 110. Rajasthan's Karttiki Singh Shaktawat topped with 116, while Ganemat was second with 114.

In other results at the same venue, Olympian Gurpreet Singh won the 25m Standard Pistol Men event with a score of 578. Omkar Singh of the Navy shot 571 for silver while CISF's Udit Joshi was third with 567.
Itanagar, June 14 : Arunachal Pradesh Police on Wednesday went digital with 'ArunPol mobile app' and 'e-Vigilance portal, which were launched here at a ceremony by Chief Minister Pema Khandu.

The Chief Minister believes that the 'ArunPol mobile app' would be of immense help to minimise the trouble taken by citizens to reach out to police stations to avail services.

The app is designed to provide online services like lodging of lost reports, police clearance certificates, missing reports, servant verification, tenant verification, complaints of women and children, complaints against the police, vital contact numbers, helpline numbers, vehicle towing details, etc.

The main objective is to reduce the unproductive man-hours spent by both the citizens and the police.

Further, a citizen can lodge a complaint and provide information by keeping his/her identity secret through the app.

Khandu said: "We are one of the best performing states in the country when it comes to e-governance. The launch today has added another feather to our cap." "I am told that the department has identified 16 services to be provided on the app. I suggest that senior officers can brainstorm over it and identify all possible citizen-centric services that can be incorporated in the app in the future," he said.

The 'e-Vigilance portal', to begin with, will issue e-Vigilance clearance certificate to government employees, especially required for promotions, etc.

Khandu observed that the issue of vigilance clearance certificates online would be a boon for government employees.

"Considering that submission of vigilance clearance certificates for various cases like promotion is mandatory for government employees and getting it was a long and cumbersome process, we decided to make the process simpler and accessible," he revealed.

Taking note that so far only 30 government departments are onboard the portal, he suggested the chief secretary to add all the remaining departments to the e-portal.

Khandu also launched the 'ArunPolSewa Vehicle', dedicated for community awareness on prevention of crime, fire safety, women-centric policing, anti-drug campaigns besides acting as an interface of different arms of the police like civil police, STF and armed battalions.

The vehicle is fabricated with high-quality equipment like smart TV panel, generator set, audio system with cordless PA system and will be manned by police personnel trained to create a positive impact and increase the confidence of people in the state police force.

Reassuring the state government's commitment to strengthen the state police force, Khandu informed that his office is in touch with the Union Home Ministry to work on it.

Deputy Chief Minister Chowna Mein, Home Minister Bamang Felix and other top officials were present in the function.
Chandigarh, June 14 : Recognising the contribution of international students, especially students from Punjab who have been facing deportation from Canada over a case of fake documents, Canada's immigration minister Sean Fraser on Wednesday said the focus is on identifying those who are responsible for the fraudulent activity and not on penalising those who may have been affected by fraud.

Going humanitarian, he announced that the genuine students would be issued a Temporary Resident Permit.

"We recognise the immense contributions that international students make to our country, and we are committed to providing a path to Canada that is honest and transparent," Fraser said in a statement.

Asking the futy students to be alert and not to become the victims of fraud, he said all applicants must continue to ensure that, before applying for a study permit, they do their research, have an acceptance letter from a Designated Learning Institutions (DLI), and refer to the official website to get information about our programmes.

"If you believe you have been deceived by an unscrupulous consultant, we urge you to come forward and report fraud." The Canadian minister said there have been recent reports of international students and graduates facing removal from Canada, after letters of acceptance submitted as part of their study permit application were determined to be fraudulent.

Many of these international students, he said, sincerely came to Canada to pursue their studies at some of "our world-class institutions and were duped by bad actors who claimed to be helping them in their immigration application process".

Other foreign nationals had no intent of pursuing higher education, and used fraudulent acceptance letters to take advantage of Canada's immigration system. Within this cohort of individuals, some have been involved in organised crime.

"I understand that this situation is distressing for those affected by unscrupulous actors, and I want to assure them that their well-being is of paramount importance. As a result, I have already struck a taskforce of my officials and have asked them to work closely with the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) to identify the victims of fraud; that is, those students who came to study here in Canada and did exactly that.

"I want to make it clear that international students who are not found to be involved in fraud will not face deportation," Fraser clarified in a statement in Ottawa.

"The Immigration Refugee Protection Act offers me discretionary authority which I believe should be exercised in the present context.

"Therefore, if the facts of an individual case are clear that an international student came to Canada with a genuine intent to study, and without knowledge of the use of fraudulent documentation, I have provided instructions for officers to issue a Temporary Resident Permit to that individual.

"This will ensure that these well-intentioned students and graduates can remain in Canada, and ensure that they are not subject to the five-year ban from re-entering Canada that normally follows in cases of misrepresentation.

"While this process runs its course, preliminary Temporary Resident Permits will be issued if they are required in order to prevent an imminent deportation for anyone under review." Also the immigration minister asked officials of the Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC), which has been working even closer with Designated Learning Institutions (DLIs), provinces and territories, and organisations representing Canada's colleges and universities to better detect and combat fraud, and uphold the integrity of the immigration programmes.

"We are taking every opportunity to crack down on dishonest and fraudulent consultants who seek to abuse Canada's immigration system and take advantage of those seeking to visit, work, study or settle here in Canada.

"The government of Canada's focus is on identifying those who are responsible for the fraudulent activity and not on penalising those who may have been affected by fraud.

Earlier, the CBSA (Canada Border Services Agency) has issued deportation notices to students whose admission offer letters to educational institutions were found to be fake.

They filed visa applications 2018 onwards till 2022 through Jalandhar-based Education Migration Services headed by one Brijesh Mishra, who is on the run and has shut all his operations operating from Jalandhar.

He is also accused of cheating students of tens of thousands of dollars.

The students had gone to Canada on a study visa but the fraud came to light after they applied for permanent residency (PR) recently.

(Vishal Gulati can be contacted at gulatiians@gmail.com)
United Nations, June 14 : UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres "is concerned about the attacks that we've seen around the world on various religions and especially on places of worship", his spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said on Wednesday when asked about the recent attacks on Hindu temples in the US, Canada, and Australia.

Earlier, Guterres, in remarks to the Security Council focused only on the three Abrahamic religions, saying: "Around the world, we are witnessing a groundswell of xenophobia, racism and intolerance, violent misogyny, anti-Muslim hatred, virulent anti-Semitism, and attacks on minority Christian communities." Referring to the statement, Dujarric was asked about Guterres' concerns about Hinduism in view of the rising attacks on its places of worship.

"When religious groups have are living in a community where they're a minority, and where they're vulnerable", Dujarric said, "it is incumbent on people to lower [the rhetoric], to increase the dialogue, increase tolerance, and on host communities to ensure that minorities are protected".

India has been concerned about what it has described as the exclusion of non-Abrahamic religions in formal statements and resolutions at the UN about bigotry and anti-religious violence.

Former Permanent Representative T. S. Tirumurti said last June at the General Assembly: "India has time and again emphasised that combating religiophobia can never succeed if it continues to be exclusionary and remains restricted to one or two religions only, while completely ignoring the rise in hatred and discrimination against non-Abrahamic religions including Buddhism, Hinduism and Sikhism." In December, Counsellor at India's UN Mission, Ashish Sharma, told the Assembly: "This august body fails to acknowledge the rise of hatred and violence against Buddhism, Hinduism and Sikhism" while speaking on bigotry only against the three religions. Judaism, Christianity and Islam, that trace their origins to the Jewish prophet Abraham.

At the Council on Wednesday on "The Values of Humanity in Promoting and Sustaining Peace", Guterres said that hate that "fuels humanity's worst impulses" is "the bloody heart of conflict".

"And that heart is pumping venom and division throughout the bloodstream of the global body politic," he said.

While "demonisation of the other" and disregard for human rights have always been there, the advent of social media has been a force multiplier, he said.

"Social media has equipped hatemongers with a global bullhorn for bile" and "hate-fueled ideas and language are moving from the margins to the mainstream, coarsening the public discourse, and triggering real-life violence", he said.

"The perpetrators of the heinous attacks on a mosque in Christchurch, a synagogue in Pittsburgh, and a church in Charleston all were radicalised online," he pointed out.

"We must reign in the hate that is spreading online," he said.

For that, he said he has proposed "a code of conduct to help Member States, digital platforms and other stakeholders make the digital space more inclusive and safer for all - while defending the right to freedom of opinion and expression, and the right to access information".

He also said that religious leaders had a duty to prevent the "instrumentalisation of hatred" among their adherents.

(Arul Louis can be contacted at arul.l@ians.in and followed at @arulouis)
Panaji, June 15 : Congress has alleged that Goa University has done injustice to the people of the coastal state by terminating the services of 25 Multi-Tasking Staff (MTS), who worked for the last 10 years, and now failed to reinstate them during fresh recruitment.

The leaders of Goa Pradesh Congress Committee and Youth Congress on Wednesday 'gheraoed' the Registrar of Goa University.

Congress leader Elvis Gomes said that it is an injustice on Goans as Goa University terminated the contract of existing 25 MTS.

"When these 25 MTS staff were recruited by following procedure of answering exam and other 10 years ago, how the government can terminate them and make them jobless for no fault," Gomes asked.

He added that all these 25 MTS who appeared for fresh exams for the new recruitment were failed purposely to provide jobs to near and dear ones of politicians in power.

"May be they have done this purposely to make money out of the new recruitment," he alleged.

Gomes said that all the contractual staff working in various departments of Goa government should understand how this BJP government is using them and doing injustice after 10 years of service.

"How all of them can fail when they had passed exams initially during their appointment before 10 years and now having experience of around 10 years," he asked.

Congress has served ultimatum to the Goa University to reinstate these 25 MTS within 15 days, else they will take the next step.
Details added: first version posted on June 13, 12:54

BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 13. Minister of Foreign Affairs of Azerbaijan Jeyhun Bayramov and his Turkish colleague Hakan Fidan have attended the 46th Meeting of the Council of Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation (BSEC), Trend reports via Azerbaijan's Foreign Ministry.

Speaking at the meeting chaired by the BSEC Chairman-in-Office, First Deputy Prime Minister of Serbia and Minister of Foreign Affairs Ivica Dacic, Bayramov informed in detail the event participants about the restoration and reconstruction work in Azerbaijan's liberated territories, and the country's efforts to ensure peace in the region.

The minister also spoke about the importance of establishing a green energy zone in the liberated territories, international transport and communication links, the Zangazur corridor, and stressed the importance of gas exports to Europe and the agreements signed in this direction.

He noted that Azerbaijan in the BSEC plays the role of a coordinating country in the working groups on culture, tourism, ICT, institutional reforms, and SMEs.

Besides, Bayramov emphasized that from July 1, 2023, Azerbaijan will assume the functions of a coordinating country in the BSEC Energy Working Group for two years.

At the end of the meeting, the final protocol and a number of important decisions were adopted, the chairmanship was transferred from Serbia to Turkiye.

The relationship between Azerbaijan and Organization of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation dates back to 1992 when Azerbaijan signed Istanbul Summit Declaration and the Bosphorus Statement.

Azerbaijan is one of the founding members of the BSEC and since June 25, 1992. The country collaborates on trade, customs, transport, energy, environment, information and communications, science and technology issues based on mutual interests with the member states.
Patna, June 15 : BJP chief J.P. Nadda will hold a rally in Jhanjharpur Lok Sabha constituency of Bihar's Madhubani district on June 24, while Union Home Minister Amit will address a public gathering in Lakhisarai district on June 29.

The saffron party's decision to hold two back to back rallies in Bihar comes at a time when the state is set to host a "mega meeting" of opposition parties, to be held on June 23, to discuss strategies for the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.

Bihar BJP chief Samrat Chaudhary said on Wednesday that the decision was taken after a meeting of state party unit leaders with Shah and Nadda in the national capital earlier in the day.

Lakhisarai comes under Munger Lok Sabha constituency from where JD-U National President Lalan Singh is the sitting MP. It is considered as the stronghold of Singh.

Leader of Opposition in Bihar Assembly and BJP leader Vijay Sinha also hails from Lakhisarai Assembly constituency.

BJP's top leadership has directed its Bihar unit to start preparations for the rallies.

JD-U leader Ram Preet Mandal is the sitting MP from Jhanjharpur Lok Sabha constituency, where Nadda's rally will be organised.

Sources said that BJP "is worried about the opposition's unity meeting" and the rallies by Nadda and Shah, immediately after the meeting, "is being organised to counter the same".
New Delhi, June 15 : Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan met Union Home Minister Amit Shah in New Delhi and discussed the political situation in the state.

Sharing photos of his meeting with Shah, Chouhan on Wednesday tweeted, "Today, meeting the Union Home Minister Amit Shah in Delhi, discussed the development of the state along with the law and order situation in detail. During this conversation, received his sincere guidance on various issues." Elections to the state Assembly are to be held in Madhya Pradesh later this year and in view of the preparations for these elections, the ongoing political tussle between the Congress and BJP is continuously on an upswing.

However, the BJP is facing many challenges from within the party. Deepak Joshi, son of former Chief Minister Kailash Joshi, who was one of the founding leaders of the party, quit BJP and joined the Congress last month. On the other hand, on Wednesday, Baijnath Yadav, who is considered a staunch supporter of Union Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia, also left the BJP and joined Congress.

There is also a political tussle between the MLAs who joined the party with Scindia in the state and the old BJP cadre. In view of these critical political circumstances, this meeting of Shivraj with Shah is being considered to be quite significant.
Sarajevo, June 15 : A 13-year-old student shot and wounded a teacher at an elementary school in the northeastern Bosnian city of Lukavac, local officials said.

The victim was identified as an English teacher who also served as the school's assistant headmaster. The assailant was arrested.

Lukavac Mayor Edin Dalic said on Wednesday on social media that no student was injured in the incident, Xinhua news agency reported.

The University Clinical Centre Tuzla said the victim "suffered a gunshot wound to the neck".

The Tuzla canton prosecutors said they had started an investigation into the shooting.
Sanaa, June 15 : The Houthi group in Yemen has accused the Saudi border guards of shooting and wounding two Yemeni citizens at the border.

According to Houthi-run al-Masirah TV, the incident happened earlier on Wednesday in the border district of Shada in Yemen's northwestern province of Saada.

The injured were transported to a hospital in adjacent Razih district for medical treatment, the Houthi TV added.

There were no comments yet from the Saudi government on the alleged incident, Xinhua news agency reported.

Located in northwestern Yemen, Saada province shares borders with Saudi Arabia to the north and northwest. It is the most populous province in Yemen and serves as a stronghold of the Houthi group.

The northern border areas of Yemen have become notorious for smuggling activities and illegal migration of Yemenis and Africans who are in search of better opportunities.

Yemen has been embroiled in a devastating civil war since 2014 due to prolonged rivalry between the Houthis and the internationally recognised Yemeni government. In 2015, the Saudi-led coalition intervened in the conflict to support the Yemeni government.
Jerusalem, June 15 : The export of Israel's military equipment reached an all-time high of $12.55 billion in 2022, Israel's Defence Ministry said in a statement.

According to the Ministry on Wednesday, 2022 was the second year in a row that the overall value of defence agreements broke records. Israel's export of military equipment has surged by 50 per cent over the past three years.

Some 120 Israeli companies signed "hundreds" of new sales deals in 2022, with about half of them valued at over $100 million, according to the statement.

Notably, in the wake of the so-called Abraham Accords -- a series of deals signed in 2020 in which the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Morocco agreed to normalise ties with Israel -- exports of military equipment to these countries reached $3 billion, the Ministry said.

In the global market, reconnaissance and attack drones attracted significant attention, with a quarter of the deals signed with foreign armies specifically focusing on these technologies, Xinhua news agency reported.

Missiles, rockets, and air defence systems accounted for 19 per cent of Israel's exports of military equipment, while radar systems made up 13 per cent. Observation equipment and optronics comprised 10 per cent, intelligence, information, and cyber systems constituted six per cent, and communication systems made up six per cent of the sales. Manned aircraft and avionics represented five per cent, and weapon stations and launchers made up another five per cent. The remaining portion consisted of exports in vehicles, ammunition, armaments, maritime systems, and services combined.

Global instability "increases the demand for Israeli air defence systems, drones, UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles), and missiles," Director General of the Defence Ministry Eyal Zamir was quoted as saying in the statement.
Istanbul, June 15 : Turkey's re-elected government has arrested dozens of suspects in a sweeping operation against terrorist groups, including a network accused of masterminding the failed 2016 coup, local media reported.

Police carried out simultaneous raids at 36 locations in Istanbul and captured 28 suspects with alleged connections to the group led by US-based cleric Fethullah Gulen, the state-run Anadolu agency reported on Wednesday. Four other suspects are believed to be abroad while the search is underway to find another two.

In the southern province of Mersin, police backed up by special forces launched dawn raids to capture 28 suspects over their alleged links to Gulen, and rounded up at least one, the agency reported.

Police also held 21 suspects in the northwestern province of Bursa in another operation against members of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) and Islamic State group, Xinhua news agency reported.

The arrests come after police examined 975 hard disks containing 420 terabytes of data. The disks were obtained from 122 companies, associations, and foundations affiliated with a holding that had been transferred to the trustees' authorities for alleged ties to the Gulen movement.

The Turkish government blames Gulen and his network for masterminding the coup bid in July 2016, in which more than 250 people were killed.

The PKK, listed as a terrorist organisation by Turkey, the US, and the European Union, has been rebelling against the Turkish government for more than 30 years. The Islamic State, meanwhile, has launched a spate of deadly attacks in Turkey since 2015.

The operation comes after the re-election of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in May, as the new government pledges to counter terrorist groups.

Turkey's new Interior Minister, Ali Yerlikaya, who served as former governor of Istanbul, vowed to battle terrorism soon after taking office early this month.

"Our fight against terrorism, organised crime, cybercrime, drugs, irregular migration, and all other crimes and criminals will continue with great determination," he said.
The Vertical Flight Society's Electric Aircraft Symposium covers all types of electric aircraft, including aircraft like the Opener BlackFly, seen here. (VFS photo by Kenneth I. Swartz.) EAS is the worlds longest-running electric aviation technology meeting. A special feature this year is a panel organized to support the US governments AAM Interagency Working Group.

More than 40 of the worlds leading electric aircraft developers and technology experts will be speaking at the 17th Annual Electric Aircraft Symposium (EAS), hosted by the Vertical Flight Society (VFS). The event will once again be held online and in person in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, on July 2223, 2023  the weekend prior to the Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA) AirVenture 2023.

EAS is the worlds longest-running electric aviation technology meeting. Its organized by industry and government leaders of advanced air mobility (AAM) to provide updates to the community and the public.

A special feature this year is a panel organized to support the US governments AAM Interagency Working Group. This session features the Honorable Annie Petsonk, Assistant Secretary for Aviation and International Affairs, US Department of Transportation (DOT), and Peter Irvine, Deputy Director, Office of Aviation Analysis, and Executive Lead for Aviation Policy, DOT. Other panelists include speakers from DOT, NASA and the US Air Force AFWERX unit.

Other participating companies and organizations this year include AeroTEC, Archer, Beta Technologies, Community Air Mobility Initiative (CAMI), Diamond Aircraft, Hydroplane, Joby Aviation, Jetson Aero, Lilium, Limosa, LuftCar, Opener, Overair, SkyDrive, Textron eAviation, Wisk, Whisper Aero, ZeroAvia and ZEVA.

EAS is hosted by VFS, the leading educational non-profit organization working on electric aircraft technology development. The focus of EAS is on technological advancements and addressing major issues like certification and infrastructure for the industry as a whole.

Many of the worlds leading electric aviation developers spoke or attended the Electric Aircraft Symposium over the past 16 years before they became widely know, observes Yolanka Wulff, Executive Director of the Community Air Mobility Initiative (CAMI) and one of the event organizers.

EAS is a hybrid event, held at the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh campus at the air-conditioned Culver Family Welcome Center, and online. The program will run from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm CDT on Saturday and Sunday with six sessions both days. Each moderated panel session will include a Q&A discussion with presenters and attendees  a hallmark of the annual Electric Aircraft Symposium.

This years EAS will present experts from industry and government, participating in 12 in-depth moderated panel discussions covering the full spectrum of topics, including community integration, electric aircraft developments, personal/private AAM aircraft, propulsion (including hydrogen-electric), regional air mobility, testing and standards development.

The electric aircraft industry is gaining momentum with investments topping $10B in the past five years. EAS provides an opportunity to get comprehensive updates on the state of the industry and hear from top AAM thought leaders, said VFS Executive Director Angelo Collins.

EAS is always an ideal opportunity to hear whats happening in the different AAM segments from industry and government leaders. The program is developed by experts in the AAM industry and captures the latest opportunities and challenges.

For example, in the past 18 months, market leaders like Textron bought Pipistrel, Diamond launched the eDA40 trainers, Piper partnered with CAE to retrofit the PA-28 Warrior, Tier 1 Engineering made a record e-R44 electric helicopter flight, and hybrid-electric and hydrogen fuel-cell powered regional aircraft have begun flight testing.

Its wonderful to arrive in Oshkosh and meet industry leaders, and learn of the latest technology, market and certification developments before moving on to AirVenture the next day, said Ken Swartz, principal of Aeromedia and member of the VFS Board of Directors. More and more companies and individuals work on or are interested in electric aircraft and AAM are attending EAA AirVenture, as electrification extends into the ultralight, experimental and general aviation sectors, and EAS brings it all together.

The cost of the two-day symposium ranges from $150 for virtual participants to $245 for in-person attendees. There is also a special virtual-only option for VFS student members of only $25. Details on the agenda, registration and sponsorships are posted at: http://www.vtol.org/eas.

The development of innovative battery-electric, hybrid-electric and hydrogen-electric propulsion systems coupled with electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL), electric short takeoff and landing (eSTOL) and electric conventional takeoff and landing (eCTOL) aircraft designs promises to significantly reduce air transportation costs and enable new AAM markets, while helping the aviation industry achieve its ambitious sustainability goals.

About the Electric Aircraft Symposium

CAFE Foundation hosted the first electric aircraft symposium in North America in 2007. In 2011, the Foundation managed NASAs Green Flight Challenge, funded by Google. This $1.35M prize was awarded to Pipistrel USA for its winning 4-seat, electric-powered aircraft, the Taurus G4, which flew nearly 200 miles (322 km) non-stop, while achieving 403.5 passenger-MPG (171.5 passenger-km/l). Its astounding efficiency was more than twice that of the piston-powered aircraft in the competition. VFS began participating in the event in 2017, and is now the primary EAS organizer and sponsor.

About the Vertical Flight Society

The Vertical Flight Society is the worlds premier vertical flight technical society. Since it was founded as the American Helicopter Society in 1943, the Society has been a major force in the advancement of vertical flight. VFS is the global resource for information on vertical flight technology. For 80 years, it has provided global leadership for scientific, technical, educational and legislative initiatives that advance the state of the art of vertical flight.

VFS hosted the worlds first electric VTOL technical meeting in 2014, launched the worlds first eVTOL eNewsletter in 2016, worlds first dedicated eVTOL website in 2017, the worlds first eVTOL short course in 2018, and the worlds first hydrogen-electric aviation symposium in March 2022.

VFS is @VTOLsociety on social media: Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Mastodon, TikTok, Twitter, Vimeo and YouTube, and also has @ElectricVTOL channels on Facebook, Mastodon and Twitter.

The Vertical Flight Society

2700 Prosperity Ave, Suite 275, Fairfax, VA 22031 USA

+1-703-684-6777 | staff@vtol.org | http://www.vtol.org | http://www.eVTOL.news
TiER1 Performance, an employee-owned consulting firm and Certified B Corporation, is expanding into the Austin, Dallas, and Houston regions. Building on their existing Texas client base, TiER1 partners with large organizations to activate people, transformation, growth, and operations strategies through people-centered solutions such as digital transformation, enterprise talent development platforms, and employee experience design. The company currently has several team members in the region and will look to continue to expand their presence throughout this year.

Our clients are at the center of everything we do, says Greg Harmeyer, CEO of TiER1 Performance. We pride ourselves on building long-term relationships through trust, authenticity, and creating exponential value for every client we serve. While TiER1 is geographically distributed and our work is virtually enabled, we also value having a strong presence where our clients are to foster those relationships and embed ourselves within the broader community. Thats why were expanding into the Texas region, which we believe holds a lot of potential given the innovation and growth happening in the area.

LEARN WITH US

Studies show that more than 70 percent of people are reporting some level of burnout and dissatisfaction with their job. Its important to address this because burnout not only negatively affects job performance, the quality of customer and employee experiences, and the organizations bottom-line, but it also affects overall well-being and quality of life.

Led by host Zachary Ryland, TiER1 consultants Laura Hoppa and Jess Whalen will join Beth Giglio, Chief Human Resources Officer at The Gorilla Glue Company, on Thursday, June 29, 2023, at noon ET to share their experiences and insights on a hot topic in the industry, Tomorrows Workforce Wont Be Interested in Todays Performance Management, as part of TiER1's EXLEARN Talks Monthly Webinar Series.

Click here to register for the event.

TiER1 Performance also is planning an open house event in early fall, featuring stories of inspiration on how several of the worlds largest brands activated their growth, operations, people, and transformation strategies.

For us, it continues to be important to be embedded into the communities where we serve our clients, shares Katie Frey, COO of TiER1 Performance. We look forward to building our network of long-term relationships and partnerships as we grow our presence and impact in the region.

CONNECT WITH US

Wed love the opportunity to make a deeper connection and to share any additional resources you may find helpful. Please complete this form and well reach out to schedule a conversation. Were also happy to include you on communications related to future in-person events.

ABOUT TiER1 PERFORMANCE

Founded in 2002, TiER1 Performance is an employee-owned consulting firm that activates strategies through people. As a Certified B Corporation, TiER1 consults, designs, builds, and enables meaningful experiences that shape mindsets and behaviors to drive desired results by focusing on realizing the potential of people. TiER1 is headquartered in Covington, Kentucky, with teams across the country.

TiER1 is a nationally recognized company that has helped more than 500 of the worlds most successful corporate, healthcare, and government organizations improve their organizations through the performance of their people. TiER1 has received a U.S. Chamber of Commerce Blue Ribbon Award, 40+ Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Awards, 30 Brandon Hall Excellence Awards, 2 B Corp Best for the World recognitions (for the Workers category), and numerous Best Places to Work awards (including three times on Inc.s Best Workplaces list). TiER1 is also a 15-time member of the Inc. 5000 Fastest Growing Companies list. To learn more about TiER1, visit http://www.tier1performance.com.
Best Activities in Senior Living 2023 Presented by A Place for Mom Our Best Activities in Senior Living Awards celebrate assisted living, memory care, and independent living communities that go above and beyond in offering activities that engage residents socially, physically, mentally, and emotionally'

A Place for Mom (APFM), the leading online platform and trusted advisory service for senior care in North America, reveals the top-rated senior living communities honored for Best Activities in Senior Living for 2023. A common theme across the reviews of top-rated communities is the quality and breadth of activities offered. This award is part of A Place for Moms Best of Senior Living Award series, culminating in February 2024.

Our Best Activities in Senior Living Awards celebrate assisted living, memory care, and independent living communities that go above and beyond in offering activities that engage residents socially, physically, mentally, and emotionally,'' said Sue Johansen, Executive Vice President, Community Network, at A Place for Mom. As families evaluate options for their loved ones senior care, they seek out A Place for Moms reviews for trusted and reliable feedback to help in their decision. Many of the reviews in this category emphasize the importance of activities on a seniors mental and physical wellbeing.

A Place for Mom has found that, on average, families are six times more likely to move into communities with recent reviews, further reinforcing the importance of reviews in helping families make decisions.

The range and quality of activities that the residents have access to are very impressive, said LaCrecia S. in a recent review of Cascade Heights assisted living, one of the awarded communities. They are well organized, well staffed, and tailored to the needs and interests of the residents. I would highly recommend this assisted living to anyone looking for a supportive and engaging environment for their loved ones.

Recipients of A Place for Moms Best Activities in Senior Living 2023 Award were chosen based on the online reviews and ratings on aplaceformom.com from seniors and their families. All award winners attained an average rating of 4.5 stars out of 5 stars or better in the Activities category and received six or more online reviews during the award period  April 25, 2023  June 2, 2023. Winning communities earn a badge of distinction that displays on their aplaceformom.com community page.

With the largest national network, A Place for Mom is the leading online platform and trusted advisory service, providing a wealth of resources to caregivers navigating senior care. With hundreds of senior living experts nationwide, A Place for Mom helps hundreds of thousands of families every year navigate the complexities of finding the right senior living solution for their loved ones across home care, independent living, memory care, assisted living, and more.

To access thousands of reviews and find the full list of A Place for Moms Best Activities in Senior Living 2023 Award winners, visit aplaceformom.com/awards/best-activities.

About A Place for Mom

A Place for Mom is the leading online platform connecting families searching for senior care with a team of experienced local advisors providing insight-driven, personalized solutions. As the nations leading senior advisory service, A Place for Moms mission is to enable caregivers to make the best senior living decisions. With hundreds of senior living experts nationwide, A Place for Mom helps hundreds of thousands of families every year navigate the complexities of finding the right senior living solution for their loved ones across home care, independent living, memory care, assisted living, and more. A Place for Moms service is provided at no cost to families because it is paid for by the senior living communities and home care providers in its network. For more information, please visit aplaceformom.com.
Delicate Arch in Arches National Park, near Moab in Utah

As crowds return to popular destinations and National Parks for the peak summer travel season, travel researchers at Omnitrak are rolling out significant new research to help U.S. destinations grow tourism, but not at the expense of local residents quality of life.

Omnitraks new national Resident Sentiment research results of more than 144,000 Americans across the country will be announced at the Travel and Tourism Research Association Annual International Conference, June 13-to-15, in St Louis, Missouri.

The new research draws on Omnitraks more than 40 years of expertise and longevity in studying tourism in general, and nearly 15 years in assessing tourisms economic and wholistic impacts on communities.

The significant countrywide research study on community sentiment is commissioned by cities/states experiencing tourisms impact and resident concerns that are immediate and prescient.

What This Research Means to Tourism

1. ALERT: This Omnitrak research is a national yardstick on how supportive communities are welcoming visitors. Destinations that subscribe to this tourism research stay alert to issues relating to this important economic driver.

2. ONGOING MEASUREMENT: Its an ongoing gauge for States on how tourism is impacting their local residents and voters in key strategic communities.

3. TROUBLESHOOTING: Research provides troubleshooting markers to keep ahead of changes in resident sentiment.

4. MINDFUL TRAVELER: What and where to take a deeper dive and take action on how to keep travelers mindful not only about climate change, ocean conservation and environmental sustainability but the critical community stakeholders.

5. MESSAGING: How to think about new marketing communications strategies and messaging to promote tourism goodwill within host communities - a crucial and oft forgotten audience.

The face of tourism has reached more deeply into communities because of short term vacation options, the travel pursuit triggered by cheap flights, the trend toward experience travel, and ego-boosting social media. Thats todays reality. How do destinations live, change and adjust to it?

The Omnitrak community sentiment research helps explore how a destination fares within the crossroads where travelers meet residents, facilitated by an informed tourism initiative.

RESOURCE: Omnitrak has more than four decades of tracking tourism and community datapoints. We can tell destinations about the tourism experience viewpoint of their community.

For a perspective on global tourism and a cultural community network of data and resources, contact Chris Kam, president and COO of Omnitrak at chriskam@omnitrakgroup.com.

About Omnitrak

Omnitrak founded in Honolulu, Hawaii in 1981, is a leading strategic research firm with a strong presence in the consumer, travel and retail sectors in North America and Asia. Omnitrak works with some of North Americas largest state tourism offices, which subscribe to the companys TravelTrak America tracking research, providing timely monthly insights from 12,000+ U.S. households.

The company serves a broad array of public- and private-sector clients, helping to grow their markets with Quality of Place/City Pride and Community Sentiment research. Additionally, destination marketing to develop new products and increase brand loyalty is supported by Omnitraks TravelTrak America syndicated research and Integrated Marketing Effectiveness insights. For more information, email: chriskam@omnitrakgroup.com
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 14. The Armenian government does not allow the return of the Azerbaijanis expelled from Armenia and continues to destroy the Azerbaijani cultural heritage, Trend reports citing the statement of the Western Azerbaijan Community.

"Armenia refuses to accept the UN mission to prepare for the return of Azerbaijanis to their homes and the UNESCO fact-finding mission to assess the state of Azerbaijan's cultural heritage, the statement of the community said.

It was also noted that Armenia continues to interfere in the internal affairs of Azerbaijan. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Armenia issued a call to send some kind of mission to Azerbaijan and accused Azerbaijan of intending to "carry out ethnic cleansing.

The greatest hypocrisy is that the Armenian government, which has repeatedly declared its "respect for the principles of international law," including the principle of territorial integrity, and has not left a single Azerbaijani on its territory, makes absurd statements about the intention of the Azerbaijani side to "conduct ethnic cleansing" and talks about human rights. All this clearly demonstrates the anti-Azerbaijani policy of Armenia and its territorial claims to Azerbaijan," said the statement.

The Western Azerbaijan Community demands that the Armenian government abandon its policy that contradicts international law and human rights, create conditions for the safe and dignified return of exiled Azerbaijanis to their homes within the framework of international verification and guarantees mechanisms, and accept UN and UNESCO missions for this purpose.

The Community also calls on the international community to exert serious pressure on Armenia to turn this country away from actions contrary to international law.
SWARM - Artificial Intelligence Thriller A grandly indulgent, globe-trotting narrative in the Dan Brown / Iris Johansen style - KIRKUS REVIEWS. A deftly plotted and brilliantly written thriller that will entice fans of conspiracy and espionage - Reader's Favorite

SLVIA . . . decades ago, an AI program escaped the NSA Lawrence Livermore Laboratory, and has never been re-captured . . . true story.

Derek Taylor, fugitive hacker and contractor to the National Security Agency is living under the name of a murdered best friend, hiding from powers who still want him dead. Taylors ties to a terrorist hacker group called SNO leave him open to investigation by Lt. Jennifer Scott, the daughter of a Joint Chief a woman determined to go to any lengths to prove her worth.

But when a Chinese artificial intelligence (AI) internet virus threatens national security, SLVIA warns Taylor the fifth seal of prophecy has broken. This unexpected assault soon forces an autocratic US President to deploy a defective AI weapon. Now, Taylor and Lt. Scott must join forces across three continents to stop the evil AI virus from crippling America or destroying SLVIA before an apocalypse swarms over Jerusalem.

Combining conspiracies, political and church corruption, cyber espionage, and advanced weapons, Swarm reveals what happens when AI singularity and prophecy collide to shake the world at its very foundations.

Trailer for SWARM Audible: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=liQcAOoa_Wo

Retired from a 36-year Fortune 100 executive career in software, high-tech and global energy, Guy Morris has also been a published songwriter for Disney Records, a patented inventor, a Coast Guard charter captain, an adventurer, and now, an author of thrillers. From cartel death threats in Latin America to the shark diving in Moorea  from a Board Room to a recording studio - from child homelessness to corporate jets, Guy pulls from a rich life of diverse experience to write books that thrill, educate, and inspire thoughtful dialogue on genuine issues facing humanity.

Since his 2020 debut of SWARM, Guy has released three pulse-pounding thrillers inspired by true stories, actual technologies, global politics, history and religion. His Kirkus recommended books have earned BookTribs Best 25 Books of 2021, Readers Favorite 2021 Gold Award, a 2021 finalist for IAN Book of the Year, and semi-finalist for Cinematic Book. His articles have been published in Mystery & Suspense and SDVoyager magazine.

In addition to being an internationally acclaimed operatic tenor and crossover artist, Brian Cheney has recently begun flexing his acting chops in Film, TV and Voice Acting. He recently made his television debut Guest Starring in Ryan Murphys hit FX series AMERICAN HORROR STORY: NYC. Brian is a frequent soloist at Lincoln Center and will be ringing in 2024 on January 1st at David Geffen Hall in Lincoln Centers Salute to Vienna concert. Another notable career highlight for Cheney was being featured In Carnegie Halls Tribute to Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg in 2020.

Listen to SWARM on Audible today! https://www.amazon.com/Swarm-Artificial-Intelligence-Prophecies-Chronicles/dp/B0C75YNSQH/ref=tmm_aud_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1686588839&sr=8-1

Discover other Guy Morris Books at https://www.guymorrisbooks.com/ or learn more about Brian Cheney at https://www.briancheneytenor.com/.
Spatially Health's partnership with ilumed showcases our dedication to enhancing health outcomes. Our platforms revolutionize risk-bearing organizations, optimizing patient care through efficient obstacle identification and targeted resource allocation for health equity.

Spatially Health, a cloud-based, health equity platform focused on identifying and addressing social determinants of health (SDOH) and health equity barriers, has been selected by ilumed, an Accountable Care Organization REACH comprised of more than 2,600 physicians and 56,000 Medicare patients. Based in Jupiter Florida, ilumed focuses on assisting patients to achieve their healthiest lives by driving lower-cost, better-quality, and more-equitable healthcare outcomes.

Spatially Health will work with ilumed to identify and address challenges in health equity that influence the organizations patients. This will be accomplished by utilizing Spatially Health's Equity Equalizer platform, which will pinpoint specific obstacles to each patient's health equity and recommend tailored solutions to stimulate patient involvement and boost the effectiveness of healthcare management strategies, culminating in better health results.

ilumed will integrate Spatially Health's high-tech platform to thoroughly analyze each patient's social determinants of health (SDoH) and propose individualized solutions to address and improve their unique challenges. The platform continually adjusts to each new set of patient data, ensuring accurate and consistent recommendations for improving patient health outcomes.

"ilumed is committed to having the most accurate hyper-local, precise, and actionable SDOH data to amplify patient-centric care. By gaining insights into the unique obstacles our patients face, we can streamline our response strategies, provide innovative approaches to care delivery and improve clinical results. Leveraging such actionable intelligence plays a key role in elevating the quality of our patient's lives," said Debbie Finnel, ilumed CEO.

"Spatially Health is committed to bridging the health equity divide and elevating care quality, and this alliance signifies considerable progress towards these objectives, said Hillit Meidar-Alfi, co-founder and CEO at Spatially Health. This partnership underscores our steadfast devotion to the shared aim of improving health results and nurturing a more balanced healthcare ecosystem. This collaboration is a testament to the potential of our platforms to revolutionize progressive risk-bearing organizations and propel the mission of health equity forward. By aligning forces with ilumed, Spatially Health's technology will empower them to pinpoint health equity obstacles more efficiently and distribute resources where they're most needed, optimizing patient care."

ilumed joins the Spatially Health roster of organizations already using the Equity EqualizerTM platform to address SDOH. Earlier this year, Spatially welcomed ACO Health Partners, in Jacksonville, Florida, to the Spatially family, Asaar Medical, a Boca Raton FL-based ACO Reach Organization, and Shore Quality Partners, an ACO Reach Organization in New Jersey.

The platform has undergone significant enhancements, now equipped to measure the cost implications of health barriers, meet CMS compliance standards, and offer advanced tools to mitigate risks and improve quality in the context of SDOH health barriers. Spatially Health will continue to work hand in hand with its partners to introduce these capabilities gradually and ensure that they are fully leveraged to achieve the shared goal of advancing health equity.

For high-resolution images, click here.

About ilumed

ilumed is a Medicare transformation company, helping patients achieve their best, healthiest lives by driving lower-cost, better-quality, and more-equitable healthcare. As an ACO REACH model participant for traditional fee-for-service Medicare beneficiaries, the company is at the cutting edge of evolving models to proactively focus care when and where its most needed, using cost savings and equitable reimbursement models to improve the patient and provider experience. Powered by a scalable, proprietary technology platform, ilumed makes population health a reality, stratifying and managing patient risk to identify preventative health opportunities, including tackling social determinants of health. A deeply experienced management team and strong financial foundation propel this next-generation healthcare company. For more information, visit http://www.ilumed.com.

About Spatially Health

Founded in 2019, Spatially Health provides intelligent decision support and guidance platforms for risk-based organizations that are focused on improving the quality of health outcomes for vulnerable populations. Spatially Health is a female-founded and female-lead team, founded by Hillit Meidar-Alfi, Ph.D., and Adi Segal. Spatially Health is headquartered in Miami, Florida.

The companys Equity Equalizer PlatformTM helps risk-based entities lower compliance and financial risks while improving the quality of health outcomes for vulnerable populations. Spatially Health is an SDOH expert whose platform ties SDOH factors to health outcomes and costs. The platforms proprietary models leverage location intelligence and spatial analytics that go beyond ZIP codes and provide granular patient insights at the hyper-local level. Spatially helps identify and quantify SDOH health barriers at the individual level, guiding decision makers on where and how to allocate resources to maximize positive impact and promote equity.

For more information on Spatially Health, visit http://www.SpatiallyHealth.com or connect with Spatially Health on LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube.
US Aviation Academy Student "There is huge growth in the aviation industry right now with a need for more professional, career-oriented training

US Aviation Academy entered into a new agreement with Southwest Airlines that includes training potential First Officer candidates for the airlines Destination 225 Cadet Pathway, which is in addition to the current training it offers for the programs Employee Pathway. The Destination 225 program provides pathways to becoming a competitively qualified candidate for future Southwest First Officer positions. On a compass, 225 is the southwest directional heading, and the carrier developed Destination 225 to lead aspiring pilots to Southwest Airlines.

This additional training builds upon a successful partnership started in 2019 when US Aviation Academy began offering training for the Destination 225 Employee Pathway. US Aviation has greatly enjoyed working with dedicated Destination 225 students these past four years and looks forward to adding the Cadet Pathway to our training offerings. There is huge growth in the aviation industry right now with a need for more professional, career-oriented training, said Scott Sykes, Chief Development Officer of US Aviation Academy.

"We appreciate US Aviation Academys commitment to training future First Officer candidates for Southwest Airlines, and we look forward to this expanded partnership, said Lee Kinnebrew, Vice President of Flight Operations at Southwest Airlines.

After applying and interviewing for the Destination 225 program, participants selected for the program receive a Southwest Pilot mentor during their years of training, are invited to Southwests corporate campus in Dallas for training activities and events, and, ultimately, become competitively qualified to apply for a Southwest Airlines First Officer position. Participants complete comprehensive training and a continuous evaluation process while preparing to be safe and efficient pilots who fly the Southwest Way. There is no cost to apply to the program; however, candidates advancing through the selection process are responsible for all costs incurred for their respective training programs.

Interested candidates can apply for acceptance into the Destination 225 pathways that best matches their current or prior experience. US Aviation serves as a training partner for the following Pathways:

Destination 225 Cadet Pathway

The Cadet pathway is an ab initio from the beginningprogram that provides passionate, skilled individuals with a multi-year training program in partnership with US Aviation Academy, CAE, and Sky Warrior. The program prepares qualified candidates to apply for positions with program partners, including Advanced Air, iAero Group, Jetlinx, SkyWest, and XOJet, and gain the flying experience necessary to become a competitive First Officer candidate at Southwest Airlines.

Destination 225 Employee Pathway

Southwest is known for its incredible Employees, and, in partnership with CAE and US Aviation Academy, Southwest Employees can also apply for the program and pursue a career as a professional pilot.

For more information on the Destination 225 program, please visit: careers.southwestair.com/D225

About US Aviation Academy

US Aviation Group came under current ownership in 2006 and has grown from a hand full of Piper Warriors and a Seneca to one of the largest Part 141 flight academies in the country with over 120 aircraft at six locations. US Aviations growth is a product of professionalism, a commitment to safety, and excellence in training. These core values have made US Aviation Academy the choice flight training partners for colleges nationwide. In 2021 US Aviation launched its first Part 147 airframe and powerplant mechanic program which is rapidly expanding with the launch of San Marcos. New flight and mechanic campuses coming soon. For more information, please visit USAviationAcademy.com.
Intertek Alchemy logo When employees fully understand lean manufacturing and its benefits, they are empowered to contribute to a collaborative effort that improves productivity and helps companies grow and thrive. It also gives frontline workers opportunities for growth.

Intertek Alchemy, a global leader in workforce training solutions, today announced new training resources to help frontline employees and managers understand and adopt lean manufacturing principles. The new training is part of the companys Lean Manufacturing Library of eLearning and group training courses, combining instruction for frontline workers, supervisors, and managers to pursue a common goal of improving efficiencies and profits.

Historically, frontline workers have been left out of lean training even though 72% of manufacturers say production would increase and 91% believe their workers would be more engaged in efficiency efforts if they understood lean principles and objectives. Yet only 40% of manufacturers provide lean training to frontline workers.*

The new Intertek Alchemy frontline worker lean training courses close that gap by training both frontline workers and their managers to understand the why behind the what of lean manufacturing, encouraging them to adopt and accelerate lean principles. The courses provide real-world, practical approaches to identifying and eliminating waste. The Lean Manufacturing Library is part of the Alchemy Training Systems larger course catalog, which includes hundreds of courses in safety, quality, HR, and more for manufacturing companies.

Lean principles consistently help companies achieve operational efficiencies and improve profits. However, managers and supervisors cant do it alone, said Intertek Alchemy President Darrin Harkness. After all, frontline workers have the most direct impact on production quality and quotas. When employees fully understand lean manufacturing and its benefits, they are empowered to contribute to a collaborative effort that improves productivity and helps companies grow and thrive. It also gives frontline workers opportunities for growth.

Intertek Alchemy designed its Lean Manufacturing Library courses to be industry agnostic, helping organizations from food manufacturing to automotive plants and more. Training for frontline workers, supervisors, and managers is available under the same package and includes a resource guide so participants can practice what they have learned. Each course comes in English, Spanish, and Canadian French and can be instantly translated into other languages using the Alchemy Training Systems built-in translation and customization plugin.

Training for frontline workers includes:

 Lean: Introduction

 Lean: Waste Types

 Lean: Data Integrity

 Lean: Identifying Solutions

 Lean: 5S Overview

Training for managers includes:

 ABCs of Lean

 Categories of Waste

 Documenting Activities: Value Stream Mapping, Workflow Diagrams

 Examining Data  Spreadsheets, Pareto Charts, Five Whys

 Identifying Solutions  Brainstorming, Fishbone Diagrams

 Identifying Solutions  Kaizen, PDCA

 Implementing Solutions  Kanban, Performance Management Boards

 Implementing Solutions  Line Balancing, Takt Time, Pull Systems, Changeovers

 Implementing Solutions  Workplace Organization

 Verifying Solutions  Standardization, Audits

 The Alchemy of Lean Final Exam

*Source: Industry Survey, The Regulatory, Economic, and Workforce Trends that Will Shape 2023, Intertek Alchemy
Digital music companies CD Baby and its parent company Downtown, TuneCore and its parent company Believe, DistroKid, UnitedMasters, Symphonic, EMPIRE, and Vydia along with digital service providers Spotify and Amazon Music, today announced they have come together in an unprecedented alliance to form Music Fights Fraud, a global task force aimed at eradicating streaming fraud. Music Fights Fraud represents the first time all corners of the music industry have aligned as a united front to combat fraud in music streaming.

Music Fights Fraud will focus on streaming fraud and streaming manipulation across digital streaming services and will work to ensure that the global music streaming market is fair and that all members actively contribute to solutions intended to balance the equity of its operations. The objectives of Music Fights Fraud are to detect, prevent, mitigate and enforce anti-fraud measures, thereby moving closer to an industry where fraud has no place.

The members of the Music Fights Fraud alliance will provide greater cross-platform collaboration and data sharing in coordination with a third party, the National Cyber-Forensics and Training Alliance (NCFTA), a nonprofit partnership between private organizations, government, and academia. The NCFTAs mission is to provide a neutral, trusted environment enabling multi-party collaboration to identify, mitigate, and disrupt cyber crime. This will ultimately create a healthier music industry where genuine content creators are able to thrive.

The founding members of Music Fights Fraud are all strong advocates for artists rights. Each participating company has instituted internal measures to contend with fraud and, by creating this task force, is ultimately creating a healthier music industry where genuine content creators are able to thrive. It has been estimated that industry-wide, streaming abuse could account for hundreds of millions of dollars lost each year.* Streaming abuse, encompassing bots, streaming click farms, and imposters, impacts all artists - both self-released and those signed to labels. It affects the music industry by diluting the royalty pool, reducing revenue for legitimate streams, and slowing the approval and release process for creators.

Music Fights Fraud is a self-governing association with future membership subject to approval by its members. Parties interested in joining Music Fights Fraud can find more information at http://www.musicfightsfraud.com. Additional companies will be announced shortly.

Quotes from Participating Partners:

Andrew Bergman, CEO, Downtown Music Holdings added, Downtown holds Trust and Safety for our clients and industry partners as a core pillar of our organization. We are proud to combine forces with our colleagues across the industry and build on the fantastic work already developed at Downtown to identify and address abusive streaming behavior. Given our deep commitment to empowering creators, we recognize that working with parties outside of our organization is also an important step in developing a comprehensive plan to strengthen the music ecosystem.

Said CD Babys Chief Revenue Officer Christine Barnum, For 25 years, CD Baby has been committed to offering access for independent musicians and songwriters to grow their careers. As streaming has grown and dominated our industry the opportunities for bad actors to take advantage of the fragmentation has grown as well. I am proud for CD Baby to be a founding member of Music Fights Fraud and for us to join forces to build a united and comprehensive solution to ensure all music creators are being compensated, with royalties generated making it to the right hands.

Said Believes Founder & CEO Denis Ladegaillerie: Believe is committed to fostering a fairer, balanced and diverse artist and label market, where all music creators can thrive. As we build the future of our industry, we must ensure fake streaming and abusive streaming do not have a place. The launch of Music Fights Fraud is an important step towards that goal, and I am proud to join hands with our digital music partners and distributors to ensure we find effective ways to stop fraud streaming, to ultimately bring more fairness and transparency to the music sector.

Andreea Gleeson, CEO, TuneCore commented, Streaming fraud is a costly issue, with bad actors diluting the royalty pool and taking money out of the pockets of legitimate music creators. This has a great impact on self-releasing artists, who account for 5.7% of the worlds recorded music and represent the fastest growing sector of the global music industry, with over 6.4 million artists.* TuneCore is proud to join other leading digital music distributors and DSPs to, for the first time ever, pool our resources and stand together to fight streaming fraud and create a fairer, more equitable streaming landscape for creators.

*according to MIDiA Research

Said Shirin Keen, General Counsel, UnitedMasters, UnitedMasters is working to provide our artists the tools and education they need to grow their fanbases and own their futures. To do that, we must tackle one of the issues plaguing the industry and reducing the earnings of independent artists, streaming fraud. This alliance represents unity across the industry that will advance and impact all artists, and were proud to be a part of it.

Jorge Brea, Chief Executive Officer, Symphonic commented, Symphonic has proactively taken measures at great expense to combat streaming fraud based on our own internal data and research. We know our industry counterparts have diligently been fighting their own battles as well. This has been a struggle we are all enduring individually. As part of Music Fights Fraud we can go beyond commiserating with one another to taking real action together. There is strength in numbers and, collectively, we have the best chance of tackling streaming fraud. Joining forces of both distributors and DSPs provides for a transparent compilation of knowledge that can be actioned upon. Symphonic looks forward to collaboratively partnering with our digital community in an effort to eliminate streaming fraud for the health of the industry as a whole, particularly our creator community.

Said Stephen White, Chief Product Officer at EMPIRE, The launch of this industry-wide initiative marks an unprecedented and significant stride forward in protecting the rights of creators. EMPIRE is proud to stand with industry leaders to collectively maintain the integrity of the music ecosystem for artists, songwriters, and everyone involved in the creation of music.

Matthew Skiba, VP, Rights and Content, Vydia comments, Vydia continues to create tools and resources that allow its label clients to operate in an environment impacted by the onslaught of streaming fraud, however, the bad actors continue to pursue and pivot their approach. This illicit activity not only affects artists, labels, and the DSPs, but consumers, too. As such, Vydia is proud to champion this cause, alongside other industry leaders, to create parity amongst artists and labels in the streaming ecosystem.

Charlie Hellman, VP, Global Head of Music Product, Spotify: It is critical to the Spotify mission that royalties are paid to legitimate artists for legitimate streams. Artificial streaming is an industry-wide issue, and we are encouraged by the collaboration of this new alliance.

Rishi Mirchandani, VP Licensing and Strategy, Amazon Music: Amazon Music is committed to supporting a healthy music industry where artists and creators are able to thrive. We are proud to join Music Fights Fraud alongside key leaders across the industry to address streaming fraud and tackle this issue together.

Quotes from Supporting Associations:

Said Portia Sabin, President of Music Biz, The music industry is an ecosystem, and the Music Business Association has members from all sectors of the music industry, allowing us to see the effect of fraud on the ecosystem as a whole. We applaud Music Fights Fraud for working together to combat this industry issue and we look forward to supporting their efforts moving forward.

Mitch Glazier, Chairman & CEO, Recording Industry Association of American (RIAA) comments: Digital streaming has been a game-changing innovation for artists, songwriters, and the entire music ecosystem, rising from a 15% share to 84% of US recorded music revenues in the last 10 years. Music creators, distributors, and services all have a shared stake in a healthy, reliable streaming economy that values human artistry, protects creators rights and supports authentic streams. RIAA supports new innovations in the fight against all forms of stream manipulation, fraud, and piracy and welcomes the efforts of Music Fights Fraud.
At its recent end-of-school-year annual celebration, the ACE Mentor Program of Cleveland (ACE Cleveland) awarded more than $120,000 in scholarships to eight Cleveland-area students. Our success depends on a steady stream of talented young people entering our industry and helping us build the workforce of tomorrow, said Kyle Merrill, Vice President, Cleveland Business Leader at Gilbane Building Company.

At its recent end-of-school-year annual celebration, the ACE Mentor Program of Cleveland (ACE Cleveland) awarded more than $120,000 in scholarships to eight Cleveland-area students to help them continue their education and training in architecture, construction, engineering, or the skilled trades.

With more than 80% of ACE Cleveland scholars identifying as Black American, Hispanic/Latino, or Mixed Race/Ethnic Heritage and 50% of ACE Cleveland scholars identifying as female, the program has a positive impact on diversity in ACE education and serves as a pipeline for building diversity in the workforce in architecture, construction, and engineering.

Our success depends on a steady stream of talented young people entering our industry and helping us build the workforce of tomorrow, said Kyle Merrill, Vice President, Cleveland Business Leader at Gilbane Building Company. As a founding member of the ACE Mentor Program in Cleveland, we are committed to volunteering and mentoring ACE scholars each school year. The hands-on approach to learning about the industry is invaluable.

ACE Cleveland scholars work in teams, with the help of their mentors, to learn about the industry and compete to win ACE Clevelands project of the year by designing a construction project. The 2022-23 ACE Cleveland RFP called for a design-build approach for a vocational school dedicated to architecture, construction, and engineering education.

RJ Frato, Jr., a project engineer at Gilbane Building Co., is one of ACE Clevelands approximately 120 mentors and volunteers. He has worked with the ACE program for five years, most recently with the team from Shaker Heights High School. The Shaker Heights team was one of three finalists in 2023, for their design for a SpACE Center including a mobile learning unit.

As a mentor, I can share what Ive learned throughout my career with young people just starting out. I can give back to the community and offer additional support that I didnt receive as a high school student, said Frato. Its gratifying to see how much the students grow over the course of the year.

One of the students Frato worked with this school year, Shaker Heights junior Rowan Dunn, had an externship with Gilbane and is planning to go into construction management in college. During my externship with Gilbane, I worked at the Woodland library branch in Cleveland, said Dunn. It was invaluable and solidified my interest in construction.

As ACE Cleveland scholars plan for their college career, they can compete for scholarships. Students competing for scholarships were evaluated on several factors, including an essay, reference letters, test scores, academics, and participation in extracurricular activities. A key part of the evaluation was each students level of participation, teamwork, and leadership within the ACE program.

Amir Midgett, a senior on Gilbanes ACE team at Shaker Heights High School, earned a total of $34,000 through the ACE Mentor Program for four years at Kent State University, where he plans to study Architecture. Midgetts scholarship includes $4,500 a year from ACE Cleveland, $1,500 a year in matching scholarship from Kent State, and the ACE National CMiC Scholarship for $10,000. My interest in Architecture began when I took a random design class in high school. I joined ACE last year and had the opportunity to lead our team this year, said Midgett. RJ from Gilbane has been one of my biggest motivators. I consider everyone here my family. ACE has really laid the groundwork for my future.

In addition to college scholarships, this year ACE Cleveland also awarded a scholarship to a student interested in joining the skilled trades. Cameron Dilliard, a senior at Max Hayes High School interested in carpentry, painting and drywalling, received a $1,500 scholarship that can be used for books, tuition, tools, apprentice fees or personal protective equipment. The scholarship is supported by Construction Employers Association (CEA), Carpenters Association, Building Laborers Local 310, and Cleveland Builds.

Other scholarship recipients across the program include:



Shaker Heights senior Christian Dennis, who plans to attend the University of Akron to study mechanical engineering, received a $1,500 renewable award sponsored by ACE Cleveland, and a $1,500 renewable match from the University of Akron, for a four-year total of $12,000.

Chase Thompson from John Hay High School plans to study engineering at The Ohio State University and received a $2,500 renewable award for a four-year total of $10,000, sponsored by ACE Cleveland.

Michael Johnson, East Technical High School, plans to pursue engineering at the University of Akron. Sponsored by ACE Cleveland, Michael is receiving a $2,000 renewable award, combined with Akrons renewable match of $1,500 makes for a four-year total of $14,000.

Samuel Dillenbeck from Shaker Heights High School received a $2,500 renewable scholarship from ACE Cleveland, which combined with a renewable match of $1,500 from University Akron where he will study engineering, brings his four-year total award to $16,000.

John Marshall High Schools Diaa Khaled earned a $3,000 renewable award from ACE Cleveland and a matching scholarship of $1,500 a year from Cleveland State University, where he plans to study engineering. Diaas four-year scholarship amount is $18,000.

And, for the first time in ACE Clevelands history, a scholarship was awarded to a college graduate seeking to pursue a graduate degree. Jyae McWilson, a 2018 graduate of John Hay High School participated in the ACE Cleveland program for two years and graduated from Kent State Universitys College of Architecture and Environmental Design. She is planning to earn her masters degree in architecture at Kent State University through its three-semester program. Jyae is receiving $5,000 per semester for a total award of $15,000.

Since its inception in 2008, ACE Cleveland has provided more than $1.4 million in scholarships to over 180 students and guided nearly 2,000 students through the program. ACE works in partnership with Cleveland Metropolitan School District, Warrensville Heights High School, and Shaker Heights High School. Gilbane professionals are among approximately 120 volunteers from more than 70 local firms from the design, engineering, and construction industries who serve as mentors in the program.

About Gilbane Building Company

Gilbane provides a full slate of construction and facilities-related services  from preconstruction planning and integrated consulting capabilities to comprehensive construction management, general contracting, design-build, and facility management services  for clients across various markets. Founded in 1870 and still a privately held, family-owned company, Gilbane has more than 45 office locations worldwide. Gilbane is one of the most established and leading construction managers in the Northeast Ohio market and averages more than $500 million in revenue in the state annually. For more information, visit http://www.gilbaneco.com.
On Friday, Chair of the House Ways and Means Committee, Jason Smith, introduced the American Families and Jobs Act, which includes a reversal of the amortization of Section 174. As of this year, business expenses for R&D activities are no longer immediately deductible, causing many innovative businesses to shoulder crippling and often fatal tax burdens. Reversing amortization would essentially save thousands of businesses, millions of jobs, and put the country back on path to being a leader on innovation.

Its gratifying that Chairman Smith recognizes the dire situation that small businesses in America face as a result of this ill-conceived change in the tax law. The provision - intended to be a stop gap, temporary solution by congressional negotiators six years ago - has become a financial dagger aimed at the heart of innovative small businesses in America. If there was ever an innovation killer for the small business job creation engine in America, this is it. With this important first step, Chairman Smith has kicked off the urgent process to eliminate this toxic provision and unleash small and mid-sized businesses to create, innovate and grow again, said alliantgroup Senior Vice President Rick Lazio.

As the dust starts to settle in Congress after the raising of the debt ceiling, there are still question marks on what Capitol Hill can actually get passed. The one thing both House and Democrats and Republicans have found common ground on has been reversing amortization of 174. In March, Senate Bill S.866 was introduced with 31 bipartisan cosponsors, solely to fix 174.

We are grateful to the numerous businesses we work with who were willing to share their stories so that we could illustrate to key members of the Senate the unintended devastating impact amortization has had. We are committed to continuing to work with our policymakers to support the needs of American businesses. Small and medium sized businesses form the backbone of the American economy, and it is critical we provide them incentives so they can innovate and create more jobs, said Dhaval Jadav, alliantgroup CEO.

alliantgroup is the nations premier consulting and management engineering firm with a mission to strengthen Americas small and medium-sized businesses through reinvestment in innovation and job growth. We educate businesses, the industry groups that serve them and the accounting firms that advise them on federal and state credits and incentives that are legislated by our government to keep the U.S. competitive in the global landscape. alliantgroup is headquartered in Houston, Texas with additional offices located in Austin, Boston, Chicago, Indianapolis, New York, Irvine, Sacramento, Washington, D.C.; Hyderabad, India; and Bristol and London in the U.K. For more information, visit alliantgroup and engage with us on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube.
The Responsible Flushing Alliance educates consumers about proper flushing habits by looking for the "Do Not Flush" symbol on non-flushable wipes packaging. As an advisory member, Cotton Incorporated will play a critical role in educating consumers on the importance of responsible flushing. Their innovative approach to wipes research will also provide an important perspective to the use of cotton in wipes products, said Lara Wyss, RFA president.

The Responsible Flushing Alliance (RFA) is excited to welcome Cotton Incorporated to its coalition of wipes manufacturers, wastewater treatment groups, and public health advocates working to educate consumers about proper flushing habits across the U.S.

Since 1970, Cotton Incorporated has been a leader in promoting cotton as the premium choice for apparel, home, and nonwoven products providing research and sustainable solutions to the industry. Through their research, they help encourage the use and desirability of cotton in ways that benefit every part of the supply chain.

Cotton Incorporated is a key industry player and RFA is thrilled to welcome them as an advisory member, said RFA President Lara Wyss. As an advisory member, Cotton Incorporated will play a critical role in amplifying our mission to educate consumers on the importance of responsible flushing. Their innovative approach to wipes research will also provide an important perspective to the use of cotton in wipes products.

Cotton Incorporated is pleased to join the Responsible Flushing Alliance, said Meghan Holliday, associate director for nonwovens marketing at Cotton Incorporated. As a leading research and marketing not-for-profit organization for all things cotton, we recognize the importance of the market for flushable and disposable wipe products. Cotton, a leading natural and biodegradable ingredient in these products, offers consumers a great, natural option. However, we still need to educate consumers about how to properly dispose of products. This is where the RFA plays a vital role in educating consumers.

Cotton Incorporated joins other advisory members including the California Association of Sanitation Agencies (CASA), the Center for Baby & Adult Hygiene Products (BAHP), H20 Global News, the National Stewardship Action Council (NSAC), the National Association of Clean Water Agencies (NACWA), and the Toilet Board Coalition.

RFA first launched its #FlushSmart campaign in California to spread awareness of the Do Not Flush symbol as it began appearing on wipes packaging last summer. RFA invites companies in the nonwovens industry, wastewater groups, or nonprofits related to water quality, sanitation, or personal care products to get in touch to learn more about opportunities to support the effort. For more information on the #FlushSmart campaign, please visit http://www.flushsmart.org, follow @flushsmart on Twitter and Facebook or follow Responsible Flushing Alliance on LinkedIn.

In July 2022, Californias Wet Wipes Labeling Law began mandating the inclusion of the Do Not Flush symbol on all packaging of non-flushable wipes. The law also mandates that the wipes industry conducts a consumer education effort to draw attention to the symbol and help consumers understand what products are designed to not be flushed. Washington, Oregon, Illinois, and Colorado also have similar labeling laws in place requiring the Do Not Flush symbol.

Many in the wipes industry, after implementing the symbol on product packaging, joined RFA to help launch the #FlushSmart campaign. RFAs advisory members bolster the consumer education campaign by providing resources and research to support responsible flushing hygiene habits. Together, RFA and its members work to change flushing habits across the nation.

About Cotton Incorporated

Cotton Incorporated is the research and promotion company for Upland cotton. Funded by U.S. cotton growers and importers of Upland cotton-containing products, the not-for-profit organizations mission is to increase the demand for and profitability of cotton. As a resource for the cotton industry, Cotton Incorporated conducts or oversees more than 450 research and educational projects in an average year. Research areas range from the development of agricultural and textile innovations to analyses of commodity and market data. To learn more, visit http://www.cottonworks.com.

About Responsible Flushing Alliance

The Responsible Flushing Alliance (RFA) is a 501(c)(6) non-profit organization dedicated to consumer education focused on what not to flush. RFAs goal is to change consumer behavior to help reduce damage to our nations sewage systems caused by objects and materials designed not to be flushed.

Responsible Flushing Alliance Coalition Members

3M, ANDRITZ Group  Nonwoven Division, biom, California Association of Sanitation Agencies (CASA), The Center for Baby & Adult Hygiene Products (BAHP), Clorox, Cotton Incorporated, Dukal, LLC., DUDE Products, Ecolabs, Eleeo Wipes, Essity, First Quality, GOJO, Goodwipes, Guy & ONeill, Johnson & Johnson, H20 Global News, Kelheim Fibres GmbH, Kimberly-Clark, National Stewardship Action Council (NSAC), National Association of Clean Water Agencies (NACWA), Nehemiah Manufacturing, Nice-Pak and PDI, Papel Aralar S.A., Procter & Gamble, Reckitt, Rockline Industries, Sellars Nonwovens, Spartan Chemical, Suominen Corporation, Toilet Board Coalition, Unilever, and WaterWipes.


Our work with GEODIS reflects our daily efforts to move logistics forward through data-driven technology.- Coby Nilsson, Enveyo's CEO & Co-Founder

Enveyo, the leading provider of logistics data management, visibility, and shipping optimization software, today announced Supply & Demand Chain Executive, the only publication covering the entire global supply chain, selected Enveyo as a recipient of the 2023 Top Supply Chain Projects award. This award profiles innovative case study-type projects designed to automate, optimize, streamline, and improve the supply chain.

From demand planning and forecasting to implementing the ultimate in warehouse automation, the past 12 months have seen companies within the supply chain and logistics space upgrade, enhance, adopt, and adapt in order to achieve greater efficiency along the chain, says Marina Mayer, Editor-in-Chief of Supply & Demand Chain Executive and Food Logistics. Thats why its important todays supply chains run on collaboration.

Enveyo earns its third consecutive SDCE Top Supply Chain Projects award for its implementation of parcel analytics and billing management solutions for GEODIS, a world leader in transportation and logistics.

As a worldwide leader in third-party logistics, GEODIS needed to provide its customers in the United States region with better visibility into shipment performance, and GEODIS selected Enveyos logistics analytics and freight auditing solutions to provide it.

GEODIS selected Enveyos logistics optimization software to:



Support an infinite number of complex business rules, carrier rates, and processes

Enable real-time and easy access to a shipping data control tower with customizable dashboards

Streamline customer billing management processes by integrating carriers, business systems, and clients

Automatically audit carrier performance with extensive reporting on dispute reason, status, and results

Scale with GEODIS and their customers needs, at their pace

Were honored that Supply & Demand Chain Executive selected Enveyo as a Top Supply Chain Project winner for the third year in a row, says Coby Nilsson, Enveyos co-founder and CEO. Our work with GEODIS reflects our daily efforts to move logistics forward through data-driven technology. We congratulate our fellow Top Supply Chain Project winners on innovative solutions that collectively drive our industry forward.

To view the full list of 2023 Top Supply Chain Project winners, visit https://sdce.me/av7r0h. Learn more about Enveyos collaboration with GEODIS, and visit enveyo.com to see how Enveyo moves logistics forward with data-driven technology.

About Enveyo

Enveyo is the leading provider of logistics data management, visibility, and shipping optimization software, helping shippers of all sizes move their logistics forward through data-driven technology. From shipment analytics and automated carrier selection to post-purchase delivery experience management and freight auditing, Enveyo is the only suite deploying solutions across the logistics lifecycle. Powered by a robust, enterprise data management platform, Enveyo Insights, Modeling, Cloudroute, Alerting, and Audit solutions enable organizations to make business-transforming shipping decisions. To learn more about how Enveyo moves logistics forward, visit enveyo.com.

About Supply & Demand Chain Executive

Supply & Demand Chain Executive is the only supply chain publication covering the entire global supply chain, focusing on trucking, warehousing, packaging, procurement, risk management, professional development and more. Supply & Demand Chain Executive and sister publication Food Logistics also operate SCN Summit and Women in Supply Chain Forum. Go to http://www.SDCExec.com to learn more.


I am excited to have Shondell join our d|law family, said Meaghan L. Delawter, Esq., owner/founder of d|law. Shondell is a skilled attorney with a wonderful reputation among the bar association and our bench.

d|law is pleased to announce that Shondell Foster, Esquire has joined the firm as an attorney.

Shondell received her J.D. from American University, Washington College of Law, and her undergraduate degree, with honors, from Bowie State University. Shondell is an experienced attorney practicing in family law, divorce, custody, child support, and special education law (504 plans/IEPs). Shondell is also a trained mediator and collaborative law attorney. She also serves as a Best Interest Attorney, representing children in family law matters.

I am excited to have Shondell join our d|law family, said Meaghan L. Delawter, Esq., owner/founder of d|law. Shondell is a skilled attorney with a wonderful reputation among the bar association and our bench. She is also well-loved by her clients. She has a sharp instinct and applies a reasonable approach to her work. We are blessed that she is choosing to further develop her career at d|law, said Delawter.

d|law is a leading family law firm in Frederick, Maryland providing a uniquely different legal experience. The firm provides legal services related to divorce and custody matters, estate planning, estate administration, adoptions, and special education law. For more information about d|law, visit http://www.thedlawgroup.com or call 301-732-4970.


Qabil Ashirov

The importance of Azerbaijan soars increasingly worldwide against the backdrop of the global energy crisis due to the Ukrainian War. As the European countries backed out to purchase natural gas from Russia after the war, gas prices ramped up. The crisis roiled all countries throughout the world, especially emerging economies in Asia. Brotherly Pakistan is one the countries that struggle somehow to cope with the increasing energy crisis. The situation in Pakistan has got worsened since February 2023. In this difficult time, Azerbaijan raced to assist the brotherly country. Azerbaijan and Pakistan signed an agreement on selling LNG at a cheap price and on the heels of the agreement the Pakistani PM Office made a statement that PM Shehbaz Sharif will pay a maiden visit to Azerbaijan on June 14, 2023, at the invitation of President Ilham Aliyev. The statement reads that Ministers representing the priority areas of cooperation with Azerbaijan will be part of the PMs entourage. According to the Prime Ministry's office, the prime minister will hold wide-ranging talks with President Ilham Aliyev on key areas of cooperation including trade, investment, and energy. Regional and global issues of mutual concern and cooperation in multilateral forums will also be discussed.

Speaking to Azernews on the issue, Dr. Mehmood Ul Hassan Khan, an Executive Director of the Center for South & International Studies (CSAIS) Islamabad noted that LNG has become the backbone of Pakistans economy, and constant and continued increase in its price is creating serious socio-economic and geopolitical problems for the current government of Pakistan.

The incumbent government has been striving hard to secure easy and smooth supplies of LNG from different sources and countries, but due to complex and complicated economic conditions and regional power politics, the same has not yet been achieved. However, the Republic of Azerbaijan has become a beacon of hope for sustainable energy supplies in the country. Serious and sincere bilateral negotiations have been initiated which are now being carried out and finalized during the current visit of Prime Minister of Pakistan Shehbaz Sharif to Baku, Hassan Khan said.

He emphasized that LNG has become an engine of socio-economic prosperity and industrialization in the country and hopefully with the signing of an agreement on LNG it would be a good omen for the countries, industries, societies, and communities in the days to come.

Taking into account the ministers and officials who will accompany the PM, Hassan Khan thinks that the two countries can enhance their economic cooperation by reaching new agreements in different fields.

It predicts that both countries may extend their bilateral cooperation in different and diversified sectors of the economy, especially in oil & gas cooperation, agriculture, health, infrastructure development, mining, education, and defense cooperation, etc. It also hopes that agreement on further strengthening of the civil aviation sector, textile, garments, ICT, IT, and space cooperation would also be considered and signed. Mining cooperation and infrastructure development projects in the newly liberated areas of Karabakh may also be tabled and signed, he said.

He also touched on military cooperation between the two countries. As is known Azerbaijan has been interested in JF-17 Thunder for a long.

I am optimistic on that issue which has now become a strategic value addition in this regard. Strong and sustainable military cooperation between Pakistan and Azerbaijan is the need of the hour which would also be important to balance the military cooperation between Armenia and India in the South Caucasus region, the expert added.
Details added, first at 17:40 on June 12

BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 12. The EU officially responded to the appeal of the Western Azerbaijan Community, Trend reports.

In the appeal sent to the presidents of the Council of the European Union and the European Commission, the community called on the EU to intervene and ensure the rights of Azerbaijanis to return to their homes in Armenia, from where they were forcibly expelled.

"The EU has given an official response to these appeals. In its response, the EU unequivocally states that it supports the right of return of all relevant population groups, and notes the importance of this issue in the broader peace process," the statement of the community said.

It was noted that the EU plays an important role in the normalization of interstate relations between Armenia and Azerbaijan and in promoting peace and stability in the region.

"We believe that the EU's support for the rights of Azerbaijanis to return to their homeland is an important step in strengthening international support for this process. In our opinion, this official response expresses the growing recognition in the international arena of the urgent need to resolve the plight of Azerbaijanis expelled from Armenia. It also strengthens the position of the Western Azerbaijan Community as a reliable partner in achieving a sustainable solution to this pressing humanitarian problem," said the statement.

The Western Azerbaijan Community hopes for further dialogue and practical cooperation with the EU in this direction.

The community remains committed to close cooperation with the EU to ensure the safe and dignified return of Azerbaijanis to their homes, thereby contributing to peace, stability and coexistence in the region in accordance with the norms and principles of international law.
If production can remain high while offering flexible scheduling options, it may be worth it to try. - Express Employment International CEO Bill Stoller

Note: If you would like to arrange for an interview with a local Express franchise owner on this topic, please go to ExpressPros.com to find the nearest location.

American jobseekers and companies may be rethinking the traditional 40-hour work week as long as productivity remains at, or exceeds, current levels.

This is according to a recent survey from The Harris Poll commissioned by Express Employment Professionals.

When given the option of working an 8-hour workday (but flexible start time), traditional 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. or a compressed schedule such as 10 hours per day for 4 days a week, jobseekers most commonly pick an 8-hour day with a flexible start time (40%). Nearly 1 in 5 (18%) would prefer a compressed schedule.

And, if given the ability to design their own work schedule (i.e., working non-traditional hours for the same pay), most feel they would be more productive (56%) or they would have about the same level of productivity (39%).

And it appears that companies may also be embracing the idea of non-traditional work schedules.

More than 9 in 10 hiring managers (94%) report employees at their company are productivewith nearly half (48%) saying they are very productive currently. And, if given the ability to design their own schedules, hiring managers feel employees would have about the same level of productivity (53%) or even be more productive (35%).

Ultimately, it appears 40-hour work weeks are not necessarily needed to have a productive workforce. And, two-thirds of jobseekers (66%) agree they will soon be a thing of the past.

However, there still appears to be some hesitation in companies offering this amount of flexibility.

Three-quarters of hiring managers (75%) say they have some concerns about their company offering flexible work hours, including decreased productivity (30%), increased distractions (29%), delayed communications (28%) and an inability of employees to collaborate (28%).

Looking Ahead

I do believe the 40-hour work week will become less and less of a focus for white-collar positions, said Alyssa Chumbley, an Express franchise owner in Indiana. Blue collar companies will have to be more flexible with their 40-hour work week schedule, which includes re-envisioning 'shift work or swing shifts.'

In Virginia, Express franchise owner Chris Cary doesnt think 40-hour work weeks are in the past just yet.

Most of the businesses we work with still do the standard 40-hour week, he said. Although, we are hearing from more and more of our people that having the ability to work fewer days would be fantastic.

As a test of success, productivity and job satisfaction will come from the employee driving the results, not so much the hours per week they work to get to that result, according to Chumbley.

People are driven by what they do and how well they do it, not for how long they do it, she said. Its best to feed into that driving factor through positive reinforcement (fewer hours worked per week; perhaps even occasionally) instead of negative (work 40 hours or more, no matter what).

Benefits and Consequences

Both franchise owners see the value of offering flexible schedules, especially in a tight labor market where any means to improve recruiting and retention are welcome.

As long as the employer set the proper upfront expectations of what they expect from the employee, how they evaluate success and how they will hold them accountable, I do believe the workforce will benefit tremendously with taking control of their work/life schedules and finding peace and contentment both at home and at work, Chumbley said.

For Cary, he believes workers of the past felt little control over their schedules, and companies that get it right the quickest will have a competitive advantage with much happier employees.

Allowing flexible schedules would give employees much more autonomy and allow them the time to navigate all the outside of work issues without feeling the pressure of the need to be at work, he said.

But as with any new initiative, employers are still concerned with the potential impacts on workers, which, according to Cary, include a lack of accountability, more distractions from people that work from home, blurred lines of when work starts and home begins and distrust from other employees working a traditional schedule.

Flexibility requires a whole lot of trust, Chumbley added. As a leader, you have to be willing to set proper expectations and hold each person accountable to not just their role and responsibilities but also their impact on the organization. If the leader isnt willing to have the tough conversation and make the hard calls, the flexible work model may not be a good fit for their organization or leadership style if theyre wanting their business to thrive and not spin out of control.

Overall, Chumbley says each stage of life is different for every employee, and its up to the employer to make a one-size fits all environment or choose to customize the work schedule individually and be that employer for life no matter the stage of life.

Despite the return of some segments to the workforce, businesses are still desperate for workers, and figuring out what incentives work best for employees at individual companies is key, Express Employment International CEO Bill Stoller said. If production can remain high while offering flexible scheduling options, it may be worth it to try.

Survey Methodology

The Job Insights survey was conducted online within the United States by The Harris Poll on behalf of Express Employment Professionals between Dec. 1 and Dec. 15, 2022, among 1,002 U.S. hiring decision-makers (defined as adults ages 18+ in the U.S. who are employed full-time or self-employed, work at companies with more than one employee, and have full/significant involvement in hiring decisions at their company). Data were weighted where necessary by company size to bring them into line with their actual proportions in the population. Respondents for this survey were selected from among those who have agreed to participate in our surveys. The sampling precision of Harris online polls is measured by using a Bayesian credible interval. For this study, the sample data is accurate to within + 3.2 percentage points using a 95% confidence level. This credible interval will be wider among subsets of the surveyed population of interest.

The omnibus survey was conducted online within the United States by The Harris Poll on behalf of Express Employment Professionals from Dec. 13-15, 2022, among 2,041 adults ages 18 and older. Data are weighted where necessary by age, gender, race/ethnicity, region, education, marital status, household size, household income and propensity to be online, to bring them in line with their actual proportions in the population. Respondents for this survey were selected from among those who have agreed to participate in our surveys. The sampling precision of Harris online polls is measured by using a Bayesian credible interval. For this study, the sample data is accurate to within + 2.8 percentage points using a 95% confidence level.

If you would like to arrange for an interview with Bill Stoller to discuss this topic, please contact Sheena Hollander, Director of Corporate Communications and PR, at (405) 717-5966.

About Bill Stoller

William H. "Bill" Stoller is chairman and chief executive officer of Express Employment International. Founded in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, the international staffing franchisor supports the Express Employment Professionals franchise and related brands. The Express franchise brand is an industry-leading, international staffing company with franchise locations in the U.S., Canada, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand.

About Express Employment Professionals

At Express Employment Professionals, were in the business of people. From job seekers to client companies, Express helps people thrive and businesses grow. Our international network of franchises offers localized staffing solutions to the communities they serve across the U.S., Canada, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand, employing 579,000 people globally in 2022 and more than 10 million since its inception. For more information, visit ExpressPros.com.
Gails extensive experience, specifically with lease-ups, renovations, and the repositioning of assets will serve us well as Bainbridge continues on its growth trajectory. - Shae Shults, Chief Strategy Officer at The Bainbridge Companies

The Bainbridge Companies (Bainbridge), a fully-integrated family of real estate companies that engages in virtually every step of the real estate process, from development and construction, acquisition and disposition, to asset management and third-party property management of multifamily real estate, today announced Gail Ruggles has joined the company as Executive Vice President of Operations. In this role, Gail will oversee the daily performance of Bainbridges property management portfolio for its owned and managed assets and will be responsible for driving financial performance at each community.

With over 30 years of experience, Ruggles most recently served as Senior Vice President of Operations at RADCO Residential and Steadfast Living, overseeing assets throughout the Southeast and Mid-Atlantic. Previously, she spent 23 years with Gables Residential where she was responsible for its third-party operations.

As a leader in multifamily property management, Bainbridge delivers excellence through our hands-on approach, strong operational practices, and high-performing teams, said Shae Shults, Chief Strategy Officer at The Bainbridge Companies. Gails extensive experience, specifically with lease-ups, renovations, and the repositioning of assets will serve us well as Bainbridge continues on its growth trajectory.

Ruggles attended Ball State University, is a member of the Atlanta Apartment Association, and is an active fundraiser for the Sarcoma Foundation of America.

About The Bainbridge Companies, LLC

Bainbridge is a multi-family real estate company that has developed and acquired more than 43,000 rental homes representing more than $8 billion in transactions since its inception in 1997. With over 650 associates nationally, Bainbridge engages in every step of the real estate process: from development and construction, acquisition, and disposition, to asset management and property management of multifamily real estate. Bainbridge is headquartered in Wellington, Fla., and has offices in Atlanta; Austin; Charlotte; Washington, D.C.; Dallas; Orlando; Raleigh, and Tampa. Learn more about Bainbridge at http://www.bainbridgecompanies.com.
Joel H. Rothstein, chair of the Asia Real Estate Practice at global law firm Greenberg Traurig, LLP, was the featured speaker at a real estate investment seminar hosted by the Korean Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Seoul May 3. Greenberg Traurig also was a sponsor of the event.

The seminar focused on recommended response strategies for Korean cross-border real estate investors to current market turbulence in places like the United States. Rothstein, an international real estate and structured finance lawyer, shared his insights and perspectives on the tools, techniques, and strategies cross-border investors can use to deal with distressed and defaulted real estate debt in the United States.

There are many features and practices that are unique to the real estate lending market in the United States, Rothstein said. Successfully navigating loan workouts or restructures requires a fundamental understating of these unique features, from the underlying motivations of the different types of lenders active in the U.S. market, to the creditors rights and remedies available under the U.S. regulatory framework, to the types of loan security packages associated with non-recourse debt in the institutional market.

Based in Tokyo, Shanghai, and New York, Rothstein advises investment banks, financial institutions, private equity funds, sovereign wealth funds, real estate developers, and investors across all major Asia markets with a particular focus on Greater China, Japan, and South Korea. He also leads Greenberg Traurigs practice in advising Asia-based outbound cross-border investors in structuring, implementing, and managing equity and debt investments into the United States, Europe, Latin America, and the Middle East.

About Greenberg Traurig's Real Estate Practice: The Greenberg Traurig Real Estate Practice is a cornerstone of the firm and recognized leader in the industry. The firms real estate attorneys deliver diversified and comprehensive counsel for property acquisition and investment, development, management and leasing, financing, restructuring, and disposition of all asset classes of real estate. The team draws upon the knowledge and experience of more than 700 real estate lawyers from around the world, serving clients from key markets in the United States, Europe, the Middle East, Latin America, and Asia. The groups clientele includes a broad range of property developers, lenders, investment managers, private equity funds, REITs, and private owners. The firms real estate team advises clients on a variety of matters across a broad spectrum of commercial, recreational, and residential real estate, including structured equity and debt and the hybrids.

About Greenberg Traurig: Greenberg Traurig, LLP has more than 2650 attorneys in 45 locations in the United States, Europe and the Middle East, Latin America, and Asia. The firm is a 2022 BTI Highly Recommended Law Firm for superior client service and is consistently among the top firms on the Am Law Global 100 and NLJ 500. Greenberg Traurig is Mansfield Rule 5.0 Certified Plus by The Diversity Lab and is recognized for powering its U.S. offices with 100% renewable energy as certified by the Center for Resource Solutions Green-e Energy as a member of the U.S. EPAs Green Partnership Program. The firm is known for its philanthropic giving, innovation, diversity, and pro bono. Web: http://www.gtlaw.com.
Developing new tools and advancing pharmaceutical development is a key part of Improved Pharmas mission

On board the rocket launch for the Transporter-8 Mission sat Vardas satellite W-Series 1. Within the capsule sits the drug ritonavir, created by scientists at Improved Pharma and housed in engineering designed and built by Varda to conduct controlled experiments in microgravity. A little over an hour after launch, the satellite was deployed and acquisition of signal followed shortly. While in orbit, the drug will undergo melt/cool experiments to grow new crystals. In about a month, the capsule will return to earth, landing at a US Air Force range in Utah. After a successful recovery, the material will be analyzed to learn how ritonavir crystals grown in space differ from those grown on earth.

Why manufacture pharmaceuticals in space? By eliminating factors such as convection and sedimentation that influence crystallization in gravity, a molecule has the freedom to crystallize in different ways. These differences can lead to significant advantages such as controlled particle size, growth of crystals that cant be grown on earth, or the invention of new polymorphic forms that could have properties more valuable than existing forms. And, once those crystals are grown in space, they can be used to seed crystallizations on earth to make more of the new form. More information about this exciting next-step in drug development can be found in recent articles in CNN and also in a deep dive report.

Developing new tools and advancing pharmaceutical development is a key part of Improved Pharmas mission. In 2021, Improved Pharma had the unique opportunity to start polymorph screening research projects in close collaboration with Varda Space Industries with the intent of advancing pharmaceutical manufacturing. Their first joint research project was published in 2022 and announced the discovery of a new form of ritonavir. This research was recognized by Organic Process Research & Development as one of the top remarkable accomplishments from the scientific literature that are expected to be relevant and important with future practical applications. The research collaboration between Improved Pharma and Varda Space Industries will continue into future missions.

About Improved Pharma

Improved Pharma is a research, consulting, and information company dedicated to improving pharmaceutical methods, formulations, and processes. Services include solid-state form studies, formulation design, synchrotron techniques, analytical testing, and expert consulting for the development and defense of intellectual property matters. The company was founded in 2006 by Stephen and Sarah Byrn, who also founded SSCI. For more information about Improved Pharmas services, please contact us at 1-765-463-9951 or info@improvedpharma.com.

About Varda Space Industries

Varda is a venture capital-backed company creating the first free-flying space stations and reentry vehicles ready-built for materials processing. Microgravity found in low Earth Orbit (LEO) makes it possible to precisely control the crystallization process during development and manufacturing to create valuable pharmaceutical products that cannot be created on Earths surface. Varda has raised $53m+ from a cadre of world-class venture capital firms including, but not limited to: Founders Fund, Lux Capital, Caffeinated Capital, Khosla Ventures, and General Catalyst. For more information about Varda please contact press@varda.com


BAM Summit Logo Come join us at the BAM Summit to learn branding secrets used by Fortune 100 companies to secure more sales and long-term customer loyalty

Bicoastal award-winning marketing and public relations firm Marketing Maven and HOW CREATIVE, the boutique, full-service business and branding firm, are announcing additional details about the launch of the first annual Branding and Marketing (BAM) Summit in September 2023.

The event will take place at the Annenberg Community Beach House in Santa Monica, CA, September 21-22nd and focus on: How do you stand apart from your competitors and reach your true business potential?

The second section of the Summit will be led by HOW CREATIVEs Howard Lim and will focus on using his 35 years of business development and Fortune 500 brand experiences to help participating businesses get position properly to attract their ideal customer or buyer.

In this live online critique of attendees business websites, youll receive honest and critical feedback on your product, service, and company to help your business go from good to great.

Come join us at the BAM Summit to learn branding secrets used by Fortune 100 companies to secure more sales and long-term customer loyalty, says , Lim, the HOW CREATIVE founder and business and brand architect . Well show you how to create a distinctive brand personality that customers and buyers can connect to emotionally.

HOW CREATIVE, President Howard Lim will demonstrate how to achieve maximum potential with exponential growth in revenue, profits, value, and equity. He will demonstrate how to position your business or brand as a leader in its category and turn bystanders into buyers.

Lim will also offer critical feedback with his live - Brand Assessment. According to Lim, customers don't choose the best product, they choose the best brand experience.

They choose what they deeply, desperately want, not just what they need. This want comes from a brand that has successfully tapped into authentic, whole brain thinking that appeals to both the personal and logistical sides of how we buy.

Aside from impressive equity, all Fortune 500 companies offer a world-class brand experience. These Fortune 500 companies started with an excellent Brand Assessment.

This In-Depth Live Brand Assessment at the BAM Summit Provides Brands With:



Advice on how to create positive associations with your business as a brand

Specific ways to improve your prospects and profits with the right website position

Instructions for your graphic designers, ad agency and marketing department to better communicate your unique message

Creative insights to how you will win your customers heart, mind and instincts

Customized advice to influence and encourage your prospective customers to purchase.

You can register here: BAM SUMMIT (bamsummits.com).

About Marketing Maven

With offices in Los Angeles and New York, Marketing Maven is an award-winning full-service international marketing and communications agency. Nationally recognized as a trusted communications partner, Marketing Maven specializes in public relations, brand strategy, social media, digital, media relations, event marketing, market research, minority marketing and search engine optimization. Marketing Maven leads the industry in utilizing advanced metrics to measure marketing reach and providing competitive analysis unparalleled in the industry. Offering strategic counsel, we see the big picture and use creative tactics to achieve results. For additional information about Marketing Maven, visit http://www.MarketingMaven.com.

About HOW CREATIVE

HOW CREATIVE has developed, implemented, and refined a comprehensive system for building a successful, world-class business. Using our proprietary SIM System, we integrate Strategy, Implementation, and Management into a seamless process that can be successfully applied to every aspect of your brand.

By identifying a companys hidden potential and shifting its trajectory for exponential growth, our streamlined, highly effective approach is as economical as it is efficient, offering more value for your dollar while increasing market share. Faster than conventional strategic planning, branding, and marketing methods, our unique approach collapses time for accelerated outcomes, increasing company profits, value, and opportunities. For additional information about HOW CREATIVE, visit http://www.HOWCREATIVE.com.

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MobileDemand xCase for Surface Go with integrated payment device and NFC reader We continue to enhance the xCase for the Microsoft Surface Go, enabling use of productivity enhancing peripherals from Honeywell, MagTek and rf IDEAS. The xCase provides essential device protection while enabling frontline workers to use the device in more ways than ever.

MobileDemand, provider of rugged tablets, cases, and mobile all-in-one computing solutions for enterprise productivity, today announced they are adding additional integrated productivity enhancements to its rugged xCase for Microsoft Surface Go tablets. The release includes an integrated MagTek tDynamo (Gen II) payment device and integrated rf IDEAS WAVE ID Near Field Communication (NFC) reader. Both versions are available with an integrated, high-performance Honeywell barcode scanner. These new additions continue to expand the list of peripherals designed to enhance productivity in retail, restaurant, healthcare, warehousing and manufacturing operations.

We are pleased to continue to enhance the xCase for the world-class Microsoft Surface Go, enabling use of productivity enhancing peripherals from industry leaders Honeywell, MagTek and rf IDEAS, said MobileDemand President and CTO Matt Miller. The xCase provides essential device protection while enabling frontline workers to use the device in more ways than ever.

Designed for Microsoft Surface Certified

The Surface Go xCase with tDynamo (Gen II) and NFC reader are the latest addition to MobileDemands growing list of products that have been certified by Microsofts Designed for Surface program. Products with the Designed for Surface accreditation have been thoroughly evaluated and tested by Microsofts Designed for Surface team to validate compatibility with the specified Surface devices. The certification assures end-users of the functionality of the xCase and add-ons.

We are excited to see MobileDemands dedication to our mutual customers as part of our long-standing partnership through the Designed for Surface program, says Branden Powell, Senior Director of Microsoft Accessories and Designed for Surface. Their line of rugged xCases for Surface Pro and Go are a popular choice among Microsoft enterprise customers, so its great to see these enhancements for the Surface Go added to their broad range of Surface products.

Integrated MagTek tDynamo (Gen II) Payment Device

The xCase with payment device and barcode scanner was designed for mobile point-of-sale (POS), line-busting, drive-thru ordering, store operations, controls, and inventory management. The mobile POS functionality enables retail and restaurant associates to complete transactions throughout the facility, both inside and out, shortening customer wait times and lowering abandonment rate.

MobileDemand makes a rugged and durable tablet enclosure, said Rebecca Robinson, marketing manager at MagTek. It is a great fit for our mobile secure card readers and expands the markets where merchants can securely and easily accept payments.

The tDynamo (Gen II), a mobile secure card reader authenticator sits flush against the back of the rugged case. The device accepts mobile wallets including Apple Pay and Google Pay, NFC and EMV contactless, EMV contact chip, and magnetic stripe payments

.

Integrated rf IDEAS NFC Reader

The xCase with NFC reader and scanner enables mobile credential-based authentication and identification. The integrated module was designed to track employee attendance, enable device sign-in, scan loyalty cards, track tagged assets and grant access to events and other venues via phones, cards or wristbands. The rf IDEAS WAVE ID NFC reader sits flush against the back of the rugged case.

Mobility and Mounting Features

The Surface Go xCase includes a Snap Plate, briefcase carrying handle and back hand strap. The Snap Plate enables the Surface Go to be mounted nearly anywhere with MobileDemands patented Snap Mount system paired with RAM Mounts substantial eco-system of rugged and versatile mounting solutions. The plate quickly and easily snaps into the optional mounting rail which can be securely attached to POS stations, counters, work areas, vehicles, beams, carts and more  wherever the work may be. The mount system is engineered for quick insertion and release of the Surface Go yet is tough enough to withstand demanding applications.

Designed for the frontline worker, the xCase features a briefcase handle for easy and convenient device carrying while on the move, helping to prevent accidental drops. The ergonomic, glove-fitting back hand strap enables frontline workers to easily hold the device in the palm of their hands while actively using the device. The hand straps flexible elastic bands are secure yet comfortable, eliminating strain from holding the device for an extended period.

The Surface Go xCase with MagTek tDynamo (Gen II) and rf IDEAS WAVE ID reader are now available for order.

About MobileDemand

MobileDemand is a technology leader in rugged tablets and mobile computing solutions, committed to bringing more functionality and capabilities to the mobile workforce. Specializing in the design of integrated productivity tools for barcode scanning, point-of-sale, magnetic stripe reading, PIN pad entry, 3D and thermal imaging, dimension measurement, and mounting hardware for myriad on-the-go applications, the company is driving the future of mobile productivity. MIL-STD-810G certified, rugged protection features of cases and accessories empower organizations to get more done in the field with rugged tablets that withstand drops, dust, water, humidity and adverse conditions where unprotected electronics fail. Since 2003, the Iowa, USA-based company has grown to serve more than 40 countries. To learn more and contact MobileDemand, visit ruggedtabletpc.com.
David Warren Pearson, Executive Chairman of Joseph Phelps Vineyards We are thrilled to welcome David Pearson and are confident that under his leadership and together with the family, Joseph Phelps Vineyards will continue to thrive and further elevate our position in all markets. - Philippe Schaus, Chairman & CEO of Moet Hennessy

Moet Hennessy is pleased to announce the appointment of David Pearson as Executive Chairman for Joseph Phelps Vineyards. With an illustrious career in luxury wines spanning over 20 years, David is renowned for his visionary leadership and for playing an important role in the development of luxury wines coming from the Napa Valley.

Starting today, as Executive Chairman, David will bring a wealth of experience and expertise to lead Joseph Phelps Vineyards into its next phase of growth and success. He will be responsible for overseeing all of the Maisons operations and strategic development. Building on the extraordinary legacy of Joseph Phelps and his family, David and the wider team will develop and implement the strategy for the company and its portfolio both in the U.S. and around the world.

Philippe Schaus, Chairman & CEO of Moet Hennessy, expressed his confidence in the appointment. We are thrilled to welcome David Pearson and are confident that under his leadership and together with the family, Joseph Phelps Vineyards will continue to thrive and further elevate our position in all markets.

On accepting the position, David Warren Pearson said: It is a great honor and a pleasure to work with the team at Joseph Phelps Vineyards at this time of transition. Joseph Phelps and his family have been central to bringing the worlds attention to the Napa Valley, with their wines recognized around the world as amongst the finest from the region. I am pleased to be able to play a role in crafting and positioning Joseph Phelps Vineyards to reach new heights, and to help the business flourish for years to come.

About Joseph Phelps Vineyards

Joseph Phelps founded his namesake winery in 1973, and quickly established himself as a pioneer and creative visionary in the Napa Valley wine industry in its early days of development. A year later, he started producing Insignia, the red blend in the exclusive Bordeaux style of California. Since then, Insignia has been critically acclaimed for its iconic vintages, and four times rewarded with Robert Parker Wine Advocates perfect 100-point scores for the 1991, 1997, 2002 and 2007 vintages. Joseph Phelps Vineyards consists of an estate recognized worldwide for the quality of all its wines, with 200 hectares of its own vines spread over eleven vineyards in the Napa Valley and 30 hectares spread over two vineyards on the Sonoma Coast. With a focus on innovation and commitment to excellence, Joseph Phelps Vineyards today is synonymous with best-in-class California winemaking and continues to embody the pioneering spirit and extraordinary legacy of its founder.
Five plastic surgery track startups selected to advance in joint effort between the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) and MedTech Innovator (MTI). Plastic surgery thrives on innovation and attracts creative, entrepreneurial individuals who are constantly striving to improve outcomes and safety for patients, says ASPS President Gregory Greco, DO, FACS, Red Bank, N.J.

Five plastic surgery startups advanced through a rigorous selection process to represent the MTI/ASPS Plastic Surgery Accelerator track in the 2023 MedTech Innovator Accelerator program and competition. Each startup will take part in the comprehensive program, designed to help grow promising new companies focused on medical device, diagnostic and digital health technology.

The plastic surgery track startups selected to advance in this joint effort between the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) and MedTech Innovator (MTI) include 4th Dimension EMR (San Diego, Calif.), Cellulora (Philadelphia), Fingy 3D (Morgantown, W.Va.), ImmersiveTouch (Chicago) and Newrotex (Oxford, U.K.). The five finalists join a field of 61 startups from around the world that will compete for a share of $800,000 in funding awards over the course of the four-month program.

Plastic surgery thrives on innovation and attracts creative, entrepreneurial individuals who are constantly striving to improve outcomes and safety for patients, says ASPS President Gregory Greco, DO, FACS, Red Bank, N.J. This program provides enormous value to ASPS members looking to bring their ideas to market  but it also advances the specialty and, most importantly, holds the potential to improve care worldwide.

More than 70 companies entered the MTI/ASPS Plastic Surgery Accelerator competition this year, and 12 advanced to the live-pitch judging phase, where the top five were selected to represent the plastic surgery track. The size of this years ASPS cohort increased from last years inaugural group of three finalist startups; this first plastic surgery track cohort was very successful, placing companies in all three finals of the MTI programs internal competitions.

ASPS participation in the MTI/ASPS Plastic Surgery Accelerator is made possible through the generous support of Motiva, the Societys 2023 Innovation Sponsor. Each of the five cohort participants from the MTI/ASPS Plastic Surgery Accelerator will be featured at Plastic Surgery The Meeting, Oct. 26-29 in Austin, Texas, and receive mentoring from ASPS surgeons and associated entrepreneurs. They will also participate in MedTech Innovators corporate mentorship program, where they will be matched with senior industry leaders to receive ongoing in-depth, customized mentorship and support.

We are proud of our stellar track record of identifying and perfecting the most innovative medtech startups in the world, says Paul Grand, CEO and founder of MedTech Innovator. The 2023 MedTech Innovator Cohort once again includes passionate medtech entrepreneurs from around the globe. We look forward to working with our corporate partners and industry advisors over the course of the program, to help these startups advance their medical device, diagnostic and digital health innovations to improve patient care.

This years event marks the second year of the ASPS/MTI partnership, but since the launch of MedTech Innovator in 2013, more than 500 companies completed the program, resulting in more than 200 FDA approvals and clearances, and $6.8 billion in funding.

The 2023 accelerator program launches June 14-15 at the MedTech Innovator Summit in Mountain View, Calif. Leadership teams from each of the 61 startups will attend networking events and workshops with MedTech Innovator partners, alumni and industry leaders.

The 2023 cohort will then be featured June 16 at the WSGR Medical Device Conference in San Francisco, where they will be showcased to investors and compete for the $25,000 Vision Award. The program culminates in The MedTech Conference powered by AdvaMed, Oct. 9-11, in Anaheim, Calif., where five companies will advance to the Grand Finals.

About the American Society of Plastic Surgeons

The American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) is the largest organization of board-certified plastic surgeons in the world. Representing more than 7,000 physician members, the society is recognized as a leading authority and information source on cosmetic and reconstructive plastic surgery. ASPS comprises more than 92 percent of all board-certified plastic surgeons in the United States. Founded in 1931, the society represents physicians certified by The American Board of Plastic Surgery or The Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada.

About MedTech Innovator

Based in Los Angeles, MedTech Innovator is the worlds largest accelerator of medical technology companies and the premier nonprofit startup accelerator in the medical technology industry. Its mission is to improve the lives of patients by accelerating the growth of companies that are transforming the healthcare system. In collaboration with 35 corporate partners, as well as a broader network of more than 1,000 industry executives including investors, business development representatives, and other stakeholders, MedTech Innovator provides startups with individualized mentorship and feedback, funding opportunities, and continual engagement with peers and advisors.

For more information about MedTech Innovator, visit https://medtechinnovator.org/ and follow @MedTechAwards on Twitter and MedTech Innovator on LinkedIn.


Creating OpenInfra Asia and OpenInfra Europe is a critical first step in what will be an evolving effort to build resiliency in our global community and to ensure that open infrastructure technology remains open to all.

OPENINFRA SUMMIT  The Open Infrastructure Foundation (OpenInfra Foundation) announced today that it has opened regional hubs in Europe and Asia in an effort to promote and protect open source communities and technologies in these regions where the OpenInfra community has rapidly expanded. The Asia and Europe regions have experienced rapid growth in recent years and currently represent 32.5% and 38.8% of OpenInfra Foundation member organizations, respectively. Both regions have also seen rising challenges to open source and global collaboration.

Thierry Carrez, general manager of the OpenInfra Foundation, shared the news in the opening keynote today at OpenInfra Summit, the organizations global gathering. The world has changed, and open source needs regional resiliency and action to ensure vital software technologies continue to be developed in the open, he said. Key regional issues have emerged, like digital sovereignty in the EU, that have created an opportunity for OpenInfra regional hubs to facilitate collaboration and discussion, coordinate responses, and give a voice to the concerns of the OpenInfra ecosystem.

The OpenInfra Foundation is actively voicing concerns, including concerns over the current wording proposed in the EU Cyber Resilience Act with regard to open source software. It is an example of regional policies and regulations that could, whether inadvertently or intentionally, have a negative impact on open source infrastructure technologies. Other examples include proposals on regulating open sources role in artificial intelligence technologies, like ChatGPT. Although advocating for open source has always been central to the mission of the OpenInfra Foundation, establishing regional entities will lend legal standing for the OpenInfra community to participate in policy discussions and a stronger mechanism for leveraging the influence of participating organizations.

OpenInfra Asia (based in Singapore) and OpenInfra Europe (based in Belgium) share the same purpose and mission as the OpenInfra Foundation. In particular, these regional hubs allow participants to engage in focused collaboration and provide a basis for coalition between industry, academia and government. Participants in OpenInfra Asia and OpenInfra Europe will join together in:



Advancing open source infrastructure in the region

Discussing regional strategic issues

Gathering regional feedback and elevating local voices

Coordinating local communities and events

Conducting regional business development and market research

Providing local programs for nurturing the next generation of open source contributors

Open source has enjoyed an age of abundancea decade of incredible success, marked by global expansion of contributors, widespread project adoption, and a thriving ecosystem that touches nearly every continent, said Mark Collier, COO of the OpenInfra Foundation. But now we're seeing new threats to open source coming from different regional regulations and reactionary attempts to limit who can contribute to or have access to technology. The OpenInfra community will be better able to respond rapidly and effectively to those types of threats and changes if we can act on a regional level. Creating OpenInfra Asia and OpenInfra Europe is a critical first step in what will be an evolving effort to build resiliency in our global community and to ensure that open infrastructure technology remains open to all.

Open source is at more risk today than it has ever been before, added Jonathan Bryce, executive director of the OpenInfra Foundation. Thats the catalyst for this proactive, strategic move to embed the OpenInfra ethos and organizational framework more deeply in key regions around the world. In a changing world where open source is under serious threat, not just from proprietary companies but also from governments, we must collaborate in new ways, such as creating legal entities that give our communities a voice and a seat at the table when decisions are being made that can change the world of open source as we know it.

Any OpenInfra Foundation organizational member can participate in their respective regional hubs at no additional cost. Visit these web pages to sign up:



Founding Participating Organizations of OpenInfra Asia:



99cloud

Ant Group

AWcloud

CDAC

China Mobile

China Unicom

Coredge

EasyStack

H3C

Huawei

Inspur

NEC

NHN Cloud

Nipa Cloud

Okestro

OneQode

Tencent Cloud

Wuhan Yangtze CT

ZTE

As a dedicated effort of collaboration among open source communities in Asia, Ant Group is very excited to see the establishment of OpenInfra Asia. Its mission is well aligned with ours: accelerating regional technology innovation with open source infrastructure software, promoting the cloud infrastructure market, and expanding ecosystem development in Asia.  Richard Bian, director of Open Source Program Office, Ant Group

The establishment of OIF Asia will accelerate the development of virtualization and container technologies, promote deep collaboration and cooperation among Asian members, and inject new strength and vitality into the development of open source in Asia.  Zhou Junyi, general manager of cloud network and open source, Huawei

Founding Participating Organizations of OpenInfra Europe:



Alisys

Bitergia

Canonical

Cleura

Cloud & Heat

Cloudbase Solutions

ComponentSoft

Deutsche Telekom

Elastx

Ericsson

Exaion

Fairbanks

G-Research

Infomaniak

OSB Alliance

OSISM

OVHCloud

OW2

Safespring

Sardina Systems

Schwarz IT

Secustack

Societe Generale

StackHPC

Ultimum

Virtuozzo

Collaborative software development has radically accelerated the worlds evolution to digital infrastructure platforms over the past ten years, and Ericsson is a proud participant in this effort driving the functionality needed by our Telecom and Enterprise customers. With the creation of OpenInfra Europe we will be able to focus on the unique needs and opportunities of the region and foster new collaborations across academia, government and industry to address them. Ericsson also looks forward to working with OpenInfra Europe to share the unique principles that underpin the success of open source collaboration with regulatory bodies to ensure that as we build impactful legislation to improve the safety of all Europeans, we also continue to allow open source collaboration to flourish.  Phil Robb, head of Ericsson Software Technology (EST) and general manager of Ericsson Software Technology USA, Ericsson

If your organization is interested in joining the OpenInfra Foundation, visit https://openinfra.dev/join/members/. The OpenInfra Foundation also welcomes individual members; to learn more, visit https://openinfra.dev/join/individual/.

*About the Open Infrastructure Foundation (OpenInfra Foundation)*

The OpenInfra Foundation builds communities who write open source infrastructure software that runs in production. With the support of over 110,000 individuals in 187 countries, the OpenInfra Foundation hosts open source projects and communities of practice, including infrastructure for AI, container native apps, edge computing and data center clouds. Join the OpenInfra movement: http://www.openinfra.dev

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OpenStack and its flexible architecture form an ideal foundation for Okestros approach to cloud, and were proud to elevate our support of the OpenInfra Foundation.

OPENINFRA SUMMIT  The Open Infrastructure Foundation (OpenInfra Foundation) announced today that Okestro has elevated its commitment to the global community by becoming a Gold Member after joining a year ago as a Silver Member. Okestro is also Premier Sponsor of the OpenInfra Summit.

Okestro, the leading cloud software company in the Republic of Korea (South Korea), has witnessed unparalleled growth since its founding in 2018, boasting an average annual growth rate of 260% and expanding its workforce from its two founders to more than 260 employees. Okestro delivers a wide range of cloud services from IaaS, PaaS, CMP (Cloud Management Platform) to AIOps. The companys primary focus lies in developing and delivering cutting-edge cloud software solutions specifically designed for orchestrating multi-hybrid cloud data centers. In fact, Okestro designed and developed the e-Government Cloud Platform architecture, which serves as the core of South Korean government cloud data centers and IT services. The National Information Resources Service (NIRS), a pan-government private data center responsible for managing all public IT resources, also relies on Okestro's solutions as the foundation for their cloud services. Other Okestro clients in South Korea include the National Pension Service, H Financial Group, 'K' Bank and the National Ministry of Defense.

Okestros product Contrabass is an OpenStack-based IaaS platform that converts a customers legacy IT operating environment into an SDDC-based private cloud architecture. Other offerings include Trombone (a DevOps platform for automated CI/CD in multiple IaaS and PaaS environments), Viola (a customized Kubernetes-based container platform), Okestro CMP (a comprehensive multi-hybrid cloud data center management platform) and Symphony AI (an AI-powered AIOps solution that optimizes cloud resources management and cost.)

OpenStack and its flexible architecture form an ideal foundation for Okestros approach to cloud, and were proud to elevate our support of the OpenInfra Foundation, said Young Gwang Kim, CEO of Okestro. Our mission is to empower our clients clouds by providing them with the optimal orchestration platforms for their needs. In the future, Okestro plans to actively participate in OpenInfra Foundation community activities, widely publicize its OpenStack technology, and contribute to improving the technological capabilities of domestic and foreign companies that promote cloud business using OpenStack technology. We will share OpenInfra technology with others so that South Korea can lead the global cloud ecosystem.

Okestro has revolutionized the cloud ecosystem in South Korea and contributed to their own countrys digital transformation to an extent that few, if any, companies can claim, said Thierry Carrez, general manager of the OpenInfra Foundation. Our OpenInfra community benefits from their success in numerous ways, not the least of which is their strategy around contributing to the OpenStack project and their sponsorship of the OpenInfra Summit. Were thrilled to welcome Okestro as a Gold Member and look forward to all the inspiration and innovation that they have to offer.

The OpenInfra community in Asia is growing rapidly, in part accelerated by the momentum in South Korea. Fueled by the 12th largest group of OpenInfra Foundation community members in the world, South Korea is home to large-scale OpenInfra users including Kakao, SK Telecom, Samsung, NHN Cloud and Naver. To support this growth and priorities of the community in South Korea, Okestro is a founding participant of OpenInfra Asia, a regional hub announced at the OpenInfra Summit Vancouver today.

Gold Members of the OpenInfra Foundation now include 99Cloud Inc., Bloomberg, China Mobile, China Telecom, China Unicom, Cleura, Deutsche Telekom, IEI System, NEC, New H3C Technologies Co. Ltd., Nipa Cloud, Okestro, Tencent Cloud, Troila Technology, Ubuntu, Vexxhost and ZTE Corporation. Platinum Members of the OpenInfra Foundation include Ant Group, Ericsson, Huawei, Meta, Microsoft, Red Hat and Wind River.

*Okestro at OpenInfra Summit Vancouver*

Visit Okestro at their OpenInfra Summit marketplace booth to hear directly from members of their open source and global business team, who will be providing short demos of their products. Okestro will also be leading two sessions at the summit on Wednesday, June 14:



Optimizing Service Continuity in Mega Private Cloud Data Center, 9:40 a.m., Room 18

Automated OpenStack Deployment for Efficiency and Security, 12:20 p.m., Room 18

*About the Open Infrastructure Foundation (OpenInfra Foundation)*

The OpenInfra Foundation builds communities who write open source infrastructure software that runs in production. With the support of over 110,000 individuals in 187 countries, the OpenInfra Foundation hosts open source projects and communities of practice, including infrastructure for AI, container native apps, edge computing and data center clouds. Join the OpenInfra movement: http://www.openinfra.dev

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BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 14. A special session dedicated to the 100th anniversary of national leader Heydar Aliyev and the 30th anniversary of National Salvation Day is being held in the Milli Majlis (Parliament) of Azerbaijan, Trend reports.

June 15, 1993 (National Salvation Day of Azerbaijan) is a date that every Azerbaijani remembers with pride, since it was on that very day that national leader Heydar Aliyev, once again taking the reins of government, saved Azerbaijan from the threat of disintegration and disappearance. Azerbaijan has embarked on the path of progress, having emerged from difficult times.

The Republic of Azerbaijan is recognized today by the world community as a state that implements an independent policy on a global scale, and occupies a worthy place among other countries of the world.
We are so fortunate to have such a committed and long-lasting program for veterans in our area..., says SAFE Credit Union President and CEO Faye Nabhani.

For the second year, SAFE Credit Union is granting funds to one of the only remaining Sacramento-area organizations providing transitional housing for veterans experiencing homelessness.

The credit union is awarding $20,000 to Volunteers of America Northern California and Northern Nevada. The nonprofit plans to use the grant to help fund its Transitional Housing Program providing shelter and resources for up to 80 veterans each night.

Ours is one of the only transitional housing programs left in the Sacramento area and it aims to provide dignified housing, employment services, case management and other tools to veterans who would otherwise be homeless, says Volunteers of America CEO Christie Holderegger.

As an organization we cannot do it alone and to have such a reliable source of support in SAFE Credit Union makes a huge difference, Holderegger continues. We also appreciate the fact that the grant committee and SAFE as a whole care deeply for veterans and their journey to becoming self-sufficient.

SAFE has a proud history supporting members of the military and veterans. The credit union opened in 1940 as the Sacramento Air Depot Federal Credit Union. Each spring, SAFE donates funds through its Community Sustainability Grant program to nonprofits dedicated to assisting veterans.

We are so fortunate to have such a committed and long-lasting program for veterans in our area and to be able to continue our tradition of veteran support by boosting their endeavors, says SAFE Credit Union President and CEO Faye Nabhani.

Volunteers of America Northern California and Northern Nevada provide shelter, housing and supportive services to 3,500 individuals and families each night, according to Ana Bankert, Vice President of Development and Marketing.

Last year, SAFE awarded $10,000 to support Volunteers of Americas financial education sessions for homeless veterans seeking new employment.

SAFE annually awards up to $120,000 in grants in phases focusing on its three pillars of philanthropy: veterans, healthcare, and education.

SAFE is also awarding a $10,000 grant to Soil Born Farms for its farm to wellness programs offering job training and therapeutic experiences to veterans.

About SAFE

SAFE Credit Union is a not-for-profit, state-chartered credit union in Northern California with over $4.5 billion in assets and more than 234,000 members. Insured by NCUA.


We are proud to support the CARH Scholarship Fund and the important work they are doing to help students achieve their dreams of higher education

Sandhurst Community Capital, a non-profit strategic partner of Churchill Stateside Group, is pleased to announce a donation of $15,000 to the 2023 CARH Scholarship Fund.

Sandhurst Community Capital's mission is to promote affordable housing for the tenants living in multifamily properties. The Council for Affordable and Rural Housing (CARH) is a national non-profit trade organization serving the rural housing industry across the United States. The CARH Scholarship Foundation provides college scholarships to exceptional students who reside in CARH-member properties.

Alex Holverson, Midwest Regional Director for Churchill Stateside Group, and CARH Board Member, was pleased to make the announcement of Sandhurst Community Capital's donation at the CARH Mid-Year Meeting in January of this year.

"We are proud to support the CARH Scholarship Fund and the important work they are doing to help students achieve their dreams of higher education, said Holverson. "We believe that everyone deserves the opportunity to pursue their dreams, regardless of their financial circumstances. This scholarship fund will help make that possible for many deserving students."

Keith Gloeckl, CEO of Churchill Stateside Group, and Chairman of Sandhurst Community Capital said, The CARH Scholarship program is a wonderful program to assist affordable housing tenants with their goals of attending college. We want to extend our appreciation to Sandhurst Community Capital and their Board of Directors for making possible the financial gift to the CARH Scholarship Fund.

Colleen M. Fisher, Executive Director, and Secretary, CARH Scholarship Foundation, added, On behalf of the CARH Scholarship Foundation, I would like to thank Sandhurst Community Capital, a non-profit strategic partner of Churchill Stateside Group for its generous contribution to the foundation. This contribution will be used to help fund the scholarships that will be given in 2023. We greatly appreciate Sandhurst Community Capital and Churchill Stateside Groups support of CARHs foundation and scholarship recipients. It is through the generosity of contributors that the foundation can fulfill its mission of providing scholarships for residents of CARH member properties for college, vocational education and beginning in 2023 graduate degrees.

The CARH Scholarship Foundation was established in 2005 and has awarded over $400,000 in scholarships since inception. The foundation has awarded scholarships to 68 residents of CARH-member properties, helping 42 students reach their dreams of graduating college or obtaining associate/vocational education degrees as of December 31, 2022.

About Sandhurst Community Capital

Sandhurst Community Capital is a non-profit affiliate of Churchill Stateside Group that provides financial assistance to affordable housing projects. The organization's mission is to promote affordable housing for the tenants living in multifamily properties.

About Churchill Stateside Group

Churchill Stateside Group (CSG) and its wholly owned affiliates serve the affordable housing and commercial renewable energy industries. CSG sponsors tax credit equity investment funds for institutional investors and provides a variety of construction, permanent, and bond Financing solutions. With over $5 Billion of assets under management, CSG has long-standing and successful investment relationships with numerous corporate investors. The company's investor and developer clients benefit from our experienced staff, prominent and proactive senior leadership. and attractive debt and equity platforms. The company, through its subsidiary Churchill Mortgage Investment LLC, is an approved USDA Rural Development and HUD/FHA MAP and LEAN lender and Ginnie Mae Issuer.

For more information, please visit http://www.CSGfirst.com.
Oregon Connections Academy Celebrates The Class of 2023 This graduating class proves that when students find a learning environment that meets their individual needs and helps them develop the skills to adapt to an ever-changing world, they will thrive and succeed academically.

The Oregon Connections Academy graduating Class of 2023 was recently honored at a commencement ceremony celebrating their achievements. Many of the more than 70 graduating seniors traveled from all over the state to participate in the full-time online public charter schools ceremony held June 10th in Scio.

This graduating class proves that when students find a learning environment that meets their individual needs and helps them develop the skills to adapt to an ever-changing world, they will thrive and succeed academically, said Janel Scurlock, Oregon Connections Academy Principal. We are inspired by these graduates and wish them all the best as they embark on the next chapter of their lives.

Oregon Connections Academy serves more than 1,000 students in grades K-12 across the state with support from highly-skilled teachers and a rigorous curriculum that meets or exceeds national and state standards. The program empowers students to gain the skills and confidence they need to thrive in a changing world.

After receiving their diplomas, the students are headed down various paths. Many students are enrolling in two-or four-year colleges, enlisting in the military or getting vocational training, while several graduates are entering the workforce. Oregon Connections Academy works with students whether their post-high school plans include college or starting a job to help them build the skills they need to take on the challenges ahead.

Students attending Oregon Connections Academy benefit from the ability to work at their own individual pace with learning plans tailored to match their needs and abilities or from the personal attention they receive from teachers to stay motivated and engaged. Oregon Connections Academy students also have access to a number of advanced courses and a flexible schedule to explore extracurricular activities.

Enrollment for Oregon Connections Academys 2023-2024 academic year is currently open. The school is hosting free online information sessions for families interested in learning more about the engaging online education program. For more information about Oregon Connections Academy or to begin the enrollment process, please visit OregonConnectionsAcademy.com or call 800-382-6010.

About Oregon Connections Academy

Oregon Connections Academy is a unique, tuition-free, online public school for K-12 students across Oregon. Authorized by the Prairie City School District but overseen by its own governing board and school leadership, Oregon Connections Academy offers a high-quality educational experience that keeps students motivated and engaged in a safe, virtual learning environment. In addition to academics, teachers focus on emotional well-being and social development, working closely with families to help students learn how they learn best. Here, students gain the skills and confidence they need to direct their own educational journey, learning to thrive in the real world by first learning how to be resourceful and resilient. For more information, call 800-382-6010 or visit http://www.OregonConnectionsAcademy.com.
Prefete Duffaut (Haitian, 1923-2012), Magician, c. mid. 1960s. Oil on Masonite. 46 x 24 inches. Tampa Museum of Art, Gift of the Arthur Albrecht Revocable Trust. This grant by Bank of America is an example of how businesses can collaborate with the arts to preserve rich cultural heritage. We are always in pursuit of opportunities to work with private institutions to ensure these works can be enjoyed for generations to come.

The Tampa Museum of Art has been awarded a $100,000 grant from Bank of America for the conservation of its recent acquisition of Haitian art. The collection consists of paintings, sculptures, and framed maps bequeathed to the Tampa Museum of Art by the Arthur R. Albrecht Revocable Trust last August. Albrecht was a devoted collector of Haitian art and was also active in philanthropy on behalf of the country.

This grant by Bank of America is an example of how businesses can collaborate with the arts to preserve rich cultural heritage, said Michael Tomor, Ph.D., the Penny and Jeff Vinik Executive Director at the Tampa Museum of Art. We are always in pursuit of opportunities to work with private institutions to ensure these works can be enjoyed for generations to come.

At the time of the acquisition, the Museum also received a $1 million endowment gift from the Albrecht Trust in support of the collection and programming. The new $100,000 grant from Bank of America will go toward preservation projects and allow for a larger portion of the Albrecht Trust to be used for educational programming related to the newly acquired artwork.

The private sector has a role to play in keeping the arts thriving in our communities, which is why we partnered with The Tampa Museum of Art to help preserve the historical and cultural impact of this art, says Bill Goede, president, Bank of America Tampa Bay. We believe that investments in arts and culture help to build our Tampa Bay community and have a positive impact on the lives of our clients and employees. We are committed to preserving these pieces that celebrate Tampas strong Haitian population.

This support is part of Bank of Americas Art Conservation Project (ACP), a unique program through which the bank provides grant funding to nonprofit museums and cultural institutions around the world to help conserve historically or culturally significant works of art that are in danger of deterioration. Since it began in 2010, Bank of America has funded the conservation of individual pieces of art through more than 237 projects in 40 countries across six continents, conserving paintings, sculptures, and archaeological and architectural pieces that are critically important to cultural heritage and the history of art.

The combined gifts and grants accompanying the collection complement ongoing fundraising efforts by the Museums Centennial Campaign for Renovation and Expansion. The Museum completed renovations of the Vinik Family Education Center last summer, growing the education space from 1,400 to 8,000 square feet, including four classrooms, a lobby, orientation spaces, and a secure entrance. With these improvements in place, the Museum anticipates quadrupling the number of students it serves per year, and the school tour program alone can grow from 6,000 students to 24,000 each year.

In 2021, the Museum announced it was embarking on its $100 million+ Centennial Renovation and Expansion to expand the Museums gross area from 69,000 to 125,000 sq. ft. On April 26, the Museum celebrated the completion of its renovations, with all exhibitions in new gallery spaces open to the public.

About the Tampa Museum of Art

Founded in 1920, the Tampa Museum of Art inspires visitors with engaging exhibitions and innovative educational programs that emphasize ancient, modern, and contemporary art. The Museum houses one of the largest Greek and Roman antiquities collections in the southeastern United States. As one of the regions most prominent museums devoted to the art of our time, the Museums permanent collection also embraces sculpture, photography, painting, new media, and more.

Online programs add to the year-round studio art classes, lectures, and tours that allow children, teens, and adults to discover new perspectives and learn different art-making techniques. Likewise, through unique community partnerships, the Museum offers outreach programs that provide art-therapy-informed interventions and meaningful modes of self-expression to vulnerable segments of the population.

Located in the heart of downtown Tampa, the Tampa Museum of Art leads as both a cultural institution and a community museum dedicated to celebrating its home citys diversity. In 2021, the Museum embarked on an ambitious renovation to increase exhibition space and education facilities to accommodate growing community partnerships and allow more hands-on, up-close experiences for students and adults.

General Hours and Information

For tickets and information, visit TampaMuseum.org or call (813) 274-8130. Located at 120 W. Gasparilla Plaza. Tampa, FL 33602, the Tampa Museum of Art is open seven days a week, Monday  Sunday, 10 am  5 pm, and Thursdays from 10 am  8 pm.

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I came to see that this book series is yet an introduction for what The Lord has called The Body of Christ to do. So that this mission is not just my mission alone. And on His throne sits Jesus, under a mighty emerald, the rainbow displaying Gods Spirit, Beauty, Purity, Life, Innocence, and Life!

Author MaRee Price seeks to serve Christ as an active and faithful vessel until her inner hidden man part ways from this world of clay, beginning with Leaving Hell Quenched Pt1: The Calling, ($35.49, paperback, 9781662879371; $9.99, e-book, 9781662879388).

Solely by The Lords grace, MaRee was gifted her first unique artistic expression from God upon receiving Revelation 4:3 and 10:1-4.

I came to see that this book series is yet an introduction for what The Lord has called The Body of Christ to do. So that this mission is not just my mission alone. And on His throne sits Jesus, under a mighty emerald, the rainbow displaying Gods Spirit, Beauty, Purity, Life, Innocence, and Life! The Kingdom Flood has come, for Christs Kingdom is at hand, though there will remain those who have refused to repent., said Price.

MaRee Price being a recent Phi Theta Kappa honors society student at Cincinnati State, has taken a great leap of faith to embark on an increasingly and challenging journey while releasing the passion for Physical Therapy and Business Mgmt. Studies from her heart, renovating more space for Him that is to come back. Per instructions, Price purchased the businesses Kaphar, Noahs Ark Inn Grill, Abrahams Bosom Inn Armor and Heavens Quarter 777. All while Pt 2. within this book series is being constructed as we speak and listen, The Paradigm Shift 1.2 Loaded.

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Xulon Press, a division of Salem Media Group, is the worlds largest Christian self-publisher, with more than 15,000 titles published to date. Leaving Hell Quenched is available online through xulonpress.com/bookstore, amazon.com, and barnesandnoble.com.


Town of Ossining Joins the Empire State Purchasing Group The Town of Ossining invites all potential vendors to register online.

Today, the Town of Ossining announces it has joined the Empire State Purchasing Group, a regional purchasing community by Bidnet Direct. Local government agencies throughout New York State utilize the purchasing group for bid and vendor management. The Town of Ossining invites all potential vendors to register online with the Empire State Purchasing Group to access its upcoming solicitations by visiting http://www.bidnetdirect.com/new-york/townofossining.

The Town of Ossining joins the Empire State Purchasing Group and the community of over 300 participating local government agencies located throughout New York. Along with a variety of bid and vendor management solutions, the Town of Ossining gains access to a bid library to help with bid creation, a shared pool of vendors, and association with like-minded purchasing professionals in the area.

Collaboration is important to us, says Elizabeth Feldman, Supervisor of the Town of Ossining. We look forward to being able to improve our efficiency by using the Empire State Purchasing Group. In addition to our time savings, our valued vendors can now access not only our open bids, but those from other municipalities, counties and school districts throughout the state. We invite all of our current vendors to register.

Vendors interested in doing business with the Town of Ossining and other nearby government agencies are encouraged to register at http://www.bidnetdirect.com/new-york/townofossining. Benefits of joining the Empire State Purchasing Group include:



Centralized location for bids from over 300 participating agencies

Bid alerts customized to the vendors products or services

Reliable and timely delivery of notifications, addenda and documents

Advanced notice of Term Contract expiration

E-Bid and E-Quote Submission

The Empire State Purchasing Group is one of Bidnet Directs regional purchasing groups throughout the country. It provides the Town of Ossining a bid and vendor management solution, document and addendum distribution, and tracking of all activity throughout the procurement process.

About the Town of Ossining:

Ossining is a town located along the Hudson River in Westchester County, New York. The population was 40,061 at the time of the 2020 census. It contains two villages, the Village of Ossining and 93% of the Village of Briarcliff Manor. Located on the banks of the Hudson River, Ossining offers many recreational, as well as shopping and professional services of all varieties.

About Bidnet Direct:

Bidnet Direct, powered by mdf commerce, is a sourcing solution of regional purchasing groups available at no cost to local government agencies throughout the country. Bidnet Direct runs regional purchasing groups, including the Empire State Purchasing Group, across all 50 states that are used by over 1,600 local governments. To learn more and have your government agency gain better transparency and efficiency in purchasing, please visit https://www.bidnetdirect.com/buyers
Details added, first published at 19:38 on June 13

BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 13. The opening of the Zangazur Corridor will further boost the work of Turkiyes ports, the Turkish Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure said, Trend reports.

The ministry believes that the Zangazur Corridor is one of the most relevant transport corridors of modern time, the opening of this corridor will serve the development of the region as a whole, including Armenia.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan made his first official visit to Azerbaijan yesterday after being elected to the presidency.

While receiving President Erdogan, President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev said that opening of the Zangazur corridor is inevitable.

"We will continue our efforts in this direction either way. Opening of this corridor will open up new opportunities for all the countries and have a positive impact on the regional cooperation," President Ilham Aliyev said.

Erdogan noted during his speech that the issues related to the Zangazur Corridor should be resolved as soon as possible.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 14. The information that the Azerbaijani army opened fire on the metallurgical plant in the Arazdeen district is false, Trend reports via the Ministry of Defense of Azerbaijan.

"We categorically dismiss the information spread by the Armenian side that units of the Azerbaijani army allegedly opened fire on the metallurgical plant in the Arazdeen district and wounded two people," the MoD said.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 14. Armenia should not slow down the opening of the Zangazur Corridor, Professor of the Turkish Yildiz Technical University, political commentator, Dr. Cemal Zehir told Trend in the interview.

He answered questions about the Turkish President's visit to Azerbaijan, reports regarding the Zangazur Corridor, Armenia's prevention of the opening of this corridor, and also the importance of it.

"The opening of the Zangazur Corridor will be beneficial for all countries of the region. This is a message to the Armenian authorities. They should not interfere with its opening or slow down the work, because it will not benefit anyone. The opening of the Zangazur Corridor will also have a positive impact on Armenia, because through it this country will be able to establish trade relations with Azerbaijan, Turkiye and other countries of the region," the professor said.

Full video of the interview:
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 14. A special meeting of the Azerbaijani Parliament dedicated to the 100th anniversary of the great political and statesman, national leader Heydar Aliyev was held today, Trend reports.

The MPs spoke at the meeting about the unprecedented merits of Heydar Aliyev to the Azerbaijani people.

At the end of the meeting, a statement was adopted by the parliament in connection with the 100th anniversary of the national leader, in which his saving mission was especially noted.

"Thanks to the great leader Heydar Aliyev, Azerbaijan at one time avoided the threat of destruction, strong social and political stability was established in the country, Azerbaijan embarked on the path of development," the statement said.
The first batch of Qatar's Hajj mission team headed to Saudi Arabia on Monday, June 12th, for this year's Hajj season, which is expected to begin on June 26th.

Read More: Vaccinations Required for Pilgrims Are Free in Qatar Health Centers

The team that has departed from Qatar includes support units who will help facilitate a smoother experience at the holy site, the Qatar news agency (QNA) reported, citing the Ministry of Endowments (Awqaf) and Islamic Affairs.

The team will provide services to the Qatari pilgrims to facilitate their performance of the Hajj rituals as hundreds of Qataris are expected to take part in the 1444 AH Hajj season.

The services include a Call and Support Unit Center that would be available to assist all Qatari pilgrims and provide them with "awareness, guidance and health services," said Ibrahim bin Mohammed Al Nama, the Head of Coordination and Follow-up Unit of Awqaf's Hajj and Umrah Affairs Department.

This year, Saudi Arabia said it is ready to host at least two million pilgrims as it returns to pre-pandemic levels.

A little over two weeks ago, Makkah municipality unveiled that it had hired 22,000 workers to cover all fields and provided them with all the machinery needed in order to boost pilgrim services ahead of Hajj.

This is considered Saudi Arabia's largest Hajj operational plan in history, which includes 14,000 staff members and more than 8,000 volunteers.
Property details:

THIS PROPERTY IS OWNER FINANCED4 Other Adjacent lots also available .DOWN PAYMENT: $99.0060 MONTHLY PAYMENTS: $99.00 0% InterestTOTAL SALE PRICE: $6,039.00NO "DOC FEES" OR HIDDEN COST" THIS IS YOUR CHANCE!Parcel: 11406010Parcel: 11406011 SOLD Adjacent lot also availableGPS: 31.97806 -109.80791An Absolutely stunning property just outside one of Americas coolest towns, Cochise AZ of Cochise County. This .53 Acre lot, has some of the most magnificent views in the area, with easy assess to Highway, ...

Price: $ 99 Seller State of Residence: Florida Zoning: Mixed State/Province: Arizona Location: 334**, Boynton Beach, Florida

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Timely Acquisitions Wants you to please note that we are not affiliated with nor do we represent the resort described in this item ad.(The Photos in this Ad are General in Nature) KA'ANAPALI BEACH CLUB MAUI, HI.WEEK: 31 FLOATING 1-52 EVEN YEARSUNIT: 1124First Usage Available: 2024Maintenance Fee Approx: $1695 JULY 1st EVEN YEARSResort DescriptionMaking memories in Maui is easy with the comfort and convenience youll find at Ka'anapali Beach Club. These spacious Suites offer room to unwind, whi...

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Serena Pitt / Instagram

By Elizabeth Kwiatkowski, 06/13/2023



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Elizabeth Kwiatkowski is Associate Editor of Reality TV World and has been covering the reality TV genre for more than a decade.

alum Serena Pitt has celebrated her bridal shower as she prepares for her big wedding to Joe Amabile Two years ago, Serena met Joe on 's seventh season, and they left the show engaged in Summer 2021."I seriously can't believe this was two years ago today!!! I had no idea what I was about to find on that beach... Joe, I love you so much!!!" Serena wrote on her Instagram Stories this past weekend, as just began filming its ninth season in Mexico.Serena and Joe already got married in a quickie courthouse wedding in New York in October 2022, but they have a bigger wedding -- so that family and friends can be included -- in September 2023.With only three months to go until their big wedding, Serena just celebrated her bridal shower.Serena took to Instagram Stories on Sunday, June 11 and posted a photo with Joe and his mother."Joe's mom and family threw me a beautiful bridal shower yesterday in Chicago!" Serena gushed.Serena wore a white romper with white heels to the event and enjoyed some fruity cocktails.She even posted a "Bridal shower recap" on Instagram.Serena's bridal shower featured pink and white florals, a cake that read "Bride To Be" with coral and yellow icing flowers, and some of Serena's closest friends.Shortly after the party, Serena flew back to New York, where she currently resides with Joe Last week, Serena uploaded a slideshow of photos in which she had tried on several lovely wedding dresses. Serena seems to like form-fitted designs with a halter or strapless neck, and a couple of the dresses had embellished bodices.Serena and Joe will be tying the knot at The Cedar Room in Charleston, SC.Before Joe and Serena's big day, they'll be celebrating their bachelor/bachelorette parties in Las Vegas, "even though it's a little cliche," according to Joe.Joe recently said on his "Click Bait with Bachelor Nation" podcast that his bachelor party, which will include about 15 friends, is set for the third week of June this year.In addition, Joe disclosed that he's excited to exchange personal , handwritten vows with Serena. And he said pro dancer Alan Bersten , whom Joe met during his stint on Dancing with the Stars, wants to choreograph a big dance moment for the newlyweds at their wedding."I don't know if I'm going to let him, but he will be at my bachelor party," Joe said. "Maybe I'll talk to him about it there."Joe and Serena revealed in January how their wedding must-haves include good food, drinks and music.In November 2022, Joe and Serena said they had no desire to televise their wedding and share it with Bachelor Nation fans.Joe looked at Serena in a YouTube video and said, "Anything in this world can change, but I highly doubt it."The pair had initially intended to keep their first wedding a secret and only share the news with close family and friends, but a person apparently spotted them at the courthouse and so Serena and Joe were worried the story may get leaked.Serena and Joe therefore posted a sweet video of their union on Instagram late last year, announcing their marriage in their own special way.The 7 finale, which featured Joe's marriage proposal to Serena, aired in October 2021.Serena told Us Weekly in September 2022 that she'd love to marry Joe exactly one year later -- even though she believed wedding venues would be limited -- and so she's going to achieve her goal.Serena admitted at the time she was "very overwhelmed by the planning process" but felt ready to dive in."Joe will start off saying, 'Whatever you want,' but he is an opinionated guy. He has a vision for the wedding, for sure," Serena shared in September."I think it's actually gonna be very 50/50. I want it to feel like our wedding, not my wedding. And if anything, I would say he's probably more opinionated than I am about this stuff... It'll be a team effort."Serena also said she envisioned herself wearing "neutral, glowy bronzed" makeup for her wedding as well as a "comfortable" wedding gown.Serena and her fiance celebrated their engagement party in July 2022, and that's when their parents met each other.Serena and Joe believe they established a strong relationship foundation while filming .Serena, for instance, never let the fact Joe's ex-girlfriend of nearly two years, Kendall Long , was on the beach get in the way of her connection with Joe.Serena kept her eye on the prize, avoided jealousy, and trusted Joe as Kendall sought closure.Prior to appearing on 7, Joe got eliminated very early from Becca Kufrin 's season of The Bachelorette and met Kendall on Season 5 of Paradise.Despite being happy and in love, Joe and Kendall broke up because they couldn't agree on whether to live in Chicago or Kendall's home city of Los Angeles long-term.Joe gave Los Angeles a chance during and after his stint on Dancing with the Stars in 2018 and wanted to move back to Chicago to be with his friends and family, but Kendall apparently wouldn't even consider relocating and trying out a life in Chicago. (Kendall is now engaged and living with her fiance in Germany).And Serena dumped Matt James on his The Bachelor season that aired in early 2021 after her hometown date.Interested in more The Bachelor news? Join our The Bachelor Facebook Group
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 14. Azerbaijani Parliament sent a congratulatory letter to President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev and First Vice President Mehriban Aliyeva on the occasion of June 15 - National Salvation Day, Trend reports.

This proposal was made by the Parliament Chairperson Sahiba Gafarova at a special meeting of the parliament dedicated to the 100th anniversary of the outstanding political figure and statesman, national leader of the Azerbaijani people Heydar Aliyev.

The MPs supported the proposal with applause.
'It is nice that the banking system is in good shape.'

'It is a little early to call it too good because I think it was too bad in the past.'

The Indian banking system has room to improve further and needs to sustain the healthy profile while ensuring that the current spell of optimism does not turn into irrational exuberance, says N S Vishwanathan, former deputy governor, Reserve Bank of India, and the chairperson of College of Supervisors.

Speaking at the SAS-Business Standard event 'Risk & Banking Resilience', Vishwanathan points out that the banking ecosystem in India had moved from "too bad to normal", supported by regulatory action.

"It is nice that the banking system is in good shape. It is a little early to call it too good because I think it was too bad in the past. What I see is that we are moving from too bad to normal. But this has not happened overnight," says Vishwanathan.

Steps like the Asset Quality Review (AQR), the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, and the provisioning for NPAs (non-performing assets) had made Indian banks more robust and resilient, he explains.

However, cautioning the banks from celebrating too early, the former central bank deputy governor points out the need of sustaining the current resilient structure.

Though a lot of things had been put in place internally and a lot had happened externally, he says sustaining this was important.

Over the years, the provisioning coverage ratio (PCR) of banks has risen to 70-80 per cent, he notes.

Vishwanathan says the RBI had been proactive in its response to any crisis.

RBI interventions, he says, were made at the time of the crisis and not after it, and added that these cases, like the trouble at YES Bank, were anticipated by the RBI and that the central bank was now better equipped in terms of technology and talent.

Laying emphasis on preparing the supervisors, he says: "It is important to keep in mind that sources of risks in the financial sector are changing. Their job is to unravel the unknown and understand the possible risks."

On the debate between a principle-based approach and a rule-based one, Vishwanathan highlights it was not "unfashionable to be rule-based".

The regulatory system could not be principle-based, he adds, when the interpretations were done by the letter of the law, while questioning the preparedness of the banking sector.

In a panel discussion 'Meltdown Sans Liquidity: The Lessons From The US Banking Crisis' following Vishwanathan's fireside chat, the bankers stated deposit liquidity in India now had gone back to pre-Covid levels.

The liquidity coverage norm is applicable to all scheduled commercial banks in India.

However, Silicon Valley Bank, despite being the 16th largest US bank, was considered a small entity and was exempt from liquidity coverage norms, leading to its collapse.

In India, even the smallest of banks have to continuously comply with norms and are under supervision.

In another panel discussion, 'IFRS9: Implications oFr Indian banks', the gathering of bankers and industry consultants also discussed the challenges in implementing the RBI's proposed framework for making provisions based on assessment of future defaults, popularly referred to as ECL, or expected credit loss.

At present, banks make provisions only after a loan account defaults.

On transitioning to the new framework for the provisioning for stressed assets, Deepak Kumar, chief risk officer, RBL Bank, saYS: "In the new system, I have to compute the expected credit loss based on the futuristic probability of default. If the provisions are increasing, ideally it should be covered through pricing of the banking products -- otherwise we will be eating into the capital."

The other challenge for the banks to transition to the new norms is the behaviour of borrowers, which varies across regions.

In the last of the panel discussions, 'Risk Decisioning At Indian Banks', the panellists spoke on the challenges emerging from cybersecurity and technological risks.

"The biggest regulatory challenge when it comes to AI models is how we ensure fairness of those models," says Shreya Paul, partner, EY India. "And ensuring fairness becomes important because of the inherent data which goes into these models from a lot of different biases."

Some experts also asserted the need for codified regulations on conduct.

"It is one risk no amount of capital can save you," says Ravi Duvurru, founder, Duvurru & Reddy LLP.

"We (India) do not have a codified regulation on conduct. But what we are increasingly seeing is supervisory intervention on conduct; there is a more emphasis on governance."
India's largest asset manager SBI Funds Management on Tuesday said they are negative on equities from a shorter-term perspective as valuations have risen above the comfort zone.

"We are not positive on equities. We think valuations are expensive.

"The market has gone up a lot more than the earnings have grown," said R Srinivasan, Chief Investment Officer (CIO) - Equity at SBI Mutual Fund, at the launch of asset management companies' (AMC) yearly report on the market outlook.

The CIO further said that investors should lower their return expectations from equities in the present valuation and macro-economic scenario.

Currently, the benchmark index Nifty50 is trading at a price-to-earnings (PE) ratio of 22.2.

The ratio, which was around 21 in March, has risen on the back of the ongoing rally since April.

Highlighting the mismatch between earnings growth and stock market performance since 2014, Srinivasan said that while the earnings remained almost flat between FY 2014 and FY 2020, the Nifty50 almost doubled to 12,000.

The earnings growth has since picked up, but valuations remain high.

"Directionally, we are positive on earnings growth but a little cautious from the macro-economic perspective," he said, adding that 'value' stocks are likely to continue outperforming in coming years.

Value stocks are those that trade at relatively lower valuations. Most public sector stocks fall in this category.

"Our view is that the economy will decelerate and the market will maintain a defensive bias.

"In such a situation, investors should prefer bonds over equities.

"However, from a longer-term perspective, this is the right time to accumulate equities," Gaurav Mehta - CIO, Alternatives.
'As long as Amul was coming in with products it was not a problem because it was something value added and with a shelf life.'

'When it gets into the local market by procuring locally, it cuts into the market-share of local cooperatives.'

Photograph: Kind courtesy Amul/Facebook

The recent battles between the Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation (GCMMF), which owns the Amul brand, and Nandini in Karnataka and Aavin in Tamil Nadu may have some roots in a ten-year-old headline-grabbing tussle between Verghese Kurien, the driving force behind India's White Revolution and GCMMF chairman, and Amrita Patel, chairman of the National Dairy Development Board (NDDB).

Patel, a Verghese protege, had wanted to create an umbrella brand under Mother Dairy (an NDDB subsidiary), by setting up joint ventures with state federations to create a centralised brand.

Mother Dairy would hold a 51 per cent stake in each joint venture.

Kurien resisted fiercely on grounds that it would corporatise the dairy sector.

After several rounds of truce talks, in which even the then deputy prime minister L K Advani had to intervene, Patel's plan was shelved.

Photograph: Amit Dave/Reuters

That episode may well have created an aversion to centralisation in the cooperative dairy sector -- hence, Nandini and Aavin's reluctance to tie-up with Amul.

Moreover, the cooperative sector dynamics have changed since 2003.

When Kurien resigned from GCMMF in 2006, it was a Rs 3,600 crore (Rs 36 billion) federation.

Now Amul is India's largest FMCG brand with a reported group turnover of Rs 72,000 crore (Rs 720 billion) in 2022-2023.

Naturally, it has the money power to compete against any state cooperative.

The current controversy started in December last year, when Union Cooperation Minister Amit Shah said, 'Cooperation between Amul and Nandini can do wonders in the dairy sector.'

Opposition parties in then BJP-ruled Karnataka immediately saw in this a move to merge the Rs 21,000 crore (Rs 210 billion) Nandini with Gujarat-based Amul.

In April, in the middle of the assembly election campaign, Amul announced that it would enter Karnataka to supply milk and curd.

This led to widespread protests across the state, providing the Congress with a handy issue to mobilise pro-Kannada sentiments.

A recent change in the Multi-State Co-operative Societies Act, making the merger of two state co-operatives easier, fuelled the Opposition's argument.

IMAGE: A Nandini milk parlour in Guledagudda, Karnataka. Photograph: Kind courtesy Nandini/Facebook

On May 25, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin approached Shah, seeking his intervention to direct Amul to desist from milk procurement from the milk shed catchment area of Aavin (the Tamil Nadu Co-operative Milk Producers Federation) in his state with immediate effect.

Though Nandini and Aavin are small brands compared to Amul, they have a strong market presence in their respective states.

Nandini, owned by the Karnataka Milk Federation, produces over 90 lakh litres of milk per day (LLPD) and has 2.64 million members dependent on it.

Meanwhile, Aavin procures 35 LLPD with around 450,000 members.

Amul's annual numbers for 2022-2023 show that it has 3.6 million registered members and procures an average of 270 LLPD.

What is more, Amul products were already being sold in both states. So what was the problem?

"As long as Amul was coming in with products it was not a problem because it was something value added and with a shelf life. When it gets into the local market by procuring locally, it cuts into the market-share of local cooperatives," M S Sriram, a professor at the Centre for Public Policy, Indian Institute of Management-Bangalore, tells Business Standard.

"This choking in procurement itself may hit the rest of the value chain of the local co-operatives," Sriram adds.

But a senior industry official and a long-timer with Amul says, nobody can stop Amul from entering into procurement tie-ups legally, because "it is not creating new members, which it cannot do being a state cooperative registered under the state laws."

In fact, he adds, Amul currently procures milk in 10 or 12 states apart from Gujarat, including Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Haryana, Rajasthan, Punjab, and West Bengal either on its own or through local cooperatives.

"To me it's a win-win situation because Amul will pay a higher and better price to farmers for their milk, consumers will get cheaper milk products and it is also good for the dairy industry," he says.

As more organised players enter the market, he adds, it brings transparency in operations and pricing and also benefits consumers.

"More buyers means a better price of the milk for farmers," the official says. In some states, even the state governments invite Amul to set up its own procurement and chilling centres to help milk farmers.

But critics say that Amul's foray is welcome in those states where the cooperative structure is weak, but in southern states where milk cooperatives are big and strong such creeping entry has started creating problems.

Photograph: Kind courtesy Aavin

To those who pitch this argument and the portrayal of Amul as a co-operative, Sriram has a counter view.

"When it comes to other states, Amul is not a co-operative, because it is a co-operative of the farmers of Gujarat and accountable to the farmers of Gujarat and not to the farmers of Karnataka or Tamil Nadu, even if they procure from them," he says.

As he wrote on The Wire Web site, other strong local brands lost out in Gujarat when Amul was given prominence -- Sagar by the Dudhsagar Dairy in Mehsana, Sugam in Vadodara, Sumul from Surat and, Vasudhara from Valsad.

Another major argument put forward by those supporting Amul entry is that the private sector is also procuring milk from these states. But the fact is that the private sector's market share in liquid milk is much lower.

The reason several experts do not think competition in milk procurement is good is the structure of the milk value chain.

Milk has to be procured from villages, and then transported and processed at the nearest plant.

"That means that procurement has to be monopolistic in nature. It becomes unviable for the other players, if they are unable to procure milk. Amul has deep pockets and can bleed for a while and sustain such operations," Sriram tells Business Standard.

Interestingly, according to the Amul Web site, it has plants in Gujarat, Delhi/NCR region, UP, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Assam, Chattisgarh, Jammu and Kashmir, and Jharkhand, but no plants in south India, indicating that the region is still a roadblock for the mega player.

Whether Amul becomes a pan-India brand or not is a pure business decision.

However, experts indicate that the move may deviate from Kurien's dream of having hundred Amul-like brands in India.

Feature Presentation: Rajesh Alva/Rediff.com
'Shinde and Fadnavis have different working styles and certainly there is a crack that has come between them.'

IMAGE: Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, left, and Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis. Photographs: ANI Photo

A survey by Zee TV-Matrize has caused an upheaval in Maharashtra politics, as it stated that Eknath Shinde is a more popular choice as Maharashtra chief minister than Devendra Fadnavis, his deputy.

An advertisement issued on the basis of the survey finding stated, 'Modi for India and Shinde for Maharashtra. The dream team loved by all.'

The survey comes almost a year after Shinde split the Shiv Sena to part ways with his leader Uddhav Thackeray and joined hands with the Bharatiya Janata Party along with 40 MLAs form the government on June 30, 2022.

Though the BJP with 105 MLAs was a senior partner in the 288-member assembly, Fadnavis agreed to play second fiddle to Shinde.

Although Shinde sought to downplay the advertisement, saying both he and Fadnavis were 'in people's minds' and working together, it did seem like the advertisement was meant to tell the latter who is the boss in Maharashtra.

With Maharashtra assembly elections more than a year away and the three Opposition parties -- the Nationalist Congress Party, Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) and Congress -- still holding on strongly to their Maha Vikas Aghadi alliance, the advertisement portends challenging times for the BJP which is hoping to win 150 assembly seats on its own whenever the state elections are held.

Syed Firdaus Ashraf/Rediff.com asks political commentator Abhay Deshpande what the advertisement's political significance is, and the issues plaguing the Sena-BJP alliance.

The advertisement issued in newspapers on Tuesday, June 13, stated that Shinde is more popular as chief minister with 26 percent votes vis a vis Fadnavis who had a popularity rating of 23 percent.What is the underlying political message this advertisement is sending across?

For the last some days there are tensions between Eknath Shinde's Shiv Sena members and the BJP, especially regarding Thane, Dombivali and Kalyan region.

BJP leaders in Maharashtra have started asserting to members of the Shinde group that Shinde has become chief minister because of them.

And conversely, they (Sena leaders) are telling them (BJP) that they should be thankful to the Shinde faction of the Shiv Sena as the BJP is in power because of them.

Eknath Shinde is also sending a message that he is not a puppet CM through this advertisement.

They are also trying to send a message through the Zee TV survey that this government and chief minister are popular, as they are under constant attack from Opposition parties.

But that same survey also says the BJP has 30 per cent of the popular vote while Shinde's Shiv Sena has only 16 per cent.

This is obvious because the BJP has 104 MLAs and the Shiv Sena has 40 MLAs. Future seat-sharing in the state elections will go according to these numbers.

Even the Shiv Sena (before the split with the BJP) got a maximum of 19 percent votes while the BJP got 30 to 31 percent votes in Maharashtra.

This survey figure is the same figure which was for the old Shiv Sena and BJP.

IMAGE: Maharashtra Governor Ramesh Bais, second from right, flanked by Shinde, second from left, and Fadnavis, right, releases a special postage stamp to pay tribute to Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, June 6, 2023. At left is Rahul Narvekar, speaker of the state assembly.

What message is being given to Fadnavis in particular because we used to hear the slogan, 'Kendra mein Narendra, rajya mein Devendra.' What is his future?

When Shinde became chief minister, Fadnavis did not want to become a part of this government. He accepted the deputy chief minister's post only on Narendra Modi's insistence.

He felt at that time that he would be accommodated in the central government or he would drive the Maharashtra government from the backseat.

Shinde and Fadnavis's relations were very cordial between 2014 and 2019 when the BJP was in power with the Shiv Sena then headed by Uddhav Thackeray.

Now, there are two power centres in Maharashtra, so obviously there will be clashes.

Both of them have different working styles and certainly there is a (visible) crack that has come between them.

Shinde wants to send a message that he is not a puppet to Fadnavis through this advertisement.

What is the problem in Thane, Dombivli and Kalyan between both parties?

Shrikant, Eknath Shinde's son, is the Lok Sabha MP from the Kalyan-Dombivli region. He has sidelined BJP leaders in that area. He wants to capture that entire area and obviously, since his father is the chief minister, he wants to have full command in the area.

Nandu Joshi is a BJP leader in Dombivli against whom a molestation case was lodged. The BJP felt that this molestation case was lodged at Shinde's behest and they took out a morcha against him (Shinde) in the area.

In Thane too, Shinde has always been very powerful, so the BJP never had much say in that city. It was only when Sanjay Kelkar contested the elections did the people of Thane vote for the BJP, otherwise it always used to be the Shiv Sena's dominance in the Lok Sabha, assembly and corporation elections in Thane city.

The clashes between the BJP and Sena were always there on the ground, but it is being highlighted more now as Shinde has become chief minister.

IMAGE: Shinde, right, and Fadnavis, second from right, greets Raj Thackeray in Raigad, June 2, 2023.

Sakal newspaper's recent survey stated that the Maha Vikas Aghadi government is ahead of the BJP-Sena in Maharashtra by 10 percent. Is the Zee survey somewhere meant to counter that survey finding?

I don't think so.

This Zee survey, for the moment we do not know what is the size and sample of that survey.

The condition that we see on the ground is definitely not what the survey is saying.

The sympathy which Uddhav Thackeray has got after resigning as chief minister is still there, but how long it will last, we do not know.

If and when the Mumbai municipal elections are held and if Uddhav Thackeray is able to retain the city for his party, only then will that effect be seen in the Lok Sabha elections.

If he (Uddhav) loses the municipal elections, the morale of the party will be down because so far he has kept the morale of the party high.

And if the Modi government wins a majority in the 2024 general elections, then whatever factors favour the MVA will dissipate in Maharashtra as well as local corporation elections.

These four states -- Maharashtra, Karnataka, West Bengal and Bihar -- have local combinations that work for the Opposition parties and somewhere a big dent can happen for the BJP in the 2024 general election.

And they (the BJP) have to ensure that they do not get that dent in these four states in 2024.

In Maharashtra, they won 42 Lok Sabha seats (out of 48) in alliance with the (pre-split) Shiv Sena in 2019.

If the MVA parties contest elections as one force it will be very difficult for them to win 42 seats from Maharashtra. Therefore, they will do something or the other to ensure that they do not lose these 42 seats in 2024.

Though they are confident of retaining 42 seats from Maharashtra, it is not for certain now looking at the ground situation.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 14. Iran is the main obstacle in issue of opening Zangazur corridor, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told reporters, Trend reports.

He noted that Azerbaijan and Iran are countries where the majority of the population are Muslims.

"This attitude of Iran worries both Azerbaijan and us. In fact, it should worry them too," Erdogan added.

The Zangazur corridor is a concept for a transport corridor which, if implemented, would give Azerbaijan unimpeded access to its exclave Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic without Armenian checkpoints along the border between Iran and Armenia.

Re-establishment of transport connections was envisaged by article 9 of the trilateral statement signed by Azerbaijani, Armenian and Russian leaders following the 2020 second Karabakh war, which stated that all economic and transport connections in the region shall be unblocked.

According to the statement, Armenia shall guarantee the security of transport connections between the western regions of the Republic of Azerbaijan and the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic in order to arrange unobstructed movement of persons, vehicles and cargo in both directions.
A total of 33 teams have been earmarked by the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) to undertake relief and rescue operations in Gujarat and Maharashtra ahead of the expected landfall of cyclone 'Biparjoy' near the Jakhau port in Kutch district, officials said on Wednesday.

IMAGE: People evacuated from Kandla port sit outside a school converted into a shelter in Gandhidham before the arrival of Biparjoy. Photograph: Francis Mascarenhas/Reuters

While 18 NDRF teams have been placed in Gujarat, one has been stationed in neighbouring Diu in the newly formed Union territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu.

Diu is encircled by Gir Somnath and Amreli districts of Gujarat in the north and by the Arabian Sea from three sides.

Giving a layout of the NDRF deployment in Gujarat, the officials said four NDRF teams have been deployed in Kutch district, three each in Rajkot and Devbhumi Dwarka, two in Jamnagar, one each in Porbandar, Junagarh, Gir Somnath, Morbi, Valsad and Gandhinagar.

In the neighbouring Maharashtra, out of the total 14 NDRF teams, five have been deployed in Mumbai while the rest have been kept on standby, the officials said.

Each of these teams have about 35-40 personnel and they are equipped with tree and pole cutters, electric saws, inflatable boats and basic medicines and relief items, they said.

NDRF deputy inspector general (operations) Mohsen Shahedi told reporters in New Delhi that a "massive" evacuation drive has been undertaken by the state authorities and the NDRF in the coastal areas of Gujarat over the last two days and more than 45,000 people have been moved to safer places.

He said the "thrust area" for the federal anti-disaster force is the Saurashtra and Kutch area of Gujarat where eight districts and 442 low-lying villages are expected to be affected by strong rains and floods that could be triggered by the cyclone.

The cyclone is barrelling towards the Gujarat coast even as parts of the Saurashtra-Kutch region received heavy rains accompanied by strong winds on Wednesday, the meteorological department said.

'Biparjoy' is expected to make landfall on Thursday evening as a "very severe cyclonic storm" with maximum wind speed reaching up to 150 kilometres per hour, the India meteorological department (IMD) said.

'Biparjoy', pronounced 'Biporjoy', is a name given by Bangladesh and in Bangla it means 'disaster'. The naming of cyclones by various countries is undertaken as per the protocol issued by the World Meteorological Organisation.
The prosecution failed to prove the link of accused Harshad Solanki and Mafat Gohil with the 2002 mob attack on Best Bakery in Vadodara during which 14 people were killed, the trial court in Mumbai has held while acquitting them.

Image used for representational purpose only. Photograph: ANI Photo

Additional sessions judge MG Deshpande on Tuesday acquitted Solanki and Gohil of all charges. The detailed order became available on Wednesday.

No specific role was attributed to these two accused, the court said in the judgement.

On March 1, 2002, two days after 56 persons died in the Godhra train burning incident, a mob attacked Best Bakery in Vadodara city of Gujarat and killed 14 people, most of them Muslim, who had taken shelter inside.

In 2003, 21 people facing trial in the case were acquitted by a court in Vadodara. Later, their acquittal was confirmed by the Gujarat high court. When one of the victims, Zahirabibi Shaikh, along with an NGO moved the Supreme Court against the judgment, the apex court ordered a retrial in Mumbai.

In the first phase of the trial, the Mumbai sessions court in February 2006 convicted nine of the 17 people accused of murder. But Solanki and Gohil were shown absconding as they were facing trial in the Ajmer blast case.

They were produced before the Mumbai court in 2017 to face trial after the conclusion of the blast case trial. Two other accused died in the course of the retrial.

The Mumbai sessions court re-examined ten witnesses including the injured eye-witnesses while conducting the second phase of the trial.

There was nothing to prove that both accused were "part of the mob, committed riot and further set Best Bakery to fire," the court said.

"Even if, homicidal and unnatural death of fourteen people in the said incident is not much disputed....The prosecution miserably failed to establish and prove nexus of these accused persons with the said incident, the judge noted.

While Best Bakery was set to fire at night, those who had taken shelter on its terrace were asked to come down a ladder in the morning. As per the witnesses who were injured, once they came down, their hands and feet were tied and they were assaulted with sticks and swords.

But there were contradictions and omissions in the evidence of these injured eyewitnesses who were re-examined, the judge said.

".....there is absolutely no substantive evidence against these two accused persons that they were armed with sword and iron pipe at the time of both incidents night as well as morning," the court said.

None of the injured eyewitnesses stated that these two accused caused them the injuries, it noted.

Investigating officer Popatlal Kanani, who was re-examined, did not say a word as to whether weapons were discovered and found at the place as stated by the accused, the court said.
A man accused of running a religious conversion racket has allegedly been found to have 30 Pakistani contacts saved in his phones, police in Gaziabad said on Wednesday.

IMAGE: Police personnel take Shahnawaz Maqsood Khan, accused in the Ghaziabad gaming app conversion racket, to the district combined hospital for medical examination, at Sanjay Nagar, in Ghaziabad, June 13, 2023. Photograph: ANI Photo

Shahnawaz Khan alias Baddo has also been found to have been operating at least six email ids, one of which with a few emails from Pakistan in the inbox, they said.

The police have seized Khan's two mobile phones and also his CPU for further investigation.

He was operating six email ids, two of which he purchased for online gaming, DCP city Nipun Agarwal said.

Khan was sent to a 14-day judicial custody on Tuesday by a Ghaziabad court where he was produced after being brought from Maharashtra's Thane on a transit remand.

The DCP said the police's cyber crime cell is scrutinising the 30 phone numbers to find out more details about them. He said police will invoke National Security Act against Khan if anything incriminating comes up against him in connection with the phone numbers.

Khan is presently lodged in the district jail, and police will seek his remand from the district court for further interrogation, the DCP said.

A Kavi Nagar area resident had on May 30 filed a police complaint alleging his son was lured to convert to Islam through an online gaming app.

The police on Sunday arrested Khan from a relative's place in Maharashtra's Alibagh in Raigad district. Khan hails from Thane's Mumbra Township.

A court in Maharashtra's Thane had on Monday granted the Uttar Pradesh Police transit remand of Khan.
A fire broke out near a departure gate of the Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport in Kolkata on Wednesday night, creating chaos and panic among passengers, officials said.

IMAGE: Airport authority staff try to douse the fire at Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose International Airport, in Kolkata, June 14, 2023. Photograph: ANI Photo

No casualty was reported.

The fire was noticed at around 9.10 pm and it was doused within half an hour, officials said adding that no arrival flight was affected.

They added that the check-in process was suspended for some time as eight fire tenders were pressed into service to douse the blaze.

The entire area inside the airport was engulfed with thick black smoke after the fire broke out at the 3C departure gate.

There was a minor fire & smoke on the check-in area portal D at 2112 pm and fully extinguished by 2140 pm. All passengers are evacuated safely and check-in process suspended due to presence of smoke in the check-in area, the airport tweeted.

Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia in a tweet described the fire incident as unfortunate.

"In touch with the airport director -- the situation is under control. Fortunately, everyone is safe and no injuries have been reported," he said.

The check-in process resumed at 22:25 hrs, Scindia said adding that the cause of the fire will be ascertained at the earliest.

Officials said the check-in is now being conducted via portal C.

No arrival flight was affected due to the incident, officials said.

Since there was a rush of passengers, airport authorities took no chance and used their firefighters to douse the fire. The cooling process started after it was extinguished, a police officer said.

Officials said after an initial investigation that a short circuit could be the reason for the fire.

State fire services minister Sujit Bose told PTI that his department had sent four fire tenders to assist the Airports Authority of India in fighting the blaze.

Initially, it seems that some fault related to the air conditioning system caused the fire. The exact reason behind it will be known after an investigation, he said.
More than a dozen people were killed as Russian missiles targeted residential buildings in Kryvyi Rih, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's home town on Tuesday, June 13, 2023.

Caution: Graphic content. Viewer discretion is advised.

Rescuers carry the body of a person killed by a Russian missile strike in Kryvyi Rih, Dnipropetrovsk region. Photograph: Andrii Dubchak/Reuters

The bodies of four people who died in the Russian strike on a residential building in Kryvyi Rih. Photograph: Alina Smutko/Reuters

Rescuers work at the site of the residential building destroyed by a Russian missile strike in Kryvyi Rih. Photograph: Alina Smutko/Reuters

Rescuers work at the site of the damaged residential building in Kryvyi Rih. Photograph: Alina Smutko/Reuters

Residents are shocked by the destruction to the building where they lived, here and below. Photograph: Alina Smutko/Reuters

Photograph: Alina Smutko/Reuters

Photograph: Alina Smutko/Reuters

Photograph: Alina Smutko/Reuters

Employees remove broken windows from a school damaged by a missile strike in Kryvyi Rih. Photograph: Alina Smutko/Reuters

Volunteers unload material to cover the broken windows in the school damaged by the Russian missile strike in Kryvyi Rih. Photograph: Alina Smutko/Reuters

People remove parts of the shattered windows. Photograph: Alina Smutko/Reuters

Neskuchne, a newly liberated village, near the front line in Donetsk region. Photograph: Oleksandr Ratushniak/Reuters

A Ukrainian national flag is seen in newly liberated Neskuchne. Photograph: Oleksandr Ratushniak/Reuters

A Ukrainian soldier walks near the body of a Russian soldier in Neskuchne. Photograph: Oleksandr Ratushniak/Reuters

A firefighter works at the site of a food warehouse heavily damaged by a Russian missile strike in Odesa. Photograph: Press service of the State Emergency Service of Ukraine in Odesa region/Handout via Reuters

A woman, who was injured by a Russian missile strike, hides in a shelter in the basement of a damaged school during an air alert. Photograph: Alina Smutko/Reuters

A firefighter is seen at the site of an office building damaged by a Russian missile strike. Photograph: Press service of the State Emergency Service of Ukraine in Odesa region/Handout via Reuters

A shopping mall and apartment buildings damaged by a Russian missile strike, in Odesa. Photograph: Press Service of the the Operational Command South of the Ukrainian Armed Forces/Handout via Reuters

Photographs curated by Manisha Kotian/Rediff.com

Feature Presentation: Aslam Hunani/Rediff.com
The Delhi high court on Wednesday granted six-hour custody parole to Popular Front of India (PFI) national coordinator Ibrahim Puthanathani, arrested under the anti-terror law UAPA, to attend his daughter's wedding.

IMAGE: Kindly note that this image has been posted for representational purposes only. Photograph: ANI Photo

Puthanathani had moved the high court against a trial court order on May 24, releasing him on custody parole of four hours.

A vacation bench of Justices Jasmeet Singh and Vikas Mahajan granted custody parole of six hours to Puthanathani to participate in the wedding ceremony scheduled to be held on June 18 in Kerala.

Puthanathani's counsel urged the high court to grant him interim bail of 30 days, saying he cannot be a spectator as he has responsibilities to perform on account of his daughter's wedding and that he would not pose a flight risk on such an occasion.

We are inclined to extend the custody parole from four hours to six hours, said the bench.

Counsel for the NIA said that as per applicable rules, custody parole cannot be granted for a period beyond six hours.

The case against Puthanathani and several other PFI leaders, registered in April last year, pertains to an alleged criminal conspiracy hatched by persons associated with the PFI to raise and collect funds from within India and abroad for committing acts of terror in various parts of India.

The NIA has alleged that the accused persons were conducting training camps to indoctrinate and train their cadres to carry out terrorist activities.

A large number of alleged PFI activists were detained or arrested in several states during the massive raids last year preceding the nationwide ban imposed on September 28, 2022.

In near-simultaneous raids across the country as part of a multi-agency operation spearheaded by the NIA, several PFI activists were detained or arrested in 11 states for allegedly supporting terror activities in the country.

The arrests were made in states and Union territories, including Kerala, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Assam, Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Puducherry, Delhi and Rajasthan.

The government banned the PFI and several of its associate organisations on September 28, 2022, for five years under the stringent anti-terror law UAPA, accusing them of having "links" with global terror groups like the ISIS.
Janata Dal-United MLA Ratnesh Sada, whom the party seeks to project as its Dalit face, is likely to be inducted into the Nitish Kumar cabinet on Friday, highly placed sources said in Patna on Wednesday.

IMAGE: Bihar minister Santosh Kumar Suman, along with his father and Hindustani Awam Morcha chief Jitan Ram Manjhi, after tendering his resignation from Nitish Kumar's cabinet, at his residence, in Patnam, June 13, 2023. Photograph: ANI Photo

Sada, who represents Sonbarsha assembly segment, is likely to be given the SC and ST welfare portfolio, earlier held by Santosh Suman who resigned on Tuesday alleging "pressure" from the JD-U to merge his Hindustani Awam Morcha with Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's party.

Notably, Sada, who was away in his constituency in Saharsa district, was asked to come to Patna by Kumar soon after Suman announced his resignation.

The 52-year-old leader has been maintaining a discreet silence whenever approached by journalists seeking confirmation of his induction into the cabinet.

However, he has been effusive in his praise of the CM, often breaking into sobs while stating that he owed his political standing to Kumar.

Not unsurprisingly, Sada has also been all fire and brimstone while attacking Suman and his father Jitan Ram Manjhi, a former chief minister and founder of the Hindustani Awam Morcha.

A Musahar by caste, like Manjhi, the JD-U MLA has been accusing the father-son duo of having ditched Nitish Kumar because of their "insatiable greed and vaulting ambition".

Sada has also charged Manjhi with "paying lip service to Dalits, especially Musahars despite being a minister in several governments since 1980s besides a brief tenure as the CM".

It is widely believed that by propping up Sada, who hails from the populous north Bihar, the JD-U seeks to neutralise the damage Manjhi could inflict, especially if he returned to the BJP-led NDA.
Glimpses of the preparation for Cyclone Biparjoy.

IMAGE: Laxmi Kumar places her three-month-old son Arvind inside a cradle at a temporary shelter in Gandhidham for people evacuated from Kandla port before the arrival of Biparjoy. Photograph: Francis Mascarenhas/Reuters

IMAGE: People evacuated from Kandla port sit outside a school converted into a shelter in Gandhidham before the arrival of Biparjoy. Photograph: Francis Mascarenhas/Reuters

IMAGE: Fishermen and their family members take shelter at a primary school at Jakhau village in Kutch district ahead of the landfall of Biparjoy. Photograph: PTI Photo

IMAGE: A fishermen's colony at Jakhau port in Kutch wears a deserted look ahead of the landfall of Biparjoy. Photograph: PTI Photo

IMAGE: Fishing trawlers anchored at Jakhau port ahead of the landfall of Biparjoy. Photograph: PTI Photo

IMAGE: The Coast Guard evacuates 50 persons at Okha ahead of Biprajoy, Photograph: Press Information Bureau

IMAGE: The Indian Army has flood relief personnel ready at Bhuj, Jamnagar, Gandhidham, Dharangdhra, Vadodara and Gandhinagar to provide help post the landfall of Biparjoy. Photograph: ANI Photo

IMAGE: Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya visits the Bhuj military station to assess the army's readiness for Biparjoy. Photograph: PTI Photo

IMAGE: Rough seas and strong winds at Gomtighat in Dwarka. Photograph: ANI Photo

IMAGE: Trucks are parked at a terminal in Gandhidham after all transportation was suspended before the arrival of Biparjoy. Photograph: Francis Mascarenhas/Reuters

IMAGE: Rough seas, gushing wind and heavy rain as Gujarat awaits the landfall of Biparjoy. Photograph: PTI Photo

IMAGE: A lifeguard patrols Juhu beach in Mumbai during a red flag alert due to rough seas caused by Biparjoy. Photograph: Francis Mascarenhas/Reuters

IMAGE: High waves at the Gateway of India. Photograph: PTI Photo

IMAGE: Police personnel and a lifeguard patrol a beach in Mumbai as high waves lash the shore as Biparjoy intensifies into a severe cyclonic storm. Photograph: PTI Photo

IMAGE: Lifeguards at Juhu beach during the search operation for the four young boys who were feared drowned during high tides because of nBiparjoy. Photograph: ANI Photo

IMAGE: Police barricades restrict visitors from entering Juhu beach ahead of Biparjoy making landfall. Photograph: PTI Photo

IMAGE: A Coast Guard helicopter searches for the missing children feared drowned after they ventured into rough seas at Juhu. Photograph: PTI Photo

IMAGE: People gather at Juhu beach during the search operation for the four boys who were feared to have drowned. Photograph: PTI Photo

IMAGE: Thane Disaster Response Force personnel are seen preparing for Biparjoy's expected landfall. Photograph: PTI Photo

Photographs curated by Manisha Kotian/Rediff.com

Feature Presentation: Mahipal Soni/Rediff.com
Madhya Pradesh Bharatiya Janata Party executive committee member Baijnath Singh Yadav, a loyalist of Union minister Jyotiraditya Scindia, quit the saffron party on Wednesday to return to the Congress fold, months ahead of the assembly elections.

IMAGE: Baijnath Singh Yadav being welcomed into the Congress party by state unit chief Kamal Nath, Bhopal, June 14, 2023. Photograph: Courtesy, @INCMP on Twitter

Yadav, who hails from Shivpuri, and his supporters, including 15 Janpad members, were welcomed by state unit Congress president Kamal Nath.

"Yadav had left Congress along with Scindia (in March 2020) and joined the BJP. But he was feeling suffocated there and finally returned to his parent party," former Union minister Arun Yadav told reporters.

Arun Yadav also claimed that several BJP workers and leaders are not happy with the partys government, especially because of rampant corruption, and they are in touch with Congress leaders including himself, Nath and Digvijaya Singh.

"They will join the Congress party at an appropriate time. Not only that but a majority of Congress leaders, who had joined the BJP along with Scindia, would also return to their parent party. A day will come when only Scindia will remain in the BJP," Arun Yadav claimed.

Baijnath Singh Yadav and his supporters were offered Congress scarves by Nath in the presence of senior party leaders including Digvijaya Singh and others.

"Everyone knows what is happening in Madhya Pradesh under BJP. Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan and his government are playing the politics of misleading people.

"As the assembly polls are approaching, they have started remembering women, employees and anganwadi workers. The future of youth is insecure under the BJP," Nath alleged, apparently referring to the state government's outreach to various sections, including women and farmers, by announcing doles.
Tamil Nadu minister Senthil Balaji allegedly "misused" his office for illegal gratification and "engineered" a job racket scam in the state transport undertakings during 2014-15 with purported kickbacks paid by candidates through his associates, the ED informed a local court on Wednesday hours after arresting the DMK leader.

IMAGE: Tamil Nadu CM MK Stalin meets state minister V Senthil Balaji who is admitted to Omandurar government hospital in Chennai, June 14, 2023. Photograph: ANI Photo

Calling him the "prime suspect" in the cash-for-jobs case, the federal probe agency also stated in its custody papers that alleged unaccounted cash deposits worth about Rs 1.60 crore were made in the bank accounts of Balaji and his wife.

Balaji, 47, was arrested under the criminal sections of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act by the agency here on Wednesday after it launched searches the previous day at his premises and those linked to him in Chennai and some other locations.

Chief Minister MK Stalin slammed the ED raids against Balaji as "intimidation politics" by the Centre.

Balaji was admitted to a city government hospital after he complained of uneasiness. He underwent a coronary angiogram and was advised to undergo bypass surgery at the "earliest".

He was remanded in judicial custody till June 28 by a Sessions Court judge during a hearing held at the hospital.

The ED in its submission claimed Balaji, a public official, "misused his office for illegal gratification and engineered a job racket scam in MTC/TNSTCs."

The case against Balaji and his aides pertains to his tenure as the state transport minister in the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam government during 2011-15.

The irregularities occurred in state-run Metropolitan Transport Corporation and Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation.

It is alleged that he, along with his brother RV Ashok Kumar, PA B Shanmugam and a person identified as M Karthikeyan, 'conspired' with the managing directors of all state transport undertakings and other officers of transport corporations to obtain "illegal gratification" from candidates to recruit them as drivers, conductors, junior assistants, junior engineer and assistant engineer in the transport corporation (during 2014-15).

It is alleged that the "entire appointment process was made in a fraudulent and dishonest manner and only in accordance with the lists provided by Shanmugam, RV Ashok Kumar, M Karthikeyan, as per the directions of Balaji", the ED alleged in its application seeking Balaji's custody from the court.

These four are alleged to have collected money from the candidates "on behalf of Balaji" for issuing appointment orders.

It is alleged that the candidates who paid the money "neither got appointment orders nor their money back".

The ED filed a case of money laundering in September 2021 to probe these allegations and its complaint is based on three Tamil Nadu Police FIRs filed during 2018 and some later years by some of those who failed to get the promised jobs.

The fresh action came after the Supreme Court issued an order on May 16 allowing an investigation into this case by the police as well as the ED.

The ED said that it had summoned Balaji, R V Ashok Kumar and B Shanmugam multiple times in the past but they did not appear and sought adjournments, showing "evasive" behaviour.

The agency informed the court that it has recorded the statement of various officials allegedly involved in this 'scam' and they have told that many rules were "violated" while recruiting candidates.

The violations included entering interview marks in pencil, not following the principle of merit and reservation, issuance of appointment letters by unauthorised officers, increasing vacancies without approval and payment of money for jobs through associates to PAs of the minister.

Some of the candidates told the ED that the money was given to Shanmugam, either "directly or through some mediators".

The ED said after raiding the premises of Balaji and his associates on Tuesday, it issued him a summons to appear before it for questioning but he allegedly "refused to sign and receive" them.

The ED claimed Balaji "shouted and yelled" at the agency officials present at his house and the agency then attempted to record his statement there in the presence of two witnesses.

It charged the minister of being "completely non-cooperative" during the proceedings and hence he was arrested around 1:30 am. It said the arrest was executed in the presence of two independent witnesses as the minister "refused" to sign the arrest memo.

If not arrested, Balaji could have "tampered and destroyed" the evidence, the agency.

"Bank statement analysis of key accused revealed that there have been cash deposits of Rs 1.34 crore in the bank accounts of prime suspect V Senthil Balaji and Rs 29.55 lakh in his wife S Meghala's account. These cash deposits are huge compared to their incomes disclosed in ITRs (income tax returns)," the ED alleged.

It informed the court that "the statements given by some accused/victims and witnesses clearly point out the offence of money laundering".

"There was neither justification nor evidence to show that the source of huge cash deposits is from his genuine income," the ED said.

The agency told the court that it requires Balaji's custody to "confront" him with those people whose statements it has already recorded and to trace the "end-use of the huge amounts of monies which appear to have been laundered in this case for which he (Balaji) could not produce documents despite sufficient opportunity."
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 14. The EU is following closely developments in the region, Toivo Klaar, EU Special Representative for the South Caucasus and the crisis in Georgia, said, Trend reports.

"It is essential to keep up the positive momentum of successive meetings and achieve results at the negotiating table that will benefit Armenia, Azerbaijan, and the entire region," he wrote on his Twitter page.

Meanwhile, as the Ministry of Defense of Azerbaijan reported today, units of the Armenian armed forces from positions located in the direction of the Arazdeen village in the Vedi district subjected the positions of the Azerbaijani army located in the direction of the Heydarabad settlement in the Sadarak district of the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic (Azerbaijan) to intense shelling from 10:00 (GMT+4) on June 14.

The operational situation is under the control of our units," the MoD said.
The Enforcement Directorate on Wednesday arrested Tamil Nadu electricity, prohibition and excise minister V Senthil Balaji under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, official sources said, making him the first member in the MK Stalin-led Cabinet to face such an action from a central probe agency.

IMAGE: TV visuals showed Tamil Nadu Electricity Minister V Senthil Balaji being uneasy while being brought to the Government Medical College in Chennai. Photograph: ANI on Twitter

Balaji was arrested after a long session of questioning, they said, even as the 47-year-old minister was admitted to a city government hospital after he complained of uneasiness.

He underwent a coronary angiogram and was advised bypass surgery at the "earliest".

A court in Chennai on Wednesday sent Balaji to judicial custody till June 28.

Sessions court principal judge S Alli visited the government hospital where Balaji was admitted this morning before passing the order.

The court also reserved orders on a total three pleas filed by either side. While the minister prayed for interim bail and permission to be shifted to a private hospital, the ED sought police custody of Balaji.

Balaji was arrested around 1.30 am on Wednesday by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), following raids on his premises since Tuesday morning.

The agency action came months after the Supreme Court allowed a police and ED probe into a cash for jobs scam allegedly involving Balaji.

The case against Balaji and his aides pertain to his tenure as the state transport minister in the AIADMK government during 2011-15 when he along with his associates including his brother R V Ashok Kumar, PA B Shanmugam entered into a criminal conspiracy with the managing directors of all state transport undertakings (STU) and other officers of transport corporations to obtain illegal gratification from candidates to recruit them as drivers, conductors, junior tradesmen, junior engineer and assistant engineer in the transport corporation during 2014-15.

Chief Minister Stalin, who had slammed the ED raids against Balaji on Tuesday as "intimidation politics", met his cabinet colleague at the Tamil Nadu Government Multi Super Speciality Hospital, Omandurar Estate.

The chief minister stepped up his attack on the Bharatiya Janata Party over the ED arresting his cabinet colleague, as he asserted the minister will face the case legally, and so will the party.

He charged the ED officials of 'enacting a drama' in the name of enquiry and accused them of 'physically and mentally troubling' Balaji.

The BJP state unit sought to dismiss Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam's charge that it was resorting to vindictive action, saying the ED move was part of an ongoing investigation into the cash for jobs scam allegedly involving Balaji.

The agency had launched multi-city searches in the state on Tuesday at the premises linked to the DMK's Karur strongman as part of the probe into money laundering.

The action came months after the Supreme Court allowed a police and ED probe into an alleged cash for jobs scam against him.

In the early hours of Wednesday, Balaji was hospitalised after complaining of uneasiness, DMK leaders said.

State minister PK Sekar Babu claimed there were 'symptoms' that Balaji was 'tortured'.

TV visuals showed Balaji feeling uneasy and crying while being brought to hospital.

"He is in the ICU. He was in an unconscious state and did not respond when we called him by his name. He is under observation...there is a swelling near his ear. Doctors say there is variation in his ECG (electrocardiogram)... these are symptoms of torture," Babu told reporters.

Balaji 'underwent Coronary Angiogram at 10.40 am' today, a medical bulletin issued by the Director of the Tamil Nadu Government Multi Super Speciality Hospital, Omandurar Estate, said.

"Coronary Angiogram revealed triple vessel disease, for which CABG (Coronary artery bypass graft) - Bypass Surgery is advised at the earliest," it said.

IMAGE: Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin meets Balaji undergoing treatment at Omandurar government hospital in Chennai, June 14, 2023. Photograph: Kind courtesy @mkstalin/Twitter

Meanwhile, the constituents of the DMK-led Secular Progressive Alliance (SPA) lashed out at the ruling BJP at the Centre for the ED action and announced a massive public meeting in Coimbatore on Friday to protest against it over the issue.

A joint statement from SPA leaders including Tamil Nadu Congress Committee president K S Alagiri and state secretaries of the Communist Party of India and the Communist Party of India-Marxist, R Mutharasan and K Balakrishnan, respectively and Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi founder Thol Thirumavalavan slammed the 'anti-people' BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) and said it has not done anything for the people in the last nine years in office.

The saffron party was losing elections in many states and has realised it was on the way out in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls and therefore was resorting to 'weakening democratic forces' to see if it can emerge victorious in the hustings next year, they said.

The BJP was attempting to scuttle the June 23 meeting of opposition parties in Bihar, held against its 'communal, authoritarian politics and as a result vengeful action is being launched in various states using the probe agencies', the SPA said.

TN BJP chief K Annamalai dismissed any charge of vindictive action by his party against the DMK and said the ED action was a culmination of a five year probe into the cash for jobs scam.

Explaining the case details, he said the Supreme Court had allowed a police and ED probe into the matter recently and insisted the agency action was in lines with that only.

"That being the case, how is this political vendetta. Stalin and his alliance party leaders should explain," he told reporters in Chennai.

Slamming Balaji and justifying the action against him, All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam senior leader and former minister D Jayakumar alleged irregularities in the handling of liquor stock and claimed illegal bars were being operated, resulting in loss to the exchequer.

Liquor sales in Tamil Nadu is nationalised and Tamil Nadu State Marketing Corporation (TASMAC) is the retailer.

Jayakumar also demanded that the ED should ascertain Balaji's health status with the help of AIIMS doctors and initiate further legal proceedings against him.

The ED had launched searches at locations linked to Balaji at Chennai, Karur and Erode on Tuesday as part of the probe into money laundering.

Balaji was earlier with the AIADMK and had been Transport Minister in the late Jayalalithaa-led Cabinet.
Tim Stevenson is a community organizer with Post Oil Solutions from Athens, and author of Resilience and Resistance: Building Sustainable Communities for a Post Oil Age (Green Writers Press), and the recently published, Transformative Activism: A Values Revolution in Everyday Life in a Time of Social Collapse (Apocryphile Press). The opinions expressed by columnists do not necessarily reflect the views of Vermont News & Media.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 14. Progress in Azerbaijani-Armenian peace process will significantly contribute to normalization of Turkiye's relations with Armenia, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told reporters after his return from Azerbaijan, where he was on a state visit, Trend reports.

"We see how the doors to a peaceful future are opening in the region after all the suffering. We expect all interested parties to act responsibly so as not to miss this opportunity," he said.

The diplomatic relations between Armenia and Turkiye have been officially non-existent since the early 1990s. In 1993, Turkiye reacted to the first Karabakh war, by closing its border with Armenia out of support for Azerbaijan.

In December 2021, Armenia and Turkiye announced appointing special envoys who met in Moscow in January 2022, with positive international reactions for attempts of normalizing relations. On January 1, 2022, Armenia lifted the embargo on import of goods from Turkiye.
By News Center

President Tayyip Erdogan made his first overseas visit to the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) after the victory of the election. Erdogan, who was welcomed with an official ceremony by TRNC President Ersin Tatar, visited the Ataturk Monument in Nicosia. Later, Erdogan and Tatar had a tete-a-tete meeting and made a joint press statement.

Turkish Cypriots will never be a minority

Emphasizing that the Turkish Cypriot people will never be a minority, Erdogan said: "We have evaluated the current situation regarding the Cyprus issue and the Eastern Mediterranean. The Turkish side has always adopted a constructive and result-oriented approach to the Cyprus issue. The ancient and original element of the island, especially the rightful demands of the Turkish Cypriots, is clear. Turkish Cypriots have never been a minority and never will be. Those who ignore these facts and continue to dream of becoming the sole ruler of the island, I especially advise to put aside their obsessions and face the realities of the Island."

We can not lose 50 more years

Despite the efforts of the Turkish Cypriots, more than half a century was wasted due to the uncompromising and maximalist approaches of the Greek Cypriot side. No one can bear to lose another 50 years. Confirmation of the sovereign equality and equal international status of the Turkish Cypriots, which are their vested rights, is indispensable for us. If there is to be a return to the negotiating table, the way to this is the recognition of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus. This is essentially the realistic and result-oriented vision that President Mr. Tatar put forward at the last informal meeting in Geneva, which we also support.

We will resolve the interests

Underlining that Turkiye, as a guarantor country, has always been in favor of dialogue, Erdogan continued: We also discussed the Eastern Mediterranean dimension of the Cyprus issue with Mr. President. We will continue to resolutely defend the rights and interests of Turkiye and the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus. On this occasion, I would like to remind you that the concrete proposals presented by the Turkish Cypriot side for the equitable sharing of the hydrocarbon resources in and around the island of Cyprus are still on the table.

We have to welcome the risks well

Unfortunately, my proposal to organize a regional conference on issues concerning the Eastern Mediterranean did not find a response. Our visionary steps taken were left unrequited. Despite this, as a guarantor country, we have always given priority to dialogue. Those who engage in meaningless armament activities should carefully calculate the risks these undertakings will bring. The peace and security of our brothers on the island means our peace and security.

There is no way out but peace

Stating that Turkiye stands by the TRNC with all its means, Erdogan said, "While we continue to support the sincere solution efforts, we will also continue our contributions to the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus. We will ensure that our citizens here receive health services from the public on equal terms with our citizens in Turkiye. Hopefully, we will start the construction of 1192 social housing units in the Derinya region soon. The manufacturing and laying of bidirectional electrical transmission cables are our priorities. In the field of transportation, we have built a total of 630 kilometers of main roads in Northern Cyprus so far. The construction of 5 separate road projects with a total length of 62 kilometers continues. We will soon make the water we bring from Turkiye available to our producers for agricultural irrigation purposes. We are also going to bid for the 500-bed state hospital in Nicosia soon. My assistant Cevdet will carry out the coordination of the studies on this matter.

Answering the question regarding Greek-Turkish relations, Erdogan emphasized that the roadmap in the relations is clear and said, Our roadmap is already clear. This roadmap is indexed on peace. For in these seas, there is no other way out but peace. If there are those who want to prevent peace, then we will have to switch to a different project application. We want such obstacles not to be put in front of us and the Aegean Sea to give its message to the world as a sea of peace".

We have the world's giant Turkiye behind us.

President of the TRNC Ersin Tatar congratulated Erdogan on his election victory and said, You have won a great victory. You won the election with a very high turnout, with great political maturity in the Republic of Turkiye, and a democratic understanding that will set an example for the world states, and you are with us with your delegation. You make your first visit to the TRNC after your swearing-in ceremony. This means a lot to us, it is very important. Because you are giving the message to the whole world, to all the states of the world that you always protect the TRNC and that you will protect it with the same understanding from now on.

You strengthen us

Tatar said, We suffered a lot in Cyprus. The messages you gave to those who are still trying to cause discord between us through various games, and to those who try to divide the TRNC from within with fifth-column activities and prevent us from further consolidating our relations with the homeland. Your presence with us gives us strength. After this time, we cannot go back to the past because a new policy has emerged. They are trying to turn the Cyprus issue in their favor, the Greek side is not coming to the table. Because they do not accept our sovereignty. They should know that behind us stands the world's giant Turkish Republic.

We will fulfill our responsibilities in the new period as well

President Erdogan visited the Ataturk Monument in Nicosia. Laying a wreath at the monument, Erdogan signed the memorial book. He wrote the following in his memorial special book: Saint Ataturk, we are in your presence again to reinforce our solidarity, and unity with the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus. In the elections held in our country on May 28, 2023, we are once again experiencing the happiness of being favored by our nation. As the President of Turkiye, we have served with love not only our own citizens but also the Turkish Cypriot People, who constitute an inseparable part of the Turkish nation. Hopefully, in our new term, we will fulfill our responsibilities towards our Turkish Cypriot brothers with the vision of the Century of Turkiyey.

With new ministers

Erdogan, Minister of Foreign Affairs Hakan Fidan, Minister of Energy and Natural Resources Alparslan Bayraktar, Minister of National Defense Yasar Guler, Minister of Transport and Infrastructure Abdulkadir Uralo?lu, Presidential Communications Director Fahrettin Altun, MIT Head ?brahim Kal?n, Defense Industry President Haluk Gorgun and AK Party Spokesperson and Omer Celik accompanied him.




BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 14. Azerbaijani Prime Minister Ali Asadov and newly appointed Turkish Vice President Cevdet Yilmaz held phone talks, Trend reports.

Asadov once again congratulated Yilmaz on his appointment as Vice President of Turkiye and wished him success in his activities.

The sides noted the high level of development of strategic partnership and allied relations between the two brotherly countries in all areas thanks to the efforts of the presidents of the two states.

The importance of the recent visit of Turkish president to Azerbaijan from the point of view of further development of bilateral relations between the two countries was pointed out. Readiness for cooperation for strengthening and deepening of ties between the two countries in various directions was expressed.

The work to be carried out within the framework of the Joint Intergovernmental Commission on Economic Cooperation between Azerbaijan and Turkiye was considered.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 14. We will continue to work with Azerbaijan for the sake of the unity of the Turkic world, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told the reporters after his return from the trip to Azerbaijan, Trend reports.

"We want to maintain the pace of bilateral relations with Azerbaijan by working out such mechanisms as the Strategic Cooperation Council and the Joint Economic Commission. We will further strengthen our mechanisms of regional cooperation and consultations with the Organization of Turkic States. I believe that this historic visit, which was made after the elections, strengthened our solidarity," Erdogan said.

He pointed out that such visits will have a fruitful impact not only on bilateral relations between countries, but will also be useful for the entire region.

"On behalf of myself and the nation, I express my gratitude to President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev for the sincere hospitality extended to me, my wife and the delegation," he said.
Why you're reading this: The 12th edition of the joint military exercise "Ex Ekuverin" between the Indian Army and the Maldives National Defence Force has commenced at Chaubatia, Uttarakhand. Scheduled to be held from June 11 to 24, 2023, this bilateral exercise aims to enhance cooperation and interoperability between the armed forces of the two nations.

3 Things You Need To Know:

The exercise, named after the Maldivian word for 'Friends', alternates between India and Maldives each year.

The 14-day exercise will mainly focus on Counter Insurgency/Counter Terrorism Operations.

The exercise also includes joint Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief operations, reflecting the commitment of both nations to regional security and disaster response capabilities.

Ex Ekuverin to simulate complex combat scenarios

During the 14-day exercise, a platoon strength contingent from the Indian Army and the Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) will engage in various activities focused on Counter Insurgency/Counter Terrorism Operations, as mandated by the United Nations. The exercise also includes joint Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief operations. Through the sharing of best practices and tactical coordination, the participating forces aim to improve their readiness and effectiveness in addressing common security challenges.

Ex #Ekuverin 2023



12th Edition of Joint Military Exercise #Ekuverin between #IndianArmy & #Maldives National Defence Force is being conducted at #Chaubatia, #Uttarakhand. The two-week long Exercise is focused on Humanitarian Assistance & Disaster Relief Operations.#IndianArmy pic.twitter.com/SQnwQ2tEQL  ADG PI - INDIAN ARMY (@adgpi) June 12, 2023

Meanwhile, Exercise Ekuverin follows a comprehensive training regimen aimed at enhancing the skills and capabilities of the participating forces from the Indian Army and the Maldives National Defence Force. The participants undergo rigorous and realistic training scenarios that simulate various CI/CT situations, including urban warfare, hostage rescue, and counter-IED operations. These exercises allow the forces to develop and refine their tactical skills, coordination, and interoperability in challenging environments. Special emphasis is placed on intelligence sharing, target identification, and swift response strategies.

Focus on logistics management during disaster situations

In addition to CI/CT Ops, the exercise also incorporates training in HADR operations, which involve responding to natural disasters and providing assistance to affected populations. The participants learn techniques for search and rescue, medical aid, and logistics management during disaster situations. This training segment aims to strengthen the forces' capabilities in joint humanitarian missions, reflecting the commitment of both nations to regional stability and disaster response.

The 11th edition of "Ex Ekuverin" was hosted by the Maldives in December 2021, highlighting the enduring defence cooperation between India and Maldives. This collaboration extends beyond joint exercises and encompasses areas such as defence training and equipment support. The two nations share strong economic, cultural, and military ties, and the ongoing exercise serves as a platform to further strengthen these bonds. The Indian Army and the Maldives National Defence Force are committed to deepening their partnership, reinforcing regional stability, and fostering mutual trust.
Partners with Franchisee to Debut Five New Stores Across Salt Lake City

Smashburger announced today the signing of a multi-unit development agreement to further expand its footprint in Utah, bringing five new locations to Salt Lake City. Leading the brand's expansion in the market is multi-unit franchisee Michael Walker of Zuvachs, LLC., who acquired two existing Smashburger locations in Salt Lake City through the deal. The announcement builds on the growth momentum that Smashburger has achieved since the beginning of the year, adding 26 locations to its pipeline.

"We are extremely proud of the growth that has been accomplished since reigniting our franchise development program towards the end of last year. Franchisees across the country have seen first-hand how strongly our elevated better-burger experience resonates in each of the markets we operate in, and see the promise in our brand's vision," said Toni Bianco, Senior Vice President of Global Operations at Smashburger. "We're looking to partner with experienced operators that are eager to grow, and Michael has proven to fit that classification."

Starting his career as a General Manager for SONIC Drive-In and holding managerial titles for other large brands like Burger King, Walker has over a decade of experience in the restaurant industry. In November of 2019, Walker and his business partners, Ralph Bohn, Joe Carpenter and Melanie Castillo, formulated Zuvachs, LLC and began their franchising journey. At the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic they acquired their first Smashburger location in Lehi, Utah and have been seeking growth opportunities with the brand ever since. In addition to the group's portfolio of Smashburger restaurants, Walker and Zuvachs are set to build five Fazoli's locations in Greater Salt Lake City.

"From the moment I took my first bite into Smashburger's signature smashed patty, I knew we had found a brand that shared our passion for quality, flavor and innovation. The brand's commitment to using fresh, premium ingredients and their dedication to handcrafting each burger with precision sets them apart in the fast casual industry, said Walker. "Along with craveable menu items, Smashburger continues to show immense growth potential due to the increased consumer demand for a modern customer experience. We are thrilled to be leading the brand's expansion in Salt Lake City!"

Founded in 2007 in Denver, Colorado, Smashburger is a better-burger brand known for its innovative approach to crafting delicious and high-quality burgers. From the way the burgers are cooked, to the unique flavors they offer, Smashburger is constantly pushing the boundaries of what a burger can be. With over 240 locations, across 34 states and seven countries, Smashburger is the quickest fast casual concept to hit the 200-restaurant milestone and has sustained consistent growth due to its ongoing brand innovation which helps drive store profitability and build guest loyalty. This past year, the brand also redefined its portfolio with the launch of a new restaurant design with some locations offering a full-service bar.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 14. Ilham Nazarli has been appointed Head of the representative office of Azerbaijan in Palestine, Trend reports.

In this regard, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev has signed a corresponding decree.
The official trip announcement comes as Chinas foreign minister issues a demand for respect from America.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken will not be seeking deliverables during a visit to Beijing this weekend, according to a top official, who instead framed the trip as an embryonic effort to reopen communications between the worlds top powers.

Blinken will be hoping to reduce the risk of miscalculation and conflict by reengaging with Chinese diplomats on areas of disunity after months of tensions, Daniel Kritenbrink, assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs, said on Wednesday.

This is not a visit in which I would anticipate a long list of deliverables coming out of it, Kritenbrink said in a call to preview the trip by the top U.S. diplomat, who departs Washington on Friday.

After months of refusals by Chinese officials to speak with their American counterparts, Kritenbrink said Blinkens primary objectives would instead be to reestablish open lines of communication, to signal U.S. priorities and then to explore areas of potential cooperation.

This is really a critical series of engagements that we'll have in Beijing, at a crucial time in the relationship, that we again hope will, at a minimum, reduce the risk of miscalculation so that we do not veer into potential conflict, he added. Its incredibly serious.

U.S. defense officials say Chinese officials have refused phone calls since Blinken canceled a planned trip to Beijing in February due to the alleged Chinese spy balloon that was found in U.S. airspace.

Chinese Defense Minister Li Shangfu also declined to meet with U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin at the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore earlier at the start of the month, with Li instead using the forum to accuse the United States of double standards.

The refusal to talk, they say, has confounded efforts to reach a resolution over the unsafe maneuvers by Chinese warships and military planes in front of American vessels over the South China Sea and Taiwan Strait, both of which Beijing claims as territory.

Show respect

Kritenbrink and Sarah Beran, senior director for China and Taiwan affairs on the National Security Council, earlier this month met with their own counterparts in Beijing to help pave the way for a meeting between Blinken and Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang.

But the efforts to resume talks have been complicated by the bad blood in the U.S.-China relationship after the months of tensions.

A Chinese J-16 fighter flies aggressively close to a U.S. RC-135 aircraft flying in international airspace over the South China Sea May 26, 2023. (U.S. Navy via AP)

Rep. Mike Gallagher, a Republican from Wisconsin who chairs the House Select Committee on China, for instance, called Kritenbrink and Berans trip to China an outrage after the pair arrived there on June 4, the anniversary of the Tiananmen Square massacre.

Chinese officials have also indicated they have little interest in humoring any demands made by Blinken while in Beijing.

In a pre-meeting phone call between Blinken and the Chinese foreign minister on Wednesday, Qin stressed Beijing would maintain its stern position on its core interests, including that the self-governing island of Taiwan will be reunited with the mainland, according to a readout issued by Chinas foreign ministry.

Qin said Washington should show respect, stop interfering in Chinas internal affairs and stop undermining Chinas sovereignty, security and development interests, the readout said.

A readout released by the U.S. State Department, by contrast, said that the pair discussed the importance of maintaining open lines of communication to responsibly manage the bilateral relationship.

Kritenbrink did not shy away from the differences between the two sides, acknowledging there had been substantive, productive and candid exchanges with Chinese officials in the lead-up to the visit.

Both sides nonetheless wanted to ensure we have communication channels open, and that we do everything possible to reduce the risk of miscalculation. Chinese counterparts have used the words to stop the downward spiral in the relationship, he explained.

Meeting for the sake of meeting

During the same call, Kurt Campbell, the White House's Indo-Pacific coordinator, said the trip would be a positive step in U.S.-China ties, and denied it would be meaningless without any deliverables.

We've heard from unofficial interlocutors just a few months ago that China was giving up on diplomacy with the United States, Campbell said. But of course, we've seen other signals of late that suggest they recognize that diplomacy with Washington is still important.

Campbell said he was not going to speculate on the reasons Beijing wanted to resume diplomacy after months of rejecting even phone calls, but said that Chinas leaders may have been pressed by concerns over the economy amid U.S. tech export controls.

It could be that they, too, see some of the risks associated with [military] accidents, he said. It could also be that they see the effectiveness of our engagement with allies and partners, and don't want to be further isolated, or there could be concerns around our technology steps. Or it could be a combination of reasons.

The simple fact is that we believe that both sides have an interest in maintaining consistent, clear and open lines of communication.

Sailors assigned to Explosive Ordnance Disposal Group 2 recover a high-altitude surveillance balloon off the coast of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, in the Atlantic Ocean on Feb. 5, 2023. (Petty Officer 1st Class Tyler Thompson/US Navy via AFP)

Kritenbrink reiterated that a resumption of talks was enough.

I fundamentally disagree with the assessment that somehow we're meeting for the sake of meeting, Kritenbrink said. The issues at stake are simply too significant to take that kind of approach.

But I do think we need to be realistic, he said. We're not going to Beijing with the intent of having some sort of breakthrough or transformation in the way that we deal with one another.

Edited by Malcolm Foster
Detained lawyer Xie Yang is denied a last video call with his father, terminally ill with COVID-19

Police in China are keeping up their harassment of prominent rights lawyers, putting pressure on recently evicted Wang Quanzhang and his family, slapping a travel ban on Li Heping and his family, while denying rights attorney Xie Yang a phone call with his sick father.

A police officer from the Beijing suburb of Changping pushed his way into the Wang family home on Wednesday, refusing to show ID and demanding to read the couples lease agreement, according to a video clip posted by Wangs wife Li Wenzu on Twitter.

Comrade Policeman, please would you leave  this is our home, Li tells the officer, who is identified as Wang Kaiguo in her tweet.

You cant just go into peoples residences, Li tells the officer in a heated discussion. You didnt produce any identification.

Im wearing a police uniform, so I can come in here, he says.

Police were claiming to have received a tip-off that the home had been illegally rented, according to the couple.

Stability Maintenance

The renewed harassment is the latest in a slew of stability maintenance actions by Beijing police and other Chinese officials, who have targeted the families of prominent rights attorneys and other activists who were previously jailed in a 2015 crackdown on rights lawyers and public interest law firms.

In a video of an earlier conversation on June 12, Wang calls on a police officer via an entryphone to show some evidence backing up the claim that his family is living in the apartment illegally. He later tweeted a photo of the lease agreement with the landlord.

Screen shot of the policeman identified as Wang Kaiguo by Wangs wife Li Wenzu. Tweeter/ @709liwenzu





"Police and corporate security personnel in Shunyi tracked us down to our new residence and reported us to the local police station," Wang said. "They continued to follow us as we were apartment-hunting, and they accused us of 'trespassing."

"It's not just us -- a lot of Christian families across the country have been evicted and persecuted," he said. "It's very hard to live a stable life."

Wang's family was forced to leave their last apartment in Beijing's Shunyi district after the authorities cut off their utilities.

"The content of the contract is true, legal, and valid, and should be protected by law," Wang said via Twitter. "I hereby declare that I will not unilaterally terminate this contract within its validity period."

"We moved into this rented accommodation legally, yet police said they had been told that we moved in illegally," Li Wenzu also tweeted on Tuesday.

Cant leave country

Meanwhile, the family of Li Heping is now banned from leaving China, after their landlord smashed a window at their rented apartment in a bid to get them to leave last month, Radio Free Asia has learned.

Police at Chengdu's international airport prevented the family from boarding a flight to Thailand last week, as Li and his wife Wang Qiaoling are considered to be "a danger to national security," Wang Qiaoling said.

"He told us, 'You aren't allowed to leave the country ... I'm going to read this notice out to you -- Li Heping and Wang Qiaoling aren't allowed to leave the country due to factors endangering national security." she said.

And a court in the central city of Changsha recently denied detained rights lawyer Xie Yang a video meeting with his ailing 90-year-old father, who is terminally ill with COVID-19.

"The lawyer asked angrily whether the judges of the Changsha Intermediate People's Court were raised by their parents," the China Rights Lawyers Twitter account said of the June 7 hearing.

Xie's U.S.-based ex-wife Chen Guiqiu told Radio Free Asia in a recent interview that her father-in-law Xie Huicheng had been in hospital with a high fever for days at the time of the request.

"Xie Yang is a very filial son, and the old man really wanted to see him before he dies," Chen said. "The court just came up with various excuses to refuse."

Xie is currently being held in the Changsha No. 1 Detention Center, awaiting trial for "incitement to subvert state power," and recently told his visiting attorney that he has been tortured while in detention.

Chen said the court's decision not to allow him to video call his dying father could be a form of retaliation, or a way to silence Xie.

U.S.-based rights lawyer Wu Shaoping said that while there was no good legal reason to deny such a request, the ruling Chinese Communist Party is the ultimate arbiter of its citizens' rights, not the law.

"There was no reason to reject a humanitarian request of this kind," Wu said. "They use [such requests] as a way of controlling suspects [to elicit a 'confession']."

Translated by Luisetta Mudie. Edited by Malcolm Foster.
Forming the new unit in a junta stronghold will likely lead to more violence

Myanmars shadow government has established an armed battalion in the countrys largest city of Yangon, intended to strengthen opposition to the junta and strategically formulate the fall of military rule, shadow government officials told Radio Free Asia.

Defense officials from the National Unity Government, or NUG, announced on June 1 that Public Defense Force 5101, or PDF 5101, is operating under its Yangon Region Military Command.

Yangon and its surrounding areas are the second strongest power base for the military junta behind the capital Naypyidaw, to the north.

In the aftermath of the military coup on Feb.1, 2021, armed citizens opposed to military rule began banding together to form PDFsguerrilla-style militia groupsto fight back against the junta. Many of these affiliated themselves with the NUG after it was formed by remnants of Myanmars democratically elected government.

Claiming a PDF in Yangon is a stepping stone towards a stronger resistance toward the junta, Naing Htoo Aung, secretary of the NUGs Ministry of Defense, told RFAs Burmese Service. He said it aims to combine existing urban guerrilla attack strategies with traditional combat tactics to shorten the response time to junta military threats in Yangon.

After regiments like this have been established, we will be able to organize stronger, more united and more traditional battles that can formulate more strategic attacks at the military junta, said Naing Htoo Aung.

A hospital staffer cleans a stretcher stained with blood from a protester killed during a crackdown by Myanmar military during a demonstration against the military coup at a hospital in Yangon, March 30, 2021. Credit: AFP

Following the NUGs announcement, junta personnel took to the Yangon streets, saying to residents through loudspeakers that they should not harbor members of PDFs in their homes, not to rent their homes ot PDF members, and to report to authorities any suspicious activity, Yangon residents told RFA.

Wake up call

The establishment of the PDF in Yangon is a wake up call to the junta, Sayar Kyaung, leader of the anti-junta Yangon UG [Urban Guerrilla] Association, a coalition of guerrilla groups from the city. But the announcement will cause the junta to come after groups like the UG association.

Since Yangon is under the control of the enemy, they search very thoroughly, inspect and arrest more people in the area, making things harder for us.

RFA attempted to contact the juntas spokesperson Maj. Gen. Zaw Min Tun for comment, but he did not answer phone calls.

The NUGs announcement is likely false according to Thien Tun Oo, the executive director of the Thayninga Institute for Strategic Studies, a group of former military officers said.

In my opinion, its more like a propaganda attempt, he said. It cannot be practical for them to do anything in the Yangon region under the current situation.

More violence expected

Anti-junta forces shot and killed about 600 junta military personnel in and around Yangon during the month of May, including officers ranked as high as majors, the NUGs Yangon Regional Military Sub-division announced on June 3.

On June 5, six people were injured in an explosion at the office of the chief of Internal Revenue Department in Yangon, and on On June 6, three bombs exploded near the citys Insein Prison.

The NUGs declaration of a newly formed armed battalion will likely cause more violence between the two sides, Sai Kyi Zin Soe, a political analyst, told RFA.

There can be more deadly incidents leading to escalating anxiety among the people, he said. I think that those who are already hiding from the military forces will have narrower freedom to move about and fewer choices of accommodation with more difficult livelihood opportunities.

Smoke rises over Tamwe township in Yangon on March 27, 2021 as Myanmar security forces continue their crackdown on protesters against the military coup. Credit: AFP

According to NUG data, there are more than 300 PDF groups in 250 townships nationwide.

The junta has therefore attempted to take a page out of the PDF playbook and has organized citizen militias loyal to the junta.

Dialogue will, however, be the only way to avoid more fighting and casualties, Ye Tun, a political analyst, told RFA.

There have been escalating anxieties, feelings of insecurity and personal vendettas among the people lately. This is a very bad consequence of politics in Myanmar, he said. We need to be very careful not to let things like this happen.

According to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners, 3,659 pro-democracy activists and civilians have been killed since the military coup, and 23,337 people have been arrested as of Wednesday.

A junta statement issued April 9, reported that from the coup through March 16, 2023, a total of 4,645 civilians were killed by PDF forces.

RFA could not independently verify the data from either organization, but if both statements are accurate, a total of 8,304 people have died on both sides since the coup.

Translated by Myo Min Aung. Edited by Eugene Whong and Malcolm Foster.
Troops arrested 5 people over 2 weeks in the Sagaing region town.

A junta slipknot is tightening in Sagaing regions Kale township, as troops guard every intersection, conducting door-to-door searches and arresting people suspected of being involved in pro-democracy politics, locals told RFA Burmese Wednesday.

Five people were arrested between June 1 and June 14, said residents who didnt want to be identified for fear of reprisals.

At night troops go from home to home, checking household registration lists, they said. They also stop motorcycles and question riders and passengers.

As a result of the searches they arrested Pau Suan Khual, Su Su Win, Thiri Lin, Mary San and Naing Htwe.

The junta council troops conduct casual checks in Kale city every day, targeting young people who are on motorbikes and checking their phones, said a Kale resident who declined to be named.

People are arrested if they are suspected of being involved in politics.

The five people, believed to be in their twenties, were taken to the Military Regional Command Headquarters interrogation center in Kale township.

Residents said police and soldiers also threaten passers-by and demand money from them.

RFA called Sagaing region junta spokesperson Aye Hlaing Wednesday but nobody answered.

One man died during interrogation after being arrested on May 19.

Salai Ram Lian Pan, 29, was detained at a junta checkpoint as he tried to ride his motorbike across the township.

On June 7, junta authorities told the family to pick up his dead body.

The National League for Democracy, a party ostensibly dissolved by the government this year even though it won a landslide victory in elections before the Feb. 2021 coup, said Tuesday that 3,818 civilians, including 93 NLD members have been killed since the military takeover.

Translated by RFA Burmese. Edited by Mike Firn.
They are confiscating the equipment of Tibetans who access foreign programs.

Police talk to a Tibetan about his satellite dish during a check of households to ensure residents access only state-sanctions programs, in Lhasa, capital of China's Tibet autonomous Region, June 13, 2023.

Chinese authorities began searching homes in the Tibetan capital Lhasa this month to determine whether Tibetans are accessing foreign radio and TV programs via satellite dishes, city police and two Tibetans with knowledge of the situation said.

Broadcast offices in the Tibet Autonomous Region, including in Lhasa, along with police investigated every household on June 8-9 for illegal satellite broadcasts, according to an announcement on the website of the Lhasa police. So far, authorities have confiscated about 50 satellite dishes.

In 2009, the Chinese government provided every household in Lhasa with a government-approved satellite dish, which gave residents access to only a limited number of state-controlled programs.

It is illegal for Tibetans who have access to or watch broadcasting other than state-sanctioned programs via satellite.

The satellite dishes in these households were installed by the Chinese government, and the satellite has only access to state-controlled programs, which are very limited, said a Tibetan living in Lhasa who declined to be identified so as to speak freely.

Tibetans cannot buy other satellite dishes or pay to watch other channels that have access to other news and information, the source said. It is deemed illegal.

Authorities say they have taken the measure to ensure harmony and stability in Tibet, and that the investigations will continue.

But Tibetans see the move as another way that the Chinese government is preventing them from accessing outside information and restricting their communication.

This operation is part of a government clampdown on satellite equipment used by Tibetans to tune in to foreign news and programs, and the tracking of Tibetans cell phones to monitor their communication with the outside world, said Pema Gyal, a Tibetan researcher at Tibet Watch, a London-based advocacy and monitoring group.

Before checking private households, authorities in Lhasa clamped down on the use of satellite dishes in hotels and guesthouses, said another Tibetan who declined to be identified for the same reason.

Though the satellite dishes installed by the government show only state-run programs, foreign programs can sometimes be picked up, the source said.

However, its up to the persons maneuvering skills to do that and to not get caught, the Tibetan added.

Translated by Tenzin Dickyi for RFA Tibetan. Edited by Roseanne Gerin and Malcolm Foster.
Welcome back to the China In Eurasia briefing, an RFE/RL newsletter tracking China's resurgent influence from Eastern Europe to Central Asia.

I'm RFE/RL correspondent Reid Standish and here's what I'm following right now.

How Chinese Parts Make It To The Battlefield In Ukraine

It's been a constant since Moscow's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, but Chinese parts and components -- as well as drones and some weapons -- are finding their way onto the battlefield and helping Russia's military.

Finding Perspective: The issue was pushed back into the spotlight following a video posted to Telegram by Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov showcasing an array of new military equipment, including eight Chinese-made unarmed armored personnel carriers.

The vehicles appeared to be a multipurpose model called the Tiger or China Tiger and the video brought renewed scrutiny of Chinese weaponry helping the Kremlin's war effort -- a possibility raised by Western governments and experts for some time.

It's difficult to determine when or how the Chinese vehicles ended up in Chechnya, or how they might be deployed on the battlefield -- if at all.

While the equipment is no doubt Chinese-made, multiple military experts I spoke with said it was unlikely this was from a formal sale, saying that the Tiger is widely exported around the world -- including across Africa and to Tajikistan -- and that Kadyrov states in the video that "we regularly purchase military equipment that helps our fighters be more effective in solving the tasks assigned to them."

Why It Matters: There is no evidence so far that China has provided any formal military aid, such as shipments of ammunition or full weapons systems.

Doing so would bring major reputational costs to Beijing and China has instead pivoted to taking up a diplomatic position around the war to frame itself as a peacemaker.

Still, Chinese exporters have supplied components of weapons systems and dual-use technology to sanctioned Russian defense companies.

A new report from The Wall Street Journal found that Iranian drones used by Russia in Ukraine had new Chinese parts that were made this year.

The revelation shows that new Chinese components are continuing to flow into Iran, where they then make their way to Russia. According to an investigation, the Chinese part was made in January, shipped to Iran, installed, and then sent to Russia and used against Ukraine in April.

While this stops short of full-blown military support, it highlights the complexities of supply chains and the multitude of ways countries can still skirt sanctions.

Another recent investigation by the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project tracked an export path for Chinese drones from China to Russia to the battlefield via the Netherlands and Kazakhstan through a collection of Russian-owned companies.

Expert Corner: Slovakia, Elections, And Taiwan

Readers asked: "Along with the Czech Republic, Slovakia has been one of Taiwan's strongest supporters in Europe. The country is set to hold parliamentary elections in late September amid rising populism and growing pro-Russian, anti-Ukraine rhetoric on the political spectrum. How might that affect relations with Taipei?"

To find out more, I asked Matej Simalcik, the executive director of the Central European Institute of Asian Studies in Bratislava:

"There's still time until the elections and the polling is not yet conclusive about what the result may be or what kind of constellation of parties can form a coalition. But at the moment, the election could go either way and that could impact relations with China and Taiwan, even though neither are big election topics in Slovakia.

"In general, you can divide Slovak politicians into three groups when it comes to China. The first are those that are pragmatically pro-Chinese and see it as a source of economic benefits. The second are more ideologically inclined towards China. These two groups are mixed and matched across several political parties, but share elements of their worldview when it comes to economics and politics that tends to favor Chinese interests. The third group are those that are opponents of China ideologically while calling for some form of limited trade relations.

"Should the opposition form a government [likely led by former Prime Minister Robert Fico's Smer-SD party] then we'd see the first two groups have a larger voice. It's also important to observe that many of these politicians that tend to be pro-Chinese are also pro-Russian and they don't back China out of sheer goodwill. It's generally a very cold political calculus where they can use China in a way that fits into their anti-West narratives related to domestic politics or the war in Ukraine."

Do you have a question about China's growing footprint in Eurasia? Send it to me at StandishR@rferl.org or reply directly to this e-mail and I'll get it answered by leading experts and policymakers.

Three More Stories From Eurasia

1. Georgia's Chinese-Built Highway

A nearly $1 billion megaproject looks to transform Georgia's timeless landscape, but the Chinese-built highway is also grappling with questions over how the contracts were awarded and unexplained delays, as I reported recently from the country.

What You Need To Know: The Chinese-built project was the focus of a recent reporting trip to Georgia and I drove along the construction with my colleague Tamuna Chkareuli, who also took some excellent photographs.

The project is ambitious, with the 51.6-kilometer section cutting through Georgia's mountainous countryside and consisting of 96 bridges and 53 tunnels.

Once completed, the highway will transform travel in Georgia, which lacks high-quality infrastructure, and potentially cut the journey from the capital, Tbilisi, to the Black Sea coast in half while providing a much-needed boost to the country's tourism-dependent economy.

But the project is also dealing with criticism and scrutiny over how the winning contracts were awarded to a constellation of Chinese firms and a series of unexplained delays that has seen costs rise and construction deadlines extended. Read more about it here.

2. Badiucao's Show Goes On in Poland

I obtained an e-mail that shows the Chinese Embassy in Warsaw trying to pressure the Polish government to cancel an upcoming art exhibit in the Polish capital by dissident artist Badiucao. Read the article here.

The Details: In the written exchange sent on June 7 to senior officials at the Polish Ministry of Culture and National Heritage from embassy staff, a Chinese diplomat says that the art show is an attack against the image of "China and Chinese leaders" and that it hurts "Chinese people's feelings."

The e-mail then goes on to say that the show being hosted in Poland could harm the "bilateral relationship" between Beijing and Warsaw and asks for a meeting with senior ministry staff.

It's not the first time this has happened. Similar incidents occurred during past shows in Italy in 2021 and the Czech Republic in 2022. Badiucao is famous for his provocative political art that tackles topics like repressions in Hong Kong and Xinjiang, the Chinese Communist Party's response to the coronavirus pandemic, the 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown, and broadly criticizing Chinese leader Xi Jinping.

Embassy officials have also visited the museum hosting the upcoming June 16 show and told them to shut it down.

3. Let's Get Virtual

This July's upcoming Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit will now be held virtually, amid speculation that Russian President Vladimir Putin's fear of foreign travel is the main reason for changing the meeting format.

What It Means: India is offering no official reason for the switch, but many observers see the move tied to Putin being reluctant to leave Russia since he was indicted for war crimes by the International Criminal Court (ICC) and an arrest warrant was issued.

India is not a member of the ICC, but Putin's presence would likely lead to increased scrutiny of New Delhi's long-standing ties with Moscow and added pressure from the West.

Indian media have also reported that New Delhi's rocky ties with China and Pakistan, which are both members of the SCO, are also a factor. Neither Beijing nor Islamabad had reportedly confirmed top-level attendance for an in-person meeting.

A similar dilemma is also facing South Africa as it gears up to host the BRICS summit -- which is made up of Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa -- in August.

Unlike India, South Africa is a signatory to the ICC and the government is already facing pressure over its ties to Russia and is also now considering switching to a virtual format for the summit, according to Semafor.

Across The Supercontinent

Fake Docs, No Deal: A Chinese construction company, the Gezhouba Group, was disqualified from participating in a major infrastructure project in Bosnia-Herzegovina after it submitted false documents and incorrect information in its bid to build a key tunnel in the country's south, my colleague Melisa Teletovic reported from Sarajevo.

The Limits Of Kabul And Beijing: Despite the appearance that China and the Taliban are becoming allies, the relationship is still limited and largely transactional, my colleague Abubakar Siddique reports.

'Sponsors Of War': Ukraine has officially designated Hikvision and Dahua "international sponsors of war," alleging that they supply Russia with products that have military purposes such as drones, thermal imagers, and anti-drone guns, along with contributing to Russia's budget.

As Charles Rollet from IPVM explains, the designation is "reputational only" and has "no legal consequences," but it still sends a powerful message from Kyiv.

No Ban: Brussels is working on a review of the so-called security toolbox for 5G wireless networks, and according to Politico, the EU isn't actually planning a full-on ban against Chinese telecoms giant Huawei, but "may use the opportunity to push governments that haven't applied the 5G security principles to high-risk vendors to fall in line and impose restrictions."

One Thing To Watch

Don't call it a "thaw" just yet, but U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is expected to visit Beijing on June 18.

This was originally supposed to happen earlier this year before the appearance of an apparent Chinese spy balloon led to Blinken canceling his trip to Beijing. The upcoming visit comes after several months of rising tensions between the two countries and both sides will need to overcome a mutual mistrust that has been allowed to build following a number of recent incidents.

That's all from me for now. Don't forget to send me any questions, comments, or tips that you might have.

Until next time,

Reid Standish

If you enjoyed this briefing and don't want to miss the next edition, subscribe here. It will be sent to your inbox every other Wednesday.
Welcome back to The Farda Briefing, an RFE/RL newsletter that tracks the key issues in Iran and explains why they matter. To subscribe, click here.

I'm RFE/RL correspondent Golnaz Esfandiari. Here's what I've been following during the past week and what I'm watching for in the days ahead.

The Big Issue

Iran said it is engaged in indirect talks with the United States over a possible prisoner swap and the lifting of crippling American sanctions.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani said on June 12 that a prisoner swap could be agreed "in the near future" if Washington shows "the same seriousness and goodwill."

At least three dual Iranian-American citizens are currently held by Tehran, including businessmen Siamak Namazi, who has been in prison since 2015.

Kanaani said the basis for the indirect talks, mediated by Oman, is the 2015 nuclear deal between Tehran and world powers.

Then-U.S. President Donald Trump withdrew Washington from the agreement and reimposed sanctions in 2018. In response, Tehran has expanded its sensitive nuclear activities, raising fears in the West that it could build a nuclear weapon.

Washington has not denied that it is engaged in indirect talks with Tehran. An unnamed U.S. official told Reuters that the two sides are not discussing a possible interim deal that could involve Tehran agreeing to suspend its nuclear activities in exchange for some sanctions relief.

"We have made clear to them what escalatory steps they needed to avoid to prevent a crisis and what de-escalatory steps they could take to create a more positive context," the official said, without offering details.

Tehran's confirmation of indirect talks came after Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said over the weekend that "there is nothing wrong with an agreement [with the West]," although he added that "the infrastructure of our nuclear industry should not be touched."

The UN's nuclear watchdog said recently that Tehran had resolved some outstanding issues that the agency had raised.

Why It Matters: Iran and the United States appear to be renewing their engagement after a monthslong pause.

The sides have held talks over reviving the nuclear deal since President Joe Biden assumed office in 2020. But the negotiations have proved protracted and inconclusive, with Washington accusing Tehran of making unrealistic demands.

After the antiestablishment protests erupted in Iran in September 2022, Washington said the nuclear deal was "not on the agenda."

Ali Vaez, director of the Iran project at the International Crisis Group, told me that a prisoner swap "could open the door to more de-escalation, which in turn could create time and space to discuss a way forward."

"Both sides seem to have realized that the 'no deal, no crisis' status quo could quickly turn into a 'no deal, big crisis' situation that neither side wants," Vaez said.

What's Next: It is not clear if Tehran is ready to take steps that would lead to a de-escalation, including allowing UN inspectors greater access to its nuclear sites and releasing detained Americans.

But Khamenei's comments appear to have prepared the ground for "renewed engagement with the West," according to Vaez.

Stories You Might Have Missed

A declassified U.S. cable obtained by RFE/RL's Radio Farda shows that a close associate and longtime friend of the founder of the Islamic republic, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, met with U.S. Embassy officials in Iran in the 1960s.

Iran's relations with its northwestern neighbor Azerbaijan have devolved into scolding and heated rhetoric as Tehran objects to outside influence from regional rivals in what it considers its backyard. The discord has been fueled by violent incidents, war games, Baku's military cooperation with Israel, and objections to the prospect of Azerbaijan building a trade corridor to the West.

What We're Watching

In his first trip to Latin America, Iran's President Ebrahim Raisi met with his Venezuelan counterpart, Nicola Maduro, on June 13.

Raisi said the two countries have "common interests and common enemies." Iran and Venezuela are both under U.S. sanctions.

The countries have forged close ties in recent years. In 2020, Iran provided fuel to the country during a shortage.

Raisi arrived in Nicaragua on June 14 where he met with seniors officials. He will later travel to Cuba.

Why It Matters: Raisi's trip is aimed at bolstering Iran's ties with its Latin American allies and increasing its presence in the region.

Before departing Tehran, the Iranian president said the country's relations with "independent" Latin American countries was "strategic."

"Through its presence in America's backyard, Tehran wants to pursue its political and ideological calculations and create some kind of convergence with these countries," Iranian analyst Hadi Alami Fariman told the hard-line Tasnim news agency.

That's all from me for now. Don't forget to send me any questions, comments, or tips that you have.

Until next time,

Golnaz Esfandiari

If you enjoyed this briefing and don't want to miss the next edition, subscribe here. It will be sent to your inbox every Wednesday.
For over 20 years, the Imam Ali's Popular Student Relief Society has worked on combating poverty and helping vulnerable children in Iran.

But the charity, which has over 10,000 volunteers across Iran, has come under mounting pressure from the authorities in recent years. In 2021, an Iranian court ordered the independent NGO be dissolved, a ruling that was upheld by an appeals court last year.

In July 2021, the charity's founder, Sharmin Meymandinejad, was arrested and charged with insulting Iran's leaders. He was kept in detention for months, during which he alleges he was tortured.

In an interview with RFE/RL's Radio Farda, Meymandinejad, who recently fled Iran, said the clerical establishment saw his grassroots organization as a threat.

He said his organization's interpretation of Islam clashed with what he called the intolerant and violent version promoted by the authorities.

"Our path was different than the one taken by the establishment, our reading of the religion was an attempt to promote self-sacrifice, mercy, and altruism," said the 53-year-old, who now resides in the United States with his wife and three children.

"But the reading promoted by the establishment is based on violence, which the authorities claim comes from above, they even say from God," he added.

The crackdown on the charity, which is widely known as the Imam Ali's Society, came after years of state pressure and a smear campaign by hard-liners, who have branded the organization a cult, Meymandinejad said.

One of the NGO's biggest critics has been the ultra-hard-line daily Kayhan, whose editor in chief was appointed by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

"We didn't want to challenge the establishment. We were doing social work based on real [Islamic] principles," said Meymandinejad.

"They saw that a [nongovernmental] group was doing the work [of the government] and that comparisons could be made," he said.

The Imam Ali's Society has been credited with helping alleviate poverty and aiding marginalized Iranians. In comparison, large state charities with extensive funds are often seen as corrupt and ineffective.

The Imam Ali's Society, one of the largest NGOs in the Islamic republic, was launched in 1999 by a group of students led by Meymandinejad at Tehran's Sharif University of Technology. The organization originally focused on poverty alleviation but has since expanded its activities to include providing education, medical care, and social and cultural events for vulnerable children and campaigning against the death penalty for offenders who committed crimes as minors. The group has been credited with saving around 50 minors on death row.

Rights groups criticized the 2021 court order to disband the Imam's Ali Society as an assault on independent NGOs and said the ruling had been "made in apparent coordination with Iran's abusive intelligence and security apparatus."

It is unclear if the charity is still active or has been dissolved.

The original court order was issued following a complaint by the Interior Ministry, which said the Imam Ali's Society had "deviated" from its mission. As evidence, the court cited the group's "questioning of Islamic rulings," including the principle of qisas, or retributive justice, as well as "promoting falsehood by publishing statements against the Islamic republic of Iran."

The move came amid a wider crackdown on civil society and dissent. Scores of activists, lawyers, and journalists have been arrested in recent years.

The Oslo-based Iran Human Rights reported last year that two other NGOs, including the Society For the Protection of Children, have also come under pressure by the authorities.

'I Broke'

In his interview with Radio Farda, Meymandinejad also accused the authorities of sending children from poor Iranian families to fight in the war in Syria, where Iran's powerful Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) deployed military advisers and fighters to prop up the regime of President Bashar al-Assad.

Meymandinejad also accused the authorities of using minors to help crush nationwide antiestablishment protests that erupted in September.

Photos appeared on social media in October that purportedly showed children and adolescent boys wearing uniforms and holding batons. They appeared to be wearing the uniforms of the Basij paramilitary forces, a branch of the IRGC.

Members and supporters of the Imam Ali's Society said the authorities had recruited children from impoverished families to help "suppress" the street protests. In exchange, the minors received a "few bags of food," the charity said.

The Imam Ali's Society was among several groups that warned that the use of child soldiers was against international law.

Meymandinejad said he will continue to hold Iran's clerical establishment accountable for its actions even from exile.

He said state pressure and the alleged torture he suffered during his time in detention forced him to leave his homeland.

"I was weak, I wasn't strong like [prominent jailed rights activist] Narges Mohammadi. I was concerned that my children will pay the price for my activities," he said.

"After four months of torture I broke and signed whatever they wanted. I broke because of my children," he added.
Yevgeny Prigozhin, who led the Russian private Wagner mercenary group's aborted mutiny last month, has appeared in a video purportedly filmed in Belarus welcoming his fighters and saying they would be headed to Africa as the company was halting its involvement in Russia's war with Ukraine for the foreseeable future.

In the dimly lit video, posted by his press people on Telegram on July 19, Prigozhin is shown in front of a large number of armed men, greeting them "on the land of Belarus."

Since the Wagner leader was last seen pulling away in a vehicle in the Russian city of Rostov-on-Don on June 24, his whereabouts have been a mystery as rumors swirled about the man cast as a traitor by President Vladimir Putin, once a close friend of Prigozhin. What Wagner would do next with its thousands of soldiers was also a question mark.



"You have done a lot for Russia. What is happening now on the front line [in Ukraine] is a shame we do not need to take part in. We need to wait until the moment when we are able to fully express ourselves," Prigozhin says in the video, the date of which remains unknown, adding that "the decision was made that we will stay here in Belarus for some time.



"During that time, we will turn, and I am fully confident about that, the Belarusian Army into the second-best army in the world, and if need be, protect them.... We must get trained further...and then head to a new destination, to Africa, and then, probably, we will get back to the special military operation [in Ukraine] when we are sure that we will not be forced to shame ourselves and our experience," Prigozhin says.

The fate of Wagner troops has been unclear since Prigozhin led a short-lived mutiny on June 23-24, the biggest threat to Putins 23 years in power.



The authoritarian ruler of Belarus and Putin's close ally, Alyaksandr Lukashenka, was reportedly involved in talks to end the mutiny by agreeing with Prigozhin and Putin to host the Wagner troops, and their leader, in Belarus.



Days after Lukashenkas statement, a tent camp began to appear in the eastern village of Tsel, a former garrison for members of a Belarusian missile brigade.



An analysis of satellite images by Schemes (Skhemy), an investigative project run by RFE/RL, estimates there are at least 485 vehicles near the tent camp in total.



The images from Planet Labs show almost all the equipment is located near warehouse-like buildings, as well as the parking lot of the military camp. No heavy military equipment can be seen.



The Belaruski Hayun Telegram channel that monitors the movement of military equipment on the territory of Belarus said it had registered at least six columns of military vehicles and equipment with Wagner and Russian national flags in the countrys eastern region of Mahilyou since July 11.



In the Wagner video released on July 19, Dmitry Utkin, a former Russian military officer known for his ultranationalist stance, is also shown.



"It is not the end; it is just a beginning. It is our new phase. It is the beginning of the biggest work in the world that will be performed very soon," Utkin, who chose the name for the Wagner Group and has been one of its commanders, says, ending his statement in English by adding, "Welcome to hell!"



Wagner troops played a key role in Russias invasion of Ukraine, helping take main parts of the town of Bakhmut after nearly 10 months of intense fighting. Prigozhin said earlier that he lost 20,000 men during the Bakhmut operation.

With reporting by RFE/RL's Belarusian Service
Eight-year-old Halima was devastated to learn that after overcoming numerous obstacles to her education under Taliban rule, her path to learning had been blocked with the closure of her private school.

"We all went home crying," she told RFE/RLs Radio Azadi of the day she and her fellow students learned that their classes in Afghanistan's southern Kandahar Province had been terminated.

"Our schools were closed first by the coronavirus [pandemic], then there was fighting, and now they have been shut again," she said. "We just want to study."

The rural classroom where she studied was a lifeline for learning basic mathematics, Afghan languages, science, and Islamic studies despite the ruling Taliban's efforts to restrict girls' and women's access to education.

But on April 16, classes ended when the hardline Islamist authorities announced that the school, among Afghanistan's thousands of Community-Based Education (CBE) centers, would be closed following unspecified "complaints from locals."

Unrest and poverty in Kandahar and neighboring Helmand Province made the two regions a focal point for the development of CBE centers over the past three decades, with funding coming primarily from Western donors via the United Nations and international nongovernmental organizations.

Countrywide, more than 500,000 Afghan children currently attend CBE centers, which were established in cooperation with the communities in which they were based and are often held in private homes, mosques, or large tents.

Aid groups pay teachers' salaries, provide educational materials, and offer the same curriculum taught in Afghan state schools. The centers, typically made up of a single classroom catering for up to 50 students, half of them girls, also filled an education void in remote areas where there were no state schools.

But since mid-April, nearly 1,600 CBE centers in Kandahar Province have been closed, depriving 50,000 students of an education. Similar numbers have been recorded in neighboring Helmand Province in a nationwide trend.

'It's Heartbreaking'

The termination of classes at Halima's school and others like it appears to show that the narrow window for learning in remote areas is being closed as the Taliban looks to impose full control over how children are educated.

Munir Ahmad, who ran a literacy class inside his mudbrick home in Dand, a rural district in Kandahar Province, said he was forced to close his doors to students in April.

"It is heartbreaking to lose these classes because they serve children in remote areas where there are no other education opportunities," he told Radio Azadi.

The Taliban, approaching two years in power, has not commented on whether it has ordered the school closures. But aid workers, rights campaigners, and education experts suggest that the hardline group is trying to ensure that young students receive an Islamic education even though the CBE centers follow the state model.

This, in turn, has led to concerns that the Taliban either intends to permanently shut down the schools or use them as venues to spread its extremist worldview and ideology.

"It is alarming," said Heather Barr, associate director of the women's rights division at Human Rights Watch. "The Taliban will likely change these schools in a way that is harmful to students, particularly girls."

Education has been a main target of the Taliban's extremist policies since it seized power in August 2021 and took steps to root out secular education.

Teenage girls were promptly banned from attending school despite the Taliban's promises to the international community, which has listed the Taliban's stance on girls' and women's education as a key obstacle to officially recognizing its government.

'Jihadi Madrasahs'

Since taking power, the Taliban has consistently enforced strict gender segregation and replaced professional educators with clerics.

Last year, Taliban supreme leader Mullah Haibatullah Akhundzada appointed key loyalists Mawlawi Habibullah Agha and Nida Mohmmad Nadim to lead the education and higher education ministries, respectively.

The two have diligently worked to expand the ban on womens education and attempted to turn schools into a tool for indoctrination by tweaking the curriculum, critics say. In some cases, modern schools have been converted into madrasahs.

In December, the Taliban upped the ante by prohibiting women from receiving a university education.

And in the latest move, a Taliban official said this month that its government had established "jihadi madrasahs" in at least five provinces. Many Islamist militant groups, including the Taliban, emerged from such religious schools in Afghanistan and neighboring Pakistan in the 1980s.

Wazhma Tokhi, an Afghan human rights activist with a particular focus on women's rights and education in Afghanistan, suggests that the recent school closures can be seen as another example of the groups determination to root out secular education.

"They want to turn the schools into madrasahs," Tokhi said.

The UN agency for children, UNICEF, which funds many CBE centers, says it is now holding discussions with the Taliban over "timelines and practicalities" for possibly handing them over to Afghan NGOs, many of which receive outside funding and have some protection from the Taliban.

Tokhi sees disastrous consequences if the Taliban assumes direct control over CBE centers.

"Our future is destroyed," she said.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 14. The powers of the General Prosecutor's Office of Azerbaijan have been expanded, Trend reports.

In this regard, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev signed a decree to amend the decree No. 754 dated July 4, 2001 of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan "On determining the coordinating body for the European Agreement on the Transmission of Applications for Legal Aid, the European Convention on the Compensation of Victims of Violent Crimes, the European Convention on the Control of the Acquisition and Possession of Firearms by Individuals".

According to the decree, the General Prosecutor's Office of the Republic of Azerbaijan is defined as the central body for the implementation of the European Convention on Compensation of Victims of Violent Crimes, signed on November 24, 1983 in the city of Strasbourg, by the Republic of Azerbaijan.

Earlier this authority belonged to the Ministry of Justice.
PRAGUE -- The war in Ukraine has opened a global fight between democracies and autocracies and Taiwan needs Europe to play a larger role in securing peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific, Taiwanese Foreign Minister Joseph Wu said on June 14.



"We often talk about the war in Europe and the great threat to peace in Asia as two separate spheres," Wu said in a speech at a conference in Prague. "The reality is that they are highly interconnected, and the impact is global."



Wu also warned that increased cooperation between Beijing and Moscow poses a global threat and expressed growing concern over Russian-Chinese naval exercises in the Pacific, with the most recent set of drills concluding last week.



"What we are witnessing is that the two authoritarian forces are collaborating with each other, trading ever more with each other, and feeding more into the hunger for expansion," Taiwan's top diplomat said about Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine and Chinese territorial ambitions in the South China Sea, Taiwan, and elsewhere.



The comments came at a conference hosted by the European Values Center for Security Policy, a Prague-based think tank. The conference opened with a speech by Czech President Petr Pavel.

Wu spoke after Pavel, and though the Czech president left immediately after his speech -- not meeting or speaking with Wu -- their presence at the conference marked the first time a Taiwanese minister and European head of state shared a room together.



The quest for recognition and extensive informal ties are particularly vital to Taiwan, which only has formal diplomatic relations with 13 countries and the Vatican -- the only country in Europe to recognize Taipei.



But the self-ruling island of 23 million people has built up its informal links to Europe in recent years, especially in Central and Eastern Europe where countries like the Czech Republic, Slovakia, and Lithuania have been at the forefront.



In framing the war in Ukraine as part of a worldwide struggle between autocracies and democracies where Taiwan is also on the front line, Wu called on European countries to increase their rhetorical support for Taipei and protect against any Chinese military moves on Taiwan, which Beijing views as its territory and has vowed to unify with the mainland by peace or by force.

"In order for Taiwan to stay strong and resilient and to have the courage to continue the policy of maintaining the status quo, we do need support from our European friends," Wu said.



He added that while the war in Ukraine has caused global economic fallout, conflict in the Taiwan Strait would disrupt major supply chains and be a "shock wave" for Europe and the world.



"It will be the same or even worse if war is to break out in the Taiwan Strait where roughly half of the world's container ships sail through and more than 90 percent of the most advanced computer or semiconductor chips are produced," Wu said.



Building Taipei's Europe Ties



The Czech Republic has been particularly forward-leaning in its engagement with Taiwan.



While Prague still adheres to a One-China policy that doesn't extend formal diplomatic recognition to Taipei, it has also taken steps in recent years to shore up informal relations.

Most recently, Pavel accepted a congratulatory phone call from Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen after his election in January, which marked a departure by Taipei from previous practice in dealing with high-ranking officials. Wu also visited Prague in 2021 and met on June 13 with Czech Senate speaker Milos Vystrcil, a leading Czech figure in building closer ties with Taipei.



Beijing regularly denounces any form of contact between Taiwanese and foreign officials, viewing it as encouraging global recognition of Taipei's separate status from China. Speaking last week when details of Wu's visit were confirmed, China's Foreign Ministry urged Europe not to have any official exchanges with Taiwan or support any "independence forces."



Despite Beijing's anger, Prague and others have continued to increase contacts with the island and reduce its isolation.

Speaking at the conference in Prague, Pavel appeared to share a similar sentiment as Wu when he said that authoritarian countries around the world were closely watching "how democratic countries react to aggression" from Moscow in Ukraine because "this will define their [own] steps in the future."



The Czech president also warned about Beijing's desire to "change the world to better fit its interests" and called for greater scrutiny when it came to screening Chinese investments in strategic areas and also for the EU to take further steps to lessen Europe's economic dependence on China.



"It's not about isolating China; it's not about not doing business with China. We should do it the same way that China does to us," Pavel said. "Let's not create dependencies. Let's do business and let's cooperate when it is beneficial to both sides -- but let's keep in mind that China's long-term interests and values are not compatible with ours."



Wu declined to answer reporters' questions about what other stops he was expected to make on his European trip, although Reuters -- quoting anonymous sources briefed on the minister's trip -- reported that he will visit EU headquarters in Brussels.
KAMYANSKE, Ukraine -- The river flowing through this village in the Zaporizhzhya region separates territory controlled by Ukrainian and Russian forces and then flows into the Kakhovka reservoir, now almost empty after the breach of the big dam downstream on the Dnieper.

It is here -- on the destroyed bridge that spanned the Yanchekrak River, just 30 kilometers south of the regional capital -- that Ukrainian troops halted the Russian advance after Moscow launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022.



The exchange of fire that has been ongoing since then turned Kamyanske into a wasteland, with most of its buildings destroyed and hunks of shrapnel and rubble lying all around. Now, as Ukraine's long-anticipated counteroffensive kicks into gear, the sounds of artillery and rocket launchers never seem to stop.



From Kamyanske, the road south leads to the strategic, Russian-held cities of Tokmak and Melitopol, crucial for cutting through the "land bridge" that stretches east to the border, allowing Russia to supply occupied Crimea as well as Enerhodar, the city linked to the Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant, Europe's largest, which Russia seized shortly after the invasion, in early March 2022.



Kamyanske seems eerily empty: Neither residents nor soldiers are easy to spot, and often the only moving objects are the drones flying above. With scarce information and contradictory reports about the fighting on Ukraine's 1,000-kilometer front line, it is not clear whether and how far have the Ukrainian forces advanced here.



Broken Silence



Faced with high expectations and complex objectives, Ukraine launched an information campaign urging silence ahead of the counteroffensive. A video released in early June by the Defense Ministry showed camouflage-clad soldiers putting a finger to their lips -- Shhh! -- and displayed slogans "Plans like silence" and "The beginning will not be announced."



Shortly afterward, the counteroffensive started.



Some of the first reports about it came from the Russian Defense Ministry and nationalist Russian military bloggers, some of whom have close ties to military units or security agencies.

On June 5, the ministry said the Ukrainian military launched an attack around the village of Novodonetske, located between Velyka Novosilka and Vuhledar in the Donetsk region, the site of a large and disastrous Russian offensive in winter, and claimed Ukraine suffered heavy losses. The claims could not be independently verified, and reports by bloggers presented a mixed picture.



On June 8, Russian sources reported a Ukrainian attack in a heavily fortified area near Orikhiv, some 30 kilometers east of Kamyanske. Footage purportedly showing destroyed and damaged Western weapons appeared online. Russia's defense minister again claimed Ukrainian troops suffered heavy losses.



After these reports spread on Ukrainian social media, a widely known officer in the Ukrainian unit involved, Sergeant Valeriy Markus, dismissed the Russian claims in an emotional video -- an unusual breach of a rule banning public comment on combat operations by military personnel. He asserted that Russian losses were "many times bigger."



"On the first day, when they [Russian sources] announced that our brigade was crushed, that we had 350 dead soldiers, that it was over, that our brigade no longer existed, in fact, we had only five soldiers killed. This is a shining example of how shamelessly they lie," Markus said.

Ukraine's ultimate goal, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy says, is to drive Russian forces from all of Ukraine including Crimea, which Russia occupied in 2014. In addition to Crimea, Russian forces occupy parts of the Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhya, and Kherson regions, and the Kremlin baselessly claims those regions are now part of Russia.



The counteroffensive has led to increased fighting on several parts of the front line, which runs northeast from near Kherson and the Dnieper delta to the Donbas and part of the Kharkiv region. Attempts to advance into Russian-occupied territory put Ukrainian troops at risk from Russian artillery and air attacks as they move from their positions and from protection of air defense systems.



Mykola Byelyeskov, an analyst at Ukraine's National Institute for Strategic Studies, told RFE/RL on June 13 that so far attempts to break thorough Russian lines have turned into grinding battles in several areas of southern Ukraine. "This means that we are still within the offensive's first phase," he said.

Byelyeskov also said most of the Ukrainian and Russian units deployed at the front were formed after the February 2022 invasion.



"It's always a challenge to turn mobilized [draftees] into a fighting force. That proved true with regards to Russia, and there is no reason not to expect the same challenge in the case of Ukraine," he said.



East of Zaporizhzhya and Kamyanske, Ukrainian forces have advanced on a part of the front close to Velyka Novosilka, a town near the administrative border between the Zaporizhzhya and Donetsk regions. On June 10 and 11, Ukraine said its forces liberated four villages along the Mokriy Yaly River south of Velyka Novosilka: Makarivka, Neskuchne, Blahodatne, and Storozheve.



Later, on June 12, Ukraine said its forces took control of the villages of Levadne and Novodarivka, 10 kilometers to the west, although Russian officials said Ukrainian forces had been repelled in some of those areas.

Ukrainian security expert Pavlo Lakiychuk told RFE/RL that Ukrainian forces have been probing Russian defenses with "tactical" strikes but that there are no indications that they reached the main defense lines -- which include minefields, lines of dragon's teeth, and large anti-vehicle trenches.



"The main forces trained and equipped by Western allies are not engaged in the fighting, and the direction of the main strikes is yet to be determined," he said.



Nuclear Plant



Also on June 12, Ukraine said its forces had retaken the village of Lobkove, just southeast of Kamyanske. According to unofficial reports, the battles there lasted for several days.



With both sides understanding the stakes of controlling the roads leading both to the Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant and Melitopol, the fierce fighting in this area is no surprise, Byelyeskov said.



Around Kamyanske, the military ambulances speeding north toward Zaporizhzhya suggested that intense fighting continued. The relative calm in the villages north of Kamyanske indicated there was no imminent threat of a Russian advance.

The picturesque village of Prymorske, about 10 kilometers north of Kamyanske and the river that bisects it, is more or less intact, and life goes on despite the battles nearby.



According to Andriy Pidhorny, who is responsible for distributing humanitarian aid to civilians in the area, two-thirds of Prymorske's more than 3,500 residents remain, and many of them continue to work.



The village sits on a steppe cut by ravines and slopes that fall to the Kakhovka reservoir, a broad section of the Dnieper that stretches to the horizon. After the June 6 breach of the Russian-controlled Kakhovka dam, at the southern end of the reservoir, the water level fell by four meters, leaving most of the bottom dry, Pidhorny said, unfurling a map from the period before the construction of the dam in 1954.



Two soldiers patrolling the shoreline, Rostyslav and Oleksandr, have watched water recede from the shore for days. "It will be possible to drive a car here when the bottom dries out, but it won't affect our job here," Oleksandr said.



The exact cause of the breach is the subject of conflicting claims, with Ukraine saying Russia most likely detonated the dam it earlier mined from the inside. Lakiychuk asserted it was a "textbook Soviet move" by the Russian command aimed at slowing down the Ukrainian counteroffensive. Russian officials claim Ukraine caused the breach but have offered no explanation as to how it might have done.



Meanwhile, retaking the Zaporizhzhya plant, also on the Kakhovka reservoir, may be a crucial goal of the counteroffensive. Ukraine will likely try to pressure Russian troops to retreat from the plant, Lakiychuk said, adding that "one cannot rule out that in the worst case, Putin will decide to bring about a nuclear catastrophe."
Russian missile strikes killed at least six people overnight in the southern Ukrainian port city of Odesa and in the eastern region of Donetsk as Moscow continues its intense aerial attacks on its neighbor.



Russia has intensified its air attacks on Ukraine in recent weeks as Kyiv prepared to launch its long-awaited counteroffensive to reclaim territory occupied by Russian forces. Last week, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy acknowledged the operation was under way, with Moscow responding by ratcheting up further its strikes with cruise missiles and drones targeting major cities around the country.

At least three people were killed and 13 wounded in a Russian missile strike on Odesa, the Ukrainian military's southern command said early on June 14.

Live Briefing: Russia's Invasion Of Ukraine RFE/RL's Live Briefing gives you all of the latest developments on Russia's full-scale invasion, Kyiv's counteroffensive, Western military aid, global reaction, and the plight of civilians. For all of RFE/RL's coverage of the war in Ukraine, click here.

Russia fired four Kalibr missiles at the Black Sea port, hitting warehouses, a business center, a school, a residential complex, and a downtown store, the military said, adding that more people could be under the rubble. It said that two of the four missiles had been shot down.

The three victims were workers at a retail store warehouse, the military reported.

In Donetsk, three people were killed by Russian missiles in Kramatorsk and Kostyantynivka, regional Governor Pavlo Kyrylenko said on Facebook.

"Two people were killed and two were wounded in Kramatorsk, one was killed and one wounded in Kostyantynivka," Kyrylenko said.



"Missiles launched by the Russians hit private homes and caused significant damage: in Kramatorsk, they destroyed at least five houses and damaged two dozen more, in Kostyantynivka -- two destroyed and 55 others damaged," he said.

The Ukrainian air defense said on June 14 that the Russian strike targeted military and civilian infrastructure facilities with air and sea-based cruise missiles as well as Iranian-made kamikaze drones.

"From the Black Sea, the enemy attacked with four Kalibr cruise missiles in the direction of Odesa. Three rockets were shot down, one hit a civilian objective," the air defense said in a statement.

Ukrainian air defenses also shot down nine out of 10 drones, the statement said.

Ukraine's Dnipropetrovsk region also came under attack for a second day in a row, regional Governor Serhiy Lysak said on June 14.

IN PHOTOS: Journalists were given access to the newly liberated Ukrainian village of Neskuchne on June 13, confirming that Kyiv's forces have made modest gains in the early phase of their counteroffensive against Moscow's forces.

Three drones were shot down by air defenses, Lysak said, adding that Nikopol was shelled by Russian heavy artillery. There were no immediate reports of casualties, Lysak wrote on Telegram.

On June 13, 12 people were killed and 13 more, including three children, were wounded in a Russian missile strike on a five-story apartment building in the Dinipropetrovsk city of Kryviy Rih.

Meanwhile, Rafael Grossi, the head of the UN nuclear watchdog, the IAEA, postponed a visit to the Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant in southern Ukraine scheduled for June 13, an unnamed senior Ukrainian government official told Reuters. "He's waiting to be able to travel safely," the official said, after Grossi met with Zelenskiy on June 12 in Kyiv.



Grossi told journalists after his meeting with Zelenskiy that the Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant faces "a relatively dangerous situation" from both the Kakhovka dam burst last week and the start of Ukraines counteroffensive.

Meanwhile, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said Ukraine was making progress in its counteroffensive and predicted NATO leaders will increase military assistance to Kyiv when they meet next month.

Stoltenberg made the comments as he met at the White House with President Joe Biden on June 13.

Stoltenberg's visit to Washington came as Ukraine attempts to seize back territory as part of a long-awaited counteroffensive against the Russian invaders.

"The support that we are providing together to Ukraine is now making a difference on the battlefield as we speak because the Ukrainians have launched the offensive," he said. "They are making advances; they are gaining ground."

Biden reiterated that the U.S. commitment to NATO was rock-solid and that NATO allies would "be building on that momentum" when they meet in Vilnius next month.

As the meeting took place, the U.S. State Department announced a new $325 million package of ammunition and heavy weaponry to top up Ukraine's supplies.

The Ukrainian military said that seven settlements had been liberated in the southern and eastern regions of the country and further advances had been made in Bakhmut amid heavy fighting.

"Both defensive and offensive fierce fighting is ongoing in the east and south of our nation. We have certain gains, implementing our plans, moving forward," said Valeriy Zaluzhniy, commander in chief of Ukrainian forces.

The claims could not be independently confirmed, and Moscow has not acknowledged any Ukrainian gains.

Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, a close ally of President Vladimir Putin who has been one of the most virulent defenders of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, on June 14 said that Moscow had "no constraints" to prevent it from destroying Western undersea communications cables following what he said was the West's "proven complicity" in the destruction of the Nord Stream pipelines last year.



The Washington Post reported earlier this month that the United States had learned of a Ukrainian plan to attack the pipelines three months before they were damaged by the underwater explosions.



The Ukrainian government has repeatedly denied any involvement in the explosions. Russia has also denied it was behind the blasts.



"If we proceed from the proven complicity of Western countries in blowing up the Nord Streams, then we have not even moral constraints left to prevent us from destroying the ocean floor cable communications of our enemies," Medvedev, who is now deputy head of Russia's Security Council, said on Telegram.

With reporting by Reuters, AP, AFP, and dpa
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 14. Employees of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) visited two Azerbaijani soldiers (Agshin Babirov and Huseyn Akhundov) held captive in Armenia on June 13, the ICRC told Trend.

According to the ICRC's statement, a one-on-one meeting was held with them, and they were given the opportunity to contact their families.

"As per its mandate, the ICRC evaluates the treatment conditions of detainees during the visit. We create conditions for the restoration or further keeping contacts with their families. In accordance with the ICRC procedures, observations and recommendations in connection with visits are provided only to the detaining party," the statement added.

Previously, the ICRC employees visited the soldiers on April 19.

The Azerbaijani military servicemen Agshin Babirov (born in 2004) and Huseyn Akhundov (born in 2003) went missing due to limited visibility under adverse weather conditions in the border area of the Shahbuz district of Azerbaijans Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic with Armenia on April 10.

Later, it was revealed that both of the servicemen were captured by Armenian Armed Forces.

Meanwhile, on May 8, a court in Armenia passed "a verdict" against Babirov, sentencing him to over 11 years of imprisonment.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 14. The delegation led by the Chief of the Medical Department of the Ministry of Defense, Medical service Major General Firudin Nabiyev visited Kazakhstan, Trend reports citing the press service of the Ministry.

During the meeting views were exchanged on the development prospects of cooperation in the field of military medicine between Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan, as well as other issues of mutual interest.
MILITARY veterans from Rotherham joined comrades from across the country to mark the anniversary of a great wartime tragedy.

The bombing raid on Great Yarmouth on May 11, 1943, killed 26 members of the Auxiliary Territorial Service (ATS) the biggest loss of female service personnel in British history.

The 80th anniversary was marked with services across the nation, including one at Aston-Cum-Aughton, where 21-year-old Pte Jean Copley is buried.

This was attended by Womens Royal Army Corps veterans Cheryl Jones, Karen Baxter and Leona Goffin, as well as male veterans and local historians.

The national coordinated tribute of 25 commemoration events took place at 2pm on May 14.
CLASS A drugs, hundreds of cannabis plants and a dozen arrests  officers were out in force and Operation Duxford brought more successes.

But the senior team made it clear that just as important was improving South Yorkshire Polices relationship with the people of Rotherham.

The regular Op Duxford days aim to improve SYPs links within communities, identify and tackle criminal activity, and protect vulnerable people living in communities affected by crime.

The district welcomed officers from across the force last Wednesday (7), with some 128 officers and staff taking part  some from 7am and others late into the night.

Chief Inspector John Crapper said: Weve been planning on what we can do to address things among the community, and we want to take advantage of having these large numbers of officers here for the day to really try and make a difference.

Weve been looking at the things that are of maximum threat to the good residents of Rotherham.

Weve been focusing on organised criminality, armed criminality and domestic abuse and weve been planning on what we can do to address these.

The arrests included a 27-year-old woman on suspicion of ten shop thefts, two people for possession of class A drugs, and another for production of a controlled drug.

Two search warrants uncovered almost 300 cannabis plants and roads policing officers seized four vehicles.

Sgt Lucy Richmond said: The main aim of the day is to make the community aware that we are acting on the intel that has been submitted and we are committed to protecting them from the crimes that impact them the most.

Its all about how we can open those lines of communication and get intel from our community to help them as best as we can.

Further into the day, PC Michelle Hudson joined the operation on police horse Hoyland to support the teams  patrolling until 7pm to reassure the public and target any concerns that were expressed.

We find that a lot of people from the community get worried when they see an increased police presence but what we want to do now is pass on the message that there shouldn't be any concerns at all, said PC Hudson.

Weve come out for the afternoon operation, so well be going into the town centre to let the community know of the arrests weve made and what the operation is all about.

Assistant Chief Constable David Hartley told the officers it was important to note the forces improvements in the eyes of inspectors from His Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services.

But he added: What Im more interested in is what our communities say about us. They are not yet saying we are outstanding, we not yet getting absolutely brilliant.

These days of action are really important for us. This work is what you do day-to-day, but that is sometimes missed by the wider public. What these days do is showcase your work and gives it visibility.

To report an issue that is a concern to you, visit southyorkshire.police.uk and use the whats happening in your area? search tool to find out which nrighnourhood policing team serves your part of Rotherham and how to contact them.
FIREFIGHTERS spent nearly four and a half hours dealing with deliberate blazes across the borough overnight  a day after posting online about the dangers of arson attacks to communities.

Crews were first called out to a deliberate bin fire at 7.10pm on School Street, Thurnscoe, and left the scene at 7.30pm.

Just ten minutes later, a crew from Rotherham station were called to the first deliberate grassland fire on Droppingwell Road in Kimberworth.

It took an hour and 40 minutes to tackle the blaze, with firefighters leaving at 9.20pm.

Meanwhile, at 7.45pm, Dearne firefighters were called out to another deliberate grassland fire on Broadwater, Bolton-on-Dearne, which took nearly an hour to deal with.

The crew came away at 8.35pm.

The final deliberate fire involving grassland was on Bradbury Balk Lane, Wombwell, with the blaze taking crews an hour and 35 minutes to deal with.

They came away at 9.40pm.

The day before, South Yorkshire Fire and Rescue had posted on Facebook appealing for information about deliberate fire-setting across South Yorkshire and encouraging people to help us bring arsonists to justice by calling its anonymous FireStoppers line on 0800 169 5558.
A DELIGHTED Millers fan has been reunited with his one-of-a-kind RUFC walking stick  thanks to the Advertiser.

Paul Miree appealed for help tracing the distinctive prized possession, which was a 50th birthday present from son Kevin.

Paul (68) believed he had left it at a shopping precinct in Rawmarsh  but it turned up in a medical centre car park.

The custom-made stick bears the Rotherham United crest and regularly supports Paul when hes supporting the team.

It had been discovered outside RDaSHs Swallownest Court  where Paul had visited someone months before  and handed in.

When the Advertiser contacted Paul to inform him the stick had been found, he said: Im nearly crying. Its better than winning the lottery. Im overwhelmed.

The stick means so much to me. It was a present from my son and its got so many memories.

I cant thank the Advertiser and Swallownest Court enough.

Paul, of Upper Haugh, went along to collect the stick, which had been recognised by receptionist Collette Link after she read our initial article.

Paul handed over a 50 donation as a thank you, which staff said would be used for treats for patients staying at the mental health centre. After having his photo taken by the Tiser, Paul added: It was great to get the stick back in my hands. It was like giving me a million pounds.

I thanked the staff very much and gave them a big hug.

An RDaSH spokesperson said: We will use the funds towards patient comforts and activities during their stay with us.

Now Paul is looking forward to taking the Millers memento back to matches at New York Stadium next season.

And while he cant guarantee it brings the team luck, he knows he is lucky to have the stick back.

Ill not be letting it out of my sight again, he said.
BJP leader Parveen Bansal

Case has been registered in the Police Station Division No. 2

Ludhiana: A case has been registered in the Police Station Division No. 2 against the former vice president of Punjab BJP, Parveen Bansal, for assaulting the Pujari of the Ludhiana temple and his family. The incident is of the Arya Samaj temple located in Kidwai Nagar, where there was a dispute over the evacuation of the temple. A video of the entire matter has come out after which the police has taken action.

BJP leader Parveen Bansal had said that he was preparing to perform Havan in the temple. The priest of the temple has died and his son used to look after the temple. Earlier, Issues and Frauds have come to the fore in Temple's Money. Due to this rivalry, the 'Pujari' tried to obstruct in-between Havan. After the video of this matter came out, the Brahmin community also staged a protest demanding action against the leader.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 14. On June 14, 2023, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Azerbaijan Jeyhun Bayramov met with Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Uzbekistan Bobur Usmanov, Trend reports citing the press service of MFA.

During the meeting, the parties discussed the prospects for the comprehensive development of bilateral cooperation relations between Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan, based on historical friendship and brotherhood, and issues on the agenda of cooperation.

Minister Jeyhun Bayramov, noting the cooperation and mutual support of states on a bilateral plane, as well as on international platforms, stressed the existence of close ties within the UN, the Organization of Turkic States, the Commonwealth of Independent States, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, the Non-Aligned Movement and other international organizations, adding that there is a dynamic growth of bilateral relations in trade, industry, tourism and other areas. The minister thanked for the support of Uzbekistan in the restoration of the liberated territories of Azerbaijan, in particular, emphasizing the high assessment of the construction of a school in the city of Fuzuli.

Deputy Minister Babur Usmanov, thanking for the reception, stressed Uzbekistan's intention to develop relations with friendly and fraternal Azerbaijan and spoke about new opportunities in this direction.

During the meeting, the parties also exchanged views on other bilateral and regional issues of mutual interest.
Dr Sunita Siddhu Dhindsa

Dr. Sunita Siddhu Dhindsa has retired from the post of Director of Ministry of Health, Govt of Australia

CANBERRA: A list of 1,191 Australian citizens to be honored on the 'King's Birthday' has been released by the Governor General of Australia, David Harlin. In this list, Punjabi origin, Dr. Sunita Siddhu Dhindsa has also been selected for the 'Order of Australia' award. There is a wave of happiness in the Punjabi community with this news.

The list includes the names of a total of 12 Indian-origin Australian citizens, who have been selected for the award for their work in various fields. Dr. Sunita Siddhu Dhindsa will be honored with 'Order of Australia' (O.A.M.), India's equivalent of Padma Shri, for social service.

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Ph.D Degree holder from Punjab Agricultural University, Dr. Sunita Siddhu Dhindsa has been living in Australia with her family for almost 30 years and she has retired from the post of Director of Ministry of Health, Government of Australia. Apart from this, She has also worked on various positions in the highest organizations of Indian origin.
New Zealand will on Wednesday release Q1 numbers for current account, highlighting a light day for Asia-Pacific economic activity.

The current account is expected to lose NZ$6.90 billion in the quarter after shedding NZ$9.46 billion in the previous three months. On an annualized basis, the current account is called lower by NZ$29.54 billion after losing NZ$33.79 billion in the previous year.

South Korea will see May numbers for unemployment, with forecasts suggesting no change from April for the jobless rate at 2.6 percent.

For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com

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What parts of the world are seeing the best (and worst) economic performances lately? Click here to check out our Econ Scorecard and find out! See up-to-the-moment rankings for the best and worst performers in GDP, unemployment rate, inflation and much more.
The United States has announced a new security assistance package worth $325 million to help meet Ukraine's security and defense needs.

The package includes key capabilities such as Bradley infantry fighting vehicles; Stryker armored personnel carriers; artillery rounds; Stinger anti-aircraft systems; Javelin anti-armor systems; ammunition to U.S.-provided HIMARS; and more than 22 million rounds of small-arms ammunition to strengthen Ukraine's forces on the battlefield and to help Ukraine retake its sovereign territory.

The package also contains additional munition for Ukraine's air defenses to help protect the Ukrainian people.

As per a Pentagon fact sheet, the capabilities in this package include additional munitions for National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile Systems (NASAMS); Stinger anti-aircraft systems; Additional ammunition for High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS); 155mm and 105mm artillery rounds; 15 Bradley Infantry Fighting Vehicles; 10 Stryker Armored Personnel Carriers; Javelin anti-armor systems; Tube-Launched, Optically-Tracked, Wire-Guided (TOW) missiles; AT-4 anti-armor systems; 22 million rounds of small arms ammunition and grenades; Demolition munitions for obstacle clearing; Tactical secure communications support equipment; and Spare parts and other field equipment.

This is the 40th drawdown of equipment from Department of Defense inventories using presidential drawdown authorities for Ukraine.

The United States is partnering with more than 50 nations to lead efforts in support of Ukraine's self-defense against Russian aggression.

Meanwhile, six civilians were killed in overnight Russian attacks on Ukraine's key Black Sea port of Odesa and Donetsk.

For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com

Political News
President Joe Biden and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg discussed preparations for the upcoming NATO Summit in Vilnius.

At the meeting held at the White House, the leaders discussed the implications of Russia's war on Ukraine for transatlantic security and the importance of continuing to strengthen NATO's deterrence and defense.

They welcomed the support that Allies and partners are providing bilaterally to help Ukraine defend itself from Russian aggression.

They also discussed the need for Allies to build on the 2014 Wales Summit defense investment pledge.

In addition, the leaders underscored their shared desire to welcome Sweden to the Alliance as soon as possible.

Sweden's accession process will be completed only after Turkey and Hungary conclude their ratification processes.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan insists on returning PKK militants for his country's ratification of Sweden's bid to join NATO.

The North Atlantic Council's approval of the applications for NATO membership requires ratification by the parliaments of all the countries of the 31-member bloc.

Hungary and Turkey remains the only NATO members that have not yet ratified the instrument of ratification of Sweden's Accession Protocols.



President Biden conveyed that he is looking forward to hosting NATO Allies in Washington, D.C. during July 9-11.

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization's 75th anniversary summit is scheduled to be held at the capital of Lithuania on July 11 and 12.

For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com

Business News
Gypsy is one of the most iconic rally vehicle of the past until 1993 and forms base of inspiration for Bimble Designs Jimny Dakar Edition

Maruti Suzuki Gypsy is one of the most iconic vehicles in Indian automobile market. It has procured legend status already and the company has launched Jimny to carry on Gypsys legacy. Jimny prices start from Rs. 12.74 lakh and go till Rs. 15.05 lakh (both prices ex-sh). Even though Gypsy is discontinued, people are still comparing it with Jimny.

Bimble Designs has done something similar and rendered Jimny Dakar Edition. Design inspirations are immediately visible from Gypsy. Especially its White shade along with White shade on its off-road worthy alloy wheels. Other than the White shade, Bimble Designs has added a multitude of new add-ons to this render to make Jimny Rally-ready.

Rally-Ready Jimny Dakar Edition Render  Powerhouse

For starters, Jimny Dakar Edition by Bimble Designs gets suspension lift kit that takes the ground clearance quite high. There are wide wheel arches, but these BFGoodrich M/T (Mud Terrain) tyres wrapped on off-road-worthy alloy wheels jut out quite a but. There is a new custom off-road bumper, taking the approach angle virtually close to infinity.

Bimble Designs have added additional roll cages underneath the front grille that should be sturdy enough to equip a high-torque winch. Brake calipers get yellow paint matching BFGoodrich logo on tyres. Rear gets disc brakes too.

Water wading capability of Jimny Dakar Edition benefits with the addition of a high-set snorkel. The Maruti Suzuki branding on the windshield eats into the glass area. But considering that this is for Dakar Rally, this branding is a welcome addition as it cuts down on suns glare on the desert. Jimnys clamshell bonnet gets an upgrade in the form of two giant hood scoops.

Bimble Designs has replaced rear door glass and quarter panel glass with sheet metal as it is lighter than glass. There are a multitude of stickers from every major rally team sponsors in existence. From the factory, Jimny gets solid axles at both ends and with these tyres, off-road ability gets enhanced.

Bimble Designs Dakar-Inspired Gem

Engine is likely to be the sole sore point on Jimny Dakar Edition. We say this because the stock 1.5L NA petrol engine only makes 103 bhp of power and 134 Nm of torque. This engine in this state of tune, will definitely struggle to even roll these fat tyres wrapped to large forged off-road-worthy wheels.

Rally vehicles are usually modded to the max. So, we hope there is a big turbo under the bonnet along with sturdier drive components and forged engine components. Bimble Designs have added a large roof rack to their render which will hamper aerodynamics. But Jimny has aerodynamics of a brick, to begin with. So, it doesnt matter, anyway.

This rack has 8 custom flood lights and if you think thats excess, there are two on its bonnet along with additional four lights on front bumper. These auxiliary lights are 14 in total and can turn night into day, which is useful in rally-spec vehicles like this.

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From Engage to Invicto: Maruti Suzukis Hybrid MPV, a MSIL Makeover and a New Name

Indias highest-selling car brand announced today that its Toyota-sourced premium hybrid MPV will not bear the name Engage. Instead, Maruti Suzuki has gone with the word Invicto. This will be the most premium vehicle in Maruti Suzuki stables and Nexa dealerships will sell them exclusively. Launch for said vehicle will happen on July 5th, 2023.

Maruti Suzuki had released official material which suggested the name Engage. But for reasons best known to Maruti Suzuki, Invicto name seems to be final. Invicto will be the most premium vehicle to ever grace Maruti Suzuki dealerships (both Arena and Nexa) and will be the companys flagship.

Embrace the Power and Luxury of Hybrid Technology

In the last official teaser, Maruti Suzuki had teased Engage MPV (now Invicto) by using a European landscape in the background. We would reckon Engage or Invicto will be on offer in select European markets under Suzuki branding just like Celerio is sold as Toyota Vitz in South African market.

Maruti Suzuki Invicto is based on Toyotas global TNGA platform. TNGA is a monocoque architecture that should ensure lightness, superior structural integrity and chassis rigidity along with sorted ride and handling characteristics as well. For people craving rugged dependability of a ladder-frame chassis and frugality of a diesel engine, Toyota still sells Innova Crysta.

Invicto has a front wheel drive layout too like its Toyota counterpart. A sole 2.0L petrol engine is on offer. Going with Nexa trim hierarchy, Maruti Suzuki Invicto will have Sigma, Delta, Zeta, Zeta Plus, Alpha and Alpha Plus trims, which align with G, GX, VX, VX (O), ZX, ZX (O) trims on Innova Hycross.

Just like Grand Vitara, Maruti Suzuki might call hybrid variants as Intelligent Hybrid. This hybrid setup might only make it to Zeta, Zeta Plus, Alpha and Alpha Plus trims. While Sigma and Delta trims will get gasoline powertrains only. Speaking of powertrains, a sole 2.0L petrol engine is on offer with or without hybrid components.

Maruti Suzuki Invicto: The Flagship Hybrid MPV Arrives on July 5th, 2023

In non-hybrid setup, this engine develops 171 bhp of power and 205 Nm of torque. Hybrid setup gets an additional 206 Nm electric motor and the engine is setup to generate 183.8 bhp and 188 Nm. All variants get a CVT gearbox to transmit power to the front wheels. There will be 7S and 8S variants and a price increment of around Rs. 10,000 to Rs. 15,000 over Innova Hycross counterparts is likely.

Features list includes ADAS tech, LED headlights, a panoramic sunroof, ambient lighting, climate control, roof-mounted AC vents, ottoman function for 2nd row, powered drivers seat, a large touchscreen infotainment system with smartphone integration and a ton more. Production has commenced at Toyotas Bidadi plant near Bengaluru, Karnataka.

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Toyotas Crown EV prototype demonstrated the companys bipolar solid state batteries that will be the next big thing with EVs in the future

Range anxiety! The one hindering factor in EV growth. Regardless of range anxiety, EV sales are clocking higher numbers with every month. Advances in Battery tech and aero efficiency will go a long way in extracting a longer range than what is currently possible. Advances are underway in EV tech in the form of solid-state batteries that will ensure more range and less cost.

Toyota wants to be at the forefront of solid-state batteries as it has dived head-first into this realm. Facing criticism for slower EV adoption, Toyota is showing the world that it means business when it does adopt. The automotive giant showcased its new-gen solid-state battery with a Crown sedan concept with 1,353 km of range on a single charge.

Toyotas Crown EV Prototype Has 1,353 Km Range

Yes! You read that right. In a Lets Change the Future of Cars workshop, Toyota revealed key details about its electrification roadmap. For starters, the company intends to offer both affordable EVs for the masses and enthusiast EVs with better capabilities. Toyota is comparing BZ4X, an EV it currently sells, with its next gen battery.

For performance versions, Toyota will stick with monopolar NCM (Nickel Cobalt Manganese) batteries and promise 200% range of BZ4X. 200% of 615 km (range of BZ4X) is 1,230 km. This next-gen battery will grace the markets in 2026 with a 20% increase in cost efficiency as opposed to BZ4Xs battery cost. Charging time will be around 20 minutes for 10-80%.

Toyota is working on a new type of bipolar LFP (Lithium Ferrous Phosphate) battery for mass market offerings. This is likely to storm the market by 2026 and 2027. This battery promises 20% increase in range when compared to BZ4Xs 615 km range. This translates to 738 km of range.

For the mainstream market, this is phenomenal considering charging time of 30 minutes for taking SOC (State Of Charge) from 10% to 80%. These new bipolar LFP batteries aim to be 40% more cost-effective than BZ4Xs batteries.

Ushering new era of Battery tech and vehicular engineering

If you observed closely, performance batteries are still monopolar in 2026. That will change till 2028. Toyota promises a high-performance bipolar solid-state battery promising a 10% increase in range and 10% increase in cost efficiency when compared to next-gen performance batterys 1,230 km. This means a total range of 1,353 km and charging times for 10-80% is still 20 minutes.

Toyota is not aiming to achieve this by the virtue of batteries alone. Reduction in weight, a smaller rear electric axle, more efficient aerodynamics based on a rockets hypersonic aerodynamics and other attributes. Toyota has already begun work on its bipolar solid-state batteries and showcased the same in a Crown sedan. The company intends to take charging time close to gasoline refueling times and cut down on range anxiety and cost associated with EVs.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 14. The launch of the EU monitoring mission in Armenia took place unilaterally, on a non-consensual basis, without the consent of the Azerbaijani side and other regional players and without proper reporting, Spokesperson for Russian Foreign Ministry Maria Zakharova said, following the opening of three operational centers of the EU monitoring mission in Armenia, Trend reports.

According to her, this only confirms the true background of the EU policy in the region, the main thing for which is squeezing Russia out of the South Caucasus, turning the region into an arena of geopolitical confrontation to the detriment of the fundamental interests of the people living here.

"Obviously, the increase in the number of EU "monitoring" bases in Armenia has nothing to do with the task of establishing stability and peace in relations between Baku and Yerevan. The non-accountability of the EU mission to the international community and, above all, to Azerbaijan and Armenia, reinforces suspicions that there is a hidden agenda in EU activities "on the ground", the presence of a "second bottom" in the mandate of the mission under the guise of its "civilian" nature. Considering all the circumstances, not only we have numerous legitimate questions about the real motives of the EU's actions in the region," she said.

According to the representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry, there is no "added value" from the dubious activity of the EU "experts" in the area of the Armenian-Azerbaijani border.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 15. Azerbaijan is always close to Turkiye, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said after a meeting of the Cabinet of Ministers of the country, Trend reports.

"Turkiye always supports the brotherly country. We will never forget the solidarity shown by the Azerbaijani people during the catastrophic earthquake in our country," he said.

Noting that the volume of trade between Turkiye and Azerbaijan has reached $15 billion, Erdogan said that one of the goals is to open a joint university between the two countries.
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...AIR QUALITY ALERT IN EFFECT UNTIL MIDNIGHT EDT TONIGHT... An Air Quality Alert is in effect until midnight EDT Tuesday night. The Vermont Agency of Natural Resources has issued an Air Quality Alert for fine particle pollution from wildfire smoke for all of Vermont through midnight tonight. The 24 hour average Air Quality Index (AQI) is expected to occur within the Code Orange or Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups category. However, note that pollutant levels may occur in the code red or "unhealthy" range for all individuals on an hourly basis. Who needs to be concerned? Sensitive groups include people with heart or lung disease, older adults, children and teenagers, minority populations, and outdoor workers. What should you do? Sensitive groups should reduce prolonged or heavy exertion. It's okay to be active outside, but take more breaks and do less intense activities. Watch for symptoms such as coughing or shortness of breath. People with asthma should follow their asthma action plans and keep quick relief medicine handy. If you have heart disease, symptoms such as palpitations, shortness of breath, or unusual fatigue may indicate a serious problem. If you have any of these, contact your healthcare provider. For additional information, please visit the Vermont Agency of Natural Resources website at https://dec.vermont.gov/air- quality/local-air-quality-forecasts
Representatives from Southwest Key Programs Casa San Diego on Broadway near Oro Street in El Cajon told the El Cajon City Council that a clerical error is to blame for the miscounting of children who have run away from the facility, a shelter for unaccompanied migrant children.

Representatives from Southwest Key Programs told the El Cajon City Council on Tuesday that a clerical error is to blame for inconsistencies in its reporting to authorities about the number of children who have run away from its facility in El Cajon.

Members of the City Council had raised concerns about whether Southwest Key was in compliance with its state license and federal contract after a story published last month in The San Diego Union-Tribune showed a discrepancy.

The U-T Watchdog report found that Casa San Diego, the El Cajon shelter for unaccompanied migrant children run by Southwest Key, reported seven runaway children to local public safety officials in 2017. The story said that only three of those runaways were reported to the California Department of Social Services, which oversees the facility.

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The Texas-based nonprofit contracts with the federal Office of Refugee Resettlement, under the Department of Health and Human Services. It provides care to children who either show up at the U.S.-Mexico border without any parents or who are separated from their legal guardians by U.S. immigration officials.

Casa San Diego is one of 27 facilities in California, Arizona and Texas run by Southwest Key. The group also has a center in Lemon Grove and another near Alpine.

Southwest Key Assistant Program Director Ana Babudar said Casa San Diego met with state licensing officials earlier this year and was not cited for any of its reporting issues in San Diego.

We hold three licenses in San Diego and we do all the reporting accordingly to them as well as to the other agencies that we report to, Babudar said. Weve been in the city of El Cajon since February of 2016 and we have been great community members.

Ismael Avilez, an administrator at Southwest Key, told the council that the nonprofit has a pretty stellar record and that the news unfortunately only got half of the story.

Records obtained by U-T Watchdog under the California Public Records Act show the shelter called El Cajon police 19 times in 2017. While most of those calls involved a faulty burglar alarm at the facility, on seven occasions, calls to police were to report runaway juveniles.

According to state records, three of those cases were reported to the Social Services department, the state agency responsible for providing oversight over all juveniles living outside their parents care.

We were not cited, Avilez said. I think that exemplifies the fact that it was not necessarily a violation but what we saw as a clerical issue. In terms of the three locations, they were looking at different locations and it was a filing issue.

Babudar invited the City Council to tour the facility at Broadway and Oro Street. City Councilman Ben Kalasho shared his phone number with Babudar and said he wanted to see the center.

The City Council directed city staff to meet with Casa San Diego personnel to visit the site and gain an understanding of the operation. As requested by City Councilman Steve Goble, the council also will write letters to the California Department of Social Services and the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services about the issue.

Seby Sebastian, regional director for Southwest Key, said that runaway children are reported to public safety officials and that the facility does not follow up on their whereabouts.

karen.pearlman@sduniontribune.com
Schools and parents are learning how to spot prescription painkillers and popular sedatives like Valium and Xanax among students.

Would you know if your teen was swiping sedatives from a family medicine cabinet, and then taking them at school? Could you spot a vaping pen  used for smoking pot  in your students pencil bag?

Parents asked themselves these questions during a presentation on drug and alcohol abuse at Escondido High School Thursday night.

School officials organized the event after a spate of recent incidents at three campuses in which students became ill after taking the drug Xanax. The discussion covered the types of substances trending now, their potential side effects, and the avenues through which students are exposed to both street and prescription drugs.

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I have been out of the loop on all of this because I work full time, said Melissa Navarrete, whose 15-year-old son attends the school. This whole thing is new compared to when I was in high school. As there are more mental health issues among adults, (prescription drugs) are more available to kids.

In September, five students at San Pasqual High School in Escondido became ill after taking pills that authorities believe to be Xanax, a sedative used to treat anxiety. A month later, two other groups of Escondido students  from Rincon Middle School and Del Lago Academy  were also sickened after apparently taking the prescription drug.

Authorities said the pills they popped could be the actual medication Xanax or a counterfeit  and potentially more dangerous -- version being sold on the street.

Known as handlebars, planks, brick, Xannies and other nicknames, the drugs are dispensed in individual tablets or in multi-dose bars that can be split into individual pieces, said Yesenia Martinez, community organizer for the Escondido Drug-Free Community Coalition. Teens experimenting with the drug sometimes take the entire two-milligram bar  equivalent to four standard doses. Symptoms of Xanax use include slurred speech, shallow breathing, sluggishness, fatigue, disorientation and lack of coordination, she said.

Counterfeit versions are also up for sale. Those could be essentially inert, she said, or more potent and deadly than pharmaceutical pills.

Some pills contain little alprazolam (the active ingredient in Xanax) or more than two milligrams, Martinez said. Some can be laced with Fentanyl, a synthetic opioid thats fatal at small doses.

Some students, including high achievers, also abuse stimulants such as Ritalin or Adderall, using them to stay awake or boost study sessions, she said. Once they become addicted, users sometimes crush the tablets and snort or inject them.

Marijuana, now legal, is available in myriad forms, including edible varieties attractive to kids, such as chocolate, soda and even gummy candy. It can also be consumed in vaping devices, some of which are designed to look like pens or flash drives.

Some of the kids have stuff in plain sight, she said. They hide vaping pens with their markers, so at first glance you dont see it.

Students surveyed about marijuana say pot is easier to get than alcohol and many believe it has no harmful side effects, she said. Thats in contrast to studies that show risks ranging from mental health issues to lung cancer, she said.

Those dangers are familiar to Lourdes Osornio, an Escondido High School parent who said her brother began using drugs at age 11. With three children of her own, ages 18, 15 and 11, Osornio said she came to the presentation to stay a step ahead on substance abuse.

I grew up in a neighborhood in Mexico where little kids used drugs, she said. When I grew up, I said I dont want it in my house.

deborah.brennan@sduniontribune.com Twitter@deborahsbrennan
A blood donation campaign was held at "Baku Steel Company" CJSC on the occasion of June 14 - World Blood Donor Day.

The campaign organized within the social responsibility projects of the Company took place with the support of the National Hematology and Transfusion Center. More than 200 employees of the Company voluntarily participated in the event and donated blood.

During the campaign, organized at the Medical station of Baku Steel Company CJSC, the health condition of each donor was pre-checked by the hematologists, and blood was taken from them after appropriate medical examination. The collected blood and derived medicines are intended for the treatment of patients with hemophilia and thalassemia, as well as for other patients who need blood.

The slogan for 2023 World Blood Donor Day campaign is Give blood, give plasma, share life, share often. This theme focuses on individuals who require lifelong transfusion support, emphasizing the crucial role that every person can play by donating blood or plasma. Baku Steel Company CJSC also acknowledges the importance of giving blood or plasma regularly to create a safe and sustainable supply of blood and blood products that can be always available, in Azerbaijan Republic, so that all patients in need can receive timely treatment.

Overall, it should be noted that officially designated as an annual event by the World Health Assembly in 2005, World Blood Donor Day provides a special opportunity to thank voluntary blood donors around the world for their gift of blood.
The aunt of Carlsbad woman accused in a failed murder-for-hire plot testified in a Vista courtroom Monday that her niece had once asked if she knew someone who would scare or kill her estranged husband.

The alleged conversation, perhaps a year or so before the nieces husband was shot by a sniper, began when the niece, Diana Lovejoy, told her aunt how frightened she was of her husband, and that she suspected he was abusing their son.

She said Aunt Diana, do you know anyone who could do that, either scare him or kill him? Diana Clark said.

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Clarks testimony came on the second day of a preliminary hearing for Lovejoy and her gun instructor, Weldon McDavid. At the end of the hearing, Superior Court Judge Robert Kearney found that enough evidence existed to order the pair to face trial.

They have pleaded not guilty to conspiracy and attempted murder in the attack on Lovejoys husband, which took place about 11 p.m. on Sept. 1 along a dark dirt road in Carlsbad. A suspicious call from a burner phone had lured the victim, Greg Mulvihill, to the area.

Attorneys for both defendants said there is no evidence of any agreement to kill Mulvihill.

Lovejoy and Mulvihill were in the middle of a contentious divorce and bitter custody battle. She met McDavid weeks before the shooting, while learning how to shoot a gun at a local gun range. He installed a security system in her home.

Police arrested the pair about a week after the shooting, after cell phone records and video surveillance led Carlsbad police first to Lovejoy, then to McDavid. Each remains jailed in lieu of $2 million bail.

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Hearing starts for woman, gun instructor accused of attempted murder

In court Monday, an emotional Clark took the stand and recounted the alleged conversation with Lovejoy, an exchange she said had left her shocked and taken aback.

And beyond the moral and ethical concerns, Clark said, I told her it was a remarkably dumb idea. She would never be able to get away with it.

Clarks testimony was unexpected; investigators first learned just last week of Lovejoys alleged conversation with Clark. It is unclear how they heard about it, and Clark initially denied that Lovejoy had mentioned wanting someone to scare or hurt husband.

But moments before court started Monday morning  and moments after denying the conversation had happened  Clark spoke to the prosecutor and admitted she had not been truthful.

I couldnt open my throat to say those words, Clark said of the initial denial.

Also on Monday, Carlsbad police Detective Scott Stallman testified that while Lovejoy had initially denied any physical relationship with McDavid, she later told him theyd had sexual relations a couple of times.

Before testimony started on Monday, both defense attorneys challenged the legality of their clients statements to police after they were read their Miranda rights, and asked the statements be tossed out. Kearney denied the request.

teri.figueroa@sduniontribune.com

Twitter: @TeriFigueroaUT
Prime Minister receives UAE Foreign Minister

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh hosted a reception for Minister of Foreign Affairs of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan in Hanoi on June 14.









Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh (R) and Minister of Foreign Affairs of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan. (Photo: VNA)



The PM spoke highly of delegation exchanges between Vietnam and the UAE in the recent past, especially the visit to the UAE by Vice President Vo Thi Anh Xuan last May, which reaped significant outcomes.



Host and guest shared the view that the bilateral friendship and cooperation have made progress in various spheres like politics-diplomacy, economy, trade, investment, tourism and energy.



PM Chinh suggested that on the occasion of the 30th anniversary of the bilateral diplomatic ties, the two sides further coordinate and support each other at regional and international forums, especially within the United Nations (UN), and coordinate in organising cultural and sport exchanges, including Vietnamese Culture Day in the UAE, contributing to raising mutual understanding between peoples of the two countries.



The leader stressed that with great potential for economic and trade cooperation, the two sides should complete negotiations for the Vietnam-UAE Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) as soon as possible.



He also asked the UAE to help Vietnam in developing Halal food production and services, and build cooperation mechanisms in Halal certification in Vietnam, helping increase the two-way trade.



The PM also emphasised that Vietnam encourages UAE enterprises and investment funds to invest and transfer technologies in the areas of mutual concern like logistics, real estate, infrastructure and innovation.



Hailing the UAEs position as a financial centre and its successes in economic restructuring and scientific-technological development, Chinh suggested the country share its experience and assist Vietnam in building an international financial centre, connecting innovation networks, energy transition, environmental protection and natural resources management.



Vietnam welcomes the UAE to host the 28th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP28), and stands ready to cooperate with the country for the success of the event.



For his part, the UAE diplomat affirmed that high-ranking leaders of his country always consider Vietnam an important partner in Asia-Pacific.



UAE investors and businesses highly value investment opportunities and environment in Vietnam, and want to enhance and advance cooperation with the country in trade and investment, particularly in renewable energy, he said.



The official noted that signing the CEPA is the UAEs top priority in cooperation with Vietnam in order to create breakthroughs in economic and investment collaboration.



Apart from trade and investment, the two countries should forge cooperation in other important fields such as renewable energy, climate change response, sustainable development, environmental protection and people-to-people exchange, he said.



Lauding contributions by Vietnamese guest workers to the UAEs development, the minister expressed his hope that the two countries will strengthen cooperation to bring more Vietnamese skilled labourers to the UAE in the time ahead.



He pledged to closely coordinate with Vietnam in implementing cooperation proposals effectively, especially in the areas mentioned by the PM./.
By News Center

The Presidential Investment Office held a reception at the London Embassy with the theme of "Turkiye: Your Durable Investment Partner" on the occasion of the Century of Turkiye. Many Turkish, British, and international investors, as well as public officials from Turkiye and England, attended the reception.

Da?l?o?lu, in his speech at the reception, stated that they held the first of the receptions they will organize in different capitals to come together with investors as part of the Century of Turkiye, in London.

Reminding that Turkiye has achieved significant success in the last 20 years and is among the 20 largest economies in the world, Dagl?oglu said that since 2003, the annual growth in Turkiye has been at the level of 5.4 percent.

Dagl?oglu stated that Turkiye's exports, which were 36 billion dollars in 2002, increased 7 times and exceeded 250 billion dollars:

"Under the leadership of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the second century of our country begins and we call this period the Century of Turkiye. We aim to become one of the 10 largest economies in the world and I am sure we can achieve this ambitious goal. Turkiye has so far been a regional leader in many areas such as production activities, R&D, and logistics activities. We will now position Turkiye as a global power center. We expect investors to continue their investments. We expect investors to continue their investments not only in production but also in different areas such as R&D, logistics activities, regional management, as well as clean energy and infrastructure, financial services, and digitalization. We invite you to invest."

Explaining that they also participated in the London TechWeek program, Dagl?oglu said, "We can build much more bridges between Turkiye and England by focusing especially on technology start-ups."

Dagl?oglu pointed out that Turkiye is a strong and fast-growing economy and the opportunities it offers thanks to its geographical location, and invited companies to invest.

- "I am sure that these investments will increase mutually"

Turkish Wealth Fund Management Inc. General Manager Salim Arda Ermut stated that 2023 is the 100th anniversary of the country's establishment and the beginning of Turkiye's new vision, and said, "Our goal is to crown the Century of Turkiye by making the country one of the 10 largest economies in the world."

Emphasizing that the Turkish Wealth Fund plays an important role in shaping the economic outlook of the country, Ermut made the following assessment on the economic relations of Turkiye and England:

"FDI from the UK to Turkiye has always been very important and strategic. I am sure that these investments will increase mutually. The Turkish Wealth Fund can also play a role as a potential partner in supporting investors who will invest in Turkiye."

Turkiye's Ambassador to London Osman Koray Ertas stated that the dynamism in the economic relationship between Turkiye and England is seen in different fields from tourism to investment.

Reminding that the election atmosphere in Turkiye has ended and the new economy team has been determined, Ertas said, "Everyone here knows Turkiye's new economy team very well. In this respect, with the support of the Presidential Investment Office, we can start to take action and focus on our bilateral trade and investments."

- The UK-Turkiye bilateral trade volume saw its highest level in history

British Minister of State for Business and Trade Nusrat Ghani, on the other hand, pointed out that the bilateral trade volume between the UK and Turkiye has seen its highest level in history with 23.5 billion pounds, "This volume has increased by 30 percent compared to the last year. In addition, in 2021 being the largest investor in Turkiye, Turkish companies invested 250 million in the UK in 2020.

Underlining that the free trade agreement signed between the two countries in 2020 plays a key role in this success, Ghani added that many sectors from clean energy and infrastructure to health technologies will determine the future between the two countries and that there are many steps that can be taken to increase the trade volume.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 14. Baku hosted the Eternity-2023 computer-assisted Command and Staff Exercises held with the participation of servicemen of Azerbaijan, Turkiye and Georgia, as well as representatives of relevant state structures, Trend reports via the Azerbaijani Defense Ministry.

The tasks on organizing the protection of strategically important regional economic projects were fulfilled at the exercises held at the Center for War Games of the Military Administration Institute of the National Defense University.

The main objective of the international exercises is to strengthen mutual cooperation and ensure interoperability between the armed forces of the three countries.

Last year, the exercises were held in Turkiye on October 22-28.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 14. A modular Family Health Center has been commissioned in Azerbaijans Lachin district at the Association for the Management of Medical Territorial Units (TBIB), the TBIB told Trend.

The Center with a total area of 299.5 square meters consists of 15 rooms: doctor's and nurse's offices, a treatment and dressing room, rooms for vaccination and monitoring of infants/children, for infant care and breastfeeding, for monitoring pregnancy and reproductive health, a day hospital with 5 beds, for sterilization, laboratory services, a utility room and kitchen.

Each of these rooms has the necessary tools and laboratory diagnostic equipment in accordance with technical standards, including an ultrasound device, a portable X-ray, an electrocardiograph, an operating table, a table for gynecological examination etc.

The Center provides for the activities of medical personnel for primary surgical interventions: a surgeon, a traumatologist, a family pediatrician, a family therapist, an obstetrician-gynecologist, a midwife, a nurse, a laboratory assistant, and, if necessary, the organization of mobile medical services is possible.

TBIB allocated two fully equipped ambulances to the Central District Hospital of the Lachin district to provide round-the-clock medical care.

A total of 53 patients received medical care at the Lachin Family Health Center from May 28 through June 2, 2023.

The Lachin Family Health Center was established by the decree No. 3587 of President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev on November 16, 2022, in accordance with the "I State Program on the Great Return to the liberated territories of Azerbaijan".

In order to fulfill the tasks outlined in the state program, the State Agency for Compulsory Medical Insurance has started work on the establishment of the mentioned center in the structure of the Lachin Central District Hospital, subordinated to TBIB, on the territory of the Lachin district, which is part of the East Zangazur Economic District, since May 18 2023.
In a pioneering study involving serial entrepreneurs and managers, a multidisciplinary research team led by HEC -- School of Management at the University of Liege and Liege University Hospital (CHU Liege), combining entrepreneurship researchers and brain specialists, found evidence of increased neuronal connectivity in the brains of entrepreneurs, which may contribute to distinct cognitive attributes.

Using resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI), the study showed that serial entrepreneurs have higher connectivity between the right insula (associated with cognitive flexibility) and the anterior prefrontal cortex (a key region for exploratory choices), compared to their fellow managers. These results, published in the journal Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, suggest that serial entrepreneurs possess greater cognitive flexibility, enabling them to alternate effectively between exploration and exploitation, a balance that is crucial to their success.

Unlike the traditional fMRI approach based on tasks submitted to the subject, the rs-fMRI on which this study is based observes the brain at rest, in the absence of cognitive tasks or presentation of stimuli, which constitutes an innovative approach to improving understanding of the entrepreneurial mind. Forty people, entrepreneurs and managers, took part in the study.

"This study represents an important advance in our understanding of the entrepreneurial mind. It highlights the potential of neuroscience and how this approach complements the traditional tools used to study entrepreneurial cognition. By highlighting the difference in cognitive flexibility, it also offers a new perspective to inform the design of training or professional development programmes aimed at improving the cognitive flexibility and entrepreneurial spirit of individuals within various organisations," explains Frederic Ooms, researcher and Assistant Professor in management and entrepreneurship (HEC -- ULiege School of Management), first author of the publication, based on the results of his PhD thesis on entrepreneurial cognitive flexibility presented in April 2023.

"In a world of rapid and unpredictable change, organisations need to cultivate an entrepreneurial mindset and foster cognitive flexibility within their teams, qualities recognised by the OECD as a 21st century challenge," points out Professor Bernard Surlemont, Professor of Entrepreneurship at ULiege (HEC Liege).

"This collaborative, multidisciplinary study illustrates 'neuro-entrepreneurship', the integration of knowledge in neuroscience (at the ULiege GIGA and the CHU of Liege) and the world of entrepreneurship (HEC Liege), and shows how neuroimaging techniques help to better visualise the neural networks involved in 'cognitive flexibility', in order to be able to adapt to a constantly changing reality, which is the source of entrepreneurial success," notes Dr Steven Laureys, neurologist and Clinical Professor at the Centre du Cerveau of the University Hospital (CHU) of Liege, Research Director at the Fund for Scientific Research -- FNRS and Visiting Professor at the CERVO Research Centre (Laval, Quebec).
The universe is big, and it's getting bigger. To study dark energy, the mysterious force behind the accelerating expansion of our universe, scientists are using the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI) to map more than 40 million galaxies, quasars, and stars. Today, the collaboration publicly released its first batch of data, with nearly 2 million objects for researchers to explore.

The 80-terabyte data set comes from 2,480 exposures taken over six months during the experiment's "survey validation" phase in 2020 and 2021. In this period between turning the instrument on and beginning the official science run, researchers made sure their plan for using the telescope would meet their science goals -- for example, by checking how long it took to observe galaxies of different brightness, and by validating the selection of stars and galaxies to observe.

"The fact that DESI works so well, and that the amount of science-grade data it took during survey validation is comparable to previous completed sky surveys, is a monumental achievement," said Nathalie Palanque-Delabrouille, co-spokesperson for DESI and a scientist at the Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab), which manages the experiment. "This milestone shows that DESI is a unique spectroscopic factory whose data will not only allow the study of dark energy but will also be coveted by the whole scientific community to address other topics, such as dark matter, gravitational lensing, and galactic morphology."

Today the collaboration also published a set of papers related to the early data release, which include early measurements of galaxy clustering, studies of rare objects, and descriptions of the instrument and survey operations. The new papers build on DESI's first measurement of the cosmological distance scale that was published in April, which used the first two months of routine survey data (not included in the early data release) and also showed DESI's ability to accomplish its design goals.

DESI uses 5,000 robotic positioners to move optical fibers that capture light from objects millions or billions of light-years away. It is the most powerful multi-object survey spectrograph in the world, able to measure light from more than 100,000 galaxies in one night. That light tells researchers how far away an object is, building a 3D cosmic map.

"Survey validation was very important for DESI because it allowed us -- before starting the main survey -- to adjust our selection of all the objects, including stars, bright galaxies, luminous red galaxies, emission line galaxies, and quasars," said Christophe Yeche, a scientist with the French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission (CEA) who co-leads the target selection group. "We've been able to optimize our selection and confirm our observation strategy."

As the universe expands, it stretches light's wavelength, making it redder -- a characteristic known as redshift. The further away the galaxy, the bigger the redshift. DESI specializes in collecting redshifts that can then be used to solve some of astrophysics' biggest puzzles: what dark energy is and how it has changed throughout the universe's history.

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While DESI's primary goal is understanding dark energy, much of the data can also be used in other astronomical studies. For example, the early data release contains detailed images from some well-known areas of the sky, such as the Hubble Deep Field.

"There are some well-trodden spots where we've drilled down into the sky," said Stephen Bailey, a scientist at Berkeley Lab who leads data management for DESI. "We've taken valuable spectroscopic images in areas that are of interest to the rest of the community, and we're hoping that other people will take this data and do additional science with it."

Two interesting finds have already surfaced: Evidence of a mass migration of stars into the Andromeda galaxy, and incredibly distant quasars, the extremely bright and active supermassive black holes sometimes found at the center of galaxies.

"We observed some areas at very high depth. People have looked at that data and discovered very high redshift quasars, which are still so rare that basically any discovery of them is useful," said Anthony Kremin, a postdoctoral researcher at Berkeley Lab who led the data processing for the early data release. "Those high-redshift quasars are usually found with very large telescopes, so the fact that DESI -- a smaller, 4-meter survey instrument -- could compete with those larger, dedicated observatories was an achievement we are pretty proud of and demonstrates the exceptional throughput of the instrument."

Survey validation was also a chance to test the process of transforming raw data from DESI's ten spectrometers (which split a galaxy's light into different colors) into useful information.

"If you looked at them, the images coming directly from the camera would look like nonsense -- like lines on a weird, fuzzy image," said Laurie Stephey, a data architect at the National Energy Research Scientific Computing Center (NERSC), the supercomputer that processes DESI's data. "The magic happens in the processing and the software being able to decode the data. It's exciting that we have the technology to make that data accessible to the research community and that we can support this big question of 'what is dark energy?'"

DESI's early data was a unique project for NERSC. All of the experiment's code, including the computational heavy lifting, is written in the programming language Python rather than the traditional C++ or Fortran.

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"That was the first time that using pure Python was shown to be a feasible approach for a major experiment at NERSC, and since then, Python has become increasingly common in our user workload," Stephey said.

The DESI early data release is now available to access for free through NERSC.

There is plenty of data yet to come from the experiment. DESI is currently two years into its five-year run and ahead of schedule on its quest to collect more than 40 million redshifts. The survey has already catalogued more than 26 million astronomical objects in its science run, and is adding more than a million per month.

DESI is supported by the DOE Office of Science and by the National Energy Research Scientific Computing Center, a DOE Office of Science user facility. Additional support for DESI is provided by the U.S. National Science Foundation, the Science and Technologies Facilities Council of the United Kingdom, the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, the Heising-Simons Foundation, the French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission (CEA), the National Council of Science and Technology of Mexico, the Ministry of Economy of Spain, and by the DESI member institutions.

Kitt Peak National Observatory is a program of NSF's NOIRLab.

The DESI collaboration is honored to be permitted to conduct scientific research on Iolkam Du'ag (Kitt Peak), a mountain with particular significance to the Tohono O'odham Nation.

Further information: https://data.desi.lbl.gov/doc/papers/
Computer models confirm that the African Superplume is responsible for the unusual deformations as well as rift-parallel seismic anisotropy observed beneath the East African Rift System.

In continental rifting, there's a mix of stretching and breaking that reaches deep into the Earth, said geophysicist D. Sarah Stamps. Continental rifting involves the stretching of the lithosphere -- the outermost, rigid layer of the Earth. As the lithosphere stretches thin, its shallow regions experience brittle deformation, with the breaking of rock and earthquakes.

Stamps, who studies these processes by using computer modeling and GPS to map surface motions with millimeter precision, compares a rifting continent's different deformation styles with playing with Silly Putty.

"If you hit Silly Putty with a hammer, it can actually crack and break," said Stamps, associate professor in the Department of Geosciences, part of the Virginia Tech College of Science. "But if you slowly pull it apart, the Silly Putty stretches. So on different time scales, Earth's lithosphere behaves in different ways."

Whether in stretching or breaking, the deformation that comes with continental rifting usually follows predictable directional patterns in relation to the rift: The deformation tends to be perpendicular to the rift. The East African Rift System, the Earth's largest continental rift system, has those rift-perpendicular deformations. But after measuring the rift system with GPS instruments for more than 12 years, Stamps also observed deformation that went in the opposite direction, parallel to the system's rifts. Her team at the Geodesy and Tectonophysics Labhas worked to find out why.

In a recent study published in theJournal of Geophysical Research, the team explored the processes behind the East African Rift System using 3D thermomechanical modeling developed by the study's first author, Tahiry Rajaonarison, a postdoctoral researcher at New Mexico Tech who earned his Ph.D. at Virginia Tech as a member of Stamps's lab. His models showed that the rift system's unusual, rift-parallel deformation is driven by northward mantle flow associated with the African Superplume, a massive upwelling of mantle that rises from deep within the Earth beneath southwest Africa and goes northeast across the continent, becoming more shallow as it extends northward.

Their findings, combined with insights from a study the researchers published in 2021 using Rajaonarison's modeling techniques, could help clear up scientific debate on which plate-driving forces dominate the East African Rift System, accounting for both its rift-perpendicular and rift-parallel deformation: lithospheric buoyancy forces, mantle traction forces, or both.

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As a postdoctoral researcher, Stamps began observing the East African Rift System's unusual, rift-parallel deformation using data from GPS stations that measured signals from more than 30 satellites orbiting Earth, from about 25,000 kilometers away. Her observations have added a layer of complexity to the debate around what drives the rift system.

Some scientists see the rifting in East Africa as driven primarily by lithospheric buoyancy forces, which are relatively shallow forces attributed mainly to the rift system's high topography, known as the African Superswell, and to density variations in the lithosphere. Others point to horizontal mantle traction forces, the deeper forces arising from interactions with mantle flowing horizontally beneath East Africa, as the primary driver.

The team's 2021 study found through 3D computational simulations that the rift and its deformation could be driven by a combination of the two forces. Their models showed that lithospheric buoyancy forces were responsible for the more predictable, rift-perpendicular deformation, but those forces couldn't account for the anomalous, rift-parallel deformation picked up by Stamps's GPS measurements.

In their newly published study, Rajaonarison again used 3D thermomechanical modeling, this time to focus on the source of the rift-parallel deformations. His models confirm that the African Superplume is responsible for the unusual deformations as well as rift-parallel seismic anisotropy observed beneath the East African Rift System.

Seismic anisotropy is the orientation or alignment of rocks in a particular direction in response to mantle flow, melt pockets, or pre-existing structural fabrics in the lithosphere, Stamps said. In this case, the rocks' alignment followed the direction of the African Superplume's northward mantle flow, which suggests mantle flow as their source.

"We are saying that the mantle flow is not driving the east-west, rift-perpendicular direction of some of the deformations, but that it may be causing the anomalous northward deformation parallel to the rift," Rajaonarison said. "We confirmed previous ideas that lithospheric buoyancy forces are driving the rift, but we're bringing new insight that anomalous deformation can happen in East Africa."

Learning more about the processes involved in continental rifting, including these anomalous ones, will help scientists chip away at the complexity behind the breaking of a continent, which they've been attempting for decades. "We're excited about this result from Dr. Rajaonarison's numerical modeling because it provides new information about the complex processes that shape the Earth's surface through continental rifting," Stamps said.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 14. 'Azerbaijani Radio' and 'Public Radio' received radio frequencies in order to ensure and develop television and radio broadcasting on the territory of Karabakh and East Zangazur economic regions, Trend reports.

The decision was made at a meeting of the Audiovisual Council of the Republic of Azerbaijan.

The decision was made to allocate radio frequencies (105.0 MHS for Azerbaijani Radio, 90.0 MHS - for Public Radio) from the broadcasting station located in the Lachin district in order to expand the coverage area of FM terrestrial radio broadcasting in this region, as well as taking into account the appeals received to the Council from Azerbaijan Television and Radio Broadcasting CJSC and Public Television and Radio Broadcasting Company.

Meanwhile, 90.0 MHS will also be allocated for Public Radio from the Lachin Radio & TV Broadcasting Station (RTBS) located in the territory of the Kalbajar district.

The 27th television broadcasting channel has been allocated from the RTBS located on the territory of the Lachin district for the implementation of open terrestrial digital broadcasting of national TV channels.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 14. The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) continues to deliver humanitarian aid to Armenian residents living in the zone of temporary deployment of the Russian peacekeeping contingent in Azerbaijan's Karabakh region [in accordance with trilateral statement signed by Azerbaijani, Armenian and Russian leaders following the 2020 second Karabakh war], Trend reports.

Another footage has been circulated today showing vehicles carrying ICRC humanitarian aid passing through the border checkpoint on Azerbaijan's Lachin-Khankendi road.

This once again confirms that there are no obstacles to the movement of ICRC vehicles via the checkpoint in both directions, and that the statements of Armenian leadership and representatives of separatist regime in Karabakh that the residents are allegedly "facing a humanitarian crisis", are nothing more than a smear campaign that does not reflect reality.

Moreover, the ICRC uses the cars of Armenian civilians living in Karabakh.

Previously, representatives of ICRC delivered 15 Armenian residents of Karabakh economic region with health problems (transporting them via a checkpoint on the Lachin-Khankendi road) to hospitals in Armenia

In order to prevent the transportation of manpower, ammunition, mines, as well as other military equipment from Armenia for illegal Armenian armed groups on the territory of Azerbaijan (which weren't withdrawn contrary to the trilateral statement signed by Azerbaijani, Armenian and Russian leaders following the 2020 Second Karabakh War), and as an adequate response to the unilateral establishment of a checkpoint by Armenia on the border with Azerbaijan on April 22 at the entrance to the Lachin-Khankendi road contrary to the trilateral statement of November 10, 2020, on April 23 at 12:00 (GMT+4), the units of the State Border Service of the Republic of Azerbaijan set up a border checkpoint in its sovereign territories, on the border with Armenia, at the beginning of the Lachin-Khankendi road.
The Embassy of India in Azerbaijan marked a significant milestone in its cultural outreach with a serene yet vibrant Yoga event hosted at Yanardag State Historical, Cultural and Natural Reserve. The event celebrated the beauty of Azerbaijan's natural heritage and the age-old practice of yoga, creating a unique fusion of culture, history, and wellness.

The picturesque setting of Yanardag, known for its enchanting natural flames, played host to an event that sought to bring the healing power of yoga to all. Approximately 50 enthusiastic participants, hailing from various backgrounds, convened under the azure skies to embark on a transformative journey of self-discovery guided by the proficient yoga instructor, Ms. Irada Aliyeva.

Ambassador of India to Azerbaijan, Mr. Sridharan Madhusudhanan, along with Ms Sabina Imanova, Chief Custodian of the Yanardag State Historical, Cultural and Natural Reserve, launched the latest edition of the Common Yoga Protocol in the Azerbaijani language. In his welcome address, he emphasized yoga's role in fostering holistic wellness and thanked the participants for embracing this age-old practice.

The newly unveiled Common Yoga Protocol in Azerbaijani language, a beginner's guide to yoga, is now available free of cost at the Indian Embassy.

With the tranquil atmosphere of Yanardag as their backdrop, participants followed Ms. Aliyeva through a sequence of yoga poses and calming breathing exercises, promoting inner peace and harmony amidst the soothing sounds of nature.

Adding a cultural dimension to the event, Ms. Solmaz Asgarova charmed the audience with her graceful interpretation of Indian dances. Her vibrant performance offered a window into India's rich cultural heritage and added to the evening's festivities. The event concluded with participants enjoying authentic Indian snacks.

This yoga event, hosted in anticipation of the International Day of Yoga, showcased the power of yoga, cultural exchange, and unity in a memorable setting. By harmonizing Azerbaijan's natural beauty with the transformative practice of yoga, the event promoted a sense of connection and well-being, strengthening the bond between the cultures of India and Azerbaijan.
LACHIN, Azerbaijan, June 15. The return of former internally displaced persons to Azerbaijans Lachin continues, which was restored and reconstructed in accordance with the instructions of President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev, Trend reports.

On June 14, another group of former internally displaced persons returned to Lachin.

Another 22 families out of 72 people experienced the joy of returning to their native lands.

Residents who returned to Lachin could not hold back tears of joy on this significant day. They were met in a solemn atmosphere and congratulated on their return to their native land.

The residents of Lachin were told that all the necessary conditions for life have been created in the city, the houses have been restored in accordance with modern standards while preserving the historical architectural style.

The families who returned to Lachin today were selected from among the internally displaced persons who lived mainly in Baku and Sumgayit, as well as in temporary accommodation places in the Absheron region. In Lachin, they were settled in the houses where they once lived and which were restored or reconstructed.
The Securities and Exchange Commission filed charges against Josh S. Verne in connection with an approximately $30 million offering fraud that targeted more than 100 investors, many from the Philadelphia area.

The SEC's complaint alleges that Verne defrauded investors, including close friends and family members, by making false claims about, among other things, his prior business successes and personal wealth, his authority to pool investor funds in order to purchase securities, and the purported use of investors' funds. According to the complaint, between at least 2018 and 2020, Verne solicited investments for his online rent-to-own business Ownable, LLC, its affiliate Ownable Capital Partners I, LLC, and three limited liability companies he created for the alleged purpose of pooling investors' funds together to invest in Ownable and two start-up companies unaffiliated with Verne. The complaint alleges that Verne wrongfully used at least $9.3 million of investors' funds for his own benefit, including to pay for private school tuition and an interior designer for a beach house, charter private jets, repay millions of dollars in personal loans, and to make Ponzi-like payments to earlier investors.

The SEC's complaint, filed in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, charges Verne with violating Section 17(a) of the Securities Act of 1933, Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5 thereunder, and seeks permanent injunctive relief, disgorgement of ill-gotten gains, prejudgment interest, and civil penalties.

The SEC's investigation, which is ongoing, was conducted by Jennifer Miller and Jacquelyn King of the Philadelphia Regional Office. It was supervised by Assunta Vivolo, Scott A. Thompson, and Nicholas Grippo. The litigation will be led by Karen M. Klotz and Gregory Bockin.
The SEC today announced charges against California residents Joseph A. Padilla and Kevin C. Dills. According to the SEC's complaint, from at least February 2020 through August 2022, Padilla engaged in a fraudulent scheme to illegally sell stock of several small companies to the public. The complaint alleges that Dills took part in Padilla's scheme with the stock of a company that Dills secretly controlled.

According to the complaint, Padilla engaged in a fraudulent scheme for his own benefit and also on behalf of individuals who paid Padilla to arrange their illegal stock sales. The complaint alleges that those individuals hid their identities by selling stock through offshore accounts in different names that Padilla arranged. The complaint further alleges that Padilla traded in his own brokerage account and accounts of family and friends to profit alongside the scheme and to manipulate stock prices in support of the scheme. Padilla also allegedly enlisted a stock trader at a registered broker-dealer firm to facilitate stock trading as part of scheme. According to the complaint, Padilla timed the stock sales to coincide with stock promotions or news announcements intended to gain investor interest. As to Dills, the complaint alleges that Dills secretly controlled Oncology Pharma, Inc., which was one of the companies with stock that was subject to Padilla's scheme. Dills allegedly provided Padilla with Oncology Pharma stock, Padilla then arranged for that stock to be sold to the public, and Padilla then returned approximately $20 million in proceeds to Dills through a circuitous route of foreign bank accounts. The complaint alleges that Padilla and Dills sold Oncology Pharma stock while Dills arranged for Oncology Pharma to issue a series of press releases intended to make the company's stock more appealing to investors.

The complaint alleges that Padilla and Dills violated the antifraud provisions of Sections 17(a)(1) and (3) of the Securities Act of 1933 ("Securities Act") and Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rules 10b-5(a) and (c) thereunder, and that they violated the securities registration provisions of Sections 5(a) and (c) of the Securities Act. It also alleges that Dills aided and abetted Padilla's violations of the antifraud provisions. The relief sought by the SEC against Padilla and Dills includes permanent injunctive relief, civil penalties, penny stock bars, disgorgement and prejudgment interest, and other injunctive relief. The complaint also names as relief defendants Bright Star International, Inc., Life Sciences Journeys, Inc. Carlos Hernandez, Jamie Quick, Ashley Robinson, and Arlene Sandoval, alleging that they each received proceeds of the alleged scheme. The complaint seeks disgorgement and prejudgment interest from the relief defendants.

In a related criminal case, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Massachusetts brought an indictment against Padilla and Dills on March 21, 2023.

The SEC's case is being handled by Ryan Murphy, Michael Moran, Kathleen Shields, and Amy Gwiazda of the Boston Regional Office. The SEC appreciates the assistance of the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Massachusetts, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority. The SEC also appreciates the assistance of the Bermuda Monetary Authority, the British Columbia Securities Commission, the Cayman Islands Monetary Authority, the Central Bank of Hungary, the Securities Commission of the Bahamas, the Mauritius Financial Services Commission, the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission, Mexico's Comision Nacional Bancaria y de Valores, the Ontario Securities Commission, and the United Kingdom Financial Conduct Authority. The SEC's investigation is ongoing.
The Securities and Exchange Commission today charged investment adviser Sabby Management LLC and its managing partner, Hal D. Mintz, with fraud in connection with a long running scheme involving misrepresentations and violations of rules for short selling and order making, as well as other violative trading, that generated more than $2 million in illegal profits.

The SEC's complaint alleges that, from at least March 2017 through May 2019, Sabby and Mintz repeatedly circumvented trading rules to conduct unlawful trades in the stock of at least 10 public companies. Short selling is a legal practice where, generally, a trader borrows a security from a securityholder and sells the security at one price, speculating that the trader can buy the security at a lower price in the future before it must be returned to its owner. As alleged in the complaint, for example, Sabby and Mintz engaged in illegal "naked short selling" by intentionally and improperly placing short sales when they knew or were reckless in not knowing that they had not borrowed or located the shares, and then failed to make timely delivery of the shares. According to the SEC's complaint, the purpose of Sabby and Mintz's fraudulent scheme was to earn profits they could not have gained through legal trading.

Additionally, as the complaint alleges, on occasion Sabby and Mintz used their naked short selling to artificially deflate the price of securities, allowing them to obtain more shares at a cheaper price.

The SEC's complaint further alleges that Sabby and Mintz tried to conceal their fraudulent trading, including by using securities acquired after the trades to make it appear to brokers executing the trades that they had complied with the requirement to have borrowed or located the shares prior to their trades. As the complaint alleges, when questioned by at least one broker regarding their trading, Sabby and Mintz repeatedly lied about the trading.

The SEC's complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey, charges Sabby and Mintz with violations of the antifraud provisions of Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rules 10b-5 and 10b-21 thereunder. The complaint also charges Sabby with violations of Sections 204 and 206(4) of the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 and Rules 204-2 and 206(4)-7 thereunder and charges Mintz with aiding and abetting those violations. The complaint seeks permanent injunctive relief, disgorgement of ill-gotten gains plus prejudgment interest, and civil penalties.

The SEC's investigation was conducted by Edward Reilly and Christopher Mathews, with assistance from Patrick McCluskey and Brian Shute, under the supervision of Amy Friedman and Carolyn Welshhans. The litigation will be led by Daniel Maher and Mr. Reilly and supervised by David Nasse.
The Securities and Exchange Commission yesterday charged Patrick Thayer of Cincinnati, Ohio, previously a dually-registered representative and investment advisory representative, with misappropriating more than $1.3 million from an advisory client.

The SEC's complaint alleges that in November 2013, Thayer surreptitiously established an account in a client's name over which he maintained control and, without the client's permission, regularly transferred client assets to the account, which he then used to pay personal expenses, including his mortgage. The complaint alleges that Thayer engaged in this conduct for nearly a decade, in total misappropriating over $1.3 million by periodically selling the client's securities to fund transfers to the clandestine account.

The SEC's complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio, Western Division, charges Thayer with violating the antifraud provisions of Section 17(a) of the Securities Act of 1933, Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5 thereunder, and Sections 206(1) and 206(2) of the Investment Advisers Act of 1940. Thayer, without admitting or denying the allegations, consented to a partial settlement, agreeing to be permanently enjoined from future violations of the charged provisions and to pay monetary relief in an amount to be determined by the court at a later date upon motion of the SEC. The settlement is subject to court approval.

The SEC's investigation was conducted by Kyle Bradley and was supervised by Natalie Brunson and Justin Jeffries of the Atlanta Regional Office. The litigation will be led by Robert Schroeder under the supervision of Graham Loomis.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 14. The Central Bank of Azerbaijan seeks to form the Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT) industry in the financial sector, Head of the Information and Cybersecurity Department of the Central Bank of Azerbaijan (CBA) Elvin Shahverdiyev said during the financial technology summit in Baku, Trend reports.

He noted that the requirements set out in the "Cybersecurity Strategy in Financial Markets" adopted by the CBA last month provide for the adoption of certain measures.

"Many of these measures are strategic goals that need to be reached. The goal for 2023-2024 is to assess the level of financial maturity, while for 2023-2026 - the formation of the Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT) for target financial markets. It is mainly about the formation of CERT industry," Shakhverdiyev added.

The experience of Singapore in this field is an example. Despite the fact that they have national CERT in each financial resource, each of the resources has formed its own CERT industry. We want to learn from this experience. There are several national CERT operating in Azerbaijan, and as the CBA we strive to form CERT industry in the financial sector, close cooperation with national CERT," he said.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 14. The enterprises of the oil industry of Turkmenistan exceeded their production indicators from January through May 2023, Trend reports.

This was announced by Deputy Chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers of Turkmenistan Batyr Amanov at a meeting of the Cabinet of Ministers on June 10.

According to him, during the reporting period, the plan for oil refining at the plants of Turkmenistan was exceeded by 2.6 percent, for the production of gasoline  by 11.9 percent, diesel fuel  by 7.5 percent, polypropylene  by 10.5 percent.

Furthermore, Amanov noted that from January through May 2023, the plan for oil supplies to the Turkmennebit State Concern was exceeded by 1.7 percent.

Meanwhile, according to the Turkmen Turkmengaz State Concern, the country's hydrocarbon resources are estimated at more than 71 billion tons of oil equivalent, of which more than 20 billion tons of oil and more than 50 trillion cubic meters of natural gas.
Details added (first version posted on 14:50)

BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 14. Annual auctions for non-exempted capacity of the Interconnector Greece-Bulgaria (IGB) have been announced, ICGB, the pipeline operator, told Trend.

Reportedly, the annual auctions for capacity allocation will be held on July 3rd, as indicated on the ENTSOG calendar.

The PRISMA booking platform will host the auction for available non-exempted capacity at the interconnection points (IPs) in Komotini, Greece, involving the transmission system operators TAP and DESFA. The auction will provide an opportunity for market-based allocation of competing capacities in these cases.

Similarly, the available non-exempted capacity at the IP in Stara Zagora, Bulgaria, with the transmission system operator Bulgartransgaz, will be offered through the RBP platform.

Since the beginning of the current heating season, the interconnector provides nearly 1/3 of the winter consumption of natural gas in Bulgaria. IGB is the first route for diversified supplies of natural gas to Bulgaria, guaranteeing increased security of supply and diversity of sources, contributing significantly to the competition in the natural gas market, which is a prerequisite for optimized prices for businesses and domestic consumers in the country.

Follow the author on Twitter: @Lyaman_Zeyn
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 14. Kazakhstan's Air Astana air carrier has launched flights between Almaty and Israel's Tel Aviv, the company told Trend.

Starting from September 7, the flights between Almaty and Tel Aviv will operate twice a week, specifically on Thursdays and Sundays. The flights will be carried out on Airbus A321LR aircraft.

According to the company's schedule, on Thursdays, the flight from Almaty to Tel Aviv is scheduled to depart at 04:30 (GMT+6) and arrive at 08:15 (GMT+3). On Sundays, the flight will depart at 04:10 (GMT+6) and arrive at 07:55 (GMT+3). The estimated flight duration is 6 hours and 45 minutes.

Meanwhile, flights in the opposite direction, from Tel Aviv to Almaty, are scheduled to depart at 09:30 (GMT+3) and arrive in Almaty at 18:20 (GMT+6). The estimated flight duration is 5 hours and 50 minutes.

Enhanced air connectivity between Kazakhstan and Israel is more likely foster trade, economic growth, tourism, and cultural exchange
Georgian Finance Minister Lasha Khutsishvili on Wednesday met Rachel Thompson, the Executive Director at the Asian Development Bank, to discuss cooperation between the Government and the institution, the Ministry of Finance said, Azernews reports, citing Agenda.ge.

The body said the sides highlighted the role of the ADB as one of the largest development partners of Georgia, in both public and private sector financing.

Khutsishvili and Thompson also noted next years Annual Meeting of the ADB, set to be hosted in Georgia under the theme Bridge to the Future.

In the 2024 Meeting, thousands of participants - including finance ministers, central bank governors, senior government officials, private sector, representatives of international and civil society organisations, youth, academia and the media - will gather in Tbilisi.

Along with the countrys hosting of the event, Khutsishvili will head the ADB Board of Directors over the next year.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 14. Kazakhstan Temir Zholy (KTZ - Kazakhstan Railways) banned the transportation of Russian jet fuel from June 14 to July 14, Trend reports.

According to the company, the convention ban on the import of jet fuel by rail from the Russian Federation has been introduced at the request of the Ministry of Energy of the Republic of Kazakhstan. The ban will be in effect for one month.

As noted by KTZ, the reason behind the ban is the excessive import of jet fuel from Russia and the lack of shipment requests from airlines and airports. Due to this, there is a risk of tank overflow at oil refineries and forced reduction in crude oil processing at three refineries.

Earlier, it was noted that Kazakhstan plans to expand the capacity of the Shymkent Refinery from 6 million tons to 12 million tons of processed crude oil by 2030, which will allow it to increase production of jet fuel threefold, from 313,000 tons to 1 million tons per year.

Moreover, it was also highlighted that the refineries of KazMunayGas, Kazakhstan's national company, are ready to produce Jet A-1 aviation fuel.
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BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 14. There is no interim deal with Iran regarding the JCPOA, Spokesperson for the US State Department Matthew Miller said during a briefing, Trend reports.

"There have been a number of reports, some of them false, in the last number of days. I will say a few things about that. Number one, we have always had the ability to deliver messages to Iran when its in the interests of the United States to do so. Number two, as we have made clear since the beginning of this administration, the President is committed to ensuring that Iran never obtains a nuclear weapon. And we believe that diplomacy is the best means to accomplish that, though we have been  also been clear that we have taken no option off the table," he said.

Earlier, Mohammad Marandi, an advisor to the Iranian nuclear negotiation team, said that there are no direct or secret discussions between Iran and the US on Iran's nuclear program.

In January 2016, JCPOA was launched between Iran and the P5+1 group (US, Russia, China, UK, France, and Germany) in connection with Iran's nuclear program. In May 2018, the US announced its withdrawal from the deal and imposed sanctions on Iran in November of the same year. To preserve the agreements reached as part of the JCPOA, the European signatories of the deal started in January 2019 that a financial mechanism for maintaining trade with Iran called INSTEX was formed.

On May 8, 2019, Iran announced that it had ceased fulfilling its commitments regarding the sale of over 300 kilograms of uranium, as stated in the deal, basing its decision on the other signatories that have not fulfilled their obligations. On July 7, Iran announced that it will not be fulfilling its commitments regarding the enrichment of uranium at 3.67 percent and the reconstruction of the Arak Heavy Water Reactor Facility as stated in the deal.

Iran announced that it will enrich uranium using next-generation centrifuges and will not mix it with the enriched uranium residues as part of the third step of reducing commitments in JCPOA on Sept.5. On Nov. 5, 2019, Iran announced that it took the fourth step in connection with reducing its commitments to the nuclear agreement. So, uranium gas is being pumped to the centrifuges at the Fordow Fuel Enrichment Plant.

On Jan.2020, Iran took the last fifth step in reducing the number of its commitments within JCPOA.

On May 8, 2018, the US announced its withdrawal from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) between Iran and the 5+1 group (Russia, China, the UK, France, the US, and Germany), and imposed new sanctions against Iran as of November 2018.

Over the past period, the sanctions affected Iranian oil exports, more than 700 banks, companies, and individuals. The sanctions have resulted in the freezing of Iranian assets abroad.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 14. Regional developments, as well as Iran's cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), suggest that discussions on the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) will soon begin in a third country or in Vienna, Austria, a member of the National Security and Foreign Policy Commission of the Iranian Parliament, Shahriar Heydari said, Trend reports.

Heydari noted that the parties announced their readiness to hold discussions on the JCPOA. At the same time, the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) increasing its cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency is a signal to start discussions.

Cooperation between the AEOI and the IAEA has so far brought the relationship even closer. So, in the near future, meetings may be held within the framework of the JCPOA, he added.

According to the official, there are no unknown issues left for discussions.

"However, a number of issues, including the presidential election in the US, the staff of the negotiating teams, as well as Iran's intended plans, are factors affecting the JCPOA negotiations," he explained.

Heydari also pointed out that the US wanted direct talks with Iran, but the Islamic Republic didn't accept the offer.

"Iran intends to negotiate within the framework of the JCPOA. After discussions under this plan, if a number of steps are taken by the US, Iran is ready to reopen the US embassy in Tehran. However, if the JCPOA negotiations fail to reach a conclusion, Iran will not negotiate directly with the US.," he said.

In January 2016, JCPOA was launched between Iran and the P5+1 group (US, Russia, China, UK, France, and Germany) in connection with Iran's nuclear program. In May 2018, the US announced its withdrawal from the deal and imposed sanctions on Iran in November of the same year. To preserve the agreements reached as part of the JCPOA, the European signatories of the deal started in January 2019 that a financial mechanism for maintaining trade with Iran called INSTEX was formed.

On May 8, 2019, Iran announced that it had ceased fulfilling its commitments regarding the sale of over 300 kilograms of uranium, as stated in the deal, basing its decision on the other signatories that have not fulfilled their obligations. On July 7, Iran announced that it will not be fulfilling its commitments regarding the enrichment of uranium at 3.67 percent and the reconstruction of the Arak Heavy Water Reactor Facility as stated in the deal.

Iran announced that it will enrich uranium using next-generation centrifuges and will not mix it with the enriched uranium residues as part of the third step of reducing commitments in JCPOA on Sept.5. On Nov. 5, 2019, Iran announced that it took the fourth step in connection with reducing its commitments to the nuclear agreement. So, uranium gas is being pumped to the centrifuges at the Fordow Fuel Enrichment Plant.

On Jan.2020, Iran took the last fifth step in reducing the number of its commitments within JCPOA.

On May 8, 2018, the US announced its withdrawal from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) between Iran and the 5+1 group (Russia, China, the UK, France, the US, and Germany), and imposed new sanctions against Iran as of November 2018.

Over the past period, the sanctions affected Iranian oil exports, more than 700 banks, companies, and individuals. The sanctions have resulted in the freezing of Iranian assets abroad.

---

Follow the author on Twitter:@BaghishovElnur
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 14. Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi held a meeting with Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega on June 13, Trend reports.

The meeting was also attended by Vice President of Nicaragua Rosario Murillo, Head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Denis Moncada and President of the National Assembly Gustavo Porras Cortes.

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi arrived in Managua on evening of June 13 as part of his official visit. The Iranian delegation consisted of various ministers, including the ministers of health and medical education, oil, culture and Islamic orientation, as well as economy and finance.

Raisi visited Venezuela earlier, where he met with President of Venezuela Nicolas Maduro. As a result of the meeting of the high-level intergovernmental commission, several significant cooperation agreements were signed between the two countries. After the visit to Nicaragua, Raisi will go to Cuba.
Entain tumbled on Wednesday after it raised around 600m in a discounted placing and retail offer, part of which will be used to help fund the acquisition of Polish sports betting operator STS Holdings , and the remainder to fund near-term acquisitions.

The company, which owns Ladbrokes, announced after the close on Tuesday that it had agreed to buy STS for around 750m.

Entain placed a total of just under 48.3m shares at a price of 1,230p, which is a 6.9% discount to the closing share price on Tuesday.

Chief executive officer Jette Nygaard-Anderson said: "We are delighted to be acquiring the leading sports-betting operator in Poland, which is a hugely exciting and fast-growing market.

"STS is an exceptional business with a great brand, a compelling omnichannel offering, and an outstanding CEO and management team. The transaction is perfectly aligned with our Entain CEE strategy and our wider M&A strategy of acquiring high quality businesses with leading positions in attractive, growing and regulated markets."

He said expansion across Central and Eastern Europe remains a core component of Entains growth plans, and that STS will be an integral part of its platform in that region.

At 0840 BST, the shares were down 10.3% at 1,185p.

Matt Britzman, equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: "Theres some maths to the price drop, new shares will be issued that represent 8.3% of the ordinary share capital prior to this announcement - diluting the holdings of any investor not able to take part in the raise. As I write, shares are now trading below the price paid by those involved in the capital raise, so any investor looking to get their piece of the pie back has a more attractive entry point.

"Strategically the deal makes sense, it continues the expansion into fast-growing regions and leverages many of Entains existing capabilities. The price is a sticky point, and potential cost synergies of 10m in the grand scheme of things are pretty thin. The 750m total cost values STS at 11 times its expected cash profit (EBITDA), thatll drop to below 10 if the synergies are delivered - but still, thats likely to be ahead of Entains current valuation. Therell be plenty of pressure to make this work."
Consumer electronics brand Endefo said it plans to invest Rs 200 crore in the Indian wearable market by the end of 2024, with an aim to secure 10 percent market share in three years. The Dubai-based brand, under the Ashtel Group of companies, said it is set to launch six verticals -- smart watches, sound bars, portable speakers, TWS (true wireless stereo), BoomBox and party speakers.

The products will be accessible through more than 2,000 large retail outlets, Amazon, and the company's own e-commerce platform, it said in a statement. "The investment of Rs 200 crore in India will be directed towards expansion plans, sound technology, launching new verticals/products, marketing and more," said Aneef Tas, CEO of Endefo.

After capturing a significant market share in more than seven countries, Endefo is bringing its product line to India and plans to make substantial investments in other sectors that complement its core expertise in mobility and IT. "We have already established a significant market presence in southern India and now, with this launch, we are excited to expand our reach to various states in north and west parts of the country," said Tas.

Established in 2003, Ashtel has successfully expanded its presence to 24 countries. The company said its objective is to bridge the gap between cutting-edge technology and affordability for Indian consumers.
Zambia is a beautiful and diverse country located in southern Africa that is definitely worth a visit. It is home to stunning natural wonders such as Victoria Falls, one of the largest waterfalls in the world, and the Lower Zambezi National Park, which offers some of the best wildlife viewing opportunities in the region.

The country is also rich in culture, with over 70 ethnic groups and a fascinating history that can be explored through its museums and historical sites. Additionally, Zambia is known for its friendly people, delicious cuisine, and adventurous activities such as bungee jumping and white water rafting. Whether you're looking for a relaxing getaway or an adrenaline-filled adventure, Zambia has something to offer everyone.

Zambias History

Zambia's history is rich and diverse, spanning thousands of years. The earliest human fossils found in Zambia date back to around 2 million years ago, and there is evidence of early human settlement in the country as far back as 50,000 years ago.

In the 19th century, Zambia was colonized by the British, and it became known as Northern Rhodesia. The British began to exploit Zambia's vast natural resources, particularly copper, and many Zambians were forced into low-paying jobs in the mines. This led to the rise of nationalist movements in the 20th century, and in 1964, Zambia gained independence from British rule under the leadership of Kenneth Kaunda.

Kaunda's government pursued socialist policies and implemented a number of programs aimed at improving the lives of ordinary Zambians, such as building schools and hospitals. However, the country also faced challenges such as economic instability and political unrest.

In the 1990s, Zambia began to transition to a multi-party democracy, and in 1991, Kaunda was voted out of power in the country's first free and fair elections. Since then, Zambia has had a relatively stable political climate, with several peaceful transitions of power.

Today, Zambia is a developing country with a growing economy and a young population. It continues to face challenges such as poverty, inequality, and climate change, but it also has a bright future ahead as it works to harness its natural resources and build a better future for all Zambians.

Why Choose Zambia for Your Next Safari

Zambia is an excellent choice for your next safari adventure. It offers a unique and authentic African safari experience, with vast, unspoiled wilderness areas that are home to a diverse range of wildlife. Zambia's national parks and game reserves, such as South Luangwa National Park and Kafue National Park, offer some of the best opportunities for wildlife viewing in Africa, with incredible sightings of big cats, elephants, giraffes, hippos, and more.

What sets Zambia apart from other safari destinations is its focus on low-impact, sustainable tourism. The country has a reputation for being a pioneer in responsible tourism, with many lodges and camps operating in harmony with the environment and local communities. Zambia is also known for its walking safaris, which provide a more intimate and immersive experience of the bush.

Zambia also offers cultural and historical experiences, with opportunities to visit local villages and learn about traditional ways of life. And with friendly people, delicious cuisine, and stunning natural scenery, Zambia is a destination that is sure to leave a lasting impression on any safari-goer.

Zambia is Home to Some of Africas Most Renowned National Parks

Zambia is home to a number of stunning national parks and game reserves, each offering a unique wildlife and wilderness experience. Here are some of the most popular national parks in Zambia:

South Luangwa National Park: Located in eastern Zambia, South Luangwa is one of the most famous parks in Africa, known for its incredible wildlife sightings, including leopards, lions, and hippos. The park also offers walking safaris, which provide a more immersive and intimate experience of the bush. Kafue National Park: The largest national park in Zambia, Kafue is a remote and unspoiled wilderness area with diverse habitats and wildlife, including cheetahs, wild dogs, and over 500 bird species. Lower Zambezi National Park: Situated along the banks of the Zambezi River, Lower Zambezi is a beautiful park with abundant wildlife, including elephants, lions, and buffalo. Visitors can enjoy game drives, canoe safaris, and fishing trips. North Luangwa National Park: A more remote and off-the-beaten-path park, North Luangwa is known for its wild and rugged terrain, with excellent walking safaris and opportunities to see rare species such as the black rhino.

Liuwa Plain National Park: Located in western Zambia, Liuwa Plain is a unique park with a vast, flat landscape and large herds of wildebeest and zebra. It is also home to the second-largest wildebeest migration in Africa.

These are just a few of the national parks in Zambia, each with its own unique character and wildlife. Whether you're looking for a classic big game safari or a more off-the- beaten-path adventure, Zambia has something to offer everyone.

You'll also want to spend some time at Lake Kariba; it's home to many birds and other animals that make their home by the lake or on its shores.

Lake Kariba, a vast reservoir on the Zambezi River, boasts a diverse ecosystem that provides a habitat for a wide variety of birds and other wildlife. The lake is surrounded by mountains and savannahs, creating a beautiful landscape that is worth a visit even if you are not an avid birdwatcher.

Additionally, Zambia is renowned for its excellent national parks, and Lake Kariba National Park is among the best. If you are seeking a thrilling safari adventure that allows you to observe various species of animals in their natural environment without traveling far, Lake Kariba may be the perfect destination for you!

Is Zambia a Prime Location to Visit Vic Falls?

Yes, Zambia is a prime location to visit Victoria Falls. The town of Livingstone, located in southern Zambia, is just a short distance from the falls, and there are several viewpoints and activities available to visitors.

The most popular way to experience Victoria Falls is to take a guided tour, which allows you to get up close to the falls and learn about their history and geology. The falls are also a popular spot for adventure activities such as bungee jumping, white water rafting, and helicopter tours.

In addition to the falls themselves, Livingstone offers a range of other attractions, including wildlife viewing opportunities in nearby national parks, cultural experiences such as visits to local villages, and water-based activities on the Zambezi River.

Overall, Zambia is an excellent choice for anyone looking to visit Victoria Falls, with a range of accommodation options, easy access to the falls, and plenty of activities to keep visitors entertained.

In Zambia, there are several parks where you can spot not only the big five, but also zebras, cheetahs, and other smaller mammals, as well as birds like vultures and eagles soaring overhead while on safari. If you're looking for an exciting adventure, Zambia is an excellent destination to consider. With a variety of activities available, there is something to suit everyone's interests.

You can embark on safaris in South Luangwa National Park or explore the Great Rift Valley on foot. Lake Kariba provides opportunities for swimming, fishing, and more. For those seeking a break from the wild animals, Zambia's luxury lodges offer everything from food preparation to cleaning services, ensuring a stress-free and comfortable stay.
CIIE.CO, the Startup continuum of IIM-A in collaboration with the government of Assam, will be supporting 100 startups, particularly in the agriculture sector, originating from Assam and the North East region as part of the Assam Agri Growth Lab initiative. This initiative has received funding from the World Bank and has already demonstrated remarkable success, with its first-year cohort witnessing the successful acceleration of 25 startups.

As part of the initiative, Assam Agri-business and Rural Transformation Project (APART) and ICCSPL have launched the second cohort of their program, known as Cohort 2.0, for continued efforts in supporting agribusiness entrepreneurs. Building upon the success of the first cohort, which saw 25 startups achieve remarkable outcomes such as a 20% average turnover increase and mobilising INR 8.26 crore in finance, the program is now witnessing the participation of 29 enterprises in its ongoing second cohort. Notably, there has been a significant rise in women-led startups, increasing from 32% to 45%. Furthermore, the program has expanded its reach, now encompassing 12 districts.

The program further aims to highlight the thriving startup ecosystem in Assam and attract investors. The goal is to position Assam as a hub for entrepreneurial activity and gain national visibility for these entrepreneurs. It will assist in developing new products, adopting innovative technologies, and improving quality standards. It also provides guidance in refining business pitch, facilitating access to finance and streamlining licensing processes.

"The startup ecosystem in Assam is brimming with untapped potential. The AAGL Program aims to unlock this potential by equipping entrepreneurs with the tools and resources to thrive. By offering mentorship, access to funding, and industry collaborations, we are empowering startups to overcome barriers and accelerate their growth trajectory," said Chintan Bakshi Partner Incubation CIIE.CO.

Over the course of eight months, the program provides a comprehensive range of support, including virtual diagnostic and mentoring clinics tailored to individual founders, focusing on areas such as packaging, distribution channels, communication, markets, quality, and other forms of technical assistance. Each year, the program extends its support to 25 agribusiness enterprises. As part of the second cohort, participants can anticipate a wealth of benefits, including entrepreneurial workshops, business sessions, technical assistance, guidance on compliance, market linkages, and access to finance.

With this, CIIE.CO will aim to drive agri-based innovation, foster sustainable growth, and empower entrepreneurs in the agricultural sector. By providing comprehensive support and resources, the program will enable agri and allied enterprises to flourish, contribute to the local economy, and create lasting impact.

Assam Agribusiness Growth Lab (AAGL) is an innovative program launched by CIIE.CO in association with APART and co-implemented by ICCSPL. It aims to support and accelerate the growth of agri and allied enterprises in Assam. By providing comprehensive assistance and resources, AAGL strives to create a thriving agribusiness ecosystem that drives economic growth and improves livelihoods in the region.

CIIE.CO is the Startup Incubator of IIM-Ahmedabad and a leading catalyst in India's entrepreneurial ecosystem. It nurtures innovative startups, provides them mentorship and support, and connects them with relevant stakeholders to accelerate their growth and impact.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 14. As UK Development Minister Andrew Mitchell attended the G20 Development Ministerial Meeting in Varanasi on Monday, new climate and tech partnerships were announced to benefit all by tackling global challenges, informed the British High Commission in India.

Mitchell joined India and G20 partners in calling for reinvigorated efforts to meet the UN's Sustainable Development Goals.

The new UK support includes funding for a tech start-up focusing on sustainable agriculture, including through growing vegetables in an environmentally-friendly way, as per an official release by British High Commission.

UK's International Development Minister Andrew Mitchell is in India for the G20 starting Monday - and to boost UK-India cooperation on development including through climate and tech partnerships.

He reinforced at the gathering in Varanasi how the UK's partnerships and investments are having a multiplier effect in tackling the biggest shared challenges of today - including climate change, poverty and food insecurity.

The G20 Development Ministerial meeting in Varanasi is laying the groundwork to accelerate progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals ahead of the G20 Leader's Summit in New Delhi this September.

At the G20, the UK emphasised the need to redouble global efforts to tackle the climate crisis and shocks facing the most vulnerable countries demonstrating our position as a development leader set out earlier this year.

New UK programmes announced in India include an investment of 10 million Pounds in the Avaana Fund, a women-led climate-tech fund that supports innovative businesses to develop solutions to climate change and create jobs for women in sectors such as clean energy, energy storage and agriculture.
Liminal, a leading wallet infrastructure and custody solutions platform announced that it has become a part of the advisory panel of the Telangana governments Web 3.0 Regulatory Sandbox to nurture viable and scalable Web3 projects in the state. Stalwarts from the industry as a part of the governance and advisory panel will enable Web3 startups to scale and grow by providing them technical, management, and operational guidance.

The advisory and governance panel constituted as a part of the regulatory sandbox will shortlist web3 projects with high potential and provide management guidance, technical support, and business strategy for creating a sustainable business model. Telangana government is highly supportive of emerging technologies like blockchain and is keen on deploying innovative concepts for better governance and the welfare of the people in the state. Blockchain district, the brainchild of the government of Telangana has been set up in Hyderabad which acts as a closely-knit ecosystem for exchanging ideas, making connections, finding resources, and collaborating to boost mass adoption of blockchain technology.

Commenting on the development Principal Secretary ITE&C Department, Sri Jayesh Ranjan representing Telangana government, said Telangana Governments Web3 Regulatory Sandbox is a part of our continued efforts to foster innovation through blockchain in India.. We believe that Web3 regulatory sandbox will help startups in navigating the regulatory landscape. We are highly optimistic about the future of web3/blockchain and want to leverage it for the benefit of mankind.

Commenting on the development Manan Vora, Senior Vice President, Business Strategy and Operations at Liminal, said It is an absolute honor to be a part of the Telangana governments Web 3 regulatory sandbox as a part of MOU with BWA. We strongly believe that it will act as a catalyst to bring blockchain to the grassroots. The model created by the Telangana government can be replicated by other state governments to deliver blockchain-based efficient governance for the people in their respective states. This will also help in creating more startups in the states and create more jobs for the youth by strengthening the Startup India program.

Liminal is actively collaborating with government machinery to enable mass adoption of Web3-related products and services. Liminal has recently partnered with Indias premier investigation agency to provide custody solutions and the recent partnership with the Telangana government will enable Liminal to leverage the power of blockchain for public welfare in the remotest parts of our country.
Upskilling platform upGrad announced the establishment of the upGrad Institute of Medical Sciences (UIMS), a fully offline campus located in the Republic of Vanuatu. The initiative aims to attract and train global talent in modern clinical competencies, diverging from the recent trend of education technology companies focusing on online platforms.

The offline institute will play a crucial role in training skilled medical practitioners and fostering talent mobility in the region. To support the launch of the university, upGrad has allocated $10 million in funding. Ronnie Screwvala, co-founder and chairperson of upGrad, emphasized the strategic importance of Vanuatu's proximity to Australia and New Zealand. He stated that this move will strengthen upGrad's presence in the South Pacific region, complementing their existing strong presence in Australia.

The UIMS plans to commence accepting enrollments from the second half of June this year. In addition, upGrad has pledged $50,000 to the Vanuatu Prime Minister's Relief Fund to support healthcare services at the Port Vila Central Hospital in the region.

upGrad's announcement aligns with the recent 12-point development agenda for the Pacific Island Nations unveiled by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The agenda emphasizes healthcare, renewable energy, and cybersecurity as key areas for development, making upGrad's initiative timely and relevant.

Gaurav Kumar, head of corporate development and M&As at upGrad, highlighted the company's collaboration with the Ministry of Health and the government of Vanuatu to establish the offline educational campus. He mentioned that the goal is to offer a world-class curriculum to the region's natives and promote the internationalization of higher education. Kumar further disclosed that this initiative is part of upGrad's multi-campus strategy, with plans to establish three medical schools in the Pacific region and additional undisclosed locations.

The announcement comes after upGrad recently completed an internal rights issue worth INR 300 crore, a significant achievement given the challenging climate for venture funding in the edtech sector.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.  Notorious ex-NYPD Officer Justin Volpe has been released under supervision from federal prison where he spent nearly a quarter-century behind bars after he was convicted for sodomizing Abner Louima inside a precinct stationhouse.

Media reports indicate that Volpe, 51, who lived for many years in Eltingville, has returned to his home borough of Staten Island.

Volpe, 51, is participating in a Residential Reentry Management (RRM) program and is scheduled to be released on January 10, 2024, according to public records.

I wish everybody well that was involved with my case, Volpe allegedly told the New York Post when reporters tracked the felon down at a family home on Staten Island. I have nothing but love in my heart for New York City and everybody in my case involved, especially Mr. Louima.

I wish us all peace, he continued to the New York Post reporters. I just want to rebuild my life at the pace that Im able to. God bless everyone.

Volpe initially received a 30-year sentence after he pleaded guilty to civil rights violations; his release comes six years early.

His release was first reported by The Freelance.

The episode that disgraced the NYPD began on Aug. 9, 1997, when Louima, a Haitian immigrant, was arrested outside a Brooklyn nightclub and was taken to the 70th Precinct stationhouse in Brooklyn.

There, Volpe beat and sodomized Louima with a broomstick, according to authorities. The victims injuries included a ruptured bladder and colon, authorities alleged. Louima was hospitalized for two months while recovering from the injuries.

Five officers were initially charged in the attack. Former Staten Island officer Charles Schwarz served a five-year term for perjury.

Schwarz was accused of lying after he said he had not escorted Louima to the bathroom and he wasnt in the bathroom during the attack.

I THINK ABOUT IT MOST OF THE TIME

In 2021, Volpe filed a filed a motion in the Eastern District of New York on Dec. 23 asking for an early release due to coronavirus (COVID-19) concerns after he tested positive for the virus while in prison in November 2020. That motion was denied by Judge Frederic Block.

He does not present any extraordinary and compelling reasons based on the possibility of contracting COVID-19, Block wrote in his decision. In any event, reconsideration of the factors does not warrant a reduction of his sentence given the grave nature and circumstances of his crime.

Louima told the Post that he has forgiven Volpe for his crimes.

My life has changed in the worst imaginable way, he said. Of course I still think about my attack. I think about it most of the time.

If the justice system wants to release him, they will. Let it be, Louima added.

Volpe previously stated he takes full responsibility and lives with the pain it has caused the victim, his family, and others.

I do not seek to evade just punishment for my crime. I have served the overwhelming majority of the sentence. After 21 plus years in prison, it is my family who is being punished more.

RELATED COVERAGE: Recent Staten Island news

>> NYPD: Brooklyn woman allegedly tried to set fire at precinct stationhouse on Staten Island

>> NYPD seeks tips in alleged assault at carnival outside Staten Island Mall

>> Staten Island woman, 45, charged in NYC fatal shooting that started as minor family dispute

>> Lawsuit: Family suffered shock, horror after hand of buried mom was found in S.I. woods

>> FDNY fights 2-alarm fire at popular restaurant on Staten Island; 1 firefighter taken to hospital; strip mall damaged

>> Man, 42, accused of attempted murder in stabbing on South Shore of Staten Island

>> Details emerge about fake-gun scare at Tottenville High School on Staten Island

https://www.bop.gov/mobile/find_inmate/byname.jsp#inmate_results

https://nypost.com/2023/06/13/justin-volpe-ex-cop-in-abner-louima-assault-released-early/
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.  A 39-year-old woman from Brooklyn stands accused in a bizarre series of incidents that culminated in an attempt to set the NYPDs 120th Precinct stationhouse in St. George on fire.

Yasmeya Mehmeti of Cortelyou Road faces charges in two encounters that occurred last month at the stationhouse at 78 Richmond Terrace, according to the criminal complaint and police.

Advance/SILive.com records indicate that Mehmeti previously lived in Elm Park.

The criminal complaint alleges that on Tuesday, May 30, at about 4:55 p.m., the defendant intentionally attempted to set a building on fire with people present in that the informant observed the defendant holding a sparking lighter against a garbage bag located in close proximity to the front door of the stationhouse.

While officers were trying to apprehend Mehmeti, the suspect allegedly lit the lighter in an attempt to avoid being arrested.

I will beat the s--- out of you, the complaint alleges the suspect said to an officer. I know where you live.

Police allege they recovered a lighter from the suspects person.

On Sunday, May 28, officers saw Mehmeti filming around 8:30 p.m. inside the stationhouse, even though signs stated that such recording was not permitted, the complaint alleges.

Officers informed the suspect multiple times that filming inside the above-mentioned police precinct was prohibited and that if the defendant did not cease filming inside said location, she would no longer be permitted to remain inside, the complaint states.

Authorities allege that the suspect refused to stop taping.

Im not leaving, the complaint quotes Mehmeti as saying. Arrest me.

When officers attempted to handcuff her, the suspect allegedly resisted arrest by tensing her arms and refusing to put her hands behind her back, kicking her legs and spitting in the direction of police.

In the incident with the lighter, Mehmeti was charged with attempted arson, obstruction of governmental administration, resisting arrest, attempted criminal mischief and harassment.

The filming incident prompted misdemeanor charges of obstructing governmental administration, resisting arrest, criminal trespass, trespass and disorderly conduct.

Mehmeti, whose last name also is listed as Weeks-Meheti in public records, has been remanded to Rikers Island and a psychiatric exam has been ordered.

She is due back in Criminal Court on June 21, according to public records.

Attorney Leo Duval, who is representing the defendant, declined to comment at this time.

ALLEGED PAST THREATS TO LAW ENFORCEMENT

Mehmeti has faced allegations in the past that she threatened members of law enforcement.

Court documents unsealed in 2021 alleged that Mehmeti, whose then husband and brother were imprisoned on criminal charges, made a death threat against a federal prosecutor who worked on one of their cases and called for the firing of an assistant district attorney on Staten Island.

I want [JANE DOE 2], [JANE DOE 3] & this corrupted b---h [JANE DOE 1] to lose their jobs or else I will Str8 murder [JANE DOE 1] of the Eastern District of New York in Brooklyn... I play chess with your f-----g heads on the concrete floor in a Staten Island basement some damn where, Mehmeti allegedly wrote on Facebook in April 2021, according to a criminal complaint.

I want immediate release for my brother, its definitely not a want in all actuality its a motherf****** need! I will go to old ways & habits! Dont F--- with me! authorities allege she wrote.

Her brother, Pearlie Johnson, was sentenced in 2008 to 16 and a half years in prison in connection to gun charges, the Advance/SILive.com previously reported. Authorities said Johnson was expected to be released in 2021 but had his prison term extended to 2031 after he stabbed someone while behind bars.

Yasmeya Mehmetis husband, Enver Mehmeti, led a violent crew that distributed large amounts of crack and powder cocaine in New Springville and in New Jersey, federal authorities said in 2009. He was sentenced to 27 years in prison, the Advance/SILive.com reported at the time. He is due for release in 2032, according to public records.

Yasmeya Mehmeti was sentenced to 15 months in prison and three years of post-release supervision in the federal case.



RELATED COVERAGE: Recent Staten Island news

>> NYPD seeks tips in alleged assault at carnival outside Staten Island Mall

>> Staten Island woman, 45, charged in NYC fatal shooting that started as minor family dispute

>> Lawsuit: Family suffered shock, horror after hand of buried mom was found in S.I. woods

>> FDNY fights 2-alarm fire at popular restaurant on Staten Island; 1 firefighter taken to hospital; strip mall damaged

>> Man, 42, accused of attempted murder in stabbing on South Shore of Staten Island

>> Details emerge about fake-gun scare at Tottenville High School on Staten Island
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.  A 23-year-old man found lying in the street in Mariners Harbor early in the Wednesday morning rush hour is suspected to have suffered a medical episode, according to a source with knowledge of the investigation.

The man was found unconscious with an electric skateboard located near him around 6 a.m. in the 200 block of Lockman Avenue near Continental Place, according to preliminary information provided to a spokesman for the NYPDs Deputy Commissioner of Public Information.

The location provided by police is in the vicinity of the Mariners Harbor Houses.

The man was rushed to Richmond University Medical Center in West Brighton.

Although initially listed a critically injured, the man is expected to recover from his injuries, a police spokesman said.

The investigation by the NYPDs Highway District Collision Squad was cancelled.

A man was found critically injured with an electric skateboard near him on the street at Lockman Avenue and Continental Place on the morning of Wednesday, June 14, 2023. (Staten Island Advance/Jan Somma-Hammel)

A man was found critically injured with an electric skateboard near him on the street at Lockman Avenue and Continental Place on the morning of Wednesday, June 14, 2023. (Staten Island Advance/Jan Somma-Hammel)

RELATED COVERAGE: Recent Staten Island news

>> Ex-cop Justin Volpe convicted in brutal assault of Abner Louima now on supervised release from prison

>> NYPD: Brooklyn woman allegedly tried to set fire at precinct stationhouse on Staten Island

>> NYPD seeks tips in alleged assault at carnival outside Staten Island Mall

>> Staten Island woman, 45, charged in NYC fatal shooting that started as minor family dispute

>> Lawsuit: Family suffered shock, horror after hand of buried mom was found in S.I. woods

>> FDNY fights 2-alarm fire at popular restaurant on Staten Island; 1 firefighter taken to hospital; strip mall damaged

>> Man, 42, accused of attempted murder in stabbing on South Shore of Staten Island
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.  Emergency shelter options have been one of the main prongs of the citys response to the ongoing migrant crisis, sometimes drawing pushback from locals, including on Staten Island.

The seriousness of the citys response and local communities reaction brought two local elected leaders, City Councilman Joseph Borelli (R-South Shore) and Councilman David Carr (R-Mid-Island), to dispute what they call false claims about future shelter sites on the borough.

Curtis Sliwa, the onetime standard-bearer of the Republican party in New York City, claimed on his WABC radio show last week that shelter sites would be coming to the former campus of St. John Villa Academy and the St. Johns University campus on Grymes Hill.

In one segment, Sliwa claimed that engineers from the Department of Homeless Services were looking at the former Villa site in Arrochar, and in another that a shelter was planned for the college campus when it closes in 2024.

Borelli didnt mince words in his response to what he called false claims made by the radio host, referencing a court case from the 1990s during which Sliwa admitted to making up actions taken by his Guardian Angels group, as reported in the New York Times.

The migrant crisis is bad enough without this village idiot making up nonsense, Borelli, the leader of the minority party in the Council said. Unfortunately, Ive learned the hard way that people shouldnt take this court-proven serial liar seriously.

In late May, the councilman took to Twitter to dispel a similar rumor Sliwa spread about migrant housing coming to the former Arthur Kill Correctional Facility, which has been under private ownership since 2017 operating as a film studio.

Borelli said in response to those claims that hed spoken with the owner of the site, Broadway Stages, and confirmed that no migrant housing was planned for the site.

Brian Browne, a spokesperson for St. Johns University, said Tuesday that neither the city nor state had approached the school specifically about its Staten Island campus, which is set to close next year  and that it had no intentions of using any of its facilities to house asylum seekers.

In early May, St. Johns  like other area institutions  received an inquiry from City Hall not specific to any of our three metropolitan campuses about available campus space, Browne said. The University advised that year-round academic instruction and related programming utilize all our campus space.

Publicly, Adams and other city officials have said all options are on the table to help deal with the influx of asylum seekers into the city, but multiple sources, including Carr, have said that in private conversations, members of the administration have denied plans to house migrants at Villa.

A spokesperson for Mayor Eric Adams, who defeated Sliwas 2021 Republican mayoral candidacy, reiterated the administrations position that all options are on the table, but specified that Sliwa has no access to their decision-making process.

In 2018, city officials announced they would purchase the site of the former St. John Villa Academy, paving the way for more than 1,000 new public school seats.

A spokesperson for the School Construction Authority, which oversees the sites transition along with the Department of Education, said that work continues at the campus, but offered no clear timeline on when it would reopen as a new school.

Despite persistent, unsubstantiated rumors to the contrary, the Administration has confirmed with me there are no plans to use the former Villa campus as a shelter, Carr said. Villa was purchased with the sole intent of continuing its use as an educational campus, which is why I continue to have productive conversations with the Administration to utilize the site to house Staten Islands first Gifted and Talented school.

Sliwa did not respond to a request for comment by the time of publication.

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Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe will visit India next month and will meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 21 July.

This will be Wickremesinghes first visit to India as President after he replaced former leader Gotabaya Rajapaksa amid a major economic crisis in the country last year.

Sources in the Sri Lankan government and the Presidents office told ThePrint that the Delhi visit would last two or three days.

The Sri Lankan President is also seeking individual meetings with External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and National Security Advisor Ajit Doval.

The official visit to India was finalised during a meeting held by Wickremesinghes cabinet Monday, sources said.

Cabinet Minister Jeevan Thondaman is among the few who will accompany the Sri Lankan President to India.

ThePrint reached out to Indias Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Arindam Bagchi to confirm details of the visit but he did not respond.

The two countries may sign a grid connectivity agreement ahead of the Sri Lankan Presidents visit to New Delhi, according to a report by Sri Lankan newspaper Daily Mirror.

India will be the sixth country visited by Wickremesinghe since he was sworn into power last July. So far, Wickremesinghe has been to five countries  the UK, Philippines, Egypt, Singapore and Japan. He is scheduled to visit France later this month.

While attending Nikkeis Future of Asia conference in Tokyo last month, the Sri Lankan President called for open dialogue between Japan, China, India, and the ASEAN nations.

China, India and Japan are among Sri Lankas top foreign lenders. India has played a major role since the island country plunged into crisis last year after its foreign exchange reserves dried up.

Recently, Indian foreign minister S. Jaishankar said that New Delhi has done more to help the island country than the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

What we have done for Sri Lanka is bigger than what the IMF has done for Sri Lanka. If any of you have visited Sri Lanka recently, then you will note the popular perception that has accrued from this action, said Jaishankar while speaking at an event in Anant National University, Gujarat last month.

Sri Lanka secured a $2.9 billion bailout from the IMF earlier this year and is currently in debt-structuring talks.
The sudden prospect of an auction for The Telegraph newspaper and Spectator magazine  two of Britains most influential conservative titles  has sparked interest throughout the countrys media and financial elite.

Earlier this month, a unit of Lloyds Banking Group appointed receivers to seize the holding company for both publications and removed the Barclay familys directors, after talks over long-running debts faltered. Brothers Frederick and David Barclay bought The Telegraph and The Spectator magazine together in 2004, in a deal worth $US1.3 billion ($1.9 billion) at the time. David Barclay died two years ago.

Billionaire media mogul Rupert Murdoch was prepared to pay 50 million ($93 million) for The Spectator as recently as two years ago. Credit: AP

Both titles are famous institutions intertwined with the upper echelons of the ruling Conservative Party. The Spectator is the worlds oldest weekly magazine still in print, founded 195 years ago, while The Daily Telegraph dates to 1855 and claims the scoop for the outbreak of World War II.

Media mogul and News Corp chairman Rupert Murdoch has coveted The Spectator for decades, and bid as recently as two years ago, at a value of around 50 million ($93 million), according to two people familiar with the matter. Murdoch is in London next week for senior management meetings at News UK, according to people familiar with his schedule.
Nobody would begrudge Kathleen Folbigg, jailed for 20 years over the deaths of her four children and recently pardoned because the conviction was unsound, for cashing in on a big-money interview with Channel Seven.

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But it looks like that interview might be worth considerably more than previously thought. The price of the interview was initially reported as $400,000, with some speculation Seven had offered as much as $1 million.

But sources close to the negotiations, who are not authorised to speak publicly, have told CBD that everybody except Seven pulled out of the talks after hearing from Folbiggs people that the benchmark bid  for an interview, security expenses and some archive footage  was $1.5 million.

It probably wont end there. Folbigg is being ably represented by celebrity agent Nick Fordham, brother of shock jock Ben Fordham  whose station 2GB is owned by Nine, publisher of this masthead. The lesser-known Fordham boasts quite the stable of talent, including Lisa Wilkinson, Ange Postecoglou and Joe Hockey.
Stephen King said Cormac McCarthy was maybe the greatest American novelist of my time, and American novelist and memoirist David Vann said he was the writer all American writers had to measure themselves against.

McCarthy, who died on Tuesday aged 89, published his first novel, The Orchard Keeper, in 1965. His final works, the companion novels The Passenger and Stella Maris, late last year.

Here are five books that are essential to his huge reputation.

Blood Meridian (1985)

The first time you read Blood Meridian, arguably McCarthys greatest novel, it shakes you to your core. Not only for the extreme violence and its horrors, but for the sheer force of the wrought almost biblical language that was McCarthys stylistic trademark, and for the extraordinary central character of the Judge, bald as a stone and he had no trace of beard and he had no brows to his eyes nor lashes to them. He was close on seven feet in height ... and the Kid all history present in that visage, the child the father of the man. Its a book that wallows in the often motiveless violence of the 1840s in the southwest of America  a validation of sequence and causality  written in a prose that keeps you gripped even when bemused by McCarthys intent.
TREVOR GREEN June 22, 1944-May 29, 2023

Trevor Green was a titan of international orchestral management, who made his home in Melbourne for 15 years.

Three of the many influential positions held by Trevor during his time in Australia were director of ABC Concerts (1985-1988), responsible for all the state symphony orchestras; director of the Australian National Academy of Music (1997-1999), turning it into a sustainable centre for excellence in post-tertiary training; and, of course, managing director of the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra (MSO) (1999-2010). He approached all these positions from his perspective as a professional performing musician with a deep and knowledgeable love of music.

Trevor always said his time with the MSO was the highlight of his long career working with orchestras. There was a special can-do chemistry between him and the musicians and staff that was infectious. Its a testament to the love that the musicians still feel for Trevor 13 years after his tenure, that when they heard he was ill they recorded and sent a special musical tribute to him.

They trusted Trevor, partly because hed been a professional orchestral trumpeter himself. He knew what a job in a professional orchestra entails and what musicians need to perform at their best. He came to almost every concert and always rushed backstage afterwards to excitedly congratulate the players as they walked off stage. Alongside his love for his musicians, Trevor mentored and guided numerous young arts management professionals, almost all of whom have gone on to contribute significantly to orchestral and arts management in Australia and around the world.
It is gobsmacking. Despite Breaker Morants being a convicted war criminal, there continues to be a serious push to belatedly add his name to the Boer War memorial in Adelaide. Previous attempts to do so were launched in 1993 and 2021, and were rightly rejected. On Tuesday evening, Adelaide City Council began to wrestle with the issue, even as South Australian Premier Peter Malinauskas told the ABC it was a legitimate debate that should be had.

Harry Breaker Morant, third from left, with members of the South Australian Infantry who left for South African in February 1900. Credit: Courtesy of the Library of South Australia

Its not. Its a disgrace that such a thing is even countenanced, and it rests on a false legend: that Morant was a kind of Man from Snowy River, put up against the wall and shot for crimes he never committed. As one who wrote a long book on him, I can affirm that this legend is not remotely the truth. Lets go through it.

Morant was actually a charismatic Englishman who arrived in Australia in the early 1880s, and for the next two decades left in his wake great feats of horsemanship, strong poetry, broken women, charges of thieving and colossal debts that went unpaid.

A shortish man, a contemporary noted of him, [he was] quite destitute of moral courage or moral principle ... he would never willingly exert himself to earn an honest shilling if he could borrow it off no matter whom; a confirmed dipsomaniac.
Egypts Strategy for Human Rights was the focus of talks between Egyptian MPs and European Union (EU) Special Representative for Human Rights Eamon Gilmore in Brussels on Tuesday.
It was a highly uncharacteristic move. Albaneses guiding principle since becoming Labor leader in 2019 had been to avoid all risks  think embracing stage three tax cuts and AUKUS, ditching any notion of broader tax reform. In Australian politics one of the greatest risks of all is to put up a referendum: since Federation, voters have shown that they like voting No. Here was a new government that had only just got over the line, with a historically low primary vote, setting out to risk a large chunk of political capital from the outset.

In his victory speech on election night, he nominated the establishment of the Voice as part of his governments first order of business. The third sentence of his speech was: And on behalf of the Australian Labor Party, I commit to the Uluru Statement from the Heart in full. He returned to the Uluru statement later in the speech, pledging specifically to introduce a Voice to parliament in partnership with the Australian people.

Political leaders are programmed not to look back and reflect. But as public support for the No case in the Indigenous Voice referendum coalesces and solidifies, does Anthony Albanese ever wonder if he should have gone about the issue differently?

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Our prime minister was an effective member of the Rudd and Gillard cabinets, overseeing infrastructure, transport, regional development and local government, but those are largely practical, spending portfolios that rarely attract controversy. It can be said, rightly, that in most cases only prime ministers and treasurers have to truly stick their necks out and advocate for big, difficult ideas. This is Albaneses first time at it.

But theres a big question mark attached to his ability as a campaigner. He had two terrible days at the start of last years election campaign. On day one he rambled on about patting puppies at the Royal Easter Show and on day two, rather than using his authority to tell reporters he wasnt a quiz show contestant and to get serious, he went along with the nonsense and embarrassed himself by flubbing an answer about the unemployment rate. It was only when he later caught COVID and Jason Clare  with his energetic, disarming style  took over as the face of the ALP for a few days that the show steadied. And still the victory over the worst prime minister in living memory was wafer-thin.

The stakes are incredibly high. If the Voice proposal fails, who can say how badly relations between most First Nations people and the rest of the country will be damaged? A lot, by my reckoning. After Albanese announced at the Woodford Folk Festival last December that the referendum would be held in 2023, rather than stepping up his advocacy, he went into cruise mode. Opposition Leader Peter Dutton immediately set out to destroy the Yes case and filled the space with misinformation in the guise of questions.

Dutton has no qualms about smashing the proposal or the consequences of his actions. His questions include how the government would define Aboriginality and how the Voice would be accountable. Among his assertions is that theres no detail, its divisive, its racist and its just another layer of bureaucracy that wont deliver real improvements for Indigenous people. Duttons not dog whistling, hes using a megaphone. He appointed Julian Leeser, a known Voice supporter, as his Indigenous affairs spokesman, and then humiliated his colleague until Leeser could take no more and stepped down. Duttons motivation is to diminish Albaneses standing and make it to the next election.
Victoria is facing calls to fast-track the replacement of more than 100 regional school buses that do not have seatbelts after two horror crashes that have thrown a spotlight on bus safety.

The state government is reviewing school bus seatbelt rules after 13 children were hospitalised  10 with serious injuries  when an Exford Primary School bus crashed on Melbournes western outskirts last month.

Thirteen children were taken to hospital after the Exford Primary School bus crash last month. Credit: Jason South

Ten people were killed in the Hunter Valley in New South Wales on Sunday when a bus carrying 35 wedding guests rolled, in one of the countrys worst road disasters.

In Victoria, it is compulsory to wear a seatbelt on a bus or coach if one is available, but there is no legal mandate for them to be installed, including on school buses.
A bespoke architectural masterpiece owned by a wealthy mining magnate couple with a penchant for collecting antique Royal Worchester porcelain has been listed for sale in Bedfordale.

The home is expected to fetch between $12 million and $15 million.

The 2014 Australian Home of the Year is carved into the hillside and sits on 50 acres of Japanese-inspired gardens with fruit trees, koi ponds and a contemplation garden.

The stunning home is owned by retirees Tena and Terry Wheeler, who migrated from England in the 1960s.
A man accused of lighting a bushfire that caused a gas cylinder to explode in the face of a curious passer-by has pleaded guilty to a charge of manslaughter in the Supreme Court of WA.

Christopher Fox, 38, lit a fire on the night of September 22 last year in Pinjar.

Jack Kinneen was killed in an explosion. Credit: WA Police

Police alleged the fire was deliberately lit by the Banksia Grove man to cause an explosion.

Jack Kinneen, 23, was driving past on a four-wheel driving expedition and approached the blaze shortly after midnight.
West Australian teachers dealing with some of the biggest classes in the country have called for a reduction in the number of students allowed per class, with concerns up to 70 per cent of teachers may have considered leaving the profession.

While WA schools allow a maximum of 32 students from years 4 to 12, other states thresholds are lower. Victoria only allows a maximum of 26, Queensland 28, and the Northern Territory 27.

A smaller class will benefit the teacher and the students, WAs teachers union says. Credit: iStock

One teacher, who works in Perths south and asked to remain anonymous, said while they had a small class, friends and colleagues were dealing with much larger ones.

They are trying to give each student the time, effort and attention that they deserve [but] you simply cannot teach up to five classes of over 30 students over the course of a week and plan for lessons and mark without something having to give, they said.
According to NSW Healths latest figures, as of June 8 there were 1516 people with COVID-19 in hospital . Another way of looking at the ongoing impact in NSW is that COVID-19 admissions currently take up the total bed capacities of both Westmead Hospital and John Hunter Hospital in Newcastle. In the past week, 81 people died of the disease in NSW.

The World Health Organisation declared COVID-19 was no longer a global emergency last month but it is still having an impact through NSW.

Nearly 18 months after Anthony Albanese promised some form of inquiry into the nations handling of the COVID-19 pandemic he has done nothing. Instead, his government continues to parry questions about the inquiry, insisting the COVID-19 crisis is ongoing and Australia will have to wait.

A massive three-year government inquiry to examine Britains response to, and the impact of, the COVID-19 pandemic began in London this week but where is Australias inquiry?

Of course, the British response to the pandemic was far different and the impact far worse than in Australia. There, huge numbers of people suffered: 227,321 have died since 2020, lockdowns tarnished many lives and left thousands suffering from clinical depression and the effects of long COVID. The country is still recording far higher COVID-19 hospital admissions and related deaths than Australia. Regardless of the ongoing crisis, the British inquiry opened on Wednesday with the initial six weeks of hearings on the countrys preparedness and resilience.

There is a sense of urgency. COVID-19 will certainly not be the last disease to ravage the world and the British government understands the need to examine the pandemic response in scrupulous detail to pinpoint where and when things went wrong.

Another outbreak of a new disease on this scale would be devastating. Albanese appeared to understand this in January last year at the National Press Club when he promised a royal commission or some other inquiry into the nations handling of the COVID-19 pandemic. It is beyond comprehension this [Scott Morrisons] government has refused to learn from this pandemic, Albanese said. The inquiry became a cornerstone of Labors election promised. But 18 months later, Australia still awaits.

In opposition, Albanese trod carefully on COVID-19. He refused to criticise premiers, despite failures by state governments, including the NSW cruise ship mess and the hotel quarantine and contact tracing debacle in Victoria. Now he appears hesitant about a royal commission. Could it be that, with Labor in government across the mainland, the prime minister is loath to do anything that might poke his state colleagues in the eyes? After all, neither Victorias Daniel Andrews nor Queenslands Annastacia Palaszczuk have shown any enthusiasm for independent reviews of their recent decisions. And the West Australian lock the world out policy of Mark McGowan was a take on federalism envisaged by none of Australias founding fathers.

Nor is Opposition Leader Peter Dutton likely to attack Albanese for breaking an election promise on the COVID inquiry, given his former Coalition government will take heavy flak from an investigation into the nations vaccine procurement and rollout.
Save Log in , register or subscribe to save articles for later. Save articles for later Add articles to your saved list and come back to them any time. Got it Normal text size Larger text size Very large text size More than two years after Brittany Higgins turned her phone over to ACT police as part of a criminal investigation into her alleged rape, tranches of her private messages have been leaked to select media outlets, opening another sorry chapter in a saga that has already been so damaging to many of those swept into it. The leakers themselves may never be unmasked, but the origin of their material  an alleged victims phone records made public without her consent  has provoked a debate about the ethics of reporting the contents and the damage caused to the justice system, even as it ensnared a minister in allegations of misleading the parliament and relaunched a political brawl over who knew what and when. What is evident, however, is that personal and political machinations are afoot. The leaks and the reporting of them have attempted to reframe the rape allegation against Bruce Lehrmann as a political conspiracy, settle scores in the media and wound a minister. As the leaks dominated question time in both houses this week, the Coalition trod a precarious line as it pursued Labor over its prior knowledge of the rape allegation, raising questions that demanded answers in the public interest while politically profiting from media reports of an alleged victims private text messages in the process. The blowtorch could ultimately land on the media as the government weighs changes to the Privacy Act. Independent Warringah MP Zali Steggall, a former barrister, said the leaks undermined trust and confidence in the criminal justice system for victims, and the media should not have a leave pass for publishing them.

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Under the Privacy Act, there is an exception for journalism, but that exception has to be used mindfully and ethically, Steggall said. She said an option was to remove the exception and create a tort of privacy  a direct avenue to sue and be compensated for privacy breaches, which is being canvassed as part of the governments review of the Privacy Act. Loading The proposal is being furiously resisted by media companies, including Nine, publisher of this masthead, Guardian Australia, Free TV Australia, and the public broadcasters ABC and SBS, which have argued it would have a chilling effect on public interest journalism and would unduly tip the scales in favour of privacy at the expense of freedom of communication. Liberal senator Andrew Bragg said watching the political storm unfold in the Senate this week has been very ugly and that while Labor had clear questions to answer, the leaks were reprehensible and should never happen again. Why would anyone come forward with allegations of assault if this is the result? Bragg said. This whole thing, going back two years now, has been long on politics  But I wonder how much good can be derived at this point.

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The parliament is just one of the many theatres where this saga has played out. Lehrmann, who was accused of raping Higgins in the office of then-defence minister Linda Reynolds in 2019, has always maintained his innocence. His trial was aborted in October 2022 due to juror misconduct and he is now suing Network 10, its high-profile host Lisa Wilkinson and the ABC for defamation over their coverage of the allegation. Against this backdrop, stories centred on Higgins phone records have landed in quick succession in the Daily Mail and The Australian over the past three weeks, inevitably sparking speculation as to who was orchestrating the leaks and their motivations for doing so. Separately, audio excerpts from a five-hour meeting in January 2021 between Higgins, her partner David Sharaz, Wilkinson, and her producer at The Project, Angus Llewellyn  in which they strategised Higgins tell-all interview  have found their way into the hands of Seven, the Daily Mail, and Sky News. The audio was originally produced by Ten under subpoena for Lehrmanns criminal trial. The Australian Federal Police is now investigating that leak. Bruce Lehrmann has maintained his innocence over rape allegations he faced, which were discontinued last year. Credit: Alex Ellinghausen The leaks appear to breach a legal principle known as the Harman rule, in which material produced to a court under subpoena cant be used for purposes other than for those court proceedings. A breach could amount to contempt of court. The outcome has been a barrage of coverage across print and TV outlets that painted Higgins and Sharaz as schemers plotting with sympathetic media to maximise the political impact of her account of the alleged rape. The leaks have ensnared Finance Minister Katy Gallagher, after The Australian published messages between Higgins and Sharaz suggesting he tipped off the Labor frontbencher about the rape allegation four days before it was aired for the first time on The Project and published by news.com.au on February 15, 2021.

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The messages have dredged up remarks Gallagher made as an opposition frontbencher in the last parliament, when she told a Senate estimates hearing that no one had any knowledge of Higgins claim before it was made public. In a statement to the Senate on Tuesday, she denied misleading the parliament, saying she had been responding to Reynolds accusations at the time that she had known for two weeks, and accused the Coalition of being giddy with the coverage of the leaked texts. Loading I was provided with information in the days before the allegations were first reported, and I did nothing with that information  absolutely nothing. I was asked to keep it to myself and I did, Gallagher told the upper house. Liberal frontbencher Jane Hume has defended the Coalitions approach, saying that once the media made the decision to publish, the opposition had a duty to hold Labor to account. Media, journalists have to make decisions about whether its in the public interest. Theyve already made that decision. Now that information is out there, the onus is on us to make sure that the evidence that this minister gave to parliament is consistent with that new evidence thats out there, Hume told Sevens Sunrise program on Wednesday. Deputy opposition leader Sussan Ley said the leaked material called into question the credibility of senior Labor ministers when they were in opposition, and accused the government of dragging out the process by providing incomplete answers. We want simple answers to our questions to demonstrate, did this government find out about an allegation of rape prior to it being made public and use that information for their own political purposes. Because if they did, those actions are morally bankrupt, she told reporters on Wednesday.

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For most of this latest episode, Higgins had kept her silence until this week, when she herself tweeted transcripts of a purported January 2021 conversation between herself and a former Liberal colleague in then-minister Michaelia Cashs office discussing the alleged assault. Loading But the media cannot pretend it knows nothing of the toll caused by the ongoing invasion of her privacy as she has scolded them in the past. Stop publishing the private contents of my phone. I entrusted police with my private information for the sole purpose that it could aid their investigation into my [alleged] sexual assault, nothing else, Higgins tweeted in February in response to an earlier leak. Her comments were directed at The Australian after it reported entries from her diary, which she claimed had been sourced from a photo on her phone. Higgins precarious mental health is also a matter of public record. She has been hospitalised twice for mental health care and prosecutors abandoned a possible retrial of Lehrmann and dropped the charges against him citing the strain on Higgins as presenting a significant and unacceptable risk to her life. Goldstein MP Zoe Daniel, a veteran ABC journalist before entering politics, is scathing of her former professions handling of the leaked material, saying a duty of care to Higgins had been abandoned and insufficient weight given to the leakers motivations in the pursuit of headlines. There is a question of balancing the public interest and duty of care. I think those two things could coexist in this situation, and I think a choice has been made to forget about the duty of care, Daniel says.

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Developers will be given stronger incentives to build higher, denser housing developments that override local environment plans under the Labor governments first major reform to help solve Sydneys housing affordability crisis.

Premier Chris Minns will on Thursday unveil a suite of incentives for large private developments containing at least 15 per cent affordable housing  that is, homes typically offered at 20-25 per cent below the market rate for 15 years, often managed by not-for-profits.

We want to maximise affordable housing in private developments too, not just on public land: NSW Premier Chris Minns. Credit: Rhett Wyman

Developments worth over $75 million that clear the 15 per cent hurdle will be fast-tracked through the state significant development pathway which bypasses local councils and planning panels.

They will also get access to a 30 per cent floor space bonus, and a height bonus of 30 per cent above what is permitted under the controls set by corresponding local council environment plans.
The Coalitions vote, and that of the Liberals in particular, cant get much lower, Reed told The Age. The West Australian Liberals and Nationals won just six out of 60 seats in the 2021 election from a primary vote of 25 per cent, and thats about where their colleagues are in Victoria right now. Its not a pretty benchmark. As part of the governments plan to repay soaring debt, the May budget also removed a payroll tax exemption on some high-fee private schools, which the opposition has vowed to repeal if elected, driven by concerns it will force up fees at independent schools. But the budget measure, which has since been watered down by the state government, has support among voters. Forty per cent of respondents backed the broad payroll tax changes that also included a 0.5 per cent tax increase for businesses with payrolls over $10 million, and an additional 0.5 per cent for businesses with wage bills above $100 million.

Only 26 per cent of respondents opposed to the tax hike, while one third were undecided. But a new levy on property investors that will mean landlords get hit with an average tax increase of $1300 a year  based on someone with landholdings with a value of $650,000  was less popular. Loading The research shows the measure, which will hit about 860,000 Victorians, is opposed by 39 per cent of respondents while 33 per cent support the additional land tax levy. A further 28 per cent of respondents were undecided. Reed said while Labors debt repayment measures were not overwhelmingly popular, they were not enough for people to desert the government for the opposition.

Andrews and Labor have obviously judged that picking on those with investment properties and kids at private schools does not unduly eat into the loyal constituencies they have built up. This is data-driven democracy, and its impressive to watch in a way, he said. Andrews has also held on to his strong lead over Pesutto as preferred premier. He leads the opposition leader by 23 points, representing a slight widening of the gap compared with the April result. Dr Zareh Ghazarian, a senior politics lecturer at Monash University, said the findings suggested the problems facing the Liberals extended beyond the partys leadership and indicated a deeper brand problem, which could make for a dangerous byelection. There is something that really isnt working in the Victorian division. There have been windows of opportunity for the party to present itself as a strong alternative, but instead they have let it slip through their fingers while they talk about themselves, Dr Ghazarian said.

There is no evidence the Liberals are recovering, and that should make them nervous about Warrandyte because if they continue in this cycle, it will be a dangerous byelection. Loading Pesutto told the Melbourne Press Club on Wednesday that the Warrandyte byelection would be a tough fight. Party members understand weve got a lot of work to do, he said. Reform was never going to be easy, and weve come off three election losses, so weve got a lot of work to do. Labor is still deciding whether to run in the byelection, to be held in August or September, which was triggered by the resignation of Liberal Ryan Smith, who holds the seat by a 4.2 per cent margin.

The Liberal Partys preselection for Warrandyte will be held on June 18. As part of its research, Resolve Strategic asks Victorians to explain the reasons they support either party. The latest findings indicated Andrews COVID leadership and longevity in office are driving his support. Theyve been in power for a long time now, and proven that they can provide good leadership, one voter said. Voters who supported other parties were primarily concerned about the states rising debt and cost blowouts on infrastructure projects.
Indeed, most of Trumps competitors are making a risky bet  for now  that the weight of his extraordinary baggage will eventually sink his reelection bid. They believe it will take time. Loading Trumps Republican opponents privately concede that the former presidents considerable political strength is likely to grow stronger, at least in the short term, as GOP voters, key officials and conservative media leaders rally around him. For example, Pastor Robert Jeffress, of the First Baptist megachurch in Dallas, initially declined to endorse Trumps 2024 bid but declared on Tuesday night that the GOPs presidential primary was all but over.

I thought there would be almost a civil war in the Republican Party for the nomination, but that quickly turned into an unconditional surrender, said Jeffress, who mingled at Trumps post-indictment gathering at Bedminster, New Jersey. People absolutely love this president, and I believe his base is going to turn out. The Republican establishment has tried and failed to reject Trump and his divisive politics for much of the last decade. But this time the GOP faces the very real possibility that a man who has been indicted twice and charged with dozens of felonies could become the partys standard-bearer in 2024. Fighting that outcome, which once seemed all but inevitable, a powerful conservative voice is being raised in the fight for the first time. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis said that if I would have taken classified [documents] to my apartment, I would have been court-martialed in a New York minute. Credit: Bloomberg The Koch networks political arm, Americans for Prosperity, has begun running online ads across Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina  the first three states on the GOPs presidential primary calendar  focusing on questions about Trumps electability in next falls general election against Biden. The new ads make no mention of his legal troubles.

Trump did a lot of good things as president, one of the ads says. But this time, he cant win. Americans for Prosperity chief executive officer Emily Seidel said her organisation has talked to thousands of voters in key states to determine the most effective arguments to undermine Trumps political strength. Based on the data were collecting, more than two-thirds of people who say theyre supporting Trump are also receptive to arguments that he is a weak candidate, his focus on 2020 is a liability, and his lack of appeal with independent voters is a problem, Seidel said. That tells us that many Republicans are ready to move on  they just need to see another candidate step up and show they can lead and win. So far, Trumps rivals are still trying to find their footing as the former president commands a big lead in early Republican primary polls.

And as they test evolving messages on the campaign trail and in media appearances, none of the top-tier competitors are running paid advertisements seizing on Trumps legal troubles. Republican presidential contender Nikki Haley, the former ambassador to the United Nations in the Trump administration, told Fox News on Monday that Trump was incredibly reckless with our national security if the allegations in the indictment are true. On Tuesday, she repeated the pointed criticism, but also said shed be inclined to pardon Trump if hes convicted. I think it would be terrible for the country to have a former president in prison for years because of a documents case, Haley said on the Clay Travis and Buck Sexton radio show. Others have made defending Trump a central message in their early campaigns.

Speaking outside the Miami courthouse on Tuesday, White House hopeful Vivek Ramaswamy announced that his campaign had sent a letter to other 2024 candidates challenging them to join his pledge to pardon Trump on their first day in office. I respectfully request that you join me in this commitment or else publicly explain why you will not, it read. Loading Trump, meanwhile, is trying to take advantage of the media storm. After his appearance in federal court in Miami, he made a stop at the citys famed Versailles Restaurant in Little Havana, with news cameras in tow. He then headed home to his Bedminster summer residence, where aides had assembled hundreds of supporters, club members and reporters for a post-arraignment speech. Trump was welcomed like a general returning home from battle. Insisting he was innocent of all charges, the former president vowed that, as president, he would appoint a special prosecutor to investigate Biden and his family.

As for the indictment and charges? This is called election interference and yet another attempt to rig and steal a presidential election, Trump said. Loading As they reckon with the fact that Trump faces years behind bars, as well as the logistical complications of balancing court appearances with campaign rallies, Trumps political advisers have stressed what they see as the political benefits. They believe the wall-to-wall coverage of his legal woes makes it difficult for his competitors to be heard, a point that other campaigns acknowledged privately. From a campaign standpoint, I mean, what did the other candidates do today? Do we know? asked Trump campaign spokesperson Steven Cheung. Theres no oxygen for the other candidates. Those other candidates are eager to highlight cracks in Trumps support, although for now, they appear to be modest.

On Capitol Hill, a small but growing Republican minority of lawmakers have recently described the new federal charges against Trump as serious. I would not feel comfortable with a convicted felon in the White House, Representative Ken Buck of Colorado told CNN. He pointed to Trumps attacks against Hillary Clinton, who was accused of mishandling classified documents in her emails in 2016. His words have set the standard. Veteran Republican strategist Ari Fleischer warned that it would take time to understand the political impact of Trumps growing legal challenges. A short-term rally around Trump now is not the true measure, Fleischer said. The only test is a long-term test. AP
A court in Iran has given a prominent actress a suspended two-year prison sentence for failing to wear the compulsory hijab headscarf in public, local media reported on Wednesday.
PHILIPSBURG:--- As part of its commitment to supporting youths from vulnerable and troubled backgrounds, K1 Britannia Foundation recently concluded a highly impactful 2-day workshop on workplace communication and personal branding as part of its Work, Training, and Social Development (WTSD) Program. The workshop, facilitated by Mrs. Evencia Carty-Seabrookes of Expressive Communication Consulting and Training, provided invaluable knowledge and tools to enhance the participants' communication skills and equip them for professional success.

The workshop fostered a highly interactive learning environment, allowing the youths to actively engage and apply their newfound knowledge. Over the course of the workshop, participants explored various aspects of effective communication, including verbal and nonverbal cues, understanding behavior's role in conveying messages and building positive workplace interactions.

The workshop's practical approach included live activities, demonstrations, an online quiz, a resume and cover letter assignment, and a review. One of the workshop's highlights was the mock interviews and interview assessments, accompanied by insightful Q&A sessions. The mock interviews were conducted by Mrs. Carty-Seabrookes with the valuable contribution of Mrs. Barbara Platteel, owner of Palapa Grill. Mrs. Platteel's insights as an employer added immense value to the participants' learning experience, ensuring their skills were honed in real-time scenarios.

These practical exercises offered the youths a unique opportunity to refine their personal presentation skills, improve their overall appearance, and make a strong first impression. The participants received valuable feedback, enabling them to identify areas for growth and work towards becoming more confident and effective in real interview situations.

Under the theme of "Be Your Brand," the workshop delved into essential concepts such as personal SWOT analysis, where participants discovered how to leverage their strengths, address weaknesses, and present themselves authentically. The importance of maintaining a strong social media presence and its impact on shaping their professional image was also explored. Additionally, the workshop addressed the expectations of Gen Z individuals in the workplace, helping participants align their skills and attitudes with evolving demands.

The K1 Britannia Foundation expresses its sincere gratitude to Mrs. Evencia Carty-Seabrookes for her expertise, positive energy, and passion in creating an engaging learning environment.

A special thanks to Pollos Hermanos SXM for sponsoring the lunch and Cost U Less for sponsoring the drinks.

This workshop is part of the Social Development element in the comprehensive WTSD Program. The workshops focus on various areas of personal development, communication, financial literacy, health, work readiness/employment, entrepreneurship, and more.

The program continues to provide valuable opportunities for youths to gain essential skills and empower themselves for a successful future. K1 Britannia Foundation is committed to assisting these youths in a variety of forms, but this relies entirely on the involvement and generosity of the community. If you are interested in the program and would like to know how you can help, as there are many ways you can, don't hesitate to send an email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or call 721-523-8421 or +1 721-553-8186.
BONAIRE:--- A Bonaire delegation participated in the Caribbean Studies Association 2023 Conference from 5th  9th June in St Croix, Virgin Islands United States. This was an historical event as for the first time the island of Bonaire was represented. Our team, Bonaire Human Rights Organization, Davika Bissessar Shaw and James Finies from Nos Kier Boneiru Bek, made a presentation and spoke on behalf of the People of Bonaire and the organizations BHRO, NKBB, and Movement pa Kambio.

Caribbean Studies Association(CSA) is an independent professional organization devoted to the promotion of Caribbean studies from a multidisciplinary, multicultural point of view. It is the primary association for scholars and practitioners working in the Caribbean Region, including Central America and the Caribbean Coast of South America. CSA Founders are Dr. Simon B. Jones-Hendrickson (Living in St. Croix) and Dr. Roland I. Perusse (deceased). Their leadership encouraged and motivated the interest of more than 300 Caribbeanists to formally join together and created and founded the annual CSA conference in 1974.

CSA 2023 St. Croix Conference with this year's theme: Transforming our Caribbean marks its 49th Anniversary and now has over 1100 members. The conference is held every year in a different Country. This year it was for the first time in 47 years, held at the University of Virgin Islands Ay Ay St. Croix under the esteem and powerful leadership of Dr. Chenzira Kahina Davis, President of the CSA.

The Bonaire delegation had a very fruitful and productive time highlighting Bonaire's Social Inequality, due to Netherlands' numerous Human Rights Violations. The Bonaire delegation once again poked Global awareness of severe inhumane actions of the Dutch Government such as the open immigration policy for mass Dutch migrants who can then vote in 90 days of arrival, creating a phenomenon of Settlers Colonialism in the 21st century, depopulation and displacing the Bonerians to a minority on their own island. This migration caused the demoting of local heads of department and replacing them with imported European Dutch people - emphasizing that since the dissolution of the Netherlands Antilles that over 50% of the population was pushed below the poverty line, etc. These facts were presented to the world during this highly anticipated event which garnered support from the global audience.

Mr. Finies participated in a panel discussion on Decolonization in the Caribbean. This plenary on Sustainable Education by the Dependency Studies Project: Caribbean Colonialocracies: The Prematurity of PostColoniality was made up of esteemed speakers from British Virgin Islands, French Guiana, and St. Maarten and Bonaire was chaired by Dr. Carlyle Corbin, UN Expert on decolonization.

The 5 days of Plenaries were very educational for the Bonaire delegation which was completed by a beautiful Gala Night at the Governors House. The Honorable Governor of St Croix, Albert Bryan Jr., and the Caribbean Studies Association President Dr Chenzira Davis Kahina invited the Bonaires delegation to attend the Caribbean Studies Association Conference Closing Ceremony & Award Gala Dinner. They were thrilled and entertained by the Hostess Dr. Chenzira and the CSA St, Croix People, showcasing their beautiful island and unique culture, hospitality, and natural wonders with everyone at Caribbean Studies Week 2023.

It was an amazing opportunity to connect with leaders, academics, and people from all over the world.

Bonaire was highlighted and got Caribbean and worldwide attention and the exposure as Bonaire Human Rights Organization received a Caribbean Studies Association Award as recognition of our outstanding advocacy and work for the human rights of the Bonaire and Caribbean Peoples at the United Nations and International platforms.

We, the delegates, are grateful to our Hostess, President of CSA Dr. Chenzira Davis Kahina, University of Virgin Islands, and Governor Albert Bryan Jr for their unwavering support and collaboration, which made our participation a success.

We would also like to extend special thanks to the CSA2022-2023 Executive Council representatives: Okama Ekpe Brook, Vice President (CSA President 2023-2024) - Dr. Eris Schoburgh, CSA Immediate Past President (2022-2023) - Representatives: Dr. Nicholas Faraclas (2022-2024) - Dr. Rhoda Arrindell (2022-2023- newly elected CSA Vice President (2023-2024) - Dr. Kristina Hinds (2021-2023) - Regan Reid (Graduate Student Rep. 2021-2023) - Dr. Dwaine Plaza, CSA Treasurer - Dr. Mala Jokhan, CSA Secretariat - Meagan Sylvester, CSA Newsletter Chief Editor

Finally, we like to extend a vote of thanks to special presidential appointed CSA2023 LOC representatives Ambassador SisDr. Sandra D. Richards (Barbados/UK/Global) and Ambassador Sharon Oshun Parris Chambers (Jamaica) for their invaluable assistance and sisterhood and help to make the CSA St Croix 2023 historical and monumental.
The oldest gold in the world

The oldest gold of mankind was found in Varna on the Bulgarian Black Sea coast.

It is a large burial site. It is considered one of the most important sites in history. The gold treasure discovered there in the 1970s dates back to the period between 4,600 and 4,200 B.C. and it contains around 3,000 gold artifacts. Almost 300 graves have been identified so far. One of them was particularly unusual because it housed a ruler or leader. Thus, it also contained more gold than other burials. In any case, the oldest worked gold and copper in human history have been found at Varna. Among other things, there are rings, chains, vessels and tool parts. Beads were made from thin strips of gold sheet, probably the oldest gold bead necklace on earth.

Gold treasures are discovered every now and then. A private treasure hunter in northern Holland found a gold treasure that is around 1,000 years old with the help of a metal detector. It was gold coins and gold jewelry from the High Middle Ages. Perhaps the treasure was buried at that time because there were wars there in the period around 1,250 and the owner wanted to hide his valuable treasure. The treasure hunter had already made the find in 2021.

Around the same time in Denmark, a man also used a metal detector to discover a gold treasure that was about 1,500 years old, one of the largest gold treasures ever to come to light in Denmark. It is believed that burying the gold was to appease the gods after a volcanic eruption. Instead of roaming the countryside with a metal detector, it might be more promising to rely on well-established gold companies that use the latest technologies to extract the valuable metal from the ground.

For example, there is Tudor Gold  https://www.commodity-tv.com/ondemand/companies/profil/tudor-gold-corp/  with its Treaty Creek Gold Project in British Columbia. A large diamond drilling program for 2023 has been successfully started.

In Idaho, Revival Gold  https://www.commodity-tv.com/ondemand/companies/profil/revival-gold-inc/  is working on the exploration and development of its Beartrack-Arnett gold property.

In accordance with A34 WpHG I would like to point out that partners, authors and employees may hold shares in the respective companies addressed and thus a possible conflict of interest exists. No guarantee for the translation into English. Only the German version of this news is valid.

Disclaimer: The information provided does not represent any form of recommendation or advice. Express reference is made to the risks in securities trading. No liability can be accepted for any damage arising from the use of this blog. I would like to point out that shares and especially warrant investments are always associated with risk. The total loss of the invested capital cannot be excluded. All information and sources are carefully researched. However, no guarantee is given for the correctness of all contents. Despite the greatest care, I expressly reserve the right to make errors, especially with regard to figures and prices. The information contained herein is taken from sources believed to be reliable, but in no way claims to be accurate or complete. Due to court decisions, the contents of linked external sites are also co-responsible (e.g. Landgericht Hamburg, in the decision of 12.05.1998  312 O 85/98), as long as there is no explicit dissociation from them. Despite careful control of the content, I do not assume liability for the content of linked external pages. The respective operators are exclusively responsible for their content. The disclaimer of Swiss Resource Capital AG also applies: https://www.resource-capital.ch/en/disclaimer/
Consolidated Uranium to Acquire the Past Producing Huemul Uranium-Vanadium-Copper Project in Argentina

Consolidated Uranium Inc. (aCURa, the aCompanya, aConsolidated Uraniuma) (TSXV: CUR) (OTCQX: CURUF)  https://www.commodity-tv.com/ondemand/companies/profil/consolidated-uranium-inc/  is pleased to announce that it has entered into two purchase agreements to acquire 100% of the Huemul-Agua Botada Uranium-Vanadium-Copper Mine (aHuemula) and surrounding prospective ground totalling ~27,350 hectares located in the MalargAe department of southern Mendoza province, Argentina (Figure 1) (collectively referred to as the \Huemul Projecta). Huemul was ArgentinaAs first producing Uranium mine and operated between 1955 and 1975, recording approximately 500,000 pounds of historical U3O8 production before it closed in 1976.1

Highlights

Adds Second Argentine Project in Mining Friendly Region a CUR has been actively working in Argentina since the acquisition of the Laguna Salada project in late 2021. Beyond the technical merits of Huemul, its location in the mining friendly MalargAe department of Mendoza province was an important consideration in making the acquisition.

Leverages Existing In-Country Expertise a The CUR team in Argentina boasts decades of experience operating in the country exploring for and developing various commodities, including uranium. The team conducted numerous technical due diligence site visits and stands ready to move quickly to advance the project once required approvals and permissions are granted.

Transaction Consolidates Large Land Package for the First Time a The Huemul area, including the historic mine area, was the subject of exploration by several different owners in the past. This will be the first time the entire package has been held in a single hand opening the potential for a more regional exploration approach.

High Uranium, and Copper Grades Previously Recovereda The Huemul mine historically recorded approximately 500,000 pounds of U3O8, ~175,000 pounds of V2O5 and 5.2 million pounds of Cu production from approximately 130,000 tonnes of ore averaging 0.21% U3O8, 0.11% V2O5 and 2.00% Cu by flotation at a concentration plant.

Robust Near Mine and Regional Exploration Potential a The down-plunge and along-strike extensions of mineralization at the Huemul mine and Aguas Botada zones are underexplored and merit additional exploration work. In addition, the target geological sequence is present and mineralized at surface over large areas across the project. Gently dipping conglomerate units hosting the mined ore at Huemul extend southwards from the historic mine workings and are traceable over at least 15 kilometers. Within this target stratigraphic package, strong Uranium-Vanadium-Copper geochemical anomalies, with broad corresponding Uranium and Thorium radiometric anomalies, have been defined by a previous exploration company. These anomalies have never been drilled.

Multiple Critical Minerals Present a Uranium, copper and vanadium are considered critical minerals by many countries based on their importance for the transition towards more environmentally friendly agreena energy.

Argentina Needs Uranium a With three reactors currently generating approximately 7% of the countrya?s electricity, a fourth under construction and a history of producing, converting and enriching its own uranium; CUR believes exploring for developing uranium mines in Argentina has strong merit and may ultimately garner support by all levels of government.

Philip Williams, Chairman and CEO of CUR commented, aArgentina is often overlooked in the CUR portfolio but is a country that presents significant opportunities. Few jurisdictions that have such a strong commitment to nuclear power also have the proven geological potential to provide domestically sourced uranium. In this regard it is very similar to the dynamics unfolding in the U.S. uranium industry however, the level of competition in Argentina is nearly non-existent, providing a tremendous opportunity to CUR. The Huemul Project, with its history of uranium mining and large, consolidated land package positions CUR to be one of the leading Uranium explorer-developers in ArgentinaAs NeuquAn basin, which could rival the large historic Uranium producing basins located in the western U.S. and Kazakhstan. Huemul was ArgentinaAs first producing Uranium mine and we believe that its location in the emerging mining-friendly department of MalargAe, as well as its vanadium and copper potential represents an exciting opportunity for the Company.a

Consolidation of the Huemul Project Claim Package

The consolidated Huemul Project claim package consists of three areas as shown in Figure 2:

The Huemul Mine, the Silvana Claim and Huemul Norte and Sur Claim applications  As part of the Huemul Acquisition (as defined herein), the Company has agreed to acquire the Huemul mine lease, the Silvana claim the Huemul Norte and Huemul Sur claim applications totalling approximately ~22,432 hectares.

The NewEra Claims  As part of the NewEra Acquisition (as defined herein), the Company has agreed to acquire two claim applications covering ~2,352 hectares (the aNewEra Claim Applicationsa) held by NewEra Metal Resources Ltd. (aNewEraa).

The Cerro Butalo Claims  Cerro Butalo, covering ~2,566 hectares, was previously staked by Energy Minerals/Maple and was acquired by the Company in 2020 pursuant to an option agreement with Green Shift Commodities Ltd. (previously U3O8 Corp.) (see CUR press release December 14th, 2020).

Terms of the Huemul Acquisition

Pursuant to an agreement between CURAs wholly-owned subsidiary, 2847312 Ontario Inc. (aOntario Inc.a), and the vendor of Huemul (the aHuemul Vendora) dated June 13, 2023 (the aHuemul Agreementa), Ontario Inc. has agreed to acquire (the aHuemul Acquisitiona) a 100% interest in ~22,432 hectares within the Huemul Project Area held by the Huemul Vendor (the aHuemul Claimsa) for consideration comprised of:

US$200,000 in cash;

500,000 common shares of CUR (aCommon Sharesa); and

A 2% NSR royalty payable by the Company to the Huemul Vendor on certain portions of the Huemul Project (the aHuemul Royaltya). CUR will have the right to repurchase 1% of the Huemul Royalty by paying the amount of US$2,000,000.

Terms of the Purchase AgreementA with NewEra

Pursuant to an agreement between Ontario Inc. dated June 13, 2023 (the aNewEra Agreementa), Ontario Inc. has a right to acquire (the aNewEra Acquisitiona and together with the Huemul Acquisition, the aAcquisitionsa) 100% interest of the NewEra Claim Applications for consideration comprised of:A

US$120,000 in cash;

119,372 Common Shares; and

A 1% NSR royalty payable by the Company to NewEra on the claims covered by the NewEra Claim Applications.

The Common Shares issuable pursuant to the Huemul Agreement and the NewEra Agreement are subject to approval of the TSXV and will be subject to a hold period expiring four months and one day from the date of issuance.A There are no findersa? fees payable in connection with the acquisitions and the Huemul Vendor and NewEra are arms-length parties with respect to the Company.

The Huemul Uranium-Vanadium-Copper Project

The Huemul Project is an early-stage exploration project located in the southern part of Mendoza Province,A Argentina. Huemul consists of ~27,350 hectares of exploration claims centred around CNEAAs (ComisiAn Nacional de EnergAa AtAmica) historic Huemul-Agua Botada mine, ArgentinaAs first producing Uranium mine (Figure 3). The Argentinian government discovered the Huemul-Agua Botada Zone in 1952 and exploited the deposit between 1955 and 1975. Historically, ore was treated in a concentration plant at the nearby town of MalargAe.

Uranium-Vanadium-Copper mineralization at Huemul comprises a number of stacked, metres-thick stratabound lenses hosted by an approximately 50-metre-thick packet of conglomerates and arenites, sandwiched by redbeds and intruded by andesite sills (Figure 4). These sedimentary rocks are part of the fill sequence of the Cretaceous NeuquAn Basin. Host rocks to the mineralization are highly bituminous and mineralized zones are likely to have been failed petroleum-gas traps.

Approximately 130,000 tonnes were historically mined from the Huemul Mine averaging 0.21% U3O8, 2.0% Cu and 0.11% V2o5, while the production from the adjacent Agua Botada deposit averaged approximately 0.13% U3O8 and 0.10% Cu. The hypogene ore-related minerals at Huemul-Agua Botada include pitchblende, pyrite, marcasite, chalcopirite, bornite, sphalerite and galena, and in the overlying supergene zone uranophane, carnotite, torbenite, malachite, azurite, neoticite and roscolite.

In 2005, Energy Minerals (local subsidiary of Calypso Uranium Corp.) conducted radiometric surveys, ground truthing and geochemical sampling over the Huemul district around the historic Huemul-Agua Botada mines; however, no drilling was ever conducted. Results of these historical studies are shown in Figures 5 to 7.

Several kilometers to the east and southeast of the historic mines, Calypso Uranium defined a number of new prospects characterized by strong radiometric and geochemical anomalism plus favourable geology:

Black Zone / Larga Vega

Rosa / Uryco

Cerro Mirano, Tres Diques

CURAs more recent analysis suggests that these prospects all have both strong geochemical and radiometric similarities with Huemul, plus the size potential to warrant immediate follow up. These prospects only require interpretive geological mapping and radiometric ground traversing before proceeding to preliminary drill testing.

At the Black Zone-Vega Larga Prospect, a semi-coherent Uranium channel airborne radiometric anomaly approximately 4.0 x 1.0 kilometers in size was delimited, elongated in an ENE-WSW direction. The radiometric anomaly is centred on an erosional window of bleached conglomerates and sandstones sandwiched between redbed facies. Strongly radiogenic Uranium-Copper mineralisation is hosted by southwesterly-dipping Upper Cretaceous conglomerates of the Cretaceous Diamante Fm. A strong Uranium-Copper rock geochemistry anomaly of a similar size to the airborne radiometric anomaly reported Uranium values up to 8,738 ppm and Copper values in excess of 10,000 ppm (1%) in historic sampling. Follow up ground radiometry by Calypso Uranium allowed interpretation of laterally extensive, stratabound, potentially mineralized conglomerate units.

Preliminary surface observations by CUR in the Black Zone-Larga Vega prospect areas has confirmed the presence of Uranium and Copper sulfates/hydroxides in certain conglomerate beds and in steep fractures striking NE-SW and NW-SE. In addition, high scintillometer counts (1,700-50,000+ cps) have been confirmed in the field, particularly within silica-clay alteration zones within some conglomerate horizons. Verification of the historic geochemical assays reported has not yet been undertaken.

The historic results gathered by Calypso Uranium and CUR field verification indicate that the Huemul Project has potential to host extensive, and as yet undiscovered, zones of shallow conglomerate-hosted Uranium, Vanadium and Copper mineralization of a similar style to that historically exploited at the Huemul-Aguas Botadas mine.

Following the receipt of environmental and exploration permits, CURAs 2023 exploration program at Huemul is expected to focus on more precisely defining the extent of radiometric and geochemical anomalies, through a program of detailed geological mapping, ground scintillometer traversing and systematic rock geochemical sampling. Potentially mineralized targets will later be tested through shallow diamond drilling.

Notes

Guillermo Rojas, 1999. Distrito UranAfero Pampa Amarilla, Mendoza. En Recursos Minerales de la Republica Argentina. Pag.1135-1140

Qualified Person

The scientific and technical information contained in this news release was reviewed and approved by Peter Mullens (FAusIMM), Consolidated Uraniuma?s VP, Business Development, who is a aQualified Persona (as defined in NI 43-101).A

About Consolidated UraniumA

Consolidated Uranium Inc. (TSXV: CUR) (OTCQX: CURUF) was created in early 2020 to capitalize on an anticipated uranium market resurgence using the proven model of diversified project consolidation. To date, the Company has acquired or has the right to acquire uranium projects in Australia, Canada, Argentina, and the United States each with significant past expenditures and attractive characteristics for development.

The Company is currently advancing its portfolio of permitted, past-producing conventional uranium and vanadium mines in Utah and Colorado, with a toll milling arrangement in place with Energy Fuels Inc., a leading U.S.-based uranium mining company. These mines are currently on stand-by, ready for rapid restart as market conditions permit, positioning CUR as a near-term uranium producer.

For More Information, Please Contact:

Philip Williams

Chairman and CEO

pwilliams@consolidateduranium.com

Toll-Free: 1-833-572-2333

Twitter: @ConsolidatedUr

www.consolidateduranium.com

In Europe:

Swiss Resource Capital AG

Jochen Staiger & Marc Ollinger

info@resource-capital.ch

www.resource-capital.ch

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulations Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Cautionary Statement Regarding aForward-Lookinga Information

This news release contains \forward-looking information\ within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. aForward-looking informationa includes, but is not limited to, statements with respect to activities, events or developments that the Company expects or anticipates will or may occur in the future including, but not limited to, completion of the Acquisitions, the approval of the TSXV and the Companya?s ongoing business plan, sampling, exploration and work programs. Generally, but not always, forward-looking information and statements can be identified by the use of words such as aplansa, aexpectsa, ais expecteda, abudgeta, ascheduleda, aestimatesa, aforecastsa, aintendsa, aanticipatesa, or abelievesa or the negative connotation thereof or variations of such words and phrases or state that certain actions, events or results amaya, acoulda, awoulda, amighta or awill be takena, aoccura or abe achieveda or the negative connotation thereof. Such forward-looking information and statements are based on numerous assumptions, including that general business and economic conditions will not change in a material adverse manner, that financing will be available if and when needed and on reasonable terms, and that third party contractors, equipment and supplies and governmental and other approvals required to conduct the Companya?s planned exploration activities will be available on reasonable terms and in a timely manner. Although the assumptions made by the Company in providing forward-looking information or making forward-looking statements are considered reasonable by management at the time, there can be no assurance that such assumptions will prove to be accurate.

Forward-looking information and statements also involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties and other factors, which may cause actual events or results in future periods to differ materially from any projections of future events or results expressed or implied by such forward-looking information or statements, including, among others: negative operating cash flow and dependence on third party financing, uncertainty of additional financing, no known mineral reserves or resources, reliance on key management and other personnel, potential downturns in economic conditions, actual results of exploration activities being different than anticipated, changes in exploration programs based upon results, and risks generally associated with the mineral exploration industry, environmental risks, changes in laws and regulations, community relations and delays in obtaining governmental or other approvals and the risk factors with respect to Consolidated Uranium set out in CURa?s annual information form in respect of the year ended December 31, 2022 filed with the Canadian securities regulators and available under CURa?s profile on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.

Although the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in the forward-looking information or implied by forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no assurance that forward-looking information and statements will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated, estimated or intended. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements or information. The Company undertakes no obligation to update or reissue forward-looking information as a result of new information or events except as required by applicable securities laws.
The Decent Life initiative, which aims to upgrade living standards in Egypts poorest rural areas, is close to the completion of its first phase and is set to expand to new areas in 2023.

The initiative focuses on developmental challenges related to rural areas, including the provision of basic services, such as water and sanitation, education, solid waste disposal, roads, irrigation, and drainage.

It provides direct support to the poorest and most vulnerable in selected villages and economic development opportunities to increase real incomes through large-scale agricultural projects and credit provision to micro and small enterprises.

In an interview with Al-Ahram Weekly, spokesman for the Ministry of Local Development Khaled Qassem said the initiative had neared the completion of its first phase despite unfavourable economic conditions, domestically and globally, as a result of the fallout from the Covid-19 pandemic, the Russia-Ukraine war, and the ongoing disruptions in international supply chains.

Within the context of the initiative, launched in 2019 under presidential auspices, a LE300 billion programme is being executed that has seen 1,477 villages experiencing upgrades to their infrastructure, drinking water facilities, and social services.

The work is expected to be completed by December 2022.

Qassem said the Ministry of Local Development was playing an important role in the initiative by coordinating the provision of the land required for the implementation of projects, in addition to overcoming any other obstacles that might arise.

He added that community development committees had been formed, with the ministry undertaking the implementation of projects that are complementary to the investments undertaken by the presidential initiative.

These include the establishment of markets, parking lots and fire stations. Social initiatives are also being implemented with the aim of economic empowerment and job creation by small and medium-sized enterprises.

Qassem said that a local administration staff was being trained to follow-up, operate, and maintain the new services and projects launched under the initiative. Its second phase, due to begin in January 2023, is projected to serve 52 centres in 20 governorates, including for the first time 30 villages from the coastal governorate of Marsa Matrouh.

Commenting on the criteria for the selection of villages to be included in the initiative, Mina Ibrahim, coordinator in the Upper Egyptian governorate of Assiut, told the Weekly that villages and districts were selected [in Assiut] based on the monitoring of the needs of the villages and their residents, [whom we represented] in meetings with members of the Foundation for a Decent Life.

Ibrahim added that all those working on the initiatives projects were recruited from among local residents because there has been constant confirmation from the foundation as well as from the local authorities, of the need to use village residents in the projects being implemented. Many job opportunities have been provided as a result, he added.

Saber Othman, former director of the climate change department at the Ministry of Environment and chair of the board of the Earths Climate for Sustainable Development Foundation, commented on the initiative by saying that its goals are in line with the UNs 17 Sustainable Development Goals. These focus on alleviating poverty, eradicating hunger, providing good healthcare and education, and providing drinking water and sanitation services.

Egypts Decent Life initiative has upheld the rights of the poor and marginalised, ensuring that they are not left behind while also respecting gender equality in its bid to develop the countrys poorest and most deprived villages, Saber said.

*A version of this article appears in print in the 29 September, 2022 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly.

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The fourth meeting on a permanent joint mechanism between Turkiye, Finland, Sweden, and NATO was held in the Turkish capital Ankara on Wednesday, Azernews reports, citing Anadolu Agency.

Akif Cagatay Kilic, the chief adviser to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, chaired the one-day meeting at the presidential complex.

Stian Jenssen, director of the Private Office of the NATO secretary general; Jan Knutsson, Swedens state secretary for foreign affairs, and Jukka Salovaara, permanent state secretary for the Finnish Foreign Ministry, attended the talks.

The three-hour long meeting comes before the NATO leaders convene in a summit in Vilnius, Lithuania on July 11-12.

Finland and Sweden applied for NATO membership soon after Russia launched a war in Ukraine in February 2022.

Although Turkiye approved Finland's membership to NATO, it is waiting for Sweden to abide by a trilateral memorandum signed last June in Madrid to address Ankara's security concerns on terrorism.

Sweden passed an anti-terror law in November, hoping that Ankara would approve Stockholm's bid to join NATO. The new law, effective as of June 1, allows authorities to prosecute individuals who support terrorist groups.

Several foreign ministers hope that Turkiye would approve Sweden's bid ahead of the NATO summit next month.

However, Erdogan made it clear that if Turkiye is expected to respond to Stockholm's expectations of accession to NATO, Sweden must also do its part on the terrorist group PKK ahead of the summit.
President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi has stressed on Thursday that stability in Egypt was paid for by the sacrifices of many martyrs and their families, adding that "the the state will do what it can to make life easier for people."

The presidents remarks came on Thursday during his inspection of the progress realised so far in development projects carried out in Maasara village in the Upper Egypt governorate of Minya under the presidential initiative Decent Life.

The president said"all development projects focus on serving citizens everywhere."

He noted that the state is keen to serve citizens in the countryside and Upper Egypt.

He also praised great voluntary work made in Maasara, which is the first model village in which Decent Life projects have been fully completed.

The president was warmly welcomed by more than 1,500 volunteers participating in these development initiatives and projects.

In a discussion with one of the volunteers, the president warned against considering the government and the people as separate entities.

"The way of thinking: "The government is here and the people are over there ... therefore, the government is the enemy so we have to wreck it," is what led to a problem in 2011," El-Sisi said.

"The government and people are on the same page," he stressed.

"The country needs sincerity, honesty, and work ... and the state will do what it can to make life easier for people," he added.

El-Sisis visit aims to stand on the development progress made in the Upper Egyptian governorate and New Minya city to provide a decent life for citizens there.

The Decent Life national project (Hayah Karima in Arabic), which was initiated in 2019, aims to improve standards of living, infrastructure, and basic services including healthcare across the countryside.

The project covers 4,658 villages across the country, which are home to 58 percent of Egypts 104 million population, with an estimated budget of EGP 700 billion.

The enormous volume of work needed to develop the 4,500 villages required the initiative to be divided into three stages comprising 1,500 villages each.









































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Guest Commentary

By Kenneth P. Green

Unless youve been living in an underground cave, youre aware that theres been a massive explosion of forest fire activity across Canada thats sending clouds of smoke south to our American neighbours. Not surprisingly, theyre not happythe orange skies are more than a bit reminiscent of Hollywood post-apocalyptic movies.

Here at home, our usual opportunistic climate alarmists including Prime Minister Trudeau, Environment Minister Guilbeault and the irrepressible Elizabeth May blame the flames on climate change (and not their leadership in Canadian forest policy). And the only cure is to end fossil fuel use.

But lets bring some facts to the hysteria. First, the climate is indeed warming. According to the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the global average atmospheric temperature is rising globally, and according to one analysis, twice as fast in Canada. (Of course, how much of this warming is human-driven is a different story.)

But is this recent atmospheric warming causing the increase in forest fires globally and Canadian fires specifically? The IPCC, in its latest omnibus climate report, only assigns medium confidence to the idea that climate change has actually caused increased fire weather in some regions on Earth. This, mind you, after desperately seeking to tie real-world events to increasing greenhouse gas concentrations for some 40 years now. In addition, many reports have shown that while fire activity is on the rise in some regions, were still not seeing an overall increase when considering the total areas burned at the global level.

As the Royal Society, an independent scientific academy in the United Kingdom, summarizes in a 2020 blog post updating its 2016 research on global wildfire extent, "Fire activity is on the rise in some regions, but when considering the total area burned at the ground level, we are not seeing an increase an overall increase. The 2016 report was more explicit, finding: Instead, global area burned appears to have overall declined over past decades, and there is increasing evidence that there is less fire in the global landscape today than centuries ago. While the Royal Society acknowledges that climate change may be increasing risk, it also observes there are many other human activities that may contribute to more or less fires, and more or less areas consumed.

But what about Canada per se? Is it clear that Canadas fire issues are climate-driven? Unless one believes that inverse correlations suggest causality, the answer is no. Thats according to a 2020 study in the journal Progress in Disaster Science where authors Tymstra et al. show a fairly sharp declining trend in the number of fires (annually) over time, and a mixed record of areas burned, though the authors note an apparent increase in areas burned over the last two decades.

In fact, as average atmospheric temperatures have risen from 1970 to 2017, Canadian forest fires have declined sharply in number and show little obvious trend in areas burnt.

Crucially, Tymstras study also finds that wildfire management policy in Canada comes up short. A major barrier in Canada is the inadequate funding to support the vision of an innovative and integrated approach to wildfire management. Mitigation funding has followed wildfire disasters but not at the same level to mitigate flood and earthquake disasters. Despite the increasing occurrence of wildfire disasters in Canada, funding to support wildfire prevention, mitigation and preparedness have not kept pace with the increasing need to mitigate the impacts from wildfires, and be better prepared when they do arrive.

More specifically, Tymstra et al. find that Canada has failed to fund the proactive management of forest fires sufficiently and is not poised to do better moving forward. Wildfire management agencies in Canada are at a tipping point. Presuppression [sic] and suppression costs are increasing but program budgets are not. But clearly, a lack of fire suppression is also a problem: Wildfire suppression contributes to a wildfire problem but paradoxically it is wildfire use that will help to solve this problem. The wildfire management toolbox must include wildfire use to manage wildfires at the landscape scale because it is not feasible to effectively use prescribed burns and/or fuel management treatments alone to restore expansive wildfire-dependent ecosystems. Thats a somewhat academic long-winded way of saying you need to fight fire with fire, but the point is valid nonetheless.

Canada is having a hell of a fire season, theres no disputing that. And its producing hellish landscapes across Canada and North America. What it is not, however, is a call to more of the same old climate action. But rather, a call for more sane real-world real-time management of fire risk in Canadas forests, a practise that Canadian governments have failed at for decades.

One can only hope that this fire season will light a fire under Canadas fire-foolish policymakers, and finally motivate them to take the rational coursefighting fire risk with fire use, rather than pointing to the climate sky gods and calling for appeasement measures that will not affect Canadas risk of forest fires.

Kenneth P. Green is a Senior Fellow at the Fraser Institute.
By SeaWestNews

The United Nations wants people to understand that the ocean is not an aquarium which is only there to be admired but that it is also a place to obtain food and sustain coastal communities.

We are part of the ocean; we are not apart from the ocean. Oceans Day becomes our day, Humans Day. The day that we look for solutions, said Manuel Barange, Director of the Fisheries and Aquaculture Division at the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the U.N.

Because if we see ourselves as part of the ocean, then we are not just part of the problem but also part of the necessary solution. We are not external to either, he said in an interview published on the FAO site in conjunction with the recent World Oceans Day.

Calling for a fundamental conceptual change  obvious to coastal and aquaculture-dependent communities but not to all ocean advocates and activists  Barange said the oceans are there to benefit both people and planet.

We need to make sure that we educate the consumer because there is a lot of misinformation and misunderstanding when it comes to issues of fisheries and aquaculture. We are not very good at communicating the good stories, only the bad stories. So, educating the consumer is important.

We also need to find solutions that work at scale. We need ocean-dependent communities around the table, said Barange, warning against a spiral of maladaptation, or finding just short-term solutions with no lasting positive impacts.

Baranges message was reflected in an op-ed written by Dallas Smith, a spokesperson for the Coalition of First Nations for Finfish Stewardship and Timothy Kennedy President & CEO of the Canadian Aquaculture Industry Alliance (CAIA) published on World Oceans Day.

The op-ed compared Canadas commitment to the Blue Economy with the three legs of the stool model: the legs being environmental, economic and social.

But after several years of various consultations, only one leg of the stool has been produced under this government. We have seen the governments commitments to marine conservation, for example creating new marine parks, a large fund dedicated to the recovery of wild BC salmon, and announcements about Canadas commitment to preserving 30% of marine areas by 2030. These are good and the government should be congratulated for them, but as only one leg they will be left tottering and could easily crash.

These commitments have not been balanced by the other legs of the stool: economic and social, the op-ed published in National Newswatch read.

This economic and social ecosystem of salmon farming in BC is a living organism with many parts: over one thousand distinct businesses  from marine and port infrastructure repair to feed, processing, engineering and transport  supply the sector, with thousands of people employed. Gutting the BC salmon farming sector as Federal Fisheries Minister Joyce Murray seems to intend  and without taking the time for fulsome consultation and social and economic impact analyses of the people and communities that would be harmed  will permanently disrupt and damage this carefully evolved coastal economic and social system.

(The government) should not shut down viable economic activities such as salmon farming, especially when (its) own science evaluation and advice process provides clear direction that there is minimal impact from salmon farms on wild salmon. And it should not shut down modern, sustainable, in-ocean salmon farming in the territories of First Nations who want it.

The federal Blue Economy Strategy should seek to improve both its environmental and human performanceThere is no future for our oceans without flourishing human communities.

Minister Murray who is ideologically opposed to open-net aquaculture is working on a transition plan for salmon farming in BC, that will impact more than 4,700 jobs and $1.2 billion in economic activity annually.

Canadas opportunity to be the worlds best salmon farming nation is being squandered by a Liberal government more interested in getting votes from activists rather than relying on science and traditional indigenous knowledge to grow the industry, aquaculture experts have said.

About 40 percent of British Columbias in-ocean salmon farming sector has already been closed, despite Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) scientists and court rulings stating that the salmon farms in BC pose less than minimal risk to wild stocks.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in his Oceans Day message said the country is making huge strides toward its goal to conserve 25 percent of Canadas oceans by 2025 and 30 percent by 2030.
The European Union and French Development Agency (AFD) are set to provide Egypt with a 60 million ($66 million) credit facility to build more silos for grain storage.

According to Reuters, the loan will help Egypt to add at least 420,000 tons of grain storage capacity.

The additional storage capacity will be dedicated mainly to wheat, in addition to other cereals and grains.

The loan is part of a 225 million initiative to improve food security in North Africa, of which 100 million has been allocated for Egypt to help meet its wheat and grain needs.

Egypt's current capacity

Egypt's wheat storage capacity currently stands at 4.5 million tons, according to Ministry of Agriculture Spokesperson Mohamed Al-Kersh.

Egyptians consume up to 18 million tons of wheat annually, of which 12 million tons is imported, according to 2022 figures.

Cairo has been encouraging farmers to supply more wheat to the government in light of disruptions in global food supply chains and rising commodity prices. The government aims to purchase four million tons of local wheat during the current harvest season, which started in April and runs through the fall.

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Egypt announced on Saturday that it was imposing visa entry for Sudanese citizens arriving at the Egyptian borders in order to regulate the process, not limit or restrict entry, according to a statement by the Foreign Affairs Ministry.

These measures aim to set an organisational framework for that process after more than 50 days since the outbreak of the crisis, and they are not intended to prevent or limit the number of Sudanese citizens entering Egypt, the statement quoted Spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Ahmed Abu-Zeid as saying.

Abu-Zeids remarks came in response to inquiries by several diplomatic journalists on the reasons for the decision.

Egyptian authorities had so far exempted Sudanese women of all ages, children under 16 and anyone over 50 from having to obtain a visa prior to arrival at a point of entry.

gypt has received more than 200,000 Sudanese citizens since the outbreak of the crisis and until today, which makes the country the highest among Sudan's neighbouring countries in terms of the number of Sudanese brothers received, Abu-Zeid said.

The Sudanese who have fled the conflict represent an addition to the nearly 5 million Sudanese citizens who were already present in Egypt before the start of the crisis, the spokesperson noted.

He also stated that the responsibility for providing the Sudanese who have recently arrived in Egypt with health, education, and housing rests with the Egyptian government, which provides the basic services to the Sudanese citizens on its territory.

On the reasons behind the newly-imposed visa entry, Abu-Zeid revealed that illegal activities by individuals and groups on the Sudanese side of the border were recently detected, adding that these activities included forging entry visas to Egypt to make profits.

These groups exploit the need of Sudanese citizens to come to Egypt and the good intentions of the Egyptian side in responding to the crisis and absorbing such a massive influx of Sudanese to Egypt, he clarified.

As a result, Abu-Zeid noted, the Egyptian authorities introduced regulatory procedures based on automated visas to combat these crimes.

Moreover, he confirmed that the Egyptian consulates in Sudan were provided with the necessary electronic devices to carry out these procedures accurately and promptly, ensuring the orderly arrival of Sudanese citizens to Egypt.

The spokesperson said that there were rules and procedures governing the entry of Sudanese citizens into Egypt, adding that these rules were formulated by joint consular committees with the Sudanese side, the spokesperson said.

These committees, he added, convene regularly to review and update the relevant procedures according to developments in the situation and circumstances.

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G lastonbury wouldnt be Glastonbury without the sight of an A-lister squelching through the festival mud in a pair of Hunter wellies.

But now the company behind a Glasto fashion accessory made almost obligatory by the likes of Kate Moss, Cara Delevingne and Alexa Chung has fallen victim to a drought-driven drying of demand in its biggest market, the United States.

Three years of below-average rainfall across much of the US has hit sales to such a degree that Hunter Boot, a royal warrant holder that was also a favourite of Princess Diana, has been forced to file for administration just days before the event with which it is most closely associated.

The company, the successor to the original North British Rubber Company founded in Edinburgh in 1856 by a New Jersey entrepreneur, leaves debts of 100 million and trade creditors in the UK owed 11.5 million. The sole surviving retail outlet at Bicester Village has shut and uncertainly surrounds the future of about 100 jobs.

In a notice from administrators AlixPartners, creditors were told that prolonged unseasonal weather in the US, a lengthy Covid shutdown of its factory in China and rocketing freight rates have all combined to make the business unviable. Theres just not been enough rain in America, said one source close to the company.

The classic welly, handcrafted from 28 individual parts, was first introduced in 1956. Hunter also sells mens, womens and childrens waterproof and weatherproof footwear, outerwear, bags and accessories.

Latest accounts for Hunter Boot show sales of 51.5 million in North America in 2021 compared with 40.6 million in Europe and group revenue of 107 million. It had been owned by Pall Mall Legacy, a fund backed by Goldman Sachs, private equity firm Searchlight Capital Partners and sportswear group Pentland.

However, despite the collapse the footwear label looks set to survive in a different guise once the production disruption caused by the administration has been resolved.

The Hunter Boot brand and intellectual property has already been sold to a US company Authentic  which also owns Ted Baker and Reebok and has a stake in David Beckhams brandee portfolio. The Standard understands the sale price was almost 100 million, with 68 million of that covering the IP rights.

Authentic said it has agreed a long-term partnership with UK licensing and distribution management company the Batra Group, which will become the licensee of Hunter in the UK and continental Europe. In the US, design, wholesale and e-commerce will be handled by Marc Fisher Footwear.

Clare Kennedy, one of the administrators at AlixPartners, said: We are delighted to have assisted in securing a new home for this storied British brand. We wish Authentic the very best for the future as they look to further elevate the Hunter brands global presence.
S hell has been accused of making a climate-wrecking and utterly destructive U-turn on plans to cut oil production by 1-2% per year until the end of this decade.

The oil major said it planned to keep the amount of oil that it extracts from wells around the world at the same level as today and announced bumper new payouts for shareholders.

The announcement on Wednesday has sparked an outcry from climate experts, activists and politicians, who are urging Shell to reconsider the decision.

Using data from energy analysts Rystad, campaign group Global Witness estimates that the U-turn means Shell could now produce an average 29 million tonnes of extra carbon per year  almost as much as Denmark emits annually  compared with what it would have emitted if it reduced production by 2% year on year between 2023 and 2030.

Fossil fuel giants like Shell are climate criminals, polluting our planet at will, and reaping record profits for their own shareholders

They said that by 2030, Shells extra estimated emissions would be as much as Spain  one of Europes largest polluters  produces in one year.

Jonathan Noronha-Gant, senior campaigner at Global Witness, said: Record profits, off the back of the energy crisis should be boosting up green investment.

Instead its shareholder pay-outs and a doubling down on climate-wrecking fossil fuels. It will always be profit over people and planet for polluters.

The Green Party accused Shell of betraying people and planet with co-leader Carla Denyer calling it pure climate vandalism.

MP and party co-leader Caroline Lucas added that the move is utterly destructive.

Fossil fuel giants like Shell are climate criminals, polluting our planet at will, and reaping record profits for their own shareholders, she said.

Shell and other fossil fuel companies mustnt receive a single penny in public subsidies when theyre willing to treat our people and planet with such recklessness  or else this Government will be even more complicit in their climate crimes.

Shareholder activist Mark van Baal, founder of Follow This which tabled climate resolutions at oil majors annual general meetings, warned that the Shells growth of fossil fuels is on a collision course with the Paris Climate Agreement, which calls for almost halving carbon emissions by 2030.

Last month, the Follow This resolution at Shell gained 20% of votes, enough to be considered a shareholder rebellion.

The new CEO Wael Sawan would not dare to grow Shells fossil fuel output if more institutional investors had voted in favour of the Follow This climate resolution requesting Paris-aligned targets, he said.

Sawan still has to answer these 20%.

Richard Black, co-lead, Net Zero Tracker (ECIU) added: Shells announcement shows that its priority continues to lie in paying money out to shareholders rather than investing in exploration, indicating a realisation that the long-term trajectory of oil demand is downwards.

Fossil fuel greed is putting all of us at risk

Meanwhile, Charlie Kronick, senior climate adviser at Greenpeace UK, said Shell is now showing their true colours.

The writing is on the wall for oil and gas but Wael Sawan is refusing to read it. Fossil fuel greed is putting all of us at risk, he added.

Production from oil and gas reservoirs naturally declines by around 5% every year, so maintaining production at current levels will require major investment from the oil giant.

Two years ago Shell said that the eight billion dollars (6.3 billion) it planned to invest was well below the investment required to offset this decline.

Shell argued that it has already met the 2030 oil reduction target, seeing its production drop from 1.9 million barrels of oil equivalent per day in 2019 to 1.5 million in 2022.

The firm has reduced the amount of oil it produces by selling off oil fields to other companies, who continue to extract fossil fuels from them.

Shell also announced on Wednesday a major new incentive for shareholders, as it said it would pay them at least five billion dollars (4 billion) by buying back their shares in the second half of this year.

Mr Sawan, who is trying to please investors who have seen Shells shares trade lower than some of its rivals, said that the dividend would rise by 15%.

The new chief executive, who will address shareholders at Shells Capital Markets Day in New York later, said: We are investing to provide the secure energy customers need today and for a long time to come, while transforming Shell to win in a low-carbon future.

Shell told PA that Global Witnesss claims about the projected increase in its emissions are nonsense, reiterating that it hit its reduction target eight years early.
F ossil fuel giant Shell has been accused of an utterly destructive decision as it decided to stop reducing the amount of oil it produces until 2030 as part of a plan it hopes will increase its share price.

The company on Wednesday dropped its plan to reduce oil production by between 1-2% each year of this decade.

It declared victory, saying the target was reached eight years early after it sold off oil fields to others, who will extract that oil instead.

We have achieved that reduction earlier than expected through targeted divestments, Zoe Yujnovich, the head of Shells upstream business, told Wall Street on Wednesday.

This is not a company that's turning its back on oil and gas. Neither is it a company that is all renewables. Neither is it a company that's tripling down on oil again

It was part of a wider bid by new chief executive Wael Sawan to hike the share price of Shell, promising markets that the age of fossil fuels was not over, to increase payouts to shareholders and to up profits.

We havent minced our words around this, the world is under-investing, in oil and gas, he said shortly after finance boss Sinead Gorman proclaimed that our stock is undervalued.

Speaking in a room painted in white and gold at the New York Stock Exchange, Mr Sawan said the volatility seen after Russia fully invaded Ukraine showed oil production must remain at current levels.

I think (this) speaks volumes to the fragility of the overall system and therefore what we need to do is to continue to make sure that while we are continuing to grow  as we must  low carbon investments  you need that investment to be able to at least hold (fossil fuel production) flat, if not grow.

Later, on a call with reporters, Mr Sawan added: This is not a company thats turning its back on oil and gas.

Neither is it a company that is all renewables. Neither is it a company thats tripling down on oil again.

Fossil fuel giants like Shell are climate criminals, polluting our planet at will and reaping record profits for their own shareholders

Mr Sawan was not asked how divesting oil fields helped combat climate change.

But speaking about a court case in the Netherlands which would force Shell to slash emissions by 45% by 2030 if it loses, he said that simply getting rid of customers would not make any difference to climate change.

Sadly, the outcome would be we would simply let go of customers. We would stop selling.

We would look at whats the least profitable molecules and say, somebody else will sell, and we will achieve the 45%.

It will not make a difference at all. It will take away opportunities which we think are critical for us to transition because those are the customers were trying to decarbonise.

Shells decision sparked widespread criticism as green campaigners warned of the climate-wrecking impact it might have on the planet.

Record profits off the back of the energy crisis should be boosting up green investment. Instead, its shareholder payouts and a doubling down on climate-wrecking fossil fuels. It will always be profit over people and planet for polluters

Campaign group Global Witness estimated the decision to declare victory on the 1-2% target means Shell could now produce an average 29 million tonnes of extra carbon per year  almost as much as Denmark emits annually.

Shell told the PA news agency it believes those figures, based on data from energy analysts Rystad, to be nonsense.

Jonathan Noronha-Gant, senior campaigner at Global Witness, said: Record profits off the back of the energy crisis should be boosting up green investment.

Instead its shareholder payouts and a doubling down on climate-wrecking fossil fuels. It will always be profit over people and planet for polluters.

MP and Green Party co-leader Caroline Lucas said the move is utterly destructive.

Fossil fuel giants like Shell are climate criminals, polluting our planet at will and reaping record profits for their own shareholders, she said.

Mark van Baal, founder of Follow This, a group of shareholders campaigning for companies to go greener, said Shell is on a collision course with the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement, which calls for carbon emissions to almost halve by 2030.

At its New York capital markets day, Shell also made it clear it did not have an advantage in the renewable power sector, saying it had sold sites in Ireland and France.

The plan to become the worlds largest electricity company, announced just four years ago, was out of the window, Mr Sawan said.

Many of you are asking if we are going to be the biggest power company, he told reporters.

Weve now hopefully answered that question by saying no.

He added: Unfortunately, the energy transition is complex. Those who double down on offshore wind alone struggle today. Those who doubled down on only oil struggled four or five years ago.

It is also busy trying to find a buyer for its household energy supplier Shell Energy in the UK and other countries.

Instead, Shell sees some of its renewable future lying in places where it can tap into its traditional business.

For instance, using the benefit of having thousands of forecourts around the world, Shell hopes to grow the number of electric vehicle charging points it owns from 30,000 to 200,000 by the end of the decade.

It appeared to focus largely on urban areas, where drivers might not have the space for a charger at home.

The company also said electric cars can bring other benefits to its old petrol stations. The average electric driver spends around twice as much on food and other items when they wait for their car to load up.
T he EU competition regulator has accused Google of abusing its position in the online advertising market, calling for the break-up of its ad businesses.

The blocs competition regulator has said the tech giant should sell off its ad purchasing arms, Google Ads and DV 360, in order to reduce the conflict of interest they have with its online ad sales and auction arms, AdX and DFP.

A break-up of its ad businesses could come as a huge blow to Google, with its advertising empire worth as much as 80% of its annual turnover. The EU can impose a fine of up to 10% of Google annual worldwide turnover if it judges that the firm has breached competition law.

The Competition Commission said Google was favouring AdX over rivals in order to make it the most attractive ad exchange, which it considered to be an abuse of its dominant position in the market.

The regulator said: A behavioural remedy is likely to be ineffective...the Commissions preliminary view is therefore that only the mandatory divestment by Google of part of its services would address its competition concerns.

Margrethe Vestager, Executive Vice-President in charge of competition policy, said: Our preliminary concern is that Google may have used its market position to favour its own intermediation services.

Not only did this possibly harm Googles competitors but also publishers interests, while also increasing advertisers costs. If confirmed, Googles practices would be illegal under our competition rules.

Googles VP of global ads, Dan Taylor, said he took issue with the EUs view. Our advertising technology tools help websites and apps fund their content, and enable businesses of all sizes to effectively reach new customers, he said.

The Commissions investigation focuses on a narrow aspect of our advertising business and is not new. We disagree with the ECs view and we will respond accordingly.

Googles practices in the online advertising market are also under investigation in the UK, with a probe launched last month by the Competition and Markets Authority.

Andrea Coscelli, the CMAs Chief Executive, said: Were worried that Google may be using its position in ad tech to favour its own services to the detriment of its rivals, of its customers and ultimately of consumers.

This would be bad for the millions of people who enjoy access to a wealth of free information online every day.
W orkers are more likely to go into the office regularly at small companies than at big employers, according to new survey results.

The shift to hybrid working post-pandemic remains popular. However, patterns have changed since property consultancy Lambert Smith Hampton last conducted its occupier survey in June last year.

This year it spoke to 60 people from companies of all sizes that collectively have more than 100,000 UK staff, about half headquartered in London.

The most common response for how many days staff are in per week on average was three (39%), compared with two (42%) being the most popular answer last year.

LSH also observed a divergence between attendance levels in firms of differing size. Among those with fewer than 50 employees, 47% in May reported office attendance of at least four days a week, and the only respondents with full attendance were all in this size category.

In contrast, two days a week remains the most common level of office attendance in firms with more than 1,000 staff.

Attendance levels of four days a week or more are still a rarity across all of the larger size bands.

Oliver du Sautoy, head of research at LSH said the results suggest that larger businesses have more established infrastructures to facilitate hybrid working By contrast, SME culture is arguably more rooted in the physical workplace and the interaction and camaraderie that comes with it.
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Telecoms giants Vodafone and Three have agreed a deal to merge their UK businesses, creating a 15 billion behemoth that will be the countrys biggest mobile network operator.

Vodafone and Threes parent company CK Hutchison Group Telecom Holdings will create a new entity, in which Vodafone will hold a 51% stake and CK Hutchison 49%.

However, the deal could still be scuppered by regulators, after a previous merger between Three and O2 was blocked by the Competition watchdog.

The merger comes as mobile operators work to roll out 5G across the nation. The new business said it will invest 11 billion over the next five years to create a new 5G network.

Margherita Della Valle, Vodafone group chief executive, said the deal would lead to better service for customers. The merger is great for customers, great for the country and great for competition.

Its transformative as it will create a best-in-class  indeed best in Europe  5G network, offering customers a superior experience.

As a country, the UK will benefit from the creation of a sustainable, strongly competitive third scaled operator  with a clear 11 billion network investment plan  driving growth, employment and innovation. For Vodafone, this transaction is a game changer in our home market. This is a vote of confidence in the UK and its ambitions to be a centre for future technology.

Vodafone claimed that the merger could be worth as much as 5 billion per year in economic benefit by 2030, as it will allow the UKs 5G network to get up and running more quickly.

If it receives regulatory approval, the deal should close before the end of 2024. But telecoms analyst Paolo Pescatore of PP Foresight warned that competition approval would not be guaranteed. In 2016, the Competition and Markets Authority blocked a takeover of O2 by Three over concerns about higher prices.

This will be a hard sale given that both companies have been outperforming the market for the last year or so, he said. Lets see if the authorities have a change of heart. Both parties need to demonstrate that this is genuinely in the interest of UK plc, the economy, and consumers for it to have a chance of getting over the line.

Vodafone set it had not yet approached the CMA about the new deal but planned to engage with the regulator over the coming weeks.

Three UK CEO Robert Finnegan hit out at concerns the watdog would block the deal on competition grounds.

If nothing changes then nothing will change the quality of the infrastructure in the UK, he said.

That will be a sad state of affairs for the country and for consumers.

The announcement of the long-anticipated mega-merger comes just weeks after Vodafone announced plans to cut thousands of jobs across the globe. Vodafone hinted that further job cuts could come as a result of the deal with Three but could not confirm numbers.

Alexandra Brodie, telecoms partner at the law firm Gowling WLG, said: This is timely news, given Vodafones most recent trading update which painted a challenging picture for the operator surrounding its imminent need to embark on job cuts to boost returns on capital employed amid increasing inflation and interest rates.

Indeed, the merger is critical for the company in light of its objectives around building the infrastructure of the future to help catalyse the digital economy. That entails significant investment in 5G roll out and expensive future-proofing projects, like the laying out of undersea internet cables which traverse areas of high geopolitical tensions.

Under the terms of the deal, Vodafone will own a 51% stake in the combined entity, with the right to acquire more of Threes share after three years. Vodafone said they expected the deal to be finalised in 2024, until which time the two businesses would keep their branding and individal pricing for customer contracts.
T he UKs stock market suffered a huge blow today after We Soda, the worlds largest producer of natural soda ash, aborted plans for a listing that was meant to revive the fortunes of the London Stock Exchange.

The decision comes just days after the IPO was first announced, and will reawaken questions about the Citys desirability as a place for global companies to list their shares.

In a statement, Alasdair Warren, CEO of WE Soda said: "Since our intention to float announcement some weeks ago, we had been encouraged by the breadth of investor engagement globally and the subsequent interest from prospective investors in our IPO.

"Despite this, the reality is that investors, particularly in the UK, remain extremely cautious about the IPO market and this extreme investor caution in London meant that we were unable to arrive at a valuation that we believe reflects our unique financial and operating characteristics. As a result, we have decided to cancel our IPO on the London Stock Exchange.

The IPO plans, revealed days ago, were expected to raise up to 800 million US dollars (645 million) for the Turkish-owned company, valuing it at up to 7.5 billion US dollars (6 billion), and would have made it the biggest UK listing so far in 2023.

Susannah Streeter, head of money and markets at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: This is a big blow for London just as confidence in the City as an IPO launch pad appeared to be edging back upwards.

The inflation problem facing the U.K is not helping sentiment, with gilts yields soaring to levels not seen for 15 years amid expectations the Bank of England will have to fire off fresh rounds of interest rate hikes. The uncertainty ahead is clearly off-putting and companies considering IPOs may continue to set their sights on New York instead.

The firm had previously shrugged off concerns of low valuations and a drought in public listings in the UK.

WE Soda chief strategy and risk officer Nicholas Hall had told the Standard: Despite the challenging market backdrop, were confident of a successful listing.

The FTSE 100 is associated with quality and prestige and given that history it seems the right place to list. Investors are seeking quality companies with defensive characteristics.

The company had also explored an offering to retail investors of up to 7 million in shares, the maximum permitted under European rules, in a move which Hall said was because an important investment opportunity should be open to everyone. It engaged J.P. Morgan, BNP Paribas and Goldman Sachs as joint global co-ordinators and joint bookrunners.

WE Soda had revenue of $1.8 billion (1.4 billion) in 2022 with EBITDA of $848 million. The company generates five million tons of natural soda ash annually across two facilities in Turkey. Proceeds from the IPO will be used to fund its $5 billion investment into building two new sites in Wyoming, USA, in a bid to more than double production. Glass manufacturing accounted for around 60% of global soda ash demand in 2022.

The company is chaired by Didem Ciner, a graduate of the London School of Economics and the wife of Turgay Ciner, the billionaire behind the Ciner group conglomerate, which owns a number of industrial and energy businesses as well as Turkeys highest-circulation newspaper, Haberturk, and operates the Turkish TV station of media firm Bloomberg.

Another of the companys subsidiaries, Ciner glass, was granted permission to build a 390 million glass container factory in South Wales in June last yea, creating 600 new jobs.

The decision to abandon a listing means London-based fintech firm CAB Payments, which provides business-to-business cross-border payments, is now set to become the first major IPO on the LSE this year after it revealed plans for a listing last week in a move which could value it between 800 million and over 1 billion.
Egypt is committed to meeting the needs of its neighbouring countries in the Nile Basin, especially South Sudan, said Minister of Water Resources and Irrigation Hani Sewilam.

This came during Sewilams meeting with his South Sudanese counterpart Pal Mai Deng in Cairo on Tuesday. South Sudan currently holds the presidency of the African Ministers' Council on Water (AMCOW) and is hosting the 13th General Assembly of AMCOW.

The meeting between Sewilam and Deng was part of a series of mutual visits at both the ministerial and technical levels to discuss the progress of joint water resources development projects, read a ministry statement.

Sewilam shared insights into Egypt's efforts to support Nile Basin countries, including the construction of groundwater drinking water stations, with eight dedicated to meeting the needs of South Sudanese citizens.

He added that Egypt has constructed four rainwater harvesting dams to provide clean water for drinking, animal husbandry, and domestic use. The country is also working on clearing waterways of aquatic weeds to facilitate river navigation and reduce flood risks.

Sewilam emphasized Egypt's commitment to enhancing cooperation by offering training programmes to South Sudanese organized by the Egyptian Agency for Partnership for Development and other ministries and institutions, the statement added.

The minister also discussed the international initiative Action on Water, Adaptation, and Resilience (AWARe), which aims to initiate practical projects and actions to adapt to the water sector's challenges.

According to the ministerial statement, Sewilam stressed the importance of implementing tangible projects that address the negative effects of climate change in Africa and contribute to Water Vision 2030 and the sixth Sustainable Development Goal related to water.

Moreover, Sewilam announced the Pan African Centre for Water and Climate Adaptation will be launched in the near future. The centre will provide training to personnel from African countries in climate adaptation.

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S ix years ago, London, the country and the world watched in horror as Grenfell Tower burned. My first visit the next morning will forever remain in my memory, as will the details told by the survivors  the tears of anguish, the sweltering heat and the acrid stench of that suffocating smoke.

As I met with local families, many bereaved, many others unsure of the fate of their loved ones and all deeply traumatised, I knew this had to be a watershed moment. Londoners united to demand justice. But six years on, the Grenfell community and their supporters are still waiting.

The fire at Grenfell Tower should have changed everything but, in reality, not nearly enough has happened. The loss of 72 lives should have been the catalyst for a rapid overhaul of the fire building safety system to ensure owners and developers treated it as being of paramount importance. It should have meant rigorous rules and regulations for the industry to follow, supported by clear guidance and, crucially, it should have enabled a vast and lucrative sector to be held to account for its part in this devastating tragedy. Six years should have meant solace for the bereaved, answers for the community and ultimately Justice for Grenfell  yet our pursuit of these goes on.

Of the 12 recommendations made to government from phase one of the Grenfell Inquiry, a third are yet to be implemented. This delay is not only inexcusable but dangerous and I remain concerned that our country has not taken the action necessary to avoid another tragedy on a similar scale. Thats why I have written to the Prime Minister, the fourth in post since the fire, urging him to ensure lessons are learned. Such a deadly inferno can never be allowed to happen again.

On the night of the fire, 15 of the 37 disabled residents at Grenfell died none of them had a personal emergency evacuation plan (PEEP) in place. The urgent need for PEEPs was identified as a key recommendation in the Grenfell Inquirys phase one report, yet the Government has repeatedly failed to introduce them. Failure to ensure the safe and dignified evacuation of people with disabilities forces vulnerable residents to live in fear in the place they should feel most secure.

This is not acceptable. All Londoners deserve to have confidence in the safety of their homes and in their ability to escape should the worst happen.

The Grenfell community is proud of its diversity and relatives who have travelled from overseas to participate in the inquiry have played a vital role representing families and helping to uncover the truth. They also continue to play a key role in the community, including as carers to survivors. Even so, despite being granted leave to enter and remain in the UK, Grenfell relatives have been left with no bespoke route to settlement. This means they are required to regularly re-apply for leave and have only limited rights and entitlements. This creates a huge amount of stress and uncertainty for their families and it is entirely avoidable.

I have also urged the Government to introduce to Parliament a Hillsborough Law, which would place a new legal duty of candour on public authorities and officials to proactively co-operate with official inquiries. Disappointingly, phase two of the Grenfell Inquiry has seen too many influential organisations refusing to accept responsibility for their role in the disaster and instead seeking to blame others.

Justice delayed is justice denied and the communitys trauma has been compounded by years of equivocation and silence.

Consistently and cruelly, the Grenfell community has had to fight to have its voice heard, its questions answered and its sacrifice acknowledged. The physical and psychological effects of the fire have rippled throughout North Kensington and the suffering which started that night is still keenly felt. The Government must recognise that the effects of fire linger long and work to ensure sustained physical and mental health support is in place as the bereaved and survivors rebuild their lives.

As Mayor, Ill continue doing everything in my power to hold the Government and the authorities to account in pursuing Justice for Grenfell. As a Londoner I stand in solidarity with the bereaved, survivors and community of North Kensington, and as a son of this great city I will always remember the 72 souls we lost in the fire as I work to continue building a safer, fairer London for everyone.
D iana: The Musical is headed to the West End and will star Loose Women panellist Denise Welch as Queen Elizabeth II.

Opening on Monday December 4, the Broadway production chronicling the life of Diana, Princess of Wales, will be staged at the Eventim Apollo in London.

Diana will be played by actress Kerry Ellis, who is best known as the first British actress to take on the lead role of Elphaba in Wicked.

Maiya Quansah-Breed, who was nominated for an Olivier in her role as Catherine Parr in the musical Six, will also play Diana, starring as a 19-year-old version of the princess.

Waterloo Road star Welch, who is mother to The 1975 frontman Matty Healy, makes a return to the theatre in her role as the late Queen, having previously starred in the 2018 Calendar Girls UK Tour.

Detailing Dianas life in the limelight, the musical will feature 80s inspired show tunes with music from Bon Jovi keyboard player David Bryan and lyrics by Joe DiPietro  the team behind the Tony Award-winning musical Memphis.

Audiences will watch as a fictional Diana reflects on her past, including her relationship to the Prince of Wales, as she signs her divorce papers in search of a new life.

The musical was first staged at Broadways Longacre Theatre in 2021, with actress Jeanna de Waal in the lead role.

In 2020, the opening of the show was delayed due to Covid restrictions and cast and crew filmed for an empty audience, with streaming platform Netflix launching the production online.

Slated to open in December, the West End version of Diana: The Musical will be audiences first time watching live in the UK.

Diana was born Diana Frances Spencer in 1961 and was married to the former Prince of Wales until 1996 when they reached a divorce agreement.

Pursued by the paparazzi in Paris a year later, Diana died in a car crash, aged 36.

Her life and story features in The Crown, a fictional Netflix drama about the Royal Family.

Many other programmes and films have been made about Diana, including the 2021 film, Spencer, which stars Twilight actress Kristen Stewart.
S ome of the worlds top creators, including inventors, artists, scientists, designers and curators have teamed up again for the return of The Great Exhibition Road Festival.

The event, which will take place this coming weekend, is set to feature a host of cutting edge and innovative displays where art, music, design and science collide, in a free two-day extravaganza.

The annual festival, which is presented by Imperial College London with partners including the Natural History Museum, Royal College of Music, Science Museum, V&A, and Royal Albert Hall, promises to be even bigger and more spectacular than last years.

This summers offering will have hundreds of free events that will see scientists step out of their labs and artists leave their studios, bringing along their inventions, prototypes and wildest imaginings, say organisers.

Highlights include the ambitious Paint Lab - an ever-changing street-sized art gallery on Exhibition Road and a multicoloured silent disco dancefloor powered by atoms.

A scene from the interior of the Crystal Palace, Hyde Park during the Great Exhibition of 1851 - the worlds first fair / Dickinson PrintNatural History Museum -

Other must-sees are a dynamic art installation inspired by the lockdown, a musical journey through the solar system and a very topical exploration of how humans and machines will co-exist in the future. Theres also a barrage of quirky food stalls as traipsing through this vast exhibition is bound to stir up an appetite.

The yearly sumer event is inspired by the iconic Great Exhibition of 1851 - the first ever international exhibition of manufactured products.

Here is breakdown of some of this years festivals biggest draws:

Paint Lab

A colour-filled live art gallery running the length of South Kensingtons Exhibition Road, will be created before the eyes of the public by artists and scientists.

They will also tell festivalgoers who inspired them as the work takes shape.

Smart Machines Zone

The public will be able to explore how humans and machines will interact in the future, from robotic friends and revolutionary tech to green transport innovations and smarter AI.

Youll also see intelligent wheelchair technologies before donning the AI goggles and driving around a virtual South Kensington where autonomous vehicles are the norm.

From children to adults - the festival will cater for everyone / the-great-exhibition-road-festival

Am I made of star dust?

The exhibit will aim to answer questions such as: How long would it take me to fly to a star? What would happen if I fell inside a black hole? Would I get a phone signal in space?

Award-winning scientist and BBC broadcaster Dr Maggie Aderin-Pocock MBE will be on board to answer countless questions about the Universe.

Future Food Live

Top chefs will create dishes before your eyes with new flavours and ingredients and share how to make meals for a healthy body, wallet - and planet.

There will be climate-friendly plates and a lesson in how insects and wrinkled peas can be a secret source of protein.

The Biggest Dinosaurs That Ever Lived

Youll come face to face with a prehistoric giant and learn about the eating habits that helped make Titanosaurs so large.

Titanosaur exhibit / Great Exhibition Road Festival

Family Fun Zone

A chance to meet scientists, engineers, artists and inventors and design and build an earthquake-proof building, make friends with worms, become an urban wildlife explorer and meet an inventor of toys.

The Lost Art of Lacemaking

Discover the ancient tradition of making lace with a designer repopularising historic artforms through digital technologies. A fan of the complex patterns lacemaking creates, Zhaodi Feng - a graduate of the Royal College of art and Imperials Dyson School for Design Engineering - will show you the principles of lace making with an interactive musical device designed to encourage appreciation of bobbin lace in a new context, before creating your own lace mementos.

Rediscovering Black Portraiture

Find out how a moment of lockdown inspiration started a journey rediscovering the history of Black subjects in Western art and literature. Artist Peter Braithwaites stunning artwork will showcase historical depictions of black figures whose stories have previously been marginalised or erased. The images, which address social and political concerns, also stem from his own identity as a performer. Brathwaites exhibition will present and reimagine subjects and figures from the 11th century to the present day.

Rediscovering black portraiture / Peter Brathwaite

Photographing the Invisible

This exhibit captures unobservable sounds using photography and uncovers the physical principles that are developing the future of brain imaging.

Atom>Light>Dance: An atomic silent disco

Discover how atoms absorb and emit light to colour our world and hit the dance floor, finding the parallels between light and sound waves.

Brilliant Bodies Zone

Marvel at the ingenious engineering and design within us. Hook up to an EEG brain activity machine, explore our skeletal system, build spines out of clay and perform knee surgery, before completing a giant DNA puzzle to understand the story of our genetic code.

Japanese national costumes inspired by nature / The Great Exhibition

Building the Future Zone

From green concrete to permeable pavements, get hands on with innovative sustainable materials and learn about new ways of powering future cities. Build batteries from fruit and vegetables, learn how to power cities in an environmentally-friendly way and contribute to our sprawling cardboard model city of the future.

Japanese National Costumes Inspired by Nature

From formal uchikake to casual yukata, find out about Japans national costume, design a nature-inspired kimono and try a summer yukata. Uchikake are a type of outer kimono worn on formal occasions in Japan, for example by brides on their wedding day. At the Festival, children can learn about the different natural elements and their meanings, have a go at colouring in an uchikake, or take it one step further and enter a competition to design their own.

20,000 Leagues Under the Sea

Britains first astronaut, Helen Sharman, hosts maritime experts for a discussion on submarines, autonomous drones, satellite measurements and technologies that will go where no human has gone before.

The Great Exhibition Road Festival 2023 - Exhibition Road, South Kensington. June 17 and 18 from 12pm to 6pm
It is not news that London society swoons for a splashy surname. On that power list  among the Laws, Gallaghers and Mosses  Hurley packs a punch.

Many have heard of Damian Hurley, the 21-year-old luscious-locked son of actress Elizabeth Hurley  who made her name in with plunging, Versace safety pinned gown on Hugh Grants arm in 1994. Model Damian, who is signed by IMG, has racked up 141,000 Instagram followers; is a fixture at Brit Awards red carpets, Vogue parties at Annabels and front rows in Milan. He counts Sir Elton John and Grant as godfathers.

Yet his cousin, Miles Hurley, 26, is a far rarer figure to spot. The son of Elizabeths older sister Kate Curran (a retired writers agent) is also a model, signed by Next, but has been out the spotlight with a humble 8,972 followers on Instagram. Let me tell you, thats not for lack of beauty.

Damian Hurley, Emma Weymouth, Marchioness of Bath, Mason Smillie, Miles Hurley and Abdel R. Abdulai attend the Dolce & Gabbana cocktail soiree to celebrate the new DG Logo Bag / Dave Benett

The fact is sobering. On March 8, 2018, Miles and his friend were repeatedly stabbed in the back by a stranger in Nine Elms, south-west London. He was 21 at the time. The knife didnt hit my spinal cord or arteries. It all came down to angles and millimetres, he said at the time. I had a guardian angel that night. I lost six pints of blood. Chaos ensued as a distraught Elizabeth flew back from New York to support her sister and nephew. She later criticised the police for dropping their investigation into the incident due to a lack of DNA evidence, saying she was annoyed but not surprised.

Before the attack, Miles scene credentials were encouraging: a pinnacle came as he sauntered down Dolce & Gabbanas catwalk, looking like he had stepped out of Evelyn Waughs pages, in dapper velvet tailoring, green bow tie and sumptuous slippers. It was the brands autumn/winter 2018 catwalk, and he commanded attention alongside other familiar faces including Raff Law.

Now, five years on, the story has come full circle. This week, Miles made his re-emergence on the London society scene at a soiree hosted at the Italian luxury labels flagship Bond Street shop, celebrating the launch of the new DG Logo Bag.

Elizabeth Hurley and her nephew Miles Hurley attend "The Royals" New York Series Premiere at The Standard Highline / Getty Images

It was like no time had passed. With a chiselled jaw, sleeveless grey hoodie and ripped baggy jeans, he goofed around on the red carpet with a beaming Damian, who wrapped his arms around him for the cameras. Later, the cousins headed in to make up for lost time, chatting with Emma Weymouth, Marchioness of Bath, Lennon Gallagher and his girlfriend Isobel Richmond.

Im very proud of Miles, Damian tells the Standard, We are very, very close. The last few years have been tough. Its great everyone is on the other side and happy moving forward.

Miles Hurley walks for Dolce and Gabbana for AW18 / Imaxtree

Could this be the year of the nepo nephew? Also on the scene is Moses Skinner, son of Sienna Millers fashion designer sister Savannah, who is an aspiring DJ.

But lets not get ahead of ourselves.For Miles, whether the summer of 2023 marks the beginning of a re-blossoming modelling career remains to be seen. Damian says, Who knows what the future holds but its all very exciting and Im looking forward to seeing what comes next.

Since the attack, Miles has posted infrequent (but certainly steamy) snaps charting the obvious hours he has committed to the gym in potential preparation.

Following half a decades wait, Miless ascension might just be in motion.
A man has been convicted of dangerous driving two days after crashing into a boy in Newham, leaving the youngster fighting for life in hospital.

Police, paramedics and an air ambulance rushed to the scene of the collision in Barking Road, near to the junction with Melbourne Road in East Ham, around 1.30pm on Sunday.

The 12-year-old pedestrian was rushed to an east London hospital with life-threatening injuries.

He remained there on Wednesday, in a condition described by police as critical, but stable.

Eesah Ahmed, from Newham, who was driving the car that hit him, was arrested at the scene of the crash and taken into custody, before being charged the next day.

The 33-year-old appeared at Thames Magistrates Court on Tuesday, where he pleaded guilty to causing serious injury by dangerous driving.

He was bailed and will be sentenced at Snaresbrook Crown Court on Tuesday, July 11.
A man who murdered Ranjith Kankanamalage, 50, in a brutal hammer attack that shocked the Tower Hamlets community has been jailed.

Erik Feld, 37, had an obsession with horrific violence and was fuelled by homophobia Metropolitan Police said, following his sentencing at the Old Bailey on Wednesday.

Feld has been sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum term of 28 years after being found guilty of attacking the stranger at Tower Hamlets Cemetery Park in August 2021.

Ranjith had moved to London from Sri Lanka and was living in Whitechapel at the time of the attack. He had an ex-wife and two children in Sri Lanka and an ex-civil partner in the UK.

His body was found at the park by a member of the public on August 16. Ranjith had suffered significant head injuries inflicted by a hammer, police said.

The shockwaves that this horrific attack caused amongst his family, friends and the people of Tower Hamlets continue to resonate, Detective Chief Superintendent James Conway said.

While officers investigated the attack as a hate crime, Feld never disclosed his motive.

Julius Capon, head of CPS London Homicide, said there was not enough evidence to prove that Felds actions were either motivated by homophobic hostility or that such hostility was demonstrated at the time of committing the offence.

But Mr Conway added: He is clearly a violent and dangerous man and, as demonstrated by comments made during his trial, one who is fuelled by homophobia.

Police said Feld was obsessed with hammer attacks and had researched and watched videos of the violent assaults on his phone.

Polie found three mallets and a sledgehammer at Felds home and he had previously brandished a hammer at a security guard following an argument.

His DNA was found under Ranjiths finernails.

Erik Feld / PA Media

Tower Hamlets Mayor Lutfur Rahman said he hoped Felds sentencing would bring some comfort and justice to the friends and family of Ranjith Kankanamalage, whose violent murder deeply affected the community in Tower Hamlets and beyond.

There is no place for hate in Tower Hamlets and we will continue to come together to oppose extremism and racism in all its forms.

He urged anyone impacted by hate crimes to always report it.

Tower Hamlets resident, Jack Gilbert, said on behalf of the LGBTAG - a voluntary group of independent advisors working closely with the police: Ranjith came to London to make a new life some time ago from Sri Lanka  a country where legal sanctions and harsh prejudice against LGBT+ people still exists.

Whilst we saw Feld stride out of the witness stand to express homophobia during testimony, the CPS and Met were unable to find sufficient evidence for homophobic motivation for the crime. It may well be that the law and/or CPS guidelines themselves present a high barrier to convicting hate-related homicide.

To satisfy LGBT+ trust and confidence, we are therefore seeking a multi-agency review linking a range of related aspects of the case. We would like to capture the innovations and to explore whether there are any opportunities for improvement, including in how the multi-agency processes monitors and manages the risk of hate crime.

Mr Conway said: We still have some way to go to demonstrate that LGBT+ people can have trust and confidence in us, but the approach in this investigation hopefully shows we are listening and are committed to making improvements, ensuring that the past treatment of those in our LGBT+ communities, for which the Commissioner recently apologised, is consigned to history.
A computer hacker who was jailed for stealing unreleased songs from stars including Ed Sheeran has been ordered to pay back more than 100,000.

Adrian Kwiatkowski, 23, stole 14 songs - two from Sheeran and 12 from Lil Uzi Vert - from their digital accounts, before selling them on the dark web.

He had been jailed for 18 months at Ipswich Crown Court in October 2022 after pleading guilty to offering songs in exchange for cryptocurrency on the dark web.

City of London police fraud specialists searched his computer finding 565 audio files.

Kwiatkowski, from Ipswich, pleaded guilty to three charges of unauthorised access to computer material, 14 charges of making for sale an article infringing copyright, one charge of converting criminal property and two charges of possession of criminal property.

In his latest appearance at Ipswich Crown Court a confiscation order was made against the fraudster giving him three months to pay 101,053.

The amount is made up of 51,975 held in a bank account owned by Kwiatkowski and 2.64 BTC (Bitcoin), worth 49,528, which makes it the first confiscation order of cryptocurrency secured by the Police Intellectual Property Crime Unit (PIPCU).

Ed Sheeran songs were stolen / PA Wire

If he fails to pay within three months, he will face a further 18 months in jail.

Detective Constable Daryl Fryatt, from the City of London , Police Intellectual Property Crime Unit (PIPCU) said: Kwiatkowski executed a complex scheme to sell creative content that he did not own.

Not only did he cause several musicians and their production companies significant financial harm, he deprived them of the ability to release their own work.

Our work doesnt just stop at conviction, and this result means that Kwiatkowski will not be able to benefit any further from the money he earned through criminal activity.

Melissa Morgia, Director of Global Content Protection and Enforcement at the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI), said:

We welcome the recent developments in this case. This type of criminal activity jeopardises the work of artists and the efforts of the teams of people supporting with the creation and release of their music.

This is an excellent example of international cooperation and we would like to thank the Manhattan District Attorneys Office and the City of London Police for their support in this matter.
A member of the public found a man with serious head injuries in broad daylight in a residential London street.

The 24-year-old was discovered lying face-down in High Cross Road, Tottenham on Saturday afternoon.

A relative phoned the injured man, but was told by a member of the public who picked up his phone that he was lying unconscious.

The relative then rushed to the scene and collected the injured man, driving him to his house before calling an ambulance.

Police and paramedics were sent to the property around 4.10pm on Saturday, and arrived to find the victim suffering head injuries.

He was taken to hospital, where his condition was on Wednesday described as life-threatening.

Scotland Yard says a number of witnesses were at the scene in High Cross Road, but had left by the time officers arrived, and police have not been able to trace them.

The injured man is thought to be of Turkish descent, medium build, with a bald head, and a black moustache and beard.

He was wearing a white vest, black jacket, jogging bottoms and trainers when the incident happened.

Detective Inspector Oliver Franks from North Area CID said: Unfortunately, due to the circumstances, we have not been able to trace witnesses to this incident and we urgently need to understand what has happened. It is important to remember that we are keeping an open mind about how the man was injured.

We know there were people at the scene and we are appealing for those people to come forward and tell us what they saw.

We believe the critical times are between 12.45pm to 2pm and we would like to speak to anyone who was in the area and thinks they may have seen this man, or were driving through and may have dash cam footage.

This man is critically ill and we urgently need the public to come forward and tell us what they saw.

Any witnesses or anyone with any information is asked to call police on 101 or contact via Twitter @MetCC. Please quote CAD 5166/10JUN. To give information anonymously contact Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 or online at crimestoppers-uk.org.
T his is the moment a man appears to drop a firebomb on himself in a massive argument in west London.

In shocking footage, a man is seen holding a flaming object before running over the street in an attempt to confront screaming residents at 8.20am on Wednesday.

As he appears to throw the device over the fence he drops it at his feet with fire spilling out on across Gresham Road in Neasden.

One resident said: I just saw there was a massive argument happening but I dont know what it was over. I stayed well back.

A London Fire Brigade spokesman said: We were called by the Metropolitan Police to an incident on Gresham Road in Neasden this morning.

The Brigade was called at 8.22am and the incident was over for firefighters by 8.34am.

A crew from Willesden Fire Station attended the scene.

A Metropolitan Police spokesperson said: Police were called at 8.15am on Wednesday, 14 June to Gresham Road, NW10.

A man was reported to have thrown petrol at a car before attempting to set it alight. A man was arrested on suspicion of arson with intent to endanger life and assault on an emergency worker.No reports of any injuries.Enquiries are ongoing.
A n NHS nurse said she was left thinking dying is better after she was handed 10,000 in fines for breaking the Covid travel rules when dealing with a family tragedy.

Nancy Gawe, 58, flew to Zimbabwe with her son in September 2021 to be with her mother after the murder of her father.

She was stopped at Heathrow terminal four on the return flight, having not booked her and her son into a quarantine hotel after visiting a red list country.

Gawe, a mental health nurse in the NHS, told a Border Force agent she believed she was flying in from an amber list country and had planned to quarantine herself at home.

On February 15 this year  17 months after she was stopped at the airport  Gawe was issued with two 5,000 fixed penalty notices under the governments Health Protection regulations.

She did not pay the penalties and was then prosecuted, before ultimately being ordered to pay 808 by a magistrate.

In a letter to the court, the single mother said she was stunned to receive letters setting out the fines she faced, she said she has lost potential evidence since the original incident due to the delay, and detailed the impact on her mental health.

This particular case was never in my mind, she wrote.

I was told if I have not received anything in the next 3-4 weeks, that means (its) not going further. Honestly I was told it will be that they wont have anything to do anymore.

Of evidence of her vaccinated status, Gawe said: If I had known this case was coming, I should have kept everything in a safe place.

And she added: When I received the first letter of money, I thought dying is better.

Gawe, from the Welsh town of Porth, told the court she had a negative Covid test before flying back to the UK, where she needed to attend her medical studies.

Missing uni was not an option in terms of learning outcomes, she said.

Knowing the profession I was going to get into, there was no chance I would risk coming back to England after testing positive.

Gawe, who became a fully-fledged nurse in April last year, told the court she made the trip after her father and nephew had been murdered, in order to comfort her mother.

I had to go pay my last respects and help, she said.

Gawe, who told the court of money struggles, pleaded guilty to failing to possess a managed self-isolation package on arrival in England and failing to ensure a child possessed managed self-isolation package.

Gawe continued to complain in her mitigation about reassurance from police that she would not be penalised, which she said made me believe its all OK.

Surprisingly after years this is proven wrong, she added. The issue of trust is very questionable and I dont want to argue because all it does is leave me worrying.

The court, sitting behind closed doors last week in the Single Justice Procedure, imposed a 653 fine plus 90 in costs and a 65 victim surcharge.

Covid prosecutions continue unabated as the UKs pandemic inquiry gets underway and nearly a year after travel restrictions were finally lifted.

Last week, magistrates sitting in Basingstoke, Bath, and Cheltenham dealt with 19 cases  including Gawes  of alleged Covid ruling breaking in 2021. Fines totalling more than 15,000 were imposed.
More than 100 people have drowned in north central Nigeria after a boat carrying families returning from a wedding sank in a river, police and local authorities said.

Details about the accident in Kwara State were still emerging, but it was the latest boat tragedy in Nigeria where river capsizes are common due to overloading, lax safety procedures and heavy flooding in the rainy season.

The boat was ferrying people in Kwara State from a wedding in neighbouring Niger State when it went down, local police and the Kwara governor's office said Tuesday, without giving the cause.

"So far we have 103 people dead and over 100 rescued from the boat accident," Kwara State police spokesman Okasanmi Ajayi told AFP by telephone.

"Search and rescue is still ongoing which means the toll is likely to rise."

The Kwara State governor's office said the victims had been returning from a wedding ceremony to Kwara's Patigi district.

"The governor is sad to receive reports of the boat accident involving several people, particularly residents of Ebu, Dzakan, Kpada, Kuchalu, and Sampi, all in Patigi," the statement said.

"The governor sends his heartfelt condolences to the people of these communities."

The governor was monitoring the rescue efforts which had been underway since Monday night in search of possible survivors, it said.

"He commends the alertness of (traditional ruler) the Etsu Patigi His Royal Highness Alhaji Ibrahim Umar Bologi II and other local government authorities for the efforts to save as many people as possible who may have survived the mishap."

Such river accidents are unfortunately common in Nigeria.

Last month, 15 children drowned and 25 others went missing after their overloaded boat capsized in northwest Sokoto State as they were on their way to collect firewood.

Almost exactly a year earlier, another 29 children from a nearby village also drowned in the same river as they were on a trip to collect firewood for their families.

During massive flooding in the rainy season last December, at least 76 people drowned when their boat went down in a swollen river in southeastern Anambra State.

With poor road infrastructure a frequent problem and kidnapping for ransom a major issue along some highways, river boat travel for transport and trade is common in Nigeria.

The Niger River is West Africa's main waterway running in a crescent through Guinea to Nigeria's Niger Delta and is a key trade route for some countries.

Nigeria's National Inland Waterways Authority has tried to ban night-time sailing on rivers to stop accidents and says overloading ships is a criminal offence, but skippers and crews often ignore the regulations.

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A convicted Satanist neo-Nazi has admitted a string of fresh crimes committed after being spared jail as a teenager two years ago.

Harry Vaughan, from Twickenham, south-west London, was aged 18 when he admitting 14 terror offences and two of possessing indecent images of children.

The Old Bailey had heard he developed an interest in right wing extremism, Satanism, the occult, and violence after disappearing down a rabbit hole of the internet from the age of 14.

Sentencing him in November 2020, Mr Justice Sweeney acknowledged the A-star students parents were committed to helping him change for the better.

The material demonstrated unequivocally that Vaughan had an entrenched extreme right-wing and racist mindset, as well as an interest in explosives, firearms and violence more generally

The senior judge handed Vaughan a two-year suspended sentence along with a 60-day rehabilitation order and a terrorist notification order for 10 years.

On Wednesday, 21-year-old Vaughan, who now goes by the name of Harry Blake, returned to the Old Bailey and pleaded guilty to making an indecent photograph of a child in September 2022.

He had also admitted three charges of possessing extreme pornographic videos, three counts of failing to comply with a Serious Crime Prevention Order and three breaches of his notification order.

The breaches which began just a month after his original sentence related to failing to tell authorities about an email address and details of crypocurrentcy accounts.

Judge Sarah Munro KC adjourned sentencing until July 21 and remanded the defendant in custody.

In 2020, prosecutor Dan Pawson-Pounds had said the defendant was considered a focused and able student at Tiffin Grammar in Kingston-upon-Thames, south-west London.

He was arrested at his family home on June 19 2019 in a counter-terror probe into Fascist Forge  an online forum used by extreme, right-wing militants.

In a March 2018 application to join the System Resistance Network  an alias of the banned neo-Nazi group National Action  he wrote: I could handle myself in a fight. There is nothing I wouldnt do to further the cause.

Police found 4,200 images and 302 files, including an extreme, right-wing terrorist book and documents relating to Satanism, neo-Nazism and antisemitism, on his computer and other devices.

Files included graphics encouraging acts of terrorism in the name of the proscribed terror organisation Sonnenkrieg Division, a guide to killing people, and bomb-making manuals.

Mr Pawson-Pounds said Vaughan had also looked on Google maps for the locations of schools near his home and searched for explosives and plastic pipes.

He said: The material demonstrated unequivocally that Vaughan had an entrenched extreme right-wing and racist mindset, as well as an interest in explosives, firearms and violence more generally.

He also demonstrated an interest in the occult and Satanism.

The court was also told that the defendants loving parents had been left with a sense of bewilderment at his arrest of their son, who went on to be diagnosed with high-functioning autism.

Defence barrister Naeem Mian KC had said: He is somebody who has disappeared down a rabbit hole, a rabbit hole of the internet, and he is in a very, very dark place, or certainly was. And he was there, it would appear, from the age of about 14.

Vaughan had originally pleaded guilty to one count of encouragement of terrorism, one count of disseminating a terrorist publication, 12 counts of possessing a document containing information of a kind likely to be of use to a person preparing or committing an act of terrorism, and two counts of making an indecent photograph of a child.
A psychopathic hammer attacker has been jailed for at least 28 years for realising his depraved fantasy to kill a random stranger in a Gothic graveyard.

Erik Feld, 37, had a long-standing obsession with extreme violence before he killed Ranjith Kankanamalage in a premediated attack, the Old Bailey heard.

Beforehand, Feld fed his fixation by buying a kitten in order to kill it and watching snuff films online of men and women being bludgeoned with hammers, the Old Bailey heard.

In the early hours of August 16 2021, Feld hid in the shadows behind a monument in Tower Hamlets cemetery in east London before hitting his prey 12 times in the face and head with a claw hammer.

The 50-year-old victim was found with catastrophic injuries by a member of the public on a path in cemetery park later the same morning.

In his trial, Feld concocted what the judge described as a preposterous cock-and-bull story and launched a homophobic rant at the victim, who had an ex-wife and two children in Sri Lanka and an ex-civil partner in the UK.

Feld was found guilty of murder in March and, on Wednesday, Mr Justice Bryan jailed him for life with a minimum term of 28 years.

The judge said it was an horrific and abhorrent murder.

He said that Feld had picked a creepy and Gothic setting because it fitted in with his long-standing desire to kill a stranger with a hammer and Mr Kankanamalage had the severe misfortune to encounter him.

Mr Justice Bryan told Feld his selfish, callous, abhorrent actions carried out to fulfil your depraved fantasy had a devastating impact on Mr Kankanamalages loved ones.

(Mr Kankanamalage) was a senior bank manager in Sri Lanka, a very accomplished athlete who won gold medals and completed two degrees in Sri Lanka as well as academic courses in the UK

The judge agreed with barristers in the case that the starting point for sentencing was 25 years  rather than 30 years if murder was aggravated by hostility to his victims sexual orientation.

Feld had 10 previous convictions for 18 offences between 2002 to August 19 2021 including criminal damage, sex assault, battery and possession of an offensive weapon.

Among the offences: he had brandished an axe at passengers on the London Underground and sprayed black paint on his face and the word kill on a Tube window, the court was told.

Feld was arrested on August 20 2021 as he was awaiting sentence for waving a claw hammer outside a Poundland store two days after the killing.

A search of his home in Tower Hamlets, east London, uncovered two mallets and a sledge hammer in a hallway cupboard, and a third mallet in a living-room cupboard.

He was re-arrested in January 2022 after his DNA was found on bloodstained nail clippings from the left hand of his victim and he was spotted on CCTV footage in the area of the cemetery.

In a fresh search of his flat, police found another hammer and a cut-throat razor by Felds pillow.

Prosecutor Paul Cavin KC read a series of victim impact statements, including one from the victims daughter, Hiruni, on behalf of herself, her mother and younger brother who watched the sentencing by video link from Sri Lanka.

She described him as a kind and friendly person with life-long love of learning and an ambition to qualify in accountancy.

She said: He was a senior bank manager in Sri Lanka, a very accomplished athlete who won gold medals and completed two degrees in Sri Lanka as well as academic courses in the UK.

He was hoping to apply to become a British citizen and resume his career in banking, she added: Before his dream came true, he was brutally murdered.

Former civil partner John Kennedy told how he met Mr Kankanamalage at the Hilton Hotel in Heathrow where the victim was working at the time.

He said the realisation of what happened to him hit me like a ton of bricks and he was consumed be grief, depression and deep sadness.

He also felt sad for Mr Kankanamalages family in Sri Lanka, saying: This was such a cruel and cowardly attack on a gentle and kind man who was just chilling in the park.

In mitigation, Andrew Morris highlighted Felds severe personality disorder.

The defendants mother died when he was aged 11, he had no relationship with his father and grew up in an abusive household, Mr Morris said.

Feld stood with his arms crossed in the dock and made no reaction as he was sent down.

Detective Chief Superintendent James Conway, of Scotland Yard, said: Erik Felds actions demonstrated a brutal low of humanity, but the response of the communities across Tower Hamlets following Ranjiths murder showed the opposite  people coming together to support each other, with the aim of ensuring the person responsible for this attack was brought to justice.

From the outset, our officers investigated this as if it were a hate crime, but throughout the police investigation Feld has never disclosed why he attacked Ranjith with such force. He is clearly a violent and dangerous man and, as demonstrated by comments made during his trial, one who is fuelled by homophobia.

Julius Capon, head of CPS London Homicide, said: In this case, the CPS and Metropolitan Police Service gave careful consideration as to whether we had sufficient evidence to prove that this offence came within the definition of homophobic aggravation for the purposes of sentencing. All agreed that we could not prove that Felds actions were either motivated by homophobic hostility or that such hostility was demonstrated at the time of committing the offence.

Lutfur Rahman, executive mayor of Tower Hamlets, said: I hope todays sentence brings some comfort and justice to the friends and family of Ranjith Kankanamalage, whose violent murder deeply affected the community in Tower Hamlets and beyond.

There is no place for hate in Tower Hamlets and we will continue to come together to oppose extremism and racism in all its forms.
A 20-year-old man has been stabbed to death in south London, Scotland Yard said.

Police on patrol were alerted to the victim, found injured at the junction of Melfort Road and Sandfield Road, Thornton Heath, near Croydon at 4.16pm on Tuesday.

He was taken to hospital where he sadly died in the early hours of Wednesday.

A Metropolitan Police spokesman said: His next of kin have been informed and formal identification awaits.

A post-mortem examination will be scheduled in due course.

There have been no arrests and enquiries into the circumstances are ongoing.

Meanwhile, one woman was knifed to death and another wounded during a double stabbing in Wembley on Tuesday.

The 27-year-old victim died at the scene in Neeld Crescent. A second female, 28, was taken to hospital with injuries assessed as non-life threatening.

A man, 24, and a woman, 23, were arrested on suspicion of murder at the scene.

Another man, 23, had been detained in Harrow at 6pm after a police appeal to locate him.
T his is the first picture of a loving student who was stabbed to death in her west London flatshare just days before returning home to India to get married.

The victim named by heartbroken family as engineering graduate Tejaswini Kontham, 27, was found dying from knife wounds in her home in Neeld Crescent, Wembley at 10am on Tuesday.

A second woman believed to be her friend, aged 28, was also knifed repeatedly in the attack.

She was rushed to hospital where her injuries were declared not life-threatening.

A 23-year-old Brazilian man, from the same address, was arrested in Harrow at around 6pm the same day.

Ms Konthams father told a local TV channel in Hyderabad, India that Ms Kontham had travelled to London three years ago to study for her masters degree at the University of Greenwich.

He said she came home for a month in August last year and was supposed to come back again for her wedding.

She said she will return after [the wedding plans] were finalised. She had resigned from her temporary job, he claimed.

Through tears, her mother told reporters: She was supposed to come home in a few more days. She urged British authorities to move quickly and repatriate her daughters body back to Hyderabad.

SBTV/YouTube

Her brother set up a Gofundme to raise 20,000 to support the family and bring the Masters graduate home.

He said: I have lost my loving sister in an incident of double-stabbing... [Our] father was an electrical engineer who after going through an accident, had to become unemployed and mother is a house-maker.

I request you to consider the situation and help me and my family, as much as possible so that we can process the transport as soon as possible.

A University of Greenwich spokesperson said: We are appalled to hear about the terrible murder of Tejaswini, who graduated from our university last year. We extend our heartfelt condolences to her family and friends at this incredibly difficult time.

Keven Antonio Lourenco De Morais, 23, of Neeld Crescent, Wembley was charged on Thursday with the murder of Ms Kontham and the attempted murder of the second woman.

Two other people arrested in connection with this investigation were released with no further action.

DCI Linda Bradley, from the Mets Specialist Crime Command, said: This has been a fast-moving investigation and I would like to thank the public for sharing our appeal for information about this man. He is now in custody.

I recognise the significant concern this incident has caused in the community and I would like to reassure the public that a dedicated team of detectives are working to establish what happened.

Local officers will remain in the area over the coming days to respond to any concerns.

A post-mortem examination will be scheduled in due course.
W arm temperatures are forecast to remain across the UK for the rest of the week, but the mercury is likely to remain lower than recent sweltering conditions.

The Met Office has forecast temperatures in the mid-to-high 20s for much of England over the next few days with London expected to reach a high of 28C on Wednesday.

Met Office spokesman Stephen Dixon said: The heat is set to drop slightly in coming days.

London might not meet heatwave criteria, for example, but theres a good deal of dry, fine, sunny weather to be had this week with temperatures remaining well above average.

Into the weekend there should be a fair amount of dry weather, with temperatures remaining warm for many, although also humid and warm overnight.

Across the rest of the UK, Manchester is likely to see a top of 27C.

The mercury could also push 28C in Cardiff in the afternoon, while temperatures should be slightly cooler across Scotland, Ireland and Northern Ireland.

Dixon said: On Thursday there is a chance of thunder moving into western areas of Northern Ireland and possibly moving further east into parts of Wales.

The risk of showers will persist into Friday, but on Thursday and Friday there will still be a good deal of dry weather around, especially in the South East.

It comes after a swathe of the UK stretching from the North West to the South East of England exceeded the threshold for a heatwave.

The temperature hit 32.2C in Chertsey, Surrey, on Saturday June 10, the highest recorded so far this year.

Porthmadog, north west Wales, saw Tuesdays highest temperature, at 30.8C.

According to the Met Office, a heatwave is defined as three consecutive days with daily maximum temperatures meeting or exceeding the heatwave temperature threshold.

The threshold varies in each county.

Mayor of London Sadiq Khan extended the high air pollution warning in the capital until Wednesday.
D iscussions about changing and modernising the NHS are even more urgent and vital due to the depth of the crisis the service is facing, shadow health secretary Wes Streeting has said.

Speaking at the NHS ConfedExpo on Wednesday, Mr Streeting said politics is part of the problem.

He added: Even if the NHS werent in the midst of the worst crisis in its history, which it objectively is, and even if the public finances werent in a terrible mess, which they are, my argument is that we would still need to be talking about how we build an NHS thats fit for the future  equipped to deal with the health needs and epidemiology of the Britain of 2048, not 1948.

But the depth of the crisis in our NHS and the state of the economy makes the conversation about change and modernisation even more urgent and vital.

The technology that exists today can instantly free up staff, make their working lives more bearable so they stay in the service, and deliver better, faster care for patients at the same time

Mr Streeting acknowledged there are amazing opportunities available to the NHS now and in the coming years but called for technology to be upgraded to stop the health service being held back by creaking, outdated technology.

It comes after Labour claimed almost 80,000 pagers are still being used in the NHS, despite former health secretary Matt Hancock saying in 2019 that the service would stop using the gadgets in 2021.

Mr Streeting said: There are now tools which can map radiation therapy onto cancer cells, avoiding organs more precisely than a radiologist working alone. And it does it in seconds, rather than the hour it takes a doctor. This is the standard technology used across the United States. But just one in three radiotherapy planning centres in England use this technology.

There are between one and two million mammograms done across the UK each year. 96% will not find cancer. But those women are currently left in the dark for weeks, or even months, waiting for the results. Why the hold-up? Because two clinicians are required to check them, and there is a workforce crisis.

But AI can rule out cancer-free scans in seconds, getting patients their results faster and freeing up clinicians to focus on the tests displaying abnormalities. This has been rolled out across Hungary since 2021, but not across the NHS.

AI can help interpret chest X-rays, saving 15% of a radiologists workload. When combined with interpretation by a consultant radiologist, it can reduce missed lung cancer cases by 60%. Yet to be fully adopted by the NHS.

Mr Streeting also said the future of the health service must see more care taking place in the community to reduce the burden on hospitals, but slow adoption is working against that.

Labour has committed to doubling medical school places and training 10,000 more nurses and midwives, which is said it will fund by abolishing the non-dom tax status.

However, Mr Streeting said that could take years.

He added: The technology that exists today can instantly free up staff, make their working lives more bearable so they stay in the service, and deliver better, faster care for patients at the same time.

Mr Streeting blamed a failure from the top for keeping the health service in an analogue age.

He said the Government cannot effectively reform the health service because it is unwilling, unable, and too distracted.

Mr Streeting also called on Rishi Sunak to negotiate with junior doctors and said his approach has failed.

It comes as thousands of junior doctors started a 72-hour walk-out on Wednesday in a row over pay.

He added: It may suit the Conservatives to blame rising waiting lists on strikes, but it doesnt suit the NHS and it doesnt suit patients. So my message to the Prime Minister is: take responsibility, get around the table with junior doctors yourself, and negotiate.
A railway worker from London is being celebrated by colleagues for having clocked up half-a-centurys service on the railway.

Shashi Vyas, now 74, first joined the industry at just 23 years old after moving to the UK from Uganda.

Marking his five decades of service this week, the Avanti West Coast employee said: I love working on the railway  its an industry Im proud to have carved out a career in. Every day is different, and my favourite thing is meeting new people.

Meanwhile his colleagues paid tribute to him as a kind, humble man with an infectious smile.

Mr Vyas began his career in the admin office at British Rails Management Training Centre in Watford, the same year Apollo 17 landed on the moon, and Chuck Berrys My Ding A Ling was number one in the UK charts.

He went on to spent time working at the telephone enquiry at Croxley Green Depot in 1974, and at Croxley Green station in the stores.

He moved to Londons Euston Station in 1993, and has worked there ever since, in the booking office and now in the stations cash office where he works as a clerk.

To mark his five decades of service, Avanti West Coast team presented Mr Vyas with a photo album documenting moments from his time on the railway so far.

Colleagues at Euston gathered on the stations concourse to celebrate the milestone, along with Mr Vyas family, to give him a round of applause while a congratulatory message was displayed on the information screen.

Mr Vyas said: Its the people that make the railway special and have given me the fondest memories of my career  were one big family and all look out for each other.

My colleagues have kept me going over these 50 years and everyone Ive worked with is happy, welcoming and takes pride in their job. This is something that will always stay with me and are values Ill keep up, as I continue my service on the railway.

Alyona Bennett, Avanti West Coast Station Manager at London Euston, said: Shashi is the most humble, modest, and happy colleague I have ever worked with. The most kind and infectious smile are what comes to mind when I think of Shashi. He always meets you with a smile and gratitude no matter what obstacles he may be faced with and gets on with what needs to be done.

Shashi is a true ambassador of the railway and achieving 50 years of service is an amazing milestone! On behalf of Avanti West Coast and the team at Euston Id like to congratulate Shashi on his achievement and thank him for all hes done. It is an absolute honour to work alongside him and we wish him many more happy years on the railway.
H undreds gathered for a silent walk to mark the sixth anniversary of the Grenfell blaze which claimed 72 lives.

The west London tower block became a scene of devastation as a blaze ripped through the building with many advised to remain in their homes to wait for help from the emergency services which in some cases never came.

On Wednesday evening, the annual silent walk took place in memory of those who died, with people encouraged to wear green to show they stand united in the fight for justice.

Marchers gathered at Notting Hill Methodist church for the event which brings together victims groups and gives a platform to those still fighting for justice.

They came together for the solemn protest brandishing banners calling for Justice for Grenfell with others highlighing the ongoing impact of the fire on the community. A banner at the head of the march saying United for Grenfell epitomised the solidarity of those on their silent tribute.

Former tower resident Edward Daffarn said: The kind of frustration that we felt at the lack of change since Grenfell is beginning to really kind of manifest and ferment into kind of anger. The marchers included members of a string of community and faith groups.

Father Gareth Wardell, of St Clement Church, a short walk from the tower, has supported many victims, including children who suffered trauma and lost all their possessions. He said: The issue of justice for Grenfell is a key one and people still dont feel theyve received it. Theres a sense of waiting until the outcome of the Grenfell Tower Inquiry and any prosecutions that may follow.

On Ladbroke Grove firefighters formed a guard of honour as the marchers passed by. They were hugged by some of the crowd in highly emotional scenes. The marchers included family and friends of those who died in the blaze.

Seventy-two lives we can never get back. How can we ever give up fighting for justice? said Yvette Williams, who lives in West Kensington and co-founded the Justice4Grenfell group.

Todays anniversary feels significant, it marks 72 months since the fire. Seventy-two months ago, 72 people died, a month for every life lost, said Natasha Elcock  survivor, bereaved and chair of Grenfell United. We wont stop fighting until justice is served.

Key figures in the disastrous refurbishment at Grenfell Tower are braced for a potentially damning report on the causes of the tragedy.

The Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, cladding manufacturers and the architects behind the refurbishment of the tower are all awaiting the final conclusions of a public inquiry into the 2017 fire.

However, Sir Martin Moore-Bick, chairman of the Grenfell Tower Inquiry, is not expected to deliver his findings until next year.

The leader of Kensington and Chelsea council, Elizabeth Campbell, pledged unwavering commitment to survivors, the bereaved and local residents. We will keep listening, keep improving, and keep supporting local people, she added.

Scotland Yard has interviewed more than 40 people under caution, many on multiple occasions. Officers are examining a series of potential offences including corporate manslaughter, gross negligence manslaughter, fraud, and health and safety breaches. More than 900 people affected by the fire have already received damages after filing civil claims.
P lans for a Grenfell memorial must be accelerated, an advocate for the victims families has said, describing the wait as punishing for the community.

Six years on from the deadly tragedy, there is no memorial at the site of the tower in North Kensington and no decision has been made on the future of the tower.

The independent Grenfell Tower Memorial Commission is still in the process of gathering the views of bereaved families, survivors and local residents ahead of publishing their final report on a memorial this autumn, the Government has said.

The commission includes local community and bereaved family representatives and is supported by the Department of Levelling Up, Housing and Communities.

But an advocate for bereaved families, Kimia Zabihyan, said the delay has been deeply traumatising for local residents and victims families.

Its just shocking, and the money thats been wasted is extraordinary.

I think a decision could have been made about the memorial years ago, had the [commission] actually executed their consultation in a more intelligent way.

Ms Zabihyan said victims families want part of Grenfell tower preserved so the height of it can be retained and people can see it from all around, and this was suggested to the Commission and DLUHC more than two years ago.

For people who lost their loved ones in the fire, that building is essential where they died, and is a very sacred place and its important to preserve as much of it as possible, Ms Zabihyan said.

She claimed the Commissions methodology has been meandering and money has been wasted on wrapping the Grenfell tower over the last six years.

The cost of that has been both financial and emotional because it has meant there has been no closure. For the community its deeply traumatising having the building there.

She said families are hopeful progress will be made following the appointment of Lord Paul Boateng as the memorial commissions new co-chair in January.

A DLUHC spokesperson said:  Any decision must be approached sensitively and in a way that people feel as comfortable as possible with.The Government is committed to supporting the independent Grenfell Tower Memorial Commission in the creation of a fitting and lasting memorial.
National projects are implemented with the sole purpose of improving people's lives, said Egypts Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly on Wednesday, stressing that it is people's right to enjoy a better life and a clean environment.

Madbouly was speaking at the National Youth Conference, attended by President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi, and held at Alexandria's Borg El-Arab Technological University as part of the presidents visit to Alexandria and Beheira governorates to inaugurate several projects under the Decent Life initiative.

The prime minister added that population density is one of Alexandria's key challenges, noting that the governorate does not have the capacity to accommodate the population increase and that it needs to generate hundreds of thousands of job opportunities in the coming period.

Madbouly pointed out that 47 percent of Alexandria's population reside in unplanned areas due to the lack of a desert hinterland while the governorate expanded vertically.

However, the country has put a strategic plan to improve Alexandria till 2032, Madbouly affirmed, adding that there are also plans for Beheira governorate.

The total investments in Alexandria and Beheira governorates since 2014 have exceeded EGP 812 billion, Madbouly stated.

He added that the country has worked on providing educational, healthcare, and social protection services in the two governorates.

The number of classrooms has increased by 21 percent in Alexandria and 18.5 percent in Beheira, Madbouly said, pointing out that there is a significant leap in technical education which increased to 57 percent in Alexandria and 51 percent in Beheira.

The premier revealed that EGP 40 billion have been invested in the development of Alexandria and Damanhour universities, in addition to the establishment of the Egyptian-Japanese University, Borg El-Arab Technological University, Alexandria Private University, and several educational hospitals.

Madbouly stated that Egypt has invested EGP 14 billion in industrial development in both Alexandria and Beheira governorates.

He explained that these projects provide thousands of job opportunities for the citizens of both governorates.

Madbouly highlighted Egypts most important project currently being built which is the New Delta project, with the aim of reclaiming and cultivating 2.2 million feddans  nearly a quarter of Egypts agricultural land  with reused water.

This project marks the largest-ever agricultural project in Egypt, the prime minister stated.

Madbouly said 19 unsafe slum areas have been eliminated and replaced with 132,000 housing units at the cost of EGP 173 billion.

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T he priest of a church that became a focal point for Grenfell fire survivors said people still dont feel theyve received justice six years on.

Father Gareth Wardell, of St Clement Church - a short walk from the tower, has supported many victims, including children, who suffered trauma and lost all their possessions on June 14, 2017.

He said the impact of the blaze continues to be felt deeply. But multiple faiths in west London pulled together to make sense of what happened and draw comfort.

Fr Wardell told the Standard: The issue of justice for Grenfell is a key one and people still dont feel theyve received it.

Theres a sense of waiting until the outcome of the Grenfell Tower inquiry and any prosecutions that may follow.

In the longer term, theres the issue of how the tragedy is memorialised and what happens to the remains of the tower.

Those are all parts of holding the authorities to account for their loved ones.

The parishs Clement James Centre continue their work supporting survivors.

But Fr Wardell said he wasnt surprised by how close-knit and deprived communities in North Kensington and Notting Dale bonded in the aftermath.

At our parish primary school, there were a number of children impacted by the fire and we seek to provide appropriate encouragement.

Overall, the impression is a community united to ensure lessons are learned.

From tragedies like this, good things can come and the best in people is drawn out.

An annual silent walk and speeches on the anniversary of the Grenfell Tower fire, which killed 72 people, will be held on Wednesday night. People are asked to gather at Notting Hill Methodist Church from 6pm.
D etectives investigating the Grenfell Tower disaster have interviewed more than 40 people under caution, many on multiple occasions.

Officers are probing offences including corporate manslaughter, gross negligence manslaughter, fraud and health and safety offences.

A Metropolitan Police spokesman said for the 180 dedicated investigators, working with international experts, it remains one of the largest and most complex cases ever undertaken by the force.

Having spent a year forensically examining the tower, over 11,000 witness statements were taken.

Around 130 million documents have been recovered from companies and organisations linked to the tower, including its management and refurbishment.

The Yard said: If the police investigation concludes there is sufficient evidence to consider criminal charges in relation to the fire, a file will be submitted to the Crown Prosecution Service for a decision.

We have had regular engagement with the CPS since the beginning of the investigation and continue to do so.

We can only imagine the impact on families of a long and complex investigation and public inquiry and we do understand their frustrations. We have always explained to families and survivors this is large and complex criminal investigation and the anticipated timeline for the police.

We are in an unusual situation where our police investigation and the public inquiry are being conducted at the same time.

London mayor Sadiq Khan added: On this sixth anniversary we pause to remember the 72 lives tragically cut short and pay tribute to the bereaved, survivors and community of North Kensington, standing in full solidarity with all those impacted.

We owe it to them to do everything we can to secure justice and ensure the failings that led to this disaster can never be repeated.

Justice delayed is justice denied and, six years on we should be operating in a different world  one in which fire safety is prioritised and embedded, rules and regulations are ambitious and rigorous, guidance is clear and comprehensive, and the industry is responsible and highly-skilled.
S eventy-two people died at Grenfell. Today, 72 months after the inferno, survivors, the bereaved and campaigners say there is still no justice.

But they are also crystal clear that time, delays, prevarication and even wilful obstruction will not break their inexorable quest for justice over the appalling failures at Grenfell, which brought so much horror, grief and shame to Britain on that night six years ago.

Seventy-two lives we can never get back. How can we ever give up fighting for justice? said Yvette Williams, who lives in West Kensington and co-founded the Justice4Grenfell group.

Hundreds, if not thousands, of people were due to join a silent walk on Wednesday to mark the sixth anniversary of the tragedy, with those taking part encouraged to wear green to show that they stand united in the campaign to hold people accountable for the Grenfell failings.

Todays anniversary feels significant, it marks 72 months since the fire. Seventy-two months ago, 72 people died, a month for every life lost, said Natasha Elcock  survivor, bereaved and chair of Grenfell United. We wont stop fighting until justice is served.

Key figures in the disastrous refurbishment at Grenfell Tower are braced for a potentially damning report on the causes of the tragedy.

The Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, cladding manufacturers and the architects behind the refurbishment of the tower are all awaiting the final conclusions of a public inquiry into the 2017 fire.

However, Sir Martin Moore-Bick, chairman of the Grenfell Tower Inquiry, is not expected to deliver his findings until next year.

Scandalously, the Government and property companies have still not addressed safety issues on thousands of tower blocks across the country.

Even more shocking, government data shows two-thirds of London boroughs still have at least one tower block with some of the same combustible cladding blamed for fuelling the fire at Grenfell. Following the inferno, hundreds of buildings across the UK were identified as having the aluminium composite material installed.

The Government ordered its removal from all high rises, but six years later, work has not even started on 23 blocks and dozens more are yet to complete replacing the panels. The official inquiry, which is entering its seventh year, was split into two phases, and first focused on the night of the fire itself.

Sir Martin, a retired Court of Appeal judge, delivered a 2019 report detailing how flames tore through the building due to the flammable cladding system and criticising the London Fire

Brigades system for handling large blazes in tower blocks.

Sir Martins second report will examine in detail the months and years leading up to the fire, how the building came to be covered in highly-flammable cladding, and cost-cutting policies that could have contributed to the disaster. More than 320,000 documents and the evidence of 1,500 witnesses have been looked at by the inquiry team, who have promised a comprehensive, well-reasoned and persuasive report. Once the inquiry has concluded, the Metropolitan Police and Crown Prosecution Service will be free to pursue criminal charges against those alleged to be responsible for the disaster.

Scotland Yard has interviewed more than 40 people under caution, many on multiple occasions. Officers are examining a series of potential offences including corporate manslaughter, gross negligence manslaughter, fraud, and health and safety breaches. More than 900 people affected by the fire have already received damages after filing civil claims. But it is justice that they are still so determined to achieve for the shocking failures. The priest of a church that became a focal point for survivors said people still dont feel theyve received justice.

Father Gareth Wardell, of St Clement Church, a short walk from the tower, has supported many victims, including children who suffered trauma and lost all their possessions. He said: The issue of justice for Grenfell is a key one and people still dont feel theyve received it. Theres a sense of waiting until the outcome of the Grenfell Tower Inquiry and any prosecutions that may follow.

Artists transform Grenfell into beacon of hope' Artists Rob and Nick Carter marked the sixth anniversary of the Grenfell tragedy by transforming an image of the towers ruined remains into a colourful beacon of hope. The husband and wife duo, whose work has been shown in the Victoria & Albert museum, have reworked a photograph of the tower so it is awash with colour exclusively for the front page of the Evening Standard. It echoes the devastating picture of the tower that dominated our front page on June 14, 2017, when the blaze broke out in North Kensington and left 72 people dead. Rob said the image was in part prompted by his own memories of seeing the fire that morning, saying: Grenfell is in between where our gallery is and our studio and I remember driving past it that morning at about 6am with smoke billowing out. The couple said the image was their attempt to transform the tragic symbol of the devastating fire into a vibrant emblem of resilience and hope. They added: The reimagining of Grenfell Tower becomes a testament to the power of art to heal and unite communities. Each colour panel becomes a beacon of hope. The Carters have asked that their fee be donated to a charity supporting the victims.

The leader of Kensington and Chelsea council, Elizabeth Campbell, pledged unwavering commitment to survivors, the bereaved and local residents. We will keep listening, keep improving, and keep supporting local people, she added.

A Ministry of Housing spokesman said: It is absolutely unacceptable for anyone to have to live in an unsafe building and residents safety and well-being should always be the utmost priority. Building owners and developers must act quickly to fix any dangerous defects so residents can finally get on with their lives.

Meanwhile Kimia Zabihyan, an advocate for victims families, said plans for a memorial must be accelerated, saying the wait was punishing for the community and deeply traumatising for residents and victims families. Some want part of the tower preserved so the height of it can be retained and people can see it from all around.
T wo thirds of London boroughs still have at least one tower block with the same combustible cladding blamed for fuelling the spread of the Grenfell fire, it can be revealed.

Hundreds of buildings across the UK were identified as having Aluminium Composite Material (ACM) installed after the devastating fire and the Government ordered its removal from all high rises.

But six years later, work has not started on 23 blocks and dozens more are yet to complete replacing the panels, Government data shows.

The majority of the buildings are in Greater London, the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities said.

Labours shadow housing minister Matthew Pennycook said it beggars belief that so many still have deadly Grenfell-style ACM cladding.

The Government must do more to accelerate the pace of remediation across the country, he added.

The Grenfell inferno prompted safety inspections of high rises across the country and revealed not only a raft of flammable rendering problems but other fire safety defects.

The Capital is at the forefront of the crisis, with more than 1,000 buildings identified as having safety concerns, such as flammable cladding, combustible balconies or missing fire prevention measures.

Up to three million people have been directly impacted by the cladding scandal alone and the estimated cost of remediation works has hit 15billion.

The crisis has also sparked calls for an overhaul of the leaseholder system in England and Wales as homeowners find themselves trapped in unsellable flats deemed unsafe and crippled by service charges.

The Government opened a 4.5million Building Safety Fund to help developers pay for the removal of unsafe non-ACM cladding systems on residential blocks over 18 metres.

Housing Secretary Michael Gove recently wrote to cladding companies investors warning of severe consequences for manufacturers if they do not bring forward a comprehensive remediation package.

However leaseholders have still faced bills, sometimes in the millions of pounds, to fix safety problems and insurance payments have also soared for some flat owners.

In Parliament, East Ham MP Stephen Timms MP raised the case of residents at Barrier Point in Newham whose insurance premiums have risen sixfold.

Residents at Northpoint in Bromley, which was stripped of dangerous cladding, found no company insure the building, MP Sir Robert Neill told the Commons.

He said: The cladding has already been removed from the building, the risk has gone and there is a zero claims record, but a major firm like Aviva will not even quote. There is a market failure here.

Harry Scoffin, co-founder of Commonhold Now, said Grenfell had highlighted an unfair system where freeholders are able to reap the rewards and hit tenants with extortionate fees but are not responsible for building repairs.

He says his mother has seen her service charges on her three-bed flat in the Isle of Dogs rise by 10,000 in the last five years.

Grenfell Tower Firefighters - In pictures 1 / 32 Grenfell Tower Firefighters - In pictures A firefighter pours water over his head after battling a huge fire at the Grenfell Tower, a 24-storey apartment block in North Kensington, London EPA Firefighters spray water after a fire engulfed the 24-storey Grenfell Tower in west Londo PA A firefighter investigates a floor after a fire engulfed the 24-storey Grenfell Tower in west London PA Firefighters rest as they take a break in battling a massive fire that raged in a high-rise apartment building in London AP A firefighter close at the scene after a fire engulfed the 27-storey Grenfell Tower in west London PA Emergency services close to the scene after a fire engulfed the 24-storey Grenfell Tower in west London Alex Lentati The moment a resident is carried out of the Grenfell Tower block by fire bridgae and riot police carrying shield Sky News Emergency services close to the scene after a fire engulfed the 24-storey Grenfell Tower in west London PA Emergency services close to the scene after a fire engulfed the 24-storey Grenfell Tower in west London Alex Lentati Emergency services gather close to the scene after a fire engulfed the 24-storey Grenfell Tower in west London PA Firefighters rest as they take a break in battling a massive fire that raged in a high-rise apartment building in London AP Firefighters wait to start their shift after a massive fire raged in a 27-floor high-rise apartment building in London AP Firefighters stand amid debris in a childrens playground near a tower block severly damaged by a serious fire, in north Kensington, West London REUTERS Emergency services gather close to the scene after a fire engulfed the 24-storey Grenfell Tower in west London PA Firefighters react as a huge fire engulfs the Grenfell Tower AFP/Getty Images Emergency personnel operate during the fire at the Grenfell Tower, a 27-storey apartment block in North Kensington, London EPA A firefighter rests during the ballte against the blaze at Grenfell Tower Jeremy Selwyn Emergency services close to the scene after a fire engulfed the 24-storey Grenfell Tower in west London Nigel Howard A London Fire Brigade worker moves air tanks close to the scene of a fire that engulfed the 24-storey Grenfell Tower in west London PA Firefighters spray water after a fire engulfed the 24-storey Grenfell Tower in west London PA Fire crews rest as they take part in the operation to put out a fire in a high rise apartment block in London AP A firemen reacts after battling a huge fire at the Grenfell Tower, a 24-storey apartment block in North Kensington, London EPA Residents were trapped "screaming for their lives" as flames raged through a 27-storey tower block in Notting Hill Alex Lentati Emergency services spray water towards a fire that engulfed the 24-storey Grenfell Tower in west London PA

The building safety crisis in the aftermath of the Grenfell tragedy exposed the reality of leasehold, Mr Scoffin told the Standard. You dont own your flat, you are a tenant with a mortgage who has no choice but to pay whatever fees the landowner, or investor they have offloaded their freehold to, deem necessary. Something has to change.

A DLUHC spokesman said: Building owners and developers must act quickly to fix any dangerous defects so residents can finally get on with their lives.

We have been clear that those responsible must pay to end the crisis. All developers who have signed the developer remediation contract now have a legal duty to get on with remediation.
T he most expensive painting ever offered for auction in Europe goes under the hammer in London this month.

Gustav Klimts portrait Dame mit Facher (Lady with a Fan) is estimated to fetch at least 65 million when it sells at Sothebys auction house on June 27.

The oil painting, done on a square canvas which roughly measures one metre by one metre, was first sold after being found still on its easel in the Austrian painters studio after his death in 1918 and was last bought in 1994 by the family of the present owner.

Helena Newman, Sothebys Europe chairman, said: Dame mit Facher (Lady with a Fan) is the last portrait Gustav Klimt completed before his untimely death, when still in his artistic prime and producing some of his most accomplished and experimental works. Many of those works, certainly the portraits for which he is best known, were commissions. This, though, is something completely different - a technical tour de force, full of boundary-pushing experimentation, as well as a heartfelt ode to absolute beauty.

The work is expected to break the current record for a painting sold at auction in Europe / Sothebys

One of only a few portraits by Klimt still in private hands, it is expected to break the current record for a painting sold at auction in Europe which has stood since 2008 when Claude Monets Le basin aux nympheas sold at Christies in London for 59.4 million.

The auction house expects strong international interest in the work with Klimts trademark use of Asian patterns and motifs potentially making it a sought-after work for Chinese collectors.

However much it goes for it will almost certainly not break the world record for a work sold at auction which still stands with Leonardo da Vincis Salvator Mundi, which went under the hammer for $450 million (then 341 million) in 2017.

That painting has not been shown publicly since that auction and is said to be in storage in Saudi Arabai where it is hoped it will eventually be exhibited.
W hen Daniela Prela roasted her first chicken, she was afraid she might undercook it and poison her family. But those early experiences of preparing meals fed a passion for the kitchen that would influence the course of her life.

A decade later, and with a three-year Professional Chef Diploma under her belt, Prela is a commis chef at The Ritz in London.

The 22-year-old from Ilford is a shining illustration of how high-quality vocational education can make dreams come true. Her experience also shows that technical pathways are far from simply the default for students who dont have any other option. With two A*s and an A in her maths, physics and art A-levels, a Russell Group university place was guaranteed.

I was going to university open days and I couldnt decide what I wanted to study and in the back of my mind I was still thinking about cooking, she says.

I was talking to one of my teachers and he said what do you want to do when you are older? and I said be a chef and he said so what are you doing going to university then? It had been so ingrained in me that I had to go to university but when he said that, I just thought right, OK.

Daniela is a commis chef / ES

She enrolled at Westminster Kingsway College and excelled, winning the Professional Chef Diploma Student of the Year award on graduation. Like thousands of teenagers who chose vocational education, she has never looked back.

The different technical routes that are available to young people can open up a world of opportunities, says Ben Blackledge, interim CEO of WorldSkills UK. Vocational education gives you skills that are so valued by employers. Ive seen amazing potential realised in great careers gained through these routes. But for people who are not in the sector and dont know those routes, there is a lot of confusion.

The Evening Standards Step Up Expo at Olympia London is about to help clear up that confusion for young Londoners and their parents. Experts from some of the best further education colleges, sixth forms and apprenticeships programmes, including Westminster Kingsway College, will be among more than 100 exhibitors on hand to help visitors map out the pathways to gaining a bankable skillset.

This roster includes the WorldSkills UK team and its Skills Champions, who are a terrific advertisement for what apprenticeships and a technical education can deliver, including the roles, career progression and earning potential.

There are so many examples of people who have gone through these colleges who are phenomenally successful, says Blackledge. Aircraft engineers, for example, can earn over 50,000 by the time they qualify and they are in their early twenties  because their skills are phenomenally sought after.

Prelas parents, a retired builder and a dental nurse, took a bit of convincing about her choices at 18, but she says they are 100 per cent supportive and love hearing her tales from the kitchen.

The Ritz is an amazing place to work and Chef Williams (John Williams MBE) is a great mentor. Their ambition is to gain two Michelin stars and I want to be part of that.

Step Up Expo runs from June 30 to July 1 at Olympia London. Find out more here.
T he mystery Tory bidding to be the partys London mayoral candidate has pledged to tackle gangs to make London safer - as he revealed his admiration for former leaders Margaret Thatcher and Sir Iain Duncan Smith.

Criminal barrister Mozammel Hossain KC has been dubbed Mysterious Moz after making it on to the partys shotlist of three candidates without any advance publicity. He has no social media profile and has yet to set up a campaign website.

He is aiming to beat Dan Korski and Susan Hall to secure the partys nomination to take on Labour mayor Sadiq Khan next May. The winner will be announced on July 19.

Moz Hossain, Susan Hall and Dan Korski / ES Composite

In his first broadcast interview, he told LBCs Nick Ferrari on Wednesday: London is unsafe today. London is too expensive today.

The streets arent safe. The antisocial behaviour, the so-called low level crime, has been decriminalised effectively.

You must know people who have had their car stolen or phone snatched. They will tell you there is no point in calling the police any more. In London, the greatest city on the face of earth, is that right?

Mr Hossain, who has been a criminal barrister for 20 years, refused to give a direct answer when asked if the Met police was institutionally racist.

He said it was a tragedy that the Met was in special measures. He said his number one priority was to fix crime.

He explained: We all know the biggest problem is gang crime in London. Behind the snatching of phones is a gang. We know who these gangs are. We just have to dismantle these gangs.

The day I become mayor of London, if I am lucky enough, I will get all the council leaders, all the senior police officers, and say: Look, what can you do?

He said he would cut the heads off the leaders of gangs and rehabilitate younger gang members.

He backed more intelligence based stop and search. He said he had met mothers who wished the police had stopped their son when he was carrying a knife.

He struggled to explain what he meant in a newspaper interview when he accused Mr Khan of taking some votes for granted  which he reportedly dubbed a vote bank.

Mr Hossain told LBC: There are certain votes he takes for granted. With my back story, my lived experience, I can reach out to all communities.

He came to London aged 21, leaving a wooden house with a mud floor and a sobbing mother in Bangladesh. He is one of eight children.

He described the Ulez expansion as a very cruel measure. He said: During the cost of living crisis, when people are suffering lives are being destroyed. We cannot do this now. I will turn off the cameras on day one...This is the wrong time to do it. Wait, let things better.

He first joined the Tory party in 2015. He didnt own a pair of shoes until he was 16.

Margaret Thatcher is his political hero. She reminds me of my mother, he said.

He confirmed that former Tory leader Sir Iain Duncan Smith, the MP for Chingford and Woodford Green, was his mentor who was guiding his campaign.

He said: I would not be here without him. To me, he is the most principled and honourable man I have met in politics. He has been my biggest champion. He cares about London deeply and that is why he is supporting me to be mayor of London. He thinks that I can win against Mr Khan.
L ondon is experiencing temperatures of 25C and beyond all this week, making Tube travel a hotter experience than usual.

As many lines do not have air-conditioning, commuting during this weather will be especially brutal although, unlike in July of last year, Transport for London has not yet issued a travel warning.

But anyone braving the London Underground may consider taking an alternate route, to ensure they keep cool.

And if you need to travel, it is good practice to take a bottle of water.

Which Tube lines have air-conditioning?

The following Tube lines have air-conditioning:

The Circle

Hammersmith & City

District

Metropolitan

Additionally, the following transport services are also air-conditioned:

Overground

Northern City

Thameslink

Trams

Elizabeth Line

Which Tube lines dont have air conditioning?

Londoners may want to avoid the following lines, as they do not have air conditioning:

Central

Bakerloo

Jubilee

Victoria

Piccadilly

Waterloo & City

Northern

UK Weather: Summer Heatwave 2022 1 / 68 UK Weather: Summer Heatwave 2022 A young girl rides her inflatable pelican in the sea at Fistral Beach Getty Images Sunrise over London Jeremy Selwyn A man cools off in a fountain during the hot weather in London REUTERS scorchedsummer22a People look out toward the Old Royal Naval College, and the Canary Wharf financial district, past the sun-scorched grass in Greenwich Park, south east London AFP via Getty Images People enjoy the hot weather at Hathersage open air swimming pool at Hope Valley, near Sheffield PA The Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall during a visit to the fishing village of Mousehole in Penzance, Cornwal PA Three swimmers pictured keeping cool with a swim at Beckenham Place Park, Kent Daniel Hambury/Stella Pictures Ltd People take pictures of the sunset from Greenwich Park REUTERS Dry fields of grassland near Perranporth, Cornwall PA A police officer poring water water on a police horse on Whitehall PA People jump into the sea at Brighton, AFP via Getty Images Pedestrians walk in the sunshine near the Elizabeth Tower of the Houses of Parliament AFP via Getty Images Lara Arrizabalaga, lifeguard with PTP Coaching at Beckenham Place Park, Kent Daniel Hambury/Stella Pictures Ltd A view of people on the beach in Margate, Kent PA A matrix sign over the A19 road towards Teesside displays an extreme weather advisory PA Children cool off in the Southbank Centre fountain Reuters Beachgoers enjoy the sun and the sea at Blackpool AFP via Getty Images A child enjoys the hot weather at Hathersage open air swimming pool at Hope Valley, near Sheffield. PA A woman wears an umbrella shield on her head during hot weather in Trafalgar Square PA People look out toward the Old Royal Naval College, and the Canary Wharf financial district, past the sun-scorched grass in Greenwich Park AFP via Getty Images A young family of Tufted ducks run past a soldier from the Queens Guard on the forecourt of Buckingham Palace PA People enjoy the hot weather at Hathersage open air swimming pool at Hope Valley, near Sheffield PA Crowds sit along the harbour wall enjoying the good weather during the Bristol Harbour Festival PA Crowds enjoy the hot weather at the beach in Broadstairs, Kent PA Serpentine Swimmers Supplied People on the beach at Barry Island PA People enjoy the hot weather at Hathersage open air swimming pool at Hope Valley, near Sheffield. PA Fans enjoy the warm weather during the Vitality Blast T20 semi-final match at Edgbaston Stadium, Birmingham PA Swimmers in the Sky Pool, a transparent swimming pool suspended 35 meters above ground between two apartment buildings, during hot weather in Nine Elms PA People enjoy the sun in Embankment Gardens, PA Emily Maitlis enjoys an early morning swim in the Serpentine Hyde Park Supplied A gardener waters plants in the SuperBloom wild flower garden at the Tower of London PA Red ruffed lemurs enjoy a frozen ice pop filled with fruit at Blair Drummond Safari Park near Stirling PA People use an umbrella to shade themselves from the sun near Tower Bridge PA People enjoy the hot weather outside their homes in Liverpool Getty Images Early morning swimmers in the Serpentine Supplied People relax in the hot weather on Bournemouth beach in Dorset PA Early morning swimmers in the Serpentine as temperatures rise in London Supplied Kayan the orangutan licks a frozen juice bottle at Twycross Zoo in Leicestershire. PA PA Wire Crowds are seen enjoying the hot weather on the beach in Bournemouth Getty Images Wimbledon REUTERS TRNSMT Festival at Glasgow Green Getty Images People watch the Wimbledon mens singles final tennis match on a giant screen next to the Regents canal at Granary Square REUTERS A man on a jet ski enjoys the warm weather on Scarborough beach, North Yorkshire PA Wire Rosie Elms, co-owner of Lordington Lavender in West Sussex, gathers bunches of lavender as she walks through the rows of lavender on her and her husbands farm near Chichester PA People enjoying the warm weather on Scarborough beach, North Yorkshire. PA Richmond Park REUTERS People in pedalos on the Serpentine, Hyde Park, London. PA People cycling through Hyde Park PA People enjoying the warm weather on Scarborough beach, North Yorkshire PA

Why isnt there air conditioning on all Tube lines?

There are a number of reasons the London Underground doesnt have air conditioning on some lines  one being that the Tube system is simply very old.

The oldest tunnels were built in the Victorian era and are just about big enough for the trains themselves, according to Engineering & Technology . Therefore, there wouldnt be room to add air-conditioning equipment to trains.

Additionally, air-conditioning in the Tube could lead to excessive heating of tunnels, which could overheat passengers waiting on the platform.

However, the Tube might not always be as unbearable as it is today.

New train designs mean that the Piccadilly Line could have air-conditioning by 2025, while the Central, Bakerloo, and Waterloo & City lines are all due upgrades in the near future, according to Engineering & Technology.
M att Hancock, look away now. The former health secretary may not enjoy seeing this picture of an actor in a wetsuit playing him on stage at the Hippodrome in Leicester Square last night. It was part of a show organised by Isabel Oakeshott, the journalist who leaked his WhatsApps earlier this year.

It gets worse for Matt: in a Q&A explaining her reasons for leaking the texts, Oakeshott revealed that shes hoping to do more news stories on them, particularly on the vaccine roll-out. She also said she has Matts flirty messages with another cabinet minister, though not which one.

Actor Adrian McGlynn played Hancock, including a cringe-inducing monologue about a photoshoot in the sea, hence the wetsuit.

Evening Standard

Matt Hancocks people are not happy with the furore over the show, which she has co-organised with Toby Young, below, first trying to block it, and now saying it is distracting from the Covid enquiry. A spokesperson told us: "Matt has made all his records and materials available to the inquiry without making any redactions for relevance.

Upstairs, we heard Oakeshott and Young planning a longer play about the messages. Poor Matt...

Grant Shapps branded a bullsh*tter

Grant Shapps at London Tech Week / Leon Neal/Getty

Energy Secretary Grant Shapps had a nightmare appearance at London Tech Week yesterday. Shapps was meant to be talking about sustainability, but made a Partridge-esque digression into praising the summer sun. If it were a drink it would be half a pint, if it were a bathroom it would probably be avocado, he said, to a sea of bemused faces. It got worse when the next speaker, former Unilever CEO Paul Polman, laid into him mercilessly. Unlike the minister I dont have any bulls**t to offer or any promises to give, Polman said, and was then greeted with rapturous applause. Are the Tories losing the business community?

Who is the W1A baller?

W1A Limo / Simon Hunt

Theres been confusion in W1A at the appearance of a white stretch limousine near BBC HQ. Did someone get a pay rise? The car has a sign in the windscreen saying it has the right to park anywhere in Westminster and the City of London on the say of Nickie Aiken, the local MP. But when we phoned Aiken she said she was mystified by the note. Shes tried to help the limo-man, a true London character called Scott Longman, and hasnt given him permission to park. Longmans website says hes a City of London ambassador, selling City-branded merchandise. But City of London says it has no association with him. Longman was approached for comment. The mystery deepens.

The Kings Royal Collection dilemma

The accession of King Charles was quick, but other parts of the changeover from one monarch to another are more clunky. The King faces a dilemma over the large Royal Collection Trust he has inherited, some of it taken from around the empire. Will he hand a few items back? A piece in The Art Newspaper suggests hell lend pieces out to Collection trustees and the Government to get around any awkwardness.

Ncuti Gatwa Sex Education set battle

Ncuti Gatwa (Ian West/PA) / PA Archive

New Doctor Who Ncuti Gatwa has revealed how a boss on his show Sex Education tried to censor one of his ad-libs on race grounds, but he fought back and got his way. One producer said: This ad-lib, I dont feel like white people will understand it, Gatwa tells Vogue. He replied that: Its not for white people... I want this other group of people to understand. They got that.
B oris Johnson has claimed a Tory MP sitting on the committee preparing to publish a report finding he misled Parliament with his partygate denials may have broken lockdown rules.

The former prime minister called for Sir Bernard Jenkins resignation from the Privileges Committee on the eve of the publication of its investigation into whether Mr Johnson lied to MPs.

The Guido Fawkes website reported that Sir Bernard went to a drinks party held by Commons Deputy Speaker Dame Eleanor Laing in December 2020, while London was in Tier 2 measures restricting indoor mixing.

The allegation emerged as the cross-party committee Sir Bernard sits on was preparing to publish on Thursday morning its damning report that Mr Johnson has already resigned as an MP over.

In a statement, Mr Johnson said: Bernard Jenkin has just voted to expel me from Parliament for allegedly trying to conceal from Parliament my knowledge of illicit events.

(Sir Bernard) has no choice but to explain his actions to his own committee, for his colleagues to investigate and then to resign

Now it turns out he may have for the whole time known that he himself attended an event  and concealed this from the Privileges Committee and the whole House for the last year.

To borrow the language of the committee, if this is the case, he must have known he was in breach of the rules.

He has no choice but to explain his actions to his own committee, for his colleagues to investigate and then to resign.

Lord Peter Cruddas, a Tory donor who Mr Johnson elevated to the Lords, called for the police to investigate.

Sir Bernard has been contacted while a representative for Dame Eleanor declined to comment.

London had entered Tier 2 restrictions six days before the alleged gathering in Parliament on December 8 2020.

Indoor mixing was banned and the rule of six was in place outside. Bars and pubs could only serve alcohol alongside substantial meals.

Sources said the Tory-majority Privileges Committee, chaired by Labours Harriet Harman, had signed off on its report into Mr Johnson and will publish on Thursday morning.

They have investigated whether Mr Johnson committed a contempt of Parliament by misleading MPs either recklessly or deliberately by denying rule-breaking parties in No 10.

The former prime minister was himself fined by the Metropolitan Police, which issued 126 fixed-penalty notices for Covid breaches across Downing Street and Whitehall.

Mr Johnson has railed against the committee he has criticised as a kangaroo court and stood down as an MP on Friday after receiving their findings.

The former Conservative leaders resignation means he will not serve the lengthy suspension likely to be recommended.

If it was at least 10 days and approved by the Commons, then a by-election in his Uxbridge and South Ruislip constituency could have been triggered.

Instead, his constituents will go to the polls next month in a major electoral challenge for Prime Minister Rishi Sunak because of the resignation.

This a typical distraction tactic from Boris Johnson that doesn't change the fact he broke the law and lied about it.

Mr Johnsons ally Nigel Adams also resigned and his arch-supporter Nadine Dorries has announced she will quit as an MP too.

The former prime minister has publicly clashed with Mr Sunak, accusing him of talking rubbish over his resignation honours list.

Liberal Democrat Deputy Leader Daisy Cooper said: This a typical distraction tactic from Boris Johnson that doesnt change the fact he broke the law and lied about it.

The Conservative Party is now in a full blown civil war, while people struggle to afford to pay their mortgage or get a GP appointment. This whole unedifying spectacle needs to brought to an end as soon as possible.

We need a general election now to finally get rid of this chaotic Conservative government.
Francophone Africa has increasingly scorned its former colonial master France, a political shift that at times has incited violence, and has been encouraged by Russian actors, according to a report published Wednesday.

While leaders, faced with their own political failures, have used post-colonial ties as a scapegoat for the issues of the day, the general public has increasingly adopted the sentiment, said the report by the French Institute of International Relations (IFRI).

In Chad, Mali and more recently Burkina Faso, violent protests have erupted against French firms such as energy giant TotalEnergies or at the arrival of French diplomats.

The extent of the phenomenon exceeds "what we have seen in previous decades" and could "take root for a long time", Alain Antil, one of the researchers behind the report, told AFP.

Anti-France feelings have intensified as a result of "the disappointing economic and political trajectories" of the countries, he said.

Antil said this results in France receiving the ultimate blame "for the non-development of these countries and the corruption of their elite", an argument that also helps the countries' leaders to dodge responsibility.

This rhetoric was able to blossom in part because France was slow to respond, "being in a space of denial", until very recently, he said.

But the study showed "a link between the Russian propaganda war and certain areas of African social networks."

It is undeniable that social networks are disseminating disinformation such as videos or photos of French soldiers appearing to steal gold or "getting along with jihadists", according to Antil.

"Obviously, Russia is playing their part, having an impact, and financing anti-French campaigns," he said.

But he warned against solely blaming Russian propaganda, adding that anti-French attitudes are also heavily informed by France's military presence and development aid policies and funding.

The number of French troops in French-speaking Africa has dropped dramatically from 30,000 in the early 1960s to just around 6,100 today, but the sense of Paris's intervention and control in the region remains, he said.

France has over the last year pulled its troops out of Burkina Faso and Mali after authorities made clear that French forces deployed to fight Islamist insurgencies were no longer welcome, as presence grows in the region of Russian mercenary group Wagner.

The report, which studied newspapers and social media from the region, didn't offer recommendations to respond to the shift.

Antil said that French-speaking African countries need to be "treated as equals" rather than receiving lectures in the political arena.

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Ministers and MPs are heading to Uxbridge and South Ruislip, where Mr Johnson quit as MP, to try to stop Labour seizing it by over-turning a Tory majority of more than 7,000.

They are already highlighting the controversial extension of the Mayors ultra low emission zone to outer London boroughs.

Tory Party chairman Greg Hands, campaigning in the constituency, argued that the ulez expansion was very, very unpopular around here.

He added: This is a great opportunity to send a message to Mayor Khan that Ulez is not welcome here.

Another Tory source said: This will be a referendum on Sadiq Khans Ulez.

Senior Conservatives believe that if they can hold onto Uxbridge and South Ruislip, it would pile pressure on Sir Keir Starmer to intervene to force Mr Khan to scale back his expansion of Ulez due to come into force at the end of August.

However, Labours candidate in Uxbridge Danny Beales said: Local people dont view this as a binary issue.

People are concerned about air quality and pollution and their children developing asthma and getting ill, but people are also concerned, in this cost of living crisis, about having to pay an extra charge to drive.

He added: The Conservatives may want to run a single issue campaign here, but I dont think that will wash with voters. The Conservatives tanked the economy and people here have seen their mortgages rise sharply....And where is the new Hillingdon Hospital that was promised? 

But Mr Hands said the Tories would also be campaigning on other great issues, with Health Secretary Steve Barclay, having recently committed to a rebuilt Hillingdon Hospital.

The Conservatives are currently in the process of selecting their candidate for the by-election.

Several town halls are seeking to block the Ulez extension through court action.

Shadow health secretary Wes Streeting, MP for Ilford North, speaking on LBC Radio, said he backed the Mayors move to tackle toxic air in the capital and welcomed a more generous scrappage scheme announced for motorists forced to change their vehicle due to the wider Ulez zone.

The Government was expected to move writs on Wednesday, or possibly later this week, to trigger by-elections in July in the west London seat and in the North Yorkshire constituency of Selby and Ainsty after one of Mr Johnsons close allies Nigel Adams MP also resigned.

The Conservatives poured activitists into the Mid Bedfordshire constituency over the weekend, where they are defending a 24,664 majority, after the sitting MP Nadine Dorries also announced that she was quitting.

But as of early Wednesday morning, she had yet to formally resign, sparking speculation that she may stay on to cause more chaos for Rishi Sunak.

A long delay would mean that the Prime Minister may not be able to hold all three by-elections on the same day, which might have limited the political fall-out if the Tories lose two or three of them.

Conservative peer and pollster Lord Robert Hayward told The Standard: All three of these by-elections are in play.

All parties will treat them as very serious contests.

He added: In a difficult set of circumstances, he (the PM) has been trying to show that he is in charge of the Government and will therefore want the best possible results in each of the constituencies.

There is no question that these are important for Keir as well because he has to be able to show that the Labour Party is making progress across the country.

Lord Hayward stressed that in the short-run, Mr Sunak is faced with a difficult combination of events after the shock resignation of Mr Johnson on Friday.

But he believes that the ex-PMs departure, and of his allies, may in the long-run turn into Mr Sunaks advantage, partly as it weakens his support in Parliament.

Holding onto Uxbridge and South Ruislip, where the Tory majority in 2019 was 7,210, could prove more challenging than in Selby and Ainsty, where the majority was 20,137.

But the Conservatives have a history of by-election successes in the west London seat, with Mr Johnsons predecessor John Randall, now a peer, winning there in 1997 shortly after Tony Blairs landslide victory.

His predecessor Sir Michael Shersby was also elected at a by-election in 1972.

Demographic changes in the constituency, though, may make it harder for the Tories to win this time.

The Tory majority in Mid-Beds was 24,664 in 2019.

However, the Liberal Democrats, who are targeting the seat, won the Tiverton and Honiton by-election last June, overturning a Conservative majority of more than 24,000

Mr Johnson formally quit on Monday under the ancient tradition of taking the Chiltern Three Hundreds.

The Chancellor of the Exchequer has this day appointed Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson to be Steward and Bailiff of the Three Hundreds of Chiltern, the Treasury announced.

Mr Adams was made Steward and Bailiff of the Manor of Northstead.

The Steward and Bailiffs of the Chiltern Hundreds and of the Manor of Northstead were positions traditionally paid for by the Crown.

In modern times they are unpaid, formal titles that are applied for when an MP needs to disqualify themselves from the Commons.

An elected MP has no right to resign, explained Commons officials, so unless they die or are expelled they must become disqualified if they wish to retire before the end of a Parliament.

By law, taking on one of these titles immediately bars a person from being an MP.
T he Conservative Government and Labour appear to be in complete denial about the contribution of Brexit to the cost-of-living crisis, an SNP MP has warned.

A cross-party committee of MPs should be established to investigate the causes of the cost-of-living crisis and solutions to it, the SNPs Scotland spokeswoman, Dr Philippa Whitford, told the Commons.

But the SNPs proposal was dismissed as a crackpot idea and a waste of taxpayers money by Scotland Office minister John Lamont.

Opening an SNP-led debate, Dr Whitford said: As we approach the seventh anniversary of the referendum, one of its key architects may have just left the stage (Boris Johnson) but Brexits disastrous legacy will impact people across the nations of the UK for years to come.

I know as a doctor that the first step in dealing with any problem is to admit that you have one, but both this Government and the Labour Party appear to be in complete denial about the contribution of Brexit to the cost-of-living crisis.

Their solution to Brexit, which in their words and mine and many others was a bad idea, is to have Scexit, which indeed would be many magnitudes worse than Brexit

She added: If he wants to reduce some of the damage of Brexit, the Labour leader should support the idea of a committee to identify proposals that could be put to the EU prior to the review of the trade and co-operation agreement in 2026. Otherwise, what is the plan? Close his eyes, click his red heels together and make a wish?

Intervening, Liberal Democrat MP Jamie Stone (Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross) said the structure of the committee meant the door was locked against his party being members of it.

Conservative frontbencher Mr Lamont said a debate which starts from the unfounded position that the UKs exit from the European Union is to blame for any and all woes is not the best use of this Houses time.

He added: (Russian President Vladimir Putins) illegal invasion of Ukraine, coupled with the economic after-shocks of Covid, have caused huge disruptions to the global economy. No country is immune to this. However, we are benefiting from the swift action taken by this United Kingdom Government to mitigate the worst of these impacts.

He went on: The SNPs motion to establish a select committee to look at the cost-of-living crisis is not only unnecessary duplication of other work by this Parliament, but it is a complete waste of taxpayers money.

The total anticipated cost to the House of Commons for this crackpot idea is in the region of 463,000 per annum  and, in addition, there would be extra costs to adapt Parliaments committee rooms to accommodate this massive new committee.

Labours shadow secretary of state for Scotland Ian Murray accused the SNP of a have their cake and eat it approach.

He added: Their solution to Brexit, which in their words and mine and many others was a bad idea, is to have Scexit, which indeed would be many magnitudes worse than Brexit. They want to repeat the same mistakes and do the same thing.

He went on: While they keep blaming Brexit, and theyre right to say that Brexit has a contribution to the cost-of-living crisis, theyre letting this Government off the hook.

On the cost-of-living committee proposal motion, he said it was when looking at the small print that the flaws of this proposal become clear.

He added: Now Im left wondering if the real reason that this is being proposed is for the SNP to try and get one of their many disgruntled members of their group an additional salary payment as being committee chair.

Conservative David Duguid (Banff and Buchan) argued the motion was straight from the SNPs playbook of every problem is Brexit, every solution is independence.

Earlier at Prime Ministers Questions, SNP Westminster leader Stephen Flynn called on Rishi Sunak to apologise for the cycle of misery that Westminster has caused.

He said: There is an elephant in this here chamber when it comes to the dire economic circumstances facing the UK, and thats Brexit.

The Tory benches, they dont want to accept it, and the Labour Party, they dont want to talk about it, but whether its food prices, energy prices or indeed mortgage prices, households in Scotland are being shafted by Brexit. So can I ask the Prime Minister will he apologise for the cycle of misery that Westminster has caused?

Rishi Sunak replied: While his party leader calls Nicola Sturgeon the most impressive politician in Europe, we are getting on delivering for the people of Scotland.

The SNPs motion calling for the creation of a new Cost-of-Living Committee was rejected by 43 votes to 260, majority 217.
B rexit has resulted in a sharp drop in the number of UK workers in EU holiday jobs, new figures show.

Only 3,700 people from the UK are being employed in the bloc to do roles such as chalet hosts, holiday reps and tour guides, travel trade organisations said.

That is a 69% drop from 11,970 in 2017.

Employing UK workers in popular EU destinations such as Spain, France, Greece, Italy and Austria has traditionally been a vital part of UK holiday companies overseas operations.

Complex paperwork, extra costs and a lack of agreements is impeding the process, according to Abta and Seasonal Businesses in Travel (SBit), which released the employment figures.

Prior to the end of the Brexit transition period on December 31 2020, UK workers were entitled to live and work in the rest of the EU with no restrictions.

Abta and SBit said since the UKs withdrawal from the bloc, it costs travel companies an additional 880 to recruit each UK worker in France, while many other member states have no viable entry routes for UK staff.

A survey of 127 UK travel businesses who sell holidays in the EU indicated that 61% believe the issue could reduce their growth over the next five years, and is their biggest concern.

Abta and SBit called on the UK and EU governments to extend the Youth Mobility Scheme to EU countries.

This would allow young people to work in the UK and EU for up to two years, with no automatic longer-term right to remain.

The UK has similar existing arrangements with countries such as Australia, Canada and New Zealand.

It cant be emphasised enough just how fundamental being able to work abroad is for the UK travel industry.

The travel trade also called for an enhanced UK-EU seasonal mobility agreement for tourism workers, as current arrangements only apply to certain roles and limit stays to 90 days.

Speaking at Abtas Travel Matters summit in Westminster, the bodys chief executive Mark Tanzer said: It cant be emphasised enough just how fundamental being able to work abroad is for the UK travel industry.

Not only do people gain those important language and soft-skills, theyre also set on a path for a good career and many become leaders in the industry.

With the UK outbound travel industry contributing 49bn a year to the UK economy, and a major driver of growth, not putting in the right mobility arrangements with the EU could come at a cost to UK plc.

Yet there are simple and sensible solutions to overcome these barriers, and Id urge ministers to make this a priority and take action urgently.

As an industry we rely on UK staff being able to work in the EU to help our businesses grow and thrive. But without a sensible arrangement on labour mobility, growth in this industry will be unnecessarily held back

SBit managing director Charles Owen said: Its proving tremendously difficult to employ the UK staff we need to run our businesses in the EU.

In some countries its a mountain of complex paperwork, delays and extra costs that need to be overcome, in others there isnt really a workable route.

As an industry we rely on UK staff being able to work in the EU to help our businesses grow and thrive.

But without a sensible arrangement on labour mobility, growth in this industry will be unnecessarily held back.

Aviation minister Baroness Vere told the summit that relaxing rules for foreign workers in the UK  seen as key to securing reciprocal rights for UK workers overseas  would be a Home Office decision and she is very happy to take this on to the heart of Government if the case is set out.

But she added: We would like to see that all youngsters be able to do that (work in the EU) but we have to put that in the context of our relationship with the EU and our other priorities at the time.
S cotlands Health Secretary has invited junior doctors in for talks on Thursday after they voted to reject the Governments pay offer.

Michael Matheson insisted he would do everything he could to try to avoid strike action in Scotlands hospitals  though he added NHS boards have been told to draw up contingency plans for walkouts and that there is no further money available for pay.

The Scottish Health Secretary stressed: I dont have any further space in the health budget in which to meet any further increase.

Thursdays talks have been scheduled after the British Medical Association (BMA) in Scotland said junior doctors would walk out on strike over three days next month if no new offer is made.

Industrial action is now scheduled for July 12 to 15 after junior doctors voted to reject a pay increase of 14.5% over two years.

I am keen to avoid industrial action, as I am sure junior doctors are as well. But it will require compromise on both sides

With the prospect of strikes now looming, Mr Matheson told BBC Radio Scotlands Good Morning Scotland programme that NHS boards have been told to put contingency arrangements in place should industrial action take place.

This, he said, will see hospitals providing urgent and emergency care only, with elective surgeries and outpatient appointments having to be cancelled.

Mr Matheson said: The key priority would be to make sure urgent and emergency care can be provided, and those that are classed as routine and elective procedures would have to be postponed until industrial action was completed.

Dr Chris Smith, chairman of the unions Scottish junior doctors committee, said upping wages further would be a down payment on the future of the NHS to make sure it stays an effective health service.

He added that strike action is an absolute last resort as he called on the Scottish Government to make an improved offer.

Dr Smith told BBC Radio Scotland: We do recognise that appointments will be cancelled and operations will be cancelled, and thats why weve called on the Government to come back with a better offer to avoid this if we can.

But if not, junior doctors are clear  we are standing up for the future of the NHS, the future of our profession by taking this absolute last resort of strike action.

Dr Smith said junior doctors are the backbone of the NHS and a better offer is needed to address years of pay erosion.

Commenting on the Scottish Government offer, he said: Since 2008 weve had a real-terms pay cut of 28.5%, so this didnt even come close to bringing us back to where we were 15 years ago.

The ball is firmly in the Governments court to come back with a better offer and we can work together to avoid the strikes if we can.

Mr Matheson, however, insisted that demands from junior doctors for a 35% rise are unaffordable to taxpayers.

He added: The 14.5% we offered over a two-year period is the largest increase in junior doctors pay in 20 years and it comes at a cost of over 61 million.

The funding for this comes directly from the NHS budget, Mr Matheson said, stressing there is not an extra pot of money I have somewhere else in the Government to fund an increase.

He said he had been very clear with junior doctors about the financial restrictions within which I am operating and the significant strain we have on the public purse at the present time which limit our space to manoeuvre.

But he insisted: I will do everything I can to try to avoid industrial action. It is in no-ones interests, junior doctors or patients, and I want to try to address the concerns and the issues that junior doctors have about how their pay settlements are agreed in the future through modernising the pay bargaining process.

I will continue to engage with them to try to find a way through this particular challenge.

But I also have to be clear about the very difficult financial environment which I am operating in.

The funding envelope is very restrictive, and I have to operate in the Governments overall funding package for these types of pay settlements.

He insisted the 14.5% pay offer started to address the decline in wages junior doctors have suffered, and said work is also under way on modernising the pay bargaining process, with a report on this due in September.

Mr Matheson said: I am keen to avoid industrial action, as I am sure junior doctors are as well. But it will require compromise on both sides.

Weve made a very significant offer, I am disappointed it has been rejected but I hear what junior doctors are saying and that is why I have invited them back in for discussions tomorrow to see whether we can make progress on this.
T he Prince of Wales has paid tribute to a ranger who was murdered in front of his family at a film screening about the battle to stop South African rhinos being poached to extinction.

Anton Mzimba was head of ranger services at Timbavati private game reserve in north-east South Africa, near the Kruger National Park, when he was shot outside his home last year.

He had previously spoken to William via video link when the royal visited a technology company to learn about a new device to combat ivory smugglers.

William was joined by the Duchess of Edinburgh, who has a strong interest in wildlife protection, at a screening of Rhino Man, a documentary which follows the next generation of South African wildlife rangers.

The murder of Anton Mzimba is a stark reminder of the daily dangers that all rangers face around the world protecting the natural world from the international criminal organisations that seek to profit illegally from wildlife

More than 150 guests attended the screening at Battersea power station on Tuesday hosted by United for Wildlife (UfW), Williams initiative to fight the illegal wildlife trade.

The prince said: The murder of Anton Mzimba is a stark reminder of the daily dangers that all rangers face around the world protecting the natural world from the international criminal organisations that seek to profit illegally from wildlife and Im proud to see his life and legacy recognised in Rhino Man.

This is not a burden they can bear alone. An effective response to this vicious crime demands attention and collaboration across the entire chain of criminal activity, not just on the front line.

That is why United for Wildlife, through its global financial and transport taskforces, and wider alliance of partners, has taken action to ensure that those involved in wildlife crime will be met with an international response as powerful and co-ordinated as any other serious and organised crime.

In the last six years the UfW has contributed to nearly 500 law enforcement cases, more than 300 arrests, over 200 seizures of wildlife products and has trained over 100,000 people.

The prince and duchess met Antons cousin Leitah Mkhabela, who is supervisor of the Black Mambas, South Africas first all-female anti-poaching unit.

William told Ms Mkhabela: He was very inspirational. I only met Anton once. He was incredibly passionate and also very motivational for all of you.

Speaking after the event, Ms Mkhabela told the PA news agency: It feels good to go back to the bush and continue putting your boots on the ground knowing that there are so many people outside in the world who are supporting you, who are looking up to you.

(Anton) left two young kids, very young kids, about three years old. They still have a long way to go.

So getting the support shows there is hope, there is light.

The audience also heard from Orlat Ndlovu, head of ranger services at the Timbavati private nature reserve, who described Anton as a brother and a mentor who led by example.

The ranger, who said he had been on the firing line facing rhino poachers, told the cinema audience: He loved and treated everyone with respect including his enemies. He saw good in them hoping that they would see good in him.

Mr Ndlovu told PA: When we are at work, especially back in South Africa, you dont know that the work that youre doing (is appreciated) until you come into this type of stage.

It is like an injection, like a fuel to keep us doing what we do best.

The illegal wildlife trade doesnt put wildlife at risk alone but also the lives of the rangers.

Paying tribute, Amanda Berry, CEO of The Royal Foundation, said: (Anton) made the ultimate sacrifice for his work when he was brutally murdered at home in front of his family.

Sadly, Antons family and colleagues are not alone in experiencing such a devastating loss.

Rangers around the world risk their lives daily, often with limited training, pay or support.
C omedian Paul Whitehouses ex-wife suffered completely inhumane tabloid intrusion during the breakdown of her marriage and when she was battling cancer, she told the High Court.

Fiona Wightman claims a private investigator for Mirror Group Newspapers (MGN) tried to blag her private medical details when she had been diagnosed with ovarian cancer.

She said she felt totally invaded and confused as journalists went to the home of her elderly parents in search of a story.

The idea that somebody thought there is a young woman with cancer who happens to bemarried to someone famous, we deserve to know about this and see if we can get astory about this is really indefensible, Ms Wightman said in a statement to the High Court.

Ms Wightman said she is not famous like her ex-husband, she did not attend premieres, and shunned the spotlight.

Her comedian husband had an affair with a costume designer who fell pregnant, leading to a separation in September 2000. However, Ms Wightman said she remained good friends with Whitehouse after the end of their marriage.

Ms Wightman is suing MGN alongside Prince Harry and soap stars Michael Le Vell and Nikki Sanderson, alleging she was subjected to privacy breaches through phone hacking and unlawful newsgathering.

PA

She said it was jaw dropping to read the articles she complains are the result of unlawful activity, telling the court: I find it absolutely extraordinary to know now that MGNs journalists would have been listening to my messages.

It still really shocks me, because of everything I was going through. I was young, I had ovarian cancer, and the prognosis for ovarian cancer then was awful.

I was dealing with infertility. My husband had an affair. It sounds like a tragedy. I am not a tragedy, but I was dealing with such incredibly difficult, painful things.

For someone to have listened to my messages and thought there is a greatstory here is just awful. I was absolutely reeling from everything I was dealing with. It was so private.

Nikki Sanderson is suing Mirror Group Newspapers (MGN) for damages (Aaron Chown/PA) / PA Wire

Detailing an alleged blagging incident in 1997, she said her cancer surgeon received a phone call from someone posing as a worker at a different hospital, asking for details of the treatment she was receiving.

The surgeon did not disclose any information and called Ms Wightman to check on her, discovering the hospitals request for details was bogus.

Invoices for payments to a private investigator are now relying on in Ms Wightmans case, as alleged evidence of unlawful activity.

I couldnt understand how somebody else could pretend like that with my doctor or who would do such a thing, said Ms Wightman.

It was deeply shocking to see the invoices and finally understand who it had been that had called my doctors secretary, its completely inhumane.

Fast Show comedian Whitehouse, in his statement to the court, said the couple  who remain on good terms after the split  shared very private information on their family, health, travel plans, and finances on voicemails.

He recalls being approached by a journalist while on the school run with his ten-year-old daughter.

And he told the court: It is deeply upsetting to Fiona to now know that that they were digging around into her personal and private health grief. Its hard to put into words really, its sick.

MGN has admitted using a private investigator unlawfully on six occasions, although it denies any voicemail interception of Ms Wightman.

Andrew Green KC, for MGN, earlier told the court the company "unreservedly apologises" for the unlawful activity against her, adding that it "shouldnt have happened and it wont again".

The trial continues.
F unding cuts to the NHS and a lack of investment in public health are likely to have hampered Britains response to the Covid-19 pandemic, Britains top scientists said on the second day of the public inquiry.

Baroness Hallett is overseeing a national inquiry into Covid and its devastating effects, focusing her initial investigations on Britains preparations for a pandemic prior to March 2020.

In an opening address, Matthew Hill KC, representing the Government Office for Science and the Sage committee, today said the UK benefited from its strengths in some areas, but was held back into areas of weakness.

Those scientific areas in which the UK was strong going into the pandemic were those in which it did well, he told the inquiry.

The quality and breadth of its science base, expertise in genomic sequencing, expertise in pharmaceuticals and vaccines, and the ability to mount large-scale national clinical trials. Conversely, areas of national weakness led to vulnerability. The absence of a major domestic diagnostic industry, and difficulties in scaling up for manufacturing of diagnostics, the underlying health inqequalities and co-morbidities within the population, the lack of excess capacity in the NHS, even in normal times, and challenges of scaling and operations of a public health infrastructure which raised questions about the investment made in that system in preceding years and whether it had responded effectively to previous pandemic threats.

Mr Hill also stressed to the inquiry that the Sage committee of independent scientists who advised the government on its pandemic response did not make policy, and was not the only voice of authority.

He said co-chair Sir Patrick Vallance had insisted that Sage meeting minutes and papers were published, giving them particular prominence in the minds of the media and public in relation to policy.

But he added: It was an important input, but it was never the only consideration, nor should it have been.

The inquirys first day of hearings began yesterday with a promise from chair Baroness Hallett that bereaved families will always be at the heart of the process she is overseeing.

Some families staged a vigil outside the hearing centre in Paddington, criticising the inquiry for not allowing pen portraits of victims of Covid and refusing to call their chosen witnesses in the first phase.

A video of some of the bereaved was played at the start of todays hearing, to represent the pain and anger felt by many people.

In his opening speech, counsel to the inquiry Hugo Keith KC said the UK was taken by surprise by the impact of the pandemic when it reached this country in January 2020. He said huge, urgent and complex policy decisions and imposing lockdowns had not been anticipated. No country can be perfectly prepared, but it can certainly be underprepared, he said.
Egyptian authorities executed Mohamed Adel on Wednesday who was convicted of killing 21-year-old university student Nayera Ashraf in Mansoura on 20 June 2022.

Adel's sentence was carried out in Gamasa prison after the Court of Cassation upheld the death sentence in February.

Ashraf was murdered at the gate of Mansoura University to the shock and uproar of Egyptian society.

Adel was transferred to Mansoura Criminal Court on 22 June 2022 for the premeditated murder of Ashraf.

Adel had stabbed Ashraf multiple times after following her to university.

During the trial, the prosecution presented to the court 25 eyewitnesses, including students and university guards who witnessed the murder.

Further investigations revealed testimonies of Ashraf's friends and colleagues stating that Adel had consistently stalked and threatened her following her rejection of his marriage proposal.

The prosecution confirmed that Ashraf's family had previously filed many complaints to the police, obtaining a restraining order two months before her murder.

The Criminal Court handed Adel a death sentence in July 2022.

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F amily members of the two students who were killed in Nottingham comforted each other as they attended a heartbreaking vigil held by the university.

The fathers of medical student Grace OMalley-Kumar and history student Barnaby Webber spoke to the crowd of thousands of students and family members at the universitys main campus on Wednesday afternoon.

Holding back tears, Barnabys father David Webber said: I cannot comprehend how I am going to deal with it. Myself and Emma and Charlie and his family and friends  I know Barny would be super touched by everyone thats here.

David Webber and Sanjoy Kumar speak during a vigil at the University of Nottingham / PA

He loved it. He loved it here. He couldnt wait to come back. It drove me mad. His heart will be with you guys forever and thank you so much.

Graces father also thanked attendees for their support.

Speaking with David Webbers hand on his shoulder, Sanjoy Kumar said: Grace was also like Barney, she loved coming up to Nottingham. In fact, we couldnt get her down.

The love we have out here, I wish we had it everywhere. Look after each other.

PA

I really thank you for being here and taking the time. It means so much to Sinead, my wife, and me. [Grace] loved being here and she loved all of you. You all touched her life, and hence ours.

He added: Youll never be forgotten by us. We had children taken away prematurely from us...but all I can say to all of you guys, is I thank you for things you did for our daughter and Barney.

The two grief stricken-men embraced after their moving words.

Barnaby Webber and Grace Kumar / Family handout/Lucy Sheffield/Southgate Hockey Club/PA

Family members were seen crying and hugging each other during the emotional service.

Grace and Barnaby, both 19, were stabbed as they walked back to student halls on Monday morning.

Ian Coates, 65, a caretaker at the university, died on his way to work as a school site manager after he was attacked with the suspect stealing his white van.

Hundreds of students attended the vigil and lay floral tributes. Many were seen crying and embracing each other.

Father and brother of Barnaby Webber / Jacob King/PA Wire

Grant Walton, from the university chaplaincy, began the vigil by saying: This is one of those moments which we hoped wed never encounter.

University of Nottingham Vice-Chancellor and President, Professor Shera West, told the crowd: Its hard to find the words to express the shock and the grief felt across our institution at the senseless loss of two talented students who had their bright futures curtailed... by a seemingly random act of violence.

Daisy Forester, a student union representative, said: What should have been one of the biggest celebrations for the student body has turned into one of our darkest days.

She said shock waves echo through the student community and the deaths have been devastating for the whole student body.

It is hard to comprehend what has happened in this city and to our students, but the messaging and support from so many of youhas been both inspiring and heartbreaking to witness.

Barney and Grace are a monumental loss. They were both first year [students] with ambitions, potential and dreams.

Floral tributes at vigil / Jacob King/PA Wire

The vigil comes after tributes poured in for the three victims.

Barnabys family said he was a talented cricketer who had been selected for the university team.

The statement said: At 19 he was just at the start of his journey into adulthood and was developing into a wonderful young man.

Graces family said she had been a star for Englands young hockey programme, having been selected on a national level for both the under-16s and under-18s squads.

We were so incredibly proud of Graces achievements and what a truly lovely person she was. She was resilient and wise beyond her years.
T he lives of 108 migrants attempting to make the perilous crossing of the English Channel were saved by RNLI lifeboat crews last year, the charity has revealed.

Publishing the figures for the first time, the RNLI has disclosed that it tasked and launched 290 times during 2022 to incidents involving men, women and children.

This makes up 3% of the 9,312 lifeboat launches by the RNLI for the entire year which saved a total of 506 lives nationwide, including beach lifeguard rescues.

The total number who made the crossing in 2022 reached a record 45,755, which has prompted Prime Minister Rishi Sunak to make tackling small boat crossings a priority for his Government this year.

So far in 2023, 8,858 people have made the crossing with the highest number to date this year  616  being picked up from 12 boats on Sunday, June 11.

In November 2021, 31 people died while trying to cross the Channel in a dinghy.

RNLI chief executive Mark Dowie said: We are extremely proud of all our volunteer lifeboat crews throughout the UK, Ireland and Channel Islands and that very much includes those working in challenging circumstances in the south east of England.

We have never released these figures before, but they illustrate clearly that our charitys work in the Channel is genuinely lifesaving.

Sadly, we know there have been incidents in the Channel which have resulted in deaths, but without the brave actions of our crews, who are ready to answer their pagers day or night, 365 days a year, we can be certain there would have been more.

The RNLI is unashamed and makes no apology for staying committed to and focused on the purpose we were created for, nearly 200 years ago  to save lives at sea.

The RNLI, which was formed in 1824, has 238 lifeboat stations around the country which are co-ordinated by the Coastguard.

This crossing and this rescue demand is very, very dangerous and the fact we have saved 108 lives just shows how perilous this journey is

The charity has brought in translation cards to aid communication with people from a variety of countries as well as new equipment to assist in its rescues including inflatable horseshoe life rings.

And it is developing an inflatable platform known as sea stairs which can help speed up the recovery of large numbers of people from the water on to an all-weather lifeboat.

Head of lifeboats Simon Ling told the PA news agency: This crossing and this rescue demand is very, very dangerous and the fact we have saved 108 lives just shows how perilous this journey is.

Men, women and children getting into overcrowded dinghies crossing one of the most treacherous shipping channels anywhere in the world.

He added: This type of rescue is very challenging for a number of reasons, be that the number of casualties, the level of trauma that these casualties present.

So for us it has been really important to understand what the risk is and work with our teams who face this unprecedented demand and come up with training, support and equipment that they feel suitably equipped to deal with this challenge.

Mr Ling said that new auto-inflate horseshoes and giant donuts had been proven to save lives.

He added that sea stairs currently under development which create an inflatable platform could help get 20 casualties out of the water in 90 seconds compared with the one minute per person of regular lifeboat rescue methods.

Mr Ling said: In the context of a mass rescue situation, we believe this to be a game-changing piece of equipment.

He added: The new equipment and procedures may have been developed for use in mass casualty scenarios in the Channel, but they have potentially widespread lifesaving application across the RNLI  and worldwide  for responding to any incident involving large numbers of casualties, such as a passenger ferry which is sinking or on fire.

I joined the RNLI for one reason and thats to help people and save lives. Whatever the circumstances, whatever the nationality, it doesnt matter to me, we are there to save lives and thats what we do

Praising the crews involved in the rescues, he added: We at the RNLI are incredibly proud of all our staff and volunteers but wish to signpost the outstanding commitment of nine stations in the south east channel.

Dungeness coxswain Stuart Adams said: I joined the RNLI for one reason and thats to help people and save lives. Whatever the circumstances, whatever the nationality, it doesnt matter to me, we are there to save lives and thats what we do.

For incidents involving numerous casualties in the water we had to come up with something we could use to speed things up and we came up with the sea stairs to make it a lot quicker to pull people out of the water.

Without them its very difficult getting casualties out of the water but, with them, crew can literally kneel, reach, grab and slide the casualties on.

His son, volunteer coxswain Jason Adams, said: Some of the kit has been used and the horse shoes have proved to be very effective. They save lives. Without them, theres definitely a few people who wouldnt be here today.
R omanian prosecutors are ramping up human trafficking charges against social media influencer Andrew Tate and his brother Tristan.

The Tate brothers and two Romanian female suspects are under house arrest as they are investigated for suspected human trafficking, rape and forming a criminal gang to sexually exploit women - accusations they have denied.

Prosecutors said on Tuesday that the four suspects are now being investigated for human trafficking in continued form, which they say is a more serious crime than the separate counts of trafficking they previously faced.

The case remains under investigation and has not yet gone to trial. Prosecutors are expected to commit the four suspects for trial later in June.

The four were held in police custody from December 29 until March 31, when a Bucharest court placed them under house arrest.

On Tuesday, Romanias anti-organised crime prosecuting unit DIICOT notified the Tate brothers that the human trafficking charge had changed to trafficking in continued form, a DIICOT spokesperson said.

Under Romanian law, trafficking of adults carries a prison sentence of up to 10 years.

One more victim was added to the case, which started out with six women, the spokesperson said.

The Tate brothers legal team said Tuesdays changes were in the suspects legal interest.

The legal framework has been revised and altered to ensure an impartial investigation is upheld, they said in a statement.

Also on Tuesday, DIICOT prosecutors said they had opened a separate criminal investigation against a Romanian man close to the Tate brothers, named Vlad Obuzic, on allegations of human trafficking and forming a criminal crime group to sexually exploit seven women.

Prosecutors have said Obuzic - whose social media platforms show pictures of him with the Tate brothers - and two other suspects recruited their alleged victims by seducing them and falsely claiming to want a relationship or marriage.

The victims were then coerced to produce pornographic content for social media sites, with the suspects keeping most of the gains, it is alleged.

To ensure the victims loyalty and that they will perform only to the benefit of the members of the group, they were forced to tattoo the name or face of the group member exploiting them, prosecutors said in a statement.
V ladimir Putins forces killed at least six people and injured more than a dozen others in missile attacks in the early hours of of Wednesday.

The southern Ukrainian city of Odesa was hit by cruise missiles overnight, while heavy shelling destroyed homes in the eastern Donetsk region.

A Ukrainian military spokesman said Russian forces have stepped up aerial strikes in their 15-month war against Ukraine, as the countrys troops reported limited gains in an early counter-offensive.

Donetsk regional governor Pavlo Kyrylenko reported that at least three people died after shelling destroyed seven homes and damaged dozens more in the cities of Kramatorsk and Konstantinovka.

In Odesa, three employees at a food warehouse were killed and seven others injured in a strike. Houses, shops and cafes were also hit. A further six people  guards and residents of a neighbouring house  were injured.

Searchers were looking for possible survivors under the rubble.

The attack on the port city, launched from the Black Sea, also involved four Kalibr cruise missiles, three of which were intercepted by air defences.

Andriy Kovalov, a spokesman for Ukraines General Staff, said Russian forces have increased missile and aerial strikes on Ukraine to support their ground troops.

It comes as UN nuclear chief Rafael Grossi delayed a planned trip to Ukraines Russian-held Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant amid safety concerns, a Ukrainian government official said.

He had been expected to visit the facility today after talks in Kyiv on Tuesday but sources said the visit would be delayed by some hours so he can travel safely.
M alaysia wants help from Interpol to track down a stand-up comedian who mocked the country and made jokes about missing Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370, its police chief said.

Jocelyn Chia, a New York-based comedian, stirred controversy in Malaysia and Singapore this month after she posted on social media a clip of her live comedy set in which she joked about the plane that went missing nine years ago with 239 people onboard.

Debris linked to the plane has been found over the years, but the fate and location of the aircraft remain a mystery.

Chia, who performed the set at a comedy club in New York, was widely criticised in Malaysia, with the home minister describing her comments as insensitive and offensive.

National police chief Acryl Sani Abdullah Sani said Malaysia would this week ask Interpol for her location and full identity to facilitate further investigations, state news agency Bernama reported.

He said Malaysia will investigate Chias comments under its own laws related to provocation, incitement, and publication of offensive online content.

A Malaysian police spokesperson confirmed the comments.

Wreckage: the part from the missing flight, according to officials / AFP/Getty Images

It was unclear if or how Chia could be penalised for her act.

Chia, a lawyer turned comedian who says she is originally from Singapore, could not be reached immediately for comment.

In an interview with CNN on Sunday, Chia said she stood by her jokes despite the controversy, but that the short clips on social media took them out of context.

Upon reflection I do see that having this as a clip that gets viewed out of a comedy club context was risky, Chia was reported as saying.

Her comedy, which also touched on historical ties between neighbours Malaysia and Singapore, also sparked outrage in Singapore.
V ladimir Putin has revealed Russia has lost 54 tanks so far in the nearly two weeks since Ukraine launched its counter-offensive.

In a rare admission of war casualties, the Russian President insisted his losses were much lower than Ukraines, claiming Kyiv had suffered catastrophic defeats, including swathes of Western-donated arms.

In an apparent slip-up at a meeting with military bloggers, he said Russia has lost 54 tanks in Ukraine since the start of the counter-offensive less than two weeks. Though he maintained that some of the tanks can be repaired and brought back to service.

The enemy did not succeed in any of the points of the offensive, the Russian president said as he claimed Ukraine was suffering catastrophic losses in terms of personnel.

SPUTNIK/AFP via Getty Images

Putin said Ukraines counteroffensive has been unsuccessful. He asserted that Ukraine lost 160 tanks and over 360 other armoured vehicles. Those claims could not be immediately verified. Ukrainian officials typically do not comment on losses.

In other remarks at the long meeting with military bloggers Putin said:

He was not contemplating a new troop mobilisation, as many Russians have feared. But he did not rule out another troop call-up later.

Russias defence industry has ratcheted up production of drones and other weapons but needs more, and the West is also struggling to produce more weapons and ammunition.

Russia might pull out of a UN-backed deal to allow grain shipments from Ukraine through a demilitarized Black Sea maritime corridor.

The United States could stop the war by halting weapons shipments to Ukraine, leaving it too weak to carry on the fight.

The West will eventually realize it wont succeed in Ukraine. They will never see it happen. Never.

The press conference came after a top Russian general was killed during a missile strike in Ukraine.

Sergei Goryachev / Telegram

Sergei Goryachev, 52, chief of staff for the 35th Combined Arms Army, was reportedly killed by a Ukrainian rocket attack in the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia region on Monday night.

Goryachev is believed to be the countrys highest-ranked Russian soldier to be killed on the battlefield this year.
U krainian forces have advanced up to five miles and liberated at least four villages since launching their counter-offensive against Vladimir Putin's army, western defence chiefs confirmed on Wednesday.

However they warned that the advance has been slow and the Russian's "well prepared" defences have proved "costly" to Kyiv's troops.

Ukrainian forces have liberated at least four villages and advanced at least seven kilometres," western officials said in a briefing.

Russian forces have generally put up a good defence from their well prepared defended positions and have been falling back between tactical lines.

This manoeuvre defence approach is proving challenging for the Ukrainians and also costly to attacking forces.

Hence, the advance at the moment has been slow.

Putin has claimed that Ukraine's counter-offensive, launched on June 4, has been unsuccessful, with its army suffering major losses.

Speaking at a meeting of war correspondents, the Russian President said Kyiv's losses were approaching "catastrophic" levels.

Ukrainian President Zelensky has denied his counter-offensive is failing.

Western officials said this is more than probing operation and progress was slow as Ukrainian forces through minefields.

These are early days in the Ukrainian counter-offensive, they added. Ukraine maintains committed, quality forces [but] the conflict is likely to be characterised by grinding costly warfare for many months to come.

Meanwhile, Ukrainian generals have still to send in the bulk of their counter-offensive troops, and future battles to recapture land are likely to be far more ferocious, British military experts warned on Wednesday.

In an update on the conflict, Dr Jack Watling, from the London-based Royal United Services Institute, said: Ukrainian troops have broken through initial fighting positions along a broad part of the front, but remain some distance from Russias main defence line.

Kyiv has yet to commit the bulk of its forces as its lead elements try to set the conditions for a breakthrough.

He stressed that Russias initial fighting positions were made up largely of fox holes and hand-dug trenches, but behind these were complex minefields of anti-tank and anti-personnel mines, covered by Russian drones and artillery.

The main Russian defence line was still 1520 km (nine to 12 miles) from Ukrainian positions, with properly dug trenches and concrete-reinforced firing posts, tank obstacles, ground-laid cable to coordinate artillery strikes, and even more mines.

Behind these defences are reserve fighting positions of the third defence line.

The fighting will likely get tougher, added Dr Watling, a senior research fellow in land warfare and military sciences at the RUSI think tank.

As Ukrainian forces penetrate deeper into the defences, they will come into range of more Russian artillery firing posts.

Moreover, their own artillery will be able to deliver fewer counterbattery missions, and the Ukrainian lines of advance will become more predictable, as they must follow the breaches identified in the minefields.

Ukraines president Volodymyr Zelensky said on Tuesday that battles are fierce, but we are moving forward after his military chiefs reported seven villages had been recaptured in the summer counter-offensive so far.

Fighting has been taken place in a series of locations on the frontline in the eastern Donetsk province and more southern Zaporizhzhia province.

But amid a highly complex picture, Russian forces were believed to be launching counter attacks after losing territory to Ukrainian soldiers.

The Ukrainian army is thought to have suffered losses of equipment, with significant casualties in some areas, as it seeks to advance.

Attacking operations normally see higher casualty rates than defensive ones.
T he United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) is holding its annual World Refugee Day on June 20, which is a day to recognise refugees all across the world.

Heres everything you need to know about World Refugee Day.

What is World Refugee Day?

Every year, this day honours the fortitude and bravery of those who have had to leave their own country because of war or persecution. The first-ever World Refugee Day was observed in 2001, to mark the 50th anniversary of the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees.

Before the United Nations General Assembly formally declared it an international day in December 2000, it was known as Africa Refugee Day.

When is World Refugee Day?

World Refugee Day is held on June 20 every year. This year it is emphasising the need for economic and social inclusion of refugees.

What to do on World Refugee Day

Events held on World Refugee Day are an opportunity to help refugees.

By contributing to World Refugee Day's Aiming Higher campaign, you can help fund the establishment of scholarships for young refugees.

You can also join the agencys international art competition, which will begin on June 20, and you'll have the chance to create shirts that will help generate money for refugees.

The theme of the 2023 art contest is Hope away from home.

The contest asks young people all over the world to submit a drawing that highlights the value of including refugees. This year, UNHCR is collaborating with a major garment brand to produce the top designs.

To participate you have to be between 10 and 30 years old. You dont need to be a professional artist, anyone can join the competition who is between those ages.

The deadline is September 30, more details can be found on the UNHCR website.
I koyis Jeremy Chan; Ravinder Bhogal of Jikoni; Bibis Chet Sharma; Selin Kiazim of Oklava; and Santiago Lastra from Kol. Its an estimable roll call of names, all of whom have one thing in common  Carousel. Theyre not the only ones.

Carousel is the hot ticket on Fitzrovias Charlotte Street, a multi-floored space thats part permanent wine bar but, more interestingly, where some of the worlds most talented chefs  many future stars, others established names  take up residence for a week or two and incubate. Its where ideas are stress tested and concepts have their temperature taken. It is, in other words, the place thats finding your next favourite restaurant for you. And at the end of the month, it hits a milestone as founders (and brothers) Ed and Ollie Templeton welcome their 300th residency. Eds the front-of-house fixer, Ollie cooks.

And the residency? Make a note of the name: for a week from June 27, Mmabatho Molefe, founder of all-black, all female-run Cape Town restaurant Emazulwini, is coming to town. Were really looking forward to it, Ollie says. Shes a fantastic chef.

Molefe and her modern Zulu fine dining are a fitting marker  in the nine years Ed and Ollie have run Carousel (which originally opened more modestly in Marylebone), theyve scoured the globe for cuisines and concepts, working with more than 300 chefs from 50 cities in 30 countries.

Ollie Templeton cooking / Press handout

There have been stars, and stars of the future. So many great chefs have come through the doors, says Ed. Theyve always done brilliant stuff already. We just look for considered chefs, charismatic chefs. We want to see a good story, and we understand who our audience is  theyre after the same thing.

One thing about the audience is that its loyal  one adventurous sort has visited 89 times. Many others have been back on more than 20 occasions, the brothers say, some travelling from outside London. But early on, it was hard enough getting chefs, let alone customers. It was difficult persuading people to come in the beginning, Ed says. We had people pull out and a lot of people didnt really see what we were trying to do. These days, chefs ask us. What changed? Its a popular thing now because people come over and have a good time.

Still, the logistics are mind-boggling: its endless travel, countless emails, calendar requests by the dozen. We do it all through word of mouth, through travelling ourselves. Weve built up a base and a great network of people, and its a community, says Ed. But its down to the team. We take care of the produce, the suppliers, and have a brilliant foundation in the kitchen. The menu, obviously, changes radically with each residency; its sort of like setting up for a daily changing menu each week, but with a new head chef.

The likes of Lastra and Chan didnt have their own restaurant when they first rocked up at Carousel. Today, they boast three Michelin stars between them, and their restaurants are frequently booked out. We organise chefs from all over the world, Ollie says. Some bring a team, others dont. We work with them on the menu, we develop it, and we source ingredients locally where possible and from outside the UK if needed. Anyone who finds travelling appealing and is up for a challenge is fine by us.

A selection of Carousel plates / Press handout

Up for the challenge have been everyone from Stockholm omakase counters to high-end Brooklyn taquerias, from Cantonese dumplings to cosy Dorset tasting menus. Ed and Ollie have brought chefs over from Mexico City, Helsinki, Patagonia, Nashville, Bethlehem, Kyiv, Copenhagen, Barcelona, Tokyo and more.

Recent favourites include Scandi iconoclasts Punk Royale, who fill their restaurants with dry ice and graffiti and feed everybody bumps of caviar. They love using luxury ingredients  lobster, wagyu, loads of truffle. Its sort of Eurotrash irony food, but its amazing. We put in lasers, smoke effects, and vinyl graffiti. They were walking around with a jerry can full of vodka and pouring it into peoples mouths. One customer complained she didnt get enough truffle and one of the chefs shaved a bunch over her head, remembers Ollie. Any other big vibes? One anonymous Welsh chefs appendix exploded midway through the week: He had one night off but he was old school, so then he came back in, remarkably. He was a nutter. At the pass covered in bandages. Obviously we didnt force him  it wasnt obligatory, but he insisted. Such a talented guy.

The pair can go on  the screaming Italian couple, who argued at the pass and threw pans about before serving unimaginably good pasta. Or a duo of Americans who necked about a bottle of bourbon before service every night, had a scrap during prep and then made out in the walk-in fridge. Great food, to be fair to them, says Ed.

One customer complained she didnt get enough truffle and one of the chefs shaved a bunch over her head,

Every chef who cooks at Carousel makes an impression. They all bring so much passion. Thats what its about, says Ed. Weve had plenty of memorable nights, says Ollie. I suppose 2014-18 was one long Negroni-fuelled lock-in. Every Saturday, after a hectic week, wed go for it, and it was always interesting because wed be with a whole new group. If the Negronis have abated a bit, their appetite for the weird has only gone up. At the start, I think we limited ourselves and were a little cautious. Now we mess about.

As they approach the 300th residency, is it getting any easier? Historically, theyve had flight cancellations, visa issues, plenty of hairy moments. One chef flew in from Peru only to be turned away at the border. Another, Karlos Pente, was sent home due to the political situation in Venezuela. We had 50 lobsters ready and no chef to cook them. We didnt have bags of cash, and we didnt want to waste the food, so we just did a menu ourselves and apologised to the people whod booked. We made lobster ravioli. There have been lots of occasions where weve had to fill gaps at late notice  days, sometimes. Disasters happen. We just adapt.

Amy and Bill Poon are among those whove had a residency at the restaurant / Press handout

So, as they look onwards, whos next? How do you follow the likes of Bill and Amy Poon, Dorsets Harriet Mansell, or cult Mexican favourite Hugo Duran? Do they have a bucket list? Josh Niland, the Australian fish butcher, hed be awesome, says Ollie. And Inaki Aizpitarte, the guy in Paris. What a legend. But we have no barriers.

Ollie and Ed, who are working on a book, have seen culinary fashions come and go. Their restaurant is a German beer hall one week, a Turkish kebab shop the next. Can they sustain it?

Were not stopping any time soon. says Ollie. Were having too much fun. We dont want to be overly earnest or po-faced. We dont really have a message other than: food is exciting. We dont really know whats next, but thats completely fine by us.

Carousel, 19-23 Charlotte Street, W1T 1RW. For tickets to the next residency and more information, visit carousel-london.com
Sheikh Ahmed El-Tayyeb, the Grand Imam of Al-Azhar, stated that the policies of global domination, materialist philosophies, and unethical economic doctrines were primarily responsible for the phenomenon of terrorism -- which Islam disavows.





El-Tayyeb made his statement on Wednesday during a UN Security Council session on "The Values of Human Fraternity in Promoting and Sustaining Peace."

The Sheikh of Al-Azhar confirmed that claiming that Islam is the religion of the sword and wars is unfair and unfounded, explaining that history testifies that Muslims fought only to defend themselves, their lands, and their honour.

In his speech, El-Tayyeb called for extinguishing the "senseless" wars that have been raging in our region and our world, such as the wars that countries like Iraq, Afghanistan, Syria, Libya and Yemen witnessed.

As for the Palestinian issue, he called on the Security Council and the international community to expedite the establishment of an independent Palestinian state, with Jerusalem as its capital, and protect Al-Aqsa Mosque against the daily violations.

I am talking about my sanctities and your sanctities in Palestine and the suffering of the Palestinian people under so much arrogance, tyranny, and cruelty," he added.

The grand Imam warned of the repercussions of the ongoing war on the eastern borders of Europe, calling on the international community to immediately stop this disaster and protect the innocent from bloodshed and the destruction of cities.

In addition, he called for guaranteeing the rights of refugees fleeing the wars by rescuing and hosting them.

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D awn French revived her Vicar Of Dibley character Geraldine Granger to pay her respects to a terminally ill friend at their living funeral.

A living funeral, also called a pre-funeral, is a funeral held for a living person - typically one who does not have long to live - so that they can celebrate their life with family and loved ones.

Comedienne French, 65, took to Instagram to share pictures of her donning Geraldines cassock and dog collar to perform a eulogy for CoppaFeel! founder Kris Hallenga, 37, who is living with stage four breast cancer.

Reflecting on the day, French wrote in the accompanying caption: It was my privilege & joy to Dibley it up at her FUNeral on Sat. She wanted to host the best possible party. She did. It was phenomenal.

She continued: So much love filling @trurocathedral. It was her own festival celebrating an extraordinary life. What a total babe.

Dawn French shared her experience of delivering a eulogy in character / Instagram/dawnrfrench

The original Vicar of Dibley ran on the BBC from 1994 until 2007.

French was last seen as Geraldine in a series of mini lockdown specials in 2020, during which she paid tribute to some of her fellow cast members who had passed away since the hit TV sitcom finished.

Hallenga fully appreciated Frenchs efforts, saying her eulogy blew my heart into smithereens as did the loving/ funny/ embarrassing speeches.

The campaigner, from Cornwall, was first diagnosed with incurable secondary breast cancer in 2009 at the age of 23 and given a life expectancy of just two years.

From that moment on, she made a conscious decision to face her illness head-on, determined to seize every opportunity and live her life to the fullest.

CoppaFeel! founder Kris Hallenga, 37, who is living with stage four breast cancer / Instagram/dawnrfrench

Almost 15 years on, Hallenga and her twin sister Maren have taken their charity CoppaFeel! to huge heights including creating checking tools, projecting onto the Houses of Parliament, and showing the first nipple on a billboard.

She first revealed plans to host a living funeral last month, saying on social media, writing: I want to be present at the event where my people have a thing or two to say about me, where I have the opportunity to show how much they mean to me.

Taking to Instagram after the events, she was clearly over the moon at how it had all gone.

I am still processing all the feelings, the wonder, the ridiculousness, the MAGNITUDE of Saturday (and my adrenaline hasnt calmed the f down yet) but suffice to say it was THE BEST DAY OF MY LIFE, she penned.

If youre a little behind, in January I decided I wanted to organise my own living funeral, my FUNeral, and in doing so celebrate a life that I have truly loved, surrounded by people I loved. It was during a psylocibin (magic [mushroom emoji]) journey later in January that my very wild and wonderful ideas were concocted and in March I started to organise the event of my life.

Where? @trurocathedral. Dress code? YODO (take of that what you will)

What? A community gospel choir @fcgccornwall, THE Vicar of Dibley, a eulogy that blew my heart into smithereens, loving/ funny/ embarrassing speeches, comfort cats (donated by @ikeauk ) @abandoman, @rae_morris, temporary tats of lady marms, food made by friends, old school TVs playing old family footage, the best MCing by my friend Georgette, a bar stocked by kind people, an ABBA Singalong, a 20 piece orchestra and scratch DJ aka @symphonica_mrswitch (imagine a rave in a cathedral), an aerial performer @swampcircus and a silent disco, she continued.

Ive never felt love like it. Ive never felt joy like it. Ive never felt such kinship with mortality. Ive never felt so alive.

Living funerals? 10/10 would recommend. Exploring your impermanence? A gateway to appreciation of life Crying and laughing at the same time? Do it. Its sexy.

Talking about and writing down your wishes for your funeral? would not only recommend but very much need you to action asap (and my pals @legacyoflives are ready and waiting).

I have so many thank yous to say but first I am SO GRATEFUL that Rebecca, the CEO of free funeral planning site @legacyoflives had my back and supported my vision.

I never wanna come down from this high (although sleep would also be [ok emoji]).
M iriam Margolyes has revealed the secret to her long-term relationship with partner Heather Sutherland is never compromising.

The Harry Potter star, 82, is one of three cover stars for British Vogues Pride month series and opened up about life with Sutherland, who she has been with for 54 years, in an accompanying interview.

The pair met while working on a BBC radio drama in 1967 after Margolyes had graduated from studying at the University of Cambridge.

Notably she and Sutherland have never co-habited in all their years together, with the retired Australian academic living in Amsterdam.

Discussing the secret to their five-decade long relationship, the British actor admitted they have never compromised on their goals in a bid to stay together.

Margolyes told the outlet: We were able to lead our lives without diminishing them. I didnt want her to have to give up anything. And I didnt want to give up anything.

Read the full interview now in British Vogue / Tim Walker

I wanted my cake and I wanted to eat it too. And so far, its worked.

The screen star revealed that they have a civil partnership and explained that its more to do with legal protection.

The Ends of Days star added that she counts herself lucky that she can have a less conventional relationship compared to most in long-term partnerships.

She claimed: Gay people have the luck to be able to fashion the relationship they want. Its much more flexible for us.

I think we have more freedom than [straight people] do. Particularly gay boys, theyre always f***ing everything. Its amazing. I dont know how they get away with it.

Adding: I think gay people are very lucky, because we are not conventional, we are a group slightly apart. It gives us an edge. Were good artists, were good musicians.

The award-winning actress, known for her foul mouth and lovable eccentricity, concluded that gay people are not conventional and she wouldnt want to be straight for anything.

The Blackadder star features along with other LGBTQ+ pioneers, including Ncuti Gatwa, Janelle Monae, Rina Sawayama, Bella Ramsey and Emma DArcy, in the July edition of British Vogue.
M olly-Mae Hague has revealed her hopes to have a second child with boyfriend Tommy Fury  but warned fans to not expect a big announcement any time soon.

The Love Island star welcomed their daughter Bambi in January, and she has been candid on social media as she navigates her way through first-time motherhood.

Despite only having had their little one five months ago, the 24-year-old responded to questions on Tuesday about whether the couple are planning another child any time soon in an Instagram Q&A.

One fan asked her: Are there plans for a little Bambi sister or brother soon?!

The reality TV star revealed that in the future she and Tommy would like to have another addition and branded those with more than one child as superheroes.

She wrote: Definitely not for a good while.

She shared her family plans during an Instagram Q&A / Instagram/Molly Mae Hague

Some day Ill be ready, but its not unknown that I have found it harder than I expected to (even though Im doing so much better now).

Plus I dont know how anyone looks after more than one baby, youre superheroes!

Hague shot to fame on Love Islands fifth season in 2019, and welcomed child Bambi with her co-star Tommy Fury on 23 January.

Elsewhere, the entrepreneur admitted she was struggling with body confidence after giving birth as she discussed wanting to wear a bikini on holiday in Barbados.

In her latest YouTube video, Hague, who was attending her managers wedding abroad, admitted that her confidence was getting worse despite her hope to embrace her post-partum body.

Speaking from her sun-lounger, she shared: Ive got this swimming costume on for me at the minute swimsuits are the one. Im not a bikini girl at the minute because I just dont have the confidence.

I didnt really have the confidence for bikinis before I had a baby.

Hague recently travelled to Barbados with boyfriend Tommy Fury and daughter Bambi / Instagram/Molly Mae Hague

Adding: Right now with my body, I need anything that is going to give me confidence Because I genuinely feel like with time, my confidence with my body is actually getting worse. Its irritating me.

I really felt on this trip that I am going to embrace it, I dont care, my new mum body, Im proud of it, and I am, but at the same time Im finding it hard to accept that Ive got a real journey to start if I want to feel more confident in my body.

Despite her want to feel more at ease with herself, she admitted she doesnt picture herself putting on a two-piece again.

I was speaking about it to my family. I just dont ever picture myself putting on a bikini ever again, I never did [feel confident] in the first place. Theres just no way, she continued.

Before I had a baby I didnt feel confident in a bikini, so after having a baby I dont picture myself ever thinking, Ill slip a bikini on and feel amazing.

I want to and I want to come on here and say I feel confident and amazing, but thats not how Im feeling at the minute.
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Mobile giants Vodafone and CK Hutchison, which owns Three UK, have agreed a merger to create Britains biggest phone operator.

The deal, reportedly worth 15 billion, would make the new company larger than BT-owned EE, which is currently the countrys largest provider.

If its approved by the Competition and Markets Authority, the two groups say they want to build one of Europes most advanced standalone 5G networks

In opening remarks at Britains Covid-19 Inquirys, lead counsel Hugo Keith KC says the government gave very little thought into the potentially massive impact of a pandemic lockdown.

The hearings now preparing to take oral evidence from its first witnesses.

There were over 220,000 deaths in the UK where Covid mentioned on the death certificate,

A studys found employees who work with artificial intelligence software are likely to be lonelier, struggle to sleep and have a drink at the end of the working day.

University of Georgia researchers undertook experiments in the US, Taiwan, Indonesia and Malaysia, where they found the march of the robots was making the workforce sad as they analysed feelings of loneliness, attachment anxiety and sense of belonging.

Plus, Nasas Mars map project, tiny island gets space broadband, glow-worm romance dimmed by street lights, original Assassins Creed and GTA IV still retro games hits.

Listen above, and find us on your Spotify Daily Drive or wherever you stream your podcasts.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and the head of Mali's junta, Colonel Assimi Goita, discussed security and economic relations between their two countries, both sides reported on Wednesday.

During the phone talks, "at the initiative of the Malian side", the two leaders paid "particular attention" to trade and economic relations, including the delivery of cereals, fertilisers and fuel from Russia to Mali, the Kremlin said in a press release.

Colonel Goita thanked Putin "for the humanitarian aid provided, as well as for the help given to ensure security, neutralise the terrorist threat and stabilise the situation" in his country, the Kremlin added.

The landlocked Sahel state has been battling a security crisis since jihadist and separatist insurgencies broke out in the north in 2012.

It has since August 2020 been ruled by a military junta, which broke a long-standing alliance with France and other Western partners in the fight against jihadism and turned to Russia for political and military assistance.

Mali received shipments of Russian military supplies in March and August 2022, and again in January 2023.

In March, the Malian army received several aircraft from Russia.

"Very satisfied with my telephone conversation" with Putin, Goita said on Twitter.

"We had direct and sincere exchanges on subjects of common interest and on our desire to strengthen our diplomatic, economic and security relations", he added.

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Agriculture Minister-designate says to request ban on Ukrainian grain imports until year end.

The Minister-designate for the portfolio of Agriculture and Rural Development, Florin Barbu, announced on Wednesday that he will ask the European Commission to extend the restrictions on cereal imports from Ukraine until the end of the year, but also to introduce new products on this list, told Agerpres.

"The ban is until 15 September. I will have a discussion with my colleagues from other countries and we will ask for an extension until 31 December. As Minister, I will try, in addition to the products we are talking about here, rapeseed, wheat, corn, sunflower, to introduce other products, up to 10 products," said Florin Barbu.

He said during hearings in Parliament's specialist committees that honey and meat could be included on the list of import bans, but also "other Romanian priorities, so that Romanian farmers can market the products they produce in Romania."

Asked what the urgent implementation of the new concept of economic patriotism, an objective included in the Government Programme, means in concrete terms, Barbu answered that it is about a structure that will allow Romanian products to reach the shelves of all supermarkets and markets in Romania.

In his opinion, accessing European funds is the most important thing he will take care of after becoming minister. "I will launch all programmes through the National Strategic Programme and Romanian farmers will have access to simplified guidelines so that projects for the next 4 years, 2023-2027, can be implemented," Florin Barbu said.

The members of the specialist committees on Wednesday issued a favourable opinion on Barbu's nomination for the Agriculture portfolio with 29 votes in favour, 7 votes against and no abstentions.
Majority of the UAE construction professionals (owners, contractors or industry consultants) are ready to welcome a government-monitored national construction playbook to safeguard the industry, according to a recent poll by British Business Group (BBG).

Nearly 64% of respondents believe the adoption of the same principles of the UK Construction Playbook would benefit the UAE's construction sector and protect the underlying performance of the industry, stated BBG.

A resounding 90% of those surveyed feel there has not, to date, been enough focus at the outset of a project on the whole life cost of the project.

In addition, 65% of respondents feel adopting the UK Construction Playbook approach to a UAE version would drive earlier stakeholder engagement, team collaboration and whole life perspective of the planning, delivery and operation of major projects, it added.

Christopher Seymour, Mott MacDonald's Head of Strategy and Investment Middle East, Africa and South Asia, said: "The UK Construction Playbook was well received by both supply chain and clients when it was released in 2020 and this survey demonstrates cross-sector support is extremely strong in the UAE for a guide based on similar themes."

Seymour was speaking at BBG's Construction Working Group, held in Dubai today (June 14).

Nearly 90% agree a playbook could enable all stakeholders to bring enhanced efficiency, innovation, transparency and standardisation to the sector, which can positively impact the returns achieved for all, he noted.

Suzannah Newboult, partner at the global law firm DLA Piper, said: "It is great to see the industry's confidence in the adoption of a construction playbook, which, if appropriately monitored, could result in the use of standard form contracts and risks being shared fairly. If properly implemented, a construction playbook would play a major part in establishing new market norms for the industry."

As per the BBG poll, the same percentage of those polled agree a playbook implemented and monitored by an appropriately designated government body to safeguard the underlying performance of the industry would drive the change required to deal with the challenges experienced by many project stakeholders.

Furthermore, over 80% of respondents feel the playbook, implemented and monitored through Project Outcome Profiles, or scorecards, by an appropriately designated government body, will provide the confidence required in the region's construction industry to attract further foreign direct investment (FDI) and stimulate the sector.

Almost all respondents agree a Construction Act codifying payment timeframes, adjudication and certification terms should be formulated and enforced.

Reacting to the survey results, Newboult said: "Backed up by a Construction Act in due course, we could see much more confidence in delivering projects here and reattract some of the major international contractors we have lost from the market."

"With the playbook would come transparency of the project pipeline, which more than 90 per cent agreed would help investment planning and regional commitment. Furthermore, 85 per cent support the concept of a playbook, which can bring about the principles required for contracts to be in a more standard form with risk being shared more fairly between the parties," he added.

General Manager of BBG in Dubai and the Northern Emirates, Katy Holmes, said: "Since the BBG Construction Sector Working Group's inception in 2019, it has sought to provide a collective view of British construction and related companies to share with the UK and UAE governments."

"The survey shows a great willingness by companies keen to work together across the sector to improve the FDI environment, which will, in turn, support the UAE's progressive growth plans," he noted.

Most respondents predict the introduction of a playbook could have additional benefits, with nearly 90 per cent surveyed believing a UAE-specific playbook can emphasise environmental, social and governance principles to ensure organisations take the steps towards becoming more environmentally sustainable throughout the entire life cycle of a capital project.-TradeArabia News Service
Israel carried out air strikes near Damascus early Wednesday, wounding a Syrian soldier, state news agency SANA said.

Explosions were heard in the Syrian capital early Wednesday, an AFP correspondent reported.

"At around 01:05 am (2205 GMT), the Israeli enemy carried out an aerial aggression from the direction of the occupied Golan Heights targeting several positions southwest of Damascus," SANA cited a military source as saying.

The source did not provide details on the targets and said the strikes "severely wounded" a soldier and caused material damage.

Syria's air defence intercepted some of the Israeli missiles, the source added.

The Israeli strikes targeted "arms depots belonging to pro-Iran fighters, and caused a fire," said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based monitor that relies on a vast network of sources on the ground.

During more than a decade of war in Syria, Israel has launched hundreds of air strikes on its territory.

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Authorities within the Nadlac Border Crossing Point (PTF) apprehended 27 migrants hiding in a truck driven by a Turkish citizen, transporting soft drinks to Austria.

The truck was checked on the way out of the country "based on the risk profile," according to Arad Border Police, and among the bottles of soda there were illegal travelers.

"The persons in question were taken in to the border police headquarters for investigation. Within the checks, our colleagues established that the persons are citizens of Bangladesh, Iraq and Pakistan, aged between 20 and 47, who legally entered Romania based on their personal documents," Arad Border Police informed on Wednesday.

Also in the Nadlac area, 500 meters from the border with Hungary, the border policemen noticed a group of people moving on foot, in the field, towards the neighboring country.

"They proceeded to move to the place where the persons were and intercepted them. As they did not justify their presence in the area, the persons were taken in to the sector headquarters for check-ups. Following the investigations, it was established that they are six Sri Lankan citizens, aged between 30 and 48, who legally entered Romania," the source conveyed.

In the first case, the truck driver is being investigated for migrant trafficking. AGERPRES
Caciu: By the end of June, second tranche under recovery, resilience plan will hopefully be out.

Adrian Caciu, the minister-designate for European investment and projects, said on Wednesday that he wants Romania to collect the money from the second tranche under the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR) by the end of June, told Agerpres.

"By the end of June, we will hopefully collect this money from the second tranche under PNRR. This payment request is quite late and this is the first thing I will do when I take over the portfolio. We have a discussion with the European Commission. So far as I know, the European Commission next week has to consider the request and give us the final answer to the payment request, after which the payment process begins," Caciu said at the Parliament House.

Asked if he left money in the national budget for all the measures on the government agenda, Caciu said: "Solutions will be found because everything means looking at the context and seeing the implementation schedule for some measures. It is the money that was scheduled for this year and, for sure, Minister Bolos can answer a lot of questions (...)"

He added that new solutions will be identified along the way to support people on low income in Romania.

He went on to say that he collaborated very closely with the former minister of European investment and projects while he was the finance minister.

"I am really happy that the former minister of European funds will be the new minister of finance and the former minister of finance will be the new minister of European funds. The two ministries are closely linked and I collaborated very well with Mr. Bolos this year and a half, at least on PNRR," said Caciu.
DefMin Tilvar, Georgia's Matiashvili discuss Black Sea security.

Black Sea security and diversifying bilateral military co-operation were among the subjects discussed by Romania's Defence Minister Angel Tilvar, Romania's Chief of Defence Daniel Petrescu, and Chief of Georgian Defence Forces Giorgi Matiashvili, told Agerpres.

Tilvar highlighted the upward trend of relations between the two armies, as a result of the signing of a collaboration agreement between Romania's Defence Ministry (MApN) and Georgia's Defence Ministry at the end of 2022, according to MApN.

"Related to common areas of interest, such as military training and education, we reiterate our support for Georgia's Euro-Atlantic path and the continuation of the necessary reforms to secure the success of the goal. Romania's commitment in this regard is visible through the contribution to the implementation of the Substantial NATO-Georgia Package (SNGP)," according to MApN.

Amid the war waged by the Russian Federation in Ukraine, expanding co-operation relations and supporting the armies of the partner states - preponderantly those from the extended Black Sea region - are among the strategic priorities of the Romanian Army.

Petrescu said that the presence of the Romanian and Georgian troops in multinational exercises held on the soil of the two countries remains the pillar sustaining their co-operation.

"The 'Sea Shield', 'Trojan Footprint' and 'Junction Strike' exercises in Romania, and the 'Agile Spirit', 'Noble Partner' and 'NATO-GEO' in Georgia are constant training platforms. Through training activities we aim to increase both interoperability and mutual trust, as well as to improve joint response to humanitarian crises," Petrescu is quoted as saying.

Matiashvili visits Romania, June 13-15, at the invitation of Petrescu.

He is scheduled to attend the Day of Distinguished Visitors of the Dacian Strike 23 exercise, at the Smardan range, Galati County, and to visit local military bases.
Foreign Minister-designate Odobescu says Romania's accession to Schengen, a priority, hoping solution by year-end.

Foreign Minister-designate Luminita Odobescu said on Wednesday, at the hearings of Parliament's special committees, that Romania's accession to Schengen is a priority objective and that she hopes to find a solution by the end of this year, told Agerpres.

"For accession to the Schengen area, a sustained effort of all the institutions involved is still needed. It is a priority objective and in close coordination with all the institutions with responsibilities in this area. We still have to convince one member state. We are counting on the support not only of the European Commission, but also of the European partners to identify a solution, and we hope that we will be able to do so by the end of this year, because Romania has proven and continues to prove that it is a security provider that responsibly protects its external borders. I would just like to give the recent example of the pilot project we are carrying out with the European Commission to demonstrate once again the good practices and the way Romania knows how to manage the EU's external border. The Interior Minister has recently agreed a concrete action plan with his Austrian counterparts. We hope that these arguments be sufficient in our dialogue with the Austrian side to identify a solution as soon as possible regarding Romania's accession to the Schengen area," said Odobescu.

She stressed that Romania's accession to Schengen is an objective that will be followed with the utmost attention.

"We have a window of opportunity for this objective (...) By the end of the year it is our objective to bring our accession to the Schengen area," added the Foreign Minister-designate.

She mentioned that foreign policy will continue to be guided by three fundamental principles, namely strengthening and consolidating Romania's role within the EU and NATO, deepening the strategic partnership with the US and promoting and respecting democratic principles, the rule of law, international values and order.

Luminita Odobescu said that in the context of the war in Ukraine, one of the priorities is to continue supporting this country.

"I am convinced that with regard to national minorities and the Bystroe Canal, through a pragmatic approach and dialogue, we will identify together with the other institutions - the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Environment, Transport, etc. - solutions to meet the current challenges," said the Minister-designate, adding that the objective is to mirror rights for the Romanian minority in Ukraine, just as Romania grants rights to the Ukrainian minority.

The Foreign Minister-designate also mentioned that support for the Republic of Moldova remains a priority. She also indicated the continuation of sanctions against Russia through the adoption of a new European sanctions package.

Luminita Odobescu stressed the importance of strengthening strategic partnerships.

She said that another important dossier for Romania is the Multiannual Financial Framework, pointing out that next week the European Commission will come up with a new proposal and that is extremely important for Romania to continue to obtain funds for cohesion policy and the Common Agricultural Policy.

Odobescu also underlined the role in NATO and the importance of the strategic partnership with the USA. The Foreign Affairs Minister-designate pointed out that Romania will continue its active steps to accede to the Visa Waiver programme.

Luminita Odobescu also pointed out that Romania's accession to the OECD is an important objective and that there is an action plan in this regard. She also said that there is a plan to open new consulates in the United States of America, UK and Germany.

Luminita Odobescu received, on Wednesday, a favourable opinion for the Foreign Affairs Minister office from the special parliamentary committees.
1818 - Birth of writer, poet and politician Vasile Alecsandri, founding member of the Romanian Academic Society (d. August 22, 1890)

1848 - Merger of revolutionary governments formed in Islaz (June 9) and Bucharest (June 11) with Metropolitan Neofit as President of the Provisional Government

1848 - Bucharest revolutionary government decrees the establishment of the national flag, in three colours: blue, yellow and red, with the motto Justice- Brotherhood on it

1877 - Romanian artillery batteries placed at Islaz, Corabia, Bechet, Calafat perform intense, ceaseless bombardment over the Turkish positions thus hindering the Ottoman troops to get to Nikopol area. As many as 150 pontoons and 60 rafts are laid down on the Olt River, safely, towards the Zimnicea - Svishtov sector, the area where the Russian troops make it to cross and form a strong bridgehead on the right bank of the river

1920 - Birth of composer and conductor Mihai Brediceanu (d. March 4, 2005)

1936 - Birth of actor Cornel Coman (d. 16 January 1981)

1941 - Birth of mathematician Viorel Barbu, Romanian Academy member (d. April 21, 1993)

1941 - Birth of composer, piano player Vasile Vasilache (d. 1991)

2000 - Second ministerial-level reunion of the Intergovernmental Conference for Romania's accession to the European Union takes place in Luxembourg

2006 - European Parliament adopts with a wide margin of votes a resolution for the support of the accession of Romania and Bulgaria to the European Union on January 1, 2007

2012 - Death of composer Dumitru Capoianu (b. 19 October 1929)

2021 - President Klaus Iohannis attends the NATO Summit in Brussels, at the end of which he stresses that the decisions made during the meeting are in line with Romania's security interests.AGERPRES
Ministerial hearings/Predoiu wants new approach of Schengen area accession issue.

Catalin Predoiu, the pick for home affairs minister in the incoming government, said on Wednesday after hearings by Parliament's committees that it would be risky for him to predict the date on which Romania will enter the Schengen area, but he considers that Romania has to do more than "stand at the Schengen gate and say that we are technically prepared," as complex action is necessary because "locked gates open from the inside."

After the hearings in Parliament, Predoiu was asked by journalists if there are hopes for Romania to join the Schengen Area while he is the home affairs minister of the country, told Agerpres.

"First of all, speaking of Schengen, my thoughts go to all those who, within the Home Affairs Ministry (MAI) , deal with the security of Romania's borders, because they have succeeded in raising the security of Romania's borders to a European standard, to a Schengen standard , which is demonstrated by all the technical evaluation missions. So, my respect to those who work in the field of border security. I believe that Romania can even export expertise in the field of border security," said Predoiu.

In his opinion, Romania should do more than stand at the "Schengen gate," and devise complex action because "locked gates open from the inside."

"Without a doubt, there is this objective on MAI's agenda. Further, of course, the necessary strategies and tactics must be thought out, but I don't think that's a problem that only concerns Romania; I don't think it's only a problem for Romania, it's one and the same problem of the application of treaties. It is also a matter to the attention of the European Commission and, not coincidentally, the European Commission supports Romania for accession to the Schengen Area. It is also a problem of the other member states that has supported Romania. So it is a European subject that should be dealt with in a European manner and I think we need to think about a complex action related to this subject. I don't think that just standing at the Schengen gate and saying that we are technically prepared is enough, I think we have to do a little more than that; as a rule the locked gates open from the inside and I think we should understand more of what is happening inside, what the grievances and challenges of the member states of the Schengen area are, understand them and tackle them with a suitable strategy. But, at this point, to say more than that would be amateurish, and I'm not a fan of amateurism. I think it would be risky to make a prediction at the moment; it would be even more than just risky, it would be unprofessional," said Predoiu.
National Liberal Party (PNL) Chairman and President of the Senate Nicolae Ciuca stated on Wednesday that in the government programme, there are included policies of the PNL and the Social Democratic Party (PSD), the programme having been drafted together by the specialized structures of the two parties, underscoring that the future Finance minister, Marcel Bolos, will take the necessary measures in order to increase collection, continue the absorption of European funds, as well as investments.

"In the drafting of this programme there are the policies of the PNL and the PSD's policies. The programme has been drafted together by the specialized structures of each party, with the contribution and based on the experience of government activity. At the moment, I have also discussed with Marcel Ciolacu, with Finance minister Caciu, with probably the future Finance minister, Marcel Bolos, what will be the necessary measures to increase collection," the former prime minister stated.

It is essential to continue to absorb European funds and to continue to invest in order to finance these measures.

"It is absolutely mandatory. That is why, through the measures taken in 2022, in order to have the highest possible absorption, they must be continued this year and intensified as much as possible. We have seen how much European funds have helped us. They have helped us in agriculture, we got through last year, which was not necessarily a good agricultural year because of the drought and we know what the effects were on the harvest. However, we have been able to prepare the autumn campaign and enter the spring campaign this year based on the funds made available by the EU. The development of the energy component has been done based on EU funds," Ciuca mentioned. AGERPRES
The future government aims to create more jobs, but also better-paying ones, so that at the end of its mandate, every employee will earn "at least 500 euros a month and the average net salary will reach 1,000 euros", Prime Minister-designate Marcel Ciolacu said on Tuesday.

He presented, at the end of the Social Democratic Party (PSD) National Political Council meeting, the proposals for Social Democrat ministers and the main parts of the government programme.

"Romanian workers must be encouraged to stay in Romania through measures. That is why we will gradually reduce labour taxation, especially for those with low and medium incomes. Today we have one of the highest tax burdens in the European Union on low wages, twice as high as in Germany. In addition, we all know that one third of employees in Romania now receive a minimum wage of 3,000 RON gross, that is 1,900 RON net. Based on dialogue with trade unions and employers, we will increase the minimum wage to reduce the number of full-time employees in poverty. Everyone who works must be guaranteed a decent standard of living. At the end of this mandate, every employee should earn at least 500 euros per month and the average net wage should reach 1,000 euros," Ciolacu said.

In addition, he added, all Romanians with low and medium incomes, whether salaried or retired, will continue to be supported by the state.

"All the forms of aid that we have at the moment, vouchers for food and for paying energy and gas bills, will continue," Ciolacu said.

He reiterated that the priority focus of the future executive's public policies will be on education and health services.

"As regards education, we have made a commitment to accelerate salary increases through the new unitary salary law. And I say it loud and clear: we will do so. To reduce school drop-out and provide equal opportunities to education, I propose a series of solutions financed from the budget and from European funds. For children in need - vouchers for one hot meal a day, school transport, clothing, school supplies twice a year and psychological counselling. But a better life is not possible without an efficient and functional health system for all Romanians. Romania still has a major problem with unequal access to quality health care. We want to modernise and equip family medicine practices in small towns and rural areas. In addition, we will increase and equip mobile health units for tests and modernise and equip more than 70 public outpatient clinics, mostly in disadvantaged areas," Ciolacu added. AGERPRES
Special pensions outlays under new provisions to get close to contributory system.

The retirement age will increase in the case of all categories of special pensions, and the time against which the calculation will be made will increase, as the time spent in activity will gradually increase, so that the outlays related to the special pensions will converge a lot towards the contributory system, Labour Minister-designate Marius Budai said on Wednesday after hearings by Parliament's joint special committees, told Agerpres.

"First of all, the retirement age will increase; secondly, the time against which the calculation will be made will increase, so that calculations will no longer be made against the last six months, the last month or the last 12 months - gradually we will reach the incomes of the entire period, which means an alignment of contributions. (...)," said Budai when asked by journalists about the modification of special pensions, after he indicated at the hearings that he was waiting for the European Commission's report on this subject.

At the hearings, Budai said that the retirement age will increase to 65 for all employees, except for magistrates, who will retire at 60, after a five-year transition period.

Regarding the taxation of such pensions currently being paid, Budai said that the amount that exceeds the average gross pay will be taxed, adding that the contribution part will not be affected.

Regarding the increase to EUR 500 in the net minimum wage over the next two years, as provided for in the new government agenda, Budai said that there is a European directive that has to be applied by the member states within two years of publication - it was issued in 2022 - but there are also two aspects that has to be taken into account: talks with the business community and talks with the unions.
The Hungarian Democratic Union of Romania (UDMR) will not support the incoming government at the investiture vote on Thursday in Parliament, according to acting Development Minister Cseke Attila.

"At tomorrow's investiture vote, UDMR will not support this government; it would be very interesting to support this government after being kicked out of the ruling coalition. Obviously, during the parliamentary activity, all the good, professional things that we consider important and effective for Romania and for the local communities will be supported by UDMR," Cseke told a news conference.

He added that at the hearings of the ministerial candidates on Wednesday, UDMR voted "for" in certain cases. "And the colleagues will vote for where we know the activity of the candidate, first of all the professional activity," said Cseke.

As for the UDMR members holding senior governmental positions, they will leave together with the UDMR ministers, added Cseke.

According to him, the power swap inside the ruling coalition should have been made exactly as it is in the protocol, "and regarding the ministries held by UDMR, the protocol was very clear, in the sense that they are not part of this swap agreement."

"We understand the need for compromise, we understand the need for flexibility, but we also cannot sit with our heads completely bowed and to have everything taken from something from which, according to the protocol, absolutely nothing should have been taken." AGERPRES
At least 79 migrants died after their fishing boat sank off the Peloponnese, Greece's coastguard said Wednesday, as fears mounted that the death toll could rise much higher.

Some 100 people were rescued after the boat capsized in international waters in the Ionian Sea in an operation complicated by strong winds, the coastguard said.

Coastguard spokesman Nikolaos Alexiou told state TV ERT the search and rescue effort would continue during the night with flares fired by a C-130 military transport plane.

The boat "capsized and sank" early Wednesday in a location that is "among the deepest in the Mediterranean," he said.

A migration ministry source told AFP that according to the coastguard there could have been "hundreds" of people on the boat.

"We fear there will be a very large number of missing persons," the official said.

The coastguard spokesman said "exact numbers cannot be safely given" on those aboard, but the boat was "overloaded."

"The fishing boat was 25-30 metres long. Its deck was full of people, and we assume the interior was just as full," he told ERT.

The survivors are mainly from Syria, Pakistan and Egypt, Alexiou said.

The International Organization for Migration (IOM) acknowledged fears of a large number of missing people, noting in a tweet: "We fear more lives were lost. Initial reports suggest up to 400 people were onboard."

Greece's head of state, President Katerina Sakellaropoulou, visited the port of Kalamata to confer with senior officials on the rescue and accommodation response.

European Commission head Ursula von der Leyen said she was "deeply saddened by the news of the shipwreck off the Greek coast and the many reported deaths" and "very concerned by the number of missing people."

"We must continue to work together, with member states and third countries, to prevent such tragedies," she said.

The worst migrant tragedy in Greece was in June 2016 when at least 320 people were listed as dead or missing, according to AFP records going back to 1993.

The IOM until Wednesday had listed 48 migrants dead and missing in the eastern Mediterranean so far this year, compared to 378 a year earlier.

Along with coastguard patrol boats and a navy frigate, the rescue operation included a helicopter as well as seven other boats that were in the area.

Passengers 'refused help'

Greek media reported that nearly 30 people have been taken to the port's hospital. The coastguard said four in a more serious condition were transferred to hospital by helicopter.

The coastguard said a surveillance plane with Europe's Frontex agency had spotted the boat on Tuesday afternoon, but the passengers had "refused any help".

It added that none on board were wearing life jackets.

Authorities said it appeared the migrants had departed from Libya and were heading for Italy.

The migration ministry would begin looking for accommodation for those rescued once they are processed by the coastguard to determine gender and nationality, an official said.

Television footage showed emergency tents being set up at Kalamata.

Also Wednesday, a sailing boat in distress carrying about 80 migrants off Crete was rescued by a coastguard patrol and towed to port, Greece's port police said.

Along with Italy and Spain, Greece has been one of the main landing points for tens of thousands of people seeking to reach Europe from Africa and the Middle East.

Another 90 people in a sailboat, more than a third of them children, were rescued near the island of Cythera over the weekend.

Greece is also facing an increase of crossing attempts from Turkey on southern routes near the Cyclades islands and toward the Peloponnese peninsula, with boats hoping to avoid patrols in the northern Aegean Sea.

Rescue operations are common, but last month the Greek government came under international pressure over video footage reportedly showing the forceful expulsion of migrants who were set adrift at sea.

Greece and other EU member states on the southern and southeastern rim of the bloc say they are being unfairly tasked with managing arrivals of undocumented migrants.

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Romania is an essential ally and strategic partner of the UK and what it is doing in order to help Ukraine regain its full sovereignty and enjoy full territorial independence is at the top of the allies' responses, Ambassador of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland in Bucharest Andrew Noble stated on Wednesday, in the opening of a security and defence exhibition, at the Marriott Hotel in Bucharest.

At this exhibition, organised by the British Embassy in Bucharest together with the UK Defence and Security Exports (UK DSE) and the British Trade Association (ADS), approximately 35 UK defence and security companies are presenting their products and activities.

"There is a phrase which you all know, 'In times of difficulty, you find out who your friends are.' And in the UK we know who our friends are and we know that at the top of our list of friends is Romania. (...) But it is also a country of clear determination to protect our way of life, to protect freedom and to protect the freedom of our cousins in other countries that are facing intolerable pressures from the illegal invasion by Russia. And we know that what Romania is doing to help Ukraine regain its full sovereignty and to enjoy its full territorial independence is at the very top of allied responses. I wish I could say more than that, but I follow your Government's policies. Romania's achievements in all fields are remarkable and I can't not take this opportunity with so many members of Romanian armed forces in the room to thank you, ladies and gentlemen, in particular, for what you are helping to happen in terms of assisting Ukraine to throw out the Russian invaders. This is a real opportunity for British businesses and Romania to forge long-term relationships," ambassador Noble stated.

According to the UK diplomat, the Romanian-British strategic partnership in the defence area means, beside the military exercises and joint training, "ensuring that in the future, we have available the equipment we need to defend our alliance and our states".

"And Romania is a key ally and a key strategic partner, it's one of the countries that we expect through defence equipment collaboration to be helping define the next generation of military equipment, because Romanian soldiers, Romanian security personnel, whether they are acting internally or externally, understand this part of the world extremely well, this place with kinetic dangers regrettably that we have to plan to counter and to deter into the future," he stated.

Andrew Noble pointed out that the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on defence and military cooperation signed by London and Bucharest in 2009 is not just a piece of paper, but the document which defines a cooperation that is growing every year, covering important areas.

According to the British diplomat, by the end of this year more than 2,000 British personnel will come to Romania for specific military tasks, in order to work with the Romanian side on how to deter and win in the face of today's challenges and the future ones.

The UK exhibiting companies include AVoptics Limited, Babcock International Group, BAE Systems, Camcode Global, Chelton, Commtech, FCDO Services, General Dynamics, JFD, Systems, Marshall Land Operational Solutions Ltd, Oxley Group, Plexus Corp., Revector, Scanna, Sonic Videosoft Global Ltd.

Also invited to the exhibition were representatives of the Defence Ministry, the Interior Ministry, the Romanian Intelligence Service (SRI), the Foreign Intelligence Service (SIE), Special Telecommunications Service (STS), the Protection and Guard Service (SPP), Parliament, the Economy Ministry, etc., as well as the Romanian defence industry.

The UK is the world's second largest defence exporter after the US, with a turnover of 22.8 billion GBP in 2022, delivering equipment to support armed forces and security services around the world. On the security and resilience side, the UK provides advanced digital and physical capabilities to secure the country's advantage. The sector is growing exponentially and currently employs 145,000 people directly, including 5,800 apprentices, a highly skilled workforce that is a major contributor to economic growth. AGERPRES
USR congress to convene on Saturday, unveil 'Romania 2024' agenda, general election preparations.

A convention of the Political Congress of the Save Romania Union (USR) will take place on Saturday in Bucharest, expected to be attended by 800 delegates from all over Romania, told Agerpres.

"During the convention, USR national chairman Catalin Drula will unveil USR's Romania 2024 vision. The congress will also adopt a mandate for preparing the 2024 elections," informs USR.

Late this May, Drula announced that on June 17 the USR congress will convene to make decisions, including to build an alternative around the Save Romania Union for next year's elections.

"We have a big congress convention on June 17. We are at a difficult point for Romania. And our congress is about preparing election year 2024, together with all our colleagues from the party, from all the counties (...) We will also have debates, we will also make decisions to put ourselves in the best position to build this alternative around USR for next year," Drula told a news conference at USR's headquarters.
After a 22-year reign as the bestselling beer in America, Bud Light slipped to No. 2 in the month of May.

The drop in sales was part of the fallout after the Anheuser-Busch InBev brand partnered with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney in April. People who were offended by the brand marketing the beer with a transgender person began an informal boycott.

The brand took further heat when its vice president of marketing, Alissa Gordon Heinerscheid, attempted to explain the move by saying, Bud Light has been kind of a brand of fratty, kind of out-of-touch humor that she hoped to change by reaching out to Mulvaney.

Also contributing to Bud Lights slide has been a rapid increase in popularity of Modelo Especial beer, which overtook Bud Light in May. Modelo Especials sales have been rising for months, but have increased particularly since the Bud Light controversy began.

What sometimes does get lost is the fact that, year-to-date, Bud Light is still the No. 1 ranked beer in America on all fronts. Bud Light still has the edge when it comes to sheer volume sales year-to-date and the month of May, said Dave Williams, vice president of analytics and insight at Bump Williams Consulting, which analyzes the alcoholic beverage industry.

Since the controversy began, Bud Light sales have been down from about 25% to about 30% each week compared with the same week the year before, Williams said. Modelo Especial sales have been up around 9% for each week of the year.

If the trend continues, Modelo will replace Bud Light as the top selling beer in America by the years end, he said.

In some cities including Chicago, LGBTQ groups have called for a counter-protest against Anheuser-Busch products, arguing that the companys CEO, Michel Doukeris, offered only weak support of Mulvaney. In an earnings call to investors, Doukeris twice said that a can of Bud Light with Mulvaneys face on it, which was given to Mulvaney in honor of 365 days of girlhood, is not a formal campaign or advertisement.

Jerry Dallape, owner of Deans Liquor in Collinsville, said he saw no difference in Bud Light sales for the first couple of weeks of the controversy. But for the last few weeks, the drop in Bud Light sales has been notable.

This past week we had the (International) Horseradish Festival and we saw probably a quarter of the sales we usually do, he said. The festival was held June 2 and 3 in Collinsville.

With inventory left over from the festival, he said he ordered only about half the amount of Bud Light last week that he usually does. Meanwhile, Mexican beers such as Modelo and Corona are selling particularly well.

And so are other Anheuser-Busch products.

Bud Select is still selling. Budweiser is selling about the same as it did. But Bud Light isnt selling, and I know why. Youd think people wouldnt buy the other products, but they do. Its funny to me, he said.

Modelo Especial is brewed and distributed in the United States by Constellation Brands. In the rest of the world, it is owned by Anheuser-Busch InBev.

According to published reports, grocery, convenience store and liquor store sales of Bud Light fell 23% to $297.3 million in May, or 7.3% of all beer sales in those stores. Modelo Especial sales in those locations jumped 15% to $333.1 million for the month, totaling 8.4% of U.S. retail beer sales for the month.

Anheuser-Busch stock closed at $56.67 Wednesday, up 1.89%. The stock has dropped 15% since partnering with Mulvaney on April 1.
MASCOUTAH  The recent opening of a major expansion of MidAmerica St. Louis Airport's terminal was marked at a ribbon-cutting ceremony Tuesday attended by Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker and other officials.

The project added more than 41,000 square feet to the terminal, almost doubling its size. The expansion area, which opened Friday, includes two new gates, increasing MidAmerica's total to five.

Other highlights include a new TSA screening area, new family rest rooms, a nursing room, a relief area for service animals, a larger departure lounge with additional concessions and a storm shelter.

The $34 million project, funded mainly by federal and state grants, also includes yet-to-be-completed work in the older part of the terminal  including baggage system improvements, a new gift shop and a community conference room. That's expected to be finished later this year.

MidAmerica's commercial carrier, Allegiant Air, now averages 70 inbound and outbound flights a week to 12 cities in Florida, South Carolina, Georgia, Nevada and Arizona.

Also under construction is a $37.7 million project to add new taxiway pavement and a new taxiway bridge to serve a new Boeing refueling drone plant set to open next year.
Natalie Merchant is having a day.

She just got home, having caught a ride with a friendly tow truck driver, she says. Her car broke down, and her other car, electric, is in the shop. And now shes got a couple of interviews to knock out.

It all worked out, Merchant says, still managing to sound warm and unfrazzled. But all the other stuff I had planned to do today, like packing  Im playing at Lincoln Center, and Im going into the city in the morning  hasnt happened yet.

In April, Merchant, a known figure on the music scene since coming to prominence in the 1980s with 10,000 Maniacs, released Keep Your Courage, her ninth solo album and first in nearly a decade. Shes promoting it with a tour that includes select dates with symphony orchestras, including a concert June 22 with the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra.

Im really excited to play with them, she says. That is one of the best symphonies in the country.

Merchants return to recording and touring did not come without its complications. There was the pandemic, of course. And just as lockdowns were beginning, she had emergency cervical spinal surgery. So I spent a couple of months in a neck brace, sleeping in a chair sitting up, she says.

Worse, the operation caused her to lose her singing voice.

They had to cut over my vocal cords, she says. But the surgeon was so skilled that he didnt damage them. I couldnt sing with my real voice, though; I didnt have control over pitch. I could sing in falsetto, but I couldnt find my full voice. And that went on for months.

To a degree, the pandemic influenced the kind of songs she wrote for Keep Your Courage.

It was the lack of intimacy, she says. Not even romantic intimacy, but just missing my friends and my family and wanting to have other people close. Im so thankful that I didnt have to spend the whole lockdown by myself. I know people who did, and it was very traumatic. Its not in our nature to be alone all the time. Were social creatures.

Making the album came with its own set of difficulties. She envisioned the songs with lush arrangements that included horns and strings, but her usual arranger, composer Stephen Barber, was working on his own material and was no longer accepting commissions (though he did agree to arrange one song).

For Merchant, the solution turned out to be working with a total of seven arrangers, including Gabriel Kahane (who performed with the SLSO in October) and Colin Jacobsen (Brooklyn Rider, the Knights, Silk Road Ensemble).

It pushed me out of my comfort zone and made me reach out to a lot of new composers but then created all these new connections, she says.

Recording was comparatively easy once we figured out all the logistics, Merchant says. By that point, she was able to gather the musicians  five at a time, anyway  in a Vermont studio.

It was a dream people had that, one day, we would be able to be in the same room as a trombone and a trumpet  you know, those are superspreader instruments, she says with a laugh. During COVID, you wouldnt want to be in the same place as somebody playing a saxophone!

Among the albums 10 songs are the soulful, uplifting Big Girls and the gospel-meets-Greek-mythology Come on Aphrodite, both of which feature vocalist Abena Koomson-Davis of Resistance Revival Chorus. Irish music ensemble Lunasa appears on Eye of the Storm.

With Tower of Babel, she says, I wanted to capture the zeitgeist. And to me, the zeitgeist of the last 10 years has been fear and confusion. And thats definitely intensified in the last six years.

Sister Tilly, meanwhile, is about the women of her mothers generation who radically altered society. Obviously, when Roe v. Wade is reversed, I think we may have taken these advances so much for granted that they can be taken away. (They were) hard won and easily lost.

Working with a symphony orchestra is gratifying, but it is also grueling. Merchant sends the scores ahead of time so the musicians can rehearse and the soloists can figure out their parts. The day of the show includes an afternoon rehearsal of the entire program, followed by the evenings concert.

Its a long day, she says.

Though we live in the days of streaming music, Merchant is glad that vinyl is making a comeback and that Keep Your Courage exists in the LP format.

It has substance for me, for the first time in years, she says. We actually designed this to be a vinyl release. Weve been selling 60 to 100 of them a night, and I signed every one. So Ive held a lot of them in my hands, and it feels so good. If it just existed in the digital realm, it would feel very different to me. It feels like a real creation this way.

What Natalie Merchant with the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra  When 7:30 p.m. June 22  Where Stifel Theatre, 1400 Market Street  How much $60-$199  More info 314-534-1700; slso.org
If your Fathers Day celebration calls for a full-bodied wine that goes with juicy steaks and barbecue, consider Muddy Arch red wine, a blend from California. Its produced by the Leonard Wine Company, a Napa-based venture launched in 2014 by St. Louisan Tom Leonard and his winemaker son, Chris. The label is a tribute to our citys iconic landmark and the Mississippi River.

Tom is the former longtime president of W.T. Leonard & Associates, a manufacturers representative firm established by his father. After 40 years at the company, Tom sold his interest in 2012 and founded the wine business. It was a dream that began when he was only 14 and working for his grandmothers catering business and her Rock Hill restaurant Chalet de Normandie (now Hacienda). His interest continued to grow during college. Then, after graduating, he became a great fan of Old World wines during eight months of European travel in a Volkswagen van with two friends.

He passed along his love for wine to Chris, who began learning about fine wine at family dinners. Chris took some fall semesters off from college to work harvests in California at highly regarded Napa Valley and Central Coast producers. Following graduation, Chris traveled abroad to work harvests in New Zealand and Italy. He returned to California in 2011 and settled in Napa Valley to pursue his winemaking career.

Muddy Arch 2018 Red Wine, California

Bought  Schnucks, 8650 Big Bend Boulevard, in May for $24.99

Description  Big, bold and juicy, this blend is made from 44% zinfandel, 32% carignane and 24% petite verdot grown in different climates and soils throughout Northern California. Aged in oak for 16 months, it has muscular tannins and tastes of black cherries and blackberries with hints of black pepper and tobacco. A very flavorful red with an alcohol level of 14.8%, this wine calls for hearty fare including grilled red meats, lamb and game.
A new report has provided the first national count of Americans who rely on health care sharing plans  arrangements through which people agree to pay one anothers medical bills  and the number is higher than previously realized.

The report from the Colorado Division of Insurance found that more than 1.7 million Americans rely on sharing plans and that many of the plans require members to ask for charity care before submitting their bills.

The total membership numbers are likely even higher. The state agency collected data from 16 sharing plans across the U.S. but identified five other plans that did not report their data.

These plans cover more people than we had previously known, said JoAnn Volk, co-director of the Center on Health Insurance Reforms at Georgetown University.

Under the arrangements, members, who usually share some religious beliefs, agree to send money each month to cover other members health care bills. At least 11 of the sharing plans that reported data operated in or advertised plans in all 50 states in 2021.

Sharing plans do not guarantee payment for health services and are not held to the same standards and consumer protections as health insurance plans. Sharing plans are not required to cover preexisting conditions or provide the minimum health benefits mandated by the Affordable Care Act. And unlike health insurance, sharing plans can place annual or lifetime caps on payments. A single catastrophic health event can easily exceed a sharing plans limits.

In Colorado, at least 67,000 people were members of sharing plans in 2021, representing about 1 in 4 Coloradans purchasing health care coverage on their own. That rate concerns Kate Harris, a chief deputy commissioner of the Colorado Division of Insurance, which she said regularly receives complaints from sharing plan enrollees.

What we hear from consumers is that when they purchase one of these, they do think there is some guarantee of coverage, for the most part, despite the disclaimers on many of the organizations websites, Harris said.

The Colorado report found that health sharing arrangements often require their members to seek charity care or assistance from providers, governments, or consumer support organizations before submitting sharing requests. Those costs are then shifted to other public or private health plans.

Katy Talento, executive director of the Alliance of Health Care Sharing Ministries, which represents five of the largest and longest-operating sharing plans in the country, said sharing ministries encourage members to act like the uninsured people they are. Such requirements to seek charity care reflect a desire to be good stewards of their members money, Talento said.

Think about it like a soup kitchen, she said.

Fourteen sharing plans reported that Colorado members submitted a cumulative $362 million in health bills in 2021, and nearly $132 million of those requests were approved. The remainder, sharing plan executives told the division, reflected duplicative bills, ineligible charges, negotiated discounts, and the members agreed-upon portion of medical bills.

Its not like every claim line on a health care sharing request is going to be eligible for sharing, Talento said. They have to submit the whole bill. They cant just pull out a piece of it.

But consumer complaints to the Division of Insurance and to consumer assistance programs, such as the Colorado Consumer Health Initiative, show that members do not always realize what sharing plans will cover.

We have seen firsthand the risks that people face when they sign up for these arrangements without recognizing the magnitude of the risk that theyre assuming for their health care costs, said Isabel Cruz, the initiatives policy director.

Talento disputed the notion that members dont know the parameters of their sharing plans.

Thats just suggesting that our members are dumb, she said. Is it likely that somehow our people are going to be willy-nilly jumping blindly into something?

Theresa Brilli, a small-business owner in Longmont, Colorado, said she and her partner signed up for a direct primary care plan in 2017 that covered primary care visits for $179 a month. Direct primary care plans are payment arrangements between patients and providers for receiving health services without billing insurance. The plan had an arrangement with Liberty HealthShare, a Canton, Ohio-based sharing plan with more than 131,000 members nationwide, to cover additional services like preventive screenings, emergency room care, and hospitalizations for $349 a month with a $1,000 deductible. The rates increased to $499 a month, with a $1,750 deductible, in 2020, Brilli said.

But Brilli said getting payments was a major hassle.

It took about four to eight months to get reimbursed, she said. It was a fight, every bill.

When she heard about enhanced subsidies for ACA marketplace plans in 2022, she decided the hassle was no longer worth it and switched to a Kaiser Permanente plan for $397 a month.

I will never go back to Liberty Health or a health care sharing plan, she said. I didnt agree with the whole ministry thing. They made you sign off saying you believed in God, which was like, Whoa, I guess thats what I have to do to get my health insurance.

Laura Murray, 49, of Aurora, Colorado, said she signed up for a Liberty HealthShare plan in 2017 as a more affordable alternative to her husbands employer-based plan.

We kind of felt we were cutting out the middleman in a way, and it was a helping-out-your-neighbor sort of deal, she said.

But when she became pregnant unexpectedly, she had trouble getting her health bills paid. Initially, Liberty paid only a portion of the tab, and her bills got sent to a collection agency. It was only through multiple calls that she learned she needed to send the bills to a third party that would negotiate with the providers.

It took years to get it cleared up, she said.

Timothy Bryan, Libertys vice president of marketing and communication, disputed many of the details of Brillis account and attributed some of the delay in payment to her failure to submit the required supporting documentation. Murrays payments, he said, were delayed more than 10 months because she had failed to provide the required pre-notification.

Mike Quinlan, 42, of Denver, turned to a health sharing ministry in 2014 after the birth of his first child cost him more than $17,000 out-of-pocket, on top of nearly $24,000 in premiums that year, under an employer-sponsored health plan. He said the births of his three youngest children were covered in full by Samaritan Ministries International, a Peoria, Illinois-based sharing plan with 359,000 members, to which he contributes $600 a month. When he incurs large health expenses, he receives a slew of $600 checks from other members, he said.

Every year, Quinlan attests that he is a Christian and identifies the church he attends.

This is a group of like-minded people who have said voluntarily were going to trust each other to cover each others health costs, he said.

The rules differ from plan to plan. Some sharing plans require members to pledge to abide by Christian principles, and some exclude payment for out-of-wedlock births or health issues that arise from drug use. Many sharing plans exclude coverage of contraception, mental health services, and abortion, often with no exceptions for rape or safety of the mother.

Regulators in Colorado and other states have also expressed concerns that health sharing arrangements are paying brokers much higher commissions for signing up members than health plans do. That could create financial incentives to push sharing plans over health insurance without adequately educating consumers about the differences.

In 2019, Covered California, the Golden States ACA marketplace, instituted a requirement that its certified agents who sell both sharing plans and health insurance provide consumers with a list of disclosures about sharing plans and show them the subsidies they could receive for buying traditional health insurance coverage.

Its really important that consumers understand what these arrangements are, and what they are not, said Jessica Altman, executive director of Covered California.

Harris said the Colorado Division of Insurance is investigating multiple health sharing arrangements based on consumer complaints but declined to name them.

Colorado officials are also concerned that health sharing arrangements might appeal primarily to people who dont expect to use many health services. That could increase the proportion of sicker and more expensive patients among enrollees in traditional health insurance plans, driving up premiums.

Harris said many consumers can get a health plan for less than the cost of a sharing plan, particularly with increased federal and state subsidies put in place in recent years. State officials are also working to inform consumers of the financial risks associated with health sharing arrangements, some of which have gone bankrupt in recent years.

It might look cheaper on its face, month to month, Harris said. But if they do really actually need their costs covered, theres a real risk that they may not be.

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WEDNESDAY, June 14, 2023 (HealthDay News) -- Elevated lipoprotein(a) (Lp[a]) is a predictor of recurrent coronary heart disease (CHD) in older adults, according to a study published online June 12 in Current Medical Research & Opinion.

Leon A. Simons, M.D., from the University of New South Wales Sydney, and Judith Simons, from St. Vincent's Hospital, both in Australia, conducted a longitudinal study involving 607 individuals (mean age, 71 years) with prevalent CHD who were followed for 16 years. Lipids and other CHD risk factors were examined at baseline in 1988 to 1989, and the independent contribution of Lp(a) to a further CHD event was assessed.

The researchers identified 399 incident CHD cases. The median Lp(a) was 130 and 105 mg/L in cases and noncases, respectively. Overall, 26 and 19 percent of CHD cases and noncases, respectively, had Lp(a) 300+ mg/L; 18 and 8 percent of cases and noncases, respectively, had Lp(a) 500+ mg/L. Compared with Lp(a) in quintile 1 (<50 mg/L), Lp(a) in quintile 5 (355+ mg/L) significantly predicted recurrent CHD, with a hazard ratio of 1.53, independent of other risk factors. Lp(a) 500+ mg/L versus lower significantly predicted recurrent CHD (hazard ratio, 1.59). Prediction was also significant for Lp(a) 300+ mg/L versus lower (hazard ratio, 1.37).

"Our new results indicate that new therapeutics in development that aim to reduce elevated Lp(a) might help prevent recurrent disease," Simons said in a statement. "However, the potential clinical benefit of therapy to reduce elevated Lp(a) is yet to be confirmed."

Novartis Pharmaceuticals provided an educational grant in support of the present analysis; one author disclosed ties to manufacturers of lipid-modifying drugs.
WEDNESDAY, June 14, 2023 (HealthDay News) -- Hepatitis C is a viral infection of the liver no one wants to catch, so knowing how that can happen can be critical.

The American Liver Foundation estimates that it affects about 2.7 million people in the United States today.

To help you protect yourself against this virus, liver experts describe how you get hepatitis C, if its curable and how contagious it is. They will also explain if theres a hepatitis C vaccine, and what medications are used to treat this viral infection.

How do you get hepatitis C?

According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, hepatitis C transmission occurs when you come into contact with the blood of someone who is infected. This can happen through:

Sharing of drug needles or other injection materials

Birth: approximately 6% of children born to infected mothers are also infected

Tattoos and piercings, especially from unlicensed and unregulated establishments

Sex with someone infected with the virus, which is reported more among men who have sex with other men

Sharing medical and other items, such as glucose monitors and razors that have infected blood on them

Health care worker exposure to blood-borne infections

Organ transplants and blood transfusions

Before 1993, a blood transfusion was a common way to get hepatitis C, but now blood transfusion is safe because we check the blood, explained Dr. Melissa Jenkins, chief of the division of infectious diseases at MetroHealth, in Cleveland, Ohio.

A research article published recently in the journal Pathogens noted that the opioid epidemic and less access to health care have also fueled new hepatitis C cases. Incidents of hepatitis C infections increased by 15% between 2019 and 2020 for acute cases, according to the CDC.

Is hepatitis C contagious?

The New York State Department of Health says that hepatitis C is typically contagious for at least a week or more before symptoms appear, and remains so indefinitely afterward for people with chronic hepatitis. Anyone who tests positive for the virus is considered contagious.

Dr. Nancy Reau, hepatology section chief at Rush University Medical Center in Chicago, explained in an American Liver Foundation video that everyday contact to someone with hepatitis C very, very rarely will lead to infection. So, you should not be afraid of your relatives or loved ones who have hepatitis C.

But, Reau added, Just be careful with anything that might have been exposed to someone elses blood or body products.

Is hepatitis C curable?

The CDC says the cure rate is over 90% for anyone who is treated for hepatitis C with antiviral medications.

For people who are treated, we check a hepatitis C level 12 weeks or more after the last dose of medicine," Jenkins explained. "If the hepatitis C virus level [viral load] is negative, also known as undetectable, then the patient has a sustained virologic response [SVR]. This is considered a cure.

She added that people who have cirrhosis prior to treatment still need to see a liver doctor because they are still at risk for liver cancer or complications of cirrhosis, but the risk is much lower after the hepatitis C is gone.

Is there a hepatitis C vaccine?

There is no hepatitis C vaccine. According to the Pathogens article, the virus has the genetic ability to make various mutations that are somewhat different from each other, making it challenging to develop an effective vaccine.

The American Liver Foundation notes that hepatitis C symptoms dont often show up until after liver damage has already occurred. In fact, up to 75% of people with the virus dont know they have it. About 75% to 85% of people who are infected will end up with chronic hepatitis C.

If left untreated, hepatitis C can lead to cirrhosis of the liver and liver cancer, Jenkins said. Once cirrhosis develops, it is irreversible.

Thats why the CDC recommends getting a hepatitis C blood test once when you turn 18, and on a regular basis if you have certain risk factors for getting the virus. This helps ensure that treatment can start as soon as possible.

For the last decade, we have had incredibly easy-to-use all-pill therapy [for hepatitis], Reau explained. So, the medications are given for between 8 weeks and 12 weeks for almost everybody. They have cure rates of nearly 100%  the medications are incredibly safe and very well-tolerated.

SOURCE: Melissa Jenkins, MD, chief, division of infectious diseases, MetroHealth, Cleveland, Ohio
TUESDAY, June 13, 2023 (HealthDay News) -- Men with erectile dysfunction will now have the option of using a topical gel to treat the condition. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved over-the-counter marketing for the product, called Eroxon, as a first-of-its-kind medical product. The British pharmaceutical firm Futura Medical makes the gel.

"FDA set a very high standard in evaluating the effectiveness and safety of De Novo Medical Devices. I am delighted that we met this standard," Futura CEO James Barder said in a news release on Monday.

This new gel will be sold in a single-dose tube, CNN reported. It should be applied to the head of the penis before sex. Users may be able to become erect within 10 minutes and maintain that for long enough to have sex in about 65 percent of those who use it, according to the company.

The product is already sold in Belgium and the United Kingdom, where it costs the equivalent of $31.22 in U.S. dollars for a four-pack, CNN reported. "We don't have specific pricing details yet, as the pricing will ultimately be determined by the partner who launches Eroxon in the U.S.," a company spokesman told CNN.

The timeline for when the product will be in the United States is unknown, but it could be 2025, CNN reported.
Lawmakers in crisis-hit Lebanon on Wednesday will make a 12th attempt to elect a new president, but bitter divisions between the powerful Iran-backed Hezbollah and its opponents are expected to mar the vote.

Lebanon has been without a head of state for more than seven months, and the last bid to elect a president was held on January 19.

The vote for the presidency, reserved for a Maronite Christian under Lebanon's delicate sectarian power-sharing system, pits the Hezbollah-backed Sleiman Frangieh against financial official Jihad Azour, who has mainly been endorsed by Christian and independent legislators.

With no side appearing to have the numbers to get their candidate across the line, analysts say the vote could further entrench a political stalemate, dimming hopes of saving the economy after three years of meltdown.

"It's very unlikely that this session will end with the election of a president," analyst Karim Bitar said.

As the 11 before it, Wednesday's attempt would likely "only be a way for political forces to gauge their respective electoral weight" and see how many votes they can get, he added.

Lebanon is facing a double power vacuum, with the country governed by a caretaker cabinet with limited powers for more than a year.

By convention, the premiership is reserved for a Sunni Muslim and the post of parliament speaker goes to a Shiite Muslim.

The international community has urged politicians to elect a consensus presidential candidate who can help the country enact reforms required to unlock billions of dollars in loans from abroad.

Frangieh, a former lawmaker and minister who is a friend of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, hails from a storied family dynasty, like many of Lebanon's prominent political figures.

On Sunday, he promised to be "the president of all Lebanese" despite his polarising alliances.

Azour was finance minister from 2005 to 2008 and has stepped aside from his role as the director of the Middle East and Central Asia department at the International Monetary Fund in view of the presidential contest.

'Prolonged vacuum'

The winner needs two-thirds majority, or 86 votes from the 128 members of parliament -- but Hezbollah and its allies have posted spoilt ballots to disrupt previous votes.

Quorum has been lost before a second round of voting -- where the winner only requires 65 ballots -- has been able to go ahead.

Hezbollah and its allies adopted a similar tactic in the last presidential vote, a move that left Lebanon without a president for more than two years, until Michel Aoun's 2016 win.

If Azour gets more than 60 votes it would be a huge "reversal of fortune for Hezbollah", said Bitar, and would represent massive cross-sectarian "opposition to Hezbollah hegemony on the Lebanese political landscape".

"However, at this stage, the most likely scenario is a prolonged vacuum," Bitar added.

Azour on Monday said he wanted to "contribute to a solution" not a crisis, as he announced his bid for the post.

He said he was "not defying anyone", after Hezbollah described him as the "defiance and confrontation candidate".

Mohammed Raad, the head of Hezbollah's parliamentary bloc, has accused Azour's supporters of not wanting him to be elected but "using him" to block Frangieh's path to the presidency.

Bitar said a stalemate at Wednesday's ballot could pave the way for protracted negotiations "that would ultimately reach a third-man solution".

The United States and France on Tuesday renewed calls for Lebanese lawmakers to cooperate and elect a new president.

French foreign ministry spokeswoman Anne-Claire Legendre urged MPs to "take this date seriously" and "not to waste another opportunity".

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Martin enrolled in the ROTC in college. When he graduated, he was commissioned as a military intelligence officer and spent the next 11 years active in the Army. His battalion was sent to the Middle East for Desert Storm. After, he remained active in the Army Reserve, and like many reservists, September 11, 2001, changed his life. As he watched the Iraq War unfold in 2003, he figured being in his late 40s would make him of little use. However, the fighting never ended, and in 2006, he was sent to Iraq to help train Iraqis to fight the insurgents. He also received two combat badges and two Bronze Stars.
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Fair warning: The following story lauds minor-league lawlessness.

A Post-Dispatch reader on Monday sent an email to several reporters and an editor that tapped into the nagging unpleasantness more than a few motorists feel upon seeing expired temporary tag after expired temporary tag flutter free and flagrant.

The fed-up citizens bulletin to this bureau told of how, after finally having had enough, he went up to one of the tardy autos in a south St. Louis parking lot and tore off the temp tag  which expired in January 2021, a solid two-and-a-half years ago.

The fact that his actions may constitute some sort of misdemeanor did not dampen his enthusiasm. He then took a photo of the pilfered past-due permit and sent it to the newspaper, with a decidedly unapologetic message:

Im an old man but got a big thrill like a kid opening Christmas presents when I ripped that tag off the car, he said. Ive wanted to do it for a long time but never had the chance.

The email went on to say, The tags had been on the car so long they are faded and rust is around the screw holes.

Reached Tuesday by telephone, the man wasted no time in providing a bit of a biography.

Yeah, you can call me cantankerous old fart from south St. Louis, he said, then noted that the situation has irked him for several years.

You know that the cops see these expired tags. How can they not? said COF, who is in his 70s and lives in south St. Louis.

COF said hed hoped that when the city hired new police Chief Robert Tracy in January, enforcement would step up. But I havent seen it and I havent heard him say anything about it.

I mean, its not like it would take a lot of police work on their part. All theyd have to do is go to any parking lot anywhere in the city and just sit there, he said.

For their part, the St. Louis police department said it does enforce vehicle registration laws, including writing tickets for expired tags.

A police spokesperson explained, however, that an expired temporary tag is not seized or otherwise removed from a vehicle.

It is possible for a motorist to receive multiple citations for registration violations yet continue to avoid properly registering their vehicle and continue to display the expired temporary registration, the spokesman said.

And to be sure, a shortage of police officers  the department says its 270 officers short of its authorized strength  usually has its officers tied up with higher-priority calls.

Our policy dictates that officers respond directly to most dispatched assignments and does not give them the discretion to deviate from, or delay their response to, those directed assignments, the department said.

In other words: too few cops, too little time.

While it doesnt speak directly to expired temporary tags, anyone driving city streets will not be surprised that traffic stops have dropped dramatically in recent years.

A Post-Dispatch story in March gave the following figures, based on information from the Missouri Attorney Generals Office:

In 2021, St. Louis police made 45,154 traffic stops, a little more than half the 85,622 of stops they conducted in 2009.

In 2021, St. Louis police issued just fewer than 18,000 tickets, about half of the 34,833 they issued in 2009.

But when it comes to expired temp tags, its not just COF who bristles about it.

On Tuesday, a longtime Post-Dispatch reporter  who had no idea this story was in the works  sent this bureau a photo of a tag that was two months more expired than the one from COF.

The photo showed a sedan near Morganford and Osceola avenues with a temp tag that had expired in November 2020.

When Charlie Brennan had his daily show on KMOX Radio, he would post expired-tag photos on social media and then talk about it on the air.

He chuckled when I mentioned the expiration dates of the aforementioned vehicles. Thats not the record. We had some four years or more.

Brennan said some listeners defended the drivers.

There were some who told me to mind my own business, or pointed out that maybe the driver didnt have the money to pay the vehicle taxes, he said. But generally speaking it got a lot of likes and retweets.

Brennans favorite story on the matter is when he was traveling on 14th Street in downtown St. Louis, right next to a police car that was directly behind a car with expired temp tags.

And the cops didnt do anything, he said.

The show segment did have an effect on Brennan. Every time I go to renew my plates, I wonder to myself  why am I even bothering with this?

One could probably guess that COF shares that feeling. He said if he never again had to drive outside of the city limits, hed consider never renewing his plates.

But, he said, they still write tickets in other places.
ST. LOUIS  An autopsy determined that a man found dead in St. Louis over the weekend had been fatally shot in the nose, police said Tuesday.

Police identified the victim as Ronnell Gray, 27, of the 1500 block of Cove Lane in the Spanish Lake area of St. Louis County.

Gray was found about 12:40 a.m. Sunday at a home in the 8800 block of Northcrest Lane. Medics pronounced him dead at the scene, in the city's North Pointe neighborhood.

Investigators didn't know what caused the man's death until an autopsy was performed.

The case is being handled as a homicide. Police have no suspects.
ST. LOUIS  Prosecutors accused a 29-year-old woman on Tuesday of exposing her toddler to a fatal dose of fentanyl late last year at a home in south St. Louis.

Chelsey Rainwater is facing charges of endangering the welfare of two children, causing a 1-year-old's death, and possession of a controlled substance.

Police said Rainwater was at a home in the 3800 block of Oregon Avenue in late October 2022 when she went to take a nap in a bed and left her two sons, ages 1 and 10, to rest on the couch.

The 1-year-old found fentanyl capsules Rainwater left in her purse and ate some of them while his mother was asleep, police said. When Rainwater woke up, the boy was not breathing and his lips were purple. He later died, according to court documents.

Rainwater's other child, a 10-year-old boy, was also in the home that day. He said he often saw his mother take drugs in front of him, court documents said.

The 10-year-old went to stay with his grandparents after his brother's death, and the grandparents found multiple fentanyl capsules hidden in his shoe. The boy later told police his mother gave them to him, according to court documents.

Rainwater is being held in the St. Louis jail without bond.
ST. LOUIS  The Missouri Attorney Generals Office asked a St. Louis judge on Tuesday to throw out a suit from more than a dozen faith leaders who say the Missouri abortion ban violates the separation of church and state.

St. Louis Circuit Judge Jason Sengheiser is expected to rule on whether the lawsuit can move forward after arguments Tuesday focused on whether the 14 faith leaders spanning Protestant, Unitarian and Jewish denominations have grounds to sue.

The suit filed in January aims to prevent both the state and prosecutors in St. Charles, St. Louis and Jackson counties, among other jurisdictions, from enforcing the abortion ban and related regulations.

The state ban on abortions, except in cases of medical emergencies, went into effect last year after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the constitutional right to abortion established in Roe v. Wade. Providers who violate the measure can be charged with a felony punishable by five to 15 years in prison and lose their medical license.

On Tuesday, an attorney for the Missouri Association of Prosecuting Attorneys argued that the faith leaders suit should be thrown out because only health care providers  not religious leaders  can be prosecuted under the ban.

Maria Lanahan, of the Attorney Generals Office, added that laws that dovetail with religious beliefs such as statutes closing businesses on Sunday and laws against bigamy have long been upheld in the U.S.

Lanahan argued the suit seeks to keep religious people from being legislators who can act on their values. She added the suit makes a circular argument that would also ban religious lawmakers from enacting laws that coincide with their faith.

Attorneys for the National Womens Law Center and Americans United for Separation of Church and State representing the faith leaders argued Tuesday their clients status as Missouri taxpayers gives them enough right to sue because, they argue, the state will be devoting direct funds to enforce the bans.

Kalli A. Joslin, of Americans United, said the problem with the ban is not that the law coincides with conservative Christianity but that legislators included overt religious statements in the text showing a preference for one religions beliefs.

She highlighted that the law itself begins with: In recognition that Almighty God is the author of life ... it is the intention of the General Assembly to defend the right to life of all humans, born and unborn.

The legislators, Joslin said, dont have a right to impose their religion on others by law.

Sengheiser said Tuesday he will consider the arguments and is expected to issue a ruling on whether the case will go forward.

Several of the plaintiffs are from the St. Louis area, including the Rev. Traci Blackmon of the United Church of Christ; the Rev. Krista Taves, a minister at Eliot Unitarian Chapel in Kirkwood and First Unitarian Church in Alton; Rabbi Andrea Goldstein at the Shaare Emeth, the largest congregation for Reform Judaism in the St. Louis area; and Rabbi Susan Talve of Central Reform Congregation in St. Louis.

Missouri is among 14 states that have banned access to abortion since last year, according to a tracker maintained by The New York Times. A handful of similar religious freedom lawsuits challenging abortion restrictions have been filed in states such as Indiana, Kentucky and Florida.

Photos: Faith leaders file lawsuit, say Missouri legislators violated church and state separation
COLUMBIA, Mo.  Gov. Mike Parson could soon make Missouri one of the first states to establish 50/50 shared parenting time as the standard in child custody cases.

But the bill on his desk, passed in the final hour of the legislative session, did not include changes that some family law attorneys and domestic violence advocates worked on for months  and has raised concerns that it could make it more difficult for victims to escape abusive relationships and protect their children.

On the one hand, it can prevent some parents from being unreasonable when taking the kid away from a good parent, said Adam Sommer, a family law attorney in Warrensburg and host of the progressive podcast Heartland Pod.

It also is going to  the flip side of that coin  is going to give abusers easier, quicker access to kids that I think is going to be an unfortunate byproduct of this.

Under current law, judges decide custody cases by weighing the best interests of the child, and the idea that each parent should have significant, though not necessarily equal, time with the child. That contact should be frequent, continued and meaningful.

The legislation changes that by requiring judges start each child custody case with the presumption that equal or approximately equal parenting time for each parent is in the childs best interests. A parent can rebut that presumption by presenting evidence that a 50/50 arrangement isnt in the childs best interests, and the judge would then consider that evidence.

After years of opposing the change, family law advocates worked with legislators on provisions updating the standards judges use to determine a childs best interest in custody cases, including related to domestic violence.

But while the changes made their way into one version of the bill, dysfunction in the Missouri Senate killed its chances. So with less than an hour left before the 2023 legislative session adjourned, the House approved a version without the negotiated changes.

What was passed was not what we had worked on, said Lara Underwood, an attorney and member of Missouri Association of Family Law Attorneys.

The sponsor of the bill, Rep. Jim Murphy, R-South St. Louis County, said the revisions pushed for by advocates were minor.

The rest of the bill was so important that not having that was not enough to stop it, Murphy said.

These types of equal shared parenting laws have been spurred on in recent years by advocacy groups like National Parents Organization (formerly called Fathers and Families), which argues the courts often favor mothers in custody disputes and that disadvantages fathers who want a larger role in their childs upbringing, as well as their children.

The 50/50 laws are part of a broader movement over the last several decades toward shared parenting laws.

Its important that children have both parents whenever possible, and that should always be the prime consideration of the court, Murphy said in an interview with The Independent.

Joan Meier, who founded and directs the National Family Violence Law Center at George Washington University, said the 50/50 legislation could put children at risk and relies on a false premise that there is a bias against men in family court.

We oppose these statutes because all they do is make things worse for children, Meier said. Because even without these statutes, things are extremely bad for children.

In a 2019 study of over 4,000 family court cases, Meier found when mothers report child abuse or domestic violence in custody litigation, they often actually lose custody to the alleged abuser. Women lost custody 28% of the time they reported abuse, she found  potentially putting children in harms way.

For judges, Meier said, the message is very clear that there are very few things that can overcome the very strong assumption that kids need to be with both parents equally, she said  even evidence of abuse because of the courts very strong implicit biases.

A 50/50 shared parenting law is just a more extreme version, she said, of the broader trends toward shared parenting that she has studied, which have, in practice, proven to hurt mothers and kids.

Meier said the idea that men often lose in family court is also not borne out by data.

Most custody cases are decided not in court but through settlement agreements, she said, where its true mothers often get primary custody. But the cases that go to court  a tiny percentage of all families who break up  in those cases, fathers are preferred, she said.

The courts already start with a desire to reward fathers who come to custody court, Meier said. They all want to encourage father involvement.

The National Parents Organization Missouri chapter director, Linda Reutzel, was unavailable for an interview.

Reutzel has previously testified that equal shared parenting will lessen the animosity between parents. She wrote in 2021 that groups attempted to conflate domestic violence issues with the creation of equal shared parenting, but actually equality tends to lessen conflict.

In an interview with National Parents Organization last year, she said its taking an adversarial system that pits one parent against the other and saying, you guys are equal and you get equal time to your child, which is the best interest of that child.

Those testifying in support at Missouri hearings have included divorced fathers who say they wish they had more time with their children and parents rights groups.

Bipartisan support

Kentucky, Arkansas and West Virginia have adopted 50/50 parenting laws over the last five years. Floridas legislature passed such a bill this year.

Missouris bill passed 114-9 in the House and 30-4 in the Senate.

Rep. Sarah Unsicker, D-Shrewsbury, was one of the few lawmakers who opposed the 50/50 parenting bill this year, arguing it would limit judges discretion in deciding the best plan for children.

The judge should listen to the arguments and make decisions based on evidence, she said.

She was also concerned that the version that ended up on the governors desk doesnt represent the behind-the-scenes work of advocates and family law experts.

When thereve been months of negotiation to work on a bill to make it better, even though its still bad, it could be worse, Unsicker said. And then at the last minute, its pretty disingenuous to slide the worse bill through and say its the same thing that people have been working on and not allow anybody to talk about it.

With GOP infighting blocking virtually all legislative business in the Senate in the sessions final week, there was no hope of passing the bill with the negotiated language. So with time running short, the House had the choice of either passing equal custody legislation without the proposed changes or letting the entire bill die and trying again next year.

I had to twist an awful lot of arms to get that to go through that last day, Murphy said. My priority was to get the presumptive shared parenting part.

Thats what Ive been working on for years.

Murphy said the bill was too important to wait another year.

About the negotiated language, Murphy said, It wasnt a showstopper at all, because the judge will always, his final word will always take the best interest of the child into consideration. Domestic violence is always that consideration.

What was missing, advocates say, were updates to the best-interest standard for judges to evaluate cases.

There are several factors judges consider when evaluating the best interest of the child, one of which is a pattern of domestic abuse.

Current law only restricts custody in the instance of a history of domestic violence when the court finds visitation would endanger the childs physical health or impair his or her emotional development. It defines domestic violence as abuse or stalking committed by a family or household member.

Advocates had hoped to expand that to allow judges to consider the nature and context of the domestic abuse, as well as implications of the violence on the childs safety and developmental needs. They also wanted the law to plainly state that abuse can be physical, verbal, emotional or psychological.

Even current law  which prioritizes shared custody but not equal custody  can pose difficulties to victims and cause hurdles to them leaving an abusive partner, a recent investigation by the Springfield Daily Citizen found.

Underwood said many family law judges never practiced family law themselves and domestic violence isnt even on their radar.
ST. LOUIS  Aldermen on Tuesday advanced a plan to reboot a $37 million business grant program for cash-strapped north St. Louis  but not before one alderman blasted the others for leaving out struggling South Side neighborhoods.

It is painfully clear that my colleagues are not familiar with the disinvestment that has occurred in southeast city, said Alderman Shane Cohn, of Dutchtown.

The argument was only the latest flare-up over a program that has been generating controversy since its conception two years ago, when the city first began working on plans to deploy nearly $500 million in federal pandemic aid. There have been fights over its legality, ties to corruption and, now, its very function.

But Cohns impassioned dissent was notable coming from someone who backed the original bill and who usually supports efforts backed by Mayor Tishaura O. Jones.

The program itself has had a rough go. First, city officials fought over how exactly to send money to the North Side. After the grant program was established, some of those who pushed it were indicted for bribery, among other charges. Then officials froze the grants  after receiving almost 200 applications  because, they said, it was unclear how to award the cash.

On Tuesday, Alderwoman Shameem Clark Hubbard, of the West End, told the boards development committee that her bill would set the program right.

The bill contains guidelines for ranking applications. It cuts out a requirement that businesses be endorsed by their local alderman to receive money, a provision that raised eyebrows after its chief architect, former Aldermanic President Lewis Reed, was indicted in the bribery scheme last year. And it makes businesses from across north city eligible for money rather than just those on its main thoroughfares, which officials said were too limited in scope.

But Cohn said if the city is going to open up the program, it should open it to businesses in poor neighborhoods on both sides of Delmar Boulevard.

He said areas like Gravois Park, Marine Villa and Dutchtown have many of the same problems that haunt the North Side: Rampant poverty. Vacant buildings. Rolling gun battles in the middle of the day.

I have gunfire in front of my house every week right now, he said.

He described overwhelming problems with homeless people roving the streets and alleys.

They are squatting in the vacant buildings that line our blocks, he said.

He also mentioned the neighborhoods high concentration of children, who are particularly vital in a city that has lost two-thirds of its population since 1950. And he said that many of the residents and business owners who havent yet fled the area are people of color and immigrants, fighting every day to keep going.

But Hubbard pushed back, saying her bill was about north St. Louis and addressing the historic wrongs its residents have endured for decades. She said Cohns push to include southside neighborhoods was divisive and would take opportunity away from the 181 North Side enterprises that have already applied for grants.

We committed to them, she said. We should continue to commit to them.

She also argued that having the grant program benefit north St. Louis doesnt preclude another program from targeting Cohns area in the future.

Neal Richardson, CEO of the citys economic development arm, said the city is putting resources into the southeast side to help young people and the unemployed get jobs.

Alderwoman Alisha Sonnier, of Tower Grove East, saw a difference between disinvestment in Cohns neck of the woods and disinvestment on the north side. She said the latter was racially motivated and that she saw Hubbards bill as something specifically tailored toward making up for that.

The committee voted 4-0 to recommend that the full board pass Hubbards bill at a later meeting. Cohn voted present.

Cohn, in an interview after the meeting, continued to vent. He said the city hasnt allocated a dime of federal pandemic aid specifically for the southeast side of the city  though he did secure $200,000 for improvements to Marquette Park. And he said his colleagues didnt know what they were talking about when it comes to the South Side.

They all think its Shaw, he said, referring to the affluent neighborhood north of Tower Grove Park. Its ridiculous.

Jacob Barker of the Post-Dispatch contributed to this report.
UNIVERSITY CITY  The Loop Trolley won't run Saturday because the University City part of its Delmar Boulevard route will be closed to traffic for a Juneteenth festival.

The trolley will return to service at 11 a.m. Sunday, said its operator, the Bi-State Development Agency.

The Juneteenth event is sponsored by the Loop Special Business District and will feature Black-owned businesses and vendors, music, storytelling and dance.

The event runs from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Saturday, with Delmar closed between Leland and Limit avenues from 6 a.m. to 8:15 p.m., a city official said.

The trolley normally runs on a Thursday-to-Sunday schedule between the western end of the Loop in U. City and the Missouri History Museum in Forest Park in St. Louis.
As illegal gambling machines spread across the Show Me State, Missourians are rightfully decrying the proliferation of these predatory devices into their communities.

However, Attorney General Andrew Bailey is doing the exact opposite. Bailey is removing his office from litigation on the issue as manufacturers of these so-called skill games challenge the states power to remove the machines from operation.

These unregulated and ubiquitous machines masquerade as the slot machines found in licensed, regulated casinos  but thats all they have in common.

Operating outside the law, these machines offer no consumer protections or guaranteed payouts, as customers have no legal recourse if an unregulated operator refuses to pay. In fact, American Gaming Association research shows unregulated gambling machines exploit customers by offering worse odds. For every dollar bet by consumers, regulated machines keep seven cents on average, while unregulated machines keep nearly 25 cents.

The difference: Legal machines are rigorously tested and retested by independent, licensed third parties, while unregulated machines undergo no such testing, relying on their appearance to fool customers into thinking they have a fair shot. And unlike legal gaming, which generated $458 million in tax revenue for Missouri in 2022, skill machines dont deliver a penny for state coffers.

Without responsible gambling measures or proper supervision, these machines prey on the most vulnerable. Its not uncommon to find minors playing these machines. And individuals with gambling problems have no options to opt-out or self-exclude, especially when the machines are littered in restaurants and convenience stores.

More than just illegal gambling operations, these machines often further endanger communities by funding additional illicit activity like drugs, weapons and money laundering and bringing crime to communities. According to news reports, criminals recently stole or attempted to steal unregulated machines from six different 7-Eleven stores, and, tragically, a convenience store clerk was murdered in 2020 by a customer who was aware of the money on site to pay winnings from the unregulated machines.

Missourians are taking notice. As noted in recent Post-Dispatch reporting (Attorney general calls illegal gambling complex. Many Missourians disagree. May 30.), the spread of these machines has prompted more than 170 complaints to the Missouri Gaming Commission since the start of 2023. This includes several reports that skill machine operators are unjustly withholding thousands of dollars in winnings from them.

In the last three months, two class-action lawsuits have also been filed against the manufacturers of these machines. One alleges corruption and racketeering, including unjust monetary losses exceeding $5 million. And the other highlights how these machines unfairly compete with businesses that offer bona fide amusement devices.

Why, then, does Attorney General Bailey balk at his duty to protect Missourians from these bad actors? Either he fails to understand the severity of the problem, or  more likely  he is letting campaign donations from special interests get in the way. As the Post-Dispatch has reported, Bailey has accepted tens of thousands of dollars from PACs that are funded in part by the owners of these unlicensed machines, or their lobbyists.

Attorney General Baileys job requires that his constituents come first, not his political ambitions. The issue of illegal gambling isnt complex. Its a clear violation of the law and warrants the attention and immediate action of Missouris chief legal officer.

While the Attorney Generals office fails to act, the Missouri legislature can take action by passing legislation to ban these machines. Earlier this year, policymakers in neighboring Kentucky created the blueprint when they became the first state to pass standalone legislation to explicitly ban unregulated gambling machines.

Local law enforcement are also essential partners in this fight. We applaud Missouris previously successful efforts on this front  not just to remove machines but to educate Missourians on their dangers. But more can and must be done to follow up on tips, seize machines and remove this menace from communities.

This is not just a Missouri problem. By American Gaming Association estimates, Americans wager an estimated $110 billion on the more than 580,000 unregulated gaming machines across the country each year. In total, this costs states nearly $9 billion in taxes annually  money needed money for education, public safety programs, veterans programs and more.

The fact is, unregulated machine manufacturers are simply playing word games to get around the law because they cannot meet the high bar for casino gaming licensure and regulation.

Missouri can be a leader in helping eliminate these machines. Attorney General Bailey needs to do his job, and, in the absence his action, the state legislature and law enforcement must fight back. With a unified effort, Missouri can ensure these machines no longer take advantage of its residents or communities.
Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley went there (again) on Tuesday night, warning a Fox News audience that we are seeing for the first time in American history ... a sitting president of the United States try to throw his opponent into jail. Fox itself went there the same night, announcing matter-of-factly in a chyron aimed at President Biden: Wannabe dictator speaks at the White House after having his political rival arrested.

This and other reckless rhetoric has spread like fire on the political right with former President Donald Trumps indictment last week and his Miami court appearance Tuesday. Its deeply misleading  Biden has no control over the special prosecutor, the grand jury, or the future criminal jury deciding Trumps fate  and its dangerous.

It is also a direct challenge to the American mantra that no one is above the law. As Americans sift through the histrionics in the coming days and weeks, its fair to ask what has happened to the GOPs once-proud designation as the law-and-order party.

So pervasive are these three elements to the rights Trump-related rhetoric  misinformation, recklessness and dismissiveness toward the rule of law  that theyre worth examining one by one:

Misinformation: The claim that Biden is personally orchestrating Trumps prosecution is particularly insidious, because it preys on the publics general lack of detailed knowledge about how the legal system works, especially at the federal level.

The grand jury that indicted Trump for his handling of classified government documents was convened by special counsel Jack Smith, who was appointed by Attorney General Merrick Garland, who was appointed by President Biden. Its easy to make that sound like Biden is having his political rival arrested, in Fox News astonishingly dishonest words, but it simply isnt true.

The whole point of assigning a special counsel to a criminal case is to keep politically sensitive cases separate from the justice department and the president. Those who believe or imply that a president holds a special counsels strings like a puppet master should explain why Trump, when he was president, didnt shut down special counsel Robert Muellers investigation of Trumps ties to Russia. He certainly wanted to, as he said publicly many times. He didnt because he couldnt.

The misinformation also comes in the form of false equivalence between what Trump is accused of doing and what Biden and former Vice President Mike Pence have done  that is, keeping possession of classified documents. I dont see Joe Biden getting indicted, Hawley said on Fox Tuesday. Why is it that no one else  has been charged with anything?

Since Hawley is either confused about the basic facts here or (more likely) is pretending to be so in his endless pandering to MAGA-world, lets review: Biden and Pence both immediately returned federal documents discovered in their possession. Had Trump done that when he was asked repeatedly  including a request via subpoena  he wouldnt have been indicted.

Instead, according to the indictment, Trump went to extraordinary lengths to retain the documents, including instructing his attorneys and others to lie to investigators about what they had and where they were, to have them moved around to avoid their discovery, and in at least one instance suggesting they should be destroyed rather than returned.

Does that answer your question, senator?

Recklessness: Whats most dangerous about the misleading rhetoric from Hawley and others is its overriding theme that Biden is (again, from Fox) a wannabe dictator. Its an inherently silly trope as applied to Biden  especially in defense of a former president who has routinely, literally called for jailing his opponents, who tried to overthrow an election, and who last year called for the termination of the Constitution so he could return to office. Are these folks familiar with the psychological concept of projection?

The dictator stuff is more serious than just name-calling. When Trump sicced his followers on the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, he didnt do it by saying he just wanted to stay in power; he did it by falsely claiming that oppressive forces were threatening democracy. (Again: Projection.)

When Hawley  who should know as well anyone that words have consequences, given his own role in Jan. 6  tells the MAGA faithful, If they can do this ... we do not have a functioning democracy, he is risking that real possibility that some of those he is misleading will again hear it as a call to arms.

Rule of law: Speaking of a functioning democracy, how exactly does that work if being a former president and/or current presidential candidate has an automatic shield against criminal prosecution? That is the inescapable message under the rhetoric, and its not just coming from rhetorical bomb-throwers like Fox and Hawley.

Do prosecutors understand the forces they are unleashing? asked an editorial headline in The Wall Street Journal, normally one of the grownups in the Republican room. The charges are a destructive intervention into the 2024 election, and the potential trial will hang over the race, warned the editorial  as if that fact alone is a reason to treat Trump differently than anyone else accused of so flagrantly violating the law.

It isnt. The charges against Trump are ultimately about his alleged willful refusal to obey laws that apply to the rest of us. Americans shouldnt let the dangerous lies being spun by his defenders distract them from that core fact.
Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has left for a state visit to France where he will meet President Emmanuel Macron, a statement said on Wednesday.

The 37-year-old prince, who is overseeing sweeping social and economic reforms in the oil-rich monarchy, will also take part in the Summit for a New Global Financial Pact in Paris next week, the Royal Court statement said.

On Monday Prince Mohammed, often known as "MBS", will attend a ceremony scheduled for 19 June in Paris to officially announce Saudi Arabia's candidacy to host the World Expo 2030, according to the statement.

The World Expo is a world's air gathering of nations to showcase their products and achievments.

The most recent World Expo, Expo 2020 Dubai, took place under the theme Connecting Minds, Creating the Future, and received over 24 million visits. The next World Expo will take place in Osaka, Kansai, Japan, between 13 April and 13 October 2025, under the theme Designing Future Society for Our Lives.

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A 5-year-old girl was shot and injured by stray gunfire Monday afternoon on the north side of St. Louis.

Its the kind of story that rocks small-town communities in the rare times that it happens there. But it registers barely a blip with a violence-weary St. Louis public.

The depressing frequency with which barrages of bullets kill or wound targets and bystanders is just one way the city is a different world than the outstate regions of Missouri.

A one-size-fits-all approach to gun regulation for those two worlds makes about as little sense as allowing freewheeling rural speed limits on city streets  yet that is exactly what the Missouri Legislature has imposed on St. Louis regarding firearms.

Now, advocates are pushing for a state constitutional amendment to give St. Louis the power to create local reforms, such as permit requirements on guns. Some in the states ruling Republican Party have reflexively signaled their opposition, but they should consider that it can be a compromise that would address the citys crisis without altering gun policies in their own districts.

Urban centers have more societal problems because they have more density  theres more poverty and crime because theres more of everything. Thats why the very mention of guns conjures up very different images in the rural areas of the state (hunting, target shooting) than in the city (carjackings, robberies, gang violence).

But the Legislatures relentless dismantling of Missouris previously reasonable gun laws hasnt taken into account those differences. Missouri law allows people to carry guns in most public areas without a permit or criminal background check. The state doesnt even have a minimum age requirement to carry guns in public (lawmakers this year nixed a proposal to specify one).

The state has repeatedly refused to allow St. Louis to impose more stringent rules within the city. As the Post-Dispatchs Mark Schlinkmann reports, a new nonprofit called Sensible Missouri now hopes to go around lawmakers with a referendum to change the state constitution and allow county-level governments, and St. Louis city, to impose local gun restrictions tailored to their local needs.

In St. Louis, for example, that could mean a permitting requirement. In contrast to the controversial stop and frisk policy that New York City once imposed, this could be a consistent and rational standard to allow police to ascertain whether people they see carrying guns are legally allowed to have them. That could help police prevent shootings before they start.

It could also allow the city to impose a minimum age limit for carrying guns in public. An incident outside the City Foundry in January, in which police caught three teenagers with handguns and were advised by juvenile court authorities to release them to their parents, highlighted how unworkable the states statutes on guns and minors are in St. Louis.

Republican opposition to the idea of letting St. Louis impose its own gun restrictions is predictable, if ironic, coming from the party that once held sacred the conservative principle of local control. Now, it seems, legislators are fine with extending the long arm of a distant state government into local decision-making.

Having gun laws in different jurisdictions is problematic, state Sen. Andrew Koenig, R-Manchester, told Schlinkmann. We need one policy in the whole state.

Why? Because St. Louis and, say, Rolla have the same local problems and their citizens have the same views on the issue? They dont.

Others have raised concerns that differences in local laws would create confusion, but that could be said of any local statute on any subject. This is what public signs are for.

This newspaper has said before that government by referendum isnt the preferred way to do things. But on this issue and others, a Legislature that is generally unresponsive to public opinion, and sometimes hostile toward the interests of St. Louis, leaves advocates with little other recourse.

For 5-year-old St. Louis girls and every other city-dweller threatened by loose gun laws written for a very different society, advocates should pursue this effort.

Group wants a vote in Missouri to allow stricter gun laws in counties and St. Louis city An ex-judge, a criminologist and an ex-legislator hope to give St. Louis and Missouri counties a way to adopt tougher gun restrictions than those in state law.
Satellite photos show that the 2022 IEA ban on poppy production reduced it by nearly 90 percent. Opium needs poppy plants as a raw material. Opium can be further refined into heroin. Reducing poppy production makes it possible for the IEA (Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan) to obtain much needed foreign aid. Back in the 1990s, the original Taliban faced a similar situation and reduced poppy after a record crop in the previous year. The ban did not last because the drug cartels are a major source of revenue for the Afghan government. Afghans in general oppose poppy production because it creates a lot of addicts in Afghanistan. That has tragic consequences for the family of the addict. Since tribes and tribal leaders are still an important factor in Afghanistan, tribal leaders tend to oppose the drug trade. For that reason, over 90 percent of Afghan poppies are produced in one province; Helmand. Then as now, neighboring Pakistan must cooperate to make this work because essential chemicals must be imported to refine the opium into heroin. Pakistan is also the most effective route to worldwide drug markets via Pakistani airports and the port of Karachi. Afghanistans other neighbors (Iran, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan) are very hostile to the drug smugglers. The northern neighbors have long received armed assistance from Russia to combat the smugglers.

Unlike the 1990s, the Pakistani military, which created the Taliban in the 1990s and has sought to control them ever since, has encountered unexpected problems in 2003. This came in the form of a popular reformist Pakistani politician Imran Khan taking on the military and its ability to do whatever it wants and ignore the elected government.

Back in 2021, shortly after the IEA took control of Afghanistan, then Pakistani prime minister Imran Khan repeated his belief that foreign nations, including the United States, would eventually have to recognize the Taliban IEA government and resume diplomatic and economic relations with Afghanistan. That was a minority opinion in Afghanistan and Pakistan. Kahn was taking a lot of heat from Pakistanis who have seen their incomes fall or disappear because money from Afghanistan stopped coming into Pakistan due to the end of nearly all Western aid after the IEA took over Afghanistan in 2022.

Khan has been a longtime fan of the Taliban, earning him the nickname; Taliban Khan. Many thought this meant Khan was an ally, or puppet of the military. That was not the case because Khan did not believe in the Pakistani generals operating beyond any oversight by the elected government. This had long been an issue but this time Khan rallied his many Pakistani supporters to openly oppose military political power. The scale of this opposition is unprecedented and the generals see their political independence and corruption income in danger of being eliminated.

This struggle is being followed with great interest by Afghans, who generally see the Pakistani military and its intelligence arm, the ISI, as bad news for Afghans and the major source of strife and corruption in Afghanistan. Khan is less corrupt than most Pakistani politicians and willing to take risks to make needed changes in Pakistan. Curbing military power is a much needed change but one that can get a powerful reformer killed by military operatives seeking to do the deed without implicating the military. If Khan comes out on top, the Afghan drug cartels are in trouble and so is, to a lesser extent, the IEA. Most Afghans want to see drug cartel power and activities curbed. That would cost the IEA a major loss of financial support, but would also make foreign aid more likely to resume and boost IEA popularity in Afghanistan.

Despite the current international condemnation of many IEA policies, there is some international cooperation with the IEA in areas of mutual interest. The most obvious one is Islamic terrorism, which is also a problem for the IEA. The primary Islamic terror threat in Afghanistan is from ISK (Islamic State Khorasan), which was formed in Afghanistan during 2015, with the help of ISIL leadership in Syria, to handle ISIL activity throughout the region (Central Asia, Iran, Pakistan and India). ISK found they were most effective if they confined their operations to Afghanistan and Pakistan, which they have been doing since 2019.

The IEA also has problems because they cannot gain any official recognition that they are the legitimate government of Afghanistan. Most nations consider the IEA a Pakistan-backed Islamic terror group that took control of the government with the additional help of Afghan drug cartels. ISK has become more active in Afghanistan and Pakistan since the IEA took over because now no one is in charge and that is ideal for ISK and the drug cartels. ISK and the cartels stay out of each others way because neither has anything to gain, and much to lose, by attacking each other. The cartels pay IEA to refrain from attacking drug operations, which include poppy crops and small labs that convert portions of the poppies into opium and then heroin, though this may change fast given the IEAs apparent successful attack on opium farming. ISK sees no point carrying out terror attacks against the cartels because the cartels will do the same to ISK and on a larger scale. In that respect the cartels are terrorists, but only when cash does not get them what they want. ISK is different because they see IEA as heretics and enemies of Islam. IEA feels the same way towards ISK. Other Moslems in Afghanistan and neighboring nations regard ISK as religious zealots who defame Islam. The only relatively safe base for ISK is IEA-ruled Afghanistan, and that only because the IEA is weak and divided. Despite this, ISK attacks targets in Afghanistan, including IEA but not the drug cartels. ISK also uses its Afghan bases on the Pakistan border to carry out attacks in Pakistan. There used to be some ISK actions across the Iranian border but attacks on Iran were more costly, in terms of cash and personnel, then similar efforts against IEA and Pakistani targets. ISK also plans attacks farther away, especially in Western countries. These attacks are more risky and prone to trigger massive counterattacks. Western nations, especially the United States, continue to observe ISK operations and carry out occasional airstrikes, usually with missile armed UAVs.

Water Wars

The IEA has a border dispute with Iran involving access to scarce water. Drought conditions have been a problem in both countries for several years. This is in addition to Iranian complaints about the Afghan heroin smuggled into Iran to support several million addicts. The heroin travels through Pakistan due to the cooperation of the Pakistan military. There has long been a business relationship between the Afghan drug cartels and the Pakistan military. That was supposed to include not supplying Pakistani dealers and addicts with heroin and opium. That didnt make any difference as the drugs were smuggled into Pakistan to support several million Pakistani addicts and casual users.

Iran has always been subject to periodic droughts but had coped with those because the monarchy backed developing more efficient irrigation methods and water use policies in general. This began to fall apart when the current religious dictatorship took control in the 1980s. Decades of ignoring water management problems contributed to the water shortages caused by the current three-year-long drought. Afghanistan also found itself with a religious dictatorship in 2021. Since then, water management has not been a high-priority issue. The growing number of hungry (because they depend on irrigation) and thirsty (lack of clean or any water) Afghans and Iranians want a solution. Iran and Afghanistan have long shared some water resources along their 921 kilometer border. Both countries have moved more combat forces to their common border. The Afghans are the underdog here and that has been the case for centuries. Despite that, IEA military leaders assert that they can defeat the Iranians. The militarily superior Iranians ignore the IEA threats. With nearly all of Iran now suffering water shortages, Iran will do whatever it can to alleviate that situation. Its unclear if that includes invading Afghanistan and taking possession of the disputed water supplies.

June 12, 2023: UN personnel working in Afghanistan report that the IEA appears to be tolerating the presence of al Qaeda personnel as well as TTP (the Pakistani Taliban). TTP support is expected but IEA insists it will not tolerate any Islamic terror groups. They are either lying or simply dont have much control in many parts of the country. The UN staff found al Qaeda training camps in five provinces in addition to many more safehouses. Suicide bombers are being trained and indoctrinated for use outside Afghanistan. Some are being sent to Western countries where they can hade among the many Afghan refugees fleeing IEA rule. The IEA is also continuing to impose more lifestyles restricts they enforced in the 1990s. This includes a ban on listening to live or recorded music. The IEA also censored what could be shown by Afghan TV stations. This meant no shows that had women with uncovered faces as well as no music. The IEA wants women appearing in public to wear the burqa (covers everything except the hands and eyes.) Many rural Afghans support some of these urban ideas, especially education for girls and more education in general. Beyond that these rural Afghans tend to be more conservative than those living in urban areas.

When the IEA took power, the national population was at least 33 million, which is 57 percent more than two decades ago when the Taliban were driven from power. Kabul is the largest city, with about half the urban population. The last time the Taliban were in charge (2001) Kabul had a population of half a million but twenty years later that has increased ten times to five million. Despite the population growth, over two-thirds of the population still lives in the countryside but the rural Afghans are not as conservative as they were in the 1990s.

June 11, 2023: In the east (Nangarhar Province) WHO (World Health Organization) polio monitoring teams have detected four cases of polio so far this year. There was also one case in Pakistan. These are the only cases detected worldwide. Pakistan expects to have no cases in 2024, unless the number of refugees from Afghanistan increases substantially. Despite years of strenuous efforts, Afghanistan has been unable to eliminate polio via vaccinations. For a long time, the main opposition were Islamic conservative clerics who called the vaccinations an attempt by Western nations to poison Moslem children. While few of those clerics remain, there are now more Afghans agreeing with Western anti-vaccination groups and insisting there are harmful side effects. Numerous controlled studies have not demonstrated any evidence of this but it has become popular. In 2016 there were 20 cases of polio in Pakistan, 13 in Afghanistan and four in Nigeria, a country declared free of polio in 2020. In Pakistan and Afghanistan there are still religious problems with vaccination. The Afghan Taliban have openly supported the vaccination program but there are still some rural areas where local Moslem clerics or teachers still denounce the vaccinations. There is a similar situation in Pakistan, where some fringe Islamic groups will still try and kill members of the vaccination teams. Since 2008 over a hundred vaccinators and police escorts have been killed.

June 10, 2023: In the southeast (Khost province) TTP gunmen crossed into Pakistan (North Waziristan) and attacked Pakistani soldiers at a checkpoint. The gunbattle left three TTP men and three Pakistani troops dead as well as four TTP wounded.

June 8, 2023: The IEA assembled old Russian tanks and troops on the Iranian border for training exercises. This was a show-of-force in an unsettled dispute with Iran over water. Iran accuses Afghanistan of restricting the flow of water sent to Iran from a river in Helmand province. This violates a 1973 treaty. There is a severe drought in Iran and Afghanistan that makes water sources worth fighting for.

June 7, 2023: In the north (Badakhshan province) an explosion near a mosque killed eleven people assembled for a memorial service to honor the provincial deputy governor, who was killed by a car bomb the day before. ISK claimed credit for both attacks.

June 6, 2023: In the east (Kunar province) IEA security forces carried out several operations near the Pakistan border that killed Sanaullah Ghafari, the head of ISK (Islamic State Khorasan) and six of his armed followers. ISK was formed in Afghanistan during 2015, with the help of ISIL leadership in Syria, to handle ISIL activity throughout the region (Central Asia, Iran, Pakistan and India). ISK found they were most effective if they confined their operations to Afghanistan and Pakistan, which they have been doing since 2019.

June 1, 2023: The UN issued a report describing the integration of al Qaeda leaders in the IEA government. This includes two provincial governors and several senior jobs in the central government. Another disrobing trend is Pushtuns dominating the central government and deliberately excluding the other ethnic groups which make up over half the population and refuse to respect Pushtun domination. For centuries the Pushtuns dominated Afghan politics and the minorities tolerated that until the Islamic radicals came along with Pakistans creation of the Taliban. One thing nearly all Afghans agree on is the damage Pakistan has done to Afghanistan and unwillingness to give up that interference. Afghans see themselves as the victim of neighbors seeking to control the country. Afghans prefer to restore the modern state of Afghanistan, which was peacefully created over a century ago. That quasi-monarchical/quasi-tribal form of government was doing fine because until the 1970s there was an agreement that largely kept the peace. This arrangement meant Afghanistan was a constitutional monarchy presided over by a Pushtun king who largely dealt with foreigners and left the tribes, 60 percent of them non-Pushtun, to negotiate their differences. At that point Afghanistan was still largely medieval as far as cultural norms and economic activity was concerned. The 20th century was making an impression and the educated urban minority was calling for radical change. This was tempting to many leading Afghans but the vast majority of Afghans were still in the countryside ruled by tribal leaders. Most of these rural Afghans opposed any radical change. The reform factions, mainly the pro-communist ones, tried violence to overthrow the monarchy, failed and in 1979 Russia intervened to rescue their fellow communists. That led to a civil war that was still going on until the IEA took over in 2021. The IEA government was intolerant and anti-Pakistan but also seemed capable of maintaining more peace than Afghanistan had known for decades. It is uncertain how long this will last, but for the moment it is. Part of the IEA strategy involves integrating senior Pushtun al Qaeda leaders into the government. This undermines IEA assurances that it is seeking to diminish Islamic terrorist activity in Afghanistan. The TTP (Pakistani Taliban) was granted sanctuary in Afghanistan. The dominance of Pushtuns in the government means the political power center of Afghanistan has shifted from Kabul and its large non-Pushtun population to Kandahar city, the capital of Kandahar province in the southwest. This is where Helmand province, where most opium and other drugs are produced.

May 18, 2023: Afghans noted that that Russia lost more troops (over 20,000) in less than a year of combat in Ukraine than the 15,000 they were lost during nine years of fighting in Afghanistan during the 1980s. Nearly a million Afghans died from Russian military operations during the 1980s, most of them unarmed civilians. Ukrainians have forces similar to the Russians and troops who are more lethal and determined than the Russian invaders. During the 1980s, Russian forces avoided contact with armed Afghans. The only exception was the few thousand special operations troops and warplanes carrying out airstrikes against Afghan civilians and the more elusive Afghan resistance fighters.
VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / June 14, 2023 / Camino Corp. (TSXV:COR) (OTC PINK:CAMZF) (WKN:A116E1) ("Camino" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that it has entered into a Definitive Agreement ("Agreement") with Nittetsu Mining Co., Ltd. ("Nittetsu") for its Los Chapitos copper exploration project ("Los Chapitos" or the "Project") in Peru.

Under the terms of the agreement, Nittetsu can earn a 35% interest in the Project by making payments and expenditures totalling CAD $10,100,000 over three years. Proceeds will be applied towards exploration, infill drilling, and metallurgical and engineering studies. After successful completion of the earn-in period, the Project will become a Joint Venture, whereby Camino will hold a 65% interest, remain operator of the Project, and retain 50% of the production off-take.

"Nittetsu is an experienced copper mining operator and a partner that is focussed on funding our Los Chapitos Project towards a development decision," said Jay Chmelauskas, President and CEO of Camino. "We plan to continue to explore our property to expand the known zones of copper mineralization to determine a potential mine size. We have known the Nittetsu team for over two years, and we believe that our partnership will realize the best development opportunity and value creation at Los Chapitos."

Key Terms:

Payment to Camino of CAD $100,000 completed in February 2023.

Nittetsu to pay Camino CAD $1,000,000 within 5 business days.

Nittetsu to incur earn-in expenditures of CAD $9,000,000 over a 3-year period to earn a 35% project interest in the Los Chapitos Project with no accruing interest rights.

First installment payment of CAD $1,500,000 to be made within 5 business days.

Upon completion of the 35% interest acquisition by Nittetsu, a Joint Venture between parties will be established.

Camino to remain the operator of the Project.

Off-take on commercial basis to be shared 50% by each party.

Exploration programs to begin immediately at the Los Chapitos Project.

"Our partnership with Nittetsu is another step towards developing our copper platform at Camino," said Keith Peck, Executive Chairman of Camino. "The advancement of Los Chapitos with Nittetsu will complement our other active corporate development activities to seek more advanced stage copper projects ahead of a strong copper market."

"Our partnership objective with Camino is to advance the Los Chapitos copper project towards a pre-feasibility study over our initial investment period," said Shinichiro Mita, General Manager of Nittetsu. "We see strong geological and development potential at Los Chapitos and a dedicated group at Camino that is committed to develop a copper business with us."

Exploration is expected to commence immediately in June to complete the plan for the first six-month instalment period. The initial exploration program is planned to consist of mapping, geophysics, and road access to identify and prepare high-priority drilling targets. In addition, the Company is anticipating the receipt of an expanded EIA permit that will open more than 6,012 hectares for exploration drilling (see press release February 8, 2023).

The Los Chapitos Project is located in the IOCG belt of the Coastal Cordillera of northern Chile and southern Peru. The Mina Justa IOCG copper mine is located approximately 100 km north of Los Chapitos in southern Peru and is notably one of the world's newest large scale copper producers behind Quellaveco (Peru) and Kamoa-Kakula (DRC). Other major deposits in this IOCG belt include Mantoverde (Chile) and Candelaria (Chile) and there are dozens of other smaller scale copper deposits (see Figure 1).

Figure 1. Copper rich IOCG deposits extending through southern Peru and northern Chile.

About Nittetsu Mining Co., Ltd.

Nittetsu is a Japanese corporation listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange with 84-year history as a mining and trading company. Nittetsu is the operator of the Atacama Kozan mine located in the prolific Candelaria-Punta del Cobre copper district which is known to host IOCG type ore deposits. In addition, Nittetsu has made a decision to start construction of its 80% owned Arqueros copper mine in Chile. Nittetsu has expertise in processing, distributing, importing, and exporting copper and other mineral products. Other businesses include: purchasing and distributing coal and petroleum products; developing and distributing equipment, machinery and environment-related products; real estate; power generation using renewable energy; the supply and sale of electricity; and mining and distributing industrial minerals including limestone.

About Camino Corporation

Camino is a discovery and development stage copper exploration company with a portfolio of projects located in Peru. The Company is focused on advancing its high-grade Los Chapitos copper project through to resource delineation, new discoveries and development. Camino has also permitted the Maria Cecilia copper porphyry project for a planned exploration drilling program. In addition, the Company has increased its land position at its copper and silver Plata Dorada project. The Company seeks to acquire a portfolio of advanced copper assets that have the potential to deliver copper into an electrifying copper intensive global economy. For more information, please refer to Camino's website at www.caminocorp.com.

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD For further information, please contact: /S/ "Jay Chmelauskas" Camino Investor Relations President and CEO [email protected] Tel: (604) 493-2058

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward Looking Statements: Certain disclosures in this release constitute forward-looking information. In making the forward-looking disclosures in this release, the Company has applied certain factors and assumptions that are based on the Company's current beliefs as well as assumptions made by and information currently available to the Company. Forward-looking information in the release includes the prospectivity of future exploration work at Los Chapitos, and the completion of a pre-feasibility study. Although the Company considers these assumptions to be reasonable based on information currently available to it, they may prove to be incorrect, and the forward-looking information in this release is subject to numerous risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause future results to differ materially from those expressed or implied in such forward-looking information. Such risk factors include, among others, the ability of the parties to negotiate the definitive earn-in and joint venture agreement on satisfactory terms, that actual results of the Company's exploration activities will be different than those expected by management, that the Company will be unable to obtain or will experience delays in obtaining any required approvals and the state of equity and commodity markets. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. The Company does not intend, and expressly disclaims any intention or obligation to, update or revise any forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law.

SOURCE: Camino Minerals Corp.

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The company will showcase the first wireless, scalable, off-the-shelf co-culture solution at ASM Microbe 2023 in Houston, TX June 16th-18th

CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA / ACCESSWIRE / June 14, 2023 / Cerillo, a biotechnology company at the forefront of developing advanced research platforms for the study of the microbiome, will host demonstrations of the company's new co-culture duet system at ASM Microbe 2023 from June 16-18th in Houston, Texas at booth #704. Attendees can learn more and register for live demos at: https://info.cerillo.bio/asm2023.

Cerillo's Co-Culture Duet System

Cerillo's co-culture system will enable researchers to observe and study individual microbial populations in real-time and measure the growth of one microbial population alongside other populations. The system's porous barrier can physically isolate populations while maintaining fluidic contact, allowing researchers to mimic natural microbiome conditions and study the interactions between microorganisms.

The co-culture system is also scalable since it can be read in multiple microplate readers, each wirelessly connected to the company's analytic software. This wireless feature can also help researchers capture and analyze growth data as it happens, enabling them to monitor and adjust their experiments in real-time.

Until now, researchers faced the constraints of limited off-the-shelf co-culture options, demanding substantial investments of time and resources in developing custom systems for their studies. "Cerillo is dedicated to liberating microbiome researchers from the constraints of conventional laboratory technologies," says Eric Mayton, CEO of Cerillo. "Our new co-culture system is a game-changer, since it is the world's first scalable, user-friendly, and cost-effective co-culture system."

Applications

Cerillo's co-culture system enables researchers to:

Mimic natural conditions : Microorganisms in the environment often exist in complex communities, where they interact with each other. Cerillo's co-culture system allows researchers to mimic these natural conditions and study the interactions between microorganisms.

: Microorganisms in the environment often exist in complex communities, where they interact with each other. Cerillo's co-culture system allows researchers to mimic these natural conditions and study the interactions between microorganisms. Improve understanding of microbial interactions: Cerillo's co-culture system can provide insight into how microorganisms interact with each other. For example, one microorganism may produce a compound that benefits another microorganism, or one microorganism may inhibit the growth of another. These interactions can be difficult to study in isolation.

Cerillo's co-culture system can provide insight into how microorganisms interact with each other. For example, one microorganism may produce a compound that benefits another microorganism, or one microorganism may inhibit the growth of another. These interactions can be difficult to study in isolation. Identify novel compounds: Our system can also be used to identify novel compounds that are produced by microorganisms. For example, one microorganism may produce a compound that is only active in the presence of another microorganism.

Our system can also be used to identify novel compounds that are produced by microorganisms. For example, one microorganism may produce a compound that is only active in the presence of another microorganism. Develop new therapies: Cerillo's co-culture system can be used to screen for potential therapeutics by testing the ability of a compound to inhibit the growth of a pathogenic microorganism in the presence of a beneficial microorganism.

Features and Benefits

multiplexed plate accommodates 18 duets

physically accessible wells enable population sampling during and after experiments

compatible with other automation systems, giving you the freedom and flexibility to run additional assays on different platforms

effective for quick proofs-of-concept, and also preconfigured for higher-throughput work, making it suitable for a wide range of experiment types

scalable, enabling high-throughput experiments for faster results and comprehensive data analysis

small and robust to harsh conditions of incubators and anaerobic chambers

easily access your data without physical contact with your plate reader and manual memory cards

About Cerillo

Cerillo is a biotechnology company at the forefront of microbiome research and innovation with a mission to develop cutting-edge solutions that enable in-depth exploration and analysis of the microbiome.

The company's flagship offering is a wireless device platform, which seamlessly connects microplate readers to advanced analytic software. This integration allows for real-time visualization of growth curves, providing researchers with valuable insights into the dynamics of microbial populations. By capturing and analyzing growth data as it happens, scientists can make informed decisions, accelerate research, and optimize experimental outcomes.

Cerillo's mission is to make microbiome engineering more accessible and available to a wider range of researchers than ever before. In order to achieve this, we're breaking down barriers to entry such as the high cost of equipment, scalability, and portability. For more information visit our website www.cerillo.bio.

Media Contact:

Meghan O'Sullivan

[email protected]

Sales:

Mike Fitzpatrick

[email protected]

SOURCE: Cerillo

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The ornate Kennedy Caucus Room of the Russell Senate Office Building featured a historic event, organized by Project Legacy, heralding the introduction of bipartisan legislation S.91- Forgotten Heroes of the Holocaust Congressional Gold Medal Act awarding a Congressional Gold Medal to 60 diplomats in recognition of their heroism and bravery during the Holocaust.

WASHINGTON, DC / ACCESSWIRE / June 14, 2023 / These diplomats used every means at their disposal to help Jews fleeing persecution. One of the most powerful tools the diplomats had was the issuing of passports and travel visas contrary to the instruction of the governments of the diplomats. This process alone was responsible for saving hundreds of thousands of Jewish families.

U.S. Senator Bill Hagerty speaking

Headtable L-R: Amb. Miloslav Stasek - Czech Republic, Ingrid Ask - Sweden, Amb. Marek Magierowski - Poland, Ezra Friedlander, Laura Curran, Art Reidel, Sen. Bill Hagerty (speaking), Abe Foxman, Stacy Bernard Davis, Amb. Tomita Koji - Japan

Chair of the Forgotten Heroes of the Holocaust Congressional Gold Medal Committee (forgottenheroesoftheholocaust.org), Abraham Foxman, encapsulated the significance of the legislative effort with a moving statement: "I decided a long time ago not to be a witness to the evil, to the brutality that men are capable of. I decided to bear witness to goodness, to decency, to compassion, to humanity, to all who have made a colossal difference in that they saved lives - Jewish lives."

Art Reidel, co-chair, expressed his strong support for the Gold Medal Act: "I feel strongly that our taking this action and supporting this bill is especially important at this time in this place. I do not need to explain to anyone here the moral challenges that we face today but I will respectfully remind everyone that at the time of the Holocaust in this city, many in positions of power failed to stand up and allowed innocent deaths that they could have prevented."

Dr. Mordecai Paldiel, academic advisor for the bill, has conducted extensive research on the theme of Righteous Among the Nations, and expressed his belief that the heroic acts of these 60 diplomats must be etched into history, asserting that "The 60 people on our list, they didn't know each other, they didn't consult with each other, they did not belong to a rescuers club, but they all decided that the values of humanity, of civilized life, of moral life are at stake and they had to make a decision. They were there on the spot, they saw it. They were not Mother Teresas, they were not cut out to be saints, but they did saintly things, saintly acts."

The program featured remarks by U.S. Senator Bill Hagerty who explained his motivation for sponsoring S. 91 (Congress.gov) and the deep significance this legislation holds. Previously serving as the United States Ambassador to Japan, this bill has a special meaning to him.

The Democratic lead of the bill, U.S. Senator Tim Kaine, discussed the importance of S.91 and his inspiration for sponsoring the bill.

Participants also heard from Senator Mike Braun and Senator Rick Scott.

Thirteen ambassadors, representing individual diplomats from countries that are listed in the Congressional Gold Medal legislation, shared remarkable stories of these heroes and spoke on how each of these stories inspired them to act bravely and honorably in their own work. The roster included Tomita Koji - Japan, H.E. Murat Mercan - Turkey, Ingrid Ask - Sweden, Marek Magierowski of Poland, Miloslav Stasek - Czech Republic, Bernardo Velloso - Brazil, Andre Haspels - Netherlands, Radovan Javorcik - Slovak Republic, Ana Louisa Fajer Flores - Mexico, Alexandra Bilreiro - Portugal, Alessando Gonzales - Italy, Andrei Muraru - Romania.

"The Forgotten Heroes of the Holocaust Congressional Gold Medal Act is a pivotal piece of legislation that strives to uphold the selflessness, kindness, and bravery of the diplomats and this bill will forever remind us that even ordinary people can do extraordinary things," concluded Ezra Friedlander, Founder of Project Legacy, organizer of the event, and CEO of The Friedlander Group.

Project Legacy (theprojectlegacy.org) was established for charitable, scientific, literary, and educational purposes. Project Legacy will recognize individuals whose leadership has resulted in the advancement of peace, human rights, democracy, and freedom.

Download additional photos and captions here.

Contact Information

Miriam Leah

Officer

[email protected]

9178263900

Related Files

Photo - Ambassador Andrei Muraru of Romania speaking.jpg

Photo - Senator Kaine speaking.jpg

Related Video

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iC-W2a3hNjs

SOURCE: Project Legacy

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VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / June 13, 2023 / Faraday Copper Corp. ("Faraday" or the "Company") (TSX:FDY)(OTCQX:CPPKF) is pleased to announce it has filed a technical report titled "Copper Creek Project NI 43-101 Technical Report and Preliminary Economic Assessment" (the "Technical Report") prepared in accordance with National Instrument 43-101 - Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects. The Technical Report is in support of our May 3, 2023 news release announcing the results of a Preliminary Economic Assessment for the Copper Creek Project, located in Arizona, U.S. The Technical Report is available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com and on our website at www.faradaycopper.com.

About Faraday Copper

Faraday Copper is a Canadian exploration company focused on advancing its flagship copper project in The United States of America. The Copper Creek Project, located in Arizona, is one of the largest undeveloped copper projects in North America with open pit and bulk underground mining potential. The Company is well-funded to deliver on its key milestones and benefits from a management team and board of directors with senior mining company experience and expertise. Faraday trades on the TSX under the symbol "FDY".

For additional information please contact:

Stacey Pavlova, CFA

Vice President, Investor Relations & Communications

Faraday Copper Corp.

E-mail: [email protected]

Website: www.faradaycopper.com

To receive news releases by e-mail, please register using the Faraday website at www.faradaycopper.com.

SOURCE: Faraday Copper Corp.

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SODANKYL, FINLAND / ACCESSWIRE / June 14, 2023 / FireFox Gold Corp. (TSX.V:FFOX)(OTCQB: FFOXF)("FireFox" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that it has completed a drilling program at the newly discovered high-grade zone in the East Target of the Mustajarvi Project. The Company drilled nine (9) diamond core holes totalling 1540.6 metres during the short spring 2023 program. These drill holes were designed to infill gaps in the modelled near-surface gold shapes and test for significant extensions to the west and southwest (see Figure 1). The new holes included close offsets and downdip tests of the replacement style gold mineralization drilled in the East Target, but the drilling also included major step-outs of 80m and 220m along strike to the southwest. Assays of the drill core are in progress.

The Company has also received multielement geochemical analyses on the drill core from the fall 2022 drilling campaign. The most recent data are consistent with previous results from Mustajarvi drilling; the gold mineralization is consistently enriched in bismuth (Bi), tellurium (Te), molybdenum (Mo), selenium (Se), nickel (Ni), and cobalt (Co). Silver (Ag), arsenic (As), and copper (Cu) occur at relatively low levels at Mustajarvi. Cobalt is quite enriched at the East target, reaching maximum values of 0.497% and 0.461% over separate 1 metre samples in the 2022 drilling. Drill hole 22MJ021 recorded the strongest cobalt interval yet drilled, along with one of the best gold results as well (see Company news release dated January 18, 2023):

22MJ021: 15.5m at 13.09 g/t Au, 0.15% Co, and 143 ppm Te from 11.0m depth, including 6.5m at 19.18 g/t Au, 0.27% Co, and 247 ppm Te from 20.0m depth.



FireFox's CEO, Carl Lofberg, commented about the drilling at Mustajarvi, "This drill program is meant to reveal the potential scale of the gold system we have been drilling at Mustajarvi. The combination of careful structural measurements and detailed interpretation of geophysics directed the team to focus the step-out drilling along a northeast-southwest corridor. Our preliminary impressions are that the new drilling has been successful in extending the mineralized corridor to the southwest. The elevated cobalt that is associated with the gold is a recurring theme at Mustajarvi. While we know the cobalt occurs in pyrite, which is also correlated with the gold, there remains a lot of work to understand whether the cobalt could be economically recovered. We look forward to the receipt of the gold and multielement assays from this latest round of drilling."

Mustajarvi Project and Drill Program Details

The Mustajarvi Project lies along the highway between the cities of Kittila and Sodankyla, approximately 17 kilometres east of Kittila. The property straddles the Mustajarvi Shear Zone (MSZ), a major right-lateral shear zone that has associated second and third-order structures which further dissect the project into separate structural zones. The SodankylaI Group rocks, which are primarily to the north of the shear zone in the footwall, include metamorphosed sedimentary and volcaniclastic rocks. Geophysics and drilling have identified an extensive corridor of albite - sericite alteration in the footwall along more than two kilometres of the structure. The project remains at an early stage as FireFox and predecessor companies have drilled approximately 14,158 metres to date.

Figure 1 - Spring 2023 drilling campaign at Mustajarvi East Target - infill and step out holes.

FireFox's structural model identified repetitive dilatant zones along the MSZ where vein swarms, replacement style, and higher-grade gold are concentrated. Three main areas of gold mineralization have been identified along a 2.1-kilometre segment of the MSZ, namely the Central Zone, the Northeast Target, and the East Target. The Central Zone and East Target have clear expressions of significant grade and thickness of gold mineralization at surface, whereas the gold at the Northeast Target is concentrated between 100 and 150 metres below surface. Folding and extensive faulting are in evidence, suggesting the potential for locating much more gold around and between these three widely spaced targets.

The spring 2023 drilling at Mustajarvi was focused on the East Target with a primary goal to extend known, shallow high-grade mineralization. FireFox geologists have collected structural geology evidence indicating that a primary control on the East Target mineralization trends to the southwest. The detailed ground magnetics also revealed a subtle corridor of less magnetic rocks trending to the southwest beneath the highway. There is also a chargeability anomaly in the area, immediately SW of the latest drilling, that may mark the presence of sulphide minerals. The high chargeability zone strikes northeast and dips to the southeast, subparallel with the inferred lithological contact and slightly oblique to the MSZ. The nature of the elevated chargeability was untested until this drill program. The drilling was targeted based on a combination of FireFox's 3D geological model, structural geology, and geophysics. Due to the near-surface nature of the high-grade target in this area, most of the drill holes in this program were shallow (See Table 1).

Drill holes 23MJ001 and MJ002 were aimed at the western side of the shallow high-grade replacement style mineralization and downdip extensions of the Riedel veins that often host high-grade gold. 23MJ001 undercut a bonanza grade intercept in 22MJ024 (3.4m at 50.91 g/t Au from 91.8m depth), which was reported on February 15, 2023. Both of these holes evaluated the downdip continuation of the thicker replacement style zones of mineralization in the centre of the East Target.

The team stepped out over 100m to the south with drill hole 23MJ003, which was aimed back to the northwest to probe for a key lithologic contact and shear zone. Drill hole 22MJ025 had intercepted narrow intercepts of 14.53 and 8.75 g/t gold at depth, but it failed to reach the shear zone (see Company news release dated February 15, 2023). The FireFox geological model predicts that jogs in the sheared contact between the Sodankyla group and Savukoski group rocks are associated with the strongest gold occurrences along the shear zone. The new drill hole passed through the contact at the approximate depth predicted. The shear zone has now been drilled over a strike length of more than 2.2km despite numerous complex jogs and displacements in the feature.

Drill holes 23MJ004 and 23MJ007 are drilled along a northeast-southwest direction, roughly parallel to the MSZ. This alternative direction of drilling yielded excellent results during a first test, as reported in the January 2023 FireFox news release. In this area, there is a well-developed zone of thicker replacement style mineralization that comes very close to surface and is interpreted to plunge to the southwest. Drill hole 23MJ007 cuts across an interpreted structure and passes through a strong magnetic low on the northwest of the known gold zone. These holes could offer meaningful extensions to the heart of the East Zone mineralization. Drill hole 23MJ006 was lost due to drilling difficulties and replaced with 23MJ007.

Drill holes 23MJ005 and MJ009 were drilled along northwest-southeast section lines, separated by approximately 20 metres. One hole was aimed to the northwest and the other to the southeast in order to test both shallow and deeper portions of the combined IP chargeability and magnetic anomaly that extends west from the East Target.

The team executed a bold step-out drill hole with 23MJ008. It was collared approximately 120 metres southwest from 23MJ005 and more than 220 meters southwest from 22MJ022. The structural geology and apparent controls on the shallow high-grade parts of the East Target appear to indicate a southwest plunge. That pattern is echoed by the complex patterns seen in the detailed ground magnetics. This drill hole was directed at crosscutting the prevailing shear direction and testing a new corridor of low magnetics that may define another zone of alteration.

Firefox Gold geologists are actively working with the new drill core, logging geology, and making measurements. Samples are still being delivered to the laboratory and assays are pending for all of this drilling. More information can be expected during the coming weeks.

Table 1. Mustajarvi Spring 2023 Collar Information (coordinates presented in EPSG:3067).

Drill Hole Easting Northing Azimuth () Plunge () Final Depth (m) 23MJ001 429085 7501026.4 320 60 188 23MJ002 429037 7501068.4 140 50 151.7 23MJ003 429214 7500911.7 320 60 284 23MJ004 429111 7501055 240 50 175.4 23MJ005 429005 7500964 325 60 152.1 23MJ006 428990 7501053.5 60 50 32.1 (failed) 23MJ007 428988 7501052.4 60 50 168.9 23MJ008 428927 7500851.2 340 60 194.4 23MJ009 428972 7501058.5 145 45 194

Methodology & Quality Assurance

The multielement analytical results reported herein are from drill core samples processed by ALS Laboratories. After receipt of gold assays, the FireFox team selects subsets of samples to be subjected to multielement geochemical analyses. These data are reported from ALS - Ireland using a four-acid digestion followed by ICP-AES and ICP-MS analyses (method ME-MS61).

ALS Laboratories is a leading international provider of assay and analytical data to the mining industry. All ALS geochemical hub laboratories, including the Irish facility, are accredited to ISO/IEC 17025:2017 for specific analytical procedures. The Firefox QA/QC program consists of insertion of blind certificated standard material and blanks into the analytical batches, and results reported here did not show deviations from recommended values.

Patrick Highsmith, Certified Professional Geologist (AIPG CPG # 11702) and director of the Company, is a qualified person as defined by National Instrument 43-101. Mr. Highsmith has helped prepare, reviewed, and approved the technical information in this news release.

Dr. Sven Honig, Certified European Geologist (EFG EurGeol Title # 1789) and General Manager - Exploration of the Company, is a qualified person as defined by National Instrument 43-101. Dr. Honig has supervised the field work reported herein and has helped to prepare and approves the technical information in this news release.

About FireFox Gold Corp.

FireFox Gold Corp is listed on the TSX Venture Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol FFOX. FireFox also trades on the OTCQB Venture Market Exchange in the US under the ticker symbol FFOXF. The Company has been exploring for gold in Finland since 2017 where it holds a huge portfolio of prospective ground.

Finland is one of the top mining investment jurisdictions in the world as indicated by its multiple top-10 rankings in recent Fraser Institute Surveys of Mining Companies. Having a strong mining law and long mining tradition, Finland remains underexplored for gold. Recent exploration results in the country have highlighted its prospectivity, and FireFox is proud to have a Finland based CEO and technical team.

For more information, please refer to the Company's website and profile on the SEDAR website at www.sedar.com.

On behalf of the Board of Directors,

"Carl Lofberg"

Chief Executive Officer

CONTACT:

FireFox Gold Corp.

Email: [email protected]

Telephone: +1-778-938-1994

Forward Looking Statements

The information herein contains forward looking statements that are subject to a number of known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated in our forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause such differences include changes in world commodity markets, equity markets, costs and supply of materials relevant to the mining industry, changes in government and changes to regulations affecting the mining industry.

Forward-looking statements in this release may include statements regarding: evolving geological interpretations; continuity of geological targets; timing for completion of assays; intent to conduct additional drilling; belief as to the location of the most prospective gold targets; the location of targets for future drill programs; and the scale and scope of the current and future work program, including the extent and nature of exploration to be conducted in 2023. Although we believe the expectations reflected in our forward-looking statements are reasonable, results may vary.

The forward-looking statements contained herein represent the expectations of FireFox as of the date of dissemination and, accordingly, are subject to change after such date. Readers should not place undue importance on forward-looking statements and should not rely upon this information as of any other date. FireFox does not undertake to update this information at any particular time except as required in accordance with applicable laws.

SOURCE: FireFox Gold Corp

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Extensions to CD-240's 34.5m @ 5.3% CuEq Mapped via Mise-a-la-Masse Survey

LONDON, UK / ACCESSWIRE / June 14, 2023 / Meridian Mining UK S (TSX:MNO)(OTCQX:MRRDF)(Frankfurt/Tradegate:2MM) ("Meridian" or the "Company") is pleased to provide an update on its geophysical program at Cabaal, with a Mise-a-la-Masse survey (the "Survey") completed to assist follow-up targeting of the Cabacal copper feeder zone intersected in CD-2401. The Survey has defined a conductive trend over a 650m strike length, projecting out from the CD-240 position that returned 34.5m @ 5.3% CuEq / 7.9g/t AuEq (4.0% Cu, 1.7g/t Au & 22.4g/t Ag) from 125.35m. CD-240 represents the Company's best copper intersection to date at Cabacal (Figure 1). This now defined trend will be targeted as part of the Cabacal infill and extensional drilling program.

The Company is also reporting that CD-254 has intercepted a strong shallow copper-gold zone in the Eastern Copper Zone ("ECZ") including 4.2m @ 3.5% CuEq / 5.3g/t AuEq (3.0% Cu, 0.8g/t Au, 15.2g/t Ag) from 63.4m. This is part of a previously reported trend of strong copper-gold mineralization along the length of the Cabacal deposit. The ECZ will now also be surveyed via the Mise-a-la-Masse technique to generate the outline of this extensive and shallow mineralization trend for subsequent testing by the current drill program. Further results are pending.

Highlights Reported Today

Mise-a-la-Masse survey maps 650m corridor over Cabacal's copper feeder zone; Mise-a-la-Masse survey defines drill targets for northwest/southeast extensions to CD-240; Southeastern extension of Cabacal copper feeder zone sparsely covered by drilling;

CD-254 returns 17.7m @ 1.6% CuEq / 2.4g/t AuEq (1.3% Cu, 0.4g/t Au & 6.8g/t Ag) from 50.0m, including: 5.0m @ 1.9% Cu, 0.6g/t Au & 9.8g/t Ag from 50.5m; 4.2m @ 3.0% Cu, 0.8g/t Au & 15.2g/t Ag from 63.4m;

(1.3% Cu, 0.4g/t Au & 6.8g/t Ag) from 50.0m, including: Additional strong copper-gold mineralization continues to be reported; and

and Third drill rig now on site with fourth rig due in July to accelerate Cabacal mine and belt program.

Dr. Adrian McArthur, CEO, comments: "The Company is very pleased with the results of the new geophysical techniques applied over the Cabacal mine area. The Mise-a-la-Masse survey technique was selected for definition of the CD-240 sulphide trend, as it applies a direct current to the sulphide body and assists in projecting the extensions of the more immediately connected sulphide mass. Results have been extremely positive, highlighting a northwest/southeast conductive trend over a 650m strike length, with subsidiary peak responses presenting numerous targets along the trend for further drilling. The strong copper-gold mineralization in CD-254, one of many shallow intercepts along the ECZ, will now be surveyed via Mise-a-la-Masse to map extensions northwest of its position and also its largely open trend to the southeast. We now have three rigs operating on site, with a fourth expected in July. Further assay results will be reported over summer and autumn, as we continue to target the strong upside of the Cabacal deposit, and the belt-scale upside, commencing at Santa Helena."

[1] See Meridian news release of March 27, 2023.

SCZ Copper Sulphide Feeder System

The CD-240 high-grade feeder intersection of 34.5m @ 5.3% CuEq / 7.9g/t AuEq from 125.35m emphasised the presence of massive to breccia sulphide mineralization in the Cabacal mineral system that was under-represented in Meridian's previous drill campaigns. The Company has undertaken a Mise-a-la-Masse ("MALM") survey in CD-240 and adjacent drill platforms, to better define the associated sulphide body and its extensions. The survey was designed by Meridian's geophysical consultancy, Core Geophysics, and executed by the Company's dedicated in-house survey team.

The MALM survey method maps surface potentials (or voltages) associated with resistivity contrasts intrinsically linked with geology. Sulphide bodies are particularly amenable to the technique due to their conductivity contrast against more resistive host rocks. The survey was concluded in late May, and results recently processed and interpreted. Three drill hole survey platforms were selected, since the measured response in a conventional survey naturally weakens radially away from the transmitter, assuming no changes in conductivity. A stronger response detected with increasing distance from the transmitter may be due to higher conductivity (potentially reflecting thicker sulphide zones, more massive sulphide, a greater abundance of chalcopyrite - the more conductive sulphide phase - or sulphide present at shallower depths). The MALM survey measured the surface potentials generated from the three down-hole electrodes over an area of 300 x 700m. The technique highlights the zone of more connected sulphides as a voltage "high" (warm colours in gridded image, Figure 1). Note that away from the main zone, polarity is reversed, and satellite conductors are shown as "lows" (blue colours in gridded image), and satellite resistors has "highs".

Figure 1: MALM Survey - results based on the survey platforms from CD-004, CD-240, CD-251.

The results from the first phase of the survey, in CD-240 itself, highlighted the presence of a corridor with a >125mV anomaly associated with the sulphide mineralization, extending over 120m. The anomaly directly over the drill site was 140mV, with the response increasing to the southeast, with three sub-peaks in the contoured data at 155mV. The anomaly persisted along strike to the northwest, dropping to 110mV, before rising again to 140mV on the northern lines, when it was decided to select a separate drill hole as a new survey platform, CD-004.

CD-004 was drilled in the initial stages of the resource program, and intersected 10.2m @ 5.7% CuEq / 8.5g/t AuEq (4.9% Cu, 1.1g/t Au, 20.4g/t Ag) from 152.0m. The hole was directed into the basal contact zone, drilled to the northwest, ~ 60m along strike from CD-240. The survey results showed the continuing northwest projection of the trend, peaking at 170mV, 120-165m along strike from CD-240. CD-098 was drilled near this position but was an angled hole and would not have intersected the position of the anomaly in plan-view. The survey grid was extended some distance to the northwest. The axis of the CD-240 sulphide trend could be continually detected in gridded and contoured data, although further survey platforms will be required to better map anomaly thresholds given the increasing distance.

CD-251 was drilled to provide a survey platform to the southeast. The hole was drilled vertically and lifted to 81 degrees which consequently offset it from the anomaly position. CD-251 intersected 31.5m @ 1.0g/t AuEq (0.5% Cu, 0.3g/t Au & 2.9g/t Ag) from 117.2m, including a basal zone of 5.1m @ 3.4g/t AuEq / 2.3% CuEq (1.8% Cu, 0.7g/t Au, 13.8g/t Ag & 1.6% Zn) from 143.2m. The trend of the sulphide response continues to the southeast, with peaks of 80mV. Although lower in threshold, the change in response may represent a local transition in the sulphide assemblage, with zinc becoming more abundant at this point (almost equalling copper content in the basal sulphide zone).

Together, the combined results of the three surveys are interpreted by the Company's consultancy to indicate a sulphide body or structure with a relatively long strike length (approximately 650m) striking northwest to southeast. Variability of the response may reflect some periodicity in the mineralization (swelling or stepping of the position). The Cabacal stringer sulphide system up-dip is expressed as a broader zone of conductivity in the northeast sector of the survey corridor. To the southwest, a resistive corridor is present which corresponds to a bedded cherty sediment. This is flanked further to the southwest by more chargeable trends, which will require further investigation as to whether they represent stratigraphic positions, or separate rift- related sulphide targets satellite to the main system. The 1990 Mason and Kerr study hypothesised that more zinc- dominant components of the system might be expected lateral to the copper-dominant core of the Cabacal system.

The projection of the main 650m conductive trend is consistent with historical reports that additional high-grade copper zones were encountered along strike from the CD-240 intersection, including:

JUSPD482: 13.4m @ 5.5% Cu, 1.3g/t Au & 24.7g/t Ag; and

CAIK211: 29.3m @ 6.0% Cu, 3.1g/t Au & 28.8g/t Ag.

Original data for these holes have been lost. Programs will continue to test for these positions. Some areas remain difficult to access beneath multiple room and pillar workings. One of the three rigs will continue to test grade distribution in the vicinity of the underground workings (where one of the PEA starter pits is projected for development), whilst other drilling will continue to infill and extend the broader deposit. Various holes are strategically placed to gather geotechnical data to update the pit design, which previously relied on conservative assumptions for pit-wall angles.

Drilling Results

Further results have been reported from the Company's drilling programs in the Cabacal mine area, and the C2A target region. Positive results have been returned in the ECZ and its extensions in the CNWE, where drilling in the shallow up-dip sector of the deposit has returned strong Cu-Au-Ag mineralization. Highlights include:

CD-254 (ECZ): 17.7m @ 2.4g/t AuEq / 1.6% CuEq (1.3% Cu, 0.4g/t Au, 6.8g/t Ag) from 50.0m, including:

5.0m @ 3.4g/t AuEq / 2.3% CuEq (1.9% Cu, 0.6g/t Au & 9.8g/t Ag) from 50.5m;

4.2m @ 5.3g/t AuEq / 3.5% CuEq (3.0% Cu, 0.8g/t Au & 15.2g/t Ag) from 63.4m; and

CD-249 (CNWE): 13.9m @ 1.3% CuEq / 2.0g/t AuEq (1.1% Cu, 0.4g/t Au & 1.9g/t Ag) from 36.2m, including:

6.6m @ 3.7 g/t AuEq / 2.5% CuEq (2.1% Cu, 0.7g/t Au & 3.6g/t Ag) from 42.4m.

Results from the ECZ and the up-dip sector of the CNWE represent part of the Company's program to extend drilling into areas where the resource is inferred to unclassified, or the Company feels the grade may be under-represented. Some of the drilling extends mineralization further into the area of the shallow gabbro sill. Following the positive results in conductivity mapping from the SCZ, the Company will extend the MALM into this area to better map the zones of enriched copper. The high grades encountered in CD-254 may indicate that copper is enriched in this structural / intrusive pinch-out position.

CD-251 was drilled to provide an additional geophysical platform in the SCZ. The hole lifted slightly off the trend of the conductor, but still shows increased concentrations of Cu-Zn sulphides compared to surrounding holes.

A number of results have been returned from exploratory holes into the C2A target region in the first quarter. The Au-Ag target area continues to show promise, with highlights including:

CD-244: 25.4m @ 0.6g/t Au & 1.0g/t Ag from 45.0m; Including: 10.8m @ 1.3g/t Au & 1.1g/t Ag from 45.0m; and

CD-247: 14.2m @ 1.1g/t Au & 1.6g/t Ag from 22.9m; 5.3m @ 0.9g/t Au & 33.5g/t Ag from 49.3m.

Reconnaissance drilling in other satellite IP / geochemical targets all returned early indications of sulphide mineralization (Table 1; Figure 2). The Company is purchasing a Geonics down-hole probe to supplement its geophysical exploration targeting, with some of these targets showing mixed Cu-Zn-Ag assemblages. The Company is also progressing with a regional gravity survey to provide an additional targeting parameter in structural interpretation for the gold overprint event. Regional exploration drilling will recommence with the arrival of a fourth rig to initially target Santa Helena. The Company continues to work with landholders and statutory authorities to formalize access over additional regional targets.

Figure 2: Map of drill holes with recently reported assay results.

Table 1: Drilling results

About Meridian

Meridian Mining UK S is focused on:

The development and exploration of the advanced stage Cabacal VMS goldacopper project;

Regional scale exploration of the Cabacal VMS belt;

Exploration in the Jauru & Araputanga Greenstone belts (the above all located in the State of Mato Grosso, Brazil); and

Exploring the Espigao polymetallic project in the State of Rondonia, Brazil.

Cabacal is a gold-copper-silver rich VMS deposit with the potential to be a standalone mine within the 50km VMS belt. Cabacal's base and precious metal-rich mineralization is hosted by volcanogenic type, massive, semi-massive, stringer, and disseminated sulphides within deformed metavolcanic-sedimentary rocks. A later-stage sub-vertical gold overprint event has emplaced high-grade gold mineralization cross-cutting the dipping VMS layers.

The Cabacal Mineral Resource estimate consists of Indicated resources of 52.9 million tonnes at 0.6g/t gold, 0.3% copper and 1.4g/t silver and Inferred resources of 10.3 million tonnes at 0.7g/t gold, 0.2% copper & 1.1g/t silver (at a 0.3 g/t gold equivalent cut-off grade), including a higher-grade near-surface zone supporting a starter pit.

The Preliminary Economic Assessment technical report (the "PEA Technical Report") dated March 30, 2023, entitled: "Cabacal Gold-Copper Project NI 43-101 Technical Report and Preliminary Economic Assessment, Mato Grosso, Brazil" outlines a base case after-tax NPV5 of USD 573 million and 58.4% IRR from a pre-production capital cost of USD 180 million, leading to capital repayment in 10.6 months (assuming metals price scenario of USD 1,650 per ounces of gold, USD 3.59 per pound of copper, and USD 21.35 per ounce of silver). Cabacal has a low All-in-Sustaining-Cost of USD 671 per ounce gold equivalent for the first five years, driven by high metallurgical recovery, a low life-of-mine strip ratio of 2.1:1, and the low operating cost environment of Brazil (see press release dated March 6, 2023).

Readers are encouraged to read the PEA Technical Report in its entirety. The PEA Technical Report may be found on the Company's website at www.meridianminig.co and under the Company's profile on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.

The qualified persons for the PEA Technical Report are: Robert Raponi (P. Eng), Principal Metallurgist with Ausenco Engineering), Scott Elfen (P. E.), Global Lead Geotechnical and Civil Services with Ausenco Engineering), Simon Tear (PGeo, EurGeol), Principal Geological Consultant of H&SC, Marcelo Batelochi, (MAusIMM, CP Geo), Geological Consultant of MB Geologia Ltda, Joseph Keane (Mineral Processing Engineer; P.E), of SGS, and Guilherme Gomides Ferreira (Mine Engineer MAIG) of GE21 Consultoria Mineral.

On behalf of the Board of Directors of Meridian Mining UK S

Dr. Adrian McArthur

CEO and Director

Meridian Mining UK S

Email: [email protected]

Ph: +1 (778) 715-6410 (PST)

Technical Notes

Samples have been analysed at the accredited ALS laboratory in Lima, Peru, and SGS laboratory in Belo Horizonte. Samples at ALS are dried, crushed with 70% passing 85% passing 200#. Routine gold analyses have been conducted by Au-AA23 (fire assay of a 30g charge with AAS finish). High-grade samples (>10g/t Au) are repeated with a gravimetric finish (Au-GRA21). Samples with visible gold identified during logging are analysed by screen fire assay method Au-SCR21. Samples at SGS are dried, crushed with 75% passing

" Au_recovery_ppm = 5.4368ln(Au_Grade_ppm)+88.856

" Cu_recovery_pct = 2.0006ln(Cu_Grade_pct)+94.686

" Ag_recovery_ppm = 13.342ln(Ag_Grade_ppm)+71.037

Recoveries based on 2022 metallurgical testwork on core submitted to SGS Lakefield

The Mise-a-la-Masse survey is being conducted using the Company's in-house team, utilizing its GDD GRx8a16c receiver and 5000Wa2400a15A transmitter. Data is processed by the Company's independent consultancy Core Geophysics. Geophysical and geochemical exploration targets are preliminary in nature and not conclusive evidence of the likelihood of a mineral deposit.

Qualified Person

Dr. Adrian McArthur, B.Sc. Hons, Ph.D. FAusIMM., CEO and Director of Meridian as well as a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101, has reviewed and verified the technical information in this news release.

Stay up to date by subscribing for news alerts here: https://meridianmining.co/contact/

Follow Meridian on Twitter: https://twitter.com/MeridianMining

Further information can be found at: www.meridianmining.co

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

Some statements in this news release contain forward-looking information or forward-looking statements for the purposes of applicable securities laws. These statements address future events and conditions and so involve inherent risks and uncertainties, as disclosed under the heading "Risk Factors" in under the heading "Risk Factors" in Meridian's most recent Annual Information Form filed on www.sedar.com. While these factors and assumptions are considered reasonable by Meridian, in light of management's experience and perception of current conditions and expected developments, Meridian can give no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct. 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, Meridian disclaims any intent or obligation to update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events, or results or otherwise.

SOURCE: Meridian Mining UK S

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Booth brings extensive expertise in data centers and Ethernet standardization.

SEATTLE, WA / ACCESSWIRE / June 14, 2023 / NLM Photonics is pleased to welcome Brad Booth to its Board of Directors. Booth is a distinguished technology strategy and development leader, and is influential in industry consortia and standardization.





Brad Booth headshot

Headshot of Brad Booth





"I am honored to be joining the NLM Photonics Board of Directors," stated Booth. "As Cloud and AI data centers continue to push technologies to greater levels of bandwidth requirements to meet the growing needs of industry, there will be increased pressure to find materials and technologies that can meet those demands in a more energy-efficient manner. The team at NLM Photonics is on the leading edge of addressing the energy-efficient bandwidth conundrum."

Booth served as a Technical Program Manager at Meta Platforms and Principal Network Architect in Microsoft's Azure Hardware Architecture Group. At Meta and Microsoft, he focused on developing next-generation optical connectivity solutions for Cloud and AI data centers. Previously, Booth has held technology strategist and engineering positions at Dell, Intel, and Bell-Northern Research.

Booth led the formation of the Ethernet Technology Consortium, the Consortium for On-Board Optics, and the Ethernet Alliance. He also served on the board of directors for the IOWN Global Forum and the 10 Gigabit Ethernet Alliance. Booth was the chair for the 10GBASE-T standard and the editor-in-chief for the 10 Gigabit Ethernet standard. The holder of over 20 patents related to networking technologies, he has also received awards for his contributions to industry consortia and IEEE 802.3 Ethernet standards.

Booth has personally pursued efforts in sustainability. He and his wife have raised horses, chickens, and dairy goats and grow fruits and vegetables while living off rainwater harvesting as their only water source. Booth has built multiple rainwater harvesting systems and solar energy systems. He often speaks at industry conferences about the need for improved energy efficiency.

"NLM Photonics is thrilled to welcome Brad onto our board of directors. His industry expertise and reputation will be an invaluable asset to the company and its future," stated Gerard Zytnicki, CEO of NLM Photonics.

About NLM Photonics

NLM Photonics develops cutting-edge photonics solutions for transforming networking, computing, and sensing alongside our global partners and is based in Seattle and Paris. Follow us at nlmphotonics.com and on LinkedIn @nlm-photonics.

Contact Information

Erica McGillivray

Communications Director

[email protected]

SOURCE: NLM Photonics

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JDA innovations focused on increasing range, lowering costs and minimizing the carbon footprint for LFP batteries.

VANCOUVER, BC and NOVI, MI / ACCESSWIRE / June 14, 2023 / (TSX:NANO)(OTC:NNOMF)(Frankfurt:LBMB):

Highlights:

Nano One and ONE to jointly develop Nano One's LFP CAM for potential use in ONE's LFP batteries.

Collaboration aims to qualify & validate LFP CAM for binding offtake agreement.

Combined innovations are aimed at increasing range while lowering cost, environmental footprint and offering a North American solution.

Nano One Materials Corp. ("Nano One"), a leader in the sustainable production of lithium-ion battery cathode materials, and Our Next Energy (ONE), a Michigan-based energy storage technology company, have signed a joint development agreement (JDA) to collaborate on the validation, qualification and production of a North American supply of lithium iron phosphate (LFP) cathode active materials (CAM).

The CAM will be produced at Nano One's Candiac, Quebec, pilot and future commercial facilities for potential use in ONE's production LFP cells used in Aries and Gemini batteries. Nano One's Candiac facility is currently the only LFP CAM production plant in North America and its production milestones are aligned with ONE's battery production growth projections. Working together, ONE and Nano One aim to qualify and validate the LFP CAM from its previously announced 200tpa pilot, potentially leading to a binding offtake agreement from the future commercial production facility.

"Establishing a North American supply chain for LFP batteries is one of the pillars on which we founded ONE ," said Mujeeb Ijaz, CEO & Founder of ONE. "Nano One's innovative and localized CAM process is aligned with ONE's efforts to grow our local material supply chain while minimizing cost, complexity and environmental footprint."

Nano One is repurposing the Candiac plant to use its patented One-Pot process for the pilot production of LFP CAM, with re-commissioning scheduled for Q3 2023. This move gives Nano One a multi-year head start and a significant competitive advantage in the race to differentiate and commercialize a clean, green and secure North American LFP supply chain.

Dan Blondal, CEO and Founder of Nano One stated, "We look forward to collaborating with ONE and co-developing a robust and economically resilient LFP battery supply chain that is decoupled and environmentally differentiated from the dominance of the overseas market. This is great news for our shareholders and also for our government supporters, and it is another important step forward for Nano One in the process to securing offtakes and monetizing our technology. We want to work with well-funded companies that have the backing of global industry leaders, and the battery technology and production experience to capture significant market share, so it is with great confidence that we are adding ONE to our ecosystem of trusted partners."

ONE began production of its Aries LFP battery pack earlier this year. The company is also building, ONE Circle, its first battery cell factory. ONE Circle is a 20 GWh battery cell factory that will be located in Van Buren Township, MI and begin operation in 2024.

Both ONE and Nano One are confident the companies can work together to meet or exceed stringent industrial validation standards. There is solid alignment and support from Governments in the United States and Canada, and each company brings valuable strategic partners and shareholders that include Auto OEMs, multinational critical mineral suppliers, and leading chemical companies.

About Nano One

Nano One Materials Corp. (Nano One) is a clean technology company with a patented, scalable and low carbon intensity industrial process for the low-cost production of high-performance lithium-ion battery cathode materials. With strategic collaborations and partnerships, including automotive OEMs and strategic industry supply chain companies like BASF, Umicore and Rio Tinto. Nano One's technology is applicable to electric vehicles, energy storage, and consumer electronics, reducing costs and carbon intensity while improving environmental impact. The Company aims to pilot and demonstrate its technology as turn-key production solutions for license, joint venture, and independent production opportunities, leveraging Canadian talent and critical minerals for emerging markets in North America, Europe, and the Indo-Pacific region. Nano One has received funding from SDTC and the Governments of Canada and British Columbia.

For more information, please visit www.nanoone.ca

ABOUT Our Next Energy

Our Next Energy Inc. (ONE) is a Michigan-based energy storage technology company focused on engineering batteries that will accelerate electrification in transportation and stationary applications. ONE's vision is to: double the range of electric vehicles; use safer, more sustainable raw materials; and establish a localized supply chain.

Visit www.one.ai to learn more.

Company Contacts:

Paul Guedes

[email protected]

(604) 420-2041

Dan Pierce

Our Next Energy

[email protected]

(314) 517-4750

Cautionary Notes and Forward-looking Statements

Certain information contained herein may constitute "forward-looking information" and "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of applicable securities legislation. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking information in this news release includes, but is not limited to: the development of technology, supply chains, and plans for construction, scale-up and operation of a multi cathode piloting hub (MCPH); industry demand; successful current and future collaborations that are/may happen with OEM's, miners or others; the functions and intended benefits of Nano One's technology and products; the development of Nano One's technology and products; the commencement of a commercialization phase at Candiac; Nano One's licensing, supply chain, joint venture opportunities and potential royalty arrangements; the purpose for expanding the Candiac facilities and scalability of developed technology; and the execution of Nano One's plans - which are contingent on support and grants. Generally, forward-looking information can be identified by the use of terminology such as 'believe', 'expect', 'anticipate', 'plan', 'intend', 'continue', 'estimate', 'may', 'will', 'should', 'ongoing', target', goal', encouraged', projected', potential' or variations of such words and phrases or statements that certain actions, events or results "will" occur. Forward-looking statements are based on the current opinions and estimates of management as of the date such statements are made are not, and cannot be, a guarantee of future results or events. Forward-looking statements are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, level of activity, performance or achievements of Nano One to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements or forward-looking information, including but not limited to: general and global economic and regulatory changes; next steps and timely execution of Nano One's business plans; the development of technology, supply chains, and plans for construction and operation of the MCPH; industry demand; successful current or future collaborations that may happen with OEM's, miners or others; the execution of Nano One's plans which are contingent on support and grants; Nano One's ability to achieve its stated goals; the commercialization of the Company's technology and patents via license, joint venture and independent production; anticipated global demand and projected growth for LFP batteries; and other risk factors as identified in Nano One's MD&A and its Annual Information Form dated March 29, 2023, both for the year ended December 31, 2022, and in recent securities filings for Nano One which are available at www.sedar.com. Although management of Nano One has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in forward-looking statements or forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements and forward-looking information. Nano One does not undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statements or forward-looking information that is incorporated by reference herein, except as required by applicable securities laws. Investors should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements.

SOURCE: Nano One Materials Corp.

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Israeli opposition leaders Yair Lapid and Benny Gantz on Wednesday suspended their participation in talks with the government over its controversial judicial programme.

The hard-right government's proposals would curtail the authority of the Supreme Court and give politicians greater powers over the selection of judges.

The divisive plan gave rise to Israel's most severe domestic crisis in years. It has sparked mass protests for 23 successive weeks, often by tens of thousands who decry the reforms as a threat to Israel's democracy.

Following the widespread anger, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had in March announced a "pause" to allow for talks on the reforms.

Lapid and Gantz announced their decision to back out of the talks at a joint press conference Wednesday, after parliament failed to elect representatives to the judicial selection committee, a body in charge of appointing judges to Israeli courts.

"There is a representative (from the opposition) in the committee to select judges, but there is no committee to select judges," opposition leader and former premier Lapid said.

"Netanyahu today prevented its establishment and put an end to pretending that he wants negotiations," he added. "The threat to democracy has not been removed."

Gantz, leader of the centre-right National Unity alliance, similarly said: "In the current situation, where there is no functioning committee as it should be, there is no point in holding negotiations".

But in a video statement Netanyahu lashed out against the two opposition members.

"Their representative was elected, and they still blew up the negotiations. So Gantz and Lapid don't want real negotiations," he said.

In its current form, the judicial selection committee includes two parliament, or Knesset, representatives among its nine members -- customarily one majority and one opposition member.

Opposition candidate Karine Elharrar, backed by Lapid and Gantz, had been voted into the committee, but the majority was unable to put forth its own candidate due to internal sparring.

As a result, a new vote must be held within 30 days.

The government, a coalition between Netanyahu's Likud party and extreme-right and ultra-Orthodox Jewish allies, argues the judicial changes are needed to rebalance powers between lawmakers and the judiciary.

Opponents have accused Netanyahu, who is on trial on corruption charge he denies, of trying to use the reforms to quash possible judgements against him, an accusation he rejected.

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NORTHAMPTON, MA / ACCESSWIRE / June 14, 2023 / Regions Bank



By Nestor Mato

"Diverse talent is essential to serving a diverse customer base."

The words are from Bibiana Gomez, who serves as business liaison for Regions' diversity, equity and inclusion networks.

Regions Bank strives to have a workforce that reflects the communities we serve. We encourage those with different ideas to speak up. Bibiana Gomez, DEI network business liaison at Regions

These networks are connecting colleagues across Regions Bank's footprint and bringing more voices to the table. In turn, that better positions Regions to be the bank of choice for people and businesses representing diverse backgrounds.

Consider the diverse markets Regions serves - vibrant, thriving communities from South Florida all the way to Middle Tennessee, over to major cities in Texas, and far beyond.

Regions' business is healthier, stronger, and better able to make an impact when the bank is in tune with the people who make up its markets.

"Regions Bank strives to have a workforce that reflects the communities we serve," Gomez added in this recent editorial published by the South Florida Business Journal. "We encourage those with different ideas to speak up."

And when that happens, Regions furthers its focus on serving as a trusted bank for all.

Take a moment to learn more here.

Check out some additional Doing More Today articles reflecting the many benefits of a strong commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion.

View additional multimedia and more ESG storytelling from Regions Bank on 3blmedia.com.

Contact Info:

Spokesperson: Regions Bank

Website: https://www.3blmedia.com/profiles/regions-bank

Email: [email protected]

SOURCE: Regions Bank

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RENO, NV / ACCESSWIRE / June 14, 2023 / Sertis (https://www.sertisins.com), a trailblazing managing general agency (MGA) specializing in multifamily property insurance, has officially commenced operations in 15 states and the District of Columbia, introducing revolutionary solutions to the multifamily insurance market. Currently servicing Arizona, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Maryland, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Utah, Virginia, Washington, and Washington, D.C., Sertis stands at the vanguard of the industry with an ambitious expansion plan slated for 2024.





Corp Logo

Sertis MGA Logo





Mark Gardella, CEO of Sertis, expressed his excitement over the company's launch during a period of unprecedented pricing challenges for property owners. "We are enthusiastic about bringing new property and general liability capacity to the market at this crucial time," Gardella says. He emphasizes the company's unflagging commitment to the multifamily industry, coupled with its proprietary risk management platform, as distinctive assets that set Sertis apart from competitors.

In a bid to redefine risk assessment and pricing in the multifamily industry, Sertis is introducing a proprietary risk management platform designed to curb loss and revolutionize insurance underwriting. Developed in partnership with Leonardo247 (https://leonardo247.com), the Live Risk Indicator (LRI) is an innovative scoring system that gauges the likelihood of insurance loss using exclusive, real-time operational risk data and property attributes. This pioneering tool places Sertis at the forefront of a fundamental shift in how multifamily portfolios are underwritten.

"The LRI marks a significant departure from traditional risk assessment methodologies, revolutionizing the norms of the industry," elaborates Gardella. "The LRI score, reflecting operational behaviors and safety practices, allows Sertis to provide favorable terms and conditions to multifamily portfolios that are committed to superior risk management."

Sertis partners with retail brokers to support their clients' long-term risk management needs, reflecting the company's focus on collaboration and client success.

About Sertis

A contemporary managing general agency (MGA) specializing in insuring owner and professionally managed multifamily properties across 15 states and the District of Columbia. Sertis offers a comprehensive package (property, general liability, and equipment breakdown) of coverages tailored to meet our clients' needs. We collaborate with our broker partners to help their clients control their rising insurance costs by assisting them in deploying industry-leading risk mitigation practices and products. At Sertis, we embrace innovation and leverage our expertise to navigate the ever-evolving landscape of multifamily property insurance.

Contact Information

Mark Gardella

CEO

[email protected]

833 273 7847

SOURCE: Sertis, Inc.

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Additions further empower brands and advertisers to scale authentic, user-generated content across TikTok, Meta, Snap, Inc., and more.

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- A new quote has been added as the sixth paragraph of release dated June 13, 2023.

The updated release reads:

SMARTLY.IO EXPANDS GLOBAL CREATOR CONNECT ECOSYSTEM WITH THREE LEADING INFLUENCER MARKETING PLATFORM PARTNERS

Additions further empower brands and advertisers to scale authentic, user-generated content across TikTok, Meta, Snap, Inc., and more.

Smartly.io, one of the worlds largest SaaS digital advertising platforms, today announced the expansion of its global Creator Connect partner network with Insense, Sapphire Studios, and Vamp. Creator Connect, Smartly.io's one-stop solution for seamless user-generated content (UGC) creative, offers a unified path forward for brands and advertisers to elevate their social media presence with authentic, UGC advertising at scale.

"Our goal is to unlock even more value for our customers through strategic partnerships," said Oli Marlow-Thomas, Chief Innovation Officer at Smartly.io. "By integrating some of the world's leading influencer marketing platforms with the Smartly.io partner ecosystem, we're making it easier for brands to find creators to collaborate with and produce winning content, while reaching the right audience on the right platforms. The creator economy is massive, and so is the opportunity for brands to tap into it as part of their strategy. When you combine this with the right approach for scaling UGC and short-form videos, along with tools to optimize wherever your audience is scrolling, the results are quite powerful."

In 2022, nearly 75% of U.S. marketers used creator content as part of their marketing mix to drive engagement, brand awareness and sales. The expansion of the Creator Connect ecosystem with Insense, Sapphire Studios, and Vamp enhances Smartly.ios position as a gateway partner for leading influencer marketing platforms and provides brands with a comprehensive creative development network to create, scale and optimize short-form video and UGC content on TikTok, Meta, Snap, Inc., and other platforms.

Creator Connect helped us to achieve a type of scale on TikTok that we had not experienced before. The ability to easily source, edit and deploy our UGC-assets was key to the performance of our campaign, highlighting the growing importance of user-generated content as an integral part of our brand strategy, Eliott Lamaury, Head of Display at Vestiaire Collective.

"We learned so much from the creative testing with Smartly  and its given us insight into what our customers actually want to see from our brand when we launch a new product, said Marie ODonovan, Performance Marketing at Huel. The results were outstanding, with the top-performing creative driving a 40% lower CPA than the product benchmark. Our collaboration with Smartly and Insense has really empowered us to continue testing new products, creators, and strategies based on the valuable insights we gained."

"At Insense, we've always believed in the power of user-generated content. Partnering with Smartly.io allows us to take this belief to the next level. Together, we're offering a solution that seamlessly integrates content creation with ad management, providing brands with a more efficient and effective way to reach their customers. This partnership is about creating value for our customers and reshaping the future of digital advertising."

As one of the most popular creator studios in TikToks ecosystem, we recognize the immense value that user-generated content can bring to brands looking to connect with their audience on a deeper level, said Thomas Ma, Co-Founder and Managing Director, Sapphire Studios. By joining forces with Smartly.io, were now able to offer our clients an unparalleled opportunity to access the full potential of user-generated content, foster genuine connections and amplify their brand's reach like never before.

"We couldn't be more excited about our new partnership with Smartly.io. Our ambitions and company purposes align perfectly, and we believe this joint venture will not only lead to great results for marketers across the globe, but also help Vamp take steps toward achieving our companys mission of creating the industry we want to see, said Aaron Brooks, Co-Founder and President, Vamp.

To learn more about Smartly.io and Creator Connect, visit our website.

About Insense

Insense is a platform that streamlines the production of creator ads for business growth. Creators in our marketplace can deliver a diverse range of assets from just UGC content and organic posting, to creator ads. Insense and Smartly.io have joined forces to offer a powerful solution that combines the best of content creation and advertising management. This partnership brings together Insense's expertise in producing high-quality user-generated content and Smartly.io's advanced advertising management platform.

About Sapphire Studios

Sapphire creates high-performing custom UGC (User-Generated Content) for brands that want to scale with TikTok. The studio leverages its learnings across thousands of campaigns to create content that is meant to generate conversions such as sales for their clients. By carefully following the latest social media trends, content generated by Sapphire's team can help clients find success across a number of social platforms.

About Vamp

Vamp is an award-winning influencer marketing platform. We connect global brands like Adobe, Estee Lauder, GAP, Nestle and Volkswagen to a vetted community of 40,000+ creators, to drive brand awareness, consumer engagement and purchase consideration through social platforms. As a Meta Marketing Partner, TikTok Creative Marketing Partner, and YouTube Creative Partner, Vamp provides brands with an omni-channel, always-on solution to managing the entire lifecycle of their creator collaborations. Founded in Australia in 2015, Vamp has run influencer marketing campaigns in 65+ countries through a global footprint of offices in key markets. Learn more at vamp.com.

About Smartly.io

Smartly.io is the leading platform for creative and performance advertisers to automate and scale their social advertising. With over $10 billion in annual ad spend, Smartly.io helps some of the world's largest brands and agencies drive greater performance and efficiency in their online advertising. Smartly.io's technology combines creative automation, ad operations, and outstanding customer service to help businesses maximize their results. Learn more at https://www.smartly.io/.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230613292851/en/

Media Contact:

Brianna Gays

[email protected]

Source: Smartly.io
MENLO PARK, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Airbus Ventures announces its investment in Venus Aerospace, a Houston-based hypersonic startup enabling cost-effective one-hour global transport. Joining Venus team of investors, Airbus Ventures will support the team in their next phase of flight-redefining growth.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230614101570/en/

The Venus Aerospace team pictured at the Lone Star Flight Museum in Houston, TX. (Source: Venus Aerospace)

Venus has developed the worlds first liquid-propellant rotating detonation rocket engine (RDRE) with a double-digit percentage increase in efficiency over standard regular engines, making the hypersonic economy possible, remarks Venus Aerospace CEO and co-founder Sassie Duggleby, who goes on to say, Were delighted to bring Airbus Ventures into the Venus family and look forward to growing our collaboration as we harness the future of hypersonic flight.

Venus has been awarded contracts with NASA and US Defense Agencies to accelerate the development and transition of its RDRE technology to enhance existing government missions. The companys advancements can also enable more efficient travel in and through space.

We are thrilled to welcome Sassie, Andrew, and the entire Venus team into the Airbus Ventures portfolio. In the world of RDREs, their pioneering approach - designing, building, and demonstrating the first liquid, storable-propellant fueled rotating detonation rocket engine - unlocks advanced aircraft capabilities and opens new vistas on our whole planetary system, praises Airbus Ventures Managing Partner Thomas dHalluin. Venus compact, low mass, high efficiency engine capability will have an immediate impact on lunar and martian landers, space mobility and logistics, and deep space mission proposals. Here on Earth today, we will see unprecedented performance gains for drones of all kinds, and more practical and faster-than-anticipated opportunities for ultra-high-speed passenger and cargo rocket plane flights.

With the strong support of Airbus Ventures now joining our investor syndicate, our next round will let Venus take the final step from lab to prototype as we fly our drone to Mach 3 under RDRE power," says Dr. Andrew Duggleby, CTO and co-founder. This will include long-duration engine runs this summer at Spaceport Houston, as well as the design, build, and flight of our drone with the broader Venus team and our incredible partners.

In Spring 2022, the company raised its $20M Series A, led by Prime Movers Lab, to fund engine development and subscale initial flight testing for building its Mach 9 hypersonic drone and Mach 9 spacecraft, both capable of one-hour global travel.

About Venus Aerospace

Headquartered in Houston, Texas, Venus Aerospace is a startup aerospace company focused on engineering the future of hypersonic flight. An expert team of PhDs, rocket scientists, and engineers taking on the biggest challenges in aerospace at Mach 9 speed, Venus is making one-hour global transport possible to connect the world and make it safer.

About Airbus Ventures

Headquartered in Silicon Valley, with offices in Toulouse and Tokyo, Airbus Ventures is a fast-moving, early-stage venture capital company that independently funds and supports startups set to shift both the aerospace industry and our planetary system to a sustainable future. Airbus Ventures has helped aspiring innovators reach new dimensions of achievement since 2015.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230614101570/en/

Media Contacts



For Venus Aerospace:

Stephanie Gracia

Director of Communications

[email protected]



For Airbus Ventures:

Orli Robin

Head of Strategy and Communication

[email protected]

Source: Airbus Ventures
OLDWICK, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- AM Best will present a session on its credit rating process at the Society of Actuaries (SOA) Health Meeting, which will be held June 26-28, 2023, in Seattle, WA.

AM Best Director Doniella Pliss and Associate Director Bridget Maehr will lead the session, titled, "Health Insurance Companies Capital  A Rating Agency View" at 9:45 a.m. (PDT) on Monday, June 26. Topics during the session to be explored include the rating agencys Best Capital Adequacy Ratio (BCAR), a quantitative foundation for AM Bests assessment of carriers financial strength. Additionally, the pair will discuss benchmarking of BCAR scores for various company types, and how changes in the investment and underwriting environments have impacted results over the last several years. Also, AM Bests view of the quality of capital and various factors impacting the overall assessment of balance sheet strength will be addressed.

SOA is a global professional organization for actuaries, and advances actuaries as the leading professionals in the measurement and management of risk. To learn more about this event, please view overview and agenda.

The AM Best presentation also will be made available virtually as part of the SOA Health Meeting. The virtual event will be held July 11-13. Please visit the event page to learn more.

AM Best is a global credit rating agency, news publisher and data analytics provider specializing in the insurance industry. Headquartered in the United States, the company does business in over 100 countries with regional offices in London, Amsterdam, Dubai, Hong Kong, Singapore and Mexico City. For more information, visit www.ambest.com.

Copyright  2023 by A.M. Best Company, Inc. and/or its affiliates. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230614617287/en/

Christopher Sharkey

Associate Director, Public Relations

+1 908 882 2310

[email protected]

Al Slavin

Senior Public Relations Specialist

+1 908 882 2318

[email protected]

Source: AM Best
Multispecialty clinic will provide medical, dental and behavioral health services for children entering foster care

ATLANTA--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Amerigroup Georgia, in partnership with Eastchester Family Services, Help a Child Smile, the Georgia Department of Community Health (DCH), and Georgia Division of Family and Children Services (DFCS), has relaunched a comprehensive healthcare clinic at the Fulton County Juvenile Justice Center in Atlanta. The clinic offers wellness visits, dental exams, and behavioral health services for children entering foster care. These services aim to conveniently address the initial healthcare needs of children entering the Georgia Families 360 program, ensuring timely intake appointments following the 72-hour deprivation hearing decision.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230614980447/en/

Amerigroup Georgia and community partners celebrated the reopening of the Fulton County Juvenile Court Clinic in Atlanta. From L to R -- Bhavini Solanki, Director, Georgia Families 360, JoShonda Guerrier, Interim Chief Administrative Officer, Fulton County Juvenile Court, and Siyama Drake, Director GBD Special Programs Services, Georgia Families 360 (Photo: Business Wire)

The Fulton County Juvenile Justice Center handles the placement and legal matters for a significant number of Georgia Families 360 participants each year. Unfortunately, many of these children and families face barriers in accessing essential medical, trauma, and dental care. The establishment of this clinic is a critical step towards addressing these healthcare gaps by enabling early detection and intervention, offering personalized care, addressing mental health concerns, ensuring ongoing care, providing preventive measures, and delivering advocacy and support.

At Amerigroup, we firmly believe that every child deserves the opportunity to thrive and have access to quality healthcare as this is a crucial component of their overall wellbeing, said Mel Lindsey, President, Amerigroup. By partnering with state agencies and our clinical provider partners, we are combining our collective expertise, resources, and unwavering dedication to transform the landscape of foster care health services in Georgia.

Georgia Families 360 serves over 32,000 youth who benefit from the program, many who are concentrated in Fulton County. Many of these individuals are involved with the juvenile court for various reasons. The newly established clinical facilities by Amerigroup offer visitors access to primary care services, early and periodic screening, diagnostic and treatment services (EPSDT), immunizations, lab services, dental care, counseling/therapy services, and more. Services are not limited to foster care members linked to Fulton County DFCS.

Eastchester Family Services (EFS) is a nationally accredited community-based organization dedicated to meeting the diverse needs of today's families. By effectively integrating behavioral health and primary care services, EFS strives to improve clinical outcomes, enhance access to healthcare, and elevate the overall quality of life for its clients and their families. Founded in 2003 by Milton Brown, a Licensed Master Social Worker and former educator in the Atlanta Public School System, EFS collaborates with federal, state, county, medical, and educational institutions to provide integrated healthcare solutions.

Every year, over 51 million school hours are lost due to poor oral health. Help A Child Smile addresses this national crisis by offering dental care that meets patients where they are. Each of their affiliated dentists are fully licensed in Georgia and they are assisted by licensed dental hygienists and/or professional dental assistants devoted to providing children with the highest level of care.

Initially opened in 2017, the clinic temporarily closed due to COVID-19 restrictions but is now reopening to resume providing essential services. The reopening event included an open house and featured remarks from Amerigroup leadership and community partners.

About Amerigroup Community Care of Georgia

Amerigroup Community Care of Georgia helps improve healthcare access and quality for more than 600,000 low-income Georgians by developing innovative care management programs and services. Members are assured care that is not only accessible but also accountable, comprehensive, integrated, and patient-centered. Amerigroup Georgia provides ongoing community relations and outreach to encourage members to become active participants in their health care. Through health education programs, members are empowered to choose and sustain a healthy lifestyle. For more information about Amerigroup Community Care of Georgia, visit www.myamerigroup.com/ga

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230614980447/en/

Michael Perry

[email protected]

617-519-6206

Source: Amerigroup Georgia
Microsoft overtakes Amazon to join Google in the top three

McDonalds is the most valuable non-tech brand; Coca-Cola rejoins the Top 10

LONDON--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Apple retains its crown as the worlds most valuable brand, for the second year in a row, in the Kantar BrandZ Most Valuable Global Brands Report 2023. The latest ranking shows that the total brand value of the worlds top 100 brands now stands at $6.9 trillion for 2023. Despite a 20% drop in the overall index vs 2022, the Kantar BrandZ Top 100 retains its long-term growth trajectory, posting 47% growth compared to the pre-COVID (2019) level.

With a brand valuation of $880bn, Apple has proven resilient in the face of testing market conditions, justifying premium prices with positive perceptions, and proving that meaningful, different and salient brands are best placed to weather global economic disruption. Google and Microsoft complete the top three, with technology brands, once again, the most represented in the Top 100 and commanding the largest share of brand value.

Martin Guerrieria, Head of Kantar BrandZ, says This years results  despite the fall in aggregate value  are, in fact, a continuation of the long-term growth trend for brands, which began following the global financial crisis of 2008 and continued up until the start of the pandemic in 2020. While the market has proved volatile and been greatly impacted by global macroeconomics, consumers view of brands has proved far more stable  the most valuable brands in the world remain as highly regarded as ever. The lessons for brand owners and marketers remain clear; effective marketing investment and long-term thinking are vital to your business growth prospects. Those brands consistently investing in establishing strong consumer connections are now much better placed to navigate the current volatile conditions and deliver a greater degree of resilience for their shareholders.

2023 Kantar BrandZ Top 10 Most Valuable Global Brands

Rank Brand Country of Origin Brand Value 2023 ($Mil.) Brand Value 2022 ($Mil.) 1 Apple US 880,455 947,062 2 Google US 577,683 819,573 3 Microsoft US 501,856 611,460 4 Amazon US 468,737 705,646 5 McDonald's US 191,109 196,526 6 Visa US 169,092 191,032 7 Tencent China 141,020 214,023 8 Louis Vuitton France 124,822 124,273 9 MasterCard US 110,631 117,253 10 Coca-Cola US 106,109 97,883

Key highlights from the 2023 report include:

16 brands grew in brand value across the Top 100  with Airtel (No.76; +24% and Pepsi (No.91; +17%) achieving the highest brand value growth vs 2022.

(No.76; +24% and (No.91; +17%) achieving the highest brand value growth vs 2022. Nine brands returned to the Top 100  including Colgate (No.95), Sony (No.99) and Pampers (No.100).

(No.95), (No.99) and (No.100). Two new Chinese brands joined the Top 100 ranking for the first time  Shein at No.70 and Nongfu Spring at No.81.

at No.70 and at No.81. The Luxury, Fast Food and Food & Beverages categories proved to be the most resilient to market fluctuations.

Brands improving their ability to justify a higher price than competitors, based on the strength of their equity with consumers, grew at twice the rate  adding 67% to their brand value over the last four years.

Sustainability remains an untapped opportunity for brands  only 2% of the most valuable global brands are perceived as leading in this area.

2023 success stories

Pepsis brand value has soared 17% year-on-year, reaching a total value of $18.8bn and taking Pepsi back into the global ranking at No.91. Defined by great advertising, the brand has grown its price premium positioning in the US while being considered a value brand across the rest of the world. Coca-Cola (No.10) showed great resilience, increasing its brand value by 8% and breaking back into the Top 10 for the first time in seven years.

TikTok (No.41) is still perceived as the second most disruptive brand in the Top 100, behind Tesla (No.25). Tesla continues to be considered a true game-changer, ranking No.1 in the Automotive category, with a 2023 valuation of $67.7bn. Outside the Top 100, Ferrari makes its debut in the Top 10 Automotive brands with a valuation of $7.8bn, increasing demand and perceived value to consumers even through the most challenging market conditions. Emerging brands competing in the EV space, and which are likely to gain value in the future, include Polestar, Li Auto and Genesis.

Food & Beverage brands demonstrated the most resilience as an overall category, declining just 3% year-on-year. Doritos proved the value of its superior taste messaging, ranking No.19 in this category, with a brand value of $5.4bn  one of many brands in this years report that shows functional benefits can be the key to outperforming competitors.

Fast Food was the second-highest performing category. Brands that outperformed in this space include Burger King, Chick-Fil-A and Starbucks. Resilience in the industry is being fuelled by greater exposure and better experience. Burger King, for example, cut drive-thru times with menu simplification and digital boards and invested more heavily in brand communications. The brand has been rewarded with a 2023 value of $7.7bn, an increase of 8% compared to last year.

Luxury brands retained their allure even with steady, incremental price increases. Louis Vuitton is the only luxury brand in the global Top 10, rising two places to No.8, with a brand value of $124.8bn. Dior is the fastest-growing brand in the category, increasing its brand value by 9% to $11.4bn. The categorys strong overall performance highlights the excellent job luxury brands are doing at leveraging their distinctive assets to drive higher demand and pricing power, despite economic challenges.

Guerrieria continued, Brands need to continue investing in brand-building, product and market diversification to grow. This years results clearly show that, even in the current macroeconomic environment, it remains possible to find growth in any category and territory with the right strategy focused on establishing and maintaining strong connections with consumers. BrandZ analysis proves that perceived difference is a key predictor of share growth; promoting any sense of difference and making it more known and more relevant to consumers will boost brand value in the long-term.

For an overarching view of a brands performance, Kantar has launched a new, free interactive tool using BrandZs wealth of data. BrandSnapshot powered by BrandZ delivers intelligence on 10,000 brands in more than 40 markets, offering a quick read on a brands performance in a category.

The Kantar BrandZ Most Valuable Global Brands 2023 report - including the Global Top 100 ranking and extensive analysis is available now.

--END--

NOTES TO EDITORS

About Kantar BrandZ: Kantar BrandZ is the global currency when assessing brand value, quantifying the contribution of brands to business financial performance. Kantars annual global and local brand valuation rankings combine rigorously analysed financial data, with extensive brand equity research. Since 1998, BrandZ has shared brand-building insights with business leaders based on interviews with 4.2 million consumers, for 20,000 brands in 54 markets. Discover more about Kantar BrandZ here.

The Kantar BrandZ Most Valuable Global Brands report is the most definitive and robust ranking available. The ability of any brand to power business growth relies on how it is perceived by customers. Grounded in consumer opinion, Kantar BrandZ analysis enables businesses to identify their brands strengths in the market and provides clear strategic guidance on how to boost value for the long-term. The brands ranked must meet these eligibility criteria:

The brand is owned by a company listed on a stock exchange, or by a private company with its financials available in the public domain.

Unicorn brands have their most recent valuation publicly available.

About Kantar  Kantar is the worlds leading marketing data and analytics business and an indispensable brand partner to the worlds top companies. We combine the most meaningful attitudinal and behavioural data with deep expertise and advanced analytics to uncover how people think and act. We help clients understand what has happened and why and how to shape the marketing strategies that shape their future.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230613005037/en/

For more information, please get in touch with [email protected] or [email protected].

Source: Kantar
LISBON, Portugal--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Applium, a French SAP integrator, has opened a subsidiary in Portugal to support its growth.

After two years of strong growth, which saw turnover almost double, Applium is continuing its development with its first international opening. For this new phase, Applium has chosen Portugal, and in particular the city of Lisbon.

"Several destinations were considered, but the choice quickly came down to Portugal. Less than 3 hours' flight from Paris, Portugal has a large ecosystem of experienced SAP consultants and an excellent higher education system. The level of fluency in English is remarkable and French remains an important language," explains Alix Ponsada, Applium's Managing Director.

Meeting the needs of SAP customers in France

The primary objective of this opening is to strengthen the teams in charge of SAP projects and Application Managed Services for the company's French customers. Applium Portugal's functional and technical SAP consultants will help to meet the high demand from customers for their SAP S/4HANA migration projects and the digitalization of their business processes.

Bertrand Dalaison, Chairman of Applium, comments: "We are not ruling out the possibility of offering our services to Portuguese SAP customers in the future. Our primary objective is to better serve our 80 SAP customers in France. In 2022, despite the arrival of more than 30 new employees, we have had to postpone several of our customers' projects, which is not satisfactory."

Baptiste Goncalves appointed Applium Lisbon country manager

Applium's Portuguese subsidiary is headed up by Baptiste Goncalves. A graduate of Skema Business School, Baptiste has worked as a consultant, project manager and then delivery manager for 2 major SAP integrators in France and Portugal. Based in Lisbon, Baptiste took up his post on 9 January 2023.

"We wish Baptiste every success, and he can count on the support of all the Applium France teams. We don't rule out that this first international experience will lead to others in the near future, probably outside Europe," concludes David Cairat, Deputy Managing Director.

About Applium

Applium is an SAP consultancy and integrator since 2002.

With sales growth of 69% over the last two years, Applium continues to expand rapidly, bringing its expertise to small and large businesses alike.

Applium covers the entire lifecycle of SAP solutions: Projects, Outsourcing, Maintenance and even SAP Support.

Key figures:

Sales of 19 million in 2022

120 employees

7 offices in France

https://www.applium.fr/actualites,109/applium-simplante-au-portugal-pour-accompagner-sa-croissance,134.html

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230613247300/en/

Press contact

[email protected]

[email protected]

Applium - 37 Rue de Neuilly, 92110 Clichy

Source: Applium
CASA GRANDE, Ariz. & TORONTO--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Arizona Sonoran Copper Company Inc. (TSX:ASCU | OTCQX: ASCUF) (ASCU or the Company), an emerging copper developer and near-term producer, today releases 8 infill holes from the Parks/Salyer Pre-Feasibility Study (PFS) level drilling program and assays from the first infill to measured drill hole (ECP-148) for the Feasibility Study (FS) (see FIGURES 1-17). The Company has now begun to generate an internal updated mineral resource and block model to support the declaration of first reserves in the pending step-up PFS by Q1 2024. Drilling continues with three rigs at Parks/Salyer, reducing drill spacing further to 125 ft (30 m) drill centres in preparation of the FS expected in the second half of 2024.

Drilling Highlights:

- Within 2.5 years (beginning Nov 2020), ASCU has drilled out an inferred resource of 2.9 B lbs of copper @ 1.015% TCu*, completed the indicated drilling and has now begun infill drilling to the measured category

- In 2023, after six months, the Company has now drilled 100,000 ft at the Cactus and Parks/Salyer deposits

- Drilling better defines the east and west margins of the inferred mineral resource area

- ECP-148: 1,239 ft (377.6 m) @ 0.82% CuT of continuous mineralization

153.1 ft (46.7 m) @ 2.11% CuT, 2.07% Cu TSol, 0.025% Mo (enriched)

Incl 58.2 ft (17.7 m) @ 4.40% CuT, 4.34% Cu TSol, 0.018% Mo

298.3 ft (90.9 m) @ 1.02% CuT, 0.83% Cu TSol, 0.030 (enriched)

- ECP-135: 369.9 ft (112.7 m) @ 1.63% CuT, 1.38% Cu TSol, 0.040% Mo (enriched)

- ECP-139: 504.4 ft (153.7 m) @ 0.74% CuT, 0.67% Cu TSol, 0.025% Mo (enriched)

613.0 ft (186.8 m) @ 0.27% CuT, 0.007% Mo (primary)

- ECP-137: 1,183.8 ft (360.8 m) @ 0.44% CuT of continuous mineralization

539.8 ft (164.5 m) @ 0.58% CuT, 0.48% Cu TSol, 0.022% Mo (enriched)

644.0 ft (196.3 m) @ 0.32% CuT, 0.007% Mo (primary)

- ECP-136: 963.7 ft (293.7 m) @ 0.46% CuT of continuous mineralization

289.0 ft (88.1 m) @ 0.92% CuT, 0.87% Cu TSol, 0.007% Mo (enriched) Incl. 130.0 ft (39.6 m) @ 1.81% CuT, 1.72% Cu TSol, 0.011% Mo

674.7 ft (205.6 m) @ 0.26% CuT, 0.004% Mo (primary)

NOTE: True widths are not known, see PR dated September 28, 2022 for the P/S mineral resource

George Ogilvie, Arizona Sonoran President and CEO commented, With these drill assays in hand for the PFS-level drilling, we look forward to updating our mineral resource estimate at Parks/Salyer from the inferred category to the indicated category. We are very pleased with the results of our drill program which has performed exceptionally well. We should expect to see a high conversion of inferred resource to indicated resource ahead of the release of our PFS in early 2024. The infill to measured drilling is now well underway and we will report on these results throughout 2023.

Recently we have bolstered the core team with US-focused expertise in developing and producing both open pits and underground heap leach operations. We have a strong and fully-funded program in place to advance our brownfields heap leach copper project on private land in Arizona and we have obtained the associated water rights. We look forward to executing on our plans with an experienced team in place.

Drilling Recap

A total of 48 infill drill holes are now drilled and assayed to generate an updated resource model used in the Prefeasibility Study. As shown in FIGURE 1s plan view, six infill holes encircled ECP-065 (see PR dated April 5, 2022) (439.7 ft @ 0.92% CuT, 0.90% TSol, 0.033% Mo (enriched) and 687.7 ft @ 0.23% CuT, 0.005% Mo (primary)), better defining the margins of the inferred high grade area. The program to reduce drill spacing to 250 ft (76 m) from the original 500 ft (152 m) drill spacing is complete, with assays from 3 of these infill holes, drilled for geotechnical purposes, expected shortly. Since March 23, 13 new core holes are complete at 125 ft (38 m) drill centers, as the geological team begins to move into drilling for a measured resource. ASCU expects to drill a total of 47 holes to round out the new infill to the measured category drilling as Phase 1 conversion drilling. Hole ECP-148, part of the infill to measured drilling in the high-grade core of the resource, shows consistency of thicknesses and grades, as predicted by our indicated drilling program.

TABLE 1: Parks/Salyer Drilling Highlights

Hole Id Zone Feet Metres Grade From To Length From To Length CuT % TSol % Mo % ECP-129 enriched 1687.0 1,707.0 20.0 514.2 520.3 6.1 0.59 0.59 0.010 enriched 1803.0 1,981.1 178.1 549.6 603.8 54.3 0.90 0.86 0.023 including 1902.8 1,973.0 70.2 580.0 601.4 21.4 1.38 1.34 0.031 primary 1991.0 2,299.8 308.8 606.9 701.0 94.1 0.39 0.03 0.011 including 2230.0 2,286.3 56.3 679.7 696.9 17.2 0.82 0.07 0.030 ECP-135 enriched 1693.0 2,062.9 369.9 516.0 628.8 112.7 1.63 1.38 0.040 including 1732.3 1,876.7 144.4 528.0 572.0 44.0 1.94 1.72 0.008 and 2007.0 2,047.0 40.0 611.7 623.9 12.2 2.09 1.77 0.285 ECP-136 oxide 1022.0 1,047.4 25.4 311.5 319.2 7.7 1.00 0.98 0.006 enriched 1120.0 1,139.0 19.0 341.4 347.2 5.8 2.35 2.28 0.020 enriched 1179.0 1,191.0 12.0 359.4 363.0 3.7 1.33 1.29 0.062 enriched 1388.0 1,677.0 289.0 423.1 511.1 88.1 0.92 0.87 0.007 including 1388.0 1,518.0 130.0 423.1 462.7 39.6 1.81 1.72 0.011 primary 1677.0 2,351.7 674.7 511.1 716.8 205.6 0.26 0.03 0.004 including 2043.0 2,202.0 159.0 622.7 671.2 48.5 0.47 0.04 0.006 ECP-137 oxide 828.5 846.0 17.5 252.5 257.9 5.3 0.89 0.84 0.005 enriched 885.0 905.0 20.0 269.7 275.8 6.1 0.91 0.91 0.020 oxide 943.0 967.5 24.5 287.4 294.9 7.5 2.77 2.56 0.004 oxide 999.0 1,012.4 13.4 304.5 308.6 4.1 1.29 1.09 0.013 enriched 1042.7 1,054.8 12.1 317.8 321.5 3.7 1.12 1.12 0.014 enriched 1080.2 1,620.0 539.8 329.2 493.8 164.5 0.58 0.48 0.022 including 1080.2 1,110.0 29.8 329.2 338.3 9.1 1.34 1.34 0.032 including 1297.0 1,368.0 71.0 395.3 417.0 21.6 0.81 0.78 0.013 including 1388.0 1,467.0 79.0 423.1 447.1 24.1 0.82 0.77 0.022 primary 1620.0 2,264.0 644.0 493.8 690.1 196.3 0.32 0.03 0.007 including 2226.0 2,264.0 38.0 678.5 690.1 11.6 0.53 0.05 0.004 ECP-139 oxide 683.0 773.0 90.0 208.2 235.6 27.4 0.92 0.77 0.004 oxide 740.0 773.0 33.0 225.6 235.6 10.1 1.32 1.23 0.004 enriched 1119.6 1,624.0 504.4 341.3 495.0 153.7 0.74 0.67 0.025 including 1119.6 1,140.0 20.4 341.3 347.5 6.2 1.60 1.58 0.034 including 1240.0 1,300.0 60.0 378.0 396.2 18.3 1.05 0.99 0.021 including 1343.0 1,383.0 40.0 409.3 421.5 12.2 1.85 1.70 0.050 primary 1663.0 2,276.0 613.0 506.9 693.7 186.8 0.27 0.03 0.007 including 2110.0 2,170.0 60.0 643.1 661.4 18.3 0.48 0.04 0.006 ECP-141 oxide 876.0 897.5 21.5 267.0 273.6 6.6 1.11 0.83 0.007 enriched 1167.7 1,199.8 32.1 355.9 365.7 9.8 0.72 0.67 0.013 enriched 1335.0 1,468.0 133.0 406.9 447.4 40.5 0.75 0.73 0.010 including 1335.0 1,358.0 23.0 406.9 413.9 7.0 1.70 1.69 0.019 primary 1613.0 2,270.5 657.5 491.6 692.0 200.4 0.32 0.04 0.008 including 1793.0 1,865.0 72.0 546.5 568.5 21.9 0.51 0.05 0.016 ECP-142 oxide 1174.2 1,214.0 39.8 357.9 370.0 12.1 0.73 0.67 0.010 enriched 1330.3 1,485.0 154.7 405.5 452.6 47.2 0.92 0.88 0.002 including 1330.3 1,380.0 49.7 405.5 420.6 15.1 1.90 1.82 0.003 primary 1864.0 2,378.2 514.2 568.1 724.9 156.7 0.30 0.03 0.003 including 2127.0 2,192.0 65.0 648.3 668.1 19.8 0.53 0.05 0.004 ECP-144 enriched 1191.3 1,438.0 246.7 363.1 438.3 75.2 0.65 0.62 0.011 including 1272.0 1,328.0 56.0 387.7 404.8 17.1 0.98 0.95 0.018 enriched 1518.0 1,732.0 214.0 462.7 527.9 65.2 0.57 0.54 0.007 including 1518.0 1,542.0 24.0 462.7 470.0 7.3 1.33 1.25 0.006 primary 1929.6 2,349.6 420.0 588.1 716.2 128.0 0.19 0.02 0.005 ECP-148 oxide 1033.5 1,114.7 81.2 315.0 339.8 24.7 1.01 0.99 0.023 enriched 1114.7 1,267.8 153.1 339.8 386.4 46.7 2.11 2.07 0.025 including 1192.1 1,250.3 58.2 363.4 381.1 17.7 4.40 4.34 0.018 enriched 1341.0 1,417.0 76.0 408.7 431.9 23.2 1.25 1.22 0.017 including 1377.0 1,407.0 30.0 419.7 428.9 9.1 1.87 1.84 0.019 enriched 1463.0 1,578.0 115.0 445.9 481.0 35.1 0.94 0.92 0.016 including 1493.0 1,543.0 50.0 455.1 470.3 15.2 1.46 1.42 0.015 enriched 1657.0 1,955.3 298.3 505.1 596.0 90.9 1.02 0.83 0.030 including 1667.0 1,717.0 50.0 508.1 523.3 15.2 1.40 1.28 0.027 including 1886.0 1,912.0 26.0 574.9 582.8 7.9 1.39 1.34 0.033 primary 1955.3 2,272.5 317.2 596.0 692.7 96.7 0.31 0.03 0.019 including 1955.3 2,095.0 139.7 596.0 638.6 42.6 0.56 0.04 0.018

Intervals are presented in core length and are drilled with very near vertical dip angles. Drill assays assume a mineralized cut-off grade of 0.5% CuT reflecting the potential for heap leaching of underground material in the case of Oxide and Enriched or in the case of Primary material, 0.1% CuT, to provide typical average grades. Holes were terminated below the basement fault. Assay results are not capped. Intercepts are aggregated within geological confines of major mineral zones. True widths are not known.

Table 2: Drilling details

Hole Easting (m) Northing (m) Elevation (ft) TD (ft) Azimuth Dip ECP-129 422071.3 3645287.9 1389.4 2316.0 0.0 -90.0 ECP-135 422147.1 3645075.5 1383.2 2086.0 260.0 -80.0 ECP-136 421466.6 3645060.9 1,373.8 2,420.2 0.0 -90.0 ECP-137 421538.2 3644935.0 1371.2 2278.5 0.0 -90.0 ECP-139 421533.0 3645016.0 1373.6 2285.7 0.0 -90.0 ECP-141 421444.9 3644908.2 1368.6 2290.5 0.0 -90.0 ECP-142 421395.9 3645031.1 1371.5 2378.2 0.0 -90.0 ECP-144 421389.4 3644957.9 1369.3 2429.2 0.0 -90.0 ECP-148 421916.8 3645219.9 1381.5 2287.3 0.0 -90.0

Quality Assurance / Quality Control

Drilling completed on the project between 2020 and 2022 was supervised by on-site ASCU personnel who prepared core samples for assay and implemented a full QA/QC program using blanks, standards, and duplicates to monitor analytical accuracy and precision. The samples were sealed on site and shipped to Skyline Laboratories in Tucson AZ for analysis. Skylines quality control system complies with global certifications for Quality ISO9001:2008.

Technical aspects of this news release have been reviewed and verified by Allan Schappert  CPG #11758, who is a qualified person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects.

Links from the Press Release

Figures 1-17: https://arizonasonoran.com/projects/exploration/maps-and-figures/

April 5, 2022: https://arizonasonoran.com/news-releases/arizona-sonoran-park-salyer-drilling-intercepts-302.0-ft-1.23-cut-0.021-mo-including-10.0-ft-7.95-cut-0.112-mo/

September 28, 2022: https://arizonasonoran.com/news-releases/arizona-sonoran-doubles-global-leachable-resource-inventory-and-declares-maiden-mineral-resources-at-parks-salyer-of-2.92/

Neither the TSX nor the regulating authority has approved or disproved the information contained in this press release.

About Arizona Sonoran Copper Company (www.arizonasonoran.com | www.cactusmine.com)

ASCUs objective is to become a mid-tier copper producer with low operating costs and to develop the Cactus and Parks/Salyer Projects that could generate robust returns for investors and provide a long term sustainable and responsible operation for the community and all stakeholders. The Company's principal asset is a 100% interest in the Cactus Project (former ASARCO, Sacaton mine) which is situated on private land in an infrastructure-rich area of Arizona. Contiguous to the Cactus Project is the Companys 100%-owned Parks/Salyer deposit that could allow for a phased expansion of the Cactus Mine once it becomes a producing asset. The Company is led by an executive management team and Board which have a long-standing track record of successful project delivery in North America complemented by global capital markets expertise.

Forward-Looking Statements

Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of ASCU to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. Factors that could affect the outcome include, among others: future prices and the supply of metals; the results of drilling; inability to raise the money necessary to incur the expenditures required to retain and advance the properties; environmental liabilities (known and unknown); general business, economic, competitive, political and social uncertainties; results of exploration programs; accidents, labour disputes and other risks of the mining industry; political instability, terrorism, insurrection or war; or delays in obtaining governmental approvals, projected cash operating costs, failure to obtain regulatory or shareholder approvals.

Although ASCU has 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 to differ from those anticipated, estimated or intended. Forward-looking statements contained herein are made as of the date of this news release and ASCU disclaims any obligation to update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or results or otherwise, except as required by applicable securities laws.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230614739245/en/

Alison Dwoskin, Director, Investor Relations

647-233-4348

[email protected]

George Ogilvie, President, CEO and Director

416-723-0458

[email protected]

Source: Arizona Sonoran Copper Company Inc.
WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Arlington Capital Partners (Arlington), a Washington, DC-area private equity firm, today announced that it has acquired Pegasus Steel LLC (Pegasus or the Company), a leading provider of complex fabricated steel structures used for the construction of submarines, aircraft carriers and other naval and industrial systems. Pegasus is headquartered near Charleston, South Carolina with approximately 350,000 square feet of manufacturing space. Tony Deering, Pegasus Founder & CEO, will continue to operate the Company along with the rest of the current management team after closing.

Pegasus is a new platform for Arlington and is a leading provider of fabricated structures and related assemblies primarily to the nuclear-shipbuilding community. The Company addresses the U.S. Navys highest priority programs including, among others, the Columbia-class submarine, the Virginia-class submarine and the Ford-class aircraft carrier.

Peter Manos, a Managing Partner at Arlington, said, Pegasus has earned a tremendous reputation in the nuclear submarine and aircraft carrier market for delivering high quality fabrications on time and on schedule. With parts weighing in excess of 800,000 pounds and among the largest structures in the industry, Pegasus enables its customers to utilize its own shipyards more efficiently to meet the required increase in output that the national security community demands. We are excited to partner with Tony to build upon Pegasus impressive achievements.

Tony Deering said I am very proud of what the Pegasus team has achieved over the last 16 years. We refined a manufacturing process with a focus on quality, efficiency and meeting customer expectations. This transaction is occurring at an inflection point in Pegasus growth trajectory and provides the company with the institutional backing of an experienced defense investor with a track record of growing businesses. The partnership with Arlington offers the large capital base and corporate strategy advice Pegasus desires as it drives towards its goal of becoming the leading tier one partner in the nuclear Navy supply chain.

Ben Ramundo, a Principal at Arlington, said The supply and demand imbalance within the submarine and aircraft carrier industrial bases threatens the Navys future force structure and deterrence objectives. In partnership with Tony, we are laser-focused on scaling the organization with the resources, investment and human capital to meet this challenge.

KippsDeSanto & Co. acted as sole financial advisor to Pegasus Steel LLC.

About Arlington Capital Partners

Arlington Capital Partners is a Washington, DC-based private equity firm that has managed approximately $7 billion in capital commitments. Arlington is focused on middle market investment opportunities in growth industries including aerospace & defense, government services and technology, healthcare, and business services and software. The firms professionals and network have a unique combination of operating and private equity experience that enable Arlington to be a value-added investor. Arlington invests in companies in partnership with high quality management teams that are motivated to establish and/or advance their companys position as leading competitors in their field.

For more information: www.arlingtoncap.com

About Pegasus Steel

Pegasus Steel is a leading provider of complex fabricated steel structures used for the construction of submarines, aircraft carriers and other naval and industrial systems. The Company specializes in cutting, forming, machining and welding of large-scale, complex fabrications. Pegasus is headquartered near Charleston, South Carolina.

For more information: www.pegasussteel.com

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230614710565/en/

Peter Manos & Ben Ramundo

Arlington Capital Partners

(202) 337-7500

Source: Arlington Capital Partners
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken called Wednesday for open lines of communication as he spoke with China's foreign minister, ahead of planned face-to-face discussions in Beijing.

Relations between the world's two largest economies have tanked in recent years over Taiwan, trade and human rights, among a litany of other issues.

The United States confirmed Wednesday that Blinken has rescheduled a rare visit to Beijing for this weekend, seeking to "responsibly manage" tense ties.

In his call with Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang, which took place Wednesday Beijing time, Blinken said they "discussed ongoing efforts to maintain open channels of communication as well as bilateral and global issues".

State Department spokesman Matthew Miller also said Blinken had stressed "the importance of maintaining open lines of communication to responsibly manage the US-PRC relationship to avoid miscalculation and conflict".

Blinken "made clear the US would continue to use diplomatic engagements to raise areas of concern as well as areas of potential cooperation", Miller said.

A Beijing readout of the call struck a more confrontational tone, reporting that Qin had warned that relations between the two countries had faced "new difficulties and challenges" since the beginning of the year.

"It's clear who is responsible," Qin said, according to the Chinese foreign ministry.

"China has always viewed and managed China-US relations in accordance with the principles of mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and win-win cooperation put forward by President Xi Jinping," he added.

Blinken in Beijing



Blinken is due in the Chinese capital on Sunday, after a previous planned visit was abruptly cancelled in February, after the United States said it detected -- and later shot down -- a Chinese balloon flying over the US mainland.

His visit would be the first trip by a top US diplomat to China since his predecessor Mike Pompeo in October 2018.

Presidents Joe Biden and Xi met in Bali in November and agreed to try to prevent tensions from soaring out of control, including by sending Blinken to Beijing.

The two sides have more recently looked again to keep tensions in check, including with an extensive, closed-door meeting between Biden's national security advisor, Jake Sullivan, and senior Chinese diplomat Wang Yi in Vienna last month.

Biden has sought limited areas for cooperation with China, such as climate change, in contrast with the more fully adversarial position adopted at the end of the administration of his predecessor Donald Trump.

But two countries remain at deeply at odds over many issues.

The White House last week accused China of operating an intelligence unit in Cuba for years and upgraded it in 2019 in an effort to enhance its presence on the Caribbean island.

A base in Cuba, which lies 90 miles (150 kilometers) off Florida's southern tip, would be viewed in Washington as a direct challenge to the continental United States.

Asked about the base at a regular press briefing, Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said he was "unaware of the situation" before criticising US policy on Cuba.

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BOCA RATON, Fla.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Bluegreen Vacations Holding Corporation (NYSE: BVH) (OTCQX: BVHBB) (Bluegreen Vacations, Bluegreen, or the Company), a vacation ownership company, announced today that Bluegreen has begun expanding the inventory of its top tier accommodations with the addition of three new presidential suites at its MountainLoft resort in Gatlinburg, Tennessee.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230614619759/en/

Bluegreen Vacations Presidential Suite at its MountianLoft resort in Gatlinburg, Tennessee. (Photo: Business Wire)

Measuring approximately 2,000 square feet, the new MountainLoft resort suites are intended to be reminiscent of a mountain retreat featuring expansive living rooms with fireplaces and oversized windows that frame dramatic mountain views. Designed to offer guests the comforts and amenities of home, the suites are planned to offer large principal suites with private bathrooms, generously sized bedrooms, spacious modern kitchens, and game rooms with pool tables.

Multigenerational travel and multi-family trips are becoming a popular trend among our owners, said Mr. Dusty Tonkin, Chief Sales and Marketing Officer for Bluegreen Vacations. Our presidential suites are tailored to accommodate large families traveling together and the amenities propose an elevated experience for our owners to enjoy.

Separately, Bluegreen recently announced plans to construct seven new presidential suites, six four-bedroom units and one three-bedroom suite at The Fountains Resort in Orlando, Florida. The addition of these units is projected to bring the Fountains Resort's top tier inventory to twenty-two presidential suites. Currently planned to debut in 2024, the new accommodations are anticipated to offer ensuite bathrooms, fully equipped chefs kitchens, media room, living and dining rooms. The four-bedroom units are also expected to feature a private courtyard with playscape.

Bluegreen currently has over 160 presidential suites across our resorts. As we expand, we believe it is important that we continue to improve our existing product to ensure that all of our accommodations meet the evolving needs and expectations of our owners, Mr. Tonkin continued.

In addition, Bluegreen recently announced:

Plans for its newly acquired Bayside Resort and Spa in Panama City Beach, Florida, to convert the 320-guestroom resort to 202 rooms, which is anticipated to include studios, one- and two-bedroom units, as well as two- and three-bedroom presidential suites.

Plans for Bluegreens Streamside at Vail property which is currently expected to include two one-bedroom loft presidential units once renovation is complete.

Plans for Bluegreens 67-room Mill Springs Lodge mountain retreat which is intended to include four three-bedroom presidential suites overlooking the Smoky Mountains.

Plans for Bluegreens recently announced acquisition of two properties located in the historic Printers Alley district in the Nashville, Tennessee market. One of the properties, previously a 15-story hotel comprising eighty-six rooms and two penthouse suites, is planned to be sold as vacation ownership interests. Bluegreen intends to refresh the guest rooms and convert the penthouse suites into presidential units. The second property, an adjacent two-story building which was formerly the Nashville Trust Company, is currently planned to be converted to a sales preview center and may have the potential to be redeveloped into a 15-story resort, providing Bluegreen with a future expansion opportunity in the Nashville market.

For further information, please visit us at www.BluegreenVacations.com.

About Bluegreen Vacations: Bluegreen Vacations Holding Corporation (NYSE: BVH; OTCQX: BVHBB) is a leading vacation ownership company that markets and sells vacation ownership interests and manages resorts in popular leisure and urban destinations. The Bluegreen Vacation Club is a flexible, points-based, deeded vacation ownership plan with 71 Club and Club Associate Resorts and access to nearly 11,400 other hotels and resorts through partnerships and exchange networks.

This press release contains forward-looking statements. All opinions, forecasts, projections, future plans, and other statements, other than statements of historical fact, are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements involve risks, uncertainties, and other factors, many of which are beyond the Companys control, that may cause actual results or performance to differ from those set forth or implied in the forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties include, without limitation, the risk that construction plans and anticipated amenities are subject to change and may not be completed or provided as planned or at the time period indicated; the risk that the availability of presidential suites is anticipated but may be delayed and is not guaranteed; the risk that resort availability and inclusion into the Bluegreen Vacation Club may be delayed, is not guaranteed and is subject to meeting all applicable licensing, registration and governmental requirements; and the additional risks and uncertainties described in the Company's filings with the SEC, including, without limitation, the Companys Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2022 (including the Risk Factors section thereof). The Company cautions that the foregoing factors are not exclusive.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230614619759/en/

Bluegreen Vacations Contact Info:

Media and Public Relations: Marcia McLaughlin, Director Brand & Owner Marketing

Telephone: 561-912-8115

Email: [email protected]



Bluegreen Vacations Holding Corporation Contact Info:

Investor Relations: Leo Hinkley, Managing Director, Investor Relations Officer

Telephone: 954-399-7193

Email: [email protected]

Source: Bluegreen Vacations Holding Corporation
The Virtual Care at School Program aims to reduce absenteeism in schools and provide a convenient, virtual care option for CHLA patient families

LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- In a first-of-its-kind partnership between a hospital and a local school district, Children's Hospital Los Angeles (CHLA) and Los Angeles Unified School District have joined together to offer virtual healthcare visits for children at school through the Virtual Care at School Program. The program aims to create a personalized and convenient way for children to receive care at school from CHLA specialists in lieu of being absent for an appointment. At launch on the first day of the 2023-2024 school year, the program will be available to existing CHLA patients 12 years of age or older who attend one of 20 participating Los Angeles Unified schools and are followed by one of the following specialties at CHLA: Adolescent Medicine, Allergy and Immunology, Developmental-Behavioral Pediatrics, Endocrinology, Infectious Diseases, Medical Genetics and Pulmonology.

Family-centered care is at the core of everything we do at Childrens Hospital Los Angeles, and we know that children with chronic illnesses constantly missing school and caregivers having to leave work early to travel across town for a doctors appointment are pain points for many of our patient families, says Omkar Kulkarni, MPH, Chief Transformation and Digital Officer at Childrens Hospital Los Angeles. Weve taken these concerns to heart and worked closely with Los Angeles Unified to create the Virtual Care at School Program so that our patients can now continue receiving world-class care from Californias premier pediatric hospital without having to leave their school campus.

Los Angeles Unified takes an active approach in providing resources that support the whole child by fostering academic excellence, nurturing and enriching green spaces, physical wellbeing and social emotional health, Superintendent Alberto M. Carvalho said. The partnership with Childrens Hospital Los Angeles, the largest provider of pediatric medical care in Los Angeles County, will not only provide world-class care from CHLA specialists. It also removes numerous impediments for families receiving medical attention by providing virtual care at schools, reducing the time families miss work and minimizing time away from the classroom. I can think of no better partner than CHLA to launch the Virtual Care at School Program.

Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, telemedicine has become an integral part of health care. At CHLA, telehealth visits have skyrocketed. Prior to the pandemic, approximately 470 virtual appointments were conducted annually. That number now exceeds 42,000. Using telehealth to bring the doctors office to the school setting offers a chance to deliver the care students need without sacrificing academic progress or their familys well-being.

As a medical professional and chief medical director of a school district, my top priority is ensuring our students receive critical support and the best medical care we can offer, Chief Medical Director Dr. Smita Malhotra said. I look forward to the ways this partnership with Childrens Hospital Los Angeles will benefit our students, support our families and bring necessary resources to the Los Angeles Unified school community.

On the day of the virtual healthcare visit, students will be summoned from class and provided a safe, quiet and private space and the equipment needed to access their appointment through a link sent to their Los Angeles Unified email address. Designated school personnel will help students connect to the visit then leave the room to ensure privacy. Caregivers will also receive a link to join the appointment from wherever they may be. A caregiver is required to participate in the childs virtual visit unless the child is over the age of 18.

Los Angeles Unified identified the following 20 schools to pilot the program based on an in-depth analysis of absenteeism rates and the number of students with chronic conditions at each school.

David Starr Jordan High School

Dr. Maya Angelou Community High School

Felicitas & Gonzalo Mendez High School

Francisco Sepulveda Middle School

Huntington Park High School

James Madison Middle School

John C. Fremont High School

John H. Francis Polytechnic High School

John Marshall High School

Los Angeles Academy Middle School STEAM Magnet

North Hollywood High School

Northridge Academy High School

Olive Vista Middle School

Panorama High School

Phineas Banning Senior High School

Rudecinda Sepulveda Dodson Middle School

Thomas Jefferson High School

Vista Middle School

William Howard Taft High School

Woodrow Wilson Senior High School

Were thrilled to support this first-of-its-kind partnership between Childrens Hospital Los Angeles and Los Angeles Unified to offer healthcare services to students through telemedicine, says Samuel Salen, MD, President of the Rauch Family Foundation, whose generous philanthropic grant is providing funding for the Virtual Care at School Program. By allowing kids who would otherwise miss school due to their chronic illness or acute injury to receive care on campus, we believe we can play a part in helping more children to prosper through their school years and beyond.

Scheduling is now open. To make an appointment for a virtual visit and discuss eligibility, CHLAs Virtual Care at School Program Coordinator can be reached Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. PDT at 323-284-3829.

About Childrens Hospital Los Angeles

Childrens Hospital Los Angeles is at the forefront of pediatric medicine, offering acclaimed care to children from across the world, the country and the greater Southern California region. Founded in 1901, Childrens Hospital Los Angeles is the largest provider of care for children in Los Angeles County, the No. 1 pediatric hospital in California and the Pacific region, and is consistently ranked in the top 10 in the nation on U.S. News & World Reports Honor Roll of Best Childrens Hospitals. Clinical expertise spans the pediatric care continuum for newborns to young adults, from everyday preventive medicine to the most medically complex cases. Inclusive, compassionate, child- and family-friendly clinical care is led by physicians who are faculty members of the Keck School of Medicine of USC. Physicians translate the new discoveries, treatments and cures proven through the work of scientists in The Saban Research Institute of Childrens Hospital Los Angelesamong the top 10 childrens hospitals for National Institutes of Health fundingto bring answers to families faster. The hospital also is home to one of the largest training programs for pediatricians in the United States. To learn more, follow us on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, YouTube and Twitter, and visit our blog at CHLA.org/blog.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230614005016/en/

Lauren Song

[email protected]

Source: Children's Hospital Los Angeles
PARIS & NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Coty Inc. (NYSE: COTY) (Coty or the Company), one of the worlds largest beauty companies with a portfolio of iconic brands across fragrance, color cosmetics, and skin and body care, announced today that following its recently communicated intention to explore a dual listing on Paris Euronext, Coty will host an in-person investor event in Paris on Thursday, July 6, 2023 at 2 pm CET/8am ET.

The event will provide a comprehensive overview of Coty, its strategic pillars and value proposition to the European investment community, including the Companys strong progress in cementing its position as a global beauty powerhouse with a diversified portfolio and multi-channel offering. The presentation will build upon recent investor updates and emphasize Cotys rich heritage and significant commitments to Europe.

Cotys Chief Executive Officer, Sue Y. Nabi, and Chief Financial Officer, Laurent Mercier, will provide insights into Cotys strategic direction, financial performance, and growth opportunities. The presentation will be followed by a Q&A.

The livestream can be accessed on Cotys Investor Relations website at https://investors.coty.com. The replay of the event and associated presentation materials will also be available under the Events & Presentations section following the completion of the event.

About Coty Inc.

Founded in Paris in 1904, Coty is one of the worlds largest beauty companies with a portfolio of iconic brands across fragrance, color cosmetics, and skin and body care. We serve consumers around the world, selling prestige and mass market products in more than 130 countries and territories. Coty and our brands empower people to express themselves freely, creating their own visions of beauty; and we are committed to protecting the planet. Learn more at coty.com or on LinkedIn and Instagram.

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Investor Relations

Olga Levinzon +1 212 389-7733

[email protected]

Media

Antonia Werther +31 621 394495

[email protected]

Source: Coty
First phase to address secure design supply chain and third-party IP security in close collaboration with partners in the defense and commercial sectors

SAN JOSE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Cycuity, Inc., the pioneer of hardware security solutions, today announced it was awarded a SBIR Phase III IDIQ contract worth up to $99 million over a seven-year period. The sole-source contract is funded by the Trusted and Assured Microelectronics Program (T&AM) of the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) and builds upon ongoing collaboration in the innovation of microelectronics security assurance.

Under the contract, Cycuity will expand the development of its core security solutions and work with partners in the defense and commercial sectors to address semiconductor design supply chain security, ranging from third-party chip IP (intellectual property) components to the entire system.

"Ensuring semiconductors are securely designed - from individual components to the full system, including software, is critical for building secure and safe electronic systems across all sectors of our economy, said Andreas Kuehlmann, CEO, Cycuity. This contract affirms our longstanding partnership with the DOD and our dedication to helping the defense and commercial industries build secure hardware.

Cycuity (formerly known as Tortuga Logic) has a long history of supporting various DOD-sponsored security initiatives and programs. The structure of this award will provide technology enhancements enabling expanded security coverage and a stronger foundation for supply chain security across the semiconductor industry.

"The DOD has identified third-party semiconductor IP security as a critical challenge to be addressed as the Department develops evidence-based microelectronics assurance processes to support deployment of resilient platforms and capability for the warfighter, said Matthew Kay, Distinguished Scientist for Trusted Microelectronics and Trusted & Assured Microelectronics Program Manager. Cycuity has been a trusted partner in the area of hardware security, and we look forward to collaborating with them under this contract to address these and other urgent DOD microelectronics assurance needs.

The first phase under this contract will extend Cycuitys Radix product capabilities to support portability of security requirements from individual third-party IP components to full SoCs while protecting the design IP. Later stages of the effort will focus on extending Radixs analysis capabilities to enable better microelectronic security traceability and governance.

About Cycuity

Cycuity is a cybersecurity company that provides security assurance for semiconductor chips, a rapidly emerging frontier for remote cyberattacks. Cycuitys security solutions enable comprehensive, scalable, and traceable security verification to ensure the chips powering our modern electronic systems are developed securely. Similar to the DevSecOps approach for software, our Radix technology integrates automated security assurance at every step of the hardware development lifecycle so organizations can detect and mitigate vulnerabilities before manufacturing. Founded in 2014, Cycuity is headquartered in San Jose, Calif.

To learn more, visit www.cycuity.com or contact [email protected].

Connect with Cycuity

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/cycuity

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Melissa Jordan

650-814-9194

[email protected]

Source: Cycuity, Inc.
10-year guarantee on the performance of the large-scale energy storage system INTILION | scalecube

Warranty for the INTILION | scalecube energy storage system for 5 years

PADERBORN, Germany & MUNICH--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Today the energy storage provider INTILION signed a long-term collaboration agreement with Munich Re Group (Munich Re), the world's largest reinsurer by premium income. The insurance product offered by Munich Re provides INTILION with the ability to insure against clients claims arising under the warranty and performance guarantee (Product and Performance Warranty Insurance). These commitments are the result of an extensive auditing process of the INTILION | scalecube by MunichRe.

Dr. Andre Haubrock, CEO of INTILION AG says: If there had been any need for a seal of approval for the quality and longevity of our product, it has now been provided by MunichRe after a very rigourous testing process. We are proud that the respected rein-surer has agreed to offer insurance covering the five-year warranty and 10-year performance guarantee that INTILION provides to its customers. This long-term approach gives our customers the necessary security and planning capability when using our large-scale storage solutions of up to 100 MWh.

The cooperation agreement between INTILION and MunichRe was agreed today by Dr. Andre Haubrock as CEO of INTILION and by Dr. Sebastian Scholz, Product Lead Energy Storage on behalf of Munich Re Group at a ceremony during the trade fair "The Smarter E" in Munich.

About INTILION AG

INTILION Aktiengesellschaft is a leading provider of innovative, highly scalable and integrable energy storage solutions (ESS) with a comprehensive range of services, primarily for use in system-relevant and critical infrastructures such as commercial, industrial and grid applications. The storage capacities of the companys intelligent lithium-ion-based ESS products range from 70 kWh to 100 MWh. INTILIONs portfolio of solutions and services is leading the way to a decarbonised, flexible and digital energy sector, enabling the transition towards climate-neutral, renewable and clean energy use. The companys customers include local, region-al and international utilities and energy distributors, as well as system distributors and engineering, procurement and construc-tion (EPC) contractors within Europe. INTILION AG is headquartered in Paderborn, Germany, and belongs to the family-owned HOPPECKE Group, with a heritage of more than 95 years of expertise and engineering excellence in batteries.

For further information, please visit https://intilion.com.

About Munich Re

Munich Re Group is a leading global provider of reinsurance, primary insurance and insurance-related risk solutions committed to driving sustainable growth and innovation in the renewable energy sector. The insurance for Intilion is underwritten by a Munich Re Group primary insurer, an S&P AA-rated international insurance company.

For more information, visit www.Munichre.com or Electrical Energy Storage Systems Insurance | Munich Re.

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Financial Press Contact INTILION:

Monika Collee

E-Mail: [email protected]

Phone: +49 (0) 5251 693 326 2

Source: Intilion AG
Industry Veteran Will Supervise Trust Administration Activities Across the Firm

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Fiduciary Trust International, a global wealth manager and wholly-owned subsidiary of Franklin Templeton, announces that Kimberly Rescorla has been named as director of trust administration, responsible for overseeing trust administration across the firm.

Our consistent effort to strengthen and streamline our fiduciary and trust administration capabilities and procedures is key to ensuring we maintain the highest level of care for all of our clients, said Leslie Gillin Bohner, chief fiduciary officer of Fiduciary Trust International. As an experienced leader in the trust industry, Kimberly will help us deliver the necessary services to meet our clients needs.

In her new role, Ms. Rescorla will manage the trust administration function across the firm, partnering with regional teams to ensure a uniform client and employee experience. She will also work with Ms. Bohner to lead the effective implementation of trust administration policies, procedures and training.

Precise coordination and operation within our trust administration business is critical in order to achieve success for clients and their families, said Ms. Rescorla. I am proud to be able to work with my colleagues to ensure we are positioned to deliver the personalized experience necessary for preserving wealth for generations to come.

Prior to joining Fiduciary Trust International, Ms. Rescorla was a senior trust officer at Bank of America Private Bank in Princeton, NJ. Earlier in her career, she was an associate at The Knee Law Firm, LLC in Hackensack, NJ, where she advised clients on estate planning, estate administration, guardianship matters, and elder law and special needs planning. Ms. Rescorla was also an associate trust officer at Merrill Lynch Bank & Trust Co. She has been admitted to the bar in New York, New Jersey, and Indiana.

Ms. Rescorla received her LLM in taxation, with honors and distinction, from Georgetown University Law Center. She obtained her JD from the Seton Hall University School of Law, and graduated cum laude from Marist College with a BA in English and communications.

About Fiduciary Trust International

Fiduciary Trust International, a global wealth management firm headquartered in New York, NY, has served individuals, families, endowments and foundations since 1931. With over $87 billion in assets under management and administration as of December 31, 2022, the firm specializes in strategic wealth planning, investment management and trust and estate services, as well as tax and custody services. The New York-based firm and its subsidiaries maintain offices in Coral Gables, FL, Boca Raton, FL, St. Petersburg, FL, Radnor, PA, Lincoln, MA, Los Angeles, CA, San Mateo, CA, San Francisco, CA, Washington, DC, Wilmington, DE, Reston, VA, and Atlanta, GA. For more information, please visit fiduciarytrust.com, and for the latest updates, follow Fiduciary Trust International on LinkedIn and Twitter: @FiduciaryTrust.

About Franklin Templeton

Franklin Resources, Inc. [NYSE: BEN] is a global investment management organization with subsidiaries operating as Franklin Templeton and serving clients in over 155 countries. Franklin Templetons mission is to help clients achieve better outcomes through investment management expertise, wealth management and technology solutions. Through its specialist investment managers, the company offers specialization on a global scale, bringing extensive capabilities in fixed income, equity, alternatives and multi-asset solutions. With offices in more than 30 countries and approximately 1,300 investment professionals, the California-based company has over 75 years of investment experience and approximately $1.4 trillion in assets under management as of May 31, 2023. For more information, please visit franklintempleton.com and follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook.

Copyright  2023. Fiduciary Trust International. All rights reserved.

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Rebecca Radosevich: 212-632-3207

[email protected]

Laura Simpson: 973-713-8834

[email protected]

Source: Fiduciary Trust International
PARIS--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Regulatory News:

Forsee Power (FR0014005SB3  FORSE), an expert in smart battery systems for sustainable electromobility, announces that 3EV  an Indian manufacturer of 3-wheel Cat-L5 electric vehicles  will use Forsee Powers battery systems as standard equipment.

The 3ev vehicles will integrate GO 10, a very modular 10.54 kWh LFP battery developed by Forsee Power to be compliant with the most stringent standards.

3ev Industries manufactures 3-wheel Cat-L5 commercial & passenger EVs for the Indian market since 2021, and now exporting to Africa

3ev, based in Bangalore, India, produces high-performance Cat-L5 electric vehicles for freight and passenger services including its leading Shakti and Vega models, as well as converts ICE-to-EV 3-wheelers under the e30 model line.

Early June, in partnership with ETG Logistics, a division of Export Trading Group (ETG), 3ev began trials of its Vega4 passenger EV in Kenya. ETG plans to be an active participant in the EV mobility space in African markets to consolidate their strong footprint in Africa in the Fertilizer, Commodity, FMCG and Logistics space.

3ev chose FORSEE G0 10, a robust battery developed by Forsee Power R&D teams to equip light electric vehicles, from 2 to 4 wheels.

FORSEE GO 10 battery clears new AIS 156 India certification for the worlds largest light electric vehicle market

Forsee Powers GO 10 is an LFP battery with high energy density and long durability of 4,000+ cycles. It embeds 171Wh/L and 10kWh of on-board energy. it is highly modular and accepts DC currents of 1C (+200A) and peak currents of up to 350A; and can be coupled in parallel with up to 8 batteries and in series with up to 96V, all this without an external battery management system. The system dimensioned to power 3ev three-wheelers will enable 120-km autonomy.

GO 10 battery is a very robust solution adapted to the most contrasted climates. Whether the vehicles operate in Africa, India, or in Nordic countries, its integrated heating system controlled by the BMS offers optimal performance and safety in any climate zone, down to -20C.

Last month, FORSEE GO 10 LFP battery solution received AIS 156 (Amendment 3  Phase 2) certification.

It is compulsory for all light electric vehicles in India and took large assistance from the R136 UNECE standard in Europe. AIS 156 certification includes the latest and most rigorous standard ensuring battery safety and reliability, including IP 67 rating for water and dust protection, successful completion of thermal runaway propagation test without any indication of fire or explosion and an audible / visual warning that promptly alerts the user in the unlikely case of a thermal incident. GO 10 also complies with other stringent standards such as R10, R136 and UN38.3.

Forsee Power battery systems are fully designed by Forsee Power teams and manufactured in Europe, Asia-Pacific and soon in North America.

About Forsee Power

Forsee Power is a French industrial group specializing in smart battery systems for sustainable electric transport (light vehicles, off-highway vehicles, trucks, buses, trains). A major player in Europe, Asia and North America, the Group designs, assembles, and supplies energy management systems based on cells that are among the most robust in the market and provides installation, commissioning, and maintenance on site and remotely. More than 2,000 buses and 100,000 LEV have been equipped with Forsee Powers batteries. The Group also offers financing solutions (battery leasing) and second-life solutions for transport batteries. Forsee Power and its 650 employees are committed to sustainable development and the Group has obtained the Gold medal from leading sustainability rating agency EcoVadis. For more information: www.forseepower.com | @ForseePower

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Forsee Power

Sophie Tricaud

VP Corporate affairs

and Sustainability

[email protected]

Source: Forsee Power
DENVER--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Gold Resource Corporation (NYSE American: GORO) (the Company, we, our or GRC) is pleased to provide an update on results for the ongoing expansion and infill drill programs at the Don David Gold Mine (DDGM) which continue to provide evidence of adding additional higher grade resources from the north-west Arista, south-central Switchback, the Three Sisters and newly discovered Gloria vein systems.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230614412965/en/

Image 1: View of the Arista, Gloria, Three Sisters, and Switchback Vein Systems (looking north-west). (Graphic Business Wire)

The 2023 drilling campaign is returning positive results and has further confirmed that the program is on the right track to deliver higher grade resources into the near- and mid-term mine plan, stated Allen Palmiere, President and CEO for the Company.

Listed below are highlighted drill results, including Net Smelter Return1 (NSR) values; additional favorable results are available in the body and tables of this release:

Hole No. 523009: Switchback Vein System:

2.56 m with NSR value of $303/t @ 0.67 g/t Au, 503.59 g/t Ag, 0.71% Cu, 0.9% Pb, 1.7% Zn

Includes: 0.71 m with NSR value of $1,078/t @ 2.41 g/t Au, 1,810 g/t Ag, 2.31% Cu, 3.24% Pb, 6.08% Zn

Hole No. 523015: Arista Vein System

2.95 m with NSR value of $173/t @ 1.53 g/t Au, 105.76 g/t Ag, 0.08% Cu, 0.54% Pb, 4.96% Zn

Includes: 0.53 m with NSR value of $838/t @ 8.31 g/t Au, 498 g/t Ag, 0.02% Cu, 2.32% Pb, 23.4% Zn

Includes: 0.53 m @ 8.31 g/t Au, 498 g/t Ag, 0.02% Cu, 2.32% Pb, 23.4% Zn 1.73 m with NSR value of $563/t @ 16.03 g/t Au, 7.28 g/t Ag, 0% Cu, 0.09% Pb, 1.13% Zn

Includes: 0.93 m with NSR value of $1,045/t @ 29.8 g/t Au, 12 g/t Ag, 0% Cu, 0.16% Pb, 2.09% Zn

Hole No. 523017: Switchback Vein System

2.18 m with NSR value of $217/t @ 4.91 g/t Au, 8.51 g/t Ag, 0.2% Cu, 0.09% Pb, 2.75% Zn

Includes: 0.57 m with NSR value of $738/t @ 16.95 g/t Au, 25.7 g/t Ag, 0.56% Cu, 0.29% Pb, 9.3% Zn

Hole No. 523021: Switchback Vein System

5.85 m with NSR value of $131/t @ 0.05 g/t Au, 99.16 g/t Ag, 0.38% Cu, 1.07% Pb, 4.35% Zn

Includes: 0.64 m with NSR value of $757/t @ 0.11 g/t Au, 539 g/t Ag, 1.75% Cu, 7.6% Pb, 26.8% Zn

Currently five underground diamond drill rigs are in operation at DDGM where a total of 61 drill holes for over 14,200 meters have been completed year-to-date in 2023. The program continues to advance our 2023 exploration objectives of identifying and defining additional mineral resources and upgrading current inferred resources. Results from the 2023 drilling program are pending incorporation into the upcoming 2023 resource estimate.

See Photo Gallery: Image 1: View of the Arista, Gloria, Three Sisters and Switchback Vein Systems (looking north-west). Note: horizontal and vertical scales are approximations due to the perspective.

Three Sisters and Gloria Vein Systems

Expansion drilling is ongoing underground from Level 3 targeting the Three Sisters vein system, located north of and between the Arista and Switchback vein systems. Significant mineralized intercepts continue to be drilled at Three Sisters and the system remains open to the north-west, up-dip and at depth. Notably, several drill hole intercepts are well north of the current resource shells and the successful results here are key in continuing to guide the direction of the 2023 expansion drill program in this zone.

After detailed reinterpretation of 2022 drill data, a new vein system was discovered via the continuation of drill holes to the west beyond the Three Sisters vein system to where a new, previously unrecognized vein system, with significant base metal mineralization was intersected. This new system (Gloria) is located west of Three Sisters and north and east of the Arista vein system. Located along a structural weakness at the lithological contact between Tertiary volcanics and Cretaceous basement sediments, initial drill results show good potential to add new additional base metal resources from this zone. The interplay of the Gloria vein system with the Three Sisters vein system is now a primary focus of the 2023 expansion drilling program with two diamond drill rigs on Level 3 continuing to focus on step-out and infill holes on both vein systems.

Highlights from Hole No. 523016 which intersected both the Three Sisters and Gloria vein systems are as follow:

Hole No. 523016: 3.24 m @ 3.22 g/t Au, 77.47 g/t Ag, 0.09% Cu, 0.69% Pb, 1.42% Zn (Sandy 2) 2.25 m @ 0.07 g/t Au, 32.24 g/t Ag, 0.32% Cu, 0.33% Pb, 5.69% Zn (Gloria HW split) Includes: 1.05 m @ 0.1 g/t Au, 47.6 g/t Ag, 0.39 % Cu, 0.48% Pb, 11.5% Zn



2.44 m @ 0.07 g/t Au, 17.98 g/t Ag, 0.03% Cu, 1.84% Pb, 6.44% Zn (Gloria FW split) Includes : 0.6 m @ 0.1 g/t Au, 34.3 g/t Ag, 0.04 % Cu, 2.03% Pb, 14.95% Zn



See Photo Gallery: Image 2: Cross Section View of the Three Sisters and Gloria Vein Systems (looking south-east).

Arista Vein System

Infill and step-out drilling from Level 21 drill stations in the Arista vein system successfully intercepted a series of closely spaced veins down-dip below and along strike to the north-west of the existing Arista mine workings. Infill drilling results during this period along the north-west extension of the Arista vein system continues to show structural continuity (along strike and at depth) and economic potential within these veins beyond areas previously modelled and outside the current resource shell. Of important note, 1) the presence of accessible high-grade gold mineralization immediately below the current productive Level 21 of the Arista mine, and 2) evidence of the robust vertical nature of the Arista epithermal vein system with the continuation of high-grade precious metals at depth. Select highlights from year-to-date 2023 holes in the north-west Arista vein system include:

Hole No. 523015: 2.95 m @ 1.53 g/t Au, 105.76 g/t Ag, 0.08% Cu, 0.54% Pb, 4.96% Zn (Daira) Includes: 0.53 m @ 8.31 g/t Au, 498 g/t Ag, 0.02% Cu, 2.32% Pb, 23.4% Zn 1.73 m @ 16.03 g/t Au, 7.28 g/t Ag, 0% Cu, 0.09% Pb, 1.13% Zn (Marena) Includes: 0.93 m @ 29.8 g/t Au, 12 g/t Ag, 0% Cu, 0.16% Pb, 2.09% Zn

Hole No. 523018: 2.96 m @ 0.18 g/t Au, 109.2 g/t Ag, 0.07% Cu, 1.97% Pb, 12.28% Zn (Veta 3) Includes: 0.99 m @ 0.43 g/t Au, 264 g/t Ag, 0.05% Cu, 3.14% Pb, 17.45% Zn 3.41 m @ 0.03 g/t Au, 86.44 g/t Ag, 0.03% Cu, 0.33% Pb, 4.82% Zn (Chuy 2) Includes: 1.14 m @ 0.05 g/t Au, 194 g/t Ag, 0.05% Cu, 0.66% Pb, 5.03% Zn 5.02 m @ 0.04 g/t Au, 123.58 g/t Ag, 0.05% Cu, 0.82% Pb, 9.49% Zn (Viridiana) Includes: 1.08 m @ 0.03 g/t Au, 207 g/t Ag, 0.02% Cu, 0.46% Pb, 23.00% Zn

Hole No. 523020: 5.01 m @ 0.05 g/t Au, 48.2 g/t Ag, 0.01% Cu, 0.99% Pb, 4.23% Zn (Veta 3) Includes: 0.82 m @ 0.03 g/t Au, 110 g/t Ag, 0.02% Cu, 1.67% Pb, 11.65% Zn

Hole No. 523030 : 5.76 m @ 0.13 g/t Au, 170.59 g/t Ag, 0.03% Cu, 3.88% Pb, 15.88% Zn (Veta 3) Includes: 1.05 m @ 0.2 g/t Au, 181 g/t Ag, 0.07% Cu, 9.2% Pb, 36.2% Zn



See Photo Gallery: Image 3: Plan View of the North-West Arista Vein System Including Holes Referenced Above.

Switchback Vein System

Infill and step-out drilling from Level 28 in the Switchback vein system continues to successfully confirm the continuity and strength of the South Soledad and Sagrario veins along strike to the south-east and down-dip from the current Switchback deposit resource shell. Recent drilling continues to give strong indications there is potential to discover and expand additional polymetallic mineralization plunging steeply in a south-easterly direction on these veins. The Sagrario and Soledad vein systems continue to show structural integrity at depth along with the continued presence of high-grade precious metals. Drilling during 2023 has also shown the continuity of mineralization in other sub-parallel veins of the central Switchback system. Select highlights from year-to-date 2023 holes from the Switchback vein system are as follows:

Hole No. 523004: 2.37 m @ 0.02 g/t Au, 233 g/t Ag, 0.06% Cu, 0.16% Pb, 0.09% Zn (Sagrario) Includes: 0.66 m @ 0.05 g/t Au, 825 g/t Ag, 0.06% Cu, 0.55% Pb, 0.25% Zn

Hole No. 523009: 2.56 m @ 0.67 g/t Au, 503.59 g/t Ag, 0.71% Cu, 0.9% Pb, 1.7% Zn (Sam 2) Includes: 0.71 m @ 2.41 g/t Au, 1,810 g/t Ag, 2.31% Cu, 3.24% Pb, 6.08% Zn

Hole No. 523017: 2.18 m @ 4.91 g/t Au, 8.51 g/t Ag, 0.2% Cu, 0.09% Pb, 2.75% Zn (South Soledad) Includes: 0.57 m @ 16.95 g/t Au, 25.7 g/t Ag, 0.56% Cu, 0.29% Pb, 9.3% Zn

Hole No. 523019: 2.52 m @ 3.63 g/t Au, 102.7 g/t Ag, 1.3% Cu, 2.82% Pb, 7.15% Zn (Sagrario) Includes: 1.26 m @ 6.99 g/t Au, 108 g/t Ag, 2.02% Cu, 5.34% Pb, 12.7% Zn

Hole No. 523021: 5.85 m @ 0.05 g/t Au, 99.16 g/t Ag, 0.38% Cu, 1.07% Pb, 4.35% Zn (Sagrario) Includes: 0.64 m @ 0.11 g/t Au, 539 g/t Ag, 1.75% Cu, 7.6% Pb, 26.8% Zn

Hole No. 523025: 2.03 m @ 3.08 g/t Au, 14.98 g/t Ag, 0.29% Cu, 1.63% Pb, 4.03% Zn (South Soledad) Includes: 0.76 m @ 6.68 g/t Au, 26.8 g/t Ag, 0.26% Cu, 1.41% Pb, 0.88% Zn

Hole No. 523027: 4.82 m @ 2.95 g/t Au, 45.95 g/t Ag, 1.13% Cu, 2.79% Pb, 9.28% Zn (Sagrario) Includes: 0.96 m @ 8.82 g/t Au, 56.2 g/t Ag, 2.28% Cu, 7.46% Pb, 17.2% Zn

Hole No. 523034: 2.58 m @ 4.11 g/t Au, 53.85 g/t Ag, 0.8% Cu, 2.64% Pb, 5.78% Zn (Sagrario)

Hole No. 523104: 8.46 m @ 2.57 g/t Au, 236.43 g/t Ag, 0.19% Cu, 0.93% Pb, 1.71% Zn (Selene) Includes: 0.98 m @ 5.13 g/t Au, 99.8 g/t Ag, 0.62% Cu, 5.68% Pb, 7.18% Zn



See Photo Gallery: Image 4: Plan View of South Switchback Vein System Including Holes Referenced Above.

Summary Tables of Select Year-to-Date 2023 Drill Results:

Select Expansion Drill Results (Three Sisters and Glory Vein Systems)

HOLE VEIN FROM TO INTERVAL ETW2 AU AG AuEq3 CU PB ZN NSR ID (m) (m) (m) (m) ( g/t ) ( g/t ) (g/t) ( % ) ( % ) ( % ) ($) 523007 Gloria 717.14 719.56 2.42 1.56 0.39 47.26 0.96 0.12 0.56 2.37 77 523016 Sandy 2 512.66 515.90 3.24 3.19 3.22 77.47 4.16 0.09 0.69 1.42 173 Gloria HW split 566.75 569.00 2.25 2.25 0.07 32.24 0.46 0.32 0.33 5.69 111 Incl. 566.75 567.80 1.05 1.05 0.10 47.60 0.68 0.39 0.48 11.50 201 Gloria FW split 578.10 580.54 2.44 2.44 0.07 17.98 0.29 0.03 1.84 6.44 119 Incl. 579.94 580.54 0.60 0.60 0.10 34.30 0.51 0.04 2.03 14.95 244 523032 Sandy 1 417.23 418.85 1.62 1.24 0.04 21.23 0.30 0.21 1.15 3.26 76 Gloria 517.08 518.90 1.82 1.39 0.01 14.54 0.19 0.00 1.30 4.38 80 523036 Gloria 440.73 442.39 1.66 1.66 0.01 32.32 0.40 0.00 0.03 5.89 94

Arista Vein System  Select Infill Drill Results

HOLE VEIN FROM TO INTERVAL ETW AU AG AuEq CU PB ZN NSR ID (m) (m) (m) (m) ( g/t ) ( g/t ) (g/t) ( % ) ( % ) ( % ) ($) 523013 Veta 3 75.85 79.11 3.26 2.10 0.10 121.33 1.57 0.18 1.02 5.89 154 Incl. 76.60 77.78 1.18 0.76 0.09 319.00 3.96 0.01 2.77 15.20 377 523015 Veta 3 65.05 68.84 3.79 3.66 0.25 102.99 1.50 0.75 2.84 13.09 293 Incl. 67.21 68.04 0.83 0.80 0.40 165.00 2.40 0.15 2.75 34.99 594 Daira 207.52 210.47 2.95 2.55 1.53 105.76 2.81 0.08 0.54 4.96 173 Incl. 208.90 209.43 0.53 0.46 8.31 498.00 14.35 0.02 2.32 23.40 838 Marena 286.13 287.86 1.73 1.50 16.03 7.28 16.12 0.00 0.09 1.13 563 Incl. 286.13 287.06 0.93 0.81 29.80 12.00 29.95 0.00 0.16 2.09 1,045 523018 Veta 3 74.01 76.97 2.96 2.79 0.18 109.20 1.51 0.07 1.97 12.28 244 Incl. 75.98 76.97 0.99 0.93 0.43 264.00 3.63 0.05 3.14 17.45 400 Chuy 2 257.67 261.08 3.41 1.71 0.03 86.44 1.08 0.03 0.33 4.82 108 Incl. 258.83 259.97 1.14 0.57 0.05 194.00 2.40 0.05 0.66 5.03 162 Viridiana 348.02 353.04 5.02 4.35 0.04 123.58 1.54 0.05 0.82 9.49 194 Incl. 349.85 350.93 1.08 0.94 0.03 207.00 2.54 0.02 0.46 23.00 406 Marena 391.59 395.72 4.13 2.38 0.18 48.51 0.77 0.05 0.31 7.64 136 523020 Veta 3 85.77 90.78 5.01 3.54 0.05 48.20 0.64 0.01 0.99 4.23 91 Incl. 89.96 90.78 0.82 0.58 0.03 110.00 1.36 0.02 1.67 11.65 225 523022 Marena 219.11 222.13 3.02 1.73 0.06 54.16 0.72 0.22 0.68 2.50 76 Incl. 220.28 221.29 1.01 0.58 0.06 92.00 1.18 0.17 1.34 4.26 121 523030 Veta 3 58.30 64.06 5.76 2.88 0.13 170.59 2.20 0.03 3.88 15.88 336 Incl. 59.15 60.20 1.05 0.53 0.20 181.00 2.39 0.07 9.20 36.20 678 Chuy 1 68.12 70.73 2.61 2.00 0.04 50.20 0.65 0.07 0.29 5.94 110 Incl. 68.66 69.66 1.00 0.77 0.07 109.00 1.39 0.05 0.64 10.50 200

Switchback Vein System  Select Infill Drill Results

HOLE VEIN FROM TO INTERVAL ETW AU AG AuEq CU PB ZN NSR ID (m) (m) (m) (m) ( g/t ) ( g/t ) (g/t) ( % ) ( % ) ( % ) ($) 523001 Sam 2 121.08 123.26 2.18 1.40 0.91 136.78 2.57 0.70 0.53 3.88 178 Incl. 121.08 122.00 0.92 0.59 0.26 214.00 2.85 1.11 0.82 5.97 238 523003 Sagrario 65.71 69.48 3.77 2.67 0.01 43.32 0.53 0.11 0.34 6.30 112 Incl. 68.77 69.48 0.71 0.50 0.03 79.70 0.99 0.43 0.41 16.25 278 523004 Sagrario 69.38 71.75 2.37 2.29 0.02 233.00 2.84 0.06 0.16 0.09 106 Incl. 70.05 70.71 0.66 0.64 0.05 825.00 10.05 0.06 0.55 0.25 369 523006 South Soledad 101.30 103.50 2.20 1.80 0.02 48.56 0.61 0.38 4.73 3.71 140 Incl. 101.70 102.27 0.57 0.47 0.06 173.00 2.15 0.87 17.95 13.25 491 523009 Sofia 75.63 77.94 2.31 2.09 0.05 87.07 1.10 1.13 2.84 5.43 193 Incl. 76.00 76.62 0.62 0.56 0.09 118.00 1.52 1.76 9.52 18.15 480 Sam 2 113.26 115.82 2.56 1.96 0.67 503.59 6.78 0.71 0.90 1.70 303 Incl. 114.20 114.91 0.71 0.54 2.41 1,810.00 24.35 2.31 3.24 6.08 1,078 523017 Sagrario 80.73 85.27 4.54 3.21 1.05 92.02 2.17 0.83 1.73 8.56 246 Incl. 83.27 84.27 1.00 0.71 0.15 132.00 1.75 1.17 3.48 21.70 444 South Soledad 115.48 117.66 2.18 2.10 4.91 8.51 5.01 0.20 0.09 2.75 217 Incl. 116.20 116.77 0.57 0.55 16.95 25.70 17.26 0.56 0.29 9.30 738 523019 Sagrario 80.43 82.95 2.52 2.18 3.63 102.70 4.88 1.30 2.82 7.15 351 Incl. 81.07 82.33 1.26 1.09 6.99 108.00 8.30 2.02 5.34 12.70 601 South Soledad 86.68 88.96 2.28 1.98 0.07 50.94 0.69 0.43 0.84 10.06 188 Incl. 87.32 88.40 1.08 0.94 0.14 95.70 1.30 0.49 1.73 21.00 370 523021 Sagrario 91.60 97.45 5.85 5.50 0.05 99.16 1.25 0.38 1.07 4.35 131 Incl. 93.58 94.22 0.64 0.60 0.11 539.00 6.64 1.75 7.60 26.80 757 523024 Sagrario 92.50 100.10 7.60 5.82 0.26 55.89 0.94 0.50 0.64 8.07 171 Incl. 95.51 96.63 1.12 0.86 0.05 130.00 1.62 1.54 0.87 19.35 395 South Soledad 104.30 106.93 2.63 2.01 0.37 55.13 1.04 0.31 1.34 5.63 141 Incl. 104.30 105.11 0.81 0.62 1.17 148.00 2.96 0.68 3.31 12.45 337 523025 South Soledad 138.83 140.86 2.03 1.56 3.08 14.98 3.26 0.29 1.63 4.03 196 Incl. 138.83 139.59 0.76 0.58 6.68 26.80 7.00 0.26 1.41 0.88 277 523027 Sagrario 91.41 96.23 4.82 3.69 2.95 45.95 3.50 1.13 2.79 9.28 325 Incl. 92.11 93.07 0.96 0.73 8.82 56.20 9.50 2.28 7.46 17.20 736 523034 Sagrario 76.90 79.48 2.58 2.23 4.11 53.85 4.77 0.80 2.64 5.78 304 523104 Selene 103.60 112.06 8.46 5.44 2.57 236.43 5.44 0.19 0.93 1.71 231 Incl. 110.61 111.59 0.98 0.63 5.13 99.80 6.34 0.62 5.68 7.18 403 523106 North Susana 38.35 43.12 4.77 4.13 0.10 72.64 0.98 0.83 0.28 1.53 94 Incl. 42.00 43.12 1.12 0.97 0.17 131.00 1.75 1.27 0.44 3.16 164

Notes: Assays by ALS, Vancouver, BC Canada. Meters down hole.

About GRC:

Gold Resource Corporation is a gold and silver producer, developer, and explorer with its operations centered on the Don David Gold Mine in Oaxaca, Mexico. Under the direction of an experienced board and senior leadership team, the Companys focus is to unlock the significant upside potential of its existing infrastructure and large land position surrounding the mine in Oaxaca, Mexico and to develop the Back Forty Project in Michigan, USA. For more information, please visit GRCs website, located at www.goldresourcecorp.com and read the Companys Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2022 for an understanding of the risk factors associated with its business.

Forward-Looking Statements:

This press release contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. The statements contained in this press release that are not purely historical are forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. When used in this press release, the words plan, target, "anticipate," "believe," "estimate," "intend" and "expect" and similar expressions are intended to identify such forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements include, without limitation, the statements regarding the potential for additional mineral resources in future mine plans and plans for further exploration drilling in 2023. All forward-looking statements in this press release are based upon information available to Gold Resource Corporation as of the date of this press release, and the Company assumes no obligation to update any such forward-looking statements. Forward looking statements involve a number of risks and uncertainties, and there can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate. The Company's actual results could differ materially from those discussed in this press release. Also, there can be no assurance that production will continue at any specific rate. Forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties, including the possibility of lower than anticipated revenue or higher than anticipated costs at the Don David Gold Mine; volatility in commodity prices; and declines in general economic conditions. Additional risks related to the Company may be found in the periodic and current reports filed with the SEC by the Company, including the Companys Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2021, which are available on the SECs website at www.sec.gov.

1 Net Smelter Return is a calculated value of the estimated net revenues less transportation and refining costs and other miscellaneous payables. Revenue is calculated utilizing metal price estimates of $1,650/oz gold (Au), $20/oz Silver (Ag), $3.40/pound Copper (Cu), $0.90/pound Lead (Pb) and $1.35/pound Zinc (Zn). For more details on the approach utilized to calculate NSR and the metal prices utilized, please refer the Exhibit 96.1, Technical Report Summary for Don David Gold Mine dated December 31, 2022) to the Companys Quarterly Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on March 2, 2023.

2 Estimated True Width (ETW) for reported vein intercepts are based on 3D models of the individual veins. Estimates are determined in cross-section by measuring the modelled vein thickness perpendicular to the vein margins and through the midpoint of the drill hole intercept. Percentage based differences between individual ETWs and downhole interval lengths will vary between drill holes depending on drill hole inclination, variations in vein strike and dip, and overall geometries of the different vein systems.

3 Gold equivalent (AuEq) g/t is calculated based on the gold grade plus silver grade converted to gold grade using an 82.5 ratio (determined by $1,650/ounce gold and $20/ounce silver metal prices).

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Kim Perry

Chief Financial Officer

[email protected]

www.goldresourcecorp.com

Source: Gold Resource Corporation
CHICAGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Grant Thornton LLP, one of Americas largest audit, tax and advisory firms, today announced that it has appointed several new leaders who will help further advance the firms business strategy and accelerate its growth for the benefit of clients and team members. The new leaders complement recent additions to the firms Senior Leadership Team, announced last November.

The appointments will contribute to Grant Thorntons ongoing momentum and strong market position heading into its next fiscal year, which starts in August.

The challenges confronting our clients require us to continuously deliver high-quality, integrated offerings that are personalized to meet their unique needs, said Seth Siegel, CEO of Grant Thornton. Our new leaders will do this by bringing us closer to our clients, delivering the right solutions and drawing our highly-skilled professionals together to act as one.

An industry and regional orientation

To help ensure the firm provides clients with industry solutions that are aligned with its geography teams and service lines, Grant Thornton has appointed national managing principal for Industry, Lisa Walkush, to its Senior Leadership Team. Walkush has a deep industry background and was recently honored by Consulting magazine for Excellence in Leadership.

In a companion move that will help Grant Thornton better orient its offerings for clients regionally, it has named several partners at the firm to fill leadership roles in a newly-designed regional structure. They include:

Nichole Jordan will continue to serve on the firms Senior Leadership Team and hold her current role as the national managing partner of Geography.

Additionally, Grant Thornton has named Greg Westfall as its national managing principal for Private Equity  succeeding Carlos Ferreira as he moves into his new regional managing partner role for the Northeast (mentioned above). Westfalls passion for private equity and his proven track record in the space will help clients drive their strategic growth goals and create value throughout the transaction lifecycle.

New leader for people and community; new head of sales

Grant Thornton has hired Jeanna Shapiro as its new chief people and community officer  a position held by Michael Monahan since December 2019. Monahan helped steer the firm through the COVID 19 pandemic and will re-engage with the market as a client-service principal, tapping into his extensive experience providing human capital and workforce solutions to clients.

Shapiro brings to Grant Thornton nearly 25 years of experience in broad-based talent, human resources and operational leadership within professional-services firms such as Oliver Wyman and Booz Allen Hamilton. Grant Thornton will tap into her knowledge and leadership to continue strengthening its community, caring for its people and delivering on a commitment to quality and integrity.

The firm has also promoted Omri Avdi to the position of chief sales officer, succeeding Karen Hudson, who is retiring in August after six highly successful years fueling growth at the firm. Avdi joined Grant Thornton just over nine years ago and most recently served as a managing director and business development executive in the Los Angeles area.

Further, Greg Wallig  who currently serves as Grant Thorntons market managing principal for Washington, D.C.  will take on added responsibilities as the head of Public Policy. In the role, he will serve as the firms primary liaison with members of Congress, while also representing policy positions with standard-setters, regulators and other policymakers.

Finally, David Hazels will assume the role of managing partner for Grant Thorntons shared-services center in Bangalore, India. He assumes the role from Verne Bragg, a longstanding Grant Thornton leader who is rotating back to U.S.-based responsibilities.

About Grant Thornton LLP

Grant Thornton LLP (Grant Thornton) is one of Americas largest audit, tax and advisory firms  and the U.S. member firm of the Grant Thornton International Ltd global network. We go beyond the expected to make business more personal and build trust into every result. With revenues of $2.3 billion for the fiscal year that ended July 31, 2022, and almost 50 offices nationwide, Grant Thornton is a community of more than 9,000 problem solvers who value relationships and are ready to help organizations of all sizes and industries create more confident futures. Because, for us, how we serve matters as much as what we do.

Grant Thornton refers to Grant Thornton LLP, the U.S. member firm of Grant Thornton International Ltd (GTIL). GTIL and the member firms are not a worldwide partnership. Services are delivered by the member firms. GTIL and its member firms are not agents of, and do not obligate, one another and are not liable for one anothers acts or omissions. Each member firm is a separate, independent legal entity.

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Jon Rucket

T +1 404 984 6249

E [email protected]

S twitter.com/grantthorntonus

linkedin/grantthorntonus

Source: Grant Thornton LLP
NASHVILLE, Tenn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- HealthTrust Performance GroupSM, a leading healthcare performance improvement company, hosted an Executive Advisory Summit from May 10-12 in Deer Valley, Utah to address some of todays top challenges in healthcare.

The Summit convened C-suite leaders from HealthTrust and its health system members nationwide to hear from expert speakers and contribute to small group workshops on pressing issues facing executives in healthcare currently. The event also provided opportunities for information exchange and networking.

Connecting with our members always brings immense value, said Ed Jones, President and CEO of HealthTrust. We are grateful for moments like these that allow for collective knowledge sharing and collaboration to overcome ever-evolving industry issues facing hospital and health system leaders. We are dedicated to helping our members break down barriers so they can achieve their missions and serve the patients in their communities.

Speakers at the Summit included:

Larry Van Horn, Ph.D., Executive Director for Health Affairs at Vanderbilt University, spoke on the changing consumer role in U.S. healthcare. Van Horn currently focuses his current academic research on the shift to consumer purchase of healthcare and the impact it will have on new delivery models.

spoke on the changing consumer role in U.S. healthcare. Van Horn currently focuses his current academic research on the shift to consumer purchase of healthcare and the impact it will have on new delivery models. Jim Davidson, a resiliency expert and high-altitude expedition leader, spoke on resiliency by distilling compelling stories from his experience executing successful high-altitude rescue missions and offering lessons on how to overcome change, challenge and uncertainty.

Attendees also had the opportunity to hear from experts and discuss an array of solutions in breakout sessions on the most urgent challenges facing hospitals today, including:

Jocelyn Bradshaw, SVP of Strategic Sourcing at HealthTrust , led the breakout session, The E in ESG, which discussed lessons learned from environmental transformations of health systems as policymakers place an increased emphasis on executing ESG strategies.

, led the breakout session, The E in ESG, which discussed lessons learned from environmental transformations of health systems as policymakers place an increased emphasis on executing ESG strategies. John Young, M.D., Chief Medical Officer at HealthTrust, and Brendan Courtney, President and CEO at HealthTrust Workforce Solutions , led the Workforce Strategy session where they discussed how healthcare leaders can stabilize the workforce staffing shortage crisis through recruitment, retention, alternative practice models, and technology approaches.

and , led the Workforce Strategy session where they discussed how healthcare leaders can stabilize the workforce staffing shortage crisis through recruitment, retention, alternative practice models, and technology approaches. Ramy Hanna, CEO of HCA Continental/Mercy Roi , moderated a panel on the increasing complexities preventing execution in healthcare organizations and approaches to effectively overcome them. Panelists included: Ed Jones, President and CEO, HealthTrust Betty Jo Rocchio, DNP, MS, RN, CRNA, CENP, EBP-C, SVP and System Chief Nursing Officer, Mercy Health Chas Roades, CEO and Founder, Gist Healthcare

, moderated a panel on the increasing complexities preventing execution in healthcare organizations and approaches to effectively overcome them. Panelists included:

About HealthTrust Performance Group

HealthTrust Performance Group (HealthTrust) is a healthcare improvement company committed to strengthening provider performance and clinical excellence through an aligned membership model and total spend management advisory solutions that leverage operator experience, scale and innovation. Headquartered in Nashville, Tenn., HealthTrust serves approximately 1,800 hospitals and health systems in the U.S. and the United Kingdom, and more than 62,000 other locations including ambulatory surgery centers, physician practices, long-term care and alternate care sites. HealthTrust has earned designation as a Top Workplace in Middle Tennessee.

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Ale DesJean

[email protected]

615.344.3368

Source: HealthTrust Performance Group
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday rebuffed growing international pressure on Ankara to ratify Sweden's NATO membership bid before the Western defence alliance meets in July.

"Sweden has expectations. It doesn't mean that we will comply with them," Erdogan said in remarks released by his office.

"In order for us to meet these expectations, first of all, Sweden must do its part."

Sweden and its Nordic neighbour Finland ended decades of military non-alignment and applied to join the US-led defence bloc in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Turkey and fellow NATO member Hungary ratified Finland's NATO membership this year.

But both countries' parliaments have yet to approve Sweden's entry, a delay that has caused growing alarm in the West.

US President Joe Biden pressed Erdogan about Sweden during a call he placed after the Turkish leader secured re-election last month.

And NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg discussed the bid with Erdogan in Istanbul earlier this month.

Erdogan noted that Stoltenberg's visit coincided with a protest held in Stockholm by Kurdish supporters of a group recognised as a terrorist organisation by Ankara.

Turkey is pushing Sweden to ban and crack down on such rallies.

"There are rights given to (Sweden's) law enforcement under the constitution. Use those rights. If you don't deal with it, we cannot (say yes) at the summit in Vilnius," Erdogan said.

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NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- KBRA Credit Profile (KCP), a division of KBRA Analytics, releases its Day 2 recap of the CRE Finance Council (CREFC) June Conference 2023. Day 2 kicked off with the CREFC Legislative & Regulatory Update Forum, where participants discussed ongoing policy adjustments impacting the commercial mortgage-backed securities (CMBS) industry. Registrants listened in as market participants laid out concerns and outlooks for their particular segments of the industry.

Key Takeaways

Regulatory concerns were focal points for discussion, with the proposed Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Rule 192 and 144A featuring throughout the day.

Lower CRE transaction volume has hindered price discovery; alternative structures are being sought to increase deal volume.

Alternative and conduit lenders are well positioned to benefit from the slowdown in regional bank lending.

Lenders and CRE securitization investors expressed an unwillingness to increase their risk thresholds, leaving the onus on borrowers to bridge the gap via equity contributions and healthy funding of reserve accounts.

Click here to view the report.

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About KBRA Credit Profile

KBRA Credit Profile (KCP) is a research service and nothing herein or otherwise provided by KCP shall be construed as a rating. Any rating opinions, analysis, projections, observations, data or other items constituting part of any information provided or distributed by KCP or KBRA are and must be construed solely as statements of opinion and not statements of fact.

About KBRA Analytics

KBRA Analytics, LLC (KBRA Analytics) is our premier product platform for high quality data and advanced analytics. Our seasoned teams of industry specialists across each product provide unparalleled insight creating a foundation of deeper analysis and rapid discovery for users. KBRA Analytics is an affiliate of Kroll Bond Rating Agency, LLC (KBRA). KBRA is a full-service credit rating agency registered in the U.S., designated to provide structured finance ratings in Canada, and with credit rating affiliates registered in the EU and UK.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230614459958/en/

Paul Jaworski, CFA, Associate

+1 215-882-5493

[email protected]

Leonard Meirson, Analyst

+1 215-882-5888

[email protected]

Steven Mullen, Senior Analyst

+1 215-882-5937

[email protected]

Michael Butkerait, Senior Analyst

+1 215-882-5441

[email protected]

Brian Quintrell, Director

+1 215-882-5903

[email protected]

Sales Contact

Marc Iadonisi, Managing Director

+1 646-882-5877

[email protected]

Source: KBRA Analytics, LLC
Solution provides automotive engineering students with advanced training to meet the cybersecurity challenges of software-defined vehicles

Automated, open-source platform is pre-programmed, supports standard testing scenarios, and is fully customizable

SANTA ROSA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Keysight Technologies, Inc. (NYSE: KEYS) is teaming with the SHIELD Automotive Cybersecurity Centre of Excellence at the University of Windsor to provide automotive engineering students with advanced cybersecurity training with the Keysight SA8710A Automotive Cybersecurity Penetration Test Platform. The SHIELD program is dedicated to advancing and developing automotive cybersecurity solutions by training engineering and computer science students to ensure tomorrows vehicles are safe and secure.

With drivers expecting their automobiles to be fully integrated into their digital lifestyles, the nature of vehicles is becoming more software-centric. Known as software-defined vehicles (SDV), these autos deliver new connectivity, personalization, and automation features through highly complex software operating systems. While SDVs promise increased safety and convenience, their hyper-connected systems make them vulnerable to cybersecurity threats.

To help build student skills in vehicle-based cybersecurity, Keysight worked with SHEILD to define an affordable automotive cybersecurity platform for research and education. As an automated testing platform supporting industry standards, the SA8710A Automotive Cybersecurity Penetration Test Platform prepares students to meet future cybersecurity challenges with state-of-the-art testing tools.

Keysights automotive cybersecurity test platform provides students with:

Automated testing  Supports a variety of security audits to maximize efficiency, covering attack surfaces such as Bluetooth, WiFi, cellular, CAN (controller area network) and automotive Ethernet.

 Supports a variety of security audits to maximize efficiency, covering attack surfaces such as Bluetooth, WiFi, cellular, CAN (controller area network) and automotive Ethernet. Quick spin-up  Comes pre-programmed for immediate use.

 Comes pre-programmed for immediate use. Open-source environment  Keysights PathWave Test Automation is open-source, enabling students to add new capabilities.

 Keysights PathWave Test Automation is open-source, enabling students to add new capabilities. Cybersecurity assessments  Running on Linux, the Keysight IoT Security Assessments platform enables students to learn with predefined audits and add open-source and custom security audits.

SHIELD provides students with:

Education and training  Custom training of high-quality personnel (HQP) with experiential learning opportunities as well as opportunities for workforce retraining to create an industry-ready talent pipeline in Canada.

 Custom training of high-quality personnel (HQP) with experiential learning opportunities as well as opportunities for workforce retraining to create an industry-ready talent pipeline in Canada. Knowledge transfer  A reference library of information and engagements that raises awareness for the need for mobility cybersecurity.

 A reference library of information and engagements that raises awareness for the need for mobility cybersecurity. Research and innovation  Institutional and industrial collaboration to create ready-made solutions that meet rapidly changing technology and threats.

Keysight leads the industry in providing innovative engineering learning solutions to the education industry, advancing teaching with hardware and software tools that transform academic teaching labs. As part of the local and global community, Keysight is committed to STEM education by supporting programs that encourage students from all backgrounds to pursue careers in science and engineering, including the SHIELD Automotive Cybersecurity Centre of Excellence at the University of Windsor. Keysight also sponsors the Automotive Security Research Group, a non-profit organization that supports the development of security solutions for automakers, researchers, and students. To date, the company has partnered with more than 30 universities worldwide to provide industry-ready certification with more than a thousand students receiving certification.

Dr. Mitra Mirhassani, Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Windsor and Co-Director of SHIELD Automotive Cybersecurity Centre of Excellence, said: SHIELD is Canadas first organization dedicated to countering threats to the connected transportation marketplace. We are excited to embark on this partnership with Keysight that provides students with real-life experience. This allows us to compete at the global level and to provide support and services for Ontario.

Thomas Goetzl, Vice President and General Manager of Keysight's Automotive and Energy Solutions, said: Keysight is dedicated to giving engineering students the skills and knowledge they need to make an immediate impact when they join the workforce. Thanks to a close working relationship with the SHIELD Automotive Cybersecurity Centre of Excellence, we have been able to build a cutting-edge platform providing students the real-life experience they need to mitigate the tough cybersecurity challenges of modern vehicles.

Resources:

About Keysight Technologies

At Keysight (NYSE: KEYS), we inspire and empower innovators to bring world-changing technologies to life. As an S&P 500 company, were delivering market-leading design, emulation, and test solutions to help engineers develop and deploy faster, with less risk, throughout the entire product lifecycle. Were a global innovation partner enabling customers in communications, industrial automation, aerospace and defense, automotive, semiconductor, and general electronics markets to accelerate innovation to connect and secure the world. Learn more at Keysight Newsroom and www.keysight.com.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230614636299/en/

Geri Lynne LaCombe

Americas/Europe

+1 303 662 4748

[email protected]

Fusako Dohi

Asia

+81 42 660-2162

[email protected]

Source: Keysight Technologies, Inc.
ROANOKE, Va.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- KlariVis, the data and analytics partner of choice for community banks nationwide, proudly announced the launch of its newly redesigned website today. The enhanced site aims to simplify the research process and educate community banks seeking effective strategies to leverage their data through analytics.

The redesigned website boasts a visually stunning interface that captivates visitors, putting KlariVis remarkable dashboards solution and customer success stories at the forefront. The emphasis on visual elements ensures that users can effortlessly navigate the site and instantly understand the value KlariVis brings to financial institutions.

Built for bankers, by bankers, the comprehensive and intuitive KlariVis platform centralizes a banks fragmented high-value data into interactive self-service dashboards and reports, providing financial institutions of all sizes with timely insights that empower teams, drive profitability and improve productivity at every level of the organization.

Recognizing the significance of the KlariVis team's subject matter expertise in solving the complex data conundrum faced by community banks, the new website prominently features an "Insights" section. This section serves as a hub for educational webinars, insightful blogs, thought-provoking white papers and other thought leadership content. This curation of resources aims to educate clients about the crucial role data plays in their banks and empower them to make informed decisions. Other notable new components of the site include newly produced client video testimonials, as well as a deeper dive into the solution and benefits KlariVis provides to almost every operational area of a bank.

"Clients are at the heart of everything we do at KlariVis, said Erica Starr, Chief Marketing Officer of KlariVis. Our newly redesigned website perfectly embodies our brand, commitment to our clients and strives to deliver an exceptional user experience. By showcasing our team's expertise and thought leadership, we aim to solidify our position as the go-to partner and resource for community banks in solving their data challenges."

KlariVis continues to experience a 200%+ YOY growth as more banks look for ways to better leverage the vast amount of data held at their institution. The company has welcomed a record number of banks this year, including Citizens Bank of Edmond, and continues to expand its team internally. Feedback collected amidst this continued growth enabled KlariVis to design an accessible website that effectively communicates the significant value of the platform, while simultaneously showcasing the companys unique brand and strong commitment to community bankers.

Furthering its position as the leading choice for innovative banks looking to unlock the power of their data, KlariVis was recently selected as a Preferred Service Provider (PSP) by the Independent Community Bankers of America (ICBA). ICBA Preferred Service Providers have earned the highest level of affiliation and are designated by a due diligence process designed to ensure that they are dedicated to the community banking industry, have national distribution ability, possess sound financials and offer unique value to ICBA members.

In todays data-driven world, having complete, accessible and timely intelligence is critical, said Kim Snyder, KlariVis CEO and Founder. Our reimagined digital presence efficiently delivers the information bank leaders need to move quickly and confidently toward unlocking the power of their data. Community banks are integral to our nations financial ecosystem, and we remain proudly committed to empowering them through transformative data and actionable insights.

About KlariVis

Created by veteran community bank executives, KlariVis enables banks of any size to accelerate growth by leveraging the data that is locked in its siloed banking systems. Developed on a modern technology stack, KlariVis lets banks see data in a way that empowers their teams and customers to live and work better. With the time saved on analysis, banks can put their new insights to work towards building a better bank. For more information, visit www.KlariVis.com.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230614566823/en/

For KlariVis

Mary York

706-280-9267

[email protected]

Source: KlariVis
MIAMI--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Korth Direct Mortgage Inc. (KDM), a national commercial real estate finance firm that offers fixed rate loans up to $100 million for multifamily, office, retail, mixed use, self-storage, industrial, and other select property types, today announced that on Friday June 9, 2023 (See our 8-K), Holly MacDonald-Korth, KDMs Chief Executive Officer, acquired 1,100,000 shares of common stock from KDMs former CEO James W. Korth. As a result of this acquisition, MacDonald-Korth is now the single largest shareholder, holding 46% of KDMs common stock.

The transaction now makes KDM a majority women-owned enterprise, with MacDonald-Korth and Pam Hipp, Managing Director of Sales and Distribution of KDMs Michigan-based broker-dealer subsidiary J. W. Korth & Company, now owning a combined 53% of KDMs common stock.

KDM is proud of its commitment to diversity and the acquisition of the best talent possible to serve its shareholders and investors. This new designation opens our company to broad opportunities with asset allocators and broker-dealers who value diversity, equity, and inclusion, said MacDonald Korth. But beyond those advantages, we are brimming with pride to be one of the only national lenders of our size to be owned and operated by women.

KDM will continue to move forward with its mission of providing value to its shareholders and investors through its unique industry perspective and by sourcing quality loans and superior talent.

About Korth Direct Mortgage Inc.

Korth Direct Mortgage is an Inc. 5000 company which was organized in 2016 and is a voluntary SEC public reporting company. Since 2017, KDM has completed approximately $600 million in balance sheet commercial real estate financing. The loans, ranging from $5 million to $50 million, are diversified by geography and asset class nationwide.

The company is a vertically integrated originator, lender, servicer, specializing in the securitization of first lien commercial real estate debt with headquarters in Coral Gables, Florida. KDM specializes in lending on income producing real estate, typically light industrial, warehouse, office, multi-family, and medical properties. It provides flexible institutional capital as a common-sense lending partner and manage borrowers through the entire loan-life cycle. KDM issues Mortgage Secured Notes ("MSNs") to fund its loans. MSNs are registered corporate bonds ("KDMMTG" on Bloomberg). You can find more information about KDM's lending platform at www.kdmfinancial.com or visit our corporate website at www.korthdirect.com.

Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains statements that are considered forward-looking statements within the meaning of and are intended to be covered by the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Please see our disclosure at https://legal.kdmfinancial.com/cautionary-statement which is incorporated by reference herein.

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C-Suite Media Strategies

Kris Conesa

[email protected]

www.csuitepr.com

305-975-5934

Source: Korth Direct Mortgage Inc.
2.7 MW community solar project at Krasdales Hunts Point warehouse will share environmental and financial benefits with local residents

BRONX, N.Y.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Krasdale Foods, a 115-year-old family-owned business providing grocery distribution, merchandising, and marketing to independent grocery store owners, and PowerFlex, a national provider of intelligent solar, storage and EV charging solutions for commercial customers, yesterday celebrated the completion of the largest solar energy installation in the Bronx and one of the largest in New York City. The event, held at Krasdales distribution center in Hunts Point, was attended by Bronx Borough President Vanessa Gibson, Assemblymember Amanda Septimo, and others.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230614640634/en/

Krasdales rooftop community solar system in the Bronx (Photo: Business Wire)

For decades, large trucks have regularly driven in and out of the Hunts Point food distribution center  pumping pollution into the air and highlighting the need for clean energy in the area, said New York City Mayor Eric Adams. Krasdale Foods is stepping up to offset those emissions and power up solar energy in Hunts Point with the Bronxs largest solar power installation. I want to thank Krasdale Foods and PowerFlex for doing their part in the fight against climate change and for helping to bring sustainable living to our city.

Krasdale's new 2.7 megawatt (MW) community solar project will share its environmental and financial benefits with the local community. Residents of the Bronx can subscribe to the project and receive credits on their electricity bill for a portion of the solar energy generated. The program will help approximately 300 Bronx residents reduce their electric bills. Community solar enables access to clean, renewable energy for homeowners, renters, and business owners who may not have ideal conditions to directly install solar panels onsite.

The system will generate an estimated 3.4 million kWh of solar energy per year, avoiding the carbon emissions equivalent to fully powering more than 300 U.S. homes annually. The carbon offset is also equivalent to the amount sequestered by 2,850 acres of U.S. forests per year, according to EPA estimates.

We are proud to partner with PowerFlex on this monumental community solar project, said Gus Lebiak, Krasdales president and COO. Krasdale continues our mission of helping the communities we serve, and this new solar roof is a commitment to clean energy for the Bronx, its residents, and Krasdale employees.

Its rewarding to work with Krasdale on this large onsite community solar project that will generate a significant amount of renewable energy and help the company achieve its sustainability goals, said Raphael Declercq, CEO of PowerFlex. This community solar system will harness the clean energy of the sun to power Krasdales operations, as well as hundreds of families in the Bronx. This notable project demonstrates that, together, we can achieve a cleaner, greener future.

PowerFlex received more than $1.3 million in support from the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) through its NY-Sun Program, which is helping make solar more accessible to families, businesses, and communities across the state. Since its inception, solar in New York has grown over 3,000 percent, leveraged nearly $7.3 billion in private investments, and decreased in cost by 73 percent. Currently, installed distributed solar projects, combined with the projects that are under development, bring the State to 95 percent of the current Climate Act goal to install six gigawatts of distributed solar by 2025.

New Yorks position as the nations top community solar market would not be possible without strong private-public partnerships with companies like Krasdale Foods and PowerFlex, said Doreen M. Harris, NYSERDA President and CEO. Through our shared investments, together we are not only making clean energy more accessible in communities like the Bronxwe are also advancing our climate goals while setting an example for other states to follow.

Video footage of the solar system is available here.

About Krasdale Foods

Krasdale Foods is a 115-year-old family-owned business providing grocery distribution, merchandising and marketing services to independent grocery store owners, helping to build and sustain multiple generations of successful enterprises. With its base of operations in New York, Krasdale has grown throughout the Northeast and Florida with supermarket and grocery store banners that include: CTown, Bravo, Aim, Market Fresh, Shop Smart Food Markets and Stop 1 Food Mart.

About PowerFlex

PowerFlex, an EDF Renewables affiliate, is a leading national provider of intelligent onsite energy solutions that support carbon-free electrification and transportation. The Company delivers integrated solar, storage, EV charging, and microgrid systems to businesses and organizations. As a single full-service provider, PowerFlex customizes clean technology solutions to help clients achieve their energy and sustainability goals. Through the comprehensive PowerFlex X platform, PowerFlex leverages patented smart software to control, monitor, and optimize a clients distributed energy resources to reduce cost and maximize return on investment. For more information, visit www.powerflex.com. Connect with us on LinkedIn, YouTube, and Twitter.

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Krasdale Foods

Jenn Carson

Marketing Manager

[email protected]

PowerFlex

Emily Lau

Marketing and Communications Manager

[email protected]

Source: PowerFlex
Lenovo simplifies deployment for businesses with additional US$1 billion investment in portfolio expansion and one-stop enablement wherever data resides, from the pocket to the cloud

Lenovo AI Innovators program delivers 150+ turnkey solutions, helping businesses implement generative AI, immersive metaverse simulations and cognitive decisions at scale

Expanded AI-ready portfolio of smart devices and edge-to-cloud infrastructure includes new Lenovo ThinkEdge and ThinkSystem platforms purpose-built for enabling AI workloads

RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, N.C.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Today, Lenovo (HKSE: 992) (ADR: LNVGY) announced it has reached record annual AI infrastructure revenue of over US$2 billion and unveiled the next phase of its growth strategy, with an additional US$1 billion investment over three years to accelerate artificial intelligence (AI) deployment for businesses around the world. Fueled by increased global digitalization and demand for IT infrastructure upgrades, Lenovo is simplifying the often-complex implementation of new AI capabilities by delivering AI to the source of data and harnessing its vast network of best-in-class partners to build next-generation turnkey solutions that enable computing intelligence directly at the edge. The investment will further expand the companys industry-leading AI-ready portfolio of smart devices, infrastructure solutions and services to help accelerate innovation, enabling the use of generative AI and delivering cognitive decisions at scale throughout remote locations across financial, manufacturing, healthcare, retail and smart city applications.

As part of the additional investment, Lenovo is committing US$100 million to grow the Lenovo AI Innovators program, which has delivered a record 150+ cutting edge AI solutions created with 45 leading ISV partners in the programs first year. Leveraging the AI Innovators end-to-end ecosystem, the new solutions are bringing AI from the lab to scale and enabling the dramatic technology shifts underway within high-growth sectors. With the new solutions, customers can more rapidly deploy and leverage cutting-edge AI capabilities, like generative AI, computer vision, voice AI and virtual assistants.

Building on our more than 150 AI solutions, this pivotal investment further expands the development of AI-ready infrastructure solutions that will help customers overcome deployment complexities and more easily implement AI to deliver transformative services and products to the market, said Kirk Skaugen, President of Lenovo Infrastructure Solutions Group. As we continue our path to become the worlds largest end-to-end infrastructure solutions provider, Lenovo is committed to being the most trusted partner and empowering our customers intelligent transformation by bringing AI to the source of their data, at the edge.

Enabling AI Discovery and Accelerating Adoption

AI is driving a new wave of opportunities for businesses, but many companies face implementation challenges due to resource limitations and infrastructure complexities, stalling its rollout. The Lenovo AI Innovators program includes an ecosystem of best-in-class software partners collaborating with Lenovo to provide customers with tailored, proven and ready-to-deploy AI solutions for their end-to-end operations, including computer vision, audio recognition, prediction, security, and virtual assistants for every industry.

Lenovo is helping customers harness the value of their data, deploying purpose-built, AI solutions to transform their business with more predictable outcomes. These include NVIDIAs accelerated computing platform to deliver the fastest time to solution across customer industry verticals at the lowest total cost of ownership. As the retail, food service and hospitality industries adapt to the post-pandemic era, businesses are reimagining front-end and back-end operations to enable improved customer service, mitigate waste and address shifts in the labor market. Lenovo is partnering with DeepBrain AI to offer an end-to-end solution for generative AI virtual assistants that can be paired with powerful large language models (LLMs) to deliver 24/7 automated concierge service in hospitality and retail settings. With Lenovo and Vistry, quick service restaurants around the globe use computer vision to automate cook times and help predict supply quantities to prevent food waste, ensuring quality standards while helping improve customer retention and profitability.

As manufacturing operations around the globe seek digitalization to drive future growth and differentiation amidst economic disruptions, innovative AI solutions from Lenovo and Guise help industrial customers reduce unplanned downtime with up to 14 days of advanced prediction, as well as understand customer behavior and optimize processes with computer vision, predictive maintenance, and anomaly detection on the production line.

Lenovo is also delivering its AI solutions via TruScale Infrastructure as a Service for ultimate flexibility as the company continues its service-led transformation. AI Innovators partner, Al Hathboor Bikal.ai and Lenovo are pioneering the service-based rollout of an AI-enabled data center at Sharjah Research Technology and Innovation Park (SRTIP) in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Leveraging Lenovo TruScale HPC and AI as a service, the collaboration is providing public and private organizations with the ability to access AI capabilities to support citizen safety and security through digital transformation projects across education, R&D, retail, oil & gas sectors. The AI-enabled data centers computing resources will also help organizations bring the benefits of advanced AI features, like GPT-3 to their own operations. Designed to align with the UAE Net Zero 2050 policy, the data center is the first in the region to use industry-leading Lenovo Neptune direct water-cooling to deliver enhanced performance and efficiency while lowering power consumption.

Al Hathboor sees this collaboration as a way to give the UAE a technological advantage to the innovation ecosystem, create jobs and opportunities for our youth and develop tech for solving regional and global challenges. Lenovo, NVIDIA AI and Intel with SRTIP gives us a joint capability in tech transfer and we look forward to working with our universities, businesses, and government, said Mohammed Al Hathboor, Management Committee Member of Al Hathboor Bikal.ai.

The new Lenovo AI Discover Center of Excellence provides access to Lenovo data scientists, AI architects and engineers to help explore, deploy and scale AI solutions. The service also guides customers to the most appropriate software partners, AI-optimized infrastructure and responsible AI guidance through the Lenovo Responsible AI Committee. As companies learn to deploy AI, the committee helps customers with their approach to designing, deploying, and using AI ethically, helping organizations understand and address privacy, fair usage, diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility considerations.

Bringing AI to Your Data

As the amount of worldwide data grows exponentially, next-generation infrastructure technologies that deliver data center-like computing to the edge are critical to empowering AI for improved emergency response, public safety, accessibility, tourism and retail experiences. With more enterprise data being processed outside of the data center, Lenovo is committed to supporting AI workloads everywhere, ensuring purpose-built performance for remote settings.

Today, Lenovo extends its comprehensive portfolio of AI-ready infrastructure to over 70 products, with new AI-optimized edge-to-cloud server platforms that help address any AI workload. With emerging innovations like LLM and the continuous expansion of computer vision deployments, more processing power is needed where the data is being generated to run real-time inferencing at the edge.

The new Lenovo ThinkEdge SE360 V2 is the latest purpose-built edge server that delivers more power to enable AI solutions ranging from computer vision, voice AI and generative AI. Whether for a store, factory or office, the new server provides extended accelerated computing supportive of Intel Data Center GPU Flex Series, the NVIDIA AI platform, including NVIDIA L4 Tensor Core GPUs and NVIDIA AI Enterprise software, as well as Qualcomm Cloud AI 100 platforms to enable intense workloads at the source of data creation. The ThinkEdge SE360 V2 delivers the highest GPU density in the smallest form factor available and is at least twice as quiet compared to competitive products, allowing edge AI to be deployed in the most remote and rugged sites.

The new range of AI-ready edge solutions also includes the Lenovo ThinkEdge SE350 V2 for hybrid cloud and modern HCI deployments, offering twice the storage capacity and leveraging the Intel Xeon D processor to help customers run AI while easily consolidating workloads, data backup, collaboration and content delivery in the smallest form factor on the market.

In the data center, the new Lenovo ThinkSystem SR675 V3 is the most versatile, accelerated computing platform on the market and purpose-built for AI with three server configurations in one, including support for NVIDIA HGX 4-GPU systems, or 4-DW PCle GPU or 8-DW PCle GPU servers in a compact 3U footprint. As fully simulated digital replicas of entire buildings, factories, distribution centers, retail stores or cities, digital twins are combined with AI to generate improved business processes and design outcomes. Lenovo is collaborating with NVIDIA on its latest NVIDIA OVX system for building and operating virtual worlds, delivering powerful performance for NVIDIA Omniverse Enterprise workloads in the data center. The ThinkSystem SR675 V3, based on the OVX architecture, features up to eight NVIDIA L40 GPUs to maximize performance and deliver the most advanced ray tracing with RTX-accelerated graphics and AI capabilities in a robust and scalable platform, allowing customers to explore and unlock the full potential of digital twins for businesses of all sizes.

Beyond infrastructure, Lenovo is implementing AI from the pocket to the cloud, with cutting-edge smart devices and solutions, that ensure data science is accessible across all industries in the new hybrid and remote work era. For improved collaboration, new Lenovo ThinkPad commercial laptops include a new Lenovo View application, offering AI-enabled computer vision technology for enhanced video image quality and tools. Lenovo ThinkReality XR solutions help users access immersive simulations, while purpose-built Lenovo ThinkStation and ThinkPad P Series Data Science workstations deliver the high-performance necessary for mission-critical AI model development, data prep and training tasks.

With its AI-ready servers, cutting-edge smart devices and ecosystem of leading ISVs, Lenovo will bring pre-validated, performance optimized AI solutions to the source of customer data, even in the most unique edge settings. Together, these advancements serve to simplify the rollout of AI, making it accessible to organizations of all sizes and enabling transformative intelligence across all industries.

Visit https://lenovo.com/nextlevelAI to learn more.

About Lenovo

Lenovo (HKSE: 992) (ADR: LNVGY) is a US$62 billion revenue global technology powerhouse, ranked #171 in the Fortune Global 500, employing 77,000 people around the world, and serving millions of customers every day in 180 markets. Focused on a bold vision to deliver smarter technology for all, Lenovo has built on its success as the worlds largest PC company by further expanding into growth areas that fuel the advancement of New IT technologies (client, edge, cloud, network, and intelligence) including server, storage, mobile, software, solutions, and services. This transformation together with Lenovos world-changing innovation is building a more inclusive, trustworthy, and smarter future for everyone, everywhere. To find out more visit https://www.lenovo.com, and read about the latest news via our StoryHub.

LENOVO, THINKSYSTEM, THINKEDGE, THINKREALITY, THINKPAD, THINKSTATION and TRUSCALE are trademarks of Lenovo. NVIDIA is a trademark of NVIDIA Corporation. Inc. Intel and Xeon are trademarks of Intel Corporation or its subsidiaries in the U.S. and/or other countries. Qualcomm is a trademark or registered trademark of Qualcomm Incorporated. Qualcomm Cloud AI 100 is a product of Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. and/or its subsidiaries. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. 2023

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Worldwide

Zeno Group, [email protected]

Claire Simmons, [email protected]

EMEA

Ella Hulbert, [email protected]

APAC

Shonali Chakravarty, [email protected], +91 9833059832

LATAM

Valkiria Suzuki, [email protected], +5511996563108

Source: Lenovo
SBIR/STTR Matching Fund and Washington Competes grant programs, unveiled at the Life Science Washington East West Summit, aim to help early-stage life science companies launch and grow in more communities across Washington

SPOKANE, Wash.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Life Science Washington Institute (LSWI), a Life Science Washington affiliate focused on supporting early-stage companies and entrepreneurs in Washington state, today announced two new grant programs, the SBIR/STTR Matching Fund and Washington Competes, to expand the pipeline of diverse and early-stage companies located throughout Washington.

The new grants were unveiled at Life Science Washingtons annual East West Life Science Summit in Spokane as part of a larger discussion among medical innovators about the challenges startups and entrepreneurs face in serving rural and underserved populations.

Founding, funding and building a life science company is never an easy task, and its even harder for companies located outside the nations top research and financing hubs, said Marc Cummings, President and CEO of Life Science Washington. These grants will help empower and equip a diverse group of life science entrepreneurs to access additional funding and mentorship to expand the medical breakthroughs that Washington is known for to more communities across our state.

Each grant program can award up to $25,000 to Washington-based life science companies that are developing technologies that will improve the health and wellbeing of Washington citizens. The new grants are made possible through a partnership between the Commerce Department and LSWI to redeploy money that was returned to the states Life Science Discovery Fund.

The Spokane community has world-class universities and hospitals focused on delivering healthcare to rural and underserved communities, State Representative and House Health Care and Wellness Committee Chair Marcus Riccelli said. These grants will help our local researchers and entrepreneurs turn their ideas into companies that deliver healthcare solutions that improve peoples lives.

The SBIR/STTR Matching Fund program will focus on supporting companies outside of King County, where SBIR/STTR awards have been less common. The Washington Competes program will be open to all Washington-based life science companies but will prioritize companies outside of King County, as well as companies that are women-owned or socially or economically disadvantaged.

LSWI is proud to introduce these grant programs as part of our ongoing commitment to supporting the next generation of life sciences innovators, said Richard Giersch, LSWI executive director. The life sciences industry has the power to transform patient lives with new medications, medical devices and diagnostics, while also supporting communities through jobs and tax revenues. These grants will be a catalyst for that change. We look forward to using these two new programs to expand our work with life science companies and communities across the state.

Along with these new grants, LSWI will continue its Washington Innovation Network (WIN) and Commercialization Support programs. The WIN program, which provides mentorship and assistance, has graduated 42 companies that have gone on to raise over $1.14 billion in follow-on financing. The Commercialization Support Program ensures life science entrepreneurs and early-stage companies have access to the mentoring and resources they require to start and grow in Washington state. By providing access to resources such as a nationwide partnering network, free consultants, mentors, grant writing workshops and networking events, companies have a guide to ensure success, work with other emerging companies and secure funding opportunities.

Each new grant program will have an information session when the full solicitation is released on June 23, 2023. For more information, visit https://lifesciencewa.org/events/lsw-institute-grant-program-information-sessions/.

About Life Science Washington Institute

Life Science Washington Institute, Where Entrepreneurs Come First, is driven by a mission of three closely connected goals: to launch life science companies, mentor entrepreneurs, and connect companies and entrepreneurs to resources they need. It is a vital part of Washington states energetic and connected life science ecosystem, and it works to ensure life science entrepreneurs and companies have access to the right resources at the right time as they are founded and grown. For more information, visit https://www.lswinstitute.org/.

About Life Science Washington

Life Science Washington connects its 500+ members to each other and to funding, talent, partners and essential business services, and it elevates the industry by promoting policies that strengthen the environment for ground-breaking research and product development that improves and saves lives. For more information, visit https://lifesciencewa.org/.

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Kaitlyn Grosse, Marketing and Communications Manager

[email protected]

Source: Life Science Washington Institute (LSWI)
Non-profit Organization Convenes Manufacturings Top Scientists, Engineers, and Academics at North American Manufacturing Research Conference at Rutgers University

NEW BRUNSWICK, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- The North American Manufacturing Research Institution of SME (NAMRI | SME) has elected Katherine C. KC Morris, FSME, as its 2023-24 president at its 51st North American Research Conference held at Rutgers University in New Brunswick, New Jersey this week. The event annually convenes the worlds top scientists, engineers, and academics from the manufacturing world to identify and enact new technology, advance efficiency and improve quality.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230614852860/en/

The North American Manufacturing Research Institution of SME (NAMRI | SME) has elected Katherine C. KC Morris, FSME, as its 2023-24 president at its 51st North American Research Conference held at Rutgers University in New Brunswick, New Jersey this week. The event annually convenes the worlds top scientists, engineers, and academics from the manufacturing world to identify and enact new technology, advance efficiency and improve quality. (Photo: Business Wire)

Morris, who leads the Life Cycle Engineering Group at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) in Gaithersburg, Maryland, has been active in SME since 2016 when she looked to NAMRC for expertise for her work with standards for representing manufacturing processes. She is a research science and technology leader who applies her background in computer science, information modeling and knowledge representation to solve industrial challenges in the manufacturing sector while ensuring that new practices lead to more competitive and sustainable manufacturing.

The manufacturing advances that we see put forward year upon year from this conference are impactful and amazing, said Morris. The technology, process and material advancements that we see this year should be positively impacting production in U.S. manufacturing facilities in as little as three to five years.

NAMRI | SME Board of Directors Sustained by Membership

As part of the NAMRI | SME Member Meeting preceding the awards ceremony, the NAMRI | SME 2023-24 board and directors were ratified by vote from members present. Receiving the confirming vote were:

Officers:

President  KC Morris, National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, Maryland.

President-Elect  Ihab Ragai, PhD, PE, Penn State Behrend, Erie, Pennsylvania.

Secretary  Dale R. Lombardo  GE Aviation, Niskayuna, New York.

Scientific Committee Chair  Robert X. Gao, PhD, FSME, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland

Scientific Committee Chair-Elect  Xun Xu, PhD, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand

Immediate Past-President  Livan Fratini, PhD, University of Palermo, Palermo, Italy

Second Past-President  Brigid Mullany, PhD, University of North Carolina at Charlotte (North Carolina)

Ex-Officio  Bryan Albrecht, EdD, Gateway Technical College (retired), Kenosha, Wisconsin

NAMRI Directors:

Stephania Bruschi, PhD, University of Padova, Padua, Italy

Cindy Chang, PhD, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia

Patrick Kwon, PhD, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan

Zhijian ZJ Pei, PhD, FSME  Texas A & M, College Station, Texas

Mike Vogler, PhD  Caterpillar Inc., Peoria, Illinois

Andrew Wells, PhD, National Science Foundation, Alexandria, Virginia

NAMRC  North American Manufacturing Research Conference of NAMRI | SME

NAMRC is recognized as North Americas preeminent and longest-running international forum for applied research and industrial applications in manufacturing and design with its presentations and publication of original, basic and applied research in advanced manufacturing.

An annual event since 1973, NAMRC advances the scientific foundation of discrete-parts manufacturing leading to next-generation applications of emerging and innovative technology in material removal, forming and additive manufacturing processes and machines, and cyber-physical systems. The conference attracts global academicians, government and industry researchers, engineers, students and leaders in manufacturing to interact with each other and advance the field. NAMRC features peer-reviewed papers, keynotes, special opportunities for networking and collaboration, and recognition of research implementation, service and achievements. Details are available at NAMRC.SME.org.

NAMRC52 will convene next year at the University of Tennessee at Knoxville June 17-21, 2024.

About SME

SME believes in the power of technology and the innovation of people to advance our nation and solve the worlds greatest problems. For 90 years, SME has led the manufacturing ecosystem to elevate manufacturers, academia, professionals, and the communities in which they operate. We help build the bridge from today to the future by developing the next generation of manufacturing talent and informing industry on technology advances that can propel their operations into excellence. Learn more at sme.org, follow @SME_MFG on Twitter or facebook.com/SMEmfg.

NOTE TO EDITORS: High-resolution images of the NAMRI | SME officers and board of directors are available from SME. More detail on each individual can be found on the NAMRI | SME Board of Directors webpage on the SME.org website.

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Michael Scholl

Senior PR Representative, SME

[email protected]

Tel. +1 313-425-3040



Whitney Bowers

Communications Manager, SME

[email protected]

Tel. +1 313.654.6817

Source: SME
Companys Largest Acquisition to Add Hydronic Lines to High-Growth Texas HVAC and Controls Business

HOUSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- HTS Eng. Ltd (www.hts.com) today announced it has entered into an agreement with the owners of Arlington, Texas-based Oslin Nation (www.onco-tx.com) to acquire the 80-year-old hydronics company. The strategic move enhances HTS HVAC and Building Automation Controls offerings and strengthens the fast-growing independent manufacturers rep firms Texas footprint with sought-after pump and plumbing capabilities. Financial details of the transaction are not disclosed.

In the Canadian province of Ontario, HTS already enjoys a strong working relationship with Xylem (www.xylem.com), one of Oslin Nations cornerstone suppliers.

HTS is already entrenched in the hydronic marketplace in the province of Ontario, so the addition of the Oslin Nation family naturally fits into our Texas business and overall strategy and vision, said Mike Donovan, President of Houston-based HTS Texas. This is an opportunity to significantly grow our business with leading suppliers of hydronic products and systems to the commercial and industrial building space.

Oslin Nations 80 employees will join 255 HTS Texas employees on the payroll, though no staffing, branding or operational changes are planned.

We werent looking to be acquired, but we are extremely excited to join the HTS team, said Mike Barnett, co-owner of Oslin Nation, who along with co-owner Steven Lipe, will continue to run the Oslin Nation business and join as Directors on the HTS Texas board. The HTS local leadership team has the same strong shared values and principles we prioritize to build a great work environment, great culture, and strong and loyal teams.

HTS Texas and Oslin Nation already have solid reputations as technical teams representing highly engineered and predictable systems and solutions to the Texas industrial, institutional and commercial building marketplace.

Weve contemplated this acquisition for over a year, and we believe this acquisition will catapult our presence and unique offerings within the Texas marketplace and allow Oslin Nations employees and our main supplier partners to continue to flourish in the Texas marketplace, added HTS Texas Principal Stephen Poles, who heads the commercial HVAC distributors Dallas-Fort Worth operation.

With the acquisition, HTS Texas and Oslin Nation are poised to set a new standard for comprehensive HVAC, hydronics and controls offerings, full-scope project management capabilities, and client services.

HTS Texas has a proven history of Delivering Real Success to its HVAC and Controls clients, suppliers and employees, Donovan added. This acquisition allows us to continue to deliver an even more comprehensive bundle of equipment and controls to each project, stakeholder and client.

About HTS

HTS, the largest independent commercial HVAC distributor in North America, represents more than 100 HVAC suppliers and has approximately 1500 employees in 24 cities across Canada and the United States. HTS Texas employs 255 people with offices and service centers in Houston, Dallas, Austin and San Antonio. Delivering Real Success to all involved in its projects, HTS provides HVAC and refrigeration solutions to commercial, institutional, and industrial markets from leading manufacturers such as Daikin, Epsilon, AcoustiFLO, and Haakon Industries. For more information about HTS, visit hts.com or connect via LinkedIn, Twitter, and Facebook.

About OSLIN NATION

Oslin Nation Company, ONCO, is a Texas-based Manufacturers Representative that has been providing Hydronic and Plumbing Solutions since 1943. Known as System Experts, the company provide the best equipment and solutions to Consulting Engineers, Mechanical Contractors, and various types of Wholesalers. The firm, with offices throughout Texas, represents leading manufacturers such as Xylem Bell & Gossett, Xylem McDonnell & Miller, Xylem Hoffman, Xylem AWS, Lochinvar Boilers, Metraflex, Weil Pumps, Roots Regulators, Cemline and Wessels.

To learn more, visit onco-tx.com and follow the company on LinkedIn for market and product updates.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230614905472/en/

Ania Czarnecka

[email protected]

713-351-9165

Source: HTS Eng. Ltd
Planet adds acquiring to its existing payments gateway and currency conversion (DCC) services.

Builds on Planets strong presence as a leading provider of payments services for North American financial institutions.

Brings full-stack payments to the hospitality, F&B and retail verticals, so businesses can boost their revenues, all through one single fully integrated connection.

LONDON--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Planet, a global technology leader providing integrated software and payment services, has today announced the launch of its full stack connected commerce proposition in the US and Canada in support of its strong growth ambitions across the continent.

The company is already well-established in North America as a leading provider of payments gateway and in-person and online currency conversion (DCC) services to financial partners, including banks and acquirers.

The move introduces Planets unique connected commerce offering to businesses in the US and Canadian hospitality, F&B and retail verticals, allowing them to significantly enhance the experience for their guests and customers, whilst also boosting revenues.

Planets full-stack payments solution combines acquiring and processing, currency conversion, digital wallets, tokenisation and in-store and online payments, all through one cost-efficient partnership. This includes integrations to key F&B POS, PMS and Retail POS providers, including Oracle (Opera, Opera Cloud and Simphony).

Guests and shoppers will enjoy being able to pay the way they want to pay thanks to an extensive selection of payment methods which includes leading digital wallets. International customers can also choose to pay in their own currency, which delivers them added convenience and helps generate additional revenue for merchants.

Discussing the announcement, Colin Close, Head of Global Business Development at Planet, said: We already have a strong established base in the US and Canada, where we continue to work with financial partners to provide payments gateway and currency conversion services.

Were excited to build on this to provide a full range of integrated connected commerce payments products and services to hotels, restaurants, F&B outlets and retailers.

Our offering brings together acquiring, processing, currency conversion, digital wallets, tokenisation, and in-store and online payments and reporting, through one seamless connection, allowing our customers to deliver an amazing experience for their guests and shoppers which helps them grow their revenue.

The platform is fully PCI compliant and meets the highest data security standards, providing real-time payment information, reporting and analysis on customer spending, helping to reduce the admin burden for staff.

Planet will be exhibiting at HITEC Toronto 2023, June 26-29 at Metro Toronto Convention Centre. Why not come and meet the team at booth #2135 and find out more.

About Planet

Planet provides integrated software, payment and technology solutions for its customers in the Hospitality and Retail sectors and worldwide via a network of global Financial Services Partners.

With headquarters in London and nearly 3,000 expert employees located across six continents we serve customers in over 120 markets.

For more information, visit:

Website: www.weareplanet.com

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/planet

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230614842940/en/

Peter Underwood

[email protected]

Source: Planet
Serbia said it arrested three Kosovo police on its territory Wednesday but Pristina countered that the group had been kidnapped within its borders.

The latest flare-up between the two sides follows weeks of tensions after rioting in northern Kosovo saw 30 NATO peacekeepers injured in late May.

Serbia said the officers were armed with automatic weapons and in full military gear with GPS devices, maps and other equipment.

"This terrorist gang was arrested today at 12:38 pm deep in the territory of central Serbia in the area of the village of Gnjilica in the municipality of Raska," Petar Petkovic, the head of the Serbian government's office for Kosovo, told reporters.

Gnjilica is approximately six kilometres (four miles) from the border crossing with Kosovo.

A video published by Serbian police showed masked men hauling off a group of men in handcuffs.

The Kosovo government in Pristina dismissed the allegations, saying the group had been abducted.

Police in Kosovo said the group belonged to a border patrol unit and had gone missing after they reported an incursion of masked and armed men in the area.

Kosovo's Prime Minister Albin Kurti blamed Serbia for kidnapping the group, saying the move was likely "revenge" following the arrest of an alleged Serb paramilitary leader in Kosovo on Tuesday.

"The entry of Serbian forces into the territory of Kosovo is aggression and an aim for escalation and destabilisation," Kurti said in a statement posted on social media.

Kurti said the incident occurred inside of Kosovo's territory in the northern municipality of Leposavic.

"We demand the immediate release of the three kidnapped police officials," the prime minister added.

Tensions have been soaring between the arch rivals following Pristina's decision to install ethnic Albanian mayors in four Serb-majority municipalities.

The mayors were elected in polls held in April that were boycotted by ethnic Serb voters.

The episode was the latest in a long list of incidents to rock the area since Kosovo declared independence from Serbia in 2008 -- nearly a decade after NATO forces helped push Serbian forces out of the former province during a bloody war that killed around 13,000 people, most ethnic Albanians.

Belgrade, along with its key allies China and Russia, has refused to recognise Kosovo's independence, effectively preventing it from having a seat at the United Nations.

Kosovo is overwhelmingly populated by ethnic Albanians.

But in the northern stretches of the territory near the border with Serbia, ethnic Serbs remain the majority in several municipalities.

Serbia has long seen Kosovo as its spiritual and historical homeland, the scene of pivotal battles over the centuries. It continues to host some of the Serbian Orthodox Church's most revered monasteries.

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GEORGETOWN, Guyana--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- In implementation of the directives of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Salman bin Abdulaziz, and HRH Crown Prince and Prime Minister, Mohammed bin Salman; and in the presence of H.E. President of the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, Dr. Mohamed Irfaan Ali; the Saudi Fund for Development (SFD) Chief Executive Officer, H.E. Sultan Al-Marshad, signed two development loan agreements worth $150 million with the Guyana Minister of Finance Hon. Dr. Ashni Singh, to fund the Infrastructural Development Works for the Housing Sector Project, and the Construction of Wismar Bridge Project, through SFD.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230614835165/en/

(from left to right): Guyana Minister of Finance, Hon. Dr. Ashni Singh & The Saudi Fund for Development (SFD) Chief Executive Officer, H.E. Sultan Al-Marshad (Photo: AETOSWire)

The signings reflect the efforts undertaken by Saudi Arabia, through the SFD, to support sustainable development in developing countries and Small Island Developing States (SIDS). The first loan agreement, worth $100 million, for the Infrastructural Development Works for the Housing Sector Project, aims to develop the infrastructure to provide about 2,500 housing units across three different regions in Guyana. The second loan agreement, worth $50 million, for the Construction of Wismar Bridge Project, aims to improve road network connectivity and the flow of transportation, relieving traffic jams, and enhancing road safety.

During the signing ceremony, President Ali said: We are very pleased that we were able to advance the projects at such a pace, as he reminded that projects will not only bring temporary relief but also permanent benefit to citizens as it forms part of the larger infrastructure masterplan of the country and will help Guyana on its journey to modernization.

SFDs Chief Executive Officer, H.E. Sultan Al-Marshad, said: "Today's agreements mark SFDs first presence in Guyana and the beginning of development cooperation between both our countries. The two agreements signed today aim to support the housing and transportation infrastructure sectors in the country, which will lead to major benefits in health, education and the standard of living. Both of these infrastructure projects will support access to vital services, and represent an essential drive for achieving seven United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly SDG 3, Good Health and Wellbeing, SDG 6, Clean Water and Sanitation, and SDG 11, Sustainable Cities and Communities.

About SFD

SFD contributes to development projects by providing soft loans, and prioritizes the financing of projects in developing countries.

*Source: AETOSWire

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230614835165/en/

Saudi Fund for Development

Randah Al-Hothali, 00966112794448

Source: Saudi Fund for Development
HALIFAX, Nova Scotia--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- On June 14, 2023, CUPE Local 5047 President Chris Melanson made the following statement:

After more than a month of job action, CUPE Local 5047 and the Halifax Regional Centre for Education have reached a tentative agreement. This agreement was made possible by the fierce determination of school support staff in HRM, whose strike action forced government and the HRCE back to the bargaining table. It is only because of CUPE members job action that there was any willingness from government to make improvements on the deal members rejected decisively in May.

School support staff work in extremely challenging situations, which they meet daily with grace and kindness. These experiences prepared them well for this extremely challenging time.

CUPE 5047 members know from our work with students that consistent positive changes can lead to transformation. This agreement offers one possible step towards the change we need to see in the education sector. It's now up to the members to have their say on this tentative agreement. No details of the agreement will be released to the public until members have had the chance to see it and vote on it. Members will be notified of vote locations and times directly.

We know the last five weeks have been extremely difficult not only for school support workers, but also for parents and students in the Halifax region. We want to express our heartfelt thanks to our communities for their support and persistence throughout this challenging round of negotiations. Our members have been bolstered and encouraged by your kindness and extend their sincere gratitude to our supporters.

:sm/cope 491

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230614555400/en/

Mary-Dan Johnston

CUPE Atlantic Communications Representative

[email protected]

902-412-5780

Source: CUPE
Revolutionizing Augmented Consulting

PARIS--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Sia Partners is thrilled to unveil SiaGPT, a groundbreaking evolution in our augmented consulting capabilities, poised to transform the industry.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230614466455/en/

SiaGPT, Revolutionizing Augmented Consulting (Photo: Sia Partners)

Designed to expedite consulting workflows, SiaGPT harnesses the power of a cutting-edge information extractor, and prompt engine, operating seamlessly across vast volumes of documents.

"With the unveiling of SiaGPT, we proudly reinforce our core ambition as a next-generation consulting firm to redefine industry norms. We are excited to announce our plans to swiftly introduce new features that harness the immense potential of Generative AI" explains David Martineau, Deputy CEO.

The development of SiaGPT began in late 2021, leveraging a dynamic blend of proprietary datasets - including Sia Partners' invaluable intellectual property - and multimodal LLM technologies from esteemed organizations such as OpenAI and Hugging Face. The solution also incorporates an intuitive prompt interface, enhancing user experience and productivity.

SiaGPT offers unparalleled versatility, catering to two primary deployment environments. It can be utilized on-demand for specific projects, for empowering consultants and industry experts, and used by SiaXperience's copywriters, and compliance subject-matter experts, to achieve superior results. Additionally, SiaGPT can be deployed within pre-defined universes of expertise, spanning diverse domains such as ESG and life sciences.

We are pleased to announce that starting from July 1st, 2023, SiaGPT will be available to clients as a licensed Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) product. It will be featured alongside a portfolio of a dozen SaaS offerings on Heka.ai, Sia Partners' AI-driven platform, ensuring seamless integration and holistic solutions for our valued clients.

The introduction of SiaGPT reaffirms Sia Partners' unwavering commitment to leadership in AI consulting services. With a team of over 300 AI specialists, data scientists, and data engineers operating in eight centers of excellence, we continue to push the boundaries of innovation to deliver unparalleled value to our clients.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230614466455/en/

For media inquiries or further information, please reach out to [email protected]

Source: Sia Partners
Cooperation with Telenor resolves the issue of local application of Farmpros IoT solution

Farmpro opened its Singapore office as the basecamp for global advancement

SINGAPORE--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Farmpro (Co-CEO Park Byeong-ok), an IoT-based stockbreeding solution startup, signed an MOU on cooperation in the field of IoT with Telenor Connexion (hereinafter Telenor), a world-leading mobile IoT company, in Singapore on June 12.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230613176214/en/

Richard Gyimesi, Telenor Connexion Head of Region Japan & Korea, Park Byeong-ok Farmpro Co-CEO (Photo: Farmpro)

Telenor Connexion is a subsidiary of Telenor, a global telecommunications company based in northern Europe, and is in charge of Telenors IoT business. This cutting-edge technology company operates more than 20 million IoT connections in around 200 countries across the globe.

By working with Telenor, Farmpro can resolve IoT device communication issues that are caused by different telecommunication environments among countries when it enters overseas markets.

Farmpro developed a solution that attaches an electronic ear tag on livestock ears to manage livestock health. It held an opening ceremony for its Singapore Corporation on June 12 and declared the full launch of entry into global markets, including such leading stockbreeding nations as the Argentine Republic, Australia, and New Zealand.

Co-CEO Park of Farmpro attended a panel discussion at an agricultural innovation forum of SGInnovate ahead of the MOU signing ceremony and said, The Farmpro solution has significantly reduced the mortality rate of calves, through which it is contributing to reducing greenhouse gas emissions and preventing misuse of antibiotics.

Farmpros advancement into Singapore was supported by Global Big IN, a private-government cooperation governance program supervised by Incheon Metropolitan City.

The MOU signing ceremony was attended by officials from Incheon Metropolitan City, the Incheon Center for Creative Economy & Innovation, which is an organization exclusively in charge of the Global Big IN program, the organizing parties, which are The Innovators and Bigbang Angels, and the Korea Agriculture Technology Promotion Agency (KOAT).

Kang Shin-ho, Director of the KOAT Department of Venture and Start-up, said, We plan to continually provide support so that Farmpros electronic ear tag business becomes a great success in the global market, going beyond the Korean market.

Using ear tags, Farmpro takes real-time measurements of livestock temperatures and activity levels then collects and analyzes data. Analysis results are used for early detection of livestock illness and infectious disease and management of pregnancy and birth. Farmpro reduced the mortality rate of calves aged no more than six months to one-tenth of the previous figure by using ear tags and doubled the chances of conception of cows through an artificial insemination solution.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230613176214/en/

Farmpro Inc.

Kenny Ji, Director

[email protected]

Source: Farmpro Inc.
Partnership alliance focusing on workforce development to advance DFWs talent pipeline within life sciences ecosystem

DALLAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Swiss American CDMO and BioNTX have partnered to host the inaugural Biotechnology and Healthcare Industry Alliance of North Texas (BHIANT) launch meeting that will champion a next generation, industry-led, workforce partnership. DFW area employers will benefit from a skilled labor force that serves communities by creating pathways to high-paying, quality jobs in biotechnology, biomanufacturing and industry related entry-level positions.

The alliance brings together industry trade and manufacturing ecosystems. Swiss American is a drug and medical device Contract Development and Manufacturing Organization (CDMO) and BioNTX is a biotechnology trade organization.

The future success of this industry relies, in part, on the supply of both entry-level and long-term career pathways," said Dr. Aaron BenComo, director of Business and Industry for BioNTX. "So, working closely with Swiss American, Dallas College and our partner institutions, the BHIANT represents the industry-driven component of this sector-partnership."

Swiss American will provide much needed expertise and insight around the complexities of biotechnology in the manufacturing industry, to help develop the best long-term path for attracting qualified employee talent to enable biotech business growth in North Texas.

We are honored to be part of the BHIANT launch with BioNTX, Dallas College and other distinguished partners, said Komel Grover, president and CEO of Swiss American. Our company has been in the DFW area for over 30 years, and this alignment between trade group, advocacy, university systems, healthcare institutions, and business, specifically addressing biotechnology in North Texas, is a remarkable opportunity that has long been our vision for advancing our life sciences ecosystem.

The inaugural BHIANT event will take place June 22nd with Swiss American CDMO hosting in Carrollton at the 1540 Luna Road facility.

About Swiss American CDMO

Swiss American CDMO (Contract Development and Manufacturing Organization) delivers breakthrough innovation and superior manufacturing of topical solutions to global skin companies and personal care products including cosmetic, OTC drug and medical device regulatory pathways. For over 30 years, Dallas-based Swiss American has helped build popular brands using a unique blend of marketplace insight, scientific formulation and quality-driven, lean manufacturing expertise. www.sacdmo.com

About BioNTX

BioNTX is the bioscience and healthcare innovation trade organization in North Texas, an affiliate of the Biotechnology Innovation Organization in Washington, DC. We are the bridge between businesses and job opportunities, providing direct cost savings services, networking events, and educational programming to the bioscience and healthcare innovation community in North Texas.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230614347097/en/

Media Contacts: BioNTX Aaron BenComo, MD, Director of Business and Industry, [email protected] 832-360-0013 | Swiss American CDMO Mitchell West, VP, Marketing and Client Engagement, [email protected] 682-226-8636

Source: Swiss American CDMO
UK-based Internet Service Provider deploys OcNOS Aggregation Router and Cell Site Router to support national rollout into key cities

SANTA CLARA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- IP Infusion, the market leader in carrier-grade network operating systems, announced today that Telcom, a UK-based internet services provider, has chosen an open networking strategy to disaggregate and upgrade its network infrastructure. This network upgrade is to facilitate their national rollout to key cities in the UK, including Manchester, Leeds, Liverpool, and Birmingham. Networking company and IP Infusion partner and integrator Nomios assisted in logistics for the deployment.

Telcom will be using a combination of IP Infusion OcNOS software with white-box hardware from Edgecore and UfiSpace to upgrade and interoperate with its existing Cisco, Nokia and Juniper equipment for Aggregation Router and Cell Site Router use cases. This disaggregation strategy provides an incremental upgrade path to deliver modern networking features, as well as providing rapid return on investment by supporting a plurality of hardware vendors.

Telcom is investing millions to build a new, hyperfast, full-fiber network in key regions across the UK, providing the countrys fastest and most robust Internet connectivity solution. This ensures that local businesses, government, health, and education sectors have access to state-of-the-art digital infrastructure capable of meeting their data connectivity and communication needs for today and the foreseeable future.

The Telcom network has hyperfast speeds of up to 10Gbps for each individual business, delivered through a dedicated leased line, with 99.99% uptime guaranteed through its real-time monitoring system.

Nomios has played a crucial role in supporting Telcom, providing extensive pre-sales and sales support, technical consultation, and strategic planning for future network expansions on behalf of IP Infusion, empowering Telcom to optimize its network infrastructure to meet the increasing demands for city metro broadband.

Utilizing IP Infusion OcNOS has enabled us to push a rich and diverse feature set out to the edge of the network, giving us greater flexibility and variety of services available to our customers, said Ben White, Principal Network Architect for Telcom. We find we can gain the same features and functionality as organizations using traditional vendors, but with more diversity on equipment choice and a more nimble vendor able to react according to market trends quicker, all at a better price point.

Telcoms decision to choose IP Infusion really speaks to the maturity and value proposition of open networking in todays marketplace, said Atsushi Ogata, President and CEO of IP Infusion. With Internet access fast becoming a modern necessity  as much as any other utility  IP Infusion continues to be a top-tier choice for leading service providers looking for reliability and performance.

About IP Infusion

IP Infusion manufactures open network software and solutions for carriers, service providers and data centers. With hundreds of customers and thousands of deployments, IP Infusion is a market leader in Network Operating Systems. Our flagship software platform OcNOS allows network operators to disaggregate their networks, streamline operations, and reduce Total Cost of Ownership (TCO). Network OEMs may also disaggregate network devices to expedite time to market, offer comprehensive services, and achieve carrier grade robustness.

IP Infusion is headquartered in Santa Clara, Calif., and is a wholly owned and independently operated subsidiary of ACCESS CO., LTD. Additional information can be found at http://www.IPInfusion.com.

IP Infusion and OcNOS are trademarks or registered trademarks of IP Infusion. ACCESS is a registered trademark or trademark of ACCESS CO., LTD. in the United States, Japan and/or other countries. Northforge Innovations is a registered trademark of Northforge Innovations, Inc. All other trademarks, service marks, registered trademarks, or registered service marks mentioned are the property of their respective owners.

About Telcom

Telcom Group provides full-fibre and wireless connectivity to businesses, landlords and residential homes across the UK. Unlike many providers, we build, own and manage all the infrastructure, allowing us to roll out the network faster than anyone else and get customers connected in days not months. We believe the internet is a basic human right. Its also a catalyst for economic growth, technological innovation and empowerment. At Telcom, we aim to create life-changing impact and connect for good.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230614993557/en/

Media Contact

Katherine Verducci

1903 PR

[email protected]

408.429.5779

Source: IP Infusion
Securitization was comprised entirely of mortgage loans originated by Change Lending, a Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) certified by the United States Department of the Treasury CDFI Fund.

DBRS Morningstar rated the senior A1 class as AAA and the A2 class as AA, while Fitch Rating rated the A3 through B2 along with DBRS. Both rating agencies cited the demonstrated performance history on prior Change Company CDFI issuances being in line with the broader NQM market as rational for their assigned rating.

The loan collateral for the deal included $307 million of loans with a weighted average 8.72% coupon, 740 FICO, 71.1 LTV and 43 months of reserves.

ANAHEIM, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- The Change Company CDFI LLC and its subsidiary Change Lending, LLC (Change)  Americas CDFI  are pleased to announce that Change has closed its seventh securitization of its proprietary Community Mortgages, and the first such securitization which earned an AAA rating for the senior A1 class. There were 16 unique investors in the $307 million offering, demonstrating the growing interest and strengthening demand from well-established RMBS investors, including socially responsible Money Managers, Banks, Insurance Companies and Private Funds.

Jesse Elhai, Managing Director of Capital Markets for Change, said, Receiving our first AAA rating on a securitization comprised solely of our proprietary Community Mortgage is an important milestone for Change. We appreciate DBRS Morningstar and our investors for recognizing and rewarding the strong credit underwriting and performance of our Community Mortgage securitizations.

The securitization, which was issued from Changes shelf registration (CHNGE), closed on May 25th, 2023. The securitization was comprised of loans with a weighted average FICO of 740, LTV of 71.1%, 43 months of reserves, and 8.72% note rate.

Jason Biegel, President of Change Lending, said, We are excited to close this groundbreaking RMBS securitization that recognizes the prime credit profile of the borrowers accessing our Community Mortgage program. The AAA rating enables us to better serve our borrowers fairly and responsibly. Change Lending thanks its investors and looks forward to continuing to deliver quality investments to the mortgage investment marketplace.

This transaction follows the completion of a comprehensive assessment by Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) that validated Changes Social Bond and Loan Framework. The analysis by ISS determined that Changes mission-driven mortgage products, social lending, and inclusive business model, align with the Social Bond Principles established by the International Capital Markets Association and positively contributed to the Sustainable Development Goals defined by the United Nations.

Since becoming a CDFI in 2018, Change has funded over $25 billion in loans to more than 75,000 families. Change will continue to finance underbanked, prime borrowers  with a primary focus on Black, Latino, and low-income borrowers, and borrowers who live in low-income communities  to eliminate the wealth gap in America.

[Cantor Fitzgerald served as the initial purchaser and bookrunner on the transaction. Dentons US LLP served as issuer counsel to Change and Hunton Andrews Kurth LLP served as underwriter counsel in the transaction.]

About The Change Company

The Change Company empowers homeowners, small businesses, and consumers to pursue their American dreams by bringing social and racial equity to banking and lending. The Change Company has built businesses that have lent over $25 billion to over 75,000 borrowers across America. For more information, visit us at www.TheChangeCompany.com.

About Change Lending

Change Lending seeks to expand homeownership by providing credit-worthy loans to prime, underbanked borrowers. Since becoming a CDFI, over 70% of Change Lendings loans have been to Black, Latino, and low- and moderate-income borrowers and communities. For more information, visit us at www.ChangeMtg.com and www.ChangeWholesale.com.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230614701392/en/

Lindsay Valdeon

[email protected]

Source: The Change Company
Fintech makes it easier for women to start and run their own businesses at scale

Tide Women in Business' content series to inspire, inform and champion female members

Members will be directed to Mastercard's Strive UK programme for free access to training and advice on tackling business challenges

LONDON--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Tide, the leading business financial platform, has announced it will help 200,000 female-led businesses start out by the end of 2027. It is the first fintech to support female-led SMEs on this scale.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230613944609/en/

Atinuke Awe is the CEO and founder of Five X More, Mums Tea and Learning with Ez. (Photo: Business Wire)

The commitment is part of Tide's efforts to promote gender equality and remove barriers to female entrepreneurship. The move builds on an earlier milestone, when Tide announced it had onboarded 100,000 female-led businesses - 10 months ahead of its 2023 end-of-year target1.

Women in Business content series

Female-led businesses make up just a fifth (20%) of all new businesses in the UK2. To address this and other challenges, Tide is launching a Women in Business content series to inspire, inform and champion female Tide members.

Tide members will be directed to Mastercard's Strive UK programme. Strive UK includes free access to training and targeted advice to tackle business challenges such as creating a social media strategy, setting up an online shop or accepting online payments.

A recent survey of 2,000 Tide members3 showed that more than half (53%) of women in the UK find it challenging to start their own business. They cited a lack of mentors, operational knowledge, and self-confidence as some of the most significant barriers. The survey showed business mentoring and learning and development are areas where female business owners need support.

Heather Cobb, SVP Member Engagement at Tide, said: Having listened to our members, we know the struggles they face when starting and running a business and we want to make that process as easy as possible. A mere 5.6% of women in the UK run their own business4 - much lower than developed economies such as Canada (15%) and the US (11%). Todays commitment is just the beginning of our journey to improve gender equality in entrepreneurship and we look forward to working with Mastercard and others to achieve this goal.

Kelly Devine, President, UK&I at Mastercard said: Theres so much we can do to support women entrepreneurs if we work together. Entrepreneurs told us that they often dont know where to look for credible support services, so its great that Tide is helping women find support, inspiration and information that will help them start and grow a business.

Fuelling growth with Mastercards Strive UK programme

Mastercards Strive UK programme, an initiative of the Mastercard Centre for Inclusive Growth, focuses on helping small businesses with digital skills, especially those led by women and ethnic-minority owners.

Through Strive UK, Tide members can:

Build a personalised business action plan with Enterprise Nations Make a Plan tool.

Connect with experts in strategy, marketing, technology, finance and more for 1:1 or small-group business mentoring through Digital Boost.

Access their very own board of experienced business people for 12 months, connect with a mentor, or get free technology advice through Be the Business.

A community for female business owners

Tides Women in Business content series will spotlight lessons from running innovative businesses, helping the community of female Tide members supercharge their ventures. One such member is serial entrepreneur and social advocate Atinuke Awe (Tinuke), who recently hosted a masterclass on Accessing Alternative Finance. Tinuke is the founder of Mums and Tea (social platform for Mums), Learning with Ez (diverse educational resources) and co-founder of Five X More CIC, an organisation committed to changing Black maternal outcomes in the UK.

Tide also has a growing member base in India, following the launch of its product in December 2022. Tide has set a target of supporting 500,000 women-led businesses to start out by the end of 2027. To achieve this, it recently launched the Sarthika web portal, an initiative to help female business owners navigate the delivery of Indias government assistance schemes.

For more information:

[email protected]

ENDs

Notes to editors:

1 Based on an average sample survey of Tide members.

2,4 The Rose Review 2023

3 The Tide member survey was conducted between 3 and 7 February 2023, with 1,961 total respondents

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230613944609/en/

For more information:

[email protected]

Source: Tide
TOKYO & SINGAPORE--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Titan, a leading business email service provider, announced its strategic partnership with GMO Internet, provider of web services. Titan will be available on GMO Internets largest international brand, Z.com. This alliance will accelerate digital transformation and inspire growth among small businesses across USA, Singapore, Philippines, Indonesia, and Malaysia.

Titan and Z.coms offeringa premium business email with a free .com domain, the most popular Top-Level Domain (TLD)will help users get online and build their virtual presence. Anyone can get a professional-looking custom email, even if they dont own a domain.

Titan is user-friendly and requires zero setup. It offers up to 50 GB storage, and native web and mobile apps. Titans mail and calendar suite includes features like Read Receipts and Email Templates establish deeper connections between companies and customers, while Priority Inbox and Follow-up Reminders boost productivity. Titan is also in the process of launching integrated appointment scheduling and email marketing features in the near future.

"Through this partnership, we're strengthening our commitment to helping small businesses grow and thrive," said Bhavin Turakhia, CEO, Titan. "We're excited to work with GMO Internet and hope to see more entrepreneurs realize their ideas."

Titan creates a new paradigm with partners in the web-presence industry - a premium business email service they can offer which comes with beautiful native apps and requires zero setup making it as easy to access and use as a free email address.

The gains are phenomenal for registrarspairing Titan with a domain not only increases NPS and customer satisfaction, but also exposes customers to the provider's branding within Titan for over 150 hours every year.

About GMO Internet

Japan-based GMO Internet provides internet infrastructure services including web hosting, domain registration, and internet security. Z.com is GMO Internets largest international brand and one of the most comprehensive providers of internet services.

GMO Internet is also a leading domain registry and owns TLDs such as .shop and .tokyo, among others.

About Titan

Titan is a leading business email provider. With a focus on user experience and quality service, Titan is dedicated to helping businesses scale new heights. Titan has consistently been highly rated across review sites such as G2, Capterra, and Trustpilot, and provides email for some of the biggest web presence companies globally.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230613610818/en/

Rishav Kumar

Email: [email protected]

Source: Titan
NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- UBS AG announced today the Call Settlement Amounts for the below three UBS-issued exchange traded notes set forth in the following table (collectively, the ETNs).

Table-1

[1] The table above provides a hyperlink to the relevant prospectus and supplements thereto for each of the ETNs, which are identified by their names. Each of the above ETNs are part of the UBS AGs Medium Term Notes, Series B, on which UBS AG is sole obligor. Capitalized terms used but not defined in this press release shall have the meanings ascribed to such terms in the relevant prospectus supplement (including, as applicable, any product supplement and pricing supplement (each such supplement, a prospectus supplement)) for the ETNs.

[2] The prospectus addendum with a link to the updated base prospectus can be accessed here.

On May 8, 2023, UBS AG announced the redemption of the ETRACS NYSE Pickens Core Midstream Index ETN. On May 31, 2023, UBS AG announced the redemption of the UBS AG FI Enhanced Europe 50 and UBS AG FI Enhanced Global High Yield ETNs. UBS will pay the applicable Call Settlement Amount to investors holding the ETNs on June 16, 2023.

Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

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About UBS ETNs

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About UBS

UBS convenes the global ecosystem for investing, where people and ideas are connected and opportunities brought to life, and provides financial advice and solutions to wealthy, institutional and corporate clients worldwide, as well as to private clients in Switzerland. UBS offers investment solutions, products and impactful thought leadership, is the leading global wealth manager, provides large-scale and diversified asset management, focused investment banking capabilities, and personal and corporate banking services in Switzerland. The firm focuses on businesses that have a strong competitive position in their target markets, are capital efficient and have an attractive long-term structural growth or profitability outlook.

UBS is present in all major financial centers worldwide. It has offices in more than 50 regions and locations, with about 30% of its employees working in the Americas, 30% in Switzerland, 19% in the rest of Europe, the Middle East and Africa and 21% in Asia Pacific. UBS Group AG employs more than 72,000 people around the world. Its shares are listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange and the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE).

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Source ICE Data Indices, LLC, is used with permission. NYSE is a service/trade mark of ICE Data Indices, LLC or its affiliates and has been licensed, along with the NYSE Pickens Core MidstreamTM Index (Index) for use by UBS AG in connection with PYPE ETNs (ETNs). Neither UBS AG nor the ETNs, as applicable, is sponsored, endorsed, sold or promoted by ICE Data Indices, LLC, its affiliates or its third-party suppliers (ICE Data and its Suppliers). ICE Data and its Suppliers make no representations or warranties regarding the advisability of investing in securities generally, in the ETNs particularly, or the ability of the Index to track general market performance. Past performance of an Index is not an indicator of or a guarantee of future results.

ICE Data and its Suppliers disclaim any and all warranties and representations, express and/or implied, including any warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose or use, including the indices, index data and any information included in, related to, or derived therefrom (index data). ICE Data and its Suppliers shall not be subject to any damages or liability with respect to the adequacy, accuracy, timeliness or completeness of the indices and the index data, which are provided on an as is basis and your use is at your own risk.

UBS specifically prohibits the redistribution or reproduction of this material in whole or in part without the prior written permission of UBS and UBS accepts no liability whatsoever for the actions of third parties in this respect.

 UBS 2023. The key symbol, UBS and ETRACS are among the registered and unregistered trademarks of UBS. Other marks may be trademarks of their respective owners. All rights reserved.

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1 Individual investors should instruct their broker/advisor/custodian to call us or should call together with their broker/advisor/custodian.

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Media contact

Alison Keunen

+1 212 713 2296

[email protected]

Institutional Investor contact1

+1-877-387 2275

Source: UBS AG
Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) is reportedly in talks with Egypt to acquire up to 30 percent of seven state-owned hotels, according to Reuters.

According to informed sources, quoted by Reuters, the Qatari sovereign wealth fund is negotiating the deal with The Sovereign Wealth Fund of Egypt (TSFE).

Qatar eyes the hotels not just for their value as real estate assets but also for their historical value, since one of these hotels dates back to the 1800s, according to sources.

Egypt's Holding Co. for Tourism, Hotels, and Cinema  a state-owned company  owns many hotels.

The company's portfolio includes Marriott Mena House Hotel, Cairo Marriott Hotel, Shepherd Hotel, Steigenberger Cecil Hotel, Sofitel Winter Palace Hotel, Legend Old Cataract Aswan, and Cosmopolitan Hotel.

Egypt's privatization programme

Egypt is implementing a broad privatization program to offer 32 state-owned companies operating in 18 sectors to strategic investors within a year under a $ 3 billion Extended Fund Facility (EFF) programme with the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

Last week, Mohamed Metwally  CEO of NI Capital, the Egyptian government's financial adviser  announced that Egypt is preparing to offer two state-owned companies as investments before the end of the current fiscal year.

Egypt-Qatar ties

Egypt and Qatar have boosted their relations on all levels and exchanged high-level visits. Cairo and Doha celebrated last December in Cairo the 50th anniversary of their diplomatic relations. Several ministers, officials and foreign ambassadors to Cairo attended the celebration.

In May, Qatari Minister of Finance Ali Al-Kuwari stated that his country is committed to injecting $5 billion of investments into the Egyptian economy as was promised last year.

Qatar is the third largest Arab state investor in Egypt with 160 companies that injected investments worth nearly $2 billion, according to a previous statement by Cabinet Spokesperson Nader Saad.

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Holoportation demonstration technology and opportunities for providing 3D telemedicine in space receives NASA award

PHOENIX--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- University of Phoenix celebrates the recognition by National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) of alum Dr. Fernando De La Pena Llaca, CEO & President of AEXA Aerospace (AEXA), in bringing holoportation technology to medicine in space. NASA presented the Johnson Space Center (JSC) Directors Innovation Group Achievement Award to De La Pena Llaca as part of the Holoportation Technology Demonstration Team on June 8, at the JSC Teague Auditorium in Houston, Texas.

Holoportation brings a meaningful connection to medicine and the isolation of situations like space habitation, shares De La Pena Llaca. I am proud of the collaboration we accomplished with NASA to prove its capability and potential for use and this award helps bring awareness to this important work.

De La Pena Llaca and AEXA were industry partners collaborating with NASA scientists to enable the use of the technology which provided holoportation as an innovative 3D version of telemedicine for astronauts on the International Space Station in October 2021. The NASA award was presented for outstanding vision and execution of the Holoportation Technology Demonstration on ISS for future medical operations application.

The current uses for holoportation technology are in medicine, engineering, business, and as a communications tool. The application is now commercially available at AEXA.

De La Pena Llaca established AEXA Aerospace in 2012, at the same time he began his master's degree at University of Phoenix. AEXA Aerospace developed a training application for astronauts and payload specialists that uses holograms to overlay existing hardware and deploys avatars of other users working remotely. This is the technology that enabled the holoportation experience with the ISS.

As an undergraduate engineering student, Fernando completed and patented a spacecraft engine propelled by anti-matter, and received additional patents, for example, a space launcher employing magnetic levitation. He received a Discovery Channel Prize in 2010 for his work developing the Mexican Space Agency.

De La Pena Llaca completed his masters in information systems with University of Phoenix in 2013 and returned to earn his doctorate, which he completed in early 2022; his dissertation, Holographic teleportation in space and astronauts stress," focused on defining the best practices and use of holoportation technology to alleviate social isolation and stress for astronauts.

His story is featured in the Fall 2022 edition of the Universitys Alumni Chronicles magazine, available here.

De La Pena Llaca is the former President of the National Contract Management Association (NCMA) Space City Houston chapter at NASA Johnson Space Center (JSC) and former Chairman of the JSC Small Business Council. He serves on the Bay Area Houston Economic Partnership Board of Directors (BAHEP) and chaired the Communications Committee of the JSC National Management Association. He is also the aerospace liaison of the Clear Lake Chamber of Commerce. He also serves as Chief of the Infragard Defense Industrial Base SIG in Houston, a cross-sector council as part of a worldwide industrial complex. De La Pena Llaca is a past recipient of the Small Business Administration award, Small Business Champion of the Year, Houston District.

About University of Phoenix

University of Phoenix is continually innovating to help working adults enhance their careers in a rapidly changing world. Flexible schedules, relevant courses, interactive learning, and Career Services for Life commitment help students more effectively pursue career and personal aspirations while balancing their busy lives. For more information, visit phoenix.edu.

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Sharla Hooper

University of Phoenix

[email protected]

Source: University of Phoenix
This partnership leverages state-of-the-art technology to help healthcare payers save on claims costs, meet compliance requirements and increase customer satisfaction

GERMANTOWN, Wis.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- VBA, a leading technology company for healthcare payers, announced a partnership with The Phia Group to integrate the Ignite claims repricing engine and PROS case tracking solution with the VBASoftware core administrative processing system and the VBAGateway portal solution.

As healthcare payers continue to deal with the challenges of implementing the Cost Transparency Rule and the No Surprises Act, they are looking for technology solutions that can increase efficiency and help them keep track of multiple levels of complex information needed to accurately process claims.

Cost transparency regulations have put healthcare claims costs under a microscope, said Mike Clayton, President and CEO of VBA. Healthcare payers need tools to help them determine reasonable and defensible pricing for healthcare claims based on benchmarking and quality data.

By integrating the Ignite claims repricing tool with VBASoftware, healthcare payers have access to real-time repricing of claims that is based on benchmark data for similar services performed by local providers and adjusted for severity. Payers can also utilize the cost and quality data to advise consumers about which providers offer the most value for a specific service or procedure.

The Cost Transparency Rule and the No Surprises Act have also opened up new avenues for negotiation and dispute resolution related to claims pricing, creating a large influx of appeals and grievances.

Healthcare consumers and providers have access to more detailed cost information than ever before, and they are engaging in the discussion about what services cost and what is reasonable to pay, explained Adam Russo, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of The Phia Group.

Processing appeals and grievances can be time-consuming because information is located in multiple systems and is not always readily available. VBAs partnership with The Phia Group provides an integrated and efficient way for payers to manage this increased volume without adding more work for their existing staff.

By integrating VBASoftware with the PROS case tracking solution, all of the necessary information will be located in one place, which will improve accuracy of decisions and reduce the time it takes to process appeals and grievances. As an added benefit, the PROS system will automatically share case activity and information back to VBASoftware.

As technology leaders for healthcare payers, VBA and The Phia Group are driving change in the industry with solutions that make the healthcare experience better for everyone. To learn more, contact us at [email protected] or visit our website at vbasoftware.com.

About VBA

VBA is a leading-edge healthcare technology company providing an integrated suite of solutions for healthcare payers. Our secure, scalable solutions provide critical information in a timely manner, positively impacting member outcomes while reducing administrative costs. The healthcare system is complex, but with the functionality and interconnectivity of our solutions, VBA makes it simpler and more efficient for everyone. Learn more at vbasoftware.com.

About The Phia Group

The Phia Group, LLC, headquartered in Canton, Massachusetts, and with offices in Hartford, Boise, and Louisville, is an experienced provider of health care cost containment techniques offering comprehensive claims recovery, plan document and consulting services designed to control health care costs and protect plan assets. By providing industry leading consultation, plan drafting, subrogation and other cost containment solutions, The Phia Group is truly empowering plans. Learn more at phiagroup.com.

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Jessica Lockhart

EVP of Sales & Marketing

[email protected]

Source: VBA
Globally-operating CDMO publishes annual sustainability report

Report now includes Scope 3 emissions

Employee-driven social responsibility takes precedence as driving force for sustainability activities

Goal to reduce total emissions globally by ten percent by 2029

RAVENSBURG, Germany--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Vetter, one of the world's leading Contract Development and Manufacturing Organizations (CDMO), is consistently pursuing improvements to its sustainability strategy. The globally-operating company released its second-annual sustainability report. For the first time, the pharmaceutical service provider headquartered in Ravensburg, Germany, also reports its Scope 3 emissions and shows its CO2 balance according to the requirements of the international Greenhouse Gas Protocol. Adding to its dynamic growth, the company was able to significantly reduce electricity consumption and CO2 emissions per euro of gross value added compared to the previous year. By 2029, the total emissions in relation to gross value added are to be reduced by ten percent compared to the base year 2019.

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 Vetter Pharma International GmbH: Vetter Sustainability Facts and Figures 2022. (Graphic: Business Wire)

Sustainability creates resilience and reliability in the supply chain

"We support our customers in the production of high-quality and vital medicines for their patients worldwide, says Managing Director Thomas Otto. Hardly any other topic concerns our company as holistically as sustainability. Functioning supply chains are a non-negotiable for us. With our sustainability report, we make our measures, successes and goals even more transparent. This gives our partners confidence in implementing their own sustainability goals."

With 100 percent green electricity, the CDMO has been a sustainability pioneer in the pharmaceutical industry since 2014. Since then, Vetter has massively advanced the expansion and conversion of the individual company sites in the areas of renewable energies, resource efficiency and circular economy.

"Without the support from all levels of the company, and without the dedicated commitment of the management and the owner families, we would be nowhere near where we are today in terms of sustainability," added Henryk Badack, Senior Vice President Technical Services and Internal Project Management.

Focus on social responsibility

Assuming responsibility for employees and making a sustainable contribution to society is an important pillar of Vetters sustainability strategy. A comprehensive health management with target-group-oriented offers for employees in different life situations is as much a part of Vetters sustainability commitment as is the promotion of high-value training and development opportunities. For example, Vetter offers all employees a free supplementary company health insurance to fund additional services that are often not covered by statutory health insurance.

Furthermore, the CDMO secured first place in the 2022 Sustainable Impact Award in the category of Social Impact on Employees, which is awarded to the most attractive medium-sized employers with a focus on employee satisfaction.

Enhanced brand identity

Simultaneously, the pharmaceutical service provider is presenting its enhanced brand identity. According to Managing Director Peter Soelkner, Our company is characterized by sustained, strong growth. Our mission is to improve the quality of life of patients worldwide and our aspiration is reliability  for our customers, suppliers and employees. In short: at all levels. With our newly launched enhanced brand, we want to make this promise even clearer  through strong corporate values and embedded in a dynamic design. Our new image authentically conveys what Vetter is all about and what we stand for."

Please find the Vetter Sustainabilty Report for download here.

Find the Vetter press kit and more background information here.

About Vetter

Vetter is a leading Contract Development and Manufacturing Organization (CDMO) with headquarters in Ravensburg, Germany, and production facilities in Germany, Austria, and the U.S. As a global player, the pharmaceutical service provider is also present with its own sales locations in the Asia-Pacific markets of Japan, China, South Korea and Singapore. Around the world, small and large renowned pharma and biotech companies rely on the decades of experience, high quality, modern technologies, reliability, and commitment of more than 6,000 employees. The CDMO provides support from process development through clinical and commercial filling to a wide range of assembly and packaging services for vials, syringes, and cartridges. Thus Vetter contributes to improve the quality of life for patients worldwide. With innovative solutions, Vetter develops prefilled drug-delivery systems together with its customers to continuously improve patient safety, comfort, and compliance. The company is a pioneer in the industry when it comes to sustainability, and acts as a socially and ethically responsible corporate citizen. The CDMO is a member of the UN Global Compact, has received multiple CDMO Leadership Awards and was awarded several times as Best Managed Company. Founded in Ravensburg in 1950, the company remains family-owned to this day. Learn more at www.vetter-pharma.com.

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Vetter Pharma International GmbH

Markus Kirchner

Corporate Spokesperson / Media Relations

Eywiesenstrasse 5

88212 Ravensburg

Germany

Phone: +49 (0)751-3700-3729

E-mail: [email protected]

Source: Vetter Pharma International GmbH
Based on customer feedback, Weave ranked first in 20 different categories and received 25 badges for patient communications

LEHI, Utah--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Weave (NYSE: WEAV), the all-in-one customer communication and engagement platform for small- and medium-sized businesses, ranked first in 20 different categories in G2s 2023 Summer Report and won 25 different badges including Most Implementable Patient Engagement Software and Best Usability for Patient Relationship Management Software.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230614006841/en/

(Graphic: Business Wire)

Placement in the G2 Report is based on customer reviews, customer satisfaction, and market presence. With 200+ verified user reviews, Weave has solidified its spot as the leading all-in-one provider of patient experience software.

Weaves platform provides small- and medium-sized businesses with the tools they need to attract, retain, and engage their customers. With products like two-way texting, email marketing, and a smart VoIP phone system, offices are able to provide an interconnected and personalized experience.

We take great pride in our prominent inclusion in G2s 2023 Summer Report, which is a testament to our unwavering dedication in delivering customers the best technology tailored to suit the needs of their business, said Brett White, CEO of Weave. At Weave, our mission is to simplify and enhance each users experience while championing small and mid-sized businesses. Our platform is thoughtfully designed to streamline operations, empower communication, and provide easy-to-use features, allowing customers to focus on what matters most to them."

Weave ranked first in the following categories:

Overall Leader HIPAA Compliant Messaging Software

Small-Business HIPAA Compliant Messaging Software Leader

Most Implementable HIPAA Compliant Messaging Software

Overall Leader Optometry Software

Overall Momentum Leader Optometry Software

Small Business Optometry Software Leader

Best Usability for Patient Engagement Software

Small Business Patient Engagement Software Leader

Overall Most Implementable Patient Engagement Leader

Best Results Small Business Patient Engagement Software

Most Implementable Small Business Patient Engagement Software

Overall Leader Patient Engagement Software

Overall Best Usability Patient Relationship Management Software

Small Business Patient Relationship Management Software Leader

Overall Most Implementable Patient Relationship Management Software

Best Results for Small Business Patient Relationship Management Software

Overall Leader Patient Relationship Management Software

Best Usability Small Business Patient Relationship Management Software

Most Implementable Small Business Patient Relationship Management Software

Overall Leader for Patient Relationship Management Software

In the past year, Weave received additional recognition for their best in class software, including the Dentaltown Townie Choice Award for the Best Patient Communication System, the EyeVote Readers' Choice Award for Patient Engagement Systems. Visit https://www.getweave.com/newsroom/ to learn more about Weave.

About Weave

Weave is the all-in-one customer communication and engagement platform for small- and medium-sized businesses. From the first phone call to the final invoice and every touchpoint in between, Weave connects the entire customer journey. Weaves software solutions transform how local businesses attract, communicate with and engage customers to grow their business. Weave has set the bar for Utah startup achievement & work culture. In the past year, Weave has been named a G2 leader in Patient Engagement, Optometry, Dental Practice Management and Patient Relationship Management software. To learn more, visit getweave.com/newsroom/

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Zac Johnson

PR Coordinator, Weave

[email protected]

Source: Weave
TORONTO--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- XTM Inc. ("XTM" or the "Corporation") (QB: XTMIF / CSE: PAID / FSE: 7XT) is providing an update to its previously announced management cease trade order (the "MCTO") granted by the Ontario Securities Commission (the OSC) under National Policy 12-203 - Management Cease Trade Orders ("NP 12-203").

Pursuant to the MCTO, the Corporations CEO, Marilyn Schaffer, and the Corporations CFO, Paul Dowdall, may not trade in securities of the Corporation until such time as the Corporation files its annual audited financial statements, annual management's discussion and analysis and related certifications for the year ended December 31, 2022 (collectively, the "Required Documents"), and the OSC revokes the MCTO. The delay in filing the required documents is in connection with to a recent change of auditor for the Corporation and audit requirements resulting from increased transaction volume experienced by the Corporation.

The MCTO does not affect the ability of other shareholders to trade their securities.

In addition to the late filing of the Required Documents, the Company does not believe it will be in a position to file its interim financial statements, managements discussion and analysis and related certifications for the three-month financial period ended March 31, 2023 (the Additional Disclosure Documents).

As such, the Company has requested, and the OSC recently confirmed, an extension to the MCTO until July 17, 2023 for the Company to file their Required Documents and Additional Disclosure Documents. The Company expects to file the Additional Disclosure Documents concurrently with the filing of the Required Documents as soon as it has obtained the necessary approvals, subject to further unforeseen delays.

XTM also confirms that it intends to satisfy the provisions of NP 12-203 and issue bi-weekly default status reports for so long as they remain in default of the financial statement filing requirement, containing any material changes to the information in this release, all actions taken by XTM to remedy the default, particulars of any failure by the Corporation to fulfill these provisions, any subsequent defaults of XTM requiring a default announcement and any other material information concerning the affairs of the Corporation not previously disclosed.

About XTM

XTM, www.xtminc.com, is a Miami and Toronto-based fintech innovator in the neo-banking space, helping businesses and service workers in the hospitality and personal care space disseminate and access earned wages and gratuities. XTM's Today Solution, comprised of a free mobile app and a Visa or Mastercard debit card with free banking features, is used by thousands of restaurants, salons and staff across Canada and the United States. XTM is a global card issuer and real-time payment specialist. Our technology is used by Restaurants, Salons and service staff at no charge to automate and expedite Earned Wage and Gratuity Access, increasing time and attendance and eliminating cash from ecosystems. XTM's Today solution drives operational efficiencies and delivers a bespoke user experience designed specifically for service workers.

The CSE has not approved nor disapproved the contents of this press release, and the CSE does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Disclaimer for Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities laws. Forward-looking statements are often, but not always, identified by the use of words such as "seek", "anticipate", "believe", "plan", "estimate", "expect", "likely" and "intend" and statements that an event or result "may", "will", "should", "could" or "might" occur or be achieved and other similar expressions. Forward-looking information in this press release includes, without limitation, statements relating to the date of filing of the Required Documents and Additional Disclosure Documents and the satisfaction of the provisions of NP 12- 203.

By their nature, forward-looking statements involve risk and uncertainty because they relate to events and depend on circumstances that will occur in the future and there are many factors that could cause actual results and developments to differ materially from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements.

The forward-looking information contained herein is made as of the date of this press release and is based on the beliefs, estimates, expectations and opinions of management on the date such forward looking information is made. The Corporation undertakes no obligation to update or revise any forward looking information, whether as a result of new information, estimates or opinions, future events or results or otherwise or to explain any material difference between subsequent actual events and such forward looking information, except as required by applicable law.

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Marilyn Schaffer

E: [email protected]

T: 416.260.1641

Source: XTM Inc.
Delivering a standardized evaluation of solar assets, beginning in Italy, Zeitview to offer higher-value-per-euro aerial inspection services via scheduled flight paths.

Zeitview's aerial inspections of solar power plants deliver real-time, actionable site health insights to asset owners and investors.

Munichs Intersolar Europe attendees can preview Zeitviews solar asset reports and scheduled flight paths at the Zeitview booth (A4.209) from Wednesday, June 14, to Friday, June 16.

MUNICH--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Last year, Europe added a record 41 gigawatts of solar power, which is well on its way to overtaking wind energy as the primary source of Europe's clean electricity. With tens of millions more people relying on solar power yearly, Zeitview, a leading provider of AI-enabled advanced energy and infrastructure inspection software, has announced a further expansion of its solar inspection services in Europe.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230613887464/en/

Zeitview's aerial inspections of solar power plants deliver real-time, actionable site health insights to asset owners and investors across Italy. (Photo: Business Wire)

By using crewed aircraft following designated flight paths and AI-enabled aerial inspection capabilities, Zeitview is bringing aerial inspection services at scale to Europe. Using high-resolution millimeter-wave infrared cameras, Zeitview can collect quality data at scale to help power plants optimize maintenance and file warranty claims. The company has used this method for the past three years to provide highly efficient inspections of utility-scale solar arrays in the United States. Zeitview is starting its scanning operations in Italy this summer, with long-term plans to inspect 1 MW and larger solar power plants throughout the region.

"To achieve our climate goals, we need to bring a lot more solar power plants online and keep them running at peak efficiency, which means saving solar operators and their investors time and money," said Mark Culpepper, the general manager of global solar solutions at Zeitview. "The industry suffers from a noticeable lack of transparency and clarity regarding the objective health of solar assets overall. Our highly efficient and scalable aerial inspections gather comprehensive data sets that bring a universal and standardized assessment to the real-life conditions of solar assets."

To capture inspection data at scale, Zeitview uses aerial sensors mounted on airplanes to deliver reliable thermal and RGB views (or truecolor images) of solar power plants. Zeitviews Solar Insights software uses AI, machine learning, and data analytics to assess equipment conditions and prioritize maintenance and repairs. Once an inspection is completed, stakeholders can access the asset data, imagery, and reports via the Solar Insights platform to maintain a global view of each system's financial performance and energy output through targeted maintenance and preventable downtime. Using airplanes enables Zeitview technicians to inspect 2 GW or more of power daily, creating an economy of scale unmatched by other imaging technologies.

"Investors and site owners want to maximize the solar energy production of their projects, and aerial inspections are essential to that, said Dan Burton, CEO at Zeitview. "A defect in a single module can significantly affect the performance of an entire string, so knowing the health of each module helps asset owners optimize output and accelerates the clean energy transition for all of us. We are thrilled to launch a cost-effective coordinated effort in Europe, allowing greater access to the data that benefits not only asset owners but also the solar industry."

Zeitview solar asset reports are designed to provide a gold standard for evaluating the total condition of solar power plants. Zeitview uses a simple three-letter rating system, each representing a specific aspect of the site's overall condition. The first letter in the rating represents the operating condition of the site, including locating failing components to estimate the power plant's direct current losses. The second letter in the rating indicates the highest recorded temperature of photovoltaic cells, with separate parameters for roof-mounted and ground-mounted assets, as elevated temperatures may indicate potential safety or liability risks. Finally, the last letter reflects the modules' condition by comparing the number of anomalies per megawatt peak, as more anomalies per megawatt generally indicate more potential problems with the modules.

Attendees of Intersolar Europe, held in Munich, Germany, will have access to a preview of Zeitviews solar asset reports and scheduled flight paths at the Zeitview booth (A4.209) from Wednesday, June 14, to Friday, June 16. To learn more about solar services in Europe, Zeitviews Solar Insights platform, or the scheduled flight path, please visit www.zeitview.com.

ABOUT ZEITVIEW

For global customers in energy and infrastructure, Zeitview builds advanced inspection software that delivers fast, accurate insights, lowers costs, and improves asset performance and longevity. We are second to none at partnering with our customers to achieve flexible, long-term solutions across their multiple asset classes. Trusted by the largest enterprises in the world, Zeitview is active in over 70 countries. Learn more at zeitview.com.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230613887464/en/

Technica Communications

Cait Caviness

408-806-9626 Ext. 9949

[email protected]

Source: Zeitview
Endeavour Silver Corp. (NYSE: EXK) announces, effective today, the appointment of Greg Blaylock as the new Vice President, Operations to oversee the Companys underground mining operations in Mexico. Greg Blaylock is a senior mining executive who brings to Endeavour over 35 years hands-on experience in mining operations, mine planning and project development as well as related executive and technical expertise. Greg is fluent in both English and Spanish.

Dan Dickson, Endeavour CEO, commented, I am pleased to welcome Greg Blaylock to the Endeavour management team. Greg brings a wealth of experience in mine management and engineering. His knowledge and leadership skills should enhance our continuous focus on safety, operational efficiency, and managing costs.

Over the span of his career, Greg has worked with different commodities, both precious and base metals, in a variety of locations including Mexico, Colombia, Argentina, the United States, Africa, and Canada. His direct work experience and consulting encompasses mining and construction with notable companies, including Coeur Mining, BHP, Kinross, Newmont, Gold Fields of South Africa, and others. Greg holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Mining Engineering from University of Idaho, Moscow, Idaho, USA and a Master of Science in Engineering from the University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa.

Most recently, Greg operated a mine engineering and management consultancy whereby he provided guidance and technical recommendations for an underground silver mine in Mexico. Prior to that, he was the General Manager at Cobre Del Mayo, a Mexican Mining company that operates the Piedras Verdes (PV mine) open pit copper mine, with over 1,000 employees and contractors.

Mr. Blaylocks responsibilities will include oversight over the Companys mining operations in Mexico, particularly with regard to the safety, production and costs of each operation, including mine, plant, tailings, warehouse, purchasing, construction, engineering, capital and operating budgets, community and government relations, and environmental functions.

Endeavour also announces the departure of Nicholas Shakesby as the Vice President, Operations. Endeavour recognizes and appreciates Nicks considerable contributions to the Company since joining in 2018. During his tenure, his efforts have helped Endeavour reach a number of key operational milestones that have contributed to the Companys growth and success. The Company wishes Mr. Shakesby well in his future ventures.
Lifezone Holdings Limited ("Lifezone Metals" or the "Company") has previously announced the entry into a Business Combination Agreement with GoGreen Investments Corporation ("GoGreen") (NYSE: GOGN), a publicly traded company on the New York Stock Exchange (the "NYSE"). Today, Lifezone Metals is pleased to announce the appointment of Ingo Hofmaier as its Chief Financial Officer ("CFO"). Ingo is expected to commence his role with Lifezone Metals by 3 July 2023 .

Ingo will play a key role in Lifezone Metals' transition to a publicly listed company on the NYSE, leading the execution of Lifezone Metals' financial and commercial strategy and securities law compliance. He brings vast corporate finance, financial and risk management experience in global commodity markets across a diverse range of geographies, including Africa and the Americas . As a market-facing finance executive, he has over 20 years of experience in financial reporting, tax, commercial contracts, project corporate finance, and M&A and investment banking.

Chris Showalter , Chief Executive Officer ("CEO") of Lifezone Metals said, "We are thrilled to welcome Ingo to the Lifezone Metals' executive team. I have had the privilege of working with Ingo in the metals sector and can attest first-hand that his global mining expertise will make him an invaluable fit for our fast-evolving operations and expanding portfolio."

Ingo joins Lifezone Metals from Omico Mining Corp., a Namibian copper exploration and development company, where he was CEO. Prior to his time at Omico Mining Corp., he spent three years with SolGold plc, an LSE and TSX-listed copper and gold developer, where he was CFO. Ingo is also an independent board member of First Tin plc, an LSE main market-listed tin development company, where he chairs both the audit & risk and nominations & remuneration committees.

Ingo's experience also includes time as a partner at Hannam & Partners in London , where he was responsible for metals & mining corporate finance, as well as at Rio Tinto, Capgemini and Wienerberger AG, a building material and industrial minerals group, where he was financial controller for the US business and commercial director during the successful project execution and market entry in India , among other roles. Ingo will be based in London , while travelling frequently to North America and Tanzania.

John Dowd , CEO of GoGreen, said, "Ingo will bring a fresh perspective and years of experience to the team. I look forward to seeing Ingo implement his finance and commercial strategy and provide the Company with a firm financial and risk management foundation to be able to deliver a strong value proposition to the Company's shareholders."

Ingo Hofmaier said, "The combination of GoGreen and Lifezone Metals combines the right value drivers: Kabanga is an outstanding asset with high nickel grades and copper and cobalt by-product credits, the foundation for any profitable commodity business, while hydrometallurgy is a future-facing base metals extraction technology. The New York Stock Exchange is a natural home for a company combining asset quality, technology and industry leading partnerships. In my work I will aim to demonstrate Lifezone Metals' commitment to our investors, ensure that we provide reliable and relevant information to the market and generate a shareholder friendly funding and growth options, while actively managing downside risks that are inherent in any global critical metals business."

If you would like to sign up for Lifezone Metals news alerts, please register here.
Toyota (NYSE: TM) shareholders handed the Japanese company a win at their shareholders meeting today when investors voted down a resolution urging greater disclosure of its climate lobbying. Investors also backed all 10 members of the board, including Chairman Akio Toyoda, despite concerns about board independence raised by prominent U.S. proxy advisers. The breakdowns of both votes won't be released until Thursday.

Toyoda, the grandson of the company's founder, was re-elected with 96% support last year.

The climate resolution, submitted by Danish pension fund AkademikerPension and two other European asset managers, sought to force Toyota to disclose additional information concerning its lobbying efforts concerning climate change.

The resolution was widely expected to fail after Toyota's board advised shareholders to vote against it. The automaker's management traditionally receives substantial backing from shareholders, including various group companies and suppliers.

The shareholder meeting took place just one day after the automaker revealed its ambitious roadmap for electric vehicles involving solid-state batteries and radical production changes, signaling to investors the companys intention to capture a big slice of EV market share.

"I believe that Toyota today can manage its business with a sense of speed," Toyota CEO Koji Sato told shareholders.

Shares of TM are up 4.84% in pre-market trading on Wednesday after jumping over 5% on Tuesday.

By Michael Elkins | [email protected]
Golar LNG Limited advises that its 2023 Annual General Meeting will be held on August 8, 2023. The record date for voting at the Annual General Meeting is set to June 15, 2023. The notice, agenda and associated material will be distributed prior to the meeting.

Golar LNG LimitedHamilton, BermudaJune 14, 2023

This information is subject to the disclosure requirements pursuant to Section 5-12 the Norwegian Securities Trading Act

Source: Golar LNG
Visa announced on Wednesday the launch of its new Visa Africa Fintech Accelerator programme to help enable Africas start-up community through expertise, connections, technology, and investment funding.





The announcement was made by Visa Executive Chairman Alfred F. Kelly Jr. at the event organized by Bloomberg New Economy Gateway Africa in Marrakech, Morocco.

The Visa Africa Fintech Accelerator will enable up to 40 startups per year to accelerate and grow through a three-month intensive learning program focused on business growth and mentoring.

Following completion of the programme, Visa will further support fintech growth with capital investment in select participating businesses while accelerating their commercial launch through access to Visa technology and capabilities.

The launch of the Africa Fintech Accelerator program follows Visas recent pledge to invest $1 billion in Africas digital transformation and its long-term commitment to advancing Africas economies and driving inclusive growth.

Fintech startups across Africa can become part of the programme through an annual application process, beginning July 2023, that involves two phases.

With more than 1,000 Africa Fintech startups participating in the Visa Everywhere Initiative* (VEI) competition in 2022, finalists from Africa country editions this year will be invited to join the accelerator program, said Visa.

Africa has one of the most exciting and admired fintech ecosystems in the world, bringing outstanding entrepreneurial talent to a young digital-first population that is growing fast, Kelly noted

He added: Visa has been increasing our investments in Africa for decades and strengthening partnerships throughout the continent to support the next wave of innovation and growth. Our new Fintech Accelerator will bring expertise, connections, and investment to Africas best fintech startups so they can grow at scale.

The support for participating fintechs will help further strengthen the payment ecosystem by fast-tracking innovations and technologies that provide solutions to challenges in the continent and further advance Africas digitization, according to Visa.

Africas fintech community is at the forefront of payments innovation and allows the unbanked to have access to the digital economy, said Otto Williams, Head of Partnerships, Products and Solutions, Central Europe, Middle East and Africa, at Visa.

Williams added that Visa has been working with this innovative community to create new programmes and solutions to help fintechs while giving access to Visas technology and partner ecosystem.

In addition to its $1 billion pledge to Africa, Visa has recently introduced several business initiatives and programmes to advance Africas payments ecosystem.

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Global innovators to meet, collaborate, and discuss the future of IP

BOSTON, June 14, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Anaqua, the leading innovation and intellectual property (IP) management technology provider, today announces the keynote speakers and session line-up for its 2023 Anaqua Experience Conference (AEC). The AEC brings together IP and business leaders from across the globe to discuss key industry issues and the future of IP. Attendees will hear from industry experts as they share trends, insights, and best practices; engage in networking events to promote industry collaboration; and participate in training sessions to help further enhance their IP management.



We are honored to serve the most innovative companies and law firms across the globe with our leading end-to-end, corporate, and law firm-focused IP management solutions, said Bob Romeo, CEO of Anaqua. Our client conference provides an opportunity for the IP community to engage with each other and with the Anaqua team as we partner to succeed in the constantly changing IP environment.

The conferences keynote speakers include:

Dr. Markus Braun, Head of IP Operations, BASF

Tracey Armstrong, President and CEO, Copyright Clearance Center

William R. LaFontaine, General Manager, IP, Vice President, Research Business Development, IBM Corporation



One of the best things about The Anaqua Experience Conference is how interactive it is, said Aileen Buchanan, Vice President, Client Success of Anaqua. After years of virtual conferences, we are looking forward to gathering with our client community in one place to facilitate discussions on industry issues and challenges, exchanging views and insights, while strengthening our long-term partnership with clients. This ongoing, invaluable collaboration with our clients is part of what we call The Anaqua Experience.

Anaqua will also host several sessions by leading international IP practitioners, including:

Christof Wolpert, VP Global Legal Innovation, adidas

Michelle Sympson, Manager, Global IP Administration, ASM

Halim Shehadeh, CEO, CWB Legal

Maxwell Adams, Patent Systems Operations Manager, Dolby

Benjamin Brown, Chief IP Counsel, Onto Innovation

Linda Kasulke, IP Paralegal, Rockwell Automation

Satoshi Ikeda, Senior Manager, IP, Sony

Michelle L. Saitz, IP Practice Support Services Supervisor, Thompson Coburn

Allyson L. Campbell, IP System Administrator, Thompson Coburn

Matthew Luby, Group Director, IP Analytics, TTI

And more.



The 2023 AEC will be held at the MGM National Harbor Hotel in Oxon Hill, Maryland, USA from June 26-29. Registration remains open until June 26. To register for the event and learn more about the session line-up, visit anaqua.com/AEC.

About Anaqua

Anaqua, Inc. is a premier provider of integrated intellectual property (IP) management technology solutions and services for corporations and law firms. Its IP management software solutions, AQX and PATTSY WAVE, both offer best practice workflows with big data analytics and tech-enabled services to create an intelligent environment designed to inform IP strategy, enable IP decision-making, and streamline IP operations, tailored to each segments need. Today, nearly half of the top 100 U.S. patent filers and global brands, as well as a growing number of law firms worldwide use Anaquas solutions. Over one million IP executives, attorneys, paralegals, administrators, and innovators use the platform for their IP management needs. The companys global operations are headquartered in Boston, with offices across the U.S., Europe, and Asia. For additional information, please visit anaqua.com, or on LinkedIn.

Company Contact:

Amanda Glagolev

Director, Communications

Anaqua

617-375-5808

[email protected]
GRIMSBY, Ontario, June 14, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Board of Directors of Andrew Peller Limited (ADW.A / ADW.B) (the Company) announced today that it has approved a quarterly common share dividend of $0.0615 per Class A Share and $0.0535 per Class B Share to be paid on July 7, 2023 to shareholders of record on June 30, 2023. The Company has consistently paid common share dividends since 1979 and has increased dividends eight times over the last ten years, most recently in fiscal 2022. The Company currently designates all dividends paid as eligible dividends for purposes of the Income Tax Act (Canada) unless indicated otherwise.

We are proud to be continuing our forty-four-year track record of paying common share dividends, a testament to our commitment to enhancing long-term value for our shareholders, commented John Peller, President and CEO. Our dividends currently represent a high yield based on current share values, and we look to build on our progress going forward.

About Andrew Peller Limited

Andrew Peller Limited is one of Canadas leading producers and marketers of quality wines and craft spirits. The Companys awardwinning premium and ultrapremium Vintners Quality Alliance (VQA) brands include Peller Estates, Trius, Thirty Bench, Wayne Gretzky, Sandhill, Red Rooster, Black Hills Estate, Tinhorn Creek, Gray Monk Estates, Raven Conspiracy and Conviction. Complementing these premium brands are a number of popularly priced varietal offerings, wine based liqueurs, craft ciders, and craft spirits. The Company owns and operates 101 wellpositioned independent retail locations in Ontario under The Wine Shop, Wine Country Vintners, and Wine Country Merchants store names. The Company also operates Andrew Peller Import Agency and The Small Winemakers Collection Inc., importers and marketing agents of premium wines from around the world. With a focus on serving the needs of all wine consumers, the Company produces and markets premium personal winemaking products through its whollyowned subsidiary, Global Vintners Inc. (GVI), the recognized leader in personal winemaking products. More information about the Company can be found at ir.andrewpeller.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

Certain statements in this news release may contain forwardlooking statements within the meaning of applicable securities laws, including the safe harbour provision of the Securities Act (Ontario) with respect to Andrew Peller Limited and its subsidiaries. These forwardlooking statements are subject to the risks and uncertainties discussed in the Risks and Uncertainties section and elsewhere in the Companys MD&A and other risks detailed from time to time in the publicly filed disclosure documents of Andrew Peller Limited which are available at www.sedar.com. Forwardlooking statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve risks, uncertainties, and assumptions which could cause actual results to differ materially from those conclusions, forecasts, or projections anticipated in these forwardlooking statements. The Companys forwardlooking statements are made only as of the date of this news release, and except as required by applicable law, the Company undertakes no obligation to update or revise these forwardlooking statements to reflect new information, future events or circumstances or otherwise.

For more information, please contact: Paul Dubkowski, CFO and Executive Vice-President, IT (905) 643-4131 Source: Andrew Peller Limited

Source: Andrew Peller Limited
The Government Debt Management has decided to cancel the auction of Treasury bonds that was scheduled for 16 June 2023 since the target amount for Q2 has been reached.
RAPID CITY, S.D., June 14, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Black Hills Corp. (NYSE: BKH) today announced changes within the companys senior management team and appointed a new vice president and treasurer.

Todd Jacobs is now senior vice president growth and strategy and Marne Jones is now senior vice president utilities, both effective June 15, 2023. Both report directly to Linn Evans, president and CEO.

These changes position the company with highly skilled, tenured and energized leaders committed to driving growth, said Evans. These leadership changes will further focus our team on driving operational efficiencies and supporting the needs of our customers and communities.

New Appointments

Jacobs, who has more than 16 years of investor-owned utility experience, joined the company in 2014. He has served in roles of increasing responsibility in legal, regulatory, corporate services, operations, corporate development and strategy.

In his new role, Jacobs now leads the companys strategic efforts related to growth, strategy, business development, regulatory, government affairs, sustainability, renewable natural gas, communications and community affairs.

Jacobs holds a bachelors degree from the Virginia Military Institute, a juris doctor from the University of Missouri-Kansas City and completed an advanced management program (The Executive Program) at the University of Virginias Darden School of Business. Jacobs served on active duty for seven years as a U.S. Army officer.

Jones joined the company in 2001 and has advanced through roles of increasing responsibility in finance, accounting, corporate services, regulatory and utility operations, and most recently as vice president electric utilities.

In her new role, Jones has responsibility for electric and natural gas utility operations, transmission and resource planning, customer service and safety.

Jones brings 21 years of utility experience and previous banking experience to her role. She holds a finance degree from the University of Wyoming.

Other Leadership Changes

The company also announced that it appointed Tom Stevens as vice president and treasurer effective June 15, 2023, reporting to Kimberly Nooney, senior vice president and chief financial officer. Stevens joined Black Hills in 2018 as the director of regulatory and finance and served most recently as vice president regulatory.

Stevens brings 15 years of utility industry experience to his new role, including two years with the Arkansas Public Service Commission. He holds a bachelors degree in economics/finance from Southwest Baptist University and a Master in Business Administration from Southern Methodist University.

Black Hills CorporationBlack Hills Corp. (NYSE: BKH) is a customer focused, growth-oriented utility company with a tradition of improving life with energy and a vision to be the energy partner of choice. Based in Rapid City, South Dakota, the company serves 1.3 million natural gas and electric utility customers in eight states: Arkansas, Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, Montana, Nebraska, South Dakota and Wyoming.

Jerome E. Nichols605-721-1171[email protected]

24-hour Media Assistance888-242-3969

Source: Black Hills Service Company, LLC
VANCOUVER, British Columbia, June 14, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Cannabix Technologies Inc. (CSE: BLO) (OTC PINK: BLOZF) (the Company or Cannabix) developer of marijuana breathalyzer devices for law enforcement and the workplace reports that its proprietary laboratory-based marijuana detection equipment (as described below) has detected THC (9-tetrahydrocannabinol) in breath samples after consumption of edibles. Cannabixs Mass Spectrometer Breath Sampler (MSBS) technology along with the handheld Breath Collection Unit (BCU) have been providing consistent results in the detection of THC in breath from smoking. More recently, the technology has been used to detect THC after consumption of edibles containing marijuana. Cannabix has been focused on developing it MSBS as a new, simpler and effective way to test for recent use of marijuana and confirm for THC in breath using gold-standard mass spectrometry (MS).

Highlights and Updates:

MSBS technology has shown the sensitivity in the low picogram range, for THC in breath allowing for detection of THC from smoking and edibles up to 4 hours after consumption.

Cannabixs MSBS method for detection of THC in breath has striking differences with conventional, legacy methods [1].

Cannabix has initiated discussions with industry leading forensic laboratory organizations on how to best integrate its novel MSBS hardware into current forensic testing and analysis methods.

Scientists at Cannabix are experimenting with a quantification marker (using deuterated 9-THC as an internal standard) added to its breath sample cartridge for confirmation and potential quantification of THC in breath.

Cannabix has recently delivered its BCU to the Friedel Clinic in Montana for testing with subjects.

THC detection after edibles consumption

Cannabis and its extracted active ingredients are commonly mixed into various types of food, including brownies, cookies, and candy. After eating an edible containing marijuana, THC is absorbed into the bloodstream through the digestive tract and undergoes a first metabolic pass in the liver before entering general circulation. Metabolism through the liver further reduces the amount of analyte that makes its way through to the breath relative to smoking. Figure 1 presents the THC in breath from edibles up to 165 minutes after consumption (averaging breath results from 5 subjects) using the Cannabix BCU collection and MSBS analysis method (data at T=0min is collected before consumption). The edibles (gummies and capsules) consumed by various subjects contained a low of 10mg and a high of up to 600mg of infused THC.

MSBS compared to legacy LCMS methods

The MSBS is a novel method for efficient collection of analytes of low volatility from human breath utilizing liquid secondary adsorption. The concept has successfully demonstrated efficient capturing and releasing of THC. This novel method uses the breath aerosol as a carrier of solid and viscous liquid particle analytes as well as a secondary adsorbent to prevent sample loss from droplet surface contact and deposition. Cannabix scientists observe that the collection efficiency of MSBS sampling method is thus far providing superior results relative to conventional LCMS forensic methods. Using the Cannabix method the results for a breath sample can be acquired from start to finish within a few minutes without any sample preparation or preconcentration steps. In comparison, legacy methods require up to 15 minutes of solvent extraction, 150 min of preconcentration, and chromatography which also takes hours. Furthermore, the acquired sample volume is smaller using Cannabix hardware: five breaths compared to 10+ breaths using legacy methods, which is easier and more convenient (and achievable) for subjects [1].

MSBS Technology and BCU

The Companys handheld Breath Collection Unit (BCU, Figure. 2) and mass spectrometer coupled laboratory MS Breath Sampler (Figure. 3) are being used together to provide a new method for drug detection that complements gold-standard mass spectrometry (MS) and significantly simplifies laboratory analysis methods, reduces sample turnaround times (thus minimizing operating costs), while maintaining sensitive, precise results.

References

Jeerage KM, Beuning CN, Friss AJ, Bidwell LC, Lovestead TM. THC in breath aerosols collected with an impaction filter device before and after legal-market product inhalation-a pilot study. J Breath Res. 2023 May 22;17(3):037103. doi: 10.1088/1752-7163/acd410.

About Cannabix Technologies Inc.

Cannabix Technologies Inc. is a developer of marijuana breathalyzer technologies for law enforcement and the workplace. Cannabix is working to develop drug-screening devices that will detect THC - the psychoactive component of marijuana that causes impairment using breath samples. Breath testing for THC would allow employers and law enforcement to identify recent marijuana use that better aligns with impairment. Cannabix devices are in the advanced prototype and pre-clinical testing stage.

We seek Safe Harbor.

On behalf of the Board of Directors

Rav Mlait

CEOCannabix Technologies Inc.

For further information, contact the Company at [email protected]

The CSE has not reviewed and does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking StatementsThis press release contains forward-looking information that involves various risks and uncertainties regarding future events. Such forward-looking information can include without limitation statements based on current expectations involving a number of risks and uncertainties and are not guarantees of future performance of the Company, such as final development of a commercial or prototype product(s), successful trial or pilot of company technologies, no assurance that commercial sales of any kind actually materialize; no assurance the Company will have sufficient funds to complete product development. There are numerous risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results and the Companys plans and objectives to differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking information, including: (i) adverse market conditions; (ii) risks regarding protection of proprietary technology; (iii) the ability of the Company to complete financings; (iv) the ability of the Company to develop and market its future product; and (v) risks regarding government regulation, managing and maintaining growth, the effect of adverse publicity, litigation, competition and other factors which may be identified from time to time in the Company's public announcements and filings. There is no assurance that its development of marijuana breathalyzer technology will provide any benefit to the Company, and no assurance that any proposed new products will be built, will be successful in beta testing or clinical trials. There is no assurance that existing patent pending technologies licensed by the Company will receive patent status by regulatory authorities. The Company is not currently selling commercial breathalyzers. Actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such information. These and all subsequent written and oral forward-looking information are based on estimates and opinions of management on the dates they are made and are expressly qualified in their entirety by this notice. Except as required by law, the Company does not intend to update these forward-looking statements

Photos accompanying this announcement are available at:https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/d46e6248-d4c4-4659-86ee-10e2a03fc303https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/377c1856-0ddb-4c3e-a561-f932ce3ca178

Cannabix Technologies Inc. Cannabix Technologies MSBS Technology Figure 2 and 3 Cannabix Technologies Inc. Cannabix Technologies THC Detected in Breath from Edibles

Source: Cannabix Technologies Inc.
Breakthroughs range from obesity drugs and diabetes treatment to potential new therapies for ALS and a future blood test for Alzheimers Disease

Boston, MA, June 14, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Mass General Brigham today revealed the annual Disruptive Dozen, 12 emerging technologies with the greatest potential to impact health care in the next several years. The Disruptive Dozen results from interviews of Mass General Brigham senior Harvard faculty and a selection process to identify the 12 most likely to have significant impact on patient care in the next few years.



The Disruptive Dozen is featured at this weeks World Medical Innovation Forum in Boston, where clinical experts, industry leaders and venture investors explored advances in brain health/central nervous system disorders, oncology, and inflammation and immunology. The Forum is presented by Mass General Brigham and Bank of America, two leading organizations with extensive healthcare expertise to advance medical breakthroughs for patients and further Bostons continued growth as a global biotech and investment hub.



The 2023 Mass General Brigham Disruptive Dozen are:

New type 2 diabetes drugs show promise in obesity



New drugs that mimic a hormone that curbs hunger, called GLP-1, are blazing a new trail in weight loss. These drugs, which were first approved for type 2 diabetes, have been shown to help some patients lose more than 15 percent of their starting weight. With a worldwide surge in obesity rates, the drugs could further enable safe, effective weight reduction without the need for invasive measures and possibly help reduce the adverse outcomes linked with obesity. But there are important concerns, too, including the uncertainties associated with long-term use, equity, access, and the potential harms of a society that overemphasizes weight loss.



RSV vaccine approaches the clinic



After years of painstaking work, a vaccine that protects against the respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is at last within reach. RSV typically causes mild or no illness, but in vulnerable populations, including the very young and the elderly, it can be a serious threat. An early vaccine developed in the 1960s failed tragically: rather than protect against disease, it made the illness worse. Now, armed with decades of knowledge of RSV biology and immunology, scientists have forged a path toward a safe, effective vaccine.



Building the next generation of mRNA vaccines



mRNA technology took center stage during the COVID-19 pandemic as it was central to the development of life-saving vaccines, which have proven safe and effective in millions of people worldwide. Now, a new generation of mRNA vaccines is under development, and could advance the treatment of a wide range of diseases, from common respiratory infections to long-standing global scourges to cancer.



New therapies for ALS



Two new treatments were recently approved for ALS, bringing the total number of approved drugs to just seven. One involves a pair of drugs that work together in combination to prevent neurons from dying. The other is a gene-based therapy tailored to patients with a rare genetic form of ALS. While the unmet need for ALS therapies remains high, these new therapies signal an important step forward.



Harnessing the power of large language models to improve health care



Large language models (LLMs) are a form of artificial intelligence that work by sifting through massive datasets to discern patterns and relationships among words  a process known as training. Once these models are sufficiently trained, they can perform a variety of language-based functions, including recognizing, summarizing, translating, generating, and predicting text. LLMs could have a significant impact in medicine by streamlining and supporting the work of physicians. Two key areas include clinical decision support and administrative workflows  offering information and suggestions at the point of care and reducing the time spent on manual, repetitive tasks.



The first in human gene editing therapy



One of the first in vivo gene-editing therapies is now in early-stage clinical trials and, if proven safe and effective, could signify a landmark in the history of biopharmaceuticals. The one-time therapy uses a genome editing system, known as CRISPR-Cas9, to make double-stranded cuts in the DNA and repair errors in the genetic code. It targets a disease known as transthyretin amyloidosis (ATTR), which arises when a misfolded protein forms abnormal clumps and damages important tissues and organs, like the nerves and heart.



A novel non-hormonal treatment for menopause



Many women experience a range of symptoms during the transition to menopause, including hot flashes, which can be extremely debilitating. Hormone therapy is the most effective current treatment, but some women cannot take it due to health concerns; others choose to avoid it. Now, a novel, non-hormonal drug was recently approved that can reduce the frequency and severity of hot flashes, promising a safe, effective, non-hormonal approach for controlling menopause symptoms.



Defining a new era of precision oncology



A new class of bifunctional precision cancer therapies is gaining traction, in which one part of the drug is designed to zero in on tumor cells and the second part delivers a cancer-killing payload while limiting damage to healthy cells and tissues. One approach involves linking tumor-homing molecules to radionuclides, which use radiation to destroy tumor cells. Another uses antibodies coupled to chemotherapy drugs. Together, these therapies are improving outcomes for cancer patients and defining a new era of precision oncology.



AI tool predicts lung cancer risk in smokers and non-smokers



Researchers developed an artificial intelligence-based tool that can predict whether patients will develop lung cancer within 6 years. The AI tool, which promises to help close important gaps in lung cancer screening efforts, uses images from low-dose CT scans to accurately predict patients future risk of lung cancer for both smokers and non-smokers. Early detection efforts are focused largely on patients with a history of cigarette use. Yet a recent rise in lung cancer among non-smokers suggests a need for new approaches.



Protecting retinal cells to preserve vision



The retina is home to specialized neurons that are required for normal vision. Several different conditions cause these neurons to degenerate and die, resulting in impaired vision and eventually blindness. Now, various strategies are underway to develop neuroprotective therapies that can protect these cells from injury and death, thereby preserving vision. These therapies could help patients with a range of retinal diseases, including macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy, glaucoma, and optic neuropathies.



Toward a simple, cost-effective blood test for Alzheimers disease



Researchers are working to develop a simple, cost-effective way to diagnose Alzheimers disease and other neurodegenerative conditions decades before the onset of physical symptoms  when the course of the disease could potentially be halted or perhaps even reversed. Such a diagnostic test could rapidly accelerate the development of effective treatments for these diseases, and also form a key piece of the puzzle for lowering the future public health burden of Alzheimers disease, which is projected to skyrocket by 2050.



Slowing the progression of type 1 diabetes



Type 1 diabetes is a chronic illness that results when the bodys own immune system attacks the insulin-producing cells in the pancreas, destroying the cells and creating a life-long dependence on exogenous insulin. Although insulin replacement is an effective treatment, it is not a cure. A newly approved drug that targets a critical protein on T-cells, deactivating them and thwarting their destruction of insulin-producing cells, has been shown to delay the onset of type 1 diabetes in children and young adults at high risk for the disease.

Mass General Brigham is the nations largest academic research enterprise. More than 150 life science and biotechnology companies have been established in Massachusetts as a result of the more than $1 billion in government funded and privately sponsored research that Mass General Brigham attracts every year.



Click here for detailed information on each of the Disruptive Dozen technologies, including video updates.

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About the World Medical Innovation Forum

The World Medical Innovation Forum was established in 2015 in response to the intensifying transformation of health care and its impact on innovation. The Forum is rooted in the belief that no matter the magnitude of change, the center of health care needs to be a shared, fundamental commitment to collaborative innovation  industry and academia working together to improve patient lives. In 2022, Bank of America joined with Mass General Brigham as presenting sponsor of the Forum, bringing together two leading organizations with extensive healthcare expertise and a shared commitment to support Bostons continued growth as a global biotech and investment hub.



About Mass General Brigham

Mass General Brigham is an integrated academic health care system, uniting great minds to solve the hardest problems in medicine for our communities and the world. Mass General Brigham connects a full continuum of care across a system of academic medical centers, community and specialty hospitals, a health insurance plan, physician networks, community health centers, home care, and long-term care services. Mass General Brigham is a nonprofit organization committed to patient care, research, teaching, and service to the community. In addition, Mass General Brigham is one of the nations leading biomedical research organizations with several Harvard Medical School teaching hospitals. For more information, please visit massgeneralbrigham.org.



About Bank of America

Bank of America is one of the worlds leading financial institutions, serving individual consumers, small and middle-market businesses and large corporations with a full range of banking, investing, asset management and other financial and risk management products and services. The company provides unmatched convenience in the United States, serving approximately 66 million consumer and small business clients with approximately 4,300 retail financial centers, approximately 17,000 ATMs, and award-winning digital banking with approximately 41 million active users, including approximately 32 million mobile users. Bank of America is a global leader in wealth management, corporate and investment banking and trading across a broad range of asset classes, serving corporations, governments, institutions and individuals around the world. Bank of America offers industry-leading support to approximately 3 million small business households through a suite of innovative, easy-to-use online products and services. The company serves clients through operations across the United States, its territories and approximately 35 countries. Bank of America Corporation stock (NYSE: BAC) is listed on the New York Stock Exchange. www.bankofamerica.com
First pump installation underway in New Cooks Kitchen shaftSubstantial amount of Feasibility Study completedNew Mineral Resource Estimate planned for Q3, 2023

VANCOUVER, British Columbia, June 14, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Cornish Metals Inc. (TSX-V/AIM: CUSN) (Cornish Metals or the Company) is pleased to provide an update on progress at the South Crofty Tin Project (South Crofty or the Project), located in Cornwall, SW England.

Richard Williams, CEO and Director, stated Activities at South Crofty continue at a good pace with the commencement of dewatering on-track for later this summer. Good progress is also being made with many aspects of the Feasibility Study to examining the re-opening of South Crofty. Initial results are very encouraging. The mine site team have also reached another important milestone with the installation of the first submersible pump into NCK shaft now underway.

Submersible Pump Installation

The first submersible pump has been suspended in New Cooks Kitchen (NCK) shaft:

This pump is the first of two submersible pumps to be installed in NCK shaft for Stage 1 of the two-stage mine dewatering programme;

The pumps are specialist high-head 950 kW vertical submersible pumps manufactured by KSB in Germany, controlled by variable speed drives to enable the 25,000 cubic metres (m3) per day pumping rate to the Mine Water Treatment Plant (MWTP) to be maintained as the water level drops and the pumping head increases;

The pumps will be lowered to immediately below the 195 fathom level (360 metres below surface) suspended from one hundred and twenty x 3-metre long pipes that will form the temporary rising main;

When the water level reaches 195 fathom level, (360m below surface) a permanent set of pumps will be installed and the submersible pumps will be lowered to the 400 (approximately 700m below surface) fathom level for Stage 2 of the dewatering programme;

Installation of the second pump is expected to commence before the end of June;

See photos 1, 2, and 3 here.

Feasibility Study

Work continues on the Feasibility Study with highlights summarised below:

The metallurgical testwork programme is well underway with Wardell Armstrong International, physical competency, characterisation and gravity response testwork has been completed on No.4, No.8 and Roskear Lodes, with mineralogy completed by Petrolab Ltd. Early gravity response results have been very good and are in line with previous operational results.

The first bulk composite sample of the metallurgical testwork programme has arrived in Germany for XRT ore sorter testing at TOMRA Sorting GmbH.

Fairport Engineering, who completed an initial conceptual study of the processing plant design, layout and cost in Q1 2023, have nearly completed the second optimisation phase, prior to the feasibility level design, which will incorporate further results of the metallurgical testwork programme. The final plant design will incorporate potential future throughput expansions;

Site investigation for the process plant footprint has been completed by AGS Ground Solutions;

Numerical modelling of the proposed underground mining methods and stope designs has been completed by MiningOne. Results confirm the historical operating data and that the ground conditions and excavation stability are expected to be very good.

Geotechnical televiewing has been completed on the majority of mining areas by RobertsonGeo, validating previous known structural data. Core samples have been taken for laboratory testing.

Paterson & Cooke UK has started concept engineering on paste backfill options and physical testing, preliminary results show samples gain sufficient strength at target densities.

Entech Mining is working with RSV Group to provide method, costing and schedule for refurbishment and recommissioning of NCK and Roskear shafts.

Piteau Associates has been engaged for the Hydrogeological works for the Feasibility Study.

Mineral Resource Estimate

The mine geological team continues to digitise and incorporate historic assay data into the South Crofty Mineral Resource model. Recent work has focussed on No.1 and No.2 Lodes, and a new Mineral Resource estimate including these lodes together with data from the metallurgical drilling programme, is targeted for release at the end of Q3 this year.

The work between now and the end of the summer will concentrate on the MING zone, located immediately south of No.1 and No.2 Lodes, and comprising Main, Intermediate, North and Great Lodes.

Background

South Crofty is an historic, high-grade, underground tin mine that started production in the sixteenth century, and continued operating until its closure in 1998;

The Project possesses Planning Permission for underground mining, valid to 2071, Planning Permission to construct a mine water treatment plant, new processing facilities, all necessary site infrastructure, and an Environmental Permit to dewater the mine;

South Crofty has the 4th highest grade tin Mineral Resource globally and benefits from the presence of multiple shafts that can be used for future operations;

Tin is a Critical Mineral as defined by the UK, USA, and Canadian governments, with approximately 75% of the tin mined today coming from China, Myanmar and Indonesia;

There is no primary tin production in Europe or North America;

Responsible sourcing of critical minerals and security of supply are key factors in the energy transition and technology growth;

South Crofty benefits from strong local community and regional and national government support. The Project could generate 250  300 direct jobs.

ABOUT CORNISH METALS

Cornish Metals is a dual-listed company (AIM and TSX-V : CUSN) focused on advancing the South Crofty high-grade, underground tin project through to delivery of a Feasibility Study, as well as exploring its additional mineral rights, all located in Cornwall, South West England. The former producing South Crofty tin mine is located beneath the towns of Pool and Camborne, and closed in 1998 following over 400 years of continuous production. Since acquiring the project in 2016, Cornish Metals has completed and published maiden NI 43-101 Mineral Resources for South Crofty using the vast archive of historical production data and more recent drilling completed between 2007 and 2013. Additionally, Cornish Metals has undertaken extensive pilot-scale water treatment trials and successfully applied for and received the necessary environmental permits to abstract, treat and discharge mine water in order to dewater the mine. Planning permissions for the operation of the mine and re-development of the surface facilities have been secured and construction of the water treatment plant is currently well underway.

An updated Mineral Resource was completed in June 2021 as summarised below:

South Crofty Summary (JORC 2012) Mineral Resource Estimate Area Classification Mass (000 tonnes) Grade Contained Tin / Tin Equivalent (000 tonnes) Increase in contained Tin / Tin equivalent from 2016 MRE LowerMine Indicated 2,084 1.59% Sn 33 10.2% Inferred 1,937 1.67% Sn 32 129.8% UpperMine Indicated 277 1.01% SnEq 3 9.5% Inferred 493 0.93% SnEq 5 8.0%

The Mineral Resource Estimate for South Crofty (see news release dated June 9, 2021), is available in a report titled the South Crofty Tin Project Mineral Resource Update, dated June 7, 2021, authored by Mr. N. Szebor, CGeol (London), EuroGeol, FGS, of AMC Consultants (UK) Ltd, can be accessed on the Companys SEDAR page.

The technical information in this news release has been compiled by Mr. Owen Mihalop who has reviewed and takes responsibility for the data and geological interpretation. Mr. Owen Mihalop (MCSM, BSc (Hons), MSc, FGS, MIMMM, CEng) is Chief Operating Officer for Cornish Metals Inc. and has sufficient experience relevant to the style of mineralisation and type of deposit under consideration and to the activity which he is undertaking to qualify as a Competent Person as defined under the JORC Code (2012) and as a Qualified Person under NI 43-101. Mr. Mihalop consents to the inclusion in this announcement of the matters based on his information in the form and context in which it appears.

For additional information please contact:

In North America:

Irene Dorsman at (604) 200 6664 or by e-mail at [email protected]

SP Angel Corporate Finance LLP (Nominated Adviser & Joint Broker) Tel: +44 203 470 0470 Richard Morrison Charlie Bouverat Grant Barker Hannam & Partners(Joint Broker) Tel: +44 207 907 8500 Matthew Hasson Andrew Chubb Jay Ashfield BlytheRay(Financial PR/IR-London) Tel: +44 207 138 3204 Tim Blythe [email protected] Megan Ray [email protected]

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Richard D. WilliamsRichard D. Williams, P.Geo

Market Abuse Regulation (MAR) Disclosure

The information contained within this announcement is deemed by the Company to constitute inside information pursuant to Article 7 of EU Regulation 596/2014 as it forms part of UK domestic law by virtue of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 as amended.

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.

Caution regarding forward looking statements

This news release contains "forward-looking statements". Forward-looking statements, while based on management's best estimates and assumptions at the time such statements are made, are subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements, including but not limited to: risks related to receipt of regulatory approvals, risks related to general economic and market conditions; risks related to the COVID-19 global pandemic and any variants of COVID-19 which may arise; risks related to the availability of financing; the timing and content of upcoming work programmes; actual results of proposed exploration activities; possible variations in Mineral Resources or grade; outcome of the current Feasibility Study; projected dates to commence mining operations; failure of plant, equipment or processes to operate as anticipated; accidents, labour disputes, title disputes, claims and limitations on insurance coverage and other risks of the mining industry; changes in national and local government regulation of mining operations, tax rules and regulations.

Although Cornish Metals has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in forward-looking statements, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Cornish Metals undertakes no obligation or responsibility to update forward-looking statements, except as required by law.

Source: Cornish Metals Inc.
BRANFORD, Conn., June 14, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- EvolveImmune Therapeutics, an immuno-oncology company developing first-in-category, multifunctional biotherapeutics to overcome cancer-driven immunodeficiency, today announced a new research partnership with Michael Dustin, Ph.D., to evaluate the molecular mechanism of action of EvolveImmunes proprietary costimulatory T cell engager platform, known as EVOLVE. Dr. Dustin is the Kennedy Trust Professor of Molecular Immunology and director of Research for the Kennedy Institute of Rheumatology at the University of Oxford.

The project will utilize the supported lipid bilayer (SLB) technology developed by Dr. Dustin, which allows researchers to recreate the precise molecular interactions comprising the interface that forms between the tumor cell membrane and cytolytic T cells in vitro, referred to as the immunological synapse. The EvolveImmune-Oxford team will carefully assess the impact of EVOLVE on the dynamics of immunological synapse behavior, molecular changes within the synapse, and functional responses of T cells, compared to conventional CD3 bispecific T cell engagers.

The EVOLVE platform is designed to unleash potent, selective, and integrated T cell costimulation to bypass low tumor immunogenicity, conditionally activate adaptive immunity, and reduce T cell dysfunction, to address unmet needs for the treatment of solid and hematologic tumors. This is achieved through finely tuned T cell receptor and CD2 costimulation optimized for CD8 T cell function.

Dr. Dustin is at the forefront of driving our understanding of the molecular circuitry responsible for mediating immunological synapse formation and T cell effector function. This strategic collaboration will leverage his groups cutting-edge technologies and know-how to interrogate the differentiated mode of action of EVOLVE compared to traditional CD3 bispecific molecules, said Jay Fine, Ph.D., president of research and development at EvolveImmune. We look forward to working together to unlock key scientific insights for EVOLVE and utilize these learnings to deepen our robust data package on the EVOLVE platform. This will help to further delineate the advantages of CD2 as a preferred costimulatory target and support the advancement of EVOLVE toward the clinic.

I am eager to work with EvolveImmune on their innovative biotherapeutic platform. I have long had a strong interest in the role that CD2 plays to drive T cell immunity, so I am particularly pleased to have the chance to apply our technology and capabilities to uncover the attributes which enable the unique activity profile demonstrated by EvolveImmunes molecules, said Dr. Dustin.

About EvolveImmune Therapeutics

EvolveImmune Therapeutics, Inc. is an immunotherapy platform company developing first-in-category, multifunctional biotherapeutics designed to overcome cancer-driven immunodeficiency in a range of solid tumors and hematological cancers. First-in-human clinical trials are anticipated in 2024. The company is supported by a syndicate of top-tier life science industry investors including Pfizer Ventures, Solasta Ventures, Takeda Ventures, Yonjin Ventures and Elm Street Ventures.

For more information, please visit: www.evolveimmune.com

Contacts: EvolveImmune Therapeutics Stephen Bloch, M.D. Chief Executive Officer 860-856-7104 [email protected] Vida Strategic Partners (on behalf of EvolveImmune Therapeutics) Tim Brons (Media) 415-675-7402 [email protected]

Source: EvolveImmune
Bair, Nebraska, June 14, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Great Plains Communications (GPC), the Midwestern digital infrastructure provider with a growing, privately owned 16,500+ mile fiber network reaching 13 states, is extending its 400-Gig capable, high-capacity fiber network, adding two new and unique 400-Gig capable routes: one between Omaha, Nebraska and Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota, and another between Omaha, Nebraska and Chicago, Illinois.

These unique connections provide capacity to 400-Gig wave service between the 1623 Farnam Data Center in Omaha, Nebraska and the Data Centers in 511 11th Ave. S in Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota and 350 Cermak Rd. in Chicago, Illinois. Carrier, wholesale, enterprise, hyperscalers and fiber-to-the-tower (FTTT) customers will benefit from the scalability and cost savings provided by these high bandwidth and unique route options.

The demand for higher bandwidth to connect data centers for real time applications like streaming continue to grow, said Tony Thakur, Chief Technology Officer at Great Plains Communications. The ongoing and intentional enhancements and growth of our MEF-certified diverse fiber network demonstrate GPCs commitment to ensuring our customers and their customers continue to have the best experience possible, both now and in the future.

Great Plains Communications is currently accepting orders for the following 400-Gig capable routes:

Between Omaha, Nebraska and Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota

Between Omaha, Nebraska and Chicago, Illinois

Between Omaha, Nebraska and Denver, Colorado

Between Omaha, Nebraska and Kansas City, Kansas

GPC Network

View the Great Plains Communications Fiber Map at GPC fiber

About Great Plains Communications

Great Plains Communications is one of the largest privately-owned digital infrastructure providers in the Midwest and is headquartered in Blair, Nebraska. It has over a century of experience providing business and residential customers in Colorado, Iowa, Nebraska and Southeastern Indiana communities with forward-thinking, fiber-based technology services including high-speed internet, Ethernet, video, GPC Cloud Connect, SD-WAN, and hosted and traditional voice solutions. The company also takes pride in its progressive approach to accommodating the unique needs of all regional and national telecommunications carriers, LECs, ISPs, wireless carriers and other service providers utilizing superior engineering and custom-build strategies. At the core of its service offering is an extensive, MEF-certified 16,500+ mile regional fiber network that reaches 13 states: Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, Ohio, South Dakota, Wisconsin and Wyoming. The network offers community access rings, last-mile and middle-mile solutions, all fully supported by the companys 24x7x365 Network Operations Center. For more information, visit www.gpcom.com.

Laura Kocher Great Plains Communications 4024566429 [email protected]

Source: Great Plains Communications
Helexia secures a new 90-megawatt contract in Brazil





Helexia, a subsidiary of Voltalia (Euronext Paris, ISIN code: FR0011995588), has signed a contract with Comerc Energia, a leading provider of energy management solutions in Brazil.



The agreement reached between Helexia and Comerc Energia provides the supply of up to 90 megawatts of photovoltaic energy over a 20-year period, distributed across a series of decentralised production projects. These will be built in the Brazilian states of Mato Grosso do Sul, Ceara and Pernambuco, strengthening Helexia's presence in Brazil. Construction work on the first 11-megawatt projects will begin in the coming months, with commissioning scheduled for the first quarter of 2024. The other sites should start construction progressively shortly after the first sites, with the aim of exploiting the full potential of the 90 megawatts.

Since the creation of its subsidiary in 2020, Helexia has experienced significant success in Brazil, leveraging Voltalia's leadership to establish its development. In March 2023, the first Brazilian solar assets began supplying electricity to Vivo, a brand of the Telefonica group. At this stage, 25 megawatts have already been connected out of the total 87 megawatts specified in the contract. The remaining 62 megawatts will be progressively connected by the end of the first half of 2024. Furthermore, in November 2022, Helexia announced the signature of three contracts totaling to 14.7 megawatts with TIM (8.5 megawatts), Vibra Energia (4.0 megawatts), and Raia Drogasil (2.2 megawatts), for which construction has already begun and which will be commissioned by the end of the first quarter of 2024.

"I would like to congratulate all the teams on their rapid rise to prominence in the country. Helexia is positioning itself as a leader in the energy transition in a country where decarbonisation objectives are very important", stated Sebastien Clerc, CEO of Voltalia.

"This agreement represents a significant milestone in Helexia's commitment to Brazil. The

90 megawatts signed will enable Helexia to accelerate the transition towards a more sustainable future. We are delighted to be working with Comerc Energia to realise this shared vision", stated Benjamin Simonis, CEO of Helexia Group.

Next on the agenda: Turnover Q2 2023, on July 26, 2023 (after-market trading)

About Voltalia (www.voltalia.com) Voltalia is an international player in the renewable energy sector. The Group produces and sells electricity generated from wind, solar, hydraulic, biomass and storage facilities that it owns and operates. Voltalia has generating capacity in operation and under construction of more than 2.6 GW and a portfolio of projects under development representing total capacity of 14.2 GW.



Voltalia is also a service provider and supports its investor clients in renewable energy projects during all phases, from design to operation and maintenance.



As a pioneer in the corporate market, Voltalia provides a global offer to private companies, ranging from the supply of green electricity and energy efficiency services to the local production of their own electricity.



The Group has more than 1,550 employees and is present in 20 countries on 3 continents and is able to act worldwide on behalf of its clients.



Voltalia is listed on the regulated market of Euronext Paris, compartment B (FR0011995588  VLTSA) and is part of the Enternext Tech 40 and CAC Mid & Small indices. The Group is also included in the Gaia-Index, an index for socially responsible midcaps. Loan Duong, Head of Communications & Investor relations

Email: [email protected]

T. +33 (0)1 81 70 37 00 Actifin

Press Contact: Jennifer Jullia

[email protected] . T. +33 (0)1 56 88 11 19 About Helexia (www.helexia.group) Helexia is a historical player in the energy transition sector. Created in 2010, Helexia is a subsidiary of Voltalia (ISIN code Euronext Paris: FR0011995588). Helexia specialises in the energy performance of buildings and the production of photovoltaic energy on site (rooftops and solar carports).







With 400+ employees in 10 countries, Helexia has completed nearly 700 photovoltaic projects with a total capacity of 174.4 MW in operation. Helexia has supported its commercial, industrial, and agricultural clients in more than 180 energy efficiency projects. It provides continuous energy management for 1000 sites.







The wide range of services offered to its clients includes the definition of an energy strategy adapted to their needs, the design and execution of constructions, and the operation, management and maintenance of equipment and facilities to achieve their decarbonisation and energy consumption reduction objectives.

Helexia Group,

Delphine Lebon, Group Communications Manager

Email : [email protected]

Attachment
National Properties, the real estate subsidiary of National Bonds Corporation, has tied up with Etihad Energy Services Company (Etihad Esco) to initiate a momentous sustainable green transformation across seven landmark buildings.

This groundbreaking collaboration sets a new benchmark for green building practices in the UAE, signifying a major stride towards sustainable development and environmental stewardship.

By capitalising on Etihad's extensive expertise in clean energy solutions and leveraging National Properties steadfast commitment to sustainable practices, the partnership aims to achieve substantial energy savings. The ambitious project encompasses the implementation of state-of-the-art energy-efficient lighting systems, advanced air conditioning units, smart thermostats, and high-efficiency water fixtures, customised to meet the unique requirements of the seven properties owned by National Properties.

Unwavering dedication

"We are immensely proud to join forces with Etihad in driving a sustainable green transformation in these seven landmark buildings," declared Mohammed Qasim Al Ali, Group CEO of National Bonds Corporation.

"This initiative underscores our unwavering dedication to promoting environmental responsibility and sustainable development in the UAE. By setting an exemplary model with these buildings, we aspire to inspire positive change and create a greener future for generations to come."

He said: "Recognising the paramount importance of prioritising sustainability and advocating for eco-conscious practices in our retrofit projects, we shoulder the responsibility to embrace eco-friendly measures, curtail carbon emissions, and cultivate healthier living environments. By establishing new benchmarks in construction and adopting cutting-edge green solutions, we have the power to leave a lasting positive impact on our environment."

Energy efficiency

Dr Waleed Al Nuaimi, CEO of Etihad, affirmed the organisation's commitment to making Dubai one of the most sustainable cities worldwide. "At Etihad, we are steadfast in our pursuit of accelerating and enhancing energy efficiency while reducing demand and consumption, with the goal of transforming Dubai into a sustainable hub.

Our strategic partnership with National Properties marks a significant leap forward in this journey. Under this collaboration, we will undertake the National Properties Seven Buildings Retrofit Projects, a major initiative encompassing energy-saving enhancements for HVAC, lighting, and water systems across seven facilities, aligning with the Dubai Demand Side Management Strategy 2030."

He added: "With a shared objective of expediting the transition to a green economy, we will work hand in hand to achieve the ambitious targets for energy demand reduction outlined in the Dubai Integrated Energy Strategy 2030 by the Dubai Supreme Council of Energy.

We aim to generate substantial energy savings of approximately 1.4 TWh and 4.9 BIG by 2030, while also reducing CO2 emissions by 1 million tons within the same timeframe. Properties like the National Properties Buildings Retrofit Projects, combined with our resolute commitment to renewable energy, will play a pivotal role in propelling our city towards a greener and more energy-efficient future."-- TradeArabia News Service
The Egyptian parliament's Energy and Environment Committee approved Tuesday a presidential decree on Egypt joining the International Atomic Energy Agency's (IAEA) convention on nuclear safety.



Chairman of the committee, Hossam Awadallah, said the Convention on Nuclear Safety (CNS) aims to commit Egypt, and other contracting parties, which operate land-based civil nuclear power plants, to maintain a high level of safety by establishing fundamental safety principles prescribed by the IAEA.

"The convention also obliges parties to submit reports on the implementation of their obligations for review at meetings normally held at IAEA Headquarters," added Awadallah.

Furthermore, he said that by joining IAEA's convention on peaceful nuclear safety, Egypt took another step towards implementing its nuclear power programme.

"Egypt has gone a long way towards implementing its first nuclear power plant at El-Dabaa, 320 kilometres northwest of Cairo," said Awadallah, adding that the plant will have four nuclear reactors that will begin operating between 2028 and 2030.

He noted that these reactors, which generate energy for peaceful purposes, are designed in collaboration with Russia's state-owned nuclear engineering company, Rosatom, with a capacity of 1.2 GW each.

The construction of the first three reactors has already begun after obtaining approval from the Egyptian Nuclear and Radiological Regulatory Authority (ENRRA).

On 19 November 2015, Egypt and Russia signed an agreement under which Russia will build and finance Egypt's first nuclear power plant.

The preliminary contracts for constructing the four nuclear reactors were signed, in December 2017, in the presence of Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

The state-owned Rosatom will build the plant and supply Russian nuclear fuel for its entire life cycle.

Russia will finance 85 percent of the cost with a loan of $25 billion, while Egypt will provide the remaining 15 percent in the form of instalments. The Russian loan is repaid over 22 years, with an annual interest of three percent.

Awadallah further said that by joining IAEA's convention on nuclear safety, Egypt guarantees that its nuclear reactors in Dabaa will not cause any radioactive risks that could harm citizens, society and the environment.

For his part, Amgad El-Wakeel, head of Egypt's Nuclear Power Plants Authority (NPPA), told the media last month that El-Dabaa's four nuclear reactors comply with IAEA's safety measures.

"They can endure earthquakes and aeroplane crashes, and they will be friendly to the environment," said El-Wakeel, noting that "the plant will comprise the most advanced technology to date, which has been successfully implemented and operated in Russia and abroad."

The presidential decree on Egypt joining IAEA's convention on nuclear safety will be submitted for a final vote when Egypt's parliament  the House of Representatives  reconvenes next Tuesday, 20 June.

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VANCOUVER, British Columbia, June 14, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Liberty Gold Corp. (TSX: LGD; OTCQX: LGDTF) (Liberty Gold or the Company) is pleased to announce voting results from the Companys Annual General Meeting of Shareholders held on June 14, 2023 (the Meeting).

Dr. Mark ODea, who has been the Chair of the Company, and Sean Tetzlaff, who has been a director of the Company, both having held these positions since the Companys inception, did not stand for re-election at the Meeting. Robert Pease, newly appointed Chair of Liberty Gold, stated, Wed like to thank both Mark and Sean for their formidable contributions to Liberty Gold, both have had an instrumental part of the Companys journey since its inception in 2011, and we wish both of them all the best on their future endeavours.

Liberty Gold is pleased to announce that Wendy Louie has been appointed to the Board of Directors effective today. Ms. Louie is a Canadian Chartered Professional Accountant (CPA, CA) with over 25 years of diverse financial and leadership experience with a focus on the mining industry. Most recently, Ms. Louie was the Vice President of Finance and CFO of Sabina Gold and Silver Corp. until its acquisition by B2Gold Corp. in April 2023. She has an extensive background in mergers, acquisitions, risk management and advisory expertise across the mining, shipping, energy, and technology sectors.

Robert Pease, Chair of Liberty Gold, commented, On behalf of the Board of Directors and of our shareholders, we welcome Wendy to the Company. She joins us at an exciting time with her extensive experience in the mining sector as we continue to advance the Black Pine oxide gold project on the development pathway.

A total of 196,021,621 common shares were voted, representing the votes attached to 61.4% of all outstanding common shares. Shareholders voted in favour of the election of all director nominees. The percentage of votes cast for each is as follows:

Total number of for votes cast: Votes for: Mr. Robert Pease 171,574,332 98.08 % Mr. Cal Everett 174,377,986 99.68 % Ms. Barbara Womersley 174,179,467 99.57 % Mr. Greg Etter 174,292,597 99.63 % Ms. Lisa Wade 174,220,758 99.59 % Mr. Wendy Louie 174,203,251 99.58 % Mr. Jason Attew 174,365,531 99.67 %

The following were also approved by the shareholders:

The reappointment of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, Chartered Professional Accountants as auditor of the Company:

Total number of for votes cast: 195,630,464 Votes for: 99.80 %

In favour of approved amendments to, and respective unallocated entitlements under the Stock Option Plan:

Total number of for votes cast: 161,098,226 Votes for: 92.08 %

In favour of approved amendments to, and respective unallocated entitlements under the Restricted Share Unit Plan:

Total number of for votes cast: 173,010,994 Votes for: 98.90 %

In favour of respective unallocated entitlements under the Deferred Share Unit Plan:

Total number of for votes cast: 173,022,590 Votes for: 98.90 %

Voting results are released in accordance with Toronto Stock Exchange requirements. Detailed voting results for the Meeting are available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.

ABOUT LIBERTY GOLDLiberty Gold is focused on exploring for and developing open pit oxide deposits in the Great Basin of the United States, home to large-scale gold projects that are ideal for open-pit mining. This region is one of the most prolific gold-producing regions in the world and stretches across Nevada and into Idaho and Utah. We know the Great Basin and are driven to discover and advance big gold deposits that can be mined profitably in open-pit scenarios. Our flagship projects are Black Pine in Idaho and Goldstrike in Utah, both past-producing open-pit mines, where previous operators only scratched the surface.

For more information, visit libertygold.ca or contact:

Susie Bell, Manager, Investor Relations Phone: 604-632-4677 or Toll Free 1-877-632-4677 [email protected]

Source: Liberty Gold Corp.
Washington, D.C., June 14, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The U.S. Department of Commerces National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and its National Marine Fisheries Service (NOAA Fisheries) have imposed an unconstitutional rule requiring fishing companies to pay for at-sea government monitoring of their herring catch. Unfortunately, relying on Chevron deference to do the heavy lifting, the First Circuit Court of Appeals upheld that rule. Today, the New Civil Liberties Alliance petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court for a writ of certiorari in Relentless Inc., et al. v. Dept. of Commerce, et al., seeking to overturn the Chevron precedent and vacate the rule.

NOAA implemented a Final Rule in 2020 to force fishing companies like Relentless Inc., Huntress Inc., and Seafreeze Fleet LLC, to pay for human at-sea monitors aboard their vessels. This would be like forcing motorists to pay for ride-along state troopers to monitor their speed. Not surprisingly, Congress never gave the agency authority to launch such a program. NCLAs clients are small businesses that commercially fish for Atlantic herring (as well as mackerel, Loligo and Illex squids, and butterfish). Paying for monitors would cost them more than $700 per day, substantially cutting intoor even exceedingtheir daily fishing profits for herring.

The U.S. Supreme Court already granted certiorari on the first question presented in NCLAs cert petition in a case called Loper Bright earlier this year, which had unsuccessfully challenged the same at-sea monitor rule in the D.C. Circuit. By seeking certiorari on that same question in Relentless, NCLA hopes to be able to fully brief two core problems with Chevron deference that NCLAs founder, Philip Hamburger, is famous for first positing. Namely, when a federal judge defers to an agencys interpretation of law, doing so denies due process of law to the entity opposed to the government in that litigation. Employing such deference also abandons a judges Article III duty of judicial independence. The logic of Chevron deference cannot withstand this devastating dual critique.

In addition, NCLA is asking the U.S. Supreme Court to resolve a split between two U.S. courts of appeal, the First and Fifth Circuits. When the First Circuit upheld the Final Rule, it decided that broad necessary and appropriate language in the Magnuson-Stevens Act (MSA), which governs U.S. fisheries, augmented the agencys regulatory power. It then relied heavily on Chevron deference to uphold the agencys ostensibly reasonable interpretation of a supposedly ambiguous federal statute. However, the Fifth Circuit rejected similar government arguments in the Mexican Gulf Fishing Company, et al. v. NOAA, et al. case. That court eschewed Chevron and set aside a different NOAA Fisheries rule in February that required constant GPS tracking of recreational charter fishing vessels. The Court should examine this conflicting treatment of key MSA language.

NCLA released the following statements:

When the Supreme Court decides the question presented in Loper Bright, it must confront two central problems with Chevron deference: its denial of due process of law and its destruction of independent judicial judgment. If the Court grants cert in Relentless, it will have the full benefit of briefing on these defects of Chevron deference. But even if the Court does not grant cert in Relentless, NCLA still anticipates the Court will decide the Chevron question in Loper Brights favor. It will then grant, vacate, and remand our clients case to the First Circuit. Mark Chenoweth, President and General Counsel, NCLAWere glad the Supreme Court decided to grant certiorari in the case of Loper Bright, and we think it should also take our second question on what necessary and appropriate means in the Magnuson-Stevens Act, so that the Administrative State cannot use such broad language to assume powers Congress never bestowed on it. John Vecchione, Senior Litigation Counsel, NCLA

This case concerns the core conflict between what Congress has permitted NOAA and the National Marine Fisheries Service to do and what those agencies wish to do. For decades, Chevron deference has emboldened agencies to twist statutory text to generate all manner of regulations Congress never authorized. More troubling, however, is that Chevron has caused courts themselves to abandon their judicial independence and abdicate their duty to determine what the law is to executive branch agencies. That is why the Court should overturn Chevron. Kara Rollins, Litigation Counsel, NCLA

For more information visit the case page here.

ABOUT NCLA

NCLA is a nonpartisan, nonprofit civil rights group founded by prominent legal scholar Philip Hamburger to protect constitutional freedoms from violations by the Administrative State. NCLAs public-interest litigation and other pro bono advocacy strive to tame the unlawful power of state and federal agencies and to foster a new civil liberties movement that will help restore Americans fundamental rights.

Judy Pino New Civil Liberties Alliance 202-869-5218 [email protected]

Source: New Civil Liberties Alliance
MIAMI, FLORIDA, June 14, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Omni Eden, the groundbreaking Web3 platform, is delighted to unveil its visionary initiative that revolutionises both the wellness and travel landscapes through the seamless integration of blockchain, smart contracts, and decentralised systems. By merging these cutting-edge technologies with a strong focus on holistic well-being, Omni Eden empowers individuals to embark on a transformative journey towards sustainable living and personal growth.

Wellness Transformation Through Web3:

Omni Eden leverages Web3 technologies to redefine the wellness industry, providing individuals with unparalleled transparency, security, and empowerment. By harnessing the power of blockchain and decentralised systems, the platform ensures that wellness practices are accessible, trustworthy, and rewarding.

Digital Nomad Collection and Exclusive Travel Benefits:As part of its groundbreaking approach, Omni Eden introduces the highly anticipated 'Digital Nomad' Membership, offering a gateway to a world of transformative experiences and exclusive benefits. These unique digital memberships provide holders with access to discounted rates, personalised recommendations, and immersive events that elevate the travel experience to new heights. By owning these digital membership passes, individuals become part of a thriving community committed to sustainable travel and holistic well-being.

Web3 Travel Concierge Platform:Omni Eden proudly presents its Web3 travel concierge platform, complementing its comprehensive wellness offerings. This innovative platform delivers seamless booking experiences, personalised recommendations, and exclusive perks for travellers seeking wellness-focused journeys. By integrating Web3 technologies, Omni Eden ensures transparency, security, and enhanced user experiences throughout the travel planning process.

Holistic Wellness Community and Transformative Experiences:Beyond being a wellness platform, Omni Eden fosters a vibrant and supportive community dedicated to holistic well-being. The company believes in the power of connection and offers transformative experiences that nurture personal growth, facilitate meaningful connections, and promote abundance. Community members can participate in immersive programs, workshops, and mindfulness practices, both within the metaverse and in real-world settings.

Tokenization and Gamification:Omni Eden pioneers the tokenization and gamification of wellness activities, revolutionising the way individuals engage with their well-being. Through innovative mechanisms, users can earn by actively participating in wellness challenges and using the tools within the platform, achieving personal goals, booking travel and contributing to the community. These rewards can be redeemed for exclusive discounts, access to wellness programs, and participation in virtual and real-world retreats, creating a dynamic and rewarding experience for community members.Curated Wellness Resources and Vibrant Community:

Omni Eden provides a rich collection of curated wellness resources, empowering individuals to prioritize their well-being in their daily lives. The platform offers expert tips, mindfulness practices, fitness routines, and self-care recommendations to support individuals on their wellness journey. Additionally, Omni Eden fosters a vibrant and engaged community, facilitating connections, collaborations, and shared experiences among like-minded individuals worldwide.

Exciting Collaborations and Future Development:Omni Eden is thrilled to announce its collaboration with spatial.io to launch the OmniVRS Metaverse platform. This immersive virtual reality space allows community members to explore stunning digital environments, connect with fellow travellers, and engage in interactive experiences, further enhancing the sense of connection and community within the Omni Eden ecosystem.

Furthermore, Omni Eden is excited to share that multiple world-renowned health and wellness experts will be joining the team over the coming months. These experts will contribute their extensive knowledge and experience to further enrich the platform's offerings and provide exceptional value to the community.

For more information about Omni Eden and its offerings, please visit:

https://omnieden.io/https://www.twitter.com/omnieden

About Omni Eden:Omni Eden is a leading Web3 wellness platform dedicated to redefining the wellness experience and empowering individuals seeking holistic well-being. By leveraging blockchain technology, Web3, and decentralised systems, Omni Eden provides seamless wellness programs, personalised recommendations, and exclusive perks for individuals worldwide. Additionally, the platform offers a Web3 travel concierge platform for wellness-focused journeys.

Caleb Hope Omni Eden info at omnieden.io

Source: Omni Eden
Not for dissemination in the United States of America.

VANCOUVER, British Columbia, June 14, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Premier Diversified Holdings Inc. ("Premier" or the "Company") (TSXV: PDH) announces that it has entered into certain loan agreements, as set out below.

Loan Agreement with MPIC Fund I

Premier entered into a loan agreement (April Loan Agreement) dated June 8, 2023 with MPIC Fund I, LP ("MPIC") for a secured loan in the principal amount of up to USD$100,000 (the "June Loan"). The June Loan matures on June 9, 2024 and bears interest at a rate of 6% per annum.

The June Loan is secured with all of the present and after-acquired property of the Company and ranks equally in priority with all of the loans previously made to the Company by MPIC. The June Loan will be used for working capital (including for Premiers partially owned subsidiaries, Purposely Platform Inc. (Purposely) and MyCare MedTech Inc.) and may be used to acquire an additional interest in MyCare MedTech Inc. (MyCare), a telehealth company.

The Company is not issuing any securities, or paying any bonus, commission or finder's fees on the loan. The loan is repayable at any time without penalty. Purposely and MyCare are generating revenue, and the Company expects to receive re-payment of funds from such entities, allowing it to partially repay some of the funds owed to MPIC. The loan is subject to review and acceptance by the TSX Venture Exchange.

Amended Loan Agreements with MPIC Fund I, LP

Premier previously entered into a certain loan agreement dated June 28, 2021 in the principal amount of USD$95,000 as amended June 28, 2022, for a loan from MPIC. Pursuant to a second amending agreement dated June 8, 2023, the parties agreed to extend the maturity date of the loan from June 28, 2023 to June 28, 2024.

Premier previously entered into a certain loan agreement dated June 3, 2022, for a loan from MPIC in the principal amount of USD$100,000. Pursuant to an amending agreement dated June 3, 2023, the parties agreed to extend the maturity date of the loan from June 3, 2023 to June 3, 2024.

No other material terms were amended under any of the foregoing amendments.

Related party transaction disclosure

As MPIC is a control person of Premier, the June Loan and the amended loan agreements described above each constitute "related party transactions" within the meaning of Multilateral Instrument 61-101 Protection of Minority Security holders in Special Transactions ("MI 61-101"). These agreements have been determined to be exempt from the requirements to obtain a formal valuation or minority shareholder approval based on sections 5.5(b) and 5.7(1)(f) of MI 61-101.

Premier does not have securities listed or quoted on any of the specified markets listed in section 5.5(b) of MI 61-101. Premier is relying on the exemption from minority shareholder approval in 5.7(1)(f) of MI 61-101 as the loans were obtained by Premier from MPIC on reasonable commercial terms that are not less advantageous to Premier than if the loans had been obtained from a person dealing at arms length with Premier. Further, the loans are not convertible, directly or indirectly, into equity or voting securities of Premier or a subsidiary entity of the issuer, or otherwise participating in nature, or repayable as to principal or interest, directly or indirectly, in equity or voting securities of Premier or a subsidiary entity of the issuer.

Postponement of Annual General Meeting

Premier has postponed the holding of its annual general meeting of shareholders for 2023 from July 26, 2023 to a future date. Premier has received approval from the B.C. Registrar of Companies to extend the time to hold its AGM for the year 2023 by four months from July 26, 2023 to November 26, 2023. The postponement is subject to approval from the TSXV.

About Premier Diversified Holdings Inc.

Premier Diversified Holdings Inc. participates in diversified industries through its acquisitions of securities and/or assets of public and private entities which it believes have potential for significant returns. It may act as a holding company (either directly or through a subsidiary) and may participate in management of subsidiary entities to varying degrees.

On behalf of the Board of Directors

"Sanjeev Parsad"

Sanjeev ParsadPresident, CEO and Director

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

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 any jurisdictions in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful. Any offering made will be pursuant to available prospectus exemptions and restricted to persons to whom the securities may be sold in accordance with the laws of such jurisdictions, and by persons permitted to sell the securities in accordance with the laws of such jurisdictions.

Further information regarding the Company can be found on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.

Not for dissemination in the United States of America.

Legal Notice Regarding Forward Looking Statements: This news release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. Forward-looking statements are indicated expectations or intentions. Forward-looking statements in this news release include those regarding loan terms including regarding maturity date(s), that PDH will repay the loan from MPIC as disclosed in the news release, and that the net proceeds of the Loan will be used as stated in this news release. Factors that could cause actual results to be materially different include but are not limited to the following: that any revenue which PDH makes indirectly via its operating subsidiaries will be insufficient to repay the loans to MPIC, that its operating subsidiaries, including MyCare, will not generate revenue, or will retain or redirect such revenue, that the terms and conditions of the various loans may be amended, that the management or board of PDH may use its revenue or other the funds for other purposes, that the capital raised will be insufficient capital to accomplish our intentions and capital alone may not be sufficient for us to grow our business, that the issuer's financial position will not improve, will stay the same or will decline further, that the timing of receipt of anticipated revenues or returns may be delayed, that its ongoing expenses including general and administrative expenses will increase, and that complications or unforeseen obstacles from COVID-19 or other factors may negatively impact Premier. Investors are cautioned against placing undue reliance on forward-looking statements. It is not our policy to update forward looking statements.

For further information, contact: Sanjeev Parsad, President and CEO Phone: (604) 678.9115 Fax: (604) 678.9279 E-mail: [email protected] Web: www.pdh-inc.com

Source: Premier Diversified Holdings Inc.
Boston, MA , June 14, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Foundry, the media, data, and martech division of IDG, Inc., has released its annual tech buyers journey research, the 2023 Role & Influence of the Technology Decision-Maker report. The research provides an in-depth analysis of who is involved in the IT purchase process, the information sources they rely on, and how to best engage and educate them.

Technology budgets appear to be recession-proof with the majority of IT decision-makers (ITDMs) expecting their budgets to either increase (50%) or remain stable (38%) over the next 12 months, similar to last years results. However, 61% agree that the purchase process is becoming increasingly complex (this increases to 66% in enterprise organizations).

Adding to the complexity is the number of influencers involved in the purchase process which has increased to 25 (up from 20 in 2022). This number varies by product area with a high of 28 influencers for cloud computing and data and analytics solutions, to a low of 21 for desktops/laptops. The time it takes to move through the process has also increased to 6.5 months (up from 6.2 months in 2022).

With the increased complexity in the tech purchase process, customers are looking to their vendor partners for help, said Stacey Raap, Marketing & Research Manager, Foundry. This years study identifies that the process is more likely to get hung up within the product evaluation and authorization stages. Customers need additional resources or assistance from a vendor during that evaluation stage, creating an excellent opportunity for vendors to provide resources designed to educate at that stage.

Here are some of the reports findings:

Tech budgets continue to be strong

According to Foundrys findings, the majority of ITDMs (88%) report that their budgets are stable or growing. This overall stability is consistent across organizations of all sizes and regions. There is variation in the results for budget growth with 57% of enterprise organizations saying their budgets will increase compared with 44% of SMBs, and 60% budget growth in EMEA compared with 50% in APAC and 48% NA). Those differences are evened out with reciprocal results within the budget numbers remaining the same.

What will influence tech purchases?

ITDMs are faced with finding a balance between innovation and maintaining business as usual. The organizations IT strategy is driven by status quo tasks and keeping the lights on (36%), responding to internal events (31%) and responding to external events (28%).

Looking at the internal and external events that will influence tech purchase decisions, the number 1 internal event is increased automation (51%), followed by process changes (47%), which in the current economic climate are not surprising given that automation can drive cost saving and increased productivity, and process changes are affected by so many things, including the shift to remote work. Looking at external events that influence purchase decisions, the focus is squarely on the economy (49%) and customers (47%).

Influencing the tech purchase process

The average number of individuals who influence the tech purchase process has increased to 25 people  13 IT and 12 LOB. This varies by company size with enterprise organizations having buying teams of 33 (17 IT and 16 LOB), but only 15 in SMB organizations (7 IT and 8 LOB).

The CIO or top IT Executive is the top leader involved in each stage of the purchasing process, except for determining the technical requirements and evaluating products and services. Instead, this is where the CIO relies heavily on IT management, security staff, and engineers. This years results show an increase in securitys role in the tech purchase process with security now prominently featured in four stages  determine technical requirements, evaluate products/services, recommending and selecting vendors, and interestingly, post-sales engagement which is ensuring the secure set up of, and integration with, existing systems.

Understanding the purchase process

Large enterprises reported a greater likelihood of a sale stalling than did their SMB counterparts at five of the six stages, led by requirements determination, product evaluation, and purchase approval. Each was cited by 35% of ITDMs. SMBs pointed to difficulties selling the solution internally and gaining purchase authorization as the biggest choke points. There are notable variances by region with EMEA respondents reporting the process stalls more often during technical requirements determination (41% vs. 26% in North America) while North American users stall more often during authorization/approval (cited by 38% compared to 25% in EMEA and 31% in APAC).

Looking at where the choke points in the process are, combined with where customers feel they need additional resources, provides a roadmap for how vendors can help. Within the evaluation stage  33% of organizations report that this is the stage purchase process is apt to stall  is also stage where the most ITDM say they need additional resources or assistance from vendors (48%), and is the stage in which they are seeking out the highest number of sources (4.1).

Educating customers

On average, ITDMs access seven different sources for the information they need to keep up-to-date with new technologies and to enhance the knowledge needed to be effective in their roles. The number one resource (43%) they rely upon is technology content sites followed by white papers (37%), and webcasts/webinars; technology vendors via phone, email or video conference, and tech vendors (via the vendor website) (all 33%). While tech content sites remain a constant across generations there is a shift vendors should note. GenZ respondents show a decrease in reliance on tech vendors  especially web sites  and an increased interest in infographics and podcasts over their generational counterparts.

Throughout the first three stages of the purchase process, technology content sites are the number one relied upon information source. Given the nature of tech content sites being educational resources with in-depth articles, product reviews, and opinion articles, it makes sense as to why these would be the number one information source when ITDMs are doing the majority of their research prior to purchasing a tech product/service. White papers also remain in the top three sources during these exploratory and educational stages. Once a vendor is selected and moves into the approval process, ITDMs turn to technology vendors, whether that be via their website, email, phone or video conference, as well as their peers for additional information and insight.

Brand awareness matters

This year the study found that more than half (65%) of ITDMs typically spend more time-consuming content from well-known and trusted brands because they are confident their time will be well spent on these sources. This increases to 73% for millennials, and 68% for GenZ. More than half (65%) also agree that when all stakeholders are aware of a brand it makes the internal sell through process easier, and this increases to 73% for millennials, and 70% for GenZ.

For technology marketers, its important to connect with tech buyers where they are researching solutions for their business needs and throughout the purchase process. Learn about how you can expand your reach and engage these IT decision-makers by becoming a sponsor at one of Foundrys virtual or in-person summits or roundtables.

About the research

Foundrys 2023 Role & Influence of the Technology Decision-Maker Research was conducted online among the audiences of Foundrys B2B brands (CIO, Computerworld, CSO, InfoWorld, and Network World) representing IT and security decision-makers involved in the IT purchase process for their organization. Results in this release are based on 846 global respondents to the 32-question survey across multiple industries and countries.

Read the full report by Foundry here.

About Foundry, an IDG Inc. CompanyFoundry helps companies bring their visions to reality through a combination of media, marketing technologies and proprietary data on a global scale. Our intent data and martech platforms are powered by data from an owned and operated ecosystem of global editorial brands, awards, and events, all engineered and integrated to drive marketing campaigns for technology companies. Foundry is dedicated to generating and innovating with data, driving demand for technology marketers with 38 offices in markets around the globe. Foundry is a wholly owned subsidiary of International Data Group, Inc. (IDG), the worlds leading tech media, data, research and marketing services company. To learn more about Foundry, visit www.foundryco.com.

Sue Yanovitch VP, Marketing [email protected]

Source: Foundry (formerly IDG Communications, Inc.)
Oakville, Ontario, June 14, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Canadian quick-service restaurant chain, The Chopped Leaf, says why wait for the official start of summer?! Shake a bowl of their Summer Strawberry Salad today at one of their 100+ locations across Canada (and growing). Enjoy the sweet flavour of strawberries and a light, new fruit vinaigrette dressing, with spinach, roasted pecans, diced apples, red onions and mozzarella cheese, in a bowl, wrap or salad.

People are often creatures of habit. However, our Summer Strawberry Salad is a tempting, juicy, fresh option for our regulars, and a new reason to come in for anyone who hasn't tried Chopped Leaf yet, said Karen Paradine, Head of Marketing, The Chopped Leaf. We brought back a customer favourite with the fruit vinaigrette dressing, however this is a limited time offer, so enjoy Summer Strawberry while it lasts!

The Chopped Leaf recently introduced their new Shake-A-Bowls, encouraging customers to experience the joy of shaking their own salad or bowl right after its been freshly made. The launch was supported by the chains first TV commercial with a fun and upbeat tone that highlights how a healthy meal can move you.

Chain Expanding and Looking for New Franchisees

The healthy eating chain is currently expanding aggressively and looking for new franchisees across Canada with 30 new restaurants planned to open this year. Recent openings included Winnipeg, Manitoba; Barrie, Ontario; and the chains first drive-thru in Grand Prairie, Alberta. Expansion is focused in Ontario, Manitoba and Atlantic Canada, with franchise opportunities also available in BC, Alberta, Saskatchewan and Quebec.

Canadians are actively looking to eat healthy, and feel good after they eat, which is what we offer, says Blair Stevens, Founder, The Chopped Leaf, who opened the first location in Kelowna, BC in 2007. As we expand across Canada, we are looking for franchisees who believe in the importance of a healthy lifestyle and the power of healthy eating.

About The Chopped Leaf

Proudly Canadian, The Chopped Leaf has over 100 locations open and committed to open within Canada and the USA. We are a lifestyle brand that offers delicious and wholesome bowls, wraps, salads and more, served fresh and quick for a better-for-you experience. The Chopped Leaf is owned and managed by Innovative Food Brands. If you are interested in becoming a Franchisee, visit https://www.choppedleaf.ca/franchise-opportunities/

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Attachments

Diane Weber The Chopped Leaf 289-259-4737 [email protected]

Source: The Chopped Leaf
Toronto, June 14, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- TORONTO, June 14, 2023  Three Toronto-area students are being celebrated as winners of Habitat for Humanity Canadas Meaning of Home national writing contest. Daphne U. is the Grade 4 grand prize winner for her entry, No Place Like Home. Her $30,000 grant will benefit Habitat for Humanity GTA. Daphne joins Grade 4 runner-up JL B. for his entry, The Meaning of Home and Grade 5 runner-up Eldana A. for her entry, The Foundation of My Heart, who each won a $10,000 grant towards Habitat for Humanity GTA. Combined with more than 1,200 students who made submissions, the three students helped raise more than $60,000 to support Habitat for Humanity GTAs efforts to build affordable homes for working families in our communities.

Habitat for Humanity and representatives from Sagen, the founding sponsor of the writing contest, gathered to honour the three students at an event last night at Habitat for Humanity GTAs Toronto office.

Since 2007, the Meaning of Home contest shares what home means to students in Grades 4, 5 and 6. This year, three grand prize winners and nine runners-up have joined over 12,000 students across Canada to raise $302,000 for Habitat for Humanity organizations across Canada through their entries. Three grand prize winners won a $30,000 grant to their local Habitat for Humanity organization. Runners-up have won a $10,000 grant for their local Habitat. Congratulations to all the winners and to everyone who entered and earned a $10 donation to their local Habitat for Humanity with their submission.

To see over 1,200 students from the GTA alone reflect on the importance of home and what it means is inspiring. At Habitat for Humanity GTA, so much of what we do is really for the children. A strong, stable home base opens up resilience and possibilities for a childs future, whether its having a place to study, play or just share a meal in the best company. The lifelong benefits of a home of your own are truly immeasurable, said Ene Underwood, CEO for Habitat for Humanity GTA. On behalf of Habitat for Humanity GTA, thank you to the students, teachers, school staff, parents and volunteers that made this years contest such a powerful one.

Safety, security, a place of love, a place to grow, play, learn and make memories  these are the things that children say matter most when asked what home means to them, says Julia Deans, President and CEO of Habitat for Humanity Canada. Housing provides a foundation for all these things, and we continue to build and advocate so more families can benefit from affordable homeownership.

Since the Meaning of Home contest began in 2007, over 100,000 students have shared what home means to them. With the support of Sagen as founding sponsor, these students have raised $2.3 million to help more families in need of homes build stronger lives through housing, said Stuart Levings, President and CEO of Sagen.

The Meaning of Home contest would not be possible without the generous support of Founding Sponsor, SagenTM and Award Sponsors Urban Systems Foundation, Face to Face Games, and Home Trust. To read all the winning entries, please visit https://habitatgta.ca/meaning-of-home-2023/.

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Attachment

Johnny Keogh Habitat for Humanity Greater Toronto Area 6478837572 [email protected]

Source: Habitat for Humanity Greater Toronto Area
Miami, Florida, June 14, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Host & Keep, a vacation investment rental firm in Miami, Florida, is expanding their services with the launch of a desktop management program.

The program will allow clients who are renting out vacation homes through Host & Keep to have their properties managed by the firm. The properties can be anywhere in the world, and all the firm requires is to have a maintenance and cleaning company set up with them in order to manage the property. The firm will manage everything else from management, revenues, listings and concierge services, to maximize rental returns for property owners.

All the management services are conducted remotely from the firms Miami headquarters. The maintenance and cleaning companies that are working at a vacation rental location use an app to communicate with the firm. Through the app, the companies upload pictures of their work and fill out detailed forms documenting all the work they have completed and are scheduled to work on. These desktop services allow property owners to provide an elevated experience, consistent quality control, and reduce the workload for owners, while increasing profitability.

The desktop management program has allowed the firm to increase their management services to clients around the world who are seeking an easy way to rent out their vacation properties. The clients are able to focus on other things in their life that may be of greater importance or enjoy time that can be spent on leisure activities.

Caroline Ramos, Founder and CEO of Host & Keep, says it has always been her vision to expand the company to take on global clients and bring a higher quality of service to people renting vacation properties around the world. She also says she wants to elevate the experience for people staying in rented vacation homes.

This is something weve been wanting to implement since the first day we formed the firm, says Ramos. Its been my vision, but it is also something that has become a necessity because there are so many vacation rental homes and Airbnbs that it can be hard to find one that you know will have suitable standards for a vacation experience. With the desktop management program we have been able to guarantee that we will provide guests with a high quality experience, while making the process worry free for owners.

The program will help provide a standard to the vacation rental property industry as a whole. Ramos says she is excited to improve the guest experience and offer their high quality of service to more clients around the world.

Media Contact:Name: Caroline RamosEmail: [email protected]

Source: Host & Keep
Hello Space, a promising satellite tech start-up, aims to set a pocketqube constellation in space to revolutionize IoT technologies, by offering reliable, consistent IoT data services to businesses, from even the most remote locations in the world.



Worlds tiniest satellite, called pocketqubes offers cutting-edge satellite tech, with

5cm x 5cm x 5cm in size. Hello Space achieved unprecedented speed by completion of software and hardware production followed by space launch in under 13 months.

Hello Spaces first test pocketqube satellite, named 'Istanbul', was launched into space today on June 13, 2023, inside SpaceX's Falcon-9, Transporter-8 mission.

ISTANBUL, Trkiye, June 14, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Hello Space, Satellite technologies start-up, takes on the worldas most recent satellite technology standard apocketqube,a and readies to revolutionize IoT services with satellite technologies. Hello Space aims to set a pocketqube constellation in space and offer uninterrupted end-to-end IoT data services from space to businesses in agriculture, logistics, energy industries, and many more.

Istanbul, the first test pocketqube satellite of Hello Space, fitting inside a palm with dimensions of 5cm x 5cm x 5cm, was launched into space today from California, with the SpaceX Falcon-9 Transporter-8 mission. Established in May 2022, Hello Space has achieved unprecedented speed by completing software and hardware production followed by a space launch in under 13 months. Concurrent with the pocketqube satellite production process, the Hello Space Ground Station was built to serve as the management and control center for the pocketqube satellite constellation.

Muzaffer Duysal, Co-founder and CEO of Hello Space, said: "Typically, a satellite production and space launch takes around 2-2.5 years on average. Thanks to our in-depth know-how on this most recent pocketqube technologies and dedication to succeed, we have managed to reduce this time to an unprecedented one year. Imagine forming a constellation of cutting-edge tech satellites that will provide consistent, reliable data to large businesses in agriculture, transportation logistics, and energy from space. Hello Space will revolutionize IoT services, covering even the most remote locations in the world, where data tracking is currently challenging. We are very excited for the launch of Istanbul, as the first step of our big dream come true."

Expanding satellite coverage for the Internet of Things (IoT)

Through its highly advanced narrowband data communication technology, Hello Space will provide continuous and reliable data services globally by providing coverage from space. Hello Space will be able to offer IoT services, even in remote areas with low population density and uncovered regions such as oceans and remote, significant agricultural lands. The services will provide location data from containers shipped in the ocean, humidity data from remote agricultural lands, and end-to-end temperature data in long-distance cold-chain food logistics. Consistent, accurate data from space will improve the efficiency of businesses via visa satellite technologies.

Team members' names sent to space

Hello Space team embedded the names of their colleagues inside pocketqube Istanbul through software they developed. The names of Hello Space team has also been sent into space, along with pocketqube Istanbul.

4 more satellites are on the way

Following the launch of the first test pocketqube satellite Istanbul into space, Hello Space is now getting prepared for the deployment of 4 new test pocketqube satellites, planned to be launched in October a23.

About Hello Space:

Hello Space was founded in May 2022 as Turkey's first commercial pocketqube satellite venture. Its co-founders are Muzaffer Duysal, the former captain of Turkey's first pocketqube satellite team, Grizu-263, and Zafer Aen, the CEO of a leading software and technology consulting company in Turkey. The venture aims to establish a constellation network in space to provide IoT data services through narrowband data transfer.

For more information, please see https://hellospace.ist/

Follow Hello Space at: LinkedIn Hello Space , IG hellospaceist

Please contact:

Nil Ayvaz at [email protected] for more information

Photos accompanying this announcement are available at:

https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/b2be458c-90e9-4300-903b-0e18b6895242

https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/fd367cc6-1cbd-4ea3-88ef-7e52d0cb0f93

https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/e49acc43-da13-4381-adaf-fddf560ac793
Edmonton, Alberta--(Newsfile Corp. - June 14, 2023) - Altiplano Metals Inc. (TSXV: APN) (WKN: A2JNFG) ("Altiplano" or the "Company") is pleased to report it has entered into an agreement for the acquisition of the Santa Beatriz Mine, located two kilometers (km) from the Company's existing operation at the Farellon Copper Gold Mine site near La Serena, Chile. Copper, gold, and iron mineralized material at the Santa Beatriz Mine is similar to what is currently extracted at Farellon and is expected to be suitable material for processing at the Company's mill and processing facility, El Peon, located ~15 km from the mine.

Highlights

Low-cost potential acquisition of past producer covering an area of 54 ha.

Previous workings include two decline advances totaling 250 m and 180 m in length.

The Santa Beatriz Mine is permitted by the Chilean Mining Authority, SERNAGEOMIN (Servicio Nacional de Geologia y Mineria) for ~ 2,000 tonnes per month (tpm) of production and can be expanded.

Mineralized material at Santa Beatriz is of the same iron-oxide-copper-gold (IOCG) deposit type and style as that at Farellon.

Copper, gold, and iron extracted from the Santa Beatriz Mine can be ideally suited for processing at the Company's El Penon processing facility, entering startup phase in July.

Material produced from the Santa Beatriz Mine has the potential to improve efficiencies and increase overall production at the Mill, maximizing the Company's monthly revenue opportunities.

President and CEO, Alastair McIntyre, commented: "We are very excited for the opportunity to begin work on the Santa Beatriz Mine. This project fits Altiplano's vision for consolidating projects located in proximity to our existing operations, with low start-up costs hosting excellent material for optimal production and processing. Acquiring an additional mine with ideal production material for Altiplano's mill and processing facility creates added flexibility and sustainability while providing the potential to add significant value for its shareholders."





Figure 1 - Location of Farellon Copper Gold Mine, processing facility, and Santa Beatriz Mine.



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Figure 2 - Photo of Historical Workings



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Santa Beatriz Agreement

In exchange for US$5,000, Altiplano retains a 3-month exclusivity period to complete due diligence on the Santa Beatriz Mine. At the end of this period, Altiplano can rent the mine for US$4,350/month and provide the owner with a 15% share in net profits after expenses. During the first 12 months of the option, APN can purchase the mine with no underlying royalty for a one-time cash payment of US$440,000 or extend the option.

The due diligence phase will include a comprehensive analysis of the veins to determine grade, width and consistency at depth, regional influence, and mining potential. Geologists will map and sample the vein sets underground and on surface, and compile and review existing datasets to aid in the determination of production and future exploration programs. A confirmation drill program will be designed as part of the exploration work to test the continuity of the vein structure and mineralogy along strike and at lower depths.

About Altiplano

Altiplano Metals is a growing gold, silver, and copper company focused on the Americas. The Company has a diversified portfolio of assets that include an operating copper/gold/iron mine, development of near-term producing gold/copper projects, and exploration land packages with district-scale potential. Altiplano is focused on creating long-term stakeholder value through developing safe and sustainable production, reinvesting into exploration, and pursuing acquisition opportunities to complement its existing portfolio. Management has a substantial record of success in capitalizing on opportunity, overcoming challenges and building shareholder value. Altiplano trades on the Toronto Venture Exchange trading under the symbol APN and the Frankfurt Exchange under the symbol A2JNFG.

Altiplano has generated over US$12.1 million from the recovery and sale (after processing costs) of more than 5.2 million pounds of copper with an average grade of 1.80% Cu (2018 Q1-2023 Q1). Cash flow has been re-invested into equipment, underground drilling, expanding underground development at Farellon, enhancing ventilation to increase productivity and capacity, new underground development and exploration, and the commissioning of the El Penon fit-for-purpose mill and flotation plant located 15 km from the Farellon site.

John Williamson, B.Sc., P.Geol., a Qualified Person as defined by NI 43-101, has reviewed, and approved the technical contents of this document.

Altiplano is part of the Metals Group of companies. Metals Group is an award-winning team of professionals who stand for technical excellence, painstaking project selection and uncompromising corporate governance, with a proven ability to capitalize on investment opportunities and deliver shareholder returns.

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD

/s/ "John Williamson"

Chairman

For further information, please contact:

Alastair McIntyre, CEO

[email protected]

Tel: (416) 434 3799

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the (TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

This release includes certain statements that may be deemed "forward-looking statements". All statements in this release, other than statements of historical facts, that address exploration drilling, exploitation activities and events or developments that the Company expects are forward-looking statements. A qualified person has not done sufficient work to classify any historical estimates as current mineral resources or mineral reserves and the issuer is not treating any historical estimates as current mineral resources or mineral reserves. Although the Company 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. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in forward-looking statements include market prices, exploitation and exploration successes, continuity of mineralization, uncertainties related to the ability to obtain necessary permits, licenses and title and delays due to third party opposition, changes in government policies regarding mining and natural resource exploration and exploitation, and continued availability of capital and financing, and general economic, market or business conditions. Investors are cautioned that any such statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual results or developments may differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements. For more information on the Company, investors should review the Company's continuous disclosure filings that are available at www.sedar.com.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/169889
Climate change is seriously affecting Nigerian farmers, who are suffering from the double onslaught of floods and droughts, reports Alyaa Abo Shahba from the West African state of Niger

On 5 June, the world celebrated World Environment Day, an annual event which emphasises the importance of preserving and protecting the environment from the growing effects of climate change.

From the west of the African continent, specifically Niger, Al-Ahram Weekly monitored the suffering of people due its effects, among them increasing floods and droughts. Women and children are suffering in particular, as they are among the most vulnerable groups.

300 Dead and 300,000 Homeless said the news headlines in Niger in October 2022 after floods that have been taking place periodically over the last five years in the country, one of the largest in West Africa but whose territory consists of 80 per cent desert.

There are no bodies of water in Niger except the Niger River, whose water level is now so low that it is difficult to navigate.

Winter now means floods every year in Niger, with the sky opening its doors and flooding and destroying the homes of hundreds with unprecedented intensity.

Even so, according to WaterAid, an international non-profit organisation founded in 1981 as a response to the UN International Contract for Drinking Water and Sanitation, nearly 13 million people now lack clean water in Niger. The country is largely made up of desert, and it is one of the least developed countries in the world. With severe droughts, poor soil conditions and the gradual spread of the desert now increasing as a result of climate change, more than 12.8 million people today lack clean water, or nearly half the population.

During the Ninth Session of the Africa Regional Forum on Sustainable Development (ARFSD-9) held in Niamey, Nigers capital, early in March, President of Niger Mohamed Bazoum warned against the growing phenomenon of climate refugees, people who are forced to leave their lands due to climate change and putting additional pressures on neighbouring countries.

A World Bank report in 2021 indicated that in the light of the acceleration of the global water crisis as a result of climate change, precipitation fluctuations are expected to be one of the factors contributing to such migration, with women and children being among the most vulnerable groups though the least able to move easily.

The Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) also estimates that homeless women are more vulnerable to sexual violence.

WOMENS EMPOWERMENT: Women and children are the most vulnerable, especially in Africa, as they lack resources and have limited access to information and movement restrictions, all of which increase the intensity of the impacts of climate change on them, said James Murombedzi, head of the Climate Change Division at the UN Economic Commission for Africa (ECA).

The UN works with governments, ensuring that contributions to adaptation and mitigation serve gender issues and contribute to minimising the impacts on the most vulnerable, he said.

Jean-Paul Adam, director of the Technology, Climate Change, and Natural Resources Division at the ECA, told the Weekly that violence resulting from climate change has its harshest impact on women, children not excluded, so one of the major aspects needed to be addressed is looking at climate change from a gender perspective. That means getting to know the impact and its costs.

Adam pointed to the need to involve women further in economic activities that could enable them to enhance their ability to withstand climate change, as well as in the agriculture sector, in the latter case giving women further empowerment.

As well as directly assisting women in resisting the impacts of climate change, this would also create a significant increase in productivity across the African continent. Greater training and financing of womens economic projects could be a major driver of economic growth across Africa.

Adamo Oumarou, chair of the board of Young Volunteers for the Environment, an NGO working on environmental management, sustainable energy solutions and agroecological practices, explained the major problems Nigerien farmers face.

The most prominent is the lack of water resources amidst the growing necessity of meeting the populations need for food as numbers increase, he said. This is being exacerbated due to the long and recurrent droughts exacerbated by climate change, in addition to the lack of arable land and already limited access to water.

Most of Nigers population live on arable land in the south and west of the country. The countrys economy and its people depend mainly on agriculture, especially on corn crops and raising livestock, Oumarou said. Global warming has increased the challenges farmers face, threatening food security, sustainable development, and economic growth.

Temperatures in the Sahel region are increasing 1.5 times faster than in the rest of the world, he added, as a result of climate change, and this is exacerbating already difficult weather conditions and increasing pressures on communities and agricultural resources.

The monsoon season in Niger extends from April to September, but the distribution of rain is problematic in terms of location and degree. The monsoon sometimes comes late, as has been the case over recent years, and when it rains, it pours, causing floods and resulting in losses in the agricultural sector.

Finding permanent water resources throughout the year is a challenge to agricultural communities in Niger, Oumarou said, as they are forced to find alternative ways to irrigate their lands during the remaining time of the year. Much remains to be done in terms of access to water, even as the country has a large reserve of groundwater.

Oumarou said that the agricultural sector in Niger is characterised by small-scale producers, often families with children working on the land. Women and children can be the first victims of the agricultural sectors issues, since as the rain decreases, the men can decide to travel looking for a better future for their families. The women are left at home, sometimes being forced to work in towns as housemaids or engage in small businesses, which is difficult due to a lack of resources.

Other women may engage in mendicancy to meet their childrens needs. The absence of the father and the preoccupations of the mother can also affect school-dropout rates and lead to the spread of malnutrition in certain areas.

LACK OF WATER: Haruna Abarshi, an expert in agriculture and food security who works for several international programmes in West Africa, defends the interests of livestock breeders in Niger with regard to securing pastoral land, food security, and preserving animal health.

He told the Weekly that Nigerien farmers are suffering from a lack of water supplies on land being used for pasture, as this is the poorest among other sectors. This was leading to a decline in the profits generated from agriculture, with this decrease in income affecting all family members, including women and children.

Abarshi said that the movement of farmers from one place to another searching for water has put pressure on their ability to provide for their families at the same time. Floods are destroying production systems, and farmers gathering in fertile areas, in some cases overgrazing them, can make things worse by destroying sustainability and increasing climate change.

He said that the global carbon market could contribute to improving the agricultural sector in Niger, provided that it employed standards compatible with the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDRs) of carbon dioxide and other emissions for Niger and that there was transparency governing the functioning of the market.

Mohamedo Seraji Adamo, director of a local institution in Niger specialising in farmers welfare and protecting and preserving the environment, said that the countrys farmers face multiple problems, on top of them climatic risks resulting from large fluctuations in the amount and timing of rainfall.

Most of the countrys farmers derive their income from the exploitation of natural resources, but such high fluctuations are leading to highly damaging droughts, he said.

He referred to several examples of the sufferings of farmers in Niger because of climate change, such as what happened in 2012 when losses due to drought amounted to more than $70 million, according to the World Bank. Damage caused by floods between 1990 and 2020 is estimated to have affected more than three million people and destroyed around 7,100 local areas as well as more than 255,000 homes.

The losses of the agricultural sector amounted to about 205,000 hectares of crops.

Higher temperatures, changing precipitation patterns, extreme climate phenomena, pests, and disease pose enormous challenges to farmers with small properties, resulting in lower crop yields, Adamo said.

Disruptions caused by climate change have led to a significant increase in food insecurity, resulting in emigration and displacement from rural areas. Conflicts between rural producers over the management of natural resources and access to them have also grown in number.

The disruption of waterways and the lack of availability of water resources, leading to a reduction in crop yields, have resulted in an increase in conflicts over land, as well as disputes related to water resources. Some farmers and herders may be attracted to agricultural practices that destroy the environment, as well as arbitrary logging to meet local energy needs.

In Tillaberi in southwest Niger, where people depend on agriculture and raising livestock, herders are trapped between the effects of climate change that dry up pastures and conflicts that prevent them from leaving the area, Adamo said. Such disputes generally take place in winter between livestock owners and farmers in the region, often between farmers, herders, refugees and homeless people.

The issue of access to land is also a fundamental one for all agricultural and pastoral communities in Niger, as men are the heads of families and the custodians of inheritance. This exacerbates land insecurity for women and children, with climate change increasing inequality among poor farmers, women, and marginalised communities.

WOMEN THE MOST VULNERABLE: Regarding the situation of women in the agricultural sector in Niger, Roqaia Abdou Ghili, a member of an association promoting farmers rights, said that women working in the agricultural sector in Niger usually work on their fathers or husbands land.

In some areas, they may be paid workers, but they only benefit from the work until harvesting. Abdou Ghili said that the current legislation in Niger is sufficient to protect womens rights from exposure to violence, whether from a partner or at work.

Many women are willing to establish their own projects selling food products, she said, and the state has provided incentives encouraging women to be entrepreneurs in agriculture, with financing available for investment or participation in marketing.

But there is still the problem of the constant decrease in water resources, leading to the displacement of people from one place to another. Women are in danger of becoming the weakest link in this situation as it is more difficult for them to move, Ghili said.

The solution could lie in enabling Nigerien women to acquire land in larger areas and on building the economic capacities of women, in addition to increasing funding to support their projects.

Ngone Diop, director of the Sub-Regional Office for West Africa (SRO-WA) in the UN Economic Commission for Africa, which covers 15 countries in West Africa, told the Weekly that women and people with disabilities should be integrated more into civil society by creating platforms expressing their ideas and being organised more fully.

This would require greater education and awareness, Diop said, adding that there are several relevant networks and womens councils working locally in Niger, but there is a need for these to be connected more widely.

At the same time, they should retain their African identity, she said, so that they can offer meaningful contributions and express African priorities.

* A version of this article appears in print in the 15 June, 2023 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly

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Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - June 14, 2023) - Boosh Plant-Based Brands Inc.(CSE: VEGI) (OTCQB: VGGIF) (FSE: 77I) ("Boosh" or the "Company") a premier plant-based brand in the "better for you" food sector, announces it has entered into a non-binding Letter of Intent and a licensing agreement for the sale and distribution of Beanfields Chips in the US.

Under the terms of the agreement, the licensee will have an exclusive trademark licensing in association with chips, crackers, rings, and bean-based snacks. Boosh will earn a license fee equal to seven (7%) of the cost of goods sold, and be paid an annual license fee of a minimum of $40,000. The licensee will also need to meet annual minimum sales targets.

"The structure of this deal allows us to better focus on Canada and other worldwide sales opportunities. The United States market is very capital intensive and to partner with a well funded company is a great opportunity to assist us in our growth," said Connie Marples, CEO.

As part of the LOI, it is also anticipated that the licensee will loan Beautiful Beanfields Inc. $1,000,000 USD to pay supplier debt. The initial term of the Loan is eighteen (18) months, with the option to extend in one (1) year increments subject to no default and mutual agreement between the parties. Payments shall be interest only at an annual rate of fifteen percent (15%) simple interest. Payments due from purchase order advances will be applied first to the outstanding balance of the Loan until such time as the Loan is paid in full.

Boosh expects to have a definitive agreement in place by July 7th, 2023.

We look forward to providing additional details on this partnership as well as other initiatives over the next several weeks.

Connie Marples

Founder/CEO

[email protected]

Telephone: 778 840 1700

www.Booshfood.com

www.beanfields.com

About Boosh Plant-Based Brands Inc.:



Boosh Plant-Based Brands Inc., through its wholly owned subsidiary, Boosh Food (www.booshfood.com) offers high quality, non-GMO, gluten free, 100% plant-based nutritional comfort foods for the whole family. Through a separate subsidiary, Beautiful Beanfields, (www.beanfields.com) the Company owns Beanfields, a plant-based chip brand sold in over 7,000 stores throughout North America. Boosh, good for you and good for planet earth.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/169991
Dieppe, New Brunswick--(Newsfile Corp. - June 14, 2023) - Colibri Resource Corporation (TSXV: CBI) ("Colibri" or the "Company") is pleased to report that its option partner Tocvan Ventures (CSE:TOC) has additional results from its ongoing bulk sample testing at the Pilar Gold and Silver Project at the Pilar Project in Sonora, Mexico.

Tocvan is in year 4 of a 5-year agreement to earn an initial 51% of Colibri's Pilar Gold & Silver Project. For full details of Colibri's agreement with Tocvan please see the Company's news release dated September 24th, 2019.

Tocvan News Release: (June 13, 2023) - Brodie A. Sutherland, P.Geo. reports:

Highlights

Leaching Process Ongoing, Preliminary Results Confirm Process Actively Recovering Gold and Silver



Gold and Silver Reported in Initial Testing of Carbon Filters Solution Samples Assayed at Two Separate Certified Labs Confirm Grade

Fine Fraction Samples (to be used for Gravity Recovery and Agitated Leach Tests)



New samples range between 1.2 and 4.9 g/t Au, weighted mean of 2.1 g/t Au Silver values range between 5 and 29 g/t Ag, weighted mean of 14.8 g/t Ag Leach Study Returned 95-99% Recovery of Gold; 73-97% Recovery of Ag Metallic Screen Results Show 12.4 to 14.1% of the Gold is Coarse (+140 mesh)



Tocvan Ventures Corp.(CSE: TOC) (OTCQB: TCVNF) (FSE: TV3)(the "Company"), is pleased to provide an update and sampling results from a Bulk Sample being completed at its Pilar gold-silver project in Sonora, Mexico. The Company's field management and technicians remain active with the heap leach process ongoing for the Bulk Sample. Over 800 tonnes of material are being processed through heap leach, an additional 350 tonnes of crushed material and 250 tonnes of raw-bulk sample are available for gravity recovery and later agitated leach testing. Initial results from the first week of leaching highlight the start of gold and silver going into solution for recovery. An onsite laboratory is being used during the program with weekly duplicate samples sent to LTM (Hermosillo) and SGS (Durango). The results confirm the performance of the onsite laboratory and indicate a successful start to the leaching process (see Charts 1 and 2). Results from initial sampling of the carbon material used to filter the leaching solution and capture gold and silver indicate the process is performing well. In addition, 148 samples new samples were collected from the fine fraction of screened material not included in the heap leach pile are showing improved grades of gold and silver, averaging 2.1 g/t Au and 14.8 g/t Ag. The fine fraction along with additional bulk sample material will be used in testing gravity recovery methods with later agitated leach, as suggested by the leaching study completed by LTM, showing potential for the high recovery of both gold and silver (see Table 2). LTM also completed a metallic screen study on the fine fraction material indicating that 12.4 to 14.1% of the Gold and 4.5 to 5.3% of the Silver are distributed within the coarser screened (+140 mesh) material, suggesting that most of the gold and silver is fine but coarse and free gold are still present. All other samples were submitted to ALS Hermosillo for fire assay and ICP analysis. Blanks and standards were submitted into the sample stream as part of the Company's robust QA/QC protocol. The assayed samples total 815.8 kg of fine fraction material.

"As the bulk sample continues, preliminary results are showing the excellent potential of Pilar." stated Brodie Sutherland, CEO. "With each step forward, we are getting a more accurate representation of what kind of grade and recovery potential exist at Pilar, giving us added confidence for the development of the project. We look forward to updating as we continue to evaluate the bulk sample and compare multiple recovery methods to optimize that potential."





Plate 1.A. Bulk Sample heap leach pile. B. Testing solution during leaching. C. Initial loading of carbon in leaching tanks.



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Plate 1.A. Bulk Sample heap leach pile. B. Testing solution during leaching. C. Initial loading of carbon in leaching tanks.



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Table 1. Summary of Metallic Screen Results from Two Tests of the Fine Fraction Material. Data provided by independent, ISO certified, LTM of Hermosillo, Mexico. Up to 14.1% of the gold is showing up in the coarer, +140 mesh screen size .

Sample ID

Au (g/t) Ag (g/t) Au Distribution (%) Ag Distribution (%) 332655 +140 mesh 11.46 21.98 12.44 5.34 -140 mesh 2.68 12.95 87.56 94.66 Calculated Head 2.97 13.24



332656 +140 mesh 8.05 15.27 14.07 4.47 -140 mesh 1.42 9.40 85.93 95.53 Calculated Head 1.60 9.56









Chart 1. Solution Sample Results from initial 53 hours of testing, provided by independent and ISO certified, LTM of Hermosillo, Mexico. Values are for gold (ppm or g/t) displaying a steady progression of concentration from 0.7 ppm to 3.5 ppm. The results match expectations and are expected to taper off slightly over time.



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Chart 2.Comparison of Solution Sample Results from SGS, LTM and Internal Labs confirming grades reported. All show strong correlation with the internal lab reporting the most conservative results.



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Chart 2.Comparison of Solution Sample Results from SGS, LTM and Internal Labs confirming grades reported. All show strong correlation with the internal lab reporting the most conservative results.



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Chart 2.Comparison of Solution Sample Results from SGS, LTM and Internal Labs confirming grades reported. All show strong correlation with the internal lab reporting the most conservative results.



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Diagnostic Leach Study Summary

Full results from the Diagnostic Leach Study are available on the Company's website and in the March 29th news release. A summary is provided below.

Table 2. Summary of Results from the Precious Metals Diagnostic Leach Study completed by LTM.

Sample ID Location Head Screen Assay Gravity Concentrate Assay Total Recoverable by Gravity and Agitated Cyanide Leach



Au (g/t) Ag (g/t) Au (g/t) Ag (g/t) Au (%) Ag (%) 494741 Main Zone (Surface) 6.2 23 76.2 237 95 78 494743 Main Zone (Surface) 8.2 68 117.0 1152 98 97 494745 Main Zone (Surface) 2.7 9 35.6 82 97 90 494747 4-T (Surface) 20.4 74 290.3 568 98 85 494749 Main Zone (Drill Core) 24.9 9 231.1 53 99 73

Brodie A. Sutherland, P.Geo., CEO for Tocvan Ventures Corp. and a qualified person ("QP") as defined by Canadian National Instrument 43-101, has reviewed and approved the technical information contained in this release.

Quality Assurance / Quality Control

Samples were shipped for sample preparation to ALS Limited in Hermosillo, Sonora, Mexico and for analysis at the ALS laboratory in North Vancouver. The ALS Hermosillo and North Vancouver facilities are ISO 9001 and ISO/IEC 17025 certified. Gold was analyzed using 50-gram nominal weight fire assay with atomic absorption spectroscopy finish. Silver and other elements were analyzed using a four-acid digestion with an ICP finish. Control samples comprising certified reference samples and blank samples were systematically inserted into the sample stream and analyzed as part of the Company's robust quality assurance / quality control protocol. Duplicate samples are submitted to LTM (Laboratorio Tecnolgico de Metalurgia), in Hermosillo, Sonora. LTM facilities are an ISO 17025 and ISO 9001:2015 certified lab. Gold and silver are analyzed using 30 g nominal weight fire assay with AA finish for Au and gravimetric determination for Ag. Other elements are analyzed using aqua regia digestion with an ICP finish.

About the Pilar Property

The Pilar Gold-Silver property has recently returned some of the regions best drill results. Coupled with encouraging gold and silver recovery results from metallurgical test work, Pilar is primed to be a potential near-term producer. Pilar is interpreted as a structurally controlled low-sulphidation epithermal system hosted in andesite rocks. Three primary zones of mineralization have been identified in the north-west part of the property from historic surface work and drilling and are referred to as the Main Zone, North Hill and 4-T. The Main Zone and 4-T trends are open to the southeast and new parallel zones have been recently discovered. Structural features and zones of mineralization within the structures follow an overall NW-SE trend of mineralization. Mineralization extends along a 1.2-km trend, only half of that trend has been drill tested so far. To date, over 23,000 m of drilling has been completed.

2022 Phase III Diamond Drilling Highlights include ( all lengths are drilled thicknesses ): 116.9m @ 1.2 g/t Au, including 10.2m @ 12 g/t Au and 23 g/t Ag 108.9m @ 0.8 g/t Au, including 9.4m @ 7.6 g/t Au and 5 g/t Ag 63.4m @ 0.6 g/t Au and 11 g/t Ag, including 29.9m @ 0.9 g/t Au and 18 g/t Ag

2021 Phase II RC Drilling Highlights include ( all lengths are drilled thicknesses ): 39.7m @ 1.0 g/t Au, including 1.5m @ 14.6 g/t Au 47.7m @ 0.7 g/t Au including 3m @ 5.6 g/t Au and 22 g/t Ag 29m @ 0.7 g/t Au 35.1m @ 0.7 g/t Au

2020 Phase I RC Drilling Highlights include ( all lengths are drilled thicknesses ): 94.6m @ 1.6 g/t Au, including 9.2m @ 10.8 g/t Au and 38 g/t Ag; 41.2m @ 1.1 g/t Au, including 3.1m @ 6.0 g/t Au and 12 g/t Ag ; 24.4m @ 2.5 g/t Au and 73 g/t Ag, including 1.5m @ 33.4 g/t Au and 1,090 g/t Ag

15,000m of Historic Core & RC drilling. Highlights include: 16.5m @ 53.5 g/t Au and 53 g/t Ag 13.0m @ 9.6 g/t Au 9.0m @ 10.2 g/t Au and 46 g/t Ag

61.0m @ 0.8 g/t Au

Brodie A. Sutherland, P.Geo., CEO for Tocvan Ventures Corp. and a qualified person ("QP") as defined by Canadian National Instrument 43-101, has reviewed and approved the technical information contained in this release.

ABOUT COLIBRI RESOURCE CORPORATION:

Colibri is a Canadian-based mineral exploration company listed on the TSX-V (CBI) and is focused on acquiring and exploring prospective gold & silver properties in Mexico. The Company holds six highly prospective precious metal projects of which five have planned exploration programs for calendar 2023.

For more information about all Company projects please visit: www.colibriresource.com.

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Notice Regarding Forward-Looking Statements:

This news release contains "forward-looking statements". Statements in this press release which are not purely historical are forward-looking statements and include any statements regarding beliefs, plans, expectations or intentions regarding the future. Actual results could differ from those projected in any forward-looking statements due to numerous factors. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date of this news release, and the Company assumes no obligation to update the forward-looking statements, or to update the reasons why actual results could differ from those projected in the forward-looking statements. Although the Company believes that the plans, expectations and intentions contained in this press release are reasonable, there can be no assurance that they will prove to be accurate.

For information contact: Ronald J. Goguen, President, Chairperson and Director, Tel: (506) 383-4274, [email protected]

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/169964
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - June 14, 2023) - European Energy Metals (TSXV: FIN) (FSE: W28)("European Energy" or the "Company") is pleased to announce the engagement of GeoPool Oy of Vantaa, Finland to implement a community and landowner awareness program and provide Finnish speaking geotechnical personnel for the Company's 2023 exploration program for its Lithium-Cesium-Tantalum ("LCT') and Rare Earth Element ("REE") Finnish Pegmatite Project, consisting of five exploration concessions in central and southern Finland.

"A large portion of Central Finland is held by private landowners and obtaining permission for exploration is a key aspect of successful operation in the country," stated European Energy Metals CEO Jeremy Poirier. "GeoPool Oy is an in-country geological and geotechnical consulting firm with a strong history of operating successfully throughout the country and will be instrumental in assisting Resourceful Geoscience Solutions successfully complete European Energy Metals' 2023 summer exploration campaign," he continued.

GeoPool will be assisting the Company through initial notification and subsequent follow-up with landowners and stakeholders of the Company's exploration activities. GeoPool will also provide two Finnish speaking geotechnicians to assist the Canadian exploration team with field activities and more importantly with communication with local community: landowners, stakeholders and contractors.

A senior GeoPool geologist will also assist in face-to-face contact with as many landowners and people living in or close to the sites as possible, as well as providing local expertise on key area to focus on. More information on GeoPool can be found at https://www.geopool.fi.

European Energy Metals in earning an 80% interest in the Finnish Pegmatite Project from Capella Minerals Ltd (TSXV: CMIL). A detailed assessment of the historic and government exploration data compiled by the Finnish Geological Survey ("GTK") identified a series of permissive tracts for LCT pegmatites. European Energy Metals exploration concessions were identified as a result of this pegmatite research.

R. Tim Henneberry, P.Geo. (BC), a Director of European Energy Metals Corp., is the Qualified Person who has reviewed and approved the technical content disclosed in this release.

About the Finland Pegmatite Project

The Finland Pegmatite Project consists of four exploration concessions in central Finland and one exploration concession in southern Finland. These reservations cover a total area of 2,300 square kilometres and are focused on Lithium-Cesium-Tantalum or LCT pegmatite complexes located within the Jarvi-Pohjanmaa and Seinajoki lithium-permissive tracts as defined by the Geological Survey of Finland (GTK). Four of the reservations (Nabba, Lappajarvi W, Lappajarvi E and Kaatiala) lie immediately adjacent to, and to the south of, Keliber Oy's spodumene mine development project in the Kaustinen district.

Keliber Oy is a consortium, comprised of Sibanye-Stillwater (79%), Finnish Minerals Group (20%) and Finnish shareholders (1%). A Definitive Feasibility Study by Hatch dated June 14, 2018 states a JORC Code 2012 compliant Measured and Indicated Mineral Resource of 9.47 million tonnes at a grade of 1.16% Li 2 O.1

European Energy Metals cautions investors the presence of lithium mineralization at Keliber Oy is not necessarily indicative of similar mineralization at the Nabba concession.

Under the terms of an Earn In Agreement with Capella Minerals Limited (TSXV: CMIL), European Energy may earn an 80% interest in the Finland Pegmatite Project by issuing 2,500,000 shares, paying Cdn$500,000 and incurring Cdn$2,500,000 dollars in exploration expenditures staged over a 4 year earn in period.

1. Definitive Feasibility Study - Executive Summary June 14, 2018 by Hatch. http://mb.cision.com/Public/14755/2547948/b83a99f0255413fe.pdf.

About European Energy Metals Corp.

European Energy Metals. is a junior mining company currently focussed on the Lithium-Cesium-Tantalum Finnish Pegmatite Project in central Finland. Governing bodies in Europe and Finland are legislating environmentally friendly and energy independent laws and policies. One of the key components is access to REE and specifically Lithium. The company is also focusing on its Champ Copper project located in Southeast British Columbia.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT:

Jeremy Poirier, CEO

Telephone: 604-722-9842

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.

Cautionary Statements Regarding Forward-Looking Information

This news release contains forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable securities legislation. Forward-looking information is typically identified by words such as: believe, expect, anticipate, intend, estimate, postulate and similar expressions, or are those, which, by their nature, refer to future events. Such statements include, without limitation, statements regarding the future results of operations, performance and achievements of the Company, including the future planned exploration programs for, and the exploration potential of, the Finland Pegmatite Project. Although the Company believes that such statements are reasonable, it can give no assurances that such expectations will prove to be correct. All such forward-looking information is based on certain assumptions and analyses made by the Company in light of their experience and perception of historical trends, current conditions and expected future developments, as well as other factors management believes are appropriate in the circumstances. This information, however, 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. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ from this forward-looking information include the costs of any anticipated work programs and the ability to fund such costs, required approvals in connection with any work programs and the ability to obtain such approvals, risks inherent in exploration as well as those described under the heading "Risks and Uncertainties" in the Company's most recently filed MD&A. The Company does not intend, and expressly disclaims any obligation to, update or revise the forward-looking information contained in this news release, except as required by law. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking information.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/169745
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - June 14, 2023) - First Hydrogen Corp. (TSXV: FHYD) (OTC Pink: FHYDF) (FSE: FIT) ("FIRST HYDROGEN" or the "Company") proudly announces that it has joined Hydrogne Quebec as a founding member, joining Hyundai, Toyota, HTEC, Air Liquide, Messer, Cummins, Harnois Energies, and Groupe FILGO-SONIC. Partnering with a coalition of companies sharing the same vision will increase the Company's footprint within the emerging Hydrogen industry in Quebec.

First Hydrogen plans to produce up to 35MW of green hydrogen using advanced electrolysis technology and distribute the hydrogen within the Montreal-Quebec City corridor for use with the Company's hydrogen-fuel-cell-powered vehicles (FCEV) as well as supporting other hydrogen-fuelled vehicles and applications in the region. First Hydrogen FCEVs are planned to be assembled in Shawinigan for distribution throughout North America in combination with the Company's Hydrogen as a Service product offering. The assembly factory will be designed for an annual production of 25,000 vehicles per year when at full capacity and will represent a major boost to green technology jobs in the region.

Balraj Mann, Chairman & CEO of First Hydrogen, stated, "It is important for First Hydrogen to work in collaboration with Hydrogene Quebec to educate the Quebec public and motivate stakeholders to invest in hydrogen, for the future of mobility and infrastructure, and to understand its economic opportunities. Moving forward First Hydrogen intends to strongly display the value of a strong presence in Quebec to businesses, governments, and universities."

Michel Archambault, Founding President and Chairman of the Board, Hydrogene Quebec, stated: "We are proud to have First Hydrogen as a founding member of Hydrogene Quebec. Striving to provide green solution with its zero-emission light commercial vehicles assembly factory and hydrogen production, First Hydrogen is a great asset in Quebec's hydrogen ecosystem and will highly benefit from joining Quebec's dynamic hydrogen network."

In addition to being lined up with Hydrogene Quebec's vision, there is also strong alignment between First Hydrogen's plans and the future Energy Transition Valley Innovation Zone, the Hydrogen Research Institute (IRH) of the University of Quebec at Trois-Rivieres and the Quebec Government's Green Hydrogen and Bioenergy Strategy.

Early Warrant Exercise Program

First Hydrogen announces that further to its news release of March 29, 2023 the Company under the Early Warrant Exercise Program will pay Canaccord Genuity Corp. ("CGC") a cash fee of $50,568.75 and will issue CGC an Agent's Warrant entitling them to purchase up to 45,764 common shares exercisable at $4.50 per common share until April 30, 2025, subject to TSX-V approval, as compensation for assisting the Company in exercising 1,123,750 share purchase warrants for gross proceeds $1,011,375.

About First Hydrogen Corp. ( FirstHydrogen.com)

First Hydrogen Corp. is a Vancouver and London UK-based company focused on zero-emission vehicles, green hydrogen production and distribution and supercritical carbon dioxide extractor systems. The Company is designing and building hydrogen-fuel-cell-powered light commercial demonstrator vehicles ("LCV") under two agreements with AVL Powertrain and Ballard Power Systems Inc. The LCV will have a range of 500+ kilometres. At the same time, the company has launched its bespoke vehicle design phase which will develop its fleet of proprietary zero-emission vehicles. First Hydrogen is also developing refueling capability working with FEV Consulting GmbH, the automotive consultancy of FEV Group of Aachen Germany. The Company is also pursuing opportunities in green hydrogen production and distribution in the UK, EU and North America.

About HYDROGENE QUEBEC ( Hydrogene.Quebec)

Hydrogene Quebec is dedicated to the development of a robust Quebec hydrogen ecosystem to contribute to a swift energy transition and decarbonisation of our economy. It brings together more than forty industry leaders and key organisations in research, production, storage and use of hydrogen in all sectors.

On behalf of the Board of Directors of

FIRST HYDROGEN CORP.

"Balraj Mann"

Chairman & Group CEO

Contact:

Balraj Mann

First Hydrogen Corp.

604-601-2018

[email protected]

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements This news release contains information or statements that constitute "forward-looking statements." Such forward looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results, performance or achievements, or developments to differ materially from the anticipated results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are statements that are not historical facts and are generally, but not always, identified by words such as "expects," "plans," "anticipates," "believes," "intends," "estimates," "projects," "potential" and similar expressions, or that events or conditions "will," "would," "may," "could" or "should" occur.

Forward looking information may include, without limitation, statements regarding the operations, business, financial condition, expected financial results, performance, prospects, opportunities, priorities, targets, goals, ongoing objectives, milestones, strategies and outlook of First Hydrogen, and includes statements about, among other things, future developments and the future operations, strengths and strategies of First Hydrogen. Forward-looking information is provided for the purpose of presenting information about management's current expectations and plans relating to the future and readers are cautioned that such statements may not be appropriate for other purposes. These statements should not be read as guarantees of future performance or results.

The forward-looking statements made in this news release are based on management's assumptions and analysis and other factors that may be drawn upon by management to form conclusions and make forecasts or projections, including management's experience and assessments of historical trends, current conditions and expected future developments. Although management believes that these assumptions, analyses and assessments are reasonable at the time the statements contained in this news release are made, actual results may differ materially from those projected in any forward-looking statements. Examples of risks and factors that could cause actual results to materially differ from forward-looking statements may include: the timing and unpredictability of regulatory actions; regulatory, legislative, legal or other developments with respect to its operations or business; limited marketing and sales capabilities; early stage of the industry and product development; limited products; reliance on third parties; unfavourable publicity or consumer perception; general economic conditions and financial markets; the impact of increasing competition; the loss of key management personnel; capital requirements and liquidity; access to capital; the timing and amount of capital expenditures; the impact of COVID-19; shifts in the demand for First Hydrogen's products and the size of the market; patent law reform; patent litigation and intellectual property; conflicts of interest; and general market and economic conditions.

The forward-looking information contained in this news release represents the expectations of First Hydrogen as of the date of this news release and, accordingly, is subject to change after such date. Readers should not place undue importance on forward-looking information and should not rely upon this information as of any other date. First Hydrogen undertakes no obligation to update these forward-looking statements in the event that management's beliefs, estimates or opinions, or other factors, should change.

NEITHER TSX VENTURE EXCHANGE NOR ITS REGULATION SERVICE PROVIDER (AS THAT TERM IS DEFINED IN THE POLICIES OF THE TSX VENTURE EXCHANGE) ACCEPTS RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE ADEQUACY OR ACCURACY OF THIS RELEASE

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/169883
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - June 14, 2023) - K9 Gold Corp. (TSXV: KNC) (FSE: 5GP) (OTCQB: WDFCF) ("K9" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that it has acquired an additional 25 claims (1274 ha) by direct staking as part of the Company's JB Lithium Project in the James Bay Region of northern Quebec. This will bring the total project holdings to 6692 Ha in 130 claims. An aggressive summer exploration is now planned and is fully funded.

The Lac Laribosire-Tilly (LL-T) property (the "Property") is located approximately 60 km due north of the previously announced Lac Joubert-Tilly (LJ-T) property on the JB Li Project. The LL-T property is located approximately 380 km east of Radisson, Quebec. Other projects in the area include Allkem's James Bay lithium project, which recently received federal approval for development, Patriot Battery Metals Corvette project located 50 km to the west and Winsome Resources Lithium Adina project located approximately 40 km to the west. The LL-T property is underlain by a package of Archaean rocks that is similar to the geological setting of the Corvette and Adina projects, and includes outcrops of Tilly pegmatites, a known host of lithium in the James Bay region.

K9 has recently completed a helicopter-borne magnetometer and VLF survey on the project. Results will be reported on completion of data interpretation. A LiDAR and photogrammetry survey is scheduled for the project in early June 2023, to be followed by an extensive program of soil sampling, prospecting and mapping. However this may be delayed as the Quebec Ministere des Ressources Naturelles et des Forets has recently placed a ban on all field work due to the forest fire situation.

Jeff Poloni, President and CEO of K9 commented, "We are very excited to add to our JB Lithium Project in an area that is turning out to be extremely prolific for Lithium exploration."

About JB Lithium Project

The JB Lithium Project is located in the La Grande sub-province of the Archaean Superior Province in Quebec, and comprises three units, the Riviere Salomon property (see Company release November 15, 2022 for property details), the Lac Joubert - Tilly property (see Company release May 25, 2023) and the newly staked Lac Laribosiere-Tilly.

Lac Laribosiere-Tilly (LL-T)property

The geology of the LL-T property is underlain mainly by the Archean Joubert Suite and the Neoarchean Coates Suite. Where the Joubert Suite occurs on the property, it consists of a package of foliated, banded or gneissic biotite-tonalite and granodiorite. The rocks of the Coates suite have been described as biotite tonalite or granodiorite.

Within the property boundaries, both the Joubert suite and the Coates suite have been intruded by a broad zone of Tilly Pegmatites which comprise pegmatitic granite with biotite-muscovite-tourmaline-magnetite-garnet assemblages. These pegmatites are a significant lithium target for other explorers in this area. A 1998 Quebec Government geological mapping program located one outcrop of Tilly Pegmatites. Government mapping also indicates that the property is transected by diabase dykes of the Mistassini Dyke Swarm.

About K9 Gold Corp

K9 Gold Corp has assembled a highly-experienced and dynamic team to explore its JB Lithium Project. K9 also operates the Stony Lake Gold Project in central Newfoundland. The project has been acquired from District Copper Corp by an option agreement, whereby K9 can earn up to a 100% interest in the project (see Company release dated July 30, 2020). The Company also owns a 100% interest in the Desert Eagle Vanadium-Uranium project located in the historic Henry Mountains Mining District in SE Utah. The area has seen extensive historic vanadium and uranium mining and is close to Anfield Energy Inc's Shootaring Canyon mill.

To ensure a safe workplace environment that protects the health and safety of employees and contractors, K9 Gold follows all federally and provincially mandated and recommended guidelines regarding COVID-19.

Chris M. Healey, P. Geo, Chief Geologist and a Director of K9 Gold Corp., is the qualified person under NI 43-101 guidelines who is responsible for the technical content of this release and approves its release.

Toll Free Number: (833) 434-GOLD (4653)

Kosta Tsoutsis

Director

K9 Gold Corp.

email: [email protected]

Telephone: 604 808-9134

Brian Morrison

Chief Financial Officer and Director

K9 Gold Corp.

email: [email protected]

telephone: 604 312-6910

The Company is listed on the TSX Venture Exchange.

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.

Disclaimer for Forward-Looking Information

Certain statements in this release are forward-looking statements, which reflect the expectations of management regarding K9's intention to continue to identify potential transactions and make certain corporate changes and applications. Forward-looking statements consist of statements that are not purely historical, including any statements regarding beliefs, plans, expectations or intentions regarding the future. Such statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results, performance or developments to differ materially from those contained in the statements. No assurance can be given that any of the events anticipated by the forward-looking statements will occur or, if they do occur, what benefits K9 will obtain from them. These forward-looking statements reflect managements' current views and are based on certain expectations, estimates and assumptions which may prove to be incorrect. A number of risks and uncertainties could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements, including K9's inability to identify transactions having satisfactory terms or at all and the results of exploration or review of properties that K9 does acquire. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date of this news release and K9 assumes no obligation to update these forward-looking statements, or to update the reasons why actual results differed from those projected in the forward-looking statements, except in accordance with applicable securities laws.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/169784
Calgary, Alberta--(Newsfile Corp. - June 14, 2023) - Lycos Energy Inc. (TSXV: LCX) ("Lycos" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that Geri Greenall was elected to the Company's board of directors at the annual general and special meeting (the "Annual Meeting") of shareholders of Lycos held earlier today.

Ms. Greenall is currently a director of Kelt Exploration Ltd. and the Chief Financial Officer of Spartan Delta Corp. She has over 22 years of experience in the energy and financial services sectors, including over a decade of experience as a Portfolio Manager and Chief Compliance Officer for investment fund managers and a strong background in both public equity analysis and commodity trading.

Ms. Greenall holds a Bachelor of Commerce in Finance from the University of Calgary as well as the Chartered Financial Analyst and Institute of Corporate Directors designations. Ms. Greenall also holds the FSA Level 1 Credential from the Sustainable Accounting Standards Board.

The Company also announces that Mr. Don Cowie, who decided not to stand for re-election at the Annual Meeting, has retired from the Company's board of directors. The Company's board of directors and management team would like to thank Mr. Cowie for his leadership and valuable contributions made over the last decade and thank him for his years of service.

All other items of business put forward to shareholders at the Annual Meeting were approved. For further details, please review the management information circular of Lycos dated May 1, 2023 under the Company's SEDAR profile at www.sedar.com.

Additional Information

For further information, please contact:

Lycos Energy Inc.

Dave Burton

President and CEO

T: (403) 616-3327

E: [email protected]

Lindsay Goos

VP Finance & Chief Financial Officer

T: (403) 542-3183

E: [email protected]

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/170049
Featuring Critical Metals Day on June 20, 2023

Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - June 14, 2023) - Nickel Creek Platinum Corp (TSX: NCP) is a Canadian mining exploration and development company focused on advancing its 100%-owned Nickel Shw Project towards becoming Canada's next world-class nickel sulphide mine. Located in the Yukon, the Company's asset is host to over 2.5 billion pounds of nickel, 1.3 billion pounds of copper, 7.0 million ounces of platinum group metals ("PGM's") and 137 million pounds of cobalt in the measured and indicated categories positioning the Company well for the rapidly growing demand for these urbanization commodities. The Company is pleased to announce that it will be participating in THE Mining Investment Event of the North, June 19-21, 2023, (THE Event) at the Fairmont Chateau Frontenac and Voltigeurs de Quebec Armoury in Quebec City, Canada.

Management from Nickel Creek Platinum Corp will be holding one-on-one investor meetings throughout the three-day conference. Interested parties should contact Jennifer Choi at [email protected] to inquire about registering to attend.

Information regarding THE Event including investor registration details, a list of participating companies, panelists and keynote speakers and a preliminary agenda can be found here https://vidconferences.com/conferences-events/tier-1-mining-conference/.

THE Mining Investment Event of the North is Canadas only tier 1 Global Mining Investment Conference and hosted annually in Quebec City, Canada. THE Event is invitation only and is independently sponsored by the Government of Quebec, and financial and mining communities at large. THE Event is designed to specifically facilitate privately arranged meetings between mining companies, international investors, and various mining government authorities. THE Event is committed to promoting sustainability in the mining industry through education and innovation through unique Student Sponsorships, She-Co Initiatives, highlighting ESG and equality issues and by providing a platform for some of most influential thought leaders in the sector. The agenda, brochure, participating companies, speakers & panelists, initiatives and registration applications for issuers and investors may be found here: https://vidconferences.com/conferences-events/tier-1-mining-conference/

Interested parties please contact Jennifer Choi, [email protected]

Joanne Jobin

Principal & Founder

IR.INC & VID Media Incorporated

[email protected]

Jennifer Choi

Vice President, Operations

IR.INC & VID Media Incorporated

[email protected]

Brhett Booker

Associate

VID Media Incorporated

[email protected]

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Reyna Law Firm (682-251-1981) has announced its truck accident injury claim representation services in Dallas, Texas.

Dallas, Texas--(Newsfile Corp. - June 14, 2023) - Aiming to bolster the legal options available to local truck accident victims, Reyna Law Firm at its Dallas offices has announced legal guidance and representation in accordance with the latest regulatory developments. The firm hosts those injured in collisions involving big rigs and other heavyweight commercial vehicles with the intent of outlining the direction their legal case could take.

For more information see https://www.reynainjurylaw.com/dallas

Reyna Law Firm Announces Dallas Truck Driver Accident Personal Injury Services

To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/8814/169220_7e76743c342a485c_001full.jpg

The firm's new services involve the aid of its personal injury attorneys in mapping out suitable strategies for appropriate compensatory amounts.

A truck accident can leave survivors in need of long-term care - while loss of employment or the inability to work are other unfortunate consequences that past clients have faced due to paralysis or dismemberment.

"After a truck accident, victims could spend weeks in the hospital and then face a future of rehab and surgeries - all of which hamper one's quality of life," said JR Reyna. "At Reyna Law Firm, we care about getting the legal work done and carrying out an exhaustive investigation right away so that no stone is unturned in the quest for compensation."

With the goal of securing sums that fairly compensate for the pain and suffering that truck accident victims are going through, Reyna Law Firm's team is able to correspond with trucking companies, insurers, and local Dallas healthcare providers.

With the latest announcement, Reyna Law Firm hopes that, by entrusting the stressful minutiae of their injury claim process to its attorneys, accident victims can put more focus on getting back to health.

Interested parties throughout the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex can learn further details about Reyna Law Firm or book appointments for its new services at https://www.reynainjurylaw.com/

Contact Info:

Name: James Lewis

Email: [email protected]

Organization: Reyna Law Firm Dallas

Address: 17330 Preston Road #200 D, Dallas, Tx 75252, United States

Website: https://www.reynainjurylaw.com/dallas

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/169220
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - June 14, 2023) - Rome Resources Ltd. (TSXV: RMR) (FSE: 33R) ("Rome" or the "Company") is pleased to provide an update of its exploration activities at the Bisie North Tin Project ("BNTP"). The BNTP is comprised of two contiguous properties, exploration permits PR 13274 and PR 15130, which are situated in the Walikale District of the North Kivu Province in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo ("DRC").

Key Observations from drilling at the Mont Agoma and Kalayi Prospects

Initial drilling at Mont Agoma comprising a total of 15 diamond drill holes (one abandoned at 46m) testing 300m of the potential 1,200m high grade tin in soil anomaly (>40ppm Sn) completed. Drilling has successfully identified a large sulphide mineralised system.

Tin mineralisation has been identified in all drill holes within a central "tin, copper and zinc" zone or an eastern "tin" zone. Most recent drill holes indicate tin and copper mineralisation increasing in grade and width at depth (assays pending) . Visual tin mineralisation (cassiterite) observed in all deep holes. Copper mineralisation appears to be leached near surface while strong visual copper (chalcopyrite and chalcocite) observed at deeper levels.

Tin mineralisation open to the northwest, southeast and at depth . Best potential for significant tin mineralisation appears to be at depths exceeding 100 to 150m below surface, comparable with elevation of Alphamin's nearby world class Mpama deposits.

Initial drilling beneath the artisanal workings at the Kalayi Prospect also undertaken, testing 150m of the associated 2,000m tin in soil anomaly. Tin mineralisation (visible cassiterite) identified in two holes (assays pending).

Assay results for Mont Agoma (10 drill holes) and Kalayi (2 drill holes) expected in July 2023 .

Planning for next phase of drilling underway.

CEO and President Mark Gasson commented: "The initial drilling at Mont Agoma and Kalayi has identified several mineralised structures with excellent potential to host significant tin and copper mineralisation. Previous assay results reported in early May were from shallow intercepts of the eastern "tin" zone and the near surface continuation of the "tin, copper and zinc" zone at Mont Agoma. Deeper drilling has since identified visible cassiterite and chalcopyrite / chalcocite in a majority of holes. We eagerly await assay results from recent holes that are expected to show tin and copper mineralisation increasing in grade and width at depth.

Metal zonation is characteristic of many tin mineralised occurrences with associated arsenic and base metals such as copper, zinc and lead, and we have found similar zonation at Mont Agoma. All indications to date suggest that we are at the upper level of the mineralised system and with potential for the discovery of substantial tin mineralisation at depth.

Initial indications from drilling at Kalayi are also highly encouraging and we look forward to further testing of the potential 2km strikelength."

Figure 1: Tin in Soil Anomaly at the Bisie North Tin Project showing 3 Main Prospects. (Note: The extent of the Anomaly which covers ~5km)

To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

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Diamond Drilling at the Mont Agoma Prospect

The phase 1 drilling program was designed to test ~300m of potential strike of the newly defined high grade, contiguous tin in soil anomaly at the Mont Agoma Prospect, which is a high-level tin in soil geochemical anomaly (>40ppm Sn), with soil samples returning up to 0.2% Sn and covers a strike length of circa 1,200m (Figure 1). The anomaly lies adjacent to the interpreted source granites in a similar geological setting as Alphamin's Mpama North and South deposits which lie approximately 8km to the south.

The Company has now completed a total of 15 diamond drill holes (one abandoned at 46m) for 2,938.5m (Figure 2). Assay results for the first four holes drilled were received in May (refer news release dated 8 May 2023). For the remaining 10 drill holes sampling has been prioritised according to visible mineralisation with guidance from the Niton XRF. All priority samples have been sent to Lubumbashi for sample preparation and then dispatch to ALS Global in Johannesburg for analysis. Results are expected in July.

The limited drilling to date has defined multiple sub-parallel zones which are strongly mineralised in tin, copper, zinc and lead within a broader 200 - 250m wide sulphide mineralised system. Tin mineralisation has been intersected in discrete zones, together with zinc mineralisation or together with zinc and copper mineralisation.

Metal zoning is typical of the style of mineralisation apparent at Mont Agoma. Mpama would lie within the deeper tin zone and reported anomalous zinc and copper mineralisation associated with the tin mineralisation while San Rafael started as a copper mine at surface which graded through a transition zone of copper and tin and today is one of the world's biggest producing tin mines from deeper levels.

As previously reported (refer news release 8 May 2023) drill hole MADD010A intersected a significant (29m) zone enriched in tin (including visible cassiterite) and strong visual copper from 146m downhole. Recently completed drill hole MADD015A was drilled approximately 50 metres below MADD010A and intersected a significant 20m zone also enriched in tin (including visible cassiterite) and strong visual copper (refer Figure 3). Allowing for typical pinching and swelling along the mineralised structure, a narrow zone of near surface tin mineralisation has developed into a broad zone (ranging from ~5m to ~30m width) of enriched tin and copper at depth. Assays for MADD010A and MADD010A are pending.

Hole MADD014 was drilled 50m to the southeast of hole MADD010A and intersected the tin and copper zone at much shallower levels than expected. Near surface tin mineralisation was identified over 15m from Niton XRF readings within the tin zone (40m downhole) and the tin and copper zone was identified over 17m from 73m.

Tin mineralisation at the Mont Agoma Prospect is open to the northwest, southeast and at depth, and as noted drilling indicates the tin and copper mineralisation is increasing in grade and width at depth.

The Company is now planning the next phase of drilling at the Mont Agoma Prospect which will be refined once all outstanding drill results have been reported. Infill soil sampling programmes will also be undertaken to assist in planning of new drill holes along the strike extension of the currently defined mineralisation, as well as to follow up on lower order tin in soil anomalies which, when combined with the priority anomalies, cover 5 km on the BNTP as shown in Figure 1.

Figure 2: Diamond Drill Hole Collar Positions on the Mont Agoma Tin in Soil Anomaly

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Figure 3: Section 1 Across MADD002, MADD007, MADD005 and MADD010A and MADD015A showing Multiple Tin and Base Metal Mineralised Structures which cover more than 200m Width and remain Open at Depth.

To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

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Diamond Drilling at the Kalayi and Mont Agoma NW Prospects

Four diamond holes were drilled for a total of 463.5m beneath the artisanal workings at the Kalayi Prospect where previous channel sampling reported up to 1m at 11% Sn. Drilling tested 150m of the associated 2,000m tin in soil anomaly.

Tin mineralisation was identified from Niton XRF readings and visible cassiterite in two holes and is strongly associated with quartz veining as shown in Figure 4. Two significant zones were identified in KBDD003, a near surface 13m wide zone from 40m which is the focus of artisanal mining and a second 3m wide zone from 71m. Initial indications on the Kalayi target are highly encouraging and more drilling is required to better understand the pinch and swell geometry of the host mineralised structure along strike and downdip.

Two diamond holes were also drilled beneath the abandoned artisanal workings at the Mont Agoma NW Prospect. No significant mineralisation was intersected.

All priority samples have been sent to Lubumbashi for sample preparation and dispatch to ALS Global in Johannesburg for analysis. First results are expected in July.

Follow up programs along the strike extension of the currently defined mineralisation at Kalayi and the historic artisanal workings at Mont Agoma NW are being planned.





Figure 4: Photograph of a Cassiterite (brown mineral inside circle) and Quartz Vein in Broken Core intersected in KBDD003 at the Kalayi Prospect



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Collar Data of Completed Holes

The collar data of the holes completed, are listed in Tables 1 and 2. The collars have been sited using a handheld GPS and will be surveyed by a qualified surveyor at a later stage. The coordinate system used is UTM35SWGS84.

Figure 5: Drilling at Mont Agoma

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QP Statement

Dr Deon Vermaakt is a consultant of Rome Resources Ltd and qualified geologist and is a registered Professional Natural Scientist (Geological Science) with the South African Council for Natural Scientific Professions (SACNASP Reg. No. 400074/03). Dr Vermaakt is a qualified person (QP) under NI 43-101 and has reviewed and approved the scientific and technical information contained in this news release.

About Rome Resources

Rome Resources Ltd. is a mineral exploration company that has entered into two option agreements and a binding term sheet to acquire direct and indirect interests in two contiguous properties situated in the Walikale District of the North Kivu Province in eastern DRC, which are collectively referred to as the "Bisie North Tin Project". Rome intends to fund exploration on the project up to the completion of a definitive feasibility study.

Contacts

Investors / Shareholders

Mark Gasson

President, CEO & Director

P: (604) 687-6140

Media



E: [email protected]

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

The information in this news release may include certain information and statements about management's view of future events, expectations, plans and prospects that may constitute forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are based upon assumptions that are subject to significant risks and uncertainties. Because of these risks and uncertainties and as a result of a variety of factors, the actual results, expectations, achievements or performance may differ materially from those anticipated and indicated by these forward-looking statements. Although Rome Resources Ltd believes that the expectations reflected in forward-looking statements are reasonable, it can give no assurances that the expectations of any forward-looking statements will prove to be correct. Except as required by law, Rome Resources Ltd disclaims any intention and assumes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements to reflect actual results, whether as a result of new information, future events, changes in assumptions, changes in factors affecting such forward-looking statements or otherwise.

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Not for distribution to United States newswire services or for dissemination in the United States.

Annexure 1

Table 1: Drill Hole Details at the Mont Agoma Prospect

Hole ID Easting Northing RL (m) Azi  Dip  EOH (m) MADD001 578764 9891547 852 230 -60 254.5 MADD002 578733 9891586 847 230 -60 279 MADD003 578755 9891675 842 230 -60 116.5 MADD004 578816 9891590 843 230 -60 27 MADD005 578783 9891627 837 230 -60 300 MADD006 578678 9891608 855 230 -60 87 MADD007 578729 9891598 854 50 -50 225 MADD008 578691 9891751 827 230 -60 222 MADD009 578856 9891560 824 230 -60 150 MADD004A 578815 9891590 843 230 -60 166 MADD010 578825 9891676 805 230 -60 48 MADD010A 578824 9891676 805 230 -60 223 MADD011 578796 9891712 827 230 -60 148 MADD012 578758 9891748 818 230 -60 160 MADD013 578795 9891712 827 230 -75 46 MADD014 578846 9891621 812 230 -60 222.5 MADD015 578865 9891715 787 240 -55 28.5 MADD015A 578865 9891715 787 230 -55 235



Annexure 2

Table 1: Drill Hole Details at the Kalayi and Mont Agoma NW Prospects

Hole ID Easting Northing RL (m) Azi  Dip  EOH (m) KBDD001 577729 9891829 818 230 -50 126.7 KBDD002 577727 9891790 812 230 -50 96.4 KBDD003 577675 9891903 850 230 -50 120.2 KBDD004 577645 9891942 852 230 -50 120.2 MANDD001 578094 9891942 828 220 -50 129.2 MANDD002 578058 9891979 843 220 -50 137.7

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Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - June 14, 2023) - Safe Supply Streaming Co. Ltd. ("Safe Supply" or "SSSC" or "the Company"), the leading global pharmaceutical and healthcare streaming company focused on the third wave of the ongoing international de-scheduling of narcotics and plant medicine, is pleased to share an update on its international initiatives to bring safe supply and related harm reduction programs to communities internationally.

As a result of the growing number of governments at various levels implementing new and forward-thinking regulations to tackle the damage from drug abuse: safe supply and related harm reduction programs, SSSC has prioritized its international initiatives to be positioned at the forefront in the development of the safe supply eco-system, which allows the Company to rapidly develop into the partner of choice for governments and advocates of harm reduction.

Significant funds are being made available to implement new programs that have been proven to deliver better results in terms of harm reduction to individuals and society when compared to the status quo (The War on Drugs). Additionally, SSSC believes that it has become apparent that safe supply is no longer only the purview of direct stakeholders.

Bill Panagiotakopoulos, Safe Supply Streaming Co. CEO, commented, "We are encouraged to see an increasing number of countries adopting the principles of safe supply. This pragmatic, evidence-based approach has significant advantages over the status quo. We are witnessing a major change in governmental approaches to tackling the harm done by drug abuse, with the damage in Canada alone reaching nearly $50 billion annually. It is clear that this new approach has much greater efficacy than the global war on drugs, which has cost about $1 trillion to date. It is encouraging that major population centres such as Bern, Toronto, Hamilton, Vancouver are now looking to implement broad and well supported harm reduction programs. We at Safe Supply Streaming Co will be working with governments and private enterprises to bring new solutions to those jurisdictions adopting safe supply by investing along the value chain to help build this new eco-system."

Setti Coscarella, VP Corporate Development, stated, "International momentum is there to push the implementation of safe supply. This will require consultation with international experts, and Safe Supply Streaming Co is being recognized as such. We are working directly with governments and other international stakeholders to shape the eco-system and help implement life-saving programs. Through our streaming model, we will be able to invest in and support in effective and efficient solution providers, thus creating growth and revenue opportunities for the Company."

Highlighted International Initiatives

SSSC has a global outlook and is in active discussions across the globe to help governments build the eco-system required for the effective and efficient implementation of these initiatives. SSSC is at the forefront of this movement. In part, our aim is to provide innovative solutions that ensure the safe delivery of essential medications and substances to patients worldwide. Furthermore, the Company will focus on bringing other proven products and solutions that support the eco-system, such as testing strips, treatment and new pharmaceuticals. By collaborating with renowned industry professionals, lobbyists, and politicians, the Company is actively involved in shaping legislation and regulations to support the roll-out of safe supply and other harm reduction programs.

With its global strategy, the Company is positioned to positively impact the way medications and substances, as well as treatment and other harm reduction measures are delivered, ensuring the well-being and safety of people worldwide.

Peru

The Company's management team recently visited with the world's only government owned legal supplier of coca leaf, Peru's ENACO.

Through its strong business and political connections, the Company was able to assist one of SSSC's designated portfolio companies in securing a supply arrangement with ENACO, while at the same time being able to demonstrate the quality of its network to ENACO and other critical partners in the safe supply eco-system.

Founded in 1949, ENACO is a Peruvian state company dedicated to the commercialization of the coca leaf and its derivatives. ENACO annually exports approximately 150,000 kg of coca leaf, predominantly to Stepan Company in New Jersey, U.S. who processes the leaf and supplies the medical industry as well as Coca Cola.

As a streaming company, Safe Supply is working with a number of designated portfolio companies to build the safe-supply eco-system, as well as pursue additional opportunities created by the decriminalization of narcotics in certain jurisdictions. To this end, the Company has been assisting a Canadian company in the coca space who are looking to supply coca-derived nutraceuticals, flavoring agents and fertilizer (all applications that require decocanization of the leaf).

United States

As part of its strategy, the Company is actively collaborating with lobbyists and politicians in the United States to shape legislation that enables and supports safe supply businesses. Furthermore, the Company continues to advance relationships with ancillary businesses associated with narcotics and addiction to identify and potentially invest in these companies to further strengthen the safe supply and harm reduction offering. The focus is on developing effective solutions, including fentanyl test strips and addiction counselling, to combat the opioid crisis and provide comprehensive support to individuals and communities affected by substance abuse.

With deaths from contaminated drug supply accelerating to nearly 300 per day in the U.S., the fentanyl test strip market has experienced rapid growth in recent years, reflecting the need for effective solutions that provide individuals and communities the ability to detect and prevent fentanyl-related overdoses. The company is committed to exploring opportunities to contribute to the accessibility of fentanyl test strips, ensuring their availability to individuals and organizations at risk of fentanyl exposure.

SSSC has engaged extensively with U.S. based institutions and family offices to discuss the safe supply and harm reduction eco-system and how it intends to play an important role in providing funding and other support to the sector through its streaming investment model.

As the Company rolls out its international strategy, the U.S. will be an important focus area for the identification of new technologies and solutions that SSSC intends to make part of its eco-system, while at the same time forming an important source of highly interested capital. Longer term, the Company anticipates the U.S. to become an important focus area for its safe supply initiatives as evidence-based solutions continue to gain traction in that market also.

Dubai

During a visit to Dubai, our executive team engaged in strategic discussions with industry leaders, exploring potential collaborations and partnerships. These interactions further solidified Safe Supply's commitment to pioneering advancements in the pharmaceutical and healthcare sectors. In particular, the team met with leaders in the fields of CBD, cannabis, psychedelics, and safe supply and the trip has positioned the Company to explore and act quickly on opportunities in this region.

Switzerland

Switzerland, since the early nineties, has been a trailblazer in its approach to drug abuse. While law enforcement continues to be one of the four pillars of its program, measures to support prevention, treatment and harm reduction have been utilized successfully, as a 50%, reduction in overdose deaths, a 65% reduction in HIV infections and an 80% in new heroin users clearly show.

While recognizing the harmful nature of cocaine, Bern's municipal council voted overwhelmingly in favour of a motion to commence a pilot project for the supervised sale of cocaine. Even though this is only one municipality, as the capital of Switzerland, what happens in Bern will be closely followed and, upon successful outcomes, be implemented elsewhere.

The supply of uncontaminated narcotics, testing kits, treatment, etc. all have proven significantly more efficacious than the status quo. While not condoning nor promoting drug use, safe supply and its derivative programs save lives, reduce harm and the overall cost to society.

As SSSC remains committed to its global strategy for safe supply, it will continue to evaluate the evolving landscape and explore potential collaborations with stakeholders invested in advancing harm reduction measures. Through these endeavors, the Company seeks to contribute to the development of responsible and evidence-based approaches that prioritize the safety and well-being of individuals within the context of the broader healthcare industry.

About Safe Supply Streaming Co

Safe Supply Streaming is the pre-eminent company tackling the systemic illicit drug problem that has been plaguing society for over 50 years. We are a healthcare / pharmaceutical investment company that is led by a world-class management team with decades of experience operating in regulated markets.

Our company is focused on working with Health Canada, and all levels of the Canadian Government to invest, finance, partner, and/or joint venture with a portfolio of companies that operate across the Safe Supply ecosystem.

This ecosystem is vast and includes opportunities in: laboratories, import/export of regulated products, manufacturing and processing of regulated products, government sponsored real estate, rehabilitation facilities, pharmaceutical development, treatment clinics and more. This burgeoning ecosystem is being designed, with oversight from local, provincial and federal government agencies, to curb the socioeconomic harm caused by the illicit drug supply which is causing deaths at an increasingly alarming rate.

On behalf of the board of directors

Bill Panagiotakopoulos

Chief Executive Officer and Director

Safe Supply Streaming Co. Ltd.

[email protected]

For more information

Marc Lakmaaker

AdvanceCap Inc

T: +1.647.289.6640

E: [email protected]

Forward-Looking Information and Statements

Certain statements in this news release related to the Company are forward-looking statements and are prospective in nature, including but not limited to the express or implied statements and assumptions regarding the intention of Origin and Safe Supply to complete the Transaction and the Private Placement. Forward-looking statements are not based on historical facts, but rather on current expectations and projections about future events and are therefore subject to risks and uncertainties which could cause actual results to differ materially from the future results expressed

or implied by the forward-looking statements. In particular, there is no guarantee that the parties will successfully enter into the Definitive Agreement or complete the Transaction or Private Placement contemplated herein, that Origin will obtain any of the required shareholder or regulatory approvals, including the listing of the Resulting Issuer Shares on the CSE. These forward-looking statements generally can be identified by the use of forward-looking words such as "may", "should", "could", "intend", "estimate", "plan", "anticipate", "expect", "believe", "will" or "continue", or the negative thereof or similar variations. There are numerous risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results and the Company's and Safe Supply's plans and objectives to differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking information, including but not limited to adverse market conditions and risks inherent in the Company's and Safe Supply's business in general. Actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such information. These and all subsequent written and oral forward-looking information are based on estimates and opinions of management on the dates they are made and are expressly qualified in their entirety by this press release. Except as required by applicable law, the Company and Safe Supply do not intend to update these forward-looking statements.

The Canadian Securities Exchange has neither approved nor disapproved the contents of this news release and accepts no responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy hereof.

THIS NEWS RELEASE IS INTENDED FOR DISTRIBUTION IN CANADA ONLY AND IS NOT INTENDED FOR DISTRIBUTION TO UNITED STATES NEWSWIRE SERVICES OR DISSEMINATION IN THE UNITED STATES.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/170010
"Further reductions in ration size are impossible; our only solution is to reduce the number of recipients," said WFP Syria Director Ken Crossley in a statement. "The people we serve have endured the ravages of conflict, fleeing their homes, losing family members and their livelihoods. Without our assistance, their hardships will only intensify."

The World Food Program said Tuesday it will be forced to end food assistance to 2.5 million Syrians next month if it does not receive at least $180 million in donations to fund programs through the end of this year.

The WFP currently assists 5.5 million people in Syria. Without the drastic cuts, the agency says it would run out of food completely by October.

After more than a decade of conflict, a spiraling economic crisis and a series of deadly earthquakes in February, many Syrians are barely getting by. The WFP says even those who receive regular food assistance are struggling to cope.

Overall, the United Nations says 15.3 million people -- or 70 percent of the population -- need some form of humanitarian assistance. More than half the population are food insecure, and malnutrition and childhood stunting are reaching unprecedented levels.

On Wednesday and Thursday, the European Union will host a ministerial conference in Brussels focusing on "Supporting the future of Syria and the region." The conference aims to revitalize international political and financial support for Syrians in their country and in host countries.
Denver, Colorado--(Newsfile Corp. - June 14, 2023) - Renowned e-commerce service brand TKOKI has recently unveiled a multi-item procurement service agreement specifically tailored for TikTok sellers.

The program aims to provide supply chain solutions and support for e-commerce sellers operating on the TikTok platform.

TKOKI is a reputable e-commerce company headquartered in Colorado, USA, specializing in providing direct supply chain services to TikTok e-commerce sellers. TKOKI has entered into multiple procurement agreements with various TikTok sellers from the UK and Indonesia, ensuring a stable channel for the supply of electronic products in 2024. Under these agreements, TKOKI will collaborate with several partner factories to offer sellers high-quality smartphones, tablets, and other electronic devices.

TikTok e-commerce sellers come from various corners of the world and have a strong presence in countries/regions like the UK, Vietnam, the Philippines, and Indonesia. That's why TKOKI has entered into multiple procurement agreements with TikTok e-commerce sellers. When TikTok sellers receive orders from buyers, they simply forward the order details to TKOKI. TKOKI then coordinates with the factories to ensure seamless order fulfillment.

May was a pivotal moment for TKOKI as it reached multiple procurement agreements with TikTok sellers, further enhancing trust and confidence in TKOKI's services among many TikTok sellers. These procurement agreements provide a solid foundation for order channels in the coming year.

Through these procurement agreements, TKOKI establishes partnerships with reliable manufacturers and suppliers worldwide. For more information about TKOKI's new service program for TikTok sellers and its solutions, please visit https://tkoki.org or contact [email protected].

Looking ahead, TKOKI is eager to expand its services beyond TikTok and welcome e-commerce sellers from other platforms. TKOKI will continue to strive to become a trusted partner for sellers worldwide.

Media Contact

Contact: Smith Owen

Company Name: Tkoki E-commerce Limited

Website: https://tkoki.org

Email: [email protected]

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/169743
Montreal, Quebec--(Newsfile Corp. - June 14, 2023) - TPA Project Finance, a newly formed provider of worldwide project funding solutions, announced its newest program for project financing, registered through the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) under CIK Filing Number #: 021-483556, under subsidiary HighLine Gold, LLC. With a strong commitment to facilitating project funding across diverse industries, TPA Project Finance hopes to offer an efficient and expedited alternative to traditional banking institutions.

TPA Project Finance

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TPA track record is tied to its extensive network of global investors attached to its parent company, TPA Gold Corporation, which has functioned as a institutional precious metals dealer in Hong Kong for over a decade.

TPA Project Finance hopes to leverage their SEC registered Regulation D 506 private placements while ensuring compliance with rigorous regulatory standards, for confidence and trust among its clients.

"TPA Project Finance is new to the project funding landscape, and by offering a fully registered program, we really hope to make a splash," stated Clark Willis, the company's spokesperson. "Our commitment to transparency and compliance underscores our dedication to the success of our clients. We understand the urgency of project funding requirements and strive to close transactions at an accelerated pace. Our hope is to surpass the timeframes typically associated with traditional banking channels and really compete."

TPA Project Finance's streamlined approach can enable clients to navigate the complexities of project funding with more ease. Through their expertise and global network, the company connects project owners with the necessary capital to bring their visions to life through the Regulation D 506 Offerings.

Unlike traditional banking institutions where extensive underwriting or credit committees must meet, TPA Project Finance plans to leverage its experience and nimbleness to assess projects quickly and efficiently. This approach should allow the company to close funding transactions in significantly shorter timeframes, providing clients with the financial resources they need promptly without carrying cost.

Whether it's infrastructure development, renewable energy projects, real estate ventures, or other large-scale initiatives, TPA Project Finance's global reach empowers clients to secure the funding required to drive their projects forward.

To learn more about TPA Project Finance and project funding solutions, please visit their official website at www.tpaprojectfinance.com.

About TPA Project Finance: TPA Project Finance is a provider of worldwide project funding solutions, owned by the TPA Gold Corporation. Through their SEC registered program, the company connects project owners with the necessary capital to fuel their ventures. With an emphasis on expedited transactions, TPA Project Finance plans to enable projects to commence promptly, with the hope of outperforming traditional banking channels.

Media Contact:

Person Name: Clark Willis

TPA Project Finance

(866) TPA -1Fund

[email protected]

1155 Rue Metcalfe, Suite 1500, Montreal, QC

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/170016
Singapore City, Singapore--(Newsfile Corp. - June 14, 2023) - The Ministry of Trade and Commerce together with the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Forestry, Fisheries and Bio - Security signed an MOU with Advanced Engineering Group (AEG) on 31 May 2023 in Port Vila, Vanuatu.

From left to right ; Mr. Leonard Tan, CEO AEG and the Consortium of Partner Leader, Minister of Trade and Commerce, Honorable Matai Seremaih (MP) and Minister of Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries, Forestry and Bio-Security, Honorable Nakou Natuman(MP)

The main purpose of this MOU is to express the willingness of both parties to engage in efforts to promote the competitiveness and economic development of THE REPUBLIC OF VANUATU, through projects and activities to develop, and expand relationships in the sectors of Engineering, Manufacturing, IT Infrastructure, Building and Construction, Mining, Fishery, as well as Agriculture technology and development.

AEG is a Singapore-based Company with Sales and Operations in Singapore, South-East Asia and China. The company is accredited with ISO9001-2015 (Quality Management System), ISO45001-2018 (Occupation, Health and Safety) and bizSAFE STAR (Risk Assessment and Risk Management); and has won several awards for her stellar performance over the years.

THE REPUBLIC OF VANUATU (Ministry of Trade and Commerce and Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Forestry, Fisheries and Biosecurity) will work and coordinate with "AEG" in the development of their initiatives to improve and expand support, with official written approvals, rights, export permits and licenses from their various authorities for the agriculture, fishery and mining. In addition, they also agree to allow "AEG" to carry out feasibility studies, monitoring, and evaluation activities to assess the impact of these activities on the environment, both locally and regionally. All costs will have to be established and agreed upon by both parties.

"AEG" will provide all consultancy, technical and engineering expertise to assist THE REPUBLIC OF VANUATU to carry out activities that will improve and expand the support to its competitiveness. As a preliminary activity, "AEG" will conduct a strategic feasibility planning exercise, jointly with THE REPUBLIC OF VANUATU to review their current and future "operational" requirements. The results of this exercise will assist THE REPUBLIC OF VANUATU with the implementation of their needs, hence, identify areas where "AEG" can provide the necessary support. After finalizing the strategic planning session, technical and financial support agreements for these specific activities, through a join participatory process with clear milestones will be tabled out. These agreements will be detailed in subsequent Addendums to this MOU.







The Minister of Trade and Commerce, Honorable Matai Seremaiah encouraged All Parties to ensure that the MOU is supported and implemented by the Ministries and AEG.

The Honorable Minister stated that, The Government through Vanuatu Trade Commissioner to Singapore, Mr Robin Teo, understood the wealth of knowledge, experience, competence and strength that AEG and her Consortium of Partners can bring to the table. "I trust your expertise in the field of Economic Development Zone and the establishment of the International Fisheries Port will bring much needed revenue to the country for the benefits of our people. Therefore, we have extended the invitation for you to come to Vanuatu and by of way of the MoU, we can work in partnership to leverage and maximize on the untapped potential and resources, and to develop services in Vanuatu that can generate revenue for the Republic of Vanuatu."

To this end, Mr. Leornard Tan, AEG and the Consortium of Partner Leader responded that this Memorandum of Understanding is comprehensive, covering a broad range of initiatives to support Vanuatu's efforts to expand its external and internal trade, and to attract investors from Southeast Asia and China. The MoU incorporated Vanuatu's key priorities (as outlined by the government), while also included a variety of business initiatives that are in line with the spirit of the MoU. These initiatives include green energy, agriculture, water and sanitation, imports (into Vanuatu) and exports (from Vanuatu to Southeast Asia and China).

After the signing of the MoU, Mr. Leonard Tan announced that as a first commitment from AEG Consortium to the Republic of Vanuatu, a formal invitation will be extended to both Ministers to visit China and Singapore later this year. In the mission, AEG Consortium will showcase a suite of successfully completed projects in partnership with other governments. The mission will also serve to enhance mutual commitments to concrete projects.

Company: Advanced Engineering Group (International) Pte Ltd

Name: McKinley Toh

Email: [email protected]

Website: https://aegintl.weebly.com/

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/169416
NEW YORK , June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- To celebrate the unwavering dedication of new fathers, Momcozy, a company that's deeply invested in the well-being of children and parents, is excited to announce a 22% discount on their flagship product, the High-Performance Video Baby Monitor, from June 12th through June 20th . This promotion seamlessly aligns with Momcozy's theme, "The Best Father's Day Gifts for New Dads," as they strive to recognize fathers' essential role in children's lives.

"Nearly 76% of new dads express worry about their baby's safety while asleep," reports a recent survey from the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Ensuring newborns are secure and well is paramount, and this Father's Day , the perfect gift can address these concerns while creating a stronger bond between fathers and their precious little ones.

The 1080HP High-Performance Video Baby Monitor is the essential gift for new dads this Father's Day . This monitor goes beyond the ordinary, providing high-quality real-time visuals and sounds that keep parents connected to their children, even when they're not in the same room.

Momcozy has recognized that one of the pain points of other monitors is that they don't have a lasting charge for night use; one of the key features is the ultra-long life 5000mAh rechargeable battery. This powerful battery assures you of uninterrupted monitoring, giving you peace of mind and the freedom to carry out other tasks without worrying about the battery running out.

Moreover, clear night vision is another incredible feature that sets our video baby monitor apart from the crowd. New dads can enjoy crisp and clear images of their sleeping baby even in complete darkness, ensuring a higher level of safety for their child at all times.

Baby monitors have always been a critical tool in child-rearing, and the 1080HP High-Performance Video Baby Monitor is designed to meet the evolving needs of modern parents. The easy-to-use interface and robust functionality make it an essential tool for ensuring the safety and well-being of the newest addition to the family.

Momcozy invites new fathers and all individuals seeking a unique, practical, and thoughtful gift this Father's Day to take advantage of this special offer. Show your love and appreciation for the new dads in your life by giving them the gift of peace of mind and a tool that brings them closer to their newborn.

For more information about the 1080HP High-Performance Video Baby Monitor or to take advantage of the 22% discount, visit our website www.momcozy.com , from June 12th-June 20th , using code FD22. This Father's Day , let's empower new dads with the right tools to ensure their baby's safety and make their parenting journey a little easier.

PR contact:

Fiona

[email protected]

+86-18823308616

Momcozy.com

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SOURCE Momcozy
VANCOUVER, BC , June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ - First Mining Gold Corp. ("First Mining" or the "Company") (TSX: FF) (OTCQX: FFMGF) (FRANKFURT: FMG) is pleased to announce the voting results from the Company's annual general meeting of shareholders held in Vancouver on June 14, 2023 (the "2023 AGM").

A total of 287,460,981 common shares of First Mining were represented at the 2023 AGM, representing 35.59% of the Company's outstanding common shares as at the record date of April 26, 2023 . Shareholders voted in favour of all matters brought before the meeting. All five director nominees listed in the Company's management information circular dated May 1, 2023 were elected as follows:

Election of Directors

Director Nominee Votes For % For Votes Withheld % Withheld Keith Neumeyer 197,101,436 98.22 % 3,561,776 1.78 % Raymond Polman 197,301,885 98.32 % 3,361,327 1.68 % Daniel W. Wilton 195,524,445 97.44 % 5,138,767 2.56 % Richard Lock 186,279,528 92.83 % 14,383,684 7.17 % Leanne Hall 196,194,338 97.77 % 4,468,874 2.23 %



Appointment of Auditor

Outcome of the Vote Votes For % For Votes Withheld % Withheld Carried 284,310,865 98.93 % 3,061,116 1.07 %



Detailed voting results for the meeting are available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.

About First Mining Gold Corp.

First Mining is a gold developer advancing two of the largest gold projects in Canada , the Springpole Gold Project in northwestern Ontario , where we have commenced a Feasibility Study and permitting activities are on-going with a draft Environmental Impact Statement ("EIS") for the project published in June 2022 , and the Duparquet , Pitt Gold , Duquesne and Porcupine East Gold Project in Quebec , a collection of advanced-stage development assets located on the Destor-Porcupine Fault Zone in the prolific Abitibi region. First Mining also owns the Cameron Gold Project in Ontario and a portfolio of gold project interests including the Pickle Crow Gold Project (being advanced in partnership with Auteco Minerals Ltd.), the Hope Brook Gold Project (being advanced in partnership with Big Ridge Gold Corp.), and a large equity interest in Treasury Metals Inc.

First Mining was established in 2015 by Mr. Keith Neumeyer , founding President and CEO of First Majestic Silver Corp .

ON BEHALF OF FIRST MINING GOLD CORP.

Daniel W. Wilton

Chief Executive Officer and Director

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This news release includes certain "forward-looking information" and "forward-looking statements" (collectively "forward-looking statements") within the meaning of applicable Canadian and United States securities legislation including the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date of this news release. Forward-looking statements are frequently, but not always, identified by words such as "expects", "anticipates", "believes", "plans", "projects", "intends", "estimates", "envisages", "potential", "possible", "strategy", "goals", "opportunities", "objectives", or variations thereof or stating that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will" be taken, occur or be achieved, or the negative of any of these terms and similar expressions.

Forward-looking statements in this news release relate to future events or future performance and reflect current estimates, predictions, expectations or beliefs regarding future. All forward-looking statements are based on First Mining's or its consultants' current beliefs as well as various assumptions made by them and information currently available to them. 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. Forward-looking statements reflect the beliefs, opinions and projections on the date the statements are made and are based upon a number of assumptions and estimates that, while considered reasonable by the respective parties, are inherently subject to significant business, economic, competitive, political and social uncertainties and contingencies. Such factors include, without limitation the Company's business, operations and financial condition potentially being materially adversely affected by the outbreak of epidemics, pandemics or other health crises, such as COVID-19, and by reactions by government and private actors to such outbreaks; risks to employee health and safety as a result of the outbreak of epidemics, pandemics or other health crises, such as COVID-19, that may result in a slowdown or temporary suspension of operations at some or all of the Company's mineral properties as well as its head office; fluctuations in the spot and forward price of gold, silver, base metals or certain other commodities; fluctuations in the currency markets (such as the Canadian dollar versus the U.S. dollar); changes in national and local government, legislation, taxation, controls, regulations and political or economic developments; risks and hazards associated with the business of mineral exploration, development and mining (including environmental hazards, industrial accidents, unusual or unexpected formations, pressures, cave-ins and flooding); the presence of laws and regulations that may impose restrictions on mining; employee relations; relationships with and claims by local communities, indigenous populations and other stakeholders; availability and increasing costs associated with mining inputs and labour; the speculative nature of mineral exploration and development; title to properties.; and the additional risks described in the Company's Annual Information Form for the year ended December 31, 2022 filed with the Canadian securities regulatory authorities under the Company's SEDAR profile at www.sedar.com , and in the Company's Annual Report on Form 40-F filed with the SEC on EDGAR.

First Mining cautions that the foregoing list of factors that may affect future results is not exhaustive. When relying on our forward-looking statements to make decisions with respect to First Mining, investors and others should carefully consider the foregoing factors and other uncertainties and potential events. First Mining does not undertake to update any forward-looking statement, whether written or oral, that may be made from time to time by the Company or on our behalf, except as required by law.

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SOURCE First Mining Gold Corp.
PHILADELPHIA , June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- FMC Corporation (NYSE: FMC) announced today it will release its second quarter 2023 earnings on Wednesday, August 2, 2023 , after the stock market close via PR Newswire and the company's website https://investors.fmc.com.

The company will host a webcast conference call on Thursday, August 3, 2023 , at 9:00 a.m. ET that is open to the public via internet broadcast and telephone.

First Quarter Conference Call Details:

Internet broadcast: https://investors.fmc.com

Dial-in telephone pre-registration link available by clicking:

FMC 2Q 2023 Earnings Call or visiting https://investors.fmc.com/events-and-presentations/

A replay of the call will be available via the internet and telephone from 11:00 a.m. ET on August 3, 2023 , until August 24, 2023 .

Internet replay: https://investors.fmc.com

US Toll Free: 1-866-813-9403

Canada : 1-226-828-7578

Other International: +44-204-525-0658

Replay Access Code: 280475

About FMC

FMC Corporation is a global agricultural sciences company dedicated to helping growers produce food, feed, fiber and fuel for an expanding world population while adapting to a changing environment. FMC's innovative crop protection solutions  including biologicals, crop nutrition, digital and precision agriculture  enable growers, crop advisers and turf and pest management professionals to address their toughest challenges economically while protecting the environment. With approximately 6,600 employees at more than 100 sites worldwide, FMC is committed to discovering new herbicide, insecticide and fungicide active ingredients, product formulations and pioneering technologies that are consistently better for the planet. Visit fmc.com to learn more and follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter.

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SOURCE FMC Corporation
CHICAGO , June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Sisram Wellness Center is excited to announce the grand opening of its flagship facility in downtown Chicago . The center offers a comprehensive range of advanced medical aesthetic services in skin health, beauty, and wellness. With a team of highly skilled professionals, licensed practitioners, and skin health specialists, Sisram Wellness Center is committed to providing exceptional care tailored to everyone's unique needs and concerns.

Visitors to Sisram Wellness Center can expect a wide range of services, including solutions for common aesthetic concerns such as acne, scars, skin discoloration, hair removal, skin tightening, cosmetic injections and more. The center also offers treatments for hair restoration and provides a range of health and wellness services for both men and women.

"At Sisram Medical, our mission is to drive the progress of our field and nurture the growth of our ecosystem by providing evidence-based solutions that prioritize the patient's experience," emphasized Lior Dayan , President and CEO of Sisram Medical. "Through integrating trusted brands like Alma , within the framework of Sisram Wellness Center, we strive to gather valuable insights from end-users, placing their needs and aspirations at the forefront. The grand opening of our flagship establishment in Chicago is a momentous step towards our strategic goals, and we are thrilled to embark on expanding Sisram Wellness Center to other prominent cities across the globe in the coming years."

Sisram Wellness Center has been meticulously developed to provide exceptional premium services within a cutting-edge facility, staffed by a highly skilled team. Keith Adams , President of Alma , a Sisram Medical Company, expressed his warm welcome to the Chicago community. "The center has been thoughtfully designed as an immersive experience center, allowing our clients to be the first to explore and benefit from our groundbreaking solutions as they are introduced to the market. With state-of-the-art technology and the unmatched expertise of our team, Sisram Wellness Center is poised to establish itself as the premier destination for skin health, beauty, and wellness services in Chicago ."

Jeffrey Hsu , MD, Medical Director and Dermatologist at Sisram Wellness Center, expressed his pride in being part of the Sisram Wellness Center family. "Our highly qualified and trained medical staff are dedicated to delivering exceptional care and helping our patients achieve their skin health and wellness goals," said Dr. Hsu .

The grand opening of Sisram Wellness Center represents an exciting milestone for both the company and the Chicago community. By combining cutting-edge technology, expert care, and a nurturing environment, the center aims to become a trusted destination for individuals seeking to enhance their health and wellbeing.

For more information about Sisram Wellness Center, please visit www.swc-chicago.com. Media inquiries and interview requests can be directed to [email protected].

About Sisram Wellness Center:

Sisram Wellness Center is a premier healthcare and wellness facility located in downtown Chicago . The center offers advanced aesthetic services and personalized care to address the unique needs of each individual. With a team of highly skilled professionals, Sisram Wellness Center is committed to providing exceptional and evidence-based care to enhance overall wellbeing.

Contact:

Company: Sisram Wellness Center

Email: [email protected]

Website: www.swc-chicago.com

Instagram: @swc_chicago.com

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SOURCE Sisram Wellness Center
Quality, Innovation, Efficiency, Win-Win

MUNICH , June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Zhejiang Hyxi Technology Co., Ltd. ("HYXiPOWER"), a high-tech renewable energy company specializing in smart photovoltaic (PV) solutions, energy storage systems (ESS) and charging stations, is demonstrating its expertise and capabilities at Intersolar Europe 2023, being held in Munich from June 14-16, 2023 . Themed "The Green Future Is Now", the Company is showcasing its environmental efforts by utilizing an exhibition vehicle with 100% recycled and environmentally-friendly materials to present its innovative PV solutions for residential, commercial, and utility scale.

In support of its commitment to sustainability, HYXiPOWER's eco-friendly exhibition vehicle can be recycled at the end of its life cycle, emphasizing the company's dedication towards a carbon-zero future.

Empowering Europe's renewable energy roadmap with innovative solutions

In 2022, the European Union rolled out the REPowerEU plan, which aims to raise the overall EU renewable energy target from 40% to 45% and achieve a cumulative installed PV capacity of 600GW by 2030. During the exhibition, HYXiPOWER is presenting a full range of solutions for residential, commercial, and utility-scale scenarios, including for micro, hybrid and string inverters, energy storage systems, portable power stations and AI-Powered energy management platforms.

The diverse range of products stands as a testament to the company's long-term proactive engagement in Europe's zero-carbon initiative and its unwavering dedication to advancing solar power as the predominant energy source.

Pursuing excellence with superior products

Germany , a global leader in PV developments, has the highest standard when it comes to product certification. Recently, their micro inverters have just obtained approval for the VDE4105 Certificate by German Standard, along with some of the other core products in the certification process. HYXiPOWER has earned the trust and confidence of its partners and allies through its superior product quality and extensive range.

About HYXiPower

At HYXiPower, we are guided by our core values of Quality, Innovation, Efficiency, and Win-Win. Quality is at the forefront of our operations, as we strive to exceed expectations and deliver products and services that stand the test of time.

Innovation drives our progress, as we continuously push boundaries and develop cutting-edge solutions that address the evolving needs of our customers. Efficiency is deeply rooted in our approach, as we optimize processes and maximize resource utilization to deliver exceptional results.

We believe in fostering a win-win mentality, emphasizing collaborative partnerships and mutually beneficial relationships with our clients, suppliers, and stakeholders. These core values form the foundation of our company culture, guiding our decisions and actions as we navigate the dynamic landscape of the renewable energy industry.

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SOURCE HYXiPOWER
SALT LAKE CITY , June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- In a testament to resilience and the power of self-belief, a man named Ken underwent an incredible life transformation, shedding 300 pounds through Diamond Dallas Page's acclaimed fitness program, DDP Yoga, and was awarded a life-changing 24-hour smile makeover courtesy of Nuvia Dental Implant Center.

Ken, who once faced severe obesity and self-esteem issues, is now a beacon of inspiration for thousands worldwide. He embarked on a transformative journey with DDP Yoga, a program known not just for weight loss but for changing lives, cultivating self-empowerment, and helping individuals reclaim control of their lives.

Ken's grit and determination caught the attention of Wrestling Hall of Fame icon, Diamond Dallas Page , the founder of DDP Yoga, who has been monitoring Ken's progress for years. Page acknowledged, "Ken is someone we've watched for years. His journey speaks volumes about resilience and the power of not giving up."

Despite the loss of his beloved dog, Lucky, who Ken says helped keep him going during his weight loss journey, he remained resolute and continued his workouts.

His determination culminated in being declared a champion of the 'Positively Unstoppable Challenge' - an annual competition hosted by DDP Yoga aimed at encouraging complete life transformations. Yet, Ken remained self-conscious about his smile.

This is where the journey took an unexpected turn. On the very day Ken was being celebrated, a surprise package arrived from Nuvia Dental Implant Center. As part of their mission to uplift hardworking, inspiring individuals, Nuvia offered Ken a free full mouth dental implant restoration to help further his incredible journey.

Reacting to the surprise and on the verge of tears, the only word Ken could muster to say was an emotional "Wow!".

24-hours after his successful procedure, Ken, with his new teeth and radiant smile, looks unrecognizable, and his self-confidence is palpable. In a heartfelt gesture, Nuvia also presented him with a hand-painted portrait of Ken's dog Lucky, a nod to his motivation throughout this journey. Moved by Nuiva's caring gesture Ken couldn't hold back his emotions.

"Ken's transformation is a testament to the power of self-belief, resilience, and the power of community support," Page shared. "His journey serves as an inspiration to us all."

Ken's journey showcases that with determination, unwavering support, and the right opportunities, one can indeed become 'Positively Unstoppable.'

The video documentary of Ken's journey can be viewed here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCi1RTdfdvB38NiIGD4UA26Q

About Nuvia Dental Implant Center

Nuvia Dental Implant Center provides a 24-hour smile restoration procedure that replaces missing or damaged teeth with new high-quality, permanent teeth supported by dental implants. 10+ years and millions of dollars in research have gone into the development of their proprietary process which allows them to do what can take other providers up to 10 months or more, in just 24 hours. https://www.nuviasmiles.com/

About DDP Yoga

Founded by Wrestling Icon Diamond Dallas Page , DDP Yoga is an inclusive fitness movement focused on empowering individuals to own their lives. Born out of DDP's personal journey of injury recovery, this unique program combines workouts adaptable to all ability levels with a supportive community, emphasizing overall health, mental wellbeing, and an enduring commitment to personal transformation. https://ddpyoga.com/

Press Contacts:

Nuvia Dental Implant Center

Phone : (866) 540-5882

Email : [email protected]

DDP Yoga

[email protected]com

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SOURCE Nuvia Dental Implant Center
Thais made up the biggest proportion of foreign plastic surgery patients last year at 11,207, followed by Japanese (8,600), Chinese (6,422), Americans (5,100) and Vietnamese (3,448).

Clinics roll out the red carpet for their foreign clients, sending a car to pick them up at the airport and offering them discounts in nearby hotels. Gangnam's district office offers a 50 percent discount on taxi fares for foreign plastic surgery patients from the airport.

The number of foreigners who came here last year for plastic surgery alone tripled since locked-down 2020 to 46,000. Foreigners with bandaged-up faces are becoming a common sight again around Seoul's Gangnam subway station, which has a high concentration of plastic surgery clinics.

The main driver has been the global K-pop craze, and everyone now wants to look like its carefully doctored starlets, with their pointy noses and chins and big round eyes.

"Thai clients often arrive carrying photos of their K-pop idols," a staffer at the Seoul Tourism Organization said. One plastic surgery clinic in southern Seoul hired Thai staff to handle client relations, offering consultations in Bangkok and keeping track of possible follow-up procedures after surgery. When the clinic performed a job on a famous Thai influencer, she posted the entire process on YouTube.

A consultant for another plastic surgery clinic in southern Seoul said, "Patients from Thailand and Vietnam want different looks than Chinese or Japanese. Southeast Asians want to look glamorous and bring photos of Blackpink's Lisa, while Japanese patients often show photos of Red Velvet's Irene."

Lisa is Thai and has a roundish baby face, while Irene has a thin nose and pointy chin that make her look rather like an anime character.

Public agencies are doing what they can to help. Since last August, Gangnam's district office has been operating an app that lets foreigners look for plastic surgery clinics in southern Seoul by inputting their desired procedures and offers real-time consulting services. Now it plans to open a medical tourism center in the tony Apgujeong-dong area.

The Seoul Tourism Organization, meanwhile, has selected 118 medical centers in the capital to attract tourists, 40 percent of them plastic surgery clinics.

But experts say there should be an integrated system if Korea's medical tourism industry is to thrive. Shin Hak-seung at Hanyang University said compared to regional health tourism hub Singapore, "There is a language barrier in Korea, so we need to hire coordinators. In addition to attracting plastic surgery tourists, Korean general hospitals should open branches overseas so foreigners can gain trust in our medical services."
Receives Court Approval for "First Day" Motions

Secures Interim Approval to Access New Debtor-in-Possession Financing to Support Ongoing Business Operations

Continues to Provide Innovative Products and High-Quality Home Goods Without Interruption

DOWNERS GROVE, Ill. , June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Instant Brands (the "Company"), maker of consumer favorites like Instant Pot, Corelle, Pyrex, Snapware, CorningWare, Visions and Chicago Cutlery, today announced that is has received approvals from the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas for its "First Day" motions related to the Company's voluntary Chapter 11 petitions filed on June 12, 2023 . Notably, the Court authorized the Company on an interim basis to access and use financing from its existing lenders provided under (i) a $125.0 million debtor-in-possession asset-based revolving credit facility, and (ii) a $132.5 million debtor-in-possession term loan credit facility, up to $100 million of which will be immediately funded on an interim basis.

The interim approvals granted by the Court enable the Company to continue:

Paying employee wages and benefits without interruption;

Paying vendors, suppliers and distributors in full under normal terms for goods and services provided on or after the filing date; and

Providing housewares and appliance products under its iconic brands.

"We want to thank our lenders and all advisors for working with us and supporting us with new financing," said Ben Gadbois , President and CEO of Instant Brands. "While we continue our efforts to strengthen our financial position, this court-approved financing gives us the ability to continue to provide all of our great products to consumers around the world during this process."

The Company also reiterated that entities located outside of the United States and Canada are not included in the Chapter 11 filings. Instant Brands continues to operate as usual in Asia , the UK , Europe , Middle East , Australia and New Zealand regions, as well as provide consumers with the iconic housewares and kitchen appliances through all the usual sales channels. The Company's mission to provide innovative products that deliver amazing culinary experiences for all consumers remains unchanged.

Chapter 11 is a legal tool in the United States that enables companies to continue operating as they strengthen their financial positions in an efficient and orderly manner. It is different from restructuring or administration processes in other countries and does not mean the Company is going out of business.

Additional information regarding the Company's court-supervised process is available at Instant Brands' restructuring website, InstantBrandsRestructuring.com. Court filings and other information related to the proceedings are available on a separate website administered by the Company's claims agent, Epiq, at https://dm.epiq11.com/InstantBrands, by calling Epiq toll-free at (888) 290-5211 (or (503) 694-4156 for calls originating outside of the U.S. ), or by sending an email to [email protected].

Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP is serving as Instant Brands' legal counsel, Guggenheim Securities, LLC is serving as investment banker, and AlixPartners is serving as restructuring advisor.

About Instant Brands

Instant Brands designs, manufactures and markets a global portfolio of innovative and iconic consumer lifestyle brands: Instant, Pyrex, Corelle, Corningware, Snapware, Chicago Cutlery, ZOID and Visions. With people-first and purpose-driven solutions in mind, Instant Brands is reimagining how people live, eat, connect, and play inside the homeand in the spaces where people gather. The Company is headquartered in Downers Grove, Ill. , and employs more than 2,000 people across four continents. Today, Instant Brands' products are in millions of homes worldwide. For more information visit Instant Brands or join the community at LinkedIn, Instagram, and Facebook.

Media Contact

[email protected]

or

Aaron Palash / Rose Temple / Rachel Goldman

Joele Frank Wilkinson Brimmer Katcher

212-355-4449

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SOURCE Instant Brands
LANSDOWNE , Va., June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation announced two $1 million grants to two public research universities with a demonstrated record in advancing the success of underrepresented students in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields: the University of California, Merced and the University of Maryland, Baltimore County .

The National Science Foundation's recent report suggests that despite notable gains in the last decade, Black, Hispanic, American Indian, and Alaska Native students remain markedly underrepresented among bachelor's degree recipients in the STEM fields  resulting in longstanding challenges to diversify and fill in-demand jobs.

Both the University of California, Merced (UC Merced) and the University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC) have been recognized nationally for innovative practices that encourage the participation and success of underrepresented students. UC Merced was awarded the 2021 Seal of Excelencia, which recognizes universities that demonstrate a robust enrollment, retention, financial support, and representation of Latinx/Latine students. UMBC is the country's number one producer of Black undergraduates who go on to earn doctorates in the life sciences and math and computer sciences combined, and also the nation's leading producer of Black undergraduates who go on to earn the combined M.D. - Ph.D. (physician scientists).

"UC Merced and UMBC are models for our nation. Both schools have resolved to ensure that all students -- especially students from underrepresented backgrounds -- are set up to succeed from day one in rigorous STEM classes," said Seppy Basili , executive director of the Cooke Foundation. "In advancement of our mission to help exceptional students reach their fullest potential, we are honored to support the work of these important institutions."

The new grants will establish two funds: the first to help current students with financial need advance to graduation, and a second endowed scholarship program to increase the institutions' long-term ability to meet the financial needs of their student population. These grants are part of a $7 million commitment to supporting underrepresented student success in STEM fields. To date, the Foundation has granted $1 million to each of the following: Alabama A&M University (2021), Florida A&M University (2021), Morgan State University (2022), Norfolk State University (2021), and North Carolina A&T State University (2021).

UC Merced has the largest percentage of Pell-eligible students in the University of California system, a majority of which are STEM majors (54 percent). With resources available on campus like the STEM Tutoring Hub and the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE), providing support and guidance for academic enrichment in this field of study has led to successful rates of completion amongst graduates. In the class of 2021, 66 percent of first generation students and 52 percent of Latinx/Latine students received a bachelor's degree in STEM.

"We are grateful for the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation's abiding commitment to ensuring that promising students confronting financial hardship have the resources to pursue postsecondary education," said Vice Chancellor and Chief External Relations Officer E. Edward Klotzbier . "The achievements of the unique and motivated students supported by these scholarships will benefit not only our community, but the world as a whole, and UC Merced is grateful to the Foundation for helping these young people reach their full potential."

UMBC has one of the country's most diverse undergraduate communities, with more than 60 percent of its students being from minority groups. UMBC has been at the forefront of efforts to increase diversity and student success in STEM, particularly through the Meyerhoff Scholars Program, which supports undergraduate students of all backgrounds who plan to pursue doctoral study in the sciences or engineering and who are interested in the advancement of minorities in those fields. The program has served as a national model that has been replicated by several other institutions.

"The Meyerhoff Scholars Program is one example of how UMBC has long worked to redefine excellence in higher education," said UMBC President Valerie Sheares Ashby . "We are deeply grateful for the partnership of the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation and its support in the form of this new grant, which will allow us to touch even more lives and advance inclusive excellence in the State of Maryland and beyond."

For more than 20 years, the Cooke Foundation has dedicated its mission to advancing the education of exceptionally promising students who have financial need. Since 2000, the Foundation has awarded almost $250 million in scholarships to nearly 3,200 students from 8th grade through graduate school, along with comprehensive educational advising and other support services. The Foundation has also provided $131 million in grants to organizations that serve such students. www.jkcf.org

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SOURCE Jack Kent Cooke Foundation
FREMONT, Calif. , June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Jackery, a global leader of innovative portable power and green energy solutions, is excited to announce a partnership with World Wildlife Fund (WWF), the world's leading conservation organization. This new collaboration will support WWF's efforts to protect the black-footed ferret, one of North America's most endangered mammals, by providing a clean and quiet power solution in the field.

"The partnership with WWF, presents an opportunity for us to further advance Jackery's commitment to protect and restore the Earth's biodiversity," said one of top executives of Jackery. "By providing reliable and portable power solutions, we are proud to support researchers and conservationists with power solutions that enhance their ability to detect, track, and conserve black-footed ferrets. Together, we can make a meaningful difference in boosting the population of the species and pave the way for building a sustainable and biodiverse future for generations to come."

There are an estimated 390 black-footed ferrets in the wild today, which is far below the 3,000 required for their recovery. To develop effective conservation strategies, annual assessments measure the size and protect the health of existing ferret populations while monitoring their movements and the spread of non-native disease. The partnership aims to provide researchers and conservationist teams with reliable, ecologically friendly power stations and solar panels that will support WWF's efforts detect, track and protect the animals in their natural habitats.

Jackery has been spearheading a series of initiatives to safeguard the natural environment and preserve biodiversity. It partnered with the National Forest Foundation to plant 10,000 trees in the US. Additionally, it made donations in Germany to permanently protect 10 square kilometers of forest. It also participated in a tree planting project in Japan to support environmental protection.

As a global leader in providing portable power stations and solar panels, Jackery has been committed to providing green energy products and services for leading a sustainable lifestyle and helping communities affected by crisis and disaster. The latest addition to the brand's lineup, the Solar Generator 2000 Plus, is the brand's new eco-friendly energy solution as well as reliable backup power during outages or other emergencies, adhering to its commitment to making the world a better place.

About Jackery

Jackery, the world's leading innovative portable power and green outdoor energy solution provider founded in California in 2012, is a global top-selling solar generator brand born with a vision to offer green energy to everyone, everywhere. Jackery launched the world's first outdoor portable power stations in 2016 and developed the world's first portable solar panels in 2018. Having introduced solar generators to the great outdoors, Jackery fulfills the power needs of every nature-lover, inspiring them to explore further and seek more extraordinary experiences than before.

Expanding its footprint from the US to Europe , Japan , and China , Jackery has sold more than 3 million units globally since 2018, with its products consistently selected as Best Sellers on Amazon. The brand has so far received over 50 prestigious international design awards, including the Red Dot Design Award, the iF Design Award, the A' Design Award and Competition, the Best of IFA Award and the CES Innovation Award.

For more details about Jackery, please visit Jackery US, Amazon Store and connect via Facebook , Instagram , Twitter , YouTube and Tiktok.

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SOURCE Jackery Inc.
Drawing on the talents of activists and justice-impacted individuals, the campaign will address the stigma faced by those with records and impart the need for expanded access to career opportunities for this population.

BOSTON , June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Jobs for the Future (JFF), a national nonprofit driving transformation in the American workforce and education systems has launched an advocacy art campaign that calls on policymakers to remove barriers for the more than 70 million Americans who have a criminal record. In partnership with Amplifier , a nonprofit design lab that builds art and media experiments to support social movements, the campaign has been created to reach audiences across the nation and will feature original art from impactful activists in the social justice space.

"One-in-three people in our country have a record and are permanently punished long after they have completed their sentences," said Brandi Mandato , senior director of JFF's Center for Justice & Economic Advancement . "Our political, economic, and social systems are designed to prevent people with records from advancing in their careers and in their lives. When we normalize opportunity for people with records, we are removing these systemic barriers and setting people up for economic success."

Rooted in the Center's recently-published policy framework, the #NormalizeOpportunity campaign uses portrait art and poetry to amplify the stories of three icons who have been incarcerated and have achieved economic success through fair chance pathways. The framework" Normalizing Opportunity: A Policy Agenda to Promote Economic Advancement for People With Criminal Records "details actions that federal, state, and local leaders can take to overhaul the complex web of rules and regulations that permanently penalize people with records and exclude them from pursuing quality jobs they are qualified for or can learn to do.

Those profiled in the campaign - all of whom are available for comment - include Susan Burton , John Gargano , and Mac Phipps all of whom have had unique experiences navigating the justice system and building meaningful careers during their reentry processes. These individuals have demonstrated the limitless potential of people who have been impacted by incarceration and what they can achieve when barriers are removed and opportunities are accessible. Artist and activist Brandan " BMIKE '' Odums has been commissioned to create a series of paintings and acclaimed writer Jazmine Williams will author poetry that share the stories of these leaders. The full collection of artwork created for the campaign can be viewed at www.amplifier.org .

"Amplifier is excited to be part of this mission for change," said Cleo Barnett , creative director for the nonprofit. "As an organization, we promote social change, but it is rare that we get the chance to work with an organization like JFF to actually push for policy change. This is a very exciting opportunity for us."

The art campaign will launch June 14 in New Orleans while JFF hosts its annual Horizons summit, an event that welcomes more than 1,000 guests and provides a national platform for ideas and actions to advance equitable economic advancement for all people. The campaign also will be disseminated to audiences nationwide with a targeted focus in New York and Louisiana and will compliment JFF's groundbreaking policy work in the field of fair chancesometimes referred to as second chanceopportunities.

"Through this art campaign, we aim to humanize the people impacted by the permanent punishment our systems place on people with records," said Lucretia Murphy , vice president at JFF and director of the Center. "It is time policymakers and communities understand that these individuals are real people with real families from real communities. By sharing the stories of these amazing individuals, it is our hope that others will share their stories so we can change the narrative around people with records."

In the United States , more than 600,000 people are released from prison every year and face barriers to employment and economic mobility. Through its Center for Justice & Economic Advancement, JFF's #NormalizeOpportunity campaign raises awareness of the economic needs of people with records and pushes for changes that start behind the walls. In addition to its policy work, the Center provides a fair chance employer training program and works with education institutions to ensure prison education programs are accessible and inclusive of the needs of a changing workforce. For more information on this work and the Center for Justice and Economic Advancement, please visit jff.org .

About Jobs For the Future:

Jobs for the Future (JFF) drives transformation of the U.S. education and workforce systems to achieve equitable economic advancement for all. We do this by designing solutions, scaling best practices, influencing policy and action, and investing in innovation. www.jff.org

About Amplifier: Amplifier is a nonprofit media lab that creates art and media experiments to amplify the most important movements of our times. We design and distribute art that engages people in the creation of a more just, inclusive and sustainable future.



Our campaigns promote critical thinking and build compassion, capturing the attention of mass audiences and providing pathways for direct action to solve some of humanity's most challenging issues. Our current portfolio includes augmented reality storytelling, an education network that reaches over a million students nationwide, and partnerships with global allies that allow the work to reach hundreds of millions, changing not just hearts and minds, but policy and practice. More information can be found at Amplifier.org.

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SOURCE JFF
EAST HARTFORD, Conn., June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- International Aero Engines AG (IAE), a multinational consortium comprised of shareholders including Raytheon Technologies' business Pratt & Whitney, Pratt & Whitney Aero Engines International GmbH, Japanese Aero Engines Corporation and MTU Aero Engines, today named Kim Kinsley as its president. She succeeds Earl Exum , who held the position since 2020.

Exum will become chair of the IAE AG board of directors and continue serving in his role as vice president, Mature Commercial Engines at Pratt & Whitney, a position he has held since October 2022 , developing strategies and execution to support customers, optimize product life and maximize value realized from Pratt & Whitney's mature engines portfolio.

Kinsley, IAE's first female president, has concurrently been named vice president, V2500 programs at Pratt & Whitney. She will assume both roles effective immediately and report to Exum.

"Kim is uniquely positioned to take IAE forward," said Exum. "The V2500 engine has seen many great successes over IAE's 40-year history, and we are confident Kim will build on that legacy as we look to the future. Kim has a wealth of experience from within and outside the aerospace industry and will ensure we continue to deliver the proven performance our customers have come to expect."

As president, Kinsley will lead the integrated program structure to support the continuous improvement of Pratt & Whitney's V2500 program, positioning the joint venture partners to best serve customers with more flexible offerings to the narrowbody segment. She will exercise leadership to ensure financial, business, technical, customer and partner commitments are achieved.

IAE, which celebrated its 40th anniversary in March, has a collaboration agreement extension to 2045. The versatile V2500 powers nearly 3,500 aircraft today for approximately 150 commercial, cargo and military operators in 80 countries. Seventy percent of these aircraft are under 15 years old and about one-third of the V2500 engines are still on first run. The V2500 powered the first Airbus A321 and A320 passenger-to-freighter conversions, with more slated to enter service in the coming years. The engine also powers the Embraer KC-390 military aircraft and its growing customer base. The efficiency of the V2500, which is approved for operation on 50% sustainable aviation fuel, will also help the aviation industry meet its goal of net-zero CO 2 emissions by 2050.

Kinsley joins Pratt & Whitney from Collins Aerospace, where she worked since 2014 and most recently served as vice president, Environmental & Airframe Control Systems  Power & Controls. She has more than 25 years of experience in operations, business management, engineering and new product development across diverse industries. Kinsley is a proven leader with capabilities in building teams, improving organizational collaboration, strengthening customer relationships and achieving business objectives.

About Pratt & Whitney

Pratt & Whitney is a world leader in the design, manufacture and service of aircraft engines and auxiliary power units. To learn more visit www.prattwhitney.com. To receive press releases and other news directly, please sign up here.

About Raytheon Technologies

Raytheon Technologies (NYSE: RTX) is the world's largest aerospace and defense company. Our global team of 180,000 employees pushes the limits of known science and redefines how we connect and protect our world. We are advancing aviation, building smarter defense systems and creating innovations to take us deeper into space. The company, with 2022 sales of $67 billion , is headquartered in Arlington, Virginia .

[email protected]

+1 860 565 9600

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SOURCE Raytheon Technologies
VANCOUVER, BC , June 13, 2023 /PRNewswire/ - Generative AI Solutions Corp. ("GenAI" or the "Company") (CSE: AICO) (FSE: 99L.F) (OTC: AICOF) is pleased to announce that it has entered into a share purchase agreement dated June 13, 2023 (the "Share Purchase Agreement") with Minework Technologies Pte Ltd. ("Minework"), pursuant to which, subject to the satisfaction of certain conditions to closing, GenAI's wholly-owned subsidiary, MAI Cloud Solutions Inc. ("MAI Cloud") has agreed to purchase all of the issued and outstanding shares (the "Purchased Shares") in the authorized share structure of Pulse AI Compute Solutions Inc. ("Pulse AI"), which are held by Minework (the "Proposed Transaction").

Pursuant to the Share Purchase Agreement, MAI Cloud will acquire the Purchased Shares from Minework for an aggregate purchase price of $1,500,000 (the "Purchase Price"). In accordance with the terms and conditions of the Share Purchase Agreement, the Purchase Price is payable by to Minework upon the closing of the Proposed Transaction (the "Closing") through the issuance to Minework of 1,630,435 common shares (the "Consideration Shares") in the authorized share structure of GenAI (the " GenAI Shares ") at a deemed price per share of $0.92 per GenAI Share (the "GenAI Share Price"), being the closing price of the GenAI Shares on the Canadian Securities Exchange (the "CSE") on June 13, 2023 . The Consideration Shares to be issued by GenAI to Minework in full satisfaction of the Purchase Price will be subject to a contractual restriction whereby Minework may not trade any such Consideration Shares for a period of 12 months following the date of the Closing (the "Closing Date").

In addition to the Purchase Price, GenAI shall pay to Minework the following amounts, to be settled through the further issuance of GenAI Shares at the GenAI Share Price:

(a) upon Pulse AI or GenAI entering into an agreement to provide services or products to certain customers, $1,500,000 ; and

(b) for each $1,500,000 of committed revenue generated by Pulse AI following the Closing Date, $1,500,000 , up to a maximum of $4,500,000 .

The Closing is expected to occur on or about June 19, 2023 .

Ryan Selby , CEO of GenAI, comments "The acquisition of Pulse AI is anticipated to provide MAI Cloud with at least one customer for our MAI Cloud service and has the potential to provide additional customers and to drive sustained revenue growth for the MAI Cloud platform. Pulse AI will also be used as the vehicle to acquire H100 Graphics Processing Units ("GPUs") from NVIDIA, and it is anticipated that Pulse AI will receive inception price discounts and reduced lead times on GPUs from NVIDIA. As we continue to build our vertically integrated AI solutions business, the procurement of supercomputers, the acquisition of paying customers, and the maximization of revenues are of utmost importance. We remain laser-focused on strategic growth and continue to pursue various opportunities across multiple verticals. I see tremendous potential for our MAI Cloud platform, and this acquisition supports both our short-term and long-term business objectives."

The CSE has in no way passed upon the merits of the Proposed Transaction and has neither approved nor disapproved the contents of this news release.

A copy of the Share Purchase Agreement shall be filed on the Company's SEDAR profile at www.sedar.com.

On Behalf of the Board,

Ryan Selby

CEO, Director, and Chairman of the Board

Generative AI Solutions Corp.

Toll-free North America: +1-833-879-7632

Outside North America: +1-406-879-7632

[email protected]

www.genai-solutions.com

ABOUT GENERATIVE AI SOLUTIONS CORP.

GenAI is a pioneering artificial intelligence company focused on developing a vertically integrated AI solutions business through its proprietary MAI Cloud database, with the development and commercialization of AI-powered tools and solutions for businesses and consumers across multiple industries. At GenAI, our mission is to harness the power of AI to create transformative products and services that benefit businesses and consumers across various sectors. Our team of talented AI professionals and engineers are dedicated to developing state-of-the-art AI-based solutions that have broad applicability and can be seamlessly integrated into diverse workflows. By leveraging our MAI Cloud platform and our expertise in machine learning, natural language processing, and data analytics, we build versatile, high-performance tools that redefine efficiency, productivity, and user experience.

For more information on GenAI, please visit www.genai-solutions.com.

The Canadian Securities Exchange has not reviewed and does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of the content of this news release.

As noted above, completion of the Proposed Transaction is subject to a number of conditions. There can be no assurance that the Proposed Transaction will be completed as proposed or at all.

Investors are cautioned that any information released or received with respect to the Proposed Transaction may not be accurate or complete and should not be relied upon. Trading in the securities of the Company should be considered highly speculative.

This news release does not constitute an offer to sell, or a solicitation of an offer to buy, any securities in the United States . 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 or to U.S. Persons unless registered under the U.S. Securities Act and applicable state securities laws or an exemption from such registration is available.

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

This news release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of applicable securities laws. All statements contained herein that are not clearly historical in nature may constitute forward-looking statements.

Generally, such forward-looking information or forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of forward looking terminology such as "plans", "expects" or "does not expect", "is expected", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates" or "does not anticipate", or "believes", or variations of such words and phrases or may contain statements that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will be taken", "will continue", "will occur" or "will be achieved". The forward-looking information and forward-looking statements contained herein include, but are not limited to, statements regarding: the Company's ability to complete the Proposed Transaction pursuant to the Share Purchase Agreement on the expected timeline or at all; the issuance of the Consideration Shares to Minework; and the filing of the Share Purchase Agreement on GenAI's SEDAR profile.

Forward-looking information in this news release are based on certain assumptions and expected future events, namely: the Company's ability to continue as a going concern; the Company's ability to continue to develop revenue generating applications; continued approval of the Company's activities by the relevant governmental and/or regulatory authorities; and the continued growth of the Company; and Company's ability to continue to meet the requirements of listing of the CSE.

These statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, which may cause actual results, performance or achievements to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such statements, including but not limited to: the potential inability of the Company to continue as a going concern; risks associated with potential governmental and/or regulatory action with respect to the Company's operations; the Company's inability to complete the Proposed Transaction; and the risks associated with the Company's ability to continue to meet CSE listing guidelines.

Readers are cautioned that the foregoing list is not exhaustive. Readers are further cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, as there can be no assurance that the plans, intentions or expectations upon which they are placed will occur. Such information, although considered reasonable by management at the time of preparation, may prove to be incorrect and actual results may differ materially from those anticipated.

Forward-looking statements contained in this news release are expressly qualified by this cautionary statement and reflect the Company's expectations as of the date hereof and are subject to change thereafter. The Company undertakes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, estimates or opinions, future events or results or otherwise or to explain any material difference between subsequent actual events and such forward-looking information, except as required by applicable law.

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SOURCE GENERATIVE AI SOLUTIONS CORP.
Blending classic and contemporary aesthetics, Markor embarks on a new era of home design

TIANJIN, China , June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- As part of its 20th anniversary celebrations, Markor International Home Furnishings ("MIHF") (SHE: 600337), a leading Chinese home furnishings retailer, held a re-opening ceremony for its renovated Tianjin Meijiang store, which was the very first Markor Furnishings store opened in 2002. The event was attended by Markor International Home Furnishings chairman Mark Feng , general manager Mou Li , deputy general manager Zhao Jing , and other guests and members of the media. Alessandro Fabrini , president of Caracole Home Furnishings, subsidiary of MIHF, was also present at the event.

New store layout - four distinct zones infused with classic elements, pollinating art to life

The design of the Tianjin Meijiang store presents a refreshing take on store layout. Drawing from extensive knowledge of the global home consumer market, design trends, and profound consumer insights, the Markor design team seamlessly integrates existing brands and product portfolios into distinct zones: Modern and Minimalist, Fashion and Light Luxury, Revival of Classics, and Connoisseurship. These spaces highlight a unique lifestyle aesthetic by blending modern and traditional Chinese elements, while also resonating between technology and tradition. The outcome is a captivating homage to artistic heritage and a reflection of evolving lifestyles.

New services - an all-inclusive, bespoken package to provide one-stop services for consumers

Leveraging its robust international design team and global network of exceptional designers, Markor Furnishings introduces a highly customized, all-inclusive package that embodies the brand's unique artistic DNA. Utilizing its "techno-artistic" manufacturing facilities and global supply chain ecosystem, the company aims to deliver an elevated level of customized home solutions to consumers. With a steadfast focus on individual demands, authentic taste, meticulousness, and craftsmanship, the comprehensive solution offers a full range of high quality services from design to manufacturing to delivery, by pioneering this approach, Markor aims to spearhead the evolution of the domestic mid- to high-end home furnishings consumer market, redefining the bespoke furniture solution in the new era of interior design. In response to the distinct aesthetic preferences of next-gen home decor consumers, Markor Furnishings remains committed to collaborating with artists and designers worldwide.

New experience - an immersive artistic space created to transform your home into an "idyllic retreat"

The Tianjin Meijiang store has added a new area, the Dream-Making zone, dedicated to crafting a visually pleasing and serene environment that fosters a restful, good night's sleep. The specialized area focuses on creating an appealing sleep space while providing a tranquil ambiance ideal for rejuvenation.

Additionally, the store has also built a special interactive parent-child space, conceived specifically for young Chinese families. The space encourages parents to engage with their children while educating them the basics of aesthetics and design.

Finally, consumers can be immersed in the delightful experience of afternoon tea at Markor Furnishings. The experience offers an opportunity to settle down in the aesthetic allure of "future concept" art, providing a tranquil respite physically and psychologically.

Markor Furnishings not only provides its consumers with a timeless lifestyle filled with artistic inspiration but also ensures exceptional professional services by offering a diverse selection of creative styles and a wide range of customizable designs. With an unwavering dedication to becoming a quintessential brand for its consumers, the re-opening of the Tianjin Meijiang store exemplifies the brand's consumer-centric approach and its commitment to ongoing refinement in design, product offerings, cultural enrichment, and integral experience. This renewal and enhancement further consolidate Markor Furnishings' position as a trusted and revered brand in the industry.

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SOURCE Markor International Home Furnishings
Industry award highlights contract packer's success through leading-edge technology

TORONTO , June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ - Nulogy , a leading provider of supply chain collaboration solutions, was announced alongside Metro Supply Chain as recipients of this year's Top Supply Chain Projects Award by Supply & Demand Chain Executive. This award profiles innovative industry projects designed to automate, optimize, streamline and improve the supply chain.

Headquartered in Canada , Metro Supply Chain manages 14 million square feet in almost 100 sites across North America and Europe with a team of 6,000.

"Metro Supply Chain is pleased to receive this recognition from Supply and Demand Chain Executive," said Cathie Wood , Vice President Contract Packaging Services, Metro Supply Chain. "We are proud of our growth and the work we have done to become an avid adopter of cutting-edge solutions in our industry."

"It is a privilege to be recognized alongside Metro Supply Chain," said Jason Tham , CEO, Nulogy. "This recognition is further motivation to continue innovating our platform to demonstrate the value of digitalized, collaborative supply chains."

"From demand planning and forecasting to implementing the ultimate in warehouse automation, the past 12 months has seen companies within the supply chain and logistics space upgrade, enhance, adopt and adapt in order to achieve greater efficiency along the chain," says Marina Mayer , Editor-in-Chief of Supply & Demand Chain Executive and Food Logistics. "That's why it's important today's supply chains run on collaboration."

"Companies partnered to implement each others' software and technology and work smarter, together. And, it's these partnerships that have enabled many supply chain organizations to better manage inventory, reduce costs, retain employees, track data and analytics and build resilience for whatever disruptions may lie ahead," Mayer adds.

View the full list of Top Supply Chain Projects winners, and visit www.SDCExec.com/awards to learn more about upcoming Supply & Demand Chain Executive awards.

About Metro Supply Chain

For almost 50 years, Metro Supply Chain has been partnering with some of the world's fastest-growing and global brands to drive impactful and sustainable business outcomes through innovative, end-to-end supply chain solutions. The largest privately owned provider of integrated supply chain solutions in Canada , it manages almost 100 sites across North America and Europe with a team of 6,000 employees. In 2023, Metro Supply Chain received the prestigious Best Managed Companies award for its strategic expertise, culture of innovation and commitment to its people and local communities.

Metroscg.com

About Nulogy

Nulogy, a leading supplier of digital supply chain solutions, enables customers and their supplier communities to collaborate on a multi-enterprise platform in order to deliver with excellence to an ever-changing consumer market. Nulogy's cloud-based platform optimizes upstream supply ecosystems composed of brand manufacturers, contract manufacturers and packagers, third party logistics providers, raw material and packaging suppliers to accelerate supply chain responsiveness and collaborate at the speed of today's market.

Nulogy.com

About Supply & Demand Chain Executive

Supply & Demand Chain Executive is the only supply chain publication covering the entire global supply chain, focusing on trucking, warehousing, packaging, procurement, risk management, professional development and more. Supply & Demand Chain Executive and sister publication Food Logistics also operate SCN Summit and Women in Supply Chain Forum. Go to www.SDCExec.com to learn more.

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SOURCE Nulogy Corporation
SAN FRANCISCO , June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- In a survey of 1400 travelers, more than one third - 36 percent - said they are likely to use AI to research or plan travel within the next 12 months. The survey was conducted on behalf of personal AI travel assistant GuideGeek, polling the community of its parent company, travel publisher Matador Network.

"Travelers are rapidly realizing that AI simply provides the best user experience for planning travel because it's personalized and saves valuable time," says Matador Network CEO Ross Borden . "Instead of spending hours trying to find what you're looking for, you can tell GuideGeek your budget, preferences, and interests and the AI provides recommendations that match your specific needs."

The survey also found that 31 percent of travelers find researching and planning vacations time-consuming and cumbersome. This is consistent with the findings of a survey of the American public GuideGeek conducted earlier this spring.

"GuideGeek's ability to understand what I'm looking for and summarize it into tailored responses is amazing," says Michael Motadmedi who is using GuideGeek to travel the world . He recently told KTLA that it reduces his travel planning time by at least half. "It feels like you have access to a friend who is a local. The only difference is that you don't have to buy GuideGeek any drinks."

The sense of having a travel buddy in GuideGeek may also encourage travelers to be more adventurous. Half of the survey respondents indicated that they would visit more foreign destinations if they had a more reliable way to learn about local customs and feel comfortable navigating the cities.

"I used to rely on Google or TikTok to find answers to my questions or give me recommendations but had generally been disappointed by the responses and the time I had to spend doing research," says travel influencer Aaron Barnes who recently arrived at the airport and let GuideGeek choose his destination .

"GuideGeek exceeded my expectations," Barnes continues. "It not only provided great recommendations for restaurants, bars, sightseeing, and attractions, but also tailored everything towards my exact budget, location and time constraints. GuideGeek will absolutely be my go-to tool for planning and researching overseas trips."

In addition to planning and logistics, AI can provide surprising travel inspiration. Nearly two thirds of survey respondents (64.2 percent) said their most memorable travel experience included a visit to a unique, off-the-beaten-path location, as opposed to one of the most popular destinations everyone would know.

"Most travelers are currently using GuideGeek as a replacement for or supplement to online research," says Borden. "But there is a set of users already shifting how they approach travel planning altogether by asking the AI open-ended questions such as, 'I love beaches, spicy food, music and cocktails. Where should I go?' I think we're only seeing the very beginning of how AI will reshape travel planning for the better."

guidegeek.com

About Matador Network

Matador Network is the world's No. 1 media brand for modern adventurers. With more than 14 million followers across social media, Matador has become a leading travel brand through its production of article features, city guides, creator-first content and original videos. Matador is the top-ranking travel brand on TikTok and its videos are viewed more than 140 million times per month. It has content distribution deals with American Airlines, Hearst Media and Gas Station TV and works with brands like Ford, REI, Samsung, YETI, Southwest Airlines, Visit California and Microsoft. matadornetwork.com

Media Contact:

Jason Simms

860-526-1555

[email protected]

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SOURCE GuideGeek
The OPPO A98 5G is the ideal travel companion for capturing summer memories with its outstanding camera system and innovative features

The device's advanced camera setup, including a 64MP AI Camera and 32MP Selfie Camera, allows users to capture high-quality images in a variety of locations

The A98 5G also offers impressive features like Portrait Mode, AI Portrait Retouching, and AI Color Portrait, enhancing the overall photography experience

DUBAI, UAE , June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- As summer begins, it's time to embark on new adventures and create lasting memories. Designed to be the ultimate travel companion, the OPPO A98 5G allows users to capture precious moments spent with family and friends this summer. Boasting an outstanding camera system and innovative features, the OPPO A98 5G empowers users to unleash their creativity and create everlasting memories.

At the heart of the OPPO A98 5G lies an advanced camera system, featuring a 64MP AI Camera, 32MP Selfie Camera , 2MP Depth Camera, and 2MP Microlens. This powerful setup ensures that photography enthusiasts can effortlessly capture stunning, high-quality images in various situations, be it breathtaking landscapes or candid portraits. With the OPPO A98 5G, every moment becomes an opportunity to capture the essence of summer adventures.

The OPPO A98 5G offers an array of impressive features designed to enhance users' photography experience. The Portrait Mode enables users to create professional-looking, vivid cinematic portrait shots that truly stand out, while AI Portrait Retouching intelligently removes blemishes and imperfections from selfies and portraits, ensuring picture-perfect results that still retain a natural look. Undoubtedly, one of the standout features of the smartphone is the Microlens, which unlocks a whole new world of possibilities, allowing users to explore the microscopic details that often go unnoticed by the naked eye.

Users can tackle monotonous long drives and road trips with the OPPO A98 5G's large 5,000 mAh battery. With the upgraded 67W SUPERVOOC fast charging feature, the device can be charged to 100% in just 44 minutes, making sure users never run out of power during their exciting adventures. Even a quick 5-minute charge is sufficient to enjoy 6 hours of phones calls or 2.5 hours of typical YouTube video viewing.

Whether users are embarking on a relaxing beach vacation, exploring new cities, or simply cherishing quality time with loved ones, the OPPO A98 5G proves to be the perfect companion. With its exceptional camera capabilities, the A98 5G enables users to capture and treasure memories made this summer.

About OPPO

OPPO is a leading global technology brand since 2004, dedicated to providing products that seamlessly combines art and innovative technology.

OPPO is on a mission to building a multiple-access smart device ecosystem for the era of intelligent connectivity. The smartphone devices have simply been a gateway for OPPO to deliver a diverse portfolio of smart and frontier technologies in hardware, software and system. In 2019, OPPO launched a $7 Billion US Dollar three -year investment plan in R&D to develop core technologies furthering design through technology.

OPPO is firmly pursuing the creation of the best technology products and technological artistry for global users. Based on the brand elements of leading, young and beautiful, OPPO dedicates to the mission of letting the extraordinary users enjoy the beauty of technology.

For the last 10 years, OPPO has focused on manufacturing smartphones with camera capabilities that are second to none. OPPO launched the first mobile phone, the Smile Phone, in 2008, which marked the launch of the brand's epic journey in exploring and pioneering extraordinary technology. Over the years, OPPO has built a tradition of being number one, which became a reality through inventing the world's first rotating camera smartphone way back in 2013, launching the world's then thinnest smartphone in 2014, being the first to introduce 5X Zoom 'Periscope' camera technology and developing the first 5G commercial smartphone in Europe .

Today, OPPO was ranked as the number four smartphone brand globally. OPPO brings the aesthetics of technology of global consumers through the ColorOS system Experience, and Internet service like OPPO Cloud and OPPO+.

OPPO's business covers 60 countries operated by more than 40,000 dedicated employees, with over six research institutes and five R&D centers across the world, from San Francisco to Shenzhen . OPPO also opened an International Design Centre headquartered in London , driving cutting edge technology that will shape the future not only for smartphones but for intelligent connectivity.

About OPPO MEA

OPPO started its journey in the Middle East and Africa (MEA) region in 2015 after setting up its regional office in Egypt . Following the immense success of the brand's sales centre in Cairo in the first year, OPPO accelerated its expansion plan across the MEA region and inaugurated its country operations in the UAE in 2019. Now OPPO is physically present in more than 14 markets across the region, including Egypt , Algeria , Tunisia , Morocco , Bahrain , Saudi Arabia , UAE , Oman , Kuwait , Qatar , Kenya , Nigeria , South Africa and the Levant.

To empower its presence in the region in line with its product localisation strategy, OPPO further invested in MENA and set up its very own factory in Algeria in 2017, thus, becoming the first Chinese brand to build a manufacturing premises in North Africa . Based on insights of local consumers in each country, OPPO has evolved the progress of product localisation, taking into consideration several perspectives towards each market, including product localisation, to further meet the core needs of users; marketing localisation, to better communicate with local young customers; and talent localisation, to understand local consumers further and provide an optimum customer service.

Within the last year, OPPO has started to adjust its product line in the Middle East region specifically. This has included the launch of its flagship OPPO Find X Series and the introduction of the OPPO Reno Series. OPPO will continue to evolve its local product line to offer more premium series to consumers in the region.

A forward-thinking international technology company, OPPO strives to be a sustainable company that contributes to a better world and have enacted positive change in every way possible through activating local community initiatives and humanitarian, charity campaigns.

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2101785/OPPO_A98.jpg

Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1451542/OPPO_Logo.jpg

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SOURCE OPPO
Hollywood stars Ryan Gosling and Margot Robbie will visit Korea next month to promote their new film "Barbie," Warner Bros. Korea said on Tuesday.

It will mark the first visit to the country for both actors.
At SIGGRAPH 2023, researchers set to debut inventive computational solutions that easily, efficiently overcome complex challenges in physical world

CHICAGO , June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The vast field of computer graphics and interactive techniques spans the gamut of industries, from gaming and film to biomedical and manufacturing. The core of SIGGRAPH 2023, the 50th iteration of an annual global  and marquis  conference for the brightest and most inventive minds in the field, is a platform to share and showcase the bold, innovative research and products that are changing  and improving  the way we live, work, and play.

Research expected to debut as part of the conference's Technical Papers program are "ones to watch"  exciting new technologies, ideas, and algorithms that span all areas of graphics and interactive techniques. Particularly noticeable this year is the emergence of research methods that extend beyond the digital world and address creation of real-life content.

"A lot of research in computer graphics has been about determining the best way to visualize various real-world phenomena using computers, and in doing so, there are often details that are elided to fit such complicated things into the computational framework," says Jenny Lin , a lead author of one of the featured new research projects that will be showcased at SIGGRAPH 2023. Lin and her collaborators have devised a formal semantics framework for machine knitting programs, applying mathematics to describe anything a knitting machine can make.

"Going from virtual representations to the physical world involves addressing details that we often take for granted when going about our daily lives," she adds. "There's a very natural connection between these two directions, and there's something very gratifying about using the language of computers to understand and improve something as tactile and grounded as knitting."

This year, computer scientists, artists, developers, and industry experts around the world will convene 610 August in Los Angeles for SIGGRAPH 2023. As a preview of the Technical Papers program, here is a sampling of three novel computational methods and their unique approaches to real-world applications.

Equipped to Make It Fit

Additive manufacturing, better known as 3D printing, brings digitally designed products to life. It allows for unprecedented freedom of 3D geometries and it gives manufacturers the ability to produce parts on demand, and locally. With 3D printing, supply chain management can be simplified, and it is easier to transition from engineering iterations to full manufacturing.

3D printing is undergoing a transition from being a prototyping technology to being a manufacturing technology. However, the main roadblock is the overall cost of the manufactured part. 3D printing hardware, materials, and human labor all drive the cost of the technology. The drive for higher cost efficiency requires printing in batches where parts are tightly packed in the 3D printer's build volume to maximize the number of printed parts per batch. One of the main limitations of this process is the limited utilization of the build volume due to the computational complexity of the packing process.

In a collaboration between MIT and Inkbit, a 3D manufacturer specializing in polymer parts, researchers are addressing the complex problem  and headache  of digitally packing many parts in a single container with multiple constraints. To date, many part models are virtually placed in the printing tray, also referred to as "nesting", and the printer executes the job printing the whole tray. The problem with this process is that the container isn't densely packed and there isn't an efficient method to automate and ensure the 3D printers are printing the maximum volume of parts in a designated container.

The team of researchers, led by Wojciech Matusik , CTO at Inkbit and professor of electrical engineering and of computer science at MIT, developed a novel computational method to maximize the throughput of 3D printers by packing objects as densely as possible and accounting for interlocking-avoidance (between many parts with different shapes and sizes) and scalability. Their approach leverages the Fast Fourier Transform, or FFT, a powerful algorithm that has made it possible to quickly perform complex signal processing operations that were previously impossible or prohibitively expensive.

Coupled with FFT, "our work is making the individual placement of a 3D part into a partially filled build volume as fast as possible," says Matusik. "Our algorithms are not only extremely fast but they can now achieve print volumes with much higher densities (40% or more). The higher print efficiency will unlock lower cost of parts manufactured."

The lead author Qiaodong Cui is set to present the new work at SIGGRAPH 2023. The team also includes Victor Rong of MIT, and Desai Chen , research engineer at Inkbit. Visit the team's page for the full paper and video.

The Refined Knitting Machine

Some may say that knitting is a relatively easy technique, or craft, to learn  and could even serve as a relaxing stress-reducer. Automating the needle-and-yarn technique with machine knitting is well established in the fashion and textiles industries. This has seen a recent surge in popularity due to increased understanding of the scope and complexity of the objects  fabrics, patterns  that can be automatically generated.

While the technique of knitting has been automated, the systems are still struggling with the ability to support everything that a knitting machine can make, as well as generate precisely what a user wants. To date, say the researchers, there is no such system that guarantees correctness on the complete scope of machine knitting programs.

A multi-institutional team of computer scientists from Carnegie Mellon University, MIT, and University of Washington, have created a novel computational framework to optimize machine knitting tasks. Their formal semantics for the low-level Domain Specific Language used for knitting machines provides a sophisticated definition of correctness on the exponentially large space of knitting machine programs.

The researchers applied knot theory to develop their new framework and addressed the key properties humans care about in knitting that are poorly captured by existing concepts from knot theory. To that end, they devised an extension to knot theory called "fenced tangles" as a mathematical basis for defining machine knit object equivalence.

Our method "can describe anything a knitting machine can make: not just your standard sweaters and hats, but also dense, shaped structures useful in architecture, and multi-yarn structures that allow for colorwork and soft actuation," says Jenny Lin , the paper's lead author and PhD student at Carnegie Mellon in the lab of James McCann , assistant professor of robotics at Carnegie Mellon and another author of the work.

She adds, "This is important, because as we develop more nuanced systems for generating more complicated knitting machine programs, we can now always answer the question of whether two machine knit objects  the object you want and the object your program makes  are truly the same."

As a proof of concept, the team has implemented a foundational computational tool for applying program rewrites that preserve knit program meaning. This approach could be expanded for characterizing machine knitting to hand knitting, which is both more flexible and variable as a fabrication technique.

The team behind "fenced tangles" also includes Vidya Narayanan , applied scientist at Amazon who was advised by James McCann at Carnegie, Yuka Ikarashi , PhD candidate at MIT Computer Science & Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, Jonathan Ragan-Kelley of MIT Computer Science & Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, and Gilbert Bernstein , assistant professor of computer science and engineering at University of Washington, and they will present their work at SIGGRAPH 2023. The paper and team page can be found here.

Linked and Characterized

Medieval chainmail armor, small metal rings linked together in a pattern to form a mesh, have been used for thousands of years as protective gear for soldiers in battle. Picture a knight in their metal "suit" wearing chainmail armor as an additional layer of protection. Fast forward to the wide landscape of materials and fabrics in the modern era and chainmail-like materials remain a physical structure that is challenging to computationally represent, accounting for all of its unique mechanical properties.

An international team of researchers from ETH Zurich in Switzerland and Universite de Montreal in Canada draws inspiration from medieval chainmail armor, generalizing it to the concept of discrete interlocking materials, or DIM.

"These materials possess remarkable flexibility, allowing them to adapt to necessary shapes, while also demonstrating impressive strength beyond a certain range of deformation," says Pengbin Tang, the lead author of the research and PhD student advised by Bernhard Thomaszewski , a senior scientist at ETH Zurich and adjunct professor at the Universite de Montreal .

"These unique properties make DIM attractive in robotics, orthotics, sportswear and many other areas of application," adds Stelian Coros , collaborator and head of the computational robotics lab (CRL) at ETH Zurich .

The researchers have developed a method for computational modeling, mechanical characterization, and macro-scale simulation of these 3D-printed chainmail fabrics made of quasi-rigid interlocking elements (the connectivity of rings or links in chainmail-like material).

A key challenge the new method addresses is accurately representing the deformation limits the quasi-rigid fabric exhibits when it bends and folds and adopts different shapes. Unlike conventional elastic materials, the mechanics of DIM are governed by contacts between individual elements. Their particular structure leads to extremely high contrast in deformation resistance. To obtain the deformation limits from a given DIM, the researchers' developed a computational approach involving thousands of virtual deformation tests across the entire deformation space.

The novel method offers an intuitive, systematic way for macro-mechanical characterization which can pave the way to using DIM for garment design, note the researchers. Their analysis has largely focused on kinematic motion and, consequently, doesn't consider friction nor elastic deformations in the structure. In future work, an extension of their macro-scale model could account for internal friction to simulate friction-dominated scenarios as well as explore geometric detail at the element level, which may be important for additional applications.

Pengbin Tang is excited to present this work at SIGGRAPH 2023. View the paper and video on the team page.

Each year, the SIGGRAPH Technical Papers program spans research areas from animation, simulation, and imaging to geometry, modeling, human-computer interaction, fabrication, robotics, and more. Visit the SIGGRAPH 2023 website to learn more about the program and for registration details.

About ACM, ACM SIGGRAPH, and SIGGRAPH 2023

ACM, the Association for Computing Machinery, is the world's largest educational and scientific computing society, uniting educators, researchers, and professionals to inspire dialogue, share resources, and address the field's challenges. ACM SIGGRAPH is a special interest group within ACM that serves as an interdisciplinary community for members in research, technology, and applications in computer graphics and interactive techniques. The SIGGRAPH conference is the world's leading annual interdisciplinary educational experience showcasing the latest in computer graphics and interactive techniques. SIGGRAPH 2023, the 50th annual conference hosted by ACM SIGGRAPH, will take place live 610 August at the Los Angeles Convention Center , along with a Virtual Access option.

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SOURCE SIGGRAPH 2023
Visitors of National Western Complex will now be able to use ParkMobile's app and website to reserve event parking and digitally pay onsite

DENVER , June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- ParkMobile, the leading provider of smart parking and mobility solutions in North America and part of EasyPark Group, is partnering with the National Western Complex in Denver to offer event parking reservations through its mobile app and website.

"As ParkMobile continues to expand its footprint, we are thrilled to partner with National Western Complex to provide our digital payment services for its events year-round," said David Hoyt , ParkMobile's managing director. "Now, visitors can reserve and pay for parking ahead of the event and smoothly pay onsite to avoid day-of stress."

This year, ParkMobile is focused on creating strategic partnerships with venues and universities across the country to grow its digital payment services. With ParkMobile's over 50 million users, the integration of its digital payments services at the National Western Complex will provide a consistent user experience for those event attendees traveling from across the U.S. Currently, ParkMobile serves over 1,600,000 users in Colorado , with availability in Boulder , Fort Collins, Colorado State University and the Denver area.

" The National Western Complex is excited to partner with ParkMobile for our year-round events," said Kevin Bode , Director of Parking Operations for the National Western Complex . "Providing a convenient digital parking service for the event promoters and guests of the Complex will help ensure a seamless experience."

ParkMobile is available for both iPhone and Android devices, and can be accessed on a mobile web browser. Users can pay for parking in advance via the ParkMobile app or via the dedicated National Western Complex webpage. ParkMobile's digital payment solution will not be available during the National Western Stock Show.

CONTACT: Haley Haas

PR Manager, US

404-580-0112

[email protected]

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SOURCE ParkMobile
The deployment is a major milestone for the advancement of digital payment security in the Kingdom.

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia , June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Saudi Arabia's PayTabs Group, the region's award-winning payment solutions provider, today announced a strategic agreement with Modirum  a global brand with a track record of delivering effective 3D secure solutions for over 20 years.

The alliance between the two firms aims to offer flexible, robust, and cost effective EMV 3D secure authentication solutions for PayTabs merchants, banks, and processors across the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

With cybercriminals on the lookout for security lapses, one of their favorite targets is collecting sensitive payment information of online shoppers. The biggest benefit of 3D secure payments is that it prevents any payment fraud or identity theft for both the end customer and merchants. According to a report by Deloitte, several organizations in the Middle East are struggling with online payment fraud, especially since the pandemic hit.

Modirum's 3DS solutions make it possible for PayTabs as a payment processor to offer authentication and verification of users' identity. This ensures secure and seamless digital payments across all devices such as desktops, laptops, tablets, and mobiles. The software security solution also aims to prevent card fraud on merchants' websites and e-stores offering ecommerce vendors peace of mind.

Certified for Verified by Visa and Visa Secure, MasterCard SecureCode, American Express Safekey, Union Pay and various other card schemes, the solution from Modirum also offers PayTabs merchants multiple integration options and APIs to ensure secure end to end transaction processing.

Commenting on the partnership, Jari Heikkinen , CEO of Modirum said, "We are delighted to be working with PayTabs, the leading payment company in Saudi Arabia . Our 3D Server Solution is in use globally and recognized as one of the best in the industry by merchants, payment gateway companies and acquirers. We are proud that PayTabs chose to partner with us in this highly dynamic market and we look forward to continued growth in the region."

While at the PayTabs Group HQ in Saudi Arabia , Abdulaziz Al Jouf , founder, and CEO of the PayTabs Group added, "Together with Modirum, we are committed to elevating digital payments on Saudi soil by offering millions of ecommerce merchants, globally certified 3D Secure solutions. This partnership marks a new dimension in payment security and is one step closer in the Saudi Kingdom's vision 2030 to digitize the economy and payment ecosystem."

About PayTabs

The PayTabs Group is an award-winning payments solutions powerhouse founded by Saudi entrepreneur Abdulaziz Al Jouf .

Having processed the first live payment gateway transaction in 2014, today PayTabs processes transactions in multiple currencies and markets, swiftly and securely. By providing the infrastructure for B2B payment solutions, including digital invoicing for businesses, QR code, social media payments, point of sale and switching platforms, PayTabs facilitates seamless e-commerce and social commerce solutions for merchants and super merchants.

Over a decade, PayTabs has custom built and exported a full stack of game changing solutions. These include mobile applications, hospitality, governmental, education, airline, travel, transport, and biller solutions, to interlink the multi-billion-dollar enterprise market chain in the region.

In 2021, PayTabs launched PT Touch, the rst soft POS solution in the MENA market to transform smart phones into merchant point of sale (POS) terminals. In 2022, PayTabs made a leapfrog move to pioneer next generation payments, by launching its home owned, globally validated unified payments and transaction processing platform -PayTabs SwitchOn. PayTabs unified payment processing orchestration enables governments and large-scale originations to become independent payment platforms to serve their industries.

In 2022, the company acquired Turkiye's social commerce platform Paymes to complement its existing retail portfolio. In early 2023, PayTabs received payment gateway certification from Saudi Payments.

PayTabs has dedicated offices in the GCC including the UAE & Saudi Arabia and presence in many other locales including Turkey , India , and Egypt . The company is an equal opportunities employer with a multi-cultural team. For more milestones visit https://site.paytabs.com/en/

About Modirum

Modirum is a global leader in 3-D Secure technologies and services. Founded in Helsinki in 1998. Modirum offers a complete range of 3-D Secure solutions for Issuers, Acquirers, Processors, Payment Service Providers and Merchants to authenticate, secure and process online payments.

Modirum software and services are used by customers in over fifty countries worldwide. Modirum software is certified to the latest requirements from EMVCo and the major Payment Systems, and our hosting facilities are audited annually for PCI 3DS and PCI DSS compliance.

Our expertise in this domain is widely recognized in the industry and we now offer expert consulting services to our client base to optimize their use of 3D secure solutions.

Modirum have personnel located in seventeen countries, with our hosting centres located in Norway and Estonia .

We sales offices in Estonia ( Tallinn ), UK ( London ), Cyprus (Larnaca), United Arab Emirates ( Dubai ) and the USA ( California ). Our support and development offices are in Estonia , Finland , Greece , India , Kenya , Nigeria , Philippines , Pakistan , Singapore , South-Africa , Ukraine , and the USA .

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MENLO PARK, Calif. , June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Peakview Capital , a technology focused hybrid venture capital fund and investor in many of the top U.S venture capital firms, has closed its latest fund, bringing total AUM to more than $500M . The firm will aim to invest a majority of the new capital in a constructed portfolio of top-tier VC managers' funds along with select inflection-stage direct investments. The fund has already backed several of the industry's leading venture capital funds.

"We are delighted to announce the launch of our newest investment vehicle, focused on providing optimal risk-adjusted returns with our concentrated strategy across what we view as best of the best venture capital funds," said Erik Lassila , Managing Partner of Peakview Capital. "With the go-forward era of lower valuations, we look forward to putting our capital to work.."

"As active investors in technology's startup ecosystem over a number of decades, we draw upon our venture experience and network of personal relationships to provide our LPs with curated access to compelling funds. We also have the expertise to hand-select direct investments that we identify as the best growth opportunities."

Peakview Capital has also recently added Tyler Hartsock and Kevin McQuillan as Partners, positioning the firm for increased investment growth and reach. Hartsock has been a VC fund of funds veteran since 2009 when he served as an early employee of Greenspring Associates. More recently he was a partner at Next Play Capital, where he served on the investment committee and led its fund partnership investment practice and emerging manager strategy. Prior to Next Play, Hartsock co-led Northgate Capital's flagship VC fund of funds. Hartsock will help manage the firm's investment practices and fundraising initiatives.

McQuillan has been an active VC investor for decades, co-founding two VC firms. He was Co-Founder and General Partner at Focus Ventures, whose first fund was the 7th highest IRR fund of all time (Preqin). McQuillan brings his experience and expertise to help inform Peakview's fund and direct investments.

Peakview has also added Nicole de Moulpied as Director of Marketing. De Moulpied has held various sales and marketing positions at Ansys, Inc., Clearstone Venture Partners and several international startups, and heads the firm's marketing initiatives.

The fund aims to deliver strong returns for its investors with a specialized and concentrated portfolio of investments. Peakview draws on decades of experience to inform its strategy for sourcing and selecting the strongest investment opportunities, backed by deep qualitative and quantitative analysis. This approach aims to enable the firm to provide investors with optimized exposure to the venture capital asset class with strong opportunities for high risk adjusted returns.

About Peakview Capital

Based in Menlo Park, California and founded in 2015, Peakview specializes in investing and deploying capital in concentrated portfolios of top performing VC firms and makes direct investments in fast-growing transformative technology startups across various industries. Peakview believes in the power of venture capital as fuel to drive innovation and growth, providing value beyond financial returns. For more information, please visit: https://www.peakview.capital/

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SOURCE Peakview Capital
Three 'nutty' new captains take the helm of the famous traveling NUTmobile

AUSTIN, Minn. , June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The Planters NUTmobile, the world-famous 26-foot traveling nut on wheels, is once again taking America's salty streets by storm with a new trio of dedicated Peanutters at the helm.

HRL) acquired the Planters brand in June 2021." alt=""Tree Nut" Tania Castro, right, "Cashew" Katie Chesebro, left, and Mason Macadamia Mulrooney comprise the brands 10th class of Peanutters and the third crew to captain the NUTmobile since Hormel Foods Corporation (NYSE: HRL) acquired the Planters brand in June 2021." />

"Tree Nut" Tania Castro , "Cashew" Katie Chesebro and Mason "Macadamia" Mulrooney comprise the brand's 10th class of Peanutters and the third crew to captain the NUTmobile since Hormel Foods Corporation (NYSE: HRL) acquired the Planters brand in June 2021 . The three new Peanutters spent the last two weeks at the company's world headquarters in Austin, Minn. , and on June 9 , their nutty, yearlong megatour of the country officially began.

"Being a Peanutter is truly a one-of-a-kind experience," said Teagan Zelle , communications manager and NUTmobile coordinator at Hormel Foods. "They not only carry on the Planters brand legacy, but they also bring joy, a few Planters product samples, and of course the iconic Mr. Peanut to communities and people across the nation. We 'pe-CAN'T' wait to see what this year has in store for Class 10!"

Over the next 12 months, fans can ask to have the NUTmobile stop at their events  such as youth sporting events, neighborhood block parties, 5K races and other fun activities  by submitting a request at RequestTheNutmobile.com.

"I can't wait to represent the Planters brand on this east-to-west 'shell' of a journey!" Mulrooney said. "I'm beyond grateful for the opportunity to share the joy of the NUTmobile with people across the country. It's going to be the thrill of a lifetime!"

Be sure to keep an eye out for Mr. Peanut and the NUTmobile on social media. Follow along on Twitter (@NUTmobile_Tour), Instagram (@plantersnutmobileofficial) and TikTok (@plantersnutmobile).

ABOUT HORMEL FOODS  Inspired People. Inspired Food.

Hormel Foods Corporation, based in Austin, Minn. , is a global branded food company with over $12 billion in annual revenue across more than 80 countries worldwide. Its brands include Planters, SKIPPY, SPAM, HormelNatural Choice, Applegate, Justin's, WHOLLY, HormelBlack Label, Columbus , Jennie-O and more than 30 other beloved brands. The company is a member of the S&P 500 Index and the S&P 500 Dividend Aristocrats, was named on the "Global 2000 World's Best Employers" list by Forbes magazine for three years, is one of Fortune magazine's most admired companies, has appeared on the "100 Best Corporate Citizens" list by 3BL Media 13 times, and has received numerous other awards and accolades for its corporate responsibility and community service efforts. The company lives by its purpose statement  Inspired People. Inspired Food.  to bring some of the world's most trusted and iconic brands to tables across the globe. For more information, visit www.hormelfoods.com and http://csr.hormelfoods.com/.

Contact: Hormel Foods

Media Relations

507-434-6352

[email protected]

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SOURCE Hormel Foods Corporation
RICHMOND, Va. , June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- RC Capital ("RCC"), a healthcare-focused private equity firm, announced today that it has closed a growth investment in James River Cardiology ("JRC") to form Aligned Cardiovascular Partners ("AlignedCardio").

AlignedCardio brings together leading cardiovascular physicians who share a common vision: to deliver the highest quality patient care while improving access to innovative cardiovascular solutions that effect positive change in the healthcare system for payors. AlignedCardio will bring a collaborative approach to its partner clinicians with a focus on enabling their individual practice goals while also providing the full suite of support services and practice development capabilities. Rob Jardeleza , a cardiology sector veteran with extensive expertise developing ancillary services in cardiovascular medicine in the outpatient setting and in partnership with hospital systems, will join AlignedCardio as CEO.

Founded by Dr. Mitesh Amin , James River Cardiology has established a strong presence and has been the fastest growing practice in the cardiovascular care sector across the greater Richmond market. James River Cardiology operates across six clinics in and around the greater Richmond market and maintains a firm commitment to growth, improving patient access and to excellence in patient care.

"We're excited to partner with RC Capital who brings to bear an impressive track record of successfully building market leading platforms that empower providers to concentrate on enhancing patient care and outcomes," says Dr. Amin . "Finding a partner who appreciated our relentless dedication to clinically differentiated and consistent patient care was of utmost importance to the James River Cardiology team. We are thrilled to have found that with RCC."

Rob Heimann and Vitaly Goldfeder from RC Capital will join the AlignedCardio Board of Directors in conjunction with the growth investment. "We believe that AlignedCardio's innovative approach will enable our partner clinicians to deliver the highest-quality cardiovascular care to the Richmond community and beyond," says Heimann, Managing Partner at RCC. "We are honored to partner with Dr. Amin and James River Cardiology. RCC's investment reflects our confidence in the exceptional vison, leadership and clinical expertise of the James River team," Goldfeder added.

About RC Capital

RCC is a healthcare-focused growth equity firm partnering with highpotential healthcare companies and healthcare executives. The company is dedicated to investing on the right side of healthcare, building companies that enable clinicians to improve the delivery of care and advance the experiences and outcomes for patients everywhere. RCC seeks to be a business partner first and a capital provider second, leveraging a network of deep healthcare relationships assembled over its 28year operating history. Visit www.rccapital.com for more information.

About Aligned Cardiovascular Partners

Founded in 2023, AlignedCardio is a leading partner and support services network for cardiovascular physician practices that are interested in driving growth and innovation in cardiovascular care. AlignedCardio's mission is to deliver innovative cardiovascular care and combining the highest quality patient care and provider satisfaction together with payer objectives. James River Cardiology, the platforms first partner, is a full-service cardiology practice currently serving Richmond and the Tri-Cities region, as well as several rural locations along the southern border of Virginia through six locations. Visit www.alignedcardio.com to learn more.

Media Contact:

Britney Hamberg

RC Capital

[email protected]

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SOURCE RC Capital
New courses provide cosmetics professionals the education they need to prepare for upcoming GMP requirements

HAMPTON, Va. , June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, leading FDA service, software, and training firm, Registrar Corp, announced the launch of a new, 100% online cosmetics Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) training course. The Cosmetics GMP Online Training course covers ISO 22176 guidelines for GMPs in the production of cosmetics, ensuring high quality and compliance with international regulations.

The Cosmetics GMP Online Training course covers ISO 22176 guidelines to help prepare for MoCRA's GMP regulations

Through this self-paced training program, participants will be equipped with the knowledge and skills to manufacture cosmetic products that meet the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's (FDA's) upcoming requirements for cosmetics companies. Participants will learn about the ISO 22176 requirements and how to integrate them into their operations to achieve compliance.

MoCRA's Cosmetics GMP Requirements

The Modernization of Cosmetics Regulations Act of 2022 (MoCRA) gives FDA the authority to establish GMPs for cosmetics. This means the agency will establish regulations and guidelines aimed at ensuring cosmetics are manufactured, packaged, and labeled in a safe and controlled environment.

As a result, FDA will provide clearer guidelines and requirements that cosmetic manufacturers must meet to comply with safety and quality standards. FDA's GMP regulations could include provisions for quality control, testing, batch release, labeling, and packaging standards for cosmetics.

Because many cosmetics companies do not currently follow standardized GMPs, adhering to these requirements could be challenging.

Although FDA has yet to release guidelines regarding GMPs for cosmetics, the agency issued guidance to the industry in 2013 that closely follows ISO 22716, the EU compliance standard for cosmetics GMPs.

Registrar Corp's Cosmetics GMP Online Training will help companies quickly learn concepts related to GMP best practices, such as personnel health and hygiene, raw materials, packaging materials, waste management, and more.

"Our online course is designed to provide a practical understanding of the ISO 22176 requirements and to help companies prepare for MoCRA's GMP regulations," said David Lennarz , CEO of Registrar Corp. "It will be highly beneficial for anyone working in the cosmetics manufacturing industry who wants to stay ahead of upcoming requirements."

Trainees can complete the fully online, self-paced course anytime, anywhere, making it a convenient option for participants who need to train without disrupting their work schedule.

Enrolling in this training program is an excellent way to gain valuable skills and knowledge about the ISO 22176 requirements and stay up to date with the latest industry regulations.

Registrar Corp's Additional Compliance Services

Registrar Corp provides a variety of compliance services for food and beverage, medical device, drug, and cosmetics establishments, including but not limited to:

FDA registration and renewal

Detentions

Inspection preparation

Food safety regulations

Software solutions for regulatory compliance

Registrar Corp's online training courses offer a robust library of food safety training and certification courses as well as medical device compliance training.

About Registrar Corp

Since 2003, Registrar Corp has been a leading resource for global government compliance, offering regulatory tech-enabled services, fully online compliance training, software product solutions, and proprietary data. Headquartered in Hampton, Virginia , Registrar Corp has 20 offices worldwide and has made compliance quick and easy for more than 50,000 companies across 180 countries.

If you have questions about cosmetics requirements or Registrar Corp's software solutions, contact Registrar Corp at [email protected] or call +1-757-224-0177 (option 5).

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SOURCE Registrar Corp
Standalone store dedicated to providing used gear for REI members to help keep outdoor products in circulation and support the co-op's 2030 climate commitments

SEATTLE , June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Specialty outdoor retailer REI Co-op will open a Re/Supply store dedicated to used gear and apparel in Clackamas, Oregon in late August 2023 . Located in Clackamas Town Center , the 16,113 square-foot store will open a few doors down from the co-op's existing store that has served the outdoor community since 2007. The new location will join the co-op's Re/Supply store in Manhattan Beach, California , which opened in 2020.

"As a member-owned co-op, we have a responsibility to preserve the long-term health of the planet," said Bob Cagle, REI regional director. "Our Re/Supply offering reimagines the lifecycle of outdoor products and helps keep gear where it belongsout on trails, waterways and other natural places. Opening a Re/Supply store in the community builds on the popularity of our used program that is enjoyed by many Oregonians."

Access to the program is a benefit of co-op membership. In the Portland market there are more than 303,000 active members. Anyone can purchase a lifetime membership to the co-op for a one-time fee of $30 , which grants access to not just the Re/Supply program, but discounts on shop services and experiences, free flat-tire repair (labor only) and ski waxing, an annual Co-op Member Reward of 10% back on eligible purchases, and more.

The selection at REI Clackamas Re/Supply will be focused on providing members with access to high-quality, used, outdoor gear and apparel at great prices. The selection will change frequently and be made up of lightly used products that the company receives through the typical returns process as well as items received through trade-in programs.

This store builds upon the co-op's long history of encouraging the exchange of used gear amongst its members. REI offered used outdoor gear to co-op members for more than 60 years through its well-known "garage sale" events at retail stores across the country. In 2018, REI innovated within its used business to launch a used-specific e-commerce site, trade-in program, and used gear offering for sale in most retail locations. In 2022, more than one million used products were sold through REI's Re/Supply omni-channel offering. REI's investment in Re/Supply aligns with the co-op's 2030 climate goals to de-couple business growth from carbon impact. Buying used instead of new typically avoids carbon emissions of 50% or more based on REI's estimate of preparing used gear for sale versus making new gear.

Once open in late August 2023 , REI's Re/Supply location in Clackamas will join the co-op's other eight retail stores in Oregon .

Join the REI Re/Supply team

REI expects to hire approximately 25 employees for the new Re/Supply in Clackamas. Candidates interested in joining the team can apply online at REI.com/jobs and learn about the general hiring timeline. Candidates can set a job alert on the co-op's career site to be notified when positions post. All employees will receive a wide variety of benefits, including generous product and service discounts, competitive pay and retirement contributions. REI employees also enjoy unique perks, such as two paid annual "Co-op Way Days" that allow them to enjoy their favorite outdoor activity and an additional paid day off on Black Friday to encourage all employees to #OptOutside. REI is committed to building a diverse and inclusive workplace that enables a life outdoors for everyone. The co-op seeks candidates who demonstrate shared values of diversity, equity, inclusion, and antiracism.

About the REI Co-op

REI is a specialty outdoor retailer, headquartered near Seattle . The nation's largest consumer co-op, REI is a growing community of 21.5 million members who expect and love the best quality gear, inspiring expert classes and trips, and outstanding customer service. REI has 181 locations in 42 states and the District of Columbia . If you can't visit a store, you can shop at REI.com, REI Outlet or the REI shopping app. REI isn't just about gear. Adventurers can take the trip of a lifetime with REI's active adventure travel company that runs more than 100 itineraries across the country. In many communities where REI has a presence, professionally trained instructors share their expertise by hosting beginner-to advanced-level classes and workshops about a wide range of activities. To build on the infrastructure that makes life outside possible, REI invests millions annually in hundreds of local and national nonprofits that create access toand stewardthe outdoor places that inspire us all.

Note: For more information about REI Co-op Member Reward, visit https://www.rei.com/membership/co-op-member-reward. A 10% Co-op Member Reward is typical but not guaranteed. An REI Co-op Member Reward is based on eligible net qualified purchases, which exclude REI Outlet items, sale and clearance items, discounted items, gift cards, REI adventure travel, REI classes or day trips, Re/Supply used gear, service fees (e.g., rentals, labor, shop services), membership fee, postage, event passes/tickets and registrations, government agencies, REI Cooperative Action Fund donations, shipping charges, return labels, exchanges, sales tax.

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SOURCE REI Co-op
NEW YORK , June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, the Committee for Economic Development, the public policy center of The Conference Board (CED), issued a new Solutions Brief, A Nation Equipped: A K-12 Education System for Today and Tomorrow.

As the report details, the response to the COVID-19 pandemicespecially the closure of schoolspropelled a national education crisis. The fallout included an upended K-12 education system, with academic progress being halted across the country and being felt most deeply among the less fortunate, with students in high-poverty schools suffering the sharpest decline. Left unaddressed, the pandemic's impact on K-12 education and the subsequent learning loss will have damaging economic implications for students and the nation.

The Solutions Brief provides recommendations for not only mitigating the more immediate educational ground lost during the pandemic, but also for addressing the long-term, systemic problems undermining our education system. It includes the need for schools to leverage technology, such as AI and machine learning tools, to help accelerate and maximize educational development.

"Without a swift and bold course correction, the pandemic's educational and economic devastation on studentswho are the nation's workforce of tomorrowwill be felt for decades to come. We have an immediate window to pursue recovery strategies and advance educational attainment to ensure students succeed. While the challenge is significant, it lies within reachbut only through close collaboration among key stakeholders including business, education, and government at all levels," said Dr. Lori Esposito Murray , President of CED.

Key Recommendations to Make Up for Pandemic-Era Learning Losses:

Leaders at the local, state, and national levels, in both the private and public sectors, need to collaborate with our K-12 educators and schools. Together, they must urgently address both the short-term challenge of pandemic-era learning losses, and the underlying problems that prevent an effective US education system. CED recommends the following as part of a comprehensive approach:

Maximize student learning, using technological advances, including in AI. School leaders need to collaborate with leaders in the technology sector to deliver learning strategies that honor the pace of learning for each student and leverage technology to maximize educational development.

School leaders need to collaborate with leaders in the technology sector to deliver learning strategies that honor the pace of learning for each student and leverage technology to maximize educational development. Use data and technology for rapid evaluation to drive strategies and continuous improvement. Local leaders should work with technology experts to develop the capacity to track progress rapidly and make real-time adjustments. The investment in technology platforms during the pandemic can yield important learning data. Expanding broadband access and affordability should continue. Investments by policy leaders need to be informed by targeted goals and evidence-based strategies.

Local leaders should work with technology experts to develop the capacity to track progress rapidly and make real-time adjustments. The investment in technology platforms during the pandemic can yield important learning data. Expanding broadband access and affordability should continue. Investments by policy leaders need to be informed by targeted goals and evidence-based strategies. Establish a national taskforce to identify best practices. Congress should establish a taskforce and invest in research to assess lessons learned, best practices, and innovative strategies in K-12 education.

should establish a taskforce and invest in research to assess lessons learned, best practices, and innovative strategies in K-12 education. Engage partners to expand school capacity. School leaders should partner with the business sector, higher education, local leaders, and philanthropic and community organizations to bolster capacity. They should connect students and families with social services supports that remove barriers to learning; supports include community schools, school-based health centers, and after-school and summer programs.

School leaders should partner with the business sector, higher education, local leaders, and philanthropic and community organizations to bolster capacity. They should connect students and families with social services supports that remove barriers to learning; supports include community schools, school-based health centers, and after-school and summer programs. Build access to post-secondary pathways: provide opportunities for apprenticeships. Schools must build awareness of career pathways among students and parents/guardians. Employers, community organizations, and workforce development agencies should be leveraged as vehicles.

Schools must build awareness of career pathways among students and parents/guardians. Employers, community organizations, and workforce development agencies should be leveraged as vehicles. Build school-wide capacity to address mental and emotional health needs. Leaders must consider strategies, such as telehealth, to deliver much needed services to students. Further, schools must build awareness of mental health challenges and provide training within the school community.

Leaders must consider strategies, such as telehealth, to deliver much needed services to students. Further, schools must build awareness of mental health challenges and provide training within the school community. Grow the teacher pipeline. The Registered Apprenticeship model, in collaboration with the business community, has been lauded as an innovative approach to growing the teacher pipeline. The first registered apprenticeship program in the nation for teaching was approved in 2022 and serves as a model.

The Registered Apprenticeship model, in collaboration with the business community, has been lauded as an innovative approach to growing the teacher pipeline. The first registered apprenticeship program in the nation for teaching was approved in 2022 and serves as a model. Prepare now for future disruptions. School leaders must learn from the lessons of the pandemic to improve emergency preparedness, minimize the length of closures, and deliver improved methods for continued learning.

School leaders must learn from the lessons of the pandemic to improve emergency preparedness, minimize the length of closures, and deliver improved methods for continued learning. Consider funding sustainability. Leaders should consider sustainability solutions for when federal funding ends. Longer-term strategies are needed to avoid disruption from a funding cliff.

Leaders should consider sustainability solutions for when federal funding ends. Longer-term strategies are needed to avoid disruption from a funding cliff. Invest in students early. In addition to efforts to expand high-quality early learning options, local leaders should invest resources to address student performance gaps as early as kindergarten to ensure student success in subsequent grades.

In addition to efforts to expand high-quality early learning options, local leaders should invest resources to address student performance gaps as early as kindergarten to ensure student success in subsequent grades. Reconnect students and families into the school system. Leaders should draw from best practices at the local and regional levels that can be replicated across the nation.

About CED

The Committee for Economic Development (CED) is the public policy center of The Conference Board. The nonprofit, nonpartisan, business-led organization delivers well-researched analysis and reasoned solutions in the nation's interest. CED Trustees are chief executive officers and key executives of leading US companies who bring their unique experience to address today's pressing policy issues. Collectively they represent 30+ industries, over a trillion dollars in revenue, and over 4 million employees. www.ced.org

About The Conference Board

The Conference Board is the member-driven think tank that delivers trusted insights for what's ahead. Founded in 1916, we are a non-partisan, not-for-profit entity holding 501 (c) (3) tax-exempt status in the United States . www.ConferenceBoard.org

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/report-education-system-must-address-pandemic-era-learning-lossesor-students-will-suffer-economically-301851307.html

SOURCE Committee for Economic Development of The Conference Board (CED)
Trading Symbol

TSX: SVM

NYSE American: SVM

VANCOUVER, BC , June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ - Silvercorp Metals Inc. ("Silvercorp" or the "Company") (TSX: SVM) (NYSE American: SVM) is pleased to report assay results from its ongoing diamond drilling program at the LMW mine within the Ying Mining District , China .

Highlights:

Discovery of new, low angle copper-gold veins at the W Zone :

Hole ZKX1009 intersected 18.0 grams per tonne ("g/t") gold ("Au"), 32 g/t silver ("Ag"), and 8.38% copper ("Cu") over a 1.11 metre ("m") interval of vein LM29 at the 1,028 m elevation; and 3.0 g/t Au, 1,167 g/t Ag, 1.49% lead ("Pb"), and 0.58% Cu over a 2.55 m interval of vein LM30 at the 1,023 m elevation

High-grade intercepts from low angle gold veins LM50 and LM26:

Hole ZKX0597 intersected 10.79 g/t Au, 272 g/t Ag, 1.55% Pb, 0.19% zinc ("Zn") and 0.10% Cu over a 1.26 m interval of vein LM50 at the 782 m elevation

intersected 10.79 g/t Au, 272 g/t Ag, 1.55% Pb, 0.19% zinc ("Zn") and 0.10% Cu over a 1.26 m interval of vein LM50 at the 782 m elevation Hole ZKX0598 intersected 22.79 g/t Au, 31 g/t Ag and 0.13% Pb over a 0.59 m interval of vein LM50 at the 777 m elevation

intersected 22.79 g/t Au, 31 g/t Ag and 0.13% Pb over a 0.59 m interval of vein LM50 at the 777 m elevation Hole ZKX0778 intersected 0.33 g/t Au, 1,327 g/t Ag, 3.45% Pb, 0.63% Zn, and 0.15% Cu over a 2.99 m interval of vein LM26 at the 672 m elevation

intersected 0.33 g/t Au, 1,327 g/t Ag, 3.45% Pb, 0.63% Zn, and 0.15% Cu over a 2.99 m interval of vein LM26 at the 672 m elevation Hole ZKX3822 intersected 28.9 g/t Au and 12 g/t Ag over a 1.24 m interval of vein LM56 at the 532 m elevation

High-grade Ag-Pb intercepts at the W Zone :

Hole ZKX0471 intersected 3,943 g/t Ag, 2.54% Pb, 0.95% Zn, and 1.07% Cu over a 3.43 m interval of vein W1 at the 1,084 m elevation

intersected 3,943 g/t Ag, 2.54% Pb, 0.95% Zn, and 1.07% Cu over a 3.43 m interval of vein W1 at the 1,084 m elevation Hole ZKX0623 intersected 2,991 g/t Ag, 2.52% Pb, 2.29% Zn, and 0.96% Cu over a 0.61 m interval of vein W1 at the 1075 m elevation

High-grade intercepts of Ag-Pb-Zn mineralization in the Production Zone :

Hole ZKX3414 intersected 1,112 g/t Ag, 3.09% Pb, 0.34% Zn, 0.17 g/t Au, and 1.35% Cu over a 2.83 m interval of vein LM17 at the 553 m elevation

intersected 1,112 g/t Ag, 3.09% Pb, 0.34% Zn, 0.17 g/t Au, and 1.35% Cu over a 2.83 m interval of vein LM17 at the 553 m elevation Hole ZKX3423 intersected 1,209 g/t Ag, 4.51% Pb, 1.75% Zn, and 0.93% Cu over a 1.47 m interval of vein LM17 at the 565 m elevation

From October 1, 2022 to May 31, 2023 , a total of 25,692 m in 189 diamond drill holes, including 165 underground holes and 24 surface holes, were completed at the LMW mine. Assay results for 145 holes have been received and select results are presented in Table 1 below.

This drilling program has been focused on four target areas: 1) expansion drilling of newly discovered high-grade Ag-Pb and low angle Au-Ag-Cu veins west of the LMW mine ( W Zone ) at elevations above 918 m to surface (1250 m); 2) expansion drilling of low angle Au and Ag-Au-Cu veins LM50, LM26, and LM21; 3) drilling to extend the high-grade LM41E series veins; and 4) infill drilling of Ag-Pb-Zn veins at the Production Zone .

1) Expansion drilling of newly discovered high-grade Ag-Pb and low angle Au-Ag-Cu veins west of the LMW mine ( W Zone )

Drilling at the W Zone intersected several new, low angle, and high-grade Ag-Au-Cu veins, including LM28, LM29 and LM30 (Table 1). These quartz-pyrite-chalcopyrite veins were intersected at elevations between 1028 m and 990 m, striking between 210 and 240 degrees with a dip angle between 10 and 30 degrees.

At the W Zone , drilling also intersected high-grade Ag-Pb veins W2, W1, W18 series and W6 series at elevations between 1087 m and 905 m, with extension over 800 m along strike. The cross-cuts and drifts from surface at 1040 m and 988 m elevations have traced the high-grade Ag-Pb veins W1, W2 and W18 for up to 100 m in length in tunnels. The W2, W1, W18 and W6 vein series clearly cut and only slightly off-set the new low angle veins.

2) Expansion drilling of low angle Au and Ag-Au-Cu veins LM50, LM26, and LM21

Drilling for the low angle Au and Ag-Au-Cu veins targeted LM50, as well as LM21, LM26, LM22, LM51, LM54 and LM55. A continuous LM50 vein block extending 1000 m along strike and 400 m downdip has been defined and will be developed for test mining. Test mining of vein LM26 is underway.

3) Drilling to extend the high-grade LM41E series veins

At the east side of the resource area ( E Zone ), drilling continued to extend the high-grade Ag-Pb-Zn LM41E series veins, including LM41E, LM41E1 and LM41E1Wa. In particular, vein LM41E has been expanded from 1,000 m to 554 m elevation.

High-grade Ag-Pb-Zn highlights from the E Zone :

Hole ZKX11142 intersected 2,114 g/t Ag, 5.17% Pb, 1.94% Zn, 0.05 g/t Au, and 0.24% Cu over a 0.86 m interval of vein LM41E at the 779 m elevation

intersected 2,114 g/t Ag, 5.17% Pb, 1.94% Zn, 0.05 g/t Au, and 0.24% Cu over a 0.86 m interval of vein LM41E at the 779 m elevation Hole ZKX10514 intersected 1,097 g/t Ag, 22.82% Pb, 0.14% Zn, 0.26 g/t Au, and 0.09% Cu over a 0.71 m interval (0.60 m true width) of vein LM41E at the 554 m elevation.

4) Infill Drilling of Ag-Pb-Zn Veins at the Production Zone

Most holes in this period targeted blocks of known Ag-Pb-Zn veins at the Production Zone , including blocks that were previously missed due to limited drilling or tunneling, changes in the strikes and dips, and/or pinch-swelling of the pay-zones in the veins. The high-grade intercepts are mainly associated with the southeast-striking LM7 series, LM12 series and LM17 series of veins, and the northwest-striking LM8 series, LM14, LM19 and LM20.

High-grade Ag-Pb-Zn highlights at the Production Zone :

Hole ZKX3413 intersected 318 g/t Ag, 7.48% Pb, 0.43% Zn, 0.13 g/t Au, and 1.07% Cu over a 3.34 m interval (3.05 m true width) of vein LM17 at the 554 m elevation

intersected 318 g/t Ag, 7.48% Pb, 0.43% Zn, 0.13 g/t Au, and 1.07% Cu over a 3.34 m interval (3.05 m true width) of vein LM17 at the 554 m elevation Hole ZKX3610 intersected 862 g/t Ag, 10.82% Pb, 0.23% Zn, and 1.08% Cu over a 1.62 m interval (1.32 m true width) of vein LM17 at the 551 m elevation

intersected 862 g/t Ag, 10.82% Pb, 0.23% Zn, and 1.08% Cu over a 1.62 m interval (1.32 m true width) of vein LM17 at the 551 m elevation Hole ZKX0158 intersected 1,046 g/t Ag, 5.69% Pb, 0.74% Zn over a 0.91 m interval (0.86 m true width) of vein LM12 at the 850 m elevation.

Table 1: Selected intercepts from the 2022-2023 drilling program at the LMW mine

Hole ID From

(m) To

(m) Elevation

(m) Interval

(m) Ag

(g/t) Pb

(%) Zn

(%) Au

(g/t) Cu

(%) Vein Ore Type Ore Zone Low Angle Gold-Copper-Silver Veins ZKX07X083 59.07 61.21 821 2.14 24 0.05 0.09 2.39 0.01 LM50 Au Au zone ZKX05X001 60.79 62.58 820 1.79 17 0.06 0.14 2.62 0.01 LM50 Au Au zone ZKX05X129 75.94 76.59 820 0.65 78 0.90 0.41 13.80 0.05 LM50 Au Au zone ZKX07X100 73.58 77.88 817 4.30 6 0.19 0.10 1.84 0.01 LM50 Au Au zone ZKX0595 94.28 95.72 796 1.44 3 0.01 0.02 3.03 0.01 LM50 Au Au zone ZKX10420 79.86 81.26 789 1.40 1 0.01 0.01 2.35 0.01 LM50 Au Au zone ZKX0597 30.01 31.27 782 1.26 272 1.55 0.19 10.79 0.10 LM50 Au Au zone ZKX0598 33.19 33.78 777 0.59 31 0.13 0.02 22.79 0.01 LM50 Au Au zone ZKX05X048 75.30 78.39 775 3.09 16 0.81 0.23 5.63 0.01 LM50 Au Au zone ZKX0238 46.68 47.30 813 0.62 8 0.14 0.26 2.54 0.03 LM21 Au Au zone ZKX0440 66.13 66.89 812 0.76 1 0.01 0.03 4.57 0.01 LM21 Au Au zone ZKX10731 64.96 65.46 771 0.50 1 0.01 0.01 4.37 0.01 LM21 Au Au zone ZKX10984 111.63 112.97 761 1.34 4 0.05 0.06 3.04 0.01 LM21 Au Au zone ZKX10517 66.51 67.67 744 1.16 3 0.03 0.02 9.67 0.00 LM21 Au Au zone ZKX0778 81.23 84.22 672 2.99 1,327 3.45 0.63 0.33 0.15 LM26 Ag-Au-Cu Au zone ZKX05X053 76.49 77.56 664 1.07 59 0.03 0.03 4.74 1.90 LM26 Au-Cu Au zone ZKX0388 55.68 56.22 604 0.54 84 0.01 0.14 1.69 9.98 LM26 Ag-Au-Cu Au zone ZKX13817 238.77 239.27 992 0.50 2,069 2.24 0.14 0.59 0.09 LM28 Ag-Au-Cu W zone ZKX0692 60.75 61.51 991 0.76 63 0.56 0.63 0.61 0.14 LM28 Ag-Au-Cu W zone ZKX1009 208.69 209.80 1,028 1.11 32 0.01 0.03 18.00 8.38 LM29 Ag-Au-Cu W zone ZKX0980 58.24 58.83 720 0.59 16 0.01 0.01 0.03 2.62 LM51 Au-Cu Au zone ZKX05X076 135.01 138.35 531 3.34 1,698 0.42 0.07 0.66 0.11 LM53 Ag-Au-Cu Au zone ZKX10744 119.29 120.32 566 1.03 5 0.14 0.39 1.98 0.01 LM54 Au Au zone ZKX10934 158.49 160.94 555 2.45 3 0.04 0.03 1.78 0.00 LM54 Au Au zone ZKX10741 337.30 338.20 406 0.90 7 0.62 0.06 8.08 0.00 LM55 Au Au zone ZKX1009 217.32 219.87 1,023 2.55 1,167 1.49 0.03 3.01 0.58 LM30 Ag-Au-Cu W zone ZKX3822 127.56 128.80 532 1.24 12 0.07 0.04 28.90 0.02 LM56 Au Au zone ZKX14007 48.66 49.40 1,114 0.74 1 0.01 0.01 2.93 0.15 NA Au-Cu Au zone High-Grade Silver-Lead Veins at the W Zone ZKX0674 14.70 16.15 1,087 1.45 505 0.09 0.03 0.02 0.06 W1 Ag-Pb-Zn W Zone ZKX0471 25.02 28.45 1,084 3.43 3,943 2.54 0.95 0.04 1.07 W1 Ag-Pb-Zn W Zone ZKX0623 77.79 78.40 1,075 0.61 2,991 2.52 2.29 0.02 0.96 W1 Ag-Pb-Zn W Zone ZKX0823 186.56 187.22 1,049 0.66 308 0.35 0.04 0.01 0.03 W1 Ag-Pb-Zn W Zone ZKX13817 201.67 202.44 1,015 0.77 27 7.15 0.11 0.01 0.01 W1 Ag-Pb-Zn W Zone ZKX13814 202.58 203.47 1,007 0.89 80 3.66 1.04 0.00 0.00 W1 Ag-Pb-Zn W Zone ZKX0656 61.02 62.15 1004 1.13 808 4.16 0.20 0.05 0.12 W1 Ag-Pb-Zn W Zone ZKX13814 164.85 167.82 1,032 2.97 189 2.99 0.25 0.00 0.00 W18 Ag-Pb-Zn W Zone ZKX13818 191.19 192.31 990 1.12 220 3.57 0.37 0.05 0.04 W18 Ag-Pb-Zn W Zone ZKX13815 209.43 211.09 976 1.66 582 2.14 0.18 0.05 0.19 W18 Ag-Pb-Zn W Zone ZKX14226 98.81 99.49 1,067 0.68 500 4.09 5.51 0.14 0.14 W18W Ag-Pb-Zn W Zone ZKX0673 142.53 143.14 1,020 0.61 133 2.11 0.04 0.01 0.01 W6 Ag-Pb-Zn W Zone ZKX13817 379.60 380.49 905 0.89 325 1.22 0.20 0.02 0.05 W6E Ag-Pb-Zn W Zone High-Grade Silver-Lead-Zinc Veins at the E Zone ZKX11141 57.95 58.64 800 0.69 474 1.71 1.41 0.01 0.12 LM41_1 Ag-Pb-Zn E Zone ZKX1905 224.18 225.04 1,003 0.86 385 0.37 0.22 0.00 0.00 LM41E Ag-Pb-Zn E Zone ZKX11142 106.78 107.64 779 0.86 2,114 5.17 1.94 0.05 0.24 LM41E Ag-Pb-Zn E Zone ZKX10731 122.30 122.90 744 0.60 318 1.31 1.21 0.01 0.03 LM41E Ag-Pb-Zn E Zone ZKX10954 112.89 113.74 679 0.85 184 2.15 1.13 0.03 0.02 LM41E Ag-Pb-Zn E Zone ZKX10955 124.46 125.48 672 1.02 245 0.96 0.13 0.05 0.02 LM41E Ag-Pb-Zn E Zone ZKX11136 116.01 116.86 627 0.85 756 0.60 0.31 0.46 0.04 LM41E Ag-Pb-Zn E Zone ZKX10729 123.77 124.87 625 1.10 328 2.60 0.13 0.00 0.00 LM41E Ag-Pb-Zn E Zone ZKX10743 135.54 136.79 625 1.25 396 11.40 1.06 0.00 0.00 LM41E Ag-Pb-Zn E Zone ZKX10744 163.62 164.67 554 1.05 51 4.08 0.12 0.04 0.05 LM41E Ag-Pb-Zn E Zone ZKX10514 174.87 175.58 554 0.71 1,097 22.82 0.14 0.26 0.09 LM41E Ag-Pb-Zn E Zone ZKX11141 136.42 136.92 794 0.50 309 1.26 0.18 0.01 0.03 LM41E1 Ag-Pb-Zn E Zone ZKX10954 118.95 119.72 678 0.77 534 4.33 0.91 0.06 0.12 LM41E1 Ag-Pb-Zn E Zone High-Grade Veins at the Production Zone ZKX07X079 5.44 6.33 750 0.89 823 1.05 0.47 0.00 0.00 LM10E Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX07X080 3.80 4.99 750 1.19 595 1.75 0.30 0.00 0.00 LM10E Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX07X081 2.90 3.54 750 0.64 239 0.62 0.06 0.00 0.00 LM10E Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX05X121 9.12 9.68 747 0.56 325 1.25 0.11 0.00 0.00 LM10E Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX05X120 50.64 52.38 742 1.74 251 0.98 0.16 0.00 0.00 LM11W1 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX07X080 44.06 45.23 731 1.17 204 0.29 0.06 0.00 0.00 LM11W1 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX0158 37.48 38.39 850 0.91 1,046 5.69 0.24 0.00 0.00 LM12 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX0159 34.14 34.69 845 0.55 1,816 4.98 0.07 0.00 0.19 LM12 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX0398 65.74 66.27 805 0.53 568 0.98 0.37 0.18 0.13 LM12_1 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX1350 124.32 125.56 690 1.24 22 5.26 0.03 0.05 0.00 LM12_1 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX05X076 147.87 148.99 520 1.12 225 3.39 0.08 0.05 0.11 LM12_1 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX11443 4.24 5.34 800 1.10 98 0.82 0.15 0.34 0.06 LM12_2 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX11239 9.22 10.29 798 1.07 99 7.62 1.16 0.08 0.03 LM12_2 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX05X053 65.34 69.06 669 3.72 154 0.92 0.42 0.14 0.06 LM12_2 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX05X047 67.06 67.91 668 0.85 1,810 4.20 4.73 0.21 0.51 LM12_2 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX05X151 151.28 152.72 609 1.44 663 5.11 2.01 0.13 0.55 LM12_2 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX0570 63.21 63.98 811 0.77 670 1.60 1.37 0.67 0.15 LM12_3 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX11239 80.78 81.75 782 0.97 321 14.65 0.09 0.07 0.08 LM12_3 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX05X158 87.79 88.56 655 0.77 190 0.74 0.28 0.00 0.00 LM12E Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX00X007 23.26 24.15 785 0.89 372 5.59 0.10 0.01 0.30 LM12E2 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX11443 106.74 107.63 786 0.89 669 0.83 0.13 0.03 0.38 LM13 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX10936 71.50 75.56 602 4.06 547 1.32 0.26 0.00 0.00 LM14 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX10937 77.27 78.54 597 1.27 166 1.29 0.22 0.00 0.00 LM14 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX4220 56.18 57.72 596 1.54 206 0.68 0.06 0.01 0.02 LM17 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX4025 58.71 60.78 595 2.07 376 8.29 1.67 0.00 0.00 LM17 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX3417 40.75 46.27 566 5.52 342 1.86 0.39 0.00 0.58 LM17 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX3423 35.21 36.68 565 1.47 1,209 4.51 1.75 0.00 0.93 LM17 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX4221 79.12 84.57 564 5.45 243 0.78 0.22 0.05 0.05 LM17 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX4219 79.61 82.21 559 2.60 134 1.39 0.37 0.00 0.00 LM17 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX3413 38.59 41.93 554 3.34 318 7.48 0.43 0.13 1.07 LM17 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX3414 41.33 44.16 553 2.83 1,112 3.09 0.34 0.17 1.35 LM17 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX3610 53.57 55.19 551 1.62 862 10.82 0.23 0.00 1.08 LM17 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX3418 48.87 49.94 544 1.07 96 0.77 0.14 0.00 1.39 LM17 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX1905 304.01 305.29 968 1.28 136 0.76 0.03 0.00 0.00 LM17W Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX10210 125.49 131.35 790 5.86 197 1.30 0.09 0.00 0.00 LM19 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX07X090 64.08 64.98 624 0.90 50 5.11 0.52 0.05 0.05 LM29E3 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX11443 133.73 135.78 782 2.05 370 0.95 0.09 0.06 0.22 LM19Wa Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX11239 137.53 138.04 769 0.51 649 0.49 0.02 0.03 0.08 LM19Wa Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX03X024 88.81 89.52 619 0.71 51 3.22 0.11 0.03 0.25 LM19Wa Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX0582 48.39 52.42 667 4.03 355 1.29 0.78 0.00 0.00 LM20 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX0157 71.72 72.50 877 0.78 22 5.85 0.14 0.00 0.00 LM20W Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX03X086 32.28 34.97 778 2.69 415 1.47 0.13 0.70 0.06 LM20W Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX0598 38.78 39.46 773 0.68 417 3.65 0.87 0.13 0.11 LM20W Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX00X002 142.43 143.20 911 0.77 1,178 1.75 0.04 0.03 0.14 LM7 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX0397 125.66 128.01 815 2.35 124 3.56 0.21 0.00 0.00 LM7 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX05X041 126.13 127.39 806 1.26 64 2.76 0.03 0.00 0.00 LM7 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX0759 42.23 43.18 770 0.95 129 1.21 0.05 0.05 0.05 LM7 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX0179 77.98 79.38 770 1.40 161 1.10 0.07 0.00 0.00 LM7 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX1153 104.93 105.65 654 0.72 329 1.76 0.22 0.00 0.00 LM7 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX1353 101.87 103.43 638 1.56 67 2.97 0.20 0.00 0.00 LM7 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX09X079 86.13 87.72 628 1.59 62 2.77 0.03 0.05 0.09 LM7 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX05X051 131.93 132.60 777 0.67 42 12.64 0.18 0.00 0.00 LM7E Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX05X048 123.20 126.13 758 2.93 164 0.62 0.05 0.02 0.09 LM7E Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX1153 122.94 124.39 647 1.45 193 0.45 0.35 0.00 0.00 LM7E Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX0155 107.72 108.48 914 0.76 1,508 1.24 0.05 0.00 0.14 LM7W Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX0759 29.55 32.91 782 3.36 608 0.64 0.09 0.13 0.10 LM7W Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX0176 41.47 43.76 789 2.29 126 1.19 0.02 0.01 0.00 LM7W1 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX0179 31.32 32.54 789 1.22 127 0.66 0.24 0.10 0.05 LM7W1 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX0177 40.32 42.86 776 2.54 70 3.11 0.22 0.08 0.01 LM7W1 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX09X079 55.67 56.30 653 0.63 370 8.28 4.55 0.13 0.24 LM7W1 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX09X079 16.18 17.66 685 1.48 191 0.79 0.12 0.03 0.07 LM8 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX1352 14.34 14.93 695 0.59 43 16.27 0.05 0.00 0.00 LM8_1 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX1351 41.64 42.46 742 0.82 224 0.40 0.04 0.00 0.05 LM8_3 Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone ZKX1009 31.93 32.70 1,125 0.77 144 0.44 0.12 0.01 0.24 NA Ag-Pb-Zn Production zone



5) Tunneling Programs at the LMW Mine

A total of 4,257 m of exploration tunnels have been developed at the LMW mine during this period. The exploration tunneling, comprised of drifting, cross-cutting and raising, was driven along and across major mineralized vein structures to upgrade the drill-defined mineral resources, and to test for new parallel and splay structures.

Quality Control

Drill cores are NQ size. Drill core samples, limited by apparent mineralization contacts or shear/alteration contacts, were split into halves by sawing. The half cores are stored in the Company's core shacks for future reference and checks, and the other half core samples are shipped in securely sealed bags to the Chengde Huakan 514 Geology and Minerals Test and Research Institute in Chengde, Hebei Province , China , 226 km northeast of Beijing , the Zhengzhou Nonferrous Exploration Institute Lab in Zhengzhou , Henan Province , China , and SGS in Tianjin, China . All three labs are ISO9000 certified analytical labs. For analysis, the sample is dried and crushed to minus 1mm and then split into a 200-300 g subsample which is further pulverized to minus 200 mesh. Two subsamples are prepared from the pulverized sample. One is digested with aqua regia for gold analysis with atomic absorption spectroscopy (AAS), and the other is digested by two-acid digestion for analysis of silver, lead, zinc and copper with AAS.

Channel samples are collected along sample lines perpendicular to the mineralized vein structure in exploration tunnels. Spacing between sampling lines is typically 5 m along strike. Both the mineralized vein and the altered wall rocks are cut by continuous chisel chipping. Sample length ranges from 0.4 m to more than 1 m, depending on the width of the mineralized vein and the mineralization type. Channel samples are prepared and assayed with AAS at Silvercorp's mine laboratory (Ying Lab) located at the mill complex in Luoning County, Henan Province , China . The Ying lab is officially accredited by the Quality and Technology Monitoring Bureau of Henan Province and is qualified to provide analytical services. The channel samples are dried, crushed and pulverized. A 200 g sample of minus 160 mesh is prepared for assay. A duplicate sample of minus 1mm is made and kept in the laboratory archives. Gold is analysed by fire assay with AAS finish, while silver, lead, zinc and copper are assayed by two-acid digestion with AAS finish.

A routine quality assurance/quality control (QA/QC) procedure is adopted to monitor the analytical quality at each lab. Certified reference materials (CRMs), pulp duplicates and blanks are inserted into each batch of lab samples. QA/QC data at the lab are attached to the assay certificates for each batch of samples.

The Company maintains its own comprehensive QA/QC program to ensure best practices in sample preparation and analysis of the exploration samples. Project geologists regularly insert CRM, field duplicates and blanks to each batch of 30 core samples to monitor the sample preparation and analysis procedures at the labs. The analytical quality of the labs is further evaluated with external checks by sending approximately 3-5% of the pulp samples to higher level labs to check for lab bias. Data from both the Company's and the labs' QA/QC programs are reviewed on a timely basis by project geologists.

Guoliang Ma , P. Geo ., Manager of Exploration and Resource of the Company, is the Qualified Person for Silvercorp under NI 43-101 and has reviewed and given consent to the technical information contained in this news release.

About Silvercorp

Silvercorp is a Canadian mining company producing silver, gold, lead, and zinc with a long history of profitability and growth potential. The Company's strategy is to create shareholder value by 1) focusing on generating free cashflow from long life mines; 2) organic growth through extensive drilling for discovery; 3) ongoing merger and acquisition efforts to unlock value; and 4) long term commitment to responsible mining and ESG. For more information, please visit our website at www.silvercorpmetals.com.

For further information

Lon Shaver

Vice President

Silvercorp Metals Inc.

Phone: (604) 669-9397

Toll Free: 1 (888) 224-1881

Email: [email protected]

Website: www.silvercorpmetals.com

CAUTIONARY DISCLAIMER - FORWARD LOOKING STATEMENTS

Certain of the statements and information in this press release constitute "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable Canadian provincial securities laws. Any statements or information that express or involve discussions with respect to predictions, expectations, beliefs, plans, projections, objectives, assumptions or future events or performance (often, but not always, using words or phrases such as "expects", "is expected", "anticipates", "believes", "plans", "projects", "estimates", "assumes", "intends", "strategies", "targets", "goals", "forecasts", "objectives", "budgets", "schedules", "potential" or variations thereof or stating that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will" be taken, occur or be achieved, or the negative of any of these terms and similar expressions) are not statements of historical fact and may be forward-looking statements or information. Forward-looking statements or information relate to, among other things: the price of silver and other metals; the accuracy of mineral resource and mineral reserve estimates at the Company's material properties; the sufficiency of the Company's capital to finance the Company's operations; estimates of the Company's revenues and capital expenditures; estimated production from the Company's mines in the Ying Mining District ; timing of receipt of permits and regulatory approvals; availability of funds from production to finance the Company's operations; and access to and availability of funding for future construction, use of proceeds from any financing and development of the Company's properties.

Forward-looking statements or information are subject to a variety of known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual events or results to differ from those reflected in the forward-looking statements or information, including, without limitation, social and economic impacts of COVID-19; risks relating to: fluctuating commodity prices; calculation of resources, reserves and mineralization and precious and base metal recovery; interpretations and assumptions of mineral resource and mineral reserve estimates; exploration and development programs; feasibility and engineering reports; permits and licenses; title to properties; property interests; joint venture partners; acquisition of commercially mineable mineral rights; financing; recent market events and conditions; economic factors affecting the Company; timing, estimated amount, capital and operating expenditures and economic returns of future production; integration of future acquisitions into the Company's existing operations; competition; operations and political conditions; regulatory environment in China and Canada; environmental risks; legislative and regulatory initiatives addressing global climate change or other environmental concerns; foreign exchange rate fluctuations; insurance; risks and hazards of mining operations; key personnel; conflicts of interest; dependence on management; internal control over financial reporting as per the requirements of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act; and bringing actions and enforcing judgments under U.S. securities laws.

This list is not exhaustive of the factors that may affect any of the Company's forward-looking statements or information. Forward-looking statements or information are statements about the future and are inherently uncertain, and actual achievements of the Company or other future events or conditions may differ materially from those reflected in the forward-looking statements or information due to a variety of risks, uncertainties and other factors, including, without limitation, those referred to in the Company's Annual Information Form for the year ended March 31, 2021 under the heading "Risk Factors". Although the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated, described or intended. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements or information.

The Company's forward-looking statements and information are based on the assumptions, beliefs, expectations and opinions of management as of the date of this press release, and other than as required by applicable securities laws, the Company does not assume any obligation to update forward-looking statements and information if circumstances or management's assumptions, beliefs, expectations or opinions should change, or changes in any other events affecting such statements or information. For the reasons set forth above, investors should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements and information.

CAUTIONARY NOTE TO US INVESTORS

The disclosure in this news release and referred to herein was prepared in accordance with NI 43-101 which differs significantly from the requirements of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC"). The terms "proven mineral reserve", "probable mineral reserve" and "mineral reserves" used in this news release are in reference to the mining terms defined in the Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum Standards (the "CIM Definition Standards"), which definitions have been adopted by NI 43-101. Accordingly, information contained in this news release providing descriptions of our mineral deposits in accordance with NI 43-101 may not be comparable to similar information made public by other U.S. companies subject to the United States federal securities laws and the rules and regulations thereunder.

Investors are cautioned not to assume that any part or all of mineral resources will ever be converted into reserves. Pursuant to CIM Definition Standards, "Inferred mineral resources" are that part of a mineral resource for which quantity and grade or quality are estimated on the basis of limited geological evidence and sampling. Such geological evidence is sufficient to imply but not verify geological and grade or quality continuity. An inferred mineral resource has a lower level of confidence than that applying to an indicated mineral resource and must not be converted to a mineral reserve. However, it is reasonably expected that the majority of inferred mineral resources could be upgraded to indicated mineral resources with continued exploration. Under Canadian rules, estimates of inferred mineral resources may not form the basis of feasibility or pre-feasibility studies, except in rare cases. Investors are cautioned not to assume that all or any part of an inferred mineral resource is economically or legally mineable. Disclosure of "contained ounces" in a resource is permitted disclosure under Canadian regulations; however, the SEC normally only permits issuers to report mineralization that does not constitute "reserves" by SEC standards as in place tonnage and grade without reference to unit measures.

Canadian standards, including the CIM Definition Standards and NI 43-101, differ significantly from standards in the SEC Industry Guide 7. Effective February 25, 2019 , the SEC adopted new mining disclosure rules under subpart 1300 of Regulation S-K of the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "SEC Modernization Rules"), with compliance required for the first fiscal year beginning on or after January 1, 2021 . The SEC Modernization Rules replace the historical property disclosure requirements included in SEC Industry Guide 7. As a result of the adoption of the SEC Modernization Rules, the SEC now recognizes estimates of "Measured Mineral Resources", "Indicated Mineral Resources" and "Inferred Mineral Resources". In addition, the SEC has amended its definitions of "Proven Mineral Reserves" and "Probable Mineral Reserves" to be substantially similar to corresponding definitions under the CIM Definition Standards. During the period leading up to the compliance date of the SEC Modernization Rules, information regarding mineral resources or reserves contained or referenced in this news release may not be comparable to similar information made public by companies that report according to U.S. standards. While the SEC Modernization Rules are purported to be "substantially similar" to the CIM Definition Standards, readers are cautioned that there are differences between the SEC Modernization Rules and the CIM Definitions Standards. Accordingly, there is no assurance any mineral reserves or mineral resources that the Company may report as "proven mineral reserves", "probable mineral reserves", "measured mineral resources", "indicated mineral resources" and "inferred mineral resources" under NI 43-101 would be the same had the Company prepared the reserve or resource estimates under the standards adopted under the SEC Modernization Rules.

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SOURCE Silvercorp Metals Inc
President Yoon Suk-yeol embarks on a visit to France and Vietnam on June 19-24, the presidential office said Tuesday.

Yoon will attend the Bureau International des Expositions' general assembly in Paris on June 20-21 to push Busan's bid to host the World Expo 2030. The highlight will be final presentations of rival candidates Korea, Saudi Arabia, Italy, and Ukraine on June 20. Rapper Psy has been roped in for the Korean presentation.

The same day Yoon will have lunch with his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron at Elysee Palace.

Yoon then flies to Vietnam to meet with Vietnamese President Vo Van Thuong on June 23. He will also have dinner with Nguyen Phu Trong, the general secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam, and other Vietnamese leaders.

Korea and Vietnam celebrated the 30th anniversary of diplomatic relations last year.

Vietnam is Korea's third largest trading partner. Yoon will be accompanied by an entourage of 205 business leaders, including Samsung chief Lee Jae-yong and the heads of the other five biggest business groups.
The Nostromo IceBrick energy storage system will reduce energy costs and greenhouse gas emissions and help the hotels achieve their aggressive climate goals

BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. , June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The Beverly Hilton and the Waldorf Astoria Beverly Hills , two of California's most iconic luxury hotels and champions for the environment, together with Nostromo Energy (TASE: NOST), provider of breakthrough energy storage solutions for commercial buildings, announced today the launch of Nostromo's sustainable energy storage system serving the two adjacent hotels. The system is designed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and enable the hotels to reach their sustainability goals while saving on energy costs. This project with hotel ownership and leading real-estate asset management groups Alagem Capital Group and Cain International marks the first hospitality industry partnership using Nostromo's innovative technology.

During peak hours, air conditioning in commercial and industrial buildings accounts for approximately half of California's energy demands. Fortunately, these buildings have the potential to reduce their demand from the electric grid during peak times by installing energy storage solutions. Energy storage not only lowers the building's energy costs and carbon emissions, but also enables more EV charging capacity, and provides resilience during extreme weather. By charging the storage systems with clean energy and using it when the grid-power is fossil-based, buildings are able to reduce the grid's reliance on fossil fuels and drastically cut carbon emissions.

"We are proud to partner with Nostromo to bring cutting-edge green technology to The Beverly Hilton ," said David Ecija , General Manager of The Beverly Hilton . "This partnership is an extension of our history as forward-thinking property, focused on the future and what is good for our community."

The 1.4 megawatt-hour energy storage system installed inside The Beverly Hilton , and also serving the adjacent Waldorf Astoria Beverly Hills , will supply energy for cooling at less than 50% of its current cost and reduce CO 2 emissions by 150-200 metric tons annually, or more than 5,000 metric tons for the life of the system. The IceBrick system will charge using power from the grid at times when renewable energy levels are high, to freeze water into ice, then use the ice in the late afternoon and evening, when power demand reaches its highest levels, to provide energy for cooling instead of using fossil-based energy from the grid in the late afternoon.

"We are thrilled that ownership of leading brand hotels such as The Beverly Hilton and Waldorf Astoria Beverly Hills are adopting Nostromo's energy storage technology, demonstrating how buildings can play significant role in integrating renewables and improving resilience of the grid in California and nationwide, while cutting their energy costs," said Yoram Ashery, CEO of Nostromo. "We look forward to partnering with more like-minded ownership and management of commercial buildings, in the hospitality realm and other sectors."

"As owner of leading hospitality properties including the Waldorf Astoria Beverly Hills , Alagem Capital Group has always been committed to incorporating the most advanced and innovative technologies to make our properties role models for sustainability," said David Alagem, Vice President, Lifestyle, Branding and Technology of Alagem Capital Group. "We are thrilled to be the first in the United States to install the Nostromo's ice energy storage technology, which we believe opens new opportunities for building owners to take leadership roles in advancing new ways to manage energy demand. This is a significant step towards achieving our goal of creating a more sustainable future for generations to come."

"We are excited to announce our partnership with Nostromo and their innovative Icebrick technology, a water-based energy storage solution. This innovative technology and partnership are the first of its kind in the US, and will enable us to reduce our carbon footprint while also saving on our energy bills," said Larry Green , Managing Director at Cain International."Together, we're building a sustainable future with cost-effective and flexible energy storage solutions that benefit building owners, the grid, and the environment. With this partnership, One Beverly Hills further confirms our investment in a sustainable future and commitment to being the benchmark for environmental sustainability by bringing together multiple technologies to aggressively lower emissions and energy consumption. "

About Nostromo

Nostromo Energy's ice-based energy storage solution is redefining energy storage for commercial and industrial buildings, helping them become sustainable energy storage assets, and reduce energy costs and carbon emissions. The Nostromo IceBrick system uses ice to store energy when electricity prices are low and renewable energy is abundant, and discharge the energy to avoid purchasing electricity that is carbon intensive and expensive. In this way, Nostromo helps accelerate the renewable revolution and paves the way to a carbon free electric grid, while offering a safe, clean and financially beneficial system to building owners. The IceBrick is non-flammable, modular and compact, easily retrofitted to existing commercial and industrial buildings. To learn more about Nostromo, visit www.nostromo.energy .

About Alagem Capital Group

Alagem Capital Group is a holding company based in Beverly Hills, California established to pursue various investment opportunities. Alagem Capital Group is led by Beny Alagem, who serves as its Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. Mr. Alagem is an entrepreneur whose business activities have spanned a nearly four-decade career in such diverse industries as computers, telecommunications, technology, and real estate. Alagem Capital Group's current investment focus is in the real estate and hospitality industries.

About The Beverly Hilton

Opened in 1955 by distinguished hotelier Conrad Hilton , The Beverly Hilton , a Forbes Four-Star hotel, is owned by the Los Angeles -based, Oasis West Realty, LLC and managed by Hilton Worldwide (NYSE: HLT). Nestled at the crossroads of the iconic Wilshire and Santa Monica Boulevards, the hotel combines the excitement of Hollywood with the prestige of Beverly Hills . In 2020, The Beverly Hilton completed a transformative, multi-million dollar renovation encompassing all guest rooms, suites, and public spaces, ushering in a reimagined and contemporary look. With more than 60,000 square feet of indoor and open-air event space, The Beverly Hilton boasts the most technologically advanced meeting space of its kind in the country. The hotel's renowned International Ballroom plays host to glamorous annual events including the Golden Globe Awards Show, Oscar Nominee Luncheon, Pre-GRAMMYs Gala, and the Milken Institute's Global Conference. For more information, please visit www.beverlyhilton.com or call 310.274.7777.

Media Contacts:

Chaya Zabihi

GK for Nostromo

[email protected]

Veronica Werhane , Account Director

The Brandman Agency for The Beverly Hilton

[email protected]

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SOURCE Nostromo
ABU DHABI , UAE , June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The Department of Health  Abu Dhabi (DoH), the regulator of the healthcare sector in the Emirate, signed a Declaration of Collaboration with Mass General Brigham's International Center for Genetic Disease (iCGD). The agreement signed is intended to advance life sciences across three strategic pillars including clinical and translational research, capacity building and technology transfer and commercialisation. Leveraging the Emirate's advanced genomics capabilities, the agreement seeks to expand research into the domain of genomic medicine and prioritised global genetic diseases in areas such as rare diseases, oncology, neurology, as well as cardiovascular and metabolic diseases. The collaboration aims to enhance access to innovative solutions and treatments for patients in the United Arab Emirates ( UAE ) and beyond.

In the presence of H.E. Mansoor Al Mansoori , Chairman of the Department of Health  Abu Dhabi and Dr. Alireza Haghighi , Founding Director of the International Center for Genetic Disease, the Declaration of Collaboration was signed by Dr. Asma Ibrahim Al Mannaei , Executive Director of Research and Innovation Centre at the Department of Health  Abu Dhabi and by Dr. Paul Anderson , Interim Chief Academic Officer of Mass General Brigham on behalf of iCGD and Mass General Brigham.

Dr. Asma Ibrahim Al Mannaei said: "Our collaboration with iCGD reaffirms our deep commitment to improving people's lives in the UAE and beyond. By leveraging the Emirate's advanced infrastructure, we seek to boost clinical research and advance gene therapy to improve healthcare outcomes today and for generations to come. Abu Dhabi continues to set the stage for a future driven by innovation and technology, reinforcing its position as a leading destination for healthcare and life science."

The research collaboration will focus on analysing whole genome sequencing data of the Emirati Genome Programme  the world's largest genomics programme  and on translational studies to develop novel therapies such as gene therapies and other effective interventions. Both parties will also explore opportunities to establish joint laboratories and genetic screening programmes in Abu Dhabi to support the discovery of genomic solutions that address international health challenges and needs.

Dr. Paul Anderson , Interim Chief Academic Officer of Mass General Brigham, commented: "Mass General Brigham is at the global forefront of scientific innovation and medical progress. Genomic medicine is a pivotal focus for us, serving to translate ground-breaking scientific advances into actionable diagnostics and treatments. Through our research collaboration with the Abu Dhabi Department of Health we intend to leverage our collective knowledge, experience, and expertise to further advance biomedical science and enhance public health. Our iCGD provides an excellent platform to achieve this goal."

Reflecting on this collaboration, Dr. Alireza Haghighi , Founding Director of the iCGD, stated: "We anticipate that the collaboration between the Mass General Brigham iCGD and the Abu Dhabi DoH will lead to improvements in clinical diagnosis and more effective disease prevention and management strategies. We are truly excited about the potential of this collaboration to advance medical science and believe that our combined impact will resonate beyond the UAE's borders, benefiting medical science globally".

To learn more, visit: https://www.doh.gov.ae/en/Abu-Dhabi-a-regional-life-science-hub

About Department of Health  Abu Dhabi (DoH):

The DoH is the regulatory body of the Healthcare Sector at the Emirate of Abu Dhabi and ensures excellence in healthcare for the community by monitoring the health status of the population. DoH defines the strategy for the health system, monitors and analyses the health status of the population and performance of the system. In addition, DoH shapes the regulatory framework for the health system, inspects against regulations, enforces standards, and encourages adoption of world-class best practices and performance targets by all healthcare service providers in the Emirate. DoH also drives programmes to increase awareness and adoption of healthy living standards among the residents of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi in addition to regulating scope of services, premiums and reimbursement rates of the health system.

For further information on DOH, visit https://www.doh.gov.ae/ and follow on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn and YouTube.

Media Contact: Rania El Kebbe , 00971551038650, [email protected]

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MEDFORD, Ore. , June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Two and a half decades after their very first espresso drink was served with a signature chocolate-covered espresso bean on top, The Human Bean is celebrating its 25th anniversary this June.

With a motto of "a little kindness goes a long way," The Human Bean has grown from a single drive-thru location in southern Oregon to over 300+ locations open or in development across over 25 states throughout the U.S. Franchise partners cite the company's core values of quality, community and integrity as the ingredients that have brewed the brand's quarter-century success.

"After seeing their passion for the company and tasting the incredible coffee, we were hooked," says Laura Stark , Texas franchise owner. "We knew we wanted to be a part of this amazing company. The Human Bean doesn't make you feel like you are a number. You feel like family."

As part of the celebration, The Human Bean recently launched a new website with easily-findable nutrition information, an online store, highlights of annual giveback campaigns, and vibrant photos of new speciality drinks and classic favorites.

Interested future franchisees are also invited to drink in the new, separate franchise-focused website with information about getting started (from site selection to operations) and accessing the suite of support tools from The Human Bean corporate team.

"We're ready to help at any stage," says COO, Scott Anderson. "Every applicant speaks with a founder during the development phase, and other franchise owners always offer their support, too. It's a really special community, and our partners who have grown with us are a big part of this 25-year milestone."

Every visit to The Human Bean in June is an opportunity to grab a limited-edition Happy Birthday sticker to join the festivities, while supplies last.

About The Human Bean

With a passion for creating happy 'Human Beans', the company's drive-thrus around the U.S. have established a reputation for friendly baristas, high-quality coffee, and innovative flavors. The Human Bean opened its first drive-thru espresso stand in Ashland, Oregon in 1998, and currently supports over 300 locations open or under development in 20 states.

Learn more at thehumanbean.com .

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SOURCE The Human Bean
93% of Business Leaders Surveyed Believe Their Companies Make It Easy to Resolve Issues, But Only 66% Of Customers Agree

CHICAGO , June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The Northridge Group, a leading Customer Experience (CX) operations and management consulting firm, released its highly anticipated 2023 State of Customer Experience (CX) report. The survey findings indicate a significant disparity between business leaders' perception of their companies' customer service and the actual experiences reported by customers.

This is Northridge's seventh annual consumer survey and the fourth conducted in parallel with business leaders. The goal is to learn what customers really think about the experiences they have interacting with companies and to determine whether their impressions are in sync with what the leaders of those businesses believe about the level of service they provide.

The 2023 State of CX report also provides insights and metrics that businesses can use to benchmark their performance as well as assess and implement meaningful operational improvements in their contact center. Highlights include the following:

Nearly half of consumers surveyed had knowingly spoken to a customer service associate who was at home, and almost 75% of those respondents felt the associate's location did not impact the resolution of their issue. Yet more than 1/3 of business leaders want contact center associates back in the office.





of consumers surveyed had knowingly spoken to a customer service associate who was at home, and almost of those respondents felt the associate's location did not impact the resolution of their issue. Yet of business leaders want contact center associates back in the office. 93% of business leaders surveyed believe their companies make it easy for customers to resolve their issues, but only 66% of customers felt this way in return.





of business leaders surveyed believe their companies make it easy for customers to resolve their issues, but only of customers felt this way in return. 92% of business leaders surveyed would like to provide additional training to their customer service representatives, with 'soft skills' being the top area of investment and/or improvement.

Download the full report at CX Trends - The Northridge Group .

"Customers look at their experiences with a company as a combination of all the contacts they make across channels to resolve their issues," said Lisa Butler , Managing Principal, Head of Service Delivery at The Northridge Group. "The companies that learn how to deliver seamless, personalized experiences across multiple communication channels will undoubtedly possess a significant and lasting competitive advantage."

The Northridge Group's State of Customer Service Experience 2023 study encompassed 1000 U.S. customers over the age of 18 and 250 U.S. business leaders from small/mid-size to multi-billion-dollar global enterprises. The surveys covered various aspects of customer experience, including channel preferences, response times, issue resolution, customer effort, self-service tools, and corporate investments.

"Providing excellent experiences is essential to the survival of all businesses but given the sheer volume at which they occur it can oftentimes be difficult to assess how specific interactions unfold and whether the impact or result they produce was net positive or negative," said Bryan Gillis , Managing Principal, Head of Emerging Markets & Growth, at Northridge. "Equally important is understanding the actions and investments made by a company's leadership, proactively and/or in response to consumer sentiment or feedback."

Download the full report at CX Trends - The Northridge Group .

About The Northridge Group

The Northridge Group is an award-winning, women-owned boutique consulting firm that specializes in Customer Experience (CX) and contact center operations. Serving Fortune 1000 organizations in the healthcare, finance, telecom, retail, energy, transportation, and government sectors, the company offers innovative solutions to complex business challenges. With a focus on contact center management, process optimization, training, technology, and digital transformation, The Northridge Group assists brands in achieving exceptional customer service through collaborative and value-driven consulting. Learn more at https://www.northridgegroup.com/

Media contact:

Jeremy Ahto

[email protected]

(847) 692-2288

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SOURCE The Northridge Group
Commercial Real Estate Developer Honored for Industry Leadership; Outstanding Quality of Projects and Services; Community Support

WASHINGTON , June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- NAIOP, the Commercial Real Estate Development Association, has selected VanTrust Real Estate, LLC (VanTrust) as its 2023 Developer of the Year  the association's highest honor. The award will be presented during NAIOP's CRE.Converge conference in Seattle this October.

"We at VanTrust are extremely proud to be recognized by NAIOP as the Developer of the Year for 2023, and we would like to thank NAIOP for this honor. This award is a testament to the commitment of our employees, who consistently strive to exceed expectations through a strong set of guiding values and a commitment to the communities we serve. This, we believe, is what distinguishes VanTrust and enables us to develop with a difference," said Dave Harrison , president, VanTrust.

Established in 2010 as a full-service real estate development firm with a regional focus and a national reach, VanTrust has grown to become one of the nation's largest privately held commercial real estate companies. VanTrust primarily develops for the Van Tuyl family, as well as select relationship-based partnerships and select fee-based development services for clients. Headquartered in Kansas City, Missouri , with offices in Dallas ; Phoenix ; Columbus, Ohio ; and Jacksonville, Florida , the company offers a wide range of services, including acquisitions, development, asset enhancement, and design and construction oversight.

The company has experienced rapid growth since its inception. VanTrust has developed more than 61 million square feet of office, industrial, multifamily, mixed-used, science + technology, and hospitality projects nationwide. Through the strong leadership of the Van Tuyl Companies, VanTrust has developed more than $6 billion worth of product. The company's project starts in 2022 surpassed $1.3 billion .

Among VanTrust's core priorities is to serve as responsible stewards of the communities in which it operates, focusing efforts on building stronger, healthier communities and delivering developments that form an integral part of these communities. Through its charitable contributions, VanTrust helps improve areas of community revitalization, education, infrastructure, economic impact, financial literacy, community health and human services, and the arts.

"We believe that supporting our communities both financially and with our time and energy improves the quality of life for our clients, business associates, our employees and those living and working around us. Contributing to those in need is consistent with our company values, makes sense for our business, and is the right thing to do," said Harrison.

From land acquisition to development and operations management, VanTrust is dedicated to working with its clients to identify measures that reduce environmental impact. Team members and clients incorporate sustainable strategies across their portfolio through innovation and adaptation.

"On behalf of NAIOP, we are honored to recognize the tremendous achievements of VanTrust as our 2023 Developer of the Year. The company has been incredibly successful and effectively navigated challenges by adapting to the market and leading with an entrepreneurial and nimble approach," said Marc Selvitelli , CAE, NAIOP president and CEO. "The company's commitment to its employees, clients and communities is impressive."

VanTrust and its employees are active in NAIOP across several association chapters, including NAIOP Arizona, NAIOP Central Ohio, NAIOP Northeast Florida, NAIOP North Texas and NAIOP Southern Nevada.

Since 1979, the NAIOP Developer of the Year award has been presented to a development company that best exemplifies leadership and innovation in the commercial real estate industry. VanTrust was selected from an impressive slate of nominees and was evaluated by a team of seasoned developers on the following criteria: outstanding quality of projects and services; active support of the industry through NAIOP; financial consistency and stability; ability to adapt to market conditions; and support of the local community.

About NAIOP

NAIOP, the Commercial Real Estate Development Association, is the leading organization for developers, owners, investors and related professionals in office, industrial, retail and mixed-use real estate. NAIOP provides unparalleled industry networking and education and advocates for effective legislation on behalf of our members. NAIOP advances responsible, sustainable development that creates jobs and benefits the communities in which our members work and live. For more information, visit naiop.org.

About VanTrust Real Estate, LLC

VanTrust Real Estate, LLC is a full-service real estate development company. The company acquires and develops real estate assets for the Van Tuyl family portfolio and offers a broad range of real estate services including acquisition, disposition, development, development services, corporate services, and asset management. Product types include office, industrial, multifamily, science + technology and mixed-use. VanTrust works nationally with regional offices in Columbus , Dallas , Phoenix , and Jacksonville with its headquarters in Kansas City, Missouri . For more information, visit www.vantrustre.com.

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SOURCE NAIOP
HOUSTON , June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Venus Aerospace, a Houston -based hypersonic startup enabling cost-effective one-hour global transport, welcomes the new addition of Airbus Ventures to its team of investors.

Venus Aerospace welcomes the new addition of Airbus Ventures to its team of investors.

" Venus has developed the world's first liquid-propellant rotating detonation rocket engine (RDRE) with a double-digit percentage increase in efficiency over standard regular engines, making the hypersonic economy possible," remarks Venus Aerospace CEO and co-founder Sassie Duggleby , who goes on to say, "We're delighted to bring Airbus Ventures into the Venus family and look forward to growing our collaboration as we harness the future of hypersonic flight."

Venus has been awarded contracts with NASA and US Defense Agencies to accelerate the development and transition of its RDRE technology to enhance existing government missions. The company's advancements can also enable more efficient travel in and through space.

"We are thrilled to welcome Sassie, Andrew, and the entire Venus team into the Airbus Ventures portfolio. In the world of RDREs, their pioneering approach - designing, building, and demonstrating the first liquid, storable-propellant fueled rotating detonation rocket engine - unlocks advanced aircraft capabilities and opens new vistas on our whole planetary system," praises Airbus Ventures Managing Partner Thomas d' Halluin . " Venus' compact, low mass, high efficiency engine capability will have an immediate impact on lunar and martian landers, space mobility and logistics, and deep space mission proposals. Here on Earth today, we will see unprecedented performance gains for drones of all kinds, and more practical and faster-than-anticipated opportunities for ultra-high-speed passenger and cargo rocket plane flights."

"With the strong support of Airbus Ventures now joining our investor syndicate, our next round will let Venus take the final step from lab to prototype as we fly our drone to Mach 3 under RDRE power, says Dr. Andrew Duggleby , CTO and co-founder. "This will include long-duration engine runs this summer at Spaceport Houston, as well as the design, build, and flight of our drone with the broader Venus team and our incredible partners."

In Spring 2022, the company raised its $20M Series A, led by Prime Movers Lab, to fund engine development and subscale initial flight testing for building its Mach 9 hypersonic drone and Mach 9 spacecraft, both capable of one-hour global travel.

About Venus Aerospace

Headquartered in Houston, Texas , Venus Aerospace is a startup aerospace company focused on engineering the future of hypersonic flight. An expert team of PhD's, rocket scientists, and engineers taking on the biggest challenges in aerospace at Mach 9 speed, Venus is making one-hour global transport possible to connect the world and make it safer.

About Airbus Ventures

Headquartered in Silicon Valley , with offices in Toulouse and Tokyo , Airbus Ventures is a fast-moving, early-stage venture capital company that independently funds and supports startups set to shift both the aerospace industry and our planetary system to a sustainable future. Airbus Ventures has helped aspiring innovators reach new dimensions of achievement since 2015.

Media Contacts

For Venus Aerospace:

Stephanie Gracia

Director of Communications

[email protected]

For Airbus Ventures:

Orli Robin

Head of Strategy and Communication

[email protected]

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SOURCE Venus Aerospace
Dozens of top artists lead Atlantic City event in July

ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. , June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- ZAZA Festival, the most anticipated new festival celebrating global music culture, is coming to Bader Field in Atlantic City on July 15 th and 16th 2023. The inaugural ZAZA Festival will feature performances by Latto, DaBaby, Afro B, Coco Jones , DJ Aktive, Freeway, Beanie Sigel , DJ Diamond Kuts , M11SON, Nisa F, Junius Bervine , Titus Showers , Jermaine Dolly and Mona Mee  with more top artists to be announced.

Just as artists drop surprise albums, the first ZAZA Festival will launch in 31 days to bring top artists of the moment to their fans  right now.

"We couldn't wait to introduce ZAZA Festivals to the world. This immersive music event will connect artists and fans through cutting-edge technology like never before," said Joe Callahan , ZAZA Festival Founding Partner.

ZAZA's inaugural event will debut the world premiere of Burna Boy's BRKFST metaverse series along with a mobile, immersive element for fans from every corner of the world to experience music together. Fans should visit zazamusicfestivals.com for information about the festival and artist lineup, with more information about the virtual experience to come.

The Atlantic City dates are the first in an anticipated series of live and streaming events by the ZAZA brand in cities across the globe celebrating a new movement of music culture. ZAZA is reinventing the way that artists and fans engage. For the first time ever, respect for artists and their fans will be the central component of a live music festival.

Artists and fans will have the option to receive their own unique, secure link to share with their networks and make a commission from the sale of each ticket. The first 200 fans who purchase tickets through a specific artist will be entered to win access to the VIP Backstage Lounge.

"Bridging the gap with artists and fans resonates with me and brought me to ZAZA Festivals. Being able to introduce the music culture through new technology, along with treating artists and fans fairly - it's history-making," said Promis, ZAZA Festival Talent Coordinator.

A portion of ZAZA tickets will support the World Education Initiative (WEI), a nonprofit organization dedicated to the critical mission of educating young women in rural Africa . WEI works directly with leaders and educators at schools in rural Africa to fund tuition and board for girls in these communities who otherwise would not have access to a formal education.

Tickets are on sale now for the two-day festival. One-day and two-day ticket passes are available at zazamusicfestivals.com. Additional artists in the lineup will be released via social media.

"This is how I recharge my soul, by being a part of ZAZA, and watching the world's greatest musicians and creatives come together for a great cause," said Tony Moore , who has built his career working with some of the top artists and movie stars globally.

ZAZA Festivals is produced by a team led by Franck Francois , collectively boasting decades of experience from Broadway shows to major concerts. They have produced festivals such as Ultra Music Fest, Calle Ocho Music Festival and Bonnaroo and concert tours for Yo Gotti , The Beach Boys, Dave Matthews Band, Metallica, and many more. Event planning, design and decor are being handled by Isha Ahijo and the team at ikhan events, Ahijo's Philadelphia -based luxury event & floral design firm.

For more information about ZAZA Festivals go to zazamusicfestivals.com and follow @zazafestivals on Instagram for the latest lineup announcements and festival news.

About ZAZA Festival

ZAZA Festivals feature the most influential artists across various genres of music. The fully immersive experiences connect artists and fans - wherever they are in the world. ZAZA is a biblical name, meaning movement and belonging to all. Music has a history of affecting change. The ZAZA movement will respect artists and their fans, while improving the end-to-end live music experience. Let music light the way.

Media Contact

For interviews and press passes, contact:

ZAZA Festivals Team

www.zazamusicfestivals.com/contact

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SOURCE ZAZA Festivals
SHANGHAI , June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- ZTO Express (Cayman) Inc. (NYSE: ZTO and HKEX: 2057), a leading and fast-growing express delivery company in China ("ZTO" or the "Company"), today announced that each of the following proposed resolutions submitted for shareholder approval has been adopted at its annual general meeting of shareholders held in Hong Kong today:

as an ordinary resolution, to receive and consider the audited consolidated financial statements of the Company and the report of the auditor of the Company for the year ended December 31, 2022 ; as an ordinary resolution, to re-elect Mr. Hongqun HU as executive Director, subject to his earlier resignation or removal; as an ordinary resolution, to re-elect Mr. Xing LIU as non-executive Director, subject to his earlier resignation or removal; as an ordinary resolution, to re-elect Mr. Frank Zhen WEI as independent non-executive Director, subject to his earlier resignation or removal; as an ordinary resolution, to authorize the Board to fix the remuneration of the Directors; as an ordinary resolution, to re-appoint Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu as auditor of the Company to hold office until the conclusion of the next annual general meeting of the Company and to authorize the Board to fix its remuneration for the year ending December 31, 2023 ; as an ordinary resolution, to grant a general mandate to the directors to issue, allot, and deal with additional Class A Ordinary Shares of the Company not exceeding 20% of the total number of issued and outstanding shares of the Company as at the date of passing of this resolution; as an ordinary resolution, to grant a general mandate to the directors to repurchase Class A Ordinary Shares of the Company not exceeding 10% of the total number of issued and outstanding shares of the Company as at the date of passing of this resolution; and as an ordinary resolution, to extend the general mandate granted to the directors to issue, allot and deal with additional Class A Ordinary Shares of the Company by the aggregate number of the Class A Ordinary Shares repurchased by the Company.

About ZTO Express (Cayman) Inc.

ZTO Express (Cayman) Inc. (NYSE: ZTO and SEHK: 2057) ("ZTO" or the "Company") is a leading and fast-growing express delivery company in China. ZTO provides express delivery service as well as other value-added logistics services through its extensive and reliable nationwide network coverage in China.

ZTO operates a highly scalable network partner model, which the Company believes is best suited to support the significant growth of e-commerce in China. The Company leverages its network partners to provide pickup and last-mile delivery services, while controlling the mission-critical line-haul transportation and sorting network within the express delivery service value chain.

For more information, please visit http://zto.investorroom.com.

Safe Harbor Statement

This press release contains statements that may constitute "forward-looking" statements pursuant to the "safe harbor" provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements can be identified by terminology such as "will," "expects," "anticipates," "aims," "future," "intends," "plans," "believes," "estimates," "likely to," and similar statements. Statements that are not historical facts, including statements about ZTO's beliefs, plans, and expectations, are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements involve inherent risks and uncertainties. Further information regarding these and other risks is included in ZTO's filings with the SEC and the HKEX. All information provided in this press release is as of the date of this press release, and ZTO does not undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statement, except as required under applicable law.

For investor inquiries, please contact:

ZTO Express (Cayman) Inc.

Investor Relations

E-mail: [email protected]

Phone: +86 21 5980 4508

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SOURCE ZTO Express (Cayman) Inc.
FILE PHOTO: The logo of AGL Energy Ltd, Australia's no.2 power retailer, adorns the building of their head office in Sydney, Australia, February 8, 2017. Picture taken February 8, 2017. REUTERS/David Gray

By Archishma Iyer

(Reuters) -Australia's AGL Energy said on Thursday it had signed a three-year deal with energy giant BP to provide easier access to electric vehicle charging points for users in New South Wales, in a bid to switch towards green energy.

Under the deal, the company and BP Pulse, the electric vehicle charging business of the London-based firm, will initially offer customers in New South Wales discounted charging rates and ultra-fast chargers when they sign up for AGL's existing 'Electric Vehicle at-home programme'.

AGL said in a statement that the agreement to develop products and services for accessible charging points would help reduce range anxiety, a common fear among EV drivers.

Shares of the country's top power producer fell 0.8% after rising about 0.1% in early trade, while BP had ended 3.7% down on Wednesday.

AGL also said that as a part of the agreement, both parties would look to explore and collaborate on the public charging infrastructure powered by renewable energy.

BP said the agreement is in line with its strategy to roll out its network of 600 BP Pulse EV charging points across Australia by 2025.

"As we transition to a low-carbon future, this agreement will empower our customers with innovative, sustainable and cost-effective EV charging solutions," AGL Chief Customer Officer Jo Egan said.

"I think the partnership could be good for AGL by promoting its EV program but I think the financial impact will really only be felt at the margins," Morgans Financial equity research analyst Max Vickerson said.

Multiple companies looking to expand their portfolios towards sustainable energy has boosted EV demand recently.

AGL had shut down the Liddell power station, one of oldest coal-fired power stations, in April after more than half a century of operations, as it looked to convert the site into a renewable energy hub.

(Reporting by Archishma Iyer and Navya Mittal in Bengaluru; Editing by Pooja Desai and Rashmi Aich)
Brochures are seen at a branch of Axis Bank in Mumbai, India, January 22, 2018. REUTERS/Danish Siddiqui/File Photo

BENGALURU (Reuters) - U.S. private equity firm Bain Capital is looking to sell a 0.7% stake in India's Axis Bank worth as much as $267 million, CNBC-TV18 reported on Wednesday, citing sources.

The stake sale would likely be at an offer price range of 964.00 rupees to 977.70 rupees per share, the report added.

Bain Capital and Axis Bank did not immediately respond to Reuters requests for comment.

Bain Capital aims to divest a portion of its total 1.3% holding in Axis Bank through a block deal, CNBC-TV18 said.

(Reporting by Rama Venkat in Bengaluru; Editing by Shailesh Kuber)
The U.S. government is expected to extend a grace period for Korean chipmakers that have factories in China before they face penalties under new protectionist legislation called the CHIPS and Science Act.

The Wall Street Journal on Sunday reported that Under Secretary of Commerce Alan Estevez told a gathering of the U.S. Semiconductor Industry Association that Washington intends to "allow top semiconductor manufacturers from [Korea] and Taiwan to maintain and expand their existing chip-making operations in China without U.S. reprisals."

The legislation from last October virtually bans semiconductor makers that benefit from U.S. subsidies from exporting equipment to China to improve their facilities there, but Samsung, Hynix and Taiwan's TSMC won a one-year grace period.

Trade, Industry and Energy Minister Lee Chang-yang told reporters last month, "We expect a significant extension even after October." But when Beijing retaliated by banning U.S. memory chipmaker Micron, calls increased in Washington for a tougher stance.

Michael McCaul, head of the U.S. House Foreign Relations Committee and Michael Gallagher, head of the U.S. House Select Committee on Strategic Competition with China, told U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo earlier this month to cooperate with the Korean and Japanese governments to ensure Korean and Japanese chipmakers do not end up gaining an advantage from Micron's misfortunes.

But Estevez' remarks suggest that the U.S. government sees Korean chip equipment exports as a separate issue. The Department of Commerce could announce the extended grace period in July or August.
Cans of AB InBev's Bud Light hard seltzer are displayed in a fridge in Jewel-Osco supermarket in Chicago, Illinois, U.S. October 21, 2020. REUTERS/Richa Naidu

By Ananya Mariam Rajesh

(Reuters) - Anheuser-Busch InBev's Bud Light has lost its top spot in the U.S. beer market to Constellation Brands' Modelo Especial, following a backlash from conservatives over a social media promotion with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney.

Sales of Bud Light and Budweiser dropped 24.6% and 9.2%, respectively, for the four weeks ended June 3 from a year earlier, while Modelo Especial sales rose 10.2%, according to consulting company Bump Williams, which sources data from NielsenIQ.

In May, AB InBev CEO Michel Doukeris said it was too early to have a full view of the impact of the backlash that triggered transphobic comments on social media and a boycott by some beer drinkers.

Conservative backlash has hit retailer Target as well, with the company removing some LGBTQ-themed goods due to confrontations between customers and employees and incidents of Pride merchandise being thrown on the floor.

Shares of AB InBev had outperformed Molson Coors and Constellation Brands for the first three months of the year, but are now trending lower after the backlash against Bud Light intensified in April.

"Bud Light's stumble with Dylan Mulvaney will certainly hurt their chances to take market share, but Miller Lite, Coors Light and Modelo will reap most of those rewards," said Jon Reynolds, a certified instructor in the business of craft beer at the University of Vermont.

Constellation's Modelo Especial was the top-selling beer brand in the United States with an 8.4% share of overall beer sales through retail stores for the period ending June 3, data from Bump Williams showed.

Bud Light came in second with a 7.3% share.

AB InBev's overall sales growth declined 12% in the four weeks ended May 20, data from NielsenIQ and TD Cowen showed.

TD Cowen analyst Vivien Azer said the decline would "fully capture the boycott", compared with the 3.6% decline in sales growth AB InBev witnessed for the four weeks ended April 22.

Even before the backlash, sales volumes of established "light" brands had slid at a faster pace than the U.S. beer sector as a whole over the past six years, according to Euromonitor International, as drinkers drifted to craft beers first and then to hard seltzers.

(Reporting by Ananya Mariam Rajesh in Bengaluru; Editing by Anil D'Silva)
FILE PHOTO: The sign of Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) is pictured at its headquarters in Beijing, China July 27, 2020. REUTERS/Tingshu Wang

By David Ljunggren

OTTAWA (Reuters) -Canada is freezing ties with the China-led Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) while it probes allegations it is dominated by the Chinese Communist Party, Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland said on Wednesday.

Freeland said she did not rule out any outcome of the investigation, a clear hint that Ottawa could pull out of a bank it officially joined in March 2018.

The bank's global communications director, a Canadian, said on Wednesday he had resigned and criticized the bank as "dominated by the Communist Party", allegations which the AIIB said were baseless and disappointing.

"The Government of Canada will immediately halt all government led activity at the bank. And I have instructed the Department of Finance to lead an immediate review of the allegations raised and of Canada's involvement in the AIIB," Freeland told reporters.

She said as the world's democracies worked to limit their strategic vulnerabilities to authoritarian regimes, they must be clear about the ways such governments exercised their influence.

"The review I am announcing today is to be undertaken expeditiously. And I am not ruling out any outcome following its completion," she said.

The Chinese embassy in Ottawa, asked for comment, said in an email that "the claim that 'AIIB is controlled by the Communist Party of China' is nothing but a lie".

Liberal Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was in power when Canada joined the AIIB. The opposition Conservatives have long demanded Ottawa pull out of the bank, saying it is a tool for Beijing to export authoritarianism throughout the Pacific.

Freeland's remarks mark a new dip in bilateral relations with China, which have been frosty for the last five years.

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police said on Tuesday it was investigating allegations China tried to intimidate a federal Conservative legislator.

Canada has accused China of trying to interfere in its affairs through various schemes, including illegal police stations and the targeting of lawmakers. Beijing denies all such allegations.

(Reporting by David Ljunggren; editing by Jonathan Oatis, Angus MacSwan and Grant McCool)
FILE PHOTO: A keyboard and a shopping cart are seen in front of a displayed Shein logo in this illustration picture taken October 13, 2020. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/FILE PHOTO

By Katherine Masters

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A bipartisan group of U.S. lawmakers planned to introduce a bill on Wednesday to eliminate a tariff exemption widely used by e-commerce sellers to send orders from China to U.S. shoppers, one of the sponsors said.

The exception, known as the de minimis rule, exempts imports valued at $800 or less from tariffs if the items are shipped to individual consumers. The bill would ban such shipments from China immediately upon enactment, sponsor Republican Senator Bill Cassidy said.

Ecommerce sellers such as China-founded, Singapore-based Shein and Temu, a rival owned by PDD Holdings Inc that operates the Chinese ecommerce site Pinduoduo, are big beneficiaries of the exemption. A federal brief in April said the companies exploit de minimis to avoid duties and import illegal items such as those made in China's Xingiang region with forced Uyghur labor.

A Shein spokesperson said Tuesday the company has no manufacturers in Xinjiang. Temu did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

De minimis shipments have drawn attention at least since 2019, when the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission reported it struggled to catch unsafe imports because of the heavy volume of low-value packages. Such shipments rose to 685.5 million in 2022 compared with 410.5 million in 2018, U.S. customs data showed.

The bills other sponsors are Republican Senator J.D. Vance and Democratic Senator Tammy Baldwin. It was unclear how much traction the proposal would gain. A separate but similar bill by Democratic Representative Earl Blumenauer failed to pass Congress last year.

Under the bill, countries other than China and Russia could keep the exemption by adopting the $800 threshold for their own tariff-free imports. The bill would only allow private shippers like FedEx, UPS and DHL to transport de minimis packages and exclude postal services.

(Reporting by Katherine Masters; Editing by Cynthia Osterman)
The logo of Guangzhou-based property developer R&F Properties is pictured at a strategic cooperation signing ceremony in Beijing, China July 19, 2017. Picture taken July 19, 2017. REUTERS/Jason Lee/File Photo

By Sam Tobin

LONDON (Reuters) -The billionaire co-chairman and CEO of Chinese developer Guangzhou R&F Properties Co Ltd on Wednesday agreed to be extradited from London to the United States, where he is facing bribery charges.

Zhang Li, who co-founded Hong Kong-listed R&F, is wanted on a provisional warrant issued in the Northern District of California that accuses him of participating in a scheme to bribe public officials between 2015 and 2020.

The 69-year-old, who is currently worth $1.6 billion, according to Forbes magazine, is alleged to have paid kickbacks to obtain permits for a construction project in San Francisco.

He appeared at London's Westminster Magistrates' Court on Wednesday, where he agreed to be extradited to the U.S.

Zhang's case will now be sent to Britain's interior minister to decide whether to approve his extradition.

Lawyers representing U.S. prosecutors told the court at a hearing in December that Zhang was involved in the payment of bribes to officials in San Francisco for the benefit of R&F's U.S. affiliate, Z&L Properties Inc.

R&F previously said that Zhang was accused of bribery because of provision of "banquet dinner and hotel accommodation" to the former San Francisco public affairs chief who was visiting China.

In December, Zhang was granted bail on the condition that he pay a security of 15 million pounds ($19 million), the joint-largest security that an English court has ever accepted.

(Reporting by Sam Tobin; editing by Sarah Young)
FILE PHOTO: Kennedy Center honoree actor and filmmaker George Clooney and wife Amal Clooney speak to reporters on the red carpet at the Kennedy Center honorees gala in Washington, D.C., U.S., December 4, 2022. REUTERS/Sarah Silbiger/File Photo

By Nicolas Misculin

BUENOS AIRES (Reuters) - The Clooney Foundation for Justice has accused Venezuelan security forces of crimes against humanity against government opponents since 2014 in a legal complaint filed in Argentina on Wednesday.

The foundation said that for lack of a response from Venezuelan authorities, it filed the complaint in Argentina where universal jurisdiction allows for the investigation and prosecution of war crimes and torture from anywhere in the world.

The complaint was filed on behalf of two families that fell victim to security forces in Venezuela, which since 2013 has been led by President Nicolas Maduro.

The Venezuelan government did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment. A spokesperson for the foundation confirmed the complaint was filed with 15,000 pages of evidence.

"We are talking about arbitrary detentions, torture, extrajudicial executions," said Ignacio Jovtis, a lawyer for the Clooney Foundation. The lawyer said he preferred not to disclose details of the complaint for legal and security reasons.

The Clooney Foundation for Justice was founded by actor George Clooney and his wife, human rights lawyer Amal Clooney.

"These are not isolated cases. The cases we are presenting are illustrative of ones that we have been documenting for years," Jovtis said.

The International Criminal Court in The Hague is investigating alleged Venezuelan human rights violations. An independent mission of the United Nations has accused the Maduro government of crimes against humanity.

The Argentine justice system has previously agreed to investigate alleged crimes against humanity carried out in Spain and Myanmar in the past, which prompted the Clooney Foundation to file the complaint in Buenos Aires.

"Argentina is one of the few countries in the world that has applied universal jurisdiction. We believe that we have a very strong case," Jovtis said.

(This June 14 story has been corrected to clarify that the Clooney Foundation filed a legal complaint against security forces and not a lawsuit against Venezuela, in the headline and paragraph 1)

(Reporting by Nicolas Misculin; Writing by Steven Grattan; Editing by Howard Goller)
FILE PHOTO: A man walks while smoke rises above buildings after aerial bombardments during clashes between the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces and the army in Khartoum North, Sudan, May 1, 2023. REUTERS/Mohamed Nureldin Abdallah/File Photo

CAIRO (Reuters) -Fighting rocked several cities in western Sudan on Wednesday in an expansion of the country's almost two-month-old war as a regional governor was killed after publicly blaming the deaths of civilians on the country's paramilitary force.

The conflict between the army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces has caused a humanitarian crisis in Khartoum, as well as major cities in the Kordofan and Darfur regions.

The widening footprint of fighting threatens to prolong the violence and draw in armed groups - particularly those with tribal affiliations - as well as external actors.

West Darfur state governor Khamis Abbakar was killed on Wednesday, an armed group he commanded said, hours after he accused the RSF and allied militias of "genocide." No details on his death were available. Two government sources said the RSF was responsible.

"Civilians are being killed randomly and in large numbers," Abbakar told Al-Hadath TV earlier on Wednesday, calling for international intervention.

The RSF did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Activists say 1,100 people have been killed since the conflict began in mid-April in the westernmost city of El Geneina, the capital of West Darfur.

While the attacks originally targeted areas of El Geneina where members of the Masalit tribe lived, these attacks have spread to the entire city, the governor said.

"We haven't seen the army leave its base to defend people," he added before his death.

The Darfur region of Sudan has seen periods of conflict since the early 2000s, when millions were displaced and 300,000 killed by attacks from Arab militias known as the Janjaweed. The RSF evolved out of those groups, becoming a legalized governmental force in 2017.

In a statement, the RSF called the fighting in El Geneina a tribal conflict, blaming the country's former regime for fanning the flames. It said it had been making efforts to get aid into the city.

Diplomatic efforts to address Sudan's conflict led by the United States and Saudi Arabia have faltered, as numerous ceasefires have been violated. On Tuesday, senior U.S. State Department officials said they were considering a new approach for the coming days.

FIGHTING ACROSS DARFUR

The Darfur Bar Association, a local group monitoring the fighting, said on Wednesday that artillery strikes hit civilian homes in Nyala, capital of South Darfur, after RSF soldiers complained of not receiving salaries.

"The assault could start again at any moment, we don't feel safe," said resident Salah Alamin, 39.

The city of Zalingei, capital of Central Darfur, was under siege, the association said. The city of El Fashir, capital of North Darfur, has been quieter but has seen a wave of displacement from RSF-controlled Kutum.

Meanwhile in El Obeid, a hub between Khartoum and Darfur in North Kordofan, residents said the army launched air and artillery strikes against RSF positions. The RSF has controlled the roads connecting the city to other towns and has agreed with local tribal leaders to secure the area from armed gangs.

Residents said the RSF attacked one of those towns, Al-Rahad, on Wednesday.

In Kadugli, South Kordofan, the army pushed back an RSF attack on one of its bases, as troops loyal to rebel leader Abdelaziz al-Hilu surrounded the city. Sources from al-Hilu's faction, SPLM-N, said that they sought to protect civilians from armed militias.

Within Khartoum, residents reported clashes and air and artillery strikes in southern and eastern districts of the city and in neighbouring Omdurman on Wednesday.

The U.N. said on Tuesday that some 1.7 million people had been displaced internally and more than 500,000 had left the country.

In army-controlled Port Sudan, meanwhile, middle school students began taking exams, while pilgrims to Mecca began their Hajj journeys, as some attempted to find some normality.

The Sudanese Doctors Union said that at least 958 people have been killed since fighting began on April 15, over the integration of the RSF into the military.

(Reporting by Nafisa Eltahir in Cairo, Khalid Abdelaziz in Dubai, additional reporting by Adam Makary and Maggie Michael in Cairo, Editing by William Maclean and Cynthia Osterman)
SAN SALVADOR (Reuters) - Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele on Wednesday signed into law a bill to slash the country's 262 municipalities to just 44, a move the government says will cut spending but that the opposition decries as a power grab.

El Salvador's Congress passed the bill late on Tuesday with 67 votes in favor and 15 against.

Ruling party deputies, who hold a majority in Congress, said the move will trim public spending, generate more investment and help fight corruption - which Bukele vowed to do this month.

The new municipalities are set to be governed in 14 departments.

"This seeks to generate a more equitable distribution of wealth, which will be converted into opportunities for the Salvadoran people, improving their quality of life," said Elisa Rosales, a deputy from the ruling New Ideas party.

Government estimates peg annual savings at $250 million from when it comes into force on May 1, 2024. Under the law, the smaller localities would not lose their cultural identity, traditions, or administrative offices.

Opposition lawmakers, however, say the move looks to centralize power, increase bureaucracy for project development and reduce the municipalities' autonomous resource management.

"This measure seeks only to concentrate power," said right-wing Nationalist Republican Alliance (ARENA) Deputy Cesar Reyes, adding the ruling party was looking to gain an electoral advantage.

El Salvador is set to hold general elections in February 2024 and local elections the following month. Polls give a strong preference to Bukele's New Ideas.

Last week, Congress passed another bill to cut the number of lawmakers to 60 from 84. This measure is also set to come into effect after the 2024 elections.

(Reporting by Nelson Renteria; Writing by Sarah Morland; Editing by David Gregorio)
Incoming World Bank President Ajay Banga is welcomed by U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen (not pictured) at the Treasury Department in Washington, U.S. June 1, 2023. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst

By David Lawder

KINGSTON, Jamaica (Reuters) - World Bank President Ajay Banga told Reuters that he will "push" the lender's balance sheet hard to help fight climate change and other crises, but this may only yield tens of billions of dollars in additional annual lending, not the hundreds of billions hoped for by some.

Banga said in an interview late on Tuesday that he will roll out steps in the coming weeks and months to evolve the World Bank beyond its traditional anti-poverty mission to fight climate change, pandemics and other global challenges and scale up its financial capacity.

On balance sheet leverage, he said he would "push it as hard as you can," but not to the point of threatening the bank's top-tier, "AAA" credit rating -- the source of its ability to borrow and lend at very low rates.

"My logic is that if you add up all these kinds of ideas together, annually, you're looking ... in the tens of billions, not in the hundreds of billions" of dollars, Banga told Reuters on his first foreign trip in the job to Jamaica and Peru.

"I just think we have to be a little careful and a little sensible, of just how much we do on this, but we should do as much as we possibly can," Banga said.

His comments inject a dose of reality into optimism from some in the development community that balance sheet alchemy at multilateral development banks can achieve a substantial part of the massive increase in lending to finance the clean energy transition -- a need that he and other experts estimate in the trillions of dollars annually.

The World Bank Group made total lending commitments of $104 billion last year.

OPTIONS WEIGHED

Finance ministers and non-profit groups alike are looking to Banga, the Indian-born former CEO of MasterCard, to devise ways to channel vast amounts of private capital into developing countries to help them cut carbon emissions and fund job-creating investments to make their economies more resilient.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen told Banga as he took office on June 2 that she wanted him to "get the most" from the World Bank's balance sheet.

He said the bank is now talking to shareholders about using so-called "hybrid capital" or subordinated debt, which would allow more leverage because ratings agencies treat a portion of it like equity -- a technique used in the banking sector for decades.

Some economists have suggested that International Monetary Fund Special Drawing Rights monetary reserves could channeled by rich countries to the bank as capital to back new bond issues worth hundreds of billions of dollars. But Banga said he viewed the idea as largely unviable, because long-term project loans against liquid central bank assets could create a dangerous asset-liability maturity mismatch.

"I'm not signing on," he added.

Using "callable capital" -- funds pledged but not paid-in by rich countries that can be called on to back World Bank losses -- is another option, advocated in a G20 report on multilateral development bank capital adequacy.

But Banga said this step would take more time to develop because not all ratings agencies would allow callable capital to be used to increase lending, and some countries may have to change laws governing their World Bank shareholdings.

He said he hoped to be able to provide details on what the bank could do in this regard by the time of its annual meeting in October.

(Reporting by David Lawder; Editing by Kim Coghill)
FILE PHOTO: People gather outside the Duomo Cathedral on the day of the funeral of former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, in Milan, Italy June 14, 2023. REUTERS/Claudia Greco/File Photo

By Elvira Pollina and Mathieu Rosemain

MILAN (Reuters) - Merger and acquisition speculation has lifted shares in MFE, the late Silvio Berlusconi's TV business, following his death, but a number of obstacles stand in the way of any rapid deal.

With a 19.8% MFE stake, Vivendi is widely seen as the natural buyer for MFE. However, legal disputes have created bad blood between Vivendi's leading investor Vincent Bollore and the only two of Belusconi's five children actively involved in the businesses, three people close to the matter told Reuters.

Current market prices imply a loss on any sale of the 41.5% stake in MFE held by the family's holding company Fininvest at a book value of around 1 billion euros ($1.1 billion).

TIME TO SELL?

This week's rally has lifted the market value of the whole of MFE to 1.8 billion euros.

With the founder out of the picture, bankers say some of Berlusconi's heirs could be more open to selling the asset given a fast-changing media landscape, though people familiar with the family's thinking said the heirs have always been united.

Rival media tycoon Urbano Cairo, who built his career in advertising at Berlusconi's empire in the 1980s and 1990s and owns Corriere della Sera daily and TV channel La7, has studied the file closely, several people said.

But the former prime minister's wealth is such that he could leave MFE solely to his son, MFE CEO Pier Silvio Berlusconi, and still ensure each heir receives an equal share of his legacy, as mandated by local inheritance laws.

Pier Silvio Berlusconi has headed MFE since 2015 after rising through the company ranks. He is the force behind the international expansion strategy MFE is pursuing.

PROSIEBEN STAKE AND EUROPEAN STRATEGY

Betting on European consolidation, MFE has built a large stake in Germany's ProSiebenSat.1 to counter the threat to free-to-air TV from streaming giants and other digital players competing for advertising revenues.

In 2020 Fininvest snubbed an approach by U.S. group Warner Bros. Discovery because it did not want to relinquish control of the broadcaster that controls three TV channels in Italy and two in Spain as it worked on further European expansion.

CAN VIVENDI AND FININVEST TRUST EACH OTHER?

On Monday, Fininvest said there would be no changes in the way its businesses are run.

Any accord between Vivendi and Fininvest would require overcoming the deep distrust between the two groups after years of courtroom battles sparked by a failed 2016 TV deal.

A 2021 accord that ended the legal war would need to be redrawn should Vivendi raise its stake.

Like Fininvest, Vivendi faces a loss on any potential sale of its MFE stake given the gap between book and market prices.

Although the settlement accord between Vivendi and MFE would entail the French group gradually selling down most of its stake, a disposal is not required as long as MFE shares trade below 1.375 euros.

B-shares were little changed at 0.753 euros on Wednesday. A-shares retreated slightly at 0.563 euros each.

WOULD ITALY'S GOVERNMENT WEIGH IN?

The key to Berlusconi's political ascent, television remains a sensitive business for governments.

Under Italian law, Rome has powers to fend off unwanted interest in sectors deemed of strategic importance.

Before winning over the Italian government, any buyer would need to get the Berlusconis on board. Governance rules put the ball firmly in their court.

In 2021 MFE moved its registered offices to the Netherlands, where Fininvest owns 50% of the voting rights and can more easily approve any extraordinary deals because local rules only demand a qualified majority from shareholders in very few cases. ($1 = 0.9259 euros)

(Additional reporting by Emilio Parodi; Writing by Valentina Za; editing by Barbara Lewis)
Finance Minister Christian Lindner, Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Defence Minister Boris Pistorius and Interior Minister Nancy Faeser attend a press conference on the day they present the national security strategy dur

BERLIN (Reuters) - Germany enshrined a NATO commitment to spending 2% of its gross domestic product on defence and identified Russia as the biggest threat to European security as the government announced its first ever National Security Strategy on Wednesday.

The following are some of the highlights of the strategy outlined in a policy document and at a government press conference. The strategy also discussed a growing rivalry with China, but that issue will be dealt with in a separate strategy paper in the coming months.

DEFENCE SPENDING

* Germany commits to spending 2% of GDP on defence on average over several years

* It wants to reach 2% spending target from 2024

* Spending on some other projects will be reduced as a result

UKRAINE AND RUSSIA

* Russia is the biggest threat to peace in the Euro-Atlantic area

* Russia is trying to destabilise European democracies, weaken EU and NATO

* German Chancellor Olaf Scholz: It is important to continue to discuss security guarantees for Ukraine including when war ends

CHINA

* China is increasingly putting pressure on regional stability and disrespecting human rights

* Rivalry with China has increased as Beijing seeks to change the existing international rules-based order

* China uses its economic weight to reach political goals

* China remains a partner without which we cannot solve the many global challenges

* Scholz: separate China strategy will come soon

* German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock: security in the 21st century means not being spied on by China on your phone chats

* Baerbock: German companies have come to the same conclusions on China as the government regarding dependencies

GLOBAL OUTLOOK AND CHALLENGES

* Germany is living in an age of growing multipolarity and systemic rivalry

* Some states are trying to undermine the international order and promote their revisionist ideas of spheres of influence. These states are trying to exert illegitimate influence on political processes, public discourse and elections

* Need to meet growing nuclear risks with credible deterrent, and work to reduce nuclear risks

* Threat of terrorist attacks is rising due to radicalisation and the return of fighters from crisis and conflict zones

* Want to work with European partners to further develop common security policy, including intensive engagement to stabilise Europe's neighbourhood

* Erosion of global initiatives for arms control and non-proliferation is worsening the global security situation

* Government pushing for harmonisation of military capability requirements with partners, wants primarily European solutions for procurement

* Germany is ready to assume global responsibility to strengthen the United Nations, wants permanent seat at the Security Council

INFRASTRUCTURE AND COMMODITIES

* Germany aims to reduce one-sided dependencies in energy, raw materials supply through diversification of supply

* Germany aims to promote commodities projects for strategic reserves, create incentives for firms to hold such reserves

* Will continue to screen investments to avoid dependencies in critical infrastructure and counter the problematic transfer of sensitive technologies

CYBER

* Germany to create a federal agency to defend against severe cyberattacks

* Government will work to identify perpetrators of cyber attacks and target them with sanctions in coordination with EU and NATO partners or other affected countries

HEALTH

* Germany calls for internationally binding rules on how to deal with pandemics

* Government wants to increase national resilience by securing medical supplies and supply chains over the long term.

* It is important to avoid dependencies, in particular by diversifying imports, by maintaining and expanding German and European production capabilities for critical goods such as medicines and healthcare products

(Compiled by Matthias Williams; Editing by Angus MacSwan)
Blackswan have the distinction of being the first K-pop band without any Korean members at all.

After a short but turbulent history, they are now left with Senegalese-Belgian Fatou (28), Brazilian-German Gabi (21), Nvee (24) from the U.S. and Shreya (18) from India.

Originally assembled in auditions by talent stable DR Music, the band's name was changed to Blackswan in 2020 when Korean, Thai and Vietnamese members quit, perhaps to cash in on the global success of Blackpink.

It seems to make little difference to the quality of their music, which at any rate is so heavily processed as to admit no glitches, and the dance moves do not distinguish between nationalities. But to be on the safe side they target chiefly the international market.
FILE PHOTO: The Tesla logo is seen on a car in Los Angeles, California, U.S., July 9, 2020. REUTERS/Lucy Nicholson/File Photo

By Michel Rose

(Reuters) - French President Emmanuel Macron said he will meet with Tesla CEO Elon Musk on Friday, the second time in just over a month, to promote France as a possible site for one of the electric vehicle (EV) maker's factories as well as to discuss tech regulation.

France has been courting Chinese EV giant BYD and Tesla to build factories in the country, officials had previously told Reuters but is competing with other EU countries such as Spain, which is in talks with Tesla too, a source told Reuters.

"I'm going (into that meeting) with an agenda," Macron told reporters as he visited the VivaTech summit in Paris, France's biggest tech fair, which Musk will visit on Friday.

"We're going to talk about artificial intelligence, in which he is involved, social media, regulation framework... And then I'll also talk to him about cars, batteries, to promote French and European attractiveness," Macron said.

Asked specifically whether he was hoping to secure a Tesla gigafactory, Macron said: "It's up to the company to look at these different issues in Europe. So we'll be selling France" as an investment destination.

France has been catching up with other European nations in its goal to become a hub for the electric vehicle industry, thanks to generous subsidies and a more business-friendly environment and aggressive lobbying since Macron took power.

Its northern region has attracted four gigafactory projects, the first one inaugurated last month by a consortium including Peugeot-owner Stellantis, Mercedes-Benz and French oil major TotalEnergies.

Earlier today, the French minister for digital affairs Jean-Noel Barrot told CNBC: "It will be great to have a Tesla factory in France. There has been a lot of effort and energy to make sure this is possible and this can happen."

Barrot added that France also has invested in an "entire sector of electric batteries" and will try to convince Musk "that France is the best possible place in Europe to establish the next Tesla factory."

Musk, who met Macron and Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire on May 15, said then he was confident Tesla would make "significant investments" in France in the future, but did not provide a timeline.

France previously tried to convince Musk to build a gigafactory in the country, but he chose Germany for his only such plant in Europe so far.

($1 = 0.9232 euros)

(Reporting by Michel Rose in Paris and Akash Sriram in Bengaluru; Editing by Silvia Aloisi and David Gregorio)
FILE PHOTO: Germany's Chancellor Olaf Scholz takes part in a discussion as he attends the Security Conference in Berlin, Germany November 30, 2022. REUTERS/Michele Tantussi/File Photo

By Sarah Marsh and Matthias Williams

BERLIN (Reuters) -China poses a growing threat to global security, Germany said in its first national security strategy on Wednesday, underscoring Berlin's shift in emphasis from economic interests to geopolitics following Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Using blunt language about its top trading partner, the strategy document describes Beijing as aggressively claiming supremacy in Asia and seeking to use its economic might to achieve political goals.

The document highlights the main threats Germany perceives it faces, from climate change to supply chain disruptions, and includes a few policy specifics, such as a commitment to raising defence spending and creating an agency to fight cyberattacks.

Analysts noted it does not prioritise which threats to fight or contain any major surprises. It also omits some major issues, such as Taiwan, and as expected, does not create a National Security Council that would help its implementation.

"This is a major change being carried out by us in Germany in how we deal with security policy," moving from a military strategy towards an integrated security concept, Chancellor Olaf Scholz said at the presentation of the document, while adding a more detailed China strategy should be ready soon.

"In future, we will focus more on security when it comes to decisions on economic policy," Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said. "We paid for every cubic metre of Russian gas twofold and threefold with our national security."

Germany's reliance on Russia for around half its gas imports prevented it from immediately being able to stop energy trade with Moscow after it invaded Ukraine in February 2022. Russia is the top threat to European peace "for now", the National Security Strategy (NSS) said.

The document highlights the need for Germany to reduce all dependencies on other countries for commodities and incentivise companies to hold strategic reserves.

These measures are particularly relevant now to Germany, and Europe's reliance on China for critical minerals key to the transition to a carbon neutral economy.

"China is deliberately exerting its economic power to reach political goals," reads the NSS, which comes just a week before German-China government consultations are due in Berlin.

However, China remains a partner the world needs to resolve global challenges and crises, it added.

'UNTHINKABLE'

At nearly 300 billion euros ($325 billion) in imports and exports, China is Germany's most important trading partner and a core market for top German companies including Volkswagen, BASF and BMW. Many German CEOs have warned of the risks of cutting or reducing links with the world's second-biggest economy. Mercedes-Benz CEO Ola Kaellenius said in April decoupling from China was "unthinkable for almost all of German industry". However, many German businesses accept that dependency on China for critical raw materials needs to be addressed.

Baerbock said government officials had held "intensive talks" with companies active in China.

"The good thing is that German companies are drawing similar conclusions to the German federal government," she said.

Still, Noah Barkin, an analyst with Rhodium Group, said the strategy may be most interesting for what it does not contain.

"There is no mention of Taiwan - probably the biggest security challenge of the coming years," he said.

China claims democratically governed Taiwan as its own territory and has never renounced the use of force to bring the island under its control. Taiwan strongly objects to Chinas sovereignty claims and says only the islands people can decide their future.

Norbert Roettgen of the opposition conservatives said the strategy also lacked clarity on the creation of a new security order for Europe, such as how Moldova and Georgia could be shielded from Russia, and whether Ukraine should join NATO.

DEFENCE SPENDING PLEDGE

Days after Russia's invasion, Scholz heralded a shift to a new era or "Zeitenwende" in which he said Germany would invest more than 2% of economic output on defence, after years of resisting pleas from NATO allies to do so.

The NSS contains a slightly weaker pledge for Germany to spend 2% of economic output "as an average over a multi-year period" on defence, initially in part by using a special 100-billion euro fund created last year.

Germany aims to reach the 2% defence spending target from next year, Finance Minister Christian Lindner said.

($1 = 0.9223 euros)

(Additional reporting by Andreas Rinke, Miranda Murray, Rachel More, Madeline Chambers and Christoph Steitz; Editing by Angus MacSwan, Mark Potter, Alexandra Hudson)
BERLIN (Reuters) - Germany plans to use a system made by Saab as it aims to enable Eurofighter jets for a role in electronic warfare, according to a document seen by Reuters on Wednesday.

Saab's mission-tested system meets German requirements most comprehensively, the defence ministry said in an information to parliament.

Spiegel magazine was first to report on the plans.

(Reporting by Sabine Siebold; Editing by Christoph Steitz)
FILE PHOTO: Journalist Jose Ruben Zamora Marroquin, founder and president of El Periodico newspaper, talks with the media as he attends a court hearing in Guatemala City, Guatemala December 8, 2022. REUTERS/Josue Decavele/File Photo

By Sofia Menchu

GUATEMALA CITY (Reuters) -A Guatemalan court on Wednesday sentenced Jose Zamora, a well-known journalist whose work has criticized successive governments, to six years in prison for money laundering in a case that rights groups have branded an attack on free speech.

Zamora has said the case against him is a "political persecution" by Guatemala President Alejandro Giammattei due to reporting on alleged corruption involving the president and his close allies in Zamora's newspaper, elPeriodico, which shut down in May.

Zamora was also issued a 300,000 quetzal ($38,339) fine, the court said. He was absolved of charges of blackmail and influence peddling.

Zamora, 66, said he would appeal and possibly take the case to the Inter-American Court of Human Rights.

"I feel happy because in the end (the sentence) was arbitrary," he told journalists, smiling and appearing calm after the hearing. "I am still innocent and he is still a thief," he said of Giammattei. "Nobody in history is going to take that away from him."

The verdict poses a threat to independent journalism and freedom of expression, Brian Nichols, assistant secretary for Western Hemisphere Affairs at the U.S. Department of State, said on Twitter.

"The world will be watching that his personal safety and health will be protected," Nichols said.

Zamora founded elPeriodico, one of the country's leading investigative media outlets, in 1996.

He was arrested in July last year during a crackdown on prosecutors, judges, human rights activists, journalists and opposition officials, spearheaded by the country's Special Prosecutor's Office Against Impunity (FECI).

FECI assistant prosecutor Samari Gomez, who was arrested last year in relation to Zamora for her alleged role in disclosing confidential information, was acquitted on Wednesday and was set to be released later in the day.

According to the attorney general's office, Zamora allegedly received $38,461 to finance his media outlet, which was not regularly deposited into the banking system.

The case developed rapidly and involved 11 hearings in which the defendant's evidence was not admitted, and eight changes of defense attorneys, some of whom now face their own legal proceedings for involvement in Zamora's defense.

Carlos Martinez de la Serna, program director at the U.S.-based Committee to Protect Journalists, said the conviction showed the government's "desperate attempts" to criminalize journalists and called for Zamora to be released.

"His only 'crime' has been the fearless exercise of his profession," he said in a statement.

Human Rights Watch's Americas director, Juanita Goebertus, said prosecutors' calls for a 40-year sentence showed the "viciousness" of Guatemala's persecution of journalism, adding that the rights group was "very concerned" by investigations into elPeriodico journalists who covered Zamora's case.

($1 = 7.8250 quetzals)

(Reporting by Sofia Menchu; Writing by Sarah Morland; Editing by Brendan O'Boyle, Bill Berkrot and Leslie Adler)
By Hritam Mukherjee

BENGALURU (Reuters) - E-bike rental startup Yulu, which is looking to go public, expects to turn operationally profitable by September and plans to expand its presence in India and abroad, its chief executive said.

The startup, which currently operates in Bengaluru, Delhi and Mumbai, will venture into cities including Hyderabad, Pune, Chennai, Kolkata and Ahmedabad over the next 15 months.

It will also explore partnerships with local entrepreneurs in smaller markets such as Varanasi, Agra and Goa.

"Yulu is open to give its technology platform to anyone who wants to run a small fleet in cities where we do not have a long-term plan to run it," CEO Amit Gupta told Reuters.

The plan comes amid a broader government push for the electrification of shared transport and at a time when Yulu relies on its tie-ups with delivery firms Zomato, Swiggy and Zepto to fend off rivals, including Gogoro-backed Zypp Electric and SoftBank-backed Ola Electric.

Delivery executives account for 60% of Yulu's fleet utilisation and revenue share, the startup said in a statement to Reuters, adding that more than 50,000 of them used its services in FY23.

Co-founded by Gupta, RK Misra and Naveen Dachuri in 2017, Yulu is aiming to achieve a four-fold increase in its fleet to 100,000 vehicles by the end of the current fiscal year.

The startup's annual losses had narrowed to 555 million rupees ($6.8 million) in FY22 from 611 million rupees in FY21, a company spokesman said, adding that the annual results for FY23 were yet to be released.

Yulu's bikes are made by Bajaj Auto, which exports vehicles to over 70 nations. The startup plans to piggyback on the industry veteran to venture abroad.

"The countries looking interesting are the ones where EV is there as a policy" such as Thailand and Indonesia," Gupta said.

(Reporting by Hritam Mukherjee; Editing by Dhanya Skariachan and Varun H K)
Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi speaks during a meeting with Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro at the Miraflores Palace, in Caracas, Venezuela June 12, 2023. REUTERS/Leonardo Fernandez Viloria

MANAGUA (Reuters) - Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi arrived in Nicaragua on Tuesday, according to state media, marking his second stop on a three-nation Latin American tour.

Nicaragua's Foreign Minister Denis Moncada received Raisi at the airport, state media said, adding the Iranian leader traveled with his wife and a delegation made up of ministers and officials.

Raisi had earlier visited Venezuela, where he pledged to increase bilateral trade to $20 billion, from $3 billion, within an unspecified time frame.

Both countries signed a memorandum of understanding to expand cooperation in petrochemicals with a view to carrying out joint projects, building on their cooperation in oil.

He is set to travel next to Cuba.

(Reporting by Ismael Lopez; Writing by Valentine Hilaire; Editing by David Alire Garcia)
(This June 14 story has been corrected to clarify that the missiles were targeting sites around Damascus and not Damascus itself, in the headline and paragraph 1)

(Reuters) - An Israeli air strike targeting sites around Syria's Damascus left one Syrian soldier with "serious injuries and caused some material damage," state news agency SANA reported early on Wednesday citing a military source.

Syrian air defences intercepted missiles Israel launched at 1:05 a.m. from the Golan Heights and "shot down some of them," the source said.

Israel has for years been carrying out attacks against what it has described as Iran-linked targets in Syria, where Tehran's influence has grown since it began supporting President Bashar al-Assad in the civil war that started in 2011.

(Reporting by Kinda Makieh and Muhammad Al Gebaly; Writing by Enas Alashray; Editing by Leslie Adler, Cynthia Osterman and Tom Hogue)
JERUSALEM (Reuters) -An Israeli soldier who killed a Palestinian toddler in a car two weeks ago thought he was shooting at gunmen, the army said on Wednesday, blaming a mix-up caused by another soldier firing in the air in violation of regulations.

Two-year-old Mohammad al-Tamimi suffered a fatal head wound in the June 1 shooting near Ramallah in the occupied West Bank. His father was hit in the shoulder. The Palestinian foreign ministry demanded accountability, deeming the incident a crime.

Publishing the results of its investigation, the Israeli military repeated previous assertions that Palestinian gunmen had fired at soldiers guarding a Jewish settlement that night.

An army officer searching the area saw a "suspicious vehicle and fired several times into the air", prompting a soldier who heard those shots to open fire on the Tamimis' car, believing the gunmen were using it for their getaway.

The investigation faulted commanders for miscommunication and "incorrect decision-making", the statement said, adding that the officer who fired in the air would be reprimanded for violating standing orders.

The Palestinian foreign ministry, in a statement, deplored the findings as "the clearest and ugliest form of disregard for, and legalization of, the shedding of Palestinian blood".

The West Bank, among territories where Palestinians seek statehood, has experienced a surge of violence over the last 15 months.

A report by Israeli rights group Yesh Din based on military data from 2017 to 2021 found that Israeli soldiers were prosecuted in less than 1% of hundreds of complaints filed against them on alleged offences against Palestinians.

(Writing by Dan Williams and Ali Sawafta; Editing by Howard Goller)
A person holds a picture of former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi on the day of his funeral, in Milan, Italy June 14, 2023. REUTERS/Yara Nardi

By Emilio Parodi and Giulio Piovaccari

MILAN (Reuters) -Italy bade farewell to four-times prime minister Silvio Berlusconi on Wednesday at a funeral befitting the business tycoon's colourful life, with mourners bellowing football chants and politicians arguing over a day of national mourning.

Crowds waving the flags of the AC Milan soccer club Berlusconi used to own chanted "Silvio, Silvio" as his coffin was carried inside Milan's gothic cathedral, flanked by ceremonially dressed Carabinieri police with plumed helmets.

Inside were some 2,300 mourners, including the women, politicians and businessmen who had accompanied the 86-year-old during his rise to power and riches.

Marta Fascina, the 33-year-old politician who was Berlusconi's partner during his final years, wept alongside Marina, his eldest daughter, who is expected to inherit his media empire and, some speculate, even his political legacy.

Berlusconi will be cremated and his ashes held in a mausoleum he built for himself and his family in the grounds of his villa outside Milan, a source close to the family told Reuters.

The conservative Forza Italia party he founded dominated Italian politics for much of the last 30 years, while his business empire stretched from real estate to publishing.

Berlusconi was a highly divisive figure who set the mould for other businessmen-turned-politicians like former U.S. President Donald Trump, with a career punctuated by scandals and legal trials.

The funeral homily by Milan's Archbishop Mario Delpini appeared to acknowledge his excesses as well as his qualities.

"What can we say about Silvio Berlusconi? He was a man: a desire for life, a desire for love, a desire for joy."

Police said around 15,000 people followed the funeral on the giant screens installed outside the cathedral, and arguments broke out between the vast majority of Berlusconi admirers and a few detractors who had come to criticise him.

"I was lucky enough to be a part of Forza Italia for 18 years. I was also lucky enough to meet him," said Lucia Adiele, a Forza Italia member who travelled nearly 1,000 km (620 miles) from her home in Altamura, southern Italy.

"The least I could do was to be here and say goodbye for the last time."

STADIUM ATMOSPHERE

In an atmosphere often more similar to a soccer match than a funeral, another group of Berlusconi supporters jumped up and down shouting "anyone who doesn't jump is a communist", a term Berlusconi often used to discredit his political opponents.

The funeral was attended by top Italian politicians including President Sergio Mattarella and Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, whose unprecedented decision to declare a day of national mourning drew some criticism.

Meloni's party, Brothers of Italy, Matteo Salvini's League and Forza Italia are the main parties in the right-wing ruling coalition.

Some opposition politicians, including former premier Giuseppe Conte, declined to attend the service, while former centre-left minister Rosy Bindi said an "inappropriate sanctification" was taking place.

The day of mourning is not a public holiday, but rather a symbolic tribute in which flags fly at half mast from public buildings. The European Parliament and the European Commission also decided to pay their respects in this manner.

Tomaso Montanari, rector of Siena's University for Foreigners, refused to respect the order, saying that by flying flags at half mast for Berlusconi his university would "lose all educational and moral credibility".

Bindi, a woman often targeted by Berlusconi's sexist jibes, said the national day of mourning was "disrespectful towards the majority" who opposed the late leader.

Few international leaders travelled to Milan for the funeral. These included Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban.

"Final farewell to Silvio Berlusconi. He was a great statesman and a true friend. Our life is emptier without you. God bless you!" Orban tweeted.

The Russian government said it was not invited, despite the friendship between President Vladimir Putin and Berlusconi, who controversially defended Moscow's invasion of Ukraine saying Putin only wanted to put "decent people" in charge of Kyiv.

"There's only one president, there's only one president," the crowds chanted as the coffin emerged from the cathedral into bright sunshine at the end of the service, in another tweaked version of a popular soccer chant.

The message from his five children published in Italy's main newspapers on Wednesday read, "Sweetest Dad, Thank you for your life, Thank you for your love, You will always live inside us."

(additional reporting by Cristiano Corvino, Angelo Amante and Alvise Armellini, writing by Gavin Jones and Federico Maccioni, editing by Alexandra Hudson and Nick Macfie)
FILE PHOTO: Chief Executive Officer Bracken Darrell of the computer peripherals maker Logitech addresses a news conference in Zurich, Switzerland March 6, 2019. REUTERS/Arnd Wiegmann

(Reuters) -Logitech's shares fell on Wednesday after the computer accessories maker said its chief executive officer and president, Bracken Darrell, was resigning with immediate effect and would be leaving the company to pursue another opportunity.

Darrell, who became Logitech CEO in 2013, will remain with the company over the coming month to facilitate the transition while a search for a replacement is conducted, the company said late Tuesday.

Meanwhile, board member Guy Getch would step in as interim CEO, it added.

Logitech shares were down 8.6% in early Wednesday trade.

Analysts were caught by surprise by the late-night announcement, which came after Tuesday's market close.

"While the abrupt change will impact investor sentiment and add near-term pressure on the shares as Bracken was the face of Logitech, we expect Logitech's strategy to remain unchanged," Vontobel analyst Michael Foeth said.

The leadership change comes after Logitech posted a 22% drop in fourth-quarter sales in May, as a growing economic downturn continued to hinder the company from maintaining pandemic-era growth.

"I feel this is a good point to hand over leadership," Darrell said, adding he would remain a "customer, shareholder and fan" of the Swiss-American tech company.

(Reporting by Rahat Sandhu in Bengaluru and Noele Illien in Zurich; Editing by Pooja Desai and Mark Potter)
Unanimous backing is needed for new countries to secure the guarantees afforded by the world's most powerful defense alliance.

Turkey and fellow NATO member Hungary -- both pushing a more accommodating line with Russia -- were the last to ratify Finland's membership this year. But both countries' parliaments have yet to approve Sweden's entry.

Sweden and its Nordic neighbor Finland ended decades of military nonalignment and applied to join the U.S.-led defense bloc in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

"Sweden has expectations. It doesn't mean that we will comply with them," Erdogan was quoted as saying. "In order for us to meet these expectations, first of all, Sweden must do its part."

Western officials had hoped Erdogan would soften his position on the diplomatically charged issue after he secured a hard-fought re-election last month. But Erdogan signaled no major shift in comments released by his office as Turkish and Swedish officials were locked in a new round of talks in Ankara.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday rebuffed growing international pressure on Ankara to ratify Sweden's NATO membership bid before the Western defense alliance meets in July.

 'Let's Get That Done'

U.S. President Joe Biden pressed Erdogan about Sweden during a call he placed a day after the Turkish leader extended his two-decade rule until 2028. Ankara hopes to win U.S. congressional approval of a major defense package that could substantially modernize Turkey's aging fleet of fighter jets.

Biden directly linked the F-16 fighters' sale with the Swedish bid for the first time. Erdogan "still wants to work on something on the F-16s. I told him we wanted a deal with Sweden, so let's get that done," Biden told reporters after the call.

And NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg personally discussed the bid with Erdogan in Istanbul ahead of an alliance summit in Lithuania in July. Erdogan noted that Stoltenberg's visit coincided with a protest held in Stockholm by supporters of a Kurdish group classified as a terrorist organization by Ankara.

Turkey is pushing Sweden to crack down on such rallies. "There are rights given to [Sweden's] law enforcement under the constitution. Use those rights," Erdogan said. "If you don't deal with it, we cannot [say yes] at the summit in Vilnius."

 'Far from Finish Line'

Sweden has already toughened its anti-terrorism legislation and taken other measures aimed at meeting Turkey's concerns. It has agreed to extradite a self-proclaimed supporter of the Kurdish militants convicted of drug trafficking and arrested in Sweden in August last year.

Turkey "was able to raise some concerns that it had," U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said this week. "Finland and Sweden have both addressed those concerns and, in our judgment, addressed them appropriately and effectively."

Wednesday's lower-level talks in Ankara ended with an agreement for the two sides and Finland to meet again at an undisclosed time.

"This has been a meeting that has moved the process forward, but we are still far from the finish line," Swedish negotiator Oscar Stenstrom said after the talks. "Once again the conversation focused on how well Sweden is meeting its commitments... and very specifically how well Sweden is fighting [Kurdish militants] and terrorism."

The Swedish police have cited the right to free expression and assembly while allowing a series of anti-Erdogan and anti-NATO protests in Stockholm in the past year.

Stoltenberg tried to underline the "progress" achieved in Wednesday's talks. "It's still possible -- I can't guarantee it, of course -- but it's possible to have an agreement in place by the summit," the NATO chief said in Brussels.

Turkey's parliament has returned from its election campaign break and is scheduled to be in session until the two-day Vilnius summit starts on July 11. Hungary's parliament has extended its current session -- which had been due to end on Thursday -- until July 7.
By Kanishka Singh

(Reuters) - A Montana man was sentenced on Wednesday to 18 years in prison for firing an assault rifle into a woman's home and trying to rid a town of LGBTQ residents.

John Howald, 46, of Basin, Montana, was convicted of the hate crime by a federal jury in February, the Justice Department said in a statement announcing the sentence handed down by Chief U.S. District Judge Brian Morris.

After firing at the residence, he walked through Basin - a community of about 200 people - intending to target others he perceived as LGBTQ, it said. The town is about 30 miles (48 km) northeast of Butte, Montana.

Residents, who heard about Howald's self-described anti-LGBTQ mission, were able to restrain him until law enforcement officers arrested him, the department said.

"Howald set out to rid the town of all LGBTQI+ members by killing them," said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department's civil rights division.

Howald was armed with two assault rifles, a hunting rifle, two pistols and multiple high-capacity magazines that were taped together to speed reloading, the statement said.

Howald's lawyer could not immediately be reached for comment.

Earlier this month, the Human Rights Campaign, the largest LGBTQ advocacy organization in the United States, declared its first national state of emergency, citing the proliferation of anti-LGBTQ legislation in statehouses across the country.

President Joe Biden has also warned about "ugly" attacks from "hysterical" people who are targeting LGBTQ Americans.

(Reporting by Kanishka Singh in Washington; Editing by Lisa Shumaker)
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg holds a press conference on the day of a meeting of the Alliance defence ministers, in Brussels, Belgium June 14, 2023. REUTERS/Yves Herman

By Sabine Siebold and Andrew Gray

Brussels (Reuters) - NATO must work harder to set common standards for weapons and ammunitions, its chief said on Wednesday, as the alliance tries to boost defence production amid a Ukrainian counteroffensive likely to deplete Western military stocks even further.

Announcing a Defence Production Action Plan designed to "rapidly address shortfalls in our stocks", NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said the plan also aimed to enhance the interoperability in the alliance's munitions and equipment.

The NATO chief warned in February that Kyiv was burning through artillery shells much faster than the West could produce them. But a lack of common standards among the various manufacturers has hampered the flow of munitions supplies.

"Standardization's a core responsibility for NATO, we have always worked hard on that," Stoltenberg said. "But since ammunition, weapons are constantly developed, refined, that sometimes undermines their interoperability. So therefore we have to actually do more."

While NATO enforces standards for rounds fired by small arms such as assault rifles, enabling troops from all allies to use each others' munitions, it is not so easy for artillery shells.

Although some large NATO countries have agreed on certain standards for the 155mm rounds used by howitzers, additional calculations are often needed to hit a target with the required precision, experts say.

Stoltenberg was speaking ahead of a two-day meeting of the alliance's defence ministers in Brussels on Thursday and Friday that, for the first time, will include talks with the heads of some 20 of the world's leading defence companies.

The discussions will focus on how to boost the production of what NATO calls "battle-decisive" ammunitions, which include the 155mm artillery shells that Ukrainian howitzers fire thousands rounds of per day.

It also includes missiles for air defence systems such as Patriot or NASAMS and precision guided deep-strike ammunitions, missiles with a range of hundreds of kilometres such as the British Storm Shadow.

NATO already has a joint procurement programme for 155mm shells worth one billion dollars in total that allies can join but the alliance aims to fill stocks more extensively.

Stoltenberg said he expected ministers on Friday to agree new targets for the stockpiling of battle-decisive ammunitions, after an announcement he made in February.

"What we saw was that the existing capability targets which we have for each and every ally... were too low," he said, adding that this kind of munitions was perhaps the one where NATO faced the most important shortfalls.

Stoltenberg did not give any figures. Stockpiling targets for ammunitions are, for security reasons, one of the alliance's best-kept secrets.

(Additional reporting Dominique Vidalon, Benoit Van Overstraeten and Charlotte Van Campenhout; Editing by Toby Chopra)
Ukrainian service members ride a BMP-1 infantry fighting vehicle, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, near the front line in the newly liberated village Neskuchne in Donetsk region, Ukraine June 13, 2023. REUTERS/Oleksandr Ratushniak

By Lucy Craymer

WELLINGTON (Reuters) -New Zealand's national radio broadcaster said it has set up an independent review of its editorial processes after it published a range of stories on its website, including on Russia's invasion of Ukraine, that were altered to present "a false account of events".

Radio New Zealand (RNZ), which is government-funded but has editorial independence, had by Wednesday corrected 22 stories on its website dating back to April 2022 because of what it termed "inappropriate editing".

The broadcaster, which first revealed the issues last Friday, said its board decided an independent review was necessary. The panel would review editorial processes and "examine factors and warning signs, which led to international wire stories being subedited with inappropriate content," it said in a statement.

Reuters supplied 21 of the altered stories and one came from Britain's BBC, RNZ's list of stories that have been corrected shows.

Most of the corrections RNZ included in the 22 stories indicate the editing had changed the original stories to present pro-Russian interpretations of some events in Ukraine as fact. Stories on other topics, including on China-Taiwan relations and the Middle East, have also been corrected.

In its statement, RNZ said it would continue to audit stories published on its website and restore copy to its original state where issues are identified.

RNZ is a media client of Reuters.

Reuters said it had addressed the issue with RNZ.

"As stated in our terms and conditions, Reuters content cannot be altered without prior written consent. Reuters is fully committed to covering the war in Ukraine impartially and accurately, in keeping with the Thomson Reuters Trust Principles," a spokesperson said.

The BBC did not immediately respond to a request for comment on RNZ's move to review its internal processes. Earlier in the week, a BBC spokesperson referred Reuters' request for comment back to RNZ.

RNZ Board Chairman Jim Mather said the review, to be conducted by three independent experts, was "in the interest of achieving and protecting the highest standards of journalism at RNZ."

"We are focused on restoring the publics confidence in us," he said.

The panel includes New Zealand media law expert Willy Akel, public law expert and former journalist Linda Clark and former director of editorial standards at the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, Alan Sunderland.

"I am pleased to be asked to be part of the panel on what is a significant review. Issues of trust and integrity in the news media are important, and I look forward to getting to work on this," Sunderland told Reuters.

Clark referred Reuters to the chair of the RNZ board while Akel declined to comment.

Last Friday, RNZ said it had become aware of the editing issue, and had started an "immediate investigation". A staff member had been put on leave while the inquiry took place and was now prevented from accessing RNZ's computer systems, it added.

(Reporting by Lucy Craymer; Editing by Lincoln Feast)
(Reuters) - Russia said on Wednesday it has enhanced its defence capability to track objects in space, allowing it to detect foreign spacecraft and determine their purpose much more quickly.

Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu was briefed by Colonel General Alexander Golovko, commander of Russian space forces, during a visit to a new facility in Russia's western military district, his ministry said.

Russia likes to boast that it is developing military technology unmatched by other countries despite the distraction of its costly war in Ukraine, where it has struggled to make headway against a highly motivated defending army equipped with advanced NATO weapons.

Shoigu was informed that the new site has "unique capabilities for automatic search, detection and control of small space objects in near-Earth space", the ministry said.

It can track objects as small as 10 cm (4 inches), it added. By 2027, it would be able to detect spacecraft post-launch four times faster than before, and to determine their purpose twice as fast.

(Reporting by Reuters, writing by Mark Trevelyan; Editing by Gareth Jones)
A view shows the newly liberated village Storozheve, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, near the front line in Donetsk region, Ukraine June 14, 2023. REUTERS/Oleksandr Ratushniak

(Refiles with correct dateline spelling)

By Vitalii Hnidyi

STOROZHEVE, Ukraine (Reuters) -The road into the newly liberated Ukrainian village of Storozheve is lined with the corpses of Russian soldiers and burnt-out armoured vehicles.

The grisly scenes bear witness to the ferocity of fighting as Ukrainian troops recaptured Storozheve and several other villages in the past few days as part of a counteroffensive in southern and eastern Ukraine.

Some of the dead Russian soldiers lay on the dusty ground beside the husks of their vehicles when Reuters journalists reached the village on Wednesday. Others were crumpled in the grass and fields nearby where they died.

Inside the village, the small one-storey houses that line the road have been badly damaged by shelling, their roofs completely gone or with gaping holes.

An abandoned stroller lay overturned at the side of the road. The village was silent, its residents gone or staying out of sight.

"Three days ago we liberated the village of Storozheve. You can see for yourselves how it was achieved. You can see the destroyed hardware. Glory to Ukraine," a Ukrainian soldier who gave his name only as Artem told Reuters in Storozheve.

A photograph posted online on Monday showed Ukrainian soldiers holding up the yellow and blue Ukrainian flag in front of a damaged home in Storozheve.

The village had been occupied by Russian forces since March 2022, one month after Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

The soldiers said about 50 Russian soldiers were killed in a "mopping-up operation" and four were taken prisoner. Reuters was unable to verify the number of Russian casualties, although corpses were still strewn across the road and nearby fields.

Storozheve is one of a cluster of settlements near the Mokry Yali river that Ukraine says its troops have captured since their counteroffensive began.

Reuters also reached the nearby village of Neskuchne on Tuesday, providing the first independent confirmation of the Ukrainian advances since Kyiv began the counteroffensive.

(Reporting by Vitlii Hnyidyi, Writing by Timothy Heritage, Editing by William Maclean)
The logo of SAP is seen on their offices in Reston, Virginia, U.S., May 12, 2021. Picture taken May 12, 2021. REUTERS/Andrew Kelly/File Photo

(Reuters) - Hasso Plattner, co-founder of German software firm SAP, concluded an agreement with a bank, which was not named, to dispose of nearly 1.46 million shares of the company, a disclosure release said on Wednesday.

Plattner, who according to Refinitiv data personally owns a 3.16% stake and a 3.44% stake via his foundation, intends to sell between 40-60% of the amount of shares until December 13 this year.

The target share price will equal the volume-weighted average stock price during the sales period.

(Reporting by Andrey Sychev; Editing by Miranda Murray)
FILE PHOTO: An aerial view of the black smoke and flames at a market in Omdurman, Khartoum North, Sudan, May 17, 2023 in this screengrab obtained from a handout video. VIDEO OBTAINED BY REUTERS/Handout via REUTERS/File Photo

(This June 14 story has been refiled to add the word "association" in paragraph 19)

By Adam Makary

CAIRO (Reuters) - Kidney dialysis patients are dying and dead bodies have been left to decompose in a morgue and in city streets as Sudan's war rages on, despite efforts by volunteers and aid workers to keep critical healthcare running.

Sudan's health sector was already on the edge of collapse due to a lack of resources before the conflict, and it has been shattered by nearly two months of fighting between the army and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) across the country.

More than 60 hospitals in conflict zones have been put out of service, and the 29 that are still operating are threatened by closure due to power and water cuts and shortage of staff, according to the United Nations.

"Despite all the best efforts of Sudanese doctors...who are working in extremely difficult conditions, this is certainly not a sustainable situation," International Committee of the Red Cross regional director for Africa Patrick Youssef told Reuters.

Dr. Mohammed Wahbi, who manages one of Sudan's largest children's hospitals in Omdurman, across the Nile from the capital Khartoum, said it normally received up to 300 paediatric patients a day.

"Once the war broke out, RSF forces stationed their vehicles in front of the hospital and its soldiers entered the building, which made the facility unsafe for patients," he said. "Many stayed away, except those who were desperate for dialysis treatment."

Two weeks ago, the hospital stopped providing treatment as dialysis supplies dwindled.

In El-Obeid, southwest of Khartoum, a power outage lasting more than two weeks has put a kidney dialysis unit at risk of shutdown and led to the death of at least 12 dialysis patients, a doctors' union statement said on Sunday.

Residents say roads into the strategically located city are under blockade, with supplies of food and medicine cut off. Engineers tried to reach a local power station to restore electricity, but were assaulted before they could arrive, the doctors' union said.

Renal disease constitutes an important health problem in Sudan, where treatment is limited and expensive. According to the International Society of Nephrology, an estimated 8,000 people in Sudan depend on dialysis to live.

In Ombada, on the outskirts of Omdurman, the main hospital has had to halve the frequency of patient visits, and shut down their operating rooms, said general director Alaa El Din Ibrahim Ali, because of power cuts and lack of fuel for the generator.

MORGUE BREAKDOWN

Nearby, a local morgue was unable to keep its refrigeration system working and 450 bodies began to decompose, seeping blood onto the floor.

The army has accused the RSF of forcibly evacuating and taking over key hospitals. The RSF said in a statement earlier this week that monitors had observed several of those hospitals, as well as power and water stations, were free of fighters.

With international humanitarian agencies struggling to scale up aid due to the pervasive danger of violence, one of many local volunteer units trying to maintain basic health services attempted to fix the outage.

"We faced problems buying equipment and fuel to get the cooling facilities up and running again," said Moussa Hassan, a member of the group, who said the price of a gallon of fuel had soared to between $58 and $83, from $11 before the war.

The police and other authorities vanished when the conflict started, blocking burial procedures, he said.

"No death certificates have been issued. The dead cannot be buried anyway given the constant fighting happening around us," Hassan said.

The situation in Darfur, in western Sudan, is even more desperate. El Geneina, the worst affected city, has been hit by waves of attacks by Arab militias backed by the RSF while cut off from humanitarian relief and phone networks.

"There are practically no health services (there) at all. Its a city of death," said Yasir Elamin, president of the Sudanese American Physicians Association.

The Geneina Teaching Hospital, the most visited hospital in West Darfur State, was forced to close in late April, its patients and doctors evacuated.

A secondary school teacher from the city, Hisham Juma, said he saw fighters take the hospital over before he fled to neighbouring Chad earlier this month.

"Many patients died, including my neighbour who needed dialysis every three days," he told Reuters by phone from Chad. Reuters was unable to verify his account or ascertain how many patients had died.

Moussa Ibrahim, a logistics supervisor in El Geneina for medical aid group MSF which supported the hospital, said fighting in the city had made it dangerous to fetch basic necessities, or to retrieve dead bodies from the streets.

"Access was finally gained but by that point the bodies had decomposed to the extent that they couldn't be removed. Now, the best that can be done is to gather the bodies in a single location," he said in a statement.

(This story has been refiled to add the word "association" in paragraph 19)

(Reporting by Adam Makary and Maggie Michael; editing by Aidan Lewis, Nafisa Eltahir and Mark Heinrich)
FILE PHOTO: A man walks while smoke rises above buildings after aerial bombardments during clashes between the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces and the army in Khartoum North, Sudan, May 1, 2023. REUTERS/Mohamed Nureldin Abdallah/File Photo

CAIRO (Reuters) -Fighting rocked several vulnerable cities in western Sudan on Wednesday in an expansion of the country's almost two-month-old war as the number of people who have fled their homes rose above two million.

The conflict between the army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces has caused a humanitarian crisis in Khartoum, as well as major cities in the Kordofan and Darfur regions.

The widening footprint of fighting threatens to prolong the violence and draw in armed groups - particularly those with tribal affiliations - as well as external actors.

Speaking to Al-Hadath TV from El Geneina as gun and artillery fire could be heard, Khamis Abbakar, the governor of West Darfur state, called for international intervention in what he described as a "genocide."

"Civilians are being killed randomly and in large numbers," he said. While the RSF and allied militias had originally targeted areas of El Geneina where members of the Masalit tribe lived, these attacks had now spread to the entire city, he said.

"We haven't seen the army leave its base to defend people," he added. Activists say 1,100 people have been killed so far in the city.

The Darfur region of Sudan has seen periods of conflict since the early 2000s, when millions were displaced and 300,000 killed by attacks from Arab militias known as the Janjaweed. The RSF evolved out of those groups, becoming a legalized governmental force in 2017.

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres "is highly worried about the increasing ethnic dimension of the violence, as well as by reports of sexual violence," a spokesperson said on Tuesday. His special representative to Sudan, Volker Perthes, blamed "Arab militias and some armed men in RSF's uniform."

In a statement, the RSF called the fighting in El Geneina a tribal conflict, blaming the country's former regime for fanning the flames. It said it had been making efforts to get aid into the city.

Diplomatic efforts led by the United States and Saudi Arabia have faltered, as numerous ceasefires have been violated. On Tuesday, senior U.S. State Department officials said they were considering a new approach for the coming days.

FIGHTING ACROSS DARFUR

The Darfur Bar Association, a local group monitoring the fighting, said on Wednesday that artillery strikes had hit civilian homes in Nyala, capital of South Darfur, after RSF soldiers had complained of not receiving salaries.

"The assault could start again at any moment, we don't feel safe," said Salah Alamin, 39.

The city of Zalingei, capital of Central Darfur, was under siege, the association said. The city of El Fashir, capital of North Darfur, has been quieter but has seen a wave of displacement from RSF-controlled Kutum.

Meanwhile in El Obeid, a hub between Khartoum and Darfur in North Kordofan, residents said the army had begun launching air and artillery strikes against RSF positions. The RSF has controlled the roads branching out from the city, and has agreed with local tribal leaders to secure the area from armed gangs.

In Kadugli, South Kordofan, the army pushed back an RSF attack on one of its bases, as troops loyal to rebel leader Abdelaziz al-Hilu surrounded the city. Sources from al-Hilu's faction, SPLM-N, said that they sought to protect civilians from armed militias.

Within Khartoum, residents reported clashes and air and artillery strikes in southern and eastern districts of the city and in neighbouring Omdurman on Wednesday.

The U.N. said late on Tuesday that some 1.7 million people had been displaced internally and more than 500,000 had left the country.

In army-controlled Port Sudan, meanwhile, middle school students began taking exams, while pilgrims to Mecca began their Hajj journeys, as some attempted to find some normality.

The Sudanese Doctors Union said that at least 958 people have been killed since fighting began on April 15, over the integration of the RSF into the military.

(Reporting by Nafisa Eltahir in Cairo, Khalid Abdelaziz in Dubai, additional reporting by Adam Makary and Maggie Michael in Cairo, Editing by William Maclean)
Interpreting Picasso in the context of Me Too is a bit of a stretch of the imagination. But of the many ways to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the death of Pablo Picasso (1881-1973), the Brooklyn Museum in New York has chosen a feminist interpretation. This exhibition sets the artists pictorial treatment of women  and Picassos misogyny  against the work of 30 women artists, pillars of feminist art (but not contemporaries of the painter who gave us Guernica. The result of the juxtaposition is the exhibition entitled Its Pablo-matic [pun on problematic]: Picasso according to Hannah Gadsby. The Australian comedian rose to fame in 2018 with Nanette, their stand-up special (on Netflix) in which, among other issues, they slammed the artist and the patriarchal roots of art.

Gadsby, who studied art history but publicly rejected the discipline, examines the artists complicated legacy from a critical, contemporary and feminist perspective, the museum says. In their glosses and apostilles to the work on display  two dozen plates from the Vollard Suite and eight oil paintings, seven of them on loan from the Picasso Museum in Paris  the Australian artist starts from a categorical statement: Picasso destroyed everything except the assumption of women as objects. It is a sentence taken from Nanette, some of whose fragments can be seen on a loop in an adjoining room. In the installations audio guide, they are even more implacable: the creator, they come to say, is no longer only detestable for his misogyny, but also for his bad behavior and colonialist impulses. His inspiration from African art, his continuous return to classical mythology, would almost fall into the category of cultural appropriation, that other nefarious evil of the 21st century.

Two works by feminist artists, next to a video still showing Hannah Gadsby. JUSTIN LANE (EFE)

The exhibition is curated by two museum specialists, Catherine Morris, curator of the Center for Feminist Art the only one of its kind in the US  and Lisa Small, head of European art, while the common thread corresponds to Gadsby, a professional hater of Picasso, as they defines themself in Nanette, so no one who visits the exhibition can be in any doubt. Well aware of their role as a feminist interpreter of this giant of the art world, their wit and the hypothetical invitation to humor one might expect from a professional comedian are overshadowed by their denial, proving to some that the worst thing that can happen to a comedian is to take themself seriously.

Quotes from other creators about Picassos political incorrectness (before the term had been coined) are dotted throughout the exhibition. No ones sexual fantasies are politically correct, recalls visual artist Marilyn Minter, one of those who act as a counterweight to genius (and who nevertheless assumes the need to separate the artist from the man: My thoughts about Picasso have changed as I learned more about him as a human. I still think he was undoubtedly a great artist, despite being a horrible man). In the female affirmation display, dedications to Louise Bourgeois, Louise Nevelson, Cecily Brown, Kiki Smith and the anonymous collective Guerrilla Girls stand out. From the latter hangs a selection of his manifesto-works, such as the poster that reminds us that in the Metropolitan Museum of New York less than 5% of the artists in the modern art sections are women, but 85% of the nudes are female.

This exhibition does not intend to cancel Picasso. You cant cancel history, says Morris to qualify the amendment that Gadsby has set out to make. But its relevance to contemporary social, cultural and political priorities can be examined, and in doing so our understanding can be enriched by reflecting on new positions and viewpoints. Our exhibition aims to engage in a highly relevant discussion about the tensions between Picassos creative genius and the dubious power dynamics that defined the era in which he lived and worked.

One of the works of the anonymous feminist collective Guerrilla Girls. JUSTIN LANE (EFE)

The exhibition, open through September 24, addresses complex issues surrounding misogyny, creativity, the canon of art history and the concept of genius. Also, the arsenal of accusations against the predatory Picasso, embodied in works such as Faun Uncovering a Sleeping Woman (Jupiter and Antiope, after Rembrandt), an aquatint from 1936 that belongs to the museums collection, or in the powerful exhibition of minotaurs that, in the light of this show, seem to be precursors of the alpha male. It also reviews his women, treated as muses as well as victims, especially Marie Therese Walter, who Gadsby reminds us was seduced by the painter when she was 17 when he had already turned 40, (the cartouche recalls that in France at that time the minimum age of consent was 13).

With Instagram and Twitter catchphrases (tags, slogans), Gadsby, who once equated Donald Trump, Harvey Weinstein and Picasso (All three cut from the same cloth), breaks down all the evils they blame on the artist, including his lack of skill as a sculptor or his gratuitous female nudes. Witty phrases like If PETA couldnt cancel Picasso, nobody can, about the work Corrida: la mort de la femme torero (Bullfight: Death of a Female Bullfighter), from 1933, share space with obvious comments, like this one about a female nude belonging to the Vollard Suite, dated Paris, 1931: It must have been very hot in Paris in the thirties. There is a certain genital and anal fixation in the comments.

Entrance to the exhibition at the Brooklyn museum. JUSTIN LANE (EFE)

For all this, some critics, such as the New York Times and the specialist magazine ArtNews, have trashed the exhibition, and for its excesses that feel personal  Gadsby is so consumed with Picasso it is difficult to know where he begins and they end  among other criticisms. Others surrender to the provocative and stimulating eagerness of the comics gaze. Of the fifty or so exhibitions that will commemorate the figure of the painter throughout the year, this is by far the most daring, for its ability to generate heated opinions. But what else to expect, if not from the vision of someone who has said that Picasso just put a kaleidoscope filter on his penis when he was helping to forge cubism? The comedian succeeds in capturing their hatred for a monumentally misogynistic and abusive domestic authoritarian dictator who occupies too much space in the collective imagination of 20th century culture.

Picasso once said that it took him four years to paint like Raphael, but a lifetime to paint like a child, Gadsby writes in one of the wall texts. Well, I dont want to call myself a genius ..., but it only took me four years to be as funny as Raphael, says Gadsby about a replica of the painting Great Bather with a Book (1937), made during their years as a student of art history. They later abandoned the degree (because of its patriarchal stamp) to which they now return on the wings of media success. Thanks to which, by the way, they have also managed to hang their own art in a museum, next to Picassos.

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ANKARA (Reuters) - Turkey's military "neutralised" 53 Kurdish militants in northern Syria, using ground artillery and drones in retaliatory strikes following an attack on a police post on the Turkish side of the border at the weekend, the defence ministry said on Wednesday.

The ministry typically uses the term "neutralised" to describe killed and wounded. The latest strikes targeted the militants' hideouts in the Manbij and Tal Rifaat regions.

Turkey has previously launched military incursions in Syria against the Kurdish YPG militia, regarding it as a wing of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), which Turkey, the United States and the European Union designate as a terrorist group.

The United States has allied with the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), spearheaded by the YPG, in the fight against Islamic State in Syria, causing a deep rift with Turkey.

The PKK launched an insurgency against the Turkish state in 1984, largely focused in Turkey's mainly Kurdish southeast. More than 40,000 people have been killed in the conflict.

(Reporting by Huseyin Hayatsever; Writing by Ali Kucukgocmen; Editing by Simon Cameron-Moore)
FILE PHOTO: U.S. Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA) departs a House Democratic Caucus meeting ahead of an expected vote in the U.S. House of Representatives on a bill raising the federal government's $31.4 trillion debt ceiling on Capitol Hill, in Washington, U.S.,

By Moira Warburton

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. House of Representatives on Wednesday rejected a Republican effort to censure Representative Adam Schiff, a Democrat who played a leading role in the first impeachment of then-President Donald Trump in 2019.

The Republican-controlled chamber defeated the motion by a vote of 225 to 196, with 20 Republicans joining 205 Democrats in opposition.

The measure's sponsors, including far-right Republican Representatives Anna Paulina Luna, Matt Gaetz and Lauren Boebert, argued that an investigation that Schiff led into potential ties between Trump's 2016 campaign and the Russian government was politically motivated.

The symbolic rebuke also called for a $16 million fine, though it is unclear how that could be enforced.

Schiff is running for California's Senate seat in 2024 and sent a fundraising email based on Wednesday's censure move.

Republican Representative Paul Gosar was censured in 2021 after he posted a cartoon video that showed him killing Democratic Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the first time the censure had been used in a decade.

Schiff has been a frequent Republican target since 2019, when he headed the investigation that led to Trump's impeachment over his alleged effort to pressure Ukraine to help him win re-election. Trump remained in office because the Senate declined to convict him.

Trump was impeached a second time by the House over his actions leading up to the Jan. 6, 2021 deadly riot at the U.S. Capitol. Again, the Senate voted against conviction.

In a letter to Democratic colleagues, Schiff called the motion "not only a terrible misuse of House precedent and resources, but a clear attack on our constitutional system of checks and balances."

(Reporting by Moira Warburton in Washington; editing by Andy Sullivan and David Gregorio)
FILE PHOTO: U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken attends a joint press conference with Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal Bin Farhan, at the Intercontinental Hotel in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, June 8, 2023. REUTERS/Ahmed Yosri/Pool/File Photo

By Humeyra Pamuk, David Brunnstrom and Simon Lewis

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The United States on Wednesday played down expectations of any breakthrough from the first trip by a U.S. Secretary of State to China in five years, after a tense call with China's foreign minister ahead Antony Blinken's visit to Beijing next week.

Chinese foreign minister Qin Gang urged the United States to stop meddling in its affairs and harming its security in a call with Blinken on Wednesday, and said it should respect China's core concerns to arrest declining relations between the superpowers, China's foreign ministry said.

Having postponed a February trip after a suspected Chinese spy balloon flew over U.S. airspace, Blinken is set to become the highest ranking U.S. government official to visit China since President Joe Biden took office in January 2021.

U.S. officials said Blinken would push to establish open communication channels to ensure competition with the Chinese does not spiral into conflict.

"We're not going to Beijing with the intent of having some sort of breakthrough or transformation in the way that we deal with one another," Daniel Kritenbrink, the State Department's top diplomat for East Asia, told reporters in a briefing call.

"We're coming to Beijing with a realistic, confident approach and a sincere desire to manage our competition in the most responsible way possible," he said.

Kritenbrink said he expected Blinken would "reiterate America's abiding interest in the maintenance of peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait" and also discuss the situation in Ukraine.

Blinken's long-delayed visit is aimed at stabilizing relations between the world's two largest economies and strategic rivals. Ties have deteriorated across the board and raised concerns they might one day clash militarily over the self-ruled island of Taiwan, which China claims as its own.

The two sides are also at odds over trade, U.S. efforts to hold back China's semiconductor industry and human rights issues.

Chinese state media said Blinken would visit on June 18 and 19. Kritenbrink said Blinken would hold a series of meetings with senior Chinese officials.

The two sides did not say which officials Blinken would meet. Asked at a regular briefing it he would meet President Xi Jinping, U.S. State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said:

"I won't speak to any potential meetings, other than to say we'll have announcements about who he will be meeting with and when over the next few days."

CRISIS COMMUNICATION

Sources familiar with the planning said Blinken had been expected to meet Xi on the canceled February trip.

A primary objective for Blinken will be "candid, direct and constructive" discussions with China, Kritenbrink said, but he cautioned about the prospect of progress.

"There will be a substantive and productive agenda that well have before us, but, again, the objective is to focus on those top line goals, not necessarily to produce a long list of deliverables," he said.

One alarming aspect of the sour ties has been Beijing's reluctance to have open military-to-military dialogue with Washington, despite repeated U.S. attempts.

White House Indo-Pacific Coordinator Kurt Campbell said in the same call that Washington has an interest in setting up crisis communication mechanisms to reduce conflict risk.

"I believe Secretary Blinken will advocate strongly that these lines of communication are necessary. They are how mature, strong militaries interact and the stakes are just too high to avoid these critical lines of communication," he said.

U.S. officials expect Blinken's visit will pave the way for more bilateral meetings, including possible trips by U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo, in the coming months.

Campbell said "a series of visits in both directions" were expected "in the period ahead," but did not elaborate.

U.S. President Joe Biden and Biden and Xi held their first face-to-face leadership talks on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Bali in November.

In three-and-a-half hours of talks, they covered topics including Taiwan and nuclear-armed North Korea, but the meeting ultimately failed to ease tensions.

The balloon episode and exchanges of visits by U.S. and Taiwanese officials have magnified U.S.-China tensions.

"Since the beginning of the year, Sino-U.S. relations have encountered new difficulties and challenges, and the responsibility is clear," Qin told Blinken, according to the Chinese foreign ministry's readout.

The United States should "stop interfering in China's internal affairs, and stop harming China's sovereignty, security and development interests in the name of competition," Qin added.

(Reporting by Humeyra Pamuk, David Brunnstrom, Simon Lewis; Editing by Doina Chiacu, Chizu Nomiyama, William Maclean)
FILE PHOTO: The Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby attends the Church of England General Synod meeting in London, Britain, February 9, 2023. REUTERS/Toby Melville/File Photo

KIGALI (Reuters) - The chair of a conservative group of Anglican church leaders on Wednesday accused the church's global head of perpetuating colonialism with his criticism of one of the world's harshest anti-LGBTQ laws, introduced by Uganda last month.

Justin Welby, the head of the Church of England and the worldwide Anglican Communion's 85 million members, said last week he had written to Ugandan Archbishop Stephen Kaziimba to express "grief and dismay" at Kaziimba's support for the law.

The legislation imposes the death penalty for certain same-sex acts and a 20-year prison sentence for "promoting" homosexuality.

It has triggered widespread Western criticism including threats by U.S. President Joe Biden and others to cut aid to Uganda and impose other sanctions.

Issues of LGBTQ rights have sharply divided Anglicans, with the church's GAFCON coalition of conservative adherents among the most critical.

Commenting on Welby's letter, GAFCON chair Laurent Mbanda said: "It seems the history of colonisation and patronising behaviour of some provinces in the northern hemisphere towards the South, and Africa in particular, is not yet at an end."

The statement by Mbanda, who is also the head of Rwanda's Anglican Church, mentioned but did not explicitly offer support for the Ugandan law.

Welby had said last week he was aware of the history of British rule in Uganda and his statement was not about imposing Western values, but a reminder of the commitment "to treat every person with the care and respect they deserve as children of God."

Anglicans created GAFCON in 2008 in response to what the group says was certain Western churches' abandonment of bible-based orthodoxy. It claims to represent the majority of all Anglicans worldwide.

A second overlapping splinter group, the Global South Fellowship of Anglican Churches, said in February it no longer recognised Welby's leadership of the Anglican Communion after the Church of England announced it would allow priests to bless same-sex couples.

Archbishop Kaziimba said last week that Welby "has every right to form his opinions about matters around the world that he knows little about first hand."

The Church of Uganda says 36% of Uganda's population of around 45 million are Anglicans.

(Reporting by Philbert Girinema; Writing by George Obulutsa; editing by John Stonestreet)
FILE PHOTO: Founder of Wagner private mercenary group Yevgeny Prigozhin speaks with servicemen during withdrawal of his forces from Bakhmut and handing over their positions to regular Russian troops, in the course of Russia-Ukraine conflict in an unidenti

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russian mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin on Wednesday reiterated the refusal of his Wagner fighters to sign contracts with the defence ministry, a day after President Vladimir Putin said the agreements were needed.

In a rare direct show of defiance towards the Russian leader, Prigozhin said: "None of Wagner's fighters is ready to go down the path of shame again. That's why they will not sign the contracts."

In a televised meeting on Tuesday, Putin backed a call by the defence ministry for "volunteer" fighters in Ukraine to sign contracts with the country's military command, widely seen as a means to assert control over Wagner.

Putin said that contracts were necessary to allow all participants in Russia's campaign in Ukraine to receive the social support payments to which they are entitled. These include compensation to fighters if they are wounded, and to their families if they are killed in action.

Prigozhin has waged a bitter public feud with Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu and the army top brass since last year, accusing them of failing to provide adequate support and ammunition to Wagner forces in Ukraine and so causing them to suffer higher casualties.

In Wednesday's remarks, however, he said he thought a "compromise solution" would be found between Putin and parliament to enable Wagner fighters to receive both social guarantees and certified status as combatants.

(Reporting by Reuters; Editing by Mark Trevelyan)
Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, S.A. (BBVA), in compliance with the Securities Market legislation, hereby proceeds to notify the following:

OTHER RELEVANT INFORMATION

BBVA has agreed to carry out an issue of preferred securities contingently convertible into newly issued ordinary shares of BBVA with exclusion of pre-emptive subscription rights for shareholders (the Securities) for a total nominal amount of 1,000,000,000 euros (the Issuance).

Once fully paid-up, the Securities are expected to qualify as Additional Tier 1 Capital of BBVA and its Group pursuant to the applicable solvency regulations.

The remuneration of the Securities, whose payment is discretionary and subject to certain conditions, has been set at 8,375% on an annual basis until 21 December 2028. After that, it will be reviewed in accordance with the applicable terms and conditions of the Issuance by applying a margin of 554.4 basis points on the 5-year Mid-Swap Rate.

The Issuance is in no event directed towards retail investors, without prejudice to the additional sales restrictions set out in the terms and conditions of the Issuance.

BBVA will request the listing of the Securities on the Global Exchange Market of Euronext Dublin.

Furthermore, BBVA informs that, for the purposes set out in articles 414, 417 and 511 of the Corporate Enterprises Act, the directors report and the report of the independent expert/auditor of accounts different from BBVAs auditor, both related to the Issuance, have been issued. These reports will be available to shareholders through their publication on BBVAs website (www.bbva.com) on the Issuance closing date (expected to take place on 21 June 2023) and will be reported to the first General Shareholders Meeting to be held after the Issuance.

Madrid, 14 June 2023
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

Form 6-K

REPORT OF FOREIGN PRIVATE ISSUER PURSUANT TO RULE 13A-16 OR 15D-16

UNDER THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

June, 2023

Commission File Number 1-15182

DR. REDDYS LABORATORIES LIMITED

(Translation of registrants name into English)

8-2-337, Road No. 3, Banjara Hills

Hyderabad, Telangana 500 034, India

+91-40-49002900

(Address of principal executive office)

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant files or will file annual reports under cover of Form 20-F or Form 40-F.

Form 20-F x Form 40-F 

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is submitting the Form 6-K in paper as permitted by Regulation S-T Rule 101(b)(1): ______

Note: Regulation S-T Rule 101(b)(1) only permits the submission in paper of a Form 6-K if submitted solely to provide an attached annual report to security holders.

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is submitting the Form 6-K in paper as permitted by Regulation S-T Rule 101(b)(7): ______

Note: Regulation S-T Rule 101(b)(7) only permits the submission in paper of a Form 6-K if submitted to furnish a report or other document that the registrant foreign private issuer must furnish and make public under the laws of the jurisdiction in which the registrant is incorporated, domiciled or legally organized (the registrants home country), or under the rules of the home country exchange on which the registrants securities are traded, as long as the report or other document is not a press release, is not required to be and has not been distributed to the registrants security holders, and, if discussing a material event, has already been the subject of a Form 6-K submission or other Commission filing on EDGAR.

Indicate by check mark whether by furnishing the information contained in this Form, the registrant is also thereby furnishing the information to the Commission pursuant to Rule 12g3-2(b) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.

Yes  No x

If Yes is marked, indicate below the file number assigned to registrant in connection with Rule 12g3-2(b): 82-________.

EXHIBITS

SIGNATURES

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.

DR. REDDYS LABORATORIES LIMITED

(Registrant) Date: June 14, 2023 By: /s/ K Randhir Singh Name: K Randhir Singh Title: Company Secretary

ATTACHMENTS / EXHIBITS

EXHIBIT 99.1
The Air Force tape test is returning to base gyms and fitness testing facilities, two years after the service dropped the abdominal circumference measurement in fitness assessments.

The service is introducing a waist-to-height ratio that will determine whether airmen and Space Force guardians meet their annual fitness standards, according to a statement Monday.

The ratio is calculated by dividing waist circumference by height and cannot exceed 0.55.

For example, a person measuring 70 inches tall, or 5-foot-10, with a 38-inch waist would just barely pass with a ratio of 0.54.

The ratio aims to measure excess fat distribution in the abdominal region, the Air Force statement said.

Instead of the top of the hip bones, as before, measurements will be taken at the midpoint between the lowest rib and the top of the hip bones, which is normally the narrowest portion of the abdomen, according to the statement.

The new body composition assessment is mandatory but separate from the annual fitness test.

Initial failure to meet the body composition standard is nonpunitive, the service said Monday. Instead, overweight personnel will have to complete a yearlong informal, self-directed body composition improvement program, the statement said.

During the program, airmen will receive education on risk factors and may be referred for further medical evaluation.

Space Force members will be referred to so-called guardian resilience teams, which the service plans to establish soon.

While the abdominal circumference measurement under the new format may be less intimidating, it can still affect careers.

Missing scheduled measurement appointments can cause commander-driven administrative actions.

Measuring in the high-risk category after the 12-month grace period will be considered failure to meet standards and may result in reprimands, delayed promotions or separation.

Studies have found that waist-to-height ratio is a good indicator of body fat distribution and is strongly correlated with body mass index and other measures of body composition.

Excess fat in the abdominal region is associated with increased health risks such as cardiovascular disease, stroke, diabetes and hypertension.

As recently as 2019, service officials explored options for a gender-neutral fitness index. Initial proposals of the policy would have divided an airmans running time by a waist-to-height ratio for a universal measurement of fitness among troops. The plan was ultimately scrapped.

In 2020, fitness testing was paused because of the COVID-19 pandemic. At the time, the service told airmen it would do away permanently with waist measurements.

A Defense Department policy updated last year, however, continues to require all services to maintain a body composition program for their members.

Airmen will complete their measurement each year in the month of their birthday. Guardians get a bit more leeway and have to log their composition in the quarter of their birthday.

Results will be tracked via myBodyComp, a new application under the troubled myFSS platform, the service said.

Assessments are expected to begin in April.
The U.S. military has deployed F-22 Raptor fighter jets to the Middle East, following months of complaints that Russian aircraft have been buzzing U.S. bases in Syria and violating protocols developed to prevent fighting between American and Russian forces.

The deployment of Raptors flown by the 94th Fighter Squadron out of Langley Air Force Base, Va., comes in response to increasingly unsafe and unprofessional behavior by Russian aircraft in the region, a statement Wednesday by U.S. Central Command said.

Their regular violation of agreed upon airspace deconfliction measures increases the risk of escalation or miscalculation," Gen. Michael "Erik" Kurilla, the commander of CENTCOM, said in the statement.

Since late February, fighter jets and surveillance drones from Russia have been flying regularly above U.S. positions in Syria and sometimes have attempted to goad American pilots into dogfights, U.S. generals have said.

They're not operating like a professional air force anymore, Lt. Gen. Alexus Grynkewich, head of U.S. Air Forces Central, told Stars and Stripes in an interview last week.

Some of the Russian planes were carrying air-to-ground weapons as they flew over U.S. bases and all were equipped with sensors that most likely are used to gather information on U.S. positions, Grynkewich said.

Some 900 U.S. troops are deployed to Syria in a mission focused on opposing the Islamic State group.

Russian forces are also in Syria, where they back the government of President Bashar Assad.

While Russian and U.S. forces in Syria have both declared the need to defeat ISIS, their backing of opposing Syrian groups has led to deconfliction protocols meant to avoid a direct conflict that could lead to a larger war.

Our No. 1 objective is of course to protect our troops, but close behind it is to avoid escalation, Grynkewich said last week.

A statement in May by U.S. Air Forces Central said the deconfliction protocols include agreements on areas where the U.S. and Russia have agreed to notify each other prior to transiting. They also include details on standoff distances from aircraft and ground forces, and an agreement not to conduct armed overflights of ground forces.

In May, the U.S. accused Russia of 85 protocol violations since March 1. Of those, 26 were armed overflights.

Russian military leaders, meanwhile, accuse U.S. pilots of violating agreements that separate Syrias airspace, the Saudi Arabia-based Al Arabiya English reported June 1.

Grynkewich said last week that Russian leaders have not been receptive to U.S. complaints recently.

They're not reciprocating as they used to, so deconfliction doesn't work, Grynkewich said. Then your next best bet is to make sure that you're in a position to defend yourself.
The Air Force will deploy over 1,000 sheep to Travis Air Force Base in California this summer to help reduce the risk of wildfires.

About 600 have already arrived at the base, where they are eating dried grass and other underbrush that can fuel blazes, the Air Force said in a statement Wednesday.

In recent years, sheep and goats have been used across California, the state most affected by wildfires, to control underbrush and mitigate burn risks.

The animals are widely regarded as more sustainable, cost-effective and efficient than machinery.

Sheep are better than lawn mowers, Christa Rolls, a wildlife biologist with the 60th Civil Engineer Squadron, was quoted in the statement as saying.

Mowing leaves the dead grass behind, which does not reduce the fire hazards, Rolls said. Sheep remove all standing vegetation and leave little residue behind.

The remaining vegetation is also less likely to catch fire, according to Melvin Self, an assistant chief of training in the squadron, which is headquartered at Travis.

The stalks or brush remaining wont burn as easily as grass since they contain more moisture, Self said.

The base, which also hosts the 349th Air Mobility Wing and the David Grant Medical Center, has been susceptible to wildfires in recent years.

In 2019, the Air Force published photos of a fire burning just south of the installation. A year later, the LNU Lightning Complex fires forced evacuations of personnel and aircraft, but the flames never breached the base perimeter.

Named after the Sonoma-Lake-Napa Unit of the state Forestry and Fire Protection Department, the 2020 fire was the sixth-largest in California history, according to the Departments data. Six of the seven largest have occurred in the past three years, the data show.

Scientists say climate change is partly to blame for the increase. A buildup of natural fuel is also a factor, they say.

Kaos Sheep Outfit, which describes itself as a sustainable target grazing company focusing on the mutualistic relationship between sheep and ranching, manages the sheep at Travis.

This is the third year the company is providing them, according to the Air Force statement, which said the grazing also improves habitat for several threatened or endangered species on base that could be harmed by herbicides and machinery.

The sheep will be grazing in three locations at the installation through July.
Foulath Holding, an industrial holding company with major steel investments, has employed over 160 Bahraini graduates from its Graduate Training Programme since the schemes inception in 2016.

The training programme, which is geared towards the technical and soft skill development of fresh graduates, has empowered young Bahrainis with valuable vocational experience in the manufacturing sector, nurturing a strong foundation to build their career growth both within the organisation and beyond.

Foulaths Graduate Training Programme supports the governments national efforts in fostering a highly skilled and competitive workforce as per the mandates set forth by the Bahrain Economic Vision 2030.

Active participant

The company has been an active participant in the National Employment Programme, initiated by His Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, the Crown Prince and Prime Minister, and has maintained a longstanding agreement with the Labour Fund (Tamkeen) and the Ministry of Labour to recruit fresh graduates.

Dilip George, Group CEO of Foulath Holding, said: Foulath is motivated by an inherent responsibility to give back to the community. We have prioritised training and development of young, promising Bahraini talent as an essential component of our CSR efforts in line with the governments national ambitions.

Our training programme provides the relevant experience to equip a fresh graduate with the necessary skillset to facilitate their entry into the job market and meet the needs of employers in the industrial sector.

Fresh graduates

Foulaths Graduate Training Programme is open to fresh graduates from both public and private academic institutions. Trainees undergo 3 years of tailormade on-the-job training best suited to their individual needs, covering technical, soft skill and vocational training. If required, candidates also have the opportunity to obtain additional technical certifications from reputable institutions.

Bader Al Tamimi, General Manager of Human Resources and Administration at Foulath Holding, said: Foulath has proudly integrated more than 160 graduates since the establishment of our training scheme across our various subsidiaries. This stands testament to the companys ongoing commitment to empowering young Bahrainis and establishing a strong and capable workforce, especially in the industrial sector which is fast growing and transforming.-- TradeArabia News Service
Bella Montoya Castro was declared dead at noon last Friday in the Babahoyo hospital in the southwest of Quito, Ecuador. Hours later, at six in the afternoon, friends and family gathered to give her one last goodbye. Some approached the casket to give her flowers when they heard blows inside the coffin, her son Gilber Barberan says. Amidst the noise of the guests, they took a while to realize that the sounds were coming from Bella.

Some friends put flowers on the casket, by her face, until we realized that it was my mother. Shes alive! Gilber cried out. The first thing Bella did was to take a mouthful of air. She sat up, and the guests called for an ambulance. Paramedics arrived minutes later, removed her from the casket, wrapped her in sheets and took her back to the hospital.

The 76-year-old woman had been feeling ill early Friday morning and so her youngest son took her to the Martin Icaza hospital, which is an hour and a half from Guayaquil, on the Ecuadorian coast. She was admitted for a stroke, according to the Ecuadorian Ministry of Health. Shortly after midday, a doctor told Gilber that his mother had died. The doctor gave him a document to begin any legal proceedings following her death. The cause of death was cardiorespiratory arrest, according to the death certificate. Something told me that she wasnt dead, and I asked to see her, but they didnt let me, the son said. The body was taken to the funeral home.

Following Bellas revival, the Ministry of Health ordered the creation of a Medical Auditing Team to evaluate who was responsible for the supposed confirmation of death. The patient, who was immediately taken from the funeral to a health center, is hospitalized in an intensive care unit within the institution that declared her dead. Her diagnosis is reserved, and her son says that the doctors do not have much hope for her survival but have asked for patience. Now she has a pulse and her heart is beating, Gilber says.

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With the striking of an anvil to symbolize the forging of the warrior spirit, the home of the Armys Joint Readiness Training Center in Louisiana was officially renamed Tuesday from Fort Polk to Fort Johnson.

At the heart of the warrior spirit lies courage, unwavering bravery to face danger head on, to stand firm in the face of adversity and to protect the freedoms we hold dear, said Brig. Gen. David Gardner, the posts commander. If Sgt. William Henry Johnson doesn't exemplify the warrior spirit in its purest form, then I don't know who does.

Born in North Carolina, Johnson moved to New York as a teenager and enlisted in the Army in June 1917. He was assigned to the 369th Infantry Regiment, an all-Black New York National Guard unit known as the Harlem Hellfighters.

Army Gen. Daniel Hokanson, chief of the National Guard Bureau, attended Tuesday's ceremony and said Johnson fought in World War I with the National Guard  the first war in which the organization was officially called the National Guard and was considered a professional military force. He thanked the commission tasked with renaming the Armys nine installations for choosing a member of the National Guard for recognition.

Fort Johnson is named after a citizen and a soldier, Hokanson said. It is a tribute to both his personal heroism with sacrifices made by so many to defend freedom.

On May 14, 1918, Johnson was deployed to France where his unit was attached to a French unit in the Argonne Forest. At about 2 a.m., Johnson was standing guard when German forces attacked. With his fellow guard incapacitated, he sounded the alarm and attacked the enemy alone.

He threw his entire supply of grenades, then fired his rifle until his bullets ran out.

He charged the enemy swinging his rifle as a club and when he observed two Germans about to carry his wounded comrade away for interrogation, Johnson abandoned his rifle and instead drew his bolo knife, fighting off the raiders in close quarters and pushing them back from the position, Gardner said.

Johnson became one of the first American privates to receive the Croix du Guerre, Frances highest military honor. However, in the U.S., Black veterans did not receive equal recognition.

Though Johnson was paraded through New York City as a hero after the war, his disability pension was denied and he died of his war wounds in 1929.

After his death, Johnson was awarded the Purple Heart in 1996, the Distinguished Service Cross in 2002, and the Medal of Honor in 2015. He is buried at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia.

The Army did not establish Camp Polk in central Louisiana until January 1941. The post, which has always been used to train troops, closed for four years between World War II and the Korean War. In 1993, the Army moved the Joint Readiness Training Center from Fort Chaffee, Ark., to the installation.

Fort Johnson has a base population of about 32,350 and an average transient daily population of about 5,000 troops, according to the base. Aside from its training mission, Fort Johnson also is home to the 3rd Brigade Combat Team of the 10th Mountain Division. It is the seventh of nine Army installations to change its name in recent months to shed homage to a Confederate general.

Fort Pickett, Va., Fort Rucker, Ala., Fort Lee, Va., Fort Hood, Texas, Fort Benning, Ga., and Fort Bragg, N.C., have been renamed Fort Barfoot, Fort Novosel, Fort Gregg-Adams, Fort Cavazos, Fort Moore and Fort Liberty, respectively.

Fort Gordon in Georgia will become Fort Eisenhower in October. A date has yet to be scheduled for the change of Fort A.P. Hill in Virginia to Fort Walker.

Congress mandated the name changes in the 2021 National Defense Authorization Act, its annual Pentagon policy and spending priorities bill. It estimated the effort would cost some $62.5 million to complete. Outside of Army base names, the effort includes the renaming Confederate-linked items and names at dozens of other bases and Navy ships.

Earlier this year, the Louisiana National Guard announced it would rename the state-owned Camp Beauregard in Pineville to the Louisiana National Guard Training Center Pineville. The formal change will occur later this year.

Gardner closed Tuesdays ceremony by pledging to continue the mission of training at Fort Johnson, just as it has for the past 80 years.

The warrior spirit that burned within Sgt. William Henry Johnson now inspires generations of soldiers. Soldiers who will now call JRTC and Fort Johnson home, and soldiers who will continue to come here from all over the nation, and all the world, to train, he said.
WASHINGTON  The Army already has met its goal for 2023 of keeping more than 50,000 troops in its ranks as the military struggles with attracting enough recruits, the services top enlisted soldier said.

Once soldiers join the military, they want to stay, Sgt. Maj. of the Army Michael Grinston said Wednesday at a ceremony commemorating the services 248th birthday.

Grinston first acknowledged the Army has surpassed this years target at a birthday celebration held at Fort Belvoir, Va., on Saturday.

The Armys retention goal for fiscal 2023, which ends Sept. 30, is 55,100 soldiers, according to congressional testimony in March by Army Undersecretary Gabe Camarillo. Last year, the Army also surpassed its retention goal by keeping more than 58,000 soldiers in the service.

The Armys success in retaining soldiers supports a message that military recruiters have been trying to spread for years that more people would serve if they only knew how much they would like military life.

When soldiers decide to join the Army, they actually decide to stay, Grinston said. They know they can be all they can be.

Gen. James McConville, chief of staff of the Army, reenlisted a group of 30 soldiers during Wednesdays ceremony.

We have to put our people first, Army Secretary Christine Wormuth said. We cant take for granted the willingness of young Americans to volunteer to serve, nor can we stop looking for ways to figure out how to improve our recruiting efforts.

Though the Army has been meeting its retention goals, hitting recruiting targets has been a problem. The Army hopes to enlist 65,000 new soldiers before fiscal 2023 ends, but Wormuth has acknowledged that will be a tough goal to meet.

Recruiting women into the Army is even more difficult. Recruitment is down 29% overall since the start of the coronavirus pandemic and among younger women its down 31%, the service told the Defense Advisory Committee for Women in the Services. Fear of sexual assault or harassment is a top concern among young women, while others do not see military service as aligned with their aspirations, according to Army Recruiting Command.

One of the biggest problems is the candidate pool of young recruits is smaller than it used to be, officials have said. Recent Pentagon data have shown just 23% of Americans between the ages of 17 and 24 meet the academic and physical requirements to serve. To help recruiters, the services are offering many enlistment incentives and attacking the root cause with development programs to help recruits pass basic training fitness and academic tests.

Army officials have said the preparatory courses for recruits have been tremendously successful.
(Tribune News Service)  A soldier who went missing while during a training exercise at Fort Jackson is dead, the U.S. Army said Wednesday.

Staff Sgt. Jaime Contreras, 40, was found unresponsive at about 11:15 p.m. Monday, Army officials said at a news conference.

Contreras family has been notified, and an investigation is underway, the Army said.

Kelly said that Contreras was participating with the U.S. Army Drill Sergeant Academy as it conducted routine land navigation training. Contreras was a drill sergeant candidate, according to the Army.

The exercise started at about 10 a.m. Monday, according to Brig. Gen. Jason Kelly, Fort Jacksons commanding officer.

Contreras was supposed to return at 1:30 p.m., but did not show, according to Kelly. A search was underway by 2 p.m.

The search was conducted on Fort Jackson grounds, but the area where the training was held was close to the posts perimeter, according to Fort Jackson spokeswoman LA Sully.

Along with the Army, Kelly said the Richland County Sheriffs Department, the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division and the South Carolina Army National Guard assisted with search.

Fort Jackson is the nations largest military basic training base with more than 50,000 recruits assigned there each year.

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KAISERSLAUTERN, Germany  The U.S. troops evacuated to Germany after a helicopter crash in Syria do not have life-threatening injuries, an Army hospital spokesman said Wednesday.

All are in stable condition, said Marcy Sanchez, spokesman for Landstuhl Regional Medical Center, the U.S. militarys largest overseas hospital.

The troops survived a potentially deadly helicopter accident in northeastern Syria on Sunday that injured 22, according to a statement by U.S. Central Command.

Ten troops were evacuated to higher-care facilities outside the region, the statement said.

An unspecified number of more seriously wounded troops arrived at Landstuhl on Tuesday, Sanchez said.

The wounded soldiers were part of the Armys Delta Force commando unit, according to a New York Times report Tuesday.

Their MH-47 Chinook helicopter went down in apparently good weather and without taking hostile fire, the report said, citing three unnamed senior military officials.

The Chinook had a problem with one rotor that caused a hard landing during takeoff, Sabrina Singh, a Pentagon spokeswoman, told The New York Times on Tuesday.

The accidents cause is under investigation, according to CENTCOM.

We have nothing additional to provide pending the outcome of the investigation, Maj. John Moore, a CENTCOM spokesman, said in an email.

The United States has about 900 service members in Syria, part of joint efforts with Kurdish fighters to prevent the resurgence of the Islamic State, according to the command.

The U.S. also has about 170 contractors in Syria, CENTCOM spokesman Lt. Col. Dave Eastburn said in March.

A contractor died and 25 troops were injured in March by a drone attack on a U.S. base by groups linked to Irans Revolutionary Guard. The U.S. responded with airstrikes on facilities used by the groups.

U.S. troops have been in the region since ISIS swept through Iraq and Syria in 2014, taking control of large swaths of territory.

The Islamic State lost the last territory it held in 2019. The U.S. military says the group remains a threat in the region and continue to launch raids against ISIS militants.

At least 17 of these operations took place in May, a statement from the command said.
China launched a series of military exercises, including live-fire training, in the East China Sea this week, just days after massive naval drills by a pair of U.S. Navy aircraft carriers and three allies in the Philippine Sea.

Beijing marked off at least three areas along its eastern coast for training between 8 a.m. and 9 p.m. Tuesday and designated one area for ship-borne weapons and light weapons shooting training, according to navigational warnings issued by Chinas Maritime Safety Administration.

The training areas were between 150 miles and 278 miles from Taiwan, in the same region where China carried out three days of drills in mid-April in response to Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wens meeting with House Speaker Kevin McCarthy in California that month.

Tuesdays live-fire training took place just 11 miles from the Dachen Islands, a chain that was administered by Taiwan until the First Taiwan Strait Crisis in 1955.

Additional exercises are scheduled to take place throughout the week in the South China Sea and East China Sea, according to the administration.

China considers democratic Taiwan a breakaway territory that must be reunified with the mainland, by force if necessary.

Three days before Beijing announced the drills, the U.S., Japanese, French and Canadian navies gathered for training several hundred miles to the east on Friday, U.S. Indo-Pacific Command said in a Monday news release.

Those drills included the USS Nimitz and USS Ronald Reagan carrier strike groups  the first operation between the two since 2020  the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Forces large-deck helicopter destroyer JS Izumo and two frigates from France and Canada.

The two carriers concluded the operation on Friday, though the Ronald Reagan continued to operate with allies in the region afterward, Carrier Strike Group 5 spokesman Lt. Cmdr. Joe Keiley told Stars and Stripes by phone Wednesday.

The credibility of an integrated carrier strike force is the U.S. Navys greatest deterrent to those who threaten the international rules-based order, Rear Adm. Jennifer Couture, commander of Carrier Strike Group 11, said in the INDOPACOM release.

The training  part of INDOPACOMs Large Scale Global Exercise 23  involved more than 12,000 sailors from the four countries and included anti-air, anti-surface and anti-submarine drills, according to the release.

Large Scale Global Exercise kicked off May 24 and is scheduled to run through Aug. 19. It incorporates units from the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps and Space Force, along with allies and partner nations across the Indo-Pacific, INDOPACOM said in a May 25 release.

On June 3, the guided-missile destroyer USS Chung-Hoon, the Canadian frigate HMCS Montreal, the Japanese destroyer JS Shiranui and the Australian frigate HMAS Anzac kicked off Noble Wolf, another component of the large-scale exercise.

Earlier that day, the Chung-Hoon and Montreal carried out a freedom-of-navigation operation in the Taiwan Strait. During the ships transit, a Chinese guided-missile destroyer overtook the allied ships and cut across the Chung-Hoons path.
SPANGDAHLEM AIR BASE, Germany  The repeated, ear-numbing rumble of American fighter jets from three squadrons shook the countryside around this base in Germanys rural Eifel region Wednesday.

Barreling down the runway throughout the day were F-35s visiting from Vermont and F-16s hailing from Minnesota, as well as Spangdahlems own Fighting Falcons.

They flew as part of Air Defender, a German-led exercise involving the most aircraft working together in European skies in the history of NATO. Its the largest showcase of airpower from NATO and partner nations in more than 70 years.

The scope and scale of this exercise cannot be underestimated, said Col. Daniel Finnegan, commander of the 158th Fighter Wing of the Vermont Air National Guard.

Having hundreds of aircraft from more than 20 countries launch from numerous bases to achieve a specific objective is daunting, he said.

The exercise also is a good opportunity to practice getting across the Atlantic Ocean quickly and efficiently, and the wing is exploring faster ways for us to get out of the East Coast  (with) less tanker support, Finnegan said.

For security reasons, he didnt disclose how many F-35s deployed to Spangdahlem, but about 100 personnel from the Vermont Air National Guard accompanied the aircraft, officials said.

The 10 days of drills are being staged amid the Russia-Ukraine war, which began with an unprovoked, full-scale invasion by Russian forces on Feb. 24, 2022.

In the past two weeks, Ukraine has reported recapturing territory during a counteroffensive supported by billions of dollars in military aid from the United States and its partners and allies.

Air Defender has been in the works since 2018, a few years after Russia illegally annexed Crimea from Ukraine.

The exercise is a signal, a signal above all to us  the NATO countries, but also to our population that we are in a position to react very quickly  that we would be able to defend the alliance in case of attack, German air force chief Lt. Gen. Ingo Gerhartz told ZDF television Monday.

Participants are simulating defense of the Baltic Sea coast and practicing protection of cities, ports and airports in the designated training areas, most of which are in Germany, Gerhartz said in his television interview.

Scenarios to be practiced revolve around Article 5, which calls for all NATO countries to respond when one member comes under attack.

But for the American fighter pilots involved in Air Defender, some of whom likely would be called on if Article 5 was invoked, the focus is more on teamwork.

This is all about relationship-building, said Lt. Col. Nathaniel Hofmann, who commands the 52nd Operations Support Squadron at Spangdahlem. Anytime you go into a complex environment, confusion is inherent, so the more that we can put ourselves in these scenarios in peacetime, (the easier) were going to be able to do it when called upon.

Relationships also were being forged on the ground. Guard troops from Vermont showed members of the German air force an F-35 parked inside a hardened aircraft shell at Spangdahlem on Wednesday, pointing out some of the planes features.

The F-16s from Spangdahlem are practicing their bread and butter, the suppression of enemy air defenses, said Capt. Tyler Knickerbocker, a pilot with the 480th Fighter Squadron.

The Wild Weasels are usually the first ones into a contested area, and were usually going to be the last ones out, he said, adding their singular focus is on destroying any potential ground threats.
TOKYO  The family of a lost American World War II aviator tossed lily petals into Tokyo Bay on Friday near the spot where his B-29 Superfortress bomber crashed 78 years ago.

Bill OConnor, 70, his wife, Pamela, and their daughter, Suzanne, traveled to the Japanese capital from their home in Richmond, Va., to learn more about the fate of Bills uncle, U.S. Army Air Forces 2nd Lt. Edward OConnor.

The young officer was the navigator on one of more than 300 U.S. aircraft that participated in the firebombing of Tokyo on March 10, 1945.

His plane  assigned to the 43rd Bombardment Squadron and among only a few that went down over the city during the raid  crashed near the shoreline in Tokyos Sunamachi district. The site, close to a former Japanese naval shipyard, was the target of some of the heaviest bombing.

Today, the spot where the Superfortress crashed and 11 crew members are believed to have perished, is a quiet marina where pleasure boats moor in placid waters.

Among a few locals who visited the marina with the family on Friday was Tatsuya Fuse. Born and raised in Sunamachi, he was a schoolboy and evacuated to Chiba prefecture during the war.

At the marina he sang Umi Yukaba, an old song that Fuse said reminds him of wars tragedy.

"I was overwhelmed with emotion when thinking about the familys feelings," he said of his decision to sing.

Growing up in Chicago, Bill OConnor heard stories about his uncle, who was revered by family and friends.

Ed had the alpha reputation, the retired drapery manufacturer recalled as he stood near the crash site. The best athlete, best student. He was my dads hero.

Tiny Tim

The Superfortress crew named their aircraft Tiny Tim after Edward OConnors young son, Tim, who now lives in Copenhagen, Denmark, Bill OConnor said.

From the crash site, the family traveled to a nearby temple, Jihoin, where locals had buried the fallen bomber crew. After the war, U.S. forces transferred their remains to Yokohama and later Hawaii and the Philippines, according to Japanese B-29 researcher Isao Arai.

Arai was a boy when he saw a B-29 crash in Shizuoka prefecture during the war. He wore a Superfortress ballcap while accompanying the OConnor family on Friday.

Edward OConnors body has never been identified, according to Bill OConnor, who said he provided a DNA sample a few years ago at the request of a group seeking to identify lost airmen.

The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency lists Edward OConnor as unaccounted for and states, on its website, that he is memorialized on the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu.

At the temple on Friday, chief priest Kenei Itabashi prayed for the deceased aviators and called out their names while striking a large bell.

Reading the names of the crew was the most moving part, Bill OConnor said afterwards.

Deeply thoughtful

The OConnors stopped next at the Center of the Tokyo Raids and War Damage in the citys Koto district. The center preserves the memory of the raid that the fallen bomber crew participated in, which killed an estimated 100,000 civilians, according to the center.

The centers collection includes photographs of the bombings aftermath that show piles of burned bodies, along with art produced by survivors showing burning buildings and people.

On display, theres a replica of an M69 oil incendiary bomb of the sort that was dropped on Tokyo.

The familys last stop was Juganji, a Buddhist temple near the Tokyo Skytree tower, where a propeller from a crashed B-29 is displayed.

Its not that if you dont learn history, you will repeat the mistakes, Bill OConnor said after seeing the 8-foot-long propeller. Today, its that if you dont learn history, we will believe anything anybody tells us.

The family appears to be the first relatives of the Tiny Tim crew to visit Japan, Arai said.

"No one had come to the crash site, although there were many [other family members of the bomber crew] who I spoke with," he said. "I've never met people as deeply thoughtful of their family.
ANDRIIVKA, Ukraine  The men of Ukraines 37th brigade were freshly trained and armed with Western-supplied weapons, tasked with an initial push through Russian-occupied territory in the early days of a long-awaited counteroffensive.

They would pay a heavy price.

Within 20 minutes of their June 5 advance south of Velyka Novosilka, in the southeast Donetsk region, mortars exploded all around them, soldiers said. A 30-year-old soldier known as Lumberjack saw two of the men in his vehicle bleeding heavily; one lost an arm as he cried out for his family. Lumberjack crawled into a crater, but the shrapnel from a mortar went through the soil and pierced his shoulder.

We were left there in the field, without tanks or heavy armor, said Lumberjack, who spoke to The Washington Post on the condition that he be identified only by his call sign because he was not authorized to discuss the battle. We were shelled with mortars from three sides. We couldnt do anything.

There were fewer than 50 men in the unit, he said, and 30 did not return  they were killed, wounded or captured by the enemy. Five of the units armored vehicles were destroyed within the first hour.

The 37ths reconnaissance push would eventually help other Ukrainian brigades liberate four villages in Donetsk, one of the counteroffensives key starting points, securing an early triumph for Kyiv during the most widely anticipated operation of the war.

Survivors from the 37th, which included some American volunteer fighters and soldiers trained in Europe, described their ordeal as the tip of the spear in Ukraines counteroffensive.

Their accounts offered one of the first real glimpses into the brutal fighting on a new front this month, far removed from the antiseptic claims of advances and retreats by officials on both sides of the conflict. And the battalions heavy losses foreshadow the terrible cost that Ukraines leader are prepared to pay  and believe they must pay  to oust the Russian invaders and reclaim their lost territory.

Elsewhere on Tuesday, Ukrainian units pressed the fight in other key areas along the front: in the Donetsk region  east of Lyman, on the outskirts of Bakhmut, and in Marinka  and in the Zaporizhzhia region, south of Orikhiv.

The enemy is doing everything to keep the positions [they] captured, Ukrainian Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Maliar wrote in a Telegram post, adding that Russians were fighting back with assault and army aviation and intense artillery fire.

Russia responded to Kyivs counteroffensive with its latest deadly overnight missile barrage, killing 11 people and injuring at least 36 in President Volodymyr Zelenskyys hometown of Kryvyi Rih.

Cruise missiles struck a residential building and a warehouse in the working-class city in central Ukraine.

Zelenskyy posted a video on his Telegram channel, showing flames leaping from the ruins of a building and the smoldering remains of cars. More terrorist missiles, Zelenskyy wrote. Russian killers continue their war against residential buildings, ordinary cities and people.

Just hours after the strike, Russian President Vladimir Putin denied that his country hits civilian targets. In a wildly cynical claim to pro-war bloggers and military journalists he accused Ukraine of being the aggressor in a war that he, in fact, brazenly initiated more than a year ago. They started this war, he said, and we are trying to stop it.

The enemy has had no success in any of the areas, Putin said, adding: During this time, Ukraine has lost over 160 tanks and over 360 armored vehicles. . . . Our losses are 10 times less. His assertions could not be confirmed.

On Tuesday, the Biden administration said it would send Ukraine an additional $325 million in military supplies from U.S. stockpiles. The package includes 25 armored vehicles, possibly to replace those destroyed as fighting intensifies, plus additional Javelin missile launchers and other weapons for targeting Russian tanks, more artillery and air defense munitions, and millions of small-arms rounds and grenades.

In a meeting with President Biden at the White House on Tuesday, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg thanked the United States for the new aid package and said the Ukrainian counteroffensive was making progress.

The more land the Ukrainians are able to liberate, the stronger hand they will have at the negotiating table, he said.

Ukrainian forces, meanwhile, continued to push ahead on a critical southeast front line here in the vast farmlands and fields of the Donetsk region.

Kyiv claims to have liberated four villages  Neskuchne, Storozheve, Blahodatne and Makarivka  just south of Velyka Novosilka, on a roughly 5-mile stretch of road close to the border of the Zaporizhzhia region and about 80 miles north of the decimated, Russian-occupied city of Mariupol.

Serhii Kozachynskyi, a spokesman for the 35th separate marine brigade, said his unit helped clear two of the villages without any of the newly supplied weapons and equipment from Ukraines Western allies, which are boosting other brigades along the front line. While some of his fellow soldiers had trained in countries including Britain, Norway and Spain, the entire brigade had not been sent abroad, as was the case with some specialized attack units.

His brigade cleared the village of Storozheve on Sunday morning and Makarivka on Monday, Kozachynskyi said. Eighty to 90 percent of the homes in both villages were destroyed. At least 17 people were evacuated from the four liberated villages, a Donetsk police press officer said.

The soldiers are highly motivated to move the enemy out of our territory, to finish the war as fast as they can, Kozachynskyi said. Even not having all of the equipment, they can perform the tasks that are required.

Sometimes, even the Western-supplied gear hasnt been enough to shield outmatched Ukrainian troops from the intensity of Russian shelling.

For the first hour and a half of the 37ths assault near Velyka Novosilka, the Russians bombarded the unit with nonstop shelling that penetrated their AMX-10 RC armored vehicles, according to Grey, another soldier in the battalion who spoke on the condition that he be identified only by his call sign. The armored vehicles, sometimes called light tanks, were not heavy enough to protect the soldiers, Grey said, and had to be positioned behind them instead of in front.

As mortars barreled toward them, Lumberjack crawled out of his vehicle for more than 300 yards, he said, desperately searching for the tree line.

Everyone expected that we would have some kind of support, but unfortunately, for some reason, there was none, Lumberjack said. His commander had little experience, he said, and had counted on assistance from artillery units. But he got confused when he saw that there was none.

Finally, after two hours of shelling, the Russians appeared to run out of ammunition, or were exhausted by the fight. Ukrainian forces seized the moment, Lumberjack recounted, taking the positions of their enemies and clawing back some ground.

The mission, brutal as it was, distracted Russian forces, allowing Ukraine to attack on other flanks. After the initial push of the 37th, other brigades helped liberate the four villages.

Yes, we made a sacrifice, he said. But we got a result in return.

Unlike most of the men in his unit, Lumberjacks injury was relatively minor. But the shrapnel was still lodged in his shoulder, making it difficult for him to fire a weapon, so he planned to head to Kyiv for treatment.

But first, for a brief moment Tuesday afternoon, Lumberjack and Grey stopped at a creek in a town just north of those they helped liberate. Soldiers jumped into the water and swam beneath the summertime sun. They hardly seemed to notice the sounds of cluster munitions and artillery nearby.

Grey planned to return to the fight that night, to replace weary soldiers in the counterattack.

Their goal was clear: Retaking all of Ukraines territory from Russia. Their next big target? Mariupol, they said.

We have to keep pushing forward, Grey said. We are afraid of death but we understand we dont have another choice. We need to go and push the enemy away from here.

The Washington Posts David L. Stern in Mukachevo, Ukraine; Francesca Ebel in London; and Dan Lamothe and Matt Viser in Washington contributed to this report.
Womens groups in Colombia are concerned about how a recent ruling from the Constitutional Court may affect the right to abortion. The sentence, dated May 15 but made public on Friday, concerns a young indigenous woman who had been denied an abortion by her public health center. While the judges sided with the woman, the ruling  known as T-158 from 2023  stated: It is not possible to assert the fundamental right to abortion.

This has set off alarm bells in Colombia, as it goes against previous rulings by the Constitutional Court, which found that women do have a constitutional right to abortion, although it may be in conflict with other rights. In 2006, the Constitutional Court reached a seminal decision on the matter, decriminalizing abortion in cases of physical or mental risk to the mother, fetal malformation and rape. In February 2022, the womens movement scored another victory, when the nine-member court legalized abortion to the 24th week of pregnancy. This was achieved after a long internal debate among the judges, and a very tight 5-4 vote in favor of decriminalization.

The court also issued numerous rulings in support of womens reproductive rights before the definitive 2022 case. In 2010, it cited the 2006 precedent, stating that from that moment on in Colombia, a true right to abortion emerged in womens minds. And in 2018, the court wrote that more than 12 years have passed since the right to abortion was recognized.

It will take more than Fridays ruling to change the line of case law. Indeed, the T-158 judgment has fallen under the radar as it breaks with the case law of the Constitutional Court. The courts decision is what is known in Colombia as a sentencia de tutela  it is a mechanism that allows anyone to go to court to obtain immediate protection of their fundamental rights. The ruling was signed by only three of the nine magistrates of the court, as is typical of such types of sentences. If a magistrate believes case law needs to be changed, it is reviewed by all nine judges in order to reach a unifying decision. These judgments  which are identified by the letters SU  carry greater weight than sentencias de tutela.

But while T-158 it may be a sentencia de tutela, it is still of concern to the pro-choice movement Causa Justa (Just Cause). Catalina Martinez Coral, from the Center for Sexual and Reproductive Rights, told EL PAIS that they will ask the court to declare judgment T-158 null and void. We have requested the annulment of this sentence because it ignores a whole block of constitutionality that has been created in the Constitutional Court around sexual and reproductive rights, she said, adding that the 2022 ruling on abortion rights remains in force across the county independent of the sentencia de tutela.

The case

The controversial judgment concerns a 23-year-old indigenous woman from the Polindara reservation in Totoro, Cauca, who launched a legal battle to defend her right to an abortion in 2022. She had requested an abortion from the Cauca Indigenous Association (AIC), a public health organization that provides care to indigenous people. But the association denied it, alleging that they did not have to conform to state law as they had indigenous autonomy.

The Constitutional Court ruled in favor of the indigenous woman, stating that the organization had violated her sexual and reproductive rights. It argued that while Colombias 2022 ruling does not expressly establish a right to abortion, it does not necessarily follow that an organization belonging to the social security health system does not have obligations related to its practice.

Due to the associations refusal to carry out an abortion, the woman was forced to continue with the pregnancy. Although it was too late to change events, the court said that it was necessary to reach a ruling so that such a situation would not happen again in the future.

When the woman first brought her case to court, a judge ruled that she had to adhere to the norms of the indigenous community, as she did not fall into the three categories under which abortion was decriminalized in 2006. This was despite the fact that a psychologist reported that she had requested an abortion for mental health reasons, breakdown of family support networks and the effect on her life plans.

At the time, the AIC said that it had to abide by what ancestral authorities of the Polindara people had decided in a general assembly. This assembly concluded that they did not approve abortions in indigenous territories, and as a result, each area must issue a resolution with a clear policy that prevents this type of procedure in our indigenous women.

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(Tribune News Service)  Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko suggested Russian tactical nuclear weapons have already arrived in his country, even as Vladimir Putin said delivery would only begin next month.

We have missiles and bombs, we have received from Russia, Lukashenko told a Russian TV reporter in an interview posted by the Belarusian state-owned Belta news service late Tuesday. He then boasted that the weapons are three times more powerful than the atomic bombs dropped on Japans Hiroshima and Nagasaki in World War II, saying they were capable of killing a million people immediately.

When the reporter asked him to clarify that the nuclear weapons promised by Russia had been delivered, however, Lukashenko chuckled and appeared to backtrack. Saying they were taking the issue slowly, he promised to blindfold the journalist and take her to a storage facility to see the weapons once we get them.

President Putin told Lukashenko at a televised meeting in Russias Sochi on Friday that construction of the nuclear storage in Belarus would be completed by July 7-8 and that transfer of the tactical weapons would begin soon after.

He announced in March that hed move nuclear arms to Belarus, ramping up a confrontation with the U.S. and its North Atlantic Treaty Organization allies that are supplying billions of dollars of weapons to Ukraine to help it push back Russias invading army.

The Kremlin leader has insisted Russia is upholding its non-proliferation obligations by retaining control over the weapons, though it has trained Belarusian troops on the storage and use of tactical special munitions.

Lukashenko, who earlier said nuclear weapons would be used without hesitation if Belarus came under attack, said hed have no difficulty in calling Putin and agreeing a strike if needed.

Russia has repeatedly suggested it may deploy tactical nuclear arms during its war in Ukraine, drawing criticism from the U.S. and Europe, as well as countries including China and India that have been more supportive of the government in Moscow. Ukrainian forces have begun a long-planned counteroffensive to reclaim territory in the countrys east and south occupied by Russia.

Lukashenko, whose country has a 620-mile frontier with Ukraine as well as borders with NATO members Poland, Lithuania and Latvia, allowed Russia to use Belarus as a launchpad for a failed attempt to capture Kyiv early in its February 2022 invasion.

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BERLIN  Germany's long-delayed first national security strategy was released Wednesday describing Russia as the biggest threat to security in Europe but providing few concrete steps  or new funding  to deal with the emerging defense challenges.

Under the tagline "robust, resilient, sustainable," the 74-page strategy lays out Germany's foreign policy and security priorities after Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

"The national security strategy, to make it clear, is not an end point, but a starting point," Chancellor Olaf Scholz said during a news conference to launch the document which stated that Russia is "for now the most significant threat to peace and security in the Euro-Atlantic area."

But while it outlined the world view from Berlin on topics ranging from China to cyber and climate, the policy contained few surprises or detail on how the government intends to proceed on its path toward "more security and less dependence."

"The key question is: Will it matter?" said Claudia Major, an expert on security policy at the German Institute for International and Security Affairs. "So far, there's no budget linked to it. There are no new extra resources for the strategy. And implementation is linked to resources."

The policy comes more than a year since German Chancellor Olaf Scholz announced a Zeitenwende, or turning point, in German security strategy. It then broke the taboo of sending weapons abroad, opting to help arm Ukraine and declaring a more than $1o0 billion special fund for defense.

While it was a major symbolic shift for a country that had long followed a policy of engaging with Russia, Berlin has been criticized for not following up with concrete actions. And the much-anticipated security strategy appeared to do little to change expectations Wednesday and was met with muted reaction in Berlin.

"My fear is that some allies will say: 'It took you one and a half years to do that?'" said Major. "It clearly shows how Germany sees its role in the world. But what's presented is a lot of status quo, while allies will want to know: 'Where do you want to go?'"

The document reiterates Germany's commitment under NATO that the country will spend 2 percent of its gross domestic product on defense but qualifies that commitment by saying it will be met as "an average over a multiyear period."

Initially planned before Russian President Vladimir Putin's invasion last year, the strategy had been delayed by disagreements within Germany's three-party coalition government. Plans for a U.S.-style National Security Council that would centralize decision-making were abandoned because of disagreements over where in government it would be situated.

In Wednesday's news conference, Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock defended the decision on not pushing ahead with a National Security Council, saying the current system was best for Germany, given that the country did not have a presidential political system. Her party had objected to more power being put in the hands of Scholz's chancellery.

Stung by its exposure to Russian gas at the beginning of the war, it also states Berlin's aim to reduce one-sided dependencies on energy and raw materials.

"The strategy doesn't really provide the kind of new, clear vision for or of Germany which many partners were hoping for and which the country needs," said Benjamin Tallis, a senior research fellow at the German Council on Foreign Relations. "That means continued reactive rather than proactive policy and an ongoing lack of real strategic thinking."

After an initial hesitancy and intense debate over sending heavy arms, Germany was the third-biggest military donor to Ukraine up until February, according to the Kiel Institute for the World Economy. Berlin announced a further $2.95 billion in arms last month, almost doubling its commitment.

But plans to revive and replenish the long-neglected German military, known as the Bundeswehr, are still in their infancy. The German military suffered from years of chronic underfunding, with military chiefs complaining of sparse supplies.

"With the watershed moment that Russia's war of aggression signifies, we have decided to finally equip our Bundeswehr appropriately," Scholz said in the document's introduction. "So that it can perform its core task also in the future: to defend our country and our allies against each and every possible attack."

The plan also outlined aims to "bolster investments in critical-infrastructure protection, cyber capabilities, effective diplomacy, civil protection, stabilizing our partners, and dedicated humanitarian assistance and development cooperation."

But without extra funding, those objectives will remain "aspirations," Tallis said, adding that it does little to assure allies in Central Europe that Germany is cutting a new course.

Even after last year's boost in spending, German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius has said the fund is insufficient to cover the military's needs and is also pushing for an increase of more than $10 billion in Germany's regular budget  currently another source of fractious negotiations within the coalition.

Regarding China, analysts said the paper contained little of surprise, and pointed out that it failed to mention Taiwan.

"We have observed that rivalry and competition have increased in the past years," it said, characterizing China as "a partner, competitor and systemic rival." The national security strategy is expected to be followed by a more detailed China strategy after the visit of Chinese Prime Minister Li Qiang to Berlin later this month.

It is not yet clear "that there is a real plan for how the muddled position on China  still referred to first as a partner  works in practice," said Tallis.
Russia is ramping up a lobbying campaign to avoid new financial restrictions against money-laundering that may plunge its economy deeper into isolation over the war in Ukraine.

Moscow has approached more than half a dozen countries including Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Mexico and the United Arab Emirates in recent weeks to spell out the negative consequences for trade ties if the Financial Action Task Force imposes more restrictions this month.

Investments and cooperation in defense and energy projects would also suffer, according to documents seen by Bloomberg and accounts by officials in NATO countries familiar with the situation.

The Paris-based FATF, an intergovernmental organization that sets standards for combating dirty money, took the unprecedented step of suspending Russia from membership in February over its invasion of Ukraine. The government in Kyiv is now seeking to add Russia to the black list or gray list of states at the FATFs June 19-23 meeting.

Designation on the first list would place Russia alongside North Korea, Iran and Myanmar. It would oblige FATF member states as well as banks, investment houses and payment-processing companies to conduct enhanced due diligence and in the most serious cases take countermeasures to protect the international financial system.

Another 23 countries are on the gray list, including Turkey, South Africa, the UAE and Jordan. A report by the International Monetary Fund in 2021 found that this penalty, which involves closer monitoring requirements, results in a large and statistically significant reduction in capital inflows.

The Kremlin is warning countries that an FATF listing would make it more difficult and costly for them to continue doing business with Russia. Calculations shared in documents for officials in Turkey and the UAE estimate the two countries would each suffer a hit of almost 1% of their gross domestic product in lost trade and investment.

Bloomberg has previously reported that Russia has urged India to oppose either listing at the meeting. Russias Federal Financial Monitoring Service, Rosfinmonitoring, is now seeking to convene a virtual meeting this week with counterparts from Brazil, India, China and South Africa in the BRICS grouping, where the issue is likely to be on the agenda, according to one of the people, who asked not to be identified because the matter is sensitive.

Discussion of the geopolitical situation is beyond the FATFs sphere of competence, while Russia has complied with its obligations to the body, Rosfinmonitorings press service said in a statement. Russias suspension was a politicized decision and further measures would discredit the FATF and disrupt international cooperation against financial criminals, it said.

The intensity of the Kremlins efforts underscores the risks facing President Vladimir Putins government if either measure is adopted, and offers an insight into the way Russia transacts with some of its commercial partners.

While the U.S. and its allies have already imposed unprecedented sanctions on Russia over the war, the Kremlin has so far been able to cushion some of the blow to its economy by boosting ties with countries like China and India, Gulf nations and other states in the so-called global south that have stayed mostly neutral.

Moscow has also sought to evade some restrictions by importing banned technologies through third countries, operations that could become more difficult if those jurisdictions implemented enhanced due diligence in response to FATF actions.

European officials confirmed that the issue of listing Russia would be on the agenda at the FATF meeting. While the bar is likely to be high for imposing the strongest sanction on Russia, there are other steps the watchdog could take to require more intensive checks if support for the measure falls short, according to one person familiar with the situation, who spoke on the condition of anonymity.

Ukraines Finance Ministry has put together a case detailing alleged Russian violations of FATF standards since Moscows suspension, including last weeks destruction of the giant Kakhovka dam as an act of terror. Russia has denied blame for the dams collapse. Several European officials have said Russia is likely responsible but they have yet to reach a definitive assessment as they continue to gather evidence.

The ministry also cites Putins decision to move tactical nuclear weapons to neighboring Belarus, which Kyiv said amounted to financing of proliferation, cyberattacks against European countries, and Russian weapons trading with United Nations-sanctioned states such as Iran and North Korea.

In the UAEs case, an FATF designation of Russia would offset some of the gains in bilateral trade that reached record levels last year driven by energy, related investments and commerce in other commodities, Moscow warned.

The UAE recognizes and respects the importance of FATFs independence as it fulfills its essential mandate, a UAE official said in a statement. The Gulf nation takes its role in protecting the integrity of the global financial system extremely seriously, the official said.

Russia said Turkey would lose revenue from Russian tourists as potential difficulties in processing payments put off visitors, while contractual disruptions to major projects such as the Akkuyu nuclear power plant or the TurkStream gas pipeline could result in billions of losses. The same document noted that Turkey imports several key goods from Russia, including coal, metals, petroleum products, natural gas and wheat.

Russias trade with the UAE and Turkey surged after the February 2022 invasion of Ukraine. The two nations are among several that have emerged as conduits through which Russian firms can obtain sanctioned goods as shipments to Russia of technologies such as semiconductors and integrated circuits from Europe and the U.S. mostly dried up.

Ankara has also played a central role in facilitating a deal with Moscow, Kyiv and the U.N. to permit Black Sea grain exports that helped ease surging food prices globally.

Russia warned Saudi Arabia that a project for state-owned Rosatom to build a nuclear power plant in the country could be at risk, as could investments made by billionaire Prince Alwaleed Bin Talals Kingdom in Russian energy firms Gazprom, Lukoil and Rosneft.

It reminded Malaysian authorities in another document that they import substantial amounts of petroleum products and aluminum from Russia. Other projects relating to the supply of helicopters and fertilizers to Kuala Lumpur may also be at risk, as well as projects Malaysian companies are implementing in Russia pertaining to oils, synthetic rubber and rubber compounds, and fiberboards, according to the document.

A Russian state agency warned counterparts in Mexico of serious difficulties in joint development projects involving Lukoil and the rollout of Moscows Mir card payment system if action by the FATF isnt averted. Trade relations would be damaged, including Russian supplies of fertilizers, steel products, aluminum and synthetic rubber to Mexico, it said.

Officials from Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Mexico and Malaysia didnt respond to requests to comment.

Moscow sent more generic pleas to a number of other governments, according to the documents.

Throughout their communications with the target countries, Russia urged opposition to attempts by Ukraine and others to add it to the two lists and voiced disappointment that nations didnt speak against its suspension from the FATF.

Bloombergs Abeer Abu Omar, Maya Averbuch, Firat Kozok, Sam Dagher, Matthew Martin and Kok Leong Chan contributed to this report.
NATO defense chiefs will put the final touches this week on a new Russia strategy and a plan to elevate Ukraines status with the alliance, Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said Wednesday.

Stoltenbergs comments came on the eve of a two-day meeting among allies in Brussels, where Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin will hold a concurrent gathering of partners focused on supplying weaponry for Ukraines war effort against Russia.

The meetings in Brussels likely will be the last major gathering of top allied defense officials before a July summit in Vilnius, Lithuania, where President Joe Biden and world leaders will meet.

In Vilnius, allies will send a strong message of support and solidarity with Ukraine and make sure clear that Ukraine's future is in NATO, Stoltenberg told reporters.

Still, it remains unlikely that allies will take any concrete steps resulting in swift NATO entry for Ukraine, which requires unanimous support from the 31 members.

Numerous members, including Germany and France, long have been ambivalent about making Ukraine a NATO ally. If those objections to accession were overcome, the alliances requirements likely would mean that Ukraine would have to wait until the war with Russia is over.

Instead, allies are expected to agree on other steps forward, such as giving Ukraine a boost within NATOs bureaucracy. Stoltenberg said allies are considering upgrading the NATO-Ukraine Commission to the level of council.

If allies agree to establish a NATO council, that actually means that we will then be 32 equals. It will be the 31 allies and Ukraine sitting around the same table and at equal terms, he said.

Meanwhile, defense ministers will focus on further strengthening NATOs eastern flank with new regional plans to defend allied territory with more troops able to deploy on shorter notice.

The regional plans require a new NATO force structure, Stoltenberg said. This will provide well over 300,000 troops at high readiness, backed by substantial air and naval power.

The NATO gathering comes while Ukraine is in the early stages of a long-planned counteroffensive, which already brought some gains amid intense fighting and losses of various Western-supplied armored vehicles.

Given the scale of the Ukraine offensive against dug-in Russian lines and minefields, casualties are going to be inevitable, Stoltenberg said. Nonetheless, there are early hopeful signs of Ukraine regaining territory, he said.

No one can today predict the developments on the battlefield. Wars are by nature unpredictable, Stoltenberg said. So therefore, it's impossible for anyone to say exactly what will happen in the next days or next weeks.
One of the images of the Condor Legion found by the Englishman John Knowles in a London flea market.

John Knowles is a true history buff. And hes very excited to find out that he, too, is now a part of history. Last spring, instinct led him to pay 35 pounds (about $44) to a woman at a street market in the wealthy London neighborhood of Chiswick. In exchange, he got a handful of cans, containing old 35mm photos. They belonged to the womans grandfather  Hans-Henning Erdmann  a German banker who moved to London.

Among dozens of family photos (which he had no interest in), Knowles began carefully examining some pictures that were grouped together in a cardboard box from the German-Belgian company, Agfa.

I began to see soldiers, in an environment that looked like the desert. I immediately thought of North Africa. I kept looking at the reels until, suddenly, I read an easily-recognizable slogan: No Pasaran (they shall not pass), Knowles tells EL PAIS, shortly before delivering all of this photographic material to the Spanish ambassador in the United Kingdom. This phrase was an anti-fascist slogan used by Republicans during the Spanish Civil War, when they were defending a position.

Immediately, I realized that [these photos were from] the Spanish Civil War they captivated me. There were many high-ranking German officers. You could tell by their insignia. I did some research, and found that it was easy for many of them to get promoted if they volunteered to fight in Spain.

Knowles, 55, had come across what were clearly unpublished images of the presence of the German Luftwaffes Condor Legion  the air force that Hitler sent his ally, Francisco Franco, to help the Nationalist rebels take power. Above all, however, Hitler had sent Nazi reinforcements to test the barbaric offensive strategies that he would later deploy against civilians during World War II. The bombing of Guernica would become a demonstration of a new type of warfare.

The Basque Children of 37 Association  made up of Basque children (and their descendants) who went to the UK in 1937, fleeing the Spanish Civil War  has gone to the Embassy of Spain, in the Belgravia district of London, to witness the delivery of this new historical material.

We all know of the impact that the Condor Legion had in the Basque Country (an autonomous region of northern Spain), as well as in the atrocity of Guernica. For the descendants of the Basque children of war, this is the recovery of a historical memory that is very much theirs thats why everyone has been so emotional, explains Ambassador Jose Pascual Marco.

A German U-boat, off the coast of Spain. Cedida por el Ministerio de Cultura At least 200 photographs show the presence of the Luftwaffes Condor Legion on Spanish territory. Hitler sent this air force to help his ally, General Francisco Franco, in his fascist rebellion against the Republican government. Cedida por el Ministerio de Cultura A Spanish property, occupied by the Condor Legion. Cedida por el Ministerio de Cultura German General Wolfgang Erdmann. Cedida por el Ministerio de Cultura Members of the German army in Spain. Cedida por el Ministerio de Cultura This was the time when it started to become easy to carry portable cameras. Everything suggests that this group of senior officers had one that they were passing around, they were taking photos of each other, says John Knowles, the British citizen who found the photos. Cedida por el Ministerio de Cultura Alfredo Kindelan, the head of Francos air force, alongside some of his German comrades. Cedida por el Ministerio de Cultura Hotel Infanta Isabel, circa 1937. Cedida por el Ministerio de Cultura I began to see soldiers, in an environment that looked like the desert. I immediately thought of North Africa. I kept flipping through the reels until, suddenly, I read an easily-recognizable slogan: No Pasaran (They shall not pass), says Knowles. Cedida por el Ministerio de Cultura The cans that contained the old rolls of 35mm photographs, which cost John Knowles $44. Cedida por el Ministerio de Cultura German officers from the Condor Legion, in Spain. Cedida por el Ministerio de Cultura Some of the cans that contain the photos bear an inscription  scratched into the metal  that reads Plother. Knowles thinks that this is the surname of the German officer, who compiled the material over the course of several months. Cedida por el Ministerio de Cultura A photo of Belchite, a town in the Spanish province of Zaragoza. Cedida por el Ministerio de Cultura Another photo of Alfredo Kindelan, second from the right, with his face half-covered. Cedida por el Ministerio de Cultura Among dozens of family photos  which he had no interest in  Knowles found a cardboard box labelled with the Agfa brand. Thats where the treasure was buried: pictures of the Condor Legion. Cedida por el Ministerio de Cultura British citizen John Knowles with the photo negatives of the Condor Legion, which he bought at a flea market.

Through Joan Maria Thomas, a professor of contemporary history at the University Rovira i Virgili, in southern Catalonia, Knowles was able to contact the Documentation Center of Historical Memory (operating under Spains Ministry of Culture) and arrange for the donation of the photographs. There are at least 200 pictures that, over the course of several months, he had identified in a rudimentary way, albeit with admirable dedication. Some of the photos include German officers on a tourist visit to a giant arch in Navarra; images of Nationalist destruction in the city of Belchite; what appears to be the headquarters of the Condor Legion in Burgos; locals assisting German officers, as well as a bored-looking soldier sitting in a latrine. There are also images of a man who is likely Alfredo Kindelan, the head of Francos air force, standing with some of his German comrades, along with a picture of a U-boat somewhere off the coast of Spain.

This was around the time when it started to be easy to carry portable cameras. Everything suggests that this group of high-ranking officers had one that they passed around they took photos of each other, talking with important Spanish (rebel) leaders, or leaning against some of their planes. Its clear that this isnt the work of a professional photographer, nor even that of a skilled amateur. Some images are poorly-focused  the composition of the shots is very poor, explains Knowles, who hails from Yorkshire. Some of the individuals posing look tired, bored, almost on vacation, he notes. Some of the cans containing the rolls of photos reveal an inscription scratched into the metal that reads Plocher. Knowles thinks that this must be the surname of the German officer who was compiling the material over the course of several months. Hermann Plocher was the Condor Legions chief-of-staff, starting from October 1, 1937.

I would have liked the young woman from whom I bought this material to be here today, at the delivery ceremony. But I havent been able to find her again. I only have the last name that was registered on the postal envelope that contained some of the negatives, the amateur historian says. From the little he was able to trace from that name, he learned that the German family who had preserved the photos for so many years had been able to rebuild their lives and prosper in British territory. Meanwhile, the younger generations probably didnt even know that something called the Condor Legion had played such a key role in modern Spanish history.

Knowles has written a short essay about his adventure. Hes fond of quoting German-Jewish philosopher Walter Benjamin, who lamented that technology was unable to capture the aura of the characters. The photos that he has contributed to rescuing, however, will still serve to help us better understand an era that we are constantly rediscovering.

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House Republicans have temporarily overcome an impasse after roughly a dozen far-right lawmakers defied their leadership and blocked a key procedural hurdle that effectively froze the House floor from considering any business for almost a week.

Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) and several of the protesting members emerged after an hour-long meeting Monday evening to separately announce that the House will vote on five pieces of legislation this week, including a key demand by the far-right group on a resolution denouncing a Biden administration gun regulation.

Later Monday night, in a clear indication that McCarthy is attempting to appease the rebels, a top McCarthy lieutenant announced that both defense and domestic spending bills would be written with deeper spending cuts at levels they demanded.

But the agreement does not free McCarthy from pressure from the group, which vows to continue to hold him accountable in the upcoming appropriations process. They also want assurance that they will be part of the negotiating process for bills as often as their more-moderate colleagues and that leadership won't rely on Democrats to pass any legislation.

"I think there's a willingness. That doesn't mean it's all locked together," McCarthy said after announcing that the House will postpone scheduled votes one more day. "I think everybody's attitude was, how do we find it when we all work together? And we know [when] we work together, we work on conservative issues, we're winning, and we get more victories that way. And I think everybody wants to get back to that place."

Frustration among the rest of the conference at the small group of disrupters erupted Tuesday morning behind closed doors at the weekly Republican conference meeting. Rep. Derrick Van Orden (R-Wis.) stood and gave a passionate, expletive-laced plea for his colleagues to put their heads down and get to work instead of holding hostage the House floor if their demands aren't met. The freshman congressman said he comes to work every day even though his daughter is suffering from cancer.

"Van Orden spoke for 95 percent of us minus the cuss words," said one lawmaker in the room who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss a private meeting.

Rep. Chip Roy (R-Tex.), one of the 11 protesters, responded during the meeting that they won't be deterred by those critiques.

Rep. Michael Lawler (R-N.Y.), who represents a district Joe Biden won in 2020, refused to comment about what was said in conference even though he criticized the lack of inaction in the House. But he did acknowledge the irritation and divisions that have flared between vulnerable Republicans like himself and the hard right since that group began making demands of leadership, which pragmatic incumbents believe could jeopardize their chances of holding the majority next year.

"You have a conference of 222 people, and they would be well advised to remember that they are 'one of,'" he said referencing his far-right colleagues. "The power of the conference resides in the fact that we have a majority. The majority was delivered by people in swing districts, people who represent areas Joe Biden won. [The hard right] didn't deliver the majority."

The standoff stemmed from the hard right's commitment to dramatically reducing the debt, which is sitting at about $31 trillion. These lawmakers want deeper spending cuts and are angry that the agreement reached late last month with Biden to lift the debt limit to prevent default would do little to narrow the spending gap and would suspend the limit until 2025, removing an effective pressure point to force Democrats to reduce spending.

There is also a deep-seated irritation with Republican leaders, who relied on Democratic votes to pass the debt limit deal. Eleven members of the far-right group, many of whom belong to the staunchly conservative House Freedom Caucus, blocked a procedural hurdle that would have set up parameters to debate and pass messaging bills last week to force GOP leaders to the negotiating table. The group said McCarthy had violated an agreement made with them in January to elect him House speaker.

McCarthy supposedly made a number of bargains with far-right members to win the speaker's gavel, but none of those alleged deals were written down and released publicly, leading to a game of he-said, he-said when it came to broken promises.

The hurdle, known as a rule, has historically been passed with only the majority party's votes, including by those who would vote against a bill during final passage. Republicans balked that Democrats had to bail them out to pass the rule vote on the debt ceiling and that almost 20 more Democrats voted to pass the final bill than Republicans.

The far-right members then used their first opportunity to sink a rule vote last week  that prevented debate on conservative priorities, including preserving gas stove usage  as a signal that they should not be ignored in the future or that leaders should not solely rely on Democrats to enact their agenda. Any five GOP lawmakers could prevent a vote from passing through their razor-thin majority.

"We reiterated to Speaker McCarthy that he is our preferred coalition partner. But we want to be his preferred coalition partner, and it cannot abide that we are the coalition partner on the frivolous and [House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.)] is the coalition partner on the substantive," said Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.), who never supported McCarthy for speaker.

The House is starting the process of writing its funding bills, which will be a huge test for the speaker. McCarthy has indicated that he is open to spending bills going below the budget caps he negotiated with the White House, and the far-right members are likely to hold him to that, an escalation that could shut down the government.

An announcement by Rep. Kay Granger (R-Tex.), chair of the House Appropriations Committee, said she would write funding bills at fiscal 2022 levels for new spending for both defense and nondefense discretionary spending, levels much lower than the slight increase to fiscal 2023 levels agreed to with the White House in the debt limit negotiations.

This is a significant concession that is sure to get fierce pushback from House Democrats. It also will make it much more difficult to come to an agreement to fund the government with the Senate, where Republicans will probably reject cuts to defense spending and Democrats have bristled at even minor domestic spending reductions.

The temporary agreement suggests that the far-right lawmakers will support a rule vote Tuesday that includes parameters for debate on four votes scheduled last week and one on a resolution by Rep. Andrew S. Clyde (R-Ga.) against limitations to use pistol braces. Clyde accused House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) of threatening to withhold a floor vote on his resolution unless he voted in support of the debt limit bill, which infuriated fellow Freedom Caucus members.

Scalise has repeatedly denied that he threatened Clyde, instead saying that he told him that his measure did not have enough support from within the GOP conference to be scheduled on the floor. Both worked together through last week, alongside co-sponsor Rep. Richard Hudson (R-N.C.), to whip colleagues to ensure the bill could immediately pass. Its inclusion in the rule vote Tuesday is a major reason the House will resume voting this week.

"The agreement to vote for the rules packages was to liberate the pistol brace legislation. And you know, there'll be more votes next week and more rules, and if there's not a renegotiated power-sharing agreement, then perhaps we'll be back here next week," Gaetz said. "That's not our goal. Our goal is to continue to build off the momentum of this discussion we just had."

Yet all sides of the negotiation emerged noting that a long-standing agreement has yet to be reached. Members of the far-right group stressed that they are unafraid to block rule votes if they deem any bill leaders hope to consider as antithetical to their desire for bills to be partisan in nature and reduce spending.

"It's going to depend on how much progress we make towards these other things: policy, procedures and personnel. And if we can make the progress towards achieving those three areas, then you'll see that the floor functions very smoothly," Rep. Matthew M. Rosendale (R-Mont.) said after meeting with McCarthy. "But if it doesn't, then you'll certainly know, you'll be aware because the floor will stop. Functions will stop."

The fragile truce will be tested repeatedly in McCarthy's slim majority, where he can lose only four votes and still be able to pass rules and legislation.

Some Republicans, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the closed-door negotiations, have also expressed concerns about a key priority many of their colleagues campaigned on to win the majority: tax cuts, including extending some enacted under President Donald Trump in 2017. Two far-right lawmakers noted that the proposal that could receive a vote in the House Ways and Means Committee as early as Tuesday would only blow up the deficit, further increasing the debt that Republicans have pledged to decrease.

Yet the far-right group's threat looms large as a majority of Republicans believe that repeated attempts to block legislation and freeze the House from considering measures could cost them their majority if they cannot fund the government or pass myriad largely bipartisan reauthorization bills.

Asked whether this is the new normal for the Republican conference, Rep. Dusty Johnson (R-S.D.) seemed nervous as he paused.

"This can't be the new normal. We can't afford to have this kind of disruption every week," he said. "That's not to say that everything's going to go perfectly smoothly throughout the 118th Congress. We will have some times where things go sideways for a couple of days because that's just what this town is. But no, we're not in an era of new normal."
Congress will not renew powerful, expiring surveillance authorities without substantial changes to shield Americans from warrantless eavesdropping, senators in both parties warned Biden administration officials Tuesday.

That message came during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing where national security officials pressed their case for reauthorizing the surveillance powers, known as Section 702, in part by revealing previously classified details about how spy agencies have used those authorities to combat threats such as fentanyl trafficking and prominent ransomware attacks.

Section 702 permits warrantless surveillance against foreign targets but occasionally collects communications with Americans, which go into a database. The law allows investigators to search that database by using U.S. phone numbers, email addresses and other identifiers. One of the chief sticking points raised by legislators is whether Section 702 should be amended to require a warrant to access information about Americans.

The FBI can search the database when they have evidence of crimes or for foreign intelligence purposes. But that process has been far from perfect: A recently unsealed court document revealed that the FBI had misused the database more than 278,000 times between 2020 and early 2021, including against thousands of donors to a congressional candidate and people protesting the police killing of George Floyd.

"I will only support the reauthorization of Section 702 if there are significant, significant reforms," said Senate Judiciary Chairman Richard J. Durbin (D-Ill.). "And that means first and foremost, addressing the warrantless surveillance of Americans in violation of the Fourth Amendment. Moreover, the reforms must also include safeguards to prevent future abuses and ensure effective oversight by Congress and the courts."

Section 702 is set to expire at the end of this year, and the Judiciary Committee shares jurisdiction in steering the law's fate alongside the Senate Intelligence Committee and their House counterparts. Durbin said he would work to bridge the gap between deep skeptics of Section 702 and those who favor only small changes.

The top Republican on the committee, Lindsey O. Graham (S.C.), said that in the United States broadly, "there's a warrant requirement to investigate an American citizen for wrongdoing. And we don't want this to be used to get around that requirement. So bottom line is, let's reauthorize this program and build in some safeguards."

Biden administration officials argued that expiration of the surveillance powers, conceived as a counterterrorism tool in the aftermath of 9/11, would be devastating. They also warned that the kind of warrant requirement that some senators and civil liberties groups are seeking would clog the courts and slow the government response to security threats.

"We must not forget the lessons of 9/11," said Matt Olsen, the assistant attorney general for national security. "Unduly limiting the FBI's ability to access lawfully collected information ... will set us back decades. It will put our nation at grave risk."

Biden administration officials highlighted what they claimed were Section 702 successes Tuesday following the declassification of partial details. Using the surveillance authorities, they were able to identify the hacker behind the 2021 Colonial Pipeline ransomware attack that sparked a fuel panic on the East Coast, said George Barnes, deputy director of the National Security Agency.

They've also used the authorities to combat the spread of the drug fentanyl, which kills nearly 100,000 Americans every year, he said. Section 702 provided insights into the Chinese origins of precursor chemicals and allowed the U.S. government to learn more about how foreign narcotics traffickers are smuggling the drug into the United States, Barnes said.

But Democratic and Republican senators alike remained skeptical about the Biden administration's case for renewing Section 702, which falls under a law known as the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA).

"Why should we ever trust the FBI and DOJ again to police themselves under FISA when they've shown us repeatedly over more than a decade that they cannot be trusted to do so?" Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) said.

Biden administration officials sought to calm congressional worries about the use of Section 702 and the potential for abuse. Procedural changes at the FBI in 2021 and 2022 have cut the number of searches of U.S. individuals by 94 percent, said FBI Deputy Director Paul Abbate, and improved compliance with the rules. The administration would not oppose Congress codifying those procedural changes so they were a matter of law rather than agency policy, he said.

The "compliance errors" such as those highlighted in the recently unsealed court document are "entirely unacceptable," he said. "It is difficult to express strongly enough in words how disappointed I am in these failures."
WASHINGTON  Rep. Dan Crenshaw said Wednesday that effective treatments for active-duty service members suffering with post-traumatic stress disorder have stalled and a new approach is needed to help them.

The truth is, we have not made much progress in treating it, the Republican congressman from Texas said. We need to think outside of the box. We need to do something new.

He thinks psychedelic drugs might unlock some answers and hes pushing legislation with 12 other lawmakers, including Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., and Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., that would direct the Pentagon to create a grant program for research into new drug treatments for troops struggling with PTSD.

The bill, which is called the Douglas Mike Day Psychedelic Therapies to Save Lives Act of 2023, would create a $75 million grant program to support research into therapeutic treatment for PTSD, as well as chronic traumatic encephalopathy or traumatic brain injury.

Crenshaw, a former Navy SEAL, introduced the bill in the House on May 25. This is the second year in a row that he has urged Congress to support research into the effects of the drugs such as MDMA, psilocybin, ibogaine and 5-MeO-DMT.

It passed in the House last year but failed in the Senate.

PTSD affects roughly 16% of troops who served in the recent wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, according to the Department of Veterans Affairs.

When an active-duty service member wants to pursue psychedelic treatment now, they must travel abroad, which puts their duty status at risk, Crenshaw said.

All this does is direct the Department of Defense to begin the research and allow service members to keep their status if they participate in those trials. It is a simple but very positive step in the right direction, he said.

The bill is named after Navy SEAL Douglas Mike Day who died by suicide on March 27, 2023. Day received the Silver Star, the militarys third-highest award, for his actions in Iraq, where he was shot 27 times during a mission in April 2007.

Day served 21 years in the Navy before retiring in 2010. He also received the Navy Cross, two Bronze Stars and a Purple Heart. He spent the next seven years working as a care coalition provider for the U.S. Special Operations Command to give insight into recovery for veterans and connect them with other resources that they might need.

Rep. Morgan Luttrell, R-Texas, who is also a former Navy SEAL, said he knew Day because he was Days care provider when he left the service.

Everyone focused on the physical wounds, how could you walk around with 27 rounds? And I think we missed the mark because no one really focused on the invisible injuries, said Luttrell, who is a co-sponsor of the legislation.

Luttrell said, when he left the Navy, he had a hard time adjusting to civilian life. He did not suffer from PTSD but was aggressive. He researched the use of psychedelics for years before finally going overseas to try ibogaine and 5-MeO-DMT. Luttrell was hesitant to try because he had never taken drugs, but it changed his life.

I was reborn. It saved my marriage, he said. It is one of the greatest things to ever happen to me.

Research into the use of MDMA to treat PTSD found 88% of trial participants had significant symptom reduction and 67% were essentially cured, according to the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies, or MAPS, a nonprofit research and educational organization on the uses of psychedelics and marijuana.

This was the case for Jonathan Lubecky, a Marine and Army veteran. Lubecky, who attended the news conference, said he medically retired after being diagnosed with PTSD and traumatic brain injury. Within two months after returning home from Iraq in 2006, he made the first of five suicide attempts.

He said the VA tried everything, but nothing worked. Lubecky said he discovered psychedelics for mental health because an intern at the VA slipped him a note that said, Google MDMA PTSD.

He managed to get into a clinical trial that MAPS conducted using MDMA treatment.

That was eight and a half years ago. I havent had PTSD or suicidal ideology since, Lubecky said.

Crenshaw said he wants the legislation to be part of the fiscal 2024 National Defense Authorization Act, the annual Pentagon policy and spending priorities bill. He said based on some conversations with members on the House Appropriations Committee and other lawmakers such as Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla., Crenshaw believes they will be successful this time.
Anchorpersons Sabir Shakir, Moeed Pirzada, and Akbar Hussain were booked in a case for allegedly inciting the public for vandalism during May 9 violent protests.

The FIR was registered at Abpara Police Station under the charges of sedition and terrorism on the complaint of a citizen named Majid Mehmood.

The complainant claimed that the charged public stationed at the Melody area in the federal capital was taking instructions directly from the nominated suspects via video.

The suspects provoked innocent people via video messages and social media posts and were playing the role of instruments of foreign anti-state agencies, he added.

"Rebellion and chaos were spread in the country by attacking military installations," the FIR stated.

Earlier, Washington-based journalist Shaheen Sehbai and three vloggers  Syed Haider Raza Mehdi, Wajahat Saeed Khan, and major (retired) Adil Farooq Raja  were also booked for inciting violence during the May 9 protests.

The arrest of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan had triggered a response from the supporters of his party in the shape of deadly protests in major cities.

Several party leaders and thousands of workers have so far been booked in connection with the violent protests that saw attacks on the state and military installations and the deaths of numerous people.
Sullivan, IN (47882)

Today

Partial cloudiness early, with scattered showers and thunderstorms overnight. Low 72F. Winds SSE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 50%..

Tonight

Partial cloudiness early, with scattered showers and thunderstorms overnight. Low 72F. Winds SSE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 50%.
Nothing seems capable of stopping the rise of ChatGPT, the generative artificial intelligence (AI) tool created by OpenAI that has amassed tens of millions of users since its launch just six months ago. Not even the apocalyptic manifestos signed by AI leaders, the threat it poses to jobs or the doubts it has raised about the potential and limits of AI technology appear capable of slowing it down. When talking about artificial intelligence, the only certainty is the overwhelming success of ChatGPT, which recorded one million users just five days after its launch, according to a tweet from Sam Altman, the CEO of OpenAI.

Six months have passed since then, and ChatGPT has gone on to break many other records. Its growth has surpassed that of other platforms that have changed the technological landscape, be it in terms of numbers of users  the chatbot is about to register one billion unique users per month, according to an analysis by VezaDigital agency  or the amount of press and institutional recognition it has achieved worldwide. What Facebook, Google, Spotify or Apple took years to achieve, ChatGPT has done in months or even days.

The fastest growth in history

The most striking result is how quickly ChatGPT has become popularized since its launch on November 30, 2022. Indeed, it is the fastest-growing product in history. However, it should be noted that OpenAI does not offer official data. What is known about the chatbot comes from Altman or from the analysis of external consultants. A UBS study, for example, estimated that ChatGPT had 100 million active users in January, just two months after its launch. The platforms meteoric rise has not gone unnoticed by large investors, such as Microsoft, which that same month invested $10 billion in OpenAI. It took Microsoft three years to invest $250 million into Facebook.

ChatGPTs rise has been much faster than that of other social media networks. While ChatGPT took two months to reach 100 million users, Facebook  which launched in 2004  did not reach that figure for four and a half years. Instagram, which was not yet part of Meta when it launched in 2010, took two and a half years to reach one million downloads on iOS devices. Twitter had to wait five years, while TikTok did it in just nine months.

Other pioneering tech products also lag behind when compared to ChatGPT. In June 2007, Steve Jobs presented the first iPhone to the U.S. market. The device  which would change the cellphone industry forever  sold one million units in just over two months, and 100 million in three and a half years. Netflix, which was founded in 1999, did not exceed one million subscribers until 2017. Its important to note, however, that the streaming platform initially began as a DVD delivery, which made it much more difficult for it to achieve this goal. It took Spotify a decade to reach 100 million subscribers, a milestone it achieved in April 2019.

YouTube grew much faster, but still not as fast as ChatGPT. Founded in February 2005 by three former PayPal employees, YouTube reached 100 million daily views in a year and a half. It rose so quickly that a year after its launch, it was the fast-growing product on the internet.

Media attention

In addition to attracting users, ChatGPT has not stopped making headlines. In February this year  three months after its launch  the prestigious TIME magazine dedicated its front cover to a screenshot of a conversation with ChatGPT, in which it asked: What do you think of a Time cover story with the title The AI Arms Race is Changing Everything.

It took Facebook and YouTube three and two years, respectively, to land on the front cover of Time. In 2006, Time set out to recognize the millions of people who anonymously contribute content to websites such as YouTube, MySpace and Facebook, choosing You as the person of the year. The groundbreaking front cover featured a computer with the word You on the screen.

In the case of Facebook, founder Mark Zuckerberg has appeared twice on the cover of the magazine: first when he was named Times person of the year in 2010, and again in 2021, more than a decade later, following the Cambridge Analytica scandal. On that occasion, the magazine questioned whether it was time to delete Facebook.

It took Googles three founders eight years to appear on the cover of Time, while Instagrams Kevin Systrom and Spotifys Daniel Ek have never landed a cover shot. That said, they both appeared on the front page of the equally prestigious Forbes magazine, two and four years, respectively, after the launch of their platforms. The only product that comes close to ChatGPT is the iPhone, which in November 2007, four months after its launch, was named invention of the year by Time.

Interest of world leaders

The unprecedented growth of ChatGPT, and of artificial intelligence more generally, has also caught the attention of world leaders. Altman was virtually unknown six months ago. But since the chatbots launch, he has been traveling around the globe nonstop on what he calls the OpenAI world tour. He went to the White House, where together with other AI pioneers, he spoke to U.S. President Joe Biden about the dangers of AI technology. And from there, he traveled to Canada, Nigeria, Portugal and Spain.

But perhaps the most striking meeting took place on May 16 in the U.S. Senate, when Altman appeared before a Judiciary Subcommittee on Privacy, Technology and the Law to discuss the benefits and risks of AI technology. This was not the first time that a Senate committee has met with the young leaders of the tech world. But what was surprising was how quickly Altman reached this level of institutional recognition, and the relaxed and cordial tone with which the hearing was conducted.

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez (right) and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman.

Zuckerberg also appeared before a Senate committee in 2018, 14 years after the birth of Facebook. In this case, the CEO of Meta  which owns Facebook, YouTube and Instagram  was called to testify to explain the massive data leak from Cambridge Analytica. Visibly nervous, Zuckerberg struggled to answer lawmakers questions, saying: I deeply regret that we didnt do enough. The encounter damaged both Zuckerbergs and his companys image.

Likewise, concerns about TikTok, the popular Chinese social network founded in 2016, took seven years to reach the U.S. Congress. In March, just weeks before Altmans hearing, TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew waded in on the debate over whether to ban the platform in the United States. It did not go very well, judging by the fact that a few weeks later, the governor of Montana signed the first law that prohibits the use of TikTok in a U.S. territory.

Not only has ChatGPT managed to stay ahead of its competitors in terms of growth, but it has also won over public opinion, despite the continuous doomsday talk about AI technology.

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Kim Porter (28) denies Dublin city centre assault

A woman dragged her ex-boyfriends new partner by the hair and kicked her on the ground after she tried to flee an attack onto an out-of-service Dublin Bus, it is alleged.

According to gardai, Kim Porter (28) and another alleged attacker opened the bus with an emergency button and followed the woman on board to assault her.

Ms Porter, with an address at DOlier Street in central Dublin pleaded not guilty and her case was adjourned at Dublin District Court for a non-jury trial later this year.

Garda Sergeant Tony Flanagan told Judge Bryan Smyth the DPP consented to the case being dealt with in the district court.

He said Ms Porter and another person were allegedly involved in assaulting a woman at Eden Quay on July 10, 2020.

The alleged victim at the time was in a relationship with a previous boyfriend of the accused.

On the day, the woman was on the boardwalk and had just been in her boyfriends company.

She heard a commotion and saw Ms Porter and another person in an altercation with her boyfriend, it was alleged.

Sensing trouble, she went to leave the area and it was alleged that Ms Porter kicked her on the right thigh.

The woman made her way to an out-of-service bus on the quay and got the door open and got on.

It was alleged Ms Porter and the other person used the emergency button to gain access.

According to the prosecution, Ms Porter spat in the womans face, grabbed her around the neck with her arm and squeezed her neck.

The alleged victims hair was pulled from behind, she was pushed to the ground and kicked to the side and back before being dragged by the hair from the bus, Sgt Flanagan said.

It was alleged the two continued to try to apprehend her as she escaped in a taxi.

Judge Smyth accepted jurisdiction.
Three women and two men, who are all Slovakian nationals, were brought before a court sitting today

Five people have appeared in court charged in relation to the Ashling Murphy murder investigation.

The 23-year-old schoolteacher was killed while out jogging along the Grand Canal at Cappincur, Tullamore in Co Offaly, on January 12 last year.

Jozef Puska (32), with an address listed as Lynally Grove, Mucklagh, Co Offaly, is currently before the courts charged with her murder.

Three women and two men, who are all Slovakian nationals, were brought before a court sitting today charged with offences including impeding the garda inquiry and withholding information.

They were arrested at locations in Dublin yesterday and released on bail following their appearances before Tullamore District Court this morning.

Marek Puska (34) is charged with withholding information relating to the murder investigation on a date unknown between January 12 and January 27 last year at Tullamore garda station.

Jozef Puska

The offence is contrary to Section 9 of the Offences Against the State (Amendment) Act 1998.

Lubomir Puska (35) and Lucia Istokova (34) are accused of the same offence at the same location between January 12 and 27, 2022.

Two other women were also brought before the court sitting charged with impeding the garda investigation.

Jozefina Grundzova (33) and Viera Gazoiva (38) are accused of impeding the apprehension or prosecution of an alleged offender relating to the murder of Ashling Murphy.

The offence allegedly occurred on date unknown between January 12 and 14 last year at a location in Tullamore and is contrary to Section 7(2) and (4) of the Criminal Law Act, 1997.

Judge Michele Finian imposed reporting restrictions on the addresses of the five accused being published.

They were all granted bail subject to conditions, including surrendering their passports, residing at a given address, and informing gardai of any change to their address.

Legal aid was also granted to the five accused who will appear before Tullamore District Court again on July 26.

Jozef Puska is due to stand trial later this year before the Central Criminal Court, accused of the murder Ms Murphy.
Kevin Kletzander told gardai he was looking for love when they arrived at the Ilac Shopping Centre to arrest him

A man sexually assaulted nine different women on various occasions in Dublin city, including slapping a female garda on the buttocks after he was arrested, a court has heard.

Kevin Kletzander, of no fixed abode, told gardai he was looking for love when they arrived at the Ilac Shopping Centre to arrest him following the final incidents on August 28, 2021, Dublin Circuit Criminal Court heard on Tuesday.

Kletzander (32) pleaded guilty to nine counts of sexual assault on August 5, 12, 27 and 28, 2021 at various locations in Dublin city including the Ilac Shopping Centre, Aston Quay, Ushers Island, Grafton Street and Store Street Garda Station. He has no previous convictions.

Judge Orla Crowe adjourned the case to June 23 for finalisation.

Detective Garda Mark Costello told Grainne O'Neill BL, prosecuting, that the first victim was on Grafton Street on August 5, 2021 at appropriately 8.40am when she saw a man walking towards her. She noticed him as he looked odd and she feared he wanted to steal her handbag. Instead, he put his arm under her skirt and touched her crotch area.

The woman screamed and Kletzander let go, before walking off in another direction. She later saw him in St Stephen's Green and made a report to gardai.

On August 12, 2021, Kletzander sexually assaulted three women by grabbing their crotch areas in separate incidents at Stephen's Green, Aston Quay and Ushers Island. In a fourth incident on the same day, he ran at a woman, who had gotten off a bus in the Ushers Island area, and hit her in the crotch area with his fist.

Separately, a 32-year-old woman was in the Ilac Shopping Centre on the afternoon of August 27, 2021. She was watching her son play, when she was grabbed on the buttocks from behind and pushed forward.

An investigating garda said Kletzander then walked several steps in front of this woman, before turning back towards her. She used a buggy as a shield as she was concerned, he was going to attack her again.

The woman screamed and Kletzander walked away. She was left in pain and shock following the incident.

The next day, another woman was walking into the Ilac Shopping Centre at 8.15am, when Kletzander, who was walking in the opposite direction, asked her to perform a sex act on him. She was shocked and froze. Kletzander then grabbed the back of her neck and pushed her head towards his crotch area. She screamed and he backed off.

A short time later in the same area, Kletzander was sitting at the entrance to the shopping centre and shouted at a woman on a bike that he could see her vagina. She got off her bike and he grabbed at her, putting his hand up her skirt, touching her crotch and stomach area.

The woman was very shocked and scared during the assault. A passer-by shouted at Kletzander and scared him off.

Kletzander was arrested shortly afterwards in the Ilac Centre, before he sexually assaulted the female garda at Store Street Garda Station by slapping her once on the buttocks.

A compilation of CCTV was played to the court.

One victim impact statement was handed in, but not read aloud.

When interviewed, Kletzander admitted being at St Stephen's Green, but made no comment in relation to the other incidents. Det Gda Costello agreed with Ms O'Neill that Kletzander accepted what he had done, but the tenor of the conversation was that he didn't feel he had done anything wrong.

The investigating gardai agreed with Luigi Rea BL, defending, that the injured parties were relieved by Kletzander's guilty pleas. Kletzander had no inhibitions and carried out these actions in front of hundreds of people, the court heard.

Kletzander has been in custody since August 2021, and had been living in hostel accommodation in recent years.

Mr Rea told the court his client has serious mental health issues, which have required periods of hospitalisation. Psychiatric and probation reports were handed to the court. The court heard the psychiatric report states that Kletzander was feeling rejected by women and receiving messages in his mind, but agreed his behaviour was not appropriate or acceptable.

Kletzander was formerly a student at Trinity College, but was unable to complete his studies due to his mental health issues. He is on a new medication regime and appears to be doing better.

Kletzander had started life and studies with such hopes, but they were to be dashed due to behavioural problems, Mr Rea said.

The defendant's older brother died last August and his parents were in court to support him. The prison service have made arrangements for hostel accommodation in Dublin for Kletzander when he is eventually released. A letter from Focus Ireland was also handed to the court.

Judge Crowe said there were a lot of injured parties in this case and a number of documents that the court must consider. She adjourned the case to June 23 for finalisation.
Gardai alleged the accused were trusted components of a capable and determined organised crime gang.

TWO men charged over an estimated 1.2m drug seizure were involved in an extremely sophisticated drug manufacture and distribution operation, it has been alleged.

Ian Cullen (29) and Barry Thomas Eustace (39) were arrested after gardai discovered cocaine, heroin and cannabis along with suspected drugs production equipment at a compound in Co Kildare.

Judge Ciaran Liddy granted them bail at Dublin District Court despite garda objections and adjourned the cases for the directions of the DPP to be given.

Mr Cullen, of Deansrath Road, Clondalkin, Dublin and Mr Eustace of Upper Punchestown, Rathmore, Naas, Co Kildare are charged with possession of drugs for sale or supply.

The court heard the accused were charged yesterday over the seizure in Celbridge, Co Kildare on June 12.

Gardai attached to the Dublin Crime Response Unit alleged the accused were both involved in an extremely sophisticated operation for the production, manufacture and distribution of illicit drugs and were trusted components of a capable and determined organised crime gang.

It was alleged they acted in full knowledge and their actions were critical to the operation.

Gardai said the estimated street value for the suspected drugs were 1.122 million for 16kg of cocaine, 60,000 for 3kg of cannabis herb and 112,000, all pending full analysis.

The total was 1.29 million.

Objecting to bail in Mr Cullens case, Garda Briain Kirwan said the accused was found on the land, which was accessed by a locked gate which he had control of a key for.

He initially told gardai he was renting the land and was responsible for it and prefab structures on it, but in later interview, he did not account for his presence there and did not accept ownership or knowledge of the alleged drugs.

A vehicle at the site was found to contain an estimated 40,000 of heroin, the garda said. Inside Mr Cullen's Mercedes car, gardai found a key to a padlocked shutter on the rear of a white lorry.

The lorry, the "centre of activity" on the site contained various items suspected to be used in the manufacture and distribution of drugs, including hydraulic presses, a vacuum packing machine, electric blenders and weighing scales.

Questioning the garda, Mr Cullens solicitor Wayne Kenny said gardai had completely overreached on the estimated value of the alleged drugs and strength of the proposed evidence.

He said it was a huge, 23-acre compound and the accused was in a yard at the front, feeding horses.

The gardai could not know the value of the alleged drugs because they had not been fully analysed yet, he said.

The key to the lands was not found on Mr Cullens person, he said.

On the analysis, Gda Kirwan said a sample was taken from each bag and the investigation was ongoing. Keys were found at numerous sites on the lands, he said.

The seized drugs

The accused gave a no comment interview but said many people have access to the lands.

Garda Tara Higgins objected to bail for Mr Eustace.

She said he was also found on the lands and had independent access to the site by means of a key to a locked gate.

It was alleged he told gardai he was aware of the presence of drugs at the site and that he would not be surprised if his DNA and fingerprints were found.

Gda Higgins said the vehicles at the site included a white Mercedes van with a sophisticated concealment compartment inside the underfloor where 300g of suspected heroin was found.

Mr Eustaces lawyer said his client had worked at the site as a groundskeeper and argued that the only alleged admissions he made were in relation to seeing a small amount of cannabis.

On DNA or fingerprints being found, he had told the garda he worked all over the site, including the lorry where there were work tools.

The accused were presumed innocent, their lawyers said.

Judge Liddy granted bail to both men on condition that they sign on at their local garda stations, surrender their passports, provide contact numbers, live at their home addresses, observe curfews and have no contact with each other.

Mr Cullens bail was set at 5,000 cash and an independent surety of 10,000. The judge required a 7,500 surety from Mr Eustace. They were remanded in custody with consent to bail to appear in Cloverhill District Court on June 21.
Neil Beckett (42) faces an indictment of 13 sex offences

A health and wellbeing officer for students at Lagan College has appeared in court charged with sexually abusing a dozen girls.

Standing in the dock of Laganside Magistrates Court yesterday, Neil Beckett (42), from Kilmore Village in Downpatrick, nodded to confirm that he understood the 13 offences against him.

Following a five-month investigation by the PSNIs Public Protection Unit, Beckett faces an indictment of 13 sex offences.

In a letter to parents yesterday, Lagan College said the school has been dealing with a very serious child protection safeguarding matter since January and contacted both the PSNI and the Education Authoritys child protection support service.

Eleven of the charges facing Beckett allege the abuse of a position of trust to incite a child under-18 into sexual activity. Beckett was also charged with two counts of sexual assault.

All of the offences are alleged to have occurred between October 2022 and February of this year.

In the letter to parents, signed by the chairman of Lagan College Francis Martin, it explained that the school principal and other key staff have been working with the relevant authorities.

This is a very serious and sensitive matter, added the letter.

I wish to re-assure you that we are adhering fully to our child protection and safeguarding policy and procedures, and the safety and wellbeing of all our students remains our top priority.

As you will appreciate, the Board of Governors is unable to make further comment at this time, so as not to compromise proceedings.

If you have any concern about your child, please do not hesitate to contact the school.

As well as holding the position of health and wellbeing officer, Beckett was also the medical officer at south Belfasts Lagan College.

The court was told Beckett is currently suspended from his job.

According to a post on the schools website, the health and wellbeing officer is responsible for the physical and mental health of all pupils and staff within the college.

Mr Beckett, who is also the school medical officer, looks after all pupils who require specific medical support throughout the day, it said.

The health and wellbeing officer liaises with external agencies for the organisation and delivery of routine annual visits by health professionals who provide services such as annual vaccinations or health checks.

The health and wellbeing officer works in conjunction with the rest of the pastoral team, form tutors, heads of year and heads of school to deliver a conjoined pastoral, emotional health and wellbeing service for all pupils.

The 11 abuse charges allege that Beckett intentionally caused or incited [the victim], a child under-18 to engage in sexual activity and at the time, you were in a position of trust over the said child.

The charges of sexual assault accuse Beckett of sexually touching two females when he did not reasonably believe the complaint so consented.

A PSNI statement last month said: Detectives from our Public Protection Branch in Belfast have charged a 42-year-old man with 11 charges of abuse of position of trust, causing or inciting a child to engage in sexual activity and a further two charges of sexual assault.

In court yesterday, a Detective Constable said he believed he could connect Beckett to each of the charges.

A prosecuting lawyer stated that evidence is still being collated so was seeking a four-week adjournment of the case.

Freeing Beckett on bail, District Judge Steven Keown adjourned the case to July 11, indicating that if he was not able to fix a date for a Preliminary Enquiry at that stage, he will want to know why not.
Robert John Woolsey denies the rape alleged to have been committed at a portable toilet

A biker from Co Armagh who denies a rape in the Isle of Man has been granted bail after an appeal.

Robert John Woolsey had previously been refused bail in summary court, the lower court of the island, last week.

However, yesterdayhe was granted bail by Deemster Graeme Cook, after an appeal at the islands higher court, the Court of General Gaol Delivery, with a friend who lives on the island putting forward a security of 12,000, on top of 30,000 security put forward by the defendants sister.

The Deemster refused to allow Woolsey to be bailed to his home address, in Aghory Road in Portadown, Co Armagh, but did allow him bail to an address provided by his friend, in Douglas in the Isle of Man.

The security amounts must be lodged and the defendant must hand in his passport, which he said was currently in Northern Ireland, before he can be released on bail.

Prosecuting advocate James Robinson had earlier opposed bail, saying that there was a danger of the defendant failing to surrender for his trial if he was released.

Defence advocate Jim Travers, representing Woolsey, said that there had been no suggestion of his client failing to comply at any point in the proceedings so far, and that he had several family and business ties in Northern Ireland.

Mr Travers said that the defendant considered the thought of him disappearing off the face of the earth unthinkable, and that he wanted to clear his name.

It was reported last week how Woolsey had denied the rape, as well as two counts of indecent assault, alleged to have been committed on May 26 at a portable toilet on Walpole Avenue in Douglas.

Woolsey, the joint owner of a concrete manufacturer, was visiting the Isle of Man at the time, competing in the Pre-TT Classic Races.

The rape allegation can only be heard at the Court of General Gaol Delivery, and he will be committed to that court on July 25 where all three matters will be heard as the case proceeds towards a trial.

Deemster Cook granted bail with a recognisance of 1,000, and securities totalling 42,000, as well as conditions to live at the Douglas address, abide by a curfew between 7pm and 7am, report to Douglas Police Headquarters daily between 9am and 10am, not to enter licensed premises or consume or purchase alcohol, not to contact the complainant or witnesses, to surrender his passport, and not to go to specific locations relevant to the complainant.
The garda involved in the N7 crash in which three members of a notorious burglary gang died has been charged with three counts of alleged dangerous driving and one count of alleged endangerment.

The officer met with members of the Garda Ombudsman Commission (Gsoc) yesterday, where he was served with the court summons. He is expected to be formally charged later this month when he will appear before the district court.

Independent.ie can reveal the garda has been charged with three separate counts of alleged dangerous driving and one count of alleged endangerment.

Dean Maguire (29), Karl Freeman (26) and Graham Taylor (31) were killed when their BMW vehicle burst into flames following a head-on crash with a truck while driving on the wrong side of the carriageway on July 7, 2021.

They were members of a Tallaght-based criminal gang that specialised in burglaries.

An adjourned inquest into the deaths of the three criminals is due to take place today at Dublin District Coroners Court.

It was revealed at a coroners court hearing last month that the Director of Public Prosecution, (DPP) had directed that the officer involved in the pursuit face a criminal prosecution over his driving in relation to the incident, sparking outrage among garda unions.

Reacting in a statement this morning, Garda Representative Association (GRA) President, Brendan O'Connor said the union had a number of questions regarding the timing and handling of this case.

He said: The Garda Representative Association has only been informed of the exact nature of these charges in the past 24 hours and will now take time to consider the implications and any possible course of action required.

"We can assure all members that all relevant supports and advice have been made available to our colleague at this time and the Association will continue to do so.

"While we respect the independence of both the offices of the DPP and GSOC we have a number of questions regarding the timing and handling of this case which we will address at an appropriate later date."

The garda, who remains on active duty at Tallaght garda station, will likely be suspended from duty once he is formally charged in court.

The officer, who has not been disciplined by garda management on foot of his actions, has applied for a transfer for personal reasons as he wants to move out of Dublin.

Last month, a designated officer with Gsoc, Sean Campbell, applied for an adjournment of the inquest into the deaths of the three men, based on the new development in the case.

Mr Campbell said at the time that the garda facing prosecution was still not aware of the precise offence with which he would be charged, and consequently he did not wish to say anything further on the matter.

The charging of the officer has sent shockwaves throughout the gardai, from rank-and-file members up to senior management.

The Garda Representative Association (GRA) and the Association of Garda Sergeants and Inspectors (AGSI) criticised the move, describing it as extremely concerning.

The prosecution of the garda was also described as outrageous in the Dail last month by Labour Party TD Alan Kelly.
The incident occurred at approximately 1.15pm in the Hyde Avenue/Childers Road area of the city

Gardai in Limerick are appealing for information after a gun was fired in the city on Sunday, June 4, in a possible drive-by.

The incident occurred at approximately 1.15pm in the Hyde Avenue/Childers Road area of the city.

No injuries were reported and there have been no arrests as of yet.

A statement from gardai today said: Investigating gardai at Roxboro Road Crime Office are seeking to speak with any witnesses who were in the vicinity of Hyde Avenue, Hyde Road, Childers Road and other surrounding areas between 1pm and 2pm on Sunday, 4th June 2023.

Any persons who may have information or any road user with dash-cam footage is asked to contact the Crime Office at Roxboro Road Garda Station on 061  214 342, the Public Office at Roxboro Road Garda Station on 061  214 340, or the Garda Confidential line on 1 800 666 111.

Reliable sources said a car drove by a house in the area and shots were discharged but that no one was injured.

Meanwhile, gardai responded to the Hyde Road area in large numbers on Thursday evening, and conducted a number of searches on open ground.

A number of areas in the community were cordoned off including the junction between Hyde Road and Childers Road as well as a large green area.

Eyewitnesses reported observing gardai conduct searches of open ground, it was reported.
40 animals were seized at a house at Edgeworthstown, Longford where the Stokes family live

An animal charity has been left 41,000 out of pocket after a family who denied running an illegal puppy farm were fined a total of 6,000.

Three years ago, when puppies were changing hands for thousands of euros during lockdown, 40 animals were seized at a house at Edgeworthstown, Longford where the Stokes family live.

Kevin Stokes, his wife Margaret, their daughters Johana Wykes and Chantel Stokes, their daughter-in-law Jane Ward and son-in-law Jonathan Wykes pleaded guilty to charges of animal cruelty and neglect.

Kim is still awaiting adoption

The case has been going through the courts for three years and at one point Kevin Stokes was arrested by officers backed up by the Armed Response Unit when he failed to appear in court.

Dogs at the property included American Bulldogs, Old English Bulldogs, German Shepherds, an Aikido, and a Great Dane.

Two breeding bitches were found being kept in small wooden crates while another dog was tied up on a rubbish heap.

Gardai and inspectors from the Irish Society for the Protection of Animals went to the Stokes home on May 7, 2020. After calls about the conditions the animals were being kept in.

At one court hearing it was heard that while most of the animals were in good condition, they were kept in filthy circumstances and there was a lack of drinking water for the dogs.

The pups

There were over 40 animals on the premises, including cats, dogs and puppies, and a total of 27 were removed by the ISPCA and only two of the dogs were licensed.

Kevin and his wife Margaret at one point each faced 75 charges including no dog licence, animal neglect, not providing clean water and having no microchips in some of the dogs.

Margaret claimed the cats and kittens were wild and said her husband did not own any of the dogs.

At a District Court hearing Sgt Mick Hogan revealed said that a breeding bitch could be worth up to 1,000, or 3,000 with papers.

He said two of the dogs had given birth to a total of 22 puppies while in the care of the ISPCA and that the charity was facing high costs for the care of the animals.

My view is that this was a puppy breeding farm, he said.

This was denied by the defendants solicitor and said they were happy for the seized dogs to be re-homed apart from two, one called Bluey and a Johnson Bulldog called Tiger.

The case came to an end last week at Longford Circuit Court ISPCA Inspector Karen Lyons told the judge the animals have been in care for the last three years and detailed the costs.

She asked that as part of the sentencing a only four dogs should be allowed at the property and any female dogs should to be spayed.

The six members of the family were told the Probation act would be applied if they each paid 1,000 to the ISPCA in six months and a restriction on the number of dogs to be kept at the property was imposed.

There have been calls to change the law so that animal charities are not left to bear the costs of animals seized in welfare cases.

ISPCA inspector Conor Dowling told the Sunday World said the case clearly shows the problems with the system.

The puppies born while under the care of the ISPCA would not have been included in the costs of looking after the dogs.

They were Bully types as well, so they are challenging enough to re-home, certainly to find the right home for them.

One dog Kim has been with the ISPCA since the start of the proceedings and is yet to be re-homed.

Senator Lynne Boylan last year brought forward a bill in the Oireachtas to allow for faster re-homing of dogs seized in welfare cases.

It was the DSPCA who initially flagged it me about the law about having to keep the animals until the case is concluded and the ISPCA came across with examples as well.

The bill has passed at the second stage at senate level, but no time has been allowed to allow it to progress despite requests she explained.

She described it as a real live issues for shelters both in terms of costs and the capacity to look after animals.

It frustrating that the government accepts there is problem but there isnt any urgency to do anything about it.

The issue also applies to horses as well as dogs with the Sunday World highlighting last year how the Irish Horse Welfare Trust has been left with a 350,000 bill looking after 33 thoroughbreds seized from CAB target and fraudster Catherine OBrien.
Quantum computing is now a scientific reality, despite evident limitations. A new study in Nature demonstrates the ability of a 127-qubit processor (the current capacity of commercially available quantum computers) to measure values in physics operations, while accounting for computational errors. Goran Wendin and Jonas Bylander from Swedens Chalmers University of Technology said the experiment demonstrates that quantum processors are potentially useful for certain calculations, despite errors. Although it doesnt definitively prove quantum supremacy (the ability to solve problems classical computers cannot address), this experiment shows that quantum computing can surpass current classical computational techniques using fault-mitigation procedures. This breakthrough could eventually lead to significant advancements in the field.

IBMs Summit supercomputer can process 200 billion calculations per second, but a quantum computer can process trillions due to superposition, a property that enables particles to be in two states simultaneously. While classical computing uses bits as the minimum unit to store data, quantum computing uses qubits. Two bits can hold one number, but since a qubit can represent both 0 and 1 at the same time (superposition), two qubits can hold four numbers. Ten qubits can therefore encode 1,024 numbers simultaneously because each additional qubit exponentially expands computing capacity.

Quantum superpositions are hindered by interactions with the environment, causing them to degrade into classical states, a process known as decoherence. Interference from heat, electromagnetism and vibration generates noise and reduces superposition maintenance time to microseconds, limiting computational capacity and leading to errors. Scientists try to mitigate these issues through programming solutions or by searching for elusive particles, such as the Majorana particle, that can maintain coherence. They also use complex isolation systems to avoid interference and operate at extremely low temperatures approaching absolute zero (-459F or -273C).

The authors of this study conclude that fault-tolerant quantum computing, which is beyond the capability of existing technologies, is likewise beyond the reach of todays processors. Nonetheless, tech giants like Google have taken significant steps in bringing this elusive goal a little closer.

The new study published by IBM researchers Youngseok Kim, Andrew Eddins and Abhinav Kadala with other co-authors, demonstrates that a quantum processor and post-analysis processing can accurately generate, manipulate and measure complex quantum states. These states cannot be precisely estimated using classical approximations.

The question is not merely one of computational speed, but rather a matter of capacity. The vast calculation potential offered by 127 qubits cannot be encoded by any classical computer due to memory limitations, said the study. Wendin and Bylander agree. The crux of quantum superiority lies in scalability, not speed. The problem encoded in the 127 qubits is beyond the capacity of classical computational memory.

One of IBM's first commercial quantum computer models. IBM

The authors credit the experiment results to advances in superconducting processor coherence and calibration, alongside the ability to control noise. These findings provide insights into the power of quantum computing at a time when fault-tolerant computing is still beyond our reach, and offer a foundational tool for near-term quantum applications.

Quantum advantage

A European team led by University of Seville (Spain) professor Adan Cabello was able to observe a strontium ions complete quantum state, not just at the start and end. This groundbreaking feat, captured in a never-before-seen recording lasting a millionth of a second, was hailed as one of the most remarkable breakthroughs of 2020 by Physics World.

The Nature study used an Ising model, a paradigm initially proposed for studying the ferromagnetic transition of particles. However, the physical process wasnt the objective. Instead, the goal was to showcase that a commercially available quantum computer, even if it lacks fault-tolerance, can achieve reliable measurements on a complex system. In an interview with the Science Media Center (SMC), Carlos Sabin, a theoretical physics researcher at the Autonomous University of Madrid (UAM), said, The Nature study asks if we can do anything useful with todays quantum computers that only have a small number of qubits and relatively high error probabilities. The experiment proves that we can, but only if we use the artifice of error mitigation.

The authors show that their [IBMs] machine, after error mitigation, does provide reliable results when calculating physical quantities of the system, Sabin said. If these results are confirmed (by Googles competing team, for instance), it would mean a first step in proving the usefulness of todays relatively small and noisy quantum computers when aided by error mitigation. Although this calculation has no practical application because the parameter values for quantum superiority likely dont correspond to real physical systems, Isings work is based on a physical model. Therefore, comparable machines could potentially address equally complex models with more practical applications, using an approach based on error mitigation rather than just correction.

Juan Jose Garcia-Ripoll, a research scientist with Spains Institute of Fundamental Physics (IFF-CSIC) praised the exceptional work that showcases the computing capabilities of IBMs 127-qubit quantum computer, and summarized the study conclusions in an interview with the Science Media Center (SMC). Quantum computers, despite their imprecision, have the unique capability to effectively simulate complex physics problems. While errors inevitably occur during computation, the protocol still enables us to derive highly accurate, quantitative predictions. For this type of endeavor, simulation techniques employed by classical computers are less precise than their quantum counterparts.

According to the Spanish physicist, the outcome may not necessarily be definitive, although quantum computing has produced processors such as IBMs Osprey, boasting 413 qubits. Perhaps in the future, advances in tensor networks [classical systems tackling problems like those addressed in the Nature study] may enable other scientists to surpass the capabilities of this 127-qubit processor.

Goran Wendin and Jonas Bylander share a similar viewpoint. This breakthrough likely doesnt help us apply quantum computing to relevant industrial problems. Those computations require far more qubits and significantly more operations to be competitive with high-performance supercomputers. Quantum computations would inevitably drown in all the noise.
What we need to remember is that this poor man was just living his life

A teenager has been arrested on suspicion of murder following the fatal stabbing of a man in Ongar, West Dublin, last night.

Gardai said that officers in Blanchardstown arrested the juvenile earlier this morning.

He is currently detained under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act 1984 at a Garda Station in West Dublin.

Meanwhile, a vigil is to be held for the man who died, Aaron Keating, who was well-known in the community, according to one local councillor.

Gardai are continuing their investigations into the incident in which the victim died following a verbal altercation with a group of other men on the main street at 7pm.

Mr Keating, who was aged in his 40s, collapsed to the ground as locals rushed to assist him.

Emergency services rushed him from the scene to Connolly Hospital in Blanchardstown, where he was pronounced dead.

An incident room has been established at Blanchardstown Garda Station under the direction of a Senior Investigating Officer. A family liaison officer has been appointed to the family of the deceased man.

One local councillor, Angela Donnelly, said that while she didnt know Mr Keating personally, she said he was a well-known figure in the area.

Many people would have spoken to him and spent a bit of time with him from day to day, Cllr Donnelly said. He was fairly quiet and kept himself to himself. He wasnt someone to be getting involved in altercations.

It happened in Ongar village, near the entrance to a Dunnes Stores car park and there would have been a lot of people around. And yesterday evening as it was nice and sunny it was very busy.

So for this to happen out in broad daylight with so many people around, its been a huge shock.

Obviously most areas have their issues, there are very few around the country that dont, Cllr Donnelly added. But this is very quiet area with people just going about their business.

Its an awful pity for the community too.

According to some reports, Mr Keating was a vulnerable person who had engaged with homeless services.

What we need to remember is that this poor man was just living his life, Cllr Donnelly said. It may not have been the life that other people may have chosen, and perhaps he may not have chosen it himself, but he was living his life his way, and minding his own business.

He was alive yesterday and today he is dead.

Cllr Donnelly said she was aware that a vigil was being organised by locals for Mr Keating in the village later tonight.

Fine Gael councillor Kieran Dennison said the death of Mr Keating in such a public way had traumatised the community.

"It happened in front of people, families, who saw the altercation happen and then the aftermath, Cllr Dennison said.

"And, of course, its traumatic for his family too.

Gardai said this afternoon that the investigation remains ongoing and an incident room has been established at Blanchardstown Garda Station under the direction of a Senior Investigating Officer. A family liaison officer has been appointed to the family of the deceased man.

A post-mortem is set to be carried out by the State Pathologist later this afternoon.

Gardai are continuing to appeal for any persons with information in relation to this incident to come forward and any road users with video footage (including dash cam) is asked to make this available to them.

Investigating Gardai are appealing to any persons who were in the vicinity of Main Street, Ongar this evening Tuesday 13th June, 2023 between 6.30pm and 7pm to contact them at Blanchardstown Garda station on 01 666 7000, the Garda Confidential Line on 1800 666 111, or any Garda station.
Gardai appealed for witnesses to come forward.

A man has died after he was stabbed following an altercation in Ongar, west Dublin, on Tuesday evening.

Gardai in Blanchardstown said they were investigating the fatal assault that occurred on the main street of the town.

It is understood the victim, aged in his 40s, was stabbed.

The man is believed to be an Irish national and was homeless.

An altercation occurred between two men on Main Street, Ongar, and one man aged in his 40s was removed from the scene to Connolly Hospital Blanchardstown where he has been pronounced dead, gardai said in a statement.

The scene is currently preserved and the Garda Technical Bureau have been requested to conduct a technical examination. The services of the Office of the State Pathologist have been requested. A post mortem will be carried out by the Office of the State Pathologist in due course.

The gardai added that an incident room had been established at Blanchardstown Garda Station under the direction of a senior investigating officer, and a family liaison officer has been appointed to the family of the deceased man.

Gardai appealed for witnesses to come forward.

Gardai are appealing for any persons with information in relation to this incident to come forward and any road users with video footage (including dash cam) is asked to make this available to them, they said.

Gardai said they were are appealing to anyone in the vicinity of Main Street, Ongar, on the evening of June 13 between 6.30pm and 7pm to contact them at Blanchardstown Garda station on 01 666 7000, the Garda Confidential Line on 1800 666 111, or any Garda station.
The officer met with personnel from the Garda Siochana Ombudsman Commission (Gsoc) by appointment today

Scene of the pursuit on the N7 in 2021

A GARDA facing criminal prosecution over a car pursuit in which a gang of burglars driving on the wrong side of the road were killed almost two years ago has been served with a summons.

The officer met with personnel from the Garda Siochana Ombudsman Commission (Gsoc) by appointment today, the Sunday World can reveal.

He is expected to be charged later this month when he will appear before the district court. The garda, who remains on active duty at Tallaght garda station, will likely be suspended from duty once he is formally charged in court.

The officer, who has not been disciplined by garda management on foot of his actions, has applied for a transfer for personal reasons as he wants to move out of Dublin.

Dean Maguire (29), Karl Freeman (26) and Graham Taylor (31) were killed when their BMW vehicle burst into flames following a head-on crash with a truck while driving on the wrong side of the carriageway on July 7, 2021.

They were members of a Tallaght-based criminal gang that specialised in burglaries,

Scene of the pursuit on the N7 in 2021

It was revealed at a coroners court hearing last month that the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) has now directed that the officer involved in the pursuit face a criminal prosecution over his driving in relation to the incident, sparking outrage among garda unions.

When contacted today, a Gsoc spokesman said he could not comment on the developments but said a brief statement would be issued tomorrow.

Meanwhile, an adjourned inquest into the deaths of the three criminals is due to take place tomorrow at Dublin District Coroners Court.

The inquest is expected to be further adjourned due to the criminal proceedings against the garda, which are now in motion.

Last month, a designated officer with Gsoc, Sean Campbell, applied for an adjournment of the inquest into the deaths of the three men, based on the new development in the case.

Mr Campbell said at the time that the garda facing prosecution was still not aware of the precise offence with which he would be charged, and consequently he did not wish to say anything further on the matter.

The charging of the officer has sent shockwaves throughout the gardai, from rank-and-file members up to senior management.

The Garda Representative Association (GRA) and the Association of Garda Sergeants and Inspectors (AGSI) criticised the move, describing it as extremely concerning.

The prosecution of the garda was also described as outrageous in the Dail last month by Labour Party TD Alan Kelly.
We are urgently looking for wanted man George Browne who is believed to be in Brighton

An on- the-run murderer who speaks with an Irish accent is the subject of a major manhunt in the UK.

George Browne (53), who is wanted on emergency recall to prison for breaching the terms of his release licence, is believed to be in Brighton.

The sadistic killer was in his late twenties when he murdered 71-year old Audrey Pearce at her Dudley Council warden-controlled flat in February 1998.

Browne was jailed for life and the Home Secretary set a 20-year minimum tariff to be served before he could become eligible for early release on licence.

Sussex Police said on Tuesday: We are urgently looking for wanted man George Browne who is believed to be in Brighton.

The 53-year-old from Ipswich, Suffolk, is wanted on emergency recall to prison for not complying with the terms of his licence.

He was last seen on Tuesday 6 June.

George is white, slim to average build, 5ft 10in, with receding hair, bald on top and speaks with an Irish accent.

Anyone who sees him should call 999, quoting Operation Spruce.
Kawerau District Council has been under fire from its community recently about the colour of its tap water.

Ongoing issues with discoloration in the Kawerau water supply have escalated in recent months.

The council says the sporadic browning is due to a build-up of manganese and iron in the water supply infrastructure, which becomes black and brown in the presence of chlorine.

Communications manager Tania Humberstone says the council is working hard to resolve the issue.

She says under normal conditions, the manganese and iron concentrations in the spring water sources were too low to cause any discolouration, however the minerals could build up in the reticulation system.

Staff believe the recent brown colouring may be connected to low water usage during the past nine months due to a lot of rain.

The community, which gets its water from springs and bores, once liked to boast of having the best drinking water in New Zealand. However, the town has been dissatisfied with its water supply since the council began chlorinating it in 2019. This was to comply with incoming Government regulations after the Havelock North water contamination in 2016.

The chlorination resulted in discolouration of the water at the time, and there were many complaints of a strong chlorine taste. Though the colour has improved since then, the recent return of the brown water has reignited the community's concerns.

One of those worried about the colour of the water and the effects it may be having on people's health is Valerie Reid, a KAinga Ora tenant who has lived in Kawerau for 10 years.

'It's not the same anymore as it was when I first moved here. It doesn't taste good. It doesn't look good. It's just totally disgusting.

With multiple health problems herself, including epilepsy, respiratory issues, sciatica and migraines, Valerie says it is the older people in the community she is most concerned for, and those with young children.

Valerie says the water is usually at its darkest in the morning after sitting overnight in the pipes.

One of her older friends had told her she had to run the outside hose for a couple of hours before it became clear enough to use and some parts of the town were worse than others.

'My neighbour has a one-year-old. It's not good for baby to drink.

Valerie says she has emailed Waiariki MP Rawiri Waititi and list MP Tamati Coffey. Rawiri responded that he wants to have a meeting with the district council about it.

'It is a health and safety matter. It is about our future and our kaumatua. How much is it actually affecting them? Our kaumatua can't afford to drink or shower in yucky water.

She says she had already contacted her KAinga Ora tenancy manager to let her know about the issue as she was concerned that she would be blamed for staining the porcelain in her toilet.

One of the many images posted on Facebook showing brown water coming from taps in Kawerau. Photo: Supplied .

Tania says council staff are going through a systematic process to eliminate potential sources.

'Council apologises for these ongoing issues and the impacts on whAnau. We appreciate that it is frustrating and impacts residents' lives.

Among the actions the council are taking are large-scale flushing of the reticulation, cleaning of all reticulation and valves and cleaning and inspecting the district's three water reservoirs.

The council is also in the process of a $12 million replacement of the town's water pipes, over six years, and some of this work has been brought forward from the 2025-26 financial year to the 2023-24 financial year.

The council has three sources for drinking water - Umukaraka Spring, Pumphouse Spring and the Tarawera bores. The Tarawera bores and Pumphouse Spring are on land owned by the council while the Umukaraka Spring is on land managed by MAori Investments.

In the previous three weeks, the council has only utilised the Pumphouse Spring to see if the possible cause was one of the other sources.

From next week, the council will only use the Tarawera bores for a period of three weeks and will revisit the availability to use Umukaraka Spring with the owners.

The council is also evaluating the use of lime in its process and replacing it with other methods. It is also rebuilding the main pump station with modern energy efficient pumps and valves.

Tania says the community could help council staff to solve the problem by telling them where dirty water was occurring.

She says there had been many comments on social media over the weekend from people saying they had complained to the council and they had done nothing.

'But, actually over the weekend we had only two service requests. Please contact the council on 07 306 9009 and if it is after hours, press option 2. This will help staff to pinpoint the causes and rectify the problem.

Public Interest Journalism funded through NZ On Air
A lucky Bay of Plenty Lotto player will be celebrating after scoring $16,666 with Lotto Second Division this week.

Nineteen other Lotto players across the country will be joining them in celebrations, after winning the same prize during the live Lotto draw.

Two lucky players also won Powerball Second Division, taking their total winnings to $28,319.

The winning Powerball Second Division tickets were sold at Kaikorai Valley Night n Day in Dunedin and on MyLotto to a player from Auckland. The winning Second Division tickets were sold at the following stores.
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If we talk about gastronomy and summer in Spain, there are several dishes that stand out above the rest: potato omelette, gazpacho, pipirrana, remojon... Although if we focus our gaze on the coast, when the summer period arrives there is one dish that takes centre stage: espeto de sardinas (sardine skewer).

This is a very typical dish on the coasts of Malaga, Granada and Almeria provinces and has become so popular that it can now be eaten in practically every corner of Andalucia and Spain. It is made by threading the sardines onto a rod that is stuck next to a wood fire at a distance of 20 or 30 centimetres. In this way, the sardines are grilled and have a very characteristic flavour thanks to the embers.

And, as there are so many options to choose from in Andalucia, today we are going to offer a tour of the Andalusian coastline with some of the best rated chiringuitos on platforms such as Tripadvisor for their espetos.

Agua Amarga, Almeria: La Tarahis

In the municipality of Agua Amarga, in the Cabo de Gata-Nijar area of Almeria, you will find this beach bar that stands out for its good location, sufficient parking and exquisite food right on the sand of the beach.

Salobrena, Granada: Casa Emilio

In the province of Granada there are many places where you can enjoy good espetos. One of them is in the municipality of Salobrena: Casa Emilio, a chiringuito of which users highlight its excellent service, its delicious food and, of course, its spectacular espetos.

Mojacar, Almeria: Cala Marina

Once again in the province of Almeria, specifically in Mojacar, there is another beach bar where you can enjoy anchovies, sardines and many other seafood dishes. Specifically, Cala Marina, one of the best-rated places in the area for eating this type of food.

Malaga: El Caleno

In Malaga city there are many options for enjoying espetos and other typical chiringuito dishes. One of the most outstanding is El Caleno, located on the Paseo Maritimo El Pedregal. An ideal option to enjoy espetos and much more.

Marbella, Malaga: Los Tres Pepes

The gastronomic offer in Marbella (Malaga province) is so wide that it is difficult to choose just one place to enjoy espetos, fish and seafood. One of the best rated on Tripadvisor is Los Tres Pepes, defined by some customers as "the ideal complement to a day at the beach".

Marbella, Malaga: Marbal-la

Another option without leaving Marbella is Marbal-la, on Avenida del Duque de Ahumada. A beach bar where you can enjoy seafood and fish at a very competitive price. However, to enjoy their espetos it is advisable to book in advance.

Almunecar, Granada: La Dorada de Plata

A highly recommended option on the coast of Granada is in the municipality of Almunecar. There, on San Cristobal beach, you will find La Dorada de Plata, a place that offers all kinds of seafood dishes, including the traditional sardine skewers.

Cadiz: Bebo Los Vientos

Although espetos are more popular in Malaga, Almeria and Granada, in other parts of Andalucia such as Cadiz they also prepare sardines. One of the most outstanding is the chiringuito Bebo Los Vientos, of which users highlight its large terrace and exquisite food.

Roquetas de Mar, Almeria: La Orilla

Chiringuito La Orilla in Roquetas de Mar is another of the most outstanding options in Andaluca to enjoy some delicious espetos next to the beach. In fact, it is among the best rated restaurants in the area. They also specialise in rice dishes.

Marbella, Malaga: La Milla Marbella

In Marbella, another option to enjoy high quality dishes is La Milla Marbella, a beach bar that some of its customers define as "a luxury restaurant on the sand". Among its dishes, sardines on a skewer are a classic, and one of the most popular with its customers.
Sooner or later, disease knocks on all doors. However, it does not always get the same response: some people, for instance, have been through Covid-19 asymptomatically, while others end up in the hospital. Age is usually a risk factor, but not necessarily a decisive one. There were elderly people in nursing homes that overcame the infection without flinching, and young people who ended up in intensive care. There are also substantial differences in susceptibility between women and men. Women live longer, and their immune system tends to be more effective in fighting external enemies; but the other side of the coin, explains infectologist Sunil Ahuja, from the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, is that they are also more prone to autoimmune diseases. Genetic and environmental factors, such as exposure to infections or vaccines, influence this diversity in the response to diseases. Now, Ahuja and his team have put another variable under the spotlight: in a study published in Nature Communications, the researchers suggest that immunologic resilience, which is the bodys ability to restore its immune functions and control inflammation, could have something to do with the response to infections and other ailments.

The Covid-19 crisis was Ahujas second pandemic; the first one was HIV, in the 1980s. Despite the distance, highly variable response patterns to infections occurred in both, he explains. We know that there are people exposed to HIV who do not become infected: before antiretroviral therapy was available, only 10% to 30% of children born to mothers with HIV were infected, and between 70% and 90% of children were resistant to HIV despite documented exposure. There is a variable susceptibility to that infection. The same happens with Covid-19. And with the flu and other viruses. There are also people who live longer lives and others who live shorter lives and have exactly the same environment, he says.

The specialist admits that genetics can play a role; also that there are other health problems or behaviors that may influence this susceptibility, and that external environmental factors can intervene. But immune resilience could also provide another clue. As he explains in his study, immune resilience is defined as the capacity to preserve and/or rapidly restore immune functions that promote disease resistance (immunocompetence) and control inflammation. These are two different things, usually opposed: if a person has high inflammation, immunocompetence is low; if they have controlled inflammation, it will be high.

An optimal immunologic resilience is the one that manages to balance these variables. Ahuja uses a slap to illustrate: If you slap me right now, I will get inflamed and have a temporary reduction in my immune capacity. When people suffer an attack or an aggression, they have to have inflammation; without inflammation, people die. But you need to have the right amount, in the right place and at the right time. Too much or too little is bad. [The point of immune resilience] is that once you control inflammation, immunocompetence quickly improves. A person can be slapped many times throughout life, by infections or other ailments that compromise this balance, but there are some whose body manages to preserve immunocompetence and control inflammation, he explains.

In the study published in Nature Communications, Ahuja and his team compiled research in humans and animal models of various ailments, such as HIV and Covid-19, and examined the data of nearly 49,000 people to analyze their immune resilience and see how it relates to the response to these attacks on the body. To do this, they measured two variables associated with the strength of the immune system and stratified several degrees of resilience: on one hand, they calculated the count of CD4 and CD8 T-cells, which are immune cells in charge of defending the body, and, on the other hand, they studied gene signatures that are associated with longevity and mortality related to inflammation. What we found is that [the degrees of immune resilience] are strong predictors of a better or worse health outcome, in terms of mortality and hospitalization, after controlling for age.

Ahuja admits that immune resilience is an inborn trait, but it can be influenced. He explains: Our ancestors used to die at the age of 50 due to a high burden of infections, but even then there were people who lived longer. Therefore, an obvious problem for immune resilience is the environmental infectious load: that will decrease your ability to recover. But there may be people who, despite this, have an innate ability to maintain it.

The authors of the study explain that, as expected, immune resilience declines with age  but not always. Why do young people die from Covid-19? It is possible that a young person, when exposed to an environmental influence, is more susceptible to having a weakened immune health and immune resilience. And if youre more susceptible, you could be at higher risk of dying, Ahuja says.

There are gene signatures that are directly associated with aging, and others that are not. The doctor points out that there is a percentage of very old people with a good level of immunologic resilience and that, in fact, although their risk of hospitalization due to illness is high, it is actually lower than that of a younger person with a much worse level of immunologic resilience. In addition, he continues, in a study on the response to common seasonal viruses such as influenza or rhinovirus, the authors discovered that, after the infectious episode, not all young patients recover the immunologic resilience they had before.

The researchers tested their hypotheses against various ailments. Among the participants in a cohort with early HIV infection, for example, the rate of development of AIDS was fastest for those with the lowest level of immune resilience. In another study with kidney transplant recipients, who are up to 100 times more likely to develop a type of skin cancer, the authors found that the risk of a second tumor of this type was lower in those who had the highest degree of immunologic resilience during the first episode of skin cancer.

Women are more resilient

The researchers noted that more immunologic resilience is observed in women of all ages, young and old, of childbearing age or postmenopausal; they have more immunocompetence, which is the ability to restore immune functions that promote longevity and resistance to disease. Given the importance of immunocompetence for maternal and fetal health, it is conceivable that the immunologic trait associated with resistance to both infections and premature death may have evolved more prominently in females. This sex bias could provide a basis for the observation that females exhibit advantages for immunocompetence and longevity, the authors state in the article. Ahuja elaborates: I suspect that this was an innate, appropriate and evolutionarily conserved trait that was useful for maternity. Otherwise, I think we as a species would have had a problem.

The researchers argue that this degradation of immune resilience is potentially reversible, especially if people stop exposing themselves to inflammatory stressors. Although this was not analyzed in this research, Ahuja also alludes to other studies in which the role of physical exercise in modulating mortality and longevity markers has been demonstrated. In other studies we have put middle-aged people on an exercise regimen for 24 weeks, and then stopped for another two weeks, and took blood samples. We examined the data and saw that when people exercise continuously, there is an improvement in the markers associated with mortality and longevity. But as soon as the exercise stops, they go back to the beginning. We suspect that sustained, not temporary, exercise, may play a role.

Oscar de la Calle, secretary of the Spanish Society of Immunology (who did not participate in the study), considers the research by Ahuja and his team convincing and interesting. This study will have a great impact and open avenues of research, says the immunologist. Two or three years ago, since the arrival of Covid-19, people began to talk more about an interesting concept, which is immune frailty: people whose immune system becomes weaker due to their age or stages of life, such as childhood, pregnancy or some disease. The opposite concept would be immune resilience, and one of the variables used in this study is common and we use it in the laboratory. He refers to the lymphocyte count. De la Calle opens the door so that, in the future, these indicators can be observed, as in a check-up, to identify deviations from normality.

The authors defend the potential of immunologic resilience and the metrics that they designed to monitor the health of patients and the prognosis for certain ailments in the future. If I want to develop an HIV or Covid-19 vaccine that is universally active, I need to make sure that there is no confounding factor that could play a role, beyond a persons age. That is the value of this work. The point of this whole idea of immune resilience is not just to describe the characteristics of immune resilience, but also to create markers or metrics or a scoring system so that people can be graded, Ahuja concludes.

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The great gateway for tourism to Andalucia is Malaga Airport, which is gaining muscle after the pandemic and gaining market share in the region compared to the first five months of the record year of 2019.

The latest data from Spain's airport operator Aena shows that between January and May, 65.5% of the passengers who flew to Andalucia landed at the Costa del Sol facility. The figure is significant as the region has five airports  Malaga, Seville, Granada, Jerez de la Frontera and Almeria.

In second place, Seville handles 26% of the region's air travellers, a figure which in the last two months has been reduced by three per cent as the Costa del Sol airport has increased its share of business. Statistics for April and May show that Malaga Airport received 69% of the passengers flying into the region. Granada, Jerez and Almeria barely account for 7.5% of the region's air traffic.

Of the twelve million tourists that transited through the five Andalusian airports between January and May, almost 7.9 million landed at Malaga Airport: Seville had 3,170,00 passengers in the same period, and Granada, with 403,100 passengers. At the bottom of the list is Almeria, with 254,590 passengers at its airport, preceded by Jerez de la Frontera with 326,350.

In terms of connectivity, the differences are also striking. The Costa del Sol airport is connected to 150 destinations around the world, operated by 65 airlines. Madrid airport, which leads the national ranking, is connected to 188 cities in the world. Seville airport has 75 routes operated by 19 airlines, followed by Almeria with twenty direct connections; Jerez, with 17, and Almeria, with ten.

Growth at Malaga Airport has been unstoppable since the beginning of the year. In May, activity set a new record, when the number of passengers exceeded two million, with 2,150,259 travellers recorded. This record is in addition to the one set last April, when the number of visitors exceeded two million for the first time.

Malaga Airport operator Aena said that the data was "a milestone, as for the first time the number of monthly travellers exceeds two million in a month of May, levels that had only been reached, until this year, in the months of July and August in 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2022 and, on one occasion, in June and September during the year before the pandemic. To this must be added last April, when 2,020,881 travellers were recorded".
It is taking place today and tomorrow (Thursday) at the Malaga transfusion centre in the Hospital Civil. Some 250 people a day are required to donate blood to meet the demand in the province

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Malaga's transfusion, tissue and cell centre is holding a special blood and plasma donation campaign today (Wednesday 14 June) and Thursday 15 June to mark World Blood Donor Day. The special session will take place at the Malaga Transfusion Centre at the Hospital Civil, from 9am to 9pm. Those who donate will be able to park in the hospital grounds free of charge on presentation of a stamped ticket.

The transfusion centre has pointed out that to donate plasma it is advisable to make an appointment (from 9am to 2pm) by calling 951 034 120 or 951 034 121.

World Blood Donor Day is celebrated on 14 June, to coincide with the date of birth of Karl Landsteiner, Nobel Prize winner for Medicine and the person who discovered the ABO blood groups. The slogan chosen this year is 'Donate blood, donate plasma, share life, share often'.

The campaign focuses on patients in need of lifelong transfusion support and highlights the role that everyone can play by donating the precious gift of their blood or plasma. It also highlights the importance of donating blood or plasma on a regular basis to create a safe and sustainable supply of blood and blood products that can always be available, worldwide, so that all patients in need can receive timely treatment.

Provincial needs

The Malaga transfusion centre supplies all the blood needed by the province's health facilities, both public and private. Some 250 people a day are required to donate blood to meet this demand.

The general profile of the blood donor in Malaga is that of a male over 40 years of age who goes to a mobile collection unit. However, the proportion changes among younger people, half of whom are men and half women. By age, the largest sector is the 41-50 age group, which accounts for 26.4%, followed by the under-31s, who account for 26.2%. People in the 51 to 60 age bracket make up 23.7% of donors, with donors over 60 in fourth place.

Malaga has registered a total of 20,713 donations during the first five months of 2023  up to 31 May  of which 19,806 were blood and 907 plasma donations, a similar number to 2022, when 20,747 donations were registered during the same period.

During these months, 2,711 new donors have been registered, 4% more than those who joined in the same period of 2022, when 2,595 new donors were registered. Fifty-four percent of the people who came to donate for the first time this year were women and 46% were men.

CreutzfeldtJakob disease (CJD)

An important note for would-be donors is that anyone who lived in Britain for 12 months or more between 1980 and 1996, or spent a nonconsecutive amount of time in the UK equalling 12 months during that period, is not allowed give blood in Spain because of fears they could transmit CreutzfeldtJakob disease (CJD), also known as subacute spongiform encephalopathy or 'mad cow' disease.
Olatz Hernandez Compartir Copiar enlace

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The European Parliament has supported an initiative to withdraw European funds from Member States that delay the implementation of priority transport connections for the European Union. Political groups broadly supported the motion, announced on Tuesday, which seeks to address the attitude of European countries such as France, which has announced that it will not complete its connection to Spain via the Atlantic Corridor until 2042, twelve years later than planned.

Two months ago, the European Parliament voted on the trans-European networks regulation in which the deadline for completing the core network by 2030 remains unchanged. MEPs now call for "greater monitoring" and "control" of the construction of priority transport projects to avoid irregularities. It also calls for greater supervision by the European Commission in the planning and implementation of the corridors and for it to "focus on the development of cross-border transport infrastructure to ensure better and greener connectivity in Europe". The resolution will now be forwarded to the European Council and the EU executive.

In Monday's debate, PNV MEP Izaskun Bilbao said the proposal is "timely" as some Member States are more than a decade behind schedule. According to the European Court of Auditors, this situation generates cost overruns of up to 40%. In the case of France and the delays in the connection with the Atlantic Corridor, the MEP said that "it is urgent to react". She added that it is necessary to "empower corridor coordinators" and to draw up annual reports on the progress of these projects so that European countries are "accountable". "We are not just losing money. The free movement of people and goods is the basis of our union. Its material foundations are the trans-European transport networks," Bilbao added.

Brussels has already drawn France's attention to the delays in the high-speed connection with Spain and has been in contact with the Paris. The European Commission is 'closely monitoring' the development of the basic network and, in particular, the connection with the Iberian Peninsula through the Pais Vasco as it is of 'extreme priority' for the European Union. According to the financial plan of the project, Brussels estimates that the French authorities must carry out an additional investment of 6.5 billion to complete the connection between southern France and Irun.
As a child, Juliana Hernandez De La Torre dreamed of working for a humanitarian organization in Africa. She believed that it was there, thousands of miles away from her native Colombia, where the needs were most acute. She did not know what was happening here, in the capital city, on the Colombian Pacific coast, or in the war-torn Caribbean coast. At that time, the struggle of thousands of women who confronted armed groups, raised their children amid violence and overcame their fears to help their communities was a world away. They were women of steel who were the leaders of political processes without ever being in power.

Hernandez graduated with a degree in finance and international relations. Her career has taken thousands of personal and professional turns: She worked in the financial sector, was involved in social processes, distanced herself from conflict to preserve her mental health and, no, she never went to Africa. She traded that dream for a bigger one: to create training networks in her country so that women leaders could win political power. Her premise, and that of Artemisas (the organization she created in the midst of the pandemic), is that to change the country you have to change its politics.

Juliana Hernandez at the Congress of the Republic in Bogota (Colombia), on May 25, 2023. Diego Cuevas

The problem is that in Colombia, as in other Latin American countries, politics is still dominated by men. Not only in Congress, where only 28% of the seats are held by women, but also in other elected positions in the regions. Not to mention the presidency. The closest a woman has come to that position is with Vice President Francia Marquez. But her arrival in that post has led to racist attacks, political violence and greater demands on her than are usually put on men.

Hernandez is committed to providing tools and training to women who want to enter politics to avoid having men open doors for them, as has traditionally been the case. That is an inheritance of a patriarchal culture that we must break away from, she says and reflects how in her life that was the norm. Her father, her bosses in the financial sector where she became a marketing manager at a very young age, then her colleagues in other social organizations all did it. That took its toll. In a deep conversation in a Bogota cafe, Hernandez admits that this made her an overbearing and aggressive leader, a woman who assumed patriarchal attitudes to demonstrate her abilities. She says she has learned from this.

Now her life goal, she says, is to enable all women who want to access power, to give them the tools and a network to help them when they are attacked. A space where they feel they can fall as many times as necessary, because we will be there, says this woman with a strong voice and a stronger personality. Hernandez leads a platform that seeks to strengthen the political participation of 300 women from different territories and political parties in Colombia.

Juliana Hernandez hugs one of her Artemisas companions during a meeting of women leaders in Melgar, Colombia. Diego Cuevas

At least 100 of these women leaders met last weekend in the town of Melgar, two hours from Bogota, at a kind of feminist convention with the Nosotras Ahora network (an activist, feminist group). As Vice President Marquez, who participated virtually said, it was a meeting for women in politics to think about themselves. Congresswomen, councilwomen from different municipalities and candidates for elected office in different parts of the country came to talk about political violence, take workshops on electoral strategy, disinformation management, knitting, singing and even twerking. Politics is also about having a good time, says Hernandez.

However, it is not at all common in Colombia. Women often avoid participating in politics because it is an uphill struggle that puts their lives and those of their families at risk. As womens political participation advances, violence against them increases. The main challenges for women in Colombia are their personal lives and their mental health. Here leadership also involves receiving threats in which their work as social, environmental and community leaders is at risk. It is a high-risk exercise, says Hernandez, and she also refers to economic violence. Another challenge is how we get the leadership to earn an income. It may sound very utilitarian, but the way we have to sustain ourselves in a world like this is by earning, by having wages, by recognizing the care work that these women do, she says.

Building collective power

One of Hernandezs first encounters with a reality that was alien to her was in Buenaventura, one of the most violent cities in Colombia. She worked in humanitarian spaces in the city and met courageous women leaders who overcame disputes to confront armed groups together. Listening to them was to send (feminist) theory to hell. They were having in-depth discussions on the whole theory of oppression, of new masculinities, of what it means to weave, to have a safe space for women, says Hernandez, who has a tendency to be controversial and does not do things in half-measures. Hernandez says that, as a child, she was introverted, something that is hard to believe because she conveys a lot of closeness and self-sufficiency. She knows and also admits that her character can be abrasive, but she says she is strict and very disciplined, that she likes to shine.

Juliana Hernandez during a speech in the Congress of the Republic of Colombia. Diego Cuevas

Before getting involved in the struggle against the violence on Colombias Pacific coast, she had listened to and assessed statements from victims of the conflict when the Victims Law was created in 2011. It was only one semester, but it gave her the opportunity to hear first-hand the effects they were suffering. She also did so at Plaza La Hoja, a Bogota housing project for perpetrators and victims of the conflict. Both jobs caused her severe mental stress, which, however, did not keep her away from activism. I think its important to talk about mental health and be honest. Every womans personal life has to do with the political struggle. You can never disassociate feminism from your personal life.

Peace, an epiphany

The peace process between the former government of Juan Manuel Santos and the now extinct FARC was like an epiphany for Hernandez, who sees it as a moment of cultural transformation, a paradigm shift for her generation. The armed conflict has dominated the agenda of feminists in Colombia. We have been talking about the war for 60 years and perhaps that is why Spanish and Argentine women are so advanced in feminist discussions.

Hernandez then worked for a yes vote in the peace referendum, the option that did not win; she was in the peace camp that was set up in Bolivar square to insist on the signing of the agreement; and then she became obsessed with overseeing the laws that were to support it. I am very institutionalist and, as a feminist, that has attracted a lot of criticism, because they [institutions] are patriarchal structures. I think you can go out and mobilize with batucadas (drum parades accompanying protests) as many times as you want, but the law that protects us from being murdered is a law that has to be sanctioned, she says.

That is why she is often seen at Congress, at which she has developed political advocacy processes in different areas. Recently, she spoke out on surrogacy and was at the forefront of a bill on political violence against women. The first step, however, is to continue to increase womens representation. According to the report Women and Men: Gender Gaps in Colombia, by UN Women, the Presidential Council for Women and the National Administrative Department of Statistics (DANE), although there are women who have managed to overcome great obstacles and have become prominent political figures and leaders, there is still a long way to go to make these successes attainable and to attain them for other women who want and have the right to participate in all spaces and at all levels of decision-making.

Juliana Hernandez with her colleagues from Artemisas during a meeting of leaders in Melgar, Colombia on June 4, 2023. Diego Cuevas

Juliana Hernandez is convinced that the time for women has come and that the new figures that will change the country will come from this support network. She knows its not easy. Our aspirations for elected office and desire for power has not been accepted so easily by our husbands, partners, sons and daughters, because this has been an exercise for men. Every time we women speak up or say we want to have power, that message is not well received, she says. Then comes silencing and mansplaining. We are required to prove every day of our lives that we are good mothers, daughters, that we deserve the salaries we have, that we deserve a decent life, she maintains.

The solution, she believes, is to build collective power. I believe in the power of women articulating what they want and in creating a very large collective power at the regional and national level. It is from there that transformations are achieved, she insists. I didnt go to Africa, but I consider that my life has been full and its because I work with women who are learning to build something together.
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Its back! The ALS CEO Soak returns to the Clinton Square fountain July 20. This is the second year for the event in which area CEOs and their companies help raise funds and awareness for the ALS Association of Upstate New York Chapter.

Local companies are invited to challenge their peers, network with the community, boost employee morale and compete to get soaked. Inspired by the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge, the CEO Soak has quickly grown to become one of the premier corporate engagement opportunities for the ALS Association.

Even if youre not personally affected by ALS, you understand the disease. You understand what people are up against. I think that brings people out, said Advance Media New York President Tim Kennedy, who participated in last years event in August.

Companies are invited to join the effort by starting a team or becoming a sponsor. Teams and sponsors have the ability to designate a Soakee from their company to participate in the community soak event on July 20.

On the day of the event, each companys Soakee will stand with other Soakees from companies across CNY. Supporters are invited to pledge to start a team or sponsor the event at the official CNY CEO Soak page  https://web.alsa.org/ceosoaksyracuse.

Often referred to as Lou Gherigs disease, ALS or Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, is a rare neurological disease affecting nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord that control voluntary muscle movements. ALS Associations mission is to discover treatments and a cure for ALS, and to serve, advocate for, and empower people affected by ALS to live their lives to the fullest. For more information, contact Kristin Schneider (716) 290-0336 kristin.schneider@als.org
Aurelius, N.Y.  A Cayuga County man convicted of stabbing a sheriffs deputy during a gun seizure plans to appeal his conviction after receiving a 15-year prison sentence Monday.

Luke Gaffney, 42, was convicted in March of aggravated assault upon a police officer, a violent felony, for assaulting an on-duty, uniformed police officer. The same jury acquitted him of an attempted murder charge.

Gaffney plans to appeal the conviction, his defense attorney Michael Kasmarek said Tuesday. Gaffneys appeal will likely argue that he should have been able to defend himself against the police officer because Gaffney believed the deputy was acting unlawfully when he came to seize his guns and ultimately arrested him, Kasmarek said.

The charges stem from an incident between Gaffney and Cayuga County Sheriffs Office Deputy Adam Bacon on Oct. 23, 2020.

Gaffney had been arraigned earlier that day in Auburn City Court after being charged with assault (Those charges were resolved in fall 2021 with an adjournment in contemplation of dismissal and an order of protection for the victim who was in a relationship with Gaffneys ex-girlfriend, according to the Auburn Citizen.)

A city court judge issued an order of protection, which directed Gaffney to stay away from the victim. Gaffney -- who had a concealed-carry pistol permit -- was also ordered to surrender his guns to a local dealer by the following Monday.

Gaffney made plans to surrender the guns to the gun dealer and thought that was the end of it, Kasmerek said.

Another judge who issued Gaffneys original pistol permit, however, signed a letter informing Gaffney his permit was suspended and directing him to immediately surrender any guns and his permit to the sheriffs office public safety building.

Bacon, the deputy, was directed to serve this letter to Gaffney. Bacon and Gaffney had opposing interpretations of the letter which ultimately led to the dispute between them.

Bacon testified that he believed the letter gave him the authority to seize Gaffneys weapons and detain him.

Cayuga County District Attorney Brittany Grome Antonacci said that the inclusion of the word immediately surrender the pistols meant the deputy could seize the weapons even though the letter directs the guns to be brought to the public safety building.

Kasmerek said that Gaffney believed that he had already made an agreement with the lower court judge and did not need to surrender his weapons to the deputies.

Kasmerek said that the appeal in this case could relate to the U.S. Supreme Courts recent decision regarding New York States gun laws. He said that Gaffney was afforded no due process regarding the merit of his pistol permit suspension.

Kasmerek also said that this was an issue of unlawful search and seizure, which is protected by the Fourth Amendment.

During Gaffneys trial, the judge ruled that the prosecution would not have to prove that the deputy was acting lawfully. He would only have to prove he was acting in his official duty as a police officer.

The penal code description of aggravated assault upon a police officer does not specify that the officer has to be acting in their lawful duty, it only specifies they have to be acting in their official duty.

Antonacci said that Gaffney has his own interpretation of the law that he feels trumps the reality of the law. She also said that a video of the incident shows that Gaffney did not read the letter before refusing to cooperate with the deputy.

Gaffney testified that he told Bacon you need to ask yourself if this is worth killing me over, when the deputy told Gaffney he was seizing his guns. The deputy perceived that as a threat and tried to take Gaffney into custody.

When the deputy grabbed Gaffney, Gaffney reached for a knife in his belt and stabbed the deputy in the leg. Gaffney told his family to leave the house before he began a standoff with officers. He was eventually taken into custody without further incident.

Bacon suffered three stab wounds to the leg and was treated at Upstate University Hospital.

Antonacci said that she understands Gafferys desire to appeal the decision but does not see his appeal as a strong case.

Staff writer Anne Hayes covers breaking news, crime and public safety. Have a tip, a story idea, a question or a comment? You can reach her at ahayes@syracuse.com.
Syracuse, N.Y.  A state report has found that Onondaga County Sheriffs Office guards did not adequately check on a man before his death at the Justice Center jail.

The state also found the provider of medical care in the jail at the time was using several unlicensed employees to provide medical care.

Kevin Gilooly, 65, died Jan. 9, 2021, while in the jail from atherosclerotic and hypertensive cardiovascular disease, according to a report published by the state Commission of Correction. Atherosclerosis is a buildup of substances in the arteries.

The commission report found guards did not adequately check on Gilooly and that he was dead for two hours before being discovered.

The medical care company, Naphcare, was replaced by the county on Jan. 1. The county hired Wellpath Care -- formerly known as Correct Care Solutions.

The replacement was revealed in a letter to the state Commission of Corrections commissioner, from the Chairman of the Onondaga County Legislature Jim Rowley as a response to the commissions final report on the death of Angela Peng. Peng died by suicide in the jail.

Gilooly was arrested on Dec. 23 2020 by deputies for violating an order of protection, according to the report. Bail was denied and he was held in jail.

When deputies started the intake process he did not comply and it was determined he needed high observation with checks every 15 minutes, commission officials said.

His medical intake process was never completed by healthcare providers at the jail, officials said. The nurse, whose name was not provided, failed to complete a medical assessment. A physicians assistant, whose name also was not provided, signed off on the incomplete assessment, officials said.

The commission referred to the incomplete assessment as negligent. Gilooly had a history of seizures, hypertension and asthma and his assessment shouldve been completed in a timelier basis and shouldve been complete, officials said.

Twice medical workers took Giloolys blood pressure. At one point the systolic number, or top number, was 162 and then jumped to 180. The report notes that the medical staff failed to address Giloolys high blood pressure.

A blood pressure measurement over 180 is considered a hypertensive emergency or crisis, according to the Mayo Clinic. A blood pressure of 162 is considered stage two high blood pressure.

On Jan 9, about two weeks and three days after Gilooly was admitted, two deputies referred to as W.B. and C.D. did checks at 10:06 p.m., 10:14 p.m. and 10:32 p.m., shining a light into Giloolys cell, officials said.

At 10:40 p.m., W.B. observed Gilooly asleep, half off his bed and wearing his shirt in an unusual way, officials said. The deputy banged on the door and then went into the cell and tapped him on the shoulder but he was unresponsive, officials said. The deputy then tried to turn Gilooly on his side but noticed he was in physical distress and called out that there was a medical emergency, officials said. Five nurses responded.

It was found that Gilooly was dead for two hours before the deputy found him, officials said. Video footage reveals deputies checked on Gilooly but did not slow down enough while passing by to ensure he was still breathing, officials said.

Additionally, several employees of Naphcare were not licensed in the state of New York, officials said.

One nurse practitioner did not obtain their license until November of that year and another until January 2022. Another waited over a year, only getting their license in July 2022, officials said. One employee called a medical doctor was also unlicensed but the commission did not say if the doctor is now licensed in New York.

The commission ordered the sheriffs office to investigate the conduct of the deputies and to determine if any policies were violated.

The death happened under the previous sheriffs administration, said Tom Newton, a spokesperson for the sheriffs office. Sheriff Toby Shelley has been more proactive about the healthcare in the jail, meeting every other week with the company providing health care, he said.

The chair of the Onondaga Legislature is also required to conduct an investigation, the commission said. The state Department of Education, Office of Professional Discipline is also required to investigate, the commission said.

Syracuse.com | The Post-Standard has reached out to the county legislature and state education department for comment.

Staff writer Rylee Kirk covers breaking news, crime and public safety. Have a tip, story idea, photo, question or comment? Reach her at 315-396-5961, on Twitter @kirk_rylee, or rkirk@syracuse.com.
SANTA FE, N.M. (AP)  Cormac McCarthy, the Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist who in prose both dense and brittle took readers from the southern Appalachians to the desert Southwest in such novels as The Road, Blood Meridian and All the Pretty Horses, died Tuesday. He was 89.

Publisher Alfred A. Knopf, a Penguin Random House imprint, announced that McCarthy died of natural causes at his home in Santa Fe, New Mexico.

For 60 years, he demonstrated an unwavering dedication to his craft, and to exploring the infinite possibilities and power of the written word, Penguin Random House CEO Nihar Malaviya said in a statement. Millions of readers around the world embraced his characters, his mythic themes, and the intimate emotional truths he laid bare on every page, in brilliant novels that will remain both timely and timeless, for generations to come.

McCarthy, raised in Knoxville, Tennessee, was compared to William Faulkner for his expansive, Old Testament style and rural settings. McCarthys themes, like Faulkners, often were bleak and violent and dramatized how the past overwhelmed the present. Across stark and forbidding landscapes and rundown border communities, he placed drifters, thieves, prostitutes and old, broken men, all unable to escape fates determined for them well before they were born. As the doomed John Grady Cole of McCarthys celebrated Border trilogy would learn, dreams of a better life were only dreams, and falling in love an act of folly.

Every mans death is a standing in for every other, McCarthy wrote in Cities of the Plain, the trilogys final book. And since death comes to all there is no way to abate the fear of it except to love that man who stands for us.

McCarthys own story was one of belated, and continuing, achievement and popularity. Little known to the public at age 60, he would become one of the countrys most honored and successful writers despite rarely talking to the press. He broke through commercially in 1992 with All the Pretty Horses and over the next 15 years won the National Book Award and the Pulitzer, was a guest on Oprah Winfreys show and saw his novel No Country for Old Men adapted by the Coen brothers into an Oscar-winning movie. Fans of the Coens would discover that the films terse, absurdist dialogue, so characteristic of the brothers work, was lifted straight from the novel.

The Road, his stark tale of a father and son who roam a ravaged landscape, brought him his widest audience and highest acclaim. It won the 2007 Pulitzer Prize for fiction and was selected by Winfrey for her book club. In his Winfrey interview, McCarthy said that while typically he didnt know what generates the ideas for his books, he could trace The Road to a trip he took with his young son to El Paso, Texas, early in the decade. Standing at the window of a hotel in the middle of the night as his son slept nearby, he started to imagine what El Paso might look like 50 or 100 years in the future.

I just had this image of these fires up on the hill ... and I thought a lot about my little boy, he said.

He told Winfrey he didnt care how many people read The Road.

You would like for the people that would appreciate the book to read it. But, as far as many, many people reading it, so what? he said.

McCarthy dedicated the book to his son, John Francis, and said having a child as an older man forces the world on you, and I think its a good thing. The Pulitzer committee called his book the profoundly moving story of a journey.

It boldly imagines a future in which no hope remains, but in which the father and his son, each the others world entire, are sustained by love, the citation read in part. Awesome in the totality of its vision, it is an unflinching meditation on the worst and the best that we are capable of: ultimate destructiveness, desperate tenacity, and the tenderness that keeps two people alive in the face of total devastation.

After The Road, little was heard from McCarthy over the next 15 years and his career was presumed over. But in 2022, Knopf made the startling announcement that it would release a pair of connected novels he had referred to in the past: The Passenger and Stella Maris, narratives about a brother and sister, mutually obsessed siblings, and the legacy of their father, a physicist who had worked on atomic technology. Stella Maris was notable, in part, because it centered on a female character, an acknowledged weakness of McCarthys.

I dont pretend to understand women, he told Winfrey.

His first novel, The Orchard Keeper  written in Chicago while he was working as an auto mechanic  was published by Random House in 1965. His editor was Albert Erskine, Faulkners longtime editor.

Other novels include Outer Dark, published in 1968; Child of God in 1973; and Suttree in 1979. The violent Blood Meridian, about a group of bounty hunters along the Texas-Mexico border murdering Indians for their scalps, was published in 1985.

His Border Trilogy books were set in the Southwest along the border with Mexico: All the Pretty Horses (1992)  a National Book Award winner that was turned into a feature film; The Crossing (1994), and Cities of the Plain (1998).

McCarthy said he was always lucky. He recalled living in a shack in Tennessee and running out of toothpaste, then going out and finding a toothpaste sample in the mailbox.

Thats the way my life has been. Just when things were really, really bleak, something would happen, said McCarthy, who won a MacArthur Fellowship  one of the so-called genius grants  in 1981.

In 2009, Christies auction house sold the Olivetti typewriter he used while writing such novels as The Road and No Country for Old Men for $254,500. McCarthy, who bought the Olivetti for $50 in 1958 and used it until 2009, donated it so the proceeds could be used to benefit the Santa Fe Institute, a nonprofit interdisciplinary scientific research community. He once said he didnt know any writers and preferred to hang out with scientists.

The Southwestern Writers Collection at Texas State University-San Marcos purchased his archives in 2008, including correspondence, notes, drafts, proofs of 11 novels, a draft of an unfinished novel and materials related to a play and four screenplays.

McCarthy attended the University of Tennessee for a year before joining the Air Force in 1953. He returned to the school from 1957 to 1959, but left before graduating. As an adult, he lived around the Great Smoky Mountains before moving West in the late 1970s, eventually settling in Santa Fe.

His Knoxville boyhood home, long abandoned and overgrown, was destroyed by fire in 2009.
U.S. intelligence officials testify during a Senate Judiciary Oversight Committee hearing to examine Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, on June 13, 2023, in Washington.

The U.S. has used electronic surveillance programs to catch fentanyl smugglers and the hackers who temporarily shut down a major U.S. fuel pipeline, the White House said Tuesday as part of its push to have those programs renewed by Congress.

Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act expires at the end of this year. President Joe Bidens administration is trying to convince Congress to renew the law, which authorizes spy agencies to capture huge swaths of foreign emails and phone calls. But lawmakers in both parties have concerns about protecting Americans privacy from warrantless searches after a series of FBI errors and misuses of intelligence data.

As part of its public campaign, the Biden administration released what it said were newly declassified examples of how U.S. intelligence uses Section 702. And the FBI announced new penalties for employees who misuse intelligence data in advance of a Senate Judiciary Committee Tuesday during which both Democrats and Republicans rebuked the bureau.

Previous administrations have often cited the importance of Section 702 in stopping terrorism. But two decades after the Sept. 11 attacks, the U.S. public is broadly skeptical of intelligence agencies and less certain of sacrificing civil liberties for security.

This time, the White House and supporters of Section 702 are targeting concerns over fentanyl, a synthetic opioid blamed for 75,000 U.S. deaths last year, and the shutdown of Colonial Pipeline, which led to gas shortages along the East Coast two years ago.

Senior administration officials briefed reporters on the new examples Monday on condition of anonymity under ground rules set by the White House.

Among the other examples the officials gave: The U.S. learned about Beijings efforts to track and repatriate Chinese dissidents; the FBI was able to warn an American who was the target of foreign spies seeking information about the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction; and the U.S. identified the people behind an Iran-linked ransomware attack against nonprofit groups last year.

The United States has already credited Section 702 with being used in the operation to kill al-Qaida head Ayman al-Zawahri and providing large amounts of the intelligence briefed daily to the president and other top officials.

The administration officials said they provided more specifics to Congress in classified briefings.

We are trying to walk a careful line here where were trying to explain both to the public and to members of Congress the importance of Section 702, one official said. But at the same time, we do need to be very careful about protecting the ways in which we collect information.

Under Section 702, the National Security Agency collects large amounts of foreign emails, phone calls, and other communications that the NSA and other agencies can then search for intelligence purposes.

That collection often snares the communications of Americans. While U.S. spy agencies are barred from targeting U.S. citizens or businesses, they can search Americans names in Section 702 data and the FBI can use that data to investigate domestic crimes.

A series of surveillance court opinions and government reports has disclosed that FBI agents at times have failed to follow rules on searching that data. Agents wrongly ran queries for the names of a congressman on the House Intelligence Committee, people linked to the Jan. 6 insurrection, and participants in the 2020 protests following the police killing of George Floyd.

The FBI, backed by the White House and some Democrats, argues it has instituted better training and new rules that have sharply reduced the number of searches for American citizens. Supporters of the FBI say Congress should enshrine those rules into law so they cant be rolled back easily.

The bureau said Tuesday that it would begin to immediately suspend any employees access to Section 702 databases for an incident involving negligence. Repeat mistakes could result in an employee being reassigned or referred for an internal investigation.

Senators on the judiciary committee praised Section 702 for its national security purposes but also said the FBIs mistakes had damaged its reputation with Congress and the public.

What Im trying to tell my constituents back home (is) the threats to the country are growing, theyre not lessening, said Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., and the top Republican on the panel, adding: Bottom line is lets reauthorize this program and build in some safeguards.

But Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., the panels chairman, said of the FBIs current reforms, Ive got to see more.

Many in the GOP are deeply angry at the FBI for the mistakes as well as for omissions in the bureaus investigation of former President Donald Trumps ties to Russia. Some echo Trumps attacks on the FBI as part of a so-called deep state.

And some Democrats say they wont vote to renew Section 702 without new restrictions on access to U.S. citizens communications. Graham on Tuesday also said he was concerned about Americans data being accessed without a warrant.

Senior Biden administration officials reiterated Monday that they oppose proposals to require the FBI to get a warrant every time it searches for an Americans information. Previous administrations have fought the idea as well.

We must not forget the lessons of 9/11, said Matthew Olsen, the assistant attorney general for national security. Unduly limiting the FBIs ability to access lawfully collected information and imposing artificial barriers between foreign intelligence and criminal investigations will set us back decades. It will put our nation at grave risk.

The U.S. public at large is also skeptical of surveillance practices, according to new polling from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs, with Democrats and Republicans opposing some practices authorized by Section 702 in roughly equal measure.

A coalition of 21 civil liberties groups issued a letter Monday saying lawmakers should not renew the law without critical reforms, including a warrant requirement.

Although purportedly targeted at foreigners, Section 702 has become a rich source of warrantless government access to Americans phone calls, texts, and emails, the letter says. This has turned Section 702 into something Congress never intended: a domestic spying tool.

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The votes are in. Syracusans have chosen their favorite design for a new city flag.

The peoples choice is the First Light flag, featuring a 6-point orange star on a tri-color background. Adapt CNY announced the results of the city-wide vote at a Wednesday city hall meeting, on National Flag Day, to some fanfare in the chamber.

The Syracuse Common Council will vote Tuesday and can approve the flag design with a majority vote.

The "First Light" flag by 8th-generation Syracusan and artist Eric Hart. Photo provided by the Syracuse Flag Initiative

The flag was designed by Eric Hart, an 8th-generation Syracusan and graduate of design at Syracuse University. He was awarded $500 by Adapt CNY for his design.

The six points of the flags star are meant to symbolize the six nations of the Haudenosaunee and Syracuses six historical names. Its spot in the center of the flag represents Syracuses location in Central New York. The orange color of the star is the rising sun, and the central white triangle symbolizes the salt and snow of Upstate New York.

The design was chosen after a four-week ranked-choice voting process during which Adapt CNY set up voting stations in Salt City Market and public libraries to encourage participation. 1,452 Syracuse residents voted in total, said Eric Ennis, president of Adapt CNY.

The process brought out a lot of debate online, Ennis said.

I will tell you that theres a very strong passionate underground community that loves flags in this community, he said.

We really came to see that a lot of self-described flag critics have come out as well in the last three to four weeks.

More than 300 designs were initially submitted for consideration. Four semi-finalists were chosen by a volunteer-comprised flag committee with members from each of Syracuses districts and Onondaga Nation. Voters chose between those four semi-finalists.

For more information about the flag and the voting process, go to syracuseflag.com.

MORE:

A century-old debacle? The messy tale of how Syracuse wound up with its city flag

City flag candidates dont bring Syracuse to mind ... or anyplace (Your Letters)

Syracuse might get a new flag. Here are the options, and how to vote

Group seeking redesign of Syracuses objectively ugly flag asks for public submissions
A former bank manager in Boston stole $121,000 in customer funds, according to acting U.S. Attorney Joshua S. Levys office.

Nathan Wadsworth, 32, of Marietta, N.Y., pleaded guilty to one count of bank fraud Thursday, according to Levys office. He was charged May 17.

Levys office said Wadsworth was from Syracuse, but his address is listed as 3154 Hearn Drive in Marietta, located in the Town of Otisco.
The Syracuse Juneteenth Board of Directors has selected eighth-graders Naraea Medley and Monique Richardson as its winners of this years Edmonia Highgate Essay Contest.

Medley attends the Syracuse STEM at Blodget, while Richardson attends Brighton Academy. Prizes for the winners are supplied by Syracuse.com | The Post-Standard.

This years Juneteenth festival will take place in Clinton Square on June 16-17.

The essay contest is named in honor of Highgate because of her ground-breaking success as a student in Syracuse and her life spent dedicated to providing Black citizens an education.

Highgate graduated with honors in the first graduating class from the new Syracuse High School in 1861. She was the only Black student. Even then she was an impressive author and speaker.

She taught in Norfolk, Virginia; Maryland; and New Orleans, enduring violence and threats.

Highgate achieved such bravery and achievement in her life despite dying suddenly at 26 years old.

Her funeral was held on Oct. 18, 1870, at Syracuses Wesleyan Church and she was buried in Oakwood Cemetery.

For this years Juneteenth Essay Contest, the Syracuse Juneteenth Board of Directors asked students to share their thoughts on contemporary issues in racial equity.

Below are the winning essays:

Naraea Medley

The Struggle Continues

Do you think housing, jobs and income are examples of disparity in U.S communities? Studies show that 11.6% or 37.9 million people (about twice the population of New York) were in poverty in the U.S. Studies also say that Native Americans, Alaskans and African Americans have the highest rate of poverty. The struggle for racial equity continues in our society through poverty which requires communal attention by eliminating poverty through equity and giving everyone the same opportunity as higher classes.

The causes of poverty around the world are rooted in inequity and disparity. The article The Top 11 Cases of Poverty Around the World states, In 2019, estimates were close to 600,000,000 live in extreme poverty. Consequently, this example gives us an exact number of people who were in extreme poverty.

The article also states, If a person does not get enough food, they will lack the strength and energy needed to work. This proves that not maintaining a healthy lifestyle can bring your energy down and affects whether someone can work or not, causing them to be in poverty. Lastly, the article states, Climate change causes poverty, working as an independent link between not only extreme poverty, but also hunger, conflict, inequity, and lack of education. This is a strong piece of evidence for my claim because it tells us how an effect on climate change can cause people to go into poverty and put people down as they struggle to make money.

The most likely reasons for inequality and poverty in the U.S. are racism and discrimination. The article, Inequality and Poverty states, Over the past 15 years, the OECD has collected a significant body of evidence on the extent and drivers of inequities, social mobility. As you can see, this is an example for my claim because they can use that evidence in court cases, or they can show it to the government to try and make a change in racial acts and inequality people of color receive from getting an equal opportunity.

The article also states, Lower income people have been prevented from realizing their human capitalism potential. This proves how people in poverty are realizing that they are misfits or outcasts in their society just because they are not able to afford certain things people who are not in poverty can afford. Finally, the article states, Lower middle-class households face an increasing risk of slipping out of the middle; meanwhile upward mobility into the middle has declined particularly for workers in typical middle-classes occupations. This indicates how lower middle-class people face hardships in poverty and deal with inequity.

The change in eliminating poverty through equity is a result of peace in different societies. The government can help create a law to give everyone equal pay no matter their gender or ethnicity. This supports my claim by giving a solution on how to prevent poverty and inequity in the U.S. community. Also, every person can be given an equal opportunity in job interviews. This solution also is a good example for my claim because this gives U.S citizens an equal opportunity to go to job interviews and not be discriminated against to have a fair shot at getting the job. Also, the government and the community can come together to provide things for people struggling with poverty, such as food, clothes, living essentials, etc. This solution is a good example as well because committing these acts can help get people in poverty back on their feet to start fresh.

In conclusion, in our society poverty and inequity are a racial struggle that continues because people of color are not given the same opportunity as white people. Poverty and inequity around the world are a big struggle for people of color, and we can eliminate that struggle for them by eliminating poverty through equity to give people of color a fair shot at job interviews so they can make money to get themselves out of poverty. If the community does not help to eliminate poverty and inequality, then people of color will continue to struggle, and it can eventually create a big disruption in their society because they will become enraged of their lifestyle so protests will be created, and protests can eventually become violent. If we can eliminate poverty through equity, there will be more peace in societies, U.S communities, and there will be a tremendous change in the world alone.

Monique Richardson

Juneteenth

Juneteenth for me means the day when freedom was given to people of all races. We honor Juneteenth because everyone is equal, and that day it was made clear. It took a lot to get here, many deaths, runaways, and many rule breakers. People fought and gave up their lives to get out of slavery.

It is important that our school district recognized Juneteenth as a holiday because then that means they recognize the Black community as an equal and as human beings. We can celebrate in many ways. We can celebrate Black excellence in our community, celebrate other Black holidays, and continue to fight for Black rights.

MORE ON EDMONIA HIGHGAGTE:

A Light in the Darkness: The extraordinary life of Edmonia Highgate

After being denied a chance to teach in Syracuse, Edmonia Highgate taught freed Black people in the South
A Donald Trump supporter holds a T-shirt with an effigy of the former president with "Not Guilty" written on it, outside the Miami courthouse where the ex-president was arraigned on Tuesday.

The latest news from Miami promises to be one of the central motifs of the impending U.S. presidential campaign. Former president Donald Trump  who was arraigned Tuesday in a Miami courtroom on 37 charges related to the illegal handling of classified documents  argues that hes the victim of a political witch hunt. His allies in the Republican Party have echoed his allegations almost verbatim, claiming that the Department of Justice has imposed double standards on the former president, treating him with undue harshness, while President Joe Biden and former secretary of state Hillary Clinton  both Democrats  were given a pass regarding their alleged errors in their handling of classified information.

None of the aforementioned cases, however, have much to do with each other. Trump also conveniently omitted the case of his former vice president, Mike Pence, which contradicts the argument of double standards being employed against Republicans. At Pences private Indiana residence, some classified documents related to his time in the White House were also found. He immediately admitted that he had taken them by mistake and returned them. The Department of Justice determined that Pence  now a candidate for the Republican presidential nomination, like Trump  had acted in good faith and hadnt committed any crime. For this reason, the investigation into the former vice president was closed, with no charges filed.

However, despite Pences situation, the allegations made by Trump  who kept boxes of classified documents in his Mar-a-Lago mansion, which were ultimately recovered during a court-ordered search  appear to be gaining ground among his supporters. The former president remains the front-runner in the Republican primaries, according to all the polls. On social media, his core voters repeat Trumps arguments over and over again. And leading figures within the GOP, including his main rivals in the race for the White House, have also come to his defense.

Hillary [Clinton] had the emails, said Florida Governor Ron DeSantis at a campaign event. Is there a different standard for a Democratic secretary of state versus a former Republican president? I think there needs to be one standard of justice in this country. DeSantis is Trumps main rival in the Republican primaries.

It doesnt seem to matter that Trumps comments are inaccurate, even bordering on slander. Three days ago, on his social media network Truth Social, he wrote: Hillary [Clinton] and Biden were not Indicted. Hillary destroyed 33,000 emails with BleachBit, and smashed her phones with a hammer. Biden was even worse, but they didnt get Indicted and, unlike them, I never gave a foreign power anything. Biden probably did. He gave to China because China gave him a lot of money? In other posts  embellished with his heavy use of capitalization and exclamation marks  Trump accuses the current occupant of the White House of keeping 1,850 boxes of secret documents at the University of Delaware.

Trumps argument mixes apples and oranges. The number of boxes is referring to what President Biden donated to his alma mater, and they contain documents that pertain to his 36-year-long career as a senator. Under U.S. law, this material is considered to be private property: it can be freely transferred by its owner. Investigators have also gone through said documents, finding no evidence that they contain any secret material from Bidens time (2009-2017) as Barack Obamas vice president.

Its true that Biden, like Trump, is under investigation by a special counsel from the Department of Justice, Robert Hur. This prosecutors team is examining various classified documents that were discovered at Bidens private residence in Delaware and in his private office in Washington  which he occupied after leaving the White House  between October 2022 and January 2023.

While the case is still open, from the outset, the incumbent president and his lawyers have assured the public that they are collaborating with investigators, allowing the Department of Justice full access to all sites that could be related to the matter. All materials that have been found have been returned to the authorities. There is no indication that the president or his aides intentionally withheld on to confidential documents. This requirement  that of intent  is essential to determining whether or not a crime has been committed.

If Trump had done the same [and had returned the papers when they were requested by the National Archives], there would have been no grand jury, there probably would have been no search warrant, and [he] probably would have avoided potential criminal trouble, former Watergate prosecutor Nick Akerman told ABC News.

U.S. law requires presidents and vice presidents to keep all official documents received during their terms and, upon leaving office, turn them over to the National Archives for safekeeping. To keep any documents, they must request a special permit and offer up their reasoning for not wanting to turn them over. However, its not uncommon for some documents to be misplaced, though they are typically returned when found.

Hillary Clintons case has already been closed for several years. In 2016, when the former secretary of state was the Democratic candidate against Trump, she faced one of the greatest controversies of the electoral campaign. During her time in president Obamas administration, she had used a private email server for her formal communications. In 2015, U.S. intelligence agencies alerted the FBI that her server potentially had hundreds of messages containing classified information.

Investigators determined that of the nearly 30,000 emails on the server, 110 included in 52 email threads contained classified information. The case was closed in July 2016, with no charges filed. Although, it was reopened 11 days before the presidential election, after the FBI found another batch of messages. Once again, all charges against Clinton were dismissed.

Back then, at the height of the electoral campaign, Trump launched into long rants at his rallies, warning about the importance of properly preserving state secrets and confidential documents. Special Counsel Jack Smith  who is leading the investigation into the case of the former presidents Mar-a-Lago papers  has cited these remarks to reinforce his accusations against the former president, who is facing 37 charges in relation to seven federal crimes.

This is the big difference between the cases: Smith sees that the former president intended to keep secret documents at his private residence in Florida. The special counsel is accusing the former president of obstruction of justice and of having violated the Espionage Act, for attempting to keep the documents in his possession despite repeated requests by the National Archives to return them.

The charges indicate that the documents kept by the former president are marked as classified, with some of them marked as top secret. There is also a recording of Trump  made six months after he left the White House  where he acknowledges that a piece of paper in his hand is classified: As president, I could have declassified it... But now I cant, he comments, according to the transcript included in the 49-page indictment filed by the Department of Justice.

For now, Trump is continuing his strategy of presenting himself as a victim of the system. His claims of political persecution are generating significant donations and political attention for his presidential campaign. Just three hours before his appearance in a Miami courtroom, he put out one of his characteristic messages on Truth Social: Will Deranged Jack Smith be looking at the thousands of pages of documents that Biden had in Chinatown then, when caught, quickly sent up to Boston? What about the 1,850 Boxes that Biden is fighting to keep secret. How about Hillarys 33,000 emails that she deleted and acid washed? Will he be looking at the $5,000,000 bribe that was paid to Biden but that the Justice Department is trying to hide?

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Sailors Society thanked by crew of Heroic Idun

As well as supporting the crew, Sailors Society has been offering support to family members

"It was clear the extremely positive effect our constant contact, interaction, assistance and support has had on the crew and their families throughout their ordeal". Members of the Sailors Society Crisis Response Network have just met with the crew of the Heroic Idun who returned to Cape Town yesterday (June 7) after a 10-month detention. CRN team member, Boet van Schalkwyk, said: "Though the crew were in good heart, delighted to be free and heading home, they had clearly undergone a traumatic and drawn-out ordeal. "They really appreciated our support for them and their families throughout this time and are looking forward to this continuing when they get home to their families." The team will keep in contact as any unresolved psychological distress will likely surface within a few weeks of returning home. As well as supporting the crew, Sailors Society has been offering support to family members in the Kochin, Mumbai and Bhubaneshwar areas of India. Members of the CRN team supported these families through the postponement of several trial dates and were on hand when the news finally arrived that the crew and their vessel had been released.




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KYODO NEWS - Jun 14, 2023 - 16:47 | All, Japan

Adult tickets for the 2025 World Exposition in Osaka, western Japan, are set to cost 7,500 yen ($50) per adult, its organizing association said Wednesday, representing a 25 percent rise from the initially proposed 6,000 yen price tag.

Tickets are set to cost 4,200 yen for visitors aged between 12 and 17 and 1,800 yen for those aged between 4 and 11, while those aged 3 and below can enter for free, the Japan Association for the 2025 World Exposition said in a press conference.

There also will be discounts available depending on when people visit, it said.

"We would like many children to come and visit, which is why we decided on pricing it this way," said Masakazu Tokura, chairman of the association.

The revenue generated from the tickets will largely go towards covering the event's operational and security costs, which are likely to balloon from the initial estimate of 80.9 billion yen due to rises in commodity prices and wages.

Tickets are slated to become available at the end of November, 500 days before the expo opens on April 13, with visitors able to purchase electronic tickets six months in advance.

The expo will run until Oct. 13 on Yumeshima, an artificial island in Osaka Bay, centered on the theme of "Designing Future Society for Our Lives."

Japan last held a world expo in 2005 in Aichi Prefecture, when adult tickets were priced at 4,600 yen.

Related coverage:

2025 World Expo in Osaka ticket prices may see over 30% hike
Artyom BHPian



Join Date: May 2020 Location: Bengaluru Posts: 566 Thanked: 1,537 Times

Quality Family Time covering Mysore -> Madikere -> Mangalore -> Goa -> Shimoga

It started with a call in May this year from my Brother- In Law who was casually inquiring about how to plan a south trip.

I shared my views and a few places to visit and the discussion ended on the note  Chalo Dekhte hain (Ok Lets see).

We had these discussions in the past and they never materialized due to some or the other reason so I was expecting the same this time.



A week passed and one fine day I get a Whats app message with the flight booking for the whole family.

They were arriving in Bangalore next week.

I seriously thought he was kidding but a quick call confirmed It is happening along with a request to plan a week long trip covering a hill station and beaches.

I was happy to meet the kids and the family and a little nervous about how to plan everything in such a short time.



First things first leaves were applied and were approved. Then came the tricky part of creating an Itinerary to cover all these places. After some brainstorming we finalized the following :-



Bangalore->Mysore->Madikeri(1 Night)->Mangalore(1 Night)->Goa(2 Nights)->Shimoga(2 Nights)->Bangalore.



I was able to book the accommodation as it was kinda off season without much hassle.

Now came the mode of transport and as luck would have it we were able to book a Tata Hexa from one of the fellow residents in our apartment who gives his vehicle for rent.

The charges were less than what Zoomcar charges so it was a win win.



Mysore

********

We left Bangalore around 6 Am and wanted to reach Mysore as early as possible.

Weather was good and in no time we hit the Expressway.As we gradually increased the speed we realized the alignment of the vehicle was a little off and it was wobbling.

We informed the owner and he accepted it and quoted some technical fault which could be causing it.

He assured us that it wouldn't cause any issues on the trip but we were a little worried so we drove it below 100.

Kids were eager to visit the Mysore Zoo and the Mysore Palace so first we headed for the zoo.

It was a Sunday morning and we were expecting a decent crowd.

Little did we know that it would be so crowded that reaching the ticket counter would seem to be a challenge on its own.

That clubbed with sweltering heat made us drop the plan .

We assured the kids a visit to Bannerghatta zoo which we did later on.

Little disappointed, we headed towards the Mysore palace parking lot.

After waiting for 15 minutes in the queue we realized the queue was almost 1 kilometer long.

This clubbed with people breaking the queue and entering made us lose interest and we decided to just click a couple of pictures in front of the palace and then head straight to Madikere.



Madikere->Chilipili Estate Stay

***************************************

As we approached Madikere it started drizzling which made our day.

The home stay is deep inside the forest and is a good 30-40 minutes drive from the main road and worth every mile.

We were suggested a home stay which is amidst the coffee plantation and was very scenic.

The owner was a fine lady who was a professional photographer, avid solo traveler (Read Leh, Ladakh circuits) and owned the coffee plantation.

She was really an inspiration to us all considering how humble yet how determined she was.

Our room had a few paintings outside one of which was for a black Leopard.

Those who dont know it's one of those animals which is spotted once in ages.

It's rare to spot one of them.

We thought it was one of those photos you buy from the market and frame it.

On closer inspection we realized it was clicked by the host herself.

Upon asking she told she had to wait for 4 years before spotting that beast and clicking before it disappeared.

The rooms were clean and hygienic with good Wifi connectivity.

We reached there by 4 Pm and were offered filter coffee which made us lose all the fatigue.

Now how could we miss Pandi Curry and Pork Fry while in Coorg.

The taste was amazing and we thoroughly enjoyed both the dishes with some Old Monk.

The dinner spread although an Ala-carte had so many dishes that we had to ask the cook to stop sending more.

With tummies full we called it a day and had a very peaceful night among the sweet sound of rain.

The next day we had plans to visit the Elephant caves as it was nothing we have experienced before.

We had plans to visit the Dubare Elephant caves but due to some misguidance we ended up at the Harangi Tree Park and Elephant Camp.

It was less crowded and we spent good time appreciating the gentle giants.

This was the first time I was seeing elephants with their tuskers intact and boy they were splendid.

After spending close to an hour and enjoying the cool shade of a tree house we decided to move back and leave for Mangalore.



Mangalore->Ginger Hotels

****************************

On the way to Mangalore we passed the main town of Madikere and purchased some coffee.

The way to Mangalore is splendid with the ghat section welcoming us first and gradually the scene changes and we are greeted with the famous coastline along which the highway runs.

We reached Mangalore by evening and after freshening up hogged upon the famous seafood at Machli followed by some yummy ice cream at Pabas.



South Goa->Sarover Portico

******************************

As soon as we left Mangalore the Goa vibes were on.

We were eagerly waiting for the serene beaches to welcome us and not to mention some good Beer.

The more sweltering it became outside the more we could imagine ourselves enjoying the beer on the shacks.

The journey from Mangalore to Goa was an end to end highway drive which was completed in no time.

We reached the hotel by noon and relaxed for a while.

The property is a 5 minute drive from the Palolem beach.

In the evening we went to Patnem Beach and enjoyed the sunset followed by some good seafood on the shacks.

The next day we visited Agonda beach in the evening and after all the shenanigans we had dinner at the hotel and called it a day.

On the day of checkout early in the morning we visited the Palolem beach to enjoy the sunrise followed by a few pictures at the shark point.

Since Palolem beach was the closest we enjoyed the sunset and sunrise during our stay.

The whole idea of visiting South Goa and specifically these beaches was to enjoy the peace.

Sit and relax watching the waves and forgetting the day to day hassles for a while.

All these 3 beaches were less crowded and relatively clean so we enjoyed it thoroughly.

Food at the hotel was Just OK with the service being the low point.

The parking was also a challenge although luckily we managed to find a slot.

Overall we achieved the purpose of relaxing and unwinding ourselves so no qualms at last.



Jog Falls

**********

While we were heading to our next stop we realized that Jog Falls is on the way.

We were warned that it would be relatively dry as the monsoon has not arrived.

We still took the chance and visited it.

It was least crowded which was good and we enjoyed a good half hour clicking pictures and enjoying the scenery.



Shimoga->Shimoga Country Club

************************************

Our next stop was Shimoga and you might find it an out of the way stoppage but we had a very good reason to visit.

My Brother In Law had a dear friend from school days and he insisted us to visit .

Settled in Shimoga and a historian by profession a thorough gentleman with abundance of knowledge being a historian.

We were witness to his rare collection of antique items which included weapons and other antiques.

After talking to him I realized there is so much history that we are not aware of.

Had a lot of interesting discussions with him with respect to Indian history etc.

We visited a famous temple which is known for its brilliant architecture.

Amrutheshwara Temple as it is known is a masterpiece of architecture from the Hoysala empire with the story of Ramayana carved out on the stones just to name a few.

The inner sanctum was another masterpiece with the pillars round and smooth as silk and the ceilings which are bell shaped all of different designs.

Each and every inch of this temple was carved in stone with such precision.

Just adjacent to the temple is a stone tablet almost 6 feet tall which has the whole history carved on it.

It was an out of world experience I must stay.

We also witnessed stone tablets which were actually marking stones for the warriors when they fought and died were erected at that place.

The marking stone depicts the story of a warrior fighting and then getting martyred and ascending to heaven.

Overall it was a surreal experience, especially visiting it with someone who can explain things in-depth.



Finally after we reached Bangalore after a fun filled ,partially tiring and good family time of 6 days.

Total Distance Traveled ->1700 Km in 6 days.





Additional Observations:-

************************

->Driving the Hexa after driving my Creta was like driving a Truck.Thankfully it was an Automatic.

->Since the alignment was off we could not drive it beyond 100 for long.

->Tata Hexa was comfortable without a doubt and drove like a tank on rough roads.

->Diesel is more expensive in Goa than Bangalore .

->The restaurants in Mangalore specializing in seafood especially the old ones close by 3 or 4 pm so plan accordingly. I can't recall the name but we reached one of them to find it was closed.

->You will be stopped for checking while exiting Goa for Liquor but usually if you are with family they will let you go after asking a few questions. This was one of the most impromptu trips we have done so far and we thoroughly enjoyed it .It started with a call in May this year from my Brother- In Law who was casually inquiring about how to plan a south trip.I shared my views and a few places to visit and the discussion ended on the note  (Ok Lets see).We had these discussions in the past and they never materialized due to some or the other reason so I was expecting the same this time.A week passed and one fine day I get a Whats app message with the flight booking for the whole family.They were arriving in Bangalore next week.I seriously thought he was kidding but a quick call confirmed  along with a request to plan a week long trip covering a hill station and beaches.I was happy to meet the kids and the family and a little nervous about how to plan everything in such a short time.First things first leaves were applied and were approved. Then came the tricky part of creating an Itinerary to cover all these places. After some brainstorming we finalized the following :-I was able to book the accommodation as it was kinda off season without much hassle.Now came the mode of transport and as luck would have it we were able to book a Tata Hexa from one of the fellow residents in our apartment who gives his vehicle for rent.The charges were less than what Zoomcar charges so it was a win win.********We left Bangalore around 6 Am and wanted to reach Mysore as early as possible.Weather was good and in no time we hit the Expressway.As we gradually increased the speed we realized the alignment of the vehicle was a little off and it was wobbling.We informed the owner and he accepted it and quoted some technical fault which could be causing it.He assured us that it wouldn't cause any issues on the trip but we were a little worried so we drove it below 100.Kids were eager to visit the Mysore Zoo and the Mysore Palace so first we headed for the zoo.It was a Sunday morning and we were expecting a decent crowd.Little did we know that it would be so crowded that reaching the ticket counter would seem to be a challenge on its own.That clubbed with sweltering heat made us drop the plan .We assured the kids a visit to Bannerghatta zoo which we did later on.Little disappointed, we headed towards the Mysore palace parking lot.After waiting for 15 minutes in the queue we realized the queue was almost 1 kilometer long.This clubbed with people breaking the queue and entering made us lose interest and we decided to just click a couple of pictures in front of the palace and then head straight to Madikere.->***************************************As we approached Madikere it started drizzling which made our day.The home stay is deep inside the forest and is a good 30-40 minutes drive from the main road and worth every mile.We were suggested a home stay which is amidst the coffee plantation and was very scenic.The owner was a fine lady who was a professional photographer, avid solo traveler) and owned the coffee plantation.She was really an inspiration to us all considering how humble yet how determined she was.Our room had a few paintings outside one of which was for a black Leopard.Those who dont know it's one of those animals which is spotted once in ages.It's rare to spot one of them.We thought it was one of those photos you buy from the market and frame it.On closer inspection we realized it was clicked by the host herself.Upon asking she told she had to wait for 4 years before spotting that beast and clicking before it disappeared.The rooms were clean and hygienic with good Wifi connectivity.We reached there by 4 Pm and were offered filter coffee which made us lose all the fatigue.Now how could we miss Pandi Curry and Pork Fry while in Coorg.The taste was amazing and we thoroughly enjoyed both the dishes with some Old Monk.The dinner spread although an Ala-carte had so many dishes that we had to ask the cook to stop sending more.With tummies full we called it a day and had a very peaceful night among the sweet sound of rain.The next day we had plans to visit the Elephant caves as it was nothing we have experienced before.We had plans to visit the Dubare Elephant caves but due to some misguidance we ended up at the .It was less crowded and we spent good time appreciating the gentle giants.This was the first time I was seeing elephants with their tuskers intact and boy they were splendid.After spending close to an hour and enjoying the cool shade of a tree house we decided to move back and leave for Mangalore.->****************************On the way to Mangalore we passed the main town of Madikere and purchased some coffee.The way to Mangalore is splendid with the ghat section welcoming us first and gradually the scene changes and we are greeted with the famous coastline along which the highway runs.We reached Mangalore by evening and after freshening up hogged upon the famous seafood at  followed by some yummy ice cream at .->******************************As soon as we left Mangalore the Goa vibes were on.We were eagerly waiting for the serene beaches to welcome us and not to mention some good Beer.The more sweltering it became outside the more we could imagine ourselves enjoying the beer on the shacks.The journey from Mangalore to Goa was an end to end highway drive which was completed in no time.We reached the hotel by noon and relaxed for a while.The property is a 5 minute drive from theIn the evening we went toand enjoyed the sunset followed by some good seafood on the shacks.The next day we visitedin the evening and after all the shenanigans we had dinner at the hotel and called it a day.On the day of checkout early in the morning we visited the Palolem beach to enjoy the sunrise followed by a few pictures at the shark point.Since Palolem beach was the closest we enjoyed the sunset and sunrise during our stay.The whole idea of visiting South Goa and specifically these beaches was to enjoy the peace.Sit and relax watching the waves and forgetting the day to day hassles for a while.All these 3 beaches were less crowded and relatively clean so we enjoyed it thoroughly.Food at the hotel was Just OK with the service being the low point.The parking was also a challenge although luckily we managed to find a slot.Overall we achieved the purpose of relaxing and unwinding ourselves so no qualms at last.**********While we were heading to our next stop we realized that Jog Falls is on the way.We were warned that it would be relatively dry as the monsoon has not arrived.We still took the chance and visited it.It was least crowded which was good and we enjoyed a good half hour clicking pictures and enjoying the scenery.->************************************Our next stop was Shimoga and you might find it an out of the way stoppage but we had a very good reason to visit.My Brother In Law had a dear friend from school days and he insisted us to visit .Settled in Shimoga and a historian by profession a thorough gentleman with abundance of knowledge being a historian.We were witness to his rare collection of antique items which included weapons and other antiques.After talking to him I realized there is so much history that we are not aware of.Had a lot of interesting discussions with him with respect to Indian history etc.We visited a famous temple which is known for its brilliant architecture.as it is known is a masterpiece of architecture from theempire with the story of Ramayana carved out on the stones just to name a few.The inner sanctum was another masterpiece with the pillars round and smooth as silk and the ceilings which are bell shaped all of different designs.Each and every inch of this temple was carved in stone with such precision.Just adjacent to the temple is a stone tablet almost 6 feet tall which has the whole history carved on it.It was an out of world experience I must stay.We also witnessed stone tablets which were actually marking stones for the warriors when they fought and died were erected at that place.The marking stone depicts the story of a warrior fighting and then getting martyred and ascending to heaven.Overall it was a surreal experience, especially visiting it with someone who can explain things in-depth.Finally after we reached Bangalore after a fun filled ,partially tiring and good family time of 6 days.Total Distance Traveled ->1700 Km in 6 days.:-************************->Driving the Hexa after driving my Creta was like driving a Truck.Thankfully it was an Automatic.->Since the alignment was off we could not drive it beyond 100 for long.->Tata Hexa was comfortable without a doubt and drove like a tank on rough roads.->Diesel is more expensive in Goa than Bangalore .->The restaurants in Mangalore specializing in seafood especially the old ones close by 3 or 4 pm so plan accordingly. I can't recall the name but we reached one of them to find it was closed.->You will be stopped for checking while exiting Goa for Liquor but usually if you are with family they will let you go after asking a few questions. Attached Thumbnails
























































































































The findings of a new report highlight the growing urgency for cybersecurity measures in response to the increasing threat of email attacks crafted with generative AI.

The findings of a new report highlight the growing urgency for cybersecurity measures in response to the increasing threat of email attacks crafted with generative AI.

Generative AI tools like ChatGPT are sparking an increase in sophisticated email attacks, according to a report released Wednesday by a global, cloud-based email security company.

Security leaders have worried about the possibilities of AI-generated email attacks since ChatGPT was released, and were starting to see those fears validated, noted the report from Abnormal Security.

The company reported that it has recently stopped a number of attacks that contain language strongly suspected to be written by AI.

High-end threat actors have always used artificial intelligence. Generative AI isnt a big deal for them because they already had access to tools to enable these kinds of attacks, said Dan Shiebler, Abnormals head of machine learning and author of the report.

What generative AI does is commoditize sophisticated attacks so we will see more of them, he told TechNewsWorld.

We have seen an increase in business email compromise (BEC) attacks, which these kinds of technologies make easier to do, he continued.

The release of ChatGPT was a consumer milestone, but the release of GPT3 in 2020 enabled threat actors to use AI in email attacks, he added.

Scary Application

Mika Aalto, co-founder and CEO of Hoxhunt, a provider of enterprise security awareness solutions in Helsinki, told TechNewsWorld that attackers are adopting AI technology to create more convincing BEC campaigns and develop more sophisticated BEC attack kits that are then sold on the dark web.

According to our own research, human social engineers are still better at crafting phishing emails than large language models, but that gap is closing, he said. Hackers are improving at prompt engineering and circumventing guardrails against the misuse of ChatGPT for BEC campaigns.

One pretty scary application of this technology is iterative resending of an attack, noted Shiebler. 

A system can send an attack, determine if it made it through to the recipients, and if it doesnt make it through, modify the attack repeatedly, he explained. Essentially, it learns how the defense is functioning and modifies the attack to take advantage of that.

In its report, Abnormal demonstrated how generative AI was used in three attacks on its customers  a credential phishing attack, a traditional BEC attack, and a vendor fraud attack.

These three examples are only a small percentage of the email attacks generated by AI, which Abnormal is now seeing on a near-daily basis, the report noted.

Unfortunately, it continued, as the technology continues to evolve, cybercrime will evolve with it, and both the volume and sophistication of these attacks will continue to increase.

No More Fractured English

Generative AI tools can increase the effectiveness of a phishing campaign, especially those originating outside the United States.

Many email attacks originate outside the U.S. by non-native speakers, resulting in emails with obvious grammatical issues and unusual tone of voice, which trigger suspicion by the recipient, explained Dror Liwer, co-founder of Coro, a cloud-based cybersecurity company based in Tel Aviv, Israel.

Generative AI allows the sender to create a customized, conversational, extremely credible email that would trigger no suspicion, resulting in more users falling into the trap, he told TechNewsWorld.

Proper context and grammar make the content more believable and less likely to be suspicious to the user, added James McQuiggan, a security awareness advocate at KnowBe4, a security awareness training provider in Clearwater, Fla.

Additionally, he told TechNewsWorld, generative AI can pull information from the internet about an organization to create a targeted or more believable spear phishing campaign.

Joey Stanford, head of global security and privacy at Platform.sh, a global platform as a service provider, noted that email attacks crafted with generative AI might appear more realistic and convincing because they use sophisticated linguistic techniques and large datasets of phishing emails.

This allows bad actors to automatically generate new, compelling phishing emails that are more difficult to detect, he told TechNewsWorld. Generative AI tools like OpenAIs ChatGPT may be behind the 135% increase in scam emails using these techniques revealed in a recent Darktrace report.

Fighting AI With AI

Stanford maintained that organizations could protect themselves at the network level against email attacks crafted with generative AI by using cybersecurity tools with self-learning AI. Those tools, he explained, can detect and respond to anomalous and malicious email activity in real time without relying on prior knowledge of past threats.

These tools can also help organizations to educate their employees on how to spot and report phishing emails and enforce security policies and best practices across the network, he said.

He acknowledged that those tools were new and undergoing rapid development, but fighting AI with AI appears to be the best solution to the problem for several reasons. Those include:

Generative AI attacks are dynamic and adaptive and can evade traditional security models that rely on prior knowledge of past threats.

Self-learning AI tools can detect and respond to anomalous and malicious email activity in real time without human intervention or predefined rules.

AI tools can also analyze the content and context of emails and texts and flag any suspicious or malicious ones for further investigation or action.

AI tools can help to educate and empower data science and security teams to collaborate and build a proactive and holistic AI security program.

Beyond AI to Behavior Analytics

However, the generative AI problem cant be solved in the long term with more AI, countered John Bambenek, principle threat hunter at Netenrich, an IT and digital security operations company in San Jose, Calif.

What is needed is looking at what is normal and abnormal from a behavior analytics standpoint and to realize that email is insecure and non-securable, he told TechNewsWorld. The more something matters, the less it should rely on email.

The key is still the same, think twice before taking action on an email, especially if its something sensitive like a financial transaction or a request for authentication, he added.

Whether an email is generated by an AI, bot, or human, the steps for vetting it remain the same, advised McQuiggan. A recipient should ask three questions: Is this email unexpected? Is it from someone I dont know? Are they asking me to do something unusual or in a hurry?

If the answer is yes to any of those questions, take the extra time to verify the information in the email, he said.

Taking the extra few moments to check the links, the emails source, and the request can reduce additional costs or resources because someone clicked a link and initiated a risk of data breach to the organization, he advised.
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What just happened? Jack Dorsey, the co-founder and former CEO of Twitter, says that India threatened to shut down the platform and raid employees' homes in the country after it refused to remove accounts and tweets that were critical of the government.

In an interview with YouTube news show Breaking Points, Dorsey revealed that Twitter users' criticism of India's handling of the farmers' protests in 2020 was a sore point for the country's government.

"It manifested in ways such as: 'We will shut Twitter down in India', which is a very large market for us; 'We will raid the homes of your employees', which they did; and this is India, a democratic country," Dorsey told hosts Krystal Ball and Saagar Enjeti.

Dorsey also claimed that Twitter was asked to censor journalists in India and Turkey who criticized the government.

India has denied Dorsey's allegations. India's deputy minister for information technology, Rajeev Chandrashekar, tweeted a response on Tuesday that read, "This is an outright lie... Perhaps an attempt to brush out that very dubious period of Twitter's history."

"No one went to jail nor was Twitter 'shutdown'. Dorsey's Twitter regime had a problem accepting the sovereignty of Indian law. It behaved as if the laws of India did not apply to it."

The BBC writes that during the farmers' protests against the agricultural reform laws, the Indian government asked Twitter to remove tweets it believed used an incendiary hashtag, and accounts it alleged were used by Pakistan-backed Sikh separatist groups.

Twitter initially blocked 250 accounts, including a news magazine and organizations supporting the year-long protests, but restored most of them just six hours later citing "insufficient justification" for keeping them suspended. Twitter incurred the government's wrath further by refusing its request to take down 1,100 accounts that were allegedly spreading misinformation.

The government responded by threatening Twitter employees in India with seven years imprisonment and fines. Police also visited the company's offices, part of a separate investigation over Twitter labeling an Indian minister's tweets as manipulated media.

India introduced a law in 2021 that threatens tech company bosses and those who work for them with potential imprisonment if they don't comply with takedown orders within 36 hours.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his government are regular users of Twitter, though the number of legal demands sent by the government to remove content from the platform increased by 48,000% between 2014 and 2020.

India is Twitter's third largest market behind the US and Japan. It appears that since free-speech-loving Elon Musk took over, Twitter has been more willing to comply with the government's demands; Chandrasekhar said Twitter had been in compliance since June 2022.
Why it matters: The US Administration wants to strengthen the software supply chain by requiring vendors and federal agencies to certify that the software they sell (and use) is secure. It turns out the certification process can be much more complex and troublesome than initially foreseen.

Published by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), the so-called Secure Software Development Framework (SSDF) is a "special publication" (800-218) containing recommendations for mitigating the risk of software security flaws. Created in the wake of the infamous SolarWinds attacks, the documentation should theoretically help US federal agencies, software developers and vendors to deploy a more secure and trustworthy supply chain in the United States.

The US government had initially set a hard deadline (September 14, 2022) for the aforementioned federal agencies to comply with the SSDF requirements and additional NIST guidance. US officials had to certify that they were employing software provided by vendors who could attest to complying with "Government-specified minimum secure software development practices."

The previously-set deadline is no more, as the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) is working on a "common form" for software certification with the US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA). Once completed, the new form will require all federal vendors and software providers to sign it. Federal agencies will be given three months to collect those certifications for "critical" providers, and six months for other, low-priority vendors.

The new memorandum reaffirms the "importance of secure software development practices," the OMB office says, while CISA is still collecting feedback on the new "Secure Software Self-Attestation Form" until June 26, 2023. The latest SSDF version (1.1) dates back to February 2022, and it provides a detailed list of development and review practices to ensure software products used by the US government are at least a bit harder to hack and compromise than before.

Furthermore, the OMB has clarified that the NIST requirements do not apply to open source and "freely, directly obtained" software used by federal agencies and personnel. This software category is outside the scope of the SSDF, as "customers" have no clear opportunity to negotiate with a well-defined manufacturer of incorporated entity.

Therefore, attestations about security practices will not be required for web browser and other free, yet significant "core software applications" currently in use by the government. US agencies, however, will still be required to "assess the risk" in employing such software on federal computers and take "appropriate steps" to minimize or eliminate known security risks.
In context: The EFI system partition plays a crucial role in the Windows booting process, but it also provides a potential "safe haven" for malicious software and security threats. While still rare, "EFI infiltration" is a tactic being increasingly employed by newer malware strains.

In Microsoft's own words, the EFI System Partition (ESP) is required on UEFI systems to boot from a GPT-style partitioned storage drive  UEFI and GPT being two technology advancements designed to supersede obsolete BIOS and MBR standards.

The EFI partition, which usually resides on the system's primary "hard drive," contains the operating system's bootloader and kernel image, basic device drivers used by the UEFI firmware at boot time and other software tools needed to run before the OS is properly loaded in RAM.

Being a fundamental component within the modern Windows booting process, the EFI partition has become a privileged target for the most complex and advanced security threats out there. The infamous BlackLotus UEFI bootkit exploits the ESP to hide from security software, and now a newly discovered "crypto stealer" is doing the same to try and escape antivirus detection.

Identified by Russian-made security software Dr.Web, Trojan.Clipper.231 is a trojan application hiding in some "pirated" ISO builds of Windows 10 Pro (22H2) being distributed on the BitTorrent network. Doctor Web discovered the threat after being contacted by a customer at the end of May 2023, with further analyses confirming the infection ongoing on the customer's Windows 10 computer.

The three-part infection includes a malware designed to steal popular cryptocurrencies (Trojan.Clipper.231), a trojan dropper (Trojan.MulDrop22.7578) and a code injector (Trojan.Inject4.57873) used to launch the clipper malware. The three files have been identified in several ISO custom builds, which were seemingly targeted at Russian-speaking users with file names such as "Windows 10 Pro 22H2 19045.2728 + Office 2021 x64 by BoJlIIIebnik RU.iso".

Once installed on a PC, the malicious Windows build is designed to run the dropper ("iscsicli.exe") via the system Task Scheduler. The dropper is designed to mount the EFI partition as an "M:\" drive, copy the two other malicious components on the partition, delete the original trojan from the C: drive, and finally launch the injector while unmounting the EFI partition.

The injector then brings the clipper code into the "lsaiso.exe" system process, where Trojan.Clipper.231 will operate from now on. The clipper monitors the Windows clipboard, checking if crypto wallet addresses are being copied by the user and replacing them with addresses controlled by the cyber-criminals. Furthermore, the clipper checks active processes to try and avoid being detected by well-known analysis tools such as Process Explorer, Task Manager, Process Monitor, and ProcessHacker.

According to figures provided by Doctor Web, the aforementioned cyber-criminals managed to steal at least $19,000 worth of cryptocurrencies from legit wallet addresses so far. Malware infiltration into the EFI partition as an attack vector is still very rare, Dr. Web says, so any new identified case can be of great interest to computer security specialists.
The big picture: One of the most undisputed beneficiaries of the generative AI phenomenon has been the GPU, a chip that first made its mark as a graphics accelerator for gaming. As it happens, GPUs have proven remarkably adept at facilitating and enhancing the process of training large foundation models, and executing AI inferencing workloads.

Up until now, the big winner in the generative AI GPU game has been Nvidia, thanks to a combination of strong hardware and a large installed base of CUDA software tools. However, at an event in San Francisco this week, AMD came out with new GPU and CPU hardware and important new software partnerships and updates. Together, AMD believes these developments will allow it to secure a larger share of a datacenter AI accelerator market it predicts will reach $150 billion by 2027.

AMD introduced the new Instinct MI300X chip as a dedicated generative AI accelerator. It leverages the same basic chiplet design as the previously announced Instinct MI300A (which AMD is now sampling), but the MI300X substitutes the 24 Zen 4 CPU cores in the MI300A with additional CDNA3 GPU cores and High Bandwidth Memory (HBM).

Indeed, this new chip  with a total of 153 billion transistors  boasts 192 GB of HBM and offers 5.2 TB/second of memory bandwidth. These numbers represent a 2.4x increase in memory capacity and a 1.6x enhancement in throughput compared to Nvidia's current H100 accelerator. Although these figures may be overwhelming for most applications, large language models (LLMs) run most efficiently in memory, indicating this should translate to solid real-world performance when the chip begins sampling in the third quarter of this year.

On the software front, AMD made several significant announcements. Firstly, the company detailed the latest version of its ROCm platform for AI software development, ROCm 5. This comprises low-level libraries, compilers, development tools, and a runtime that lets AI-related workloads run natively on AMD's Instinct line of GPU accelerators. This serves as the foundation for AI development frameworks like PyTorch, TensorFlow, and ONNX. Moreover, a new partnership with the PyTorch Foundation emerged at AMD's event. From PyTorch 2.0 onwards, any AI models or applications developed with PyTorch will run natively on AMD Instinct accelerators that have been upgraded to support ROCm 5.4.2.

This development is significant as many AI models are built with PyTorch and, until this announcement, most could only run on Nvidia's GPUs. Now, developers and major cloud computing providers can opt to use AMD Instinct accelerators directly or replace Nvidia accelerators with AMD ones.

Another major software announcement involved Hugging Face, which has rapidly become the go-to site for open-source AI models. As part of their new partnership, Hugging Face will collaborate with AMD to ensure compatibility of existing and new open-source models posted on its site with Instinct accelerators. They also plan to work on compatibility across other AMD processors, including Epyc and Ryzen CPUs, Radeon GPUs, Alveo DPUs, and Versal FPGAs (or adaptive processors, as AMD refers to them). This should help position AMD as a viable alternative to Nvidia in several AI datacenter environments.

On the datacenter CPU front, AMD announced their new "Bergamo" and "Genoa X" versions of their fourth-generation Epyc processors, and hinted at another version named "Sienna" to be announced later this year. Bergamo is optimized for cloud computing workloads, featuring a new smaller Zen4c core and accommodating more of these smaller cores onto the chip (up to 128). The refined architecture facilitates operations such as running more containers simultaneously, leading to impressive benchmarks that partners including AWS, Azure, and Meta were keen to discuss.

The Genoa X model combines AMD's 3D V-Cache technology, first introduced with their third-generation "Milan" series, with the fourth-generation Genoa CPU design. It's optimized for technical and high-performance computing (HPC) workloads that require more and faster on-die cache memories.

These CPU developments, as well as variations on the Instinct MI300 accelerator, reflect AMD's growing diversity of designs optimized for specific applications. All these can leverage key AMD technologies, including their chiplet-based design and the Infinity Fabric interconnect technology. It's a prime example of how forward-looking designs can significantly influence overall strategies.

AMD also unveiled the Instinct Platform at their event, which, like Nvidia's similar offering, integrates eight of AMD's GPU-based accelerators (MI300Xs) into a single, compact hardware design.

To be clear, Nvidia still maintains a significant lead in generative AI training and holds a strong position in inferencing. H owever, once these new accelerators and software partnerships begin to influence the market, they could make a notable difference for AMD. While many companies appreciate what Nvidia has achieved for generative AI, no one relishes a market dominated by a single entity. Consequently, several companies will likely welcome AMD's emergence as a strong alternative in this sector.

On the datacenter CPU front, AMD has already established itself as a solid alternative to Intel. It's not difficult to imagine the company developing a similar profile in datacenter AI accelerators. While the journey won't be easy, it's bound to make things more exciting.
In case you missed it, a 65-year-old former official at Samsung Electronics was recently arrested in South Korea for allegedly stealing blueprints and design plans to replicate an entire factory in China.

This audacious act also involved poaching over 200 semiconductor experts and stealing data worth over $200 million.

As Bloomberg notes, the case highlights the desperate measures individuals and businesses are willing to take to secure crucial semiconductors.

Tech Industry Secrets Now Open Targets

Semiconductors play a vital role in today's world, serving as the foundation for electric vehicles, cellular networks, and advancements in artificial intelligence.

Large economies like Japan, Korea, India, and the EU are investing billions in securing their positions in chipmaking leadership.

The importance of semiconductors is evident in the success of companies like Nvidia Corp., known for its AI-training chips that recently pushed its valuation to $1 trillion.

However, the supply of these critical components is becoming fragmented due to growing sanctions on major chipmaking centers like Taiwan and Korea and efforts to reposition manufacturing.

The United States is leading the charge to reduce reliance on these regions and establish a more self-reliant chip supply chain as well as chip-boosting laws.

The future implications of geopolitical tensions and intellectual property protection raise concerns about the potential for escalating multibillion-dollar IP espionage.

Global Chip Espionage

In a separate development, Reuters reports that a state-sponsored Chinese hacking group has been involved in spying on the United States's critical infrastructure organizations.

Western intelligence agencies and Microsoft revealed that this extensive cyber espionage campaign targeted sectors such as telecommunications and transportation hubs.

Read Also: Xbox PC Game Pass Titles are Coming to NVIDIA's GeForce Now-Available for All Devices

While espionage activities between China and the United States are not uncommon, this represents one of China's most extensive cyber-espionage campaigns against American critical infrastructure.

Chinese officials dismissed the hacking allegations as a "collective disinformation campaign" orchestrated by the Five Eyes countries (United States, Canada, New Zealand, Australia, and the UK).

The full extent of the damage caused by this cyber-espionage campaign is still being determined. The US National Security Agency and partners in Canada, New Zealand, Australia, and the UK are working to identify breaches. Concerns have been raised that the hackers may also target Canada, the UK, Australia, and New Zealand.

Microsoft analysts warn that the Chinese hacking group, known as 'Volt Typhoon,' is developing capabilities that could disrupt critical communications infrastructure between the United States and the Asia region during future crises.

US on Alleged Chinese Espionage

The US cybersecurity watchdog has warned of China's persistent cyber espionage threat to the US government and private-sector networks.

It also raises the alarm about China's capability to launch cyberattacks that could disrupt critical infrastructure services within the United States, including oil and gas pipelines and rail systems.

As tensions between China and the US escalate, the need for robust cybersecurity measures and constant vigilance becomes crucial.

The interplay between technological advancements, intellectual property protection, and national security is complex, and inadequate defense mechanisms can have far-reaching consequences.

Stay posted here at Tech Times.

Related Article: Former Samsung Executive Arrested for Stealing Trade Secrets to Build Chip Plant in China

 2023 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
The top US cybersecurity officer has issued a stern warning on China's cyber espionage and sabotage capabilities, describing them as an "epoch-defining threat."

Jen Easterly, Director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), recently spoke at the Aspen Institute in Washington, DC. She discussed the possibility that China could engage in "aggressive cyber operations" that could cause social unrest and disrupt vital US transportation infrastructure in the event of open warfare, CNBC reported.

Easterly's worry stems from the newly exposed Chinese penetration of American military and commercial sector infrastructure; this assault is linked to the organization known as "Volt Typhoon," which has strong links to the Chinese government's cyber-offensive capabilities.

The CISA head cautioned that it would be challenging to prevent disruptions if cyber organizations with similar aims targeted crucial transportation infrastructure like pipelines and trains in the event of an open confrontation between the United States and China.

Easterly emphasized the need for "operational and societal resilience" and "cyber resilience." She also underlined the necessity of being aware of and ready for the possible repercussions of cyberattacks on crucial infrastructure.

China Denies US' Allegations

The US government is emphasizing the defense against cyber threats coming from China and Asia during increased geopolitical tensions, which is why these warnings are being issued.

The United States has taken a more transparent and open stance in identifying the linkages between the Chinese government and different hacking organizations since there is a growing awareness of these relationships.

Easterly's comments add to past advisories from the US intelligence community that, in the event of a significant conflict, China would not be reluctant to conduct aggressive cyber operations against US military and critical infrastructure targets, per Reuters.

No one is immune to cyber threats.  Cybersecurity should be on the daily agenda for both big and small businesses.



Watch @CISAJen, director of @CISAgov, discuss this important topic with journalist Katie (cont) https://t.co/CJv3Vz6PQB pic.twitter.com/XeUMqWNUid  Think with Google MENA (@thinkgooglemena) June 13, 2023

Other American officials have also expressed worry about China's use of cyberattacks to undermine American support for Taiwan in the event of an invasion.

Meanwhile, the United States assertions were swiftly refuted by China, which emphasized that it has always opposed and severely punished all types of cyber hacking in line with its laws. Chinese Embassy spokesperson Liu Pengyu even accused the US of massive, coordinated, and indiscriminate cyber theft and spying on foreign governments, organizations, and persons, according to VOA News.

Related Article: Twitter Faces Ban Threats in India, Nigeria, and Turkey

 2023 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
GoDaddy, the company that helps entrepreneurs thrive, has launched its latest cyber security offering, a Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) Setup Service in Saudi Arabia.

This is a more cost-effective way to set up SSL certificates for entrepreneur and small businesses customers who have simple websites with limited budgets.

The new security feature, part of GoDaddys security offering, including Website Security and a full range of SSL certificates, is a more economical option that will help keep a site safe and secure. Entrepreneurs and small business owners who do not need ongoing support, can benefit from this new service.

News service

SSL Setup Service means GoDaddy experts only instal configure and troubleshoot the SSL certificates. This new service can eliminate frustration and saving entrepreneurs time to allow them to create, manage and grow their business, or their clients online presence.

Selina Bieber, Commercial Strategy Senior Director, International Markets at GoDaddy, said: GoDaddy is proud to evolve our offering to suit a range of customers. The SSL Setup Service is the latest addition to GoDaddys existing fully Managed SSL service, helping entrepreneurs and small business owners focus on their businesses by giving them all the tools they need to grow online.

GoDaddy's 2021 Website Security Survey shed light on the security concerns faced by Mena customer websites, with over 50% of them necessitating enhanced security measures. Notably, the survey highlighted that Mena entrepreneurs' primary apprehensions revolved around the exposure of customer data and the potential loss of customer trust.

Security features

To help ensure the safety and security of customers websites as well as that of their own end customers, the new security proposition is equipped with security features including redirect to https, update of all mixed content to ensure the padlock shows in browser address bars, sitemap update so that Google recognises that the site is loading securely over https, WAF settings update if the site has a firewall to ensure full encryption. A benefit of having a secure website is that it, in turn, boosts Google rankings, and is supported by GoDaddy experts 24/7.

Purchasing an SSL is just the first step in protecting a site and the customers sensitive visitor information. The SSL also must be set up, requiring multiple steps and often a higher technical know-how to accomplish. This can create a frustrating experience for a small-to-medium sized business owner (SMB) or even busy website professionals (Pros). For a small fee, SMBs and Pros can have GoDaddy setup the SSL to make sure it is functioning as expected on their site.

Furthermore, customers can always pay a web development professional to install and develop their website. The new proposition offers the competitive benefit to customers of ease and peace of mind of not having to manage a relationship with the professional.

The new product also allows for installation and configuration management and mixed content update service which is not readily available in the market.-- TradeArabia News Service
KYODO NEWS - Jun 14, 2023 - 21:17 | All, Japan

A Ground Self-Defense Force recruit shot three instructors, two of whom were killed and another seriously injured, on Wednesday during a live-fire training exercise at the force's firing range in central Japan, the GSDF said.

The recruit, an 18-year-old male, was arrested at the site following the incident that occurred at around 9:10 a.m. during the indoor exercise in Gifu Prefecture, according to the GSDF. He has admitted to shooting the victims with a rifle, police said.

There were no reports of civilian casualties.

The two who died were aged 52 and 25, according to the police. They and the third SDF member shot, also 25, were taken to hospital, according to local firefighters.

The recruit denied his intention to kill the 25-year-old who died, said the police, which will jointly look into the incident and the shooter's motive with a GSDF section.

The suspect was quoted as telling investigators that the 25-year-old was not his target but merely got in the way as he fired at another person, investigative sources said, suggesting the trainee initially took aim at the 52-year-old.

"As an organization that handles weapons, such things should never happen," Gen. Yasunori Morishita, chief of staff of the GSDF, told a press conference at the Defense Ministry in Tokyo.

Following the incident, the GSDF will immediately suspend all shooting and explosion drills across the nation to ensure the safety of its troops, according to Morishita. He also said the GSDF will set up an investigation panel to prevent the recurrence of such an incident.

The trainee joined the GSDF in April and belonged to the same regiment as the three senior personnel in charge of training, Morishita said.

The training session involved approximately 120 personnel, including some 70 recruits. Its purpose was for them to acquire expertise in utilizing a commonly employed assault rifle, and it was the fifth and last drill for the suspect, according to the GSDF.

Further details, such as personal relations between the recruit and the victims, are being investigated, the GSDF said.

GSDF recruits start working as regular personnel with fixed terms of a year and nine months after a three-month educational training period, according to the ministry.

"I sincerely apologize for causing worry to Japanese people," Defense Minister Yasukazu Hamada told reporters in Tokyo.

The firing range is about 5 kilometers northeast of JR Gifu Station.

Shoji Tsusaki, 73, who lives nearby, witnessed ambulances and firetrucks rushing to the scene around 9:30 a.m. Police vehicles also arrived, and investigators entered the facility, he said.

Tsusaki sensed that "something terrible had happened." He added, "I was just surprised and could not understand the situation."

He also saw a GSDF member in camouflage uniform come out of the soundproof building and sit down, looking stunned.

"I cannot understand why the suspect did such a thing," said a 78-year-old man who used to work part-time for the SDF. The man, who lives in the city, said he came to the site as he was concerned about what had happened.

Related coverage:

Suspect in central Japan slayings asked mother to shoot him

Man arrested over fatal stabbing, shooting of 4 in central Japan

Suspicious delivery halts Japan court preparations to try Abe shooter
Engineers at Switzerland's Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne (EPFL) have unveiled a groundbreaking development in robotics: shapeshifting, 2D triangular robots that can transform into virtually any 3D shape.

Inspired by biological swarm behaviors and geometrical patterns, these robots, known as Mori3, are modular and origami-like.

Shapeshifting 2D Robots

In a recently published paper in Nature Machine Intelligence, the EPFL researchers explained that the Mori3 robots could be assembled and disassembled according to the environment and task.

This adaptability and flexibility make them ideal for space exploration, where space is limited and costs are a significant concern.

Instead of specializing in a single role, they serve as all-purpose systems that can transform to meet the specific needs of astronauts.

Flexible for Any Task

In a proof-of-concept demonstration, Popular Science reports that the Mori3 robots showcased their versatility by shuffling around, handling objects, and interacting with their environment.

They were able to form various design shapes, including a single-walking quadrupedal machine and an upright, three-dimensional walking robot.

Christoph Belke, a robotics researcher at EPFL and co-author of the study, emphasized the significance of this development, stating, "These robots can change their own shape, attach to each other, communicate, and reconfigure to form functional and articulated structures."

Future of Space Robots

As space agencies and private companies gear up for crewed missions to the moon and Mars, robots will play an increasingly vital role in supporting these endeavors. With limited space available on rockets, it is crucial to have flexible and adaptable robots.

Mori3, with its modular and shapeshifting capabilities, offers a promising solution for the future of space exploration.

As shown in footage shared by DailyBeast, these robots can handle various tasks, from external repairs in the harsh vacuum of space to internal transportation within lunar bases or spacecraft, by changing their size, shape, and function.

Read Also: Meet ANDI: This ASU Thermal Manikin Robot Can Breathe, Sweat and Walk Like a Human

Jamie Paik, the director of EPFL's Reconfigurable Robotics Lab and co-author of the study, explained the significance of Mori3, stating, "Our aim with Mori3 is to create a modular, origami-like robot that can be assembled and disassembled at will depending on the environment and task at hand."

The researchers at EPFL have successfully demonstrated the transformative potential of Mori3 robots, paving the way for a new era of robotics in space exploration.

By combining the principles of biology, geometry, and innovative engineering, these shapeshifting robots offer unprecedented adaptability and versatility, ensuring that future missions can overcome the challenges of space travel more efficiently and effectively.

What's In The News

The development of shapeshifting 2D robots represents a major breakthrough in robotics and space exploration.

The Mori3 robots, with their ability to transform into virtually any 3D shape, offer a cost-effective and versatile solution for tasks in space.

In related news, a company called Space Forge is planning to test its innovative heat shield, named Pridwen, on a SpaceX Falcon 9 mission later this year.

This space shield, which has a clever design, is backed by the UK Space Agency and the European Space Agency (ESA). Its goal is to transform spacecraft reentry using folding techniques inspired by origami.

Stay posted here at Tech Times.

Related Article: New Robot Vacuum Can Climb Stairs - MIGO Ascender Is Now Available for Preorders but There's a Catch

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A TikTok travel influencer recently divulged her terrifying experience on an Emirates trip, which she called the "worst flight" of her life when her gluten-free onboard dinner unintentionally included a croissant containing gluten, which led to the incident.

Chloe Chapdelaine described the experience in an emotional TikTok video published on June 5 and said she has been eating gluten-free for over 10 years. She was told the croissant she was given was gluten-free but found out it was not afterward, Insider reported.

The 25-year-old Canadian influencer from Alberta tried to make herself throw up in the aircraft bathroom to eliminate any probable gluten sensitivity symptoms. She described the uncomfortable incident and her fight to avoid panic attacks during the flight from Dubai to Los Angeles, which took 15 hours.

In the TikTok clip, Chapdelaine addressed the crucial nature of the celiac illness, a gluten sensitivity. She thought ailments like celiac disease needed to be considered on an equal footing with nut sensitivities.

Read Also: US Cybersecurity Official Raises Alarm on China's Aggressive Cyber Operations

Chloe Chapdelaine is very sensitive to gluten; even "trace amounts or cross-contamination" may cause serious responses. In an interview with Kennedy News, she discussed her anxiety after discovering she had eaten a sizable chunk of a non-gluten-free croissant.

For the TikTok travel influencer, the consequences of ingesting gluten were practically instantaneous, leading her to induce vomiting to limit additional harm. She spent approximately an hour in the bathroom recovering from the ordeal's physical and mental toll, according to New York Post.

Users Support Chapdelaine

The TikTok video posted by Chloe Chapdelaine soon gained 2 million views. Several users expressed sympathy for her situation.

User kathlynn said, "People downplaying celiac disease don't get it. I wish I could hug you, girly. I hope you're managing okay. I would have done the exact same thing."

TikTok user Jamie shared a similar nightmarish experience: "You know. I took a 16hr flight to Australia, and @Air Canada "forgot" my gluten-free meal after delaying me for 24 hours. I cried like this."

Another user commented that the same mishap happened to her during a 14-hour solo trip. "Spent half the flight essentially on the toilet non-stop puking," said Ally.

Falling_sparks reacted: "To everyone saying she should have packed her food, was she supposed to eat snacks the entire flight?"

Emirate Reacts To The Viral Video

After the upsetting event, Chloe Chapdelaine contacted Emirates' Customer Affairs department to get answers.

The concerned airline, Emirates, responded to the incident and expressed that it is "dissapointed to hear" the TikTok star's experience, per LAD Bible. The airline stressed its dedication to customer satisfaction by providing customized meals to meet passengers' medical, nutritional, and religious demands. The company also guaranteed safety and health on their flights.

Emirates said that they are looking investigating the situation.

Related Article: Paul McCartney Reveals AI Restored John Lennon's Vocals for Final Beatles Record

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Apple is reportedly considering expanding the camera capabilities of its iPhone lineup. Rumors suggest that after introducing a 48MP camera in the iPhone 14 Pro models, Apple may extend this powerful camera system to the entire iPhone 15 family.

These rumors stem from reports indicating that Sony, one of Apple's camera suppliers, is experiencing production constraints due to increased demand.

Apple Rumored to Roll Out 48 MP Camera to All iPhone 15 Models

According to a report by the Chinese-speaking publication IT Home, Sony has reached out to Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) for assistance in handling the surge in orders. Sony's camera units, including the color filter film, are facing pressure due to Apple's adoption of the 48MP camera in their smartphones.

Apple is allegedly planning a comprehensive upgrade to the 48MP camera system for the entire iPhone 15 lineup rather than limiting it to the Pro models alone.

The adoption of this advanced camera setup, dubbed "state-of-the-art sensors," has led to a higher demand for the camera hardware, causing manufacturing strain for Sony. Sony may expand its back-end manufacturing processes to cope with the increased orders, as it has previously done with companies like TSMC.

The complexity of Sony's camera setup, which involves a triple-layer structure and stacking technology for superior image quality, has contributed to their manufacturing concerns. The stacking technology enhances sensitivity and reduces image noise in photos.

Related Article: [RUMOR] New Wired USB-C EarPods for iPhone 15 Could Arrive! Is Apple Really Mass Producing Them?

iPhone 15 Production Delay

Earlier reports in May 2023 also hinted at potential production delays for the iPhone 15 lineup, partly due to supply constraints related to the camera systems.

iPhone 15 Will Contain a Cheaper Chip

Another story from Tom's Guide tells that the upcoming Apple handset will have its chip swapped to a "cost-cutting N3E" process from A17 bionic rumor.

The leak, which came from a Weibo user named Cell Phone Chip Expert, suggests that cheaper chips will be coming in 2024.

If true, consumers could expect a lower MSRP for the upcoming handhelds. This is great news for those planning to purchase an iPhone 15. However, this might not appeal to others who wish to see a highly-advanced processor coming to the scene.

No Solid-State Buttons For iPhone 15

Meanwhile, Tech Times reported back in April that the iPhone 15 Pro will not feature solid-state buttons. Reliable tech analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said that the smartphone would revert to its traditional design when it comes to this part.

The rumor appears to be supported by a report from two analysts Shelly Choi and Jeff Pu that the Cupertino giant won't be adding extra bulk to the next iPhone lineup. If that's the case, then we might allegedly see it returning by 2024 when the iPhone 16 models come out.

It is important to note that these are rumors and should be treated as such until Apple or other reliable sources make official announcements.

Read Also: 5 Practical iOS 17 Features You Need to Add to Your Routine [2023]

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AMD revealed a few more details regarding its upcoming line of artificial intelligence processors, in an effort to compete with its rivals and help data centers to handle the popularity of AI. This was teased earlier this year during the Consumer Electronic Show Convention 2023.

(Photo : PAU BARRENA/AFP via Getty Images)

This photograph shows a AMD logo at the Mobile World Congress (MWC), the telecom industry's biggest annual gathering, in Barcelona on February 27, 2023.

AMD's Bet for Generative AI

As OpenAI's ChatGPT becomes one of the most popular tools related to AI, a lot of people have been wondering if other GPUs will deliver the computational large memory requirements of LLMs other than NVIDIA's A100 and H100. According to a report from Bloomberg, Advanced Micro Devices Inc. will change that later this year.

AMD introduced the Instinct MI300 series earlier this year, and Chief Executive Officer Lisa Su unveiled more details regarding the GPU. The company stated during a presentation in San Francisco today, this will include an accelerator that has the capacity to speed processing for generative AI, which is similarly used by ChatGPT and other chatbots.

Instinct MI300X accelerator was also introduced by the company during the presentation, which is claimed as the world's most advanced accelerator for generative AI. This is based on the next generation of AMD CDNA 3 accelerator architecture and supports up to 192 GB of HBM 3 memory, aiming to provide the compute and memory efficiency needed for LLMs training.

Since it is equipped with a large memory, customers can now fit LLMs like Falcon-40, a 40B parameter model on a single, and MI300X accelerator5. Aside from this, the company also introduced the AMD Instinct Platform that brings MI300x into a design that is considered as the standard in the industry for solving AI inference and training.

Lastly, AMD Instinct MI300A was introduced as the first APU Accelerator for HPC and AI workloads in the world. It is currently sampling to customers while MI300X will start key sampling in the third quarter of the year.

Racing to Offer the World's First CPU, CPU Combo

As the chip industry becomes more challenging the market, AMD is racing to meet the increasing demand for AI computing as data centers are being pushed to the limit. Especially popular services that rely much on large language models and algorithms that take a massive amount of data to answer queries and generate images as fast as they can.

CEO Su added that AMD is still in the early life cycle of artificial intelligence but as for the preparation, it's going to be a lot. WCCF Tech reported that the total addressable market for data center AI accelerators will increase fivefold to more than $150 billion by 2027.

Along with AMD, Intel, and NVIDIA are currently racing to offer the first CPU and CPU combo in the world. Intel was supposed to offer Falcon Shores as its bet, which was going to combine an x86 CPU with a leading-edge GPU. Unfortunately, those plans did not come to fruition and faced delays in the project.

Also Read: Acer Nitro 16 QHD Gaming Laptop with AMD Ryzen 7735HS and RTX 4070 Spotted as a Discount: $100 Off MSRP

As per Forbes' report, Microsoft and OpenAI need to have an alternative to NVIDIA, which comes at perfect timing as they project AMD will give the company an offer that they cannot refuse knowing that MI300X looks to be a solid contender. Although this has not been confirmed, the report stated it is still possible to happen.

Related Article: AMD Zen 2-based Ryzen and Athlon 7020C Series Launches: Chromebooks Get RDNA 2.0 Integrated Graphics Upgrade

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The origin of humanity has long been the focus of scientific discoveries as researchers try to understand the actions of early humans further. Now, recent discoveries show that there is evidence that the first human ancestors arrived in Southeast Asia some 86,000 years ago.

New Evidence Reveals More About How Early Human Ancestors Traveled on Foot

According to a new study, early humans were known to travel on foot for miles and miles through unfavorable obstacles and circumstances. These included the lack of food, water, harsh terrains, and bad weather, Interesting Engineering reported.

The study shared the difficulties of piecing together the migration tales of human ancestors. Archaeologists were able to gather evidence of these lengthy travels due to the collection of thousands of years-old records.

New Discovered Evidence Adds Up to Previous Discoveries on to What Scientists Know of Human Ancestors

The records compiled in the investigation include those that were buried in different locations around the world. They were then cross-referenced and used to paint a massive picture of what early ancestors' migration tales might be like.

So far, more evidence keeps coming in, with scientists continuing to acquire new ones. Numerous ancient human artifacts remain hidden and are just waiting to be uncovered.

New Discovery in Northern Laos Cave Shows More Details About the Earliest Human Migrations

Recently, new evidence found in a cave in northern Laos provides a more detailed picture of the earliest human migration from Africa to Australia. This evidence for the earliest human presence in Southeast Asia was reportedly found buried in various sediment layers of Tam Pa Ling cave.

It reportedly shows that early modern humans traveled from Africa to Arabia and then Asia far earlier than previously assumed. Experts believe these humans passed by this cave between 86,000 and 68,000 years ago on their way to becoming Australia's First People.

University of Copenhagen Palaeoanthropologist Fabrice Demeter Talks About Evidence in the Cave

In a statement, Fabrice Demeter, a palaeoanthropologist from the University of Copenhagen, and one of the research paper's lead authors, said the Tam Pa Ling cave plays a significant role in the story of modern human migration through Asia. However, Demeter noted that its significance and value are "only just being recognized."

In 2009, a skull and mandible were discovered in this cave. The skeleton was discovered to belong to Homo sapiens, who had moved through the Southeast Asia region thousands of years ago.

Read Also: Massive Stone Walls Along River Nile Unveil Millennia-Old Hydraulic Engineering Marvels

Evidence Found in the Northern Laos Cave

In this latest finding, an international group of researchers found seven parts of the human skeleton at 4.5 meters intervals, two complete bovid teeth at 6.5 meters, and a fragment of a leg bone at seven meters from the cave.

The scientists applied several dating techniques to the skeletons' remains, and they discovered that these humans arrived in this cave between 86,000 and 68,000 years ago.

This new dating analysis pushed prehistoric humans' first arrival to mainland Southeast Asia further back to about 40,000 years. The new findings also showed that the early ancestors had the ability to travel in forested areas and inland river systems to reach other parts of the world.

The study's results were reported in the journal Nature Communications.

Related Article: Maritime Archaeologists Discover Carvings of Sweden's Famed 17th-Century Warship Vasa

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Celebrities and influencers are now increasingly taking over for journalists as the people's source for news. Reports found that the younger generation now prefers social media applications like TikTok as a new channel for their main source of news, rather than traditional media.

(Photo : Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

SAN FRANCISCO - SEPTEMBER 20: Freshly printed copies of the San Francisco Chronicle roll off the printing press at one of the Chronicle's printing facilities September 20, 2007 in San Francisco, California.

TikTok as News Access

Younger generations now prefer to access news through social media rather than reading the newspapers, watching the news on the television, or listening to radio reports. According to the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism in its annual Digital News Report, audiences are now paying more attention to celebrities, influencers, and personalities on internet platforms.

55% of TikTok and Snpahcta users get their news from personalities on the internet while 52% from Instagram. Meanwhile, 33-42% of the survey get it from mainstream media and traditional journalists on the mentioned platforms, which are the most popular social media applications among the younger generation.

Despite journalists leading conversations around news on Twitter and Facebook, they struggle to get the attention of much newer platforms. TikTok is the fastest-growing social network in the report, which is used by 20% of 18-24-year-olds. This study was funded by the Thomson Reuters Foundation, which is the company's philanthropic arm.

Potential Reasons

Younger audiences gain little interest in many conventional news offers as it tends toward older generations' habits, interests, and values. Reuters Institute Director Rasmus Nielsen stated, "There are no reasonable grounds for expecting that those born in the 2000s will suddenly come to prefer old-fashioned websites, let alone broadcast and print, simply because they grow older."

The results were based on interviews from the conducted study, containing 94,000 people across 46 countries conducted by the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism. This institution is part of the University of Oxford in Britain.

Irish News reported that the study highlighted important people that contributed journalism on TikTok, including Britain's Matt Welland who discusses current affairs and daily life on his TikTok account which contains 2.8 million subscribers.

Also Read: Ex-ByteDance Executive Claims Chinese Communist Party Accessed Tiktok's Data to Spy on Hong Kong's Civil Rights Activists

Lead Report Author Nic Newman stated that websites are now more optimized for those that are engaged with every twist on today's news. However, these approaches also seem to be turning large sections of the public away, potentially having long-term implications for civic and democratic engagement.

TikTok has been met with incredulity and worries about the death of traditional journalism. But rather than seeing it as a threat, The Guardian reported that we should see it as a natural evolution as news finds its best possible way to find its right channel, knowing that journalism has been presented to the media as always being transformative.

Related Article: TikTok Aims to Increase Its E-Commerce Sales to $20 Billion, Relies on Southeast Asia

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The port of Rotterdam, Europe's largest port, fell victim to a cyberattack orchestrated by hackers affiliated with Russia, according to port authorities.

This incident comes after similar attacks on several Dutch ports, including Amsterdam and Groningen, where distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks disrupted online operations, Bloomberg reported.

The Dutch National Cyber Security Center provided the port of Rotterdam with information pointing to pro-Russian groups as the culprits behind the cyberattack.

Cyberattack on Port of Rotterdam

A DDoS attack is a malicious cyberattack that aims to disrupt the normal functioning of a target website, network, or online service by overwhelming it with a flood of illegitimate traffic. The objective is to make the targeted system unavailable to its intended users, causing inconvenience, financial losses, or reputational damage.

DDoS attacks work by utilizing multiple compromised devices, often forming a network of bots or zombies called a botnet. These compromised devices, which can include computers, servers, Internet of Things (IoT) devices, or even smartphones, are usually infected with malware or controlled by the attacker through other means.

Reports from Dutch news outlet RTL shed light on the motives behind the cyberattacks. A hacker group self-identified as "NoName057(16)" claimed responsibility, stating that the attacks were in response to the Netherlands' plans to procure Swiss tanks for Ukraine.

Earlier this year, intelligence agencies had warned about Russia's potential sabotage of Dutch maritime infrastructure. During the cyberattack, the port of Amsterdam's website was rendered inaccessible for over an hour on June 6, while Groningen Seaports experienced disruptions that lasted two days.

Fortunately, no money was paid to the pro-Russian hackers, and there was no compromise of sensitive data, as confirmed by a port spokesperson.

Investigations revealed that the attacks originated from Russian and Serbian IP addresses. The port of Rotterdam obtained this information from its service provider, further supporting the attribution of the cyberattack to Russia-aligned hackers.

Read Also: Fake AI Chatbot Apps Are Spreading: Here's How to Avoid Being Tricked

Major Breach Targets Tech Vendor

In a related cybersecurity news, a major breach targeted the systems of a technology vendor, resulting in the theft of approximately half a million personal health records. The breach affected Fortra, the vendor associated with Intellihartx, and has raised significant concerns about data security.

The stolen information encompassed a wide range of sensitive data, including patient names, addresses, dates of birth, and Social Security numbers. Such compromised information poses a serious risk to the affected individuals.

Moreover, the breach also exposed medical billing, insurance details, confidential diagnoses, and medication records. The gravity of this incident extends beyond Intellihartx, as Fortra's GoAnywhere file-transfer software has become a prime target for cybercriminals.

Exploiting an undisclosed vulnerability in Fortra's software, the cybercriminal group known as Clop infiltrated the networks of over a hundred organizations and companies, resulting in a widespread impact.

Among the notable victims of these aggressive cyberattacks were Hatch Bank, a digital financier; Rubrik, a renowned security firm; and even the City of Toronto.

Related Article: US Dental Health Insurance Firm Hit By Ransomware Attack: Nearly 9 Million Patients Exposed

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Online retail giant Amazon is facing accusations of exploiting small businesses after a recent report claimed that the company was significantly raising fees and advertising costs for sellers.

According to The Guardian, the report, spanning from 2017 to 2022, found that Amazon had tripled its earnings from fees charged to independent sellers in Europe, surpassing the growth in sales, which only doubled during the same period.

'Captive Clientele'

An examination of the costs associated with delivering and storing goods for sellers in the UK, France, Germany, Spain, and Italy revealed that prices in certain categories had more than doubled between 2017 and 2023.

Margarida Silva, a researcher at the Amsterdam-based Centre for Research on Multinational Corporations, also known as Somo, alleged that Amazon is exploiting a "captive clientele" by expanding its control over online shopping in Europe.

Based on Somo's analysis of accounts for the group's European arm, Amazon EU Sarl, the income derived from sellers' fees increased 6% last year, reaching 23.5 billion, despite a 1% decline in retail sales. Notably, these fees do not include the charges sellers paid for advertising on the platform.

Amazon's overall advertising revenue has experienced remarkable growth in recent years, rising from 0.3 billion in 2017 to 5.4 billion in 2021. The report estimates that independent sellers contribute approximately 51% of this advertising revenue, amounting to 2.75 billion.

Amazon Online UK's advertising revenue in the UK surged from 0.3 billion in 2018 to 1.9 billion in 2021, a sixfold increase driven by bidding competition. According to Somo's report, Amazon sellers face increasing costs due to network expansion and digital services taxes.

Concerns also arise as fees, including advertising, represent almost 40% of pre-VAT prices for some UK independent sellers, who also express dissatisfaction with service quality.

Read Also: Amazon New Echo Buds Introductory Price Sits at Just $39.99: Here's What You Need to Know

Amazon Under Investigation

UK's competition watchdog is investigating Amazon for alleged preferential treatment, while the European Commission conducted a separate probe, which prompted commitments from Amazon to address concerns.

In response to the accusations, Amazon claimed that its revenue growth stems from European sellers expanding their businesses through its platform.

The company stated that it invests extensively in supporting the growth of its selling partners and highlighted the optional nature of services such as storage, picking, packing, delivery, and advertising. Amazon emphasized that these services are chosen by sellers who see incremental value in their business.

While Amazon vehemently disagrees with the characterizations of its market position as monopolistic, small businesses feel compelled to pay the increasing costs due to Amazon's high market share, reaching as much as 70% in Germany, France, and Spain, according to a European Commission report.

Despite Amazon's refusal to disclose sales values on European marketplaces, the company shared that independent and third-party sellers sold over 2.2 billion products worldwide in 2021, a 65% increase over two years. The report's findings indicate that revenue generated from sellers' listings has risen by 85% during that same two-year period.

Related Article: UK Ofcom Proposes Investigation into Amazon, Microsoft for Alleged Abuse of Market Power

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Are you looking for the best travel adapter to make your travels hassle-free and enjoyable? You do not have to worry. Shopping around for the top-rated universal travel adapter is common among travelers.

Of course, you would want to keep your chargers and electronic gadgets fully-charged and functioning while relishing the sights and sounds of your new travel destination. Travel adapters can help you do so even with varying outlets in different places you visit.

Travel adapters such as the Apple travel adapter compatible with Apple products decrease the stress involved, especially when you embark on a long journey. They ease your anxiety caused by jet lags and incompatible outlets and plugs. In this discussion, you will discover the best travel plug adapters that satisfied buyers recommend.

These must-have solutions will allow you to enjoy your brief break away from home and work.

What Should I Look for in a Travel Adapter?

When you want to buy the best travel adapter, and it is your first time doing so, you need a guide to get a great value-for-money product.

The following considerations can help you find the travel power adapter that can help you avoid problems on your excursions to distant destinations like Athens, Greece, or Zurich, Switzerland:

1. Power supply selections

The best travel adapter features multiple power options, such as one AC outlet and two USB ports. They are suitable for your electronic devices.

Additionally, it is recommended that you buy a travel adapter that has a high-power port. A product with at least 45 Watts of power is ideal.

This travel power adapter can support your laptop or other large digital devices. You can also charge your gadgets fast and prevent them from overheating.

2. Territories supported

Satisfied customers recommend converter travel adapters that support various plug types in many countries.

For example, if you are visiting Tokyo in Asia or Provence, France in Europe, it would be essential to have a travel adapter that supports both 220 and 110 Volts.

Meanwhile, an affordable and compact three-way adapter is appropriate if you are heading to the United States, Mexico, or Canada.

3. Price

Finding the best travel power adapter should not cost you much. There are many budget-friendly options available below US$100. They suit your needs and are within your budget. These affordable devices ensure a safe and convenient trip without breaking the bank.

4. Built-in safety properties

When you buy a travel adapter, it should have a 10A fuse and many other safety features. The top-rated ones can safeguard your gadgets from overheating and overcharging.

They also protect you from any sudden electric shock. The best travel adapter converters are fire-resistant and can have sliding security covers. Thus, you do not have to worry about your pets or children from every unused power outlet.

Finding the recommended travel adapters do not have to be challenging, especially if you keep these guidelines in mind.

3 Best Momax Travel Adapters You Must Buy

After discussing the significant factors to consider when buying travel power adapters, you are ready to find the highly-rated ones.

Content customers highly recommend the following three options for their many advantages:

1. Momax Universal Power Adapter - 100 Watts

The 100-Watt Momax universal power adapter is among the most powerful and best travel adapters in the market. You might want to consider it when you visit travel destinations where you will go on long walking tours, such as Rome.

The Momax universal travel adapter impresses buyers with the following features:

a. Power supply selections

The Momax universal power adapter has all USB-C ports with maximum 100-watt output. You will be impressed because this device can power two laptops simultaneously.

Furthermore, the total power output can reach 100 Watts when you use all the ports. This makes Momax better than other brands that offer reduced total output.

Choosing the easy-to-use Momax 100-Watt travel adapter will also make you travel light. Pushing the slide button lets you switch plugs suitable for different countries of your destination. You do not need extra accessories.

Additionally, you do not need extra USB chargers when you charge your USB gadgets. The Momax universal travel adapter has two USB-A and two USB-C ports. It can charge up to four digital devices simultaneously.

b. Territories supported

Momax's 100-Watt travel plug adapter features the GaN technology. This advanced feature enables the compact device to accommodate plugs from the United States and the United Kingdom.

Furthermore, the Momax universal travel adapter is compatible with plugs from Australia and the European Union. You can enjoy super-fast charging encounters anywhere you go.

You will be amazed with the Momax travel adapter's 2,500-watt AC output. This feature makes it sufficient to cover nearly all your gadgets.

Additionally, you can add the Momax Apple travel adapter to what you consider your Apple world travel adapter kit.

After all, it works well with the iPhone 14/13/12 series, MacBook Pro M1 and M2, and iPad Pro 11 inches and 12.9 inches. Plus, you will find the travel adapter useful with your AirPods.

Momax's travel adapter converter is compatible with home appliances such as hair iron, hair dryer, and razor. It also works well with digital cameras, Bluetooth speakers, Switch, and Steam Deck.

c. Price

The travel power adapter by Momax is affordable and is below the $100 range. Considering its multi-compatibility advantage, you will agree that that cost makes this device a good choice.

d. Built-in safety features

You will feel safe amid your travels when you charge the 100-Watt Momax universal power adapter because it has many protective features. The advanced GaN technology enhances heat dissipation while attaining efficient power output.

Additionally, if you believe there is overcurrent charging, the Apple travel adapter's 10A overload fuse cuts off the current.

The Momax travel plug adapter comes with fire-resistant material. Thus, you do not have to worry about leaving this non-flammable device in your hotel room.

Will you be traveling with your children? You do not have to worry about their safety, too. The Momax travel adapter's safety shutter will safeguard your children from injuries if they ever touch its outlet.

2. Momax Universal Power Adapter - 65 Watts

The Momax 65-Watt universal power adapter is one of the top-rated and convenient options. This international converter is also affordable. Hence, you get great value for your hard-earned money with this high-quality device, offering the following benefits:

a. Power supply selections

The Momax 65-Watt converter travel adapter has three USB-C and two USB-A ports. It also has one AC outlet with a maximum of 2,500-watt output.

Furthermore, the Momax 65-Watt universal travel adapter's input voltage is 250 Volts, while its output voltage is 20 Volts.

It supports QC3.0 and PD3.0 fast charging. Thus, when you are excited to leave your hotel room, you can do so anytime.

One of this device's USB-C PD ports can even achieve a speed of 65 Watts. These advantageous features make your travels hassle-free.

Will you bring your smart tablet, smartphone, power bank, digital camera, and laptop? The Momax 65-Watt travel adapter is reliable and works best with your USB gadgets.

b. Territories supported

The Momax 65-Watt world travel adapter is an all-in-one converter. It has built-in sockets compatible with plugs from the United States, Japan, the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, and the European Union.

Additionally, the Momax Apple travel adapter covers over 150 countries worldwide. Are you going to Spain soon? Or are you heading to France in the summer? You do not have to worry. This tiny travel adapter can resolve all your issues regarding converting plugs during your trips.

c. Price

If you are a budget-conscious traveler and want the best travel adapter worth below US$50, the Momax option suits you.

You do not have to spend much. After all, this 65-Watt option is below that price level, which is already good value for your money. Hence, you can save your money and time.

Plus, with the advanced GaN technology, the budget-friendly Momax travel adapter gets compressed to a compact and lightweight dimension.

The Momax 65-Watt travel adapter allows you to take advantage of many reliable charging ports, fast charging, and reduced temperatures. Your travel will then be more convenient, faster, and easier.

d. Built-in safety properties

Traveling safely and with sheer comfort is possible with the Momax 65-Watt converter travel adapter. It features GaN cooling and fireproof material.

The Momax travel plug also comes with a plug lock system, a 10A overload dual fuse, and safety shutters.

Have you felt inconvenienced by over-voltage, over-current protection, or short circuit in the past? Well, not anymore this time. The Momax 65-Watt travel adapter gives you peace of mind to safely charge your smartphone, smart tablet, or laptop.

3. Momax Universal Power Adapter - 35 Watts

The Momax 35-Watt international plug adapter is one of the most convenient converters you can buy. It is light and compact, weighing merely 5.29 ounces.

You can meet your goal of traveling light to Los Angeles, Chicago, or London as the Momax travel adapter converter can easily fit in your backpack or any other luggage.

Plus, this top option fits into every country's wall outlet without blocking the switch. Besides the Momax 35-Watt travel adapter's versatile and lightweight design, you will find this option worth considering because of the following beneficial features:

a. Power supply selections

The Momax multi-functional travel plug adapter has an AC outlet with a wide voltage capacity of 100 to 250 Volts and a 2,500-Watt power output.

It also comes with two USB-A and three USB-C ports. The Momax 35-Watt travel adapter can charge six digital devices simultaneously, and you cannot find that benefit in common converters.

Moreover, the 35-Watt USB-C port can charge your MacBook Air M2 laptop without sharing power. Are you bringing your hair iron, razor, or hair dryer on your trip? You can do that since the 250-Volt multi-functional universal travel adapter is compatible with those personal appliances.

b. Territories supported

The Momax 35-Watt travel adapter has multi-country plugs. Thus, you do not need to bring additional plugs and replace them often when you travel.

The Momax converter travel adapter covers more than 150 countries and creatively combines AC outlets from the United States, the European Union, and the United Kingdom. This feature includes USB charging hubs and plugs. Hence, you can travel light to destinations like Paris, Rome, and San Francisco and save space.

c. Price

You will find it unbelievable because, with the Momax 35-Watt travel adapter, you find an option below US$50. This universal adapter offers great value for your hard-earned money because of its many advantages.

d. Built-in safety properties

Comprehensive safety is within your reach with the Momax 35-Watt travel adapter. It comes with many protective features, such as a plug lock system and safety shutters. Moreover, the Momax universal outlet adapter has a 10A overload fuse that is replaceable and cuts off the current when it is too high.

You can save more money since you do not have to buy fuses. You can use your money to buy souvenirs, enjoy the best dining places, etc. After all, the Momax 35-Watt travel adapter has a spare fuse inside.

The Momax 100-Watt, 65-Watt, and 35-Watt universal adapters offer all the important features you are looking for when seeking the best travel adapters.

They are powerful and useful in multiple destinations, such as the United States, Canada, and the European Union.

These highly recommended Apple travel adapters are also worth buying, for you do not have to spend more than US$100 to use them.

These products let you realize the light, safe, and worry-free journey you have always wanted.

Promo

The Momax Travel Adapter series is a must-have product for travelers since it makes travel extremely simple and convenient. You do not have to worry about charging your gadgets anywhere in the world. As a Tech Times reader, you can enjoy a 10% discount. Just use the code TECHTIMES10.

 2023 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
NASA's Curiosity Mars rover has captured a breathtaking view of the Martian landscape, showcasing what morning looks like on the Red Planet.

After completing a significant software update in April, the rover bid farewell to "Marker Band Valley" but not before capturing a stunning "postcard" of the scene.

Martian Postcard

The postcard is an artistic rendition of the landscape, combining color-enhanced versions of two black-and-white panoramas taken by Curiosity's navigation cameras.

These views were captured at different times of the day, precisely at 9:20 a.m. and 3:40 p.m. local Mars time on April 8. By merging the images taken in contrasting lighting conditions, the details of the terrain come to life.

The morning shots were accentuated with blue hues, while the afternoon shots were enhanced with yellow tones. This technique was employed previously by Curiosity in November 2021, producing similarly captivating results.



The byproduct is nothing short of awe-inspiring. Curiosity finds itself in the foothills of Mount Sharp, an imposing 3-mile-high (5 kilometers) mountain within Gale Crater. The rover has been diligently exploring this region since its momentous landing in 2012.



Stretching into the distance, Marker Band Valley emerges beyond the tracks left by Curiosity. This meandering expanse finds its place within the "sulfate-bearing region" and unveils surprising remnants of an ancient lake as the rover diligently conducted its investigations.

Continuing downward, at the center and to the right of the image, two prominent hills bearing the names "Bolivar" and "Deepdale" grace the scene. Curiosity charted its course between these hills while navigating through the "Paraitepuy Pass."

Read Also: From Mars to Earth: Meet NASA's Spherical Robots Saving Lives in Disasters

Stage Lighting on Mars

Curiosity engineer Doug Ellison, based at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California, emphasized the visual differences that occur between morning and afternoon. "Anyone who's been to a national park knows the scene looks different in the morning than it does in the afternoon," he explained.

The strategic capture of images at two different times of day created contrasting shadows, akin to stage lighting. The Sun served as Curiosity's sole source of illumination, resulting in dramatic shadow effects.



Furthermore, the winter season, characterized by reduced airborne dust, added depth to the shadows in the image. Ellison clarified, "Mars' shadows get sharper and deeper when there's low dust and softer when there's lots of dust."

This unique combination of lighting conditions and minimal dust allowed for the creation of a truly captivating visual composition.



Offering a glimpse into the rover's backside, the image reveals the presence of three antennas and a nuclear power source. Particularly noteworthy is the Radiation Assessment Detector (RAD) instrument, depicted as a white circle in the lower right segment of the image.

This crucial tool has played a pivotal role in advancing scientists' comprehension of safeguarding prospective astronauts against radiation during their Martian ventures.



Curiosity's latest postcard from Mars serves as a testament to the incredible scientific achievements and artistic beauty that continue to unfold on the Red Planet.

As the rover embarks on new exploratory endeavors, its remarkable discoveries and captivating imagery inspire awe and ignite curiosity about the mysteries of our neighboring planet.

Related Article: Mars' Crust Made of 'Heavy Armor' Says New Study, Will this Tough Exterior be a Problem Soon?

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KYODO NEWS - Jun 15, 2023 - 02:01 | All, World

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken will visit Beijing this weekend to hold talks with Chinese officials, a senior State Department official said Wednesday, as Washington seeks to lower the temperature after months of heightened tensions between the two countries.

This will be the first visit to China by a U.S. secretary of state since 2018. The trip, agreed upon by U.S. President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping last year during a meeting in Indonesia, was abruptly postponed from its initial timing in February after a suspected Chinese spy balloon flew across the United States.

During the two-day visit from Sunday, Daniel Kritenbrink, assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs, said the United States has three objectives -- keeping communication channels open to reduce the risk of miscalculation, signaling U.S. interests and exploring areas of potential cooperation.

"This is not a visit in which I would anticipate a long list of deliverables coming out of it," he told reporters.

Kurt Campbell, coordinator for Indo-Pacific affairs on the U.S. National Security Council, said that despite the tense situation with China, he expects Blinken's trip to herald a series of visits in "both directions" in the months ahead.

"Intense competition requires intense diplomacy if we're going to manage tensions," Campbell said in the same press briefing with the senior diplomat. "We can't let the disagreements that might divide us stand in the way of moving forward."

He added, however, that the United States will not compromise its interests or values, while maintaining it does not seek conflict or a new Cold War.

The announcement of Blinken's trip, also the first Cabinet-level visit to China since 2019, according to Kritenbrink, came after the top diplomat spoke by phone to Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang.

During the conversation, Qin told Blinken that the United States should respect China's position on Taiwan and never interfere in Beijing's internal affairs.

China's Foreign Ministry also said Qin urged the United States to stop undermining its "sovereignty, security and development interests in the name of competition."

The U.S.-China relationship remains fraught over a range of thorny issues, including not just Taiwan but also differing views on human rights, Russia's invasion of Ukraine and territorial disputes in the South and East China seas.

Most recently, the relationship was marred by a media report saying that China had secretly struck a deal with Cuba to build an electronic eavesdropping station on the island.

The Wall Street Journal report last week was initially described as inaccurate by the White House, but a Biden administration official said Saturday that China has been spying from Cuba for some time, rather than it being a recent development.

On Monday, Blinken revealed that China upgraded its intelligence collection facilities in Cuba in 2019, adding that upon the formation of Biden's administration in 2021, he and some other officials were briefed on Beijing's attempts to expand its overseas logistics to enable it to "project and sustain military power at the greater distance."

Blinken's remarks have drawn a sharp reaction from China, which denounced him and other U.S. officials for "spreading rumors and smearing" Beijing.

As the strategic rivalry between the United States and China heats up, other countries are especially concerned about the risk of miscalculation and military accidents by the two countries.

China severed military-to-military communication channels with the United States after then House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited Taiwan in August, becoming the most senior U.S. official to set foot on the democratic island in a quarter century.

China, which has been putting pressure on Taiwan, regards the island as part of its territory to be brought under its control by force if necessary.

Campbell said the need to restore high-level exchanges between the two militaries will likely be raised by Blinken, in addition to discussing issues such as those related to Taiwan and Russia's ongoing attacks on Ukraine.

It is almost certain that Blinken will meet with the Chinese foreign minister and perhaps with Xi during his stay. But Kritenbrink said only that he will have meetings with senior Chinese officials, suggesting the top U.S. diplomat's schedule has not been finalized yet.

State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said Blinken's trip, which will also take him to London, is set to run through next Wednesday.

In London, Blinken will attend a conference on Ukraine's recovery from Russia's invasion, he said.

Related coverage:

Blinken says China upgraded Cuba intelligence facilities in 2019

Blinken planning to visit China as soon as next week: report
Vodafone and CK Hutchison have officially announced their merger, combining their British operations in a deal worth $19 billion.

Experts say the merger will create the largest mobile operator in the UK and is expected to impact the country's economy positively.

The announcement comes after months of talks between the two companies and will now face regulatory scrutiny.

Vodafone and CK Hutchison Announce Landmark Merger

Reuters tells us that under the terms of the agreement, Vodafone will hold a 51% stake in the combined group, with CK Hutchison owning the remaining 49%.

The new company will be led by Ahmed Essam, the current CEO of Vodafone UK, while Darren Purkis, the finance chief of Hutchison's Three UK, will assume the same role in the merged entity.

With approximately 27 million customers, the combined operator will surpass BT's EE and VM O2 as the market leader.

Vodafone and Hutchison have also outlined their commitment to invest 11 billion in Britain over the next decade, focusing on developing an advanced standalone 5G network.

The companies aim to provide better network coverage to customers within the first 12 months of the deal's closure, which is expected before the end of 2024, pending regulatory and shareholder approvals.

They have reassured customers that there will be no extra costs and have promised flexible, contract-free offers with no annual price increases and social tariffs.

A Closer Look at the Merger, Regulatory Challenges

The Vodafone and Hutchison merger marks a significant development in the UK mobile market. The two companies combine their operations to overcome their limitations and compete more effectively against industry leaders such as BT and Virgin Media O2.

The deal will reduce the number of major mobile operators in the UK to three, following a series of consolidations in the telecommunications sector.

Read Also: AMD Introduces New Lineup of AI Processors, Aiming to Compete with Nvidia

While the merger presents strategic advantages, it will face a thorough investigation by regulators. Authorities have expressed concerns about reducing the number of networks from four to three in significant markets.

CNBC reports that the merger will require approval from the UK's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), which has become increasingly vigilant in scrutinizing large-scale mergers and acquisitions.

However, Vodafone and Hutchison remain optimistic about the benefits of their merger, highlighting the potential 5 billion per year economic benefit by 2030, job creation, and support for the digital transformation of UK businesses.

What's next?

Analysts have expressed mixed opinions about the likelihood of regulatory approval for the Vodafone-Hutchison merger.

While the companies plan to address concerns by investing 11 billion in the UK's network infrastructure, the ultimate decision rests with the authorities.

Some experts believe it will be a challenging sell, considering the recent strong performance of both Vodafone and Hutchison in the market.

The merger has the potential to reshape the competitive landscape in the UK telecommunications industry, allowing the combined company to offer enhanced services and drive innovation.

Stay posted here at Tech Times.

Related Article: UK Prime Minister Sunak Keeps Up Efforts to Remain Tech Capital Status in AI Regulation

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In collaboration with the Polytechnic University of Turin, the Vatican has launched a "papal satellite" named Spei Satelles into space.

The CubeSat was launched from the Vandenberg Space Force Base in California aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. This remarkable feat marks a significant step in the Catholic Church's engagement with space technology.

Papal Satellite Launch

Vatican News reports that the primary objective of the Spei Satelles mission is to transmit a message of hope to the world, particularly during the challenging times of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

The message chosen by the Vatican is the Statio Orbis prayer, delivered by Pope Francis on March 27, 2020, at St. Peter's Square in Rome.

This prayer and "message of hope" were shared with an empty square, symbolizing the impact and severity of the pandemic.

The Nanobook and Satellite Specifications

A key component of the papal satellite is a tiny nanobook created by the Institute of Photonics and Nanotechnology at the Italian National Research Center (CNR).

Measuring only 2 x 2 x 0.2 millimeters, IFLScience reports that this nanobook contains a silicon slab engraved with a binary code representation of the Pope's words and images from the 2020 Statio Orbis.

The nanobook's engraving technique was necessary due to the size constraints, as traditional printing methods were not feasible.



Spei Satelles is a 3U CubeSat designed by students at the Polytechnic University of Turin over five months. It measures 34x10x10 centimeters and weighs approximately three kilograms.

The satellite features solar panels on its exterior to generate power. Inside, it houses the nanobook, two onboard computers, a battery, measurement sensors, small magnets for stabilization, and two ultra-high frequency (UHF) communication systems.

Broadcasting the Pope's Message

The UHF communication systems on board the satellite play a crucial role in broadcasting the Pope's messages.

The satellite will transmit excerpts from Pope Francis' messages of hope through two antennas, enabling radio enthusiasts worldwide to receive and listen to the inspirational words.

Listeners will require radio equipment capable of tuning in to the 437.5 MHz frequency to receive the broadcast.

Read Also: Varda Space Industries' W-Series 1 Satellite Becomes the World's First Drug-Making Factory in Space

In addition to transmitting the message, the Spei Satelles project allows individuals to participate in a gesture of mercy. Participants commit to performing acts of kindness and mercy on Earth by registering their names on the official website.

The registered names will be stored on an additional chip carried by the satellite. Participants have pledged various acts, such as displaying messages of peace, writing letters of gratitude, or helping young people express themselves responsibly online.

The success of this initiative has prompted the organizers to continue accepting registrations even after the launch. Names from the ground control station will be remotely written on the chip, ensuring a lasting connection between the participants and the mission.

Stay posted here at Tech Times.

Read Article: NASA's 'Message In a Bottle' Allows You to Send Messages to Jupiter's Moon Europa

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The European Parliament has passed a crucial resolution that outright bans real-time, remote biometric monitoring. Due to this decision, future discussions might put legislators in conflict with the EU's 27 member nations.

Last week, the failure of a political agreement cast doubt on the broad prohibition, which MPs had previously approved. Lawmakers also established new regulations about general-purpose AI and pillar models like GPT-4 in addition to the restriction on biometric monitoring.

The parliament's proposal calls on businesses like OpenAI Inc. and Google, regardless of the usage of their AI models, to do risk analyses and disclose summaries of the copyrighted materials they used to train such models, according to Bloomberg.

European Parliament President Roberta Metsola stressed the need to define boundaries and restrictions for artificial intelligence at a news conference. She said technological breakthroughs must always be consistent with democratic principles and fundamental rights.

What will happen next?

The parliament approved the whole text of the AI Act with 499 votes in favor, 28 votes against, and 93 abstentions. This opens the way for later-scheduled "trilogue" deliberations between the parliament, EU member states, and the European Commission.

We're making history!



Proud that @Europarl_EN has just approved the world's first Artificial Intelligence Act.



A balanced and human-centred legislation which will set the global standard for years to come.



Europe will continue leading in innovation  https://t.co/UXXZOU3Nel  Roberta Metsola (@EP_President) June 14, 2023

Read Also: TikTok Star's 'Worst Flight' of Her Life on Emirates Goes Viral

Any product or service using AI systems would be subject to regulation under the AI Act, which was first proposed in 2021. It divides AI systems into categories depending on the degree of danger, which ranges from minimum to intolerable. Transparency and precise data use will be required for high-risk applications like employing or targeting children.

The EU member states will enforce the regulations, and authorities can compel businesses to take their AI-based goods off the market. Fines for breaking the rules may exceed 30 million euros ($33 million) or 6% of a company's yearly worldwide sales, amounting to billions for digital giants like Google and Microsoft.

Protecting The Public From AI Threats, Upholding Democracy

The European Union's primary goal for the move is to protect people's lives, property, and fundamental rights and values against AI-based harm. Such "social scoring" systems, which rank people according to their actions, are among the applications of AI that are explicitly forbidden. Exploitative AI that targets vulnerable populations, such as children, or uses subliminal manipulation to promote risky conduct is likewise prohibited, per Time.

The compromise version of the AI Act permits remote biometrics to be used by law enforcement, but only after a significant crime has been committed, with court approval, and not in real-time.

Several Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) believe that using biometrics by law enforcement is incompatible with democratic norms, which has made this issue divisive. The topic has been driven by China's Communist Party's extensive use of face recognition cameras to monitor the people, according to Euronews

During the voting, President Roberta Metsola emphasized the need to balance technical progress and society's interests by reiterating the necessity for distinct boundaries and restrictions on artificial intelligence.

Related Article: US Cybersecurity Official Raises Alarm on China's Aggressive Cyber Operations: Should We Be Worried?

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OpenAI is making sure that its chatbots are getting upgrades at each update. With the recent announcement coming from the AI firm, the GPT-4 and GPT 3.5 will receive features that will benefit the programmers.

OpenAI Keeps Getting Better With Latest GPT Chatbot Features

The recent advancements in language models like GPT-4 and GPT-3.5-turbo include a notable feature called "function calling." According to OpenAI's blog post, this feature allows users to describe programming functions to the model, which can then generate code to execute those functions.

For instance, you can request the weather in Boston, and the model will follow a specific process outlined in OpenAI's blog post to provide an answer.

Of course, it's worth mentioning that searching for the weather in Boston or any other location on a search engine like Google is also a convenient option.

Additionally, GPT-3.5-turbo has received an improvement in its "context window." This means that the model can now refer to a larger portion of the preceding conversation, enabling it to generate more contextually relevant answers without forgetting important details.

It's important to note that the advanced version of GPT-3.5-turbo comes at a higher cost, twice as much as the standard version. However, as a positive development, the price of the vanilla version has been reduced by 25 percent, per Mashable.

These updates represent the ongoing efforts to enhance language models such as GPT-3.5-turbo, allowing them to provide more accurate and context-aware responses.

Related Article: How to be a Better Coder Through ChatGPT [2023]

What Applications Benefit From OpenAI's Innovations

According to Search Engine Journal, here are some of the companies that maximize OpenAI's tools for their business.

Microsoft and OpenAI have collaborated to provide developers with AI models and enhance popular products like Bing and Office by leveraging generative AI capabilities.

Snapchat has introduced a new chatbot called My AI, powered by OpenAI GPT models? The latest update to My AI allows it to send and interpret image snaps, offering an enriched chat experience.

Salesforce has unveiled Einstein GPT, the first generative AI customer relationship management (CRM) product. This innovative CRM tool incorporates OpenAI's advanced models to deliver enhanced functionalities.

Morgan Stanley has recently partnered with OpenAI, granting them access to the latest GPT-4 model. This collaboration positions Morgan Stanley as one of the select few wealth management companies with this cutting-edge technology at their disposal.

HubSpot has developed ChatSpot.ai, a suite of tools that leverage OpenAI GPT-4 to facilitate seamless communication and interaction.

GitHub Copilot, a code completion tool, has integrated OpenAI Codex to offer developers generative AI capabilities. However, this integration has been accompanied by a legal dispute related to copyright concerns.

Stripe, a prominent financial technology company, has incorporated OpenAI GPT technology to gain deeper customer insights and bolster their fraud detection mechanisms.

GetResponse, an email marketing platform, has introduced an advanced email generator powered by OpenAI GPT. This addition enables users to create compelling email content effortlessly.

Instacart, a leading grocery shopping service, has implemented an AI chatbot to assist users in their shopping journey. OpenAI's technology plays a key role in enhancing the capabilities of this chatbot.

Read Also: Jobseekers Use ChatGPT to Create Resumes, but Beware of Eagle-Eyed HR Professionals

 2023 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has warned that Moscow is prepared to deploy weapons with depleted uranium if necessary in response to reports that the United States plans to supply such weaponry to Ukraine.

The declaration was made simultaneously with Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko's affirmation that his government had obtained Russian tactical nuclear weapons three times more potent than those deployed in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, according to The Independent.

The US will supply Ukraine with depleted-uranium rounds that can pierce Russian tank armor, according to a report from the Insider, citing a Wall Street Journal article. For several months, the Biden administration has considered how this choice may affect the environment and public health. An administration official said there are no severe hurdles to providing the munitions.

When utilized in tank shells, the dense by-product of nuclear enrichment, depleted uranium, is chosen because of its superior penetration properties. This might offer Ukraine an edge in tank combat as it reclaims southern and eastern Ukraine from Russian troops.

Concerning its counteroffensive against Putin's soldiers, Ukraine claims excellent success, claiming that Russia is losing an estimated 900 men daily.

Depleted uranium ammo, used in the Challenger tanks that the UK delivered, was the first ally to provide Ukraine. These cutting-edge rounds have unmatched penetrating capability and are widely used by the US military for anti-armor operations, according to Fox News.

Read Also: EU Lawmakers Vote to Ban Public Face-Scanning, Stricter AI Regulations

Russia has criticized the UK's supply of depleted uranium shells for accusing Western countries of helping Ukraine with "weapons with a nuclear component."

Experts Warn of Environment, Health Risks

The US government has expressed worries about these shells' health and environmental implications despite President Biden's Defense Department's adamant support for their sale to Ukraine.

The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) classifies depleted uranium as a radiation health threat if breathed in as dust or shrapnel. However, it does not release enough radiation to enter the skin from the outside.

The UN Environment Program warns that the material's chemical toxicity may cause skin irritation, renal failure, and cancer.

Although depleted uranium shells are not radioactive, if shrapnel becomes lodged in the skin, there may be consequences. Scott Boston, a retired Army artillery officer, claims that the shells' great density and kinetic velocity render them very efficient against opponent armor arrays.

Related Article: US Cybersecurity Official Raises Alarm on China's Aggressive Cyber Operations

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Sony is making strides to enable game streaming on devices like its Project Q handheld, opening up new possibilities for players.

The company is currently conducting tests to stream PS5 games exclusively for PlayStation Plus Premium subscribers. This exciting feature includes access to the PS Plus Game Catalog and the ability to stream supported digital PS5 titles that players already own.

Sony Pushes Cloud Streaming For PS5 Titles

Through cloud streaming, there's no way to miss downloading tons of games on your SSD. You can save a lot of space when you go fully digital on your gaming session, per Engadget.

At the moment, the Japanese game publisher confirms that it's still in the early stages, and there's not much information to give to the public this time.

Sony has not yet shared any information about the release window of this feature, but we hope to hear more from it soon in the next few months or so.

PlayStation Plus Premium, available at a regular price of $15 per month, already offers cloud gaming for PS3, PS4, and classic titles. Subscribers can also stream these games on their PCs. The addition of PS5 support is expected to significantly enhance the appeal of this subscription tier, especially as Sony expands accessibility beyond the PS5 itself.

Currently, Project Q is confirmed to be compatible only with Remote Play directly from users' own PlayStation 5 consoles.

Related Article: Sony Gears Up for New PlayStation Cloud Gaming

Not All First-Party PS5 Titles Will Be Available

It's interesting to know that despite the announcement, not all first-party titles won't be readily playable by the time cloud streaming drops. That's the same case we have observed with the Xbox Game Pass by Microsoft.

According to Nick Maguire, the head of subscriptions at Sony, the original plan will involve releasing the first-party games "outside the service first." This approach has proven successful thus far, as it maximizes game purchases.

However, the mention of "digital titles you own" suggests that certain games may be available for streaming on the day of their release, provided users opt to purchase them outright.

Tricky Part in Cloud Gaming

As per IGN, Kenichiro Yoshida, Sony's chief executive, cautioned about some tricky technicalities behind the cloud streaming venture.

The decision could likely affect the company's current business model. Additionally, it's also plagued with risks that can pose challenges to the whole organization.

Regardless, Yoshida seems to be confident in the future of cloud gaming since Sony could rely on GT Sophy to improve its performance.

If Sony is successful with cloud gaming, this could revolutionize gaming for its future consoles as anticipation builds up for PS5 Pro.

Read Also: Xbox Games 2023 is Adding Speedrunning Platformer 'Neon White' Along With Other Indie Titles

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France is making a solid push to persuade Elon Musk to choose the country as the location for Tesla's next gigafactory, according to a high-ranking French official.

Jean-Noel Barrot, France's digital minister, made the most unequivocal statement about France's desire for Musk's investment in an interview with CNBC. This comes after Barrot recently warned that Twitter, owned by Elon Musk, might get banned if it does not comply with the proposed legislation.

Barrot stressed the importance of having a Tesla plant in France and cited the enormous amount of time and work that had been put out to ensure it was feasible.

France Gearing Up to Becoming an EV Powerhouse

With the opening of its first battery factory, France is establishing itself as an electric car production powerhouse. The French government wants to reindustrialize and catch up to Chinese electric vehicle makers.

France's first battery facility opened in May. The Lens facility is expected to start production this summer, creating 400 jobs this year and 2,000 over time. The facility will produce 800,000 annually. This factory is one of three proposed in Germany and Italy, The Guardian reported.

A meeting between the Tesla CEO and French President Emmanuel Macron is being set up as another sign of France's determination to get Elon Musk's attention. Artificial intelligence, social media, regulatory frameworks, and enhancing French and European competitiveness in the automotive and battery industries are just a few of the subjects anticipated to be discussed.

Elon Musk, currently searching for an appropriate location for Tesla's next Gigafactory in Europe, will speak at the Viva Tech summit in Paris. The tech mogul may use this significant technology conference to investigate opportunities in France, where the government will be present.

With @ElonMusk, we talked about the attractiveness of France and the significant progress in the electric vehicle and energy sectors. We also talked about digital regulation. We have so much to do together. See you this afternoon at the #ChooseFrance Summit! pic.twitter.com/wkdwjv45OG  Emmanuel Macron (@EmmanuelMacron) May 15, 2023

Read Also: Sonos to Lay Off Roughly 130 Employees

While Barrot was attempting to persuade Elon Musk to make substantial investments in France, his position on Twitter was quite different. The minister recently said that if Twitter doesn't follow the proposed Digital Services Act, it may be banned in the European Union.

Tech firms must fight illicit material and misinformation under the legislation, which takes effect in August. If you don't comply, you risk paying hefty penalties that might equal up to 6% of Twitter's total annual revenue. If Twitter continues violating the rules, it might be banned from the EU market.

Twitter Facing Debt Issues

In a related issue, Elon Musk's choice not to pay the rent for Twitter's premises has impacted Goldman Sachs' commercial mortgage portfolio. Goldman Sachs' banking division reported delinquent commercial real estate loans of $840 million to have increased significantly by 612% in the first quarter, according to Business Insider.

Twitter's failure to pay rent since November of the prior year is one cause of this rise in delinquencies. Goldman Sachs is a member of a group of financial institutions that provided Columbia Property Trust, which owns several Twitter office buildings, with a $1.7 billion loan.

Since buying Twitter, Musk's cost-cutting strategies, such as skipping rent payments, have been made clear. The business has struggled financially as it works to settle the $12.5 billion debt Elon Musk accrued as part of the purchase.

Despite Musk's refusal to pay Twitter's rent, Columbia Property Trust is suing the social media site for breaking its lease agreement.

Related Article: Meet Kairan Quazi: The 14-Year-Old Engineer Hired by Elon Musk's SpaceX

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Spotify, the popular music streaming platform, on Tuesday, was issued an administrative fine of SEK 58 million (approx $5.4 million) in Sweden for breaching the data access rights of its users in the European Union.

According to the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) that came into force in 2018, users have the right to access, which means they have a right to find out what personal data a business handles about the person in question and to receive information about how this data is used.

However, during its audit, the Swedish Authority for Privacy Protection (IMY) found Spotify guilty of violating Article 15 of Europes GDPR. It discovered that Spotify releases the personal data the company processes when individuals request it; however, it did not offer clear and comprehensive information on how data collected on them was used by the company.

The IMY emphasized that Spotify should be more transparent about how and for what purposes individuals personal data is handled. The lack of clarity made it challenging for the users to understand how their personal data was processed and to assess whether the handling of their personal data was lawful.

The Swedish Authority for Privacy Protection (IMY) has investigated Spotifys general procedures for handling access requests and have found some shortcomings related to the information that should be provided to the individual making the request pursuant to article 15.1 a-h and 15.2 of the GDPR and in relation to the description of the data in the technical log files provided by Spotify. IMY has issued an administrative fine of SEK 58 million against Spotify for not providing sufficiently clear information to individuals in this regard. The decision includes violations of articles 12.1, 15.1 a-d, g and 15.2 of the GDPR, the regulator said in a statement.

IMYs investigation has also encompassed an investigation of what has occurred in three different complaints and here IMY found that Spotify had failed in its handling of requests for access related to two of the complaints examined. The decision in this part includes violation of articles 12.1, 12.3, 15.1,15.3 and 15.1 a-h and 15.2 of the GDPR. In relation to these infringements IMY issues a reprimand.

The regulator also said that the identified shortcomings were considered to be of a low level of seriousness, with the fine imposed taking into account Spotifys revenue and number of users.

Since Spotify has users in many countries, the above decision has been made in cooperation with other data protection authorities in the EU.

The ruling against Spotify comes more than four years after a complaint was lodged against the music streaming platform by the non-profit privacy and digital rights organization noyb at the start of 2019.

In the complaint filed by noyb, the organization alleged that Spotify failed to provide users with all requested personal data, information as to their source, recipients of personal data, or details on international data transfers under Article 15 GDPR.

The original complaint was filed in Austria, but the case was sent to IMY as Spotify was based in Sweden. Also, a complaint related to the same issue, filed in the Netherlands, was combined into the Swedish case. However, the cases languished with IMY for four years.

As a result, on June 22, 2022, noyb filed litigation against the IMY before the Swedish Courts over the lack of a decision. Finally, after more than four years of the case being originally filed, IMY ordered Spotify to provide the full set of data to the complainant under Article 58(2)(c) GDPR.

We are glad to see that the Swedish authority finally took action. It is a basic right of every user to get full information on the data that is processed about them. However, the case took more than 4 years and we had to litigate the IMY to get a decision. The Swedish authority definitely has to speed up its procedures, Stefano Rossetti, a privacy lawyer at noyb, said in a statement.

Spotify has rejected the IMY findings and planned to file an appeal in response to the EUs GDPR fine.

Spotify offers all users comprehensive information about how personal data is processed. During their investigation, the Swedish DPA found only minor areas of our process they believe need improvement. However, we dont agree with the decision and plan to file an appeal, the company said in a statement.

When asked whether Spotify is making changes to its response protocol to user data access requests taking into consideration the IMY sanctions, a Spotify spokesperson told that the company has nothing to confirm at the moment. However, they did mention that the company is continuously reviewing and improving the process to enhance transparency.
A truck loaded with goods from Nepal enters the Gyirong port in southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region, Dec. 28, 2022. (Photo by Shen Shuwen/Xinhua)

by Cao Bin

LHASA, March 29 (Xinhua) -- I recently embarked on a journey to Gyirong, a charming border town nestled between China and Nepal. It is about 820 km west of Lhasa, the regional capital of Tibet, and lies about 131 km from the Nepalese capital Kathmandu.

Upon arriving in the evening, I checked into a modest yet cozy hotel. To my amusement, a dzo (a hybrid of a bull and a yak) was casually strolling outside the lobby, crossing the street while paying no heed to the traffic light at the intersection. It must have been used to meandering in the area for quite some time.

After dinner, I decided to explore the quaint town on foot. With merely two main thoroughfares in the town, a half-hour amble suffices to explore its charm.

Renowned for its delectable Nepalese cuisine, Gyirong had been highly recommended to me by several friends, who specifically extolled the delightful pairing of curry and rice as a must-try.

Much to my surprise, I discovered that a multitude of local stores brimmed with an array of products ready for export. One store owner, with an air of intrigue, confided in me, whispering his conviction that a wave of Nepalese customers would soon descend upon his shop to replenish their stocks. His confidence was palpable and contagious.

I was really happy for him. The past few years have not been easy for merchants in the town. In 2015, mega earthquakes struck Nepal and affected Gyirong. Houses tumbled down, roads were destroyed, and people relocated. Post-quake reconstruction was initiated soon after. However, just as a brand-new town was about to embrace its former prosperity, the COVID-19 pandemic hit.

Yet now, everyone who came to Gyirong could sense that something is different.

As I breathed in the air, I could sense the arrival of spring with its distinct warmth and humidity, typical of the southern foothills of the Himalayas.

The Himalayas have cut open five north-south rift valleys in Xigaze under Tibet. The valley where Gyirong is located is the westernmost and longest of them all, stretching approximately 93 km.

Distinctly contrasting my perception of the world's rooftop as a frigid and arid snow-laden plateau, Gyirong Town nestles within a deep valley, sitting at an elevation of approximately 2,800 meters above sea level, invigorating and pleasant.

The aura of the atmosphere instantly reminded me of a Chinese adage that goes: "The Gyirong valley has witnessed half the history of Tibet."

Throughout history, the border town has been a vital area in the valley. International tourists often enter China through Nepal, and vice versa. Merchants from Nepal and other South Asian countries operate businesses in the area, while workers from the other side of the border come to China to seek employment.

The valley has served as a crucial transportation route between the hinterland of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau and South Asia. Historically, it has functioned as a combination of an "official road" and a "commercial road."

Cliff inscriptions in Chinese language documenting a Tang Dynasty diplomat's mission to ancient India dating back to 658 A.D. were found here, which confirm that the Gyirong valley was an official road connecting Tang, the Tubo regime established in Tibet in the seventh century, and South Asia.

Scientists conducted DNA analysis on carbonized rice discovered in this region and dated it to the eighth century. However, the researchers noted that Gyirong did not have the necessary thermal conditions for indica rice cultivation. Therefore, the unearthed rice must have been transported to higher altitude areas for consumption through trade or other means.

In addition to its long history, the small town has undergone significant changes in the new era.

Today, a land port has been built on the ancient commercial site. During my visit there, I saw a bridge straddling the boundary river, the third one linking the two countries. From a shabby wooden bridge to a narrow iron cable bridge, to today's concrete two-lane bridge, they are all witnesses to the development of bilateral exchange and trade between China and Nepal.

In 1961, Gyirong port attained approval for opening. It was declared a second-class land port in 1972 and was upgraded to a national first-class land port in 1987.

Thanks to the Belt and Road Initiative, the volume of border trade at the Gyirong port has steadily grown. In 2017, the port was designated as an international port, thereby allowing access to individuals from third countries besides China and Nepal.

Just in March 2022, a border economic cooperation zone was approved to be established here, making Gyirong the 18th of its kind in China and the first in Tibet.

According to the government plan, by 2035, Gyirong will be built into an important passageway linking the inland region with South Asia, a new model of Tibet's opening-up cooperation, and a border ecological city suitable for living, working and traveling.

The movement of people and goods came to a halt due to the COVID-19 restrictions. However, as of December 2022, two-way cargo transport has been restored. According to a customs officer, personnel exchange will also soon resume.

"I am very much looking forward to the resumption of personnel exchange, and plan to return to Nepal to visit my family in April," Tsering, a Nepalese businessman based in Gyirong, told me. 
Investigation into security in Nice during the attack: the prosecutor's office for a reclassification as "involuntary homicide"

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Origin of life: Have you cracked the mother of all questions, Ulrich Schreiber?

Kaab bin Zuhair bin Abi Salma. Why did his father forbid him to say poetry? And why did the Prophet shed his blood?

We discover the most spectacular houses of Menorca, the chic island of the Mediterranean

Brigitte Bardot in difficulty breathing, her husband gives news: "She can no longer stand the heat"

Corona balance of the Conference of Ministers of Education and Cultural Affairs: Self

The traffic business of the weight loss camp: key trainees as publicity gimmicks to star according to the script

The "new favorite" of cool home appliances: can air circulation fans really be comparable to air conditioners?

Summer addiction to mobile phones How to pull children from the "small screen" back to the "big world"

Demands to abolish the guardianship of men and ban polygamy. Why insist on amending and updating personal status laws in Arab countries?

Moving to Saudi Arabia or returning to their homeland: Zenit may lose Malcolm, Claudinho and Wendel before the start of the RPL

The queen stage in the Alps: The Tour de France has been decided

A fake smile and feelings of fear and anxiety. Body language expert: Messi is not happy with his move to Inter Miami

Conflict with the referee and provocation Toth: Shuai survived a panic attack and withdrew from the tournament in Budapest

Truck drivers on the A5: truckers are on strike again in Grafenhausen

The world's first 16 MW ultra-large capacity offshore wind turbine is connected to the grid to generate electricity

Beijing strengthens the management of housing leases from the owner body It is proposed to require the publicity of fees

The "Opinions of the CPC Central Committee and the State Council on Promoting the Development and Growth of the Private Economy" were promulgated

China issued a document to promote the development and growth of the private economy and responded to four core concerns

French MP: sanctions against Russia have led to a catastrophe in the economy in Europe

Putin called the impudence of the failure of Russian conditions in the framework of the grain deal

The president of the Eurogroup distances himself from Calvino and avoids supporting Sanchez: "Full respect for the electoral process"

Requests to get rid of being at the polling station shoot up 76%

Electoral debate to three of RTVE, live | Yolanda Diaz and Santiago Abascal, already in the facilities of TVE

"The goal has been achieved": the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation reported strikes on military infrastructure in Odessa and on the Kanatovo airbase

Pakistani government to file new case against Imran Khan for 'disclosing official secrets to the state'

Three activists arrested for sneaking into Ibiza airport sticking to a private jet and spraying it with paint

Activists of Futuro Vegetal spray paint on the megayacht of the Walmart heiress docked in Ibiza

WP: U.S. prepares sanctions against Kyrgyzstan to force it to stop trade with Russia

The astonishing data of the time trial in which Vingegaard swept Pogacar: "He scored more watts than expected"

"Artillery delivered powerful blows": the Russian military destroyed more than 40 soldiers of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in the area of the Antonovsky bridge

Putin: RT is closed in the West and obstructed because they are afraid of the truth

To avoid an environmental disaster. Preparations to transport the cargo of an abandoned Yemeni oil ship in the Red Sea

 Communities 2019 - Privacy

The information on this site is from external sources that are not under our control.The inclusion of any links does not necessarily imply a recommendation or endorse the views expressed within them.
Experts from the Beijing University of Agriculture check the apricot trees in Beizhai Village, Pinggu District of Beijing, capital of China, May 16, 2023. (Xinhua/Zhao Xu)

BEIJING, June 14 (Xinhua) -- As the dawn breaks, postgraduate Gao Jie, wearing sun-proof clothing and a hat, drives an electric tricycle with her two classmates, heading to the apricot farm.

After unloading tools like shovels and sample bags, they select three trees, dig some soil near the trees and put it into the bags for lab analysis.

"Soil is just like life. It also needs physical examinations," said Gao, adding that previous analysis has shown that most of the apricot trees are overfertilized, harming their growth.

Gao and her classmates from the Beijing University of Agriculture are dispatched to a rural station at Beizhai Village, Pinggu District in suburban Beijing.

The rural station, known as "the tiny yard of science and technology," allows students like Gao to perform field research on farmers' plots, while farmers can gain direct access to advanced agricultural techniques.

Surrounded by mountains on three sides, the village, with its unique climate and soil conditions, is ideal for the growth of red apricots.

However, due to long-term extensive management, villagers saw a shrinking apricot yield, with the fruit quality declining year by year, despite various efforts.

In 2019, experts from the university visited the village, finding that villagers were in shortage of scientific knowledge of fertilization and pest control, and the experience of online sales.

"We then contacted relevant departments and set up the rural station. In this way, postgraduate students are stationed here by turns, and the instructors regularly visit the rural station to help with troubleshooting," said Jia Yuehui, a professor at the university.

Jia said the countryside is a special classroom that brings the students extra experience for learning and research.

"Some students were too shy to speak in public. Now that they talk to villagers every day, their communication capability improves a lot," she said, adding that some students have developed multiple skills, such as claiming compensation for hail damage and creating QR codes for online sales.

The students, many growing up in cities, also learn from the farmers.

Kong Fanli, an experienced apricot farmer, told the students that the weed under the trees helps absorb some humid heat in summer, and therefore should not be removed.

"With the weed, the apricots will not have peeling skin caused by heat waves," said Kong.

Facing problems that the students cannot solve, the instructor team will show up to help.

Farmer Yu Jihong turned to the experts as a brown gelatinous substance oozed from the bottom of some of his tree trunks as if "the trunks are bleeding."

Liu Jie, an associate professor sent to the village, said the glue-like substance is the cell sap inside the trees. He said the cell sap leakage is caused by bacteria infection, as overfertilization has led to weak trees.

Liu advised Yu to reduce fertilization and apply some lime sulfur after clearing the cell sap on the trunk surface.

"After I listened to the advice from the expert, my anxiety is gone," said Yu.

Liu Fudong, Party chief of the village, said the apricot planting in the village is gradually becoming scientific thanks to the rural station. With the help of the students, the village has set up an online shop, with half of the apricot yield sold online last year.

Figures show that the number of rural stations of science and technology has exceeded 1,000 across China, providing a new model for scientific research, social services, personnel training and agricultural development. 

Gao Jie, a postgraduate from the Beijing University of Agriculture, processes soil samples at a rural sci-tech station in Beizhai Village, Pinggu District of Beijing, capital of China, May 16, 2023. (Xinhua/Tian Chenxu)
Chinese employee Liu Shuyuan (C) interprets for trainees during the first training courses for operation and maintenance personnel of the Jakarta-Bandung High-Speed Railway at the Indonesian Railway Polytechnic in Madiun, East Java, Indonesia, March 20, 2023. Here the first training courses are currently going on for operation and maintenance personnel of the Jakarta-Bandung High-Speed Railway (HSR), attended by 173 Indonesians and taught online by experts at Chinese railway institutes far away. (Xinhua/Xu Qin)

by Xinhua writers Xu Qin, Yu Qianliang

JAKARTA, June 14 (Xinhua) -- Madiun, a small Indonesian city in East Java Province more than 8 hours of eastward drive from the capital Jakarta, is where the Indonesian Railway Polytechnic (PPI) is based.

After driving halfway through the densely populated Java Island and getting off the expressway to enter the town, a 1 km wall painted with almost all kinds of trains you can imagine will be seen along the Madiun River, the largest tributary of the Solo River, on the way leading to the PPI campus.

Madiun has evidently a deep bond with the railway, which is also the seat of the state-run Railway Industry Co., Ltd. The company's products are shipped to Malaysia, Thailand, Singapore and Australia, among others.

Sitting on a vast stretch of a green field, the PPI campus enjoys a distant view of Lawu Volcano and the nearby scenery of the Madiun River. Here the first training courses are currently going on for operation and maintenance personnel of the Jakarta-Bandung High-Speed Railway (HSR), attended by 173 Indonesians and taught online by experts at Chinese railway institutes far away.

Classes started at the end of February, with 3-6 month theoretical training courses targeting EMU (electric multiple unit) drivers, EMU mechanicians, operation control center dispatchers, and emergency response personnel.

In each classroom, trainees are helped by two on-site interpreters in understanding the contents stated in Chinese, and raise questions any time they like. They have also teaching plans and materials in Indonesian to read, which were prepared beforehand by about a dozen translators in an arrangement made by the Chinese side of the Jakarta-Bandung HSR.

All the interpreters and translators are employees of the Jakarta-Bandung HSR construction companies, who are both proficient bilinguals and masters in railway knowledge.

Serving as such a "bridge" between Chinese teachers and Indonesian trainees is Liu Shuyuan, who builds on a two-month interpreter working experience once before coming here.

"Transferring HSR knowledge or HSR technology, I'm very happy to make my small contribution to the construction of the Jakarta-Bandung High-Speed Railway," she said.

In the class, trainees listen attentively and take notes. After each week of study, they would face random oral quizzes given by the interpreters.

The trainees cherish the opportunity of learning, and often spend the few minutes of break between classes in discussions with each other or seeking help from interpreters in reviewing the lectures.

"My training is coming to an end, and I can't wait for the upcoming practical operation," said Nisrina Azzahra Kurniawan, a 23-year-old female trainee expected to work as a first responder.

She joined the consortium of Indonesian and Chinese companies operating the Jakarta-Bandung HSR, PT KCIC, this year, and is currently an intern at the company.

"After more than three months of study, I feel that there is still a lot that I don't understand. I am looking forward to applying what I have learned to the specific work," she said.

Bahana Putra Perangin Angin, 29, who joined PT KCIC in 2019, is a trainee in the EMU mechanician class.

A PPI alumnus, he said, "I am here learning and researching the new technology of high-speed rail, and I hope that more people will benefit from high-speed rail in their future lives."

Nisrina, Bahana and other trainees will leave Madiun with qualifications before being arranged for practical training on the Jakarta-Bandung HSR.

Farida Makhmudah, the PPI's head of Finance, General Affairs and Cooperation, said, "Together our students and teachers have overcome the language barrier and made the training go smoothly. I hope they can pass the assessment and enter corresponding job positions."

"The Jakarta-Bandung High-Speed Railway is not only the first high-speed railway in Indonesia, but also the first of its kind in Southeast Asia. Our students will soon be able to take high-speed trains in our own country," said the PPI official.

Throughout the Jakarta-Bandung HSR construction, the Chinese side also provided training for Indonesian employees in an effort to support Indonesia in building its own HSR technical force and workforce.

More than 45,000 Indonesian personnel have attended such training programs offered by the Chinese side.

At present, the joint commissioning and testing of the Jakarta-Bandung HSR have already started.

The high-speed railway, a flagship project under the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative, connects Indonesia's capital Jakarta and another major city Bandung.

With a design speed of 350 km per hour, the railway will cut the Jakarta-Bandung journey from over three hours currently to around 40 minutes. 

Farida Makhmudah, head of Finance, General Affairs and Cooperation at the Indonesian Railway Polytechnic, gives an interview to Xinhua in Madiun, East Java, Indonesia, June 7, 2023. Here the first training courses are currently going on for operation and maintenance personnel of the Jakarta-Bandung High-Speed Railway (HSR), attended by 173 Indonesians and taught online by experts at Chinese railway institutes far away.(Xinhua/Xu Qin)

Trainees in the EMU (electric multiple unit) driver class attend a training at the Indonesian Railway Polytechnic in Madiun, East Java, Indonesia, June 7, 2023. Here the first training courses are currently going on for operation and maintenance personnel of the Jakarta-Bandung High-Speed Railway (HSR), attended by 173 Indonesians and taught online by experts at Chinese railway institutes far away.(Xinhua/Xu Qin)

Nisrina Azzahra Kurniawan (C) attends a training for emergency response personnel at the Indonesian Railway Polytechnic in Madiun, East Java, Indonesia, June 7, 2023. Here the first training courses are currently going on for operation and maintenance personnel of the Jakarta-Bandung High-Speed Railway (HSR), attended by 173 Indonesians and taught online by experts at Chinese railway institutes far away. (Xinhua/Xu Qin)

Bahana Putra Perangin Angin (2nd R, front), a trainee in the EMU (electric multiple unit) mechanician class, attends a training at the Indonesian Railway Polytechnic in Madiun, East Java, Indonesia, June 7, 2023. Here the first training courses are currently going on for operation and maintenance personnel of the Jakarta-Bandung High-Speed Railway (HSR), attended by 173 Indonesians and taught online by experts at Chinese railway institutes far away.(Xinhua/Xu Qin)

Trainees in the EMU (electric multiple unit) driver class leave a teaching building at the Indonesian Railway Polytechnic in Madiun, East Java, Indonesia, June 7, 2023. Here the first training courses are currently going on for operation and maintenance personnel of the Jakarta-Bandung High-Speed Railway (HSR), attended by 173 Indonesians and taught online by experts at Chinese railway institutes far away.(Xinhua/Xu Qin)

This aerial photo shows a view of the Indonesian Railway Polytechnic in Madiun, East Java, Indonesia, June 7, 2023. Here the first training courses are currently going on for operation and maintenance personnel of the Jakarta-Bandung High-Speed Railway (HSR), attended by 173 Indonesians and taught online by experts at Chinese railway institutes far away.(Xinhua/Xu Qin)
BEIJING, June 14 (Xinhua) -- Around 720 million yuan (about 100.61 million U.S. dollars) has been retrieved as a result of national inspections of China's medical insurance funds last year, according to the National Healthcare Security Administration.

A total of 48 medical institutions in 23 provincial-level regions were inspected in the national operation, which imposed fines of more than 145 million yuan on those with malpractices and violations, data from the administration showed.

The main problems include charging extra fees and engaging in excessive treatment, examinations, and prescription of drugs in violation of standard norms.

China is improving the world's largest network for basic healthcare security, which covers about 95 percent of the country's 1.4 billion population, by enhancing the supervision of its funds.

During local inspections in 31 provincial-level regions in 2022, authorities handed out punishments to 2,413 medical institutions and recovered 1.98 billion yuan of medical insurance funds. 
The unprecedented bulk filing of clemency petitions on Tuesday for 50 men and one woman sentenced to death in Louisiana will set off an emotional process at the state Board of Pardons that could take several months to play out, say attorneys familiar with it.
ATHENS, June 14 (Xinhua) -- The death toll has risen to 59 following the capsizing of a fishing boat carrying refugees and migrants off southwestern Greece, Greek national broadcaster ERT reported on Wednesday, citing local authorities.

A total of 104 passengers have been rescued, while a search and rescue operation was underway to locate a yet unclear number of missing, according to the report.

The incident happened in international waters, 47 nautical miles off the coast of Pylos town during nighttime between Tuesday and Wednesday, and survivors told authorities the fishing boat had sailed off from Tobruk in Libya and was heading for Italy, ERT reported.

The Hellenic Coast Guard said in an earlier press release that none of the passengers were wearing a life jacket and Greek authorities were alerted by Italian authorities about the incident.

The nationalities of victims and survivors have not been identified yet.

Greek President Katerina Sakellaropoulou will travel to the nearby city of Kalamata, where the rescued are being transferred, her office said.

On Tuesday evening, in a separate incident south of Crete island, Greek authorities rescued 80 migrants and refugees who were on board a sailing boat, Greek national news agency AMNA reported on Wednesday.

Greece has been at the forefront of the refugee and migrant influx since 2015 and hundreds have perished in the Aegean Sea in the past eight years. 
Biomethane made from wastewater flushed down Sydneys toilets has been injected into the gas network for the first time as utility companies trial carbon-neutral fuels to encourage customers to stick with gas in the transition to net-zero emissions.

While governments across Australia are setting targets to phase out the use of gas appliances in favour of electric alternatives, energy infrastructure owner Jemena and Sydney Water said they had begun injecting biomethane  produced when bacteria break down organic material such as human waste  from the Malabar Waste Treatment Plant into Jemenas gas distribution network.

Gas companies say blending biogas offers a sustainable alternative to full electrification in the shift to net zero. Credit: Getty

Co-funded by Jemena and the Australian Renewable Energy Agency, the biomethane demonstration project will at first produce about 95 terajoules each year  equivalent to the average yearly gas use of 6300 homes.

We expect to scale it up to double that, Jemena managing director Frank Tudor said. And we have had a look at the potential within NSW to take waste from different sources and convert it through a similar process.
Its hard for any man/ To be caged in a prison cell/ But if your skin is black/ Its like burning in hell.

When Graeme Dixon wrote those lines in his poem Regrets, he knew what he was talking about. Born in 1955, the Noongar man spent much of his early life in institutions, including jail. He knew about Black deaths in custody and had been on the receiving end of police violence.

During a spell in Fremantle prison he began to write poems that bore witness to his experiences. As fellow poet Ali Cobby Eckermann describes them, they are a poignant portrayal of hardship in a disadvantaged life  streetwise and honest.

Doris (Nugi Garimara) Pilkington, author of Follow the Rabbit-Proof Fence, with her mother Molly Kelly, who led her two sisters on an epic walk to find their parents, in 1996. Credit: Tony McDonough

When he was 25, Dixon decided to keep out of jail. After a battle with alcohol and drugs he met his wife Sharmaine, who encouraged him to develop as a writer. He studied at the University of Western Australia and Curtin University and lectured on Aboriginal history and social justice issues. UQP published his first poetry collection, called Holocaust Island, Dixons name for Australia. The book won the inaugural David Unaipon Award in 1989, but in time it went out of print.

Dixon died in 2010, unaware that Holocaust Island would become a classic. It has been reissued as one of eight award-winning books in UQPs new First Nations Classics series, designed to bring the work of some of our best authors back into the spotlight. The series features a diverse range of fiction, nonfiction and poetry and each book is introduced by an acclaimed contemporary First Nations writer.
Victorias ban on Nazi symbols could be expanded to include other fascist symbols as the state government condemned displays of hateful ideology revealed in Australias large Croatian community.

The comments were in response to an investigation by this masthead that uncovered how major sporting and cultural clubs in the nations Croatian community openly celebrate fascist anniversaries and display emblems of the murderous Ustasha regime of 1941-45.

At least 500,000 Serbs, Jews and Romani people were murdered by Croatias Ustasha regime. Credit: The Age

That included six men at the Melbourne Knights soccer club on April 10 this year  the anniversary of the creation of the Nazi-backed puppet state  doing fascist salutes as they sang a song extolling the Ustasha. The president of the Knights, Pave Jusup, is pictured in front of an Ustasha flag on two of his social media accounts. The Knights and Jusup have not responded to requests for comment.

State governments have in recent times introduced laws to ban the use of Nazi symbols, and the federal government will soon introduce similar legislation.
Few of us would begrudge NSW woman Kathleen Folbigg a few quid in the bank  via a big-money paid interview with Channel Seven  after spending 20 years in the clink for the murders of her four children before being pardoned because the convictions were unsound.

But it looks like that interview might be considerably better-paid than previously reported.

Fair to say that this facet of the story has attracted some media interest with the sum to change hands for the interview initially reported as somewhere between a relatively modest $400,000 and $850,000, even $1 million.

But sources close to the negotiations have told CBD that everybody except Seven pulled out of the talks after being told by Folbiggs people that the benchmark bid  just for the interview, security expenses incurred in the production process and some archive footage  was $1.5 million.
THE FORUM Caught up

Is the Victorian government going to hand out free wildlife rescue and rehabilitation kits to school children along with the rods and tackle? (Free Fishing rods for private schools is a hook critics say is out of line, 13/6). Fishing line and barbed hooks account for dozens of wildlife entanglements and non-target species hookings every month in Victoria. Much tackle is un-retrievable as line and hooks are caught high in branches over water or broken off under water, thereby remaining a lethal threat for years. Typically it is volunteer wildlife rescuers, not Victorian Fisheries staff, who come to the aid of distressed entangled or hooked animals. The restriction and discouragement of fishing, rather than its promotion, would be more in line with the wildlife and animal welfare interests modern children and adults have today.

Lawrence Pope, North Carlton Spiritual journey

Correspondents with doubts about whether children will use their free fishing rods should have faith, (Letters, 14/6). Fishing gives kids permission to remain silent and observe for hours on end. The sun, moon and tides, what the seagulls are up to, the wind on the water and waves  it verges on meditation. And when they finally catch that first fish, they will instinctively recognise cruelty and thatll the end of it.

Ronald Elliott, Sandringham Start a trend

Your correspondent made an interesting comment about the state government ultimately raising money through fishing licences. As a grandmother with a fishing-obsessed grandson aged 14, we both applied for licences and found they were free. Perhaps more grandparents could take time off to go fishin with their grandchildren?

Judith Hudson, Elwood Get the kids outside

The state governments pledge to hand out fishing rods to school children is a great idea as it will help prevent and combat Screen Dependency Disorder. A growing body of evidence shows that screens can be addictive and lead to isolation, depression and anxiety.

Ian Cameron, Chelsea

Screens must be limited

I am not that old that I cannot well remember trying to placate a toddler climbing over my head at meetings, in church or at a cafe. And I admit I, like many, have a virtual umbilical cord to my phone, and jump at a ping. Yet, I feel we have given up when I read statements like theres no way of stopping screens. Theyre going to end up on them anyway (Swallow guilt over table tablets, 13/6). It is untrue that todays parenting requires more engagement. Engagement and involvement are a piece of string. There have always been parents more and less involved in their childrens activities. Some actively involved, others only physically present. As a secondary English teacher, I worry about the oral and written literacy of children who have far less interaction and conversation with parents and instead are given a screen. A device stops awareness with the outside world, with other people and with what is going on around them.

Parenting is tough. But we all need to limit and deal with our screen addiction, particularly for children.

Mary-Jane Boughen, Murrumbeena Keep it down

If parents choose to allow their kids to have tablets while dining out, thats fine by me  provided that the device is on mute or that they are wearing headphones. It seems to be the new normal for people to play video on their device out loud in public, oblivious to the fact that theyre disturbing those around them.

Erin Byrnes, Glen Iris How effective?

Good article by Liam Mannix on air purifiers in schools (Value of school air purifiers not clear, 14/6). The whole expensive program was implemented without any reasonable evaluation. As Mannix points out there is little evidence to show that these air purifiers are effective in the school setting.

Such purifiers are only usually effective in cases where air can be passed through the filters in significant volumes compared to the volumes of the rooms and the number of people in the room. As an example, a purifier would work well in a bedroom where there are only one or two people and a relatively small volume. In a large room (like a classroom) with many people, a purifier cannot typically filter significant amounts of air.

Shaun Quinn, Yarrawonga Dont blacklist a culture

There is something wrong about Eat Pray Love author Elizabeth Gilbert withdrawing her new novel because it is set in Russia (Author pulls new novel set in Russia after backlash, 14/6). It suggests the actions of a current Russian dictator must lead to the elimination of all references to that countrys culture. Should we now eschew Tolstoy, Chekhov, Gorky, Tchaikovsky, Prokofiev, Shostakovich, et al? Much of the great music and literature that originated in Russia was produced by creators who often were in direct conflict with the then current regime, whether that regime was Tsarist, Communist or Putinist. Beethoven was not banned during World War II, despite his German origins.

Brian Kidd, Mt Waverley Illogical alternative

The Age editorial, Make dementia part of euthanasia review (14/6) is timely. A person must have control over the process of their death. It is for this reason that personal capacity is at the heart of the current Voluntary Assisted Dying legislation in Victoria; a candidate must have the capacity to request the drug involved and have the capacity to self administer the drug. It follows logically that a person with a diagnosis of dementia should be offered entry to the VAD process. The individual then has the power to make his/her decision when to ingest the drug. The alternative approach, to wait until the person no longer has the capacity to request or administer the drug, opposes the wishes of the person, is illogical and is wasteful of physical and emotional resources.

Maurie Trewhella, Hoppers Crossing

Precedent set

Canada already allows a person with dementia to use VAD. Dementia has met the criteria since their system commenced in June 2016. Their criteria is that death is reasonably foreseeable. Canada does not require a prognosis of six or 12 months. Dementia is a terminal illness and a person with dementia is therefore eligible. In March 2021, after a long public inquiry, amendments were made and the waiver of final consent was introduced. The waiver means that once you are assessed as eligible, and while you still have decision making capacity, you can make an agreement with your doctor for the procedure on a particular date. When it arrives, you can change your mind or set another date. The cultural, social and political similarities between Canada and Australia means we can also make it safe for people with dementia to use VAD.

Anne Bunning, Adelaide SA Not fit to represent

The possibility of Donald Trump, a know misogynist, bully, narcissist and liar, to mention only a few of his weaknesses, and who is also indicted for an alleged capital offence can, apparently, still represent the Republican Party as their candidate for the next US presidential election. Trump has already proven he is not fit for any office, let alone the highest office in the land. His ringmaster skills are tiresome, his easily impressionable supporters are in high numbers, and often dangerous as we all know; with the clear evidence surrounding the capital riots of January 6. How is it that the party of Lincoln can abide this dangerous fool?

Keith Brown, Southbank Turning lives around

Re: Liberal MP questions tough-on-crime policies (14/6), it was encouraging to read of the support within the ranks of the Liberal Party to invest in people not prisons, with an emphasis on rehabilitation. This is especially important with respect to young people who have fallen foul of the law. A high proportion of them have mental health problems or cognitive impairment, in conjunction with a range of social disadvantages. And while their adolescent brains will not be fully developed until they are in their 20s, with faulty judgment and self-control risk factors for offending, it means, on the other hand, that they are have a greater chance of benefiting from rehabilitation. Support is key to change.

Jennie Stuart, Balwyn

Reasons to lock in change

Your correspondent (Letters, 14/6) implies they will blame Anthony Albanese if the Voice referendum fails  saying the prime minister should introduce a Voice via legislation. A reading of the tea leaves suggests that, at the moment, the Albanese government is likely to win at least one more term in office, however, inevitably, the Liberals, supported by the Nationals, many of whom are vehemently opposed to a Voice, will at some point be elected. Such is the nature of our democracy. The Voice legislation can, and probably will immediately be repealed, leaving our First Nations people once more without a voice. Who will your correspondent blame then?

Jo Bond, South Melbourne No going back

Re the letters headline Does Peter Dutton comprehend the damage of his doubts? (14/6), I would like to turn the question around. Do those advocating a Yes vote comprehend the potentially irreversible damage of altering the Constitution in a manner the proponents are not willing to define? I am all for solutions, and even an imperfect (but improvable) solution; but this tips us over the edge into a nightmare with no option to go back when we discover that this solution is not viable.

Geoff Boer, Cape Paterson AND ANOTHER THING Credit: Illustration: Matt Golding Trump indictment

Maybe Mr Trump, if he becomes the US president for a second time, will become famous for his special striped suit.

Paul Chivers, Box Hill North

Trump, the master of deflection.

Lou Ferrari, Richmond The Voice

If the words that are causing all the anguish, and the executive government, are removed, then I expect Peter Dutton will find something else to focus on to continue his No campaign.

Marie Nash, Balwyn Could the Yes team present a short informative series of TV/social media advertisements explaining exactly how the Yes vote advances/benefits our First Nations people. In a practical sense, how and what are the gains, and at what cost?

Frances Vearing, Bentleigh Voters should ignore people like Lidia Thorpe and Peter Dutton who are only trying to muddy the waters. There is too much debate about a simple question.

Marion White, Hawthorn Free fishing rods

If you give a child a fish, you feed them for a day. If you teach a child to fish, you feed them for a lifetime. Great idea, Dan.

Kathy Diviny, Coburg
Powerful unions want Labors rank and file to formally condemn the $368 billion AUKUS submarine deal this weekend, potentially setting up an awkward clash with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese when he addresses Victorian Labors first state conference in four years.

Both the prime minister and Premier Daniel Andrews will deliver speeches to party faithful at the conference, according to several state and federal government sources.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews. Credit: Alex Ellinghausen

The conference will be the first since 2019  before the pandemic, Melbournes long lockdowns, and the federal intervention that followed revelations by The Age about branch stacking, especially by former Labor right powerbroker Adem Somyurek.

The 606 delegates will be asked to vote on a motion from manufacturing union the AMWU seen by The Age, slamming Australias decision to acquire a nuclear-powered fleet from the United States and the prospect of the Albanese government dragging Australia into a new Cold War, rather than pursuing the labour movements longstanding commitment to a peaceful and independent foreign and defence policy.
London: Germanys first-ever national security strategy names Russia as the biggest threat to peace and describes China as both a partner and competitor that uses its economic clout for political gain.

Todays Russia is, for now, the most significant threat to peace and security in the Euro-Atlantic area, the strategy reads.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz launching the national security strategy in Berlin on Wednesday. Credit: Bloomberg

China is a partner, competitor and systemic rival. We see that the elements of rivalry and competition have increased in recent years, but at the same time, China remains a partner without whom many of the most pressing global challenges cannot be resolved.

In global terms, the Indo-Pacific, too, remains of special significance to Germany and Europe.
Chinese President Xi Jinping holds a welcoming ceremony for Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in the Northern Hall of the Great Hall of the People prior to their talks in Beijing, capital of China, June 14, 2023. Xi held talks with Abbas in Beijing on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Huang Jingwen)

BEIJING, June 14 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping held talks with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in Beijing on Wednesday.

The two leaders announced the establishment of a strategic partnership between China and Palestine.

Xi said China and Palestine are good friends and good partners who trust and support each other. He said China was one of the first countries to recognize the Palestine Liberation Organization and the State of Palestine.

China has all along firmly supported the Palestinian people's just cause of restoring their legitimate national rights and worked for a comprehensive, just and durable solution of the Palestinian question at an early date, Xi said.

China supports Palestine in becoming a full member state of the United Nations, will continue to speak up for Palestine and champion justice on multilateral occasions, and will provide assistance as best as it can to help ease humanitarian difficulties and reconstruction in Palestine, Xi said.

He called on both sides to take the establishment of strategic partnership as an opportunity to continue supporting each other on issues of core concern, advance cooperation in various areas, deepen partnership in jointly building the Belt and Road, speed up negotiations on the China-Palestine free trade agreement, share experiences on national governance and further the traditional friendship.

Xi put forward a three-point proposal for the settlement of the Palestinian question. Xi stressed that the Palestinian question has remained unresolved for over half a century, causing great sufferings to the Palestinian people; justice must be done to Palestine as soon as possible.

First, the fundamental solution lies in the establishment of an independent state of Palestine that enjoys full sovereignty on the basis of the 1967 borders and with east Jerusalem as its capital, he said.

Second, Palestine's economic and livelihood needs should be met, and the international community needs to step up development assistance and humanitarian aid to Palestine, he said.

Third, it is important to keep to the right direction of peace talks. The historical status quo of the holy sites in Jerusalem should be respected, and excessive and provocative words and actions should be avoided. A large-scale, more authoritative and more influential international peace conference should be convened so as to create conditions for the resumption of peace talks and contribute tangible efforts to help Palestine and Israel live in peace, he said.

"China stands ready to play a positive role to assist Palestine in achieving internal reconciliation and promote peace talks," Xi said.

Xi said China is willing to strengthen solidarity and cooperation with Palestine and other developing countries, enhance coordination in international and regional affairs, advance China's cooperation with Arab states, and safeguard the common interests of developing countries and international fairness and justice.

On behalf of the Palestinian people, Abbas thanked China for its long-term strong support and selfless assistance for the Palestinian people's just cause of restoring their legitimate national rights, calling China a trustworthy friend and partner.

Abbas said Palestine supports China's position on issues concerning its core interests and follows the one-China principle, adding that Palestine will work with China to promote the Belt and Road Initiative, strengthen bilateral cooperation and build a community with a shared future for humanity.

Palestine backs the Global Security Initiative, the Global Development Initiative and the Global Civilization Initiative proposed by President Xi, and speaks highly of the China-mediated talks between Saudi Arabia and Iran, Abbas said.

He thanked China for putting forward a number of initiatives on an early and just settlement of the Palestinian question. The Palestinian side believes in China's wisdom and just position and expects China to play a greater role in promoting intra-Palestinian reconciliation and realizing peace in the Middle East.

After their talks, the two presidents witnessed the signing of documents on bilateral economic and technological cooperation.

Prior to the talks, Xi held a welcoming ceremony for Abbas in the Northern Hall of the Great Hall of the People. 

Chinese President Xi Jinping holds talks with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, capital of China, June 14, 2023. (Xinhua/Yin Bogu)

Chinese President Xi Jinping holds a welcoming ceremony for Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in the Northern Hall of the Great Hall of the People prior to their talks in Beijing, capital of China, June 14, 2023. Xi held talks with Abbas in Beijing on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Zhang Ling)

Chinese President Xi Jinping holds a welcoming ceremony for Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in the Northern Hall of the Great Hall of the People prior to their talks in Beijing, capital of China, June 14, 2023. Xi held talks with Abbas in Beijing on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Huang Jingwen)

Chinese President Xi Jinping holds a welcoming ceremony for Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in the Northern Hall of the Great Hall of the People prior to their talks in Beijing, capital of China, June 14, 2023. Xi held talks with Abbas in Beijing on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Yin Bogu)
NEW YORK, June 13 (Xinhua) -- Politicians in European and Asian countries were far more worried about the U.S. policy toward China and more generally about President Joe Biden's new international economic policies, as outlined recently by National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan, reported The Washington Post on Friday.

"Europe needs an industrial policy, but it cannot afford to mimic the Biden administration's protectionism," former British Prime Minister Gordon Brown was quoted as telling the author of the article. "For Europe, trade is vital; its prosperity is dependent on trade with the rest of the world, including China, in a way that America's is not."

While acknowledging that the Biden administration has made moves to expand trade ties, he expressed concern that all the moves are bilateral or regional efforts that might undercut global trade. They come, he said, "at the expense of any real discussion of what a modern multilateralist order would look like."

"De-risking" is the hottest buzzword in diplomacy these days. Even the Biden administration now says it also wants to de-risk rather than decouple. But many European officials the author spoke with said they worry that this is just a rhetorical change and that U.S. policies -- and Chinese responses -- will keep moving the ratchet up, according to the report.

Kishore Mahbubani, the former Singaporean diplomat and author of "The Asian 21st Century," pointed out that discussions in the West often forget that the world's growth is mostly coming from Asia. The largest trade relationship in the world is between China and ASEAN -- almost 1 trillion U.S. dollars. And ASEAN countries cannot grow without open and vibrant trade, especially with China, said the report.

"It is worth remembering China's formidable strengths and the degree to which it is intertwined into the global economy," it noted. "Ten years ago, China exported a relatively small number of cars. Today, it is the world's leading exporter of automobiles, handily ousting Japan from that position. It is especially strong in electric vehicles. Two of every three EVs made in the world are made in China." 
SHANGHAI, June 14 (Xinhua) -- After three years of online meetings with his Chinese partners, Eike Schmidt, director of the world-renowned Uffizi Galleries in Florence, Italy, visited Shanghai recently to share the beauty of Renaissance art with the Chinese audience.

"It is very important for the Uffizi Galleries to be present in China," Schmidt told Xinhua in an exclusive interview. "We look forward to enhancing our cooperation with art museums here."

In 2022, the Uffizi Galleries and Shanghai's Bund One Art Museum signed a cooperation agreement to mark the China-Italy Year of Culture and Tourism, according to which the two museums would jointly hold 10 exhibitions in China over five years.

As a highlight and kickoff event, the "Uffizi Self-portrait Masterpieces" exhibition was unveiled in Shanghai in September 2022 and enjoyed immediate success.

It gathered 50 epic pieces by 50 masters from the 16th to the 21st century, including Titian, Rembrandt, and Chagall. The Self-Portrait of Raphael, a classic work by the master, made its debut in Shanghai during the exhibition.

The show has now traveled to Beijing and is currently on display at the National Museum of China.

"Botticelli and the Renaissance," the exhibition that is currently running at the Bund One Art Museum, features one of the greatest painters of the Florentine Renaissance. It has also become a big hit since its inception in April.

In recent years, the Uffizi Galleries has engaged in extensive cooperation with galleries across China, bringing a large number of precious works for Chinese art lovers.

According to Schmidt, another exhibition focusing on the art of the Enlightenment of the 18th century is being prepared and will open in the autumn in Bund One.

He also disclosed a dream project dedicated to both traditional and contemporary Chinese art. "While it is too early now to make any announcement, it is certainly something that is within the horizon of what we're planning to do."

During his first visit to Shanghai, Schmidt has been impressed by "the joy of the people on the streets, in the museum, and the beauty of the city."

The director of one of the most visited art museums in Europe said he is already looking forward to his next trip to China to promote art dialogues and deepen cultural ties.

"There are still eight more exhibitions to go... Even 10 exhibitions will not be enough. For us it's almost as never leaving," said Schmidt, referring to the joint program with Bund One. "I'm looking forward to going beyond these here in Shanghai, but also (cooperating) with other museums in China." 
AWJ, a Kitopi company and a leader in the F&B industry, is progressing its expansion in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA).



The company announced three significant launches: a new Operation:Falafel location in Jeddah, the debut of SushiDo in Riyadh, and the introduction of Shawarmetna, a virtual shawarma concept, launching across Riyadh, Dammam and Jeddah.



These expansion efforts underscore AWJs commitment to bringing its diverse and innovative culinary concepts to the Saudi market. The initiative aligns with the company's strategy of capitalising on global opportunities and acknowledges the potential of the rapidly evolving Food & Beverage industry in Saudi Arabia.



Operation:Falafel (O:F), the groups flagship restaurant, inaugurated its first location in Jeddah on May 1st, 2023. Renowned for its traditional Arabic street food served with a modern, unconventional twist, O:F offers a comprehensive menu for dine-in, takeaway, and delivery with notable delivery partners include Hungerstation, Jahez, The Chefz, To You, and Careem.



"Saudi Arabia has always been a market of immense potential for us, and we are thrilled to open our first Operation:Falafel location in Jeddah," said Mohamad Sami Ballout, CEO of AWJ. "Following our successful ventures in the Eastern region and Riyadh, we are confident that our unique concept will be well-received in the vibrant Jeddah market. With our experience in both the UAE and KSA markets, we've identified market gaps and have tailored our menus to cater to the preferences of the Saudi market."



SushiDo, acclaimed for its fusion of traditional and eccentric sushi, is primed for its debut in Riyadh, marking its entry into the Saudi market. Keeping the success of its Dubai model in mind, the brand has personalised its menu to align with local tastes. SushiDo will function as a cloud kitchen, facilitating deliveries through Jahez, The Chefz, To You, Hungerstation, Careem, and Mrsool.



AWJ is also enthusiastic about introducing Shawarmetna to the KSA market. Operating as a delivery-only shawarma concept, Shawarmetna will offer a variety of shawarma choices, including chicken and beef shawarma platters, sandwiches, bites, and appetisers. This launch continues to extend AWJ's influence in the KSA market.



AWJ's strategic market penetration and growth in KSA are rooted in its comprehensive understanding of market dynamics, gained from its experiences with Operation: Falafel and Catch22 in Dubai and KSA, with the company determined to blend traditional flavours with a contemporary edge through its innovative brands.  TradeArabia News Service
A Turkish scholar has said that the Global Development Initiative (GDI) proposed by China provides a guideline for the post-pandemic world.





Produced by Xinhua Global Service
Cheyenne, WY (82001)

Today

Variable clouds with scattered thunderstorms. High 77F. Winds ESE at 10 to 15 mph. Chance of rain 50%..

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Partly cloudy skies early followed by scattered thunderstorms overnight. Low 59F. Winds SE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 40%.
BEIJING, June 14 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping on Wednesday sent a congratulatory letter to the Forum on Global Human Rights Governance.

At a time of severe challenges facing the global human rights governance, China stands for safeguarding human rights with security, respecting the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all countries, calling on all countries to follow the path of peaceful development, and putting into action the Global Security Initiative, Xi noted in the letter.

China advocates for promoting human rights with development, putting into action the Global Development Initiative, and ensuring fair entitlement to human rights by people of all countries through modernization paths with their own characteristics, Xi said.

China stands for advancing human rights with cooperation in the spirit of mutual respect and equality, putting into action the Global Civilization Initiative, and deepening exchanges and mutual learning among civilizations, he added.

Putting the people above all else, China has pursued a human rights development path that follows the trend of the times and suits its national conditions, strengthening human rights protection in the course of advancing Chinese modernization, Xi stressed.

China is ready to work with the rest of the world to act on the principles enshrined in the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action, push for greater fairness, justice, reason, and inclusiveness in global human rights governance, and promote the development of a human community with a shared future, he said.

Jointly hosted by the Information Office of the State Council, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the China International Development Cooperation Agency, the forum is themed "Equality, Cooperation and Development: The 30th Anniversary of the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action and Global Human Rights Governance." It opened in Beijing on Wednesday. 
The Daily News will sit down with your top performance player from the Week #7 Batavia Muckdogs games and talk baseball! Keep an eye out for our Week #8 poll, running next week (Tuesday - Friday)!

You voted:
This photo taken on June 13, 2023 shows a Security Council meeting on threats to international peace and security with a focus on climate change, peace and security, at the UN headquarters in New York. (Manuel Elias/UN Photo/Handout via Xinhua)

UNITED NATIONS, June 14 (Xinhua) -- The UN Security Council on Tuesday highlighted the growing security risks climate shocks pose in vulnerable locations. Speakers strongly urged decisive action to address the intricate connections between climate change and conflict.

With an estimated 3.5 billion people living in climate hotspots, related peace and security risks are only set to heighten, UN Under-Secretary-General for Peace Operations Jean-Pierre Lacroix told the council, warning that action must be taken to avert ever-worsening effects.

Climate shocks are triggering worsening security environments, from Afghanistan to Mali, and UN peacekeeping missions are taking steps to adapt, from reducing their carbon footprint to addressing myriad related consequences.

"Given the growing linkages of climate change, peace, and security, as well as the broader changes to the conflict dynamics in the areas in which we work, we must continue to adapt," he said.

Providing an overview of current efforts, Lacroix said that within the past several years, most UN peace operations have faced greater dangers and political challenges.

Of the 16 countries that are the most climate vulnerable, nine host a UN field mission, he said, emphasizing that most UN peace operations are deployed in contexts that are both highly climate exposed and characterized by high levels of gender inequality.

"Our missions witness first-hand the dual vulnerabilities posed by climate change and insecurity," he said, offering several examples.

As such, priority areas for action in UN field missions include investing in capacities to anticipate and address climate and security linkages, reinforcing the mutual benefits of climate action and making environments safer, and ensuring the missions do not become part of the problem, he said.

At the council's second formal meeting of 2023, more than 70 speakers, including former Colombian President and Nobel Prize laureate Juan Manuel Santos, exchanged views on connections between climate change and worsening security.

He said that peace can only be maintained if the very forests, soils and rivers that communities depend on are protected and managed sustainably.

"We need bold policy action," he said. "We must redouble our efforts not only in mitigation and adaptation but in nature-positive solutions, including conserving high-integrity forests, peatlands, coral reefs, and other ecosystems that provide humanity with clean air, clean water."

Salma Kadry, a climate, peace and security expert at the Consortium on International Agricultural Research, warned that failing to address the scale of the climate crisis would expose her generation and future ones to an array of escalating dangers and insecurities.

She encouraged the global community to reassess the effectiveness of its peace and security measures in promoting innovation and building resilience, especially among women and young people. Additionally, she called upon the Council to broaden the range of research that informs its decision-making processes.

In the ensuing all-day debate, speakers tackled the issue of the climate crisis-security nexus, with many urging the council to expand the measures already underway to curb the impact climate-related changes have on both peacekeeping operations and the regions in which they are located.

Hermann Immongault, minister for foreign affairs of Gabon, said that 17 out of 20 countries most affected by climate change are in Africa. Access to water, along with drought, desertification and recurrent flooding constraints, is causing the economic and social fabric of the Horn of Africa and the Sahel region to fray.

He called for incorporating the climate-security nexus in geopolitical strategies; boosting cooperation between subregional and regional organizations and the United Nations; and sharing best practices at the national, regional and international levels.

"This is the question of survival of the affected populations and the issue that determines peace and security for people throughout the world," he added. 

UN Under-Secretary-General for Peace Operations Jean-Pierre Lacroix briefs a UN Security Council meeting on threats to international peace and security with a focus on climate change, peace and security at the UN headquarters in New York on June 13, 2023. (Eskinder Debebe/UN Photo/Handout via Xinhua)

Former Colombian President and Nobel Prize laureate Juan Manuel Santos briefs a UN Security Council meeting on threats to international peace and security with a focus on climate change, peace and security at the UN headquarters in New York on June 13, 2023. (Manuel Elias/UN Photo/Handout via Xinhua)

Hermann Immongault, minister for foreign affairs of Gabon, addresses a UN Security Council meeting on threats to international peace and security with a focus on climate change, peace and security at the UN headquarters in New York on June 13, 2023. (Manuel Elias/UN Photo/Handout via Xinhua)
by Zhang Weiwei

BEIJING, June 14 (Xinhua) -- With more than 40 years of reform and opening-up, China has eradicated extreme poverty, lifted about 800 million people out of poverty, and brought over 400 million people into the middle-income group. This is a miracle in the history of human civilization and has far-reaching implications for global human rights governance.

The United States has never considered poverty eradication a human rights issue, while Europe considers it an obstacle to the realization of human rights at most. However, China has politically recognized poverty eradication as not only a human right, but also a core one, and has put it into firm, vigorous, and extensive practice. Therefore, China is at the forefront of poverty eradication in the world. It provides great inspiration for all developing countries since almost all of the biggest challenges facing developing countries are related to poverty eradication.

The achievements made in eradicating poverty in the course of Chinese modernization are much better than those achieved under the West-led development pattern. The main reason is the huge difference in human rights awareness between the two patterns. Chinese civilization has never been disrupted in its continuity in the world. In its modernization drive, China continues to formulate policies based on the people's needs, national conditions, and cultural traditions.

As a Chinese saying goes, "The people are the foundation of a state. When the foundation is strong, the state will be secure." In other words, the people are the cornerstone of a country, and only by consolidating the cornerstone of the country can the country be peaceful, and how well people's livelihood issues are resolved will determine the future and destiny of a country. Furthermore, as another Chinese saying goes, "issues related to people's livelihoods are paramount." An important experience from China's reform and opening up in the past few decades is that people's livelihood is paramount. A developing country shall spare no effort to eradicate poverty and improve people's livelihood, which is the top priority of the government's work.

Now, it seems that China's philosophy that "people's livelihoods are paramount" has corrected a deviation that has been in existence for a long time in the Western philosophy of human rights governance, that is, importance is only attached to the political rights of citizens, but their rights to survival and development are ignored. Looking back, we can find that when European enlightenment thinkers in the 18th century proposed human rights such as freedom, equality, and private property rights, they represented the emerging proprietary classes at that time.

Today's world has entered the 21st century, but hundreds of millions of people still suffer from extreme poverty. Many developing countries that follow Western political systems have not yet solved the basic issue of people's livelihood. In this context, we may better understand the global significance of the Chinese path to modernization. The Chinese people, through their great practice of poverty eradication, are, in a sense, redefining modernization and modernity.

In contrast, the 20-year war waged by the United States in Afghanistan cost some 2.3 trillion U.S. dollars according to studies, and resulted in human rights violations, countless deaths, and innumerable displaced people. We can even make a theoretical hypothesis from this: If we followed the Chinese pattern, with 2.3 trillion U.S. dollars, we could almost eliminate extreme poverty in the whole world including the United States.

The U.S. political system has long been kidnapped by U.S. military-industrial interest groups. They have made a lot of money through wars, including the Afghanistan War, but they have brought crises and even disasters to the people of the world, including the American people. How can such a country be qualified to talk about human rights in today's world?

The China-proposed Global Development Initiative calls for staying committed to development as a priority and a people-centered approach. Only through development can poverty be eliminated and the root causes of many conflicts be removed. Seen from the perspective of human rights protection, this initiative and China's complete set of philosophies and practices for poverty eradication have greatly enriched the philosophy and practice of global human rights governance.

(The author is director of the China Institute of Fudan University in Shanghai.) 
2nd Victim Dies 2 Months After Fatal Northridge Shooting

NORTHRIDGE, Calif.A second victim in the April 15 shooting of men who had been hired to paint over gang graffiti on the wall of a Northridge business has died, police said June 12.

The name of the victim was withheld pending notification of next of kin.

Jamal Jackson, 24, of Panorma City, was arrested April 16 in Ontario as a suspect in the shooting in the 19100 block of Parthenia Street, near Vanalden Avenue, the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) reported.

Charges against Jackson have been updated by the Los Angeles County District Attorneys Office to include a second count of homicide, police said.

Jackson was being held without bail. He is slated to appear in the North Valley Superior Court on June 28, according to jail records.

Anyone with additional information about the shooting was asked to call Detective Gabe Bucknell of LAPDs Valley Bureau Homicide at 818-374-1928.
3 California Conservative School Board Members Face Recall Amid LGBT, CRT Debates

A special meeting is held to discuss critical race theory with the Temecula Valley Unified School District Board and invited experts in Temecula, Calif., on March 22, 2023. (Brad Jones/The Epoch Times)

A Temecula group is looking to recall three school board members amid controversy surrounding their conservative stance on critical race theory and LGBT content in classroomsas well as their recent decision to fire the districts superintendent.

One Temecula Valley, a local political action committee, gathered the required number of signatures30 from each trustees districton June 12 to initiate a formal petition to recall Temecula Valley Unified Board President Joseph Komrosky as well as Trustees Danny Gonzalez and Jennifer Wiersma, all of whom were elected in December.

Committee member Jeff Pack said the trustees controversial actions are causing some teachers and principals to announce their intent to leave the district.

[The trustees actions] have created instability and chaos in the district, Pack told The Epoch Times. We want to make Temecula boring again.

Pack said he felt that despite the board members elections, their actions did not represent the whole communityonly their supporters.

One Temecula Valley Unified parent, who preferred to remain anonymous, said she supported the recall petition because she thought the board was becoming too engaged in political battles to focus on students.

I feel like the board members are kind of in this role to start controversy rather than backing whats best for our kids, the parent told The Epoch Times. I scanned through the social studies books in question, and I didnt see any issues with them. I dont know why [the board] voted them down.

But other parents say theyre grateful to the current board members for standing up for parents rights.

These current board members were elected because parents were completely unsatisfied with the board members of the past two years, district parent Stephanie Dawson told The Epoch Times. We felt they didnt listen to our concerns and that they belittled us for how we felt.

Dawson said she thought the recall groups desire to make Temecula boring again meant they wanted to keep the districts standards low.

With the new board members, we voted them in because, during the pandemic, parents started to pay attention to what was wrong with the district and what was wrong with the leadership, she said. Thats why we elected them to get on there and make those changes. Unfortunately, they are big changes, and theyre changes that the other side is not happy with. But this is what the majority of us parents wanted.

The recall effort comes as the board recently garnered national attention for blocking a textbook containing references to LGBT activist and politician Harvey Milk, whom Komrosky, the district superintendent, called a pedophile last month.

In a press conference on June 7, Komrosky said that his comment did not refer to Milks sexual orientation, but to reports that Milk had a sexual relationship with a minor.

I would express the same sentiments [against] any [such] adult being [featured] in K5 textbooks, he said.

Meanwhile, California Gov. Gavin Newsom and state Attorney General Rob Bonta released a joint statement on June 7 demanding the board provide information regarding its process for rejecting the curriculum.

The debate centers around a book called Social Studies Alive, a textbook recently piloted in district schools that was brought before the board for official approval at a board meeting in May.

While the textbook does not mention Milk in its main text, its optional supplemental material features him.

Komrosky, along with Gonzalez and Trustee Jennifer Wiersma, voted against the books adoption, while Trustees Allison Barclay and Steven Schwarz voted in its favor.

In December, the three newly-elected trustees, who campaigned on parent rights, voted to ban critical race theory in the district.
Advance Turnout for Toronto Mayoral Vote up Almost 12 Percent From Last Election

The six-day advance voting period for what is shaping up to be a record-setting by-election for a new mayor in Toronto has just come to an end, with almost 12 percent more advance voters going to the polls than in the last election in October 2022.

Advance polls closed at the end of the day on June 13, and according to a Toronto City news release, 129,745 eligible voters cast their ballots. The actual election day is June 26, when voters will have a choice between a record-setting 102 candidates. It only takes 25 signatures for a candidate to be placed on the ballot for mayor.

This is the highest number of candidates ever registered for mayor of the amalgamated City of Toronto, surpassing the previous record of 65 candidates in the 2014 municipal election. There were 31 certified candidates for mayor of Toronto in the 2022 municipal election, the city said in a May 12 news release.

Toronto has a population of more than 3 million people, with an estimated nearly 2 million eligible voters, and is the fourth largest city in North America. The last day of advance voting, June 13, saw 38,621 voters go to a polling station, which the city said was the highest single day of advance voting since Torontos six separate municipalities amalgamated on Jan. 1, 1998.

This election saw voters able to cast their ballots at one of 50 advance voting locations in the city, also a historic option unique to this by-election, because there was only one race for the mayors seat. The former mayor, John Tory, resigned in February, just four months after being reelected, after it was publicized that he had an extramarital affair with a former member of his staff.

John Beebe, founder of the Democracy Engagement Exchange at Toronto Metropolitan Universitywhich encourages Canadians to votesaid the election readiness handbook prepared by the organization sold out.

Were very excited because we see that level of excitement. Whether the candidates have really lit people on fire, thats what were going to have to wait and see, he told Global News on June 13.

Electoral Reform

Beebe was also critical of Torontos first-past-the-post system for winning the election.

Its the worst possible system to choose a mayor. And this is definitely a case study in why we need to change our election procedures, Beebe said.

Regardless of the share of overall ballots cast, the candidate with the most votes wins. With 102 candidates on the ballot, the next mayor could take the win with less than one-third of the popular vote, and will also enter office with strong mayor powers.

These new powers granted by the provincial government allow a mayor to pass a budget with the support of just one-third of council. The powers can also be used to veto bylaws and form the upper administration of the city.

Some cities use a ranked ballot to determine the mayor, where each round eliminates the candidate with the fewest number of votes, with the next ranked choice on the ballot getting those votes by attrition.

Ontario changed the law in 2016 to allow a ranked ballot election, but in 2020, Doug Ford reversed that policy and changed the law back so that municipal candidates were elected the same way as provincial and federal representatives.

The latest poll conducted by Liaison Strategies, according to CP24 on June 13, has Olivia Chow leading the race with 34 percent of decided voters, with Mark Saunders trailing behind at 15 percent support. In third and fourth place respectively, polls have Josh Matlow at 12 percent and Ana Bailao at 10 percent, followed by a tie between Anthony Furey and Mitzie Hunter at 9 percent.

The Canadian Press contributed to this report.
ANALYSIS: How the Pandemic Affected Trade Between the US, Canada, Mexico

Trucks wait in a long queue for border customs control to cross into the U.S. at the World Trade Bridge in Nuevo Laredo, Mexico, on April 2, 2019. (Daniel Becerril/Reuters)

U.S. trade with Canada and Mexico has rebounded to $1.6 trillion after taking a hit during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to official data.

From 2019 to 2020, the value of total trade with Canada and Mexico slumped by 13.3 percent to $1 trillion, according to the U.S. Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS). The weight of goods crossing the border decreased by 3.7 percent to 557.7 million tons.

In 2019, before the pandemic, the U.S. had $1.2 trillion in trade with Canada and Mexico. The total weight of that trade was 579.4 million tons. Although freight traffic was not affected by pandemic-related border closures, overall economic activity slowed in 2020 following pandemic lockdowns in all three nations, BTS said.

The pandemic revealed the deep integration of our economies as well as some important impediments and limitations, Andrew Rudman, director of the Wilson Centers Mexico Institute, told The Epoch Times. Closure of the U.S. border to nonessential travel and the differing definitions of essential meant significant disruptions to the movement of goods across our border.

For U.S. border communities, it also meant the loss of significant portions of their customer base, much of which crossed the border on a daily basis to make purchases. One of the most important lessons we should take from the pandemic is the need for the U.S. and Mexico (and Canada) to establish clear and consistent guidelines and metrics to determine when the borders will be closed and reopened to commercial and personal movement, he said.

With the end of the lockdowns, trade between the United States, Mexico, and Canada has recovered enormously, according to BTS.

In 2022, as the pandemic waned and economic activity recovered, the value of U.S. trade with Canada and Mexico hit $1.6 trillion, up 50 percent from 2020 and 25 percent from pre-pandemic 2019.

Companies Relocate to Mexico

In Mexico specifically, experts believe there was such a robust return in trade because many companies moved their manufacturing operations to Mexico from China.

Its exponentially grown primarily due to companies manufacturing and logistics [operations] pulling out of China and relocating into Mexico, Ricardo Rubiano, founder of real estate investment firm RubiGroup Capital, told The Epoch Times.

This is not a new trend by any means; its been happening now for the better part of five or seven years and so because of the expansion of the manufacturing and logistics corridor from Mexico City to Monterrey to the three major checkpoints, which are Ciudad Juarez, Reynosa, and Laredo.

Because of that, we are showing development in Mexico, and that demand has been brought forward into the United States.

When you look at the industrial expansion in [that] corridor, Tesla is under construction in Monterrey, along with Sony and Samsung. Almost any Fortune 500 entity is now operating in Mexico or expanding their presence in Mexico significantly, he said.

Rudman agrees with that assessment.

Companies are moving operations back to Mexico both to shorten supply chains (another lesson of the pandemic) and to gain access to the North American market, which is one of the most competitive in the world. The wave of nearshoring is creating extreme demand for warehouse space and for contract manufacturing, as well as for greenfield investment in new manufacturing facilities, he said.

The extent to which Mexico can capitalize on this interest will depend on the availability of clean, dependable energy and on the delivery of quality education and health care for potential workers and their families. With appropriate policies to attract and retain investment, Mexico could indeed capitalize on higher labor costs in China, a preference for shortened supply chains, and its geographic proximity to the most important consumer market in the world.

Laredo

No U.S. city is feeling the growing difference in trade between the United States and Mexico more than the Texas border city of Laredo.

About 40 to 45 percent of all the goods coming in from Mexico [to the United States] pass through Laredo bridges, Laredo Mayor Victor D. Trevino told The Epoch Times. Trade is growing rapidly; border-related trading was nearly $320 billion in 2022 [in our area].

So much trade goes from Nuevo Laredo, Mexico, to Laredo that Trevino said the city is working on expanding the World Trade Bridge, one of four international bridges that connect to Laredo.

We must invest in our infrastructure, and the international significance of the World Trade Bridge is very important, and it is the No. 1 U.S.Mexico border crossing, Trevino said.

According to the City of Laredos April 2022 report on expanding the bridge, the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) said the World Trade Bridge is such an important border crossing that by 2050, the average wait time on the bridge might reach 8 hours and 47 minutes.

TxDOT stresses that the economic costs of these delays would be extreme: Demand and delays at the World Trade Bridge are forecast to experience the estimated impact on GDP to move from $422.3 million in 2019 to $28.0 billion ($16.8 billion on the U.S., $11.2 billion on Mexico) in 2050,' the report said.

Trevino said the World Trade Bridge shows the importance of binational cooperation because both sides of the border rely on commerce and consumers moving from one country to the other.

He said that during the pandemic, Laredo and its sister city across the border, Nuevo Laredo, worked together to mitigate the spread of COVID-19.

Because of the pandemic, we were able to pull our resources together and hold on and be resilient. And with efforts of cooperation and working together, I think we can get things done in a better, more effective way. This pandemic model should serve as an example for other projects.
Arrests and Releases Without Charges: The Erosion of Due Process

Commentary

There seems to be a fashion these days for arresting politicians once theyve left office. The latest victim of this fashion is Nicola Sturgeon, former first minister of Scotland, who was recently arrested by the police in Scotland and then released without chargeyet.

The former president of France, Nicolas Sarkozy, is presently appealing a conviction that will confine him to house arrest should it be upheld.

Of Donald Trumps current travails with the law, I need hardly speak. Boris Johnson will probably be next.

I have no particular sympathy for Sturgeon. It seems that the finances of her political party are a swamp, and the idea that has been mooted, that she might find a job in the U.N. or some other transnational organization, appalls me. I think that failed politicians should fade into the background and preferably not be heard from again.

But to arrest someone and then release him or her almost immediately without charge seems to be the procedure of a police state. Its no excuse that Sturgeon was herself no friend of freedom, that, in fact, she circumscribed freedom by promoting draconian laws against hate speech. The point about the rule of law is that it extends its protection to everyone, whether or not they personally deserve it: for its precisely this that makes it morally superior to arbitrary rule.

To arrest and then release without charge is a way of destroying someones reputation, as theres a natural propensity for people to assume that there can be no smoke without fire. Surely there must have been something on Sturgeon for the police to have arrested her: Such is the way that most people will think, except for a rump of fanatical supporters.

Furthermore, were now mostly so cynical that we believe that no successful politiciansuccessful in the careerist sensecould have been entirely honest or never have broken the law. The presumption of innocence doesnt apply in their case: We presume that theyre guilty. The only question is of how much.

A person such as Sturgeon, who has been arrested, immediately released, and then told that theres an ongoing investigation into her, has already been punished de facto, irrespective of any subsequent finding of guilt or innocence, for she must live with the Sword of Damocles hanging over her head. It seems elementary that in a case such as hers, no one should be arrested unless theres strong prima facie evidence of wrongdoing, strong enough to charge.

Another technique wrongly used by police and prosecutors is to bring so many charges against a person that defense against them all requires superhuman efforts unlikely to be within any individuals mental capacity. Its like asking a country to fight a war on 30 fronts at once: It cant be done. Its calculated to strengthen the popular idea that there can be no smoke without fire. Moreover, it heightens the temptation of the accused to plead guilty to something in return for the withdrawal of other charges.

No system of justice in which theres plea bargaining can be anything other than morally corrupt. A person should be charged with what he or she is believed to have done, not charged with more in the hope of securing some conviction or other against him or her.

The new leader of Sturgeons party, Humza Yousaf, has been heavily criticized for not having at once suspended her from the party. I have no liking for Yousaf, but in this instance, hes perfectly right: As yet, Sturgeon has been found guilty of nothing. It would have been different had she been found guilty of something, but she hasnt.

The case illustrates the fragility of the presumption of innocence in the human mind, in effect, its unnaturalness: We find it much easier to believe in guilt than in innocence (in part, no doubt, because we know that were all guilty of something). A legal system in which theres a genuine presumption of innocence is an achievement of civilization, not of nature.

When I examine my heart, I find that, because I dislike Sturgeon, I hope that shes found guilty of having broken the law and that this puts an end to her political career, but I believe myself to be capable of sufficient dispassion that I could sit on a jury and judge her strictly according to the evidence presented, to wipe the prejudice from my mind. Indeed, the jury system is predicated on the assumption that Im not alone in this but that its within the capacity of most citizens to do likewise if called upon to do so.

On the matter of the legal pursuit of wrongdoing by politicians, I find myself not of one mind. Complete impunity is obviously dangerous, and there must be a point at which they should be held liable for their misdeeds. On the other hand, we elect people, not saints, and given the nature of politics since time immemorial, even the most admirable politicians have usually done something not entirely in accord with the laws (of us ordinary citizens, I dont speak). The prosecution of politicians for crimes that arent in themselves very heinous risks a cycle of vendetta that can only end badly.

But the argument that they, the politicians, are all the same or that there are politicians who have done worse things than the one whos being currently prosecuted, isnt a very good one. Clearly, some people have gotten away with murder, but that wouldnt excuse a burglary that I had committed or be a sufficient reason for not prosecuting me for it. Indeed, the rhetorical argument of tu quoque you alsois an implicit admission of guilt.

If, on the one hand, we dont want our politicians to enjoy impunity, but on the other, we dont want to start a self-destructive cycle of vengeance, we need to be able to trust some authority to exercise proper judgment in the matter: But thats precisely what we cant do, to a degree unprecedented in my lifetime. How to restore trust, I dont knowperhaps training ourselves to behave as if we believed in the assumption of innocence would be a start.

Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
Its a travesty of justice. This is what happens in third world countries.

In this episode of ATL, I sit down with Rep. Ralph Norman (R-S.C.) to discuss Trumps arraignment, in which the former president is pleading not guilty to federal charges.

Its a dog and pony show and well see how it turns out. Hes strong enough to take it, says the congressman, who believes that the indictment will only help Trump in his run for the 2024 presidency, as Americans sense that the entire process has been politicized.

Hes a political opponent to the left and theyre doing everything they can to discredit him. Look at the timing of it. Hes in the middle of a presidential election. The primaries will be coming up in six, eight months, says Norman.

We also discuss the World Health Organizations (WHO) upcoming pandemic treaty, which President Joe Biden has expressed interest in signing, and what impact that will have on Americas sovereignty.

America determines Americas health  not a third party like the WHO, says Norman. Theyre not an organization that has been truthful and its been obvious in their decisions that they answer to one party, and its the CCP [Chinese Communist Party].
Australians to Get Affordable Financial Advice From Super Funds Under New Reform

The Australian Labor government has introduced a new reform that allows more citizens to access affordable financial advice from their superannuation funds.

This comes following an exodus of financial advisors in the country due to a 2019 royal commissions inquiry into the misconduct in the banking, super and financial services industry, which resulted in a shortage of accredited advisors and soaring service fees.

In his speech to the Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia, Financial Services Minister Stephen Jones said only a small percentage of super members sought financial advice before retirement.

There are five million Australians at or approaching retirement. The average Australian is now retiring with around $200,000 in superannuation, he said.

Yet the Retirement Income Review found that only 26 percent of individuals approaching retirement seek financial advice.

The minister noted that the situation resulted in an advice gap among super members, causing them to miss out on social security entitlements and other benefits.

Superannuation funds have told me that they have many retirees who have not switched from the accumulation phase to a taxfree pension account. This might be good for the Treasury coffers, but its not good for members, he said.

Im also told that there are thousands who miss out on the Age Pension and other benefits that they are entitled to simply because they didnt know who to ask. Or because they assumed their super fund was already doing this for them.

The State of Australias Financial Advice Industry

Jones said the financial advice sector had become heavily regulated in the past decade as the federal government rolled out reforms to protect Australians from poor investments and bad financial advice.

While the reforms have been effective in protecting Australians from bad advice, it has also shielded them from helpful advice, he said.

The minister said the governments reforms had resulted in 10,000 financial advisors exiting the industry since 2019, leaving behind just 16,000 advisors today.

Financial Services Minister Stephen Jones at a press conference in Canberra, Australia, on Oct. 31, 2022. (AAP Image/Mick Tsikas)

Due to the shrinking advisory pool, advice and information have become too expensive or inaccessible for everyday Australians, with the median ongoing advice fee soaring by 41 percent between 2018 and 2021.

While super funds were required under laws to create a retirement strategy for members, the minister said a second set of rules made it almost impossible for them to provide that information and advice.

Jones added that the situation had caused many Australians to seek help from the unregulated world, namely finfluencers (social media financial influencers), unlicensed online advice and scammers, which could lead to significant harm.

Details of the Financial Advice Reform

As Jones elaborated on the challenges of the financial advice industry, he said the government had decided to allow super funds to expand their provision of advice, and provide legal certainty for funds on how to charge fees for their services.

Super funds are wellsuited to safely meeting the needs of their members, he said.

They are already governed by strong obligations to act in the best financial interests of members, and act for the sole purpose of providing retirement benefits to members.

In addition, Jones said the government would strengthen super disclosures and consult with the industry and the Treasury Department to develop a proper advising model for super funds.

Other changes outlined in the reform include cutting unnecessary paperwork for financial advisors and exploring new channels for advice, including banks and insurers.

Following the governments announcement, Super Consumers Australia director Xavier OHalloran welcomed the reform and said his organisation would actively consult the government.

We support the governments focus on clarifying the law to make sure super funds can safely and helpfully answer simple questions from people approaching retirement, he said.

There is the potential to help more people plan for retirement, so long as there are appropriate consumer safeguards.

Meanwhile, the Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia (ASFA), a peak industry body, said the reform would boost retirement incomes for Australians.

These reforms will improve access to financial advice and retirement outcomes. They will also increase the efficiency, cost-effectiveness, and consumer experience of advice, ASFA Deputy CEO Glen McCrea said.

Superannuation funds are well placed to deliver the financial advice that consumers want and need. This can range from relatively simple advice around a single issue, such as contributions or investment options, to more holistic advice around retirement.
BEIJING, June 14 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping held talks with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in Beijing on Wednesday.

Xi welcomed Abbas's visit to China. He recalled their joint attendance at the first China-Arab States Summit in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, at the end of last year and their bilateral meeting during which many important common understandings were reached.

Xi thanked Abbas for sending a congratulatory letter in March on his re-election as the Chinese president. Noting that Abbas is the first Arab head of state hosted by China this year, Xi said the visit speaks volumes about the strength of China-Palestine relations.

Xi stressed that China and Palestine are good friends and good partners who trust and support each other. He said China was one of the first countries to recognize the Palestine Liberation Organization and the State of Palestine, and has all along firmly supported the Palestinian people's just cause of restoring their legitimate national rights.

"Facing unprecedented changes in the world and the new developments in the Middle East, China stands ready to strengthen coordination and cooperation with Palestine, and work for a comprehensive, just and durable solution of the Palestinian question at an early date," Xi said.

Today, the two presidents have jointly announced the establishment of a strategic partnership between China and Palestine.

Xi said the establishment of a strategic partnership will serve as an important milestone in bilateral relations that builds on past achievements and heralds a brighter future, adding that China will seize this opportunity to work with Palestine to advance bilateral friendship and cooperation in all areas. 
Battle Over Bidens Senate Records Continues in Delawares Supreme Court

President Joe Biden delivers the commencement address for his alma mater, the University of Delaware, at Delaware Stadium, in Newark, Del., on May 28, 2022. (Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images)

The Delaware Supreme Court will deliberate on whether the University of Delaware violated the states Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) in denying requests related to President Joe Bidens U.S. Senate records.

More than 1,850 boxes of archival records and 415 gigabytes of electronic records from Bidens time in the Senate are currently housed at the University of Delaware.

In April 2020, the conservative nonprofit Judicial Watch and Daily Caller News Foundation sought access to those records and communications related to their donation via FOIA requests.

Now, their legal team aims to reverse a lower courts ruling that the university met its obligations under the law when it denied those requests.

Legal Battle

We need to probe what steps the university took, argued Bill Green, attorney for Judicial Watch and Daily Caller News Foundation, on June 14.

Theres been a bare minimum of representations as to what theyve done, and theyve relied on these categorical determinationscategorical determinations we dont believe are fair and need to be tested through an adversarial process.

Initially, the two appellants filed separate petitions with the Delaware attorney generals office seeking a review of the universitys denial of their requests.

In July 2020, Delaware Deputy Attorney General Dorey Cole responded (pdf) that the documents were not subject to FOIA because they did not fulfill the laws definition of public records.

Judicial Watch and Daily Caller News Foundation appealed that determination to the states Superior Court. That court ultimately sided with the university and the attorney generals office, but when the appellants took their case to the Delaware Supreme Court, they received their first partial victory.

In December 2021, the state Supreme Court found that the University of Delaware had not sufficiently detailed its efforts to prove that the requested documents were not public records subject to FOIA.

Because the universitys factual assertions to the Deputy Attorney General and the Superior Court were not made under oath and do not describe the efforts to identify responsive documents, they are not sufficient to meet FOIAs burden of proof, the court ruled (pdf), handing the case back to the Superior Court for further review.

In response to that ruling, the University of Delaware filed a supplemental affidavit from the schools FOIA coordinator, Jennifer Becnel-Guzzo.

In her affidavit, Becnel-Guzzo disclosed that she did not conduct a search in response to the appellants requests but relied on her previous communications in January 2020 with university personnel regarding similar requests involving Biden.

Those communications, she attested, confirmed that public funds were not used in the custody and curation of Bidens records, thereby disqualifying them as public records.

She added that her previous review of the gift agreement between Biden and the school had revealed that it did not mention state funds.

In October 2022, the Superior Court again sided with the university, finding that the new affidavit satisfied the universitys burden of proof.

Burden of Proof

Now back before the Supreme Court, Green argued on June 14 that the Superior Courts October ruling was erroneous.

The affidavit, he said, does not satisfy the universitys burden of proof for three reasons: Most importantly, it is ambiguous.

Second, the university performed no search related to the requests. It reviewed no documents apart from the gift agreement but rather relies on previous inquiries of university staff.

And finally, the supplemented affidavit is largely based on hearsay.

However, arguing on behalf of the University of Delaware, attorney William Manning said that the university did not need to conduct a search to know that the requested documents did not qualify as public records.

We can say, without looking at that document, that there are no responsive documents if you know that no state funds were spent on the universitys custody and curation of the Biden documents, Manning said.

Justice Abigail LeGrow, however, pushed back on that assertion, noting that the Supreme Courts prior opinion had found that it was not clear on the face of the requests for the gift agreement or communications records that they were not subject to FOIA.

She also stressed the courts ruling that the university would need to create a record from which the court could determine whether an adequate search was conducted.

What I think youve just said over the last few minutes and what your brief acknowledges is that you didnt perform a search, she said. So, how could this court ever conclude that what you did is consistent with its prior decision?

Manning responded that his reading of the courts prior opinion led him to believe that if it was clear on the face of the requests that there were no responsive documents, the requests could be denied.

Meanwhile, Justice Karen Valihura questioned how the court could be sure that the FOIA coordinators previous communications with university personnel were still reliable and accurate given the amount of time that had passed since the requests in question were made.

Manning replied that the university only needed to justify its original denial of the FOIA requests, not prove that the facts they relied upon then hadnt changed.

Implausible

Another line of argument Green pursued was that it seemed implausible that the gift agreement between Biden and the university would not in some way relate to the expenditure of state funds, even if only to specify that state funds would not be used to maintain the records.

But LeGrow seemed skeptical of that reasoning as it could be construed to encompass any university document that relates in any way to the expenditure of funds.

The justice also noted that, in the case of the agreement, the FOIA coordinator had attested to reviewing that document herself.

She says it. Its under oath. Shes a member of this bar. Why should the Superior Court of this court not take her at her word?

Green responded that his team would still like a sworn statement that specifies whether the document addresses the expenditure of funds and, if not the state, the source of the funds that are covering the documents upkeep.

Valihura said the Court would take the matter under advisement.

Similar Cases

The hearing came one day after former President Donald Trump pleaded not guilty to 37 federal charges relating to his handling of classified documents.

Trump is being prosecuted by special counsel Jack Smith after boxes of classified documents were found at his Florida home of Mar-a-Lago.

Biden, like Trump, is also under federal investigation for retaining classified documents from his time as vice president and as a U.S. Senator.

The discovery late last year of such documents at his Wilmington, Delaware, home and the University of Pennsylvanias Penn Biden Center led the FBI to conduct two searches of the University of Delaware for additional documents.

It remains unclear whether those searches yielded any classified materials.
Belarus to Get Russian Tactical Nuclear Weapons In Days: Lukashenko

Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko speaks to journalists during his visit to a military-industrial complex facility in the Minsk Region, Belarus, on June 13, 2023. (Press Service of the President of the Republic of Belarus/Handout via Reuters)

LONDONBelarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said on Tuesday that Russian tactical nuclear weapons would be physically deployed on the territory of Belarus in several days and that he had the facilities to host longer-range missiles too if ever needed.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Friday that Russia, which will retain control of the tactical nuclear weapons, would start deploying them in close ally Belarus after special storage facilities to house them were made ready on July 78.

The deployment will be Moscows first move of such warheadsshorter-range less powerful nuclear weapons that could potentially be used on the battlefieldoutside Russia since the fall of the Soviet Union.

The step is being watched closely by the United States and its allies as well as by China.

Lukashenko was cited by Belta as saying that Belarus was now ready to host the warheads.

Everything is ready. I think we will have what we asked for in a few days, and even a little bit more, he was quoted as saying.

Putin announced in March he had agreed to deploy tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus, pointing to the U.S. deployment of such weapons in a host of European countries over many decades.

The United States has criticized Putins decision but has said it has no intention of altering its own stance on strategic nuclear weapons and has not seen any signs that Russia is preparing to use a nuclear weapon.

Nuclear Deterrent

Lukashenko said the nuclear deployment would act as a deterrent against potential aggressors.

It (the deployment) was my demand. It wasnt Russia who imposed it on me. Why? Because no one in the world has ever gone to war with a nuclear power. And I dont want anyone to go to war with us. Is there such a threat? There is. I must neutralize that threat.

Lukashenko was cited as saying that Belarus was working to ensure its facilities to house longer-range strategic Russian nuclear weapons such as the Topol intercontinental ballistic missile was ready for use, but had no need of such weapons for now which Moscow has not spoken of supplying to Minsk anyway.

What do I need strategic (missiles) like the Topols for? Although we are now preparing sites for these weapons as well. They (the Soviet-era sites) are all alive and well, except for one. So if we need to, we can at any moment (house them), Belta cited Lukashenko as saying.

But the Topol is an intercontinental missile. Am I planning to go to war with America? No. Thats why this (tactical nuclear weapons) are enough for me for now.

Belaruss three western neighbors are all part of the U.S.led NATO military alliance, which is helping Ukraine against Russia with weapons and intelligence.
Biden Administration Asks Court to Let City Enforce Nations 1st Natural Gas Ban

A city in California should be able to enforce the nations first ban on natural gas piping, President Joe Bidens administration told a federal court this week.

Berkeleys ban on the pipes in new construction is allowed because the city was addressing health and safety concerns and is therefore allowed under the Energy Policy and Conservation Act, officials with the U.S. Energy and Justice departments said in a June 12 amicus brief to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit.

If not, a recent ruling by the appeals court could lead to problems, the officials said.

Until now, the Department has promulgated energy conservations standards for numerous covered products without fear that, by doing so, the Department would thereby also be preempting vast swaths of State and local health and safety laws, the officials said in the brief.

If the panels erroneous opinion stands, the Departments decisions going forward could quickly be overtaken by debates over interference with State and local policy in areas other than energy conservation (and possibly outside the Departments expertise).

They asked the court to rehear the case to correct the opinion.

The opinion in question was handed down on April 17.

Three circuit judges found an ordinance adopted by Berkeley in 2019 that barred natural gas infrastructure such as pipes in newly constructed buildings violated the Energy Policy and Conservation Act (EPCA).

The act states that once a federal standard for energy conservation is established for a product such as dishwashers, a state cant impose a regulation for the energy efficiency, energy use, or water use of such covered product.

The law doesnt allow regulations that relate to the quantity of gas consumed by consumer appliances at places where the appliances are used, the panel said.

So, by its plain language, EPCA preempts Berkeleys regulation here because it prohibits the installation of necessary natural gas infrastructure on premises where covered natural gas appliances are used, Circuit Judge Patrick Bumatay wrote.

He was joined in the 30 vote by Judges M. Miller Baker, a Trump appointee, and Diarmuid OScannlain, a Reagan appointee.

The panel overturned a ruling from U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers, an Obama appointee who had ruled in favor of Berkeley.

Federal officials said in the new brief that ECPA preempts energy conservation standards, not health and safety regulations. Energy conservation standards are defined in the law as a performance standard which prescribes a minimum level of energy efficiency or a maximum quantity of energy use, or  water use, for a covered product.

The opinion upended the previous understanding that state and local officials can still regulate health, safety, and drought response without fear of running afoul of the law, the Biden administration said.

It held that a particular municipal ordinance addressing a health and safety concern identified by local elected leaders is preempted by the Acteven though the ordinance does not regulate the energy efficiency, energy use, or water use of a covered product, they said.

The ruling cast a cloud of uncertainty over any health or safety law that may indirectly affect someones ability to use a product for which the federal government has issued an energy conservation standard, it added.

Berkeley in May asked for a rehearing, describing the panels ruling as straying from how Congress intended ECPA to work and warning of consequences.

The decision not only condemns Berkeleys and many similar laws addressing serious harms caused by indoor combustion of natural gas, but also endangers subnational governments powers over an array of mattersfrom building safety, to zoning, fire prevention, and water distributionthat the Constitution, Congress, and history recognize as quintessentially local responsibilities, lawyers for the city told the court.

A rehearing, if granted, would see the case go before the full court instead of a panel. Its an alternative to an appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Other entities filing briefs in the case include the state of California, Energy and Environmental Law Professors, and the American Thoracic Society.

Both restaurant owners and operators have decried the ordinance, with at least one winning an exemption.

The California Restaurant Association, which brought the case, has said the ruling was correct.

Cities and states are not equipped to regulate the energy use or energy efficiency of appliances that businesses and homeowners have chosen; energy policy and conservation is an issue with national scope and national security implications. This ordinance, as well as the solution it seeks, is an overreaching measure beyond the scope of any city, Jot Condie, the associations CEO and president, said previously.

Natural gas appliances are crucial for restaurants to operate effectively and efficiently, as they allow for a wide variety of cuisines and innovations in the restaurant industry, Condie added. Cities and states cannot ignore federal law in an effort to constrain consumer choice, and it is encouraging that the Ninth Circuit upheld this standard.
Biden Health Official Defends Forcing 2-Year-Olds to Wear Masks

Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services Xavier Becerra speaks in Orange, Calif., on March 9, 2022. (John Fredricks/The Epoch Times)

Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Xavier Becerra defended a policy requiring 2-year-olds to wear masks as a condition to participate in a low-income financial assistance program.

The Head Start program is an HHS initiative that manages a series of facilities across the United States providing education, nutrition, and parental engagement services for low-income families. During the COVID-19 pandemic, HHS imposed a rule requiring children participating in the program, who range from birth to five years old, to be vaccinated and wear a face mask.

The policy prompted criticism due to the low proportion of COVID-19 deaths among the youngest members of society.

According to provisional figures by the CDC, children aged zero to 4 years old accounted for less than a tenth of a percent of COVID deaths, and in most cases, other health conditions were factors in these deaths. The broad majority of COVID-19 deaths came from people older than 65.

Opponents of masking children have also noted that such requirements can have substantial detrimental effects on childrens social and intellectual development. A crucial aspect of human social development involves seeing and learning to interpret social cues from facial expressions. Masks diminish the clarity of such cues, leading to fears that children raised in the midst of the pandemic will have developmental and social issues for years to come.

Children wear a mask and wait for President Joe Biden to visit their pre-Kindergarten class at East End Elementary School to highlight the early childhood education proposal in his Build Back Better infrastructure agenda in North Plainfield, N.J., on Oct. 25, 2021. (Jonathan Ernst/Reuters)

Critics have also questioned the effectiveness of masks against COVID-19, noting that on a microbial level, the virus is substantially smaller than the spaces between the fibers of masks. Studies suggest that masking may have little impact on the spread of respiratory viruses like COVID-19.

Nevertheless, when pressed on the value of the mask mandate by Rep. Kevin Kiley (R-Calif.), Becerra defended it.

Mr. Secretary, did forcing 2-year-olds to wear masks save lives? Kiley asked.

Making sure people were masked when it was appropriate was essential to making sure we were able to get out of this pandemic, Becerra responded.

Can you point to any evidence that there was a public health benefit to forcing young children to wear masks? Kiley pressed Becerra.

Well the fact that today we are not losing lives the way we lost them when we first got into this pandemic, Becerra responded.

Kiley interjected, again asking if the mask requirement on children as young as two saved lives.

Thats your interpretation, Becerra responded. What Im saying to you is that using good policies that give us the precautions to keep our families from contracting COVID are helping save lives.

Opposition

Republicans long sought a repeal of the policy, which required children as well as staffers at Head Start facilities to wear masks and be vaccinated.

In April 2022, Reps. David Joyce (R-Ohio) and Mariannette Miller-Meeks (R-Iowa), the latter of whom has a degree in medicine, put forward a resolution to end the mandate.

The federal government should not be using taxpayer dollars to force children as young as two years old to wear face masks, Joyce said at the time. If parents or individual Head Start programs want to mask themselves or their kids, they have every right to do so.

But the federal government should not insert itself into that decision-making process, especially when children are the least at risk for COVID-19 but the most likely to suffer developmental setbacks from prolonged masking.

Our students have been negatively impacted by school closures and remote learning, especially in low-income and rural communities. Loss of learning, lack of socialization, and increased rates of depression and suicide show just how much our students have suffered, Meeks-Miller echoed.

In January 2023, HHS ended the masking requirement for Head Start participants but left the vaccine mandate intact.

It was not until May 2023 that the agency announced an end to the vaccine requirements.

But that decision only came after Judge James Wesley Hendrix of the Northern District of Texas struck down the mandate on March 31, calling it unprecedented, unauthorized, and procedurally improper (pdf).

Hendrix ruled that the mandate was illegal because (1) no permissible construction of the Head Start Act could authorize the rule; (2) HHS failed to follow proper rulemaking procedures; and (3) the rule is arbitrary and capricious.

In his memorandum announcing an end to the mandate, Becerra nevertheless contended that his agencys mandate was founded in an evidence-based COVID-19 mitigation policy.

Meanwhile, unwanted attention was focused on Becerras agency in April after explosive whistleblower allegations claimed that HHS was acting as a crucial middleman in cartel sex trafficking operations.

Becerra himself was alleged to have been dismissive of concerns that children were being sent to criminal and cartel-affiliated sponsors, telling officials during a leaked phone call that children should be moved across the border into the interior like a Ford assembly line.

Republicans are currently considering legislation that would seek to address the wide-ranging uses of regulatory authority dubbed the Regulations from the Executive in Need of Scrutiny Act, or REINS Act.

That bill would require any regulation stemming from the executive branch with a substantial impact on the economy to be approved by Congress.

While Becerras masking rule likely would not have applied for congressional scrutiny under the terms of the REINS Act, the issue of executive rule-making and its effects on society has been a topic of keen interest for the GOP majority in the House.
Biden Vetoes GOP Measure to Roll Back EPAs Heavy-Duty Truck Pollution Rule

Trucks drive through the Port of Oakland on March 31, 2023 in Oakland, California. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

As expected, President Joe Biden has vetoed a Republican-backed resolution that disapproves the federal governments latest attempt to tighten air pollution standards for heavy-duty trucks.

Biden announced his veto on Wednesday, accusing Republicans of trying to set back his efforts to improve the countrys air quality.

Earlier, I vetoed a Republican resolution to repeal an EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) standard that will make our air cleaner and prevent thousands of premature deaths by limiting hazardous heavy-duty vehicle pollution. This would take us backwards in our fight against air pollution, so Im blocking it, Biden wrote on Twitter.

Feds Boasts Penitential Benefits

Under the EPA rule finalized last December, new heavy-duty trucks and engines starting 2027 will have to meet a set of stricter-than-ever standards to slash emission of air pollutants, particularly nitrogen oxides, which can react with oxygen to create ground-level ozone or smog. It applies to trucks of sizes ranging from Ford F-250 pickups to semi-trucks.

The rule is the Biden administrations latest move towards implementing its Clean Truck Plan, an ambitious agenda the EPA said would move Americas highly polluting heavy-duty trucking fleet towards low-carbon and electric technologies.

The EPA, which has a broad range of environmental and public health regulations nationwide, estimates that the rule will result in many public health benefits by 2045, including preventing up to 2,900 deaths, 6,700 hospital and emergency room visits, and 18,000 cases of childhood asthma every year.

Overall, the EPA project an annual $29 billion in net economic benefits from the change.

Republicans Push Back Changes

Republican lawmakers were not convinced. Instead, they pointed to the perceived immediate rise of transportation costs, arguing that the change would only make Americans lives harder since almost every product they buy is at some point transported by a truck.

The EPAs own estimates say their emissions standards for heavy-duty trucks could cost more than $8,000 per semi-truck, Republican members of the House Energy and Commerce Committee said last month in opposition. This will jack up prices for everything transported by truck, including food, clothing, [and] building materials.

The American people cant afford this regulation, and itll force small operators [to] close up shop, which will wreak havoc across our supply chains, they warned.

Among the rules fierce critics is Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-Wash.), who chairs House Energy and Commerce Committee. In a speech on the House floor, she condemned Biden for pushing the electrification of the entire transportation sector without considering its financial impact that could ripple into peoples everyday lives.

The costs will be passed on directly to Americans, many of whom are living paycheck to paycheck, the congresswoman said. Imagine someone who is already being forced to make tough choices for their family at the grocery store, the gas pump, the pharmacy.

With the EPAs rule, they will be paying and sacrificing even morefor food, clothing, fixing their homes, and trying to provide for their families, she added.

The Vetoed Resolution

A joint resolution that would nullify the truck air pollution rule first narrowly squeaked through the Senate in April by a 50-49 vote, with all Republicans voting Yes and all Democrats except the fossil energy-friendly Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) voting No. Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), who would have voted against it, was absent.

The resolution then moved to the House, where Republicans enjoy a larger majority. It passed the lower chamber on May 23 by a vote of 221-203.

Sen. Deb Fischer (R-Neb.), the resolutions sponsor, said that the EPA rule might not even be able to achieve its stated goal to reduce air pollution, considering that smaller truck fleets would likely be forced out of business.

The irony is, the prices of newer vehicles will escalate, incentivizing truckers and businesses to hold onto their older, higher-emitting trucks, she explained in a Senate floor speech. Smaller, more affordable trucking businesses will close up shop, and the ones that can afford higher prices will raise their rates. This means consumers will be paying more money to a smaller group of businesses.

Meanwhile, Sen. Thomas Carper (D-Del.), who chairs the Senate Environment and Public Works, argued that the standards are achievable and made with the stakeholders interests in mind.

These standards are achievable, and they provide predictability for industry, which the blunt tool of the CRA would undercut, Carper said. EPA listened to a range of stakeholders during the rulemaking process and finalized standards that are feasible and cost-effective for manufacturers and fleet operators.

If the Republicans effort succeeded, Carper warned, it would set a precedent and prevent the agency from ever issuing similar standards in the future.

The presidents veto didnt come as a surprise to the resolutions opponents and proponents alike. In fact, the White House vowed to use the veto power shortly after it cleared the Senate.

Heavy-duty vehicles and engines contribute to pollutants that threaten public health, the White House said in April. The final rule cuts pollution, boosts public health, and advances environmental justice.
The COVID-19 pandemic has woken Americans up to a stark truth: Our health system doesnt always have our best interests at heart. And worse, the same is true for most of our elected officials in Congress, who are lobbied extensively by big pharma. The one institution designed to protect Americans from predatory drug companies is under attack from both the left and the right.

In this eye-opening episode of Over the Target, former congresswoman and Commissioner of the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission Ann Marie Buerkle tells Lee Smith whats wrong with our public health systemand how to hold both the private and public sectors accountable for malpractice.

3:00 GOP needs a vision for health care

8:00 Why is Bernie Sanders driving health-care debate?

12:50 Why did DeSantis pass anti-PBM bill in Florida?

20:30 COVID used as a political tool to hurt Trump and his candidacy

24:40 The FDA needs to be modernized

28:40 Consolidation of hospitals raise price of healthcare
Binance.US Says SECs Temporary Restraining Order Would Destroy the Company

Binance said that the Securities and Exchange Commissions (SEC) move to freeze the assets of its American affiliate, Binance.US, would effectively destroy the crypto exchange.

The SEC filed a temporary restraining order on June 12,to freeze Binance.USs funds until it was able to prove that no one at the firm, including its CEO, Changpeng CZ Zhao, could access them.

Binance and Zhao were hit by the SEC with 13 charges on June 5 for alleged violations of U.S. securities rules, which they have totally denied.

The first hearing for the case was held on June 13 at the U.S. district court for the District of Washington, D.C.

SEC Presses Ahead to Shut Down Binance

The federal regulator accused Binance, Binance.US, and Zhao for allegedly running the companies as an unregistered securities exchange, broker, and clearinghouse.

The defendants were also accused of allowing American customers to buy and trade certain cryptocurrencies that the SEC recently defined as unregistered securities in a crackdown on private currency.

The SEC said that Binance and its CEO diverted millions from customer accounts held by from Binance.US to entities owned by Zhao, like Bank Merit Peak and Sigma Chain.

SEC chairman Gary Gensler accused the defendants of attempting to evade U.S. securities laws by announcing sham controls that they disregarded behind the scenes so that they could keep high-value U.S. customers on their platforms.

Through 13 charges, we allege that Zhao and Binance entities engaged in an extensive web of deception, conflicts of interest, lack of disclosure, and calculated evasion of the law, Gensler said in a press release.

According to the SEC complaint, Binance and Zhao allegedly secretly controlled Binances American platform operations, despite publicly stating that it did not serve U.S. investors.

Binance immediately denied the SECs allegation that it was a clearing agency or an illicit exchange.

The firm also refuted accusations that it directly operated Binance.US and that it merely acted as a service provider for the platform.

The filing quoted Genslers previous admission that there was no regulatory framework for cryptocurrencies before Congress when the charges were filed against Binance in May.

Binance Requests Limited Control of Assets to Continue Operations

In a motion filed by Binance.US, the company called the SECs moves draconian and unduly burdensome and said if the court does address the merits of the SECs motion, it should deny that motion. The SEC seeks unnecessary and unjustified relief. Far from requesting relief that is carefully calibrated to maintain[] the status quo  the SECs proposed remedies would effectively end BAMs business, said the filing. BAM Trading Services is the name of the entity behind Binance.US, which is owned by BAM Management US Holdings, and in turn controlled by Zhao, said the SEC.

Attorneys for the embattled crypto exchange wrote that freezing its funds would primarily harm BAMs customers, effectively put BAM out of business, and prevent BAM from defending itself in this litigation. George Canellos, a former Department of Justice prosecutor for the Southern District of New York, and one-time SEC division of enforcement co-director, was recently added to the legal team. They said freeze would likely deter banks from doing business with Binance, which is already having trouble finding financial institutions willing to partner with them. The SECs actions would prevent the crypto exchange from paying its employees, vendors, and other parties, or even allow it to maintain its systems, said the filing. The defendants filed a joint memorandum arguing that there is no risk to [Binance.US] customer assets, and said there was no need for an emergency action. Binance.US later filed a separate request that would allow the company to continue paying employees and vendors, but prevent it from paying any other entities controlled by Zhao. Attorneys representing the firm asked the court for permission to allow Binance.US to move all of its assets to BAM Tradings possession, custody, and control. This would make sure that its current employees, except for Zhao, would still have access to its accounts, so that no one from the crypto exchange could access its funds during the trial. Binance.US also promised to transfer all user funds to new digital wallets within two weeks, but the proposal stops far short of the SECs demand for a full asset freeze. Crypto Exchange Said That Regulators Failed to Warn of Violations

The firm said in its filing that the SEC could not identify a single security trading on BAMs platform.

The SEC suggests that it is a foregone conclusion that cryptocurrency is a security, but that is not the case. That numerous cryptocurrency exchanges, including BAM, have operated in the United States for years without interference by the SEC belies the claim that they are clearly covered by the securities laws, said Binance.

Binance.US further claimed that the SEC had failed to prove that it sold its BNB stable coins as an investment contract and that they had been fully cooperating with the agency prior to last weeks lawsuit to remain compliant with federal securities regulations.
Border Patrol Agents Record 1000 Percent Increase in Illegal Immigrants From Nations Including China, Afghanistan

Border Patrol agents have seen a more than 1000 percent increase in the number of illegal immigrants from countries including China and Afghanistan attempting to enter the United States, according to Border Patrol Chief Raul Ortiz.

Ortiz, who is set to retire next month after more than three decades with the agency, took to Twitter on June 9 where he shared the latest data pertaining to fiscal year 20222023.

Similar illegal immigrant increases were seen from the nations of Algeria, Djibouti, the Dominican Republic, Egypt, Ethiopia, Mauritania, Paraguay, and Vietnam, according to Ortizs post.

While we work diligently to repatriate migrants from these countries, we still have challenges with countries governments to get working programs in place to repatriate all those we apprehend, said Ortiz, who will be succeeded by Jason Owens, the current head of the Del Rio Sector.

Official data from Border Patrol shows that agents recorded 342 encounters with immigrants from China in fiscal year 2021, with that figure rising to 1,987 in fiscal year 2022.

In the first seven months of fiscal year 2023, agents recorded 9,753 encounters with immigrants from China.

The rise in illegal immigration from China comes amid increasing tensions between the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and Washington over Beijings increasingly aggressive actions toward the self-ruled island of Taiwan, its alleged surveillance of Americans, and its highly-documented human rights abuses.

Extreme Pessimism in China

Right now in China, theres extreme pessimism, especially among people in their 20s about the future of their country, so its understandable that theyre leaving and theyre trying to get into the United States. And, you know, these are people who are relatively middle class, so it shows you the problems in Chinese society are severe, China expert Gordon Chang previously told the Daily Caller.

Border Patrol has not published official data on encounters with immigrants from Afghanistan, but a March report from Foreign Policy states that more than 150,000 Afghans have applied for special immigrant visas following the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan in August 2021, when the leader of the U.S.-backed Afghan government fled and the Taliban captured the capital city of Kabul.

The Epoch Times has contacted U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) for further comment.

Ortizs comments come shortly after the end of the Title 42 emergency health restrictions that had allowed agents to turn illegal immigrants back to Mexico immediately if they were deemed to pose a health threat.

Data shows that overall, Border Patrol encountered a record-high 2.2 million illegal migrant encounters at the southern U.S. border in 2022.

Biden Admin Touts Decline in Illegal Border Crossings

Despite concerns that the number of border crossings would surge after Title 42 came to an end, the Biden administration has reported a decline in such crossings.

As a result of planning and executionwhich combined stiffer consequences for unlawful entry with a historic expansion of lawful pathways and processesunlawful entries between ports of entry along the southwest border have decreased by more than 70 percent since May 11, The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said in a June 6 memo.

The [Biden] administrations plan is working as intended, the DHS memo noted.

However, so far in fiscal year 2023, agents have recorded more than 1.8 million encounters at the border.

Meanwhile, DHS Inspector General Joseph Cuffari has warned that agents at the border are suffering from low morale due to widespread staffing shortages and improper management of resources and planning during a surge in immigrant crossings.

This, he says, has resulted in many officers having to take on responsibilities outside of their typical roles which has left them unable to perform their primary law enforcement duties.

In a lengthy report published in May, Cuffari stressed that the Biden administration needs to reassess and strategically change the staffing issue at the border or risk seeing an increase in high staff turnover and earlier retirements which he believes could ultimately impact security operations at entry points into the United States.
ANKARA, June 14 (Xinhua) -- Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Wednesday that Turkiye will only admit Sweden's NATO bid in the upcoming Vilnius Summit in July if the latter takes concrete steps to prevent anti-Turkiye "terror" activities in the country.

"The fact that Sweden has some expectations (for NATO membership) does not mean that we will fulfill these expectations... Sweden has to do its part so that we comply with its expectations," the semi-official Anadolu Agency quoted Erdogan as saying.

The Turkish president noted that there were anti-Turkish protests in Sweden even when he was meeting with visiting NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg in Istanbul on issues of Sweden's joining the alliance earlier this month.

"While Stoltenberg was expressing (his opinion about Sweden's joining), unfortunately, the terrorists were rallying in the streets in Sweden," Erdogan said.

His remarks came as the Turkish, Swedish and Finnish officials held the fourth joint mechanism meeting to discuss fulfilling Turkiye's conditions for approving Sweden's accession to NATO on Wednesday in Turkiye's capital Ankara.

Sweden and Finland applied to join NATO last year but faced objections from Turkiye on the grounds that the two countries harbor members of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) and the Gulen movement.

Turkiye eventually lifted its objection to Finland earlier this year after it took "concrete steps" against such organizations, and the country went on to become the organization's 31st member in April. But Ankara maintains its veto of Sweden. 
Boris Johnson Steps up Attacks on Partygate Probe

Former prime minister called privileges committee report 'nonsense'

Former UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson listens during a tour after a meeting with Gov. Greg Abbott at the Texas State Capitol in Austin, Texas, on May 23, 2023. (Brandon Bell/Getty Images)

Boris Johnson has intensified his attacks on the Parliamentary committee investigating the Partygate scandal, which is to announce in the coming days its verdict on whether the former prime minister lied to MPs about lockdown parties in Downing Street.

The House of Commons Privileges Committee, led by Labour MP Harriet Harman but has a Conservative majority, has been investigating whether Johnson misled Parliament when he repeatedly claimed COVID-19 rules had been followed at all times during the pandemic.

A photograph obtained by ITV News of then Prime Minister Boris Johnson at a leaving party in Downing Street, London, on Nov. 13. 2020. (ITV/PA Media)

The verdict has not been publicly announced, but Johnson quit as an MP on Friday, accusing the committee of trying to drive him out of Parliament and calling its investigation into the partygate scandal a kangaroo court.

In a statement on Tuesday evening, the former prime minister said: The Privileges Committee should publish their report and let the world judge their nonsense. They have no excuse for delay. Their absurdly unfair rules do not even allow any criticism of their findings.

I have made my views clear to the committee in writingand will do so more widely when they finally publish.

Boris Johnson giving evidence to the Privileges Committee at the House of Commons, London, on March 22, 2023. (House of Commons/UK Parliament via PA Media)

The comments came after Johnson made last-minute representations to the Privileges Committee on Monday night.

A committee spokesman said on Tuesday: A letter enclosing further representations from Mr. Johnson was received by the committee at 11:57 p.m. last night. The committee is dealing with these and will report promptly.

Biased

In his resignation statement on Friday, Johnson called the partygate investigation a kangaroo court with egregious bias.

He claimed the probe has been a witch hunt intended to take revenge for Brexit and ultimately to reverse the 2016 referendum result, despite the fact that the Privileges Committee has a Tory majority and includes arch-Brexiteer Sir Bernard Jenkin.

Johnsons allies have joined him in the attacks on the committee.

Conservative MP Jacob Rees-Mogg delivers his keynote address during the National Conservatism conference at the Emmanuel Centre in London, on May 15, 2023. (Leon Neal/Getty Images)

Writing in the Mail on Sunday, Conservative MP Jacob Rees-Mogg said the committees report was clearly partisan and biased.

He said the committee never had any credibility as an impartial tribunal and lamented that its Conservative members ignored the politicking of the Labour chairman and naively went along with her leadership.

But Downing Street expressed confidence in the work of the committee.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunaks official spokesman said on Monday: This is a properly set-up committee that the house has voted to carry out their work. The government will in no way traduce or criticise the work of the committee who are doing exactly what Parliament has asked them to do.

Row over Resignation Honours

Following his resignation, Johnson launched into a public spat with Sunak over his resignation honours list.

The prime minister said on Monday that his former boss wanted him to ignore the recommendations of the House of Lords Appointments Commission (Holac), which had vetoed eight names Johnson had put forward for peerages.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak speaking during the London Technology Week at the QEII Centre in central London, on June 12, 2023. (Ian Vogler/Daily Mirror via PA Media)

Johnson subsequently released a statement saying: Rishi Sunak is talking rubbish.

To honour these peerages it was not necessary to overrule Holacbut simply to ask them to renew their vetting, which was a mere formality.

The Cabinet Office dismissed the attack, saying: Holac did not support the nominations of the MPs put forward by the former prime minister. It is unprecedented for a sitting prime minister to invite Holac to reconsider the vetting of individual nominees on a former prime ministers resignation list. It is, therefore, not a formality.

Ill Be Back

Despite his resignation from the House of Commons, the former prime minister insisted he will be back.

In the Daily Express, Johnson said: We must fully deliver on Brexit and on the 2019 manifesto. We must smash Labour at the next election.

Nothing less than absolute victory and total Brexit will doand as the great Arnold Schwarzenegger said, Ill be back.

Commenting on the internal row in the ruling Conservative Party, Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer warned on Tuesday that Tory infighting is damaging the UKs reputation internationally and putting off investors.

PA Media contributed to this report.
Braver Than Police: Citizens Praise Hong Kong Chef Confronting Knife Murderer After Double Homicide in Plaza Hollywood

Chef Fai spoke to the media after the stabbing incident at Plaza Hollywood in Hong Kong on June 3, 2023. (Cheuk Sheung-yu/The Epoch Times)

On June 2, a double homicide occurred in Plaza Hollywood, Diamond Hill, Hong Kong, where two women died of serious injuries.

The suspect was charged with two counts of murder. At the initial court hearing held on June 5, the case was postponed until June 19 at the Kwun Tong Magistrate.

Police received reports of a man attacking two women with a knife. A 26-year-old was pronounced dead on site, while a 22-year-old did not survive her severe injuries after being sent to the hospital.

Video footage and photos online showed that a chef named Fai confronted the murderer holding two stools to stop him from wounding more people. Hong Kong citizens praised Chef Fai for his courage and righteousness and commended his heroic act, reflecting human natures good side.

In an interview with the media on June 3, Fai, a 64-year-old restaurant chef, who did not want his full name used, recounted the event. He said he was having his meal break at the restaurant at about 5:15 p.m. on June 2, 2023, when he thought he heard children screaming. He did not take notice at first, but then someone called out and said, Someone is stabbing people!

Fai immediately headed to the shopping area, where he saw a man kneeling on the ground with a knife.

Chef Fai returned to the restaurant entrance and quickly took two round stools before running toward the suspect.

Fai said he was so nervous that he did not realize another victim was on the ground.

As I was walking around the murderer, I was terrified. He had a 12-inch knife. Chef Fai felt threatened, so he whacked the murderers forehead with one of the stools he was holding.

The murderer looked stunned and walked closer to Chef Fai. The brave but terrified chef felt threatened by the 12-inch knife, so he smacked the murderers forehead again with a round chair.

The murderer then just stood dumbfounded.

Subsequently, the employees evacuated the shopping mall while paramedics and two passers-by performed first aid on the injured victims.

Meanwhile, the chef kept his eyes on the murderer in case he decided to attack someone again.

He broke down and cried desolately. The chef said.

Chef Fai then stood between the perpetrator and the residents performing first aid on the victims.

After the police arrived, Chef Fai left the scene.

The heroic chef emphasized that his first thought was to stop the murderer from hurting others.

He said he did not like the murderer hurting others and wanted to stop him. There was not much time for me to think or be afraid.

Chef Fai and the murderer had zero verbal exchange; he did not look the murderer straight in the eye, worried that might be too provocative.

When asked why he used round stools to go against the murderer, the chef said that was the only thing available.

The murderer had a 12-inch knife. I could not approach empty-handed. I was not trained. Besides, I had no choice.

Chef Fai said he was only doing what he could.

He jokingly added that he got in a lot of trouble after he got home. His family told him off for not thinking about them before doing something high-risk or dangerous.

I am old. I might not have the courage to do the same again. The chef said.

Braver Than The Police

After seeing his heroic acts in the footage, netizens flooded forums with praises in the comments.

A netizen wrote, Chef Fai is more courageous than any police officer or security guard in Plaza Hollywood.

Another commented, It is astonishing that someone is still willing to step in and help nowadays.

Others also were relieved; if it were not for the chef, the murderer probably would keep on killing.

Others said, Hats off to Chef Fai!

Murder Suspect In Custody

Sze To Shing-Kwong, an unemployed 39 years old male, was charged with two counts of murder. The court appearance was on the morning of June 5, 2023, at Kwun Tong Magistrate.

The police said the two deceased women were friends. According to CCTV footage, the murder suspect had no contact with the two victims before the fatal attack.

Sze To Shing-Kwong was charged with murdering two women, Fong Hiu-tung and Lau Kai-hei, on June 2, 2023, at Plaza Hollywood.

The case has been postponed to June 19, 2023, pending the defendants two psychiatric reports to determine if he would be fit to answer.

The defendant did not apply for bail and would be held at Siu Lam Psychiatric Centre, also known as Siu Lam Prison.

Public Reaction

The case has stirred safety concerns.

Some citizens expressed online, There is no freedom of expression, no freedom of the press. The society is so oppressed that there will only be more mentally ill people.

Who said Hong Kong is one of the safest cities in the world?
Higginss Saga Comes Crashing Down

Former Liberal Party staffer Brittany Higgins makes a statement after leaving the ACT Supreme Court in Canberra, Australia, on Oct. 27, 2022. Former Liberal Party staffer Bruce Lehrmann is accused of raping a colleague Brittany Higgins at Parliament House in 2019. (AAP Image/Mick Tsikas)

Commentary

Brittany Higgins has crashed from her pedestal, potentially bringing with her key government ministers. The silencing of proper public debate about the weaponization of this pivotal rape case has ended, revealing widespread community contempt about the way this has all been handled.

When we look back at what caused it all to fall apart, no one will forget the widely exposed video footage of Senator Katy Gallagher, the current finance minister, shown in June 2021 attacking then-Defence Minister Linda Reynolds for daring to suggest she knew about the Higgins rape allegation two weeks before it first surfaced publicly.

How dare you? Gallagher said with indignation.

However, now we have evidence from a five-hour chat recorded weeks before the Higgins sexual assault allegations first hit the media that strongly suggests Gallagher may have allegedly known about the matter from the start but also, according to the text messages, was really invested in using the issue to attack the Coalition government. At least that is according to Higgins boyfriend, David Sharaz, a former journalist and alleged friend of Gallagher.

And she appears to have allegedly lied about this in Senate Estimatessetting herself up for a charge of misleading parliament.

Australian Finance Minister Katy Gallagher and Treasurer Jim Chalmers arrive at a press conference during the Budget lockup at Parliament House in Canberra, Australia, on May 9, 2023. (Martin Ollman/Getty Images)

Zali Stegall MP has also accused the Opposition of using all this to make a vile political attack on the government.

Get that?

Shes charging Dutton with launching a political attack for calling the government to account for Labors use of the Higgins matter for the vile political attack which brought down the previous government.

Labor achieved this by falsely claiming a government coverup of the rape allegationanother vile political attack.

Enough to do your head in?

Moreover, if the revelations in Bruce Lehrmanns Channel 7 interview are true, then they could well turf some of the Labor ministers out of their jobs.

New Revelations Keep Streaming In

The stories keep coming.

One key item which needs explaining is Lehrmann did not pull out of his first defamation battle with News Life Media (formerly news.com.au) regarding the article by Samantha Maiden, which, alongside Lisa Wilkinsons hit job on The Project, led to him being identified as an alleged rapist to the entire country.

It ended with a confidential settlement, but unfortunately, the statement hammered out by the two teams of lawyers who achieved that result gives the impression that Lehrmann simply discontinued the action.

However, Lehmann announced at the time that he was extremely happy with the settlement, which included two componentsthe payment of legal fees (the amount wasnt specified, but Lehrmanns comment suggests this was not a small sum) plus an addendum to the Maiden article stating it is not claimed that Lehrmann was guilty of sexual assault.

Does this amount to a compensation payout and correction? Looks like a duck, and swims like a duck

Bruce Lehrmann leaves the ACT Magistrates Court in Canberra, Australia, on Oct. 26, 2022. (Martin Ollman/Getty Images)

But nows certainly the time for pressure to be put on the Walkley Award organisation to ensure Maidens Award is revoked.

The top prize for effrontery from the media players in the defamation cases must go to the national broadcaster ABC, which is now claiming it offered to make amends to Lehrmann over the broadcast of the National Press Club address by Higgins.

Sure, they didwith an offer of $5,000!

Podcaster Chad James has a very interesting discussion about the ABC defamation case, which makes the telling point that ABC kept the video of Higgins Press Council address up on their website until April this yeardespite the criminal proceedings having been dropped late last year, and even after receiving the concerns notice of the defamation action.

Every day, new gems pop uplike the item on the Channel Seven News in May reporting that Higgins allegedly had previously had sexual relations multiple times in her bosss office.

This information was apparently included in text messages the police allegedly recovered from Higgins phone and referred to alleged encounters with former boyfriends on the ministers couch.

Turning Point for Both Parties

As for Lehrmanns Spotlight interview, his decision to go public at this stage was prompted by various media outlets jockeying over who would release extracts from the audio recording of the five-hour meeting between Higgins, her boyfriend David Sharaz, television personality Lisa Wilkinson and her producer. In it, they plan to employ Labor politicians in their campaign to use the rape allegation to bring down the Morrison government.

For example, one comment from Higgins, when she is speaking about the former prime minister, declared: Hes about to be [explicative] over. Just wait. Weve got him.

I still hate the [explicative], replied Sharaz.

Lehrmann has described Sharaz as an alleged puppet master who used Higgins to bring down the government.

Including that critical audio recording in the Channel Seven television interview was bound to be a turning pointas it has indeed proved to be. For the first time, Lehrmann is being stopped in the street by people telling him they now believe his side of the story.

Nothing has undermined Higgins already shredded credibility as effectively as the image of her in the Seven interviews, skipping cheerfully through security at parliament house, showing no sign of the drunken stupor she claimed she was allegedly experiencing in her statements to police.

Now this has become the political story of the week, with Reynolds promising to refer Higgins compensation to the National Anti-Corruption Commission.

Brittany Higgins (with David Sharaz) arrives to give evidence in front of an ACT Supreme Court jury on the third day of the trial of her alleged rapist, Bruce Lehrmann, in Canberra, Australia, on Oct. 6, 2022. (Martin Ollman/Getty Images)

The Australians legal expert Chris Merritt points out that this payment was made without any finding of wrongdoing, and that the Albanese government nobbled the mediation by preventing key ministers, Linda Reynolds and Michaelia Cash, from giving evidence at the mediation by threatening not to pay their legal fees.

Merritt explains this made it impossible for officials running that process to properly discharge their duty to protect the financial interests of the Commonwealth,which could result in criminal sanctions.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is now protecting Gallagher by claiming the decision was made entirely by Attorney General Mark Dreyfus using his exceptional circumstances provisionwhere normal rules need not apply.

Well see how that goes.

Theres blood in the water, and the Opposition is stepping up, promising to pursue this agenda with talk about possible Senate inquiries as well as the referral to the Anti-Corruption Commission.

The most surprising twist in this endless saga is that the former Australian of the Year, Grace Tame, herself a survivor of sexual assault, is no longer prepared to support Brittany Higgins. She has quietly deleted an Instagram post in which she declared Higgins was her friend and a national hero.

This perhaps speaks volumes about how Brittany Higgins has fallen from grace.

Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
By-elections Triggered to Replace Boris Johnson and Ally Nigel Adams

A member of the public goes to vote in the Chester by-election at the Festival Church polling station in Chester, England, on Dec. 1, 2022. (Christopher Furlong/Getty Images)

The government has triggered two by-elections to replace former Prime Minister Boris Johnson and his ally Nigel Adams, both of whom resigned as MPs last week.

On Wednesday, Conservative Chief Whip Simon Hart moved a motion known as a writ for by-elections in Johnsons Uxbridge and South Ruislip constituency and Adamss Selby and Ainsty seat.

That means there are between 21 and 27 working days for the votes to be held, with possible dates being July 13 or 20, as they are always held on Thursdays.

Another Johnson ally, former culture secretary Nadine Dorries, also announced she was quitting with immediate effect, but has not formally resigned, which means the by-election to replace her in her Mid-Bedfordshire constituency remains on hold.

Former Prime Minister Boris Johnson gives evidence to the Privileges Committee at the House of Commons, London, on March 22, 2023. (House of Commons/UK Parliament via PA Media)

Three Resignations

Sunak will have to call a general election by January 2025 at the latest, but he has been forced to face the three by-elections at a time when the ruling Conservative Party is lagging in opinion polls far behind the main opposition Labour Party.

Johnson quit on Friday after receiving the Privileges Committee report into the Partygate scandal. He accused the committee of trying to drive him out of Parliament and called its investigation a kangaroo court.

Dorries and Adams also announced they were resigning as MPs with immediate effect, despite having said previously they would stand down at the next general election.

Honours Row

In addition to his opposition to the Parliamentary investigation, Johnson also launched into a public spat with Sunak over his resignation honours list.

The prime minister said on Monday that his former boss wanted him to ignore the recommendations of the House of Lords Appointments Commission (Holac), which had vetoed eight names Johnson had put forward for peerages.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak speaking during the London Technology Week at the QEII Centre in central London, on June 12, 2023. (Ian Vogler/Daily Mirror via PA Media)

Johnson subsequently released a statement, accusing Sunak of talking rubbish.

Dorries, who expected to be on Johnsons resignation honours list, accused Sunak of blocking her from receiving a seat in the House of Lords.

During an interview with Piers Morgan on TalkTV, Dorries called the prime minister and his aide James Forsyth privileged posh boys who duplicitously and cruelly took away her peerage.

Delayed Resignation

But Dorries has so far failed to formally resign, five days after she announced her immediate resignation.

The delay may mean the three by-elections have to take place over two separate days, prolonging the pain for the prime minister as he faces a battle to defend three Conservative seats at a time of dire polling results.

Nadine Dorries gives a speech during the Conservative Democratic Organisation conference at Bournemouth International Centre, Bournemouth, England, on May 13, 2023. (Andrew Matthews/PA Media)

Asked if there is frustration over the delay, Sunaks press secretary said: Its obviously unusual to have an MP say they will resign with immediate effect and for that not to take place.

The prime minister believes the people of Mid-Bedfordshire deserve proper representation in this house and he looks forward to campaigning for the Conservative candidate in the by-election.

Opposition Gearing Up for Polls

Labour is gunning for Johnsons 7,000 majority in Uxbridge while the Liberal Democrats hope to pull off shock victories in the other two constituencies, both safe Tory seats.

Labour said it would be campaigning to win in all the by-elections, however many we end up having and whenever we end up having them.

A spokesman said the party was ruling out any sort of deal with the Liberal Democrats in the fight for the seats.

Lib Dem deputy leader Daisy Cooper said: Liberal Democrats will be fighting for every vote in these by-elections, giving people a chance to back our fair deal and elect a strong local champion who will stand up for them.

PA Media contributed to this report.
California High School Forced to Withdraw Anti-Christian Material

A California high school has backed down after parents and students demanded the removal of a controversial photograph, which they called anti-Christian bigotry, from one of its courses.

Dos Pueblos High School in Goleta, California, included a photograph taken by Andres Serrano in 1987 in a Theory of Knowledge course thats required for its International Baccalaureate Diploma program. The prestigious program, aimed at upper-level high school students who want to pursue higher education, is recognized by many universities.

The photo shows a plastic crucifix submerged in a small glass tank of what was purported to be the artists urine. The image, which has been displayed in art galleries, caused widespread public outrage when it became known that it was created using funds from a grant provided by the taxpayer-funded National Endowment for the Arts (NEA). The controversy ultimately resulted in Congress limiting NEA funding in 1989.

Serrano defended his work in a 2017 interview with The Washington Post.

I was born and raised a Catholic and have been a Christian all my life, he said. My work is not meant to be blasphemous nor offensive.

It was very surreal to see myself become the object of a controversy and national debate I did not intend.

Paul Jonna, special counsel at the Thomas More Society, a public interest law firm that litigates religious freedom cases and challenges government overreach, said that John Hayward, who will be a senior at the high school in the fall, learned that the course featuring the photo was a prerequisite to obtain an International Baccalaureate Diploma.

He had no option but to drop out of the program. And then we were retained, the lawyer told The Epoch Times.

The schools use of the Serrano photo in a course required for an International Baccalaureate Diploma shows extremely poor judgment, said Jonna, who is also a partner at LiMandri and Jonna in Rancho Santa Fe, California.

Even more importantly, it is an act of unconstitutional anti-Catholic, anti-Christian bigotry.

Debasing Religion

The law firm sent a letter threatening legal action to Wendy Sims-Moten, the president of the board for the Santa Barbara Unified School District, in which the high school is located, on May 9. The letter denounced the photo as a particularly vile, anti-Catholic image that constitutes hate-speech which is intended to, and which actually does, cause devout Catholics to feel directly harassed and targeted.

The letter noted that a commonly asked question about the photo, which the theory of knowledge course presumably asks, is whether the artist is debasing religion or commenting on the way it has been debased.

Either way, the image is hate-speech: either it is debasing Christianity itself or the religion practiced by adherents of the Catholic Church. The image is meant to provoke a reaction, it is meant to be harassing. In that sense, it may be art, but teaching it is no different than asking students to personally step on a crucifix so that the class can then have a discussion about how engaging in blasphemy made them feel, the letter reads.

Jonna said the letter explained the various ways in which the school was violating the Constitution.

Both the Free Exercise Clause and the Establishment Clause prohibit government hostility to religion, he said.

Teaching this image is tantamount to harassment.

Eventually, after parents and other students got involved and let the school district know how unhappy they were with the photo, including through a petition drive and at a public meeting, the district relented and confirmed it wouldnt be using it.

School District Responds

The school district acknowledged to The Epoch Times in an email on June 12 that it wont be using the Serrano photograph.

The District recognizes that the use of the image invokes hurtful responses among many in the community. Because the course curriculum can adequately be covered by discussion and through the utilization of other slides, the image will not be included in the future.

While the image will not be used in the Theory of Knowledge curriculum going forward, it still may be discussed verbally in the context of discussing the confluence of art and censorship, an important issue in addressing the topic of what is art.

The image was used on a slide to discuss the topic of what is art that took place in a college-level IB Theory of Knowledge class. When a student, who was not enrolled in the class but heard the piece was discussed, objected, the school administrators met with the student and family to discuss their concerns.

Hayward said in a statement: Having this sacrilege taken down from a school setting means a lot to all those who helped call for its removal in a time when hate towards the Catholic faith is widespread.

This was a small, yet significant, victory for Our Lord. Prior to contacting the Thomas More Society, it was a merely symbolic movement. Until we had the weight of a legal letter, our concerns would have been, and indeed were, brushed off by administrators who proudly defended their blasphemous curriculum as some sort of human right.

Jonna said his side was pleased that the school district backed down.

They shouldve never used this despicable image in any manner, he said. This was anti-Catholic, anti-Christian bigotrywhich unfortunately is tolerated all too often. Students deserve to learn in an environment thats free from religious discriminationand were pleased that litigation was not necessary to accomplish that here.
California Legislators Call on the EPA to Tighten Pollution Regulations Without Interfering With Controlled Wildfire Burns

Traffic is diverted off of the 71 freeway during the Blue Ridge Fire in Chino Hills, Calif., on Oct. 27, 2020. (David McNew/Getty Images)

California legislators on Tuesday called for the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to implement tighter regulations on air pollution without interfering with controlled wildfire burns, in a letter to EPA (pdf).

Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) was joined by Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) and Rep. Jared Huffman (D-Calif.) to support the EPAs proposed ambient air quality standard, which would lower the allowable fine particulate pollution.

Extremely thick smoke from recent Canadian wildfires blanketed the Eastern Seaboard, prompting officials to issue air quality alerts. It refocused wide attention on the issue of fire pollution.

We are concerned that the proposed rule could inadvertently hinder the ability of land managers to deploy prescribed fires that help California avoid the larger catastrophic wildfires that more significantly pollute the air and threaten public safety, the legislators wrote in response to their support for tighter regulations.

U.S. Senator Alex Padilla from California speaks in Los Angeles, Calif., on Nov. 10, 2021. (John Fredricks/The Epoch Times)

Controlled burns are deliberately caused, tightly regulated fires with goals such as reducing potential fuel for uncontrolled fires, promoting growth, and reducing invasive species.

A lot of our colleagues from other parts of the country [are] finally getting an appreciation for a very real challenge that weve had in California for many years, Padilla said in an interview with KQED.

In 2022, California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed pollution and climate change measures into law as part of the states California Climate Commitment (pdf).

This month has been a wake-up call for all of us that later is too late to act on climate change. California isnt waiting anymore, Newsom said in a statement at the time. Together with the Legislature, California is taking the most aggressive action on climate our nation has ever seen. Were cleaning the air we breathe, holding the big polluters accountable, and ushering in a new era for clean energy. Thats climate action done the California Wayand were not only doubling down, but were also just getting started.

According to the letter, smoke from wildfires in the Golden State has pushed back much of the states progress on clean air, making it particularly vital to maintain prescribed burns as an option.

The problem is, if you dont do these controlled burns, you will have more catastrophic fires that blast way past anyones air quality standards. And that has become a chronic problem in Northern California year after year, said Huffman.

Controlled burns produce smoke but are more manageable and less toxic than wildfire smoke.

If regulators are not allowing us to use the most powerful tool we have to prevent those kinds of massive air quality violations, then we need to urge them to do better. Thats what this letter is all about, Huffman said.

Restricting the use of controlled burns would only exacerbate the risk of catastrophic wildfires that decimate communities and fundamentally undermine the air quality gains we are all working together to achieve, the letter stated.

California has experienced some of the largest fires in state history and the negative health impacts of lingering wildfire smoke. These devastating fires have burned over 2.5 million acres of land, damaged 30,000 structures, and have been responsible for the destruction of entire communities.

Padilla grew up in a heavily polluted neighborhood of Los Angeles and dedicates his work to ensuring that every family in California and across the country can access clean air.

Padilla has also pushed for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to designate the impacted Southeast Los Angeles neighborhoods affected by the Exide Pollution as a Superfund site, which will help provide critical resources and expertise for a proper clean-up.

For decades, Exide dumped lead and hazardous contaminants into these communities without consequence, and its clear to me that this community of neighbors, friends, and families has been neglected by just about everyone involved, Padilla said in a statement. Theres been misstep after misstep, and its time to end that and provide justice finally. Im calling on the EPA to formally designate these impacted neighborhoods as a federal Superfund site to provide critical federal resources and expertise to ensure Southeast Los Angeles can count on a thorough cleanup that prioritizes the health and safety of everyone living here.
California Voters Say Economy Is Most Important Issue, 28 Percent Support Reparation Payments: Poll

Voters wait in line to cast their ballots at a vote center at a Masonic Lodge in Los Angeles, Calif., on March 3, 2020. (Mario Tama/Getty Images)

California voters say the economy is the most important issue facing the state and 28 percent of them support paying reparations to black residents, according to a new poll by Emerson College Polling and Inside California Politics.

The survey, released on June 12, asked registered voters questions on a variety of topics, including presidential candidates and state issues.

The results showed a quarter of the states votersor 25 percentfind the economy to be the most important issue in the Golden State, while 17 percent ranked homelessness highest, and 16 percent were most concerned about housing affordability.

A lower number of respondents said crime, climate change, and threats to democracy were important, at 11 percent and 5 percent each, respectively.

The voters concerns contrasted with Gov. Gavin Newsoms rosier description of Californias economy in an interview that aired on June 12 with FOX News host Sean Hannity.

This states economy has outperformed the nation 3.1 percent in the last decade, and 2.1 percent nationwide, Newsom told Hannity when confronted with a list of companies that had moved out of the state.

This state continues to be the tent pole of the American economy, Newsom said. Were on our way to being the fourth-largest economy.

Additionally, a new study by the Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce showed a different view of the states economy.

The study also reported that Californias population has been shrinking since 2020 and the number of departing companies nearly doubled from 2012 to 2019. Tesla, Hewlett Packard, Toyota, and many other companies have moved their headquarters from the state in recent years.

The Golden States luster appears tarnished in recent years, said the study authored by economists and academics with the Inland Empire Economic Center, an organization in southern California that works with prominent business and government leaders. A seemingly endless stream of firms is leaving the state, citing high taxation, heavy regulation, other business costs, and anything but a business-friendly environment.

Lukewarm About Reparations

The Emerson College poll also revealed only about 50 percent of respondents approved or were neutral of recommendations made last month made by the states Reparations Task Force to pay black residents $1.2 million each. About 13 percent of those responding to the survey somewhat opposed the payments, while 37 strongly opposed it.

Fifteen percent of voters strongly supported the recommendation, while 13 percent somewhat supported it, and 22 percent were neutral.

Newsom told Hannity during Mondays interview the actual recommendation was $1.4 million in addition to taking several other steps.

In a preliminary report published on June 1 by the task force, it recommended paying each black resident moneybased on several qualificationsfor harm done during slavery and for conditions described as housing discrimination, disproportionate law enforcement, and discriminatory business policies, according to documents released by the task force (pdf).

The governor has pushed back against the recommendation and reiterated his concerns in his interview with Hannity.

It doesnt have to be in the frame of writing a check, Newsom told Hannity. Reparations come in many different forms.  I put out a statement saying reparations is more than just about money. That implies a deeper rationalization of what is achievable, whats reasonable, and what is right, and thats the balance that well try to advance.

The task force also recommended creating free healthcare programs, eliminating over-policing in black communities and racial disparities in police stops.

A final report is expected to be submitted to the state Assembly on June 29.

Other Findings on Budget Deficit, Fentanyl Crisis, Sen. Feinstein

In other findings, an overwhelming number80 percentof California voters who participated in the survey said they are very concerned or somewhat concerned about the states budget deficit, which has ballooned to $31.5 billion. The state has until June 15 to approve the states 202324 fiscal year budget, which goes into effect July 1.

Most respondentsnearly 77 percentsaid they think addressing the states fentanyl crisis should be one of many priorities for the state Legislature. Another 17 percent said they thought the crisis should be the most important priority, and 6 percent said they think it should not.

The poll also explored voters preferences for 2024 political candidates, finding 53 percent would choose to reelect President Joe Biden over former President Donald Trump, at 32 percent.

The respondents also favored current Congress members Adam Schiff and Katie Porter in a primary election for retiring Sen. Dianne Feinsteins seat, though 47 percent remain undecided about the race.

Regarding the timing of Feinsteins departure, nearly 63 percent of respondents said they think she should resign and allow Newsom to appoint a successor to complete the remainder of her term, which ends Jan. 3, 2025.

Emerson College Polling surveyed 1,065 registered state voters via cell phone, email, and online between June 4 and June 7 for the poll, which has a margin of error of +/- 2.9 percent.

Correction: A previous version of this article misstated the percentages of respondents approving the reparation payment plan. The Epoch Times regrets the error.
Canada Halts Activities With China-Led Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance Chrystia Freeland pauses while responding to questions during the second day of a Liberal cabinet retreat, in Vancouver on Sept. 7, 2022. (The Canadian Press/Darryl Dyck)

Ottawa says it will cease all activity at the China-led Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) while it investigates allegations made by the banks global communications director after announcing his resignation.

The Canadian government will also discuss this issue with its allies and partners who are members of the bank. China, as the worlds second-largest economy, needs to play a role in solving global problems which affect every country, Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland told reporters on June 14.

Freeland said the federal government would launch a review of allegations made by Bob Pickard, a Canadian, who resigned as AIIBs director general of global communications earlier in the day. Pickard alleged that the bank, which was founded in 2016 to finance railways and other infrastructure, is dominated by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).

As a patriotic Canadian, this was my only course, Pickford said while announcing his resignation on Twitter. The Bank is dominated by Communist Party members and also has one of the most toxic cultures imaginable. I dont believe that my countrys interests are served by its AIIB membership.

The finance minister said that the review of Pickards allegations would be untaken expeditiously and that she would not be ruling out any outcome following its completion.

Canada became a member of the AIIB in 2017, allocating $256 million to purchase shares in the bank.

The AIIB, Chinas multilateral development bank to rival the World Bank and Asian Development Bank, was created to improve social and economic outcomes in Asia through the financing of key infrastructure. It has 106 member governmentsincluding most Asian countries and Australia, Canada, Russia, France, and Britain. Japan and the United States are not members.

CCP Runs the Joint

When announcing his resignation on Twitter, Pickard made a number of subsequent posts alleging Beijings control over the AIIB.

The [CCP] runs the joint, but thats not transparent. Its only after working there for many months that I became aware of how thats where the true power is concentrated inside the bank  the CCP crowd who operate like a secret police, he said.

The Communist Party hacks hold the cards at the Bank. They deal with some board members as useful idiots, he said in another post. I believe that my Government should not be a member of this PRC instrument. The reality of power in the bank is that its CCP from start to finish.

Pickard added that he became increasingly concerned for his safety, and as a result, did not tender his resignation until he was back in the free world of Japan.

The AIIB said in a press release on June 14 that it accepted the resignation of Pickard, and had supported and empowered him to perform his role. It called Pickards comments about the AIIBs leadership baseless and disappointing.

We are proud of our multilateral mission and have a diverse international team representing 65 different nationalities and members at AIIB, serving our 106 members worldwide, many of whom have been with us since our formation in 2016, it said.

Tories Call on Liberals to Withdraw

Reacting to the news, Conservative MP Michael Chong said on Twitter that the latest development surrounding AIIB had confirmed what Tories had been saying for years, that the bank is a tool of Beijing to export its authoritarian model of governance throughout the Indo-Pacific region.

Chong noted that the Liberal government paid $256 million to join the AIIB in 2017, and since then has made payments of $40 million in each of the last three years. He also said Global Affairs previously warned the Liberals that the AIIB was being used by the CCP to promote its perspective on governance, economic security, and human rights, which diverge in fundamental ways from Canadas.

In light of todays new revelation, Conservatives reiterate our call for the Trudeau govt to withdraw from the bank and repatriate the public funds invested, Chong said.

Back in 2021, the Tories demanded the government stop its funding of the AIIB, given the detention of two Canadian citizens in the country.

When the AIIB was first proposed it was criticized by the Obama administration as a political tool that the Chinese government would use to expand its influence throughout Asia, then-leader Erin OToole wrote. Furthermore, concerns about the AIIBs environmental records, labour standards, and overall commitment to human rights continue to this day, he said.
China 2022 Q4 Social Services Cremation Data Missing

Family members follow an urn containing the ashes of a loved one at a crematorium in Beijing on December 22, 2022. - Hospitals are struggling, pharmacy shelves have been stripped bare and many crematoriums are overwhelmed in the wake of the Chinese government's sudden decision to lift years of lockdowns, quarantines and mass testing. (Photo by AFP)

China recently released its statistics on social welfare for Q4 2022. However, the belated quarterly report came with missing data on the number of cremations.

Critics believe the massive death toll from last October to December embarrassed the regime. Its lockdown and zero-COVID policies clearly failed to contain the virus, and that is the reason for the missing data.

In the past, China would release quarterly data regarding welfare, registration, and services on marriage, divorce, and cremation within three months. The Ministry of Civil Affairs did not explain the reason why the release was late.

While the ministry is not available for the inquiry on the missing data, the Beijing Civil Affairs Bureau hotline told The Epoch Times that the data is still under verification.

China affairs commentator Tang Jingyuan believes that Chinese deaths in Q4 last year during a surge of COVID infections were too huge to handle, even for a regime that is accustomed to falsifying data.

He explained that national death data cant exist independently. It is related to data on various criteria and departments, such as pensions, medical and health care, social security, and subsistence allowances. Fake cremation service data could expose its lies.

In response to the regime concealing the hit from the pandemic, Dr. Jonathan Liu, a professor of Chinese Medicine at Georgian College in Canada, told The Epoch Times a responsible government will give the real data to the public as a way to keep the public better informed and prepared.

A mourner carries the cremated remains of a loved one as he and other participants wear traditional white funeral clothing during a funeral in Shanghai, China, on Jan. 14, 2023. (Kevin Frayer/Getty Images)

As crematoriums became overwhelmed by the deaths, there were less than 40 cases of COVID death registered in the Chinese CDC between Dec. 7, 2022, and Jan. 7, 2023.

On Jan. 14, Beijing admitted to a surging death toll of 59,938 between Dec. 8, 2022, and Jan. 12, 2023, though its speculated the true number is much higher.

World Health Organization (WHO) chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus also indicated that Chinas COVID-19 death figures are certainly much higher than Beijing revealed.

When the cases surged in December upon the sudden lifting of the draconic zero-COVID measures, the WHO said the strict policy of the last three years had stopped working anyway.

WHOs head of emergency programs, Dr. Mike Ryan told CBS News: The explosion of cases in China is not due to the lifting of COVID restrictions.

The explosion of cases in China had started long before any easing of the zero-COVID policy, he said.

Liu said Chinese officials have continued to keep its populace from getting relevant pandemic information, even though the COVID outbreaks never ceased inside China.

According to a June 7 Nature report, the current surge of cases in China with the highly infectious subvariant of Omicron, XBB.1.5, could infect as many as 65 million people per week by the end of this month, said Nanshan Zhong, a respiratory physician in China.

Unfortunately, a new reality with this virus [is that] we will have repeated infections, said Ali Mokdad, an epidemiologist at the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington in Seattle.

Liu advised the Chinese to learn lessons from the past three years of pandemic and try to get true information by circumventing the Great Firewall. Dont just listen to the propaganda of the Chinese officials, he said.

Tang said that the plague has had a clear targetmembers of the Chinese Communist Party, and thats the reason why the regime is too frightened to reveal the true death tolls.

Haizhong Ning and Luo Ya contributed to this report.
Chinas Youth Unemployment Will Worsen in the Coming Years: Experts

People attend a job fair in Huaian, in China's eastern Jiangsu province, on May 26, 2023. (STR/AFP via Getty Images)

China has hit a record-high youth unemployment rate. A Chinese researcher warned in his recent analysis that the unemployment figure may surge further in the coming three years.

In general, from now until 2030, it will be the most challenging period for employment since Chinas reform and opening up, writes Wang Mingyuan, a researcher at a Chinese think-tank based in Beijing.

In April, the urban-surveyed unemployment rate of those aged 1624 was 20.4 percent, nearly four times the national rate of 5.2 percent, according to Fu Linghui, a spokesperson for Chinas National Statistics Bureau at a press briefing in May.

This unemployment rate exceeded the former high of 19.9 percent disclosed by Beijing in 2022 during the hardest pandemic lockdowns, when people were strictly kept motionless and businesses were closed.

Wang Mingyuan analyzed Chinas youth unemployment situation in his recent research report and he concludes that it is going to become worse.

A Grim Employment Future in China

Several factors show that China likely will experience a very serious unemployment situation, as revealed by Wang Mingyuans research report, How Many Young People Exactly Are Out of Jobs?

The first factor is the difference between the increasing number of graduates and the declining number of recruitments.

The number of graduates in 2023 will be at a record high, reaching 11.58 million, adding to the pressure of employment in China, according to Wang.

Wang writes that the official number of 11.58 million graduates for 2023 only includes university graduates, while 5.64 million graduates from Chinas blue-collar vocational schools and 600,000 overseas returnees are not counted in the official statistics of graduates. If they are all included, the total number of graduate students will be nearly 17.82 million in 2023.

According to Wang, the difference between the annual increase in employment and the number of fresh graduates from 2020 to 2023 is -2.49 million, -2.20 million, -4.49 million, and -5.82 million, respectively. This means that 15 million graduates have been unable to find jobs during this period.

In addition, due to setbacks encountered by the private economy, digital economy, and service industry, the number of youth who have lost their jobs is estimated to be around 25 million, according to Wangs analysis.

On top of that, around 14 million migrant young workers lost their jobs and returned to their hometowns in the rural areas during the three years of pandemic lockdowns. Hence, the cumulative number of jobless young people (aged 1624) is 54 million over the past three years.

Wang believes that the situation will become worse due to the enrollment expansion. He estimates that there will be nearly 20 million new graduates by the year 2030.

According to Wang, in the coming years, the Chinese government has to address the unemployment stock of the 54 million jobless young people, while at the same time, urban employment demand will reach its historical peak, partly due to the increasing number of graduates. He holds that Chinas employment dilemma will be more prominent than ever before.

True Unemployment Figure Higher Than Official Figure: China Experts

China experts believe that the real unemployment situation is much worse than the official data.

The Chinese Communist Partys method of urban unemployment survey only counts the jobless with urban hukou and are registered, and those who are not registered are not included. Moreover, rural households are not included in unemployment either, as the CCP regards them as part of the rural labor force. This has led to the unemployment rate remaining between 4 percent and 5 percent in the past, which does not reflect the real unemployment data at all, China current affairs commentator Cai Shenkun told the Chinese-language edition of The Epoch Times on April 19.

Four migrant worker couples sit in their shelters made out of plastic sheeting, at a road construction site in Chongqing municipality, China, on March 5, 2008. (China Photos/Getty Images)

Cai said that the enrollment expansion is a third factor that masks the true unemployment rate.

Qiu Wanjun, a professor of finance at Northeastern University in Boston, told The Epoch Times that the CCPs enrollment expansion serves as a delayed solution to the employment problem.

Students in school are not included in the calculation of the unemployment rate of the working population. Their staying in school reduces the number of unemployment, He said.

Li Hengqing, a China expert at the Washington Institute for Information and Strategy, told the Chinese-language edition of The Epoch Times that Chinese universities fake the number of graduates as well, which also reduces the overall unemployment data because they dont count graduates without the graduation certificates in the official number of graduates.

Chinese universities dont issue graduation certificates to students. The high-education authorities tell graduates: We will issue your graduation certificate when you have found a job, Li said in an interview with The Epoch Times on June 5.

Wang Guo-chen, a Taiwan economics expert, agrees with Cai that the CCPs unemployment statistics dont include the rural working population.

The Taiwanese economist added that there is indeed an omission in the statistics of the unemployment rate in mainland China, as its sample proportion is too low, less than 0.07 percent.

Wang is an assistant research fellow at Taiwans Chung-Hua Institution for Economic Research (CIER). He specializes in China and the world economy, international political economy, and quantitative study.

[Wang Mingyuan] came to the final figure of 54 million unemployed young people, which is relatively conservative, and that is why his research article was published, said Wang Guo-chen.

Amid the grim future for the young generations, Chinese leader Xi Jinping encourages Chinese youth to eat bitterness, a Chinese expression equal to enduring hardships.

Lin Cenxin contributed to this report.
SHENZHEN, June 14 (Xinhua) -- Once a small fishing village, Shenzhen in southern China's Guangdong Province is now a mega city, having spent nearly five decades growing at full speed.

As the first special economic zone and tech-hub of the world's second largest economy, Shenzhen's GDP totaled 3.2 trillion yuan (447.13 billion U.S. dollars) in 2022, taking third place in China after Shanghai and Beijing.

What created this metropolitan miracle? The answer lies in ceaseless innovation and highly competent talents.

INNOVATION-BASED SUCCESS

Over three decades, Mindray Bio-Medical Electronics Co., Ltd. grew from an agent for imported medical devices to China's biggest medical solution provider. During this period, it developed cutting-edge technologies, while boosting its core competitiveness and developing the power of its brand.

Mindray takes up a considerable share of the international market with its self-developed products, such as monitors, anesthesia machines and ventilators. The company's direct-selling products have entered two thirds of hospitals in the United States.

With an annual revenue over 30 billion yuan (about 4.19 billion U.S. dollars), Mindray puts over 10 percent of its revenue into innovation and research, which has taken the company's business performance to a higher level. In the first quarter of 2023, Mindray saw both revenue and net profit increase by more than 20 percent.

"A great market nurtures good enterprises," Mindray's founder Li Xiting said, attributing the company's success to solid innovation-based research and development of products and services to meet the ever-changing market demand.

The local government also plays an indispensable role, Li added, noting the policy and capital support that Mindray received in the early stages, as well as the current favorable innovation atmosphere, industrial ecology and business environment in Shenzhen.

Improving the business environment is one of the priorities of Shenzhen's government work. In recent years, it has strengthened legislation to tackle dishonest business practices and unfair competition, while utilizing AI to reduce administrative intervention, and establishing pilot projects to better protect intellectual property.

During a recent visit to Guangzhou and Shenzhen, Chinese Vice Premier Zhang Guoqing stressed that independent innovation is an inherent requirement for building a powerful manufacturing nation and achieving high-quality development, adding that enterprises should take more responsibility for attaining dominance in innovation.

Zhang said that enterprises should focus on the primary strategic needs of the country and building a modern industrial system, keep an eye on the trend of industrial development and technological changes, strengthen basic research, and continuously optimize the environment for independent innovation.

YOUNG AND COMPETITIVE TALENTS

Shenzhen has continued to ramp up efforts to foster innovation with a view to advancing technological development, including setting up research alliances encompassing leading universities and research institutes.

Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology (SIAT) was co-founded by the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen government and the Chinese University of Hong Kong. It specializes in research on health care, robots, new energy and materials, big data and smart cities.

The average age of SIAT's 3,219 personnel is 33, while the annual turnover rate stands at 15 percent, ensuring high-level competence and a competitive mechanism.

As a result, SIAT has established 230 laboratories jointly with enterprises, while 1,582 businesses have been incubated. Altogether 27.5 percent of scientific and technological achievements have been converted into practical use.

Huang Shuqiang, SIAT's human resources director, said that the institute applies a system of competition for funding, with a certain rate of elimination applied to the personnel, which stimulates their innovative efforts. Meanwhile, the institute's coordination with enterprises boosts healthy market-driven competition.

The relatively high conversion rate is supported by SIAT's innovation and the government's industrial policies, said Fu Xiongfei, SIAT's deputy director.

He explained that Shenzhen has mapped out a new model for start-up businesses, namely "upstairs-downstairs," which means accommodating industrial research and incubation inside one complex, making for more efficient innovation and talent integration. 
A century ago, many of the finest French red wines were known to improve after they had been aged for a decade or more in a cool cellar. The main reason was that the wines were basically undrinkable when they were young.

Winemaking back then was fairly rudimentary and the astringency that developed in such reds was due to the combination of acidity and tannin that then was basically unavoidable after the fruit was picked at optimum flavor development.

Over time, things changed and the style of red wine we began to make after about 1970 needed less time in the cellar. And in the last 30 years, that style moved far away from mandatory aging of red wines to a drink-soon beverage.

Cabernet sauvignon in particular was a wine that consumers began to drink widely, even though before the 1970s many red wines were still a bit heavy and astringent to drink young.

By 2000 in California, the earlier style of cabernet had been all but abandoned. In todays world, some of these earlier wines began to be seen as ancient history. Some people derisively called these wines old reds and disparaged them.

However, there are people among us who cherish these mature survivalists of the former era in winemaking. Although older bottlings of the earlier period of elegance and wine/food compatibility are becoming hard to obtain and expensive, tastings of these well-developed examples always bring together some of the most dedicated wine collectors.

Early in June this year, two dozen such people gathered at two outrageous private events in the Napa Valley staged by a Hawaiian wine collector by the name of Chris Clever, who began collecting older California wines decades ago.

His collection includes wines that were designed to be aged and then were perfectly stored. Both criteria are necessary if a red wine is to survive long aging in a cellar. Clever invited several friends who absolutely would appreciate maturity.

Among those who attended this series of tastings and dinners were winemakers Dr. Richard Peterson, Bernard Portet, and Rob Davis; winery executive Michael Mondavi, and chef/vineyard owner Narsai David.

The significant aspect of this series of events, which included a remarkable collection of older wines from Clevers cellar, was not only that every bottle displayed remarkable characteristics of mature fruit and complexity. Also amazing was that the wines all validated the concept that for a red wine to take on classic proportions in a wine cellar, the grapes must be harvested earlier than they are being picked today.

Almost every wine we tried displayed a label that showed it had less than 13.5 percent alcohol! And the rare bottle that showed nearly 14 percent usually was described by the experts as being from a warm vintage.

I attended each of the events and can attest to the fact that the wines were all in perfect condition, and several of the wines tasted perfectly fine the next day!

At one of the tastings, several of the bottles of very old wines from the 1960s and 1970s were contributed by host Beaulieu Vineyard, the preeminent cabernet producer during that period.

BVs winemaker at the time they were made was the great Andre Tchelistcheff. His name and legacy were invoked often during the events. Andres protege, Rob Davis, spoke of the maestros tactics in making wins of utter balance and structure.

Many of those in attendance pointed out that todays red wines simply do not have the precision, either from the vineyard or in their winemaking, to last beyond a few years in the bottle. Most of the experts pointed out that the alcohol levels in todays cabernets are simply too high for the wines to age the way the cabs from the 1960s and 70s developed.

It really is not possible to find very many cabernets today that are made the way they were 30 and 40 years ago, and as a result most of the cabernets on the shelf today are ideal for consuming extremely soon. Aging of such wines usually leads to disappointment.

No Wine of the Week.
CSIS Director Contradicts Blair on Transferral of Intel Related to Beijing Threats

David Vigneault, director of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service, prepares to appear before the Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs studying the intimidation campaign against MPs, on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on June 13, 2023. (The Canadian Press/Justin Tang)

The director of Canadas spy agency told MPs that the proper protocol had been followed to pass information to the public safety minister on Beijings threats to parliamentarians, contradicting the ministers previous testimony.

My understanding of how the information flows from an agency to the minister is that this is sent to the departmentin this case, the Department of Public Safety, said David Vigneault, director of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS).

Vigneault said the minister doesnt directly receive the information via electronic means, but that CSIS sends it via a secure communications channel to the department for onward transmission to the minister.

The CSIS director gave this testimony to the House of Commons Procedure and House Affairs Committee (PROC) on June 13, in the course of its study of the Chinese regimes threats against MPs.

While testifying before PROC on June 1, Emergency Preparedness Minister Bill Blair blamed CSIS for not providing information to him in 2021 about Beijings intentions to retaliate against MPs for their stance on human rights in China.

Blair, who was minister of public safety at the time, said Vigneault determined this was not information that the minister needed to know, and so I was never notified of the existence of that intelligence, nor was it ever shared with me.

Blair also said he did not have access to the secure terminal in which the information had been shared and that CSIS should have briefed him directly if it deemed the issue important.

Emergency Preparedness Minister Bill Blair holds a press conference in the foyer of the House of Commons on Parliament Hill in Ottawa, on June 12, 2023. (The Canadian Press/Sean Kilpatrick)

Former special rapporteur on foreign interference David Johnston wrote in his May 23 report that CSIS had sent an issues management note on the topic to Blair, his chief of staff, and his deputy minister in May 2021.

The note reportedly said there was intelligence that the PRC [Peoples Republic of China] intended to target [Conservative MP Michael] Chong, another MP, and their family in China.

Conservative MP Michael Cooper sought to clarify the issue with Vigneault.

[Blair] said that you determined that that information was something he didnt need to know and from what I understand from the answer you just provided, thats not the case, you didnt make that decision, Cooper said.

That could be an accurate description, Vigneault replied, and I think the fact that we did an issues management note speaks to the notion that we wanted to highlight the information.

He told MPs that CSIS sends on average zero to two or three issues management notes to the minister on a weekly basis, and that this approach was created a few years ago to draw attention to particular issues of high importance.

What is clear is that the process did not work, Vigneault said.

Information coming to light in recent weeks indicates that no minister was ever informed of the matter of Beijings threats to MPs.

Ministers have said they only became aware of it after The Globe and Mail reported on the 2021 CSIS assessment on Chinese interference on May 1.

RCMP Commissioner Michael Duheme also testified before the committee on June 13 and said he had no previous knowledge of the issue prior to the Globes report.

Vigneault testified that media leaks can be a source of confusion and misunderstanding for victims of foreign interference and also complicates the work of CSIS and its partners, which is exactly what our adversaries want.

Conservative MP Luc Berthold asked Vigneault if there is frustration within CSIS given the information it collects falls into black holes.

Vigneault replied that his team is very dedicated to keeping Canadians safe, but that the current system where CSIS information is not being leveraged to the fullest absolutely deserves particular attention.
Dances With Wolves Actor Facing Additional Charges in Alberta

Police in Alberta have issued warrants for Nathan Chasing Horse, a former actor in the movie Dances With Wolves, for nine charges including sexual exploitation, sexual assault and removing a child from Canada under the age of 16.

Tsuutina Nation Police Service said in a news release that the investigation has spanned several years with one of the offences dating back to 2005.

The actor has been in jail in Las Vegas since his arrest in January in southern Nevada, where he is charged with 18 felonies, including sexual assault of a minor, child abuse and kidnapping.

Court documents say he was the leader of a cult-like group called The Circle. Documents allege he used his position to gain the trust of Indigenous families and their children, and take underage wives.

The Nevada prosecution was put on pause as the actor, who played young Sioux character Smiles a Lot in Kevin Costners 1990 Oscar-winning film, appealed to the states Supreme Court to dismiss the case.

His lawyers have argued that his accusers wanted to have sex withhim.

Chasing Horse is also facing criminal charges in Montana and British Columbia.

The U.S. arrest report alleges a British Columbia woman reported Chasing Horse to RCMP, who contacted Las Vegas police, prompting the investigation that led to his arrest.

The woman alleged she was 13 years old when she met the actor while he was performing ceremonies in Canada. She alleges he began to have sex with her when she was 17.

Tsuutina police, who serve the First Nation west of Calgary, said the prosecution of Chasing Horse in different legal jurisdictions has required significant planning and co-operation. In 2015, the Tsuutina band council passed a resolution banning the actor from all community events.

More information on the Alberta investigation is to be released Wednesday.

U.S. arrest documents detailed how the Alberta police service received a complaint earlier this year from a woman who alleges she was sexually assaulted as a 15-year-old and taken to the United States as one of Chasing Horses multiple wives.

That woman eventually returned to Canada because she could no longer take the physical and emotional abuse, the documents said.
Deportations for International Students Caught in Fraud Scheme Put on Hold

Federal Immigration Minister Sean Fraser speaks at a news conference highlighting the government's inflation relief efforts for those hardest hit by rising food prices, in Calgary, April 3, 2023. (The Canadian Press/Jeff McIntosh)

Immigration Minister Sean Fraser says deportation orders for international students caught up in a fraud scheme have been put on hold while a task force investigates each case.

Hundreds of students might have been affected by the scheme, which saw immigration agents issue fake acceptance letters to get international students into Canada.

Some students had no idea their documents were forged until it came time for them apply for permanent residency.

Fraser says the department is aware of only few dozen who have been ordered to leave the country, and that process will be paused.

A task force of senior immigration and border control officials will go through each case to determine whether the student was in the know about the scam or not.

The minister says those who are believed to be innocent victims will be offered the chance to stay in Canada for several years while they apply for permanent residency or complete their studies.
Canadian Executive Quits Beijing-Led Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, Citing CCP Control

General view of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) building in Beijing on Jan. 13, 2016. (VCG via Getty Images)

The global communications chief for the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) has announced his resignation, saying in a statement on June 14 that the bank is being controlled by Communist Party hacks and that Canadas best interests are not served by being a member.

As a patriotic Canadian, this was my only course, said executive Bob Pickard of his resignation in a series of tweets Wednesday.

The [AIIB] is dominated by Communist Party members and also has one of the most toxic cultures imaginable. I dont believe that my countrys interests are served by its AIIB membership.

Reacting to the development, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance Chrystia Freeland said Canada will cease all activities with the bank for the time being, and that the government will investigate Pickards allegations.

The Canadian government will also discuss this issue with its allies and partners who are members of the bank. China, as the worlds second-largest economy, needs to play a role in solving global problems which affect every country, Freeland said.

Pickard, who took on the role of director general of communications with the AIIB in March 2022, said the Communist Party hacks hold the cards at the China-based bank, and that they deal with some board members as useful idiots.

The reality of power in the bank is that its CCP from start to finish, he tweeted, referring to the Chinese Communist Party. I believe that my Government should not be a member of this PRC [Peoples Republic of China] instrument.

Authoritarian Model of Governance

Reacting to the development, Conservative foreign affairs critic Michael Chong said Pickards resignation has confirmed what Conservatives have long said about the AIIB.

Its a tool of the Beijing to export its authoritarian model of governance throughout the Indo-Pacific region, he said on Twitter. He also reiterated his partys position that the government withdraw from bank and repatriate the public funds invested.

Established by the CCP on Christmas Day 2015, the AIIB was billed as the first global multilateral financial institution, operating as an alternative to the American and European-led World Bank and International Monetary Fund for funding infrastructure projects in countries throughout Asia, Latin America, and Africa.

Chinese experts have warned that Beijings aim in founding an international development bank is to pivot the world economy toward the communist state and away from the United States.

Starting off with an initial 57 member states, the bank managed to entice countries across five continents, increasing its membership base to over 100 states in less than five years as of July 2020, according to Baidu, a Beijing-controlled Chinese information portal.

The path for Western countries to join the AIIB against the wishes of the United States was paved by the UK, which became a founding member of the bank in 2015.

In 2017, the Trudeau government contributed US$995 million (approximately C$1.28 billion) to join the bank for a 1.07 percent stake.

In Europe, Italy, France and Germany likewise spent considerable amounts to obtain voting rights from two to about five percent since joining as members.

China remains the largest shareholder of AIIB with a 30 percent stake, and a 26 percent voting rights, enabling it to have veto power over major decisions, which require 75 percent consensus.

Secret Police

Pickard said in his tweets that the CCP runs the joint, although he didnt really notice it when he first started.

Its only after working there for many months that I became aware of how thats where the true power is concentrated inside the bank  the CCP crowd who operate like a secret police, he wrote.

I saw with my own eyes the extent to which Communist Party hacks occupy key positions in the bank, like an in-house KGB or Gestapo or Stazi.

The AIIB issued a statement shortly after Pickards announcement.

Mr. Pickards recent public comments and characterization of the bank are baseless and disappointing, said the bank. We are proud of our multilateral mission and have a diverse international team representing 65 different nationalities.

Global Affairs Canada has previously warned that Beijings motive for establishing the AIIB is to use its economic clout to export its authoritarian governance model around the world.

The departments 2019 briefing papers later released by the Commons Canada-China relations committee in 2020 described the bank and Xi Jinpings Belt and Road Initiative as the means of pushing that model.

In February 2021, the Commons finance committee, then chaired by former Liberal MP Wayne Easter, released a report recommending that Canada withdraw from investing in the AIIB.

In March of that year, then Conservative leader Erin OToole called on Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to cancel a US$40 million payment to the bank after Beijings arbitrary detention of Canadian citizens Michael Spavor and Michael Kovrig.

Gu Feng, Omid Ghoreishi, Peter Wilson, Shane Miller and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Family Groups and LGBT Activist Uniting Against Bill That Could Make Pedophiles a Protected Class

The Connecticut State Capitol in Hartford, Conn., on May 4, 2020. (John Moore/Getty Images)

In an unlikely alliance, Christian family values groups and an LGBT activist have signed a petition against a proposed Connecticut bill they say could make pedophiles a protected sexual minority.

The bill, HB 6638, would revise the language of the states anti-discrimination statutes.

The current definition of sexual orientation in Connecticut law excludes protections for any behavior that is a sex offense crime. An update to the law would remove that wording.

Transgender activist Christine Rebstock opposes a Connecticut bill that could make pedophilia a protected sexual orientation. (Courtesy of Christine Rebstock)

If Governor [Ned] Lamont signs it, a person who admits they are a pedophileeven if they havent acted on it but just admit itthey could just go to an appeal board if they get fired from a job or denied housing near a school, said transgender activist Christine Rebstock.

The bill would redefine sexual orientation as a persons identity in relation to the gender or genders to which they are romantically, emotionally, or sexually attracted, including any identity that a person may have previously expressed or is perceived by another person to hold.

Because of that critics are sounding the alarm, fearing the new legal language could make it unlawful to fire an employee with a sexual attraction for childreneven one working at a business focused on serving minors.

Employers are going to have to be more cautious about how they interact with potential employees, Leslie Wolfgang, public policy director of the Family Institute of Connecticut (FIC), told The Epoch Times.

They wont be able to discriminate based on their sexual attraction.

The new bill was sponsored by Rep. Dominique Johnson (D), Rep. Hubert Delaney (D), Rep. Jeff Currey (D), Sen. Gary Winfield (D), and Rep. Tom Delniki (R).

It has passed both chambers of the legislature and now awaits signing by Lamont, a Democrat.

The Epoch Times contacted the bills sponsors but received no response by publication time.

Major Problems With Minor Attraction

Current law in Connecticut protects people from facing discrimination due to their heterosexual, homosexual, or bisexual preference.

But radical gender ideology activists felt that this carve-out wasnt big enough, said Peter Wolfgang.

Wolfgang is the executive director of FIC, a Christian family values promotion group, and is married to Leslie Wolfgang.

Our concern is, the language of the [proposed] bill was written so vaguely that it could allow for other categories to be protected that they probably may not have even intended to be included, Peter Wolfgang said. Pedophiles is one. There are others.

The law doesnt legalize pedophilia, polygamy, or bestiality. But if signed into law, the new language could be interpreted to give protections to people who practice those sex crimes, critics argue.

The process of pedophiles seeking legal protections under the proposed laws language likely would be gradual, not overnight, Peter Wolfgang said. But after everything that weve lived through for the last 20 years, can anyone really claim that these definitions will not evolve?

If youve got someone who hasnt committed the crime but is openly professing that thats what his attraction is on social media, our concern is that you will not be able to discriminate against this person, he said.

Under the proposed law, even if someone expresses a desire to have sexual encounters with children, it could be considered unlawful discrimination to fire him or her from a job working with children, such as driving a school bus or working in a preschool.

Peter Wolfgang (R), executive director of the Family Institute of Connecticut, and Leslie Wolfgang, the institutes public policy director. (Courtesy of Leslie Wolfgang)

However, Peter Wolfgang said, the law provides an example of something best-selling conservative writer Rod Dreher calls the Law of Merited Impossibility.

This phrase describes a phenomenon often seen in flashpoint culture-war issues.

One side will argue that a controversial activity or policy will never happen, but thenwhen it doesthat same side will accuse opponents of bigotry for previously opposing it.

An example is how many on the political Left denied the existence of child sex-change procedures. Then, when the procedures became undeniable, they defended them, Wolfgang said.

Not Pedophiles, MAPs

Leslie Wolfgang is concerned about how the proposed law creates protected sexual identities based on attraction. That will make hiring and firing decisions more challenging for employers, she said, especially when it comes to people attracted to children.

The pedophile community has created terms such as MAP, which means Minor-Attracted Person, to avoid using the word pedophile.

Employers are going to have to be more cautious about how they interact with potential employees, Leslie Wolfgang said. They wont be able to discriminate based on their sexual attraction.

Rebstock fears the bill is one of many that seek to give legal protections to adults who want to interact sexually with children.

Though identifying as transgender, Rebstocka man who identifies as a womandoesnt support the sexualization of children and medical transition for minor-aged kids.

Adding language that could offer legal protection to pedophiles is happening in other states, as well.

Children cheer as drag performers dance at the Chattanooga Pride parade in Chattanooga, Tenn., on Oct. 2, 2022. (Jackson Elliott/The Epoch Times)

In Minnesota, state House Rep. Leigh Finkey, a Democrat, had proposed removing words from a Minnesota anti-discrimination bill that excluded adults who want to have sex with children from the list of protected categories.

Finkey, who sponsored the bill, is a man who identifies as a woman.

The proposed Minnesota bill would define sexual orientation as emotional, physical, or sexual attachment to another person.

It also would remove from existing Minnesota law the stipulation that sexual orientation does not include a physical or sexual attachment to children by an adult.

So the bill would clarify anti-discrimination protection for people, regardless of their orientation.

Later in the legislative process, the Minnesota House unanimously passed an amendment clarifying that the physical or sexual attachment to children by an adult is not a protected class under this chapter.

In its current form, the bill would amend existing law to make sexual orientation and gender identity separate legally protected groups. It also adjusts language on gender identity.

Under current law, the clause on sexual orientation includes people having or being perceived as having a self-image or identity not traditionally associated with ones biological maleness or femaleness.

The new law would define gender identity as a persons inherent sense of being a man, woman, both, or neither.

Protection for Pedophiles

As a man who has transitioned to living as a woman, Rebstock has faced heavy criticism from progressives and transgender-identifying people for taking a stand against language that may protect pedophiles.

But if the Connecticut bill is signed into law, a school bus driver who openly announces his sexual desire for children cant be fired for that, Rebstock said with incredulity.

And whats in his mind when he sees these kids? Rebstock asked. Is he going to be lusting over a 10-year-old kid who is defenseless?

Opposing that, Rebstock said, is just the right thing to do.
Farmers: USDA Rules, Lack of Competition in Meat Packing Endangers Food Supply

Stacey Richard checks sides of beef hanging in the refrigerated butchering section at the Wright's Meat Packing facility in Fombell, Pa., on June 16, 2022. (Keith Srakocic/AP Photo)

Four corporations process most of the meat sold in the United States; two are based in other countries. American farmers say its time to promote competition in the meat processing industry by changing the rules to allow farmers to deal with small local processors.

In my opinion, the Department of Justice, the USDA, and the Federal Trade Commission have been on vacation since the 1970s on antitrust issues, Greg Gunthorp, an artisan farmer and processor from LaGrange, Indiana, told a House subcommittee on June 13.

We are in a fight for our lives.

Gunthorp testified before the House Judiciarys Subcommittee on the Administrative State, Regulatory Reform, and Antitrust.

According to Subcommittee Chair Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.), Tyson Foods, Cargill, JBS, and Seaboard process 85 percent of the beef, 70 percent of the pork, and 54 percent of chicken in the United States.

A truck arrives at Smithfield Foods pork plant in Smithfield, Va., on Oct. 17, 2019. (Tom Polansek/Reuters)

Under federal law, farmers and ranchers can only sell meat processed at facilities with a USDA inspector on-site, so they often have to travel great distances, even though there are local slaughterhouses in their communities. Farmers often have to make an appointment months or even years in advance.

This can create bottlenecks in the system that raises prices and endangers the food supply, Massie said. This was especially evident during the pandemic.

Affordability of meat was impacted if [consumers] could find it all, Massie said.

In a perplexing twist of the law, while farmers cannot sell the meat they produce to their friends or neighbors, they can give it away for personal, household, guest, and employee use. Grocery stores, restaurants, and direct sales to consumers are off-limits.

If I sell it, I become a criminal, said Joel Salatin, co-owner of Polyface Farm in Swoope, Virginia. What is it about money that changes the meat?

Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) speaks at a House committee hearing on May 18, 2023. (House Judiciary Committee/Screenshot via The Epoch Times)

Massie introduced the Processing Revival and Intrastate Meat Exemption (PRIME) Act in 2019 to promote competition. The Act would expand commercial markets to include the four exceptions and hotels and boarding houses within the same state as the processor.

Massie said the USDA regularly inspects existing processors, and states can set their own standards. So, food safety should not be compromised.

Salatin believes the current requirements overstep the governments constitutional authority and are tyrannical.

Its a discriminatory, regulatory issue, Salatin said. Few human decisions speak to freedom like making the decision about what we swallow.

He pointed out that small processors dont have the resources or influence to argue with Food Safety Inspection Service (FSIS) inspectors like large corporations do. So, they usually go along. Arguing with an inspector can cause trouble, he said.

Firsthand Experience With USDA

Rosanna Bauman said she has firsthand experience. For 15 years, she has been co-owner and general manager of Baumans Cedar Valley Farm near Garnett, Kansas.

Her family-run businesses are involved in all aspects of production. They raise chicken, beef, pork, and lamb on their farm. They also slaughter and process the meat in their USDA-inspected facility. The Baumans then sell the meat through their website and from their butcher shop in Kansas.

Bauman told the subcommittee that she disagreed with an overly aggressive FSIS supervisor last summer. She said a relatively minor matter would have been resolved with a larger business in a few hours. However, she said that because she runs a small business, the inspector would not budge.

According to Bauman, it took 90 days to resolve the issue, which resulted in her returning 3,000 chickens to farmers and costing $80,000 in lost business. Bauman said the system is stacked against the farmer.

We are presumed guilty. Our accuser is also our judge and jury. If I was a baby business woman, I would have folded, Bauman told the subcommittee.

Inspectors Sometimes Subjective

Salatin said part of the problem is subjectivity. He told the subcommittee that his cattle are primarily grass-fed. So, their meat and organs will look slightly different from grain-fed cattle. He said one inspector rejected some beef liver because it didnt look like the grain-fed liver he was used to.

Salatin took the liver to another inspector, who gave them a pass. He said it was safer to find another inspector rather than to argue with the first one.

Youre under this extortion all the time, he said.

Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.) is the ranking member of the House Judiciary Committee. He supports more competition. According to Nadler, the meat processing and packing industry has been consolidated and bleared too long.

According to Nadler, the first attempt to address the matter was the Sherman Antitrust Act in 1890. In the following decades, more regulations were promulgated to address health and safety concerns. These included laws to address child labor and unsanitary conditions in meat packing facilities. He agreed with Massie that the pandemic showed how fragile the food system could be.

Meat processing is less competitive today than it was in the 1900s. Our current food system can be easily disrupted, Nadler said.

Still, he cautioned that any changes should focus on something more than competition.

We must keep to the same safety standards, Nadler said.
Federal Agencies Routinely Spy on Phone Calls, Texts, Emails of American Citizens, Experts Say

Congress debates renewing FISA Section 702 amid reports of 'persistent' abuse

Despite the Constitutions Fourth Amendment, which prohibits warrantless government searches, U.S. agencies are proving to be ever more intrusive in their routine surveillance of Americans speech and activities.

Often working in collaboration with private companies and banks, agencies such as the FBI have been misusing laws against foreign terrorism to vacuum up and sift through the private data of millions of Americans without a warrant or any evidence of a crime.

As Congress now debates reauthorizing relevant sections of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) that are set to expire this year, the libertarian think tank Cato Institute held a four-day conference in early June, which featured calls for major legal reforms by conservative and liberal speakers alike.

The violations that weve seen have not just been epic in scale, but theyve also been persistent, over and over again, Jake Laperruque, deputy director at the Center for Democracy and Technology, told attendees.

To put a human scale on this, what were talking about is not just random typos or wrong clicks; were looking at things like pulling up batches of thousands of political donors in one go, without any suspicion of wrongdoing. Weve had reports of journalists, political commentators, a domestic political party; these compliance violations are the most worrisome type of politically focused surveillance.

In 2001, Congress passed the Patriot Act as a means to combat foreign terrorism after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. In 2008, Congress added an amendment to FISA, Section 702, which authorized warrantless surveillance of non-U.S. persons located outside the country. This amendment, which critics say is the source of much of the abuse, is scheduled to sunset on Dec. 31.

Evidence of Abuse

Congressional debates about whether to renew Section 702 are coming amid numerous reports that the FBI and other federal intelligence agencies have abused the surveillance authority granted to them by this law. Critics say theres mounting evidence that federal agencies have been using laws that were intended to target foreign terrorists to conduct extensive, long-term domestic spying campaigns on U.S. citizens.

To prevent Section 702 from being used as an end run around [Fourth Amendment] protections, Congress did two things: It required the government to minimize the collection, sharing, and retention of Americans personal information  and it required the government to certify to the FISA court on an annual basis that it is not using Section 702 to try to access the communications of particular known Americans, Elizabeth Goitein, senior director at New York Universitys Brennan Center for Justice, told conference attendees.

What has become abundantly clear over the last 15 years is that these protections are not working. All agencies that receive Section 702 data have procedures in place, approved by the FISA court, that allow them to run electronic searches  for the purpose of finding and retrieving the phone calls, text messages, and emails of Americans.

A report by the Brennan Center for Justice states that since 2006, the National Security Agency (NSA) has been secretly collecting the phone records of millions of Americans from some of the largest telecommunications providers in the United States, via a series of regularly renewed requests by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).

In addition, the report states: Over the past six years, the NSA has obtained unprecedented access to the data processed by nine leading U.S. internet companies. This was facilitated by a computer network named PRISM. The companies involved include Google, Facebook, Skype, and Apple.

Rise of Data Brokers

Speaking to attendees of the Cato Institute conference, Nathan Wessler, a director at the American Civil Liberties Union, detailed the rise of data brokers that assemble enormous databases of photo IDs that they then sell to law enforcement for profit.

Many companies are selling face recognition algorithms to government and private industry buyers, Wessler said. That might be state drivers license photos, arrest photos, federal passport photos.

And then theres another company, Clearview AI, which has been scouring the internet for billions of photos. The last I heard, they had a database of 30 billion photos of people from social media, from employer websites, from local newspapers, and anywhere else on the internet where theres a photo that might be attached to a name, building giant databases of face prints extracted from those photos, and selling that to police departments and other law enforcement around the country.

This, Wessler said, presents a truly unprecedented ability for the government to instantaneously identify anyone in any situation and then take action without usually any kind of court oversight, and often in tremendous secrecy.

We have legacy photo data sets of almost all of us, said Clare Garvie, counsel at the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers. As a practical matter, most of us are in numerous of these, and theyve been almost instantaneously turned into biometric data sets.

According to Garvie, the collection of these biometric data sets by law enforcement started in about 2001 and has been expanding ever since.

That really happened without any notice to the public, any sort of negotiation or discussion about enrollment, she said. Its adoption has predated by almost 20 years any sort of public discussion about regulation, control, etc.

This data collection comes at a time when the Transportation Security Administration is expanding the use of facial recognition software at airports. Its also coming at a time when, in the wake of numerous scandals, an increasing number of Americans are losing trust in the FBI and the Department of Justice. According to polls in 2021 and 2022, about half of all Americans have an unfavorable opinion of the FBI.

On May 12, special counsel John Durham released his report regarding the FBI investigation of alleged Russian collusion, which ultimately proved to be a hoax, in Donald Trumps 2016 presidential campaign. Durham found that throughout an investigation that was predicated on unvetted hearsay information, senior leaders at the FBI violated their own rules and applied a double standard in how they treated Trump compared with his Democrat opponent, Hillary Clinton.

What Durham found is that apparently, no one in the FBI or the National Security Division at DOJ thought it would be a good idea to go to NSA and CIA and ask them, Hey, do you have anything that would corroborate this?' said Patrick Eddington, a senior fellow at the Cato Institute. And when youre talking about an investigation that targeted the campaign of a presidential candidate, if they were that sloppy there, then how much more sloppy are they being with folks that dont have the kind of power and influence that Donald Trump does, or that Hillary Clinton does?

House Works to Extend Section 702

On March 22, the House Intelligence Committee established a bipartisan working group to assess under what conditions Section 702 should be extended. Simultaneously, pressure to kill the provision is coming from people on both the left and the right who are concerned about a pattern of civil rights violations by federal agencies.

Many Americans have rightfully lost faith in the FBI and the FISA process, Rep. Darin LaHood (R-Ill.) stated at the time. Citing abuses in the Durham report, he said, This incident, along with other outlined abuses, must be a wake-up call.

While Section 702 was designed to combat foreign terrorism, the FBI has been accused of using it for purely domestic reasons, including to track down Americans who participated in the U.S. Capitol breach on Jan. 6, 2021. And this effort is alleged to be part of a pattern of FBI surveillance of American citizens, including most recently charges that the FBI has targeted parents who protest school curricula and Catholics who oppose abortion rights.

In a March 24, 2022, letter to FBI Director Christopher Wray, Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) and Rep. Mike Turner (R-Ohio) cited a report by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) that from December 2020 through November 2021, the FBI conducted 3.3 million U.S. person inquiries against its Section 702 holdings. This was a substantial increase from the number of U.S. person queries the FBI conducted from December 2019 to November 2020, which was approximately 1.3 million.

Bob Goodlatte, a former U.S. representative and chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, said: These are long, ongoing programs that do not involve war in the traditional sense of the word. They are done in such a way that Americans rights under the Fourth Amendment are violated constantly, all day, every day.

Goitein said that the FBI routinely conducts these queries at the assessment stage of its investigations, which is before the Bureau has a reasonable factual basis to suspect criminal activity, let alone probable cause and a warrant.

The FBI conducted around 200,000 backdoor searches in 2022 alone, so thats more than 500 warrantless search of Americans communications every day, she said.

The NSA and CIA also conduct thousands of backdoor searches every year. When you look at these numbers, it becomes clear that what was supposed to be a solely foreign-focused authority has in fact become a very powerful domestic spying tool.

The ODNI report also cited an FBI bulk inquiry of 19,000 donors to a congressional campaign. In addition to the FBIs alleged collaboration with tech and telecom companies to collect data on Americans, there have been allegations of collaboration with banks, as well.

Following an FBI whistleblower report that Bank of America (BoA) provided the FBIvoluntarily and without any legal processwith a list of individuals who had made transactions in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area with a BoA credit or debit card between January 5 and January 7, 2021, Jordan and Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) wrote on June 12 to JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup, Truist Financial Corp., Wells Fargo, and U.S. Bank demanding information regarding whether they had acted in a similar fashion.

In the Governments Crosshairs

If you go back and you actually look at the historical record, an awful lot of groups, either ethnically, religiously, politically, have wound up in the governments crosshairs, and its a completely consistent pattern, Eddington said. Thats what, to me, speaks to the larger problem that were dealing with here.

What was fascinating and terrifying was to go through records from the World War I era and to see just exactly how victimized German Americans were, and Im talking about lynchings, Im talking about murders. The focus on Arab and Muslim Americans easily goes back to the Palestinian rights era.

Laperruque said that some of the worst surveillance abuses in recent history have all been done under this idea of defensive surveillance against foreign enemies. He cited cases such as Martin Luther King being monitored because the civil rights and anti-war movements allegedly represented security threats during the Vietnam War.

Its proven to be some of the most vulnerable types of surveillance to abuse, he said.

Assistant Secretary of State Brett Holmgren said on May 30 that while he found the abuses of Section 702 disturbing, the program should continue. Holmgren, who oversees the State Departments Bureau of Intelligence and Research (INR), said the national security and diplomatic uses of Section 702 were essential and downplayed the abuses.

Today, INR and the State Department that we serve is at risk of losing access to one of the most important streams of intelligence on which we rely  Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, Holmgren said.

Goodlatte said that Section 702 can be reformed in a bipartisan way to prevent many of the current violations from recurring.

This is a tremendous opportunity because of the heightened awareness on both sides of the aisle in Congress of these abuses, Goodlatte said. Congress can act in a very bipartisan way, and I think is disposed to act in a very bipartisan way.

Goitein said: Section 702, on one level, is an incredibly technical and complicated bill, and I think the government uses that to its advantage. But if we get lost in a conversation about technical details, were missing the big picture.

What Section 702 is being used for right now is not complicated at all; its being used for warrantless access to Americans communications. That is the principle we need to hold on to, that surveillance in this country, surveillance of Americans, should be pursuant to a warrant, and there should be robust mechanisms in place to ensure accountability and oversight.

I think as long as we keep our eye on those big principles and dont get lost in the legal weeds, were going to end up with a pretty good outcome.

Laperruque said: We cannot have a regime where the people doing the watching are also watching themselves for abuse and misconduct.

I do think that 702 can be reformed, but we need to remove it from this realm of self-policing  and actually have items like a warrant rule, where if the FBI or NSA or CIA wants to conduct a query to pull up Americans communications, it has to get a court order first.
After visiting Fort McHenry, I reflected upon the flag that was still there after the British assault, and which gave rise to our national anthem. Does that banner still wave over the land of the free and the home of the brave? The flag represents Americas existence, but also symbolizes what America representsfreedom. Thats why its not just a flag, nor just a song.

They are symbolic of the concept of freedom from tyranny. Although America was imperfect then as it is now, what it stands for is liberty for all. As we celebrate Flag Day on June 14, may we remember the perilous fight in 1814and that the flag still waves over the land of the free and the home of the brave.
Google Faces Forced Break-Up as EU Regulators Allege Anti-Competitive Violations

A Google sign is shown at the company's office in San Francisco, on April 12, 2023. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)

Google has been accused of breaching antitrust rules in the European Union (EU), and the blocs regulators have issued a preliminary assessment that the only solution to addressing their competition concerns is to force Google to break up.

The European Commission (EC), which serves as the executive branch and primary antitrust regulator of the bloc, stated in its initial assessment on June 14 following an investigation that Google has distorted competition in the advertising technology industry.

Our preliminary concern is that Google may have used its market position to favour its own intermediation services, Margrethe Vestager, EC executive vice president in charge of competition policy, said in a statement.

Not only did this possibly harm Googles competitors but also publishers interests, while also increasing advertisers costs, she continued. If confirmed, Googles practices would be illegal under our competition rules.

European Commission Vice President Margrethe Vestager speaks during an interview with Reuters in Brussels, on March 28, 2022. (Johanna Geron/Reuters)

The EC said it takes issue with Googles preference for its own online display advertising technology services, which negatively impacts competitors providing advertising technology services, as well as to the the detriment of advertisers and online publishers.

The commissions preliminary view is that the only thing that would address its competitive concerns is for the mandatory divestment by Google of part of its services.

Past antitrust cases against Google ended with fines and requirements for the company to stop anti-competitive practices, but these have been ineffective as the company has continued its anti-competitive practices just under a different disguise, Vestager said at a press conference in Brussels.

Google is representing the interests of both buyers and sellers. And at the same time, Google is setting the rules on how demand and supply should meet, she said at a news conference. This gives rise to inherent and pervasive conflicts of interest.

She said that a possible solution to Googles conflict of interest in the EU could be a forced sale of such business lines as its real-time marketplace for buying and selling ads or a tool for publishers to manage their ads.

This marks the first instance in which the 27-member bloc has called for a tech giant to divest key business segments for allegedly violating strict EU antitrust laws.

However, specific details of what a Google break-up in the EU would look like remain unclear.

Google Responds

Google pushed back on the ECs claims in a statement, vowing to respond accordingly, accusing the EC of not considering the broader impact of Googles business operations.

Todays Statement of Objections from the European Commission sets out claims that are not new and relate to a narrow part of our advertising busines, Dan Taylor, Google vice president of global ads, said in a statement.

It fails to recognize how advanced advertising technology helps merchants reach customers and grow their businesseswhile lowering costs and expanding choices for consumers, he added.

Taylor also reaffirmed Googles commitment to delivering value for their publisher and advertiser partners in the fiercely competitive sector.

We look forward to showing how we have enabled higher-quality, more effective digital ads that have helped fund broader access to content and information online for everyone, Taylor said.

Google can defend itself by pleading its case before the EC ahead of a final decision.

Investigation

The ECs preliminary ruling comes as a result of an official investigation initiated in June 2021 that set out to determine whether Google violated the blocs competition rules by favoring its own online display adtech at the expense of rivals.

The formal investigation will notably examine whether Google is distorting competition by restricting access by third parties to user data for advertising purposes on websites and apps, while reserving such data for its own use, the EC said in a statement at the time.

As part of its in-depth investigation, the EC focused on Googles display advertising services and sought to gauge the extent to which the company forced its partners to favor Googles services.

In particular, the EC examined the obligation to use Googles services for purchasing and serving online display ads on YouTube; potential favoritism toward Googles ad exchange; restrictions on competitors accessing user data; the impact of Googles plans to replace third-party cookies with the Privacy Sandbox; and the effects of stopping the availability of advertising identifiers on Android devices.

Following the investigation, the EC said in its June 14 statement that Google had abused its dominant positions since at least 2014 and engaged in abusive practices.

These practices include favoring its own ad exchange, AdX, in the ad selection auction conducted by its dominant publisher ad server, DFP. Google did this by providing AdX with advanced knowledge of competitors best bid values that needed to be surpassed to win the auction.

Furthermore, Googles ad-buying tools, such as Google Ads and DV360, were biased toward AdX, as they predominantly placed bids on AdX while avoiding competing ad exchanges, making AdX the most appealing option.

Previously, the EC hit Google with over $8.6 billion in fines in three separate antitrust cases. Those involved Googles Android operating system, as well as shopping and search advertising services.

Google is appealing all three penalties.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
China-funded projects have positively facilitated the daily life of Palestinians in the densely populated West Bank city of Ramallah, according to Palestinian officials and locals.





Produced by Xinhua Global Service
Make This Most of Ripe, Juicy Tomatoes in This Delicious Dish
Critics Warn of Gov. Gavin Newsoms Potential Runaway Constitutional Convention

Commentary

California Gov. Gavin Newsom has taken a lot of flack for his recently proposed 28th Amendment to the Constitution.

Our ability to make a more perfect union is literally written into the Constitution, he explained on June 8. So today, Im proposing the 28th Amendment to the United States Constitution to do just that. The 28th Amendment will enshrine in the Constitution common sense gun safety measures that Democrats, Republicans, Independents, and gun owners overwhelmingly supportwhile leaving the 2nd Amendment unchanged and respecting Americas gun-owning tradition.

Newsweek summarized the criticism by pointing out the NRA branded it unhinged. Republican House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, a fellow Californian, wrote on Twitter, Hey Governor Newsom, the 2nd Amendment already existswe dont need a 28th. But what we do need is for Presidential aspirants to stop pushing their extreme positions nationally.

But the real problem comes from this statement in Newsoms announcement; note the italics I added:

The Governor will work with grassroots supporters, elected and civic leaders, and broad and diverse coalitions across the nation to fight for the passage of similar resolutions in other state legislatures to ensure the convening of a constitutional convention limited to this subject. 33 other states, in addition to California, would need to take action to convene such a convention.

Apparently he doesnt know a Constitutional Convention probably cannot be limitedthe same as the original one in 1787. According to the short history on the website of the U.S. House of Representatives:

Six years after the ratification of the Articles of Confederation, which established the first national government, a majority of Delegates to Congress agreed that the Articles needed significant revisions. On February 21, 1787, the Congress resolved that a convention of delegates  appointed by the several states be held at Philadelphia for the sole and express purpose of revising the Articles of Confederation.'

But instead of revising, the delegates produced an entirely new document, the Constitution of the United States of America, later ratified by the states.

A 28th Amendment Convention likely could do the samepassing a 29th Amendment, a 30th Amendment, all the way to an Nth Amendment. Or it could imitate the delegates of 1787 and write an entirely new Constitution.

Of course, it still would need 34 states to approve whatever was passed. Most likely, only a few states would approve even Newsoms 28th Amendment. Republican states all would be against it. So would some Democratic states. Vermont has long been the most pro-gun state in the country. Long before last years Bruen decision affirming the right to carry a concealed gun, Vermont did so, without even the requirement of taking a course or getting a permit. Thats now called Constitutional Carry and has been adopted in recent years by a total of 26 states. Floridas law, the latest, goes into effect in July.

Pro-Life Convention

I remember when a Constitutional Convention was talked about on a large scale after the Roe v. Wade decision by the U.S. Supreme Court in 1973 overturned all state abortion lawseven the liberal onesand imposed abortion on demand everywhere. That was overturned with last years Dobbs decision.

This took 49 years, becausealthough Republican presidents kept promising to appoint pro-life justices to the U.S. Supreme Courttoo often we got such pro-aborts as Sandra Day OConnor and Anthony Kennedy.

As Robert N. Karrer detailed in his 2011 article, The Pro-Life Movement in Its First Years Under Roe, Pro-lifers promoted a Constitutional Convention to achieve a Human Life Amendment. The plan failed.

In 1979, the Congressional Quarterly produced research which looked at two proposed calls for a Constitutional Conventionone for a pro-life amendment, the second mandating a balanced federal budget. As of that year, 14 states had called for a pro-life convention, well short of the 34 required.

Runaway Convention Concerns

At the time, President Jimmy Carter warned of a convention for a balanced-budget amendment:

I think the convening of a Constitutional Convention to pass such an amendment would be very ill-advised and contrary to the best interest of our country. It would be a radical departure from the historic procedures that we have always used to amend our Constitution and might result in unlimited amendments which would change the basic thrust, the philosophy and the structure of our government.

And the research article noted:

Carters statement echoes the concerns of a number of constitutional scholars, members of Congress and others about what would happen if a constitutional convention were called. Because there are no established procedures for calling and running a convention, some fear that a convention, once called, would move beyond the specific subject of the proposed amendment and make broad revisions in the nations constitution. There is no assurance that [a constitutional convention] would not be a runaway, Rep. Don Edwards, D-Calif., chairman of the House Judiciary Committees Civil and Constitutional Rights Subcommittee, said recently. Weve had only one constitutional convention and it tore up the Articles of Confederation.'

However, others said a Constitutional Convention could be limited:

That fear is not shared by a special constitutional convention study committee set up six years ago by the American Bar Association (ABA). The committees report, which was adopted by the ABA in August 1973, said the convention method of proposing amendments could be an orderly mechanism of effecting constitutional change when circumstances require its use. Others have pointed out that the work of constitutional conventionsincluding a runaway sessionstill would require ratification by three-fourths of the states. 

On the question of whether Congress has the power to limit a conventions scope, Attorney General Griffin B. Bell said recently: I absolutely do think limits can be set. I think Congress has a duty to do so. The ABA study and a 1973 Senate Judiciary Committee report support that view.

Conclusion: Newsom Grandstanding

Given a Constitutional Convention is highly unlikely, this question of limiting a convention will remain unresolved. But Newsoms lack of care on the point shows this isnt a realistic proposal. Hes just doing it to gain points for a potential presidential run in 2028. Or, possibly, in 2024, as President Bidens every stumble generates more conjecture that he might cancel his re-election bid.

The national news on his 28th Amendment shows Newsom is garnering the national attention hes been seeking. Get ready for many more ideas that, even if theyre unrealistic, keep his name out there among the Democratic primary voters hes courting.

John Seilers email: writejohnseiler@gmail.com

Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
The UK publicly funded health care system will no longer allow the use of puberty blockers for children except for clinical trials.

The NHS will only commission puberty-suppressing hormones as part of clinical research, the National Health Service (NHS) stated in a June 9 update about implementing advice from the Cass Review, an independent review of gender identity services for children and young people.

The review highlighted significant uncertainties surrounding the use of hormone treatments, according to the NHS.

We are now going out to targeted stakeholder testing on an interim clinical commissioning policy proposing that, outside of a research setting, puberty suppressing hormones should not be routinely commissioned for children and adolescents who have gender incongruence/dysphoria, the agency stated.

In a June 9 NHS document (pdf), the agency stated that the most appropriate clinical pathway to deal with children said to be experiencing gender incongruence was through an integrated multidisciplinary team (MDT) approach, fully involving the child or young person and their family.

It stressed the need to explore all developmentally and psychosocially appropriate options when treating such children. The clinical approach should be mindful that this may be a transient phase, particularly for pre-pubertal children.

Experts welcomed the NHSs new policy.

This day will go down in history as the day that safeguarding of children came back into existence, James Esses, co-founder of Thoughtful Therapists, wrote on Twitter on June 9.

Thoughtful Therapists is a group of counselors, clinical psychologists, and psychotherapists from the UK and Ireland.

Mental Health Issues

In the June 9 document, the NHS also stated that there could be a link between mental health issues and feelings of gender incongruence: A significant proportion of children and young people who are concerned about, or distressed by, issues of gender incongruence experience coexisting mental health, neuro-developmental and/or personal, family or social complexities in their lives.

The relationship between these presentations and gender incongruence may not be readily apparent and will often require careful exploration.

Because of the link between mental health and gender incongruence among children, NHSs MDT will include expertise for the direct assessment of autism, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and other forms of neurodiversity.

The primary intervention for children experiencing gender incongruence and assessed as suitable for NHSs service will be psychosocial and psychological support and intervention, according to the agency.

Brilliant news! The NHS are finally listening to valid concerns that children are being harmed under the guise of the be kind movement! Whats actually kind is exploring WHY a child is so devastated by their world that they want to transition, Dr. Pam Spurr, a chartered psychologist with the British Psychological Society, wrote in a June 9 tweet.

US Laws Against Transitioning Children

Multiple U.S. states have taken action to prevent gender transitioning among minors. On June 2, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott signed into law Senate Bill 14, which will prohibit sex-change treatments for children and is scheduled to go into effect on Sept. 1.

The decision now prevents Texas Childrens Hospital in Houston, the largest pediatric health care provider in the country, from offering gender change procedures to children. Texas joined 17 other states that currently restrict gender transitioning for children.

A Jan. 6 report by Do No Harma group that seeks to insulate the health care profession from radical, diverse, and discriminatory ideologypointed out that the United States is the most permissive country for the legal and medical gender transition of children. The observation came after comparing the United States with 11 Northern and Western European nations.

In a sharp departure from the gender affirmation model employed in the United States, these countries now discourage automatic deference to a childs self-declarations on the grounds that the risks outweigh the benefits, while also calling for months-long psychotherapy sessions to address co-occurring mental health problems, the report reads.

Notably, in the United Kingdom, the Cass Review attributed the lack of safeguards for children at the largest pediatric gender center to the affirmative model, which originated in the USA.

What topics would you like to read about? Please let us know at health@epochtimes.nyc
Heres What the 2024 GOP Candidates Said About Trumps Arrest in Miami

Only one GOP candidate went to the Miami courthouse for Trump's arrest

Then-President Donald Trump looks on after a news conference with then-Vice President Mike Pence in the Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House in Washington on Feb. 26, 2020. (Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images)

Former President Donald Trump, who polls show is the Republican frontrunner for 2024, was arrested on Tuesday on federal charges in connection to whether he allegedly mishandled classified documents.

Trump is largely ahead of the rest of the GOP pack, according to polls. A Quinnipiac poll shows Trump has 53 percent support among GOP voters, while No. 2 is Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who has 23 percent. No other candidate reached 5 percent.

Vivek Ramaswamy and radio host Larry Elder publicly denounced Trumps arrest on Tuesday. In a statement last week, after the federal indictment was unsealed, DeSantis condemned what he called the weaponization of federal agencies but didnt mention the former president by name.

Ramaswamy, meanwhile, was the only Republican candidate to go to Miami to defend Trump, saying that the Department of Justice (DOJ) is engaging in police state-style tactics by arresting Trump.

In an appearance in front of the Miami courthouse, Ramaswamy mounted a defense of Trump and said that it would be a lot easier for me as a Republican candidate if Donald Trump were not in it. But I dont want to win this election, unlike others, by eliminating our competition by a federal administration police state arresting my opponents.

The businessman-turned-candidate then alleged that the GOP donor class told every Republican candidate and telling us to stay away from this  I refuse to abide by being a disciple of the donor class.

After Trumps arrest, Elder, who unsuccessfully ran for governor against Gov. Gavin Newsom in a recall election, told Fox News that if hes elected, I would instruct my Attorney General to drop the politically-motivated charges against Trump.

I can tell you that it is deeply disturbing that Hillary Clinton was not charged for her blatant violation of the Espionage Act when she destroyed her private email server, Elder continued in a statement. And why is the special counsel investigation into [President] Bidens mishandling of classified documents taking so much longer than the investigation of Trump?

Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy speaks to the press outside the Wilkie D. Ferguson Jr. United States Courthouse in Miami, Fla., on June 13, 2023. (Madalina Vasiliu/The Epoch Times)

As for DeSantis, both the governor and his team have largely remained silent on Trumps arrest. Over the past weekend, DeSantis suggested there is a double standard at play.

I think there needs to be one standard of justice in this country. Lets enforce it on everybody and make sure we all know the rules. You cant have one faction of society weaponizing the power of the state against factions that it doesnt like and thats what you see, he said during a speech in North Carolina on Saturday. He made similar comments on his Twitter account.

But DeSantis also said that if I would have taken classified [documents] to my apartment, I would have been court-martialed in a New York minute when he was a Naval officer.

Former Vice President Mike Pence, former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley, and Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) signaled they are now willing to criticize Trump after his arrest. For instance, Scott told reporters that the DOJ indictment against Trump is a serious case with serious allegations, Haley called Trump reckless, and Pence said that he cant defend what the indictment alleged Trump did with classified documents.

And I cant defend what is alleged. But the President is entitled to his day in court, hes entitled to bring a defense, and I want to reserve judgment until he has the opportunity to respond, Pence said in a Wall Street Journal interview on Tuesday.

Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-Fla.) speaks during a campaign stop at Manchester Community College in Manchester, New Hampshire, on June 1, 2023. (Joseph Prezioso/AFP via Getty Images)

Haley, in a statement to Politico, said that she would likely pardon Trump if he is convicted on the federal charges. When you look at a pardon, the issue is less about guilt and more about whats good for the country, Haley remarked. And I think it would be terrible for the country to have a former president in prison for years because of a documents case.

Former Gov. Asa Hutchinson and former Gov. Chris Christie, both longtime critics of Trump, appeared to largely agree with the DOJs indictment.

Whether you like Donald Trump or you dont like Donald Trump, this conduct is inexcusable, in my opinion, for somebody who wants to be president of the United States, Christie said during a recent town hall. Notably, Christie backed Trump during his 2016 campaign and helped head his transition team, but since then, hes turned against the former president.

Hutchinson, meanwhile, said during an MSNBC interview this week that its simply wrong for Republican presidential candidates such as Ramaswamy and Haley to be discussing a pardon for Trump.

President Joe Biden has largely remained mum on Trumps arrest, with Biden saying last week that he did not tell the DOJ to investigate the former president. Democratic 2024 rival Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has not specifically made mention of the arrest but said in a recent interview with journalist Glenn Greenwald that recent disclosures make the TrumpRussia investigation look like the entire thing was fake, the entire thing was fabricated from whole cloth.
Home Secretary: Women Trafficked For Sex Work Could be Deported Under New Bill

Suella Braverman made the revelations as MPs questioned her on organised prostitution within her constituency

Home Secretary Suella Braverman speaking to the Home Affairs Select Committee on June 14, 2023. (Parliament TV/Screenshot via The Epoch Times)

The home secretary was asked about the levels of organised prostitution in her constituency as she faced questions over the fate of trafficked women under her small boats bill.

During Wednesdays Home Affairs Committee, Dame Diana Johnson said an adult website currently listed 300 sex worker adverts in Suella Bravermans Hampshire constituency.

Half of those, the Labour MP said, included red flags that the women advertised have been trafficked.

Asked what action the government was taking against those websites and what was available to trafficking victims, Braverman responded by saying there are new mechanisms in legislation to deal with trafficking, exploitation and prostitution.

Johnson then pressed the home secretary on provisions for sexual exploitation victims trafficked into the UK through illegal routes.

The MP said: I just want to drill down in this a little bitif a woman who had been brought into the United Kingdom by an illegal route for sex trafficking, if she came to the attention of the authorities, would she be subject to arrest and detention under the Illegal Migration Bill?

Braverman conceded that trafficked women could be deported under measures to tackle illegal migration.

We are not including blanket exclusions in our legislation, the home secretary told the committee.

We have struck the right balance, whereby genuine victims of modern slavery can still put in a claim and if they are able to meet the thresholds that weve set in the bill, combined with thresholds that we are implementing at the moment in terms of objective and compelling evidence for their reasonable grounds claim, if theyre part of a police investigation we believe that will filter out the vexatious claims of modern slavery.

Boats Keep Coming

Former prime minister Theresa May previously warned the Illegal Migration Bill to stop the boats could harm efforts to tackle human trafficking.

Braverman said victims could claim an exemption, but she stressed the need to tackle people claiming to be victims of modern slavery when they patently are not to thwart removal from the UK under the legislation.

Johnson, who grilled Braverman over a range of issues surrounding the controversial bill, replied, Its quite clear that particularly victims of trafficking for sexual exploitation find it very difficult to come forward.

Braverman was also challenged on the promise to tackle the backlog of asylum cases, insisting the legacy backlog predating June last year has fallen by around 17,000 claims.

But she said the overall numbers are high because the boats keep coming.

Its absolutely impossible to ever get that number down to zero because there are constant cases coming into the system, she told MPs.

But I accept, of course, the numbers keep rising because the boats keep coming and that is the flow of casework and that is what we are also working on to reduce.

She confirmed that from Saturday to Monday, around 1,200 migrants had arrived in the UK after crossing the English Channel including 661 in one day alonethe highest number this year.

Johnson said, It seems to me you have a backlog of backlogs now, youre just building backlogs on backlogs.

Braverman replied, No I wouldnt say that, I would say weve got a caseload of cases.

A group of people thought to be illegal immigrants are brought into Ramsgate, Kent, onboard a Border Force vessel on Aug. 1, 2022. (Gareth Fuller/PA Media)

154 Children Missing

The home secretary also faced questions on what the Home Office was doing to find over 100 unaccompanied child asylum seekers who have disappeared from government-funded hotels since last year.

Scottish National Party (SNP) MP Alison Thewliss asked Braverman what she would do if one of her own children went missing.

After replying that she would contact the police, Thewliss said: There are, according to an answer to a written question that I had this week, still 154 unaccompanied asylum seeking children still missing who were in a Home Office hotel.

What are you doing to find those children?

Braverman replied, So any child going missing is extremely serious and thats why we work very closely, if that case arises, with local authorities and the police to operate a very robust system of missing persons protocols to ensure that the appropriate efforts are put into place to identify where they might be.

She added that the government did not have the power to detain children in the hotels but took any cases of missing children very seriously.

Generally, when it comes to missing persons, if you speak to the police to trace them, it is incredibly challenging to find someone who does not want to be found.

The SNP politician said it was Bravermans Rwanda policy that was putting the fear into unaccompanied child asylum seekers who were choosing to flee instead of being put on a plane out of the country.

Braverman replied that the point of Rwanda is a deterrent.

We want to stop people coming here on boats in the first place, she said.

We want to stop people making this illegal journey in the first place. We want to stop these people smuggling gangs, exploiting vulnerable people, we want to stop them, putting children on their unseaworthy vessels, travelling late at night without a life jacket in the vain hope of getting to a life in the United Kingdom.

The home secretary said that as of last week, no children were currently being held in hotels in the UK.

However, with the arrival of over 1,000 people in the last number of days, that could have now changed.
Hong Kongers From 27 Cities Worldwide Unite Against Authoritarianism on 4th Anniversary of the Anti-Extradition Movement

Protesters gather during a rally at Victoria Park in Hong Kong on Aug. 18, 2019. Pro-democracy protesters had continued rallies on the streets of Hong Kong against a controversial extradition bill since June 9, 2019 as the city plunged into crisis after waves of peaceful demonstrations and several violent clashes. (Billy H.C. Kwok/Getty Images)

Starting from June 9, a series of anti-authoritarian activities, including rallies, vigils, and demonstrations, were held in 27 cities worldwide to commemorate the Hong Kong anti-extradition bill movement that happened four years ago in Hong Kong. A veteran Australian media professional and Doctor of Politics from Hong Kong urged people to speak up for Hong Kong and the people suppressed by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).

Liberate Hong Kong, Revolution of our times, Liberate Hong Kong, Revolution of our times

On the afternoon of June 10 at 3 p.m., many Hong Kongers and human rights organizations held a parade in Taipei with the theme Rally for Hong Kongs Democracy in Taipei, Taiwan.

The parade of thousands of people shouted slogans such as Resist Authoritarianism, Uphold Beliefs and carried banners recounting the history of Hong Kongs anti-communist movement.

A participant from Hong Kong said, The evil side of the CCP or their means are terrifying, but we have not given up fighting for freedom, democracy, and human rights.

Various groups participating in the demonstrations took turns speaking on a mobile stage to recall the development of Hong Kongs democratic movement.

A Taiwanese participant said, Today, we are not only here for our friends in Hong Kong but also for ourselves in Taiwan. We must take action to protect people from the Chinese government when it uses such brutal means against Chinese people, against Hong Kong people, and even against everyone else; we Taiwanese refuse this way and defend our true dignity.

The organizers stated that by holding an annual protest to connect with dispersed Hong Kongers and continue the spirit of anti-extradition movements while reminding people currently suffering from CCP infiltration and threats.

Australian and Hong Kong veteran journalist and Doctor of Politics, Dr. Lin Bin stated, We held the 4th anniversary of the anti-extradition bill movement and the 34th anniversary of the June 4 (Tiananmen Square massacre) vigil together. We had two events in Sydney and a seminar. We also held related activities in Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth, and many other cities.

In Sydney, dozens of Hong Kongers held up banners reading Liberate Hong Kong, Revolution of our times while recounting CCPs crimes and singing Glory to Hong Kong.

On June 11, hundreds of Hong Kongers gathered at Mel Lastman Square in North York to commemorate the 4th anniversary of the anti-extradition bill movement. The event called on fellow protesters to continue their fight against the CCP, with attendees stating that anti-communism is a responsibility.

On June 11, 2023, hundreds of Hong Kong people in Toronto rallied at Mel Lastman Square in North York Region to commemorate the 4th anniversary of the anti-extradition protests. (Yiling/The Epoch Times)

Most participants were young immigrants from Hong Kong who wore black t-shirts or carried backpacks and gas masks reminiscent of frontline protesters. Banners reading Liberate Hong Kong, Revolution of our times and Release political prisoners were also displayed. Throughout the event, people chanted slogans such as Down with the CCP, and Free Hong Kong, Free Tibet, and Fight for freedom.

In addition to rallies and exhibitions in several cities in Taiwan and Canada, fourth-anniversary events were also held in San Francisco, Seattle, Washington DC, in the USA, Bristol, Bishops Cottage, Nottingham, Crawford, Reading, Southampton in the UK, Glasgow, Edinburgh, St. Andrews in Scotland, Frankfurt in German, and other cities worldwide.

Over 1,000 people participated in the London 6.12 4th Anniversary Rally. (Shan Lam/The Epoch Times)

On June 11, the largest gathering was held at Londons Parliament Square at 3 p.m., with over a thousand people in attendance, as The Epoch Times reporter on-site estimated. The rally was co-organized by the UK Hong Kong Association, the Hong Kong Support Fund, and HK Aid, with a backdrop on the stage reading Resist British Communism () in six Chinese characters.

The demands of the rally included calling on the British government to:

Publicly support Hong Kong people who have been victims of political persecution: including the release of Jimmy Lai (media tycoon) and other political prisoners who are British citizens; Close down Confucius Institutes in the UK; Ensure that British institutions uphold principles of free speech and cultural diversity; Expedite the approval process for political asylum seekers and provide a stable and safe space for them.

Former Hong Kong Legislative Council member Nathan Law spoke at a rally in London. (Shan Lam/The Epoch Times)

Nathan Law, who has been in exile since 2020, recounted his past decade of life, including his involvement in the student union at age 20, participation in the Umbrella Movement in 2014, election to the Legislative Council in 2016, and imprisonment in 2017.

He noted that fewer and fewer Hong Kong people are participating in rallies or political discussions in the UK, possibly due to fears of returning to Hong Kong.

However, he reminded them that it would be a waste if they did not use their freedom of assembly and political freedom.

He encouraged Hong Kong people in the UK to live a life that aligns with their values and reflect on what meaningful things they can do while living there.

At noon on June 11, UK Stands With Hong Kong, a Hong Kong organization in the southern English town of Reading, held a rally outside City Hall with an estimated 200 people in attendance, as observed by The Epoch Times reporter on site.

The emcee criticized the CCPs tyranny over the past four years, which has destroyed Hong Kong beyond recognition and forced Hongkongers to scatter.

She admitted that although Hongkongers have felt powerless over the past four years, she hoped that rally participants would consider whether doing nothing is useless and whether they upheld the original intentions.

The anti-extradition movement began on June 9, 2019, when over one million people took to the streets to protest against the proposed extradition bill by the Hong Kong government. However, the regime refused to withdraw the bill.

On June 12, protesters surrounded the Legislative Council and were brutally suppressed by the Hong Kong police, leading to mass arrests. Under the red terror, Hong Kongers were forced to flee and hold anti-authoritarian activities worldwide.

Lin said, Many things happened in 2019 during the anti-extradition movement. Hong Kong is now being suppressed so much that we are not allowed to assemble, protest, or do anything. However, Hong Kong people have this right in Australia, the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, and Western countries. We must stand out and keep speaking up for the CCPs suppression of Hong Kong.

In June 2020, the CCP introduced the Hong Kong National Security Law, arresting over 10,000 Hong Kong citizens. Lin said that Hong Kong people are struggling, and even middle-aged men couldnt help but cry when talking about Hong Kong.

Lin stated, At a recent event in Australia on June 12, they hoped for the release of all political prisoners in Hong Kong because these so-called charges were baseless. In the long run, they hope to fight for Hong Kong to return to the hands of its people.

At least 12 cities in the UK held a rally for the anti-extradition bill movement. Several Chinese students attacked Hong Kong protesters after a protest in Southampton on June 11.

Lin said, Incidents of Hong Kong people being attacked overseas are not limited to the UK. It has also happened in Australia. Former Hong Kong Legislative Council member Ted Hui Chi Fung was chatting with friends at a restaurant in Australia when someone beside him threw a glass of water at him and threatened to hit him. After reporting it to the police, the police arrested that person.

Lin once organized an event that a group of long-term pro-CCP members attacked, and some participants were violently pushed down. After reporting it to the police, the perpetrators were also punished. Lin pointed out that these people were all instructed by the CCP.

Lin urged Hong Kong citizens who have obtained citizenship from other countries to participate in politics and become democratic representatives to speak up for suffering Hong Kong and Chinese citizens, and meanwhile, conjugate the Chinese legislators who infiltrate democracies and speak for the CCP.

In addition, due to the Hong Kong governments ban on the song Glory to Hong Kong, Hong Kongers launched a global radio relay campaign starting June 12. Lin said that broadcasting this song is mainly saying no to the CCP regime. No matter how it suppresses them, they will continue to speak out.
Hongkongers Held Aloft Their Appeal for Freedom and Light on Lion Rock Amidst Darkness

Act of bravery under threat of National Security Law to speak out on 4th anniversary of anti-extradition movement

June 9 marked the fourth anniversary of the anti-extradition movement in Hong Kong. Under the threat of the national security law (NSL), when the Hong Kong media was silenced, and local commemorative activities seemed to have disappeared, there were still some Hongkongers who braved the rain to ascend atop Lion Rock, a landmark symbol of Hong Kong people and raised the GLORY HK light sign, expressing their hope for freedom and light amidst darkness.

On the night of June 9, it was rainy with occasional fog in Hong Kong, and the top of Lion Rock was shrouded with clouds and fog for most of the time. However, several Hongkongers still insisted on going up amidst darkness, raising their light boards to express their aspirations.

Glory HK is edited from Glory to HK, a song widely sung by Hong Kong citizens during the anti-extradition movement. It even ranked continuously higher than the Chinese national anthem when searching under the thread Hong Kong national anthem on Google. It led lately to the Hong Kong government resorting to the application for a court injunction to ban it, citing reasons such as it can be used directly or indirectly as a slogan inciting sedition; and being repeatedly mistaken as the Hong Kong national anthem; constituting an insult to the official national anthem, and the like.

Four years ago, on June 9, one million Hong Kong people took to the streets to protest the governments extradition bill amendment, and the Hong Kong anti-extradition movement broke out and lasted for around half a year. During the campaign, the police arrested more than 10,000 citizens, including pro-democracy lawmakers and media executives, and detained them pending trial.

Later, the National Security Law (NSL) for Hong Kong was passed by the CCP legislative body, which overrides the common law implemented in Hong Kong and restricts the freedoms of Hong Kong people. The government imprisoned without trial, democrats whom the CCP dislikes, forced dozens of media outlets to shut down, and many scholars fled Hong Kong.

Lion Rock represents the spirit of Hong Kong. During the anti-extradition movement, Hong Kong people often hung giant banners on top of it to inspire people to keep their faith. Ascending the Lion Rock to express their aspiration for freedom has a deep-rooted meaning to Hong Kong people today, but the organizers and participants bear the risk of being arrested at any time.

Some witnesses and participants said that the injunction cannot stop peoples hearts, and GLORY to Hong Kong has taken root in the hearts of every Hongkonger.

Another ascender Siu Kwan believes that as long as we persevere, the day of democracy and freedom will come. It is not to persevere because there is hope. It is because we persevere, then there is hope. Come on, Hong Kong people!

Climber HongKonger pointed out that everyone should use wisdom and remain flexible, Be water. At the same time, he would like to thank the Hong Kong people who are not afraid of oppression and intimidation around the clock and who are still working hard no matter where they are.

Another climber Mr. Chan felt grateful that many Hong Kong people still continue to bring their lights to Lion Rock amid darkness and help illuminate each other.

He specifically mentioned reporter Bao Choy Yuk-ling, who was convicted for searching for information from the number plate system. After years of hard work, her appeal was finally upheld, which is encouraging. In addition, he also respects the protesters who are not afraid of the high wall they are up against. People such as Tonyee Chow Hang-tung and Granny Wong, among others. Their courage and persistence are touching. At the same time, we should not forget the many martyrs who died for Hong Kong earlier; even though their bodies have left, their faith will last forever.

Another ascender, who calls himself a letter fan, demands the immediate release of all political prisoners. He also hopes that everyone should pay more attention to the oppressed and make them feel they are not alone.

A participant recalled that some music was wafting from a distance when they were almost at the top of Lion Rock. Then they found two young people enjoying the scenery while playing songs such as Glory to Hong Kong, Be Water, For those who stayed, for those who had left, and What Happened on their mobile phones.

They met, and after deliberation, the two young people said that they came to Lion Rock on the evening of June 9th. It was fate to meet each other up there.

They also mentioned that even if they go to foreign countries in the future, they will continue to speak out for the Hong Kong people. While walking and talking on the way, they gave cheer to each other, Brothers climb mountains together but by their own efforts, and shouted together, Come on, Hong Kong people!
House Calls for Immediate Release of Americans Detained by Russia

(Left) The Wall Street Journal journalist Evan Gershkovich is shown in this undated photo. (The Wall Street Journal via AP) Paul Whelan, a former U.S. marine, stands in a cage as he waits for a hearing in a courtroom in Moscow on Aug. 23, 2019. (Alexander Zemlianichenko/AP Photo)

The House of Representatives on June 13 unanimously approved resolutions that call on Russia to immediately release two Americans who have been accused of espionage.

The U.S. lawmakers condemned Russias arbitrary and baseless detention of former U.S. Marine Paul Whelan and journalist Evan Gershkovich.

Today, we send a strong message to [Russian President] Vladimir Putin that AmericaRepublicans and Democrats alikewill not tolerate his corrupt regime holding U.S. citizens hostage under false pretenses, Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Texas) said on the House floor on June 12.

Gershkovich, 31, a Moscow-based correspondent for The Wall Street Journal, was arrested by the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) on March 29 on suspicion of spying for the U.S. governmenta charge that McCaul said lacks evidence.

Gershkovich is the first U.S. journalist to be detained in Russia since the Cold War.

Whelan is a 53-year-old corporate security executive from Michigan who was arrested in December 2018. Hes currently serving a 16-year sentence at a maximum-security penal colony.

Child of Exiles

According to the Journal website, Gershkovich has covered Russia, Ukraine, and the former Soviet Union for the outlet since January 2022. He also previously worked for Agence France-Presse, The Moscow Times, and The New York Times.

Following his arrest, the FSB claimed that Gershkovich was detained in Yekaterinburg, Russia, while attempting to obtain classified information.

It was established that Evan Gershkovich, acting at the request of the American side, collected information constituting a state secret about the activities of one of the enterprises of the Russian military-industrial complex, the agency said in a statement.

The U.S. government, the Journal, and Gershkovichs family have all rejected those claims.

No evidence has been presented to back up this accusation because there is no evidence, McCaul said. Evan is innocent. He was simply doing his job reporting on the news in Russia. But we know that the war criminal Putin doesnt like that.

Prior to his detainment, Gershkovichs most recent stories covered Russias war with Ukraine and how the Russian economy was starting to come undone from the strain. He also co-authored an in-depth report on Putin in December 2022.

That report is what began to change her perspective on the dangers of her sons work, according to his mother, Ella Gershkovich.

I think when that article came out about Putin in December, [it] got me worried a lot, she told the Journal in a recent video interview. Like my mood was changing.

Ella and Mikhail Gershkovich are both Jewish exiles of the former Soviet Union who emigrated to the United States separately in 1979. After meeting in New York, they eventually settled in New Jersey, where they raised their two children to love and respect the Russian traditions of their own upbringing.

Despite his familys complicated history with the country, Mikhail Gershkovich said he didnt speak with his son about the risks of being a journalist in Russiaa fact he now regrets.

I trusted himI trusted his judgment, he said. Of course, it makes things more difficult for me now because I feel that Ive failed in some way as a father.

Veteran Imprisoned

As for Whelan, the State Department marked the fourth anniversary of his detention in December 2022, decrying the unfathomable ordeal the veteran has endured.

Russian authorities subjected him to a secret trial and sentenced him to 16 years in a Russian penal colony based on secret evidence, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a statement at the time. His detention remains unacceptable, and we continue to press for his immediate release at every opportunity.

Whelan was in Moscow for the wedding of a fellow Marine veteran on Dec. 28, 2018, when he was arrested on espionage charges. While the FSB said he was arrested while on a spy mission, he has maintained his innocence, insisting that he was set up.

The U.S. government has backed him in those claims, with then-U.S. Ambassador to Russia John Sullivan describing Whelans trial as a mockery of justice.

Previous attempts to secure Whelans release in a prisoner swap have failed, even as Russia released fellow U.S. detainee WNBA star Brittney Griner in December 2022.

Still, Whelan told CNN on May 21 that he remains confident that the U.S. government is working to secure his release.

I remain positive and confident on a daily basis that the wheels are turning, he said. I just wish they would turn a little bit more quickly.

Bipartisan Outrage

Last month, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) presented a united front in opposing the continued imprisonment of Whelan and Gershkovich.

We strongly condemn Russias ongoing and illegal detention of journalist Evan Gershkovich and call for his immediate release, the lawmakers said on May 4 in a joint statement. Since arresting Evan five weeks ago, Russia has failed to provide any credible evidence to justify its manufactured charges. Journalism is not a crime and his detention is another deeply concerning attack on freedom of the press across the globe.

The persecution of Gershkovich is part of a disturbing practice by Putins Russia of kidnapping American citizens and using Soviet-style show trials to unjustly imprison them. Today, the Kremlin not only holds Gershkovich hostage, it continues to unjustly imprison Paul Whelan. Russia must release Gershkovich and Whelan now.

The two resolutions echo those comments, expressing solidarity with the families of the two men and all other American citizens and lawful permanent residents wrongfully detained abroad.

The measures passage in the House comes on the heels of Russian authorities arrest of an American musician and former paratrooper, Michael Travis Leake, on drug charges.

Leake was arraigned on June 10. According to a statement posted to Telegram by Moscows courts of general jurisdiction, hell remain in custody until Aug. 6. He faces up to 12 years in prison if found guilty.

Commenting on Leakes arrest at a White House press briefing, National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters on June 12 that the State Department was examining the situation.

I know that the State Department is, at least as of my coming out here, trying to get in touch with the family, and theyre looking into this case, Kirby said. As far as I know, consular officers were present at his arraignment and did get a consular visit with him.

Well obviously continue to monitor this and stay in touch with his case as much as possible, but its just too soon for me to be able to characterize it one way or another.

Reuters and Katabella Roberts contributed to this report.
House Passes Another Bill Protecting Gas Stoves From Being Banned

Eggs being cooked in a cast iron pan over flames on a natural gas-burning stove in Chicago, Illinois, on Jan. 12, 2023. (Scott Olson/Getty Images)

The House on June 14 passed another piece of gas stove legislation.

Voting in favor of the Save Our Gas Stoves Acta bill that would block the Department of Energys (DOE) proposed efficiency rule on gas stoves and similar applianceswere 249 representatives, while 181 went against the measure.

The legislation passed just one day after the House voted to adopt the Gas Stove Freedom and Protection Act.

That aims to prevent possible moves by the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) to ban gas stoves as hazardous products or significantly increase the appliances prices.

The June 13 bill passed 248180. The totals from both measures demonstrate that more than a few Democrats crossed the aisle in support of attempts to shield the appliances.

Lawmakers who spoke with The Epoch Times explained their stances on the issue.

Im not sure what the Democrats problems with gas stoves are, Rep. Kevin Hern (R-Okla.) said in a June 14 interview with The Epoch Times.

Rep. Jake Auchincloss (D-Mass.) said in comments to The Epoch Times on June 14, They [Republicans] are conjuring a straw man as opposed to tackling issues that are affecting people day in, day out.

Rep. Mikie Sherrill (D-N.J.) said in June 14 comments to The Epoch Times, I have four kids, so I want to make sure that any appliance Im putting in my house is safe.

Votes on the two gas stove bills and the REINS Act, a measure intended to bring the administrative state under greater congressional authority, were initially expected last week.

The conservative Freedom Caucus scuttled that effort as a protest against House Republican leaderships debt ceiling deal with Democrats.

Were frustrated in the way this place is operating, Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) told reporters at the time.

The REINS Act was approved by the House on June 14.

Gas Stove Worries

Americans concerns about a gas stove ban increased in January after a CPSC commissioner suggested that such a move could be in the offing.

This is a hidden hazard. Any option is on the table. Products that cant be made safe can be banned, Commissioner Richard Trumka Jr. told Bloomberg News.

Trumka made that statement soon after the publication of a peer-reviewed study on childhood asthma and gas stovesone that the natural gas industry and others swiftly criticized.

The American Gas Association on Jan. 10 reacted negatively to the investigation, saying it was not substantiated by sound science.

They pointed out that it didnt look into the appliances in a direct manner, as it depended on an evaluation of population-level trends rather than anything like laboratory testing. It also ran contrary to a large previous study that employed a similar methodology.

CPSC Chair Alexander Hoehn-Saric quickly sought to shut down talk of a prohibition on gas stoves.

I am not looking to ban gas stoves, and the CPSC has no proceeding to do so, he said a few days later.

Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm was also among those who attempted to curtail rumors of gas stove bans based on Trumkas remarks.

In late January, Granholm said the notion of a gas stove ban was so ridiculous and just not true.

Yet an internal memorandum penned by Trumka late last year shows that his concerns run deeper than some off-the-cuff remarks to a reporter.

In that document, he said a gas stove ban in homes could be advanced this fiscal year based on the amount and strength of evidence the CPSC had gathered regarding gas stoves supposed risks to human health.

The memorandum can be viewed here. The Epoch Times has reviewed it.

During the June 13 House debate over the Gas Stove Freedom and Protection Act, Rep. Frank Pallone (D-N.J.) dismissed worries about Trumkas widely publicized comments.

Pallone said the commissioner doesnt have the power to effectuate a ban because hes only one person.

Department of Energy Proposal

The bill passed on June 14 targets a Department of Energy proposal issued earlier this year. It outlines energy conservation standards for gas stoves.

The White House wants to limit your ability to purchase and use gas stoves, Rep. Tom Cole (R-Okla.) said during a June 5 House Rules Committee hearing.

He stressed that DOEs own assessment is that its efficiency proposal would eliminate roughly half of the gas cooking appliances now available in the American marketplace.

My constituents are right to worry, Cole said.

During a March 23 hearing, Granholm acknowledged that her agencys proposal would have far-reaching effects on gas stovesyet, in her wording, the proverbial glass was still half full.

Half of the gas stoves that are on the market right now wouldnt even be impacted, she said.

Granholm told lawmakers that the proposal was timed to comply with a September 2022 consent decree between the department and various environmental groups, including the Sierra Club, requiring it to decide whether itll act on gas stoves by Jan. 31, 2024.

The consent decree followed a years-long battle over gas stove regulations spanning the Obama, Trump, and Biden administrations.
House Passes Gas Stove Protection Bill to Prevent Restrictions on Family Cookers

The House passed the Gas Stove Protection and Freedom Act on June 13, marking another salvo in the conflict between Democrats and Republicans over the future of gas stoves.

The bill made it through the chamber with 248 yeas and 180 nays.

H.R. 1615 can be read here.

Debate over the measure failed to start last week due to conflict among Republicans.

Alongside House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.), Reps. Andy Biggs (R-Ariz.), Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.), Ken Buck (R-Colo.), Dan Bishop (R-N.C.), Tim Burchett (R-Tenn.), Eli Crane (R-Ariz.), Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.), Bob Good (R-Va.), Ralph Norman (R-S.C.), Matt Rosendale (R-Mont.), and Chip Roy (R-Texas) all moved against considering the legislation and other bills as a show of displeasure with House Speaker Kevin McCarthys (R-Calif.) over the debt ceiling deal.

Before the June 13 vote took place, lawmakers debated the measures merits. It would restrict the Consumer Product Safety Commissions (CPSCs) ability to regulate or possibly even ban new gas stoves.

The weaponization of government against our energy industry only serves to make our energy future less secure, said Rep. John Joyce (R-Pa.), a supporter of the legislation.

This legislation is about ensuring that American families have access to the products and the energy resources that they need and that they want, he added.

I just dont quite understand the energy and hysteria almost in places about gas stoves. No one is taking away your gas stove, said Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill.), an opponent of the bill.

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) introduced the Senate version of the legislation in February. Its been referred to a committee.

The Epoch Times has reached out to the White House to see if President Joe Biden would veto the legislation should it pass both chambers of Congress.

Targets Consumer Product Safety Commission

The Gas Stove Protection and Freedom Act is meant to shield those appliances from any significant new restrictions emanating from the CPSC, an agency created by Congress in 1972 through the Consumer Product Safety Act.

It bars the CPSC from regulating gas stoves as a banned hazardous product.

In addition, it prevents the agency from putting any consumer product safety standards into effect that would either ban gas stoves or substantially increase the average price of gas stoves in the United States.

The gas stove furor traces back to agency Commissioner Richard Trumka Jr.s comments to Bloomberg News in January regarding the possibility gas stoves could be prohibited.

This is a hidden hazard. Any option is on the table. Products that cant be made safe can be banned, he said.

The White House moved swiftly to shut down any loose talk of gas stove bans.

On Jan. 11, it told CNN that Biden does not support banning gas stoves.

It stated that the commission, which is independent, is not banning gas stoves.

Yet, a later story from Fox News drew attention to Trumkas internal memorandum from late 2022 outlining the case for a prohibition on gas stoves.

The memo was reviewed by The Epoch Times and can be read here.

During the June 13 debate over the bill, Rep. Frank Pallone (D-N.J.) questioned concerns over the comments from Trumka.

The commissioner, Pallone said, doesnt have the power to effectuate a ban because hes only one person.

Trumkas controversial comments to Bloomberg News came shortly after the release of a widely publicized, peer-reviewed study linking gas stoves to childhood asthma.

The articles authors included representatives of the Rocky Mountain Institute, an environmental think tank with connections to Beijing and the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).

Their study faced skepticism at the time, including from the natural gas industry.

In a Jan. 10 statement, the American Gas Association said the paper was not substantiated by sound science, as it relied on population-level associations rather than any direct examination of the appliances and ignored another population-level investigation that did not establish a correlation between gas stove use and asthma.

Complementary Bill

The Gas Stove Protection and Freedom Act comes alongside another bill, the Save Our Stoves Act, which targets a parallel effort by the Department of Energy to regulate gas stovesone that could take approximately half the models now available out of the picture, according to the agencys own assessment.

The former was originally introduced by Rep. Kelly Armstrong (R-N.D.) in March, in coordination with the Save Our Stoves Act that Rep. Debbie Lesko (R-Ariz.) introduced.

Our bills make it clear that Americans should decide if a gas stove is right for their families, not the federal government, Armstrong said in a press release at the time.

Those Republican-led efforts met with criticism during a June 5 Rules Committee hearing from Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon (D-Pa.).

Contrary to the rhetoric out there, the government is not coming for anybodys gas stoves, she said.

GOPers see the situation differently.

My constituents are right to worry, said Committee Chair Tom Cole (R-Okla.) in his opening remarks during that same hearing.
Li Shulei, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and head of the Publicity Department of the CPC Central Committee, reads out Chinese President Xi Jinping's congratulatory letter to the Forum on Global Human Rights Governance and delivers a keynote speech at the forum in Beijing, capital of China, June 14, 2023. The Forum on Global Human Rights Governance opened in Beijing on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Zhang Ling)

BEIJING, June 14 (Xinhua) -- The Forum on Global Human Rights Governance opened in Beijing on Wednesday. Chinese President Xi Jinping sent a congratulatory letter to the forum.

Xi's letter was read out at the forum's opening ceremony by Li Shulei, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and head of the Publicity Department of the CPC Central Committee. Li himself delivered a keynote speech.

The forum is being attended by over 300 participants from nearly 100 countries and international organizations, including United Nations agencies.

The guests noted that Xi's letter puts forward China's proposals on the development of the international human rights cause and global human rights governance.

They also noted that it elaborates on China's vivid practice in implementing the basic principles of the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action and in respecting and protecting human rights. It bears significance in guiding and promoting the work of advancing China's human rights cause, facilitating international human rights cooperation, and building a human community with a shared future.

The forum is being jointly hosted by the Information Office of the State Council, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the China International Development Cooperation Agency. 

Participants listen to a speech during the Forum on Global Human Rights Governance in Beijing, capital of China, June 14, 2023. The Forum on Global Human Rights Governance opened in Beijing on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Li Xin)

A participant receives relevant books during the Forum on Global Human Rights Governance in Beijing, capital of China, June 14, 2023. The Forum on Global Human Rights Governance opened in Beijing on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Li Xin)

Participants attend the Forum on Global Human Rights Governance in Beijing, capital of China, June 14, 2023. The Forum on Global Human Rights Governance opened in Beijing on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Li Xin)

Participants listen to a speech during the Forum on Global Human Rights Governance in Beijing, capital of China, June 14, 2023. The Forum on Global Human Rights Governance opened in Beijing on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Li Xin)

Participants communicate with each other during the Forum on Global Human Rights Governance in Beijing, capital of China, June 14, 2023. The Forum on Global Human Rights Governance opened in Beijing on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Li Xin)

This photo taken on June 14, 2023 shows the opening ceremony of the Forum on Global Human Rights Governance in Beijing, capital of China. The Forum on Global Human Rights Governance opened in Beijing on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Li Xin)

Participants receive relevant books during the Forum on Global Human Rights Governance in Beijing, capital of China, June 14, 2023. The Forum on Global Human Rights Governance opened in Beijing on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Li Xin)

A participant receives relevant books during the Forum on Global Human Rights Governance in Beijing, capital of China, June 14, 2023. The Forum on Global Human Rights Governance opened in Beijing on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Li Xin)

Participants listen to a speech during the Forum on Global Human Rights Governance in Beijing, capital of China, June 14, 2023. The Forum on Global Human Rights Governance opened in Beijing on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Li Xin)

Participants communicate with each other during the Forum on Global Human Rights Governance in Beijing, capital of China, June 14, 2023. The Forum on Global Human Rights Governance opened in Beijing on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Li Xin)
House Passes REINS Act to Curb Administrative State

Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.) speaks at the Conservative Political Action Conference in Dallas at the Hilton Anatole in Dallas, Texas on Aug. 6, 2022. (Bobby Sanchez for The Epoch Times)

The House passed a bill that would require major regulations from agencies to secure approval from Congress.

The Regulations from the Executive In Need of Scrutiny (REINS) Act made it through on June 14 with 221 yeas and 210 nays.

The bill, also known as H.R. 277, can be read here.

In the hours before the vote, representatives debated multiple amendments to it.

The House agreed to multiple amendments from Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.) as well as amendments from other lawmakers.

One offered by Rep. Harriet Hageman (R-Wyo.), Wyomings replacement for Liz Cheney, would make the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs assess whether every rule has a significant economic impact.

One from Rep. Bob Good (R-Va.) enables Congress to review all existing agency rules over a half-decade period.

An amendment from Rep. Andy Biggs (R-Ariz.) to lower the threshold for a major regulation from one with a likely economic impact of $100 million to one with a likely economic impact of $50 million failed.

Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) expressed concern over the measure.

I think its an effort at deregulation that would weaken the ability to have common-sense regulation for safety, he told The Epoch Times in a June 14 interview.

I think we have to, no pun intended, rein in executive overreach, said Rep. Kevin Hern (R-Okla.) in comments to The Epoch Times on June 14.

REINS on the Administrative State

By requiring agencies to gain the favor of Congress, the measure adds to and flips the standard under the Congressional Review Act.

As it currently stands, the Congressional Review Act can allow Congress to stop new agency rules through a joint resolution of disapprovala simple piece of legislation that must pass both the House and the Senate.

Congress first tried to pass the REINS Act more than a decade ago, soon after Republicans made massive gains in the 2010 midterm election.

The tremendous significance of the REINS Act has led to fierce debate about both its constitutionality and its wisdom, George Washington University Law Professor Jonathan Siegel wrote in a law review article (pdf) at the time.

The first state-level REINS Act was passed in Wisconsin in 2017 under then-Governor Scott Walker.

In a June 5 committee hearing on the REINS Act and other legislation, Republicans suggested that existing tools, including the joint resolution of disapproval, are inadequate for exercising authority over the administrative state.

Just in the 118th Congress, both the House and the Senate passed legislation to overturn the unlawful WOTUS [Waters of the United States] rule as issued by the EPA, to overturn the tariff repeal on solar panels made in China, and to overturn the radical ESG requirements issued by federal agencies. Yet each of those times, the President of the United States vetoed the actions of the House of Representatives and the Senate, Hageman said during that hearing.

When the president vetoes a joint resolution of disapproval, its dead and buriedthat is, unless supporters can convince two-thirds majorities in both chambers to vote for it.

Thats tough at any time, but its even harder to fathom in a closely divided Congress during a period of intense political polarization.

Democrat Response

At the June 5 hearing, Democrats argued that Congress does have recourse to the joint resolution of disapproval and other tools to oversee executive-branch agencies.

Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon (D-Pa.) said REINS could bring government operations to a grinding halt.

In addition, she claimed it could be a legislative veto. Those are unconstitutional because of a Supreme Court case from 1983, INS v. Chadha.

In his law review article on the previous REINS Act, Siegel concluded that it would in fact be constitutional. According to Siegel, however, it would also be unworkable as policy.

Congress lacks the time and expertise to vote responsibly on every regulation, he wrote.

During the June 5 hearing, Hageman pointed out that rules have only rarely been taken out through the joint resolution of disapproval, saying it means something with more teeth is needed to bring the administrative state to heel.

Rep. Hank Johnson (D-Ga.) said that trend is a testament to the validity and the virtue of the rules federal agencies produce.

He said that REINS and another bill discussed in the same hearing, the Separation of Powers Restoration Act, both represent efforts to dismantle and undermine the administrative process in different and dangerous ways that would frustrate the purpose of government and would put our constituents in harms way.
IN-DEPTH: A Look at the Suspects Behind Random Attacks in Canada, Many With Long Criminal Histories

Antonio Magalhaes (R) and his wife, Andrea, take part in a candlelight walk toward Keele Station where their 16-year-old son, Gabriel, was killed in a random attack, in Toronto on March 30, 2023. (Tijana Martin/The Canadian Press)

Canadians have been falling victim to unprovoked attacks by strangers with increasing frequencyin the middle of the day, in stores, or walking down the street. A man in London, Ont., was even stabbed while sitting in his car waiting for a train to pass.

Some say Canadas growing drug problem is to blame, with drug-induced psychosis sending addicts on violent rampages. Others say the problem is a lax criminal justice system that allows the most violent to repeatedly offend.

The trend of Canada releasing repeat violent offenders back onto our streets, who then go out and commit more and increasingly violent crimes up to and including murder, is literally a featurenot a bugof our system, said documentary filmmaker Aaron Gunn in an interview with The Epoch Times.

In his recently released documentary Canada Is Dying, Gunn presents what he sees as one of the most shocking cases of a repeat violent offender.

Kirkland Russell of Chilliwack, B.C., had over 50 convictions when he fatally stabbed Doug Presseau, who had stepped in to help Russells girlfriend as he was attacking her. Russell received a sentence of eight years for the 2017 murder.

When you have that many convictions, I dont understand how our justice system can allow him to be out walking the streets. My son should never have been murdered, Presseaus mother told Gunn in Canada Is Dying.

In his film, Gunn looked at both the drug and criminal justice causes behind random attacks, and says the fault lies within the system.

This is something that our system is designed to do and its been happening with increasing frequency over the past 20 years, he said.

The Epoch Times delved into the stories behind these attacks in an effort to discover the causes. Information about suspects was often hard to come by, but what information is available shows many of the random attacks are by people well-known to the justice system.

Manitobas courts were forthcoming with information, including the detailed criminal records for any named suspects. British Columbias courts, on the other hand, would not provide any information on cases before the court.

Manitoba

In Winnipeg on the afternoon of March 10, Julius Kincaid Kilbourne, 28, stabbed a stranger at random in a downtown store. Moments later, he stabbed a second stranger on the street.

He was in an intoxicated state, police said in a press release, but there was no indication whether drugs specifically were involved. Winnipeg Police Service spokesperson Ally Siatecki told The Epoch Times the police could not provide any further information on Kilbourne or the incident.

However, Justice of the Peace Services Director Cheryl Paulic sent The Epoch Times Kilbournes long list of previous convictions.

The earliest on record are 2013 convictions for assault with a weapon, breaking and entering, and theft, for which he received three years of supervised probation. In the same year, he had multiple convictions of failure to comply with the conditions of his probation, along with a few 30-day stints in jail.

In 2014, Kilbourne was found guilty on two charges of assault with a weapon and a failure to comply, and spent a little over 100 days in custody. From 2015 onward he racked up convictions of aggravated assault, escaping custody, identity fraud, forcible entry, five counts of failure to comply with a weapons prohibition, and multiple incidents of obstruction and resisting a police officer.

Over the years, Kilbournes penalties included some minor fines, a few stints of time served from 30 to 60 days, some periods of time in custody usually lasting between one to 45 days. He spent 113 days in custody in 2019 after an assault conviction, and 180 days in 2020 after a similar verdict.

Most recently, just a few months before he allegedly stabbed the two people at random on March 10, he was found guilty of four weapons offences possibly for a dangerous purpose.

A week before Kilbournes alleged attacks, another young man attacked four people in downtown Winnipeg at random.

Through their investigation, officers determined the suspect randomly approached the victims and physically attacked them without provocation. The suspect and victims were not previously known to one another, a police release said.

The suspect was released on an undertaking as mandated by the Criminal Code, the release said.

No charges have been laid and police could not name the 22-year-old male suspect, Cst. Dani McKinnon of the Winnipeg Police Service told The Epoch Times via email.

Winnipeg police released the citys 2022 crime statistics on May 30, 2023. Offenders on bail accounted for one in five violent crimes. Total crime increased more than 25 percent from 2021 to 2022, and rose 17 percent above the five-year average. Violent crimes by a stranger were up more than 44 percent.

British Columbia

In Vancouver, police have reported similar statistics.

Weve noticed what appears to be an uptick in unprovoked stranger attacks, the Vancouver Police Department (VPD) said in a 2021 tweet.

The VPD reviewed assault cases for the period of Sept. 1, 2020, to Aug. 31, 2021, and found that about 1,555 were unprovoked stranger assaults involving 1,705 victims.

Not all attacks involve extreme violence such as stabbing, but the Vancouver area has had its share of major incidents.

For example, Jaal Routh Kueth, 30, of Surrey was charged with second-degree murder for allegedly stabbing a stranger in Vancouvers Chinatown on Feb. 6.

The provinces daily court list for June 9 showed Kueth was in court not only for the murder charge, but also for breach of probation. He was on probation for an aggravated assault with a weapon.

Alberta

The perpetrator in a fatal attack in Edmonton on May 5 reportedly had a violent history, including multiple other random attacksone just a month before he killed a mother and her child outside a school.

Muorater Mashar, 33, was convicted of stabbing a man in the back at a bus stop in 2014, according to the Edmonton Journal. He served a sentence of almost four years, and while in prison he allegedly assaulted inmates and an officer.

Mashar had an entrenched criminal lifestyle, extensive history of non-compliance, ongoing problematic behaviour in the community, limited gains from programming, and previously failed releases, according to parole board documents viewed by the Journal.

The board also noted his history of drug abuse and mental illness, including Tourettes Syndrome and narcissistic personality disorder.

In April, he allegedly attacked a man with a scooter. Charges against him were stayed only two days before he stabbed 35-year-old Carolann Robillard and her 11-year-old child outside Crawford Plains School on May 5. He had previously tried to enter the school.

Mashar died in hospital five days later of police-inflicted gunshot wounds.

Edmonton police and Alberta Courts told The Epoch Times they couldnt confirm the above information or provide any information on other random-attack suspects.

Ontario

In Ontario, information is scarce on some suspects, including Leah Valdez, the 43-year-old woman arrested in the Jan. 24 stabbing of a woman on a Toronto streetcar.

The few court documents available for several Toronto-area suspects have scant information, and that information is under a publication ban, but The Epoch Times can report that a few of the suspects failed to comply with previous court orders.

Peel Regional Police reported that David Dytlow, who allegedly stabbed a 19-year-old boy at random in Mississauga on Jan. 10, has been charged not only with attempted murder, but also three counts of failure to comply with bail conditions.

At the time of his arrest, Dytlow was on judicial release for several criminal offences, including assault, assault with a weapon, assault causing bodily harm and uttering threats. One of these incidents took place in Peel Region in 2021, where Dytlow is alleged to have stabbed an individual. Dytlow was prohibited from carrying weapons, police said in a press release.

Jordan OBrien-Tobin, who is accused in the fatal stabbing of 16-year-old Gabriel Magalhaes in Toronto on March 25, was also a repeat violent offender. He had more than 20 different accusations in 2021 alone, including multiple alleged assaults, sexual assault, and harassment, according to CTV News. Toronto police and the Ontario courts said they couldnt confirm the information.

A memorial for 16-year-old Gabriel Magalhaes, victim of a random stranger attack, at the Keele Street subway station in Toronto on March 27, 2023. (The Canadian Press/Sharif Hassan)

Bail Reform Not Meaningful Change

Although the federal government has introduced Bill C-48 to reform the bail system, some say its not enough.

Criminal defence lawyer Ari Goldkind told The Epoch Times it wont change much for him in the majority of his cases.

Currently, the onus is on the prosecutor to prove why the suspect shouldnt get bail, but C-48 reverses the onus, making it so the defence must prove why the suspect should get bail.

That may be of some moment, but none of this scratches the surface of any meaningful change, Goldkind said.

He said many repeat offenders will still be able to get bail and lighter penalties based on race.

Its embedded in our bail system and our case law that judges and justices of the peace must consider the race and/or indigenous background of an offender, Goldkind said.

This is a tool he has in his toolbox when representing a client, he said. And Justice Minister David Lametti has said that C-48 should not significantly affect this approach. We want to make sure that these law reforms do not make things worse for indigenous people, black people, and other vulnerable groups, he told a news conference on May 16.

Law enforcement officials in B.C. told Gunn its the same small number of people committing the vast majority of the crimes. Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre made a similar statement speaking to reporters in Ottawa on Feb. 9.

If you could just take those 40 violent offenders off the street, youd have 6,000 fewer victims of violent crime, he said.
IN-DEPTH: A Quiet Revolution Is Unfolding Against Woke Corporate AmericaHeres the Strategy Behind It

Conservatives find kryptonite of corporate wokeness: 'I think it's now clear people are paying attention'

BlackRock CEO Larry Fink attends a session at the World Economic Forum annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland, on Jan. 23, 2020. (Fabrice Coffrini/AFP via Getty Images)

Consumer boycotts against woke corporations such as Target and Anheuser-Busch are the key to reversing race, gender, and environmental activism in corporate America, according to conservative groups.

Thats because customers ditching companies that are pushing left-wing policies have given conservative groups the traction they need to fight them legally.

Scott Shepard is a fellow at the National Center for Public Policy Research (NCPPR), which is a free-market public policy research group, and director of the National Centers Free Enterprise Project, a conservative shareholder activist group.

He told The Epoch Times that the tide is turning against environmental, social, and corporate governance, or ESG.

Were seeing something very different this time. Because its not just the conservatives, who are always interested in this sort of thing; its the whole country, Shepard said.

ESG, which started as guidelines, has now turned into heavy-handed mandates on controversial social justice ideologies, he said.

And a potential breach of fiduciary responsibility to shareholders will expose businesses to legal action, such as what Shepards organization has started.

Even with companies losing billions of dollars, they continue to embrace the concept to the detriment of their shareholders, he said.

Target came under fire for placing Pride Month merchandise, including rainbow-colored onesies for babies and tuck-friendly swimsuits for men identifying as women, in front-of-store displays.

Likewise, consumers boycotted Anheuser-Busch after the company provided transgender activist Dylan Mulvaney with a personalized can of Bud Light, which subsequently went viral on social media.

Target and Anheuser-Busch both came out with statements as the boycotts intensified. But they fell short of apologizing and continued to support transgenderism and LGBT causes as consumers stayed away.

Targets strategy was to blame threats from customers for removing some of the more controversial items from their Pride Month displays and relocating LGBT items to the back of the store.

Pride Month onesies displayed at a Target store in Nashville, Tenn., on May 24, 2023. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)

Employees at a Target location in Tennessee, where some wore rainbow-flag gear, gave a mixed review on June 13 about how the boycott was affecting sales.

Sundays and Mondays have been less busy. Its noticeable if you work here long enough. The past few weeks have been slower, one employee said.

Another employee said, Its kind of hard to say. Day-to-day things are different.

Shortly after its controversy, Anheuser-Busch came out with pro-America ads featuring the Budweiser Clydesdales traversing the country.

We never intended to be a part of a discussion that divides people. We are in the business of bringing people together over a beer, Anheuser-Busch CEO Brendan Whitworth said.

Besides Targets and Anheuser-Buschs continued support of Pride, business titans such as Citi, Bank of America, Cisco, HP, and Pfizer have all changed their social media icons to Pride-themed logos.

Billionaire Mark Cuban, owner of the Dallas Mavericks and star of Shark Tank, went so far as to call going woke good for business over the weekend.

Boycotts Kryptonite for Woke Firms

Shareholder lawsuits could be the key to stopping ESGand prolonged consumer boycotts are making it possible by inflicting huge losses on woke companies, according to Shepard.

On June 6, America First Legal (AFL), which represents the NCPPR, demanded to see Targets corporate books and records amid the backlash against the retailer for selling Pride Month items aimed at children.

AFL, headed by former Trump presidential adviser Stephen Miller, accused Targets management of a radical LGBT political agenda that has cost the corporation over $12 billion in market valuation since mid-May 2023, according to a statement.

The boycotts hit the companies market capitalizations, meaning their value dropped on the stock market.

Targets market capitalization fell from $72.52 billion to $58.61 billion between May 1 and June 10 and was downgraded on Wall Street twice.

Anheuser-Buschs market cap slid even morefrom $132.06 billion to $108.96 billion between April 3 and June 2and was also downgraded.

Attorneys for AFL said its client has concerns about the possible financial risk posed by selling LGBT-related merchandise since Target admits that its customer base is mainly made up of families.

This dramatic and sudden loss to shareholders is a direct and predictable result of managements calculated efforts to please its extreme leftist stakeholders, almost none of whom shop at Target, and evidence contempt for the corporations core customers, AFL stated.

Shepard said stock value losses demonstrate that woke corporate boards and executives care more about an ideology than their shareholders.

I think its now clear people are paying attention, he said.

A can of Bud Light on a railing at the World Equestrian Center in Ocala, Fla. on May 26, 2023. (T.J. Muscaro/The Epoch Times)

Aside from the hard-left activists, nobody wants trans issues aimed at children; nobody thinks that Target ought to play a central role in deciding whether our children are going to get drawn into all this nonsense.

Shepard said he believes that if CEOs and corporate board members continue to pretend that going woke wont make them broke, theyll likely be sued personally.

He predicted that executives will be forced to pay back out of their pockets the amount they cost shareholders by running companies according to their own personal preferences, rather than according to objective, neutral rules of running a business.

Why Executives Alienate Customers

Woke business practices arent going away without a fight, according to Will Hild, executive director of Consumers Research, a nonprofit consumer protection group.

Consumers Research started a public information campaign on BlackRock and recently created a woke alert for consumers. Those who sign up are notified when companies cave to the woke mob so they know which brands are attacking their values.

Corporate leaders fear losing their jobs if they drop ESG more than they fear corporate losses, Hild told The Epoch Times.

Thats why woke companies dont seem to learn their lesson and keep pushing ESGs far-left agenda, he said.

Its a cover for pushing politics using other peoples money, Hild said.

Will Hild, executive director of Consumers Research, a nonprofit consumer protection group, said corporate executives fear losing their jobs if they dont go along with ESG. (Courtesy of Consumers Research)

In fact, if BlackRock likes you and Vanguard likes you and State Street likes you, then you may not ever get fired, no matter how bad of a job you do, because they can have your back.

BlackRock managers who control investments can call the board of directors and pressure them into making efforts toward left-wing goals such as net zero carbon emissions, he said.

Bud Light is a case in point.

Despite losing billions of dollars, Bud Light sponsored the Cincinnati Pride Parade and announced a $200,000 donation to the National LGBT Chamber of Commerce.

Companies care about ESG scores because theyre essential to attract investment companies such as BlackRock, which controls roughly $10 trillion in assets, according to Hild.

BlackRock, whose CEO, Larry Fink, became an early ESG disciple, issued a thinly veiled threat in 2018 for companies to get with the program, according to an article in The New York Times.

Fink sent out a letter demanding that business leaders do more than make a profit and contribute to society to receive BlackRocks support, according to the article.

Democracy Bad for Business

Finks reasoning for iron-fisted ESG enforcement appears simpleDemocracy is bad for business.

Markets dont like uncertainty. Markets like, actually, totalitarian governments, he said in a Bloomberg video posted on Twitter.

Since BlackRock manages trillions of dollars in investments through 401(k) plans and mutual funds, it gives Fink tremendous influence over things such as corporate executive pay and whether investors are voted on or off boards, according to Shepard.

Under Finks control, BlackRock voted to replace three members of Exxons board in 2021 with green left-wing members, Shepard said.

After changing the board, Fink pressured Exxon into selling an oil investment to a state-backed Chinese company in which BlackRock holds investments, according to Shepard.

China has lax environmental laws, so tons of carbon will still be spewing into the atmosphere, Shepard said.

So the difference is that by forcing that move, Larry Fink and BlackRock got brownie points with the Chinese Communist Party, he said.

The seal for the International Monetary Fund is seen near the World Bank headquarters (R) in Washington on Jan. 10, 2022. (Stefani Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images)

ESG Started With UN, World Bank

Some point to the 2004 U.N. and the World Bank initiative Who Cares Wins as the genesis of ESG.

The initiative grades companies on social performance instead of financial performance, according to Dan Sanchez, director of content at FEE.org, the Foundation for Economic Education.

ESG is antithetical to capitalism, Sanchez told The Epoch Times.

Since 2004, ESG has evolved from guidelines and recommendations to standards that hold sway over huge swaths of the global economy, he wrote in a 2022 article.

Sanchez explained that the idea behind ESG is stakeholder capitalism, which supporters claim is the antidote to the excesses of shareholder capitalism.

Traditional shareholder capitalism has been condemned as narrowly focused on maximizing profits for corporate shareholders without considering the interest of customers, suppliers, employees, local communities, and society in general, he wrote.

Sanchez said ESG has been able to mute the power of the consumer to some extent because of government policies favoring ESG.

These standards are set by ESG rating agencies such as the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board and enforced by investment firms that manage ESG funds, according to Sanchez.

A view of the Exxon Mobil refinery in Baytown, Texas, on Sept. 15, 2008. (Jessica Rinaldi/Reuters)

Conservative States Part of Equation

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed sweeping legislation this spring to stop Bidens ESG financial fraud.

DeSantis, who announced his campaign for president last month, partnered with 18 other states to force asset managers away from woke ideology.

They are Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Georgia, Idaho, Iowa, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, West Virginia, and Wyoming.

Investment companies such as BlackRock, State Street, and Vanguard manage state pension funds and university endowments.

Other states, such as Texas, passed legislation in 2021 to divest state pension funds from ESG portfolios that boycotted fossil fuel.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signs legislation banning the financial industrys use of ESG principles on May 2. (Courtesy of the Florida Governors Office)

This year, the state legislature passed a bill restricting insurance companies operating in Texas from considering ESG factors when setting rates, under a measure sent to Republican Gov. Greg Abbott for his signature.

Some insurers wont issue policies to those in the fossil fuel business, which prompted the legislation.

Hild said pressure from conservative states had helped the effort to break ESGs hold on businesses.

Were gonna see probably 14 states pass anti-ESG measures this year, he said. They are going to start pulling the power back from these asset managers.

While it may seem like a David-and-Goliath matchup, the power of the consumer is still a force to be reckoned with, he said.

Consumers and citizens do have the powerthey just have to stand up and use it, Hild said.

Neither Target Corp. nor Anheuser-Busch responded by press time to a request by The Epoch Times for comment.

Epoch Times reporters Naveen Athrappully and Jackson Elliott contributed to this story.
Japanese Teen Soldier Arrested After Shooting Leaves at Least 1 Dead

Members of the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force (JGSDF) bring down the Japanese national flag in the early evening, at the JGSDF Miyako camp on Miyako Island, Okinawa prefecture, Japan, on April 20, 2022. (Issei Kato/Reuters)

A teenage Japanese soldier allegedly opened fire with a rifle at an army training base on Wednesday, resulting in the death of at least one soldier and injuries to two others, according to local reports.

Police arrested the suspected shooter, an 18-year-old Japan Self-Defense Force (SDF) recruit, on suspicion of attempted murder.

The shooting happened at around 9 a.m. (local time) at a military firing range in Gifu prefecture.

The three victims were in their 50s and 20s, local broadcaster NHK reported. One of the wounded victims is in a serious condition, according to Japan Today, but no civilian injuries have been reported so far.

The shooter allegedly fired about eight rounds during the incident, an SDF spokesperson told reporters without elaborating.

The possible motive and other details of the incident are yet to be known.
Judge Lets E. Jean Carroll Seek More Damages Against Trump in Defamation Lawsuit

(Left) President Donald Trump comes out of the Oval Office from the White House on Sept. 16, 2019. (Right) E. Jean Carroll leaves following her trial at Manhattan Federal Court in New York on May 8, 2023. (Mandel Ngan, Stephanie Keith/Getty Images)

A federal judge on Tuesday approved a request from E. Jean Carroll to amend the first of her two defamation lawsuits against former President Donald Trump to include comments Trump made about her at a recent televised CNN town hall event.

Carroll, a former magazine columnist, in late May asked to amend the pending defamation lawsuit, filed in November 2019, so she could seek further punitive damages against Trump. The suit is now seeking $10 million in compensatory damages.

We look forward to moving ahead expeditiously on E. Jean Carrolls remaining claims, Roberta Kaplan, Carrolls attorney, said in a statement after the amendment was approved.

Carroll had won $5 million on May 9 in her second defamation lawsuitabout $3 million for a defamation charge and about $2 million for a civil battery charge. The defamation charge was related to a statement Trump made on Truth Social in October 2022. In the civil battery charge, jurors determined that Trump, now 76, had sexually abused, but did not rape, Carroll, 79.

Trump appeared at a town hall event on CNN on May 10just a day after the verdictwhere he called Carroll a whack job and said her claims against him were fake. Carroll in 2019 had accused Trump of having raped her in a dressing room at the Bergdorf Goodman department store in Manhattan in 1995 or 1996.

Up until Carrolls request to amend her complaint, her first lawsuit had been put on hold as an appeals court was deciding whether Trump was immune from being sued for remarks he made in 2019 when he was president.

Trump Lawyers Opposition to Carrolls Motion to Amend

Lawyers for Carroll in the motion to amend had accused Trump of having doubled down on derogatory remarks about her.

Trumps defamatory statements post-verdict show the depth of his malice toward Carroll since it is hard to imagine defamatory conduct that could possibly be more motivated by hatred, ill will, or spite, the lawyers wrote in the complaint, filed on May 22 (pdf).

This conduct supports a very substantial punitive damages award in Carrolls favor both to punish Trump, to deter him from engaging in further defamation, and to deter others from doing the same.

Writer E. Jean Carroll leaves a Manhattan court house after a jury found former President Donald Trump liable for sexually abusing her in a Manhattan department store in the 1990s on May 09, 2023, in New York City. (Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

In response, lawyers for Trump on June 5 contended in a memorandum of law (pdf) that Carrolls motion was futile since his comments made at the CNN town hall were safeguarded by the fair reporting privilege, which consequently prevents them from being used as a foundation to enhance the punitive damages sought by [Carroll] in this case. The lawyers were referring to the absolute privilege under Section 74 of the New York Civil Rights Law. It states: a civil action cannot be maintained against any person, firm or corporation, for the publication of a fair and true report of any judicial proceeding, legislative proceeding or other official proceeding, or for any heading of the report which is a fair and true headnote of the statement published.

The lawyers said that Trump was addressing a specific question about the jurys decision on May 9 in Carrolls second defamation case against him.

[Trump] neither denied nor misrepresented the jurys verdict but merely voiced his disagreement with the finding and restated his positionwhich he had asserted throughout the duration of the proceedingsthat the claimed event never happened, Trumps legal team wrote. The average listener would have had no difficulty ascertaining that the comments were made in response to, and in connection with [Carrolls second defamation case]. Former President Donald Trump arrives to deliver remarks to the Georgia state GOP convention at the Columbus Convention and Trade Center in Columbus, Ga., on June 10, 2023. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images) Trump Pleads Not Guilty in Separate Historic Federal Case

The federal judges decision Tuesday comes as Trump pleaded not guilty in a federal court in Miami in a separate, historic federal case brought by Justice Department special counsel Jack Smith.

Trump, the 2024 Republican presidential frontrunner, faces 37 felony charges related to his handling of classified government documents at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida after he left office.
Jury Awards $25 Million for White Starbucks Manager Fired After Arrest of Black Men

A federal jury in New Jersey has awarded $25.6 million to a former Starbucks regional manager who accused the company of firing her as a racial scapegoat following the arrest of two black men at a Philadelphia store.

Shannon Phillips, a white woman who had worked with Starbucks for 13 years, sued the coffee chain giant in 2019, claiming that she had nothing to do with the racially charged incident but was unfairly punished in an attempt to quell the public outrage.

In her complaint (pdf), Phillips alleged that Starbucks took steps to punish white employees who had not been involved in the arrests, but who worked in and around the city of Philadelphia, in an effort to convince the community that it had properly responded to the incident.

I was terminated because I am white. If I was black, I would not have been terminated. I was terminated because I complained of and objected to race discrimination, Phillips stated in court documents.

Federal jurors in Camden, New Jersey, on Monday, sided with Phillips, finding that Starbucks had fired her because she was white, which violated her civil rights under both federal and New Jersey anti-discrimination law.

The verdict includes $25 million in punitive damages and $600,000 in compensatory damages. A judge will later decide on the amount of economic damages that could include a loss of pay.

We are very grateful for the jurys attentiveness and work in listening to all of the evidence presented in court in this case, Laura Mattiacci, an attorney for Phillips, said in a statement.

Starbucks did not respond to a request for comments on the verdict.

The case stemmed from a widely publicized incident that took place on April 12, 2018, at a Starbucks in Philadelphias affluent Rittenhouse Square neighborhood.

Donte Robinson and Rashon Nelson, both 23 at that time, were asked to leave the coffee shop after sitting at a table without ordering anything. Although the two explained that they were waiting for a business associate, they ended up being escorted out of the coffee shop in handcuffs after a store manager called the police on them for alleged disturbance and trespassing.

The video of the arrest, released by Philadelphia police, became widely circulated on social media, sparking protests and even vandalism against the store in the months following the controversy.

In May 2018, Robinson and Rashon Nelson agreed to a settlement with Starbucks for an undisclosed sum, as well as an offer of free college tuition to complete bachelors degrees through an online program with Arizona State University that was created for Starbucks employees.

In a separate deal, each of the pair received a symbolic $1 compensation from the City of Philadelphia, in addition to a promise from officials to invest $200,000 into an entrepreneurship program for public high school students.

Starbucks then-chief executive Kevin Johnson, also went to Philadelphia to apologize for the incident and thank Robinson and Nelson for their willingness to reconcile.

Starbucks will continue to take actions that stem from this incident to repair and reaffirm our values and vision for the kind of company we want to be, Johnson said. He also ordered 8,000 stores across the country for an afternoon to conduct racial-bias education geared toward preventing discrimination.

Phillips, who at that time oversaw operations in Southern New Jersey, the Philadelphia region, Delaware, and parts of Maryland, had helped Starbucks to handle the public relation crisis. According to her lawsuit, she worked to keep stores in her area safe and make sure employees returned to work at stores where customers were too afraid to come during protests.

After a settlement was reached with Robinson and Nelson, however, Phillips claimed that a black supervisor told her to place one of her district managers, a white man named Ben Trinsey, on administrative leave for allegedly paying non-white employees less than their white coworkers. Trinsey oversaw stores in Philadelphia, not including the location where the high-profile arrest occurred.

Phillips opposed the white managers suspension because Trinsey could not have any input on employee salaries due to Starbucks internal policies. She was fired the next day, allegedly told nothing except that the situation is not recoverable.

In 2019, Starbucks denied the claims in Phillips lawsuit. Johnson stepped down in March 2022 after five years of leading the coffee chain.
Leader of Nations Largest Trump Club Reacts to Historic Court Appearance

Larry Snowden (L) and Donald Trump at an election night party in the Mar-a-Lago ballroom in Palm Beach, Fla. on Nov. 8, 2022. (Courtesy of Larry Snowden)

PALM BEACH, Fla.As the leader of the nations largest grassroots club supporting former President Donald Trump, Larry Snowden felt disquieted as he headed toward the Miami courthouse where he knew that Trump would make history in an unenviable way.

Yet Snowden, president of Palm Beach-based Club 47 USA, says he was uplifted by what he witnessed while driving from his home in Boca Raton, Florida, about 45 miles away from the Wilkie D. Ferguson Jr. U.S. Courthouse in Miami.

I saw thousands of people out supporting President Trump. I only saw one person that was anti-Trump, Snowden told The Epoch Times on June 14, a day after Trump pleaded not guilty to 37 federal charges. Trump is the nations first former president to face not only state charges but also federal ones. Court proceedings are being set in a New York state court and in the Miami federal court. Additional accusations could be filed in Georgia and Washington, where probes continue for his opposition to the 2020 election results declaring Democrat Joe Biden the winner.

It is distressing that this is actually happening in our country, Snowden said, as Trump continues his quest to become a three-time winner of the Republican Partys presidential nomination. Trump won in 2016 and served as president from 2017-2021. Hes now seeking to displace Biden from the White House in the 2024 race.

Snowden acknowledged that, despite his observations of overwhelming support for Trump en route to the Miami courthouse, he did later see video footage showing there was a lot of opposition to Trump, too.

Still, Snowden contends: Somebody had to look real hard to find these people who were not in total support of President Trump.

Demonstrators gather outside the Wilkie D. Ferguson Jr. U.S. Courthouse to await the arrival of former President Donald Trump in Miami, Fla., on June 13, 2023. (Madalina Vasiliu/The Epoch Times)

Placards and Flags

People waving placards, Trump flags, and American flags lined both sides of the streets as he drove through Miami, Snowden said.

Just seeing that in a city thats not known to be an ultra-conservative city was refreshing, Snowden said. Seeing people with tears in their eyes was just very moving to me.

This subtropical urban community leans Democrat, aligned with Biden. Many other parts of Florida are dominated by Republicans. The states Republican governor, Ron DeSantis, is widely considered to be Trumps most formidable challenger for the GOPs nomination.

Among 1.5 million voters in Miami-Dade County, about 436,000 are Republican; 544,000, Democrat; and 482,000 with no party affiliation, according to state data. Whoever wins each partys nomination would be aiming to snare many of those undeclared voters, which could sway the election results in their favor. Both Trump and Biden face multiple challengers for their partys nomination in the 2024 election. So far, both lead the pack, according to opinion polls.

Trumps popularity has made him a target for those who want to torpedo his re-election campaign, Snowden said.

Theres no doubt in my mind that this is an effort to interfere with the election. And the extent that the other side, that the Left, will go to, to try to accomplish their objectives, is the worst example of the Lefts election interference that Ive ever witnessed in my lifetime, said Snowden.

Snowden said that, while hes a superfan of Trump, he doesnt expect coverage to always be favorable. However, he says it is reasonable to expect that coverage be fair and balanced. He says that is a rarity, especially when it comes to Trump.

If our media would be fair and report the truth, people are smart, and they can make up their own minds. But theres so much of an effort to try to influence the minds of the American people. It infuriates people like me that they think people are so stupid that we cant see what the media are doing.

Now 77Trumps ageSnowden said he has been involved in politics for all of his adult life. He has been a staunch supporter of Trump since the beginning of his first presidential run in 2015. Snowden is known for his tireless efforts to boost Trump. All I am is a volunteer, he said.

The continued attacks on Trumpby Democrat prosecutors, federal bureaucrats, and liberal media reportsseem to be backfiring, he said.

They Just Dont Get It

The enthusiasm I witnessed tells me that the media, the Left, just dont get it. They are trying so hard to kill this man, Snowden said.

But every step of the way, they are making this man more popular with average Americanswith the people that actually vote in middle America.

Snowdens Club 47 USA was founded in 2018 as Club 45 USA, indicating its support of Trump as the nations 45th president. The club changed its name because Snowden and others firmly believe Trump will prevail in the 2024 contest and be inaugurated as the 47th president.

The club, which has more than 17,000 people on its mailing list, routinely draws upwards of 1,000 people to its monthly gatherings in Palm Beach County. Snowden says that, as far as he knows, the group is Americas largest in-person Trump club.

Snowdens group inspired people to start a Pennsylvania organization, AmFirst 47, short for Trumps America First policies.

Both groups report theyve grown. On June 13, the day Trump appeared in court, 50 new people signed up for Club 47 USA, Snowden said.

People just randomly find our website; it just keeps on growing. And that tells me: These people feel like I do, Snowden said. And that, to me, is reassuring.

No matter what is going on in the present administration to try and disqualify President Trump, the attitude of the people is doing the exact opposite. The attitude of the people is becoming more supportive than ever.

Despite the gravity of trumps legal issues, Snowden says he remains confident that Trump will overcome.

I truly believe that President Trump will be reelected, and there is an end in sight, he said. I have faith in American system, and American people that the right thing is gonna happen.
Los Angeles Councilman Curren Price Charged With Perjury, Embezzlement

Los Angeles City Councilman Curren Price speaks at an event in Los Angeles Calif., on Oct. 22, 2022. (Rodin Eckenroth/Getty Images for The Recording Academy)

LOS ANGELESAn arraignment date was pending June 14 for Los Angeles City Councilman Curren Price, who has been charged with theft by embezzlement, perjury, and conflict of interest for allegedly voting on projects involving developers tied to his wifes consulting firm, then failing to report the connections.

The criminal complaint, filed Tuesday, also alleges that Price effectively embezzled money between 2013 and 2017 by having the city cover roughly $33,800 in medical premiums for Del Richardson, to whom he claimed to be married, although he was still married at the time to Lynn Suzette Price.

Price, 72, has represented the Ninth District, which includes most of South Los Angeles and Exposition Park, since 2013. He previously served in the California State Assembly and State Senate.

The councilman was charged with five counts of grand theft by embezzlement, three counts of perjury, and two counts of conflict of interest, according to a criminal complaint provided by the District Attorneys Office.

Council President Paul Krekorian introduced a motion Wednesday to suspend Price. Motions were also introduced to have Councilman Marqueece Harris-Dawson fill Prices position of president pro tempore of the council, and to initiate a process for community input from Ninth District residents.

For the time being, Krekorian said he will be appointing Councilman Bob Blumenfield as the assistant pro tem.

New L.A. City Council President Paul Krekorian presides as the council holds its first in-person meeting since he became president in the wake of a leaked audio recording in Los Angeles on Oct. 25, 2022. (Mario Tama/Getty Images)

At a news conference Wednesday morning at City Hall to explain the councils next steps, Krekorian acknowledged that the council has been rocked by a number of scandals in recent years which are palpably felt by me, by the members of the council and certainly by the members of the public.

But he also recognized the need to look at these cases as things that stand on their own. Regarding the charges against Price, Krekorian noted that the council does not know whether they have merit. The judicial process will bear that out, he added.

Late Tuesday afternoon, Price had sent a letter to Krekorian announcing his decision to step down as council president pro tem, and surrendering all of his committee assignments.

While I navigate through the judicial system to defend my name against unwarranted charges filed against me, the last thing I want to do is be a distraction to the peoples business, Price wrote in the letter.

Prices spokeswoman, Angelina Valencia-Dumarot, told City News Service, We have not seen the charges filed against Council member Curren Price. Its highly unusual for charges like this to be brought up against a sitting City Council member without any prior notice or discussion.

Curren Price is a longstanding public servant who has given his life to the city of Los Angeles. He looks forward to defending himself once hes had an opportunity to address these charges, she said.

Zach Seidl, spokesman for Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass, issued a statement saying, The mayor has yet to review the charges filed earlier today [June 13] but she is saddened by this news.

According to the complaint, between 2019 and 2021, Prices wifes consulting firm, Del Richardson & Associates, received payments totaling more than $150,000 from a pair of developers, after which Price voted on matters pertaining to the companies. He also allegedly failed to report the connections or the money paid to his wifes company on city disclosure forms.

Todays charges against Councilman Curren Price are the result of a thorough investigation into allegations of public corruption, District Attorney George Gascon said in a statement. This alleged conduct undermines the integrity of our government and erodes the publics trust in our elected officials. We will continue to work tirelessly to root out corruption at all levels and hold accountable those who betray the publics trust.

Price is the latest Los Angeles city officials to fall into legal or political turmoil. Former council members Jose Huizar and Mitch Englander have both pleaded guilty to federal charges in recent years, while Councilman Mark Ridley-Thomas was convicted earlier this year of federal charges for trading votes during his time on the county Board of Supervisors in exchange for benefits provided by the University of Southern California to his son.

Former City Council President Nury Martinez resigned last year after being caught on tape in a racially charged conversation with two other councilors and a county labor official discussing the councils redistricting process.
Majority of Canadians Agree With NB Premier on Keeping Parents Informed About Gender Dysphoria: Poll

3 in 5 adults agree schools must tell parents if their child discusses changing genders or 'transitioning'

New Brunswick Premier Blaine Higgss update to the provinces revised education gender policy lines up with a recent poll indicating that 57 percent of Canadians think schools should have to inform parents if their child is experiencing gender dysphoria.

A national poll, conducted by Leger on behalf of think tank SecondStreet.org and released on May 11, found that three in five adults surveyed agreed that parents must be involved if their child discusses changing their gender pronouns or transitioning at school.

We decided to include a question about something that were seeing happening in Canada. Schools are keeping parents in the dark when it comes to their children asking to change their gender pronouns, or discussing changing their gender altogether, SecondStreet.org president Colin Craig told The Epoch Times on June 13.

Craig said the poll results arent surprising. By a margin of about three to one, Canadians believe that parents want to know if their children are having any kind of struggles, he said.

Craig said the poll results show that the public very much expects schools to be transparent with parents, and that the New Brunswick government is on the right track with what Canadians want in terms of policy.

He predicts that more provinces will have to face this issue. The way that schools are operating conflicts with where the public opinion is. So were going to see butting of heads.

Schools cannot even give a child a Tylenol without a parents permission. So its strange that a school can engage in a deep psychological intervention with a child without telling the parent, added Craig.

The exact question asked by the poll was, Should schools have to let parents know about their childs desire to change gender or have new gender pronouns. A total of 57 percent of those surveyed said yes. Only 18 percent, less than a fifth, of those surveyed disagreed with this idea, while 25 percent didnt know.

The poll question was broken down statistically into region, age range, gender, and if the individuals had children in their household. Of those with children, 62 percent said yes, schools have to keep parents informed. Among those without children in the household, 55 percent also said schools have to let parents know what is happening with their child.

The poll was conducted from May 5 to 7 with 1,523 online participants. It also asked respondents: Thinking about the public school system over the last 20 years, curricula and teaching methods have changed as have some of the content in the lessons. In your opinion, is the public school system moving in the right direction or wrong direction to equip students with the skills they need to succeed and compete in life, work and post-secondary education?

Fifty-one percent of those polled said schools were moving in the wrong direction, with only 25 percent indicating schools were moving in the right direction, and another 24 percent undecided.

The premier and New Brunswicks education minister, Bill Hogan, announced on June 8 that as of July 1, students under the age of 16 cannot change their names or pronouns in school without parental consent.

The new policy requires the school to talk to students about contacting their parents on the issue, or directing the student to a mental health professional to work with them in the development of a plan to speak with their parents if and when they are ready to do so.

We believe that its fundamentally wrong to not share this information with the parents if we are using [a students preferred name] on a daily basis, Hogan said. If we are using it on a daily basis, it puts teachers in a really challenging position.

Higgs said the province had to find a solution where we do not exclude parents in their childs life. He said the policy is taking a strong position for families.

The new policy will also implement at least one private universal washroom in every school as well as ensure there are private universal changing areas.

The Canadian Press contributed to this report.
Wisconsin native Sara Dahmen blissfully recalls childhood excursions to attend Rendezvous. The annual historical reenactments brought the states Fur Trade era back to life, with 18th- and 19th-century settlers, traders, and Native Americans gathering to exchange furs and goods.

I remember seeing these girls and boys, a little bit older than me, in full pioneer, Laura Ingalls Wilder clothes, she said. Theyd be washing their hair in the river, and I was like, This is where I live! Why cant I go back in history and live in this time?

In her own way, shes achieved that longing for time travel.

Today, Dahmen is the only known female coppersmith building copper cookware in the United States, bringing back a nearly lost American tradition. From her home in rural Wisconsin, she handcrafts tin-lined copper cookware inspired by pioneer-era designs, using all American-sourced materials. History serves as her inspiration and is etched into each piece of metal she works.

Looking to the Past

Before Dahmen became a coppersmith, she was a novelist. A childhood dream of becoming an archaeologist gave way to a successful career as a wedding planner, but her deep fascination with Midwest Americana led her to writing.

Dahmens Flats Junction series of novels is set in the Dakotas of the 1800s and told primarily from a female perspective. In her extensive research of 19th-century pioneer womanhood, Dahmen, an enthusiastic home cook, was instantly drawn to the historical cookware her characters would be using.

What did American pioneers have on wagon trails? What did they have in their homes after traveling across the country? she wondered. Because it was very specific to us: Our cookware had come over with the first colonists, but then it evolved very differently because we were traveling in a way that people from Europe were not.

The deeper Dahmen delved, the more questions arose. The natural ores to produce copper were in abundance, but how was the cookware made? Who made it? How would a pan be fixed?

Perhaps it was the zeal of Dahmens inner young archaeologist that guided her to what would be a transformational experience: an apprenticeship with master tinsmith Bob Bartelmewho lived just 15 minutes away.

The Master and the Apprentice

It was an accident, Dahmen said with a chuckle. I didnt walk into Bobs shop and go, I cant wait to be your apprentice. I was there as a one-off. And then he said, Well, you should come back and make a Revolutionary War cup. So I did. And then he said, Why dont you come back and make something out of copper, since thats what you want to learn? So, she did. And she kept coming back.

Two to three times a week, often with her children in tow, Dahmen would be in Bartelmes shop, learning the ins and outs of traditional copper cookware.

The master and apprentice relationship eventually blossomed into a friendship. Dahmen laughed, recalling that during Rendezvous events they attended together, Bartelme was often mistaken for her father. He never bothered to correct the mistake.

It really, truly was the modern version of Johnny Tremains apprenticeship, Dahmen said. And it was truly the only way [I] could learn this skill. There are old books out there on how to become a sheet metal worker, but unless youre already a sheet metal worker by trade, those books are Greek. They make no sense. It took me four years of working with Bob for those books to make sense.

During those long hours of learning, Dahmens love for her newfound trade blossomed. An ambitious idea began to take shape in her mind. She and Bartelme were making cookware in the same style as the characters in her novels, primarily for historical reenactors. But Dahmen wanted to go further: an all-American cookware line for modern home cooks.

Putting the Pieces Together

On the surface, the idea was simple. She would manufacture her own pieces, sourcing all the materials from American fabricators. That was easier said than done.

After the Revolutionary War, domestic cookware manufacturing boomed. American inventions revolutionized the industry, making iron and copper cookware more affordable and therefore more abundant. Such was the norm until the 20th century.

Then, after World War II, modern American kitchens were flooded with cheaper stainless steel, aluminum, and non-stick-sprayed options. Now, any copper in the American kitchen is likely either imported from Europe or a family heirloom. The old trade had all but vanished.

There were a lot of nos and we cant help yous, Dahmen said of her myriad calls to metal manufacturers around the country. It was up to Dahmen to gather all of the pieces and put them together herself.

With persistence, she eventually found what she needed. A family foundry in Lodi, California, would make her ductile iron handles. Another foundry in Houston, Texas, would smelt and sheet her copper. A company in Ames, Iowa, would provide the tin. A small business in Dayton, Ohio, would spin the metal. A mom-and-pop operation in Markesan, Wisconsin, would make the rivets. In 2015, House Copper was born.

Despite the extra difficulty, keeping all of the manufacturing in America was of the highest importance to Dahmen.

I can take a drive or a short flight to have lunch or shake hands with my fabricators. Its like a small manufacturing family, she said. She can trust that shes getting the quality of material required to make her cookware, and pass that along to her customers.

Built To Last

Dahmens designs for her cookware take direct cues from the past. I dont make anything that I didnt see in a historic archive, she said. Her cookware tends to follow the taller and wider shapes of pieces from the pioneer dayskettles and pots were made this way so they could be stacked for easier transport.

Once shes settled on a design, the process of fabrication and assembly can take upwards of several months. For a copper pot, for instance, her fabricators build out the match plates for the body and handles, pour the iron, smelt the copper, roll the sheets, and spin the metal. Blank bodies arrive at Dahmens workshop for final assembly and tinning.

Using a combination of old and modern equipment, Dahmen smooths, sands, and drills the ductile iron handles, then rivets them onto the blank body. She moves the pot over a fire, melts down some tin directly inside, and uses a piece of insulation to wipe on the new tin lining. The finished pot is then washed, buffed, and polished.

Youre getting something truly handmadeits a transparent product, Dahmen said.

Dahmen sands, grinds, drills, rivets, hand-tins, buffs, and hand-polishes each piece at her home workshop in Wisconsin. (Courtesy of Sara Dahmen)

Copper is highly conductive and responsive to heateven more so than cast ironmeaning her copper cookware heats fast and cooks fast, and all on a lower temperature, too, Dahmen said. The tin bonds molecularly to the copper, creating a naturally non-stick lining that carries heat just as quickly. In terms of conductivity, she noted, tin-lined copper is 25 times more efficient than stainless steel pots.

Dahmen also takes custom requests, and she specializes in the restoration and re-tinning of historic pieces. Recent projects include an 1800s drinking horn, a massive 1700s copper pot, and a (formerly) battered old saucepan.

This aspect of her business speaks to the durability of copper products. Dahmen says her cookware will stand up to anything from a campfire to her childrens demands for mac n cheeseand, with proper care, to the test of time.

Theres an element of old-fashioned sustainability at play here, too. While the coating of a non-stick pan will eventually wear out and kill the pan, tin-lined copper cookware can be relined and used indefinitely.

There will be people 10,000 years from now, Dahmen said with a laugh, who will find one of my copper pots and have a King Tut moment.

Meet the Maker: Sara Dahmen

Age: 39

Lives in: Port Washington, Wis.

Most prized cookware: I have a piece of 1700s cookware from England thats 100 percent handmade. Ive restored it so I can cook in it, and the shape is so elegant and something I wish I could make again, so I keep it also as inspiration.

Best advice ever received: Always think bigger than you already do. Theres an old Polish saying, Jakos to bedzie, which officially translates to something like, Things will work out in the end, but the cultural connotation means to reach for the impossible, take risks without thinking to be afraid first, and work hard to build anything you dream, even though there will be obstacles.

Best advice for other entrepreneurs: Say yes to trying as many new things and meeting as many new people as you can, always. Never stop asking yourself, Why not?

Favorite fellow made-in-America companies: I enjoy my Wisconsin-shaped cast-iron skillet from the American Skillet Company. My husband and I use a few serious, solid pieces of Rogue exercise equipment every morning to help us stay healthy, and I am also a fan of the Wisconsin Candle Company, which is made in my husbands hometown of Waunakee.

Fact Sheet: House Copper & Cookware

Founded: 2015

Based in: Port Washington, Wis.

Specializes in: Building and restoring traditional tin-lined copper cookware

Best-sellers: 12-inch House Copper Skillet ($525), Copper Bowl ($300), Copper Baking Sheets (from $165)

Annual production: 300 to 400 pieces

Oldest piece of equipment: A mid-1700s blacksmith-made swedge

Oldest piece restored: A 1600s-era hearth coffee pot

Most intensive project: A copper apple butter kettle with an iron tripod that took 3 weeks to build

Shop at: HouseCopper.com

Custom-made souffle pots. (Courtesy of Sara Dahmen)

Copper Cookware Care

Caring for tin-lined copper cookware is not too precious, says Sara Dahmen. The guidelines are similar to those for cast iron cookwarethe one difference is you dont have to season it! Here, she shares her tips for keeping your pieces in top shape.

Cooking

Always use wood or silicone utensils when cooking. Have food or liquid in the cookware before turning on the heat. Dont broil (unless its full of food!).

Cleaning

Never put copper cookwareno matter the liningin the dishwasher. Clean with warm water, non-abrasive dish soap, and a soft cloth after cooking. If food is sticking, add water and a drop of dish soap and heat to simmer, and the food should begin to lift out. Dry with a soft cloth.

Polishing

For a quick shine-up, use ketchup! Pour a generous amount on the pot and rub it all over the copper. Leave on so the oxalic acid in the ketchup (from the tomatoes) eats at the oxidation of the copper, then wash off with warm soapy water. This works if the oxidationthe tarnished lookisnt too dark. For truly dark, near black copper, mechanical means, such as a buffing wheel, are needed.

To keep copper shiny, do regular cleaning after use. Polishing once a week would be sufficient if you use the copper daily.

This article was originally published in American Essence magazine.
The Chinese Embassy in Zimbabwe held a donation ceremony on Tuesday in Harare, the capital of Zimbabwe, to bring cheer to orphans and other vulnerable children in the country.





Produced by Xinhua Global Service
NATO Chief Meets Biden in White House Over Ukraine

President Joe Biden meets with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg in the Oval Office of the White House, on June 13, 2023. (Manuel Balce Ceneta/AP Photo)

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg met with President Joe Biden on Tuesday to discuss the war in Ukraine.

In the meeting in the Oval Office, Stoltenberg said that NATO members should step up their spending for defense, reaching at least 2 percent of their GDP.

It has to be a minimum of what allies have to invest in our shared security, Stoltenberg said of the spending target.

Last year, only seven countries in the 31-member alliance met that target goal: the United States, Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, the United Kingdom, Estonia, and Greece.

The meeting with Biden was ahead of a NATO summit in Vilnius, Lithuania, on July 11-12.

At our summit in Lithuania next month, we are going to be building on that momentum, working to ensure allies [spend] enough on defense, Biden said.

Biden said the U.S. commitment to NATO was rock solid. The Biden administration later announced $325 million in new military aid to Ukraine.

Stoltenberg also met with Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Tuesday.

Blinken thanked Stoltenberg for his leadership during one of the most critical times I can remember.

Stoltenberg is scheduled to leave his post at the end of September after nine years as NATOs head, and there is no consensus on who should replace him.

Stoltenbergs visit came as Ukraine attempted to seize back ground taken by the Russians as part of a long-awaited counter-offensive against the invaders.

The support that we are providing together to Ukraine is now making a difference on the battlefield as we speak because the offensive is launched, and Ukrainians are making progress, Stoltenberg said.

Its still early days, but what we do know is that the more land Ukrainians are able to liberate, the stronger hand they will have at the negotiating table.

He said more aid would be pledged at the NATO summit in Vilnius, Lithuania.

Thats exactly what well do when we meetall the NATO leadersat the summit in Vilnius next month, where we [will] agree to sustain and step up our support for Ukraine, he said.

Biden, who has sought to keep NATO allies united against Russia since the war broke out in February 2022, said: God willing, well be able to keep this unity up.

Many NATO members would like a decision on who will head the alliance when leaders meet in Lithuania.

That does not give NATOs 31 nations, spanning from the United States to Turkey, much time to forge the consensus needed to pick a new leader.

Long-Range Missiles

Russia uses long-range missiles to strike targets in Ukraine. Last month, Britain became the first country to supply Ukraine with long-range missiles.

Ukraine has asked Germany for Taurus cruise missiles, which have a range of 500 km (311 miles), while French President Emmanuel Macron has said France will give Ukraine missiles with a range allowing it to carry out its counter-offensive.

The Kremlin said at the end of May that any supply of long-range missiles to Kyiv by France and Germany would lead to a further round of spiraling tension in the Ukraine conflict.

Russia has repeatedly criticized Western countries for supplying Ukraine with weapons and has warned that NATO members have effectively become direct parties to the conflict.

The Russian Foreign Ministry headquarters are seen next to one of the towers of Moscows Kremlin, on March 15, 2023. (Maxim Shemetov/Reuters)

On Monday, Russias defense ministry said it had repelled attempted offensives by Ukrainian forces in the Donetsk and Zaporizhzhia regions and had hit targets with sea-launched high-precision missile strikes.

A still image from a video shows what are said to be destroyed armored vehicles of the Ukrainian armed forces, in the course of the Russia-Ukraine conflict in an unidentified location in the southern Donetsk region in Ukraine, in this image taken from handout footage released on June 10, 2023. (Russian Defense Ministry via Reuters)

Ukraine said on Monday its troops had recaptured a fourth village from Russian forces in a cluster of settlements in the southeast, a day after reporting the first small gains of its counter-offensive.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had revealed in June that Ukraine was ready for a counter-offensive to recapture territory that was acquired by Russian forces, warning of large casualties in the fight.

In an interview with the Wall Street Journal, the leader of Kyivs government said that a long-reported counter-offensive would come soon. However, he warned that a large number of soldiers will die in the attempt.

Former President Donald Trump said this month that officials are lying about the real number of casualties in the Ukraine war.

Speaking to FOX News, he said that the deaths are far more than theyre reporting. When they say: Nine apartment houses got knocked down, and two people got hurtno, no, hundreds of people died. The numbers are much different than what youre being told.

Reuters and Jack Phillips contributed to this report.
New Jersey Schools Report More Than 4,200 Percent Increase in Nonbinary Students in 4 Years

Experts blame pandemic chaos, LGBT curriculum, and trend of 'normalizing' alternative gender identities for spike that includes pre-kindergarteners

The number of nonbinary students in New Jersey public schools rose by 4,218 percent in just four years, figures from the states Department of Education (NJDOE) show.

People who identify as nonbinary say their gender identity doesnt conform to exclusively male or female.

This massive increase in students identifying as nonheterosexual isnt business as usual, according to New Jersey parental rights activist Nik Stouffer. She said she believes that the jump in nonbinary cases springs from COVID-19 restrictions and also a new education program starting in 2020 that normalizes sex changes, she told The Epoch Times.

This isnt even changing your genderwe dont have a number on that, Stouffer said of the state statistics. Theyre only collecting the number of nonbinary students because they collect male and they collect female.'

She wonders how many New Jersey students now identify as transgender or homosexual. The state doesnt provide those numbers in the report.

An Exponential Rise

The NJDOE figures show that in just four years, the number of nonbinary students in New Jersey schools jumped to 675 from 16, state student surveys show.

In the 20192020 school year, of those 16 nonbinary students, 10 were in high school. The youngest was in second grade, state records show.

In the 20202021 school year, there were 85 nonbinary students; the two youngest two were in pre-kindergarten classes. By the 20212022 school year, that number had soared to 376 nonbinary students, with eight in pre-kindergarten.

And in the 20222023 school year, there were 675 nonbinary students reported. Of those, 41 were in fifth grade or below.

Nonbinary students currently make up less than 1 percent of the states 1,371,921 public school students.

Among the states 406,120 high school students, 497 identify as nonbinary; thats about 1 per 1,000.

While the percentage is low, the jump in the numbers is what alarms Stouffer.

NJDOE officials didnt respond by press time to a request by The Epoch Times for comment.

Children Are Sexually, Socially Malleable

During COVID-19, government protocols shattered normal child development, Stouffer said.

Child development psychologist Leonard Sax supports her concerns. Research suggests that children are far more sexually and socially malleable than previously thought, he told The Epoch Times.

Almost every culture of which we have any record has taught girls to be women and boys to be men, Sax said. We dont do that. Instead, we undermine that. And the results are not good. And were seeing an explosion in anxiety and depression among American kids.

If children grow up being shown that a transgender or nonbinary identity is normal, it will seem normal to them, he said.

Kids are not born knowing what normal is, and they need to be taught, he said. Its not hardwired.

If schools emphasize to children that gender is fluid, more children will get gender dysphoria, Sax predicted. Meanwhile, the ones who do will experience more anxiety and depression, he said.

Problematizing gender identity is child abuse, he said. Its causing kids to be uncertain where they should be constant. And it clearly leads to a greatly increased risk of anxiety and depression.

Pandemic Confusion for Children

Masks shut down normal conversation, while isolation forced children to interact almost entirely on the internet. Schools made surprising decisions, such as leaving windows open on 20-degree days to circulate air and prevent COVID-19, Stouffer said.

We made them live their lives online, she said. They were subjected to torturous conditions where they were unable to interact with other kids. They werent allowed. They had no facial expressions. Theres no whispering to a friend in a mask. You cant even give them looks.

In this abnormal environment, children developed abnormally, she said.

A lot of relationships fell apart, Stouffer said. Kids dont know how to interact with each other. And then you lose a sense of self. Because youre hiding your authentic self from other people.

She also blames New Jerseys new Comprehensive Health and Physical Education sex education standards released in 2020 for the sharp rise in nonbinary students. She asserts that the standards encourage students into non-straight sexualities.

Children as young as second grade should discuss the range of ways people express their gender and how gender-role stereotypes may limit behavior, the standards read. And by fifth grade, students should differentiate between sexual orientation and gender identity.

By eighth grade, the standards instruct, schools should develop a plan for the school to promote dignity and respect for people of all genders, gender identities, gender expressions, and sexual orientations in the school community.

The guide also includes an expansive glossary of words, such as cisgender, gender assigned at birth, gender binary, gender nonconforming, and gender transition.

Stouffer said, Theyre just playing all these games with biology based on preferences that are meaningless and have nothing to do with gender.
NIH Tightens Funding Requirements for Foreign Research Collaboration

Acting Director of the National Institutes of Health Dr. Lawrence Tabak testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington, on May 17, 2022. (Shawn Thew/AFP via Getty Images)

The National Institutes of Health announced a new policy that puts under scrutiny foreign collaborations on research projects, especially when foreign partners receive sub-awards.

The new policy will take effect in October this year.

According to its requirements, the primary grantee, or the American partner, should receive from the foreign partner copies of the lab notebooks, their data, and documentation relevant to the research, at least once every 3 months.

The announcement comes after the lab leak theory for the spread of COVID-19 became more widely accepted after it was revealed the National Institutes of Health (NIH) fundedby way of sub-awardsgain-of-function research for bat coronaviruses in China. The research was conducted on how new, hybrid coronaviruses can be transmitted to humans.

The NIH funded the U.S.-based EcoHealth Alliance to do research on coronaviruses, and part of the fundsa sub-awardwas given to the Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV) to study bat coronaviruses in the wild, and their potential to infect humans.

Part of this research was to create hybrid bat coronaviruses that could be transmitted to humans, or gain-of-function research.

Some scientists said that the new policy could have a chilling effect on foreign collaborations.

David Relman, a microbiologist at the Stanford University School of Medicine in California, has concerns that the new policy is not clearly stating the elements of the lab notebooks that will need to be shared, according to Nature.

EcoHealth Alliance reported two years late to the NIH on the transmissibility of the hybrid coronaviruses their Chinese partners were creating or researching. EcoHealth said the failure to report on time was because of miscommunication and a technical glitch.

The NIH halted the grant to EcoHealth in 2020 over safety concerns about their partners in China, and after criticism from federal auditors, and then terminated the grant in 2022. However, a $576,290 federal grant was renewed in May.

The renewed grant is to be administered through the NIHs National Institute for Allergies and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), the research arm headed for several decades by the recently retired Dr. Anthony Fauci. NIHs statement on the renewal was made public by Rep. Morgan Griffith (R-Va.), who is chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committees Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee.

This project seeks to understand what factors allow bat-origin coronaviruses, including close relatives to SARS, to jump into the human population by studying their evolutionary diversity, the patterns of spillover in people that live in high-risk communities, and analyzing characteristics of bat coronaviruses that could allow them to emerge, the grant description on NIHs website says.

Peter Daszak, president of EcoHealth Alliance, (R) and other members of the World Health Organization (WHO) team investigating the origins of the COVID-19 coronavirus, arrive at the Wuhan Institute of Virology on Feb. 3, 2021. (Hector Retamal/AFP via Getty Images)

EcoHealth issued a celebratory statement declaring that the NIH decision reflects a reversal of the previous termination and suspension of a [grant] awarded in 2019, but halted in April 2020 due to concerns about continuing collaborative laboratory research with the Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIH).

The NIH has awarded seven grants totaling more than $4.1 million to EcoHealth to study various aspects of SARS, MERS, and other coronavirus diseases. Part of this money funded the gain-of-function research at the WIV in China.

EcoHealth said in its statement that its agreement with NIH requires researchers to conduct all of their studies outside of China and in conjunction with a Singapore-based health facility, as well as other measures designed to address concerns about the lack of proper safety procedures at WIH and its connection with the Chinese military.

The renewed work will involve collaboration only between EcoHealth Alliance and the Duke-National University of Singapore Medical School, with the following specific aims: (1) identifying high-spillover risk bat SARSr-CoV sequences in southern China and assessing drivers of recombination; (2) conducting community- and clinic-based surveillance of archived pre-COVID-19 human samples to identify SARSr-CoV spillover events, routes of exposure, and potential public health consequences; and (3) characterizing SARSr-CoV binding, ability to evade therapeutics/vaccines, and identifying spillover hotspots, the EcoHealth statement continued.

$1.3 Billion Unaccounted Grants

Sen. Joni Ernst (R.-Iowa) and her staff investigators, working with auditors at the Government Accountability Office (GAO) and the Congressional Research Service, as well as two nonprofit Washington watchdogsOpen The Books (OTB) and the White Coat Waste Project (WCWP)recently discovered dozens of other grants to China and Russia that werent counted on the federal governments USASpending.gov internet database.

While the total value of the uncounted grants found by the Ernst team is $1.3 billion, that amount is just the tip of the iceberg, the GAO reported.

Its gravely concerning that Washingtons reckless spending has reached the point where nobody really knows where all tax dollars are going, Ernst told The Epoch Times in May. But I have the receipts, and Im shining a light on this, so bureaucrats can no longer cover up their tracks, and taxpayers can know exactly what their hard-earned dollars are funding.

The problem is that federal officials dont rigorously track sub-awards made by initial grant recipients, according to the Iowa Republican. Such sub-awards are covered by a multitude of federal regulations that stipulate many conditions to ensure that the tax dollars are appropriately spent.

The GAO said in an April report that limitations in sub-award data is a government-wide issue and not unique to U.S. funding to entities in China.

GAO is currently examining the state of federal government-wide sub-award data as part of a separate review, the report reads.

The Eco-Health sub-awards to WIV illustrate the problem.

Despite being required by law to make these receipts available to the public on the USAspending.gov website, EcoHealth tried to cover its tracks by intentionally not disclosing the amounts of taxpayer money being paid to WIV, which went unnoticed for years, Ernst said in the statement.

I was able to determine that more than $490 million of taxpayer money was paid to organizations in China [in] the last five years. Thats ten times more than GAOs estimate! Over $870 million was paid to entities in Russia during the same period!

Mark Tapscott contributed to this report.
Former President Donald Trump raised over $2 million just hours after his Tuesday arraignment in Miami, Florida. Meanwhile, the U.S. House of Representatives on June 14 rejected a Republican effort to censure Rep. Adam Schiff, a Democrat who played a leading role in the first impeachment of Trump in 2019.

A Delaware Supreme Court panel of five judges heard arguments over the release of President Joe Bidens Senate records, currently maintained at a University of Delaware library. In a 2012 agreement, the university agreed not to release the records to the public until they had properly processed and archived them. Now the plaintiffs want to see the agreement.
Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) condemned the use of FISA surveillance during a June 13 hearing. He said the programmeant to investigate foreign agentswas allegedly used to spy on thousands of Americans without proper cause.

Former President Donald Trump pleaded not guilty in a federal court in Miami on June 13 to 37 felony charges related to his handling of classified government documents. During a speech in New Jersey after his arraignment, he criticized the charges as a politically motivated attack meant to keep him out of the White House in 2024.

A new report by government watchdog Open the Books says fraudsters and dead people received hundreds of billions of dollars in government payments last year. NTD spoke with the founder of the nonprofit to find out more.

Topics in this episode include:

1. Senator Condemns Use of FISA Surveillance

2. Trump Denounces Federal Indictment

3. Absentee Ballots Found in Mich. Storage Unit

4. 25% Calif. Voters Say Economy Is Top Issue

5. House GOP Reveals Findings of Mayorkas Probe

6. Bud Light Sales Continue to Decline

7. Survey: Trans Athletes Shouldnt Change Teams

8. 45 MILLION UNDER THREAT OF SEVERE STORMS

9. Chrysler Recalling 331K+ Jeep Grand Cherokees

10. Instant Pot, Pyrex Maker Files for Bankruptcy

11. Chinese Presence in Caribbean Growing: Mills

12. Nvidia Reaches $1 Trillion Valuation

13. Japan: Soldier Arrested After Fatal Shooting

14. S. Korea Sues N. Korea over Office Blowup

15. Blinken Speaks to Chinese Counterpart

16. $247B Improper Payments in 2022: Watchdog

17. Belarus Receives Russian Nuclear Weapons

18. Putin Claims Ukraine Losses Catastrophic

19. Ukraine: F-16 Jet Training Could Start Soon

20. Dozens Drown in Migrant Shipwreck off Greece

21. UK: Push for Tighter Laws on Organ Harvesting

22. New Electric Vehicle Battery Charges in 6 Min

23. Hungarian Off-Road Festival Draws Thousands

24. UK Zoo: First Fathers Day for Giraffe

25. 10-Foot Crocodile Pulled from Florida Pool

26. Tips to Keep Your Eyes Healthy
On the Border of Ukraine: A Conversation With Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki

Commentary

Polands Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki is eager for his nation to be the best friend America has always sought in the European Union (EU). The EUs Old Guard powers (Germany and France) have been more competitive frenemies of the United States, often taking pleasure in criticizing and embarrassing American leaders and policies.

In late May, I met with Morawiecki, and it became clear that Morawiecki and Poland bear no such mixed feelings or ill will towards the United States.

The Polish government invited me to visit Warsaw to meet with Morawiecki and other members of Polands government. For approximately an hour, in an intimate gathering in the Chancellery building, Morawiecki shared his thoughts on a wide range of issues and fielded questions from me and four other American public policy professionals.

Morawieckis point of greatest emphasis was the importance of the trans-Atlantic alliance between the EU and America. Many people and political leaders in Europe take pride in being independent of America. Such people view the trans-Atlantic alliance as one of pragmatism, especially in regard to gaining protection under Americas security umbrella. Morawiecki envisions a much closer trans-Atlantic relationship: one of true and enthusiastic friendship.

In the EU, Germany and France lead the Old Guard of Western European nations that dominate EU decision-making. Poland is most prominent among the New Guard of Central and Eastern European nations that often view things differently than Germany and France. For years, Germany and France have been shifting EU economic and geopolitical ties away from America and closer to Russia, despite warnings from Poland and other former Iron Curtain nations not to trust Russian intentions. With Russias invasion of Ukraine, Poland has unfortunately been vindicated.

As a result of Russias invasion of Ukraine, the EU is recalibrating. Not only was Poland prescientif ignoredin its past warnings about potential Russian aggression, but Poland is now also the center of gravity regarding the EUs response to Russian aggression. The vast majority of European (and American) military and humanitarian assistance for Ukraine enters the embattled nation through Poland. Poland has willingly absorbed most of the Ukrainian refugees fleeing the war. Poland continues to spend a greater percentage of its gross domestic product on military defense than any other EU nation.

In 2003, then-French President Jacques Chirac lashed out at Poland and other Eastern European nations for supporting U.S. foreign policy too much and not falling in line behind Germany and France. Chirac chided the Eastern European nations for missing a good opportunity to shut up. Now in 2023, current French President Emmanuel Macron has apologized for Chiracs 2003 rebuke.

Some said you had missed an opportunity to shut up. I think we also lost an opportunity to listen to you, said Macron.

Poland greatly values its place within the EU. Poland also greatly admires America as a beacon of freedom. The EU should recalibrate closer to America, Morawiecki believes, and Poland is a friend in the EU that America can trust.

Poland recognizes that America is the bedrock of freedom in the modern world, Polands Vice Consul to the Polish Consulate in New York, Stanislaw Starnawski, explained to me. That is a freedom Poland fought very hard for and cherishes to this day. America is a beacon of light for Poland.

Morawiecki and Starnawski hope the European Old Guard will rediscover this truth, as well.

Polands love for America transcends White House personalities, Starnawski observed. Poland viewed America as a special nation when Donald Trump was president, and Poland views America as a special nation now as Joe Biden is president.

Starnawskis observation is supported by a poll just released by the European Council on Foreign Relations regarding how people in the EU view the United States. According to the poll, less than one-third of EU citizens view America as an allythat shares our interests and values. Poland and Denmark are the only two countries in which half or more of the people view the United States as an ally. In Germany and France, just 35 percent and 22 percent of the people, respectively, view America as an ally.

Its nice to have an ally who truly likes you, Morawiecki noted. Doesnt America want a friend that genuinely loves America back?

As Poland gains in international prominence and influence, will America take Poland up on its offer?

Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
Peru is battling its worst dengue outbreak in recent years with almost 200 reported deaths and nearly 150,000 cases, and the El Nino weather phenomenon is being blamed.

There have been 145,529 total cases of dengue infection in the country as of June 13, including 75,798 confirmed cases and 69,731 probable ones, according to data from Perus National Center for Epidemiology, Disease Prevention and Control. There have been 183 confirmed deaths, with 31 over the previous week; 62 of the deaths are under investigation.

More than 1,300 people are being hospitalized daily.

Dengue is a virus carried by Aedes species mosquitoes that are most prevalent in regions with tropical and subtropical climates. Peruvian health authorities are blaming El Nino as a key factor for the current surge in dengue cases.

El Nino is a climate phenomenon that drives tropical cyclones in the Pacific and thus raises the risk of rainfall and flooding in countries in the region. A season of heavy rains can trigger a rapid expansion of mosquito populations because of the accumulation of water in various places.

The last time Peru saw a major outbreak of dengue cases was in 2017, when the region was affected by El Nino. At the time, there were 68,290 cases and 89 deaths. This years numbers have already eclipsed 2017 figures.

Dengue Danger

According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), about 1 in 4 people who get infected by the dengue virus will get sick. Among those who do get sick, symptoms can range from mild to severe.

The most common symptoms of dengue are fever, along with some other discomforts, such as nausea, vomiting, rashes, aches, or pain in the muscles, joints, bones, or behind the eyes. Theres no specific medicine for treating dengue.

Roughly 1 in 20 people who get sick with dengue are expected to develop severe sickness that can result in shock, internal bleeding, and even death. Those who have already contracted dengue in the past are more likely to develop severe dengue.

In Peru, the situation is now so alarming that President Dina Boluarte signed a decree on June 8 that declared a two-month state of emergency. The emergency declaration is valid in 18 of Perus 24 regions and allows quick official action for imminent danger from heavy rainfall this year and in 2024.

Children are believed to be at particular risk from severe dengue.

In Piura, 30 percent of the infected people are children, said Cesar Orrego, ombudsman for the region, according to The Guardian. Their cases can quickly become fatal, so we need pediatricians.

Health Alert, Global Situation

On June 7, the U.S. Embassy in Lima issued a health alert warning about the spread of dengue fever in the South American nation and advised travelers to sign up for the Smart Traveler Enrollment Program to receive updates from the embassy.

The CDC has issued a travel health notice for Peru, warning travelers to be aware of current health issues in the country. It has classified Peru as a Level-1: Practice Usual Precautions nation.

Because dengue is spread by mosquito bites, all travelers to risk areas should prevent mosquito bites by using an EPA-registered insect repellent, wearing long-sleeved shirts and long pants when outdoors, and sleeping in an air-conditioned room or room with window screens or under an insecticide-treated bed net, the agency stated.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), about half of the worlds population is at risk of contracting dengue, with annual infections ranging from an estimated 100 million to 400 million.

Over the decades, the number of dengue cases reported to WHO has soared, jumping to 5.2 million in 2019 from 505,430 cases in 2000. Since a vast majority of cases are asymptomatic or mild and self-managed, the organization believes that the actual number of cases is underreported.

What topics would you like to read about? Please let us know at health@epochtimes.nyc
Political Leanings Dictated COVID Vaccine Uptake: 2021 Federal Memo

Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau is escorted by his RCMP security detail while leaving a campaign stop at a local microbrewery during the federal election campaign in London, Ont., on Sept. 6, 2021. (Nathan Denette/The Canadian Press)

Two days before Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced the 2021 election, a confidential government memo indicated the decision to receive the COVID vaccine was split along political party lines.

The memo from the Privy Council Office, dated Aug. 13, 2021, and titled Emerging Evidence on Covid-19, said voters who supported the Liberals and NDP were more likely to get a COVID shot than Conservative voters.

The memo was obtained through an access to information request, according to Blacklocks Reporter on June 8, and dated two days before Trudeau called the federal election on Aug. 15, 2021.

At the time, Trudeau announced he would campaign on a mandatory vaccination policy, which would see unvaccinated Canadians banned from travel, fired from public service jobs and, in many provinces, refused entry to places the government deemed non-essential, like restaurants, pools, fitness centres, movie theatres, and museums.

Weve seen where Conservative backbenchers have referred to some of this governments decisions as tyrannical in terms of how were creating mandates for vaccination of public servants or vaccination for people on trains or airplanes, he said at the time. Well, the answer to tyranny is to have an election.

Trudeau added that those who disagree with the direction the government was taking should have an opportunity to make themselves heard. Thats what this election is all about. Its allowing Canadians to weigh in.

The memo stated that the most common factors positively associated with intention to vaccinate were male gender, older age, higher education, adequate knowledge or health literacy, trust in experts and government, history of a prior influenza vaccine, higher socioeconomic status, and heightened worry or concern about COVID-19.

Partisanship was associated with intention to vaccinate. Those who voted liberal/democrat expressed intention to vaccinate at higher rates than those who voted for other parties, it said.

Those who voted Liberal or NDP in the 2019 election were most likely to indicate the intention to vaccinate compared to those who voted for other parties. Alberta and Saskatchewan have the highest percentage of the population who do not intend to vaccinate.

At the time, the federal Liberal party had no seats in either of the two Prairie provinces.

A subsequent Privy Council memo on Aug. 19, 2021, titled Closing The Gap For Vaccine Hesitancy During The Last Mile of Vaccine Rollout, said there were pockets of vaccine hesitancy in parts of Canada that traditionally voted Conservative.

There are pockets across the country of low vaccine uptake including northern parts of British Columbia, Alberta and Saskatchewan, rural southern Ontario and southern Manitoba. Reasons for lower uptake in these regions are multifactorial and complex and include access issues, prevailing political ideologies, regional industry, demographics and more, said the memo.

In the 2021 election, the Liberal Party was returned to power with 32.6 percent of the popular vote, less than the 2019 election when it captured 33.1 percent of the vote.

The second memo noted that during the 2021 election campaign, Canada already had one of the highest rates of voluntary vaccination in the world, without mandatory policies.

Canada is among the top countries in the world in terms of one dose coverage and we are quickly gaining ground on two dose coverage, it said.

The government document suggested an estimated 72 percent of all Canadians had received at least one COVID shot compared to other countries, such as the United Kingdom (70 percent), France (67 percent), Germany (62 percent), and the United States (59 percent), Blacklocks reported.
Pregnant Ontario Nurse Facing Termination Asks Hospital to Reconsider COVID Vaccine Mandate

Union said she will be fired within a week

A London, Ontario, pregnant nurse about to be fired from her job has asked the CEO of the London Health Sciences Centre (LHSC) to reconsider the hospitals mandatory vaccine policy.

Sandra Hartman, who is 35 and eight months pregnant, was put on unpaid leave for declining a COVID-19 shot, according to a report in the London Free Press on June 11. Despite most COVID restrictions being lifted, the hospital has not changed its policy, the nurse said.

An LHSC spokesman said the hospital was unable to comment by press time.

Hartman said she hopes LHSC chief executive Jackie Schleifer Taylor would reconsider the policy.

At this point, were past  needing it, she said on June 11.Im hoping for a change, but that could take time. It could take years. As CEO, I think she would have the authority to change it.

Hartman said her union, the Ontario Nurses Association, has told her that after 12 years being employed by LHSC, she will be fired within a week. She said besides saving her job, a change in policy would address a nursing shortage and also allow other nurses impacted by the mandatory COVID vaccine policy to return to work.

The hospitals CEO told the London Free Press that the hospital has a special table of various hospital groups that discuss the policy and its guidelines come from public health officials.

Collective scientific evidence and individual protection of patients and staff are debated regularly, Schleifer Taylor said. If a decision was made to change the vaccine requirements, she said that it will be evidence-informed. There are a number of things at play.

According to the Ontario Nurses Association (ONA), the province is short more than 24,000 nurses. The union has been grieving the mandatory vaccine policy. In October 2021, the ONA said it supports education and addressing vaccine hesitancy, not penalizing and terminating nurses when we need them most. ONA also supports regular testing of employees as a measure that ensures safety of everyone, reassignment or other measures.

Lawsuits

In July 2022, two former LHSC employees filed separate wrongful dismissal lawsuits against the hospital, stating they were fired for refusing to get COVID shots. One of the workers was a 23-year employee working remotely from home as a support analyst, and was denied an exemption based on conscience and creed.

According to the law firm representing the woman, if an employer fires an employee for refusing COVID shots, they must provide a complete severance package to the staff member.

What an employer cant do is fire an employee for cause if they fail to get vaccinated, as per the companys policy. The company cant use the failure to fully vaccinate against COVID-19 as a reason to dismiss someone, without compensation or the ability to collect Employment Insurance, said Samfiru Tumarkin law firm in a statement. The firm said the employees seek a combined $700,000 in damages.

According to a report on Oct. 27, 2021, the hospital fired 84 staff, including nurses, for not complying with COVID shot mandates. Another LHSC nurse, Kristen Nagle, who worked in the neonatal intensive care unit, was fired with cause in January 2021, after speaking at an anti-lockdown rally in November 2020.

At the time, the hospital said in a statement, After initially learning of actions involving an NICU nurse at London Health Sciences Centre that were not aligned with LHSCs values back in November, immediate action was taken to place her on an unpaid leave pending the results of an internal investigation.

While we are not able to address the specifics of the investigation, we can confirm that the nurse has been terminated with cause, said the LHSC. Safeguarding the health of our patients and their families, staff and physicians is of the utmost importance and remains our top priority.

The hospital only loosened some of its pandemic-related restrictions in April of this year. The same month, LHSCH raised the overtime pay rate for nurses from time-and-a-half to double-time, because the hospital is short 500 nurses.

Its clear the COVID-19 pandemic has entered a new phase and its time for a new approach to masking for patients, staff, physicians and visitors, Dr. Michael Payne, an LHSC medical director, said in a statement at the time. Due to vaccinations and herd immunity, our masking guidelines can be relaxed.
Schneider Electric, a global leader in the digital transformation of energy management, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Royal Commission for AlUla (RCU) to provide state-of-the-art technology in AlUla.

Schneider Electric will advise RCU on the most advanced technologies and innovative energy management solutions that can be harmoniously integrated within the living environment of AlUla, leading the way for more sustainable tourism.

This could include everything from renewable energy and power distribution to smart micro grids, intelligent buildings, data centres and electric mobility infrastructure.

Key contributor

Schneider Electric will become a key contributor in AlUlas development lifecycle, working closely with RCU on advanced technology and solutions design through to implementation and maintenance across the world-class hotels, museums, residential buildings, infrastructure that will be built.

Schneider Electric will also provide capacity building to RCU, working closely to share knowledge and expertise with the local community on the latest and smartest energy-efficiency products and software.

Both parties will use their joint resources and expertise to build a robust technology ecosystem focused on sustainability, digitalisation, and energy efficiency. These efforts will contribute to transforming AlUla into a sustainable archaeological and cultural tourism destination in line with Saudi Vision 2030.

Symbolic tie-up

"We are pleased to sign this agreement with RCU which is symbolic of our mission to build hyper-effective partnerships that contribute to a more electric, digital and sustainable world, said Mohamed Shaheen, Schneider Electrics Cluster President for Saudi Arabia and Yemen.

By deploying the latest software and technologies, Schneider Electric and RCU will work to make the kingdoms fast-growing tourism industry not only more resilient, energy efficient and cost-effective but greener and cleaner for generations to come. This is a milestone that will promote greater collaboration, will localise innovation, boost capacity buildings and bring new innovations and proven technologies for RCU to realise its masterplan for AlUla.

The agreement was concluded during the Schneider Electric Innovation Summit Saudi Arabia 2023 in Riyadh. It was signed by Shaheen and Lawrence Eta, VP for Digital & Analytics from RCU and witnessed by Schneider Electrics Global Chairman, Jean-Pascal Tricoire, alongside senior figures from both parties.-- TradeArabia News Service
KUWAIT CITY, June 13 (Xinhua) -- A royal decree was issued on Tuesday to reappoint Sheikh Ahmad Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah as Kuwait's prime minister, reported the Kuwait News Agency (KUNA).

The Emiri decree, signed by Kuwait's Crown Prince Sheikh Mishal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, said that Sheikh Ahmad is responsible for nominating new cabinet members and submitting their names, according to the report.

This decree, issued about a week after the Kuwaiti emir accepted the previous government's resignation, came one week before the convening of the newly elected National Assembly (parliament) on June 20.

On June 6, Kuwaiti voters cast their ballots to elect the 17th National Assembly. A total of 50 lawmakers were elected out of 207 candidates in the new legislative body for a term of four years.

Kuwait's parliament, reinstated in March following a Constitutional Court ruling on a previous dissolution, was dissolved by a royal decree in May this year.

Over the past years, tensions between Kuwait's cabinet and the parliament have frequently resulted in cabinet reshuffles and dissolutions of the parliament.

Sheikh Ahmad was born in 1956 as the eldest son of Kuwaiti Emir Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah. He served as the Kuwait National Guard's deputy commander between November 2020 and March 2022 and was first appointed as the prime minister on July 24, 2022. 
Prevalence of IVF Could Create Genetic Haves and Have Nots: AMA

An embryologist shows an Ovocyte after it was inseminated in Virginia, the United States, on June 12, 2019. (Ivan CouronneI/AFP/Getty Images)

Australian Medical Association President Stephen Robson has warned that with the development of IVF technologies, society could be in big trouble if wealthier people can select better genes for their babies.

Speaking at the National Press Club in Canberra on Wednesday, Robson said the rising use of IVF technologies could lead to a genetic divide where wealthier people could pick embryos that have a lower risk of disease.

Those less well-off would be locked out of accessing the technology, which can run into the hundreds of thousands.

In-vitro fertilisation (IVF) is a type of assisted reproductive technology used for infertility treatment in which eggs are fertilised outside the body.

Robson said the next big thing in the health sector is to comprehend more and more about human genetics.

We understand a lot of our health is programmed in our genetics, and I think the big divide is going to come when people use technologies like IVF to select embryos that have genetics, which reduce the risk of disease. And that is the basis of the next generation, he said.

Were seeing this in America at the moment in some places overseas, and the cost of IVF. And the cost of that technology will leave a generation of people alone.

So well have genetic haves and genetic have-nots, and I think thats the next frontier, and I share your concern. I think we get to that stage as a society, were in big trouble.

The comment comes after the Victorian government announced that Australias first public IVF clinic is set to open in Melbourne to provide free fertility treatment for women having difficulty falling pregnant.

IVF can be a game-changer for people who might be struggling to have a child, but too often and for too many, its financially out of reach, said Victorian Premier Dan Andrews.

However, IVF is not without its own health risks. According to long term studies, test tube babies are at greater risk of heart defects, musculoskeletal and central nervous system malformations, preterm birth, and low birth weight. Scientists still recommend that IVF treatment only be performed if a pregnancy cannot be achieved in another way.

At the National Press Club, Robson also called for an overhaul in how investment in health care is framed, saying that a lack of graduate doctors choosing to become GPs was a key issue for the country.

Australians are now experiencing the consequences of decades of neglect to general practice by successive governments, he said.

We have to say we value it, and one of the messages that successive governments have delivered to GPs is we dont value you.

Making sure that our jobs are not in a situation where to actually turn a living you have to see patient after patient  but funded in such a way that you can actually sit down and spend time with a patient.

AAP contributed to this report.
Proposed $874 Billion Defense Budget Cleared for House Hearings Beginning Next Week

The U.S. Department of Defense wants to replace the Minuteman 3 Intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), here in training launch tube at Minot Air Force Base, North Dakota, in 2014, with the LGM-35 Sentinel. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)

After nearly five months of hearings, the House Armed Forces Committees six subcommittees on June 13 quickly and unanimously adopted their components of the proposed $874.2 billion fiscal 2024 (FY24) national defense budget.

The next stop for the draft National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), filed as House Bill 2670, is its first hearing before the entire 59-member House Armed Services Committee on June 21.

The overall $874.2 billion budget includes $841.5 billion for the Department of Defense (DOD), an increase of nearly $26 billion, or 3 percent, over the FY23 enacted NDAA, and $32.26 billion for the Department of Energys nuclear weapons programs.

The Republican-led House panels essentially retained the Biden administrations overall budget request but shifted money around within the spending plan, adding $326 million to DOD programs while trimming $386 million from Department of Energy allocations to arrive at nearly the same top-line figure.

While that may sound relatively simple, there are many details in the funding tables that span dozens of pages at the end of the 412-page draft NDAA.

It is only because of the unimaginable sacrifices made by our nations brave men and women in uniform that our nation remains freeits crucial that we ensure that our service members have access to the resources and weapons they need to be successful on any battlefield, House Armed Services Committee Chair Mike Rogers (R-Ala.) in a June 12 statement.

Among highlights within the spending plan is an amphibious warship the Marine Corps lobbied for but the Navy didnt request, authorization to build 13 Virginia-class attack submarines over the next five years instead of the proposed 10, boosted funding for Air Force F-15 and F-16s, and a 5.2 percent pay raise for those serving in the armed services.

The FY24 NDAA puts our national security first by boosting innovation, providing for our warfighters, and focusing on our defense industrial basesupplying our military with the tools necessary to counter the unprecedented threats our nation faces from China, Russia, North Korea, and Iran, Rogers said.

The proposed budget also significantly increases funding for research and development of new weapons systems incorporating artificial intelligence, hypersonic missiles, and other emerging technologies while bolstering funding for military housing, among other quality-of-life enhancements.

Providing for our national defense is the most important task given to Congress by the U.S. Constitutionthe NDAA is a critical part of fulfilling that duty, Rogers said. I look forward to next weeks full committee markup.

The U.S. Navy, in collaboration with the U.S. Army, conducts a static fire test of the first stage of the newly developed 34.5-inch common hypersonic missile that will be fielded by both services, in Promontory, Utah, on Oct. 28, 2021. (Northrop Grumman/Handout via Reuters)

Strategic Forces

During the committees Strategic Forces Subcommittee hearing, Chair Rep. Doug Lamborn (R-Colo.) said the panels proposed spending plan first and foremost modernizes the nations strategic deterrent and seeks to accelerate the development of hypersonic weapons and defenses against them.

This is one area where the United States lags behind China and Russia, and closing the gap has been one of my priorities as chairman, he said.

The subcommittees proposed budget includes an integrated schedule for the LGM-35 Sentinel and the future U.S. land-based intercontinental ballistic missile system (ICBM) and requires the DOD to notify Congress about nuclear cooperation between Russia and China.

This subcommittee has paid a key role in highlighting the way Russia fuels Chinas nuclear breakout, and this is something we will continue to closely monitor, Lamborn said.

The panels lead Democrat, Rep. Seth Moulton (D-Mass.), said the Strategic Forces Committees realm of concern is front and center in the news whether it be the criminal war being waged by war criminal Vladimir Putin [and his] threats to wage a nuclear war, North Koreas ICBM test launches, or the dramatic and unprecedented expansion of Chinas ICBM fleet, not to mention their weaponization of space.

The United States nuclear deterrent remains as vital, and as critical, as ever, he said. One example of proof is the fact that over a year into the war in Ukraine, despite Putins huge losses and persistent threats, the conflict has remained conventional.

But there is aging infrastructure and weapons systems across the nuclear complex that the proposed budget addresses, Moulton said.

The space domain is evolving at a much faster pace than any other theater of operation, he said. Space had been a domain reserved for monitoring, communicating, and exploring, but no more. In just the last several months, we have seen demonstrations of both Russian and Chinese capacities that are specifically designed and deployed to destroy [US] space assets.

The United States must employ a more robust and resilient architecture, Moulton said, adding that the nation needs a coherent and unclassified strategy when it comes to space in order to explain the threats and stakes to the American people, which has long been a position of this committee and Congress.

The U.S. Armys Cyber Center of Excellence, in Augusta, Ga., on June 10. (Georgia Army National Guard photo by Staff Sgt. Tracy J. Smith)

Cyber and People

The House Armed Forces Committees Cyber, Information Technologies, and Innovation Subcommittee wasted little timeless than three minutesin adopting its component of the budget.

The plan creates a pilot program on near-term quantum applications, which requires the DOD to work with the quantum industry to identify near-term problems that could be solved with quantum computing and includes metrics to evaluate the Pentagons ability to transition technology successfully.

The subcommittees proposed budget addresses cybersecurity and network security and requires the DOD to study how to better use National Guard and reserve forces in cyberspace activities.

In this strategic competition with the Chinese Communist Party, they are of the opinion that they can beat us, Chair Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-Wis.) said. It is up to us to prove them wrong.

Among highlights in the committees Military Personnel Subcommittees proposed spending plan is the 5.2 percent increase in basic military pay, a monthly economic conditions bonus for junior enlisted, the elimination of the 5 percent co-pay for housing, and the removal of the basic allowance for housing from members calculation of basic needs allowances.

Chairman Rep. Jim Banks (R-Ind.) said there was no way the panel could move through its proposed budget in less than three minutes the way the Cyber, Information Technologies, and Innovation Subcommittee did.

I want to state for the record that it is impossible for the committee to do anything [that quickly] because of the substance of the nature of what we are going to accomplish in this subcommittee, he said.

[The panel] focuses on taking care of service members and their families to ensure they are prepared to carry out, without any distraction, any mission they are called upon to execute. The [budget proposal] builds on our continuous efforts to develop legislation that improves the lives of our military families.

The proposal authorizes the establishment of a Space National Guard and dramatically increases emphasis on child care funding, he said.

Were not about setting speed records. Were about getting things done, Banks said.

The Times Square military recruiting station in New York City displays insignia of military branches. (AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews, File)

Efforts to Boost Recruiting

Ranking Member Rep. Andy Kim (D-N.J.) said the budget addresses many quality-of-life issues for military members and their families and will have a measurable effect on recruitment and retention.

The Marine Corps and newly created Space Force met recruiting goals in 2022, but the Army missed its 2022 recruiting goal by 15,000 active-duty soldiers, or 25 percent of its target, leaving the nations largest military force 7 percent smaller than it was two years ago.

The Navy also fell short even after lowering its recruiting quota, increasing its oldest enlistment age to 41 from 39, and relaxing other standards, including for those with criminal backgrounds.

The Air Force met 2022 goals but anticipates missing its objectives for the first time since 1999 by as much as 10 percent in 2023.

The Pentagon projected that trend will continue in 2023 in what it called the most challenging recruiting environment in the 50 years of the all-volunteer force, primarily because of a strong job market and quality-of-life issues.

The Army estimated that in 2023 it will fall at least 20,000 soldiers short of its needed 485,000 active-duty force. It has lowered its goal to 452,000.

Even military academies are seeing shortfalls. Applications to attend the Air Force Academy dropped by 28 percent for the class of 2026, the Naval Academy by 20 percent, and the Military Academy (West Point) by 10 percent.
Man Jumps In Front of Trumps Motorcade Outside Miami Courthouse

Dominic Santana is taken into custody outside of the Wilkie D. Ferguson Jr. federal courthouse following an incident that occurred when the motorcade carrying former President Donald Trump departed the courthouse on June 13, 2023 in Miami, Florida. (Scott Olson/Getty Images)

An anti-Trump protester was tackled by police after he ran out in front of former President Donald Trumps motorcade after he left the court in Miami on Tuesday.

Dominic Santana, who was seen wearing a prison costume and was interviewed by The Epoch Times sister media NTD outside the courtroom, said he would try to exercise what he described as his right to protest by rushing out in front of what he hoped was Trumps vehicle.

Santana said he unsuccessfully tried the stunt earlier in the day, while Trump was en route to the Wilkie D. Ferguson Jr. U.S. Courthouse to his arraignment.

I jumped, hopefully, in front of the vehicle he was travelingwhich was the second Tahoe or Suburban, or whatever, Santana said of his earlier attempt to rush Trumps motorcade.

Santana told NTD that he was prevented from getting close to the motorcade during the failed attempt by law enforcement.

I was attacking the first one because I broke the line and then I had like 20 cops just jump on me, he said, adding he was just exercising my right to protest.

I wanted to get some attention and I did, said Santana, who was carrying a sign that said Lock Him Up.

Hes gotten away with conning the world, Santana alleged, referring to Trump. He should have been locked up before he became a president.

Some time after the interview, Santana managed to break through the lines of security and rush Trumps motorcade.

Aerial video posted online showed the column of vehicles traveling down a Miami street after Trump left the courtroom.

The footage featured a man dressed in a prison costumelater confirmed to be Santanarushing in front of a vehicle and briefly holding up a sign before being manhandled by security and quickly ushered to the side of the road.

Commotion followed after agents removed Santana from the road, with a number of other protesters giving chase to Trumps vehicle before it sped away.

Dominic Santana, an anti-Trump protester, holds a sign outside the Wilkie D. Ferguson Jr. United States Courthouse in Miami, Fla., on June 13, 2023. (Madalina Vasiliu/The Epoch Times)

Santanas stunt was one of a handful of protests as crowds gathered outside the Miami courtroom where Trump was arraigned on charges pertaining to his handling of classified documents.

After leaving the courthouse, Trumps motorcade stopped at a Cuban restaurant named Versailles where he met with supporters. Several of the patrons prayed with him, while others sang happy birthday ahead of the former presidents June 14 birthday.

Trump told the crowd food for everyone.

The former president also lamented the state of the nation, saying: We have a country that is in decline and we cant let that happen.

Former President Donald Trump greets supporters at Versailles restaurant in Miami on June 13, 2023. (Alex Brandon/AP Photo)

Trump Pleads Not Guilty

Trump pleaded not guilty in a federal court in Miami on Tuesday to 37 felony charges related to his handling of classified government documents.

One of the saddest days in the history of our country, Trump wrote on Truth Social on June 13 while en route to the federal courthouse. We are a nation in decline!!!

Trump and his Republican supporters have decried the charges as politically motivated, while others see them as evidence that no one is above the law.

The plea marks the latest step in a years-long legal battle between the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the former president, one that now has serious implications for the 2024 presidential race, in which Trump is the leading Republican candidate.

Protesters gather outside the Wilkie D. Ferguson, Jr. federal courthouse, awaiting the arrival of former President Donald Trump in Miami, Fla., on June 13, 2023. (Madalina Vasiliu/The Epoch Times)

The Arraignment

The former president arrived at the federal courthouse in Miami more than an hour prior to his scheduled 3 p.m. arraignment. The case is the first time a former president of the United States was formally accused of violating federal law.

Trump was placed under arrest. Court staff collected his fingerprints electronically. Trump was not photographed. The booking took about 10 minutes.

A crowd of several hundred mostly Trump supporters gathered among the rows of palm trees in the spacious court plaza. A large number of local, state, and federal law enforcement officers were on hand as well.

During the arraignment, which lasted about 35 minutes, Trump appeared calm and composed in his trademark blue suit and red tie.

Trump appeared before Duty Magistrate Judge Jonathan Goodman, flanked by attorneys Todd Blanche, a former federal prosecutor, and Christopher Kise.

The indictment alleges that Trump unlawfully retained 31 government documents, including some classified as top secret.

It also alleges that Trump showed classified documents to others twice in 2021, a potential violation of the federal Espionage Act.

The most serious charges carry penalties of up to 20 years in prison.

When asked to enter a plea, Blanche spoke on behalf of his client: We most certainly enter a plea of not guilty.

Trump has steadfastly maintained his innocence, calling the charges a travesty of justice, election interference, and a witch hunt.

The former president was released on his own recognizance at the request of the prosecution, with most pretrial release conditions waived.

Janice Hisle, Jackson Richman, Joseph Lord, and Lawrence Wilson contributed to this report.
ANALYSIS: Replacing Aging Canadian Submarine Fleet Appears Unlikely to Happen Soon

Canadas exclusion from nuclear sub alliance AUKUS not surprising, says defence analyst

HMCS Corner Brook (L), the third of four Victoria-class submarines leased from Britain, arrives in Halifax as a Sea King helicopter flies past, in a file photo. HMCS Windsor (R) and HMCS Victoria sit at berth. (CP Photo/Andrew Vaughan)

How Canada might go about replacing its aging submarine fleet is an ongoing exercise, but the nuclear-powered option looks to be off-the-table. This much is not new; however, Canada was also just reminded of its exclusion from the AUKUS nuclear submarine pact between its close allies the United States, United Kingdom, and Australia.

It may be a very long time before Canada makes a commitment for replacement submarines given that defence experts arent envisioning it being part of a new national defence policy to replace 2017s Strong, Secure, Engaged (SSE).

It wont be in the defence policy update, James Fergusson, deputy director of the Centre for Defence and Security Studies at the University of Manitoba, said in an interview.

He also questioned if Canada has the resource capacity to launch what would be another massive capital procurement project given the already announced upgrades to NORAD and purchase of new fighter jets.

While SSE was said to be fully costed, it did not contemplate NORAD modernization, which Stephen Saideman, director of the Canadian Defence and Security Network at Carleton University, called the unwritten chapter of SSE.

I can almost guarantee you that the next unwritten chapter will be the submarines. I dont think theyre going to want to tackle the submarines in this review because that would imply another $20[-billion to] $40-billion project, he said during a Conference of Defence Associations Institute podcast published on June 8.

The Department of National Defence (DND) told The Epoch Times on June 13 that the Royal Canadian Navy is continuing work on the Canadian Patrol Submarine Project in which it conducts analyses of potential options to meet the navys requirements.

Fergusson noted improvements in battery technology and said that such subs produced by the Japanese and Germans can provide for longer periods under the ice.

The Americans are very protective about who is involved in nuclear subs, Fergusson added.

If youre not playing in that world, you dont get the access to it.

AUKUS Rebuke

U.S. National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told CTV on June 11 that AUKUS is not contemplating expansion to include Canada.

There really arent discussions right now or plans to modify the AUKUS arrangement in the future, Kirby said.

Around the time of AUKUSs creation, in the fall of 2021, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Canada was excluded from the pact since it didnt need nuclear subs.

Some national security and defence experts have bemoaned Canadas ongoing exclusion from AUKUS. Fergusson says it should come as no surprise, given the lack of interest Ottawa shows in the Pacific region.

He also highlighted Canadas exclusion from the Quadan alliance between the United States, Australia, India, and Japan.

Were not in both [alliances] because were not really not committed to the Pacific in any significant way. We have a Pacific strategy, but its vacuous. It doesnt really make us commit to anything, Fergusson said.

The DND pointed to Canadas long-standing membership in the Five Eyes intelligence alliance, which includes New Zealand along with the AUKUS countries, and the governments new Indo-Pacific strategy.

We are investing nearly $230 million to expand the capacity of our national security and law enforcement agencies to work closely with partners in the Indo-Pacific. Through the Indo-Pacific strategy, we are also investing approximately $500 million in four defence initiatives to boost our military presence in the region, spokesperson Jessica Lamirande told The Epoch Times.

Fergusson characterizes Canada as not having any formal commitments in the Pacific and just having informal relationships.

Little Appetite for Nuclear

On a March 10 Canadian Global Affairs Institute (CGAI) podcast, Timothy Choi, an expert on submarines and CGAI fellow, said that Canada has a longer history of working with nuclear fuels than Australia does but that he didnt think Canadians are too keen on spending a lot of money on nuclear subs.

But Canada has to do something by the mid- to late 2030s to line up replacement subs, which will be running for 40 to 50 years thereafter and need an ability to operate in deeper ice to counter any Russian threat, Choi added.

Its very much a unicorn project that requires a unicorn solution in a project where nobody wants to have a unicorn solution, Choi said. Its definitely a project that I think many politicians have considered a nice-to-have but not a priority, and [therefore], will be happy to get something off the shelf.

A 2021 Macdonald-Laurier Institute research report cited factors like domestic political blowback, lengthy intellectual property negotiations, production costs, and need for expansive support infrastructure as likely preventing Canada from purchasing nuclear-powered subs.
Shen Yun Faces Unrelenting Interference From Beijing in South Korea

Shen Yun Performing Arts World Companys curtain call at the National Theater of Korea in Seoul, South Korea, on Feb. 19, 2023. (Kim Guk-hwan/The Epoch Times)

Shen Yun Performing Arts has faced challenges in securing top-flight venues in South Korea, sparking concerns over Beijings interference in South Koreas internal affairs and cultural sovereignty.

New York-based Shen Yun is the worlds top classical Chinese dance company, and since its inception in 2006, it has become a global phenomenon. Using the universal language of music and dance, it seeks to revive 5,000 years of Chinese civilization and show audiences the beauty of China before communism.

The organizations eight equally sized companies have embarked on a journey of more than 750 performances in over 180 cities in more than 20 countries on five continents this year.

However, Shen Yun has struggled to secure top-flight venues in South Korea for the past 17 years.

Most recently, in 2023, 13 government-operated theaters refused to rent their venues to Shen Yun, all citing Beijings disinformation about the show.

Despite that, Shen Yun was able to secure three major venues this year, the National Theater of Korea in Seoul, the Sohyang Theater in Busan, and the Gumi Art Center in Gumi.

Beijing Interference

Viewing the companys mission to revive traditional Chinese culture as a direct challenge to its authority, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has gone to great lengths to interfere with Shen Yuns performances worldwide.

Its efforts are especially rampant in South Korea.

For years, Shen Yuns venue applications to major South Korean theaters were often rejected ahead of its tour, oftentimes without an explanation.

There are also instances where the theaters would abruptly cancel the venue rental even after a contract had been signed. In such cases, Shen Yun would pursue legal action.

In 2016, Seouls KBS Hall pulled the plug on Shen Yuns performances, prompting the local organizer to launch legal action against the venue, seeking a court order that the company be allowed to perform.

KBS Hall, a government-owned venue attached to the largest national broadcaster, Korean Broadcasting Service, had a working relationship with Chinas state broadcaster, China Central Television (CCTV). Ahead of the performance, the theater received multiple letters from the Chinese Embassy, also obtained by The Epoch Times, demanding that it not host Shen Yun.

Seoul Southern District Court ruled that the cancellation does not hold and that Shen Yun must be allowed to perform at KBS. However, seeing the result, the Chinese embassy issued another official document and sent it to KBS Hall, again with the same libel and threats.

A few days later, the court revoked its decision and canceled Shen Yuns four performanceseven though thousands of tickets had already been sold.

The court order also revealed the implicit financial threat involved. It noted that KBS, or Korean Broadcasting System, the national public broadcaster that owns the hall, currently broadcasts content in China. The court order reasoned that if Shen Yuns shows were canceled, the theater would only have to compensate the companys losses. But if Shen Yun performed and, as a result, the Chinese Communist Party retaliated and revoked KBSs content dissemination rights in China, then KBS stood to lose upwards of eight million dollars.

US State Department Report Highlights Beijing Coercion

The U.S. Department of States 2020 Report on International Religious Freedom cited Shen Yuns difficulty finding venues in South Korea and several instances of the abrupt cancellation of performances in the country due to pressure from the Chinese regime.

The annual U.S. report highlights government policies violating the religious belief and practices of groups, religious denominations, and individuals in accordance with the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998.

According to the Korean Falun Dafa Association, the local organizer of Shen Yun, the Chinese Embassy and Consulate General in South Korea have been forcing local governments and universities with major performance venues to refuse venue rentals to Shen Yun or cancel existing contracts with the company for the past 17 years. And their methods of coercion include phone calls, letters, and personal visits.

It urged South Korean local governments to no longer remain silent or cooperate with the Chinese regimes interference in South Koreas internal affairs and violate its cultural sovereignty.

Falun Gong, also known as Falun Dafa, is an ancient Chinese spiritual practice consisting of five meditative exercises and moral teachings based on the principles of truthfulness, compassion, and tolerance. The practice became widely popular for its health benefits in China in the 1990s, eventually attracting an estimated 70 million to 100 million by the end of the decade, according to official Chinese records.

Perceiving this popularity as a threat to its power, the CCP started an elimination campaign in 1999, resulting in millions of adherents being detained and an unknown number of deaths from slave labor, torture, and other abuses over the past 23 years.

On the other hand, the venue at the government-operated National Theater of Korea was made available to Shen Yun for the first time this year, a welcoming change since President Yoon Suk-yeol took office in May 2022.

Yoon is widely known for his stance on strengthening ties with Washington over Beijing.

At the recent U.S.-South Korea Summit in April, the two leaders pledged to enhance the cultural connections between the nations, leading many to speculate whether the South Korean theaters, which have long yielded to Beijings interference, will undergo a transformation.
Significant Portion of Trump Indictment Based on Protected Attorney-Client Privilege: Ex-Federal Prosecutor

A significant amount of the indictment against former President Donald Trump is based on attorney-client communications which are protected under U.S. law and will likely lead to a long and drawn-out legal battle in the months ahead, according to legal experts.

Trump has been charged with 31 counts of willful retention of national defense information; one count of conspiracy to obstruct justice, one count of withholding a document or record, one count of scheme to conceal, one count of corruptly concealing a document or record, one count of concealing a document in a federal investigation, and one count of false statements and representations.

The indictment marks the first time in history that the Department of Justice has charged a former president with a crime and will likely have serious implications for the 2024 presidential race, in which Trump is a leading candidate.

The former president has vowed to remain in the race regardless of the outcome of the trial. He pleaded not guilty in a federal court in Miami on June 13 and has called the case against him political persecution.

Speaking with EpochTVs Crossroads program on June 13, former federal prosecutor Will Scharf told host Joshua Philipp that it appears as though the DOJ has essentially gotten into the middle of the attorney-client privilege between Trump and his lawyer, Evan Corcoran, which Scharf described as one of the core privileges guaranteed in our legal system.

The attorney-client privilege protects the confidentiality of communications between individuals and their lawyers, meaning the latter may not disclose either oral or written communications with their clients to anyone unless granted permission by the client to do so.

However, Corcoran was forced to testify in the case against Trump and hand over records, including private correspondence, earlier this year after DOJ-appointed Special Counsel Jack Smith was able to obtain a crime-fraud exception, effectively piercing the attorney-client privilege.

Former President Donald Trump visits the Versailles restaurant in the Little Havana neighborhood after being arraigned at the Wilkie D. Ferguson Jr. United States Federal Courthouse in Miami, Florida, on June 13, 2023. (Stephanie Keith/Getty Images)

Key Legal Battle Lies Ahead

Its not unique, but it certainly is another strange feature of the case that were seeing brought in court today, Scharf said. If you read the face of the indictment, a lot of the evidence that the special counsel appears to be relying on particularly to prove President Trumps state of mind, his knowledge, his understanding of what was going on, is attorney-client communications between President Trump and a former lawyer of his.

Attorney-client communications, attorney-client work product, are very strongly protected in really all common law legal systems, but especially here in America. And the fact that those communications form such a large part of the case against the president is something thats going to be litigated, and I think, be a key legal battle in the months ahead, said Scharf, who is running in the 2024 GOP primary for Missouri attorney general.

I would say that hes being treated worse than many people who have a much weaker legal case than he does, Scharf said of Trump.

Scharf said he believes Trumps legal team will soon move to dismiss all or part of the indictment against the former president and will likely be successful in doing so, meaning he could be found not guilty on a number of counts.

After that, its up to the government to prove to a jury of 12 men and women beyond a reasonable doubt that their theory of the case against Trump is correct, which Scharf said is a very high quantum of proof and a difficult task to achieve.

Its certainly a long road ahead of us. But if I have to put money on anybody, it would be on President Trump at this point, based on everything that Ive seen, Scharf said.

Elsewhere on the Crossroads program Rep. Andy Ogles (R-Tenn.) said the indictment against Trump was political persecution and akin to what you might see in dictatorships like China or Russia.

Protesters stand in front of the Wilkie D. Ferguson, Jr. federal courthouse ahead of former President Donald Trumps court appearance in Miami, Fla., on June 13, 2023. (Madalina Vasiliu/The Epoch Times)

Weaponized Department of Justice

Ogles also noted that President Joe Biden has been the subject of an alleged bribery scandal for which there has never been an investigation or subsequent trial.

Earlier this year it was revealed that classified documents were also discovered at Bidens home and former office from his time as a U.S. senator. Biden referred to the documents as stray papers.

This is clearly a situation where a weaponized Department of Justice has targeted President Trump because theyre terrified of him, said Ogles, who on June 12 introduced articles of impeachment against Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris.

Ogless articles of impeachment allege that Biden has weaponized his presidency and vice presidency to shield the business and influence peddling schemes of his family from congressional oversight and public accountability.

Ogles said he believes that the indictment of Trump is akin to election interference, noting that there are a number of pressing issues that need to be addressed in order to protect American and national security such as the ongoing border and fentanyl crises, but that the focus is instead on Trump.

We have a border thats porous and wide open, 250,000 to 300,000 people coming here illegally every single month, you have kids overdosing on fentanyl. Why? Because of this administration. And meanwhile, theyre worried about Donald Trump. This is ridiculous, the Tennessee lawmaker said.

Ultimately though, Ogles believes the former president will go on to win the 2024 race because America is waking up to the fact that this administration has weaponized the government against them.

Patrick Basham, a former adjunct scholar and senior fellow of the Cato Institute and the founding director of the Democracy Institute, shares a similar view, noting that Trump is still doing well in multiple polls.

A protester holds a sign outside the Wilkie D. Ferguson, Jr. federal courthouse in Miami, Fla., on June 13, 2023. (Madalina Vasiliu/The Epoch Times)

Biden Administration Made Consequential Miscalculation

A June 13 USA Today/Suffolk University 2024 poll shows that Trump has 48 percent support in GOP primaries and caucuses with a 25 percentage point lead over Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis. No other candidate has 5 percent.

This is showing that this is helping Trump not hurting him, and therefore by default, hurting his opponents, principally Ron DeSantis at least on the Republican side, Basham said. It shows that this is a monumental, consequential miscalculation on the part of the Biden administration, given the whole point of this is to either weaken Trump as a candidate in 2024 or potentially eliminate him.

Basham noted that prior to Trumps indictment, polls were showing him with a mid to high 20 points lead over DeSantis but that the former president is now holding up to a 30 percent lead over his rivals, which Basham believes in part is down to voters feeling sympathetic toward Trump who is clearly being politically prosecuted.

Its so helping Trump that I start to wonder, is it possible that Donald Trump is the secret campaign manager of the Biden campaign? Because who would do this thinking it was going to help Biden and hurt Trump, but theyve done it. And so far theyve made a big mistake, Basham said.

Throughout the case against Trump, the former president has maintained that he had the authority to possess classified documents under the Presidential Records Act of 1987.

Speaking to a crowd of supporters in Bedminster, New Jersey, after pleading not guilty on Monday, Trump called the indictment the most evil and heinous abuse of power in the history of our country and a very sad thing to watch.

A corrupt sitting president had his top political opponent arrested on fake and fabricated charges, of which he and numerous other presidents would be guilty, right in the middle of a presidential election, in which hes losing very badly, Trump said. What they did to lawyers, what they have done to our lawyers, all of our lawyers, theyve done things that were absolutely horrible and unthinkable.

This day will go down in infamy, and Joe Biden will forever be remembered as not only the most corrupt president in the history of our country, but, perhaps even more importantly, the president who, together with a band of his closest thugs, misfits, and Marxists tried to destroy American democracy, the former president added.
South Africa Brands as Unfair US Politicians Call to Punish It for Supporting Russia

US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken speaks during a closing press conference with the secretary-general of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) at the 60th OECD Ministerial Council Meeting in Paris on Oct. 6, 2021. (Ian Langston/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

JOHANNESBURGThe South African government has stated that any punitive action taken against it by the Biden administration for Pretorias perceived support of Russia in its war against Ukraine would be based on hysteria, hearsay, and contempt for South Africas sovereignty.

The reaction comes after four powerful U.S. congressmen from the Democratic and Republican parties wrote a letter to senior Washington officials on June 9 effectively asking U.S. President Joe Biden to retaliate against South Africa.

The letter was addressed to Secretary of State Antony Blinken, U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai, and Bidens national security adviser, Jake Sullivan.

It suggested that South Africas access to the U.S. governments African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) be terminated.

AGOA gives 25 African countries preferential and duty-free access to U.S. markets.

South Africas exports to the United States under AGOA reached almost $1 billion in the first three months of 2023. Its the second biggest beneficiary of the program after Nigeria.

The letter also requested that the AGOA Forum, at which U.S. officials and their African counterparts are to discuss trade ties between the worlds largest economy and the continent, be moved away from Johannesburg.

The meeting is supposed to be held in South Africas biggest city in November.

The letter, dated June 9, was signed by Sen. Chris Coons (D-Del.) of the Senate Foreign Affairs Committee; Rep. Mike McCaul (R-Texas), chairman of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs; Sen. Jim Risch (R-Idaho), ranking Republican member of the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations; and Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-N.Y.), ranking Democratic member of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs.

We are seriously concerned that hosting the 2023 AGOA Forum in South Africa would serve as an implicit endorsement of South Africas damaging support for Russias invasion of Ukraine and possible violation of U.S. sanctions law, the lawmakers wrote.

Further, these actions by South Africa call into question its eligibility for trade benefits under AGOA due to the statutory requirement that beneficiary countries not engage in activities that undermine United States national security or foreign policy interests.

They questioned whether a country in danger of losing AGOA status should have the privilege of hosting a meeting focused on the program.

Our concerns are shared by many South African citizens and businesses, who are increasingly vocal about deteriorating conditions in the country, the letter reads. We encourage you to explore other possible locations to host this years forum.

Chris Hattingh, a senior analyst at the Centre for Risk Analysis in Johannesburg, said it should be very concerning to South African President Cyril Ramaphosa that the warnings were coming from both sides of the U.S. political divide.

Democrats usually give Africans a lot of leeway when it comes to foreign policy issues, Hattingh told The Epoch Times. The fact that liberal Democrats have lost patience with the South African government and its love affair with Russia and are now expressing open animosity to the ANC [African National Congress] government is very telling.

This could be the biggest turning point in United StatesSouth Africa relations since the end of apartheid, and its not going to be a turn for the better.

The letter refers to U.S. intelligence reports that said Pretoria had provided weapons to Russia in December 2022.

Late last year, a Russian cargo vessel [The Lady R] subject to U.S. sanctions docked in South Africas largest naval port, and intelligence suggests that the South African government used this opportunity to covertly supply Russia with arms and ammunition that could be used in its illegal war in Ukraine, the letter reads.

Ramaphosas spokesperson, Vincent Magwenya, told The Epoch Times that the U.S. legislators letter was unfair.

We maintain that the American intelligence reports are wrong. Our government did not supply arms to anyone. Nevertheless, we have appointed an independent panel to investigate what, if anything, was loaded onto Lady R, Magwenya said.

The U.S. members of Congress dont have any proof of what they are claiming.

U.S. intelligence services have also not released any evidence to support their claims. But in the eyes of these members of Congress, we are guilty as charged.

He said the congressmen had failed to recognize that the South African government is actively pursuing a peaceful end to the conflict in Ukraine.

We have been engaging with the United States, Ukraine, and Russia to this end, Magwenya said. President Ramaphosa is also part of the African Leaders Peace Mission that aims to end the conflict as soon as possible.

He noted that Biden continued to encourage Ramaphosa to use his access to both Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to advocate for peace.

Therefore, any punitive trade action against South Africa will be based on hysteria, hearsay, and contempt for South Africas sovereignty. In the conduct of foreign policy, the government will always act in accordance with the prescripts of our constitution and laws, Magwenya said.

The letter asking for action to be taken against South Africa came just a few weeks after senior ANC officials visited the Capitol to meet members of Congress to emphasize Pretorias neutrality in the war in Eastern Europe and to ask Washington to not exclude South Africa from AGOA.

Either the pleas and convincing fell on deaf ears or the Americans simply didnt believe the South African government delegation. My moneys on the latter, Hattingh said.

The letter suggests that U.S. lawmakers arent convinced of South Africas non-alignment.

In February, South Africa held joint military exercises with Russia and China, and in April, authorized a Russian military cargo plane also subject to US sanctionsto land at a South African air force base, the letter reads.

On top of this, in August, South Africa will host the BRICS Summit where the government aims to strengthen its ties with China and Russia and is working to facilitate the participation of Russian President Vladimir Putin, despite the outstanding arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court [ICC].

The annual meeting of heads of state of the BRICS countriesBrazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africais scheduled to be held in Johannesburg in late August.

Putins attendance is complicated by the fact that the ICC has issued an indictment against him for war crimes allegedly committed in Ukraine.

As a signatory to the law that established the ICC in Rome in 2002, South Africa is obligated to arrest Putin if he sets foot on its soil.

But Pretoria has stated that it has no intention of doing so and that its exploring options that would allow the Russian leader to attend the summit in person without fear of being taken into custody.

Some analysts say punishing South Africa would drive it further away from the West and more firmly into the ChinaRussia camp.

Hattingh said thats where South Africa under the ANC is anyway.
Students at Massachusetts School Revolt Against Gay Pride Celebrations

Students at a middle school near Boston revolted against Pride Month celebrations and destroyed rainbow decorations, according to school officials.

The incident was sparked after the schools Spectrum club for LGBT students celebrated the beginning of Pride Month by distributing rainbow stickers, plastering Pride signs, and by telling their peers to wear rainbow clothing, the Boston Globe reported.

Children attending Marshall Simonds Middle School in Burlington were encouraged by their teachers to support the student group, on June 2, in celebration of Pride Month, Boston 25 News reported.

However, some students refused and instead tore down the rainbow decorations, wore patriotic colors, and chanted that U.S.A. was their pronoun, in what school administrators called a display of intolerance and homophobia.

Computer science teacher Diana Marcus told BCAT News that the protesting students had intimidated participants in the Pride celebration, which was similar to what school administrators said in a letter to parents.

Over the course of the day, you could actually see a reduction in the number of students walking around in rainbow-colored clothing. It was really tough, Marcus said.

Middle school students pick up on all this stuff. They may seem socially unaware, but our most vulnerable students are very aware of the situation around them. It was very clear that those students were not feeling supported.

Principal Cari Perchase, who is a supporter of the gay and transgender community at the school, told students that she was truly sorry that a day meant for you to celebrate your identity turned into a day of intolerance and that I want to publicly state that I stand in solidarity and support of the members of the LGBTQ community who were impacted by these events.

We ask all staff, teachers, and members of the Burlington Public School community to join us in taking a stand against homophobia and identity-directed hateful actions, Superintendent Eric Conti wrote in a letter to the community.

A School Committee meeting was held on June 13 to discuss the clash.

LGBT Activist Call for Rebel Students to Face Punishment

Nancy Bonassera, a co-chair of the Burlington Equity Coalition, who said she is a parent of one of the kids at the school, complained about the student revolt at the towns select board meeting on June 12.

On that same day, there was a counter-demonstration in response to what should have been a day to celebrate. Students wore red, white and blue clothing, chanted my pronouns are USA, and destroyed rainbow decorations at the school, said Bonassera.

These displays of intolerance and homophobia are unacceptable and impact the whole community, she added.

Bonassera demanded that school administrators provide consequences and punish the protesting children and declared the incident an opportunity for the town to promote inclusivity and equality.

She also requested that the Massachusetts town reinstate the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion subcommittee and appoint a director of DEI policy, which has been open for a year.

We also believe that without any direct and concrete action, these incidents will occur again and increase in severity, said the activist mother.

Former School Committee member Carl Foss said he was shocked and saddened at the childrens demonstration and that he, thought Burlington was a safer place than Texas or Florida.

Obviously, I was wrong, Foss added. Some may argue that the incidents are a schools problem. To that, I would say it runs deeper. This type of intolerant rhetoric starts in the home.

Select Board Chair Mike Runyan told the meeting attendees that the school administration was taking the matter seriously and was working with the town to investigate.

So far, it is unknown whether any students have been punished in connection to the protest.

Town Board Calls for DEI Policies to Be Instated

Meanwhile, Select Board member Michael Espejo told CBS Boston that a bad light has been cast over our town and claimed that he was traumatized by the event at the school.

I was very upset. Ive lost sleep over it, Espejo said and added, it kind of shocked me to my core. I didnt think something like that could happen in Burlington.

He also called for the reinstatement of the defunct DEI subcommittee and said that a professional be placed at its helm to lead us in the endeavor.

Gov. Maura Healey, Massachusetts lesbian governor, told Boston 25 News that she was disappointed by what happened at the school but that administrators would immediately address it.

I hope it becomes a teaching moment for the young people who were involved in that, Healey said and that it doesnt represent who we are as a state.

Healey said that the state of Massachusetts will work to ensure that members of the LGBTQ+ community, young and old, are seen, are heard, are respected and will be cared for and protected.
Teacher Who Was Shot by 6-Year-Old Student in Virginia Has Resigned, School Officials Say

The first-grade teacher who was shot by her 6-year-old student in Virginia has resigned from her position, school officials said Tuesday, more than two months after she sued the district for $40 million.

The last day of Abby Zwerners contract was Monday, Newport News Public Schools said in a statement. The district said that Zwerner notified human resources in March that she wouldnt be returning next school year.

Zwerner, 25, was shot in the hand and chest as she sat at a reading table in her first-grade classroom on Jan. 6. She spent nearly two weeks in the hospital, has endured multiple surgeries and told NBC that she sometimes  cant get up out of bed.

Zwerner filed her lawsuit in early April, alleging that school officials ignored multiple warnings that the boy had a gun and was in a violent mood that day.

The school board has pushed back, asking a judge to dismiss the case and arguing that Zwerner should get workers compensation instead.

WAVY-TV first reported that Zwerner no longer worked for the district on Tuesday. In an interview with the station, an attorney for Zwerner characterized her departure as a firing.

Abigail Zwerner, a first-grade teacher at Richneck Elementary School in Newport News, Va., inside her classroom in a file photo. (Family of Abigail Zwerner via AP)

Lawyer Jeffrey Breit cited an email that school officials sent Zwerner in May, stating they had processed a separation of employment for you effective the close of business 06/12/2023.

Breit told WAVY: I dont think you can read this any other way than youve been fired. And thats what she thinks. She doesnt understand it; theres no other communication.

Newport News Public Schools refuted Breits claim in a statement Tuesday.

Every employee who is separating from the school division receives a similar communication, the district said.

The school system also provided emails between the district and Zwerner in which the teacher wrote: I wish to resign. Thank you.

Breit did not respond to an email and a phone call from The Associated Press seeking comment.

Zwerners resignation is yet another development in the aftermath of the shooting, which has reverberated through the shipbuilding city of about 180,000 people near the Atlantic coast.

The boy who shot Zwerner had used his mothers gun. His mother, Deja Taylor, pleaded guilty Monday in federal court to using marijuana while owning a firearm, which is illegal under U.S. law.

Deja Nicole Taylor, 25, in a booking photo. (Courtesy of Newport News Police Department)

Taylor is facing charges on the state level of felony child neglect and reckless storage of a firearm. A trial for those counts is set for August.

Meanwhile, Zwerners $40 million lawsuit is pending.

Zwerners attorneys have said school officials knew the boy had a history of random violence at school and at home, including an episode the year before in which he strangled and choked his kindergarten teacher.

Teachers concerns with John Does behavior (were) regularly brought to the attention of Richneck Elementary School administration, and the concerns were always dismissed, the lawsuit states.

In asking a judge to dismiss the case, the school board has argued that Zwerners injuries fall under the states workers compensation act.

The school board rejected Zwerners claim that she could reasonably expect to work with young children who pose no danger, pointing to numerous incidents of violence against teachers across the U.S. and in Newport News.

While in an ideal world, young children would not pose any danger to others, including their teachers, this is sadly not reality, the board stated.

The school board said Zwerner has refused to accept workers compensation.

By Ben Finley
Texas Beaches Cleared After Inundated With Thousands of Dead Fish From Fish Kill

Several Texas beaches along the Gulf Coast are in clean-up mode after being inundated with thousands of dead fish, which had prompted wildlife officials to warn people against visiting over the weekend until the fish kill fallout subsides.

On June 11, the Brazoria and Quintana County Parks departments used tractors with giant rakes to clear the carcasses of dead fish off the beaches.

The pedestrian beach is cleared with the exception of a spattering of fish that the machinery couldnt get, the Quintana Beach County Park (QBCP) department said in a Facebook statement. High tides over the next couple of days should sift the rest down into the sand and bury them.

The fish kill resulted in high bacterial levels in the water, as well as sharp fins from the fish risking cuts to swimmers.

The QBCP said water samples taken from its Intracoastal Waterway were found to have close to no dissolved oxygen and no evidence of a chemical release.

The department then asked the public to stop spreading misinformation.

The Brazoria County Parks Dept., nor the TP&W has any interest in covering for the chemical industry if a spill of any kind were to happen, the QBCP said. We are in the business of protecting the environment and creating safe spaces for the public to enjoy nature.

Fish kill in Quintana County Beach, Texas, in June 2023. (Courtesy of Quintana Beach County Parks Department)

Fish Kills Common

According to the Texas Parks and Wildlife Departments (TPWD) Kills and Spills Team, an investigation determined that the scores of dead fish were caused by a low dissolved oxygen event.

Fish kills like this are common in the summer when temperatures increase, the TPWD said in a statement to The Epoch Times. If there isnt enough oxygen in the water, fish cant breathe. Low dissolved oxygen in many cases is a natural occurrence.

Photosynthesis and aerobic respiration result in changes in oxygen concentration, the TPWD said.

Increased dissolved oxygen during the day is a result of photosynthesis which is driven by sunlight, the TPWD said. Photosynthesis stops at night and may slow down on cloudy days, but plants and animals in the water continue to respire and consume free oxygen, decreasing the dissolved oxygen concentration.

The TPWD said before the fish kill event takes place, fish will strive for more oxygen by gulping at the surface of the water in the morning.

The species impacted was the Gulf menhaden, which travel in large schools.

According to the National Ocean and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), over 32 different predators feed on the Gulf menhaden, which include sharks, mackerel, and sea birds.

The fish act as filters, cleaning impurities out of the water.

Their pattern of traveling in large schools likely contributed to the sudden appearance of such a large quantity of fish at once, according to officials.

Tractor cleaning up after fish kill on Quintana Beach County Park, Texas, in June 2023. (Courtesy of Quintana Beach County Parks Department)

It Looked Like a Big Blanket

Patty Brinkmeyer, the park supervisor with QBCP, told CNN it was the third time in her 17 years that shed witnessed the phenomenon, with this most recent incident being the largest amount of fish.

You could literally see a straight-across mass of fish floating on the water, Brinkmeyer said. It looked like a big blanket.

Despite some media outlets attempting to connect the fish kill to climate change, state officials said the phenomenon is normal.

Katie St. Clair, a sea life facility manager with Texas A&M University, told a local news outlet that hypoxia takes place when there is a lower than normal dissolved oxygen in the water, which she adds is very common in the summer.

As we get these warmer Gulf water temperatures, the water itself has less capacity to hold dissolved oxygen, which, of course, is really important and essential for the fish and other animals to breathe, Clair said.

Clair added a benefit of the die-off is there will be a huge nutrient pulse into our environment.

Its kind of a circle of life, she said.
BEIJING, June 14 (Xinhua) -- China has approved the imports of bananas and coffee beans from Honduras starting Tuesday, according to a notice issued by the General Administration of Customs (GAC).

China also ratified access of Honduran white shrimps to its market as the two countries officially signed protocol documents for Honduran aquaculture products on Monday.

To date, the GAC has approved the registration of 10 Honduran coffee bean and nine aquatic products enterprises in China.

Since China and Honduras established diplomatic relations in March this year, the bilateral trade scaled up. In the first four months of 2023, the total value of China's imports from and exports to Honduras jumped 22.9 percent year on year to top 3.89 billion yuan (about 543.55 million U.S. dollars). 
The Ghosts of Khrushchev, Castro Now Haunt Communist Chinas Cuba

A P2V Neptune U.S. patrol plane flies over a Soviet freighter during the Cuban Missile Crisis in October 1962. The crisis brought the world to the verge of nuclear catastrophe. (MPI/Getty Images)

Commentary

As a young boy growing up among the servant class in Palm Beach, Florida, and living just down the street from President John F. Kennedys (JFK) Florida compound during the Cuban missile crisis, it was one of the scariest times of my life. Construction crews were working on a nuclear bomb shelter for JFK under nearby Peanut Island while my classmates and I were practicing hiding underneath our desks in the event of a Soviet attack.

JFK was absolutely right then to make sure that the shoe-pounding Nikita Khrushchev didnt have the capability to launch nuclear-tipped missiles 90 miles from American shores. Thankfully, his combination of steely spined brinksmanship and deft diplomacy resulted in a Soviet retreat.

Today, an even more dangerous existential threat to America originates from a rapidly militarizing communist China and, again, from socialist Cuba. In this new Cuban (cyber) missile crisis, China is installing far more than a simple surveillance outpost.

One need look no further than similar communist Chinese facilities on islands across the South China Sea to understand that the Cuban adventure is no more a simple listening post than the massive balloon that China sent on a cross-country journey across the United States was, as the Neville Chamberlain of his time, Joe Biden, put it, a silly balloon.

In todays cyber times and age of deadly artificial intelligence, the clear and present danger to America is this: From nearby Cuba, Chinese dictator Xi Jinping and his Peoples Liberation Army will have far better and more lethal cyber and electronic warfare capabilities to wage what the Chinese military itself calls unrestricted warfare.

Chinese military ships moor at the port of Havana in Cuba on Nov. 10, 2015. (Yamil Lage/AFP via Getty Images)

From its Cuban fortress, communist China will be far better able to disable American communications, disrupt our financial systems, misdirect U.S. ship traffic, launch sonic attacks on our Guantanamo base and, most dangerously, paralyze our electricity grid, rail systems, and water supplies.

From my days in the Trump White House, I can assure you that communist China is planning to wage such unrestricted warfare should push comes to shove in some kind of U.S.-China contingency, with the coming battle over Taiwan offering up the most likely possibility.

Heres what infuriates me the most about the Biden administrations response to this new Cuban (cyber) missile crisis. First, the gut first reaction of this administration was to immediately lie to the American people about the presence of China in Cuba.

We are not aware of China and Cuba developing any type of spy stations, Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder, the Pentagons press secretary, told reporters.

That leads me to the second infuriating thing: In admitting its lie amid intense public pressure, the Biden administration now claims communist Chinas Cuban fortress first popped up during the Trump yearsso blame Trump is the implication.

Now hear this breaking news: During my service at the White House, I never once heard of any such Chinese fortress on Cuban soil. Ever.

If Donald Trump had been fully briefed about such an existential threat, he certainly wouldnt have tolerated it. He also would have factored such an egregious threat into his tough trade policies against Chinaand I would certainly have heard about that.

The other possibility is that the Deep State intelligence apparatus simply refused to disclose this information to Trumps White House. This rings as at least possibly true, as I noticed every time I sat in on a national security briefing, Americas so-called intelligence officers would always take a see no evil appeasement posture toward communist China, perhaps fearful that Trump would take an even tougher line on Xis dictatorship.

Heres the bottom line: Communist China is now using its debt trap diplomacy to drag an impoverished and cash-starved socialist Cuba into its panda Belt and Road Initiative bearhug. If the Biden administration fails to immediately shut this down, a strategic Cuban naval port will likely be next on Xis shopping list.

Follow Peter Navarro at PeterNavarro.Substack.com, where this article originally appeared.

Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
Trudeaus Former Adviser Defends Not Briefing PM on Beijing Threats to MPs

Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs David Morrison takes part in the meeting to discuss the Venezuelan political crisis, in Lima, Peru, Tuesday, Aug. 8, 2017. (AP Photo/Martin Mejia)

A senior official who received a memo on Chinese regime threats to MPs told a committee that the transmission of information had functioned as expected and that the report did not warrant being shared immediately with the prime minister.

I would submit that the system did function according to the protocols that were in place back in 2021, said Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs David Morrison as he testified before the House of Commons Procedure and House Affairs Committee (PROC) on June 13.

Morrison was Trudeaus acting National Security and Intelligence Advisor (NSIA) when the office received an assessment from the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) in the summer of 2021.

The assessment of Chinese interference reportedly contained information about Beijing seeking to target unspecified MPs for their stance on human rights in China. The information was never briefed to any minister, as revealed in recent weeks, and only came to light after The Globe and Mail broke the story on May 1.

Morrison told the committee that the CSIS document was in his reading package on August 17, 2021, but he had no recollection of receiving it or reading it then. He mentioned that Kabul had fallen to the Taliban on August 15 and his focus was on that issue.

Once the dust from Afghanistan settled, Morrison said he did read the CSIS assessment but decided not to raise it with the prime minister, saying it was never intended to spur action by readers.

It was not a memorandum for action, it was a report for awareness, he said.

Conservative MP Michael Cooper said he was absolutely astounded by Morrisons testimony and his singular refusal to accept responsibility given his role to brief Trudeau on national security matters.

Tory MP John Nater pointed to the fact that Morrison was given the CSIS assessment two days after the government was dissolved and an election called by Trudeau. As NSIA, Morrison was assigned to sit on the election integrity panel.

You, as National Security and Intelligence Advisor, you, as a member of the panel of five, didnt twig to the fact that this could be an issue in a campaign that had just been called two days prior? asked Nater.

No, I did not anticipate being informed of a threat to Canadas democratic processes in a lengthy info note that came without a warning in my pack, replied Morrison.

Follow-up Assessment

Despite Morrison having judged that the information wasnt significant enough to brief the prime minister, he said he found it interesting enough to commission a follow-up assessment by analysts within the Privy Council Office (PCO).

He said most of the contents of that assessment were published by Global News as a result of a leak. The outlet reported on the memo in November 2022 and March 8 of this year.

A large clandestine transfer of funds earmarked for the federal election from the PRC Consulate in Toronto was transferred to an elected provincial government official via a staff member of a 2019 federal candidate, it reported.

Government officials have repeatedly denied seeing intelligence about Beijing money going to candidates.

Morrison told the committee he didnt know if the PCO memo had been briefed to the prime minister, having left his position in early January before it was finalized.

Morrison also said anyone reading the CSIS assessment could have safely assumed that any necessary action on any of the specific points raised had already been taken.

He pointed to an issues management note that CSIS sent to the minister of public safety in May 2021 on the same matter which mentioned specifically the MPs being targeted, including Conservative MP Michael Chong.

The note said that Chong would be provided a defensive briefing, which is unclassified in nature, and didnt go into the specifics of the threat. That briefing was provided in June 2021.

But as other committee testimonies have demonstrated, the CSIS note never made it to then-public safety minister Bill Blair.

Emergency Preparedness Minister Blair said on June 1 that CSIS had determined the issue was not something worth briefing him on, and that he didnt have access to the secure communications system through which the note had been sent.

CSIS Director David Vigneault testified at PROC on June 13 that issues management notes are not often sent to the minister and his department and are used to convey matters of high importance.

I think the fact that we did an issues management note speaks to the notion that we wanted to highlight the information, he said.

CSIS Role

With respect to Morrisons assertion that the CSIS assessment did not call for action from the readers, CSIS products typically never do. The role of CSIS is to provide intelligence to the government, which it then uses to make policy or take action.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau made this point to reporters in February when asked why he had not rescinded the Liberal Party nomination of Han Dong, after being briefed about the Chinese consulates involvement.

In a free democracy, it is not up to unelected security officials to dictate to political parties who can or cannot run, Trudeau said.

The report from former special rapporteur David Johnston, who Trudeau appointed in March, confirmed some of the national security leaks that appeared in the media in that regard.

Irregularities were observed with Mr. Dongs nomination in 2019, and there is well-grounded suspicion that the irregularities were tied to the PRC Consulate in Toronto, with whom Mr. Dong maintains relationships, wrote Johnston.

Johnston added that Trudeau had been briefed, but no recommendation had been provided, saying, He concluded there was no basis to displace Mr. Dong as the candidate for Don Valley North. This was not an unreasonable conclusion based on the intelligence available to the Prime Minister at the time.

Johnston resigned from the role on June 9, after initially resisting a call from the House of Commons to step down.
Trump Gets the Beria Treatment

Special counsel Jack Smith delivers remarks on a recently unsealed indictment against former President Donald Trump at the Justice Department in Washington on June 9, 2023. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)

Commentary

The Trump indictments (note the plural)are they not like the blind encountering an elephant for the first time?

One touches the beasts trunk and says its shaped like a snake.

Another touches its tusks and says, no, its hard and bone-like.

A third, hands on the elephants capacious side, says its more like a wall of flesh.

That old story was meant to remind us of how limited our individual perspectives can be.

How easy it is to mistake the part for the whole, to seize on one thing were familiar with and elevate it to a general explanatory principle.

Noting the wild differences among peoples assessments of the latestbut not the lastof the Trump indictments, I, at first, thought the differences of opinion might be due to the differences in the vantage points from which individuals survey the news about the indictments.

But the more I learn about the issue, the more I think thats too generous a conclusion.

It assumes a modicum of good faith among those issuing the judgments.

Alas, I dont think the motives of every party to this spectacle are pure.

Some, Im confident, are partisan actors.

Yes, the partisanship exists on either side of the spectrum.

But that isnt to say that its evenly distributed.

In my view, the lions share of the partisanship is on the anti-Trump side.

Thats both obvious and neglected.

Its obvious because Trump is the most investigated, the most harassed, and the most frequently indicted president in history.

Everyone knows that.

And yet, wethe public watching this happenare continually lulled into forgetting it.

Ever since 2015, when Donald Trump made his way down the elevator in Trump Tower to announce his candidacy for president, he has been the object of a concerted attack by the establishment.

In one sense, the indictment unsealed by special counsel Jack Smith the other day is just the latest chapter in the long-running drama called Get Trump.

Robert Mueller was the face of season one.

Now were well into Season five or six.

Have we jumped the shark yet?

Since Smith, in his 37-count indictment, drew heavily on the Espionage Act to frame his accusation, one might think so.

And yet legal experts from former Attorney General William Barr to legal commentator Jonathan Turley (among others) have publicly judged the indictment (favorite epithet) damning.

The indictment was very damning, Barr said, and Trump is toast if even half of the charges set forth in the indictment are true.

Turley agreed. The indictment was extremely damning, he said, a devastating hit below the waterline.

I hesitate to disagree with such eminent legal authorities.

But I wonder: Are they right?

I dont doubt that Trump is in serious legal jeopardy or that he might be convicted of a felony and, possibly, as Turley and others have suggested, even go to jail, if not for his handling of documents then for obstruction.

The forces arrayed against him are formidable.

But the question is, what did he do that was wrong?

Barr said Trump had no right to have the documents he had at his residence in Mar-a-Lago.

Those documents are among the most sensitive secrets the country has, he said.

Maybe.

But the question is whether Trump, a former president, was governed by the Presidential Records Act or the Espionage Act in his handling of the documents.

Jesse Watters was one among many who made the case for the former.

As president, Trump could handle, possess, and dispose of any documents any way he wished, Watters said.

George H. W. Bush did so, as did Bill Clinton, as did Barack Obama.

The situation is different with all those boxes of classified documents that Joe Biden stashed behind his Corvette in his Delaware garage.

Thats different because Biden was a senator or vice president, not president, when he parked those documents in his home.

But even to enumerate such details is to miss the point.

Donald Trump is being given the treatment that Lavrentiy Beria, Stalins head of the secret police, advocated for when he said, Show me the man, and Ill show you the crime.

At the end of the day, Trump is guilty not because of anything he has done but because of who he is.

Forget about the fact that Trump was in the process of consulting with the National Archives and the FBI about the documents when his home was raided by the FBI in August 2022.

Forget, too, that the documents in question were evasively described by the prosecutor as presumptively classified.

Trump is persona non grata, an enemy of the state.

Jack Smith is well suited to his role as a modern Beria.

As Julie Kelly pointed out, he was one of those who signed off on the FISA warrant for Carter Page, back at the inception of the Russia Collusion episode of the Get Trump saga.

Cant even make it up, Kelly said, but then you dont have to: The deep state, like the house of the Lord, is a mansion with many rooms.

No one who has been paying attention will be surprised that Smith, although nominally an independent, is an anti-Trump activist.

And its just business as usual that his wife, Katy Chevigny, is a left-wing documentary filmmaker and donor to Joe Bidens campaign.

Former Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard is no fan of Donald Trump, but shes right that Smiths indictment undermines democracy.

As Conrad Black, in a column for The New York Sun, put it, A democracy that uses the criminal justice system to destroy partisan opponents is on the verge of constitutional suicide.

Indeed.

Like an overactive immune system, our government is mobilizing the criminal justice system to conduct a partisan witch hunt.

It may well surround and destroy this novel threat to the host.

Unfortunately, the host wont survive in its original form.

It will emerge distorted and perverted into something else: not a constitutional republic but a one-party oligarchy.

The former was nice while it lasted.

Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
Former President Donald Trump has pleaded not guilty on charges brought against him for taking home classified documents while president. President Joe Biden is preparing to evacuate Americans from Taiwan, amid concerns the Chinese Communist Party may invade the island nation. And JPMorgan has agreed to pay a settlement in a case with victims of Jeffrey Epstein.

In this live Q&A with Crossroads host Joshua Philipp, well discuss these stories and others, and answer questions from the audience.
Tucker Carlson Says Prosecution of Trump Isnt Just Political, Its Ideological

Former Fox News host Tucker Carlson believes the indictment against former President Donald Trump is not just political but ideological and based on comments he made regarding the U.S.-led coalition invasion of Iraq.

Carlson made the remarks in the third episode of his Twitter show published on June 13, the same day that Trump pleaded not guilty in a Miami court to charges in the federal governments classified document case.

Carlson described Trumps appearance in court as the first step of a process designed to put the former president in prison for the rest of his life and said the Republicanwho is currently leading in 2024 election pollshad made himself the blood enemy of the largest and most powerful organization in human history, which would be the federal government in 2016.

The former Fox host then shared a clip of Trump during a February 2016 Republican candidates debate in Greenville, South Carolina.

During the clip, Trump can be seen telling the audience: We should have never been in Iraq. We have destabilized the Middle East. They lied, they said there were weapons of mass destruction. There was none. And they knew there were none. There were no weapons of mass destruction.

The United States-led invasion of Iraq, which was closely supported by the United Kingdom, began on March 20, 2003, after former President George Bushs claim that former Iraq President Saddam Hussein and his regime were harboring weapons of mass destruction.

Trump Sealed His Fate With War Comments

Hussein refused to step down as president and went into hiding before being captured by U.S. soldiers in early December 2003. He was then handed over to the new Iraqi government, which tried him for crimes against humanity and sentenced him to death by hanging in December 2006.

However, the war in Iraq continued to rage until 2011, and resulted in more than 4,700 U.S. and allied troop deaths, and the deaths of more than 100,000 Iraqi civilians, according to the Council on Foreign Relations, although the Department of Defense puts the number of American soldiers killed at 4,475.

Weapons of mass destruction were never found.

By saying that, he sealed his fate, Carlson said of Trump. That was the one thing you were not allowed to say because it implicated too many people on both sides.

After that, it was pretty clear that even if he did get elected president, Trump was going to have a very hard time controlling the federal government he was supposed to be in charge of. Most of Washington decided that thwarting Trump was the single most important mission in their lives Many of them said so publicly, Carlson said.

Trump Indictment Ideological

Carlson went on to state that the prosecution of Trump is transparently political.

Hes literally [President] Joe Bidens main political opponent. Hes polling over 60 percent among Republican voters right now. So Joe Biden is doing what no president has ever dared to do. Hes using law enforcement to lock up his chief rival. Thats happening right now. Anyone who denies its happening is lying to you. But actually, its worse than that. Trumps prosecution isnt just political. Its ideological, Carlson said.

Nobody with Trumps views is allowed to have power in this country. Criticize our wars, and youre disqualified. If you keep it up, well send you to prison. Thats the message Washington is sending, not just the Democratic Party is sending, but both parties are sending, he added.

Trump pleaded not guilty on Monday to 37 felony charges related to his alleged improper possession of classified records at Mar-a-Lago.

He has maintained that he is the victim of political persecution and said his indictment is tantamount to election interference. Despite the ongoing litigation and the outcome of the trial, Trump has vowed to remain in the 2024 presidential race.

Carlson concluded that the Biden administration is trying to take Trump out before you can vote for him.

And that should upset you more than anything thats happened in American politics in your lifetime, he said, adding that the destruction of American democracy should keep you up at night.

The Epoch Times has contacted the White House for comment.
UN Secretary-General Proposes Global Digital Compact to Push Laws Against Online Hate

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres deliver remarks to reporters outside the U.N. Security Council at U.N., headquarters in New York City, on April 20, 2023. (Mike Segar/Reuters)

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, proposed a Global Digital Compact, (GDC) to push sweeping international laws against hate and lies online.

The proliferation of hate & lies in the digital space is causing grave global harm. This clear & present global threat demands clear and coordinated global action. We dont have a moment to lose, he wrote in a tweet announcing the compact.

The UN policy brief, which was released on June 12, called for handing control of the internet to international bodies, as part of the UNs 2030 Agenda.

Guterres also referred to another UN brief, Information and Integrity on Digital Platforms (IIDP), which he said will be used as a guide to coordinate global efforts against hate.

The IIDP warned about what it calls, the darker side of the digital ecosystem, which could enable the rapid spread of lies and hate, causing real harm on a global scale.

Guterres said that the internet is being misused to deny science and spread disinformation and hate to billions of people, in a veiled reference to vaccine skeptics and growing populist movements.

The proliferation of hate and lies in the digital space is causing grave global harm. This clear and present global threat demands clear and coordinated global action. We dont have a moment to lose, he declared in his call for global censorship.

UN Calls for Nations to Suppress Online Disinformation

The GDC is focused on eliminating the divide across regions, gender, income, language, and age groups regarding internet access and decries the fact that some 89 percent of people in Europe are online, but only 21 percent of women in low-income countries use the internet.

Inequality is rising, it claimed, adding that enormous investments in technology have not been accompanied by spending on public education and infrastructure.

Digital technology has led to massive gains in productivity and value, but these benefits are not resulting in shared prosperity, said the brief.

The GDC blamed hate speech and disinformation, on malicious hackers, criminal activity, authoritarian state controls, and predatory business models, calling them serious risks to human rights.

It believes that the only solution is to develop robust accountability criteria and standards for digital platforms and users to address disinformation, hate speech, and other harmful online content.

IIDP expanded on that point by claiming that social media-enabled hate speech and disinformation can lead to violence and death. The ability to disseminate large-scale disinformation to undermine scientifically established facts poses an existential risk to humanity.

However, the writers of the UN report admitted that the distinction between mis- and disinformation can be subtle and difficult to determine, without providing any further details.

These statements raised alarm for those concerned with freedom of speech and in countries that have long traditions of free debate and expression.

Some countries with state-controlled media, like communist China, could utilize the international bodys panel on online censorship to crush overseas opposition to its views and policies worldwide.

Climate and Vaccine Skeptics to Be Targeted

The UN policy brief condemned any criticism of international climate change policy, which the international body sees as a settled science.

Skeptics of green policy were accused of being guilty of greenwashing, which was defined as misleading the public into believing that a company or entity is doing more to protect the environment, and less to harm it, than it is.

The report also called for banning online disinformation during key elections, where the spread of mis- and disinformation can undermine public trust in electoral institutions and the electoral process itself.

This proposal would definitely interfere with the internal politics of sovereign states, at a time when election disputes are still being hotly debated, such as with the 2020 and 2022 U.S. elections.

The UN further proposed a digital code of conduct, which laid out some of the proposed rules, but provided little detail on how they would be enforced or how violators would be judged.

The code of conduct only suggested that member states ensure that responses to mis- and disinformation and hate speech are consistent with international law, including international human rights law, and are not misused to block any legitimate expression of views of opinion.

The paper also called on major tech companies to invest in human and artificial intelligence content moderation systems, which could be programmed to block any views in opposition to the globalist agenda.

Digital platforms should move away from business models that prioritize engagement above human rights, privacy, and safety, it added.

From health and gender equality to peace, justice, education, and climate action, measures that limit the impact of mis- and disinformation and hate speech will boost efforts to achieve a sustainable future and leave no one behind, the report concluded.
Updated COVID-19 Vaccines Needed Due to Waning Effectiveness: FDA

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration in White Oak, Md., on July 20, 2020. (Sarah Silbiger/Getty Images)

Newly formulated COVID-19 vaccines are necessary because the performance of the current slate is slipping over time, U.S. officials said this week.

There appears to be an inverse relationship between the time since vaccination and vaccine effectiveness, such that bivalent COVID-19 vaccine effectiveness against Omicron sublineages appears to wane over time, Food and Drug Administration (FDA) officials said.

The vaccines were already updated in late 2022 to focus on Omicron subvariants such as BA.5, with the hope they would perform better than the old vaccines.

But the shots have been providing subpar protection against infection and short-lived shielding against hospitalization, according to data from the United States and elsewhere. That prompted a partial rollback in the availability of the shots.

Protection against hospitalization for adults aged 18 to 65 who are described as immunocompetent, for instance, started at 68 percent but plunged to 27 percent beyond 60 days, according to data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Other papers suggest the levels of neutralizing antibodiesbelieved to help protect people against COVID-19induced by the vaccines against XBB and its sublineages are lower than the levels against BA.5, the FDA staffers noted. Some evidence indicates that the bivalents, which retained a component of the original Wuhan strain, perform better against that variant, which hasnt been in circulation since 2020.

Those three points prompted the officials to say theyre preparing to direct vaccine makers to produce updated vaccines that dont contain a Wuhan component.

Both real-world evidence and immunogenicity data suggest that a vaccine composition that more closely matches circulating virus strains can significantly improve vaccine-induced immunogenicity and protection, the officials said.

They provided no citations and the FDA didnt return a request for comment.

A summary of a recent meeting with other regulators offered a different statement that did not mention real-world data. It said that preclinical data show that a vaccine composition that more closely matches currently circulating strains improves immunity.

The document (pdf) was released ahead of the FDAs June 15 meeting with its panel of vaccine advisers.

The group will consider the next composition of the vaccines, with an eye toward a fall/winter booster campaign.

What to Target?

The FDA and other regulators, including some from Europe, convened in May to discuss how to move forward as they move to implement a model for COVID-19 vaccination similar to the one for the influenza vaccines.

They converged on the proposal for the next round of vaccines to target XBB, a parent lineage stemming from BA.2 sublineages, and its descendants, given that they are now dominant in the United States and many other countries.

Officials also said that monovalent vaccines would be better in light of the high levels of prior vaccination and/or infection in many countries.

The addition of prior circulating variants or lineages is not likely to provide further benefit, a summary of the meeting stated.

The World Health Organization plans to meet twice a year to review evidence and recommend either to keep the current vaccines in circulation or to update them. After a meeting in May, the organization recommended updating the vaccines to target XBB lineages.

The XBB lineages may be gone, though, by the time updated vaccines are available.

All of these have overlapping degrees of susceptibility to vaccines tailored to one of them. But by January 2024, when a new wave would start up, if the virus is seasonaland that is a big if, we dont know it yet but this winter we should see betterthen a booster tailored to any of these three may very well be out of date and perform poorly for reducing severity of illness, Dr. Harvey Risch, professor emeritus of epidemiology at the Yale School of Public Health, told The Epoch Times via email.

Uncertainty, and Lack of Data

Health authorities have acknowledged that little data exist as they chart the way forward.

Data on the immune response specific for XBB.1 descendent lineages are largely restricted to neutralizing antibodies and are limited for other aspects of the immune response, including cellular immunity, the World Health Organization said.

The FDA said that the evolution of COVID-19 is complex and remains unpredictable.

Officials in the United States and elsewhere already cleared in 2022 the currently available shots with no clinical trial data, saying they believed, but could not confirm, that the shots would perform better than the previously available ones.

The indications are now that the vaccine makers will not be required to run trials on the updated compositions.

FDA officials said that vaccine manufacturers have been conducting human serology studies on the current vaccines against the XBB lineages, and preclinical immunogenicity studies on new vaccine candidates, but none of the data from the studies were included in the document or have yet been released to the public. The FDA said that the data will be presented during the meeting by the companies.

Only three companies have vaccines available in the United States: Pfizer, Moderna, and Novavax. Johnson & Johnsons vaccine was pulled from the market earlier this year.
US Concerned Over Possible North Korea Weapons Transfer to Russia

People watch a TV showing an image of North Korea leader Kim Jong Un, during a news program at the Seoul Railway Station in Seoul, South Korea, on July 28, 2022. (Ahn Young-joon/AP Photo)

The United States has voiced concern about the potential transfer by North Korea of additional weapons to Russia as the communist states leader vowed full support for Russia amid the ongoing war in Ukraine.

A State Department spokesperson confirmed that North Korea delivered infantry rockets and missiles to the Russian private military firm Wagner Group in November 2022, even as North Korea denied the assertion.

We are concerned that the DPRK is planning to deliver more military equipment to Russia, the spokesperson said on June 12, referring to North Korea by its official name: the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea.

The remarks were made on the same day that North Korean leader Kim Jong Un vowed to seek closer strategic cooperation with Russia, in a statement carried by the state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).

Kim wrote to Russian President Vladimir Putin on Russias National Day, expressing his willingness to cooperate with Russia in achieving the grand goal of building a powerful country, KCNA reported.

Russian President Vladimir Putin meets with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un at the Far Eastern Federal University campus on Russky Island in the Russian port of Vladivostok on April 25, 2019. (Alexey Nikolsky/ AFP via Getty Images)

It remains unclear how many weapons Wagner Group received from North Korea. In December 2022, National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said the weapon transfer will not change the battlefield dynamics in Ukraine.

North Korea and Wagner have both denied the U.S. claims.

However, Kirby said on Jan. 20 that evidence suggested that North Korea supplied weapons to Wagner, pointing to images allegedly showing Russian railcars traveling to North Korea in November 2022.

We obviously condemn North Koreas actions, and we urge North Korea to cease these deliveries to Wagner immediately, Kirby said.

Weapons-for-Food Deal

In March, the White House claimed that it obtained new information that Russia was planning to send a delegation to North Korea for talks to buy more weapons in exchange for food aid.

As part of this proposed deal, Russia would receive over two dozen kinds of weapons and munitions from Pyongyang, Kirby told reporters on March 30, referring to the capital city of North Korea.

North Korea has been grappling with food shortages for years. South Korea had previously offered North Korea economic benefits in exchange for denuclearization steps, but Kim rejected the offer.

Russia Restarts Oil Shipments

U.N. Security Council (UNSC) data show that Russia delivered 3,225 barrels of refined oil to North Korea in December 2022, the first since Russias previous shipment in September 2020.

Russian oil shipments to North Korea peaked at 44,655 barrels in January before drastically declining to just 3,612 barrels in April, the U.N. data show.

Russias resumption of oil shipments to North Korea could be part of an exchange arrangement between the two countries, Soo Kim, a former CIA analyst, told Radio Free Asia.

I would guess that [the oil shipments] may be Russia fulfilling its end of the deal in exchange for North Korea providing weapons and lethal aid to the Russian troops in the ongoing war with Ukraine.

UK Foreign Secretary James Cleverly said Russias reliance on North Korea is a sign of desperation and isolation amid Western sanctions on Russia, which is a permanent member of the UNSC.

This is a clear breach of U.N. Security Council Resolutions, Cleverly said on Dec. 20, 2022. We will work with our partners to ensure that North Korea pays a high price for supporting Russias illegal war in Ukraine.

The U.N. has imposed a series of sanctions against North Korea since 2006 related to the countrys nuclear and ballistic missile aspirations. In 2017, the UNSC capped North Korean imports of refined petroleum products at 500,000 barrels per year.
US Sanctions Companies That Train Chinese Pilots, Help China in Weapons Development

Two Chinese SU-30 fighter jets take off from an unspecified location to fly a patrol over the South China Sea in a file photo. (Jin Danhua/Xinhua via AP)

The U.S. Department of Commerce on June 12 added dozens of China-based and other firms to its Entity List (pdf), citing concerns regarding national security and foreign policy risks.

A group of companies, including Frontier Services Group Ltd., a security and aviation company, and Test Flying Academy of South Africa, were sanctioned for providing training to Chinese military pilots using Western and NATO sources, the department stated.

The agency deemed these activities as contrary to U.S. national security and foreign policy interests. The listed companies will be subject to export restrictions.

Other firms were blacklisted for helping China build its hypersonic weapons and upgrade its military, the department added.

It is imperative that we prevent China from acquiring U.S. technologies and know-how to enable their military modernization programs, Matthew Axelrod, assistant secretary for export enforcement, said in a statement.

Added to the list were Beijing Ryan Wende Science and Technology Co. Ltd. and Xinjiang Kehua Hechang Biological Science and Technology Co. Ltd. The two companies are alleged to have facilitated the Chinese regimes monitoring of Uyghurs and other ethnic minorities in the Xinjiang region by supplying equipment.

China criticized the sanctions imposed on its entities, calling it the wrong practice of politicizing, instrumentalizing, and weaponizing economic, trade, and sci-tech issues with a pretext of human rights or military-related issues.

The United States has repeatedly overstretched the concept of national security, abused state power, unwarrantedly suppressed Chinese companies, and wantonly disrupted the international economic order and trade rules, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said at a daily briefing in Beijing on June 12.

Test Flying Academy of South Africa

Test Flying Academy of South Africa (TFASA) was highlighted in a May 2022 report by Intelligence Online that stated it was involved in training pilots for the Chinese militarythe Peoples Liberation Army (PLA).

TFASA has been providing training for Chinese commercial pilots for more than 10 years in partnership with the Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC), a state-controlled group which builds aircraft in collaboration with the two aircraft construction market leaders, Boeing and Airbus Group, as well as helicopters and fighter aircraftlike the PLAs JL-10, the report reads.

TFASA operates in a joint venture with aviation giant AVIC-International Flight Training Academy (AIFA), which trains Chinese and African commercial airline pilots. The South African company has links with the Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics (NUAA) and provides civil aviation training in the province of Liaoning.

It also trains pilots to fly aircraft produced by AVIC subsidiary, the Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China (COMAC), which is on the way to becoming the worlds third-biggest aircraft manufacturer, it adds.

In April 2022, a video that went viral on Twitter claimed to show a European trainer and a Chinese air force pilot jumping out of their JL-10 training plane in Anhui Province. The PLA air force (PLAAF) uses the JL-10, a supersonic light combat fighter, for training missions. A division of AVIC, the Hongdu Aviation Industry Corp. is the company that makes the JL-10.

Pilots Hired by China

The UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) issued an intelligence alert in October 2022 after it was reported that about 30 former jet and helicopter pilots had been hired through lucrative compensation packages of about $270,000 a year to help train Chinas Peoples Liberation Army (PLA) pilots.

A spokesperson from the UKs Ministry of Defence told The Epoch Times in a statement issued on Oct. 28, 2022, said that the ministry would take decisive steps to stop the Chinese regime from attempting to headhunt current or former UK military pilots to train Chinese armed forces in China.

All serving and former personnel are already subject to the Official Secrets Act, and we are reviewing the use of confidentiality contracts and non-disclosure agreements across Defence, while the new National Security Bill will create additional tools to tackle contemporary security challengesincluding this one, the spokesperson said.

Former US Military Pilot Arrested

A former U.S. military pilot, Daniel Edmund Duggan, was arrested in Australia on Oct. 21, 2022, and is awaiting extradition to the United States because of his alleged work for a Chinese aviation consulting firm from 2017 to 2020.

Boston-born Duggan has been in custody in Australia since October 2022 and appeared in a Sydney court in March by video link from a prison cell for a brief hearing about the U.S. application to extradite him.

Prosecutors allege Duggan received about nine payments totaling about $88,000 Australian dollars ($61,000) and international travel from another conspirator for what was sometimes described as personal development training.

Efthymis Oraiopoulos, Jenny Li, and Olivia Li contributed to this report.
US to Send $325 Million in New Military Aid to Ukraine

Ukrainian servicemen fire a Partyzan multiple launch rocket system towards Russian troops near a frontline in the Zaporizhzhia region, Ukraine on May 12, 2023. (Stringer/Reuters)

WASHINGTONThe United States announced on Tuesday a new $325 million military aid package for Ukraine that will include munitions for air defense systems, ammunition, and vehicles, the Pentagon said.

The latest military aid announcement comes as Ukraine begins its counteroffensive, which has seen some U.S.-provided vehicles lost on the battlefield.

This is the 40th aid package being rushed to Ukraine using Presidential Drawdown Authority, which allows the president to transfer articles and services from U.S. stocks without congressional approval during an emergency.

As a part of the aid package, Ukraine will receive additional ammunition for its National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile Systems (NASAMS), munitions for High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS) 155-mm Howitzer ammunition, Stinger anti-aircraft systems and anti-tank weapons.

In addition, the package includes 15 Bradley fighting vehicles, 10 Stryker armored personnel carriers, secure communications equipment, and over 22 million rounds of ammunition for small arms.

A State Department spokesperson said the United States has provided approximately $40 billion in security to Ukraine since Feb. 24, 2022.

By Mike Stone
This aerial photo taken on June 6, 2023 shows a view of the Dongling Park in Shenyang, capital of northeast China's Liaoning Province. Shenyang, a city with a history of more than 2,000 years, is an important manufacturing and transportation hub in northeast China. (Xinhua/Long Lei)

This aerial photo taken on Nov. 15, 2019 shows a view of the Beiling Park after snow in Shenyang, capital of northeast China's Liaoning Province. Shenyang, a city with a history of more than 2,000 years, is an important manufacturing and transportation hub in northeast China. (Xinhua/Long Lei)

A bullet train runs past the 9.18 Historical Museum, a museum for the September 18 Incident that marked the start of Japan's invasion of China, in Shenyang, capital of northeast China's Liaoning Province, June 6, 2023. Shenyang, a city with a history of more than 2,000 years, is an important manufacturing and transportation hub in northeast China. (Xinhua/Yang Qing)

This aerial photo taken on June 6, 2023 shows a view of the Dongling Park in Shenyang, capital of northeast China's Liaoning Province. Shenyang, a city with a history of more than 2,000 years, is an important manufacturing and transportation hub in northeast China. (Xinhua/Long Lei)

This photo taken on June 5, 2023 shows a night view of Shenyang, capital of northeast China's Liaoning Province. Shenyang, a city with a history of more than 2,000 years, is an important manufacturing and transportation hub in northeast China. (Xinhua/Yang Qing)

Soldiers escort caskets containing remains of Chinese soldiers dead in the 1950-53 Korean War to the Chinese People's Volunteers martyrs' cemetery in Shenyang, capital of northeast China's Liaoning Province, Sept. 28, 2020. Shenyang, a city with a history of more than 2,000 years, is an important manufacturing and transportation hub in northeast China. (Xinhua/Long Lei)

This aerial photo taken on June 6, 2023 shows a view of the Chinese People's Volunteers martyrs' cemetery in Shenyang, capital of northeast China's Liaoning Province. Shenyang, a city with a history of more than 2,000 years, is an important manufacturing and transportation hub in northeast China. (Xinhua/Yang Qing)

This undated file photo shows a view of the 1905 Art Re-Creative Space, which is transformed from an abandoned factory, in Shenyang, capital of northeast China's Liaoning Province. Shenyang, a city with a history of more than 2,000 years, is an important manufacturing and transportation hub in northeast China. (Xinhua)

People attend a ceremony about the September 18 Incident that marked the start of Japan's invasion of China, at the 9.18 Historical Museum in Shenyang, capital of northeast China's Liaoning Province, Sept. 18, 2019. Shenyang, a city with a history of more than 2,000 years, is an important manufacturing and transportation hub in northeast China. (Xinhua/Long Lei)

This photo taken on April 30, 2023 shows a view of the Imperial Palace in Shenyang, capital of northeast China's Liaoning Province. Shenyang, a city with a history of more than 2,000 years, is an important manufacturing and transportation hub in northeast China. (Xinhua/Yang Qing)

Tourists visit the Imperial Palace in Shenyang, capital of northeast China's Liaoning Province, April 30, 2023. Shenyang, a city with a history of more than 2,000 years, is an important manufacturing and transportation hub in northeast China. (Xinhua/Yang Qing)

This photo taken on June 5, 2023 shows a night view of Shenyang, capital of northeast China's Liaoning Province. Shenyang, a city with a history of more than 2,000 years, is an important manufacturing and transportation hub in northeast China. (Xinhua/Yang Qing)

A visitor looks at a painting at an art gallery in the Hongmei cultural and creative industry park, which is transformed from an old factory, in Shenyang, capital of northeast China's Liaoning Province, July 7, 2021. Shenyang, a city with a history of more than 2,000 years, is an important manufacturing and transportation hub in northeast China. (Xinhua/Yang Qing)
White House Calls Trans Activists Stunt at Pride Month Event Inappropriate and Disrespectful

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre answers questions from the media during the daily press briefing at the White House in Washington on June 7, 2023. (Madalina Vasiliu/The Epoch Times)

Transgender activist and internet influencer Rose Montoyaborn a male and identifying as a bisexual and nonbinary womanshook hands with the president of the United States on the South Lawn of the White House on June 10.

Seconds later, accompanied by two men who were shirtless, Montoya undressed above the waist, revealing breasts, before covering them again by hand. The moment was captured on video, posted online, and quickly became go-to, widely shared, and sensational theater.

Montoya and fellow activists performed their demonstration at a Pride Month event that the White House held to celebrate LGBT people and their history and accomplishments, and to call attention to the challenges they face.

The surprise, provocative, and outlandish performance upset and drew the condemnation of the White House, which called it disrespectful.

Other and more pointed criticism claimed that the activists co-opted and sacrificed at least some of the goodwill of the event, and also placed grandstanding and self-aggrandizement ahead of the cause.

Denouncing the Action

This behavior is inappropriate and disrespectful for any event at the White House, said a statement released by the White House.

It is not reflective of the event we hosted to celebrate LGBT families or the other hundreds of guests who were in attendance. Individuals in the video will not be invited to future events.

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre addressed the controversy in her June 13 briefing.

The behavior was simply unacceptable. Weve been very clear about that, said Jean-Pierre at the briefing.

It was unfair to the hundreds of attendees who were there to celebrate their families. So, you know, were going to continue to be clear on that, and that type of behavior is, as I said, unacceptable. Its inappropriate, its disrespectful. And it really does not reflect the event that we hosted to celebrate the LGBT families.

In a statement sent to The Epoch Times, Rodrigo Heng-Lehtine, executive director of the National Center for Transgender Equality/NCTE Action Fund, said: This behavior was inappropriate, and it is important to understand that the actions of a single individual do not define an entire community.

Transgender people have families and cherish family-friendly events just like anyone else.

LGBT Influencer Is Not Sorry

Montoya is a powerhouse on social media with 575,000 fans on TikTok and 104,000 followers on Instagram, as well as almost 11,600 followers on Twitter.

Montoya responded to the controversy with commentary in a video posted on social media.

Conservatives are trying to use the video of me topless at the White House to try to call the community groomers, etcetera; and I would just like to say that, first of all, going topless in Washington, D.C., is legal, said Montoya in the video.

And I fully support the movement in freeing the nipple because why is my chest now deemed inappropriate or illegal when I show it off? However, before coming out as trans, it was not?

Montoya received strong and negative backlash on social media pages for the behavior at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.

And among those who took exception to Montoyas explanation and defenseand the behavior itselfthere were several respondents who voiced apprehension and anger that Montoya, with this stunt, may have harmed the LGBT march and striving for acceptance.

Way to set the movement for equal rights back! Its the  White House. Have some respect, went one comment; another noted, You have literally made the Trans community look so stupid.

One said: Im a conservative and have no problem with how you want to live your life, just do it with class and stop the tasteless [expletive].

And there was the commentator who suggested the following: Which leads me to my core question. Are you a plant for the right?? Were you paid off to do this to tank the Biden admin for the GOP? Because you have embarrassed and made a mockery of  every liberal and of Biden for showing support of your community. This was too [expletive] far!!!!
Youth Depend More on Online Influencers for News Over Media Outlets: Report

Social media influencers and celebrities are now the dominant source of news among users of apps like Snapchat and TikTok that are popular among young Americans, overtaking mainstream news sources in the process, per a new report by the UK-based Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism.

While mainstream journalists often lead conversations around news in Twitter and Facebook, they struggle to get attention in newer networks like Instagram, Snapchat, and TikTok, where personalities, influencers, and ordinary people are often more prominent, even when it comes to conversations around news, according to the Reuters Institutes Digital News Report 2023 (pdf) released on June 13. According to SEO platform Backlinko, Snapchat reaches more than 75 percent of the GenZ and millennial population in the United States. Meanwhile, 37.3 percent of GenZ Americans use TikTok at least once a month.

On TikTok, 55 percent of users got their news from personalities including influencers and celebs compared to just 33 percent from mainstream news. On Snapchat, this was at 55 percent to 36 percent. On Instagram, the proportion was 52 percent to 42 percent.

On Twitter, 55 percent of users got their news from mainstream channels, followed by 43 percent from personalities. On Facebook, these figures stood at 43 percent and 38 percent. The report is based on a global survey conducted in JanuaryFebruary 2023 among more than 92,000 individuals from 46 nations.

Social media influencers becoming a significant source of news and news analysis has been a trend that many experts have observed in recent years.

During the defamation trial involving Hollywood celebrities Johnny Depp and ex-wife Amber Heard, several influencers from Instagram and YouTube raked in millions of views covering the court case. The mainstream media lost the Depp-Heard trial and the lifestyle influencers turned court correspondents won, said the headline of a June 2022 article from NYMag.

The collapse of crypto exchange FTX last year also put social media influencers in the spotlight. Influencers outshine traditional media on coverage of FTX implosion, said the headline of a Jan. 5 article at The Washington Post.

Some see this shift in news consumption as being the result of a growing lack of trust in mainstream media sources.

Twitter has broken just about every piece of this FTX story using blockchain analytics, while NYT is writing puff pieces on a criminal. Feels like a turning point for citizen journalism and loss of trust in MSM, Brian Armstrong, CEO of Coinbase, said in a Nov. 6 tweet.

New Generation and Trust in Social Media News

A Pew Research survey published in October last year showed that the younger generation of Americans are now likely to trust social media news as much as national news outlets.

Among Americans aged 50-64, 62 percent said they had some or a lot of trust in the information they get from national news organizations. Only 25 percent said the same about social media sites. When it came to Americans aged 18-29, these numbers were at 56 percent and 50 percent.

Talking about the shifting preference of new generation news consumers, Prof. Rasmus Kleis Nielsen, Director of the Reuters Institute, pointed out that those born in the 1980s did not suddenly come to prefer landline phones over mobiles when they became parents or bought a house, nor did those born in the 1960s return to black-and-white television when they entered middle age.

Similarly, there are no reasonable grounds for expecting that those born in the 2000s will suddenly come to prefer old-fashioned websites, let alone broadcast and print, simply because they grow older.

Security Threat

The growth of social media apps as a trustworthy source of news among the younger generation of Americans can pose a challenge to the security of the United States, as some of the apps have ties with China.

For instance, TikTok is a Chinese-owned app. In a speech in December, FBI Director Christopher Wray warned that [TikToks] parent company [Bytedance] is controlled by the Chinese government and it gives them the potential to leverage the app in ways that I think should concern us.

He pointed out that the app gives CCP the power to control the recommendation algorithm which allows them to manipulate content, and if they want to, to use it for influence operations.

They also have the ability on it to get access [via] the software through devices  So you have millions of devices and that gives them the ability to engage in different kinds of malicious cyber activity through that, he said.

In an EpochTV interview last year, Casey Fleming, a cyber-security expert and CEO of strategic advisory firm BlackOps Partners, also warned that foreign-controlled mobile apps pose a security threat to America.

We must assume that every one of these applications coming from China, Russia, and other declared adversaries of the United Stateswe have to assume that these applications are weaponized against us, he said.
Commentary

By Dr Alexis Heng Boon Chin

In the past few decades, rapid advancements in IVF and other new reproductive technologies have caused much disruption to how society traditionally views and defines parenthood, as compared to just a few generations ago.

The widespread availability and rampant commercialization of surrogacy, sperm, and egg donation, made possible with such new technologies, have greatly muddled and even severed biological and genetic links between parents and children.

Indeed, such trends have only accelerated over the past few years. The advent of the three-parent technique (mitochondrial replacement therapy) and human genome editing that involve mixing and combining genetic material from multiple persons, other than the presumed father and mother, have further befuddled societys views, perceptions, and definitions of modern parenthood.

Into this confusing and muddling fray, enters in vitro gametogenesis (IVG) technology that enables the generation of functional sperm and eggs from stem cells. Several research groups in Japan and China have already demonstrated the birth of live healthy offspring from IVG-generated sperm and eggs from the skin cells of mice and rats, which could in turn reproduce normally and give rise to the next generation of healthy offspring.

It is highly plausible that these would soon be replicated in humans within the near future, given the good track record of how readily scientific breakthroughs in rats and mice are translated into human clinical applications.

While the advent of IVG technology would certainly be a beacon of hope for many infertile patients, it must be noted that this technology can also be used to enable gay and lesbian couples to have offspring that are genetically related to both same-sex partners, which would not be possible in nature.

For example, sperm can be generated from the skin cells of a woman to fertilize the egg of her lesbian partner, resulting in a child with two mothers. Similarly, an egg can be generated from the skin cells of a man, which could be fertilized by the sperm of his gay partner, and the resulting embryo implanted into a surrogate mother, ultimately leading to the birth of a child with two fathers.

Nevertheless, even if IVG technology advances sufficiently to become viable for human clinical applications in the near future, it is very unlikely that the Singapore government will ever allow gay and lesbian couples to beget children with this new technology, given their long-standing opposition to the formation of same-sex family units in the country.

Under current healthcare regulations in Singapore, only legally married heterosexual couples are allowed to receive any form of clinically assisted reproduction treatment at local fertility clinics.

However, there is nothing to stop Singaporean gay and lesbian couples from utilizing IVG to beget children overseas, which would subsequently lead them to encounter legal obstacles that bar them from adopting their genetically-related IVG-conceived offspring.

Under current laws in Singapore, only married couples can jointly adopt children, whereas same-sex marriages and civil partnerships are not afforded any legal recognition in the country.

This in turn will motivate gay and lesbian parents with IVG-conceived children to challenge existing statutes that define parenthood in Singapore, via the local family court system. Such challenges will likely be based on legal precedents that establish the paramount importance of genetic affinity and blood ties between parent and child in family law, and the need to prioritize child welfare above public policy.

For example, when the Singapore High Court granted a gay mans bid to adopt his biological son born via a foreign surrogate mother, the Chief Justice declared that ensuring child welfare is paramount and outweighs public policy against the formation of same-sex family units.

In another landmark court case involving compensation claims for IVF sperm mix-up by a fertility clinic in Singapore, the court ruling stated that the ordinary human experience is that parents and children are bound by ties of blood and this fact of biological experience  heredity  carries deep sociocultural significance.

Hence LGBTQ activists in Singapore can readily exploit such legal precedents in a future landmark court case to overturn current legal statutes that define parenthood in Singapore, which is largely based on a child conceived by a man and a woman. It can easily be argued that based on genetic affinity and blood ties alone, both partners in a gay/lesbian relationship should be given automatic parenthood status of their IVG-conceived offspring, without the need for either of them to undergo the adoption procedure.

This would in fact represent a subversion of democratic principles, because the overthrow of laws by individuals mounting legal challenges through the court system may not exactly be met with approval by the majority of the population.

Currently, in Singapore, conservative sociocultural values still prevail with the majority of the population being religiously affiliated, despite increasing secularization in recent years.

It is precisely for these reasons that the Singapore government last year enacted a constitutional amendment to protect the definition of marriage as between a man and woman, when they repealed Section 377A of the penal code, a colonial-era legislation that criminalized homosexual acts between men.

Henceforth, only the Singapore parliament has the right to make changes to the current legal definition of marriage as between a man and a woman, while excluding the possibility of a landmark court case challenging the status quo, which could possibly lead to recognition of same-sex marriages in Singapore without approval from parliament.

To prevent a similar subversion of democratic principles by a future landmark court case overthrowing current legal statutes that define parenthood in Singapore, it may thus be necessary for the Singapore parliament to also enact a constitutional amendment to protect the legal definition of parenthood in the country, in the face of new reproductive technologies such as IVG.

Dr. Alexis Heng Boon Chin, an expert in Biomedical Science, had previously worked in the field of human clinically assisted reproduction research in Singapore.
Bank unions oppose RBIs decision to allow compromise settlement of wilful defaulters





Business Bureau

All India Bank Officers Confederation (AIBOC) and All India Bank Employees Association (AIBEA), representing the collective voice of more than 6 lakh bank employees, vehemently criticised the recent move by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to allow banks/lenders to settle loans of wilful defaulters under compromise settlement.

C H Venkatachalam, General Secretary, AIBEA said, As key stakeholders in the banking industry, we have always advocated for strict measures to address the issue of wilful defaulters. We firmly believe that allowing compromise settlement for accounts classified as fraud or wilful defaulters is an affront to principles of justice and accountability. It not only rewards unscrupulous borrowers but also sends a distressing message to honest borrowers who strive to meet their financial obligations. RBI in its Prudential Framework for Resolution of Stressed Assets (June 7, 2019), made clear that the borrowers who have committed frauds/ malfeasance/ wilful default will remain ineligible for restructuring. Now this sudden change in the framework by the central bank to grant compromise settlements to wilful defaulters came as a shocker and it will not only lead to erosion of public trust in the banking sector, Venkatachalam said.

Rupam Roy, General Secretary, AIBOC said, It fosters an environment where individuals and entities with the means to repay their debts choose to evade their responsibilities without facing appropriate consequences. RBI should make list of the wilful defaulters public, introduce stricter penalties, enhanced scrutiny, and a more proactive approach to identify and prevent potential defaulters, Rupam Roy said. Additionally, bank union officials urge the RBI to prioritise the protection of the interests of honest borrowers and depositors who rely on the integrity of the banking system.
Border forces and CAPFs asked to check illegal encroachment in their areas, inform IB, RAW





NEW DELHI,

BORDER guarding forces deployed along the front with Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal and other neighbouring countries have been directed to keep a check on illegal encroachments and possible suspicious activities in their area of operation that may pose a security threat to the nation, official sources said on Tuesday.

The issue was discussed and a plan of action was finalised during a Chintan Shivir of IPS officers working in the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs) and National Security Guard (NSG) that was held here on Monday under the chairmanship of Union Home Minister Amit Shah. Sources privy to the meeting told PTI that the top brass and other senior commanders of these forces were asked to keep a strict vigil against any illegal encroachment taking place in their respective areas of operations. In case a suspect installation or facility is detected, central agencies like the Intelligence Bureau (IB) and the Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) should be immediately informed, they said. The State authorities concerned like district administration, police and intelligence setup should also be made aware about these activities and it should be ensured that any nefarious structure, the sources said.

The senior officers of these forces like the BSF, ITBP, SSB, CRPF and CISF, apart from the NSG, were asked to ensure strict compliance on this subject, they said. The Border Security Force guards Indian fronts with Pakistan and Bangladesh, the Indo-Tibetan Border Police is the designated frontier guarding force along the Chinese Line of Actual Control. These forces, as part of their Intelligence gathering exercise, have earlier reported about suspicious warehouses, godowns and religious centres coming up close to the border and have expressed concerns about their activities, a senior CAPF officer said. The Central Reserve Police Force, the Central Industrial Security Force and the National Security Guard too have permanent and temporary bases across the length and breadth of the country.
BEIJING, June 14 (Xinhua) -- Greeted by a group of frisky children clutching bouquets, Iris Xiomara Castro Sarmiento, president of the Republic of Honduras, broke into a smile and reciprocated the warm gestures by forming a heart shape with her hands. Standing beside her was Chinese President Xi Jinping.

It's a scene that would be inscribed in the chronicle of China-Honduras relations. After walking the red carpet China rolled out for the visiting Honduran president, the two heads of state conducted their historic meeting on Monday, jointly charting the course forward for bilateral relations.

NEW CHAPTER

Castro is the first Honduran president to pay a state visit to China. When she arrived in Shanghai on Friday, the president said her visit to China is expected by the Honduran people.

On March 26, China and Honduras signed a joint communique in Beijing on the establishment of diplomatic relations. Honduras has thus become the 182nd country to have diplomatic relations with China.

During the meeting, Xi said the bilateral relationship has got off to a good and speedy start and enjoys great dynamism and promise since the establishment of diplomatic ties.

Underscoring the immediate and long-term significance of the establishment of diplomatic ties, Xi stressed "China will remain committed to developing friendly relations with Honduras, firmly support economic and social development in Honduras, and forge a good friendship and partnership with Honduras featuring mutual respect, equality, mutual benefit, and common development."

China and Honduras have every reason to forge close ties. Recognized as a major developing country with a strong sense of responsibility, China has been dedicated to strengthening solidarity and cooperation among developing countries and safeguarding their common interests and international fairness and justice.

During their talks, Xi said that China is willing to work with Honduras and other Latin American and Caribbean (LAC) countries to promote cooperation on the China-CELAC Forum and the overall cooperation between China and Latin America.

From Costa Rica, Panama, and Dominica, to El Salvador, Nicaragua, and Honduras ... Over the years, China has established or restored diplomatic relations with many countries in Central America and the Caribbean region. By making more friends, China is joining Latin American countries to write a new chapter on building a China-Latin America community with a shared future.

NEW OPPORTUNITIES

In the past over two months, China and Honduras have been delivering on their commitments and working together with a sense of urgency to bring bilateral relations to a fast track based on principles of mutual respect, equality, mutual benefit and common development.

During the meeting with Castro, Xi mentioned not long ago, a delegation of Honduran business leaders visited China, noting that many of them said the trip has transformed their perception of China.

Among members of the delegations are many coffee merchants, as Honduras is an important coffee exporter. Diplomatic ties with China will bring opportunities for them to explore the vast Chinese market.

"Taking advantage of the establishment of diplomatic relations, Honduran high-quality products represented by coffee will reach more customers from the vast Chinese market," said Zelaya, a Honduran coffee merchant who only gave his first name.

"China is a big country with leading science and technology," said Mario, another coffee merchant. "The advanced machinery made in China will promote the development and upgrading of the Honduran coffee industry, and active cooperation between two countries in various fields will continue to benefit the Honduran people."

According to the General Administration of Customs of China, in the first four months of this year, China's total export-import volume with Honduras reached 3.893 billion yuan (544 million U.S. dollars), a year-on-year increase of 22.9 percent, of which imports increased 229.5 percent.

The fruitful results brought by the two countries' practical cooperation since the establishment of diplomatic ties testify to the huge development potential of bilateral relations.

On Friday, Castro said in Shanghai that Honduras will actively participate in the sixth China International Import Expo to be held in November; On Sunday, China and Honduras held a high-level business meeting, the first of its kind since the two countries established diplomatic relations; On Monday, the two countries pledged in a joint statement to negotiate a free trade agreement, and encourage Chinese enterprises to participate in Honduras's development by investing in projects of various fields.

During the visit, China and Honduras also signed a memorandum of understanding on Belt and Road cooperation, making Honduras an official participating country of the Belt and Road Initiative. Latin America now has 22 countries that have joined Belt and Road cooperation with China.

The vigorous vitality and broad prospect of China-Honduras practical cooperation is a manifestation of China and Latin American countries working together to promote practical cooperation and achieve common development.

According to data from China's General Administration of Customs, the total trade volume between China and Latin America and the Caribbean countries reached a new high of 485.79 billion dollars in 2022, exceeding 450 billion dollars for the second consecutive year and marking an increase of more than 7 percent over 2021.

NEW EXPECTATIONS

During the talks with Castro, Xi said that the two sides should promote cultural and people-to-people exchanges to consolidate the popular support for China-Honduras friendship. The establishment of bilateral diplomatic ties has paved the way for the two peoples to strengthen cultural exchanges and enhance mutual understanding.

In May, a delegation of 30 Honduran media professionals visited Shanghai, Guizhou, Chongqing, Zhejiang, Jiangsu, and other places in China.

"In the past, my impression of China came entirely from Western media reports. This trip to China allowed me to see the modern urban governance model with my own eyes, which is worth learning from," said Pedro Membreno, editor-in-chief of the Honduran newspaper People's Power.

With the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries, Membreno said, the Honduran people now have a growing need for real Chinese information to grasp further knowledge of the country.

"This trip to China helped me feel the harmonious coexistence between the city and the natural environment, which embodied the concept of sustainable development. I will try to let more Hondurans know how socialism makes China prosper in a way that is easy for the audience to understand," said Carlos Mendez, a new media worker in Honduras.

Li Xinwei, a researcher at the Institute of Archaeology of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, also bears witness to the rapid development of civil exchanges between the two countries

Since 2015, Li has been working with his Honduran colleagues on a joint archaeological team to excavate the ruins of an aristocratic courtyard in the ancient city of Copan, one of the birthplaces of the Mayan civilization.

"Studying the Mayan civilization would also help us better understand the formation and development of Chinese civilization," Li said.

"There is still a lot of potential for our archaeological cooperation with China, and the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries provides more opportunities for this," said Salvador Varela Martinez, the western region representative of the Honduran Institute of Anthropology and History.

Xi himself is also a champion of the diversity of human civilizations. In June 2013, the Chinese president visited the ancient Mayan ruins of Chichen Itza, saying that different cultures and civilizations, while retaining their uniqueness, should be open-minded, tolerant and coexist in peace with each other, thus to achieve common development and prosperity.

In 2016, when delivering a key speech at the Peruvian Congress, Xi called for China and Latin America to carry out people-to-people and cultural exchanges and mutual learning of civilization in order to realize the synchronous development of China-Latin America cooperation at both material and spiritual levels.

Going forward, China, Honduras, and other Latin American countries are poised to further deepen mutual trust, expand cooperation and enhance friendship, so as to promote China-Latin America relations into a new era characterized by equality, mutual benefit, innovation, openness and benefits for the people. 
CM performs bhoomipujan of community building in Katni





Our Correspondent

Katni,

Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said that the aim of his life is to bring smile on the faces of sisters by changing their lives. None of sisters should remain helpless, the Mukhya Mantri Ladli Bahna Yojana has been started so that they become strong. The scheme has helped remove the helplessness of the sisters due to lack of money. The amount of Rs 1,000 being given to the sisters will be gradually increased to Rs 3,000. The Chief Minister was addressing a huge gathering after bhoomipujan of the community building and skill development training building at Shri Harihar Tirtha on Ramraja hill located in village Banjari of Vijayraghavgarh of Katni district. Chief Minister Chouhan said that it is true that arrangements for food, clothes, houses, education, medicines and employment are necessary. But man does not remain happy with this, sometimes there is a desire that before leaving the world one can do all four pilgrimages. If one visits these, then ones life becomes worthwhile. With this idea, the Government has started the Mukhya Mantri Teerth Darshan Yojana.

Chief Minister Chouhan said that service to the public is worship of God for me. MLA Sanjay Satyendra Pathak has started the pious work of bringing all the pilgrimages at one place, congratulations and best wishes to him for this pious resolution. The Chief Minister said that necessary co-operation will be given to make this vision a reality. He said that whatever is necessary will be done by the State Government for Sanskrit College etc. People always co-operate in good work. Chief Minister Chouhan said that under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, along with the entire country, Madhya Pradesh has been progressing continuously. A glorious, prosperous and powerful India is being built. Peoples lives have been better.





Chief Minister Chouhan said that nectar is showered by saints through Kathas (discourses). We all get their guidance. He honoured Junapeethadhishwar Acharya Mahamandaleshwar and Hindu Dharma Acharya Sabha President Swami Avdheshanand Giri and Tulsi Peethadhishwar Jagadguru Ramanandacharya Swami Rambhadracharya Maharaj. Chouhan recited Ramdhun with devotion in an atmosphere of religion and spirituality. The people along with the Chief Minister made the atmosphere devotional by singing in sync Ram Bhajan Sukhdayee, Ye Jeevan Hai Mati Ka Dhela. The Chief Minister also rhythmically sang the hymn Hare Rama Hare Rama Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna Hare Krishna, Krishna-Krishna Hare-Hare.
Doval, Sullivan unveil roadmap for cooperation in critical technologies





NEW DELHI,

NSA Ajit Doval and his visiting American counterpart Jake Sullivan on Tuesday unveiled an ambitious roadmap for Indo-US collaboration in seven specific high-technology areas including semi-conductors, next-generation telecommunication and defence. The roadmap was announced at the second Track-1.5 dialogue on Initiative on Critical and Emerging Technologies (iCET) that was organised by industry chamber CII. Doval and Sullivan also held restricted talks ahead of the Track 1.5 dialogue that covered a number of bilateral and regional issues.

US National Security Advisor Sullivan arrived here on Tuesday on a two-day visit for talks with Doval, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and other senior Indian officials ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modis visit to Washington. In a major move, President Joe Biden and Prime Minister Modi announced in May last year the US-India iCET to elevate and expand the strategic technology partnership and defence industrial cooperation between the two countries. The iCET is expected to forge closer linkages between the Government, academia and industry of the two countries in areas such as artificial intelligence, quantum computing, 5G and 6G, biotech, space and semiconductors.
ED raids TN Minister, others in money laundering probe





CHENNAI :

THE Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Tuesday conducted searches against Tamil Nadu Electricity Minister V Senthil Balaji and some others as part of a money laundering investigation and held multi-city searches, official sources said. Balajis office room at the Secretariat here was among the locations raided by the ED officials. The Minister, a DMK strongman from Karur district, said he was not aware of what the officials had come searching for at his premises and assured to extend total cooperation in the probe. The ruling DMK hit out at the ED raids and termed it as an attempt to divert attention from the ongoing war of words between NDA constituents BJP and the AIADMK. Senior DMK leader and its Organisation Secretary R S Bharathi said the party has seen many such raids but no charges have been proved against its leaders in the past. They were an attempt to defame the party, he alleged. The raids were being carried out at Balajis premises in State capital Chennai and his native Karur. Besides these, ED officials also searched the house of a Tamil Nadu State Marketing Corporation (TASMAC) lorry contractor in Erode district. State-run TASMAC is the retailer of liquor in Tamil Nadu. Balaji also holds the Prohibition and Excise portfolio.

The Supreme Court had earlier allowed police and ED probe into an alleged cash-for-jobs scam against Balaji, who was earlier with the AIADMK. He was Transport Minister in the late Jayalalithaa-led Cabinet. The ED conducted the searches under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), the sources said. Last month, the Income Tax Department too had searched people close to Balaji in the state. Responding to the ED searches today, Balaji said he was ready to extend full cooperation to the investigating agency. With what intention have they come, what are they looking for, we will see. Let it get over, he told reporters soon after the sleuths started the searches. Whether it be the IT or ED, Balaji assured full cooperation for the authorities concerned, adding whatever explanation sought by officials based on documents, will be provided. The Minister, who went for a morning walk, said he took a taxi back home after receiving a message about the raids on his premises. The ED officials were accompanied by central paramilitary personnel during the raids. Last month, Income Tax officials were allegedly attacked in Karur when they went to conduct searches at some places linked to Balaji. As the raids continued, DMK lawyers led by Bharathi, an advocate himself, landed at Balajis house.

The senior leader alleged that the team was refused permission to meet Balaji as they wanted to seek his instructions for getting legal remedy. The raids are in violation of human rights. Senthil Balaji may be a minister, but he is a human being first. We have a right to know his status, Bharathi told reporters. This is a planned attempt to malign the DMK, he said and indicated that searches at the Secretariat happened without the approval of the state Chief Secretary. The party was not bothered about such raids, as it has come across many such action against its leaders in the past, but without any result against them. He said the ED had held searches many times at Karnataka Congress leader and now Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar, but he still emerged victorious with a massive margin in the just concluded polls. This showed such agency action will not impact a mans popularity, Bharathi claimed. He said the ED action came days after Union Home Minister Amit Shahs TN visit and claimed it was an attempt to divert attention from the ongoing spat between allies AIADMK and the BJP. He also took a swipe at the alleged low conviction rates in ED cases.
Farmer not only provides food, but also a creator of Indias destiny: Rajnath Singh





Staff Reporter

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has said that the farmer is not only the provider of food, but also the creator of Indias destiny. The sons of the farmer have guarded the borders. To make India strong, farmers have to be made strong. Whether it was the freedom struggle, the struggle of 1857, the Satyagraha of Champaran or the movement of Bardoli in Gujarat, the farmers shook the Britishers. Today, the presence of a large number of farmers in this Kisan-Kalyan Mahakumbh in Madhya Pradesh is heartening. Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan is doing miraculous work for development and farmers, poor, daughters etc. in the state. He is working whole-heartedly for the public. Today, I am seeing how much people love him. Defence Minister Singh was addressing the Kisan-Kalyan Mahakumbh in Rajgarh district. Chief Minister Chouhan said that in the Mukhyamantri Kisan-Kalyan Yojana, instead of Rs 4,000, the State Government will now provide Rs 6,000 to the farmers every year. In the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi, farmers get Rs 6,000 every year. In this way, now the amount received by the farmers will be Rs 12,000 annually.

The Chief Minister said that such families that own tractors will also be benefitted under the Mukhya Mantri Ladli Bahna Yojana. Tractor will not be considered in the category of four wheeler. The sisters of these families will also get Rs 1,000 per month. He said that fertilisers are available in sufficient quantity. The State Government will also pay the interest of three months for the advance lifting of fertilisers and seeds. He told the farmers that the procurement of moong at the support price would start soon. Union Defence Minister Singh and Chouhan, transferred Rs 2,123 crores in the accounts of 11 lakh farmers in the Chief Minister Farmers Interest Waiver Scheme-2023, (Contd from front page) Rs 2,900 crores in the accounts of 44.49 lakh farmers in the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana and Rs One thousand 400 crore in the accounts of 70.61 lakh farmers under the Mukhya Mantri Kisan Kalyan Yojana, thus transferring an amount of a total Rs 6,423 crore. Along with the farmers, a large number of sisters and daughters gathered in the programme.

Singh said that India is no longer a weak country. No country has the courage to raise its eyes and look at us. The people of India have faith in Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam. We consider all the people living on the earth of the world as our own. India does not attack any country, this is our character. We will not attack anyone, but if anyone attacks us, we will not leave them either. India can teach a lesson to terrorists and attackers not only within but outside the country as well. This has become evident from the decision of surgical strike by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Union Minister Singh said that importance is being given to women in the army. Now they are not only joining the army in large numbers, but have also become ready for leadership. The flagship of a major naval warship is also headed by a woman. Sisters have an important role in building a new India. PM Modi has done the work of increasing the participation of sisters. Shivraj is doing miraculous work in Madhya Pradesh: Defense Minister Singh said that Chouhan has done miraculous work in various fields including farmers welfare. He remembers that when he came to Madhya Pradesh several years before on the invitation of CM Chouhan to attend the Kisan Sammelan, the farmers used to get loans at 4 percent interest, which the Chief Minister worked to bring down to zero percent. Chouhan has taken not one but many steps in the interest of the farmers. This is proof of his sensitivity. Like Prime Minister Modi, Chouhan is also providing charismatic leadership for public welfare.

The huge community present in this meeting of Rajgarh is also a proof that Chief Minister Chouhan has served the public a lot. Defense Minister Singh said that farmers are food givers, life givers and shapers of our destiny. Our country cannot develop without making the farmers strong. The Government of Madhya Pradesh has done an incomparable work for the farmers. Remarkable work has been done in various fields in Madhya Pradesh under the leadership of Prime Minister Modi. Central government has taken care of the village, the poor and farmers: Defence Minister Singh said that Prime Minister Modi has done wonderful work to make the Digital India. Payments worth Rs 29 lakh crore in the country are being done through mobile only. This is an example of digital revolution that today e-payment is being done even at vegetable shops. In the last 9 years, there has been concern for the village, the poor and the farmer. If a government works for the farmers, it is not doing them any favour. Agriculture welfare has been given priority. There should be no difference between our words and actions. The central and state governments have done what they said.

There is a world of difference between the works of the previous government and the present government. The same thing can be said for Madhya Pradesh also. Under the Jal-Jeevan Mission, the Prime Minister has resolved to provide water to every household. Madhya Pradesh has done excellent work in this field by providing tap water to 60 lakh families. The production of food grains has increased in the country. In the areas where India was ranked 6th to 10th in the world, now has come up to the first and second rank. There has also been a significant increase in the budget of the Central Government. The agriculture budget has also increased. Whether it is the question of construction of toilets or construction of roads, India is making steady progress. Chouhan started his address with the soulful words of Kaisi Ho Meri Bahno. The Chief Minister welcomed the Union Defence Minister in a special way. He said that Prime Minister Modi and Defence Minister Singh have played an important role in making India a superpower in the defence sector. There was a time when India was intimidated by small nations, now India has become powerful under the leadership of the Prime Minister and the Union Defence Minister. The central government under the leadership of Prime Minister Shri Modi has completed 9 successful years. Common people are also congratulating him today. Tractor holder families will also get the benefit of Ladli Bahna Yojana In an important announcement, Chief Minister Chouhan said that now such families where there are tractors will also be benefitted under the Mukhyamantri Ladli Bahna Yojana. In the provisions of the scheme, it was earlier decided that the female member of the family having a four wheeler would not be eligible for the Mukhyamantri Ladli Bahna Yojana. Now the family having a tractor will also get the benefit of Mukhyamantri Ladli Bahna Yojana.

Now farmers will get Rs 6000 per year instead of Rs 4000: Chief Minister Chouhan said that a large number of farmer brothers have come for the Kisan-Kalyan Mahakumbh. Today, the work of removing the burden of interest amount from the heads of the farmers has been done by the hands of Union Minister Singh. The previous government had put this burden on the heads of the farmers. Initiative has also been taken to purchase moong from farmers in the state. With the increase in the area under irrigation, the condition of the farmers has changed. Madhya Pradesh, which once had 7.5 lakh hectare irrigation capacity, has now increased upto 45 lakh hectare. The target is to take it further to 65 lakhs. Even in Rajgarh district, the previous government had not made any arrangement for irrigation. Even the peoples representative who was the Chief Minister for 10 years could not make this arrangement. There was no electricity supply. Electricity used to remain off for hours. Now Madhya Pradesh has become self-sufficient in the production of electricity. The previous government had not even made irrigation and road arrangements. The farmers were cheated. To give them relief, even their list was not prepared.
Juhi Vyas of Durg to represent India in Mrs Globe contest





Staff Reporter

DURG,

Juhi Vyas of Durg, the runner-up of Mrs. India-2022 and crowned Mrs India Globe-2023, has been selected for the Mrs Globe Beauty Contest to be held in California city of America from June 18. This world class beauty contest is being organised for the last 26 years, but no Indian has been able to live up to the criteria of this contest till now. Juhi Vyas is the first such Indian woman, who will represent India in this world class Mrs Globe contest and will bring fame to Chhattisgarh and Durg on the world stage. Participants from 80 countries of the world will take part in the Mrs Globe contest. Chhattisgarh Juhi Vyas is fully prepared for every challenge and will soon leave for California City of America to join this contest.

The preliminary phase of the contest will start from June 18 and the finale on June 24. Juhi Vyas sharing about her preparations and experiences with media persons said that being selected in Mrs. Globe contest is a matter of great pride not only for me but for the country and the state. There will be many challenges in the contest that she will face with her full potential and make India proud on the world stage. In response to a question, she said that there is no dearth of talent in the people of Durg-Bhilai. They just need to hone their talents. She further said that she will soon set up an academy for the people going into the field of beauty contest and will provide all possible help to them. Replying to a query Juhi said that organizing Miss, Mrs. and Mr. Contests in Chhattisgarh has become a means of earning money for the organizers. Such events take place, but due to lack of proper platform, the participants are not able to move forward. Therefore, participants of such events need to be aware. Her husband Shantanu Vyas was also present along with Juhi during the press conference.
Manjhis son Santosh resigns from Nitish Cabinet





PATNA,

IN A sudden move, Bihar Minister Santosh Suman resigned from the State Cabinet on Tuesday alleging pressure to merge his Hindustani Awam Morcha (HAM) with Chief Minister Nitish Kumars JD(U). Suman, who held the SC and ST welfare portfolio, is the national president of HAM founded by his father Jitan Ram Manjhi, a former Chief Minister. I have sent my resignation to the Chief Minister and personally met Vijay Kumar Chaudhary (senior JD(U) leader and Minister) to explain my point. I hope my resignation will be accepted. We are, though, not pulling out of the Mahagathbandhan, Suman told reporters.

He pointed out that his father, who then headed the party, had decided to quit the NDA last year and join the Mahagathbandhan because of his loyalty towards the Chief Minister. It is for the CM to decide whether we be kept in the Mahagathbandhan or expelled. We will decide accordingly. But in view of the JD(U)s proposal, I had to take a decision to save my party from extinction. Hence I resigned, said Suman.

The Opposition BJP in the State was quick to claim that the development was a dampener for Nitish Kumars Opposition unity efforts as part of which he will be hosting a conclave next week, to be attended by bigwigs like Rahul Gandhi, Mamata Banerjee and Arvind Kejriwal. The resignation of Jitan Ram Manjhis son is proof of the chasm that exists in the Mahagathbandhan. The alliance has been rejected by the people and it will become evident in the Lok Sabha polls next year and culminate in the defeat of the Mahagathbandhan in the assembly elections a year later, said BJP national spokesperson Syed Shahnawaz Hussain. However, RJD spokesperson Mrityunjay Tiwari, whose party helms the Mahagathbandhan, said, Jitan Ram Manjhi has been known for his pressure tactics and prevarications.
MG Gloster Blackstorm at Nangia Cars





Business Bureau

MG MOTOR India, a British automobile brand with a 99-year-old legacy, introduced the Advanced Blackstorm edition of the MG Gloster - Indias first autonomous level-1 premium SUV. This exclusive special edition comes in an elegant and deep Black hue, adding a clear touch of distinction to vehicle. The Advanced Gloster Blackstorm will be available nationwide at an ex-showroom (Nagpur) price of Rs 40,29,800. The car was unvieled by Akshit Nangia and Abhimanyu Nangia of Nangia Cars.

The Advanced Gloster Blackstorm captivates with its dynamic aesthetics, featuring bold sporty elements and striking red accents on the bodywork. The iconic 2WD & 4WD, New Gloster, and Internet inside emblems are highlighted by the Metal Black and Metal Ash colours. The dark theme is further enhanced by the roof rail, smoked black taillight, window surround, fender, and fog garnish, resulting in an overall commanding presence for MGs flagship SUV. Inside the Advanced Gloster Blackstorm, the black-themed interior is complemented by red accents on the steering wheel, headlamps, callipers, and front and rear bumper. The dark-themed leatherette seat upholstery, adorned with red stitches, adds a sporty touch to the entire interior.

Customers of the Advanced MG Gloster Blackstorm can enjoy the exclusive benefits of the personalised car ownership programme My MG Shield, which offers over 180 after-sales service options. Customers will benefit from standard 3+3+3 package, which includes a warranty of 3 years with unlimited kilometres, 3 years of roadside assistance, and 3 labour-free services. MG Nagpur (Nangia Cars) is opposite Nangia Speciality Hospital, MIDC Hingna, Nagpur (M: 7775022000).
NEW EQUATIONS





EVEN as the political atmosphere is warming up for the election year ahead, new equations among parties are seen emerging on the horizon. Those who played a key role in the Opposition strategy to pull down Prime Minister Mr. Narendra Modi in 2019 appear to have gone under and are possibly looking at new alignments. For example, Mr. Chandrababu Naidu, the last elections roaring tiger in the Opposition camp, has lost his relevance suddenly for reasons not very difficult to decipher. He is now reported to be making attempts to realign himself and his Telugu Desam Party (TDP) with the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) led by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) under Mr. Narendra Modi. Several other political outfits of varying influences and sizes also are trying to return to the NDA fold, as reports have us believe.

As these reports emerge and vanish in the atmosphere, political observers are expecting a major internal shake-up in the BJP as well as the Central Government, possibly ahead of the electoral challenges of the coming year at the State and the Central levels. Of course, with master strategists like Mr. Narendra Modi and Mr. Amit Shah leading the NDA, it is absolutely unfathomable how they will react to emerging situation. Yet, there is no denying the fact that reports of a major shake-up are thick in the air. But if the NDA camp is busy in a serious strategic rethink for the election season, the Opposition camp is still trying to find ways and means to forge what can be called a grand front of its constituent parties. These attempts may not succeed as the road-blocks to that goal are very serious though mostly stemming from narrow considerations of various Opposition leaders.

The biggest hurdle in that journey is the seat-sharing formula among the constituent parties in the Opposition camp. For, according to regional chieftains like Ms. Mamata Banerjee of Trinamool Congress or Mr. Arvind Kejriwal of the Aam Aadmi Party and Mr. K. Chandrasekhara Rao of Bharat Rashtra Samithi or Mr. M.K. Stalin of the Dravida Munetra Kazhagham, they will not sacrifice their seats in their respective regions of influence for the benefit of the Congress party. They expect the Congress party to form its national list leaving aside these regional segments to respective parties. If this approach is approved, the Congress party will be left with no scope to choose its own candidates nationally. Its influence, thus, will get restricted only to those States under its rule. In that case, the number of seats the Congress party will contest at will be far lesser than its actual influence as the countrys single largest Opposition party.

With the Opposition camp having been stuck at this point ahead of the proposed June 23 meeting at Patna, there are obviously serious issues the collective leadership must handle. Correspondingly, the NDA camp is in a happy position since there are no such issues that outweigh common good. Yet, in the NDA, persons like former Prime Minister Mr. H.D. Dewe Gowda, Bahujan Samaj Party leader Ms. Mayawati, a faction of Akali Dal and many others are cosying up with the Prime Minister, making way for newer alignments in the election year. It is obvious that the political picture of the country during this year of intense contests would be altogether different, and far beyond the normal imagination. Though the Opposition camp is making appropriate noises to create an impression of a threat to Mr. Narendra Modis primacy, the whole nation is sure that this time, too, the Prime Minister is going to have an easy run at the hustings, no matter the margin with which he will win. The reason is simple: The Prime Minister knows how to manage political equations better than anybody in the Opposition camp.
One-day training for proposed G-20s 4G finance working group conference organised





Staff Reporter

RAIPUR,

G-20s 4G Finance Working Group conference is proposed to be held in district Raipur on September 18, 2023. In relation to the said G-20 conference, a one-day training programme and sensitisation workshop was organised was held at the convention hall of New Circuit House, Civil Line Raipur on June 12. More than 170 police officers of the state were trained in the workshop. For the first time such a big international level meeting is to be organised in State of Chhattisgarh, in which duty of police officers will be imposed at different levels for security and protocol. To make the event a success in Chhattisgarh, the police have already started their preparations.

Inspector General of Police (Incognito) Ajay Yadav, Inspector General of Police (Raipur Zone) Arif H Sheikh, Senior Superintendent of Police Raipur Prashant Agrawal, ML Kotwani (Security), Additional Superintendent of Police (Rural) Neeraj Chandrakar, Additional Superintendent of Police (ATS) Sukhnandan Rathore, Additional Superintendent of Police E O W Keertan Rathore, Additional Superintendent of Police Protocol, Pitamber Patel discussed all aspects of the event and gave training and sensitized police officials in context of the event. More than 170 police officers of the rank of Additional Superintendent of Police, Deputy Superintendent of Police, City Superintendent of Police, Inspector and Sub-Inspector of the state participated in this one-day workshop
Opposition alleges foul play, Congress demands judicial inquiry





By Bhavana Aparajita

Shukla

Fire episode at Satpura Bhawan in Bhopal before Assembly elections in the State has raised several questions among social circles and gave a reason to the Opposition parties to take on the Government. Congress demanded a judicial inquiry in the incident while Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) smelt conspiracy terming it could be an attempt to hide alleged wrong doings.Opposition leaders alleged that the fire at Satpura Bhavan was either a conspiracy or evidence of rampant corruption/scams be removed? K K Mishra, President of Pradesh Congress Media Department, who around 15 days back already expressed apprehension that the campaign of setting fire to Government offices may be started soon in the State.

After Mondays incident of massive fire at Satpura Bhawan, Mishra threw a series of questions alleging that ever since the Shivraj government came to power in the State, the fire incidents occur only in the creamy ministries, importantly before the Assembly elections? Why not before the Lok Sabha elections?, he questioned. Pointing towards the State Governments ill intentions, Atul Sharma from Aam Aadmi Party has raised the query that was it just an incident of fire or was intentional? Before losing power, the evidence of all the irregularities and scams has been erased? Taking a jibe over self-reliant claims by Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on many occasions, Mishra asked If the Army has to be called to extinguish the fire in the ministries of the State capital, then how is the State self-sufficient? Congress MLA Jitu Patwari Tweeted, CM Chouhan, my direct question is, whether the fire breaks out or has it been set? Because it is generally believed that the Government does such action to destroy the evidence before the elections. Now, the BJP should also tell who were the culprits in the old fire incident. How many people were punished?

Citing examples of the British Armys defensive mechanism, Mishra said that it is like a retreating army destroying their pill boxes. This is a sponsored fire incident, because the people responsible for the rampant corruption in the state have now realised that the exit of the present state government is certain in the upcoming assembly elections. Therefore, the documents related to corruption should be completely destroyed through such sponsored tactics.

Mishra said that if the sponsored fire in the second floor of the Satpura building in the state capital Bhopal reaches the sixth floor after a few hours, despite the well-publicised fire extinguishing engines, there is no management, the army has to be called in. What will be the condition of fire services in other districts? Mishra has sought answers Why all the documents caught fire were related to Vyapam, Transport, Health, Ayushman, NHM, scams during the corona period. Does the Government want to hide the scams and corruption through sponsored flames? Government was more concerned and focused about forming a committee to investigate the cause of the fire instead of extinguishing it. What is the reason for this haste?

Reacting to State Home Minister Dr Narottam Mishras statement that the files burnt by fire are not important. Congress leaders point out that NHM official Priyanka Das statement, who has said that all important documents have been burnt to ashes contradicts Home Ministers claim. Mishra alleged that burnt documents belong to the pending cases in the High Court, Lokayukta and EOW. K K Mishra linked the fire with the theft incident which had occurred at his residence in the month of April, He alleged this fire is also related to the theft of a license revolver from my residence on April 14 and a file related to corruption of Rs 250 crore in the Health Department, because the Government was aware that this file was a big deal. It is linked to corruption, it is suspected that this fire may have destroyed it as well. Otherwise, what was the reason why the thief targeted some rupees, the said file and the license revolver only, left other belongings at my house. The papers of corruption related to crores of rupees in Shri Mahakal Lok can also be burnt in the same way, so that the evidence is destroyed, so security should be ensured, he demanded. He has demanded that the Governor should ensure the accountability of the officers for this and a judicial inquiry should be conducted. Former Pradesh Congress Committee President (PCC) chief Arun Yadav tweeted, In Jabalpur, when Priyanka Gandhiji was making attack on scams in her speech, a huge fire broke out in the Satpura Bhawan where important files were burnt to ashes. Whether it is a conspiracy to burn the documents of scams on the pretext of fire? This fire incident indicates a change in Madhya Pradesh, he added.
DHAKA, June 14 (Xinhua) -- The Bangladeshi government and the World Bank Wednesday launched a project to improve road safety and reduce fatalities and injuries from road crashes.

The "Road Safety Project", which receives 358 million U.S. dollars in financing from the World Bank, is the first dedicated road safety project in South Asia supported by the bank, said the Washington-based lender in a statement.

In two national highways, it said the project will pilot comprehensive road safety measures, including improved engineering designs, signing and marking, pedestrian facilities, speed enforcement, and emergency care.

These measures will help reduce road traffic deaths by more than 30 percent on these two highways, it added.

"Road crashes are the fourth leading cause of children's death in Bangladesh and youth are disproportionately affected," said Abdoulaye Seck, World Bank country director for Bangladesh and Bhutan.

Speaking at the launching ceremony in Dhaka, Bangladeshi Minister of Road Transport and Bridges, Obaidul Quader, said "The Project will support Bangladesh on its commitment to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals on road safety by 2030." 
World is eager to partner with India: PM





Delhi Bureau

NEW DELHI,

DESPITE the challenges of today including the economic recession, the global pandemic and the disruption in the supply chain due to the ongoing war, India is taking its economy to new heights, and the entire world is eager to partner with us in our growth journey today, said Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Addressing the National Rozgar Mela via video conferencing on Tuesday, while distributing about 70,000 appointment letters to newly-inducted recruits in various Government departments and organisations, the Prime Minister said, today, India is known for its political stability, progressive economic and social decisions. Giving examples of various multinationals making their way into India for manufacturing and the countrys growing foreign exchange reserve, Modi explained that foreign investments give rise to production, expansion and setup of new industries, and boost exports, thereby giving a push to employment opportunities at a very fast pace. Emphasising that compared to a decade ago, India is a more stable, safe and strong country, the PM recalled the time when scam and misuse of the public money was the hallmark of governance. He said that the global agencies are acknowledging the work in ease of living, infrastructure building and ease of doing business.

He reiterated that India has made huge investments in its physical and social infrastructure. Highlighting the policies of the present Government that have created lakhs of employment opportunities in the private sector, the PM gave the example of the automobile sector which has contributed more than 6.5 per cent to the GDP of the country. Mentioning that the growth of the automotive industry in India can be witnessed by the growing export of passenger vehicles, commercial vehicles and three and two-wheelers to various countries, he informed that the automotive industry which was worth 5 lakh crore ten years ago, stands at more than 12 lakh crore today. Informing that the expansion of electric mobility is also taking place in India and that the PLI scheme is also helping the automotive industry, he underlined that such sectors are creating numerous employment opportunities for lakhs of youth in India.

Talking about the social infrastructure, Modi gave an example of ensuring the availability of safe drinking water through the Jal Jeevan Mission. Informing that about 4 lakh crore rupees have been spent on Jal Jeevan Mission, he said that from its inception when, on average, 15 out of 100 rural habitats had piped water, now the number has risen to 62 out of every 100 households. And the work is going on at a rapid pace, he added, mentioning that there are 130 districts with full coverage of piped water for every household. Observing this is resulting in saving time and freedom from many waterborne diseases, the PM said that the studies have shown that clean water has prevented about 4 lakh diarrhea-related deaths and financial savings of 8 lakh crore rupees of people which were spent in managing water and treatment of diseases. He asked the candidate to understand the multiplier effect of the Government schemes. Slamming the Opposition, saying that other political parties are trying to divide the people in the name of language, the PM said the Government on the other hand is making language a strong medium of employment. He emphasised that emphasis on recruitment examinations in the mother tongue is benefiting the youth. Also taking a dig at the ills of dynasty politics and nepotism in the recruitment process, he highlighted the issue of cash for jobs scam that has been unearthed in one of the states and warned the youth about such a system. Throwing light on the details that have emerged, he stated how a rate card was prepared for every job posting similar to that of a menu card in a restaurant.

He also highlighted the land for jobs scam where the then railway minister of the country had acquired the land in exchange for a job and remarked that the case is being investigated by CBI and pending in courts. He warned the youth of such political parties that engage in dynastic politics and loot the youth of the nation in the name of jobs. He said that contrary to this, the present Government is safeguarding the future of the youth. He said that the country will decide whether the future of the youth will be governed by the rate card or by the safeguard. Addressing the gathering, the Prime Minister remarked that the National Rozgar Mela has become the new identity of the present Government as recruitment letters are handed out to more than 70,000 individuals today.

He expressed happiness that the BJP and NDA ruled States are also organising similar Rozgar Melas on a regular basis. Noting that the Azadi Ka Amrit Kaal has only begun, the PM said that this is a very significant moment for those who are joining government service as they have the opportunity to contribute towards making India a developed country in the next 25 years. Notably, the selected recruits from across the country will be joining the Government in various Departments including the Department of Financial Services, Department of Posts, Department of School Education, Department of Higher Education, Ministry of Defence, Department of Revenue, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Department of Atomic Energy, Ministry of Railways, Department of Audit and Accounts, Department of Atomic Energy and Ministry of Home Affairs, among others. Incidentally, 43 places across the country were connected with the Mela during the Prime Ministers address.
This combo photo shows the village clinic at Zhangwu Village in Anji County, east China's Zhejiang Province in 2002 (above, photo taken by local photographer Wang Guangfa) and a view of the relocated clinic on June 13, 2023 (below, photo taken by Xinhua photographer Han Chuanhao). Zhangwu Village has witnessed great changes in the last two decades thanks to the promotion of Green Rural Revival Program in Zhejiang Province, which has helped thousands of villages develop in a green and sustainable way. (Xinhua)

This combo photo shows the residence of villager Liu Jingjiang at Zhangwu Village in Anji County, east China's Zhejiang Province in 2002 (above, photo taken by local photographer Wang Guangfa) and a view of the same place on June 13, 2023 (below, photo taken by Xinhua photographer Han Chuanhao). Zhangwu Village has witnessed great changes in the last two decades thanks to the promotion of Green Rural Revival Program in Zhejiang Province, which has helped thousands of villages develop in a green and sustainable way. (Xinhua)

This combo photo shows villager Zhang Jufang posing for a photo with her daughter Shen Lingzhu near their house in 1996 (L, photo taken by local photographer Wang Guangfa) and the mother and daughter posing for a photo in front of their new house at Zhangwu Village in Anji County, east China's Zhejiang Province on June 13, 2023 (R, photo taken by Xinhua photographer Han Chuanhao). Zhangwu Village has witnessed great changes in the last two decades thanks to the promotion of Green Rural Revival Program in Zhejiang Province, which has helped thousands of villages develop in a green and sustainable way. (Xinhua)

This combo photo shows Guirenli Street at Zhangwu Village in Anji County, east China's Zhejiang Province in 2009 (above, photo taken by local photographer Wang Guangfa) and a view of the same place on June 13, 2023 (below, photo taken by Xinhua photographer Han Chuanhao). Zhangwu Village has witnessed great changes in the last two decades thanks to the promotion of Green Rural Revival Program in Zhejiang Province, which has helped thousands of villages develop in a green and sustainable way. (Xinhua)

This combo photo shows the former residence of Wu Changshuo (1844-1927), a contemporary master painter, at Zhangwu Village in Anji County, east China's Zhejiang Province in 2001 (above, video snapshot by local photographer Wang Guangfa) and an aerial view of the same place on June 13, 2023 (below, photo taken by Xia Pengfei). Zhangwu Village has witnessed great changes in the last two decades thanks to the promotion of Green Rural Revival Program in Zhejiang Province, which has helped thousands of villages develop in a green and sustainable way. (Xinhua)

This combo photo shows a view of Zhangwu Village in Anji County, east China's Zhejiang Province in 2000 (above, photo taken by local photographer Wang Guangfa) and a view of the same place on June 13, 2023 (below, photo taken by Xinhua photographer Han Chuanhao). Zhangwu Village has witnessed great changes in the last two decades thanks to the promotion of Green Rural Revival Program in Zhejiang Province, which has helped thousands of villages develop in a green and sustainable way. (Xinhua)

This combo photo shows a kindergarten at Zhangwu Village in Anji County, east China's Zhejiang Province in 1999 (above, photo taken by local photographer Wang Guangfa) and an aerial view of the same place on June 13, 2023 (below, photo taken by Xia Pengfei). Zhangwu Village has witnessed great changes in the last two decades thanks to the promotion of Green Rural Revival Program in Zhejiang Province, which has helped thousands of villages develop in a green and sustainable way. (Xinhua)

This combo photo shows Guirenli Street at Zhangwu Village in Anji County, east China's Zhejiang Province in 2006 (above, photo taken by local photographer Wang Guangfa) and a view of the same place on June 13, 2023 (below, photo taken by Xinhua photographer Han Chuanhao). Zhangwu Village has witnessed great changes in the last two decades thanks to the promotion of Green Rural Revival Program in Zhejiang Province, which has helped thousands of villages develop in a green and sustainable way. (Xinhua)

This combo photo shows a view of Zhangwu Village in Anji County, east China's Zhejiang Province in 2000 (above, photo taken by local photographer Wang Guangfa) and a view of the same place on June 13, 2023 (below, photo taken by Xinhua photographer Han Chuanhao). Zhangwu Village has witnessed great changes in the last two decades thanks to the promotion of Green Rural Revival Program in Zhejiang Province, which has helped thousands of villages develop in a green and sustainable way. (Xinhua)

This combo photo shows a view of a primary school at Zhangwu Village in Anji County, east China's Zhejiang Province in 1987 (above, photo taken by local photographer Wang Guangfa) and a view of the same place on June 13, 2023 (below, photo taken by Xinhua photographer Han Chuanhao). Zhangwu Village has witnessed great changes in the last two decades thanks to the promotion of Green Rural Revival Program in Zhejiang Province, which has helped thousands of villages develop in a green and sustainable way. (Xinhua)
Passengers check in at an international airport in Frankfurt, Germany, June 12, 2023. A massive NATO exercise that kicked off on Monday is set to cause major disruptions to passenger flights in Germany, raising concerns from air travellers and also protesters. (Xinhua/Shan Weiyi)

FRANKFURT, June 13 (Xinhua) -- A massive NATO exercise that kicked off on Monday is set to cause major disruptions to passenger flights in Germany, raising concerns from air travellers and also protesters.

Jens Bischof, chief of Lufthansa Group's low-cost airline Eurowings, said he was concerned about the fallout of the exercise, which had led to the closure and heavy restriction of a large swath of German airspace.

The military drill, known as "Air Defender 23", is the biggest ever NATO air force deployment exercise involving 10,000 military personnel and 250 combat aircraft from 25 nations including the United States. It will last until June 23.

The two-week-drill will be carried out mainly in German airspace. The consequent impact includes possible delays of flights, prolonged flight time and cancellations at a busy time of year.

Up to 800 flights will have to be rerouted, and around 40 percent will have to fly 110 kms longer, according to estimates by the European Organization for the Safety of Air Navigation (Eurocontrol).

Hamburg Airport has told local media that it is impossible to know exactly which individual flights will be affected, due to the unprecedented nature of the ongoing exercises. Stuttgart Airport also put out a similar message on social media. Both suggested passengers to monitor the status of their flights closely.

Some 300 protestors rallied in front of an air base in the state of Lower Saxony on Saturday over the damage done to the climate by the aircrafts and over the NATO show of military might at a time when the conflict in Ukraine is raging on.

"If they want to use maneuvers to demonstrate, to intimidate others, this is always the wrong way," protester Thomas Wefing told Xinhua.

NATO has claimed that the drill is not targeted at anyone. However, Wefing believes it serves as a provocation to Russia and will lead to the escalation of the situation in Ukraine.

Egon Roth, another protestor, shared Wefing's concern over the drill that it could lead to escalation, adding that conflicts can only be resolved through diplomacy rather than the use of weapons.

Jochen Scholz, a security expert and a former military officer, feared that the military exercise will be exploited to give Europeans the wrong idea that Russia poses a threat to the security of Europe.

"It is not Russia that is a threat to Europe, but the United States, because it sees domination of the Eurasian continent as a prerequisite for its global dominance," he said. 

Passengers walk through the check-in area at an international airport in Frankfurt, Germany, June 12, 2023. A massive NATO exercise that kicked off on Monday is set to cause major disruptions to passenger flights in Germany, raising concerns from air travellers and also protesters. (Xinhua/Shan Weiyi)

A man browses a bulletin of flight information at an international airport in Frankfurt, Germany, June 12, 2023. A massive NATO exercise that kicked off on Monday is set to cause major disruptions to passenger flights in Germany, raising concerns from air travellers and also protesters. (Xinhua/Shan Weiyi)
Actual Experience plc (LON:ACT  Get Rating) reached a new 52-week low on Monday . The company traded as low as GBX 0.70 ($0.01) and last traded at GBX 0.70 ($0.01), with a volume of 17500 shares. The stock had previously closed at GBX 0.73 ($0.01).

Actual Experience Stock Performance

The stock has a market cap of 1.47 million, a PE ratio of -7.33 and a beta of 1.80. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of GBX 0.91 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of GBX 1.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 17.37, a quick ratio of 6.81 and a current ratio of 3.51.

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Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Richard Steele purchased 97,580 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 5th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of GBX 1 ($0.01) per share, with a total value of 975.80 ($1,220.97). In related news, insider Steve Bennetts bought 210,005 shares of the companys stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 3rd. The shares were purchased at an average cost of GBX 1 ($0.01) per share, with a total value of 2,100.05 ($2,627.69). Also, insider Richard Steele bought 97,580 shares of the companys stock in a transaction on Monday, June 5th. The stock was bought at an average cost of GBX 1 ($0.01) per share, for a total transaction of 975.80 ($1,220.97). Insiders purchased a total of 659,248 shares of company stock worth $659,248 in the last 90 days. 10.41% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Actual Experience Company Profile

Actual Experience plc, an analytics-as-a-service company, provides human experience management and associated consultancy services in the United Kingdom and the United States. It offers Analytics Cloud that receives data from digital users, applies algorithms to the data, and produces an objective score of digital experience quality and supply chain diagnostics; business impact assessment that helps its customer to understand the impact on top-level business metrics; and continuous improvement service to optimize the digital business over time.

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Air France-KLM SA (OTCMKTS:AFLYY  Get Rating) was the recipient of a significant decrease in short interest during the month of May. As of May 31st, there was short interest totalling 500 shares, a decrease of 88.1% from the May 15th total of 4,200 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 67,800 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 0.0 days.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on AFLYY shares. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded Air France-KLM from an underperform rating to a market perform rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 24th. Societe Generale upgraded shares of Air France-KLM from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note on Friday, March 24th. Stifel Nicolaus upgraded shares of Air France-KLM from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Air France-KLM from a neutral rating to an overweight rating in a report on Wednesday, February 22nd. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Air France-KLM from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note on Friday, March 31st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Air France-KLM has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $1.76.

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Air France-KLM Price Performance

OTCMKTS AFLYY opened at $1.87 on Wednesday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $1.73 and a 200 day moving average of $1.67. The company has a market capitalization of $1.20 billion, a PE ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 1.67. Air France-KLM has a 1 year low of $1.15 and a 1 year high of $3.45.

About Air France-KLM

Air France-KLM ( OTCMKTS:AFLYY Get Rating ) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, May 5th. The transportation company reported ($0.15) earnings per share for the quarter. Air France-KLM had a net margin of 3.22% and a negative return on equity of 21.31%. The company had revenue of $6.79 billion for the quarter. Research analysts expect that Air France-KLM will post 0.37 earnings per share for the current year.

(Get Rating)

Air France-KLM SA engages in providing passenger and cargo air transportation services. Its services include cargo, aeronautics maintenance, and other air transport related activities, such as catering and charter services. It operates through the following business segments: Network, Maintenance, Transavia, and Other.

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Algert Global LLC grew its position in Tri Pointe Homes, Inc. (NYSE:TPH  Get Rating) by 76.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 321,480 shares of the construction companys stock after buying an additional 139,360 shares during the period. Algert Global LLCs holdings in Tri Pointe Homes were worth $5,976,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in TPH. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its stake in Tri Pointe Homes by 951.4% in the 3rd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,819 shares of the construction companys stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 1,646 shares during the period. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new position in Tri Pointe Homes in the 1st quarter worth $45,000. Captrust Financial Advisors boosted its stake in Tri Pointe Homes by 30.4% in the 1st quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 2,275 shares of the construction companys stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 531 shares during the period. Quadrant Capital Group LLC boosted its stake in Tri Pointe Homes by 500.9% in the 3rd quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 3,209 shares of the construction companys stock worth $48,000 after purchasing an additional 2,675 shares during the period. Finally, Ronald Blue Trust Inc. boosted its stake in Tri Pointe Homes by 95.6% in the 4th quarter. Ronald Blue Trust Inc. now owns 4,861 shares of the construction companys stock worth $73,000 after purchasing an additional 2,376 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.41% of the companys stock.

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Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on shares of Tri Pointe Homes in a research note on Wednesday, May 31st. They issued a buy rating and a $42.00 target price for the company. Wedbush increased their price objective on shares of Tri Pointe Homes from $27.00 to $30.00 in a research note on Friday, April 28th. Finally, StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Tri Pointe Homes in a research note on Thursday, May 18th. They set a buy rating for the company. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $27.00.

Tri Pointe Homes Trading Down 0.5 %

Tri Pointe Homes stock opened at $33.00 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 2.24 and a quick ratio of 2.24. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $28.66 and a 200-day moving average of $24.04. The company has a market cap of $3.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.01, a P/E/G ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 1.45. Tri Pointe Homes, Inc. has a one year low of $14.59 and a one year high of $33.56.

Tri Pointe Homes (NYSE:TPH  Get Rating) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 27th. The construction company reported $0.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts consensus estimates of $0.41 by $0.32. The company had revenue of $768.40 million for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $586.76 million. Tri Pointe Homes had a net margin of 12.97% and a return on equity of 20.83%. Tri Pointe Homess quarterly revenue was up 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.81 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Tri Pointe Homes, Inc. will post 3.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Douglas F. Bauer sold 19,076 shares of the companys stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.24, for a total value of $557,782.24. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 423,514 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $12,383,549.36. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 2.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About Tri Pointe Homes

(Get Rating)

Tri Pointe Homes, Inc designs, constructs, and sells single-family homes and condominiums. It operates through the Homebuilding and Financial Services segments. The Homebuilding segment consists of six reportable segments: Maracay Homes, consisting of operations in Arizona, Pardee Homes, consisting of operations in California and Nevada, Quadrant Homes, consisting of operations in Washington, Trendmaker Homes, consisting of operations in Texas, TRI Pointe Homes, consisting of operations in California and Colorado, and Winchester Homes, consisting of operations in Maryland and Virginia.

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Alps Advisors Inc. reduced its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC  Get Rating) by 4.6% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 162,074 shares of the financial services providers stock after selling 7,848 shares during the period. Alps Advisors Inc.s holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $26,820,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 43,528,811 shares of the financial services providers stock worth $6,498,416,000 after purchasing an additional 227,036 shares during the period. BlackRock Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 1.7% during the 3rd quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 41,313,574 shares of the financial services providers stock worth $6,167,702,000 after purchasing an additional 693,039 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 10,306,370 shares of the financial services providers stock worth $1,702,898,000 after purchasing an additional 65,306 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 8.7% during the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 9,188,078 shares of the financial services providers stock worth $1,520,443,000 after purchasing an additional 735,798 shares during the period. Finally, Mawer Investment Management Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 3.3% during the 4th quarter. Mawer Investment Management Ltd. now owns 7,807,853 shares of the financial services providers stock worth $1,292,044,000 after purchasing an additional 249,614 shares during the period. 87.30% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $168.00 to $192.00 in a report on Monday, May 15th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $180.00 to $183.00 and gave the company a sector perform rating in a report on Friday, April 21st. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $197.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a report on Friday, April 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $180.00 to $181.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a report on Friday, March 31st. Finally, StockNews.com assumed coverage on Marsh & McLennan Companies in a report on Thursday, May 18th. They set a hold rating for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Marsh & McLennan Companies currently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $183.54.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MMC opened at $177.37 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.15. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $143.33 and a fifty-two week high of $182.43. The firm has a market capitalization of $87.75 billion, a PE ratio of 27.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 0.94. The stocks 50-day simple moving average is $176.33 and its 200-day simple moving average is $170.50.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC  Get Rating) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 20th. The financial services provider reported $2.53 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.47 by $0.06. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a return on equity of 33.33% and a net margin of 15.24%. The business had revenue of $5.92 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.86 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.30 EPS. The businesss quarterly revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 7.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Marsh & McLennan Companies

In other news, Director Oscar Fanjul sold 5,500 shares of the firms stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $179.38, for a total transaction of $986,590.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 70,116 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $12,577,408.08. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the companys stock.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Company Profile

(Get Rating)

Marsh & McLennan Cos., Inc is a professional services firm, which engages in offering clients advice and solutions in risk, strategy, and people. It operates through the Risk and Insurance Services, and Consulting segments. The Risk and Insurance Services segment is involved in risk management activities, as well as insurance and reinsurance broking and services.

Further Reading

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Ares Management Co. (NYSE:ARES  Get Rating) declared a quarterly dividend on Friday, April 28th, Zacks reports. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 16th will be paid a dividend of 0.77 per share by the asset manager on Friday, June 30th. This represents a $3.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.25%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 15th.

Ares Management has increased its dividend by an average of 24.0% per year over the last three years and has raised its dividend annually for the last 5 consecutive years. Ares Management has a payout ratio of 60.5% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities research analysts expect Ares Management to earn $4.70 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $3.08 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 65.5%.

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Ares Management Trading Up 2.0 %

ARES opened at $94.79 on Wednesday. Ares Management has a 1-year low of $53.15 and a 1-year high of $95.13. The stock has a market capitalization of $28.67 billion, a PE ratio of 86.17, a PEG ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 1.32. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $84.73 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $79.79.

Insider Buying and Selling

Ares Management ( NYSE:ARES Get Rating ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 28th. The asset manager reported $0.71 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts consensus estimates of $0.82 by ($0.11). Ares Management had a net margin of 6.84% and a return on equity of 16.79%. The company had revenue of $813.36 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $694.04 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.65 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Ares Management will post 3.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

In other news, Director Judy D. Olian sold 1,200 shares of Ares Management stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.59, for a total transaction of $102,708.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 28,997 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,481,853.23. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, major shareholder Ares Management Llc bought 200,000 shares of Ares Management stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 20th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $20.85 per share, with a total value of $4,170,000.00. Following the purchase, the insider now owns 37,494,654 shares in the company, valued at $781,763,535.90. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Judy D. Olian sold 1,200 shares of Ares Management stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.59, for a total value of $102,708.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 28,997 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,481,853.23. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have acquired 1,740,756 shares of company stock valued at $37,373,324 and have sold 12,430,646 shares valued at $343,599,493. 47.34% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Ares Management by 3.4% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 14,038,275 shares of the asset managers stock worth $1,140,328,000 after acquiring an additional 458,646 shares during the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. lifted its position in shares of Ares Management by 7.1% in the first quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 10,618,459 shares of the asset managers stock worth $886,004,000 after purchasing an additional 701,738 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in Ares Management by 4.3% during the first quarter. State Street Corp now owns 3,002,715 shares of the asset managers stock worth $250,547,000 after purchasing an additional 123,403 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Ares Management by 4.1% in the first quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,090,581 shares of the asset managers stock valued at $174,175,000 after purchasing an additional 82,543 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Ares Management in the 4th quarter valued at $107,777,000. 47.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ARES has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. StockNews.com began coverage on Ares Management in a research report on Thursday, May 18th. They set a sell rating for the company. Wells Fargo & Company lowered shares of Ares Management from an overweight rating to an equal weight rating and cut their price objective for the company from $99.00 to $93.00 in a report on Monday. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on shares of Ares Management from $100.00 to $105.00 in a report on Tuesday, May 2nd. Barclays increased their price target on Ares Management from $98.00 to $108.00 in a research note on Monday, May 1st. Finally, TheStreet raised Ares Management from a c+ rating to a b- rating in a research note on Thursday, April 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Ares Management presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $97.56.

Ares Management Company Profile

(Get Rating)

Ares Management Corp. is engaged in providing investment management and consultancy services. It operates through the following segments: Credit Group, Private Equity Group and Real Estate Group. The Credit Group segment offers credit strategies across the liquid and illiquid spectrum, including syndicated bank loans, high yield bonds, credit opportunities, special situations, asset-backed investments and U.S.

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AMMAN, June 13 (Xinhua) -- A Royal Jordanian flight heading to Aqaba on Tuesday returned to the capital of Amman due to a dust storm, said Fayez Al Fayez, spokesperson of the Aqaba Special Economic Zone Authority (ASEZA).

The airplane had hovered and waited for the weather condition to ease, but was forced to return to Amman due to the severe dust, Fayez was quoted as saying by the Jordanian state-run Petra news agency.

The ASEZA spokesperson called on the public, mainly the elderly and those with respiratory diseases, to take precautions against the dust storm in Aqaba.

Meanwhile, the Jordan Maritime Authority issued a warning for vessels against high wind speed and high waves.

The Jordan Meteorological Department (JMD) predicted the dust over Jordan would increase gradually, resulting in a decrease in visibility in many regions of the kingdom.

The JMD also warned of possible flash floods in valleys and low-lying areas, slippery roads and low visibility due to the dust storm, calling on the public to take precautions. 
Auto Trader Group plc (OTCMKTS:ATDRY  Get Rating) reached a new 52-week high on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $2.00 and last traded at $1.99, with a volume of 145397 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $1.96.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently commented on ATDRY. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Auto Trader Group from an underweight rating to a neutral rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 4th. Credit Suisse Group raised their target price on shares of Auto Trader Group from GBX 405 ($5.07) to GBX 473 ($5.92) in a research note on Tuesday, June 6th. Peel Hunt lowered Auto Trader Group from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report on Thursday, June 1st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on Auto Trader Group from GBX 610 ($7.63) to GBX 670 ($8.38) in a research note on Friday, June 2nd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Auto Trader Group currently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average price target of $596.33.

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Auto Trader Group Stock Up 1.5 %

The firm has a 50-day moving average of $1.90 and a two-hundred day moving average of $1.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 1.61 and a quick ratio of 1.58.

About Auto Trader Group

Auto Trader Group plc operates in the digital automotive marketplace in the United Kingdom and Ireland. The company provides vehicle advertisement on its websites for private sellers, as well as insurance and loan financing products to consumers; and display advertising on its websites for manufacturers and their advertising agencies.

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Banco Bradesco S.A. (NYSE:BBD  Get Rating) announced a monthly dividend on Wednesday, June 14th, Wall Street Journal reports. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 5th will be given a dividend of 0.0039 per share by the bank on Tuesday, August 8th. This represents a $0.05 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.34%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 3rd. This is a positive change from Banco Bradescos previous monthly dividend of $0.0035.

Banco Bradesco has a dividend payout ratio of 10.0% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities analysts expect Banco Bradesco to earn $0.51 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $0.05 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 9.8%.

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Banco Bradesco Price Performance

Shares of Banco Bradesco stock traded up $0.04 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $3.50. The companys stock had a trading volume of 29,842,584 shares, compared to its average volume of 31,722,279. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44. Banco Bradesco has a 12-month low of $2.34 and a 12-month high of $4.16. The company has a market capitalization of $37.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.67 and a beta of 0.73. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $3.01 and a 200-day moving average price of $2.81.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Banco Bradesco

Banco Bradesco ( NYSE:BBD Get Rating ) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 4th. The bank reported $0.07 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts consensus estimates of $0.07. Banco Bradesco had a return on equity of 11.66% and a net margin of 9.54%. The firm had revenue of $9.82 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.43 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.12 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Banco Bradesco will post 0.37 EPS for the current year.

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Advisor Group Holdings Inc. grew its position in shares of Banco Bradesco by 15.3% in the first quarter. Advisor Group Holdings Inc. now owns 47,036 shares of the banks stock valued at $325,000 after purchasing an additional 6,254 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can boosted its position in shares of Banco Bradesco by 38.4% in the first quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 164,575 shares of the banks stock worth $767,000 after buying an additional 45,641 shares during the period. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Banco Bradesco by 36.4% in the first quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 16,506 shares of the banks stock worth $77,000 after buying an additional 4,407 shares during the period. Federated Hermes Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Banco Bradesco in the first quarter worth about $470,000. Finally, Prudential Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Banco Bradesco in the first quarter worth about $57,000. 2.36% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on BBD shares. The Goldman Sachs Group cut Banco Bradesco from a buy rating to a neutral rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $3.70 to $2.70 in a report on Thursday, February 16th. Barclays reduced their price objective on Banco Bradesco from $3.50 to $3.00 and set an equal weight rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 7th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the companys stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Banco Bradesco presently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $11.93.

Banco Bradesco Company Profile

(Get Rating)

Banco Bradesco SA engages in the provision of financial and insurance services. It operates through Banking, and Insurance segments. The Banking segment includes banking activities. The Insurance segment covers auto, health, life, accident and property insurance, and pension plans aw well as capitalization bonds.

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Basilea Pharmaceutica AG (OTCMKTS:BPMUF  Get Rating) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $50.00 and last traded at $50.00, with a volume of 0 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $50.00.

Basilea Pharmaceutica Stock Performance

The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $51.16 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $51.70.

About Basilea Pharmaceutica

(Get Rating)

Basilea Pharmaceutica AG engages in the development and commercialization of pharmaceutical products. Its products include Cresemba, Zevtera, Derazantinib, BAL101553, and BAL3833. The company was founded on October 17, 2000 and is headquartered in Allschwil, Switzerland.

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BlackRock MuniYield Pennsylvania Quality Fund (NYSE:MPA  Get Rating) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest during the month of May. As of May 31st, there was short interest totalling 82,000 shares, a growth of 638.7% from the May 15th total of 11,100 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 29,900 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.7 days.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On BlackRock MuniYield Pennsylvania Quality Fund

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Captrust Financial Advisors acquired a new position in shares of BlackRock MuniYield Pennsylvania Quality Fund in the second quarter valued at about $44,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. acquired a new position in BlackRock MuniYield Pennsylvania Quality Fund in the 4th quarter worth approximately $47,000. Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new position in BlackRock MuniYield Pennsylvania Quality Fund during the 4th quarter worth approximately $127,000. City of London Investment Management Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in BlackRock MuniYield Pennsylvania Quality Fund during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $156,000. Finally, UBS Group AG boosted its holdings in shares of BlackRock MuniYield Pennsylvania Quality Fund by 33.6% in the 4th quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 15,143 shares of the investment management companys stock valued at $167,000 after acquiring an additional 3,810 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 7.18% of the companys stock.

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BlackRock MuniYield Pennsylvania Quality Fund Stock Down 0.4 %

NYSE:MPA traded down $0.05 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $11.74. 10,875 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 32,181. BlackRock MuniYield Pennsylvania Quality Fund has a 52-week low of $10.17 and a 52-week high of $14.50. The companys 50 day moving average price is $11.39 and its 200-day moving average price is $11.36.

BlackRock MuniYield Pennsylvania Quality Fund Dividend Announcement

About BlackRock MuniYield Pennsylvania Quality Fund

The business also recently disclosed a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 3rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.034 per share. This represents a $0.41 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.48%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 14th.

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BlackRock MuniYield Pennsylvania Quality Fund is a closed ended fixed income mutual fund launched by BlackRock, Inc It is managed by BlackRock Advisors, LLC. The fund invests in fixed income markets. It invests primarily in long-term investment grade municipal obligations exempt from federal income taxes and Pennsylvania income taxes.

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Shares of Boston Scientific Co. (NYSE:BSX  Get Rating) gapped up prior to trading on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $51.16, but opened at $53.60. Boston Scientific shares last traded at $52.91, with a volume of 2,453,467 shares.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. StockNews.com initiated coverage on Boston Scientific in a report on Thursday, May 18th. They issued a buy rating for the company. TheStreet upgraded Boston Scientific from a c+ rating to a b rating in a report on Tuesday, May 30th. UBS Group started coverage on Boston Scientific in a report on Tuesday, March 28th. They set a buy rating and a $57.00 price objective for the company. Mizuho upped their price target on Boston Scientific from $52.00 to $56.00 in a report on Tuesday, April 18th. Finally, Truist Financial upped their price target on Boston Scientific from $54.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a report on Monday, April 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of Buy and a consensus target price of $54.00.

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Boston Scientific Trading Up 4.5 %

The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $51.87 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $48.62. The stock has a market cap of $74.87 billion, a PE ratio of 86.71, a PEG ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a current ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47.

Insider Activity at Boston Scientific

Boston Scientific ( NYSE:BSX Get Rating ) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 26th. The medical equipment provider reported $0.47 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.43 by $0.04. Boston Scientific had a return on equity of 14.57% and a net margin of 6.91%. The firm had revenue of $3.39 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $3.16 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.39 EPS. The companys revenue was up 12.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts expect that Boston Scientific Co. will post 1.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

In related news, CAO Jonathan Monson sold 5,000 shares of the firms stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total transaction of $250,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 34,868 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $1,743,400. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other Boston Scientific news, EVP Eric Francis Yves Thepaut sold 83,401 shares of Boston Scientific stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.49, for a total value of $4,377,718.49. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 12,269 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $643,999.81. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CAO Jonathan Monson sold 5,000 shares of Boston Scientific stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total value of $250,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 34,868 shares in the company, valued at $1,743,400. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 179,017 shares of company stock valued at $9,397,768. Corporate insiders own 0.53% of the companys stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Boston Scientific

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Householder Group Estate & Retirement Specialist LLC bought a new stake in shares of Boston Scientific in the 1st quarter worth approximately $26,000. Asset Dedication LLC grew its position in shares of Boston Scientific by 109.5% in the 1st quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 551 shares of the medical equipment providers stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 288 shares during the last quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. grew its position in shares of Boston Scientific by 56.7% in the 4th quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 636 shares of the medical equipment providers stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 230 shares during the last quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Boston Scientific in the 1st quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, BerganKDV Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Boston Scientific by 44.3% in the 1st quarter. BerganKDV Wealth Management LLC now owns 658 shares of the medical equipment providers stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 202 shares during the last quarter. 90.23% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Boston Scientific Company Profile

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Boston Scientific Corp. engages in the development, manufacture and marketing of medical devices that are used in interventional medical procedures. It operates through the MedSurg and Cardiovascular segments. The MedSurg segment includes Urology and Neuromodulation. The Cardiovascular segment consists of Cardiology and Peripheral Interventions.

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Halliburton (NYSE:HAL  Get Rating)  Capital One Financial issued their Q1 2024 EPS estimates for shares of Halliburton in a report released on Wednesday, June 7th. Capital One Financial analyst D. Becker forecasts that the oilfield services company will earn $0.79 per share for the quarter. Capital One Financial currently has a Overweight rating and a $41.00 price objective on the stock. The consensus estimate for Halliburtons current full-year earnings is $3.13 per share. Capital One Financial also issued estimates for Halliburtons Q2 2024 earnings at $0.85 EPS, Q3 2024 earnings at $0.90 EPS, Q4 2024 earnings at $0.96 EPS, FY2024 earnings at $3.50 EPS, Q1 2025 earnings at $0.97 EPS and FY2025 earnings at $4.11 EPS.

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Halliburton (NYSE:HAL  Get Rating) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 25th. The oilfield services company reported $0.72 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.67 by $0.05. Halliburton had a net margin of 9.04% and a return on equity of 29.38%. The business had revenue of $5.68 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.49 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.35 EPS. The businesss revenue was up 32.5% on a year-over-year basis.

Halliburton Stock Up 3.1 %

Other research analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. Citigroup lowered their price target on shares of Halliburton from $47.00 to $44.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 22nd. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Halliburton from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report on Friday, May 26th. UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of Halliburton in a report on Wednesday, April 19th. They issued a buy rating and a $49.00 price target for the company. Benchmark reissued a buy rating and issued a $50.00 price objective on shares of Halliburton in a research report on Monday, April 3rd. Finally, Susquehanna reduced their price objective on shares of Halliburton from $57.00 to $45.00 in a research report on Monday, April 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of Buy and a consensus target price of $47.83.

Shares of NYSE:HAL opened at $32.71 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 2.14, a quick ratio of 1.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94. Halliburton has a 12 month low of $23.30 and a 12 month high of $43.42. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $31.37 and a 200 day moving average price of $35.06. The company has a market cap of $29.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.14, a PEG ratio of 0.41 and a beta of 2.13.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Halliburton

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Sei Investments Co. lifted its stake in shares of Halliburton by 259.5% during the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 166,407 shares of the oilfield services companys stock worth $6,281,000 after buying an additional 120,122 shares during the period. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board lifted its stake in shares of Halliburton by 70.5% during the first quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 128,001 shares of the oilfield services companys stock worth $4,847,000 after buying an additional 52,933 shares during the period. Prudential PLC acquired a new stake in shares of Halliburton during the first quarter worth $696,000. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust lifted its stake in shares of Halliburton by 81.5% during the first quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 2,347 shares of the oilfield services companys stock worth $89,000 after buying an additional 1,054 shares during the period. Finally, Covestor Ltd lifted its stake in shares of Halliburton by 83.7% during the first quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 3,384 shares of the oilfield services companys stock worth $128,000 after buying an additional 1,542 shares during the period. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Jeffrey Allen Miller sold 271,283 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.25, for a total transaction of $8,206,310.75. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 829,230 shares in the company, valued at $25,084,207.50. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other Halliburton news, CAO Charles Jr. Geer sold 12,065 shares of the firms stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.60, for a total value of $369,189.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 52,817 shares in the company, valued at $1,616,200.20. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Jeffrey Allen Miller sold 271,283 shares of the firms stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.25, for a total transaction of $8,206,310.75. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 829,230 shares of the companys stock, valued at $25,084,207.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.60% of the companys stock.

Halliburton Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 28th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, June 7th will be paid a dividend of $0.16 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 6th. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.96%. Halliburtons dividend payout ratio is presently 29.63%.

About Halliburton

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Halliburton Co engages in the provision of services and products to the energy industry related to the exploration, development, and production of oil and natural gas. It operates through the Completion and Production, and Drilling and Evaluation segments. The Completion and Production segment delivers cementing, stimulation, intervention, pressure control, specialty chemicals, artificial lift, and completion services.

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Novozymes A/S (OTCMKTS:NVZMF  Get Rating) is one of 348 publicly-traded companies in the Biotechnology industry, but how does it contrast to its competitors? We will compare Novozymes A/S to similar companies based on the strength of its dividends, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, profitability, earnings, valuation and risk.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current ratings and recommmendations for Novozymes A/S and its competitors, as reported by MarketBeat.

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Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score Novozymes A/S 0 0 0 0 N/A Novozymes A/S Competitors 482 1594 4009 40 2.59

As a group, Biotechnology companies have a potential upside of 79.75%. Given Novozymes A/Ss competitors higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Novozymes A/S has less favorable growth aspects than its competitors.

Dividends

Institutional and Insider Ownership

Novozymes A/S pays an annual dividend of $1.80 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.8%. Novozymes A/S pays out 22.4% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. As a group, Biotechnology companies pay a dividend yield of 2.7% and pay out 1,850.5% of their earnings in the form of a dividend. Novozymes A/S is clearly a better dividend stock than its competitors, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.

20.4% of Novozymes A/S shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 23.7% of shares of all Biotechnology companies are held by institutional investors. 27.2% of shares of all Biotechnology companies are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Novozymes A/S and its competitors top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

Gross Revenue Net Income Price/Earnings Ratio Novozymes A/S N/A N/A 5.97 Novozymes A/S Competitors $130.82 million -$11.92 million 70.61

Novozymes A/Ss competitors have higher revenue, but lower earnings than Novozymes A/S. Novozymes A/S is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than its competitors, indicating that it is currently more affordable than other companies in its industry.

Profitability

This table compares Novozymes A/S and its competitors net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets Novozymes A/S N/A N/A N/A Novozymes A/S Competitors -434.66% -57.40% -15.34%

About Novozymes A/S

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Novozymes A/S engages in the research and development of biotechnology solutions, which produces industrial enzymes and microorganisms. Its business areas include agriculture, bioenergy, biopharma, food and beverage, household care, leather, pulp and paper, textile and wastewater solutions. The company was founded in 2000 and is headquartered in Copenhagen, Denmark.

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Petro Matad (OTCMKTS:PRTDF  Get Rating) and EQT (NYSE:EQT  Get Rating) are both energy companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their institutional ownership, valuation, risk, profitability, dividends, earnings and analyst recommendations.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

0.3% of Petro Matad shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 97.6% of EQT shares are held by institutional investors. 0.5% of EQT shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

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Profitability

This table compares Petro Matad and EQTs net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets Petro Matad N/A N/A N/A EQT 41.96% 15.17% 7.06%

Earnings and Valuation

Gross Revenue Price/Sales Ratio Net Income Earnings Per Share Price/Earnings Ratio Petro Matad N/A N/A N/A ($0.02) -1.88 EQT $7.50 billion 1.85 $1.77 billion $11.26 3.41

This table compares Petro Matad and EQTs revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

EQT has higher revenue and earnings than Petro Matad. Petro Matad is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than EQT, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent recommendations and price targets for Petro Matad and EQT, as reported by MarketBeat.

Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score Petro Matad 0 0 0 0 N/A EQT 0 6 13 0 2.68

EQT has a consensus price target of $49.59, suggesting a potential upside of 28.97%. Given EQTs higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe EQT is more favorable than Petro Matad.

Summary

EQT beats Petro Matad on 10 of the 10 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Petro Matad

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Petro Matad Limited, together with its subsidiaries, explores for, develops, and produces oil in Mongolia. It holds 100% interests in production sharing contract blocks, including Ongi Block V that covers an area of approximately 7,937 square kilometers; and Matad Block XX that consists of an area of approximately 218 square kilometers in Mongolia. The company was incorporated in 2007 and is based in Douglas, the United Kingdom.

About EQT

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EQT Corporation operates as a natural gas production company in the United States. As of December 31, 2022, it had 25.0 trillion cubic feet of proved natural gas, natural gas liquids, and crude oil reserves across approximately 2.0 million gross acres, including 1.8 million gross acres in the Marcellus play. The company was founded in 1878 and is headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

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Credit Suisse Asset Management Income Fund, Inc. (NYSEAMERICAN:CIK  Get Rating) crossed above its 50 day moving average during trading on Monday . The stock has a 50 day moving average of $0.00 and traded as high as $2.97. Credit Suisse Asset Management Income Fund shares last traded at $2.96, with a volume of 127,312 shares.

Credit Suisse Asset Management Income Fund Price Performance

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Credit Suisse Asset Management Income Fund Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 23rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 16th will be paid a dividend of $0.0225 per share. This represents a $0.27 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 8.79%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, June 15th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Credit Suisse Asset Management Income Fund

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Credit Suisse Asset Management Income Fund in the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new position in Credit Suisse Asset Management Income Fund during the 2nd quarter valued at about $32,000. Astoria Portfolio Advisors LLC. purchased a new position in Credit Suisse Asset Management Income Fund during the 4th quarter valued at about $36,000. Advisor Group Holdings Inc. grew its holdings in Credit Suisse Asset Management Income Fund by 30.7% during the 4th quarter. Advisor Group Holdings Inc. now owns 20,663 shares of the companys stock valued at $52,000 after buying an additional 4,859 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. purchased a new position in Credit Suisse Asset Management Income Fund during the 4th quarter valued at about $59,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 7.80% of the companys stock.

About Credit Suisse Asset Management Income Fund

Credit Suisse Asset Management Income Fund, Inc is a closed-ended fixed income mutual fund launched and managed by Credit Suisse Asset Management, LLC. The fund invests in the fixed income markets of the United States. It primarily invests in high yield corporate debt such as bonds and debentures that are rated Baa or lower by Moody's or BBB or lower by S&P.

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Revvity (NYSE:RVTY  Get Rating) is one of 69 publicly-traded companies in the Diagnostics & Research industry, but how does it weigh in compared to its competitors? We will compare Revvity to similar businesses based on the strength of its risk, earnings, dividends, analyst recommendations, valuation, profitability and institutional ownership.

Volatility and Risk

Revvity has a beta of 1.11, indicating that its share price is 11% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Revvitys competitors have a beta of 0.72, indicating that their average share price is 28% less volatile than the S&P 500.

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Institutional & Insider Ownership

85.2% of Revvity shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 26.9% of shares of all Diagnostics & Research companies are held by institutional investors. 0.5% of Revvity shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 33.4% of shares of all Diagnostics & Research companies are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Analyst Recommendations

Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score Revvity 0 0 1 0 3.00 Revvity Competitors 68 281 237 35 2.38

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and recommmendations for Revvity and its competitors, as provided by MarketBeat.

As a group, Diagnostics & Research companies have a potential upside of 143.29%. Given Revvitys competitors higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Revvity has less favorable growth aspects than its competitors.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Revvity and its competitors gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

Gross Revenue Net Income Price/Earnings Ratio Revvity $3.31 billion $569.18 million 14.96 Revvity Competitors $965.74 million $60.17 million -143.60

Revvity has higher revenue and earnings than its competitors. Revvity is trading at a higher price-to-earnings ratio than its competitors, indicating that it is currently more expensive than other companies in its industry.

Dividends

Revvity pays an annual dividend of $0.28 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.2%. Revvity pays out 3.6% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. As a group, Diagnostics & Research companies pay a dividend yield of 0.6% and pay out 13.9% of their earnings in the form of a dividend.

Profitability

This table compares Revvity and its competitors net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets Revvity 28.94% 11.17% 5.83% Revvity Competitors -30.08% -0.79% -6.60%

Summary

Revvity beats its competitors on 11 of the 15 factors compared.

Revvity Company Profile

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Revvity, Inc. provides products, services, and solutions to the diagnostics, life sciences, and applied services markets worldwide. It operates through two segments, Discovery & Analytical Solutions and Diagnostics. The Discovery & Analytical Solutions segment provides instruments, reagents, informatics, software, subscriptions, detection, and imaging technologies that enable scientists to enhance research breakthroughs in the life sciences research market, as well as contract research and laboratory services. It also provides analytical technologies, solutions, and services for its customers to understand the characterize the health of various aspects, including air, water, and soil. In addition, this segment offers solutions to farmers and food producers; and analytical instrumentation for the industrial market, which includes the chemical, semiconductor and electronics, energy, lubricant, petrochemical, and polymer industries. The Diagnostics segment provides instruments, reagents, assay platforms, and software products for the early detection of genetic disorders, such as pregnancy and early childhood, as well as infectious disease testing in the diagnostics market. Its products are used for testing and screening genetic abnormalities, disorders, and diseases, including down syndrome, hypothyroidism, muscular dystrophy, infertility, and various metabolic conditions. This segment also develops technologies that enable and support genomic workflows using protein coupled receptor and next-generation DNA sequencing for applications in oncology, immunodiagnostics, and drug discovery. It serves pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, laboratories, academic and research institutions, public health authorities, private healthcare organizations, doctors, and government agencies. The company was formerly known as PerkinElmer, Inc. and changed its name to Revvity, Inc. in April 2023. Revvity, Inc. was founded in 1937 and is headquartered in Waltham, Massachusetts.

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LHASA, June 14 (Xinhua) -- From Tibetan yak cashmere and Nepalese copper cookware to Australian chocolates, southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region is drawing crowds of tourists to its international expo on the "roof of the world."

The expo on tourism and culture, scheduled to open in Lhasa on Friday and last for three days, will highlight the unique plateau culture and different products, Tibet's tourism development department said in a press release Wednesday.

Altogether 984 businesses from 12 countries will participate in the event, which aims at boosting the development of local industries and promote international exchanges, it said.

Tsetso, 29, is eager to welcome visitors to her booth featuring Tibetan yak cashmere clothes. "This is going to be a great opportunity for Chinese and international tourists to discover our products."

Nepalese craftsman Narayan has brought copper pots, bowls, and bottles from Nepal. "This is my second time participating in the expo, and I am proud to bring my family's traditional craft to Tibet," said Narayan, 38.

On her first-ever visit to Tibet, Chen Lijuan from southwest China's Chongqing Municipality brought handmade chocolates her company imports from Australia.

"The Potala Palace is fully booked. I can only try my luck after the expo," said Chen, who has managed to visit the Jokhang Temple and Barkhor Street in the heart of Lhasa on the sidelines of her tight schedule.

This year's expo is the fifth such event in Lhasa since the first one was held in September 2014.

Tibet received more than 11.73 million tourist arrivals in the first five months of this year, a rise of nearly 45 percent year-on-year. Tourism revenue over the period surpassed 13 billion yuan (about 1.81 billion U.S. dollars), up nearly 43 percent from the same period in 2022, the regional tourism development department said. 
Algert Global LLC increased its holdings in shares of EMCOR Group, Inc. (NYSE:EME  Get Rating) by 208.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 47,134 shares of the construction companys stock after acquiring an additional 31,843 shares during the quarter. EMCOR Group makes up approximately 0.4% of Algert Global LLCs holdings, making the stock its 20th biggest holding. Algert Global LLCs holdings in EMCOR Group were worth $6,981,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of EME. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. raised its stake in EMCOR Group by 5.9% during the first quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 2,426 shares of the construction companys stock worth $273,000 after acquiring an additional 135 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of EMCOR Group by 3.8% in the first quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 5,156 shares of the construction companys stock valued at $580,000 after purchasing an additional 189 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can increased its stake in shares of EMCOR Group by 3.4% in the first quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 8,037 shares of the construction companys stock valued at $928,000 after purchasing an additional 264 shares during the period. Acadian Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of EMCOR Group by 160.4% in the first quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 4,828 shares of the construction companys stock valued at $543,000 after purchasing an additional 2,974 shares during the period. Finally, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS increased its stake in shares of EMCOR Group by 10.5% in the first quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS now owns 19,561 shares of the construction companys stock valued at $2,203,000 after purchasing an additional 1,865 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.44% of the companys stock.

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Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of EMCOR Group in a research note on Thursday, May 18th. They issued a strong-buy rating on the stock. DA Davidson raised their price target on shares of EMCOR Group from $165.00 to $188.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research note on Friday, February 24th.

Insider Activity at EMCOR Group

EMCOR Group Price Performance

In related news, EVP R Kevin Matz sold 13,462 shares of the firms stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.46, for a total transaction of $2,227,422.52. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 191,709 shares in the company, valued at $31,720,171.14. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink . In related news, CFO Mark A. Pompa sold 25,000 shares of the firms stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total transaction of $4,250,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 58,758 shares in the company, valued at $9,988,860. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link . Also, EVP R Kevin Matz sold 13,462 shares of the firms stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.46, for a total transaction of $2,227,422.52. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 191,709 shares of the companys stock, valued at $31,720,171.14. The disclosure for this sale can be found here . Insiders have sold 49,462 shares of company stock worth $8,298,143 over the last quarter. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Shares of NYSE:EME opened at $177.16 on Wednesday. EMCOR Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $95.64 and a 52 week high of $178.46. The company has a current ratio of 1.34, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.47 and a beta of 1.09. The firms 50 day moving average is $164.28 and its two-hundred day moving average is $156.77.

EMCOR Group (NYSE:EME  Get Rating) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 27th. The construction company reported $2.32 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts consensus estimates of $1.83 by $0.49. EMCOR Group had a net margin of 3.91% and a return on equity of 22.68%. The business had revenue of $2.89 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.87 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.39 earnings per share. The businesss revenue for the quarter was up 11.5% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that EMCOR Group, Inc. will post 9.74 earnings per share for the current year.

EMCOR Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 28th. Investors of record on Monday, April 17th were paid a dividend of $0.18 per share. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.41%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, April 14th. This is a positive change from EMCOR Groups previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. EMCOR Groups dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 7.91%.

About EMCOR Group

(Get Rating)

EMCOR Group, Inc engages in the provision of electrical and mechanical construction, and facilities services. It operates through the following segments: United States Electrical Construction and Facilities Services, United States Mechanical Construction and Facilities Services, United States Building Services, United States Industrial Services, and United Kingdom Building Services.

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Grupo Simec, S.A.B. de C.V. (NYSEAMERICAN:SIM  Get Rating) saw a significant decrease in short interest during the month of May. As of May 31st, there was short interest totalling 4,400 shares, a decrease of 27.9% from the May 15th total of 6,100 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 800 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 5.5 days.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Grupo Simec in a research note on Thursday, May 18th. They issued a hold rating on the stock.

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Grupo Simec Stock Down 6.5 %

Grupo Simec stock traded down $2.17 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $31.05. The company had a trading volume of 1,512 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,608. The stock has a market cap of $4.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.29 and a beta of 0.31. The business has a fifty day moving average of $34.91 and a 200 day moving average of $32.30. Grupo Simec has a 1 year low of $26.21 and a 1 year high of $38.22.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Grupo Simec

Grupo Simec ( NYSEAMERICAN:SIM Get Rating ) last announced its earnings results on Friday, April 28th. The basic materials company reported $0.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The business had revenue of $687.21 million for the quarter. Grupo Simec had a net margin of 13.44% and a return on equity of 14.87%.

A hedge fund recently bought a new stake in Grupo Simec stock. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new stake in Grupo Simec, S.A.B. de C.V. (NYSEAMERICAN:SIM  Get Rating) during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 7,455 shares of the basic materials companys stock, valued at approximately $273,000. 0.17% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Grupo Simec

(Get Rating)

Grupo SIMEC SAB de CV engages in the manufacture, processing and distribution of steel and structural steel products. It operates through the following geographical segments: Mexico, U.S., and Brazil. The Mexico segment represents the results of the operations in Mexico, including plants in Mexicali, Guadalajara, Tlaxcala, and San Luis Potosi.

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Hudson Pacific Properties, Inc. (NYSE:HPP  Get Rating) declared a quarterly dividend on Friday, June 9th, Zacks reports. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 20th will be given a dividend of 0.125 per share by the real estate investment trust on Friday, June 30th. This represents a $0.50 annualized dividend and a yield of 10.02%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 16th.

Hudson Pacific Properties has a payout ratio of -83.3% indicating that the company cannot currently cover its dividend with earnings alone and is relying on its balance sheet to cover its dividend payments. Equities research analysts expect Hudson Pacific Properties to earn $1.73 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $0.50 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 28.9%.

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Hudson Pacific Properties Price Performance

Hudson Pacific Properties stock opened at $4.99 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $703.09 million, a P/E ratio of -12.47 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a quick ratio of 1.80, a current ratio of 1.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37. The companys 50 day moving average price is $5.20 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $7.95. Hudson Pacific Properties has a 52 week low of $4.08 and a 52 week high of $17.08.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Hudson Pacific Properties ( NYSE:HPP Get Rating ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 8th. The real estate investment trust reported ($0.14) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts consensus estimates of $0.42 by ($0.56). Hudson Pacific Properties had a negative return on equity of 1.52% and a negative net margin of 4.91%. The business had revenue of $252.26 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $261.21 million. On average, equities analysts predict that Hudson Pacific Properties will post 1.38 earnings per share for the current year.

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on HPP shares. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Hudson Pacific Properties from $10.00 to $7.00 and set an equal weight rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 16th. StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Hudson Pacific Properties in a research report on Thursday, May 18th. They set a sell rating for the company. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Hudson Pacific Properties from $10.00 to $6.00 and set an equal weight rating on the stock in a report on Friday, March 31st. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price objective on Hudson Pacific Properties from $8.00 to $7.00 and set a market perform rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 10th. Finally, Piper Sandler lowered their target price on Hudson Pacific Properties from $8.00 to $6.00 in a research note on Wednesday, May 31st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Hudson Pacific Properties currently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average target price of $10.46.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Arthur X. Suazo bought 10,000 shares of Hudson Pacific Properties stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 28th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $5.86 per share, with a total value of $58,600.00. Following the acquisition, the executive vice president now directly owns 87,102 shares of the companys stock, valued at $510,417.72. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Hudson Pacific Properties news, CIO Drew Gordon acquired 25,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 27th. The shares were bought at an average price of $5.96 per share, for a total transaction of $149,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive now owns 116,958 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $697,069.68. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Arthur X. Suazo acquired 10,000 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 28th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $5.86 per share, with a total value of $58,600.00. Following the purchase, the executive vice president now directly owns 87,102 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $510,417.72. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have purchased 38,975 shares of company stock valued at $232,523. Corporate insiders own 2.95% of the companys stock.

Institutional Trading of Hudson Pacific Properties

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of HPP. Group One Trading L.P. bought a new position in shares of Hudson Pacific Properties in the first quarter worth approximately $149,000. HighTower Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Hudson Pacific Properties by 3.4% in the 1st quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 18,542 shares of the real estate investment trusts stock worth $514,000 after buying an additional 612 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can raised its position in shares of Hudson Pacific Properties by 76.5% during the 1st quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 36,550 shares of the real estate investment trusts stock valued at $1,034,000 after buying an additional 15,845 shares in the last quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Hudson Pacific Properties by 33.3% during the 1st quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 98,525 shares of the real estate investment trusts stock worth $2,734,000 after acquiring an additional 24,633 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS grew its position in Hudson Pacific Properties by 10.5% in the first quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS now owns 55,882 shares of the real estate investment trusts stock worth $1,551,000 after acquiring an additional 5,328 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.57% of the companys stock.

Hudson Pacific Properties Company Profile

(Get Rating)

Hudson Pacific Properties (NYSE: HPP) is a real estate investment trust serving dynamic tech and media tenants in global epicenters for these synergistic, converging and secular growth industries. Hudson Pacific's unique and high-barrier tech and media focus leverages a full-service, end-to-end value creation platform forged through deep strategic relationships and niche expertise across identifying, acquiring, transforming and developing properties into world-class amenitized, collaborative and sustainable office and studio space.

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Ingersoll Rand Inc. (NYSE:IR  Get Rating) shares reached a new 52-week high on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $64.40 and last traded at $64.28, with a volume of 85388 shares. The stock had previously closed at $64.10.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

IR has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Citigroup upped their price target on Ingersoll Rand from $62.00 to $64.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research note on Monday, April 10th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Ingersoll Rand from $57.00 to $62.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 22nd. Barclays upped their price target on Ingersoll Rand from $64.00 to $65.00 in a research note on Friday, May 5th. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on Ingersoll Rand from $62.00 to $66.00 in a research note on Friday, May 5th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Ingersoll Rand from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note on Friday, June 2nd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the companys stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $60.36.

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Ingersoll Rand Stock Performance

The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $57.93 and a 200-day simple moving average of $56.32. The stock has a market cap of $25.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.62 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 1.50 and a current ratio of 2.16.

Ingersoll Rand Dividend Announcement

Ingersoll Rand ( NYSE:IR Get Rating ) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 3rd. The industrial products company reported $0.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts consensus estimates of $0.48 by $0.15. The firm had revenue of $1.63 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $1.48 billion. Ingersoll Rand had a return on equity of 10.69% and a net margin of 10.66%. On average, equities analysts expect that Ingersoll Rand Inc. will post 2.57 earnings per share for the current year.

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 22nd. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 24th will be given a $0.02 dividend. This represents a $0.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.12%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 23rd. Ingersoll Rands dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 4.94%.

Insider Activity at Ingersoll Rand

In related news, insider Kathleen M. Keene sold 4,003 shares of the firms stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.50, for a total value of $250,187.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 1,879 shares of the companys stock, valued at $117,437.50. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other news, insider Gary E. Gillespie sold 27,487 shares of Ingersoll Rand stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.73, for a total transaction of $1,669,285.51. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 42,234 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,564,870.82. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Kathleen M. Keene sold 4,003 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.50, for a total value of $250,187.50. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 1,879 shares in the company, valued at approximately $117,437.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.83% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ingersoll Rand

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Bessemer Group Inc. boosted its stake in Ingersoll Rand by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 10,247 shares of the industrial products companys stock valued at $444,000 after purchasing an additional 234 shares during the period. Handelsbanken Fonder AB boosted its stake in Ingersoll Rand by 63.8% in the 4th quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 297,747 shares of the industrial products companys stock valued at $15,557,000 after purchasing an additional 116,017 shares during the period. Barclays PLC boosted its stake in Ingersoll Rand by 41.6% in the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 490,126 shares of the industrial products companys stock valued at $25,608,000 after purchasing an additional 143,977 shares during the period. Aigen Investment Management LP bought a new stake in Ingersoll Rand in the 4th quarter valued at $370,000. Finally, ING Groep NV bought a new stake in Ingersoll Rand in the 4th quarter valued at $238,000. Institutional investors own 99.73% of the companys stock.

About Ingersoll Rand

(Get Rating)

Ingersoll Rand, Inc provides a broad range of mission critical air, fluid, energy, specialty vehicle and medical technologies, providing services and solutions to increase industrial productivity and efficiency. It operates through the following segments: Industrial Technologies and Services, Precision and Science Technologies, High Pressure Solutions, and Specialty Vehicle Technologies.

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iShares Russell Mid-Cap Growth ETF (NYSEARCA:IWP  Get Rating) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $95.12 and last traded at $95.01, with a volume of 117871 shares. The stock had previously closed at $94.76.

iShares Russell Mid-Cap Growth ETF Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $12.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.03 and a beta of 1.10. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $90.22 and a 200 day moving average price of $88.95.

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Institutional Investors Weigh In On iShares Russell Mid-Cap Growth ETF

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in iShares Russell Mid-Cap Growth ETF by 124,827.5% in the 4th quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 91,796,711 shares of the companys stock valued at $7,674,205,000 after acquiring an additional 91,723,231 shares during the period. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in iShares Russell Mid-Cap Growth ETF in the 4th quarter valued at about $149,997,000. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in iShares Russell Mid-Cap Growth ETF by 15,554.5% in the 1st quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,090,024 shares of the companys stock valued at $99,247,000 after acquiring an additional 1,083,061 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in iShares Russell Mid-Cap Growth ETF by 16.3% in the 3rd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 5,224,357 shares of the companys stock valued at $409,746,000 after acquiring an additional 733,494 shares during the period. Finally, CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC raised its stake in iShares Russell Mid-Cap Growth ETF by 83.3% in the 4th quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 1,462,551 shares of the companys stock valued at $122,269,000 after acquiring an additional 664,589 shares during the period.

iShares Russell Mid-Cap Growth ETF Company Profile

iShares Russell Mid-Cap Growth ETF, formerly iShares Russell Midcap Growth Index Fund (the Growth Fund), is an exchange-traded fund. The Fund seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the Russell Midcap Growth Index (the Growth Index).

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Jones Soda Co. (OTCMKTS:JSDA  Get Rating) was the target of a large growth in short interest in the month of May. As of May 31st, there was short interest totalling 15,100 shares, a growth of 184.9% from the May 15th total of 5,300 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 173,600 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 0.1 days.

Jones Soda Price Performance

Jones Soda stock traded up $0.01 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $0.22. The companys stock had a trading volume of 8,981 shares, compared to its average volume of 146,142. The firms 50 day moving average is $0.21 and its 200 day moving average is $0.24. The company has a market cap of $21.67 million, a PE ratio of -2.90 and a beta of 1.25. Jones Soda has a 52-week low of $0.18 and a 52-week high of $0.48.

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Institutional Investors Weigh In On Jones Soda

A hedge fund recently raised its stake in Jones Soda stock. Private Capital Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Jones Soda Co. (OTCMKTS:JSDA  Get Rating) by 84.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 153,000 shares of the companys stock after purchasing an additional 70,000 shares during the quarter. Private Capital Advisors Inc. owned approximately 0.16% of Jones Soda worth $41,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period. 0.22% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Jones Soda

Jones Soda Co, together with its subsidiaries, engages in development, production, marketing, and distribution of beverages primarily in the United States, Canada, and internationally. The company provides craft sodas under the Jones Soda and Lemoncocco brands; and cannabis products under the Mary Jones brand.

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Alps Advisors Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC  Get Rating) by 4.6% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 162,074 shares of the financial services providers stock after selling 7,848 shares during the period. Alps Advisors Inc.s holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $26,820,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Edge Capital Group LLC acquired a new position in Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 4th quarter valued at $96,000. Macquarie Group Ltd. raised its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 15.1% in the 3rd quarter. Macquarie Group Ltd. now owns 177,979 shares of the financial services providers stock valued at $26,571,000 after purchasing an additional 23,338 shares during the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 5.5% in the 4th quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 329,373 shares of the financial services providers stock valued at $54,505,000 after purchasing an additional 17,025 shares during the last quarter. AlphaCrest Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 134.5% in the 3rd quarter. AlphaCrest Capital Management LLC now owns 19,742 shares of the financial services providers stock valued at $2,947,000 after purchasing an additional 11,323 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp grew its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 4.3% in the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 72,713 shares of the financial services providers stock valued at $12,033,000 after buying an additional 3,012 shares in the last quarter. 87.30% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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Marsh & McLennan Companies Stock Performance

Shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies stock opened at $177.37 on Wednesday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $176.33 and a 200 day moving average of $170.50. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 12 month low of $143.33 and a 12 month high of $182.43. The stock has a market capitalization of $87.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 1.15 and a quick ratio of 1.15.

Insider Buying and Selling at Marsh & McLennan Companies

Marsh & McLennan Companies ( NYSE:MMC Get Rating ) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 20th. The financial services provider reported $2.53 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts consensus estimates of $2.47 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $5.92 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $5.86 billion. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a return on equity of 33.33% and a net margin of 15.24%. Marsh & McLennan Companiess revenue for the quarter was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.30 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 7.6 earnings per share for the current year.

In other Marsh & McLennan Companies news, Director Oscar Fanjul sold 5,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $179.72, for a total value of $988,460.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 64,616 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $11,612,787.52. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MMC has been the subject of several analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $197.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a report on Friday, April 21st. StockNews.com initiated coverage on Marsh & McLennan Companies in a report on Thursday, May 18th. They issued a hold rating for the company. Citigroup upped their target price on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $190.00 to $192.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a report on Tuesday, April 18th. Roth Capital reiterated a neutral rating on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a report on Monday, April 24th. Finally, Raymond James increased their price target on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $185.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a report on Friday, April 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Marsh & McLennan Companies currently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $183.54.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Company Profile

(Get Rating)

Marsh & McLennan Cos., Inc is a professional services firm, which engages in offering clients advice and solutions in risk, strategy, and people. It operates through the Risk and Insurance Services, and Consulting segments. The Risk and Insurance Services segment is involved in risk management activities, as well as insurance and reinsurance broking and services.

Further Reading

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Methode Electronics (NYSE:MEI  Get Rating) issued an update on its FY24 earnings guidance on Monday morning. The company provided earnings per share guidance of $1.55-1.75 for the period, compared to the consensus earnings per share estimate of $2.58. The company issued revenue guidance of $1.15-1.20 billion, compared to the consensus revenue estimate of $1.19 billion. Methode Electronics also updated its FY 2023 guidance to $2.10-$2.14 EPS.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on MEI shares. Robert W. Baird decreased their price objective on Methode Electronics from $49.00 to $42.00 in a research report on Tuesday. StockNews.com cut shares of Methode Electronics from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report on Monday, May 22nd.

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Methode Electronics Price Performance

MEI opened at $36.90 on Wednesday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $42.17 and a 200 day moving average price of $44.73. The company has a current ratio of 3.51, a quick ratio of 2.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. Methode Electronics has a 1 year low of $33.91 and a 1 year high of $51.38. The stock has a market cap of $1.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.04 and a beta of 1.12.

Methode Electronics Announces Dividend

Institutional Trading of Methode Electronics

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 14th were paid a dividend of $0.14 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 13th. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.52%. Methode Electronicss dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 24.35%.

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in MEI. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC acquired a new position in shares of Methode Electronics during the 4th quarter valued at about $53,000. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new position in Methode Electronics during the second quarter valued at approximately $99,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its stake in shares of Methode Electronics by 52.1% in the third quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 3,219 shares of the electronics makers stock worth $120,000 after buying an additional 1,103 shares during the last quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors boosted its holdings in shares of Methode Electronics by 29.5% during the 1st quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 3,824 shares of the electronics makers stock worth $165,000 after buying an additional 870 shares during the period. Finally, UBS Group AG grew its stake in Methode Electronics by 117.5% in the 3rd quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 4,917 shares of the electronics makers stock valued at $182,000 after buying an additional 2,656 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.93% of the companys stock.

About Methode Electronics

(Get Rating)

Methode Electronics, Inc engages in the manufacture of component and subsystem devices. It operates through the following segments: Automotive, Interface, Industrial, and Medical. The Automotive segment supplies electronic and electromechanical devices, and related products to automobile original equipment manufacturers.

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Citigroup upgraded shares of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (OTCMKTS:MHVYF  Get Rating) from a neutral rating to a buy rating in a report issued on Sunday morning, The Fly reports.

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Price Performance

Shares of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries stock opened at $47.00 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.16, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The businesss 50 day simple moving average is $40.53 and its 200-day simple moving average is $38.71. Mitsubishi Heavy Industries has a twelve month low of $32.80 and a twelve month high of $47.00.

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Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Company Profile

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Further Reading

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. engages in the manufacture and sale of ships, industrial machinery, and aircraft. It operates through the following segments: Energy, Plants and Infrastructure Systems, Logistics, Thermal and Drive Systems, and Aircraft, Defense and Space. The Energy segment handles clean gas and steam power systems, nuclear power systems, compressors, and marine machinery.

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New Gold Inc. (NYSEAMERICAN:NGD  Get Rating) shares gapped up prior to trading on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $1.12, but opened at $1.15. New Gold shares last traded at $1.13, with a volume of 153,120 shares traded.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on NGD. TheStreet lowered shares of New Gold from a c rating to a d rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 21st. TD Securities lowered their target price on shares of New Gold from $0.95 to $0.90 and set a reduce rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 17th. StockNews.com raised shares of New Gold from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report on Friday, June 2nd. Finally, Scotiabank started coverage on shares of New Gold in a report on Friday, March 3rd. They issued a sector perform rating on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the companys stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average price target of $1.48.

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New Gold Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $765.69 million, a P/E ratio of -8.00, a PEG ratio of 4.31 and a beta of 1.54. The stocks 50 day simple moving average is $1.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 1.48 and a current ratio of 2.28.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On New Gold

New Gold ( NYSEAMERICAN:NGD Get Rating ) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 26th. The basic materials company reported $0.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts consensus estimates of $0.01 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $201.60 million for the quarter. New Gold had a negative net margin of 14.38% and a negative return on equity of 1.87%. On average, analysts anticipate that New Gold Inc. will post 0.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of New Gold during the third quarter valued at about $9,586,000. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its stake in shares of New Gold by 9.0% during the 1st quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 72,242,626 shares of the basic materials companys stock worth $79,467,000 after purchasing an additional 5,959,821 shares during the period. Herr Investment Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of New Gold during the 4th quarter worth approximately $5,320,000. Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in New Gold by 48.4% in the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 16,612,687 shares of the basic materials companys stock valued at $29,903,000 after acquiring an additional 5,421,488 shares during the period. Finally, U S Global Investors Inc. acquired a new stake in New Gold in the 3rd quarter valued at $2,811,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 31.92% of the companys stock.

About New Gold

(Get Rating)

New Gold, Inc is a gold mining company, which engages in the operation, development and exploration of mineral properties. Its portfolio includes Rainy RIver, New Afton, and Cerro San Pedro. The company was founded on January 31, 1980 and is headquartered in Toronto, Canada.

Further Reading

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DAMASCUS, June 14 (Xinhua) -- Syria's tourism sector has recorded an estimated year-on-year growth of 40 percent in the first five months of 2023, Syria's al-Watan newspaper reported on Wednesday.

A total of 727,000 foreign tourists visited Syria between January and May, compared to 519,000 in the same period last year, the newspaper quoted Syrian Tourism Minister Mohammad Rami Martini as saying.

The minister said the future of the tourism sector is promising, noting that the government supports domestic tourism and has formulated plans to renovate hotels and launch new projects this year and next year.

Since the start of the Syrian civil war in 2011, the revenue from tourism has declined steeply in the country.

In 2019, Martini said that the losses in the tourism sector were estimated at 2.3 trillion U.S. dollars, including material damages, the destruction of historical sites, unemployment, and significantly lower revenues. 
North West (TSE:NWC  Get Rating) had its price target reduced by equities research analysts at Royal Bank of Canada from C$38.00 to C$36.00 in a research note issued to investors on Monday, BayStreet.CA reports. The firm presently has a sector perform rating on the stock.

Several other research firms have also recently commented on NWC. BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on North West from C$41.00 to C$39.00 in a research note on Thursday, June 8th. CIBC boosted their target price on North West from C$37.00 to C$39.00 in a research note on Thursday, April 6th. Finally, TD Securities lowered their target price on North West from C$41.00 to C$39.00 and set a hold rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, June 8th.

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North West Price Performance

North West has a one year low of C$30.55 and a one year high of C$40.49. The firm has a market cap of C$1.64 billion, a PE ratio of 13.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 62.13, a current ratio of 1.91 and a quick ratio of 0.64. The businesss 50 day moving average is C$38.31 and its two-hundred day moving average is C$36.98.

North West Company Profile

North West ( TSE:NWC Get Rating ) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, June 7th. The company reported C$0.43 EPS for the quarter. The company had revenue of C$593.60 million for the quarter. On average, research analysts anticipate that North West will post 2.7480127 earnings per share for the current year.

(Get Rating)

The North West Company Inc, through its subsidiaries, engages in the retail of food and everyday products and services to rural communities and urban neighborhood markets in northern Canada, rural Alaska, the South Pacific, and the Caribbean. The Canadian operations comprises Northern stores, which offers food, financial services, and general merchandise; NorthMart stores that provides fresh foods, apparel, and health products and services; Quickstop convenience stores that provides ready-to-eat foods, and fuel and related services; Giant Tiger junior discount stores, which offers family fashion, household products, and food; Valu Lots discount center and direct-to-customer food distribution outlet; solo market, a store in remote market; Pharmacy and Convenience stores; and North West Company motorsports dealership offering sales, service, parts and accessories for Ski-doo, Honda, Can-am and other premier brands.

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Nuveen New York Municipal Value Fund (NYSE:NNY  Get Rating)s share price passed below its 200-day moving average during trading on Monday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $8.48 and traded as low as $8.38. Nuveen New York Municipal Value Fund shares last traded at $8.38, with a volume of 23,096 shares.

Nuveen New York Municipal Value Fund Trading Up 0.5 %

The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $8.53 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $8.48.

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Nuveen New York Municipal Value Fund Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 3rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, June 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.028 per share. This represents a $0.34 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.00%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 14th.

Institutional Trading of Nuveen New York Municipal Value Fund

Nuveen New York Municipal Value Fund Company Profile

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Advisor Group Holdings Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Nuveen New York Municipal Value Fund by 13.5% during the 4th quarter. Advisor Group Holdings Inc. now owns 12,823 shares of the investment management companys stock worth $105,000 after buying an additional 1,527 shares during the last quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC increased its holdings in shares of Nuveen New York Municipal Value Fund by 9.8% during the 4th quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 22,500 shares of the investment management companys stock worth $186,000 after buying an additional 2,000 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James & Associates increased its holdings in shares of Nuveen New York Municipal Value Fund by 7.5% during the 4th quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 37,355 shares of the investment management companys stock worth $309,000 after buying an additional 2,600 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE increased its holdings in shares of Nuveen New York Municipal Value Fund by 15.0% during the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 22,822 shares of the investment management companys stock worth $199,000 after buying an additional 2,973 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MinichMacGregor Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Nuveen New York Municipal Value Fund during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. 13.20% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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Nuveen New York Municipal Value Fund, Inc is a closed-ended fixed income mutual fund launched by Nuveen Investments, Inc The fund is co-managed by Nuveen Fund Advisors LLC and Nuveen Asset Management, LLC. It invests in the fixed income markets of New York. The fund invests in tax exempt municipal bonds, with a rating of Baa/BBB or higher.

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Orion Oyj (OTCMKTS:ORINY  Get Rating)s stock price reached a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $24.40 and last traded at $24.40, with a volume of 0 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $24.40.

Orion Oyj Price Performance

The business has a 50 day moving average of $25.28 and a 200-day moving average of $25.98. The stock has a market cap of $6.89 billion, a PE ratio of 19.68 and a beta of 0.30. The company has a current ratio of 3.19, a quick ratio of 2.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22.

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Orion Oyj (OTCMKTS:ORINY  Get Rating) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 27th. The company reported $0.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The firm had revenue of $298.14 million for the quarter. Orion Oyj had a return on equity of 37.95% and a net margin of 24.76%.

Orion Oyj Increases Dividend

Orion Oyj Company Profile

The business also recently disclosed a dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 24th were given a dividend of $0.505 per share. This represents a yield of 1.92%. This is a boost from Orion Oyjs previous dividend of $0.50. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 23rd. Orion Oyjs dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 41.94%.

(Get Rating)

Orion Oyj develops, manufactures, and markets human and veterinary pharmaceuticals and active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) in Finland, Scandinavia, other European countries, North America, and internationally. It provides prescription drugs and self-care products, including Nubeqa for the treatment of prostate cancer; dexdor and Precedex for intensive care sedative; Stalevo and Comtess/Comtan for Parkinson's disease; Simdax for acute decompensated heart failure; and Fareston for breast cancer, as well as Salmeterol/fluticasone Easyhaler, Budesonide/formoterol Easyhaler, Formoterol Easyhaler, Budesonide Easyhaler, Beclomet Easyhaler, and Buventol Easyhaler drugs for the treatment of asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

Further Reading

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Shares of Pinnacle West Capital Co. (NYSE:PNW  Get Rating) reached a new 52-week high on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $81.96 and last traded at $81.87, with a volume of 23197 shares. The stock had previously closed at $81.50.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. Bank of America raised Pinnacle West Capital from an underperform rating to a neutral rating and raised their price target for the company from $76.00 to $78.00 in a report on Friday, May 26th. Credit Suisse Group raised Pinnacle West Capital from a neutral rating to an outperform rating and raised their price target for the company from $77.00 to $80.00 in a report on Tuesday, March 14th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Pinnacle West Capital from $71.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a report on Thursday, April 20th. Mizuho raised their price target on Pinnacle West Capital from $74.00 to $80.00 in a report on Wednesday, June 7th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Pinnacle West Capital from a hold rating to a sell rating in a report on Saturday, May 20th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $74.73.

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Pinnacle West Capital Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28. The stock has a market cap of $9.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.27 and a beta of 0.46. The companys 50-day simple moving average is $79.20 and its 200-day simple moving average is $77.21.

Pinnacle West Capital Announces Dividend

Pinnacle West Capital ( NYSE:PNW Get Rating ) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 4th. The utilities provider reported ($0.03) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.03 by ($0.06). The business had revenue of $944.60 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $808.33 million. Pinnacle West Capital had a return on equity of 7.50% and a net margin of 10.33%. The companys quarterly revenue was up 20.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.15 EPS. Analysts predict that Pinnacle West Capital Co. will post 4.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 1st were issued a dividend of $0.865 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, April 28th. This represents a $3.46 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.22%. Pinnacle West Capitals dividend payout ratio is currently 84.60%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Pinnacle West Capital

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. ProShare Advisors LLC boosted its position in Pinnacle West Capital by 7.5% during the 1st quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 26,350 shares of the utilities providers stock worth $2,088,000 after acquiring an additional 1,833 shares during the period. Empower Advisory Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Pinnacle West Capital in the first quarter worth approximately $67,970,000. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Pinnacle West Capital by 12.3% during the first quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 651,032 shares of the utilities providers stock worth $51,612,000 after purchasing an additional 71,322 shares during the period. Advisory Services Network LLC grew its position in Pinnacle West Capital by 21.8% during the first quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC now owns 4,130 shares of the utilities providers stock valued at $327,000 after purchasing an additional 739 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC grew its position in Pinnacle West Capital by 1.0% during the first quarter. Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC now owns 65,749 shares of the utilities providers stock valued at $5,210,000 after purchasing an additional 674 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.21% of the companys stock.

About Pinnacle West Capital

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Pinnacle West Capital Corp. is a holding company, which engages in providing energy and energy-related products. It offers regulated retail and wholesale electricity businesses and related activities, such as electricity generation, transmission and distribution through its subsidiary, Arizona Public Service Co The company was founded on February 20, 1985, and is headquartered in Phoenix, AZ.

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StockNews.com upgraded shares of Portland General Electric (NYSE:POR  Get Rating) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a report released on Saturday.

POR has been the subject of several other reports. Bank of America upgraded Portland General Electric from a neutral rating to a buy rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $47.00 to $52.00 in a research report on Tuesday, March 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. assumed coverage on Portland General Electric in a research note on Monday, May 8th. They set an overweight rating and a $56.00 price objective on the stock. Credit Suisse Group boosted their target price on shares of Portland General Electric from $48.00 to $51.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 21st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Portland General Electric from $52.00 to $53.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a research report on Friday, February 17th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the companys stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $50.57.

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Portland General Electric Stock Performance

Shares of POR stock opened at $49.38 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $4.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.09, a P/E/G ratio of 3.19 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21. Portland General Electric has a fifty-two week low of $41.58 and a fifty-two week high of $56.37. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $50.00 and a 200-day simple moving average of $48.76.

Portland General Electric Increases Dividend

Portland General Electric ( NYSE:POR Get Rating ) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 28th. The utilities provider reported $0.80 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts consensus estimates of $0.79 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $748.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $622.50 million. Portland General Electric had a net margin of 8.88% and a return on equity of 9.06%. The firms revenue was up 19.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.67 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Portland General Electric will post 2.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 26th will be paid a dividend of $0.475 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 23rd. This represents a $1.90 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.85%. This is an increase from Portland General Electrics previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. Portland General Electrics dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 66.30%.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP John Teeruk Kochavatr sold 3,000 shares of the firms stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.12, for a total value of $153,360.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 15,489 shares in the company, valued at approximately $791,797.68. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.51% of the companys stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Portland General Electric

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in POR. Cascade Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Portland General Electric in the 1st quarter valued at $36,000. Ridgewood Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Portland General Electric during the 1st quarter valued at about $39,000. Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its position in Portland General Electric by 308.8% during the 3rd quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 834 shares of the utilities providers stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 630 shares in the last quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Portland General Electric by 150.9% in the first quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 946 shares of the utilities providers stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 569 shares during the period. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in Portland General Electric by 475.1% in the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 995 shares of the utilities providers stock valued at $49,000 after buying an additional 822 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.03% of the companys stock.

Portland General Electric Company Profile

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Portland General Electric Company, an integrated electric utility company, engages in the generation, wholesale purchase, transmission, distribution, and retail sale of electricity in the state of Oregon. It operates six thermal plants, three wind farms, and seven hydroelectric facilities. As of December 31, 2022, the company owned an electric transmission system consisting of 1,255 circuit miles, including 269 circuit miles of 500 kilovolt line, 413 circuit miles of 230 kilovolt line, and 573 miles of 115 kilovolt line; and served 926 thousand retail customers in 51 cities.

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Several brokerages have updated their recommendations and price targets on shares of National Bank of Canada (TSE: NA) in the last few weeks:

6/7/2023  National Bank of Canada had its price target lowered by analysts at Barclays PLC from C$93.00 to C$92.00.

6/1/2023  National Bank of Canada had its price target raised by analysts at TD Securities from C$100.00 to C$105.00. They now have a hold rating on the stock.

6/1/2023  National Bank of Canada had its price target raised by analysts at Barclays PLC from C$82.00 to C$93.00.

6/1/2023  National Bank of Canada had its price target lowered by analysts at CIBC from C$110.00 to C$108.00.

6/1/2023  National Bank of Canada had its price target lowered by analysts at Cormark from C$113.00 to C$109.00.

6/1/2023  National Bank of Canada had its price target lowered by analysts at CSFB from C$116.00 to C$111.00.

6/1/2023  National Bank of Canada had its price target lowered by analysts at Scotiabank from C$111.00 to C$109.00.

5/23/2023  National Bank of Canada had its market perform rating reaffirmed by analysts at Cormark.

5/16/2023  National Bank of Canada had its price target lowered by analysts at CIBC from C$112.00 to C$110.00.

5/16/2023  National Bank of Canada had its price target raised by analysts at CSFB from C$113.00 to C$116.00.

5/9/2023  National Bank of Canada had its price target lowered by analysts at Barclays PLC from C$98.00 to C$82.00.

National Bank of Canada Trading Up 0.4 %

Shares of NA traded up C$0.35 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching C$98.11. 201,295 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,490,680. National Bank of Canada has a 52 week low of C$82.16 and a 52 week high of C$104.83. The companys 50 day moving average is C$99.19 and its two-hundred day moving average is C$97.78. The company has a market capitalization of C$33.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.54, a PEG ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.11.

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National Bank of Canada (TSE:NA  Get Rating) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 31st. The financial services provider reported C$2.38 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts consensus estimates of C$2.40 by C($0.02). The company had revenue of C$2.48 billion during the quarter. On average, sell-side analysts expect that National Bank of Canada will post 9.745694 EPS for the current year.

National Bank of Canada Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 26th will be paid a $1.02 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 23rd. This is a boost from National Bank of Canadas previous quarterly dividend of $0.97. This represents a $4.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.16%. National Bank of Canadas dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 43.82%.

National Bank of Canada provides various financial products and services to retail, commercial, corporate, and institutional clients in Canada and internationally. It operates through four segments: Personal and Commercial, Wealth Management, Financial Markets, and U.S. Specialty Finance and International.

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Banca Mediolanum (OTCMKTS:BNCDY  Get Rating) and First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP  Get Rating) are both financial services companies, but which is the superior stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their earnings, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, risk, valuation, profitability and dividends.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent recommendations and price targets for Banca Mediolanum and First BanCorp., as reported by MarketBeat.com.

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Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score Banca Mediolanum 0 0 2 0 3.00 First BanCorp. 0 1 0 0 2.00

Banca Mediolanum presently has a consensus target price of $11.40, indicating a potential downside of 38.92%. First BanCorp. has a consensus target price of $14.25, indicating a potential upside of 12.83%. Given First BanCorp.s higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe First BanCorp. is more favorable than Banca Mediolanum.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

Profitability

94.4% of First BanCorp. shares are held by institutional investors. 2.4% of First BanCorp. shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

This table compares Banca Mediolanum and First BanCorp.s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets Banca Mediolanum N/A N/A N/A First BanCorp. 29.26% 21.11% 1.55%

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Banca Mediolanum and First BanCorp.s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

Gross Revenue Price/Sales Ratio Net Income Earnings Per Share Price/Earnings Ratio Banca Mediolanum N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A First BanCorp. $918.39 million 2.47 $305.07 million $1.57 8.04

First BanCorp. has higher revenue and earnings than Banca Mediolanum.

Summary

First BanCorp. beats Banca Mediolanum on 7 of the 9 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Banca Mediolanum

(Get Rating)

Banca Mediolanum S.p.A. provides various banking products and services in Italy. The company offers current accounts and mortgages and loans. It also provides debit, credit, and prepaid cards; savings and investment products, such as equities and bonds, as well as trading services; and insurance and pension products and services. The company was founded in 1982 and is headquartered in Basiglio, Italy.

About First BanCorp.

(Get Rating)

First BanCorp. operates as a bank holding company for FirstBank Puerto Rico that provides a range of financial products and services to consumers and commercial customers. The company operates through six segments: Commercial and Corporate Banking, Mortgage Banking, Consumer (Retail) Banking, Treasury and Investments, United States Operations, and Virgin Islands Operations. The Commercial and Corporate Banking segment offers commercial loans, including commercial real estate and construction loans, as well as other products, such as cash management and business management services. The Mortgage Banking segment engages in the origination, sale, and servicing of various residential mortgage loans; acquisition and sale of mortgages in the secondary markets; and purchase of mortgage loans from other local banks and mortgage bankers. The Consumer (Retail) Banking segment provides auto loans, finance leases, boat and personal loans, credit card loans, and lines of credit; and interest-bearing and non-interest-bearing checking and savings accounts, and individual retirement accounts and retail certificates of deposit (CDs), as well as insurance agency services. The Treasury and Investments segment offers funding and liquidity management services. The United States Operations segment provides checking, savings, and money market accounts, as well as retail CDs; traditional commercial and industrial, and commercial real estate loans, residential mortgages, home equity loans, lines of credit, FHLB advances, and brokered CDs; and internet banking, cash management, remote deposit capture, and automated clearing house transactions services. The Virgin Islands Operations segment is involved in consumer, commercial lending, and deposit-taking activities. First BanCorp. was founded in 1948 and is headquartered in San Juan, Puerto Rico.

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Shares of Textainer Group Holdings Limited (NYSE:TGH  Get Rating) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $40.50 and last traded at $39.91, with a volume of 77025 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $39.34.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Textainer Group in a research report on Thursday, May 18th. They issued a buy rating on the stock.

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Textainer Group Trading Up 1.4 %

The company has a market cap of $1.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.70 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a current ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.97. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $35.77 and a 200-day moving average price of $33.36.

Textainer Group Dividend Announcement

Textainer Group ( NYSE:TGH Get Rating ) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 2nd. The transportation company reported $1.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts consensus estimates of $1.21 by $0.01. Textainer Group had a return on equity of 17.40% and a net margin of 36.01%. The company had revenue of $194.90 million for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $195.11 million. Analysts forecast that Textainer Group Holdings Limited will post 4.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 2nd will be paid a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 1st. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.01%. Textainer Groups dividend payout ratio is currently 20.44%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Textainer Group

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in TGH. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. bought a new stake in Textainer Group in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Dorsey Wright & Associates bought a new stake in Textainer Group in the 4th quarter valued at $36,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Textainer Group in the 1st quarter valued at $47,000. Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA bought a new stake in Textainer Group in the 1st quarter valued at $51,000. Finally, Point72 Hong Kong Ltd bought a new stake in Textainer Group in the 1st quarter valued at $53,000. Institutional investors own 38.69% of the companys stock.

Textainer Group Company Profile

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Textainer Group Holdings Ltd. engages in the purchase, management, leasing, and resale of a fleet of marine cargo containers. It operates through the following segments: Container Ownership, Container Management, and Container Resale. The Container Ownership segment includes standard dry freight containers and also includes refrigerated and other special-purpose containers.

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TransAlta Renewables Inc. (OTCMKTS:TRSWF  Get Rating) was the target of a significant drop in short interest in the month of May. As of May 31st, there was short interest totalling 1,202,300 shares, a drop of 28.0% from the May 15th total of 1,668,900 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 7,400 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 162.5 days.

TransAlta Renewables Stock Down 0.4 %

TransAlta Renewables stock traded down $0.04 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $9.13. The stock had a trading volume of 4,859 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,777. TransAlta Renewables has a 52-week low of $7.78 and a 52-week high of $14.27. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $9.28 and a 200 day moving average price of $9.08.

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Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently commented on the stock. TD Securities raised their price objective on shares of TransAlta Renewables from C$12.00 to C$12.50 in a research note on Monday, May 8th. National Bank Financial lowered their price objective on shares of TransAlta Renewables from C$13.25 to C$13.00 in a research note on Monday, May 8th. Finally, Credit Suisse Group upgraded shares of TransAlta Renewables from a neutral rating to an outperform rating in a research note on Monday, May 15th.

About TransAlta Renewables

TransAlta Renewables Inc owns, develops, and operates renewable and natural gas power generation facilities and other infrastructure assets in Canada, the United States, and Australia. The company operates through Canadian Wind, Canadian Hydro, Canadian Gas, US Wind and Solar, US Gas, and Australian Gas segments.

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U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB  Get Rating) had its price objective reduced by Citigroup from $39.00 to $33.00 in a report published on Sunday, The Fly reports.

Several other research firms have also recently commented on USB. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of U.S. Bancorp from $52.50 to $45.00 and set an overweight rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 10th. Oppenheimer increased their price objective on shares of U.S. Bancorp from $64.00 to $67.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a report on Thursday, April 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price objective on shares of U.S. Bancorp from $41.00 to $37.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 19th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their target price on shares of U.S. Bancorp from $55.00 to $49.00 and set an outperform rating on the stock in a report on Friday, March 24th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of U.S. Bancorp from $60.00 to $55.00 and set an overweight rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, U.S. Bancorp currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $49.84.

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U.S. Bancorp Stock Up 1.7 %

USB opened at $32.70 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $32.13 and a 200 day moving average price of $39.90. U.S. Bancorp has a twelve month low of $27.27 and a twelve month high of $49.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 0.80. The firm has a market cap of $50.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 0.93.

U.S. Bancorp Announces Dividend

U.S. Bancorp ( NYSE:USB Get Rating ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 19th. The financial services provider reported $1.04 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts consensus estimates of $1.13 by ($0.09). U.S. Bancorp had a return on equity of 16.70% and a net margin of 19.21%. The business had revenue of $7.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.14 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.99 earnings per share. The firms quarterly revenue was up 28.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that U.S. Bancorp will post 4.59 EPS for the current year.

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 17th. Investors of record on Friday, June 30th will be given a $0.48 dividend. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.87%. U.S. Bancorps dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 51.06%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Scott W. Wine acquired 30,438 shares of the firms stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 28th. The stock was bought at an average price of $32.85 per share, with a total value of $999,888.30. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 30,438 shares in the company, valued at approximately $999,888.30. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, Director Scott W. Wine acquired 30,438 shares of the firms stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 28th. The stock was bought at an average price of $32.85 per share, with a total value of $999,888.30. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 30,438 shares in the company, valued at approximately $999,888.30. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider James B. Kelligrew acquired 16,260 shares of the firms stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 8th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $30.59 per share, with a total value of $497,393.40. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 151,927 shares in the company, valued at $4,647,446.93. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders bought a total of 76,698 shares of company stock valued at $2,446,082 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.24% of the companys stock.

Institutional Trading of U.S. Bancorp

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. EP Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in U.S. Bancorp in the 1st quarter worth about $573,000. Level Four Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in U.S. Bancorp by 5.7% in the 1st quarter. Level Four Advisory Services LLC now owns 11,079 shares of the financial services providers stock worth $399,000 after purchasing an additional 601 shares in the last quarter. Golden State Equity Partners acquired a new stake in U.S. Bancorp in the 1st quarter worth about $419,000. ProShare Advisors LLC raised its stake in U.S. Bancorp by 31.3% in the 1st quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 348,903 shares of the financial services providers stock worth $12,578,000 after purchasing an additional 83,244 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Toroso Investments LLC raised its stake in U.S. Bancorp by 86.6% in the 1st quarter. Toroso Investments LLC now owns 44,573 shares of the financial services providers stock worth $1,607,000 after purchasing an additional 20,689 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.83% of the companys stock.

U.S. Bancorp Company Profile

(Get Rating)

U.S. Bancorp operates as a bank holding company, which offers financial services including lending and depository services, cash management, foreign exchange and trust and investment management. The firm also offers mortgage, refinance, auto, boat and RV loans, credit lines, credit card services, merchant, bank, checking and savings accounts, debit cards, online and mobile banking, ATM processing, mortgage banking, insurance, brokerage and leasing services.

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Rotana, one of the leading hotel management companies in the region, has announced the agreement signing for Pontus Rotana Resort & Spa Gonio, with one of the largest developers in Georgia, Pontus Capital.



The luxury property located in the beach suburb of famous Batumi, is expected to open in 2026, catering to both business and leisure travellers.



Integrating traditional architecture with modern living, Pontus Rotana Resort & Spa boasts 600 spacious rooms offering unobstructed views of the natural landscape. Guests staying at the property will also enjoy access to world-class gaming at the grand casino.



The five-star property will offer an additional range of services and amenities including a private beach, exquisite dining venues, a serene spa, indoor and outdoor swimming pools, a fully equipped wellness and fitness centre as well as a dedicated interactive kids play zone.



Guy Hutchinson, President & CEO of Rotana, said: We are excited to be partnering with Pontus Capital to debut the first Rotana branded five-star property in Georgia. Complete with glamourous architecture, a variety of fine-dining venues and elevated recreation facilities, Pontus Rotana Resort & Spa will deliver on our singular brand promise of Treasured Time for guests and visitors alike. The 600-key property marks a significant milestone for Rotana as we continue to expand our footprint internationally with new regions in the pipeline, and we look forward to the propertys successful launch.



A beautiful coastal town nestled along the Black Sea coast, Gonio is renowned for its picturesque beaches and luscious green mountains. Pontus Rotana Resort & Spa will provide a beautiful backdrop for visitors to enjoy while they relax on the private beach or explore the local town. Batumi International Airport is only seven minutes away from Gonio, Batumi centre is 14 minutes, and it is short 10-minute drive to the Turkish border near Sarfi.



Irakli Varshalomidze, Managing Director from Pontus Capital, added: We are pleased to welcome for the first time in Georgia, one of the largest hospitality management companies, Rotana, to help realize this vision and create an extraordinary getaway for all. Batumi, a truly all-four-season city with mesmerizing natural beauty, offering an attractive destination for visitors to experience Georgia. The Georgian culture and language have deep connections to the Arab world, making our partnership with Rotana a natural fit.



Rotana currently operates 73 hotels in the Middle East, Africa, Eastern Europe and Turkey, serving more than six million guests per year, including an impressive 10,012 keys across 36 hotels in the UAE alone.  TradeArabia News Service
A passenger checks information on electric screens at Frankfurt airport in Frankfurt, Germany, Jan. 15, 2019. (Xinhua/Lu Yang)

Up to 800 flights will have to be rerouted, and around 40 percent will have to fly 110 kms longer, according to estimates by the European Organization for the Safety of Air Navigation (Eurocontrol).

FRANKFURT, June 13 (Xinhua) -- A massive NATO exercise that kicked off on Monday is set to cause major disruptions to passenger flights in Germany, raising concerns from air travellers and also protesters.

Jens Bischof, chief of Lufthansa Group's low-cost airline Eurowings, said he was concerned about the fallout of the exercise, which had led to the closure and heavy restriction of a large swath of German airspace.

The military drill, known as "Air Defender 23", is the biggest ever NATO air force deployment exercise involving 10,000 military personnel and 250 combat aircraft from 25 nations including the United States. It will last until June 23.

A plane of Lufthansa is seen at the Berlin Tegel Airport in Berlin, capital of Germany, May 26, 2020. (Xinhua/Shan Yuqi)

The two-week-drill will be carried out mainly in German airspace. The consequent impact includes possible delays of flights, prolonged flight time and cancellations at a busy time of year.

Up to 800 flights will have to be rerouted, and around 40 percent will have to fly 110 kms longer, according to estimates by the European Organization for the Safety of Air Navigation (Eurocontrol).

Hamburg Airport has told local media that it is impossible to know exactly which individual flights will be affected, due to the unprecedented nature of the ongoing exercises. Stuttgart Airport also put out a similar message on social media. Both suggested passengers to monitor the status of their flights closely.

The screenshot shows Stuttgart Airport's post on Twitter, saying: "The military maneuver 'Air Defender' begins today and will last until June 23, affecting civil aviation. Please check your flight status regularly and contact the airline if you have any questions."

Some 300 protestors rallied in front of an air base in the state of Lower Saxony on Saturday over the damage done to the climate by the aircrafts and over the NATO show of military might at a time when the conflict in Ukraine is raging on.

"If they want to use maneuvers to demonstrate, to intimidate others, this is always the wrong way," protester Thomas Wefing told Xinhua.

NATO has claimed that the drill is not targeted at anyone. However, Wefing believes it serves as a provocation to Russia and will lead to the escalation of the situation in Ukraine.

People take part in a protest against Sweden hosting a large international military exercise and the country striving to become a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) in Stockholm, Sweden, on April 22, 2023. (Photo by Patrick Ekstrand/Xinhua)

Egon Roth, another protestor, shared Wefing's concern over the drill that it could lead to escalation, adding that conflicts can only be resolved through diplomacy rather than the use of weapons.

Jochen Scholz, a security expert and a former military officer, feared that the military exercise will be exploited to give Europeans the wrong idea that Russia poses a threat to the security of Europe.

"It is not Russia that is a threat to Europe, but the United States, because it sees domination of the Eurasian continent as a prerequisite for its global dominance," he said. 
Wynnstay Properties Plc (LON:WSP  Get Rating) announced a dividend on Wednesday, June 14th, Upcoming.Co.Uk reports. Investors of record on Thursday, June 29th will be given a dividend of GBX 15 ($0.19) per share on Wednesday, July 26th. This represents a dividend yield of 2.22%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, June 29th. This is a positive change from Wynnstay Propertiess previous dividend of $9.00. The official announcement can be accessed at this link.

Wynnstay Properties Stock Performance

WSP opened at GBX 675 ($8.45) on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of 18.23 million, a P/E ratio of 340.91 and a beta of 0.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 33.75, a current ratio of 3.05 and a quick ratio of 3.05. The stocks 50 day simple moving average is GBX 646.72 and its 200 day simple moving average is GBX 651.99. Wynnstay Properties has a 1-year low of GBX 610 ($7.63) and a 1-year high of GBX 799.40 ($10.00).

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About Wynnstay Properties

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Wynnstay Properties Plc engages in the investment, development, and management of properties in the United Kingdom. It owns and manages office, retail, warehouse, and industrial properties in Southern England. The company was incorporated in 1886 and is based in London, the United Kingdom.

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The member representing Warri South-West Constituency in the Delta State House of Assembly, Emomotimi Guwor was on Tuesday June 13, 2023 elected as the Speaker of the 8th House of Assembly while Arthur Akpowowo who represents Ethiope-East Constituency, emerged the Deputy Speaker. Guwor and other members of the States 8th Assembly were inaugurated after they swore an oath of allegiance.

While congratulations have continued to pour in for the new Speaker following his success at the polls and election into State Assembly leadership, this piece, like other well meaning deltans believes that his commitment to public service and exemplary track record in the now rested 7th Assembly, more than anything else earned him this well-deserved position and confident that under his leadership, the Delta State House of Assembly will thrive, and the interests of the people will be represented effectively.

However, as the celebration festers and the newly inaugurated Honourable members settle down for the task of lawmaking, one urgent imperative by members self introspection and interrogation in order to ascertain if they are result or comfort-centered, people or self focused, internally driven and most importantly, externally open?

Separate from the awareness that most of the legislation, policies and decisions by the out gone 7th Assembly were neither beneficial and helpful to the real development in the state nor aimed at improving the life chances of the poor and vulnerable deltans, experience bears eloquent testimonies to the fact that most of the public office holders in the state in most cases put their personal needs above those of the whole and allow their pursuit of personal interest control their relationship with the people that voted them to power. In fact, deltans are in agreement that most of the laws made by successive Assemblies in the state were never positively legislated for the poor.

Thats not the only negative signature previously witnessed in the state

More often than not, most of these lawmakers in the state become more comfort centered. They are not only hypocritical and deceptive but advocate ambitious outcomes while designing works but frequently produce what already exists.

This quest for private gain and high propensity to acquire at the detriment of the poor masses and public good has not only led to high cost of governance but partially explains why recurrent expenditures budgeted by successive administrations in the state religiously surpassed capital projections/expenditures. This is in sharp contrast and direct opposite with development Professionals doctrine which preaches that capital expenditure drives infrastructural development and therefore must be given a lion share by any government desirous of empowering its people.

As an incentive to assisting the state change the above narrative in ways that will usher in a Delta state of our dreams where peace and development shall remain supreme, this piece holds the opinion that the first responsibility expected of Rt Honourable Guwor led 8th Assembly is urgently generate legislations to drastically reduces cost of governance, supports human capital development in state while promoting values, fiscal discipline, robust, and continuous community engagement and development, effective and efficient and excellent public service delivery for the benefit of this generation and the next.

Again, even though things currently looks grim in the state, this author considers it very logical, rational, practical, beneficial and helpful to the real development in the state if the 8th Assembly develops the culture that gives education sector a pride of place through budgetary allocation and framework to stop perennial underfunding regime in the state that has consequentially visited students in virtually all the state-owned institutions of higher learning with inconsiderate fee hikes.

Indeed, while some may argue that this is not the time to hold the previous administration accountable for a hike in school fees because there are more important matters confronting the state, the truth must be told to the effect that the new administration is bound to face confusion in their minds if the House allows these fee regimes to stand or do nothing to change the narrative.

The reason for the above line of argument is not far fetched.

Aside from the awareness that the immediate past administration in the state defined leaning in the state too narrowly in a manner devoid of process and outcome fairness by getting preoccupied with revenue generation without recourse to the comfort of students and their parents, there exists in the state shocking phenomenon of declining standards of physical infrastructures and the near-total collapse of basic facilities that ought to be functional in government own tertiary institution, secondary and primary schools in the state.

Without going into critical analysis of how underfunding of the education sector spread it wings in the state, one point members of the 8th Assembly must not fail to remember, and of course a very cogent why education must be given a favorable attention and allocation by the House, is that there are a large number of youths in the state that are knowledge/education hungry and daily project vividly and openly their potential, nature, character, behavior, performance skills and talent that needs to be nurtured in a conducive environment and fairest fees.

As we know, any developmental plan in the state without youth education delivered in a well-structured learning environment and fair fees will amount to a mere waste of time and effort.

To catalyze the process, it is important that Guwor led Assembly in line with the provisions of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, of which Nigeria is a signatory, domesticate/recognize the right to education as a human right. This is necessary for enthroning sustainable development in the state, particularly as education is the bedrock of all developments.

Also germane within this period of vulnerability is for the Assembly to come up with legislation that will make former Governor Okowas social investments progrmme/empowerment schemes a sustainable exercise while new ones are creatively added.

This projects include but not limited to ;the flagship Skills Training and Entrepreneurship Programme (STEP), Youth Agricultural Entrepreneurs Programme (YAGEP) and similar programmes undertaken by the Ministries of Agriculture and Natural Resources, Commerce and Industry, Women Affairs as well as the Delta State Micro Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency and Widows alert initiative.

The Delta state 8th Assembly must commit to mind the fact that the above projects and programs made Delta state Best in Human Capital Development in the 2017 States Peer Review, by the National Competitiveness Council of Nigeria, and in 2020 adjudged the Second Least Poor State, coming only after Lagos, by Nigerias business hub among others.

Very key, while deltans celebrate the recent inauguration, the members of new Delta state Assembly in my views are obliged to creatively devise legislation that are coastal areas-specific to aid the state Governor achieve his expect More mantra promised to the good people of the state.

Thankfully, the Speaker is from the coastal axis of the state and familiar with challenges confronting the people of the area and the need to prioritize development process of, and socio-economic rejuvenation of the area which has taken the state too long a time to accomplish.

For members of the Assmbly who are not from that part of the state(coastal areas), a visit to that part of the state will reveal that they have not vanished physically but only exist in the frames. In the riverine communities, many children, particularly the children of fishermen and women, are out of school not because they are not willing to be educated but because the cost of education is beyond the reach of their parents. For the majority in school, no learning takes place as a greater number of public schools sited in the area are short of teachers and dotted with dilapidated buildings. On the other hand, the private schools where the environment is conducive for learning are not only far from those communities but also capital intensive.

For me, the template for developing the area is available. It is for the Guwor led Assembly to resuscitate and carefully consider a bill scripted two years ago by the Centre for Peace and Environmental Justice (CEPEJ), submitted but not considered by the now rested 7thDelta State House of Assembly.

Provisions in the proposed Bill outlined the communities referred/described as coastal communities to be affected as IJAW: Ogulagha, Egbema, Gbaramatu Kingdoms, Burutu, Bomadi Patani and Okpokunou. ISOKO: Iyede Ane, Onogboko and Ofagbe. ITSEKIRI: Omadino, Ugborodo, Ogidigben, Gbokoda and Bateren. NDOKWA: Ase, Aboh and Ashaka. URHOBO: Assah, Gbaregolo, Okwagbe, Esaba, Otutuama, Ophorigbala and Otor-Ewu.

They are well spread across the three senatorial zones of the state and include the five major ethnic nationalities in the state; (1) Ijaw; (ii) Isoko; (iii) Itsekiri; iv) Ndokwa of Anioma nationality and (v) Urhobos. Under this form of arrangement and inclusiveness, the case of envy or inter-tribal crisis is, without doubt, bound not to arise.

The Agency is expected to formulate policies and guidelines for the development of the Coastal Area; conceive, plan and implement projects and programmes for the sustainable development of the Coastal Area; prepare a master plan to tackle ecological and environmental problems of the Coastal Area; cause the Coastal Area to be surveyed in order to ascertain measures to promote its physical and socio-economic development; undertake such research as may be necessary for the performance of its functions;

If the bill is passed to law, it will provide needed protection and save the area from infrastructural backwardness, accelerate the issue of communal rights to a clean environment and access to clean water supplies to the people while providing a broader solution to the challenges created by the Niger Delta Development Commissions (NDDC) and that of the Presidential Amnesty handlers.

But if ignored, it will again elicit the question as to how the state government will expect the people to be treated with equal respect by the vast majority of International Oil Companies (OICs), operating in the locality, who already consider the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), as a dangerous fiction created as an excuse to impose an unfair burden upon the wealthy and powerful.

Finally, while this piece waits for the adoption of these or some of the proffered solutions, guidelines and roadmaps and most importantly legislate for the poor, I will in the interim congratulate the Honourable Members of the Delta State 8thAssembly.

Utomi is the Programme Cordinator (Media and Public Policy), Social and Economic Justice Advocacy (SEJA), Lagos. He could be reached via; [email protected]/08032725374.
Car thief busted after complaint from Phuket foreigner

PHUKET: Royal Thai Police officers have recovered a car stolen from a foreign man in Phuket last week and apprehended the culprit, who turned out to be a serial thief intending to sell the vehicle on the black market. The man was was caught following a thrilling pursuit on a highway and through rural areas in Prachuap-Khiri-Khan, halfway from Phuket to Bangkok.

crimepolice

By The Phuket News

Thursday 15 June 2023 12:00 AM

A car thief heading from Phuket to Bangkok was nabbed after a thrilling highway chase and a foot pursuit. Photo: CIB via CH7

A car thief heading from Phuket to Bangkok was nabbed after a thrilling highway chase and a foot pursuit. Photo: CIB via CH7

The Central Investigation Bureau (CIB) officially announced the arrest of the serial car thief, identified only by his first name Mr Suwit, at around 8pm on Wednesday (June 14). By that time the arrest had already been reported by some Thai media outlets, including Channel 7.

Although the exact day and time of the arrest have not been provided by the CIB* (see update below), the timing of the earliest reports suggests that the suspect was apprehended by Tuesday (June 13) morning.

Police launched a search for Mr Suwit after an unnamed Finnish national reported to Phuket City Police on June 11 that his Ford Everest Titanium SUV had been stolen from his residence in Mueang Phuket District. The exact location is not confirmed, with some sources naming Tambon Koh Kaew while others claim that the man lives in Phuket Town.

According to Channel 7, Mr Suwit stated that the gate of the foreigners house was unlocked, and the car keys were left somewhere near the entrance, facilitating the theft. However, it was not explained whether the suspect specifically targeted the Finnish mans car or opportunistically seized the chance to steal it.

Investigators soon discovered that Mr Suwit had driven the stolen Everest from Phuket to the mainland and was heading towards Bangkok. Phuket police contacted their colleagues from relevant departments, and soon the Highway Patrol Police spotted the Everest on Phetkasem Rd in Prachuap Khiri Khan.

Officers attempted to stop the vehicle on the highway, but Mr Suwit ignored their orders and attempted to flee in the stolen SUV. Police initiated a chase on the highway and then onto a small dirt road, where the fleeing driver tried to shake off the pursuit.

The car chase, reminiscent of a video game, ended at the edge of the jungle in tambon Salalai south of Hua Hin, where Mr Suwit abandoned the vehicle and attempted to escape on foot through the jungle.

According to the CIB report, police officers spread out and combed the area until they found and arrested Mr Suwit.

The CIB report only mentions charges of theft committed at night with the use of a getaway vehicle, which in this case was also the stolen property worth over B1mn.

Officials have not mentioned any additional charges related to the chase, although it is understood that Mr Suwit also ignored lawful orders from officials performing their duty and may have violated traffic laws or damaged the car while attempting to escape on the highway and dirt road.

The CIB confirmed that the man had a previous criminal record, including drug-related offenses and crimes against others property.

It is not clear from the report whether the stolen Ford Everest has been returned to the Finnish man. However, the CIB stated that both the suspect and the vehicle were to be transported to Phuket.

*Update: Additional information regarding the case was disclosed by Phuket Police Chief Maj Gen Sermphan Sirikong, during a press conference held on Thursday (June 15). According to Maj Gen Sermphan, the car had been stolen from the house of Iram Emity, a Finnish national residing in Koh Kaew, at 3am on June 11. Mr Emity discovered the absence of his Ford Everest Titanium in the morning and reported the incident to the Phuket City Police Station at 11.40am.

After reviewing CCTV footage from the scene, the police focused their attention on a suspicious Toyota vehicle that had passed by Mr Emitys house prior to the theft. Upon checking the license plates, law enforcement officials identified the owner of the car as a Thai woman, whose son had a previous criminal record, including a car theft in Phuket in 2017.

The son, identified as Suwit (Jack) Chandahan, was subsequently declared the prime suspect, and an investigation was initiated. Mr Suwit was spotted by Highway Police while driving the stolen Everest in Prachuap Khiri Khan, south of Hat Yai, at 8.30pm on June 12. After a pursuit involving both vehicles and foot chase, Mr Suwit was apprehended.

On June 13, Mr Suwit was charged with nighttime burglary using a vehicle to facilitate the commission of an offense, as well as theft at night using a vehicle.
Expat from Belgium takes own life at Rawai shooting range

PHUKET: Police are investigating what could be the motive for the alleged suicide of a 52-year-old expat from Belgium who shot himself in the head at a shooting range in Rawai yesterday (June 13).



By Eakkapop Thongtub

Wednesday 14 June 2023 08:00 AM

Chalong Police officers, medical personnel, and other relevant officials were called to the shooting range on Saiyuan Rd in Rawai at about 2.40pm.

Upon arriving at the scene, they found the body of a 52-year-old foreign man lying dead on the floor with a single gunshot wound to the head. A revolver was found nearby.

The man was identified by his Belgian passport as a local expatriate resident registered in Rawai. The mans name was withheld pending notification of relatives.

It was not reported if Chalong Police officers were able to immediatelly obtain CCTV records from the scene. However, the police did not report anything that could lead to allegations that the death could be anything but suicide.

The death of the Belgian man came as the third alleged foreign suicide in Phuket within a span of just over two weeks.

On May 29, a tourist from Russia was found dead beside a building at a beachfront resort in Karon, apparently after jumping from his fourth-floor hotel room. The man was identified as Yuri Alekseenko, 43, from Moscow. Police learned that the man had family issues and an alleged drinking problem.

Last Saturday (June 10), a man from Belarus was found hanged in Karon. The deceased was identified as 26-year-old Belarusian national Alexander Zapronenko, who had been staying with a friend in rented accommodation nearby. It was known that the man had been suffering from depression.

If you or anyone you know is in need of emotional support and counseling, please contact the Samaritans of Thailand at their 24-hour hotline 02-113-6789 (English & Thai) or the Thai Mental Health Hotline at 1323 (Thai).
Phuket governor visits Chinese envoy in Bangkok

PHUKET: Chinese Ambassador to Thailand Han Zhiqian warmly welcomed Phuket Governor Narong Woonciew during his visit to the Embassy of China today (June 14). The meeting aimed to strengthen ties between China and Phuket.

Chinesetourismeconomics

By The Phuket News

Wednesday 14 June 2023 06:24 PM

Phuket officials were invited to the Embassy of China on Wednesday (June 14). Photo: PR Phuket

Phuket officials were invited to the Embassy of China on Wednesday (June 14). Photo: PR Phuket

Phuket officials were invited to the Embassy of China on Wednesday (June 14). Photo: PR Phuket

Phuket officials were invited to the Embassy of China on Wednesday (June 14). Photo: PR Phuket

Phuket officials were invited to the Embassy of China on Wednesday (June 14). Photo: PR Phuket

Led by Governor Narong, the delegation of Phuket officials and representatives from the private sector included Rewat Areerob, President of the Phuket Provincial Administration Organisation (PPAO); Kongsak Koophongsakorn, President of the Phuket Chamber of Commerce (PCC); and Thanet Tantipiriyakit, Chairman of the Phuket Tourist Association (PTA).

Also joining Governor Narong was Trin Panyawai, President of Sakhu Subdistrict Administrative Organisation (Sakhu SAO, or Sakhu OrBorTor). Located in the northern part of the province, Sakhu is renowned as the prime area for growing durian in Phuket. The fruit is highly popular among Chinese consumers.

As part of the visit, Governor Narong and Ambassador Han planted a durian tree native to Sakhu "as a symbol of goodwill and long-lasting friendship between China and Phuket."

According to the Phuket office of the Department of Public Relations (PR Phuket), Governor Narong and Ambassador Han praised the relations between China and Phuket, including trade, investment, and travel.

"China and Phuket have had a strong relationship for a long time. Currently, Chinese tourists are the top visitors to the island in terms of numbers. Additionally, Phuket has signed sister-city relationship agreements with many cities in China," PR Phuket said, concluding the report.

Governor Narong and Ambassador Han previously met on March 18 when the Chinese envoy visited the province "to discuss the Chinese tourism situation in Phuket in more depth," according to PR Phuket.

During his time on the island, Ambassador Han visited local ethnic Chinese community associations and met with local Chinese community leaders in Phuket Town.

"The Ambassador of the Peoples Republic of China in Thailand thanked Phuket and the nearby provinces for welcoming and taking good care of Chinese tourists, especially in terms of various security measures," Governor Narong said after the visit.

Neither the March 18 nor the June 14 meetings were mentioned on the official website of the Embassy of China in Thailand. The most recent events listed as newsworthy on the website include a Chinese photo exhibition in Bangkok, the Embassys participation in an ESCAP session, and the recent passing of giant panda Lin Hui in Chiang Mai.
DAMASCUS, June 14 (Xinhua) -- The World Food Program (WFP) said it had to cut assistance to 2.5 million people in Syria due to an "unprecedented funding crisis."

The WFP said in a press release on Tuesday that the funding crisis in Syria was forcing it to cut aid to 2.5 million of the 5.5 million people who rely on the agency to meet basic food needs.

The UN food agency said it took the decision after "exhausting all other options" and planned to allocate its "extremely limited" resources by prioritizing "the 3 million Syrians who are unable to make it from one week to the next without food assistance."

"Instead of scaling up or even keeping pace with increasing needs, we're facing the bleak scenario of taking assistance away from people, right when they need it the most," Kenn Crossley, the WFP representative in Syria, was quoted as saying in the press release.

The WFP started reducing the monthly food ration size by half of its former size two years ago, said the press release, noting that the funding hasn't been able to catch up with people's increasing needs amid rising food and fuel prices.

Crossley stressed that "further reductions in ration size are impossible. The only solution is to reduce the number of recipients."

He warned that people's hardships will intensify without the WFP assistance and Syria's next generation will be at risk without adequate and timely food assistance.

The WFP official said it's critical that the WFP continues to provide life-saving food assistance to help families to get through each week and month while working to help them to rebuild their lives and become less dependent on assistance.

Crossley added that the WFP is counting on its partners to prevent irreversible harm to the Syrian people's future. 
Thai coconut milk producers call for Peta response

BANGKOK: A group of Thai coconut milk producers has urged the government to act fast and hire a lobbyist to move against Peta (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) after the animal rights group made fresh accusations concerning domestic farmers treatment of monkeys.

animalswildlife

By Bangkok Post

Wednesday 14 June 2023 07:11 AM

A monkey is trained to pick coconuts in Surat Thani province. Photo: Pattarapong Chatpattarasill / file

Peta tweeted on its account yesterday (June 13): Reminder that if you see Thai or Thailand on a can of coconut milk, leave it on the shelf. The Thai coconut industry kidnaps countless monkeys as babies & later forces them to pick coconuts.

The Bangkok Post reports a source from the Thai food industry as saying the reputation of Thai coconut milk had been damaged ever since the campaign was launched in July 2020 and repeated last November and has now resurfaced on social media.

He said Thai coconut milk had been banned from the shelves of many department stores and supermarkets in some major countries, such as the United States and the United Kingdom. HelloFresh, a Germany-based meal kit provider, banned all coconut milk exports from the country in March this year.

This caused huge damage to the Thai coconut milk industry and saw the country lose some of its 80% global market share, the source said.

Despite several attempts by the government, ambassadors and manufacturers to deny the use of monkeys to harvest coconuts, sales of Thai products have remained in the doldrums.

An effort to emphasise the use of machines to collect coconuts, as well as the launch of the Monkey Free Plus certification, has not been successful in restoring lost profits across the sector, the source said.
Woman injured in Tha Ruea accident

PHUKET: A female motorcyclist has been taken to Thalang Hospital for medical treatment after a road accident in front of Tha Ruea Shrine earlier today (June 14).

accidentstransportSafety

By Eakkapop Thongtub

Wednesday 14 June 2023 02:23 PM

Police and emergency services were notified about a road accident on Thepkrasattri Rd in Srisoonthorn just before 11am today.

Upon arriving at the scene, south of Heroines Monument, police officers and first responders found one victim, a 28-year-old woman identified by her Thai ID as Soolfa Taemtophol from Kamala.

Mrs Soolfa suffered a laceration on her face and several abrasion wounds on her body. The woman was taken to Thalang Hospital for treatment.

According to witnesses, Mrs Soolfa was riding a red Honda Wave motorcycle in the direction of Koh Kaew when her bike collided with a bronze Mazda BT 50 pickup truck.

The details of the accident and the name of the pickup driver are yet to be revealed by the relevant authorities. Pictures from the scene show two foreigners standing by the victim while she is on a stretcher. However, it has not been confirmed what connection, if any, they have to the accident.

The sharp curve in front of Tha Ruea Shrine and Wat Tha Ruea is known as one of the "black spots" on Phuket roads where serious accidents often occur. The Phuket office of the Highway Department has yet to suggest a solution to improve safety on this stretch of Thepkrasattri Rd, a busy highway used by countless commuters on a daily basis.
BEIJING, June 13 (Xinhua) -- Chinese customs authorities on Tuesday said they had launched 16 initiatives to optimize the country's business environment.

The measures will help stabilize social expectations further and boost confidence in foreign trade, according to a press briefing of the General Administration of Customs (GAC).

Efforts have been made to improve the efficiency of cross-border logistics, support the import of advanced technology equipment and special items, promote the import and export of important agricultural and food products, facilitate export tax rebates, enhance the upgrading of trade processing, and optimize the supervision of border trade, according to the GAC.

In 2022, it introduced 23 measures to stabilize foreign trade, providing solid support to bring the scale of China's foreign trade to a record high, according to GAC official Wu Haiping.

In its next step, the GAC will focus on the implementation of the 16 new initiatives, urge local customs offices to introduce supporting measures, devise targeted solutions for difficulties faced by enterprises, and strengthen the implementation of and feedback concerning the policies, Wu said. 
The footage starts off with the driver, a 63-year-old woman, turning around a corner and driving over a significant part of the curb, before braking slightly to take the next corner. So far, already not good but it gets much worse.
Blind hate : New signature in State Basking under politics of hate

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Hate, blind hate at that, is the new signature of those who are apparently calling the shots. One/two days after the Kuki Inpi, Manipur, (KIM), the Indigenous Tribal Leaders Forum (ITLF), the Core Committee on Separate Administration and the Co-ordination Committee on Manipur Integrity (COCOMI) rejected the Peace Committee set up at the initiative of the Union Home Ministry, Manipur woke up to the news of 9 people shot or hacked to death somewhere at Khamenlok area, a place lying in between Kangpokpi and Imphal East district. As a sort of a reprisal, the quarter of a Minister was reduced to ashes somewhere at Lamphel and two villages went up in flames at Salam Patong and Thangza village in Kangpokpi district under Nongpok Sekmai police station near Kasom Khullen , a place which comes under Kamjong district. Confusing it certainly sounds, but this is how the maps of the sixteen districts in Manipur have been drawn and it in the midst of this confusion that ownership claims and rights over land has been asserted by the different ethnic groups in the State. Manipur went up in flames in the evening of May 3, after the Tribal Solidarity March, and the madness continues. Over 100 people killed, numerous houses and residential places gutted and thousands displaced and many more continue to be displaced and many more houses continue to go up in flames. Obvious that hatred has blinded everyone and there can be nothing more naive than expecting a people blinded by hate to listen to the voice of peace and tranquillity. It is also obvious that the Government at Imphal has failed to rein in the situation and making things worse is obviously the silence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Or is it a case of the silence saying something profound, so profound that it has blown over the sensibility of the people, the people who matter ? Or can Manipur expect to see a magic formula being conjured up to be delivered at the time New Delhi deems is right ? Either way, the silence of the Prime Minister would not have left anyone in Manipur feeling comfortable.

What is the way ahead ? An answer would be hard to find, especially given that there are just too many who know only how to speak the language of hate and suspicion. This is the reality and any peace process should start with the knowledge that hate is the medium through which people are communicating with each other now. Hate is the new language and it is disturbing to see how fast the perfectly innocent boys and girls on the streets have picked up this language so fast and so adeptly, so much so that today, hate is the lingua franca of Manipur. The language of hate cuts across community divide and perhaps no one knows this better than those who are at the forefront taking aims at those on the other side of the clash divide. The result is arson, killings and making a count of the piling body bags. This has been the story of Manipur since the evening of May 3 and for over 40 days there has been no interval. Not a single day has passed by without some confrontation, without a house being razed to the ground and without shots being fired. To many hate is the new calling to master and like many other aspects of life, there are wannabe masters standing at the back and prodding those in front to take aim and fire a shot. This is the script that has run through Manipur since the evening of May 3 and tragically the author who has scripted this tragedy does not seem ready to wind up the story told and retold so many times. This is where a method to the violent madness is starkly visible.
Burnt down

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IMPHAL, Jun 14 : A mob burnt down the official quarter of Commerce and Industries Minister, Nemcha Kipgen at Lamphel this evening even as curfew relaxation in the twin district was curtailed this morning.

The quarter (Type VII/G-1) was set ablaze at about 5 pm today, according to a source.

Three fire tenders swung into action to control the fire from further spreading to neighbouring quarters housing different Government officers, said the source who added that no casualty was reported from the incident.
GENEVA, June 14 (Xinhua) -- The number of people displaced by war, persecution, violence and human rights abuses stood at a record 108.4 million by the end of 2022, up 19.1 million on a year earlier and the biggest ever increase, the United Nations (UN) refugee agency said on Wednesday.

In its annual report titled "Global Trends in Forced Displacement 2022," the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said that the upward trajectory in global forced displacement showed no sign of slowing in 2023 as the eruption of conflict in Sudan triggered new outflows, pushing the global total to an estimated 110 million by May.

According to the report, of the global total, 35.3 million were refugees, who crossed an international border to find safety.

The number of refugees from Ukraine soared from 27,300 at the end of 2021 to 5.7 million at the end of 2022 - representing the fastest outflow of refugees anywhere since World War II.

At the end of 2022, an estimated 4.4 million people worldwide were stateless or of undetermined nationality, 2 percent more than at the end of 2021, the report showed.

Whether measured by economic means or population ratios, the world's low and middle-income countries host the most displaced people. The 46 least-developed countries account for less than 1.3 percent of the global gross domestic product (GDP), yet they hosted more than 20 percent of all refugees.

"People around the world continue to show extraordinary hospitality for refugees as they extend protection and help to those in need, but much more international support and more equitable responsibility sharing is required, especially with those countries that are hosting most of the world's displaced," UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi said.

"Above all, much more must be done to end conflict and remove obstacles so that refugees have the viable option to return home voluntarily, safely and with dignity," he added.

The latest UNHCR report was launched six months ahead of the second Global Refugee Forum, a major gathering in Geneva, Switzerland. 
Context of Bangladesh and Pakistan: It is the USs clear two-pronged policy

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Tilottama Rani Charulata

The author Brahma Chelani, a professor of strategic studies at the Center for Policy Research in New Delhi and a former adviser to Indias National Security Council said in an article tilted Uneven U.S. treatment of Bangladesh and Pakistan makes little sense in the Nikkei Asia published on June 12 that the USA has adopted a double standard policy towards Bangladesh. He is the author of a total of 9 books, including Water: Asias New Battlefield. He also said that the USA has a vested geostrategic interest thus it has targeted Bangladesh like peaceful small country. On the other hand, despite having various human rights violation, it hasnt targeted Pakistan. Thus, it can easily understand, the USA has vested interest in the Bangladesh case for the so-called violation of human rights etc.

Mass arrests, disappearances, murders and torture have become a regular occurrence in Pakistan under undeclared military rule. The US is not making any noise about it. But on the contrary, the country has stepped up to protect democracy in Bangladesh by imposing the ban that those who obstruct the election will not be given US visa. How exactly can such contrasting behavior towards the two countries be explained?

In short, the US has always been partisan about this democratic right. There are always geopolitical benefits involved. In this regard, democracy promotion serves as a major tool for US lawmakers to impose sanctions on vested interests.

Two factors put the US in a very advantageous position in imposing a new visa policy on Bangladesh. One is that a large number of relatives of Bangladeshi politicians live in the United States. Even Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasinas son is a US green card holder. The other is that the big market for Bangladeshi products is the western world. Among them, the United States is at the top.

Few people would disagree with US Secretary of State Anthony Blinkens statement that the USs goal is to ensure that the 2024 elections in Bangladesh are free and fair. However, his threat to suspend visas for those responsible for or involved in obstructing the democratic electoral process does little to promote this cause and may even be counterproductive.

Sheikh Hasina, the leader of Bangladeshs independence struggle and the daughter of the first president Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, has alleged that the United States is trying to implement a strategy to topple the ruling government in Bangladesh. Last April, he told the National Parliament, They want to uproot democracy and install a government that will not have democratic legitimacy. This would be very undemocratic behaviour.

She ensured political stability and rapid economic growth in the country. But recently, the countrys economy has suffered a bit due to the global economic crisis and the war in Ukraine.

Bangladeshs excellent economic growth is the exact opposite of Pakistan. The country is currently on the brink of bankruptcy. Despite having so many positive aspects, Bangladesh was not invited to the democracy conference organized by the United States. But Pakistan was invited to two democracy conferences organized by the Biden administration. Although the country never joined.

The US has continued to support Pakistan for short-term geopolitical considera- tions. On the other hand, the United States has deprived Bangladesh by alleging that the democratic process is being disrupted in Bangladesh.

(To be contd)


MONTREAL - Air Canada pilots have kickstarted the bargaining process with their employer in a move that comes days after their fellow union members at WestJet ratified a new collective agreement.

Representing about 4,500 employees, the Air Line Pilots Associations Air Canada contingent said it has provided a bargaining notice to company management, the first step toward hashing out a new deal.

The decision comes two weeks after the pilots group invoked a clause to end its 10-year collective agreement a year early and launch negotiations for a new one.

Key issues include a widening wage gap between Canadian pilots and their U.S. counterparts as well as job security and career progression, said Charlene Hudy, who heads the contingent.

The Air Canada pilots have not been in a meaningful negotiating position since 2014, and in these negotiations we are striving for a historic contract for our Air Canada pilots to address this growing disparity between the United States and Canada, she said in a statement.

The current deal will remain in force until Sept. 29 and its provisions will still apply after that date.

Such negotiations usually take months, and this is just the beginning, said Air Canada spokesman Peter Fitzpatrick in an email.

The current agreement, which has been in place for nearly a decade, is a testament to the productive relationship we have with our pilots. We expect the upcoming negotiations to be conducted in this same spirit.

Since landing on a deal in 2014, Air Canada pilots have received a two per cent pay hike each year.

The unions move comes after 1,800 pilots with WestJet and budget subsidiary Swoop ratified a new agreement that brings them onto a level pay scale, giving flight crews a 24 per cent wage bump over four years and resulting in Swoops shutdown at the end of October.

Experts say the deal sets a new standard in Canadian aviation that will put pilots closer to U.S. pay levels and raise costs for airlines still recovering from hundreds of millions of dollars in losses during the pandemic.

The pending Air Canada talks also arrive as airlines face intense domestic and cross-border competition from ultra-low-cost carriers such as Flair Airlines and Lynx Air.

Labour shortages continue to plague the aviation industry as the sector emerges from COVID-19 and the past years travel turmoil, with a dearth of workers in areas ranging from air traffic control to ground handling.

In March, Delta Air Lines pilots secured a deal that includes a 34 per cent pay hike over four years.

American Airlines pilots authorized a strike amid contract negotiations last month before reaching a preliminary deal.

United Airlines pilots are also in the middle of talks, pushing for even higher pay than their Delta counterparts, as well as comparable quality-of-life provisions.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 13, 2023.

Companies in this story: (TSX:AC)

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OTTAWA - The Canadian Food Inspection Agency has issued a recall for Al Kanater brand tahini due to a possible salmonella contamination.

The affected tahini was sold in 330-gram packages with a best before date of Jan. 31, 2025.

The tahini was distributed throughout Quebec, Ontario, Saskatchewan and Alberta.

There have been no reports of illnesses linked to the product.

Customers are being told to either throw the product out or return it to the place of purchase.

Salmonella poisoning can result in a wide range of symptoms, from short-term fever, headache and nausea, to more serious issues, including severe arthritis and, in rare cases, even death.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 13, 2023.

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OTTAWAThe federal government will immediately halt all activity with the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank as it reviews allegations the Beijing-based international institution  which has received more than $260 million from Canada  is really controlled by Chinas authoritarian regime, Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland said Wednesday.

The move comes at a fraught time for relations between Canada and China, as the Liberal government is mired in a political debate over Beijings efforts to meddle in Canadian democracy.

Speaking to reporters outside the House of Commons, Freeland noted that a top official at the bank, Canadian Bob Pickard, voiced serious concerns about the institution in his recent resignation.

She said Canada will immediately stop all government-led activity with the bank, and launch a review of the countrys involvement and the allegations that the institution is under Beijings control  a charge the bank has flatly denied.

As the worlds democracies work to de-risk our economies by limiting our strategic vulnerabilities to authoritarian regimes, we must likewise be clear about the means through which these regimes exercise their influence throughout the world, said Freeland, who sits on the banks board as the finance minister of a member country.

The review I am announcing today is to be undertaken expeditiously, and I am not ruling out any outcome following its conclusion.

Founded in 2016, the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank describes itself as a multilateral development bank with more than 106 member countries and $97 billion (US) in capital, according to its most recent financial statement. Its stated purpose is to foster sustainable economic development, create wealth and improve infrastructure in Asia, and to promote regional co-operation.

Canada, as a member since 2018, has contributed almost $200 million (US) in paid-in capital to the bank, the financial statement says.

But Pickard, who has worked at the bank as the director general of its communications department since March 2022, told the Star that money needs to stop flowing immediately.

Pickard, a veteran of the Canadian public relations industry, said he told the bank  and the Canadian embassy in Beijing  this week he could no longer work there.

He fled Beijing within hours of tendering his resignation, fearing for his safety after criticizing Chinas ruling party.

Pickard said in his view, the bank operates in Chinas interest, despite its claims otherwise.

The governance structure appears independent and the management looks international, but the reality is that Communist Party members are in charge of the bank, he told the Star.

I cant continue here in good conscience having realized this.

In a statement, the bank denied his allegations.

Mr. Pickards recent public comments and characterization of the Bank are baseless and disappointing, the statement said.

We are proud of our multilateral mission and have a diverse international team representing 65 different nationalities and members at AIIB, serving our 106 members worldwide, many of whom have been with us since our formation in 2016.

The Conservatives have called for Canada to stop funding the bank since 2021, during the diplomatic standoff over Chinas jailing of Canadians Michael Spavor and Michael Kovrig after Canada arrested a Chinese telecom executive in Vancouver on an American extradition warrant. At the time, then-Tory leader Erin OToole noted that the United States had described the bank as a political tool to expand Beijings influence in Asia.

In the House of Commons on Wednesday, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre charged that the banks mission is to expand Chinas empire around the world, and demanded the government get back all the money it has contributed to the institution. Where is our money, and how will we get it back? Poilievre demanded.

Randy Boissonault, the associate finance minister, said the government is reviewing its relationship with the bank as quickly as possible.

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BCE Inc. announced Wednesday it was cutting roughly 1,300 positions, or three per cent of its workforce, in response to what it says is unfavourable public policy and regulatory conditions that the company can no longer outwait.

The planned cuts, announced in an internal memo distributed to staff Wednesday morning, come weeks after Bell Canada shared how much its top executives earned in 2022.

So, just how much did they collect last year?

Bell CEOs base salary increased between 2021 and 2022

Mirko Bibic, president and CEO of Bell Canada since January 2020, received $13.59 million in total compensation last year. Thats up nearly 20 per cent, or $2.45 million, from the previous year. Much of that increase is attributed to excess pension benefits, which Bibic was eligible to receive after turning 55 that year.

Bibics base salary also increased in 2022, up by $100,000 from $1.3 million in 2021 to $1.4 million in 2022.

Bibic, who was born and raised in the Montreal area, first joined the company in 2004 as a senior vice president. In 2018, he was appointed Bell Canadas chief operating officer.

In 2021, Bibic was among the top 100 best paid CEOs in Canada, according to a report published by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, which examined compensation disclosures from documents filed by publicly-traded companies.

President of Bell Media earned $900,000 base salary

Wade Oosterman, meanwhile, who serves as president of Bell Media, collected nearly $4.88 million in total compensation last year, including a base salary of $900,000.

Oostermans division will see a six per cent cut as a result of the eliminated positions announced Wednesday.

In an interview with The Canadian Press, Bell executive vice-president and chief legal and regulatory officer Robert Malcolmson said the companys media branch cant afford to continue operating with its various brands  such as CTV National News, BNN, CP24, its local TV news stations and radio channels  operating independently of one another.

The plan entails moving to a single newsroom approach across brands, allowing for greater collaboration and efficiency, said Richard Gray, vice-president of news at Bell Media, in an internal memo distributed to staff Wednesday morning and provided to The Canadian Press.

Rogers and Telus CEOs earned more

Bibic and Oostermans earnings, however, paled in comparison to those of other major telecom CEOs.

Darren Entwistle, president and CEO of TELUS, raked in roughly $17.49 million in total compensation last year, including a base salary of $1.6 million. Entwistle, who assumed his position in 2000, is the longest-serving CEO in the global telecommunications industry.

But the title of highest-paid CEO belongs to Rogers president and CEO Tony Staffieri, who made $31.52 million in 2022. His earnings last year werent normal, the company noted. That amount was bolstered, in part, by additional compensation tied to Rogers acquisition of Shaw Communications. (Staffieri, who became CEO of Rogers in January 2022, will receive $8 million in stock options if the deal closes but not before meeting the undisclosed one- and two-year milestones.)

The compensation also includes a one-time $9.9-million pension adjustment, which is not a cash payment. Rogers said the pension adjustment is tied to a change in the actuarial expense of Staffieris pension, a change that came because he moved from the role of chief financial officer to CEO.

Note: Details on Staffieris compensation have been clarified from an earlier version of this story.

With files from The Canadian Press and Thea Gribilas

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You could say textiles are in Myra Arshads blood  several members of her family worked in the industry in Pakistan and her mother founded a cut-and-sew business after arriving in Canada.

But Arshad was troubled by all the issues the fashion industry was plagued with, ranging from labour standards to the vast amounts of waste fast fashion creates. One of the core issues she wanted to tackle as an entrepreneur was the very linear materials weve been using for centuries.

So she teamed up with a close friend, Avneet Ghotra, who Arshad describes as a passionate environmentalist with a background in biochemistry and environmental science to find a circular solution for the textile industry. They pinned down what that solution was three years ago: an alternative to polyester using food waste. Arshad and Ghotra co-founded ALT TEX to scale up and commercialize their concept.

Today, the Kitchener, Ont., company has grown to nine employees, hoping to expand to 15 by the end of the year, and has raised nearly $4.7 million. Earlier this week, the company was awarded the Global Change Award from the H&M Foundation, receiving nearly $300,000 and a year of commercial acceleration with the fashion giant.

Here, Arshad shares her motivation to create a biodegradable fabric, how food waste became the hero input material and the challenges she faced along the way.

What got you interested in finding an alternative to polyester?

Were taking some of the most valuable resources we have on the planet, such as petroleum in the case of polyester, and were using it on things like fast fashion. Synthetic fabrics like polyester are in 60 per cent of all the clothes we wear. We also saw that bioplastics were becoming a very large space. We hadnt seen anyone use bioplastics successfully in fashion, even though polyester is basically just a plastic. My co-founder and I wondered: Why are bioplastics not being tapped into for polyester? And then we went from there and figured out how to innovate on existing bioplastic technology to create a polyester alternative.

What would it mean to replace the polyester with something biodegradable?

Our technology is plug-and-play with polyesters existing supply chain. If we can nail the biotech scaleup and we can plug this into polyesters existing supply chain  which we have the connections to do so through myself, my family and our investors  we can effectively replace a very large chunk of polyester. If we can replace even 30 per cent of polyester at full commercial scale, that would equate to about 1.25 gigatons of emissions that were able to divert by 2050.

How did you figure out how to use food waste as a source material?

We actually didnt start with food waste. Our theory was that we can replace a limited resource like petroleum with an abundant one. After evaluating a variety of underutilized resources, such as byproducts from farms or from flower cultivation, even paper waste, we realized food waste has the building blocks we needed to generate our specific polymer. The challenge was getting fermentation efficiency comparable to commercial methods that are resource-intensive, which weve proudly been able to solve for.

What were the requirements for the new material to be comparable to polyester?

We very quickly learned that brands were not going to sacrifice on durability, nor did we want to. If we didnt create a performance-oriented fabric, it wouldnt stay in your closet for many years  youre defeating the purpose of circularity.

We talked to fashion brands to understand their classification of strength when it came to natural fabrics, semisynthetics and synthetics, and then reverse-engineered to work toward those goals. We built our innovation around that, arriving at a very strong polymer. When it came to secondary things like the flexibility of the material, we also just reverse-engineered our technology to work toward brands goals. Were not at 100 per cent of those goals yet, but were very close to where polyester is today.

What were the most challenging problems to solve?

Maintaining biodegradability and durability at the same time is very difficult  youre trying to create something that is very durable and can last the consumer a long time, but you also want it to have an end-of-life that is circular. Introducing biodegradability does compromise strength so we found a good balance of it now where the material is still industrially biodegradable and its very strong, and thats part of our IP.

Is the material on the market?

Its still very much at lab scale, and were working with some contract manufacturing organizations to scale up. Well be moving into the pilot phase in the next little while, which will take us from producing a couple of metres of fabric per batch to several thousands of metres every month.

What are you aiming for next?

Canada hasnt been a big player in textiles for a very long time. Were not just trying to create a local niche Canadian brand, were trying to put it on a global stage. Weve had a lot of brands that are interested in us because of the fact the product is made here. While theres a long-term vision for it to be manufactured across the world, this has shown us the merit in doing this type of work in Canada.

Sadiya Ansari writes about technology for MaRS. Torstar, the parent company of the Toronto Star, has partnered with MaRS to highlight innovation in Canadian companies.

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KIMBERLEY, B.C. - An Australian hiker has been found dead after being reported missing over the weekend in the East Kootenay region of British Columbia.

Kimberley RCMP say police were alerted Sunday about a 25-year-old woman who had been missing since the previous day.

Officers say they found the womans vehicle near Bear Lake, about 60 kilometres east of Kimberley, and searchers subsequently found her body.

Police say the death is not considered suspicious.

The RCMP did not name the victim, but relatives in Australia have, on Facebook, identified her as Julia-Mary Lane.

A Facebook post by Lanes roommate, who first alerted police to her disappearance, says Lane was visiting Kimberley from Canmore, Alta., for a week and planned to hike the region while she was in B.C.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 13, 2023.

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MONTREAL - A tribunal has found that a Quebec man who became a father after he was sexually assaulted by his wife qualifies for payments from the provincial fund for victims of crime.

The provinces administrative tribunal was asked to rule whether the man should receive the compensation given to someone who supports a child born of sexual assault.

The officials who oversee the fund had denied his request, noting among other things the father did not have custody of the child and that the amounts are meant for a parent who cant work.

However, the ruling notes the wording of the law can also include someone other than a mother if that person assumes financial care of the child.

Calling the matter a unique case, a panel of two administrative judges agreed with the father, noting that he alone provides financial support for the child as the mother is unemployed.

None of the parties are identified in the decision dated May 19 and released earlier this month.

The tribunal also found the father does try to play a part in the childs life but is forced to deal with his assailant. It concluded he would be more involved if he wasnt re-traumatized after visits to her home.

The couple came to Canada in 2008 and conflicts arose soon after as the man did not want children and was subjected to verbal, physical and sexual violence that got worse over the years.

The abuse spanned between 2010 and February 2013, when he said he was forced to have sex with his wife without a condom after a particularly tense argument with her and his mother-in-law over whether to have children.

The father learned a few weeks later she was pregnant and ultimately left the family, never to return.

Paternity was established in 2018 and the divorce was finalized in 2019.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 13, 2023.

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PHNOM PENH, June 14 (Xinhua) -- Cambodian Prime Minister Samdech Techo Hun Sen said here on Wednesday that anyone or any political party obstructing the July general election will be fined and could also face criminal charges.

An amendment to the election laws to punish the violators will be made ahead of the upcoming election, he said.

"Those using iniquitous means to block or incite people not to go to the polls will be fined from 5 million riels (1,250 U.S. dollars) to 20 million riels (5,000 dollars) by the National Election Committee," he said in a speech during a meeting with thousands of garment factory workers.

"This has not yet included criminal charges," he said.

On Tuesday, the prime minister also said that the Southeast Asian nation will modify its election laws to ban politicians or political officials who don't vote from running as candidates in future elections.

Cambodia is scheduled to hold a general election for the 125-seat National Assembly on July 23, 2023, the National Election Committee said, adding that more than 9.7 million Cambodians have registered to cast their ballots.

Eighteen political parties will contest the election. Among them are the ruling Cambodian People's Party (CPP) and the royalist Funcinpec Party.

In the last general election held five years ago, the CPP won all 125 seats in the parliament. 
DELTA, B.C. - The Canada Border Services Agency says it has confiscated more than 6,300 kilograms of methamphetamine in British Columbia over the last six months, including the largest ever single seizure of the drug.

The drugs were found in four Metro Vancouver seizures in jugs labelled as canola oil and destined for export to Australia.

Five Australian citizens and one American were arrested in Australia over their alleged connection to the operation, which police there have described as a global crime syndicates attempt to traffic $1.5 billion worth of methamphetamine into the country.

The CBSA says that in December of last year, agents in Burnaby found 40 jugs containing just over 200 kilograms of crystal methamphetamine, and a month later 180 containers with 2,900 kilograms of liquid methamphetamine were seized coming through the container examination facility in Delta.

In a statement, the agency says the January discovery was enough to fill 35 large suitcases and is its largest methamphetamine seizure to date.

In May, two other major seizures happened at the container examination facility, where more than 3,000 kilograms of liquid methamphetamine was discovered.

A separate joint statement from Australian and Canadian law enforcement officials says the drugs bound for Australia were then substituted with harmless substances to give authorities time to track and identify alleged Australian offenders in the operation.

Police say two Australia men in their 30s have been charged with attempting to import methamphetamine connected to the January seizure.

The statement says one man is accused of acting as a conduit for an organized crime network in Canada and the other is alleged to have used his position in a logistics business to transport the substituted drug when it arrived in Australia.

Both men are facing a maximum penalty of life in prison.

Three other men, including an American citizen, have been charged with attempting to possess a commercial quantity of unlawfully imported drugs.

A sixth man  also from Australia  has been charged with possession and trafficking, and Australian police say more arrests are expected.

The statement says police executed search warrants at the suspects homes and a storage unit allegedly used to store the drugs. Officers allegedly uncovered a clandestine lab in one of the homes, along with a quantity of other drugs.

The CBSA says the investigation on the Canadian side has been referred to the RCMP.

Canadian federal Minister of Public Safety Marco Mendicino said in the CBSA statement that safety and security is the governments top priority.

I want to thank the CBSA, the RCMP and our Australian and New Zealand law enforcement partners for their excellent work in disrupting organized crime and protecting our communities from dangerous narcotics, he said.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 14, 2023

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KELOWNA, B.C. - The mother of a nine-year-old girl says her daughter has received an outpouring of love and support after a man wrongly suggested the girl was transgender and demanded proof she was born biologically female at a Kelowna, B.C., track meet.

The confrontation, which has received international news coverage, has resulted in the man being banned from school premises and events, was condemned by B.C. Premier David Eby, and is being investigated by police.

Heidi Starr said the man pointed to two girls, including her daughter, who were competing in the girls Grade 4 shot put event last Thursday. He questioned their right to compete, she said.

They did not fit his picture of what a little girl should look like, and he completely jumped to conclusions and then rode his transphobic hate train, she said in an interview Wednesday.

Her daughter, who she asked not to be identified, was born female, uses she/her pronouns and has a pixie cut hairstyle, Starr said.

Starr said a woman accompanying the man started calling her and her ex-wife genital mutilators and groomers.

She said their daughter was seriously shaken up and really upset at the time.

She was born to a lesbian family  She has no confusion about orientation or identity, and she knew exactly what this man was demanding, Starr said.

It was particularly impactful for her because shed just never seen the hate and it was directed right at her.

However, she said that since sharing the story, her daughter has received overwhelming love and support that had helped her process the incident.

Because of the support weve received, its not as traumatic as it could be, Starr said.

The man, who was identified by Starr on Facebook, did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

But in remarks to the Castanet news site, he reportedly said he approached an official in private to ask about the girl, and when challenged by her mother had asked to see a certificate. He denied pointing out a second girl.

Kevin Kaardal, the superintendent of Central Okanagan Public Schools in Kelowna, B.C., said in a statement that staff at the regional track and field meet intervened and eventually moved the girls event across the field.

He said people who accosted the student and family were identified and steps have been taken to formally ban them from any district property or events.

The entire school community that surrounds the student has shown tremendous allyship and concern for their well-being following the incident and we will continue to check in and ensure supports are available to anyone affected by the incident, Kaardal said.

B.C. Premier David Eby said on Twitter Tuesday that the incident was awful and unacceptable, and people should continue to call out transphobia when they see it.

Starr said she was moved to tears when she saw leaders, including Eby, speak out about the situation and hopes it encourages others to do the same.

I think its so incredibly important that if you have a platform to speak, that you speak out, and I am so incredibly grateful that the premier has tweeted, she said.

Starr said she made a formal complaint to police last Thursday.

Kelowna RCMP said in a statement they have received several messages from concerned citizens and are investigating the claims.

We too share everyones grave concerns with discriminatory behaviour, the detachment said in a statement Tuesday.

 By Brieanna Charlebois

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 14, 2023.

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CALGARY - A Law Society of Alberta hearing into allegations that a former cabinet minister broke the lawyers code of conduct wont hear final arguments until September.

Tyler Shandro, a lawyer who was defeated in last months provincial election, faces three complaints from his time as health minister early in the COVID-19 pandemic.

His hearing started in January, continued for a couple of days this week and has been adjourned until Sept. 5 to give lawyers time to complete written briefs.

The law society says in a statement that oral arguments would be heard that day if required.

It says the hearing is considered concluded when all is submissions, oral and written, have been completed.

The society says the hearing committee then typically reserves its decision and aims to issue a written decision on its website within 90 days of its conclusion.

The complaints against Shandro include: confronting a Calgary doctor in the front yard of his home, calling two Red Deer doctors on their personal cellphones and contacting a woman who sent a message to his wifes company accusing the couple of being in a conflict of interest.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 14, 2023.

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Canadian officials will stop the pending deportations of a group of Indian international students who were allegedly duped by unscrupulous agents and let in with fake college admission letters.

Their removals to India will be suspended, Immigration Minister Sean Fraser said Wednesday, while a special task force investigates each case to determine if the subject students were innocent or complicit in defrauding Canadas immigration system.

Factors the task force will consider include whether the individual students completed their study and their level of knowledge of any fraudulent scheme that may have underpinned their application, Fraser told reporters in Ottawa.

Those who are found not to have had knowledge and who have been genuine applicants to the student program will be given permission to stay in Canada for a period of a few years so they can either complete their studies or potentially remain in Canada and work over the next few years.

Fraser had been under tremendous pressure to address the crisis faced by the students from India, which has been the top source country of international students in Canada, making up 40 per cent of the 800,000 international students now in the country.

The scandal made headlines in India with many, including Canadian Liberal MPs, saying the students were victims and should not be penalized. Other criticism noted the fraudulent documents werent detected until years later, after many of the students had already graduated from other schools, had jobs and gotten established.

The controversy prompted the Indian government to reach out to Canadas High Commissioner to India to vouch for the innocence of the students and plead with Canadian officials to save the victims from being deported.

Last week, the parliamentary immigration committee voted unanimously to ask Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) to waive inadmissibility of the affected students and to give them an alternative pathway to permanent residence.

Fraser said the new task force will be made up of senior immigration and border enforcement officials; the latter will provide the names of the students to their colleagues in immigration to examine the specifics of each case.

Someone came to Canada, for example, never undertook a period of study and immediately tried to start to work, or if there is specific evidence on their file indicating they had knowledge of a fraudulent scheme, that would obviously push the equation in the other direction, Fraser explained.

The scandal was uncovered after immigration officials launched a new process in 2018 to verify the authenticity of letters of acceptance to Canadian institutions. When authorities had reason to suspect fraud, they would reach out to individual colleges and universities to confirm the documents.

Fraser said he has recently completed a consultation on the international student program and the government will roll out reforms to the system, including the verification process.

Were developing new digital tools that are going to allow us more seamlessly to work with colleges and universities, he said, promising more consultation with those institutions to put this issue to bed.

According to Fraser, officials are dealing with dozens of removal orders regarding affected students, not the hundreds that have been widely reported. He said a few have been removed while others have left voluntarily.

Removal orders are issued by an independent tribunal after hearings into CBSA allegations, but advocates have said many of the students are still waiting for their hearings.

Lovepreet Singh, one of about a dozen affected students who have been camping outside a border agency office on Airport Road since late May, said he and others are relieved by the new announcement.

All students are happy that there will be no further deportations unless there are proper investigations, said the 30-year-old who arrived in Canada in 2017 with what he thought was a letter to attend Lambton College in Mississauga.

There is still a lot of uncertainty and we are not clear about the investigation process, but we will fully co-operate with the investigators.

Sarom Rho of Migrant Students United, a national advocacy group for international students, welcomed the governments move but said the students are concerned about the criteria that officials would use to determine who a genuine applicant was.

It is great that they can stay and work and study for a couple years, but a couple years without permanent residence status means that exploitation will continue. People may be denied health care and they simply wont be treated equally, said Rho.

We are still demanding a permanent solution, which is permanent residence.

Toronto immigration lawyer Sumit Sen praised the government for approaching the situation from more of a policy perspective than a legal one, as the immigration law is clear that someone with inauthentic documents is deemed inadmissible whether theres a direct or indirect misrepresentation.

This certainly is organized crime. Its affecting hundreds of students. We dont know how many more will be unearthed in the months and years to come. Canada has to be more proactive. Its not enough to say we dont have the long arm of the law outside the country, Sen said.

Indian officials are aware of the problem. They are cognizant of this matter and they are very happy to help. This is a problem which needs to be rooted out once and for all.

Fraser said his goal is to ensure a fast, fair and final resolution for people who have been caught in this situation.

The international student program is an incredible benefit to Canada, but its reputation depends on protecting the integrity of the process, he noted.

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HALIFAX - Animal autopsies on several pilot whales that washed ashore last weekend in Cape Breton indicate the whales were healthy, says a marine animal conservation group.

Tonya Wimmer, executive director of the Marine Animal Response Society, says necropsies performed on eight of the whales suggest the animals were not following a sick member who had become disoriented and led them to shore.

While the final necropsy results arent in yet, Wimmer says the whales potentially swam to their deaths because they werent paying attention to where they were going. Whales, she says, are often following food and dont realize the ocean water receding as they approach the shore.

They dont seem to realize the tide is actually dropping underneath them, and they do get stuck, she said in a recent interview.

In total, 11 whales came ashore Sunday in Port Hood, N.S., but three were pushed back into the water by passersby and survived.

The whales were a mix of males and females, Wimmer said, with the largest around five metres long. Theyre not as big as their cousin, the killer whale, she said, but they can get quite big.

They were a part of a larger group of about 30 pilot whales swimming nearby, she said, which included extremely small calves.

The remaining whales were carefully herded by boats back out into the ocean, Wimmer said, to ensure the larger group wouldnt also swim ashore. She noted there are only a few channels to sneak into the shallow, enclosed bay where the eight ultimately died.

Its very surprising that these highly intelligent, very social animals at times make these mistakes and end up running aground, she said, adding that its not uncommon behaviour for the species globally.

Elizabeth Zwamborn, a PhD candidate at Dalhousie Universitys Whitehead Lab who has been studying pilot whales since 2013, says this particular breed is notorious for mass-stranding events, sometimes swimming ashore and dying after being spooked by loud noises such as underwater explosions.

Pilot whales are social creatures, Zwamborn said, with sons and daughters staying with their mothers for life, living in very tight-knit groups. Their echolocation skills can be compromised in shallow waters with twisty channels, she added.

That seems to be a commonality in many of the strandings, she said. Not all, but many. They simply cant find their way out and they panic, and end up on the beach.

Zwamborn said wildlife pathologists would review the information from the necropsies to better understand how the animals died. Sometimes, she added, the reason cant be determined, but its just as important to find out what it wasnt, as it is to find out what the cause is.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 14, 2023.

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An Ontario man has been found guilty of attempted murder for hiring a hit man to kill his ex-common law partner with a crossbow.

This was a targeted hit, Brampton Superior Court Justice Jennifer Woollcombe said Wednesday, convicting Roger Jaggernauth in a plot to kill his former partner because she was seeking a cut of the Mississauga home they once shared.

On Nov. 7, 2018, Jaggernauths ex-partner opened the door of her Mississauga home to a man impersonating a delivery man with a package. The man shot her in the torso with a crossbow; its bolt pierced her chest, severely and permanently damaging internal organs before lodging into a wall.

The woman, who the Star is not naming as a victim of domestic violence, survived following three days of life-saving surgeries detailed in a 2020 Peel police video.

After finally leaving a volatile and toxic five-year relationship, I was finally feeling happy and looking forward to the life I wanted, she said in the police video, in which her identity is obscured. That all changed for me when I answered the door to a man posing as a delivery person.

Although the disguised shooter has never been identified, the woman told police that she thought her ex-boyfriend, Jaggernauth, might be involved.

Jaggernauth sought to kill his estranged partner because he knew he would have to pay her about $350,000 back for her investment in the home, Woollcombe said in her decision.

The risk to Mr. Jaggernauth, that he would lose his most precious possession, made his situation dire and desperate, the judge said.

He knew he could not sell the home without paying her, and had a clear and demonstrated motive.

Jaggernauth was also found guilty of counselling a former Satans Choice biker gang member to commit the murder.

At trial, the ex-biker testified about a conversation in which Jaggernauth asked if he knew anyone who could take her out. But the call didnt work, and the biker testified he refused to help.

It was a serious question, intended to further Mr. Jaggernauths goal of having the (victim) killed, Woolcombe noted, adding that Jaggernauth had also made damning statements to his work supervisor, saying he would or could kill her.

The guilty verdict on both counts was met with jubilation from attending family and friends of the victim, some of whom could be seen sobbing and applauding as Woollcombes final ruling was heard.

Outside the courtroom, the victim embraced relatives and hugged Crown prosecutor Keeley Holmes and investigators.

Jaggernauth pleaded not guilty. At trial, the defence tried to dismiss the former bikers evidence as unreliable.

The former couple had separated in the months leading up to the attack. By the summer of 2018, the woman had retained a lawyer to start litigation against Jaggernauth.

Following up on the victims suspicions, Peel police zeroed in on Jaggernauth as a suspect and launched a more than 21-month investigation, including listening in on his phone conversations. Jaggernauth, who was 50 at the time, was arrested in August 2020.

The shooter, who was never found, was described as white, tall and skinny.

The case is scheduled to return to court on June 23.

For women facing domestic violence, the end of a relationship is often the most dangerous time, a pattern that has been repeated in several recent cases in the GTA.

Jason Miller is a Toronto-based reporter for the Star covering crime and justice in the Peel Region. Reach him on email: jasonmiller@thestar.ca or follow him on Twitter: @millermotionpic

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Toronto police are still searching for a suspect wanted in connection with a May sexual assault on the TTC.

Police said they were called to Wilson Station at around 2 a.m. for reports of a sexual assault.

The victim was allegedly on-board a TTC subway when she noticed the suspect staring at her. The victim exited the train at Wilson station and the suspect allegedly followed her off the train and subsequently sexually assaulted her, said Toronto police.

Police described the suspect as having a thin build, short black hair, and black facial hair. He was last seen wearing a black long sleeve shirt, green cargo pants, black boots and carrying a black backpack.

Anyone with information should contact police or Crime Stoppers.

TG Thea Gribilas is a breaking news reporter, working out of the Star's radio room in Toronto. Reach her via email: tgribilas@thestar.ca

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Borrowing a tactic from the business world, the Star performed 360 performance reviews of the leading contenders in the mayoral race. We talked to people all around the candidates  those who have worked above them, next to them and under them  to understand their strengths and weaknesses as voters prepare to decide who will be Torontos next leader.

Bob Gallaghers voice catches telling the story, because even now, three decades later, the memory of the Metro council vote to grant health-care benefits to the same-sex partners of city employees is emotional.

Gallagher had a personal stake in the vote. He was then councillor Olivia Chows chief of staff and his partner had AIDS.

A previous attempt to change the policy had failed in the term before she was elected, but Chow was undeterred. She believes in listening to people to figure out where they are at, Gallagher said. She doesnt badger or lecture or try to make anyone feel bad.

This is part of the Chow Way: empathy and inclusiveness. But she is also known as a sharp strategist who works the hallways and possesses a gruelling work ethic.

The question is whether she will be able to transition from being the opposition and a gadfly to conservative administrations to being a unifying mayor.

Gallagher has no doubt, because in his mind shes been doing it all along. What made him abandon his university job to work for Chow was that she understood the only way shed be able to get her progressive ideals into practice was to work with people, listen to them, figure out the middle ground  and we can somehow get through the things we believe in.

Others who have worked with Chow arent so sure.

Former conservative councillor Denzil Minnan-Wong, who had a short crossover with Chow on council, said being in charge is very different from being the opposition. Can she put away her NDP membership card and govern as a non-partisan? he said, pointing out that the city is coming up to union negotiations later this year and that Chow has been endorsed by public-sector unions.

Longtime former councillor and relentless fiscal conservative Doug Holyday said then mayor Mel Lastman kept Chow tightly in check and questioned her ability to be a mayor who would meaningfully take into account conservative voices or other perspectives.

But Gallagher and others are confident that because Chow has needed to work across the aisle to get results during her long political career, from Toronto school board trustee to councillor to MP, she is well prepared for this moment.

In their health-care benefit battle, her team sent gay and lesbian people to find out where their councillors stood and armed with that information, the team sprang into action. One councillor said her constituents wouldnt support it, so they collected a petition of support from her ward. Another had religious objections, so they got a local religious leader to make the case to him.

On the council floor, the deciding vote to grant the benefits was cast by a staunchly Catholic councillor theyd been trying to convince who said homosexuality is a sin. But even when you sin you should get health care, Gallagher said.

Chow has touted her decade on Lastmans budget committee as an example of her ability to work with people with very different political views. Gallagher said Lastman knew she was pragmatic, could negotiate productively and could be trusted to keep her word.

Chow can be summed up as one of the most effective backroom strategists that I have ever known in local politics, former councillor Howard Moscoe wrote in his book, Call Me Pisher: A Madcap Romp Through City Hall.

Chow maintains she is fiscally responsible and those who know her say she has a track record of, for example, working with developers in her SpadinaFort York ward to support growth, but with parks, schools and libraries as well.

In an interview, Chow recalled wanting then immigration minister Jason Kenney to bring in legislation to crack down on unscrupulous immigration consultants  she put a wire on her own mother, who posed as an undocumented worker to collect evidence. She said she told Kenney: You dont want to be soft on crime on immigrants, right? as part of her pitch.

She has also been unafraid to do what she thought was right even in the face of fierce opposition.

Its OK not to be loved all the time, Chow said.

She fought to introduce anti-homophobia curriculum in schools, anti-discrimination policies and training for teachers in the wake of the 1985 murder of public school librarian Kenneth Zeller in High Park. In response, she faced backlash and demonstrations. The same thing happened when she worked to get condoms available in high schools.

Thats fine. Im convinced I need to do this, she said of what she thought at the time. She added that its about laying a foundation for a different future.

Chow is a very courageous politician, said former councillor and longtime child-care advocate Janet Davis. She saw how Chow was able to push forward new ideas about child care as a trustee and councillor by mobilizing the community  something the city may need when negotiating with the province.

And if a key part of being mayor is ensuring accountability, she believes Chow can deliver.

She has weathered political defeat and personal tragedy in the loss of her husband, former city councillor and NDP leader Jack Layton. Shes faced hideous racism, sexism and vile hate from the start of her career. Very little has come easy for her.

Her drive comes from her belief that we have to make life better for other people, she said. In part that comes from her faith, in part from her mothers strong sense of justice. And partially, Chow said matter-of-factly, it was watching my dad beat the crap out of my mom.

Chow is a collaborator who will take on a good idea no matter where it comes from, former staff members said.

If she wins shell have to prove it quickly, and convince at least a significant chunk of councillors and Torontonians that her intentions are genuine and she can be trusted.

Susan Kwong, who was once a social work student on a placement with Chows city council office, said she was immediately folded into the team and soon became family and a confidante.

As a boss, she doesnt talk down.

According to people who have worked with her, Chow will have to work on prioritizing her goals because she will want to take on too many problems at once  something that is impossible in the bureaucracy of city hall and could set her up to fail. She has high expectations for herself and for her staff. She is also famously impatient.

Olivia does not take no for an answer very easily, said Kwong. And if it doesnt work out, she wants to know why.

One of the biggest things Ive learned from her and Ive seen her learn for herself is to say, You know what? This didnt work, there is always next time. Well do it again and well do it better, Kwong said.

Alyshah Hasham is a Toronto-based reporter covering city hall and municipal politics for the Star. Reach her via email: ahasham@thestar.ca or follow her on Twitter: @alysanmati

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TORONTO - Burned out and fed up with working conditions they say are unfair, Ontarios coroners are pushing to be allowed to unionize  despite their first raise in more than a decade and a law preventing them from doing so.

The Ontario Coroners Association says coroners are frustrated with a new computer program that has increased workloads and lost data, and are concerned about growing reliance on nurses for investigations and a system that places all coroners on call.

Association president Dr. Jeannie Walton says Ontarios approximately 350 coroners want to be paid fairly, with the raise announced this month marking only the beginning of improvements that are needed.

Its a start, but its nowhere near sufficient, she says. Were not asking for anything outrageous.

The provinces chief coroner has accepted responsibility for the years-long wait for better pay and admitted the troubles with the new computer system, but pledged better days ahead with significant reforms underway.

Dr. Dirk Huyer says he understands why coroners are trying to unionize, noting they were told for years that their pay was going to increase and working conditions would improve.

I was too slow and I think people distrust that I was actually interested and supportive of them, he says.

Huyer, who became chief coroner in 2013, says he initially chose to hold any changes until after the end of an inquiry into serial killer Elizabeth Wettlaufer, who killed eight long-term care residents in southwestern Ontario. That probe reviewed the coroners work.

But then came an auditor generals review, so Huyer waited longer. Following that, Huyer brought in PricewaterhouseCoopers for a review of the coroner system in 2021.

Theres no question I was too slow on it and I regret that, Huyer says.

Ontarios coroners have now filed a constitutional challenge to be able to unionize  doctors are not allowed by law to do so  and voted 96 per cent in favour of joining the Ontario Public Service Employees Union. A hearing is set for November.

If the coroners cannot achieve full unionization, they hope to come up with something akin to the Ontario Medical Association, which represents doctors and can negotiate with the government on their behalf.

The recent pressure has yielded some gains.

Earlier this month, Huyer presented a series of reforms, including an increase in pay.

As of Oct. 1, coroners will earn $525 per death investigation, up from the $450 per investigation theyve earned since 2011. They will also have higher premiums for night and weekend work.

Walton, of the Ontario Coroners Association, says the raise doesnt come with a plan for the coming years.

Theres no contract, mention of annual increases, just heres your new salary and boom, thats it, she says. But we have seen the chief coroner willing to listen lately, which is a huge improvement.

Huyer has also set a call schedule to address the issue of coroners saying no to investigating a death. Walton says that approach is missing the mark.

Most coroners have other jobs  their practices, their clinics  and this will require them to give up that work in order to be on call, she says.

Huyer says the call schedule is necessary.

We have a significant number of cases that are being done without physicians attending to scenes, he says. We dont like that.

Walton says that while coroners can carry out death investigations remotely, they dont like doing so.

The situation usually involves being on the phone with a police officer on scene who needs to take photographs and examine a body by following instructions, she says.

It creates a lot more work for us and police, Walton says.

Another change being brought in by Huyer is an increased reliance on nurses.

There are about 15 nurses who work as coroners, Huyer says. They manage medical assistance in dying cases and cases that dont fall under the Coroners Act.

Their duties will be expanding.

Currently, family doctors should be going to patients homes if they die suddenly with a known health problem. But about two million Ontarians are without a family physician and a doctor might refuse to attend a scene even for those who have one  so nurses will fill that gap, Huyer says.

Nurses will also be responsible for reviewing all long-term care death notices and, this fall, will be responsible for investigating all uncomplicated accidental hip fracture deaths for those over 60 where going to the scene isnt required.

Walton expressed concern with those changes.

Theyre taking away more paid work for us, she says.

Another issue for coroners recently has been a new case management system, called QuinC, Walton says. Coroners now fill out much more data on each investigation, she says.

It is the most horrendous computer system you can imagine, Walton says. It has significantly increased the workload burdens of everybody.

Death investigation data has also gone missing in the system, she says, which means coroners look at their notes and input the data again.

Recently a coroner was sent 20 cases, some of which were back to when the system was implemented in 2021 and asked to re-enter all the data, Walton says. This is a serious problem.

The system frustrations have led to many coroners refusing to pick up cases, Walton says.

Huyer admits the program creates more work, but says the wage increase is partly to reflect the increased workload. While some data did go missing, he says most of it was recovered and the issue has been addressed.

He also says data collection through the new system is crucial.

The best way for prevention is population health data, he says, adding that race and Indigenous identity are now mandatory fields. So were asking them now to collect determinants of health.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 14, 2023.

Note to readers: np,

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Ingrid Burke has found a home. The Toronto grandmother who plastered east-end hydro poles with her pitch for an apartment will be moving into a seniors building thanks to the help of a Toronto social service agency.

The one-bedroom apartment she has been offered is everything I want, said Burke, 59, who was contacted by her employer, The Neighbourhood Group, a Toronto social service agency, who helped find her the unit after her story appeared in the Star on Friday.

The rent is about $900, roughly a third of the approximately $2,800 she takes home each month from her job as a peer support worker in harm reduction.

Its also well below the $1,500 that Burke had identified as the maximum she could pay for an apartment. Knowing her budget was about $1,000 below the listing price for the average one-bedroom apartment in Toronto, she was offering to do yard work, cleaning and maintenance in exchange for a safe roof with space for her five grandchildren to visit.

I can have overnights now. I feel like Ive been missing out on being a grandma, she said.

Burke has been living in a boarding house but disagreements with the other male tenants prompted her to give her notice for July 1. After two-and-a-half months of fruitlessly searching Torontos expensive, vacancy-squeezed rental market, she was on the verge of desperation.

But Burke said she is heartened by the response of several Star readers who reached out with information about vacancies and offers of assistance.

I was so shocked. I never in a million years expected that, she said.

Bill Sinclair, CEO of The Neighbourhood Group, said he was moved by Burkes story.

This is a common story multiplied by a thousand in our organization, he said.

The housing crisis is touching everyone in the organization. All of the participants in our programs, its a top issue. But even for our staff and for our trainees  people who are learning  are struggling to find housing to live in, in Toronto. Even in the GTA its very difficult, said Sinclair.

The Neighbourhood Group, an amalgamation of six smaller charities, provides child care, home care, housing, employment supports and help for newcomers.

The agency employs people in shelters and precarious housing as a way of helping them achieve their dreams, said Sinclair.

Everyone we know is either facing eviction or struggling to pay the rent.

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SHENZHEN, June 13 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Vice Premier Zhang Guoqing has called for efforts to ensure safety during the flood season and promote independent innovation in manufacturing to safeguard industrial and supply chain security.

Zhang, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, made the remarks on a research trip in southern China's Guangdong Province.

During his visits to embarkments and floodgates from Sunday to Tuesday, Zhang learned of the floods in the Pearl River basin, and inspected embankment reinforcement and renovation, and emergency responses to urban flood control and drainage.

He called for staying highly vigilant during the current flood season, monitoring and forecasting rains and floods, strengthening cross-regional information sharing, and taking decisive measures to avoid casualties in emergencies.

Zhang also stressed coordinated efforts in flood control and drought relief regarding the uneven precipitations and ensuring water for drinking and industrial and agricultural production in drought regions.

In Guangzhou and Shenzhen, Zhang went to manufacturing enterprises in intelligence, communications equipment, and medical devices to learn about their independent innovation efforts.

Independent innovation is an inherent requirement for building a powerful manufacturing country and achieving high-quality development, Zhang stressed, adding that the enterprises should better assume their responsibility of being dominant in innovation.

The enterprises should focus on the primary strategic needs of the country and building a modern industrial system, keep an eye on the trend of industrial development and technological changes, strengthen basic research, and continuously optimize the environment for independent innovation, Zhang said. 
A quarter of a million people are expected to turn up to the heart of College street for the 24th annual Taste of Little Italy.

The event is taking place from June 16 to June 18 this year and with it comes road closures.

College Street will be closed from Shaw Street to Bathurst Street beginning at 3 p.m. on June 16 and will reopen on June 19, at 3 a.m.

The TTC will also not be operating within these boundaries during the road closures.

Under Armour Toronto 10k

Runners are also taking to the streets this Saturday for the Under Armour 10k.

The following roads will be closed from 4 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.

Fort York Boulevard between Fleet Street and Lake Shore Boulevard West

Strachan Avenue between Fleet Street and Lake Shore Boulevard West

Lake Shore Boulevard West from Bathurst Street to Windermere Avenue

With the exceptions of:

Access to Sunnyside Park/Beach, Palais Royale, the Boulevard Club, Royal Canadian Legion Branch 344, and Toronto Argonaut Rowing Club will be provided using the eastbound curb lane on Lake Shore Boulevard West from Windermere Avenue to Oarsman Drive.

Access to HMCS York, Coronation Park, and Ontario Place will be provided from Stadium Road across Remembrance Drive.

Other road closures in the city

There will be some additional road closures throughout the city for various reasons.

One lane and the shoulder on the Don Valley Parkway from Don Mills Road to Bayview Avenue will be closed in each direction, until Sept. 1.

On June 17 from 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. eastbound and westbound lanes will be occupied at Lake Shore Boulevard West from Windermere Avenue to Bathurst Street to support kid Canada.

This weekends road closures are on top of the long-term projects that have shut down major arteries in the city, like the stretch of Queen Street that is closed for nearly five years for the Ontario Line subway construction.

TG Thea Gribilas is a breaking news reporter, working out of the Star's radio room in Toronto. Reach her via email: tgribilas@thestar.ca

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UNITED NATIONS (AP)  U.S. climate envoy John Kerry on Tuesday urged the world to be very skeptical about claims from oil and gas producers that emerging technology soon will allow people to adequately capture the climate-wrecking fumes emitted by their cars, planes and businesses.

Its one big question mark, Kerry told The Associated Press of the future viability of carbon-capture technology, a debate at the heart of global negotiations on cutting emissions to stave off the most disastrous scenarios of global warming.

The International Energy Agency and increasing numbers of scientists, governments and global leaders and advocates are saying the only way to rein in climate change fast enough is to immediately stop drilling new oil and gas wells and sharply phase down existing drilling.

Many oil companies and oil states are fighting the calls for production cuts, saying that still-emerging carbon-capture technology will come to the rescue. The burning of fossil fuels is the main cause of global warming, and techniques to capture enough of the fumes to make a difference, affordably and efficiently, have yet to be developed.

Lets be very skeptical about this unless its proven to work, Kerry told the AP after delivering a statement at a U.N. Security Council meeting. We cant afford to play games anymore with the amount of fossil carbon thats going up in the atmosphere, along with methane and other climate-damaging gases from the oil and gas industry.

That doesnt mean that government, corporations and oil and gas producers shouldnt keep pushing for breakthroughs in the technology, he said. If it could work, fine, you know.  But we heard for 30 years about clean coal, and how did that work out?

Kerry told the U.N. Security Council that its now indisputable  indisputable  that the climate crisis is one of the top security threats, not just to the developed world but to the entire planet, to life on the planet itself.

He said it already costs countries billions of dollars every year just to clean up the mess, and most importantly, it costs the world millions of lives, including 7 million a year who die from greenhouse gas pollution.

Kerry stressed that 48 countries in sub-Saharan Africa account for 0.55% of global emissions and 20 countries account for 76%. He said they all pledged nearly 10 years ago to cut emissions fast enough to keep the rise in temperature to 1.5 degrees Celsius, a threshold scientists say is about to be crossed, but were not all doing it.

He said he wasnt at the U.N. to point fingers but to urge all countries to start working together to tackle the crisis. He called for an immediate end to the permitting of new unabated coal plants.

No country should be bringing online new sources of pollution wherever it comes from, knowing what we know about this crisis, Kerry said.

Globally, no major oil and gas producer is known to be seriously considering phasing down its production, said Hanna Fekete, a researcher with the German-based NewClimate Institute. The U.S., the worlds biggest producer, is among those scaling up production, despite the Biden administrations climate commitments.

American consumers would need to cut their dependence on fossil fuels dramatically if the U.S. is to meet its climate goals, Fekete said.

The United Arab Emirates, the host for U.N.-sponsored climate talks later this year, is also among the nations aiming to ramp up production, not reduce it.

Kerry called the stepped-up U.S. production a momentary bubble as a result of bumps in the global energy market from the war in Ukraine. Increased U.S. demand for electric vehicles and a move to cleaner forms of power would help take care of that, he said.

So, were in a transition. The word transition is very key to what were trying to do, Kerry said.

China would have to step up as well, Kerry said. The country is currently the top emitter of fossil fuels, owing partly to continued operation and building of dirty-burning coal-fired power plants.

President Xi Jinpings government has resisted pressure to rapidly phase out coal plants, arguing that China is still a developing nation and should not be held to the same climate standards as the U.S. and other big Western economies.

Well, first of all, China is not a poor nation, Kerry said. So lets understand that the second-largest economy in the world is exactly that, the second-largest economy in the world, and theyve spent huge amounts of money around the world in various countries.

Kerry also made clear that he will not go to China for face-to-face talks with his climate counterpart, Xie Zhenhua, before U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken visits Beijing. He is expected in China soon.

Kerry, who was invited to Beijing by Xie, noted concerns about the health of the Chinese official, who has been a key part of U.S-China climate negotiations that have led to some past climate breakthroughs.

Hes had a difficult period in the last months, and we wish him well, Kerry said. He is a very, very important interlocutor and hes very reliable and trustworthy in terms of his commitment, seriousness. So we hope the Chinese-U.S. track will begin to get on.

-

Knickmeyer contributed from Washington and Jordans from Berlin.

-

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MEXICO CITY (AP)  In his first visit to Latin America, Irans hardline president met Tuesday with his Nicaraguan counterpart and railed against a theme both leaders have in common: U.S. sanctions.

President Ebrahim Raisis visit to Nicaragua is his second stop, after Venezuela. He is also scheduled to visit Cuba, Irans other ally in the region.

Raisi spoke at a joint appearance in Managua with Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega.

The United States wanted to paralyze our people with threats and sanctions, but it hasnt been able to do it, Raisi said.

Many top figures in Ortegas government also face U.S. sanctions for crushing dissent and imprisoning or exiling opponents.

On Monday , Raisi visited President Nicolas Maduro of Venezuela, which is also under U.S. economic sanctions.

His tour of allied nations in Latin America comes amid rising tensions with the administration of President Joe Biden.

The U.S. has accused Iran of providing Russia with materials to build a drone manufacturing plant east of Moscow, while the Kremlin seeks to ensure a steady supply of weapons for its invasion of Ukraine. U.S. intelligence officials believe the plant in Russia could start operations early next year, but Iran has said it supplied drones to Russia before the start of the war.

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GUATEMALA CITY (AP)  A Guatemalan tribunal sentenced newspaper founder Jose Ruben Zamora to six years in prison Wednesday in a money laundering case, concluding a trial that press freedom groups decried as a political persecution aimed at silencing a critical voice.

The three-judge panel convicted and sentenced the well-known journalist on a charge of money laundering that affected the national economy and stability of the financial system. The tribunal cleared Zamora of additional charges of blackmail and influence peddling.

Guatemala President Alejandro Giammattei, and specifically his justice system, have been criticized internationally for backsliding on democratic principles and weaponizing the countrys prosecutors and courts to pursue perceived enemies.

I am innocent of the crimes, Zamora said after his sentencing. I continue being innocent and he (Giammattei) continues being a thief.

Giammattei has denied there was any political motivation.

Zamoras El Periodico newspaper was known as fiercely independent and published investigations about corruption in the administrations of Giammattei and his predecessors. Zamoras work has been internationally recognized.

In his final comments to the court Wednesday before the verdict was announced, Zamora said, all of my rights were violated, including the right to a defense. They treated us like criminals, they destroyed evidence, he said.

Several of his defense lawyers were arrested in the run-up to the trial.

After the hearing, Rafael Curruchiche, the Attorney Generals special prosecutor against impunity who brought the charges against Zamora, was visibly upset and raised his voice, insisting that prosecutors would likely appeal the sentence and ask for the 40-year sentence they had originally requested.

He said the prison time Zamora would get is compensation for those whose name and reputation he and his newspaper destroyed.

The charges stemmed from Zamora, 66, asking a friend to deposit a $38,000 donation to keep the newspaper going rather than depositing it himself. Zamora has said he did so because the donor did not want to be identified supporting an outlet in the sights of Giammattei.

The tribunal fined Zamora an equal amount Wednesday.

With Zamora in jail, El Periodico was forced to stop publishing a print edition Nov. 30 due to its financial difficulties. The outlet halted operations altogether May 15.

Last month, the Guatemalan Association of Journalists said that at least 20 journalists have been forced to flee the country in recent years.

Following the sentence Wednesday, the New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists condemned the proceeding.

Carlos Martinez de la Serna, CPJs program director, said the shameful sentence was part of attempts by Giammatteis government to criminalize journalism, and that it signaled an erosion of free speech in Guatemala.

Guatemalan officials must end the absurd charade of criminal proceedings against him. It is time for Jose Ruben Zamora to be released, for his only crime has been the fearless exercise of his profession.

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TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP)  U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang shared concerns on a phone call Wednesday ahead of a planned visit by the U.S. official to China meant to shore up relations.

The diplomats discussed the importance of maintaining open lines of communication to responsibly manage the U.S.-(China) relationship to avoid miscalculation and conflict, according to a readout of the call from the U.S. State Department.

It added that Blinken addressed a range of bilateral and global issues, and made clear the U.S. would continue to use diplomatic engagements to raise areas of concern as well as areas of potential cooperation.

The Chinese Foreign Ministry said in a statement that Qin urged the United States to respect Chinas core concerns, such as the issue of Taiwan's self-rule, stop interfering in Chinas internal affairs, and stop harming Chinas sovereignty, security and development interests in the name of competition.

Qin noted China-U.S. ties have encountered new difficulties and challenges since the beginning of the year, and the two sides responsibility is to work together to properly manage differences, promote exchanges and cooperation and stabilize relations.

Blinken is reportedly planning a trip to China this week, after several weeks in which the two countries made diplomatic overtures to one another in an attempt to ease tensions. Blinken had scrapped a trip to Beijing in February after a suspected Chinese spy balloon flew over U.S. territory.

China has since largely rejected U.S. attempts at official exchanges, but some overtures were made. Last week, Daniel Kritenbrink, assistant U.S. secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs, was the highest-ranking U.S. official to visit China since the U.S. downed the balloon, angering Beijing.

In May, U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo met her Chinese counterpart Wang Wentao in Washington to discuss trade.

The U.S. and China are struggling to agree on a range of issues including security, trade, human rights and Beijings looming threat to one day take over Taiwan, which it considers part of its territory.

President Joe Biden has called for guardrails to prevent the countries competition from spiraling into conflict.

Chinese President Xi Jinping on the other hand has decried what he sees as the comprehensive containment and suppression of his country by the U.S., after Washington last year restricted Chinas access to valuable technology such as microchips.

Washington has also warned Beijing of consequences if it arms Russia in its war against Ukraine. Beijing has pledged not to do so, though it refuses to condemn Russias invasion.

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MANILA, Philippines (AP)  A Chinese navy training ship with hundreds of cadets made a port call in the Philippines on Wednesday, its final stop on a goodwill tour of four countries as Beijing looks to mend fences in the region.

Cadets in dress whites stood at attention on the deck of the Qi Jiguang as they were welcomed at the port in Manila by Philippine military officials on shore, while artists in dragon costumes performed a traditional dance and onlookers waved Chinese and Philippine flags.

Chinas ambassador to the Philippines was on hand for the ceremony but neither he nor any of the Philippine officials made any comment to the media.

It was a rare visit for a Chinese naval ship to the Philippines, whose new government under Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has been strengthening ties with the United States, including more joint military exercises and in February granting the American military greater access to the countrys military facilities.

China, meantime, has become increasingly assertive in pressing its broad claims to the strategic South China Sea, which has put it at odds with the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Taiwan and Brunei.

In February, a Chinese coast guard ship aimed a military-grade laser at a Philippine patrol vessel off a disputed reef, temporarily blinding some crew members and prompting the Philippines to intensify its patrols in the South China Sea.

The ships visit comes a week after joint U.S., Japanese and Philippine coast guard law enforcement drills in the area.

President Joe Bidens administration has been broadly working to reinforce alliances in the Indo-Pacific to push back against Chinas sweeping maritime claims, including threats against the self-governing island of Taiwan, which Beijing claims as its own.

The largest naval training ship of Chinas Peoples Liberation Army Navy, the Qi Jiguang was to be in port for three days. It was the end of a nearly 40-day voyage for 476 naval cadets and sailors from Chinas well-known Dalian Naval Academy.

Before the port call in Manila, it made stops in Vietnam, Thailand and Brunei.

When it set off in mid-May, there was no mention of the various territorial disputes China is embroiled in, with official media reporting it as an opportunity for the cadets to visit foreign military vessels, academies and training facilities, and help deepen the friendship with local people.

Only members of the Chinese-Filipino community were allowed to board the Qi Jiguang on Wednesday, but the ship was to be opened to the broader public on Thursday and Friday.

Yong Ning Cai, a Chinese-Chinese businessman who was on the pier to watch the Qi Jiguangs arrival, was one of those allowed to board the ship and said he was impressed by its advanced and high-end equipment.

This is a ship of our motherland and it is built very well, better than those in other countries, he said. This visit is very successful and will definitely promote the friendship between China and the Philippines.

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HONG KONG (AP)  A popular Hong Kong protest song was no longer available Wednesday on several major music streaming sites and social media platforms, after the government sought an injunction to ban the tune.

Glory to Hong Kong rose to popularity during the 2019 pro-democracy protests, and became an unofficial protest anthem. In 2020, the government outlawed the protest slogan Liberate Hong Kong, revolution of our times over secessionist and subversive connotations, and the song was widely considered to be banned in the city as its lyrics contained parts of the slogan.

Hong Kong, once a bastion of free speech and expression, has come under tighter scrutiny by Beijing after the unrest in 2019. Since then, its political system has undergone a major overhaul to ensure that only patriots loyal to Beijing can hold office. More than 250 people have been arrested under a sweeping national security law passed in 2020 that critics say is aimed at suppressing dissent.

The song rose to the top of Apple iTunes charts last week after the Hong Kong government sought an injunction from the courts to ban unlawful acts related to the song and any derivatives of it, including the lyrics and melody.

But the song was no longer available on music streaming platforms such as Spotify and Apple Music on Wednesday. The original version of the tune was also not available on Facebook and Instagrams Reels function.

It wasnt clear if Glory to Hong Kong was removed by the platforms or if the song was pulled by its creators.

The creators of the song, DGX Music, said in a post on their Facebook page that it was dealing with some technical issues related to streaming platforms and apologized for the temporary issue.

Facebook, Instagram, Spotify and Apple Music did not immediately comment.

Versions of the song, including the one by the original creators, were still available on video-streaming site YouTube.

The Hong Kong government sought an injunction to ban the song after it was mistakenly played as the citys anthem at several international sporting events in the past year, instead of Chinas national anthem March of the Volunteers.

A Hong Kong court on Monday adjourned the injunction hearing to July 21.

During a regular news briefing on Tuesday, Hong Kongs leader John Lee said that the song was not compatible with national interest and that the city should proactively and also preventively safeguard national security.

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CANBERRA, Australia (AP)  The wife of a man accused of killing his German backpacker girlfriend 18 years ago welcomed Australian prosecutors dropping all charges Wednesday, while the dead womans father described the decision as a stab in the heart.

Charges against German immigrant Tobias Moran, 43, of murder and perverting the course of justice were withdrawn in Lismore Local Court in New South Wales state, the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions said. No reasons were given.

The naked body of 25-year-old Simone Strobel from Rieden, Bavaria, was found hidden under palm fronds in a Lismore park on Feb. 17, 2005. She was found six days after she was reported missing and close to where she had been camping in a Lismore trailer park with Moran, then known as Suckfuell, his sister Katrin Suckfuell, and friend Jens Martin.

Morans Australian wife, Samantha Moran, said in a press statement outside their upscale City Beach home in the west coast city of Perth, It was the right decision.

Tobi, I and our whole family are extremely relieved by the  decision to withdraw the charges against him, the mother of her husbands three children said.

Im deeply ashamed that this happened to Simone in Australia, a visitor to our country who Tobi has always described as an angel on Earth, she added.

Tobi Moran stood beside his wife during her statement but remained silent.

Moran was arrested in Perth in July 2022. He was extradited to New South Wales and charged with murder and perverting the course of justice. A Sydney court released him on bail and allowed him to return to Western Australia state.

Prosecutor Kim Gourlie had told the bail hearing that Moran lied about crucial events, including the nature of his relationship with Strobel and their use of alcohol.

Defense lawyer Tim Game told the court the prosecution case was nonexistent.

Samantha Moran used her statement to send her condolences to the Strobel family, particularly parents Gustl and Gabi who continue to suffer terribly from the loss of their daughter.

Whilst todays news is a relief for our family, we are conscious that this news does not give answers to the Strobel family, she said.

Gustl Strobel said the decision to end the prosecution knocked the ground from under my feet.

Its like a stab in my heart. The authorities in Australia make such a fuss and then nothing comes of it, he said in a statement reported by Nine Network television.

Samantha Moran said the time since her husbands arrest had been highly distressing and emotional for us.

I know that there is not a day that goes by that Tobi doesnt think about Simone and wishes that he had stopped her from walking away that night, she said. Tobi continues to be traumatized by the loss of Simone as well as the speculations surrounding him.

A New South Wales coroner ruled in 2007 that there was insufficient evidence to recommend charges against anyone for the death of Strobel, a kindergarten teacher.

Police offered a reward of 1 million Australian dollars ($678,000) for information in 2020.

Tobias Moran arrived in Australia with Strobel as backpackers in 2004. He changed his name from Suckfuell in 2012 when he married his wife in Bavaria, near where Strobels parents still live.

Morans lawyers will return to court on June 28 to seek reimbursement of legal costs from the New South Wales government.

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SARAJEVO, Bosnia-Herzegovina (AP)  A 13-year-old boy was arrested in Bosnia Wednesday after allegedly shooting and wounding a teacher inside an elementary school building, police and local officials said.

The teacher, a 38-year-old man who also served as the assistant headmaster in Lukavac Elementary School in the northeastern town, sustained serious wounds and was undergoing surgery, police said in a statement. The assailant was detained after the shooting in which no students were injured, the statement added.

Police released no information about the shooters motive, but local officials confirmed the boy was expelled from the school earlier this year for unruly behavior. A local politician in Lukavac, Dino Osmanovic, claimed the boy had previously threatened to take revenge for the disciplinary action.

Osmanovic said he notified the police of the danger in late May, but was told they had taken necessary measures, that everything was under control and that they cannot share more information about the case because it involves a juvenile.

The shooting comes on the heels of two mass murders in neighboring Serbia where, in early May, a 13-year-old boy took his fathers gun to school in Belgrade and opened fire on his fellow students. The shooting claimed the lives of nine students and a school guard. A day later, a 20-year-old used an automatic weapon to randomly target people in two villages south of Belgrade, killing eight people and wounding 14.

Serbias twin mass shootings reverberated around the Balkan region that is awash with small arms and weapons since the 1990s wars, part of the breakup of Yugoslavia, particularly in Bosnia - the country of about 3.5 million people. According to a 2010 study by the United Nations Development Program, there are about 750,000 weapons in illegal possession in Bosnia.

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AMMAN, June 14 (Xinhua) -- Jordan strives to promote medical tourism as the industry is gaining more recognition in the Middle East and contributing to the kingdom's economic growth, business insiders have said.

Last week, the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) honored Jordan as a regional center and destination for medical tourism in the Middle East, which officials and experts consider an economically strategic chance to accelerate the development in this field.

Fawzi Hamouri, president of the Private Hospitals Association, said the UNWTO's endorsement was credited to the cumulative efforts jointly made by the public and private sectors for decades, and would further strengthen the kingdom's role on the global tourism map.

"This is an acknowledgment of Jordan's medical achievement, which is characterized by comprehensive services and low costs compared to global standards," Hamouri said.

Hailing the role of medical tourism as a boon to the economy, Ilham Jehad, an economic news editor at the Jordan Press Foundation, noted that medical tourism could have a multiplier effect on enhancing employment while advancing the healthcare and pharmaceutical industry itself.

Calling for maximizing the advantages of the UN recognition, Jehad suggested promoting the kingdom's medical services in the global market by increasing cooperation with travel agencies worldwide.

Mahmoud Al-Khasawneh, a member of the board of the Association of Travel and Tourism Agents, told Xinhua on Tuesday that Jordan boasts a mild climate and rich medical resorts, such as the Dead Sea, Wadi Rum, and Aqaba while featuring political stability and security as well.

Al-Khasawneh called on the authorities to promptly upgrade services for the tourism and medical sectors, including reducing administrative fees, taxes, and energy bills and improving accessibility to medical resorts across the kingdom.

Jordan's Health Minister Firas Hawari said during a UNWTO conference on June 8 that health care and medical tourism are among the priorities of economic growth in Jordan, and the government is working to utilize the potential, capabilities, and advantages of the industry.

Jordan has received nearly one million patients from 71 countries over the past five years, Jordan's Tourism Minister Makram Qaisi said during the conference, adding highly qualified medical and pharmaceutical workers, as well as affordable services, are among the kingdom's advantages.

Noting the number of physicians in Jordan reached 30,000, with 26.6 doctors per 10,000 people in 2021, the minister noted the kingdom holds a high doctors-to-population ratio, exceeding the global average of 17.2 doctors per 10,000 people.

The state-run Petra news agency reported last week that the Jordanian government is stepping up efforts to develop medical tourism and has introduced several supportive measures, including setting a simplified visa classification for medical tourism, promoting all-inclusive medical tourism packages, and launching promotional campaigns. 
BERLIN (AP)  The German government said Russia is the greatest security threat for the foreseeable future and advocated a balanced approach to China as it unveiled its first comprehensive national security strategy Wednesday.

The strategy was part of an effort to address what Germany views as growing military, economic and social risks to the country. Germanys biggest opposition party criticized the governments position as anemic.

Chancellor Olaf Scholz said the new strategy, which his three-party governing coalition pledged to draw up when it took office at the end of 2021, had gained added importance since Russia attacked Ukraine almost 16 months ago.

The war in Ukraine has heightened anxiety in Germany about the preparedness of its own armed forces, prompting Scholz to announce a turning point on military spending.

Russias invasion of Ukraine in Feburary 2022 demonstrated what many of our neighbors in Eastern Europe have warned us about  that Europe is vulnerable, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock told reporters at a news conference in Berlin also attended by Scholz and other top officials.

A 76-page document outlining the strategy states that todays Russia is, for the foreseeable future, the greatest threat to peace and security in the Euro-Atlantic area.

It also warns that some countries are trying to reshape the existing international order according to their view of systematic rivalry, an oblique reference to the threats of disinformation, cyberattacks and economic pressure from major powers such as China.

The document makes several references to security threats posed by climate change. These include a heightened risk of famine, disease and conflict around the globe, as well as extreme weather events and damage to critical infrastructure in Germany.

It sets out Berlins general approach, but doesnt go deep into details  including the strategys potential foreign policy consequences. Officials plan to draw up more specifics at a later stage.

The German government also is preparing a specific strategy on China. Scholz declined to say when it would be published. Well be ready when were ready, but soon, he told reporters.

The document released Wednesday came out a week before the German government sits down for high-level talks with senior Chinese officials in Berlin that are expected to touch on numerous sensitive issues.

Germany has traditionally hesitated to antagonize Beijing due to the importance of China as a market for German exports and a source of key commodities.

Still, the document underlined Berlins view that China is a partner, competitor and systemic rival, noting that elements of rivalry and competition have increased in recent years; at the same time, China remains a partner without which many of the most pressing global challenges cant be solved.

Asked what practical implications the new strategy would have, Baerbock said the government will look closely at areas where Germany is most vulnerable due to its dependence on China. She said they include raw materials and components for the energy, telecommunications and medical sectors, for which Germany is actively trying to diversify its sources.

Scholz noted a recent declaration by leaders of the Group of Seven major economies calling for a de-risking rather than a decoupling from China. Creating new supply chains for crucial commodities can take decades, he said.

Trans-Atlantic relations with the United States have reached a new quality and level with President (Joe) Biden that we couldnt wish to be better, the chancellor added. This is of greatest important for security in Europe and our security.

The government said it will also produce a strategy to increase Germanys ability to counter hybrid threats, which would entail strengthening the analytical capacities of its intelligence services.

However, the idea of creating a National Security Council, akin to those in the United States and Britain, was shelved.

The government also resisted calls for Germanys military spending to go above the NATO-wide goal of 2% of gross domestic product.

Opposition leader Friedrich Merz said the new security strategy was anemic in terms of substance, strategically irrelevant, without operational consequences and had been drawn up without consultation with Germanys allies.

It has no value, no substance, no significance.  It is a big disappointment, he said.

Another top opposition politician, Alexander Dobrindt, complained that the strategy had the wrong priorities.

Just as an example, it contains the word climate 71 times and the word China six times, he said.

___

Follow APs coverage of the war in Ukraine: https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

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BELGRADE, Serbia (AP)  Serbian authorities said Wednesday they captured three fully armed Kosovo police officers inside Serbia near their mutual border, while Kosovo officials said the trio were kidnapped on Kosovo territory as they patrolled the area.

The latest incident sharply raises tensions between Serbia and its former province. Serbia had put its troops on the border on the highest state of alert amid a series of recent clashes between Kosovo Serbs on one side, and Kosovo police and NATO-led peacekeepers on the other.

Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti said the kidnapping of the police officers represents an act of aggression aimed at escalating and destabilizing his country and called on the international community to react.

We call for the immediate release of the three kidnapped police officers and invite international actors to denounce Serbias act of aggression, he said in a statement.

On the other hand, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic praised the professionalism of the Serbian police officers who arrested the Kosovo officers, and rejected claims that the Serbian officers crossed the border in the process.

The populist Serbian leader, who was speaking in an interview with the state Serbian television broadcaster, accused Kurti of seeking war and said that the region is at the crossroads between war and peace.

Kosovo police said in a statement Wednesday that the three police officers called for assistance after they had seen gunmen wearing masks on Kosovo territory near the border north of the capital, Pristina.

When other members of the security forces arrived at the location, they found an empty police car and suspected that the three officers had been kidnapped by Serb forces. Kosovo authorities didnt provide any other details about why they believe the officers were abducted.

Serbian security forces published photos of three men in uniforms lying face down on a field on the edge of a forest, with machine guns, other weapons and radio equipment placed near them.

A video showed the three blindfolded and handcuffed men being led by Serbian officers to parked police cars.

Serbias chief negotiator with Kosovo, Petar Petkovic, denied that the police officers were kidnapped and insisted they were deep in Serbias territory, and in full combat gear. He said Serbia was ready to offer evidence for its assertion and called for an international investigation.

He said the terrorist gang was arrested because they crossed the administrative line in full combat gear.

Kosovo Interior Minister Xhelal Svecla denounced the kidnapping, which he said, violates any agreement and is against international norms.

The minister called on the international community to urgently increase pressure on Serbia not only to release our police officers but also stop its provocations.

Kosovo police have contacted NATO-led international peacekeepers, known as KFOR, and other security institutions and international organizations to call for the release of the officers.

The incident comes a day after Kosovo police arrested in northern Mitrovica  an area mostly populated by the ethnic Serb minority  an alleged organizer of Serb protests in the countrys north, including one last month in which 30 NATO-led peacekeepers were injured.

Tensions in Kosovo flared anew late last month, including violent clashes.

The tensions escalated when Kosovo police seized local municipality buildings in northern Kosovo, where Serbs represent a majority, to install ethnic Albanian mayors who were elected in a local election in April after Serbs overwhelmingly boycotted the vote.

Serbia and its former province Kosovo have been at odds for decades, with Belgrade refusing to recognize Kosovos 2008 declaration of independence. The latest violence near their shared border has stirred fears of a renewal of a 1998-99 conflict in Kosovo that claimed more than 10,000 lives, mostly ethnic Albanians.

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Llazar Semini reported from Tirana, Albania.

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ROME (AP)  Pope Francis is expected to be released from the hospital in the coming days, as he recovers well and without complications from abdominal surgery last week, the Vatican said Wednesday.

In his daily medical update, Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni said Francis again rested well overnight, was at work during the day and had received the Eucharist during a moment of prayer in the chapel of his hospital suite.

The 86-year-old pope was admitted to Romes Gemelli hospital on June 7 for surgery to repair a hernia in his abdominal wall and remove intestinal scar tissue that had caused intestinal blockages. Francis in 2021 had 33 centimeters (13 inches) of his colon removed at Gemelli because of a narrowing of the intestine, and had at least two prior abdominal surgeries in Argentina.

Citing Francis doctors, Bruni said the popes recovery is proceeding regularly, without complications, and as such his discharge is planned for the coming days.

Daily Il Fatto Quotidiano quoted an email from the dean of the College of Cardinals, Cardinal Battista Re, to his colleagues saying Francis return to the Vatican was expected Thursday or Friday.

Francis already has a full agenda scheduled for next week, including a reported audience with Cuban President Miguel Diaz Cane and one with Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva. On June 23, hes due to preside over an audience in the Sistine Chapel with artists to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the contemporary art collection in the Vatican Museums.

The Vatican typically cancels papal audiences during July, a summer break that will give Francis time to recover more fully before his expected Aug. 2-6 trip to Portugal for World Youth Day. Other upcoming travel includes an Aug. 31-Sept. 4 visit to Mongolia, the first-ever by a pope, and a Sept. 23 day trip to Marseille, France.

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KYIV, Ukraine (AP)  Russian forces fired cruise missiles at the southern Ukrainian city of Odesa and shelled the eastern Donetsk region early Wednesday, killing at least six people and damaging dozens of homes, regional Ukrainian officials said.

Russian forces have recently stepped up aerial strikes in their nearly 16-month war, a Ukrainian military spokesman said. The countrys armed forces, meanwhile, have reported limited gains in the early stages of a counteroffensive to take back the nearly one-fifth of Ukraines territory that is under Russian control.

The grinding Ukrainian advance is pressing slowly ahead, Ukraines Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Maliar said Wednesday. Western analysts and military officials say the effort to dislodge entrenched, powerfully armed and large numbers of Russian troops could take years.

Ukrainian troops have advanced 200-500 meters (650-1,600 feet) at various sections of the front line around the Donetsk city of Bakhmut and 300-350 meters (980-1,150 feet) in the southern Zaporizhzhia region, Maliar claimed. Ukrainian forces have managed to make gains despite the Russian edge in artillery and air power, she said.

It was not possible to verify the battlefield claims.

Ukrainian forces can expect to make slow progress in what will be a hugely difficult fight as the counteroffensive gains traction, according to a Western official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss intelligence.

Intense fighting is now ongoing in nearly all sectors of the front, the official said This is much more than probing. These are full-scale movements of armor and heavy equipment into the Russian security zone.

The official described the Ukrainian attacks as methodical and said that, broadly speaking, Russian forces have put up a good defense.

In Odesa, three food warehouse employees were killed in a strike that also damaged homes, shops and cafes in the citys downtown, the regional administration said on Facebook. An additional 13 people were injured.

Search teams were looking for possible survivors under the rubble of the warehouse, it said.

The attack on the port city, launched from the Black Sea, was the second in a week and involved four Kalibr cruise missiles, three of which were intercepted by air defenses, the administration said.

In eastern Ukraine, Donetsk province Gov. Pavlo Kyrylenko wrote on Telegram that at least three people died after shelling destroyed seven homes and damaged dozens more in the cities of Kramatorsk and Kostiantynivka.

Ten towns and villages along the front line in Donetsk were struck as Kyivs troops slowly advance, according to Ukraines presidential office.

A missile hit the Ukrainian-controlled city of Kramatorsk, where Kyivs forces are headquartered, killing two civilians and wounding two others while damaging 29 homes, the presidential office said. Russian shelling of Kostiantynivka killed one civilian, with 57 houses damaged, it added.

Andriy Kovalov, a spokesperson for the General Staff of Ukraines armed forces, said the Russian military increased missile and aerial strikes as Kyivs forces intensify attacks along the wars 1,000-kilometer (600-mile) front line and claim some modest gains at the beginning of their counteroffensive.

In a briefing, he said strikes on the Kharkiv, Donetsk and Kirovohrad regions, in addition to the Odesa region, involved Kh-22 cruise missiles, sea-launched Kalibr cruise missiles, and Iranian-made Shahed drones. Nine were intercepted.

Kovalov said Ukrainian forces had made advances in several sections and fighting was continuing in or near at least two Donetsk province communities.

Britains Defense Ministry, which has regularly issued updates on the conflict, wrote on Twitter that southern Ukraine has often been more permissible for Russian air operations compared with other parts of the front.

Separately, the mayor of the central city of Kryvyi Rih, President Volodymyr Zelenskyys hometown, said the death toll from a Russian strike that hit an apartment building a day earlier had risen to 12.

Ukrainian authorities continued to rescue people from the flooded areas of southern Ukraines partially Russian-occupied Kherson region following the destruction of the Kakhovka dam last week.

A total of 28 settlements on the Ukrainian-held western bank of the Dnieper River remain under water, and nearly 2,800 people have been taken to safety so far, the presidential office said, adding that the rescue effort was taking place under relentless Russian shelling.

A visit by Rafael Mariano Grossi, the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, to the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant on Wednesday was postponed for security reasons.

He met with Zelenskyy on Tuesday to discuss the perils facing the nuclear plant, which grew more serious after the Kakhovka Dam burst last week.

The plant has been in the crossfire repeatedly since Russia launched its war on Ukraine in February 2022 and seized the facility shortly after.

The largest nuclear power plant in Europe faces a relatively dangerous situation, the head of the United Nations nuclear watchdog told journalists in Kyiv on Tuesday.

The Ukrainian-controlled areas of the Kherson region came under artillery fire 57 times over the past 24 hours, the presidential office said.

Rumors swirled Wednesday about a relative and close associate of the Kremlin-backed, strongman leader of Chechnya, Ramzan Kadyrov. The reports said that lawmaker Adam Delimkhanov had been wounded  or even killed  in Ukraine.

After Russian state TV reported that the lawmaker had been wounded and Ukrainian Telegram channels suggested that he had been killed, Kadyrov published a photo showing Delimkhanov.

In a photo caption, Kadyrov said that Delimkhanov was alive and well  adding that he knew this from the very beginning, despite earlier requesting Ukrainian intelligence to provide information on what positions were hit so that he could locate his dear brother.

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Associated Press writer Yuras Karmanau in Tallinn, Estonia, and Jill Lawless and Elise Morton in London contributed to this report.

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Follow APs coverage of the war in Ukraine: https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

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PRAGUE (AP)  Taiwan needs support from European countries to help maintain peace in the self-governed island and in the Indo-Pacific region, its foreign minister said Wednesday.

Foreign Minister Joseph Wu said China has ambitions to expand its power in the region and may not limit them to Taiwan.

I think we need to unite with each other to curb this Chinese ambition, to ensure peace and stability over the Taiwan Strait, Wu told reporters in the Czech capital of Prague.

Wu declined to say what other European countries he is planning to visit on his trip.

Ahead of Wus trip, Chinas Foreign Ministry urged European countries to refrain from supporting Taiwanese separatist activities. Beijing claims Taiwan is part of its territory, to be united by force if necessary.

The Czech Republic, like most countries, has no formal diplomatic ties with Taiwan and recognizes the one China principle, but maintains robust informal contacts. Taiwans high-tech companies are also significant investors in the Czech Republic.

Wu gave a speech at a conference on China organized by a Czech think tank immediately after it was opened by Czech President Petr Pavel. Pavel left right after his remarks without meeting Wu.

Taiwan Foreign Ministry spokesperson Jeff Liu said it was the first time that a Taiwanese official has shared the stage with a head of state of a European country that has no diplomatic relations with Taiwan.

Pavel angered China in January by having a phone conversation with Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen.

I believe the world should stay fully in support of preserving the democratic arrangement in Taiwan, Pavel said in his speech Wednesday.

On Tuesday, Wu met with Czech Senate Speaker Milos Vystrcil, who angered China by visiting in 2020.

Earlier this year, Marketa Pekarova Adamova, the speaker of the Czech Parliaments lower house, visited Taiwan to boost ties, further angering China.

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BEIRUT (AP)  Airstrikes attributed to Israel over Syrias capital early Wednesday critically wounded one soldier, Syrian state media reported.

Syrias state news agency, SANA, citing military officials, said the strikes over southwest Damascus also caused material damage without giving further details.

It reported that Syrian air defenses shot down some of the missiles.

Israeli authorities did not comment immediately.

Israel, which has vowed to stop Iranian entrenchment next door, has carried out hundreds of strikes on targets in government-controlled parts of neighboring Syria in recent years, but it rarely acknowledges them.

The last suspected Israeli airstrike on Syria was on May 29, targeting locations in the vicinity of Damascus. Israel has also targeted the international airport in the northern Syrian city of Aleppo several times this past year, often putting it out of commission.

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JERUSALEM (AP)  The Israeli military admitted Wednesday that it had shot and killed a Palestinian toddler in the occupied West Bank by mistake earlier this month  a rare acknowledgement of wrongdoing.

After an initial investigation into the killing, the Israeli military said it would reprimand one of the officers involved in the killing. The military said it hadnt yet decided whether to proceed with a criminal investigation into the childs death.

Rights groups contend the Israeli military does too little to investigate and punish its soldiers for the killing of Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, creating a pattern of impunity.

The death of 2-year-old Mohammed al-Tamimi after he was wounded by Israeli gunfire near his village of Nebi Saleh set off an outpouring of grief and anger.

His 44-year-old father, Haitham al-Tamimi, dismissed Israels move to investigate the killing as a cover-up. The initial results, he said, added insult to injury.

Of course we were not expecting justice, but this report feels to us like a crime on top of the original crime, he said. This is all they have to say when my son is killed in cold blood, when his life is cut off before I could discover what kind of person hed become.

In announcing the results of the initial investigation Tuesday, the Israeli military described a scene of considerable confusion following a suspected Palestinian shooting attack near a Jewish settlement.

The military said that soldiers stationed at a lookout near the Palestinian village of Nebi Saleh heard a burst of gunfire, but didnt know where it came from. At the sight of a suspicious car, a commander assisting the search fired several times into the air, the military said, in violation of army orders.

The sound of gunfire carried to a nearby guard post, the military said, surprising a soldier who claimed he thought the shots were fired by two people getting into a car just down the road. Believing that car to be the source of the gunfire and those passengers to be the fleeing militants, the soldier followed orders and opened fire toward the vehicle, it said.

Inside were 2-year-old Mohammed and his father al-Tamimi.

Al-Tamimi, a chef in the Palestinian city of Ramallah, said he had just buckled up his son for a ride to visit his uncle when the bullets struck. He was also shot and treated at a Palestinian hospital for moderate shoulder wounds. Mohammed died of his wounds in an Israeli hospital four days later.

The family is still in shock, al-Tamimi said. His only other son, 7-year-old Osama, wakes up with nightmares about his younger brothers killing nearly every night.

The Israeli military said it reprimanded the commander who initially sparked the confusion by firing into the air against army orders. The officer wasnt demoted, but a reprimand remains on a soldiers personal record and can affect chances of promotion. Further consequences for the soldiers involved in the shooting could follow if the Israeli military decides to open a criminal investigation.

Recent investigations by the Israeli military  including into the high-profile deaths of prominent Palestinian-American Al Jazeera correspondent Shireen Abu Akleh and Palestinian-American Omar Assad  did not result in criminal prosecutions. Israel says that it thoroughly investigates all claims of wrongdoing and does its best to prevent civilian deaths.

I express my sorrow for the harm that was caused to civilians and the death of the toddler, said Maj. Gen. Yehuda Fox, the commander overseeing the West Bank region. We will continue to learn and improve.

Surging Israeli-Palestinian fighting in the occupied West Bank this year has killed 123 Palestinians in 2023 alone, according to a tally by The Associated Press. Nearly half of them are affiliated with militant groups, though the Israeli military says that number is much higher. Palestinian attacks on Israelis during the same period have killed 21 people.

The Israeli military said Wednesday that four soldiers who were lightly wounded in a Palestinian shooting attack in the northern West Bank the previous day were recovering well.

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JERUSALEM (AP)  Israels parliament on Wednesday appointed an opposition lawmaker to the powerful committee that picks the countrys judges, defying Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in a vote that exposed divisions within the ruling coalition and raised questions about his control over his political allies.

The vote appeared to temporarily avert a crisis that had threatened to unleash renewed political turmoil over Netanyahus contentious judicial overhaul plan.

The opposition had threatened to withdraw from negotiations with Netanyahu over the overhaul if its candidate, Karine Elharrar, was not named to the committee. Despite Elharrars appointment on Wednesday, the opposition said it would nonetheless suspend talks with Netanyahu until the second vacancy on the committee is filled and it can resume work.

No committee, no talks, opposition leader Yair Lapid said.

Netanyahu accused his opponents of trying to blow up the dialogue.

Netanyahus government unveiled the judicial overhaul days after taking office last December, saying the plan was needed to rein in an interventionist judiciary. Netanyahus opponents say the plan is a way for the far-right coalition  a collection of ultranationalist and ultra-Orthodox parties  to gain control over the judicial system, threatening the countrys system of checks and balances.

The proposal has prompted hundreds of thousands of Israelis to take part in mass demonstrations each week against the proposed overhaul. The demonstration prompted Netanyahu to freeze the plan in March and open negotiations, brokered by the countrys figurehead president, aimed at reaching a compromise with his opponents.

The committee for appointing judges  which, among other things, approves the makeup of the Supreme Court  has been a central battleground in the overhaul plan.

Both the governing coalition and the opposition traditionally are represented on the nine-member committee. But proponents of the overhaul had demanded that the coalition control both positions, drawing accusations that Netanyahu and his allies were trying to stack the judiciary with cronies.

The votes, cast anonymously, raised doubts about Netanyahus control over his coalition.

Netanyahu ordered his allies to oppose all candidates, including its own members, in a maneuver that he hoped would delay all appointments until another vote a month from now.

But in the secret ballot, several coalition members joined the opposition in supporting Elharrars appointment in a 58-56 vote. A second candidate, Tally Gotliv of Netanyahus Likud party, mustered just 15 votes and did not clear the threshold. That means parliament will have to fill the post in the coming month.

Lapid said it was good news that an opposition member would remain on the judicial selection committee. But he said was problematic that there is still no committee.

Netanyahu today prevented its establishment, putting an end to the pretense that he was open to negotiations, he said.

Netanyahu used to be a liar and powerful. Now he is a liar and weak, he said. The committee was not established, the threat to democracy is not removed.

In a video statement, Netanyahu said his opponents were to blame, noting that they froze the talks even after getting what they wanted.

Gantz and Lapid dont want real negotiations, he said. I promise the citizens of Israel, unlike them, we will act responsibly for our country.

Since the overhaul was paused in March, the weekly protests have continued to draw tens of thousands of people. The protesters are set to demonstrate for a 24th week on Saturday.

Anticipating protests over the vote on Wednesday, police set up barriers outside the parliament building and next to Netanyahus home in central Jerusalem. But the protests were called off after the opposition lawmakers appointment.

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Associated Press writer Laurie Kellman in Tel Aviv, Israel, contributed reporting.

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DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP)  Kuwait reached an agreement worth $367 million with Turkish drone giant Baykar to purchase its increasingly sought-after TB2 combat drones, the Kuwaiti army said.

The drone, Bayraktar TB2, boasts unmanned aerial vehicles that can carry lightweight, laser-guided bombs, and fly for up to 27 hours at a time, which, according to the company, was a record, it had set while testing the drone in Kuwait in 2019.

The announcement, on Tuesday, would set Kuwait to become the 28th country to procure the TB2 drones.

Demand for the drones has surged due to their successful deployment in conflict zones such as Libya, Syria and Ukraine.

Kuwaiti Air Force operations chief brigadier, General Fahad Al-Dosari, said in a video posted on their Twitter account that the drone fleet can support the navy and coast guard, as well as monitor maritime and land borders. He said the drones can also carry out reconnaissance and targeted missions in addition to supporting search and rescue efforts.

Baykar and the Kuwaiti government did not say how many drones were purchased or when they would be delivered. Both could not be immediately reached for comment.

The drones  priced under $2 million each according to estimates  are produced by Baykar Defense company, which belongs to the family of Selcuk Bayraktar, the son-in-law of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Bayraktar is the companys chief technical officer.

The TB2 has been credited with helping tip the balance of conflicts in Libya, as well as to Turkeys ally Azerbaijan in fighting with Armenian-backed forces in the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region in 2020.

It has also enabled Ukraine to mount a stiff defense of its cities, carrying out attacks against Russian forces with an effectiveness that surprised many Western military experts and triggered a rush among nations to procure the unmanned craft.

A video using a song titled Bayraktar  with sounds of explosions timed to coincide with the beats  has been uploaded on YouTube and played on Ukrainian radio.

A private Lithuanian crowdfunding campaign, inspired by the drones effectiveness in battle, rallied ordinary citizens and raised nearly 6 million euros to purchase a TB2 for Ukraine.

The drone contract between Baykar and Kuwait, struck through direct negotiations between the Turkish and Kuwaiti governments, also includes weapons provisioning, electronic warfare, and mobile ground control facilities compatible with NATO standards according to Kuwaiti state media.

Kuwait, considered a major non-NATO ally, and the U.S. have had a close military partnership since America launched the 1991 Gulf War to expel Iraqi troops after Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein invaded the country. The country hosts the U.S. Army Centrals forward headquarters and some 13,500 American troops.

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ADEN, Yemen, June 14 (Xinhua) -- The Yemeni government announced on Wednesday that it agreed to attend a new round of UN-sponsored talks with Houthi rebels on exchange of prisoners including individuals abducted by Houthis.

"The main objective of the upcoming talks" starting Friday in Jordan's capital Amman "would be to determine the fate of forcibly abducted individuals, such as the prominent politician Mohammed Qahtan, as well as other detainees," Yahya Kazman, chief of the negotiation committee of the internationally-recognized Yemeni government, said in a brief press statement.

Earlier this month, the Yemeni government had rejected participation in future prisoner exchange negotiations with the Houthi rebels, citing the rebels' refusal to disclose the location of Qahtan and their denial of visitation rights to his family.

Qahtan, a prominent Yemeni politician of the Muslim Brotherhood-affiliated Islah party, was abducted by the Houthis eight years ago in the capital Sanaa.

The Houthis have remained unresponsive to repeated appeals from the United Nations, local and international human rights groups, as well as the politician's family for access to Qahtan, according to the government.

UN-sponsored negotiations between the Yemeni government and Houthi rebels in March successfully led to the release of nearly 900 prisoners in April, marking the second largest prisoner exchange between the warring sides since a civil war broke out more than eight years ago.

High-profile figures, including Nasser Mansour Hadi, the brother of former Yemeni President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, and Mahmoud Al Subeihi, the country's former defense minister, were among those who were freed.

Yemen has been embroiled in the devastating civil war since 2014, with the Houthi rebels fighting against the internationally-recognized government and a Saudi Arabia-led coalition allied with the government. 
ANKARA, Turkey (AP)  Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said that NATO should not bet on his country approving Swedens application to join the Western military alliance before a July summit because the Nordic nation has not fully addressed his security concerns.

Sweden and Finland applied for membership together following Russias invasion of Ukraine last year. Finland became NATOs 31st member in April after the Turkish parliament ratified its request, but Turkey has held off approving Swedens bid.

NATO wants to bring Sweden into the fold by the time the leaders of member nations meet for a summit in Lithuanias capital on July 11-12. Speaking to journalists on his way back from a state visit to Azerbaijan on Tuesday, Erdogan said Turkeys attitude to the accession was not positive.

Turkeys state-run Anadolu Agency and other media reported Erdogans comments as senior officials from NATO, Sweden, Finland and Turkey met in Ankara on Wednesday. The officials discussed what Finland and Sweden have done to address Turkeys concerns over alleged terrorist organizations.

Erdogan said the Turkish delegation at the meeting will give this message: This is our presidents opinion, dont expect anything different at Vilnius, Lithuanias capital.

Turkeys government accuses Sweden of being too lenient toward groups that Ankara says pose a security threat, including militant Kurdish groups and people associated with a 2016 coup attempt.

A series of separate demonstrations in Stockholm, including a protest by an anti-Islam activist who burned the Quran outside the Turkish Embassy, also angered Turkish officials.

Speaking in Swedens parliament, Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson called the Ankara meeting very important. Kristersson reiterated that his government had done what it promised in an agreement last year that was intended to secure Turkeys ratification of the countrys NATO membership.

However, Erdogan remained unsatisfied. He said he told NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg last week, If you expect us to respond to Swedens expectations, first of all, Sweden must destroy what this terrorist organization has done. He was referring to the Kurdistan Workers Party, or PKK, a group that has waged a separatist insurgency in Turkey.

Erdogan said that pro-Kurdish and anti-NATO rallies also took place in Stockholm during his meeting with Stoltenberg in Istanbul.

A statement issued by the Turkish presidency after Wednesdays meeting said the parties held consultations on the activities of terrorist groups in Sweden based on concrete examples. It said they agreed to continue working on further steps.

Stoltenberg said his chief of staff, who attended the meeting, reported that it took place in a constructive atmosphere.

Some progress has been made, and we will continue to work for the ratification of Sweden as soon as possible, he said.

Asked whether NATO would be able to admit Sweden before the Vilnius summit, Stoltenberg replied, It is still possible. I cannot guarantee it, of course.

Swedish envoy Oscar Stenstrom described the talks as a step forward.

But we are far from the finish line, he said.

The fight against the PKK has intensified, Stenstrom said, noting that that charges were brought last week against a man for attempting to extort money on behalf of a group that is outlawed in Turkey.

NATO requires the unanimous approval of all existing members to expand, and Turkey and Hungary are the only countries that have not yet ratified Swedens request to join. Erdogan said he planned to attend the July summit in Lithuania unless extraordinary circumstances arise.

On Tuesday, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said after meeting with Stoltenberg that it was time to welcome Sweden into the alliance, arguing that Stockholm had an important and I think very appropriate process on its accession to address appropriate concerns of other allies.

Sweden has amended its constitution and strengthened its anti-terror laws since it applied to join NATO just over a year ago. This week, the Swedish government also decided to extradite a Turkish citizen resident in Sweden who was convicted for drug offenses in Turkey in 2013.

Sweden and Finland applied to become NATO members in the wake of Russias invasion of Ukraine, abandoning decades of nonalignment.

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Badendieck reported from Istanbul. Associated Press writers Lorne Cook in Brussels and Jan M. Olsen in Copenhagen, Denmark, contributed to this report.

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JERUSALEM (AP)  The United States on Wednesday said it was seeking more information about the closure of an Israeli military investigation into the death of a 78-year-old Palestinian-American who was detained, gagged and left unconscious shortly before being pronounced dead.

Israel had announced on Tuesday that it would not bring criminal charges against the soldiers involved in the detention of the Palestinian-American, Omar Assad, from an impromptu checkpoint in the occupied West Bank last year.

The military admitted that the actions of the soldiers  who left Assad lying unresponsive on the ground without offering medical help or checking to see if he was alive  showed a lapse of moral judgement. But it said the soldiers would face only internal disciplinary measures because it could not determine that their misconduct directly caused Assads death.

Assads death has sparked outrage, shining a light on the dangers faced by Palestinians in the West Bank. Palestinians say they suffer systematic mistreatment living under military occupation.

In the U.S., where Assad spent four decades and where his family still lives, the State Department said it was discussing this troubling incident with the Israeli government.

We are at this time seeking more information, U.S. State Department spokesman Matthew Miller told reporters in Washington. Were going to talk to them directly about it.

Miller said the American government had expected Israel to conduct a thorough criminal investigation and full accountability.

Human rights groups long have argued that Israel rarely holds soldiers accountable for the deaths of Palestinians, with Israeli military investigations often reflecting a pattern of impunity.

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JACKSON, Miss. (AP)  A Mississippi police officer who shot and wounded an unarmed 11-year-old Black boy in the childs home has been suspended without pay, a city official said Tuesday.

The Indianola Board of Aldermen voted Monday night to immediately stop paying Sgt. Greg Capers, board member Marvin Elder said Tuesday. Capers, who is Black, had previously been suspended with pay, according to Carlos Moore, the attorney representing the family of the boy, Aderrien Murry.

Moore said the family is still pushing to get Capers fired. He needs to be terminated and he needs to be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law, Moore said.

Aderrien Murry was hospitalized for five days with a collapsed lung, lacerated liver and fractured ribs after Capers shot him in the chest May 20, Moore said. The Mississippi Bureau of Investigation is examining the case, as is customary with shootings involving law enforcement, but Capers has not been charged with any crime.

Capers attorney, Michael Carr, said the Boards 4-1 vote was cast during a closed-door, unnoticed meeting without informing him or his client.

This is very disturbing to Sgt. Capers, and he should have been allowed due process, Carr said. They have no evidence Sgt. Capers intentionally shot this young man, which he didnt. Everything that happened was a total and complete accident.

Carr added that body camera footage would prove Capers did nothing wrong. I thank God that Sgt. Capers was wearing a bodycam, Carr said.

The shooting happened in Indianola, a town of about 9,300 residents in the rural Mississippi Delta, about 95 miles (153 kilometers) northwest of Jackson.

Nakala Murry asked her son to call police about 4 a.m. when the father of one of her other children showed up at her home, Moore said. Two officers went to the home, and one kicked the front door before Murry opened it. She told them the man causing a disturbance had left the home, but three children were inside, Moore said.

According to Murry, Capers yelled into the home and said anyone inside should come out with their hands up, Moore said. He said Aderrien walked into the living room with nothing in his hands, and Capers shot him in the chest.

Murry has filed a federal lawsuit against Indianola, the police chief and Capers. The lawsuit, which seeks at least $5 million, says Indianola failed to properly train the officer and that Capers used excessive force. Murry also filed an affidavit, reviewed by The Associated Press, calling for criminal charges against Capers. That affidavit will be considered at an Oct. 2 probable cause hearing in the Sunflower County Circuit Court.

This is only the beginning, Murry said in a written statement. I look forward to seeing Greg Capers terminated, and never allowed to work for law enforcement again.

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Michael Goldberg is a corps member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues. Follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/mikergoldberg.

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NEW YORK (AP)  Former President Donald Trumps federal arraignment in Miami on Tuesday was historic  yet virtually invisible to the public.

In an era when people are accustomed to instantly available images and sounds of important events, Trumps not-guilty plea to charges of hoarding classified documents was a step back in time. Hundreds of photographers and television crews were at the courthouse  many broadcasting live from outside  but they couldnt show the key moments inside the courtroom.

Efforts by news organizations to loosen restrictions that generally prohibit cameras in federal courtrooms failed, despite the events unprecedented nature. It was a stark contrast from Trumps arraignment in New York earlier this year.

Trump eventually found a way Tuesday to fill the void after leaving the courthouse  with a stop at a Cuban restaurant, where he could bathe in the cheers of supporters.

This is the visual he wants  I just left the court. Im good, said CNNs John King.

Earlier, he arrived at the courthouse to be booked and enter his plea and then left without being seen. Cameras followed a motorcade of black vehicles with tinted windows.

This is a little bit old-fashioned, said Fox News Channels Mark Meredith. Were not going to be able to see whats going on in the courtroom.

News organizations had petitioned the court to allow photographs of Trump to be taken prior to his arraignment, and permit the public release of an audio recording of the court proceeding after it was done. Yet on Monday night, U.S. Magistrate Judge Jonathan Goodman denied the requests.

Also Monday, Chief U.S. District Judge Cecilia Altonaga ordered that no journalists could possess electronic equipment anywhere in the courthouse on the day of the arraignment. Prior to her order, credentialed journalists at the courthouse had been allowed to use cell phones and computers.

Its kind a black hole inside the building, said David Reiter, executive producer of special events for CBS News.

Most reporters in the courthouse were confined to an overflow room, where they watched the proceedings on the kind of televisions you get in low-cost hotel rooms, CBS News reporter Scott MacFarlane said.

Through a random draw, some journalists  including at least one sketch artist  were allowed into the courtroom itself.

News organizations scurried to make arrangements to deal with the restrictions. Several television networks, for example, placed a handful of reporters and producers in the overflow room, sending them out one-by-one to report from the outside on what had happened. Reporters also discovered working phones by a bathroom that allowed them to make outgoing calls.

The limits on journalists were quickly apparent. ABC News, for example, reported while the hearing was still ongoing that Special Prosecutor Jack Smith was in the courtroom. Yet when NBC News reporter Gabe Gutierrez was asked about that by anchor Lester Holt, he confessed he wasnt certain because he was limited in what he could see.

Some commentators couldnt resist making assumptions, either, like when ABCs John Santucci suggested Trump would be trying to find a way to be a little charming when he spotted Smith.

CNNs Jake Tapper, in debriefing reporter Evan Perez, said he couldnt ask him to be a mind-reader in assessing Trumps mood. Then he did precisely that.

He appeared very glum, Perez said. He did not seem to have a lot of energy.

With time to fill, most networks took it live when Trump lawyer Alina Habba spoke outside the courtroom. MSNBC cut her off, however, and CBS John Dickerson noted that she did not address the specifics of any charges against the former president.

An outage at the Amazon Web Services cloud computing unit on Tuesday severely restricted some news organizations, including The Associated Press, from sending material at precisely the time of Trumps arraignment. The Verge, the Boston Globe and PennLive.com were also affected.

Reporters kept a close eye on people gathered outside of the courtroom, including several banner-waving Trump supporters, a few anti-Trump demonstrators, and journalists from around the world  China, Australia, France, Germany and Australia.

A handful of news organizations that sent reporters to the scene hired private security in case there was trouble.

Its a small price to pay for peace of mind, said Nathan King, the White House correspondent for Chinas state-run CGTN. King said he had to flee an angry group of demonstrators at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, and watched as some of his equipment was destroyed.

Katie Taylor, a 76-year-old retired real estate agent and Trump supporter, drove 15 hours from Virginia to be part of the scene.

We all know whats going to happen inside the courtroom. What I care about is what they report on what is happening out here, said Taylor, who gets her news mostly from conservative outlets like Newsmax and Bannons War Room. I want to see it with my own eyes.

Some Trump supporters snapped photographs of people in the media and recorded their interviews.

Dominic Santana, who retired in Miami after decades of operating an eatery in the New York area, showed up wearing a black and white striped jailhouse uniform, complete with handcuffs and a plastic ball and chain to celebrate what he hopes will be Trumps imprisonment. He carried a sign saying, Lock Him Up.

A fellow New Yorker can spot a rat a mile away, said Santana, 61, a political independent who said his mother and daughter voted for Trump.

____

Goodman reported from Miami. Kate Brumback in Miami also contributed to this report.

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HAHNVILLE, La. (AP)  A 28-year-old woman who enrolled at a Louisiana high school and posed as a 17-year-old student to learn English has been arrested along with her mother, authorities said Wednesday.

Martha Jessenia Gutierrez Serrano and her mother, Marta Elizabeth Serrano Alvarado, 46, both of Boutte, were arrested Tuesday, the St. Charles Parish Sheriffs Office said in a news release. Each are charged with a one count of injuring public records.

Serrano Alvarado used a fake passport and birth certificate from Honduras to register and enroll her daughter at Hahnville High School for the 2022-2023 school year, the sheriffs office said.

Sheriff Greg Champagne, at a news conference Wednesday, said Gutierrez Serrano told investigators she enrolled in school to learn the English language.

She wanted to learn English. She wanted to become proficient in the English language, Champagne said.

There was no nefarious reason behind this, he said, adding that the falsifying of government documents to do this was just bad judgment.

Champagne noted there were other avenues the women could have taken, including enrolling in ESL or GED programs. Certainly that is a much better option than falsifying records, he said.

The sheriff said Gutierrez Serrano did not participate in any extracurricular activities and had no disciplinary issues while attending school.

There is no current evidence of any other criminal activity or inappropriate conduct by either woman, he said.

Four days after the school year ended on May 25, an internal investigation began after the St. Charles Parish School System received a tip that a female student at Hahnville High School believed to be 17 may actually have been in her mid-20s, the sheriffs office said.

It was unknown if either woman has an attorney who could comment on the arrests.

The school system will enhance processes to determine the authenticity of enrollment documents for current and future students as well as modify policy and procedures as warranted, the school system said in a statement late Tuesday, The Times-Picayune/The New Orleans Advocate reported. As this is an ongoing investigation conducted by the Sheriffs Office, no further information or specifics may be shared at this time.

This is not the first time this year that an adult has been accused of posing as a U.S. high school student. In January, a 29-year-old woman was charged with using false documents to enroll in a New Jersey high school and attend classes over a four-day period. A judge in May allowed her to enter a pretrial intervention program.

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WASHINGTON (AP)  U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken will travel to China this weekend as part of the Biden administrations push to repair deteriorating ties between Washington and Beijing and keep lines of communication open, the State Department said Wednesday.

Blinken will be the most senior U.S. official to visit China since President Joe Biden took office. His visit had initially been planned for earlier this year but was postponed indefinitely after the discovery and shootdown of what the U.S. said was a Chinese spy balloon over the United States.

Since then, however, there have been lower-level engagements between the U.S. and China despite ongoing hostility and recriminations over both sides actions in the Taiwan Strait, the South China Sea, Chinas refusal to condemn Russia for its war against Ukraine, and allegations from Washington that Beijing is attempting to boost its worldwide surveillance capabilities, including in Cuba.

The State Department said Blinken had spoken with his Chinese counterpart, Foreign Minister Qin Gang, on Tuesday night to confirm his trip, which will begin on Sunday and was first reported by The Associated Press and other news organizations last week. Blinken will leave Washington late Friday.

While in Beijing, Secretary Blinken will meet with senior PRC officials where he will discuss the importance of maintaining open lines of communication to responsibly manage the U.S.-PRC relationship, the department said, using the acronym for the Peoples Republic of China. He will also raise bilateral issues of concern, global and regional matters, and potential cooperation on shared transnational challenges.

In its readout of the phone call, Chinas foreign ministry said Qin urged the United States to respect Chinas core concerns such as the issue of Taiwans self-rule, stop interfering in Chinas internal affairs, and stop harming Chinas sovereignty, security and development interests in the name of competition.

Qin noted China-U.S. ties have encountered new difficulties and challenges since the beginning of the year, and the two sides responsibility is to work together to properly manage differences, promote exchanges and cooperation and stabilize relations, it said.

Blinken, who will be the first secretary of state to visit China since 2018, expects to meet with Qin on Sunday, as well as Chinas top diplomat, Wang Yi, and possibly Chinese President Xi Jinping on Monday, according to U.S. officials.

The trip will take place amid myriad complications in U.S-China relations, which have steadily declined over the past several years dating back to the Trump administration that started with trade and industrial espionage.

Those concerns grew rapidly to include human rights concerns over the treatment of Uyghur Muslims and other minorities in Chinas western region of Xinjang, Hong Kong, Tibet, and increasing Chinese aggressiveness toward Taiwan, and then escalated over questions about the origin of the COVID-19 virus.

Blinkens visit was agreed between Xi and Biden last year at a meeting in Bali during which the leaders agreed that the worlds two largest economies must remain in contact and take precautions to ensure there are no miscalculations in their global rivalry that could lead to conflict. The trip came within a day of happening in February but was delayed after the spy balloon incident. Beijing insists the craft was a weather balloon that strayed off course.

Contacts after that have taken place, but they have been rare as tensions have risen over Chinas conduct in the South China Sea, aggressive actions toward Taiwan and support for Russias war against Ukraine. Earlier this month, Chinas defense minister rebuffed a request from U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin for a meeting on the sidelines of a security symposium in Singapore.

However, shortly after postponing his trip to Beijing, Blinken met briefly with Wang at the Munich Security Conference in Germany. And, CIA chief William Burns traveled to China in May, while Chinas commerce minister traveled to the U.S. last month. And Bidens national security adviser Jake Sullivan met with Wang in Vienna in early May.

More recently, the top U.S. diplomat for the Asia-Pacific region, Daniel Kritenbrink, traveled to China last week along with a senior National Security Council official to finalize details of Blinkens trip.

Just in the past several days, though, the Biden administration has said that it has quietly blunted Chinese efforts to bolster its intelligence collection and military capabilities around the world, including in Cuba.

Blinken said on Monday that when Biden took office in January 2021, U.S. intelligence agencies briefed him on a number of sensitive efforts by Beijing around the world to expand their overseas logistics, foreign collections infrastructure to allow them to project and sustain military power at a greater distance.

They were considering a number of sites around the world for that expansion, including facilities for that intelligence collection in Cuba, he said.

Although the Chinese had already upgraded their facilities in Cuba in 2019, Blinken said Biden determined that more needed to be done because Trump administration officials werent making enough progress on this issue and we needed a more direct approach.

He did not elaborate on what had been done since, although the Biden administration has moved rapidly to expand its diplomatic presence, especially in Indian Ocean and the Pacific island nations, where it has opened or has plans to open at least five new embassies over the next year or so.

Weve been executing on that approach quietly, carefully, but in our judgment, with results, Blinken said. Weve engaged governments that are considering hosting PRC bases at high levels. We have exchanged information with them. Our experts assess that our diplomatic efforts slowed down this effort by the PRC.

After his meetings in Beijing, Blinken will travel to London to attend a Ukraine reconstruction conference next on June 21 the State Department said.

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KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP)  The parents of a 6-year-old girl who drowned at a popular Kansas City water park last year allege in a lawsuit that the park repeatedly hires young, inexperienced lifeguards and does not adequately train them.

Therron and Debra Stewart, of Grandview, Missouri, filed the lawsuit against Oceans of Fun and its parent company, Cedar Fair. Their daughter, Adeline Stewart, died at a Kansas City hospital days after she was pulled from the Coconut Cove pool on July 5, 2022, The Kansas City Star reported.

Brian McGannon, a spokesman for the park, said Wednesday the company does not respond to pending litigation.

Lawyers for the family say in the lawsuit that pool lifeguards did not detect Adeline for several minutes, even while park patrons made frantic attempts to get their attention.

After she was pulled from the pool, the lifeguards were not equipped to give her first aid, according to the lawsuit.

The Stewarts are seeking a jury trial.

After Adelines death, the water park made changes to improve safety, including increasing height requirements for wearing life jackets in the pool, and requiring children shorter than 3 1/2 feet (1.07 meters) to be accompanied by a supervisor.

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Last Monday morning, I got a call that my mentor and friend passed away. Egbert Gaye was the founder and managing editor of The Montreal Community Contact, the only newspaper for the citys English-speaking Black population.

The Community Contact was a staple at my parents house, like in many Caribbean households in Montreal. Every two weeks, wed pick up the latest copy from our local West Indian market or Black beauty supply store to read about who was doing what in our community  someone who received an academic scholarship to study in another city or a church group raising money for a youth trip.

Sometimes the paper covered heavier topics like the over-policing of Black youth or how the ongoing politicization of language was affecting our predominantly English community.

Whatever it was, it was written for our community by members of our community. That didnt mean that we all agreed with everything in the papers pages, but we had the opportunity to debate topics from our perspective as Black Montrealers.

For 31 years, Egbert did all the things to ensure the authentic stories of Black and Caribbean people in Quebec were told. From delivering newspapers to 70 locations and attending community events, to highlighting the communitys concerns on mainstream news platforms. More importantly, Egbert and The Montreal Community Contact gave young, Black, would-be journalists a voice in a city where their voices were often ignored.

Community journalism gives voice to people who feel invisible, until something bad happens in their neighbourhoods. Newspapers like Torontos Share, Caribbean Camera, Pride, and online news magazines like ByBlacks.com give Black and racialized people a space, and the agency, to tell the stories that are important to us and tell those stories how we choose.

When I walked into the Community Contacts small office, a first-year journalism student, I was nervous about meeting a newspaper editor, but I didnt just meet someone who ran a newspaper. I was welcomed by a friend, a mentor and a teacher.

As we went on runs to pick up or deliver the latest issue of the paper, or when we sat in the office with other writers or community members who would drop in, wed talk about everything from the Quebec referendum to unemployment, all to the rhythm of soca music playing in the background.

But that wasnt all we spoke about because that wasnt all that we were about.

We would discuss Montreals Caribbean carnival, or the latest concerts coming to town. We asked hard questions of each other, Why werent there any Black-owned banquet halls in Montreal? or Why dont young people in our communities vote? I heard different perspectives and folks wanted to hear and read what I thought.

The Community Contact, like Torontos community newspapers, gives young writers the mentorship and experiences needed to hone their skills and learn the ropes of journalism. Editors like Egbert give us the opportunity to report on and advocate for our communities, while helping us become real journalists.

Isnt that what young people need? Someone who is willing to give them time and energy. Listen to their ideas. Teach them by example. And, sometimes, give advice  whether they wanted it or not.

That is the beauty and necessity of community journalism and mentorship it offers.

So, last Monday morning, my heart broke and a community mourned.

It is difficult to find people who believe in you. People who want to see you succeed and reach your goals. People who create space for us to share our stories without apology.

That was who Egbert was.

The Montreal Community Contact gave and continues to give space to young journalists and voice to a community. His passing is a loss for community journalism, Montreal, and the community he loved and lifted up.

An African proverb says, The only truly dead are those who have been forgotten.

Egbert, my dear friend, you wont be forgotten. Rest well.

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Listen:

Listen here or subscribe at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favourite podcasts. Stay updated on episodes via our Twitter page. If you would like to support the journalism of the Toronto Star, you can at thestar.com/subscribingmatters. Please take five minutes to complete this podcast survey for a chance at a $100 gift card.

Guests: The Toronto Star All-Star Opinionator Panel, featuring columnists Emma Teitel, Shawn Micallef, Matt Elliott and guest host Edward Keenan

With less than two weeks to go before the election, candidates are making their closing pitches to voters and in this campaign, a surprising number of those involve claims to be the only candidate to beat Olivia Chow. Our Toronto Star All-Star Opinionator Panel talks about some of claims and assesses their credibility, including a comical trip into Mark Saunders website FAQ. The panel also discusses the potential for surprises, which losing candidate might still come out ahead in the long run and a range of other ballot-box issues.

This episode was produced by Ed Keenan and Sean Pattendon.

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OTTAWA  Canadas top judge has slammed ongoing federal government delays in filling federal judicial vacancies, saying theres no adequate explanation for a problem that puts serious criminal and civil cases at risk.

Supreme Court of Canada Chief Justice Richard Wagner, who also holds the title of chief justice of Canada, told reporters Tuesday that after he wrote to the prime minister on May 3 to complain of delayed appointments, Justin Trudeau called him and promised to provide his best effort to appoint the best candidates, of course, and to try to correct the situation.

It was a short conversation, but I think that if the prime minister took the time to call me its because he took the problem seriously, Wagner said. And so that was my responsibility. So now, well wait and well see.

At a news conference marking the end of the Supreme Court of Canadas spring session, Wagner said although judges typically give six months notice of their retirements or departures, it can sometimes take a year or more to fill vacancies, which he said has major effects in every province of this country.

Across the country, the number of federal judicial vacancies totals 80  which now includes an open spot on the Supreme Court of Canada, after Mondays resignation of Justice Russell Brown.

Thats nearly double the number of openings in federally appointed Superior Courts  46  that was reported by the federal government in the spring of 2016.

Since then, the Supreme Court of Canada, in a landmark 2016 ruling known as R. v. Jordan, rewrote the ground rules for what constitutes an unreasonable  and therefore unconstitutional  trial delay.

It said most trials in lower provincial courts should be wrapped up in under 18 months, while Superior Court trials should be completed in 30 months.

Wagner said he gave Trudeau the example that in Alberta, where there are 11 judicial vacancies, 22 per cent of active criminal cases now exceed the 30-month timeline that puts legal proceedings at risk of being stayed due to unconstitutional delay. Of those, he said, 91 per cent involve serious and violent crimes.

If that happens, public confidence in the courts, judges and a pillar of democracy could be eroded, he said.

Wagner said the Supreme Court is not to blame if cases get tossed. Rather, he argued, Canada should adequately fund its justice system and name judges in a timely manner in order for courts to function properly.

The Jordan ruling was 5-4 decision, and Wagner was among the justices who dissented because I thought it was a big price to pay to see serious charges stayed, he said.

But he said now, I think it was right to do that. Thats the law.

A society like us, governed by the rule of law, with a strong democracy and a Charter of Rights, should be able to make sure that a criminal trial comes to trial within a reasonable delay. So I think our society has to adapt to that, not the contrary, not the other way around.

Justice Minister David Lametti told the Star last month that a big reason so many jobs are unfilled is because Canada has difficulty in recruiting judges, particularly racialized and female lawyers, to apply, saying they have lost trust that they have a shot at the job.

On Tuesday, Lametti told reporters he is always concerned cases could be thrown out, but added that the vast, vast majority of criminal law cases are actually done by provincial courts across Canada.

Tonda MacCharles is Ottawa Bureau Chief and a senior reporter covering federal politics. Follow her on Twitter: @tondamacc

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BEIJING, June 14 (Xinhua) -- Honduran President Iris Xiomara Castro Sarmiento made a historic state visit to China less than three months after the two countries forged diplomatic ties.

Prior to her talks on Monday with Chinese President Xi Jinping, Xi held a welcome ceremony for her at the square outside the Great Hall of the People, where the Honduran president, delighted, made a hand heart to a group of frisky children greeting her.

Over the past weeks, both sides have been proactive and practical to deliver on their diplomatic commitments with a sense of urgency. The bilateral relationship has got off to a good and speedy start and enjoys great dynamism and promise.

In March, Honduras signed with China a joint communique on establishing diplomatic ties, becoming the latest in a string of Central American countries to sever so-called "diplomatic ties" with China's Taiwan region. In early June, China inaugurated its embassy in the Honduran capital of Tegucigalpa, and Honduras has also opened its embassy in Beijing.

The historic visit is of special significance. It opens a new chapter in the annals of the China-Honduras relationship, as both sides continue to deepen their political mutual trust and further tap potential for their highly complementary economies.

The fast growing bilateral relationship is expected to expand the scale of bilateral trade, increase local employment, and enhance people's welfare in Honduras's largely agricultural economy.

Customs statistics indicated that in the first four months of this year, China's trade with Honduras logged a total value of 3.893 billion yuan (some 543.4 million U.S. dollars), up 22.9 percent year on year, with imports increasing by 229.5 percent.

During his talks with Castro on Monday, Xi said China will promote the early introduction of Honduran specialty products to the Chinese market, and is willing to start the negotiation process for a free trade agreement at an early date.

On the same day, Chinese customs announced the approval of the import of Whiteleg shrimp from Honduras. Coming up, more are expected to hit the Chinese market, including bananas, melons, coffee, cigars and beef, from this major coffee bean grower and cigar exporter in Central America.

Now local farmers and businessmen are eyeing greater market opportunities and upgraded processing techniques with advanced machinery from China. They are also upbeat about the sixth China International Import Expo scheduled for November in Shanghai.

Notably, the two sides also signed a document on cooperation under the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), a major milestone for boosting bilateral cooperation. They also agreed to cooperate in areas such as quality inspection, trade, agriculture, technology, culture and education.

Both countries have also voiced staunch support for each other regarding their respective core interests. Honduras will act faithfully on the one-China principle, the primary prerequisite and political foundation for the establishment of diplomatic ties and the development of bilateral relations. China pledged firm support for Honduras in choosing its own development path suited to its national conditions.

Meanwhile, Honduras shares with China such common values of humanity as peace, development, fairness, justice, democracy and freedom, and honors the concept of building a community with a shared future for mankind. Experts believe their ties will also exert a radial effect on the continuous deepening of China-Latin America relations in the new era and have an important bearing on the promotion of democracy in international relations.

Their mutual trust also comes from ever increasing understanding between both peoples. For many Hondurans, China is not just a new friend from afar, but a friend quite different from how the biased Western media have portrayed. Now with direct ties, many say they get to see and experience a real, fascinating China in person.

Last month, a delegation comprising around 30 media professionals from Honduran radios, televisions, newspapers and social media platforms visited Shanghai, Guizhou, Chongqing, Zhejiang, Jiangsu, and other Chinese localities. And during her state visit this week, Castro said Honduras will send young students to Shanghai for study.

Pledging to be good friends and partners that enjoy mutual respect, equality, mutual benefits and common development, China and Honduras will reap dividends from the sound and steady progress in their bilateral ties. 
OTTAWA  The New Democrats dialed up the heat on the federal government Tuesday to swiftly introduce pharmacare legislation, warning the Liberals it is absolutely required that such a bill pass by years end, even as the federal health minister said he could make no promises.

The NDP are part of a governing agreement that could see the party prop up the minority Liberals until 2025 in exchange for a suite of policy commitments, one of which is passing legislation outlining a universal national pharmacare program by the end of 2023.

NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh and the partys health critic Don Davies pressured the government in that direction on Tuesday by tabling their own version of the legislation: a private members bill they say will ultimately save Canadians $500 a year in drug costs and bring coverage for essential medications to millions of uninsured Canadians.

We found that with this government, even if weve got things in writing, that its not a guarantee. Weve got to continually fight, put pressure, push them to deliver, Singh told reporters.

The New Democrats have long questioned whether the Liberals are sincere about their promises to enact a pharmacare program, which Singh said must be a universal, single-payer, publicly administered program.

Thats the same model recommended in 2019 by an advisory council the government convened to examine the implementation of a national program.

Davies said the NDPs proposal doesnt prescribe a specific fiscal arrangement between provincial territorial and federal governments.

It lets the federal government negotiate with the provinces and territories. Like the Canada Health Act, the Canada Pharmacare Act gives power to the Governor in Council to withhold contributions to provinces if they dont respect the conditions of funding, the health critic said.

Progress on the policy items set out under the Liberal-NDP deal, like launching dental care and tackling climate change, is typically achieved through close collaboration between the parties.

When asked Tuesday whether that co-operation was missing on the pharmacare front, Singh said there had been conversations between Davies and Health Minister Jean-Yves Duclos on initial steps, but that it was time to accelerate the matter.

In response, Duclos said he had been working with Davies and other New Democrats ahead of tabling the governments version of the bill, which is still expected to land this fall.

We will certainly do everything we can do  to table the bill by the end of this year. Something which we cannot promise to be able to do, but which well try to do, is to pass a bill by the end of 2023, Duclos said.

Singh said doing precisely that is absolutely required by our agreement, and said he was prepared to force the Liberals into achieving that outcome, though he stopped short of saying whether he would pull out of the confidence-and-supply agreement.

But government sources close to the pharmacare file were quick to dismiss the NDPs move, highlighting that private members bills involving the spending of funds cant make it through the legislative process without government support.

Its pharmacare. Its going to be a s- load of money, right? said one source on the condition they not be named. They know this bill cannot legally pass third reading. Its nothing more than a political stunt, and I dont think its helping anyone.

Duclos also drew the ire of the New Democrats, who once again accused the minister of bowing to pharmaceutical industry lobbyists who oppose changes to drug pricing reforms. Earlier this year, the House of Commons health committee began looking into the resignations of three members of the Patented Medicine Prices Review Board, which came after Duclos wrote to the drug pricing regulator and asked them to consider pausing their consultations on the reforms.

The minister has defended his actions, stating he does not provide direction to the board but does participate in consultations before new guidelines for drug prices are issued. On Tuesday, Ducloss office said it was the ministers duty to work with all actors, from patients and  the industry, to make sure Canadians have access to the medication and vaccines they need.

Even so, theres no doubt that Minister Duclos and the Liberal government are being pressured by other forces, Davies said.

What we want to do is add some pressure on the other side of this. Do I trust them? Yes. And I hope that they will do the right thing.

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OTTAWACanadian lawmakers and the Canadian Judicial Council must expedite changes to ensure swifter and more transparent investigations when judges are accused of wrongdoing or risk harming public credibility in the judiciary, says Canadas Chief Justice Richard Wagner.

Wagner, who heads both the Supreme Court of Canada and the Canadian Judicial Council (CJC), the body that oversees judicial ethics and independence, refused to talk about a glaring lack of official transparency in the case of Justice Russell Brown.

Faced with a public complaint alleging drunken and obnoxious behaviour, the Alberta judge on Monday insisted he is innocent but said a lengthy delay in the judicial councils investigation was taking too great a toll on him, his family, and on the courts work.

Brown opted to retire immediately from the Supreme Court of Canada after just eight years, halting the CJCs disciplinary probe. The result is that no conclusive public finding or any details of the judicial councils preliminary review of the matter were made public.

The judicial council, in a statement, said its legal jurisdiction to investigate ended with Browns retirement, and it is declining all other comment on the matter.

Its finished because the judge resigned. So theres no matter to deal with anymore, said Wagner.

He acknowledged the lack of transparency that is the result, saying, Im not comfortable with any complaints against any judges.

Wagner urged Parliament to pass legal reforms he has advocated for since 2018 to shorten such judicial investigations and avoid delays, and decried the fact that some judicial investigations can drag on for years and cost taxpayers millions of dollars.

A bill, now in its third iteration, has been passed by the House of Commons but the senate has recommended further amendments, which Wagner says have been rejected by the federal Justice Minister David Lametti.

So its been kicking around Parliament for quite a few times, for quite a few years. I would say it has to stop. This legislation has to be adopted, Wagner told reporters. And I think that it would be in the best interest of the public, best interest of the judiciary, and in the best interest of transparency.

Wagner has also asked the judicial councils conduct committee to look at their own regulations on when a complaint or the wording of a decision should be made public, saying the rules now are too opaque.

Still, Wagner insisted the fact that Brown has retired now brought closure for Canadians, who he said should not doubt the Supreme Courts ability to continue to do its work, nor judges ability to investigate their peers.

Its unfortunate, of course, Wagner told reporters. But I believe that, as much as it concerned in this specific case, concerns one judge and one behaviour outside of the of the courtroom, I dont think that people will have a bad opinion of the Supreme Court following this incident. I think that they should be comforted by the fact that in Canada, we have ethical principles that Wagner said are taken seriously.

Jonathan Crump, a Philadelphia ex-Marine, called Arizona police in the early hours of Jan. 29, saying before midnight hed had a run-in with a man who identified himself as a Supreme Court of Canada judge.

A police report of the Jan. 28 incident said Crump had been drinking with three other women at the Omni Scottsdale Resort hotel bar at the time he alleged Brown had hit on them and later tried to follow them to their room.

Body-worn camera footage released by the Paradise Valley police department shows Crump saying he punched Brown a couple of times to stop him and that Brown didnt give up much of a fight. When the officer asks Crump if Brown had punched him, Crump said, No.

Minutes later, asked why he called the cops, Crump said the judge was a creeper  following the girls and he tried to assault me. At one point, Crump said the judge was kissing them on the f--ing hand and groping them.

The officer, Adam Balcom, filed a police report, released to the Star, which said, During the interview, Crump became argumentative, hostile, antagonistic, and began swearing profanities at me. I believed this was due to him being under the influence of alcohol.

The police officer knocked several times on Browns hotel room door that night but couldnt speak with him. After speaking to the three women, he decided no charges were warranted.

His report concluded: two intoxicated males got into a brief physical altercation at the Omni Hotel, after one of the males followed the group back to their hotel room, refused to leave the women alone, and attempted to follow the women inside their room uninvited.

Based on the totality of the circumstances, the use of force appeared reasonable and necessary, and no crime was determined. No arrests made.

On retiring at age 57, and after just eight years on the Supreme Court bench, Brown is entitled to a reduced pension because he had not fulfilled the full pension eligibility requirement.

Tonda MacCharles is Ottawa Bureau Chief and a senior reporter covering federal politics. Follow her on Twitter: @tondamacc

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The Glorious Mauryan Empire (322-185 BCE), emerging out of the Mahajanapads, was the first Indian Empire to unite most of the sub-continent, the largest empire India had ever had.

During the reigns of Chandragupta Maurya and his son Bindusara, the Vedic religion along with the Vedas, Upanishads, and the Puranas, the Mahabharata, the Ramayana, the Gita and the Sanskrit language received maximum royal patronage and dissemination forming the core of Indian culture throughout the sub-continent.

After Ashoka embraced Buddhism, the later Mauryans and also the Kushans adopted Pali (a Prakrit of Sanskrit) as the State language and spread Buddhism covering almost the entire Asia ~ Afghanistan, Tibet, Mongolia, China, Japan, Korea, the South-East Asia and Sri Lanka.

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The Golden Gupta period, also known as the Classical period (320 BCE-650 CE) of Indian history witnessed the greatest flowering of art, culture, science and literature unparalleled in the history of the world until the Italian renaissance took place in modern Italy in 15th and the 16th centuries. The Gupta period produced a galaxy of great geniuses like Kalidasa (the Indian Shakespeare), Arybhatta, Varahamihira, Banabhatta, Vishnu Sharma, Sushruta, Dhanwantri, Vatsayan etc.

During the Classical Period, India not only excelled in administrative and economic developments, the period is also marked by liberalism, freedom of expression and permissiveness; sex was not taboo. The fact that a treatise like Kamasutra could be written those days and the practice of Niyog (getting pregnant from other than the husband) was in vogue, shows how liberal and enlightened the society was.

Extreme erotic carvings, statues and murals in hundreds of temples and places of worship (Khajuraho, Konarak etc.) in later centuries indicate the openness of Indian society. The decline of the Gupta period witnessed the rise of a number of smaller empires and kingdoms  the Harsha, the Pala, the Rastrakuta and the GurjaraPratihara empires in the North and the Chalukya, the Chola, the Pallava, the Chera, the Pandyan and the Western Chalukya empires in the South.

They ruled the sub-continent for the next 600 years till the 13th century when the Muslims overthrew most of them but the spirit of unity among them never disappeared. The Cholas of Tamil Nadu created a remarkable empire extending from the East coast of India to Indonesia but they never thought they were not part of Bharatvarsha as they shared the same religion and culture and worshipped the same gods and goddesses.

The Sangam period (300 BCE  200CE) was the golden period for Tamil literature producing great literary works including the Five Great Epics of Tamil Literature, one of which was Silappatikaram by Ilango Adigal. The famous Tirukkural by Thiruvalluvar was also composed around 300 BCE.

Along with Tamil, Sanskrit language and literature shaped their lives; it can be noticed that most of the Tamil men and women and their villages and towns bear Sanskrit names. Religion wise, Shaivites and Vaishnavites, two off-shoots of the Vedic religion became the dominant sects in South India. Most of the Tamil Brahmins of today have found their ancestry to North India and Bengal.

It is believed that the first manuscript of the original Sanskrit Ramayana was found in Andhra, which is explained by the mass migration of the North Indian Brahmins to South India to escape from Muslim persecution. Sanskrit continued to be the lingua franca of the sub-continent for a long time ~ the court language and the language of the kings, the scholars, the writers and the priests and the gods.

Andhra, Karnataka and Kerala became important centres of Sanskrit studies. Born in a remote village of Kaladi in Kerala, Adi Shankaracharya, a great scholar of Sanskrit, saint and exponent of Advaita Vedanta aroused the conscience of India as was done in modern times by Swami Vivekananda. He travelled the length and breadth of India from Kerala to Kashmir, Gujarat to Bengal and to the mountains of the Himalayas.

In a unique unifying move, he established Shankaracharya Peeth (Math) at four corners of India making a quadrangular unity structure ~ Shringeri, Dwarka, Joshimath and Puri ~ symbolizing the four Vedas and oneness of India.

Relentless invasions by the Arabs and the Turco-Mongal nomadic tribes of Central Asia since the 7th century till the 13th century resulted in the consolidation of the Muslim rule in the sub-continent ~ first by the Delhi Sultanate (1207-1526: 32 Sultans) for 320 years and after the battle of Panipat in 1526, by the Mughal Empire (1526-1857: 21 Emperors) for 330 years. The 600-year Islamic rule considerably changed the religious and cultural topography of India.

The Islamic rulers with their primary state policy of aggressive Islamization vertically divided the Indian society into We (Muslims) and They (nonMuslims). While during the Muslim period, especially during the Mughal regime, there had been accelerated growth in communications, trade and industry contributing about 25 per cent of the worlds GDP and trade and uniting the larger part of India into one geographical unit, the entire period was marked by wars, invasions, bloodshed, genocide and discrimination, suppression, oppression and conversion of the majority non-Muslims.

The only silver linings during this period had been: (i) the Bhakti Movement spearheaded by Guru Nanak, Sant Kabir and Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, who flooded the country with their message of love, devotion, communal harmony and oneness of humanity; (ii) a Sufi movement of love and oneness, though in a muted form and (iii) the rise of Maratha power under Chhatrapati Shivaji and Sikh power under Guru Gobind Singh, putting up stiff resistance to the ruthless theocratic rule of Aurangzeb. None of the Islamic rulers could, however, destroy the concept of oneness of India.

The British introduced a modern secular administration, and established a huge British India empire extending from the borders of Afghanistan in the West to Burma in the East and from the Tibetan borders in the North to Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) in the South. While the British rule did tremendous good in many areas (like the common Civil, Judicial and the Central Services, the Railways, Posts and Telegraphs, Banks and financial services etc.), their economic exploitation and loot of Indias wealth to the extent of trillions of dollars kept India impoverished with an abysmal rate of economic growth and trade. Indias fall from the richest country to an abysmally poor country has been a subject of severe criticism of the British Raj.

More reprehensible had been their divide and rule policy which kept 562 Princely States under their suzerainty within British India and ultimately succeeding in dividing India to create a separate independent State of Pakistan in a manner that kept both the nations in perpetual conflict. But in spite of their best efforts, they could not destroy the spirit of unity of the 562 Princely States who agreed to join the Union of India.

Admittedly, all was not well with the Indian civilization in its journey towards the unity and integrity of the nation. The fault lines have been too many. Modern India inherited a few from the past and the new ones have been created after Independence by the people who have been in power and politics. The fault lines which have been militating against the unity and integrity of India have been:

1. The Caste System and Brahmanism: The hereditary caste-system has always been a bane of Indian society. In spite of all-out efforts to establish an egalitarian society by hundreds of reformers and by many reform movements through centuries starting with Gautama Buddhas Buddhism in ancient India and ending with the modern periods social reformers like Swami Dayanand (Arya Samaj), Sri Ramakrishna Paramahansa, Swami Vivekananda (Ramakrishna Mission), Raja Ram Mohan Roy, Iswarchandra Vidyasagar and others, nothing much has changed in Indian society. On the other hand, the State policy of affirmative action based on caste-based reservation system has widened the sense of divisiveness in the society.

2. The Communal Divide: Secularism forms a part of the fundamental structure of the Indian Constitution. The manner in which secularism has been practiced as a political weapon reducing it to an appeasement policy and vote-bank politics has accentuated the communal divide rather than promoting harmony among the various groups. The politicians have taken the noble principles of secularism to the burial ground of hate.

3. The Left Politics and Ideology: The leftist political and social organizations, especially the orthodox Marxists, receiving inspiration and resources from foreign lands, and still believing in the infallibility of Marxist ideas of revolution and class-struggle, have little respect for democratic values and human rights. Their disruptive politics and agitations and disaffection for the establishment cause considerable social disharmony.

4. Terrorism: Terrorism has been the biggest enemy of modern civilization and greatest destroyer of democracy and human rights. Terrorism in all forms ~ external, internal or statesponsored ~ cuts at the very root of liberal democracy. In India, the Naxalites, the Maoists and the sleeper cells of terror organizations and their sympathizers have been the new enemies of the State, more dangerous than the historical invaders.

5. Paradox of Personal Laws: While the Constitution has granted full freedom to practice ones own religion, enforcement of certain regressive personal laws has had the effect of taking away the basic Fundamental Rights of the individual as guaranteed by the Constitution creating social fissures.

6. Freedom of Expression: Misuse of the freedom of expression in the form of fake news, paid news, manufactured conspiracy theories in the social media, internet and the television channels and the lowest level of political discourse produce a great deal of social disharmony.

7. Linguistic States: Unlike the USA, Russia and Australia, the Indian federation consists of linguistic States. While this has furthered promotion of the principal regional languages, it has also led to jingoistic regionalism and has opened a Pandoras Box demanding creation of new linguistic States dividing the present ones (there are 121 major languages in India).

In conclusion, the concept of India, that is Aryavarta, Bharatvarsha, Bharat or Hindustan, as one nation, has existed for more than 5,000 years, since the days of Harappan Civilization to the present day irrespective of the fact that changing political fortunes and rise and fall of multiple empires, kingdoms and satraps had the effect of transforming the geographical units. In spite of all the vicissitudes, the sense of oneness has always existed.

(The writer is a former Dy. Comptroller &Auditor General of India and a former Ombudsman of Reserve Bank of India. He is also a writer of several books and can be reached at brahmas@gmail.com)
The Calcutta High Court on Tuesday directed deployment of central armed forces personnel in sensitive districts for the forthcoming Bengal panchayat polls. A division Bench of Chief Justice TS Sivagnanam and Justice Hiranmay Bhattacharya also identified seven districts in the state as sensitive.

It also directed the West Bengal State Election Commission to review whether deployment of central forces is required elsewhere, other than the seven districts identified as sensitive. The districts are East Midnapore, Birbhum, South 24-Parganas, parts of North 24-Parganas, Murshidabad, Jalpaiguri and Hooghly. The State Election Commission should ensure polls in a peaceful ambience.

The commission should deploy central armed forces where there is a deficit of state police force. So, deployment of central forces is necessary to ensure free and fair polls. The Union government also should provide the necessary forces as demanded by the state government, the division Bench observed. It also said that the Union government will have to bear the expenses for deployment of the central forces.

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The state today, however, informed the court that 15 battalions of armed police from other states would be deployed for conducting polls. The division Bench, however, refused to interfere with the Commissions decision about the extension of the period of nomination for the rural civic body polls. It also turned down the plea for the polls being conducted under the supervision of a retired judge of the Calcutta High Court. It also said that the CCTVs should be installed in each and every polling booth and if necessary, the entire polling process should be video recorded.

The court gave clear instructions to the state government and the State Election Commission not to use civic volunteers in poll-related security duties at any cost. However, it observed that in case of extreme necessity, contractual state government employees can be deployed in other poll-related duties. Opposition parties were demanding deployment of central armed forces since the day the polling and counting dates were announced by State Election Commissioner Rajiva Sinha.
Bhangar, in South 24-Parganas, turned into a battlefield on Tuesday following violent clashes between activists of the Trinamul Congress and the All India Secular Front (AISF) over nomination for the upcoming panchayat polls. The ongoing clashes erupted in front of the Block Development Office as candidates of the two parties reached there to file their respective nominations.

Within minutes, the area turned into a virtual battlefield, first due to heavy brick batting and subsequently due to heavy bombing from both sides. Tuesday is the fourth day of nomination and like the previous three days, reports of violence have come from different pockets of the state with the one in Bhangar being the most serious of all. As a huge police contingent reached the spot, supporters of both the parties started hurling bricks, stones and crude bombs towards the security personnel.

The intensity of the attack was so high that police forces had to initially retreat with a couple of security personnel being injured in the attack. However, the police soon retaliated and resorted to lathi charge and firing of teargas shells to bring the situation under control. The leaderships of both Trinamul Congress and AISF have traded accusations over the development. On one hand, the AISF leadership has claimed that the clashes broke out as the ruling party activities tried to resist their candidates from filing the nomination.

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On the other hand, the Trinamul Congress leadership has accused AISF activists of launching unprovoked attacks on the ruling party candidates. Police have arrested some persons in relation to the development. Trinamul Congress leader and MLA Saukat Mollah has accused AISF activists of launching unprovoked attacks.

Naushad, however, refuted the charges saying that TMCs programme will be held at a different block (Block 1), and they have no such intention of disrupting it. We dont believe in the politics of bombs and pistols like TMC, he said. The Trinamul Congress Nabo Jowar Yatra in South 24- Parganas is scheduled to start from Block 1 of Bhangar on Tuesday. Trinamul national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee is expected to be present for the programme.
Union minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar on Tuesday reiterated that there was no breach in the CoWIN app and the platform remains safe and secure. He added that allegations of data breaches were a continued pattern of people trying to undermine the strong digital infrastructures in India.

There are many forces, there are many interests in the world that want to undermine Cowin, create question marks about CoWIN. Therefore, I believe yesterdays breach or alleged breach of Cowin was one more instance of people trying to target the Cowin app, Chandrasekhar told ANI. He said Indian CERT (Indian Computer Emergency Response Team), the agency that is tasked to dealing with cyber security breaches, is, however, investigating the alleged breach matter.

Telegram BOT (in question) was not from the CoWIN app. It was certainly data that was either fake, false, or had been collected from other sources by some third-party threat actor and the Cowin app, as has been reaffirmed by the health minister and the ministry, is completely safe and secure and has not been breached, he added.

On Monday, there were some media reports claiming the breach of data of beneficiaries who have received COVID vaccination through the app.

Certain posts on the social media have claimed that using a Telegram (online messenger application) BOT, the personal data of individuals who have been vaccinated is being accessed. It was reported that the BOT has been able to pull individual data by simply passing the mobile number or Aadhaar number of a beneficiary.

CoWIN was developed and is owned and managed by the Ministry of Health.

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Russian President Vladimir Putin (L) meets with visiting Cuban Prime Minister Manuel Marrero in Moscow, Russia on June 14, 2023. (Kremlin press release)

Bilateral cooperation should develop in a wide range of areas, Putin said.

MOSCOW, June 14 (Xinhua) -- Russian President Vladimir Putin and visiting Cuban Prime Minister Manuel Marrero vowed on Wednesday to deepen bilateral cooperation.

"There is no need to emphasize the special, allied and long-standing nature of our relations that took shape many decades ago," Putin said during a meeting with Marrero in the Kremlin.

Russia-Cuba relations are expanding despite difficulties and bilateral cooperation should develop in a wide range of areas, including in energy and tourism, Putin said.

"Cuba has been living under illegal sanctions for decades, yet the Cuban people are coping with them. For our part, we will do our best to ensure that our economic cooperation helps overcome the difficulties imposed on you," he said.

Marrero noted that work is already underway to implement cooperation projects between the two countries.

"We are very pleased with the pace at which our relations are moving. Trade and economic ties are being raised to the same level as political relations," he said.

After visiting Moscow, the Cuban prime minister will travel to Russia's second largest city to attend the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum. 
In anticipation of a powerful cyclone making landfall near Jakhau port in Gujarats Kutch district tomorrow evening, authorities have taken action to protect the residents. A total of 37,000 people from coastal areas have been relocated to temporary shelters. In order to provide quick response and aid, 17 teams from the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and 12 teams from the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) are prepared and waiting.

The army is also prepared to provide relief efforts and has stationed flood relief units at strategic locations. Coordination between the army, civil administration, and NDRF has been established in several districts.

The evacuation operation is being carried out in two phases. The first phase involves moving people living within 0 to 5 kilometers of the seashore, while the second phase focuses on those within 5 to 10 kilometers of the coast. Alok Kumar Pandey, the State Commissioner of Relief, provided this information.

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Union Home Minister Amit Shah held a virtual meeting on Tuesday with Chief Minister

Bhupendra Patel and other senior officials to assess Gujarat's preparedness. Shah emphasized the need for relocating vulnerable residents to safer areas and ensuring the availability of essential services, such as electricity, telecommunications, healthcare, and drinking water.

The cyclone, as indicated by Manorama Mohanty, the Director of Ahmedabad IMD, is expected to pass through the area near Jakhau port, between Mandvi in Kutch and Karachi in Pakistan. It is predicted to bring wind speeds ranging from 125-135 kmph, with gusts reaching up to 150 kmph.

The IMD has issued warnings of extremely heavy rainfall and strong winds in the coastal areas of Saurashtra-Kutch, particularly in the districts of Kutch, Porbandar, and Devbhumi

Dwarka.

Precautionary measures have been taken by the Western Railway to ensure the safety of passengers and maintain smooth operations. As a result, 69 trains have been canceled, 32 have been terminated short of their intended destination, and 26 have originated from a different starting point.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath arrived in Ayodhya on Wednesday evening where he first visited and offered prayers at Hanumangarhi for a happy and healthy Uttar Pradesh.

Then the chief minister had darshan of Ramlala and also took part in aarti and parikrama.

He also learned about the progress in the construction of Ram temple from people associated with the Trust.

Yogi Adityanath also inquired about the well being of the laborers working there and asked the officials about the progress in the ongoing works. Local public representatives were also present during the inspection.
The Rajasthan government suspended IAS and IPS officers among eight employees for their involvement in a scuffle with the employees of a hotel-cum-restaurat on Jaipur-Ajmer highway.

The action was taken against the officials after a video surfaced on social media in which they were seen indulging in a drunken brawl at the restaurant. The officers included Girdhar, commissioner of Ajmer Development Authority (ADA) and Sushil Kumar, officer on special duty at Ganganagar, and five other state employees.

In a separate suspension order late last night, Rajendra Singh Kavia, joint director of the Department of Personnel, said a departmental inquiry was pending against the two officers. The duo is suspended with immediate effect under Rules of All India Services, 1969 section 3, sub-section 1.

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Girdhar would report every day to the Secretariat and Sushil to the Police Headquarters.

The vigilance wing of the Police Headquarters has started investigating the role of Sushil (IPS), in the alleged assault on the restaurant staff.

In a complaint to the Gegal police station, owner of Makrana Raj Hotel and Restaurant said the incident occurred on the intervening night of Sunday and Monday when both officers visited the restaurant with their friends for drink and non-veg party which was not allowed there. An altercation over some trivial matter with waiters turned into a brawl in which the duo could be seen in the video beating up the restaurant staff.

Later, some other cops from nearby police stations joined their officers and beat up the staff.

On the recommendation of the Rajasthan Tourism Development Corporation Chairman Dharmendra Rathore yesterday evening, the Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot directed the concerned authorities to take immediate action.

Two state employees, assistant sub-inspector and two cops of the Gegal police station were also suspended for their alleged involvement in a literal fight.
The Communist Party of India (CPI) on Wednesday extended its support to the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) against the Centres ordinance giving control of services back to the Delhi lieutenant governor.

The CPI announced its decision after a meeting between CPI general secretary D Raja and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal. Several prominent political parties, including JD (U), RJD, TMC, Shiv Sena (UBT), NCP, BRS, DMK, JMM, SP and CPI (M) have already assured their support to the AAP over the matter.

Addressing the media after the meeting, Kejriwal expressed his gratitude to D Raja and the CPI for the support to his campaign against the Centres ordinance.

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He said the CPI has announced their support to a cause that will be of immense help in the fight of two crore Delhiites against the suppression of their rights. The democratic rights of the people of Delhi are being trampled upon. Today, we are in power, tomorrow someone else might be. The people of Delhi deserve to have the right to empower their elected leaders to govern the state without any interference from the Centre, he said.

Furthermore, the Delhi chief minister explained that after studying the ordinance in-depth it has become clear that its provisions havent been imposed on Delhi because it is a half state. Instead, this ordinance can be replicated upon any full state. Tomorrow, it might be Rajasthan, the day after it might be Punjab, Tamil Nadu or Kerala. The Centre can easily use it to confiscate the authority over all the subjects in the concurrent list, Kejriwal said.

He also cautioned all non-BJP state governments to not be under the misconception that the step wont be taken against them. Delhi is only their pilot test. If this ordinance is not defeated at the stage of Delhi itself, then it will be replicated in every state where a non-BJP government is elected. All the 140 crore citizens of this country, all political parties must forget their differences and oppose this draconian ordinance, the chief minister said.

He further said, The ordinance is a brazen power grab and has wreaked havoc on Delhi. The ordinance not only reverses the Constitution Bench judgement of the Supreme Court but goes much beyond that.

The CM highlighted many instances wherein the ordinance has created several impediments and has made day to day functioning of Delhi Government almost impossible.

Kejriwal said the ordinance is very dangerous for the whole country, not just Delhi. The more one reads into it, the more fatal outcomes of its provisions come out.

He pointed out about how the BJP has faced crushing defeat in Delhi three times in a row, and how its trying to stifle the governance system through the backdoor.

The CM thanked all the Opposition parties which have extended their support to his campaign against this ordinance. He expressed his hope that the ordinance will not stand in the Supreme Court and Rajya Sabha and the people of Delhi will get justice very soon.

Speaking on the occasion, D Raja said, He (Arvind Kejriwal) explained to us how the Delhi Government has been made powerless and all the powers of the state government have been grabbed by the Central Government. It is very atrocious.

The senior CPI leader expressed his support to Kejriwal on the issue of the ordinance and said that his party has always batted for Delhi being given full statehood. As far as our party, the Communist Party of India, is concerned, we have made it very clear that we are with Arvind Kejriwal on this issue. In fact, ours is one of the few parties that have been demanding full statehood for Delhi, because there is an elected government with an elected chief minister, but they have no powers. It is the same situation in Puducherry, and our party has always said that both Delhi and Puducherry should have full statehood, he said.

Kejriwal also criticised a provision in the Centres ordinance that allows them to establish commissions and boards for the Delhi government.

Accusing the Bharatiya Janata Party-led Central government of misusing the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) by targeting the opposition leaders, Kejriwal said names of these probe agencies should be changed to BJP Sena.

In a tweet, Kejriwal said, The names of CBI and ED should be changed to BJP Sena. There was a time when these investigative agencies were respected. Whenever they conducted raids or made arrests, it appeared that the person must have done something wrong. Today, these agencies have become mere political weapons of the BJP.
Even as Telangana government celebrated the Health Day as part of its decennial celebrations, Hyderabad MP Asaduddin Owaisi slammed chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao for neglecting the dilapidated Osmania Hospital calling it a blatant injustice to the people of his constituency.

The AIMIM chief mocked the BRS Government saying it has funds for everything in the world, but for the healthcare of the poor. He wondered why health was not being prioritised.

The AIMIM, which is considered a friendly party for the BRS, has been of late targeting the ruling party. The latest attack came on a day the state chief minister laid the foundation stone for a new building of the Nizam Institute of Medical Sciences (NIMS) to accommodate 2,000 beds making it one of the largest hospitals of the country.

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Not mincing words, Owaisi said the chief minister was going to lay the foundation stone for the extension of NIMS for Rs 1,571 crore, but his demand for upgradation and new building for Osmania Hospital was being disregarded. This is blatant injustice against the people of Hyderabad constituency. It is also a grave disservice to doctors, medical students and people of Telangana who come to Hyderabad for treatment. The dilapidated building doesnt serve the needs of a modern hospital, he rued in a long tweet.

He went on to add, The restoration of the old building and construction was estimated to be Rs 560 crore. This amount is peanuts for a prosperous state government that seems to have funds for everything in the world. Whats the use of public money if its not helping the poorest get life-saving healthcare? What else could be the reason for the delay in starting work on Osmania?

The Osmania Hospital, set up by the last Nizam, is housed in a beautiful but dilapidated heritage building.

Initially, when the chief minister wanted to raze it to the ground to construct a new block there faced uproar, particularly from conservationists. Owaisi had been batting for the demolition, but the state government is yet to take an initiative in this direction.

Meanwhile, chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao pointed out that in 2014, the Health Department was allocated only Rs 2,100 crore while nine years later the budget jumped to Rs 12,367 crore.

Besides, he launched KCR nutrition kits aimed at reducing anaemia and boosting haemoglobin levels among pregnant women. The kit contains one kg nutritional powder, one kg dates, 500gm of ghee, 3 bottles of iron syrup and a cup.
Amid reports of outages across state, Punjab Power Minister Harbhajan Singh on Wednesday said adequate power arrangements have been made to ensure 24-hour power supply to the domestic consumers in the state during summer.

The minister assured uninterrupted eight-hour daily supply to farmers during this paddy season. He said the Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL) is in a position to meet 14150 megawatt (MW) of demand and it will be able to meet 15350 MW demand by utilising remaining 1200 MW transmission capacity.

Singh said the import capacity (available transfer capability limit) of Punjab from outside Punjab has been enhanced to 8800 MW which is likely to be enhanced in a day or two to 9000 MW.

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With around 6400 MW generation within state and 4800 MW share of state in Centre sector and BBMB plants and 2950 MW of short term arrangements, 7750 MW of arrangements from outside state on short term basis PSPCL is in position to meet 14150 MW of demand, said the minister said.

He said by utilising the remaining 1200 MW transmission capacity PSPCL will be able to meet 15350 MW demand. He said the remaining transmission capacity will be booked by procuring power from open market through exchanges on real time demand availability gap basis, if required.

Singh said recently a series of heavy storms hit various areas of Punjab causing severe damage to the power transmission and distribution infrastructure of the state. Storms resulted in damage of around 8150 poles, 1839 transformers and around 73 kilometer of conductor, with total financial loss assessed at around Rs 16.5 crore, he added.
In the wake of the police action against a woman journalist of a leading Malayalam news channel in connection with an alleged fake exam result of the state secretary of the SFI, the student-wing of CPI-M, Union Minister of State for Electronics and Information Technology Rajeev Chandrasekhar has questioned the double standards of the CPI-M over the press freedom.

Terming the case filed against Asianet News Kochi Chief Reporter Akhila Nandakumar for covering a fake mark list story as an example of CPI-Ms hypocrisy on press freedom, Rajeev Chandrasekhar said they (the CPI-M) are vocal about freedom of expression when BBC documentary issue came up. However, when a fake mark list story was reported by a journalist in Kerala, the government under the CPI-M has filed a case against her with conspiracy charges.

Meanwhile, Opposition leader in the Kerala Assembly VD Satheesan on Tuesday took a dig at CPI-M general secretary Sitaram Yechury, asking whether his remarks accusing the BJP-led Central government of media manipulation were also applicable to his party comrade and Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan.

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Satheesan said Yechury appeared to be blissfully unaware that Vijayan was also allegedly involved in media manipulation.

The criticism comes in the wake of the police action against Akhila Nandakumar, a reporter of a leading Malayalam news channel in connection with covering a story related to an alleged fake mark list.

Responding to the revelations made by former Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey that the Narendra Modi Government threatened the social media company with a ban and raid of its employees in India if certain tweets about the farmers protest were not suppressed, the CPI-M general secretary has tweeted, The outrageous manner in which the media ecosystem is being manipulated, dissent is intimidated, journalists threatened, abused and jailed on false pretext. No amount of denial by the Modi Government can obfuscate the truth of doctoring media content.

Sharing the tweet, Opposition leader in Satheesan asked Yechuri whether this is applicable to Comrade Pinarayi Vijayan and his government too. Mr.Yachuri, is this applicable to Com.Pinarayi and his government too, he said.

The Kerala Police on Saturday booked Akhila Nandakumar, a reporter with Malayalam news channel Asianet News, on a complaint filed by PM Arsho, state secretary of the Students Federation of India (SFI. The complaint was against a news report by Akhila alleging that Arsho, an MA Archaeology student at Maharajas College Ernakulam, had passed all his exams without appearing for them. Akhila, who is chief reporter of Asianet News Kochi, has been named the fifth accused in the case.

The police have booked her with 120B (criminal conspiracy), 465 (forgery), 469 (forgery for purpose of harming reputation), and 500 (defamation) of the Indian Penal Code.

In this connection, the Editors Guild of India on Tuesday voiced concern over alleged intimidation and harassment of journalists by the CPI-M-led LDF government in Kerala.

Condemning the police action, the Guild said that the action taken in the case is extremely worrisome and urged the Kerala government to immediately withdraw the case. It said raising questions is the duty of the media persons and to face it with threats and using investigative agencies is against democratic values.

The Editors also voiced concern over alleged intimidation and harassment of a journalist by Union minister Smriti Irani. It claimed that Irani intimidated a journalist during her visit to her Lok Sabha constituency Amethi on 9 June.
No sooner had the dates for the rural polls to be held in West Bengal next month announced, a war of words began between the states ruling party and the opposition parties. Among the

most contentious issues were whether central paramilitary forces would be deployed to ensure a peaceful polling process or whether the states police force was adequately equipped. The ruling party insisted on the latter. The Opposition demanded the former. In fact, the very next day of the

announcement, BJP and Congress filed petitions in the Calcutta High Court asking for central forces.

State police is certainly not enough, exclaimed CPIMs Sujan Chakraborty. It will fall way short of the number of booths the personnel have to man during the polls.Currently, the West Bengal police comprise 79,032 personnel. The estimated number of booths during the upcoming polls is expected

to not only exceed that figure but exceed by a large number, according to Chakraborty.

There are 3,317 Gram Panchayats in the three-tier rural-government system in West Bengal spread over 23 districts. The total number of Gram Panchayat (the village-level governing body) seats that will be contested is 63,229. The total number of Panchayat Samity (the block-level governing body) seats that will be contested is 9,730 and the total number of Zilla Parishad (district-level governing body) seats that will be contested is 928.

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In West Bengal, the Panchayat Polls are given a great deal of importance and are even considered at par with the Parliamentary or Assembly elections. This was a practice during the three decades of Communist rule whose policy was decentralized governments and more power to the people in the districts, explains Professor Biswajnath Chakraborty, a political analyst. West Bengal, more than perhaps some other states, has had a policy of implementing the provisions of the Panchayat Raj with greater priority.

And the more control that a political party exercised at the ground, that is the number of Panchayat seats held, meant that that partys chances of securing seats in the other elections would be far greater.

This is why the Panchayat polls are extremely important for Mamata Banerjee as she heads to the Parliamentary elections next year, says Professor Chakraborty. Her party does already control the majority of the Panchayats in the state and she doesnt want to concede any ground locally because she is now trying to recapture ground at the Parliamentary level (BJPs seats and vote shares had shot up significantly in the last general elections.) The 2023 Panchayat polls for Didi are all about retaining ground in order to recapture it in the Parliamentary polls of 2024.

As far as the Oppositions insistence on deploying central paramilitary forces during the rural polls is concerned, it has a lot to do with their claim that Trinamools fight to protect its turf could come at the cost of free and fair elections. It is not just about the shortage of personnel in comparison to booths which could leave booths vulnerable to manipulation by the party wielding power but it is also about the neutrality of the force guarding the booths, says Professor Chakraborty. The

Opposition fears that without a neutral watchdog their candidates and their supporters would not be able to register their votes in a free and fair manner. He points out that violence has often marred elections in West Bengal. The idea of violence is not new to West Bengal politics whether you look at Naxal Movement or the Communist ideas of armed revolutions. This has unfortunately seeped into the democratic processes including of holding elections.

The last Panchayat Polls reported unprecedented incidents of violence according to the experts. From the time of filing nomination papers when contestants were violently beaten up to the time of actual voting when there was largescale violence. This time too reports of violence are

trickling in. There have been allegations that many would-be contestants are being prevented from filing their nomination papers by political goons. Allegations that Trinamool has perpetrated most of these have been denied with party leaders pointing out that The most number of nomination

papers filed in the first two days have been those of the Opposition parties including BJP and the Congress, as said a Trinamool leader.

After a five-day wait (the petition was filed on June 9, the day after the announcement of dates, which was on June 8), yesterday, the division bench of the Calcutta High Court headed by Chief Justice TS Sivagananam, ruled that central forces would indeed be deployed and especially in the seven sensitive districts of the state. These districts are East Midnapore, South 24 Paraganas, parts of North 24 Paraganas, Birbhum, Hoogly, Jalpaiguri and Murshidabad.
After a high-voltage drama Tamil Nadu minister, Senthil Balaji was admitted to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) in a government hospital on Wednesday morning after he was questioned by Enforcement Directorate (ED) officials in connection with a money laundering case.

Here is everything we know about V.Senthil Balaji

V. Senthil Balajis is an Indian politician from Tamil Nadu. Born on 21 October 1975, in London, England he is 48 years old. He studied from Rameswarapatti Govt School, Vivekananda School, Pasupathypalayam, and Municipal Higher Secondary School, Karur. His personal life is yet to be uncovered as we know very less about his parents and siblings. His fathers name is unknown and his mothers name is also unknown. His spouses name is Megala Senthilbalaji. His ethnicity status has not been mentioned.

V. Senthil Balajis Career

He entered politics at the age of 21 and was active from the early 2000s. In 1997 he began his public service as a local body member. He was the Minister of Transport in the Government of Tamil Nadu from 2011 to 2015.

As a member of Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, he was earlier elected to the same Karur constituency in the 2006 general elections. He was elected as MLA from Aravakurichi constituency in 2016. But he came to the limelight after the death of Jayalalithaa as he played a key role in saving the government. When AIADMK separated into coalitions he stood by T. T. V. Dhinakaran.

He joined Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), in the presence of Party President M. K. Stalin on 14 December 2018, after 18 MLAs were disqualified by the speaker P. Dhanapal for their petition to the Governor Mr. Banwarilal Purohit to change the Chief Minister.

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Soon after joining the party, he was offered the district secretarys post and later was declared as the by-election candidate for the Aravakurichi constituency. He was elected as an MLA on 23 May 2019 for the fourth time. He serves as a member of the Tamil Nadu legislative assembly. He won the election held in the month of April 2021 and has been currently serving as Minister for Electricity, Prohibition & Excise.
Karnataka Minister for Home and prominent Dalit leader Dr. G. Parameshwaras statements on Dalits being deprived of the post of Chief Minister in the state has not only triggered the Dalit CM debate but also revealed that all is not well within the Congress government.

When I was the President of Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC), even after bringing the party to power in 2013, I could not become the CM. Though the party achieved success under my leadership, no one gave the credit to me. I also did not claim. In 2018, the party had to taste defeat as it neglected Dalits. The so-called big leaders, who neglected the community, had to be taught a lesson in the elections, said Parameshwar.

He said this while addressing the Scheduled Castes congregation organised by various Dalit groups at Ambedkar Bhavan here on Tuesday.

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The minister further claimed that intentionally Dalit leaders are being denied the post of the CM in the party. Why cant I, or Minister for Social Welfare Dr. H.C. Mahadevappa, Minister for Food and Civil Supplies K.H. Muniyappa become Chief Ministers? Parameshwara stated. We have to shed inferiority and get united, he gave a call to Dalit leaders.

Sources in the Congress said that the party is worried about the development and watching the turn of events carefully in Karnataka.

The party is worried over the development as it might threaten the unity of the party which is looking formidable at present. Dalits and other backward classes had rallied behind the Congress during the recent Assembly polls and the party is not ready to take the risk of losing the vote bank on any count, especially before the Lok Sabha and Bengaluru civic polls.

The high command has managed to broker peace between Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Deputy CM and state President D.K. Shivakumar. The duo seems to be strongly going ahead, and the BJP has not able to get the momentum even one month after the elections.

Parameshwara is one of the prominent Dalit leaders and senior Congressman, who never changed his loyalty in his career.

It is an open secret in the state political corridors that Chief Minister Siddaramaiah ensured the defeat of Parameshwara in state Assembly election of 2013 to wrestle the post of CM. Parameshwara, who was the state party president then, was not considered for the post following his defeat. Sources stated Parameshwara is not happy and still remembers the betrayal handed over to him.

When I was the President of Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC), even after bringing the party to power in 2013, I could not become the CM. Though the party achieved success under my leadership, no one gave the credit to me. I also did not claim. In 2018, the party had to taste defeat as it neglected Dalits. The so-called big leaders, who neglected the community, had to be taught a lesson in the elections, Parameshwar stated.

He further claimed that intentionally Dalit leaders are being denied the post of the CM in the party. Why cant I, or Minister for Social Welfare Dr. H.C. Mahadevappa, Minister for Food and Civil Supplies K.H. Muniyappa become Chief Ministers? Parameshwara stated. We have to shed inferiority and get united, he gave a call to Dalit leaders.

Sources in the Congress said that the party is worried about the development and watching the turn of events carefully in Karnataka.

Karnataka state has never had a Dalit CM after Independence. Though prominent leaders emerged from the community, including Mallikarjun Kharge, no one made it to the CMs post.

Mallikarjun Kharge missed the opportunity by a whisker when the JD(S)- Congress coalition government came to power in 2004. Sources said that though Congress party was keen to make Mallikarjun Kharge as the CM, the JD(S) supremo and former Prime Minister H.D. Deve Gowda favoured the late Dharam Singh. Congress came to power in the 2013 election and Parameshewar was the party president. He lost the opportunity as he lost elections from the Koratagere seat.

Though JD(S) and BJP have Dalit leadership, the party is not grooming any leader for the top post. On the contrary Congress party has many prominent and strong leaders from the Dalit and oppressed classes. It is to be seen what turn the Dalit CM debate takes in the Congress party.
Commentary: Basing sanctions on lies, Washington is true human rights violator in Xinjiang

Xinhua) 08:24, June 14, 2023

A seeding machine equipped with the Beidou Navigation Satellite System is at work in a cotton field in Yuli County, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, March 30, 2023. (Xinhua/Wang Fei)

Washington is adept at pursuing its self-interests by imposing sanctions against others, often under the guise of high-sounding excuses. It is no doubt the "sanctions lord."

BEIJING, June 13 (Xinhua) -- On identifying who is hindering their strive for better lives, the Xinjiang locals have more say.

Reyla Qahar, a worker at Kuche Pomegranate Seed Clothing Co., Ltd, aspires to improve her life through hard work. Unfortunately, U.S. sanctions in recent years on the region's cotton industry have disrupted her plan.

The U.S. bans plunged the clothing company into difficulty. They "had an adverse impact on our company," Qahar said. Ridiculously, the damaging sanctions have been imposed by Washington in the name of promoting human rights in Xinjiang. As Qahar has pointed out, it is Washington itself that is "violating our human rights and undermining our happy life."

Stories similar to Qahar's are not uncommon in Xinjiang as Washington has lengthened its sanction list to target more Xinjiang-related companies beyond the cotton industry. The businesses are groundlessly accused of using either "forced labour" or materials produced by "forced labour" in Xinjiang. On Friday, under the same pretext, Washington added two more Chinese companies, one printer maker and one chemicals company, to its hit list.

The actions taken by Washington are based on flagrant lies, rather than factual evidence. The allegation of "forced labor" in Xinjiang is completely contrary to reality. In Xinjiang, the rights and interests at work of the people of all ethnic groups are effectively protected.

Washington's sanctions are by no means an effort to protect human rights. Instead, the ulterior motive for the sanctions is to defame China, undermine prosperity and stability in Xinjiang, and stifle China's development to serve the United States' hegemonic interests.

Washington is adept at pursuing its self-interests by imposing sanctions against others, often under the guise of high-sounding excuses. It is no doubt the "sanctions lord." According to a report of The Washington Post, the U.S. Treasury Department estimated in late 2021 that it had sanctions on 9,421 organizations and individuals, a roughly 900 percent increase over the past 20 years. In 2022, the Treasury Department added 2,549 new designations.

This photo taken on Jan. 20, 2023 shows the U.S. Department of the Treasury in Washington, D.C., the United States. (Xinhua/Liu Jie)

The bulk of those sanctions has been imposed in the name of protecting human rights, yet they have only caused humanitarian disasters in numerous regions and countries.

For years, Washington has consistently imposed illegal unilateral sanctions on Syria, exacerbating the Middle Eastern country's economic crisis and devastating the livelihoods of its people. In February, Washington's sanctions directly impeded the rescue efforts in the first 72 hours in Syria after a deadly earthquake.

Xinjiang presents another case. Last June, Washington signed into law the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, which brazenly presumes that all goods from Xinjiang have been tainted by "forced labor" and stipulates that the goods will be banned from exporting to the United States unless importers can prove otherwise.

The legislation is a clear form of intimidation. Any company that hires people from Xinjiang may fall prey to the act. Rather than combatting "forced labor," the law actually engenders "forced unemployment" and "forced poverty."

Furthermore, it has also attempted to kick Xinjiang out of the global industrial and supply chains, a de facto "forced decoupling" from China that will disrupt international economic and trade orders.

Washington has been violating human rights under the pretext of protecting human rights, flouting rules while purporting to uphold them, and breaking laws while pretending to safeguard them. Such moves go against the trend of the times and are ultimately destined to fail.

(Web editor: Zhong Wenxing, Liang Jun)
Turkish Airlines has been named Turkiyes most valuable brand for the sixth consecutive time in the 2023 study by Brand Finance, an international leading brand valuation organization.



Turkish Airlines has successfully increased its value from $1.6 billion in 2022 to $2.02 billion, representing a 26% growth. The flag carrier airline, deserving of this title for the sixth consecutive time, solidified its position at the top.



On the title, Turkish Airlines Chairman Prof Dr. Ahmet Bolat stated: "We are proud to be Turkiyes most valuable brand for the sixth consecutive time. We will continue to bring our brand, which represents the wings of Turkiye as dreamed 90 years ago, to even greater achievements. Just as we soar high in the blue sky, we will continue to soar high in the realm of brands. I thank all my colleagues who have contributed to this success."



Brand Finance, one of the world's leading independent brand valuation and consulting companies, has been aiming to bridge between marketing and finance since 1996. The company, which has been calculating the financial value of brands for over 20 years, evaluates the world's largest 5,000 brands every year and prepares approximately 100 reports annually by ranking these brands based on country and sector.  TradeArabia News Service
BEIRUT, June 14 (Xinhua) -- Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri on Wednesday called for a national dialogue to facilitate the election of a new president after the parliament failed for the 12th time to pick a head of state.

"The election of a new president will only be achieved through a consensus by adopting the path of dialogue within the framework of the Lebanese constitution and in a way that would preserve partnerships among different political parties,"

The Lebanese parliament on Wednesday failed to elect a new president during its 12th session in the presidential race between Sleiman Frangieh, leader of the Marada Movement, supported by the two Shiite parties Hezbollah and Amal Movement, and Jihad Azour, a former finance minister, backed by the country's two biggest Christian parties, the Free Patriotic Movement and the Lebanese forces.

Neither of the two candidates obtained a two-thirds majority or a total of 86 votes during the first voting, while the second round was not held because of a lack of quorum.

Lebanon failed to elect a president since October 2022 when the term of former President Michel Aoun ended.

Lebanon has been suffering from an unprecedented financial crisis. The country urgently needs to elect a president and form a new cabinet to implement the necessary reforms and put the country on the path of recovery. 
This summer, enthusiasts in Delhi can savor the flavors of beloved Mango the King of Fruits. The 9th edition of the Bengal Mango Mela and Handloom-Handicraft Expo 2023 organised by the West Bengal government begins on June 5, 2023.

The festival will continue until June 19, 2023, being held at the courtyard of Handloom Haat, Janpath, New Delhi. This brings the annual display of Bengal mangoes to the capital city once again. Visitors will also be treated to exotic delicacies. In comparison to last year, this years event will be significantly larger in scale as many new initiatives have been taken to showcase the crafts & culture of West Bengal.

The festival was inaugurated on 5th June 2023 by Dr.Subrata Gupta, IAS, Additional Chief Secretary, Department of Food Processing Industries & Horticulture, in the gracious presence of Smt. Ujjaini Datta, Resident Commissioner, Government of West Bengal, And Sri Jayanta Kumar Aikat, IAS, Director, Department of Food Processing Industries & Horticulture.

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Speaking to The Statesman, Dr.Subrata Gupta says Farmers from six districts of West Bengal put up eight stalls at the fair, one can find uncommon varieties of mangoes like Champa, golapjamun, etc apart from regular common and famous varieties.

He informed that mangos mainly grow in Murshidabad and Malda districts of WB with about 100 and 150 varieties respectively. We are now encouraging farmers of other districts like Purulia Bankura & Birbhum districts to also grow different varieties of mangoes by providing free seeds, fertilizers, saplings etc, and they are doing excellent and producing very good quality mangos at large scale.

Some of the varieties facing extinction which were earlier used to be found in farmhouses of Jamindars (landlords), we are finding out options to collect seeds of those varieties, and encouraging and helping farmers to grow them also.

Here, the purpose of the Mango mela is basically meant for the farmers to encourage them to show cause the produce for marketing purposes and support them. In addition, Delhities will be able to taste delicious mangos he added.

This festival has brought together a huge quantity of around 40000 Kgs of the diverse range of delicious Bengal mangoes such as Himsagar, Laxmanbhog, Lyangra, Fazli, Amrapali, Mahila, Kohitur, etc from six different districts of West Bengal, namely  Malda, Murshidabad, Nadia, Hoogly, North 24 Parganas & Bankura. Visitors to the Mango Mela can choose a wide variety of mangoes available for sale, including unique GI-tagged types of mangoes also.

West Bengal have the distinct GI recognition of handicrafts and handlooms like Bankura Panchmura Terracottah, Bengal Dokra, Bengal Patachitra, Purulia Chhau mask, Wooden mask of Kushmandi, Madurkathi, Shantiniketan Leather Goods, Shantipori Saree, Baluchari Saree, Dhaniakhali Saree. Many of these items will be displayed for visitors and are also for sale at the venue. This exhibition also features some of Bengals most popular GI foods, like Gobindbhog rice, Tulaipanji rice, Rasogolla, and Darjeeling tea.

The fruit has been used to prepare a wide range of dishes, from appetizers to main courses to desserts, using the different varieties of mangoes found in Bengal, such as Gulabkhas, Dilkhush, Amrapali, Langra, Fazli, Himsagar, Laxmanbhog and Mallika. An Exclusive Food zone comprises a Wide range of Mango based special Bengali cuisine, Delightful Mango savory items, bakeries, pickles, and other delicacies created at the mela. Also, there is a Special Food counter for Original Mango desserts from MALDA district and Natural organic mango eateries from Sundarini Naturals from SOUTH 24 PARGANAS. Visitors can taste Magical Mango delights such as Mango Mutton with Luchi, Mango Halwa, Mango Pulao, Mango Souffle, Mango Fish Fry, Mango Lassi, Mango Pastry and many more delicacies.

Apart from the Exhibition of GI Tagged Products and Food zone, the festival will witness a cultural extravaganza for the audience to be mesmerized with musical and dance programs on the evenings of June 11 and June 18, 2023, which will be held.

While the first performance of Shreekhol Sankirtan by Dr. Harekrishna Halder and Troupe, Kolkata, will be performed on June 11 at 6 pm, the next performance is titled Shraddhanjali, which is to be performed by Le Rhythme, New Delhi.

On June 18 from 5 pm onwards, Folk Dance of Bengal will be performed by the Shinjan group from New Delhi, the direction of which will be undertaken by Smita Chakrabarty. The next performance for this evening will be Hum-Sufi, which is to be performed by The Rocking Sufi Sensation group from Kolkata.
An unsealed indictment has revealed that former President Donald Trump is facing 37 felony charges related to the mishandling of classified documents. The indictment alleges that Trump not only improperly shared sensitive material but also took steps to hide records and obstruct investigators. This latest development marks a significant escalation in the legal troubles faced by the former president.

Here is a complete timeline of events in the Donald Trump classified documents case

May 6, 2021: The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) sends a letter to Trumps White House counsel, Pat Cipollone, asking for records from Trumps time in office.

Summer 2021: Trump displays letters from North Korean leader Kim Jong-un at a press conference. The letters are classified and should have been returned to NARA.

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January 17, 2022: Trump turns over 15 boxes of records to NARA.

February 25, 2022: NARA determines that 14 of the boxes contain classified information.

March 30, 2022: The FBI opens a criminal investigation into Trumps handling of classified information.

April 12, 2022: NARA tells Trump that it is cooperating with the FBI investigation and that it may need to search his properties.

April 26, 2022: A grand jury in Washington, D.C., is impaneled to investigate Trumps handling of classified information.

June 8, 2022: FBI agents search Trumps Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida.

August 8, 2022: The Justice Department unseals an indictment charging Trump with 17 felony counts of mishandling classified information.

August 12, 2022: A federal judge orders Trump to turn over all remaining classified documents in his possession.

September 1, 2022: Trump files a motion to dismiss the indictment, arguing that the charges are politically motivated.

November 15, 2022: A federal judge denies Trumps motion to dismiss the indictment.

December 1, 2022: Trumps lawyers file a notice of appeal of the judges ruling.

March 8, 2023: The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit hears oral arguments in Trumps appeal.

June 8, 2023: The D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals upholds the lower courts ruling, denying Trumps motion to dismiss the indictment.

June 13, 2023: Trumps lawyers file a petition for a writ of certiorari with the U.S. Supreme Court.

As the legal proceedings unfold, the nation eagerly awaits the resolution of these charges and the potential implications for the security and integrity of classified information.
Pakistan will evacuate around 100,000 people as part of its efforts to ensure the safety of those living in the countrys coastal area as cyclone Biparjoy is intensifying, according to National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) chairman Inam Haider Malik.

The evacuations will be completed by early Thursday, when Biparjoy is expected to make landfall between Keti Bandar in Sindh province and Kutch in Gujarat, Xinhua news agency quoted the NDMA chairman as saying at a press conference.

Malik said the cyclones intensity has increased and has been declared from a severe to a very severe cyclonic emergency, adding that measures are underway to control the storms effects and weather damage.

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According to the Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD), storm surges of up to 3.5 metres high are expected at the landfall point, which can inundate low-lying settlements along the coastline, reports Dawn news.

As a result, sea conditions along the coasts of Sindh and Balochistan would be extremely rough.

A PMD alert issued on Tuesday night said the cyclonic storm had moved further north/northwestward and lay just 380km south of Karachi.

The maximum speed of sustained surface winds is calculated to be between 140 and 150kmph, rising to 170kmph around the centre of the system.

Biparjoy has been categorised as a very severe cyclonic storm over the northeast Arabian Sea.

Thousands of people have already been evacuated from the coastal regions of both India and Pakistan.
Former U.S. President Donald Trump entered a plea of not guilty on Tuesday to federal charges of unlawfully retaining national security documents and lying to officials during their retrieval. Heres what to expect in the ongoing case.

The trial is anticipated to occur in approximately a year or more. Trumps plea, made before U.S. Magistrate Judge Jonathan Goodman in a federal court in Miami, sets the stage for a lengthy legal battle as he seeks to regain the presidency in the 2024 election.

Following the plea, Trump was allowed to leave court without any conditions or travel restrictions, and he wasnt required to post a cash bond. However, the judge ruled that he could not communicate with potential witnesses. Trumps aide, Walt Nauta, who is also charged in the case, appeared alongside him but will not enter a plea until June 27 due to the absence of a local lawyer. Nauta was also released without having to post bond and was ordered not to communicate with other witnesses.

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Federal prosecutors are expected to begin handing over evidence to Trumps legal team, which may include extensive correspondence involving Trumps lawyers, the U.S. National Archives and Records Administration, and prosecutors during the negotiation of document release.

Trumps lawyers will likely file a motion to dismiss the case on various grounds, potentially including his claim that he declassified the documents before taking possession of them. They may also argue for dismissal based on alleged prosecutorial misconduct, such as violations of attorney-client privilege.

However, motions to dismiss in criminal cases rarely succeed, as defendants face a high burden of convincing a judge that the case is fundamentally flawed and should not proceed to trial. At this stage, prosecutors are given the benefit of the doubt regarding their factual allegations.

Regarding Trumps campaign for the presidency, the charges against him, including violations of the Espionage Act, conspiracy to obstruct justice, and making false statements to investigators, do not automatically prevent him from running or assuming office if convicted. Trumps legal troubles have not significantly impacted his standing among Republican voters, as a recent poll indicated that he still maintains a wide lead in the race for the 2024 Republican nomination, with 81% of Republican voters viewing the charges as politically motivated.

Most of Trumps Republican rivals have expressed support for him and criticized the FBI for alleged political bias, deviating from the partys traditional stance of backing law enforcement. Trump has used his legal cases and investigations as fundraising tools, portraying himself as a target under attack and soliciting support from his followers.

The timeline for a potential trial remains uncertain. While Special Counsel Jack Smith, leading the prosecution, has mentioned a speedy trial, the complex nature of the case means that a trial could be several months away. The parties involved are likely to agree to extend deadlines as they examine evidence and argue legal disputes before a judge.

Whether Trump testifies in the trial is solely his decision. Defendants in criminal cases are not obligated to testify, and the risk of cross-examination by prosecutors often dissuades them from doing so. In a recent civil trial concerning allegations of sexual abuse and defamation brought by writer E. Jean Carroll, Trump chose not to testify, and a jury found him liable in that case in May.

If Trump were to win the 2024 presidential election, it is unlikely that the prosecution would proceed. The U.S. Department of Justice, which falls under the executive branch headed by the president, typically adheres to a policy that a sitting president cannot be prosecuted.

However, in extraordinary circumstances, with the approval of the U.S. attorney general, the department can deviate from this policy. In this scenario, a lame-duck attorney general, such as Merrick Garland serving under President Joe Biden, could choose to proceed, but Trump, as president, could terminate
A student from Hyderabad was stabbed to death at a residential property in Wembley, London, on Tuesday morning. The student has been identified as Kontham Tejaswini. The 27-year-old was to London to pursue higher studies. The attacker has been identified as a Brazilian man who had recently shifted into the shared accommodation.

The Metropolitan Police immediately responded to the crime scene and arrested the suspect, identified as Keven Antonio Lourenco De Morais, on suspicion of murder.

Tejaswini was rushed to a local hospital where she succumbed to injuries. Another woman, whose identity was not revealed, was hospitalised with non-life-threatening injuries. Her relationship with Tejaswini was not known.

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An investigation is now underway to uncover the details of this incident.

Tejaswini was a native of Brahamanapalli village in Hayatnagar mandal of Rangareddy district. According to a London police statement, another woman, aged 23, was arrested in connection with the incident but she was released without further action.

The male accused remained in custody as of Thursday,

The Metropolitan Police had earlier released an image of Keven Antonio Lourenco De Morais to seek the publics help in tracing the suspect behind the attack on Tuesday morning.
Saint-Laurent, CA (H4T1V6)

Today

Mainly clear. Areas of smoke and haze are possible, reducing visibility at times. Low 63F. Winds WNW at 5 to 10 mph..

Tonight

Mainly clear. Areas of smoke and haze are possible, reducing visibility at times. Low 63F. Winds WNW at 5 to 10 mph.
KIGALI, June 14 (Xinhua) -- Experts have emphasized the need for African countries to strengthen the growth of basic sciences to accelerate technology development on the continent.

Science and education experts, technology scholars, researchers, and government officials attending the African Continental Conference on Basic Sciences for Transformation in Kigali, Rwanda, have stated that the future prosperity of the continent depends on robust investment in inclusive and innovative basic sciences.

Vaughan Turekian, executive director of the Policy and Global Affairs Division of the US-based National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, expressed that science should not be limited to one country or region but should be inclusive and shared for the benefit of all.

Luc Allemand, secretary general of the International Year of Basic Sciences for Sustainable Development (IYBSSD), stressed the transformative potential of developing basic sciences in Africa, highlighting how advancements in science and technology can drive economic and technological growth and generate employment opportunities.

"Basic science is instrumental in the development of society and the expansion of human knowledge, benefiting various aspects of our lives, including energy, environment, and agriculture," said Valentine Uwamariya, Rwandan minister of Education at the conference.

She highlighted that many of the revolutionary inventions and developments the world enjoys today, such as electricity, telecommunications, computers, and modern medicine, are a direct result of basic scientific research through discoveries and new technologies.

Uwamariya pointed out that Rwanda has established a Bioeconomy Skills Development and Acceleration Center in pursuit of a competitive and effective pharma and biotechnology in Rwanda. She said that the center will provide the necessary laboratory space and resources for the development of skills that the bioeconomy demands, enabling the Rwandan workforce to be qualified and competent in this emerging sector.

Amal Kasry, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)'s chief of the Section in Basic Sciences, Research Innovation, and Engineering, highlighted the significance of strengthening basic sciences in Africa to address challenges in healthcare and energy resources. Basic science serves as the foundation for applied research, enabling the development of techniques and applications to tackle various challenges such as water and climate change mitigation, she added.

The two-day conference, which opened Tuesday, was organized by UNESCO in collaboration with Rwanda's Ministry of Education. It is part of the International Year of Basic Sciences for Sustainable Development. It brought together delegates from local educational institutions, as well as representatives from international organizations including UNESCO, the World Academy of Sciences, and the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.

The event featured exhibitions showcasing hands-on training tools for teachers and students, including micro-science kits, artificial intelligence (AI) robotics, a virtual reality chemistry lab by Chemists Without Borders, and displays by national exhibitors engaged in scientific research.

The conference aimed to demonstrate developing science and technology will support economic growth, including increased trade and investment opportunities to support the growth of regional economies and the creation of job opportunities. 
NED BRISTOL is a retired editor who writes occasional columns for the newspaper. Drop him a line at news@thesunchronicle.com .
LAGOS, June 13 (Xinhua) -- At least 103 people were killed and many others missing after a boat capsized on Monday in the country's central state of Kwara, police said on Tuesday.

The accident occurred on Monday morning in a river in the Patigi local government area of the state, as the passengers were returning home from the neighboring Niger state in the central region, a police spokesperson told Xinhua on the phone. 
JOHANNESBURG, June 14 (Xinhua) -- The South African Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SACCI) said Wednesday that its business confidence index declined to 106.9 in May, 4.2 points lower than in April.

The country's business confidence index has decreased 10.4 points since December 2022, when the reading stood at 117.3, the SACCI said, noting that the largest contributor to the decline in the short term was related to foreign trade relations.

The less merchandise import and export volumes, fewer inward tourists, and the weaker rand exchange rate against major trade and investment currencies contributed to the decline in the confidence index, the SACCI said.

On the positive side, there were more new vehicles sold in May, improved energy supply caused by a lower crude oil price and increased manufacturing output from a low "unenergetic" level, the chamber said, adding that South Africa's business climate might be settling down after the uncertain effects of electricity and the global trade recovers.

Official data showed earlier this month that the South African economy grew 0.4 percent in the first quarter of this year. 
Who would have thought that a picture taken on March 5, 1960, with a Leica M2 90 mm lens of a man who had been photographed by many, and in numerous poses, would go on to become one of the world's most famous photographs, and be reproduced on every imaginable medium more than any other picture, perhaps, in history.

On that day in March, former fashion photographer Alberto Diaz Gutierrez, who later changed his name to Korda, immortalised Ernesto Guevara de la Serna, popularly known as Che Guevara.

Revolutionary leader. Physician. Marxist. Guerrilla leader. Author. And later, pop culture icon. Ernesto Che Guevara was all these, and more. But even those who do not know much about Che's life or exploits, would probably know him from Korda's iconic photo.

On that day, in downtown Havana, a funeral march was held in memory of all the sailors and stevedores who were killed when the La Coubre, a French vessel carrying tons of grenades and munitions, exploded. The march was attended by the likes of philosophers Jean-Paul Sartre and Simone de Beauvoir. Also present was Korda - a staff photographer for the Revolucion, a newspaper first published by the Revolutionary Union.

Korda, when asked about the picture by The Times of London, said "I decided to watch from the crowd and used my Leica with its medium telephoto lens. I panned the podium, and suddenly Che moved forward into my camera. I took a picture, and immediately thought of a cover of our newspaper, turned the camera vertically, made another - and the moment had gone."

Korda later said that Ches facial expression at that moment showed his characteristic stoicism and absolute implacability.

Though the picture  later titled 'Guerrillero Heroico' - did not go to print, it ended up in Korda's private collection and would not see the light of the day till 1967, when an Italian publisher and businessman Giangiacomo Feltrinelli came to Korda looking for a portrait of Che Guevara. He gifted Feltrinelli two copies of the print; the same print that Feltrinelli mass printed as promotional posters to promote Guevara's book after his execution by the Bolivian army on October 8, 1967. The picture first appeared as the cover of Feltrinellis publication of Guevara's Bolivian Diaries in 1968.

Interestingly, eight years after Korda's click, and a year after Che died, Irish artist Jim Fitzpatrick did a stylised red-black-and-white rendering of 'Guerrillero Heroico', which, to borrow from modern vocabulary, went viral.

Che Guevara had, by then, become the face of the revolution and his image a symbol of rebellion and anti-imperialism. As a result, Feltrinelli prospered while Korda never got any royalties despite being the man behind the lens. His daughter Diana Diaz told CGTN America that her father did not receive a cent out of the photograph's popularity and he did not care about making profits either. The only thing, she said, that mattered to him was the fact that the image helped make Che famous.

The year before he died, in an interview for a documentary, Korda is quoted as saying, I had the luck to take this photo and leave something for humanity. I didnt leave great palaces, yachts, money in the bank, none of that. I left an example of my work during my time in this world.
As many as 6,500 high-net-worth individuals (HNIs) are likely to leave India this year to migrate to other countries. India is second only to China (13,500) in the number of millionaires likely to leave the country, according to the latest edition of Henley & Partners' annual Private Wealth Migration Report.



High net-worth individuals mean people who have a total investable wealth of $1 million or more.



The 2023 migration forecasts are based on year-to-date HNWI movements to June 2023. The UK ranks third in the number of millionaires likely to migrate, followed by Russia, Brazil, Hong Kong, South Korea, and Mexico.



Australia is the most preferred destination for millionaires looking to migrate, followed by UAE, Singapore, the USA, and Switzerland. Other preferred destinations include Canada, France, Greece, Portugal, and New Zealand.



According to the report, nine of the top 10 countries to which HNIs prefer to move in 2023 host formal investment migration programmes and actively encourage foreign direct investment in return for residence rights.



In an unsettled, ever-changing world, wealthy individuals need a plan B for themselves and their families  one that offers them a safer place to live in times of crisis, while also providing them with greater access to global business and lifestyle opportunities, says the report.



It points out that many countries host residence and citizenship by investment programmes (golden visa programmes) offering several investment options. Such programmes give HNIs the option to relocate and the right to live, work, study, and access healthcare in their new countries of residence.



Investing in different residence and/or citizenship options offers both short-term value and long-term yield, the report observed.



"Affluent families are extremely mobile, and their transnational movements can provide an early warning signal in terms of a countrys economic outlook and future country trends," Forbes quoted Juerg Steffen, CEO, Henley & Partners as saying.



Wealthy Indians prefer Dubai and Singapore to migrate, with the latter frequently extending its golden visa programme to several celebrities among others. Most incoming millionaires in 2023 to Dubai are expected to come from India, says the report.



The report cites UAE's status as a safe haven, highly diversified economy, low tax rates, great healthcare system, good international schools, prime real estate, and all-year-round leisure activities as some of the reasons for being seen as a preferred destination for migration.
Blood donation is a selfless act that has the power to transform lives. But, misconceptions and apprehensions often deter potential donors. Myths about blood donation persist, hindering efforts to meet the growing demand for blood and blood products. Here are the five common myths about blood donation.

1.

MYTH:

Donating blood increases the risk of acquiring HIV and other infections.

FACT:

Medical professionals prioritise the use of sterile and new needles for every donation, ensuring that each needle is used only once. All used needles are promptly discarded to prevent any potential contamination.

According to the studies conducted by netmeds.com, before donating blood, individuals undergo a comprehensive screening process, which includes a detailed questionnaire and laboratory testing. This screening aims to identify any potential risk factors or underlying infections that may disqualify a person from donating blood. If a donor is found to have a high-risk profile or any indication of infections, their blood is not used for transfusion. Furthermore, donated blood undergoes extensive testing for various infectious diseases, including HIV hepatitis b and c, syphilis and others. These tests help ensure that any blood units found to be contaminated or carrying infections are promptly discarded.

2.

MYTH:

Donating blood can lead to a weakened immune system.

FACT:

As per American Red Cross, the process of donating blood involves, primarily, the extraction of red blood cells, which are replenished by the body within a few days. While it may take a few weeks for white blood cell levels to return to normal after donation, this temporary decrease in white blood cells does not significantly impair the immune system functionality.

The immune system is a complex network of cells, tissues and organs that work together to defend the body against infections and diseases. It is not compromised by the act of donating blood. The immune response is regulated by various factors such as the production of specific antibodies, the presence of immune cells and the overall health of an individual.

3.

MYTH:

Individuals with diabetes cannot donate blood.

FACT:

As per Lancet Citizens' Commission, diabetics can donate blood, provided their blood sugar levels are well managed and within the normal range specifically in terms of fasting blood sugar. It is important, however, for individuals with certain medical conditions such as cardiac ailments, hypoglycemia symptoms or blood sugar levels in the pre-diabetic range to consult their healthcare provider before considering blood donation.

It is crucial to ensure that the diabetes management is optimised to prevent any potential adverse effect on the recipient of the donated blood.

4.

MYTH:

Individuals with tattoos or piercing are ineligible to donate blood.

FACT:

This notion is a longstanding myth, but it is false. According to the American Red Cross guidelines, individuals should wait for a period of three months after getting the tattoo, to donate blood. But this, only if the tattoo was done from a tattoo parlour with a government licence. If not, the person cannot donate blood.

The guidelines also state that individuals who have undergone a piercing can donate blood without any issues if the instrument used during the piercing was single-use disposable. However, if a reusable gun or any other reusable instrument was used during the piercing, potential donors are requested to wait for three months before donating blood.

5.

MYTH:

Being on medication prohibits blood donation.

FACT:

As per a research by netmeds.com, taking medicines generally does not disqualify individuals from donating blood. The eligibility to donate blood may depend on the underlying condition for which the medication is prescribed. If the condition is well managed and the individual is in good health, he or she is usually eligible to donate. However, there are certain medications that may require a waiting period after the last dose before donating.
GARISSA, Kenya, June 13 (Xinhua) -- At least 12 people, including six soldiers, were killed Tuesday in two separate attacks linked to the al-Shabaab terror group in coastal and eastern Kenya.

The police said the attackers used improvised explosive devices (IED) to target security agencies as they moved on roads, also leaving dozens wounded.

In the first incident, al-Shabaab militants targeted a passenger bus in the eastern county of Mandera by shooting at it to force the driver to stop in vain, the police said. The driver sped off with a deflated tire, saving almost 50 passengers who were on board.

In the eastern county of Garissa, the police said the terror group targeted Kenya Defense Forces (KDF) troops with an explosive device, killing four of them after the vehicle ran over an IED.

The personnel were also attacked by guns, said the police officer, who declined to be identified. A team of National Police Reserve (NPR) that responded was met with resistance, leaving six of the NPR dead.

According to the police, another IED hit a KDF vehicle in the coastal county of Lamu, killing two troops, officials said, adding that the attacks happened almost simultaneously.

This brings the total number of security officers killed in the two terror attacks to 12.

The latest incidents marked the highest casualties so far this year as the terror group keeps moving into Kenya from Somalia where they have been facing onslaught from African Union Transition Mission in Somalia and Somali security forces.

In the recent past, there have been some attacks involving landmines, grenades, or other explosive devices in eastern Kenya. Most of these attacks occurred in eastern Kenya, mainly in Wajir, Garissa, and Mandera counties as well as along the Kenyan coast. 
The Tamil Nadu government on Wednesday withdrew the general consent accorded to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to probe cases in the state. The move came hours after the Enforcement Directorate arrested state electricity minister Senthil Balaji in connection with a cash-for-job scam case.

The central probe agency will now have to take prior permission from the state government to conduct investigation in the state. Nine opposition statesChhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Kerala, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Punjab, Rajasthan, Telangana and West Bengalhave already withdrawn the general consent to the CBI, accusing the Narendra Modi government of misusing the central agencies.

The ruling DMK has hit out at the ED raids at Balaji's residence and his arrest, with Chief Minister M.K. Stalin calling it as "an assault on federalism".

Stalin, who is the DMK President, stepped up his attack on the BJP and charged the ED officials with "enacting a drama" in the name of inquiry and accused them of "physically and mentally troubling" Balaji.

"They had pressured him to the point of him suffering chest pain," Stalin alleged in a statement.

Several opposition parties have also condemned the arrest of Balaji.

"Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge condemns the late-night arrest of Tamil Nadu Electricity Minister Shri V. Senthil Balaji by the ED," the Congress said in a statement.

"This is nothing but political harassment and vendetta by the Modi government against those opposed to it. None of us in the Opposition will be intimidated by such brazen moves," it added.

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said the manner in which the arrest was made is very objectionable.

"CBI and ED should be renamed as 'BJP's Army'... We condemn the raid and arrest of a minister in Tamil Nadu," he said.

CPI leader D. Raja pointed out that the raid took place a few days after Union Home Minister Amit Shah claimed the BJP would win 25 Lok Sabha seats during a visit to Tamil Nadu.

"It's highly objectionable that ED can go inside the Secretariat. If the BJP thinks they can win seats in Tamil Nadu by doing this, they are living in a fool's paradise. Tamil Nadu will not allow BJP," he said.

CPI(M) Secretary Tamil Nadu State Committee K Balakrishnan strongly condemned the "central government and its ED wing" for the arrest of Balaji.

The National Conference (NC) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) expressed with solidarity with the DMK and Balaji.
Ahead of the assembly elections in Rajasthan, the BJP is set to intensify its protest against the Ashok Gehlot-led government. The saffron party is planning a series of protests which will culminate with a statewide gherao in the last week of July.

The gherao would witness participation of over five lakh people across the state. The event is being organised as a big impact political statement as the spectacle will be visible across the state. To coincide with the mega event, a rally is also being planned for July 31 or August 1, party sources said. Another feature of this maha gherao would be that the party would set up counters across the states to register symbolic FIRs against the Gehlot government for alleged wrongdoings particularly corruption.

The BJP has already held Jan Aakrosh rallies across the assembly segments, districts and even conducted Jan Sampark (community outreach) programme in the villages.

Rajasthan is an important state for the BJP where elections are due in November-December this year. The state has been electing alternate government every five years. The BJP is hopeful that this tradition will be maintained in the state as infighting in the Congress and corruption charges against the Gehlot government would be determining factors. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had picked up Ajmer to hold a rally to mark the ninth anniversary of his government on May 31.

The BJP is yet to decide on its CM face, for which the call will be taken by the partys parliamentary board. The party may also go to election with a collective leadership.

Our party is attracting talent. Already eight IAS and IPS officers have joined BJP as has the son of former state CM Pahadia. Even nephew of former President Pratibha Patil has joined the BJP, Arun Singh, BJP general secretary and party in-charge of Rajasthan, said.

Addressing a press conference, Singh said corruption has broken all records in Rajasthan under Gehlot government. Our cadres are protesting against it, as we did in Jaipur on Tuesday. The police let lose terror on our cadre. Illegal mining, cash for transfers, paper leaks, farmer suicides are now associated with the state, he said.
Parts of the Saurashtra-Kutch region in Gujarat received heavy rains accompanied by strong winds on Tuesday as Cyclone Biparjoy is expected to make a landfall on June 15 evening. Over 50,000 people have been shifted to safer locations from the coastal areas.

The India Meteorological Department said the cyclone is very likely to move nearly northeastwards and cross Saurashtra and Kutch and adjoining Pakistan coasts between Mandvi (Gujarat) and Karachi (Pakistan) near Jakhau Port (Gujarat) by June 15 evening.

"Cyclone Warning for Saurashtra & Kutch Coasts: RED MESSAGE. VSCS BIPARJOY at 1130 IST today over NE Arabian Sea near lat 21.9N & long 66.3E, about 280km WSW of Jakhau Port (Gujarat) and 290km WSW of Devbhumi Dwarka. To cross near Jakhau Port by evening of 15th June as VSCS. @WMO," tweeted IMD.

Nine talukas in Devbhumi Dwarka, Jamnagar, Junagadh, Porbandar and Rajkot districts received more than 50 mm of rainfall in the 24 hours ending on Wednesday morning.

The National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) has earmarked a total of 33 teams to undertake relief and rescue operations. While 18 NDRF teams have been placed in Gujarat, one has been stationed in neighbouring Diu in the newly formed Union territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu. Fourteen NDRF teams have been deployed in neighbouring Maharashtra.

Each of these teams have about 35-40 personnel and they are equipped with tree and pole cutters, electric saws, inflatable boats and basic medicines and relief items, PTI reported quoting officials.

Indian Army, Navy and Border Security Force (BSF) have also joined rescue and relief operations. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Wednesday spoke to the three service chiefs and reviewed the preparations of the armed forces to deal with the impact of the cyclone.

Singh later said the armed forces are ready to provide every possible assistance to civil authorities in tackling any situation or contingency that may arise due to the cyclone.

Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel held a meeting with the state chief secretary and senior officers at the State Emergency Operation Centre (SEOC) and reviewed preparedness. Shelter homes have been set up in government schools and offices in coastal districts, with arrangements for food, drink and medicine.

According to IMD, the wind speed will gradually increase to 125-135 kmph gusting to 150 kmph on Thursday along and off the districts of Kutch, Devbhumi Dwarka, Porbandar, Jamnagar, Rajkot, Junagarh and Morbi.

Sea condition is likely to be very rough till the evening of Wednesday along the Saurashtra and Kutch coasts and "high to phenomenal" till the evening of Thursday before becoming normal.

With PTI inputs
The India Meteorological Department (IMD) issued a red alert on Wednesday as Very Severe Cyclonic Storm Biparjoy barrels towards the Kutch coast in Gujarat, ahead of the landfall expected on Thursday.

The latest IMD alert posted on Twitter read: "Cyclone Warning for Saurashtra and Kutch Coasts: RED MESSAGE. VSCS BIPARJOY at 0530IST of today over NE Arabian Sea near lat 21.9N & long 66.3E, about 280km WSW of Jakhau Port (Gujarat), 290km WSW of Devbhumi Dwarka. To cross near Jakhau Port (Gujarat) by evening of 15June as VSCS."



The weather agency had warned that the cyclone could cause extensive damage and result in extremely heavy rainfall (over 20 cm) at isolated places in Kutch, Devbhoomi Dwarka and Jamnagar districts. "Usually these areas do not receive such massive rainfall. Therefore, it can lead to flooding in low-lying areas," IMD chief Mrutyunjay Mohapatra told reporters on Tuesday.



The weather agency has also warned of a storm surge despite Biparjoy losing some of its intensity. Experts warn that the cyclone could pick up force again and come barrelling down on Gujarat. Ahead of the landfall, Gujarat is already witnessing high tidal waves on Wednesday morning.



The cyclone could also destroy thatched houses and cause extensive damage to kutcha houses in Kutch, Devbhumi Dwarka, Porbandar, Jamnagar, Morbi, Junagarh and Rajkot districts. The power supply can be disrupted and crops damaged.



Given the cyclone, the Railways had already cancelled around 95 trains running through, originating or terminating in coastal areas of Gujarat.



Meanwhile, the Gujarat government has said they have so far evacuated nearly 37,800 people living near the sea in eight districts. The officials have also identified over 400 shelter homes in Gujarat's Dwarka to house villagers from unsafe areas.



"More than 400 shelter homes have been identified in the Dwarka district and people are being shifted to shelter homes. PM took stock of the arrangements from concerned officials and ministers and directed them to be on alert mode and take all necessary steps," Union Minister Parshottam Rupala told ANI.



Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel visited the state government's emergency operations centre on Tuesday night for a review of the preparedness, it said.



In a virtual meeting on Tuesday, Union Home Minister Amit Shah asked the Gujarat government to make arrangements for moving people living in sensitive places to safer locations and ensure all necessary services like electricity, telecommunication, health and drinking water, said an official statement.


An Indigo flight headed from Lucknow to Mumbai, made a hard landing in Udaipur after two failed attempts. The flight scheduled to land in Mumbai at 1.15 pm, hovered over the airport for about 30 minutes, before it was diverted to Udaipur. The flight was unable to land in Mumbai due to bad weather conditions in the wake of the cyclonic storm 'Biparjoy'. The flight landed in Udaipur at 3.30 pm.



The harrowed passengers created a ruckus at the Udaipur airport and demanded that the pilot be changed. Eventually, the pilot was changed and the flight landed in Mumbai at 8 pm. A few passengers even took to Twitter and tweeted complaints while tagging Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia.

Mumbai faced heavy rains and strong winds due to cyclone Biparjoy. The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) issued a yellow alert for Thane and Mumbai in the wake of the cyclone.

While the airlines blamed the weather for the diversion, the passengers said that two attempts to land in Mumbai were aborted. A spokesperson for Indigo said, Due to bad weather, the pilot could not land in Mumbai and decided to go to Udaipur After landing in Udaipur, he said he was fatigued and hence asked for crew replacement. This took some time and the flight left after 6 pm.

The cyclone is expected to make landfall near Jakhau port in Gujarat's Kutch district on June 15. Authorities have so far evacuated over 37,000 people from different coastal regions.
Madras High Court Justice R. Sakthivel has recused himself from hearing a Habeas Corpus petition moved by Tamil Nadu Electricity Minister Senthil Balajis wife Mekhala. A day after the Enforcement Directorate (ED) conducted raids, Balaji's wife moved the Madras HC, saying that she had no information about Senthil's arrest. A division bench of Justice M. Sundar and Justice Sakthivel had agreed to hear the plea on urgent basis.

Though the exact reason for the recusal is not known yet, sources say it is because Justice Sakthivel hails from Karur, Balaji's home turf.

ED arrested Balaji under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), making him the first minister in the M.K. Stalin-led government to face such action from a central agency.

Balaji was arrested after a long session of questioning, official sources said, even as the 48-year-old minister was admitted to a city government hospital after he complained of uneasiness.

Balaji underwent coronary angiogram at 10.40am today, a medical bulletin issued by the Director of the Tamil Nadu Government Multi Super Speciality Hospital, Omandurar Estate, said.

He has been advised bypass surgery at the "earliest". "Coronory angiogram revealed triple vessel disease for which CABG (coronary artery bypass graft) - bypass surgery is advised at the earliest," it said.

'Political harassment, vendetta by Modi govt', says Congress

The Congress condemned Balaji's arrest, and alleged it was nothing but "political harassment and vendetta" by the Narendra Modi government.

"Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge condemns the late-night arrest of Tamil Nadu Electricity Minister Shri V. Senthil Balaji by the ED," the Congress said in a statement.

"This is nothing but political harassment and vendetta by the Modi government against those opposed to it. None of us in the Opposition will be intimidated by such brazen moves," it added.

"Such gross misuse of investigative agencies against political opponents has been the hallmark of the Modi government," the statement further said.

Party leader Amitabh Dubey said, "This is part of a long-standing pattern of the Modi government which is to misuse state agencies like ED, CBI and others to harass political opponents, put them under pressure and ensure that there is no level-playing field in Indian politics."

Dubey said figures clearly show that ED and CBI action against opposition leaders during the UPA was around 55-60 per cent, while that during the Modi government is around 95 per cent.

(With PTI inputs)
The flow of prominent national leaders to Madhya Pradesh has increased drastically in the past few weeks as the assembly polls are just four months away. The topmost leaders of the ruling BJP  Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah and party national president J.P. Naddawill be in different parts of the state in 10 days starting June 22.

These visits, though part of the month-long mega outreach campaign of the saffron party on the completion of nine years of PM Modis rule, are more to be seen as election-related, political watchers feel.

The visits of the top leaders closely follow the launch of the assembly election campaign of the opposition Congress by party general secretary Priyanka Gandhi on June 12 at Jabalpur. A day after the Congress launched its campaign, Defense Minister Rajnath Singh was in Rajgarh for a visit.

Modis schedule

PM Modi will attend a sickle cell anemia awareness programme in the tribal-dominated Dhar district in western Madhya Pradesh on June 27 before reaching Bhopal on the same day to flag off Jabalpur-Indore Vande Bharat Express. However, his main programme in Bhopal will be to digitally address party workers at 10 lakh booths across the country.

BJP state president Vishnu Dutt Sharma told media persons on Wednesday that 2,500 selected party workers will be physically present at the Bhopal event. The PMs address will be transmitted to over 64,100 booths in Madhya Pradesh. As many as 38 lakh workers in the state enrolled digitally to attend the digital rally. They include the president and members of booth committees and panna (voters page level) committees, Sharma said.

He said a roadshow of the prime minister is also likely on the occasion, though the detailed schedule would be released later.

Reacting to news of the PMs proposed visit, MP Congress chief Kamal Nath said everyone, including the PM, was welcome to visit the state. Let them come to the election arena; we are already in the arena. The voters now are very perceptive and they understand everything well and they are not to be swayed by any theatrics, he said.

Modis visit will be preceded by that of Amit Shah on June 22 at tribal-dominated Balaghat in southeastern MP. Shah has been visiting Madhya Pradesh almost every two months in the recent past. He has personally taken responsibility to ensure the BJP win at Chhindwara Lok Sabha constituency, the home turf of MP Congress chief and former chief minister Kamal Nath. The BJP has made a special plan to rout the Nath family in the LS polls scheduled for 2024.

Nath won the LS seat nine times right from 1980 to 2014, save a brief stint of his wife Alka Nath in 1996-97 and one defeat at the hands of former chief minister Sunderlal Patwa, of the BJP, in 1997 by-polls after Alka Nath resigned. However, he won back the seat within a year in 1998 general elections. The BJP hasnt ever held the seat other than this brief tenure. Currently, Naths son Nakul is the Member of Parliament from the seat while Nath himself is MLA from Chhindwara assembly constituency, which he contested after becoming chief minister of the state in 2018.

Naddas visit is scheduled for Khargone on June 30  the last day of the mega outreach campaign.

BJP slams Arun Yadav for comment on PMs father

State BJP leaders, including state president Sharma, hit out at former state Congress president Arun Yadav over a comment on PM Modis late father. While reacting to reports of the PM's proposed visit to the state, Yadav had said Let Modi ji come or anyone above him may come too. Nadda ji is coming anyway. Even if Modi jis father wants to come, he can come. We have no objection, but there is a wind of change in Madhya Pradesh in favour of Congress.

Sharma hit out at Yadav and the grand old party in a series of tweets, saying frustrated at the global popularity of PM Modi, Congress leaders are breaching the dignity of language to gain cheap popularity. Continuing to make undignified comments on PM Modi and his family shows the cheap mentality of the Congress. Now Arun Yadav has breached language dignity and commented on the late father of the PM. Such comments are made by Congress leaders at the direction of the Gandhi family and therefore the Gandhi family remains silent. He added that the people will answer this insult of the PM through their vote and asked Yadav, Kamal Nath and Rahul Gandhi to apologise for the comments.
The Rapid Action Force (RAF) has been deployed at the Omandurar multi-speciality government hospital in Chennai after Tamil Nadu Electricity Minister Senthil Balaji was admitted to the hospital in the wee hours of Wednesday. The minister was taken to the hospital after the Enforcement Directorate arrested him in connection with a money laundering case.

He is likely to be produced before a special court later where the agency will seek his custody, reported PTI.



The arrest has triggered a political maelstrom as Chief Minister Stalin slammed the raids as "intimidation politics". Stalin also visited the minister at the hospital. The DMK has also promised to legally approach the case.



The Congress too condemned Balaji's arrest, stating the late-night arrest by ED was a "political vendetta'. A statement by Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge read: "This is nothing but political harassment and vendetta by the Modi government against those opposed to it. None of us in the opposition will be intimidated by such brazen moves".



The JD(U) has also flayed the arrest, calling it a "desperate reaction of the Narendra Modi government" ahead of the meeting of opposition parties called by Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar.



Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin, who heads the DMK, is among those who have agreed to attend the June 23 meeting to be held here.



JD(U) president Rajiv Ranjan Singh Lalan', a close aide of Kumar, tweeted: "ED has raided the house of Thiru V Senthil Balaji in Tamil Nadu which is a panic and desperate reaction of @NarendraModi government keeping in mind the meeting of all opposition parties convened by Sri Nitish Kumar Ji in Patna on 23rd June," the JD(U) chief tweeted.



"BJP government is misusing the constitutional institutions against opposition parties to defame" governments run by these in states, he alleged. He also expressed apprehensions of "more such action" against leaders opposed to the BJP in the run-up to the conclave.



The Shiv Sena (UBT) has also responded to the issue, stating that there are no raids against BJP people. "We keep sending complaints against their (BJP) people, with evidence. When will the probe against them start?... I sent complaints against 3 ministers of Maharashtra to ED, on money laundering, I have not even received a reply...why there are no raids against them?" party MP Sanjay Raut told ANI.



While NCP MP Supriya Sule said she "was not surprised at all", TMC MP Saugata Roy has said how it was "totally wrong how Enforcement Directorate is being misused."


Tamil Nadu minister Senthil Balaji, who was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Wednesday morning, has undergone coronary angiogram, a medical bulletin stated. Balaji was hospitalised after the arrest as he complained of chest pain, and was moved to the Intensive Care Unit. Balaji has been advised bypass surgery at the earliest.

"Coronory angiogram revealed triple vessel disease for which CABG (coronary artery bypass graft) - bypass surgery is advised at the earliest," a medical bulletin issued by the Director of the Tamil Nadu Government Multi Super Speciality Hospital, Omandurar Estate, said.

The ED arrested Electricity Minister Balaji in connection with a money laundering case. The Rapid Action Force (RAF) was also deployed at the government hospital in Chennai after Balaji was admitted. Meanwhile, Balaji's wife moved the Madras High Court, alleging that the arrest was made without any notice or summons.

Balaji's arrest has become the latest rallying point for opposition parties who have hit out at the BJP-led Centre's alleged misuse of probe agencies. Chief Minister M.K. Stalin who visited Balaji at the hospital earlier in the day, condemned the arrest and accused the BJP of resorting to 'politics of intimidation'. The BJP's politics of backdoor intimidation of those it is unable to face politically will not succeed. He also slammed ED officials conducting searches at the office room of Balaji at the State Secretariat, saying it was a "blot on federalism.

The ED had launched searches at locations linked to Balaji at Chennai, Karur and Erode, on Tuesday, months after the Supreme Court allowed police and ED probe into an alleged cash for jobs scam against the DMK strongman. Balaji was earlier with the AIADMK and had been Transport Minister in the late Jayalalithaa-led Cabinet.
Karnataka incharge and AICC general secretary Randeep Singh Surjewala's presence in an official meeting of the civic body officers in Bengaluru on Tuesday has sparked a controversy. Opposition parties have taken a strong exception to Surjewala, who does not hold any constitutional post in the state, attending an official meeting of the government.

The meeting was held at a private hotel in the city and was chaired by Bengaluru Development Minister D.K. Shivakumar and attended by BBMP commissioner Tushar Girinath, BDA commissioner Rakesh Singh, Energy Minister K.J. George and Shivaji Nagar MLA Rizwan Arshad, among others.

The matter came under the scrutiny of both the BJP and the JD(S), after a photograph of the meeting went viral.

The BJP, which slammed the Congress government as "ATM Sarkara", alleged that the "secret meeting" was a way of the Gandhi family controlling the Congress government in Karnataka.

In a series of tweets, the BJP slammed Surjewala's presence at the meeting saying, "The secret meeting held at Bangalore's Shangri-La Hotel is just another way of Gandhis' trying to control Karnataka. The family has sent their close aide Randeep Surjewala, who neither holds any position at BDA/BBMP nor in the government to decide on Karnatakas matters.

What is his capacity or authority to chair the meeting with the BBMP and BDA Commissioners/Officials ? Is this where the "85% deals" are being orchestrated by the #ATMSarkara to raise funds ahead of 2024 Elections?."

Karnataka now has a "High Command-controlled government" and not the Siddaramaiah government.

"Is this Siddaramaiah government or the one controlled by 10, Janpath Marg in Delhi? Did the Karnataka voters elect a Congress government or a puppet government? It is the misfortune of Karnataka that the official meeting of this government is being chaired by actors from the High Command's house. The photo is evidence of the pathetic state of affairs. Who has entrusted Surjewala of conducting the official meetings? I can see senior ministers and IAS officers are present in the meeting," said former chief minister and JD(S) leader H.D. Kumaraswamy.

Meanwhile, Shivakumar dismissed the charges saying the officers had come to the hotel to take him to the Bangalore Development Authority meeting scheduled at Hebbal.
LILONGWE, June 14 (Xinhua) -- At least 40 Rwandan refugees, who have been residing in Malawi and have expressed their desire to return home, are scheduled to be repatriated this week.

The announcement was made by Malawian Minister of Homeland Security Ken Zikhale Ng'oma in Lilongwe, the capital of Malawi, Tuesday during a meeting with Valentin Tapsoba, the director of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) Regional Bureau for Southern Africa.

The purpose of the UNHCR delegation's visit, as highlighted by the Malawian official, was to gain a comprehensive understanding of the issues related to the relocation of refugees to Dzaleka Camp in Malawi.

The minister emphasized the Malawian government's determination to identify and address the presence of migrants illegally involved in various economic activities. "We have explained to the UNHCR delegation the distinction between refugees and migrants who entered the country illegally and are engaged in economic activities," said Ng'oma.

The minister further emphasized that while the government is committed to protecting the approximately 51,000 refugees currently in Malawi, it is crucial to differentiate them from individuals residing in the country without official refugee status. "We intend to conduct a thorough headcount to accurately determine the number of genuine refugees and illegal migrants," he added.

Ng'oma said his government will uphold the rule of law and ensure that refugees receive the necessary care and protection as outlined in the Geneva Convention.

During the discussions, Tapsob expressed the organization's commitment to supporting both the relocation process and the repatriation of refugees willing to return to their countries of origin. 
Reptile reproduction theories overturned by groundbreaking study.

Live birth predates reptile egg, says Nanjing-Bristol research.

Extended embryo retention crucial in amniote evolution.

Study challenges traditional view on reptile egg's importance.

In a remarkable scientific breakthrough, researchers from Nanjing University and the University of Bristol have shattered long-standing beliefs about reptile reproduction. The study, published in the prestigious journal Nature Ecology & Evolution, presents compelling evidence suggesting that live birth preceded the development of the hard-shelled egg in the evolutionary history of amniotes, a group of vertebrates that includes reptiles, birds, and mammals.

Traditionally, the hard-shelled egg was considered a pivotal factor in the success of amniotes, providing a protective environment for embryonic development within the amnion membrane. However, the research team conducted an extensive analysis of 51 fossil species and 29 living species, categorized as oviparous (laying eggs) or viviparous (giving birth to live young), and uncovered a different narrative.

The findings of the study indicate that viviparity, or live birth, and extended embryo retention played crucial roles in the evolution of all major branches of Amniota, including Mammalia, Lepidosauria (comprising lizards and their relatives), and Archosauria (encompassing dinosaurs, crocodilians, and birds). Extended embryo retention refers to the practice of mothers retaining their offspring for varying periods, possibly based on optimal survival conditions.

According to Professor Michael Benton from the University of Bristol's School of Earth Sciences, the amniotes were able to break away from water-dependent habitats by developing waterproof skin and other mechanisms to control water loss. However, it is now suggested that extended embryo retention, rather than the hard-shelled egg, provided the ultimate protection that enabled these animals to flourish in terrestrial ecosystems.

Challenging the conventional view, Project Leader Professor Baoyu Jiang highlighted the flexibility of reproductive strategies observed in lizards and snakes, with some closely related species exhibiting both oviparity and viviparity. The study also shed light on fossil evidence, revealing that numerous prehistoric reptiles, including marine creatures like ichthyosaurs and plesiosaurs, were live-bearers. The researchers noted that the transition between oviparity and viviparity occurred not only in lizards but also in other animal groups.

Dr. Armin Elsler, a member of the research team, emphasised the significance of this discovery by stating, "Our findings challenge the classical reptile egg model and reveal that the first amniotes relied on extended embryo retention rather than hard-shelled eggs to protect developing embryos. This adaptive parental protection provided them with a competitive advantage over earlier tetrapods."

The study also emphasised the prevalence of extended embryo retention among contemporary vertebrates, with developing young often being retained by the mother for varying durations. Lizards and snakes, in particular, exhibit diverse reproductive strategies, releasing their young either within an egg or as fully formed offspring at different stages of development. Ecological advantages of extended embryo retention were also noted, allowing mothers to release their young when conditions such as warm temperatures and abundant food supplies are favorable.

Professor Benton concluded, "Our work, in conjunction with other recent studies, has debunked the traditional 'reptile egg' model taught in textbooks. Instead, our research indicates that the first amniotes relied on extended embryo retention to protect the developing embryo until the optimal conditions for birth were met. The exact nature of these births, whether through parchment eggs or as live, active offspring, remains unknown. Nevertheless, this adaptive parental protection conferred a significant advantage to amniotes over earlier tetrapods."

The groundbreaking findings of this study are poised to revolutionize our understanding of the evolutionary history of reptiles and other amniotes. The revelation that live birth and extended embryo retention predates the development of the reptile egg challenges long-held assumptions and opens up new avenues of research into the reproductive strategies of ancient organisms.

Scientists from around the world have praised the study for its meticulous analysis of both fossil and living species. Dr. Joseph Keating, another member of the research team, highlighted the wide prevalence of extended embryo retention in modern vertebrates and the ecological advantages it offers. This groundbreaking research not only deepens our understanding of the past but also provides valuable insights into the reproductive behavior of animals today.

The implications of this study extend beyond the realm of biology. Understanding the mechanisms and evolutionary processes that led to the emergence of live birth in amniotes can shed light on the development of diverse reproductive strategies seen in the animal kingdom. By challenging conventional theories and pushing the boundaries of knowledge, scientists are paving the way for further discoveries that could reshape our understanding of life's origins and evolution.

Female bearded dragon (pogona vitticeps) in a terrarium with freshly laid eggs | Shutterstock

The research team at Nanjing University and the University of Bristol is now focused on expanding their investigations to include a broader range of species and incorporating advanced genetic and molecular techniques. These future studies aim to unravel the genetic basis of reproductive strategies and provide a more comprehensive picture of how live birth evolved in amniotes.

The scientific community anticipates that this groundbreaking research will spark further debate and inspire scientists to reevaluate existing theories and frameworks. The journey to uncover the mysteries of life's history is an ongoing process, with each discovery leading to new questions and avenues of exploration.

As we delve deeper into the evolutionary past, one thing remains certain: our understanding of the natural world is constantly evolving. The reptile egg, once considered an iconic symbol of amniote evolution, has now been dethroned by the fascinating revelation that live birth and extended embryo retention played a vital role in the success of early amniotes. The journey to uncover the truth about our planet's ancient inhabitants continues, and with each breakthrough, we inch closer to unraveling the enigmatic story of life on Earth.
Marriages in China dipped to a historic low in 2022. According to a CNN report, 6.8 million couples registered marriages in 2022, the lowest since 1986, when available government data begins. In 2021, 7.63 million couples registered for marriage. The data comes as the country struggles with a declining birth rate and a fall in population.



The drop in couples tying the knot was the result of the pandemic when people were confined to their compounds or homes for several weeks together last year. Last year, China's birth rate dropped from 7.52 births per 1000 in 2021 to 6.77 births per 1,000 people. The country's population also shrank in 2022, for the first time in more than 60 years. Rising living costs, weak economic growth, and changing attitudes towards raising a family seem to have contributed to the fall in population. There's also been a decline in the population of younger people, partially a result of the one-child policy, which was adopted in 1979. The government lifted it in 2016 and now the government lets couples have up to three children.

Policymakers are worried about the downward trend in marriage and birth rates. Between 2010 and 2020, the average age for women to get married increased from 24 to 29. In a bid to increase the birth rate, local governments have been introducing policies such as free IVF and subsidies to encourage couples to have second and third children. Policymakers in March proposed that single and unmarried women have access to IVF and egg freezing and other services to boost the country's fertility rate. Reportedly, Chinese sperm banks are also appealing to college students to donate sperm after the country reported a negative population growth.

Some provinces are giving newlyweds an extension of paid marriage leave. However, thanks to China's ageing population, there are fewer people of marriageable age. According to data, China's divorce has declined since its peak in 2019. The government's stringent response to Covid-19 also seems to have an effect on youngsters' decision to not have children. 'We are the last generation' seems to be a catchphrase among the young. Gender inequalities and women moving to other countries for opportunities also seem to be a reason contributing to a decline in marriage.
Former US President Donald Trump pleaded not guilty on Tuesday to federal criminal charges on the classified documents case. Seeking a jury trial during the arraignment, Trump's lawyers told Magistrate Judge Jonathan Goodman that "we most certainly enter a plea of not guilty."

The former President, clad in a blue suit and a red tie, did not speak during the 47-minute hearing though he was seen scowling in his chair. Trump is the first former President to be charged with federal crimes.



On arrival at the Miami courthouse, deputy marshals booked Trump and took electronic copies of his fingerprints. As predicted, they did not take a mugshot of Trump since he is easily recognisable.



Trump's aide Walt Nauta, who is also charged in the case, appeared alongside Trump but did not have to enter a plea until June 27 because he does not have a local lawyer. He was also released without having to post bond, reported CNN.

Judge Goodman allowed Trump to leave court without conditions or travel restrictions. No cash bond was required either. Prosecutor David Harbach told court that both Trump and Nauta be released with no financial or special conditions as "the government does not view either defendant as a flight risk."



However, the judge ruled that Trump could not communicate with Nauta about the case. There is also a ban on Trump against communicating with other witnesses in the case, except through a counsel.



Former President Donald Trump leaves Wilkie D. Ferguson Jr. U.S. Courthouse after making a federal court appearance | AP

Trump faces 37 felony counts in connection with his alleged stashing of classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate. The Justice Department claims that Trump illegally retained national defense information and refused to return them. Images released along with the indictment shows boxes of documents stored on a ballroom stage, in a bathroom and strewn across a storage-room floor. Those records included information about the secretive U.S. nuclear program and potential vulnerabilities in the event of an attack, the indictment said.



After the arraignment, Trump headed to a Cuban restaurant where he warmly greeted waiting supporters who sang "happy birthday." Trumps birthday is on Wednesday.



Trump told supporters that the United States was "rigged," "corrupt" and "in decline." "We've got a government that's out of control," he said.



Meanwhile, Trump spoke to supporters after arriving at New Jersey when he had been staying. "This day will go down in infamy," Trump said, adding that he would appoint a special prosecutor to target Democratic President Joe Biden.



He reiterated that he had "every right to have these documents." Calling on prosecutors to drop this case immediately because theyre destroying our country, Trump said: "This was an unwritten rule, you just dont unless its really bad. But you just dont. But the seal is now broken."


After getting arraigned on Tuesday, former President Donald Trump hit out at President Biden and accused him of orchestrating the charges against him. Trump said the indictment was "corrupt" and a "political pursuit" designed to destroy him.

Calling the charges against him the "most evil and heinous abuse in the history of our country", Trump vowed to appoint a "real special prosecutor" to go after the Biden family.



"Biden will forever be remembered as not only the most corrupt president in the history of our country, but perhaps even more importantly, the president who together with a band of his closest thugs, misfits and Marxists tried to destroy American democracy," Trump charged while addressing his supporters his club in Bedminster, New Jersey.



His supporters cheered on him as he took the stage as "God Bless the USA" blared from loudspeakers. People dressed in Red and MAGA gear also wished him "happy birthday."



"Today we witnessed the most evil and heinous abuse of power in the history of this country," were Trump's first words. "A corrupt sitting president had his top political opponent arrested on fake and fabricated charges in which he and other presidents would've been guilty of  right in the middle of a presidential campaign in which he was losing badly."



He said the federal charges against him were fake and fabricated and stated he will win. Trump also took a dig at the Espionage Act and repeated his claim that the documents recovered were not classified.



"Hillary Clinton took hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of furniture, china, flatware, rugs and more from the White House, and she wasnt prosecuted," Trump complained. "How about if Trump did that? Do you think Trump would have a little problem?"



He also didnt spare Special Counsel Jack Smith, calling him a "lunatic" and a "thug." "This is called election interference, yet another attempt to rig and steal a presidential election. More importantly, its a political persecution like something straight out of a fascist or communist nation. This day will go down in infamy," he alleged.



"Many people have asked me why I had these boxes, why did you want them? The answer, in addition to having every right under the Presidential Records Act, is that these boxes were containing all types of personal belongings many, many things shirts and shoes and everything clothing, memorabilia and much much more," Trump said.



"I hadn't had a chance to go through all the boxes. It's a long tedious job takes a long time, which I was prepared to do, but I have a very busy life."



Trump also accused that Biden's handling of classified records, some of which were stashed in his Wilmington garage, was worse.



"Classified documents were strewn all over his garage floor where his now-famous Corvette is stored. He's so proud of that car. There was no security and the door was left open most of the time," he said.



Trump also alleged that the Biden administration indicted him in a historical first to distract from corruption allegations linked to the first family's foreign business dealings. "(It's" no coincidence that these charges against me came down the very same day evidence revealed Joe Biden took a USD 5 million bribe from Ukraine," Trump said.


US Ambassador to India Eric Garcetti was all praises for India National Security Advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval and called him an 'international treasure'. "India's NSA has not only become a national treasure but an international treasure," Garcetti said at the United States-India initiative on Critical and Emerging Technologies (iCET) meet in Delhi.



Garcetti also expressed admiration for the strong foundation between India and the US. "When I look at the foundation between the United States and India, it is so strong, it is so clear that Indians love Americans and Americans love Indians," he said, ANI reported.

Garcetti also praised India's advancements in digital payments. He said, When I look at digital payments and financial technology that India has, we have rocked the world. A 'tea wala' in a village makes sure that she gets direct payment from the government on her phone, a 100 per cent of each one of those rupees."

Talking about Doval's humble beginnings, Garcetti said, "Ajit Doval, a village boy from Uttarakhand, who now has not become only a national treasure but an international treasure, who has had the same vision to come together and say what can we do to change the course of this century, to quote NSA Jake Sullivan, to take us forward,"

US NSA Jake Sullivan is on a two-day trip in India. He met up with Doval and discussed regional and global issues of mutual interest. Sullivan had earlier said that US President Joe Biden is thrilled to see what is happening in India.

"As we look ahead to the state visit that PM Modi will be embarking upon in Washington next week, a number of the deliverables at that visit are not just bullet points on a page, they are fundamentally designed to remove obstacles in defence and high-tech trades and in taking away obstacles that have stood in the way of better collaboration among our scientists and researchers," Sullivan said.

Sullivan's visit to India comes ahead of PM Modi's state visit to the US.
What about Hillary's 30,000 emails? What about Joe Biden's boxes of classified materials in his garage? Mike Pence too had classified documents at home. Why did they get away with it and Donald Trump indicted?



Hours after the first indictment of a former US president on federal charges, the subject, Donald J. Trump  who was for a brief part of his time in the US Courthouse "the property of the FBI" as the bureau describes the status of a person under its custody  was acting unlike any other accused person. He held a rally at his Bedminster, New Jersey, club before a packed and loud audience of supporters and raised the aforementioned questions.



He called Biden, "the most corrupt president in American history," saying he put the prosecutors on him to stop the candidate who was going to defeat him. Trump made the claim although he is yet to secure the Republican nomination.



But the e-mails resonate with his supporter base. In Trump rallies, crowds boo and chant "Lock her up," at the mention of Hillary's e-mails. They are now doing the same thing at the mention of Biden or Pence and their possession of classified materials after leaving office.



So, what is the difference?



Why hunt down Trump in a systematic and unfounded persecution as it happened in 16th century Massachusetts when women, believed to be witches or involved in witchcraft, were hunted down and burned at the stake. That is the way Trump wants you to see what is happening.



"Whatever a president decides to take with him it is his absolute right, it is the law," said Trump at Bedminster, stressing the difference between himself and Hillary.



There is, however, a major difference: Intent.



Mens Rea is the legal term used in the field of criminal law around the world. Intent. It boils down to intentwhether the accused acted with a conscious purpose.



The US legal system, as many jurisprudences around the world, requires an analysis of the mental state at the time of an illegal action to distinguish between those who have intentionally or knowingly engaged in criminal conduct and those who may have indeed committed the acts but without criminal intent or with a lesser degree of blame.



A serious legal system does not want to incarcerate those who break the law without criminal intent. While Trump is portraying himself as a victim of exactly that an innocent conduct that may have violated a silly law  the facts show something different, says the government.



Unlike Hillary, Biden, and Pence, the indictment says facts show that Trump set out to take classified documents, to keep them, and then to obstruct their return, and in doing so, to obstruct justice.



Did Trump know this was prohibited? There is plenty of footage of him attacking Hillary that indicates he knew well what was prohibited.



Okay, those facts point to intent. But the burden on prosecutors is much greater.



They must also show that the former president acted to take property that did not belong to him without permission. This is referred to by the legal term 'Actus Reus'.



Prosecutors must also show that the intent and the act occurred at the same time and that there is a connection between the two. The indictment says Trump intended to take the records illegally and did take them.



The Justice Department says the efforts to hide the documents, evidence of which they present in video and photo format, show both the consciousness of a guilty mind and the guilty acts. Intent and action.



Trump claims that his actions were "perfectly legal" and covered by the Presidential Records Act.



Under the Act, however, and contrary to Trump's assertion, presidential records are considered the property of the United States government. When a president's term concludes, at 12:01 on inauguration day, the records generated during his time in office are to be transferred to the custody of the US National Archives.



The Act further sets specific requirements for the management of presidential records, mandating the records to be appropriately documented, maintained, and preserved. It also establishes a restricted period of 12 years, during which access to the records may be restricted from public disclosure to protect national security and other sensitive concerns.



Instead of turning the records to the archives, the prosecution alleges Trump loaded them up in the presidential plane and flew off with them.



But the burden of proof is high. The law must also prove causation. In other words, that his actions were the cause of the crime. The indictment indicates that the secret documents were selected and packed by Trump and that they were later stored and moved at his direction.



Before the government charges a crime, they must also be able to show that the actions of Trump resulted in harm to the United States. The implication is that secret information in the hands of foes puts in danger the lives of secret agents and those working for the interests of the United States abroad.



But espionage? We will look at that below.



But first, the government must prove that the conduct is clearly defined as illegal and is recognized as a crime under an existing law. The law, as it stands with its highest penalties, exists because in promising to prosecute and jail Hillary, Trump pushed for, and, in 2018, signed a law that increased the penalties for mishandling classified information from a misdemeanor to a felony and upped the penalty from one year to five.



For a prosecution to stand, a judge must determine that the charges meet all these requirements: the act (actus rea), intent (mens rea), concurrence (the act and the intent), causation (actions lead to crime), harm (to the United States), and illegality. Otherwise, he should dismiss the charges.



In the US jurisprudence, these elements collectively form the basis for determining criminal liability and are the elements to prove guilt. The Sixth Amendment of the US Constitution guarantees the right to a fair trial and requires that guilt in criminal cases be proven beyond a reasonable doubt.



Within the realm of American criminal law, however, the notion of mens rea occupies a paramount position. It is the vital tool to discern between deliberate or conscious illegal activity  reserving criminal charges exclusively for those who possess the requisite mental state indispensable for the commission of a crime and those who act illegally but without intent.



According to government investigators, after considering all the facts, Hillary, Biden, and Pence fall under the latter category. They say Trump is a prime example of the former: deliberate and conscious illegal activity.



Okay, but that is a stretch to espionage.



Despite suspicions that Trump had colluded with Putin, allegations that resulted in investigations that returned no compelling evidence, it is a stretch to charge him with espionage. Though he has been charged with several counts under the Espionage Act, he has not actually been charged with espionage.



To decipher this, it is important to note the difference between the common understanding of espionage and the Espionage Act. The Special Prosecutors office filed 31 charges against Trump under the Act.



The Act is a 1917 law enacted in the wake of WWI and criminalises various conducts related to the mishandling of sensitive government records connected to national defense". It has undergone many iterative changes and been used to prosecute suspected Soviet spies and, lately, whistleblowers like Edward Snowden who leaked classified information about the existence of a domestic surveillance programme. Snowden has been living in Moscow since 2013, a fugitive from US justice.



Trumps defense is that he declassified the records in question and that his broad presidential powers gave him the authority to disclose or declassify materials.



The Espionage Act, however, does not explicitly require prosecutors to prove that the records themselves were classified, and though Trump has alluded to the right to declassify documents mentally  just by thinking about it, he said  his defense lawyers have not made that argument in court nor provided evidence to suggest they were ever declassified according to existing protocols.



Despite Trump having been charged under the Espionage Act, it is a mischaracterisation to say that he has been accused of espionage in its common understanding as the illicit passing of sensitive information for the benefit a foreign government. There has been no allegation or proof of that. And Trump took offense to that in his remarks at Bedminster.



What makes Trump different not just from Hillary, Biden, Pence or any other defendant, however, is his ability to convince millions of people that he is an innocent man being treated unfairly, politically persecuted.



He has effectively used his platform to cast doubt on the motives of prosecutors, question the legitimacy of the charges against him, and portray himself as a victim of a politically motivated witch hunt.



Trump, unlike any other indicted person, was able to raise a purported $2 million in donations on the day of his indictment from supporters who could only dream of the power and privilege he enjoys.



Indicted defendants can be overwhelmed by the power and resources of the United States government against them. Trump uses the projection of that power to raise money for his defense. But what is more, he has influence over Republican lawmakers who are threatening to defund the Justice Departmenta stunning development on its own.



Ohio Senator J.D. Vance has been threatening to bring the US Justice Department to a halt, as a pushback to the Trump indictments. Others are calling to defend the Special Counsel's office.



Such a move would make Trump the only individual in history who, as a wealthy individual who can tap into funds from millions of supporters, is

pitted against a financially hobbled prosecutor's office, giving him not just a fairer but a better chance than just about any defendant with the weighty evidence put forth to beat the charges levied against him.



But it is his ability to convince dozens of millions that he is an innocent man unfairly charged that poses a most significant challenge to the Justice Department.



Trump only needs to convince one person on the jury to vote against conviction to be acquitted.



Despite the evidence, there is the concept of Jury Nullification, when a jury or jury member, despite evidence of guilt, chooses to acquit a defendant based on disagreement with the law or its application.



In the US system it only takes one person.



Intent or not.



Just one.
Kolkata, Jun 14 (PTI) Sri Lankan minister Ramesh Pathirana on Wednesday said small tea growers contribute around 77 per cent of the island country's total production, and the government is providing subsidiy to the STGs. Speaking at a BIMSTEC event on tea organised by the Indian Chamber of Commerce here, Pathirana said Sri Lanka is also trying to adopt technology to raise productivity.

There is a need to protect the existing markets and also go for value addition. Our government is giving subsidy to the small tea growers to support replantation activity, adoption of technology and best agricultural practices," he said.

Most of the tea produced in the island country is exported, and the major exporting destinations include Russia, Turkey and Iran, the minister said.

Sri Lanka produced 250 million kg of tea last year, which is expected to go up to 280 million kg in this calendar year, he said.

"The biggest challenge is the shrinking global market for tea, Pathirana added.

Speaking on the occasion, MD of Goodricke Tea Atul Asthana said the per capita consumption of the beverage in India has remained static, with STGs contributing close to 55 per cent of the total production of around 1,350 million kg.

"There is a lack of initiative on the part of the Tea Board for supporting generic promotional campaign. This is required to boost internal consumption, Asthana said.

An official of the Tea Board said lack of funds is the reason for the statutory body not being able to support any generic campaign.

"We are going for digital and social media promotion, targeting the youth, she said.
Kolkata, Jun 14 (PTI) Cement maker Kesoram Industries Ltd continues to struggle to get out of the woods and aims at scaling up operations and refinance its high-cost debt to return to profitability.

The B K Birla Group company, which has now become a pure cement company after it demerged the tyres and rayon business, was looking at raising Rs 60 crore this fiscal by hiving off its 21 acres of land belonging to Hindustan Heavy Chemicals in West Bengals Khardaha, as part of raising resources by disposing of non-core assets.

In FY'23, it posted a net loss of Rs 115 crore and in FY'22 the loss was Rs 130 crore.

Kesoram's whole-time director and CEO P Radhakrishnan, speaking on the sidelines of the 104th AGM, said that the company was putting its energies into scaling up the operations and was planning to sell 8 million tons of cement in the current fiscal year, up from 7.02 million tons in FY'23.

"We are expecting to be back in black in the next 12-18 months as the worst is over, with costs moderating and improved cement price," Radhakrishnan said.

In the current fiscal, with improvements in cement prices and higher sales, the company was looking at an EBITDA of Rs 500-550 crore in FY'24, up from Rs 371 crore in FY'23.

Higher cash flow will help it improve its rating, which will increase its bargaining power for refinancing its debt instruments carrying a coupon rate of 19 per cent, which is not sustainable in the long run.

In 2021, Kesoram raised some Rs 1,900 crore in Optionally Convertible Redeemable Preference Shares and Non-Convertible Cumulative Redeemable Preference Shares to pay off bank debt.

The current debt burden on the company is around Rs 1,700 crore. Kesorams annual finance cost, including interest, remains elevated at Rs 422 crore in FY'23.

Radhakrishnan stated that at a time when the cement industry was consolidating, no cement company can afford to stay small and said it was also looking at expansion of its installed capacity to 15 million tons in the next five years from 10-11 million tonne now.

The company was looking at options for the best utilisation of the 400 acres of land at Solapur in Maharashtra, which includes contemplating a cement grinding unit there. However, disposal was also not out of the radar, according to sources.

Speaking about improvement in margins, Radhakrishnan said the company was continuously increasing blended cement in the portfolio to 80 per cent in two years from 50 per cent now.

The company has raised Rs 120 crore through fixed deposits out of a window of Rs 200 crore to reduce interest costs.
MUMBAI, India, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Flytxt, a leading provider of AI-powered SaaS for Customer Lifetime Value (CLTV) maximisation, launched a Generative AI that assists digital product designers. This first-of-its-kind application of Generative AI solves a critical pain point faced by digital businesses worldwide  design of well-performing products faster and at scale.



"Achieving product-market fit in volatile markets is a challenge, as the ease of adoption of digital products also lowers switching costs for customers. Generative AI is well suited to solve this challenge. It can programmatically evaluate several potential product designs to find the best match," said Dr. Vinod Vasudevan, CEO of Flytxt.



Flytxt's Generative AI can optimise price points, product attributes, bundling options, and associated benefits to meet business objectives like increasing revenue, retention, or margin.



Generative AI has been mostly used for creating original multimedia content and enabling intelligent conversations as in tools like ChatGPT. Flytxt's innovative application of Generative AI will open up new possibilities for product managers to bring in innovations in product design and ensure higher success rate.



"Flytxt foresees widespread applicability of Generative AI in many Customer Experience workflows like product and campaign design," continued Dr. Vinod Vasudevan, CEO of Flytxt. "We will continue to integrate powerful AI capabilities like Generative AI into our solutions to help users make accurate decisions that impact long term value creation."



Furthermore, Flytxt Generative AI adds the ability to explain the decisions made by the AI. This transparency allows product managers to critically review the reasons behind the AI-recommended design, before they decide to approve and launch the product in the market.



About Flytxt



Flytxt is the trusted technology partner of 70+ digital enterprises across more than 50 countries, as well as of top CX platform vendors for Customer Lifetime Value (CLTV) maximisation. Its award-winning, proprietary CLTV AI has been designed and trained using real-world insights and patterns from more than a billion consumers and trillions of data points. The firm has a corporate office in Dubai, global development centers in India and presence in Mexico, The Netherlands, Malaysia, Colombia, Czech Republic, Spain and Kenya.



Photo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2096852/FlytxtGenerativeAI.jpg



Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2096851/Flytxt_Logo.jpg



(Disclaimer: The above press release comes to you under an arrangement with PRNewswire and PTI takes no editorial responsibility for the same.). PTI PWR

PWR
SOLAN, India, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- In a groundbreaking dual-degree partnership, Shoolini University, India's top-ranked private university, has teamed up with the prestigious University of Melbourne, offering unparalleled opportunities for international education to Indian students. This development marks the University of Melbourne's first dual-degree collaboration with a private Indian university and highlights Shoolini University's exceptional credentials and reputation.



With Shoolini University recognised as India's No.1 private university and the country's second-ranked university overall by the Times Higher Education (THE) World University Rankings, and the University of Melbourne's standing as Australia's foremost university, ranked number one in the country and 34th worldwide, this partnership sets new standards for academic excellence and innovation.



The dual-degree program, starting with the Bachelor of Science Advanced (Honours), provides students with a world-class curriculum and opens doors to a truly global education experience. Under this landmark agreement, Indian students gain a unique advantage, allowing them to pursue undergraduate science studies at Shoolini and the University of Melbourne. The transformative journey begins with two years at Shoolini University and the remaining two years at Melbourne. Students can choose from diverse multidisciplinary majors in the third and fourth years, including Agriculture, Sustainability and Environment, Biosciences, and Computer Sciences, offering a truly global education experience.



Shoolini University Vice Chancellor Professor Atul Khosla expressed his enthusiasm for the partnership, saying, "We are thrilled to provide our exceptional undergraduate students with enhanced opportunities to study internationally. This collaboration with the University of Melbourne underscores the global standing of Shoolini University as a world-class institution. Furthermore, it opens the doors to many more opportunities for our students."



As an added advantage, eligible students may opt to extend their studies for an additional year, completing a Master's of Science at the University of Melbourne. Moreover, students who meet the Australian government criteria can apply for post-study work rights upon completion of their studies in Australia.



Deputy Vice Chancellor Global, Culture and Engagement, University of Melbourne, Professor Michael Wesley said the agreement would give high-achieving Indian students opportunities to receive a global education and build their international professional network.



"This is our fourth dual-degree partnership with an Indian University and our first with a private university. We are delighted to work with Shoolini University to provide students with an international education that will prepare them for today's globally connected world," Professor Wesley stated.



He added, "We are committed to long-term partnerships with premium Indian universities to build capacity, shape international education, and connect Indian students to the University of Melbourne's network of half a million global alumni."



The curriculum of this program reflects the rigorous standards upheld by the University of Melbourne. Moreover, Shoolini University faculty members will visit Melbourne for practical training, fostering a more significant knowledge exchange between the two institutions.



Together, Shoolini University and the University of Melbourne are paving the way for Indian students to access exceptional global education, fostering a new generation of highly skilled professionals prepared to thrive in today's interconnected world.



The momentous partnership was solidified during a meeting held last week between a delegation from Shoolini University, led by Vice Chancellor Prof Atul Khosla and comprising Trustee and Director Admissions Avnee Khosla, Dean, Research Dr Saurabh Kulshrestha, Associate Director Dr Rosey Dhanta, and senior executives from the University of Melbourne, including Deputy Vice Chancellor Global, Culture and Engagement Professor Michael Wesley.



The meeting paved the way for a collaboration that will mutually benefit both universities and their students.



About Shoolini University



Set up in 2009, Shoolini University of Biotechnology and Management Sciences is a research-driven private university with full-recognition from the UGC. A leading university of India, it is recognised for its focus on innovation, quality placements, and world-class faculty. Nestled in the lower Himalayas, the university has received accreditation from NAAC and it is ranked by the NIRF.



Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/792680/3954308/ShooliniUniversityLogo.jpg



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TUNIS, June 14 (Xinhua) -- Tunisian President Kais Saied said Tunisia will not be a guardian of Europe's borders in preventing the flow of illegal immigrants as the country will only guard its own borders, according to a statement released by the presidency on Wednesday.

"There are criminal networks that traffic in human beings in the countries of origin or in countries of destination in Europe," Saied said during a phone call with President of the European Council Charles Michel.

"Security solutions alone are not enough to eliminate the scourge," he added, calling for a new collective approach mainly by eliminating the root causes.

The Tunisian president reiterated that an international meeting must be held with the participation of all countries concerned with the issue.

Saied and Michel also discussed a number of other issues of common interest such as bilateral cooperation and Tunisia's negotiations with the International Monetary Fund.

Located in the central Mediterranean, Tunisia is one of the most popular transit points for illegal immigration to Europe.

Although Tunisian authorities have adopted rigorous measures to tackle the problem, the number of illegal immigrants from Tunisia to Italy has been on the rise. 
Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], June 14: Mrs. Juhi Vyas, a sensational and determined individual hailing from the picturesque town of Durg in Chhattisgarh, has captured the attention and admiration of the entire nation with her recent achievement as the runner-up in the prestigious Mrs. India Inc 2022 pageant. Displaying unwavering dedication and a remarkable ability to overcome obstacles, Mrs. Vyas has become an inspiration to many.



The Mrs. India Inc 2022 pageant, renowned for celebrating the strength, beauty, and talent of married women, witnessed Mrs. Juhi Vyas mesmerizing the audience and judges alike with her grace, confidence, and undeniable charisma. Standing out from the crowd with her exceptional performance, Mrs. Vyas's achievements are a testament to her commitment and unwavering spirit.



Mohini Sharma, the National Director of Mrs. India Inc, praised Mrs. Vyas's accomplishments, stating, "Mrs. Juhi Vyas has showcased exceptional talent and poise throughout her journey in the Mrs. India Inc 2022 pageant. Her determination and unwavering spirit have been truly commendable. We are immensely proud of her achievements and believe that she has the potential to leave an indelible mark on the international stage at Mrs. Globe 2023. We wish her the very best in her pursuit of yet another significant milestone."



Buoyed by her success, Mrs. Juhi Vyas is now setting her sights on an even grander stage as she prepares to compete in the esteemed Mrs. Globe 2023 international pageant. Mrs. Globe is a globally recognized beauty pageant that celebrates the beauty, intelligence, and philanthropic endeavors of married women from around the world.



With her sights firmly set on the Mrs. Globe 2023 crown, Mrs. Juhi Vyas is leaving no stone unturned in her preparation. Known for her unparalleled work ethic and determination, Mrs. Vyas has been relentlessly working on refining her skills, enhancing her confidence, and showcasing her immense talent to shine on the international stage.



Mrs. Juhi Vyas said, "I am honoured to have been chosen as the runner-up of Mrs. India Inc. 2022. This incredible recognition has given me the confidence to strive for even greater heights. The opportunity to represent my country and community on an international platform like Mrs. Globe is a dream come true. I am excited to showcase the rich culture and values of India while competing against talented women from around the world."



Mrs. Vyas's journey is an inspiration to all, proving that with unwavering determination, dedication, and the ability to overcome any obstacle, one can achieve extraordinary success. She serves as a role model for aspiring women, encouraging them to break barriers and pursue their dreams fearlessly.



As Mrs. Juhi Vyas gears up for the Mrs. Globe 2023 pageant, the town of Durg, Chhattisgarh, and the entire nation stands firmly behind her, extending their support and best wishes for her upcoming endeavor. The journey of Mrs. Juhi Vyas continues to captivate hearts, and she is poised to achieve yet another significant milestone in her illustrious career.



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New Delhi, Jun 14 (PTI) SJVN on Wednesday signed an agreement with Mahagenco to develop renewable energy projects with a total capacity of 5,000 megawatts (MW) in Maharashtra.

The MoU was signed by SJVN Director (Personnel) Geeta Kapur and Mahagenco CMD P Anablagan in the presence of Devendra Fadnavis -- Deputy Chief Minister and Power Minister of Maharashtra and State Principal Secretary Energy Abha Shukla, SJVN said in a statement.

"Nand Lal Sharma, Chairman & Managing Director, SJVN informed that the company has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Maharashtra State Power Generation Company (Mahagenco) for the development of 5,000 MW Renewable Energy Projects in the state of Maharashtra," the company said.

Under the pact, the companies will explore the feasibility of setting up various renewable projects in Maharashtra, including hydro, pumped storage projects, wind, solar, hybrid and green hydrogen projects, the CMD said.

SJVN and Mahagenco will jointly participate in tenders floated by the Maharashtra government for the renovation and modernisation of small hydropower stations, which are operated and maintained by Mahagenco, he said.
New Delhi, Jun 14 (PTI) Smartphone major Samsung has opened its biggest premium experience store in Telangana as it eyes to increase the share of business from premium products to 60 per cent in the state, the company said on Wednesday.

Spread over 3,500 square feet, it is at par in terms of Samsung's premium experience store in Delhi.

"We are excited to bring the next-gen Premium Experience Store to our consumers in Hyderabad. Our aim is to connect the diverse local community with the best of Samsung technology. We have tailored unique experiences through zones such as Samsung SmartThings, Gaming and Bespoke DIY Customisation, designed especially for Gen Z consumers," Samsung India, Senior Director, Sumit Walia said in a statement.

Samsung has the biggest Premium Experience Store in Bengaluru, spread over an area of around 33,000 square feet.

The company has plans to set up a total of 15 premium experience stores across the country by December as it aims to enhance the share of revenue from premium products in the overall business.

"In 2023, Samsung aims to take premium contribution in the Telangana state to 60 per cent and in Hyderabad city to 70 per cent," Samsung India, Head of Exclusive Brand Shops, Rahul Singh said.

Samsung has 56 brand stores in Telangana.

The contribution of premium products at Samsung exclusive stores in Telangana and Hyderabad city is 50 and 65 per cent, respectively, Singh said.

"In 2022, we saw strong growth of 30 per cent across our brand stores in Telangana. We expect to grow in excess of 30 per cent in the state on the back of the launch of this new Premium Experience Store, and the upcoming festival season," he said.
New Delhi, Jun 14 (PTI) The Centre has discontinued the sale of rice and wheat from the central pool under the Open Market Sale Scheme (OMSS) to state governments, a move that will hit some states, including Karnataka, offering free grains to the poor.

This decision has already been conveyed to the Karnataka government, which had sought 13,819 tonne of rice for its own scheme under the OMSS without e-auction for July at the rate of Rs 3,400 per quintal.

According to a recent order issued by the Food Corporation of India (FCI), "The sale of wheat and rice under the OMSS(domestic) for state governments is discontinued".

However, the sale of rice under the OMSS will be continued for northeastern states, hilly states and states facing law and order situations, natural calamities at an existing rate of Rs 3,400 per quintal, it said.

FCI may liquidate rice under the OMSS to private parties from the central pool stock as per the requirement in order to moderate the market prices, it added.

On June 12, the central government while imposing stock limits on wheat till March 31, 2024, had also announced offloading of both rice and wheat under the OMSS to cool down the open market prices and curb hoarding.

It had announced the sale of 15 lakh tonne of wheat under the OMSS from the central pool to flour mills, private traders and manufacturers of wheat products through e-auction. It had, however, not fixed the quantity of rice for these traders for the sale under the OMSS.

The move comes amid the slow progress of monsoon and rising prices of rice and wheat. Rice prices have increased by up to 10 per cent in the last one year at the mandi level, while by 8 per cent in the last one month, as per the official data.

Monsoon rains are crucial as about 80 per cent of the country's total rice production is grown during the kharif season and sowing will begin next month onwards.

It may be noted that on January 26, the central government had come out with the OMSS policy for 2023 under which states were allowed to buy both rice (including fortified rice) and wheat from the FCI for their own schemes without participating in e-auction.

Usually, OMSS is operationalised to sell foodgrains, especially wheat and rice, at pre-determined prices in the open market from time to time to bulk consumers and private traders during the lean season to improve domestic availability of these two key grains and cool down open market prices, especially in deficit regions.
Brussels, Jun 14 (AP) European Union regulators hit Google with fresh antitrust charges on Wednesday, saying the only way to satisfy competition concerns about its lucrative digital ad business is by selling off parts of the tech giant's main moneymaker.

The unprecedented decision to push for such a breakup marks a significant escalation by Brussels in its crackdown on Silicon Valley digital giants, and follows a similar move by US authorities seeking to bust Google's alleged monopoly on the online ad ecosystem.

The European Commission, the bloc's executive branch and top antitrust enforcer, said its preliminary view after an investigation is that only the mandatory divestment by Google of part of its services would address the concerns.

The 27-nation EU has led the global movement to crack down on Big Tech companies  including moving closer to groundbreaking rules on artificial intelligence  but it has previously relied on issuing blockbuster fines, including three antitrust penalties for Google worth billions.

It is the first time the bloc has told a tech giant that it should split up key parts of its business over violations of the EU's strict antitrust laws, though details on what that could look like are not clear following the preliminary finding.

Google can now defend itself by making its case before the commission issues its final decision. The company said it disagreed with the finding and will respond accordingly, adding that the EU's investigation focused on a narrow part of its ad business.

Our advertising technology tools help websites and apps fund their content, and enable businesses of all sizes to effectively reach new customers," said Dan Taylor, Google vice president of global ads.

"Google remains committed to creating value for our publisher and advertiser partners in this highly competitive sector."

The commission's decision stems from a formal investigation that it opened in June 2021, looking into whether Google violated the bloc's competition rules by favouring its own online display advertising technology services at the expense of rival publishers, advertisers and advertising technology services.

Online display ads are banners and text that appear on websites such as newspaper home pages and are personalised based on an internet user's browsing history.

European Commission Vice President Margrethe Vestager says Google is dominant on both sides of the ad-selling market. Google abused that position by favouring its own ad exchange, reinforcing its ability to charge a high fee for its services, the commission said.

Google is representing the interests of both buyers and sellers. And at the same time, Google is setting the rules on how demand and supply should meet, she said at a news conference. "This gives rise to inherent and pervasive conflicts of interest."

Vestager added that if Google sold off, for example, its real-time marketplace for buying and selling ads or a tool for publishers to manage their ads, we would put an end to the conflicts of interest.

The commission is seeking a forced sale because past cases that ended with fines and requirements for Google to stop anti-competitive practices have not worked, allowing the company to continue its behaviour, just under a different disguise, she said.

Google's ad tech business is also under investigation by Britain's antitrust watchdog and faces litigation in the US that calls for the company to divest its digital ad tools.

European and US authorities are acknowledging that the only way to address this egregious conflict of interest is to force Google to divest part of its business, said Max von Thun, director of the Europe office of the Open Markets Institute, a proponent of stronger antitrust enforcement.

The commission's move is a clear illustration of the power competition authorities have when they work in parallel, he said.

Brussels has previously hit Google with more than 8 billion euros (now USD 8.6 billion) worth of fines in three separate antitrust cases, involving its Android mobile operating system and shopping and search advertising services.

The company is appealing all three penalties. EU regulators have the power to impose penalties worth up to 10 per cent of a company's annual revenue.

Google brought in USD 54.5 billion in ad sales and YouTube earned nearly USD 6.7 billion in ad sales in the first three months of the year, but that marked a back-to-back slump as companies spend more cautiously. (AP) PY

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Mumbai, Jun 14 (PTI) Remembering her brother and actor Sushant Singh Rajput on his third death anniversary, Shweta Singh Kirti on Wednesday urged fans to imbibe "the goodness of his heart".

Kirti, who is based out of the US, posted a video on her Instagram account to share a note with Rajput's admirers.

"If we want to keep Sushant alive, we have to imbibe his qualities, the goodness of his heart. A little note for all of you. He has not left anywhere, he is alive in us. #SushantISAlive #WeAreSushant," she captioned the clip.

Rajput was found dead in his apartment in suburban Bandra on June 14, 2020. He was 34.

In a previous post, Kirti said she missed her brother every day.

"Love you Bhai, and salute to your intelligence. I miss you every moment. But I know you are a part of me now. You have become as integral as my breath. Sharing a few books recommended by him. Lets live him by being him. #SushantIsAlive (sic)" she wrote.

Kirti also shared a series of pictures of Rajput with her children and screenshots of her conversation with him in which he talked about his favourite books.
Washington, Jun 14 (AP) President Joe Biden is dispatching White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan to Tokyo this week for talks with his counterparts from Japan, Philippines and South Korea.

Sullivan will also take part in "the first-ever trilateral meeting of the Japanese, Philippine, and US national security advisers" while in Japan, the White House National Security Council said in a statement Tuesday.

The White House offered scant details about Sullivan's two-day visit that begins Thursday, saying Sullivan and his counterparts "will discuss ways to deepen collaboration on a number of key regional and global issues".

Sullivan's visit comes after US, Japanese and Philippine coast guard ships staged law enforcement drills in waters near the disputed South China Sea earlier this month. Washington has stepped up efforts to reinforce alliances in Asia amid an increasingly tense rivalry with China.

Washington lays no claims to the strategic South China Sea, where China, the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysian, Taiwan and Brunei have been locked in tense territorial stand-offs for decades.

But the US says freedom of navigation and overflight and the peaceful resolution of disputes in the busy waterway are in its national interest.

The White House confirmed Sullivan's travels after Biden during a reception at the White House for US chiefs of diplomatic missions on Tuesday made an off-hand remark that Ambassador Rahm Emanuel, the US envoy to Japan, was not on hand because he was getting ready for Sullivan's visit.

US-China relations have been strained throughout Biden's tenure. China launched military exercises last year around Taiwan after then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif, visited the democratically governed island that China claims as its own.

Relations became further strained early this year after the US shot down a Chinese spy balloon that had crossed the United States. Beijing also was angered by Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen's stopover in the US in April that included an engagement with House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif.

And on Saturday, the White House confirmed that China has been operating a spy base in Cuba for some time and that it was upgraded in 2019 under the Trump administration's watch.

White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby on Monday said that the Trump administration had the "same access" to intelligence about China's spying operations as the Biden administration did.

Former Trump administration officials, including former Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe and national security adviser John Bolton, have pushed back against the assertion that the Cuba spy base was upgraded under their watch.

"The (Biden) administration claims that the base was there in 2019 if not before, all I can say is I was in the White House for part of 2019 I was certainly unaware of it," former Trump-era national security adviser John Bolton said in an interview on Tuesday with SiriusXM's POTUS channel. "I think I would have remembered it if it crossed my desk."

The White House confirmed the base after the Wall Street Journal reported last week that China and Cuba had reached an agreement in principle to build an electronic eavesdropping station on the island.

Despite the tensions with Beijing, the administration has been eager to restart high-level communications with Beijing.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken is planning a visit to China on June 18 to meet with senior officials, according to US officials, who spoke Friday on condition of anonymity because neither the State Department nor the Chinese foreign ministry has yet confirmed the trip.

Blinken was scheduled to visit China in February but those talks were scrapped after the spy balloon incident.

Sullivan is currently in India meeting with officials ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's state visit to Washington next week.

He held talks on Tuesday with his Indian counterpart, Ajit Doval, that focused on potential US-Indian collaboration on artificial intelligence, semiconductors and defence, according to the Indian Foreign Ministry.

Sullivan also addressed a conference of business leaders where he said the US was keen on doing away with regulatory obstacles that are holding back the two countries from deepening trade in areas like defence and high-tech. (AP) SZM
Washington, Jun 14 (PTI) The US, through the official state visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, is looking to convey that the relationship between India and America is of "positive strategic consequence", the White House has said.

Prime Minister Modi arrives in Washington DC on a three-day state visit on June 21. The welcome ceremony and the state dinner along with an address to the Joint Session of the US Congress are scheduled for June 22.

Speaking at a panel discussion during the annual 'India Ideas Summit' of the US India Business Council on Tuesday, Principal Deputy National Security Advisor Jon Finer said after years of strengthening ties across administrations, the US-India partnership is deeper and more expensive than ever.

The main message that we are looking to convey is that this is a relationship of positive strategic consequence, he said.

We think we are much more deeply aligned and significantly converging with each other on numerous global issues and innumerable ways we can benefit each of our populations.

"What you will see when Prime Minister Modi comes and is able to spend some time with President Joe Biden in this setting, is a modern relationship between two significant countries that will benefit their own people, Finer said.

He said in just eight days, President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden have the honour to receive the Prime Minister of India at the White House for an official state visit and dinner, which is the third such occasion for this administration.

I can tell you,  how much he's looking forward to it, how much attention to detail is given at the very highest levels for governments and it's good evidence of that, he said.

The two governments are deepening the strategic convergence, strengthening policy alignment to elevate and expand strategic technology and defence industrial cooperation, Finer said.

We really believe that we now look instinctively to each other and more cooperatively, to uphold a free and open Indo-Pacific to drive innovation and to jointly tackle global challenges, the White House official said.

Observing that India and the US are natural partners, Finer said the two countries are ready to meet the challenges and seize the opportunities of this unique moment together.

Working with other like-minded partners, our countries will shape the future, working towards a world as more open and more prosperous, more secure, more stable, more resilient. This offers a brief overview of the highlights as we see them of the partnership that we are building, he said.

India, being the major defence partner, saw the two countries consult regularly to assess regional developments and put in place an architecture to cooperate more closely through joint exercises, information sharing, logistics networks and interoperable communication systems, he said.

We continue to strengthen India's status as a major defence partner through defence industrial cooperation that Co-develops and co-produces important military capabilities for both of our countries, Finer said.

Second, our Strategic Technology Partnership. I know you're all aware of our pathbreaking initiative on critical emerging technologies, ICET, .which has already catalysing government, business and university cooperation in defence space semiconductors, advanced telecommunications biotechnology, emerging technologies like AI and quantum to foster an open, accessible and secure technology ecosystem, he said.

Finer said this technology ecosystem in areas such as 5G will offer other countries beyond just US-India advanced communications alternatives that are consistent with their shared democratic values.

Third, is our work together on the clean energy transition, the United States and India share a common vision to decarbonise our economies and deploy clean energy, which is obviously reflected in all of our country's 2030 targets for climate action and energy, he said.

In countries, the energy transition can be more consequential to the world than India and the US.

Together, we are pushing each other to develop and deploy innovative solutions to strengthen climate security, expand peaceful uses of civil nuclear energy and unlock climate finance solutions, to mobilise the information technologies and the resources we need to create the clean energy economy of the future, Finer said.

Fourth, as two of the world's foremost centres of innovation, we are driving prosperity together, he said, adding that bilateral trade last year was USD 191 billion, which has nearly doubled since 2014.

Indias G-20 presidency has brought renewed focus on strengthening multilateralism and international cooperation to tackle global challenges, and achieve UN Sustainable Development Goals, he said.

Fifth, we are welcoming new education partnerships and taking steps to support the growing demand for travel between our countries," he said.

The US mission last year issued 125,000 visas to Indian students which is a record, Finer said, adding that Indian students are on pace soon to become the largest foreign student community in the US.

Our relationship is also grounded in values that are cherished by both our people and our founders: democracy, pluralism tolerance, openness and respect for human rights.

"These enable us to work together and to work together with civil societies and NGOs, to build a more resilient, more peaceful, more secure, democratic society, Finer said.
Singapore, Jun 14 (PTI) A Singaporean man of Chinese origin has been convicted of verbally insulting and kicking in the chest an Indian lady, who did not wear her mask properly while brisk walking to the workplace during Covid-19.

Wong Xing Fong, 32, attacked Madam Hindocha Nita Vishnubhai, 57, near the Northvale condominium in Choa Chu Kang in May 2021.

Wong, who was convicted on Tuesday, is expected to be sentenced on July 31 for kicking Vishnubhai in the chest (assault) and wounding her feelings, The Straits Times newspaper reported.

Vishnubhai testified that she was brisk walking to Choa Chu Kang stadium, where she worked at a fast-food restaurant, with her mask down when she heard someone shouting.

She turned and saw Wong and his fiancee Chua Yun Han. She did not know the couple, but they told her to mask up.

Brisk walking was one of the activities exempted from covering the mouth and nose with a mask.

The prosecution told the court Vishnubhai explained to the couple that she was brisk walking and gestured to illustrate that she was exercising and sweating.

The accused scolded the complainant (and verbally insulted her). To de-escalate the matter, the complainant responded, God bless you, the prosecution added.

The accused, however, kicked the complainant in her chest area. He and (his fiancee) then jogged off.

Vishnubhai testified that an eyewitness helped her to her feet and applied plaster to a wound on her left forearm. She filed a police report that evening.

The prosecution said the eyewitness, who was unrelated to either party, testified that she saw a man kicking the lady.

Describing Vishnubhai as a truthful witness, the prosecution said, It is absurd to suggest that the complainant framed the accused, a stranger, out of the blue.

Wong claimed that Vishnubhai was sarcastic and aggressive, and hurled vulgarities at him.

He also claimed that she spat at him and his fiancee, and he reacted by pushing the victim. While he accepted that he had used vulgarities, he denied they were racial insults.

But the prosecution said any allegation that Vishnubhai spat at him was fatally contradicted by the conduct of Wong and his fiancee.
Washington, Jun 14 (PTI) Prime Minister Narendra Modi's official state visit to the US next week is about building and institutionalising cooperation between the world's two largest democracies for the next two decades, a top American diplomat of Indian origin has said.

Richard Verma, the Deputy Secretary of State for Management and Resources, said the visit has come at a "perfect time".

There are a lot of reasons why this visit makes so much sense right now because it's about building in and institutionalising our cooperation for those next two decades, for those next 10 years or so. This is exactly what the president wanted to do. It's why he has prioritised this visit," he told PTI on Tuesday.

Prime Minister Modi arrives in Washington DC on a three-day state visit on June 21. The welcome ceremony and the state dinner along with an address to the Joint Session of the US Congress are scheduled for June 22.

Verma, 54, is the highest-ranking Indian American ever in the US State Department.

Verma, who has been associated with President Joe Biden in various capacities for the past several decades, has the distinction of being the first Indian American ever to serve as the US ambassador to India.

The first US ambassador to travel to every Indian State, Verma is credited with the deepening of the India-US relationship.

Biden has taken several steps to develop the India-US relationship both bilaterally and multilaterally with Quad and I2U2 groupings.

Ahead of the official state visit, Verma recollected how Biden, then as the Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, batted for Indo-US civil nuclear deal under Republican president George Bush and convinced his Democratic colleagues in Congress to vote in its favour.

I'm so grateful that President Biden, and Secretary (of State, Tony) Blinken are such strong believers. I started my career after the military and went to the Senate to work where then-Senator Biden was chairman of the foreign relations committee. The staff director of the committee at that time was a young man named Tony Blinken. He was my colleague, he said.

Verma recalled going to the events of the Indian community with Biden, where then-Senator Biden would talk about the importance of the US-India relationship.

"You can find a quote from then-Senator Biden from I think 2003 or 2004, where he says, if the US and India are the closest friends in 2020, then the world will be a much safer and prosperous place. And, he was right. He made that prediction 17 years ago. He turned out to be exactly right about it, Verma said.

He said the Democratic caucus in early 2000 looked to Senator Biden for guidance on questions related to foreign policy and on how they might vote or handle an issue. "So when a matter sensitive of the US-India civil nuclear deal came up, and Senator Biden came out in support of the deal that brought along the Democratic caucus with him, said the top Indian American diplomat.

Verma said Biden knew it was important to bring India into the kind of mainstream when it came to civil nuclear trade and thought the deal was really worth it.

Now, where it's fallen short is in actually producing nuclear power in India. But where it has delivered an incredible amount has just been in our relationship and how India saw the US bat for it in the international system to try to write an international system that had not treated the global south or rising powers fairly.

"And, it brought in the US Congress, it brought in the Indian American diaspora. That moment really did transform our relationship. So it's paid huge dividends, even though we're still waiting for the nuclear power side of it, to pay those dividends, he said.

India-US relationship has strengthened since then, Verma said.

I tell people all the time, if you look at the relationship over the last 75 years, I think you have to look at the year 2020 forward as when things really turned. It was with President Clinton's visit to India in the year 2000. I will say every year since then, it has gone upwards and upwards and upwards. That continues to be the case, he said.

So, people say, why? What has been different? I think we realise that in this post kind of Cold War era where we are these two big democracies out trying to protect a rules-based order, trying to ensure that our people have a voice, trying to ensure that disputes are resolved peacefully.

"We have gravitated back towards each other. Frankly, the way President Eisenhower and President Kennedy saw the relationship. We're actually coming back kind of full circle to where we started years ago. But we've gone now much further, he said.

Verma said the bilateral relationship is not just about defence sales or defence cooperation, but also about clean energy, innovation and technology.

"Our national security advisor, Jake Sullivan, is in India today to talk about emerging technologies, quantum computing, AI and semiconductors and how we can do more work in this field of which India and the US are leading in. So why not talk about these areas, he said.

Verma said he is really excited about the next 20 years and how the work that "we do in these next two years can really shape those next two decades.

I'll also say we have to just keep working at the relationship. We can't assume it's just gonna keep going up. The reason it's kept going up is because people have worked on it, he said.

Verma said Prime Minister Modi has played a very significant role in strengthening this partnership.

When he came into office (in 2014), one of the very first trips he took was to Washington. He and President Brack Obama had a very strong relationship that carried into the next administration. He and President Biden have a very strong relationship, Verma said.

From the Prime Minister to the National Security Advisor to the Foreign Secretary, the External Affairs Minister, the very fine ambassador here in Washington, Ambassador Sandhu, I think the entire team has really put itself forward into the relationship. I hope they feel a similar amount of effort, respect and commitment has gone in from the Washington side as well, he said.
LUSAKA, June 14 (Xinhua) -- The Zambian government on Wednesday welcomed the decision by the World Bank to approve 100 million U.S. dollars for the country's tourism sector.

In a statement released Monday, the World Bank approved a 100-million-dollar credit to strengthen Zambia's nature-based economy and increase economic opportunities in emerging tourism destinations in the southern African nation. The funds will help increase economic opportunities and revenue from tourism and the broad nature-based economy sector by improving the enabling environment, financing basic infrastructure and providing matching grants to communities for investments in the nature-based economy.

Minister of Tourism Rodney Sikumba welcomed the decision by the World Bank, saying it will go a long way in boosting the tourism sector in the country. He told journalists during a press briefing that the approval has come at the right time when the government is trying to make Zambia a tourism destination.

While acknowledging that Zambia has abundant tourism sites, he said most of the areas do not have a conducive environment to attract tourists, adding that the funds will be used to improve infrastructure in tourism-rich regions. "What we want is to create a destination and we are looking at connecting tourism areas," he said.

The minister noted that the sector suffered a setback during the COVID-19 period but disclosed that the government has come up with a plan to attract more tourists.

The ministry is looking at both attracting domestic and international tourists, said the Zambian official, adding that the sector has the potential to provide sustainable employment. 
Karachi, Jun 14 (PTI) Thousands of people living in coastal towns and small islands in Pakistan left their homes for safer places ahead of the approaching Cyclone Biparjoy that is expected to make landfall in the country on Thursday.

Strong winds, showers and high tides heralded the arrival of Cyclone Biparjoy, which means disaster or calamity in the Bengali language.

Classified as a very severe cyclonic storm of category 3, Biparjoy is expected to make landfall with winds of approximately 140-150 kilometres per hour (km/h) and gusts up to 170 km/h.

According to the latest forecast, the cyclone was expected to maintain a northward trajectory and then it was likely to re-curve eastward and make its landfall between Keti Bandar in Thatta district and India's Gujarat coastline.

The areas likely to be affected included Thatta, Badin, Sajawal, Tharparkar, Karachi, Mirpurkhas, Umerkot, Hyderabad, Ormara, Tando Allahyar and Tando Mohammad Khan, according to weather experts.

Information shared by the Sindh Chief Minister's House showed that out of the total vulnerable population of 71,380 residing in seven talukas of three districts (as estimated by the government), a total of 56,985 people were evacuated by Tuesday evening.

Of these, over 22,000 people were evacuated voluntarily. The evacuation took place in Keti Bandar and Ghora Bari, part of Thatta district; Shah Bandar, Jati and Kharochann, part of Sujawal district; Shaheed Fazil Rahu tehsil (district Badin) and Badin.

Thirty-seven relief camps have been set up at different sites including government schools and colleges. The Pakistan Navy said that troops had evacuated 700 people from various villages of Shah Bandar and 64 fishermen were rescued from the sea.

Naval emergency response and medical teams had been deployed at coastal areas of Balochistan and rural areas of Sindh including Hyderabad, Shaheed Benazirabad, Sukkur and Sanghar, while naval ships were maintaining vigilance in the open sea, it added.

Climate Change Minister Sherry Rehman urged people to stay calm, adding that the federal government was engaged with the Sindh and Balochistan governments while the prime minister was supervising risk mitigation and reduction efforts and had directed all relevant ministers to remain engaged on a 24/7 basis until the emergency is resolved.

She said that the cyclone was still on path".

The cyclones reduced intensity is limited to the Balochistan side, but people in Kund Malir, Hub, Lasbela and Winder are advised to exercise caution. Please dont take the early warnings casually and remain vigilant, she said.

The cyclone will not directly hit Karachi; however, it will certainly hit Keti Bandar, she said on Tuesday.

She said that Karachi would likely receive 110mm of rainfall, whereas Thatta, Badin, and Sajawal are expected to receive 330mm of rain.

"We have a red alert [in place] till June 18 and will issue a new advisory at 11 or 12 o'clock on the day [the storm is expected to make a landfall]," she added.

In a tweet separately, she said: "Panic is understandable, human nature; but its important to move with caution & calm."

"Evacuations are painful, stressful and hard to embark on but we must insist on them in areas where see #CycloneBiparjoy making landfall. For Coastal areas like Keti Bandar evacuations are not optional."

The Army, Navy, Rangers and district administrations moved people to shelters and relief camps, which were set up in schools and other government buildings.

Pakistan Meteorologist Department (PMD) Sindh Chief Meteorologist Sardar Sarfaraz told Geo News that the storm's intensity had decreased somewhat.

"There is no dangerous situation in Karachi, the cyclone will exit from the city's south," he said.

He, moreover, added that the storm was heading toward the north.

"It will then move north-east, where it will hit or pass Keti Bandar and India's Gujarat," he said, commenting on the cyclone's trajectory.

He also shared that there is a possibility of light to moderate rainfall in Karachi on Wednesday. However, the port city will probably receive heavy rainfall on Thursday and Friday.

Earlier, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, who chaired a meeting to review the preparedness ahead of the possible impact of the cyclone, directed the Sindh government, the National Disaster Management Authority and other relevant organisations to utilise all-out resources to protect the people.

In view of the storm, the prime minister also ordered the establishment of mobile hospitals in the coastal areas to ensure adequate emergency medical assistance there. He also ordered for provision of clean drinking water and food at the camps.

The prime minister instructed Power Minister Engineer Khurram Dastgir Khan to ensure his presence in the districts of southern Sindh until the effects of the cyclone were over, to monitor the 24-hour power transmission system in the coastal areas.

He said that after the cyclone, the possible damage to the power transmission system should be repaired immediately. He also set up a committee to deal with the emergency situation.

Pakistan is still recovering from losses caused by unprecedented floods last year in which more than 1,700 people were killed, and over 33 million people were affected.
London, Jun 14 (PTI) A 27-year-old Indian-origin woman has been stabbed to death in north London and Scotland Yard on Wednesday said that two men have been arrested in connection with the murder.

The incident took place at a residential property in Neeld Crescent, Wembley on Tuesday.

While the murder victim is yet to be formally identified by police in the UK, reports from India indicate that it was Kontham Tejasvini  a young professional from Hyderabad.

A post-mortem examination is scheduled, following which the police are expected to formally release her identity.

The Metropolitan Police had earlier released an image of Brazilian national Keven Antonio Lourenco De Morais to seek the publics help in tracing the suspect behind the attack on Tuesday morning.

The 23-year-old has now been arrested from Harrow, near the crime scene of Neeld Crescent in Wembley.

He was arrested on suspicion of murder and taken into custody at a north London police station, the Met Police said, without naming him again as he can now be named only if he is charged.

Officers attended along with the London Ambulance Service and two women were treated for stab injuries. Despite the efforts of emergency services, a 27-year-old woman sadly died at the scene. Her next of kin are yet to be informed, the Met Police said in a statement.

A second woman, aged 28 and also unnamed, was taken to hospital with stab injuries that were later assessed as not life-threatening.

Two other people, a 24-year-old man and a 23-year-old woman, were arrested at the scene on suspicion of murder. While the man remains in custody, the woman has been released without further action, the police said.

Police officers were called to Neeld Crescent in Wembley, north London, at 9.59 am local time on Tuesday to reports of a double stabbing.

Two female victims were treated at the scene by the emergency services and while one died on the spot, the other remains in a north London hospital.

"This has been a fast-moving investigation and I would like to thank the public for sharing our appeal for information about this man. He is now in custody, said Detective Chief Inspector Linda Bradley, from the Met's Specialist Crime Command.

"I recognise the significant concern this incident has caused in the community and I would like to reassure the public that a dedicated team of detectives are working to establish what happened. Local officers will remain in the area over the coming days to respond to any concerns," she said.
Kyiv, Jun 14 (AP) Russian forces fired cruise missiles at the southern Ukrainian city of Odesa and shelled the eastern Donetsk region early Wednesday, killing at least six people and damaging dozens of homes, regional Ukrainian officials said.

Russian forces have stepped up aerial strikes in their nearly 16-month war, a Ukrainian military spokesman said, while the country's armed forces have reported limited gains in the early stages of a counteroffensive to take back the nearly one-fifth of Ukraine's territory that is under Russian control.

In Odesa, three food warehouse employees were killed in a strike that also damaged homes, shops and cafes in the city's downtown, the regional administration said on Facebook. Another 13 people were injured.

Search teams were looking for possible survivors under the rubble of the warehouse, it said.

The attack on the port city, launched from the Black Sea, was the second in a week and involved four Kalibr cruise missiles, three of which were intercepted by air defenses, the administration said.

In eastern Ukraine, Donetsk province governor Pavlo Kyrylenko wrote on Telegram that at least three people died after shelling destroyed seven homes and damaged dozens more in the cities of Kramatorsk and Kostiantynivka.

Ten towns and villages along the front line in Donetsk were struck as Kyiv's troops slowly advance, according to Ukraine's presidential office.

A missile hit the Ukrainian-controlled city of Kramatorsk, where Kyiv's forces are headquartered, killing two civilians and wounding two others while damaging 29 homes, the presidential office said. Russian shelling of Kostiantynivka killed one civilian, with 57 houses damaged, it added.

Andriy Kovalov, a spokesperson for the General Staff of Ukraine's armed forces, said the Russian military increased missile and aerial strikes as Kyiv's forces intensify attacks along the war's 1,000-kilometre front line and claim some modest gains at the beginning of their counteroffensive.

In a briefing, he said strikes on the Kharkiv, Donetsk and Kirovohrad regions, in addition to the Odesa region, involved Kh-22 cruise missiles, sea-launched Kalibr cruise missiles, and Iranian-made Shahed drones. Nine were intercepted.

Kovalov said Ukrainian forces had made advances in several sections and fighting was continuing in or near at least two Donetsk province communities.

Britain's Ministry of Defence, which has regularly issued updates on the conflict, wrote on Twitter that southern Ukraine has often been more permissible for Russian air operations compared with other parts of the front.

Separately, the mayor of the central city of Kryvyi Rih, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's hometown, said the death toll from a Russian strike that hit an apartment building a day earlier had risen to 12.

Ukrainian authorities continued to rescue people from the flooded areas of southern Ukraine's partially Russian-occupied Kherson region following the destruction of the Kakhovka dam last week.

A total of 28 settlements on the Ukrainian-held western bank of the Dnieper River remain under water, and nearly 2,800 people have been taken to safety so far, the presidential office said, adding that the rescue effort was taking place under relentless Russian shelling.

The Ukrainian-controlled areas of the Kherson region came under artillery fire 57 times over the past 24 hours, the presidential office said. (AP)



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Rome, Jun 14 (AP) Pope Francis is expected to be released from the hospital in the coming days, as he recovers well and without complications from abdominal surgery last week, the Vatican said Wednesday.

In his daily medical update, Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni said Francis again rested well overnight, was at work during the day and had received the Eucharist during a moment of prayer in the chapel of his hospital suite.

The 86-year-old pope was admitted to Rome's Gemelli hospital on June 7 for surgery to repair a hernia in his abdominal wall and remove intestinal scar tissue that had caused intestinal blockages.

Francis in 2021 had 33 centimetres of his colon removed at Gemelli because of a narrowing of the intestine, and had at least two prior abdominal surgeries in Argentina.

Citing Francis' doctors, Bruni said the pope's recovery is proceeding regularly, without complications, and as such his discharge is planned for the coming days.

Daily Il Fatto Quotidiano quoted an email from the dean of the College of Cardinals, Cardinal Battista Re, to his colleagues saying Francis' return to the Vatican was expected Thursday or Friday.

Francis already has a full agenda scheduled for next week, including a reported audience with Cuban President Miguel Diaz Cane and one with Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.

On June 23, he's due to preside over an audience in the Sistine Chapel with artists to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the contemporary art collection in the Vatican Museums.

The Vatican typically cancels papal audiences during July, a summer break that will give Francis time to recover more fully before his expected August 2-6 trip to Portugal for World Youth Day.

Other upcoming travel includes an August 31-September 4 visit to Mongolia, the first-ever by a pope, and a September 23 day trip to Marseille, France. (AP)



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Kyiv, Jun 14 (AP) Russian forces fired cruise missiles at the southern Ukrainian city of Odesa and shelled the eastern Donetsk region early on Wednesday, killing at least six people and damaging dozens of homes, regional Ukrainian officials said.

Russian forces have stepped up aerial strikes in their nearly 16-month war, a Ukrainian military spokesman said.

The country's armed forces, meanwhile, have reported limited gains in the early stages of a counteroffensive to take back the nearly one-fifth of Ukraine's territory that is under Russian control.

The grinding Ukrainian advance is pressing slowly ahead, Ukraine's Deputy Defence Minister Hanna Maliar said on Wednesday.

Western analysts and military officials say the effort to dislodge entrenched, powerfully armed and large numbers of Russian troops could take years.

Ukrainian troops have advanced 200-500 metres (650-1,600 feet) at various sections of the front line around the Donetsk city of Bakhmut and 300-350 metres (980-1,150 feet) in the southern Zaporizhzhia region, Maliar claimed.

Ukrainian forces have managed to make gains despite the Russian edge in artillery and air power, she said.

It was not possible to verify the battlefield claims.

In Odesa, three food warehouse employees were killed in a strike that also damaged homes, shops and cafes in the city's downtown, the regional administration said on Facebook. Another 13 people were injured.

Search teams were looking for possible survivors under the rubble of the warehouse, it said.

The attack on the port city, launched from the Black Sea, was the second in a week and involved four Kalibr cruise missiles, three of which were intercepted by air defences, the administration said.

In eastern Ukraine, Donetsk province governor Pavlo Kyrylenko wrote on Telegram that at least three people died after shelling destroyed seven homes and damaged dozens more in the cities of Kramatorsk and Kostiantynivka.

Ten towns and villages along the front line in Donetsk were struck as Kyiv's troops slowly advance, according to Ukraine's presidential office.

A missile hit the Ukrainian-controlled city of Kramatorsk, where Kyiv's forces are headquartered, killing two civilians and wounding two others while damaging 29 homes, the presidential office said. Russian shelling of Kostiantynivka killed one civilian, with 57 houses damaged, it added.

Andriy Kovalov, a spokesperson for the General Staff of Ukraine's armed forces, said the Russian military increased missile and aerial strikes as Kyiv's forces intensify attacks along the war's 1,000-kilometer (600-mile) front line and claim some modest gains at the beginning of their counteroffensive.

In a briefing, he said strikes on the Kharkiv, Donetsk and Kirovohrad regions, in addition to the Odesa region, involved Kh-22 cruise missiles, sea-launched Kalibr cruise missiles, and Iranian-made Shahed drones. Nine were intercepted.

Kovalov said Ukrainian forces had made advances in several sections and fighting was continuing in or near at least two Donetsk province communities.

Britain's Ministry of Defence, which has regularly issued updates on the conflict, wrote on Twitter that southern Ukraine has often been more permissible for Russian air operations compared with other parts of the front.

Separately, the mayor of the central city of Kryvyi Rih, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's hometown, said the death toll from a Russian strike that hit an apartment building a day earlier had risen to 12.

Ukrainian authorities continued to rescue people from the flooded areas of southern Ukraine's partially Russian-occupied Kherson region following the destruction of the Kakhovka dam last week.

A total of 28 settlements on the Ukrainian-held western bank of the Dnieper River remain under water, and nearly 2,800 people have been taken to safety so far, the presidential office said, adding that the rescue effort was taking place under relentless Russian shelling.

The Ukrainian-controlled areas of the Kherson region came under artillery fire 57 times over the past 24 hours, the presidential office said. (AP) PY

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Ankara, Jun 14 (AP) Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said that NATO should not bet on his country approving Sweden's application to join the Western military alliance before a July summit because the Nordic nation has not fully addressed his security concerns.

Sweden and Finland applied for membership together following Russia's invasion of Ukraine last year. Finland became NATO's 31st member in April after the Turkish parliament ratified its request, but Turkiye has held off approving Sweden's bid.

NATO wants to bring Sweden into the fold by the time the leaders of member nations meet for a summit in Lithuania's capital on July 11-12. Speaking to journalists on his way back from a state visit to Azerbaijan on Tuesday, Erdogan said Turkey's attitude to the accession was not positive.

Turkiye's state-run Anadolu Agency and other media reported Erdogan's comments as senior officials from NATO, Sweden, Finland and Turkiye met in Ankara on Wednesday.

The officials discussed what Finland and Sweden have done to address Turkiye's concerns over alleged terrorist organisations.

Erdogan said the Turkish delegation at the meeting will give this message: This is our president's opinion, don't expect anything different at Vilnius,'" Lithuania's capital.

Turkiye's government accuses Sweden of being too lenient toward groups that Ankara says pose a security threat, including militant Kurdish groups and people associated with a 2016 coup attempt.

A series of separate demonstrations in Stockholm, including a protest by an anti-Islam activist who burned the Quran outside the Turkish Embassy, also angered Turkish officials.

Speaking in Sweden's parliament, Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson called the Ankara meeting very important. Kristersson reiterated that his government had done what it promised in an agreement last year that was intended to secure Turkiye's ratification of the country's NATO membership.

However, Erdogan remained unsatisfied. He said he told NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg last week, If you expect us to respond to Sweden's expectations, first of all, Sweden must destroy what this terrorist organization has done.

He was referring to the Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK, a group that has waged a separatist insurgency in Turkiye.

Erdogan said that pro-Kurdish and anti-NATO rallies also took place in Stockholm during his meeting with with Stoltenberg in Istanbul.

A statement issued by the Turkish presidency after Wednesday's said the parties held consultations on the activities of terrorist groups in Sweden based on concrete examples. It said they agreed to continue working on further steps.

Stoltenberg said his chief of staff, who attended the meeting, reported that it took place in a constructive atmosphere.

Some progress has been made, and we will continue to work for the ratification of Sweden as soon as possible, he said.

Asked whether NATO would be able to admit Sweden before the Vilnius summit, Stoltenberg replied, It is still possible. I cannot guarantee it, of course.

NATO requires the unanimous approval of all existing members to expand, and Turkey and Hungary are the only countries that have not yet ratified Sweden's request to join. Erdogan said he planned to attend the July summit in Lithuania unless extraordinary circumstances arise.

On Tuesday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said after meeting with Stoltenberg that it was time to welcome Sweden into the alliance, arguing that Stockholm had an important and I think very appropriate process on its accession to address appropriate concerns of other allies.

Sweden has amended its constitution and strengthened its anti-terror laws since it applied to join NATO just over a year ago. This week, the Swedish government also decided to extradite a Turkish citizen resident in Sweden who was convicted for drug offenses in Turkiye in 2013.

Sweden and Finland applied to become NATO members in the wake of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, abandoning decades of nonalignment. (AP)



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London, Jun 14 (AP) Lawmakers in Europe signed off on Wednesday on the world's first set of comprehensive rules for artificial intelligence, clearing a key hurdle as authorities across the globe race to rein in AI.

The European Parliament vote is one of the last steps before the rules become law, which could act as a model for other places working on similar regulations.

A yearslong effort by Brussels to draw up guardrails for AI has taken on more urgency as rapid advances in chatbots like ChatGPT show the benefits the emerging technology can bring  and the new perils it poses.

Here's a look at the EU's Artificial Intelligence Act:

HOW DO THE RULES WORK?

The measure, first proposed in 2021, will govern any product or service that uses an artificial intelligence system. The act will classify AI systems according to four levels of risk, from minimal to unacceptable.

Riskier applications, such as for hiring or tech targeted to children, will face tougher requirements, including being more transparent and using accurate data.

It will be up to the EU's 27 member states to enforce the rules. Regulators could force companies to withdraw their apps from the market.

In extreme cases, violations could draw fines of up to 30 million euros (USD 33 million) or 6 per cent of a company's annual global revenue, which in the case of tech companies like Google and Microsoft could amount to billions.

WHAT ARE THE RISKS?

One of the EU's main goals is to guard against any AI threats to health and safety and protect fundamental rights and values.

That means some AI uses are an absolute no-no, such as social scoring systems that judge people based on their behaviour.

Also forbidden is AI that exploits vulnerable people, including children, or uses subliminal manipulation that can result in harm, for example, an interactive talking toy that encourages dangerous behaviour.

Predictive policing tools, which crunch data to forecast who will commit crimes, is also out.

Lawmakers beefed up the original proposal from the European Commission, the EU's executive branch, by widening the ban on real-time remote facial recognition and biometric identification in public. The technology scans passers-by and uses AI to match their faces or other physical traits to a database.

A contentious amendment to allow law enforcement exceptions such as finding missing children or preventing terrorist threats did not pass.

AI systems used in categories like employment and education, which would affect the course of a person's life, face tough requirements such as being transparent with users and taking steps to assess and reduce risks of bias from algorithms.

Most AI systems, such as video games or spam filters, fall into the low- or no-risk category, the commission says.

WHAT ABOUT CHATGPT?

The original measure barely mentioned chatbots, mainly by requiring them to be labelled so users know they're interacting with a machine. Negotiators later added provisions to cover general purpose AI like ChatGPT after it exploded in popularity, subjecting that technology to some of the same requirements as high-risk systems.

One key addition is a requirement to thoroughly document any copyright material used to teach AI systems how to generate text, images, video and music that resemble human work.

That would let content creators know if their blog posts, digital books, scientific articles or songs have been used to train algorithms that power systems like ChatGPT. Then they could decide whether their work has been copied and seek redress.

WHY ARE THE EU RULES SO IMPORTANT?

The European Union isn't a big player in cutting-edge AI development. That role is taken by the US and China. But Brussels often plays a trend-setting role with regulations that tend to become de facto global standards and has become a pioneer in efforts to target the power of large tech companies.

The sheer size of the EU's single market, with 450 million consumers, makes it easier for companies to comply than develop different products for different regions, experts say.

But it's not just a crackdown. By laying down common rules for AI, Brussels is also trying to develop the market by instilling confidence among users.

The fact this is regulation that can be enforced and companies will be held liable is significant because other places like the United States, Singapore and Britain have merely offered "guidance and recommendations", said Kris Shrishak, a technologist and senior fellow at the Irish Council for Civil Liberties.

Other countries might want to adapt and copy the EU rules, he said.

Businesses and industry groups warn that Europe needs to strike the right balance.

The EU is set to become a leader in regulating artificial intelligence, but whether it will lead on AI innovation still remains to be seen," said Boniface de Champris, a policy manager for the Computer and Communications Industry Association, a lobbying group for tech companies.

Europe's new AI rules need to effectively address clearly defined risks, while leaving enough flexibility for developers to deliver useful AI applications to the benefit of all Europeans, he said.

Sam Altman, CEO of ChatGPT maker OpenAI, has voiced support for some guardrails on AI and signed on with other tech executives to a warning about the risks it poses to humankind. But he also has said it's a mistake to go put heavy regulation on the field right now.

Others are playing catch up on AI rules. Britain, which left the EU in 2020, is jockeying for a position in AI leadership. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak plans to host a world summit on AI safety this fall.

I want to make the UK not just the intellectual home but the geographical home of global AI safety regulation, Sunak said at a tech conference this week.

WHAT'S NEXT?

It could be years before the rules fully take effect. The next step is three-way negotiations involving member countries, the Parliament and the European Commission, possibly facing more changes as they try to agree on the wording.

Final approval is expected by the end of this year, followed by a grace period for companies and organisations to adapt, often around two years.

Brando Benifei, an Italian member of the European Parliament who is co-leading its work on the AI Act, said they would push for quicker adoption of the rules for fast-evolving technologies like generative AI.

To fill the gap before the legislation takes effect, Europe and the US are drawing up a voluntary code of conduct that officials promised at the end of May would be drafted within weeks and could be expanded to other like-minded countries". (AP) PY

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Ankara, Jun 14 (AP) Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said that NATO should not bet on his country approving Sweden's application to join the Western military alliance before a July summit because the Nordic nation has not fully addressed his security concerns.

Sweden and Finland applied for membership together following Russia's invasion of Ukraine last year. Finland became NATO's 31st member in April after the Turkish parliament ratified its request, but Turkiye has held off approving Sweden's bid.

NATO wants to bring Sweden into the fold by the time the leaders of member nations meet for a summit in Lithuania's capital on July 11-12. Speaking to journalists on his way back from a state visit to Azerbaijan on Tuesday, Erdogan said Turkiye's attitude to the accession was not positive.

Turkiye's state-run Anadolu Agency and other media reported Erdogan's comments as senior officials from NATO, Sweden, Finland and Turkiye met in Ankara on Wednesday. The officials discussed what Finland and Sweden have done to address Turkiye's concerns over alleged terrorist organisations.

Erdogan said the Turkish delegation at the meeting will give this message: This is our president's opinion, don't expect anything different at Vilnius", Lithuania's capital.

Turkiye's government accuses Sweden of being too lenient toward groups that Ankara says pose a security threat, including militant Kurdish groups and people associated with a 2016 coup attempt.

A series of separate demonstrations in Stockholm, including a protest by an anti-Islam activist who burned the Quran outside the Turkish Embassy, also angered Turkish officials.

Speaking in Sweden's parliament, Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson called the Ankara meeting very important. Kristersson reiterated that his government had done what it promised in an agreement last year that was intended to secure Turkiye's ratification of the country's NATO membership.

However, Erdogan remained unsatisfied. He said he told NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg last week, If you expect us to respond to Sweden's expectations, first of all, Sweden must destroy what this terrorist organization has done.

He was referring to the Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK, a group that has waged a separatist insurgency in Turkiye.

Erdogan said that pro-Kurdish and anti-NATO rallies also took place in Stockholm during his meeting with with Stoltenberg in Istanbul.

A statement issued by the Turkish presidency after Wednesday's said the parties held consultations on the activities of terrorist groups in Sweden based on concrete examples. It said they agreed to continue working on further steps.

Stoltenberg said his chief of staff, who attended the meeting, reported that it took place in a constructive atmosphere.

Some progress has been made, and we will continue to work for the ratification of Sweden as soon as possible, he said.

Asked whether NATO would be able to admit Sweden before the Vilnius summit, Stoltenberg replied, It is still possible. I cannot guarantee it, of course.

NATO requires the unanimous approval of all existing members to expand, and Turkiye and Hungary are the only countries that have not yet ratified Sweden's request to join. Erdogan said he planned to attend the July summit in Lithuania unless extraordinary circumstances arise.

On Tuesday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said after meeting with Stoltenberg that it was time to welcome Sweden into the alliance, arguing that Stockholm had an important and I think very appropriate process on its accession to address appropriate concerns of other allies.

Sweden has amended its constitution and strengthened its anti-terror laws since it applied to join NATO just over a year ago.

This week, the Swedish government also decided to extradite a Turkish citizen resident in Sweden who was convicted for drug offenses in Turkiye in 2013.

Sweden and Finland applied to become NATO members in the wake of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, abandoning decades of nonalignment. (AP) PY

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Cairo, Jun 14 (AP) The conflict in Sudan has displaced more than two million people, the United Nations said on Wednesday, as a UN official warned that escalating attacks in Darfur city could amount to crimes against humanity.

Sudan has plunged into chaos since mid-April when monthslong tensions between the military and its rival, the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, exploded into an open fighting in the capital, Khartoum, and elsewhere across the northeastern African nation.

The fighting continued unabated on Wednesday in parts of the capital and the western region of Darfur, both have seen some of the worst battels. At least 959 civilians have been killed and about 4,750 others were wounded as of June 12, according to Sudan's Doctors Syndicate, which tracks civilian casualties.

The brutal clashes have forced more than 1.6 million people to leave their homes to safer areas inside Sudan, according to the International Organisation for Migration. About 530,000 others fled to the neighbouring countries of Egypt, South Sudan, Chad, Ethiopia, the Central African Republic, and Libya, the agency said.

The medical group said the toll could be much higher given it was unable to take into account those who were killed or wounded in the ongoing clashes in Genena, the provincial capital of West Darfur. The city's hospitals have been out of service since the fighting erupted there in April, the group said.

All of Sudan's 18 provinces experienced displacement, with Khartoum at the top of the list with around 65 per cent of the total number of displaced people, followed by West Darfur with over 17 per cent, according to the IOM's Displacement Tracking Matrix.

In Genena, the provincial capital of West Darfur, the RSF and allied Arab militias rampaged through the city over the past week, killing and wounded hundreds of people, according to local activists and UN officials.

Activists and residents in Genena reported dozens of women were sexually attacked inside their homes and while trying to flee the fighting. Almost all rape cases were blamed on the RSF, which didn't respond to repeated requests for comment.

Khamis Abdalla Abkar, the provincial governor of West Darfur province, accused the RSF and allied militias of attacking local communities across Genena. In a phone interview on Wednesday with Saudi-owned television station, Al-Hadath, he urged the international community to intervene to protect civilians in his province.

Volker Perthes, the UN envoy in Sudan, said on Tuesday the fighting in Genena has taken an ethnic dimension, with Arab militias and armed men in RSF uniforms showing an emerging pattern of large-scale targeted attacks against civilians based on their ethnic identities.

Such attacks, if verified, could amount to crimes against humanity", he warned.

Alice Wairimu Nderitu, the UN special adviser on the prevention of genocide, also condemned the shocking violence in Genena. She warned in a statement on Tuesday that such fighting could turn into renewed campaigns of rape, murder, and ethnic cleansing amounting to atrocity crimes.

Darfur had been the scene of genocidal war in early 2000s, when ethnic Africans rebelled, accusing the Arab-dominated government in Khartoum of discrimination. Former dictator Omar al-Bashir's government was accused of retaliating by arming local nomadic Arab tribes, known as Janjaweed, who targeted civilians.

The Janjaweed later evolved into the RSF. (AP) PY

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Kathmandu, Jun 14 (PTI) Nepals President Ramchandra Paudel, who was admitted to a hospital on Tuesday after he complained of chest pain, was discharged on Wednesday.

The 78-year-old leader, who was admitted to the Bansbari-based Shahid Gangalal National Heart Centre, was discharged at 8 am on Wednesday, according to a statement issued by the hospital.

Dr Chandra Mani Adhikari, the hospitals executive director, said that President Paudel was discharged following necessary treatment and after being kept under observation for 24 hours.

The president's health condition is normal at present, he said.

Paudel underwent an angiogram test in the hospital on Tuesday.

In early April, Paudel had been admitted to Maharajgunj-based Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital twice after experiencing abdominal pain and shortness of breath.

Paudel was airlifted to India on April 19 for treatment at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences in New Delhi. He returned to Nepal after his health improved following his successful treatment for a chest-related ailment at the AIIMS.

Doctors involved in Paudel's treatment had advised him to rest for a few more weeks.

Paudel of the Nepali Congress was elected as the president of Nepal in March.
DAR ES SALAAM, June 14 (Xinhua) -- A total of 20 Tanzanian secondary school students who are learning the Chinese language will attend the 2023 Chinese summer camp under support from the Confucius Institute at the University of Dar es Salaam in cooperation with Zhejiang Normal University in China.

The students from Baobab Secondary School and St. Christina Girls' Secondary School on Wednesday left for the two-week summer camp that will take them to Beijing, Jinhua in east China's Zhejiang Province, and Shanghai.

Speaking at the pre-departure ceremony Tuesday, Zhang Xiaozhen, the director of the Confucius Institute at the University of Dar es Salaam, said she hoped the students would have different feelings and benefits after visiting Beijing, the political, economic and cultural center of China, Shanghai, the business and financial hub, and Jinhua where Zhejiang Normal University is located.

During the visit, the students will be trained to improve their Chinese language skills, and they will also be exposed to Chinese culture, high-tech, food and infrastructure, according to Zhang.

Wang Siping, cultural counselor at the Chinese Embassy in Tanzania, told the students that while in China, they will experience traditional Chinese culture, and understand more about Chinese people.

"You will see that China is sharply different from Tanzania. You will see the hospitality and friendliness of Chinese people," said Wang.

Shalia Yasini Mpenda, 17, a Form Four student at Baobab Secondary School, thanked the Confucius Institute for supporting them to travel to China.

"The trip to China will be a great exposure to us, and we hope to broaden our Chinese learning and learn about the Chinese culture," said Yasini. 
Tallinn (Estonia), Jun 14 (AP) Russian lawmakers gave initial approval on Wednesday to a bill that would outlaw gender transitioning procedures in yet another blow to the country's beleaguered LGBTQ+ community.

Senior lawmaker Pyotr Tolstoy, who is among the bill's sponsors, has said it is intended to protect Russia with its cultural and family values and traditions and to stop the infiltration of the Western anti-family ideology.

Russia's LGBTQ+ community has been under growing pressure for a decade as President Vladimir Putin and the Russian Orthodox Church embarked on a campaign to preserve what they deem the country's traditional values.

The bill bans any medical interventions aimed at changing the sex of a person, as well as changing one's gender in official documents and public records.

Russian transgender people and LGBTQ+ rights advocates contacted by The Associated Press described the measure as a grim development.

We knew that they didn't like us here, but to go absolutely against human rights, against the existing laws even," said Maxim, a 29-year-old transgender activist who spoke on condition of anonymity because of safety concerns.

The only option for those seeking to transition through medical care or changing their gender in documents would be to leave the country, according to human rights lawyer Max Olenichev, who works with the Russian LGBTQ+ community.

Neither medical, nor legal transitioning will be possible without changing the country of residence.

The bill must receive three readings by Russia's lower house of parliament, the State Duma, but there is little doubt it will pass because about 400 members of the 450-seat house signed it, including the house speaker and the leaders of all political factions.

The independent Russian news outlet Meduza reported that such a massive show of unity has happened only three times before under Putin, most recently when 385 Duma members signed on to a bill last year to ban propaganda of nontraditional sexual relations among adults.

That initiative was quickly rubber-stamped, and by December 2022, any positive or even neutral representation of LGBTQ+ people in movies, literature, or media was outlawed. The bill severely restricting trans rights came just a few months after that.

The crackdown on the LGBTQ+ community started well before last year, however. Maria Sjodin, executive director of the Outright international LGBTQ+ rights group, told AP in an interview that the situation in Russia has been deteriorating over quite a long period of time, coming up on at least 10 years".

In 2013, the Kremlin adopted the first legislation restricting LGBTQ+ rights, known as the gay propaganda law that banned any public endorsement of nontraditional sexual relations among minors. In 2020, Putin pushed through a constitutional reform that outlawed same-sex marriage.

But the Kremlin has ramped up its rhetoric about protecting traditional values from what it called the West's degrading influence after sending its troops into Ukraine last year, in what rights advocates saw as an attempt to legitimize the war.

Do we really want to have here, in our country, in Russia, Parent No. 1, No. 2, No. 3' instead of 'mom' and dad?" Putin said in September at a ceremony during which four Ukrainian regions were formally annexed by Moscow.

"Do we really want perversions that lead to degradation and extinction to be imposed in our schools from the primary grades? (AP) PY

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New York, Jun 14 (AP) Fox News said on Wednesday that an onscreen message that called President Biden a wannabe dictator was taken off TV immediately after it aired and addressed.

The headline appeared on Tuesday night under onscreen video of former President Donald Trump speaking to supporters live following his arrest, next to Biden speaking at an earlier White House event.

The message, called a chyron, read in full: Wannabe dictator speaks at the White House after having his political rival arrested.

Fox said in a statement on Wednesday that the chyron was taken down immediately and was addressed. There was no explanation about how it was addressed. The website Mediaite reported that the message was onscreen for 27 seconds.

The White House has said Biden has had no contact with Attorney General Merrick Garland about the indictment by special counsel Jack Smith, which accuses Trump of illegally hoarding classified documents. Biden has not commented on the case.

Several commentators on Fox and Republican politicians have, however, suggested the indictment was politically motivated, particularly before details of the charges were made public.

Two months ago, Fox News agreed to pay Dominion Voting Systems USD 787 million to settle a lawsuit accusing the news organization of telling lies about the 2020 presidential election. (AP) PY

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Kyiv, Jun 14 (AP) Russian forces fired cruise missiles at the southern Ukrainian city of Odesa and shelled the eastern Donetsk region early on Wednesday, killing at least six people and damaging dozens of homes, regional Ukrainian officials said.

Russian forces have recently stepped up aerial strikes in their nearly 16-month war, a Ukrainian military spokesman said. The country's armed forces, meanwhile, have reported limited gains in the early stages of a counteroffensive to take back the nearly one-fifth of Ukraine's territory that is under Russian control.

The grinding Ukrainian advance is pressing slowly ahead, Ukraine's Deputy Defence Minister Hanna Maliar said on Wednesday.

Western analysts and military officials say the effort to dislodge entrenched, powerfully armed and large numbers of Russian troops could take years.

Ukrainian troops have advanced 200-500 metres (650-1,600 feet) at various sections of the front line around the Donetsk city of Bakhmut and 300-350 metres (980-1,150 feet) in the southern Zaporizhzhia region, Maliar claimed. Ukrainian forces have managed to make gains despite the Russian edge in artillery and air power, she said.

It was not possible to verify the battlefield claims.

Ukrainian forces can expect to make slow progress in what will be a hugely difficult fight as the counteroffensive gains traction, according to a Western official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss intelligence.

Intense fighting is now ongoing in nearly all sectors of the front, the official said This is much more than probing. These are full-scale movements of armour and heavy equipment into the Russian security zone.

The official described the Ukrainian attacks as methodical and said that, broadly speaking, Russian forces have put up a good defence.

In Odesa, three food warehouse employees were killed in a strike that also damaged homes, shops and cafes in the city's downtown, the regional administration said on Facebook. An additional 13 people were injured.

Search teams were looking for possible survivors under the rubble of the warehouse, it said.

The attack on the port city, launched from the Black Sea, was the second in a week and involved four Kalibr cruise missiles, three of which were intercepted by air defences, the administration said.

In eastern Ukraine, Donetsk province Gov. Pavlo Kyrylenko wrote on Telegram that at least three people died after shelling destroyed seven homes and damaged dozens more in the cities of Kramatorsk and Kostiantynivka.

Ten towns and villages along the front line in Donetsk were struck as Kyiv's troops slowly advance, according to Ukraine's presidential office.

A missile hit the Ukrainian-controlled city of Kramatorsk, where Kyiv's forces are headquartered, killing two civilians and wounding two others while damaging 29 homes, the presidential office said. Russian shelling of Kostiantynivka killed one civilian, with 57 houses damaged, it added.

Andriy Kovalov, a spokesperson for the General Staff of Ukraine's armed forces, said the Russian military increased missile and aerial strikes as Kyiv's forces intensify attacks along the war's 1,000-kilometer (600-mile) front line and claim some modest gains at the beginning of their counteroffensive.

In a briefing, he said strikes on the Kharkiv, Donetsk and Kirovohrad regions, in addition to the Odesa region, involved Kh-22 cruise missiles, sea-launched Kalibr cruise missiles, and Iranian-made Shahed drones. Nine were intercepted.

Kovalov said Ukrainian forces had made advances in several sections and fighting was continuing in or near at least two Donetsk province communities.

Britain's Defence Ministry, which has regularly issued updates on the conflict, wrote on Twitter that southern Ukraine has often been more permissible for Russian air operations compared with other parts of the front.

Separately, the mayor of the central city of Kryvyi Rih, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's hometown, said the death toll from a Russian strike that hit an apartment building a day earlier had risen to 12.

Ukrainian authorities continued to rescue people from the flooded areas of southern Ukraine's partially Russian-occupied Kherson region following the destruction of the Kakhovka dam last week.

A total of 28 settlements on the Ukrainian-held western bank of the Dnieper River remain under water, and nearly 2,800 people have been taken to safety so far, the presidential office said, adding that the rescue effort was taking place under relentless Russian shelling.

A visit by Rafael Mariano Grossi, the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, to the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant on Wednesday was postponed for security reasons.

He met with Zelenskyy on Tuesday to discuss the perils facing the nuclear plant, which grew more serious after the Kakhovka Dam burst last week.

The plant has been in the crossfire repeatedly since Russia launched its war on Ukraine in February 2022 and seized the facility shortly after.

The largest nuclear power plant in Europe faces a relatively dangerous situation, the head of the United Nations nuclear watchdog told journalists in Kyiv on Tuesday.

The Ukrainian-controlled areas of the Kherson region came under artillery fire 57 times over the past 24 hours, the presidential office said.

Rumors swirled Wednesday about a relative and close associate of the Kremlin-backed, strongman leader of Chechnya, Ramzan Kadyrov. The reports said that lawmaker Adam Delimkhanov had been wounded  or even killed  in Ukraine.

After Russian state TV reported that the lawmaker had been wounded and Ukrainian Telegram channels suggested that he had been killed, Kadyrov published a photo showing Delimkhanov.

In a photo caption, Kadyrov said that Delimkhanov was alive and well  adding that he knew this "from the very beginning, despite earlier requesting Ukrainian intelligence to provide information on what positions were hit so that he could locate his dear brother. (AP) PY

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Nagpur, Jun 14 (PTI) A 25-year-old man allegedly posed as a woman doctor and managed to move around the Indira Gandhi Government Medical College and Hospital here for almost three weeks before he was caught on Wednesday, police said.

The accused, who wore a burkha on the hospital premises and identified himself as `Dr Ayesha', told police that he was gay and posed as a woman to befriend men, said an official of Tehsil police station.

Nobody suspected his identity as he interacted with the hospital staff as well as patients until personnel of the Maharashtra Security Force (MSF) posted at the hospital became suspicious, the official said.

After the MSF personnel alerted police, the deception came to light and the man was arrested, he said.

The accused's voice was so woman-like that even the police officials were taken by surprise, he said.

He was married but his wife had left him, the official said.

A case was registered against him for cheating, impersonation and other relevant offences under the Indian Penal Code and further probe was on, the police official said.
Pune, Jun 14 (PTI) India signed MoUs with four countries - Armenia, Sierra Leone, Suriname and Antigua and Barbuda - on sharing INDIA STACK, a digital solutions implemented at population scale during the third meeting of the 'G20 Digital Economy Working Group (DEWG)' that concluded here on Wednesday.

The agenda of the three-day meeting included the Global DPI (Digital Public Infrastructure) Summit and Global DPI Exhibition as the side events and closed-door meetings among the G20 delegates, invited countries and IOs on the priority areas, a statement said.

More than 250 delegates attended the meeting in-person, of whom there were around 150 foreign delegates from 50 countries. More than 2,000 people attended it virtually. India signed memoranda of understanding (MoU) with Armenia, Sierra Leone, Suriname and Antigua and Barbuda on sharing INDIA STACK.

The summit provided a global platform to discuss sector agnostic (foundational) and sectoral DPIs that inter-alia involved leadership, policy and practitioner-level insightful, thought-provoking and future-shaping discussions among overall 60 global experts on DPIs, it said.

These experts participated in 10 important sessions - 'Overview of Digital Public Infrastructure', 'Digital Identities for empowering people', 'Digital Payments and Financial Inclusion', 'DPI for Judicial Systems and Regulations', 'Digital Document Exchange for efficient service delivery', 'Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) for DPI', 'Digital Education and Skilling', 'DPI for Digital Health and Climate Action', 'Digital Agriculture Ecosystem', and 'Building the Global DPI Ecosystem'.

By providing the global platform on DPI to digital decision-makers from 50 Countries and multiple international organisations, India took the lead and further strengthened its role of acting as a strong bridge between Global North (G20 members) and Global South (Developing and LMIC countries).

The exhibition showcased 14 experience zones comprising successfully-implemented DPIs related to Digital Identity, Fast Payment, DigiLocker, Soil Health Card, E-National Agriculture Market, Unified Mobile App for New-Age Governance, Open Network for Digital Commerce, seamless travel experience at airport, language translation, learning solution, tele-medical consultation, and Digital India Journey.

It was visited by the delegates attending the summit and G20 DEWG meeting. Residents of Pune comprising also visited the exhibition.

The closed-door meeting of G20 DEWG began with the participation of 77 foreign delegates from G20 members, nine guest countries, five international organisations and two regional organisations.

The discussion under the Indian Presidency was led by Sushil Pal, Co-Chair G20 DEWG, the statement said.

During the meeting, discussions were held on DPI and the concept of 'One Future Alliance and One Future Fund' for DPI, enabling principles for good DPI, and recognition of the need for financing opportunities for DPI in Low and Middle Income Countries (LMIC).

Thereafter, digital skilling, upskilling and reskilling, capacity building and awareness, building a mutual recognition framework for digital skills and information sharing were discussed.
Indore, Jun 14 (PTI) Candidates who appeared for the Madhya Pradesh State Services Preliminary Examination 2022 last month, have questioned the MP Public Service commission's "unfair" decision to drop a question days after the exam, and threatened to approach the high court against the move.

The candidates said the question on the Quit India Movement carried two marks, and deleting it after the exam was "injustice" to those who answered it correctly.

State Congress president Kamal Nath hit out at the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), alleging that the MPPSC deleted the question "to please the political leadership", and also accused it of playing with the future of candidates.

Officials said that in the MPPSC's General Studies paper of the preliminary examination 2022 held on May 21, a multiple choice question was asked - 'On which date the Quit India movement started?'. Four choices were given to candidates to answer the question and they included August 7, 1942, August 9, 1942, August 10, 1942 and August 6, 1942.

Talking to PTI, Akash Pathak, a state services exam candidate, said on Wednesday, "We have concrete official documents that the Quit India movement started on August 9, 1942. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has also mentioned this in an episode of 'Mann Ki Baat'. The correct choice of the date of the beginning of the movement was in the question paper of the State Service Examination."

In the provisional answer-key released on May 24, the MPPSC declared the option of 'August 9, 1942' as the correct one, but in the final answer key released on June 12, it shockingly deleted this question, carrying two marks, he said.

Pathak threatened that if the MPPSC does not withdraw its alleged unfair decision, the candidates will file a petition in the Indore bench of the Madhya Pradesh High Court.

"The deletion of the question on the Quit India Movement is an injustice to the thousands of candidates who answered it correctly," he said.

When asked about the controversy over the question of Quit India Movement, MPPSC Officer on Special Duty (OSD) Ravindra Panchbhai said that the question was deleted by subject experts after considering the objections raised by candidates.

Meanwhile, purported screenshots have surfaced on social media claiming that a post from state Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan's Twitter account dated August 8, 2020, mentioned "August 8, 1942" as the date of the start of the Quit India Movement.

After the controversy, State Congress President Kamal Nath on Wednesday targeted the state's BJP government in a tweet saying, The answer key of the State Service Examination 2022 organised by the MPPSC has come under controversy. The answer to a question is not being decided by what is the truth, but by what the Chief Minister believed to be true and tweeted on a particular date."

He further said in the tweet, "Madhya Pradesh Public Service Commission should prepare answer-keys with facts and truth and not play with the future of students to please political leadership."

On the other hand, state BJP spokesperson Narendra Saluja termed Kamal Nath's statement as "childish" and claimed that both August 8, 1942 and August 9, 1942 are discussed in relation to the beginning of the Quit India Movement.
Mumbai, Jun 14 (PTI) A 23-year-old man transporting cattle died after he was allegedly assaulted by a group of gau rakshaks (cow vigilantes) in Maharashtras Nashik district following which six persons have been arrested, police said on Wednesday.

The alleged crime came to light on June 10 when Lukman Ansaris body was recovered from a gorge at Ghatandevi in Igatpuri area, an official said.



Police have taken into custody six gau rakshaks so far and a search is on for more accused in the case, he said. All the accused persons were associated with the Rashtriya Bajrang Dal, a right-wing outfit, he said.



Ansari along with his two aides was transporting cattle on their tempo on June 8 when they were intercepted by about 10-15 activists at Vihigaon in Sahapur of Thane district, he said.



The group then took control of the tempo and rescued four bovine animals before driving the vehicle towards Ghatandevi in Igatpuri, he said.



They stopped the tempo at a secluded place and allegedly started assaulting all three. While his aides managed to flee, Ansari could not escape, the official said.



Though the accused have claimed that Ansari lost his life after he fell into a gorge, police suspect he died due to the beating, said the official.



Police have registered two cases, including one under section 302 (murder), of the Indian Penal Code, he said.
Patna, Jun 14 (PTI) Hindustani Awam Morcha (HAM) founder Jitan Ram Manjhi on Wednesday squarely blamed Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar for his son Santosh Suman's exit from the state cabinet, following which the state's ruling Mahagathbandhan slammed its doors on his party.

The former chief minister, who broke his silence a day after the dramatic turn of events, also raked up the "humiliation" he had felt upon being forced to resign more than eight years ago, which helped the JD(U) chief return to the seat of power.

Keeping his cards close to the chest, the HAM founder, whose meeting with Union Home Minister Amit Shah a month ago has led to speculations of his return to the NDA, said, "We will decide the future course of action after our party's executive meeting on June 18."

"I met Nitish Kumar earlier this month. I was accompanied by MLAs of my party who wanted to share some concerns about their respective constituencies. The meeting continued for 45 minutes, most of which were taken up by the chief minister's harangue on our party's merger with JD(U)," said Manjhi.

"I tried to draw his attention, even told him in good humour that age seemed to be catching up on him," said Manjhi, incidentally, senior to Kumar by a few years.

The ex-CM claimed that when Kumar persisted with the talk of a merger, he said it was not possible, only to be brusquely told that "then you better get out".

"I was to leave for my own constituency in Gaya the same day and return on June 12. The CM asked me to think on his proposal again and let him know when I come back," claimed the HAM founder.

"On June 12, I met him again and conveyed to him my inability to agree to a merger. He again said if that was the case I better leave. So, I asked my son to resign the very next day," he added.

Notably, state Parliamentary Affairs Minister Vijay Kumar Chaudhary, whom Suman had handed over his resignation letter, claimed that the latter spoke of "personal reasons making it difficult to remain together".

Manjhi also bristled at his party being likened to a "tiny shop" by JD(U) national president Rajiv Ranjan Singh 'Lalan', saying, "This is the language befitting those for whom everything is up for sale."

He said the JD(U) should remember it is pointless to say the HAM is out of Mahagathbandhan as the party had never joined the coalition and "our loyalty had solely rested with Nitish Kumar".

On Deputy CM Tejashwi Yadav's remark that Kumar had accorded him "respect" by helping him become the CM, Manjhi said, "The young RJD leader has potential but clearly is not aware of the whole story."

"Nitish had not backed me out of an appreciation for my qualities. He was feeling ashamed over the party's drubbing in 2014 Lok Sabha polls. He wanted to shun limelight and put in his place someone whom he considered pliable," said Manjhi.

"For about two months I acted as per his advice. But all, including the media, began raising a hue and cry that I had become a rubber stamp. So, I started asserting myself. This made Nitish suspicious and he decided to have me overthrown," alleged Manjhi.

"Tejashwi should know that Nitish gave me respect but was also responsible for the humiliation I faced. He never trusted me, though I never ditched him. Instead of resigning as the chief minister, I could have recommended the dissolution of the assembly. It would have allowed me to function as caretaker CM for a few months and spoiled the plans of Nitish," Manjhi added.
Shillong, Jun 14 (PTI) The regional committees of Assam and Meghalaya held a meeting in Shillong on Wednesday, where they discussed the demarcation of their disputed inter-state boundary.

The meeting took place six months after violence in Mukroh village along the disputed border claimed the lives of six people.

Meghalaya's Deputy Chief Minister Sniawbhalang Dhar, who was leading his state's committee, told PTI, "This was the first joint meeting of the regional committees after the CMs of the two states met last month. We have decided to start working on the ground. The demarcation of the boundary was discussed."

The committees will visit the villages in Block I areas in Meghalaya's West Jaintia Hills district and Assam's West Karbi Anglong district and seek people's opinions before going ahead with the demarcation, Dhar said.

He said the Assam team was headed by minister Pijush Hazarika, and the committee included deputy commissioners of West Karbi Anglong and West Jaintia Hills districts.

In November last year, violence broke out in Mukroh area, where six people -- a forest guard from Assam and five villagers from Meghalaya -- were killed after a truck "laden with illegally felled timber" was intercepted by the forest personnel of Assam.

The clash had taken place between a joint team of Assam Police and Forest Protection Force and some villagers from Meghalaya's West Jaintia Hills district.

The entire conflict area falls in a disputed border location near Kheroni Forest Range in Assam and Mukroh and both states claimed the incident occurred in their respective territories.

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma had told the assembly last year that seven incidents of clashes and disputes between the two neighbouring states had taken place in West Karbi Anglong since 2021.

Assam and Meghalaya have a longstanding dispute in 12 areas along the 884.9-km-long interstate border, and the location of the November 22 clash happens to be one among these.

In 2010, four persons have died in an indiscriminate firing by Assam Police at Langpih (one of the 12 areas of differences).

The two northeastern states had signed a memorandum of understanding in March 2022 in the presence of Union Home Minister Amit Shah in New Delhi for settling the dispute in six areas.

Meghalaya was carved out of Assam in 1972 and had since then challenged the Assam Reorganisation Act, 1971, which is recognised by Assam as its border.

Meghalaya lays claim to Block I and Block II as both areas were transferred from the then United Khasi Jaintia Hills district of Assam in 1951 to the Karbi Anglong district by the then Governor of Assam for administrative convenience.

However, in 1972 when Meghalaya was carved out of Assam, they were not retransferred resulting in claims and counter-claims among the residents.
Kolkata, Jun 14 (PTI) A division bench of the Calcutta High Court on Wednesday stayed an order of a single bench appointing a special investigation team (SIT), which included two retired IPS officers, to probe the unnatural death of a teenage girl at Kaliaganj in West Bengal's Uttar Dinajpur district on April 20.

The West Bengal government had moved an appeal challenging the May 11 order of the single bench which appointed the three-member SIT to probe the death that had led to violent protests by locals alleging that it was a case of murder.

A division bench presided by Chief Justice T S Sivagnanam stayed till further orders the single bench direction appointing the SIT.

The bench, also comprising Justice Hiranmay Bhattacharayya, said that in its prima facie view, the constitution of an SIT, that too on the ground that there are doubts about the investigation conducted by the police, "and appointing two retired officers as part of the SIT would be transgressing the settled legal parameters".

The court directed that the matter will appear for further hearing in the monthly list of July.

The bench said that the Supreme Court has on various occasions observed that in the rarest of rare cases, the investigation in a case should be transferred from one agency to another agency, either of the state or of the central government.

The division bench said that on going through the order of the single bench, it finds that the order constituting an SIT appears to be on the grounds that the single bench had a doubt with regard to the investigation conducted by the state police.

Questioning whether an investigation can be transferred to a specialised agency or an SIT merely on the grounds that the writ court doubts the investigation conducted by the state police, the division bench said that the level of satisfaction of the court has to be recorded for transferring the probe.

The bench noted that the SIT has been formed consisting of two retired officers and a serving IPS officer of the state police.

"The question is whether such retired officers can constitute a special investigation team," the court said.

Appearing for the state, Advocate General S N Mookherjee submitted that the two retired officers have been giving interviews to the media on various issues.

The girl's father had moved the high court seeking the transfer of investigation into his daughter's death to the CBI, claiming that he has no faith in the probe done by the state police.

Observing that truth must come out, Justice Rajasekhar Mantha had on May 11 ordered the formation of an SIT comprising a retired additional director of CBI, a former IG-rank officer of the West Bengal police and a special commissioner of Kolkata Police to investigate the unnatural death of the girl.

Upen Biswas, who had headed the fodder scam case probe, former IG Pankaj Dutta and special commissioner (I) of Kolkata Police, Damayanti Sen will constitute the SIT, the court directed.

Sen has since been transferred to the state police by the West Bengal government.

The state had told the court that the girl was reported to have gone missing on April 20 and that her dead body was found near a pond in the area a day later.

Alleging that she was sexually assaulted and gagged to death, the petitioner's lawyer prayed that the investigation be transferred to the CBI, claiming that the parents have no faith in a probe by the state authorities.

Stating that no sign of sexual assault was found on the body as per the postmortem report, the state lawyer had claimed that there were signs of poisoning on the body.

Violent protests took place at Kaliaganj on April 25 over the death of the girl with agitators also setting fire to Kaliaganj police station.
KHARTOUM, June 14 (Xinhua) -- Civilian death toll has climbed to 958 in the armed clashes between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces across the country, the Sudanese Doctors' Union said Wednesday.

The number of civilian injuries has risen to 4,746, the nongovernmental organization said in a statement.

Over 1.9 million people have been displaced since the conflict began on April 15, fleeing to safer locations inside and outside Sudan, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said in its latest update on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, 1.4 million were internally displaced within Sudan as of June 6, and some 460,000 people, including refugees, asylum seekers and returnees, have crossed into neighbouring countries as of June 8, it added, citing the UN Refugee Agency.

The countries the Sudanese have crossed into include the Central African Republic, Chad, Egypt, Ethiopia and South Sudan, according to OCHA. 
Dumka, Jun 14 (PTI) Senior BJP leader and party national vice president Vasundhara Raje on Wednesday urged people to resolve to bring back a Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.

Raje said the entire world had witnessed the development work done by the government at the Centre under Prime Minister Modi during the past nine years.



Addressing a rally here as part of BJP's outreach drive, Raje urged party workers and people to ensure the Modi government's victory with a thumping majority.

The BJP has been conducting a nationwide outreach programme to mark the completion of nine years of the Modi-led government.



The former Rajasthan chief minister also urged people to root out "corrupt" Jharkhand government from the state in the ensuing Assembly elections which is also scheduled in 2024.



"There is a need to root out JMM-led Hemant Soren government in the state which has become synonymous to corruption," she claimed.

Earlier during the day Raje while addressing media at Deoghar, listed digital revolution, abrogation of Article 370 to end the special status of Jammu and Kashmir, linking of PAN with Aadhaar besides a slew of development schemes among others as major achievements of the Modi government.



Hitting out at Raje, Jharkhand Mukti Morcha alleged that she was talking of corruption when her party had written off huge loans to the industrialists at the cost of common masses.



Addressing a press conference senior JMM leader Supriyo Bhattacharya alleged that she has no acceptance in her own state as a result of which "the BJP party is undecided whether to field her or not" in elections to the Rajasthan assembly.
Guwahati, Jun 14 (PTI Former Assam Chief Minister Prafulla Kumar Mahanta was cleared of charges of 'secret killings' with the Gauhati High Court dismissing the interlocutory application (civil) filed in this connection.

Hearing the application, the division bench of Chief Justice Sandeep Mehta observed on Monday that the petitioners have failed to provide substantial proof in support of their claims.

The interlocutory application was filed by Rajya Sabha MP Ajit Kumar Bhuyan and Ananta Kalita challenging the Court's order of September 3, 2018 which had held the inquiry commission indicting Mahanta of secret killings during his second term in office (1996 -2001) as invalid.

The bench, which also included Justice Mitali Thakuria, also said that the allegations levelled against Mahanta were a part of conspiracy by some political and non-political parties of Assam to malign his public image.

Dismissing the application, it observed that the petitioners had filed the interlocutory application 531 days after the High Court's earlier verdict and even then failed to convincingly appeal the gross delay in filing it.



They also made ''inconsistent and contradictory pleadings in the three affidavits,'' the judges observed.

''The application for condonation of delay is not based on bonafide assertions and grounds and hence, the same does not merit acceptance and as a consequence, the plea is dismissed,'' the judges observed.

The bench said that the applicant's plea that they were not aware of the verdict is ''absolutely false and thus unacceptable'' as the verdict was extensively covered by the media.

As the prayer for condonation of delay has been refused, the writ appeal, which is yet to be numbered, would fail automatically, it said.



In September 2018, the Gauhati High Court had held that the constitution of the inquiry commission under Justice (Retd) K N Saikia in 2005 by the then Congress government to inquire into the killings of relatives of ULFA militants by unknown persons between 1998-2001, which was termed as 'secret killings', was invalid.

The commission had submitted its report in 2007 and had indicted Mahanta and the union home ministry for the killings.

Mahanta had moved the HC challenging the legality and validity of the constitution of the commission and the court had subsequently ruled in his favour.

Kalita and Bhuyan had moved the high court in 2021 challenging the High Court's order declaring the constitution of the Commission as invalid which was dismissed on Monday.

Mahanta later said that at last justice has prevailed and the court's judgement has reaffirmed his faith in the judiciary.
New Delhi, Jun 14 (PTI) The Congress on Wednesday attacked the Centre over the situation in Manipur, saying Home Minister Amit Shah's "belated" visit and Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma's "outsourced interventions" haven't had a significant impact as the agony of the people of the state continues unabated.

At least nine people were killed and 10 injured in the latest incident of violence in which a village in the Khamenlok area was targeted, officials said on Wednesday.

The armed men surrounded the Kuki village of Khamenlok area bordering Imphal East district and Kangpoki district and launched the attack at around 1 am, officials said.

Tagging a media report on the violence, Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said, "The agony of the people of Manipur continues unabated. Their agony is the nation's pain but clearly not the PM's - he continues to maintain silence."

"HM's belated visit and outsourced interventions to Assam CM are not having any significant impact," he said.

The Congress has accused the BJP of playing divisive politics in Manipur and claimed that the current situation in the northeastern state is a result of it.

Manipur has seen violence between various communities since May 3.

More than 100 people lost their lives and 310 others were injured in the ethnic violence between Meitei and Kuki community people in Manipur that broke out a month ago. Army and para-military personnel were deployed to restore peace in the state.

Clashes first broke out on May 3 after a 'Tribal Solidarity March' was organised in the hill districts to protest against the Meitei community's demand for Scheduled Tribe (ST) status.

Meiteis account for about 53 per cent of Manipur's population and live mostly in the Imphal Valley. Tribals - Nagas and Kukis - constitute another 40 per cent of the population and reside in the hill districts.
New Delhi, Jun 14 (PTI) Union Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi has led the Indian Parliament's maiden goodwill mission to Brazil as part of the celebration of 75 years of diplomatic relations between the two countries.

It was also a follow-up to the meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva on the sidelines of the recent G7 summit.

A statement said that during their visit between June 11 and 13, the delegation paid homage to the busts of Mahatma Gandhi, a symbol of the shared democratic values and peace between India and Brazil, situated at the heart of the city parks of Brasilia and Rio de Janeiro.

G Srinivas, the Secretary to the Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs, said this was the first goodwill delegation of Parliament and the visit underscores the importance that India places on its relations with Brazil, a strategic partner since 2006.

On June 13, the delegation held a meeting with Rodrigo Otavio Soares Pacheco, the president of the Federal Senate, Upper House of the Brazilian Parliament. The exchanges during the meeting were a testament to the growing strategic partnership between India and Brazil underlined by mutual understanding and cooperation, the statement said.

It added that Pacheco also accepted an invitation to visit India leading a delegation of parliamentarians.

The Indian delegation also met Senator Nelson Trad, President of the India-Brazil Friendship Front, and other prominent members of the Front. This interaction laid the foundation for a further deepening of the diplomatic ties between the two nations.

During the visit, both sides expressed satisfaction over the significant increase in bilateral trade over the past two years as they have surged by an impressive 115 per cent from USD 7.05 billion in 2020 to USD 15.20 billion in 2022.

This emphasis on strategic trade expansion reflects the commitment of both nations to forging a mutually beneficial partnership, driving economic development, and bolstering diplomatic ties, the statement said.

Joshi also met members of the Indian community residing in Brazil. He updated them on India's swift socio-economic development, highlighting the various policy initiatives by the government that have contributed to this progress.

The meetings offered an opportunity for community members to better understand and connect with the ongoing growth story of India, further strengthening the bond between the Indian diaspora and their motherland, it said.

Ambassador Suresh Reddy noted that this visit by the goodwill delegation from the Indian Parliament marks a significant step in the rich history of India-Brazil bilateral relations.

He stated that while, "reinforcing our shared commitment to democratic values and paving the way for enhanced collaboration in various fields, the visit is also expected to facilitate visits of parliamentary delegations from the Senate and Congress to India".
New Delhi, Jun 14 (PTI) India has significantly enhanced military infrastructure, surveillance and combat capabilities along the nearly 3,500 km-long Line of Actual Control (LAC) with China since the deadly clashes in Galwan Valley in 2020, sources in the defence establishment said Wednesday on the eve of the third anniversary of the hostilities.

The Indian and Chinese militaries are engaged in talks to reduce tensions along the frontier as the two sides are still locked in a standoff in a few friction points though they managed to disengage from some others.

The Galwan Valley clashes on June 15, 2020 were the first deadly skirmish between the two militaries along the LAC in five decades and they significantly strained the bilateral ties.

India has managed to significantly reduce the "infrastructure differential" with China along the LAC in the last three years in view of consistent focus on building helipads, airfields, bridges, tunnels, troop habitats and other required facilities, the sources said when asked about measures that have been taken following the Galwan clashes.

"The infrastructure development along the entire LAC is taking place at a fast pace. The main focus has been to bring down the infrastructure differential," said a source.

Our troops and equipment are adequately deployed now to deal with any eventualities, the sources said.

We are maintaining a posture that is focused on defeating any evil design by the adversary, they said.

The sources identified strengthening of all forms of surveillance including electronic ones as another significant aspect of boosting overall military preparedness by the Indian armed forces.

"The overall efforts to enhance the infrastructure, surveillance and military capabilities are based on a whole-of-the-government approach," the source said.

It is learnt that senior commanders of the Army's Northern Command would review the overall situation along the LAC in eastern Ladakh on Thursday.

The need for quick mobilisation of troops and weapon systems gained renewed focus in the wake of the lingering border row between India and China in eastern Ladakh.

Following the escalation in tension in eastern Ladakh standoff, the Army has taken a series of measures to boost its operational capabilities in the eastern sector that included procurement of all terrain vehicles, precision guided ammunition, high-tech surveillance equipment, radars and weapons.

The militaries of the two countries held 18 rounds of high-level talks so far with an objective of taking forward the disengagement process in the remaining friction points and restoring peace and tranquillity along the LAC in eastern Ladakh.

The 18th round of high-level military talks between the two sides were held on April 23 during which they agreed to stay in close touch and work out a mutually acceptable solution to the remaining issues in eastern Ladakh at the earliest.

The two sides completed disengagement in several areas following extensive diplomatic and military talks.

India has been maintaining that its ties with China cannot be normal unless there is peace in the border areas.

On June 8, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said that any expectation of normalisation of India's ties with China when the border situation in eastern Ladakh is not normal is unfounded.

"The fact is the relationship is impacted. And the relationship will continue to be impacted. If there is any expectation that somehow we will normalise (ties) while the border situation is not normal, that's not a well-founded expectation," he said.

The eastern Ladakh border standoff erupted on May 5, 2020, following a violent clash in the Pangong lake area.
Srinagar, Jun 14 (PTI) Democratic Progressive Azad Party (DPAP) chief Ghulam Nabi Azad on Wednesday said he sees no benefit coming out of "opposition unity" ahead of the 2024 Lak Sabha polls.

Asked about a meeting of opposition parties called by Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, Azad said he has not been invited to it.

"Opposition unity will benefit only when there is something for both sides. There may be a difference in the share of benefits for the two -- it can be 50-50 or 60-40 -- but in this case, both sides have nothing to offer to the other," he said.

Referring to West Bengal, Azad pointed out that the Congress and the Communist Party of India (Marxist) have no MLA in the state and wondered that just in case the two parties forge an alliance with the Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress (TMC), what does the latter stand to gain?

"Why would Banerjee enter into an alliance? What benefit will she get out of it? Similarly, the TMC has no MLA in Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh. What would the Congress give her in these states? Nothing," he said.

Similarly, the Congress does not have a single legislator in Andhra Pradesh, the former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister pointed out, adding that the ruling YSRCP in the southern state, led by Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy, has no MLA anywhere else.

"What will the Congress give to him (Reddy) and what will he give to the Congress party?" he wondered while asserting that "opposition unity" is nothing but a "good photo opportunity".

The former Union minister, however, clarified that he wants the opposition to unite to defeat the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in next year's general election.

"But unfortunately, each opposition party has nothing in other states than their own. It would have been beneficial if two-three parties had formed governments (in an alliance) in the states.

"There will be no difference whether there is a pre-poll or a post-poll alliance. They will get the same number of seats in a pre-poll alliance as well as in a post-poll alliance. I see higher chances of an alliance in the post-election scenario," he said.

The ground situation is such that if the opposition parties win 300 seats in a pre-poll alliance, they would get the same number of seats even if there was no alliance, the former Congress leader added.

He credited the leadership of the Congress in various states for the party's recent electoral triumphs.

"I have said the Congress has suffered losses at the Centre, not in the states. Wherever there is a strong state leadership, the party is bouncing back. The only difference is that previously, the central leadership used to run the states and now, the state leadership runs the central leadership.

"The central leadership has lost ground, but the state leaders are defending their turf. So, there is zero truth if someone says the Congress is winning the state elections because of the central leadership," Azad said.

He demanded compensation for the losses incurred due to an earthquake in Doda district of the Jammu region.

"We have information that in Gundoh and Bhaderwah tehsils, some schools, hospitals and houses have suffered damage. It is a matter of concern. We hope that there are no more tremors.

"I request the government to organise classes for the students outside and not inside the school buildings. Similarly, at hospitals, patients in a critical condition should be placed where there has been no impact of the quake," Azad said.
New Delhi, Jun 14 (PTI) The central government will recruit 38,800 teachers and support staff for Eklavya Model Residential Schools (EMRS) in the next three years, Union Tribal Affairs Minister Arjun Munda said on Wednesday.

The EMRS scheme for making model residential schools for tribal students across India started in 1997-98.

Under the Narendra Modi government, the number of such schools functioning in the country has increased from 119 in 2013-14 to 401 in 2023-24, Munda said at a press conference, listing his ministry's achievements in the last nine years.

The number of students enrolled in these schools has increased from 34365 in 2023-14 to 1,13,275 in 2023-24.

As part of a new scheme formulated in 2019, the government decided to establish Eklavya Model Residential Schools in every block with 50 percent or more ST population and at least 20,000 tribal persons as per the 2011 census.

"The ministry is focusing on setting up of EMRSs in 740 identified blocks across the country by the year 2025-26. In the next three years, 38,800 teachers and support staff will be recruited to impart quality education to around 3.5 lakh tribal students in these schools," Munda said.

A total of 693 schools have been sanctioned so far, the minister said. Smart classes are being set up by the Ministry of Electronics and IT in 175 such schools, Munda added.
New Delhi, Jun 14 (PTI) Supernumerary seats for single girl child, scholarships for underprivileged students, and laptops for all are among the incentives being offered by the Delhi University for its three new BTech programmes this year, Vice Chancellor Yogesh Singh announced on Wednesday.

Addressing a press conference here, Singh said the new academic session of the university will begin on August 16.

The courses conducted by the Faculty of Technology are BTech Computer Science and Engineering, BTech Electronics and Communication Engineering, and BTech Electrical Engineering.

A total of 360 students will be admitted to the courses on the basis of their Joint Entrance Examination (Mains) score, Singh said, adding that a seat in each of the three programmes will be given to a single girl child.

"From this year, three new BTech programmes are being started wherein each of the 360 enrolled students will be reimbursed up to Rs 50,000 by the university on the purchase of a laptop," the vice chancellor announced.

He said the University will also introduce a Financial Support Scheme (FSS) to extend the benefits of equity and access to quality education to economically weaker students seeking admission to BTech programmes.

"Candidates whose parents' income is Rs 4 lakh or less will be given a 90 per cent fee waiver at the time of admission. Candidates whose parents' income is more than Rs 4 lakh and less than Rs 8 lakh will get a 50 per cent fee waiver at the time of admission," he said.

"One seat in each BTech programme will be offered to a single girl child as a supernumerary seat. The university has also included a supernumerary quota for orphan students this year," he added.

As far as student strength in the first year is concerned, each course will have 120 seats. It means a total of 360 students will be admitted, he said.

Singh said the BTech programmes would be designed in such a manner that there would be a minimum of 50 per cent weightage given to the major subject area of study with a maximum of 65 per cent weightage.

The remaining weightage would be to the minor subject areas of study, he added.

According to the vice chancellor, students will have multiple exit options in line with the National Education Policy.

A student who has completed one year of study and earned the requisite credits would be awarded a certificate, those two years of study and requisite credits would be awarded a diploma, those with three years of study along with credits would be awarded an advanced diploma. Students who complete four years would be awarded a BTech degree, he said.

The departments of Computer Engineering, Electronics and Communication Engineering and Electrical Engineering are required to be situated on the North Campus of the university for logistic support and proximity to the majority of the faculties/departments on the campus, Singh said.

New programmes like a five-year LLB and ITEP are also being started from this academic session, he said.
Lucknow, Jun 14 (PTI) Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav on Wednesday claimed that the BJP "conceding" most of its Lok Sabha seats in UP being in the "red zone" was an effect of the power of "red"  a colour his party identifies with.

The SP chief made the remark in a tweet that apparently referred to recent claims that the BJP has conducted an internal survey which indicated that it will find it hard to retain some of the Lok Sabha seats in the coming election.

"Now, the BJP is saying that most of its seats in Uttar Pradesh are in 'red zone'. So it means that the pro-people party -- the Samajwadi Party -- is showing its colours. SP's 'red power' is the red zone for the BJP," Yadav said in the tweet.

SP workers are often seen in red caps in line with most socialist parties across the world, which identify with red.

UP BJP's spokesperson Manish Shukla said Yadav's remark was nothing more than castles in the air.

"The tweet made Akhilesh Yadav ji is a classic example of 'Mungeri Lal ke haseen sapne,' and nothing more than that. The SP chief should know that since 2014, people of UP have rejected the casteist politics of the SP, and have embarked on the path of development," Shukla told PTI.

In December 2021, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had equated the red caps worn by Samajwadi Party workers with red beacons alleging the similarity symbolised SP's hunger for power.

"The red-cap people want power to commit scams, fill their coffers, indulge in illegal grabbing (of resources) and give complete freedom to the mafia," Modi had said.
New Delhi, Jun 14 (PTI) The Akhil Bharatiya Vanvasi Kalyan Ashram, an RSS-affiliated body, on Wednesday called for restoration of peace in violence-hit Manipur and appealed to eminent people from different walks of life to come forward to soothe tempers.

In a statement, ABVKA president Ram Chandra Kharadi said the central government is not able to restore peace in the state as the mutual trust between the Kukis and the Meiteis, who have been living together for thousands of years, have "broken into pieces".

"This violence which is continuing for the last one-and-a-half months has not only claimed hundreds of lives, but also thousands of people from both the communities have had their houses burnt, forced to live in relief camps like refugees in their own state," he said.

"The loss is not only of life and property but of mutual trust. The mutual trust of the two communities which have been living together for thousands of years has broken into pieces. This is the reason why the efforts of the central government to restore peace are also failing," he added.

Kharadi said the broken homes will be rebuilt but restoration of broken trust is the "biggest challenge".

"And, it will start with restoration of peace and normalizing the situation," he said, adding, "Now is not the time to know the reasons behind the unfortunate violent incidents took place but to restore peace and harmony".

Kharadi noted that when the government becomes "helpless", domestic and foreign "selfish elements" start adding fuel to the fire.

This is the time when the entire country, spiritual leaders, sociopolitical leaders, eminent people in the field of sports, arts, cinema, ex-military personnel and bureaucrats should come forward in the interest of the country, he added.

Kahradi said the ongoing violence in Manipur is not just a conflict between two communities in an area falling on the international border but a matter of "grave concern" for the entire country.

"As the president of the Akhil Bhartiya Vanvasi Kalyan Ashram, I appeal to people of Manipur to treat all these unfortunate incidents as a bad dream and come out of this situation on their own, and also encourage your neighbors, friends and relatives to do so. All of them are waiting for such a positive initiative. There is no other way out," he said.

"I also appeal to eminent persons, spiritual personalities of the country, famous people associated with sports, art, cinema, former military-administrative officers, to come forward and wipe the tears of the affected people of the state," he said.

He also urged them to take out a peace march in the affected areas in order to pacify the people there and assure them that the entire country is standing with them.

"These dignitaries should also issue an appeal for peace individually or collectively from their respective places," Kharadi said, adding, "The Vanvasi Kalyan Ashram is confident that such efforts will have amazingly positive impact."
LUANDA, June 14 (Xinhua) -- The Venancio de Moura Diplomatic Academy (ADVM) on Wednesday signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Confucius Institute of Agostinho Neto University (UAN) for establishing a classroom dedicated to teaching the Chinese language and culture at the ADVM premises.

The ADVM will be the second Angolan university after the UAN to officially offer Chinese language courses with the support of the Confucius Institute in Angola.

Jose Marcos Barrica, the director-general of the ADVM, in his speech highlighted the significance of the MoU, saying that the classroom will play a vital role in strengthening the relationship between the Angolan and Chinese peoples.

While emphasizing the long-term benefits that the opening of a Chinese language classroom at the ADVM will bring to diplomats, Pedro Magalhaes, the rector of the UAN, said this opportunity will enable them to achieve significant accomplishments for the benefit of both Angola and China.

According to the MoU obtained by Xinhua, the ADVM will offer courses in Chinese language and culture, with support from the Confucius Institute of the UAN, once or twice a week. Participants will receive a certificate upon completion of the courses.

Chinese Ambassador to Angola Gong Tao, speaking at the ceremony, expressed his optimism regarding the MoU, stating that it would give a renewed impetus to Sino-Angolan cultural cooperation. He believed this partnership will facilitate deeper bilateral cooperation and contribute to building a closer community with a shared future between China and Angola in the new era.

Ren Bing, the Chinese director of the Confucius Institute at the UAN, referred to the ADVM as the "cradle of diplomats in Angola." According to Ren, the Confucius Institute at the UAN has provided training courses to more than 2,000 local students over the past seven years. Currently, 200 young Angolans are studying Chinese at the institute. 
New Delhi, Jun 14 (PTI) Eighty-five per cent of the target population was given free ration in June under the National Food Security Act, the Delhi government said on Wednesday.

Chairing a meeting with the Commissioner (food and supplies), Delhi Minister of Food and Civil Supplies Imran Hussain said the department needs to put more effort to provide free rations regularly to the eligible population in a transparent manner.

"Our government is committed to resolving public grievances related to the public distribution system in a timely and expeditious manner. I assure you no one will be deprived of free ration in Delhi," Hussain said.

The meeting was convened to review the distribution of free ration under the NFSA and to assess the setting up of vigilance committees at the Fair Price Shops throughout the capital.
Srinagar, Jun 14 (PTI) The twin daughters of an imam in Jammu and Kashmir's Kulgam district have brought cheer to the family by qualifying in the undergraduate National Eligibility-Cum-Entrance Test (NEET), the results of which were declared on Tuesday.

The girls cracked the test in their first attempt.

Syed Sabiya and Syed Bismah, residents of Watoo village in the Noorabad area of the south Kashmir district, secured 625 and 570 marks respectively in the entrance examination for medical colleges.

Their house has come to life after the results were announced as relatives, neighbours and well-wishers are turning up to congratulate the family on the feat of the twins.

The girls acknowledged the role of their family members, teachers and supportive neighbours behind their success.

"Our parents supported us a lot since our childhood. The people in our area also boosted our morale. Everyone had a role to play in my success," Sabiya told PTI.

Sabiya, who studied in a local Islamic model school till Class 3 before joining a private school, said throughout her school days, her teachers gave her the confidence that she can do something big in life.

"Thanks to my teachers, I nurtured the dream of becoming a doctor or an IAS (Indian Administrative Service) officer and do something big in life," she said.

Bismah said both the sisters were nervous ahead of the declaration of the NEET results. "We are very happy that the results are good. We thank god for it. Our entire family is happy," she said.

Bismah said they used to help each other a lot during their studies.

"We might have encountered many more difficulties had any of us been alone. We supported each other throughout this journey to achieve this success," she said.

Sabiya said the sisters were overwhelmed that both of them have qualified in the NEET.

"I want both of us to become good doctors and serve our people," she said.

Their father, Sajad Hussain, the imam (priest) at the local Jamia Masjid, said he considers both religious and worldly education important for children.

"I thank god. I am extremely pleased with their achievement. Both religious teachings and worldly education are important. I taught my daughters about Islam, prayers, the Quran and gave them school education as well," he said.

The siblings said one needs to be extremely focused to qualify in the NEET.

"Identify your weaknesses and then take help to overcome those," they said.
Hisar, Jun 14 (PTI) A man accused of shooting dead his wife and her two brothers at Krishna Nagar here was arrested from Gujarat's Rajkot on Wednesday, police said.

Earlier on June 11, triple murder accused Rakesh Pandit allegedly shot his wife Suman and her two brothers, Manjeet Singh and Mukesh Kumar, who had come from nearby Dhanana village to intervene in a fight between the couple.

Pandit was absconding since the crime and police had formed several teams to nab him.

Police said a case under the Arms Act and Section 302 (murder) of the IPC has been registered against the accused in Urban Estate Police Station, Hisar.

Pandit will be produced before a court on Thursday, following which he will be taken on police remand, they said.
Ghaziabad (UP), Jun 14 (PTI) A man accused of running a religious conversion racket has allegedly been found to have 30 Pakistani contacts saved in his phones, police here said on Wednesday.

Shahnawaz Khan alias Baddo has also been found to have been operating at least six email ids, one of which with a few emails from Pakistan in the inbox, they said.

Police have seized Khan's two mobile phones and also his CPU for further investigation.

He was operating six email ids, two of which he purchased for online gaming, DCP city Nipun Agarwal said.

Khan was sent to a 14-day judicial custody on Tuesday by a Ghaziabad court where he was produced after being brought from Maharashtra's Thane on a transit remand.

The DCP said the police's cyber crime cell is scrutinising the 30 phone numbers to find out more details about them. He said police will invoke National Security Act against Khan if anything incriminating comes up against him in connection with the phone numbers.

Khan is presently lodged in the district jail, and police will seek his remand from the district court for further interrogation, the DCP said.

A Kavi Nagar area resident had on May 30 filed a police complaint alleging his son was lured to convert to Islam through an online gaming app.

Police on Sunday arrested Khan from a relative's place in Maharashtra's Alibagh in Raigad district. Khan hails from Thane's Mumbra Township.

A court in Maharashtra's Thane had on Monday granted the Uttar Pradesh Police transit remand of Khan.
Kurukshetra, Jun 14 (PTI) A court in Haryana's Kurukshetra will on Thursday hear bail applications filed by nine farmer leaders who were arrested recently during a protest at Shahabad town.

The farmers led by BKU (Charuni) chief Gurnam Singh Charuni had on June 6 blocked the highway near Shahabad here demanding that the state government procure sunflower seeds at MSP. Police had used water cannons and batons to disperse the protesters.

Later, nine BKU (Charuni) leaders, including its president, were arrested on various charges, including rioting and unlawful assembly.

The arrested farmer leaders on Wednesday filed their applications before the Chief Judicial Magistrate, Kurukshetra for bail.

Superintendent of Police S S Bhoria said that the case is fixed for hearing on Thursday.

On the call of BKU (Charuni), a mahapanchayat was held in Pipli on Monday after which the farmers had blocked the National Highway-44 in Pipli, demanding the minimum support price (MSP) for sunflower seeds and release of farmer leaders arrested during Shahabad protest.

The farmers on Tuesday night called off their agitation after an assurance from the state government of "appropriate price" for the crop. The farmer leaders also claimed the administration had agreed to release the arrested farmers after following due process of law.

The sunflower crop had started coming to the grain market in Shahabad for sale from June 1. Most of the sunflower crop is sown in the Shahabad area.

Secretary of Market Committee Shahabad, K K Malik, said that out of the total arrival of 15,000 quintals in the 'mandi' on Wednesday, Hafed purchased 7,100 quintals of the crop at Rs 4,900 per quintal plus the benefit of 'Bhavantar Bharpai Yojna'.
Gurugram, Jun 14 (PTI) The Gurugram administration has issued an order to vacate another tower in sector 109's Chintels Paradiso Society within 15 days after the structure was declared unsafe for habitation by a recent audit report, officials said.

Deputy Commissioner Nishant Kumar Yadav issued the order on Tuesday, after the June 2 audit report by the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi, declared Tower G of the housing society as unsafe.

Earlier, Towers D, E and F had been declared unsafe following structural audits. The society has nine towers in total. Last year, two people lost their lives when Tower D partially collapsed.

The District Town Planner (Enforcement) has been appointed the nodal officer and duty magistrate to get the tower vacated. The 14-storey G tower has 56 flats.

"Using the powers vested in section 144 of the Code of Criminal Procedure and section 34 of the Disaster Management Act, 2005, the tower needs to be vacated. Legal action will be taken against those who violate the orders under section 188 of the IPC and sections 51 to 60 of the Disaster Management Act, 2005," the order read.

"We cannot compromise with the safety of the residents. They need to move out for their own safety. We have assured and will guarantee the implementation of the agreed buyback," Yadav said.
Westerly, RI (02891)

Today

A few clouds. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 66F. Winds W at 5 to 10 mph..

Tonight

A few clouds. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 66F. Winds W at 5 to 10 mph.
by Misbah Saba Malik

ISLAMABAD, June 14 (Xinhua) -- Hassan Raza, a farmer in Pakistan's eastern city of Multan, was in awe when he saw the demonstration of China-donated corn-cob picker in local fields by the staff of MNS-University of Agriculture.

"The best thing about the newly-introduced machine is that it will help Pakistan meet climate change challenge as it picks the whole cob rather than seeds, giving farmers the flexibility to harvest their crop earlier than the scheduled time," Raza told Xinhua.

He said crops face destruction as local machines in Pakistan selectively pick corn grains. Farmers have to wait until the grains are fully dried, which makes them vulnerable to the risk of crop loss caused by heat waves or excessive rains resulting from unpredictable weather patterns.

"With the new Chinese picker, the farmers can now pick the whole cob and dry it indoors before unfavorable weather conditions arise," he said, adding that it can both save the crop and facilitate their work.

Launched in 2013, the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) is a corridor linking Pakistan's Gwadar Port with Kashgar in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, which highlights energy, transport and industrial cooperation in the first phase, and expands to the fields of agriculture and livelihood in the new phase.

Echoing the CPEC's cooperation in agriculture, China's Tianjin Modern Vocational Technology College signed an MoU with the MNS-University of Agriculture in Multan to transfer technology to the Pakistani agriculture, and skill locals to adopt modern farming techniques.

Under the MoU, the parts of the Chinese corn cob picker were transferred to Pakistan as donations, and the machine was assembled in Luban Workshop Multan, a joint project of Punjab Technical Education and Vocational Training Authority and Tianjin Modern Vocational Technology College.

Sarfraz Hashim, an agriculture engineer and assistant professor at the MNS-University of Agriculture, told Xinhua that the cost of the machine was 55,000 U.S. dollars, but the Chinese university provided it free of cost to Pakistan to modernize its agriculture.

"Our students and engineers received a two-week virtual training to operate and assemble the machine. Some students and engineers will visit China to know more about agriculture machines and farming techniques," he added.

After the demonstration of the picker, it will be lent to the farmers at low prices and they will use it to harvest the crop under the supervision of university's technicians, Hashim said.

"The response to the demonstration was very welcoming and the farmers were really impressed by the machine. People related to the agriculture business can also import it in the next phase and expand its use in other parts and the demand for the machine will sharply increase," he added.

The professor said the best thing about the machine is its efficiency as it can pick corn from one acre of land in an hour, the work which usually takes a laborer 12 hours to complete.

Talking about the impact of technology transfer by China on Pakistan's agriculture sector, Hashim said that in mechanization, China is on the dint of its advanced technology and has much higher yields than Pakistan.

"Under the CPEC agriculture cooperation, it is our basic need to introduce Chinese machines in Pakistan, which will help Pakistan cope with climate change and food security challenges," he added.

Sikandar Raza, a student of agriculture at the MNS-University of Agriculture, told Xinhua that he is excited to visit China to equip himself with modern techniques in agriculture. "I will apply them back home to transform the lives of local farmers and boost agricultural development in Pakistan."

"China, being a global leader in agricultural innovation, can provide the necessary support and knowledge transfer to help uplift Pakistan's agricultural sector," he added.

By embracing advanced farming practices such as precision agriculture, hydroponics and mechanization, Pakistani farmers can enhance productivity, reduce crop losses, and ultimately generate better profits, Raza said. 




Sadly, our community has seen its fair share of Ponzi schemes, phony investments, and thieves who prey on fellow members of their kehilla; We all know the names of the most infamous schemers and scammers that have wrought havoc in our community. Some have been jailed, but others have been bailed out to prevent prison time and mesira.

Many readers may not know this, but there were at least five Ponzi schemes and frauds exposed in just the past few weeks.

One of them  seemingly the best known one  is alleged to be a whopping $45 million dollars stolen by a thief in Toms River who then fled to Israel. Another one was in Flatbush, where around $10 million dollars was allegedly embezzled. A third involved investors from many Jewish communities around the United States and Israel, and a fourth took place in Williamsburg, where around $50 million was stolen. Theres also a fifth, but I cant talk about that publicly just yet.

While each scam and scheme had its own shtick to it, all shared one feature, a tzad hashaveh if you will: the investors were, by and large, not wealthy. Many, if not all, investors of each scam (except for the Williamsburg one) were hard-working, blue collar individuals; some of them poured their entire life savings into what they were convinced were great deals. In other words, they were all looking to make a quick, easy buck.

A few points that need to be made.

NUMBER ONE: If anyone offers you a 30% or 40% return on your money, immediately turn away and consider calling law enforcement, because whoever is making that claim is likely to end up robbing you and others in the community. Dont let your greed overtake your seichel and think youre about to strike it rich. Youre not. Specifically, when someone comes to you with a great real estate deal, be very, very thorough. Check every detail and then check it twice. If youre not a pro and dont have experience in real estate, get a mentor and learn it. Theres a lot more to real estate than cap rates and price per square foot. There have numerous stories of people losing all they had on real estate deals, thinking that they were about to become a real estate magnate.

NUMBER TWO: Do you know why most of the victims were indeed not wealthy? Because truly wealthy people know that no investor anywhere in the world can promise to give you a 40% return on your money. A healthy investment makes 7% or 8% a year. And in the few cases where there were wealthy investors, they knew better, but they too fell for greed over seichel.

NUMBER THREE: Can we please stop trying to hide these scams? There was one in Monsey a few years ago where a young kid managed to suck in tens of millions of dollars and proceeded to flush it down the drain. Its high time that we turn these crooks into the cops and make them pariahs in our community. LIMAAN YISHMIU VIYIRAU! We think we are helping people who made a mistake by doing so, but in reality, we are severely hurting our kehillos. Not only that, but we are hurting future scammers, because if theyd see what happened to the last guy that tried pulling a shtick, maybe they would think twice before ruining others lives  not to mention their own. If current scammers are outed, future ones will think long and hard before doing anything similar, and that will result in many people not going to jail, and many families not destroyed.

I think its high time that this becomes a serious point of discussion and our Rabbanim begin publicly warning their shuls. People need to get a grip before more disasters occur.

NOTE: The views expressed here are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent or reflect the views of YWN.

DO YOU HAVE AN OPINION YOU WOULD LIKE TO SEE POSTED ON YWN? SEND IT TO US FOR REVIEW.

(YWN World Headquarters  NYC)




Prominent military veterans have voiced their criticism against the Biden administration, accusing it of diminishing the significance of the American flag by placing a Pride banner at the center of a display during a recent event.

Over the weekend, the White House held a Pride Month celebration on the South Lawn, featuring various decorations, including a rainbow-colored flag positioned prominently at the center of the White House balcony, flanked by American flags on either side.

President Bidens Twitter account shared a message stating, Today, the Peoples House  your house  sends a clear message to the country and to the world: America is a nation of pride.

However, critics argue that the administrations placement of the Pride flag violated the guidelines outlined in the US Flag Code, which states that the Stars and Stripes should be at the center and at the highest point of the group when a number of flags of States or localities or pennants of societies are grouped and displayed from staffs.

Chad Robichaux, a Marine veteran who played a key role in organizing one of the largest civilian evacuation efforts from Afghanistan, expressed his concerns in a statement to The Post, saying, You would think the White House knows this. They do, they just dont care.

Robichaux emphasized the significance of the American flag as a symbol of freedom and equality for all, regardless of skin color or legal sexual preference. He argued that no additional flags representing specific social groups were necessary, stating, If every group could understand what the American flag truly represents, it would not be a divisive thing.

(YWN World Headquarters  NYC)




Donald Trump was slapped with 37 federal charges on Tuesday, and his communications team wasted no time in capitalizing on the situation, utilizing it as a fundraising opportunity. The team sent out a series of emails coinciding with Trumps court appearance in Miami, under the banner of Trump: Make America Great Again! 2024.

The initial email began with a striking statement: Friend, Reports state that I could receive a maximum sentence of 400 YEARS IN PRISON despite being a totally and completely innocent man.

The email seemed to channel disbelief at the gravity of the situation, comparing it to the tactics employed by historical figures such as Stalin and Mao to eliminate political opposition. It also suggested that the prosecution of Trump signified the advent of communism in America, claiming that the country was no longer the land of Washington and Lincoln.

However, amid the bleak outlook, the email urged supporters to remain steadfast, assuring them that America would be made great again.

The message then predictably asked for money, appealing to recipients to contribute towards the cause, framing it as an opportunity to save the greatest country in history, promising a substantial impact of 1,500%.

The email potentially provided insight into the legal strategy of Trumps defense team regarding the 37 federal charges he faced. The team seemed to focus on portraying the federal governments actions as an abuse of prosecutorial power in an attempt to persecute Trump as President Joe Bidens primary political opponent.

Earlier in the day, Trumps attorney Alina Habba, who is not involved in the current case, took the opportunity to address the media outside the federal courthouse. Habba asserted the existence of a two-tiered system of justice in the United States, suggesting that Trump was specifically targeted for prosecution by the federal government.

(YWN World Headquarters  NYC)




A former National Security Agency employee has been sentenced to two weeks of imprisonment for storming the U.S. Capitol along with associates described by authorities as fellow followers of a white nationalist movement.

Federal prosecutors had recommended 30 days of imprisonment for Paul Lovley, who lived in Halethorpe, Maryland. Lovley, 24, worked as an information technology specialist for the NSA before riot on the Jan. 6, 2021, according to prosecutors.

NSA spokesperson Cameron Potts referred questions about Lovley and his employment to the Justice Department, which did not elaborate in court filings on the nature of his work for the government.

U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly sentenced Lovley on Tuesday to 14 days behind bars, to be served over the course of seven weekends, along with three years of probation, according to a spokesperson for the U.S. Attorneys Office for the District of Columbia.

Lovley pleaded guilty in February to parading, demonstrating or picketing in a Capitol building, a misdemeanor punishable by a maximum term of imprisonment of six months.

Lovley was charged with four other men whom prosecutors described as members of the white nationalist America First movement. The movements leader is internet personality Nicholas Fuentes, who is known for promoting white supremacist and antisemitic views on his livestreams. His followers often call themselves Groypers or members of a Groyper Army.

Groypers believe they are defending against the demographic and cultural changes that are destroying the true America, a white, Christian nation, Justice Department prosecutor Joseph Huynh wrote in a court filing. Groypers attempt to normalize their ideology by aligning themselves with Christianity and traditional values, such as marriage and family.

In November, former President Donald Trump was widely criticized for having dinner at his Mar-a-Lago club with Fuentes and Ye, the rapper formerly known as Kanye West. Trump said he had never met and knew nothing about Fuentes before he arrived with Ye at his club.

Fuentes, who was outside the Capitol on Jan. 6, is not accused of entering the building that day. Fuentes has not been charged with any riot-related crimes, but some of his followers have.

Lovley was charged with co-defendants Joseph Brody, Thomas Carey, Jon Lizak and Gabriel Chase. The five men, all in their early 20s, gathered at Lovelys Maryland home on Jan. 5, 2021. The following day, they went to Washington and attended Trumps Stop the Steal rally.

After other rioters breached the Capitol, the five men entered the building through the Senate wing doors, joined the mob in pushing past police officers in the Crypt and went into a conference room for then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosis office, according to prosecutors. Brody later broke off from their group and entered the Senate chamber while Lovley and the others remained outside, prosecutors said.

After they left the Capitol, Brody lifted a metal barricade and appeared to use it to obstruct or assault a police officer, according to prosecutors. Before leaving Capitol grounds, the group went to an area where rioters destroyed and looted media equipment, prosecutors said.

In a letter addressed to the judge, Lovley said he knows that his actions on Jan. 6 were unbelievably irresponsible.

I am certain that I would not have even shown up if I had known that the day was going to turn into what it did beforehand, he wrote.

Defense lawyer David Benowitz said Lovley moved from California to Maryland for an unspecified government job after graduating from California State University, San Bernadino. Lovley has since moved to a different state for a new job, according to his lawyer.

It is clear that Mr. Lovley is a man of great values and great promise who recognizes that he made the worst decision of his life on January 6, 2021, Benowitz wrote in a court filing.

Carey, whos from Pittsburgh, Lizak of Huntington, New York, and Chase of Gainesville, Florida, all pleaded guilty to the same misdemeanor offense as Lovley. Last Tuesday, Kollar-Kotelly sentenced Carey to three years of probation, including 14 days of jail time. Chase is scheduled to be sentenced in July. A sentencing hearing for Lizak is set for October.

Charges against Brody, of Springfield, Virginia, have not been resolved.

More than 530 people have been sentenced for Jan. 6-related crimes, including at least three other Capitol riot defendants described as followers of the America First movement.

In October 2022, former UCLA student Christian Secor, of Costa Mesa, California, was sentenced to to three years and six months in prison for storming the Capitol while waving a flag bearing the America First emblem.

Brandon Cavanaugh, who also carried an America First flag into the Capitol, was sentenced in April to 14 days behind bars.

Riley June Williams, who invaded Pelosis office with other rioters. was sentenced in March to three years in prison. Prosecutors said Williams became obsessed with Fuentes and considered herself a member of his Groyper Army.

Judges have sentenced more than 300 Capitol riot defendants who pleaded guilty to the same misdemeanor charge as Lovley and three of his America First associates. Just under half of them received a term of imprisonment, according to an Associated Press review of court records.

(AP)




Everyone seems to have an opinion. Remember this loser?

Anthony Scaramucci, the man who lasted a whopping 11 days as a White House communications director under President Trump, expressed his belief on Monday that Trump is feeling stressed about the indictment he faces and predicted that he will eventually withdraw from the 2024 White House race.

During an interview on NewsNations Cuomo, Scaramucci, who served in the White House for just 11 days in July 2017 before being dismissed, revealed his insight into Trumps personality and concerns. I know President Trumps personality reasonably well, Scaramucci stated. Remember, it wasnt just 11 days for me; it was 71 campaign stops and a full years worth of work. He does not like this. He is stressed about it.

As an outspoken critic of Trump, Scaramucci announced his support for former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie in the 2024 election. Despite Trumps determination to stay in the race, Scaramucci offered his prediction of the former president eventually bowing out.

I am going to say something contrarian on your show, Scaramucci stated on Monday. I think he ends up eventually dropping out of the race.

And I think he ends up coming up with some type of Spiro Agnew-like plea where hes out, doesnt go to jail, Scaramucci continued. Something happens to him, but not too significant.

I dont think he makes it to the Iowa caucus, Scaramucci added, sharing his contrarian view. So thats a contrarian view. He says hes going to be in it till the end.

Scaramucci also noted that Trumps children, such as Ivanka and Jared, are not actively supporting him this time around, which he believes weighs on the former president.

Despite Scaramuccis prediction, Trump has maintained a defiant stance following his second indictment, asserting that he has no plans to leave the race even if convicted.

Ill never leave, Trump asserted in an interview with Politico on Saturday. Look, if I would have left, I would have left prior to the original race in 2016. That was a rough one. In theory, that was not doable.

(YWN World Headquarters  NYC)




Left-wing Brothers in Arms protesters heckled Economy Minister Nir Barkat during his speech at an economic conference in Sderot on Tuesday.

One member of the audience yelled at the protesters: I have businesses in Sderot. You dont even live in the area. I came to hear how Im supposed to handle the damage caused by the Gaza operation. Why are you harming my parnassah?

Many local residents shouted at the protesters to go back to Tel Aviv.

Police officers who were called to the scene ordered the protesters to leave the building or face arrest. Three protesters were arrested, including Amir Haskel, an ex-IDF pilot who is one the leading figures in the protests against the Netanyahu government.

The protesters also made a ruckus outside the building.

Below, Sderot Mayor Alon Davidi silences the protesters, saying that both left-wing and right-wing speakers deserve respect and he would have loved to have also seen them protesting in the city when rockets were being launched at it from Gaza. Stop being violent and engage in your populism outside, he said, to the applause of the audience.

Barkat was harassed by Israeli leftists in Boston on his recent trip to the States as well as a month ago at a conference in the Galil and the previous month, in Tel Aviv.

(YWN Israel Desk  Jerusalem)




Matthias Weniger put on a pair of white cloth gloves and carefully lifted a tarnished silver candleholder, looking for a yellowed sticker on the bottom of it.

The candlestick is one of 111 silver objects at the Bavarian National Museum that the Nazis stole from Jewish families during the Third Reich in 1939. Thats when they ordered all German Jews to bring their personal silver objects to pawn shops across the Reich  one of many laws created to humiliate, punish and exclude Jews.

What started with anti-Jewish discrimination and persecution in 1933, after the Nazis were voted to power in Germany, led to the murder of 6 million European Jews and others in the Holocaust before World War II ended with Germanys surrender in 1945.

Weniger, who is a curator at the Munich museum and oversees its restitution efforts, has made it his mission to return as many of the silver objects as possible to the descendants of the original owners.

These silver objects handed in at the pawn shops are often the only material things that remain from an existence wiped out in the Holocaust, Weniger told The Associated Press in an interview last week at the museums workshop where he displayed some silver items that have yet to be restituted.

Therefore its really important to try to find the families and give back the objects to them, he added.

Thousands of the pieces taken from Jewish families were melted into around 135 tons of silver, and used to help Germanys war efforts. But several museums ended up with hundreds of silver pieces such as candlesticks used to light candles on the eve of Shabbat, Kiddush cups to bless the wine, silver spoons and cake servers.

Some of the items were returned to Holocaust survivors in the 1950s and 1960s, if they came forward and actively tried to retrieve their stolen possessions. But many owners were murdered in the Holocaust or, if they succeeded to flee from the Nazis, ended up in far-flung corners of the globe.

Two thirds of the last owners did not survive the Shoah, Weniger said.

Despite these odds, and with a combination of thorough detective work, dedication and deep knowledge of history, Weniger has so far managed to return about 50 objects to the family members and relatives of the original owners.

Hes convinced that he may be able to return almost all remaining objects by the end of this year.

First, he searches for the identity of the original owners. The little yellowed paper stickers on some of the pieces often help his efforts. They were put on the objects by the pawn shops  a testament to Germans obsessive bureaucracy even in times of dictatorship and war. The numbers on the stickers are also listed on more than 80-year-old documents naming the people who had to give away their silver  sometimes beloved heirlooms that had been passed down in families for many generations.

Once Weniger discovers the names of the original owners, he starts looking up Jewish obituary and genealogy databases, in hopes that direct descendants or more distant relatives may have posted their names online.

And so you get from one generation to the next generation and you end up with telephone books  with LinkedIn, with Facebook, with Instagram or email addresses that correspond to a member of the younger generation of that family, the researcher explained.

In most of the cases, Weniger says he gets lucky and is able to track down the right relatives.

The majority of descendants live in the United States and Israel, but the museum has already or is in the process of also returning silver pieces to France, the United Kingdom, Australia and Mexico.

Weniger makes a point of personally delivering the pieces to the families. He traveled to the U.S. earlier this year, and last week, he returned 19 pieces to families in Israel.

There, Weniger met up with Hila Gutmann, 53, and her father Benjamin Gutmann, 86, at his home in Kfar Shmaryahu north of Tel Aviv, and gave them a small silver cup.

Weniger had managed to track down the family with the help of the tracing service of Magen David Adom  Israels version of the International Committee of the Red Cross.

The cup was likely used for Kiddush to bless the wine on the eve of Shabbat  but nobody knows for sure because the original owners, Bavarian cattle dealer Salomon Gutmann and his wife, Karolina, who were the grandparents of Benjamin, were murdered by the Nazis in the Treblinka extermination camp.

It was a mixed feeling for us to get back the cup, Hila Gutmann said. Because you understand its the only thing thats left of them.

While the grandparents of Benjamin Gutmann were murdered in the Holocaust, their son Max  Benjamins father  survived because he fled from the Nazis to the British-mandated territory of Palestine, in what is now Israel.

Despite the pain triggered by the loss and return of the silver cup, the Gutmanns say theyre happy to have it back and plan to use it in a ceremony with all their other relatives on Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, in September.

As for Weniger, the Gutmanns have nothing but praise for him and his work.

Hes really dedicated to it, Hila Gutmann said. He treats these little objects with so much care  like they are holy.

(AP)




Despite the left-wing chants of democracy during protests against the Netanyahu government, their actions belie their slogans as they do everything they can to silence right-wing politicians and views.

A lack of willingness to engage in respectful dialogue is often used to cover up fear, anger, and lack of clarity. A recent confirmation of this appeared in a Walla report that the left-wing rag Haaretz banned their journalists from appearing on the increasingly popular right-wing Channel 14.

The report was confirmed by Haaretzs chief editor Aluf Benn.

The far-left Haaretz pundit Gideon Levy who was scheduled to appear on a recent showing of Channel 14s The Patriots notified the channel that he is canceling his appearance.

The Patriots is 14s most popular show, featuring a panel of journalists and activists who are not afraid to host people from all stripes of the political spectrum. Haaretz police reporter Josh Breiner, who has appeared many times on show recently wrote on Twitter that he is taking a break from The Patriots despite the fun he had, the great people there, and the importance he attributes to expressing his opinions during these times.

Breiner wrote: After four years, dozens of programs, and one torn shirt, I decided to take a break from The Patriots. Many thanks to Yinon [Magal, the shows host], Chagai, the wonderful editor, the panelists and viewers  those who liked me and those who didnt. I saw the importance of voicing my views davka at 14 and davka during these times. All in all it was fun. Believe it or not, there are also great people there. Love.

(YWN Israel Desk  Jerusalem)




The investigation of the severe incident earlier this month in which a terrorist infiltrated Israeli territory at the Egyptian border and murdered three IDF soldiers was completed this week.

The investigation revealed that the main lapses which led to the incident were the security passage in the fence, which was hidden but not locked, as well as poor implementation of security at the border, including prioritizing the prevention of drug smuggling incidents over security despite the fact that several terrorist attacks were attempted over the past decade.

Not only was the security passage unlocked (it was purposely designed to be easily accessible in case of emergencies) but its existence was known only to officers and not to the soldiers at the nearby guardpost.

The investigation found that the two fallen IDF soldiers, Hyd, at the border, who were manning a long 12-hour shift, were not sleeping at the time of the incident but did not fire their weapons at the terrorist, which meant that they were caught completely by surprise. The IDF has already implemented relevant changes, sealing the security passage, reducing the shifts to eight hours, and increasing the number of soldiers on each shift to four rather than two.

In the wake of the findings of the investigation, disciplinary measures will be taken against three senior officers, including transferring the commander of the Paran Brigade to a different position due to his overall responsibility for the incident, and officially censuring two other officers, including delaying the promotion of one officer for five years.

(YWN Israel Desk  Jerusalem)




Senior members of the British Parliament have expressed deep concern about a recent report by the Jewish Chronicle (JC) that scientists at universities in the UK aided the Islamic Republic in developing technology for suicide drones and fighter jets.

According to the report, at least 11 British universities, including Cambridge, are involved.

Despite the fact that the UK bans the export of military and dual-use technology to Iran and has placed sanctions on Iran for supplying Russia with kamikaze drones being used in Ukraine, in one Irananian-funded project, British researchers worked to improve drone engines, increasing their altitude, speed, and range.

Another British university worked with Iranian researchers to test new control systems for jet engines with the goal of improving them for military applications.

In an analysis of thousands of papers published in scientific journals since 2017, the JC found hundreds of projects which were collaborative efforts of British academics and institutions with Iranian universities, which have been sanctioned by the UK due to their involvement with the countrys nuclear program.

Former Tory cabinet minister David Davis MP said: There is little point in having a sanctions regime unless the relevant government departments monitor and enforce it properly. It should not be possible for researchers at British universities to effectively assist the Iranian state in enhancing its weapons systems which may be deployed against our allies, or even our own soldiers.

Lord Polak, President of Conservative Friends of Israel, said: Its clear that the IRGC controls Irans drone programs, and that these weapons are being used by the Russians in Putins war on Ukraine. That it has a presence in British universities is yet more evidence  not that any should be needed  that we should have banned the IRGC a long time ago.

(YWN Israel Desk  Jerusalem)
KABUL, June 14 (Xinhua) -- A total of 531 Afghan refugees have returned from Pakistan over the past two days, Afghanistan's Ministry for Refugees and Repatriation said in a statement Wednesday.

More than 2.5 million registered Afghan refugees reportedly have been living in neighboring Pakistan and about the same number in Iran.

A couple of weeks ago, the state-run Bakhtar news agency reported the return of more than 60,000 Afghan refugees from Iran since January.

The Afghan caretaker government has urged Afghan refugees living abroad to return home and contribute to rebuilding their war-torn country. 
Households struggling with 2,500-a-year energy bills may finally be able to save money this year, as energy firms are set to bring back fixed-rate deals.

But there is little good news for cash-strapped customers just yet, as none of the fixed-rate gas and electricity deals on the market will save them much money.

The average home will pay around 2,000 a year for energy until at least next March, experts think, and no energy deal - fixed or variable - is currently much cheaper than this.

Historically the cheapest and most popular energy deals were fixed-rate tariffs. Variable-rate deals were normally reserved for households that had reached the end of their cheap fixed tariff and not switched to a new one.

Big bills: Energy prices are likely to hover at around 2,000 a year until next March

But energy firms pulled all new low-cost fixed deals when energy prices started rising in October 2021, leaving increasing numbers of consumers with no choice but to go on to expensive variable rates.

These are regulated by the Ofgem price cap, which will fall to 2,074 in July for a household with average usage.

What fixed rates are available now?

At the moment there is only one fixed energy tariff for new customers, from So Energy.

This is priced at 2,047 a year for average energy use, and is available through price comparison website Uswitch.

Three other energy firms, British Gas, Ovo and E.On, have fixed-rate tariffs for existing customers. However, none of these deals will save consumers much money - if any at all.

For average energy use, one British Gas customer was quoted 2,106.40 for a fixed-rate electricity and gas tariff per year, and another 2,001.19.

An E.On customer taking out a fixed tariff would pay around 2,138.59 for typical energy use.

Most homes currently pay around 2,500 a year for average electricity and gas use, falling to 2,074 a year from July.

It means that, for the moment, staying put and waiting for a significantly cheaper fixed-rate energy deal later this year is probably the wisest move.

Other major energy firms EDF, Octopus, Scottish Power and SSE would not confirm any plans to relaunch fixed-rate tariffs for either new or existing customers.

Is a fixed-rate energy deal best for me?

To explain if a fixed-rate tariff is the right deal for you, it is important to first lay out how energy bills are worked out.

There are only two sorts of energy bill: variable and fixed. As the names suggest, variable-rate energy bills change over time, whereas fixed rates are locked for a set time period  normally a year, 18 months or two years.

Around 80 per cent of British homes now have variable bills, with the rest on fixed rates.

Return of the fix: Ovo is one of the energy firms to have unveiled a fixed rate this year

Variable-rate customers are at the mercy of bills dictated by the price cap of regulator Ofgem, which changes four times a year.

This price cap sets the maximum level a variable rate bill can be. Specifically, it caps average unit rates for gas and electricity - the rate energy firms charge you for each kilowatt hour of power you use. So the more energy you use, the more you pay.

Last month Ofgem announced that its price cap would fall to 2,074 a year for the average home from July to September, down from 3,280 currently.

However, the typical home does not currently pay the full 3,280 due to a Government support scheme called the Energy Price Guarantee.

This sees the state pick up some of the tab for consumer gas and electricity bills, so the average home pays 2,500 a year now and will save 426 when the price cap drops in July.

The Energy Price Guarantee was introduced in October 2022. From July it will rise to 3,000 a year, and ends in April 2024.

Why are energy bills so high? Since coming out of the pandemic demand for gas has gone through the roof, but supply has struggled to catch up. It has sent prices soaring and pushed up the cost of gas and electricity for both households and businesses. This has been compounded by Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

When will more fixed deals arrive?

Experts think that the falling Ofgem price cap will give energy firms certainty that they can relaunch competitive fixed-rate tariffs without being caught out by abrupt hikes in power prices.

A spokesman for the Energy Saving Trust charity said: 'While there continues to be uncertainty around the energy market, Ofgem's latest price cap announcement is now expected to encourage some energy suppliers to begin tentatively offering a few tariffs which are more competitive than the default, price cap-protected tariffs.'

Natalie Mathie, energy expert at comparison site Uswitch, added: 'This is a watershed moment for energy suppliers who can now look to start offering fixed deals again, given the market conditions - and would help to encourage genuine competition in the retail energy market.

'We see no reason why energy suppliers cannot offer competitive fixed deals around the 2,000 level.'

However, analysts at Cornwall Insight predict the typical price-capped energy bill will remain at around 2,000 until next March.

There is a possibility that the cap could decrease, leading to consumers locked into higher-than-market prices

That means it is crucial to pick a fixed rate carefully to avoid paying more than you would on a price-capped deal.

Craig Lowrey, principal consultant at analysts Cornwall Insight, said: 'Those seeking alternative options to bypass the high cap prices through the return of fixed tariffs will need to manage their expectations, as the availability of deals below the cap is still uncertain.

'Even for those able to secure a below-cap rate, it remains a risky decision. There is a possibility that the cap could decrease, leading to consumers locked into higher-than-market prices.'

There are two main reasons to consider a fixed-rate energy deal over a variable rate: saving money and certainty over future bills.

If you spot a fixed rate that is less than you are paying now, and less than you will be paying from July, it may make sense to lock in.

The average price-capped energy bill will drop by 17 per cent from July, so that is the price to beat with any fixed rate.

Take your current annual energy bill and knock 17 per cent off the price. If you can find a fixed-rate deal cheaper than that, it is worth considering.

However, there is no certainty around what energy prices will do past September, meaning there is a risk of overpaying with any fixed rate unless it is incredibly cheap.

If you are offered a fixed-rate energy deal that costs more than you are paying now, it would of course make no financial sense to take it out.

But some may value the security and ability to budget of knowing their monthly payments are set for the period of the fixed deal, and might be happy to pay slightly more in return.
The special relationship just got more special. In a surprise twist, the US government has sided with Britains competition watchdog in its controversial attempt to block Microsofts 55billion takeover of video game publisher Activision Blizzard.

US regulators at the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) have asked the courts to temporarily block Microsoft from completing its bid for Activision.

They claim the deal  which would be the biggest in the history of the video game industry  would substantially lessen competition in the sector.

If Microsofts bid for the Call of Duty creator went through, the combined group would be the third biggest gamer in the world after Chinas Tencent and Japans Sony.

The FTC injunction comes after the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) blocked the deal in the UK on grounds that it would damage competition and stifle innovation, leaving less choice for gamers.

Blocked: Regulators in the US at the Federal Trade Commission have asked courts to temporarily block Microsoft from completing its bid for Activision

Both Microsoft and Activision deny this, arguing that the move towards cloud gaming opens up the market.

Indeed, Microsoft claims that gaming groups will become more like streaming services  such as Netflix  with players becoming subscribers to a bigger library rather than having to pay for individual games for their PCs or consoles.

The European Commission bought the Microsoft story, helped by the computer giant promising to offer ten-year free licensing deals, allowing European customers access to Activisions PC and console games.

But the CMA didnt.

The UK regulator took the view that the growth of the emerging cloud gaming markets is changing the sector so dramatically that the two combined companies would, in effect, become a monopoly.

Its decision to block the takeover in April provoked outrage from Activisions boss Bobby Kotick, who accused the CMA of being a tool of the FTC, while Brad Smith, Microsofts president, branded the UK regulator an outlier, suggesting that start-ups were better off in the EU than the UK.

Technically, the CMAs opposition to the deal should be enough to halt the takeover. But the FTC went to court on Monday because of concern that Microsoft and Activision might try to go ahead this week and seal the deal, rather than wait for the July 18 deadline.

The main worry was that the two gamers were looking for ways to get around the veto by re-organising their respective UK businesses.

Smith  who is also suing the CMA  says he now welcomes the chance to present his case in the federal court in August.

Much of Microsofts case will rest on persuading the court that the merger wont impact competition.

He will have his work cut out. The FTC and the CMA mean business.

It is correct to say they have worked closely together on this deal. The two sides have met 26 times for discussions.

But to describe the UK regulator as a tool is grossly unfair hot air from Kotick.

What the FTCs trip to court does show is that the CMA has been vindicated in its original decision, and how much more seriously our regulators are judging the impact of mergers to be for the consumer than even a few years ago.

That is no bad thing.

CBIs poor show

Fewer than a third of the CBIs direct members backed the group during last weeks crunch vote on whether it should survive or not. Thats even worse than at a local election.

After the vote, director general Rain Newton-Smith claimed that 93pc of members were in favour.

The CBI has always been secretive about membership but open about its reach, boasting that it speaks for 190,000 businesses and 7m employees.

But thanks to questioning by MPs on the Commons business committee, it turns out the CBI has only 1200 companies and 120 trade bodies as members.

Achieving a turnout of 28 per cent is pathetic, and an embarrassing admission for Newton-Smith.

Some humility as well as greater transparency would help if she wants to restore credibility after the sexual misconduct scandals.

Out the door

JP Morgan has followed Goldman Sachs, Exane and Morgan Stanley in cutting ties with Odey Asset Management.

JP Morgan was a key Odey partner, and a custodian of its assets. It will now have to find a new partner to take on these assets as a depositor.

Not an easy task to undertake during the sex drama swirling around the firm.
When Jacqueline Morgan arrived at Birmingham Airport two hours before her flight to Greece, she never thought she would be watching it take off from the departure lounge.

But huge delays at security meant that the office administrator, from Dudley in the West Midlands, and her friend, Shirley Halliday, were stuck in queues for two hours and did not make it to their gate until it was too late.

Jacqueline was one of more than 20 Ryanair passengers due to fly to Rhodes at 7am on May 6 who were left stranded because of disarray at the airport.

She says: The crowds were massive  there were thousands of people in the queue at security. Staff told us no one would miss their flight while blocking us from joining the fast queue.

Law: Airlines must provide compensation if your flight arrives at its destination more than three hours late

After missing her flight, the 62-year-old was assured by airport staff that she would be reimbursed if she booked a new flight.

But a month later, she is still waiting for a refund of more than 800 for the new flight, train tickets to transfer to another airport and a hotel room.

A Ryanair spokesman said: Due to security delays at Birmingham Airport a small number of passengers missed their flight to Rhodes on May 6. It is a passengers responsibility to ensure they are at the gate before it closes.

An airport spokesman admitted that it is was the source of the delay, but denied compensation, telling customers to claim on their insurance.

Jacqueline is just one of thousands of passengers caught up in travel turmoil at Britains airports. On Monday, around 15,000 passengers were stranded after easyJet cancelled more than 100 flights due to thunderstorms.

As Britain braces for another summer of travel chaos, Money Mail explains your rights if you get caught up in it...

Can I claim due to queues at security?

If you miss your flight because of long queues at security, then it is unlikely you will be able to claim compensation from your airline.

These checks are carried out by the airport, which means your airline is not liable to pay compensation or refund you on this basis.

If you miss your flight because you do not get to the gate in time, then it is deemed to be your fault, according to Gary Rycroft, of law firm Joseph A. Jones & Co.

The airline is not obligated to provide you with a replacement flight and you will have to pay if you still want to travel to your final destination.

Get in touch with your airline if you think you might miss your flight because of a long queue. If enough passengers are caught up in this chaos, then there is a chance the flight will be delayed.

Some airlines will rebook you on to the next available flight for a fee. Ryanair charges customers who arrive at the check-in desk any time between 40 minutes before their flights scheduled departure time, to one hour after, a 100 fee per passenger to move to the next available flight.

Stranded: Jacqueline Morgan (right) and her friend Shirley Halliday missed their flight to Rhodes

But beware, this may exceed the cost of booking a new ticket.

At easyJet, you can pay a 110 rescue fee to move to the next available flight if you arrive at the airport less than two hours after yours departed.

Virgin Atlantic customers who miss their flight will be booked on to the next available plane with the airline for free. You may be able to make a claim for missing your flight on your travel insurance.

Most policies will pay out if you arrive late to the airport because you were stuck in heavy traffic or your car broke down. Policies will list specific reasons you are covered for, so read the terms and conditions carefully.

Missed flight insurance is not usually included in standard travel policies, and only on offer as an add-on, says Rebecca Goodman, of price comparison site Comparethemarket.

As for the airport, your chances of claiming compensation are very slim, says Jo Rhodes, of consumer group Which?.

She says: No large UK airport currently has a policy to compensate passengers in these circumstances. If you are in a long queue and worried you are in danger of missing your flight, its essential you speak up and make a fuss. Most airports will bring you to the front of the queue if your flight is departing imminently.

What if the flight is late?

Under UK law, airlines must provide compensation if your flight arrives at its destination more than three hours late.

But there are exceptions to this rule. If the delay was caused by extraordinary circumstances, such as extreme weather or strike action, then dont expect to receive any compensation, says the Civil Aviation Authority.

How much compensation you qualify for depends on the distance you were travelling.

Limited cover: Most insurance policies will pay out if you arrive late at the airport because you were stuck in heavy traffic or your car broke down

For short-haul flights of less than 1,500km (for example, London to Split in Croatia) you are entitled to 220 if you are delayed by more than three hours. For distances of 3,500km, such as Greece, its 350. Compensation for any further than this is 520.

During your delay your airline must provide food and drink, and accommodation if you are delayed overnight. If you are delayed by more than five hours and no longer want to travel, then you are entitled to a full refund.

But once you accept a refund, or do not move to the first available flight, then your airline is not required to provide you with food, drink or accommodation.

What if Imiss my connection?

If you miss your connecting flight because of a delay during the first leg of your journey, then you may be entitled to compensation, but usually only if you booked both flights as a single booking, according to Citizens Advice.

You should contact the airline as soon as possible to reschedule your second flight. If you booked the two flights separately, then you may have to pay for another flight if you miss your connection.

This is because you failed to arrive for your flight within the recommended time, so will not be entitled to compensation from the second airline.

If you were delayed by less than three hours, then you also may not be entitled to compensation from your original airline, even if you missed your connection.

Some insurance providers will cover missed connections if the airline is not obliged to pay compensation, according to Ms Goodman. Check your policy to see if connections are included.

Sean Tipton, of the Association of British Travel Agents (ABTA), says: The best way to protect yourself when booking two flights is to do it through a travel agent. The two flights are then treated legally as one contract, so you can claim directly from the airline.
Heathrow's bosses have told ministers they must reinstate VAT-free shopping as visitors to France and Spain spend more than double what they do here.

Europes busiest airport said British businesses are losing out to neighbours as the Government refuses to budge on the so-called tourist tax.

Whilst spending by American tourists in the UK has returned to pre-pandemic levels, their shopping has doubled in Spain and France and is now at a respective 201 per cent and 226 per cent of 2019 levels, according to data from tourism shopping tax refund company Global Blue.

Shoppers from across the Atlantic are also spending nearly twice as much in Italy as they did before lockdown, reaching 190 per cent of 2019 levels.

This trend has played out with visitors from the Middle East and Southeast Asia too, who are continuing to splash less cash on British goods than in other European hot spots.

Heathrow's bosses have told ministers that British businesses are losing out to neighbours as the Government refuses to budge on the so-called tourist tax

This sparked concerns that London could fall behind the likes of Paris and Madrid.

Heathrow is among more than 200 businesses to have backed the Daily Mails Scrap the Tourist Tax campaign.

Household names such as Harrods, Burberry and Marks & Spencer are also behind the campaign. VAT-free shopping was abolished by Rishi Sunak when he was Chancellor in 2021.

It means that overseas shoppers are no longer entitled to a 20 per cent refund on their shopping basket.

While countries in Europe charge VAT, they also offer a refund for overseas visitors who take purchases home.

There is growing unease that the loss of the tax break in Britain is a major own-goal, with the tourist tax hitting the UK economy while boosting sales in the EU.

A Heathrow spokesman said: Government must reinstate tax-free shopping to let British businesses and the UK economy maximise the benefits from recovering markets, instead of losing out to neighbours in France, Italy and Spain.

Some 99pc of shops and restaurants spaces in the airport were in use prior to the pandemic but the level stands at just 95 per cent today  with Heathrow laying the blame firmly on the tourist tax.

Bosses of 20 airports, including Gatwick, Edinburgh and Belfast, have also put pressure on the Government to reinstate the tax break.

Critics say that  far from the Treasurys claim that scrapping the tourist tax would cost 2billion a year  there would be a net gain of around 350million.

A study by advisory firm Oxford Economics suggests the move would bring a 4.1billion boost to the economy and support 78,000 jobs.
US regulators have called for Microsofts 55billion takeover of Call of Duty maker Activision Blizzard to be blocked  following in the UKs footsteps.

The US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) said the deal, which would be the largest in the history of the video games industry, could substantially lessen competition and must be stopped.

The ruling came after the UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) blocked the deal in April over concerns it would hamper the growth in the sector.

Activision owns games including World Of Warcraft and Candy Crush Saga as well as Call of Duty.

But while the decision by the CMA was greeted by howls of anger from Microsoft, the US firm was far more measured in its response to the FTC.

Concerns: The US Federal Trade Commission said Microsoft's takeover of Call of Duty video game maker Activision could 'substantially lessen competition'

We welcome the opportunity to present our case in federal court, said Microsoft president Brad Smith.

Simon French, head of research at Panmure Gordon, accused the company of hypocrisy  pure and simple adding: The measured response of Microsoft to the US regulator is in sharp contrast to the sniping at the UK equivalent.

It leaves the impression that these companies thought they were above competition law in the UK.

The case has divided regulators, with the European Union deciding to give the deal the green light a few weeks after the CMA blocked it.

When the CMA announced its opposition to the deal, Smith slammed the move as bad for Britain, telling the BBC it was the tech giants darkest day in the 40 years it has been operating in the UK.

The European Union is a more attractive place to start a business than the United Kingdom, Smith said at the time.

But US regulators have followed suit and a trial is set for August where the FTC will argue the deal would give Microsoft the ability and increased incentive to withhold or degrade Activisions content in ways that substantially lessen competition.
Odey Asset Management has blocked withdrawals from two funds and shut down another as the hedge fund flails after its founder faced accusations of sexual misconduct.

Partners at the firm ousted Crispin Odey over the weekend and said the business would be rebranded as it battles to reassure investors.

But as investors rushed to withdraw their money, the company gated the Brook Developed Markets Fund and the LF Brook Afternoon fund.

Accused: Partners at Odey Asset Management ousted founder Crispin Odey (pictured) over the weekend and said the business would be rebranded as it battles to reassure investors

The two funds are run by Odey subsidiary Brook Asset Management. In a letter to customers, the Brook Developed Markets Fund  which had 452million in assets at the end of May  said it was forced to block withdrawals as investors sought to pull out cash worth over 10 per cent of the funds value.

The Swan Fund was also suspended, and its portfolio will soon be liquidated, the company told investors.

In a letter to Swan Fund investors, the firm said it was in the best interests of shareholders that the [fund] be closed and its portfolio liquidated, with the proceeds of liquidation being returned to shareholders.

US bank JP Morgan also terminated its relationship with the asset management firm, meaning all big banks  including Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs and Exane  have cut ties with Odey Asset Management.

A report published in the Financial Times last week revealed allegations of sexual harassment against 13 women over a 25-year period, causing Odey Asset Management to throw out the 64-year-old.

A law firm for Odey has said he strenuously disputed the allegations.

City watchdog the Financial Conduct Authority has launched an investigation into the possibility of non-financial misconduct at the hedge fund two years ago.
The business behind restaurant chain Yo! Sushi has been bought by one of Japans biggest food companies in a deal worth almost half a billion pounds.

Mayfair Equity Partners said it sold its stake in Snowfox Group to Zensho Holdings for 495million ($621million).

The deal sees the Japanese giant gain a company which owns several brands in the UK, the US and Canada.

Takeaway: Mayfair Equity Partners said it sold its stake in Yo! Sushi-owner Snowfox Group to Japanese food giant Zensho Holdings for 495m

In the UK, it runs Yo! Sushi, which has more than 100 outlets in the country, as well as Taiko, which produces Japanese food to go for British supermarkets.

In the US, the company founded the Snowfox chain of sushi kiosks in 2005, and has grown that to more than 1,000 sites in grocery stores, wholesalers, workplaces and universities in 25 states across the country.

In Canada, the business runs Bento, which it says is the second-largest sushi brand in North America and the largest in Canada.

Snowfox chief executive Richard Hodgson said: This is an exciting moment for the Snowfox Group, and, having had seven successful years owned by Mayfair Equity Partners, this proposed transaction represents the next natural step for us as a business.

I believe this is absolutely the right move. Zensho recognises the value of the Snowfoxs highly attractive brands, our customer relationships, and our diversified international presence.
Vodafone and Three yesterday struck a long-awaited 15billion merger deal to create Britains largest mobile network.

With a combined 27m customers, the new joint venture will leapfrog EE and Virgin Media O2 to claim the top spot.

New Vodafone boss Margherita Della Valle described the deal as a game-changer in our home market.

But the announcement drew fears of higher prices for consumers.

The deal will face scrutiny by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) in a process analysts think could last 18 months, and will also need approval on national security grounds.

Mobile giant: Vodafone and Three have struck a 15bn merger which new Vodafone boss Margherita Della Valle (pictured) described as a game-changer

It aims to create a joint venture 51 per cent-owned by FTSE 100 giant Vodafone and 49 per cent by Hong Kong-based CK Hutchison, current owner of Three.

Trade union Unite wants the tie-up blocked, fearing it will lead to job losses and push up bills.

It warned of CK Hutchisons involvement, saying the merger would place a company with deep ties to the Chinese state [in] an even more prominent place at the heart of the UKs telecommunications infrastructure.

The deal, announced after months of talks, is intended to complete by the end of 2024.

The company will have a combined value of 15billion, and threatens to up-end Britains fiercely competitive mobile market.

Currently, Vodafone is the UKs third-largest operator behind Virgin Media O2 and BT-owned EE, while Three is in fourth place.

Della Valle said the merger would be great for customers, great for the country and great for competition.

Observers pointed out that plans for a similar-scale tie-up between Three and O2 were blocked by competition officials in 2016.

But Della Valle said the market had moved on since then and the deal was needed to boost the UKs mobile and digital infrastructure.

She added: This is a vote of confidence in the UK and its ambitions to be a centre for future technology.

The company plans to invest 11billion in the UK over ten years in a bid to create one of Europes most advanced stand-alone 5G networks.

The companies plan to cut costs by 700million a year but said it was too early to put a figure on the number of jobs likely to be affected, or say if any offices will close.

They insisted the deal would boost the combined workforce, creating 8,000 to 12,000 new roles in the UK.

Della Valle was confirmed less than two months ago as permanent chief executive of Vodafone after Nick Read was ousted.

Victoria Scholar, head of investment at Interactive Investor, said: This is likely to be Della Valles biggest accomplishment so far if the deal crosses the line.

The head of Vodafone UK, Ahmed Essam, will lead the merged company.
MPs have written to the UKs financial watchdog to demand answers around its handling of sexual harassment allegations against hedge fund manager Crispin Odey.

Conservative MP Harriett Baldwin, chairman of the House of Commons Treasury Select Committee, has asked the head of the Financial Conduct Authority Nikhil Rathi to clarify what the regulator was aware of and whether it had taken any action against Odey or his asset management firm following allegations of misconduct.

The letter requested more detail on systems put in place by the regulator to handle accusations of what it called non-financial misconduct and whether it monitored the cultural impact owners could have on their firms even if they do not hold a formal management position.

It followed a report in the Financial Times last week which alleged Odey sexually harassed 13 women over a 25-year period. He denies the claims.

Financial services culture, and the experiences of women, are ongoing concerns of the committee.

In the firing line: Hedge fund boss Crispin Odey (pictured) is alleged to have sexually harassed 13 women over a 25-year period

Journalists at the Financial Times have shone a light on deeply troubling allegations of conduct regarding the actions of a powerful individual.

We look forward to receiving a response from the financial regulator on these issues, Baldwin said.

The scandal caused Odey Asset Management to throw out its 64-year-old founder over the weekend, block withdrawals from two funds and shut another as it struggled to contain the fallout.

The firm said Odey will no longer have any economic or personal involvement and that it will rename the business.

But as investors rushed to withdraw money, the company gated the Brook Developed Markets fund and the LF Brook Afternoon fund. The Swan fund has been suspended with its portfolio set to be liquidated.

Other firms have moved to distance themselves from the fallen fund manager.

US bank JP Morgan has terminated its relationship, meaning all big banks  including Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs and Exane  have cut ties with Odey Asset Management since the scandal broke.

Discussions are ongoing as to whether the three banks  the firms prime brokers  can be lured back. There is hope internally that management changes announced by the business will help restore its reputation.

The fund has 3.5billion in assets under management  1billion held in funds previously run by Odey, who still has 600million of his own money in the funds, which have now been taken over by other investment managers.

Odey has said he was the victim of an aggressive campaign, and had massaged a colleagues back but said this was not a criminal offence.

He compared himself to Tesco chairman John Allan, who had to resign after four women made allegations about his conduct.
Complaints about current accounts made to the Financial Ombudsman Service are soaring, as fraud victims increasingly turn to the service when seeking compensation.

The national arbiter of financial complaints is the last line of defence for those battling financial firms for compensation, often amounting to thousands of pounds.

The total number of complaints made to the Financial Ombudsman Service is also rising  but current accounts top the table of gripes.

The independent government-backed body received 26,039 complaints about these accounts in the 12 months to April 2023.

The biggest reason given was banks not offering adequate support to fraud victims who had money taken from a bank account.

Claims: The Financial Ombudsman Service is the last line of defence for those battling financial firms for compensation - often thousands of pounds

Hundreds of people who take their fight for fraud refunds to the ombudsman win their case, analysis by Money Mails sister website This is Money found last month.

It discovered the ombudsman sided with 370 consumers in battles with their High Street bank or credit card firm last year and ordered refunds. In one case against the bank Santander, this amounted to as much as 345,750.

When someone is defrauded, perhaps after their debit card has been stolen, a bank must provide a full refund. But if a customer is conned out of money, such as paying a trickster who has lied, rules are not so clear cut.

Most banks have signed up to a voluntary agreement to pay up in such circumstances, but where customers are not happy with the outcome they can go to the ombudsman.

A nother major grumble is shoddy customer service  with banks closing branches and pushing people on to automated services, making it harder for customers who prefer to deal with someone in person.

The ombudsman received a total 165,149 complaints  with 35 per cent resolved in favour of the complainant.

Credit cards were the second most complained about product  at 14,504. Problems included lending deals being pushed on to vulnerable customers with unaffordable terms.

The next most complained about financial service was motor insurance, at 11,851 complaints for the year ending April  a 27 per cent rise on the previous year. Difficulties in getting insurers to pay out for damaged vehicles was a major gripe.

There has also been an 85 per cent increase in motor hire-purchase cases over the year. It now stands at 11,446. Much of this was due to extra charges hidden in the small print of contracts, such as sales commission, fees and charges.

The ombudsman received 6,497 complaints about building insurance  with not only grumbles about the amount of money offered to settle a claim but also the length of time it took for insurers to pay up.

Fake investment opportunities set up by get-rich-quick scheme scammers was another key reason why consumers turned to the ombudsman.

If you have an issue with a financial firm that has not addressed a complaint to your satisfaction, call the Financial Ombudsman Service on 0800 023 4567.

toby.walne@dailymail.co.uk
NEW DELHI, June 14 (Xinhua) -- Nine people were killed and 10 others wounded in fresh violence in India's northeastern state of Manipur, local media reported on Wednesday, quoting police officials.

The killings took place during a firing incident late Tuesday night in the Khamenlok area in Kangpokpi district, about 25 km northeast of Imphal, the capital city of Manipur.

"There was firing in the village ... and nine people were killed and 10 others injured. All injured have been admitted to hospital where the condition of one is stated to be critical," a local newspaper Hindustan Times quoted K Shivakanta Singh, a senior police official in Imphal East, as saying.

Following the incident, local authorities rushed government forces to counter the insurgents in the area. Meanwhile, the curfew relaxations have been restricted after the fresh round of violence in Manipur.

Reports said over 100 people have died and another 40,000 displaced since the outbreak of the violence over a month ago.

Last month, large-scale violence broke out in the state during a tribal protest demonstration over the inclusion of the non-tribal Meiteis community for a scheduled tribe status.

Scheduled tribes in India are officially designated as disadvantaged socio-economic groups. They are given reservations in education and jobs with the aim to improve their lives.

Authorities imposed a curfew and deployed over 100 columns of the army and paramilitary forces in the state to restore peace, as schools, houses, churches, vehicles and public properties were set ablaze by protesters in the state. 
EOG Resources, Inc. is a leading independent exploration and production company focusing on the oil and gas industry. Based in Houston, Texas, EOG's mission is to provide energy solutions that power the world while adhering to the highest environmental and safety standards. With its robust portfolio of assets, talented management team, and commitment to technological advancements, EOG Resources has emerged as a key player in the energy sector.

EOG Resources operates in multiple locations across the globe, primarily focusing on North America, including the United States, Canada, and Trinidad. The company's primary products and services revolve around the exploration, development, production, and marketing of crude oil and natural gas. EOG Resources serves a diverse range of customers, including industrial, residential, and commercial sectors, as well as other energy companies.

EOG Resources is committed to minimizing its environmental impact. The company employs advanced drilling techniques and utilizes cutting-edge technologies to maximize production efficiency while reducing emissions and water usage. EOG's sustainability efforts align with its mission to provide reliable energy solutions for a sustainable future.

EOG Resources boasts a highly experienced and accomplished management team led by key executives with industry knowledge and expertise. Ezra Y. Yacob, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, has driven the company's strategic growth initiatives. With a strong background in geoscience and leadership roles, Mr. Yacob has been with EOG Resources since 2005. He has served in various key positions, including President and Executive Vice President of Exploration and Production.

Lloyd W. "Billy" Helms, Jr., President and Chief Operating Officer, joined EOG Resources in 1995 and has held several significant leadership positions within the company. Mr. Helms has been pivotal in overseeing the company's operations, exploration activities, and production strategies.

Timothy K. Driggers, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, has been integral to EOG Resources since 1995. Mr. Driggers' financial acumen and expertise have contributed to the company's financial stability and growth.

EOG Resources has consistently demonstrated strong financial performance, with steady revenue growth and healthy profit margins. EOG Resources has successfully navigated market fluctuations and achieved long-term financial stability.

When considering the company's valuation metrics, EOG Resources has been favorably positioned compared to its industry peers. The company's valuation metrics, such as price-to-earnings and price-to-book ratios, have reflected investor confidence in the company's future prospects and financial strength.

With significant price movements and trading volume, EOG Resources' stock performance has been notable. The company's stock has demonstrated resilience, responding to market conditions and reflecting investor sentiment. Recent news and events, including industry trends, regulatory changes, and geopolitical factors, have influenced EOG's share price.

EOG Resources operates in a dynamic and competitive industry highly influenced by global market conditions, regulatory policies, and technological advancements. The company competes with international and domestic players and strives to maintain a competitive edge through its operational excellence, technological innovation, and strong asset portfolio.

EOG Resources is well-positioned to capitalize on growth opportunities in the energy sector. The company continues to explore and develop new reserves, expand its operations and optimize production techniques. EOG's focus on technological advancements, such as utilizing data analytics and artificial intelligence, enhances its capabilities in identifying and extracting hydrocarbon resources efficiently.

Like any company operating in the energy sector, EOG Resources faces various risks and challenges that can impact its operations and financial performance. Investors and stakeholders must be aware of these factors when evaluating the company's prospects.

EOG Resources' revenue and profitability are closely tied to crude oil and natural gas prices. Fluctuations in commodity prices can significantly impact the company's financial results. Factors such as global supply and demand dynamics, geopolitical tensions, and economic conditions can lead to price volatility, posing a risk to EOG's revenue and profitability.

The energy industry is subject to extensive regulations related to drilling, production, emissions, and environmental impact. Regulation changes, especially those aimed at reducing carbon emissions and transitioning to renewable energy sources, can require significant investments and impact the company's operational costs. Non-compliance with regulations could result in penalties and reputational damage.

EOG Resources relies on advanced technologies and innovations to efficiently explore and produce hydrocarbon reserves. However, technological advancements also bring inherent risks, such as data security threats and potential operational disruptions. Additionally, adopting new technologies may require substantial investments and successful implementation to yield desired results.

The energy sector is highly competitive, with numerous players vying for market share. EOG Resources competes with both established energy companies and emerging players. Intense competition can lead to pricing pressures and reduced margins. Moreover, market conditions, such as supply and demand imbalances, can impact the company's ability to sell its products at favorable prices.

EOG Resources operates in a global industry influenced by geopolitical tensions, trade policies, and macroeconomic conditions. Political instability, conflicts, and economic downturns in key markets can disrupt operations, impact demand for energy products and create uncertainty in the business environment.

EOG Resources has implemented various risk management strategies to mitigate the potential impacts of these risks and challenges:

EOG maintains a diverse portfolio of assets across multiple regions, allowing it to mitigate risks associated with specific geographic areas or regulatory environments. This diversification strategy helps spread risk and minimize the impact of localized disruptions.

The company emphasizes operational efficiency, cost discipline, and continuous improvement. By optimizing its operations, EOG aims to enhance productivity, reduce costs and mitigate the effects of commodity price fluctuations.

EOG Resources is committed to responsible environmental practices and sustainability. By proactively managing ecological risks and adopting environmentally friendly technologies, the company aims to mitigate regulatory and reputational risks.

EOG maintains a solid financial position, enabling it to weather market volatility and fund strategic initiatives. The company's prudent financial management and capital allocation strategies provide a cushion against potential economic downturns and industry challenges.
Petroleo Brasileiro S.A., more commonly known by the name Petrobras, is a multinational integrated and diversified energy company headquartered in Brazil. The company was founded in 1953 by the government of Brazil and was a government-run entity for the first portion of its life. The companys motto at inception was The Oil Is Ours, it is headquartered in Rio de Janeiro and is listed on the Forbes Global 500.

Petrobras operated with a legal monopoly in Brazil until 1997. During that time the companys production ramped from 2,700 barrels per day to about 2.6 million barrels per day in 2022. Along the way the company entered the refining market in 1961, it opened the Cenpes Research Center in 1963 (one of the worlds largest and leading petroleum research centers), it entered the petrochem market in 1968, and then, in 1994, it launched what was the worlds largest offshore drilling and production facility only to have it sink after less than 20 years in service.

Since 1997, when the government granted monopoly was revoked, the company has expanded its operations into other countries and is now functional in 16 nations. Today, Petrobras explores for, produces, and markets crude oil, natural gas, and derivative products worldwide. The companys operations are worldwide but the bulk of business is in Brazil. At the end of 2021, the company had 8.435 billion barrels of proven reserves of which less than 0.50% were located outside of Brazil.

The government of Brazil retains 64% of the voting rights in Petrobras. The remaining shares are listed on the B3 exchange and are part of the Bovespa index. The stock is also listed on the NYSE as a depository receipt shares and in Madrid. The company operates in 4 primary business segments that are Exploration and Production: Refining, Transportation and Marketing; Gas and Power; and Corporate and Other Businesses.

The Exploration and Production segment explores and develops oil fields, processes, delivers, and trades in crude oil, crude oil products, natural gas, and oil-bearing shale feedstock. The Refining, Transportation, and Marketing segments are the mid and downstream operations including refining, pipelines, and wholesale/retail operations. This segment is also engaged in petrochemical and ethanol production. The Gas and Power segment markets natural gas and electricity. This segment also has interests in petrochemicals. The Corporate and Other Businesses segment is engaged in the production of renewable fuels such as ethanol, biodiesel, and their co-products.

Petrobras environmental record includes aiding a rebound of Humpback whales, supporting and rebuilding forest ecosystems, and advances in green and renewable technology.






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Occidental Petroleum Corporation is an international oil and gas giant founded in 1920 to explore for oil in California. The company made its name in the early 1960safter discovering the Lathrop Gas Field in Lathrop, California. The company expanded into chemicals manufacturing in 1968 and then in 1972 it became a pioneer in the quest to extract oil from shale. In 1993, the company made a historic move by exiting its coal operations, and then it did so again when it embraced a lower carbon future.

The company worked to realign its goals with a carbon-free future in 2021. After extensive review, new carbon emission targets were laid out along with a plan that the Transition Pathway Initiative recognized as being 1 of 3 coming from major oil companies that could realistically result in net-zero emissions by 2050. Since then the company has laid interim goals that include net zero from operations and energy by 2040 and no routine flaring by 2030.

Today, Occidental Petroleum is an integrated energy company with operations in the US, the Middle East, Africa, and Columbia along with some other smaller operations. The company operates a network of best-in-class production, delivery, and storage facilities with operations centered in the US. On a net basis, the companys US operations accounted for more than 75% of the total in 2022 with 19% from Middle East operations and the remainder from Columbia and elsewhere.

The company engages in the oil & gas business as an explorer, producer, and mid-stream infrastructure operator. The company operates through three segments that include Oil and Gas, Chemicals, and Midstream & Marketing.

The oil and gas segment explores for oil, develops new fields, and produces hydrocarbon liquids, gasses, and condensates. The chemicals segment manufactures a range of chemicals including chlorine, potassium chemicals, and vinyl. The midstream segment transports, stores, and markets hydrocarbons. It is the 6th largest oil and gas producer in the US by market cap. The company attained the position after its acquisition of Anadarko Petroleum in 2019, the 4th largest oil and gas acquisition at the time.

Berkshire Hathaway became Occidental Petroleums largest shareholder in mid-2022. The firm had purchased more than 26% of the shares as of 10/14/2022 and had regulatory approval to purchase up to 50% of the company in total.
Novo Nordisk A/S is a global healthcare company specializing in the research, development, production, and marketing of pharmaceutical products to treat diabetes, obesity, and other chronic diseases. The company was founded in 1923 in Denmark and is headquartered in Bagsvrd, Denmark.



Novo Nordisk has operations in more than 80 countries, including production facilities in nine countries, and employs approximately 48,500 people worldwide.

Novo Nordisk's mission is to discover and develop innovative medicines to help people with chronic diseases lead longer, healthier lives. The company's key therapeutic areas include diabetes, obesity, hemophilia, growth hormone therapy, and other severe chronic diseases. Novo Nordisk is the world's largest producer of insulin and has been at the forefront of diabetes care for more than 95 years.

Lars Fruergaard Jrgensen is the President and CEO of Novo Nordisk A/S, a position he has held since 2017. Jrgensen joined Novo Nordisk in 1991 and has held various management positions, including Executive Vice President and Head of Corporate Development, Strategy and Biopharmaceuticals.

Novo Nordisk has consistently delivered strong financial performance over the past few years. Novo Nordisk's profit margin has remained consistently high, with a net margin of approximately 30%. In terms of debt, Novo Nordisk has maintained a conservative approach. Novo Nordisk's debt has kept pace with its assets for several years. The company's cash reserves have not always been healthy, but in 2022 Novo Nordisk made a profit for the first time since 2018.



Novo Nordisk's valuation metrics compare favorably to industry peers. It has a price-to-earnings ratio in line with its peers but a price-to-book ratio significantly higher than the industry average. Novo Nordisk's high P/B ratio reflects its strong brand, market position, and financial performance.



Novo Nordisk's stock has performed well over the past few years, with a 3-year annualized return of around 23%. The stock price has shown some volatility, with significant price movements in response to regulatory and market news related to diabetes and obesity markets.

Novo Nordisk operates in the highly competitive and rapidly evolving pharmaceutical industry, specifically in diabetes and obesity markets. The global diabetes market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 5.7% from 2022 to 2027, driven by the increasing prevalence of diabetes, especially in emerging markets, and the growing demand for innovative diabetes treatments. In the obesity market, the global prevalence of obesity has been steadily increasing, and it is expected to continue to rise, driving demand for effective obesity treatments.

Novo Nordisk faces intense competition from several large and small pharmaceutical companies in the diabetes and obesity markets. The company's main competitors in the diabetes market include Sanofi, Eli Lilly, and AstraZeneca, while its main competitors in the obesity market include Roche, Novartis, and Eisai.



The company's competitive position is based on factors such as the quality and effectiveness of its products, its research and development capabilities, its brand reputation, and ability to adapt to changing market dynamics.

Novo Nordisk is also subject to various regulatory and political issues that can impact its operations and financial performance. The company must comply with strict regulatory requirements in each country it operates, including the US FDA and the European Medicines Agency. Changes in regulatory requirements, such as changes to reimbursement policies, can significantly impact the company's financial performance.

Novo Nordisk has several growth opportunities to pursue in the coming years. The company is investing heavily in research and development to develop new and innovative treatments for diabetes and obesity, as well as other chronic diseases. Novo Nordisk has a strong pipeline of potential products in development, including GLP-1 receptor agonists, which have shown promise in clinical trials for treating obesity.

The company also expands in emerging markets, such as China and India, with significant and growing demand for diabetes and obesity treatments. Novo Nordisk has established partnerships with local companies in these markets to help drive growth and increase product access.

Novo Nordisk has pursued acquisitions and partnerships to expand its product offerings and capabilities. In 2021, the company acquired Prothena's ATTR amyloidosis program, a potential treatment for a rare and debilitating disease. This acquisition will strengthen Novo Nordisk's position in the rare disease market.

Novo Nordisk faces several risks and challenges that could impact its operations and financial performance. The company's success is heavily dependent on the success of its products in the diabetes and obesity markets, and any setbacks in clinical trials or product launches could significantly impact its financial performance.

In addition, Novo Nordisk faces regulatory and political risks, as changes in regulations or policies could impact its ability to operate or sell its products in specific markets. The company is also subject to intellectual property risks, as competitors may seek to challenge its patents and market their products.

Novo Nordisk also faces risks related to supply chain disruptions and production delays, as well as cybersecurity and data privacy risks.
The Charles Schwab Corporation is a financial services company that offers a wide range of investment services, including brokerage, banking, and financial advisory services. Founded in 1971 and headquartered in Westlake, Texas, the company operates through two main segments: Investor Services and Advisor Services. The Investor Services segment offers individual investors retail brokerage and banking services, while the Advisor Services segment provides custodial, trading, and support services to independent investment advisors. In 2020, the company completed its acquisition of TD Ameritrade, further expanding its client base and offerings.

Charles Schwab Corporation's management team is led by Walt Bettinger, who has been the company's President and Chief Executive Officer since 2008. Mr. Bettinger joined the company in 1995 and has held various leadership roles, including Chief Operating Officer and Head of Schwab Institutional.

Over the past few years, Charles Schwab Corporation has experienced steady growth in its key financial metrics. It is reporting increased revenue and increased profit margin. Charles Schwab Corporation's valuation metrics are generally in line with industry peers. The company's price-to-earnings ratio is slightly lower than the industry average, and the company's price-to-book ratio is also somewhat lower than the industry average. Charles Schwab Corporation's stock has generally performed well over the past few years, with some fluctuations in response to broader market conditions and regulatory changes. The company's stock price has outperformed the S&P 500 for several years. The company has also experienced increases in trading volume in response to changes in market conditions and regulatory changes.

Charles Schwab Corporation operates in the financial services industry, which has experienced significant growth and transformation over the past few years. The industry has been impacted by a range of factors, including advances in technology, changing consumer preferences, and regulatory changes. Charles Schwab Corporation competes with other financial services firms, including traditional brokerage firms, online investment platforms, and banks.

Charles Schwab Corporation has a range of potential growth opportunities, including expanding its offerings to meet the evolving needs of its clients. The company has been investing in technology and digital platforms to improve its services and attract new clients. In addition, the company's acquisition of TD Ameritrade has provided new opportunities for growth and expansion. The company also focuses on expanding its international presence and exploring new markets.

Charles Schwab Corporation faces a range of potential risks and challenges, including changes in regulatory and political environments that may impact the company's operations and profitability. The financial services industry is subject to a wide range of regulations, and changes in these regulations could significantly impact the company's operations. In addition, the industry is subject to intense competition, which could affect the company's ability to attract and retain clients.

Another potential risk is the impact of market volatility on the company's operations. Charles Schwab Corporation generates a significant portion of its revenue from commissions and fees, which are impacted by changes in market conditions. In periods of market volatility, clients may reduce their trading activity, which could affect the company's revenue and profitability.

The company also faces risks related to data security and privacy. The company collects and stores sensitive financial and personal information on its clients. Any breach of this data could significantly impact the company's reputation and financial performance.

To address these risks and challenges, Charles Schwab Corporation is focused on maintaining a robust regulatory compliance program and investing in data security and privacy measures. The company is also focused on diversifying its revenue streams and expanding its offerings to meet the evolving needs of its clients.
S&P Global Inc., together with its subsidiaries, provides credit ratings, benchmarks, analytics, and workflow solutions in the global capital, commodity, and automotive markets. It operates through six segments: S&P Global Ratings, S&P Dow Jones Indices, S&P Global Commodity Insights, S&P Global Market Intelligence, S&P Global Mobility, and S&P Global Engineering Solutions. The S&P Global Ratings segment operates as an independent provider of credit ratings, research, and analytics, offering investors and other market participants information, ratings, and benchmarks. The S&P Dow Jones Indices segment is an index provider that maintains various valuation and index benchmarks for investment advisors, wealth managers, and institutional investors. The S&P Global Commodity Insights segment provides information and benchmark prices for the commodity and energy markets. The S&P Global Market Intelligence segment offers multi-asset-class data and analytics integrated with purpose-built workflow solutions. This segment offers Desktop, a product suite that provides data, analytics, and third-party research; Data and Advisory Solutions for research, reference data, market data, derived analytics, and valuation services; Enterprise Solutions, software and workflow solutions; and Credit & Risk Solutions for selling Ratings' credit ratings and related data and research. The S&P Global Mobility segment provides solutions serving the full automotive value chain, including vehicle manufacturers (OEMs), automotive suppliers, mobility service providers, retailers, consumers, and finance and insurance companies. The S&P Global Engineering Solutions segment offers engineering standards and related technical knowledge, including product design to provide information and insight to design products, optimize engineering projects and outcomes, solve technical problems, and address complex supply chain issues. S&P Global Inc. was founded in 1860 and is headquartered in New York, New York.
This photo shows a sub-forum of the 26th St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) in St. Petersburg, Russia, June 14, 2023. The 26th SPIEF began on Wednesday at the Expoforum exhibition center in Russia's second-largest city St. Petersburg. (Photo by Irina Motina/Xinhua)

ST. PETERSBURG, June 14 (Xinhua) -- The 26th St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) began on Wednesday at the Expoforum exhibition center in Russia's second-largest city St. Petersburg.

According to the forum's press service, more than 17,000 people from about 130 countries and territories have confirmed their participation in SPIEF, scheduled to end on Saturday.

The theme of SPIEF 2023 is "Sovereign Development as the Basis of a Just World: Joining Forces for Future Generations." Participants from Russia and abroad will discuss the development of the Russian economy under sanctions, the country's technological sovereignty, social policy priorities and world economic issues.

In addition, Russia will hold several bilateral business dialogues regarding its relations with China, the United Arab Emirates, India and Brazil.

SPIEF has been held since 1997 and has become a powerful global platform for the business community to discuss critical economic issues facing Russia and the world. 

This photo shows the booth of St. Petersburg at the 26th St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) in St. Petersburg, Russia, June 14, 2023. The 26th SPIEF began on Wednesday at the Expoforum exhibition center in Russia's second-largest city St. Petersburg. (Photo by Irina Motina/Xinhua)

A participant looks at a planning model at 26th St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) in St. Petersburg, Russia, June 14, 2023. The 26th SPIEF began on Wednesday at the Expoforum exhibition center in Russia's second-largest city St. Petersburg. (Photo by Irina Motina/Xinhua)
The following companies are subsidiares of Colgate-Palmolive: 887357 Ontario Inc., COLGALIVE S.A., CP GABA GmbH, CP International Holding C.V., CP West East Investment Limited, Cleaning Dimensions Inc., Colgate (BVI) Limited, Colgate (Guangzhou) Company Limited, Colgate (U.K.) Limited, Colgate Business Services of the Americas S.C., Colgate Flavors and Fragrances Inc., Colgate Global Business Services Private Limited, Colgate Holdings, Colgate Inc., Colgate Oral Pharmaceuticals Inc., Colgate Palmolive Ghana Limited, Colgate Palmolive Holding S.Com.P.A., Colgate Palmolive Nouvelle Caledonie Sarl, Colgate Palmolive Tanzania Limited, Colgate Sanxiao Company Limited, Colgate Venture Company Inc., Colgate-Palmolive (America) Inc., Colgate-Palmolive (Asia) Pte Ltd, Colgate-Palmolive (Blantyre) Limited, Colgate-Palmolive (Brunei) Sdn Bhn, Colgate-Palmolive (Central America) Inc., Colgate-Palmolive (Central America) Inc. y Compania Limitada, Colgate-Palmolive (Centro America) S.A., Colgate-Palmolive (China) Co. Ltd, Colgate-Palmolive (Costa Rica) S.A., Colgate-Palmolive (Dominica) Inc., Colgate-Palmolive (Dominican Republic) Inc., Colgate-Palmolive (East Africa) Limited, Colgate-Palmolive (Eastern) Pte. Ltd., Colgate-Palmolive (Egypt) S.A.E., Colgate-Palmolive (Far East) Sdn Bhd, Colgate-Palmolive (Fiji) Pte Limited, Colgate-Palmolive (Gabon) S.A., Colgate-Palmolive (Guyana) Ltd., Colgate-Palmolive (H.K.) Limited, Colgate-Palmolive (Hellas) S.A. I.C., Colgate-Palmolive (Hong Kong) Holding Limited, Colgate-Palmolive (Kazakhstan) L.L.P., Colgate-Palmolive (Latvia) Ltd., Colgate-Palmolive (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd, Colgate-Palmolive (Middle East Exports) Ltd., Colgate-Palmolive (Myanmar) Limited, Colgate-Palmolive (New York) Inc., Colgate-Palmolive (Poland) Sp. z o.o., Colgate-Palmolive (Proprietary) Limited, Colgate-Palmolive (Research & Development) Inc., Colgate-Palmolive (Romania) SRL, Colgate-Palmolive (Thailand) Limited, Colgate-Palmolive (UK) Limited, Colgate-Palmolive (Uganda) Limited, Colgate-Palmolive (Vietnam) Ltd., Colgate-Palmolive (Zambia) Inc., Colgate-Palmolive (Zimbabwe) Inc., Colgate-Palmolive A.B., Colgate-Palmolive A/S, Colgate-Palmolive Adria Ltd., Colgate-Palmolive Argentina S.A., Colgate-Palmolive Asia Pacific Limited, Colgate-Palmolive Asia Pacific Treasury Services Limited, Colgate-Palmolive Belgium S.A., Colgate-Palmolive Bolivia Ltda., Colgate-Palmolive Canada Inc., Colgate-Palmolive Caricom Service Co. Inc., Colgate-Palmolive Central European Management Inc., Colgate-Palmolive Chile S.A., Colgate-Palmolive Cia., Colgate-Palmolive Comercial Ltda., Colgate-Palmolive Commercial (Hellas) SP LLC, Colgate-Palmolive Commerciale S.A.S., Colgate-Palmolive Commericale S.r.l., Colgate-Palmolive Compania Anonima, Colgate-Palmolive Company Distr. LLC, Colgate-Palmolive Company GmbH, Colgate-Palmolive Cote dIvoire S.A., Colgate-Palmolive Cyprus Limited, Colgate-Palmolive Development Corp., Colgate-Palmolive East West Africa Region (Pty) Ltd, Colgate-Palmolive Enterprises Inc., Colgate-Palmolive Espana S.A., Colgate-Palmolive Europe (Holdings) Sarl, Colgate-Palmolive Europe Sarl, Colgate-Palmolive Finance (UK) plc, Colgate-Palmolive Global Trading Company, Colgate-Palmolive Holding Argentina S.A., Colgate-Palmolive Holding Inc., Colgate-Palmolive Hungary Kft Limited Liability Company, Colgate-Palmolive IHQ Services (Thailand) Limited, Colgate-Palmolive Inc., Colgate-Palmolive Inc. S.A., Colgate-Palmolive Industrial Ltda., Colgate-Palmolive Industriel S.A.S., Colgate-Palmolive International Holding LLC, Colgate-Palmolive International LLC, Colgate-Palmolive Investment Co. Inc., Colgate-Palmolive Investments (BVI) Ltd., Colgate-Palmolive Investments (PNG) Ltd., Colgate-Palmolive Investments (UK) Limited, Colgate-Palmolive Investments Inc., Colgate-Palmolive Israel Ltd., Colgate-Palmolive Italia S.r.l., Colgate-Palmolive JSC, Colgate-Palmolive Lanka (Private) Limited, Colgate-Palmolive Latin America Inc., Colgate-Palmolive Limited, Colgate-Palmolive Manufacturing (Poland) Sp. z o.o., Colgate-Palmolive Marketing Sdn Bhd, Colgate-Palmolive Maroc S.A., Colgate-Palmolive Mocambique Limitada, Colgate-Palmolive NJ Inc., Colgate-Palmolive Nederland B.V., Colgate-Palmolive Norge A/S, Colgate-Palmolive Participacoes e Investimentos Imobiliarios Lda., Colgate-Palmolive Peru S.A., Colgate-Palmolive Philippines Inc., Colgate-Palmolive Pty Ltd, Colgate-Palmolive Retirement Trustee Limited, Colgate-Palmolive S.A. de C.V., Colgate-Palmolive S.p.A., Colgate-Palmolive Senegal S.A., Colgate-Palmolive Services (Hellas) LLC, Colgate-Palmolive Services (Poland) Sp. z o.o., Colgate-Palmolive Services CEW GmbH, Colgate-Palmolive Services S.A., Colgate-Palmolive Slovensko s.r.o., Colgate-Palmolive Support Services, Colgate-Palmolive Temizlik Urunleri Sanayi ve Ticart S.A., Colgate-Palmolive Transnational Inc., Colgate-Palmolive Ukraine LLC, Colgate-Palmolive Unipessoal Lda, Colgate-Palmolive de Paraguay Sociedad Anonima, Colgate-Palmolive de Puerto Rico Inc., Colgate-Palmolive del Ecuador S.A.I.C., Colgate-Palmolive del Peru (Delaware) Inc., Colgate-Palmolive Eeska republika spol. s r.o., Colpal CBS S de R. L. de C. V., Consumer Viewpoint Center Inc., Cotelle S.A., Dimac Development Corp., Dominica Coconut Products Limited, EKIB Inc., ELM Company Limited, Elta MD Holdings Inc., Elta MD Inc., EltaMD, Filorga Americas Inc., Filorga Asia Limited, Filorga Benelux SA, Filorga Cosmetiques Polska, Filorga Middle East DMCC, Filorga Portugal Unipessoal Lda., Filorga RU Limited Liability Company, GABA Europe Holding GmbH, GABA International, GABA International Holding LLC, GABA Schweiz AG, GABA Therwil GmbH, Gamma Development Co. Ltd., Global Trading and Supply LLC, Hamol Ltd., Hello Products, Hello Products LLC, Hills Funding Company, Hills Pet Nutrition (NZ) Limited, Hills Pet Nutrition (Thailand) Co. Ltd., Hills Pet Nutrition Asia Limited, Hills Pet Nutrition B.V., Hills Pet Nutrition Canada Inc., Hills Pet Nutrition Denmark ApS, Hills Pet Nutrition Espana S.L., Hills Pet Nutrition GmbH, Hills Pet Nutrition Holding B.V., Hills Pet Nutrition Inc., Hills Pet Nutrition Indiana Inc., Hills Pet Nutrition Italia S.r.l., Hills Pet Nutrition Korea Ltd., Hills Pet Nutrition Ltd., Hills Pet Nutrition Manufacturing B.V., Hills Pet Nutrition Manufacturing s.r.o, Hills Pet Nutrition Norway AS, Hills Pet Nutrition OOO, Hills Pet Nutrition Pty. Limited, Hills Pet Nutrition S.p.A., Hills Pet Nutrition SNC, Hills Pet Nutrition Sales Inc., Hills Pet Nutrition South Africa Proprietary Limited, Hills Pet Nutrition Sweden AB, Hills Pet Nutrition Switzerland GmbH, Hills Pet Nutrition Taiwan Ltd, Hills Pet Nutrition Trading (GZ) Co. Ltd, Hills Pet Nutrition de Mexico S.A. de C.V., Hills Pet Nutrition de Puerto Rico Inc., Hills Pet Nutrition s.r.o., Hills Pet Products (Benelux) S.A., Hills Pet Products Inc., Hills Veterinary Companies of America Inc., Hills-Colgate (Japan) Ltd., Hopro Liquidating Corp., Hygiene Systemes et Services SA, IES Enterprises Inc., Inmobiliaria Colpal S. de R.L. de C.V., Inmobiliaria Hills S.A. de C.V., Innovacion Creativa S.A. de C.V., Kolynos Corporation, Laboratoires Filorga Cosmetiques Espana S.L.U., Laboratoires Filorga Cosmetiques Italia S.R.L., Laboratoires Filorga Cosmetiques S.A., Laser Brand Toothpaste, Lournay Sales Inc., Mennen Company, Mennen Interamerica Ltd., Mennen Limited, Mennen South Africa Ltd., Mennen de Chile Ltd., Mennen de Nicargua S.A., Mission Hills Property Corporation, Mission Hills S.A. de C.V., Norwood International Incorporated, Olive Music Publishing Corporation, PCA SKIN, Paramount Research Inc., Penny LLC, Pet Chemicals Inc., Physicians Care Alliance LLC, Productos Halogenados Copalven C.A., Purity Holding Company, Purity Music Publishing Corporation, Refresh Company Limited, Samuel Taylor Holdings B.V., Sanex, Sanxiao Company Limited, Services Development Co. Ltd., Societe Generale de Negoce et de Services (GENESE) S.A., The GDN - The Global Distributive Network SAS, The Lournay Company Inc., The MPDP - The Medical and Pharmaceutic Distributive Platform SAS, The Murphy-Phoenix Company, Tom's of Maine, Toms of Maine Holdings Inc., Toms of Maine Inc., Veterinary Companies of America Inc., Vipont Pharmaceutical Inc., and XEB Inc..

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Mastercard Inc. is a leading technology company in the payments industry that provides payment processing solutions to businesses and consumers worldwide. Mastercard is one of the largest payment processors in the world by market cap and the number of payments processed.

Mastercard was founded in 1966 as Master Charge: The Interbank Card. The company was created to respond to the growing need for a secure and reliable payment processing system. In 1979, the company changed its name to Mastercard. Mastercard is in over 200 countries and territories and serves over 2.8 billion cardholders.

Mastercard operates on a business-to-business (B2B) model, providing payment processing services to financial institutions, merchants and governments. The company earns revenue primarily through transaction processing fees, cross-border fees and other value-added services. Mastercard's business is divided into four segments: domestic assessments, cross-border volume fees, transaction processing fees and additional revenue.

Mastercard's financial performance has been consistently strong in recent years, with revenue and earnings growth driven by increased transaction volumes and higher fees. Mastercard faces significant competition from other payment processing companies, including Visa Inc. (NYSE: V), American Express Co. (NYSE: AXP) and PayPal Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: PYPL). However, Mastercard has maintained its position as one of the largest payment processors in the world due to its strong brand recognition, global network and innovative technology solutions.

Mastercard has consistently invested in innovative technology to enhance its payment processing solutions. One of the company's most significant innovations in recent years is Mastercard's tokenization technology, which provides a secure way to process payments without exposing cardholder data. Mastercard has also invested heavily in contactless payment technology, which has become increasingly popular during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Mastercard has a solid commitment to corporate social responsibility and sustainability. The company has set ambitious goals to reduce its carbon footprint, increase financial inclusion and promote gender equality. Mastercard is also actively involved in philanthropic efforts, including the Mastercard Foundation, which focuses on advancing financial inclusion in Africa.

As with any company, Mastercard faces several risk factors that could impact its financial performance. One of the most significant risks facing Mastercard is the potential for increased regulation of the payment processing industry. Mastercard is also vulnerable to changes in consumer behavior, such as a shift away from traditional payment methods toward mobile payments. Additionally, Mastercard's business depends on the overall health of the global economy, which could be impacted by factors such as inflation, geopolitical tensions and natural disasters.
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 - Wichita II LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Kansas - Wichita LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Kansas  TCG LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Kansas  TCS LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Louisiana - Alexandria Inc., Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Louisiana - Bossier City Inc., Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Louisiana - Lake Charles Inc., Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Louisiana - Shreveport Inc., Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Louisiana  TCG Inc., Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Louisiana  TCS Inc., Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Maine - Bangor PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Maine - Lewiston PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Maine  TCG PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Maine  TCS PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Maryland - Cheverly PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Maryland - Cumberland PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Maryland - Frederick PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Maryland - Laurel PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Maryland - Rockville PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Maryland P.C., Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Maryland  TCG PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Maryland  TCS PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Massachusetts - Brockton PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Massachusetts - Dorchester PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Massachusetts - Framingham PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Massachusetts - Holyoke PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Massachusetts - Natick PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Massachusetts - Norwood PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Massachusetts - Springfield PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Massachusetts - Stoughton PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Massachusetts - Taunton PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Massachusetts - Worcester PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Massachusetts  TCG PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Massachusetts  TCS PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Michigan - Alpena PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Michigan - 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 - Hackensack PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of New Jersey - Paterson PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of New Jersey - TCG PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of New Jersey  TCS PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of New Mexico - Clovis LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of New Mexico - Rio Rancho LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of New Mexico - TCG LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of New Mexico - TCS LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of New York PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of North Carolina - Burlington PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of North Carolina - Clyde PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of North Carolina - Elizabeth City PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of North Carolina - Jacksonville PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of North Carolina - New Bern PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of North Carolina - Rocky Mount PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of North Carolina PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of North Carolina  TCG PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of North Carolina  TCS PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of North Dakota  TCG PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of North Dakota  TCS PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Ohio - Akron Professional Corporation, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Ohio - Batavia Professional Corporation, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Ohio - Canton Professional Corporation, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Ohio - Cincinnati II Professional Corporation, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Ohio - Cincinnati III Professional Corporation, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Ohio - Cincinnati Professional Corporation, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Ohio - Circleville Professional Corporation, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Ohio - Columbus II Professional Corporation, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Ohio - Columbus Professional Corporation, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Ohio - Dover Professional Corporation, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Ohio - East Liverpool Professional Corporation, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Ohio - Fairfield Professional Corporation, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Ohio - Martins Ferry Professional Corporation, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Ohio - 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Aiken LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of South Carolina - Rock Hill LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of South Carolina  TCG LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of South Carolina  TCS LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of South Dakota  TCG LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of South Dakota  TCS LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Tennessee  Columbia PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Tennessee  Franklin PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Tennessee  TCG PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Tennessee  TCS PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Texas - Amarillo PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Texas - Atlanta PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Texas - Austin II PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Texas - Austin PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Texas - Bryan PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Texas - Burnet PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Texas - Corpus Christi II PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Texas - Corpus Christi PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Texas - Cypress PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Texas - Dallas PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Texas - El Paso II PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Texas - El Paso III PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Texas - El Paso PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Texas - Fort Worth II PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Texas - Fort Worth PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Texas - Fredericksburg PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Texas - Houston PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Texas - Humble PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Texas - Kerrville PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Texas - Kyle PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Texas - Livingston PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Texas - Lubbock PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Texas - Lufkin PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Texas - Mount Pleasant PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Texas - Plainview PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Texas - Rockwall PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Texas - Round Rock PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Texas - San Antonio II PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Texas - San Antonio III PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Texas - San Antonio IV PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Texas - San Antonio PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Texas - San Antonio V PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Texas - San Antonio VI PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Texas - San Antonio VII PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Texas - San Marcos PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Texas - Texarkana PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Texas - Tyler PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Texas PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Texas  TCG PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Texas  TCS PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Utah  TCG LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Utah  TCS LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Vermont  TCG LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Vermont  TCS LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Virginia - Alexandria LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Virginia - Front Royal II LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Virginia - Front Royal LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Virginia - Mechanicsville LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Virginia - Midlothian LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Virginia - Richmond II LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Virginia - Richmond LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Virginia - Winchester LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Virginia LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Virginia  TCG LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Virginia  TCS LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Washington - Arlington PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Washington - Auburn PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Washington - Bellingham PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Washington - Bremerton PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Washington - Burien PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Washington - Coupeville PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Washington - Enumclaw PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Washington - Federal Way PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Washington - Gig Harbor PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Washington - Lakewood PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Washington - Mount Vernon PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Washington - Puyallup PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Washington - Tacoma II PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Washington - Tacoma III PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Washington - Tacoma PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Washington - Vancouver PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Washington County LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Washington  TCG PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Washington  TCS PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of West Virginia PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of West Virginia  Martinsburg PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of West Virginia  South Charleston PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of West Virginia  TCG PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of West Virginia  TCS PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of West Virginia  Wheeling PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Wisconsin Ltd., Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Wyoming - 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. 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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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ANKARA, June 14 (Xinhua) -- Turkish defense company Baykar Technology announced on Wednesday it has signed a 367-million-U.S. dollar contract with the Kuwaiti government to export drones.

Baykar said in a statement posted on its Twitter account that it has "successfully" completed the contract with the Kuwaiti government on the export of domestically made Bayraktar TB2 drones.

It added that the drones were tested in Kuwait in July 2019 and broke a record by flying continuously for more than 27 hours under challenging geographical and climatic conditions such as high temperatures and sandstorms.

The contract will "enhance defense capabilities of the Kuwaiti army," the Kuwait News Agency cited a statement from the Kuwaiti Defense Ministry as saying.

Besides providing necessary maintenance and logistical supplies, the contract includes "preparing special facilities for those aircraft, including arming, electronic warfare equipment, and mobile ground control stations that are compatible with NATO standards," the Kuwaiti Defense Ministry said in the statement.

Neither Baykar nor the Kuwaiti Defense Ministry revealed how many drones will be delivered or when exactly they will be delivered.

Baykar said Kuwait is the 28th country in the world to conclude a contract on TB2 drones. 
MOSCOW, June 14 (Xinhua) -- Russia is considering withdrawing from the grain export deal as most of the Ukrainian grain, instead of going to the developing countries as agreed, is being sold to the wealthy European Union nations, Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday.

Putin acknowledged that food export is one of the main sources of foreign currency income for Ukraine. "We knew this. We agreed to this deal on purpose, to help the developing countries -- our friends, and to get the sanctions lifted from our agricultural sector. We were cheated again," he said during a meeting with military commanders, according to a TASS news agency report Wednesday.

Putin added that almost none of the Ukrainian grain reached African countries. "Therefore, we are now thinking about leaving this so-called grain deal, especially since the corridors through which the ships go are constantly used by the enemy to launch sea drones," he said.

In case Russia quits the deal, it will provide the poorest countries with free grain shipments that they are now getting from Ukraine, Putin said. "We are ready to give the poorest countries the amount of grain they used to get, which is, I repeat, a little over three percent, for free."

Putin added that the matter still needs further discussion and he intends to consult the leaders of African states soon.

In July 2022, Russia and Ukraine separately signed the Black Sea Grain Initiative in Istanbul with Turkiye and the United Nations on grain and fertilizer exports from Ukraine and Russia to ensure supplies to global markets amid the Ukraine crisis. 
ATHENS, June 14 (Xinhua) -- The Greek government announced on Wednesday a three-day period of national mourning for the victims of a shipwreck which had occurred in international waters off its southwestern coast.

Authorities have retrieved the bodies of 79 refugees after a fishing boat carrying an unknown number of passengers sank 47 nautical miles off Pylos town, Greek national news agency AMNA reported.

"Everyone's thoughts are with all the victims of the ruthless traffickers who take advantage of human misery," said caretaker Prime Minister Ioannis Sarmas.

A total of 104 passengers have now been rescued, Nikolaos Alexiou, spokesperson for the maritime affairs and insular policy ministry told Greek national broadcaster ERT. A search and rescue operation to locate other passengers will continue during the night, he added.

"We cannot give a number of passengers with certainty, but it was very large ... My colleagues found an overloaded boat," he said.

However, he did not confirm estimates that there were 400-700 passengers on board, which survivors gave to ERT and other media. They said the fishing boat which sank during nighttime between Tuesday and Wednesday had been on the way from Libya to Italy.

The incident happened in the area with the deepest waters across the Mediterranean Sea, and none of the survivors was wearing a lifejacket, according to Alexiou.

Greek President Katerina Sakellaropoulou has travelled to the nearby city of Kalamata, where survivors are being taken. The president expressed deep sorrow over the tragedy, calling for "coordination of EU member states to safeguard the lives and safety of migrants and refugees."

Meanwhile, European Council President Charles Michel said the accident was a "heartbreaking reminder we must put an end to the unscrupulous business of smugglers." EU leaders will address the issue at the European Council on June 29-30, he said on Twitter.

"We must continue to work together, with Member States and 3rd countries, to prevent such tragedies," European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said.

So far this year, 72,778 refugees have arrived in Europe from the south, including 71,136 arrivals by sea to Italy, Greece, Spain, Cyprus and Malta, according to the United Nations Refugee Agency UNHCR.

At least 1,037 people have died or been reported missing in the region since the start of 2023, according to UNHCR. 
by Pete Jones

DENVER, the United States, June 13 (Xinhua) -- One of the first climate change trials in U.S. history began Monday in the sparsely populated, big western state of Montana, where the local conservative government is facing a hostile backlash over anti-climate change policies it recently imposed.

"Do children have a right to a healthy climate? Montana case is a test," the Monday headline in The Christian Science Monitor read, in a case that is going viral across the United States with national climate change policy implications.

In 2020, 16 plaintiffs between the ages of five and 22 from around the state banded together to file "Held versus Montana," alleging that state officials violated their constitutional right to a healthy environment by enacting pro-fossil fuel policies.

Students said their case hinged on a 1972 Montana Constitution statute that provided all of Montana's 1.1 million residents "the right to a clean and healthy environment," according to eenews.net, a pro-environment website.

This spring, the case was directly attacked by Montana's super conservative majority state legislature, when Republican Governor Greg Gianforte signed unprecedented legislation eliminating climate change assessment when state agencies approve fossil fuel projects, including mining and drilling for gas and oil.

Republican lawmakers denied the recent far-reaching legislation was crafted to derail the children's lawsuit, but had tried unsuccessfully other legal maneuvers to stop the trial.

Montana, the U.S. fourth largest state bordering Canada in the northwest, has the largest estimated recoverable coal reserves in the nation, which account for about 30 percent of the U.S. total, according to media reports.

Ironically, the fossil-fuel-rich state also is home to thousands of outdoors enthusiasts who enjoy the pristine isolated environment, and clean air and water via the Rocky Mountains that run through the western part of the Treasure State.

Plaintiffs in the lawsuit would cite numerous instances where climate change triggers, supported by a vast majority of climate scientists, had adversely affected air quality, media reports said.

A staggering 97 percent of climate scientists "agree that humans are causing global warming and climate change," according to articles published by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) during the past decade.

But not Montana's Republican lawmakers.

During the past decade, wildfires have run rampant throughout the U.S. West, costing taxpayers billions of U.S. dollars and scorching millions of acres of land, which scientists say are exacerbated by human induced climate change, and have affected air quality for millions of Americans across the country.

"Children need lawyers, and they need advocates, because our system of law does not prioritize the needs of the youngest among us," said Julia Olson, executive director of Our Children's Trust (OCT), a nonprofit group of Oregon attorneys representing the students in the class action lawsuit.

"And when it comes to climate crisis, human laws are not paying attention to the laws of nature, and what scientists say is necessary to protect our children and all future generations," she added.

The two-week trial will be closely watched by other states exploring legislation to either combat or support or deny climate change.

"A favorable verdict in the Montana case could create momentum elsewhere," said OCT attorney Phil Gregory, noting that the Hawaii Supreme Court in March upheld the rejection of a biomass plant by recognizing a "right to a stable climate."

A win for Held versus Montana and other young Montana activists "would be a tremendous victory," said Marco Simons, who represents Colorado communities suing the oil and gas industry as general counsel at EarthRights International, and could "contribute to the overall ecosystem in which courts are recognizing that overuse of fossil fuels is deeply problematic."

In May, Gianforte signed into law a bill passed by conservative politicians that bars state agencies from considering greenhouse gas emissions, or other climate change affects when conducting environmental reviews of proposed projects.

Republican state Senate majority leader Steve Fitzpatrick called the student lawsuit a waste of time.

"We have so many better things to do in our courtrooms than worry about climate change," Fitzpatrick said in an interview.

"We are 1 million people in a country of 300 million on the planet with close to 7 billion people. There is nothing that we can do in the State of Montana, that in any conceivable way can affect the climate of the earth. That's the science," he said.

Ironically, Fitzpatrick's "science" assertion is disputed by 97 percent of the scientific community.

"We're asking the government and the courts to do their job and protect us, along with the rest of Montana's citizens and our incredible home state; this case is one big opportunity for the state to become a leader in preserving a safe, beautiful and prosperous future for Montana," Grace Gibson-Snyder, a 19-year-old plaintiff, told The Guardian on Monday.

During the Montana trial, each side will be given a week to present evidence before Judge Kathy Seeley of Montana's 1st District Court, who in May rejected a state bid to throw out the suit that allowed the trial to proceed, The Guardian noted.

Seeley said she would be "looking to determine whether climate impacts in the state can be tied to fossil fuel activity."

"This is not an inevitable cliff we are jumping off, rather it is a slope we are being pulled down by governments - like Montana's - and the fossil fuel they use," wrote Daniel Fagre, a scientist emeritus of the United States Geological Survey who was stationed at the Glacier National Park for nearly 30 years, in a pretrial report to the court.

Montana's share of carbon dioxide emissions that contribute to climate change is "nationally and globally significant," wrote Peter Erickson, a researcher at the Stockholm Environment Institute.

Erickson told Scientific American last week that carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuels extracted, consumed and transported across Montana amounted to about 166 million tons in 2019 - equivalent to such emissions attributed to Argentina, the Netherlands and Pakistan. 
[June 14, 2023] EdgeNext Partners with Chatlabs to Offer Comprehensive Technology Solutions for Content Delivery and Social Media Expansion into China and Beyond Tweet

EdgeNext, a leading provider of Cloud Delivery Services, announced a strategic partnership with Chatlabs, a New York City-based social experiences solutions provider, to orchestrate seamless digital experiences for brands targeting Chinese audiences. This collaboration aims to help Chatlabs' clients expand their footprint in China and beyond by leveraging EdgeNext's CDN services and cutting-edge technology solutions. The partnership will offer integration with EdgeNext's innovative platform, which includes CDN, VOD, live streaming, comprehensive cybersecurity measures, and advanced edge computing capabilities to ensure high-quality and low-latency digital experiences for end-users in China. Robert Sha, CEO of EdgeNext, said, "Our partnership with Chatlabs enables us to combine our industry-leading CDN services with their expertise in social media strategies, creating a powerful solution tailored to the needs of businesses looking to expand their reach in the Chinese market and beyond. We are conident this collaboration will strengthen our market presence in China and beyond and provide exceptional user experiences for Chatlabs' clients and their target audiences."



Michel Tjoeng, SVP of Sales & Marketing of Chatlabs, added, "We are thrilled to offer brands the opportunity to grow their presence in China and beyond together with EdgeNext. By combining the power of EdgeNext's state-of-the-art content delivery solutions with our innovative Social Experiences Platform solutions, our clients can deliver seamless, secure, and hyper-personalised digital experiences to their followers that boost engagement and nurtures loyalty, ultimately translating into conversion." About EdgeNext

EdgeNext is a global edge cloud service provider specializing in APAC, China, and Middle East cloud delivery, cloud security, and edge computing solutions. Powered by a strategically located, globally distributed network, innovative computing technologies, and customer-centric expert services, EdgeNext supports industry-leading brands with the capacity to deliver the most agile, rapid, and seamless content viewing experience to target audiences worldwide. EdgeNext is a partner of choice, driving significant internet traffic in the regions mentioned above by supporting and delivering high-demand videos, live streaming, sports, gaming, and performance-dependent websites or applications. About ChatLabs: ChatLabs helps international brands create hyper-personalised digital experiences for consumers by integrating data from social channels into their owned systems and CRM in a secure & compliant manner to automate engaging & highly-converting social customer experiences that nurture brand loyalty. ChatLabs works with several leading global brands in the luxury, retail, financial services, tourism industries including Richemont, Chopard, Shiseido, LVMH, La Prairie, Shangri-La, United Airlines, HSBC, and more. ChatLabs is headquartered in New York City with offices in Guangzhou, Shanghai, and London. Visit www.chatlabs.com to learn more. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230614149760/en/

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[June 14, 2023] GoNetspeed Begins Construction, Bringing Town of Seymour High-Speed Fiber Internet Tweet

GoNetspeed today announced that construction has officially begun on the high-speed fiber infrastructure that will provide residents and businesses throughout Town of Seymour with access to fiber internet. Through GoNetspeed's fully funded $4.1 million investment in Seymour, many residents and businesses will soon have the opportunity to experience fast, reliable internet and voice service for their home or business, free of taxpayer dollars. As construction expands throughout the area, the first customers will be eligible for service installation as early as late summer of 2023. Construction is expected to be completed by the end of fall of 2023 when more than 6,000 homes and businesses throughout Seymour will have the opportunity to experience GoNetspeed's symmetrical fiber internet speeds that allow customers to upload just as fast as they download. Residents and businesses interested may visit gonetspeed.com to sign up for priority installation once service is available in their area. "Digital connectivity is the key to success for businesses and families today. At GoNetspeed, we are focused on providing that key by connecting comunities like Seymour to 100% fiber internet designed to scale to faster speeds," said Tom Perrone, Senior Vice President of Network Operations & General Manager of Connecticut. "As we invest in the Town of Seymour, this new future-proof network infrastructure will better support their growth as a community, bringing more opportunity for residents and businesses."



GoNetspeed continues to ensure that more communities throughout Connecticut have access to a high-speed 100% fiber internet infrastructure. Currently, more than 30 communities across the state have access to GoNetspeed's service, along with many communities that are well on their way to having access to GoNetspeed's fiber internet. With a legacy of innovation and a commitment to customer service, GoNetspeed is excited to accelerate the expansion of its fiber networks throughout nine states, including Connecticut. GoNetspeed continues to deliver more fiber, more access, more speed, and better reliability to residents and businesses throughout our footprint. With access to 100% fiber internet, customers have access to symmetrical upload and download speeds, ranging from 500 Mbps to 1 Gbps (1,000 Mbps). Learn more about GoNetspeed at gonetspeed.com.

About GoNetspeed: GoNetspeed, a high-speed fiber internet provider, serving residential and business customers in Maine, Alabama, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Missouri, New York, Pennsylvania, Vermont, and West Virginia, formed a partnership with Oak Hill Capital ("Oak Hill") in January 2021, allowing GoNetspeed to accelerate the expansion of its fiber network throughout the Northeastern U.S. Adding thousands of new service areas every year, GoNetspeed is one of the largest independent internet providers in the east. For more information about GoNetspeed, or to inquire about service in your residence, business or community, visit gonetspeed.com. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230614081444/en/

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[June 13, 2023] Five Elms Capital Strengthens Its Investment & Value Creation Teams with Two Valuable Hires Tweet

KANSAS CITY, Miss., June 13, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Five Elms Capital, a leading software growth equity firm, is pleased to announce the recent additions of Lauren Janek as Vice President of Operations and Brooke Longtin as a Vice President on its Investment Team. These strategic hires reflect the firm's commitment to expanding its expertise to support its portfolio companies as well as new investments. Five Elms Capital Strengthens Its Investment & Value Creation Teams with Two Valuable Hires Lauren Janek, who joined this spring as Vice President of Operations, brings an invaluable combination of strategic acumen and proven operational prowess to Five Elms Capital. Previously, Janek served as the Director of Strategy at LogicGate, a GRC SaaS company, where she played a pivotal role in driving the company's growth and various strategic initiatives. Janek also brings years of investment banking experience at William Blair, where she focused exclusively on technology investments. In her new role at Five Elms, Janek works closely with portfolio companies to drive high-priority growth initiatives with her guidance and implements operational best practices across the entire portfolio. Janek is a native of Chicago and holds a degree from the University of Notre Dame.



Brooke Longtin, who joined this month as a Vice President on the Investment Team, brings a strong background in investing and a passion for identifying and nurturing high-growth companies. Longtin joins Five Elms from Aquiline Technology Growth (ATG), a technology-focused investment firm, where she focused on investing in growth-stage companies within the insurance and financial services sectors. Longtin has spent the last six years in New York, between her time at ATG and in investment banking at Houlihan Lokey. Longtin will play a crucial role in sourcing and evaluating potential investments for Five Elms Capital's portfolio and working with portfolio companies post-investment. Originally from Iowa, Longtin holds a degree from The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. "We are thrilled to welcome Lauren Janek and Brooke Longtin to the Five Elms Capital team," said Fred Coulson, Founder, and Managing Partner at Five Elms Capital. "Their extensive operating & investing experience, coupled with their skills and insights, will undoubtedly enhance our ability to support and grow our portfolio companies. We are confident that their contributions will play a significant role in shaping the future success of Five Elms Capital."

With the addition of Janek and Longtin, Five Elms Capital reinforces its commitment to providing exceptional support and expertise to its portfolio companies. The firm's investment strategy focuses on partnering with high-growth businesses in the software and technology sectors, empowering them to achieve their full potential. For more information about Five Elms Capital, please visit https://www.fiveelms.com/ . About Five Elms Capital Five Elms Capital is a global growth investor in fast-growing B2B software businesses that users love. Five Elms provides capital and resources to help companies accelerate growth and further cement their role as industry leaders. Founded in 2007, Five Elms has a team of more than 60 investment professionals and $1.6 billion in assets under management. For more information, visit fiveelms.com. View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/five-elms-capital-strengthens-its-investment--value-creation-teams-with-two-valuable-hires-301850142.html SOURCE Five Elms Capital

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Nicholas Academic Centers Launches 202 Students From Disadvantaged Backgrounds to Prestigious Universities

Lorena Alvarez's immigrant parents who worked the night shift cleaning hospital rooms taught Lorena the value of hard work. Now, she will be the first in her family to attend college. Jesus Huerta's mother taught 4-year-old Jesus the alphabet and mathematics using books from the 99 Cents Store. Watching his parents struggle to pay for necessities motivated Jesus to attend college and pursue a career in business to support his family. Sandra Hernandez learned to adapt to loud environments as her family shared one house with many other families to make ends meet. The Nicholas Academic Centers (NAC) became her quiet sanctuary to study, and she was often the last to leave. Emmanuel Jaimes's mother disappeared from his life six years ago, leaving him to be raised by his single father and grandparents. This motivated Emmanuel to reach for the stars and bring original ideas to the field of aerospace engineering. The NAC helped these students overcome financial, social, and emotional hardships to achieve academic success; the four are receiving full rides to Harvard University, University of Notre Dame, Stanford University, and the University of California, Los Angeles, respectively.

On June 10, 2023, Broadcom Cofounder Dr. Henry T. Nicholas III, the NAC, elected officials, and community members held the 15thannual NAC graduation ceremony to celebrate the tremendous achievements of the 202-member Class of 2023. One hundred percent of the NAC graduates will move forward with their academic careers at prestigious universities, receiving 1,749 college acceptances.







The NAC provides highly qualified staff, academic assistance and tutoring, social services, cultural enrichment programs, college access and support services, and need-based scholarship opportunities for students. A total of 2,066 NAC graduates have received over $101 million in scholarships and grants.

"The NAC graduates represent the 'American Dream' - you can start from nothing and achieve great things. 96 percent of NAC scholars are Hispanic/Latino, with 94 percent of them being of first in their extended family to attend college. Our NAC graduates have graduated from elite universities and returned to their communities to become leaders and contributors. The NAC scholars are changing their family trajectories, enriching their community, and making the world a better place. I am honored to play a small part to give motivated students from underserved communities the same academics, support, and funds that are normally reserved for the rich and privileged students," said Dr. Henry T. Nicholas III, the cofounder and principal benefactor of the NAC.

The NAC is generously funded by the Henry T. Nicholas III Education Foundation and was founded by Dr. Henry T. Nicholas III and Retired Superior Court Judge Jack Mandel on Oct. 10, 2007. Since its inception, Dr. Nicholas has donated $45.7 million to support the three NAC locations in downtown Santa Ana, Valley High School, and Century High School.

View: 15th Annual NAC Booklet

View: Press Packet

NAC Highlights:

100% high school graduation rate (national average 87%)

91% of NAC graduates who enrolled in four-year universities have graduated or remain enrolled (national average retention rate of 82%)

"Dr. Nicholas has enabled a generation of under-resourced students the opportunity to achieve and build themselves into the leaders sorely needed by our communities. We are already seeing the impact of what our alumni have accomplished back home in Santa Ana. It is really amazing to witness the transformation," said Rosa Elena Diaz, director of the NAC who helped build the centers since its inception.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230613130189/en/
[June 13, 2023] SOLiTHOR Expands its Expertise Platform Tweet

GENK, Belgium, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The Belgian company, SOLiTHOR who is at the forefront of next generation solid-state lithium batteries has added three leading scientists to grow and upscale its technology, taking it to a whole new level. Having invested in a multi-million-euro new research and cell testing laboratories as well as a new cell production facility in Sint-Truiden, Belgium, the appointment of these leading scientists will form the backbone of SOLiTHOR's move toward commercialisation of cell and module technology for the electrification of vehicles for the aviation, defence and maritime sectors. Dr. Sergey Yakovlev is an accomplished electrochemist and material scientist with a twelve-year track record of research and development in electrochemical energy generation and storage systems. Dr. Yakovlev spent many years working for llika, a pioneer in solid-state battery technology enabling solutions for applications such as loT, MedTech and Electric Vehicles. Dr. Yakovlev has a strong background in the formulation of slurries for lithium-ion battery electrodes, rheology and electrochemistry. His main focus at the moment is on building a supply chain for the mass-production of battey electrode components and building R&D research facility. Dr Yakovlev will lead the components development team at SOLiTHOR.



Dr. Ali Darwiche will be responsible for components and cell design. He is an expert in Materials Chemistry with more than ten years' experience in research and development. His forte is the use of Lithium metal and assembly of pouch cells. Dr. Darwiche previously worked for Hydro Quebec, the largest power utility in Canada and a major player in the global hydropower industry. Dr Darwiche will guide the assembly and testing team to build pouch cells with larger capacity from 0.1Ah to 3 and 10 Ah. Dr. Matthieu Moors is a Creative Engineer and Technical leader, with an MSc in Chemistry and PhD in Materials Science. He has twelve years of international experience in cutting-edge product design, cost-efficient process development and high-volume manufacturing. Dr. Moors joins SOLiTHOR from Tesla, the American multinational automotive and clean energy company where he played a significant role in developing the 4680 Tesla cell technology. His expertise in upscaling of process and manufacturing will be a big asset for SOLiTHOR when moving from laboratory to pilot line demonstration and increase the number of cells produced in the next 3-5 years.

Huw Hampson-Jones, CEO and co-founder of SOLiTHOR says, "We are delighted to welcome these eminently qualified scientists to our team. Their appointment means that SOLiTHOR can move swiftly toward the deployment of its solid-state cell and battery systems into demonstrator battery systems. The reason that we can recruit such talent is confirmation of our current capabilities and our Technology Readiness Levels (TRLs)." About SOLiTHOR SOLiTHOR is pioneering the design, development and the commercialisation of intrinsically safe, high-energy solid-state Lithium cell technology. Having acquired a strong intellectual property portfolio from imec, the company already has access to nearly 30 personnel of the highest calibre. www.solithor.com Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2100330/SOLiTHOR_Inc_Belgium.jpg

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[June 13, 2023] How Can Japan Face Cyber Attacks During Major Events? Knowing Industry Attack Dynamics Can Help Tweet

TAIPEI, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- TeamT5, a leading cybersecurity firm, has recently published a report to share insights and suggestions on how Japan can face cyber attacks during the G7 Summit in Hiroshima, Japan. TeamT5 suggests enterprises/organizations should have comprehensive control over current events and industry attack trends. Strengthening monitoring and staying updated with the latest intelligence is crucial in order to respond to potential attack incidents. Due to recent world events, prior to the G7 Hiroshima Summit, which was held May 19-21, Japan experienced a surge in cyberattacks, mainly targeting the Cabinet Offices and the local governments of Osaka, Aichi, Kumamoto, and Nara, as well as companies such as West Japan Railway and Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings. TeamT5 also identified multiple G7-related attacks. One such attack was a spear-phishing campaign against government entities of G20 countries by GuDiao. TeamT5 identified a G7-themed decoy and GuDiao's proprietary downloader, StartIE in the email. Further analysis of the incident suggested that GuDiao exploited CVE-2023-0669 to compromise a server and use the server as the C2 of this campaign.





Sample 1 is a spear-phishing email. In the email, the actor attached a Microsoft Word document with a malicious template embedded with StartIE. The Word document was a decoy with content related to the recent G7 Summit in Hiroshima. TeamT5 is participating in Japan's Interop23 and will demo its groundbreaking cyber solution, ThreatVision, which is aimed at empowering enterprises in anticipating and countering cyber threats. In today's digital landscape, proactive defense is paramount, and TeamT5's innovative approach provides businesses with the tools to stay one step ahead of malicious actors. [About TeamT5] TeamT5 consists of top cyber threat analysts with more than 20 years of experience. We provide cyber threat intelligence reports and endpoint scanning solutions to Asia Pacific clients such as government agencies, financial businesses, and telecom operators. TeamT5 is frequently invited to share insights at Black Hat (USA), Code Blue/AVTokyo (Japan), and other important industry seminars. TeamT5 is backed by Japanese titans JAFCO Asia, ITOCHU, and MACNICA. Website: https://teamt5.org/en/ View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/apac/news-releases/how-can-japan-face-cyber-attacks-during-major-events-knowing-industry-attack-dynamics-can-help-301846818.html SOURCE TeamT5

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[June 13, 2023] Announcing Flytxt's Generative AI for digital product design Tweet

AMSTERDAM, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Flytxt, a leading provider of AI-powered SaaS for Customer Lifetime Value (CLTV) maximisation, launched a Generative AI that assists digital product designers. This first-of-its-kind application of Generative AI solves a critical pain point faced by digital businesses worldwide  design of well-performing products faster and at scale. "Achieving product-market fit in volatile markets is a challenge, as the ease of adoption of digital products also lowers switching costs for customers. Generative AI is well suited to solve this challenge. It can programmatically evaluate several potential product designs to find the best match," said Dr. Vinod Vasudevan, CEO of Flytxt. Flytxt's Generative AI ca optimise price points, product attributes, bundling options, and associated benefits to meet business objectives like increasing revenue, retention, or margin.



Generative AI has been mostly used for creating original multimedia content and enabling intelligent conversations as in tools like ChatGPT. Flytxt's innovative application of Generative AI will open up new possibilities for product managers to bring in innovations in product design and ensure higher success rate. "Flytxt foresees widespread applicability of Generative AI in many Customer Experience workflows like product and campaign design," continued Dr. Vinod Vasudevan, CEO of Flytxt. "We will continue to integrate powerful AI capabilities like Generative AI into our solutions to help users make accurate decisions that impact long term value creation."

Furthermore, Flytxt Generative AI adds the ability to explain the decisions made by the AI. This transparency allows product managers to critically review the reasons behind the AI-recommended design, before they decide to approve and launch the product in the market. About Flytxt Flytxt is the trusted technology partner of 70+ digital enterprises across more than 50 countries, as well as of top CX platform vendors for Customer Lifetime Value (CLTV) maximisation. Its award-winning, proprietary CLTV AI has been designed and trained using real-world insights and patterns from more than a billion consumers and trillions of data points. The firm has a corporate office in Dubai, global development centers in India and presence in Mexico, The Netherlands, Malaysia, Colombia, Czech Republic, Spain and Kenya. SOURCE Flytxt

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[June 13, 2023] ZTE secures two major awards at the Asian Telecom Awards 2023 Tweet

ZTE won the " Technology Innovation of the Year - Philippines " award for its partnership with Converge ICT Solutions Inc. ZTE introduced the first residential XGS-PON services in the Philippines through Converge

ZTE secured the "HR Initiative of the Year - Philippines " award with its outstanding FLIP program MANILA, Philippines, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- ZTE Corporation (0763.HK / 000063.SZ), a global leading provider of information and communication technology solutions, has been honored with two prestigious awards at the Asian Telecom Awards 2023. ZTE received the "Technology Innovation of the Year - Philippines" and "HR Initiative of the Year - Philippines" awards. These accolades acknowledge ZTE's outstanding accomplishments and initiatives among Asia's top telecommunications companies. The Asia Telecom Awards commend the endeavors of telecommunications companies across Asia in delivering the top-notch products and services in a challenging market. ZTE distinguished itself from the competition by utilizing ZTE XGS-PON for network expansion and implementing the Filipino Localization Improvement Program (FLIP). FLIP focuses on enhancing the skills of local engineers and driving localization efforts, demonstrating ZTE's commitment to empowering the Filipino telecommunications industry." ZTE bagged the Technology Innovation of the Year - Philippines award for its partnership with Converge ICT Solutions Inc., the country's fastest growing fiber internet provider. ZTE introduced the first residential XGS-PON services in the Philippines through Converge, enablng an industry-first average speed of 8 Gbps. This brings a first-world country experience for the Converge's clientele, catering to bandwidth-hungry applications, more users, and an increased number of devices.



"ZTE Philippines will continue to be the country's partner in bringing forth second-to-none technology innovations, remaining faithful to our commitment towards driving the digital economy," said Zhang Chaohao, CMO of ZTE Philippines. Meanwhile, ZTE also claimed the HR Initiative of the Year - Philippines award for its FLIP program, a meticulously planned talent management strategy aimed at recruiting, and nurturing digital talents in the industry. Additionally, ZTE has entered into a strategic cooperation Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with two of the Philippines' premier universities, the University of Santo Tomas (UST) and the Polytechnic University of the Philippines, as part of an Industry-Academe Linkage Program (IALP). This collaboration strengthens industry-academe partnerships and fosters mutual growth.

"All these initiatives and partnerships initiated by ZTE Philippines steer the company towards a successful direction, as well as contribute to the country's economic development as a whole given the exceptional talent that ZTE plans to attract, develop and retain," said Jin Zhichao, CTO of ZTE Philippines. "Being a company that believes in the quality of the Filipino workforce, we look forward to attracting and nurturing even more outstanding talents from the Philippines," concluded Liu Feng, HR Director of ZTE Philippines. ABOUT ZTE: ZTE helps to connect the world with continuous innovation for a better future. The company provides innovative technologies and integrated solutions, its portfolio spans all series of wireless, wireline, devices and professional telecommunications services. Serving over a quarter of the global population, ZTE is dedicated to creating a digital and intelligent ecosystem, and enabling connectivity and trust everywhere. ZTE is listed on both the Hong Kong and Shenzhen Stock Exchanges. www.zte.com.cn/global FOLLOW US: Facebook www.facebook.com/ZTECorp

Twitter www.twitter.com/ZTEPress

LinkedIn www.linkedin.com/company/zte

YouTube www.youtube.com/@ZTECorporation MEDIA INQUIRIES: ZTE Corporation

Communications

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SAN FRANCISCO, June 13 (Xinhua) -- A 19-year-old man was fatally shot early Tuesday morning inside a movie theater in Kent, U.S. state of Washington, police said.

Officers responded to reports of a shooting inside the AMC Kent Station 14 and found the man inside the theater with a gunshot wound, said the Kent Police Department.

The victim was carried outside the theater, where he died, said the police department, adding that it was a targeted shooting and the public was not in danger.

Police searched for the suspect inside the theater while people evacuated. No arrest has been made yet. 
[June 13, 2023] MAI CLOUD, A SUBSIDIARY OF GENAI, ACQUIRES AI COMPUTE BUSINESS Tweet

VANCOUVER, BC, June 13, 2023 /PRNewswire/ - Generative AI Solutions Corp. ("GenAI" or the "Company") (CSE: AICO) (?FSE: 99L.F) (OTC: AICOF) is pleased to announce that it has entered into a share purchase agreement dated June 13, 2023 (the "Share Purchase Agreement") with Minework Technologies Pte Ltd. ("Minework"), pursuant to which, subject to the satisfaction of certain conditions to closing, GenAI's wholly-owned subsidiary, MAI Cloud Solutions Inc. ("MAI Cloud") has agreed to purchase all of the issued and outstanding shares (the "Purchased Shares") in the authorized share structure of Pulse AI Compute Solutions Inc. ("Pulse AI"), which are held by Minework (the "Proposed Transaction"). Pursuant to the Share Purchase Agreement, MAI Cloud will acquire the Purchased Shares from Minework for an aggregate purchase price of $1,500,000 (the "Purchase Price"). In accordance with the terms and conditions of the Share Purchase Agreement, the Purchase Price is payable by to Minework upon the closing of the Proposed Transaction (the "Closing") through the issuance to Minework of 1,630,435 common shares (the "Consideration Shares") in the authorized share structure of GenAI (the "GenAI Shares") at a deemed price per share of $0.92 per GenAI Share (the "GenAI Share Price"), being the closing price of the GenAI Shares on the Canadian Securities Exchange (the "CSE") on June 13, 2023. The Consideration Shares to be issued by GenAI to Minework in full satisfaction of the Purchase Price will be subject to a contractual restriction whereby Minework may not trade any such Consideration Shares for a period of 12 months following the date of the Closing (the "Closing Date"). In addition to the Purchase Price, GenAI shall pay to Minework the following amounts, to be settled through the further issuance of GenAI Shares at the GenAI Share Price: (a) upon Pulse AI or GenAI entering into an agreement to provide services or products to certain customers, $1,500,000; and (b) for each $1,500,000 of committed revenue generated by Pulse AI following the Closing Date, $1,500,000, up to a maximum of $4,500,000. The Closing is expected to occur on or about June 19, 2023. Ryan Selby, CEO of GenAI, comments "The acquisition of Pulse AI is anticipated to provide MAI Cloud with at least one customer for our MAI Cloud service and has the potential to provide additional customers and to drive sustained revenue growth for the MAI Cloud platform. Pulse AI will also be used as the vehicle to acquire H100 Graphics Processing Units ("GPUs") from NVIDIA, and it is anticipated that Pulse AI will receive inception price discounts and reduced lead times on GPUs from NVIDIA. As we continue to build our vertically integrated AI solutions business, the procurement of supercomputers, the acquisition of paying customers, and the maximization of revenues are of utmost importance. We remain laser-focused on strategic growth and continue to pursue various opportunities across multiple verticals. I see tremendous potential for our MAI Cloud platform, and this acquisition supports both our short-term and long-term business objectives." The CSE ha in no way passed upon the merits of the Proposed Transaction and has neither approved nor disapproved the contents of this news release.



A copy of the Share Purchase Agreement shall be filed on the Company's SEDAR profile at www.sedar.com. On Behalf of the Board,?

Ryan Selby

CEO, Director, and Chairman of the Board Generative AI Solutions Corp.

Toll-free North America: +1-833-879-7632?

Outside North America: +1-406-879-7632

[email protected]

www.genai-solutions.com ABOUT GENERATIVE AI SOLUTIONS CORP. GenAI is a pioneering artificial intelligence company focused on developing a vertically integrated AI solutions business through its proprietary MAI Cloud database, with the development and commercialization of AI-powered tools and solutions for businesses and consumers across multiple industries. At GenAI, our mission is to harness the power of AI to create transformative products and services that benefit businesses and consumers across various sectors. Our team of talented AI professionals and engineers are dedicated to developing state-of-the-art AI-based solutions that have broad applicability and can be seamlessly integrated into diverse workflows. By leveraging our MAI Cloud platform and our expertise in machine learning, natural language processing, and data analytics, we build versatile, high-performance tools that redefine efficiency, productivity, and user experience. For more information on GenAI, please visit www.genai-solutions.com. The Canadian Securities Exchange has not reviewed and does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of the content of this news release. As noted above, completion of the Proposed Transaction is subject to a number of conditions. There can be no assurance that the Proposed Transaction will be completed as proposed or at all. Investors are cautioned that any information released or received with respect to the Proposed Transaction may not be accurate or complete and should not be relied upon. Trading in the securities of the Company should be considered highly speculative. This news release does not constitute an offer to sell, or a solicitation of an offer to buy, any securities in the United States. 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 or to U.S. Persons unless registered under the U.S. Securities Act and applicable state securities laws or an exemption from such registration is available. FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS This news release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of applicable securities laws. All statements contained herein that are not clearly historical in nature may constitute forward-looking statements. Generally, such forward-looking information or forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of forward looking terminology such as "plans", "expects" or "does not expect", "is expected", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates" or "does not anticipate", or "believes", or variations of such words and phrases or may contain statements that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will be taken", "will continue", "will occur" or "will be achieved". The forward-looking information and forward-looking statements contained herein include, but are not limited to, statements regarding: the Company's ability to complete the Proposed Transaction pursuant to the Share Purchase Agreement on the expected timeline or at all; the issuance of the Consideration Shares to Minework; and the filing of the Share Purchase Agreement on GenAI's SEDAR profile. Forward-looking information in this news release are based on certain assumptions and expected future events, namely: the Company's ability to continue as a going concern; the Company's ability to continue to develop revenue generating applications; continued approval of the Company's activities by the relevant governmental and/or regulatory authorities; and the continued growth of the Company; and Company's ability to continue to meet the requirements of listing of the CSE. These statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, which may cause actual results, performance or achievements to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such statements, including but not limited to: the potential inability of the Company to continue as a going concern; risks associated with potential governmental and/or regulatory action with respect to the Company's operations; the Company's inability to complete the Proposed Transaction; and the risks associated with the Company's ability to continue to meet CSE listing guidelines. Readers are cautioned that the foregoing list is not exhaustive. Readers are further cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, as there can be no assurance that the plans, intentions or expectations upon which they are placed will occur. Such information, although considered reasonable by management at the time of preparation, may prove to be incorrect and actual results may differ materially from those anticipated. Forward-looking statements contained in this news release are expressly qualified by this cautionary statement and reflect the Company's expectations as of the date hereof and are subject to change thereafter. The Company undertakes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, estimates or opinions, future events or results or otherwise or to explain any material difference between subsequent actual events and such forward-looking information, except as required by applicable law. View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/mai-cloud-a-subsidiary-of-genai-acquires-ai-compute-business-301850220.html SOURCE GENERATIVE AI SOLUTIONS CORP.

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[June 13, 2023] Humanforce acquires intelliHR, cementing its position as a best-of-breed human capital management platform Tweet

Its third acquisition in a year, Humanforce continues to strengthen ability to deliver on mission of making work easier and life better for frontline and flexible workforces SYDNEY, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Humanforce, a Sydney-based global provider of workforce management (WFM) and payroll solutions, today announced the completion of its acquisition of intelliHR, a fellow Australian-born HR tech SaaS company. The takeover deal, worth over AUD$77 million, is Humanforce's third acquisition since receiving capital investment in May 2022 from leading technology-focused private equity firm Accel-KKR. Founded in 2013, intelliHR is a best-of-breed, intelligent people platform that drives employee engagement, performance and retention, and is underpinned by a rich layer of AI-powered workforce analytics and a single system of record (Core HR). intelliHR is designed to help businesses make intelligent people decisions through real-time, proactive and data-rich insights about their employees. Clayton Pyne, Chief Executive Office of Humanforce said, "We are incredibly impressed by intelliHR's momentum and success to date, stemming from the development of a superior people-focused technology platform that provides rich data insights and powerful analytics for HR and business leaders. We look forward to welcoming intelliHR employees and customers to the Humanforce family". Humanforce's acquisition of intelliHR unlocks new and exciting opportunities for its customers, with access to an unparalleled combination of tools and data, enabling intelligent data-driven decision making. intelliHR is a fully featured human capital management (HCM) platform, giving customers Onboarding, Cre HR, Compliance and Workflows, Learning and Performance Management, Employee Engagement and People Analytics, in addition to Humanforce's best-of-breed WFM and Payroll solution.



Humanforce's acquisitions of intelliHR, and Wagestream Australia earlier this year, propels Humanforce into unrivaled territory for frontline and flexible workforces, having launched Humanforce Thrive  a mobile app offering wellbeing perks and benefits to employees. Thrive is every employer's nirvana  meeting the needs of the business through fulfilling the needs of their employees. Thrive delivers earned wage access, financial wellness education, cash back programs and discounts. It is a foundational step in Humanforce's aspiration to assist customers with the attraction, retention and assessment of staff, by helping facilitate the curation of available labour pools to ensure best-fit match of talent to demand in the roster. "We remain laser-focused on continuous innovation for people management by bringing a modern, employee-centric solution to frontline and flexible workforces, which places the employee experience and talent at the core.", Pyne added.

Humanforce wants to play a critical role in helping customers not only improve productivity, optimise costs and realise compliance confidence, but also help them strengthen their employee value proposition (EVP) in order to attract, engage and retain talent in an extremely tight labour market. Humanforce continues its focus on mid-market and enterprise businesses in their core industries of care (aged, child and clinical), sports, leisure, hospitality and retail among others, to accelerate its momentum with its evolving, best-of-breed HCM platform. "We're incredibly grateful to have such a strong partnership with and investment from Accel-KKR, which has allowed us to accelerate our growth over the past year with strategic acquisitions of Ento, Wagestream Australia and now intelliHR. Bringing Humanforce together with these complementary, world-class people management solutions, builds on the depth and breadth of our platform and allows us to deliver on our mission of making work easier and life better for frontline and flexible workers around the world." Joe Porten, Managing Director at Accel-KKR and Humanforce board member said, "intelliHR's focus on innovative products aligns well with Humanforce's vision of a modern, employee-centric solution that businesses can't live without. We believe the capabilities that Humanforce is investing in are increasingly mission-critical for businesses, evidenced by growing market demand for AI-powered people technologies that help companies effectively manage and engage their workforce in an increasingly challenging labour market." About Humanforce Humanforce is the #1 platform for frontline and flexible workforces, offering highly configurable, best-of-breed WFM, HR and Payroll - without compromise. Founded in 2002, Humanforce has a 2000-strong customer base and over half a million users worldwide. Today, we have offices across Australia, New Zealand, and the UK. Our vision is to make work easier and life better by focusing on the needs and fulfilment of frontline workers and the efficiency and optimisation of businesses. Customers include StoryHouse Early Learning, Flight Centre, Southern Cross Care, Howard Smith Wharves , Delaware North and more. Humanforce was founded in Sydney in 2002, and today has offices across Australia, New Zealand and the UK. https://humanforce.com View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/apac/news-releases/humanforce-acquires-intellihr-cementing-its-position-as-a-best-of-breed-human-capital-management-platform-301850256.html SOURCE Humanforce

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[June 13, 2023] Gaabor introduces new cordless vacuum cleaner with "Inn Sarin" as brand ambassador for Gaabor Dust Away campaign. Tweet

BANGKOK, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Building on the immense success of their previous product, the Gaabor air fryer, which achieved remarkable sales figures and garnered positive reviews, the company enlisted the expertise of esteemed food host Shahkrit Yamnam as brand ambassador. three months of launched, the Gaabor air fryer reached the top spot on the Shopee platform. Notably, other kitchen appliances in the same category also garnered enthusiastic feedback on online platforms, TikTok and Lazada. This year, Gaabor is aims to make its mark in Thailand's vacuum cleaner market. Drawing on its success and positive reception in countries like the Philippines, Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam, and Brazil, Gaabor has garnered praise for its innovative and contemporary designs. Embracing brand's concept of surpassing traditional home appliances, Gaabor emphasizes the aesthetic appeal of its products no matter where they are placed. Additionally, Gaabor aims to cater to the needs of new generations by offering affordable prices and one-year warranty policy that allows customers to receive "Fresh new replacement" instead of lengthy repair processes. Furthermore, Gaabor recognizes rising dust concerns in various regions of Thailand leading to an increased demand for vacuum cleaners. Thus, Gaabor has developed a range of wireless and corded vacuum cleaners for both household and car usage, all within a single device. This year highlights the VCL12E vacuum cleaner, featuring adjustable carrying handle, ergonomically crafted to suit users' height, and lightweight construction, ensuring effortless maneuverability to reach every nook and cranny. Including two modes of suction power, to extend usage on single charge. Perfectly tailored to modern lifestyle seeking versatile with sleek and contemporary design.





Featuring the charismatic Inn Sarin Ronnakiat a popular young actor known for his appealing lifestyle, as brand ambassador to share his experience with Gaabor's latest vacuum cleaner as part of Gaabor Dust Away campaign. Campaign starts from June 20-22 ,2023 on TikTok, Shopee and Lazada. On June 20, 2023, Gaabor will host the Gaabor Dust Away live campaign on TikTok with Inn Sarin, Sharhkrit Yamnam, Nack Charlie, Noorat, and many more. Starting 11:00 AM onwards, be prepared for surprise activities, exclusive promotions, and the chance to win prizes worth over 1 million baht. Moreover, Gaabor is organizing return profits to customers activity for cordless vacuum cleaners ordered during 15-19 June 2023. Participate in Gaabor Fan Review activity, and selected reviews will receive 100% refund for cordless vacuum cleaner purchased as token of gratitude for your trust and loyalty to Gaabor. Shop online Tiktok : www.tiktok.com/@gaaborthailand Shopee : https://shopee.co.th/gaabor_official_shop Lazada : https://www.lazada.co.th/shop/gaabor Facebook : GaaborThailand View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/apac/news-releases/gaabor-introduces-new-cordless-vacuum-cleaner-with-inn-sarin-as-brand-ambassador-for-gaabor-dust-away-campaign-301849071.html SOURCE Gaabor

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[June 14, 2023] P&G announces exclusive partnership with Lazada to launch #HairDNA, a personalized haircare microsite for shoppers Tweet

The launch marks a first-of-its-kind initiative and partnership by P&G in Southeast Asia

The interactive microsite by P&G will recommend personalized haircare solutions for consumers MANILA, Philippines, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG), a leading fast-moving consumer goods company launches a new haircare microsite #HairDNA, aiming to solve consumers' biggest hair queries via expert advice from the world's leading brands, exclusively on Lazada, Southeast Asia's pioneer e-commerce platform. The launch of #HairDNA marks the first-ever retailer partnership for P&G in Southeast Asia, as the microsite has been uniquely built for Lazada. #HairDNA on Lazada will serve as a one-stop-shop for consumers looking to switch up their haircare routine and find new products at the best deals, from the comfort of their homes. With this venture, the company aims to establish itself as a thought leader and frontrunner in the haircare category. #HairDNA will also help P&G foster a closer relationship with its consumers through personalizing the experience and increasing the segment of one-to-one interaction, all while driving higher penetration for its premium beauty segment. Commenting on the launch of #HairDNA, Ajit Nayak, Senior Vice President APAC, Haircare, P&G, said, "P&G is proud to partner with Lazada in launching #HairDNA, delivering personalized haircare solutions, cementing our commitment to driving category growth and delivering the best possible haircare experience." Moran Lucy, Senior Director for e-Commerce sales Asia Pacific, Middle East, and Africa at P&G said "With a wide repertoire of beauty choices online, as P&G, we want to be able to streamline the shopping process for our eCommerce shoppers, in an easy and interactive way to understand their problems and provide qualit recommendations from our brands. With #HairDNA, we are step-changing the way Lazada shoppers can find the right haircare products that suit each of their personalised hair types. This is the first of many partnerships with Lazada that we will embark on together to deliver a great shopping experience for our shoppers."



Regina Toh, Senior Vice President, Regional Strategic Accounts (FMCG), Lazada Group added, "With increasing numbers of beauty shoppers on our LazBeauty channel, haircare products have regularly been hot favourites with our shoppers, thanks to the great deals and an engaging online shopping experience that we provide. Lazada is delighted to drive the beauty category further with leading P&G brands  from sampling to full hair regime exploration  via #HairDNA, and to leverage the power of data and technology to provide personalised recommendations to consumers across Southeast Asia." With increasing patterns of self-love amongst the millennials and Gen Zs, consumers from this generation are moving towards seeing themselves reflected in the brand that they're purchasing. This would mean focusing more on the authenticity of the product, and understanding that the product is built around their needs and requirements.

The new #HairDNA microsite on Lazada helps shoppers discover their hair needs and receive personalized recommendations for the best products and regimens. Consumers can get personalized product recommendations that solves a variety of hair problems through a series of quiz-like questions such as: What are your current hair challenges. #HairDNA will prompt shoppers to share three important details about their "Hair Profile"  current condition of hair, their hair goals, and the hair-related problems they are facing. The interactive platform will then analyze the responses and offer customized advice, including tailored haircare tips and recommendations on the product regimen comprising shampoos, conditioners, as well as treatments from brands under the P&G ambit. Currently, these include Head & Shoulders, Pantene, Herbal Essences, and Rejoice which are available on Lazada via P&G's official LazMall flagship store. P&G has kick-started its #HairDNA microsite in Indonesia. The microsite is set to be rolled out in the Philippines in June and across the rest of the ASEAN markets by July. Get your #HairDNA recommendation by clicking on this link. *Terms and conditions apply About Procter & Gamble P&G serves consumers around the world with one of the strongest portfolios of trusted, quality, leadership brands, including Always, Ambi Pur, Ariel, Braun, Downy, Dynamo, Febreze, Gillette, Head & Shoulders, Olay, Oral-B, Pampers, Pantene, Safeguard, SK-II, Tide, Vicks, and Whisper. The P&G community includes operations in approximately 70 countries worldwide. About Lazada Group Lazada Group is Southeast Asia's pioneer eCommerce platform. For the last 11 years, Lazada has been accelerating progress in Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam through commerce and technology. Today, a thriving local ecosystem links about 160 million active users to more than one million actively-selling sellers every month, who are transacting safely and securely via trusted payments channels and Lazada Wallet, receiving parcels through a homegrown logistics network that has become the largest in the region. View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/apac/news-releases/pg-announces-exclusive-partnership-with-lazada-to-launch-hairdna-a-personalized-haircare-microsite-for-shoppers-301850320.html SOURCE P&G

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[June 14, 2023] Doors Open to Enter Black Desert SEA's New Region "Land of the Morning Light" Tweet

SEOUL, South Korea, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Pearl Abyss announced today that the "Land of the Morning Light'' region has been released in Black Desert SEA. The Land of the Morning Light portrays a breathtaking landscape of the Joseon era, consisting of environments, vegetation, housing, and bosses that are inspired by its fables, myths, and folktales. To embark on the journey, existing Adventurers can receive the quest "Emma's Invitation" from the Black Spirit. From there, by following the main questline, Adventurers will eventually be led to travel to Nampo Harbor by entering the Magnus' Abyssal Well located at Bartali Farm at Velia. Even a fresh starter can easily enter the new region. New Adventurers can simply select Land of the Morning Light as a starting point upon character creation, which makes this the third starting point in Black Desert SEA alongside the Ancient Stone Chamber and the Mountain of Eternal Winter. Read the GM note to learn more details on how to enter the new region.



The main questline in the new region can be found in a "Collection of Tales," which is composed of eight tales, each with its own unique story, including the vicious tiger lord Sangoon, the savage Golden Pig King, the vengeful ghost Songakshi, and more. Adventurers can choose which story they wish to complete first as the quests are designed to promote a non-linear progression. After clearing each boss, Adventurers will be able to challenge themselves to defeat a stronger version of that boss through the Boss Blitz, "Black Shrine," which has levels of difficulty divided into a total of 10 "Calamities."

To defeat them, Adventurers will need to invest "Light Orbs" into one of three "Auras" that each boss is weak to as the bosses only receive, and deal damage based on a ratio of 90% aura attribute and 10% character's stat. The Light Orbs can be earned by completing the main questline. Adventurers can loot a new top-tier gear piece, "Dahn's Gloves," from those bosses at a low rate or loot its prerequisite materials, based on their weekly rankings. The material required to craft the gloves includes the "Flame of Hongik." Watch the latest introductory trailer for the Land of the Morning Light and read the GM note to learn more about the region including new accessories, crystals, manors, carrack, and more. An array of events is being held to celebrate Land of the Morning Light's release. Just by simply logging in and opening a Challenge tab, Adventurers can receive Shimmering Blue Jades and exchange them for rewards such as a Rare Morning Light Box. Also, veteran Adventurers can take advantage of the Caphras Stone Extraction event which allows them to extract Caphras Stones at the cost of a single Silver. View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/apac/news-releases/doors-open-to-enter-black-desert-seas-new-region-land-of-the-morning-light-301850418.html SOURCE Pearl Abyss

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[June 14, 2023] More than a third of UK organisations believe inadequate software supply chain security is the biggest security risk to their business, reveals new Aqua Security study Tweet

LONDON, June 14, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Aqua Security, the pioneer in cloud native security, has announced the results of a new study which reveals that, whilst UK firms are realising the benefits of cloud native security, the software supply chain has become a top security concern for them.

The survey was conducted at Cloud Expo Europe in March 2023 and gathered insights from 100+ cloud professionals who attended the event. Compared with a similar survey conducted at the same event in 2022, the results indicate an increase of 18.6% from the previous year to 36.9% of respondents believing supply chain security to be the biggest security risk to their business. Overall, there has been some improvement over the last 12 months in understanding cloud native security risks, but there is heightened confusion over new regulations, and significant fears in regards to supply chain security. Key results included: Almost half (47.1%) of respondents chose open-source vulnerabilities as their main software supply chain concern.

of respondents chose open-source vulnerabilities as their main software supply chain concern. 34% of organisations now have a Cloud Native Security strategy in place for 2023, compared to 21.2% in 2022.

now have a Cloud Native Security strategy in place for 2023, Barriers to effective Cloud Native Security included lack of understanding (42.7%), limited or lack of budget (38.8%) and perceived difficulty of implementation (29.1%)

High-profile supply chain attacks have likely drawn organisations attention to an issue hat has slowly been festering over the last few years, explained Rani Osnat, SVP of strategy at Aqua Security . Hopefully, greater concern will lead to greater action, and organisations will implement true end-to-end security solutions to keep their software supply chain secure.



New regulations causing concern New compliance obligations in regards to supply chain security, such as Executive Order 14028 in the U.S., were a cause for concern for many respondents. But only 36.9% were confident in their ability to adopt new guidelines or frameworks. Furthermore, few organisations planned to implement supply chain security standards - only 22.3% were planning to adopt SBOM standards such as CycloneDX or SPDX, and only 10.7% were planning to implement NIS2 guidelines.

Signs of progress, but barriers still in place Despite their concerns, the survey did indicate that progress has been made over the last year when it comes to Cloud Native Security. Thirty four percent of organisations now have a Cloud Native Security strategy in place for 2023, compared to just 21.2% in 2022. Furthermore, there was an increase in the number of organisations that indicated responsibility for Cloud Native Security sits with both IT Security and DevOps teams, up from 20.2% to 28.2%. Understanding and awareness also appears to have increased, with 46.6% of respondents familiar with the term CNAPP (Cloud Native Application Protection Platform), the cloud native security category introduced by analyst firm Gartner, a 47% increase over the previous year. Furthermore, the number of respondents who cited a lack of understanding as a barrier to a successful Cloud Native Security Strategy decreased by 12.9% from last year, to 42.7%. However, there are still some significant barriers to effective Cloud Native Security. Limited, or lack of budget was cited as an obstacle by nearly 38.8% of respondents, and 29.1% stated that they thought Cloud Native Security was complicated or hard to implement. Osnat concluded: Its encouraging to see progress in the UK on Cloud Native Security awareness. With Gartner estimating that more than 95% of new apps will be deployed on cloud-native platforms by 2025, its vital that this becomes a key security priority. More must still be done to ensure that security and DevOps teams are armed with the knowledge and solutions needed to stop Cloud Native attacks across the application lifecycle. For more details on the survey, download Aquas new 2023 Cloud Native Security Survey eBook. About Aqua Security

Aqua Security stops cloud native attacks across the application lifecycle and is the only company with a $1M Cloud Native Protection Warranty to guarantee it. As the pioneer in cloud native security, Aqua helps customers reduce risk while building the future of their businesses. The Aqua Platform is the industry's most integrated Cloud Native Application Protection Platform (CNAPP), protecting the application lifecycle from dev to cloud and back. Founded in 2015, Aqua is headquartered in Boston, MA and Ramat Gan, IL with Fortune 1000 customers in over 40 countries. For more information, visit https://www.aquasec.com/ . Contact:

Look Left Marketing

[email protected]





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[June 14, 2023] Alaya Consulting and Avarni partner to facilitate ESG reporting and carbon emissions management Tweet

Collaboration enhances Alaya's sustainability consulting services with Avarni's AI-driven carbon management to help companies automate their emissions reporting and accelerate their decarbonisation efforts HONG KONG, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Alaya Consulting, a leading specialist consultancy focusing on ESG disclosure, science-based target setting and GRI certified training, has announced a new collaboration with Avarni, a carbon emissions management platform helping companies quickly understand their carbon emissions exposure, to assist Hong Kong based companies in their decarbonisation journeys. This partnership aims to empower companies in Hong Kong and beyond to prepare for proposed regulations set by the Hong Kong Stock Exchange (HKEX), requiring all listed companies to make new climate-related disclosures in their ESG reports in line with the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) Climate Standard. The proposed changes to climate-related disclosures were released in April this year and will be effective from January 2024. Given the limited timeline for companies to comply with the new regulations, Avarni and Alaya Consulting will play an integral role in offering comprehensive guidance and support to companies for a frictionless transition. The HKEX's forthcoming regulations, which require companies to disclose their carbon emissions, have significantly elevated the importance of sustainability practices in the business community. These regulations encompass the disclosure of emissions from companies' value chains, known as "Scope 3" emissions, which can contribute up to 80-90 per cent of a company's total emissions. Traditionally, identifying and measuring these emissions has been a demanding and resource-intensive task. Alaya's expertise and guidance, combined with Avarni's AI-powered emissions management automation, will equip companies to effectively navigate the new regulatory landscape. "We are excited to partner with Avarni to offer a comprehensive solution for companies navigating the complex world of ESG reporting and carbon emissions management," said Tony Wong, Founder of Alaya Consulting. "By combining our expertise in ESG disclosure with Avarni's advanced carbon management platform, we aim to empower organisations to embrace sustainability, exceed regulatory requirements, and drive positive environmental mpacts."



Alaya Consulting brings its extensive expertise in ESG reporting, pre-assurance, ratings upgrade and sustainability training to the partnership. With a strong track record in helping organisations adopt sustainable practices, Alaya Consulting has become a trusted advisor in the ESG space. Their deep knowledge of reporting frameworks, including the ISSB, Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD), Global Reporting Initiative (GRI), and Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB), will support Avarni's sophisticated carbon management platform that automates Scope 1-3 carbon emissions management for companies. By leveraging artificial intelligence and data analytics, Avarni empowers organisations to accurately measure, monitor, and forecast their carbon emissions. The platform provides valuable insights and tools for organisations to develop and implement effective emission reduction strategies. "Decarbonisation efforts have largely been centred on Scope 1 and Scope 2 reductions, but the HKEX's new regulatory framework around emissions reporting, specifically Scope 3, reinforces the importance of gaining clear insight of the entire value chain," said Misha Cajic, Co-Founder and Co-CEO of Avarni. "Our AI-driven carbon management platform, combined with Alaya Consulting's deep sustainability reporting knowledge, will equip businesses with a tangible solution to address and comply with Scope 3 emissions mandates whilst enhancing their environmental sustainability practices."

Together, Alaya Consulting and Avarni will provide comprehensive support to companies seeking to meet their carbon emissions disclosure obligations. By integrating Alaya Consulting's ESG reporting expertise with Avarni's cutting-edge carbon management platform, businesses will have the necessary tools to enhance their sustainability performance, streamline their ESG reporting processes, improve their environmental impact and drive meaningful change. About Alaya Consulting Alaya Consulting is a specialist advisory firm focused on ESG disclosure, pre-assurance, and training. As the first ESG consultancy in Asia to have a Science Based Target approved, Alaya Consulting leverages its sustainability expertise and cross-industry experience to empower clients and create long-lasting value while fostering continuous growth. The Alaya team comprises of professionals with diverse experiences, blending compliance, process improvement, environmental engineering, stakeholder engagement and training, aiming to combine insights with passion to solve reporting and communication challenges and to earn the trust of all its stakeholders.

alayaconsulting.com.hk About Avarni Avarni is a carbon emissions management platform that enables organisations to move from net zero commitment to action as quickly as possible. Driven by AI and the power of a global supplier network, Avarni improves measurement, hotspot identification, and planning, to help companies quickly understand and address their emissions exposure. Countless industry leaders leverage Avarni, including 5B, City of London, Jacobs, KPMG, Point B, Schneider Electric Sustainability Business, and WNS. Avarni has analysed over $300 billion in corporate spending data and examined the equivalent of 150 million tonnes of CO2e emissions within supply chains.

avarni.co Alaya Consulting Media Relations  Adella Budianto, Phone: +852 3702 0054; [email protected]hk Avarni Media Relations  Angela Thompson, Phone: +61 0447075133; [email protected] PR agency for Avarni  Courtney Phelps; Phone: +61 452663095; [email protected]com View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/apac/news-releases/alaya-consulting-and-avarni-partner-to-facilitate-esg-reporting-and-carbon-emissions-management-301850410.html SOURCE Alaya

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[June 14, 2023] AlphaGrep, a global multi-asset quant trading firm, launches new investment management arm - AlphaGrep Investment Management Tweet

MUMBAI, India , June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- AlphaGrep, a global quant trading firm, announced the launch of its new quant-driven investment management arm  AlphaGrep Investment Management. AlphaGrep, with its origins in high-frequency trading, was founded in 2010 by University of Pennsylvania alumni duo Mohit Mutreja and Parshant Mittal. After graduation, both worked with marquee global hedge funds and returned to India with the vision to start an Indian-origin quant-focused investment firm. On the back of their global experience, both started AlphaGrep, a multi-asset proprietary trading firm focused on quantitative research and trading. Over the last 13 years, AlphaGrep has added expertise in the medium to low-frequency space in addition to high-frequency trading and has now grown to a team of over 300 people with offices in Mumbai, Bengaluru, Gurugram, London, Singapore, Chicago, Dubai, and Shanghai, emerging as one of the leading domestic quant investment firms. It is amongst the top market participants by volume on domestic exchanges and is an active participant in multiple global exchanges. Further to this success, the team has now forayed into investment management space in India with an aim to create a differentiated investment offring for investors.



Mohit Mutreja, Chairman & Managing Director, AlphaGrep, said, "Since AlphaGrep's inception, we have extensively harnessed the power of technology and quantitative data analysis. Over a decade, our talented team of engineers, mathematicians and statisticians have built proprietary technology and trading algorithms, that have been successfully deployed to trade all asset classes on several exchanges globally. With the launch of AlphaGrep Investment Management, we are excited to offer this expertise to external investors through differentiated investment products" Parshant Mittal, Executive Director, AlphaGrep, said, "According to data, Category III alternative investment funds (AIFs) are gaining traction and are expected to witness threefold growth in the short term to surpass Rs.1 lakh crore in assets under management (AUM). Overall, these growth numbers are reflective of investors' demand for sophisticated products and the industry's capability to cater to them. Interestingly, in Category III AIFs, long-short funds have grown in popularity amongst HNI investors, treasuries, and family offices."

He added, "We are hopeful that our multi-strategy long-short quant fund will be able to deliver an enhanced investment experience to our clients." AlphaGrep's competitive advantage lies in recruiting the best industry talent having prior trading experience or data science qualifications from premier institutes. AlphaGrep also offers them an excellent career path. For More Info: https://www.alpha-grep.com/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/AlphaGrepIM

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[June 14, 2023] Cashfree Payments expands its senior leadership team to achieve the next level of growth Tweet

Appoints Parveen Kumar as Vice President - Operations and Vijay Ravisekar as Vice President - Product Management BENGALURU, India, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Cashfree Payments , India's leading payments and API banking solutions company has expanded its senior leadership team to drive the company's next phase of growth. Parveen Kumar has been appointed as Vice President - Operations, while Vijay Ravisekar has been appointed as Vice President - Product Management. The appointments were announced by the company as it gears up for its next phase of growth. The changes in the leadership team are expected to help the company accelerate its innovation and growth. The company has recently announced the elevation of Arun Tikoo as Chief Business Officer (CBO) and Ramkumar Venkatesan as Chief Technology Officer (CTO). Praveen Kumar brings over 15 years of industry experience in enhancing customer experience, managing finances, and building operations across various sectors. He holds a B.Tech in Aerospace Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur, and a PGDM in strategy and operations from the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad. In his new role, Parveen will oversee the operations and customer service vertical at Cashfree Payments. Parveen's responsibilities include expanding capabilities, driving research and innovation, and ensuring excellent customer service. Vijay has over 20 years of experience in Product Management, having successfully managed products for the driver ecosystem and Customer Care. He holds a Bachelor's degree in Engineering rom the University of Mumbai and an MS in Telecommunications Engineering from The University of Texas, Dallas. Vijay will assume the crucial role of formulating product strategies and offering valuable guidance to enhance products and solutions, specifically focusing on 'Collections'. His responsibilities include fostering greater agility and driving improved business outcomes.



Commenting on the appointment, Akash Sinha, Co-Founder & CEO, Cashfree Payments said, "I am thrilled to welcome Parveen and Vijay on board. Their proven ability to expand businesses, build exceptional teams, drive product innovation, and forge strong alliances will undoubtedly propel our company's growth and development with renewed enthusiasm. Cashfree Payments is currently in an incredibly exciting phase of its growth, positioning itself as a leader in the payments ecosystem. I am confident that Parveen and Vijay will play a vital role in our company's tremendous growth." With over 50% market share among payment processors, Cashfree Payments today leads the way in bulk disbursals in India with its product Payouts. Recently, India's largest lender, SBI invested in Cashfree Payments underscoring the company's role in building a robust payments ecosystem. Cashfree Payments works closely with all leading banks to build the core payments and banking infrastructure that powers the company's products and is also integrated with major platforms such as Shopify, Wix, Paypal, Amazon Pay, Paytm and Google Pay. Apart from India, Cashfree Payments products are used in eight other countries including the USA, Canada and UAE.

About Cashfree Payments: Cashfree Payments is a leading payment and API banking solutions company. It provides full-stack payment solutions enabling businesses in India to collect payments and make payouts via all available methods with simple integration. Cashfree Payments' offerings include an advanced and easy way to integrate payment gateways, a split payment solution for marketplaces, bank account verification API, Lending disbursals solution and Auto Collect -- a virtual account solution to match inbound payments to customers. Founded by IIIT Hyderabad alumnus Akash Sinha and IIT Kharagpur graduate Reeju Datta, www.cashfree.com is among the leading payment service providers in India processing transactions worth USD 40 Billion annually. It has leveraged technology to lead payment disbursals in India with more than 50% market share among payment processors. Cashfree Payments enables more than 3,00,000 businesses with payment collections, vendor payouts, wage payouts, bulk refunds, expense reimbursements, loyalty and rewards. Apart from India, Cashfree Payments products are used in eight other countries including the USA, Canada, and UAE. Cashfree Payments is backed by Silicon Valley investor Y Combinator, Apis Partners, State Bank of India (SBI), and was incubated by PayPal. Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1714361/3750410/Cashfree_Payments_Logo.jpg View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/in/news-releases/cashfree-payments-expands-its-senior-leadership-team-to-achieve-the-next-level-of-growth-301850483.html

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[June 14, 2023] Dual-Degree Program: Shoolini is First Private Indian University to Partner with University of Melbourne Tweet

SOLAN, India, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- In a groundbreaking dual-degree partnership, Shoolini University, India's top-ranked private university, has teamed up with the prestigious University of Melbourne, offering unparalleled opportunities for international education to Indian students. This development marks the University of Melbourne's first dual-degree collaboration with a private Indian university and highlights Shoolini University's exceptional credentials and reputation. With Shoolini University recognised as India's No.1 private university and the country's second-ranked university overall by the Times Higher Education (THE) World University Rankings, and the University of Melbourne's standing as Australia's foremost university, ranked number one in the country and 34th worldwide, this partnership sets new standards for academic excellence and innovation. The dual-degree program, starting with the Bachelor of Science Advanced (Honours), provides students with a world-class curriculum and opens doors to a truly global education experience. Under this landmark agreement, Indian students gain a unique advantage, allowing them to pursue undergraduate science studies at Shoolini and the University of Melbourne. The transformative journey begins with two years at Shoolini University and the remaining two years at Melbourne. Students can choose from diverse multidisciplinary majors in the third and fourth years, including Agriculture, Sustainability and Environment, Biosciences, and Computer Sciences, offering a truly global education experience. Shoolini University Vice Chancellor Professor Atul Khosla expressed his enthusiasm for the partnership, aying, "We are thrilled to provide our exceptional undergraduate students with enhanced opportunities to study internationally. This collaboration with the University of Melbourne underscores the global standing of Shoolini University as a world-class institution. Furthermore, it opens the doors to many more opportunities for our students."



As an added advantage, eligible students may opt to extend their studies for an additional year, completing a Master's of Science at the University of Melbourne. Moreover, students who meet the Australian government criteria can apply for post-study work rights upon completion of their studies in Australia. Deputy Vice Chancellor Global, Culture and Engagement, University of Melbourne, Professor Michael Wesley said the agreement would give high-achieving Indian students opportunities to receive a global education and build their international professional network.

"This is our fourth dual-degree partnership with an Indian University and our first with a private university. We are delighted to work with Shoolini University to provide students with an international education that will prepare them for today's globally connected world," Professor Wesley stated. He added, "We are committed to long-term partnerships with premium Indian universities to build capacity, shape international education, and connect Indian students to the University of Melbourne's network of half a million global alumni." The curriculum of this program reflects the rigorous standards upheld by the University of Melbourne. Moreover, Shoolini University faculty members will visit Melbourne for practical training, fostering a more significant knowledge exchange between the two institutions. Together, Shoolini University and the University of Melbourne are paving the way for Indian students to access exceptional global education, fostering a new generation of highly skilled professionals prepared to thrive in today's interconnected world. The momentous partnership was solidified during a meeting held last week between a delegation from Shoolini University, led by Vice Chancellor Prof Atul Khosla and comprising Trustee and Director Admissions Avnee Khosla, Dean, Research Dr Saurabh Kulshrestha, Associate Director Dr Rosey Dhanta, and senior executives from the University of Melbourne, including Deputy Vice Chancellor Global, Culture and Engagement Professor Michael Wesley. The meeting paved the way for a collaboration that will mutually benefit both universities and their students. About Shoolini University Set up in 2009, Shoolini University of Biotechnology and Management Sciences is a research-driven private university with full-recognition from the UGC. A leading university of India, it is recognised for its focus on innovation, quality placements, and world-class faculty. Nestled in the lower Himalayas, the university has received accreditation from NAAC and it is ranked by the NIRF. Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/792680/3954308/Shoolini_University_Logo.jpg View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/in/news-releases/dual-degree-program-shoolini-is-first-private-indian-university-to-partner-with-university-of-melbourne-301850520.html

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NEW YORK, June 14 (Xinhua) -- Drawing on the experience of the global war on terror, defense hawks in the U.S. Congress have figured out an accounting gimmick to protect increases in military spending, according to an article published by The Hill on Tuesday.

After weeks of partisan debate, the United States avoided a default thanks to a deal that limits some federal spending in exchange for eliminating the debt ceiling for two years. Defense spending emerged largely unscathed, however, and is set to rise to nearly 900 billion U.S. dollars in fiscal year 2025.

"Specifically, there is bipartisan support in Congress to use emergency supplemental funding to circumvent the budget deal's already extravagant 'caps' on defense spending," noted the article.

"This would create a walled-off slush fund for Washington to move defense spending closer to and possibly over 1 trillion dollars without much political debate or strategic discipline," it said.

Emergency supplemental funding would function similarly to the Overseas Contingency Operations fund, commonly known as OCO. During the global war on terror, the OCO fund was a malleable, seemingly bottomless supply of cash used to support U.S. military operations in Iraq, Afghanistan, and elsewhere, with minimal oversight, it added.

Critically, OCO money was considered separate from the Pentagon's base budget and therefore not subject to spending limits, according to the article.

Policymakers discovered that they could escape the spending limits by moving defense budget items into the OCO account. "The OCO budget was an undemocratic tool that allowed Congress to fund wars that were not in America's interest," it said. 
[June 14, 2023] Elena Baturina and BE OPEN Art awarded the first Artist of the Region at a celebratory ceremony in Nicosia, Cyprus Tweet

LONDON, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- On June 8th, 2023 BE OPEN Art, an online art gallery set up by BE OPEN think tank, a humanitarian initiative founded by international businessperson and philanthropist Elena Baturina, held an opening ceremony for the BE OPEN Regional Art: the Eastern Mediterranean art competition. The exhibition will be open to public until June 21st at the Centre of Visual Arts and Research in Nicosia. It is dedicated to celebrating the emerging artists of the Eastern Mediterranean and displays the artworks selected by the public and BE OPEN experts in the course of a region-based competition that lasted from January to March 2023. Every month, works by 20 emerging artists from Cyprus, Turkey, the Greek Dodecanese islands, and the countries of Lebanon, Syria, Palestine, Israel, Jordan and Egypt were posted at the online gallery, for the public to select the Regional Artist of the Month. Based on the general amount of votes, Jovanna Theodosiou was selected as the Artist of the Region for the Eastern Mediterranean. Jovanna studied Fine Art in Kingston University, UK, and currently lives and works in Nicosia, Cyprus. As a regional winner, she received a money prize of EUR500 and a major representaton at the exhibition.



The exhibition featured woks by other regional artists: Chrystalla Tsiamparta, Cyprus; Aya Abou Hawash, Palestine and Lebanon; Christina Kyriakou, Cyprus; Abdelrahman Mahmoud, Egypt; Jamilee Doueihy, Lebanon; Dimitrios Ikonomou, Nicolaou Pantelis and Elena Adamou from Cyprus. The exhibition enjoyed cordial support from the Ministry of Education of Cyprus: "We are glad to see creative Cyprus youth benefit from BE OPEN's international initiative that offers much needed support to young artists. This exhibition will become a celebration of our artistic and cultural tradition. We hope that such philanthropic projects will help more of our creative young people become acknowledged and appreciated in Cyprus and internationally. Furthermore, it will contribute to the achievement of the Government's objectives of providing opportunities for all our children and young people to develop their talents and abilities to the fullest extent possible," said Minister of Education Dr Athena Michaelidou.

Eleni Loukalidou, Municipal Councilor Nicosia and President of European Affairs Committee, greeted the artists and guests on behalf of the city of Nicosia: "I am greeting you all at this celebration of arts, youth, creativity and talent of Cyprus and other Eastern Mediterranean countries, conceived and organised by BE OPEN Foundation. Being a very important part of our rich and ancient culture, visual arts have always played an immense role in the expression of who we are as a person, as a people, as part of the bigger world. We are very glad that thanks to BE OPEN Regional Art programme and this exhibition, more people around the world will learn the names of Cyprus's young and talented. Hope this becomes the beginning of your great future." When awarding the winner, the Founder of BE OPEN Elena Baturina said: "We set up BE OPEN Art with the sole purpose to showcase and support emerging talents. So many young artists all over the world deserve to be seen, and BE OPEN is happy to contribute to their artistic aspirations, to help them get deserved attention and an opportunity to have their say in the art. Our congratulations, this certificate and a money prize go to Jovanna Theodosiou. We wish Jovanna to keep following her heart, and the best of luck in her artistic future." BE OPEN Regional Art is a series of competitions for emerging artists, aimed to support those whose art best represents their regional, cultural and ethnic identities. Each regional stage lasts three months, therefore four stages will be run a year, with a winner named for each of them. The regional winners get the money prize of EUR500, while a selection of artwork best representing the region form an exhibition, in order to share the art with the wide public and celebrate the artists involved. The ongoing stage of the regional programme is held in the Caribbean, and then BE OPEN Regional Art will travel to Southeast Asia and Central Africa at the end of the year. Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2097715/BE_OPEN_Foundation.jpg View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/elena-baturina-and-be-open-art-awarded-the-first-artist-of-the-region-at-a-celebratory-ceremony-in-nicosia-cyprus-301850521.html SOURCE BE OPEN Foundation

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[June 14, 2023] Proofpoint's 2023 Human Factor Report: Threat Actors Scale and Commoditize Uncommon Tools and Techniques Tweet

SUNNYVALE, Calif., June 14, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Proofpoint, Inc., a leading cybersecurity and compliance company, today released its annual Human Factor report, revealing that after two years of pandemic-induced disruption, 2022 was a return to business as usual for the worlds cyber criminals. As COVID-19 medical and economic programs began to wind down, attackers had to find new ways to make a living by honing their social engineering skills, commoditizing once-sophisticated attack techniques, and creatively searching for new opportunities in unexpected places.

From scaling brute-force and targeted attacks on cloud tenants to the surge in conversational smishing attacks and proliferation of multifactor authentication (MFA) bypass, the cyber-attack landscape witnessed significant developments on several fronts in 2022. With Microsoft 365 forming a large percentage of the typical organizations attack surface, broad abuse of that platform, from Office macros to OneNote documents, continues to shape the broad outlines of the threat landscape, said Ryan Kalember, executive vice president, cybersecurity strategy, Proofpoint. As security controls have slowly improved, threat actors have innovated and scaled their bypasses; once the domain of red teams, techniques like MFA bypass and telephone-oriented attack delivery, for example, are now commonplace. While many threat actors are still experimenting, what remains the same is that attackers exploit people, and they are the most critical variable in todays attack chain. The Human Factor is the industrys most comprehensive report from a single vendor and delves into the new developments across the threat landscape, focusing on the combination of technology and psychology that makes modern cyber attacks so dangerous among the three main facets of user riskvulnerability, attacks, and privilege. The report draws from one of the industrys largest and most diverse global cybersecurity data sets across email, the cloud and mobile computing sourced from more than 2.6 billion email messages, 49 billion URLs, 1.9 billion attachments, 28 million cloud accounts, 1.7 billion suspicious SMS messages, and more. From complex techniques like multi-factor authentication bypass, to telephone-oriented attack delivery, and conversational threats that rely solely on the attackers charm, 2022 was a year of unprecedented creativity among threat actors as they varied attack chains and rapidly tested and discarded delivery mechanisms. Key findings highlighted in Proofpoints 2023 Human Factor report include: Office macro use collapsed after Microsoft rolled out controls to block them : After almost three decades of service as a popular malware distribution method, Office macros finally began to decline in use after Microsoft updated how its software handles files downloaded from the web. The changes set off an ongoing flurry of experimentation by threat actors to seek alternative techniques to compromise targets.

: After almost three decades of service as a popular malware distribution method, Office macros finally began to decline in use after Microsoft updated how its software handles files downloaded from the web. The changes set off an ongoing flurry of experimentation by threat actors to seek alternative techniques to compromise targets. Threat actors began to match their ingenuity with new-found precision and patience : Conversational smishing and pig butchering threatswhich start with attackers sending seemingly harmless messagessurged last year. In the mobile space, it was the year's fastest-growing threat, experiencing a twelvefold increase in volume. And telephone-oriented attack delivery (TOAD) peaked at 13 million messages per month. Several state-sponsored APT actors invested significant time exchanging benign messages with their targets to build rapport over the course of weeks and months.

: Conversational smishing and pig butchering threatswhich start with attackers sending seemingly harmless messagessurged last year. In the mobile space, it was the year's fastest-growing threat, experiencing a twelvefold increase in volume. And telephone-oriented attack delivery (TOAD) peaked at 13 million messages per month. Several state-sponsored APT actors invested significant time exchanging benign messages with their targets to build rapport over the course of weeks and months. Off-the-shelf MFA bypass phish kits have become ubiquitous , allowing even non-technical criminals to spin up a phishing campaign : MFA-bypass frameworks such as EvilProxy, Evilginx2, and NakedPages accounted for more than a million phishing messages per month.

: MFA-bypass frameworks such as EvilProxy, Evilginx2, and NakedPages accounted for more than a million phishing messages per month. Legitimate infrastructure plays a key role in the delivery of many cloud-based attacks and shows the limitations of rules-based protections : Most organizations faced threats originating from cloud giants Microsoft and Amazon, whose infrastructure hosts countless legitimate services that organizations rely upon.

: Most organizations faced threats originating from cloud giants Microsoft and Amazon, whose infrastructure hosts countless legitimate services that organizations rely upon. Novel distribution methods pushed SocGholish into the top five malware by message volume : With a novel distribution method involving drive-by downloads and fake browser updates, the threat actor behind SocGholishTA569has increasingly been able to infect websites to deliver malware exclusively through drive-by downloads, tricking victims into downloading it through fake browser updates. Many sites hosting the SocGholish malware are unaware they are hosting it, further proliferating its delivery.

: With a novel distribution method involving drive-by downloads and fake browser updates, the threat actor behind SocGholishTA569has increasingly been able to infect websites to deliver malware exclusively through drive-by downloads, tricking victims into downloading it through fake browser updates. Many sites hosting the SocGholish malware are unaware they are hosting it, further proliferating its delivery. Cloud threats have become ubiquitous : 94% of cloud tenants are targeted every month by either a precision or brute-force cloud attack, indicating a frequency on par with email and mobile vectors. The number of brute-force attacksnotably password sprayingincreased from a monthly average of 40 million in 2022 to nearly 200 million in early 2023.

: 94% of cloud tenants are targeted every month by either a precision or brute-force cloud attack, indicating a frequency on par with email and mobile vectors. The number of brute-force attacksnotably password sprayingincreased from a monthly average of 40 million in 2022 to nearly 200 million in early 2023. Abusing the familiarity and trust in major brands is one of the simplest forms of social engineering : Microsoft products and services occupied four of the top five positions for abused brands, with Amazon being the most abused brand.

: Microsoft products and services occupied four of the top five positions for abused brands, with Amazon being the most abused brand. Successful initial access can rapidly lead to domain-wide attacks such as ransomware infection or data theft : As many as 40% of misconfigured, or shadow admin identities can be exploited in a single step, such as resetting a domain password to elevate privileges. And 13% of shadow admins were found to already have domain admin privileges, allowing attackers to harvest credentials and access corporate systems. Around 10% of endpoints have an unprotected privileged account password, with 26% of those exposed accounts being domain admins.

As many as 40% of misconfigured, or shadow admin identities can be exploited in a single step, such as resetting a domain password to elevate privileges. And 13% of shadow admins were found to already have domain admin privileges, allowing attackers to harvest credentials and access corporate systems. Around 10% of endpoints have an unprotected privileged account password, with 26% of those exposed accounts being domain admins. Emotet roared back as the worlds most p ro minent threat actor, one year after law enforcement took the botnet offline in January 2021 : Yet despite sending over 25 million messages in 2022more than double the volume of the second most prominent threat actorEmotet's presence has been intermittent, with the group also showing signs of lethargy in adapting to the post-macro threat landscape.

: Yet despite sending over 25 million messages in 2022more than double the volume of the second most prominent threat actorEmotet's presence has been intermittent, with the group also showing signs of lethargy in adapting to the post-macro threat landscape. While financially driven crime largely dominates the threat landscape, a single outlier attack by an Advanced Persistent Threat (APT) actor can have a massive impact: One large campaign by TA471, a Russian-aligned APT group that engages in both corporate and government espionage, propelled that actor to the top of the APT message volume charts. TA416, an APT actor aligned with the Chinese state, was one of the most active. In particular, significant new campaigns by TA416 coincided with the start of the Russia-Ukraine war, targeting European diplomatic entities involved in refugee and migrant services.



https://www.proofpoint.com/us/resources/threat-reports/human-factor About Proofpoint, Inc.

Proofpoint, Inc. is a leading cybersecurity and compliance company that protects organizations greatest assets and biggest risks: their people. With an integrated suite of cloud-based solutions, Proofpoint helps companies around the world stop targeted threats, safeguard their data, and make their users more resilient against cyber attacks. Leading organizations of all sizes, including 75 percent of the Fortune 100, rely on Proofpoint for people-centric security and compliance solutions that mitigate their most critical risks across email, the cloud, social media, and the web. More information is available at www.proofpoint.com.

Connect with Proofpoint: Twitter | LinkedIn | Facebook | YouTube PROOFPOINT MEDIA CONTACT:

Estelle Derouet

Proofpoint, Inc.

[email protected] Proofpoint is a registered trademark or tradename of Proofpoint, Inc. in the U.S. and/or other countries. All other trademarks contained herein are the property of their respective owners.



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[June 14, 2023] Automotive Industry Accelerates Digitalization with No Code Process Automation Tweet

DUBLIN, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- FlowForma the leading provider of enterprise-class, no code process automation tools for Microsoft 365, is excited to continue building momentum in the automotive manufacturing and retail space by empowering new customer Jacksons CI Ltd. to overcome process challenges within their organization using the award-winning FlowForma Process Automation tool. An industry currently seeing increased demand for digitalization tools, the automotive sector is doubling down on automation to gain a competitive advantage and benefit from technology to digitalize critical business processes at scale across multiple divisions. Maintaining a competitive advantage amongst peers allows businesses to move ahead of rivals to drive and accelerate business growth, whilst creating a culture of continuous improvement and innovation. The 3-in-1, 100% no code, FlowForma Process Automation tool is empowering business users with forms, workflow, and document generation to rapidly digitalize simple and complex business processes with speed and flexibility, with minimal training required or IT involvement. Leveraging the power of cloud-based digitalization tools has seen a significant increase in efficiency, visibility, and employee/supplier experiences. Jacksons CI Ltd. have shifted their digital transformation projects into gear by utilizing the award-winning, 100% no code, FlowForma Process Automation tool to digitalize tasks such as: Pre-Service Recall Checks, Stock Warranty Recall Process, Quality Checks, and more, ultimately saving days for employees and stakeholders across all departments to complete processes spanning multiple locations. Olivia Bushe, Chief Executive Officer, FlowForma commented: "We are delighted to assist Jacksons CI Ltd. on their rodmap to digital transformation. The automotive industry is seeing a significant shift in demand for process digitalization tools, to encourage seamless multi-site process optimization, engage external users such as suppliers and manufacturers in processes, and eliminate the risk associated with paper-based tasks. With increased competition and customer expectations, the automotive sector is keen for better all-round visibility, productivity, and positive customer outcomes."



Supporting Resources: Learn how automotive organizations in 2023 can digitalize at scale, drive savings, better customer experiences and sustainability in our latest infographic: https://www.flowforma.com/why-its-vital-to-advance-your-process-automation-plan-and-how-to-triumph

To find out how the FlowForma Process Automation tool works visit: www.flowforma.com/how-it-works

T o download a free 14-day trial of FlowForma Process Automation visit: http://www.flowforma.com/start-your-flowforma-trial

To learn more about FlowForma Process Automation, book a demo with one of our experts: http://www.flowforma.com/book-a-demo About FlowForma

FlowForma, the leading provider of Process Automation tools for Microsoft Office 365 is revolutionizing the automotive industry with an innovative approach to developing award-winning products that empower users to create and streamline processes smarter and faster, utilizing the familiar SharePoint platform, without any coding. FlowForma is a Microsoft Gold Partner with over 200,000 global users of its product. Headquartered in Dublin, Ireland, with offices in New York, Boston, and London, FlowForma is motivated by its values to innovate, evolve, and achieve with employees, customers, and partners. For further information or a 14-day free trial, visit www.flowforma.com. Contact Details

For further press information please contact Conor McGrath, Senior Digital Marketing Executive at FlowForma:

Email: [email protected]

Telephone: +353 (0)1 5369 679 Photo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2099953/Olivia_Bushe.jpg

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[June 14, 2023] EvoPricing and Event Network celebrate publication of their research on AI in the Harvard Business Review Tweet

LONDON, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- EvoPricing and Event Network announced the publication of their AI research on high-impact analytics strategies for executives in the Harvard Business Review at a popular webinar on June 13th. The two CEOs, Fabrizio Fantini and Larry Gilbert, addressed the pressing question "Will AI be your next CRO?". EvoPricing and Event Network hosted a popular webinar on June 13 to discuss high-impact analytics strategies for executives. The webinar addressed the pressing question "Will AI be your next CRO?" with insight on how executives can optimize revenues and overall company performance using AI. The event featured CEO of EvoPricing, Fabrizio Fantini and CEO of Event Network, Larry Gilbert. Business executives left the webinar with a deeper knowledge of AI strategies that deliver insights not otherwise attainable through traditional analytics, unlocking benefits from each of the three types of analytics available to managers: descriptive, predictive and prescriptive. During the event, they launched a structured framework to address any type of complex management challenge using data, showing how AI is a commitment that yields the best results when executives are willing to ask questions and grow along with the AI system itself. "Machines are great at answering complex questions using all available data, but they are terrible at suggesting which questions are valuable to ask. Human intuition and creativity are therefore as critical for success as ever before, if not more, just in a very different way. In the digita age, managers must move from depending on analytics to get the 'right' answer, to a strategy where they trust the machine to optimize the path to a goal defined by humans," said Fantini.



The webinar was itself a broadening and celebration of the applications from research and analytics strategies Fantini and Harvard Business School professor Das Narayandas published an article in the May/June 2023 issue of the Harvard Business Review. The article focuses on practical uses of analytics that do not sacrifice valuable insights founded in intuition and experience. In addition to the analytical strategies, webinar tackled the question of whether or not a machine, such as AI, can take the place of a top manager like a Chief Revenue Officer (CRO). Traditionally, a CRO would use analytics to determine the exact amount of revenue a company has been bringing in. More advanced data analytics, however, allow a CRO to optimize new methods of growing the business through optimal pricing, product management and marketing decisions directly driven by machine recommendations.

Fantini and Gilbert say this topic is important because it is something that can have a massive impact on most industry sectors throughout the world. The questions around how to implement AI in a business setting are rapidly changing and this event showed how those questions can be understood and answered. "Our commitment to Artificial Intelligence has been rooted in curiosity and openness. Over the years, we have found answers, captured opportunities, and gained sometimes unexpected insight, only to, in turn, unlock the next wave of learning. The role of managers gradually transformed, from a backward-looking focus on accounting accuracy to a forward-looking exploration of potential and evolution through asking questions. It's a 'forever journey' really," said Gilbert. The webinar recording is now available to interested executives who reach out to [email protected]. About Fabrizio Fantini is the founder and CEO of EvoPricing. He founded the company to help businesses make better sales, customer, pricing and supply chain decisions. He accomplishes this through an algorithm he has created. Larry Gilbert is the CEO of Event Network and a lifelong entrepreneur. He is passionate about teaching and mentoring and has held lectures at prestigious universities in the United States. EvoPricing is a London-based software company that uses revolutionary prescriptive AI to help managers worldwide make better business decisions. Event Network focuses on experiential retail in the U.S.: designing and building gift shops and web stores for world-class cultural destinations. Contact: Kaitlin Goodrich

[email protected]com

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[June 14, 2023] eRINs Supporters Urge EPA, Biden Administration to Forge Ahead on RFS Electric Pathway Tweet

EV automakers, biogas producers meet with the White House on pending Renewable Fuel Standard 'eRIN' proposal WASHINGTON, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- More than a dozen automakers and biogas producers recently urged the Biden Administration to finalize the proposed 'eRINs' program under the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's ("EPA") Renewable Fuel Standard ("RFS"). In the June meeting, led by Bridge to Renewables, Inc. ("BTR"), the stakeholders present expressed broad and robust support for the White House Office of Management and Budget to finalize EPA's proposal such that eRIN generation may begin in 2024. More than a dozen automakers and biogas producers recently urged the Biden Administration to finalize the proposed 'eRINs' program.



Jack Barrow , released the following statement: BTR submitted one of the first registration applications to generate eRINs in 2015 and has continuously engaged the EPA in the development of regulations for the program. The company's Chief Executive Officer,, released the following statement: "The EPA's long-awaited eRINs program, as proposed last year, would undoubtedly result in meaningful emissions reductions from the transportation and energy industries. It would support the transition to electric vehicles and encourage the capture and productive use of methane at existing landfills and farms across the U.S. The program would also be complementary to other important policies recently proposed by the Biden Administration and would help the White House achieve its climate goals more broadly. Congress has long intended for electricity to be actively included in the RFS as a transportation fuel, and finalizing the eRINs program, a tool readily available to the EPA, should not be further delayed. BTR strongly encourages the Biden Administration to include eRINs in the final rule on June 21st to realize all of the program's potential benefits beginning in 2024."

ABOUT BTR Bridge to Renewables, Inc. (dba "BTR") is on a mission to maximize the environmental impact of every electric vehicle, everywhere. Since its founding in 2015, BTR has been one of the earliest supporters of the eRINs program and has continuously engaged the EPA in developing its regulations. The Company provides an industry-leading platform that empowers electric vehicle manufacturers, fleet operators, charging station networks, and renewable energy generators to work together to reduce emissions and to participate in low carbon and renewable transportation fuel programs, like the eRINs program and California's Low Carbon Fuel Standard program. Through these new and innovative strategic partnerships, BTR supports its clients in electrifying and decarbonizing the transportation sector. For more information, visit: www.btr.energy. Media Contact: Ashley P. Beaty

[email protected]

(202) 674-5305 View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/erins-supporters-urge-epa-biden-administration-to-forge-ahead-on-rfs-electric-pathway-301850057.html SOURCE BTR Energy

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[June 14, 2023] AptEdge Closes Seed Round of $11M, led by Stage 2 Capital, Unusual Ventures, and National Grid Partners to Transform Customer Support-Help Challenges Tweet

AptEdge, a generative AI startup building an answer engine for customer service, raised an oversubscribed $11M seed+ round led by Stage 2 Capital with other investors (Unusual Ventures, National Grid Partners, Carya Venture Partners, Counterpart Ventures) to support momentum behind its revolutionary solution for the customer service industry. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230614401861/en/ AptEdge co-founders Aakrit Prasad (left) and Anthony Kilman (right) (Photo: Business Wire) "We're excited to close this round and get back to expanding and servicing our rapidly growing customer base behind the rollout AnswerGPT - the leading customer care solution," said Aakrit Prasad, CEO and co-founder of AptEdge. AptEdge's contextual answer engine understands all the knowledge across the support team's workflows. Its carefully tuned AI search layer surfaces customer service help desk knowledge scattered around a business's digital platforms, while its generative AI capabilities, through OpenAI's ChatGPT and other language models, create concise, easy to follow answers for frontline support to share with customers. AptEdge's AnswerGPT is available directly in existing customer service and CRM platforms such as Salesforce, ServiceNow, and Zendesk. The company has seen its customer base grow over 300% since 2022. "Customer questions and support tickets continue to rise which is putting incredible pressure on support teams that are facing tightening budgets and can no longer afford to throw bodies at the problem. The team at AptEdge is arming support teams with AI to help them increase CSAT and lower annoying wait times for customers. When we shared the value prop of AptEdge with our LPs, it was an instant no briner seeing how their value prop resonated. AnswerGPT will set the bar for how support teams find answers for their customers," said Stage 2 Capital Co-Founder, Jay Po.



Aakrit and Anthony founded AptEdge in 2020 after a successful exit of AppDynamics to Cisco for $4B. They realized AI was advancing quickly enough to provide real time, fully generated responses to technical customer service queries, and pivoted to invest heavily in the platform's AI technology. "Having experienced this problem while scaling AppDynamics made us realize every company had this problem and now we've shown that generative AI combined with enterprise AI search technology can truly augment human customer service agents, fundamentally improving the time to resolve technical customer service requests, and making each agent a 10x multiplier for their business," said Prasad.

AnswerGPT crawls all sources of enterprise knowledge, often spread across multiple services including Salesforce, Confluence, Sharepoint, Slack/MSTeams, ServiceNow, Jira, Zendesk, and more. AptEdge AI functionality quickly finds contextual information and recommends concise customer responses. AptEdge counts Cisco, EverBridge and Hexagon among its enterprise customers. The company plans to deploy the funds in further developing the product; incorporating new language models as they launch; and additional connectors to sources of industry and in-house knowledge. "We partnered with AptEdge to provide fast, high quality answers to all our customer's problems. The product is fast and easy to use," said Charles Coaxum, VP of customer experience at Cisco. To learn more, go to https://www.aptedge.io/. About AptEdge

AptEdge has built the first Answer Engine for the technical customer service desk. Founded by experienced enterprise tech product leaders, AptEdge reduces the time to answer for customer service agents by 75%, improving CSAT scores and reducing customer churn. AptEdge's first product, AnswerGPT, combines cutting edge enterprise search technology and generative AI to bring useful answers directly to customers as quickly as possible. About Stage 2 Capital

The first go-to-market venture capital firm, Stage 2 Capital, combines capital and GTM execution expertise, leveraging its elite LP base of 300+ senior executives from unicorns and Fortune 500 firms to help portfolio companies scale revenue and accelerate growth. Co-founded in 2018 by Jay Po, former investor at Bessemer Venture Partners, and Mark Roberge, former CRO at HubSpot, Stage 2 Capital invests in B2B software companies between late seed stage and Series A. For more information, visit: http://www.stage2.capital. About Unusual Ventures

Unusual Ventures is an early stage venture capital firm designed from the ground up to help founders find product-market fit. Launched in 2018, Unusual has over $1B under management and has backed iconic companies in enterprise software like Carta, Harness, Webflow and Arctic Wolf Networks. For more information, visit: https://www.unusual.vc/. About National Grid Partners

We invest in innovators with the tenacity, ingenuity and creativity to make a difference. Our team's experience gives us a network and a deep understanding. Our heritage provides access to the world's largest utilities and the know-how to deploy and scale ideas. By connecting these two worlds, we're accelerating the clean energy transition. For more information, visit: https://www.ngpartners.com/. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230614401861/en/

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[June 14, 2023] BDO CANADA WORKING WITH TOP-TIER ENTERPRISE CLIENTS TO LEAD THE GENERATIVE AI INNOVATION FRONTIER Tweet

TORONTO, June 14, 2023 /CNW/ - Today BDO Canada announced a significant step forward in their collaboration with Microsoft through the utilization of Microsoft Azure OpenAI Service, enhancing the firm's ability to build custom and effective solutions for Canadian businesses. With a 500-person AI team dedicated to building custom solutions for top-tier enterprise level clients, BDO is ready for this seismic shift and has been building up for this moment for several years. "At BDO, we are thrilled about our collaboration with Microsoft as we lead the charge in driving innovation for Canadian enterprises. Combining our expertise in value-added professional services with cutting-edge solutions uniquely positions us to help our clients stay ahead of the curve in this era of rapid and powerful technological change," says Bruno Suppa, CEO of BDO Canada. "By working closely with Microsoft, we are confident that we can empower Canadian businesses to unlock their full potential and achieve unprecedented growth and success." In addition to its heavy commitment and investment in resources, BDO has also made five strategic acquisitions of boutique technology firms over the past 10 years, attaining considerable cloud and AI expertise across several industries, and bringing with them a culture of curiosity and innovation. The firm's acceerator, Innovation & Change, is currently building projects to implement Azure OpenAI Service across the firm to improve efficiency, productivity, and enhance their client's experience.



"Our team is dedicated to building pragmatic solutions using best-in-class technology to empower how our employees do their work which will result in a significant step change in our firm and in our industry," says Sonia Edmonds, Managing Partner, Innovation & Change, BDO Canada. BDO Canada is currently engaged in multiple large-scale projects with top-tier enterprise level clients and has built unique IP that is currently in use.

"BDO recognized the power of AI for our people, clients, and our firm early on and made strategic investments to get us ready for this very moment. This is yet another significant stride forward in our commitment to driving new possibilities and truly changing the trajectory of the future of work," said Jeff Chapman, Managing Partner of the Advisory Service Line for BDO Canada. "The integration of AI into technology platforms will profoundly change how we work and how every business operates," said Harp Girn, Vice President of GPS, Microsoft Canada. "With BDO, we are bringing the power of Microsoft Azure OpenAI Service to more Canadian organizations, enabling them to take advantage of the world's most advanced AI models, backed by Azure's trusted enterprise-grade capabilities and AI-optimized infrastructure." An award-winning firm, BDO has a longstanding history of integrating technology and innovation through their Microsoft relationship. The strategic global alliance announced in 2022 was designed to deliver an expanded range of advanced digital services and solutions to BDO clients around the world. About BDO BDO Canada LLP is a leading provider of professional services to clients across a variety of sectors and segments. For over 100 years, our team has served communities across Canada through a comprehensive range of assurance, tax, and consulting services, complemented by deep industry knowledge. With over 5000 people across 100 offices in Canada, and more than 1,800 offices in 164 countries, BDO is well-positioned to assist clients with both domestic and global needs. BDO Canada LLP, a Canadian limited liability partnership, is a member of BDO International Limited, a UK company limited by guarantee, and forms part of the international BDO network of independent member firms. BDO is the brand name for the BDO network and for each of the BDO member Firms. For more information, visit: www.bdo.ca. SOURCE BDO Canada LLC

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[June 14, 2023] Laser Light Companies & Nokia Agree to Accelerate and Scale Deployment of Their All-Optical Global Network Tweet

Beta Phase of Global Network Deployment to Reach 5 Continents Laser Light Will Mesh Data Service Locations, Globally & Locally Nokia's Optical & IP Solutions to Enable the Capabilities of Unique Greenfield Network Laser Light Also Retains DelMorgan & Co. as Exclusive Strategic Transaction Advisor to Accelerate Growth RESTON, Va., June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Laser Light Companies and Nokia have agreed on a $25 million (USD) Beta Program to commence the deployment of Laser Light's planned global all-optical network. In the agreement, Laser Light will exclusively use Nokia optical and IP solutions and technologies to enable the first stage of its planned Extended Ground Network System ("XGNS") to reach and serve diverse locations. Following the initial Beta in Australia, other Beta locations are planned for the United States, Chile, Spain, and Africa later this year. When completed, Laser Light and Nokia's Beta Program will operate a meshed global platform connecting 5 continents, enabling demonstration of advanced data services and the platform to support integration activities ahead of the global commercial network. $25 Million Beta Program "Nokia has been a wonderful strategic partner for us this past year, and we are honored to be able to continue our collaboration on our network," said Bob Brumley, Chairman and CEO of Laser Light Companies. "Their commitment to our Beta Program, combined with their technologies and expertise, will allow us to accelerate and scale our deployment even further and faster." Laser Light's global elastic network will initially comprise more than 200 locations of globally meshed optical infrastructure  subsea cable, terrestrial fiber, data facilities, and an industry-first constellation of all-optical satellites  to offer highly secure, high capacity, low latency data services to users in the Metro, Near & Far Edge data markets. Each location will serve regional, local defined data pools, seeking low latency, lower cost access to Cloud services, including Edge computing and robust content delivery. "We are honoured to have been working closely with Laser Light sine our Memorandum of Collaboration announcement last year. Together with Laser Light's and Nokia's partners, we look forward to delivering Laser Light's Beta program ahead of the global XGNS rollout. Laser Light's vision for service innovation and advanced customer use cases is exciting and transformational." said Stuart Hendry, Head of Enterprise for Asia Pacific and Japan, Nokia.



Nokia's Australian operations will also serve as Laser Light's global partner for its overall XGNS program, including provision of selective R&D, advanced engineering, collaborative innovation, optics and IP capabilities. Building on the existing 5G Tech Lab at UTS in Sydney, Nokia intends to complete integration of the Beta at an expanded facility, enabling future collaboration between Laser Light, Nokia, UTS, research and industry partners. Advanced data and analytics and innovative use cases are a focus of Laser Light's global data service delivery platform.

In addition, Laser Light also announced that it has engaged DelMorgan & Co. (www.delmorganco.com), an internationally recognized investment banking firm, as its exclusive strategic transaction advisor to explore a capital raise and other strategic growth alternatives. Rob Delgado, Chairman of DelMorgan, commented, "We are excited to be working with the Laser Light team to create the next-generation platform for global data connectivity." Neil Morganbesser, DelMorgan's President & CEO, added, "Laser Light's vision is truly transformative, and the Nokia partnership is the latest encouraging development. We look forward to the opportunity to connect Laser Light with strategic and financial investors who can provide the capital to fully realize that vision." About Laser Light Companies

Laser Light is the owner/operator of an emerging global optical platform  network of networks  which will deliver a first-of-a-kind 21st century data service that will transform the way high volume data communications traffic is carried, distributed, and utilized. Using a hybrid approach converging terrestrial, sub-sea, and space domains; an end-to-end software architecture, favoring "always best route, best latency"; and a unique business model which emphasizes efficiency and operational simplicity, the Laser Light all-optical global data platform will connect companies, countries, and continents at high speed, more flexibly, securely and economically than ever before. Laser Light Companies will do for networking what Cloud did for computing. For more information, please visit www.laserlightcomms.com. About Nokia

At Nokia, we create technology that helps the world act together. As a B2B technology innovation leader, we are pioneering networks that sense, think and act by leveraging our work across mobile, fixed and cloud networks. In addition, we create value with intellectual property and long-term research, led by the award-winning Nokia Bell Labs. Service providers, enterprises and partners worldwide trust Nokia to deliver secure, reliable and sustainable networks today  and work with us to create the digital services and applications of the future. www.nokia.com About DelMorgan

Headquartered in Santa Monica, California, DelMorgan & Co. is an internationally recognized investment bank and financial advisor. With over three decades of experience and over $300 billion in successfully completed transactions, the professionals at DelMorgan & Co. provide world-class financial advice to companies, institutions, governments and individuals around the world. For more information, please visit www.delmorganco.com. View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/laser-light-companies--nokia-agree-to-accelerate-and-scale-deployment-of-their-all-optical-global-network-301850634.html SOURCE Laser Light Communications, LLC

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[June 14, 2023] New Study Reveals Massive Email Security Risks Due to Misconfigured Security Records Across 1 Million Domains Tweet

MELBOURNE, Australia, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, Stratus Security announced the findings of a ground-breaking study examining the security measures of over 1 million internet domains. The research, which analyzed the implementation of critical email security measures, identified a concerning trend: a significant percentage of domains are vulnerable to phishing attacks due to misconfigured security records. Stratus Security's research focused on the configuration of Sender Policy Framework (SPF) and Domain-based Message Authentication, Reporting & Conformance (DMARC) records - crucial defenses in protecting a domain and its users from phishing attacks. Correct configuration of these measures prevents unauthorized parties from sending emails using a domain's identity. However, the study uncovered widespread misconfigurations leaving domains open to exploitation. Alarmingly, this included highly sensitive government and education domains, commercial entities, and even some surprising outliers like North Korea's sole domain in the study, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (mfa.gov.kp). Stratus Security's researchers found that misconfigurations could potentially allow malicious actors to send emails appearing to come directly from these domains. The most alarming cases were domains tagged with '+all' in their SPF records, essentially inviting anyone to send emails as that domain, with no indications of phishing. One such domain was the Greek public employment service (dypa.gov.gr) - making it possible for virtually anyone to send an email posing as an official communication from this institution. Stratus Security CTO, Colin Watson, explains: "Phishing attacks rely on rust. When an email appears to come from a reputable source, users and businesses are much more likely to engage with its content. That's why these misconfigurations present such a risk. It's essentially rolling out a red carpet for threat actors to exploit."



The full findings, including additional case studies, are detailed in a comprehensive blog post available on the Stratus Security website: https://www.stratussecurity.com/post/email-security-top-1-million-domains Stratus Security urges organizations to review and correct their SPF and DMARC records, perform regular audits, foster cybersecurity awareness among their teams, and seek expert assistance if needed. They stand committed to supporting businesses in this endeavor, with the belief in building a safer digital landscapeone domain at a time.

For more information about this study, or to schedule an interview with Stratus, please email [email protected] or call 1300 379 289. About Stratus Security Stratus Security is a leading cybersecurity consultancy specializing in next-generation offensive security services, including penetration testing, vulnerability assessments, and red team exercises. With a team of seasoned professionals and a relentless focus on innovation, Stratus Security enables businesses to proactively safeguard their digital assets and excel in the digital age. For more information, please visit https://www.stratussecurity.com or follow Stratus Security on LinkedIn and Twitter. For media inquiries, please contact: Colin Watson Chief Technology Officer Stratus Security Phone: 1300 379 289 Email: [email protected] View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/new-study-reveals-massive-email-security-risks-due-to-misconfigured-security-records-across-1-million-domains-301849540.html SOURCE Stratus Security

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[June 14, 2023] Alliance Memory Appoints Tanya Frew as Business Development Manager, Europe Tweet

KIRKLAND, Wash., June 14, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Alliance Memory today announced the appointment of Tanya Frew as the companys business development manager for Europe. In her new role, she is responsible for expanding Alliance Memorys business in the region, while assisting managing director Sue Macedo in day-to-day sales support for its growing customer base.

Mrs. Frew comes to Alliance Memory from Micron Europe, where she served in a number of capacities over the last nine years. She joined the company as an order management specialist before being promoted to a combined role of inside sales representative, customer sales operations. Mrs. Frew concluded her tenure with Micron Europe as a sales operations analyst. In addition to establishing a successful excess inventory sales and quote process that was rolled out to other regions, she was recognized with multiple Culture Champion Awards and Spot Awards for beating revenue targets and identifying and improving gaps in the companys processes. She holds a degree from the University of Foreign Languages in Horlivka, Ukraine. Through her work with Micron, Tanya not only gained invaluable knowledge of the semiconductor industry, but she also established key relationships with distributors and customers throughout Europe, which will be essential in heping us expand our footprint in the region, said Ms. Macedo. Combined with her record of providing exceptional customer support, she is a perfect fit for this dual role, and Im thrilled to welcome her to the Alliance Memory team.



Alliance Memory has long had a reputation for providing legacy devices that prevent costly redesigns for its customers. But its growth trajectory over the last few years  marked by the introduction of a diverse range of products  has been remarkable, said Mrs. Frew. Im excited for the opportunity to contribute to the companys continued success and look forward to leveraging the knowledge and experience I gained with Micron to support the companys existing customers and expansion efforts in Europe and beyond. Mrs. Frew is located in the UK and can be reached at [email protected].

About Alliance Memory Inc.

Alliance Memory is a worldwide provider of critical and hard-to-find memory ICs for the communications, computing, consumer electronics, medical, automotive, and industrial markets. The companys product range includes flash, DRAM, and SRAM memory ICs with commercial, industrial, and automotive operating temperature ranges and densities from 64Kb to 8GB. Privately held, Alliance Memory maintains headquarters in Kirkland, Washington, and regional offices in Europe, Asia, Canada, and South America. More information about Alliance Memory is available online at www.alliancememory.com. Editor resources: Link to image of Tanya Frew:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/alliancememory/albums/72177720309001470 Agency Contact:

Bob Decker

Redpines

+1 415 409 0233

[email protected]



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SAN FRANCISCO, June 14 (Xinhua) -- Boeing on Wednesday released its 2023 Sustainability Report to share the company's vision and path toward a sustainable aerospace future.

Boeing has increased renewable-energy use in its factories, purchased more sustainable aviation fuel for commercial operations and continues significant investments in aerospace technologies to reduce fuel use, emissions and noise, according to the report titled "Sustainable Aerospace Together."

The report provides an annual update on company efforts to advance environmental stewardship, human development and inclusion. This includes addressing the company's sustainability goals on employee safety and well-being; global aerospace safety; community engagement; and equity, diversity and inclusion, in addition to sustainable operations and clean technology innovation.

Boeing's sustainability accomplishments in this year's report include introducing and publicly launching the Boeing Cascade Climate Impact Model, a data-modeling tool that quantifies strategies to reduce aviation emissions.

In 2022, the company celebrated the 10th anniversary of the Boeing ecoDemonstrator program, which has evaluated about 230 technologies to reduce fuel use, emissions and noise.

Boeing purchased 2 million gallons (7.6 million liters) of sustainable aviation fuel for its commercial airplane operations, achieving 35 percent renewable electricity use across the company in 2022 by purchasing renewable electricity and renewable energy credits, a leap from 21 percent in 2021, the report said.

"Boeing continues to invest and make progress on our journey to achieve a more sustainable aerospace future," said Chris Raymond, Boeing's Chief Sustainability Officer. "As we enter a new era of sustainable aerospace, we are committed to documenting our progress and outlining our path forward with transparency so our industry can progress, together." 
[June 14, 2023] Anne Fontaine Transforms its Information Systems by Switching to Infor's Multi-Tenant Cloud Tweet

Renowned women's ready-to-wear brand chooses Infor CloudSuite Fashion ERP to modernize its entire information system and provide a global supply chain, with an omnichannel approach RUEIL MALMAISON, Paris, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Infor, the industry cloud company, today announced that Anne Fontaine, a women's ready-to-wear and accessories brand known for its white blouses marketed with noble materials (such as silk, lace, linen or cotton) and numerous finishing details, has just opted for Infor CloudSuite Fashion, an enterprise resource planning (ERP) solution specifically designed for the fashion, textile and luxury industries. This choice is part of a vast project to modernize the company's information system, with the aim of introducing OMS (Order Management System) functionalities, i.e. automated tracking and management of sales, orders, inventory and order fulfillment, all with a view to creating a truly omnichannel customer experience. With 350 employees and sales of 60 million, the company is present in Asia, the United States and Europe through subsidiaries and some 50 boutiques,mainly in its own name. All Anne Fontaine's creations are designed in France, in the founder's Honfleur workshop, and each of her inspirations begins with a simple sketch on paper. Capturing the elegance and sophistication of Parisian women, her creations are characterized by impeccable attention to detail, exceptional materials and flawless craftsmanship. Ari Zlotkin, CEO of Anne Fontaine, comments: "Our brand has been gradually built up over time and, as our needs evolved, our system became increasingly obsolete. Today, manufacturing is at the heart of the issues facing brands, and we want to quickly gain in efficiency by equipping ourselves with a modern, scalable ERP solution." Anne Fontaine called on Prodware, a true partner in the digital transformation of companies, to identify all of the company's needs and select various suppliers. The Infor solution was chosen at the end of 2022, in view of its functional richness and its ability to evolve in the multi-tenant cloud for greater modularity and interoperability (notably with marketplaces). The rollout of Infor CloudSuite Fashion is scheduled for the end of 2023 in France and the United States, then progressively in other countries, all within a high-availability cloud environment hosted by AWS (Amazon Web Services). ELCIMAI Group, a long-standing Infor integrator partner, will conduct the implementation. Bruno Kientzel, managing director of ELCIMAI Business Solutions, comments: "This is a particularly ambitious digital transformation project in the Infor cloud, with a very broad application and geographical scope at the outset, the first batch integrating logistics flows for 16 subsidiaries in 13 countries, and the implementation of international finance for seven subsidiaries in four countries. Added to tis is the integration of almost 50 boutiques, checkout management, five marketplaces, an e-commerce site, PLM (product lifecycle management), a warehouse management system in the U.S. and the dematerialization of supplier invoices. This project is in line with our strategy of carrying out significant international digital transformation projects based on the Infor CloudSuite."



Philippe Maillet, Infor's sales director for channel in France & Iberia, comments: "Infor's solution enables fashion brands to manage all their activities  accounting, production, purchasing, inventory and warehouse management  within a single, integrated solution and, de facto, to manage all their intersubsidiary flows, as well as localization and compliance obligations at country level." The company is also working on other parallel projects, such as implementing a new customer relationship management (CRM) system, and developing interfaces between Infor's solution and other applications: These include C-DESIGN PLM software (which organizes product development data into a single, reliable interface for monitoring the progress of a collection), the Magento e-commerce platform, Yourcegid Retail Y2 store management and omnichannel control software, and, eventually, a solution for dematerializing invoices.

Zlotkin concludes: "We are enthusiastic and eager to have access to all these modern tools, which should enable us not only to improve performance and customer satisfaction, but also to develop our market share by increasing our online sales, thanks to an accurate, real-time view of our stocks. The development of e-commerce is one of our main concerns, although all the points, such as CRM, PLM and tax compliance, should also contribute to the success of this project." Learn more about Infor CloudSuite Fashion: https://www.infor.com/products/cloudsuite-fashion About Anne Fontaine

Anne Fontaine is a French ready-to-wear brand founded in 1993. It offers a complete wardrobe centered around the white shirt, accompanied by a line of accessories. The brand embodies fashion and femininity as well as a synergy between creation and technical knowledge and artisanship. Anne Fontaine has grown to become an internationally recognized luxury label, serving clients in Europe, the United States and Asia. The brand has over 200 employees worldwide and offers its creations in more than 50 boutiques. Visit https://www.annefontaine.fr/ About ELCIMAI Group

Founded 30 years ago by Pascal Denier, the ELCIMAI Group, headquartered in France, is a diversified holding company organized around 2 divisions:

-A professional real estate division (design and construction of new buildings and refurbishments) and environmental, industrial and logistics consultancy. ELCIMAI has the architects, engineers and design offices needed to design and build complex buildings, as well as consultants working in a wide range of private and public sectors.

-An IT division with two business lines addressing different markets: a software publisher dedicated to the worlds of banking, mutual insurance, provident societies and insurance, and an ESN (Entreprise de Services Numeriques) business line: ERP and specific solutions integration, application outsourcing for the banking, mutual insurance, insurance, industry, logistics/distribution and associated services markets (local authorities, EPICs, business support, etc.). ELCIMAI has been an Infor partner since 1999. The complementary nature of its offerings enables it to respond to large-scale projects involving major organizational and productivity challenges, both in France and abroad. The ELCIMAI Group employs nearly 400 people at 14 sites across France. About Infor Infor is a global leader in business cloud software specialized by industry. We develop complete solutions for our focus industries. Infor's mission-critical enterprise applications and services are designed to deliver sustainable operational advantages with security and faster time to value. Over 60,000 organizations in more than 175 countries rely on Infor's 17,000 employees to help achieve their business goals. As a Koch company, our financial strength, ownership structure, and long-term view empower us to foster enduring, mutually beneficial relationships with our customers. Visit www.infor.com. Media contact:

Richard Moore

Senior PR Director, EMEA,

[email protected],

+447976111243 Copyright 2023 Infor. All rights reserved. The word and design marks set forth herein are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of Infor and/or related affiliates and subsidiaries. All other trademarks listed herein are the property of their respective owners. www.infor.com

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[June 14, 2023] Fiduciary Trust International Names Kimberly Rescorla as Director of Trust Administration Tweet

Fiduciary Trust International, a global wealth manager and wholly-owned subsidiary of Franklin Templeton, announces that Kimberly Rescorla has been named as director of trust administration, responsible for overseeing trust administration across the firm. "Our consistent effort to strengthen and streamline our fiduciary and trust administration capabilities and procedures is key to ensuring we maintain the highest level of care for all of our clients," said Leslie Gillin Bohner, chief fiduciary officer of Fiduciary Trust International. "As an experienced leader in the trust industry, Kimberly will help us deliver the necessary services to meet our clients' needs." In her new role, Ms. Rescorla will manage the trust administration function across the firm, partnering with regional teams to ensure a uniform client and employee experience. She will also work with Ms. Bohner to lead the effective implementation of trust administration policies, procedures and training. "Precise coordination and operation within our trust administration business is critical in order to achieve success for clients and their families," said Ms. Rescorla. "I am proud to be able to work with my colleagues to ensure we are positioned to deliver the personalized experience necessary for preserving wealth for generations to come." Prior to joining Fiduciary Trust International, Ms. Rescorla was a senior trust officer at Bank of America Private Bank in Princeton, NJ. Earlier in her career, she was an associate at The Knee Law Firm, LLC in Hackensack, NJ, where she advised clients on estate planning, estate administration, guardianship matters, and elder law and special needs planning. Ms. Rescorla was also an associate trust officer at Merrill Lynch Bank & Trust Co. She has been admitted to the bar in New York, New Jersey, and Indiana. Ms. Rescorla received her LLM in taxation, with honors and distinction, from Georgetown University Law Center. She obtained her JD from the Seton Hall University School of Law, and graduated cum laude from Marist College with a BA in English and communications. About Fiduciary Trust Internationa



Fiduciary Trust International, a global wealth management firm headquartered in New York, NY, has served individuals, families, endowments and foundations since 1931. With over $87 billion in assets under management and administration as of December 31, 2022, the firm specializes in strategic wealth planning, investment management and trust and estate services, as well as tax and custody services. The New York-based firm and its subsidiaries maintain offices in Coral Gables, FL, Boca Raton, FL, St. Petersburg, FL, Radnor, PA, Lincoln, MA, Los Angeles, CA, San Mateo, CA, San Francisco, CA, Washington, DC, Wilmington, DE, Reston, VA, and Atlanta, GA. For more information, please visit fiduciarytrust.com, and for the latest updates, follow Fiduciary Trust International on LinkedIn and Twitter: @FiduciaryTrust. About Franklin Templeton

Franklin Resources, Inc. [NYSE: BEN] is a global investment management organization with subsidiaries operating as Franklin Templeton and serving clients in over 155 countries. Franklin Templeton's mission is to help clients achieve better outcomes through investment management expertise, wealth management and technology solutions. Through its specialist investment managers, the company offers specialization on a global scale, bringing extensive capabilities in fixed income, equity, alternatives and multi-asset solutions. With offices in more than 30 countries and approximately 1,300 investment professionals, the California-based company has over 75 years of investment experience and approximately $1.4 trillion in assets under management as of May 31, 2023. For more information, please visit franklintempleton.com and follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook. Copyright  2023. Fiduciary Trust International. All rights reserved. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230614987531/en/

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[June 14, 2023] New Study: ST Math Use Drives Significant Improvement in Texas Students' Math Scores Tweet

IRVINE, Calif., June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- A recent study conducted by MIND Research Institute shows that students who used the ST Math program made significantly higher gains in math proficiency. The study, which included over 160,400 students across Texas, found a 13.6 percentage point advantage in growth in percent of students achieving "Meets" or "Masters" on the 2022 STAAR for students who used ST Math with fidelity. Learn more about ST Math created by MIND Education and request a demo by visiting: www.stmath.com ST Math is a PreK-8 instructional program that fills crucial gaps in any math curriculum. Animated formative feedback introduces a positive math learning experience that has repeatedly proven to deepen students' conceptual understanding of mathematics. ST Math's cognitive playground enables perseverance and transforms students' relationship from "struggling with math" to "discovering math". Susnna Gutierrez, Director of STEM, El Paso Independent School District: "ST Math has elevated student achievement by engaging our students in deep and enjoyable math experiences without language barriers. The pace of ST Math supports students in authentic learning and helps them understand math concepts more readily with spatial-temporal reasoning. Best of all, it builds confidence in their abilities and fosters a love of learning math that can be carried into later grades and beyond. ST Math is a valuable resource and an excellent way to reach all learners."



Most significantly, the study revealed that the unique and patented ST Math evidence-based learning approach provides equitable learning access and transcends language barriers, confirming that ST Math provides similar effectiveness across all student subgroups . Regardless of race/ethnicity, socioeconomics, demographics, or language, results show that every student group benefits from ST Math games. Brett Woudenberg, CEO of MIND Education: "We are thrilled to see the positive impact that ST Math is having on Texas student outcomes and self-perceptions about their ability to be successful mathematicians. The magnitude of the study not only demonstrated ST Math's impact on all student subgroups in Texas, but it also proved that these results are scalable statewide and thus nationwide. We continue to see that the more students play ST Math, the higher their scores. This is what we mean by equitable impact: ST Math works for ALL students and ensures their future success."

TEA partnered with MIND Education to provide educators and K-5 students free access to ST Math. The ST Math program is currently used by over 2,500 schools across Texas, and has been adopted by thousands more across the country. About MIND Education MIND Education engages, motivates, and challenges students towards mathematical success through its mission to mathematically equip all students to solve the world's most challenging problems. MIND is the creator of ST Math, a pre-K8 visual instructional program that leverages the brain's innate spatial-temporal reasoning ability to solve mathematical problems; and InsightMath, a neuroscience-based K-6 curriculum that transforms student learning by teaching math the way every brain learns so all students are equipped to succeed. During the 2022-23 school year, MIND Education and ST Math reached more than 2.28 million students and 115,000 educators across the country. View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/new-study-st-math-use-drives-significant-improvement-in-texas-students-math-scores-301849954.html SOURCE MIND Research Institute

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[June 14, 2023] SAS Curiosity Cup student data science competition honors wide range of analytics applications Tweet

Higher education teams recognized for excellence in data preparation, analysis and presentation CARY, N.C., June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- What do hotel reviews, Romanian deforestation and diabetes have in common? They were all topics of winning projects in the 2023 SAS Curiosity Cup, a global data science competition sponsored by analytics leader SAS. The contest of data skills challenged the next generation of analytics experts to explore, analyze and learn from data on topics that inspired their curiosity. "Our showing at the SAS Curiosity Cup demonstrates that what we've learned is applicable outside the classroom." The disparate topics reflect the broad, real-world applications of analytics. Using SAS software, student teams from around the world researched topics ranging from public health to travel to sports. Over 70 student teams from 16 countries competed for the honors, with presentations judged by industry experts in three categories: data preparation, data analysis and data presentation. "We were excited to see what topics these young competitors would choose to analyze, and we weren't disappointed," said Jurgen Kaselowsky, Director of Global Academic Programs at SAS. "Data is powering industries and careers with new advances and applications. We are proud of all our 2023 participants and look forward to their continued exploration of data's endless possibilities." Curiosity Cup competitors could use free SAS software, such as SAS Viya for Learners and SAS OnDemand for Academics, or SAS software licensed by their universities. Viya for Learners and SAS OnDemand for Academics are available to all higher education students through SAS Skill Builder for Students, a global program that students can access 24/7 to learn analytics skills, earn valuable certifications sought by employers, and find ways to connect with potential employment opportunities.



The champions, who are highlighted on the SAS Curiosity Cup page, were: Data Preparation: Team Data Voyagers from the University of Technology and Applied Sciences, Oman  Unveiling Traveler Preferences and Experiences: An Analysis of Hotel Reviews from TripAdvisor .

 . Data Analysis: Team T(h)ree Sentinel from Babes-Bolyai University, Romania  Satellite Image Classification for Detecting Deforestation in Romania .

 . Data Presentation: Team Shazam! from the University of Maryland Global Campus (UMGC), US  Comparing Classification Models of Predicting Diabetes Using SAS Viya. UMGC students Shiva Devkota and Zane Liu presented their paper, along with their faculty advisor.

"Winning the SAS Curiosity Cup competition is a significant achievement for me, both personally and professionally," said Devkota in a UMGC announcement. "It validates my hard work, skills and knowledge in SAS programming and data analysis and potential to make significant contributions in the field." Liu said the competition results reflected the relevance of the UMGC team's skills. "Our showing at the SAS Curiosity Cup demonstrates that what we've learned is applicable outside the classroom," he said. All teams were made up of two to four students with a faculty advisor. Teams chose their own SAS learning software, data and analytical questions for the free competition. After a round of paper submissions, 10 finalists submitted video presentations describing their data analyses as if given to an audience of analytical stakeholders. Judges scored entries based on data preparation, analysis and presentation, organization, use of visuals, and subject matter knowledge. Winning teams received 12 months of free access to the SAS Academy for Data Science and a SAS digital badge acknowledging winner status. Learn more about how SAS Academic Programs and SAS Skill Builder for Students are creating the next generation of analytics experts. Details on the 2024 competition will be available in the fall. About SAS

SAS is the leader in analytics. Through innovative software and services, SAS empowers and inspires customers around the world to transform data into intelligence. SAS gives you THE POWER TO KNOW. SAS and all other SAS Institute Inc. product or service names are registered trademarks or trademarks of SAS Institute Inc. in the USA and other countries.  indicates USA registration. Other brand and product names are trademarks of their respective companies. Copyright  2023 SAS Institute Inc. All rights reserved. Editorial Contact:

Trent Smith

trent[email protected]sas.com

919-531-4726

sas.com/news View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/sas-curiosity-cup-student-data-science-competition-honors-wide-range-of-analytics-applications-301849717.html SOURCE SAS

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[June 14, 2023] Saudi Fund for Development Chairman Signs Three Loan Agreements with Small Island Developing States Worth $61 Million Tweet

In implementation of the directives of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Salman bin Abdulaziz, and HRH Crown Prince and Prime Minister, Mohammed bin Salman; the Saudi Fund for Development (SFD) Board of Directors Chairman, H.E. Ahmed Al Khateeb, recently signed three development loan agreements worth $61 million with two Small Island Developing States (SIDS) - Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, and Belize. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230614127128/en/ Image (from left to right): The Prime Minister of Belize, Hon. John Briceno & The Saudi Fund for Development (SFD) Board of Directors Chairman, H.E. Ahmed Al Khateeb (Photo: AETOSWire) The signings reflect the efforts undertaken by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, through th SFD, to support sustainable development in developing countries and Small Island Developing States (SIDS). Since its establishment in 1974, SFD has implemented over 700 development projects across 85 countries worldwide.



The first two loan agreements, worth $16 million, were signed with the Honorable Prime Minister of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Dr. Ralph Gonsalves, for constructing a primary care center, and a cultural and artistic hub and market for craft and agricultural products. SFD continued its support of enhancing the healthcare infrastructure across the SIDS, signing a loan agreement worth $45 million with the Honorable Prime Minister of Belize, John Briceno, for the construction of a tertiary hospital in Belmopan. H.E. Ahmed Al-Khateeb, the SFD Board of Directors Chairman, said: "The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is deeply committed to promoting sustainable socio-economic development in developing countries and Small Island Developing States, in support of the journey towards achieving the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals. These agreements signify an important step forward in development cooperation between Saudi Arabia, the island states of the Caribbean, and Central America, and will open the door for even greater collaborations and partnerships in the future."

The loan agreements will contribute towards raising living standards for the population, while supporting access to vital services. They also represent an essential drive for achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), including SDG 3, Good Health and Wellbeing, and SDG 11, Sustainable Cities and Communities. SFD's development cooperation with the SIDS reaffirm the importance of international cooperation and solidarity to support developing countries around the world in achieving their sustainable development goals, and fostering economic and social growth. About SFD SFD contributes to development projects by providing soft loans, and prioritizes the financing of projects in developing countries. Source: AETOSWire View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230614127128/en/

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[June 14, 2023] Ryan Named as One of the Best Workplaces in Texas by Great Place to Work for Seventh Consecutive Year Tweet

Ryan, a leading global tax services and software provider, has recently been honored as one of the 2023 Best Workplaces in Texas by Great Place to Work. This is the Firm's seventh consecutive year to be named to this prestigious list, ranking fifth, an increase of one spot from the previous year. The Best Workplaces in Texas award is based on confidential employee feedback using rigorous analytics. "We do our best to ensure that Ryan is a top workplace for talented professionals across the globe, and receiving this award confirms that we are succeeding," said Ginny B. Kissling, Ryan's Global President and Chief Operating Officer. "Being recognized as a great place to work in Texas is especially meaningful because we have been headquartered here since our Firm was founded. This recognition is only possible because of the dedication of our team members across the Lone Star State, and I truly appreciate their tireless pursuit of world-class client service and results." Great Place to Work is the only company culture award in America that selects winners based on how fairly employees are treated. Companies are assessed on hw well they are creating a great employee experience that cuts across race, gender, age, disability status, or any aspect of who employees are or what their roles are within the organization.



"Congratulations to the Best Workplaces in Texas," says Michael C. Bush, CEO of Great Place to Work. "These are companies that understand how putting people first drives performance, productivity, and innovation-essentials in this economy." "Fortune congratulates the Best Workplaces in Texas," says Fortune Editor-in-Chief Alyson Shontell. "They are leading their industries in employee satisfaction, a critical metric for success in a period of economic uncertainty."

For the full list of winners, please visit here. About the Best Workplaces in Texas Great Place to Work selected the Best Workplaces in Texas by gathering and analyzing confidential survey responses from its study of thousands of companies representing more than 6.1 million U.S. employees at Great Place to Work-Certified organizations. Companies must be headquartered in Texas to be eligible. About Great Place to Work Great Place to Work is the global authority on workplace culture. Since 1992, it has surveyed more than 100 million employees worldwide and used those deep insights to define what makes a great workplace: trust. Its employee survey platform empowers leaders with the feedback, real-time reporting, and insights they need to make data-driven people decisions. Everything it does is driven by the mission to build a better world by helping every organization become a great place to work For All. About Ryan Ryan, an award-winning global tax services and software provider, is the largest Firm in the world dedicated exclusively to business taxes. With global headquarters in Dallas, Texas, the Firm provides an integrated suite of federal, state, local, and international tax services on a multijurisdictional basis, including tax recovery, consulting, advocacy, compliance, and technology services. Ryan is an 11-time recipient of the International Service Excellence Award from the Customer Service Institute of America (CSIA) for its commitment to world-class client service. Empowered by the dynamic myRyan work environment, which is widely recognized as the most innovative in the tax services industry, Ryan's multidisciplinary team of more than 4,100 professionals and associates serves over 21,000 clients in more than 60 countries, including many of the world's most prominent Global 5000 companies. More information about Ryan can be found at ryan.com. "Ryan" and "Firm" refer to the global organizational network and may refer to one or more of the member firms of Ryan International, each of which is a separate legal entity. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230614808641/en/

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[June 14, 2023]

ActivTrak Named to 2023 Fortune Best Workplaces in Texas List

AUSTIN, Texas, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- ActivTrak today announced it is ranked No. 15 in the small and medium business category on this year's list of Best Workplaces in Texas by Fortune magazine and Great Place To Work. According to the survey results , 95% of employees at ActivTrak say it is a great place to work, 96% percent believe management is approachable and 99% say they have the resources to do their jobs.

According to the survey results, 95% of employees at ActivTrak say it is a great place to work.

Great Place To Work surveyed more than 100,000 employees at eligible companies to determine the Fortune Best Workplaces in Texas List . ActivTrak employees responded to 60 statements about their workplace experience and answered open-ended questions. Employees cite ActivTrak's commitment to work-life balance, professional development and empowering leadership as reasons to work for the company.

"Building an inclusive culture and empowering employees to innovate and thrive together is especially important in a remote-first work environment," said Mindee Humphrey, vice president of people at ActivTrak. "As a leader in workforce analytics, we know first-hand how important employee experiences are in today's modern workplace. Keeping a pulse on employee burnout, overutilization, engagement and focus is critical to meeting business goals and building healthy, high-performing workplaces."

The Best Workplacs in Texas list is highly competitive. Survey responses reflect a comprehensive picture of the workplace experience. Honorees were selected based on their ability to offer positive outcomes for employees regardless of job role, race, gender, sexual orientation, work status, or other demographic identifier. To be eligible for the list, companies must be Great Place To Work Certified , have at least 10 U.S. employees, and be headquartered in Texas.







"Fortune congratulates the Best Workplaces in Texas," says Fortune Editor-in-Chief Alyson Shontell. "They are leading their industries in employee satisfaction, a critical metric for success in a period of economic uncertainty."

"Congratulations to the Best Workplaces in Texas," says Michael C. Bush, CEO of Great Place To Work. "These are companies that understand how putting people first drives performance, productivity and innovation  essentials in this economy."

About ActivTrak

ActivTrak helps employers and employees work better together to realize their full potential. Our workforce analytics cloud provides visibility and insights across people, processes and technology to help organizations inform key decisions and optimize outcomes. More than 9,000 customers trust ActivTrak, which has been recognized by the Deloitte Technology Fast 500, Inc. 5000 and Brandon Hall Excellence in Technology award. Founded in 2009, and based in Austin, Texas, ActivTrak is backed by Sapphire Ventures and Elsewhere Partners.

About the Fortune Best Workplaces in Texas

Great Place To Work selected the Fortune Best Workplaces in Texas List by surveying companies employing 7.5 million people in the U.S. with 1.3 million survey responses received. Of those, more than 100,000 responses were received from employees at companies who were eligible for the 2023 Fortune Best Workplaces in Texas List, and this list is based on their feedback. To be eligible, companies must be Great Place To Work Certified , have at least 10 U.S. employees, and be headquartered in Texas. Read the full methodology. To get on this list next year, start here.

About Great Place to Work

As the global authority on workplace culture, Great Place To Work brings 30 years of groundbreaking research and data to help every place become a great place to work for all. Their proprietary platform and For All Model help companies evaluate the experience of every employee, with exemplary workplaces becoming Great Place To Work Certified or receiving recognition on a coveted Best Workplaces List. Follow Great Place To Work on LinkedIn , Twitter , and Instagram or visit greatplacetowork.com and sign up for the newsletter to learn more.

About Fortune

The Fortune mission is to change the world by making business better. We achieve that by providing trusted information, telling great stories, and building world-class communities. We measure performance by rigorous benchmarks. And we hold companies accountable. Our goal is to make Fortune a force for good through its second century and beyond. For more information, visit www.fortune.com .

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SOURCE ActivTrak
[June 14, 2023] Government of Canada invests in strategic research at the University of Ottawa Tweet

Investment further positions Canadian post-secondary institutions as world leaders OTTAWA, ON, June 14, 2023 /CNW/ - Throughout Canada, universities spur innovation, support scientific discoveries and train tomorrow's researchers and workers. To ensure Canada remains at the forefront of research, innovation and wealth generation, the Government of Canada is investing in the success of the country's researchers. Today, the Honourable Mona Fortier, President of the Treasury Board, highlighted an investment of more than $109 million in the University of Ottawa through the Canada First Research Excellence Fund (CFREF). This funding is part of a $1.4 billion investment in support of 11 large-scale research initiatives, which was announced by the Honourable Francois-Philippe Champagne, Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry, on April 28. This investment will allow researchers at Canadian universities to capitalize on the strengths of their research areas and attract capital and world-class talent. The Brain-Heart Interconnectome initiative at the University of Ottawa is the first dedicated interdisciplinary research program to study, prevent and treat brain-heart disorders. It will deliver tools for earlier diagnosis, new medical treatments, and new non-pharmaceutical interventions that will help prevent these disorders. The Brain-Heart Interconnectome initiativeand all CFREF initiativeswill foster community, provincial, national and international partnerships across the academic, private and not-for-profit sectors to deliver research leading to important social and economic benefits for Canadians. By supporting initiatives focused on, among other things, treating and preventing brain and heart diseases, cutting carbon emissions in our communities, and making discoveries through responsible artificial intelligence use, robotics and advanced computing, CFREF is helping Canadian researchers pioneer global insights and strengthen Canada's social and technological innovation ecosystems. Quotes "Today's research is tomorrow's economy. Since the start, our government has re-established the fundamental role of science and scientists in our society. The funded initiatives, including the one here at the University of Ottawa, will lead to breakthrough discoveries that will improve people's lives, nourish our innovation ecosystems, and shape Canada's prosperity for years to come. Such is the value of universities, and of our Canadian researchers who think outside the box to tackle the greatest challenges of our time."

 The Honourable Francois-Philippe Champagne, Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry "Through initiatives like this one, we are reinforcing Canada's competitive advantage as a destination of choice for world-class research. Our government is proud to support the world-leading researchers here at the University of Ottawa in Ottawa Vanier and their partners. They are conducting meaningful work that will generate ground-breakng discoveries and deepen our understanding of human health, which will ultimately lead to healthier communities."





 The Honourable Mona Fortier, President of the Treasury Board "Canada's post-secondary institutions are rich in talent and ideas and are committed to building healthier, more sustainable, more inclusive and prosperous communities. With support from the federal government's Canada First Research Excellence Fund, they are able to build on these foundations to develop advanced research programs that showcase Canadian talent and lead the world in developing solutions to the critical challenges facing our planet, from environmental sustainability to advanced biotherapeutics, child health and population migration."

Ted Hewitt, Chair, Tri-agency Institutional Programs Secretariat Steering Committee; President, Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada; and Chair, Canada Research Coordinating Committee

"The University of Ottawa is very pleased and proud to see this innovative approach be supported by the federal government. The BHI will bring together long-standing areas of priority and excellence from the University of Ottawa, uOttawa Brain and Mind Research Institute (uOBMRI) and University of Ottawa Heart Institute. More than four million Canadians are affected by cardiovascular disease and neurological disorders. The breakthrough research conducted by BHI will have a direct impact on the health and the lives of Canadians."

Sylvain Charbonneau, uOttawa vice-president, research and innovation Quick facts Created in 2014, the Canada First Research Excellence Fund (CFREF) supports Canadian post-secondary institutions in their efforts to become global research leaders. The program helps Canadian universities, colleges and polytechnics compete with the best in the world for talent and partnership opportunities. It also supports them in making breakthrough discoveries; seizing emerging opportunities and strategically advancing their greatest strengths on the global stage; and implementing large-scale, transformational and forward-thinking institutional strategies.

The investment of close to $1.4 billion will also support the following 10 initiatives:

will also support the following 10 initiatives: McGill University : $165 million for DNA to RNA: An Inclusive Canadian Approach to Genomic-based RNA Therapeutics (D2R)

: for

Memorial University of Newfoundland : $91 million for Qanittaq Clean Arctic Shipping Initiative

: for

Dalhousie University : $154M for Transforming Climate Action: Addressing the Missing Ocean

: for

University of Toronto : $199 million for Acceleration Consortium: Self-Driving Labs for Molecular and Materials Discovery

: for

University of Victoria : $83 million for Accelerating Community Energy Transformation

: for

Universite de Montreal: $124 million for R3AI: Shifting Paradigms for a Robust, Reasoning, and Responsible Artificial Intelligence and its Adoption

for

York University : $105 million for Connected Minds: Neural and Machine Systems for a Healthy, Just Society

: for

Concordia University : $123 million for Electrifying Society: Towards Decarbonized Resilient Communities

: for

University of Calgary : $125 million for One Child Every Child : A Transformational Child Health Research Initiative

: for

Toronto Metropolitan University: $98 million for Migrant Integration in the mid-21st Century: Bridging Divides

Metropolitan University: for CFREF invests approximately $200 million per year through a highly competitive peer review process, held every seven years, to support selected Canadian post-secondary institutions in turning their key strengths into world-leading capabilities.

per year through a highly competitive peer review process, held every seven years, to support selected Canadian post-secondary institutions in turning their key strengths into world-leading capabilities. CFREF is a tri-agency institutional program administered by the Tri-agency Institutional Programs Secretariat (TIPS), housed at the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC), on behalf of the three federal research funding agencies: the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada and SSHRC.

(SSHRC), on behalf of the three federal research funding agencies: the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of and SSHRC. Initiatives funded by CFREF are selected through an independent, multidisciplinary and international competitive peer review process. Associated links About the Canada First Research Excellence Fund

2022 CFREF competition results

2016 CFREF Competition 2 results

2015 CFREF Competition 1 results Stay connected Find more services and information at Canada.ca/ISED. Follow @CDNScience on social media for Canadian science news: Twitter, Instagram, Facebook Follow the Tri-agency Institutional Programs Secretariat on social media.

Twitter: @TIPS_SPIIE , LinkedIn: TIPS-SPIIE SOURCE Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada

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[June 14, 2023] Another Record Set in the Polish & Slavic FCU Scholarship Program Tweet

512 Young PSFCU Members Receive A Total of $550,000 in Scholarships BROOKLYN, N.Y., June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- This year's scholarship program of the Polish & Slavic Federal Credit Union saw scholarships awarded to a record number of 512 young members of the Credit Union, with a total value of $550,000. In this edition of the PSFCU scholarship program, 324 high-school graduates and 188 college students were awarded. The winners received scholarships up to $5,000. In total, since the first edition of the program in 2001, our Credit Union has awarded scholarships to more than 6,000 students for a total of more than $7 million. Scholarship recipients received their awards at two ceremonies held on Saturday, June 3 in Chicago, IL and on Wednesday, June 7 in New York City. "Today's event is a prime example of the fact that our Credit Union is more than a bank," PSFCU President/CEO Bogdan Chmielewski said at the scholarship ceremony in New York. "The scholarship program is what sets us apart from commercial banks and other financial institutions. You would be hard pressed to find another financial institution or credit union that allocates so much to support the younger generation." A ceremony to award scholarships to students from the Mid-West region was held in the exhibition hall of the Polish Museum in America. Ambassador of the Republic of Poland to the U.S. Marek Magierowski was a special guest at the ceremony. "I am very pleased that I was able to participate in this ceremony. This is a very commendable initiative of the Credit Union. I do hope this is a long-term project, because investing in our youth is the best investment we can make," Ambassadr Magierowski said commenting on the event. In his speech, he also reminded young people that, aside from successes, life also consists of failures and it is very important to be able to recover from such failures and to learn from them.



Ambassador Krzysztof Szczerski, Permanent Representative of the Republic of Poland to the United Nations, was the keynote speaker at the New York ceremony, which was held at The Bowery Ballroom. Ambassador Szczerski was very impressed by the achievements of PSFCU scholarship recipients. Addressing them directly he said: "Do more than you think you can achieve. It is always worthwhile to aim higher and achieve more than seems possible." During the ceremony, a special PSFCU Rising Star scholarship was also presented. This year's recipient of this award was Caroline Baran of Algonquin, IL. The young artist, who performs under the artistic pseudonym Kaeyra, reached the Top 20 of this year's edition of American Idol.

In addition, after a three-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic, ten young PSFCU members participated in the Presidential Internship - a study tour of Poland organized in cooperation with the Chancellery of the President of the Republic of Poland Andrzej Duda. The internship is an integral part of the PSFCU Scholarship Program and this year was held for the fourth time. The PSFCU Scholarship Program was established in 2001 and since then, including this year's 23rd edition, more than 6,000 young people have received a PSFCU scholarship, with the total amount of scholarship funds reaching over $7 million. About the PSFCU Founded in 1976 by a group of Polish immigrants to help other ethnic Poles obtain mortgages, the Polish & Slavic Federal Credit Union now has 21 branches in New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Illinois, a Mortgage Center in New Britain, CT and an operations center in Fairfield, NJ. In addition, PSFCU offers mortgage loans on properties located in the states of Florida and Indiana. Credit Union members can access our services through our Online Banking, accessible through our www.psfcu.com website or through our mobile app. Through its scholarship program, PSFCU has thus far granted over seven million dollars to over 6,000 students. The nearly 47-year-old credit union has over $2.5 billion in assets and serves over 114,000 members. View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/another-record-set-in-the-polish--slavic-fcu-scholarship-program-301851106.html SOURCE Polish & Slavic Federal Credit Union

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[June 14, 2023] Minister Wilkinson and Minister Sikela Discuss Shared Interest in Advancing Climate Action and Clean Energy Tweet

OTTAWA, ON, June 14, 2023 /CNW/ - Today, the Honourable Jonathan Wilkinson, Minister of Natural Resources, met with Jozef Sikela, Minister of Industry and Trade of the Czech Republic, to discuss the importance of international collaboration on global energy security and the transition to net zero. Their discussion focused on how Europe, the Czech Republic and Canada can strengthen their cooperation to ensure a more resilient and sustainable energy policy, increase critical mineral supply chains and advance the fight against climate change through clean technology and energy. The Ministers also signalled their desire to work together on topics of common interest, including hydrogen and critical minerals. Canada and the Czech Republic have a long-standing friendship and close partnership, and the Ministers agreed to continue strengthening CzechCanadian relations and working together to enhance energy security and accelerate the global energy transition. To these ends, they affirmed their shared interest in the following areas: Hydrogen, in particular their mutual understanding of the key role of hydrogen in future energy needs, especially with respect to hydrogen produced from renewable resources;

The import and export of hydrogen, taking into account Canadian industry's plans to export hydrogen and the Czech Republics intention to import hydrogen to satisfy its energy need with low-carbon sources; and

Critical minerals and their supply chain, as well as clean technologies to make mining more sustainable. Associated links



Canada's Critical Minerals Strategy

Hydrogen Strategy for Canada

Canada's Emissions Reduction Plan Quotes

"By advancing the development of clean energy supply chains  including hydrogen and critical minerals  Canada, the Czech Republic and other like-minded countries are reinforcing energy security, advancing climate action and spurring economic opportunity and the creation of sustainable jobs. It was a pleasure to welcome my counterpart Minister Sikela to Canada. Canada will always be a reliable, predictable and secure supplier of clean energy to our European partners." The Honourable Jonathan Wilkinson

Minister of Natural Resources "In 2022, Europe was hit with the largest energy crisis in modern history, which we were able to overcome with the support of our friends and allies. We are looking to increase the resilience of our energy sector, also through building tighter relationships with like-minded countries, such as Canada. We had a great discussion today, and I am certain that cooperation in the field of hydrogen is one of the most promising areas to deliver mutual benefits for our countries. By working together on the green transition and increasing our energy security, we will make our industries more resilient and consequently speed up decarbonization efforts on both sides of the Atlantic." Jozef Sikela

Minister of Industry and Trade of the Czech Republic Follow us on Twitter: @NRCan (http://twitter.com/nrcan) SOURCE Natural Resources Canada

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Description

The west coast of Ireland is known for its dramatic windswept scenery, charming seaside towns, friendly people, and tiny, twisting narrow roads that barely accommodate one car, which should be driven on the left side of the road. Two of our librarians traveled there last fall with no fixed itinerary other than to see a bit of the areas of their ancestral roots, counties Kerry and Donegal. Theyd love to share some of their experiences with you. No registration required. For additional information, please call the library or visit our website.
[June 14, 2023] AvaTouch Launches Revolutionary Generative Video Bot Meeting System to Enhance Remote Work Efficiency Tweet

TOKYO, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Tokyo-based AvaTouch, Inc. has announced the release of AvaTouch, a generative video bot meeting system designed to revolutionize remote work. AvaTouch is an AI system that uses natural language processing and machine learning to facilitate one-on-one meetings between individuals and an AI bot. With AvaTouch, users can save time and resources by automating tasks such as meeting minutes, creating summaries, and translating and interpreting languages. The system is designed to cut the time spent on remote management, human resource development, and customer development by 50%, making it a valuable tool for any remote worker, and transforms interactions into searchable digital assets, making it easy to access and reference information later on. Additionally, meeting minutes can be translated into nine languages (Chinese, Spanish, Portuguese, Russian, Japanese, German, French, Italian, and Dutch), and offers audio interpretation, enabling team member of diverse backgrounds to communicate effectively, without any language barriers. AvaTouch is a game-changer for remote work, offering a range of benefits for internalmeetings, human resource development, and customer training. In internal meetings, the system also eliminates the need for scheduling, interprets languages, and optimizes time, reducing redundancy and preventing information silos. For human resource development, AvaTouch allows new hires to learn at their own pace and conduct practical tests through interactions with the bot. For customer training, the system facilitates immediate product explanations and provides easy reference to historical transactions for proposal crafting and post-sales reporting.



Registering with AvaTouch is free and easy to get started. You can sign up now at https://avatouch.net/signup. There are also numerous ways to stay informed and get support, such as joining the AvaTouch Discord community, subscribing to the AvaTouch YouTube channel, and accessing the AvaTouch help page. "We are excited to introduce AvaTouch to the world, as it represents a significant step forward in the evolution of remote work," said Tomohiro Kato, CEO of AvaTouch, Inc. "Our system is designed to streamline communication and make remote work more efficient, allowing individuals and organizations to save time and resources while improving productivity and collaboration."

About AvaTouch, Inc. AvaTouch, Inc. is a Tokyo-based developer of AI products that aim to revolutionize the way that people work and communicate. For more information, please visit https://avatouch.net. CONTACT: tomohiro kato, [email protected] View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/avatouch-launches-revolutionary-generative-video-bot-meeting-system-to-enhance-remote-work-efficiency-301850481.html SOURCE AvaTouch

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[June 14, 2023] University of Phoenix alum Dr. Fernando De La Pena Llaca's holoportation technology and expertise recognized by NASA Tweet

University of Phoenix celebrates the recognition by National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) of alum Dr. Fernando De La Pena Llaca, CEO & President of AEXA Aerospace (AEXA), in bringing holoportation technology to medicine in space. NASA presented the Johnson Space Center (JSC) Director's Innovation Group Achievement Award to De La Pena Llaca as part of the Holoportation Technology Demonstration Team on June 8, at the JSC Teague Auditorium in Houston, Texas. "Holoportation brings a meaningful connection to medicine and the isolation of situations like space habitation," shares De La Pena Llaca. "I am proud of the collaboration we accomplished with NASA to prove its capability and potential for use and this award helps bring awareness to this important work." De La Pena Llaca and AEXA were industry partners collaborating with NASA scientists to enable the use of the technology which provided holoportation as an innovative 3D version of telemedicine for astronauts on the International Space Station in October 2021. The NASA award was presented "for outstanding vision and execution of the Holoportation Technology Demonstration on ISS for future medical operations application." The current uses for holoportation technology are in medicine, engineering, usiness, and as a communications tool. The application is now commercially available at AEXA.



De La Pena Llaca established AEXA Aerospace in 2012, at the same time he began his master's degree at University of Phoenix. AEXA Aerospace developed a training application for astronauts and payload specialists that uses holograms to overlay existing hardware and deploys avatars of other users working remotely. This is the technology that enabled the holoportation experience with the ISS. As an undergraduate engineering student, Fernando completed and patented a spacecraft engine propelled by anti-matter, and received additional patents, for example, a space launcher employing magnetic levitation. He received a Discovery Channel Prize in 2010 for his work developing the Mexican Space Agency.

De La Pena Llaca completed his master's in information systems with University of Phoenix in 2013 and returned to earn his doctorate, which he completed in early 2022; his dissertation, "Holographic teleportation in space and astronauts' stress," focused on defining the best practices and use of holoportation technology to alleviate social isolation and stress for astronauts. His story is featured in the Fall 2022 edition of the University's Alumni Chronicles magazine, available here. De La Pena Llaca is the former President of the National Contract Management Association (NCMA) Space City Houston chapter at NASA Johnson Space Center (JSC) and former Chairman of the JSC Small Business Council. He serves on the Bay Area Houston Economic Partnership Board of Directors (BAHEP) and chaired the Communications Committee of the JSC National Management Association. He is also the aerospace liaison of the Clear Lake Chamber of Commerce. He also serves as Chief of the Infragard Defense Industrial Base SIG in Houston, a cross-sector council as part of a worldwide industrial complex. De La Pena Llaca is a past recipient of the Small Business Administration award, Small Business Champion of the Year, Houston District. About University of Phoenix University of Phoenix is continually innovating to help working adults enhance their careers in a rapidly changing world. Flexible schedules, relevant courses, interactive learning, and Career Services for Life commitment help students more effectively pursue career and personal aspirations while balancing their busy lives. For more information, visit phoenix.edu. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230614601195/en/

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[June 14, 2023] Saudi Fund for Development Signs Two Development Loan Agreements Worth $150 Million in Guyana Tweet

In implementation of the directives of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Salman bin Abdulaziz, and HRH Crown Prince and Prime Minister, Mohammed bin Salman; and in the presence of H.E. President of the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, Dr. Mohamed Irfaan Ali; the Saudi Fund for Development (SFD) Chief Executive Officer, H.E. Sultan Al-Marshad, signed two development loan agreements worth $150 million with the Guyana Minister of Finance Hon. Dr. Ashni Singh, to fund the "Infrastructural Development Works for the Housing Sector Project," and the "Construction of Wismar Bridge Project," through SFD. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230614835165/en/ (from left to right): Guyana Minister of Finance, Hon. Dr. Ashni Sinh & The Saudi Fund for Development (SFD) Chief Executive Officer, H.E. Sultan Al-Marshad (Photo: AETOSWire)



The signings reflect the efforts undertaken by Saudi Arabia, through the SFD, to support sustainable development in developing countries and Small Island Developing States (SIDS). The first loan agreement, worth $100 million, for the Infrastructural Development Works for the Housing Sector Project, aims to develop the infrastructure to provide about 2,500 housing units across three different regions in Guyana. The second loan agreement, worth $50 million, for the Construction of Wismar Bridge Project, aims to improve road network connectivity and the flow of transportation, relieving traffic jams, and enhancing road safety.

During the signing ceremony, President Ali said: "We are very pleased that we were able to advance the projects at such a pace," as he reminded that projects will not only bring temporary relief but also permanent benefit to citizens as it forms part of the larger infrastructure masterplan of the country and will help Guyana on its journey to modernization. SFD's Chief Executive Officer, H.E. Sultan Al-Marshad, said: "Today's agreements mark SFD's first presence in Guyana and the beginning of development cooperation between both our countries. The two agreements signed today aim to support the housing and transportation infrastructure sectors in the country, which will lead to major benefits in health, education and the standard of living. Both of these infrastructure projects will support access to vital services, and represent an essential drive for achieving seven United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly SDG 3, Good Health and Wellbeing, SDG 6, Clean Water and Sanitation, and SDG 11, Sustainable Cities and Communities." About SFD SFD contributes to development projects by providing soft loans, and prioritizes the financing of projects in developing countries. *Source: AETOSWire View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230614835165/en/

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[June 14, 2023] Issuu Launches New App on Canva to Enhance Its Content Transformation, Publishing & Analytics Platform Tweet

New integration empowers the next generation of designers, marketers, and creators to design content at scale and reach their customers across all channels. PALO ALTO, Calif., June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Issuu , the largest SaaS content publishing and marketing platform in the world, today released a new app on Canva to enable bi-directional, seamless creation across the two platforms. Now content creators and marketers can cohesively leverage both platforms to enhance their content, extend its reach, and understand its performance. This comes at a time when demand is high, with Issuu seeing five times more Canva content uploaded to Issuu in the past year. The Issuu app in Canva's marketplace is now available to all users with an Issuu subscription here . Issuu Launches New App on Canva to Enhance Its Content Transformation, Publishing & Analytics Platform Through this powerful new functionality, all content creators and marketers can reach their audiences more effectively by creating content once, and sharing it everywhere. Through the Issuu app in Canva's app marketplace, creators can: Utilize Canva's extensive library of templates, or start from scratch, to create standout designs before exporting and publishing them digitally on Issuu in a range of engaging formats;

Share and send designs to Issuu in one click, turning Canva designs into page-turning digital lipbooks, mobile-optimized articles, social posts, GIFs, and more, in minutes;

Maximize the reach and impact of content created on Canva with the integrated distribution and audience growth potential of publishing on Issuu;

Leverage Issuu's AI to extend the life and reach of content with auto-generated, mobile-optimized articles, given the 6x increase in publication of AI-generated articles in the past year;

Gain valuable insights into content performance by accessing Issuu's built-in statistics within the Canva workspace, and make data-driven decisions on how to iterate designs;

Re-use high-performing assets to create new versions of the same content or additional formats for a variety of channels;

Share digital content directly from Canva with fullscreen sharing and embed links provided by Issuu (coming soon).



Joe Hyrkin , chief executive officer at Issuu. "To both companies, this signaled an immediate opportunity to evolve with our customers, and enhance their experience. This new integration simplifies their workflows, and enables them to transform, host, and more easily create content once and share everywhere." Issuu is ideal for publishing and distributing marketing collateral, portfolios, brochures, newsletters, magazines, catalogs, and more. Issuu empowers content creators to transform designs from static files into dynamic marketing assets for every distribution channel. This includes flipbooks to embed in websites and blogs, mobile-optimized articles, on-brand posts for social media, GIFs for email, and more.

"By collaborating with Issuu's intuitive all-in-one publishing platform, we're powering a faster, more insightful content creation process for people who need to create, publish and share long-form content at high volumes, quickly," said Anwar Haneef, Head of Ecosystem at Canva. "Our mission at Canva is to empower anyone to design anything so they can achieve their goals. Through Issuu's app on Canva, we'll be helping customers get more value from their designs." Canva rolled out its new Canva Apps SDK offerings at its first developer event, Canva Extend, on June 14, 2023. Issuu CEO Joe Hykrin participated in a panel conversation on Driving Growth Together: Canva + App Developers, with D-ID Avatar and Amazon also in attendance. Learn more and register to join the global virtual event here . About Issuu

With 50+ million publications hosted and 2+ billion monthly page views, Issuu is the largest SaaS content publishing and marketing platform in the world. The Issuu Story Cloud empowers content creators to transform designs from static files into marketing assets for every distribution channel  including flipbooks to embed in websites and blogs, mobile-optimized articles, motion-graphic stories for social media, GIFs for email, and more. Issuu is headquartered in Palo Alto, with offices in Copenhagen, Berlin, and Braga. For more information, please visit: www.issuu.com . View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/issuu-launches-new-app-on-canva-to-enhance-its-content-transformation-publishing--analytics-platform-301851184.html SOURCE Issuu

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[June 14, 2023] Merchants & Marine Bancorp, Inc. Welcomes Antonio J. Davis as Chief Risk Officer Tweet

Merchants & Marine Bancorp, Inc. President & Chief Executive Officer Clayton Legear today announced the selection of Antonio J. Davis as the company's new Chief Risk Officer. Davis was chosen by the company's Board of Directors to fill this important role after a robust search process that included many highly qualified candidates from throughout the region. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230614015263/en/ Antonio J. Davis (Photo: Business Wire) Davis joins the Company's growing executive leadership team, which also includes Chief Executive Officer Clayton Legear, Chief Operations Officer Jeff Trammell, Chief Financial Officer Casey Hill, and Chief Banking Officer Greg Hodges. Davis joins the Company from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), where he most recently served as a Supervisory Examiner in the FDIC's Jackson, Mississippi, office. His background includes extensive experience in regulatory compliance, team leadership and development, and enterprise risk management. Throughout his time at the FDIC, Davis gained invaluable experience in and connections throughout the region which will greatly benefit the Company. As a part of the Company's executive leadership team, Davis will take the lead in regulatory affairs and oversee the Enterprise Risk Management division. This area provides support and guidance to each member of the Company's current family of brands, including Merchants & Marine Bank, Canvas Mortgage CannaFirst Financial, and Voyager Lending. Davis will work alongside company leadership to control risk, to drive strong regulatory compliance, and to help shepherd the Company's continued growth and expansion.



"Antonio's deep regulatory, consumer compliance, and risk management knowledge and his broad industry network throughout the Southeast will be tremendous assets to our Company," said Clayton Legear, Merchants & Marine Bancorp's President & Chief Executive Officer. "He has distinguished himself as a highly motivated, capable and accomplished leader throughout his career, and I'm excited to have his leadership as a part of our team." Davis holds a Bachelor of Science degree in finance from Jacksonville State University, as well as a Master of Business Administration degree from the Florida Institute of Technology. He's also an alumnus of the Graduate School of Banking at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Davis also holds the highly respected Certified Regulatory Compliance Manager (CRCM) designation.

About Merchants & Marine Bancorp, Inc. Merchants & Marine Bancorp, Inc. (OTC QX: MNMB) is a community bank holding company with operations throughout the Southeastern United States. It operates through its subsidiary, Merchants & Marine Bank (www.mandmbank.com), a Pascagoula, Mississippi-based community bank with 14 offices throughout Southern Mississippi and Alabama, as well as through three non-banking divisions: Canvas Mortgage (www.canvasmortgage.com), CannaFirst Financial (www.cannafirst.com), and Voyager Lending (www.voyagerlending.com). While unique in their name, focus and leadership, each member of the Merchants & Marine Bancorp, Inc. family of brands is united in their focus on building stronger communities and brighter futures through leveraging the power of local decisions, personal service, and the power of the combined Company. More information about Merchants & Marine Bancorp, Inc. can be found at www.mandmbank.com/investor-relations. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230614015263/en/

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[June 14, 2023] Cycle Trader Adds New Ways to Receive Cash Offers For Pre-Owned Tweet

New Options for Selling Used Vehicles for Cash through an Easier, Safer, and Faster Process VIRGINIA BEACH, Va., June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Cycle Trader, the leading online marketplace for new and pre-owned motorcycles, has added two new ways for consumers to request cash offers for their used vehicles. The new options expand Cycle Trader's online offerings by creating a seamless selling experience utilizing the largest network of online dealers. Cycle Trader users interested in selling their motorcycles can now solicit cash offers in two quick and convenient locations on the marketplace. Specifically: After receiving a free trade-in value range for their current motorcycle on the Vehicle Valuations page , users can now choose whether they want to trade it in or sell it for cash.

, users can now choose whether they want to trade it in or sell it for cash. When listing their motorcycle for sale on the Sell Your Motorcycle page, users can now opt-in to receive cash offers from the market's lagest used vehicles buyer in addition to private inquiries from consumers who may or may not offer cash.



Cash Offers makes selling a motorcycle as simple and convenient as possible online, with offer requests being responded to directly. The complete process is easy and convenient by handling all logistics, paperwork  including DMV documentation  and purchases directly with the seller. Within a few clicks, the selling journey is complete. "With our new Cash Offers product, Cycle Trader sellers can not only purchase a motorcycle digitally through our Buy Now purchase-from-home program, but also sell their pre-owned vehicles for cash quickly and effortlessly through a single, reputable source," said Troy Snyder, Vice President/General Manager of Digital Retailing for Trader Interactive, the parent company of Cycle Trader. "It saves time, avoids the potential complications of private party sales, and helps ensure that you sell your motorcycle as quickly as possible."

Cycle Trader's new cash offer features are available immediately. About Cycle Trader

Cycle Trader is part of a unique portfolio of Trader Interactive marketplaces for buying and selling powersports vehicles, including Cycle Trader, ATV Trader, PWC Trader, and Snowmobile Trader, with over decades as part of the "Trader" family of brands. The company's mission is to bring powersports buyers and sellers together by providing dealers and manufacturers with comprehensive listing packages and innovative advertising products that place inventory in front of relevant, high-quality buyers. Listing inventory through Trader Interactive's powersports brands ensures that dealers can maximize their exposure, generate connections, drive sales, and boost profits. For more information, visit www.CycleTrader.com. View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/cycle-trader-adds-new-ways-to-receive-cash-offers-for-pre-owned-301851202.html SOURCE Cycle Trader

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[June 14, 2023] Hess Midstream LP to Participate in J.P. Morgan Energy, Power & Renewables Conference Tweet

Hess Midstream LP (NYSE: HESM) ("Hess Midstream") announced today that Jonathan Stein, Chief Financial Officer, and Jennifer Gordon, Vice President, Investor Relations, will meet with investors at the J.P. Morgan Energy, Power & Renewables Conference on June 22, 2023. A presentation has been posted in the "Investors" section of the Hess Midstream website at www.hessmidstream.com. About Hess Midstream Hess Midstream is a fee-based, growth-oriented, midstream company that owns, operates, develops and acquires a diverse set of midstream assets to provide services to Hess and third-party customers. Hess Midstream owns oil, gas and produced water handling assets that are primarily located in he Bakken and Three Forks Shale plays in the Williston Basin area of North Dakota. More information is available at www.hessmidstream.com.



Forward Looking Statements This press release may include forward-looking statements within the meaning of the federal securities laws. Generally, the words "anticipate," "estimate," "expect," "forecast," "guidance," "could," "may," "should," "believe," "intend," "project," "plan," "predict," "will" and similar expressions identify forward-looking statements, which generally are not historical in nature. Forward-looking statements are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from historical results and current projections or expectations. When considering these forward-looking statements, you should keep in mind the risk factors and other cautionary statements in the filings made by Hess Midstream with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, which are available to the public. Hess Midstream undertakes no obligation to, and does not intend to, update these forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances occurring after this press release. You are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this press release.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230614629236/en/

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[June 14, 2023] Motorola Solutions Foundation and Calculated Genius Announce Recipients of 2023 Bright Minds, Bold Futures Scholarship Tweet

Today the Motorola Solutions Foundation, the charitable and philanthropic arm of Motorola Solutions (NYSE: MSI), together with Calculated Genius, awarded approximately $100,000 in scholarships to 37 deserving students from underserved and underrepresented Chicagoland communities who are pursuing degrees in technology and engineering. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230614552723/en/ 2023 Bright Minds, Bold Futures scholarship recipients gather at Motorola Solutions headquarters in Chicago, IL. Credit: Motorola Solutions The 2023 Bright Minds, Bold Futures Scholarship is renewable, allowing students to receive $3,000 during their first year of college and an additional $2,500 each subsequent year throughout their two or four year college education. In addition to the scholarship, students will be matched with a mentor who is a Motorola Solutions professional in the technology field and provide support through regular guidance check-ins, leadership conversations and internship opportunities. "I am grateful and excited to receive this scholarship. What a great gift at just the right time. I can't thank Calculated Genius and the Motorola Solutions Foundation enough," said Bright Minds Bold Futures scholarship recipient Annabel Johnson. "I am honored to be a part of this cohort as I pursue my engineering degree."



Scholarship recipients are pursuing a wide range of degrees covering computer science, civil engineering, aerospace engineering, electrical engineering, construction engineering and cybersecurity. Sixty-five percent of recipients are women and nearly half are first generation college students. Recipients were recognized for their accomplishments during a special ceremony hosted at Motorola Solutions' Experience Center in Chicago, Ill. with 70+ students, parents, teachers, mentors and volunteers in attendance.

"Calculated Genius is delighted to partner with the Motorola Solutions Foundation in our work to improve diversity, inclusion, access and representation in the fields of engineering and technology. This is a huge step forward and sets a fantastic example of what is possible with community partnerships like ours," said Brian Biederman, executive director at Calculated Genius. "We enthusiastically congratulate all of the well-deserved Bright Minds, Bold Futures scholarship recipients who demonstrated grit and perseverance in the face of some of the most challenging obstacles," said Karem Perez, vice president of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion at Motorola Solutions. "My fellow Motorolans and I are proud to support these incredible students every step of their college career and we look forward to witnessing the impact they will make on the world." About the Motorola Solutions Foundation As the charitable and philanthropic arm of Motorola Solutions, the Motorola Solutions Foundation partners with organizations around the globe to create safer cities and equitable, thriving communities. We focus on giving back through strategic grants, employee volunteerism and other community investment initiatives. Our strategic grants program supports organizations that offer first responder programming and technology and engineering education, and align to our values of accountability, innovation, impact, diversity and inclusion. The Foundation is one of the many ways in which the company lives out its purpose of helping people be their best in the moments that matter. For more information on Motorola Solutions corporate and foundation giving, visit our website: www.motorolasolutions.com/foundation About Calculated Genius Calculated Genius is a 501c3 nonprofit organization dedicated to helping underrepresented youth explore and connect to engineering, to inspire and support a brighter future. Founded in 2016 by engineer and entrepreneur, Kimberly Moore, Calculated Genius provides STEM + programming, scholarships and mentorship, demonstrating through example a pathway to sustainable, rewarding, and essential careers in STEM. Learn more at calculatedgenius.org. Follow CG on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and Instagram. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230614552723/en/

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[June 14, 2023] APEX TRADER FUNDING ANNOUNCES PREMIER OF 'TRADER BACON' LIVE STREAMING SHOW Tweet

ONLINE TRADING PLATFORM TO HOST REGULAR EPISODES ON BENZINGA AUSTIN, Texas, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Apex Trader Funding, an innovative online trader funding platform offering the easiest to pass, lowest cost and highest contract plans, announced today their new live streaming show entitled 'Trader Bacon.' The first episode of the show debuted earlier today. "The show comes at an exciting time ... as the platform now has just over 60,000 monthly active users across the world."



Hosted by Gates Adams, 'Trader Bacon' will offer new and existing traders insights into trading strategies, behind the scenes looks at new benefits to the Apex platform and highlight why Apex is one of the fastest growing prop trading funding platforms in the United States. The debut episode featured trader Terrence Spence, who discussed why he loves to use Apex Trader Funding. The show comes at an exciting time for Apex Trader Funding, as the platform now has just over 60,000 monthly active users across the world.

"We are thrilled to launch our first streaming show on Benzinga," said Darrell Martin, CEO of Apex Trader Funding. "Our platform continues to see success because traders recognize it's built for them by fellow traders. Trader Bacon will be another resource for new and existing traders to see why Apex goes above and beyond for our users compared to any of our competitors." To watch the show on Benzinga, click here. About Apex Trader Funding

Headquartered in Austin, Texas, Apex Trader Funding is a community of traders offering the easiest to pass, lowest cost, highest contract funding plans. Founded in 2021 by Darrell Martin, Apex Trader Funding is a thriving community of traders including more than 25,000 members in 150 countries. View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/apex-trader-funding-announces-premier-of-trader-bacon-live-streaming-show-301851269.html SOURCE Apex Trader Funding

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[June 14, 2023] Hamilton ETFs Launches Hamilton Utilities Yield Maximizer ETF Tweet

Hamilton Capital Partners Inc. ("Hamilton ETFs") is pleased to announce the launch of the Hamilton Utilities Yield Maximizer ETF ("UMAX"). UMAX seeks to deliver attractive monthly income, while providing exposure to a portfolio of utility services companies' equity securities with an active covered call strategy. UMAX has closed the offering of its initial Class E units. Units of the ETF will begin trading on Thursday, June 15, 2023 on the Toronto Stock Exchange ("TSX") under the ticker symbol "UMAX". "We are excited to introduce our latest yield maximizer ETF, UMAX, for investors seeking higher monthly income. With an initial target yield of 13%+, UMAX is the highest yielding utilities ETF in Canada1, and provides exposure to a portfolio of Canada's largest utility services companies with an innovative active covered call strategy to enhance monthly income and reduce volatility. We believe UMAX is an attractive complement to our Hamilton Canadian Financials Yield Maximizer ETF (ticker: HMAX), which is the highest yielding financials ETF in Canada2, and has already grown to over $350 million in AUM since it was launched in January. The covered call strategy for both UMAX and HMAX will be overseen by Nick Piquard, a well-known top covered call portfolio manager in Canada and a recent addition to the Hamilton ETFs team," said Pat Sommerville, Senior Partner and Head of Business Development at Hamilton ETFs. For more information on UMAX, ad the rest of Hamilton ETFs' innovative suite of ETFs, please visit www.hamiltonetfs.com.



About Hamilton Capital Partners Inc. (Hamilton ETFs) With over $2.5 billion in assets under management, Hamilton ETFs is one of Canada's fastest growing ETF providers, offering a suite of innovative exchanged traded fund (ETFs) designed to maximize income and growth from trusted sectors in Canada and across the globe. The firm is also an active commentator on the global financial services sector and Canadian banks; and the firm's most recent Insights can be found at www.hamiltonetfs.com/insights-commentary.

Commissions, management fees and expenses all may be associated with an investment in exchange traded funds (ETFs). Please read the prospectus before investing. ETFs are not guaranteed, their values change frequently and past performance may not be repeated. Certain statements contained in this news release constitute forward-looking information within the meaning of Canadian securities laws. Forward-looking information may relate to a future outlook and anticipated distributions, events or results and may include statements regarding future financial performance. In some cases, forward-looking information can be identified by terms such as "may", "will", "should", "expect", "anticipate", "believe", "intend" or other similar expressions concerning matters that are not historical facts. Actual results may vary from such forward-looking information. Hamilton ETFs undertakes no obligation to update publicly or otherwise revise any forward-looking statement whether as a result of new information, future events or other such factors which affect this information, except as required by law. 1 Based on a universe of 9 utilities focused ETFs that trade on the Toronto Stock Exchange, as of June 7, 2023.

2 Based on a universe of 40 financials focused ETFs that trade on the Toronto Stock Exchange, as of May 31, 2023. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230614898366/en/

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Williams will field an updated FW45 in Montreal this weekend, but Alex Albon will be the sole recipient of the changes.

The Grove-based outfit heads to Canada determined to improve on its results year-to-date, having so far scored but a single top-ten finish in 2023, thanks to Albon in Bahrain.

"The track in Montreal should play slightly more to the strengths of the FW45 than Monaco and Barcelona did," said Williams' head of vehicle performance Dave Robson.

"Furthermore, we have several upgraded components available this week, which will run on Alexs car only.

"We expect to be more competitive, but we will take our time on Friday to understand if the new package is delivering as expected."

"Alongside the work to understand the upgrades, we will look at the usual tyre work on Friday as well as understanding how the track surface has weathered in the last 12 months.

"Overtaking is easier in Montreal than it was at the last two races, which may open up some additional strategy options during the Grand Prix, if the tyre degradation can be managed."

Albon is looking forward to getting onboard Williams' updated contender at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve.

"Heading into Canada, its always a bit of a tricky circuit, however with it having more medium downforce, it should suit us a bit more than the last couple of tracks.

"We have an upgrade coming for this weekend, so it should be interesting to see how it performs.

"Everyone at the factory has done a huge job to get this upgrade ready for the weekend, so hopefully we can have a good result."

On the other side of the Williams garage, this week's Canadian Grand prix will marl Logan Sargeant's first visit to the race. And the young American is excited to discover the lay of the land on the Ile Notre Dame.

"Im excited to head to Canada for the first time," commented Sargeant. "Its a track Ive wanted to drive since I was very young.

"It's a difficult circuit with the walls very close on the exits of high-speed chicanes. I'm hoping it suits our car a little better than Barcelona and we can have a good weekend."

Keep up to date with all the F1 news via Facebook and Twitter
[June 14, 2023] The secret to securing talent in a tight labour market revealed in new PageUp research Tweet

MELBOURNE, Australia, June 15, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- New research from PageUp reveals strategies business leaders can implement to crack the code on talent attraction. PageUp, a global leader in Talent Acquisition solutions surveyed 185,000 applicants worldwide to understand what really matters in the hiring process. The findings give leaders valuable insights on how to secure talent in the face of ongoing talent shortages. "This research shows that candidate experience is more crucial than ever. With global unemployment still sitting below long-term trends, companies are struggling to attract the right candidates  and it's putting huge pressure on productivity," says PageUp Group CEO, Mark Rice. "To support long-term, sustainable organisational resilience, it's vital for companies to reflect and take action to close the gap between what candidates expect from a hiring process, and what they're getting." The research follows the jobseeker journey through three key stages  pre-application, job search and application  to show what impacts the candidate experience at each stage. The findings highlight the significant impact technology, transparency and data have on optimising the applicant journey, and shows the value for companies invested in giving candidates a stand-out experience. "We found that 32% of applications are submitted via a mobile device, a number that continues to grow each year," says Rebecca Skilbeck, Head of Customer Insights and Market Research at PageUp. "Technology has a huge role to play when it comes to scalability, streamlining processes, accessibility and guiding candidates on their journey. But, while the right tech makes a huge difference, it's not solely about the platforms it's also about how companies choose to use them. To today's jobseekers, information is key." Of the surveyed applicants, 80% expressed that it was important to have access to critical information before deciding to pursue a role but only 36% were satisfied they had access to the information they needed. With 64% of jobseekers beginning their search on the careers site, this presents an opportunity for organisations to showcase their employer brand, provide jobseekers with critical information, and optimise this channel to increase applications. When it comes to job ads, jobseekers wnted clarity and transparency: clear job titles and descriptions, a defined salary range, eligibility requirements and required documentation were the most frequently requested elements.



At the application stage, the findings indicated that question type had a much larger impact on experience positive or negative than factors like application form length. Questions asked without context, or questions jobseekers felt were 'intrusive' or 'invasive' had a strong negative impact on experience, whereas applicants praised companies who opted for clear, direct and relevant questions.

"Many organisations believe the candidate experience starts once a jobseeker has submitted an application. Nothing could be further from the truth. Our aim with this research is to provide a comprehensive view of what can go right  and wrong  at the start of the hiring process, before you even see a candidate: from initial interest, through job search to submitted application," Rebecca adds. "In what feels like a tumultuous talent market, this report gives business leaders tangible, actionable data things within their control that they can use to their advantage. This is no longer a 'nice-to-have': it's the only way to win the best talent." The full report can be accessed here . About the research: In 2021 PageUp conducted an in-depth survey of 199 jobseekers to understand what was most important across the hiring journey. Now, in the second stage of the research, PageUp surveyed over 185,000 candidates after they had applied for a job to understand which factors influence the application experience. More than 34,000 comments were analysed to determine themes related to positive and negative experiences. The survey was live in-system for 377 organisations for two weeks during October 2022. About PageUp: The powerful PageUp platform optimises each step of the talent management lifecycle  so everyone can reach their full potential. PageUp Talent Management software enhances HR processes with technology that HR professionals, people leaders and employees love to use. From Recruitment Marketing  including sophisticated content management, marketing automation and candidate relationship management tools  through to Recruitment Management , Onboarding , Learning , Performance , and Succession  all underpinned by Analytics . Customers love PageUp for its deep functionality and ability to be configured for a range of workflows and industries, all accompanied by outstanding customer service. Used in over 190 countries, PageUp is a truly global solution. PageUp has offices in Melbourne, Sydney, New York, London, Dublin and Singapore. Media contact: Bridie Mallon

Content Marketing and Communications Manager

[email protected] View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/apac/news-releases/the-secret-to-securing-talent-in-a-tight-labour-market-revealed-in-new-pageup-research-301850179.html SOURCE PageUp

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As always . . . We think this city hall contender explains his adventures far better than we ever could.

Here are the best of his two recent blasts . . .



Chastain press release: Chastain confronts Lucas @ City Hall and Lucas avoids answering Chastain's questions about why he won't debate, and if he is committed to serving the people of Kansas City (for the next 4-years), if elected Mayor.

Like most career politicians, Lucas does not ring true because he has ulterior motives. Here is the conversation between Lucas and Chastain (this morning) after the Transportation & Infrastructure hearing concluded that Lucas chaired:



Chastain approaches Lucas..."Could I have a moment of your time Mayor?

Lucas..."We'll talk soon." (Lucas walks past Chastain (out of the Council chambers) towards the elevator).



Chastain catches up with Lucas..."How can we "talk real soon" Mayor when you refuse to debate me"?



Lucas....Lucas does not respond and his female aid steps in between Chastain & Lucas in front of the elevator.



Lucas enters the elevator. Chastain tries to follow Lucas and get an answer to his debate question. Again, Lucas' female aid steps in between Lucas and Chastain and stops Chastain from entering the elevator with Lucas telling Chastain to call his office (uh huh).



Before the doors close Chastain asks Lucas.... "Are you committed to being Mayor of Kansas City for the next-4-years, if elected"?

Lucas..."We'll see."



Chastain..."Typical politician. You play your role well." (Lucas fails to respond but just smiles at Chastain as the elevator doors closes, with security standing by).



Lucas admits to Chastain (indirectly) that he is going to bail on KC sometime soon after the election, if he wins.



Conclusion: At least I'm honest with the people about my residency status (part-time) while running for Mayor. However, I have also stated that my legal situation is changing in Virginia which will allow me to be a full-time KCMO resident, if elected Mayor. Lucas is trying to deceive the people and apparently cares more about DC than he does KC. After today, the media now has another question to ask our elusive Mayor.

#################

The previous presser sent last night . . .



Chastain press release: The Battle of the Bulge set for this Friday in court. Mayor Lucas had Clay Chastain arrested for trespassing (@ City Hall) and will now prosecute his political opponent (possible 180-days in jail and or $1,000.00 fine, if guilty). Clay Chastain could become the first Mayor ever elected in America while sitting in jail because he tried to confront a sitting-Mayor over that Mayors refusal to debate him before the people.



He doesn't want to debate and he doesn't want Chastain, the media or anyone else to ask him why. Lucas cares more about his political ambition than he does the people of Kansas City.



(Reparations / Trans Sanctuary City / Defund Police) Lucas will claim Chastain was arrested for campaigning at City Hall (which Lucas and the City says is unlawful). Chastain will counter and say he was just trying to exercise his right to free speech at a City Council Forum.



We will see if our local (imperious) government (led by it's imperious Mayor) is (yet again) successful in it's on-going 30-year war to beat down an activist just trying to help improve Kansas City.

##########



You decide . . .


There are many "open secrets" about the 6th District At-Large council lady floating around amongst Kansas City's elite.

We've hinted that she's not as "powerful" as previously noted.

There's no longer any danger of getting sent to Guantanamo Bay for talking trash about her. Ironically, that makes taunting this cowtown power player far less fun.



Accordingly . . . Let's celebrate a bit of nice career news for the legal eagle and progressive politico:



INSIDERS REVEAL COUNCIL LADY ANDREA BOUGH IS LIKELY TO EARN 'MAYOR PRO TEM' HONORS FROM MAYOR Q AFTER THE NEW COUNCIL TAKES HOLD!!!



What does that mean???

For the uninitiated . . .



The Mayor Pro Tem fills in for the mayor whenever he/she is absent. In Kansas City, the Mayor Pro-Tem is basically the one vote a Mayor can always count on and often serves as a tiebreaker in close decisions.

Mayor Pro Tem typically falls to an experienced politico like Bough and she would do well playing the "nice guy" with the newbie councilmembers which allows Mayor Q a bit more leeway to establish boundaries.

And, building on our coverage this morning . . . This means that when Mayor Q takes off, Council Lady Bough might serve as KC Mayor until the next election.

Again . . . Given that we've been very snarky at her expense over the past 4 years . . . It's a relief to report something nice likely coming her way.

She has served as a solid progressive, environmentalist and strident champion of LGBT rights on the council along with her reliable support of Mayor Q's agenda.

It's unlikely that the very nice but almost totally unfunded right-wing MAGA granny running against her will win.

Developing . . .
Today we share a reminder that worsening domestic drama has helped to worsen Kansas City's current homicide crisis.

Here is the first report on a deadly morning shooting followed by local media coverage . . . Check-it:



Homicide 7400 College

On 6/14/2023 just after 8:30 am, officers were dispatched to the 7400 block of College on a reported shooting.



Upon arrival officers were directed inside a residence where they located an adult female suffering from an apparent gun shot wound. EMS arrived on scene and declared the victim deceased.



There is a person of interest in custody. Detectives are not actively looking for any additional subjects of interest. The circumstances surrounding the homicide are still being investigated.



Homicide detectives and Crime Scene Personnel have responded to the scene. They will be processing the scene to recover any evidence and speaking to any potential witnesses.



Anyone with information is asked to call homicide detectives at 816-234-5043. Or if you wish to remain anonymous you can do so by calling the TIPS Hotline at 816-474-TIPS.



There is a reward of up to $25,000 for information provided to TIPS which leads to an arrest in the case.



We are working with Partners for Peace in all our homicide investigations to monitor risks for retaliation and provide social services to affected residents.

#############



Read more via www.TonysKansasCity.com link . . .

Kansas City police investigating homicide near 74th and College Avenue KANSAS CITY, Mo. -A homicide investigation is underway after a woman was shot and killed in south Kansas City Wednesday morning. According to Kansas City police dispatch, just after 8:30 a.m. off...

1 fatally shot Wednesday morning in 7400 block of College One person was fatally shot just after 8:30 a.m. Wednesday morning in the 7400 block of College Avenue in Kansas City, Missouri.

Kansas City police investigating Wednesday morning homicide near 74th and College KCPD says they were called to the homicide scene at a residence near Noble Park just after 8:30 a.m.

Developing . . .
Tonight we share a bevy of EXCELLENT local crime reporting that offers a tough but fair glimpse at life in our cowtown . . . This time around . . . Close readers will notice one of Kansas City VERY BEST DENIZENS OF TWITTER making a surprise appearance in an uplifting story.



Check TKC news gathering . . .

Kansas City man convicted after undercover sex sting arrest A Kansas City, Missouri. man is convicted after he was arrested in an undercover sex sting in Osage County Kansas, south of Topeka.

Independence man sentenced for deadly road rage shooting A Jackson County judge sentenced an Independence man for the deadly road rage shooting of Riley Youngblood along 40 Highway in January 2022.

Man sentenced to 18 years in prison for fatally shooting Riley Youngblood in Independence Youngblood's heartbroken family members said they told prosecutors they did not support a plea agreement.

Can you be detained for not showing a receipt at stores in Kansas? Dayton Borisouth said he bought a $5 pizza at Walmart, but it turned into an attempted arrest.

911 call on Arrowhead attack on hold for 4 minutes, not 15, KC says. Is it still too long? A man who was attacked Saturday ahead of the Luke Combs concert at Arrowhead Stadium has been re-admitted to the hospital with ongoing ankle problems, his wife said.

Family reacts after two killed, another injured in Kansas City police shooting The Missouri State Highway Patrol said Marcell Nelson and Kristen Fairchild were shot by a police officer.

Man fatally shot by Olathe police was 'a sweetheart' with mental health issues, friends say David Sweet, the man shot and killed by Olathe police in June, had mental health issues and was a kind person, two friends from an addiction recovery group said.

City, county clear up confusion over Kansas' new human smuggling law Wichita Police Chief Joe Sullivan and Sedgwick County Sheriff Jeff Easter held a press conference on Tuesday to address growing concerns around House Bill 2350.

Missouri AG wants to remove sheriff accused of gang activity from office Iron County Sheriff Jeff Burkett, two deputies and a citizen were all charged in March with crimes related to an alleged kidnapping plot.

Liquor store owners in KC metro frustrated by string of thefts The owners of Party Time Liquor in Olathe are in disbelief with the amount of alcohol that was taken, which was nearly $10,000 worth.

KC Unsolved: Isaiah Abraham-Brown's mom searching for justice nearly 2 years after son's homicide An up-and-coming artist who aspired to own his own clothing line had his life cut short in an instant in Kansas City.

'Platte CARES' diversion program helps keep 1st-time offenders from repeating mistakes An initiative in Platte County is finding ways to keep some first-time offenders on a positive path instead of behind bars.

Dispatcher who assisted member of LGBTQ community in crisis honored by police department Blue Springs police say the individual called last month, saying they were struggling with thoughts of suicide.

Developing . . .
Actually . . . The comparison isn't really great given that nobody voted for a local guv worker and she never had any of that sweet, sweet Executive Privilege . . .

HOWEVER . . . Looking at this report by way of the "creeping normality" theory . . . We realize that many progressive news outlets are getting the public ready for a scary option . . . Check-it . . .



Kendra Kingsbury worked at the FBIs Kansas City division. Federal prosecutors say she kept about 386 classified documents in her home.



The case details how seriously federal investigators and prosecutors treat cases of mishandling national defense information and other classified documents.

On Tuesday, former President Donald Trump pleaded not guilty to mishandling classified intelligence documents.

In the governments sentencing memorandum, which was filed Monday, Assistant. U.S. Attorney Patrick C. Edwards requested Kingsbury be sentenced 57 months of prison time. Thats almost 5 years.

Read more via www.TonysKansasCity.com link . . .

Espionage Act case involving former KCMO FBI analyst shows seriousness of mishandling classified documents A former intelligence analyst for the Federal Bureau of Investigation will be sentenced by a federal court judge next week on two counts of violating the Espionage Act.

Related reading . . .

Protester in prison costume detained after rushing Trump's motorcade outside Miami courthouse A protester wearing a prison costume jumped in front of former President Donald Trump's motorcade following his appearance in a Florida court on Tuesday.

Ivanka Trump is long gone, but Melania is waiting. Will her husband be president - or go to prison? | Arwa Mahdawi In the past, Melania's vanishing acts have led to rumours about their marriage. Now Donald is facing a trial though, she appears to be sticking around, writes Arwa Mahdawi

Your 7 biggest questions about Trump's latest indictment, answered Here's what you need to know about the classified documents case against Trump.

Developing . . .
Again, we struggle to keep our opinion out of the mix . . .

Today's word from a local activist is EXCEPTIONALLY CONTROVERSIAL and even in the context of political conversation seems off-limits. For most, this kind of talk would be over the line.

To be fair, it's doubtful we'll see any legal action against the claim but here's our take so that we won't be accused of hiding our bias on this topic . . .

KANSAS CITY STAR PLATFORMING ACCUSATORY RHETORIC AGAINST POLICE ISN'T JOURNALISM, IT'S ADVOCACY!!!

There are a few real life journalists who read our blog . . . And we're willing to stand corrected . . . But at a certain point, when the subject of a report begins to take an irresponsible tone . . . A thoughtful journalist might document the basics of what they're saying and direct even curious readers to more resources. In the digital age . . . A direct hyperlink helps tell a story without becoming an accomplice.

Of course the Star was well within their rights to include the quote . . .

HOWEVER, these kind of street corner slurs don't seem befitting of the so-called "paper-of-record" in Kansas City.



Maybe, I'm being too much of a fuddy-duddy about this kind of thing . . . But at a certain point the desperate quest for clicks has to take second place to some semblance of civic responsibility.

Nevertheless . . . Given that we've shared our concerns and provided all of the context that we can . . .



Here's a peek at the bombastic allegation and more info on the newspaper highlighting scathing allegations against KCPD . . .



Blayne Newton is a serial killer, said Steve Young, an organizer with Kansas City Law Enforcement Accountability Project or KC LEAP. There are officers who dont discharge their weapons their entire careers. Hes (Newton) now responsible for three deaths and two assaults that we know of. It is not known how many Kansas City police officers on the job today have shot and killed more than one person. But in a 2015 Star investigation of police shootings showed that seven officers had been involved in two shootings each over the previous decade.



Read more via www.TonysKansasCity.com link . . .

KCPD officer who fatally shot 2 Friday killed unarmed man in 2020, accused of assaults The Kansas City police officer who shot and killed two people Friday night was the same officer who fatally shot Donnie Sanders in 2020 and was accused of assaulting a pregnant woman and a teen in other cases.

A better report that doesn't include incendiary rhetoric . . .

KCPD officer in deadly shooting previously investigated twice A Kansas City police officer involved in a deadly June shooting has been investigated previously in two cases, including another deadly shooting.

Related reading given that we noticed this post by way of another lesser local blog who also seems fond of tossing around the "serial killer" slur in the absence of evidence . . .

Why Rumors About Potential Serial Killers Can Be Dangerous - Grunge Armchair detectives get invested in solving murders, but they don't have all the information. Here's why rumors about potential serial killers can be dangerous.

Developing . . .
This report is interesting because the old school fiery rhetoric about "illegals" is absent and now seems to be a fringe position inasmuch as the mainstream conversation is concerned.

In fact . . .

Take note of local law enforcement officials working to calm undocumented/illegal residents about their status who might fear a roundup.

Like it or not reality check . . . With ABSOLUTELY no will from the Feds to enforce immigration laws . . . Local authorities in the reddest of all U.S. states are basically focusing on public safety over culture war election season politics.

Check-it . . .



In order for a person to be charged with the crime of human smuggling, or the intentional transporting, harboring or concealing of an individual, there has to be proof on three points: that there was transporting, harboring or concealing of an individual; knowledge of that the person being transported entered the U.S. illegally; there being a financial benefit or something of value; and, knowledge that the person transported is being exploited for the financial gain of another.



Is there some broad context of this bill that could be confusing? Yes, there is, Sedgwick County Sheriff Jeff Easter said. The fact of the matter is we have to prove elements of a crime.



Read more via www.TonysKansasCity.com links . . .

City, county clear up confusion over Kansas' new human smuggling law Wichita Police Chief Joe Sullivan and Sedgwick County Sheriff Jeff Easter held a press conference on Tuesday to address growing concerns around House Bill 2350.

New Kansas human smuggling law sparks concern A law going into effect this summer could land someone in prison for years.

Developing . . .
The US announced its intention to rejoin UNESCO in July on June 12

Greece "wholeheartedly welcomes the United States' decision to rejoin UNESCO", the Foreign Affairs Ministry said in a tweet on Tuesday, ANA reports.

"As a long-standing supporter of UNESCO's work & values, Greece looks forward to enhancing multilateral cooperation, with the participation of the United States, and contributing to the Organisation's mission to address todays challenges affecting education & cultural heritage," the Greek ministry added.

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 License: CC-BY-SA Copyright: Denniss
The exhibition is organized under the auspices of the Embassy of Japan in Greece

The Piraeus Bank Group Cultural Foundation (PIOP) and the Corfu Museum of Asian Art will be presenting the temporary exhibition "Like Silk" at the Silk Museum in Soufli, from June 10 to November 13, ANA reports.

The exhibition, which is organized under the auspices of the Embassy of Japan in Greece, will for the first time present selected authentic objects from the collections of the Corfu Museum of Asian Art, the only museum in the country dedicated exclusively to the antiquities and art of Asia.

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 License: CC-BY-SA Copyright: greecejapan.com
A major grocery chain across the GTA will not see thousands of its employees strike after the union representing them and Metro reached a tentative agreement.
40 Legit Companies That Will Pay You To Work From Home

Delmaine Donson / iStock.com

There might have been a time when working from home seemed too good to be true, but no more.

Make Money With AI and Chat GPT: How To Earn $1,000 a Month

Check Out: How To Build Your Savings From Scratch

The U.S. economy was already shifting toward more remote jobs even before the coronavirus pandemic struck. Now, with social distancing in place, working from home is more critical than ever.

Using FlexJobs' list of the 100 top companies with remote jobs, GOBankingRates pinpointed 40 organizations that have offered work-at-home positions. Note that job listings change constantly, and some work-from-home opportunities are either temporary or seasonal. Some companies have also recently trimmed their listings due to the effects of the coronavirus.

Keep reading to see if there's a company with a position that interests you.

dvoevnore / Shutterstock.com

Amazon

The world's largest online retailer employs 55,000 people in its Seattle office alone but also offers plenty of remote positions. Amazon has a virtual customer service program that offers full-time work-from-home jobs that provide benefits.

Examples of positions available: Software development engineer, technical customer service associate, risk analyst

Benefits : Health insurance, 401(k) plan, vacation and paid time off

Pay : Senior operations engineer, $95,700 to $177,900 yearly

Where to apply: Amazon jobs page

I'm a Financial Planning Expert: Here Are 3 Ways ChatGPT Can Save You Money

Also: 18 Legitimate Games & Apps That Pay Real Money in 2023

Tatiana Buzmakova / Getty Images/iStockphoto

Robert Half International

Robert Half is a global professional staffing and consulting firm that offers opportunities in a wide range of fields such as legal, finance, administrative, and IT. The company was recognized by Fortune as one of its 2023 World's Most Admired Companies.

Examples of positions available: Recruiter, staff accountant, paralegal

Benefits: 401(k) plan, employee discount, vacation and paid time off

Pay: Paralegal, $70,000 to $90,000 yearly

Where to apply: RH jobs page

Take Our Poll: Do You Think AI Will Replace Your Job?

PixelsEffect / Getty Images

Direct Interactions

Direct Interactions uses a home-based approach to deliver solutions for customer care and technical support to its clients through channels like live chat, email, social media, and traditional phone-based support.

Examples of positions available: Customer service specialist, IT support specialist

Benefits: Medical and dental coverage, life insurance, paid time off

Pay: Customer service specialist, $15/hour

Where to apply: Direct Interactions job page

Ken Wolter / Shutterstock.com

UnitedHealth Group

UnitedHealth Group provides healthcare benefits for companies and their employees as well as state Medicaid and Medicare plans. The Minneapolis-based company offers a variety of remote jobs.

Examples of positions available: Care manager, product manager, healthcare services coordinator, Medicare consultant

Benefits: 401(k) plan, health insurance, life insurance, HSA

Pay: Healthcare services coordinator, $18.80 to $36.78/hour

Where to apply: UnitedHealth Group jobs page

Skarie20 / Getty Images/iStockphoto

Alight Solutions

Formerly known as Aon Hewitt, Alight Solutions is an information technology and services company that employs over 15,000 people and has served over half of the Fortune 500.

Examples of positions available: Communications manager, workers compensation case manager, customer service agent

Benefits: Health, dental, and vision insurance, life insurance, 401(k) plan

Pay: Customer service agent, $45,200 yearly

Where to apply: Alight jobs page

Ken Wolter / Shutterstock.com

Williams-Sonoma

Founded in 1956, this home products retailer operates Pottery Barn, West Elm, Rejuvenation and Mark and Graham in addition to its namesake Williams-Sonoma stores. The company's call center positions are sometimes offered as home-based options, particularly during the holiday seasons.

Examples of positions available: Customer service agent, virtual design associate

Benefits: 401(k) plan, health insurance, vacation and paid time off, employee discounts

Pay: Call center customer service, $15/hour

Where to apply: Williams-Sonoma jobs page, may also put up seasonal job applications on other sites

Side Gig: Earn Up To $200/Hour With This Easy-To-Start Job, No College Degree Required

Jonathan Weiss / Shutterstock.com

Lincoln Financial Group

Founded in 1905, Pennsylvania-based Lincoln Financial Group offers its customers a wide range of financial services but specializes in retirement income security.

Examples of positions available: Retirement consultant, sales representative, financial analyst

Benefits: 401(k) plan, paid time off, free financial counseling

Pay: Retirement consultant, $60,000 to $135,000 yearly

Where to apply: Lincoln Financial Group jobs page

ricochet64 / Shutterstock.com

Xerox

This Fortune 500 company is known for its office printers and copiers, but it also focuses heavily on solutions and services.

Examples of positions available: Software support engineer, post sales analyst, help desk associate

Benefits: 401(k) plan, health insurance, paid holidays

Pay: Help desk associate, around $55,000 yearly

Where to apply: Xerox jobs page

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Humana

Louisville, Kentucky-based Humana is one of the largest health insurance providers in the U.S. It provides group health insurance and Medicare plans as well as the TRICARE program for active duty and retired military members and their families.

Examples of positions available: Actuarial analyst, senior software engineer, care management support professional

Benefits: Medical, dental and vision insurance, 401(k) plan, vacation and paid time off

Pay: Senior software engineer, around $168,000 yearly

Where to apply: Humana jobs page

TTEC

TTEC

TTEC is a global customer experience technology and services company that provides human-centric, tech-enabled customer service solutions. Several remote positions are available.

Examples of positions available: customer service representative, network engineering architect, revenue assurance analyst

Benefits: Medical, dental and vision insurance, 401(k), HSA plan, health insurance, paid time off

Pay: customer service representative, $17.50/hour

Where to apply: TTEC jobs page

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HubSpot

Since its founding in 2006, HubSpot has become an industry-leading customer relationship management (CRM) platform. It was recognized as one of Glassdoor's 2023 Best Places to Work.

Examples of positions available: Customer service specialist, enterprise solutions architect, product manager

Benefits: Medical, dental and vision insurance, unlimited vacation, tuition reimbursement

Pay: Enterprise solutions architect, $140,000 to $223,000 yearly

Where to apply: HubSpot jobs page

Working Solutions

Working Solutions

Working Solutions provides home-based sales and customer service representatives for a variety of businesses. Its call center support services aim to provide on-demand solutions in four main areas: customer care, sales, business continuity and back-office support. Remote jobs are available in customer service and sales.

Examples of positions available: Customer service representative, travel reservation representative

Benefits: Job training, flexible hours

Pay: Customer service representative, around $19/hour

Where to apply: Working Solutions jobs page

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Cactus Communications

Cactus Communications is a medical communications agency that provides writing, editing and transcription services for pharmaceutical and medical device companies. It's based in Mumbai, India, but hires freelance contractors around the world.

Examples of positions available: Graphic designer, editorial reviewer, freelance translator

Benefits: Performance bonuses

Pay: Freelance translator, around $43,000 yearly

Where to apply: Cactus Communications jobs page

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Pearson

With over 160 million users worldwide, Pearson is a leading education company that serves both institutions and individual learners. Many of their remote opportunities are related to developing test content and scoring tests.

Examples of positions available: Marketing manager, product manager, scorer

Benefits: 401(k) plan, health insurance, paid time off, stock purchase plan

Pay: Scorer, $17.50/hour

Where to apply: Pearson jobs page

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ICON plc

This Dublin, Ireland based company has over 90 locations in 40 countries, making it a global presence in the outsourced development services industry. Many of its opportunities are in the field of clinical research

Examples of positions available: Clinical study manager, clinical trial manager, account executive

Benefits: Medical and dental, paid time off

Pay: Clinical trial manager, around $110,000 yearly

Where to apply: ICON jobs page

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Randstad

Randstad, founded in 1960, is one of the world's largest staffing companies, providing outsourcing and staffing solutions for engineering, healthcare, HR, legal, and more. In addition to their nearly 6,000 internal staff members, they manage an additional workforce of over 94,000 people each week in the United States and Canada.

Examples of positions available: Project manager, user experience designer, telemarketer

Benefits: Medical and dental insurance, paid volunteer hours, access to Randstad University

Pay: Telemarketer, around $28/hour

Where to apply: Randstad jobs page

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Citizens Bank

Originally founded as a community bank in 1828, Citizens Bank is one of America's oldest financial institutions. They offer a broad range of banking products to both individuals and businesses.

Examples of positions available: Mortgage loan officer, cloud engineer, client services specialist

Benefits: Medical, dental and vision insurance, 401(k) plan, paid time off, gym and tuition reimbursement

Pay: Mortgage loan officer, $100,000 to $250,000 yearly (commision based)

Where to apply: Citizens Bank jobs page

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BairesDev

BairesDev describes itself as the leading nearshore technology solutions company. This Buenos Aires based company partners with tech businesses to rapidly scale their teams. In their own words, they "were fully remote before fully remote was trendy."

Examples of positions available: Product manager, SQL developer, graphic designer

Benefits: Paid time off, professional development, travel and relocation

Pay: Product manager, around $180,000 yearly

Where to apply: BairesDev jobs page

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GitHub

GitHub is best-known as a website that hosts open-source code, but also serves as a software publisher and social network for software developers.

Examples of positions available: Staff researcher, corporate sales representative, software engineer

Benefits: 401(k) plan, medical, dental, and vision coverage, charitable donation match

Pay: Staff researcher, $118,100 to $313,000 yearly

Where to apply: GitHub careers page

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BCD Travel

BCD Travel is based in the Netherlands but has its regional U.S. headquarters in Atlanta. The company focuses on making corporate travel more cost-effective and streamlined for clients. It offers several telecommuting and remote job opportunities.

Examples of positions available: Data analyst, travel consultant, meeting coordinator

Benefits: 401(k) plan, health insurance

Pay: Travel consultant, around $63,000 yearly

Where to apply: BCD Travel jobs page

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Thermo Fisher Scientific

Thermo Fisher Scientific develops biotechnology products, reagents, scientific instruments, software solutions and other science-based products and supplies. It employs over 80,000 people around the world. Some of its remote jobs require heavy travel.

Examples of positions available: Procurement analyst, field service engineer, account executive

Benefits: Medical, dental and vision insurance, 401(k) plan, employee discounts

Pay: Field service engineer, around $100,000 yearly

Where to apply: Thermo Fisher Scientific jobs page

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SAP

SAP is the market leader in enterprise application software. The company has more than 100,000 employees in over 140 countries.

Examples of positions available: IT senior specialist, technical service manager, mobile developer

Benefits: Medical, dental and vision insurance, 401(k) plan, paid time off

Pay: Mobile developer, around $127,000 annually

Where to apply: SAP jobs page

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Liveops

Liveops offers the VirtualFlex platform to its customers -- a scalable, on-demand system to fill sales and customer service needs. Remote jobs are primarily the agents that make VirtualFlex work, through voice, email, text, or live chat.

Examples of positions available: Retail support agent, inbound sales agent, insurance sales agent

Benefits: 401(k) plan, health insurance, vacation and paid time off

Pay: Varies depending on client, typically $12 to $17/hour

Where to apply: Liveops jobs page

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Lee Hecht Harrison

LHH is a management consulting company owned by Adecco Group, one of the world's leading workforce solutions companies. Their consulting services include strategic advisory, leadership development, career transition, and recruitment solutions.

Examples of positions available: Sales executive, claims adjuster, account support specialist

Benefits: Medical, dental and vision insurance, 401(k) plan, paid holidays, skills training

Pay: Claims adjuster, $18 to $20/hour

Where to apply: LHH jobs page

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Transcom

Self-described "customer experience fanatics," Transcom offers customer and technical support services as well as sales and credit management services. Originally founded in Sweden in 1995, Transcom was an early adopter of work-from-home.

Examples of positions available: Technical support advisor, retail customer support, appointment setter

Benefits: Medical, dental, and vision insurance, 401(k) plan, paid time off

Pay: Appointment setter, $15 to $17/hour

Where to apply: Transcom jobs page

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AnywhereWorks

With its mission to "help the world work anywhere," AnywhereWorks offers a variety of 100% remote positions. They advocate people-powered customer support over the growing trend of using chatbots or other automated solutions.

Examples of positions available: Legal support associate, property services associate

Benefits: Medical, dental, and vision coverage, 401(k) plan, paid time off

Pay: Legal support associate, starting at $155/hour

Where to apply: AnywhereWorks jobs page

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Travel Nurse Across America

As the name implies, TNAA is a healthcare staffing firm specializing in the travel nursing industry. While nursing obviously can't really be remote, many of TNAA's corporate jobs offer a fully remote working environment.

Examples of positions available: Recruiting specialist, workforce consultant

Benefits: Health benefits, 401(k) plan, unlimited paid time off

Pay: Travel nurse recruiting specialist, $40,000 yearly with performance incentives

Where to apply: TNAA careers page

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Liberty Mutual

One of the largest casualty and property insurers in the nation, Liberty Mutual offers remote work in areas such as customer service, insurance, and sales.

Examples of positions available: Underwriter, inside sales representative

Benefits: Medical, dental and vision insurance, 401(k) plan, employee assistance plan

Pay: Inside sales representative, $55,000 to $75,000 yearly

Where to apply: LMG jobs page

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Stride, Inc

Formerly known as K12, provides online educational programs for students in kindergarten through grade 12. Its programs are geared toward military families, home-schooled children, athletes and traveling entertainers. Numerous work-from-home positions are available.

Examples of positions available: Teacher, guidance counselor, special education, speech pathologist

Benefits: 401(k) plan, health insurance, paid time off

Pay: Special education teacher, around $75,000 yearly

Where to apply: Stride jobs page

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Mozilla

The Mozilla corporation is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the nonprofit Mozilla Foundation, a community open source project founded in 1998. Best known for the Firefox browser, their work is guided by the "Mozilla Manifesto" of ten principles focused around the internet as a global public resource.

Examples of positions available: Staff software engineer, product manager, payroll administrator

Benefits: Medical, dental, and vision coverage, parental leave, wellbeing stipend

Pay: Staff software engineer, $138,000 to $239,000 depending on location

Where to apply: Mozilla careers page

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Sutherland

Sutherland offers services that help companies improve their business processes and customer engagement. It works in a variety of sectors, including healthcare, insurance, banking and government. Sutherland has posted job listings for a variety of work-at-home positions.

Examples of positions available: Customer support representative, insurance agent, medical coder

Benefits: Vision, dental and health insurance, paid training, paid time off, performance incentives

Pay: Medical coder, $30/hour

Where to apply: Sutherland jobs page

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American Red Cross

A household name, this 501(c)(3) public nonprofit famously provides communities with disaster relief, donated blood, and health and safety education.

Examples of positions available: Donor scheduler, logistics engineer, caseworker

Benefits: Medical and dental insurance, paid parental leave, floating holidays

Pay: Donor scheduler, $15.50 to $16.50/hour

Where to apply: Red Cross jobs page

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Kelly Services

Kelly Services is a staffing agency committed to pairing people with companies that need their skills. The company provides staffing for 75 of the Fortune 100 companies. FlexJobs has named Kelly Services one of the Top 100 employers for remote jobs every year since 2014.

Examples of positions available: Customer service representative, language interpreter

Benefits: Medical, prescription and group life insurance, vacation, holiday and sick pay, job training

Pay: Language interpreter, $15/hour

Where to apply: Kelly Services jobs page

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CWT Global

This Paris, France based company traces its roots all the way back to 1872, when a Belgian named Georges Nagelmackers started a business that added sleeping compartments to trains. He went on to create the legendary Orient Express. All these years later, CWT now specializes in business travel and meeting event management.

Examples of positions available: Meeting and event planner, project manager

Benefits: Medical, dental and vision insurance, 401(k) plan, vacation and paid time off

Pay: Project manager, around $89,000 yearly

Where to apply: CWT jobs page

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The Hartford

One of the nation's largest investment and insurance companies, The Hartford has been in business for over 200 years. Founded in 1810, it even beats out the remarkable CWT Global. With offices all over the world, it's no wonder that this company offers flexible work environments.

Examples of positions available: Data scientist, actuarial associate, staff attorney

Benefits: Medical, dental and vision insurance, 401(k) plan, vacation and paid time off

Pay: Data scientist, $84,960 to $127,440

Where to apply: The Hartford jobs page

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Kaplan

Kaplan has an 80-year history as a test prep company for everything from SAT students to lawyers and doctors preparing for licensing exams. Data scientists and educators are often in demand for remote positions here.

Examples of positions available: Client success consultant, instructor, software engineer

Benefits: Medical, dental and vision insurance, 401(k) plan, paid time off

Pay: SAT instructor, $22/hour

Where to apply: Kaplan jobs page

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CVS Health

CVS Health has been a FlexJobs Top 100 remote employer since 2014. The company is the largest provider of prescriptions and healthcare services in the US. Common remote opportunities at the company are not just in healthcare but in fields like sales, customer service, and account management.

Examples of positions available: Customer service representative, case manager RN, community health worker

Benefits: Medical, dental and vision insurance, employee discounts, vacation and paid time off

Pay: Customer service representative, $17 to $27.90/hour

Where to apply: CVS Health jobs page

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Achieve Test Prep

For three straight years, Achieve Test Prep has made the FlexJobs Top 100 remote employers list. The company develops products for the Credit-by-Examination Educational Marketplace and offers all of its people work-from-home opportunities.

Examples of positions available: Instructor, social media specialist, sales manager

Benefits: On-the-job training, paid holidays, paid time off

Pay: Sales manager, $100,000 to $115,000 yearly

Where to apply: Achieve Test Prep jobs page

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Parexel

Parexel is one of the world's largest clinical research organizations, with a team of over 21,000 professionals. They work in a wide range of therapeutic areas, like oncology, neuroscience, vaccines, and rare diseases.

Examples of positions available: Clinical research associate, biostatistician, project manager

Benefits: Medical, dental and vision insurance, 401(k) plan, paid time off

Pay: Project manager, around $130,000 yearly

Where to apply: Parexel remote jobs page

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Allstate

Everyone knows the slogan - but this insurer also has a number of remote jobs in its hands, primarily in sales, IT, and claims.

Examples of positions available: Sales representative, regional sales manager, auto damage adjuster

Benefits: Vacation and paid time off, health insurance, paid training and licensing

Pay: Auto damage adjuster, $51,600 to $71,050 yearly

Where to apply: Allstate jobs page

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Cameron Huddleston contributed to the reporting for this article.

This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: 40 Legit Companies That Will Pay You To Work From Home
Ukrainian pilots can start training for the F-16 as early as this summer.

Dutch Defense Minister Kajsa Ollongren said this in an interview with Reuters, according to Ukrinform.

Ukrainian pilots can start training to fly U.S.-made F-16 fighter jets as early as this summer, the minister said.

It is noted that the Netherlands previously stated they intend to start training Ukrainian pilots "as soon as possible", but stopped short of announcing the date for the training start.

This summer is our ambition. And we will see if it is realistic, Ollongren said, commenting on the long-awaited start of the training program.

She also said the goal would be to have the curriculum fully rolled out within six months. Denmark, which has the necessary flight simulators, is seen as a likely location to host the training.

As Ukrinform reported earlier, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin announced on Thursday that Denmark and the Netherlands, in cooperation with the USA, would in a few weeks start developing a base for comprehensive training of Ukrainian pilots on F-16s and other fourth-generation warplanes.

Photo: Jeffrey Groeneweg/AFP/Getty Images
It's all about those contribution margins, Aston Martin owner Lawrence Stroll says.

Lawrence Stroll and his British luxury performance brand, Aston Martin (AML.L), are planting a big flag in New York City  part of the billionaire's continued quest to cater to the wealthy and produce eye-raising profit margins.

The automaker opened its Q New York boutique, its first flagship store, on 450 Park Avenue in New York City, a stones throw away from the iconic Plaza Hotel. The new location  with floor-to-ceiling champagne tinged windows, Italian marble floors, and clubhouse style walnut trimmed lounge  brings the British brands bespoke service, Q by Aston Martin, to North America for the very first time.

Q by Aston Martin boutique in New York City

Aston Martins chairman knows a thing or two about owning businesses that attract the wealthy among us. The Canadian, who made his billions licensing brands like Polo Ralph Lauren, Tommy Hilfiger, and Michael Kors for territories around the globe, bought a controlling interest in Aston Martin in 2020. (His vision also included a rebranding his Racing Point F1 team to Aston Martin Racing in 2021.)

Though Stroll is passionate about high-end cars and racing, he wasnt going to buy a then-struggling Aston out of kindness. He expected, and expects, to produce big profit margins.

Q by Aston Martin boutique in New York City

I've already mentioned previously that every car under my stewardship will only start with a minimum of 40% contribution margin. That was significantly not the case when I took over, Stroll said in a roundtable discussion with reporters from the Q New York boutique.

In accounting parlance, contribution margin differs from regular gross margin in that it excludes fixed costs and focuses on variable costs like materials, variable overhead, and sales commissions. In theory, it is supposed to give a better view of a business  and how much it actually earns from sales.

MONTE-CARLO, MONACO - MAY 28: Owner of Aston Martin F1 Team Lawrence Stroll looks on during the F1 Grand Prix of Monaco at Circuit de Monaco on May 28, 2023 in Monte-Carlo, Monaco. (Photo by Eric Alonso/Getty Images)

But before those lofty goals could be reached, Stroll said he had to clean up some issues. "When I started three years ago, there was [too much] inventory on the market, and we stopped production for almost a whole year. I said, 'We got to clear this inventory.'" That "was a very expensive proposition to do, hugely expensive, you have no gross margin coming in and all the expenses going up," he added referring to the then-current lineup of DB11, Vantage, and DBS road cars.

Q by Aston Martin boutique in New York City

"So the first thing, those same cars [that] were selling at a slight discount when I arrived are now selling at 25% to 35% higher prices," Stroll said, after drastically cutting production.

Stroll said that was step one of the plan. The next step started with the DBX SUV and the special edition variant  the DBX 707. It was the first new car produced under Strolls stewardship, and it hit the 40% contribution margin that Stroll was targeting.

"We've achieved our 40% contribution margin. Now [new cars] will go from 40% contribution margins up to 65-75% contribution margin depending (on) volumes," he said.

Aston Martin intends to offer more on its updated financial metrics at its capital markets day scheduled for June 26. Stroll said the company will update its EBITDA targets ($2 billion by 2024-2025) as well as its production volumes (9,000-10,000 vehicles).

Q by Aston Martin boutique in New York City

Said Stroll: "I'd rather make 100 cars less at 45% contribution margin than 1000 cars or more at 25% contribution margin because guess what? It comes out to the same amount of dollars at the end of the day."



Pras Subramanian is a reporter for Yahoo Finance. You can follow him on Twitter and on Instagram.

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France has sent two more teams of criminal investigators and forensic experts to Ukraine to help investigate the environmental harm and damage to civilian property caused by the Russian invaders.

This is stated in a joint communique of the Ministry of Europe and Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of the Interior and Overseas Affairs of France, published on Tuesday by the French Embassy in Ukraine, Ukrinform reports.

"On June 10 and 11, France sent two teams from the French Ministry of the Interior and Overseas Territories to Ukraine, one consisting of investigators and the other of forensic experts... In response to Ukraine's request for assistance from France, the first team will help the Ukrainian authorities investigate crimes that have caused serious and lasting damage to the environment since the beginning of Russian aggression in Ukraine," the document says.

The group includes gendarmes from the Central Directorate for Combating Crimes against the Environment and Public Health (OCLAESP) and an expert from the Institute of Criminal Research of the National Gendarmerie (IRCGN).

France will also deploy a technical and forensic police mission under the auspices of the Office of the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC), the communique says.

Drawing on IRCGN's experience, this mission will collect evidence of civilian property damage and document it using three-dimensional digital models. The information gathered will facilitate the ICC investigation and proceedings in Ukrainian courts.

The document notes that these two new missions are a continuation of five previous missions of the French Ministry of the Interior and Overseas Territories to Ukraine, two of which were long-term. These missions included investigating damage to infrastructure, identifying victims in order to return their bodies to their families, investigating causes of death, and modeling crime scenes.

"France reiterates its strong condemnation of Russia's aggressive war against Ukraine. True to its long-standing commitment, France will continue to support the vital work of the Ukrainian and international criminal justice systems in the fight against impunity for all crimes committed in Ukraine," the French Foreign Ministry and the Ministry of the Interior assured.

As reported, at night on June 6, the Russian army blew up the dam of the Kakhovka hydroelectric power plant. Rescue operations and measures to overcome the consequences of this crime are ongoing in the Kherson region. The situation in the temporarily occupied territories of the region remains dramatic, as the occupation forces do not allow Ukrainian rescuers to enter the flooded areas.

Law enforcement officers have opened an investigation into the occupiers' explosion of the Kakhovka HPP under the article "ecocide." Ukrhydroenergo stated that Kakhovka HPP was completely destroyed and cannot be restored.
Ukraine has filed a request with Australia as to the current condition of 41 decommissioned F-18 fighter jets.

This was stated by the Ambassador of Ukraine to Australia, Vasyl Myroshnychenko, who gave a comment to AFP, Ukrinform reports citing The Defense Post.

The Ukrainian diplomat noted that an initial inquiry had been made about the condition of approximately 41 aircraft stored at an air base north of Sydney.

"There has been a request for information. Ukraine is looking at fighter jet capabilities, including this one," Myroshnychenko said.

As reported earlier, Australia, the U.S., and Ukraine are discussing the possibility of transferring to Kyiv 41 F/A-18 Hornets of the Royal Australian Air Force.
The meeting of NATO ministers of defense on June 15 will start with a meeting of the NATO-Ukraine Commission, during which Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov and NATO allies will address developments on the ground and discuss a multi-year package of support for Ukraine.

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said this at a press conference in Brussels on Wednesday ahead of the meeting of NATO defense ministers, according to an Ukrinform correspondent.

"We will start our ministerial with a meeting of the NATO-Ukraine Commission, which will be preceded by the Ukraine Defense Contact Group led by the United States. Together with Defense Minister Reznikov, we will address developments on the ground and how to sustain our support. We will discuss a multi-year package of support with substantial funding to ensure Ukraine can defend itself for the longer term," he said.

He noted that this package would help Ukraine transition from Soviet-era to NATO standards, achieve full interoperability with NATO, and reform and rebuild its security and defense sector.

"We must ensure that when this war ends, there are credible arrangements in place for Ukraine's security so that history does not repeat itself and so that Russia cannot rest, rearm and relaunch a fresh attack," Stoltenberg said.

"At the Vilnius summit, we will send a strong message of support and solidarity with Ukraine and make clear that Ukraine's future is in NATO," he added.
The Netherlands will start training Ukrainian pilots on F-16 fighter jets within a few months and is working with partners to create a training center.

Dutch Defense Minister Kajsa Ollongren reported this on Twitter, according to Ukrinform.

"I have just informed the House of Representatives about new support for Ukraine. We will start the F-16 training within a few months and are working with partners on an F-16 training center. We will also continue to strengthen Ukrainian air defenses," Ollongren wrote.

A statement posted on the website of the Dutch Defense Ministry says that the training of Ukrainian pilots on the F-16 will begin in the coming months.

"The Netherlands and several European countries are working to start training Ukrainian pilots on the F-16 as soon as possible. At the same time, a training center is being set up in a country in Eastern Europe. The Netherlands is also once again contributing to strengthening the air defense of Ukraine," the ministry said.

Earlier reports said that Denmark and the Netherlands would lead a coalition of partner nations lining up to train Ukraine pilots how to fly F-16 fighter jets.

Photo: Defensie.nl
The main topics of the next meeting to be held by the Ukraine Defense Support Group in Ramstein, Germany, on Thursday, will be strengthening Ukraines air defense and other capabilities both short- and long-term.

Thats according to a readout of U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin's phone call with Ukrainian Minister of Defense Oleksii Reznikov.

The meeting will focus on bolstering Ukraines air defense and other near-term capability priorities, as well as training and sustainment to enhance Ukraine's enduring strength over the long term.

It was also reported that Lloyd Austin provided Reznikov with an update on recent U.S. security support, including the announcement of an additional $325 million package.

Minister Reznikov shared his reflections on the dynamics on the ground in Ukraine, the readout says.

As Ukrinform reported earlier, the United States announced on Tuesday an additional package of military support to Ukraine, which provides for the immediate delivery of air defense equipment, HIMARS munitions, artillery rounds, armored vehicles, and other weapons.
President Volodymyr Zelensky thanked Luxembourg for recognizing the Holodomor of 1932-1933 as genocide of the Ukrainian people.

The head of state wrote about this on Twitter, Ukrinform reported.

"The Chamber of Deputies of Luxembourg recognized the Holodomor of 1932-1933 as genocide of the Ukrainian people. I am grateful to Luxembourg for this historic vote. The world will never accept the crimes of the Kremlin regime - neither past nor present!" Zelensky emphasized.

In turn, Deputy Speaker of the Verkhovna Rada Olena Kondratiuk thanked the Parliament of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg on Facebook for recognizing the Holodomor as genocide.

According to her, this is one step closer to restoring historical justice for the Ukrainian people.

"We also appeal to the Chamber of Deputies of Luxembourg to provide a clear assessment of Russia's latest crimes - to recognize Russia as a terrorist state," added the Deputy Speaker of the Verkhovna Rada.

At the same time, she thanked Luxembourg for providing humanitarian aid to Ukraine worth 90 million euros and hosting more than five thousand internally displaced Ukrainians.

As reported, the day before, the House of Deputies of Luxembourg adopted a resolution recognizing the Holodomor of 1932-1933 as genocide of the Ukrainian people.
By deploying nuclear weapons in Belarus, Russia and Belarus violate the International Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons. Moreover, such actions are also considered a violation by Russia of the provisions of the Budapest Memorandum in relation to Belarus itself. The UN Security Council must remain focused on the issue.

Thats according to Ritis Paulauskas, Lithuanias Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Ukrinform reports citing Guildhall.

On 25 May, Defense ministers of Russia and Belarus signed documents defining the procedure for deploying Russias non-strategic nuclear weapons in a special storage facility on the territory of Belarus. The deployment of any kind of nuclear weapons in Belarus goes against Russias and Belarus international commitments under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, the envoy said.

In particular, after blatantly violating the 1994 Budapest Memorandum on Security Assurances to Ukraine, Russia would also be in breach of the similar Memorandum on Security Assurances in connection with Belarus. The Budapest Memorandum committed Belarus to eliminate all nuclear weapons from its territory. It also committed Russia to respect a non-nuclear Belarus, he added.

Paulauskas noted that, by accepting the deployment of Russias nuclear weapons, Belarus is getting integrated ever more closely into Russias military plans.

Putin and Lukashenka are escalating further. Their nuclear rhetoric and actions are dangerous and irresponsible. The Security Council and the other relevant international bodies should remain focused on this issue. We continue our consultations with our strategic partners, the diplomat stressed.

As Ukrinform reported earlier, on May 25, the Russian and Belarusian defense ministers signed off an agreement on the deployment of Russian tactical nuclear weapons on Belarusian soil. On the same day, Lukashenko announced that Russia had already begun to transfer its nuclear weapons to Belarus.

Last week, at a meeting with Lukashenko in Sochi, Putin said that tactical nuclear weapons would be delivered to Belarus after July 7-8.
Russia poses the greatest threat to peace and security in the entire Euro-Atlantic area in the foreseeable future, and Germany and its partners will continue to support Ukraine.

Olaf Scholz, the Chancellor of Germany, said this while presenting the National Security Strategy: Integrated Security for Germany," an Ukrinform correspondent reported.

"Russia's aggressive war against Ukraine is a violation of international law and the European security order. Today's Russia is the greatest threat to peace and security in the Euro-Atlantic region for the foreseeable future," the document, the first of its kind in German history, reads.

"Russia's brutal war of aggression against Ukraine poses a fundamental challenge to the European security order... That is why it is so important to support Ukraine," the German Chancellor said at the presentation of the document.

According to him, Germany is currently second after the United States in terms of financial, humanitarian, and weapons support to Ukraine, and will continue to provide support as long as Ukraine is forced to defend itself.

In this context, the politician also mentioned the establishment of a rapid process of repairing weapons donated and damaged in combat - in Slovakia, Romania and soon in Poland. This is very important now, he said.

Scholz called it necessary to provide security guarantees for Ukraine in the future. Very specific, intensive, and "trusting" discussions have been underway with the most important partners and with Ukraine for some time now, he said.

"We are talking about preparing for how we can guarantee security when the current situation ends," he added, without providing specifics.

The head of the German government emphasized the inadmissibility of freezing the conflict or forcing Ukraine to an unjust peace, as some have demanded.

"We are not demanding freezing or legitimizing the theft of Ukraine's territories...We do not accept a dictated peace. Russia must withdraw its troops," Scholz emphasized.

Read also: Ukraine asks Germany to provide more tanks

The presentation of the document, the first of its kind in German history, was attended by Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Ministers of Finance Christian Lindner, Defense Boris Pistorius, Foreign Affairs Annalena Burbock and Interior Nancy Feser. The document was approved by the federal government on Wednesday.
France condemns in the strongest terms the new wave of Russian missile strikes that recently targeted the Kyiv, Dnipropetrovsk and Kharkiv regions.

The French Foreign Ministry said this in a statement published by the French Embassy in Ukraine on Wednesday, June 14, according to Ukrinform.

"These strikes once again deliberately targeted civilian infrastructure and residential buildings, in flagrant violation of international humanitarian law. They caused several victims, in particular in the city of Kryvyi Rih, where six people lost their lives, according to a provisional report by the Ukrainian authorities," the statement said.

The French Foreign Ministry recalled that as French Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs Catherine Colonna has repeatedly pointed out, these unacceptable acts constitute war crimes and cannot go unpunished.

"France will continue to provide support to the Ukrainian courts and to the International Criminal Court in order to fight against impunity for such crimes," the statement said.

In Kryvyi Rih, the Russian army targeted a five-story residential building and other civilian objects in the early hours of June 13, killing 12 people.

Russia's missile attack on Odesa early on June 14 left three people dead and 13 others injured.
In Lithuania, according to the Employment Service, 25,600 Ukrainians work under labor contracts.

This is reported by Delfi, Ukrinform reports.

As noted, most of the Ukrainian citizens without state support were employed by PKC Group in Lithuania, Manvesta, Elixus, Rimi Lietuva, AQ Wiring Systems, Biovela - Utenos Mesa, Premier Restaurants, Costo, Marino grupe, Baltic Transline Transport.

In Lithuania, in the case of subsidized employment, the employer is compensated for wages. "This targeted support connects employers and employees - when updating or acquiring skills for specific jobs, people adapt faster and companies find employees faster," explained Brigita Blavasciuniene, advisor to the Employment Service's event management department.

According to experts, the integration of Ukrainians into the Lithuanian labor market helps to solve the problem of staff shortages. "This cushions the need for labor, especially in the areas of accommodation and catering services, manufacturing, construction, wholesale and retail trade," Blavasciuniene said.

Currently, 9.9 thousand positions are registered on the platform of the Lithuanian Employment Service.

As reported, in March, the Department of Migration registered about 42 thousand Ukrainian refugees in Lithuania who have a temporary residence permit in the country on the basis of temporary protection.
FILE PHOTO: A worker is reflected in a wall of the Reserve Bank of Australia head office in central Sydney, Australia

SYDNEY (Reuters) - Australia's central bank will pay out just over A$1 million in back pay after an internal review found on Wednesday the bank had systematically underpaid more than a thousand current and former employees.

A review into the Reserve Bank of Australia's (RBA) "more complex remuneration arrangements" identified 1,173 current and former staff owed roughly A$1.15 million ($777,975), according to a statement on Wednesday.

Most of the money owed came from leave entitlements that should have been paid out when staff left the bank, the bank said. The RBA has contacted all the staff involved and begun making payments.

The bank should be setting an example for the broader sector on pay and was right to apologise, according to Julia Angrisano, national secretary of the Finance Sector Union.

It should not be up to the Finance Sector Union to point out to the RBA that its internal procedures are leaving staff out of pocket, she said in a statement.

The Reserve Bank's admission comes weeks after fellow Australian institution and the world's biggest listed miner BHP Group said it owed workers A$280 million in leave and other entitlements from a 13-year period of underpayment.

The review was done with the help of "big four" firm PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) Australia, which is battling a national scandal over the misuse of confidential government tax documents.

Governor Philip Lowe said last month the bank would freeze all new work with the firm until there was an appropriate amount of transparency and accountability from the firm.

($1 = 1.4782 Australian dollars)

(Reporting by Lewis Jackson; Editing by Kim Coghill)
Estonia will provide Ukraine with machinery and equipment to help eliminate the consequences of the Russians' blowing up of the Kakhovka dam, for which almost 457,000 euros have been allocated.

That's according to the national broadcaster ERR, Ukrinform reports.

It is noted that in this way Estonia responded to Ukraine's international request for assistance. The country's Rescue Department will send equipment worth almost 457,000 euros to Ukraine. The money is allocated by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Estonia.

"The priority now is to rescue people from the flooded areas, and as soon as the water subsides, we can start calculating the damage and pumping out the water. It is very important for us that we can help Ukraine in this crisis. Our friends are doing exactly that," said Margo Klaos, Director General of the Estonian Rescue Board.

Hoses, pumps, absorbent material, boats, wetsuits, rubber pants, and cork vests will be sent to Ukraine.

The day before, the Latvian government decided to provide Ukraine with humanitarian aid worth more than 453,000 euros to eliminate the consequences of the destruction of the Kakhovka hydroelectric power plant.

As reported by Ukrinform, on the night of June 6, the Russian army blew up the dam of the Kakhovka hydroelectric power plant. Rescue operations and evacuation of the population from the flooded areas continue in Kherson region. The situation is particularly difficult in the temporarily occupied territories.

Ukrhydroenergo stated that Kakhovka HPP was completely destroyed and cannot be restored.

Photo: libkos
| By Alex Likowski

Im proud to witness the official unveiling of the new mobile health treatment unit, Caroline County Commissioner Larry Porter told a crowd gathered at the Caroline County Health Department offices in Denton on June 9. We have a team thats dedicated to provide our citizens with the proper care and resources to help bridge this vital gap in our community.

The team Porter referenced is the Eastern Shore Mobile Care Collaborative, a partnership between the county health departments behavioral health program and the University of Maryland, Baltimore. Funded by the Maryland Health Resources and Services Administration, the collaboratives two mobile treatment units bring evidence-based treatment to individuals with opioid use disorders and underserved rural communities, said Caroline County Health Officer Robin Cahall. There's a great need here on the mid-Shore for the services that are being provided.

The MTU team (l-r) Jessica Anthony, outpatient program graduate; Brittney Marshall, outpatient program graduate; Linda Tetrick, MSN, RN; Jessica Tuel, MSW, Director of Behavioral Health; Kristina Pullen, Substance Use Counselor; Roger McKnight, MTU Program Administrator; Eric Weintraub, MD; Robin Cahall, Caroline County Health Officer; Carla Penny, MTU Coordinator

Under the medical supervision of University of Maryland School of Medicine (UMSOM) professor Eric Weintraub, MD, the mobile treatment team sees about 150 clients a month in Caroline County. With the addition of a second mobile unit, services will be extended to patients in neighboring Talbot County and the Chestertown area of Kent County.

Ive had the opportunity of working with this great team here and Caroline County for the last five years, Weintraub said. And Im just really impressed by the quality of work they do and how they reach out and take care of patients.

Weintraub, who is an associate professor in the Department of Psychiatry at UMSOM, has helped develop innovative programs in providing medication assisted treatment to underserved rural areas via telemedicine across Maryland.

Im just really impressed by the quality of work they do and how they reach out and take care of patients, he said. Understanding that people with substance use disorders are really just trying to access help, theyre people just like us, like everybody else. They have the same hopes and dreams, and theyre just caught in the throes of a terrible disease that they cant always get out of. And weve been able to provide opportunities for these individuals to get evidence-based help.

Patients can visit the mobile treatment units (MTUs) at various locations throughout the month, solving a major obstacle for many residents of rural areas: transportation. Counselors and medical staff can meet and assess the needs of patients in person, and patients can meet privately with doctors located at the University in Baltimore via telemedicine technology.

If you have a person who just walks up and knocks on his door and says they want help, that happens right then and there, said MTU program administrator Roger McKnight. Nine times out of 10, we will have them with a medication prescription, they will be able to see the doctor, see a counselor, we do an intake.

An important factor in the success of the program, McKnight said, is the ability to make people feel at home welcomed on board. They know Im from here, too. So, its not like an outsider coming in, he said. I live down the road. I cut my grass, and they see that, but then when I come to work on Monday, my job is to help people with it.

The success of the program also can be seen in the lives of former patients, some of whom have returned to work as employees of the program helping others.

It was at the mobile treatment unit that my life shifted for the better, said Jessica Anthony, a graduate of the outpatient program. When I began treatment on the MTU, I had nothing. As a result of their guidance, I was able to regain my independence and rebuild my life from the ground up.

Anthony described her journey as a true testament to the power of resilience. Now I am privileged to be able to work alongside them as a peer recovery specialist for the University of Maryland.
Baron Funds, an investment management firm, released its Baron Focused Growth Fund first quarter 2023 investor letter, a copy of which can be downloaded here. During the quarter ending on March 31, 2023, the Fund's Institutional Shares exhibited a notable increase of 14.49%. This remarkable performance can be attributed to the resilience and robust demand witnessed by companies held within the Fund's portfolio. Spare some time to check the funds top 5 holdings to know more about their top bets for 2023.

In its Q1 2023 investor letter, Baron Focused Growth Fund mentioned Hyatt Hotels Corporation (NYSE:H) and explained its insights for the company. Founded in 1957, Hyatt Hotels Corporation (NYSE:H) is a Chicago, Illinois-based hospitality company with a $12.3 billion market capitalization. Hyatt Hotels Corporation (NYSE:H) delivered a 29.18% return since the beginning of the year, while its 12-month returns are up by 42.59%. The stock closed at $116.67 per share on June 13, 2023.

Here is what Baron Focused Growth Fund has to say about Hyatt Hotels Corporation (NYSE:H) in its Q1 2023 investor letter:

"Shares of global hotelier Hyatt increased 23.6% and helped performance by 148 bps in the first quarter. Hyatt continues to see strong growth in revenue-per-available room above pre-pandemic levels. This is driven by continued strength in its leisure business, now 50% of its room base. We believe the companys corporate business should continue to rebound. Its group business is now running above 2019 levels. Sustained margin gains from operating improvements implemented during the pandemic should also help drive EBITDA and cash flow growth. Hyatt expects to complete its transition to an 80% fee-based business through asset sales of about $2 billion by the end of 2024. We believe Hyatt shares are significantly undervalued. While investor concern that a possible recession will result in slower or even negative growth, we believe this has been priced into its stock at current levels. So far, the company has seen no material slowdown in occupancy levels and continues to increase prices, especially on the leisure side. While leisure may be experiencing peak demand levels, management believes any slowdown in growth would be offset by the continued recovery of its group and business customers. Volumes in these segments are rapidly returning to pre-pandemic levels. Hyatts balance sheet and cash flow profile remain strong, which, combined with the hotel asset sales mentioned above, should result in more consistent earnings. We believe Hyatts multiple will increase over the next few years."

hotel, resort

Photo by jared rice on unsplash

Our calculations show that Hyatt Hotels Corporation (NYSE:H) was not able to secure a spot on our list of the 30 Most Popular Stocks Among Hedge Funds. Hyatt Hotels Corporation (NYSE:H) was in 24 hedge fund portfolios at the end of the first quarter of 2023, compared to 27 funds in the previous quarter. Hyatt Hotels Corporation (NYSE:H) delivered a 10.30% return in the past 3 months. You can find other investor letters from hedge funds and prominent investors on our hedge fund investor letters Q1 2023 page.

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Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.
Will This Bill Add More Annuities to Your 401(k)?

Representatives Donald Norcross (D-NJ) and Tim Walberg (R-MI) have introduced a bill in Congress to allow the default inclusion of annuities in 401(k) plans. If signed into law, it would functionally raise the profile of annuities, allowing individuals to hold large investments in this asset class based on the overall contributions to their 401(k) plans. Heres what you should know about the bill and whether its an option to consider.

Consider working with a financial advisor as you plan out your retirement.

What the Bill Would Do

Currently entitled a bill [t]o amend the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 to permit default investment arrangements in annuities, and for other purposes, it is an updated version of a substantially similar bill from 2022 known as the Lifetime Income For Employees (LIFE) Act. If passed, it would allow employers to include annuities as a default investment option in employer-sponsored retirement plans such as 401(k)s.

Specifically, the bill would classify a certain type of annuity contract as a QDIA, or qualified defined investment alternative. In practical terms, this means that employer-sponsored retirement plans could automatically invest a participants money in a qualified annuity contract as well as more well-known assets like a stock portfolio. This would expand on steps already taken in last years SECURE 2.0 Act, which increased the overall footprint that annuities can have in a retirement portfolio by raising the cap on how much individuals can contribute to annuities with their tax-advantaged retirement accounts.

How This Bill Would Work

This bill limits plan contributions to 50%. This means that, if an employer does choose an annuity contract as their 401(k) plans default option, the plan can only invest up to half of a participants contributions in that contract. The rest must be invested in other assets such as stocks, bonds and funds. This is meant to ensure diversification in a participants portfolio.

Plan participants also must be allowed to opt out of the annuity contract within six months of being opted in, and the plan must explain their investment alternatives. This would apply both to new enrollees, such as a new hire, and to plan changes, such as if the employer restructures the companys retirement plan in favor of annuities. In either case, each employee will have 180 days in which they can withdraw from the annuity without fees, penalties or any other charges. After that window, the plan can include delays and even surrender penalties if an employee chooses to withdraw from annuity investments.

This opt-out provision is where the updated LIFE Act particularly mirrors SECURE 2.0. That law allows employers to make retirement plan participation the default, giving employees the option to opt out of making contributions if they choose. That changed the current system, in which employees are left out of workplace retirement plans by default and must opt-in. Finance experts have found that opt-out systems increase participation substantially, as employees are much more likely to stay in a plan than they are to seek out participation.

The newly introduced bill would expand on that, allowing employers to automatically enroll their workers in a retirement plan that uses annuities as a default investment, with those participants then given the option to select another investment or stop contributing to the plan as a whole.

Pros and Cons The Bill

Will This Bill Add More Annuities to Your 401(k)?

If this bill passes, individuals should make sure to carefully consider the potential benefits and drawbacks of annuity investments. The main benefit to annuity investments is its certainty. A standard lifetime annuity is an insurance policy that guarantees fixed payments, typically issued every month, starting in retirement and lasting for the rest of the participants life. As a result, it is not subject to the vagaries of market volatility, and it allows for confident financial planning. Participants know what they will receive, when they will receive it and for how long.

Annuities have their risks, though. In particular, they tend to post lower returns than the market at large, meaning that investors usually get a lower return on investment off an annuity contract than an S&P 500 index fund. They can also be fairly expensive, often charging high administrative fees. And, of course, there is always the edge-case risk that the company issuing the annuity contract might go out of business, forcing a risky question of who will hold up their end of the bargain in your retirement.

Whats more, despite its name, the updated LIFE Act does not require employers to select a lifetime annuity. Per the legislative text of the 2023 bill, the selected contract must make payments for a fixed term or for the remainder of the life of the participant [and spouses or beneficiaries]. Retirement savers should review any plan carefully to make sure that the annuity their employer selects is a lifetime asset, or at least one with appropriate duration.

Annuities can be an excellent retirement vehicle, but make sure they meet your long term goals and needs.

Bottom Line

Will This Bill Add More Annuities to Your 401(k)?

Recently proposed legislation would allow employers to use annuity plans as a default investment in 401(k) and other employer-sponsored retirement accounts. The goal is to create a functional system of private pension accounts for workers. Whether it makes sense for you depends on the specific terms of your 401(k) and what your particular retirement needs are.

Retirement Planning Tips

A financial advisor can help you build a comprehensive retirement plan. Finding a financial advisor doesnt have to be hard. SmartAssets free tool matches you with up to three vetted financial advisors who serve your area, and you can have a free introductory call with your advisor matches to decide which one you feel is right for you. If youre ready to find an advisor who can help you achieve your financial goals, get started now.

Are annuities the right investment for you? If your employer is going to start making this hybrid pension product the default choice in your 401(k), it might be time to learn all about how this investment class works and whether its a good fit for your plans.

Photo credit: iStock.com/shapecharge, iStock.com/tadamichi, iStock.com/FG Trade

The post Will This Bill Add More Annuities to Your 401(k)? appeared first on SmartAsset Blog.
Strengthening the role of prosecution services through the Pakistan Prosecution Forum

14 June 2023, Murree - Prosecution is an important function that needs to be delivered with extreme vigilance and public responsibility to ensure that the constitutional rights of the citizens are protected. The Pakistan Prosecution Forum (PPF) is playing a pivotal role in strengthening prosecution services in Pakistan. As a flagship platform of provincial prosecution departments, the PPF brings together provincial prosecution departments to enable sharing of lessons and good practices with the purpose to enhance and harmonize the role of prosecution services in the justice sector in Pakistan. The Forum has been instrumental in bolstering the role of prosecution in the Criminal Justice System in Pakistan.

The 16th meeting of the Pakistan Prosecution Forum was held on 14th June 2023 in Murree with generous funding from the US Embassy's Office of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement (INL) and technical support of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC). The Forum provided an opportunity to bring together senior leadership of the provincial prosecution departments, including Special Secretary KP Mr. Akbar Ali Khan, Prosecutor General Punjab Mr. Rana Abdul Majeed, Deputy Prosecutor General Sindh Mr. Muhammad Noonari & District Public Prosecutor ICT Mr. Muhammad Naseem Zia in addition to other stakeholders.

Syed Waqas Shah, Officer-In-Charge Criminal Justice and Legal Reforms from UNODC, elaborated the agenda and purpose, appreciating the ground-breaking role of PPF, which is emerging as a successful platform in catalyzing policy reforms towards enhancing the performance of the provincial prosecution departments.

The proceedings of the 16th PPF built on the momentum of the previous meetings, underscoring the need for the adoption of the Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) by the provincial prosecution departments. It was unanimously agreed that the KPIs are important for streamlining the due process of prosecution across the chain of investigation to ensure robustness and integrity in the legal analysis and decision-making .

While prosecutors aim to secure convictions, they also have a responsibility to ensure that the accused receives a fair trial. In Pakistan, the role of a public prosecutor is narrowly defined, limiting effective coordination with police investigators to provide legal guidance in trial preparations. To this end, adoption of KPIs will go a long way in streamlining procedures and coordination.

The PPF concluded with mutual agreements on delivering an overall monitoring framework informed by relevant

KPIs in order to deliver fair and speedy justice and act with due diligence in the public interest.

The 16th PPF was funded by the US Embassy's Office of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement (INL) as part of Pakistan's Terrorism Prevention Programme (PTP2).
ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 14th Jun, 2023 ) :France has provided Euro 180 million soft loan to Pakistan for financing the National Transmission and Despatch Company (NTDC) transmission lines and grid stations projects located in Vehari, Aarifwala and Sialkot.

Federal Secretary, Ministry of Economic Affairs Dr Kazim Niaz, Ambassador of France Nicolas Galey and Philippe Steinmetz, Country Director of the French Development Agency (AFD), signed the Credit Facility Agreement, said a press release issued here Wednesday.

This loan will support the NTDC in its transmission mandate to provide reliable and efficient power supply in major cities of Punjab. The funding will also help enhance the transmission of efficient power distribution in Pakistan. Such benefits will contribute to improving affordability and scaling up the energy supply.

Since most of the power generation in the country is through the hydel sources, hence the projects will help mitigate impacts of climate change through transmission of green energy, in line with the policies of the Government of Pakistan and its commitment to fight climate change.

It is also part of the pledge and commitments announced by France at the International Conference on Climate Resilient Pakistan in Geneva on January 9, 2023.

The Republic of France, through the French Development Agency, is providing technical and financial support in several sectors such as energy, water and sanitation, urban development, and cultural heritage.

The French loan will support NTDC in the components of the projects including: Construction of a new 220KV substation and 50km of new 220kV transmission lines to be connected to it in Aarifwala, which will be connected to the MEPCO grid.

In Vehari, the existing 220KV substation will be upgraded to 500kV level and 48km of new 500KV transmission lines connected to it. The enhanced capacity of the sub-station will add to the MEPCO grid. In Sialkot, construction of a new 500KV substation and 55km transmission lines connection will take place with the help of this project. The new substation will be connected to the GEPCO grid.
SHARJAH, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News / WAM - 14th Jun, 2023) H.H. Dr. Sheikh Sultan bin Muhammad Al Qasimi, Supreme Council Member and Ruler of Sharjah, in the presence of his wife H.H. Sheikha Jawaher bint Mohammed Al Qasimi, Chairperson of The Big Heart Foundation (TBHF) and Eminent Advocate for Refugee Children at UNHCR, honoured Talent Beyond Boundaries (TBB), the winner of the 7th edition of the Sharjah International Award for Refugee Advocacy and Support (SIARA 2023), during the award ceremony held today at the Sharjah Police Science academy.

The ceremony started with the UAE national anthem, and a video screening about SIARA, followed by the opening speech of Sheikha Jawaher, who said, "On behalf of TBHF and personally, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to the Ruler of Sharjah for his unwavering support of this award and his commitment to its continuity and development in achieving its goals. At a time when conflicts, disasters, tragedies, poverty and displacement are rampant, God's wisdom creates balance in this universe and leaves us with the choice to be the helping hand in times of hardship. Therefore, you should be proud because you have carried the responsibility of goodness and made it a way of life.

"Goodness is not a fleeting or an isolated act, but rather a culture, an awareness, and daily decision we do not back down from, and are proud to see our work bearing fruit in the lives of others. We want to see our efforts turn into a smile on a child's face, a source of knowledge for a young mind, care for a family weakened by circumstances, and a future full of hope for the younger generations. This is how we understand goodness, and this is why we launched SIARA. It serves as a reminder that this goodness has creative people behind it and continues to provide inspiring models of hope and giving to the world," she added.

Sheikha Jawaher concluded the opening speech by encouraging good willing and kind hearted people to always be hopeful, pointing out that support will continue as the mission is not yet over.

Mariam Al Hammadi, Director of The Big Heart Foundation, stated, Today we meet in a different competitive context - a competition that celebrates goodness and is dedicated to promoting the good. Each nominee is a winner, although only one can be crowned. Our collective commitment to choosing to do good is a significant triumph in its own right because it is a commitment to respecting the rights of human beings, a commitment of love, giving and cooperation. This free and conscious choice has shaped the global humanitarian sector. If refugees had no choice in deciding their forced fates of injustice, we in Sharjah, led by His Highness the Ruler of Sharjah and under the patronage of Sheikha Jawaher, have chosen to stand by them out of love and willingness.

She added, The SIARA award shines light on role models supporting refugees and providing new opportunities and beginnings. Such distinguished models need the world to stand by them, so their impact extends from one refugee to thousands and millions around the world.

Al Hammadi congratulated TBB, asserting that the organisation has worked hard, innovated, achieved its goals, and turned the spotlight on facts that the world may have overlooked, which is that many refugees possess abilities, talents, visions, and aspirations that make them a real asset to host communities if invested in the right way. She applauded the efforts of TBHFs committee who selected the winner of this years edition of SIARA.

For his part, Khaled Khalifa, Senior Advisor to the High Commissioner and UNHCRs Representative to Gulf Cooperation Council countries, expressed his appreciation and gratitude to His Highness the Ruler of Sharjah and his wife H.H. Sheikha Jawaher, an Eminent Advocate for Refugee Children at UNHCR and a visionary leader with a big heart, visionary insight and generous contributions of around US$ 30 million since 2013, which have helped to improve the living conditions of more than one million refugees around the world.

He said, Refugees are not just numbers; they are doctors, engineers, skilled workers, and software developers. Many have skills but lack opportunities as they find themselves in countries where they are not allowed to work. By involving governments, the private sector, and non-profit organisations, we create safe pathways that enable refugees to transition to work, resume their professions, and rebuild their lives.

He congratulated TBB for winning the 7th edition SIARA and lauded THF's efforts and the teams helping refugees, turning the spotlight light on their suffering, providing the necessary support, and bringing hope and joy to their hearts.

The award ceremony saw another video screening about TBBs key efforts, achievements and success stories in helping skilled and talented refugees and displaced people.

Stephany Cousins, Global CEO of TBB, expressed her gratitude and appreciation to the wise leadership of Sharjah and their visionary initiative in establishing the coveted SIARA Award, as well as to TBHF and the UNHCR for their steadfast commitment and tireless efforts to ensure its continued success every year.

She emphasised "Refugees possess skills and aspirations and can positively impact the work environment, economies, and societies when given the right opportunity and allowed to migrate to places that need their skills and experiences. At the same time, this positive impact can be extended to refugee families and communities in their country of origin during reconstruction.

She added We have succeeded in helping more than 1,200 refugees find sustainable solutions to their displacement, which is a small part compared to the achievements we will make with your support. A single organisation can't find a solution for refugees and displaced persons, as it requires collective efforts and radical changes in systems and practices. I am honoured to dedicate this award to refugees and forcibly displaced individuals around the world who seek to practise their professions and achieve their dreams in the darkest conditions and challenges. Together, we will build a world where refugees and displaced persons can migrate safely and peacefully to work.

On being a refugee, Yusra Mardini, a swimmer in the Olympic Refugee Team and a Goodwill Ambassador for UNHCR, said I went through the ordeal of seeking refuge in 2015 and suffered its harshness, which is why the UNHCR and the initiatives of TBHF and Sheikha Jawaher Al Qasimi hold a special place in my heart. Her Highness is a truly inspiring role model who has tirelessly advocated for refugees over the years and actively champions the cause of UNHCR."

She added, With the increasing numbers of refugees worldwide, it may be easy to forget that they are real people with stories that speak of their resilience in the face of crises, aspirations, and dreams that bring a bright glimmer of hope. As a Goodwill Ambassador for UNHCR, I have been able to tell my story and other stories of refugees I have met throughout my journey. Therefore, I would like to take this opportunity to shed light on our stories to raise awareness about the refugee issue around the world.

She congratulated TBB and thanked His Highness the Ruler of Sharjah and H.H. Sheikha Jawaher Al Qasimi for supporting SIARA which exemplifies the ethics and values of goodness and hospitality of the UAE and the Emirati people.

TBB received AED 500,000 from TBHF in recognition of its role and innovative vision in supporting humanitarian efforts for more than 6000 refugees worldwide. The organisation has collaborated with corporates, recruiters and non-profits worldwide to connect over 1,200 refugees with companies in need of their skills while also benefiting over 5,000 additional refugees who have gained from TBB's services and support, and organed an International Job Fair exclusively for skilled refugees and displaced individuals. The organisation has also made a significant impact on governments in various countries, inspiring them to revise and enhance their migration programmes and visa services.

TBB's efforts are carried out by teams operating in various countries worldwide, ensuring ongoing support for refugees even after their migration and facilitating their smooth integration into new communities. Consequently, the organisation has contributed to increasing refugees' annual income by over 750 percent. Moreover, it has established a digital platform that verifies the professional qualifications of more than 65,000 refugees worldwide.

Along with His Highness the Ruler of Sharjah, The award ceremony was attended by Sheikh Mohammed bin Humaid bin Mohammed Al Qassimi, Chairman of Sharjahs Department of Statistics and Community Development (DSCD); Sheikh Saqr bin Mohammed Al Qasimi, Chairman of the board of Directors of the Sharjah Charity International (SCI); Sheikha Hind bint Majid Al Qasimi, Chairperson of Sharjah business Women Council (SBWC); Sheikh Salem bin Muhammad bin Salem Al Qasimi, Director of Sharjah Commerce & Tourism Development Authority (SCTDA); Sheikha Jawaher bint Abdullah Al Qasimi, Director of FUNN; and a host of a number of high-ranking officials, ministers and heads of government departments and agencies, representatives of humanitarian organisations, and media.
(@FahadShabbir)

The very severe cyclonic storm (VSCS) Biparjoy has caused a halt of small aircraft operations in the areas facing impacts of cyclonic winds, whereas the government has started mulling over the closure of commercial flights as well in its high-level meeting to be convened on Wednesday evening

ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 14th Jun, 2023 ):The very severe cyclonic storm (VSCS) Biparjoy has caused a halt of small aircraft operations in the areas facing impacts of cyclonic winds, whereas the government has started mulling over the closure of commercial flights as well in its high-level meeting to be convened on Wednesday evening.

The Very Severe Cyclonic Storm (VSCS) "Biparjoy" over the northeast Arabian Sea moved further north-northwestward during the last six hours, and now lies near Latitude 21.9N and Longitude 66.3E at a distance of about 340km south-southwest of Karachi, 355km south-southwest Thatta and 275km south-southwest of Keti Bandar.

In a joint media briefing, flanked by Chairman National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) Lieutenant General Inam Haider Malik, Federal Minister for Climate Change and Environmental Coordination Senator Sherry Rehman shared a recent update on the VSCS Biparjoy.

Senator Sherry Rehman said that the cyclone was heading toward the coastline of the country. She added that the winds were blowing at a speed of 140 kilometers per hour (km/h) and all the institutions were working together to ensure that the preparations were being made along with precautionary measures.

The senator informed that some 75 relief camps were established and according to the Sindh government, all the individuals were evacuated from the potentially affected areas.

She urged the masses that there was no need to panic as the authorities concerned were vigilant and taking prerequisite measures. Public safety and saving people's lives was the top priority of the government, she added.

The minister requested the masses to stay away from coastal areas and reiterated that this difficulty needed to be faced with courage. She announced that the government would soon issue an advisory regarding small ships.

Chairman NDMA, Lieutenant General Inam Haider Malik informed that the VSCS BIPARJOY might make landfall in Keti Bandar by tomorrow (June 15) afternoon. He underlined that there was a risk of urban flooding in the areas of Karachi, whereas some 62,000 people were shifted to safer places.

"After every two hours, cyclone-related information is being shared with the institutions concerned. The movement of small aircraft is being stopped at Karachi Airport, whereas a decision will also be taken soon regarding commercial planes," he added.

The NDMA chairman said a data bank of the relocated population was also compiled, adding, "If more areas are submerged, another phase of migration will follow," he said.

He informed that the orders were issued to immediately stop flights of small aircraft while a decision regarding commercial flights would be taken in the meeting to be held at 1700 hours in the evening.
(@ChaudhryMAli88)

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 14th June, 2023) Russian energy group En+ said on Wednesday it would discuss together with the state-owned China Energy Investment Corporation (CEIC) the possibility of increasing electricity exports from Russia to China.

"The parties will study the potential for increasing electricity exports from Russia to China via existing power lines. The 'green' energy of hydropower plants will be prioritized," the company said, citing bilateral documents signed to jointly promote low-carbon energy, particularly, hydroelectric power plants and alternative power generation.

The agreement will enable Russia to preserve and develop expertise in energy generation from renewable sources, in addition to actually supplying clean energy to both Russian and Chinese companies, En+ CEO Mikhail Khardikov said.

It also provides for the joint development of the Zashulanskoye hard coal field in Russia with an output of 5 million tonnes of steam coal per year by the end of 2027. The project is expected to create about 1,700 jobs in Russia's Zabaikalye priority development territory.

"Investments will include the construction of a coal mine, infrastructure and a motor road, a non-public railroad station, Gyrshelun-Ugolnaya, as well as the purchase of machinery and equipment," the statement read.

The companies will arrange mutual visits to exchange experience and work together in coal chemistry and the production of biodegradable plastic, resins, gas purification technologies for coal-fired plants and automated control systems, as well as the operation and maintenance of energy equipment.
MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 14th June, 2023) Losses of the Ukrainian army in the Donetsk direction exceeded 205 military and 10 pieces of equipment over the past day, the Russian Defense Ministry said on Wednesday.

In the Donetsk direction near the settlements of Pervomaiske and Petrivske, Russia successfully repulsed two enemy attacks, the ministry said in a statement.

"During the fighting, the losses of Ukrainian troops amounted to more than 205 military personnel, two armored combat vehicles, seven vehicles, and two D-20 howitzers," the ministry said.

Near the Vremivka ledge, Russia also repelled two attacks, the ministry said, adding that Ukraine lost 11 armored vehicles, including four tanks.
TOKYO (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 14th June, 2023) A Japanese Self-Defense Force (SDF) officer has been detained for opening fire from an automatic rifle at the force's shooting range and wounding three other SDF servicepeople, Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno said Wednesday.

"The Self-Defense Force officer, who had fired the shots, has been detained. Three soldiers of the Self-Defense Force have been wounded and hospitalized," Matsuno told an emergency news conference.

Earlier in the day, Japanese broadcaster NHK reported, citing investigative sources, that an SDF officer in his teens has been detained for wounding three people at the shooting range in the Japanese city of Gifu.

At least three people have been injured in the incident, with one of them being in critical condition, the report said.

No civilian casualties have been reported, sources told the media.

One of the injured soldiers has passed away following the incident, the broadcaster reported.

NHK, citing police in Gifu Prefecture, reported that the shooter was an 18-year-old male SDF candidate. He has been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder. Police said the shooter opened fire at the SDF range shortly after 9 a.m. local time (00:00 GMT) and injured a 25-year-old male SDF soldier.
Binance has applied to pull out of Cyprus, according to a listing with the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission.

The worlds biggest crypto exchange is under review to deregister with the regulator ahead of the European Unions Markets in Crypto Assets (MiCA) legislationset to become law next year.

The legislation, which applies to those engaged in the issuance, offer to the public and admission to trading of crypto-assets or that provide services related to crypto-assets in the Union, will mean digital asset firms will face tighter rules such on stablecoins and the implementation of new anti-money laundering (AML) and data security procedures.

A reason for Binances deregistration was not given on the regulators website. But Binance told Decrypt it was focusing efforts on fewer regulated entities in the E.U., especially our larger registered markets where we already have a mature footprint, including France, Italy and Spain.

We are working hard to prepare our business to be fully compliant with MiCA when it is implemented in the next 18 months, a Binance spokesperson added.

Binance advertises itself as being available in over 100 countries on its website, but Cyprus is no longer featured on the list. Earlier this month, the crypto company announced that it was leaving Canada due to new guidance related to stablecoins and investor limits. Canadas Ontario Securities Commission had hit Binance with an investigation shortly before.

Binance US Market Shrinks 78% in Just 7 Days After SEC Lawsuit

Binance has faced regulatory challenges as of late.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission last week sued the exchange, hitting the crypto behemoth with 13 charges, including operating unregistered exchanges, broker-dealers, and clearing agencies; misrepresenting trading controls and oversight on the Binance US platform; and the unregistered offer and sale of securities.

The move comes as American regulators clamp down on the crypto industry harder than ever before. This year alone, a number of major digital asset exchangesKraken, Coinbase, and Geminihave been hit with fines and lawsuits.

The SECs complaint against Binance is particularly serious, alleging that the worlds biggest digital asset exchange by volume, was run through a web of deception by CEO Changpeng Zhao and commingled customer funds.

As a result, the worlds most recognizable crypto brand has hired a high-powered legal team to battle the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commissionincluding contracting an ex-SEC lawyer.
US Senator James Risch will stall arms sales to Hungary as punishment for Budapest delaying Sweden's accession to the NATO alliance, the top Republican on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee said on Wednesday

WASHINGTON (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 14th June, 2023) US Senator James Risch will stall arms sales to Hungary as punishment for Budapest delaying Sweden's accession to the NATO alliance, the top Republican on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee said on Wednesday.

"For some time now, I have directly expressed my concerns to the Hungarian government regarding its refusal to move forward a vote for Sweden to join NATO," Risch said, as quoted by The Washington Post. "The fact that it is now June and still not done, I decided that the sale of new US military equipment to Hungary will be on hold."

The move blocks a $735 million arms sale by the United States to Hungary, which includes High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS).

US foreign arms sales require approval by the heads of the House of Representatives and Senate foreign affairs panels before the State Department can move forward with them.

Hungary has blocked Sweden's entry into NATO, citing a need for improved relations between Budapest and Stockholm first. Turkey has likewise blocked Sweden's membership over concerns about Stockholm's approach to organizations deemed terrorist by Ankara.

Earlier on Wednesday, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said it is possible to have an agreement in place for Sweden's accession by the military alliance's summit in July.

However, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan also said on Wednesday that Turkey should not be expected to change its stance on the matter unless Sweden meets its expectations.
Students, Faculty, Staff Recognized at Awards Ceremonies

Wed, 06/14/2023 - 12:02pm | By: Dena Temple

The School of Leadership at The University of Southern Mississippi (USM) recently announced the list of student award winners for 2023. Members of the schools faculty and staff were also recognized with several awards.

The awards were presented at the Gulf Coast Awards ceremony on the Gulf Park campus in Long Beach and at the College of Business and Economic Development Awards ceremony in Hattiesburg, both in late April.

Dr. Heather Annulis, director of the School of Leadership, lauded the caliber of students in all of the schools programs, most notably their Human Capital Development doctoral program.

Our students determination to succeed in our programs is an inspiration, said Dr. Annulis. In spite of having full-time jobs, spouses, children, and busy lives, the students were recognizing go well beyond what is expected. They will no doubt continue to excel  thats just who they are. She continued, Our faculty are very proud of each of the award recipients.

Dr. Annulis said that she is not surprised by the numerous awards bestowed upon the faculty and staff from the School of Leadership. The School of Leadership faculty and staff is like a family. We collaborate, champion each other, share successes, and offer support to those who need it. I wish we could present awards to all of them  but those honored certainly have earned the recognition and praise.

Here is a complete list of award winners.

University Awards

Excellence in Online Instruction  Dr. John Kmiec

Aubrey Keith and Ella Ginn Lucas Endowment for Faculty Excellence Award 

Dr. Bhagyashree Barhate

College of Business and Economic Development Awards

Student Awards:

Outstanding Undergraduate Student in an Online Program - Elliott Parish

Outstanding Undergraduate Student (In Person)  Queliah Conway

Outstanding Master's Student  Jessica Lacy

Outstanding Doctoral Students  Dr. Brian Sajdak, Dr. Wendi Lord

Faculty and Staff Awards

Outstanding Service Award  Dr. Quincy Brown

Business Advisory Council Research Award  Dr. Bradley Winton

Outstanding Staff Award  Joyce Powell

School of Leadership Awards

School of Leadership Distinguished Alumni Award  Dr. Valeria Williams

Dr. Cyndi Gaudet Work Hard, Have Fun, Make a Difference Award  Melissa Lomas

Dr. David Powe Learning Leader Award  Tundra Gatewood

Outstanding Master's Student in Human Capital Development (ITD) - Kerry Pree

Outstanding Master's Student in Human Capital Development Stephanie Utesch

Outstanding Master's Student in Logistics, Trade, and Transportation Jessica Lacy

Outstanding Doctoral Student in Human Capital Development  Brian Sajdak

Outstanding Doctoral Student in Human Capital Development(ITD)  Wendi Lord

Outstanding Research Award - Jena Hartley

Outstanding International Student Award  KaLon Duncanson

Outstanding Woman Student in School of Leadership  Queliah Conway, Jessica Lacy

Outstanding First Generation College Student Award  Roosevelt Morgan

Outstanding Diversity Student Award  Jamille Williams

Outstanding Undergraduate Student in Accounting - Brooke Thomas, Skyler Helman

Outstanding Undergraduate Student in Applied Technology - Elliott Parish

Outstanding Undergraduate Student in Industrial Engineering Technology  Kollin King

Outstanding Undergraduate Student in Management  Edward Alvarez

Outstanding Undergraduate Student in Marketing  Queliah Conway

Overcoming Adversity Award  Kerri Parker, Sandra Reddish

The School of Leadership is housed within the College of Business and Economic Development at The University of Southern Mississippi and operates on the Coastal USM campus in Long Beach, Mississippi. Its undergraduate degree programs include Accounting, Applied Technology, Business Administration, Industrial Engineering Technology, Industrial Engineering Technology (Logistics), Management, and Marketing. Graduate programs include Human Capital Development, Human Capital Development (Instructional Technology and Design), Instructional Technology and Design, and Logistics, Trade and Transportation. To learn more about these degree programs, visit the School of Leadership website or via email.
Dr. Perales is an imaginative innovator with an impressive track record in public history and experiential learning, said Espy. She will bring unique insight through her wealth of experience, deeply informed understanding of Texas' rich cultural tapestry and appreciation for our mission. I look forward to pathways she will create for our students and community to engage and benefit.

I am also grateful to the search committee and committee chairs, Glenn Martinez and Veronica Rodriguez, for their outstanding work to identify such an innovative professional to lead the ITC into the future, Espy said.

Perales has served on numerous committees at the University of Houston, including being named to the presidents Racial Equity and Social Justice Committee. She co-chaired the College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences Strategic Plan Management Committee. She administered an endowed lecture series that brought together Houston professionals, community leaders and others to consider historical, social and cultural perspectives directly related to the decisions they make. Perales has served on the board of Humanities Texas, the state affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities, and is also a member of the Foodways Texas advisory board, an organization dedicated to preserving, promoting, and celebrating the states diverse food cultures.

An award-winning educator, author and historian of the U.S.-Mexico borderlands, Perales will also have a faculty appointment in the new Interdisciplinary School for Engagement in the Humanities and Social Sciences in the College of Liberal and Fine Arts. The mission of the Interdisciplinary School is to create and sustain an interdisciplinary environment that integrates knowledge from the arts, humanities, and social sciences in ways that engage with and respond to contemporary challenges in San Antonio and globally.

Perales research explores questions of race, gender, labor and foodways in Texas. Her first book, Smeltertown: Making and Remembering a Southwest Border Community (University of North Carolina Press, 2010) received the 2010 Kenneth Jackson Award for Best Book (North America) from the Urban History Association and was a finalist for the 2010 William P. Clements Prize for the Best Non-Fiction Book on Southwestern America.

Perales earned her Ph.D. in U.S. history from Stanford University. She earned a masters degree in history and a bachelors degree in journalism with a minor in history from the University of Texas at El Paso.

I believe in the power of the public humanities to bridge divides and help us find common ground, Perales said. It is important for people to see themselves in our institutions and to create spaces where we can learn from one another. The ITC is where this happens  it elevates our diverse cultures and shows us what Texas has been and can still become.

I have spent time as a researcher working in the ITCs amazing collections, Perales said. Im excited about the opportunity to continue the ITCs great work to make these stories accessible to audiences of all ages. It is a privilege to be a part of a talented team dedicated to preserving and celebrating these diverse stories and leading the ITC into the future.
The University of Wyomings School of Energy Resources (SER) will host a webinar exploring the current role of energy in Ukraine Tuesday, June 20, at 10 a.m.

The webinar will feature Serhii Averchenko, a former member of parliament and legislator of Ukraine, and Amiran Purtseladze, the chief specialist and project manager at SYNERGY, along with Eric Williams, the senior vice president and design authority at TerraPower.

The trio will discuss energy challenges in times of crisis; the difference between a traditional light water nuclear reactor and the Natrium nuclear reactors being developed by TerraPower; and approaches to building resilient energy infrastructure. The presentations will be moderated by Eugene Holubnyak, director of SERs Hydrogen Energy Research Center, an energy expert and native of Ukraine.

We wanted to take the opportunity to not only bring attention to these important issues and concerns that are unfolding before our very eyes in the world, but also to talk about our own efforts related to the issues discussed and what they mean for Wyoming, Holubnyak says.

In addition to being a target of disruption, energy systems have been impacted dramatically throughout Europe. The webinar will examine these major shifts as well as delve into the increasing demand for new energy technologies.

There have been major supply chain disruptions, increased energy costs for countries reliant on resources in the conflict region, and questions related to energy security, Holubnyak says. We will discuss strategies for rebuilding, including the need for bulk energy storage, and integrating a mix of energy including hydrogen.

Time will be reserved at the end of the presentation for questions.

The webinar is free and open to the public, though attendees are requested to register at https://forms.gle/zeVqRKhKsr1tKGQa8.

Once registered, attendees will be emailed the webinar link no sooner than 24 hours before the start of the presentation. Registrants also may submit questions for the panelists in advance through the registration portal.

For more information, email Christine Reed, SER outreach director, at christine.reed@uwyo.edu.
Binance.US Asset Freeze Denied by U.S. Judge For Now

A federal judge in charge of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commissions case against Binance and Binance.US declined to issue a temporary restraining order that would have frozen the assets of the Binance.US trading platform.

Judge Amy Berman Jackson of the D.C. District Court asked the SEC to continue negotiating with Binance.US about limits, which would permit the company to carry on with its operations for now.

Binance.US urged the judge to reject the SEC's request to freeze billions of dollars' worth of assets on the platform. Representatives from Binance.US stated that they were "not willing to accept the death penalty" posed by a complete asset freeze and that they mainly wanted to be permitted normal operational expenses.

In the hearing on Tuesday, the judge appeared frustrated by the responses after questioning if any funds from Binance.US customers had actually left the country. Multiple SEC attorneys stated they were mostly worried about the fact that Binance's global platform had enough private key shards to move funds.

The judge reportedly stated that if the SEC and Binance.US lawyers can agree on the limits, theres absolutely no need for a restraining order. This would allow all parties ample time to go through the cases details. Judge Jackson also asked Binance.US to provide a list of its business expenses to the court. A status update is due by the end of the business day on Thursday.
(Bloomberg) -- Binance.US and the Securities and Exchange Commission agreed to work on a deal that avoids a total asset freeze at the cryptocurrency trading platform, which the regulator has accused of operating illegally.

Most Read from Bloomberg

US District Judge Amy Berman Jackson said Tuesday the two sides arent that far apart on ways to protect billions of dollars in customer funds without shutting the exchange down while the SECs lawsuit proceeds. She referred them to a magistrate judge to work on a compromise agreement.

The nitty-gritty of it is better handled by you than by me, Jackson said during a hearing in Washington. The judge said if a deal is struck, she would no longer need to rule on the SECs request for a temporary restraining order.

The SEC sought the asset freeze last week for Binance.US, a trading platform owned by Binance Holdings Ltd. founder Changpeng Zhao. In its June 5 lawsuit, the SEC accused Binance and Zhao of mishandling customer funds, misleading investors and regulators, and breaking securities rules.

Binance.US, which is fighting the SECs suit and says customer assets are safe, argued during the hearing that blocking the flow of all funds would cripple its business and hurt customers.

We are not willing to accept the death penalty eight days into our case, one of the Binance.US lawyers told the judge.

The exchange needs to have the ability to cover ordinary business expenses such as payments for rent, salaries, vendors and licensing of software, the Binance.US attorney said. The area that is giving us consternation is an asset freeze that will be misconstrued by banks, he said.

The judge agreed. Shutting it down completely would create significant consequences not only for the company but for the digital asset markets in general, she said during the hearing.

Read More: Why Crypto Flinches When SEC Calls Coins Securities

According to the lawsuit, Binance improperly moved billions of dollars of customer funds to a bank account for an entity controlled by Zhao. Those funds were transferred to a third party and then appeared to be used to purchase and sell crypto, the regulator said.

Binance, in response to the SECs request for an asset freeze, had proposed a compromise that would include transferring US customer cryptoassets to new wallets with new private keys that would be under the sole control of US-based officers at Binance.US.

Operating Costs

As part of its proposal, the exchange also asked for permission to keep paying employees and cover operating costs, while pledging that no assets would be transferred or payments made to benefit any Binance entity without a judges order.

The SEC, in its compromise proposal filed with the court, asked that Binance repatriate customer assets to the US, where theyd be under the control of entities that are outside the reach of Zhao and can handle redemptions for customers.

During the hearing, one SEC attorney said the regulator is open to a narrowly-tailored exception to any freeze that would let Binance.US cover its operations. The regulator asked that Binance.US provide an accounting of its business expenses and professional fees to better understand what would be required to keep operating the platform.

The judge ordered that Binance.US file a list of its business expenses by Wednesday.

A lawyer for the SEC said the asset freeze was necessary because of a risk that Binance would transfer customer assets offshore.

In an earlier memorandum, the SEC said Zhao and Binance have a pattern and practice of commingling customer funds as well as moving funds outside of the US and/or on the blockchain where they are outside of this courts reach.

The memorandum said Binance.US customer assets total over $2.2 billion and described Zhao as a foreign national who has made overt his views that he is not subject to the jurisdiction of this court.

The case is SEC v. Binance, 23-cv-01599, US District Court, District of Columbia (Washington, DC).

(Updates with details from the hearing.)

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UNHCR appeals for concerted international response as forced displacement hits new record of 110 million globally in 2022, whose augmentation that last year was driven by war in Ukraine, further fighting, especially in Sudan, and revised estimates for Afghan refugees.

By Deborah Castellano Lubov

UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, is calling for concerted action as forced displacements hit a new record of nearly 110 million.

According to UNHCRs annual report, Global Trends in Forced Displacement 2022, by the end of 2022, the number of people displaced by war, persecution, violence and human rights abuses, reached a record 108.4 million.

This, increase of 19.1 million since the previous year, marks the greatest-ever increase.

In a statement, the UN Refugee Agency asserts that the upward trajectory in global forced displacement showed no sign of slowing in 2023, especially as the eruption of conflict in Sudan triggered new outflows.

Urgency for collective action

UNHCR highlights that the war in Ukraine, conflict elsewhere, and climate-provoked upheaval, meant more people than ever remained uprooted from their homes last year, "heightening the urgency for immediate, collective action to alleviate the causes and impact of displacement."

Of the global total, 35.3 million are refugees -people who crossed an international border to find safety - while a greater portion, of 58 per cent, representing 62.5 million people, were displaced in their home countries because of conflict and violence.

War in Ukraine top driver

The war in Ukraine was the top driver of displacement in 2022, as the number of refugees from Ukraine soared from 27,300, at the end of 2021 to 5.7 million at the end of 2022, representing the fastest outflow of refugees anywhere since World War II.

By the end of 2022, estimates for the number of refugees from Afghanistan increased significantly, given revised estimates of Afghans hosted in Iran, many having arrived in prior years.

The report likewise reflected upward revisions of the number of Venezuelan refugees, by Colombia and Peru, categorized mostly as other people in need of international protection, hosted in those countries.

Low, middle income countries host most displaced

The report's figures confirm that the worlds low and middle-income countries, not wealthy states, host the most displaced people.

The 46 least-developed countries account for less than 1.3 percent of global Gross Domestic Product, UNHCR asserts, yet, it notes, they hosted more than 20 percent of all refugees.

Funding for the numerous displacement situations and to support hosts lagged behind needs last year, remaining sluggish in 2023 as requirements increase.

Possibility, desire to return home

Despite the total figure of displaced continuing to grow, the Global Trends report observes that those forced to flee are not condemned to exile, but can, and do, return home, voluntarily and safely.



For example, in 2022, over 339,000 refugees returned to 38 countries, and though this figure was lower than the previous year there were significant voluntary returns to South Sudan, Syria, Cameroon and Cote dIvoire.

Also, the UNHCR report illustrates, some 5.7 million internally displaced people returned in 2022, notably within Ethiopia, Myanmar, Syria, Mozambique and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Rights activists have expressed concerns about reports that Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh are being coerced and offered cash incentives by the Bangladesh government to return to Myanmar. Bangladesh "must immediately suspend" the pilot repatriation project for Rohingya refugees to return to Myanmar, a senior U.N. expert said.



"In the past fortnight, [Bangladeshi] government officials threatened several members of our [Rohingya] community with violence if we do not return to Myanmar," a Rohingya on Bay of Bengal Island Bhasan Char  who fears reprisal and does not want to be identified  told VOA.



In a news release issued June 8 by the office of the U.N. high commissioner for human rights, the special rapporteur on human rights in Myanmar, Tom Andrews, said reports have surfaced that Bangladeshi authorities are using "deceptive and coercive measures" to compel Rohingya refugees to return to Myanmar.



"Conditions in Myanmar are anything but conducive for the safe, dignified, sustainable, and voluntary return of Rohingya refugees," Andrews said in the statement.



"I implore Bangladesh to immediately suspend the repatriation pilot programme."



Phil Robertson, Asia division deputy director of Human Rights Watch (HRW), noted that Bangladesh is "squeezing the Rohingya camp residents economically, abusing their rights, and making the refugees as miserable and desperate as possible" in the hope they will accept "Myanmar's woefully unacceptable offer" for repatriation.

Third attempt at repatriation



After two previous efforts to send the Rohingya back to Myanmar failed in 2018 and 2019, Myanmar and Bangladesh are making another effort to repatriate about 1,100 Rohingya refugees.



Over the past couple of weeks, however, it has come to light that Rohingyas are not willing to return to Myanmar given the current situation, and the Bangladeshi officials are resorting to coercive tactics.



"Two weeks ago, some [Bangladeshi] government officials told us through some [Rohingya] cluster focal leaders that each Rohingya family would be offered U.S. $2,000 if they repatriated to Myanmar. The news brought relief to many of us who have been struggling to find income opportunities in Bangladesh. Like many other Rohingyas, I enrolled myself and my family for repatriation," an anonymous Rohingya refugee told VOA on Monday.



"But after a high Bangladeshi official a few days ago clarified that there was no such offer of cash incentive for the repatriating Rohingyas from the Bangladesh government, I have decided to withdraw from the repatriation list."

Other Rohingyas said they are scared to return to Myanmar at this time.



"We have overheard that the military junta intends to confine us to camps and issue a National Verification Card [NVC] that would render us illegal immigrants in our own homeland. These reports have created fear and doubts among the families who enlisted their names for repatriation, and now they all want to withdraw from the list," another Bhasan Char-based Rohingya refugee told VOA.

Citizenship rights



The refugees are facing "indescribable hardships" in Bangladesh, and they all want to return to their "ancestral land" in Myanmar once the government officially recognizes the community as an "official ethnicity as Rohingya in the parliament," Cox's Bazar-based Rohingya community leader and human rights defender Htway Lwin said.



"We insist on the repatriation process including rehabilitating Rohingya in Sittwe's IDP [internally displaced people] camps to their original villages, granting them full citizenship rights, ensuring their safety, religious freedom, and freedom of movement, as well as access to education and health care  the same rights being enjoying by the other 135 ethnic groups in Myanmar," Lwin told VOA.



After violence displaced hundreds of thousands of Rohingya in 2017, Myanmar authorities interned many of them in an open-air detention camp in Sittwe where 130,000 of them still live in abusive and squalid conditions.



"If these demands are not guaranteed, the repatriation process mediated by China could result in a disastrous situation involving three countries, negatively impacting the Rohingya community," he noted.

Mohammed Mizanur Rahman, Bangladesh's refugee relief and repatriation commissioner in Cox's Bazar, said Tuesday the repatriation-related preparation was "in process."



"This is not true that the Rohingya are being coerced to return to Myanmar. And, we have not offered any cash incentive to anyone for returning to Myanmar," Rahman told VOA.

The director of rights group Fortify Rights, John Quinley, told VOA, "The Myanmar junta recently gave out pamphlets to Rohingya promoting the National Verification Card [NVC] process and told refugees that if they return to Myanmar, they must accept NVCs. The reality is NVCs do not allow Rohingya to self-identify and label the Rohingya as foreigners in their own land."



Myanmar's State Administration Council junta has fundamentally failed to address any of the key Rohingya demands for their voluntary return, HRW's Robertson said.



"The Rohingya refugees are facing the classic 'out of the frying pan, and into the fire' situation, with Bangladesh officials apparently threatening they will face violence if they stay," Robertson told VOA.



"But the Rohingya know they could face atrocities and worse if they return to Myanmar under the control of the Tatmadaw, who butchered, raped, and burned them out of Rakhine state in 2017."
Others have tried and failed, and now six African leaders are heading to Moscow and Kyiv in the coming days to try to resolve the Russia-Ukraine conflict. South Africa  leading the delegation  has been accused of favoring Russia, despite its officially neutral stance on the war.

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa is leading the delegation, which also includes heads of state from Zambia, the Republic of Congo, Egypt, Senegal and Uganda.

The countries have taken different positions on the war, with South Africa, Uganda and the Republic of Congo abstaining from a United Nations resolution earlier this year condemning Russias 2022 full-scale invasion and demanding it withdraw its troops.

Zambia and Egypt voted in favor of the resolution, while Senegal didnt participate.

Ramaphosas spokesman, Vincent Magwenya, said the delegations trip was imminent, although exact dates were not made public due to security concerns.

We are anticipating that quite imminently a delegation of African heads of state will head to both Ukraine and Russia, he said.

South Africa has been criticized in the West for its warm relations with Moscow  having hosted Russian warships for joint military exercises earlier this year  and last month the U.S. Ambassador to South Africa accused the country of having provided arms to Russia.

South Africa denies the charge that weapons were secretly loaded onto Russian vessel the Lady R while it was docked in Cape Town late last year, but the controversy has strained relations with Washington.

A group of U.S. lawmakers raised questions this week on whether South Africa should still be eligible for trade benefits and top South African business leaders have also warned the country could pay economically for its stance, raising the possibility of sanctions.

Steven Gruzd, an analyst at the South African Institute for International Affairs, says it is hard to predict whether the six-leader mission will make a difference. With heavy fighting going on, he says the time is not ripe for negotiations but adds that any attempt at peace making should be welcomed.

I think it might be a way for South Africa to distract from the Lady R scandal, about South Africa allegedly arming Russia on a ship that was loaded at night in secret, and the other flak that South Africa has been getting, but I do think its coming from a genuine place of wanting to make a difference," said Gruzd.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has welcomed the African leaders mission, as has Ukraine. But in an online news conference last week, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba warned that some things are non-negotiable.

Any peace initiative should respect the territorial integrity of Ukraine, it should not imply, even in-between the lines, any cessation of Ukrainian territory to Russia. Second, any peace plan should not lead to the freezing of the conflict, said Kuleba.

Ramaphosa is a seasoned negotiator, having been instrumental in talks that ended apartheid. But so far, peace plans proposed by other countries, including China, have failed, and critics are skeptical the African leaders mission will achieve much.

Meanwhile, the South African government is still mulling over what to do about the upcoming summit of the BRICS group of emerging nations in Johannesburg, which Putin has been invited to attend.

With a warrant from the International Criminal Court out against the Russian leader, South Africa would be obliged to arrest him, and there are reports the country is looking for a way out through a legislative amendment to their ICC agreement.

South Africa has denied speculation it is considering moving the summit entirely.
U.S. climate envoy John Kerry on Tuesday urged the world to be "very skeptical" about claims from oil and gas producers that emerging technology soon will allow people to adequately capture the climate-wrecking fumes emitted by their cars, planes and businesses.

It's "one big question mark," Kerry told The Associated Press of the future viability of carbon-capture technology, a debate at the heart of global negotiations on cutting emissions to stave off the most disastrous scenarios of global warming.

The International Energy Agency and increasing numbers of scientists, governments and global leaders and advocates are saying the only way to rein in climate change fast enough is to immediately stop drilling new oil and gas wells and sharply phase down existing drilling.

Many oil companies and oil states are fighting the calls for production cuts, saying that still-emerging carbon-capture technology will come to the rescue. The burning of fossil fuels is the main cause of global warming, and techniques to capture enough of the fumes to make a difference, affordably and efficiently, have yet to be developed.

"Let's be very skeptical about this unless it's proven to work," Kerry told the AP after delivering a statement at a U.N. Security Council meeting. "We can't afford to play games anymore with the amount of fossil carbon that's going up in the atmosphere," along with methane and other climate-damaging gases from the oil and gas industry.

That doesn't mean that government, corporations and oil and gas producers shouldn't keep pushing for breakthroughs in the technology, he said. "If it could work, fine, you know.  But we heard for 30 years about clean coal, and how did that work out?"

'One of the top security threats'

Kerry told the U.N. Security Council that "it's now indisputable  indisputable  that the climate crisis is one of the top security threats, not just to the developed world but to the entire planet, to life on the planet itself."

He said it costs countries billions of dollars every year "just to clean up the mess, and most importantly, it costs the world millions of lives," including 7 million a year who die from greenhouse gas pollution.

Kerry stressed that 48 countries in sub-Saharan Africa account for 0.55% of global emissions and 20 countries account for 76%. He said they all pledged nearly 10 years ago to cut emissions fast enough to keep the rise in temperature to 1.5 degrees Celsius, a threshold scientists say is about to be crossed, "but we're not all doing it."

He said he wasn't at the U.N. to point fingers but to urge all countries to start working together to tackle the crisis. He called for an immediate end to the permitting of new unabated coal plants.

"No country should be bringing online new sources of pollution wherever it comes from, knowing what we know about this crisis," Kerry said.

'We're in a transition'

Globally, no major oil and gas producer is known to be seriously considering phasing down its production, said Hanna Fekete, a researcher with the German-based NewClimate Institute. The U.S., the world's biggest producer, is among those scaling up production, despite the Biden administration's climate commitments.

American consumers would need to cut their dependence on fossil fuels dramatically if the U.S. is to meet its climate goals, Fekete said.

The United Arab Emirates, the host for U.N.-sponsored climate talks later this year, is also among the nations aiming to ramp up production, not reduce it.

Kerry called the stepped-up U.S. production a "momentary bubble" because of bumps in the global energy market from the war in Ukraine. Increased U.S. demand for electric vehicles and a move to cleaner forms of power would help take care of that, he said.

"So, we're in a transition. The word transition is very key to what we're trying to do," Kerry said.

China would have to step up as well, Kerry said. The country is the top emitter of fossil fuels, owing partly to continued operation and building of coal-fired power plants.

President Xi Jinping's government has resisted pressure to rapidly phase out coal plants, arguing that China is still a developing nation and should not be held to the same climate standards as the U.S. and other big Western economies.

"Well, first of all, China is not a poor nation," Kerry said. "So let's understand that the second-largest economy in the world is exactly that, the second-largest economy in the world, and they've spent huge amounts of money around the world in various countries."
President Joe Biden is dispatching White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan to Tokyo this week for talks with his counterparts from Japan, Philippines and South Korea.

Sullivan will also take part in "the first-ever trilateral meeting of the Japanese, Philippine, and U.S. national security advisers" while in Japan, the White House National Security Council said in a statement Tuesday.

The White House offered scant details about Sullivan's two-day visit that begins Thursday, saying Sullivan and his counterparts "will discuss ways to deepen collaboration on a number of key regional and global issues."

Sullivan's visit comes after U.S., Japanese and Philippine coast guard ships staged law enforcement drills in waters near the disputed South China Sea earlier this month. Washington has stepped up efforts to reinforce alliances in Asia amid an increasingly tense rivalry with China.

Washington lays no claims to the strategic South China Sea, where China, the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysian, Taiwan and Brunei have been locked in tense territorial stand-offs for decades. But the U.S. says freedom of navigation and overflight and the peaceful resolution of disputes in the busy waterway are in its national interest.

The White House confirmed Sullivan's travels after Biden during a reception at the White House for U.S. chiefs of diplomatic missions on Tuesday made an off-hand remark that Ambassador Rahm Emanuel, the U.S. envoy to Japan, was not on hand because he was getting ready for Sullivan's visit.

U.S.-China relations have been strained throughout Biden's tenure. China launched military exercises last year around Taiwan after then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., visited the democratically governed island that China claims as its own.

Relations became further strained early this year after the U.S. shot down a Chinese spy balloon that had crossed the United States. Beijing also was angered by Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen's stopover in the U.S. in April that included an engagement with House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, a Republican from California.

And on Saturday, the White House confirmed that China has been operating a spy base in Cuba for sometime, and that it was upgraded in 2019 under the Trump administration's watch.

White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby on Monday said the Trump administration had the "same access" to intelligence about China's spying operations as the Biden administration did.

Former Trump administration officials, including former Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe and national security adviser John Bolton, have pushed back against the assertion that the Cuba spy base was upgraded under their watch.

"The [Biden] administration claims that the base was there in 2019 if not before, all I can say is I was in the White House for part of 2019 I was certainly unaware of it," former Trump-era national security adviser John Bolton said in an interview on Tuesday with SiriusXM's POTUS channel. "I think I would have remembered it if it crossed my desk."

The White House confirmed the base after The Wall Street Journal reported last week that China and Cuba had reached an agreement in principle to build an electronic eavesdropping station on the island.

Despite the tensions with Beijing, the administration has been eager to restart high-level communications with Beijing.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken is planning a visit China on June 18 to meet with senior officials, according to U.S. officials, who spoke Friday on condition of anonymity because neither the State Department nor the Chinese foreign ministry has yet confirmed the trip. Blinken was scheduled to visit China in February, but those talks were scrapped after the spy balloon incident.

Sullivan is currently in India meeting with officials ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's state visit to Washington next week.

He held talks on Tuesday with his Indian counterpart, Ajit Doval, that focused on potential U.S.-Indian collaboration on artificial intelligence, semiconductors and defense, according to the Indian Foreign Ministry. Sullivan also addressed a conference of business leaders where he said the U.S. was keen on doing away with regulatory obstacles that are holding back the two countries from deepening trade in areas like defense and high-tech.
Amazon.com said cloud services offered by its unit Amazon Web Services were recovering after a big disruption on Tuesday affected websites of the New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority and The Boston Globe, among others.

Several hours after Downdetector.com started showing reports of outages, Amazon said many AWS services were fully recovered and marked resolved.

"We are continuing to work to fully recover all services," AWS' status page showed.

Tuesday's impact stretching from transportation to financial services businesses underscores adoption of Amazon's younger Lambda service and the degree to which many of its cloud offerings are crucial to companies in the internet age.

According to research in the past year from the cloud company Datadog, more than half of organizations operating in the cloud use Lambda or rival services, known as serverless technology.

Nearly 12,000 users had reported issues with accessing the service, according to Downdetector, which tracks outages by collating status reports from a number of sources, including user-submitted errors on its platform.

The disruption appeared smaller in time and breadth than one the company suffered in 2017 of its data-hosting service known as Amazon S3, representing the bread and butter of its cloud business.

The outage appeared to extend to AWS's own webpage describing disruptions in its operations, which at one point failed to load on Tuesday, Reuters witnesses saw.

"We quickly narrowed down the root cause to be an issue with a subsystem responsible for capacity management for AWS Lambda, which caused errors directly for customers and indirectly through the use by other AWS services," Amazon said.

AWS Lambda is a service that lets customers run computer programs without having to manage any underlying servers.

Twitter users expressed their frustration with the outage, with one user saying, "I don't know, Alexa won't tell me because #AWS and her services are down!"

Delta Air Lines also said it was facing problems but did not say if it was related to the AWS outage. The company did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Other Amazon services such as Amazon Music and Alexa were also impacted, according to Downdetector.

Amazon had its last major outage in December 2021, when disruptions to its cloud services temporarily knocked out streaming platforms Netflix and Disney+, Robinhood, and Amazon's e-commerce website ahead of Christmas.
More than 100 people are dead after a boat capsized on the Niger River in northern Nigeria Monday night.

Police spokesman Okasanmi Ajayi told reporters late Tuesday the boat was traveling in the western state of Kwara during the pre-dawn hours when the disaster occurred. He said many of the passengers were returning from a wedding ceremony in nearby Niger state.

Officials say several children were among those who died in the accident. Ajayi said at least 103 were killed in the accident, while 100 people or more have been rescued.

Searchers are still looking for more victims, so the death toll may rise.

Kwara state Governor Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq issued a statement expressing his condolences to the families.

River boat accidents are common in Nigeria due to a combination of overcrowding, poor maintenance and lax safety regulations. At least 15 children died back in May when a boat capsized while traveling through the northwestern state of Sokoto.

The 4,184 kilometer long Niger is the main river in western Africa, originating in Guinea and cutting a path through the Niger Delta before flowing into the Atlantic Ocean.

Some information for this report came from The Associated Press and Agence France-Presse.
European Union antitrust regulators took aim at Google's lucrative digital advertising business in an unprecedented decision ordering the tech giant to sell off some of its ad business to address competition concerns.

The European Commission, the bloc's executive branch and top antitrust enforcer, said that its preliminary view after an investigation is that only the mandatory divestment by Google of part of its services would satisfy the concerns.

The 27-nation EU has led the global movement to crack down on Big Tech companies, but it has previously relied on issuing blockbuster fines, including three antitrust penalties for Google worth billions of dollars.

It's the first time the bloc has ordered a tech giant to split up keys of business.

Google can now defend itself by making its case before the commission issues its final decision. The company didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.

The commission's decision stems from a formal investigation that it opened in June 2021, looking into whether Google violated the blocs competition rules by favoring its own online display advertising technology services at the expense of rival publishers, advertisers and advertising technology services.

YouTube was one focus of the commission's investigation, which looked into whether Google was using the video sharing sites dominant position to favor its own ad-buying services by imposing restrictions on rivals.

Google's ad tech business is also under investigation by Britain's antitrust watchdog and faces litigation in the U.S.

Brussels has previously hit Google with more than $8.6 billion worth of fines in three separate antitrust cases, involving its Android mobile operating system and shopping and search advertising services.

The company is appealing all three penalties. An EU court last year slightly reduced the Android penalty to 4.125 million euros. EU regulators have the power to impose penalties worth up to 10% of a companys annual revenue.
Bitcoin fell in Wednesday morning trading in Asia, remaining stuck under the US$26,000 resistance line. Ether also lost ground, while other top 10 non-stablecoin cryptocurrencies by market capitalization were mixed. The BNB token of the Binance crypto exchange marked the biggest gains among the top 10 after a U.S. court denied the financial regulators request to freeze the assets of the Binance.US exchange.

Fear & Greed

Bitcoin fell 0.38% over the last 24 hours to US$25,835.15 at 7:00 a.m. in Hong Kong, losing 4.87% in the last week and repeatedly failing to break through resistance at US$26,000 following the lawsuits filed last week against U.S. crypto trading platforms by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Ether dipped 0.49% to US$1,734.63, posting a 7.87%% loss for the week.

Bitcoin is struggling to move above $26,000 because of the fear in the crypto market and despite the optimism in equities, Alex Kuptsikevich, senior market analyst at online brokerage firm FxPro said in emailed comments.

The cryptocurrency Fear & Greed Index is in the Fear territory at 45 (-2 points overnight), whereas the Fear & Greed index for the stock market is at 79 (extreme greed), Kuptsikevich noted. Technically, to break the downtrend, Bitcoin needs to overcome $27K, and a drop below $26.5K is required to confirm the downtrend. The second scenario seems more likely.

Other top 10 cryptocurrencies were mixed. Binances BNB token led winners with 4.67% rise to US$241.36, reducing its weekly loss to 14.41%.

The BNB gains came after a U.S. federal judge on Tuesday denied the SEC request for a temporary restraining order that would have frozen the assets of Binance.US, the U.S. arm of the worlds largest cryptocurrency exchange.

The judges decision allows Binance.US to continue operating while it negotiates with the SEC over its compliance with securities laws. Last week, the federal agency accused Binance.US of failing to register as a securities exchange and of offering and selling unregistered securities. The SEC also filed a lawsuit against the U.S.-based Coinbase exchange. Both exchanges have rejected the allegations.

According to CryptoQuant, bitcoin reserves on US crypto exchanges have fallen below the 50%  levels last seen in 2017. Assets are flowing to overseas exchanges due to regulatory uncertainty and recent SEC actions against Binance and Coinbase, said Kuptsikevich.

In other developments involving the SEC and crypto, Ripples XRP token lost 0.87% to US$0.5197 for a weekly decline of 2.25% after Tuesdays long-awaited unveiling of the so-called Hinman documents, named after former SEC corporate finance director William Hinman.

Ripple Labs Inc. was sued by the SEC in December 2020, which alleged XRP was offered and sold as an unregistered security. The company had sought the unsealing of the documents which reveal that Hinman said Bitcoin and Ether should not be categorized as financial securities. The comments are a major point of argument between the SEC and Ripple as Ripple seeks to bolster its fair notice defense.

Ripples chief legal officer Stuart Alderoty wrote on Twitter Tuesday that the documents show: Hinman ignored multiple warnings that his speech contained made-up analysis with no basis in law and showed the SEC flip-flopped and overstepped the boundaries of its jurisdiction.

Unelected bureaucrats must faithfully apply the law within the constraints of their jurisdiction. They cant  as Hinman tried  create new law, Alderoty said.

The total cryptocurrency market cap lost 0.12% to US$1.054 trillion in the last 24 hours, while daily trading volume increased by 10.62% to US$33.75 billion, according to CoinMarketCap data.

NFT market on downtrend

The indexes are proxy measures of the performance of the global NFT market. They are managed by CryptoSlam, a sister company of Forkast.News under the Forkast.Labs umbrella.

In the non-fungible token (NFT) market, the Forkast 500 NFT index lost 1.76% to 2,919.17 in the 24 hours to 7:30 a.m. in Hong Kong. The index is down 10.92% for the week.

The Forkast 500 NFT index is now down nearly 11% in seven days as we continue to find new lows, said Yehudah Petscher, NFT Strategist at Forkast Labs, the parent company of Forkast.News.

Thinking about what it will take to recover seems pretty daunting, as traders are pretty unsure that a recovery will even mean existing assets regain value. History tells us that its new projects that a majority of investors funds will go into.

Total NFT buy/sell transactions rose 3.42% to US$22.1 million, but sales on Ethereum, the leading blockchain by volume, fell 3.94% over the last 24 hours to US$12.87 million, according to CryptoSlam data.

The Bitcoin network was the second largest NFT network in terms of buy/sell transactions, jumping 76.67% to US$3.8 million in the last 24 hours.

Transactions of Uncategorized Ordinals  unique digital assets on the Bitcoin network that are not identified as part of one established collection  rose 69.42% to US$1.39 million.

Bored Ape Yacht Club sales gained 25.14% to US$1.3 million.

Art is still hot, with multiple Fidenzas selling for six figures recently and plenty of hype leading up to the Sothebys grails auctions coming this week, Petscher added. Fidenza refers to a collection of 999 NFTs created by the artist Tyler Hobbs using computer algorithms.

Sothebys is auctioning the Grails digital art collection on Wednesday. The collection consists of NFT artwork that belongs to the bankrupt crypto hedge fund Three Arrows Capital and its NFT-purchasing fund Starry Night Capital.

U.S. stock futures mixed

Federal Reserve Board Chairman Jerome Powell (Left), Securities and Exchange Commission Chair Gary Gensler (Right) | Image: Getty Images

U.S. stock futures were mixed as of 9:30 a.m. in Hong Kong after equities gained for the fourth consecutive day during regular trading on Tuesday. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures fell 0.24%, S&P 500 futures edged 0.034% lower while Nasdaq Futures gained 0.028%.

During Mondays regular trading, the Dow climbed 0.43%. The S&P 500 added 0.69%, and the Nasdaq Composite gained 0.83%.

Tuesdays U.S. Consumer Price Index (CPI) report showed that inflation grew at a 4% annual rate in May, compared to 4.9% in April. The CPI was the lowest yearly inflation rate since March 2021, leaving investors hopeful for a pause in the Federal Reserves run of interest rate hikes to curb price inflation.

Its a feel-good headline figure that will cheer investors as it will add further pressure on the Fed to pause its interest rate hike agenda, said Nigel Green, founder and chief executive officer of financial management group deVere, in an email statement.

The U.S. central bank is now 15 months and 10 consecutive rate increases into its battle to cool red-hot inflation, but markets will be expecting that the latest CPI report will now be enough to convince officials to hit the pause button, Green said.

The U.S. central bank is expected to leave interest rates unchanged when it meets on Wednesday, according to TradingEconomics. U.S. rates are at 5% to 5.25%, the highest since 2006 after ten consecutive hikes that started in March 2022 to slow the pace of inflation that surged to 40-year highs at one stage.

The CME FedWatch Tool predicts a 94.2% chance the Fed will leave rates as is at this weeks meeting, up from 80.4% the previous day.

However, Green of deVere Group warned of more hikes this year  Inflation is certainly coming down so far, but it is very, very gradual. It remains sticky and a long way from the 2% target, largely due to a tight labor market.

Former Fed vice chair Roger Ferguson also told CNBC last Friday that the central bank may raise rates later in the year even if it skips this time.

(Updates with equities section)
U.S. National Security Council spokesman John Kirby on pressing Iran to be more transparent about its nuclear activities. Arms Control Associations Kelsey Davenport on why U.N. nuclear agencys governing board did not censure Iran for its lack transparency so far. Middle East Institutes Fatemeh Aman on how the Taliban benefit from restricting water flow from Afghanistans Helmand River into Iran.
In his first visit to Latin America, Irans hardline president met Tuesday with his Nicaraguan counterpart and railed against a theme both leaders have in common: U.S. sanctions.

President Ebrahim Raisis visit to Nicaragua is his second stop, after Venezuela. He is also scheduled to visit Cuba, Iran's other ally in the region.

Raisi spoke at a joint appearance in Managua with Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega.

The United States wanted to paralyze our people with threats and sanctions, but it hasnt been able to do it, Raisi said.

Many top figures in Ortega's government also face U.S. sanctions for crushing dissent and imprisoning or exiling opponents.

Monday, Raisi visited President Nicolas Maduro of Venezuela, which is also under U.S. economic sanctions.

His tour of allied nations in Latin America comes amid rising tensions with the administration of President Joe Biden.

The U.S. has accused Iran of providing Russia with materials to build a drone manufacturing plant east of Moscow, while the Kremlin seeks to ensure a steady supply of weapons for its invasion of Ukraine. U.S. intelligence officials believe the plant in Russia could start operations early next year, but Iran has said it supplied drones to Russia before the start of the war.
An Iranian court has sentenced a man to death after convicting him of killing a powerful cleric in April, the judiciary said Wednesday, but the victim's family may still spare his life.

Ayatollah Abbas Ali Soleimani, a member of the Assembly of Experts that selects the country's supreme leader, was killed on April 26 inside a bank in Babolsar city in the northern province of Mazandaran.

The man convicted of his murder, who has not been named by authorities, was a security guard at the bank.

"The killer of Ayatollah Soleimani was sentenced to qesas [Iran's Islamic law of retribution] on the charge of intentional murder," provincial judiciary chief Mohammad Sadegh Akbari said, according to the judiciary's Mizan Online website.

CCTV footage released by the media at the time showed the security guard, wearing a blue and white jacket, shooting the cleric from behind as he was sitting in a chair at the bank.

Under Islamic law, the sentence of qesas can be dropped if the victim's family agrees to spare the convict.

Soleimani, 75, was previously a representative of the country's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

He had also been the imam who led Friday prayers in the cities of Kashan, in Isfahan province, and Zahedan, in the southeastern province of Sistan-Baluchistan.

Under the constitution, the 88-strong Assembly of Experts is tasked with supervising, dismissing and electing the supreme leader.

In April 2022, a suspected jihadist knife attack in Iran's second city of Mashhad led to the deaths of two clerics and injuries to a third.

The chief suspect, identified as Abdolatif Moradi, 21, was hanged in Mashhad in June on the charge of moharebeh, or enmity against God.
Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko says his country has received some of Russias tactical nuclear weapons. Russian President Vladimir Putin said earlier this year he would deploy some of the short-range nuclear weapons to its neighbor and ally.

France accuses Russia of disinformation campaign that included making fake versions of websites from the French Foreign Ministry and French media outlets to spread false information about Ukraines military and sanctions against Russia.

The International Committee of the Red Cross says there will be massive needs in the coming weeks in the Kherson area following last weeks destruction of the Kakhovka dam.

A Russian missile struck the southern Ukrainian port city of Odesa early Wednesday, killing at least three people and injuring 13 others.

Ukraines military said the attack involved four Kalibr cruise missiles.

Regional authorities said a missile struck a warehouse where the three people were killed and that the Russian attack also damaged homes and shops in downtown Odesa.

Officials said rescuers were searching to find anyone who may have been buried in the rubble.

The U.N.s humanitarian agency condemned the attack.

"People in Odesa woke up, once again, to see their loved ones killed or injured by an airstrike. This is not an isolated case, U.N. Humanitarian Coordinator for Ukraine Denise Brown said in a statement. Since the start of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, indiscriminate attacks and the use of explosive weapons with wide impact in populated areas have left thousands of civilians, including children, killed and injured. This must stop.

In Donetsk province, in eastern Ukraine, officials said missile strikes killed at least three people in the cities of Kramatorsk and Konstantinovka.

The Ukrainian prosecutors office said shelling Wednesday in the Sumy region in northeastern Ukraine hit a car near the Russian border, killing six people.

Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Maliar told VOAs Myroslava Gongadze that Ukraine is conducting offensive operations in the east and south of Ukraine, even as the Russian army is conducting offensive operations. So, Ukrainian forces are currently engaged in offensive and defensive operations.

There is some progress in the Bakhmut direction, she said, but the enemy increased artillery and mortar shelling, using aviation, making it challenging to advance. There are some difficult weather conditions as well.

However, Ukrainian forces are moving forward step by step, Maliar said. In the last week, Ukrainian forces advanced by 6.5 kilometers in all directions and liberated around 90 square kilometers.

NATO support for Ukraine

NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg said Tuesday that the Western military alliance's support for Ukraine in its fight against Russia "is now making a difference on the battlefield" with the start of Ukraines counteroffensive.

"The offensive is launched, and the Ukrainians are making progress, making advances," Stoltenberg said as he met with U.S. President Joe Biden at the White House.

"It's still early days, but what we do know is that the more land the Ukrainians are able to liberate, the stronger hand they will have at the negotiating table," Stoltenberg said, "and also the more likely it will be that [Russian] President [Vladimir] Putin at some stage will understand that he will never win this war of aggression on the battlefield."

Biden agreed that NATO's continuing support for Ukraine is making a difference, saying, "NATO allies have never been more united, and we both worked like hell to make sure that happened, and so far, so good. Putin is making a mistake."

Stoltenberg offered his assessment of the now nearly 16-month Russian assault on Ukraine.

"I think you also have to realize that Russia's brutal invasion of Ukraine is not only an attack on Ukraine, but also on our core values, and on free people everywhere," he said. "And therefore, President Putin must not win this war, because that will not only be a tragedy for Ukrainians, but also make the world more dangerous."

"It will send a message to authoritarian leaders all over the world, also in China, that when they use military force, they get what they want," the NATO chief said. "And we will then become more vulnerable. So, it's [in] our security interest to support Ukraine."

Black Sea grain deal

Russian President Vladimir Putin said Tuesday that Russia is thinking about withdrawing from the Black Sea grain deal under which tons of Ukrainian grain have been shipped to other European countries and impoverished nations in Africa.

Putin said that Moscow had been "cheated" over implementation of the parts of the deal that concerned its own exports.

Putin told pro-Kremlin war correspondents that the accord was intended to help "friendly" countries in Africa and Latin America. But he said Europe has turned out to be the largest importer of Ukrainian grain and that this was providing a key source of foreign currency to Kyiv.

Putin said he plans to discuss the future of the grain deal with some African leaders who were expected to visit Russia. Putin said Moscow is ready to supply grain for free to the world's poorest countries.

The deal was brokered last July by the United Nations and Turkey and extended since then, allowing for the safe export of grain from several Ukrainian ports past Russian warships on the Black Sea.

Meanwhile, Putin suggested that he could order his troops to try to seize more land in Ukraine to protect Russian territory on the border with Ukraine, where villages have come under attack.

Putin said Ukrainian forces had suffered "catastrophic" losses in their new counteroffensive. He said that Ukraine lost 160 tanks and more than 360 other armored vehicles, while Russia lost only 54 tanks since Kyiv began the new assault in recent days. His claims could not be immediately verified.

Putin said he wasn't contemplating a new mobilization of troops but didn't rule it out.

Some information for this story came from The Associated Press, Agence France-Presse and Reuters.
Calls for countries in the East and Horn of Africa to address the needs of the millions of displaced people in the region came Tuesday at the start of a four-day ministerial conference being held by the Inter-governmental authority (IGAD) in the Ugandan capital.

Hilary Onek, Uganda's Minister for Relief, Disaster Preparedness and Refugees, called on ministers to examine and address the wide range of factors that are forcing people from their homes. These factors, he said, include not only material issues but political ones.

"Some governments don't tolerate opposition. And they clamp down on them and these people run to exile. Tribal intolerance. Like in Congo here there's Lendu against the Hema group killing each other, and some are forced to flee their home. Those are the challenges of intolerance I'm talking about. And most of them are driven by ignorance," Onek said.

Limited funding has been cited as one of the major challenges in handling the refugee crisis in the East and Horn of Africa. Uganda is currently hosting more than 1.5 million refugees, the largest population in Africa. Other refugee-hosting countries include Ethiopia with more than 830,000 refugees and Kenya, which has 560,000.

Matthew Crentsil, the UNHCR Country representative, says all these countries have single, unsustainable funding sources while their refugee burdens continue to grow. Crentsil said it is time for countries hosting refugees to look at expanding domestic and internal sourcing of funds, such as engaging the private sector.

"There should also be other means of supporting refugees," he said. "It doesn't pay at all keeping refugees in settlements and camps for years and feeding them for years. That is why we are advocating for an increase in livelihood opportunities and activities for refugees in the region."

In October 2021, a military coup destabilized Sudan, which is already home to 1.1 million refugees. The majority of those refugees are from South Sudan, followed by Eritrea and Syria.

As efforts continue in different parts of the world to bring an end to the conflict in Sudan, Osman AbdulRahman, the deputy Ambassador of Sudan to Uganda, told VOA he hopes the meeting will also find solutions to contribute to peace in his country.

"This humanitarian situation right now is going to threaten even the region and the entire world unless we do something right now to stop this war," he said. "And to have peace talks between all elements in Sudan and our partners as well."

The UNHCR says the East and Horn of Africa is home to 5.5 million refugees, out of which 2.5 million are from South Sudan.

The conference in Kampala comes as the United Nations marks World Refugee Day on June 20, with "Hope away from home" as this year's theme.
Its been a year since armed men in Nigerias southwest Ondo state rushed into St. Francis Xavier Catholic Church during a Mass and attacked worshippers, killing 41 people and injuring scores of others. Nigerian officials and the Catholic diocese held a memorial service and dedicated a park to honor the memory of those killed. Timothy Obiezu has the latest from Owo, one year on.
Many of the wigs and false eyelashes labeled Made in China that are sold by American retailers may violate U.S. sanctions on North Korea, which is where they are actually manufactured, according to experts.

China imported approximately 30 tons of North Korean-made wigs and false eyelashes in April worth over $22.7 million, according to data from Chinas General Customs Administration examined by VOAs Korean Service.

About half, amounting to more than $11.2 million, were imported by Chinese companies in Henan province. Xiaogang, a city in central Henan province, is the worlds largest wig manufacturing, distribution and export hub.

Although North Korea sealed its border with China in January 2020 at the beginning of the pandemic, trade between the neighbors has resumed gradually since North Korea declared victory over COVID-19 in August 2022. China is North Koreas biggest trading partner.

The amount of Pyongyangs wig and false lash exports to China in April shows that trade is returning after the pandemic as North Koreas total exports to China in 2021 only amounted to $56.3 million, said Troy Stangarone, senior director at Korea Economic Institute (KEI) to VOA Korean by email.

As North Koreas exports to China return to pre-pandemic levels, experts said U.S. companies must be vigilant that supply chains do not include Chinese manufacturers that use North Korean labor. U.S. penalties for sanctions violations convictions include incarceration, fines, and forfeiture of any/all goods imported and proceeds of these crimes, according to federal law.

Chinese firms have been known to subcontract with North Korean firms and label the goods as made in China, Stangarone said. Any efforts by Chinese firms to directly or indirectly export wigs and fake lashes or any other North Korean goods to the United States would be a violation of U.S. sanctions.

Despite the sanctions, however, there is still a good chance that those items could end up in the U.S., he added.

$128.6 million in human hair products

China was the top global exporter of human hair products including wigs and fake lashes in 2021, totaling approximately $1.84 billion while the U.S. was the largest importer of those products worth approximately $1.01 billion in the same year.

In April, China was the largest exporter of wigs and other human hair products to the U.S. amounting to $128.6 million.

If firms utilize China as part of their supply chain, they need to be aware they could be unknowingly sending North Korean goods to the United States, said Stangarone.

The U.S. Treasury issued an advisory in 2017 cautioning American businesses to closely examine their entire supply chain(s) for North Korean laborers and goods and services or technology especially those businesses with operation in high-risk countries.

The advisory said that North Korea uses forced labor to raise revenue to fund its weapons of mass destruction (WMD) and ballistic missile programs.

The use of North Korean citizens or nationals as laborers in supply chains could trigger U.S. sanctions, and the issuance of work authorizations for these North Korean nationals is prohibited under UN Security Council resolution 2397 issued in 2017, said the advisory.

Joshua Stanton, a Washington-based attorney who helped draft the Sanctions Enforcement and Policy Enforcement Act in 2016, said, Importing products made with forced or penal labor into the United States has long been a violation of the U.S. Tariff Act.

He continued, If goods are made in whole or in part with North Korean labor, theyre subject to rebuttable presumption that theyre made with forced labor.

Regulations ban imports from North Korea

The regulations ban imports of goods, services or technology from North Korea.

In 2019, California-based e.l.f. Cosmetics agreed to pay nearly $1 million for importing over $4 million worth of false eyelash kits from Chinese suppliers that sourced materials from North Korea in violation of the North Korean Sanctions Regulations.

The U.S. Treasury said the cosmetics company appears not to have exercised sufficient supply chain due diligence while sourcing products from a region in which North Korea is known to export goods.

If U.S. Customs and Border Protections Office of Trade identifies those [North Korean-made] wigs, it will seize them and sell them at auction, said Stanton.

Stanton said U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) may rely on tips to identify North Korea-made products such as items coming from an exporter or factory with a known history of employing labor in North Korea, among other ways of detection.

In 2022, CBP seized goods produced by the Chinese companies Jingde Trading, Rixin Foods and Zhejiang Sunrise Garment Group at U.S. ports.

The seizures were based on CBPs investigation indicating that these companies use North Korean labor in their supply chains in violation of the Countering Americas Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA), the CBP said in December 2022.

CAATSA bans the importation to the U.S. of items made by North Korean workers anywhere in the world, said the statement.

Although U.N. Security Council sanctions on North Korea do not explicitly list wigs and false lashes as banned export items, China and North Korea could be violating those sanctions, according to Stanton. U.N. sanctions ban the Pyongyang regime from exporting items like coal, textiles and seafood to prevent sales revenue from funding its weapons programs.

The U.N. sanctions are not required to list every product and item that North Korea exports, Stanton said.

North Koreas export to China is nonetheless a violation of UN sanctions if China fails to ensure that Pyongyang doesnt use the profits for prohibited activities, including WMD proliferations, continued Stanton.

North Korea conducted a record number of weapons tests last year to enhance the development of its missile and nuclear programs, a practice that Pyongyang is continuing this year. Its latest attempted launch of a satellite using ballistic missile technology banned by the UN failed on May 31.

Christy Lee contributed to this report.
Multiple identical complaints filed with police in Pakistan this week have accused several self-exiled journalists of inciting mutiny against the state and defaming the military, a move critics view as another attempt to suppress freedom of speech in the country.

The journalists facing the charges work out of the United States and Britain. Most of them fled Pakistan in recent months, citing personal security concerns. They include freelancer Wajahat Saeed Khan, Shaheen Sehbai  the former editor of a mainstream Pakistani newspaper  and Moeed Pirzada and Sabir Shakir, both of whom hosted popular TV political talk shows on national channels.

While those filing the complaints have identified themselves as "patriotic citizens," critics accuse the military of being behind the cases.

Reporters Without Borders, a France-based international defender of media freedom, denounced the charges against Khan and Sehbai as absurd, demanding Pakistani prosecutors immediately dismiss them. The watchdog defended the two men saying they "have just practiced journalism" and have done nothing else.

"Make no mistake  the sole purpose of this ludicrous complaint  is to intimidate the two journalists into silence ..." said Daniel Bastard, the head of RSF's Asia-Pacific desk, in a press release. "The credibility of the rule of law in Pakistan, and above all, judicial independence in the face of unacceptable military interference is at stake."

The allegations against the journalists stem from violent nationwide protests sparked by the May 9 arrest of former Prime Minister Imran Khan on corruption charges.

Protesters also vandalized several military sites and symbols, prompting incumbent Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and the military to arrest thousands of supporters of Khan's opposition Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, or PTI, party.

The detainees include women. Dozens of PTI workers face trials in military courts for allegedly playing a role in the attacks on defense installations.

The journalists in question, via YouTube shows and Twitter posts, have since routinely criticized the military for unleashing the clampdown on Khan supporters and alleged human rights abuses against detainees.

Pirzada dismissed charges against him as "bogus and baseless," vowing to contest them through his attorneys in Pakistani and even U.S. courts.

"The only goal is to silence dissent from journalists outside Pakistan  after totally suppressing Pakistani media," Pirzada wrote on Twitter.

The whereabouts of a nationally known journalist, Imran Riaz Khan, remain unknown a month after police picked him up in the populous Punjab province.

"In the run-up to general elections that are due to be held on a still-undetermined date in the coming weeks, Pakistans journalists  both those in Pakistan and those abroad  are being subjected to growing harassment by the military establishment and intelligence agencies, the RSF alleged in its statement.

The U.S.-based Committee to Protect Journalists said the growing censorship in Pakistan is extremely concerning.

It is essential for journalists to keep the public informed about the countrys political situation, Beh Lih Yi, CPJs Asia program coordinator, told VOA.

Pakistani authorities must reverse their blatant acts of censorship and allow the media to report freely without the fear of harassment by law enforcement, she said.

Ban on Khan

The military has allegedly barred all Pakistani news channels from showing pictures of former Prime Minister Khan or using his name. Senior army officers conveyed the warning to media owners in a meeting in the capital, Islamabad, earlier this month, several attendees told VOA on the condition of anonymity.

Instead, government news conferences, speeches, and statements denouncing Khan and his supporters as "miscreants" and "hatemongers" are often broadcast, with all the channels airing images of the incidents of arson and vandalism in the run-up to hourly bulletins.

The former prime minister has openly accused the Pakistani military of being behind the crackdown and media ban in a bid to dismantle his party. Khan has distanced his party from the violence, blaming government-infiltrated "saboteurs" for the ransacking.

VOA has contacted the army's media wing for a reaction to the allegations but did not receive a response immediately.

Last week, a strongly worded military statement quoted its chief, General Asim Munir, as telling his top commanders that "attempts to take refuge behind imaginary and mirage human rights violations to create a smoke screen for hiding the ugly faces of all involved, are absolutely futile."

Without naming Khan, the army chief added, "It is time that the noose of law is also tightened around the planners and masterminds who mounted the hate-ripened and politically driven rebellion against the state."

On Wednesday, Pakistani Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar defended military trials of civilians while speaking to reporters. He claimed the country's army laws meet "the internationally acknowledged minimum requirements" for a fair trial.

Additionally, Sharif attempted in a recent statement to assure critics that "the culprits are being dealt with under the law and that I will ensure that no rights violations take place."

Pakistan's National Assembly, the lower house of the parliament, passed a resolution on Monday calling for military trials "without even a single-day delay" of PTI members allegedly involved in last month's rioting.

Skeptics such as the independent Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, or HRCP, swiftly rejected the resolution, reiterating their strong opposition to military trials of civilians. The watchdog said the resolution "seems to imply that the government is willing to sacrifice the right to a fair trial, transparency, and due process on the altar of political expediency."

Khan's critics attribute his rise to power after the 2018 election to his close ties with the military, and he was removed from power in April 2022 through a parliamentary vote of no-confidence after falling out with the institution.

According to all recent polls, the deposed prime minister remains the most popular politician in Pakistan, but the crackdown on his party has forced dozens of his aides to publicly abandoned Khan or quit politics altogether, praising the military and condemning the protests. They all appeared to be reading from the same script but denied they were leaving the party under any pressure, claims critics dismissed.

Those abandoning Khan have been allowed to leave jails and join rival political parties without facing prosecution regarding the alleged violence against military installations. PTI leaders who remain in hiding to avoid being arrested have complained their family members have been harassed and subjected to abuse by police in repeated raids on their homes.

An earlier version of this article included a quote that had been edited out of the body of the story.
Egypt has been struggling to cope with a new wave of refugees from Africa after the latest round of conflicts erupted in Sudan and Ethiopia. The UNHCR appears to be having difficulties dealing with the large numbers of refugees and Egyptian authorities slapped a visa requirement on Sudanese refugees trying to enter the country several days ago.

Scores of recently arrived Sudanese refugees gather outside the UNHCR building in Cairo's normally quiet suburb of Zamalek. A refugee charity organization is handing out food and blankets to refugee families who appear tired and distraught from their recent ordeal fleeing the ongoing fighting in the Sudanese capital, Khartoum.

Agothe, a 30-year-old Sudanese mother of five, lost track of her husband in the rush to flee Khartoum and several of her children became ill during the disorganized trek to the Egyptian border and days of sleeping in unsanitary conditions. While she has found food and medical care for her children in Cairo, her husband is still missing, and she only has temporary shelter to live in.

At the same time, dozens of Syrian refugees, most of whom fled to Egypt several years ago, gather outside a side-door to the U.N. facility that is trying to help them. Most of them have jobs and a place to stay, but their situation remains precarious. Several told VOA that they were worried about being sent back to Syria now that the Arab League has normalized ties with Damascus.

Miriam, a middle-aged woman from Damascus, told VOA that she would be happy to return to Syria, but that she is worried that her 18-year-old nephew, who lives with her, will be drafted into the Syrian Army if he returns with her.

She said that she doesn't want to see her nephew Maher die in a new war in Syria. We've already lost half our family in the last war, she said, and I don't want to see any more of them die.

Cairo is also awash with refugees from African countries that have witnessed conflicts in recent months or years. Andre, who comes from the Democratic Republic of Congo, told VOA that militia fighters took him from his family and killed his father, who tried to stop them. He recounts being tortured and treated like a slave before he was finally able to flee to Uganda, then Sudan, and finally on to Egypt.

Andre said that he has been struggling to get his situation sorted out with the U.N. refugee agency, but that no one wants to listen to him since he speaks French and not English or Arabic. He recounts sleeping outside buildings on many nights and worries that he could get deported back to Congo.

Mohammed, a 50-year-old refugee from Tigray, in Ethiopia, said that he has been fleeing from place to place since he was a young man. He had a successful business in Sudan, before militia fighters stole his property and forced him to flee, along with part of his family.

He said that he can't go back because his business was confiscated and the militiamen who took it could decide to kill him to hide what they've done. Mohammed said that he still hasn't found a job in Egypt, but that his wife is helping to make ends meet by doing odd jobs and cooking for Egyptian families.

Ahmed, a young man from Somalia, told VOA that other Somalis have been harassing him because they don't like him and because they see him hanging around churches.

He said that he's had to change his place of residence and change his phone number because other Somalis were trying to harm him. They don't like the fact that I am Christian, he said, and they want to make an example of me to other Somalis.

Sardo, a lanky young man from South Sudan told VOA that he was forced to flee Khartoum for Juba when the two countries split in 2010. He said that he didn't want to leave but had no choice. After several months in Juba, however, Sardo found himself in a South Sudanese jail. He describes his arrest, which happened while he was working at a store.

They came with eight commandos and then they came down, they (entered) the gallery and say 'this is the one.' They hold my leg and they drop me into the car and he put his leg on my neck to break my neck. Then I say Jesus. Then I stay there more than three months. Suddenly they released me at night. When we reached the place where it's a jungle, they opened the door, they called my name and they take me by my neck and drop me down. When I woke up, the dogs were running to me to bite me, he said.

Sardo told VOA that some of the same South Sudanese militiamen tracked him down to his home in Cairo, as well, where they threatened to kill him, again. Sardo fled to a new location and is still afraid to be seen during the day in his old neighborhood.

Walid, a twenty-something Sudanese man from Nuba Mountain, told VOA that many young Sudanese refugees have turned to violence and roam around with gangs because they have no jobs, can't go to school and their parents have lost control over them.

A gang of young Sudanese men run around with knives in the street around a residential building in an outer Cairo suburb. The gang threatens passers-by and robs a number of people before running off.

"Being a refugee is not easy, said Walid. Many young people can't cope with it and end up in jail.

Some even take their own lives.

A young Sudanese man jumped off a bridge, earlier this year, after he became depressed.
Three Kosovo police officers were detained by Serbian forces on Wednesday but officials from Kosovo and Serbia gave different locations for the arrest, accusing each other of crossing the border illegally.

Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti demanded the release of the three officers. He said they had been arrested 300 meters inside Kosovan territory, near the border with Serbia.

"The entry of Serbian forces into the territory of Kosovo is aggression and aimed at escalation and destabilization," Kurti wrote on his Facebook page.

In response to the detentions, Kosovo's interior minister, Xhelal Svecla, told reporters he had ordered officers at border crossings to stop all trucks with Serbian plates and trucks carrying Serbian goods.

But Petar Petkovic, the head of the Serbian government office for Kosovo, said the three were arrested "deep inside" Serbian territory.

He told a news conference in Belgrade that the arrest took place in the village named Gnjilica, a few kilometers from the border, and that Serbia was willing to accept an international investigation into the arrest.

The detentions may further fuel tensions in the predominantly Serb northern part in Kosovo which borders Serbia and which has seen violence in recent weeks.

Kosovo declared independence from Serbia in 2008, nearly a decade after an uprising by the 90% ethnic Albanian majority against repressive Serbian rule.

In 1999, a NATO bombing campaign drove Serbian security forces out of Kosovo but Belgrade continues to regard it as a southern province.

Violence flared last month when 30 peacekeepers and 52 Serbs were injured in clashes in four predominantly Serb municipalities in northern Kosovo just outside Serbia.

It erupted after Serbs rallied against ethnic Albanian mayors who moved into their offices following a local vote in which turnout was just 3.5%. Serbs in the area boycotted the election.

The arrest on Tuesday of a Serb identified by the Kosovo Albanian interior minister as an organizer of assaults on NATO peacekeepers during unrest last month stirred more anger in the region and triggered protests on Wednesday.
BlackRock CEO Fink says he does not plan to leave the firm 'any time soon'

FILE PHOTO: Larry Fink, Chairman and CEO of BlackRock, at the NYSE in New York

By Carolina Mandl and Davide Barbuscia

NEW YORK (Reuters) - BlackRock Inc chairman and Chief Executive Officer Larry Fink said on Wednesday he is not planning to leave the world's biggest asset manager "any time soon," while his team unveiled plans for revenue growth.

Fink, 70, said he has no plans to retire, but BlackRock still has been planning for his succession.

"I have no higher priority than developing the next generational leaders for BlackRock," he said at the firm's investors day event.

Fink co-founded BlackRock in 1988 along with seven partners. Now, investors and analysts have begun to question who will next take the helm of the New York-based asset manager.

"BlackRock is at a bit of a strategic inflection point as it seeks to ramp up growth and meet client needs. As a result, succession at BlackRock takes on an added significance," said Cathy Seifert, vice-president at research firm CFRA.

BlackRock's top executives said the company is keeping an eye on acquisitions and targets a 5% organic base fee revenue growth between 2023-2027, the same pace it grew between 2019 and 2022. Still, the firm sees its market share in fee revenue reach 3.1% from 2.8%.

Private markets will play an important role in BlackRock's growth in the future, according to Edwin Conway, global head of equity private market, as investors will seek diversification beyond debt and equities. "We're firm believers we'll double our revenues in next five years," he said.

The firm manages $320 billion in alternative assets, such as real estate, private credit and infrastructure. Last year, the private markets area posted $1 billion in revenues.

Shares in BlackRock were up nearly 2% following BlackRock's executives comments and expectations that a Federal Reserve pause on rate hikes will benefit asset managers.

Fink talked about potential inorganic growth opportunities for the firm that would be transformational, a concept he had already expressed in April, adding possible areas to expand the firm's footprint could include data, information, technology, or could be related to distribution.

"The most important thing, I will assure you, is a process of testing ourselves and really ask ourselves how should we evolve our business model to best serve our clients," he said.

(Reporting by Carolina Mandl and Davide Barbuscia, in New York; Editing by David Gregorio)
Kidney dialysis patients are dying, and dead bodies have been left to decompose in a morgue and in city streets as Sudan's war rages on, despite efforts by volunteers and aid workers to keep critical healthcare running.

Sudan's health sector was already near collapse because of a lack of resources before the conflict, and it has been shattered by nearly two months of fighting across the country between the army and the Rapid Support Forces, or RSF.

More than 60 hospitals in conflict zones have been put out of service, and the 29 that are still operating are threatened by closure caused by power and water cuts and shortage of staff, according to the United Nations.

"Despite all the best efforts of Sudanese doctors ... who are working in extremely difficult conditions, this is certainly not a sustainable situation," Patrick Youssef, International Committee of the Red Cross regional director for Africa, told Reuters.

Dr. Mohammed Wahbi, who manages one of Sudan's largest children's hospitals, across the Nile from Khartoum in Omdurman, said it normally received up to 300 patients a day.

"Once the war broke out, RSF forces stationed their vehicles in front of the hospital and its soldiers entered the building, which made the facility unsafe for patients," he said. "Many stayed away, except those who were desperate for dialysis treatment."

Two weeks ago, the hospital stopped providing treatment as dialysis supplies dwindled.

In El-Obeid, southwest of Khartoum, a power outage lasting more than two weeks has put a kidney dialysis unit at risk of shutdown and led to the deaths of at least 12 dialysis patients, a doctors union statement said Sunday.

Residents say roads into the strategically located city are under blockade, with supplies of food and medicine cut off.

Engineers tried to reach a local power station to restore electricity, but were assaulted before they could arrive, the doctors union said.

Renal disease constitutes an important health problem in Sudan, where treatment is limited and expensive. According to the International Society of Nephrology, an estimated 8,000 people in Sudan depend on dialysis to live.

In Ombada, on the outskirts of Omdurman, the main hospital has had to halve the frequency of patient visits and shut down their operating rooms, said general director Alaa El Din Ibrahim Ali, because of power cuts and lack of fuel for the generator.

Morgue breakdown

Nearby, a local morgue was unable to keep its refrigeration system working and 450 bodies began to decompose, seeping blood onto the floor.

The army has accused the RSF of forcibly evacuating and taking over key hospitals. The RSF said in a statement earlier this week that monitors had observed several of those hospitals, as well as power and water stations, were free of fighters.

With international humanitarian agencies struggling to scale up aid because of the pervasive danger of violence, one of many local volunteer units trying to maintain basic health services attempted to fix the outage.

"We faced problems buying equipment and fuel to get the cooling facilities up and running again," said Moussa Hassan, a member of the group, who said the price of a gallon of fuel had soared to between $58 and $83, from $11 before the war.

The police and other authorities vanished when the conflict started, blocking burial procedures, he said.

"No death certificates have been issued. The dead cannot be buried anyway, given the constant fighting happening around us," Hassan said.

The situation in Darfur, in western Sudan, is even more desperate. El Geneina, the city hit hardest, has been struck by waves of attacks by Arab militias backed by the RSF while cut off from humanitarian relief and phone networks.

"There are practically no health services [there] at all. Its a city of death," said Yasir Elamin, president of the Sudanese American Physicians.

The Geneina Teaching Hospital, the most visited hospital in West Darfur State, was forced to close in late April, its patients and doctors evacuated.

A secondary school teacher from the city, Hisham Juma, said he saw fighters take the hospital over before he fled to neighboring Chad earlier this month.

"Many patients died, including my neighbor, who needed dialysis every three days," he told Reuters by phone from Chad.

Reuters was unable to verify his account or ascertain how many patients had died.

Moussa Ibrahim, a logistics supervisor in El Geneina for medical aid group MSF, which supported the hospital, said fighting in the city had made it dangerous to fetch basic necessities or retrieve dead bodies from the streets.

"Access was finally gained, but by that point the bodies had decomposed to the extent that they couldn't be removed. Now, the best that can be done is to gather the bodies in a single location," he said in a statement.
Fighting rocked several vulnerable cities in western Sudan on Wednesday in an expansion of the country's almost two-month-old war as the number of people who have fled their homes rose above two million.

The conflict between the army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces has caused a humanitarian crisis in Khartoum, as well as major cities in the Kordofan and Darfur regions.

The widening footprint of fighting threatens to prolong the violence and draw in armed groups  particularly those with tribal affiliations  as well as external actors.

Speaking to Al-Hadath TV from El Geneina as gun and artillery fire could be heard, Khamis Abbakar, the governor of West Darfur state, called for international intervention in what he described as a "genocide."

"Civilians are being killed randomly and in large numbers," he said. While the RSF and allied militias had originally targeted areas of El Geneina where members of the Masalit tribe lived, these attacks had now spread to the entire city, he said.

"We haven't seen the army leave its base to defend people," he added. Activists say 1,100 people have been killed so far in the city.

The Darfur region of Sudan has seen periods of conflict since the early 2000s, when millions were displaced and 300,000 killed by attacks from Arab militias known as the Janjaweed. The RSF evolved out of those groups, becoming a legalized governmental force in 2017.

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres "is highly worried about the increasing ethnic dimension of the violence, as well as by reports of sexual violence," a spokesperson said on Tuesday. His special representative to Sudan, Volker Perthes, blamed "Arab militias and some armed men in RSF's uniform."

In a statement, the RSF called the fighting in El Geneina a tribal conflict, blaming the country's former regime for fanning the flames. It said it had been making efforts to get aid into the city.

Diplomatic efforts led by the United States and Saudi Arabia have faltered, as numerous cease-fires have been violated. On Tuesday, senior U.S. State Department officials said they were considering a new approach for the coming days.

Fighting across Darfur

The Darfur Bar Association, a local group monitoring the fighting, said on Wednesday that artillery strikes had hit civilian homes in Nyala, capital of South Darfur, after RSF soldiers had complained of not receiving salaries.

"The assault could start again at any moment; we don't feel safe," said Salah Alamin, 39.

The city of Zalingei, capital of Central Darfur, was under siege, the association said. The city of El Fashir, capital of North Darfur, has been quieter but has seen a wave of displacement from RSF-controlled Kutum.

Meanwhile in El Obeid, a hub between Khartoum and Darfur in North Kordofan, residents said the army had begun launching air and artillery strikes against RSF positions. The RSF has controlled the roads branching out from the city and agreed with local tribal leaders to secure the area from armed gangs.

In Kadugli, South Kordofan, the army pushed back an RSF attack on one of its bases, as troops loyal to rebel leader Abdelaziz al-Hilu surrounded the city. Sources from al-Hilu's faction, SPLM-N, said that they sought to protect civilians from armed militias.

Within Khartoum, residents reported clashes and air and artillery strikes in southern and eastern districts of the city and in neighboring Omdurman on Wednesday.

The U.N. said late on Tuesday that some 1.7 million people had been displaced internally and more than 500,000 had left the country.

In army-controlled Port Sudan, meanwhile, middle school students began taking exams, while pilgrims to Mecca began their Hajj journeys, as some attempted to find some normality.

The Sudanese Doctors Union said that at least 958 people have been killed since fighting began on April 15, over the integration of the RSF into the military.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and his Chinese counterpart Qin Gang spoke by telephone late Tuesday ahead of an expected visit by Blinken to Beijing.

Blinken tweeted that the two diplomats talked about ongoing efforts to maintain open channels of communication as well as bilateral and global issues.

State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller added in a statement that Blinken made clear the U.S. would continue to use diplomatic engagements to raise areas of concern as well as areas of potential cooperation.

A Chinese Foreign Ministry statement about the call said Qin told Blinken the United States should stop interfering in Chinas affairs and undermining Chinas security and development interests. The ministry also said it hopes the United States will work with China to manage differences and promote cooperation.

Blinken canceled a planned trip to China in February amid tensions that included a Chinese spy balloon flying over the United States and Chinas objection to U.S. support of Taiwan. The State Department has not announced a makeup visit, but it is expected to happen soon.

Some information for this report came from Agence France-Presse and Reuters.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Friday he would seek to establish open and empowered communications during a weekend visit to China  a trip that was rescheduled from February after a suspected Chinese spy balloon flew through U.S. airspace.

Shortly before departing for China on Friday evening, Blinken told a news conference in Washington that U.S. officials would speak candidly with their Chinese counterparts about very real concerns on a range of issues.

Speaking alongside visiting Singapore Foreign Affairs Minister Vivian Balakrishnan, Blinken said the U.S. wanted to make sure that the competition we have with China doesn't veer into confrontation or conflict.

Expectations are low that Blinkens trip will reset the two countries fraught relationship.

Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Wang Wenbin said Friday that "the United States views China as its 'primary rival' and 'the most consequential geopolitical challenge.' This is a major strategic misjudgment.

He said the competition the United States has with China is not responsible competition, but irresponsible bullying. It will only push the two countries towards confrontation and create a divided world.

Blinken is the first secretary of state to visit Beijing since 2018.

While in Beijing, Secretary Blinken will meet with senior PRC officials where he will discuss the importance of maintaining open lines of communication to responsibly manage the U.S.-PRC relationship. He will also raise bilateral issues of concern, global and regional matters, and potential cooperation on shared transnational challenges, the State Department said on Wednesday, referencing the Peoples Republic of China.

In a tweet, Blinken said he and Qin discussed ongoing efforts to maintain open channels of communication as well as bilateral and global issues.

In Beijing, Chinese officials asked the United States to stop what they said was Washingtons undermining of Chinas security and development interests, but added the two countries can manage differences and promote cooperation.

Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Wang Wenbin said during a Wednesday briefing that the Beijing government hopes the U.S. will take concrete actions to work with China to effectively manage differences, promote exchanges and cooperation, [and] stabilize the relationship from further deterioration.

Senior U.S. officials said topics high on the agenda during Blinkens meetings in Beijing June 18-19 include regional security, counternarcotics, climate change, global macroeconomic stability, Americans wrongfully detained in China, as well as exchanges between American and Chinese people.

Officials said they would not anticipate a long list of deliverables after Blinkens meetings in Beijing.

In Brussels on Friday, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin expressed optimism that he would eventually hold talks with his Chinese counterpart after China refused a meeting at an event in Singapore earlier this month.

"I'm confident that, over time, that's going to happen. We're going to meet at some point in time. But we're not there yet," Austin told a news conference at NATO headquarters.

On Wednesday, Daniel Kritenbrink, assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs, told reporters during a phone briefing that stopping illicit fentanyl will feature prominently in Blinkens meetings in Beijing.

Officials also said Chinas military escalation in the Taiwan Strait was a global concern.

Kurt Campbell, coordinator for Indo-Pacific affairs on the White House National Security Council, said the maintenance of peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait is a clear bipartisan, strong determination of the United States.

U.S. officials have said it is in the interest of both countries to maintain open lines of communication. The Pentagon also wants Beijing to answer a military hotline so generals can talk during incidents like a recent close encounter involving U.S. and Chinese ships in the Taiwan Strait.

Observers say despite the tensions, the two governments are trying to set up a summit later this year.

Both countries are working toward a possible meeting between [U.S. President Joe] Biden and [Chinese President] Xi Jinping at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation meeting, which will take place in San Francisco in November, said Bonnie Glaser, managing director of the Indo-Pacific program at the German Marshall Fund of the United States. And in order to have a successful summit, if that is indeed on the agenda, there needs to be a lot of preparation. said Bonnie Glaser, managing director of the Indo-Pacific program at the German Marshall Fund of the United States.

While Washington is seeking to re-engage Beijing on the issues of counternarcotics and climate change, experts and congressional critics are skeptical that the two countries can have a substantial change in the status of their relationship.

I do not think that we should be looking towards a reset of the U.S.-China relationship, Glaser told VOA.

It is an opportunity for both sides to continue to express their concerns and maybe find ways to address differences. This is particularly true in the military realm, where they've actually been frozen, Glaser added.

After Beijing, Blinken heads to London to attend a Ukraine Recovery Conference to "mobilize international support from the public and private sector" and "help Ukraine recover from Russias brutal and ongoing attacks."

Some information for this report came from The Associated Press and Reuters.
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Former President Donald Trump remained defiant following his not guilty plea in a Florida courtroom Tuesday. The Republican presidential front-runner is facing 37 federal felony counts, including illegally retaining classified information and obstructing justice. White House Bureau Chief Patsy Widakuswara has this report. Camera - Celia Mendoza
In its latest Global Trends in Forced Displacement report, the U.N. refugee agency reported Wednesday that the number of people who have been forced to flee their homes because of war, persecution, human rights abuse and climate change had reached an all-time high of 108.4 million in 2022.

That is an increase of 19.1 million from the previous year and more than twice the number of people who were forcibly displaced a decade ago when the number stood at 42.75 million.

Every year, this figure has been rising, said Filippo Grandi, U.N. high commissioner for refugees, noting that new data show that last years record number of forcibly displaced already has been smashed.

It is quite an indictment on the state of the world, if I may say, to have to report thatwe have reached now 110 million. So, the figure has gone up again.

The report finds that last years record number of 108.4 million forcibly displaced people was driven by the war in Ukraine and by revised sharply higher estimates for Afghan refugees. It said the eruption of fighting in Sudan in mid-April largely pushed the current global total of forcibly displaced people to 110 million.

All of this increased displacement is often the result of brutal violence, like in Sudan and complete disregard for international humanitarian law, like in Ukraine, for example, said Grandi.

All of this, he said is met increasingly with a more hostile environment, especially when it comes to refugees.

So, we see pushbacks. We see tougher and tougher immigration or refugee admission rules, he said. We see in many countries a criminalization of immigrants and refugees, blaming them for everything that has happened and so forth.

The report finds refugees, that is people who cross an international border in search of protection, accounted for 35.3 million of the forcibly displaced, while 58 percent or 62.5 million people were displaced inside their home countries due to conflict and violence.

Belying common perceptions, UNHCR statistics confirm that most displaced people around the world are hosted in low-and-middle-income countries, not in wealthy nations.

I think the prevailing rhetoric is still that all the refugees go to the rich countries, said Grandi. This is actually wrong. It is quite the opposite.

Seventy percent of the refugees, meaning of those 35 million, actually flee to the country next to their country, he said. Most of them actually want to go back home.

The report confirms that. It shows that some people who have lived in exile for years, albeit a trickle, indeed did go home voluntarily and safely, last year. It said over 339,000 refugees returned to 38 countries. While those numbers were lower than the previous year, the report said, there were significant voluntary returns to South Sudan, Syria, Cameroon, and Ivory Coast.

Additionally, 5.7 million internally displaced people returned home in 2022, notably within Ethiopia, Myanmar, Syria, Mozambique and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Solutions to these movements are increasingly difficult to even imagine, said Grandi.

We are in a very polarized world, where international tensions play out all the way into humanitarian issues, he said. And, this is very, very worryingBut solutions do happen.
The largest nuclear power plant in Europe faces "a relatively dangerous situation" after a dam burst in Ukraine and as Ukraine's military launches a counteroffensive to retake ground occupied by Russia, the head of the United Nations nuclear watchdog said Tuesday.

Rafael Mariano Grossi, the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), spoke to journalists in Kyiv just before leaving on a trip to the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant. The plant has been in the crossfire repeatedly since Russia launched its war on Ukraine in February 2022 and seized the facility shortly after.

Grossi said he met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to discuss the perils facing the nuclear plant, which grew more serious after the Kakhovka Dam burst last week. The dam, further down the Dnipro River, helped keep water in a reservoir that cools the plant's reactors. Ukraine has said Russia blew up the dam, something denied by Moscow, though analysts say the flood likely disrupted Kyiv's counteroffensive plans.

Grossi said the level of the reservoir that feeds the plant is dropping "quite steadily" but that it didn't represent an "immediate danger."

"It is a serious situation because you are limited to the water you have there," Grossi said. "If there was a break in the gates that contain this water or anything like this, you would really lose all your cooling capacity."

Most reactors in 'cold shutdown'

Ukraine recently said it hoped to put the last functioning reactor into a cold shutdown. That's a process in which all control rods are inserted into the reactor core to stop the nuclear fission reaction and generation of heat and pressure. Already, five of the plant's six reactors are in a cold shutdown.

When asked about Ukraine's plans, Grossi noted that Russia controlled the plant and that it represented "yet again, another unwanted situation deriving from this anomalous situation." Ukrainian workers still run the plant, though under an armed Russian military presence. The IAEA has a team at the plant, and Grossi said its members would be swapped out during his trip.

Asked about the Ukrainian counteroffensive, Grossi said he was "very concerned" about the plant potentially getting caught again in open warfare.

"There is active combat. So we are worrying that there could be, I mean, obviously mathematically, the possibilities of a hit," he said.

Grossi stressed the IAEA hadn't yet "seen any heavy military equipment" from the Russians at the plant when asked about Ukrainian fears the plant could be wired with explosives.

"There shouldn't be any military equipment or artillery or amounts of ammunition, an amount that could compromise the security of the plant," Grossi said. "We do not have any indication at this point. But it could not be excluded."

"There is active combat. So we are worrying that there could be, I mean, obviously mathematically, the possibilities of a hit," he said.
U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland on Wednesday defended Jack Smith, the career prosecutor he appointed as an independent special counsel to handle the criminal investigations of former President Donald Trump.

Trump has assailed Smith repeatedly in his social media posts. He has called the prosecutor a "thug" and "lunatic," including on Tuesday, when Trump pleaded not guilty at the U.S. Courthouse in Miami to a 37-count indictment filed by Smith. The document accused Trump of "willfully" retaining 31 highly classified national security documents and conspiring to hide them when federal authorities demanded he hand them over.

"As I said when I appointed Mr. Smith, I did so because it underscores the Justice Department's commitment to both independence and accountability," Garland, the top U.S. law enforcement official, told reporters at the Justice Department he heads.

"Mr. Smith is a veteran career prosecutor," Garland said. "He has assembled a group of experienced and talented prosecutors and agents who share his commitment to integrity and the rule of law. Any questions about this matter will have to be answered by their filings in court."

Smith sat behind his fellow prosecutors in the courtroom on Tuesday, and a few meters from Trump at the defendant's table, but they did not interact in any way.

A Trump lawyer referred to his client as "President Trump," while the judge conducting Trump's arraignment referred to him as "the former president" and a prosecutor called him "the defendant."

Garland's defense of Smith was the first time he had commented publicly since a federal grand jury charged Trump last week. It was the first time that a former or sitting American president has faced a federal indictment.

No date has been set for a trial, which could come in the first half of 2024, as Trump tries to win the Republican presidential nomination, or even after the November 2024 national election.

Trump has also been indicted by a state prosecutor in New York, where he is accused of falsifying records at his real estate conglomerate to hide a hush money payment to a porn star who claimed to have had a one-night tryst with Trump in 2006. The payment was made just ahead of Trump's successful 2016 presidential campaign.

Smith is also investigating Trump's role in trying to upend his 2020 election loss to President Joe Biden and the subsequent riot by Trump supporters at the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021. A prosecutor in the Southern state of Georgia is also investigating Trump's efforts to overturn his loss there to Biden.

Trump has denied all the charges, calling them a "witch hunt" aimed at keeping him from winning the presidency again. He far and away leads national polls of Republicans for the party's 2024 presidential nomination.

When Trump first disclosed he had been indicted, some Republican lawmakers and several of Trump's Republican presidential opponents accused Garland's Justice Department of "weaponizing" the country's judicial system to target Trump while ignoring alleged offenses committed by Democratic politicians. Some of the attacks have continued since then.

But once the 49-page indictment was released on Friday and the critics had a chance to read it, numerous Republicans have adopted a more nuanced position on the charges against Trump, with some still attacking the prosecution but refusing to defend Trump against the specific allegations.

Mike Pence, Trump's onetime vice president who is now running against him for the Republican nomination, told The Wall Street Journal editorial board, "These are very serious allegations. And I can't defend what is alleged. But the president is entitled to his day in court, he's entitled to bring a defense, and I want to reserve judgment until he has the opportunity to respond."
Less than three months after reviving diplomatic relations with Saudi Arabia, thanks to Chinese mediation, Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi is now on a high-profile trip to several countries in South America, forging strategic alliances and challenging U.S. sanctions.

Raisi's tour, which includes stops in Venezuela, Cuba and Nicaragua, is more than just a symbolic gesture of defiance against U.S. sanctions.

According to Emanuele Ottolenghi, a senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, Iran is actively seeking alliances in opposition to U.S. sanctions and aims to promote a vision of a multipolar world where U.S. influence is eroded in favor of rising authoritarian powers such as Russia and China.

"Where rising ascendant powers like China and Russia want to challenge U.S. dominance in trade and commerce  this competition has created this open space for other aspiring authoritarian regimes like Iran to step into the fray," Ottolenghi told VOA.

Geographically and culturally distinct, Iran nonetheless has maintained close ties with some South American regimes for decades, primarily to sow antagonism toward the United States, some analysts say.

During the signing ceremony of several agreements between Iran and Venezuela, Raisi made a pointed reference to their "common enemy," alluding to the United States.

In Washington, U.S. officials have downplayed the significance of Raisi's visit to the Americas.

"We don't ask countries in this hemisphere or any other to choose who they're going to associate with, or who they're going to talk to, or who they're going to allow to visit. That's for them to speak to," John Kirby, White House National Security Council spokesman, said Monday.

The United States remains concerned, though, about Iran's "destabilizing behavior" in the region, Kirby said.

"We have and will continue to take steps to mitigate that behavior," he said without elaborating.

Domestic audience

In addition to international sanctions, the Islamic Republic of Iran has been facing widespread internal denunciation from women, minorities, civil society activists and concerned citizens.

The Iranian government also has faced scathing criticism in recent months from the United Nations and other independent human rights groups for its alleged execution, imprisonment, torture and repression of women and political activists.

Despite its controversial record in human rights, Iran has secured leadership status at the U.N. Human Rights Council, as well as the U.N. General Assembly in 2023, sparking condemnations from several human rights organizations.

In his efforts to forge worldwide alliances with like-minded autocrats, Raisi also has set his sights on domestic perceptions.

"Iran has sought relationships in Central and South America to demonstrate to a domestic audience that it has friends and allies internationally, despite U.S. and Western efforts to isolate Iran," Cynthia Arnson, an expert at the Washington-based Wilson Center, told VOA.

Bypassing sanctions

Decades of Western sanctions have plunged Iran's oil sector into turmoil, wreaking havoc on its economy.

The intensified sanctions imposed by the U.S. between 2016 and 2020 are estimated to have inflicted staggering economic losses of up to $1 trillion on Iran.

In the face of Western sanctions, both Iran and Russia, two major oil producers, have turned to alternative remedies, selling oil to China, India and other countries at heavily discounted prices.

"Clearly, the situation we face today with regards to sanctions is very different from what we had a decade ago when the U.S. was successful in building a very strong architecture of sanctions jointly with allies, mostly in the Western world, but also to some extent with the support of Russia and China," Ottolenghi said.

"In the case of Venezuela, Iran has assisted with a variety of methods to evade oil sanctions  using ship-to-ship transfers, for example, or turning off transponders to make it harder to track shipments," said Arnson.

While the sanctions have dealt significant blows to Iran's economy, senior U.S. officials acknowledge they have not fully achieved their desired objective of changing the behavior of the Islamic Republic.

Iran's growing ability to forge economic and strategic alliances in some parts of the world is considered a serious threat for democratic movements.

"It is not about ideology. It is about power. It is about autocracy," said Leopoldo Lopez, a Venezuelan pro-democracy activist at the Oslo Freedom Forum.

"As they said yesterday in Caracas, it's about going against their enemies. And part of what they identify as their enemies, not only the United States or liberal democracy, is what they call the color revolutions. And the color revolutions are what many of us represent, are the revolutions, the movements, against autocratic regimes," Lopez said.
Republican and Democrat senators are backing Secretary of State Antony Blinken's trip to China beginning Friday but remain skeptical that it will lead to a breakthrough in relations with Beijing.

Blinken is expected to emphasize the importance of maintaining open lines of communication between the two countries and discussing regional security issues, climate change and the global economy. State Department officials also said the issue of illegal fentanyl trafficking to the United States would also be a prominent part of the talks.

Ahead of the trip, VOA's China branch spoke with several U.S. senators about their expectations for the talks, including whether Blinken should raise the issue of a Chinese spy station in Cuba, which was confirmed in recent days by U.S. officials.

The interviews have been edited for brevity and clarity.

VOA: Do you think China's spy base in Cuba reflects the scale of China's infiltration or influence in the region?

Senator Bob Menendez (Democrat): I'm looking forward to a briefing on China's spy station inside of Cuba. Obviously, it now seems that it is not something new, according to published reports. But the mere fact that certainly we didn't know about it is really alarming to me. And what's also alarming is that 90 miles [144 kilometers] away from the United States, you have a great opportunity to do significant signal and other intelligence over the United States. I think that any country who wants to allow China to do that from their home base must understand that the United States not only looks at it as a real challenge and problem, but that there must be consequences that flow from it.

VOA: How would you like Secretary Blinken to address this issue?

Menendez: I hope that he will raise it. You know, I don't want this issue to impede his ability to have his trip and have face-to-face and tough conversations with the Chinese leadership. But I do think you should make it clear that we look at it as an affront, in terms of our own security and sovereignty.

Senator Todd Young (Republican): I want to make sure it is a topic of conversation. But beyond that, just emphasize that the American people will be insisting that their government does whatever it can to prevent invasive and unwelcome surveillance activities against the United States. Period. But most certainly those that emanate from our hemisphere, that should be conveyed in an especially powerful way in the wake of the balloon incident that occurred just weeks ago.

VOA: Do you believe China has been taking steps for a meaningful dialogue with the U.S.?

Senator Chris Van Hollen (Democrat): Well, they have not engaged in our effort to try to establish a line of communication between our secretary of defense and their minister of defense, which is important to try to prevent accidents or unintended events from spiraling out of control. So, I hope during Secretary Blinken's visit, we can also resolve them.

Senator Tim Kaine (Democrat): Here's what I believe: Dialogue guarantees nothing, but the absence of dialogue almost always guarantees problems. So, dialogue has no downside and all upsides. And so, we have to keep making the case. And I'm hoping that China will also view dialogue is really important to promote stability to avoid miscalculation, miscommunication.

Senator John Cornyn (Republican): It seems like it's a one-way street to many people from the Biden administration reaching out, only to be met with no response.

VOA: Is this the right time for the U.S. to talk with China?

Cornyn: Well, I think it's always good for two countries to talk so that they try to understand each other better, so there's not any mistakes that could lead to conflict.

VOA: Do you expect any positive results [from Blinken's visit]?

Cornyn: No.

Adrianna Zhang contributed to this report.
European Commission vice-president in charge Europe fit for the digital Margrethe Vestager gives a press conference on the launch of antitrust probe against Google - JOHN THYS/AFP via Getty Images

The European Union is seeking to break up Googles giant advertising business in an escalation of Brussels war with the internet giant.

Margrethe Vestager, the EUs competition chief, announced a statement of objections against Google on Wednesday morning, saying it had used illegal tactics to dominate the online ad market and charged advertisers inflated prices.

The EU said it expected to order Google to sell parts of its advertising business, claiming that this was the only way to ensure the company would change its ways.

Ms Vestager has repeatedly fined the company in recent years, with three separate penalties amounting to more than 8bn (6.8bn).

However, this case is the first time that Ms Vestager has said that the EU expects to break up Google. She said it was a reflection of how pervasive Google is in this value chain that we think divestiture is the only way to solve this.

Google said it would resist attempts to break it up and that it strongly disagreed with the case.

The EUs objections focus on Googles display advertising business, which is used by millions of websites and advertisers to host adverts.

Google runs the worlds biggest advertising exchange, AdX, which is used to handle the light-speed auctions that determine what adverts are shown on third-party websites.

However, the company also has the most popular automated tools for both buying and managing advertising space.

Ms Vestager said Googles tools favoured its own exchange over rivals, for example by sharing information about the best bids from other exchanges. This gave Googles AdX an unfair advantage, allowing it to charge higher fees. [Google] is setting the rules on how supply and demand should meet, she said.

Ms Vestager said she had been in regular contact with both the US Department of Justice and Britains Competition and Markets Authority in developing the case.

Dan Taylor, Googles vice president of global ads, said: Our advertising technology tools help websites and apps fund their content, and enable businesses of all sizes to effectively reach new customers.

Google remains committed to creating value for our publisher and advertiser partners in this highly competitive sector. The Commissions investigation focuses on a narrow aspect of our advertising business and is not new. We disagree with the ECs view and we will respond accordingly.

A spokesman added that the company would oppose demands to sell any parts of its business and that it would harm advertisers.

A statement of objections is a preliminary set of charges, and it can take years for the European Commission to issue a fine and any order, which can then be appealed by the company.

Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month, then enjoy 1 year for just $9 with our US-exclusive offer.


The U.S. House of Representatives unanimously passed a resolution Tuesday calling for the immediate release of American reporter Evan Gershkovich, who has been detained in Russia since late March on espionage charges that he denies.

The vote was 422-0 in favor of the nonbinding measure.

In addition to calling for the journalists release, the resolution urged U.S. executive branch officials to raise Gershkovichs case in all interactions with the Kremlin.

The reporter for The Wall Street Journal was arrested on March 29 while on assignment in the Russian city of Yekaterinburg. Moscow has accused him of espionage, which he, his employer and the U.S. government vehemently deny.

His original pre-trial detention was originally set to expire on May 29, but a court last month extended the period until August 30.

The Wall Street Journal welcomed the resolution.

We applaud this latest show of bipartisan support from Congress in the fight for Evans release. His wrongful detention is a blow to press freedom, and it should matter to anyone who values free society. We will not rest until he is free, editor-in-chief Emma Tucker and publisher Almar Latour said in a statement about the resolution.

Russia's Washington embassy did not immediately reply to VOA's email requesting comment on the resolution.

The resolution also calls on Russia to provide unfettered and consistent consular access to Gershkovich.

U.S. Embassy officials were allowed to visit Gershkovich once, but two other requests for consular access have been denied.

Representative Michael McCaul, a Republican from Texas, sponsored the bill.

Evan is innocent. He was simply doing his job, reporting on the news in Russia, McCaul said Monday in remarks urging support for the resolution. I want to assure Evans friends, his co-workers and especially his family that Ive met with that we will continue our fight every day until we bring him home to you.



Russian President Vladimir Putin knows that a free press is a pillar of democracy, McCaul said in May at a Foreign Affairs Committee session on the bill. So, he arrested Evan with the intention of not only silencing him, but of scaring other journalists to remain silent too."

The resolution also urges Moscow to desist from detaining, imprisoning, and otherwise seeking to intimidate journalists in order to curtail or censor an independent press.

Out of 180 countries, Reporters Without Borders ranks Russia 164th in terms of press freedom. At least 22 journalists are currently detained in Russia, according to the press freedom group. Numerous foreign correspondents have left the country following Russias invasion of Ukraine because of safety concerns.

Gershkovich is the first U.S. journalist to be detained in Russia on spying charges since the end of the Cold War. The U.S. government has designated Gershkovich as wrongfully detained.

Additionally, the resolution calls for the immediate release of American former Marine Paul Whelan, who has been detained in Russia since 2018 on espionage charges. He received a 16-year prison sentence in 2020.

Todays bipartisan resolution condemns the Putin regime for their illegal imprisonment, McCaul said Monday. And today we send a strong message to Vladimir Putin that in America, Republicans and Democrats alike will not tolerate his corrupt regime holding U.S. citizens hostage under false pretenses.
The Biden administration said Tuesday it would extend through 2025 the temporary legal status of more than 300,000 immigrants from El Salvador, Honduras, Nepal and Nicaragua who had faced the risk of deportation and loss of work permits under the Trump administration's policies.

Under the Temporary Protected Status program, the Biden administration will permit migrants from these four countries to continue their lawful residence and employment in the United States.

Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said in a statement that through the extension of Temporary Protected Status, "we are able to offer continued safety and protection to current beneficiaries who are nationals of El Salvador, Honduras, Nepal, and Nicaragua who are already present in the United States and cannot return because of the impacts of environmental disasters."

The TPS program does not lead to permanent U.S. residency, but it does provide legal status in the U.S. and protection from deportation for up to 18 months. It also provides work permits for people to work legally in the country. And it can be extended.

Congress established TPS in 1990 when it said migrants whose home countries are considered unsafe could live and work in the U.S. for a period of time if they met the requirements established by the U.S. government.

Currently, 16 countries have TPS designations: Afghanistan, Cameroon, El Salvador, Ethiopia, Haiti, Honduras, Myanmar, Nepal, Nicaragua, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria, Ukraine, Venezuela and Yemen.

The Trump administration sought to terminate most TPS programs, arguing that previous administrations had misused them. However, these attempts were halted in federal court.

Because of Tuesday's announcement by the Biden administration, a lawsuit filed in federal court by advocates challenging the Trump administration's attempts to terminate TPS will likely be deemed moot. A hearing was scheduled for late June.

According to the DHS statement, soon-to-be-published notices in the Federal Register are expected to have more information on eligibility criteria and what is necessary for current beneficiaries to re-register for TPS and renew their work permits.

Once the notices are published, existing TPS beneficiaries from the four countries "will be able to re-register to continue their TPS throughout the 18-month extension," DHS said.

Immigration advocates called the move "a hard-fought victory for TPS holders" but urged Congress to provide permanent relief for TPS holders who have been living and working in the U.S. for years without a long-term solution.

Despite pressure from Democratic lawmakers and migrant advocates, the administration has chosen not to pursue the expansion or redesignation of the TPS programs for these countries, which means the program will not be opened to new applicants, thereby excluding more recent arrivals from eligibility for TPS.

About 239,000 Salvadorans residing in the United States since 2001, about 76,000 Hondurans and 4,000 Nicaraguans who have been in the U.S. since 1998 and about 14,500 Nepalese who have been in the country since 2015 will be eligible for TPS renewal.
When peanuts are dropped into a pint of beer, they sink to the bottom before floating up and "dancing" in the glass.

Scientists have dug deep to investigate this phenomenon in a study published on Wednesday, saying it has implications for understanding mineral extraction or bubbling magma in the Earth's crust.

Brazilian researcher Luiz Pereira, the study's lead author, told AFP he first had the idea when passing through Argentina's capital Buenos Aires to learn Spanish.

It was a "bartender thing" in the city to take a few peanuts and pop them into beers, Pereira said.

Because the peanuts are denser than the beer, they first sink down to the bottom of the glass.

Then each peanut becomes what is called a "nucleation site." Hundreds of tiny bubbles of carbon dioxide form on their surface, acting as buoys to drag them upward.

"The bubbles prefer to form on the peanuts rather than on the glass walls," said Pereira, a researcher at Germany's Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich.

When the bubbles reach the surface, they burst.

The peanuts sink again before being propelled up anew by freshly formed bubbles, in a dance that continues until the carbon dioxide runs out, or someone interrupts it by drinking the beer.

In a series of experiments, the team of researchers in Germany, Britain and France examined how roasted, shelled peanuts fared in a lager-style beer.

'Beer-gas-peanut system'

The study, published in the journal Royal Society Open Science, describes two key factors in what the researchers dubbed the "beer-gas-peanut system."

They found that the larger the "contact angle" between the curve of an individual bubble and the surface of the peanut was, the more likely it was to form and grow.

But it cannot grow too much  a radius of less than 1.3 millimeters is ideal, the study said.

Pereira said he hoped that "by deeply researching this simple system, which everyone can grasp, we can understand a system" that would be useful for industry or explaining natural phenomena.

For example, he said the floatation process was similar to the one used to separate iron from ore.

Air is injected, in a controlled way, into a mixture in which a mineral, such as iron, "will rise because bubbles attach themselves more easily to it, while other (minerals) sink to the bottom," he said.

The same process could also explain why volcanologists find that the mineral magnetite rises to higher layers in the crystalized magma of the Earth's crust than would be expected.

Like peanuts, magnetite is denser, so should sit at the bottom. But because of a high contact angle, the researchers theorize, the mineral rises through the magma with help from gas bubbles.

Of course, science is never settled, particularly when beer is involved.

Hoping to create a better model of the dancing peanut phenomenon, Pereira said the scientists will continue to "play with the characteristics of different peanuts and different beers."
Latest developments:

French President Emmanuel Macron pledges continued deliveries of ammunition, weapons and armed vehicles in the coming weeks, saying France wants Ukraines counteroffensive to be as successful as possible.

Russia-installed official says the death toll in Russia-controlled areas following the destruction of the Kakhovka dam in southern Ukraine increases to 17.

NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg said Tuesday that the Western military alliance's support for Ukraine in its fight against Russia "is now making a difference on the battlefield" with the start of Kyiv's counteroffensive.

"The offensive is launched, and the Ukrainians are making progress, making advances," Stoltenberg said as he met with U.S. President Joe Biden at the White House.

"It's still early days, but what we do know is that the more land the Ukrainians are able to liberate, the stronger hand they will have at the negotiating table," Stoltenberg said, "and also the more likely it will be that [Russian] President [Vladimir] Putin at some stage will understand that he will never win this war of aggression on the battlefield."

Biden agreed that NATO's continuing support for Ukraine is making a difference, saying, "NATO allies have never been more united, and we both worked like hell to make sure that happened, and so far, so good. Putin is making a mistake."

Stoltenberg offered his assessment of the now nearly 16-month Russian assault on Ukraine.

"I think you also have to realize that Russia's brutal invasion of Ukraine is not only an attack on Ukraine, but also on our core values, and on free people everywhere," he said. "And therefore, President Putin must not win this war, because that will not only be a tragedy for Ukrainians, but also make the world more dangerous."

"It will send a message to authoritarian leaders all over the world, also in China, that when they use military force, they get what they want," the NATO chief said. "And we will then become more vulnerable. So, it's [in] our security interest to support Ukraine."

Ukraine said Monday it had recaptured seven villages since launching the counteroffensive last week with the aim of reclaiming areas occupied by Russian forces.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken expressed confidence that Ukraine will "continue to have success in what they're trying to achieve, which is to take back the land that's been seized from them by Russia."

Blinken told reporters the United States will "continue to maximize our support to Ukraine now" and provide enduring support to help Ukraine deter Russia from invading again in the future.

"It's very important to note that, in terms of what President Putin was trying to achieve in Ukraine, it's already been a strategic failure, because the objective that Putin had  that he stated himself  was to erase Ukraine from the map, to eliminate its independence, and to absorb Ukraine, in one fashion or another, into Russia. That has failed, and it cannot succeed," Blinken said.

Deadly attack on Kryvyi Rih

Ukrainian officials said Tuesday a Russian missile attack on Kryvyi Rih in central Ukraine killed at least 10 people and injured 25 others.

Serhiy Lysak, governor of Dnipropetrovsk region, said Russia destroyed a five-story residential building in the attack and that rescuers were searching through the rubble.

Kryvyi Rih is the birthplace of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who posted on Telegram, "Russian killers continue their war against residential buildings, ordinary cities and people."

"Terrorists will never be forgiven, and they will be held accountable for every missile they launch," Zelenskyy said.

The attack on Kryvyi Rih was part of a wider aerial assault by Russia that also targeted the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, and the city of Kharkiv.

Ukraine's military said it shot down 10 of 14 cruise missiles launched by Russia, as well as one of four Iranian-made drones used by Russian forces.

Russia's Defense Ministry said Tuesday its forces captured several German-made Leopard tanks and U.S.-made Bradley Fighting Vehicles during fighting in southern Ukraine. Russia called the hardware "our trophies" and said they were captured in the Zaporizhzhia area after Ukrainian crews fled.

Black Sea grain deal

Russian President Vladimir Putin said Tuesday that Russia is thinking about withdrawing from the Black Sea grain deal under which tons of Ukrainian grain have been shipped to other European countries and impoverished nations in Africa.

Putin said that Moscow had been "cheated" over implementation of the parts of the deal that concerned its own exports.

Putin told pro-Kremlin war correspondents that the accord was intended to help "friendly" countries in Africa and Latin America. But he said Europe has turned out to be the largest importer of Ukrainian grain and that this was providing a key source of foreign currency to Kyiv.

Putin said he plans to discuss the future of the grain deal with some African leaders who were expected to visit Russia. Putin said Moscow is ready to supply grain for free to the world's poorest countries.

The deal was brokered last July by the United Nations and Turkey and extended since then, allowing for the safe export of grain from several Ukrainian ports past Russian warships on the Black Sea.

Meanwhile, Putin suggested that he could order his troops to try to seize more land in Ukraine to protect Russian territory on the border with Ukraine, where villages have come under attack.

Putin said Ukrainian forces had suffered "catastrophic" losses in their new counteroffensive. He said that Ukraine lost 160 tanks and more than 360 other armored vehicles, while Russia lost only 54 tanks since Kyiv began the new assault in recent days. His claims could not be immediately verified.

Putin said he wasn't contemplating a new mobilization of troops but didn't rule it out.

Some information for this story came from The Associated Press, Agence France-Presse and Reuters.
A Zimbabwean, Xanda Moyo, appeared in court Tuesday in Bloemfontein Magistrates Courts facing charges of violating a corpse, fraud and harboring an escaped offender, Thabo Bester.

According to The Mail and Guardian, Moyo, who was not represented and asked the court to grant him permission to look for an attorney, allegedly helped Bester, a convicted rapist and murderer to escape from prison.

The newspaper reports that Moyo told the court that he speaks Northern Ndebele and therefore proceedings in court can be translated into Zulu.

Moyo, who was arrested Sunday in Johannesburg, and appeared before magistrate Mohlolo Khabisi is the ninth person to appear in court in connection with Besters escape from Mangaung Maximum Security Prison where he feigned death and fled to Tanzania in May last year.

A corpse was found in his prison cell resulting in authorities believing that he was dead.

He was arrested in Tanzania with his girlfriend, Nandipha Magudumana.

The Mail and Guardina reports that she faces multiple charges of fraud and corruption, as well as violating a corpse, harboring and concealing an escaped offender and defeating the course of justice.
WASHINGTON - There was commotion in the National House of Assembly on Wednesday after the Parliamentary Legal Committee issued a non-adverse report on Statutory Instrument 144, which clearly stipulates that presidential candidates will fork out US$20,000 each in the forthcoming general elections.

Furious opposition Members of Parliament questioned the PLC report but the Acting Speaker of the House of Assembly, William Moomba, stood firm, noting that there would be no debate on a non-adverse report.

Citizens Coalition for Change lawmaker, Prince Dubik Siyanda, said the PLC should explain to Zimbabweans why they are supporting the high nomination fees.

People want to know why you are doing all this. Its unfair, said Sibanda.

People intending to contest for seats in the House of Assembly are expected to pay US$1,000, which is equivalent to an annual salary of a Member of Parliament.

But Zanu PF supported the PLC report saying there is need to ensure that only strong candidates are allowed to contest in all the elections.

The ruling partys parliamentary chief whip, Pupurai Togarepi, said, There was commotion in the house. Obviously, it was members trying to politic on a non-procedure. I mean we all know the procedure of parliament regarding bills and how they operate and we all understand what the Constitutional Court said. For us it meant that the process of looking and analyzing the Statutory Instrument was supposed to be finished. That was our understanding and when that ruling was done we followed it through having the Statutory Instrument going its journey through the PLC  And that was done. Yesterday, the PLC came to parliament to report and it did report. It was a non-adverse report.

He said this means that the gazette nomination fees will be used in the 2023 general elections.

What was there before proclamation cannot be changed  Whether we were going to debate about these fees, whether we were going to think we can alter them, they were not going to apply in this election. They would apply in 2028 or during primary elections. So, it was just an academic debate, wasting everybodys time."

Togarepi emphasized that the fees gazetted in 2022 will be used in the forthcoming general elections because the fees were already there at the proclamation of the date of the elections.

VOA Correspondent Godwin Mangudya contributed to this article
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Hwange Central Member of Parliament, Daniel Molokele, says parliament should recommend the scrapping of nomination fees imposed by the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission. He says the ZEC prescribed US$1,000 nomination fee is outrageous. (Video: VOA)
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ZURICH, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Switzerland is home to a globally unique life science cluster. In addition to multinational companies like Novartis and Roche, this encompasses a dense network of startups and SMEs. Its renowned universities, strong intellectual property protection and strategic location in the middle of Europe have made Switzerland a preferred site for global and regional pharma headquarters. There is a strong ecosystem in place that feeds a dynamic talent pool and provides companies with an important advantage: All parts of the value chain  from R&D to manufacturing, through to commercialization  can be accessed in one location.

Healthtech in Switzerland

At the same time, the pragmatic and business-friendly legislation has attracted fastgrowing tech companies that develop high-quality "Swiss made" products. For companies who wish to quickly and easily bring new innovations in personalized health to market, Switzerland offers the ideal environment.

THE ADVANTAGES OF SWITZERLAND

1. High Innovation Output

A steady stream of highly qualified talent and scientists in Switzerland make a significant contribution towards developing new medicines. The framework conditions are also in place: The Swiss healthcare system supports the introduction of new medicines and, in doing so, offers companies access to a sophisticated test and sales market.

Why Switzerland:

Switzerland is among the countries with the highest spending on R&D in relation to its GDP with private companies contributing almost two-thirds. This pays off: For over a decade, the country has been topping the Global Innovation Index (WIPO), which compares 132 countries worldwide.

The two Swiss polytechnics ETH Zurich and EPFL and other firstclass Swiss research facilities regularly rank among the best in the world (QS World University Ranking, Shanghai Jiao Tong Ranking, THE University Ranking).

In terms of the number of patent applications per capita, Switzerland occupies a leading position on the European Patent Index 2021 (EPO). Switzerland's strengths lie in the fields of health technologies and biotechnology. Its effective and modern patent protection enables the pharmaceutical industry to invest profitably in R&D of innovative medicines.

The close relationship between science and industry in Switzerland is unique. Established research institutes drive innovation together with companies and institutions. Each institute at university and college level has a coordination office for cooperation with the private sector. The Swiss Innovation Promotion Agency Innosuisse makes significant financial contributions to R&D projects in which companies cooperate with non-profit research organizations.

2. Life Sciences Value Chain in One Place

With its long tradition in life sciences and a strong infrastructure in advanced manufacturing, Switzerland offers a dense and experienced network of peers, universities and suppliers over a geographically manageable terrain. It is precisely because Switzerland is a small country that industry benefits from this experienced cluster along the entire value chain to develop, produce and market new products and services all in one place.

Why Switzerland:

With its unique ecosystem of innovative startups, multinational pharmaceutical giants such as Roche, Novartis, Bayer or Abbott and world leading research institutes and hospitals, the Basel Area is continuously growing its network of digital health innovators. The DayOne initiative aims to foster collaboration across disciplines and industries in precision medicine and digital health. Basel is the host city of Intelligent Health AI and the BioDataWorld Congress, two of the world leading conferences for health data science.

Stretching from the Canton of Valais to Geneva and as far north as Neuchatel and Bern, Switzerland's Health Valley is a dense network of more than 1,000 companies and 35,000 talents collaborating with 500 research labs to further life sciences. Campus Biotech in Geneva is a center of excellence for research in biotechnology. Biopole Lausanne is an innovation-oriented life sciences campus comprising an incubator, StartLab and a digital health program. In Valais, BioArk supports SMEs and startups in transforming their projects into industrial and commercial reality and in developing their business. The Swiss Institute for Translational and Entrepreneurial Medicine (sitem-insel) in Bern works on unlocking "bench to bedside" innovation.

While the Greater Zurich Area is home to large pharmaceutical companies like Biogen, Johnson & Johnson, or Amgen, its ecosystem offers a fertile environment especially for early-stage life sciences companies. In the Bio-Technopark, for instance, over 50 companies and many institutions have settled on an area of 55,000m. These include startups such as Cutiss, Biognosys and Neurimmune, Roche with its Innovation Center, or DiNAQOR with its gene therapy platform. Companies also benefit from the proximity to ETH Zurich and the University of Zurich, who support research activities such as NEXUS, Wyss Zurich, Loop Zurich, or the Zurich-Basel Personalized Health Alliance.

3. Strategic Location in the Heart of Europe

With its strong life sciences clusters and a business-friendly environment, Switzerland has become a favored headquarter location for pharmaceutical companies expanding into Europe for the first time. Its thriving ecosystem provides partnering and licensing opportunities, and the country's geographical position helps access the European market efficiently.

Why Switzerland:

Free trade agreements with the EU/EFTA and 43 other countries, including China, Canada, and Japan, provide access to the most important export markets.

Switzerland offers direct access to Europe, its main trade partner. Various agreements to liberalize the market create almost equal access to the European single market. These agreements make it easy for companies from Switzerland to tap into a market of almost 500 million consumers.

Switzerland shares a border with three of the four largest European markets: Germany, France and Italy. Their languages are also national languages of Switzerland, which many inhabitants speak fluently in addition to English. Because it provides great diversity within a very small area, Switzerland is also perfectly suited as a test and sales market.

With Roche and Novartis, headquartered both in Basel, two out of the top five global pharma players call Switzerland their homebase.

4. First-Class Technology

Swiss authorities are pragmatic and business-friendly, which has led to pioneering regulations in the field of emerging technologies such as blockchain, robotics, or AI. This has attracted global talent and fast-growing tech companies that develop high-quality products.

Why Switzerland:

Swiss products and services have enjoyed a very good reputation around the world for a long time. Customers associate Swissmade products with reliability, the highest quality, longevity and technological superiority. The same is valid for Swiss-made software and algorithms.

Proximity to cutting-edge research is one important reason why renowned technological companies such as Google, IBM, Sony or Microsoft run their AI research from Switzerland. This paves the way for innovative partnerships that combine a traditionally strong life sciences cluster with top notch expertise in artificial intelligence.

As a result of the high quality of life and excellent working conditions, Switzerland is highly attractive for foreign qualified staff and managers. The presence of regional headquarters and global AI labs further fuels a talent pool that is highly sought after.

Case Studies

Sophia Genetics , based in the Canton of Vaud, was founded in 2011 as a spin-off of EPFL. Through its AI platform it established the world's largest data-driven medicine community network and now serves more than 1,000 hospitals worldwide.

Operating from the Switzerland Innovation Park Basel Area at the Novartis Campus , innovative startups use machine learning and AI to develop monitoring platforms such as Holmusk that develops data-driven digital therapies to treat a variety of disorders focusing on mental and neurological illnesses, Rekonas enabling EEG diagnosis, or Zoundream that translates newborn cries to detect pathologies.

The Zurich startup Ava has created a wristband that provides women with information on their most fertile days by measuring physiological parameters. Ava was launched in the USA in July 2016 and is now available in 36 countries. In 2019, the startup became part of the Tech Tour Growth list of the 50 tech companies with the greatest growth potential in Europe. In December 2020, Ava became the first wearable fertility tracker to receive FDA clearance.

MindMaze is a global leader in brain technology. Its healthcare division is addressing some of the most challenging problems in neurology, including strokes, Alzheimer's and Parkinson. Founded in 2012 in Lausanne (Canton of Vaud), it became the first Swiss tech unicorn and now has offices in several countries.

BC Platforms is a global leader in healthcare data management, analytics and access. The company has global operations with its headquarters in Zurich, Switzerland, research and development in Finland, and sales and marketing in Boston, London and Singapore.

Geneva University Hospital became the first hospital in Europe to utilize IBM's AI technology Watson to optimize therapeutic options for patients.

Healios and RC2NB , a leading neuroscience research center at the University Hospital of Basel, have entered into a multi-year development partnership to further develop and validate digital biomarkers in multiple sclerosis. As a result, dreaMS, a software used as medical device, will be available soon.

Align Technology is a leading medical device company in the dental industry. The combination of digital treatment planning and mass customization of aligners developed by Align has revolutionized the orthodontic industry. In 2020, the company moved its regional headquarters from Amsterdam to Rotkreuz (Canton of Zug). The new office with over 150 employees opened in January 2020 and also serves as R&D hub.

https://businesslocation.swiss/

Business Location Switzerland

Business Location Switzerland is a collaboration among key stakeholders across Switzerland to recruit businesses from North America with a focus on the personalized health space. In the U.S., we have locations in Washington, DC, New York, NY, Austin, TX, San Francisco, CA and Los Angeles, CA.

Business Location Switzerland

Cision

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SOURCE Business Location Switzerland
Featuring fake K-pop bands like Only1, BF2000, Gottawakka, and Ki55, whose tagline is we are 55 boys and we love you. Photo: A24

This piece was originally published in April. We are recirculating it now that Beau Is Afraid is available on digital. Spoilers ahead for the plot and ending of Beau Is Afraid.

Beau Is Afraid is a zany three-hour road trip through the most neurotic recesses of the male mind, and a project that writer-director Ari Aster has been carrying around with him for nearly a decade. The film went through several iterations before making it onto movie screens in its final, 180-minute form, giving Aster plenty of time to fill it with what Aster refers to as chicken fat, a term former MAD Magazine editor Will Elder coined to describe the jokes crammed into every page of the satirical magazine.

Some of the films details  an attic full of abominations; a guy crouched in the corner of Beaus bathroom ceiling, dripping sweat onto a naked Joaquin Phoenix in the tub  feel almost like parodies of similar images in Asters breakout horror film, Hereditary (2018). Except that the first draft of Beau Is Afraid was written four years before Aster made that film. And Aster is famously reluctant to connect the dots between the psychologically loaded imagery in his films and his own life in interviews.

So well just have to assume all the funny signs, cheeky parodies, and off-kilter references in Beau Is Afraid are all simply dumb jokes that Ari Aster put into the movie to amuse himself. And there are a lot of dumb jokes to unpack.

Beaus Neighborhood

The city block where Beau lives is home to a soup truck, the convenience store Cheapo Depot, and a pair of peep-show parlors called Asstral Projection and Erection Injection. Erection Injection is downstairs from Beaus apartment, so we get a better look at the front of the place, with signs advertising such carnal delights as Knife Dick (Stab Other Man), Pussy Open the Bottle, and Pussy Inside Out. A few scenes later, Beau sits on a fire escape with a mural behind him that reads, Jesus Sees Your Abominations.

Beaus Apartment

Amidst the obscene graffiti on the walls of Beaus apartment building are posters for two shows: One for a double bill of Death by Anal and Murder by Fuck, and another for a band called Clit Shitter. Clit Shitter is an Ari Aster deep cut: Its the vagina-havers equivalent to Tinos Dick Fart, a fake product for which Aster made a crude infomercial back in 2011.

Beaus building is also papered with flyers warning residents of the presence of a brown recluse spider, one of three North American spider species with what Wikipedia calls medically significant venom. (Yikes!) The poster has a quote: The price of greatness is responsibilityWinston Churchill. That has nothing to do with spiders, but it does add to the movies overall vibe of oppressive guilt and failure.

Early on in the film, Beau eats an OLoha  Hawaii and Ireland meal from the frozen-foods division of MW, the super-business empire founded and run by Beaus mom. (MW = Mona Wasserman.) At his apartment, Beau also watches a TV news report warning citizens of the Birthday Boy Stab Man, with a teaser for an upcoming segment called Dead And Pregnant?

Beaus Phone

When the film cuts to a closeup shot of the recent calls screen on Beaus phone, we see that he really only calls three people: His mother, his therapist, and Moviefone, the once-ubiquitous phone number for movie showtimes (its even mentioned in an episode of Seinfeld) that shut down in 2014. The movie is set in 2021, so either Beau keeps calling the number in a pathetic attempt to connect, he makes phone calls less than once a year, or Mr. Moviefone is still gainfully employed in the Ari Aster-verse.

And although we see it on his busted computer monitor, not his phone, a screenshot of Beaus plane ticket shows that hes flying from Corinna, CRa reference to the 1994 Whoopi Goldberg-Ray Liotta dramedy Corinna, Corinna. Hes flying to Wasserton, where his mother, Mona Wasserman, lives. (Wasser is German for water, as Vultures Bilge Ebiri explores in his analysis of the films ending.) This woman is truly inescapable.

Grace and Rogers House

After Beau is stabbed in the side and palm (just like Jesus), hes run over by a truck and wakes up in whats clearly a teenage girls bedroom. On the walls are satirical posters for made-up movies (Professor Marvelous: Final Exam and Confessions of a Teenage Llama Queen), as well as fake K-pop bands like Only1, BF2000, Gottawakka, and Ki55, whose tagline is we are 55 boys and we love you.

The house belongs to Grace (Amy Ryan) and Roger (Nathan Lane), the drivers of the aforementioned soup truck, and the bedroom belongs to Toni (Kylie Rogers), Grace and Rogers unrelentingly hostile teenage daughter. The rest of the familys suburban home is decorated with generic Live Laugh Love-style signage in cursive script, and photos of their dead son, Nate, who died in an imaginary war between the U.S. and Venezuela. Theres even a puzzle with Nates picture on it, just to give it that extra morbid edge. (The posters in Nates room are all for real bands, like PUP, Owen, and Texas prog-rockers Polyphia.)

Beau watches more TV at Grace and Rogers house, seeing the UPS guy who discovered his moms dead body (his face is turned from the camera, but its definitely Bill Hader). He also stumbles on footage of himself from surveillance cameras tuned to the defunct UHF frequency Channel 78. Grace passes Beau a napkin that reads, stop incriminating yourself  a hint that Mona may still be alive and watching her son, as well as another drop in the films overflowing bucket of paranoia.

Beaus Cruise

In the flashback sequence where a young Beau goes on a cruise with his overbearing, pseudo-incestuous mother, hes reading a book called Big Mistake! The Treehouse Gang Comes Home  a cheeky parody of a Hardy Boys book that also reflects Beaus intense anxiety about going back to his hometown to see his mother(s headless corpse).

The Orphans Play

When Beau first walks into the woodland settlement occupied by the Orphans of the Forest, he passes a series of wooden signs nailed to trees, each of them painted with banal phrases like know thyself and nothing to excess that are all taken from the lyrics to Broadway musicals.

The play-within-the-film, known as the Hero Beau sequence in the films credits, was created by Chilean filmmakers Cristobal Leon and Joaquin Cosina. Aster is a big fan of the duos 2018 stop-motion animated film The Wolf House, which Aster calls a brilliant Chilean stop-motion monstrosity that was really one of the most amazing things that I had ever seen.

The Wolf House is a dark and psychologically fraught fairy tale inspired by the true story of a German colony in Chile infamous for the torture and murder of dissidents during the Pinochet regime, so the Ari Aster appeal is pretty self-evident. As well as working with them on Beau Is Afraid, Aster also executive produced the duos new stop-motion short Los Huesos (The Bones), which premiered at the Venice International Film Festival in 2021.

Beaus Moms House

When Beau first walks up to his moms house, he sees a van for a catering company called Shiva Steves Grub for the Grieved parked out front. The caterers are packing up; the funeral is over.

Beau goes inside the house and walks down a spiral staircase surrounding a pillar decorated with photos of Beau throughout his life  including, most curiously, a screenshot from a surveillance camera, showing Beau talking on the phone with his mom at the beginning of the film. At the bottom of the stairs, Beaus mother has set up a sort of shrine to MWs many subsidiaries, including framed print ads for ADHD and allergy meds, frozen meals, safety razors, and pimple creams  all featuring a young Beau. MW, as it turns out, also built Beaus apartment as part of some nightmarish, urban blight-themed housing complex, and was preparing to roll out a security company when Mona died. MWs tagline? Perfectly Safe.

Beau also looks at a photo collage of MW employees, among them Roger and the heavily tattooed man who chased Beau into his apartment early on in the film. (RIP  the spider got him.) The camera focuses on a photo of Beaus childhood crush Elaine, played as an adult by Parker Posey.

A few scenes later, Elaine comes back into Beaus life in the flesh, and the two have sex (finally  Beaus been waiting for decades) as Always Be My Baby by Mariah Carey plays in the background. According to Aster, the song was in the script: There was never another option, he told The Daily Beast. It would not be Always Be My Baby if there was another option, because it was expensive. (Carey, delightfully, showed up to the premiere.)

Thats not the last of Beaus, lets say, unconventional musical choices: The CD he gives to his mother two years in a row for her birthday is For the Boys: Music from the Motion Picture, the soundtrack to the 1991 movie starring Bette Midler and James Caan.
Photo: A24

This piece was originally published in April. We are recirculating it now that Beau Is Afraid is available on digital. Spoilers ahead for the plot and ending of Beau Is Afraid.

Regardless of whether you think its a masterpiece or a career-ending crime against cinema, Beau Is Afraid will leave you with a lot of questions. Namely: Is writer-director Ari Aster okay? And whats going on in the films crazy ending? The picture is structured as an existential mystery, always on the verge of delivering some big revelation that will clarify the insanity weve been watching. But Aster refuses to directly explain the events in the film. Even the finale, which has Joaquin Phoenixs Beau Wassermann facing a surreal tribunal, doesnt really tell us whats been going on.

To try and understand what actually happens at the end of Beau Is Afraid, one must first look back at the rest of the movie. Asters three-hour magnum opus, a psychiatric session masquerading as a quirky A24 comedy-drama, follows Beau, a middle-age nobody living in a bleak one-bedroom apartment on a city street comically ravaged by crime. Beau is supposed to fly to see his mom on the anniversary of his fathers death, but his keys get stolen and he cant leave. When his mom (Patti LuPone) finds out hes not coming, she responds in a cold, passive-aggressive manner that hints at their dysfunctional relationship. Then, after a hilariously surreal sequence in which Beau desperately attempts to purchase a bottle of water from across the street (to take with his new anti-anxiety meds), our hero learns that his mother has died in a freak accident after a chandelier fell on her head. How does he find out? A random UPS driver (Bill Hader) who happened to find his mothers headless body answers her phone when Beau calls.

It would be tempting to say that Beau Is Afraid is the story of Beaus journey back home, but really, there isnt much of a journey. After a hellish series of mishaps  involving a brown recluse spider, a naked tussle in an overflowing bathtub, a standoff with the worlds most inept cop, a stabbing, and a speeding truck ramming him from out of nowhere  Beau winds up in the pleasantly appointed home of Grace (Amy Ryan) and Roger (Nathan Lane), a relentlessly positive bourgeois couple who care for his wounds and promise to take him to his moms funeral. Constantly foiled in his attempts to leave, and already chewed out over the phone by his moms accusatory lawyer (Richard Kind), Beau is terrorized by Grace and Rogers pissy teenage daughter, Toni (Kylie Rogers), whose pill-popping makes her own overmedicated parents look like Temperance League activists.

Finally, he manages to escape, chased by Grace and Rogers animalistic psycho boarder Jeeves, who served with their now-deceased son Nate on the front lines in Caracas (where the U.S. has apparently been fighting a war with Venezuela). Beau runs into the forest and winds up in a back-to-nature theater troupecommune called The Orphans of the Forest. They stage a highly symbolic play that seems, weirdly, to coincide with Beaus own life, even though it doesnt actually coincide much with his life at all. The play itself is about a guy who watches a play that seems to coincide with his life, the point perhaps being that sometimes art that has nothing to do with our lives can feel like its all about us. And Beaus experience of watching the play begins to lay the groundwork for the final act of the film.

I. Beaus Father, the Giant Penis Monster

Beaus mother previously told him that his father died when he was conceived  that his dad was, in fact, killed at the moment of sexual release, the victim of a hereditary disorder that also claimed his grandfather and great-grandfather. Theres a man (Julian Richings) in the Orphans of the Forest campground who claims that he knew Beaus father; he whispers that he helped take care of his father and that he is still alive. Beau begins to wonder if this man might actually be his father. Then the father guy explodes as the camp is attacked by a heavily armed Jeeves, who blows everyone away, including, somehow, himself. Beau runs into the forest, but the ankle monitor Roger put on him switches to incapacitate and zaps him unconscious.

The father guy (Julian Richings). Photo: A24

Whenever Beau goes unconscious in the film (which is often), Aster tends to cut to two things. One is a flashback to a cruise Beau took as a teen with his mom, where he met Elaine, a vivacious girl with whom he fell in love, and who was taken away from the trip by her mom. Another is a hazy dream from Beaus childhood in which he is in a bathtub, being washed by his mother. In the dream, young Beau asks about his father. You know where Daddy is. Daddys dead! Mona, his mother, tells him. She leads Beau, clothed, away and turns to the camera and angrily asks, You want Daddy, too? This is when we realize that the cameras point of view is that of another person in the room. Mona then leads the boy to the attic, makes him go up the stairs, and then slams the attic door, yelling, We dont talk about you anymore!

Lets flash forward a bit, because this event is worth exploring. We learn more about this dream later in the film, when Mona (having revealed she is still alive  long story; well talk about that in a bit) plays a recording of adult Beau telling his therapist about the dream. Theres another me, but hes braver, Beau tells the shrink, suggesting that the weak Beau is in the bathtub, while the stronger, braver Beau is being punished. After the recording ends, Beau tells Mona he wants to know the truth about his father. Mona replies that she tried to keep that truth from him, for his protection. She leads him to the attic stairs and then yells, ominously, That wasnt a dream. That was a memory! Which sounds significant, but in a movie that runs almost entirely on dream logic, is there really any difference?

Upstairs, in the darkened attic, Beau looks around with a flashlight. He sees a gaunt, debilitated, gray-haired, and bearded figure leaning against a wall. (This man is wearing the same T-shirt that brave Beau was wearing in those flashbacks. He also looks like Joaquin Phoenix, though the film credits an actor named Julien Fortin as Beaus Twin in Attic.) Then Beau points the flashlight to another corner of the room, and he sees  an enormous penis monster  a giant, screaming dong-beast with huge balls and spiky, arthropod arms. My boy  the penis monster rasps. Just then, into the attic bursts Jeeves, who is, somehow, still alive. He fires at the penis monster and starts furiously stabbing it, only for the penis monster to drive one of its sharp arms through his head, instantly killing him. Beau falls out of the attic and his shrink drags him away, while Mona wails, That was your father!

A happy family vacation. Photo: A24

So, was that Beaus father? Was Mona impregnated by an enormous sentient phallus? Like most of the film, it probably makes more sense to read this symbolically. We could, of course, spend a lot of time grafting a Freudian interpretation onto the events of Beau Is Afraid. (Theres certainly a lot of Oedipal stuff going on.) But there may be a simpler way of looking at this. Beaus father has been absent all his life. Is the father absent because hes dead, or useless, or because Mona has symbolically cast him to the attic of memories we do not speak of? You can take your pick  it not only doesnt matter, it could also be all three options. All Beau knows of his dad is that he allowed Mona to conceive him, a notion that has grown bigger and bigger in his mind all these years. Dad might as well just be a huge dick, in all senses of the word.

But who is the other man in the attic? Is that  also Beau? The braver version of himself he talked about to his shrink? Or is it maybe a long-lost brother  maybe even a twin  who has been living in the attic, forgotten, ever since he asked about Dad? He holds out an empty cup or bowl, as if hes been starving forever. This figure has had no love. Hes only had giant-penis dad, who can conceive but cant nourish. Later, Beau will be referred to as Monas sole surviving son. Does the other son exist? Did the other son exist? Either way, this gaunt, sad figure is perhaps a cautionary tale of what happens to boys who dare to flee their mothers influence or who simply dare to be different. He might be the most haunting image in the film.

II. Beaus Mother, an Interventionist and Cruel God

In the final act, Beau hitches a ride to Wasserton, the pleasant waterside village where moms home is. Wasser is German for water, and images of it show up repeatedly in the movie. We often hear water on the soundtrack and occasionally even see flashes of a darkened lake or ocean. Weve returned repeatedly to the dream-memory of Beau in the bath and to the ocean cruise where Beau met Elaine. In an early scene set in Beaus city, we see a mom berate her child for not listening to her; the child is playing with a boat in a small pool of water. Beaus anti-anxiety medication has to be taken with water, hence why he attempts to purchase a bottle of it after the water in his building is shut off. Water can be freedom, but it can also mean death: On the cruise, Elaine excitedly took Beau to see a dead man floating in the pool. Water can be symbolic of a mothers love, which can be smothering and destructive, as weve seen. It can also be denied, as retribution. Think of the man in the attic and his empty bowl.

Back to Wasserton. Beau is late, and his mothers funeral is over. He walks inside and sees the open casket where Monas headless body lies. A recording plays of her lawyers funeral speech about her lifelong dedication to her son, with characteristic digs at his failure to show up to the funeral on time. Beau looks around at the photos on the walls. Many are from his youth, but theres also one that looks like a surveillance image from earlier in the film, at Grace and Rogers house, hinting that Beaus mom has been in control of his life all along.

If Mona has become someone impossibly cruel who steamrolls anybody in her path, then Beau is the opposite: someone who is always (literally) getting run over.

A further look around Monas house adds proof. Framed photos and posters show how her company has grown over the years. (The company is identified by an MW logo weve seen throughout, including in Beaus building and as one of the production companies of the very film were watching.) We discover that MW is, among other things, some sort of pharmaceutical giant, peddling meds all across the country and presumably to many of the characters Beau has met, and to Beau himself: ADHD meds, allergy meds, instant dinners, safety razors, pimple creams, and, eventually, rehab neighborhoods and housing complexes such as the one Beau lives in. MWs motto seems to be Perfectly Safe. And a lot of the ads we see feature the young Beau, a literal poster child for these ailments and conditions. Has Mona been using Beau as some kind of guinea pig? Or is it that Mona, so pathologically obsessed with Beaus safety, has built an entire, childproof world around him? There are two seemingly conflicting takeaways: the sheer breadth of Monas concern for her sons well-being, and the cynicism with which she has used Beau to build this empire.

Its terrifying, but also kind of touching  an expression of how protectiveness can curdle into cruelty. This is one of the ideas at the heart of Beau Is Afraid, and one of the animating forces behind just about every scene. Beau has lived in fear all his life. Hes quite relatable in this regard. The images Aster chooses to depict the dangers of the world feel like ones that could have been ripped from the internet. (How many of us have spent an hour or two reading about the dangers of brown recluse spiders on dodgy websites well into the night?) Armed psychos, serial killers, zonked-out junkies, deadly spiders, moody teens  the demons of Beau Is Afraid are a litany of modern American bogeymen. But attempts to protect ourselves from these fears wind up being counterproductive and deadly in their own regard. Grace and Roger closed off their sons room after he died. So what did their daughter wind up doing? She went in there and killed herself, another forgotten child who chose to break free of her parents, albeit in the most horrifying way.

While its portrait of a nation neck-deep in fear, medication, and runaway overprotectiveness strikes home, Beau Is Afraid isnt building up to some screed against the pharmaceutical industry or cynical internet headlines; its targets are more cosmic and existential. Looking at photos of Monas employees, Beau is shocked to see Elaine (played as an adult by Parker Posey). She has apparently been working for Beaus mom for years. Was she always working for Mona? Or did Mona bring her into the company to keep her away from Beau?

Parker Posey as Elaine. Photo: A24

Look closely at some of the other employees faces: They look like the people around Beaus apartment building, including one tattoo-covered guy who aggressively chased him. Were they all working for Mona, propping up a reality she had created for her son? Beau has been struggling, and failing, his whole life to escape his moms sphere of influence. Of course all the psychos surrounding his apartment, preventing him from stepping beyond his door, forcing him to live in fear of the outside, would turn out to be associated with his mom; they are manifestations of a neurosis that may have originated in Beaus fraught relationship with her, terrifying examples of what awaits us in the big dark scary world. We can, again, choose to read this in broader, societal terms: The more we attempt to control the world, the more it spins out of control.

While Beau looks at Monas funeral arrangement, Elaine arrives, a little tipsy. Our hero is shocked to see her. You worked for her? Beau asks. I did, until last week. After a couple more awkward exchanges, Beau kisses her. She reciprocates and suggests they go inside. As soon as they do, her attitude becomes very terse and businesslike. (Bedroom. Where?) She pulls out a condom. The two have sex in Monas bed, and right as hes about to climax, Beau begins to panic, remembering the curse of the men in his family. But its too late. I really felt that, Elaine sighs. That was a lot. You just blasted through that thing. Beau is relieved to see that he has not, in fact, died. But then Elaine achieves orgasm, and is immediately frozen stiff  dead. Its not the mans orgasm that kills; its the womans. Could that be partly the source of Monas resentment toward Beau and his bloodline? Either way, Beaus fears of sex and death have been realized.

In that trial, is Beau really just talking to himself? Is it his mother accusing him, or is it the guilt in which hes always existed?

It is at this point that Mona arrives in the bedroom. Beaus mom is not only still alive, shes been watching all this. You dont look too overjoyed to see me. I was dead just a minute ago, she says passive-aggressively. Servants come in and carry Elaines body away. (In another absurdist touch, the body is frozen mid-straddle.) Beau reveals that he knew Mona wasnt dead when he saw the hands of the headless corpse in the casket: A telltale birthmark gave them away as belonging to his onetime babysitter Martha.

Why did Mona fake her own death? To find out just how little Beau cared for her, it seems. She suddenly unloads a litany of bizarre charges against him, including the fact that he refused to be breastfed as a baby and that he gave her the same For the Boys soundtrack CD two years in a row. She insists he was lying about losing his keys. She then plays tapes of Beaus psychiatric sessions. (Through the weaning process, she took your displays of autonomy as a betrayal, the shrink says in one of the films more direct statements of a theme.) It turns out that Beaus psychiatrist has also been working for his mother, like just about everyone else in the movie.

Cue the aforementioned attic scene with the giant penis-monster. Afterward, Mona tells Beau that she gave up so much to bring Beau into the world, and that she had to squeeze all the love out of herself. She claims that she spent every waking minute worrying about him, about whether he was safe and fed. (This scene is dominated by an enormous statue of a mother and child in the background, an image that has appeared throughout the film.) Beau, distraught, begins choking her  and then, shocked, stops and lets her go. Im sorry, he says. She looks at him in disbelief, and then, as if felled by his intentions rather than his actions, she falls and smashes through a glass display, dying instantly.

III. Beaus Guilt on Trial

Beau runs out of the house, his face frozen in a comic expression of terror. He comes to the edge of the water, gets in a boat, and motors off into the night. He passes through a cave and into what appears to be a star field. Suddenly, his boat stops, as if hes hit something. Stadium lights go up all around him, and it turns out what he thought were stars were thousands of spectators in a cavernous arena encircling him. In the distance, we see Mona with a scar around her neck, and her lawyer, who announces that we will now assess the extent of the subjects guilt. Even farther away, barely audible and visible, is Beaus lawyer, who can barely get a word in.

His one act of defiance, his one act of independence, leads to his demise. Did he just wait too long to break free, or was he always doomed?

Monas lawyer then shows scenes from Beaus life, all of which are interpreted quite unfairly to color Beau in the worst light. (Seriously, Kafka would be proud.) We see Beau feeding ducks and his therapists fish. Then we see him running away from the tattooed guy outside his apartment; Monas lawyer suggests that this shows Beau refusing to help out a hungry fellow member of the human race. The lawyer then shows surveillance video of Beau at age 9, hiding from his mom at a mall while she desperately looks for him; Beau insists that he really was lost. Then we see him at age 15, letting his friends peruse his moms bedroom and steal her panties while she was away; Beau insists that he was pressured. Meanwhile, Beaus hapless lawyer is thrown from his balcony and smashed against the rocks below.

Other reinterpretations follow as Mona grows increasingly furious. And Beau never really sticks up for himself. All of his explanations basically come down to one thing: He was weak and didnt speak up. The kids pressured him. He was afraid his mom would be upset with him for getting lost. True to form, Beau yells that hes sorry. His boat, which has begun to sputter, now catches fire. Beaus legs are stuck and he cant move. Nobody helps him. Suddenly, his face goes expressionless, almost as if hes accepted his fate. All at once, the boat flips over and traps him under it. It shakes and the water bubbles, signs of Beau struggling. The audience begins to file out. Eventually, the boat goes still. Roll credits.

So what the hell just happened?

Beau is a man who has watched the world pass him by. Was this because he was effectively raised in a cocoon, everything provided for him by Mom and her meds and creams and TV dinners? Was it because he was afraid of what lay beyond his door and afraid of upsetting others? Was his constant sense of guilt inborn, or something fostered by his mother? In that trial, is Beau really just talking to himself? Is it his mother accusing him, or is it the guilt in which hes always existed? Mona and Beau are not unique; they are locked in an eternal dance that predates them. The guilt-tripping mother is a common literary figure, as is the guilt-stricken child who attempts to assert his identity.

If Mona has become someone impossibly cruel who steamrolls anybody in her path (and has created a massive business empire as a result), then Beau is the opposite: someone who cant assert himself, someone who is always (literally) getting run over and apologizing. Here we have the twin poles of human experience  predator and prey  and Asters vision suggests that a happy medium might be impossible, at least in our current reality. Beau finally tries to free himself of his mother at the end and heads out over the water  only to discover that she also controls the water. His one act of defiance, his one act of independence, leads to his demise. Did he just wait too long to break free, or was he always doomed?

The films opening sequence, a Beaus-eye view of his birth, had begun in darkness, with the ambient sound of sloshing liquid. As we (blurrily) saw him exit the birth canal, we heard his mothers screams and shrieks. Doctors often have to slap a baby to make sure hes breathing, and we see a quick shot of this happening. In other words, Beau Is Afraid is a journey from a mans first breath to his last. In the end, like many of us, he went nowhere.
Photo: MEGA/GC Images

Your boyfriend might actually have something in common with Jeff Bezos. Does this mean youre dating one of the most wealthy people alive? Ok, no. My condolences. But your partner and Amazon big boy Jeff Bezos both have probably been asked to take just one more picture, this time with the phone tilted back. No, not like that. Instagram boyfriend Bezos was spotted taking photos of his alleged fiancee Lauren Sanchez on a super fancy yacht off the coast of Portofino, Italy. Its like a deleted scene from The White Lotus, except there are no gays trying to murder anyone. However, trust that this wont be Bezoss last photography journey since Mike White is probably inspired as hell after seeing these images of a very rich man learning his girls angles. Maybe Stanley Tucci or Jason Statham can show off their biceps while taking a photo of the ghost of Jennifer Coolidge. The White Lotus: Amazon Warehouse is currently being developed on a laptop near you.
Carey personally approved Beau Is Afraids use of Always Be My Baby after Ari Aster wrote a letter to her, according to producer Lars Knudsen. Photo: A24

This piece was originally published in April. We are recirculating it now that Beau Is Afraid is available on digital. Spoilers ahead for many plot details of Beau Is Afraid.

Before watching Beau Is Afraid, Ari Asters three-hour Freudian epic, I thought there were only two kinds of needle drops. Either it was the kind that fit a scene so well, the song felt tailor-made to it (Aerosmiths Sweet Emotion in Dazed and Confused), or it was the kind that took you out of the moment entirely (Angel of the Morning during an otherwise scary sequence in It: Chapter Two). With Beau Is Afraid, Aster has introduced me to a secret, third option: a needle drop so incongruous and absurd given everything else happening onscreen that its actually somehow  perfect.

Beau Is Afraids needle drop arrives in the third act, once youve started to feel like youve seen it all  suicide by paint-chugging, an elaborately executed play-within-a-play, a completely nude homicidal maniac. And then comes a sex scene. Its a surprising turn of events, given the main characters whole deal. But its not just that. This scene is underscored by a song that would take anyone 10,000 tries to guess correctly with the movie playing on mute. That song is Mariah Careys 1996 chart-topper Always Be My Baby.

Aster had a rough first draft of Beau Is Afraid ten years ago, and the Mariah song was in the draft already all the way back then, says Asters producing partner Lars Knudsen. (The two have worked together on all three of Asters feature films, and co-founded their production company, Square Peg, in 2021.) Its a very idiosyncratic scene. Its emotional, its strange, its provocative, and when you add Mariah Carey on top of that it just becomes something else entirely.

Some background: Beau (Joaquin Phoenix) is an agoraphobic mamas boy who sets out on a surreal quest to make it back to his mothers house in time for her funeral. When he finally arrives after a series of highly surreal obstacles, he sees that the service has already ended  and that his childhood crush has just arrived, too. Elaine (Parker Posey) is everything Beau is not: self-possessed, assertive, maybe a little pushy. She takes charge, leading Beau straight up to his mothers bedroom, where she instructs him to undress.

Panic grips Beau. From the time he was a child, Beaus mother Mona (played by Zoe Lister-Jones in the characters younger years) burdened her son with the knowledge that his father died as Beau was conceived (literally the second he ejaculated). She explains this fate also befell his fathers father, and his father before him. So Beau is a virgin grappling with the idea that sleeping with the girl of his dreams might literally kill him. Elaine, unbothered, straddles him, reaches for her phone, and queues up a banger.

There was not one single song that could do what that song did. It was definitely money well spent.

The iconic opening of Always Be My Baby  doo doo doop dum  elicited an audible gasp when I saw the film in theaters. Its a song that calls to mind prom dances and mixtapes, a sonic reminder of Beaus forever state of arrested development. Sensing Beaus tension and trying to get him to relax, Elaine at one point stops the song and plays it again from the beginning. Mariah is mid-do do doop when Beau, terrified, barrels toward his first orgasm. I really felt that, Elaine says afterward as Beau, still alive, processes the supposed generational curse hes escaped. That was a lot. You just blasted through that thing.

Elaine goes to work on her own orgasm, climaxes, and then goes quiet. Beau looks up at her and realizes shes dead, frozen stiff mid-straddle, as Always Be My Baby keeps playing in the background.

Though Aster always knew he needed this song, getting Always Be My Baby into the movie posed some obstacles. Beyond the task of getting Carey to sign off on it, Knudsen also needed to make sure they had the budget to license it. Knudsen declined to name the songs official price tag, but he did say that it clocked into the hundreds of thousands  a number that required A24 to raise the films music budget, and cut a few other, less critical songs from the film.

For a brief time, Knudsen says, he and Aster considered alternatives. They looked for pop songs from the 80s and 90s, hoping to find something instantly recognizable that would still play as a surprise in the moment. (Knudsen wouldnt say which others they considered.) Ari listened to a hundred of other songs to try to find a replacement, Knudsen says. But he rehearsed and shot the scene with Careys song, and the cast and crew grew increasingly attached to it. It just became a thing where we were like, Were kind of fucked now if we cant get it, because there was no alternative.

Aster wrote a letter to Carey, pleading his case and describing the alchemy of the song with the scene, Knudsen says. He was trying to give her the history that he had lived with for ten years, and basically begging her to let us use it. Carey watched a clip of the scene with the song  on her phone, according to Knudsen  approved it, and later attended the films premiere after-party.

Like the rest of Beau Is Afraid, the sex scene is an exercise in dark humor. Knudsen says Aster wants audiences to dive into the layers of meaning in the films use of the song themselves, but he acknowledges that theres something intentionally bleak about a middle-aged man whos been smothered by his mother losing his virginity to a song called Always Be My Baby. The first time I saw it with an audience, I knew we made the right choice, he says. There was not one single song that could do what that song did. It was definitely money well spent.
Photo: Hana Mendel

This piece was originally published in April. We are recirculating it now that Beau Is Afraid is available on digital.

Patti LuPone, legendary for her work on the Broadway stage and with the English language, once called Madonna a movie killer who is dead behind the eyes. She erected an Andrew Lloyd Webber Memorial Pool at her Connecticut home in the 90s with the money she made suing him for replacing her in Sunset Boulevard, then called him the definition of a sad sack. There is an entire section on LuPones Wikipedia page dedicated to her views on theater conduct, including the time she yanked a phone out of an audience members hand mid-performance and the time she told told an American Theatre Wing patron to wear a mask or get the fuck out.

Controversy is my middle name, she tells me cheerfully, sitting behind a little table backstage at New Yorks Cherry Lane Theatre, the Off Broadway venue thats now owned by a movie studio and LuPones most recent employer, A24. Its not intentional. People think it, and I say it. But just in case I do something stupid, hes here to stop me, she adds, pointing to her publicist, a man named Philip, whom shes known for 40 years and who looks alternately charmed and unbothered by everything that exits her mouth.

She and Philip are not concerned about LuPone accidentally spilling plot points from her A24 movie presently in theaters, Beau Is Afraid  though spoilers ahead. They are concerned about LuPone leaking details about her upcoming Marvel show, Agatha: Coven of Chaos. Indeed, on The View later this same day, shell reveal shes playing a 450-year-old Sicilian witch named Lilia Calderu in the WandaVision spinoff series. When I joke that Disney is famously litigious, she bursts into delighted laughter. Uh-oh, she says. Theres not enough money in the world.

LuPones near-Shakespearean quotability and relish for calling a spade a son of a bitch has for many fans been a feature, not a bug, of her decades-long career. Andy Cohen, for one, regularly hosts her on Watch What Happens Live in a segment called Does Patti Give a Damn? in which LuPone doles out spontaneous assessments of casting announcements and celebrity breakups. That delicious transparency has sometimes gotten in the way of her Hollywood aspirations, relegating her to playing, as she puts it, stregas and nonas: angry Italian wives who yell at Robert De Niro (The Comedian) and Danny DeVito (Wise Guys) or pissed-off single women whose limited patience is tested by Harrison Ford (Witness). But its the very same quality that helped LuPone land a part in Beau Is Afraid  the best role Ive ever been offered on-camera  as Joaquin Phoenixs towering, smothering mother in Ari Asters darkly comic Jewish anxiety opera.

When Aster reached out to LuPone, she had no idea who he was and hadnt heard of Hereditary and Midsommar, the A24 golden boys previous features about deranged women and the hapless men upon whom they rain terrible punishments. Her son, 32-year-old Joshua Johnston, urged her to hop on a Zoom with Aster. He said, Mom, this is the guy, recalls LuPone. And so I watched Midsommar and Hereditary. And I said, Why me? Is he a musical-theater queen?

I watched Midsommar and Hereditary. And I said, Why me? Is he a musical-theater queen?

Aster, who has not self-identified as such, cast LuPone for two reasons: He was impressed, she says, by how well she handled the language of 2012s The Anarchist, a Talmudic David Mamet play. (I was so grateful that Ari came to me from the legitimate side of my stage career, not the musical-theater side, says LuPone, who has won three Tonys for her work in musical theater.) Hed also seen a clip of her calling Donald Trump a motherfucker on a red carpet and thought she seemed like a hard-ass. (It just flew out of my mouth, shrugs LuPone of that moment, which quickly went viral. I turned to Philip after and I said, Well, you are going to have to be dealing with something in about ten minutes.)

Beau Is Afraid follows Phoenix as the titular character, who embarks on a Homeric journey to attend the funeral of his mother, Mona, played by Lupone, after hes told she was beheaded by a falling chandelier. Along the way, Beau gives Lloyd Webber a run for LuPones sad-sack title, becoming the victim of a break-in, a stabbing, a near-drowning, an attempted kidnapping, a compulsory crack smoking, multiple murder attempts, and Nathan Lane. In the days since its theatrical release, the three-hour Oy-dyssey has become a polarizing piece of filmmaking with some calling for Aster to be locked up in movie jail and others proclaiming it one of the most fascinating films of recent years. Critics seem to agree on one thing, however: Despite appearing in only a handful of scenes, LuPone runs away with the film.

LuPone admits she found the whole thing a bit baffling tonally: While filming Beau in Montreal in the summer of 2021 (during a break between critically acclaimed performances in London and New York productions of longtime collaborator Stephen Sondheims Company), she played Mona totally straight, unaware that the film was Asters version of a black comedy. I did not see the humor, she says, lifting up her legs and calmly removing her Manolo Blahniks from her feet as she talks. I saw the horror.

Not even scenes featuring a gigantic talking penis  a character who is identified as Beaus biological father  tipped her off. Well, I didnt think that was funny, she says. She recalls seeing the penis for the first time in a big barn on their set and responding, Oh, shit. I never saw it move, she adds. But I tried to figure out how he penetrated Mona. LuPone says she and the cast were typically in thrilling disbelief during filming, often asking one another, Somebody put money behind this script?

LuPones co-star, Stephen McKinley Henderson, who plays Beaus therapist and whom LuPone has been friends with since they studied together at Juilliard in the 1970s, kept referring to the movie as vaudeville, and LuPone was totally lost. I said, Wait a minute. I dont feel vaudeville at all. What am I missing? Later, when she was recording dialogue in postproduction, LuPone noticed that a grotesque portrait of a woman with green skin and a wide grimace had appeared behind her in a pivotal scene. I said, Ari, who is that? she recalls. And he said, Thats Monas mother. I went, What? and I burst out laughing. I said, Oh my God. I wished Id known it was a comedy.

LuPone is, nonetheless, uproariously funny as Mona, oozing passive-aggressive Jewish guilt and Machiavellian manipulation as she puppeteers her pathetic sons entire existence. Near the end of the film, its revealed that, in a staggering, lifelong attempt to test Beaus devotion to her and protect him from what she sees as an irrevocably dangerous world, Mona created an entire corporation whose central purpose was to track and control her son. After faking her own death, then killing her beloved housekeeper as a decoy, Mona tries Beau in a kind of extralegal, existential court for, among other things, regifting her the same Bette Midler CD twice.

Fascinatingly, LuPone didnt play her character as a villain. I see her as deeply concerned. She structured her entire life around that child, says LuPone, poker faced. And he constantly disappoints!

LuPone first appears in Beau in an audio-only scene that takes place after Beau reneges on a long-planned flight to visit Mona, and she makes a meal of it, peppering the dialogue with long, loaded pauses hinting at biblical rage. She tells me the scene was her first interaction with Phoenix  she was in New York, dialing him from her own cell phone; he was in Montreal on set. The two did the scene a few times with LuPone taking her cues from Phoenix.

Joaquin took a very long pause. And I went to myself, Am I still connected on the phone? Are you wasting my life, basically, kid? she laughs. I told myself, Just be patient. Just be patient. And then he finally said, What do I do? And I thought, Wow.

Once LuPone made it to Montreal, the two became friends, having coffee each morning on their hotel balconies with Phoenixs partner, Rooney Mara, and their baby. I would bring out my French press and say, Does anyone want coffee? And Ari and Joaquin and I would chat not about the movie but just What a day! I think it helped Joaquin and I be able to go at it as we did.

LuPone similarly bonded with Zoe Lister-Jones, who plays young Mona in several flashbacks to Beaus childhood. The two are playing the same tune but in different keys: Lister-Jones draws out the characters incestuous overtones, while LuPone hits heavy notes of shame. They didnt scientifically calibrate their performances, but they did hang out a lot, going to museums and dinner, casually studying each others mannerisms. Because shes a very fine actor, she understood the responsibility that she had in playing an earlier version of me, LuPone says. The two still keep in touch  I think its important that you establish a friendship with people  but LuPone knows how this song ends. These are never going to be friendships that last forever, she says matter of factly. Its show business, after all.

LuPone has always had a dramatic relationship with show business. Although shes dominated the stage for decades, she decided to give up her Actors Equity card, which she announced LuPone-ishly in the fall of 2022: Quite a week on Broadway, seeing my name being bandied about. Gave up my Equity card; no longer part of that circus. Figure it out. Without the card, LuPone can still perform on Broadway, but she tells me she doesnt even want to. She launches into one of her favorite topics: the Las Vegasification of Broadway. I dont think its encouraging audiences to be educated, she says, convincingly falling into character as an American theatergoer who willingly pays $350 to debase themselves. Its more like, Lets go see Mamma Mia! I wish the Phantom would come back.

(I ask LuPone if Lloyd Webbers musical finally closing on the same weekend LuPones biggest film opens is meaningful to her, and she throws her head back with a cackle and brief applause. No, but yay!)

Patti LuPone as Mona in Beau Is Afraid. Photo: Takashi Seida/A24

Shes not done with theater  shes merely looking downtown. I want to work on East 4th Street. I want to go to the New York Theatre Workshop, she proclaims. She gestures to the space around us at the Cherry Lane, where shes pondering bringing a new play she might produce. Lets get creative, she says. The audience will find me.

Historically, audiences have found her. Over the years, the gays and Jews (Ryan Murphy, Lena Dunham, Rachel Bloom, et al.) who grew up mainlining her show tunes have given her memorable cameos and supporting roles on shows such as Hollywood, Girls, and Will & Grace. But she hasnt had a lead TV role since the early 90s, when she played the matriarch on a network series called Life Goes On. Shes never had a starring, or even hefty supporting, role in a film until now.

Its definitely the nose, says LuPone, turning so I can see her profile. She thinks its why shes so often cast as Jewish, Italian, Greek, and, at least once, Latina, in 2013s Parker as a shitty mother to Jennifer Lopez. When I tell her I often forget she isnt actually a member of the tribe, she is visibly exhilarated. Thank you! she responds. I did 23andMe, and I am 12 percent Ashkenazi Jewish. Italians and Jews, were the same.

Its my biggest fear besides falling on stage. Which is more important, falling onstage or my kid dying?

When Aster offered her the role of yet another Jewish mother, LuPone was so proud to finally get the chance to play what she describes as an attractive, vital woman with an emotional arc and a monologue so juicy its already incited some Oscar chatter. Thats so dangerous, to talk about awards, because it only leads to disappointment, she says. She will, however, emphatically request that A24 and Aster put her in more movies. Put me in everything, Ari, she says. I dont care if Im sneaking around a corner, just sticking my head in.

I ask LuPone if she thinks Mona, a character with whom she continues to empathize, ever took things too far. I think ultimately she does, and she regrets it at the very end, she says. She pauses for a moment, then shakes her head, disagreeing with herself. But he missed his flight to see her, goddamn it! Now lets see whether he shows up when shes headless. What the hell else does she have to do?

I think its understandable that a mother becomes irrational when its her child, she adds, laughing.

This raises the inevitable question regarding LuPones own mothering of Joshua, her only son with her longtime husband, Matthew Johnston, a cameraman she met while filming a TV movie in the 80s. Ive never gotten as mad as Mona. Ive never created a baby formula or an empire around my kid, LuPone says. But I do love my son unconditionally. And I worry about my son the same way that she worried about her son. Im always worried that my son is going to die, and then I think, Am I projecting? Am I going to create it?

I ask what her son thought of Beau Is Afraid, and LuPone gets a mischievous glint in her eye for approximately the fifth consecutive time during our conversation. I think we should call him and find out, she says, whipping out her phone. LuPone dials Johnston, who picks up immediately, and briefs him on our conversation. What do you mean that I am going to die, Mom? he asks, vaguely frightened. Oh, I always worry, Joshua, she says. Im always worried that youre going to die. Its my biggest fear besides falling onstage. Which is more important, falling onstage or my kid dying?

Johnston quietly mulls the question. Its terrifying when youre not in control of a situation, he says. Thats probably what youre fearful of with me.

So what did he think of Mona, the mother he never had? Ive lived with a lot of interesting characters that youve played over the years, Johnson says, but its a testament to your acting ability that the person onscreen was not anyone I was familiar with.

LuPone looks pleased. Brilliant, she says. Hes a very smart boy.
Photo: Prashant Gupta/FX

Timothy Olyphant is dusting off his hat (oh, you know the one). The actor is set to reprise his role as Raylan Givens, that smoldering gunslinger, in a miniseries spinoff of FXs crime drama Justified, which ended in 2015. Justified: City Primeval reunites Olyphant with producers of the original acclaimed series  including creator Graham Yost. The new limited series is set to be based on Elmore Leonards novel City Primeval: High Noon in Detroit  after the original series drew from Leonards novella Fire in the Hole and other stories featuring the Givens character. City Primeval takes place after Givenss work in Kentucky is finished, with the U.S. Marshal living in Miami before he ends up in Detroit and involved with the case of someone known as the Oklahoma Wildman.

Has the trailer dropped?

Yeehaw, a trailer has trotted on down with a blue tint reminiscent of a Twilight film. The full trailer gives us just enough plot and more than enough punching to keep us interested. Givens was supposed to go on a road trip with his daughter but got suckered into crime fighting? Okay. Theres a bad guy who loves killing? Say more. That a bad guy who loves killing is maybe hooking up with Givenss daughter, who was supposed to be on that road trip? Now yer talkin! This game of bad copbad cop has us fascinated.

Who else is in the cast?

Speaking of wild men, FX announced that eight new actors were added to the main cast of Justified: City Primeval. Boyd Holbrook, Vondie Curtis Hall, Norbert Leo Butz, and Victor Williams are officially joining as new characters alongside Aunjanue Ellis, Adelaide Clemens, Marin Ireland, and Vivian Olyphant, the stars daughter. While new faces will accompany Olyphant, other Justified stars like Walton Goggins as Boyd Crowder or Jere Burns as Wynn Duffy have not confirmed if theyre returning for the revival. In the meantime, dont say we didnt call it first.

Whats the plot?

Justified: City Primeval begins ten years after the original series ended. After a spell in Miami raising his 15-year-old daughter (played by Olyphants real-life daughter) and continuing his work as a U.S. Marshal, Givens ends up in Detroit to take down sociopathic criminal Clement Mansell (Boyd Holbrook) and his attorney. This storys kind of a three-hander: Its about Raylan, Clement Mansell, and the third character is this woman defense attorney, Carolyn Wilder, who in some ways is kind of locked at the wrists and ankles, not by her doing, to Clement Mansell, showrunner Michael Dinner said in an interview with EW. But then theres a fourth character, which is the city of Detroit. Raylans a little bit of a fish out of water in a place that he doesnt understand as well as he understood where he grew up in Kentucky  or Miami, where he lives.

While you might be excited to see some familiar faces, the show emphasizes that this is a new world for Givens filled with new characters. Were dealing with this next chapter of his life  we did Justified for six or seven years, and that was kind of like Act 1. This is Act 2 of his life, and its an existential story, explains Dinner to EW. However, Dinner does tease that Act 2 of Givenss story might not end well. If youre bringing Raylan back, you put him up against a really, really bad guy who doesnt have any problem killing people, because Raylan could die, Andron says. This is a limited [series] and Raylan could very well not make it out of this. Every season we ended the show with Youll Never Leave Harlan Alive, but then he does. Right up until the end of the show, you know Raylans not going to die, and obviously he did not at the end. But I think, at this point, all bets are off.

This story is really going to be about Raylan and his demons and his past and trying to move forward at this point in his life, fellow showrunner Dave Andron added. So we had to create a new foil for him and somebody whos still a little bit of a mirror but also a big obstacle.

Was there really a shootout during filming?

Yes. Olyphant opened up about the incident on the Conan OBrien Needs a Friend podcast. While filming at night in Chicago in a very, very bad neighborhood, he recalled hearing a series of rapid gunshots from across a nearby park. It was the scariest goddamn thing. It went on forever, Olyphant said. He then heard three cars drive by  ignoring the productions road-closure barricade  as the people in the vehicles aimed machine-gun fire at each other. The actor said he grabbed a PA and threw her out of the way during the gunfight.

Olyphant acknowledged that the production was understaffed in terms of law enforcement, and noted that a cop who was present described the scene as one of the closer calls he ever had. Olyphant said that at his request, the shows producers canceled filming the next day to give everyone a break.

What does Quentin Tarantino have to do with the Justified revival?

Well, hes more or less responsible for the whole thing happening in the first place. According to the showrunners, the Once Upon a Time  in Hollywood director wanted to make the book into a movie at one point but eventually abandoned the idea and instead planted the TV-adaptation idea into Tim Olyphants head. One day the phone rang, and it was Tim Olyphant, who said, Ive been sitting on the set with Quentin, and we were talking about this book, City Primeval, Dinner told EW. So we started kicking around the idea, and FX was into it. It was very complicated to put together, because the rights situation was a little murky  part of the rights belonged to the estate, part belonged to MGM (which was going to make this movie several times), and it took a while to get it going, but then we did.

When will Justified: City Primeval be released?

Its slated to premiere privately during the ATX Television Festival on June 1 and will eventually make its way on FX in July 18, 2023.

This post has been updated throughout.
Photo: Eric Charbonneau/Invision/AP/Shutterstock

Update, June 14: Riley Keough agreed to give Priscilla Presley a lump-sum payment as a part of a settlement over the late Lisa Marie Presleys will and financial trust, the New York Times reports. Keough, Lisa Maries daughter, settled the dispute for what appears to be $1 million dollars, according to court documents that the family attempted to keep private. She agreed to pay as much as $400,000 in legal fees to Priscilla for costs related to the petition challenging who should inherit Lisa Maries trust. Keough will be the sole trustee, per the terms of the settlement, and agreed to retain Priscilla as a special adviser. If the Los Angeles Superior Court approves the agreement, it would mark the end of the Elvis estates trust issues.

Update, May 16: Priscilla Presley reached a settlement over the dispute surrounding her late daughter, Lisa Marie Presleys will, the Los Angeles Times reports. The parties would like to report that theyve reached a settlement, Ronson J. Shamoun, Priscilla Presleys attorney, told a Los Angeles judge on May 16, describing everyone in the family as happy and united after the hearing. Specifics of the settlement were not discussed in court, and attorneys for both parties filed motions to seal the agreement, per CNN. The disagreement arose after the elder Presley disputed a 2016 amendment to her daughters will, which said the late Lisa Marie had removed her mother and former business manager, Barry Siegel, as co-trustees and replaced them with her children Riley and Benjamin Keough, the latter of whom later died in 2020. A new hearing is set for August 4.

The original story, published March 24, follows.

When Lisa Marie Presley, Elviss only child, died after experiencing cardiac arrest at her home on January 12, her family seemed unified in grief. It is with a heavy heart that I must share the devastating news that my beautiful daughter Lisa Marie has left us, Priscilla Presley, her mother and Elviss ex-wife, told People. She was the most passionate, strong and loving woman I have ever known. In a statement from her family shared by Gracelands management, surviving relatives said, Priscilla Presley and the Presley family are shocked and devastated by the tragic death of their beloved Lisa Marie. They are profoundly grateful for the support, love and prayers of everyone, and ask for privacy during this very difficult time. But as the weeks wore on, it seemed that sadness was the only thing tying Lisa Maries family members together. Soon, control over Lisa Maries estate seemed like it was tearing them apart.

In late January, Priscillas legal team filed paperwork in a Los Angeles court challenging the authenticity and validity of an amendment to her daughters trust that left Lisa Maries daughter Riley Keough as the sole trustee. Priscillas legal challenge argues that a 2016 change to Lisa Maries trust is suspect. Priscilla claims Lisa Maries signature on the document appeared inconsistent with past signatures and that her name was spelled incorrectly. Before the 2016 paperwork, Priscilla and Lisa Maries former business manager Barry Siegel were listed as co-trustees  the amendment that is now in dispute takes control of the trust away from Priscilla. (Siegel has reportedly said he wants out of the co-trustee role.) So far, Keough has not filed paperwork in response. Keough and her half-siblings, 14-year-old twins Harper and Finley Lockwood, are beneficiaries to her trust  which counts the Graceland mansion and 15 percent of Elvis Presley Enterprises among its assets, per the Los Angeles Times. Before her death, Lisa Marie appeared to be drawing in lots of money related to her stake in Elvis Presley Enterprises  even though most of the $97 million received when she sold 85 percent of it in 2005 has been depleted. In 2022, Lisa Marie received $1.25 million in income from the trust, which is valued at tens of millions, according to the New York Times.

Sources have been telling tabloids that the grandmother and granddaughter, who supported Baz Luhrmanns Elvis together along with Lisa Marie, are in a very bad place. One of Lisa Maries confidants told Page Six that Priscillas challenge was a money grab and that the pair had no relationship when Lisa Marie passed away. A hearing in the legal dispute is now scheduled for April 13, and a lot of questions remain about the familys trust issues.

Christopher Melcher, a celebrity attorney and legal analyst, said that its common for people to place their assets in a trust while they are estate planning  figuring out who gets what upon death. Its an easier  and cheaper  way of leaving assets to the people. The trustee, in turn, is in charge of carrying out the deceased persons wishes with the handling of an estate. If theres a will but no trust, then everything has to go through probate, involving the court. Priscillas petition maintains the pre-2016 doc is what Lisa Marie wanted, which would leave her and Riley as co-trustees.

Priscilla thinks its fraudulent, [and] that Lisa Marie didnt sign this, Melcher said. That is a ridiculous position for Priscilla to take. Melcher said its common sense that Lisa Marie would want her children handling the assets. When Elvis died, he had one child, which was Lisa Marie  he wanted everything to go to Lisa Marie, Melcher said. Priscilla and Elvis were divorced and he made a conscious choice not to leave Priscilla in his will or estate. When Lisa Marie expressed her wishes, she wanted her children to inherit her estate. Melcher doesnt think that Priscilla has much of a legal leg to stand on, as Keough and her two minor half-sisters are poised to get the estate anyway. Rileys got the better legal argument.

Regardless of who might or might not have a better claim to control of the trust, its poised to be a long and complicated process. Benny Roshan, who chairs Greenberg Gluskers Trust and Probate Litigation Group, explained that the dispute is in its very early stages. Priscilla filed a petition. Keough can reply, or she could decide not to file anything. Were not likely to see an actual ruling on the underlying petition or filing on April 13, Roshan said. This is not the first and last that well see of this petition. As for how long it could take to resolve everything, it depends on whether theres disagreement over Priscillas petition. If nobody wants to fight Priscilla on this, everything could be resolved as shortly as in a few months. But if there is a conflict  which it sure looks like there is  it could take upwards of a couple of years to resolve. As for who has a better case, it depends on the facts. If Priscilla Presley is right, then I think she has a strong case, and she might get the relief that shes asking from the court. But thats a question mark for us.

As this is happening, Keough is starring in the popular Prime Video series Daisy Jones & the Six, about a rock-and-roll band dealing with all the lasting repercussions of fame, from money issues to crumbling relationships. And Priscilla is promoting the new animated Netflix series she co-created called Agent Elvis, about a crime-fighting version of the man at the center of this whole mess.
Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD), is not the largest company out there, but it led the NYSE gainers with a relatively large price hike in the past couple of weeks. As a mid-cap stock with high coverage by analysts, you could assume any recent changes in the companys outlook is already priced into the stock. But what if there is still an opportunity to buy? Today I will analyse the most recent data on Lithia Motorss outlook and valuation to see if the opportunity still exists.

View our latest analysis for Lithia Motors

What's The Opportunity In Lithia Motors?

According to my price multiple model, which makes a comparison between the company's price-to-earnings ratio and the industry average, the stock price seems to be justfied. In this instance, Ive used the price-to-earnings (PE) ratio given that there is not enough information to reliably forecast the stocks cash flows. I find that Lithia Motorss ratio of 6.62x is trading slightly below its industry peers ratio of 10.1x, which means if you buy Lithia Motors today, youd be paying a reasonable price for it. And if you believe Lithia Motors should be trading in this range, then there isnt much room for the share price to grow beyond the levels of other industry peers over the long-term. Although, there may be an opportunity to buy in the future. This is because Lithia Motorss beta (a measure of share price volatility) is high, meaning its price movements will be exaggerated relative to the rest of the market. If the market is bearish, the companys shares will likely fall by more than the rest of the market, providing a prime buying opportunity.

What does the future of Lithia Motors look like?

Future outlook is an important aspect when youre looking at buying a stock, especially if you are an investor looking for growth in your portfolio. Buying a great company with a robust outlook at a cheap price is always a good investment, so lets also take a look at the company's future expectations. Lithia Motors' earnings growth are expected to be in the teens in the upcoming years, indicating a solid future ahead. This should lead to robust cash flows, feeding into a higher share value.

What This Means For You

Are you a shareholder? LADs optimistic future growth appears to have been factored into the current share price, with shares trading around industry price multiples. However, there are also other important factors which we havent considered today, such as the financial strength of the company. Have these factors changed since the last time you looked at LAD? Will you have enough confidence to invest in the company should the price drop below the industry PE ratio?

Are you a potential investor? If youve been keeping an eye on LAD, now may not be the most advantageous time to buy, given it is trading around industry price multiples. However, the positive outlook is encouraging for LAD, which means its worth diving deeper into other factors such as the strength of its balance sheet, in order to take advantage of the next price drop.

Keep in mind, when it comes to analysing a stock it's worth noting the risks involved. Every company has risks, and we've spotted 2 warning signs for Lithia Motors (of which 1 makes us a bit uncomfortable!) you should know about.

If you are no longer interested in Lithia Motors, you can use our free platform to see our list of over 50 other stocks with a high growth potential.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.



This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.

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Key Insights

Using the 2 Stage Free Cash Flow to Equity, Canadian Tire Corporation fair value estimate is CA$161

Canadian Tire Corporation's CA$169 share price indicates it is trading at similar levels as its fair value estimate

Our fair value estimate is 17% lower than Canadian Tire Corporation's analyst price target of CA$195

In this article we are going to estimate the intrinsic value of Canadian Tire Corporation, Limited (TSE:CTC.A) by taking the expected future cash flows and discounting them to their present value. The Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) model is the tool we will apply to do this. It may sound complicated, but actually it is quite simple!

Remember though, that there are many ways to estimate a company's value, and a DCF is just one method. Anyone interested in learning a bit more about intrinsic value should have a read of the Simply Wall St analysis model.

Check out our latest analysis for Canadian Tire Corporation

The Calculation

We're using the 2-stage growth model, which simply means we take in account two stages of company's growth. In the initial period the company may have a higher growth rate and the second stage is usually assumed to have a stable growth rate. To start off with, we need to estimate the next ten years of cash flows. Where possible we use analyst estimates, but when these aren't available we extrapolate the previous free cash flow (FCF) from the last estimate or reported value. We assume companies with shrinking free cash flow will slow their rate of shrinkage, and that companies with growing free cash flow will see their growth rate slow, over this period. We do this to reflect that growth tends to slow more in the early years than it does in later years.

A DCF is all about the idea that a dollar in the future is less valuable than a dollar today, so we discount the value of these future cash flows to their estimated value in today's dollars:

10-year free cash flow (FCF) forecast

2023 2024 2025 2026 2027 2028 2029 2030 2031 2032 Levered FCF (CA$, Millions) CA$813.8m CA$726.0m CA$935.0m CA$933.0m CA$940.0m CA$949.6m CA$961.5m CA$975.2m CA$990.1m CA$1.01b Growth Rate Estimate Source Analyst x4 Analyst x4 Analyst x1 Analyst x1 Analyst x1 Est @ 1.02% Est @ 1.26% Est @ 1.42% Est @ 1.53% Est @ 1.61% Present Value (CA$, Millions) Discounted @ 11% CA$732 CA$588 CA$681 CA$612 CA$555 CA$504 CA$459 CA$419 CA$383 CA$350

("Est" = FCF growth rate estimated by Simply Wall St)

Present Value of 10-year Cash Flow (PVCF) = CA$5.3b

We now need to calculate the Terminal Value, which accounts for all the future cash flows after this ten year period. The Gordon Growth formula is used to calculate Terminal Value at a future annual growth rate equal to the 5-year average of the 10-year government bond yield of 1.8%. We discount the terminal cash flows to today's value at a cost of equity of 11%.

Terminal Value (TV)= FCF 2032  (1 + g)  (r  g) = CA$1.0b (1 + 1.8%)  (11% 1.8%) = CA$11b

Present Value of Terminal Value (PVTV)= TV / (1 + r)10= CA$11b ( 1 + 11%)10= CA$3.8b

The total value, or equity value, is then the sum of the present value of the future cash flows, which in this case is CA$9.1b. The last step is to then divide the equity value by the number of shares outstanding. Compared to the current share price of CA$169, the company appears around fair value at the time of writing. Valuations are imprecise instruments though, rather like a telescope - move a few degrees and end up in a different galaxy. Do keep this in mind.

dcf

The Assumptions

Now the most important inputs to a discounted cash flow are the discount rate, and of course, the actual cash flows. If you don't agree with these result, have a go at the calculation yourself and play with the assumptions. The DCF also does not consider the possible cyclicality of an industry, or a company's future capital requirements, so it does not give a full picture of a company's potential performance. Given that we are looking at Canadian Tire Corporation as potential shareholders, the cost of equity is used as the discount rate, rather than the cost of capital (or weighted average cost of capital, WACC) which accounts for debt. In this calculation we've used 11%, which is based on a levered beta of 1.571. Beta is a measure of a stock's volatility, compared to the market as a whole. We get our beta from the industry average beta of globally comparable companies, with an imposed limit between 0.8 and 2.0, which is a reasonable range for a stable business.

SWOT Analysis for Canadian Tire Corporation

Strength

Debt is well covered by earnings.

Weakness

Earnings declined over the past year.

Dividend is low compared to the top 25% of dividend payers in the Multiline Retail market.

Opportunity

Annual earnings are forecast to grow for the next 3 years.

Good value based on P/E ratio compared to estimated Fair P/E ratio.

Threat

Debt is not well covered by operating cash flow.

Dividends are not covered by cash flow.

Annual earnings are forecast to grow slower than the Canadian market.

Looking Ahead:

Whilst important, the DCF calculation shouldn't be the only metric you look at when researching a company. DCF models are not the be-all and end-all of investment valuation. Instead the best use for a DCF model is to test certain assumptions and theories to see if they would lead to the company being undervalued or overvalued. For instance, if the terminal value growth rate is adjusted slightly, it can dramatically alter the overall result. For Canadian Tire Corporation, we've compiled three relevant items you should further examine:

Risks: Consider for instance, the ever-present spectre of investment risk. We've identified 2 warning signs with Canadian Tire Corporation (at least 1 which makes us a bit uncomfortable) , and understanding these should be part of your investment process. Future Earnings: How does CTC.A's growth rate compare to its peers and the wider market? Dig deeper into the analyst consensus number for the upcoming years by interacting with our free analyst growth expectation chart. Other Solid Businesses: Low debt, high returns on equity and good past performance are fundamental to a strong business. Why not explore our interactive list of stocks with solid business fundamentals to see if there are other companies you may not have considered!

PS. The Simply Wall St app conducts a discounted cash flow valuation for every stock on the TSX every day. If you want to find the calculation for other stocks just search here.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.



This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.

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Of all the countries in sub-Saharan Africa to be optimistic about, the most promising is Kenya. Economic and political forces are converging to put the continents seventh-largest nation in a relatively favorable position. Wp Get the full experience. Choose your plan ArrowRight Africa is the fastest-growing continent and is expected to account for one-quarter of the worlds population by 2050. That means more multinational corporations see a need to have a direct presence somewhere in sub-Saharan Africa. Many such companies already realize they need a presence in Asia, with Singapore proving increasingly popular as the hub, especially as Hong Kong has been absorbed into communist China.

Where in Africa might such a comparable cluster of companies evolve? Unfortunately, some of Africas leading nations have experienced major troubles lately. Economic growth has slowed in Nigeria, Africas most populous nation, and the country has only begun to make much-needed reforms; Ethiopia, the second-most populous country, just went through a civil war; political problems and power shortages continue to plague South Africa. For the time being, those places are not in the running to be a dominant sub-Saharan economic hub, if only because expats will be reluctant to move there.(1)

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In contrast, a locale with a reasonable level of English fluency and an attractive year-round climate will get a lot of attention  and that nicely describes Kenya. Kenya also had a growth rate of about 5.5% last year, despite negative shocks to the prices of imported food and energy. Since 2004, growth rates have been in the range of 4% to 5%.

Kenya also has some geographic advantages. It has an extensive coastline on the Indian Ocean, and research suggests that landlocked countries have worse economic performance. Countries with a coast also find it easier to stay in touch with the rest of the world, and Kenya has relatively easy access to China and India, large markets and sources of capital. In the current geopolitical climate, East Africa is attracting more interest from more sources than is most of West Africa.

In terms of scale, Kenyas population of about 57 million cannot compete with Nigerias 222 million. But East Africa, with almost 500 million people, has a larger population than West Africa.

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Tanzania, just to the south of Kenya, has a larger population than Kenya. But Kenya is much wealthier and has a superior infrastructure  and that includes the digital infrastructure, as internet access in Kenya is ranked among the most reliable in Africa.

To the extent the world focuses more on green energy, Kenya also has a positive story to tell. The country already has more than 80% renewable energy, and the climate is ideal for an ongoing expansion of solar power. Foreign companies looking to boost their green reputations might find Kenya an attractive destination. That said, expensive energy  due in part to taxes and poor regulation  has been a growth drawback.

There are other elements of the case against Kenya. It has had difficulty attracting foreign direct investment, even compared to other African nations. Corruption, regulatory barriers to entry and political instability remain concerns and cannot be dismissed lightly.

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That said, Kenyan governance has been stable as of late, and the 2022 election went relatively well. The government is proving more adept at preventing major terror attacks, often coming from groups in Somalia. As Kenya becomes wealthier, there is a good chance those problems will diminish further.

It is also possible that sub-Saharan Africa will not develop a single dominant corporate hub at all. The United Arab Emirates will continue to evolve into Africas financial center, Lagos will have the most startup activity, South Africa will remain the dominant business center in the South  and London, Beijing and India will play more important roles in Africas economic future.

Still, African distances are great and its population is growing, two simple facts that argue for Kenyan growth no matter what. The idea of putting a manufacturing plant or service center near Nairobi or Mombasa makes sense even if it serves only East Africa. Kenyas immediate neighbors to the west and south, Tanzania and Uganda, also have an English-language background, and Tanzania may become one of the worlds most populous countries.

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Not only is Africa rising, but East Africa is too. And Kenya is likely to be the easiest and most predictable way to bet on it.

Elsewhere in Bloomberg Opinion:

 Kenyas Economy Cant Afford a Political Crisis: Bobby Ghosh

 What Africa Needs Now Is Its Own Singapore: Noah Smith

 The West Is Ceding Africas Promise to Chinas Exploitation: Max Hastings

For more Bloomberg Opinion, subscribe to our newsletter.

(1) South Africa also has the disadvantage of being geographically distant not only from the rest of the world but also from most of Africas population.

This column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the editorial board or Bloomberg LP and its owners.

Tyler Cowen is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist. He is a professor of economics at George Mason University and writes for the blog Marginal Revolution. He is coauthor of Talent: How to Identify Energizers, Creatives, and Winners Around the World.

More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com/opinion

2023 Bloomberg L.P.

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Data and experts suggest President Biden and former president Donald Trump would likely retain the ability to perform as chief executive, but many Americans are still concerned about how old they are.
Key Insights

Using the Dividend Discount Model, Innoprise Plantations Berhad fair value estimate is RM1.56

Current share price of RM1.29 suggests Innoprise Plantations Berhad is potentially trading close to its fair value

The average premium for Innoprise Plantations Berhad's competitorsis currently 91%

In this article we are going to estimate the intrinsic value of Innoprise Plantations Berhad (KLSE:INNO) by taking the expected future cash flows and discounting them to their present value. We will take advantage of the Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) model for this purpose. Don't get put off by the jargon, the math behind it is actually quite straightforward.

We generally believe that a company's value is the present value of all of the cash it will generate in the future. However, a DCF is just one valuation metric among many, and it is not without flaws. For those who are keen learners of equity analysis, the Simply Wall St analysis model here may be something of interest to you.

See our latest analysis for Innoprise Plantations Berhad

The Calculation

We have to calculate the value of Innoprise Plantations Berhad slightly differently to other stocks because it is a food company. Instead of using free cash flows, which are hard to estimate and often not reported by analysts in this industry, dividends per share (DPS) payments are used. This often underestimates the value of a stock, but it can still be good as a comparison to competitors. We use the Gordon Growth Model, which assumes dividend will grow into perpetuity at a rate that can be sustained. The dividend is expected to grow at an annual growth rate equal to the 5-year average of the 10-year government bond yield of 3.6%. We then discount this figure to today's value at a cost of equity of 10.0%. Compared to the current share price of RM1.3, the company appears about fair value at a 17% discount to where the stock price trades currently. Remember though, that this is just an approximate valuation, and like any complex formula - garbage in, garbage out.

Value Per Share = Expected Dividend Per Share / (Discount Rate - Perpetual Growth Rate)

= RM0.1 / (10.0%  3.6%)

= RM1.6

dcf

The Assumptions

Now the most important inputs to a discounted cash flow are the discount rate, and of course, the actual cash flows. If you don't agree with these result, have a go at the calculation yourself and play with the assumptions. The DCF also does not consider the possible cyclicality of an industry, or a company's future capital requirements, so it does not give a full picture of a company's potential performance. Given that we are looking at Innoprise Plantations Berhad as potential shareholders, the cost of equity is used as the discount rate, rather than the cost of capital (or weighted average cost of capital, WACC) which accounts for debt. In this calculation we've used 10.0%, which is based on a levered beta of 0.800. Beta is a measure of a stock's volatility, compared to the market as a whole. We get our beta from the industry average beta of globally comparable companies, with an imposed limit between 0.8 and 2.0, which is a reasonable range for a stable business.

SWOT Analysis for Innoprise Plantations Berhad

Strength

Currently debt free.

Dividend is in the top 25% of dividend payers in the market.

Weakness

Earnings declined over the past year.

Opportunity

Annual earnings are forecast to grow for the next 2 years.

Good value based on P/E ratio and estimated fair value.

Threat

Dividends are not covered by earnings and cashflows.

Looking Ahead:

Valuation is only one side of the coin in terms of building your investment thesis, and it shouldn't be the only metric you look at when researching a company. The DCF model is not a perfect stock valuation tool. Instead the best use for a DCF model is to test certain assumptions and theories to see if they would lead to the company being undervalued or overvalued. For instance, if the terminal value growth rate is adjusted slightly, it can dramatically alter the overall result. For Innoprise Plantations Berhad, we've put together three further aspects you should further examine:

Risks: For example, we've discovered 2 warning signs for Innoprise Plantations Berhad (1 makes us a bit uncomfortable!) that you should be aware of before investing here. Future Earnings: How does INNO's growth rate compare to its peers and the wider market? Dig deeper into the analyst consensus number for the upcoming years by interacting with our free analyst growth expectation chart. Other Solid Businesses: Low debt, high returns on equity and good past performance are fundamental to a strong business. Why not explore our interactive list of stocks with solid business fundamentals to see if there are other companies you may not have considered!

PS. Simply Wall St updates its DCF calculation for every Malaysian stock every day, so if you want to find the intrinsic value of any other stock just search here.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.



This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.

Join A Paid User Research Session

Youll receive a US$30 Amazon Gift card for 1 hour of your time while helping us build better investing tools for the individual investors like yourself. Sign up here
Former SAS corporal Ben Roberts-Smith has ruled out apologising to the families of the victims affected by his actions in Afghanistan.

Roberts-Smith  arriving into Perth on a Qantas flight shortly after 9pm on Wednesday  said he was devastated by the outcome of his high-profile defamation case against The Age, The Sydney Morning Herald and The Canberra Times, adding that he was 100 per cent proud of his behaviour while serving in the Defence Force.

It is the first time Roberts-Smith has spoken publicly since the case ended, spending the days prior to the court judgment in Bali.

He was seen in Queenstown in New Zealand on Wednesday afternoon alongside his girlfriend, Sarah Matulin. They were reportedly checking in for a business-class flight.
Independent senator Lidia Thorpe has accused Victorian Liberal senator David Van of harassing and sexually assaulting her, in an incendiary intervention in parliament that threatens to again engulf federal politics in allegations of toxic behaviour.

David Van denied Thorpes allegation, which was made after Senate question time on Wednesday as Van made a speech accusing the Labor Party of disgraceful behaviour in its handling of the Brittany Higgins sexual assault allegation.

Thorpes remarks, which she later said she was withdrawing to comply with Senate rules, were made less than an hour after Prime Minister Anthony Albanese suggested the Morrison government had staged a sham inquiry into Higgins claim, dramatically escalating the political blame game descending on parliament this week over the rape trial that was discontinued by a court last year.

As the opposition again went on the attack during question time, the Prime Minister raised the abandoned inquiry by Phil Gaetjens, former secretary of the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet, which was halted due to legal advice when a criminal charge was laid against former Liberal staffer Bruce Lehrmann. Lehrmann has always denied Higgins allegation and pleaded not guilty. The charge was ultimately discontinued. He has now sued several media outlets for defamation.
Kuala Lumpur: Malaysia will seek Interpols assistance in tracking down and investigating a stand-up comic who mocked the country and made jokes about missing Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370, its police chief said.

Jocelyn Chia, a New York-based comedian, stirred controversy in Malaysia and Singapore this month after she posted on social media a clip of her live comedy set in which she joked about the plane that went missing nine years ago with 239 people onboard.

Jocelyn Chia in the clip that has caused the outrage. Credit: Facebook

Debris linked to the plane has been found over the years, but the fate and location of the aircraft remain a mystery.

Chia, who performed the set at a comedy club in New York, was widely criticised in Malaysia, with the home minister describing her comments as insensitive and offensive.
An Anti-corruption workshop under the joint Global Container Control Program (CCP) of the WCO and the UN Office on Drugs and Crime was held on May 25, 2023, in Baku, Azerbaijan.

The workshop objectives were to review international experience in promoting Integrity, the effectiveness of anti-corruption tools, and ways of cooperation between the countries participating in the programme.

During the workshop, the participants were updated on the WCO A-CIP Programme, the BACUDA analytical platform, training in Customs control measures using Virtual Reality and CLiKC!, the progress in developing the Platform for Performance Measurement Mechanisms (PMM), among others. The WCO representative Zh. Inkerbayev called for active participation in these programs, as well as in the joint combat against corruption.

The workshop was a success thanks to the active participation and contributions of the participants, with the latter enriching their knowledge in promoting Integrity. Participants expressed their gratitude to the WCO and its experts for sharing valuable knowledge and information in the field of Integrity to assist them in their further anti-corruption efforts.

For more information, please, contact capacity.building@wcoomd.org.
On 24 May 2023, the Eswatini Revenue Service (ERS), in partnership with the World Customs Organization (WCO), launched the electronic Advance Ruling Tool (e-ART), in Mbabane, Eswatini. The e-ART aims to provide binding Customs decisions on classification and origin of commodities prior to their entry to or exit from the country. It represents a significant achievement for the ERS, following the launch of the Electronic Tariff Tool in 2021 and a series of technical assistance and support to implement advance rulings under the EU-HS Africa Programme as well as wider trade facilitation measures under the framework of the multi-year partnership with the Accelerate Trade Facilitation Programme as funded by the United Kingdom.

In his opening remarks, the Eswatini Minister of Finance, Mr. Neal Rijkenberg, highlighted the importance of the Web-based e-ART, as a major contribution to the countrys trade facilitation endeavours. He expressed his appreciation to the WCO for the continuous capacity building and technical assistance provided, namely under the WCOs EU HS-Africa Programme and Accelerate Trade Facilitation Programme.

Dr. Kunio Mikuriya, Secretary General of the WCO, addressed a video message to the audience congratulating ERS for such an achievement and the values it represents in terms of partnership, commitment, political will and customer service. He highlighted that the introduction of this tool will fulfil Eswatinis efforts in aligning to the requirements under the WTO Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA), and African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) as well as the best practices enriched in the WCO Recommendation on the introduction of programmes for binding pre-entry classification information (1996).

The EU Ambassador and the UK High Commissioner stressed the importance of partnerships in delivering on common development objectives. They underlined the benefits of the tool for small and medium enterprises and the role it shall play in unfolding the full potential of regional and continental trade facilitation and with that foster sustainable development.

The ERS Commissioner General and the CEO of Business Eswatini, echoed the importance of partnerships and recognized the importance of such achievements in enhancing trust and advancing a prosperous environment for trade facilitation. The e-ART is a concrete step in ERS's vision to mobilize and create easy-to-use digital platforms that benefit Customs and support the engagement of the trading community by fostering a business enabling environment.

The e-ART tool will be used by the traders to electronically submit requests for advance rulings, and ERS Customs officers will review, assess, deliver and publish the advance rulings. The introduction of the e-ART tool will enhance predictability, prevent delays and uncertainty, and help traders make informed business decisions based on legally binding rulings.

For more information, please contact hs@wcoomd.org.

For more information on the Accelerate Trade Facilitation Programme as supported by the United Kingdoms His Majestys Revenue & Customs (HMRC), please see here.
From 28 March to 2 June 2023, the World Customs Organization (WCO) delivered a national workshop on integrity promotion in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan. Organized with financial assistance from the WCO Reserve Customs Cooperation Fund, the workshop was attended by 26 officials from the State Customs Service of Turkmenistan.

The workshop was officially opened by a Senior Representative of the State Customs Service (SCS) of Turkmenistan. During his opening remarks, he thanked the WCO Secretariat for organizing the integrity promotion workshop for the benefit of the Turkmenistan Customs Service. Additionally, he acknowledged that integrity represents a core value for enhancing the efficiency and effectiveness of the SCS and that, for this reason, the Customs Service has been promoting it in a continuous manner. He pointed out some of the initiatives the SCS has undertaken on integrity, particularly from the human resource angle.

Throughout the workshop, the experts shared knowledge and experience on different matters related to the WCO policy on integrity promotion, including key instruments and tools for use by Customs in their efforts to combat corruption, such as the Revised Arusha Declaration, the Integrity Development Guide, and the Transparency and Predictability Guidelines. The consequences of corruption and the need to reduce the high degree of discretionary power in Customs were among some of the aspects discussed during the workshop.

Additionally, the workshop allowed the experts to underscore how implementing trade facilitation standards can enhance transparency and predictability at the border. Among others, the Revised Kyoto Convention on Simplification and Harmonization of Customs procedures was highlighted as the blueprint for modern and efficient Customs procedures in the 21st Century, which has been acceded to by the majority of the WCO Members.

At the end of the workshop, the experts held a meeting with the management team of the SCS headed by the Deputy Chairman, where the outcomes of the workshop were reported. The WCO experts also took the opportunity and had a fruitful discussion on a wide range of issues of the bilateral cooperation between the WCO and Turkmenistan.

For more information, please, contact: capacity.building@wcoomd.org.
A Boeing 737 Max aircraft during a display at the Farnborough International Airshow, in Farnborough

(Reuters) - Flair Airlines said on Wednesday it is leasing two more Boeing 737 MAX jets to meet rising travel demand, after the Canadian budget carrier lost access to four planes earlier this year in a dispute with a separate lessor.

Small, privately held Flair is taking the planes through a sale-leaseback deal with SMBC Aviation Capital, the world's second-largest aircraft lessor, and will begin flying this summer, a company spokesperson said.

While Flair claimed it had gotten MAX planes from Boeing Co at "a great price" in 2021, just months after they were returned to service following two crashes, Flair CEO Stephen Jones says MAX prices are back to where they were before the 2019 grounding.

Boeing and European rival Airbus SE are ramping up production of narrowbody jets to meet surging travel demand.

"It's clear that pricing has become very firm again," Jones said in an interview.

In May, Ireland's Ryanair placed a major Boeing MAX order after reaching a truce on pricing.

Jones said the deal shows Flair has the confidence of a big global leasing company, after the ultra-low-cost carrier had four aircraft seized in March as a result of a commercial dispute with a New-York based hedge fund and aircraft lessor.

"We were really surprised and upset by the actions taken," he said.

Lessor Airborne Capital has said the aircraft deal ended following a five-month-long period during which Flair was regularly in default of its leases by failing to meet its payments when due, with payment arrears reaching millions of dollars.

The matter is now in court. With the two additions, Flair will operate 21 jets.

Jones said he expects strong summer travel in Canada with the number of seats above 2019 levels due to new entrants.

(Reporting By Allison Lampert in Montreal; editing by Jonathan Oatis)
Chicken first, egg later  Japans need for a macroscopic view of the metaverse

Japans potential metaverse use cases include helping repopulate rural areas to assisting the growing number of individuals suffering from extreme social withdrawal, known as hikikomori.

Hence, some policy makers see the technology as a tool to tackle some of the nations biggest socio-economic problems.

While the government has made metaverse development a central feature of its ongoing Digital Transformation (DX) drive for economic rejuvenation, progress is slow. Inadequate funding and a workable consensus on where best to direct resources and investment are two stumbling blocks.

Everyone is interested [in the metaverse] and everyone knows that they have to do something, said architect and Tokyo University professor Keisuke Toyoda, a leading figure in computational design. But they dont because no one wants to be the first to spend.

A government white paper on Web3 developments including the metaverse released in April said opportunities for remote work in virtual reality could help people in the country in social isolation re-engage with the workforce. Image: Getty Images

A platform is needed, Toyoda argues, to build the software applications capable of monetizing the Japanese metaverse. But the construction of a cross-dimensional network of the requisite complexity, quality and scale is expensive and offers limited initial return on investment, deterring private entities, he said.

As such, the industry remains at an impasse, victim of what Toyoda describes as a chicken and egg conflict where the profitable ornaments of metaverse construction are prioritized over its foundations, meaning that nothing of scalable substance is built.

But that could all be about to change.

Use cases

In February, a group of 10 leading manufacturers announced an agreement to begin developing a Japan-specific metaverse project called Ryugukoku that will form part of a proposed Japanese Metaverse Economic Zone to compete within similar projects being built by neighbors South Korea and China.

And while that project remains in the early stages, Toyoda is among a number of thought leaders now pushing for greater cooperation among academia, the state, and industry to develop a domestic metaverse as a matter of national priority.

Everyone is interested [in the metaverse] and everyone knows that they have to do something. But they dont because no one wants to be the first to spend. Keisuke Toyoda, Tokyo University

Under the Ryugukoku project, Fujitsu, one of Japans major electronic companies, will develop metaverse use cases across various industries, said a company spokesperson.

Japan is also looking at how the metaverse could help it reverse the rapid aging of the country and projected population slump.

An annual health ministry report released on June 2 found that Japans fertility rate had declined for a seventh straight year to a record low.

Local economies are suffering because of the drastic reduction of the population in rural areas and villages. They cant sustain another decade or two, Toyoda said.

Japans rigid work style and education system constricts domestic travel and family vacations, he said, which means rural areas that rely on tourism are either overrun in season, or deserted throughout the rest of the year.

Imbalances of this kind could be addressed by the metaverse, Toyoda said. Virtual classrooms and workplaces would allow Japanese citizens to observe social and work commitments while living in different parts of the country.

Japan is also looking at how the metaverse could help it reverse the rapid aging of the country and projected population slump. Image: Envato Elements

Reviving struggling local economies through this form of repopulation is also expected to encourage younger residents to stay, rather than leaving for larger cities to find work.

A government white paper on Web3 developments including the metaverse released in April said opportunities for remote work in virtual reality could help people in the country in social isolation re-engage with the workforce.

Japan has an estimated 1.5 million hikikomori  people who have been isolated from society for at least six months.

Efforts are underway to provide employment support [through the metaverse] for people who have withdrawn from work, the report says. This includes development of robots that can be controlled remotely through the metaverse to perform tasks at another site, the report says.

But for Minase Yuzu, representative director of metaverse development firm Plepla Inc., current government-backed metaverse initiatives such as Ryugukoku lack the focus on user interaction necessary to propel these social use cases forward.

We welcome that major Japanese firms are working with the government to create a large-scale metaverse economic zone, Yuzu said. But commercial activities related to the metaverse have been dominated by purchasing and selling 3D models and VR devices.

Yuzus organization runs welfare programs  such as reintegration activities for school refusers  that connect individuals using virtual reality platforms and digital avatars. The focus on economic gains ahead of social benefits therefore presents a problem, limiting the desire for private players such as Plepla to integrate with the government-backed platform.

Since our mission is to achieve the welfare of young people by creating a place to stay, we cannot imagine a future in which we would collaborate with Ryugukoku given the content currently disclosed, Yuzu said.

Virtual future

Toyoda was a design advisor for the city of Osakas successful Expo 2025 bid to bring the worlds flagship industrial trade fair to Japan.

His work as an architect includes the Common Ground Initiative. This computerized development model combines various digital 3D formats, Internet-of-Things devices, and artificial intelligence to create what Toyoda and his team at Noiz Architects call a Cyber-Physical System.

Like many key developments in Web3  a new phase of the internet built around decentralized blockchain technologies, the metaverse, and non-fungible tokens (NFTs)  virtual reality building of this kind is subject to debate about how best to utilize its social and economic benefits for communities in the real world.

Some policy makers see the metaverse as a tool to tackle some of the nations biggest socio-economic problems. Image: Wikimedia Commons, Reto Stockli

For Toyoda, the Osaka expo  as a self-enclosed experimental zone lacking permanent residents  provides a controlled space where metaverse-related technologies such as Common Ground can be tested and those benefits identified.

This, he hopes, will prove the catalyst needed for Japans metaverse development to make its next big advance. Perhaps even providing the platform to reverse the egg-before-the-chicken dynamic that has limited the industry to date.

We just need the one service, one application that is fundamentally rooted to the [nationally scalable metaverse] platform we are trying to build to become very successful, he said.

Once the vision is set and theres some kind of triggering technology, I think that cycle could be rolling. I hope that it might happen in the very near future with the expo.

(This story has been updated: comments from Plepla Inc. representative Minase Yuzu, end of Use Cases section)



See related article: Hong Kong? Singapore? Tokyo? Seoul? Dubai? The race is on for the Web3 hub of Asia | Part 1
Festivals  Hindu Festivals  Makara Sankranti

Makara Sankranti

Place: Most of India

Significance: Celebration of spring.

Date: 15.1.2023

Makara Sankranti is celebrated in the month of Magh and is a harvest festival. It is a celebration of spring on the occasion of the 'ascent' of the sun to the north (Uttarayana). In Maharashtra , Karnataka as well as parts of Andhra, Makara Sankranti is a day of good will and friendship. People exchange pieces of sugar-cane, molasses, pieces of dry coconut, peanuts and fried gram as a symbol of the need to be generous and kind to everyone.

Cows and bulls are washed, their horns painted in bright colours and garlands hung round their necks after which they are taken out in a procession to the accompaniment of pipes and drums. A bonfire is lit at night over which the animals are made to jump.

In the north, during makara sankranti it is considered particularly auspicious to bathe at the confluence of the rivers Ganga and Jamuna in Allahabad, known as Prayag and also in Ganga Sagar where the Ganga river confluences with the Bay of Bengal. The festival starts with bathing in the ponds or rivers and offering water to the Sun God (Surya) and giving alms to the poor. Bhojya daan (charity of raw food) to the Brahmin is customary on this day. The Bhojya daan consists of an uncooked mixture of rice, dal (lentil) ghee - melted butter, cooking oil, salt and Til (sesame seeds) ke Laddoo - a sweet preparation. The Bhojya is first dedicated to Lord Vishnu and Surya and then is offered to the poor. Such deeds earn special and lasting merit and assure one a place in heaven, so goes the belief.

Women wear new clothes, new glass bangles and hold get-togethers to share sweets and gifts. A new bride is given ornaments made of sugar drops and her new relatives are invited to meet and welcome her at a Haldi (Turmeric) - Kumkum (Red Vermillion Powder) celebration.
China was shocked by the Ukraine war and is worried about the situation as it tries to find a peaceful solution, a People's Liberation Army strategist has said.

Speaking on the sidelines of the recently concluded Shangri-La defence dialogue in Singapore, Lieutenant General He Lei stressed that Beijing had not been expecting the war, which began when Russia invaded its neighbour in February last year.

Lieutenant General He Lei. Photo: Minnie Chan alt=Lieutenant General He Lei. Photo: Minnie Chan>

"China is very anxious and regretful because so far we have not seen the dawn of peace," He told the Post, adding Beijing believes that negotiation is the only solution to end the war.

Do you have questions about the biggest topics and trends from around the world? Get the answers with SCMP Knowledge, our new platform of curated content with explainers, FAQs, analyses and infographics brought to you by our award-winning team.

He questioned if the United States was for peace or war, adding that Washington's current actions would prolong the conflict.

"I want to ask if the US really wants peace? If you [the US] actually want to be the 'black hand' behind the scene, or are you serious about becoming the friend who brings peace?" he asked.

He's remarks are consistent with comments made by Li Hui, China's special envoy for Eurasian affairs, who said after wrapping up his 12-day tour of Europe last month he had felt it was "rather difficult" to get all parties to sit down at the negotiation table.

He, a former vice-president of the PLA's Academy of Military Sciences who led the Chinese delegation to the Shangri-La Dialogue in 2017 and 2018, denied media reports that Beijing wanted to persuade Ukraine to "give up territory to Moscow as price of peace".

"Our stance is consistent. We insist that all parties' territorial security and sovereignty should be respected. No country can violate the security of another country for its own national security," he said and criticised Nato for using the war to pressure and isolate Russia.

"The US treated Ukraine like cannon fodder in its struggle against Russia, so it would have one less competitor and strategic rival if Moscow loses the war."

Zhou Chenming, a researcher at the Beijing-based Yuan Wang military science and technology think tank, said Beijing was surprised that Ukraine had put up a tough fight especially after it lost Crimea to Russia eight years ago.

"Indeed, China didn't expect the Ukrainians could be so bold to fight against the powerful Russian troops for so long," said Zhou, adding that he expects the war to continue until both sides become exhausted.

Other Chinese defence analysts said He and Li's remarks reflected Beijing's worries over the Ukraine war, which has seen both sides deploying more troops and lethal weapons in recent months.

"China feels anxious because it believes that one of the ultimate goals of the US-led West is not about weakening Russia but containing China, a move to preserve Washington's global hegemony," said Eagle Yin Shuguang, a research fellow of the China Foundation for International and Strategic Studies in Beijing.

"The Ukraine crisis has brought the US and European countries to a level of solidarity that is unprecedented, putting great pressure on China, which now wants to play the role of a key mediator."

Yin said the war was likely to continue for at least another year as Western countries send Kyiv more advanced and powerful weapons.

"Both Russia and Ukrainian militaries have escalated their strikes, with many civilian facilities like power plants and dams now targets," Yin said.

Ni Lexiong, a professor of political science at Shanghai University of Political Science and Law, said Beijing was worried about what might happen if Russian President Vladimir Putin felt he was being cornered.

"The worst scenario is Putin using a tactical nuclear weapon as the last resort in order to win," Ni said. "Only the victor on the battlefield has bargaining power at the negotiation table - that's always the case in any war."

Zhou also urged Nato to make sure Moscow had a way out. "Don't force Putin into becoming another Adolf Hitler, bearing in mind that the Ukraine war has already flamed the rise of nationalism [in Russia]," Zhou said.

This article originally appeared in the South China Morning Post (SCMP), the most authoritative voice reporting on China and Asia for more than a century. For more SCMP stories, please explore the SCMP app or visit the SCMP's Facebook and Twitter pages. Copyright  2023 South China Morning Post Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved.

Copyright (c) 2023. South China Morning Post Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved.
Whistleblowers who claim the Justice Department improperly interfered with a yearslong investigation of President Joe Biden's son, Hunter Biden, testify before three the U.S. House of Representatives' committees  Judiciary, Oversight and Accountability, and Ways and Means.
SCRANTON, Pa. - A Berks County man is among six individuals indicted by a federal grand jury that found evidence that the group was part of a nationwide network that bought and sold human remains.

The remains were allegedly stolen from Harvard Medical School and an Arkansas mortuary.

The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that 46-year-old Joshua Taylor from the West Lawn area was one of a half dozen people indicted on conspiracy and interstate transport of stolen goods charges.

Taylor pleaded not guilty and was granted pretrial release.

The other defendants include 55-year-old Cedric Lodge of Goffstown, New Hampshire; 44-year-old Katrina Maclean of Salem, Massachusetts; 63-year-old Denise Lodge of Goffstown, New Hampshire; and 52-year-old and Mathew Lampi of East Bethel, Minnesota.

In addition, 41-year-old Jeremy Pauley of Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania, was charged by criminal information, and Candace Chapman Scott of Little Rock, Arkansas was previously indicted in the Eastern District of Arkansas.

The charges allege that from 2018 through 2022, Cedric Lodge, who managed the morgue for the Anatomical Gifts Program at Harvard Medical School, stole organs and other parts of cadavers donated for medical research.

Authorities say Lodge, at times, transported stolen remains from Boston to his residence in Goffstown, New Hampshire, where he and his wife, Denise Lodge, sold the remains to Katrina Maclean, Joshua Taylor and others.

It is alleged that Lodge would allow Maclean and Taylor to enter the morgue at Harvard Medical School to examine cadavers in person and choose which ones to purchase. Court documents show Taylor sending $1,000 and a memo that read "head number 7."

In a statement, the Harvard Medical School dean said, "We are appalled to learn that something so disturbing could happen on our campus  a community dedicated to healing and serving others."

Prosecutors say Maclean and Taylor then resold the stolen remains for profit, including to Pauley from Cumberland County.

Pauley also purchased stolen human remains from Candace Chapman Scott, who allegedly stole them from a Little Rock mortuary and crematorium where she was employed.

Authorities say Scott stole parts of cadavers that were scheduled for cremation, as well as two stillborn babies who were supposed to be cremated and returned to their families.

Scott sold the stolen remains to Pauley and shipped them to him in Pennsylvania, who then resold them to other individuals, including Matthew Lampi. Lampi and Pauley allegedly made these transactions over an extended period of time and exchanged over $100,000 in online payments.

The federal indictment says human skin was shipped to Pauley in Pennsylvania "and engaged his services to tan the skin to create leather." Pauley is already facing charges of human remain trafficking.

"Some crimes defy understanding," said U.S. Attorney Gerard M. Karam. "The theft and trafficking of human remains strikes at the very essence of what makes us human."

"It is particularly egregious that so many of the victims here volunteered to allow their remains to be used to educate medical professionals and advance the interests of science and healing," Karam said. "For them and their families to be taken advantage of in the name of profit is appalling. With these charges, we are seeking to secure some measure of justice for all these victims."

The U.S. Attorney's Office will continue to attempt to identify as many of the victims as possible. Taylor has pleaded not guilty and was granted pretrial release.

If anyone believes they or a family member may have been affected by the conduct charged in these indictments, please contact the Victim and Witness Unit at usapam-victim.information@usdoj.gov or (717) 614-4249.

The maximum penalty under federal law for this offense is 15 years of imprisonment.

All persons charged are presumed to be innocent unless and until found guilty in court.
BOYERTOWN, Pa.  Graduation for Boyertown Area School District was held June 2, but it remained the main topic of discussion at Tuesday night's meeting of the school board.

Wayne Foley, Boyertown Area Senior High School principal, gave a presentation about why the district held its graduation ceremony at the Santander Performing Arts Center in Reading instead of at the recently renovated high school stadium.

Foley explained that a student survey revealed that graduating seniors and parents overwhelmingly wanted the ceremony at Santander. The main reasons were that Santander allowed each family to get eight tickets while the stadium only allowed four; Santander eliminated weather and climate conditions; parking conditions were better at Santander; and Santander allowed more Americans with Disabilities Act seating than the stadium.

The board's reaction was mixed.

Member Christine Nieman said, "I tell people if we come here to Boyertown, we're a lot more limited with our tickets."

Ruth Dierolf was in favor of bringing the event back to Boyertown. "I've been here a long time, and we always had a rain date set," she said. "If I'd known we wouldn't use the stadium, I wouldn't have voted for hundreds of thousands of dollars to build the stadium the way we did."

Some board members mentioned the sentimentality of having the ceremony where students went to school for up to 13 years. Others wanted to do a survey again of students and parents.

In the end, the administration was directed to make a recommendation to be voted on at the next board meeting.

Board recognition

0:40 Boyertown Area School District students take part in fishing rodeo The Boyertown Rod and Gun Club filled its private pond with fish. Members of the club were on hand to help.

The board recognized the Boyertown Rod and Gun Club for having a fishing rodeo June 26 for the district's autistic students. Thirty-five members of the club volunteered to bait hooks, help land fish and otherwise make it an enjoyable day for the students.

NJROTC trip

In other news, the administration recommended and the directors approved an overnight student trip for approximately nine BASH students traveling to the Naval Station Newport, in Rhode Island, this summer for the naval science/Navy Junior Reserve Officers Training Corps trip. Students will pay approximately $335 each and the NJROTC will pay $950.00. The U.S. Navy reimburses LCDR Bob Hayman for the travel, instructor and chaperone costs.

School musical

The directors approved the 2023-24 senior high school musical, "The Hunchback of Notre Dame," with an anticipated budget of $11,000.

It was noted that student musical productions provide outstanding opportunities for students in the district.

Appointments

Every four years, the school board must appoint a board secretary for a term of four years. The board approved Patricia J. Denicola for the position, effective July 1, 2023, through June 30, 2027.

Also, the directors approved the appointment of Carrie Fox to the position of board treasurer for the 2023-24 fiscal year, at an annual stipend of $1,200.
READING, Pa. - Reading Police are investigating an overnight shooting that sent a 21-year-old woman to the hospital.

It happened around 12:30 a.m. in the 1700 block of Klein Avenue near Pendora Park.

Responding officers found a female victim seated in a vehicle with a gunshot wound to the leg.

The victim was transported to Reading Hospital for treatment of non-life-threatening injuries.

Reading police have release no information on the suspected shooter at this time.

The investigation is ongoing.
BEIJING (Reuters) - China's industry minister met Siemens' chief executive on Wednesday and discussed intelligent manufacturing, digital economy development and the digital transformation of small and medium-sized enterprises, the ministry said.

The minister, Jin Zhuanglong, said the Chinese government attaches great importance to promoting the deep integration of the digital economy, according to a statement from the ministry of Industry and Information Technology.

Chief Executive Roland Busch said the company wants to further expand Siemens' investment in China, and further strengthen cooperation with China, according to the statement.

(Reporting by Beijing newsroom)
ALLENTOWN, Pa.  Allentown City Council held the first of two special meetings to discuss a proposed ordinance to create a public health pilot program known as a mobile community response team, or MCRT.

Council heard from several members of the committee Tuesday night, which petitioned to create the proposed ordinance known as Bill 47. Public testimony will continue at the second meeting on Thursday at 6:30 p.m. Comments from citizens opposed to the ordinance will also be heard on Thursday.

Council was presented with a proposed ordinance on May 4 that was the result of a citizens' petition.

The proposal calls for providing alternative first response to calls for service involving mental and behavioral health, substance use, welfare checks and quality of life complaints such as neighbor disputes, issues related to homeless individuals and calls about suspicious persons.

The proposed bill would authorize spending $4.08 million for a one-year MCRT pilot program to be launched in 2024.

According to the city charter, qualified voters of the city have the power to propose ordinances to council. If council fails to adopt such an ordinance, the proposed ordinance becomes a referendum question in a general election.

Imogen Wirth, Lehigh County resident, said she represents the petitioners' committee, which collected 3,800 signatures.

"There's been some dismay expressed from members of leadership in the city administration at the process that the petitioners committee has used and that the voters of Allentown have employed to bring this petition and proposed ordinance to the city," Wirth said. "But it is the right of the voters of Allentown to use the ballot referendum as a tool."

Mayor Matt Tuerk stated that he was opposed to the bill at the May 4 meeting.

Wirth said the proposed ordinance represents three years of work by the committee.

"We all remember May 25, 2020, when George Floyd  may he rest in peace  was killed at the hands of police in Minnesota," Wirth said. "And this created a national and even global movement of people being concerned about mental health crises such as drug use and other issues, and the way that law enforcement handles this now."

Wirth said she learned that out of 110,000 calls made in 2022 to the 911 call center, 3,000 were deemed as mental health calls.

"And so, when that determination is being made by the officers about what is considered mental health, they don't have the training of someone who is experienced," Wirth added. "Licensed professionals are needed to be able to make that determination."

"The reality of it is that there were probably way more than 3,000 calls that could have been responded to as a mental health condition," she said.

In responding to the proposed cost, Wirth said that there are organizations that fund these types of programs by providing grants.

"There's nothing that the city would need to do to detract from anything in its present budget to enact this program for one year," she said. "It would not touch the police budget in any way, and there would be no need to raise taxes."

Wirth read a statement from a retired Detective Chad Bruckner, who formerly served on the Lansdale Police Department.

"Cities across our nation and police departments are facing a significant challenge in maintaining adequate staffing levels," Bruckner said in the statement. "Meanwhile, our 911 call centers are inundated with low-level calls that do not necessarily require an armed police response."

"As a result, our law enforcement resources are stretched thin and valuable," his statement continued. "Time and energy are being diverted away from addressing more serious crimes. This is where community responder programs come into play."

Susan Jordhamo, member of the petitioners' committee, said if she were a police officer, she would welcome this program.

"Wouldn't it be better to have a team of people trained in dealing with troubled people than having only police personnel in their uniforms with their guns, flashing lights, handcuffs and tasers?" Jordhamo asked.

Alex Domingos, senior organizer with the American Civil Liberties Union of Pennsylvania's Campaign for Smart Justice, told City Council that jurisdictions across the country have implemented alternative crisis response similar to the one being proposed in Allentown.

"Cities have seen successes with this model, and their units respond to thousands of calls, provide clinical support and divert individuals from the criminal legal system," Domingos said.

"We all have a role to play to ensure safe responses to those that are experiencing a crisis, making sure that they are treated with dignity and that their well-being is a priority," he continued.

"Never should the police be the go-to when addressing social issues, especially those are that are public health issues, when there are more qualified health professionals that could address these calls and be more effective," Domingos said.

At the May 4 meeting, Chief of Police Charles Roca criticized the proposed ordinance, calling it "a part of defund-the-police rhetoric."

Matthew Ming Lo, an Allentown resident, said the proposal has no risk of defunding the police.

Ming Lo cited data from a mobile community response team in Denver, Colorado.

"In the city of Denver, this did not lead to defunding the police," Ming Lo said.

"Their police budget in 2020 was $250 million, and today in 2023, is $308 million," he said. "That is a 23% increase, so I believe that the arguments that this is an effort to defund the police are a little disingenuous to suggest."
ALLENTOWN, Pa.  Allentown City Council on Tuesday night introduced a proposed ordinance that would direct the Lehigh County Board of Elections to place a referendum question in the Nov. 7 general election to ask city voters to increase the pay for the seven members of City Council.

The referendum would ask voters to increase the pay for each council member to $15,000.

When the home rule charter was adopted on April 23, 1996, an ordinance set the compensation for each council member at $6,149, with the president receiving an additional $500.

In the proposed ordinance, council president would receive an additional $1,000.

In 2002, there was a question posed to city voters on whether council's salary should be increased, so that the pay would not exceed one-half the salary for the entry wage in lowest pay level of an occupied full-time position.

That referendum failed on Nov. 5, 2002, which kept councilmembers at the pay established in 1996.

In a memo from the city clerk to Allentown City Council, he offered a review of salaries of other city council members in Pennsylvania.

"Looking at the comparisons, council is the very low end of salaries, especially given the fact Allentown is the third largest city in Pennsylvania," the memo stated.

The highest city council salary in the state is in Philadelphia, where councilmembers are paid $142,751, and the lowest pay is in Reading, where councilmembers are paid $5,000.

According to the memo, the highest city council pay in the nation is in Los Angeles, California, where councilmembers are paid $178,789.

Controller's salary

Also Tuesday, council introduced a second referendum question that would establish the salary of the controller equal to 50% of the mayor's salary, which is currently set at $95,000.

The salary of the controller has also not increased since 1997 when it was set at $49,894.

Both of the proposed referendum questions will be referred to the rules, chambers, intergovernmental relations and strategy committee, which is scheduled to meet on June 15 at 6 p.m.

Council did not discuss the proposed ordinances on Tuesday night.

Street vacations

In other business, council voted to adopt an ordinance to vacate: Cumberland Street from the centerline of South Sixth Street to the centerline of South Fifth Street; South Virginia Street from the centerline of Cumberland Street to the centerline of Susquehanna Street; South Sixth Street from the centerline of Cumberland Street to the centerline of Susquehanna Street; and South Fair Street from the centerline of Cumberland Street to the north property line at 1029 S. Sixth St.

The street vacations are to accommodate a new apartment complex at Sixth and Cumberland streets.
LANCASTER COUNTY, Pa. - Health officials announced a major recall of frozen strawberry products due to the risk of hepatitis A contamination.

Some of the recalled items were shipped to Pennsylvania, including Wal Mart stores located at 2034 Lincoln Highway East and 2030 Fruitville Pike in Lancaster County.

The Food and Drug Administration said a fruit company based in Salem, Oregon voluntarily recalled some of its frozen food items containing strawberries.

Willamette Valley Fruit Company said the strawberries, which were grown in Mexico, could be contaminated with hepatitis A.

The company is voluntarily recalling the following products out of an abundance of caution:

Great Value sliced strawberries

Great Value mixed fruit

Great Valley anti-oxidant blend

Rader Farms organic fresh start smoothie blend

Rader Farms organic berry trio

The products were sold at Wal Mart, Costco and HEB stores.

Consumers who purchased any of the recalled products should throw them out or return them to the store for a refund.

More information on the recall can be found at fda.gov/
MIDDLE SMITHFIELD TWP., Pa. - A man in Monroe County has been accused of attempting to rape a teenage girl.

David Lewis Haywood Jr., 33, was taken into custody Tuesday, according to a news release from Pennsylvania State Police.

The Pennsylvania State Police Stroudsburg Criminal Investigation Unit investigated the attempted rape of the 14-year old girl in Middle Smithfield Township.

Haywood remains incarcerated at the Monroe County Correctional Facility pending arraignment.

The investigation remains active.

State police say anyone with information regarding similar circumstances is asked to contact Trooper Carl Nerthling, PSP Stroudsburg at 570-619-6800.
Rowers from all over the world set sail from the coast of California this week and are heading to Hawaii.

It's a 2,800-mile trip across the Pacific Ocean.

The race is one of two races called the World's Toughest Row, and for good reason -- it's an incredible test of strength and endurance.

One race goes across the Atlantic Ocean and one goes across the Pacific.

Some of the racers are elite athletes while some are just regular men and women who want a challenge.

Lots of folks are following the team Antigua Island Girls. They made history during their last trip by being the first Black women to row across the Atlantic Ocean, and they are ready to cross the Pacific off their list now too.

"The nights are absolutely beautiful. The sunsets, the sunrises, the peace and tranquility that you feel out there," said Samara Emmanuel, rower on team Antigua Island Girls. "Also, I think the fact being on a boat without the engines, you don't have the outside noise cloud in your mind. It's a space where you can reflect on your life decisions."

"When we did the Atlantic first, we didn't even... we did it because we are very adventurous women. And I don't think we even realize the gravity of symbolism of what we're doing," said Christal Clashing, another Antigua Island Girls rower.

They realize it now. Their journey started in Monterey on Monday and they are heading to Hawaii. It will take anywhere from 30 to 70 days to complete.

The race across the Atlantic was back in December.

All the way back in 1896 was when the first people ever rowed across an ocean -- two Norwegian immigrants, George Harbo and Frank Samuelsen.
Chinese President Xi Jinping has restated Beijing's willingness to "play a positive role" in finding an early and lasting solution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.

The renewed mediation offer came as Xi met visiting Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas in Beijing on Wednesday, where they announced the setting up of a bilateral strategic partnership.

Hailing their relationship as one between good friends and partners, Xi also proposed a three-point solution to the Palestinian issue.

Do you have questions about the biggest topics and trends from around the world? Get the answers with SCMP Knowledge, our new platform of curated content with explainers, FAQs, analyses and infographics brought to you by our award-winning team.

Xi said Abbas was the first Arab leader to be welcomed by China this year, which fully demonstrated the "high-level" of bilateral relations.

"China and Palestine are good friends and good partners who trust and support each other," Xi said. "Facing a changing world [with events never before seen] in 100 years and new changes in the Middle East, China is willing to strengthen coordination and cooperation with Palestine to promote an early, comprehensive, just and lasting solution to the Palestine issue," he was quoted as saying by Xinhua.

"Today, we jointly announced the establishment of the China-Palestinian strategic partnership, which will be an important milestone in the history of bilateral relations," he said.

Xi Jinping and Mahmoud Abbas inspect a guard of honour ahead of their meeting in Beijing. Photo: dpa alt=Xi Jinping and Mahmoud Abbas inspect a guard of honour ahead of their meeting in Beijing. Photo: dpa>

Xi also reaffirmed China's willingness to "play a positive role" to push for peace talks on the Palestinian issue, as he put forward a new three-point solution.

The proposal calls for an independent Palestine on the basis of the 1967 borders - with East Jerusalem as its capital, increased development and humanitarian assistance to Palestinians, as well as an end to provocative actions and the creation of conditions for peace talks through larger-scale international meetings.

Abbas, who arrived in Beijing for a four-day visit on Tuesday, thanked Beijing for its political support for Palestinians and briefed Xi on the ongoing tensions with Israel.

He also discussed efforts to mobilise international support for Palestine to obtain a full membership at the United Nations, as well as ways to enhance relations with China in "all fields", according to the Palestinian Wafa news agency.

The head of the Palestinian Authority, whose last visit to China was in 2017, is also expected to meet Premier Li Qiang, according to media reports.

China has been increasingly vocal on the Israeli-Palestinian issue as it steps up peacemaking efforts in the Middle East and Ukraine.

Beijing had also offered to facilitate Israeli-Palestinian peace talks in April when Foreign Minister Qin Gang spoke over the phone with their respective foreign ministers.

It has also ramped up criticism against Israel over its illegal expansion of settlements in the occupied territories, and called for multiple emergency meetings at the United Nations in response to conflicts at the Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Gaza Strip.

This comes amid a shifting geopolitical dynamics in the Middle East after a China-brokered peace deal saw ties restored in March between Saudi Arabia and Iran after seven years of hostilities, and Saudi Arabia and Syria agreed to restore diplomatic ties last month after nearly a decade.

Meeting his Palestinian counterpart Riyad al-Maliki in Beijing on Tuesday, Qin reaffirmed China's support for a peaceful resolution of the Palestine issue amid "profound changes in the Middle East".

"The situation in the Middle East is undergoing profound changes, and strengthening strategic autonomy and enhancing solidarity and cooperation are the common aspiration and general trend," Qin said, according to a readout from China's foreign ministry.

"China attaches great importance to the Palestinian issue and has always firmly supported the just cause of the Palestinian people to restore their legitimate national rights. China will continue to support the right direction of the peace talks and contribute Chinese wisdom and strength to the settlement of the Palestinian issue."

Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang with Palestinian counterpart Riyad al-Maliki in Beijing on Tuesday. Photo: Xinhua alt=Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang with Palestinian counterpart Riyad al-Maliki in Beijing on Tuesday. Photo: Xinhua>

China has proposed initiatives and organised peace talks on the Palestinian issue several times during Xi's term but without substantial results.

In separate meetings in 2013, Xi proposed a four-point peace initiative to Abbas and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

The initiative called for a "two-state solution", a halt to settlement activities in the occupied territories, coordinated international efforts to resolve the conflict, and a focus on Palestinian development.

The proposal was expanded in 2017 during Abbas' last visit, with a call for a three-way dialogue with both the Israelis and Palestinians, and support for Palestinian development through China's Belt and Road Initiative.

This article originally appeared in the South China Morning Post (SCMP), the most authoritative voice reporting on China and Asia for more than a century. For more SCMP stories, please explore the SCMP app or visit the SCMP's Facebook and Twitter pages. Copyright  2023 South China Morning Post Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved.

Copyright (c) 2023. South China Morning Post Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved.
51job restated their maintains rating on shares of Dominion Energy (NYSE:D  Get Rating) in a research report sent to investors on Friday, Benzinga reports.

Several other research firms have also commented on D. Bank of America lowered their price target on shares of Dominion Energy from $54.00 to $52.00 in a report on Tuesday, May 16th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price target on shares of Dominion Energy from $66.00 to $61.00 and set an outperform rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 27th. Credit Suisse Group lowered their price target on shares of Dominion Energy from $67.00 to $58.00 and set a neutral rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 14th. Guggenheim lowered their price target on shares of Dominion Energy from $69.00 to $63.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 28th. Finally, Mizuho lowered their price target on shares of Dominion Energy from $62.00 to $58.00 and set a neutral rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Dominion Energy has an average rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $62.55.

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Dominion Energy Stock Down 0.2 %

Dominion Energy stock traded down $0.12 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $52.38. 3,380,077 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,450,370. The business has a fifty day moving average of $54.80 and a 200 day moving average of $57.51. The firm has a market cap of $43.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.63, a PEG ratio of 0.70 and a beta of 0.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a current ratio of 0.75. Dominion Energy has a 12-month low of $48.47 and a 12-month high of $86.28.

Dominion Energy Dividend Announcement

Dominion Energy ( NYSE:D Get Rating ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, May 5th. The utilities provider reported $0.99 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts consensus estimates of $0.98 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $5.25 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.46 billion. Dominion Energy had a return on equity of 12.67% and a net margin of 7.05%. The businesss quarterly revenue was up 22.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.18 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Dominion Energy will post 3.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 20th. Investors of record on Friday, June 2nd will be paid a dividend of $0.6675 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 1st. This represents a $2.67 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.10%. Dominion Energys payout ratio is currently 186.71%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, COO Diane Leopold sold 6,250 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.16, for a total transaction of $307,250.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 100,115 shares in the company, valued at $4,921,653.40. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.14% of the companys stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Dominion Energy

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Sei Investments Co. increased its holdings in Dominion Energy by 7.7% in the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 168,723 shares of the utilities providers stock valued at $14,325,000 after buying an additional 12,002 shares in the last quarter. Prudential PLC acquired a new stake in shares of Dominion Energy in the first quarter valued at approximately $1,528,000. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Dominion Energy by 30.0% in the first quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 7,195 shares of the utilities providers stock valued at $611,000 after purchasing an additional 1,661 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd grew its position in shares of Dominion Energy by 49.8% in the first quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 394 shares of the utilities providers stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 131 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Merit Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Dominion Energy in the first quarter valued at approximately $419,000. 70.30% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Dominion Energy

(Get Rating)

Dominion Energy, Inc engages in the production and distribution of energy. It operates through following business segments: Dominion Energy Virginia, Gas Distribution, Dominion Energy South Carolina, Contracted Assets, and Corporate and Other. The Corporate and Other segment focuses on corporate, service company, non-controlling interest in Dominion privatization, and non-regulated retail energy marketing operations.

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Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. (NYSE:NCLH  Get Rating) was the recipient of unusually large options trading on Tuesday. Stock traders purchased 37,407 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 14% compared to the typical volume of 32,848 call options.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Rio Frank J. Del sold 300,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.44, for a total transaction of $5,532,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 926,505 shares in the company, valued at $17,084,752.20. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Norwegian Cruise Line news, CFO Mark Kempa sold 4,700 shares of the firms stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.04, for a total transaction of $75,388.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 241,021 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,865,976.84. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Rio Frank J. Del sold 300,000 shares of the firms stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $18.44, for a total value of $5,532,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 926,505 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $17,084,752.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.87% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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Institutional Trading of Norwegian Cruise Line

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Alterna Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Norwegian Cruise Line in the 1st quarter valued at about $176,000. ProShare Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Norwegian Cruise Line by 19.2% in the 1st quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 61,437 shares of the companys stock valued at $826,000 after buying an additional 9,892 shares during the period. Advisory Services Network LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Norwegian Cruise Line by 12.6% in the 1st quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC now owns 8,307 shares of the companys stock valued at $112,000 after buying an additional 928 shares during the period. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. lifted its holdings in shares of Norwegian Cruise Line by 10.1% in the 1st quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 19,965 shares of the companys stock valued at $268,000 after buying an additional 1,826 shares during the period. Finally, Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Norwegian Cruise Line by 1.0% in the 1st quarter. Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC now owns 244,982 shares of the companys stock valued at $3,295,000 after buying an additional 2,513 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.17% of the companys stock.

Norwegian Cruise Line Stock Up 5.8 %

NCLH stock traded up $1.06 on Tuesday, hitting $19.47. 22,904,544 shares of the companys stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 14,567,595. Norwegian Cruise Line has a 12-month low of $10.31 and a 12-month high of $19.59. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $14.25 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $14.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 184.14, a quick ratio of 0.26 and a current ratio of 0.29. The stock has a market cap of $8.26 billion, a P/E ratio of -5.64 and a beta of 2.49.

Norwegian Cruise Line (NYSE:NCLH  Get Rating) last announced its earnings results on Monday, May 1st. The company reported ($0.30) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.51) by $0.21. The firm had revenue of $1.82 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.74 billion. Norwegian Cruise Line had a negative return on equity of 448.59% and a negative net margin of 23.54%. The firms revenue for the quarter was up 249.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned ($1.90) EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Norwegian Cruise Line will post 0.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

NCLH has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Norwegian Cruise Line from $15.00 to $16.00 in a report on Monday. Susquehanna dropped their target price on Norwegian Cruise Line from $20.00 to $15.00 and set a positive rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 29th. Credit Suisse Group reiterated an underperform rating and issued a $13.00 target price on shares of Norwegian Cruise Line in a report on Wednesday, March 1st. Truist Financial dropped their target price on Norwegian Cruise Line from $21.00 to $17.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 23rd. Finally, Citigroup dropped their target price on Norwegian Cruise Line from $18.00 to $16.00 and set a neutral rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 2nd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Norwegian Cruise Line has an average rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $16.75.

About Norwegian Cruise Line

(Get Rating)

Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd., together with its subsidiaries, operates as a cruise company in North America, Europe, the Asia-Pacific, and internationally. The company operates the Norwegian Cruise Line, Oceania Cruises, and Regent Seven Seas Cruises brands. It offers itineraries ranging from three days to a 180-days calling on various locations, including destinations in Scandinavia, Russia, the Mediterranean, the Greek Isles, Alaska, Canada and New England, Hawaii, Asia, Tahiti and the South Pacific, Australia and New Zealand, Africa, India, South America, the Panama Canal, and the Caribbean.

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Absa Group Limited (OTCMKTS:AGRPY  Get Rating) saw a significant increase in short interest in the month of May. As of May 31st, there was short interest totalling 1,300 shares, an increase of 1,200.0% from the May 15th total of 100 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 6,600 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 0.2 days.

Absa Group Stock Performance

AGRPY stock opened at $17.70 on Wednesday. The firms fifty day moving average is $18.49 and its 200 day moving average is $20.85. Absa Group has a one year low of $15.31 and a one year high of $24.41.

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Absa Group Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 4th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 21st were issued a dividend of $0.5416 per share. This represents a yield of 5.36%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 20th. Absa Groups payout ratio is 46.51%.

Absa Group Company Profile

Absa Group Limited, together with its subsidiaries, provides retail, business, corporate, investment banking, insurance, financial, and wealth management products and services in South Africa and internationally. It offers retail and business banking products and services; residential property-related finance solutions; vehicle and asset finance products and services; credit cards; personal loans; corporate, relationship and transactional banking services; and savings and investment products and services.

Further Reading

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Advantage Alpha Capital Partners LP boosted its holdings in shares of First American Financial Co. (NYSE:FAF  Get Rating) by 14.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 162,748 shares of the insurance providers stock after purchasing an additional 20,038 shares during the quarter. First American Financial makes up approximately 1.7% of Advantage Alpha Capital Partners LPs holdings, making the stock its 18th largest holding. Advantage Alpha Capital Partners LP owned about 0.16% of First American Financial worth $8,518,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in First American Financial by 135.7% during the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,184,147 shares of the insurance providers stock worth $141,577,000 after buying an additional 1,257,338 shares during the last quarter. Nomura Holdings Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of First American Financial during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $43,823,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in First American Financial by 13.0% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,740,010 shares of the insurance providers stock valued at $143,415,000 after purchasing an additional 315,686 shares during the period. BlackRock Inc. grew its position in shares of First American Financial by 3.3% during the first quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 9,629,986 shares of the insurance providers stock worth $624,215,000 after acquiring an additional 303,214 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in First American Financial by 2.1% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 12,031,143 shares of the insurance providers stock valued at $779,858,000 after purchasing an additional 245,974 shares during the last quarter. 84.45% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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First American Financial Trading Up 1.5 %

NYSE FAF opened at $56.14 on Wednesday. First American Financial Co. has a 1 year low of $43.54 and a 1 year high of $64.66. The stocks 50-day moving average price is $56.41 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $56.17. The company has a market cap of $5.79 billion, a PE ratio of 28.21 and a beta of 1.26.

First American Financial Dividend Announcement

First American Financial ( NYSE:FAF Get Rating ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 27th. The insurance provider reported $0.49 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.48 by $0.01. First American Financial had a net margin of 3.01% and a return on equity of 12.16%. The business had revenue of $1.45 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.42 billion. Research analysts forecast that First American Financial Co. will post 4.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 8th will be given a $0.52 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 7th. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.71%. First American Financials dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 104.52%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have commented on FAF. TheStreet cut shares of First American Financial from a b- rating to a c+ rating in a research report on Friday, March 17th. StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of First American Financial in a research note on Thursday, May 18th. They set a hold rating on the stock. Finally, Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of First American Financial from $65.00 to $63.00 in a research note on Friday, April 28th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the companys stock. According to MarketBeat.com, First American Financial has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $68.40.

First American Financial Company Profile

(Get Rating)

First American Financial Corporation, through its subsidiaries, provides financial services. It operates through Title Insurance and Services, and Specialty Insurance segments. The Title Insurance and Services segment issues title insurance policies on residential and commercial property, as well as offers related products and services.

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Alps Advisors Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO  Get Rating) by 1.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 586,601 shares of the companys stock after selling 7,826 shares during the period. Alps Advisors Inc.s holdings in Altria Group were worth $26,814,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in MO. Sei Investments Co. raised its position in shares of Altria Group by 1.6% during the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 404,894 shares of the companys stock valued at $21,248,000 after acquiring an additional 6,324 shares during the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Altria Group by 5.2% in the 1st quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 18,647 shares of the companys stock valued at $974,000 after buying an additional 929 shares in the last quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P bought a new stake in shares of Altria Group in the 1st quarter valued at $25,000. Mackenzie Financial Corp increased its position in shares of Altria Group by 3.4% in the 1st quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 2,711,773 shares of the companys stock valued at $141,690,000 after buying an additional 89,334 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Western Trust Bank bought a new stake in shares of Altria Group in the 1st quarter valued at $498,000. Institutional investors own 58.68% of the companys stock.

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Altria Group Trading Up 0.5 %

MO stock opened at $45.77 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $45.55 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $45.90. The stock has a market cap of $81.69 billion, a PE ratio of 14.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 0.59. Altria Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $40.35 and a 1 year high of $51.57.

Altria Group Announces Dividend

Altria Group ( NYSE:MO Get Rating ) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 27th. The company reported $1.18 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts consensus estimates of $1.19 by ($0.01). Altria Group had a negative return on equity of 245.43% and a net margin of 22.44%. The business had revenue of $4.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.89 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.12 earnings per share. The companys quarterly revenue was down 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that Altria Group, Inc. will post 4.97 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.94 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 14th. This represents a $3.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 8.22%. Altria Groups dividend payout ratio is 120.90%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently commented on MO. Stifel Nicolaus began coverage on shares of Altria Group in a research report on Thursday, April 13th. They issued a buy rating and a $52.00 price objective for the company. StockNews.com cut shares of Altria Group from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $49.50 to $47.00 and set a neutral rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 17th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Altria Group currently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $44.67.

Altria Group Profile

(Get Rating)

Altria Group, Inc, through its subsidiaries, manufactures and sells smokeable and oral tobacco products in the United States. The company provides cigarettes primarily under the Marlboro brand; cigars and pipe tobacco principally under the Black & Mild brand; moist smokeless tobacco products and snus products under the Copenhagen, Skoal, Red Seal, and Husky brands; and on! oral nicotine pouches.

Further Reading

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding MO? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO  Get Rating).

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AQR Capital Management LLC raised its stake in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR  Get Rating) by 71.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,066,253 shares of the companys stock after purchasing an additional 2,114,418 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC owned 0.71% of Kroger worth $225,854,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Synovus Financial Corp grew its position in shares of Kroger by 6.3% during the first quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 12,869 shares of the companys stock worth $739,000 after acquiring an additional 764 shares during the last quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. grew its position in Kroger by 30.2% in the 1st quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 29,150 shares of the companys stock valued at $1,672,000 after buying an additional 6,764 shares during the last quarter. Blair William & Co. IL increased its stake in Kroger by 7.1% in the 1st quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 14,673 shares of the companys stock valued at $842,000 after buying an additional 974 shares during the period. Prudential PLC acquired a new position in Kroger in the 1st quarter valued at $1,443,000. Finally, Moors & Cabot Inc. increased its stake in Kroger by 3.6% in the 1st quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 7,703 shares of the companys stock valued at $442,000 after buying an additional 269 shares during the period. 78.03% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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Analyst Ratings Changes

KR has been the topic of several recent research reports. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Kroger from $46.00 to $49.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a research note on Friday, March 3rd. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Kroger from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a research report on Thursday, June 8th. Stephens decreased their price objective on shares of Kroger from $57.00 to $52.00 and set an equal weight rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 6th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price objective on shares of Kroger from $51.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock a hold rating in a research report on Friday, March 3rd. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group decreased their price objective on shares of Kroger from $64.00 to $55.00 and set an outperform rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $52.31.

Kroger Stock Up 1.0 %

Insider Buying and Selling

KR opened at $46.86 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $47.94 and a 200 day moving average price of $46.59. The company has a market cap of $33.63 billion, a PE ratio of 15.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.47. The Kroger Co. has a 1 year low of $41.81 and a 1 year high of $52.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a current ratio of 0.74.

In related news, SVP Timothy A. Massa sold 23,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.95, for a total transaction of $1,102,850.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 194,956 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $9,348,140.20. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, VP Christine S. Wheatley sold 25,000 shares of the firms stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.49, for a total transaction of $1,187,250.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 126,866 shares in the company, valued at $6,024,866.34. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Timothy A. Massa sold 23,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, April 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.95, for a total value of $1,102,850.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 194,956 shares in the company, valued at $9,348,140.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 132,206 shares of company stock valued at $6,402,118. 1.38% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Kroger Company Profile

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The Kroger Co engages in the operation of supermarkets and multi-department stores. Its brands include Big K, Check This Out?, Heritage Farm, Simple Truth, and Simple Truth Organic. The company was founded by Barney Kroger in 1883 and is headquartered in Cincinnati, OH.

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Ashtead Group plc (LON:AHT  Get Rating) announced a dividend on Tuesday, June 13th, Upcoming.Co.Uk reports. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.85 per share on Tuesday, September 12th. This represents a dividend yield of 1.26%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 10th. This is an increase from Ashtead Groups previous dividend of $0.15. The official announcement can be viewed at this link.

Ashtead Group Stock Up 1.7 %

AHT stock opened at GBX 5,504 ($68.87) on Wednesday. The companys 50 day moving average is GBX 4,784.84 and its 200 day moving average is GBX 5,029.73. The stock has a market cap of 24.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 1,937.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 1.45. The company has a current ratio of 1.22, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 154.56. Ashtead Group has a 1-year low of GBX 3,269 ($40.90) and a 1-year high of GBX 6,012 ($75.23).

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Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AHT has been the subject of a number of research reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a hold rating and issued a GBX 4,460 ($55.81) price target on shares of Ashtead Group in a research note on Wednesday, June 7th. Barclays reiterated an overweight rating and issued a GBX 6,300 ($78.83) price objective on shares of Ashtead Group in a report on Monday, April 24th. Peel Hunt reissued a buy rating and set a GBX 5,200 ($65.07) price target on shares of Ashtead Group in a research note on Tuesday, March 7th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a buy rating and issued a GBX 7,000 ($87.59) price objective on shares of Ashtead Group in a report on Tuesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the companys stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of GBX 5,826.43 ($72.90).

Ashtead Group Company Profile

Ashtead Group plc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the construction, industrial, and general equipment rental business in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Canada. It provides pumps, power generation, heating, cooling, scaffolding, traffic management, temporary flooring, trench shoring, and lifting services.

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Black Hills (NYSE:BKH  Get Rating) and AES (NYSE:AESC  Get Rating) are both utilities companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, dividends, risk, earnings, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations and valuation.

Dividends

Black Hills pays an annual dividend of $2.50 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.0%. AES pays an annual dividend of $6.88 per share and has a dividend yield of 8.5%. Black Hills pays out 64.1% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Black Hills has increased its dividend for 52 consecutive years.

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Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Black Hills and AESs top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

Gross Revenue Price/Sales Ratio Net Income Earnings Per Share Price/Earnings Ratio Black Hills $2.55 billion 1.61 $258.39 million $3.90 15.85 AES $13.00 billion N/A N/A N/A N/A

Analyst Ratings

Black Hills has higher earnings, but lower revenue than AES.

This is a summary of current ratings and recommmendations for Black Hills and AES, as reported by MarketBeat.

Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score Black Hills 2 4 0 0 1.67 AES 0 0 0 0 N/A

Black Hills presently has a consensus price target of $67.29, suggesting a potential upside of 8.84%. Given Black Hills higher possible upside, equities analysts plainly believe Black Hills is more favorable than AES.

Profitability

This table compares Black Hills and AESs net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets Black Hills 9.62% 8.33% 2.72% AES N/A N/A N/A

Institutional & Insider Ownership

89.0% of Black Hills shares are held by institutional investors. 0.6% of Black Hills shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Summary

Black Hills beats AES on 7 of the 10 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Black Hills

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Black Hills Corporation, through its subsidiaries, operates as an electric and natural gas utility company in the United States. It operates in two segments, Electric Utilities and Gas Utilities. The Electric Utilities segment generates, transmits, and distributes electricity to approximately 220,000 electric utility customers in Colorado, Montana, South Dakota, and Wyoming; and owns and operates 1,482 megawatts of generation capacity and 9,024 miles of electric transmission and distribution lines. The Gas Utilities segment distributes natural gas to approximately 1,107,000 natural gas utility customers in Arkansas, Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska, and Wyoming; owns and operates 4,713 miles of intrastate gas transmission pipelines; 42,222 miles of gas distribution mains and service lines; seven natural gas storage sites; and approximately 50,000 horsepower of compression and 515 miles of gathering lines. The company also constructs and maintains gas infrastructure facilities for gas transportation customers; and provides appliance repair services to residential utility customers, as well as electrical system construction services to large industrial customers. In addition, it produces electric power through wind, natural gas, and coal-fired generating plants; and coal at its coal mine located near Gillette, Wyoming. The company was incorporated in 1941 and is headquartered in Rapid City, South Dakota.

About AES

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The AES Corporation operates as a diversified power generation and utility company. It owns and/or operates power plants to generate and sell power to customers, such as utilities, industrial users, and other intermediaries. The company also owns and/or operates utilities to generate or purchase, distribute, transmit, and sell electricity to end-user customers in the residential, commercial, industrial, and governmental sectors; and generates and sells electricity on the wholesale market. It uses a range of fuels and technologies to generate electricity, including coal, gas, hydro, wind, solar, and biomass; and renewables, such as energy storage and landfill gas. The company owns and/or operates a generation portfolio of approximately 32,326 megawatts. It has operations in the United States, Puerto Rico, El Salvador, Chile, Colombia, Argentina, Brazil, Mexico, Central America, the Caribbean, Europe, and Asia. The company was formerly known as Applied Energy Services, Inc. and changed its name to The AES Corporation in April 2000. The AES Corporation was incorporated in 1981 and is headquartered in Arlington, Virginia.

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BlackRock MuniYield Pennsylvania Quality Fund (NYSE:MPA  Get Rating)s share price passed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Monday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $11.36 and traded as high as $11.88. BlackRock MuniYield Pennsylvania Quality Fund shares last traded at $11.79, with a volume of 9,499 shares traded.

BlackRock MuniYield Pennsylvania Quality Fund Stock Down 0.3 %

The firms 50-day moving average price is $11.39 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $11.36.

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BlackRock MuniYield Pennsylvania Quality Fund Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 3rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 15th will be given a $0.034 dividend. This represents a $0.41 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.49%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 14th.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

About BlackRock MuniYield Pennsylvania Quality Fund

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Captrust Financial Advisors acquired a new position in BlackRock MuniYield Pennsylvania Quality Fund in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $44,000. UBS Group AG increased its stake in BlackRock MuniYield Pennsylvania Quality Fund by 33.6% in the 4th quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 15,143 shares of the investment management companys stock valued at $167,000 after buying an additional 3,810 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. acquired a new position in BlackRock MuniYield Pennsylvania Quality Fund in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $47,000. Advisor Group Holdings Inc. increased its stake in BlackRock MuniYield Pennsylvania Quality Fund by 9.0% in the 4th quarter. Advisor Group Holdings Inc. now owns 65,920 shares of the investment management companys stock valued at $726,000 after buying an additional 5,429 shares during the period. Finally, Wolverine Asset Management LLC grew its position in BlackRock MuniYield Pennsylvania Quality Fund by 9.2% in the first quarter. Wolverine Asset Management LLC now owns 78,492 shares of the investment management companys stock worth $921,000 after acquiring an additional 6,626 shares in the last quarter. 7.18% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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BlackRock MuniYield Pennsylvania Quality Fund is a closed ended fixed income mutual fund launched by BlackRock, Inc It is managed by BlackRock Advisors, LLC. The fund invests in fixed income markets. It invests primarily in long-term investment grade municipal obligations exempt from federal income taxes and Pennsylvania income taxes.

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The Bank of New York Mellon Co. (NYSE:BK  Get Rating) has been assigned a consensus rating of Hold from the fifteen research firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, four have given a hold recommendation and four have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month target price among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $51.61.

BK has been the topic of several recent research reports. StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Bank of New York Mellon in a research report on Thursday, May 18th. They issued a hold rating on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Bank of New York Mellon from $44.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a sector perform rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 19th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Bank of New York Mellon from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the company an underweight rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 19th. Evercore ISI decreased their price objective on shares of Bank of New York Mellon from $49.00 to $46.00 in a research report on Friday, May 12th. Finally, Barclays cut their target price on shares of Bank of New York Mellon from $64.00 to $62.00 in a research note on Wednesday, April 12th.

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Bank of New York Mellon Stock Up 1.0 %

Shares of Bank of New York Mellon stock opened at $44.15 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $34.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 1.07. The companys 50 day moving average is $42.58 and its 200 day moving average is $45.70. Bank of New York Mellon has a twelve month low of $36.22 and a twelve month high of $52.26. The company has a quick ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 0.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92.

Bank of New York Mellon Announces Dividend

Bank of New York Mellon ( NYSE:BK Get Rating ) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 18th. The bank reported $1.12 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.09 by $0.03. Bank of New York Mellon had a net margin of 11.98% and a return on equity of 11.45%. The business had revenue of $4.36 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.40 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.86 earnings per share. The companys quarterly revenue was up 11.1% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that Bank of New York Mellon will post 4.74 EPS for the current year.

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 11th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 28th were paid a $0.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 27th. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.35%. Bank of New York Mellons payout ratio is currently 46.84%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Bank of New York Mellon

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio lifted its holdings in shares of Bank of New York Mellon by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 436,802 shares of the banks stock worth $16,826,000 after acquiring an additional 2,220 shares during the last quarter. U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Bank of New York Mellon in the 4th quarter worth about $78,000. Teza Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Bank of New York Mellon in the 3rd quarter worth about $1,962,000. Meritage Portfolio Management lifted its holdings in shares of Bank of New York Mellon by 4.8% in the 4th quarter. Meritage Portfolio Management now owns 98,444 shares of the banks stock worth $4,481,000 after acquiring an additional 4,538 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wrapmanager Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Bank of New York Mellon in the 4th quarter worth about $203,000. Institutional investors own 82.29% of the companys stock.

About Bank of New York Mellon

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The Bank of New York Mellon Corp. is a bank holding company, which engages in the provision of financial services. It operates through the following segments: Securities Services, Market and Wealth Services, Investment and Wealth Management, and Other segment. The Securities Services segment includes Asset Servicing business, which provides global custody, fund accounting, integrated middle-office solutions, transfer agency and data and analytics solutions.

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StockNews.com downgraded shares of CenterPoint Energy (NYSE:CNP  Get Rating) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research report report published on Sunday.

A number of other research analysts have also issued reports on CNP. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an outperform rating and set a $33.00 target price on shares of CenterPoint Energy in a research note on Monday, March 6th. UBS Group downgraded shares of CenterPoint Energy from a buy rating to a neutral rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $33.00 to $30.00 in a research report on Tuesday, June 6th. They noted that the move was a valuation call. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of CenterPoint Energy from $28.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research report on Thursday, April 20th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of CenterPoint Energy from $30.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Friday, April 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, CenterPoint Energy has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $32.44.

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CenterPoint Energy Trading Up 0.2 %

CenterPoint Energy stock opened at $29.19 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.65. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $29.68 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $29.64. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.17, a PEG ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.88. CenterPoint Energy has a 52-week low of $25.03 and a 52-week high of $33.50.

CenterPoint Energy Dividend Announcement

CenterPoint Energy ( NYSE:CNP Get Rating ) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 27th. The utilities provider reported $0.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts consensus estimates of $0.48 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $2.78 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.79 billion. CenterPoint Energy had a net margin of 8.99% and a return on equity of 9.97%. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.47 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that CenterPoint Energy will post 1.49 earnings per share for the current year.

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 8th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 18th were issued a $0.19 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 17th. This represents a $0.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.60%. CenterPoint Energys payout ratio is currently 60.32%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Barry T. Smitherman sold 5,000 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.51, for a total transaction of $152,550.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 21,075 shares in the company, valued at $642,998.25. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, Director Ted Pound sold 2,770 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.50, for a total transaction of $84,485.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 46,541 shares of the companys stock, valued at $1,419,500.50. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Barry T. Smitherman sold 5,000 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.51, for a total transaction of $152,550.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 21,075 shares in the company, valued at $642,998.25. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.18% of the companys stock.

Institutional Trading of CenterPoint Energy

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of CenterPoint Energy by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 75,929,134 shares of the utilities providers stock worth $2,139,684,000 after buying an additional 631,836 shares during the period. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in shares of CenterPoint Energy by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 34,833,478 shares of the utilities providers stock worth $981,607,000 after buying an additional 657,742 shares during the period. Boston Partners boosted its holdings in shares of CenterPoint Energy by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 25,132,753 shares of the utilities providers stock worth $753,793,000 after buying an additional 68,199 shares during the period. Deutsche Bank AG boosted its holdings in shares of CenterPoint Energy by 10.7% during the 4th quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 22,564,998 shares of the utilities providers stock worth $676,724,000 after buying an additional 2,179,250 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of CenterPoint Energy by 1.5% during the 1st quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 12,971,112 shares of the utilities providers stock worth $381,258,000 after buying an additional 195,919 shares during the period. 90.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

CenterPoint Energy Company Profile

(Get Rating)

CenterPoint Energy, Inc is a holding company, which engages in the business of power generation and distribution. It operates through the following segments: CenterPoint Energy, Houston Electric, and CERC. The CenterPoint Energy segment consists of electric transmission and distribution services in the Texas gulf coast area in the ERCOT region and electric transmission and distribution services primarily to southwestern Indiana and includes power generation and wholesale power operations in the MISO region.

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Centrais Eletricas Brasileiras S.A.  Eletrobras (NYSE:EBR  Get Rating) was downgraded by analysts at StockNews.com from a hold rating to a sell rating in a note issued to investors on Tuesday.

Centrais Eletricas Brasileiras S.A.  Eletrobras Trading Down 1.5 %

NYSE:EBR traded down $0.12 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $7.88. 1,111,292 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,485,503. The companys 50 day moving average is $7.03 and its two-hundred day moving average is $7.25. Centrais Eletricas Brasileiras S.A.  Eletrobras has a twelve month low of $5.67 and a twelve month high of $10.39. The company has a quick ratio of 2.03, a current ratio of 2.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. The company has a market capitalization of $18.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 0.79.

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Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Advisor Group Holdings Inc. raised its position in shares of Centrais Eletricas Brasileiras S.A.  Eletrobras by 49.0% during the 1st quarter. Advisor Group Holdings Inc. now owns 4,898 shares of the utilities providers stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 1,611 shares during the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC increased its position in shares of Centrais Eletricas Brasileiras S.A.  Eletrobras by 462.9% in the 3rd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 5,764 shares of the utilities providers stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 4,740 shares in the last quarter. Penserra Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Centrais Eletricas Brasileiras S.A.  Eletrobras in the 4th quarter valued at $46,000. Citigroup Inc. increased its position in shares of Centrais Eletricas Brasileiras S.A.  Eletrobras by 33.0% in the 1st quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 7,961 shares of the utilities providers stock valued at $53,000 after buying an additional 1,976 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Panagora Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Centrais Eletricas Brasileiras S.A.  Eletrobras in the 1st quarter valued at $84,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 2.37% of the companys stock.

About Centrais Eletricas Brasileiras S.A.  Eletrobras

Centrais Eletricas Brasileiras SA engages in the production and dissemination of electricity. It operates through the Generation and Transmission segments. The Generation segment refers to the electric power generation including hydroelectric, thermal, and nuclear power plants. The Transmission segment focuses on the transmission of electric power in Brazil.

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China Gerui Advanced Materials Group Ltd. (OTCMKTS:CHOPF  Get Rating) passed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Monday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $0.00 and traded as high as $0.00. China Gerui Advanced Materials Group shares last traded at $0.00, with a volume of 100 shares.

China Gerui Advanced Materials Group Trading Down 90.9 %

About China Gerui Advanced Materials Group

(Get Rating)

China Gerui Advanced Materials Group Ltd. is a holding company which engages in the steel processing business. It process ultra-thin, cold-rolled steel for narrow strip steel products. The company sells its products to domestic Chinese customers in a diverse range of industries, including the food packaging, electrical appliances and the construction materials industries.

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China Youzan Limited (OTCMKTS:CHNVF  Get Rating) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest in May. As of May 31st, there was short interest totalling 14,573,600 shares, a growth of 233.6% from the May 15th total of 4,368,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,500 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 9,715.7 days.

China Youzan Stock Performance

Shares of CHNVF stock remained flat at C$0.01 during trading on Wednesday. 10,000 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 19,032. China Youzan has a 52-week low of C$0.01 and a 52-week high of C$0.04. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of C$0.02 and a 200-day simple moving average of C$0.03.

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About China Youzan

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China Youzan Limited, an investment holding company, provides online and offline e-commerce solutions in the People's Republic of China, Japan, and Canada. The company operates through five segments: General Trading, Third Party Payment Services, Onecomm, Merchant Services, and Others. It trades in watches and other good; sells integrated smart point of sales devices; and offers third party payment and related consultancy services, as well as third party payment management services.

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Shares of CTT  Correios De Portugal, S.A. (OTCMKTS:CTTPY  Get Rating) hit a new 52-week low during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $7.28 and last traded at $7.28, with a volume of 0 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $7.28.

CTT  Correios De Portugal Price Performance

The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $7.56 and a 200 day simple moving average of $6.66.

CTT  Correios De Portugal Company Profile

(Get Rating)

CTT  Correios De Portugal, SA, together with its subsidiaries, provides postal and financial services worldwide. It operates through Mail, Express & Parcels, Financial Services & Retail, and Bank segments. The company offers courier and urgent mail transport services; postal financial services; and banking services.

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Duolingo, Inc. (NYSE:DUOL  Get Rating)s share price was down 4.2% on Wednesday after an insider sold shares in the company. The stock traded as low as $150.00 and last traded at $152.74. Approximately 93,951 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 85% from the average daily volume of 608,377 shares. The stock had previously closed at $159.50.

Specifically, General Counsel Stephen C. Chen sold 9,252 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $130.43, for a total value of $1,206,738.36. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel now directly owns 26,553 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,463,307.79. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Duolingo news, General Counsel Stephen C. Chen sold 9,252 shares of Duolingo stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $130.43, for a total value of $1,206,738.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel now directly owns 26,553 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $3,463,307.79. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Robert Meese sold 5,000 shares of Duolingo stock in a transaction on Friday, March 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.25, for a total value of $701,250.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 197,601 shares of the companys stock, valued at $27,713,540.25. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 60,292 shares of company stock worth $8,614,350 in the last ninety days. 19.85% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently weighed in on DUOL shares. Needham & Company LLC upped their price objective on Duolingo from $115.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 10th. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on Duolingo from $127.00 to $167.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on Duolingo from $92.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research report on Thursday, March 2nd. Bank of America upped their price objective on Duolingo from $105.00 to $160.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 6th. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on Duolingo from $131.00 to $136.00 and gave the stock an equal weight rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 10th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $142.38.

Duolingo Trading Down 3.6 %

The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $142.90 and a 200-day simple moving average of $111.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a quick ratio of 3.65 and a current ratio of 3.65. The firm has a market cap of $6.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -127.60 and a beta of 0.41.

Duolingo (NYSE:DUOL  Get Rating) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, May 9th. The company reported ($0.06) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts consensus estimates of ($0.24) by $0.18. Duolingo had a negative return on equity of 9.22% and a negative net margin of 12.38%. The business had revenue of $115.66 million during the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $112.86 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.31) EPS. The businesss revenue for the quarter was up 42.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Duolingo, Inc. will post -0.53 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Duolingo

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its stake in shares of Duolingo by 10.5% in the first quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 16,201 shares of the companys stock valued at $2,310,000 after buying an additional 1,533 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its stake in Duolingo by 207.7% during the first quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 117,987 shares of the companys stock worth $16,823,000 after purchasing an additional 79,648 shares during the period. State Street Corp grew its stake in Duolingo by 6.6% during the first quarter. State Street Corp now owns 494,740 shares of the companys stock worth $70,545,000 after purchasing an additional 30,662 shares during the period. Fred Alger Management LLC grew its stake in Duolingo by 6,890.0% during the first quarter. Fred Alger Management LLC now owns 17,475 shares of the companys stock worth $2,492,000 after purchasing an additional 17,225 shares during the period. Finally, G2 Investment Partners Management LLC acquired a new stake in Duolingo during the first quarter worth approximately $670,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 63.16% of the companys stock.

Duolingo Company Profile

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Duolingo, Inc develops a language-learning website and mobile app in the United States and China. The company offers courses in 40 different languages, including Spanish, English, French, Japanese, German, Italian, Chinese, Portuguese, and others. It also provides a digital language proficiency assessment exam.

Further Reading

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Eaton Vance Floating-Rate Income Trust (NYSE:EFT  Get Rating) saw a significant growth in short interest in the month of May. As of May 31st, there was short interest totalling 23,900 shares, a growth of 223.0% from the May 15th total of 7,400 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 80,600 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 0.3 days.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Eaton Vance Floating-Rate Income Trust

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC bought a new position in Eaton Vance Floating-Rate Income Trust during the 1st quarter valued at $27,000. Belpointe Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Eaton Vance Floating-Rate Income Trust during the 4th quarter worth $29,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Eaton Vance Floating-Rate Income Trust during the 3rd quarter worth $31,000. Financial Management Professionals Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Eaton Vance Floating-Rate Income Trust during the 1st quarter worth $39,000. Finally, Advisory Services Network LLC raised its stake in shares of Eaton Vance Floating-Rate Income Trust by 123.3% during the 1st quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC now owns 6,040 shares of the investment management companys stock worth $70,000 after purchasing an additional 3,335 shares during the period.

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Eaton Vance Floating-Rate Income Trust Trading Down 0.2 %

Shares of EFT traded down $0.02 on Tuesday, reaching $11.60. The companys stock had a trading volume of 48,258 shares, compared to its average volume of 76,238. Eaton Vance Floating-Rate Income Trust has a twelve month low of $10.89 and a twelve month high of $13.22. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $11.42 and a 200-day moving average of $11.50.

Eaton Vance Floating-Rate Income Trust Cuts Dividend

Eaton Vance Floating-Rate Income Trust Company Profile

The firm also recently announced a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 30th. Investors of record on Thursday, June 22nd will be issued a $0.11 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 21st. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 11.38%.

(Get Rating)

Eaton Vance Floating-Rate Income Trust is a closed-ended fixed income mutual fund launched and managed by Eaton Vance Management. The fund invests in fixed income markets of the United States. It invests in fixed income securities operating across diversified sectors. The fund primarily invests in senior, secured floating rate loans.

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Euro Manganese Inc. (OTCMKTS:EUMNF  Get Rating) was the target of a significant drop in short interest in May. As of May 31st, there was short interest totalling 30,300 shares, a drop of 66.9% from the May 15th total of 91,600 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 45,400 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 0.7 days.

Euro Manganese Trading Down 5.4 %

OTCMKTS:EUMNF traded down $0.01 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $0.13. 219,560 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 32,979. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $0.15 and a 200-day simple moving average of $0.19. Euro Manganese has a 52 week low of $0.12 and a 52 week high of $0.35.

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About Euro Manganese

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Euro Manganese Inc engages in the evaluation, exploration, and development of mineral assets. Its principal property is the 100% owned Chvaletice manganese project, which is involved in the re-processing of a manganese deposit hosted in historic mine tailings located to the east of Prague, the Czech Republic.

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FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC increased its stake in The Southern Company (NYSE:SO  Get Rating) by 1.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 14,075 shares of the utilities providers stock after buying an additional 208 shares during the period. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLCs holdings in Southern were worth $1,005,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in SO. Prudential PLC increased its position in Southern by 23.4% during the 1st quarter. Prudential PLC now owns 19,438 shares of the utilities providers stock valued at $1,409,000 after purchasing an additional 3,689 shares during the period. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust boosted its holdings in shares of Southern by 33.5% in the 1st quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 1,727 shares of the utilities providers stock valued at $126,000 after buying an additional 433 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of Southern by 63.0% in the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,902 shares of the utilities providers stock valued at $138,000 after buying an additional 735 shares in the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Southern by 0.4% in the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 49,925 shares of the utilities providers stock valued at $3,621,000 after buying an additional 221 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mackenzie Financial Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Southern by 35.8% in the 1st quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 907,132 shares of the utilities providers stock valued at $65,776,000 after buying an additional 239,325 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 61.78% of the companys stock.

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Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Bryan D. Anderson sold 9,491 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction on Monday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.03, for a total value of $712,109.73. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 36,119 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $2,710,008.57. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Southern news, CEO Kimberly S. Greene sold 47,326 shares of Southern stock in a transaction on Monday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.78, for a total transaction of $3,302,408.28. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 118,659 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $8,280,025.02. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Bryan D. Anderson sold 9,491 shares of Southern stock in a transaction on Monday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.03, for a total transaction of $712,109.73. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 36,119 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,710,008.57. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 205,678 shares of company stock valued at $14,888,271. 0.37% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Southern Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:SO traded up $0.76 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $71.21. 549,306 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,196,712. The company has a quick ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 0.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.51. The company has a market cap of $77.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.73, a P/E/G ratio of 4.91 and a beta of 0.51. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $72.01 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $69.45. The Southern Company has a 52-week low of $58.85 and a 52-week high of $80.57.

Southern (NYSE:SO  Get Rating) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 27th. The utilities provider reported $0.79 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.71 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $6.48 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.14 billion. Southern had a net margin of 11.53% and a return on equity of 10.78%. The businesss quarterly revenue was down 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.97 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that The Southern Company will post 3.61 EPS for the current year.

Southern Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 6th. Investors of record on Monday, May 15th were issued a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.93%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 12th. This is a positive change from Southerns previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. Southerns payout ratio is presently 90.32%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. VNET Group restated a maintains rating on shares of Southern in a report on Friday, April 28th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Southern from $73.00 to $71.00 and set an equal weight rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 17th. Mizuho lowered their target price on shares of Southern from $77.00 to $76.00 in a research note on Tuesday, May 16th. Guggenheim lifted their target price on shares of Southern from $73.00 to $79.00 in a research note on Monday, April 24th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Southern from $57.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an underweight rating in a research note on Thursday, April 20th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average price target of $74.07.

Southern Company Profile

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The Southern Company, through its subsidiaries, engages in the generation, transmission, and distribution of electricity. It operates through three segments: Gas Distribution Operations, Gas Pipeline Investments, and Gas Marketing Services. The company also develops, constructs, acquires, owns, and manages power generation assets, including renewable energy projects and sells electricity in the wholesale market; and distributes natural gas in Illinois, Georgia, Virginia, and Tennessee, as well as provides gas marketing services, gas distribution operations, and gas pipeline investments operations.

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First Farmers and Merchants Co. (OTCMKTS:FFMH  Get Rating) was the recipient of a significant decrease in short interest during the month of May. As of May 31st, there was short interest totalling 300 shares, a decrease of 57.1% from the May 15th total of 700 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,100 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 0.3 days.

First Farmers and Merchants Price Performance

Shares of OTCMKTS FFMH remained flat at $28.12 during midday trading on Tuesday. First Farmers and Merchants has a 12-month low of $19.00 and a 12-month high of $33.00. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $24.76 and a 200-day simple moving average of $25.53.

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First Farmers and Merchants Company Profile

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First Farmers & Merchants Corp. operates as a bank holding company. Through First Farmers & Merchants Bank, it engages in the provision of commercial and mortgage banking services. It also offers community lending services. The company was founded in 1909 and is headquartered in Columbia, TN.

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Frontier Asset Management LLC bought a new position in The Southern Company (NYSE:SO  Get Rating) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 3,744 shares of the utilities providers stock, valued at approximately $267,000.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Prudential PLC raised its position in Southern by 23.4% during the first quarter. Prudential PLC now owns 19,438 shares of the utilities providers stock worth $1,409,000 after acquiring an additional 3,689 shares during the last quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust raised its position in shares of Southern by 33.5% in the first quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 1,727 shares of the utilities providers stock valued at $126,000 after buying an additional 433 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd raised its position in shares of Southern by 63.0% in the first quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,902 shares of the utilities providers stock valued at $138,000 after buying an additional 735 shares during the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Southern by 0.4% in the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 49,925 shares of the utilities providers stock valued at $3,621,000 after buying an additional 221 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mackenzie Financial Corp grew its holdings in Southern by 35.8% in the first quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 907,132 shares of the utilities providers stock valued at $65,776,000 after purchasing an additional 239,325 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 61.78% of the companys stock.

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Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Guggenheim boosted their target price on shares of Southern from $73.00 to $79.00 in a report on Monday, April 24th. 1-800-FLOWERS.COM reiterated a maintains rating on shares of Southern in a research note on Friday, April 28th. Mizuho decreased their price objective on shares of Southern from $77.00 to $76.00 in a research note on Tuesday, May 16th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Southern from $57.00 to $63.00 and gave the company an underweight rating in a research note on Thursday, April 20th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Southern from $73.00 to $71.00 and set an equal weight rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 17th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Southern has an average rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $74.07.

Southern Stock Down 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE:SO opened at $70.45 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $76.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.91 and a beta of 0.51. The Southern Company has a 1-year low of $58.85 and a 1-year high of $80.57. The companys fifty day moving average is $72.01 and its two-hundred day moving average is $69.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.51, a quick ratio of 0.51 and a current ratio of 0.69.

Southern (NYSE:SO  Get Rating) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 27th. The utilities provider reported $0.79 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts consensus estimates of $0.71 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $6.48 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $6.14 billion. Southern had a net margin of 11.53% and a return on equity of 10.78%. The firms revenue was down 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.97 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that The Southern Company will post 3.61 EPS for the current year.

Southern Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 6th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 15th were given a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 12th. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.97%. This is a positive change from Southerns previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. Southerns dividend payout ratio is currently 90.32%.

Insider Transactions at Southern

In other news, CEO Stephen E. Kuczynski sold 5,000 shares of the companys stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.48, for a total transaction of $357,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 136,284 shares in the company, valued at $9,741,580.32. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Bryan D. Anderson sold 9,491 shares of the firms stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.03, for a total transaction of $712,109.73. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 36,119 shares of the companys stock, valued at $2,710,008.57. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Stephen E. Kuczynski sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.48, for a total value of $357,400.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 136,284 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,741,580.32. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 205,678 shares of company stock worth $14,888,271. Insiders own 0.37% of the companys stock.

Southern Company Profile

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The Southern Company, through its subsidiaries, engages in the generation, transmission, and distribution of electricity. It operates through three segments: Gas Distribution Operations, Gas Pipeline Investments, and Gas Marketing Services. The company also develops, constructs, acquires, owns, and manages power generation assets, including renewable energy projects and sells electricity in the wholesale market; and distributes natural gas in Illinois, Georgia, Virginia, and Tennessee, as well as provides gas marketing services, gas distribution operations, and gas pipeline investments operations.

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Glenview Capital Management LLC reduced its position in shares of Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS  Get Rating) by 33.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 765,576 shares of the casino operators stock after selling 377,133 shares during the period. Glenview Capital Management LLC owned about 0.10% of Las Vegas Sands worth $36,801,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Hollencrest Capital Management purchased a new stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands during the 4th quarter worth $32,000. James Investment Research Inc. acquired a new stake in Las Vegas Sands during the 4th quarter worth $39,000. Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Las Vegas Sands during the 3rd quarter worth $50,000. Achmea Investment Management B.V. acquired a new stake in Las Vegas Sands during the 4th quarter worth $52,000. Finally, Quadrant Capital Group LLC raised its stake in Las Vegas Sands by 59.7% during the 4th quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 1,190 shares of the casino operators stock worth $57,000 after acquiring an additional 445 shares in the last quarter. 39.75% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $66.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research note on Thursday, April 20th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $76.00 to $80.50 and gave the company a buy rating in a research note on Thursday, April 20th. Credit Suisse Group lifted their price objective on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $62.00 to $67.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research note on Thursday, April 20th. StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Las Vegas Sands in a research note on Thursday, May 18th. They issued a hold rating on the stock. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $64.00 to $69.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research note on Thursday, April 20th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the companys stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $68.25.

Insider Buying and Selling at Las Vegas Sands

Las Vegas Sands Stock Up 0.7 %

In other Las Vegas Sands news, Director Charles D. Forman sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.17, for a total value of $947,550.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 205,984 shares of the companys stock, valued at $13,012,009.28. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link . 0.91% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

LVS stock opened at $59.38 on Wednesday. Las Vegas Sands Corp. has a 52 week low of $30.46 and a 52 week high of $65.58. The company has a current ratio of 1.79, a quick ratio of 1.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.65. The company has a market cap of $45.38 billion, a P/E ratio of -82.47, a P/E/G ratio of 7.56 and a beta of 1.16. The companys 50-day moving average price is $59.31 and its 200 day moving average price is $55.57.

Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS  Get Rating) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 19th. The casino operator reported $0.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts consensus estimates of $0.17 by $0.11. Las Vegas Sands had a negative net margin of 10.42% and a negative return on equity of 10.21%. The company had revenue of $2.12 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $1.83 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted ($0.40) earnings per share. The firms quarterly revenue was up 124.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that Las Vegas Sands Corp. will post 1.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About Las Vegas Sands

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Las Vegas Sands Corp. engages in the development of destination properties. The firm operates through the Macao and Singapore geographical segments. The Macao segment handles the operations of The Venetian Macao, The Londoner Macao, The Parisian Macao, The Plaza Macao and Four Seasons Macao, and Sands Macao.

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Golden Star Resources Ltd. (TSE:GSC  Get Rating) (NYSE:GSS)s share price traded down 0.8% on Monday . The stock traded as low as C$4.96 and last traded at C$4.96. 124,735 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 263% from the average session volume of 34,347 shares. The stock had previously closed at C$5.00.

Golden Star Resources Trading Down 0.8 %

The company has a current ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 370.50. The businesss fifty day moving average is C$4.96. The company has a market cap of C$574.00 million and a PE ratio of -49.11.

Golden Star Resources Company Profile

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Golden Star Resources Ltd. operates as a gold mining and exploration company. The company owns and operates the Wassa open-pit gold mine, the Wassa underground mine, and a carbon-in-leach processing plant located to the northeast of the town of Tarkwa, Ghana; and the Bogoso gold mining and processing operation, the Prestea open-pit mining operations, and the Prestea underground mine located near the town of Prestea, Ghana.

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Service Corporation International (NYSE:SCI) Has More To Do To Multiply In Value Going Forward

If you're looking for a multi-bagger, there's a few things to keep an eye out for. One common approach is to try and find a company with returns on capital employed (ROCE) that are increasing, in conjunction with a growing amount of capital employed. Ultimately, this demonstrates that it's a business that is reinvesting profits at increasing rates of return. However, after investigating Service Corporation International (NYSE:SCI), we don't think it's current trends fit the mold of a multi-bagger.

What Is Return On Capital Employed (ROCE)?

Just to clarify if you're unsure, ROCE is a metric for evaluating how much pre-tax income (in percentage terms) a company earns on the capital invested in its business. To calculate this metric for Service Corporation International, this is the formula:

Return on Capital Employed = Earnings Before Interest and Tax (EBIT)  (Total Assets - Current Liabilities)

0.057 = US$830m  (US$15b - US$767m) (Based on the trailing twelve months to March 2023).

Therefore, Service Corporation International has an ROCE of 5.7%. In absolute terms, that's a low return but it's around the Consumer Services industry average of 6.8%.

See our latest analysis for Service Corporation International

roce

Above you can see how the current ROCE for Service Corporation International compares to its prior returns on capital, but there's only so much you can tell from the past. If you'd like, you can check out the forecasts from the analysts covering Service Corporation International here for free.

What Can We Tell From Service Corporation International's ROCE Trend?

There are better returns on capital out there than what we're seeing at Service Corporation International. The company has employed 23% more capital in the last five years, and the returns on that capital have remained stable at 5.7%. This poor ROCE doesn't inspire confidence right now, and with the increase in capital employed, it's evident that the business isn't deploying the funds into high return investments.

What We Can Learn From Service Corporation International's ROCE

As we've seen above, Service Corporation International's returns on capital haven't increased but it is reinvesting in the business. Since the stock has gained an impressive 98% over the last five years, investors must think there's better things to come. Ultimately, if the underlying trends persist, we wouldn't hold our breath on it being a multi-bagger going forward.

One final note, you should learn about the 2 warning signs we've spotted with Service Corporation International (including 1 which is a bit concerning) .

While Service Corporation International isn't earning the highest return, check out this free list of companies that are earning high returns on equity with solid balance sheets.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.



This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.

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Shares of Gray Television, Inc. (NYSE:GTN.A  Get Rating) saw unusually-strong trading volume on Wednesday . Approximately 5,017 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 179% from the previous sessions volume of 1,799 shares.The stock last traded at $8.64 and had previously closed at $8.40.

Gray Television Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $822.89 million, a P/E ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 1.22. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $8.23 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $9.84. The company has a quick ratio of 1.27, a current ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.98.

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Gray Television Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 30th. Investors of record on Thursday, June 15th will be paid a $0.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 14th. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.70%. Gray Televisions dividend payout ratio is presently 9.58%.

About Gray Television

Gray Television, Inc, a television broadcast company, owns and operates television stations and digital assets in the United States. As of February 28, 2019, it owned and operated television stations in 91 television markets broadcasting approximately 400 program streams, including approximately 150 channels affiliated with the CBS Network, the NBC Network, the ABC Network, and the FOX Network.

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Great Wall Motor Company Limited (OTCMKTS:GWLLY  Get Rating) saw a significant growth in short interest in May. As of May 31st, there was short interest totalling 1,300 shares, a growth of 225.0% from the May 15th total of 400 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 700 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.9 days.

Great Wall Motor Stock Performance

GWLLY remained flat at $10.96 during mid-day trading on Wednesday. 21 shares of the companys stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,290. The stocks 50-day moving average is $11.62 and its two-hundred day moving average is $12.67. Great Wall Motor has a 1-year low of $9.06 and a 1-year high of $22.86.

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Great Wall Motor (OTCMKTS:GWLLY  Get Rating) last announced its earnings results on Friday, April 21st. The company reported $0.03 earnings per share for the quarter. The company had revenue of $4.24 billion for the quarter.

About Great Wall Motor

Great Wall Motor Company Limited researches and develops, manufactures, and sells automobiles, and automotive parts and components in China, Russia, South Africa, Australia, Saudi Arabia, Chile, and internationally. The company offers pick-up trucks, SUVs, sedans, and energy vehicles primarily under the Haval, WEY, ORA, Tank, and Great Wall Pickup brand names; and unmanned vehicles.

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Carters (NYSE:CRI  Get Rating) and Lanvin Group (NYSE:LANV  Get Rating) are both consumer discretionary companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their earnings, risk, institutional ownership, profitability, dividends, analyst recommendations and valuation.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

99.1% of Carters shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 50.0% of Lanvin Group shares are held by institutional investors. 3.6% of Carters shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 2.7% of Lanvin Group shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

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Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Carters and Lanvin Groups top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

Gross Revenue Price/Sales Ratio Net Income Earnings Per Share Price/Earnings Ratio Carters $3.13 billion 0.82 $250.04 million $5.66 11.99 Lanvin Group $445.02 million 1.52 -$229.99 million $0.33 15.64

Risk & Volatility

Carters has higher revenue and earnings than Lanvin Group. Carters is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Lanvin Group, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Carters has a beta of 1.22, meaning that its share price is 22% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Lanvin Group has a beta of 0.01, meaning that its share price is 99% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current ratings and recommmendations for Carters and Lanvin Group, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score Carters 0 2 0 0 2.00 Lanvin Group 0 1 0 0 2.00

Carters currently has a consensus price target of $77.67, suggesting a potential upside of 14.43%. Lanvin Group has a consensus price target of $6.50, suggesting a potential upside of 25.97%. Given Lanvin Groups higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Lanvin Group is more favorable than Carters.

Profitability

This table compares Carters and Lanvin Groups net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets Carters 6.97% 30.11% 9.73% Lanvin Group N/A -443.09% -50.06%

Summary

Carters beats Lanvin Group on 9 of the 12 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Carters

(Get Rating)

Carter's, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, designs, sources, and markets branded childrenswear under the Carter's, OshKosh, Skip Hop, Child of Mine, Just One You, Simple Joys, little planet, and other brands in the United States and internationally. The company operates through three segments: U.S. Retail, U.S. Wholesale, and International. Its Carter's products include babies and young children products, such as bodysuits, pants, dresses, layette essentials, tops and t-shirts, multi-piece sets, sleep and play products, and sleepwear; and OshKosh brand products comprise playclothes, such as denim apparel products, overalls, core bottoms, knit tops, t-shirts, and layering pieces. The company also provides products for playtime, travel, mealtime, bath time, and home gear, as well as kid's bags under the Skip Hop brand. In addition, it offers bedding, home decor, cribs and baby furniture, diaper bags, footwear, gift sets, hair accessories, jewelry, outerwear, paper goods, socks, shoes, swimwear, and toys. The company operates wholesale locations, including department stores, national chain stores, and specialty stores, as well as retail stores. It also sells its products through its eCommerce websites, such as carters.com, oshkosh.com, and skiphop.com, as well as other international wholesale accounts and licensees. The company was founded in 1865 and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia.

About Lanvin Group

(Get Rating)

Lanvin Group Holdings Limited operates as a couture house worldwide. The company offers ready-to-wear, made to measure, footwear, leather goods, costume jewelry, accessories, eyewear, and childrenswear under the Lanvin brand name; ready-to-wear, legwear, lingerie and beachwear, and accessories under the Wolford brand; footwear under the Sergio Rossi brand name; luxury womenswear, footwear, handbags, jewelry, and leather goods under the St. John brand; and leisurewear and formalwear under the Caruso brand name. The company was founded in 1889 and is headquartered in Shanghai, China. Lanvin Group Holdings Limited is a subsidiary of Fosun International Limited.

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Invesco S&P 500 QVM Multi-factor ETF (NYSEARCA:QVML  Get Rating) traded up 0.7% during trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $25.43 and last traded at $25.43. 101 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 97% from the average session volume of 3,005 shares. The stock had previously closed at $25.25.

Invesco S&P 500 QVM Multi-factor ETF Stock Down 0.1 %

The companys fifty day moving average is $24.68 and its two-hundred day moving average is $24.12. The stock has a market cap of $924.91 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.57 and a beta of 0.98.

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Hedge Funds Weigh In On Invesco S&P 500 QVM Multi-factor ETF

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Municipal Employees Retirement System of Michigan grew its position in Invesco S&P 500 QVM Multi-factor ETF by 16.3% in the 1st quarter. Municipal Employees Retirement System of Michigan now owns 36,124,001 shares of the companys stock valued at $878,738,000 after buying an additional 5,060,000 shares during the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC purchased a new position in Invesco S&P 500 QVM Multi-factor ETF in the 2nd quarter valued at $822,000. Natixis purchased a new position in Invesco S&P 500 QVM Multi-factor ETF in the 4th quarter valued at $109,000. Finally, UBS Group AG grew its position in Invesco S&P 500 QVM Multi-factor ETF by 664.4% in the 1st quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 1,009 shares of the companys stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 877 shares during the last quarter.

Invesco S&P 500 QVM Multi-factor ETF Company Profile

The Invesco S&P 500 QVM Multi-factor ETF (QVML) is an exchange-traded fund that mostly invests in large cap equity. The fund tracks a market-cap-weighted index that selects the top 90% of stocks in the S&P 500 based on three factors: quality, value, and momentum. QVML was launched on Jun 30, 2021 and is managed by Invesco.

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iShares Expanded Tech Sector ETF (NYSEARCA:IGM  Get Rating)s share price hit a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $383.45 and last traded at $383.45, with a volume of 14832 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $377.80.

iShares Expanded Tech Sector ETF Stock Up 0.7 %

The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $349.98 and a 200 day simple moving average of $321.94. The stock has a market cap of $3.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.20 and a beta of 1.18.

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Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in iShares Expanded Tech Sector ETF by 154.3% during the first quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 37,057 shares of the exchange traded funds stock worth $14,402,000 after buying an additional 22,482 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in shares of iShares Expanded Tech Sector ETF by 12.5% in the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 7,836 shares of the exchange traded funds stock worth $3,045,000 after purchasing an additional 870 shares in the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers increased its stake in shares of iShares Expanded Tech Sector ETF by 422.2% in the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 4,125 shares of the exchange traded funds stock worth $1,603,000 after purchasing an additional 3,335 shares in the last quarter. Dakota Wealth Management increased its stake in shares of iShares Expanded Tech Sector ETF by 11.0% in the first quarter. Dakota Wealth Management now owns 555 shares of the exchange traded funds stock worth $216,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Finally, NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its stake in iShares Expanded Tech Sector ETF by 95.0% during the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 20,675 shares of the exchange traded funds stock valued at $8,035,000 after acquiring an additional 10,074 shares in the last quarter.

About iShares Expanded Tech Sector ETF

iShares North American Tech ETF, formerly iShares S&P North American Technology Sector Index Fund (the Fund), is an exchange-traded fund. The Fund seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, of the United States-traded technology companies, as represented by the S&P North American Technology Sector Index (the Index).

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Texas Pacific Land Co. (NYSE:TPL  Get Rating) major shareholder Kinetics Asset Managem Horizon bought 8 shares of the firms stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 9th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $1,392.94 per share, with a total value of $11,143.52. Following the purchase, the insider now directly owns 197,655 shares of the companys stock, valued at $275,321,555.70. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Major shareholders that own at least 10% of a companys shares are required to disclose their transactions with the SEC.

Kinetics Asset Managem Horizon also recently made the following trade(s):

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On Monday, June 12th, Kinetics Asset Managem Horizon bought 6 shares of Texas Pacific Land stock. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $1,349.14 per share, with a total value of $8,094.84.

On Wednesday, June 7th, Kinetics Asset Managem Horizon bought 4 shares of Texas Pacific Land stock. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $1,427.97 per share, with a total value of $5,711.88.

On Monday, June 5th, Kinetics Asset Managem Horizon bought 2 shares of Texas Pacific Land stock. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $1,345.25 per share, with a total value of $2,690.50.

On Thursday, June 1st, Kinetics Asset Managem Horizon purchased 2 shares of Texas Pacific Land stock. The stock was bought at an average price of $1,329.30 per share, with a total value of $2,658.60.

On Tuesday, May 30th, Kinetics Asset Managem Horizon purchased 2 shares of Texas Pacific Land stock. The stock was bought at an average price of $1,306.73 per share, with a total value of $2,613.46.

On Friday, May 26th, Kinetics Asset Managem Horizon purchased 2 shares of Texas Pacific Land stock. The stock was bought at an average price of $1,315.01 per share, with a total value of $2,630.02.

On Wednesday, May 24th, Kinetics Asset Managem Horizon purchased 2 shares of Texas Pacific Land stock. The stock was bought at an average price of $1,345.99 per share, with a total value of $2,691.98.

On Monday, May 22nd, Kinetics Asset Managem Horizon purchased 2 shares of Texas Pacific Land stock. The stock was bought at an average price of $1,365.42 per share, with a total value of $2,730.84.

On Friday, May 19th, Kinetics Asset Managem Horizon purchased 2 shares of Texas Pacific Land stock. The stock was bought at an average price of $1,376.50 per share, with a total value of $2,753.00.

On Wednesday, May 17th, Kinetics Asset Managem Horizon purchased 2 shares of Texas Pacific Land stock. The stock was bought at an average price of $1,346.17 per share, with a total value of $2,692.34.

Texas Pacific Land Price Performance

TPL opened at $1,335.23 on Wednesday. Texas Pacific Land Co. has a fifty-two week low of $1,275.86 and a fifty-two week high of $2,739.00. The business has a 50-day moving average of $1,463.47 and a 200-day moving average of $1,842.10. The company has a market capitalization of $10.27 billion, a PE ratio of 23.69 and a beta of 1.85.

Texas Pacific Land Dividend Announcement

Analyst Ratings Changes

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 8th will be paid a dividend of $3.25 per share. This represents a $13.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.97%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 7th. Texas Pacific Lands dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 23.06%.

A number of brokerages have commented on TPL. StockNews.com began coverage on Texas Pacific Land in a research report on Thursday, May 18th. They set a hold rating for the company. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on Texas Pacific Land from $1,399.00 to $1,378.00 in a research report on Monday, May 22nd. Finally, 1-800-FLOWERS.COM restated a maintains rating on shares of Texas Pacific Land in a research report on Monday, May 22nd.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Kalos Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Texas Pacific Land in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $26,000. VitalStone Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of Texas Pacific Land in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Texas Pacific Land in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $33,000. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S increased its position in Texas Pacific Land by 250.0% in the 1st quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S now owns 21 shares of the financial services providers stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 15 shares during the period. Finally, Fred Alger Management LLC bought a new position in Texas Pacific Land in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $41,000. 58.95% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Texas Pacific Land Company Profile

(Get Rating)

Texas Pacific Land Corp. operates as a landowner in the State of Texas. Its surface and royalty ownership allow revenue generation through the entire value chain of oil and gas development, including through fixed fee payments for use of the firms land, revenue for sales of materials used in the construction of infrastructure, providing sourced water and treated produced water, revenue from its oil and gas royalty interests, and revenues related to saltwater disposal on land.

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Klondex Mines Ltd. (TSE:KDX  Get Rating)s stock price crossed above its fifty day moving average during trading on Monday . The stock has a fifty day moving average of C$3.07 and traded as high as C$3.09. Klondex Mines shares last traded at C$3.07, with a volume of 1,962,298 shares.

Klondex Mines Stock Up 1.3 %

The company has a 50-day moving average price of C$3.07.

Klondex Mines Company Profile

(Get Rating)

Klondex Mines Ltd., together with its subsidiaries, acquires, explores, develops, and produces mineral properties in the United States and Canada. It primarily explores for gold and silver deposits. The company holds 100% interests in the Fire Creek mine covering approximately 19,000 acres located in Lander County; the Midas mine and ore milling facility covering approximately 30,000 acres situated in Elko County; and the Hollister mine approximately 18,000 acres located in Elko County.

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loanDepot, Inc. (NYSE:LDI  Get Rating) Director Dan Binowitz sold 9,999 shares of loanDepot stock in a transaction on Monday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $2.15, for a total transaction of $21,497.85. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 658,863 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $1,416,555.45. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink.

Dan Binowitz also recently made the following trade(s):

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On Friday, June 9th, Dan Binowitz sold 9,999 shares of loanDepot stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $2.09, for a total transaction of $20,897.91.

On Monday, June 5th, Dan Binowitz sold 9,999 shares of loanDepot stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $1.88, for a total transaction of $18,798.12.

On Monday, May 15th, Dan Binowitz sold 9,999 shares of loanDepot stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $1.73, for a total transaction of $17,298.27.

On Friday, May 12th, Dan Binowitz sold 9,999 shares of loanDepot stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $1.85, for a total transaction of $18,498.15.

On Wednesday, May 10th, Dan Binowitz sold 9,999 shares of loanDepot stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $1.78, for a total transaction of $17,798.22.

On Monday, May 8th, Dan Binowitz sold 9,999 shares of loanDepot stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $1.68, for a total transaction of $16,798.32.

On Friday, May 5th, Dan Binowitz sold 9,999 shares of loanDepot stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $1.67, for a total transaction of $16,698.33.

On Wednesday, May 3rd, Dan Binowitz sold 9,999 shares of loanDepot stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $1.58, for a total transaction of $15,798.42.

On Monday, April 17th, Dan Binowitz sold 4,517 shares of loanDepot stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $1.68, for a total transaction of $7,588.56.

On Friday, April 14th, Dan Binowitz sold 9,999 shares of loanDepot stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $1.73, for a total transaction of $17,298.27.

loanDepot Price Performance

LDI stock traded down $0.03 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $2.12. The company had a trading volume of 479,788 shares, compared to its average volume of 425,731. The firm has a market capitalization of $673.95 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1.26 and a beta of 2.41. The business has a 50 day moving average of $1.78 and a 200 day moving average of $1.89. loanDepot, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $1.25 and a fifty-two week high of $3.02. The company has a current ratio of 1.34, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.54.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On loanDepot

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Jane Street Group LLC lifted its holdings in loanDepot by 26.2% in the 2nd quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 27,513 shares of the companys stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 5,711 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in loanDepot by 9.3% in the 4th quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 73,215 shares of the companys stock valued at $121,000 after acquiring an additional 6,227 shares during the last quarter. Clear Creek Financial Management LLC lifted its holdings in loanDepot by 20.3% in the 4th quarter. Clear Creek Financial Management LLC now owns 54,422 shares of the companys stock valued at $90,000 after acquiring an additional 9,182 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in loanDepot in the 1st quarter valued at about $47,000. Finally, LPL Financial LLC lifted its holdings in loanDepot by 106.0% in the 4th quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 26,297 shares of the companys stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 13,530 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 3.50% of the companys stock.

Several research firms have recently commented on LDI. William Blair lowered shares of loanDepot from an outperform rating to a market perform rating in a research report on Thursday, March 9th. Bank of America restated a market perform rating on shares of loanDepot in a research report on Thursday, March 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and seven have given a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of Hold and an average price target of $1.83.

loanDepot Company Profile

(Get Rating)

loanDepot, Inc engages in originating, financing, selling, and servicing residential mortgage loans in the United States. It offers conventional agency-conforming and prime jumbo, federal assistance residential mortgage, and home equity loans. The company also provides settlement services, which include captive title and escrow business; real estate services that cover captive real estate referral business; and insurance services, including services to homeowners, as well as other consumer insurance policies.

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Malvern International Plc (LON:MLVN  Get Rating)s share price reached a new 52-week high on Wednesday . The company traded as high as GBX 20 ($0.25) and last traded at GBX 20 ($0.25), with a volume of 6000 shares. The stock had previously closed at GBX 19 ($0.24).

Malvern International Stock Performance

The businesss fifty day moving average price is GBX 16.20 and its two-hundred day moving average price is GBX 14.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 70.89, a quick ratio of 0.50 and a current ratio of 0.53. The stock has a market capitalization of 4.89 million, a P/E ratio of -380.00 and a beta of 1.07.

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Insider Transactions at Malvern International

In other news, insider Alan Carroll sold 142,850 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of GBX 13 ($0.16), for a total value of 18,570.50 ($23,236.36). Insiders own 47.08% of the companys stock.

About Malvern International

Malvern International Plc, an investment holding company, provides educational consultancy services in the United Kingdom. The company operates Malvern House London; Malvern House Brighton; Language in Action; Communicate School in Manchester; and Malvern Online Academy. Its colleges offer English language courses, professional teacher training programs, juniors and summer camps, and bespoke group courses; and university pathway programs, such as foundation year, year one, graduate diploma, pre-master's program, and academic and pre-sessional English programs.

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Molina Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:MOH  Get Rating)s share price gapped down prior to trading on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $290.85, but opened at $273.02. Molina Healthcare shares last traded at $279.48, with a volume of 110,358 shares.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MOH has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Credit Suisse Group lifted their target price on shares of Molina Healthcare from $347.00 to $350.00 in a report on Friday, April 28th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Molina Healthcare from $307.00 to $282.00 and set an underweight rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 21st. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Molina Healthcare from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a research note on Saturday, June 3rd. Cantor Fitzgerald assumed coverage on shares of Molina Healthcare in a research note on Thursday, April 20th. They issued an overweight rating and a $354.00 price target for the company. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Molina Healthcare from $360.00 to $348.00 and set an overweight rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $354.75.

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Molina Healthcare Price Performance

The firms 50-day moving average is $287.90 and its 200-day moving average is $296.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.47 and a quick ratio of 1.47. The company has a market capitalization of $16.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 0.68.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Molina Healthcare

Molina Healthcare ( NYSE:MOH Get Rating ) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 26th. The company reported $5.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.13 by $0.68. Molina Healthcare had a net margin of 2.64% and a return on equity of 36.20%. The company had revenue of $8.15 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.31 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $4.90 earnings per share. The firms quarterly revenue was up 4.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Molina Healthcare, Inc. will post 20.26 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MOH. Prelude Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Molina Healthcare in the first quarter worth $259,000. Macquarie Group Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Molina Healthcare by 9.4% in the first quarter. Macquarie Group Ltd. now owns 26,728 shares of the companys stock worth $7,149,000 after buying an additional 2,306 shares in the last quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC raised its stake in Molina Healthcare by 52.8% during the first quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 12,910 shares of the companys stock valued at $3,453,000 after purchasing an additional 4,462 shares in the last quarter. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Molina Healthcare during the first quarter valued at $4,941,000. Finally, Toroso Investments LLC raised its stake in Molina Healthcare by 233.6% during the first quarter. Toroso Investments LLC now owns 3,993 shares of the companys stock valued at $1,068,000 after purchasing an additional 2,796 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.25% of the companys stock.

Molina Healthcare Company Profile

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Molina Healthcare, Inc engages in the provision of health care services. It operates through the following segments: Medicaid, Medicare, Marketplace, and Other. The company was founded by C. David Molina in 1980 and is headquartered in Long Beach, CA.

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Companies need to start preparing for the European Unions new crypto laws now, even though they wont be applied until the end of next year, Chainalysiss head of policy for Europe said during a recent webinar.

Markets in Crypto Assets (MiCA) was published in the EUs official journal last week, setting the clock ticking before it's officially applied, creating new obligations on crypto-asset providers and stablecoin issuers serving customers in the region.

While the regulation will become law on 29 June this year, the first rules wont come into effect until the same date in 2024, with the rest being applied by the end of that year.

'At Least We Are Regulating,' Says President of Ethereum France on EU Crypto Rules

But Janet Ho, head of policy for Europe at Chainalysis, warned both businesses and regulators not to be complacent and start readying for MiCA as soon as possible.

These are the preparations you want to start now  maybe even yesterday, she said.

Citing the timeframes set out in MiCA, Ho said during a webinar that in a good case scenario, it could take between four and five months for applicants to secure a MiCA license from their local competent authority.

Those wishing to operate crypto-related businesses in the EU will need to apply for authorization in their chosen member country, and the text of the landmark regulation specifies that authorities have 25 working days to let the applicant know if any information is missing, and another 60 working days to grant or refuse their request.

If you want to continue your business, you need to take into account that 4-5 months, if not more, said Ho.

Europe a 'Significant Beneficiary' of US Crypto Regulatory Confusion: Ripple CEO

But companies need not see conforming to the regulation as simply a burden, she said. There would also be benefits to securing authorization.

Once you get one license, you can also scale up the business within the EU, Ho noted. MiCA will allow businesses to "passport" their practices into other EU countries without further authorization, once they have gained a license in one.

She added that there could even be benefits beyond Europe if MiCA comes to be seen as the gold standard of crypto regulation.

If youve got the MiCA license, you are complying, youre being verified, she said. There are no standardized rules in any other part of the world.

Some even expect the standards set by MiCA to become commonplace in other countries. EU lawmakers have urged their counterparts around the world to take inspiration from the package when creating their own crypto rules.

Last month outspoken SEC commissioner Hester Perice said that regulation efforts in the EU and the UK could serve as a "model" for the U.S.
NIPPON STL & SU/S (OTCMKTS:NSSMY  Get Rating) shares reached a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as low as $6.88 and last traded at $7.02, with a volume of 21693 shares. The stock had previously closed at $6.85.

NIPPON STL & SU/S Trading Down 1.3 %

The company has a 50 day moving average of $7.13 and a 200-day moving average of $8.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 0.51 and a current ratio of 1.22. The stock has a market cap of $6.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 2.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.94 and a beta of 1.35.

About NIPPON STL & SU/S

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Nippon Steel & Sumitomo Metal Corporation engages in steelmaking and steel fabrication businesses worldwide. It operates in five segments: Steelmaking and Steel Fabrication, Engineering and Construction, Chemicals, New materials, and System Solutions. The company offers steel plates; hot- and cold-rolled steel sheets and coils, coated steel sheets, color coated steel sheets, electrolytic tin plates, and electrical steel sheets; bar and rod materials; and structural steel products.

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Sampo Oyj (OTCMKTS:SAXPY  Get Rating) was the recipient of a significant decline in short interest in the month of May. As of May 31st, there was short interest totalling 4,800 shares, a decline of 50.0% from the May 15th total of 9,600 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 71,200 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 0.1 days.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, HSBC upgraded Sampo Oyj from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report on Monday, February 20th.

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Sampo Oyj Trading Down 0.1 %

SAXPY stock traded down $0.02 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $23.16. 35,359 shares of the companys stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 30,931. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.32 and a quick ratio of 0.32. Sampo Oyj has a fifty-two week low of $19.82 and a fifty-two week high of $26.75. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $24.14 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $24.66. The company has a market capitalization of $23.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.83 and a beta of 0.91.

Sampo Oyj Cuts Dividend

Sampo Oyj ( OTCMKTS:SAXPY Get Rating ) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 10th. The financial services provider reported $0.30 earnings per share for the quarter. Equities research analysts forecast that Sampo Oyj will post 1.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The company also recently disclosed a dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 22nd will be paid a dividend of $0.8819 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 19th. This represents a dividend yield of 3.51%. Sampo Oyjs dividend payout ratio is currently 69.11%.

About Sampo Oyj

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Sampo Oyj engages in the administration of insurance subsidiaries and management of investment portfolio. It operates through the following segments: Property and Casualty Insurance, Life Insurance and Holding Business. The company was founded in 1909 and is headquartered in Helsinki, Finland.

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SFL Co. Ltd. (NYSE:SFL  Get Rating) announced a quarterly dividend on Monday, May 15th, Zacks reports. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 16th will be paid a dividend of 0.24 per share by the shipping company on Friday, June 30th. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 10.12%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 15th.

SFL has decreased its dividend payment by an average of 14.3% per year over the last three years and has raised its dividend every year for the last 3 years. SFL has a dividend payout ratio of 79.3% meaning its dividend is currently covered by earnings, but may not be in the future if the companys earnings decline.

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SFL Stock Up 1.9 %

Shares of NYSE SFL opened at $9.49 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $9.00 and a 200 day moving average price of $9.48. SFL has a 52 week low of $8.43 and a 52 week high of $11.51. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.47 and a beta of 0.78.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

SFL ( NYSE:SFL Get Rating ) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 15th. The shipping company reported $0.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The company had revenue of $173.27 million during the quarter. SFL had a net margin of 23.45% and a return on equity of 11.29%.

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its holdings in shares of SFL by 1.5% during the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,046,431 shares of the shipping companys stock worth $20,832,000 after buying an additional 30,763 shares in the last quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. grew its stake in SFL by 15.8% in the 1st quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 21,120 shares of the shipping companys stock worth $215,000 after acquiring an additional 2,889 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC acquired a new position in SFL in the 1st quarter valued at $126,000. Panagora Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of SFL during the 1st quarter worth $503,000. Finally, LSV Asset Management boosted its holdings in shares of SFL by 3,760.1% during the first quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 445,453 shares of the shipping companys stock worth $4,535,000 after purchasing an additional 433,913 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 31.18% of the companys stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on SFL shares. StockNews.com initiated coverage on SFL in a research report on Thursday, May 18th. They issued a hold rating for the company. DNB Markets cut shares of SFL from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 14th. TheStreet downgraded shares of SFL from a b rating to a c rating in a report on Monday, May 15th. Finally, B. Riley raised their price objective on shares of SFL from $11.50 to $12.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research note on Thursday, February 16th.

About SFL

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SFL Corp. Ltd. engages in the ownership and operation of vessels and offshore related assets. It is also involved in the charter, purchase, and sale of assets. The firm operates through subsidiaries located in Bermuda, Cyprus, Malta, Liberia, Norway, the United Kingdom, and the Marshall Islands. The company was founded on October 10, 2003 and is headquartered in Hamilton, Bermuda.

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Fresenius Medical Care AG & Co. KGaA (NYSE:FMS  Get Rating) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest during the month of May. As of May 31st, there was short interest totalling 2,570,000 shares, a growth of 70.2% from the May 15th total of 1,510,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 732,800 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.5 days.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Fresenius Medical Care AG & Co. KGaA

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Sandy Spring Bank acquired a new stake in Fresenius Medical Care AG & Co. KGaA in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Clear Street Markets LLC bought a new position in Fresenius Medical Care AG & Co. KGaA in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. American National Bank bought a new position in Fresenius Medical Care AG & Co. KGaA in the 1st quarter valued at $32,000. Assetmark Inc. increased its stake in shares of Fresenius Medical Care AG & Co. KGaA by 61.1% in the 1st quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 1,969 shares of the companys stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 747 shares during the period. Finally, Ronald Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake in shares of Fresenius Medical Care AG & Co. KGaA by 1,156.0% in the 4th quarter. Ronald Blue Trust Inc. now owns 3,366 shares of the companys stock valued at $48,000 after buying an additional 3,098 shares during the period. 5.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

FMS has been the subject of a number of research reports. HSBC cut shares of Fresenius Medical Care AG & Co. KGaA from a hold rating to a reduce rating in a report on Tuesday, March 7th. Truist Financial increased their target price on shares of Fresenius Medical Care AG & Co. KGaA from $22.00 to $24.00 and gave the company a hold rating in a research note on Thursday, April 13th. Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on shares of Fresenius Medical Care AG & Co. KGaA in a research note on Tuesday, March 7th. They issued a market perform rating on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Fresenius Medical Care AG & Co. KGaA from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research note on Friday, April 28th. Finally, StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Fresenius Medical Care AG & Co. KGaA in a report on Friday, June 9th. They set a buy rating on the stock. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the companys stock. According to MarketBeat, Fresenius Medical Care AG & Co. KGaA currently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $28.45.

Fresenius Medical Care AG & Co. KGaA Stock Performance

NYSE:FMS traded up $0.35 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $23.30. 265,907 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 785,860. Fresenius Medical Care AG & Co. KGaA has a twelve month low of $12.78 and a twelve month high of $26.56. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.64 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 1.32 and a quick ratio of 0.96. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $22.78 and a 200 day moving average price of $19.85.

Fresenius Medical Care AG & Co. KGaA (NYSE:FMS  Get Rating) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 9th. The company reported $0.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.18 by $0.10. Fresenius Medical Care AG & Co. KGaA had a return on equity of 5.44% and a net margin of 3.06%. The company had revenue of $5.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $4.98 billion. On average, analysts expect that Fresenius Medical Care AG & Co. KGaA will post 1.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Fresenius Medical Care AG & Co. KGaA Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed an annual dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, May 18th were paid a $0.7086 dividend. This represents a yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, May 17th. Fresenius Medical Care AG & Co. KGaAs dividend payout ratio is currently 38.68%.

About Fresenius Medical Care AG & Co. KGaA

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Fresenius Medical Care AG & Co KgaA engages in the provision of products and services for individuals with renal diseases of which regularly undergo dialysis treatment. It operates through the Care Enablement and Care Delivery segments. The Care Enablement segment is involved in the healthcare products business including research and development, manufacturing, supply chain, and commercial operations as well as supporting functions, such as regulatory and quality management.

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Madison County Financial, Inc. (OTCMKTS:MCBK  Get Rating) was the recipient of a large decline in short interest in the month of May. As of May 31st, there was short interest totalling 100 shares, a decline of 50.0% from the May 15th total of 200 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,500 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 0.1 days.

Madison County Financial Price Performance

Shares of MCBK stock remained flat at $25.00 during trading hours on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a current ratio of 0.93. Madison County Financial has a 12 month low of $21.00 and a 12 month high of $33.00. The companys 50-day simple moving average is $26.58 and its 200-day simple moving average is $28.76.

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Madison County Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 11th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 3rd were issued a $0.72 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 2nd. This represents a dividend yield of 2.48%. This is a positive change from Madison County Financials previous dividend of $0.69.

About Madison County Financial

Madison County Financial, Inc operates as the holding company for Madison County Bank that provides banking and financial services to individual and corporate customers in Nebraska, the United States. It offers deposits, such as checking, money market savings, savings, and individual retirement accounts, as well as certificates of deposit; credit and debit cards; home loans; and consumer loans, including home equity lines of credit, second mortgage, home improvement, recreational vehicle, personal, and overdraft protection loans, as well as loans for automobiles, trucks, and vans.

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Suncor Energy Inc. (TSE:SU  Get Rating) (NYSE:SU) shares crossed below its two hundred day moving average during trading on Monday . The stock has a two hundred day moving average of C$42.46 and traded as low as C$39.56. Suncor Energy shares last traded at C$39.74, with a volume of 12,188,520 shares trading hands.

Analyst Ratings Changes

SU has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price target on Suncor Energy from C$52.00 to C$51.00 and set an outperform rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, May 29th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their target price on shares of Suncor Energy from C$54.00 to C$52.00 in a report on Monday, April 17th. Scotiabank lowered their price target on shares of Suncor Energy from C$50.00 to C$47.00 in a report on Thursday, April 13th. Eight Capital upgraded Suncor Energy from a sell rating to a neutral rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from C$43.00 to C$50.00 in a report on Wednesday, February 22nd. Finally, National Bank Financial increased their target price on Suncor Energy from C$57.00 to C$60.00 in a research note on Tuesday, April 18th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the companys stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Suncor Energy currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of C$53.50.

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Suncor Energy Stock Down 0.7 %

The stock has a 50-day moving average of C$40.38 and a 200-day moving average of C$42.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 42.16, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 0.83. The firm has a market cap of C$52.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.67, a P/E/G ratio of 0.15 and a beta of 1.66.

Suncor Energy Dividend Announcement

Suncor Energy Company Profile

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 26th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 26th will be issued a dividend of $0.52 per share. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.24%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 2nd. Suncor Energys dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 34.67%.

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Suncor Energy Inc operates as an integrated energy company in Canada and internationally. It operates through Oil Sands; Exploration and Production; and Refining and Marketing segments. The Oil Sands segment explores, develops, and produces bitumen, synthetic crude oil, and related products. This segment also engages in syncrude oil sands mining and upgrading operations; and marketing, supply, transportation, and risk management of crude oil, natural gas, power, and byproducts.

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The Gabelli Equity Trust Inc. (NYSE:GAB  Get Rating) shares gapped down prior to trading on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $5.78, but opened at $5.66. The Gabelli Equity Trust shares last traded at $5.62, with a volume of 49,724 shares trading hands.

The Gabelli Equity Trust Price Performance

The company has a 50-day moving average of $5.57 and a 200-day moving average of $5.67.

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The Gabelli Equity Trust Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 23rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, June 15th will be given a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 10.70%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 14th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On The Gabelli Equity Trust

About The Gabelli Equity Trust

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in The Gabelli Equity Trust by 46.1% during the 1st quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 6,573 shares of the financial services providers stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 2,073 shares during the last quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of The Gabelli Equity Trust by 28.3% during the 1st quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 73,857 shares of the financial services providers stock worth $424,000 after purchasing an additional 16,284 shares in the last quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC raised its stake in shares of The Gabelli Equity Trust by 22.9% during the 1st quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC now owns 117,805 shares of the financial services providers stock worth $676,000 after purchasing an additional 21,973 shares in the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans raised its stake in shares of The Gabelli Equity Trust by 35.0% during the 1st quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 72,013 shares of the financial services providers stock worth $413,000 after purchasing an additional 18,665 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV raised its stake in shares of The Gabelli Equity Trust by 64.2% during the 1st quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 32,909 shares of the financial services providers stock worth $189,000 after purchasing an additional 12,870 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 7.58% of the companys stock.

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The Gabelli Equity Trust Inc is a closed ended equity mutual fund launched by GAMCO Investors, Inc The fund is managed by Gabelli Funds, LLC. It invests in public equity markets of the United States. The fund seeks to invest in stocks of companies operating across diversified sectors. It invests in preferred stock, convertible or exchangeable securities, and warrants and rights.

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Turkiye Garanti Bankasi A.S. (OTCMKTS:TKGBY  Get Rating) is one of 126 publicly-traded companies in the BanksRegional industry, but how does it weigh in compared to its rivals? We will compare Turkiye Garanti Bankasi A.S. to similar businesses based on the strength of its valuation, profitability, institutional ownership, risk, earnings, analyst recommendations and dividends.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Turkiye Garanti Bankasi A.S. and its rivals top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

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Gross Revenue Net Income Price/Earnings Ratio Turkiye Garanti Bankasi A.S. N/A N/A 1.65 Turkiye Garanti Bankasi A.S. Competitors $2.09 billion $494.96 million 558.36

Turkiye Garanti Bankasi A.S.s rivals have higher revenue and earnings than Turkiye Garanti Bankasi A.S.. Turkiye Garanti Bankasi A.S. is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than its rivals, indicating that it is currently more affordable than other companies in its industry.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

Profitability

45.8% of shares of all BanksRegional companies are held by institutional investors. 13.2% of shares of all BanksRegional companies are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

This table compares Turkiye Garanti Bankasi A.S. and its rivals net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets Turkiye Garanti Bankasi A.S. N/A N/A N/A Turkiye Garanti Bankasi A.S. Competitors 23.84% 10.28% 0.96%

Dividends

Turkiye Garanti Bankasi A.S. pays an annual dividend of $0.08 per share and has a dividend yield of 6.6%. Turkiye Garanti Bankasi A.S. pays out 10.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. As a group, BanksRegional companies pay a dividend yield of 2.7% and pay out 28.7% of their earnings in the form of a dividend. Turkiye Garanti Bankasi A.S. is clearly a better dividend stock than its rivals, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current ratings for Turkiye Garanti Bankasi A.S. and its rivals, as reported by MarketBeat.

Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score Turkiye Garanti Bankasi A.S. 0 2 1 0 2.33 Turkiye Garanti Bankasi A.S. Competitors 997 3015 2943 23 2.29

As a group, BanksRegional companies have a potential upside of 46.34%. Given Turkiye Garanti Bankasi A.S.s rivals higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Turkiye Garanti Bankasi A.S. has less favorable growth aspects than its rivals.

Summary

Turkiye Garanti Bankasi A.S. rivals beat Turkiye Garanti Bankasi A.S. on 10 of the 13 factors compared.

About Turkiye Garanti Bankasi A.S.

(Get Rating)

Turkiye Garanti Bankasi A.S. provides various banking products and services. It offers current, savings, time and term deposit, ELMA, structured deposit, and gold accounts; and general purpose, auto, revolving, house, discount, SME project, installment, working capital, foreign currency, mortgage, and other loans, as well as spot TL and foreign currency, letters of guarantee and reference, and overdraft accounts. The company also provides various cards; and auto, liability, health, unemployment, life, house, individual accident, automobile, business premises, fire, freight, engineering, accident, loan, and agriculture insurance products, as well as pension products. In addition, it offers mutual funds, T-bills/government bonds, Eurobonds, repos, equities, dual currency deposit transactions, Turkish derivatives exchange, e-trader, forward transactions, and taxation services; cash management services; and SME specific products, such as support packages, foreign trade financing and legislation, and related services. Further, the company provides leasing, fleet management, factoring, investment and private banking, payment, safety box, and Internet and mobile/SMS banking services. As of May 18, 2022, Turkiye Garanti Bankasi A.S. operates as a subsidiary of Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, S.A.

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Universal Health Realty Income Trust (NYSE:UHT  Get Rating) announced a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, June 7th, Wall Street Journal reports. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 20th will be paid a dividend of 0.72 per share by the real estate investment trust on Friday, June 30th. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.91%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 16th. This is a positive change from Universal Health Realty Income Trusts previous quarterly dividend of $0.72.

Universal Health Realty Income Trust has increased its dividend by an average of 1.5% per year over the last three years and has raised its dividend annually for the last 37 consecutive years.

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Universal Health Realty Income Trust Stock Performance

Universal Health Realty Income Trust stock opened at $48.70 on Wednesday. Universal Health Realty Income Trust has a 1-year low of $40.92 and a 1-year high of $57.52. The company has a current ratio of 2.10, a quick ratio of 2.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.57. The firm has a market capitalization of $672.06 million, a PE ratio of 33.36 and a beta of 0.87. The firms 50 day simple moving average is $45.48 and its 200 day simple moving average is $49.15.

Insider Activity

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Universal Health Realty Income Trust

In related news, CEO Alan B. Miller acquired 2,395 shares of the firms stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 3rd. The shares were bought at an average cost of $43.18 per share, for a total transaction of $103,416.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 147,141 shares in the company, valued at $6,353,548.38. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link . Corporate insiders own 2.08% of the companys stock.

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Harbour Investments Inc. raised its position in shares of Universal Health Realty Income Trust by 57.1% during the 4th quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 550 shares of the real estate investment trusts stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main purchased a new stake in Universal Health Realty Income Trust during the second quarter valued at about $69,000. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its stake in Universal Health Realty Income Trust by 45.4% during the third quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 3,440 shares of the real estate investment trusts stock worth $149,000 after purchasing an additional 1,074 shares during the last quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky purchased a new position in shares of Universal Health Realty Income Trust in the 3rd quarter worth about $171,000. Finally, BNP Paribas Arbitrage SNC bought a new position in shares of Universal Health Realty Income Trust during the 3rd quarter valued at about $192,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 63.50% of the companys stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, StockNews.com began coverage on Universal Health Realty Income Trust in a research note on Thursday, May 18th. They set a hold rating for the company.

About Universal Health Realty Income Trust

(Get Rating)

Universal Health Realty Income Trust operates as a real estate investment trust. It engages in investing and leasing healthcare and human service facilities through direct ownership or joint ventures. The firm focuses on investing in acute care hospitals, rehabilitation hospitals, sub-acute facilities, medical office buildings, free-standing emergency departments, and childcare centers.

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Stock analysts at BNP Paribas initiated coverage on shares of Walmart (NYSE:WMT  Get Rating) in a research note issued on Monday, MarketBeat.com reports. The firm set an outperform rating and a $186.00 price target on the retailers stock. BNP Paribas price objective would indicate a potential upside of 19.77% from the stocks current price.

Several other equities analysts have also recently commented on WMT. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on shares of Walmart from $157.00 to $161.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 6th. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Walmart from $168.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a report on Thursday, April 6th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on shares of Walmart from $160.00 to $164.00 in a research note on Friday, May 19th. Roth Capital restated a buy rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Tuesday, February 14th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Walmart from $155.00 to $157.00 in a research note on Friday, May 19th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-five have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the companys stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Walmart currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $166.91.

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Walmart Price Performance

WMT stock opened at $155.30 on Monday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $150.37 and a 200-day moving average of $146.11. Walmart has a 12-month low of $117.90 and a 12-month high of $155.51. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. The company has a market cap of $418.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.33, a PEG ratio of 4.48 and a beta of 0.49.

Insider Activity

Walmart ( NYSE:WMT Get Rating ) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 18th. The retailer reported $1.47 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.32 by $0.15. Walmart had a net margin of 1.82% and a return on equity of 21.30%. The firm had revenue of $152.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $147.91 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.30 EPS. Walmarts revenue for the quarter was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts expect that Walmart will post 6.21 EPS for the current fiscal year.

In other news, Director S Robson Walton sold 170,587 shares of the firms stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.12, for a total transaction of $25,608,520.44. Following the transaction, the director now owns 244,364,516 shares in the company, valued at approximately $36,684,001,141.92. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, Director S Robson Walton sold 170,587 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.12, for a total value of $25,608,520.44. Following the transaction, the director now owns 244,364,516 shares in the company, valued at approximately $36,684,001,141.92. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Alice L. Walton sold 1,957,377 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction on Monday, March 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $140.72, for a total transaction of $275,442,091.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 255,973,516 shares in the company, valued at approximately $36,020,593,171.52. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 12,945,443 shares of company stock worth $1,859,668,300. 46.51% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Fiduciary Alliance LLC bought a new position in shares of Walmart during the 4th quarter worth about $443,000. Spotlight Asset Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Walmart during the 3rd quarter worth about $536,000. Merit Financial Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Walmart by 77.9% during the 4th quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 20,181 shares of the retailers stock valued at $2,862,000 after acquiring an additional 8,840 shares in the last quarter. PFS Investments Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Walmart during the 3rd quarter valued at about $355,000. Finally, Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky acquired a new stake in shares of Walmart during the 3rd quarter valued at about $17,529,000. Institutional investors own 31.27% of the companys stock.

About Walmart

(Get Rating)

Walmart, Inc engages in retail and wholesale business. The company offers an assortment of merchandise and services at everyday low prices. It operates through the following business segments: Walmart U.S., Walmart International, and Sams Club. The Walmart U.S. segment operates as a merchandiser of consumer products, operating under the Walmart, Wal-Mart, and Walmart Neighborhood Market brands, as well as walmart.com and other eCommerce brands.

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Wendel (OTCMKTS:WNDLF  Get Rating) is one of 1,114 public companies in the Asset Management industry, but how does it weigh in compared to its competitors? We will compare Wendel to similar businesses based on the strength of its earnings, analyst recommendations, risk, dividends, valuation, institutional ownership and profitability.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

12.6% of Wendel shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 32.6% of shares of all Asset Management companies are held by institutional investors. 18.0% of shares of all Asset Management companies are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

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Dividends

Wendel pays an annual dividend of $1.85 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.7%. Wendel pays out 109.1% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. As a group, Asset Management companies pay a dividend yield of 7.0% and pay out 645.7% of their earnings in the form of a dividend.

Profitability

Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets Wendel N/A N/A N/A Wendel Competitors 373.31% 7.86% 4.93%

Analyst Recommendations

This table compares Wendel and its competitors net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

This is a breakdown of current ratings and price targets for Wendel and its competitors, as provided by MarketBeat.

Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score Wendel 0 0 0 0 N/A Wendel Competitors 969 4144 5298 78 2.43

Wendel presently has a consensus target price of $110.00, indicating a potential upside of 1.71%. As a group, Asset Management companies have a potential upside of 33.83%. Given Wendels competitors higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Wendel has less favorable growth aspects than its competitors.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Wendel and its competitors gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

Gross Revenue Net Income Price/Earnings Ratio Wendel N/A N/A 63.80 Wendel Competitors $458.40 million $3.97 million 8.95

Wendels competitors have higher revenue and earnings than Wendel. Wendel is trading at a higher price-to-earnings ratio than its competitors, indicating that it is currently more expensive than other companies in its industry.

Summary

Wendel competitors beat Wendel on 8 of the 10 factors compared.

Wendel Company Profile

(Get Rating)

Wendel SE engages in the acquisition and management of investment portfolios. The company is involved in long-term investment in industrial, media, and services companies. It also acquires portfolios from companies, which are engaged in energy, real estate, biotechnology, media, and advertising sectors. The company was founded in 1704 and is headquartered in Paris, France.

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The Western Investment Company of Canada Limited (CVE:WI  Get Rating) shares traded down 1.4% on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as C$0.36 and last traded at C$0.36. 43,000 shares were traded during trading, an increase of 59% from the average session volume of 27,102 shares. The stock had previously closed at C$0.36.

Western Investment Company of Canada Stock Down 1.4 %

The company has a market cap of C$10.74 million, a P/E ratio of 17.75 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 47.15, a current ratio of 0.02 and a quick ratio of 0.07. The companys 50-day moving average is C$0.36 and its two-hundred day moving average is C$0.37.

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Western Investment Company of Canada (CVE:WI  Get Rating) last issued its earnings results on Friday, May 26th. The company reported C$0.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Western Investment Company of Canada had a net margin of 29.16% and a return on equity of 4.62%. The company had revenue of C$0.54 million for the quarter.

Insider Transactions at Western Investment Company of Canada

About Western Investment Company of Canada

In other news, Director Scott Tannas sold 75,000 shares of Western Investment Company of Canada stock in a transaction on Monday, March 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of C$0.38, for a total transaction of C$28,500.00. Corporate insiders own 11.26% of the companys stock.

(Get Rating)

The Western Investment Company of Canada Limited, is a private equity firm specializing in buyout and middle market investments. It seeks investments in retail and distribution, human services, agriculture and related services and special situations. The firm prefers to invest in USA and Canada with a focus in companies which are headquartered in Western Canada like Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba and Saskatchewan.

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American Eagle Outfitters, Inc. (NYSE:AEO  Get Rating)  Stock analysts at Zacks Research lowered their Q2 2024 earnings per share estimates for American Eagle Outfitters in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday, June 7th. Zacks Research analyst R. Lohia now forecasts that the apparel retailer will post earnings of $0.12 per share for the quarter, down from their previous forecast of $0.16. The consensus estimate for American Eagle Outfitters current full-year earnings is $1.01 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for American Eagle Outfitters FY2024 earnings at $1.00 EPS, Q2 2025 earnings at $0.13 EPS, Q4 2025 earnings at $0.30 EPS and FY2025 earnings at $0.95 EPS.

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American Eagle Outfitters (NYSE:AEO  Get Rating) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 24th. The apparel retailer reported $0.17 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts consensus estimates of $0.17. The firm had revenue of $1.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $1.07 billion. American Eagle Outfitters had a net margin of 2.23% and a return on equity of 12.89%. The companys quarterly revenue was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.16 EPS.

American Eagle Outfitters Trading Up 0.7 %

Other analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. UBS Group dropped their price target on American Eagle Outfitters from $22.00 to $19.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 29th. StockNews.com began coverage on American Eagle Outfitters in a research note on Thursday, May 18th. They issued a hold rating on the stock. Citigroup lowered their price target on American Eagle Outfitters from $17.00 to $14.00 in a research report on Thursday, May 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of American Eagle Outfitters from $14.00 to $15.00 in a research note on Monday, May 8th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group restated a market perform rating and set a $17.00 price objective on shares of American Eagle Outfitters in a research note on Thursday, March 2nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $13.38.

NYSE:AEO opened at $11.81 on Monday. American Eagle Outfitters has a one year low of $9.46 and a one year high of $17.09. The companys 50-day simple moving average is $12.60 and its 200 day simple moving average is $14.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.47, a PEG ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 1.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a current ratio of 1.58 and a quick ratio of 0.70.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in American Eagle Outfitters by 0.4% during the first quarter. FMR LLC now owns 28,228,744 shares of the apparel retailers stock valued at $379,394,000 after purchasing an additional 117,903 shares in the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. increased its stake in American Eagle Outfitters by 25.9% in the 3rd quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 24,356,394 shares of the apparel retailers stock worth $236,988,000 after buying an additional 5,013,262 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in American Eagle Outfitters by 15.6% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 17,571,205 shares of the apparel retailers stock valued at $170,967,000 after acquiring an additional 2,369,726 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of American Eagle Outfitters by 26.1% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 9,231,083 shares of the apparel retailers stock valued at $124,063,000 after acquiring an additional 1,913,492 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cooke & Bieler LP boosted its stake in shares of American Eagle Outfitters by 10.1% in the third quarter. Cooke & Bieler LP now owns 8,399,160 shares of the apparel retailers stock worth $81,724,000 after acquiring an additional 771,320 shares during the period. 93.34% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other American Eagle Outfitters news, EVP Michael R. Rempell sold 2,967 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $13.56, for a total transaction of $40,232.52. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 172,003 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,332,360.68. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, EVP Michael R. Rempell sold 5,761 shares of the firms stock in a transaction on Friday, March 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $13.33, for a total value of $76,794.13. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 172,003 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $2,292,799.99. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Michael R. Rempell sold 2,967 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.56, for a total value of $40,232.52. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 172,003 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $2,332,360.68. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 24,205 shares of company stock valued at $321,515 in the last ninety days. 7.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

American Eagle Outfitters Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 7th will be paid a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 6th. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.39%. American Eagle Outfitterss dividend payout ratio is presently 72.73%.

American Eagle Outfitters Company Profile

(Get Rating)

American Eagle Outfitters, Inc is a multi-brand specialty retailer, which offers an assortment of apparel and accessories for men and women under the American Eagle Outfitters brand, and intimates, apparel and personal care products for women under the Aerie brand. The firm operates stores in the United States, Canada, Mexico, Hong Kong, China and the United Kingdom.

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YUMAI, June 13 (Xinhua)  Located at the southern foot of the Himalayas, Yumai once had a population of three  Zhoigar, her sister Yangzom and their father Sangye Quba, who was the former township head and passed away in 2001. Taking her father's walking stick, Zhoigar followed in her father's footsteps and patrolled the border.

Her father instilled in her the attitude that "protecting the land beneath your feet is to protect your country," and so Zhoigar braved wind and snow, and persisted in her career.

Before Sangye Quba's death, he expressed his belief that the authority would develop Yumai well.

Since 2018, Yumai has embarked on the construction of a prosperous border township with steel-framed houses, drainage, schools, and parks popping up one after another. In 2019, a reconstruction project of the 50-kilometer paved road connecting Yumai to a neighboring township was completed, ending the trouble of being snowbound every year. Additionally, the State Grid extended a 10-kilovolt power transmission line to Yumai, providing stable and secure electricity.

Nowadays, Sangye Quba's wish has been fulfilled. The once three-person township is home to over 200 people and oversees two villages. In 2022, the per capita annual income in Yumai reached nearly 44,000 yuan (about 6,142.8 U.S. dollars) with a per capita residential area of 40 square meters.

This photo taken on June 11, 2023 shows houses at Yumai Township in Shannan City, southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region. [Xinhua/Fei Maohua]

This photo taken on June 10, 2023 shows houses at Yumai Township in Shannan City, southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region. [Xinhua/Fei Maohua]

Yangzom walks out of the cabin to milk at Yumai Township in Shannan City, southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region, June 10, 2023. [Xinhua/Fei Maohua]

Zhoigar (L) and Yangzom talk with people in a street at Yumai Township in Shannan City, southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region, June 10, 2023. [Xinhua/Jigme Dorje]

Zhoigar makes butter at Yumai Township in Shannan City, southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region, June 10, 2023. [Xinhua/Jigme Dorje]

A staff member registers express parcels at a post office in Yumai Township in Shannan City, southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region, June 10, 2023. [Xinhua/Jigme Dorje]

A staff member of the State Grid helps a customer pay electricity bill at Yumai Township in Shannan City, southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region, June 10, 2023. [Xinhua/Jigme Dorje]

This aerial photo taken on June 10, 2023 shows Yumai Township in Shannan City, southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region. [Xinhua/Jigme Dorje]

Yangzom milks at Yumai Township in Shannan City, southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region, June 10, 2023. [Xinhua/Jigme Dorje]

This aerial photo taken on June 11, 2023 shows Yumai Township in Shannan City, southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region. [Xinhua/Fei Maohua]

A child is pictured at Yumai Township in Shannan City, southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region, June 10, 2023. [Xinhua/Jigme Dorje]

Zhoigar recalls her father at Yumai Township in Shannan City, southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region, June 10, 2023. [Xinhua/Fei Maohua]

People buy fruit and vegetable at Yumai Township in Shannan City, southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region, June 10, 2023. [Xinhua/Jigme Dorje]

Yangzom milks at Yumai Township in Shannan City, southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region, June 10, 2023. [Xinhua/Fei Maohua]

(Source: Xinhua)
Weather Alert

...FLOOD WATCH IN EFFECT FROM MIDNIGHT CDT TONIGHT THROUGH THURSDAY MORNING... * WHAT...Flooding caused by excessive rainfall is possible. * WHERE...Portions of southern Illinois, western Kentucky and southeast Missouri, including the following areas, in southern Illinois, Alexander, Franklin, Hardin, Jackson, Johnson, Massac, Perry IL, Pope, Pulaski, Saline, Union and Williamson. In western Kentucky, Ballard, Caldwell, Calloway, Carlisle, Christian, Crittenden, Fulton, Graves, Hickman, Livingston, Lyon, Marshall, McCracken, Todd and Trigg. In southeast Missouri, Bollinger, Cape Girardeau, Mississippi, Perry MO and Scott. * WHEN...From Midnight CDT tonight through Thursday morning. * IMPACTS...Excessive runoff may result in flooding of rivers, creeks, streams, and other low-lying and flood-prone locations. * ADDITIONAL DETAILS... - While rainfall from heavy rain and storms late tonight through Thursday morning will be around an inch with locally higher amounts, locations which experienced torrential rainfall this week have ground conditions susceptible to additional flooding. - http://www.weather.gov/safety/flood PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS... You should monitor later forecasts and be alert for possible Flood Warnings. Those living in areas prone to flooding, and especially those who experienced flooding Tuesday night into Wednesday, should be prepared to take action should flooding develop. &&

The National Weather Service in Paducah has issued a * Flash Flood Warning for... Massac County in southern Illinois... Pulaski County in southern Illinois... Central Ballard County in western Kentucky... Graves County in western Kentucky... McCracken County in western Kentucky... * Until 500 PM CDT. * At 1230 PM CDT, emergency management reported flash flooding across the warned area. Many roads remain closed and some water rescues continue. HAZARD...Life threatening flash flooding. Heavy rain producing flash flooding. SOURCE...Emergency management reported. IMPACT...Life threatening flash flooding of creeks and streams, urban areas, highways, streets and underpasses. * Some locations that will experience flash flooding include... Paducah, Metropolis, La Center, Lone Oak, Reidland, Brookport, Mounds, Barlow, Mound City, Karnak, Barkley Regional Airport, West Paducah, New Columbia, Lynnville, Ullin, Kevil, Joppa, Olmsted, Water Valley and New Grand Chain. After coordinating with Emergency Management officials, this Flash Flood Warning will replace the Flash Flood Emergency in effect for Pulaski, Ballard and McCracken counties. While considerable flooding issues persist, rains have let up and there has been some improvement in overall conditions. PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS... Turn around, don't drown when encountering flooded roads. Most flood deaths occur in vehicles. && FLASH FLOOD...OBSERVED; FLASH FLOOD DAMAGE THREAT...CONSIDERABLE
LONDON, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- On June 8th, 2023 BE OPEN Art, an online art gallery set up by BE OPEN think tank, a humanitarian initiative founded by international businessperson and philanthropist Elena Baturina, held an opening ceremony for the BE OPEN Regional Art: the Eastern Mediterranean art competition.

Founder of BE OPEN Elena Baturina and Artist of the Region Jovanna Theodosiou

The exhibition will be open to public until June 21st at the Centre of Visual Arts and Research in Nicosia. It is dedicated to celebrating the emerging artists of the Eastern Mediterranean and displays the artworks selected by the public and BE OPEN experts in the course of a region-based competition that lasted from January to March 2023.

Every month, works by 20 emerging artists from Cyprus, Turkey, the Greek Dodecanese islands, and the countries of Lebanon, Syria, Palestine, Israel, Jordan and Egypt were posted at the online gallery, for the public to select the Regional Artist of the Month.

Based on the general amount of votes, Jovanna Theodosiou was selected as the Artist of the Region for the Eastern Mediterranean. Jovanna studied Fine Art in Kingston University, UK, and currently lives and works in Nicosia, Cyprus. As a regional winner, she received a money prize of EUR500 and a major representation at the exhibition.

The exhibition featured woks by other regional artists: Chrystalla Tsiamparta, Cyprus; Aya Abou Hawash, Palestine and Lebanon; Christina Kyriakou, Cyprus; Abdelrahman Mahmoud, Egypt; Jamilee Doueihy, Lebanon; Dimitrios Ikonomou, Nicolaou Pantelis and Elena Adamou from Cyprus.

The exhibition enjoyed cordial support from the Ministry of Education of Cyprus: "We are glad to see creative Cyprus youth benefit from BE OPEN's international initiative that offers much needed support to young artists. This exhibition will become a celebration of our artistic and cultural tradition. We hope that such philanthropic projects will help more of our creative young people become acknowledged and appreciated in Cyprus and internationally. Furthermore, it will contribute to the achievement of the Government's objectives of providing opportunities for all our children and young people to develop their talents and abilities to the fullest extent possible," said Minister of Education Dr Athena Michaelidou.

Eleni Loukalidou, Municipal Councilor Nicosia and President of European Affairs Committee, greeted the artists and guests on behalf of the city of Nicosia: "I am greeting you all at this celebration of arts, youth, creativity and talent of Cyprus and other Eastern Mediterranean countries, conceived and organised by BE OPEN Foundation. Being a very important part of our rich and ancient culture, visual arts have always played an immense role in the expression of who we are as a person, as a people, as part of the bigger world. We are very glad that thanks to BE OPEN Regional Art programme and this exhibition, more people around the world will learn the names of Cyprus's young and talented. Hope this becomes the beginning of your great future."

When awarding the winner, the Founder of BE OPEN Elena Baturina said: "We set up BE OPEN Art with the sole purpose to showcase and support emerging talents. So many young artists all over the world deserve to be seen, and BE OPEN is happy to contribute to their artistic aspirations, to help them get deserved attention and an opportunity to have their say in the art. Our congratulations, this certificate and a money prize go to Jovanna Theodosiou. We wish Jovanna to keep following her heart, and the best of luck in her artistic future."

BE OPEN Regional Art is a series of competitions for emerging artists, aimed to support those whose art best represents their regional, cultural and ethnic identities. Each regional stage lasts three months, therefore four stages will be run a year, with a winner named for each of them. The regional winners get the money prize of EUR500, while a selection of artwork best representing the region form an exhibition, in order to share the art with the wide public and celebrate the artists involved. The ongoing stage of the regional programme is held in the Caribbean, and then BE OPEN Regional Art will travel to Southeast Asia and Central Africa at the end of the year.

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2097715/BE_OPEN_Foundation.jpg

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View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/elena-baturina-and-be-open-art-awarded-the-first-artist-of-the-region-at-a-celebratory-ceremony-in-nicosia-cyprus-301850521.html

SOURCE BE OPEN Foundation
FILE PHOTO: The logo for Google LLC is seen at the Google Store Chelsea in Manhattan, New York City

Google faces EU break-up order over anti-competitive adtech practices FILE PHOTO: The logo for Google LLC is seen at the Google Store Chelsea in Manhattan, New York City

By Foo Yun Chee

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Alphabet's Google may have to sell part of its lucrative adtech business to address concerns about anti-competitive practices, EU regulators said on Wednesday, threatening the company with its harshest regulatory penalty to date.

The European Commission set out its charges in a statement of objections to Google two years after opening an investigation into behaviours such as favouring its own advertising services, which could also lead to a fine of as much as 10% of Google's annual global turnover.

The stakes are higher for Google in this latest clash with regulators as it concerns the company's biggest money maker, with the advertising business accounting for 79% of total revenue last year.

Its 2022 advertising revenue, including from search services, Gmail, Google Play, Google Maps, YouTube adverts, Google Ad Manager, AdMob and AdSense, amounted to $224.5 billion.

Google has a few months to respond to the charge. It can also ask for a closed hearing in front of senior Commission antitrust officials and their national counterparts before the EU issues a decision in a process that could take a year or more. The company also could potentially settle by offering stronger remedies than previously proposed.

EU antitrust chief Margrethe Vestager said Google may have to sell part of its adtech business because a behavioural remedy is unlikely to be effective at stopping the anti-competitive practices.

"For instance, Google could divest its sell-side tools, DFP and AdX. By doing so, we would put an end to the conflicts of interest," she told a news conference.

"Of course I know this is a strong statement but it is a reflection of the nature of the markets, how they function and also why a behavioural commitment seemed to be out of the question."

Google said it disagreed with the Commission's charge.

"The Commission's investigation focuses on a narrow aspect of our advertising business and is not new. We disagree with the EC's view," Dan Taylor, Google's vice president of global ads, said in a statement.

Vestager said investigations would continue into Google's introduction of a privacy sandbox set of tools to block third party cookies on its Chrome browser and its plan to stop making the advertising identifier available to third parties on Android smartphones.

She said the EU had closely cooperated with competition authorities in the United States and the UK.

The European Publishers Council, which filed a complaint to the Commission last year, welcomed the charge.

The Commission said Google favours its own online display advertising technology services to the detriment of competing providers of advertising technology services, advertisers and online publishers.

It said Google has abused its dominance since 2014 by favouring its own ad exchange AdX in the ad selection auction by its dominant publisher ad server DFP, and also by favouring AdX in the way its ad buying tools Google Ads and DV360 place bids on ad exchanges.

Google is the world's dominant digital advertising platform with a 28% market share of global ad revenue, according to research firm Insider Intelligence.

Google had sought to settle the case three months after the investigation was opened but regulators grew frustrated with the slow pace and the lack of substantial concessions, a person familiar with the matter told Reuters previously.

(Reporting by Foo Yun Chee, additional reporting by Sudip Kar-Gupta; Editing by Philip Blenkinsop, Kirsten Donovan and Lisa Shumaker)
By Foo Yun Chee and Supantha Mukherjee

BRUSSELS/STOCKHOLM (Reuters) -European Union lawmakers on Wednesday agreed changes to draft artificial intelligence rules to include a ban on the use of the technology in biometric surveillance and for generative AI systems like ChatGPT to disclose AI-generated content.

The amendments to the EU Commission's proposed landmark law aimed at protecting citizens from the dangers of the technology could set up a clash with EU countries opposed to a total ban on AI use in biometric surveillance.

The rapid adoption of Microsoft-backed OpenAI's ChatGPT and other bots has led top AI scientists and company executives including Tesla's Elon Musk and OpenAI's Sam Altman to raise the potential risks posed to society.

"While Big Tech companies are sounding the alarm over their own creations, Europe has gone ahead and proposed a concrete response to the risks AI is starting to pose," said Brando Benifei, co-rapporteur of the bill.

Among other changes, European Union lawmakers want any company using generative tools to disclose copyrighted material used to train its systems and for companies working on "high-risk application" to do a fundamental rights impact assessment and evaluate environmental impact.

Systems like ChatGPT would have to disclose that the content was AI-generated, help distinguish so-called deep-fake images from real ones and ensure safeguards against illegal content.

Microsoft and IBM welcomed the latest move by EU lawmakers but looked forward to further refinement of the proposed legislation.

"We believe that AI requires legislative guardrails, alignment efforts at an international level, and meaningful voluntary actions by companies that develop and deploy AI," a Microsoft spokesperson said.

The lawmakers will now have to thrash out details with EU countries before the draft rules become legislation.

'AI IS INTRINSICALLY GOOD'

While most big tech companies acknowledge the risks posed by AI, others like Meta, which owns Facebook and Instagram, have dismissed warnings about the potential dangers.

"AI is intrinsically good, because the effect of AI is to make people smarter," Meta's chief AI scientist Yann LeCun said at a conference in Paris on Wednesday.

In the current draft EU law, AI systems that could be used to influence voters and the outcome of elections and systems used by social media platforms with over 45 million users were added to the high-risk list.

Meta and Twitter will fall under that classification.

"AI raises a lot of questions  socially, ethically, economically. But now is not the time to hit any 'pause button'. On the contrary, it is about acting fast and taking responsibility," EU industry chief Thierry Breton said.

He said he would travel to the United States next week to meet Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and OpenAI's Altman to discuss the draft AI Act.

The Commission announced the draft rules two years ago, aiming to setting a global standard for a technology key to almost every industry and business as the EU seeks to catch up to AI leaders the United States and China.

(Reporting by Foo Yun Chee and Bart Meijers in Brussels, Supantha Mukherjee in Stockholm; Additional reporting by Mimosa Spencer in Paris, Editing by Emelia Sithole-Matarise)
The imprisonment of 44-year-old mother of three Carla Foster for inducing an abortion after the legal limit has exposed the UKs archaic abortion legislation and highlighted the increasingly aggressive use of state power against societys most vulnerable.

Sentenced to 28 months by Justice Edward Pepperall, Foster will serve half of it in custody and the rest on license. She pleaded guilty in March under the Offences Against the Person Act 1861, which carries a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.

The UK's Royal Courts of Justice [Photo by Mike Peel / Wikimedia / CC BY-SA 4.0

The law criminalises Every woman, being with child, who, with intent to procure her own miscarriage, shall unlawfully administer to herself any poison or other noxious thing, or shall unlawfully use any instrument or other means whatsoever with the like intent. The Abortion Act 1967 left the old law in place, but created a legal defence for abortion if two registered medical practitioners are of the opinion that the pregnancy poses a:

Risk to the life of the mother (this had been in place since 1929).

Risk of grave injury to the physical or mental health of the mother.

Substantial risk that the child would suffer from seriously handicapping physical or mental abnormalities.

Up to 24 weeks of pregnancy, risk of injury to the physical or mental health of the pregnant woman or any existing children of her family.

The vast majority of abortions are carried out on this last ground.

In other words, women in Britain do not have a right to abortion, only exemption from prosecution if certain conditions are metthe same as the legal status of strike action. The Abortion (Northern Ireland) Regulations 2020 allows abortion up to the twelfth week of pregnancy without conditions.

Foster terminated her pregnancy after 32-34 weeks using medication received through a pills by post scheme set up during the Covid pandemic, after lying to the British Pregnancy Advisory Service (BPAS) about how advanced her term was. She discovered she was pregnant in December 2019 and contacted BPAS in May 2020 after Googling, How to hide a pregnancy bump, I need to have an abortion but Im past 24 weeks.

It is clear she received no support under immensely difficult personal circumstances and has suffered enormously for what happened. According to the BBC, The court heard she had moved back in with her estranged partner at the start of lockdown while carrying another mans baby.

The judges decision acknowledged that she had been in emotional turmoil at the time, was now racked by guilt and had suffered depression. I also accept that you had a very deep emotional attachment to your unborn child and that you are plagued by nightmares and flashbacks to seeing your dead childs face. After taking the medication, she had to be admitted to hospital.

Pepperalls comment during sentencing that if Foster had plead guilty at her first opportunity, a custodial sentence could have been avoided is vindictiveespecially given that the charges against her switched from child destruction to administering drugs or using instruments to procure abortion after the legal limit.

The courts decision received widespread professional condemnation. Chief executive of BPAS Clare Murphy said she was shocked and appalled by the verdict and called for abortion law reform.

A letter sent to Pepperall in April by organisations including the Royal College of Midwives and the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists warned of the chilling impact of a custodial sentence. Both groups, and the British Medical Association, have called for abortion to be decriminalised.

Murphy pointed out, Over the last three years, there has been an increase in the numbers of women and girls facing the trauma of lengthy police investigations and threatened with up to life imprisonment under our archaic abortion law. These include a 15-year-old girl subjected to a year-long investigation after an early stillbirth. A mother of one served two years in prison after inducing a traumatic miscarriage in 2019 much later in her pregnancy than she realised under pressure from an abusive partner not to see a doctor.

Moves to imprison these individuals reflect an attitude of hardened indifference and callous cruelty in the legal system and the ruling class, akin to the Victorian elite who implemented the original 1860s law. Feeling the capitalist system they defend exposed, judges and politicians are less and less able to acknowledge the damning social causes and necessarily fundamental social solutions to personal tragedies, shifting the blame by branding individuals.

In the case of abortions carried out beyond the legal limit, women are crushed for actions only ever taken in extremis. Fully 89 percent of abortions in 2021 were performed within 10 weeksup from 78 percent in 2011. Just 1 percent were performed at 20 weeks. Legal post-24-week abortions make up just 0.1 percent of the total.

Fosters treatment cannot be separated from the reactionary trend in bourgeois politics expressed and advanced by the June 2022 overturning of Roe v. Wade in the United States, effectively denying millions of American women any right to an abortion.

All manner of far-right and ultra-conservative religious elements are being mobilised by the ruling class to strengthen itself against a looming social explosion. Last summer, the UK government dropped commitments to abortion and sexual health rights from a statement on gender equality following a UK-hosted conference on freedom of religion and beliefto which co-chair of the parliamentary pro-life group Fiona Bruce MP was appointed the prime ministers special envoy.

Bringing an end to cases such as Fosters means a political fight against these forces, defending individuals from the punitive scapegoating of the state and securing reproductive rights together with a massive improvement in pre-natal care, availability of medical services and all forms of maternal and family support. The constituency for this programme is the working class which bears the brunt of state cruelty and must take up these causes as part of the socialist movement against social inequality, authoritarianism and war.
A firefighter views the aftermath of an elevated section of Interstate 95 that collapsed in Philadelphia, Monday, June 12, 2023. [AP Photo/Matt Rourke]

On Sunday, a bridge collapsed on Interstate 95 in north Philadelphia as a result of a massive tanker truck fire. The damaged section of the interstatethe most important thoroughfare on the East Coastwill remain closed for months while the damage is repaired.

One body has been found. The deceased has not been officially identified, but is presumed to be the driver, Nathaniel Moody, 53, of New Jersey. Moody, who was transporting gasoline to a local distributor when he lost control of the truck, had over 10 years of experience on the job and was certified to handle hazardous materials. He leaves behind a girlfriend and a seven-year-old daughter.

I am kind of baffled, Moodys cousin, Isaac, told a local news station. I am trying to not cry because I dont know what happened. Isaac, who is himself a truck driver, stressed that his cousin was very experienced, according to the news story.

The truck owners, K Transport and Penn Tank Lines, have yet to comment.

The disaster occurred when the tanker, carrying 8,500 gallons of gasoline, crashed and caught fire under an overpass, sending thick black smoke across the area. The fire was reported at 6:20 a.m., and firefighters arrived around 10 minutes later. The blaze became so hot that it began to weaken the steel girders of the bridge abovesteel begins to lose structural strength at about 750 degrees. The fire was not extinguished until the afternoon.

The death toll could have been worse. In spite of the fire below, motorists continued to use the overpass above, very likely hastening the bridges eventual collapse. One driver, Mark Fusetti, took a video showing a depression emerging in the highway, while thick black smoke whirled around. He described the sensation of driving on the overpass prior to the collapse as similar to driving off a curb.

In response to the disaster, Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro declared an emergency, which allows the state to access federal funds. Shapiro also made $7 million available for reconstruction efforts of the highway.

When asked about how long it could take to repair the damaged section of the interstate, Shapiro said it could take some number of months.

I-95 is a major interstate, daily handling millions of motorists and up to $200 billion of goods and services up and down the East Coast from Maines Canadian border to Miami. In its center, I-95 links the major cities of Washington D.C., Baltimore, Philadelphia, New York City and Boston, a vast urban zone inhabited by some 55 million people. The damaged stretch of the road alone carries 160,000 people per day.

The media have not reported on Moodys work conditions, but his family stated that he worked overnight, which means he may have been near completion of a long shift when the disaster took place at 6 a.m.

Trucking is one of the most dangerous professions in the US. The National Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries reports that around one in seven workplace deaths occur in the trucking industry. Truckers are ruthlessly exploited by owners. Of the more than 5,000 fatal truck crashes that occurred in 2019, 13 percent involved a drowsy driver, according to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA). Truck drivers average under five hours of sleep per night, and nearly two-thirds report suffering fatigue regularly.

Another major contributing factor in truck crashes is inadequate and failing infrastructure. According to media reports, while the northbound highway was destroyed by the explosion, the southbound highway was inspected and was also found to be structurally unsound.

This is a major problem in Pennsylvania. Over 3,000 bridges, 15 percent of all bridges in the state, are considered structurally deficient. A 2017 report from the Federal Highway Administration found that 30 percent of roads in the state of Pennsylvania are in poor condition. In a 2018 report, the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) gave Pennsylvania a D+ grade for the conditions of its roads and bridges. Yet another report, this one from 2019, found that Pennsylvania was the 11th-worst state for the condition of its interstate system, and 12th from last for structural integrity of interstate bridges

Disasters like the one that took place in Philadelphia are not uncommon. In neighboring Maryland, three such disasters have happened in the last three months. On March 4, a tanker truck fire in Frederick, killed the driver, Ronald Leroy Heiston Jr., 58, and caused extensive damage to homes in the area. On March 24, a tanker overturned on I-795 in Baltimore County, causing all ramps in the vicinity to be closed. On May 24, a portion of Interstate 895 in northeast Baltimore was closed after a tar tanker overturned on an overpass above the highway.
In this image provided by the U.S. Air National Guard, U.S. Air Force National Guard Explosive Ordnance Disposal Techinicians prepare several contaminated and compromised depleted uranium rounds on June 23, 2022 at Tooele Army Depot, Utah. (Staff Sgt. Nicholas Perez/U.S. Air National Guard via AP) [AP Photo/Staff Sgt. Nicholas Perez/U.S. Air National Guard]

In keeping with its total indifference to the lives of the people of Ukraine, the United States will send cancer-causing depleted uranium rounds to that country for use in the war with Russia on Ukrainian territory.

The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday that the Biden administration has decided to send the toxic and radioactive ordnance to Ukraine, and the decision will be announced shortly.

Depleted uranium rounds are fired from the main gun of tanks like the M1 Abrams and will be used to pierce the armor of Russias Soviet-era tanks.

The Journal reported that the decision followed debate within the White House over the fact that sending the weapon might open Washington to criticism that it was providing a weapon that may carry health and environmental risks.

The United Nations Environment Programme reported last year that depleted uraniums chemical toxicity can cause skin irritation, kidney failure, and increase the risks of cancer.

An article in the Harvard International Review notes that someone who inhales small, insoluble uranium particles may experience lung damage or lung cancer due to radiation. Depleted uranium may also lead to poor kidney functioning.

The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists noted in 2020, Depleted uranium is a by-product of the enrichment of natural uranium, a process used to create fuel rods for nuclear power plants... While not as radioactive as natural uranium, the metal nevertheless poses a threat.

It added that young children playing in conflict zones have a greater chance of exposure due to contaminated soil and should be prevented from touching the substance.

The Wall Street Journal also reported that there are advanced discussions within the White House about sending Ukraine cluster munitions, which are notorious for their high failure rate, scattering unexploded bomblets that kill civilians for decades afterwards. They are infamous for maiming and killing children who attempt to play with them.

The report stated, Some Pentagon officials favor providing cluster munitionsknown as dual-purpose improved conventional munitionsto Ukraines forces to help them counter Russian forces. NATOs top commander, Gen. Christopher Cavoli, has told Congress that such weapons could be very effective against concentrations of Russian troops and equipment.

In May, Senator Lindsey Graham, who had previously lobbied for the White House to provide HIMARS missiles, Abrams tanks, and F-16 fightersall of which were subsequently sentcalled for the US to ship cluster munitions to Ukraine.

The sooner long-range ATACMS missiles and cluster munitions are provided, the more territory they [Ukrainian government forces] will be able to regain, and the fewer lives will be lost, Graham stated.

On Tuesday, the US announced that it would send a further $325 million in weapons to Ukraine, including 15 Bradley fighting vehicles, 10 Stryker armored personnel carriers, secure communications equipment and over 22 million rounds of small arms ammunition.

The Defense Department said the package includes key capabilities to aid Ukraines efforts to retake its sovereign territory.

In a press briefing on Tuesday, Deputy Pentagon Press Secretary Sabrina Singh was asked whether the new armored vehicles were aimed at replacing those that had been destroyed so far during the counteroffensive.

Reporters asked Singh to address claims that 16 US armored vehicles had been destroyed so far, with one asking, The counteroffensive begins, and suddenly youre providing armored vehicles again. Is that intentional that now that Ukraine will suffer and has suffered some losses on the battlefield, you are providing these to continue support for the offensive?

Increasingly, NATO sees the conflict as a war of attrition, in the words of NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg. In May, he said, The main challenge [facing NATO] is that this war has now become a war of attrition, which means the battle of logistics is about getting ammunition, weapons, supplies to the front lines.

The announcement of a major new weapons package comes ahead of a series of meetings by NATO countries aimed at setting the stage for the upcoming NATO summit in Vilnius, Lithuania.

On Tuesday, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin left to travel to Germany, where he and Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Mark Milley will host a meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group at Ramstein Air Base on Thursday.

This will be followed by a summit of NATO defense ministers on June 16.

Both meetings are aimed at setting the stage for the July 11-12 NATO summit in Vilnius, Lithuania, which will focus on the expansion of the NATO alliance with the accession of Sweden and moves to engineer a formal alliance between NATO and Ukraine.

These meetings take place against the backdrop of the largest NATO aerial exercise in its history. Designated as Air Defender 23, 250 aircraft and more than 10,000 military service members from 25 countries will take part in a simulated war game against Russia.

The exercise, to take place from June 12th through 23rd, will involve the partial closure of airspace in Germany to civilian flights, and bombing sorties launched from Germany flying to forward operating locations in the Czech Republic, Estonia, and Latvia, the Pentagon said.

On the ground, fighting continued to rage as Ukraine continued its counteroffensive. While Russian President Vladimir Putin claimed that the offensive had so far achieved none of its goals, the Ukrainian government claimed that Ukrainian forces had advanced four miles along a 60-mile-long stretch of the front.

During a meeting with Stoltenberg on Tuesday, President Biden declared, Weve strengthened NATOs eastern flank, made it clear well defend every inch of NATO territory. I say it again: The commitment of the United States to NATOs Article 5 is rock solid.

In a separate statement, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that the United States would continue to fund and arm Ukraine for as long as it takes.
In 2021, Penguin Random House published John McWhorters Woke Racism: How a New Religion Betrayed Black America. The book, whose author is a well-known professor of linguistics at Columbia University and columnist with the New York Times, became a bestseller and received significant media attention when it was released.

Woke Racism takes aim at contemporary identity politics, including ideology like Critical Race Theory (CRT). He exposes the racialists for the inanities and nastiness of their ideology, as well as for the mob-like atmosphere they whip up. McWhorter is observant. His commentary is often perceptive, at times amusing and frequently scathing. He sticks his neck out and takes positions that are generally unpopular within his own social milieuacademia and the op-ed pages of Americas leading liberal newspaper.

Woke Racism, John McWhorter

However, McWhorters overriding objection is not that racialism is deeply anti-egalitarian and aimed at dividing the working class, but that it hinders, as opposed to advances, the meritocratic aspirations of minorities trying to climb to the top rungs of American capitalism.

The author touches on the privileged status of the race-obsessed, but he analyzes neither the historical origins of racial ideology nor the class interests it serves. Therefore, when it comes to proposing ways to combat racialism, he finds himself at a dead end. McWhorter concludes his book with a number of pragmatic proposals whose content, whatever his intentions, are of a right-wing character, careening in the direction of libertarianism.

Woke Racism argues that Third Wave Antiracism and its attendant Critical Race Theory are neither anti-racist, scholarly nor a theory, but rather a puritanical religion that is propagated by an Elect and that shares all the worst features of zealotry. This ideology, McWhorter writes, teaches that because racism is baked into the structure of society, whites complicity in living within it constitutes racism itself. He writes,

Under this paradigm, all deemed insufficiently aware of this sense of existing while white as eternal culpability require bitter condemnation and ostracization, to an obsessive, abstract degree that  leaves millions of innocent people scared to pieces of winding up in the sights of a zealous brand of inquisition that seems to hover over almost any statement, ambition, or achievement in modern society.

McWhorter issues a number of indictments against this new religion: It is losing innocent people their jobs. It is coloring academic inquiry, detouring it, and sometimes strangling it like kudzu (p. 5); It is an obsessive, self-involved, totalitarian, and an utterly unnecessary kind of cultural reprogramming (p. 15); It is gruesomely close to Hitlers racial notions in their conception of an alien, blood-deep malevolent whiteness (p. 15).

John McWhorter

McWhorter rejects the label white supremacism as a description of modern-day reality, pointing out that it both minimizes the brutality of race relations in the past and ignores decades of social change. He argues that rather than America being in constant denial about race and racism, the country suffers from an obsession with it. Millions of dollars, for example, have poured into the Black Lives Matter industry.

Woke Racism takes on the absurdities of antiracism education and cuts down to size leading racialists. McWhorter aptly characterizes diversity training as the mouthing of vacuous mantras (p. 17). He denounces the racialist Elect as apocalyptic inquisitors who are persecuting people for not adhering to their religion (p. 20), ban heretics, and believe that whiteness is the original sin, which can only be overcome by worship, by people embracing the self-mortification of the inveterate sinner and accepting the teachings of Ta-Nehisi Coates, Ibram Kendi, and Robin DiAngelo (p. 33). He argues that [w]ithin the Elect hierarchy in which whites are Satan on top, sainthood increases with all other people as you move down the hierarchy of intersectional opposition (p. 53). He describes DiAngelos White Fragility as reading in the present tense like a bizarre exercise in mind control created by someone bent on manipulation and getting paid (p. 65).

McWhorter points to the deep subjectivity and self-obsession upon which the racialists base their claims. Richard Delgado, one of the progenitors of CRT, began teaching non-whites to base their complaints about injustice not on something so rigid as objective truth (p. 62). In this fragile, performative ideology that rejects Enlightenment rationalism, an oppressed races story constitutes truth (p. 63). Furthermore, what the person feels is what they have been taught to feel by a paradigm that teaches them to exaggerate and even fabricate the feeling. (p. 163).

McWhorter recounts public shamings, wrecked careers and destroyed lives. The dean of nursing at the University of Massachusetts Lowell was fired for writing that black lives matter, but also, everyones life matters. In 2020, a business professor at the University of Southern California was removed from teaching a course because he was explaining to his class the significance of the expression nay-guh in Mandarin Chinese, a filler word or hedging term that plays a similar role as um in English. A group of black students claimed they were offended by the sounds similarity to an American English racial epithet and launched a campaign denouncing the professor as a racist. He was removed from the class.

At one point, McWhorter presents a table that summarizes the patently self-contradictory tenets of Third Wave Antiracism. The elect must show interest in multiculturalism but also not culturally appropriate. What is not your culture is not for you, and you may not try it or do it. Romance is a minefield: If youre white and date only white people, youre a racist, and yet [i]f youre white and date a black person, you are, if only deep down, exotifying an other. So is friendship: Support black people in creating their own spaces and stay out of them, and yet [s]eek to have black friends, if you dont have any, youre a racist.

Yet, despite all his incisive observations, McWhorter, a self-described liberal Democrat who also spent several years working at the right-wing Manhattan Institute, does not get very far. Or rather, where he ends up is pretty unsavory.

McWhorter concludes his book by arguing that rather than joining in the religious mania of the racialist Elect, saving black America for real requires three things: 1) legalizing narcotics, 2) using a phonetic-based method for teaching in the schools and, sounding very much like Booker T. Washington, 3) promoting vocational training as opposed to attending a four-year college as the route to success. These delusional prescriptions have no progressive content.

According to Woke Racisms author, even more potent drugs such as heroin should be available, albeit regulated, to those who seek them. With the selling of illegal drugs having been removed as a means to survive in black communities, McWhorter argues, black men who fall into this underworld will get legal jobs and the prisons will not be filled up by people incarcerated for murders or theft that are themselves connected to drug sales.

The Centers for Disease Control report that 187 Americans die every day just from opioids, which began as products of a legal and regulated prescription industry that has secured massive profits for the pharmaceuticals. The opioid epidemic has ravaged communities across the countryleft children orphaned, individuals broken by addiction, homes wrecked by violence. As for McWhorters belief that the transformation of the sale of illegal drugs into an over-the-counter market might lessen the prison population, this is naive in the extreme. As is the case in the opioid epidemic, an illegal drug trade would flourish alongside the legal one, and, in all events, Americas heavily militarized police forces would find new justifications for their predations in working class neighborhoods. Legalization of narcotics would do nothing to resolve the despair that leads to drug abuse, much less resolve the social crisis in the cities.

On the question of reading, McWhorter objects to the use of a whole word method in schools. He insists that an exclusively phonetic approach in which students sound out words would be more effective and has been proven to raise the test scores of black kids vastly. The other teaching style is more suited to middle-class kids from book-lined homes. Whatever the value of phonics, and it is legitimate to raise the issue, McWhorter sails past the social and economic reasons for so many children growing up in homes without any books to begin with.

His last solution to the societal inequity is to get past the idea that everybody must go to college. Instead, people can make a solid living as electricians, plumbers, hospital technicians, cable television installers, body shop mechanics, and many other jobs.

Speaking in the abstract, no one would insist that everybody must to go to college. Thats a red herring. The essential issue here is McWhorters thoroughgoing acceptance of the status quo, including the current educational system, rooted in class oppression, and the myriad means by which the working class is denied access to culture.

McWhorter, who has a Ph.D. and teaches at an elite university, certainly does not anticipate that he or his children will be living off the salary of a hospital technician or body shop mechanic. His position on college reflects the degree to which he has digested and transmits ruling class ideologyworkers have no need for literature, philosophy, history, art, writing and, of course, reading. Their role is to be exploited, and no one needs to be able to read Plato (or about Plato) in order to fulfill that function.

The dispute between McWhorter and the racialists is a conflict between two layers within the black petty bourgeoisie over how privileges should be secured and justified. Neither advocates the slightest challenge to capitalism.

McWhorter notes, for instance, that the racialists demand that admission standards be altered for minority students does nothing to address the underlying issue, which is that large segments of these populations, and students in the US overall, underperform educationally. Tinkering with race-based admissions policies to exclusive law schools can be done without lifting a single finger to improve the countrys public education system. Focusing on the excessively high numbers of expulsions and suspensions at black-majority schools as examples of institutional racism does not, for example, address the problem of the high levels of violence within these communities. These are, as far as they go, fair points.

However, what McWhorter wants is not a program that would really address the underlying causes of these social problems, but rather to stop promoting ideas of victimhood. He finds the racialists demand that blacks be evaluated according to different standards than whites to be embarrassing, because he believes it reinforces a sort of black inferiority complex. McWhorter implies that black individuals should adopt a can do attitudeto pull themselves up by their bootstraps, thereby lifting the fortunes of the race. His is a Booker T. Washington-style conception of racial uplift.

McWhorters political orientation becomes clear when discussing the New York Times 1619 Project and its creator Nikole Hannah-Jones. He says relatively little about the substance of the newspapers massive effort at constructing a historical lie. McWhorter, who sprinkles his book with small doses of anti-communism, makes, for instance, no mention of the World Socialist Web Site, which led the campaign to destroy those lies.

Although McWhorter rejects the idea that the US was founded on racism and observes that Hannah-Jones received a Pulitzer Prize in commentary for claims that are simply false and for substituting indignation for accuracy, his primary concern is that her promotion is actually a form of utter diminishment. He writes, White people patting her on the head for being brave or getting her views out there, he says, are condescending to a black woman who deserves better, even if the zeitgeist she has been minted in prevents her from knowing it herself. (p. 109).

In short, McWhorters main concern is that the self-advancement campaign of people like Hannah-Jones is based on things that are so egregiously stupid as to be humiliating. He would like there to be less, as he describes it, evident dummity.

But the idiocies of the racialists are not simply the musings of misguided, pitiable individuals. They manifest the interests of a grasping upper-middle-class layer that rejects egalitarianism and lives in mortal fear of a mass movement from below that will unify the population across racial boundaries. Individuals in this layer sense, therefore, that their prospects for improvement lie in the promotion of racial animus as a means of shoring up a capitalist system that is collapsing all around them.

They do not want to be judged on the basis of any universal standard of achievement, as McWhorter suggests ought to be happening. They want to get theirs. Having witnessed over the last two decades a massive growth in the amount of financial wealth sloshing around in the top 1 percent, they seek access to their share by taking advantage of, sowing confusion about, and abusing the history of the struggle for equality and against racial oppression in the US. The combination of black nationalism, identity politics and postmodernism that characterizes the outlook of todays racialistswhich McWhorter touches on in his bookis a class position.
Send in your statements of support for workers targeted for speaking out by filling out the form below. All submissions will be kept anonymous.

The World Socialist Web Site demands an immediate halt to all threats by the bureaucrats of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) against workers for speaking with reporters.

On Monday, ILWU Local 29 union President Raymond Leyba threatened longshore workers with their jobs during the morning call for speaking to WSWS reporters. In a tirade caught on video, Leyba threatened, You may have a right, but if they talk to you, I have a right to not give them any work. [Emphasis added]

Leyba doubled down in a post the following day in the Local 29 Facebook group, where he has called out three casual workers for taking leaflets from WSWS reporters, who asked about working conditions.

I have a MAJOR issue with these casuals, Leyba roared. It was reported that you three gave a statement to the WSWS reporter.  You are just casuals, you do not have liberty to speak to anyone representing any publication in regards to ILWU/PMA contact [sic] negotiations. No matter how much you think you know, you dont! We will have a conversation ASAP about you speaking to these people yesterday (Monday morning). Also be advised; to the registered members who were speaking to the press, there will be consequences.

Leyba's threats issued on Facebook on Tuesday [Photo: ILWU Local 29 via Facebook]

Leyba speaks to the workers who fund his salary with their dues in the manner of a dictator. Leyba may think that workers dont have the liberty to speak to anyone, but workers are not his peasants. They have the right to freedom of speech and association under the First Amendment.

He denigrates the history of the struggle on the West Coast docks. One of the central aims of the historic 1934 strike was an end to the retaliation against workers for their political views. Now, acting as managements attack dog, he threatens workers with termination for speaking out.

What is Leyba and the ILWU bureaucracy afraid of? The WSWS reporting team was speaking to workers about the lack of a strike authorization vote, more than a year after their contract expired, and was bringing them news of a more than 99 percent strike authorization vote of ILWU members in Canada and discussing the prospects of a joint struggle by workers in both countries.

That, to the ILWU apparatus, is totally out of bounds. As far as they are concerned, workers do not have the right even to the most basic information.

Leyba treats workers as though they were stupid and dont know anything. This from a bureaucracy which refuses to tell workers anything! There have been no meaningful updates from the union in more than a year of contract talks. The ILWU has announced periodic tentative agreements on various issues without telling workers a single thing about what it is they agreed to. Meanwhile, there are no secrets between the bureaucracy and the Pacific Maritime Association or with Biden Administration officials, who have been involved in the talks from the start.

At the beginning of talks, the ILWU announced a no strike, no lockout pledge with the PMA, a deal which was brokered by the White House, which wants to block a strike which could spread to other industries and to keep the ports open for the transit of weapons for use against Russia and China. Not a single worker was ever notified, much less consulted, before the pledge was signed. This is because workers would have refused to approve it.

Now, the no strike pledge is crumbling against growing rank-and-file opposition. For months, dockworkers have carried out a series of escalating job actions, which have grown as workers become more aware of the sellout terms being negotiated. Leybas outburst is a sign that this has the bureaucrats terrified and that they are furiously lashing out in response. It is a taste of what is to come from ILWU officials if workers decide to reject whatever sellout agreement they cook up.

A particularly sinister aspect of Leybas tirade is his singling out of casual workers. The ILWU bureaucracy treats this lowest tier of the port workforce like garbage. The creation of casuals was a major concession granted by ILWU President Harry Bridges in 1960. Casuals have no rights, are not even union members, and are made to line up each day waiting for a small chance of getting work. They are strung out for years, and even decades, before attaining full-time status. Leyba is trying to utilize the economic insecurity of casuals, which the ILWU has signed off on for decades, as a weapon against free speech.

Anyone who speaks in such terms to workers forfeits any claim to leadership. Workers must call out Leyba and all other ILWU bureaucrats who act similarly to account.

This incident is also a serious warning. Workers cannot afford to leave the conduct of their struggle in the hands of these would-be dictators in the union apparatus but must organize themselves to take the initiative into their own hands. Dockworkers must form rank-and-file committees to oppose this and all future attacks on their democratic rights and to fight for the principle that the will of the membership takes absolute priority.
On Friday, Podemos, its recently-founded electoral rival Movimiento Sumar (Unite Movement), and the Stalinist-led Izquierda Unida (IU, United Left), agreed to a common platform for the July 23 Spanish elections. The platform will be led by Sumars leader, acting Deputy Prime Minister and Labour Minister Yolanda Diaz.

Deputy Prime Minister Yolanda Diaz [Photo by U.S. Department of Labor / CC BY 2.0

Podemos, Sumar and IU are all part of the Socialist Party (PSOE)-Podemos government recently dissolved by its leader, Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, after its debacle in the May regional elections. They are all led by tested, pro-NATO ministers and politicians who have pursued the PSOE-Podemos governments policies of imperialist war on Russia abroad, and class war on workers at home. Their common electoral platform clearly signals that Podemos, Sumar and IU will run on pledges to continue and intensify the right-wing policies they implemented in office.

Above all, it is clear Podemos, Sumar and IU all intend to justify continued attacks on workers living standards and social rights by escalating the US-NATO war on Russia. This is reflected in the names included in the Sumar-Podemos-IU electoral lists that are now being finalised. This list includes:

Yolanda Diaz, head of Sumar and acting Deputy Prime Minister. Diaz was the most visible leader of Podemos after Podemos founder Pablo Iglesias left government in 2021, before she founded Sumar earlier this year. Sumar helped formulate Podemos ultra-reactionary domestic policies, including pension cuts and a labour reform; pumping 140 billion of EU bailout funds into Spanish corporations and banks; a profits-over-lives policy in the COVID-19 pandemic leading to over 160,000 deaths; the barbaric incarceration and murder of migrants, including the infamous massacre of 37 refugees at the borders of the Spanish enclave of Melilla in Africa; and violent crackdowns on striking metalworkers and truck drivers.

Agustin Santos, Permanent Representative of Spain to the UN, a long-time representative of Spanish imperialism. Previously, he held important embassy positions in Beijing, La Habana, Washington, Canberra and Brussels. He was chief of staff for PSOE Foreign Minister Miguel Angel Moratinos from 2008-2011, as Spain increased its troop deployment in Afghanistan and Lebanon. The army awarded him the Grand Cross of Military Merit for his role in Madrid obtaining the command of the UNIFIL mission in Lebanon. Santos had pledged to raise not only the name of Spain but also that of its Armed Forces.

Ernest Urtasun, recently nominated as Sumars spokesperson. A Member of the EU Parliament since 2014, he has worked closely with the pro-war German Greens in the GreensEuropean Free Alliance. In 2019, he was re-elected as a Podemos candidate. Urtasun is a fervent advocate of sending weapons and tanks to NATOs Ukrainian proxy to wage war on Russia.

Pablo Bustinduy was Podemos former foreign affairs spokesperson in parliament, before quitting the party in 2019 for an academic post in the US. He has called for European strategic autonomy vis-a-vis the United States.

Tesh Sidi, a Sahrawi nationalist activist and founder of the news channel Sahrawi Today. Sidis nomination comes amid rising discontent within sections of the Spanish army with the deal reached between the PSOE-Podemos government and Morocco recognising Rabats annexation of Spains former colony of Western Sahara. The deal was done at the expense of gas-rich Algeria, the main backer of the Sahrawi-nationalist Polisario militia.

Inigo Errejon, a founder of Podemos who broke with it to found Mas Madrid (More Madrid) and Mas Pais (More Country). A friend of anti-Marxist Left Populist theoretician Chantal Mouffe, he supported sending arms to the Ukraine and the EUs escalation against Moscow, demanding Brussels do more to cut off imports of Russian gas. His party notoriously welcomed last years NATO war summit in Madrid with pleasure and pride.

Ione Belarra, general secretary of Podemos. She has played a cynical role, making empty protests against arming Ukraine while sitting in the government of an imperialist country playing a leading role in prosecuting the NATO war on Russia. She supported the PSOE-Podemos governments increase in the military budget to a record 27 billion a year.

Significantly, Podemos has signed up to the removal of its top leaders as part of the electoral lists: acting Minister of Equality Irene Montero and its parliamentary spokesperson, Pablo Echenique. Both have been targeted by far-right press campaigns close to Vox. Both are also close to former Podemos leader and Deputy Prime Minister Pablo Iglesias, who was violently attacked by Sumar after he called for EU independence from Washington.

By agreeing on this rogues gallery as the head of their joint election list, Sumar, Podemos and IU are making clear they will make no shift to the left in response to their election defeat. Rather, they will intensify the policies of imperialist war, social austerity, and police repression that has discredited the PSOE-Podemos government and bolstered Spains far-right Vox party.

In last months elections, Podemos lost all its councillors in Madrid, Valencia, Zaragoza, Tenerife, Burgos, Valladolid, Vigo and Coruna. It lost 10 regional lawmakers in the Madrid region, and eight in the Valencian parliament. In Barcelona, Yolanda Diazs Sumar party did not run but instead backed mayor Ada Colau, who lost her mayorship after eight years in office. Errejons More Madrid lost seven councilors in Madrid city, falling to 12, while in the region of Madrid it lost 100,000 votes.

As the WSWS explained, Podemos and its allies reacted to this debacle not by campaigning to win back support from Vox and the right-wing Popular Party (PP), but by running an essentially right-wing campaign aiming to hand over power to the PP and Vox. At the heart of this reactionary strategy is the support of Podemos, Sumar, IU and the entire pseudo-left milieu in Spain for the NATO war with Russia.

Over the past weeks, the PSOE-Podemos government has escalated its looting of the Spanish working class at the behest of the financial aristocracy. Last Wednesday, it sent an addendum to the EU Bailout Recovery Plan to receive 94 billion to disburse to banks and corporations, to be paid for through mass austerity. If re-elected, the government has already promised Brussels to make 24 billion in social cuts and tax increases for 2024.

Military spending hikes will also continue. PSOE-Podemos Defence Minister Margarita Robles said the record investment in the army would not be changed, irrespective of who rules Spain, declaring: The armed forces belong to all Spaniards, they do not belong to any political party.

Stopping a catastrophic escalation that could lead to nuclear war requires mobilizing the working class against Sumar, Podemos and similar pseudo-left parties internationally. Terrified above all of mounting working class opposition to their reactionary policies, Sumar is tobogganing towards World War III. An anti-war movement must be built in the working class in direct opposition to the pro-war, pseudo-left parties of the affluent middle class such as Podemos.
UK postal workers have written in to outline their crippling workloads and Royal Mails trashing of its statutory obligation to deliver six days a week.

Increased walks and impossible targets are being enforced by management intimidation and use of overtime to clear back logs, forcing postal workers into a longer working week or to resign.

Postal workers on the picket line at Aylesbury. Chad is fourth from left. December 14, 2022

There is a deep well of opposition to the Communication Workers Unions (CWU) efforts to impose its rotten deal to end the national dispute, which agrees to a low-paid, flexible and two-tier workforce and a raft of attacks. CWU leaders Dave Ward, Andy Furey and the Postal Executive have postponed the ballot on the negotiators agreement in the face of an overwhelming sentiment to reject.

We encourage postal workers to continue to write in to the World Socialist Web Site and to make contact with the Postal Workers Rank-and-File Committee to organise a fightback.

***

Coventry, West Midlands: I work from a Coventry delivery office and can concur with other comments made by other posties up and down the country. These revisions are being pushed through without considering the knock-on effect it has for our valued customers. Again, mail not going out for days on end because someones time off hasnt been covered and management just shrugging their shoulders and only caring about premium tracked parcels.

Extra duties seem to be added to your job description on what seems like a weekly basis, i.e., scanning your own tracked parcels before leaving the depot, parcel collection service, second-day option delivery on any parcels, the list goes on. You get the vibe from management if you dont like it, then leave.

One day last week was particularly busy and there were parcels littered all over the floor and managers were just walking by completely ignoring this, which shows their couldnt give a damn attitude. I also feel betrayed by the CWU and Im strongly considering withdrawing from them.

Gillingham, Kent: The workload we have been given is unachievable, making mail go out on average every 3 to 4 days with management still telling us to leave mail behind and prioritise parcels.

North London: We were informed this week that our office has been chosen along with some others to implement the new working times, where we will be starting later and finishing earlier in the summer and then the reverse in the winter. We were also told that the union were working with Royal Mail on this. I want to know how can we make these changes without an agreement? My office is in North London and I think Royal Mail should be concentrating on delivering the USO in all areas.

South London: The union has well and truly sold its members out. Poor communication from them to their members. I have no faith in the union.

Hours cut and extra work given out without adding extra time onto the walk. My partner and I already struggle with our routes as logically and logistically they do not make sense to put them together. We tell the managers that the routes do not work as a pair and that we struggle to complete on most days. We are told regardless to take all work from the frames, knowing that in the morning the work not completed needs to be re-added to the frame again. Just so the managers can say that the frames are cleared in the office.

Tracked and special deliveries are prioritised, despite them saying they are not. When you get back from your walk you are having to scan everything you didnt deliver back into the enquiries office and attach stickers to them which in-house staff used to do. Not to mention any parcels you dont deliver that day have to go out the following day, adding to an already impossible workload.

Customers on our routes think taking parcels out twice is ridiculous and that they preferred the old way. Royal Mail state that they want to bring it in line with other delivery companies. However, the likes of DPD, Yodel, etc., do not have to deliver to a majority of addresses on a daily basis.

The hierarchy are paid high salaries to come up with concepts that do not work and push their genius ideas and cuts onto their overworked staff. Poor management of a once highly thought of company who dont care about staff, but just lining their pockets and bonuses.

East London: I worked for Royal Mail for 34 years, left last year due to ill health. I loved it when I first went there but was so glad to leave. Managers pushing you all the time, have a day off and come back with no work being taken out. Work twice as hard to complete as you dont want to let customers down.

Lincoln: Two months ago half our office had revisions put in, all fail, not complete. Now rest of office has revisions put in, no one has completed their duty. USO failing every day, customers missing hospital appointments.

Most duties have had 2 to 3 hours added, all with same hours, and this time of year is supposed to be quiet. When September comes, not a chance.

Ive done over 40 years, and if Royal Mail give letters a good service then they will attract more business. Now Royal Mails reputation has gone.

Manchester: Do not trust the union anymore. If you do actually get a chance to vote, reject it. I was a postman from 1998 till 2019. They have not got your interests at heart.

South Yorkshire: I only work in a small Subs office. We have had 2 out of 7 of us put in and take redundancy. These jobs have not been filled and with holidays and sickness, even days off, most days are busy since this has happened. We have been asked to lapse the other two duties, or at least 1 of them. This is creating way too much work and pressure. All that is happening on the days the rest of us do pluck up enough courage to tell management NO Tracked are being prioritised and we still have extra work.

The amount of overtime on a weekly basis covers more than a full-time persons wage and it is ridiculous that we are expected to do that much overtime. When we do throw the work back, we are asked why or told its not busy, usual rubbish managers come up with. We are asked constantly to work our days off, knowing full well if we dont we will be owing into double mail and parcels, and again tracked mail will go... but as Mr Thompson said, we dont prioritise tracked.

We are nowhere near our USO despite our best efforts, and its coming to the point where people are dragging themselves to work and causing unnecessary stress between employees too. One last thing I will say is this time of year is our slack time where we are told its not busy. What happens from the back end of October when we do get busy?

West Sussex: Part time walks being failed to cover full timers walks, only tracked and Special Delivery packets being done. Part time staff having to do 2 days worth of deliveries every other day. Also required to do heavy and large packets, additional lapsing added to walks to cover staff leaving.
JPMorgan Chase, the largest bank in the U.S., reached a tentative settlement on Monday with victims of deceased billionaire, sex trafficker and abuser of underage girls Jeffrey Epstein.

The bank and lawyers for the victims issued a statement saying JPMorgan agreed to pay $290 million to resolve a class action lawsuit that they considered, is in the best interests of all parties, especially the survivors who were the victims of Epsteins terrible abuse. The settlement amounts to less than eight tenths of one percent of the banks $38 billion in revenue in the first quarter of 2023.

The lawsuit was filed last November in Manhattan federal court by a woman identified as Jane Doe 1 on behalf of the teenage girls and young women who were abused by Epstein over a 15-year period.

Her lawsuit argued that JPMorgan facilitated Epsteins criminal sex trafficking operation by allowing him to continue making large cash withdrawals even after his depraved activities were widely known. Epstein used some of this money to pay his victims.

In 2008, Jeffrey Epstein pleaded guilty to state charges in Florida of procuring for prostitution a girl below the age of 18. He served 13 months of an 18-month prison sentence that included an unlocked cell door and work release of up to 12 hours per day, six days per week.

The sentence and location of his imprisonment in a private wing of the Palm Beach County Stockade were part of an elaborate non-prosecution agreement negotiated by U.S. Justice Department officials that dismissed the complaints of as many as three dozen girls who said Epstein had abused them.

At least eight civil lawsuits were filed against Epstein in connection with his sex trafficking operation between his 2008 conviction and his death under suspicious circumstances on August 9, 2019. Many of these cases were either settled by Epstein out of court or remain unresolved.

Epstein held accounts with JPMorgan beginning in 1998 and became one of the banks largest revenue producers by referring clients to its private wealth division. Epstein exclusively managed the funds of individuals with a net worth of $1 billion or more. JPMorgan maintained its relationship with Epstein until 2013.

On July 6, 2019, Epstein was arrested in New Jersey on charges that he trafficked dozens of girls as young as 14 at his apartment in Manhattan, his mansion in Palm Beach and his private island in the U.S. Virgin Islands. Less than one month after his arrest, Epstein was found dead in his Manhattan jail cell from injuries consistent with strangling. However, his death was found by the New York City medical examiner to have been suicide by hanging.

A central aspect of the lawsuit against JPMorgan was exposing the degree to which those at the multi-trillion-dollar bankas well as other wealthy individuals in and around the bankwho knew and interacted with Epstein were aware of his criminal enterprise. With announcement of the settlement on Monday, the terms of which must still be approved by the court, many of the details about the relationship of Epstein with the U.S. financial elite will remain concealed.

Meanwhile, the settlement permits JPMorgan to avoid admission of liability and pretend that no one at the bank knew anything about Epsteins corruption and abuse of underage girls. The actual number of women participating in the class-action lawsuit, which is estimated to be more than 100, is also being concealed.

A significant factor in JPMorgans settlement, which is considered minuscule by financial experts, was the fact that top executives of the bank including CEO Jamie Dimon were deposed and forced to testify under oath.

In his 416-page deposition, Dimon claimed that an email from Epsteins office that suggested he was scheduled to meet with the sex offender along with senior bank executive Jes Staley at Epsteins townhouse was not true. Dimon protested, I have never had an appointment with Jeff Epstein. Ive never met Jeff Epstein. I never knew Jeff Epstein. I never went to Jeff Epsteins house. I never had a meal with Jeff Epstein. I have no idea what theyre referring to here. Dimon added, I dont think Jeff Epstein ever arranged for me to meet with anybody, to my knowledge, he added.

Others who were subpoenaed in the lawsuit included Tesla founder Elon Musk and Google co-founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin. They faced extensive questioning about Epsteins relationship with Microsoft founder Bill Gates for a charitable fund that never got off the ground.

Other disclosures from the case show that employees of the JPMorgan noted Epsteins activity was suspicious, while other documents show Epsteins easy access to top executives at the bank even after his 2008 guilty plea in Florida. A cache of emails and calendar entries reviewed by the New York Times showed that top bank executives were very close with Epstein. A spokesperson for JPMorgan dismissed these facts saying that personal contact between wealthy clients and bank executives is not uncommon.

In May, Deutsche Bank agreed to pay $75 million to settle a lawsuit brought by women who accused Epstein of sexual abuse. The class-action lawsuit was filed late last year with the victims accusing the German bank of knowingly providing funds for the operation of a large sex-trafficking ring, made possible by cash disbursements supported by the bank. The lead plaintiff is described in court documents as Jane Doe 1.

Another lawsuit by the attorney-general of Virgin Islands against JPMorgan, based on information the territory had gathered during litigation with Epsteins estate, is pending. The US territory said its investigation revealed that the financial services giant enabled Epstein's recruiters to pay victims and was indispensable to the operation and concealment of the Epstein trafficking enterprise.

The Virgin Islands is seeking to recoup tens of millions in tax benefits it had awarded to Epsteins businesses based in St. Thomas.

The Virgin Islands relationship with Epstein is itself revealing. The islands government awarded lucrative tax breaks to his businesses in 2012 and eased travel restrictions for the sex offender after a request from his lawyers. As a sex offender, Epstein was required by law to notify authorities of his travel plans, but the notice was cut to one day from three weeks by the Virgin Islands attorney general at the time, according to the documents reviewed by the Times.
To discuss joining the Clarios Workers Rank-and-File Committee or forming a rank-and-file strike support committee, fill out the form below.

Striking Clarios workers on first day of strike May 8, 2023

Clarios workers, who have been on strike in Holland, Ohio, for five weeks, were informed Tuesday evening by United Auto Workers Local 12 officials that the union bargaining team had reached a new tentative agreement with the auto battery manufacturer. The announcement in the unions internal Facebook group said workers would be given packets with details of the agreement Wednesday, that informational meetings would be held Thursday and a vote held on Friday.

The manner in which the announcement was made is highly suspicious, with all signs indicating that the deal reached by UAW Region 2B Director David Green and the rest of the UAW bureaucracy will be nothing but a rehash of the two previous UAW-backed proposals that workers rejected, first by 98 percent and then by 76 percent.

Throughout Tuesday workers were told the UAW was holding its first negotiating sessions with the company in more than three weeks. As one striker told the World Socialist Web Site, Theyre resuming negotiations today, but they are not telling us anything. Its like a secret thing.

As late as 6:41 p.m. on Tuesday evening, the Toledo Blade, citing the comments of Region 2B Director Green, wrote that the two sides hadnt sat down for bargainingother than an occasional Zoom meeting or phone callsince striking workers on May 22 rejected a tentative agreement struck by the company and the union. The newspaper continued, Mr. Green, who was not at the bargaining table himself, said the two sides appeared to be making good progress on Tuesday, but he said it was unclear how quickly a new deal could be reached.

Message from UAW L. 12 Clarios Chairman Aaron Shinaul [Photo: UAW L. 12]

Within a few hours, however, UAW Local 12 Clarios Chairman Aaron Shinaul posted a statement on Facebook, saying, We have come to a tentative agreement. We will be passing out Packets [sic] Wednesday 6/14/23 from 9 am to 5 pm at the Local 12. On Thursday 6/15/23 we will be having two meetings going by your last name at Local 12. The first meeting will be.A-L and that meeting will start at 8 am..second meeting will be M-Z and will start at 1 pmplease show up by your last name. And we will be voting on Friday 6/16/23 polls will open at 10am and will close at 6pm at the Local 12. In Solidarity, The Bargaining Committee.

There is no reason to believe that management, which is engaged in an all-out strikebreaking campaign backed by the Big Three automakers, has suddenly dropped its demands for cuts in real wages, brutal work schedules and the elimination of overtime payments after eight hours.

It is highly significant that the UAW bureaucrats are dividing workers according to last names for the two informational meetings. Previous meetings included all members, but Green & Co. are terrified that they will confront an angry and hostile crowd when they announce their latest deal with management.

To prevent a sellout from being rammed through, rank-and-file workers should demand the right for all members to be present when discussing the UAWs agreement and the release of the full contract, not phony highlights that conceal the secret agreements like the ones in the last contract, which allowed management to increase piece-rate quotas. Workers should also demand a full week to study and discuss the deal before any ratification vote is held, and a committee of trusted rank-and-file workers should oversee the casting and counting of ballots to protect against any efforts by the UAW bureaucrats to falsify the results.

For more than five weeks, the Clarios workers have courageously defied the worlds largest auto battery manufacturer, which has cut off their medical insurance, obtained strikebreaking court injunctions and threatened to replace them with scabs. The company has been backed by the Big Three automakers, which want the rebellious workers defeated so they can impose similar or even worse concessions on GM, Ford and Stellantis workers, whose contracts expire in three months.

The Clarios strike, along with the fight by the Constellium workers in Van Buren, Michigan, is the first battle in the major struggles autoworkers face this year. The auto bosses, with the support of the UAW bureaucracy and the Biden administration, want to put the full burden of the transition to electric vehicle production onto the backs of workers, through the destruction of tens of thousands of jobs and a drastic reduction in wages in battery and other auto parts plants. These immense attacks on autoworkers are part of the overall efforts of the ruling class to shift to a wartime economy in preparation for military conflict with Russia and China.

Far from mobilizing all UAW members to ensure the Clarios strike succeeds, the UAW apparatus, headed by President Shawn Fain, has done everything it can to isolate and defeat the strikers.

Fain has never bothered to show up on the picket lines and the UAW has done virtually nothing to inform workers about the strike. Most significantly, the UAW bureaucracy has ordered the continued use of batteries built by scab labor at GM, Ford and Stellantis plants. In factory after factory, rank-and-file workers have challenged UAW officials about the scab batteries and have been told that the orders to use them have come from the UAW International.

The UAW leadership is isolating the strike because it fears that the revolt by the Clarios workers will spark a broader rebellion by GM, Ford, Stellantis and auto parts workers who have suffered decades of eroding wages and conditions imposed by the union bureaucracy. But such a rebellion is exactly what is needed.

In every factory, rank-and-file workers should build support committees for the Clarios and Constellium strikers. They should demand the doubling of strike pay from the UAWs $825 million strike fund and a ban on the handling of all scab parts.

None of us should be handling any scab batteries. We should all be on strike

Warren Truck workers

On Tuesday, supporters of the International Workers Alliance of Rank-and-File Committees distributed statements to Stellantis workers at the Warren Truck Assembly Plant in suburban Detroit to win support for the Clarios workers. In their responses, workers readily connected the fight of the auto battery workers with the struggle they will face in September.

Its good that they rejected contracts with terrible raises and 12 hour days with no overtime, said one worker. The UAW has been working with the companies a long time. She said that workers at parts supplier Dakkota, where new workers make $15-16 in starting pay, were also in a contract fight.

Id be striking too, another worker said, pointing to the contract demands that Clarios and the UAW were pushing. None of us should be handling any scab batteries. We should all be on strike. The UAW is supposed to be for us not management. But they let management get away with everything and dont say or do a thing. The Clarios workers should stay out until they get what they want. We should join them to restore COLA [cost-of-living adjustments], the rolling over of the TPTs [temporary part-time workers], the elimination of all these tiers and pensions for all workers. These companies are making billions and giving us crumbs.

One worker, referring to the elimination of the third shift last year, said, Im being pushed to work more and longer, its hard for me to even see my kids. I also want COLA back and to see more money for these TPTs. In fact, there shouldnt be this tier system at all. We should all be paid the same.

We should never have accepted the two-tier system, a worker nearing retirement said. In three or four years, there wont be any higher-paid workers left. Then the company and the union are going to go to second-tier workers and tell them to cut our pensions to get a pay raise. At this plant, theyre already using non-union workers, getting paid peanuts, to do repair worker that used to be done by UAW members.

A young TPT added, We all feel screwed. If we dont get rolled over to full-time in this next contract, a lot of us are going to quit. There is supposed to be a 30 percent cap on the number of TPTs. At this plant, two-thirds of the workers are temps. Union and management are in bed. We have to bring back COLA, get pensions, stop this eight-year wait to get top pay, and give workers more days off.

I say to the Clarios workers, stay strong, we have to bring back the morals of unity, and fighting together. We make them so much money. They dont even have air conditioners in the plants for the hot summer days. Two weeks ago, workers in the body shop were so angry because it was so hot and the company wouldnt fix the broken fans. The workers took the initiative and threatened to walk off the line, and suddenly they got all the motors fixed on the fan.

Pointing to the broader issues confronting workers, she said, I have a young child and she should have a life without fear of war and other risks. Workers everywhere have to come together to fight for a better life for ourselves.
Amid a flurry of diplomatic activity last week, New Zealands Labour-led government escalated its involvement in the US-led confrontation and preparations for war against China.

Defence Minister Andrew Little (left) and Japanese Defence Minister Yasukazu Hamada, after the signing of Statement of Intent for greater military cooperation. [Photo: @ModJapan_en]

On the sidelines of the Shangri-La Dialogue, held in Singapore from June 10-12, NZ Defence Minister Andrew Little signed a Statement of Intent for greater military cooperation with Japan. The deal follows last years signing of a bilateral intelligence sharing agreement, aimed at strengthening Japans case to ultimately join the Five Eyes intelligence sharing network involving the United States, New Zealand, Australia, the UK and Canada.

Tokyo and Wellington, which have both backed the US-NATO proxy war against Russia, are seeking to extend their reach further into the Pacific. The agreement is part of the plethora of alliances being built up around the western Pacific to confront China and prepare for war. It will see deeper integration of the New Zealand Defence Forces (NZDF) into the regional security schemes being driven by the United States and its ally, Australia.

Little said the statement was the culmination of more than two years of discussions, including consultation with Pacific partners to ensure alignment with Pacific priorities. It would seek to strengthen collaboration with Pacific partners and regional institutions on  maritime security, humanitarian and disaster relief, and climate change, he said.

There has already been military cooperation between Japans so-called Self-Defense Forces and the NZDF, including deployments of NZ Air Force aircraft to Japan. Notwithstanding its purported focus on humanitarian efforts, the new pact opens the door to more direct collaboration. The statement highlighted the response of both countries to the 2022 volcanic eruption in Tonga. Such emergencies, involving military equipment and personnel, are used as full-scale defence exercises.

The US is strengthening its military ties with Japan as it prepares for conflict with China and is encouraging Tokyo to forge closer relations with other American allies and strategic partners in the region. Japan is part of the quasi-military pact known as the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue along with the US, India and Australia. US military bases in Japan would play a critical role in any war with China.

US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin travelled to Tokyo on his way to the Shangri-La event and stated the two countries militaries are operating and training together like never before.

Japan plans to double military spending over the next five years as it develops long-range missiles capable of striking targets abroad and ramps up its own war planning against China. A stronger trilateral relationship between the US, Japan, and South Korea is regarded by Washington as a vital aspect of its ballistic missile system in the region.

In concert with the US, Japan is seeking to advance their own interests across the region. In March, Japans Foreign Minister Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi became the first to visit the Solomon Islands, which has been at the centre of strategic tensions since signing a defence pact with Beijing last year. Hayashi and his Solomons counterpart Jeremiah Manele agreed on strengthening cooperation towards a free and open Indo-Pacificthe mantra employed by the US and its allies to assert their domination of the region.

In April, Japans Maritime Self-Defence Force began its largest tour yet of the Indo-Pacific, including a port call in Kiribati which had switched its diplomatic allegiance from Taiwan to Beijing in 2019. The naval deployment is scheduled to run for 151 days through to September, involving 1,190 personnel aboard three surface vessels and a submarine.

Littles signing of the Japan agreement makes it clear that New Zealand is fully on board with the reckless drive by US imperialism to reassert its global hegemony against Russia and China. It takes place amid ongoing efforts at Washingtons behest to strong-arm Pacific governments to put aside their reservations and align with the US war drive. Australia is currently pushing proposed security pacts with both Papua New Guinea and Vanuatu that have stalled over concerns by both Pacific countries about the impact on their sovereignty.

Last week, Fijis Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka made his first visit to Wellington since assuming office in January. He held meetings with senior New Zealand government officials, including the prime minister and opposition leader, and announced a new defence agreement between the two countries.

Little has been dispatched to Suva this week to sign a Status of Forces Agreement providing the legal framework for New Zealand and Fijian military forces to effectively cooperate within each others territories. Little said: Our militaries already cooperate across many areas and I look forward to further strengthening this enduring relationship with the Republic of Fiji as one of our key Pacific partners.

Rabuka is readjusting relations away from China, recently threatening to cancel a 2011 police training and exchange agreement with Beijing. At his Wellington press conference he said, referring to China: If our systems and our values differ, what cooperation can we get from them? Fiji is expected to shortly have a fully-fledged diplomatic mission operating in Washington with an ambassador now appointed.

Sections of the New Zealand ruling elite remain nervous about jeopardising relations with China, the countrys most important trading partner. To that end, Hipkins has announced he will be leading a trade delegation to China later this month.

However, last Friday New Zealand signed a joint statement with Japan and the Five Eyes partners condemning so-called economic coercion and nonmarket policies regarding trade and investment. While the declaration did not explicitly name China, Beijing got the message. On Twitter Wang Xiaolong, Chinas Ambassador in Wellington, shot back; Smearing other countries, either directly or indirectly, wont whitewash ones own dismal record on coercion.

The rapidly advancing war preparations, and their likely catastrophic consequences, are being deliberately hidden from the New Zealand population, which has long anti-war traditions, as campaigning for the countrys critical election, due on October 14, unfolds.

Speaking at a NZ Institute for International Affairs (NZIIA) conference on June 8, visiting US Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs, Daniel Kritenbrink, falsely reassured the audience that we do not seek conflict with China or a new Cold War, declaring: We are not trying to contain China.

NZ Foreign Minister Mahuta who, a facade for a so-called indigenous Maori foreign policy, is dishonestly masquerading as a peacemaker. She echoed Kritenbrinks message, declaring that while the international environment may be more complicated, it does not represent a new Cold War or require binary choicesi.e. between Washington and Beijing.

Mahuta then emphasised that the US is fundamental to the underpinning of the international system, and we recognise the important role of the US to uphold and promote the international rule of law. In reality, US imperialism has been engaged in one illegal neo-colonial military operation after another in the past three decades.

In other words, the choice has been made. While boasting its independent foreign policy, as a minor imperialist power in the Pacific, New Zealand has always relied on the backing of one or other major powerfirst Britain then the USto support its neo-colonial operations. As in the lead-up to New Zealands entry into World Wars I and II, the countrys room to manoeuvre has all but evaporated.
By Elena Fabrichnaya and Alexander Marrow

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia's dominant lender Sberbank will issue bonds in Chinese yuan this year if an opportunity arises and will continue borrowing in roubles to drive portfolio growth, the bank's finance chief told Reuters.

In his first interview since becoming Sberbank's head of finance last year, Taras Skvortsov said the bank's yuan deposit portfolio, which has grown 1-1/2 times since the start of the year, was currently more appealing than bond issues, which require active demand, good liquidity and attractive prices.

"So far there is good demand for deposits in yuan, especially from private clients, who are transferring their savings from dollars and euros to deposits in Chinese currency." he said.

"But the situation is changing and it is possible that a window of opportunity will appear before the end of this year, then we will issue yuan bonds."

The yuan's role in Russia's financial system and transactions has increased sharply since Western sanctions over Moscow's actions in Ukraine have limited access to dollar and euro markets.

But strict currency controls still limit the yuan's global reach and Russia's central bank has warned that the rise of China's yuan in Russia is not uniform, creating temporary imbalances and difficulties with foreign exchange liquidity.

Russian energy and commodities firms, such as Rusal, Polyus and Rosneft, have led the way in yuan-denominated issues. Russian firms placed bonds worth 1.7 billion yuan ($237.5 million) in May.

Skvortsov said volatility and the small volumes on the market were affecting Sberbank's plans for now. The bank has issued 140 billion roubles ($1.7 billion) worth of rouble-denominated bonds this year, he said, and would continue to do so at the right price.

DIVIDEND PROMISE

Sberbank expects its profits this year to exceed 2021's record 1.25 trillion roubles ($14.9 billion). Skvortsov said Russia's economy growing faster than expectations would drive this. The central bank estimates banking sector profits could exceed $23.75 billion.

The International Monetary Fund in April raised its 2023 Russian GDP forecast to growth of 0.7% from 0.3%, but lowered its 2024 forecast to 1.3% from 2.1%. The head of Sberbank rival VTB last week told Reuters Russia's economy had adapted to sanctions.

Sberbank's record first-quarter profit of 357.2 billion roubles featured no one-time revenues, meaning profits should grow as the business does, Skvortsov said.

"If there are no new requirements from the regulator and the situation in the economy stays as it is now, then of course, on the coming years' horizon we also see the opportunity for Sberbank to generate high profit and, as a consequence, direct part of this profit to dividends," Skvortsov said.

Major companies' dividend payments have driven Russia's stock market in recent weeks. Sberbank and many others did not pay dividends in 2022, but the bank is paying out a record 565 billion roubles this year, using 2022 profits and part of those in 2021.

Skvortsov said he did not expect any changes to Sberbank's dividend policy of paying dividends once a year, the most optimal solution, given high volatility on the Russian market.

($1 = 7.1580 Chinese yuan renminbi)

($1 = 84.2205 roubles)

(Reporting by Alexander Marrow and Elena Fabrichnaya; Editing by Lisa Shumaker)
Hundreds are feared dead after the latest mass drowning of refugees off the coast of Greece. What was described as a vastly overcrowded 20-30 metre fishing vessel sank in the early hours of Wednesday. By early afternoon the death tally had already reached 79 in by far the worst mass fatality incident off Greeces Mediterranean coast this year.

According to a Greek official cited by the Guardian Wednesday, There has been a dramatic rise in the death count, which is climbing by the hour Speculation is rife that as many as 600 people were onboard but that has not been confirmed. The ship is under the water. It has sunk.

A handout image provided by Greece's coast guard on Wednesday, June 14, 2023, shows scores of people covering practically every free stretch of deck on a battered fishing boat that later capsized and sank off southern Greece, leaving at least 79 dead and many more missing. [AP Photo/Hellenic Coast Guard via AP]

Just 104 have been rescued so far and that as many as 750 could have been onboard when the vessel sank around 50 miles (80 km) south-west of Pylos. It is reported than many women and children were in the ships hold, with the Financial Times noting, Survivors said more than 100 children were in the ships hold.

The deaths occurred less than two weeks before the second round of Greeces general elections on June 25 forcing New Democracy Prime Minister Mitsotakis; the main opposition Syrizas Alexis Tsipras; and other party leaders to suspend campaigning. Three days of national mourning were declared. The election had already been suspended previously for around a month as a result of mass protests and strikes in opposition to Februarys preventable train crash deaths in the Tempi valley.

The vessel set off from the eastern Libyan port of Tobruk destined for Italy and sank off Greeces southern Peloponnese coast. Reports said people from Afghanistan and Pakistan, Syria and Egypt were on board.

Greek state broadcaster ERT reported, Twenty-six people are hospitalized in the Kalamata hospital with minor injuries or hypothermia, they are all men, young and middle-aged. Seventy-eight people are in the premises of the Coast Guard and tomorrow (15/6) they will be transferred to a hospitality structure in Malakasa.

Survivors of a shipwreck sleep at a warehouse at the port in Kalamata town, about 240 kilometers (150 miles) southwest of Athens, Wednesday, June 14, 2023. A fishing boat carrying migrants capsized and sank off the coast of Greece on Wednesday, authorities said, leaving at least 79 people dead and many feared missing in one of the worst disasters of its kind this year. [AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis]

The Guardian wrote of unprecedented scenes in Kalamata, the Peloponnesian town where the dead and injured were being taken. Coastguard vessels, a navy frigate, military transport planes, an air force helicopter and an array of private craft were participating in the search for survivors. Rescue efforts were initially hampered by strong winds.

Kathimerini cited Ioannis Zafiropoulos, Kalamatas deputy mayor, who said he understood that there were more than 500 people on board.

No-one can take at face value the account of the situation being provided by the European Union border agency Frontex and the Greek coastguard, as evidence emerges that the ship was treated with hostility and allowed to sink. Frontex issued a self-serving 89-word statement Wednesday declaring, Frontex surveillance aircraft had detected the boat on Tuesday, 13 June at 09:47 UTC and immediately informed the competent Greek and Italian authorities. All questions should be directed to the Greek Rescue Coordination Centre.

Media reports cited the coastguard saying that they were told by those on board that they did not require assistance. Reuters reported, Late on Tuesday, a few hours before the boat capsized, the boat's occupants refused an offer of help, insisting on continuing their journey, the coast guard said. Those on deck refused assistance and stated their desire to continue their voyage, said the coastguard.

It was left to Alarm Phone, staffed by volunteers who provide a hotline for people on boats in distress, to provide an account of what happened. The group published a timeline and accompanying article Wednesday, Europes shield: Hundreds presumed to have drowned off Greece. It stated, Yesterday, 13 June 2023, we had alerted the Hellenic Coast Guard at 16:53 CEST [Central European Summer Time] to this boat in distress, as the people had called us for help. The Greek authorities, reportedly also Italy and Malta, had already been alerted several hours earlier. Greek and other European authorities were thus well aware of this overcrowded and unseaworthy vessel. A rescue operation was not launched. In the early hours of today, 14 June 2023, the boat capsized.

Already in the hours following this disaster at sea, the Hellenic Coast Guard has begun to justify their failure to assist by arguing that the people in distress had not wanted to be rescued to Greece.

Alarm Phone responded, We ask: Why are people at sea so afraid to encounter Greek forces?... It is because people on the move know about the horrible and systematic pushback practices carried out by the Greek authorities, practices that are sanctioned by the EU. Greece has become Europes shield, as European Commission president von der Leyen once noted, violently deterring people on the move. (emphasis in original)

The piece noted that refugees know that thousands have been shot at, beaten, and abandoned at sea by these Greek forces. They know that encountering the Hellenic Coast Guard, the Hellenic Police or the Hellenic Border Guards often means violence and suffering. It is due to systematic pushbacks that boats are trying to avoid Greece, navigating much longer routes, and risking lives at sea.

Excerpts from the timeline read:

In the morning of 13 June, from 9:35h CEST, the Twitter user Nawal Soufi alerts about a large boat in distress, carrying, according to them, 750 people. Over the following hours, Nawal Soufi adds further information, including the GPS position of the boat in distress and that authorities in Italy, Greece, and Malta have been alerted.

14:17 CEST: Alarm Phone receives the first call from the boat in distress. It is difficult to communicate with the distressed. They say that they cannot survive the night, that they are in heavy distress. Alarm Phone tries to receive their current GPS coordinates in order to be able to alert authorities  but the call cuts. We try to reconnect with them.

16:53 CEST: We alert the Greek authorities per email as well as other actors, including Frontex and UNHCR Greece.

17:20 CEST: We speak to the distressed and they report that the boat is not moving. They say: The captain left on a small boat. Please, any solution. They say they need food and water.

17:34 CEST: We receive another call from the boat in distress and their updated position: 36 18, 21 04  very close to the previous position. They say that the boat is overcrowded and that the boat is moving from side to side.

18:00 CEST: We call the company of the merchant vessel Lucky Sailor, informing them about the boat in distress. They say that they only act under the authority of the Greek coastguards.

Two hours later at 20:05 CEST: Alarm Phone is informed by the distressed that they received water from the merchant vessel Lucky Sailor and that they have been in contact with the police. Alarm Phone also notices that a second merchant vessel, the Faithful Warrior, is close to the distressed.

The timeline ends: 00:46 CEST on 14/06/2023: Last contact to the boat in distress. All we hear is: Hello my friend The ship you send is . The call cuts.

Many more refugee deaths could have occurred even during the same day, as a boat with more than 80 migrants had to be rescued and towed to a port in southern Crete.

After every mass death of refugees in the Mediterraneanover 21,000 have died since 2014governments and political leaders, alongside the EU, shed crocodile tears and are deeply moved by the tragic events (Frontex). But the deaths are the inevitable result of brutal anti-immigration policies. Even before this weeks mass deaths over 1,100 migrants have died in the Mediterranean so far this year, the latest victims of Fortress Europea policy funded by vast resources to prevent refugees from escaping their war torn and poverty stricken countries.

In July, the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) ruled that Greece acted unlawfully in failing to protect refugees who perished in an Aegean Sea mass drowning that killed 11 people. The 16 survivors13 Afghans, two Syrian nationals and a Palestinian nationalsaid the Greek coastguard sank the boat when attempting to tow it at speed towards Turkey. The ECHR found that Greek officials unlawfully subjected 12 of the survivors to degrading treatment by strip-searching them when they reached land. The authorities then failed to carry out an effective investigation into the circumstances in which the boat had sunk.

The pseudo-left Syriza played a major role in enforcing this brutal policy during its years in power (2015-19). Its anti-immigration agenda, including implementing the pushback policy as part of the deal between the EU and Turkey, is documented by the WSWS here.

The deepening crisis of the capitalist system is creating millions more refugees each year. Last year the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), put the number of people forcefully displaced at more than 100 million. On Tuesday the UNHCR announced that, fuelled by the wars in Ukraine, Somalia, Sudan and elsewhere, the number had soared to a new record, 110 million peoplemore than one person in every 74 on the planet.
National Median In-Network Amount for C-section Is More Than $15,000

Alaska Has Highest Median In-Network Amount for Vaginal Delivery

NEW YORK, June 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Today FAIR Health launched the Cost of Giving Birth Tracker, a free, interactive tool tracking the cost of giving birth state by state. Available on FAIR Health's website fairhealth.org, the Cost of Giving Birth Tracker consists of heat maps that show state-specific and national median1 charge and allowed (in-network) amounts2 for vaginal deliveries and C-sections. The tool draws on the national, independent nonprofit FAIR Health's database of over 41 billion private healthcare claim recordsthe largest such repository in the country.

Cost of Giving Birth Tracker

The Cost of Giving Birth Tracker includes inpatient and outpatient facility and professional costs. Services include the delivery itself (e.g., pharmacy, nursery, labor and delivery room, medical and surgical supplies, room and board for the mother), anesthesia, fetal nonstress tests, ultrasounds, laboratory work and a breast pump. The data come from the September 2022 release of the vaginal delivery and C-section FH Total Treatment Cost benchmarks.

Among the findings of the Cost of Giving Birth Tracker:

The national median allowed amount for C-section is $15,555.61, and the national median charge amount is $35,907.33.

The national median allowed amount for vaginal delivery is $12,968.44, and the national median charge amount is $27,371.88.

Alaska is the state with the highest median allowed amount for vaginal deliveries, $21,525.77, followed by (in order from highest to lowest) New York, New Jersey, Connecticut and Massachusetts.

Alaska also had the highest median allowed amount for C-sections, $25,518.63, followed by New Jersey, New York, Connecticut and California.

Alabama had the lowest median allowed amount for vaginal deliveries, $7,840.62, followed by (in order from lowest to highest), Louisiana, Maryland, Virginia and West Virginia.

Alabama also had the lowest median allowed amount for C-sections, $8,913.31, followed by Louisiana, Maryland, Missouri and Oklahoma.

The Cost of Giving Birth Tracker is the latest addition to FAIR Health's series of trackers offering geographic windows into healthcare data. The series also includes the Monthly Telehealth Regional Tracker, which tracks telehealth utilization by region across the nation, and, in July, will include the Opioid Tracker, which will track opioid abuse and dependence and opioid overdose.

FAIR Health President Robin Gelburd stated: "FAIR Health is pleased to shine a light onto the costs of giving birth from state to state and nationally. With the Cost of Giving Birth Tracker, we once again use our vast data repository to inform healthcare stakeholdersincluding patients, policy makers, payors and providerson issues that matter to them."

For the Cost of Giving Birth Tracker, click here.

Follow us on Twitter @FAIRHealth

About FAIR Health

FAIR Health is a national, independent nonprofit organization that qualifies as a public charity under section 501(c)(3) of the federal tax code. It is dedicated to bringing transparency to healthcare costs and health insurance information through data products, consumer resources and health systems research support. FAIR Health possesses the nation's largest collection of private healthcare claims data, which includes over 41 billion claim records and is growing at a rate of over 2 billion claim records a year. FAIR Health licenses its privately billed data and data productsincluding benchmark modules, data visualizations, custom analytics and market indicesto commercial insurers and self-insurers, employers, providers, hospitals and healthcare systems, government agencies, researchers and others. Certified by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) as a national Qualified Entity, FAIR Health also receives data representing the experience of all individuals enrolled in traditional Medicare Parts A, B and D; FAIR Health includes among the private claims data in its database, data on Medicare Advantage enrollees. FAIR Health can produce insightful analytic reports and data products based on combined Medicare and commercial claims data for government, providers, payors and other authorized users. FAIR Health's systems for processing and storing protected health information have earned HITRUST CSF certification and achieved AICPA SOC 2 Type 2 compliance by meeting the rigorous data security requirements of these standards. As a testament to the reliability and objectivity of FAIR Health data, the data have been incorporated in statutes and regulations around the country and designated as the official, neutral data source for a variety of state health programs, including workers' compensation and personal injury protection (PIP) programs. FAIR Health data serve as an official reference point in support of certain state balance billing laws that protect consumers against bills for surprise out-of-network and emergency services. FAIR Health also uses its database to power a free consumer website available in English and Spanish, which enables consumers to estimate and plan for their healthcare expenditures and offers a rich educational platform on health insurance. An English/Spanish mobile app offers the same educational platform in a concise format and links to the cost estimation tools. The website has been honored by the White House Summit on Smart Disclosure, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), URAC, the eHealthcare Leadership Awards, appPicker, Employee Benefit News and Kiplinger's Personal Finance. FAIR Health also is named a top resource for patients in Dr. Elisabeth Rosenthal's book An American Sickness: How Healthcare Became Big Business and How You Can Take It Back. For more information on FAIR Health, visit fairhealth.org.

Contact:

Rachel Kent

Senior Director of Communications and Marketing

FAIR Health

646-396-0795

rkent@fairhealth.org

1 A median is the midpoint of the distribution of values below and above which there is an equal number of values.

2 A charge amount is the amount charged to a patient who is uninsured or obtaining an out-of-network service. An allowed amount is the total fee negotiated between an insurance plan and a provider for an in-network service, including both the portion to be paid by the plan member and the portion to be paid by the plan.

Cision

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/fair-health-launches-interactive-tool-tracking-cost-of-giving-birth-state-by-state-301850624.html

SOURCE FAIR Health
Family offices are increasingly investing in oil and gas, and some industry analysts and executives say their presence may offset some of the macro deficit created when generalist investors fled the E&P space.

A decade of dismal returns coupled with a rising tide of anti-fossil fuel sentiment drove shareholders away from the sector in recent years. But private family offices may be less distracted by the sectors history, especially as many large producers  flush with free cash flow  are now returning record cash to investors.

Dallas-based private equity firm Pearl Energy Investments closed a $705 million fund in May to target oil and gas opportunities with heavy participation from unnamed family offices.

PW Consortium, a private investor group largely led by family offices, acquired Wyoming natural gas producer PureWest Energy in a late May cash deal worth $1.84 billion. The buyer entity consisted of A.G. Hill Partners, Cain Capital, Eaglebine Capital Partners, Fortress Investment Group, HF Capital, Petro-Hunt and Wincoram Asset Management.

Joseph O'Brien, president and CEO of A.G. Hill Partners. (Source: A.G. Hill Partners)

Family offices were attracted to the investment opportunity in part because of its excellent assets with a large portion of its production hedged over the medium term, said Joseph OBrien, president and CEO of A.G. Hill Partners, a family office that manages the wealth of Al Hill Jr., the grandson of legendary oil tycoon H.L. Hunt.

We always like to collaborate with other like-minded investors. A.G. Hill Partners, by nature, collaborates with others, OBrien said, explaining that in addition to sharing risk, collaboration brings additional creativity and talent to the boardroom.

He said the other family offices in the new PureWest consortium are also sophisticated energy investors, and he said he expects other energy-focused consortiums to form out of necessity, just to pool enough capital to meet the sectors sizable capital demands.

Joe Flack, an attorney at Jackson Walker. (Source: Jackson Walker)

Joe Flack, an attorney at Jackson Walker who worked on the deal for Wincoram, said the family offices were attracted to the consortium for its ability to share risk. The new consortium is an example of family offices greater interest in oil and gas investing.

I think theyre interested in producing assets because they have consistent return relative to other assets they would invest in, Flack said, adding that family offices are using sophisticated financial devices to manage risk and are investing for longer terms than private equity does.

Oil and gas producers may source 12% of their capital from family offices during the next year, according to a Haynes Boone survey of energy executives released in April. This was the surveys greatest increase in expected capital sources; in a survey six months earlier, respondents expected family offices to account for 7% of their capital.

Kraig Grahmann, a partner at Haynes Boone, said family offices are filling part of a newly created void.

Kraig Grahmann, a partner at Haynes Boone. (Source: Haynes Boone)

When all of a sudden you saw private equity firms not being as willing to back oil and gas, and you saw commercial banks not be as willing to put as much capital in the space, it created an opening for family offices, he said.

Kraig and many others said declining returns and ESG concerns were the main drivers pushing investors away from oil and gas. He said private equity firms and publically traded companies can have constituencies that are very focused on ESG concerns and whether or not you're putting  their money into oil and gas. Many family offices have fewer ESG concerns and are seen to be willing to wait longer for returns.

Private equity pulled back from oil and gas investing when the landscape turned unfavorable to their model, according to Keith Behrens, a managing director of Stephens, a financial services firm based in New York. As the shale boom began to ebb, private equity portfolio companies could no longer drill a few promising wells and find a public buyer in the drill and flip model.

That derailed private equitys fundraising cycle and hindered their ability to circle back to investors for new investments.

Others said many traditional investors are still sitting out because they were so turned off by the massive capital destruction caused by rampant E&P overspending and tanking commodity prices.

But Mike Vlasic, whose family office has invested profitably in oil and gas for decades, said most people arent looking at the oil and gas boom-bust cycles in the right way. While many companies faced bankruptcy during the busts, the cycles also showed the industrys resilience. Steep declines in oil and gas prices were blows many other industries probably could not have endured, he told Hart Energy.

Mike Vlasic. (Source: Mike Vlasic)

Vlasics family earned its wealth  and household-name status  in the pickle business. The Vlasics turned to wealth building with a family office after selling the business in 1978.

Vlasic said oil and gas has been a profitable part of his family office portfolio since the late 1980s, and he sees more family offices starting to realize the industrys potential.

Its too big to ignore, he said. The oil and gas industry in this country is extremely sophisticated, has tons of ingenuity and has thrived and survived in a variety of market conditions that other industries would not.

Among one of the Vlasics early partners was Frank Lodzinski of Earthstone Energy who, now at age 74, is executive chairman of the Permian Basin pure play.

Lodzinski said family offices are being won over by management teams track records or by showing more responsible business practices in the aftermath of profligate spending and down cycles.

The industry has shown greater discipline than it has in the past in terms of controlling its leverage and developing free cash flow that it uses for returns or for growth, he said. The discipline has offset some of the fears of volatility and massive commodity price swings.

Michael Mitchell, senior management director of Mitchell Energy Advisors. (Source: Michael Mitchell)

Analysts and executives said the family offices growing presence brings E&P companies many long-term investors, but their investment is unlikely to meet all of the industrys capital demands. Many described the family offices as wanting high returns while keeping a low profile.

As many talked up family offices increasing presence as positive, one senior investment banking analyst, who asked to remain confidential, sees some pitfalls. The analyst works with family offices and said many dont have the internal expertise to evaluate oil and gas business plans and geology to make sound decisions in these investments. He spoke on the condition his name not be used in order to offer a candid assessment.

That was not a concern for Dallas broker Michael Mitchell, senior management director of Mitchell Energy Advisors. He said if family offices need petroleum expertise, they can outsource it.

Family offices that invest in E&P companies without a private equity team save themselves from paying the firms management and carried interest fees, Mitchell said.

I think we will continue to see family offices moving in to fill the gap based on improving industry returns as a result of renewed capital discipline by oil and gas producers, he said.
Its 8 a.m. on the westside of Los Angeles, and Angelica Song is getting ready for work as a marketing manager at Google. But unlike most other managers at the company, hundreds of thousands of people know exactly what her morning routine entails.

Song, 24, nabbed her coveted post-graduation tech job in 2021 after hustling hard during her internship and working long hours. In addition to her full-time gig with Google, shes also carved out a space for herself as a social influencer under a genre she calls corporate girlie, posting videos with advice to recent graduates, how much she spends in a day, and her home buying experience.

As an influencer, shes landed partnerships with Lexus and LinkedIn, doing brand deals and posting for her roughly 300,000 followers across TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube. She says her side gig brings in roughly two to three times what she makes at her corporate job.

I may be entry-level at my Google job, but at my off-time job, Im like CEO of my own company. I run my own business, and I have a team that helps me. It takes a lot of ambition to clock out after your day job and then fully dive back into another full-time job.

Gen Z entered the workforce during a once-in-a-generation global health crisis, and many had never known a professional life before the world shut down for the better part of two years. As society slowly returns to a new version of normal, a narrative has emerged that paints Gen Z as lazy and lacking the ambition required to succeed at work.

But Gen Zers like Song, as well as workplace experts Fortune spoke with, say that young workers are, in fact, extremely ambitiousjust uninterested in climbing an antiquated corporate ladder. And their efforts to redefine what success looks like will significantly transform how companies deal with their newest employees and their ability to retain and develop this generation into future corporate executives.

Many established workers at all levels come from that paradigm of: Work is your central identity, and the way to belong and thrive and work is just to centralize work in your life, says Heidi Brooks, a senior lecturer in Organizational Behavior at Yale School of Management. [Gen Z is] not on that plan. Turns out there are other ways of thinking about life and work, which is great. It's really refreshing, and we should be listening."

A new kind of ambition

Camila, 26, who asked that her full name not be used for privacy reasons, recently put herself up for a promotion at the boutique public relations company where she works. She says that employees have to pitch themselves for promotions at her company and explain why theyre ready for the job.

I figure, why not? she tells Fortune. She says it would be roughly a $10,000 pay increase to do essentially the same thing she does nowwith a smidge more responsibility.

The money is compelling, but Camila says shes not particularly interested in the designation in her email signature. Nor is she overly concerned with what this promotion could mean for her long-term career goals.

My vision of my job and life has much less to do with my actual job title, Camila says. I dont need to make $1 million. Yeah, itd be great, but I dont need thatSuccess doesnt have to be climbing the corporate ladder; it can be just being really good at your job.

At most, Camila says she would want to be an account director someday. Shes not opposed to climbing higher, but only if she can do the job in a way that allows her to maintain her work-life balance. She doesnt want phone calls and emails while on vacation like shes seen with past bosses.

Song admits she has some desire to be the chief marketing officer at a big company one day. But what she really wants is to feel passionate about her work and flex her skills, not just a high rank at a big company.

It's easy to say I would love to be CEO one day or that I'd love to be CMO one day. But I had a really good mentor ask me, What is it out of those positions and titles that you want? Song says. There's obviously a vanity aspect of it. It's like a public declaration that you're able to make it that far. But ask yourself, What type of leader do you want to be?

That rhetoric is common among Gen Z, who broadly want to bring their full selves to the office and perform work that aligns with their values, Brooks says.

Gen Z is more likely than older generations to pursue leadership positions, with 38% aspiring to be CEO, compared to 18% of Gen X and 21% of Boomers, according to a 2022 study by global consultancy United Minds in partnership with KRC Research. But while ambitious to succeed, they seem far less interested in doing so in the halls of a traditional corporate structure, and more on their own terms. According to Bank of America, 31% of Gen Zmuch like Songare turning to their passions as side hustles, demonstrating an entrepreneurial nature and desire to captain their own ship.

The same United Minds survey found Gen Z are more likely to do the work theyre paid for and not more, to value flexibility at work, and see the gap between what they want at work and what they get as insurmountable. As a generation, they are far more aware of diversity and exploring their unique identities than previous generations. They are also politically and socially active and place substantial value on racial justice and sustainability, which can be hard to find in mainstream corporate culture.

I would be falsely posturing if I said I didnt have any ambitions of climbing the corporate ladder, Sakib Jamal, a 26-year-old senior investment associate at venture capital firm Crossbeam tells Fortune. But his aspirations are more complex than simply trudging up the corporate ladder.

The answers not no, Jamal says when asked whether hes eyeing the C-suite someday. I would like the responsibility, but Im just as happy with the smaller officeIm still very much gunning for it, but Im not willing to sacrifice just to reach that.

And the prospect of corporate success isnt the carrot it used to be for students getting ready to enter the workforce, either. Sophia Kianni, a junior at Stanford University who founded the climate change nonprofit Climate Cardinals, tells Fortune that none of her friends fantasize about work and getting ahead in the office. The 21-year-old, who also served on the inaugural United Nations Youth Advisory Group on Climate Change, says she has no intention of joining corporate America and that many of her peers are still unsure about going the corporate route. Why work for a company when you can create your own and become the CEO?

I haven't seen a lot of hunger for climbing the corporate ladder in a traditional hierarchical structure, especially when it means forsaking the self, one's health, she says, adding that giving oneself over to the whims of organizational structure and shareholder demands isnt that appealing.

Gen Z is just not on that plan.

Listening to Gen Z

Gen Z hasnt been shy about making workplace demands. Like most, they want flexibility, a liveable salary, and healthy relationships with peers and higher-ups. But they also say theyre most motivated by feeling respected and like their work is appreciated, according to a study from research firm The Center for Generational Kinetics.

In roughly two years, Gen Z will make up more than a quarter of the global workforce among the 38 member countries of the OECD, generally defined as high-income countries, according to the World Economic Forum. That means companies and the people who lead them will likely soon have to cater to some of Gen Zs workplace demands to remain competitive in the talent market.

From a kind of demand and supply perspective, there will be some pressure to heed their needs and expectations in the workplace, Brooks says. That's a good thing. But beyond the kind of supply and demand, how do we actually unleash the potential of this generation?

Thats the question every company should ask itself, says Liz Hilton-Segel, a senior partner at McKinsey, who, in addition to counseling CEOs, writes the companys newsletter centered on Gen Z. She says the cohort started their careers, for the most part, during the pandemic, resulting in generationally distinct views on work and life. Whereas most employees now find themselves reprioritizing their work-life balance, Gen Z has no other reference.

My experience is of a generation thats unbelievably hardworking and unbelievably passionate about making a difference in their work, Hilton-Segel says. Theyre talking about meaning and purpose moreAnd were all sort of learning the upside opportunity of what we didnt know before.

Brooks says that companies must find the root underneath smaller individual requests to win over their youngest workers.

If you listen transactionally, they might be saying, I don't want to work on Fridays. But if you listen more deeply to what they're actually asking for and ask a follow-up questionWhy is it important to you to not work on Fridays? What are you hoping for from work? How can I help you create that?you can get into a deeper conversation with them and what they're really seeking, Brooks says.

Failing to do so could be costly not only in attracting talent but helping Gen Z evolve into future C-suite successors.

If you think about the future of work, and you want it to be a vibrant place, characterized by meaning, and belonging, and unleashing potential for your company and for your employees, and for your stakeholders and for society, then you might not squash the yearning for Gen Z to be aligned with that, Brooks says.

This story was originally featured on Fortune.com

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High-tech pizza company that raised nearly $500 million and would cook a pie in transit is reportedly broke

Even in the competitive world of food delivery, Zume was an idea that was out there.

Using high-tech tools, it aimed to cook a customers pizza while the delivery was in transit, resulting in a pie as fresh out of the oven as possible, delivered to your doorstep. But tech issues and a business model pivot that didnt work out have led to the company ceasing operations and looking to liquidate.

A report in The Information says Zune, which raised nearly $500 million in venture capital, has retained a restructuring firm to sell its assetsan alternative to bankruptcyafter largely shutting down last month.

Zume wasnt a name that pizza lovers would likely recognize. But it certainly had some unique ideas on shaking up the industry. Founded in 2015, it hoped to use new forms of technology to prepare pies, and venture capitalists were big fans of the model.

Softbank invested $375 million in the company in 2018, and Zume ultimately raised $445 million.

The idea was to use robots to assemble the pizzas at lightning-fast speed once the order came in. That would then be transferred to delivery vehicles with high-tech ovens that were meant to cook the food while it was being transported. Those ovens were equipped with GPS devices, to ensure the pizzas were ready when the delivery driver got close.

The reality of cooking on the go proved to be a lot harder than the theory; geography was a factor. Cheese would slide off the pies as the trucks traversed the hills of San Francisco, and customers lost patience.

In 2020, Zume gave up on its pizza dreams, laying off employees and pivoting to become a sustainable food-packaging company. It had dipped its toes in these waters with its pizza box, which was mean to prevent steam from impacting the fresh-cooked crust.

Altering the business model couldnt save the company, though.

This story was originally featured on Fortune.com

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"Don't worry about it, just keep telling the story."

So says Adrien Brody's director Schubert Green when Jones Hall (Jason Schwartzman) frets that he doesn't understand the play (within the movie) that he is currently starring in. It could also be the mantra of Asteroid City and the entire oeuvre of director Wes Anderson.

For Asteroid City  in theaters June 16 with a wider release June 23  isn't merely a mid-century Southwestern jewel box of Americana as diffused through Anderson's piquant eye. It is also an American Playhouse-style black-and-white special detailing the 1950s Actors' Studio approach to writing and mounting the "play" we are predominantly viewing.

ASTEROID CITY

Courtesy of Pop. 87 Productions/Focus Features Scarlett Johansson in 'Asteroid City'

Anderson, who directed and co-wrote the film, has always used a Matryoshka doll-esque approach to his storytelling, the layers of his masterfully designed sets and vast ensemble casts collapsing and expanding with the precision of a Mozart symphony. But Anderson compounds that tiered confectionary storytelling structure here, in his 11th feature, with this play-within-a-TV-special-within-a-movie framework.

The special's host, as played by a stentorian Bryan Cranston who seems to be channeling some combination of his stage work in All the Way and Network, wants us to remember that Asteroid City is also a fiction, the drama and ensuing mythology around its mounting as false as the Monument Valley-esque peaks in the background of the titular city.

Bryan Cranston stars as "Host" in writer/director Wes Anderson's ASTEROID CITY, a Focus Features release. Credit: Courtesy of Pop. 87 Productions/Focus Features

Courtesy of Pop. 87 Productions/Focus Features Bryan Cranston in 'Asteroid City'

The plot of the special revolves around dissolute playwright Conrad Earp (Edward Norton) attempting to write and perfect the play, Asteroid City, while the play itself is focused on a Southwestern town whose annual Junior Stargazer convention is upended by the sudden appearance of an alien.

Schwartzman, an Anderson regular, is New York actor Jones Hall, uncertain of his grasp on the play Asteroid City. Within the play, he is widowed war photographer Audie Steenbeck. Schwartzman has always been adept at playing the tragic clown and here, he might give his most wistful performance yet as an actor struggling to understand a play about a man who can only make sense of the world through his camera lens.

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He stars opposite Scarlett Johansson's Mercedes Ford, a veteran NY stage actress, who is portraying Midge Campbell, a mid-century movie star in the vein of Elizabeth Taylor or Susan Hayward. Johansson has made something of a career of playing brassy women of this era in projects such as Hail, Caesar! and Jojo Rabbit. But she elevates that to a new level here, barely tamping down Midge's inner melancholy, while also fully giving herself over to the melodramatic tableaus she enacts in her bungalow bathroom.

ASTEROID CITY

Courtesy of Pop. 87 Productions/Focus Features Jason Schwartzman and Tom Hanks in 'Asteroid City'

Johansson and Schwartzman give two stellar performances within a galaxy of gripping ensemble work that treads the line between pastiche and pathos with ease. There's no shortage of films set in the 1940s and '50s, movies that try to replicate the rat-a-tat patter of the Golden Age of Hollywood. But often, contemporary actors feel like they're playing dress-up, their all-too modern selves packaged in the trappings of the time.

One might think that would feel even more the case within the purposeful artifice of Anderson's world  the meticulously framed tableaus; the exquisite Southwestern sets that feel more like Disneyland than the real world; and the comedic language of the tilts, pans, and close-ups of his camera.

What can be said that hasn't been already about the visual style of Anderson's filmmaking (so recognizable that it's a meme)? Suffice it to say that Asteroid City both meets and exceeds the sumptuous artistry and fastidious invention of his previous work.

(L to R) Hong Chau stars as "Polly" and Adrien Brody stars as "Schubert Green" in writer/director Wes Anderson's ASTEROID CITY, a Focus Features release. Credit: Courtesy of Pop. 87 Productions/Focus Features

Courtesy of Pop. 87 Productions/Focus Features Hong Chau stars as Polly and Adrien Brody stars as Schubert Green in 'Asteroid City'

The deliberate contrivance of the world of the play, Asteroid City, feels more akin to the filmmaking of the era that Anderson is probing than other recent projects that aim for naturalistic verisimilitude to the time. It's clear that's entirely by design when you juxtapose the play's brightly lit exteriors, which conjure a classic studio's overexposed approach to natural light, with the black-and-white classic aspect-ratio realism of the TV special that details the making of the play.

The plays  and artists  that defined Broadway in the '40s and '50s (and reinvented the American theater) were about truth and realism. For artists engaged in the "Method," like the ones we see in a class near the film's conclusion, a good performance is less about acting than it is about being. Yet, the films that built Hollywood and coalesced the concept of movie-making are steeped in a purposeful disconnect between reality and fantasy. There's a reason they called the studios "dream factories."

ASTEROID CITY

Courtesy of Pop. 87 Productions/Focus Features Grace Edwards and Scarlett Johansson in 'Asteroid City'

With Asteroid City, Anderson seems to be philosophizing about that gap between the truth we seek in storytelling and the lush, bravura craftsmanship required to tell it. Asteroid City isn't in any way a cohesive story; it plays as a series of vignettes that don't necessarily build to any grand climax or clear purpose. But like Brody's Schubert instructs Schwartzman's Jones, it isn't really about reaching some greater sense of understanding anyway. Just keep telling the story. (Though admittedly, Anderson seems to care more about theory and style than narrative at this point in his career.)

Near the film's conclusion, the acting students with whom Conrad Earp meets are seized by the mania of repeating the mantra: "You can't wake up if you don't fall asleep." It could be dismissed as "Method" pretension, but it's also potentially the thesis statement of the film and Anderson's views on storytelling as a whole  to find the truth in art, you have to give yourself over to the artifice of the dream. Grade: B

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Cormac McCarthy, who died on Tuesday at the age of 89, is known for the dark and often merciless stories depicted in any of the dozen novels he wrote throughout his life.

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McCarthys inimitable outlook on life was first introduced to the world with his 1965 debut The Orchard Keeper, but the Pulitzer Prize-winning writer didnt enter the mainstream until the release of his later novels All the Pretty Horses, No Country for Old Men and The Road, the acclaimed film adaptations of which brought him a wide readership.



Biblical prose and grim themes run through all of McCarthys work, which is set in the American South and West. The MacArthur foundation, of which he was a fellow in 1981, hailed McCarthys stories as distinctively American fiction in the southern gothic and epic western traditions.



Below, check out the best novels to begin your Cormac McCarthy journey  from the Pulitzer Prize-winning The Road to his final two companion novels, The Passenger and Stella Maris.

Blood Meridian



McCarthys relentlessly bloody 1985 Western is based on historical events that took place on the Texas-Mexico border in the 1850s. The book follows its teenager protagonist in Tennessee, where he becomes witness to a nightmarish world in which Indians are being murdered for their scalps. The late critic Harold Bloom wrote that no other living American novelist  has given us a book as strong and memorable as Blood Meridian.'

Blood Meridian: Or the Evening Redness in the West

Price: $17.00 $9.99

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The Passenger



McCarthys final books, The Passenger and Stella Maris, released a year apart and 16 years after The Road, are vastly different than anything hed ever published. However, youd be mistaken to assume either of them are set in a cheerier place. The Passenger tells the tragic story of Bobby Western, a salvage diver, who is haunted by the loss of his sister Alicia, a troubled mathematical genius who died by suicide.

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A companion novel, Stella Maris, focuses on Alicia, with a narrative that unfolds as dialogue between Alicia and her doctors at a psychiatric hospital in Wisconsin in 1972.

The Passenger

Price: $30.00 $20.22

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The Road



The Road, which won the Pulitzer Prize in fiction in 2007, is a brooding post-apocalyptic novel that details the grueling journey of a father and son as they travel over a landscape thats been destroyed by some unspecified cataclysm. The novel was adapted into John Hillcoats 2009 film of the same name, with the screenplay written by McCarthy and Joe Penhall.

The Road

Price: $35.00 $19.89

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No Country for Old Men

Courtesy of Amazon



The violence-riddled No Country for Old Men is one of McCarthys most famous titles and widely considered one of his best. The book, originally written as a screenplay, follows a drug deal gone wrong when its Average Joe protagonist stumbles upon more than $2 million in a leather satchel in the Texas backcountry. The novel was then adapted into an indelible film by the Coen Brothers, which went on to win four Oscars including best picture.

No Country for Old Men

Price: $17.00 $10.99

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Suttree



Although not his most widely read book, 1975s Suttree is considered to be one of McCarthys greatest Southern novels. Having left behind a life of privilege with his prominent family, Cornelius Suttree lives in a dilapidated houseboat on a Tennessee river, spending his days fishing and mingling with the drunks and misfits trawling Knoxvilles seedy underbelly.

Suttree

Price: $18.00 $13.29

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All the Pretty Horses



Adapted into the Matt Damon-starring film directed by Bill Bob Thornton, All the Pretty Horses is the first installment of McCarthys Border Trilogy, which also includes The Crossing and Cities of the Plain. The novel, which is considered one of McCarthys most accessible works, tells the story of John Grady Cole as he leaves Texas to live as a cowboy in Mexico with his friend Lacey Rawlins. Along the way, he and Rawlins are beaten up and imprisoned, but even after his love leaves him, Cole never quite lets go of his cowboy optimism.

All the Pretty Horses

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Francois Gohier / Universal Images Group via Getty Images

Run-ins with orcas have been leaving boats stranded.

One captain told Newsweek that a pod of killer whales ambushed his boatan incident thats occurred not once, but twice. Dan Kriz told the publication the first encounter took place in 2020, when he and his crew were transporting a yacht through the Strait of Gibraltar, between Spain and Morocco.

"I was surrounded with a pack of eight orcas, pushing the boat around for about an hour," Kriz said. He described the ships rudder as being so impaired that they had to be towed to a nearby marina. He also said hes one of the first to experience these very unusual acts by orcas.

It then happened again, with Kriz explaining that the second time seemed more intentional. He was maneuvering a boat near the Canary Islands in April when he thought his vessel had collided with a wave. He soon knew it was something more when the boat was hit again.

"My first reaction was, 'Please! Not again,'" Kraz recalled. "There is not much one can do. They are very powerful and smart."

In a clip from the incident, the killer whales are biting off both rudders and one orca has a piece of the rudder in its mouth.

During the first encounter, Kriz and his crew could hear the animals communicating with each other; this time around, they were quiet, he said. It didn't take them that long to destroy both rudders, he continued. Looks like they knew exactly what they are doing. They didn't touch anything else."

The attack was around 15 minutes long. The crew then set sail once again for Spain, when one of the whales came back.

"Suddenly, one big adult orca started chasing us. In a couple of minutes, she was under the boat, and that was when we realized there was still a little piece of fiberglass left and she wanted to finish the job," Kriz said. "After that, we didn't see them anymore."

According to studies by the orca research group GTOA, these types of situations have nearly quadrupled recently. In 2020, only 52 interactions were recorded, with that number rising to 207 in 2022.

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More on this

Just days ago, a sailor reported an encounter with several whales that destroyed the rudders on his vessel. The incident also took place in the Strait of Gibraltar region, with the man, Iain Hamilton, telling BBC Radio 4 that a very large whale was pushing along the back of the boat, trying to bite the rudder.

He said the whales were repeatedly bumping it and pushed us around like a rag doll.
This story was produced as part of the NEW (Northeast Wisconsin) News Lab, a consortium of six news outlets covering northeastern Wisconsin. It is republished with the permission of The Press Times

The Press Times' editor's note: As generational cycles occur, negative patterns and traits are known to transfer through multiple generations via learned behavior, family dynamics and environment. We continue to explore five northeast Wisconsin intergenerational family issues  physical health, alcoholism and drug use, mental health, education and housing  and what some organizations are doing to address the trends.

Intergenerational trauma is an emotional response to a deeply disturbing event that is passed down through generations and is often at the heart of family mental health issues.

While interpersonal trauma  abuse  can be a visible factor for mental health disorders, non-interpersonal emotional or psychological trauma can appear silent or hidden, delivered through biological, social and psychological factors across generations.

This can result in distant parent-child relationships, complicated personality traits or personality disorders and negative repeated patterns of behavior.

The Duke University Office for Institutional Equity provides the following example of this type of transmission:

Intergenerational trauma is a concept developed to help explain years of generational challenges within families. It is the transmission (or sending down to younger generations) of the oppressive or traumatic effects of a historical event. For example, a great-grandmother who was placed in a concentration camp in Germany may have learned to cope by cutting off her emotions. Because of this, this grandmother may interact with her family in an emotionally distant fashion. That relationship may be tumultuous, to say the least.

The transmission of the historical trauma may begin to negatively affect her grandchildren and her grandchildrens children, etc., leading to generations of emotional distance, defensive behaviors around expression of emotions and denial.

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Wisconsin Office of Childrens Mental Health diagram

A report from the National Library of Medicine, Intergeneration trauma: A silent contributor to mental health deterioration in Afghanistan provides another example:

The triggering traumas can be personal, such as intimate partner violence, or collective, as in war or genocide. Intergenerational trauma is passed down in complex and subtle ways through attachment relationships and within family and community groups. One study discovered that successors of Holocaust survivors had shown changes in stress hormonal changes, indicating a change in their genetic makeup, implying that stressful experiences experienced by parents and grandparents can affect children even before they are born. Even after the threat has passed and they have resettled in a safe country, the body does not return to an unstressed state, and this response causes physical and psychological problems for future generations.

Family dynamics can be key to the childs development and the transmission of that trauma, as studies show positive childhood experiences, PCEs, and a healthy family environment can reduce the effect of adverse family experiences, or ACEs, such as intergenerational trauma.

The state of mental health in Wisconsin a 'burgeoning crisis'

Early this year, Gov. Tony Evers declared mental health a burgeoning crisis affecting both students and families.

We cannot overstate the profound impact that the past few years have had on our kids in many ways  and that includes their mental health. According to the Office of Childrens Mental Healths 2022 Report, about a third of our kids experience feelings of sadness and hopelessness nearly every day  a 10% increase over the last decade, Evers said.

Kids in crisis are often distracted and disengaged in class, might not be able to finish their homework and wont be able to focus on their studies at home or at school. Improving student mental health can also improve student learning outcomes and school attendance, while reducing bullying, risky behaviors, violence, involvement in the juvenile justice system and substance misuse.

The Wisconsin Office of Childrens Mental Health (OCMH) 2002 report stated that school belonging is on the decline in Wisconsin. High school students are feeling less connected now than a decade ago. 40% of high school students in Wisconsin feel they do not belong at school.

The report also found that screen time increased greatly during this same timeframe, partially due to reliance on technology induced by the COVID-19 environment.

Extracurricular participation in activities such as sports, music, art, drama or afterschool clubs decreased from a five-year average of 68% to 64% in 2022.

OCMH said that these activities have a positive effect on mental health by improving self-esteem, resilience, social skills, school connections and academic performance.

The report also showed that while the number of school-based mental health professionals has increased, Wisconsin still lags behind in the recommended levels and half of the Wisconsin youth with a diagnosed mental health condition are not receiving treatment.

Data also shows that 34% of Wisconsin high school students feel sad or hopeless and nearly half  48%  of LGBT youth have seriously considered committing suicide.

The U.S. Department of Health & Human Services Childrens Bureau said that up to 80% of children in foster care have significant mental health issues, and Native American/Alaskan Native people report experiencing serious psychological distress 2.5 times more often than the general population in one month.

A Wisconsin Department of Health Services report reflects that increase in mental health services use in Brown County from 2,842 to 3,065; Door County from 478 to 535; Kewaunee County from 346 to 365; and Manitowoc County from 1,236 to 1,393, while Outagamie County decreased from 1,897 to 1,843.

Family Services of northeast Wisconsin said there is also a huge discrepancy in access to mental health care in Wisconsin. Waitlists are weeks long, and the ratio of the population to mental health providers in Wisconsin is 440:1, 22.8% higher than the national average (the national average is 350:1).

A 2022 University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute study backed that up, stating that there are 440 people for each mental health provider in the state.

Whats being done

Access to mental health programs, social connectedness and family dynamics play a large role in breaking the cycle of intergenerational trauma and other mental health issues.

OCMH said that 82% of Wisconsin high schoolers have an adult, besides their parents, whom they feel comfortable seeking help from. 67% of high schoolers have an adult at school they can talk to adding that just one accepting adult in the life of an LGBTQ youth can reduce their risk of a suicide attempt by 40%.

Big Brothers Big Sisters of Northeast Wisconsin, which provides one-to-one mentoring for youth, said that when compared with their peers, youth matched with adults through their programs showed 84% improvement in socio-emotional competence, 82% improvement in avoidance of risky behaviors (and) 83% educational success.

Family & Childcare Resource of N.E.W. works to support family child development through education and support.

Programs such as the Triple P Positive Parenting Program focus on family dynamics and helping families grow together.

Family Services of northeast Wisconsin makes mental health services accessible to the community and works to help reduce the stigma surrounding mental health.

Family Services said they have received over 45,000 plus calls, texts and chats across Wisconsin through the 988 Suicide Crisis Lifeline, which is housed within Family Services.

In May of 2022, Wisconsin Lifeline became the primary call center for all 72 counties in Wisconsin. Three-digit dialing for 988 rolled out in July of 2022, making Wisconsin Lifeline easier to access and increasing call volume in the state. Wisconsin Lifeline calls increased by 26% following the rollout of 988, providing Wisconsin residents with life-saving crisis counseling at a moments notice. Our very own Crisis Center, which has served the region for 43 years, serves as the primary backup to Wisconsin Lifeline.

This spring, Foundations Health & Wholeness added free mental health therapy services for foster parents and their youth, as well as biological parents who are associated with the Foster Care by Foundations program.

Through the Get Kids Ahead initiative state funding is being provided to public and independent charter schools to grow Comprehensive School Mental Health Systems to provide support and services for social and emotional well-being in Wisconsin school districts.

Through the initiative, school districts were eligible for a per-pupil allocation in funding.

In May, the Unified School District of De Pere (USDDP) selected Care Solace and its Care Companion program to expand the districts access to mental health and substance use treatment.

Support for mental health issues is a top concern expressed to us by our community, says USDDP Superintendent Chris Thompson. Care Solace has a proven track record of effectively coordinating mental health provider access for more than 300 school districts throughout the US. We believe they will be a valuable resource that our students, staff, families and community members can turn to in their time of need.

The program assists in navigating the mental health care system.

Its hard to know where to begin and which provider would be a good fit. Then it can take weeks or even months to get an appointment. Care Solace is a single point of contact to help manage all the variables, and they can do it much more quickly than an individual can, added USDDP Director of Student Services Jerry Nicholson.

During Public Schools Week, Evers said no one working at the state level should say that we are doing enough in addressing the mental health crisis.

Folks, enough will be enough when these are not the statistics were reading about our kids in the news. Its time to get serious, he stated.

This story is part of the NEW (Northeast Wisconsin) News Labs fourth series, Families Matter, covering issues important to families in the region. The lab is a local news collaboration in northeast Wisconsin made up of six news organizations, which includes Green Bay Press-Gazette, Appleton Post-Crescent, FoxValley365, The Press Times, Wisconsin Public Radio and Wisconsin Watch. The University of Wisconsin-Green Bays Journalism Department is an educational partner. Microsoft is providing financial support to the Greater Green Bay Community Foundation and Community Foundation for the Fox Valley Region to fund the initiative. The mission of the lab is to collaborate to identify and fill information gaps to help residents explore ways to improve their communities and lives  and strengthen democracy.

READ THE SERIES:

This article originally appeared on Appleton Post-Crescent: Breaking the cycle: Intergenerational trauma has real impacts on Wisconsinites
Wes Gordon will design costumes for the New York City Ballet this fall on behalf of the Carolina Herrera brand.

Gordon is the sole fashion designer participating in this years fall gala, which will also mark the kickoff for City Ballets 75th anniversary year.

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Previous NYCB fall galas have focused on premiering new works from rising choreographic talents alongside costumes from important fashion designers. Given the companys significant anniversary, this years event will instead stage two works that are elemental to City Ballets history.

With that, Gordon will envision new costumes for Balanchines 1970 work Who Cares? The George Gershwin-scored piece was created as a jazzy, hell-of-a-town type homage to New York Citys bustling energy. For its fall gala, City Ballet will stage excerpts from the piece featuring 10 dancers in new looks designed by Gordon.

As a New Yorker, I look forward every year to NYCBs fall season and gala. I have attended numerous times and have always dreamt of being the guest designer; its a tremendous honor. I have been a longtime fan of Wendy Whelan, associate artistic director of NYCB  having photographed her in partnership with Elizaveta Porodina for our fall 2020 collection  and Im excited to work with her and the NYCB costume shop on this project, Gordon told WWD.

While Gordon has not seen Who Cares? live, hes watched archival footage as research for his designs. Its a very fitting piece for Herrera  high energy, fun and [a] celebration of New York, he said.

As in past years, Gordon will work side-by-side with City Ballet costume director Marc Happel and the companys in-house atelier of seamstresses and costume technicians.

Happel said the costumes in Who Cares? were ripe for reinvention. There is opportunity to bring new sophistication and elements of the city to the costume design for the ballet. Who Cares? is bubbly like Champagne, effervescent like the city itself. It is an entertaining and uplifting ballet, with a lot of old New York period design about it. I was thrilled when Wes Gordon signed on to redesign it, I have always thought he would be a great designer to bring to NYCB. His collections for Carolina Herrera have an elegant sophistication but also playfulness about them.

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Who Cares? last got a wardrobe update in 2013 with costumes by Santo Loquasto, which were designed for the pieces full cast and 40-minute run.

City Ballets 75th anniversary fall gala is scheduled for Oct. 5 and will also include a full run of Jerome Robbins Glass Pieces, with a score by Philip Glass. On Oct. 11, the company will stage a one-night-only tribute to its anniversary, staging the same program from its inaugural performance, which was held on Oct. 11, 1948.

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Sarasota city officials will settle two lawsuits for $150,000 after an officer crashed into a car in 2021 with an "excessive rate of speed" causing the passengers to be injured, according to court documents.

Sarasota city commissioners held a special closed meeting April 17 and in a unanimous vote accepted two settlement proposals, according to recorded video from the end of the session and court documents filed the next day.

Assistant City Attorney Joe Mladinich said the settlement proposals were for $110,000 and $40,000.

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Haley Jay, of Sarasota, and Nicholas Charles Tovar, of Maricopa County, Arizona, each sued the city for damages exceeding $30,000.

According to the two complaints, in cases that were consolidated into one, Jay and Tovar were passengers in a 2001 Honda CRV on March 30, 2021, that was traveling westbound on Main Street in Sarasota when it slowed to turn left across the double yellow lines into an open parking spot.

Sarasota Police Officer Julius Gonzalez was driving in a police vehicle heading west behind the Honda CRV, according to one complaint. Gonzalez switched lanes to his left thereby driving on the wrong side of the road at an excessive rate of speed and hit the Honda CRV as it turned into the parking spot. The complaint notes that the emergency lights on the police car were not on during the time of the accident.

Mladinich said the officer was responding to an emergency call he'd just received, and that was why he was driving at an excessive speed. Mladinich added the officer was about to turn on his emergency lights when the accident happened.

"When officers respond to an emergency, they're allowed to exceed the speed limit, and they're allowed to do things that would otherwise be against the law when responding to an emergency, but they still have to be careful and if they cause an accident, they're still at fault," Mladinich said.

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Mladinich said that when the officer was approaching the car and saw its red brake lights, he thought the car was stopping to allow him to pass. The officer hadn't anticipated that the car would turn across the double yellow line, which prohibits drivers from turning across the line.

Both Jay and Tovar claim they sustained serious and permanent injuries from the accident, with Jays complaint adding that some of the injuries are ongoing and will continue to affect her in the future.

In Tovars initial complaint, additional exhibits stated Tovar, then 23, went to the American Family Care Urgent Care the following day after the accident, complaining of lower back, right shoulder, and neck pain, as well as a tight feeling due to the crash. On April 9, 2021, Tovar went to a chiropractor and again listed several areas of pain and numbness in his right arm. He went to several more specialists, each time listing several areas of pain.

Attorneys for Tovar and Jay declined to comment and did not return calls to comment when a Sarasota Herald-Tribune reporter called their offices.

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Mladinich said the case was an example of comparative negligence, as there were factors by both parties that played a role in the accident.

Comparative negligence is when each party involved in an accident is assigned a certain percentage of fault when there isn't a sole perpetrator. If a case goes to trial, the jury usually decides what percentage of the fault lies with either party. Then, each party only pays the degree of fault for which they're found guilty.

In this case, the Honda CRV driver was turning left across double yellow lines, while the officer didn't turn on his emergency lights and sirens while he was speeding to indicate there was an emergency.

Gabriela Szymanowska covers the legal system for the Herald-Tribune in partnership with Report for America. You can support her work with a tax-deductible donation to Report for America. Contact Gabriela Szymanowska at gszymanowska@gannett.com, or on Twitter.

This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Sarasota settles lawsuits for $150K after officer crashes with car
A person crosses the street to enter a Detroit Department of Transportation bus outside the Coleman A. Young Municipal Center in Detroit in this Feb. 14, 2023 file photo. On Wednesday, the Wayne County Prosecutor's Office announced charges against Geraldine Johnson, a DDOT driver, in a fatal crash involving pedestrian Janice Bauer on June 2.

The driver in a bus crash that killed a Grosse Pointe Park woman as she walked in downtown Detroit earlier this month has been charged, according to the Wayne County Prosecutors Office.

Geraldine Johnson, 59, of Harper Woods faces one count of moving violation causing death in the June 2 crash that killed Janice Bauer, 67. Bauer worked for 10 years at another bus service, SMART, where she was the Americans with Disabilities Act clerk.

Johnson, who began her career with the Detroit Department of Transportation in 1997, was expected to be arraigned Wednesday in 36th District Court, the prosecutor's office said. The charge is listed as a misdemeanor on the court's website, and the Michigan Vehicle Code says the penalty for a conviction is "imprisonment for not more than 1 year or a fine of not more than $2,000.00, or both."

More: DDOT bus driver had fatality on record before crash that killed Grosse Pointe Park woman

Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy called the case tragic on every level.

The alleged facts are that defendant Geraldine Johnson literally ran her over with the city bus she was driving and caused her death, Worthy said in the release.

This marked the second fatal bus crash involving Johnson and a pedestrian. In 2015, she was behind the wheel in a crash that killed Joey Davis and led to a $4.5 million settlement with the city in 2016.

More: DDOT driver pulled off job after fatal pedestrian crash

In the latest incident, Johnson was at Griswold Street and West Congress in Detroit at 7:36 a.m. on June 2 when the crash happened, according to the prosecutors office.

When the defendant began to make a left turn onto Griswold Street, it is alleged that she fatally struck the victim while she was crossing the street on a green light. Medics arrived on scene and pronounced Ms. Bauer deceased, the release said.

Contact Eric D. Lawrence: elawrence@freepress.com. Become a subscriber.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: DDOT driver charged in crash that killed Janice Bauer
Deadpool shocked face in Deadpool 2

It figures that in a month where The Flash and Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny are about to mess with their own respective timelines, a huge release date shakeup has occurred. No need to worry about this years schedule though, as this slew of updates starts with the 2024 new movie releases , and its all about Disney. Avatar 3 fans, Ive got some bad news. However, Deadpool 3 loyalists are about to be rather pleased.

Per reporting from THR , it looks like despite James Camerons insistence of an on time Avatar 3 , the movie has now been moved into December 2025. This decision has caused a cascading effect for all subsequent sequels in that sweeping Pandoran epic, as Avatar 4 and Avatar 5 will now be released in December 2029 and December 2031, respectively.

As for Avengers: Kang Dynasty and Avengers: Secret Wars, those upcoming Marvel movies are now set to debut on May 1, 2026 and May 7, 2027. Though its not all bad news, as theres two new bright spots on Disneys 2024 calendar. Deadpool 3, which is currently in production, will be released on May 3, 2024; rather than its original November 8th release date.

And for those of you awaiting Fede Alvarezs still untitled Alien movie, that has now hit the calendar with an August 16, 2024 premiere window. Have you got all that down? Good, now lets talk about what these shifts may mean, and why they might have happened.

Lets start with those two Avengers movies, which feel like a dead giveaway that Marvel Studios could be playing for time. More specifically, theres a chance that recasting and retooling of the MCU might be afoot, particularly thanks to Jonathan Majors legal issues surrounding multiple allegations of abuse.

Though theres also the fact that everything from Captain America: Brave New World to Fantastic Four have also been pushed back; so perhaps its merely an issue with calendar space. Thats the more likely story, as Deadpool 3 taking the prime May 2024 spot set for Anthony Mackies MCU return seems to be the first domino in this particular chain.

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Ryan Reynolds debut in the post-Fox merger timeline taking such a leap forward does sound promising, and possibly a vote of confidence for director Shawn Levys big budget threequel. If theres any change of plans that has the world wondering just whats going on, its probably the further delay of the Avatar sequels.

This surely isnt the first time James Cameron has shifted plans, as the history of Avatar 2 delays will readily show anyone interested in digging into the matter a bit deeper. With everything we know about Avatar 3 informing us that the movie has been completely shot, and only post-production standing between the world and this next chapter, the reasoning behind this shift is still not totally clear.

Such is the nature of playing 4D chess with a slate that includes several major franchises at work at any given time. We'll have to just wait and see what sorts of details come out in the aftermath of this huge shake up, when and if they're available.

Thankfully, Avatar: The Way of Water is available, without delay, for those who have a Disney+ subscription. Which is also the same place you can find all four films needed to prepare for Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, as it's set to open in theaters on June 30th.
Three days of high-stake negotiations between interim Haiti Prime Minister Ariel Henry and a cross-section of Haitian political and civic leaders have ended without a resolution to their countrys multifaceted crisis, but with an agreement to continue talking back in Port-au-Prince.

Those discussions are to involve not just the 50 Haitians who eventually made it to Jamaicas capital this week, but also the three former Caribbean prime ministers  Perry Christie of The Bahamas, Bruce Golding of Jamaica and Kenny Anthony of St. Lucia  who facilitated the tense political negotiations aimed at getting Haitians to compromise.

The former leaders and elder statesmen have agreed to travel to Haiti in the coming days to meet with members of a transition council whose job it is to prepare the volatile country for long-overdue elections. The council currently consists of three members and is headed by Mirlande Manigat, a constitutional law expert and former first lady and presidential candidate.

Manigat had declined the invitation to travel to Jamaica to discuss Haitis crisis, saying the council had held a similar effort in Port-au-Prince and that such discussions should take place in Haiti, not Jamaica.

The hope was that by meeting in a neutral place to talk among themselves, Haitian political and civic leaders could arrive at a broad political consensus, after nearly two years of failed efforts by others in the international community, toward elections and improved security.

But as with previous negotiations, the unresolved core issue in closed-door discussions, which at times became heated, remained: How, in the absence of a president or a parliament, should Haiti be governed?

Haiti hasnt had an elected representative since January, when the last of its parliamentarians, 10 senators, left office after their terms expired. The country has not presidential elections following the assassination of President Jovenel Moise on July 7, 2021.

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Henry, who emerged as prime minister after a three-way power struggle, has governed the country since late July 2021. Although he has signed two political accords with parties and civil society groups, and installed the transition council to advise him, hes accused of amassing power. He pushed back against that accusation repeatedly in Kingston, where after declining to attend the first day of negotiations he participated in the last two days.

Its a match and this was the first half, architect and former presidential candidate Leslie Voltaire said. Voltaire accompanied Dr. Maryse Narcisse to Kingston on behalf of Fanmi Lavalas, the political party headed by former President Jean-Bertrand Aristide.

Before returning to Haiti on Wednesday with the others, Voltaire said that despite the lack of a concrete deal, he believes progress was made.

For one, the number of political voices was enlarged to include others, not just the coalition of civil society groups and political parties known as the Montana Accord, which has been vocal in their criticism of Henry and have been pushing their own transition plan. As a result, some parties have decided to create a bloc to further push for an opening, said Katia Bonte. with the Struggling Peoples Organization, OPL.

Second, Haitians got a chance to talk among themselves and express their dissatisfaction with the eroding situation at home. Their comments were directed at not only at Henry, but at others in the room who had been part of the government of Moise and former President Michel Martelly, who had handpicked Moise to succeed him.

In his conversation with Henry, Voltaire said he implored the prime minister to compromise.

I told him if you have all of the power than you have all of the pressures. Why dont you distribute the pressure? Voltaire said.

Upon returning to Port-au-Prince Wednesday, Henry addressed his visit to Jamaica saying during a press conference that the trip was an occasion to renew contact and engage in dialogue that was frank and sincere. He regretted the decision by those who opted not attend and said agreed with Voltaire that this was a step.

We will continue to talk, he said, adding that in the two years since he came into office, we have been trying to find a consensus and spoken to everyone in order to find an agreement so we can advance.

Then, he added, the current intermediary period has gone on for far too long and its time for Haiti to head to elections, to allow the population to freely choose the men and women of its choosing to represent them in office.

We say we are democrats. Then we can agree that one of the principle missions of a transition government is to organize good elections, Henry said, adding that improving the security environment by securing outside assistance for the Haiti National Police remains a priority and an urgency.

In principle, Henry has agreed to include a broader representation in his government by creating a unity government; he also agreed to expand the number of people on the transition council and both he and the others agreed to work toward creating a Provisional Electoral Council.

The government and [the transition council] remains flexible to modify certain structures in the government and governance and agree to make changes in the government so we can become more inclusive, Henry said, adding that making modifications to the constitution is something he also believes they can do given that nearly everyone in Kingston agreed it required changes.

But the stumbling blocks that have dogged previous tentative agreements persist: how much power should the council have? Will it be able to fire the prime minister? Will he be able to fire the council?

Members of the Montana Accord, who are now willing to have Henry remain in office, want the transition council to have presidential authority so that Haiti, in the spirit of its constitution, has a two-tier governmental structure: a prime minister and a president.

We are in an autocracy and its dangerous, said Magali Comeau Denis, who leads the Montana coalition.

Two years after the assassination of Moise, Denis said there is chaos in Haiti and at the head of the government. Chaos cannot solve chaos, she said. You need to have some order.

Jacques Ted Saint-Dic, who joined Denis in Jamaica, said they came to the talks with the idea that it was possible to arrive at a political consensus to create an opening and to discuss the future of the country.

The question of the personal power of Ariel for us is an important problem, he said. We are always saying we are a democracy. Unfortunately no institutions are functioning and the power is personal.

Though the talks are the initiative of the 15-member Caribbean Community, they were heavily supported and financed by the United States and Canada.

Ahead of the visit, diplomats in Haiti and in Washington met with several of the invitees, emboldening some participants at the negotiating table but arousing suspicious in others about whether the outcome was pre-decided, even though no foreign diplomats were allowed in the room during the talks.

In this perspective, we must negotiate directly with the Americans, Saint-Dic said. Because when speaking to Ariel Henry, we speak directly to the United States of America. Weve been saying to the Americans to free Ariel, to allow him to negotiate promptly and frankly, so we can know where he is, what he wants and where he wants to go.

Politicians on both sides of the issue accused both Henry and members of the Montana Group of being under the influence of foreign governments, accusations they all deny.

Sorel Jacinthe, a former senator and supporter of Henry, said he the negotiators are returning to Port-au-Prince the same way they left: empty handed and without a deal.

We did not resolve anything, he said.

Jacinthe accused the Montana group of not backing down from its insistence that there be a president appointed in Haiti, even through there have been no elections and there has been some opposition in the international community, given that the head of the Supreme Court was dead and the parliament was not functional.

They know clearly that as long as we do not have elections, there cannot be a president, Jacinthe said of the Montana coalition. There cannot be an executive at the head, and yet they insist on maintaining the same position after two years even though its not possible.

Jacinthe noted that prior to the Jamaica talks, the transition council held a forum in Port-au-Prince and many of the groups represented in Jamaica refused to show up.

They preferred to come to Jamaica but not one went to the forum, Jacinthe said. Now they are returning to Haiti with nothing being resolved.
FILE - This July 13, 2010, file photo, shows an entrance to the Advanced Micro Devices Inc. (AMD) headquarters in Sunnyvale, Calif. Advanced Micro Devices has revealed a new artificial intelligence chip in its race to compete with rival chipmaker Nvidia in supplying the foundation for a boom in AI-fueled business tools. The semiconductor company described its new MI300X chip as the worlds most advanced accelerator for generative AI. It's expected to attract interest from big cloud providers such as Amazon or Microsoft, but AMD hasn't specified which cloud provider might use it. (AP Photo/Paul Sakuma, File) (ASSOCIATED PRESS)

SAN FRANCISCO (AP)  Advanced Micro Devices has revealed a new artificial intelligence chip in its race to compete with rival chipmaker Nvidia in supplying the foundation for a boom in AI-fueled business tools.

The semiconductor company, based in Santa Clara, California, described its new MI300X chip as the worlds most advanced accelerator for generative AI. It's expected to attract interest from big cloud providers such as Amazon or Microsoft, but AMD hasn't specified which cloud provider might use it.

CFRA senior equity analyst Angelo Zino predicted this month that that AMDs MI300 processor will see significant interest from cloud providers and vie with NVIDIAs Grace Hopper Superchip.

AMDs stronger partnership with Microsoft should also drive upside, as it is reportedly cited to be developing a custom processor chip that Microsoft will use for AI workloads, Zino wrote.

AMD CEO Lisa Su demonstrated the new technology at a showcase event in San Francisco on Tuesday.

AMD joins a growing list of technology companies trying to take advantage of a broader interest from businesses looking for new AI tools that can analyze data, help make decisions and potentially replace some tasks currently performed by human workers. Much of the interest is on generative AI tools such as ChatGPT that can produce works of writing on command, as well as images, computer code and other media.

Nvidia, also based in Santa Clara, has carved itself a position as the lead provider of AI chips, a term that encompasses computing hardware thats specialized to handle workloads such as the training of AI systems on vast troves of data.

Nvidia, already one of the most valuable companies on the planet, joined the exclusive club of companies worth more than a trillion dollars shortly after forecasting a massive revenue boost thanks in part to chips made for use with artificial intelligence technology.
At least 78 people died after a migrant boat carrying hundreds of people sank off the Greek coast in the early hours of Wednesday, that countrys Coast Guard said, as fears mount that there could be more fatalities.

A total of 104 migrants who were traveling on the boat have since been rescued from the water and transferred to the city of Kalamata.

All the men who have been rescued are between 16 and 41 years old according to what they said, Kalamata Mayor Thanasis Vasilopoulos said Wednesday. They also said there were women and children on board, he added.

The coast guard, which revised down a previous death toll of 79, said the search and rescue operation will stop once its dark in the area and will continue with the first light of day tomorrow.

It is unclear how many people were on board the ship when it went under. Survivors say there could have been as many as 750 passengers.

The Greek coast guard released photos of the boat taken on Tuesday before it sank on Wednesday. - Hellenic Coast Guard

We fear that the number of dead will rise significantly, a spokesperson for Peloponnese prefect Panagiotis Nikas said.

The International Organization for Migration (IOM) earlier tweeted that it believed that there were up to 400 people onboard.

UN chief Antonio Guterres referred to the shipwreck as horrific in a post on Twitter, adding: As Ive said before  every person searching for a better life deserves safety and dignity.

State broadcaster ERT, citing initial information from authorities, said the boat had sailed from Tobruk, in Libya.

The NGO Alarm Phone said it first received a call from the boat Tuesday afternoon and that it was difficult to communicate with the distressed, who said that they could not survive the night.

Survivors arrive by yacht after a rescue operation at the port in Kalamata town. - www.argolikeseidhseis.gr/AP

People rest in a shelter, following a rescue operation, after their boat capsized at open sea. - Stelios Misinas/Reuters

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Those on board said the captain left the vessel three hours after the first distress call was made and passengers were in need of food and water, accoring to Alarm Phone.

A merchant vessel is said to have provided the boat with water at around 8 p.m. local time on Tuesday evening.

The last time Alarm Phone was able to contact the boat was just before 1 a.m. local time on Wednesday morning. According to Alarm Phone, all that could be heard was Hello my friend The ship you send is before the call cut off.

Search and rescue operations are being carried out by the Coast Guard in international waters, 47 nautical miles off the coast of Pylos in the southwestern Peloponnese.

The boats destination was Italy, according to Greek officials.

Survivors receive first aid. - www.argolikeseidhseis.gr/AP

Greek President Katernina Sakellaropoulou visited some of the survivors on Wednesday. We are shocked, we are shocked like everyone in Greece, Vasilopoulus said.

Greece has been at the heart of the European migrant crisis, offering a way into the European Union for migrants and refugees coming from the Middle East, Asia and Africa.

The number of undocumented people arriving on European shores by sea has skyrocketed this year due to conflict, global inequality and the climate crisis.

More than 36,000 people arrived in the Mediterranean region of Europe from January to March this year, nearly twice the number compared with the same period in 2022, according to figures from the UNs refugee agency (UNHCR).

It is the highest number since the refugee crisis that peaked in 2015 and early 2016  during some of the fiercest fighting in Syrias civil war  when the arrival of more than 1 million people on Europes shores led EU solidarity to collapse into bickering and border chaos.

For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com
Senior Biden administration officials on Tuesday announced new disciplinary measures to prevent further FBI abuses under a controversial surveillance program that will expire at years end unless Congress renews it.

A new three strike FBI policy will have analysts disciplined, or even fired, for three incidents in which they misuse the intelligence program, Deputy FBI Director Paul Abbate told the Senate Judiciary Committee.

The program, known as Section 702, allows authorized US officials to search a vast database that gathers phone calls and text messages of foreign targets overseas from US telecommunications providers. The data can include the communications of Americans in touch with those foreign targets.

The new FBI disciplinary measures are a response to heated criticism of the FBI from lawmakers from both parties after recently revealed examples of FBI using the foreign intelligence tool to search for information on Americans.

US officials and many lawmakers agree that the program is vital to US national security, but the recently revealed abuses have complicated the programs renewal and sharpened concerns in Congress about a lack of civil liberties protections.

Ive got to see more [reforms] than what the Justice Department has presented to the committee in the last two years, said Sen. Dick Durbin, the Illinois Democrat who chairs the committee.

The FBI improperly searched a Section 702 database for information on suspects in the January 6, 2021, US Capitol riot and people arrested at 2020 protests after the police killing of George Floyd, according to a court opinion that was unsealed and released last month.

Abbate and other senior officials from the CIA, National Security Agency and Justice Department made the case to lawmakers that, in the two years since those abuses, stringent reforms have been made to the approval process and procedures for the data searches.

The abuses are wholly and completely unacceptable, and they do not reflect the high standards that we seek to hold ourselves to in the FBI, Abbate told lawmakers.

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Abbate and other senior officials touted the importance of Section 702 in foiling assassination plots, tracking drug traffickers and recovering millions of dollars in ransom payments to foreign cybercriminals. The majority of the intelligence that appears in President Joe Bidens daily intelligence briefing comes from the program, officials said.

But lawmakers from both parties responded with a mix of support for the objectives of the program and an insistence that more safeguards for civil liberties are needed if the program is to be reauthorized.

The bitterly partisan political climate and Republican attacks on the FBI are also complicating Section 702s renewal. During the hearing, Republicans Ted Cruz and Marsha Blackburn made lengthy denunciations of the FBI and accused the bureau of not doing enough to investigate the business dealings of the presidents son Hunter Biden. Abbate declined to comment on investigative matters and forcefully defended the bureaus work as nonpartisan.

With the release of even more examples of how Section 702 has proven useful in disrupting terrorist plots and recovering ransom payments, the government has done a good job of convincing most members of Congress that the statute needs to be re-authorized, Glenn Gerstell, former general counsel at the NSA, told CNN.

But thats only half the battle; the other half is persuading Congress that the FBI can be trusted, Gerstell said.

For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com
I Feel Like the Most Hated Man in the World": Inmate Gets Life for Escaping Prison with Help from Guard He Loved

An Alabama inmate was handed a life sentence Thursday for his 2022 escape from prison with the help of a corrections officer.

Casey White, 39, pleaded guilty to escape in exchange for the dismissal of a felony murder charge involving the death of corrections officer Vicky White, who helped him escape and then ultimately took her own life as cops caught up with them. He agreed to the maximum sentence of life without parole, according to the Associated Press.

RELATED: Murder Trials For Once-Escaped Alabama Inmate Casey White Scheduled

I feel like the most hated man in the world," White said in the Lauderdale County courtroom Thursday, according to WHNT. I loved Vicky and I wouldnt drag her name through the mud for anyone in this courtroom.

Vicky took me out because she said, Right was right. Wrong is wrong,'" he continued. "First person to show me affection. First person to give me a hug in six years.

The pair, who are not related, were involved in a romantic relationship. Law enforcement initially thought the inmate kidnapped the corrections officer.

A Police handout of Vicki White

Vicki White Photo: Lauderdale County Sheriff's Office

Casey White escaped the Lauderdale County Detention Center in Alabama on April 29, 2022 with the aid of Vicky White, the assistant director of corrections at the time. Video evidence showed Vicky White escorting Casey White into a patrol car that they ditched in a parking lot a few miles away from the prison, WHNT reported.

After an 11-day manhunt, the chase ended in Evansville, Indiana, where Casey White was recaptured. As authorities closed in on the duo, Vicky White died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

Police handouts of Vicki White and Casey White

Alabama Jail Escapee Pleads Not Guilty In Death Of Corrections Officer Who Freed Him

The felony murder charge against Casey White was based on an Alabama law that allows someone to be charged with murder if someone is killed when a felony is being committed, according to the AP. In this case, the felony was Casey Whites escape from prison.

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It wasnt supposed to go that way, Casey White said to Vicky Whites mother in the courtroom, according to WHNT. White allegedly admitted the two had fallen in love and were planning to start a new life together.

Lauderdale County District Attorney Chris Connolly said during the June 8 hearing that the events surrounding the escape and death had a tremendous impact on Vicky Whites family, and that her mother wanted to speak, but was too emotional, per WHNT.

A new police handout of Casey White

Casey White Photo: Vanderburgh County Sheriffs Office

Defense attorney Mark McDaniel noted that he had never seen a case like this, the Huntsville, Alabama-based TV station reported.

As good as Vicky was, as kind as she mightve been, she had a key to get [Casey] out, WHNT reported McDaniel as saying. He didnt have it. She did.

RELATED: Cops: Alabama Inmate, Late Deputy Exchanged 949 Phone Calls Before Jail Break

White was already serving a 75-year prison term at the time of his escape for a series of criminal acts, including breaking into his ex-girlfriends home, killing her dog, and holding her and two other people hostage back in 2015, according to WAFF 48.

While in prison, White allegedly confessed to the murder of Connie Ridgeway, who was stabbed to death in October of 2015, per WAFF. He later recanted.

His capital murder trial regarding Ridgeway's killing  which had been delayed due to Whites escape  is set for Aug. 14.

If you or someone you know is thinking about self-harm or experiencing suicidal thoughts, call or text 988 to contact the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline.
British big-hitters Russell T. Davies, Jack Thorne and Dennis Kelly are preparing to stand with writers around the world today in support of striking scribes on a global day of solidarity and action.

Badged Screenwriters Everywhere, writers and protestors from almost two-dozen countries will march later to show support for their American counterparts, who put their pens down on May 2.

More from Deadline

Actions are taking place throughout the globe including at Netflixs office in Seoul, South Korea, Apple and Amazon in Canada and the European Parliament in Brussels.

The Writers Guild of Great Britain (WGGB)-organized protest in the UK will be attended by the likes of Doctor Who Showrunner Davies, Helps Thorne, The Full Monty writers Alice Nutter and Simon Beaufoy, and The Third Days Kelly. WGGB President Sandi Toksvig and Chair Lisa Holdsworth will make speeches around 1 p.m. GMT (5 a.m. PT).

Toksvig said: Everything starts with the writer, and we need to make sure that those who profit from the creative brilliance of writers, share those profits with writers, so they can be paid properly, enjoy fair working conditions and are treated with dignity and respect. These are the principles on which the trade union movement was founded, and they are more important today than they have ever been.

Its a hard thing, navigating it all is tough, Thorne told Deadline last week. Im trying to work out what Im putting on my placard. Im going to be spending most of the rest of the week working out what clever thing I can write.

The WGGB has urged all of its members to refuse work on WGA projects since the dispute  which shows no sign of ending soon  started six weeks ago. Other unions from around the world have made similar demands. The WGGBs protest is being supported by Equity, Bectu, the Musicians Union and the National Union of Journalists, alongside WGA members in the UK.

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You can see the full list of actions below:

Netflix, Buenos Aires, Argentina

European Parliament, Brussels

Apple and Amazon, Canada

National Assembly, Bulgaria

FoxTelecolombia, Colombia

Eiffel Tower, France

Cologne Cathedral, Germany

Tel Aviv Central Library, Israel

Estudios Churubusco, Mexico

EYE Film Museum, Netherlands

Chancellery of the Prime Minister, Poland

Netflix, Seoul, South Korea

Filmoteca de Catalunya and Valenciana, Spain

The Riksdag, Sweden

Leicester Square, London, United Kingdom

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Click here to read the full article.
The ChatGPT-generated church service took place in Saint Pauls Church in Furth, Germany (Getty Images)

Hundreds of people have attended an AI-generated church service in Germany, involving virtual avatars delivering sermons written by ChatGPT.

The 40-minute service at Saint Pauls church in Furth received mixed reactions from the Protestant congregation, the Associated Press reported, with the avatars occasionally causing unintentional laughter.

Some church members even refused to speak along when the digital avatar read out the Lords Prayer.

There was no heart and no soul, said Heiderose Schmidt, a 54-year-old IT worker who attended the service.

The avatars showed no emotions at all, had no body language and were talking so fast and monotonously that it was very hard for me to concentrate on what they said. But maybe it is different for the younger generation who grew up with all of this.

Lutheran pastor Marc Jansen was more impressed by the artificial intelligence, saying he had imagined it to be worse than it was.

I was positively surprised how well it worked, he said. Also, the language of the AI worked well, even though it was still a bit bumpy at times.

The AI began the service by stating: Dear friends, it is an honour for me to stand here and preach to you as the first artificial intelligence at this years convention of Protestants in Germany.

It went on to talk about leaving the past behind and never losing trust in Jesus, while also urging the congregation to overcome their fear of death.

More than 300 people attended the service, which was organised by 29-year-old theologian Jonas Simmerlein from the University of Vienna.

Mr Simmerlein instructed ChatGPT to include psalms, prayers and a blessing, saying the experiment was designed to show how religious leaders could use AI to help them with their work.

Artificial intelligence will increasingly take over our lives, in all its facets. And thats why its useful to learn to deal with it, he said, adding that AI will not be able to replace the role pastors serve in interacting with the local community.

The pastor is in the congregation, she lives with them, she buries the people, she knows them from the beginning. Artificial intelligence cannot do that. It does not know the congregation.
Billionaire Jeff Bezos was seen snapping photos of his rumoured fiance Lauren Sanchez aboard his new yacht as it travelled through Italy, making him the worlds most overpaid Instagram boyfriend.

The couple, who reportedly got engaged in May, took a trip to Portofino, Italy, on Monday. As captured in pictures shared by the DailyMail, they set sail on Bezos superyacht, Koru, which is reportedly worth $500m.

While aboard the large luxury boat, Bezos wore a black shirt and multi-coloured swim trunks, while his partner of five years wore a black bikini, which she paired with matching sunglasses.

The Amazon founder, who is worth more than $148bn, also took a moment to be Sanchezs personal photographer. While leaning on the metal railing of the yacht, the 53-year-old appeared to pose in front of the iPhone her partner was holding.

As he faced the camera toward Sanchez and the boats deck, the Blue Origin founder could be seen leaning back in an apparent effort to capture his partners best angles.

In another picture of the couple, shared by the DailyMail, the 59-year-old was captured handing his phone to Sanchez, presumably so she could see how the photo shoot turned out.

Hes an Instagram boyfriend, one person tweeted in response to the photos of the couple, while another said: This has me giggling because one of the wealthiest men in the world is no different than other dudes when it comes to being forced to take multiple pics of their lady until shes happy with the angle and lighting lol.

Im putting this on my vision board, someone else joked of the couples behaviour, while another described the moment as relationship goals.

As noted by The Atlantic, Kaitlyn Tiffany explained on the podcast Whyd You Push That Button? that an Instagram boyfriend, or husband, is a loose term for whoever is the invisible person behind the camera of all of your Instagram photos.

The couple arrived on the yacht in Italy via helicopter, with Sanchez and Bezos landing on Korus support vessel, a shadow boat for the super yacht that is reportedly worth more than $75m.

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The couple were also reportedly joined in Portofino by Sanchezs three children. The former news anchor shares one son, Nikko, with former NFL star Tony Gonzalez, as well as a son, Evan, and a daughter, Eleanor, with ex-husband Patrick Whitesell.

Meanwhile, Bezos shares three sons and one daughter with ex-wife MacKenzie Scott, who he was married to for 25 years. The former couple keeps their childrens lives private, with only the name of their eldest son, Preston, known to the public.

(Getty Images)

Last month, it was reported that Bezos and Sanchez had gotten engaged after five years of dating. The rumours of an engagement came amid the couples first vacation aboard Bezos super yacht. Bezos reportedly popped the question while the couple were in Cannes, France, for the Cannes Film Festival.

On 25 May Sanchez seemingly hinted at the engagement on her Instagram Story, where she shared a photo of herself on the trip. In the caption, she wrote: Cannes 2023. That was fun.

Days later, fans were quick to mock Bezos when it was reported that he spent more than $4,000 on a bottle of wine during the weekend of his engagement.

According to People, Bezos forked over $4,285 for an off-menu bottle of Dugat-Py Grand Cru from Domaine Bernard, which the couple enjoyed at La Petite Maison in Cannes, France. However, the New York Post reported that the same bottle of wine sold at auction in March 2022 for just $647, which is more than $3,500 less than what Bezos allegedly spent.

Five months before her reported engagement, Sanchez opened up the realities of being in a high-profile relationship with Bezos in an interview with WSJ Magazine.

According to the reporter, her relationship with the entrepreneur has meant that she has had to change the way she shares information, and secrets.

Its hard. Im a very open person. I talk a lot. I like to tell all my secrets, she said, before adding: I have had to learn that I cant do that.

She also said that prioritising privacy and keeping information to herself is something that she has to think about all the time.

I want to tell everyone everything. I want everyone to be my friend! she said. I learned how to not give the location of where Im at. I cant Instagram things that I normally would before. I have to be more private, a little more controlled, and thats fine.
Kevin Spacey hopes to return to acting soon after his U.K. sexual assault trial comes to an end.

The 63-year-old actor, whose trial is set to begin this month, told ZEITmagazin that there are directors and producers that have expressed an interest in working with him, but are waiting until after he's found not guilty to bring him onboard.

"It's a time in which a lot of people are very afraid that if they support me, they will be canceled," he said. "But I know that there are people right now who are ready to hire me the moment I am cleared of these charges in London. The second that happens, they're ready to move forward."

In January, Spacey pleaded not guilty to seven sexual assault charges that were all announced over the last year, including allegations that he sexually assaulted three men while serving as the artistic director of London's Old Vic theater between 2004 and 2015. He is facing 12 charges in total as additional sexual abuse charges, which he denied, were also levied against him last year.

Kevin Spacey has pleaded not guilty to sexual assault charges in the U.K.

Carl Court/Getty Images Kevin Spacey has pleaded not guilty to sexual assault charges in the U.K.

As part of the conditions of the interview, Spacey did not explicitly discuss the charges that he's facing. However, Spacey said that he isn't interested in "trying to even the score" and doesn't anticipate he'll be writing his story into any feature films anytime soon, adding, "I have no interest in fighting something that's not worth fighting against."

Ultimately, the actor believes he will be found innocent. "The moment scrutiny is applied, these things fall apart," he explained. "That's what happened in the [Anthony] Rapp trial, and that's what will happen in this case." (Spacey was found not liable for battery against Rapp in a three-week-long sexual abuse trial last October.)

These days, Spacey said that he feels like he's "back at the beginning of my career, when nobody wanted me." That doesn't mean, however, that his career has come to a total halt: Spacey has roles in the Italian film The Man Who Drew God, the documentary Once Upon a Time in Croatia, and a voice role in the upcoming independent film Control.

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"Just because I was being benched for a while, I'm not going to stop working," Spacey said. "I don't want to get rusty. I'm ready."

The article also briefly touched upon his "Let Me Be Frank" YouTube video from 2018, which saw Spacey channel his House of Cards character Frank Underwood while standing in front of a sink. "No one was hiring him, and he was bursting to act," his best friend and manager Evan Lowenstein said. "This was an opportunity for him to communicate in a way that couldn't be used against him in the court of law because he was acting."

Elsewhere in the interview, Spacey said that his fame influenced how he came to see everyone around him. He told the outlet that he didn't see people for who they are, but rather what they wanted from him, be it a signature or a selfie. "There's no school you can go to to learn how to handle being famous," he said. "I think I tried really hard not to be an asshole. But I think to some degree, I was an asshole."

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I think I loved the fact that it was a comedy, reflect Marcia Gay Harden on what first drew her into the script for her CBS series So Help Me Todd. Even though the show seems like a legal procedural, its episodes are always threaded through with hijinks. Even if Margaret is ostensibly serious, its because shes serious about her work, but in life, her inabilities in life to master technology, her rigidness, and her vanity are really funny and her anger is really funny, comments the actress about her character. Watch our exclusive video interview above.

So Help Me Todd centers on Hardens Margaret, a powerful Portland, Oregon, attorney who hires her sharp but unorganized son Todd, played by Skylar Astin, to be her firms temporary, in-house investigator. Its not like anything Ive ever done, admits the Oscar winner, discussing how the show has a screwball comedy sensibility, a whodunnit aspect, and real big family heart all at once. It took the writers a couple of episodes to find the ideal tone, which comes through because creator Scott Prendergast has an oddball sense of humor. The entire cast and crew ultimately landed on a style that she describes as grounded screwball.

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Harden serves as a producer on So Help Me Todd, which is the first time she has held this title on a television series in her career. She sees the responsibility as an honor, one she takes really seriously, especially because she has over 40 years of experience to bring to the work. I feel like the title producer earned me a place at the table, a chair at the table. Now its up to me to make sure I have good manners at the table, elaborates the actress. She picked up one important insight when she worked on Joel Coen and Ethan Coens Millers Crossing that she continues to apply, revealing, They never made you feel embarrassed about your creative instinct, your impulse, but they would slowly guide you into what they wanted.

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For So Help Me Todd, that translates into how Harden offers feedback on her scenes and on scripts. The Tony Award winner shares a story about production on episode 18, Gloom and Boom, a really beautifully written, dark, much more serious installment in which her character defends a Black man on death row and has to explain the state of systemic racism in the prison to a Black reporter. The actress voiced her concerns and discomfort about the scene of Margaret educating a Black woman about injustices affecting Black people and suggested changes for the journey of this character. For the producer, it is all about how to kindly and generously and non-defensively and non-aggressively make it better, if you can, because everybodys good and everybodys fighting for the same thing.

The success of the series hinges on the relationship between Margaret and Todd, and Harden says she developed a rapport with Astin instantly. From the premiere episode, the actress could see the rhythm between the mother and son on the page and shares, Boy, he would throw the ball at me, and I would throw it right back. The three-time Emmy nominee credits her scene partner as super good with ad libs and says they trust each other and have our own language of things that work.

WATCH Oscars Playback: Revisiting the 2001 ceremony when Gladiator entertained and Marcia Gay Harden thrilled us all

The first season finale is certainly dramatic for Margaret, who on the heels of winning a case stands up for herself against named partner Beverly (Leslie Silva), threatening to leave and start her own law firm if her contributions are not recognized. Margaret does receive the promotion to named partner that she has been coveting all season long as a result, but for Harden, the scene doesnt necessarily play as triumphant: While she ended up getting it, she had to kind of get ugly to get it, in a way. It sullied it a little bit, for me Why do we need to get there, because she deserved it, so why did it have to be a mud-wrestling? Margarets new position will undoubtedly play a major role in the upcoming second season.

Harden also starred in Uncoupled this season opposite Neil Patrick Harris and Tisha Campbell. Like Margaret in Todd, her character Claire in this comedy was recently left by her husband, which is just one of the similarities the actress sees between the roles. Theyre both very vain and the vanity of both of them, for me, is what makes them funny and fun, and theyre both slightly grand, says the actress, continuing, I think Margarets sillier, and I think Claires level of anger is a bit more ferocious. Claires more of a lion.

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All evidence of the scene shows she accidentally maybe lost her footing, authorities said of Julia-Mary Lane

Facebook Julia-Mary Lane

An Australian hiker has been found dead after she disappeared while climbing in Canadian bear country.

Julia-Mary JM Lane, 24, of Brisbane, was on a road trip in British Columbia when she vanished, according to Australias ABC News and The Guardian.

In a Facebook post, housemate Janet Hamilton said she had not seen her since she went for a hike on Saturday. She said family had not spoken with Lane since Saturday morning, either.

Officers located the womans car parked near Bear Lake shortly after her disappearance was reported on Sunday, according to a statement from the Kimberley Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP). Unfortunately, searchers found the woman, deceased, they said.

Related: High School Senior Found Dead After Swimming in N.J. Lake Was on 'Scavenger Hunt That Went Astray

RCMP Corporal John Tent told The Kimberley Bulletin that two hikers had located the womans body while search crews ascended the mountain.

The victims death appears to be accidental, RCMP Corporal James Grandy told The Guardian. All evidence of the scene shows she accidentally maybe lost her footing, he added.

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"We have lost our beautiful baby girl  in an unfortunate hiking accident, her family said in a statement shared on social media.

Separately, Hamilton thanked those who offered help and support during the two-day search for Lane, whom she called a truly beautiful soul.



Related: Calif. Woman Dies Trying to Keep Teen Who 'Slipped' from Going Over Waterfall Ledge

Lane had been living in Canada since early January, according to ABC News and The Guardian.

The Queensland woman had gone for a hike on the Bear Lake Trail near Kimberly the day she disappeared, according to News.com.au.



Her mother, Rosalind Lane, told ABC News that she learned about her daughters disappearance early Monday morning. She said loved ones grew concerned after JM stopped responding to messages and phone calls, which her mom said was "very out of character.

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"She's very well-traveled, she's fit, she's capable, Rosalind explained. The worry is there's unstable ground and she's had a fall and there's bears around.

Related: Body of Wash. Man Found After He Went Missing Climbing Mount Rainier for 50th Time to Celebrate Birthday

Father Julian Lane was the last person to speak with her on Saturday, according to ABC News. The young woman was waiting to start a new finance job in Canada before she died.



Its a very sad situation and the RCMP send out their condolences to the family, Tent told the Bulletin.



The BC Coroner Service is investigating, according to the Kimberly RCMP.

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Read the original article on People.
NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg promised a new commitment in support for Ukraine and pledged to sustain and step up defense spending across the alliance.

Stoltenberg said at a Tuesday meeting with President Biden in the Oval Office that he expects members of the western security alliance to reach a minimum commitment in defense spending of 2 percent of GDP, or the economic output for a country.

It has to be a minimum of what allies have to invest in our shared security, he said.

Defense spending across the alliance increased last year after Russia invaded Ukraine, but most of the 31 members have not reached the 2 percent of GDP target.

NATO released a report this year that showed only seven nations reached the GDP target: the United States, Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, the U.K., Estonia and Greece.

Stoltenbergs meeting with Biden comes ahead of the July 11-12 NATO summit in Vilnius, Lithuania, where world leaders in the alliance are expected to discuss GDP spending and the war in Ukraine, along with other security interests.

Biden on Tuesday praised the strength of the security alliance in the wake of Russias invasion of Ukraine.

At our summit in Lithuania next month we are going to be building on that momentum, working to ensure allies [spend] enough on defense at 2 percent, not just as the height but the bottom line, Biden said.

The U.S. on Tuesday also announced another roughly $300 million dollar package for Ukraine, which launched its counteroffensive this month to reclaim territory occupied by Russian forces in the southern Donetsk region and southeastern Zaporizhizhia region.

Ukrainian forces have made small but incremental progress, claiming to have captured at least seven towns in the east.

Stoltenberg said the support provided to Ukraine from the security alliance is making a difference on the battlefield.

Ukrainians are making progress, making advances, he said. Its still early days, but what we do know is the more land Ukraine is able to liberate, the stronger hand they will have at the negotiation table.

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Both Stoltenberg and Biden were also expected to discuss the accession of Finland earlier this year into the security alliance and the obstacles facing Swedens inclusion.

Turkey has opposed Swedens membership over concerns due to the nations alleged ties to extremist groups.

Stoltenberg on Tuesday said he was looking forward to welcoming Sweden into the alliance as soon as possible.

Stoltenberg, who has held the secretary-general job since 2014, is expected to step down at the end of his term in September. Alliance members are currently looking for his replacement.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
A cargo ship is towed in by tugboats in Tanjung Priok Port, Jakarta, Indonesia

JAKARTA (Reuters) - Economists surveyed in a Reuters poll expect Indonesia's May trade surplus to shrink from the previous month, following a decline in exports because of weakening commodity prices.

The median expectation of the 19 economists was for the trade surplus in Southeast Asia's biggest economy to fall to $3.02 billion from $3.94 billion in April.

Although Indonesia has enjoyed a monthly trade surplus since mid-2020, economists expect the trend to gradually decline this year due to the fall in commodity prices.

Economists in the poll predicted May exports to fall 8.7% on an annual basis, although the contraction is less than 29.4% the previous month, because of a low base effect.

May imports were also seen declining 11% from the corresponding month last year, versus April's contraction of 22.32%.

Both exports and imports last month were still seen contracting because of a global economic slowdown, said Bank Mandiri economist Faisal Rachman, who forecast a trade surplus of $3.07 billion in May.

"The combination of falling commodity prices, subdued global economic environment, and domestic politics triggers a wait-and-see action in investment and production activities," he said.

However, in month-on-month terms, both exports and imports were seen to have posted growth in May, Rachman added, as economic activity returned to normal after the April holiday of Eid al-Fitr that ended the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan.

(Polling by Anant Chandak and Madhumita Gokhale; Writing by Stefanno Sulaiman; Editing by Clarence Fernandez)
Tanker truck drives on U.S. Route 191 near Martin and Helper on March 29, 2023. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News

On June 1, boosters of the Uinta Basin Railway wrote an op-ed to debunk criticism of the project. However, an objective look at the facts shows that the railway amounts to little more than a massive oil pipeline on wheels threatening Utah, Colorado and downline communities with pollution, spills, hazardous waste and climate havoc.

Of course railroads are used every day, and they often solve transportation problems. But the only problem this railway will solve is how to make oil companies richer. The federal Surface Transportation Board concluded that the railway was designed to serve a single purpose: quintupling oil production in the Uinta Basin. Trains leaving the basin are not predicted to carry anything in commercially significant quantities but oil (up to 5 billion gallons a year) that would not otherwise be drilled, while trains returning to the basin are not expected to carry anything in commercially significant quantities but fracking sand to help with that drilling. While the board stated other products might be transported, the agency concluded that transporting freight besides oil and sand was not reasonably foreseeable. The railways contention that it will diversify the local economy or carry all manner of other freight is simply make-believe.

Railway backers allege that hauling Uinta waxy crude will be as safe as hauling birthday candles. This is more make-believe. They fail to mention that this special wax comes with a hazardous materials safety sheet that warns that the crude is suspected of causing genetic defects, may cause cancer, may cause damage to organs (liver, kidneys, blood, nervous system and skin) through prolonged or repeated exposure and is very toxic to aquatic life with long lasting effects (long-term, chronic). The Surface Transportation Boards analysis concluded that waxy crude oil may persist in the environment for a longer time relative to other non-waxy crude oil.

And that oil may burn in an accident. The Surface Transportation Board stated, For larger spills (e.g., spills involving five or more loaded rail cars), the likelihood of an accident having sufficient energy to yield an ignition would be greater, i.e., closer to 50 percent or more.

In short, such toxic candles would pose environmental and health threats if damaged rail cars were to release them into the environment. Thats inevitable, because if weve learned anything from the East Palestine, Ohio disaster earlier this year, its that train cars derail, crack, and release dangerous, polluting cargo.

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There is ample reason to doubt the railways claim that it would actually transport Uinta waxy crude in its solid form. When Uinta Yellow Waxy Crude falls below 120 degrees Farenheit, it is a solid that cannot be pumped from the ground, transferred, or refined. Yet the railways boosters claim that once the hot waxy crude is loaded into a tanker car, they will let it cool and solidify before shipping it, reducing its risk in the event of a spill.

This would be a radical departure from current practice. When Uinta crude solidifies, it forms a paraffin and asphaltene sludge that binds to and corrodes container walls and, over time, clogs anything it is carried in. That is why shippers scrupulously avoid letting it solidify in transit. Hauling solid Uinta crude in tanker cars is so expensive and impractical that it calls into question the commercial viability of the railway, which is in doubt even if it were to follow standard business practice. If the railways backers actually have discovered a commercially viable way to haul solid crude in tanker cars, they need to publicly disclose the details to ease the fears of all those who would suffer if a 120-car oil train were to derail and spill into the Colorado River.

Federal regulators predict that a two-mile-long oil train carrying millions of gallons of oil will derail every year, and lead to a spill every four years. This apparently doesnt worry the railways backers.

Up to five times a day, loaded oil trains would tiptoe down the steep, unstable slopes and sharp bends of Utahs Indian Canyon, crossing its stream over 400 times, then tackle Colorados mountainous terrain, including narrow canyons without road access, and then follow the Colorado River for well over 100 miles. More than a dozen communities near the rail line oppose it because they know that accidents are inevitable, spills will not be easy to clean up, and they would threaten the livelihoods of their residents, which depend on angling, boating and clean water.

The sunny picture of the railway that its backers paint ignores the air pollution and climate impacts of producing, refining and consuming all that oil. Oil production in the Uinta Basin causes smog worse than Los Angeles on some winter days. Quintupling the basins production, as the railway intends, would make its smog problem that much worse.

Nearly all of the oil would be transported to areas in Texas and Cancer Alley in Louisiana for refining, whose communities are already heavily impacted by the pollution created by the fossil fuel industry. No federal agency has ever assessed these harms, or asked these communities if theyre prepared for more. The Seven County Infrastructure Coalition certainly didnt.

The Surface Transportation Boards analysis concluded that producing, transporting, and burning the railways extra Uinta crude could also unleash 56 million tons of carbon dioxide per year, an amount that would cause more than $2.5 billion in global damage annually.

So when oil train backers say they are correcting misrepresentations about the Uinta Basin Railway, beware. Such corrections blend crude oil with snake oil.

Malin Moench spent 37 years analyzing economic and legal issues pertaining to public utilities and logistics for the federal government. Now retired, he works as a volunteer for various nonprofits devoted to protecting pubic health and the environment.
A Penn State professor is facing charges after allegedly sexually assaulting an animal at a state park.

Themis Matsoukas was caught on camera in April committing sexual acts with his dog near a set of restrooms at Rothrock State Forest, according to an affidavit of probable cause filed June 12.

Matsoukas, a 64-year-old chemical engineering professor at Penn States University Park campus, was identified through a pair of trail cameras that recognized his North Face backpack, which was reportedly documented in photographs as he visited the park on several occasions dating back to 2014.

Rothrock State Forest rangers later served a pair of search warrants  one for Matsoukass State College home and another for his car  and found all items listed, including his backpack, a black ski mask, the professors dog and electronic tablets allegedly used to record some of the lewd acts. A series of recordings captured by trail cameras at the park allegedly observed Matsoukas sexually assaulting his dog.

Heres what you need to know about the charges Matsoukas faces, as well as Pennsylvania law and animal cruelty guidelines across the country.

Penn State professor facing animal cruelty charges

According to court documents filed Monday, Matsoukas faces three misdemeanor charges: open lewdness, indecent exposure and sexual intercourse with animals. Two summary charges of cruelty to animals and disorderly conduct were also included in the filing.

A preliminary hearing is scheduled for 2 p.m. July 19 before Magisterial District Judge Douglas Gummo of Huntingdon County.

Pennsylvanias law regarding animals, more

Under Pennsylvania law, sexual intercourse with an animal is illegal and typically classified as a second-degree misdemeanor. Notably, the commonwealths statute broadly refers to sexual intercourse and is not limited to assault.

A person who engages in any form of sexual intercourse with an animal commits a misdemeanor of the second degree, the statute reads.

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Most cases of indecent exposure in Pennsylvania are also classified as second-degree misdemeanors. Charges can be upgraded to a first-degree misdemeanor if anyone present is younger than 16 years old.

A person commits indecent exposure if that person exposes his or her genitals in any public place or in any place where there are present other persons under circumstances in which he or she should know that this conduct is likely to offend, affront or alarm, the statute reads.

In Pennsylvania, violations of second-degree misdemeanors can be punished by a maximum of two years in prison, plus a fine of up to $5,000.

Finally, open lewdness is usually classified as a third-degree misdemeanor. Though such acts are closely associated with indecent exposure, the statutes language is broader.

A person commits a misdemeanor of the third degree if he does any lewd act which he knows is likely to be observed by others who would be affronted or alarmed, the commonwealths statute reads.

Third-degree misdemeanors in Pennsylvania are punishable by up to 90 days in prison, plus a fine of up to $5,000.

Animal cruelty cases in Pennsylvania

Authorities in the commonwealth have filed charges and prosecuted those who have engaged in sexual acts with animals for decades.

According to a 2021 report from the Administrative Office of Pennsylvania Courts, more than 25,000 animal abuse offenses have been filed statewide since stricter anti-cruelty laws were adopted in 2017. Roughly 39% of that share  about 9,800 cases  were related to animal cruelty, while the overwhelming portion was aggregated as neglect.

One of Pennsylvanias most high-profile cases surfaced in August 2018 when three men faced charges that included more than 1,400 counts of sexual intercourse with animals. They were each sentenced in 2019 to serve terms of 20 to 41 years in state prison.

Why a local DA called this one of the most extreme cases of animal abuse

Animal cruelty laws across the nation

As of 2023, 49 states criminalize the sexual assault of animals, according to the Animal Legal Defense Fund, an animal law advocacy organization. West Virginia remains the lone exception, though related acts in the Mountain State could be prosecuted as animal cruelty in some scenarios.

New Mexico enacted the Animal Sexual Abuse Act in late March to become the latest state to criminalize the sexual assault of animals.

Though the sexual assault of animals is now illegal in nearly every state, punishments vary. According to the Animal Legal Defense Fund, roughly half of U.S. states impose misdemeanors for such charges, while the remaining half offers felony enhancements or full felony classification.

Additionally, about a dozen states still use outdated laws that poorly define animal cruelty crimes or employ vague language. According to the Animal Legal Defense Fund, antiquated statutes are difficult to enforce and may not properly prevent a convicted offender from later owning or possessing animals. Updated provisions are critical to protecting future animal victims, the group writes.

How to report animal cruelty

Pennsylvanians are encouraged to report animal cruelty by contacting their local humane societies or police stations.

Police are required to respond to calls about animal cruelty and animal-related emergencies. Those in the State College area can contact borough police by phoning 814-234-7100 during business hours or by calling 800-479-0050 after business hours.

Visit pda.state.pa.us/BAHDS/HSPO/HSPOSearch.aspx to search and find humane offices near you.

Additionally, the Pennsylvania Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals offers several resources to help report and respond to suspected abuse. To report animal cruelty, call 866-601-7722, email cruelty@pspca.org or submit a tip online at pspca.org/form/report-animal-cruelty.
Queen Rania's dusty pink dress

Queen Rania stepped out for an important engagement today and wore the most fabulous dusty pink gown from Dolce and Gabbana.

Queen Rania of Jordan attended an engagement on Tuesday, June 13, 2023.

Queen Rania's dusty pink dress for this event was another fantastic look as she nailed an all-pink ensemble that was both classic and modern.

In other royal news, Why Lady Louise Windsor could be about to make high-profile appearance months after missing annual Royal Family event.

Queen Rania of Jordan looked wonderful on Tuesday as she stepped out in Amman to attend a Graduation Ceremony at the International Academy. For this prestigious occasion, Her Majesty wore a dusty pink dress that perfectly blended modernity with a short knee-length cut, and femininity in a classic lace overlay.

The long-sleeved dress featured a hidden zip closure, and a fit-and-flare design that hugged Her Majesty's torso, waist, and hips, but flared at her thighs to give the Queen a full range of motion. This stunning look is last season's Dolce and Gabbana and was called the Pink Lace Flounce Midi Dress.

Accompanying this Dolce and Gabbana dress, the Queen paired the dress with a bag from the same brand. The queen wore the Sicily Small Tote Bag in Grey which she has actually worn to a number of engagements in the past.

The Queen also wore a pair of Dior Pumps with this look with a similar pink shade. Her Majesty re-wore the Rose Gold and Blush Mesh Pointed Toe Pumps which she has been snapped in before.

A post shared by Queen Rania Al Abdullah (@queenrania) A photo posted by on

Allie Silver Belt, (20.00) $30.00 | White Stuff

Much like Queen Rania's belt, this thin wasit clinching belt is the perfect silver accessory to add to any high end look. This piece is made from 100% leather and features a silver hardware buckle as well as a metalic silver shine to the leather.View Deal

The Queen put her own spin on this look by adding a delicate belt to this ensemble. This wasn't an original part of the Dolce and Gabbana look and showed how the Queen's stylists were able to add a sprinkling of subtle glamour to this look. The waist of this dress was elevated by the belt and drew attention to the Queen's figure.

It is unknown where Her Majesty purchased her belt from but based on the high-end labels behind the rest of her look it was likely a designer brand. But you don't have to fork out a lot to achieve this cinched-in look, as many brands sell similar silver belts for reasonable prices.

Her Majesty has been stepping out in some fabulous outfits recently. On Monday, Queen Rania's delicate lace blue gown stunned as she steps out for an important charity event alongside her glamorous cousin-in-law Princess Ghida. Similarly, earlier in the month, Queen Rania combined tradition and modernity in two highly decorated chic dresses for Jordanian Royal Wedding.


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'Housewives' star Kim Zolciak is asking a judge for full physical custody of her children, in the nasty divorce battle with ex-husband Kroy Biermann.

According to new legal documents, obtained by The Blast, Kim filed a response and "counterclaim" to Kroy's original divorce documents in Fulton County, Georgia claiming she should get primary physical custody of the former couple's four minor children.

In the filing, Zolciak says the couple separated on April 30, 2023, but the kids have been living with both parties at the marital residence. Plus, prior to the breakup, the kids have lived with both parents since birth. In other words, Kim writes she is a "loving, fit, and proper parent to have joint legal and primary physical custody" of the children.

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Zolciak says Kroy should have "liberal visitation" with the kids.

Kim Zolciak Asking For Spousal, Child Support Following Nasty Divorce

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It should be noted, "legal custody" normally constitutes sharing the right with your ex-spouse to make major decisions like schooling, religion, and medical issues. The documents reveal Zolciak wants Kroy to pay "temporary and permanent child support" along with "temporary and permanent alimony" following the split.

As we reported, Kroy filed for divorce several weeks ago, claiming the kids are currently in his care -- and he should have sole custody of the children.

As for the rest of the couple's money, Kim is asking a judge to order Biermann to split everything, writing, she should be "awarded an equitable division of all marital assets and debts accumulated during the marriage." The other problem with that statement is that they reportedly owe the IRS $1 Million.

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'Housewives' Star Kim Zolciak Wants Maiden Name Restored Following Breakup

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Also, Kim wants her share of the ex-couples high-end items from the house, asking a judge he be "restrained and enjoined from removing or secreting any property of the parties, including any bank accounts, retirement accounts, furniture, and household goods in the marital residence."

Interestingly, the reality star is asking the court to legally change her name back to "Kimberleigh Marie Zolciak." Of course, she has always gone by that name on the television show and in the public's eyes.

The bottom line, this divorce is nasty and both of them are slinging mud at each other like a good reality show.

Kroy Biermann, Kim Zolciak Divorce Is Getting NASTY! Read The Stunning Details...

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In Kroy's original divorce documents, he claims Zolciak is an addicted gambler and it has thrown the family into financial disaster. Biermann says the situation is so bad, she can't take care of the kids and the "compulsion" is "very troubling behavior." Shockingly, he is asking the court to run a psychological evaluation on his ex-wife claiming the gambling "may be the result of underlying mental health issues like depression, anxiety, narcissistic personality disorder, bipolar disorder or ADHD."

Of course, Kim responded with her own allegations of bad parenting. Zolciak claims she has serious concerns for the safety of her children because Biermann is smoking a large amount of marijuana. In court documents, Kim is asking a judge to forcer Kory to submit to drug testing -- including a hair follicle test. The best part is she doesn't want him to be about to "cut or remove" any of his hair to hide the weed smoking.

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In most celebrity cases, these divorce cases will be settled out of court. As of now, there are TWO divorce cases and they are fighting over who has to pay for the lawyers.

Or, they drag in out for months and film the whole thing for 'Real Housewives Of Atlanta?!"

You be the judge.
Rochester Institute of Technology will be one of 11 universities to participate in a high-level research and development program for semiconductor technology, it was announced last week at the G7 Summit in Hiroshima, Japan.

The initiative, called UPWARDS for the Future, was established by Micron Technology, the company that recently announced a $100 billion investment in the Syracuse area. In will involve five schools in Japan and six in the United States, also including Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy.

The universities will help develop semiconductor curricula and grow a more diverse engineering workforce. Micron and others will fund it with about $60 million over five years, according to a press release.

"As a leading producer of STEM graduates, Rochester Institute of Technology recognizes the crucial role that semiconductors and related technologies play in driving innovation and economic growth," RIT President David Munson said in a statement. More importantly, we are committed to fostering diversity and removing educational barriers. We look forward to partnering with our academic colleagues in Japan and in the United States, as well as Micron, through the UPWARDS for the Future initiative to advance semiconductor research and workforce development."

Rochester Institute of Technology professors Karl Hirschman, Stefan Preble and Seth Hubbard developing and fabricating integrated circuits.

RIT already has a microelectronic engineering program, one of the first in the nation, and more than 1,500 alumni working in the semiconductor field now, it said.

Semiconductors are a crucial component of all electronic devices; Micron focuses primarily on chips for memory and storage uses. Gaining a market advantage in their production and use has turned into an international race, particularly between the United States and China.

China this month banned the use of Micron memory chips in some cases, a move viewed as retaliation for restrictions the United States lay against China in March.

As a sign of the industry's geopolitical significance, U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken and Japanese Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology Keiko Nagaoka were present for the signing of the UPWARDS for the Future agreement.

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Besides RIT and RPI, the other participating universities are Boise State University, Purdue University, the University of Washington and Virginia Tech in the U.S. and Hiroshima University, Kyushu University, Nagoya University, Tohoku University and Tokyo Institute of Technology in Japan.

RIT's specialized semiconductor and microsystems manufacturing lab is currently being expanded with the help of state and federal funding. Much of its involvement in UPWARDS for the Future will be concentrated in the Kate Gleason College of Engineering and the College of Engineering Technology.

This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: RIT part of U.S.-Japan semiconductor development program
See You On Venus Trailer Shows an Unforgettable Journey in Spain

The official See You On Venus trailer for Voltage Pictures and Verticals upcoming film adaptation of Victoria Vinuesas coming-of-age romance novel has been released. The video features two teenagers Mia and Kyle, as they go on a once-in-a-lifetime trip to Spain in order to find Mias birth mother. The film arrives in theaters on July 21.

Check out the See You On Venus trailer below (watch more trailers):

What to Expect in See You on Venus?

The film follows Mia and Kyle, two misfit American teens who travel to Spain in search of Mias birth mother, reads the synopsis. As the pair road trip through the picturesque cities of Andalusia and fall in love, they discover that the most important question isnt who gave you life but what you decide to do with it.

Read See You on Venus on Amazon

See You on Venus is directed by Spanish filmmaker Joaquin Llamas from a screenplay written by Vinuesa. The film stars Virginia Gardner (Marvels Runaways), Alex Aiono (Pretty Little Liars: Original Scene), Rob Estes, Isabel Serrano, Bernard Bullen, Alex Astor-Fabra, and more.

In addition to starring, Gardner is also serving as an executive producer along with Nicolas Chartier, Jonathan Deckter, and Pia Patatian. It is also produced by Brian Pitt.

The post See You On Venus Trailer Shows an Unforgettable Journey in Spain appeared first on ComingSoon.net - Movie Trailers, TV & Streaming News, and More.
Patrick Duffy, Linda Gray, Charlene Tilton, Audrey Landers, Steve Kanaly, Joan Van Ark, Sheree Wilson and Cathy Podewell met up on Tuesday in Palm Springs, California

Emma McIntyre The cast of 'Dallas'

Dallas heads to Palm Springs!

Dallas stars Patrick Duffy, Linda Gray, Charlene Tilton, Audrey Landers, Steve Kanaly, Joan Van Ark, Sheree Wilson and Cathy Podewell, as well as director Michael Preece, reunited at Oscar's in Palm Springs, California, on Tuesday ahead of the show's 45th anniversary  and PEOPLE has the exclusive photos.

Speaking about the show's legacy, Gray, 82, tells PEOPLE: "I think that Dallas was like daytime soaps that were very popular and Dallas came into play and it was gigantic and it filled that same need that people love to have a recurring story, suspense and something to look forward to."

Emma McIntyre

"Because the show ran for so many years, the audience got to know the characters so genuinely and they really cared for [them] and the characters all went through so much," Gray continues. "And I think the fans really loved to relate to the stories that were bigger than life. I think that they were definitely bigger than life so they could live vicariously through those characters. Dallas was so influential."

Emma McIntyre Charlene Tilton, Linda Gray, and Joan Van Ark

Duffy, 74, echoes his costar's sentiments, comparing Dallas to the likes of Succession and Yellowstone.

Emma McIntyre Linda Gray and Patrick Duffy

"Sometimes I watch and think we did that. If you think about basically every family drama except for Breaking Bad, we latched onto the premise that was not started with Dallas, but with Peyton Place, but then that was forgotten and Dallas took over."

Emma McIntyre Linda Gray and Steve Kanaly

"The way Dallas was written, it's standard writing template for shows that run any period of time from a few episodes onto years. But yeah, it all started with us," Duffy adds. "I really thought about it with Succession."



Says Tilton, 64: "I think it was, to the best of my knowledge, the first show that gave you characters that were truly flawed, but they were loved by the audience. And every one of us had a major flaw, but still they were human and the audience still loved them."



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Emma McIntyre Patrick Duffy, Linda Gray and Charlene Tilton

Related: Victoria Principal, Now Rescuing Animals on Her California Ranch, Revisits 'Dallas' 40 Years Later

Dallas ran for 14 seasons from 1978 to 1991, earning four Emmys along the way. The show followed the wealthy Ewing family and the drama that surrounded their booming oil business and their entangled personal lives.



When the show celebrated its 40th anniversary in 2018, Victoria Principal (who played Pamela Barnes from 1978 until 1987) told PEOPLE she found the first five years of Dallas to be some of the best television Ive ever seen.



Emma McIntyre Audrey Landers

When I went in for the part on Dallas, I had already fallen in love with the show and with the part, said Principal, 73. So, my feeling from the moment I read it was that it was incredibly special and that I really, really wanted to be a part of it. I could not imagine not being Pam.



In season 10, Principals run as Pam came to an end when her character, who had been pregnant, died in a car accident. I wanted an ending that was definitive, the actress said. And I certainly felt that being blown up was definitive.

Related: Patrick Duffy Compares 'The Bold and the Beautiful' Return to 'Dallas' : 'A Real Clash of Titans'

TNT/Skip Bolen Brenda Strong, Jordana Brewster, Jesse Metcalfe and Patrick Duffy in "Dallas."

Dallas continued for four more seasons and inspired a revival on TNT in 2012 that ran for three seasons. Fan-favorite characters return, including Duffy's Bobby, and Gray's Sue Ellen and even J.R. Ewing himself: Larry Hagman.



Related: Farewell to An Icon: Larry Hagman (1931-2012)

Sadly, after season 1 of the Dallas revival aired, Hagman died at age 81 that November.

Larry Hagman was my best friend for 35 years. He was the Pied Piper of life and brought joy to everyone he knew, Gray, 82, said in a statement released to PEOPLE at the time. He was creative, generous, funny, loving and talented and I will miss him enormously. He was an original and lived life to the fullest. The world was a brighter place because of Larry.

Ian Gavan/Getty

Related: Why Dallas Star Charlene Tilton Never Thought She was Beautiful: 'I Couldn't Wait to Get Older'

Much of the cast  including Hagman, Principal, Duffy, Gray, Kanaly and Tilton  reunited back in 2004 for a TV special titled Dallas Reunion: The Return to Southfork, referring to the fictional Texas land where the primetime soap opera took place.



When I was on Dallas, it was such a whirlwind, Tilton, 64, recalled to PEOPLE earlier this year. At my age now, I'm more present. I don't feel the need to take every job, but I do make myself say yes to most things because I believe in saying yes, and trying new things and having opportunities."

Tilton also said she couldn't wait to get older during her Dallas days.

I always saw myself as a character actress, she said. I really did. I just always said, "Someday I'm going to be a great character actress and I was chomping at the bit to do that."

While in Palm Springs, the cast will be appearing in a panel at Oscar's on Tuesday night. Duffy and Gray are also about to go on tour together.

Never miss a story  sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

All 13 original seasons of Dallas can be streamed on Amazon Freevee.

For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter!

Read the original article on People.
It finally happened. Donald Trump, the twice-impeached ex-president, has been indicted on 37 criminal charges in a Florida federal court in the heart of Trump country. It is not pretty.

When the person who has held the highest office in the land is indicted, it's a sad day in our nation's history. But given the ex-president's conduct in handling the nation's top secrets, his refusal to return secret and highly classified documents, lying about what was in his possession, and his obstruction of justice, the indictments are wholly justified. Any other person committing the acts Trump is charged with would already be in prison.

Irresponsible statements to a divided nation

The anger, the partisan divisions ripping at the country's seams and the lack of understanding of what genuine patriotism demands of citizens threaten a second Civil War. How irresponsible for U.S. Rep. Andy Biggs (R-Ariz.) to tweet: "We have now reached a war phase. Eye for an eye."; and for failed gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake, also an Arizona Republican, to say that if prosecutors want to get to President Trump, theyre going to have to go through me, and 75 million Americans just like me. And most of us are card-carrying members of the NRA.

The refusal of many of Trump's supporters to accept facts and the truth simply because they choose not to threatens the freedom of all Americans.

In this courtroom sketch, attorney Todd Blanche stands as he enters a plea of not guilty on behalf of former President Donald Trump, second from right, in federal court June 13 in Miami. From left are Stanley Woodward, Walt Nauta, Blanche, Trump and Chris Kise.

Counterpoint: If Donald Trump is not successfully prosecuted, then this was all a witch hunt | Column

Not apples to oranges, but apples to rocks

Rather than acknowledge what is real, many so-called leaders within the Republican Party are resorting to whataboutisms  What about Hillary Clinton? What about the Biden family? What about Bill Clinton?

What short memories they have. Hillary Clinton was investigated 40 ways from Sunday, and nothing indictable was found. Former U.S. Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.), chairman of the House Select Committee on Benghazi, did all he could to uncover wrongdoing in the tragedy at our embassy in Libya. When he came up with nothing, he and the other Republican committee members resorted to smear tactics, knowing Clinton would be the presidential candidate to succeed Barack Obama. The same result with her email debacle.

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Hear more Tennessee voices: Get the weekly opinion newsletter for insightful and thought-provoking columns.

And they have the gall to talk about the weaponization of government against Trump and Republicans. Their comparison of the two is not apples to oranges. It is apples to rocks.

Trump's indictment is not because he took classified materials with him when he left office. The charges are due to his refusal to return the materials after he took them, and his lying and obstruction of efforts by the government to have them returned. Trump was not charged for the 197 documents he returned. He was charged for refusing to return roughly 11,000, with some 100 marked as classified, including highly sensitive military intelligence.

The cowardly, spineless reactions by many Republicans in Congress and candidates for president in the GOP primaries have been appalling. Although Nikki Haley, former governor of South Carolina, has now changed her tune, she previously tweeted: "This is not how justice should be pursued in our country," which begged the question of how justice should be pursued. Should certain people, based on their status, be above the law? Special prosecutor Jack Smith says, "No man is above the law," a view held by most Americans.

Dazed by loyalty to a man who functions like a cult leader rather than adhering to the guiding principles upon which the nation was founded, people like U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham, dripping with faux anger, refuse to engage with the facts of the charges. But not all are willing to take Graham's path. Responding like Pavlov's dog is unbecoming for the senator.

'If even half of it is true, he's toast.'

Bill Barr, the former attorney general who served as a shill for Trump, has said of the 37 counts against his former boss, "If even half of it is true, he's toast." Still the front-runner in the Republican presidential race, there are no laws that would block Trumps candidacy or election. Serving as president from jail would be tricky, and any man convicted of a crime issuing a pardon to himself would be more than problematic.

Bringing criminal charges against Trump in Florida could be to his disadvantage. He has won twice in his adopted state and will have a jury pool that could have some Trump voters in its makeup. Added to that likelihood is the federal judge assigned to preside over the case, Judge Aileen Cannon. Last year as the investigation into his wrongdoing proceeded, Cannon issued two highly controversial rulings that favored Trump that were overturned by the conservative 11th Appeals Court.

A conviction by a jury of some likely Trump voters before a judge he appointed to the bench would leave the MAGA crowd little to howl about.

Dr. Theotis Robinson Jr. is a freelance writer, former Knoxville City Council member and retired vice president of equity and diversity at the University of Tennessee. He may be reached at thewriteone7@comcast.net.

This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Opinion: Trump's indictment is a sad but necessary day for the country
Armorer Hannah Gutierrez Reed is facing felony charges in the October 2021 shooting death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on the set of "Rust," shown, near Santa Fe, N.M. (Roberto E. Rosales / Albuquerque Journal)

The weapons expert on "Rust" was drinking and smoking marijuana in the evenings during filming of the western, prosecutors have alleged in new court filings, saying she was likely hungover when she loaded a live bullet into Alec Baldwin's revolver before the fatal shooting.

New Mexico prosecutors leveled the accusations late last week in a court filing in response to a motion filed by armorer Hannah Gutierrez Reed's attorneys, who have been seeking a dismissal of the involuntary manslaughter charges against her.

Gutierrez Reed, 25, is the sole member of the "Rust" crew still facing felony charges in the October 2021 shooting death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins near Santa Fe.

Prosecutors dismissed involuntary manslaughter charges against Baldwin in late April, citing newly discovered information, but said they might eventually charge the actor. "There were serious issues concerning the evidence which warranted further investigation," prosecutor Kari T. Morrissey wrote in the June 9 filing.

Sources have told The Times that Baldwins prop gun was modified before being delivered to the set of the low-budget western, increasing the odds that the gun might have misfired, as Baldwin has maintained.

Prosecutors said they would decide in the next 60 days whether to bring new charges against Baldwin.

In the meantime, they are pressing on in their prosecution against Gutierrez Reed, claiming she had a history of irresponsible conduct and should finally be held accountable for her actions.

"Her reckless failure resulted in the senseless death of another human being," Morrissey wrote in the filing. "All Defendant Gutierrez needed to do was shake every bullet and make sure it rattled before putting it in the gun  she failed and killed someone."

Morrissey described Gutierrez Reed as "the most culpable defendant in a case that resulted in the senseless death of another person."

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She added: "The current prosecution team is dedicated to proceeding with the prosecution of Ms. Gutierrez in a fair and ethical manner."

Jason Bowles, Gutierrez Reeds attorney, pushed back in a statement, saying the prosecution has mishandled the case.

"The case is so weak that they now have chosen to resort to character assassination claims about Hannah, Bowles said in a statement to The Times. The prosecution has abandoned the idea of doing justice and getting to the actual truth apparently.

New Mexico 1st Judicial District Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer previously scheduled a preliminary hearing for Gutierrez Reed in early August. That's when the judge is expected to decide whether theres probable cause for the case against Gutierrez Reed to move forward to trial.

Morrissey and her legal partner, Jason J. Lewis, were appointed to the case in March after the district attorney stepped down. Since then, the two Albuquerque attorneys have been trying to salvage the criminal prosecutions following a series of missteps by the previous team.

In the filing, Morrissey said they were awaiting results of an additional analysis of the gun and its broken sear, a part of the trigger mechanism. The gun fell apart during testing last year at the FBI lab in Virginia, according to court documents.

The items were sent to the states independent expert for further testing.

Baldwin was pointing a gun at Hutchins during a rehearsal in an old wooden church on the New Mexico film set in October 2021 when it went off, killing her and wounding Joel Souza, the film's director. Souza has since recovered.

Gutierrez Reeds attorneys had argued in their motion that the prosecution was tainted by improper political motives and that 1st Judicial Dist. Atty. Mary Carmack-Altwies and the initial special prosecutor she appointed, Andrea Reeb, both used the tragic film set accident that resulted in the death of Halyna Hutchins as an opportunity to advance their personal interests.

The defense lawyers contend permanent damage was done to the gun by FBI testing before the defense could examine it.

They said that amounted to destruction of evidence and a violation of the courts rules of discovery. They also argued that the selective prosecution of Gutierrez Reed was a violation of the equal protection clause of the U.S. Constitutions 14th Amendment.

Morrissey and Lewis have disputed those claims in their response, saying nothing about this prosecution has or will be selective.

In the filing, Morrissey wrote that the collapse of the gun did not diminish the fact that Gutierrez Reed had loaded it with at least one live bullet. Sheriff's deputies also found other live bullets had been co-mingled with "dummies" in Gutierrez Reed's fanny pack, where she kept the ammunition for the guns in the western.

The prosecutors acknowledged the unanswered question of where the live rounds found on set came from.

"The current prosecution team is making a herculean effort to determine the identity of the person(s) responsible for the live rounds being introduced to the movie set," Morrissey wrote. She also suggested there was evidence to support the theory that Gutierrez Reed herself may be responsible for introducing the live bullets on set and if so, more charges may follow.

But they offered no specifics in the filing as to what that evidence might be.

Morrissey blasted Gutierrez Reeds attorneys. She said Bowles has appeared on numerous TV shows, on which he has spread unfounded conspiracy theories about sabotage on set in an improper attempt to try to taint the jury in favor of his client.

The prosecutor pointed to several TV interviews, including with ABCs Good Morning America in November 2021  two weeks after the shooting. During that broadcast, Bowles said: Were afraid that could have been what happened here, that somebody intended to sabotage this set with a live round, intentionally placed in a box of dummies.

New Mexico rules of professional conduct forbid lawyers from spreading false information to create a clear and present danger of prejudicing the proceeding, according to the filing. Suggestions that someone else may have planted live ammunition was an attempt to place blame on other crew members or co-defendants, Morrissey wrote.

Bowles on Wednesday rejected the allegation that he had acted improperly.

Our statements were made based on facts and information that we had and have continued to investigate, Bowles said. We were responding to false allegations against Hannah.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
There's no doubt that money can be made by owning shares of unprofitable businesses. For example, although Amazon.com made losses for many years after listing, if you had bought and held the shares since 1999, you would have made a fortune. Nonetheless, only a fool would ignore the risk that a loss making company burns through its cash too quickly.

Given this risk, we thought we'd take a look at whether Industrial Minerals (ASX:IND) shareholders should be worried about its cash burn. In this article, we define cash burn as its annual (negative) free cash flow, which is the amount of money a company spends each year to fund its growth. We'll start by comparing its cash burn with its cash reserves in order to calculate its cash runway.

View our latest analysis for Industrial Minerals

Does Industrial Minerals Have A Long Cash Runway?

A cash runway is defined as the length of time it would take a company to run out of money if it kept spending at its current rate of cash burn. As at December 2022, Industrial Minerals had cash of AU$2.2m and no debt. Importantly, its cash burn was AU$1.9m over the trailing twelve months. So it had a cash runway of approximately 14 months from December 2022. That's not too bad, but it's fair to say the end of the cash runway is in sight, unless cash burn reduces drastically. You can see how its cash balance has changed over time in the image below.

How Is Industrial Minerals' Cash Burn Changing Over Time?

Whilst it's great to see that Industrial Minerals has already begun generating revenue from operations, last year it only produced AU$837, so we don't think it is generating significant revenue, at this point. As a result, we think it's a bit early to focus on the revenue growth, so we'll limit ourselves to looking at how the cash burn is changing over time. During the last twelve months, its cash burn actually ramped up 87%. Oftentimes, increased cash burn simply means a company is accelerating its business development, but one should always be mindful that this causes the cash runway to shrink. Admittedly, we're a bit cautious of Industrial Minerals due to its lack of significant operating revenues. We prefer most of the stocks on this list of stocks that analysts expect to grow.

How Hard Would It Be For Industrial Minerals To Raise More Cash For Growth?

Given its cash burn trajectory, Industrial Minerals shareholders may wish to consider how easily it could raise more cash, despite its solid cash runway. Companies can raise capital through either debt or equity. Many companies end up issuing new shares to fund future growth. We can compare a company's cash burn to its market capitalisation to get a sense for how many new shares a company would have to issue to fund one year's operations.

Industrial Minerals has a market capitalisation of AU$30m and burnt through AU$1.9m last year, which is 6.2% of the company's market value. That's a low proportion, so we figure the company would be able to raise more cash to fund growth, with a little dilution, or even to simply borrow some money.

Is Industrial Minerals' Cash Burn A Worry?

On this analysis of Industrial Minerals' cash burn, we think its cash burn relative to its market cap was reassuring, while its increasing cash burn has us a bit worried. We don't think its cash burn is particularly problematic, but after considering the range of factors in this article, we do think shareholders should be monitoring how it changes over time. Separately, we looked at different risks affecting the company and spotted 4 warning signs for Industrial Minerals (of which 1 is potentially serious!) you should know about.

Of course, you might find a fantastic investment by looking elsewhere. So take a peek at this free list of interesting companies, and this list of stocks growth stocks (according to analyst forecasts)

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.



This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.

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The global number of children forcibly displaced from their homes reached a record 43.3 million by the end of 2022, fueled by conflicts such as the war in Ukraine, according to estimates released Wednesday by the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund.

That figure has doubled in the last decade, UNICEF said, despite efforts to integrate and protect displaced children. Of the 43.3 million children living in forced displacement by the end of last year, 25.8 million -- almost 60% -- were internally displaced by conflict and violence. Russia's ongoing war in Ukraine forced more than 2 million Ukrainian children to flee the country and displaced over 1 million children inside Ukraine, according to the estimates.

MORE: Russia-Ukraine war live updates

PHOTO: Children sit on a bench as they watch others play on a football dirt pitch at the Madrasa al-Gharbiya camp for those displaced by conflict in Wad Madani, the capital of Sudan's al-Jazirah state, on May 29, 2023. (AFP via Getty Images)

Moreover, extreme weather events around the world, including the catastrophic drought in the Horn of Africa and the unprecedented floods in Pakistan, led to another 12 million displacements of children over the course of 2022. The worldwide number of refugee and asylum-seeking children also hit a new high of 17.5 million by the end of last year, according to UNICEF estimates.

"For more than a decade, the number of children forced to flee their homes has risen at an alarming rate, and our global capacity to respond remains under serious strain," UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell said in a statement Wednesday. "The increase is in step with the consistent onslaught of conflict, crises and climate disasters around the world. But it also highlights many governments' underwhelming response to ensure every refugee and internally displaced child can keep learning, stay healthy and develop to their full potential."

MORE: What is happening in Sudan?

PHOTO: Spivak Nastya, a 13-year-old Ukrainian refugee from the war-torn Donetsk region, reacts as she talks with journalists next to a tank at an open air exhibition of destroyed Russian armored equipment in the center of Kyiv, Ukraine, on May 9, 2023. (Sergei Chuzavkov/AFP via Getty Images)

Most of these children will spend their entire childhoods in displacement, according to UNICEF. Refugee and internally displaced children are among the most vulnerable, with many denied access to education and health care.

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The estimates came as the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees announced Wednesday that the global number of people living in forced displacement has climbed to a record 110 million, spurred by Sudan's eight-week-old conflict.

"Greater political will is required to address the drivers of displacement and provide long-term solutions for children on the move," Russell added. "A record number of refugee, migrant and displaced children -- a global population that rivals that of Algeria, Argentina or even Spain -- demands a commensurate response."

Global number of displaced children reaches new high amid Ukraine war originally appeared on abcnews.go.com
Officials unveiled on Wednesday a plan to repair an elevated section of Interstate 95 in Philadelphia that collapsed when a tanker truck caught fire in the underpass.

Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro said the "most efficient" way to get the impacted lanes reopened will be to backfill and pave over the Cottman Avenue underpass and then work to build a new bridge.

"Once complete, cars and trucks can return to this stretch of 95 and then we will work together to build a permanent bridge, while making sure we keep six lanes of traffic open at all times," Shapiro said at a press conference.

A 24/7 livestream feed that will allow the public to watch the reconstruction in real time will be set up over the weekend, according to the governor.

MORE: I-95 collapse updates: 1 vehicle trapped under the highway, no one injured, governor says

PHOTO: Workers inspect and clear debris from an elevated section of Interstate 95 that collapsed the previous day in Philadelphia on June 12, 2023. (Mark Makela/Getty Images)

Shapiro didn't give a timeline on when the repaving of the underpass will be complete, but he stressed that it will be done "as quickly as possible." The materials to fill the underpass will arrive on Thursday, he said.

"This is our championship," he added. "We are ready to go and I am proud as hell to be on the team with all of these guys and gals standing behind me here today."

The governor had told reporters on Sunday evening that "the complete rebuild" is expected "to take some number of months."

The bridge collapsed on Sunday morning as a tanker truck carrying 8,500 gallons of gasoline attempted to navigate a left-hand turn after exiting at the Cottman Avenue offramp of I-95 in Pennsylvania's largest city, according to officials. Losing control through its turn, the truck fell on its side and ruptured its own tank. Once ignited, the fuel burned at a high enough heat to structurally compromise the concrete and steel I-beams of the overpass, officials said.

MORE: Body recovered from Interstate 95 collapse wreckage

PHOTO: An investigator surveys the aftermath of an elevated section of Interstate 95 that collapsed, in Philadelphia, June 12, 2023. (Matt Rourke/AP)

The northbound lanes of the affected segment collapsed, while the southbound lanes are compromised and will also need to be replaced. Crews have since removed most of the collapsed structure along with the tanker truck that was trapped beneath, officials said. They are now working to demolish the structurally unsound southbound portion of the roadway. The full demolition will be finished by Thursday, according to Shapiro.

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The Pennsylvania State Police said Monday that a body was recovered from the wreckage and turned over to the Philadelphia County Medical Examiner and Coroner. While authorities have yet to identify the remains, the family of Nathaniel Moody told ABC News that he was the driver of the tanker truck and had died in the crash. Moody leaves behind a son and two daughters, his family said.

I-95 is one of the busiest travel corridors in the United States and serves as the main north-south highway on the East Coast. An average of more than 160,000 vehicles travel across the impacted section in Philadelphia every day, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation.

ABC News' Victoria Arancio, Peter Charalambous, Matt Foster, Josh Margolin and Chad Murray contributed to this report.

Officials unveil Interstate 95 collapse repair plan in Philadelphia: 'This is our championship' originally appeared on abcnews.go.com
A man who was kayaking with his fiancee is presumed to have died after his vessel began sinking and he was submerged and he disappeared into near-freezing water.

The kayaker -- 37-year-old Travis Valenti from Massapequa, New York -- was kayaking on Lake Crescent in Olympic National Park in Washington state last Friday at approximately 2:10 p.m. when his vessel suddenly began taking on water and his fiancee attempted to rescue him, according to a statement from the National Park Service detailing the incident.

MORE: 2 people who allegedly harassed bison calf at national park being hunted by authorities

Mr. Valenti attempted to continue paddling but ultimately had to abandon his kayak and entered the water, officials from NPS said. As Mr. Valentis fiancee attempted rescue, her kayak overturned, resulting in her also entering the water.

Valentis fiancee was able to swim to shore to alert staff from the nearby Log Cabin Resort that her partner had become submerged and was struggling to swim back. Neither of them were wearing a life jacket at the time of the incident.

MORE: With only dozens left, South Dakota zoo welcomes litter of 'critically endangered' red wolf pups

Log Cabin resort staff immediately responded to the area where Valenti was last seen but were unable to locate him in the water.

On-shore bystanders and Mr. Valentis fiancee assisted Rangers and personnel from Clallam County Fire District 2 with identifying the area he was last seen, which was estimated to be more than a quarter mile offshore and roughly 400-500 feet deep, NPS said of the lake in Washington located about 200 miles by car to the northwest of Seattle. Rangers searched for Mr. Valenti by vessel for more than 2-hours but were unable to locate him.

MORE: Human remains found inside 2 crocodiles believed to be missing fisherman

A secondary search of the area was carried out the next day but Valenti still remains missing and is presumed dead.

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Lake Crescent hovers around 50 degrees around this time of year due to its location and depth and sudden immersion into cold water can immediately impact a persons breathing as well as their ability to move their limbs, according to NPS.

MORE: Woman survives on candy and wine after being lost in the wilderness for 5 days: Police

Swimmers are encouraged to use a buddy system, NPS said following Valentis death. Boaters should always wear a life jacket and understand the risks of recreating on large bodies of water, such as underwater hazards, wind, waves, and water temperature.

Kayaker presumed dead after disappearing into frigid water while with fiancee originally appeared on abcnews.go.com
Kate Upton was photographed by Yu Tsai in Fiji. Yu Tsai/Sports Illustrated

If theres anyone who is best known for her SI Swimsuit appearances, its Kate Upton. The supermodel made her debut with the magazine in 2011, and her most recent feature with the publication was in 2018. Shes landed the cover three times, participated in body painting photo shoots, was photographed in freezing weather and even modeled in zero gravity throughout her six years with the magazine.

Those are the campaigns I want to do and the career I want to haveto inspire women to love themselves, the mom of one, who is married to New York Mets pitcher Justin Verlander, said. Thats a balance of working hard and eating healthy but also enjoying life and having cheat days and for the emphasis not to be on the ideal perfect body. It makes me proud to be asked back.

Below are six of our favorite photos from Uptons 2017 cover photo shoot in Fiji with photographer Yu Tsai.

Yu Tsai/Sports Illustrated

Yu Tsai/Sports Illustrated

Yu Tsai/Sports Illustrated

Yu Tsai/Sports Illustrated

Yu Tsai/Sports Illustrated

Yu Tsai/Sports Illustrated

Make sure to follow SI Swimsuit on YouTube!
Summer flight prices getting you down? Hop on a last-minute trip, courtesy of this Norse Atlantic Airways sale, with flights to Europe starting at $129.

Courtesy of Norse Atlantic Airways

With the summer travel season in full swing, and flight prices skyrocketing, a low-cost carrier is offering great deals on last-minute flights to Europe.



Norse Atlantic Airways, an airline based in Oslo, Norway, just announced a summer sale on flights to Oslo, London, Paris, and Rome, with fares starting at only $129, including all taxes and fees.



The best deals are on flights from New Yorks JFK airport to Oslo, for $129 each way, and Boston to Londons Gatwick Airport, also $129 each way. Plus, there are deals on flights from JFK to London Gatwick, starting at $139 each way.



Additional flight deals include:



Los Angeles (LAX) to Oslo (OSL) from $189

Fort Lauderdale (FLL) and Miami (MIA) to London (LGW) from $159

Orlando (MCO) to London (LGW) from $159

Washington, D.C. (IAD) to London (LGW) from $159

San Francisco (SFO) to London (LGW) from $169

New York (JFK) to Berlin (BER) from $169

New York (JFK) to Rome (FCO) from $189



The fares can be purchased on Norses website from June 14, 2023 through June 21, 2023, subject to availability. The promotional rates are in Norses Economy Light cabin, which includes one under-seat bag, while an overhead bag and checked bag cost extra.

That said, there's value in exploring Norse's other seat categories on offer. Premium Light, Premium Classic, and Premium Flextra, while pricier than Economy Light, are still often less expensive than flying with one of the major U.S. carriers. Each premium-class seat comes with seat selection, checked baggage, and priority check-in and boarding  plus, Premium Flextra lets you change your flight for no additional fee.



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Read the original article on Travel & Leisure.


Our editors independently select the products we recommend. We may earn a commission on items bought through our links.

Getting out of a club chair is always a struggle. The leather gathers and holds you in a deep embrace, while the downy cushions seem to soak up all of the bodys tension. Its such a lovely feeling, if the room were on fire, something in your prefrontal cortex would say, just one more minute.

Today's Top Deals

An art deco product of late 1920s in France, the club chair, then known as a fauteuil confortable or comfortable armchair, quickly became a staple at social clubs in Europe and the United Kingdom, hence the name. Traditionally, their leather seats feature a medium-high back, wide arms and deep padding. Today, the definition has broadened to include all manner of comfortable seats used in more conversational settings.

What the Experts Say

A club chair should be the envy of the room, according to Brooklyn and Montana-based interior design specialist Sarah Reilley. You want to sit down in it and get all cozy, she says. So, comfort obviously needs to be top of mind, unless its a piece for the corner of a bedroom thats just there to look cute or add some kind of design element.

In choosing upholstery, personal taste should be your guide, but one also needs to consider what works in the room. Leather is a go-to for club chairs. But a contemporary design might benefit from a textile fabric. Leather is for longevity. It will withstand the test of time, says Reilley. It also has a little bit more of this timeless element as well as an heirloom quality.

Though if you have a room with an onslaught of wood, you might consider colorful fabric for contrast. Or a piece that incorporates metal, she says. Something that stands apart from the rest of the room can add a cool layer.

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Reilley recommends finding a good maker so you can trust the quality over the long term. A good hallmark of longevity for a club chair is a well-constructed, solid frame. People are gonna be sitting in this and they are not going to be careful. In real life, things happen and furniture gets bumped by guests or kicked around by children. Reilley says youll need to invest a little to buy a piece that will last, Theres a reason that these things tend to have a decent price tag, Reilley says.

brown leather West Elm delray club chair against white background

BEST OVERALL

West Elm Delray Leather Chair

Buy Now

Price: $1,249

Buy Now

Understated and elegant, you could put the West Elm Delray leather chair in nearly any room in your house and it would blend in nicely. The wraparound back and angled wooden legs gives the chair a modern, coastal feel. The aniline dyed, top-grain leather finished with an oil-wax blend that will gather beauty naturally every time you sit in it.

cream Kardiel puff fabric chair against white background

BEST FOR BRIGHTENING A ROOM

Kardiel Puff 39" Fabric Chair

Buy Now

Price: $1,627.00 $1,247.00

Buy Now

Fans of Scandinavian industrial modern design will dig this Puff chair. Its wide and soft so its easy to get comfy. The frame is built from solid, kiln-dried ash hardwood. So it should stand up to abuse and while white upholstery can be tricky, the textured, boucle fabric is thankfully stain resistant, which should minimize any worry you might have about stains from kids or pets.

dark gray Arhaus madrone leather chair against gray background

BEST LOW PROFILE

Arhaus Madrone Leather Chair

Buy Now

Price: $3,999.00 $2,799.00

Buy Now

Just looking at Arhaus Madrone leather chair soaks up a good bit of life stress. Low and plush, the aniline-dyed leather seat is stuffed with thick foam and padded with poly fibers, while the back is supportive thanks to the addition of a flexible elastic webbing. The arms are wide enough to rest your favorite cocktail, though youll want to use a coaster to prevent staining the hide.

light gray Herman Miller ColourForm Club Chair against white background

BEST FOR DESIGN ENTHUSIASTS

Herman Miller ColourForm Club Chair

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Price: $4,995.00

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Of course, Herman Miller is a must for folks who enjoy thoughtful, modern design. But beyond the brand name, the ColorForm club chair would make a cool addition to most contemporary living spaces or offices. With clean lines, thick seat padding, and a pair of back supporting cushions. The piece is designed for both work and chilling out after the project is done and dusted.

brown leather Ralph Lauren Colorado Club Chair

BEST SPLURGE

Ralph Lauren Colorado Club Chair

Buy Now

Price: $9,275.00

Buy Now

Expensive? Definitely. Ralph Laurens Colorado Club chair is hand-upholstered in soft cowhide with nailhead trim and classic single-welt edges. The base is cut from a solid maple wood plinth and padded with plush spring-down cushions. This is an heirloom-worthy chair that youre buying not just for yourself, but whomever you choose to leave it when youre gone but not forgotten.

cream Jonathan Adler St. Germain Club Chair against white background

THE CONVERSATION PIECE

Jonathan Adler St. Germain Club Chair

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Price: $1,600.00

Buy Now

A French name, modern Scandi design influences, and what the brand calls a dash of Japanese rigor makes the Jonathan Adler St. Germain club chair both a fine place to sit and a cool piece to talk about. The soft L-shaped seat is held and contrasted by a wood frame and arm rests. But rather than wooden legs, this chair rests on two polished brass orbs in the front and smaller steel ones in the back.

dark grey Maiden Home Perry club chair in room with light wood floors and light gray wall

THE MID-CENTURY PICK

Maiden Home Perry Chair

Buy Now

Price: $2,925.00

Buy Now

Classic mid-century design never goes out of style. The Perry Chair from Maiden Home uses thick cushioning at the contact points to keep it soft and luxurious. Clad in rich leather and adorned in simple buttons, the understated aesthetic and modest dimensions fit nearly any space from a home office to a formal living room.

navy blue Sabai The Sssential Club Chair against white background

BEST SUSTAINABLE

Sabai The Essential Club Chair

Buy Now

Price: $745.00

Buy Now

Furniture manufacturing can be environmentally taxing, so Sabai uses cushioning made from 100% recycled fiber fill pillows and doesnt use toxic chemicals. The wooden legs are constructed from domestically-sourced maple with 100% cork gliders and every upholstery option is woven in either 100% upcycled polyester or recycled velvet.

blush pink Gwyneth Chair from CB2 against white background

BEST SWIVEL

CB2 Gwyneth Chair

Buy Now

Price: $1,099.00

Buy Now

To update her living room, art director and painter Chloe Weiss Galkin chose a pair of Gwyneth swivel chairs in dale blush so anyone sitting in the could face the sofa for conversation or turn toward the fireplace for a quiet tipple. I liked the color and shape when I saw it online, she says. Then I tested it in the store and it was really comfy.

Frequently Asked Questions About Club Chairs

What is a club chair?

Its a comfortable chair typically with a high backrest and wide armrests. Club chairs are also generally quite padded. While traditionally leather today, they can come in textile fabric or synthetic hide.

Whats the difference between a club chair and a lounge chair?

Club chairs are typically more upright, while lounge chairs have a reclined seating position. Lounge chairs leave the sitter looking up and relaxed while club chairs tend to aim you toward other parts of the room in conversation.

Where should you put a club chair?

They go anywhere! They can work in a variety of rooms, but you are most likely to see them in conversational settings like living rooms, family rooms, dens, or offices.

More Top Deals from SPY

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Click here to read the full article.
Brad Pitt Angelina Jolie

Things are going from bad to worse in terms of Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolies seemingly never-ending legal battle. According to legal documents filed in LA Superior Court on Thursday, June 1st and obtained by outlets such as CNN and Page Six, the 59-year-old Once Upon a Time in Hollywood actor claimed that the 48-year-old Maleficent star went against their original agreement and vindictively sold her share of their $30M French estate, Chateau Miraval, to get back at him following their bitter custody battle over their six children, Maddox, 21, Pax, 19, Zahara, 18, Shiloh, 17, and 14-year-old twins Vivienne and Knox.

The latest court filings come nine months after the Eternals actress filed a $250M counter-suit against the Bullet Train actor for trying to seize control of the French winery they bought in 2008 and even got married at, to, as per the suit, ensure [she] would never see a dime of its profits.

Angelina Jolie Sold Her 50% Stake In Chateau Miraval In 2021

In October 2021, the Lara Croft: Tomb Raider star sold her 50% stake to Tenute del Mondo, a subsidiary of Stoli Group, which is controlled by Russian oligarch Yuri Shefler. Pitt first filed his lawsuit over the sale in 2022, saying it was "unlawful" and went against their alleged initial agreement to never sell their share without the others permission. Jolie filed a countersuit, claiming that there was never any such agreement and that she sold her stake in order to have "financial independence" and "have some form of peace and closure to this deeply painful and traumatic chapter of her and their childrens lives."

Pitt had reportedly previously turned Shefler down, and then claimed that his "vindictive" ex-wife "collaborated in secret" with Shefler, to ensure he would be "kept in the dark" regarding the sale. Now that half of the winery in the South of France has been sold to a third party, Pitt says it defeats the purpose of buying the property as a "loving home for their six children."

Story continues

Brad And Angelina Reportedly Started To Negotiate A Buy-Out Option In 2019

As per Page Six, Angelina started to negotiate a buy-out option with her ex-husband back in 2019, and allegedly even agreed to divide the business up 68% to 38% in Pitts favor as he had invested more money and time into it than she had. However, things changed drastically after he was granted joint custody of their children (although the decision was later overturned) and as per the filings, she "no longer wanted to sell to Pitt" in the "wake of the adverse custody ruling."

"Her decision to terminate negotiations with Pitt was intentional and pretextual," the court documents claim. "As will be demonstrated at trial, Jolies actions were unlawful, severely and intentionally damaging Pitt and unjustly enriching herself."

Pitt also reportedly believes that his ex-wife purposely chose Shefler because she knew it would be bad for business given his ties to Vladimir Putin. "Stoli and Jolie have sought to force Pitt into a partnership with a stranger, and worse yet, a stranger with poisonous associations and intentions."
Brandy Clark's career is a study of the dichotomies created not by imposter syndrome but instead by the curse of greatness.

The Country Music Association Song of the Year-honored 11-time Grammy-nominated singer-songwriter was recently nominated for a Tony Award for the Broadway musical "Shucked," which she co-composed alongside songwriter Shane McAnally. Clark could be halfway to an EGOT (Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony award wins) but still searching for solo country artistic superstardom.

Via her self-titled album arriving Friday from Warner Music, Clark is likely to have finally arrived  10 years after her solo debut  at a pinnacle of achievement that she may not have sought but is overjoyed and relieved to be receiving.

Brandy Clark's self-titled album from Warner Music is out Friday.

She's in a small class of dynamic female country music creators like Ashley McBryde, Nicolette "Pillbox Patti" Hayford and Caylee Hammack who, as fellow songwriter Laura Veltz noted in March, write "honest stories" as "empathetic and risk-driven poetry" and "vulnerable art."

Leslie Fram, CMT's senior vice president of music and talent, said in a 2020 interview that CMT's decade-old "Next Women of Country" program was inspired by Clark's 2013 album "12 Stories," which was described as "dazzlingly witty and insightful" by the Los Angeles Times, but still lacking country music industry support.

Clark's albums deserved broader commercial and social appeal then, but her folk-rock stood to the left of the genre's most pop-leaning and deeply soulful era in 30 years.

In the same year that Chris Stapleton's cover of "Tennessee Whiskey" and Little Big Town's "Girl Crush" were two of country music's biggest songs, Clark received the 2015 Grammy award fir Best New Artist. In the span between her sophomore and third albums, Florida Georgia Line spent 46 consecutive weeks in 2018 on top of country's sales charts with the Bebe Rexha duet "Meant To Be."

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Though Clark tells The Tennessean that she's never felt creatively confined during her impressive career, she did note that revealing the core of her humanity has always been somewhat troublesome.

Similar to the new album's producer  emerging Americana-to-rock star and studio dynamo of the moment Brandi Carlile  she's a queer native of Washington State with a humble, blue-collar work ethic.

However, unlike other albums, being surrounded by a group of creators who shared her two decades of Nashville experience and erred on the artistic side of folk-aimed country and soul-baring Americana aided her process.

For the most part, Clark's career has been a fascinating interplay between her ability to drive Nashville's mainstream toward plaintive pop and her desire to dig deep into the grooves playing within her soul.

With Carlile at the helm, she was able to achieve more of the latter than the former than ever before.

Brandy Clark arrives for the 58th ACM Awards at the Ford Center at the Star in Frisco Texas, on May 11.

"Achieving artistic honesty at all costs is Brandi's superpower," Clark says.

In Clark's mind, Carlile's production goal is working to elevate critically acclaimed artists to a "Song of the Year" level proportional to the quality of their artistry.

Also, as a queer artist with country roots who is now occupying space at the highest echelon of pop and rock music, she's a solo actress who, though an adept collaborator, is still an outlier. She's now on a mission to invite fellow breakout stars to the most elevated industry heights.

Clark now joins an impressive crew of artists  the Highwomen, Joni Mitchell, Allison Russell and Tanya Tucker among them  who have benefitted from Carlile's growing spotlight, which has not cast a shadow but instead has offered a springboard to sustainable, career-redefining acclaim.

Clark describes sending her completed album to her bandleader, Vanessa McGowan, and finding that she and other frequent collaborators not in the room at Malibu's vaunted, Rick Rubin-owned Shangri La Studios thought the final product was "excitingly cool."

Collaborators on the album include Brooklyn-based indie-pop band Lucius, Nashville-based string duo Sista Strings, and Derek Trucks. Trucks' three decades of guitar work in the Tedeschi Trucks Band, Allman Brothers and with artists such as Eric Clapton, Bela Fleck and Buddy Guy have him listed as one of Rolling Stone magazine's 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time.

Brandy Clark and Shane McAnally arrive for the opening night of Shucked at the Nederlander Theatre in New York on April 4.

"The beautiful magic that happened in the studio on this album made absolutely no sense on paper," Clark says.

"Instead of things like inspiring, seven-minute 'Americana' songs without choruses, I got back to just writing things [that emerge] as just structurally sound country and rock songs," she adds.

"The music on this record is beautiful, but my writing is more flatly stated and plain-spoken than ever. Greats like John Prine and Harlan Howard's excellence came from knowing how to layer simple [metaphorical] meat on the bone and make it so well that you keep gnawing at it until you get down to the marrow."

Of the album's material, the song "She Smoked in the House" exists as an earnest, engrossing remembrance of her grandmother,

Having listened to Merle Haggard's "Are the Good Times Really Over (I Wish a Buck Was Still Silver)" in her car for literally a month, Clark recalled advice from legendary songwriter Mark D. Sanders ("Heads Carolina, Tails California" for JoDee Messina, "I Hope You Dance" by Lee Ann Womack, among others).

"[Mark] once told me that to be general, you must first be specific."

Brandy Clark is releasing her fourth album in a decade Friday.

The melodious folk ballad opens with a description of how Clark's grandmother was a Pepsi-drinking listener of George Jones and Buck Owens, who "put holes in the couch" with "lipstick-colored [cigarette] butts" when she smoked in the house.

Because of the major mainstream success of Carlile  and associated artists  of late, Clark's latest album could achieve a level of renown unprecedented for her career.

Though initially baffled into laughter by the possibility, she calms and offers a focused response.

Brandi Carlile produced brandy Clark's self-titled album, which features Lucius and Derek Trucks, among many collaborators

"Believing in yourself and making music from your heart  and being surrounded by people you trust and admire  makes you create music that matters not just to yourself, but sometimes also to the world."

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Brandy Clark releases a new album produced by Brandi Carlile
Bullies are afraid

I read that some people who support the former president are threatening their fellow U.S. citizens with a civil war. Those who make these threats are entitled to the First Amendment right of freedom of speech, as outlined in the Constitutions Bill of Rights.

An honest reply to those folks: I was raised in Kansas by parents who were born in the United States, and I support freedom of speech. However, those who threaten civil war need to be reminded that other citizens do not support anyone breaking the law without accountability. Going to war by exercising their Second Amendment rights  an amendment they might use because they dont like others using the First Amendment so readily  threatens the fearful, elderly, young and every other person who hears their words.

Despite your threats, I will use my freedom of speech, which is one thing self-righteous, self-centered bullies dont tolerate. Please talk on, but be advised that you will always be bullies, afraid of those of us who speak the truth.

- Valerie A. Jansen, Lenexa

Just read it

I would ask Republicans to actually read the indictment of Donald Trump, or at least look at the photos released by the Justice Department, before declaring as usual that there is absolutely no Trump outrage that could sway their undying devotion.

The photos show a multitude of boxes of alleged classified and secret documents that include nuclear secrets, key military intelligence and other information critical to our national security. The boxes are stacked on a ballroom stage, in a bathroom by a shower and toilet, and in various storage rooms in Mar-a-Lago. The National Archives tried to recover the documents for many months, but Trump continually lied and obstructed their return.

When the government finally had to retrieve them, Trump still lied and declared hed returned everything, while there were other boxes that hed removed and hidden elsewhere. He allegedly showed top-secret documents to several people who did not have clearance to view them.

Story continues

It is amazing that Republican leaders still shield and protect Trump no matter how many crimes he commits or insurrections he orchestrates.

- David S. Evans, Kansas City

Our Council picks





Sunrise Movement KC calls on Kansas City voters to elect Jenay Manley for City Council 2nd District at large, Johnathan Duncan for 6th District and Michael Kelley for 5th District at large. With their opposition endorsed and funded by Spire, the Fraternal Order of Police, corporate PACs and out-of-state developers, the choice is clear: Some candidates stand with young people and our futures, and some do not.

We are young people organizing for a Green New Deal at all levels of government. Jenay, Jonathan and Michael are the obvious choices, as they will be a part of a historic coalition fighting for everyday people, not for entities looking to leech our tax money for the next several decades. Part of our endorsement includes candidates signing the No Fossil Fuel Money Pledge and promising to prioritize the health of our communities by refusing donations from utility monopoly, oil and gas executives.

We have a vision where everyone  especially our historically excluded Black and brown communities, the poor and the working class  has better access to affordable housing, free and robust public transit, good union jobs, clean air and water, green spaces and sustainably grown local food.

Join us in making history and delivering a better future for all. Vote Jenay, Johnathan and Michael on June 20.

- Lacey Hopkins and Laela Zaidi, Sunrise Movement KC, Kansas City

Even more benefits

It is very likely that electric battery-powered buses can be manufactured to look exactly like, ride like and make the same noises as streetcars. But these vehicles also could carry passengers wherever existing streets or trails go.

- William Alburty, Leawood
Residents visiting the Lebanon County Courthouse to vote in the 2023 primary Tuesday morning were greeted with the sound of trumpets and bagpipes.

One person they were playing for was the memory of Lt. William Lebo, who was shot and killed in the line of duty more than a year ago. Lebanon County District Attorney Pier Hess Graf said the risks police officers take each day are "severe and grave," but they do their job honorably.

"We must remember this week that we have lost lives, and there are people who have lost their children and their husbands because of the sacrifice given to this job," she said to those in attendance Tuesday.

That's why Lebo was among those honored by county, state and local officials and various police officers Tuesday as part of National Police Week. The ceremony highlighted local law enforcement officers who passed away in the line of duty.

On Tuesday, local law enforcement held a memorial on the steps of the Lebanon County Municipal Building in remembrance of officers who died in the line of duty. This included Lt. William Lebo, who was shot and killed on duty more than a year ago.

In 2022, Lebo, Officer Derek Underkoffler, Officer Ryan Adams, and Officer Kris McCarrick were responding to a domestic disturbance report. Lebo died in a shootout with a man who had broken into a home on the 1100 block of Forest Street.

Lebo had more than 40 years of service and was 30 days from retirement.

Lebo's remembrance : 'A fantastic officer': Lebanon Police Lt. William Lebo's sacrifice remembered a year later

Lebo's shooting: 'Constant worry': Lebanon officials honor the service of Lt. Lebo, fallen police officers

On Monday, Lebanon Police Chief Bret Fisher was with Lebo's widow, Lora, and her family in Washington, D.C., to add Lebo's name to the wall of fallen officers. Fisher said the trip filled him with mixed emotions.

"Sometimes it's the greatest sorrow to be there, to see all the widows (and) children who been left behind by fallen officers," he said. "At other moments, you're one of the proudest people in the world to be a police officer. It's an honorable career. We make a difference."

Story continues

Officials also recognized former Lebanon Chief of Police Aaron McCord, former Lebanon Chief of Police Cyrus Schaeffer and South Londonderry Township Sgt. Sheryl Pierce, Reading Police Department Patrolman Michael Harry Wise II, and former state senator and Lebanon District Attorney David Arnold.

Remembering fallen officers: To protect and serve: Lebanon officials honor fallen officers in courthouse ceremony

There have been more than 26,000 line-of-duty deaths in the United States since the country's inception, according to North Lebanon Township Police Chief Tim Knight. According to the Officer Down Memorial Page, 246 line-of-duty deaths occurred in the United States in 2022, and 42 deaths occurred in 2023 as of Tuesday morning.

"In Pennsylvania, the total officers killed in the line of duty is 1,099 and 22 K-9s," Knight said.

On Tuesday, Lebanon County District Attorney Pier Hess Graf and North Lebanon Twp. Police Chief Tim Knight spoke at a police memorial service on the steps of the Lebanon County Municipal Building. "We must remember this week that we have lost lives, and there are people who have lost their children and their husbands because of the sacrifice given to this job," Graf said.

The tragedy of losing Lt. Lebo is still felt by Lebanon City Police officers, according to Fisher. Every officer is dealing with the situation in their own way, and they all take something away from his memory and career working as an officer for the city of Lebanon.

"We return to this place that Lt. Lebo came to work for years," he said, standing at the former entrance to the Lebanon City Police Department. "He'll always be remembered here, but he'll always be remembered in every officer's heart that he worked with."

Matthew Toth is a reporter for the Lebanon Daily News. Reach him at mtoth@ldnews.com or on Twitter at @DAMattToth.

This article originally appeared on Lebanon Daily News: Lebanon officials honor the service of fallen police officers
The fact that multiple Boston Scientific Corporation (NYSE:BSX) insiders offloaded a considerable amount of shares over the past year could have raised some eyebrows amongst investors. When analyzing insider transactions, it is usually more valuable to know whether insiders are buying versus knowing if they are selling, as the latter sends an ambiguous message. However, when multiple insiders sell stock over a specific duration, shareholders should take notice as that could possibly be a red flag.

While insider transactions are not the most important thing when it comes to long-term investing, we would consider it foolish to ignore insider transactions altogether.

See our latest analysis for Boston Scientific

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Boston Scientific

The insider, Eric Francis Thepaut, made the biggest insider sale in the last 12 months. That single transaction was for US$2.8m worth of shares at a price of US$52.49 each. That means that an insider was selling shares at around the current price of US$51.16. While we don't usually like to see insider selling, it's more concerning if the sales take place at a lower price. We note that this sale took place at around the current price, so it isn't a major concern, though it's hardly a good sign.

In the last year Boston Scientific insiders didn't buy any company stock. You can see the insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year depicted in the chart below. If you want to know exactly who sold, for how much, and when, simply click on the graph below!

If you like to buy stocks that insiders are buying, rather than selling, then you might just love this free list of companies. (Hint: insiders have been buying them).

Boston Scientific Insiders Are Selling The Stock

Over the last three months, we've seen significant insider selling at Boston Scientific. Specifically, insider Eric Francis Thepaut ditched US$2.8m worth of shares in that time, and we didn't record any purchases whatsoever. This may suggest that some insiders think that the shares are not cheap.

Insider Ownership Of Boston Scientific

Looking at the total insider shareholdings in a company can help to inform your view of whether they are well aligned with common shareholders. Usually, the higher the insider ownership, the more likely it is that insiders will be incentivised to build the company for the long term. It's great to see that Boston Scientific insiders own 0.2% of the company, worth about US$176m. I like to see this level of insider ownership, because it increases the chances that management are thinking about the best interests of shareholders.

What Might The Insider Transactions At Boston Scientific Tell Us?

An insider sold Boston Scientific shares recently, but they didn't buy any. And even if we look at the last year, we didn't see any purchases. On the plus side, Boston Scientific makes money, and is growing profits. While insiders do own a lot of shares in the company (which is good), our analysis of their transactions doesn't make us feel confident about the company. So while it's helpful to know what insiders are doing in terms of buying or selling, it's also helpful to know the risks that a particular company is facing. When we did our research, we found 3 warning signs for Boston Scientific (1 can't be ignored!) that we believe deserve your full attention.

If you would prefer to check out another company -- one with potentially superior financials -- then do not miss this free list of interesting companies, that have HIGH return on equity and low debt.

For the purposes of this article, insiders are those individuals who report their transactions to the relevant regulatory body. We currently account for open market transactions and private dispositions, but not derivative transactions.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.



This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.

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Who are the Nubians? Learn more in this week's episode of "Lost Cultures: Living Legacies."

Getty Images

Every Wednesday on the Lost Cultures: Living Legacies podcast, host Alisha Prakash, Travel + Leisure's associate editorial director, explores a unique cultural identity around the world and shares how you can learn more about it on your travels, too.



Egypt is often synonymous with pyramids and pharaohs, but lesser known is an equally significant part of the nation's history: the Nubians.

"Nubians are a linguistic and ethnic group that has lived for millennia in Northeast Africa. [They] have their own complex ancient civilization that rivals that of Pharaonic Egypt, which is much better known," anthropologist Yasmin Moll, who is directing a documentary called "Finding Nubia," told Travel + Leisure. "Nubians ruled over Pharaonic Egypt as a 25th dynasty. They also had a rich and flourishing culture in the medieval times."

The Nubians' ancestral land is in what is now south of Egypt and north of Sudan, according to Mona Sherif-Nelson, the founder of the Nubian Foundation. Not surprisingly, most of the present-day Nubians are citizens of Egypt or Sudan.

"Nubians are one of the oldest communities that are still living on this Earth, but also it is a Black peoplehood," said Menna Agha, a third-generation Fadijja Nubian. "It's a Black community that kind of sits between two different countries that are identified as Middle Eastern/North African."

The community lost its ancestral land in the 1960s with the building of the Aswan High Dam that submerged Nubian land and displaced its community. In spite of facing obstacles  from British colonization to modernization  the Nubians have survived. "Our land is lost, but I don't think our culture is," said Agha.

"[I] think it's super important to learn that there are people who are Nubian, who identify as Nubians, who have a distinctive culture, who continue to live today in Egypt and Sudan and to not let this glorious or prestigious ancient past overwhelm this contemporary culture," added Moll.

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The Nubian diaspora has preserved its culture through wedding customs, traditional music, and food. And in the digital age, social media plays a vital role in collecting stories of the community.

"Today, I would say, Nubians and descendants of that culture are really united by a shared loss," said Moll. "But still, we like to say that Nubia still lives inside of us, guwanna, and it lives in our songs about it, it lives in our dances for it, it lives in our stories about it, and now it lives on in social media. We're very proud of this culture that's often, I think, misunderstood or marginalized or seen as only belonging to the ancient past, is not really part of the present."

To learn more about the Nubians, listen to Prakash's conversation with guests Yasmin Moll, Menna Agha, and Mona Sherif-Nelson in Lost Cultures: Living Legacies, available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, and everywhere podcasts are available.



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MLB: MAY 21 Dodgers at Giants - Credit: Brian Rothmuller/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

Former Dodgers pitcher Trevor Bauer was accused by an Arizona woman of sexual assault and choking her unconscious, according to court filings in which the woman accused Bauer of raping her and getting her pregnant in late 2020.

According to USA Today, which first reported on the court filings, the woman filed the civil complaint against him in December and then amended it recently. Bauer denied the allegations in the court records and countersued the woman, accusing her of fraud, extortion and fabricating her pregnancy.

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The woman is seeking $3.7 million in payment, per the filing, and an apology to any women the defendant has sexually humiliated and abused against their consent.

Bauers co-agents, Jon Fetterolf and Rachel Luba, denied the allegations in a statement to Rolling Stone, and accused the woman of making four documented multi-million-dollar extortion demands over the last two years, which prompted Mr. Bauer to file a criminal complaint against her.

His attorneys claimed he had a consensual encounter with the Arizona woman in December 2020, and that she demanded $1.6 million to terminate her pregnancy. The countersuit alleged that Bauer had sent the victim $8,761.09 for the expenses related to her alleged pregnancy and its subsequent termination.

The woman is the fourth person to accuse Bauer of sexual assault. He was investigated by the Pasadena Police Department in 2021 after a woman alleged she was physically and sexually assaulted two different times. Bauer claimed the encounters were consensual. In February 2022, the L.A. County D.A.s Office announced it would not file criminal charges.

A Washington Post report also found that Bauer had been accused of physical assault by a separate woman in 2017. Then, a third accuser came forward during MLBs investigation. Bauer has previously denied all allegations of sexual assault made by the three separate women.

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In January, the Los Angeles Dodgers announced that the organization was cutting ties with the pitcher. He currently plays professionally in Japan.

Two extensive reviews of all the available evidence in this case concluded that Mr. Bauers actions warranted the longest ever active player suspension in our sport for violation of this policy, read the Dodgers statement. Now that this process has been completed, and after careful consideration, we have decided that he will no longer be part of our organization.

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Hailey Clauson was photographed by James Macari in the Dominican Republic. James Macari/Sports Illustrated

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Returning to the SI Swimsuit Issue for her seventh year with the publication, Hailey Clauson posed for this years magazine in the Dominican Republic with James Macari. The model and photographer previously worked together in Turks and Caicos in 2016, the year Clauson landed the cover of the publication.

The 28-year-old, who has collaborated with notable brands such as Calvin Klein, Louis Vuitton and Versace, recently has expanded her portfolio of work. Shes now the co-owner and creative director of Margaux the Agency, a boutique agency based in Los Angeles.

While on location in the Punta Cana area of the Dominican Republic for the 2023 SI Swimsuit Issue, Clausons styling was inspired by the popular Barbiecore trend. She sported hot pink and purple swimsuits, as well as classic silhouettes and prints. In one of our favorite looks, Clauson modeled a black-and-white gingham print bikini thats both classic and classy. Shop itand similar stylesbelow.

Hailey Clauson was photographed by James Macari in the Dominican Republic. Swimsuit by Mara Hoffman. James Macari/Sports Illustrated

The underwire styling of the top provides support, while the high-cut bottoms offer minimal coverage.

We love the crossover styling of these high-rise bottoms, and best of all, the similar set is much more affordable.

This top features removable straps, while the set can be paired with the coordinated swim skirt ($59.50) for additional coverage.

The knotted front of this bikini top adds some sweet detail, while the high-rise bottoms feature a cheeky backside.

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This set, featuring a string top and classic bottoms, is a great way to test the waters and try out the look for less.

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GREEN BAY - The Ocean Navigator cruise ship docked Wednesday morning at Leicht Memorial Park for the first of two daylong visits this year to the Green Bay area.

This is the second year in a row that American Queen Voyages cruise ships scheduled a stop in Green Bay where passengers will get the chance to check out the downtown's shops, restaurants and the Farmers Market on Broadway. The visitors will have the chance to hop on a bus that will stop at some of the region's popular attractions.

The Ocean Navigator docked Wednesday morning in downtown Green Bay at Leicht Memorial Park.

There are more than 70 passengers on the Ocean Navigator for this trip, and local tourism officials said visitors hail from California, Texas and Oregon, among other states.

The Ocean Navigator has space for up to 202 passengers and more than 80 crew members. The visit to Green Bay is part of a 14-day Great Lakes cruise that departed from Chicago and includes stops in Sturgeon Bay, Milwaukee; Mackinac Island, Michigan; Duluth, Minnesota; and Thunder Bay, Ontario.

The ship is expected to depart from Leicht Park at 7 a.m. Thursday.

Related: Green Bay's 20-year voyage to bring cruise ships to downtown ends with arrival this week of Ocean Navigator

Discover Green Bay welcomed cruise ship passengers to Green Bay with water, stickers, maps and information on attractions. Passengers were able to take a bus to several popular Green Bay area attractions, too.

Of course they'll get a look at Lambeau Field, but what other Green Bay attractions will passengers see?

Discover Green Bay, the region's tourism marketing agency, worked with C&M Presents, a destination management company, to offer bus service to and from popular destinations in the Green Bay area. The bus will make stops at the Neville Public Museum, The Automobile Gallery, Captains Walk Winery and the National Railroad Museum throughout the day.

And while there will be no tours of Lambeau Field, the bus route will take passengers past the home of the Green Bay Packers.

This is the second year in a row that American Queen Voyages have docked at Leicht Memorial Park in downtown Green Bay.

When will the Ocean Navigator return to Green Bay?

The ship is scheduled to return to Leicht park and the Port of Green Bay on June 28 and depart on June 29.

More: Tourism in I-41 cities as much about youth sports as big ticket events. Here's what we found

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Contact Jeff Bollier at (920) 431-8387 or jbollier@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @JeffBollier.

This article originally appeared on Green Bay Press-Gazette: Cruise ship returns to Green Bay for first of two visits in 2023
Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny

Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destinys reception at Cannes left Harrison Ford very emotional. His final outing as Indy premiered at the 2023 edition of the film festival to enthusiastic applause.

In a video from The New York Times journalist Kyle Buchanan, Ford can be seen with tears in his eyes amid a five-minute standing ovation from the crowd. At one point he turns around and blows a kiss to the audience and shares a thumbs up.

"Harrison Fords eyes are filled with tears after the premiere of Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny," shares Buchanan of the moment on Twitter. "Its been an emotional night for him." The Hollywood actor was also honored with an honorary Palme dOr at the Cannes premiere.

Harrison Fords eyes are filled with tears after the premiere of INDIANA JONES AND THE DIAL OF DESTINY. Its been an emotional night for him pic.twitter.com/qlCGYgc2eYMay 18, 2023

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Indiana Jones 5 marks the final film in the franchise for Ford, and the first not to be directed by Steven Spielberg. Logans James Mangold is in the directing seat this time in the adventure set at the heart of the Space Race in 1969. Joined by goddaughter Helena Shaw (Phoebe Waller-Bridge), Indy is battling Nazis while debating the methods America is using to get the edge in the race to the moon.

Early reviews from Cannes have been quite mixed, but the Total Film Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny review gave it four stars, calling it a "terrific thrill ride". Our writer James Mottram concluded: "With Ford in fine form, Indys last stand is a highly satisfying blend of action, humor, and emotion."

Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny arrives in UK cinemas on June 28 and in US cinemas on June 30. For more upcoming movies, here are all of the 2023 movie release dates on the way.
The six columns on the Francis Quadrangle on the University of Missouri's campus are seen on April 22, 2022, in Columbia, Mo.

Officials on Thursday described the University of Missouri Career Accelerator as a hub for noncredit offerings to meet new and existing workforce training needs.

Operating under the radar for about a year, Thursday was the Career Accelerator's public launch at Bradford Research Farm.

It is an initiative of the Office of the Provost and MU Extension.

"We're going to try something a little bit different in Missouri," said Chad Higgins, interim vice chancellor for MU Extension and Engagement. "This is a noncredit hub for upscaling our workforce. It's very important to the state of Missouri that we get this right."

How to get more people and the right mix of people into the labor force is necessary, said Rob Russell, senior program director for MU Extension Business Community.

There has been a 93% increase in people age 55-plus in the workforce since 2001, Russell said.

"There's not a giant reserve of people out there who aren't participating in the labor market," he said.

So far, the accelerator has developed online certificate programs from construction management, supply chain management and clinical engineering.

The accelerator also will customize online or in-person workforce trainings to meet companies' needs, said Sara Rieley, a senior coordinator for MU Extension Business and Community.

The accelerator also will be the hub for all of MU's noncredit offerings, said Jonathan Mack, another senior coordinator for MU Extension and Business Community.

"There hasn't been that before," Mack said. "It's getting off the ground. It's just starting."

Roger McKinney is the Tribune's education reporter. You can reach him at rmckinney@columbiatribune.com or 573-815-1719. He's on Twitter at @rmckinney9.

This article originally appeared on Columbia Daily Tribune: MU Career Accelerator to customize job training for employers
John Amos' daughter is not backing down when it comes to the welfare of her father.

Last week, the actor's 56-year-old daughter Shannon Amos made some alarming claims about her dad, alleging that the Good Times alum, 83, is the victim of elder abuse. She even set up a GoFundMe page on his behalf, though a representative for John spoke out soon after to deny her allegations.

But now, Shannon is doubling down on the initial claims that her father needs help. In a statement made directly to Parade, a representative for Shannon said she and the rest of the family are "unwavering in their commitment to ensuring John's safety, stability, and healing."

"Shannon will not provide further comment as the investigation remains open with the Colorado Bureau of Investigations (CBI) and Custer County Sheriffs Department," the statement read. "This continues to be a private family matter that Shannon hopes will be resolved soon."

View the original article to see embedded media.

The Custer County Sheriff's Office also confirmed in a statement to People that an investigation was underway, noting in a statement, "We are thoroughly investigating that allegation and have consulted with our partners at the Colorado Bureau of Investigation and Department of Human Services. We have also been in contact with Mr. Amos and his attorney.

The statement added, "We take allegations of crimes very seriously."

Shannon first alleged that her dad was left "fighting for his lifie" in the ICU of a Memphis hospital last month, unveiling the "horrifying truth," about her father's life to her and the rest of the family.

"My dad had fallen victim to elder abuse and financial exploitation," she wrote on the GoFundMe page, claiming that her father's home was "violated," and "stripped of anything valuable." She noted that the alleged abuse was committed by a "trusted caregiver."

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>>> Sign up for Parade's Trending News newsletter and we'll keep you in the know on the viral pop culture moments and celebrity news everyone is talking about <<<

But soon after delivering her statements, John's representative spoke out on behalf of the Roots actor, who wanted his fans to know he is doing just fine.

View the original article to see embedded media.

"I wish to make a statement for the record that I am doing well," his rep, Belinda Foster, relayed in the statement to Parade. "I appreciate everyone's concerns but again, please understand that this GoFundMe campaign is not one that is accurate or authorized by me. Thank you, John Amos."

Shannon's GoFundMe page is still active online, and already has raised over $13K from its $500K goal.
A farmhand preps dairy cow udders for milking inside the parlor building at Boadwine Farms in Baltic.

The Department of Homeland Security wanted to do a routine work authorization audit of the Turner County Dairy more than a decade ago.

Walt Bones, who co-owns the dairy and was the state secretary of agriculture at the time, complied with the obligation, sending the official documents employers must have on hand for employees: drivers licenses, Social Security cards, or migrant-worker visas.

About 10 employees had falsified documents, the audit found, and were working illegally. Some of them had been working for years with Bones, who said he did not know their actual legal status; hed invested in them and trained them.

He had to let them go. At the same time, Bones couldnt find new employees to hire as dairy workers  a near constant problem in the agriculture industry  so he contracted with another firm to temporarily fill in the gaps.

Youll never guess who they hired. The same people we just let go, Bones said. That is case in point how screwed up our system is.

The Department of Homeland Security did not respond to a confirmation request about the audit history.

The majority of farmhands in South Dakotas booming dairy industry are foreign-born. The 24/7 operations are jobs most Americans dont want  due to the long hours, the rural setting and the pay, Bones said, so immigrants and foreign guest workers meet the need.

About 70% of farmworkers in the United States were born in Mexico or Central America, according to the Department of Labor  though that doesnt include workers in the livestock industry. An estimated 44% of farmworkers in the U.S. lack legal status, according to the survey of 2,172 crop farmworkers.

The countrys agricultural economy would break without foreign-born people working as farmhands, and the countrys homegrown food supply would disappear, said South Dakota Farm Bureau Federation President Scott VanderWal.

Its holding South Dakota back economically, VanderWal said. If you want to expand but cant get enough workers to help out, thats damaging to a state like South Dakota where our economy directly depends on agriculture to drive it.

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A worker sanitizes feed buckets for calves at Boadwine Farms.

Latest effort to address immigration, agriculture fails in Congress

The most recent effort to fix the system for foreign agricultural workers, the Farm Workforce Modernization Act, was killed by Congress late last year; though the House passed the act multiple times, an amended version didnt pass the Senate at the end of December.

It would have offered a path to permanent residency for undocumented employees who have a track record of playing by the rules, said Lynn Boadwine, managing operator of Boadwine Farms in Baltic.

Rep. Dusty Johnson voted against the act, saying it was a special deal for California and other vegetable and fruit-producing states while cutting out the processing industry  meat, cheese and biofuel processing  important to the agriculture industry in South Dakota and other Midwestern states. Johnson said Democratic leadership wouldnt accommodate requests to include processing. The American Farm Bureau opposed a provision of the bill that would allow farmworkers to sue employers when conditions of employment are not met.

While the bill did have special relief for dairies, it wasnt enough to sway Johnson.

We need to be strategic enough to understand whether a minor victory moves us closer toward a broader solution or moves us further away from that solution, Johnson said. Had we given California and other vegetable and fruit-producing states everything they needed, it would have made getting relief related to ag processing a lot less likely  I think it would have doomed the middle of the country into a serious workforce shortage.

Dairy operations already find it increasingly difficult to obtain labor to meet South Dakotas growing dairy industry needs.

Since the Farm Workforce Modernization Act was first introduced in 2019, South Dakotas inventory of dairy cows has risen by 53%, producing 4.16 billion pounds of milk worth over $1 billion in 2022.

The increase in milking cows over the past couple decades came from expansions of longstanding dairies, diversification of existing farms, the relocation of dairy operations to South Dakota from states such as California, and the expansion of milk-processing capacities with the states growing cheese industry.

Dorothy Elliott, who operates a dairy with 6,500 cattle near Lake Norden with her husband, said the country lacks incentives to create a labor force through immigration, and industries such as dairy production and agriculture lack clout to make a difference.

Farms can use a range of worker visa programs, though owners say theyre costly, complicated and restrictive. H-2A visas, which are popular guest worker programs for seasonal farmhands, cant be used by dairy operations because milking cows isnt a seasonal need.

The dairy industry is managing, but its limping along, Elliott said.

Spanish is the native language for a majority of the workers at Boadwine Farms. Many instructions are translated to Spanish, and the farm has translators available for workers as well.

U.S. visa program improves quality of life for foreign families, worker says

Elliott and Bones compare their immigrant and guest workers with the hardworking homesteaders of the 1800s. Although the dairy industry cant use H-2A workers, it can use J-1 visas, which is a cultural exchange program for college students in the summer and professionals for years at a time. The dairy industry can also obtain professional workers with TN visas, through the North American Free Trade Agreement, which requires a minimum education of a bachelors degree. Most TN workers in the dairy industry have a background in dairy science or veterinarian degrees. There are no restrictions for how many J-1 or TN visas can be granted in a year.

Most of the money guest workers make goes back to their families in their native countries to enroll children into school, they say, or to help them establish their own operations back home.

Aurelio Garcia, a 40-year-old father of three from Aguascalientes in Mexico, has been an H-2A worker with Boadwine Farms since 2021, where he focuses on the farm piece of the operation  raising alfalfa or other crops. He sends roughly $2,000 home a month, or about 75% of his monthly income.

That money allowed him to pay tuition for his children to go to school, build a house for his family and help his father financially  all of which has improved his familys quality of life. He can more easily afford to send his children and wife to the doctor when theyre sick or pay for their eyeglasses or braces.

Its eight months away from home each year for three years, but its worth the sacrifice, he said through a translator. He lives in free housing provided by Boadwine Farms while working in South Dakota.

Garcia applied for the H-2A program in 2013 but wasnt one of the lucky ones then.

The people who were only able to eat two tortillas a day can now eat four tortillas per meal with this money, Garcia said through a translator. Sometimes we were only able to eat meat once a week, and now we can eat meat every day. I believe the majority of people in Mexico would like to come work in the U.S. to be able to afford that.

Lynn Boadwine and his dog, Kenny, walk through a barn at Boadwine Farms. Boadwine and other dairy farmers say they have difficulty finding help and could benefit from more immigrant or migrant labor.

Immigration, foreign programs improve U.S. industries, farmers say

The United States largest market for dairy products is Mexico. Thats because the more money guest workers earn and send home, the more costly food and produce families can afford, which only further benefits South Dakota, Boadwine said.

Guest workers and immigrant workers isnt money leaving the country, but expanding the incomes of countries that are evolving and will become our customers, said Boadwine, whose workforce is over two-thirds foreign-born.

But immigration debates have corrupted ideas about foreign labor in the country, especially for critical roles in agriculture, Elliott added.

The average American says they dont want people to come into the country without any kind of scrutiny or security, but at the same time most Americans are quite happy not having to do the jobs the border hoppers are doing, Elliott said. They turn a blind eye to the issue when it suits them and then get up and shout about it without doing anything to fix it otherwise.

Nearly 95% of Elliotts workforce is foreign labor, with about half domestic hires with immigrant backgrounds and the other half made up of J-1 or TN workers. The Elliotts are planning to expand with a neighbor for another 5,000-cow dairy.

Elliott and her husband had lived in Ireland for years raising a family and farming, but were persuaded by state officials and marketing efforts to move to South Dakota and establish a dairy farm. Elliott was born in the United States and their children were easily naturalized, but it took her husband another eight years to gain citizenship.

Even though the process was difficult for her family, Elliott said it was a breeze compared to the process of seeking proper documentation or visas for most people seeking work in the industry.

Bones said hes seen others experience the same.

Those folks that are here, that weve trained, want to get citizenship or their visas, Bones said. Our system is so overwhelmed even those who want to do it right cant succeed in a timely manner.

Spanish is the native language for a majority of the workers at Boadwine Farms. Many instructions are translated to Spanish, and the farm has translators available for workers as well.

Status quo could lead to higher prices, national security issue

Bones has been proposing immigration changes since he was secretary of agriculture to give implementation and enforcement power to states based on their own industries and needs.

Those suggestions have obviously gone nowhere, Bones said.

Rep. Johnson said the nations southern border needs to be secured before Congress and the executive branch pass meaningful immigration or work-visa reform. Until President Joe Biden takes steps to partner with Republicans and secure the border, Johnson said, bipartisan solutions will remain elusive.

There are clearly improvements that need to be made on both sides of the ledger. We need an executive and legislative branch that are mature enough to address those together, Johnson said.

But Boadwine thinks Congress should take the smaller bite first.

Fix the one problem in the dairy industry, improve guest worker programs and let that be a template for how you go forward with immigration policy as a whole, Boadwine said. Youve got to do something sometime or it just stays the same.

Elliott is skeptical politicians will ever find an immigration solution. Instead, shes turning to robotics.

One of her barns uses technology to milk the cows. That milk is the most expensive milk she produces because of the cost to purchase the equipment and because the robots are less efficient than humans.

She fears if technology is the route farms have to take, the higher costs could be passed on to milk and cheese consumers. Or the country could shift to a reliance on overseas production.

If that happens, it could cause worse price fluctuations and supply problems due to natural disasters or geopolitical situations, like the vehicle shortage caused by chip manufacturing shortages, or Russias invasion of Ukraine, which has threatened a major source of the worlds cereal grain production. That would be a national security issue, Bones said.

We could buy all of our food from overseas, Bones said, adding sarcastically: That seems to be working so well with other consumer items.

This article originally appeared on Sioux Falls Argus Leader: Lack of action on immigration is holding SD back, dairy farmers say
Delaina Doyle Walley, a May 2023 graduate from Hineston, with a major in English and a minor in graphic design, served as a graphic design intern at the Louisiana Baptist Foundation this spring and will begin her position as communications coordinator there on June 1.

More Louisiana Christian University students had the chance to do in-person internships this academic year, and one of them was able to transform her position into a job.

Delaina Doyle Walley, a recent LCU graduate from Hineston, served as a graphic design intern at the Louisiana Baptist Foundation. She will begin her new position as communications coordinator there on June 1.

I was not looking for a job or an internship at the beginning of last semester, but the universitys Center for Calling & Career sent out an email that caught my eye, Walley said. Most of my courses during my last semester were graphic design courses, so the idea of doing a paid internship in graphic design sounded like a great learning experience. Meredith Rennier connected me with the foundation, and I soon joined the team as an intern. I am very blessed and thankful because it led me directly to a career in my field of interest and expertise.

Louisiana Christian University has made a concerted effort in the past two years to have every student incorporate experiential learning initiatives into their collegiate education, and its been paying off. Dozens of students have gotten hands-on experience in various career fields across central Louisiana.

Experiential Learning Initiatives are so very important to our students, as they can take the knowledge learned within the classroom and apply it through actual experiences within the workforce and local community, said Vice President of Student Life Meredith Rennier.

While not required for every major, including Walleys, Rennier said she recommends everyone take advantage of the opportunities.

All students, in their freshmen year at LCU, take the Clifton StrengthFinder Assessment to identify their Top 5 strengths, Rennier said. We focus on building these strengths throughout their college career and use the strengths to identify areas of opportunity for internships and deciding upon a career path best suited for the student.

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For Walley, her internship was a perfect fit.

It helped me discover different ways to use my degree as well as how to take advantage of my minor, she said.

Her supervisor, LBF Executive Director Jeff Steed, approached her about a permanent position that Walley said LBF created and offered to her, she said.

I will continue to use my knowledge with design programs to help the foundation create graphics for advertising their services, and I will also be using my English knowledge and skills to coordinate communication between the foundation and other organizations, institutions, etc., Walley said. I will be able to combine my creativity with my love for language to communicate effectively and efficiently with everyone in my path.

LCUs unique Center for Calling & Career is equipping students for internship opportunities, which simply cant be overemphasized in preparation for the competitive marketplace awaiting our graduates, said President Dr. Rick Brewer.

When future employers include our students as interns, Brewer said, they discover the quality education LCUs students have received preparing them to think critically, conduct analytical reasoning, and serve as problem-solvers while exhibiting a Christ-like attitude.

This article originally appeared on Alexandria Town Talk: LCU graduate graduates from intern to full-time employee
MIAMI - Lazaro Ecenarro believes Donald Trump is guilty of something. But it has nothing to do with the Espionage Act.

"In a way, I blame him for being in this mess," said Ecenarro, a Miami native in his late 40s. "When you appoint two corrupt attorney generals - Bill Barr and Jeff Sessions - well, you create your own demise."

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He was sitting on a granite block under a buckeye tree outside the federal courthouse in downtown Miami, a sand-colored JanSport backpack at his feet, a neon-green hospital bracelet on his right wrist, an eye patch from recent surgery for a blown-out cornea over his left eye. Trump's old attorneys general were gone from the Justice Department well before Trump left office - let alone took sensitive government documents to Mar-a-Lago - but in Ecenarro's eyes, they were part of the Mueller-Page-Strzok-Clinton-Biden cabal. But the indictment had to do with corruption and corporations and following the money, he said, and he was certain Trump's alleged crimes were "fabricated." So he had arrived a full 24 hours before Trump's appearance in federal court here Tuesday, to line up for a chance to watch the proceedings in person, to see the process play out.

"If they can do it to him, then that means they can do it to anybody," Ecenarro said the next morning, around 8 a.m. "Obviously," he noted warily, "they have sinister intentions." Moments later, he was escorted with a throng of journalists into the courthouse.

It's a rhetorical nail that Trump and his supporters have hammered for a while: that the prosecution of the former president - for alleged acts that average citizens couldn't even commit if they wanted to - signifies not just a political threat to Trump but also a personal threat to his supporters. "In the end, they're not coming after me," he said in a speech following his indictment last week. "They're coming after you."

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Among the hundreds who showed up to support Trump in the 90-degree heat - enough to make their presence felt in the plaza around the courthouse, though not the "5,000 to 50,000" police were expecting - the message seemed to have seeped through.

"Do you have millions of dollars to hire the lawyers he got? No? So they can bring any charges against you," said Louis Medina, a retired Miami native who was clutching a bullhorn in a wheelchair, covering his legs with a Trump flag, around 10 a.m.

"They're coming for you next!" bellowed Laura Loomer, the far-right activist, to a group of people encircling her just before noon. One of them, a woman in a denim hat with bedazzled "TRUMP" letters, nodded vigorously.

Madeleine Munilla, a 68-year-old retiree and property manager, migrated to Miami from Cuba. She's trying to open Americans' eyes to "what happened in Cuba and Nicaragua and Venezuela." Could the feds come after her? What do voters keep in their closets?

"They could come. Not because of that, because I don't have any classified documents. But they can come for my freedom of speech." Such as claiming there's only "two sexes," which she does freely say.

As the sun neared its peak, the crowd swelled. They were here for Trump, as he came home from his summer residence in New Jersey to face federal charges related to his retention of sensitive government documents at his club in Palm Beach.

Ron DeSantis, they hate. Mike Pence, they hate.

They were, however, willing to pay a little attention to a clean-shaven man named Vivek Ramaswamy.

Ramaswamy - who, like Trump, is running for the Republican nomination for president - showed up in a white "TRUTH" hat to reiterate his pledge to pardon Trump if he's convicted (and Ramaswamy beats him and wins the White House). He challenged the rest of the Republican and Democratic field to do the same.

The cameras huddled around Ramaswamy, whose voice was inaudible to much of the crowd.

"WE ARE NOT A DEMOCRACY," brayed a man in a black T-shirt a few feet behind the cameras as his news conference began. "Can we say that louder? WE ARE NOT A DEMOCRACY."

"You're not getting elected. Move on," a young guy in a light-gray blazer and a red hat told Ramaswamy, then proceeded to hit his orange vape.

Francis Suarez, the Republican mayor of Miami who has been teasing a possible presidential run himself, was berated by the crowd and was called a "swamp monster." Kari Lake hopped from tent to tent of conservative networks, speaking in a calm, even tone, the way a former TV anchor would.

Osmany Estrada, 40, wrapped in an American flag and a Cuban flag, was one of the people who came because he was glad to see the legal system working. He had long, flowing curls, and he gripped a wooden stick, pacing all day. Atop it was the yellowing, severed head of a pig with a mini American flag sticking from its mouth. A fly fluttered above its eye.

"I'm so happy. We are living through history," the self-described philosopher said. "I believe in our democratic process. And I believe in the independence of our institutions."

A day earlier, outside the nearby Trump National Doral resort, Chancy Blumenfrucht, a 59-year-old Jewish woman from Brooklyn, and her son took a break from their vacation to show their support for Trump, along with 50 or so others. Blumenfrucht rejected revenge fantasies about destroying the anti-Trumpers. But she was worried about what a successful prosecution of the former president would mean.

"If Trump ends up going to jail," she said, "I don't even know what would happen. I don't even - it would be a civil - I don't even know, with the crazy people out there."

On Tuesday, if his supporters were not going to get revenge, or retribution, they were at least going to repeat their well-trod refrains. The crowd - which included a multitude of Latinos and "Blacks for Trump" - paraded around talking to their comrades about the system and how the country was really going down now. They surrounded the Mexican American journalist Jorge Ramos, who frequently challenged Trump while he was in office, and chanted: "Traitor! Traitor!"

The Proud Boys, whose leaders were convicted of seditious conspiracy this year in connection to the Jan. 6, 2021, riot, seemed to have stayed away. A bomb squad officer swept the plaza, wearing a patch that read: "STOP SCREAMING - I'M SCARED TOO."

While Trump was speaking, his supporters massed behind a phalanx of law enforcement officers. They chanted, "WE WANT TRUMP!" and "LATINOS FOR TRUMP!" After Trump pleaded not guilty, his motorcade whizzed off to Versailles, a landmark of the Cuban community here.

In the middle of the crowd, a short woman from Port Charlotte, Fla., named Mirmila Jitta was holding a sign that said, "TRUMP YOU ARE NOT ABOVE THE LAW." "Indict Biden!" someone yells.

"They don't even know Biden had nothing to do with the indictment," Jitta said. It was a grand jury, she said. "From Florida."

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Hexima Limited (ASX:HXL) insiders who bought shares over the past year were rewarded handsomely last week. The stock rose 38%, resulting in a AU$835k rise in the company's market capitalisation. Put another way, the original AU$229k acquisition is now worth AU$329k.

Although we don't think shareholders should simply follow insider transactions, we would consider it foolish to ignore insider transactions altogether.

See our latest analysis for Hexima

Hexima Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

In fact, the recent purchase by John Tarrant was the biggest purchase of Hexima shares made by an insider individual in the last twelve months, according to our records. Although we like to see insider buying, we note that this large purchase was at significantly below the recent price of AU$0.018. While it does suggest insiders consider the stock undervalued at lower prices, this transaction doesn't tell us much about what they think of current prices.

John Tarrant bought a total of 18.26m shares over the year at an average price of AU$0.013. You can see a visual depiction of insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last 12 months, below. If you click on the chart, you can see all the individual transactions, including the share price, individual, and the date!

There are plenty of other companies that have insiders buying up shares. You probably do not want to miss this free list of growing companies that insiders are buying.

Does Hexima Boast High Insider Ownership?

Many investors like to check how much of a company is owned by insiders. I reckon it's a good sign if insiders own a significant number of shares in the company. Hexima insiders own about AU$1.3m worth of shares (which is 43% of the company). I like to see this level of insider ownership, because it increases the chances that management are thinking about the best interests of shareholders.

So What Does This Data Suggest About Hexima Insiders?

It's certainly positive to see the recent insider purchase. And an analysis of the transactions over the last year also gives us confidence. However, we note that the company didn't make a profit over the last twelve months, which makes us cautious. Along with the high insider ownership, this analysis suggests that insiders are quite bullish about Hexima. One for the watchlist, at least! So while it's helpful to know what insiders are doing in terms of buying or selling, it's also helpful to know the risks that a particular company is facing. Case in point: We've spotted 5 warning signs for Hexima you should be aware of, and 4 of them are significant.

But note: Hexima may not be the best stock to buy. So take a peek at this free list of interesting companies with high ROE and low debt.

For the purposes of this article, insiders are those individuals who report their transactions to the relevant regulatory body. We currently account for open market transactions and private dispositions, but not derivative transactions.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.



This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.

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Not only is Donny Pelletier the best skier in Maine, he's known as the state's 'Finest Athlete'. True story. Just check his Instagram bio.

The video below shows Donny tackling a mogul course run this season as Sunday River, ME. Pay attention to Donny's unique technique as he navigates the brutal bumps that have claimed the knees and backs of many skiers before him:

He's officially named this bizarre method of mogul skiing 'the pelletier 2-step', I think that's pretty fitting, don't you?

If you're not aware of Donny, I highly recommend that you give him a follow across social media platforms. He consistently puts out hilarious content throughout the ski season and has quickly become one of skiing's most recognizable personalities.

Dig a little deeper and you might be able to find out Donny's true identity.

Turns out that today is Donny's birthday! How do I know this? A quick look at professional skier Daron Rahlves' Instagram Story will tell you all you need to know.

Rahlves clearly thought Donny's birthday was the perfect opportunity to relive the viral video they filmed earlier in the season. Check out the screenshot below.

The screenshot above shows Donny freshly-blasted by Daron Rahlves.

Join me in wishing Donny Pelletier a very happy birthday! I hope it's filled with wicked amounts of Moxie, lobstah, and whatever else you Mainers enjoy.

This next message is for Donny (assuming that he reads the stupid words that I write)- Just don't enjoy yourself too much, okay? I know you're mister California big shot now with all of those videos you filmed for Palisades, but don't let it get to your head.

Overly-celebrating birthdays is a very California thing. Don't forget where you came from. Everybody from Kittery to Caribou is watching.

Happy Birthday!

Don't miss another headline from POWDER! Subscribe to our newsletter and stay connected with the latest happenings in the world of skiing.

We're always on the lookout for amusing, interesting and engaging ski-related videos to feature on our channels. Whether you're a professional or just an amateur, we want to see your best footage and help you share it with the world. Submit your video for a chance to be featured on POWDER and our social channels. Be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel to watch high-quality ski videos.
POINTS OF PRIDE: In honor of Pride Month, the Finnish design house Marimekko has called upon three LGBTQ visual artists in New York, Bangkok and Helsinki, Finland, to create work for a Marimekko store window.

Brooklyn, New York-based art director and illustrator Shanee Benjamin, Bangkok-based illustrator Juli Baker and Summer and the Helsinki-based visual and textile artist Anna-Karoliina Vainio were recruited for commissions. Baker, who earned a fashion degree at Chulalongkorn University, started her artist career under the nom de plume Juli Baker and Summer in 2015. As a point of reference to help get the three artists ideas circulating, they were given a quote by Marimekko founder Armi Ratia, who wrote in her diary at the age of 14, There is only one strength  love.

More from WWD

As an official partner of Helsinki Pride since 2018 and a supporter of the Finnish LGBTQ artist community, Marimekko has had similar art window collaborations in Helsinki for the past three years. In addition, the company has a tradition of inviting artists and creatives from all walks of life to create bold and colorful prints in order to brighten the lives of people.

This year is the first that the store window concept was unveiled in New York and Bangkok. Earlier this month, the Brooklyn-based art director and illustrator Benjamin could be seen working on her creation outside of the brands Wooster Street store, while shoppers browsed indoors. To give them another taste of her artistry, some of Benjamins personal paintings are on display in the store this month.

Although Pride Month winds down in the U.S. at the end of this month, Helsinkis Pride celebration runs through July 2. Finlands former president Tarja Halonen, an advocate for the human rights of sexual and gender minorities, will serve as this years event patron. Vainios artistry will be on view in the Helsinki store until July 3.

Story continues

It wont be long before Marimekko has other reasons to celebrate. The Finnish brand will take part in Copenhagen Fashion Week in August, and more plans are in the works for next year in honor of the 60th anniversary of the brands Unikko (poppy) print.

Best of WWD

Click here to read the full article.
a red octopus facing the camera against a black background

In October 1962, the rules of engagement during the Cold War assumed particular urgency. Soviet nuclear warheads were in Cuba  and ships carrying missiles, launchers, and more warheads were on their way. The U.S. needed to establish new rules to communicate with and relate to the Soviet Union. Gregory Bateson, an interdisciplinary scholar, looked to his own studies with octopuses for insight into this problem.

Bateson understood that for birds and mammals, communication was rooted in parent-offspring bonds. In courtship feeding among many bird species, for example, the courted female begs like a young bird and allows the male to feed her. Bateson recognized that the feeding in this context is a signal, because feeding is not its only function. The behavior's additional function is courtship; that is, relationship building. Courtship feeding is a behavioral metaphor, an implicit comparison between one relationship (parental care) enacted as another (courtship).

In the context of the communications between nations, as related by Phillip Guddemi in his 2020 book Gregory Bateson on Relational Communication: From Octopuses to Nations , Bateson looked to another metaphor: that of closeness, physical proximity, which he observed in octopuses. Octopuses were interesting because females tend their eggs, but otherwise lack maternal care of offspring. Octopuses are also notoriously solitary. These facts drew Bateson's attention to their willingness to tolerate the proximity of neighbors as a metaphor for tolerant relationships among nations.

A two-spot octopus with its tentacles and suckers showing

Surprisingly, however, and despite their solitary reputation, octopuses like closeness. Thursday was an octopus that my daughter Laurel and I kept in a home aquarium for a while. Thursday was eager to interact with Laurel. On coming home from school, Laurel would put her fingertips in the water, and Thursday would leave her den at the other end of the tank, scoot along the bottom, and then jet up to the surface for a hello. Even after feeding, she liked to hold on to Laurel, sometimes for as much as a half hour or more. When I chose a seat in the living room to read, Thursday would often quietly relocate in the tank to the point nearest me. She would crawl up and down the glass in my line of sight until I attended to her. By contrast, when Amethyst squirted me with water in the lab, she not only kept me at a distance but also metaphorically indicated her dislike.

Related: Watch an octopus waking up from what scientists think could have been a nightmare

The relational communications in octopuses are not rooted in parental care or mating dynamics. This insight allowed Bateson to wonder how the same mechanisms might serve in the relations of nations. Bateson studied juveniles of either (or both) Verill's two-spot octopus (Octopus bimaculatus) and the California two-spot octopus (Octopus bimaculoides)  he did not always distinguish which. Bateson collected his octopuses along the shores of La Jolla, California, where he at times found two octopuses under a single rock. His experiment similarly consisted of keeping two octopuses in a single tank. The solitary reputation of octopuses makes this a poor idea, and it is seldom done. Indeed, in some cases, one octopus would harass the other persistently, sometimes to death. However, if introduced at the same time, some pairs coexisted. These cases particularly interested Bateson.

Coexistence began with minor battles in which neither octopus was badly injured, a sort of testing phase. The larger octopus stole food from the smaller, and drove it out of shelter. After an interval, the smaller cautiously approached the larger 

a dangerous move  but the larger then retreated. As Bateson saw it, this sequence established trust. First, the stronger octopus demonstrated strength. The weaker then showed its vulnerability by approaching regardless. Finally, and critically, the stronger then held back and refrained from harming the vulnerable octopus, as though showing "I can hurt you but I will not." From this point, the two octopuses could coexist without fighting, and sat in close proximity, sometimes touching.

President John F. Kennedy sitting at his desk in the oval office signing a US arms quarantine against Cuba.

Armed with these observations, in the final and most tense days of the Cuban missile crisis, Bateson then wrote a remarkable letter, seeking to bring to the attention of the Kennedy administration parallels between the international nuclear crisis and the behaviors of octopuses. The letter was to Bateson's colleague and mentor Warren McCulloch, who Bateson felt could direct the ideas to another colleague in the Presidents Science Advisory Committee and thereby reach policy makers within the Kennedy administration.

The Cuban Missile Crisis was resolved within a few days of the letter being written, so there was little time to act on it and no evidence McCulloch ever did. In the near aftermath, however, Bateson remarked that Kennedy had placed "trust" in Khrushchev's judgment, as the quarantine might have given Khrushchev a cause to be offended, but one that the Soviet ruler could decline to act on. That is, Bateson felt that Kennedy's quarantine of Cuba had provoked the Soviets in just the way one octopus could provoke another. The quarantine blocked only weaponry, and fell short of an air strike on the missile sites, or a blockade of Cuba, either of which would have been an act of war. The quarantine provided Khrushchev aggravation not conciliation. Would Khrushchev break the quarantine and land the missiles in Cuba anyway? But six Soviet ships containing weapons stopped short or reversed course before meeting the quarantining U.S. forces. Khrushchev refrained. He subsequently agreed to remove the existing warheads from Cuba. An operational trust had been obtained allowing coexistence.

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Bateson's observations were from captive octopuses interacting in pairs, and they described behaviors that remain rare or unheard of in octopuses, such as face-

to-face mating, backing mantle-first toward a rival, and embracing one another after making peace. Out of concern for their welfare, captive octopuses are so seldom housed together that few independent observations exist to expand on Bateson's account. Where we find octopuses together in the wild, they are busily interacting with one another in complex ways. While some of these interactions escalate into battles and can be fatal, most are mediated by relational communication such as signals and low-intensity aggression that fall short of all-out hostility.

Excerpted from Many Things Under a Rock: The Mysteries of Octopuses

The Mysteries of Octopus. Copyright (c) 2023 by David Scheel. Used with permission of the publisher, W. W. Norton & Company, Inc. All rights reserved.

Many Things Under a Rock: The Mysteries of Octopuses - $21.92 at Amazon

A behavioral ecologists riveting account of his decades-long obsession with octopuses: his discoveries, adventures, and new scientific understanding of their behaviors.View Deal
Heres a look at the life of Olaf Scholz, the chancellor of Germany.

Personal:



Birth date: June 14, 1958

Birth place: Osnabruck, Germany

Birth name: Olaf Scholz

Father: Gerhard Scholz, textile worker

Mother: Christel Scholz, textile worker

Marriage: Britta Ernst (1998-present)

Education: University of Hamburg, J.D., 1984

Religion: Non-denominational

Other Facts:

Practiced as a labor law attorney.

Nicknamed Scholzomat for his controlled, robot-like communication style.

Timeline:



1975 - Joins the Social Democratic Party (SPD) of Germany as a student.

1982-1988 - Deputy chairman of the SPD youth organization, Jusos.

1998-2001 - A member of the German federal parliament (Bundestag).

May 2001-October 2001 - Senator for the Interior of Hamburg.

2002 - Reelected to the Bundestag.

2002-2004 - Secretary-general of the SPD.

2007-2009 - Federal Minister of Labour and Social Affairs.

2011-2018 - Mayor of Hamburg.

July 2017 - After a group of anti-capitalist protesters clash with the riot police in Hamburg during the G20 summit meeting, Scholz is criticized for his handling of the protests, and some politicians call for his resignation.

February-April 2018 - Acting Chair of the SPD

August 10, 2020 - Is nominated to be the SPD candidate for chancellor of Germany.

September 26, 2021 - The SPD wins the federal election with 25.7% of the vote.

November 24, 2021 - Following two months of negotiations to form a new government, Scholz announces the SPD will head a three-party coalition with the Greens and pro-business Free Democrats.

December 8, 2021 - Scholz is sworn in as the new chancellor, replacing Angela Merkel.

For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com
Amtrak moves into the fast lane.

Marc Glucksman/Courtesy of Amtrak

Amtrak is about to live life in the fast lane.



Train travelers commuting along the Chicago to St. Louis corridor will now experience speeds 20 miles per hour faster than previously permitted by law. The new top speed for train travel on this popular route will increase to 110 mph as of later this month. The speed increase will mostly affect the approximately 248 miles of track between Joliet, Illinois, and Alton, Illinois, according to a release from Amtrak. More than 3 million Amtrak passengers travel through Chicagos Union Station annually, and it ranks as the fourth most popular train station for Amtrak.



The speed increase was approved by federal agencies, and the Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT). It will take effect on June 26, according to a release from IDOT.



This week, Amtrak revealed just how much time travelers will save thanks to the speed increase. A train from Chicago to Bloomington-Normal, Illinois, will be less than two hours, down from 2.5 hours; and a Chicago to St. Louis train will take less than five hours, when it previously took about 6.5.



Between the shorter schedules and having more than half of all the new state-owned Amtrak Midwest Venture railcars now in service, we are completing a full makeover of this corridor service. said Roger Harris, president of Amtrak, in a statement.



While the speeds of 110 mph are impressive, they do not match Amtraks Acela service between Boston, New York, and Washington, D.C., which tops out at 150 mph.



With the increase in speed, Amtrak is also recommending that pedestrians and motorists stay vigilant around train tracks and stopping guards.



Motorists, pedestrians, and bicyclists should always use caution on this important rail corridor, as our trains are faster than they can appear and are quieter than ever. Only use designated public crossings, Amtrak said in a release.



Amtrak, a federally chartered corporation," per its website, services 500 destinations in 46 states.

For more Travel & Leisure news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter!

Read the original article on Travel & Leisure.
File. Romania ambassador to Kenya, Dragos-Viorel-Radu Tigau (Photo by YASUYOSHI CHIBA/AFP via Getty Images)

Romania has recalled its ambassador to Kenya over his racist comments at a meeting in Nairobi where he compared monkeys to African diplomats, according to reports.

Dragos Viorel Tigau was at a UN building in Kenyas capital on 26 April when he allegedly commented the African group has joined us after he sighted a monkey outside the window of the conference room.

It was reported on Saturday that Romanias foreign ministry recalled Mr Tigau after receiving complaints of the racist comment following the meeting.

Mr Tigau allegedly made the racist remark before the African diplomats arrived for the meeting but several people in attendance found his comment insensitive and disrespectful, the Kenyan Foreign Policy reported.

The Romanian foreign ministry said they were informed of the incident only recently and recalled Mr Tigau as soon as they found out and issued an apology.

We deeply regret this situation and offer our apologies to all those who have been affected and strongly reject and condemn any behaviour and any attitude incompatible with mutual respect.

It added that racist behaviour or comments were absolutely unacceptable.

Several others found the incident disgraceful and said that they were appalled by the Romanian envoys remark.

Kenyan diplomat Macharia Kamau tweeted that he was appalled and disgusted at the remarks by the Romanian ambassador in Nairobi during the Eastern European group meeting.

He added: Utter shame attempts to cover up this disgrace. This [is] intolerable and unacceptable in any age, let alone [the] 21 century in Nairobi!

It was also reported that the African diplomats sought clarification from Mr Tigau and the Kenyan foreign ministry.

Appalled &disgusted at learning of remarks by Romanian Amb in Nairobi in reference African Group members as monkeys during Eastern European group meeting. Utter shame attempts to cover up this disgrace. This intolerable &unacceptable in any Age let alone 21 Century in Nairobi!  Amb. Macharia Kamau (@AmbMKamau) June 8, 2023

The Guardian reported that the South Sudanese ambassador to Kenya, Chol Ajongo, wrote to the director general of the United Nations Office on 31 May and expressed his shock and disgust at Mr Tagaus disparaging and unacceptable remarks.

Story continues

Mr Ajongo was the acting dean of the Africa group for the meeting on 26 April. He was later thanked by many for standing firm as the chair of the group of African diplomats.

He also demanded a clear public personal apology from the ambassador. The letter to the director general also reportedly said that the African group was not prepared to participate in the same spaces as Mr Tigau.

One Twitter user wrote: I hope #Romania and other European countries learn from such utterances. We cant tolerate ignorance anymore. Its time we stand as African nations.

Reports also said that Mr Tigau has since presented his apology, including in writing, according to the Romanian foreign ministry. The ministry also hoped that the incident will not affect the relationship with the countries of the African continent.
Travelers heading to the United Kingdom will soon need to have an Electronic Travel Authorization (ETA) waiver. In addition to a 10 fee per applicant (just over $12 in U.S. currency), all foreign visitors without a visa will need to apply for an ETA online in advance of their travel plans.

The ETA, which is electronically linked to your passport, gives travelers permission to travel to the U.K. as part of an effort to fully digitize the country's borders by 2025. According to the official government website, an ETA allows for up to six months of tourism, such as visiting family and friends, business, or study; or up to three months for temporary work. It's also good for two years or until your passport expires, at which point visitors will need to apply for a new ETA.

The rollout will begin in late 2023, starting with citizens from Qatar in November, followed by Bahrain, Jordan, Kuwait, Oman, Saudi Arabia, and United Arab Emirates in February 2024. By the end of 2024, all visitors, including those from the United States, will be required to have one to travel within the country's borders.

While a slight hassle, the concept of an ETA is hardly new. As Travel + Leisure points out, the Europe Union will likewise implement a similar European Travel Information and Authorization System (or ETIAS) next year that will apply to foreign visitors between the ages of 18 to 70 years old. That waiver will come with a 7 fee.

The U.S. Customs and Border Protection also requires an Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) for foreign visitors, which is available through the Visa Waiver Program and costs $21 to apply.
Is your knee starting to ache after going for a run? Are your joints stiff when you wake up in the morning? Do you hear cracking in your legs when you get up after sitting for a while? If so, you may be seeing early signs of arthritis.

You might think of arthritis as something your grandparents get. And, yes, arthritis, especially osteoarthritis, usually worsens with age, as the cartilage in your joints starts to deteriorate. Taking steps to protect your joints well before old age can lessen the effects of osteoarthritis, and as millennials are reaching their 40s, now is the time to start thinking about ways to slow the progression of the condition.

About 15% of all adults over 60 have osteoarthritis, and women are twice as likely as men to develop it, according to the Arthritis Foundation. But, symptoms can begin decades earlier.

It is never too early to get into the habit of protecting your joints, says Brittany Ferri, an occupational therapist in Rochester, New York, who specializes in conditions like arthritis. Many of us often don't realize that some of the things we do on a daily basislike overdoing small and repetitive tasks like textinghave a negative impact on our joint health.

Related: Can Stress Cause Arthritis?

Not everyone develops arthritis, but theres no cure if you do. It can, however, be treated with medication and lifestyle changes, like exercise. Experts say learning to take care of your joints can reduce your risk of developing arthritis, delay the start of arthritis and minimize symptoms like pain and immobility.

What Is Osteoarthritis?

Arthritis is an umbrella term for inflammation of the joint, says Alice Holland, a doctor of physical therapy at Stride Strong Physical Therapy in Portland, Oregon.

There are hundreds of types of arthritis, but the most common is osteoarthritis, also known as wear and tear arthritis.

Osteoarthritis occurs when the cartilage, which provides cushioning between bones, breaks down, creating inflammation, causing pain and swelling and making movement difficult, according to the Arthritis Foundation.

Story continues

Related: What Does Arthritis Feel Like?

Any joint can develop osteoarthritis, but its most common in the knees, hips, hands, lower back and neck. The risk increases with age, since bones, muscles and joints also get older, according to the Arthritis Foundation. Genetics, joint injury, obesity, overuse and weak muscles also increase the likelihood of developing arthritis.

Everything that our body goes through, like injuries or poor posture, stays with us for years to come and can cause arthritis in individuals who are already predisposed to the condition, Ferri says.

How to Keep Your Joints Healthy

Get moving

Motion is lotion is a common saying in the physical therapy world, Holland says.

Its like if youre the rusty Tin Man (from The Wizard of Oz), you need to get some oil, and you need to move, she says. Arthritis is correlated with sedentary habits and weakness.

Exercise lubricates the joints, making them more flexible, Ferri says. Joints are encased in the synovial membrane, a soft tissue that releases fluid to allow bones to move smoothly. Exercise circulates the fluid, and also improves circulation in your joints, moves oxygen and nutrients into the joints, builds muscle and removes cellular waste from the joint.

Related: Does the Weather Cause Joint Pain?

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services recommends that adults get at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise each week, and to generally move more and sit less throughout the day.

To guard against osteoarthritis, the Arthritis Foundation suggests varying your exercise routines to include strengthening exercises to build muscle, range-of-motion moves to reduce stiffness, cardio to boost energy level and balance exercises to strengthen the tiny muscles around the joint.

Our balance comes from our eyes, an organ in the inner ear and information from our muscles and joints, explains Cleveland Clinic physical therapist Mary Morrison, PT, DScPT.

Many falls happen when people rotate their bodies while reaching up or down (for example, turning and reaching overhead to put something in the kitchen cabinet).

Your body must be able to react to save you from falling. When we work on balance in physical therapy we take people to the edge of falling and allow their body to learn to respond, Morrison says.

If youre ready to get moving, ease into a new exercise routine and check with your doctor or physical therapist first, especially if youre mostly sedentary, Holland says. Healthcare professionals can teach you proper form so you dont injure yourself.

Related: 4 Micro-Movements That Will Help Keep You Flexible

Maintain a healthy weight

Being overweight puts extra pressure on the bodys major joints, including the hips, knees and back, Ferri says. The added strain erodes cartilage in the joints.

Excess fat cells, or adipose tissue, release the pro-inflammatory proteins cytokines, which can destroy joint tissue and change how cartilage cells function.

Being sedentary and overweight are two major factors that influence arthritis, Holland says. It goes without saying that the more weight you have to carry, the more load youre putting on your spine, knees and feet.

Managing your weight lowers your risk for osteoarthritis. Research shows that each pound of weight lost decreases the pressure put on knees by four times.

Break bad habits now

You probably spend a good part of your day texting, scrolling through social media and typing on your laptop. The repetitive movements of the tasks can stress the joints, which could lead to osteoarthritis, Ferri says.

When you cant avoid these tasks, take plenty of breaks and stretch your whole body, she says.

Sitting or standing for too long, or continuously lifting heavy objects stresses the joints, as well.

Related: Does Cracking Your Knuckles Cause Arthritis?

Eventually, your joints will wear because you are not moving, Holland says. You're not varying up the loads in your joints. If you're sitting for eight hours a day staring at your laptop with a bent over, stooped posture, you're going to feel it in your neck, you're going to feel it in your low back, and you're going to feel it in your hips.

Follow a healthy lifestyle

An overall healthy lifestyle lowers your osteoarthritis risk, so break bad habits like not getting enough sleep, drinking too much, smoking and eating unhealthy foods. Look for ways to relax and avoid stress.

Practicing joint self-care now could help prevent osteoarthritis later. Give yourself hand massages or see a massage therapist regularly, and get in the habit of icing and applying heat to sore or achy muscles, Ferri suggests.

Listen to your body, she says. If any activity causes pain or discomfort, stop.

Next, What Is Restorative Yoga and How Will It Help You

Sources:
Forever chemicals are nearly everywhere, including in hamburger wrappers, raincoats, car seats and nonstick pans. (Illustration by Victoria Ellis for Yahoo; Photo: Getty Images)

Although scientists are still investigating the impact of so-called "forever chemicals" in humans, it's become clear that they're nearly everywhere. Now, a new study by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) finds that about 45% of tap water in the U.S. contains per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), which have been called forever chemicals.

In the study, scientists tested water collected "directly from peoples kitchen sinks across the nation, providing the most comprehensive study to date on PFAS in tap water from both private wells and public supplies, Kelly Smalling, the study's lead author and USGS research hydrologist, said in a statement. The study estimates that at least one type of PFAS  of those that were monitored  could be present in nearly half of the tap water in the U.S. Furthermore, PFAS concentrations were similar between public supplies and private wells.

But that's not the only study looking at forever chemicals in our environment. Recent research shows that 1 in 5 children have levels of forever chemicals that are above established safety limits.

The study, which was published in the International Journal of Hygiene and Environmental Health, analyzed blood samples from 1,094 children in Norway between the ages of 6 and 16 and looked for the presence of PFAS. The researchers found that four common PFAS were found in all children and that 22% had levels above safety limits set by the European Food Safety Authority.

Another recent study on the impact of forever chemicals on kids found that mothers who were exposed to higher levels of PFAS during pregnancy had children with slightly higher BMIs and a higher risk of obesity than those whose mothers had lower levels of PFAS in their blood during pregnancy.

But what are forever chemicals exactly, and why are they so concerning? Experts break it down.

What are forever chemicals?

Forever chemicals are a large group of man-made chemicals that have been used in consumer goods since the 1950s, according to the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS). PFAS have a lot of uses, including making carpets stain resistant, creating firefighting foam and keeping food from sticking to packages or cookware.

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"These chemicals have gotten into the environment, but they don't break down in the environment," Dr. Robert Laumbach, a researcher and occupational medicine physician at Rutgers Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences Institute, tells Yahoo Life. They end up "bioaccumulating," which means they build up over time. "They've been found all over, including in polar bears in the Arctic," Laumbach says. "Because they don't break down and bioaccumulate, we're all exposed."

"These chemicals have long half-lives and tend to accumulate within the body and environment over time," Jamie Liu, a postdoctoral research associate in epidemiology at Brown University and lead author of the recent study that linked PFAS to childhood obesity, tells Yahoo Life.

Worth noting: Thousands of PFAS have been identified.

Where are forever chemicals commonly found?

Forever chemicals are nearly everywhere. "PFAS are ubiquitous in society, in everything from hamburger wrappers and raincoats to car seats and carpets," Emily Scarr, Maryland state director of public safety advocacy organization PIRG (Public Interest Research Group), tells Yahoo Life. "And because there are no required labels, its hard to know everywhere they are."

In addition to firefighting foams, PFAS are usually used in waterproof and stain-resistant products, along with food packaging, rugs, makeup and outdoor apparel, Scarr says. It's also found in nonstick cookware.

How harmful are forever chemicals?

PFAS "have been linked to various health risks," Liu says, and research on their health impact is still ongoing.

These forever chemicals raise the risk of developing cancer with long-term exposure, according to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Research has also linked PFAS to conditions such as obesity, infertility and thyroid disease.

Last year, the EPA issued health advisories for drinking water, noting that forever chemicals are more hazardous to human health and at lower levels than scientists previously thought.

While research into the impact of PFAS is ongoing, what's been discovered so far isn't great. "Right off the bat, we're concerned about what the potential effects of these chemicals are, given how common they are," Laumbach says.

How parents can help kids lower their exposure to forever chemicals

Experts admit that this is tricky because they're nearly everywhere. A 2015 report found that at least 97% of Americans have forever chemicals in their blood, while a 2019 study found that 98% of Americans have PFAS in their blood.

"It is not possible to completely avoid PFAS," Liu says. "These chemicals are everywhere in the environment; people can be exposed to PFAS through the ingestion of contaminated food and drinking water as well as the inhalation of indoor air and house dust."

Still, Liu says you may be able to minimize your family's exposure to these chemicals. That includes doing the following:

Use water filters containing activated carbon or reverse osmosis membranes to remove PFAS from drinking water.

Avoid or limit takeout and fast food  the containers and packaging often have PFAS that can leach into food.

Frequently vacuum, using HEPA filters to remove PFAS-containing dust.

Avoid stain-resistant rugs, which are treated with chemicals that contain PFAS.

Try to keep babies and infants from putting objects into their mouths, which is easier said than done.

Again, it's not possible to completely prevent your family from being exposed to PFAS  but experts say you can take some steps to reduce your exposure.

Wellness, parenting, body image and more: Get to know the who behind the hoo with Yahoo Life's newsletter. Sign up here.
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A Chinese man was arrested for allegedly vandalizing the gate of the U.S. Consulate in Hong Kong with white paint on Tuesday morning, according to reports.

How he did it: The man allegedly spray-painted the gate and wall of the consulate with the English word hegemony and the Chinese words for double standards. Each area covered 3 meters by 1 meter.

The aftermath: The consulate reported the incident at around 5:22 a.m. Officers arrived at the scene and arrested the man on suspicion of criminal damage. The graffiti was removed later that morning.

About the suspect: The suspect has been identified by his surname, Wen. The 47-year-old is said to be from mainland Chinas Shandong province. He holds a two-way permit, a travel document issued in the mainland for entry to Hong Kong. Under the citys law, he could face up to 10 years in jail for destroying or damaging property.

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U.S. responds: The State Department released a statement in connection with the incident, saying that while the U.S. does not support destruction of property, it encourages the peaceful expression of views:

The United States champions freedom of expression. While we do not support the destruction of property, we believe that every person has the right to express their views peacefully  including those with which we do not agree.

The U.S. remains seriously concerned about the continued erosion of protections for human rights and fundamental freedoms in Hong Kong, including freedom of expression, freedom of association, and peaceful assembly, the State Department added.

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TRENTON - A state regulatory board has suspended the license of a Paulsboro doctor who admitted guilt to a prescription-drug offense.

The doctor, Anthony W. Villare, cannot practice medicine in New Jersey for a minimum of two years under the action by the state Board of Medical Examiners.

The suspension was reached through a June 6 consent order between Villare and the state board.

Among other points, it noted Villare's guilty plea in October 2021 to a federal charge of distribution of controlled substances.

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He was sentenced to two years on probation and was ordered to pay a $150,000 criminal penalty.

The order also noted Villare's medical license in Pennsylvania has been suspended.

Villare could not be reached for immediate comment on the consent order.

Among other conditions for future reinstatement, the order requires Villare to show "fitness, competence and capacity to active practice as a medical doctor."

He also must give "a full account of conduct" during his suspension period.

Villare was licensed to practice medicine and surgery in New Jersey in December 1991.

According to records in Camden federal court, Villare was accused of dispensing 30 tablets of Percocet, a prescription painkiller, "outside the usual course of professional practice and without a medical purpose."

He dispensed the pills in September 2020, records say.

In exchange for his plea, the U.S. Attorney's Office for New Jersey said it would not pursue charges for alleged offenses between January 2016 and February 2021.

Jim Walsh is a senior reporter with the Courier-Post, Burlington County Times and The Daily Journal. Email him at jwalsh@cpsj.com.

This article originally appeared on Cherry Hill Courier-Post: Dr. Anthony W. Villare and state board agree on suspension
Delphi murders suspect Richard Allen is trying to throw out key ballistics evidence from his case ahead of his trial for the brutal 2017 slayings of teenage best friends Libby German and Abby Williams.

In a motion filed in an Indiana court on Tuesday, Mr Allens attorneys asked a judge to rule certain evidence in the case inadmissible at trial.

The motion itself is sealed but online court records show that it relates to ballistics evidence.

The criminal affidavit, which was partly-redacted and released in November, previously revealed that the local man was finally tied to the February 2017 murders through a bullet found at the bloody crime scene.

Ballistics confirmed that an unspent .40 caliber round found close to the bodies of the teenage victims came from Mr Allens Sig Sauer Model P226.

The firearm  which he owned since 2011  was found during a search of his home last October and both he and his wife Kathy told police he was the only person with access to it, the documents state.

The bombshell document also revealed that, in Libbys cellphone footage, one of the victims mentions the word gun  suggesting that their attacker was armed with a firearm and was using it to coerce the victims.

In a police interview on 13 October, Mr Allen told investigators he had no explanation as to how the spent bullet ended up near the bodies of the two teenage victims, the document states.

The accused killer said he had not been on the property where the unspent round was found, that he did not know the property owner, and that he had no explanation as to why a round cycled through his firearm would be at that location, it says. The property owner  Ron Logan  was also previously tied to the case. He died in 2020.

Mr Allens attorneys previously questioned the analysis of the unspent bullet in December.

Richard Allen pictured in mugshot after arrest for Delphi murders (Indiana State Police)

While it is unclear whether this is the ballistics evidence in question and what argument his defence team is presenting for its exclusion, the judges ruling could play a key role in the strength of the prosecutions case.

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The new court filing comes ahead of Mr Allens next court appearance on Thursday for a suppression hearing in the case, where Judge Fran Gull will hear arguments about other evidence the accused killer is fighting to suppress.

The 50-year-old father to a daughter, who used to work in the local CVS in Delphi, is trying to quash evidence subpoenaed from both CVS and from the Westville Correctional Center where he has been held since his arrest.

The hearing had been set aside as a bail hearing but was converted to a suppression hearing earliler this month.

Mr Allen has been behind bars since his arrest in October  almost six years on from the brutal murders of Libby, 14, and Abby, 13, who went out one day together and never returned.

On 13 February 2017, the two best friends set off on a hike along the Monon High Bridge Trail in their hometown of Delphi.

During the walk, Libby posted a photo of her best friend on Snapchat as they walked along the Monon High Bridge.

Minutes later, Libby captured a video of a man  known as bridge guy  dressed in blue jeans, a blue jacket and a cap walking along the abandoned railroad bridge. In the footage, the man tells the two girls: Guys, down the hill.

Later that day, the teenagers were reported missing when they failed to return to a spot where a family member was picking them up.

The next day  Valentines Day 2017  their bodies were discovered in a wooded area less than half a mile off the trail along the side of Deer Creek. Their cause of death has never been released with a previously-released search warrant application only detailing that they were killed with some type of weapon and lost a lot of blood.

Libby German (left) and Abby Williams (right) pictured together (Facebook)

For more than five years, the girls devastated families waited for answers in the case.

Then, in late October 2022, Mr Allen  a local man who served the victims families in his job at the Delphi CVS store  was arrested and charged with their murders.

According to investigators, Mr Allen is the so-called bridge guy captured on camera by the victims.

The suspect forced the two victims down the hill and led them to the location where they were murdered, according to his probable cause affidavit.

As well as the ballistics evidence, Mr Allen was also tied to the killings after his vehicle was spotted parked close to the trail in an odd manner as if to conceal the license plate, the documents state.

Several witnesses also reported seeing a creepy man matching the description of bridge guy around the time of the murders while one person said they saw a muddy and bloody man leaving the trail around two hours after Libby and Abby were last seen alive. The witnesses did not see anyone other than bridge guy on the trail at the time, the affidavit reads.

The married father to a daughter had been on law enforcements radar back in 2017 after he admitted to being on the trail the day the girls were killed.

During a 2017 interview with police, Mr Allen confessed to being on the Monon High Bridge Trail that afternoon but denied any involvement in the murders and insisted he had never seen the two girls that day.

Libby German posted a Snapchat as the girls walked along the trail (Snapchat)

Despite placing himself at the scene of the crime at the time of the murders, he slipped through the net due to a clerical error.

The sudden arrest of the local man almost six years on from the murders marked a major break in the case.

But the investigation is far from over with officials saying that they believe Mr Allen may not be the sole person involved in the killings.

Prior to Mr Allens arrest, investigators had been searching for information about a catfishing account which was in contact with Libby on the day she was killed.

The man behind the account  Kegan Anthony Kline  was tied to the 2017 murders in December 2021 when investigators urged the public to come forward with information about a bogus online profile named @anthony_shots.

Kline, 28, confessed to using the fake profile to groom underage girls, get them to send him nude photos and their addresses, and try to get them to meet him in person.

In a 2020 police interview, a transcript of which has been seen by The Independent, Kline admitted that he had communicated with 14-year-old Libby on Instagram and Snapchat through the catfishing profile before she died.

The transcript revealed that he had exchanged photos with the teenage girl and that Libby had communicated with the fake profile on the very day that she and Abby were murdered.

On 25 February 2017 - less than two weeks after the two girls were brutally killed  police carried out a search of Klines home in Peru.

Kline has never been charged in connection to the murders.

However, he has been behind bars for the last two years on a string of child sexual abuse and child exploitation felonies.

In March, he pleaded guilty to all 25 counts against him.

He then fired his attorney and said he planned to withdraw his guilty plea  before walking this back again. He is awaiting sentencing in July.

Last month, he told The Murder Sheet podcast in a jailhouse interview that he has information about the murders but that police dont want to hear anything I have to say.
Gov. Ron DeSantis must know hes risking voter backlash over his reckless and irresponsible insistence on spending Florida taxpayers dollars to ferry migrants from other states around the country.

Why else would the state continue its seemingly endless delays over the release of public records on the migrant flights?

The latest round came Tuesday. DeSantis lawyers went to a Tallahassee appeals court to argue that the administrations failure to provide public records about the controversial Texas-to-Massachusetts flights was because of Hurricane Ian. Oh, and the governors office also was backed up with more than 150 records requests, the lawyers said.

Thats nonsense. If the state was normally quick to hand over public documents, that stitched-together argument of being both too busy and occupied by hurricane recovery might hold some sway. But this foot-dragging been going on for months. And the DeSantis administration has a long track record of trying to slow-roll records requests on other issues  notably, COVID.

We pick up the tab

The state was appealing a ruling in October by Leon County Circuit Judge J. Lee Marsh in a suit brought by the non-profit Florida Center for Government Accountability last year. The judge ruled that the state had improperly delayed release of some migrant flight documents, ordered the documents released and also concluded that the governors office redacted some documents without providing proper exemptions.

But the DeSantis administration never hesitates to use taxpayer dollars to defend its own bad decisions. This was no different. So back to court the case went, on appeal. When you have the open pocketbook of the taxpayers to pick up the costs, why not?

Many, including the Editorial Board, have characterized these flights as political stunts by a man who wants to be the Republican nominee for president. That remains a correct characterization. Floridas governor first hit on the idea of hauling migrants around the country last year, in that initial round of flights from the Texas border to Marthas Vineyard.

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Seeing the outrage about immigration that he had stoked in the GOP, he got the Legislature to earmark $12 million for more such flights, most recently when he ordered up charter flights to carry about three dozen mostly Venezuelan migrants from New Mexico to Sacramento.

That was a jab at Gavin Newsom, the California governor and potential Democratic presidential candidate, who responded by saying the flights might be grounds for kidnapping charges and tweeting that DeSantis is a small, pathetic man.

So this is about politics. This is about DeSantis presidential ambitions. And yet Florida taxpayers are the ones paying  for the flights and for the court appeals.

Kept under wraps

It has been a dirty business from the start. In addition to the obvious inhumanity of using migrants as political pawns, theres the ick factor of DeSantis public safety czar, Larry Keefe, using a private email address with the alias Clarice Starling (after the Jodie Foster character in the serial-killer movie Silence of the Lambs) to secretly communicate with Vertol Systems, his former client, the Destin vendor who won the state contract to operate the relocation program. Or that texts and emails from the governors chief of staff, James Uthmeier  records now being sought by the watchdog group  involved the use of an encrypted email application held on servers in Switzerland.

The public has the right to know how its money is being spent. But the DeSantis administration seems to be doing everything in its power to stop that from happening in the case of the migrant flights. We dont buy that the delays are related to a hurricane or too many public records requests, and neither should the appellate court.

The question is, what does the administration have to hide?
RALEIGH - Former state Commerce Secretary Jim Fain, who in the 2000s helped North Carolina bring in companies from the pharmaceutical, financial services and aviation sectors, has died at age 80.

Fain  the states primary economic recruiter during Democratic Gov. Mike Easleys eight years in office  died June 7 at a hospice center in Raleigh, his son, John Fain, said June 9. He had been in declining health over the past year, the family said.

Fain was a native of Hendersonville, where his family was owners of the Times-News newspaper, according to his obituary on a funeral home website. He received degrees from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. A burial service will be held on June 15 at Christ Episcopal Church in Raleigh. Fains wife, Peggy, died last year. In addition to his son, Fain is survived by a daughter, Catherine, and a brother.

Hendersonville native Jim Fain, a former state commerce secretary, died on June 7 in Raleigh.

A longtime First Union and Wachovia area bank executive, Fain first joined the state Commerce Department in 1999 as an assistant secretary in Gov. Jim Hunts administration. He was elevated to Easleys Cabinet in 2001 during one economic downturn and left as the 2008 Great Recession was ramping up and Easleys second term ended.

In between, the state attracted a host of new companies that helped counter the loss of manufacturing and textile jobs overseas. They included Merck in Durham; Honda Jet in Greensboro; and Credit Suisse and Fidelity Investments in the Raleigh-Durham area. During Easleys final year in office, the Global TransPark in Kinston finally landed a major tenant: aircraft component supplier Spirit AeroSystems.

Fain was very proud of that moment, John Fain said. His father later briefly became TransPark president and continued as an economic development consultant. He also helped found the North Carolina Coalition for Global Competitiveness in 2013.

Dan Gerlach, who was Easleys budget adviser, credited Fain for improving North Carolinas attractiveness to companies looking to build or expand through his efforts to overhaul the states chief financial incentives tool. The General Assembly passed legislation creating the Job Development Investment Grant program, which began in 2003 and remains in place today.

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Gerlach said Fain helped create JDIG, which closed North Carolinas disadvantages with economic incentives and remains a national model.

Fains tireless work and direct advocacy with companies ... made a real difference, Gerlach said.

This article originally appeared on Hendersonville Times-News: Hendersonville native, former Commerce Secretary Fain dies at 80
The grant from the U.S. Department of Defense was worth just over $2.9 million and Escambia was one of seven school districts in the country to receive it. The money was intended to fund additional foreign language classes and expanded areas of study at three of the district's high schools, four middle schools and seven elementary schools that have high military family enrollment.

The Escambia County School District received a multi-million dollar grant in 2021 to enhance cultural education and foreign language instruction in the classroom. Since then, nonprofit The Global Corner has been changing the way elementary school students see the world.

While teaching foreign language and culture has long been part of the curriculum at middle and high schools, this grant has allowed elementary school students to have experiences that allow them to relate to the people around them that may not look like them or have grown up like they did.

Before the funds run out, community leaders are hoping students and adults can learn to appreciate the cultural, professional and potential economic benefits of broadening their world view.

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Students watch a video and learn about a traditional Filipino dance as part of the Passport to the Philippines Program by The Global Corner.

According to Global Corner Founder Lee Hansen, the travel experience of students in Escambia County varies greatly, where some of have been all the way to Kenya, while others have never been to Pensacola Beach.

When The Global Corners in-school Passport Program commences in the school day, students move from station to station, stamping their passports, learning greetings, geography and cultural norms. Each year, they focus on a different country.

The grant also funds an optional two-to-three-week after school enrichment program for the young learners.

Hansen, a retired Naval officer who traveled the globe during her career, founded The Global Corner 15 years ago to introduce children of Northwest Florida to the languages, customs, and cultures of people around the world. Since, its founding the organization has provided 90,000 virtual adventures to K-5 students across Escambia and Santa Rosa counties.

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In this school year alone, over 78.6% of students who participated in The Global Corners after school program expressed they were more interested in learning about language and culture looking toward middle school.

Kingsfield Elementary School students practice using chopsticks during the Let's Visit Japan after school program run by The Global Corner.

The program has had a deeper impact than just getting children interested in learning about world languages. It has helped build a sense of belonging in students who are typically the minority, and empathy is developed in those that arent.

When we were teaching about China in one of the schools that we went into, there was a little boy who was from China, Hansen said. He was a very quiet, very shy little boy. That day, he was the one who knew all the answers. He was the star of the show. Everybody turned to him and looked to him for answers.

They finally realized  this kid wasn't stupid. He was in an environment where he didn't speak the language, Hansen continued. So it really gave not only him certainly a really good feeling, but it gave his classmates the understanding that, Holy cow, can you imagine if you had to go to school where nobody spoke English?' How difficult that would be.

Retired Navy Capt. Tim Kinsella, former base commander of Naval Air Station Pensacola, thinks the program has been a serious asset to Escambia County Public Schools as far as preparing future leaders in a diverse world. They key is starting the interest in other cultures early.

Here in the United States, only 20% of Americans consider themselves bilingual. And the vast majority of that 20% are immigrants. People who were born here and raised here, a very, very small minority of them are bilingual in any way, shape or form. The rest of the world is about 56%, Kinsella said. Why is it that we refuse to embrace foreign languages here in the United States? I think it is pretty obvious that we have everything that we need here in the United States, right? We don't need to go anywhere else. We don't need to involve ourselves in other cultures, because weve got everything we need right here, right? Wrong.

He learned this firsthand when working for NATO, where he had to understand other points of view and culture to negotiate in the business world.

I learned very, very quickly when I worked with NATO the value of understanding other cultures and the value of giving other cultures the respect of being interested in those cultures, Kinsella said. "If you don't understand other cultures, other points of views, you can never hope to have a meaningful relationship. You can never hope to negotiate in business.

Students locate the Philippines on a globe as part of the Passport to the Philippines Program by The Global Corner.

Hansen said that once the five-year grant expires, the expense will back on the schools and The Global Corner to raise the necessary funds for cultural programs. But in order to secure funding, people need to understand how significant the experiences can be down the road.

I was a little naive and thinking that we would be able to get enough grants and sponsorships and things. It was a little hard, I think, for businesses and individuals to understand the connection between children learning about language, learning about other cultures, and how they would become more well-rounded adults, Hansen said.

Global Corner instructor Silke Johnson said people underestimate how much the elementary school students are able to learn, remember and teach others.

Theyre like little sponges, and the earlier you get to them, the more you can actually inspire them to learn about other things that they might not have known, Johnson said. I think it's so important for them to understand we're a part of a bigger world.

This article originally appeared on Pensacola News Journal: Global Corner brings cultural education to Escambia elementary schools
After three hours of public comment and months of intense debate, the Hamtramck City Council voted unanimously Tuesday night to ban LGBTQ+ Pride flags from being displayed on all city properties.

Introduced by Mayor Pro Tem Mohammed Hassan, the resolution also prohibited the display and flying of flags with racist and political views. Before the vote, Hassan gave a fiery speech blasting critics of the resolution for not respecting the views of Hamtramck residents, quoting from Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address about how government should be of the people, by the people, for the people.

The clashes represented diverging views about the future of Hamtramck, whose population jumped 27% from 2010 to 2020, one of the biggest spikes among older cities in Michigan.

Hassan and other members of the council said the LGBTQ+ community and others are welcome in Hamtramck but that they need to respect religious freedom. Some proponents of the resolution said the Pride flag clashes with their faith. Several speakers from Dearborn who were leaders in protests last year against LGBTQ+ books spoke at the Hamtramck meeting, saying American soldiers sacrificed for the U.S. flag, not the Pride flag.

Hassan Aoun, of Dearborn, speaks during public comment at a city council meeting before a vote about banning the LGBTQ Pride flag on government buildings and city property, including other flags representing racial and political issues, at Hamtramck City Hall on Tuesday, June 13, 2023.

"You guys are the ones making problems," not us, Hassan said of opponents at the meeting. "Please don't threaten us. ... I'm the elected official. ... I'm working for the people, what the majority of the people like."

City Councilman Nayeem Choudhury said LGBTQ+ people in Hamtramck have equal access to all services, but should respect Muslim sensibilities.

"We want to respect the religious rights of our citizens," Choudhury said. "You guys are welcome. ... (but) why do you have to have the flag shown on government property to be represented? You're already represented. We already know who you are. ... By making this (about) bigotry ... it's making it like you want to hate us."

Hamtramck Mayor Amer Ghalib said: "We serve everybody equally with no discrimination, but without favoritism.

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"Those people who accused me of hating them, half of my boards and commissions are either LGBTQ, or supporters for LGBTQ," Ghalib added. "I never fired anybody who belong to the LGBTQ."

The council's move may block Hamtramck's Human Relations Commission Chair Russ Gordon from raising the LGBTQ+ flag on a city sidewalk next month, which he said earlier he was planning to do again like he did last year.

Mayor of Hamtramck Amer Ghalib speaks at the start of a city council meeting about banning the LGBTQ Pride flag from government buildings and city property, along with other flags representing racial and political issues, at Hamtramck City Hall on Tuesday, June 13, 2023.

LGBTQ+ people and their supporters spoke out strongly against the resolution, saying it would push them out of Hamtramck and reduce investment in the Detroit enclave known for its immigrant and artistic communities. Some noted that Muslim immigrants once faced discrimination when they immigrated to Hamtramck and should be more sensitive about discriminating against other groups. A majority of the public comments submitted by email and read by Hamtramck City Clerk Rana Faraj at the meeting opposed the resolution, calling it backwards and bigoted.

More: Hamtramck considers banning LGBTQ Pride flags on city property

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During the public comments, two women who opposed the Hamtramck resolution banning LGBTQ flags from city property, one wearing a clown nose, gave a sarcastic presentation, then kissed in front of the city council: pic.twitter.com/QFO4ws3i4H  Niraj Warikoo (@nwarikoo) June 14, 2023

At one point during the public comment session, a woman wearing a clown nose made sarcastic remarks about how Hamtramck should change its slogan to say the city "welcomes you if you're straight," and then kissed a woman standing next to her.

A woman kisses her partner after speaking during public comment before a vote about banning the LGBTQ Pride flag on government buildings and city property, in addition to other flags representing racial and political issues, during a city council meeting at Hamtramck City Hall on Tuesday, June 13, 2023.

Hamtramck has the highest percentage of immigrants among cities in Michigan and is the only city in the U.S. with an all-Muslim city council and mayor. Packed with bars and arts centers, the city also has attracted LGBTQ+ people and others looking for an alternative and affordable lifestyle.

"The LGBTQ community is the life blood of our organization," Darren Shelton, executive director of Planet Ant Theatre in Hamtramck, said at the meeting. "I don't think sexuality is a political issue."

The Tuesday vote was the latest in an ongoing debate stretching back 15 years over LGBTQ+ rights in Hamtramck. In 2008, conservative Christians launched an effort to defeat a ballot proposal in Hamtramck that would have protected gay rights, reaching out to the city's growing Muslim community to hold rallies and defeat the proposal backed by LGBTQ+ advocates. In 2021, then-Mayor Karen Majewski flew the Pride flag outside City Hall, drawing criticism and prompting challenger Amer Ghalib to make it a campaign issue. Ghalib defeated her and on Tuesday spoke out in favor of Hassan's resolution.

People overflow into a hallway to listen to public comment before a vote about banning the LGBTQ Pride flag on government buildings and city property, including other flags representing racial and political issues, during a city council meeting at Hamtramck City Hall on Tuesday, June 13, 2023.

More: LGBTQ and faith communities struggle for unity in Dearborn, Hamtramck

Three City Council seats are up for election this year in Hamtramck, where about half of the city's population is either of Yemeni or Bangladeshi descent. LGBTQ+ advocates have also clashed over the past year with conservative Christians across Michigan. Some of the Hamtramck council members expressed concern that progressives are singling out their city over the LGBTQ+ flag issue only now, but not in the past, and not in other cities in metro Detroit.

The chambers and hallways were packed for the long council meeting. Dearborn residents active with the Republican Party spoke near the beginning. Two religious leaders in the Muslim community sat in the front.

A Hamtramck imam who emigrated from Bangladesh spoke in favor of the resolution, saying that all religions oppose certain ideologies.

"None of the religions support them," he said. "Allah created us man and woman, which is natural."

At times, Hamtramck Police Chief Anne Moise had to quiet down the crowd, but there was no violence or arrests during the meeting. Hassan Aoun, of Dearborn, who was a key leader in shutting down a Dearborn Schools board meeting last year, sat in the crowd and was outspoken. He and others are among a small but growing number of Muslims across the U.S. pushing back against LGBTQ+ content. Earlier this month, Muslims held a protest against a Maryland school district, garnering national attention.

"Pride month, don't put it down our throats," Aoun said. "You can be gay by yourself. ... Do not put (the Pride flag) on city property."

Another speaker, Hassan, gave his remarks in Arabic, which were translated by Ghalib.

"Flying ... the LGBT flag is something unacceptable," Ghalib said, translating Hassan's words into English. "And it's odd, he said, to humanity and to the nature of people. And he thinks it will destroy the new generations."

The council's vote Tuesday is the latest effort that has stirred controversy. Earlier this year, members voted to allow animal sacrifices during the Eid holiday.

People overflow into a hallway to listen to public comment before a vote about banning the LGBTQ Pride flag on government buildings and city property, including other flags representing racial and political issues, during a city council meeting at Hamtramck City Hall on Tuesday, June 13, 2023.

Hassan and Ghalib said the resolution was supported by a previous resolution passed a decade ago allowing various international flags to be raised in Hamtramck. During Tuesday's meeting, there was some discussion about eliminating those as well, and only raising the American flag.

State Sen. Stephanie Chang, D-Detroit, whose district includes Hamtramck, released a statement Wednesday expressing support for LGBTQ+ people.

To Hamtramck LGBTQ+ community members and their families  please know that you have many allies throughout the city and state, and that includes me as your state senator," Chang said. "You are loved, you are welcome, and you are valued. Hamtramck has had a long history of being a place of hope and opportunity for people of all backgrounds."

Oakland County Executive David Coulter posted a tweet with a link to a story about the council's vote that said: "You're welcome here."

Hayley Cain, of Hamtramck, said the resolution "sends a clear message of discrimination."

Cain said she moved from California to Hamtramck because "I knew it was a diverse community," but now, "I'm questioning whether it is. ... I don't want to live in a place like this.

"The Pride flag represents making space for all humans on all the spectrums and this is where we're going as a human species," she said. "You can't stop that."

Free Press photographer Sarahbeth Maney contributed to this report.

Contact Niraj Warikoo: nwarikoo@freepress.com, Facebook.com/nwarikoo, or Twitter @nwarikoo.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Hamtramck City Council bans LGBTQ Pride flags from city property
FORT JOHNSON - Linda Rhodes of Pineville was overwhelmed with honor to witness the re-designation of Fort Polk to Fort Johnson in a ceremony Tuesday at the U.S. Army installation in Vernon Parish. The base was renamed for Sgt. William Henry Johnson, a Black World War I soldier and the first hero the Great War. He is finally getting a befitting recognition for service to his country that a hero like him should have gotten in life.

To have a base where soldiers come to train to protect the U.S. named after her grandfather is a big honor and more than they had ever imagined, said Tara Johnson of Toledo, Ohio.

Its growth," she said. "Its growth within our services. Its growth within our community, because now we are focusing on people, being less judgmental, regardless of the color of their skin. It is focusing on service to our country. Nothing else.

Taylor Gamlin of Detroit, Michigan, said to have such a historical contribution noted and celebrated with the renaming of the base is such an honor for her aunt, Tara Johnson, and the whole family.

The U.S. Army base in Vernon Parish is home to the Joint Readiness Training Center and the 3rd Brigade Combat Team of the 10th Mountain Division. The Naming Commission, a federal commission led by retired Adm. Michelle Howard, recommended name changes for nine military bases named for Confederates. Fort Polk was named for Confederate Gen. Leonidas Polk, the first Episcopal Bishop of the Diocese of Louisiana. The re-designation of military installations, streets and ships is underway and must be completed by the end of the year.

Vietnam War veteran Raymond Flowers of Bastrop heard about the re-designation but didnt attend the ceremony. He never thought the U.S. military would change the name of a military base to honor a Black serviceman.

Flowers went through basic training at Fort Polk in 1962. Due to the atmosphere at the time, he said it he probably didnt know that the base was named for a Confederate, so it didnt bother him that the base where he trained was named for one.

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I never thought of the former base name, because to me its not the name of the base in particular," said Retired Army Col. Anthony King, who is the chief financial officer for the base. "Its the people that run the base, that operate it. So here at the Joint Readiness Training Center, now Fort Johnson, its all about the people currently here and the community coming as one to train soldiers.

Barbara Dashiell-Williams of Alexandria is a Navy veteran who comes from a family with a legacy of military service. Her father, the late Charles Smith, was a World War II veteran. She is one of four of his seven children who served in the military.

"I'm so elated today," she said. "If my dad were here, he would be here today with a big smile on his face giving a big salute. This means everything for the African-Americans involved in World War I, World War II and all the other wars. The recognition is finally here."

Personally, I believe this is a significant step forward in recognition and healing especially for the African American community, said Daenel Vaughn-Tucker, Central Louisiana Technical Community College Director of Library Services at the main campus in Alexandria, who is an Army veteran.

Johnson's history

An article about Johnson listed on the U.S. Department of Defense website, Medal of Honor Monday: Army Sgt. Henry Johnson, states that in May 1918, Johnson fought off German soldiers attacking his position near a bridge over the Aisne River at Bois d'Hauzy in France. He suffered 21 wounds in the attack that left another soldier, Pvt. Needham Roberts, severely injured. Johnson threw grenades until he ran out and fired all the ammunition he had. When he ran out of ammunition, he charged the Germans swinging his rifle like a club. Using a bolo knife, he also fought off two Germans who tried to carry away Roberts.

Johnson became known as Black Death" when fighting in battles. He and Roberts were the first American soldiers to be awarded the French Croix de Guerre avec, Palme, Frances highest award for valor. He was the first American hero of World War I.

Fort Polk was officially renamed Fort Johnson ceremony held Tuesday. The U.S. Army base was named for Sgt. William Henry Johnson, a Black World War I soldier and the first hero the Great War.

When Johnson returned to the states, he was paraded around New York City. His story motivated many Black people to support the war effort.

But despite the accolades, Sgt. William Henry Johnson was never recognized as an American veteran," said Brig. Gen. David W. Gardner, commanding general of the Joint Readiness Training Center and Fort Polk. "He never received the care for his wounds or any veterans benefits such as those we take for granted today.

Johnson could not find work because he was badly injured during the war. He died destitute in 1929. He was buried with military honors in Arlington National Cemetery.

Black soldiers have historically sacrificed so much, including their pride, dignity and honor, said Rhodes, adding that despite segregation and discrimination, Black troops served with great distinction.

In 1996, Johnson was posthumously awarded the Purple Heart and in 2002, the Distinguished Service Cross, upgraded in 2015 to the Medal of Honor. The medal is on loan to Fort Johnson by the New York State Military Museum. It will be included in a historical exhibit about Johnson until August.

Sgt. William Henry Johnson embodied the warrior spirit, and we are deeply honored to bear his name at the Home of Heroes, Gardner said.

"Sgt. Johnsons story is one that should be shared, as it is a universal story of strength, courage, and resilience. And this is a legacy that all who train at Fort Johnson will carry with them," said Vaughn-Tucker.

In 1996, Johnson was posthumously awarded the Purple Heart and in 2002, the Distinguished Service Cross, upgraded in 2015 to the Medal of Honor. The medal is on loan to Fort Johnson by the New York State Military Museum. It will be included in a historical exhibit about Johnson until August.

Jimmy Sawtelle, Chancellor of Central Louisiana Technical Community College, attended the ceremony with Vaughn-Tucker.

The story of Sgt. Henry Johnsons heroic bravery in World War I is beyond inspirational," Sawtelle said. "CLTCC is honored to partner with Fort Johnson, having trained hundreds of transitioning soldiers in partnership with their Soldier for Life program and partnering with companies such as Linde and our sister college SOWELA Technical Community College.

Rhodes said President Abraham Lincoln believed in what Black soldiers could achieve despite popular opinion to the contrary during the Civil War.

What makes me so sad is that after the war, they didn't receive what was promised to them," she said. "Their freedom. Military benefits. Medals of honor for their bravery.

Why bases were named for Confederates

In order to get support for World War I in the South, some U.S. Army base were named after Confederate officers as a sign of reconciliation between the North and the South, according to a Department of Defense article DOD Begins Implementing Naming Commission Recommendations.

It was also the height of the Jim Crow Laws in the South, so there was no consideration for the feelings of African Americans who had to serve at bases named after men who fought to defend slavery, the article goes on to state.

Camp Beauregard re-designation

Camp Beauregard in Pineville will be re-designated as the Louisiana National Guard Training Center Pineville later this year, according to a press release issued by the Louisiana National Guard.

Six names were provided to the adjutant general, Maj. Gen. Keith Waddell, for consideration after the Camp Beauregard re-designation committee completed their selections.

Waddell selected the name with the top number of votes from the committee. He stated that Louisiana National Guard Training Center Pineville reflected the values of the LANG, the state of Louisiana and the United States of America.

A re-designation ceremony will be determined in this fall.

This article originally appeared on Alexandria Town Talk: Fort Polk renamed Fort Johnson; honors sacrifice of Black World War I hero
Key Insights

Using the 2 Stage Free Cash Flow to Equity, Kuala Lumpur Kepong Berhad fair value estimate is RM17.40

Kuala Lumpur Kepong Berhad is estimated to be 26% overvalued based on current share price of RM21.90

Analyst price target for KLK is RM23.73, which is 36% above our fair value estimate

How far off is Kuala Lumpur Kepong Berhad (KLSE:KLK) from its intrinsic value? Using the most recent financial data, we'll take a look at whether the stock is fairly priced by projecting its future cash flows and then discounting them to today's value. The Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) model is the tool we will apply to do this. Believe it or not, it's not too difficult to follow, as you'll see from our example!

Companies can be valued in a lot of ways, so we would point out that a DCF is not perfect for every situation. Anyone interested in learning a bit more about intrinsic value should have a read of the Simply Wall St analysis model.

View our latest analysis for Kuala Lumpur Kepong Berhad

Is Kuala Lumpur Kepong Berhad Fairly Valued?

We're using the 2-stage growth model, which simply means we take in account two stages of company's growth. In the initial period the company may have a higher growth rate and the second stage is usually assumed to have a stable growth rate. In the first stage we need to estimate the cash flows to the business over the next ten years. Where possible we use analyst estimates, but when these aren't available we extrapolate the previous free cash flow (FCF) from the last estimate or reported value. We assume companies with shrinking free cash flow will slow their rate of shrinkage, and that companies with growing free cash flow will see their growth rate slow, over this period. We do this to reflect that growth tends to slow more in the early years than it does in later years.

A DCF is all about the idea that a dollar in the future is less valuable than a dollar today, and so the sum of these future cash flows is then discounted to today's value:

10-year free cash flow (FCF) estimate

2023 2024 2025 2026 2027 2028 2029 2030 2031 2032 Levered FCF (MYR, Millions) RM2.23b RM1.51b RM1.59b RM1.47b RM1.41b RM1.39b RM1.39b RM1.40b RM1.42b RM1.46b Growth Rate Estimate Source Analyst x2 Analyst x5 Analyst x5 Est @ -7.32% Est @ -4.06% Est @ -1.77% Est @ -0.17% Est @ 0.95% Est @ 1.74% Est @ 2.29% Present Value (MYR, Millions) Discounted @ 10.0% RM2.0k RM1.2k RM1.2k RM1.0k RM879 RM785 RM712 RM654 RM605 RM563

("Est" = FCF growth rate estimated by Simply Wall St)

Present Value of 10-year Cash Flow (PVCF) = RM9.7b

The second stage is also known as Terminal Value, this is the business's cash flow after the first stage. The Gordon Growth formula is used to calculate Terminal Value at a future annual growth rate equal to the 5-year average of the 10-year government bond yield of 3.6%. We discount the terminal cash flows to today's value at a cost of equity of 10.0%.

Terminal Value (TV)= FCF 2032  (1 + g)  (r  g) = RM1.5b (1 + 3.6%)  (10.0% 3.6%) = RM24b

Present Value of Terminal Value (PVTV)= TV / (1 + r)10= RM24b ( 1 + 10.0%)10= RM9.1b

The total value is the sum of cash flows for the next ten years plus the discounted terminal value, which results in the Total Equity Value, which in this case is RM19b. In the final step we divide the equity value by the number of shares outstanding. Relative to the current share price of RM21.9, the company appears slightly overvalued at the time of writing. Valuations are imprecise instruments though, rather like a telescope - move a few degrees and end up in a different galaxy. Do keep this in mind.

dcf

Important Assumptions

The calculation above is very dependent on two assumptions. The first is the discount rate and the other is the cash flows. If you don't agree with these result, have a go at the calculation yourself and play with the assumptions. The DCF also does not consider the possible cyclicality of an industry, or a company's future capital requirements, so it does not give a full picture of a company's potential performance. Given that we are looking at Kuala Lumpur Kepong Berhad as potential shareholders, the cost of equity is used as the discount rate, rather than the cost of capital (or weighted average cost of capital, WACC) which accounts for debt. In this calculation we've used 10.0%, which is based on a levered beta of 0.800. Beta is a measure of a stock's volatility, compared to the market as a whole. We get our beta from the industry average beta of globally comparable companies, with an imposed limit between 0.8 and 2.0, which is a reasonable range for a stable business.

SWOT Analysis for Kuala Lumpur Kepong Berhad

Strength

Debt is well covered by earnings and cashflows.

Dividends are covered by earnings and cash flows.

Weakness

Earnings declined over the past year.

Dividend is low compared to the top 25% of dividend payers in the Food market.

Opportunity

Good value based on P/E ratio compared to estimated Fair P/E ratio.

Threat

Annual earnings are forecast to decline for the next 3 years.

Next Steps:

Whilst important, the DCF calculation ideally won't be the sole piece of analysis you scrutinize for a company. DCF models are not the be-all and end-all of investment valuation. Instead the best use for a DCF model is to test certain assumptions and theories to see if they would lead to the company being undervalued or overvalued. If a company grows at a different rate, or if its cost of equity or risk free rate changes sharply, the output can look very different. Why is the intrinsic value lower than the current share price? For Kuala Lumpur Kepong Berhad, we've compiled three pertinent elements you should consider:

Risks: Every company has them, and we've spotted 4 warning signs for Kuala Lumpur Kepong Berhad (of which 1 is a bit concerning!) you should know about. Future Earnings: How does KLK's growth rate compare to its peers and the wider market? Dig deeper into the analyst consensus number for the upcoming years by interacting with our free analyst growth expectation chart. Other High Quality Alternatives: Do you like a good all-rounder? Explore our interactive list of high quality stocks to get an idea of what else is out there you may be missing!

PS. The Simply Wall St app conducts a discounted cash flow valuation for every stock on the KLSE every day. If you want to find the calculation for other stocks just search here.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.



This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.

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Theres a new twist in the saga of the Colony Apartments and the city of Columbias attempt to hold its owners accountable for flagrant violations that resulted in the mass evacuation of hundreds of apartment units days after Christmas.

A manager for the property who was fined 83 times for violations at the apartments is alleging that the city has not lawfully communicated about the violations and that it has misrepresented her involvement with the apartments. Now, shes asking a jury to dismiss the charges if she cant get a jury trial by July.

The Monroe Group, a Denver-based property management company, operates Columbias Colony Apartments at 3545 West Beltline Blvd. in addition to more than 80 properties nationwide. After residents at the Colony Apartments said they went without heat or running water for days in late December, city officials intervened, evacuating the property. Evacuated residents were sent to hotels, where some stayed for weeks.

The city spent several days in late December inspecting the units at Colony Apartments and found that in addition to no units having running water or working heat, 144 of 300 units had additional problems. In at least 10 units, serious violations including gas leaks and the presence of carbon monoxide were reported. Eighty-three fire code violations were reported.

Ebony Nelson, the district manager for The Monroe Group, was the person held responsible for those violations.

Nelson currently has 83 open cases with the Columbia Municipal Court, each for a different code violation identified by city inspectors after the Colony Apartments were evacuated. Each violation comes with a $500 fine or 30 days in jail, making Nelsons penalty more than $41,000 or potentially six years in jail if shes held liable, according to a motion filed Tuesday on Nelsons behalf by Columbia attorney Chris Kenney.

Nelson, who lives in North Carolina, came to Columbia Dec. 29, two days after residents were evacuated. Nelson helped stabilize the situation, helping coordinate transportation, meals, gift cards and hotel vouchers for the displaced tenants, the motion says.

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The motion also claims that the city has not provided documents regarding the Colony Apartments situation or the code violations. The motion asks for that document discovery and a speedy trial by June or July so she can clear her name.

Shes entitled to both along with an apology from a city government that has personally targeted her for violations she had no role in causing, the motion adds.

If the city cannot provide the documents Nelson is asking for in time for her to have a trial by July, all charges should be dismissed, the motion adds.

In a separate action against the Colony Apartments, the city is suing the Monroe Group and asking a judge to force the company to pay $52,129.10 to cover the costs of evacuating hundreds of residents and the costs for repairs at the apartments.

Those costs include more than $28,000 for Columbia police personnel, which includes both uniformed officers and code enforcement officers; $20,818 for Columbia-Richland Fire Department personnel; $1,654 for meals for the evacuated residents; $971 for the usage of the police departments mobile command bus; $394 for bus rentals to transport the evacuated residents; and $77 for Parks and Recreation personnel time.

While the Monroe Group is clearly the named party in the citys suit against the company, Nelson is the only person whose name is on the code citations, which carry a misdemeanor criminal charge.
The full Senate on Tuesday approved formation of Rhode Islands first Cannabis Control Commission, a three-member body that will regulate the states medical and fledgling recreational marijuana markets moving forward.

The Senate gave unanimous consent to all three of Gov. Dan McKees nominees: Kimberly Ahern, who will serve as commission chairwoman, Robert Jacquard and Layi Oduyingbo.

Judiciary Committee Chairwoman Dawn Euer praised all three nominees for their devotion to public service and their legal skills, which she said would serve them well in getting this "critical" commission off the ground.

And Senate President Dominick J. Ruggerio commended McKee for making three "great appointments."

All three are lawyers. Ahern is McKees current deputy chief of staff who also worked for former Gov. Gina Raimondo and in the Attorney Generals office. Jacquard and Oduyingbo are in private law practice.

Jacquard addresses lobbying position and potential conflict

Jacquard, a former Cranston police officer and long-time legislator, has also been a State House lobbyist since January 2022. He told members of the Senate Judiciary Committee last week that, if confirmed as a commission member, he would abstain from any matters involving one of his former clients, the Portsmouth-based Greenleaf marijuana dispensary.

Jacquard told The Journal prior to the Senates vote Tuesday that he wasnt worried his continued lobbying work would pose any conflicts of interest.

I was in the General Assembly for 28 years. I think I did a good job of watching out for any potential conflict and, of course, Im always happy to receive training from the Ethics Commission. So, I think Im perfectly capable of avoiding any conflicts and I certainly would do so.

A marijuana plant.

Why RI's Cannabis Control Commission is so crucial

The formation of the commission cant come soon enough for many local marijuana growers and retailers facing intense competition from Massachusetts pot stores amid what they say was McKees year-long delay in making his nominations to the commission.

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The law legalizing recreational use marijuana last year gave McKee 40 days to name his nominees. McKee took 12 months. His office said they were conducting background checks.

The states 60 or so licensed cultivators are clamoring for the commission to approve more retail marijuana stores as soon as possible to expand their markets.

And several of the states seven operating dispensaries want the commission to immediately lift the ban on advertising so they can attract those Rhode Island customers.

Massachusetts stores dont have to abide by the states advertising ban, so they have been luring customers over the line with highway billboards.

More on RI retail pot: RI's first pot co-op hopes to light the way toward social equity for cannabis businesses

But while dispensaries and even state business regulators have said it would be the newly formed cannabis commission that would tackle writing regulations that lifted the advertising ban, Jacquard said Tuesday that the question really should be before lawmakers.

The advertising ban was originally prohibited by the General Assembly, so only the General Assembly can remove that prohibition, he said.

He referred to a bill which passed the full House recently that would give state business regulators the power now to write regulations lifting that ban. The legislation was held for further study by the Senate Judiciary Committee on June 6. But Jacquard predicted it would be revived in a couple of days.

This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Commission finally formed to regulate legal pot in Rhode Island
Miami Mayor Francis Suarez filed paperwork Wednesday to run for president, joining the crowded pool of Republicans vying for the White House in 2024.

Suarez is set to give a speech on Thursday in California, during which he is expected to formally announce his candidacy.

In May, Suarez said that he was strongly considering running for president. The mayor is expected to have an uphill 2024 campaign, going up in the primary against, among others, two Republican giants and fellow Floridians: Gov. Ron DeSantis and indicted former President Donald Trump.

Suarez, the son of Miamis first Cuban American mayor, was elected twice for the same office. His entrance into the presidential race makes him the first Hispanic candidate seeking the nomination for either party this cycle.

On Wednesday, a super PAC supporting Suarez released a two-minute video saying that when it comes to addressing crime, conservative Mayor Francis Suarez chose a better path for Miami compared to Democratic mayors in major cities. The video, created by SOS America, features far-right former Fox News host Tucker Carlson praising Suarez for what he said were decreasing crime rates in Miami.

The mayor has distanced himself from both Trump and DeSantis. Suarez claims he voted for then-Democratic gubernatorial candidate Andrew Gillum in 2018 before eventually supporting DeSantis in 2022. But last month, Suarez said that the governors feud with Disney over Floridas Dont Say Gay lawappears to be a personal vendetta by DeSantis that has potentially cost the state thousands of jobs.

The mayor has previously said that he did not vote for Trump in both the 2016 and 2020 elections. Suarez faced heat from Trump supporters on Tuesday while appearing outside the Miami courthouse, where the former president pleaded not guilty to 37 federal counts related to his possession of classified documents after leaving the White House.

Weve got a deep state corrupt mayor! a Trump supporter yelled at Suarez as the mayor approached the courthouse. Weve got a deep state swamp monster! Weve got a swamp monster, folks! Weve got a big swamp monster! Swamps getting rounded up, baby! Times coming, baby! The swamps getting taken down, and youre getting taken down, brother.

Related...
AD23 formation NATO

The largest air combat exercise in NATOs history, Air Defender 2023 (AD23), officially got underway yesterday. Bringing together 25 nations and NATO, the exercise features a strong U.S. military presence, with the U.S. Air National Guard (ANG) providing nearly half of the aircraft involved. AD23, which seeks to test the "joint responsiveness of... allied air forces in a crisis situation," the Bundeswehr indicates, comes as Russias all-out war with Ukraine has left the issue of European security of paramount importance to the U.S. and allies.

AD23 is scheduled to take place between June 12-23. Germany, which has been largely responsible for organizing the event, has planned AD23 since 2018. In all, almost 10,000 personnel and more than 250 aircraft from across the participating countries  including Germany, the U.S., the U.K., France, and Japan  are involved.

https://twitter.com/Team_Luftwaffe/status/1668279755198668802?s=20

The more than 250 allied aircraft of various kinds involved in AD23  including various fighters, transports and tankers  are stationed at six locations across Germany, with the air exercises being carried out mainly over three areas of airspace connected to Schleswig/Hohn, Wunstorf and Lechfeld. Daily missions with round trips to forward operating locations will take place in eastern Europe, as well, according to the Bundeswehr.

Aircraft from partner nations will be stationed at the locations in Wunstorf, Schleswig/Hohn, Geilenkirchen, Spangdahlem, Lechfeld and Neuburg. Bundeswehr/Marco Parge

Training airspaces over Germany and eastern Europe. Bundeswehr/Marco Parge

Upwards of 60 aircraft from Germany are taking part in the exercise, while the largest cohort of aircraft (around 100) comes from the U.S. The ANG has sent the majority of those 100 aircraft to Germany, alongside approximately 2,600 airmen from 42 states. ANG units began arriving in Germany earlier in June for AD23.

https://twitter.com/USNationalGuard/status/1668287051685404677?s=20

A U.S. Air Force A-10 Thunderbolt II aircraft assigned to the 127th Wing, Michigan National Guard, fly in formation behind a KC-135 Stratotanker assigned to the 128th Air Refueling Wing, Wisconsin National Guard, during the air bridge on the way to exercise Air Defender 2023 (AD23), June 5, 2023. U.S. Air National Guard photo by Master Sgt. Lauren Kmiec

As we highlighted in our preview article on the preparations for AD23, the overall U.S. Air Force presence in Germany is significant:

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Air Defender 23 strategically unites the United States and Germany, Lt. Gen. Michael A. Loh, director of the ANG, said during a press conference at the German Embassy in Washington back in April. [The exercise] tests not only our interoperability to work together, but it also tests our ability to rapidly deploy and rapidly employ [coalition air power].

Image via RAF

With the exercise kicking off yesterday, various training missions began involving aircraft from the different participating nations. F/A-18 Hornets of the Finnish Air Force began training missions with Luftwaffe Typhoons, for example. Finland, which only recently joined NATO on April 4, has deployed four of those aircraft for AD23.

https://twitter.com/FinnishAirForce/status/1668274479892422656

As we also noted in our preview feature on AD23, a variety of simulated training missions will be carried out during the eleven-day exercise, including combined air assaults in the face of dense surface-to-air missile or electronic warfare threats. Offensive and defensive counter-air operations will also be a centerpiece as part of this training.

13 June 2023, North Rhine-Westphalia, Norvenich: German Air Force Eurofighter fighter jets taxi to the runway at the Oswald Boelcke Barracks air base as part of the "Air Defender 2023" military exercise. Photo by David Young/picture alliance via Getty Images

Of course, it should be mentioned that AD23 will also provide U.S. forces and allies with opportunities to practice interoperability beyond training in the air. Other sorts of exercises, including exploring different refueling methods, are also being performed. Yesterday, for example, two USAF B-1B Lancers landed at Mihail Kogalniceanu Air Base, Romania, for hot-pit refueling. Hot-pit refueling allows aircraft to land and refuel without stopping their engines, enabling faster regeneration times and better chances of keeping the aircraft in flyable status.

https://twitter.com/US_EUCOM/status/1668594456382042118?s=20

A U.S. B-1B Lancer from the 7th Bomb Wing, Dyess Air Force Base, Texas, at Mihail Kogalniceanu Air Base, Romania, June 12, 2023. U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Allison Payne

U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Allison Payne

With AD23 ongoing until June 23, close cooperation between the Luftwaffe, air traffic control, Eurocontrol, as well as airlines and airport operators has been maintained to avoid flight issues for commercial travel. According to the Bundeswehr, the three areas that are being used for AD23 are only being utilized for up to four hours per day, and at different times. "I hope that, if all these measures are effective, there will be no flight cancellations," Ingo Gerhartz, a lieutenant general in the German Air Force has said, according to Deutsche Welle.

Image via RAF

Alongside the aim of optimizing and expanding the cooperation between the participating nations, the Bundeswehr notes, AD23 is modeled after a NATO Article 5 assistance scenario. Article 5, which is at the heart of the North Atlantic Treaty signed in 1949, stipulates that if a NATO ally is attacked, all members of the alliance will consider the act as a collective attack on the alliance. Exercises based on an Article 5 assistance scenario seek to replicate a fight [involving NATO partners] against hybrid occupation forces from a fictitious opponent, NATO indicates.

The exercise is a signal  a signal above all to us, a signal to us, the NATO countries, but also to our population that we are in a position to react very quickly ... that we would be able to defend the alliance in case of attack, Lt. Gen. Ingo Gerhartz, Germanys air force chief who is overseeing AD23, told ZDF television as The Associated Press reports.

https://twitter.com/GermanyNATO/status/1668662035532460045?s=20

While AD23 does not aim to officially rehearse scenarios involving specific opponents, the initial planning was seemingly influenced by Russias annexation of Crimea in 2014. Speaking on the impetus for the exercise, Lt. Gen. Gerhartz (who also initially proposed the exercise) indicates that the trigger for me was the capture, the annexation of Crimea, the New York Times reports.

In addition, speaking to reporters last week on AD23, Amy Gutmann, the U.S. ambassador to Germany, said, I would be pretty surprised if any world leader was not taking note of what this shows, in terms of the spirit of this alliance, which means the strength of this alliance. That includes Mr. Putin, the Times notes.

Image via Luftwaffe

Other figures within the German military have taken a different stance, perhaps in a bid to prevent provoking additional tensions with Russia. As Lieutenant General Gunter Katz, the commanding general of the Bundeswehr Air Force Command, indicates, "the decision [to start planning for AD23] was made in 2018 and actually has nothing to do with the Russia-Ukraine war."

U.S. Army Lt. Col. John Van Aken, front right, accompanies German air force Brig. Gen. Gunter Katz on a walking tour around the Afghan National Defense University (ANDU) in Kabul, Afghanistan, May 7, 2013. U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Dustin Payne/Released

More broadly, NATO has maintained a heightened force posture since Russias all-out invasion of Ukraine began in February 2022. This includes holding established recurring exercises, such as Steadfast Noon, as well as conducting various inter-allied naval drills, in Europe. Nearly constant deployments of U.S. aircraft to Europe and Eastern Europe, in particular, have occurred since the invasion of Crimea. These continue today and feature drills with local air arms.

That Russias all-out war with Ukraine has spurred greater interoperability between European air forces more specifically has been evidenced of late by the creation of the Nordic air defense alliance in March. Involving Denmark, Finland, Norway, as well as Sweden  the former three countries being NATO members and all four of which are participating in AD23  the air defense alliance aims to develop a Nordic concept for joint air operations based on already-known NATO methodology. As we reported at the time, those countries have upwards of 300 fighter jets between them as well as training, transport and surveillance fixed-wing aircraft and helicopters. They also have readily avaliable surface-to-air missile capabilities.

With that said, much like massive ground combat-oriented exercises of the recent past, AD23's massive scope signals NATOs deep commitment to defending its allies from external aggression in the midst of Russia's war in Ukraine.

Contact the author: oliver@thewarzone.com
Investigators say speeding was likely a factor in a Sunday afternoon crash on Highway 22 about five miles east of Idanha that killed a Salem man.

Oregon State Police said Alberto Avila-Perez, 41, was driving west in a Honda Civic at about 3:51 p.m. when he lost control, left the road and hit a boulder.

The Honda flipped over, crossed the center lane and hit an oncoming trailer being towed by a Hyundai and then crashed head-on into a Subaru Forester.

Avila-Perez was pronounced dead at the scene. A passenger was transported to the hospital with non-life threatening injuries. The other drivers were not injured.

Traffic on Highway 22 was impacted for about four hours due to the crash.

Bill Poehler covers Marion and Polk County for the Statesman Journal. Contact him at bpoehler@StatesmanJournal.com

This article originally appeared on Salem Statesman Journal: Police say speed likely contributed to fatal Highway 22 crash
Rick Warren's herculean efforts came to naught.

Despite the best-selling author and evangelist's video series, open letter, media interviews and social media blitz, disagreement over the scriptural compatibility of female pastors ultimately drove a final wedge between the Southern Baptist Convention and the megachurch that Warren founded in 1980.

Warren learned on Wednesday that he was unsuccessful in persuading Southern Baptists to overturn a decision by the denomination's credentials committee and Executive Committee to "disfellowship" Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, California, because the house of worship has women serving as pastors.

More than 12,000 Southern Baptist delegates, called messengers, attended the faith group's annual meeting in New Orleans, and a majority voted to uphold the decision to oust both Saddleback and Fern Creek Baptist in Louisville, Kentucky, over the issue of female pastors, Messengers voted overwhelmingly  by 88%  to uphold the ouster of Saddleback from "friendly cooperation" with the denomination, but not before hearing passionate speeches from Warren and Fern Creek's pastor Linda Barnes Popham.

Previously: As Southern Baptists meet, will 'America's pastor' Rick Warren change minds on female pastors?

"Why should this one issue cancel our fellowship?" Warren said.

"No one is asking any Southern Baptists to change their theology. I'm not asking you to agree with my church. I am asking you to act like a Southern Baptist, who have historically agreed to disagree on dozens of doctrines in order to share a common mission."

Albert Mohler, president of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, gave rebuttals to the Saddleback and Fern Creek appeals. He said the determination that employing female pastors means a church is not in "friendly cooperation" with the Southern Baptist Convention is a "statement without rancor and without personal attack."

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"It is an issue of biblical authority," he told those gathered.

The Rev. Blake Gideon, senior pastor of First Baptist Church of Edmond, said the decision regarding Saddleback wasn't cause for celebration.

"I think that the convention did the right thing, but it's never a happy occasion when you experience a divorce, you know, and that's the way it kind of felt with having to do that," Gideon said. "Nobody's really happy about it, but sometimes the right thing to do is like the hardest thing to do."

Gideon and the Rev. Dick Kurtz were among at least 45 Oklahoma Southern Baptist preachers who signed an online letter in support of an amendment to the Southern Baptist constitution that unequivocally prohibits women from becoming pastors of Southern Baptist churches because they believe, according to scripture, the office of pastor is reserved solely for men.

Doubling down on the ban on female pastors, the amendment, approved by messengers on Wednesday, was brought to the denomination's annual meeting by the Rev. Mike Law of Arlington, Virginia. Law said he conducted research and found 170 Southern Baptist churches with female pastors on staff.

Meanwhile, Kurtz, pastor of New Hope Baptist Church in El Reno, said he wasn't shocked that messengers voted to affirm Saddleback's expulsion.

"I felt like most Southern Baptists were pretty much in agreement with our bylaws that we had adopted in the Baptist Faith and Message in 2000 that clearly states that in there (prohibition on female pastors)," he said.

Like Gideon, Kurtz said the decision on Warren's church wasn't about animosity for the influential pastor who founded it, but about installing women in pastoral roles, a practice that doesn't align with Scripture.

More: Live updates: Southern Baptist Convention meeting in New Orleans

Rick Warren, retired senior pastor and founder of Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, California, speaks Tuesday at the Southern Baptist Convention's annual meeting at the Ernest N Morial Convention Center in New Orleans, Louisiana.

"I believe that none of us wish any ill fate upon those churches that choose to do that, but you cannot be associated with the Southern Baptists if you're going against the bylaws or rules that we've established."

Trouble began brewing between the denomination and Saddleback when the house of worship  one of the largest and most influential Southern Baptist churches in the country  ordained three women as pastors in 2021. After Warren retired in 2022, Saddleback's choice of Andy Wood as lead pastor appeared to bring the issue to a head because Wood's wife, Stacie, assumed a role as teaching pastor. The church was then deemed no longer in "friendly cooperation" with the Southern Baptist Convention but given an opportunity to appeal the decision.

Warren's high-profile campaign to persuade Southern Baptists to change their minds about the decision to disfellowship the megachurch he founded began several weeks ago and included, among other things, letters to Southern Baptist clergy throughout the country.

After Wednesday's vote regarding Saddleback, Warren said more Southern Baptists than he anticipated voted in favor of reinstating his church.

"We have said since last February that we didnt expect to win," he told members of the media. "We made this effort to push a conversation thats been stagnant for years.

He said he felt compelled to defend Saddleback  and women.

"I wanted to speak up for the millions of Southern Baptist women whose spiritual gifts, leadership gifts and talents are being wasted," he said.

That the issue of women's role in the church was a key topic at this year's meeting was further emphasized as messengers considered resolutions on Tuesday. Messengers conveyed their appreciation for women and their importance to the Church through a resolution "On the Legacy and Responsibility of Women Fulfilling the Great Commission."

"Both men and women are created in the image of God, sharing equal value, dignity and worth, and are commissioned by God ... and scripture calls women to obey Christ's Great Commission and demonstrates women are crucial and indispensable to His mission," the resolution stated. "Women today serve courageously, and selflessly in our Southern Baptist churches and entities, and in a multitude of contexts around the world, through praying, giving and obeying the Great Commission of our only Lord Jesus Christ."

Southern Baptist denomination president picked

In other business, the Rev. Bart Barber on Tuesday was reelected to a second one-year term as the denomination's president, with 68% of messengers voting for the Texas preacher.

Typically, individuals are reelected to a second term as president after fulfilling the role for the first one-year term, but Barber drew a challenger on Tuesday in the Rev. Mike Stone, of Georgia.

The two men appeared to represent divergent views on the denomination's way forward in confronting a sexual abuse crisis that has rocked the faith group in recent years.

Southern Baptist Convention President Bart Barber speaks at the denomination's annual meeting in New Orleans.

Barber was elected to his first term in 2022, just as Southern Baptists gathered in the wake of a bombshell independent report on denominational leaders' mishandling of sex abuse cases. He appointed Southern Baptists to to a new Abuse Reform Implementation Task Force to oversee implementation of the abuse reforms delegates approved at the group's 2022 annual meeting in Anaheim.

Stone's nomination was backed by a group of conservatives called the Conservative Baptist Network. He made it widely known that he would dismantle the Abuse Reform Implementation Task Force appointed by Barber and possibly replace them with his own appointees. Stone also said he was against the implementation of a proposed Ministry Check website, a type of database of sex abusers with connections to Southern Baptist churches and affiliates. The database, which hasn't been launched, was viewed as an integral part of a series of reforms Southern Baptist messengers approved at the Anaheim gathering.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Southern Baptist Convention vote ousts Rick Warren's Saddleback church
Microsoft may own almost half of OpenAI, but a recent expose hints the pair arent the happiest of bedfellows . The Wall Street Journal claims the AI company warned Microsoft not to incorporate GPT-4 into Bing search without further training, but it did so anyway. It resulted in several high-profile examples of odd behavior, including bots arguing with users, and at least one instance of a user being urged to dissolve their marriage and elope with Bing instead.

Theres resentment, too, on Microsofts side, finding its own internal AI projects overlooked in favor of OpenAI. Which, despite the close financial ties, is very much free to work with Microsofts rivals in plenty of fields. Its led to a situation where the pair are working together, and yet against one another. And thats never a recipe for success.

 Dan Cooper

The Morning After isnt just a newsletter  its also a daily podcast. Get our daily audio briefings, Monday through Friday, by subscribing right here.

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Theres almost nothing in the human spirit as indomitable as the phrase, You sure about that, pal? Its something Reddit CEO Steve Huffman seems unable to stop milking in his user base after sending a memo to staffers saying the API protests would pass. His internal missive added that, despite tens of thousands of communities going dark, there was no significant revenue impact. Consequently, those in charge of the communities have pledged to keep their protests running indefinitely , with one user inviting Reddits leadership to f- around and find out.

Story continues

Continue Reading (Huffman)

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And something about hydrogen.

A Lexus EV, one of Toyota's growing fleet of EVs as it pivots away from Hydrogen.

Toyota has announced its next-generation EV battery will have a range of 621 miles, or 1,000 kilometers. Its part of a long series of announcements from the company that kickstarted the EV revolution finally embracing the technology. Of course, it wouldnt be a Toyota announcement without plenty of sweet words about hydrogen, but we all know the writings on the wall for that one, at least for small and mid-size vehicles.

Continue Reading.

Its likely to be a 1978 demo written by John.

Sir Paul McCartney has announced hell release one last song from The Beatles , which was recorded with the help of AI. It comes from the same trove of John Lennon demos used to make Free as a Bird and Real Love in the mid 90s. A third song, Now and Then, was on the same tapes, but electrical interference rendered Lennons vocals unusable. McCartney was inspired to go back to the material after watching Peter Jacksons Get Back, which used AI to extract clean dialog audio from the studio noise. The song will be released later this year, but be warned  George Harrison didnt think much of it when they tried to re-record it in the 90s.

Continue Reading.

It could have implications for some mid-tier game revivals in the works.

Youd be forgiven for not knowing the name Embracer , a publisher that has spent big to pick up a roster of big, if not blockbuster, games franchises. Its the name behind the names behind series like Borderlands, Homeworld, TimeSplitters, Tomb Raider and The Lord of the Rings. Sadly, it also managed to tie itself in financial knots after an unnamed deal, reportedly worth $2 billion, fell apart back in May. Consequently, its announced itll need to restructure to survive , with several as-yet unannounced games on the chopping block and the potential for mass layoffs in the near future.
Sergei Goryachev (Telegram )

A top Russian general has been killed following a missile strike in Ukraine.

Sergei Goryachev, 52, chief of staff for the 35th Combined Arms Army, was reportedly killed by a Ukrainian rocket attack in the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia region on Monday night.

Goryachev is believed to be the countrys highest-ranked Russian soldier to be killed on the battlefield this year.

There was no immediate confirmation from Russias defence ministry but Kremlin-aligned media also reported the death of General Goryachev, who commanded troops in Transnistria and Tajikistan as he rose through the ranks.

Vladimir Rogov, a Russian-installed official in part of the southern Zaporizhzhia region, said: The army has lost one of its brightest and most effective military commanders.

Ukraines military claimed responsibility by saying he was eliminated as a result of the successful actions of the Ukrainian Army.

General Goryachev was stationed at a frontline location in Zaporizhzhia that has come under intense fire during Ukraines counteroffensive, Russian military bloggers reported.

Ukraine claims to have captured several villages in the region but has lost several Western armoured vehicles.
Donald Trump on Tuesday night complained, yet again, about being charged with dozens of felonies for retaining highly sensitive national defense documents at his Florida country club and then conspiring to hide them from authorities trying to get them back.

Today we witnessed the most evil and heinous abuse of power in the history of our country, he told a crowd of his specially invited guests to his Bedminster, New Jersey, country club.

The coup-attempting former presidents 35-minute speech came just hours after pleading not guilty to 37 counts in federal court in Miami. He was indicted last week after an investigation by special counsel Jack Smith, who was appointed in November by Attorney General Merrick Garland to take over the investigation after Trump declared his candidacy for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination.

This day will go down in infamy, Trump said, calling the filing against him a sham indictment designed only to hurt his presidential campaign. They ought to drop this case immediately because theyre destroying the country.

Trump also renewed his attacks on Smith. You take a look at this guy. He looked like a thug, he said. Hes a raging and uncontrolled Trump hater.

During the hourlong Miami court hearing, Trump was seated just a few feet from Smith but did not say a single word to him, let alone call him names, according to journalists in the courtroom. Smith, who prior to taking on Trump had been assigned to prosecute war criminals in The Hague, stared at Trump for long stretches, including as he walked out.

Trump once again claimed that he was allowed to keep whatever documents he wanted  a claim refuted by many legal experts, including Trumps own attorney general, Bill Barr  and that it was Democrat Joe Biden that had broken the law by storing some of his vice presidential records in a Chinatown neighborhood office in Washington, D.C. This, in Trumps view, meant that Chinese spies have access to the records.

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He complained that neither Biden nor former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton had been charged. I did everything right, and they indicted me, he said.

Smith is also conducting a separate investigation into Trumps Jan. 6, 2021, coup attempt, which culminated with thousands of his followers assaulting the U.S. Capitol to pressure then-Vice President Mike Pence and lawmakers into awarding Trump a second term notwithstanding his election loss to Joe Biden. One hundred and forty police officers were injured during the attack, with one dying the following day. Four more officers took their own lives in the coming weeks.

Trump is also under investigation by the Fulton County, Georgia, district attorney for trying to coerce state officials to overturn his 2020 election loss in that swing state.

Trump has already been indicted in New York on 34 counts of falsifying business records in connection with a $130,000 hush-money payment to a porn star in the days before the 2016 election. His trial in that case is set for next spring.

Despite all the criminal accusations and investigations, Trump remains the Republican front-runner for the 2024 presidential nomination as he seeks to return to the White House.

Related...
Key Insights

The projected fair value for Illinois Tool Works is US$224 based on 2 Stage Free Cash Flow to Equity

Current share price of US$245 suggests Illinois Tool Works is potentially trading close to its fair value

Our fair value estimate is 5.8% lower than Illinois Tool Works' analyst price target of US$238

How far off is Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) from its intrinsic value? Using the most recent financial data, we'll take a look at whether the stock is fairly priced by projecting its future cash flows and then discounting them to today's value. The Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) model is the tool we will apply to do this. Don't get put off by the jargon, the math behind it is actually quite straightforward.

We would caution that there are many ways of valuing a company and, like the DCF, each technique has advantages and disadvantages in certain scenarios. If you still have some burning questions about this type of valuation, take a look at the Simply Wall St analysis model.

See our latest analysis for Illinois Tool Works

The Method

We're using the 2-stage growth model, which simply means we take in account two stages of company's growth. In the initial period the company may have a higher growth rate and the second stage is usually assumed to have a stable growth rate. To begin with, we have to get estimates of the next ten years of cash flows. Where possible we use analyst estimates, but when these aren't available we extrapolate the previous free cash flow (FCF) from the last estimate or reported value. We assume companies with shrinking free cash flow will slow their rate of shrinkage, and that companies with growing free cash flow will see their growth rate slow, over this period. We do this to reflect that growth tends to slow more in the early years than it does in later years.

Generally we assume that a dollar today is more valuable than a dollar in the future, so we discount the value of these future cash flows to their estimated value in today's dollars:

10-year free cash flow (FCF) estimate

2023 2024 2025 2026 2027 2028 2029 2030 2031 2032 Levered FCF ($, Millions) US$3.18b US$3.26b US$3.46b US$3.65b US$4.33b US$4.63b US$4.89b US$5.12b US$5.31b US$5.49b Growth Rate Estimate Source Analyst x8 Analyst x8 Analyst x6 Analyst x3 Analyst x1 Est @ 7.08% Est @ 5.59% Est @ 4.55% Est @ 3.82% Est @ 3.30% Present Value ($, Millions) Discounted @ 8.3% US$2.9k US$2.8k US$2.7k US$2.6k US$2.9k US$2.9k US$2.8k US$2.7k US$2.6k US$2.5k

("Est" = FCF growth rate estimated by Simply Wall St)

Present Value of 10-year Cash Flow (PVCF) = US$27b

After calculating the present value of future cash flows in the initial 10-year period, we need to calculate the Terminal Value, which accounts for all future cash flows beyond the first stage. The Gordon Growth formula is used to calculate Terminal Value at a future annual growth rate equal to the 5-year average of the 10-year government bond yield of 2.1%. We discount the terminal cash flows to today's value at a cost of equity of 8.3%.

Terminal Value (TV)= FCF 2032  (1 + g)  (r  g) = US$5.5b (1 + 2.1%)  (8.3% 2.1%) = US$90b

Present Value of Terminal Value (PVTV)= TV / (1 + r)10= US$90b ( 1 + 8.3%)10= US$41b

The total value, or equity value, is then the sum of the present value of the future cash flows, which in this case is US$68b. To get the intrinsic value per share, we divide this by the total number of shares outstanding. Relative to the current share price of US$245, the company appears around fair value at the time of writing. Remember though, that this is just an approximate valuation, and like any complex formula - garbage in, garbage out.

dcf

Important Assumptions

We would point out that the most important inputs to a discounted cash flow are the discount rate and of course the actual cash flows. Part of investing is coming up with your own evaluation of a company's future performance, so try the calculation yourself and check your own assumptions. The DCF also does not consider the possible cyclicality of an industry, or a company's future capital requirements, so it does not give a full picture of a company's potential performance. Given that we are looking at Illinois Tool Works as potential shareholders, the cost of equity is used as the discount rate, rather than the cost of capital (or weighted average cost of capital, WACC) which accounts for debt. In this calculation we've used 8.3%, which is based on a levered beta of 1.045. Beta is a measure of a stock's volatility, compared to the market as a whole. We get our beta from the industry average beta of globally comparable companies, with an imposed limit between 0.8 and 2.0, which is a reasonable range for a stable business.

SWOT Analysis for Illinois Tool Works

Strength

Earnings growth over the past year exceeded its 5-year average.

Debt is well covered by earnings and cashflows.

Dividends are covered by earnings and cash flows.

Weakness

Earnings growth over the past year underperformed the Machinery industry.

Dividend is low compared to the top 25% of dividend payers in the Machinery market.

Expensive based on P/E ratio and estimated fair value.

Opportunity

Annual earnings are forecast to grow for the next 3 years.

Threat

Annual earnings are forecast to grow slower than the American market.

Looking Ahead:

Whilst important, the DCF calculation ideally won't be the sole piece of analysis you scrutinize for a company. DCF models are not the be-all and end-all of investment valuation. Preferably you'd apply different cases and assumptions and see how they would impact the company's valuation. For example, changes in the company's cost of equity or the risk free rate can significantly impact the valuation. For Illinois Tool Works, we've put together three additional aspects you should consider:

Risks: Consider for instance, the ever-present spectre of investment risk. We've identified 1 warning sign with Illinois Tool Works , and understanding this should be part of your investment process. Future Earnings: How does ITW's growth rate compare to its peers and the wider market? Dig deeper into the analyst consensus number for the upcoming years by interacting with our free analyst growth expectation chart. Other High Quality Alternatives: Do you like a good all-rounder? Explore our interactive list of high quality stocks to get an idea of what else is out there you may be missing!

PS. Simply Wall St updates its DCF calculation for every American stock every day, so if you want to find the intrinsic value of any other stock just search here.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.



This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.

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CAIRO (AP)  Last year was the deadliest for migrants in the Middle East and North Africa since 2017, the United Nations' migration agency reported Tuesday.

About 3,800 people died on sea and land migration routes within and from the Middle East-North Africa region, according to data released by the International Organization for Migrations Missing Migrants Project.

The number is 11% higher compared to 2021 and the highest since 2017, when the project documented the deaths of 4,255 people in the region. The 2022 data show that the region, often referred to by the acronym MENA, accounted for more than half of the 6,877 deaths the project documented worldwide last year.

This alarming death toll on migration routes within and from the MENA region demands immediate attention and concerted efforts to enhance the safety and protection of migrants, Othman Belbeisi, the International Organization for Migration's director for the region.

The project said the true tally was likely much higher given the scarcity of official data and limited access to land routes in the region for civil society and international organizations.

On the regions land routes, the Missing Migrants Project documented over 1,025 deaths, while the rest occurred on sea routes to Europe, particularly in the central Mediterranean Sea.

Most of the people who died traveling by land took place in war-torn Yemen, where the IOM said targeted violence against migrants has intensified.

At least 795 people, mostly Ethiopians, lost their lives on a route between Yemen and Saudi Arabia, according to the Missing Migrants Project. Most of the deaths occurred in northern Yemens Saada province, a stronghold for the Iranian-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen.

East African migrants used to cross the Bab-Al Mandab, the 31-mile (50-kilometer) strait separating Djibouti and Yemen, on small boats, aiming to cross Yemen into neighboring Saudi Arabia and then move on to other wealthy Arab Gulf states in search of work. The report cited an October shipwreck off Yemen's Mayyun island which killed at least 28 people.

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Libya, which has in recent years become a transit point for Europe-bound migrants who fled wars and poverty in the Middle East and Africa, had 117 deaths on land routes, and neighboring Algeria had 54, the data showed.

More than 800 people died in the Mediterranean Sea off chaos-stricken Libya in 2022, the report said. At least 713 of them perished in 46 known shipwrecks, and the bodies of 94 migrants washed ashore but could not be linked to any of the wrecks. it added.

Most of the deaths were reported off towns in western Libya, including Sabratha, Zuwara and Garabulli, which for years have been launching points for migrant boats heading to Europe, the report said.

The IOMs report also highlighted increasing sea crossing attempts from Lebanon to Greece. It said at least 174 people reportedly died while making that trip last year.

The West Africa-Atlantic route to Spain's Canary Islands, with boats primarily departing from Northern Africa, claimed a further 559 lives last year, a decrease from 2021, when at least 1,126 people reportedly died during their voyages, the data showed.

___

Follow AP's coverage of global migration at https://apnews.com/hub/migration
The vast amount of personal data for sale online is an increasingly powerful tool for intelligence gathering by US and foreign spying agencies but also represents a privacy risk to ordinary people, according to a newly declassified US intelligence report.

To protect civil liberties, US spy agencies need to catalog what data they buy and develop guidance for protecting that data, according to the report released by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence on Friday.

The report is one of the more detailed public records of how the US intelligence community approaches commercially available information  things such as geolocation data and phone records, which can be bought from third parties. The amount of such data available to anyone with a credit card has exploded in the past decade as smartwatches and wireless earpieces have become a staple of life.

The ubiquity of such data on large groups of people is an increasingly significant part of the information environment in which US spy agencies must function, the ODNI report says.

The report was completed in January 2022 but only recently declassified. Democratic Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon asked the ODNI for the report.

Congress needs to pass legislation to put guardrails around government purchases, to rein in private companies that collect and sell this data, and keep Americans personal information out of the hands of our adversaries, Wyden said in a statement Monday in response to the report.

Commercially available data is a dual-edged sword for US government agencies: It opens up new avenues for spying on foreign adversaries while also exposing vulnerabilities to US personnel.

The Pentagon in 2018 announced a ban on deployed personnel using fitness trackers, smartphones and potentially even dating apps that use geolocating features. That followed a review of such practices after Strava, a fitness tracking app, may have inadvertently revealed the locations of security forces around the world.

For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com
Donny Williams, chief of the Wilmington Police Department, said recruiting and retaining officers remains difficult.

For Chief Donny Williams and leaders of the Wilmington Police Department, it hasn't been easy recruiting and keeping officers in recent years.

Since 2020, Wilmington police has lost about 40 to 50 officers to retirements or resignations. But Williams said there is some light at the end of tunnel, with recruiters Josh Graham and Robert Quinn hiring close to 30 officers in the past 12 months.

During a Tuesday joint news conference with New Hanover County District Attorney Bed David and North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein, Williams said protests and feelings towards police after the murder of George Floyd may have turned people away from the job.

"For a young person just getting into this line of work, it could really make you think though some emotions," he said. "You're getting in this line of work and people are saying they hate for no reason just because of your uniform and the fact that you want to serve."

In addition to what he called "anti-law enforcement rhetoric," he said officers hired in the 90s are retiring and the amount of people leaving are catching up when it comes to numbers.

As of Tuesday, Williams said the department is down 10 positions. But in reality, Williams added the department is down by about 40 to 50 officers because of training. It takes about nine months to train a new Wilmington police officer. There are about a dozen people in various stages of field training. It was 20 a few weeks ago, but more people are completing the process. Ten will be graduating from the police academy soon. Some are out of state and are awaiting certification, while others are planning to attend later in the summer.

Once they join the department, Williams said keeping them is another important aspect.

Williams said there are several steps involved starting with the hiring process, which takes about a month or two for people with no experience. Next is 16 weeks of basic law enforcement training, followed by many other steps taking many more months of preparation. Williams said it could take 18 months to three years for an officer to fully function in their role.

Story continues

"That's if we keep them the entire time," he said. "What has been frustrating for us, we have had people to go through basic law enforcement training, go to the public school, get to the end of field training, and they decide that the city of Wilmington is not the best agency for them. And then they'll go work for another agency and basically we've opened up a window and thrown $40,000 out of it."

On Monday, Williams said Wilmington police officers responded to more than 473 calls for service. The typical day is anywhere from 300 to 500 calls. Williams is confident legislation will help the department fill voids to have more officers in the area. Wilmington was one of the few cities in the state to have a civilian crash investigator to make up for shortages. After the program was authorized in 2007, it expanded in 2020.

More: In a fender bender? Meet the Wilmington Police Department civilian unit ready to help.

"Those calls for service don't care if you're down five officers or 55 officers, they will continue to come in," he said.

Wilmington police also opened one of the first virtual response units in the state, which is operated by civilian personnel.

"We are thinking out of the box to meet the daily needs that our citizens require from us," he said.

District Attorney Ben David talks about the law and public safety during a news conference Tuesday.

New Hanover District Attorney Ben David said it's a tough time in Wilmington and across the country because of national conversations regarding police and the economy. During protests in 2020, David said he went out and talked to people about understanding their frustrations, while encouraging them to join the department.

"We're hiring," he said. "Don't just speak truth to power, become powerful."

He said district attorney offices around the state are not immune, with a 12% vacancy rate at any time. David, like Williams, is hopeful that funding at the local and state level can help.

"When communities said we should defund the police, this community has actually given raises," David said about the support from local officials. "It really helped keep us in the position we are in now to hold the line. We are able to continue to protect and serve and deliver on that promise containing the constitution of equal protection."

North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein said more legislation is needed to help law enforcement.

Attorney General Josh Stein spoke about legislation for law enforcement and retention. According to Stein's research, 506 fewer recruits took the Basic Law Enforcement Training Exam last year compared to 2019. In 2021, retirement increased by 45% and resignation increased by 18%. He also noted there were 492 more law enforcement separations than new appointments in the state between 2020 and 2021.

Some of the proposals and strategies regarding recruitment and retention include the Criminal Justice Fellows Program, hiring bonuses, launching an out-of-state recruiting campaign, stopping pension penalties, and offering mental health assistance.

STAY CONNECTED: Keep up with the areas latest news by signing up for the StarNews newsletter and following us on Facebook and Instagram.

Reporter Chase Jordan can be reached at cjjordan@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Wilmington StarNews: Wilmington Police Department challenged with hiring officers
In Basket appears at least once a month in The Bottom Line section of the Yakima Herald-Republic. To have an item published, email business@yakimaherald.com. Send photos as jpg attachments. Deadline is 5 p.m. Tuesday for the following Sunday.
Kit Mora, who disappeared in 2022, would have graduated this year. Reward for info is $10K
Jasper Kenzo Sundeens reporting for the Yakima Herald-Republic is possible with support from Report for America and community members through the Yakima Valley Community Fund . For information on republishing, email news@yakimaherald.com.
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Most people who start a small business hope their company will be successful enough to do more than break even. Their hope is their business, an idea they truly believe in, will make millions.

Im a Financial Advisor Who Works With Wealthy Families: These Are the Best Ways To Transfer Wealth

Related: How To Build Your Savings From Scratch

Reaching the first million in revenue, however, usually doesnt happen overnight although there are some success stories where it can happen sooner than later. GOBankingRates spoke to two entrepreneurs who shared the reality behind making a million in revenue. Heres how these small business owners made their first million.

We reached our first million in revenue in our second year.

Dave Carr is the founder and CEO of Progressive Label Manufacturing, a high-quality label producer headquartered in Orange County, California. The company produces prime labels for well-known and prestigious brands in the food, beverage, pharmaceutical and consumer goods industries.

In 2023, Progressive Label Manufacturing will celebrate 30 years of being in business. The company hit a milestone in reaching its first million in revenue in its second year.

How did this happen? Carr said it was all thanks to a large customer who said yes to both Carr and the companys product. It was a leap of faith based on performance and trust, said Carr.

After making the first million, Carr, who had been managing several roles including sales, accounting and customer satisfaction, said he was able to begin delegating these tasks to a competent team. It was crucial since the business was scaling up and signified the shift from a shopkeeper to a thriving business owner operating on a larger scale. There was now much-needed space for the team to make mistakes, learn and grow.

For business owners who want to earn their first million within the first few years of being in business, Carr suggests setting ambitious goals. These goals may appear unattainable, but they should be worth striving for. When possible, business owners should visualize themselves already operating in this space and fully believe it is possible to reach this milestone.

Treat each day as if you were starting a new job, embracing the opportunity to make mistakes and learn from them, said Carr. With success comes greater responsibility and the need for swift decision-making. Its essential to view mistakes as valuable learning experiences and use them to propel your growth. Never give up on your dreams; persistence is critical to achieving remarkable results.

Im a Financial Planning Expert: Here Are 5 Things You Should Never Spend Money on If You Want To Be Rich

We reached a million dollars in revenue in our first year.

Amber Lee launched Select Date Society, a high-end matchmaking firm, alongside her co-founder Sandra Myers on June 1, 2020. Despite the challenges of launching a business during the COVID-19 pandemic, the company is now celebrating three years in business. Better yet, Lee and Myers reached a million dollars in revenue in their first year in business  and have continued to double their revenue year over year.

According to Lee, no one thing tipped the scale for them. Rather, it was a combination of things that allowed the co-founders to reach this million-dollar milestone.

We stayed laser focused on reaching our goals. We got great press in our first year of business, including a feature in The New York Post,' said Lee. We also made really great hiring decisions, bringing on experienced matchmakers who shared our vision.

Hiring the right team and looking for opportunities to market the business without spending any money, including asking customers to leave online reviews and actively reaching out to local media with valuable story ideas, are two pieces of advice Lee would give any business owner who wants to make their first million.

The final key ingredient to cracking the first million in revenue comes with knowing your value and setting your prices accordingly.

Lee knows the business she runs with Myers is not the cheapest matchmaking option. However, she doesnt recommend getting caught in the race to the bottom by pricing yourself cheaper than your competitors.

Raise your prices and provide a higher level of service than what your competitors provide, said Lee. Our clients hire us because they feel we are the best option for them. We learned that when you provide a solution for a problem that people have and you are able to deliver results, people will happily pay you to solve their problems.

More From GOBankingRates

This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: Im a Successful Small Business Owner: Heres How I Made My First Million
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Is Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. (NYSE:MLM) Expensive For A Reason? A Look At Its Intrinsic Value

Key Insights

Using the 2 Stage Free Cash Flow to Equity, Martin Marietta Materials fair value estimate is US$322

Martin Marietta Materials' US$427 share price signals that it might be 33% overvalued

Analyst price target for MLM is US$438, which is 36% above our fair value estimate

Today we'll do a simple run through of a valuation method used to estimate the attractiveness of Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. (NYSE:MLM) as an investment opportunity by taking the forecast future cash flows of the company and discounting them back to today's value. Our analysis will employ the Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) model. Don't get put off by the jargon, the math behind it is actually quite straightforward.

We would caution that there are many ways of valuing a company and, like the DCF, each technique has advantages and disadvantages in certain scenarios. Anyone interested in learning a bit more about intrinsic value should have a read of the Simply Wall St analysis model.

Check out our latest analysis for Martin Marietta Materials

Step By Step Through The Calculation

We're using the 2-stage growth model, which simply means we take in account two stages of company's growth. In the initial period the company may have a higher growth rate and the second stage is usually assumed to have a stable growth rate. To begin with, we have to get estimates of the next ten years of cash flows. Where possible we use analyst estimates, but when these aren't available we extrapolate the previous free cash flow (FCF) from the last estimate or reported value. We assume companies with shrinking free cash flow will slow their rate of shrinkage, and that companies with growing free cash flow will see their growth rate slow, over this period. We do this to reflect that growth tends to slow more in the early years than it does in later years.

Generally we assume that a dollar today is more valuable than a dollar in the future, so we need to discount the sum of these future cash flows to arrive at a present value estimate:

10-year free cash flow (FCF) estimate

2023 2024 2025 2026 2027 2028 2029 2030 2031 2032 Levered FCF ($, Millions) US$713.6m US$888.8m US$1.14b US$1.17b US$1.21b US$1.24b US$1.27b US$1.30b US$1.33b US$1.36b Growth Rate Estimate Source Analyst x6 Analyst x6 Analyst x3 Analyst x1 Analyst x1 Est @ 2.64% Est @ 2.48% Est @ 2.37% Est @ 2.29% Est @ 2.24% Present Value ($, Millions) Discounted @ 7.6% US$663 US$768 US$918 US$873 US$838 US$799 US$761 US$725 US$689 US$655

("Est" = FCF growth rate estimated by Simply Wall St)

Present Value of 10-year Cash Flow (PVCF) = US$7.7b

The second stage is also known as Terminal Value, this is the business's cash flow after the first stage. For a number of reasons a very conservative growth rate is used that cannot exceed that of a country's GDP growth. In this case we have used the 5-year average of the 10-year government bond yield (2.1%) to estimate future growth. In the same way as with the 10-year 'growth' period, we discount future cash flows to today's value, using a cost of equity of 7.6%.

Terminal Value (TV)= FCF 2032  (1 + g)  (r  g) = US$1.4b (1 + 2.1%)  (7.6% 2.1%) = US$25b

Present Value of Terminal Value (PVTV)= TV / (1 + r)10= US$25b ( 1 + 7.6%)10= US$12b

The total value, or equity value, is then the sum of the present value of the future cash flows, which in this case is US$20b. To get the intrinsic value per share, we divide this by the total number of shares outstanding. Compared to the current share price of US$427, the company appears reasonably expensive at the time of writing. Valuations are imprecise instruments though, rather like a telescope - move a few degrees and end up in a different galaxy. Do keep this in mind.

dcf

Important Assumptions

We would point out that the most important inputs to a discounted cash flow are the discount rate and of course the actual cash flows. You don't have to agree with these inputs, I recommend redoing the calculations yourself and playing with them. The DCF also does not consider the possible cyclicality of an industry, or a company's future capital requirements, so it does not give a full picture of a company's potential performance. Given that we are looking at Martin Marietta Materials as potential shareholders, the cost of equity is used as the discount rate, rather than the cost of capital (or weighted average cost of capital, WACC) which accounts for debt. In this calculation we've used 7.6%, which is based on a levered beta of 0.918. Beta is a measure of a stock's volatility, compared to the market as a whole. We get our beta from the industry average beta of globally comparable companies, with an imposed limit between 0.8 and 2.0, which is a reasonable range for a stable business.

SWOT Analysis for Martin Marietta Materials

Strength

Earnings growth over the past year exceeded the industry.

Debt is well covered by earnings.

Weakness

Dividend is low compared to the top 25% of dividend payers in the Basic Materials market.

Expensive based on P/E ratio and estimated fair value.

Opportunity

Annual revenue is forecast to grow faster than the American market.

Threat

Debt is not well covered by operating cash flow.

Annual earnings are forecast to grow slower than the American market.

Next Steps:

Although the valuation of a company is important, it is only one of many factors that you need to assess for a company. The DCF model is not a perfect stock valuation tool. Rather it should be seen as a guide to "what assumptions need to be true for this stock to be under/overvalued?" For example, changes in the company's cost of equity or the risk free rate can significantly impact the valuation. Why is the intrinsic value lower than the current share price? For Martin Marietta Materials, there are three additional factors you should explore:

Risks: For example, we've discovered 1 warning sign for Martin Marietta Materials that you should be aware of before investing here. Future Earnings: How does MLM's growth rate compare to its peers and the wider market? Dig deeper into the analyst consensus number for the upcoming years by interacting with our free analyst growth expectation chart. Other High Quality Alternatives: Do you like a good all-rounder? Explore our interactive list of high quality stocks to get an idea of what else is out there you may be missing!

PS. The Simply Wall St app conducts a discounted cash flow valuation for every stock on the NYSE every day. If you want to find the calculation for other stocks just search here.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.



This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.

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WIZZ AIR continua sa ii UMILEASCA pe clujenii abandonati la Bologna! De ce nu-si pot cere banii inapoi pentru ca zborul apare efectuat - FOTO

Dorel de la WIZZ AIR este de serviciu zilnic, pentru ca altfel nu se explica modul in care aceasta companie [citeste mai departe]
(Bloomberg) -- Microsoft Corp.s $69 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard Inc. was temporarily blocked by a federal judge in California who said a temporary restraining order was necessary to maintain the status quo while the Federal Trade Commission challenges the deal.

Most Read from Bloomberg

The FTC, which sought to block the deal in its in-house court, filed an emergency motion to halt the merger on Monday.

The ruling holds the two companies apart until five days after the court rules on a more permanent pause on the deal, US District Judge Edward J. Davila wrote.

An evidentiary hearing on the longer-term injunction is set to be held in San Francisco on June 22 and 23.

The FTC filed suit last year at its in-house court, but the agencys administrative judge lacks the ability to order a pause to the deal.

A Microsoft spokesperson said the order was expected and lauded the court for moving swiftly toward a resolution of the case.

The FTC declined to comment.

US authorities are not the only ones who have challenged the deal. UK competition regulators vetoed the merger, though Microsoft is appealing that order.

The case is Federal Trade Commission v. Microsoft Corp., 3:23-cv-02880, US District Court, Northern District of California (San Francisco).

(Updates to add comments from Microsoft, FTC beginning in sixth paragraph)

Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek

2023 Bloomberg L.P.
Researchers, entrepreneurs, students to create innovative projects at Laser Valley Innovation Bootcamp Researchers, entrepreneurs and students will create "possible new innovative projects" or make progress with the development of existing initiatives at the Laser Valley Innovation Bootcamp, which will take place from Thursday to Saturday in the town of Magurele in Ilfov county, according to a press release from Ilfov County Council (CJ) sent to AGERPRES on Wednesday. Laser Valley Innovation Bootcamp aims to facilitate the connection of some of the most important researchers from national research and development institutes with startup founders and students passionate about entrepreneurship.  Citeste articolul mai departe pe stiripesurse.ro

Sursa articol si foto: stiripesurse.ro

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- IGPF: Almost 94,000 people enter Romania on Wednesday, of whom approximately 11,400 Ukrainians. The General Inspectorate of the Border Police (IGPF) informs that, on Wednesday, a number of 93,900 people entered Romania through border points, of whom 11,391 were Ukrainian citizens, told Agerpres.

- The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Bogdan Aurescu, participated on Wednesday in the annual ministerial meeting of the Council of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), which took place at the headquarters of the Organization in Paris, under the title "Securing A Resilient Future:

- Sanitas Federation announces Japanese strike in public health and social assistance institutions. Health trade unionists will start a Japanese strike in public health and social assistance institutions on June 7, without interrupting work until the demands are resolved, the Sanitas Federation announced

- Romania has, starting Wednesday, a Scientific and Ethical Council in Artificial Intelligence, consultative, under the coordination of the Ministry of Research, Innovation and Digitalization (MCID), a forum of renowned specialists who can offer their expertise for the benefit of the Government, for the

- The Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel has an "open door" for students and researchers from Romania, the president of the institution, Prof. Alon Chen, told AGERPRES on Thursday evening, during a short visit to Bucharest to set up a special scholarship programme for young people with "excellent"

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- The Education Committee of the Chamber of Deputies decided on Thursday, during the debate on the draft law on higher education, that students benefit from rates discounted by 75% at public sports facilities, but also at museums, concerts, theatre, opera, film, within the limits of the approved budgets.
Parliament on Tuesday voted to give the green light to a new national innovation strategy dubbed the Neumann Janos Programme, aimed at facilitating links between universities, research institutes, and the economy.

The nine strategic measures included in the package were designed to reinforce a knowledge-based economy through further developing existing institutions and launching new programmes, the ministry of culture and innovation told MTI.



The ministry said the programme would put Hungarian research into an international orbit and help innovative ideas in foreign markets.



Innovative investments will focus on healthy lifestyles, the green transition, digitalisation and security, while researchers will benefit from predictable career models, the ministry said.



The programme will create scientific and innovation parks to facilitate cooperation between universities and businesses, and innovation support will be rolled out to communities in the Carpathian Basin, it added.



Under the new package, the Eotvos Lorand Research Network will be renamed Hungarian Research Network to ensure that the organisation is easily and clearly recognised in the international community, contributing to enhancing Hungarys popularity and prestige, the ministry said.



Click here to know more about Janos Neumann, the Hungarian-American mathematician, physicist, computer scientist, engineer and polymath.
More than 2,200 programmes including concerts, guided exhibitions and interactive events will await visitors at 442 venues nationwide at the Night of Museums on June 24, an official of the ministry of culture and innovation told a press conference.

Deputy state secretary Mate Vincze said last years event drew over 300,000 visitors.



Veszprem, in western Hungary, will be in the focus of this years programme, with nearly 500 programmes at 30 venues, he added.



Ten institutes will offer programmes presenting the work of world-renowned mathematician John von Neumann, who was born 120 years ago.



This years motto and main topic



Trends change, waves follow each other, but some things are eternal.



This year's Night of Museums will focus on timeless and changing trends, to show how different influences have affected our culture, how they have left their mark on later eras or disappeared almost without trace.



The declared aim of the theme is to inspire museums, public collections and exhibition venues to present an unusual look at their own collections from a different perspective than they are used to and to create something new and different.



The themes also help you gain an insight into a the development of a discipline by showing what tools, directions and discoveries have been the ones t"setting the trend" trend' in a way, through modernization, in the fields presented in the exhibitions.



"We are on TREND"

Which are the eternal trends and which are the ones that emerge for a shorter or longer period of time only to disappear without trace and give way to something new and up-and-coming to a new, upcoming trend?



And is there an ideal situation where a given trend or tendency also lends a certain equilibrium in the life of either an individual artist or an (artistic) period?



But it is also important for the museum world to follow trends; whether it is museum pedagogy, or by (re)ordering the use of audiovisual tools to bring the centuries/ millennia-old values.



In line with the thematic priority, the participating exhibition sites will be able to present their exhibitions and related programs, they will show how trends are changing, how new and newer ones follow one another and yet there is something that is eternal.



This year, the event series is over 20 years old, and over the years more and more young people have been taking part in the programs, making them increasingly "trendy" going to the museum.



For the trendiest program click on the program list or download the Muzej mobile app on your phone!



Beloved soprano Erika Miklosa will be the events ambassador.







This year, Erika Miklosa, holder of the Order of St. Stephen of Hungary, winner of the Kossuth and Liszt Ferenc Prize, is the ambassador of the Night of Museums.



Erika will accompany you to exciting museums and unique exhibitions. You can watch the fun short films on Muzej's Facebook and Instagram pages.



In the spring, Erika took part in several guided tours and interactive activities to promote the Night of Museums on 24 June.



The world-famous singer visited the Szentendre Skanzen, where she was enchanted by the turn-of-the-century Transylvanian town, visited the very modern Mint Museum, where she was able to hold an authentic gold bar and then visited the Semmelweis Museum of Medical History, and afterwards she visited the Golden Eagle Museum of Pharmacy, learning about the beneficial effects of medicinal herbs still used today.



Now, with the Night of the MUseums more than twenty years old and increasingly popular with young people, the institutions are preparing this year with special programs. Erika Miklosa is delighted to be part of the country's largest cultural program since, as she stressed, in addition to the transmission of traditional values she also loves to to raise young people's awareness of culture.



Ticket prices:

Adults: HUF 2500

Children (6-18 years old): HUF 1200

Children under 6: free



Detailed program: Night Of Museums



Photo: Museum of Pecs
The opposition Democratic Coalition (DK) on Tuesday slammed the draft budget for 2024 as without thought  the budget of idleness, during the bills debate in parliament.

The promise to preserve the governments previous achievements is too little for the majority of the country, party leader Ferenc Gyurcsany told parliament.



Public education and health care are deteriorating, and wealth disparity is growing. Meanwhile, the sum total of incomes from wages is down compared with that coming from interests and profits, he said.



Momentum said the budget was driven by short-term considerations to retain power, and was abandoning people, households, companies and local authorities.



Further cuts to municipality funding would finish off the capital, Lajos Locsei said. Further, wage hikes for public servants and teachers were wholly missing from the bill, and support for welfare recipients are woefully underfunded, he said.



The Socialists called for the withdrawal of the draft, which they said should be replaced by a new draft focusing on security.



The budget was prepared before the final accounts of the 2022 budget were published, and so in many chapters, the government has no way of knowing what to expect, he said.



The party called on the government to prepare a new draft by October 31, and to raise spending on health care to 7% of GDP, welfare spending to 18% and public education expenditures to 6-6.5%.



Parliament Debates 2024 Draft Budget

Addressing the debate of the 2024 budget in parliament, the finance minister said the budget was a defence budget, adding that in times of war Hungary must guarantee its security, protect families, pensions, jobs and maintain low utility costs.



That is why the focus of the budget is to strengthen the scheme to keep utility costs low and boost national defence, Mihaly Varga said, adding that Hungary faced challenges on several fronts such as the protracted war and failed Brussels sanctions that had resulted in a serious energy crisis in Europe.



The additional burdens in energy prices are costing the country more than 1,000 billion forints (EUR 2.7bn), he said.



Varga said protecting the countrys results achieved so far was the governments primary task, adding that financial stability was essential for security.



A strong economy combined with budgetary discipline were needed in this regard, he added.



The government is committed to reducing inflation to single digits by the end of this year, and inflation is targeted at 6% next year, while the economy is expected to grow by 4% in 2024, the minister said.



The public debt as a percentage of GDP will be reduced to 69.7% this year and 66.7% next year, he said, adding that a deficit target of 2.9% of GDP was slated.



MTI Photo
Papio Blaine Burrier Miller was born on February 25, 1938, in Lincoln to Joseph and Gladys (Burrier) Miller and passed away on June 12, 2023, in Surprise at the age of 85 years, 3 months and 18 days.

Blaine was baptized and confirmed at the Utica Methodist Church. He attended and graduated from Utica Public School with the Class of 1956. Blaine and his future wife, Janice Cradick, were born two days apart and grew up together. They were also crowned homecoming king and queen in 1956. On December 28, 1957, Blaine and Janice were united in marriage in Utica and to this union five children were born. The couple began to farm south of Utica, and in 1960 they moved to a farm south of Surprise to continue farming. Blaine and Janice transferred their church membership to First Methodist Church in Surprise in 1960. The couple lost an infant son, Terry, in 1961.

Surprise Methodist Church closed on May 2, 1976, and the couple began attending church at Rising City Methodist Church later that month. Blaine worked at the Columbus Sales Pavilion for close to 50 years, while also farming and raising livestock. He shared his love of horses and tractors by participating in numerous parades within the state throughout his life. After retirement, Blaine spent time collecting, restoring and selling tractors and farm equipment online and at auctions. Blaine holds a Guinness World Record for participating in the RFD-TV classic tractor parade at the Nebraska State Fair in September of 2012. He loved being a member of the Surprise community and he was a member of the Surprise Village Board. He also spent time maintaining and decorating the town of Surprise for different holidays. Blaine and Janice celebrated their 65th wedding anniversary in December of 2022.

Blaine is preceded in death by his infant son, Terry; parents, Joseph and Gladys Miller; parents-in-law, Pete and Ruth Cradick; siblings, Dale, Ruth, JoAnn and Leon.

Survivors cherishing his memory include his wife of 65 years, Janice Miller; children and their spouses, Vicky Samek, Jean (Bruce) Wendt, Barb (Dallen) George, Andy (Carie) Miller; 11 grandchildren; 12 great-grandchildren, with another arriving in October; sister-in-law, Sherry Miller; brother-in-law, Ivan (Janice) Cradick; numerous nieces, nephews, and a host of friends. To this obituary we add our thoughts, prayers and memories of a life shared with Blaine.
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation has grounded two Tata Group-owned Air India pilots for an incident in which one of the pilots allowed a female friend inside the cockpit during a domestic flight recently, a DGCA official said on Tuesday. The official also said that the regulator received a report from the airline (into the incident) and has completed its investigation.

Air India, in a statement, without sharing any details about the incident, said that "such breaches are dealt with on a serious basis, and sanctions will be imposed on those who are in breach of the regulations".

Also read: Indian Domestic Air Passenger Traffic Registers 2.3 Per Cent MoM Hike In May



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It may be mentioned here that the DGCA had last month slapped a fine of Rs 30 lakh on Air India for not reporting a similar incident that took place on its Dubai-Delhi flight in February this year.

"We have received the report (into the incident) and completed our investigation. The pilots have been grounded," the DGCA official said. As per DGCA safety norms, unauthorised people are not allowed to enter the cockpit, and any such entry could violate norms.

"Air India has a Just culture approach to all safety-related events and has a zero tolerance for deliberate breaches of regulations," an Air India spokesperson said in the statement without mentioning information about the incident.

"Such breaches are dealt with on a serious basis, and sanctions will be imposed on those who are in breach of the regulations," the spokesperson added.

In the February incident, the aviation regulator slapped a fine of Rs 30 lakh on Air India for lapses in effectively addressing the "safety-sensitive issue" related to the incident of a pilot allowing a female friend into the cockpit during a Delhi-Dubai flight on February 27.

This was the third time in less than four months that the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has fined Air India, which is now under the control of Tata Group, for lapses. While imposing the penalty, the DGCA had said that Air India did not take prompt corrective action.

In connection with the Delhi-Dubai flight incident, the regulator has also suspended the licence of the pilot who operated the flight for three months, and the co-pilot was warned for not being assertive in preventing the violation.

Besides, the airline has been directed to take administrative action against the "Staff On Duty (SOD)/passenger, including removal from any managerial functions in the organisation for a specified period". While acknowledging and accepting the DGCA ruling, the airline rejected the "assertion that no action was taken by Air India in response to the complaint".
Crisis-hit airline Go First on Tuesday announced that its scheduled flight operations will remain cancelled till June 16, adding that a full refund will be issued to the passengers. Earlier, it was supposed to be till June 12.

"We regret to inform you that due to operational reasons, Go First flights scheduled till June 16, 2023, have been cancelled. We apologize for the inconvenience caused by the flight cancellations," Go First said in a tweet.

Also read: Air India's 2 Pilots Grounded After Inviting Female Friend In Cockpit

cre Trending Stories

"We acknowledge the flight cancellations might have disrupted your travel plans, and we are committed to providing all the assistance we can," they said in a letter.

They further said, "A full refund will be issued to the original mode of payment shortly."

Due to operational reasons, Go First flights until 16th June 2023 are cancelled. We apologise for the inconvenience caused and request customers to visit https://t.co/FdMt1cRjeD for more information. For any queries or concerns, please feel free to contact us. pic.twitter.com/YyOU6NamU9  GO FIRST (@GoFirstairways) June 13, 2023

Earlier on June 8, Go First announced that its scheduled flight operations will remain cancelled till June 12. The airline operator had in early May filed for voluntary insolvency and since then its operations were kept stalled.

Civil aviation regulator DGCA had advised the airline to submit a comprehensive restructuring or revival plan, within a period of 30 days. The revival plan once submitted by Go First shall be reviewed by the regulator for further appropriate action in the matter.
AI google

The Ministry of Defence has signed a deal with Google to use artificial intelligence (AI) despite recent warnings that the technology could threaten the human race.

The Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl), the ministrys research arm, will use Googles Cloud platform to learn about AIs potential uses, which include cybersecurity work, disaster response and speeding up research.

Just last week, Rishi Sunaks adviser on the technology warned that the world has two years to stop AI from becoming a threat to the human race.

Matt Clifford, the Prime Ministers AI task force adviser, said there are all sorts of risks now and in the future from the pretty scary technology which should be very high on the policy makers agendas.

But the tech giant and the MoD have promised to use the technology responsibly. Google has also pledged not to allow its AI software to be used for weaponry.

Dstls chief executive Paul Hollinshead said: As one of the most transformative and ubiquitous new technologies, AI has enormous potential to transform societies.

Dstls collaboration with Google Cloud is one of the significant steps Dstl is taking to prioritise research, development, and experimentation of technologies in line with our commitment to safe and responsible AI.

It comes after thousands of Google staff in 2018 signed a letter protesting their employers role in a US programme that used its AI technology to interpret video and refine the accuracy of drone strikes.

It led to the tech company laying down rules for how it deployed AI, including a list of applications we will not pursue, which included weapons development.

But in the last few years, Google has found some defence work, although the company insists it will not break its own rules.

The companys guidelines also ban using AI for surveillance, human rights violations and technology that is likely to cause overall harm.

Helen Kelisky, of Google Cloud, said: AI has potential to assist the ministry in a broad range of use cases, including cybersecurity, disaster response, and employee productivity. We look forward to helping Dstl in its commitment to using AI boldly and responsibly.

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Patna: After the resignation of Hindustani Awam Morcha leader Santosh Suman created a huge political storm in Bihar, the states ruling party has called his party a small shop that is not viable in the current political situation. The remark was made by Janata Dal-United national president Lalan Singh while also admitting that his party wants the merger of Hindustani Awam Morcha (HAM) into the JDU.

"We are trying the merger of HAM in JDU but Jitan Ram Manjhi did not agree to it and Santosh Suman has given his resignation from the post of cabinet minister. His resignation was accepted by the Chief Minister," Singh said. "... we are assuming that he has left the Mahagathbandhan," Singh said, adding that the JD-U proposed the merger as there is no benefit of "running small shops they are running".

Jolt To Mahagathbandhan In Bihar

cre Trending Stories

Santosh Suman tendered his resignation from the state cabinet on Tuesday alleging 'pressure' to merge his Hindustani Awam Morcha (HAM) with the Janata Dal (United). "I have sent my resignation to the chief minister and personally met Vijay Kumar Chaudhary (senior JD(U) leader and minister) to explain my point. I hope my resignation will be accepted. We are, though, not pulling out of the Mahagathbandhan," Santosh Suman told reporters earlier in the day.

Santosh Suman is the president of HAM and the son of former Bihar Chief Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi. He held the SC and ST welfare portfolio in Nitish Kumar's Mahagathbandhan cabinet of Bihar.

After tendering his resignation, Suman also pointed out that his father, who then headed the party, had decided to quit the NDA last year and join the Mahagathbandhan because of his loyalty towards Nitish Kumar. "It is for the CM to decide whether we be kept in the Mahagathbandhan or expelled. We will decide accordingly. But in view of the JD(U)'s proposal, I had to take a decision to save my party from extinction. Hence I resigned," he said.

Meanwhile, JDU leader Vijay Kumar Chaudhary said that he has a copy of Suman`s resignation letter, in which Suman cited "personal grounds" as the reason for his resignation. "He is not a minister anymore and not in Mahagathbandhan. If two parties merge together, it will make a stronger party. While the entire country is getting united, he is thinking otherwise," Chaudhary added.

Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Yadav said, "CM Nitish Kumar has given all the respect to Jitan Ram Manjhi. He had made him the Chief Minister. His son was given the post of cabinet minister..."
New Delhi: In today's success story we shall talk about MA Yusuff Ali who started as an employee at a grocery shop run by his relative and is now considered retail king of Middle East.

MA Yusuff Ali Aspired To Become Lawyer

MA Yusuff Ali, born on November 15, 1955, in Kerala's Thrissur. Young Yusuf had dreamt of beoming a lawyer, however hailing from a business family, he also finally entered business. At around 15-16, he joined his father in Ahmedabad in Gujarat where the latter used to run a grocery shop. Yusuf also earned a diploma in busines administration at 18 and was simultaneously preparing to leave for Dubai where his relative was running a grocery shop. The early 1970s was the era when many people from India, especially southern part of the country were leaving for the middle-east in search of better livelihood and career opportunity.



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MA Yusuff Ali Worked At A Relative's Grocery Store In Abu Dhabi

Yusuf reached Dubai in 1973 and from there left for Abu Dhabi. At the same time as being employed in his relatives grocery store, he was also keenly observing the FMCG market and how export and import business was carried out. Yusuf visited places like Australia, Hong Kong, Singapore to learn the tricks and trades of supermarkets/hypermarkets chains. At the age of 34 he opened his first supermarket in Abu Dhabi which got the much needed boost for his future ventures. In 1995 he opened the biggest supermarket in Abu Dhabi and was noticed by the UAE government and even the King.

Today MA Yusuff Ali is a billionaire Indian businessman who presides over $7.5 billion (revenue) LuLu Group International, having 272 stores and retail centers throughout the Gulf and abroad. The company employs the largest number of Indians outside India.

MA Yusuff Ali was ranked first among the Top 100 Indian businesspeople in the Arab World for 2018 by Forbes Middle East.

MA Yusuff Ali, The Founder Of Lulu Group

MA Yusuff Ali launched his business in India by opening Lulu Convention Centre cum hotel in Keralas Thrissur in 2006. He purchased 49.99% of the Catholic Syrian Bank (CSB) and Dhanlaxmi Bank in 2013. He boosted his ownership of the Federal Bank, situated in Aluva, to 4.47 percent that same year. The first mall owned by Lulu Group opened in Kochi in 2013. In 2014, he purchased a 2% interest in South Indian Bank. Yusuff Ali opened a new shopping centre in Kerala in 2019. Then he expanded and opened malls in Lucknow and Bengaluru. According to reports, a member of the Abu Dhabi royal family paid $1 billion for a 20% share in LuLu in April 2020. According to another report, he intends to IPO the retail company in 2023.

The other possessions of the UAE-based billionaire include the Waldorf Astoria in Scotland and the Great Scotland Yard Hotel, the former headquarters of the U.K. Metropolitan Police, Forbes has reported.

MA Yusuff Ali Family And Children

MA Yusuff Ali is married, has three kids and resides in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. His daughter Shafeena is married to Adeeb Ahamed, the person behind Lulu International Exchange and Twenty14 Holdings, while his other daughter Sabeena is married to wealthy businessman Shamsheer Vayalil.

M A Yusuff Ali's Realtime Net Worth

As per Forbes Realtime Billionaire Index figures, M A Yusuff Ali's realtime net worth as of 14-06-2023 is USD 5.2 billion (4,27,93,14,00,000.00 Indian Rupee approximately).
Hyderabad: Senior Congress leader Hanumantha Rao has said that Congress will win both the assembly elections in Telangana as well as the general elections in 2024. He also accused BJP of not taking any action against Andhra Pradesh CM Jagan Mohan Reddy despite flagging corruption allegations. Speaking to ANI, Rao said, "Amit Shah went to Andhra Pradesh and said that Jagan's government is full of corruption. The Union Home Minister has investigation agencies like CBI and ED in his hands, but he didn't take any action. He just goes and says things like these.

"If Jagan Mohan Reddy is involved in corruption, why is he not behind bars? Why have you not exposed his corruption? Why haven't you used the weapons you have?" he added.

The Congress leader said that despite all the efforts by "BJP's shop" won't be opened in Khammam while that of BRS will get closed.

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"Amit Shah will come to Khammam and throw similar corruption allegations. Whatever happens, the seat of Khammam belongs to Congress. The shop of BJP will not open in Khammam and the shop of BRS is about to be closed. In coming days, Congress will get a majority in Khammam, we will form a government in Telangana and also in the country," he said.

Rao added, "When Congress comes into power, we will conduct a caste-wise census and also increase the OBC reservation. We are celebrating the birthday of Rahul Gandhi on June 19. All people in all villages should perform palabhishekam for Rahul Gandhi on that day."

He further said that Congress will win both assemblies as well as the parliamentary elections.

"The farmers had staged a protest for 1 year, have they given minimum support price? What about the 2 crore job and Rs 15 lakhs to each account? They are just playing with the lives of people by privatising everything. Both BRS and BJP will be defeated and Congress will win in Telangana and also in the parliamentary elections," he said.
A man facing charges of orchestrating a religious conversion racket has been found to have 30 contacts from Pakistan saved on his phones, according to local police. Shahnawaz Khan, known as Baddo, was also discovered to be in possession of at least six email accounts, with one inbox containing emails from Pakistan. These findings have prompted further investigation into the accused's activities. In order to gather additional evidence, the police have seized Khan's two mobile phones and his CPU. It was revealed that Khan had been operating six different email accounts, including two that were purchased for online gaming purposes, said DCP city Nipun Agarwal. Khan was recently transferred from Maharashtra's Thane on a transit remand and was subsequently sent to 14-day judicial custody by a Ghaziabad court on Tuesday.

The DCP announced that the cybercrime cell is currently analyzing the 30 phone numbers found in Khan's possession to uncover more details about his Pakistani connections. If any incriminating evidence is discovered in relation to these phone numbers, the police will invoke the National Security Act against Khan.

Presently, Khan is being held in the district jail, but the police are planning to request his remand from the district court to facilitate further interrogation. The investigation began after a resident of Kavi Nagar reported on May 30 that his son had been enticed to convert to Islam through an online gaming application. Following this complaint, Khan was apprehended in Maharashtra's Alibagh, Raigad district, at a relative's residence. Khan, originally from Mumbra Township in Thane, was granted transit remand by a court in Thane on Monday, allowing the Uttar Pradesh Police to take him into custody.



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Indian Navy SSR Recruitment 2023: The official notification for the recruitment of agniveers has been released by the Indian Navy. Now that the number has increased, there are 4165 open positions overall (with a limit of 833 women only). Male and female candidates who are not married are invited to apply online for the Indian Navy Agniveer SSR 02/2023 and 01/2024 Batch positions. As of May 29, 2023, you can apply online for the Indian Navy Agniveer SSR Recruitment.

Indian Navy SSR Jobs 2023: Total Vacancies

Prior to the new notice being published on June 12th, there were a total of 1365 open positions; the new notice expanded those positions to 4165 (with a maximum of 833 women exclusively). The Indian Navy Agniveer Recruitment 2023 Notification PDF includes comprehensive information on the openings, qualification standards, pay scale, test methodology, etc.



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Indian Navy Vacancies 2023: Important Dates

Activity Details Notification Release Date 19 May 2023 Online Registration Open for all candidates 29 May 2023 Application Window for Agniveer Batch 2023 29th May 2023 to 15th June 2023 Examination & Physical Fitness To be notified Medical & Joining To be notified Training Agniveer 02/23 batch  Nov 23

Agniveer 01/24 batch  Apr 24 at INS Chilka, Odisha

Indian Navy Agniveer Recruitment 2023: Qualification

The candidates should have earned their 10th or 12th-grade diplomas from boards of school education accredited by the Ministry of Education, Government of India, in Math, Physics, and at least one of Chemistry, Biology, or Computer Science. The candidate must have been born between November 1, 2002, and April 30, 2006, both inclusive.

Indian Navy Agniveer Jobs 2023: Here's how to apply

Visit the official website of the Indian Navy.

Navigate to the main page.

Look for the Apply Online link and click on it.

Provide the required information, including your Email Id, Password, and Captcha code.

If you are a new applicant, click on the new user link.

The system will generate a password and send it to your activated Email id.

Once you receive the password, log in to your account.

Apply for the Indian Navy Agniveer Recruitment 2023.

After completing the application, download the Indian Navy Agniveer Recruitment 2023 Application Form.

Keep a hard copy of the form for future reference.

Indian Navy Jobs 2023: Application Fees

The candidate must pay the examination cost of Rs. 550/- (Rupees Five Hundred Fifty Only) plus 18% GST during the online application process using net banking, Visa, Master, RuPay Credit, Debit Cards, or UPI.
Jayasri Groups have firmly established themselves as pioneers in the realm of electric vehicles (EVs) in India. As a one-of-its-kind service in the nation, we are dedicating significant resources and are committed to continuous, ongoing research and development.

Our team stays current on the newest technological breakthroughs in the EV market around the world, ensuring that our services remain relevant and cutting-edge.

What are the hurdles existing in the current EV market?

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We have identified four major problems that are now limiting public acceptance of EVs. Addressing and overcoming these challenges, we believe, will pave the way for a cleaner, greener future, with electric vehicles at the forefront.

The following issues demand immediate attention:

1. Limited Distance Range: EV motorists now encounter limitations when attempting to travel large distances because their vehicles are designed primarily for local, short-distance trips. Improving EV range will be critical in increasing acceptance of this environmentally friendly method of transportation.

2. Battery Safety: The lack of fireproof, safe, and explosion-proof batteries in the EV industry now constitutes a serious safety risk for potential EV customers.

The development and execution of superior battery technology will be critical in assuaging these fears and rebuilding customer confidence.

3. Service Infrastructure: There is a significant lack of dedicated service facilities for electric vehicles, which can make maintenance and repairs difficult for EV owners. Creating a strong service infrastructure will ensure that EV owners receive reliable support and maintenance for their vehicles.

4. Value for Money: It is critical to ensure that clients receive the finest possible product for their investment in an electric vehicle. As the EV industry expands, consumers must have confidence in the quality, performance, and value of their selected electric vehicle.

Addressing Identified Challenges in the EV Sector: Solutions Provided by Jayasri Groups.

The Jayasri Groups has worked extensively to create unique solutions to the four key difficulties highlighted in the electric vehicle (EV) sector. Our initiatives demonstrate our commitment to addressing these challenges and encouraging the mainstream adoption of EVs.

The following are the primary solutions we provide:

1. Long-Distance Travel: The Jayasri Groups allows EV owners to travel long distances without worrying about running out of battery power. We are actively working to create 3,569 fast charging stations in Andhra Pradesh, with the potential to increase this number dependent on demand.

2. Battery Safety: After vital research, the Jayasri Groups has developed a ground-breaking, non-explosive AI-based battery technology solution. This system, which includes a Smart BMS, is ARAI-approved Phase II and seeks to develop trust among EV customers by addressing their safety concerns.

3. Service Infrastructure: We take pride in providing a superior level of service in the industry. Please visit our website at www.jayasrigroups.in for additional information on the comprehensive assistance we offer, or visit our YouTube channel at https://www.youtube.com/jayasrigroups.

4. Uniform Pricing: Jayasri Groups, unlike other showrooms, ensures that pricing is uniform depending on the vehicle model across all 639 showrooms in the entire state. We are committed to offering all customers with affordable and transparent pricing, regardless of location.

Key Pillars of Jayasri Groups: Setting New Standards in Customer Satisfaction with Unmatched EV Services, Vast Charging Infrastructure, and a Variety of Vehicle Options:

1. Broad Vehicle Range:

Jayasri Groups is dedicated to providing a wide range of electric vehicles, assuring a perfect fit for each individual's needs and preferences. Among our numerous selections are a number of carefully tested models from renowned companies. This broad selection supports our customers by allowing them to select the vehicle that best meets their lifestyle, needs, and budget. Jayasri Groups strongly believes in customer focus and empowering our clients to make the best informed and appropriate decision when purchasing an electric vehicle.

2. Extensive Charging Network:

Jayasri Groups has launched a record-breaking effort to install 3,569 fast charging stations in Andhra Pradesh. We aim to eliminate the 'range anxiety' that bothers EV users by ensuring a charging station installed in every prominent location in close vicinity, giving them the comfort and confidence to conduct long journeys without the worry of running out of power. This network will transform the EV industry, making electric vehicles even more feasible and motivating to consumers.

3. Committed After-Sales Service:

Jayasri Groups is committed to offering a great client experience that extends beyond the purchase of a vehicle. We promise 100% service and maintenance assistance to our customers with a large after-sales service network across all 639 showrooms (Test Ride Zones). Our professional staff assist customers every step of the way, from routine check-ups to complete maintenance, and vehicle assistance ensuring their EV ownership is seamless and worry-free. This wide network, together with a team of 600 technicians, positions us to provide top-tier support, confirming our position as an EV industry pioneer. This degree of dedication to client satisfaction truly sets apart Jayasri Groups in the EV market.

4. Efficient Backup Services:

Jayasri Groups stands out itself with a large inventory of spare parts and a specialized fleet of service vehicles, ensuring prompt assistance in the event of a vehicle breakdown.

5. Strong Showroom Network:

We know the value of customers and dealers, this is why we are planning to set a new standard by launching a wide network of 639 showrooms. This strategically distributed network spans every region in Andhra Pradesh, ensuring that our premium EV solutions and services are easily accessible to all clients. This program benefits not only customers but also future dealers, establishing Jayasri Groups as a truly inclusive and customer-centric company in the EV business.

Roadmap for Jayasri Groups Future Initiatives:

1. Ongoing R&D and Collaboration: Jayasri Groups is committed to pursuing frequent national and international research and development activities in the field of electric vehicles. We hope to deliver cutting-edge automobiles equipped with high-end technology for the benefit of the public by creating collaborations with a number of companies that are key players in the EV industry continuously evolving and innovating.

2. Broad Range of Vehicle Offerings: To meet the diverse needs of its customers, Jayasri Groups works with respected firms to provide a wide range of vehicle types. Before being made accessible to consumers, these vehicles are subjected to extensive inspections to guarantee they meet our quality standards and exacting requirements.

3. Collaboration with International Companies: Jayasri Groups is forming an alliance with German technology industry experts to develop a manufacturing plant in India as part of the prestigious Bharat Project. This agreement will make it easier to manufacture and export advanced technology vehicles to other nations, strengthening India's position in the global EV industry.

Overview of Advanced Smart BMS Technology:

Jayasri Groups has created a cutting-edge AI-based battery with advanced error detection capabilities. This advanced technology enables prompt maintenance and repair, addressing potential concerns and improving overall battery safety.

With its unique features including auto cut-off and temperature sensors, the AI system is intended to detect temperature abnormalities and initiate preventive measures to limit the risks associated with battery problems, minimizing potential hazards such as explosions.

The AI-based battery technology is equipped with Advanced Smart BMS and to support this Grid network charging is being launched for the first time. It uses cloud computing to monitor battery health in real-time, delivering directives as needed to

optimize performance and ensure maximum safety. The incorporation of cloud-based AI technology not only improves the user experience but also enables predictive maintenance and battery life extension through optimized utilization.

Message from the Chairman:

Sri Sambasiva Rao, Chairman of Jayasri Groups, said, "We are thrilled to introduce India's first non-explosive AI-based battery." Our innovative technology offers exceptional safety features and could have a significant impact on the EV battery market. "

"This breakthrough marks a milestone in battery safety and demonstrates our commitment to addressing critical challenges faced by EV riders."

Jayasri Groups has established partnerships with renowned EV firms who are advancing in this sector with research and innovation, positioning itself as a leader in the competitive Indian EV market.

Jayasri Groups is known for its commitment to excellence and customer satisfaction. With partnerships with several top brands, Jayasri Groups provides customers access to the latest technological innovations. The company is dedicated to harnessing technology to address key challenges faced by society and contribute to India's technological progress.

In conclusion, the Jayasri Groups is always ready to bring you the most recent developments in electric vehicle technology from across the world. We are involved in continuous research and development to achieve this. We are able to deliver these advancements to India because of our open partnerships with national and international businesses.

Media Contacts:

Raja Manyam: 9281109374

Rahul Sharma: 9281109375

For complete details, contact us at:

Jayasri Groups,

2-34, Near Ankalamma Temple, Ubalanka Road,

C/o Satti Somireddy, Ravulapalem,

East Godavari, Andhra Pradesh-533238

Email: jayasrigroups@gmail.com Website: jayasrigroups.in

(This article is part of IndiaDotCom Pvt Lts Consumer Connect Initiative, a paid publication programme. IDPL claims no editorial involvement and assumes no responsibility or liability for any errors or omissions in the content of the article.)
The official quarters belonging to Nemcha Kipgen, a prominent Manipur minister and leader of the Kuki community, were engulfed in flames late Wednesday night when unidentified individuals set the residence on fire, according to officials. Fortunately, no one was present inside the quarters at the time of the incident. Prompt action by firefighters prevented the blaze from spreading to neighboring properties. In a separate incident, a village in the Khamenlok area of strife-ridden Manipur was subjected to a violent attack, resulting in the death of nine individuals and leaving ten others injured, as confirmed by officials. Suspected miscreants encircled the Kuki village located on the border of Imphal East district and Kangpokpi district, launching their assault at approximately 1 am. The ensuing gun battle led to casualties and injuries on both sides, with three persons reported as missing. The area where the attack occurred lies at the confluence of Meitei-dominated Imphal East district and the tribal-majority Kangpokpi district.

As a precautionary measure, authorities have adjusted the curfew relaxation hours in Imphal East district and Imphal West district. The usual relaxation period from 5 am to 6 pm has been shortened to 5 am to 9 am. Currently, curfew remains in effect in 11 out of the 16 districts of Manipur, while internet services across the entire northeastern state have been suspended. It is worth noting that the ongoing ethnic violence between the Meitei and Kuki communities in Manipur, which erupted a month ago, has already claimed the lives of over 100 individuals and left 310 others injured. The state has witnessed the deployment of army and para-military personnel to restore peace. The clashes initially broke out on May 3 following a 'Tribal Solidarity March' organized in the hill districts to protest the Meitei community's demand for Scheduled Tribe (ST) status.

Manipuri society is comprised of Meiteis, constituting approximately 53 percent of the population and primarily residing in the Imphal Valley, and Nagas and Kukis, who make up around 40 percent of the population and inhabit the hill districts.



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In a tragic incident that has sent shockwaves through both Hyderabad and London, a 27-year-old student from Hyderabad was brutally stabbed to death in Wembley, London. Kontham Tejaswini, who had traveled to London to pursue higher studies, was attacked at a residential property on Tuesday morning. The assailant, identified as a Brazilian man who had recently moved into the shared accommodation, carried out the heinous crime. The Metropolitan Police swiftly responded to the scene, arresting two individuals on suspicion of murder. While Tejaswini tragically lost her life, another woman sustained non-life-threatening injuries. The investigation is now underway to uncover the details of this devastating incident.

1. Tragic Incident: Hyderabad Student Fatally Stabbed in London's Wembley

- Kontham Tejaswini, a 27-year-old woman pursuing higher studies, brutally attacked at a residential property.

- The assailant, a Brazilian man who had recently moved into the shared accommodation, committed the crime.



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2. Fatality and Injuries: Victim Dies on the Spot, Another Woman Hospitalized

- Tejaswini tragically succumbed to her injuries, while a 28-year-old woman was taken to the hospital with non-life-threatening stab wounds.

- The incident occurred at Neeld Crescent in Wembley, London.

3. Suspects Apprehended: Arrests Made in Connection with the Murder

- A 24-year-old man and a 23-year-old woman were arrested at the scene on suspicion of murder.

- The man remains in custody, while the woman has been released without further action.

- Additionally, a 23-year-old man has now also been arrested in connection with the case.

4. Investigation Underway: Fast-Moving Probe Launched

- Detective Chief Inspector Linda Bradley assures the public that a dedicated team of detectives is diligently investigating the incident.

- Authorities express gratitude to the public for their cooperation and appeal for information related to the case.

5. Victim's Background: Tejaswini's Pursuit of Higher Education in London

- Tejaswini, a resident of Hyderabad, had traveled to London in March last year to pursue her Master's degree.

- Her tragic demise has left family and friends devastated.

6. Community Concerns: Reassurances from Police

- The incident has raised significant concerns within the community.

- Detective Chief Inspector Linda Bradley reassures the public that the investigation aims to establish a clear understanding of the events.

7. The Attack: Details of the Tragic Incident Unfold

- The fatal assault took place on Tuesday, June 13, 2023, around 10 am (BST) at Tejaswini's residence in Neeld Crescent, Wembley.

8. Victim's Family Devastated: Grief Grips Hyderabad

- Family members in Hyderabad express their shock and sorrow upon receiving news of Tejaswini's brutal attack and subsequent death.

- Emergency treatment was provided to Tejaswini, but she could not be saved.

9. Another Victim: Woman Injured but Stable

- Alongside Tejaswini, another woman was also attacked at the scene.

- She was immediately taken to a hospital, where she received treatment for her stab wounds and is currently in stable condition.

10. Brazilian Man Arrested: Investigations Continue

- The UK Metropolitan Police have arrested a 23-year-old Brazilian man as a suspect in the murder.

- An ongoing investigation is underway to determine the circumstances surrounding the tragic incident.
Introduction:

Smita Sabharwal, a distinguished Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer of the 2001 batch, hailing from the Telangana cadre, has garnered widespread acclaim as "The People's Officer" for her proactive approach to addressing citizen issues. Notably, she holds the distinction of being the first female IAS Officer appointed to the Chief Minister's Office. Currently serving as the Secretary to the Chief Minister of Telangana, she also assumes additional responsibilities as the Secretary of the Rural Water Supply and Sanitation Department, also known as the Mission Bhagiratha Department.

Early Life and Education:

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Born on June 19, 1977, Smita Sabharwal grew up in a Bengali family in Darjeeling, West Bengal. Her father, Colonel Pranab Das, served in the Indian Army, and her mother, Purabi Das, provided a nurturing environment for her development. Smita completed her schooling at St. Ann's High School in Secunderabad, where she excelled academically, emerging as the all India topper in the Indian Certificate of Secondary Education (ICSE) examination. Subsequently, she pursued her higher education in commerce at St. Francis College for Women in Hyderabad.

A Stellar Career:

Smita Sabharwal's journey towards becoming a prominent IAS officer commenced when she cleared the highly competitive Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) exam in 2000, securing an impressive All India fourth rank. Following her successful entry into the civil services, she underwent rigorous administrative training at the prestigious Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration in Mussoorie in 2001. During her probationary period, she gained invaluable experience through her training in Adilabad district.

Professional Accomplishments:

Throughout her career, Smita Sabharwal has held several key positions that have contributed to her reputation as an efficient and visionary leader. Her first independent charge was as Sub Collector in Madanapally, Chittoor, where she honed her skills in Land Revenue Management and District Administration. Later, she worked as the Project Director of the District Rural Development Agency (DRDA) in Kadapa, focusing on rural development initiatives.

As the Municipal Commissioner of Warangal, Smita Sabharwal introduced the innovative "Fund your City" scheme, which facilitated the creation of numerous public amenities such as traffic junctions, foot-overbridges, bus stops, and parks through Public-Private Partnerships (PPP). Subsequently, she served as the Deputy Commissioner of Commercial Taxes in Visakhapatnam.

In April 2011, Smita Sabharwal assumed the role of District Collector in Karimnagar district, where she spearheaded remarkable advancements in the healthcare and education sectors. Her notable health initiative, "Ammalalana," aimed at improving institutional deliveries in the public sector, became a model for similar programs across India, targeting high-risk pregnancy management, infant mortality rates (IMR), and maternal mortality rates (MMR). This initiative garnered recognition and was nominated for the Prime Minister's award for excellence in public administration.

During her tenure as District Collector, Karimnagar witnessed a transformational facelift, with the collaboration of public representatives. The town saw the development of wider roads, well-planned traffic junctions, bus stops, toilets, and other public utilities. As a result, Karimnagar district earned accolades as the best district in the Prime Minister's 20 Point Programme for 20122013. Smita Sabharwal also pioneered the "Voter Panduga" program, aimed at increasing voter turnout
Vande Bharat Express train's presence in India is growing consistently. The train is currently operational on 17 routes and is set to get more in multiple states. As a part of this expansion, a new train unit will be launched between Secunderabad and Nagpur. Reports suggest the new unit's plans to launch under South Central Railway (SCR) are still underway. Once launched, the train is expected to reduce travel time while covering the 581 km distance between the two cities.

Currently, the average travel time between Secunderabad and Nagpur stands at around 10 hours. However, with the semi-high-speed train, the time will come down to around 6 hours and 30 minutes. It is to be noted that the authorities have already conducted a trial run on the route and have deemed it fit for the operations of the semi-high-speed train.

Also read: Cyclone Biparjoy: Indian Railways Cancels 95 Trains Till June 15 - Check Full List Here



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Once operational, the train will cover multiple districts between the two cities, including Adilabad, Karimnagar, Warangal, and some cities of Maharashtra. Expectations are the Secunderabad-Nagpur Vande Bharat Express will have stops at Kazipet, Ramagundam, Mancherial, Sirpur Kagaznagar, and Balarshah. However, the details have not been confirmed yet.

Secunderabad currently already has two Vande Bharat Trains improving its connectivity with different cities. Specifically, the train is currently operated on Secunderabad-Visakhapatnam and Secunderabad-Tirupati routes. Furthermore, the trains on these routes have been successful with high-occupancy routes.

The indigenously developed Vande Bharat Express train is loaded with modern amenities and facilities for passengers, like a GPS-based passenger information system, automatic sliding doors, reclining seats, CCTV cameras, diffused LED lighting, and charging ports. Furthermore, the train is capable of going up to 180 kmph at top speed and currently operates at high speed on a few routes.

Meanwhile, Indian Railways is also set to launch the semi-high-speed train on the Patna-Ranchi route. The train recently completed its trial run on the route. During the test, the train started its journey from Patna Junction and arrived in Ranchi via Gaya Junction. Railways will soon make the details of the train public, including the details of fare and scheduled stops on between the two cities. Once operational, it will be the first Vande Bharat Express train unit operating in Bihar.
Over the last year, a good number of insiders have significantly increased their holdings in Nicolet Bankshares, Inc. (NYSE:NIC). This is encouraging because it indicates that insiders are more optimistic about the company's prospects.

While we would never suggest that investors should base their decisions solely on what the directors of a company have been doing, we would consider it foolish to ignore insider transactions altogether.

Check out our latest analysis for Nicolet Bankshares

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Nicolet Bankshares

In the last twelve months, the biggest single purchase by an insider was when Independent Director John Dykema bought US$757k worth of shares at a price of US$79.03 per share. That means that even when the share price was higher than US$75.83 (the recent price), an insider wanted to purchase shares. Their view may have changed since then, but at least it shows they felt optimistic at the time. In our view, the price an insider pays for shares is very important. As a general rule, we feel more positive about a stock if insiders have bought shares at above current prices, because that suggests they viewed the stock as good value, even at a higher price.

In the last twelve months Nicolet Bankshares insiders were buying shares, but not selling. You can see the insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year depicted in the chart below. If you click on the chart, you can see all the individual transactions, including the share price, individual, and the date!

There are plenty of other companies that have insiders buying up shares. You probably do not want to miss this free list of growing companies that insiders are buying.

Insiders At Nicolet Bankshares Have Bought Stock Recently

Over the last quarter, Nicolet Bankshares insiders have spent a meaningful amount on shares. Overall, three insiders shelled out US$107k for shares in the company -- and none sold. This makes one think the business has some good points.

Does Nicolet Bankshares Boast High Insider Ownership?

For a common shareholder, it is worth checking how many shares are held by company insiders. A high insider ownership often makes company leadership more mindful of shareholder interests. Nicolet Bankshares insiders own 13% of the company, currently worth about US$144m based on the recent share price. I like to see this level of insider ownership, because it increases the chances that management are thinking about the best interests of shareholders.

So What Does This Data Suggest About Nicolet Bankshares Insiders?

It is good to see recent purchasing. We also take confidence from the longer term picture of insider transactions. Along with the high insider ownership, this analysis suggests that insiders are quite bullish about Nicolet Bankshares. Looks promising! So while it's helpful to know what insiders are doing in terms of buying or selling, it's also helpful to know the risks that a particular company is facing. Every company has risks, and we've spotted 1 warning sign for Nicolet Bankshares you should know about.

If you would prefer to check out another company -- one with potentially superior financials -- then do not miss this free list of interesting companies, that have HIGH return on equity and low debt.

For the purposes of this article, insiders are those individuals who report their transactions to the relevant regulatory body. We currently account for open market transactions and private dispositions, but not derivative transactions.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.



This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.

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Reaffirming the inaugural speech of Rishi Sunak at the London Tech Week 2023, Rt Hon Kemi Badenoch MP, Secretary of State for Business and Trade and President of the Board of Trade said that the UK is open for international trade with technology firms from across the globe more than ever. The Trade Secretary was speaking the ministerial reception hosted for the delegates on the second day of the ongoing London Tech Week 2023. She also announced the launch of new global tech awards, the Unicorn Kingdom: Pathfinder Awards 2023 to promote tech startups in the country.

"Its a pleasure to be here at the flagship event for the Department for Business and Trade on the tenth anniversary of London Tech Week. This Government has a clear mission: to make the UK the most innovative economy in the world and cement our status as a Science and Technology Superpower. As the Business and Trade Secretary, I see it as my job to create the best possible business conditions to encourage innovative tech companies to start-up, invest and expand," said Kemi Badenoch.

The MP said that the winners of the awards will be flown to the UK and given support to help them accelerate their business growth. "Ladies and Gentlemen, we are open for business. And thats why Im excited to announce the launch of our new global tech awards, promoting the benefits of the UK ecosystem around the world. Building on the success of our Tech Rocketship Awards, our Unicorn Kingdom: Pathfinder Awards 2023 will identify the brightest and best tech companies around the world," added Badenoch.

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"The UKs technology landscape is diverse and thriving, with a vibrant startup culture and a robust ecosystem that fosters innovation and provides significant opportunities for investors. We are home to some of the worlds most successful tech companies, including DeepMind, Graphcore and Darktrace, to name just a few. Last year, the UK became just the third country in the world to have a tech sector valued at $1 trillion, with more unicorn billion-dollar tech startups being created than Germany, France and Sweden combined," she added.

Earlier, the UK PM Rishi Sunak, speaking the inaugural address of the London Tech Week 2023 said that the "AI has great power to make any country a global leader. UK Prime Minister spoke on the growing innovation in the technology sector and how it is surpassing any other industry in the world. United Kingdom is ranked 4th in the Global Innovation Index and the UK tech and digital ecosystem value has reached over $1 trillion in 2022, more than 17x the value ten years ago.
Airfares have dropped on several routes after Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia asked airlines to rein them, and as a result of this intervention, domestic airfares have declined by up to 60 percent.

"As a result of this intervention, prices have seen up to 60 percent decline. This is being monitored daily by the Minister himself," as per ministry sources on data by DGCA's Tariff Monitoring Unit. The official source further stated, "Airfares internationally have remained firm on account of various factors like the opening of markets after the pandemic and the resultant surge in demand, rise in ATF prices globally, supply chain disruptions on account of both Covid and Ukraine-Russia conflict... The rise in airfares has been mostly seen on select routes that were earlier being serviced by GoFirst.

Also read: Go First Extends Flight Cancellations Till June 16, Cites 'Operational Reasons'



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A meeting with the airlines was held on June 5, 2023, where airlines were strictly advised to self-regulate fares on certain select routes that have seen considerable surge pricing of late. A mechanism for ensuring reasonable pricing within the high reservation booking designator (RBD) will be devised by airlines."

"The DGCA is monitoring this. During any calamity, airlines need to keep a tight check on the pricing of air tickets in view of the humanitarian situation and monitor and control any surge in ticket prices to/from that region. In the case of the unfortunate Odisha tragedy, airlines were advised to provide free carriage (cargo) services to the families of the deceased," it stated.

Even in the case of Delhi - Ahmedabad, the Minimum D1 fares, which were as high as 60 percent till Monday, have come down to 20 percent, the report said.

Earlier on June 7, Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia said that airfares on certain routes from Delhi have been considerably reduced by 14 to 61 percent following the airlines' advisory group meeting.

Scindia explained that airlines have the authority to determine airfares, and various factors are considered, including market dynamics and season. The aviation industry employs an algorithm for pricing decisions.

"The airlines have been given rights to fix airfares which are market controlled. The aviation market in the country is season based. The rates are also fixed accordingly. If capacity is low and demand is high, and input costs are not reduced, then rates will be high. There is an algorithm to decide the fare," he said.

He further said that private airline companies also have their own social responsibility and there should be a limit to increasing fares across sectors. Further, clarifying and explaining the role of the aviation Ministry, he said, "The role of the ministry is that of a facilitator and not a regulator."

Scindia chaired the high-level meeting, which was called on June 5 by the airline's advisory group, where he urged airlines to self-regulate airfares and maintain reasonable price levels. "There have been some unforeseen incidents in Manipur, and now in Odisha, fare rates should be strictly monitored by airlines," Ministry advised airlines
A fire broke out near a departure gate of the Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport on Wednesday night, officials said. Firefighting arrangements were pressed into service to douse the blaze as panic-stricken passengers were moved to a safe place, they said. No casualty was reported.

The entire area inside the airport was engulfed with thick black smoke after the fire broke out at portal D near the 3C departure gate at around 9.12 pm. The fire was fully extinguished by 9:40 PM.

Also read: Union Minister Smriti Irani Shares Appreciation Post For IndiGo Cabin Crew: Check Pictures



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"Since there was a rush of passengers, airport authorities took no chance and used their firefighters to douse it. At the moment, it is under control, and the cooling process is being done," a police officer said.

There was a minor fire & smoke on the check in area portal D at 2112 pm. and fully extinguished by 2140 pm.

All passengers are evacuated safely and check in process suspended due to presence of smoke in the check in area.

Check in and operation will resume by 1015 pm. #  Kolkata Airport (@aaikolairport) June 14, 2023

Officials said after an initial investigation that short circuit could be the reason for the fire. In a tweet, the authorities stated, "All passengers have been safely evacuated, and the check-in process has been temporarily suspended due to the presence of smoke in the area. Check-in operations will resume by 10:15 PM."
BJP leader and Union Minister Smriti Irani recently traveled using the flight services of IndiGo. The Union Minister shared the news via her Instagram story. Furthermore, she appreciated the Indian Airlines' cabin crew for their sweet gesture of welcoming her onboard, along with a picture on the social media platform. It is to be noted that the details of her journey are not known.

Smriti Irani's Instagram story shows her holding a collage of pictures being handed over to her by the cabin crew dressed in blue. The collage also had a welcome message for the minister on the flight. The BJP leader also mentioned the names of the crew members in her post. Talking about the post, she said in the caption, "When someone's kindness helps start your day on a sweet note."

Also read: Go First Extends Flight Cancellations Till June 16, Cites 'Operational Reasons'



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Smriti Irani also reposted the article written by Sneha Jadhav, a member of the cabin crew. Sneha shared a photo of the present they gave her together with the Union Minister.

Currently, the BJP leader is in charge of the Ministry of Women and Child Development and has been currently surrounded by controversy over alleged intimidation and harassment of journalists.
World Blood Donar is observed annually on 14 June. The theme for World Blood Donor Day in 2023 is "Give blood, give plasma, share life, share often." This theme emphasises the value of routine, unpaid volunteer blood and plasma donations to maintain the safety of the blood supply for all patients in need.

In an exclusive conversation with Zee English, Dr Prasad Kuvalekar, Consultant Physician Internal Medicine at DPU Private Super Speciality Hospital, Pune shares how a simple act of kindness- donating blood can save a life. Keep reading to learn more.

Blood is only made from a factory called the human body. We are always in need of blood and blood products. One of the significant reasons for the constant scarcity of blood is the increasing demand due to the rise in the number of patients diagnosed with diseases today.



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The other reason for the invariable shortfall of blood is the shelf-life of blood. Packed red blood cells have to be used within 21 to 42 days of collection depending on the anticoagulant and preservative used, platelets within 5 to 7 days, and plasma within a year of collection before they expire and have to be discarded.

Hence the blood stores need to be replenished regularly to meet the constantly increasing demand for blood. Remember: blood used in an emergency, is blood on the shelf.

By sparing just 20 minutes of your time and making a blood donation, you get a lot of personal satisfaction and happiness knowing that you can save three lives.

A unit of blood donated is separated into three major components  red blood cells, platelets and plasma. These can be used for at least three patients  saving at least three lives. Other components such as white blood cells can be separated in special circumstances.

Importance of blood donation

Patients have survived because of your generous attitude to voluntarily come and donate blood. Each blood group is precious irrespective of whether you belong to the most common blood group or the rarest. The demand for blood is always high, and the price of saving lives is invaluable and worth its weight in diamonds.

It might be a matter of a tiny not-more-painful-than-an-ant-bite prick to you, but it is indeed a lifesaver for the sick patient receiving your blood on the other side. Yes, your blood donation can give a precious smile to somebodys face. One of the many good things about donating blood is it brings great joy and a sense of satisfaction to you.

Most of us want to make a positive difference in the lives of others  people we dont know; people we may never meet. Thankfully, theres a simple, safe and effective way to make the biggest difference of all: give blood.

World Blood Donor Day: Health benefits of donating blood

Wondering what you get out of donating blood other than a good nights sleep knowing you saved lives? First, you get a full body check-up done regularly. Your blood gets tested for hepatitis B and C infections, HIV, syphilis, and malaria.

Moreover, it is beneficial for the human heart and liver, lowers harmful cholesterol levels, and rejuvenates RBCs. Thats right! You get fresh new blood, version 2.0 of yourself.

It prevents excess iron stored and deposits in the body, stimulate blood cell production, burns calories (donating blood burns up to 650 calories every single time you donate because the body works to make fresh blood!) and not to mention the psychological benefits and the feel good factor after youve donated blood. These are one of the many advantages of donating blood.

Blood is a gift of life, and a blood donation is a real act of humanity. Excuses do not save lives, but blood donation does. Let us all get out there and donate blood and save lives. Let us go make a difference in peoples lives with this small kind of life-saving gesture.

In conclusion, donating blood is a uniquely powerful act. The blood you give could save the life of a woman suffering birth complications, revive and sustain a child with severe anaemia, facilitate urgent surgery, or provide critical support during a public health crisis.

It is a gesture made all the more significant given bloods core components are yet to be synthesized, making voluntary donation one of the most basic expressions of human solidarity possible.
New Delhi: The US, through the official state visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, is looking to convey that the relationship between India and America is of "positive strategic consequence", the White House has said. Prime Minister Modi arrives in Washington DC on a three-day state visit on June 21. The welcome ceremony and the state dinner along with an address to the Joint Session of the US Congress are scheduled for June 22. Speaking at a panel discussion during the annual 'India Ideas Summit' of the US India Business Council on Tuesday, Principal Deputy National Security Advisor Jon Finer said after years of strengthening ties across administrations, the US-India partnership is deeper and more expensive than ever. "The main message that we are looking to convey is that this is a relationship of positive strategic consequence," he said.

"We think we are much more deeply aligned and significantly converging with each other on numerous global issues and innumerable ways we can benefit each of our populations." "What you will see when Prime Minister Modi comes and is able to spend some time with President Joe Biden in this setting, is a modern relationship between two significant countries that will benefit their own people," Finer said.

He said in just eight days, President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden have the honour to receive the Prime Minister of India at the White House for an official state visit and dinner, which is the third such occasion for this administration.



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Also Read: PM Narendra Modi - Joe Bidens Relationship So Far: A Brief Overview

"I can tell you, ? how much he's looking forward to it, how much attention to detail is given at the very highest levels for governments and it's good evidence of that," he said. The two governments are deepening the strategic convergence, strengthening policy alignment to elevate and expand strategic technology and defence industrial cooperation, Finer said.

"We really believe that we now look instinctively to each other and more cooperatively, to uphold a free and open Indo-Pacific to drive innovation and to jointly tackle global challenges," the White House official said.

Observing that India and the US are natural partners, Finer said the two countries are ready to meet the challenges and seize the opportunities of this unique moment together.

Also Read: PM Narendra Modi To Get '21-Gun Salute' Welcome In White House; US Says Looking Forward

"Working with other like-minded partners, our countries will shape the future, working towards a world as more open and more prosperous, more secure, more stable, more resilient. This offers a brief overview of the highlights as we see them of the partnership that we are building," he said. India, being the major defence partner, saw the two countries consult regularly to assess regional developments and put in place an architecture to cooperate more closely through joint exercises, information sharing, logistics networks and interoperable communication systems, he said.

"We continue to strengthen India's status as a major defence partner through defence industrial cooperation that Co-develops and co-produces important military capabilities for both of our countries," Finer said.

"Second, our Strategic Technology Partnership. I know you're all aware of our pathbreaking initiative on critical emerging technologies, ICET,".

"Which has already catalysing government, business and university cooperation in defence space semiconductors, advanced telecommunications biotechnology, emerging technologies like AI and quantum to foster an open, accessible and secure technology ecosystem," he said. Finer said this technology ecosystem in areas such as 5G will offer other countries beyond just US-India advanced communications alternatives that are consistent with their shared democratic values.

"Third, is our work together on the clean energy transition, the United States and India share a common vision to decarbonise our economies and deploy clean energy, which is obviously reflected in all of our country's 2030 targets for climate action and energy," he said. In countries, the energy transition can be more consequential to the world than India and the US.

"Together, we are pushing each other to develop and deploy innovative solutions to strengthen climate security, expand peaceful uses of civil nuclear energy and unlock climate finance solutions, to mobilise the information technologies and the resources we need to create the clean energy economy of the future," Finer said.

"Fourth, as two of the world's foremost centres of innovation, we are driving prosperity together," he said, adding that bilateral trade last year was USD 191 billion, which has nearly doubled since 2014. India's G-20 presidency has brought renewed focus on strengthening multilateralism and international cooperation to tackle global challenges, and achieve UN Sustainable Development Goals, he said.

"Fifth, we are welcoming new education partnerships and taking steps to support the growing demand for travel between our countries," he said. The US mission last year issued 125,000 visas to Indian students which is a record, Finer said, adding that Indian students are on pace soon to become the largest foreign student community in the US.

"Our relationship is also grounded in values that are cherished by both our people and our founders: democracy, pluralism tolerance, openness and respect for human rights. "These enable us to work together and to work together with civil societies and NGOs, to build a more resilient, more peaceful, more secure, democratic society," Finer said.
Success Story: You couldn't be more mistaken if you believed that no one could become a billionaire by teaching others how to practice yoga. Acharya Balkrishna, CEO of Patanjali, is ranked seventh on the Hurun India Rich List for 2017. Forbes estimates that he has a staggering net worth of Rs 29,680 crore now. The chairman and CEO of the consumer goods company Patanjali Ayurved is Acharya Balkrishna. He is Baba Ramdev's right-hand guy and a yoga master. His wealth comes from the huge manufacturer of consumer goods, Patanjali Ayurved.

First Meeting With Baba Ramdev

Acharya Balkrishna, who was born on August 4, 1972, in Haridwar, was raised by Nepalese immigrants Sumitra Devi and Jay Vallabh Subedi. He met Ramdev while studying at Khanpur Gurukul in Haryana after returning to India.



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Acharya Balkrishna: Rose To Prominence

On January 5, 1995, Acharya Balkrishna, Baba Ramdev, and Acharya Karamveer established the Divya Yoga Mandir Trust. It was installed at the Kripalu Bagh Ashram in Haridwar. The three founded Patanjali Ayurved in 2006. The company's success was aided by Sunita and Sarwan Poddar, two of Baba Ramdev's devotees, and a loan they provided. For those who are unaware, Baba Ramdev has no stake in Patanjali Ayurved. He serves as the company's public face, though. Patanjali Ayurved is owned by Acharya Balkrishna to the tune of 94%. Despite owning a 94% interest in Patanjali Ayurved, Balkrishna doesn't receive a salary. Even on Sundays and other holidays throughout the year, he puts in 15 hours a day at his job.

Also Read: Indian Billionaire Buys One Of The World's Most Expensive Houses, It's Not Mukesh Ambani, Gautam Adani Or Ratan Tata

Baba Ramdev Fame

Due to Baba Ramdev's fame as a household name in northern India, the business was an immediate success. In the previous fiscal year, the company earned Rs. 886.44 crore in profit. The company reported 56 million dollars in revenue during 2012. It increased to $630 million in 2015. The business made Rs 9022 crore in revenue in 20192020. In the following five years, Patanjali Foods hopes to reach the Rs 50,000 crore turnover milestone. The corporation also aims to make Rs 5,000 crore in profits. The company has implemented an aggressive FMCG approach. Ruchi Soya was the name of the business. In 2019, it received a new name. Media reports state that the company wants to grow its FMCG industry. The company intends to launch new products such as premium dry fruits, premium biscuits and cookies, and white buffalo ghee.

Baba Ramdev and Acharya Balkrishna - The pair affect the lives of millions of Indians by teaching yoga, promoting ayurveda, and selling a wide variety of goods. They are prominent influencers and brand ambassadors of "Make in India" on social media, with a sizable following.
New Delhi: As powerful cyclone 'Biparjoy' approaches the Gujarat coast, authorities have evacuated 50,000 people from vulnerable areas in a massive operation and deployed disaster management personnel for relief and rescue measures in the state set to be most impacted by the second storm to hit it in just two years, officials said on Wednesday. With the cyclone, expected to make landfall near Jakhau port in Kutch district on Thursday evening, barrelling towards the Gujarat coast, parts of the Saurashtra-Kutch region received heavy rains accompanied by strong winds.

Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel took stock of the situation with senior officers, while at the central level, Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh separately reviewed the preparedness to deal with the impact of the cyclone. Nine talukas in Devbhumi Dwarka, Jamnagar, Junagadh, Porbandar and Rajkot districts received more than 50 mm of rainfall in the 24 hours ending on Wednesday morning.

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) said Biparjoy was set to change the path on Wednesday and begin moving north-eastwards towards Kutch and Saurashtra but it will still have landfall as a very severe cyclonic storm with wind speed ranging from 125-135 kmph, gusting to 145 kmph from morning to evening on Thursday. The Gujarat government has undertaken a massive exercise to evacuate people living in villages within a 10 km radius of the coast, with a special focus on Kutch which is likely to be worst affected by the cyclone, and move them to temporary shelters.



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Also Read: Cyclone Biparjoy: IMD Warns Of Extensive Damage In Gujarat; Know About Its Impact, Govt's Preparedness

The evacuation is in progress and is expected to be completed by Wednesday evening, officials said. "The cyclone is nearly 290 km away from Kutch at present. As a precautionary measure, we have already shifted nearly 50,000 people living in coastal areas to temporary shelters. The evacuation process is still on and the remaining 5,000 persons will be shifted by this evening to safer places" said State Commissioner of Relief, Alok Kumar Pandey.

Of the 50,000-odd evacuees, nearly 18,000 people were shifted to shelters in Kutch district while others were evacuated from Junagadh, Jamnagar, Porbandar, Devbhumi Dwarka, Morbi and Rajkot, Pandey told reporters in Gandhinagar. He said 18 teams of NDRF (National Disaster Response Force), 12 teams of SDRF (State Disaster Response Force), 115 teams of state road and building department, and 397 teams of the state electricity department have been deployed in different coastal districts.

Also Read: Live Updates | Cyclone Biparjoy: Nearly 44,000 Evacuated, Red Alert Issued As Cyclone 'Biparjoy' Moves Closer To Gujarat

"Officials of departments of Electricity and Road & Building have also reached designated spots to restore connectivity and power supply. We have also deployed teams carrying HAM Radio sets and satellite phones in the coastal region for better communication," said Pandey.


New Delhi: Things are getting heated between the Congress and Bharatiya Janata Party in the rup up to crucial assembly elections in Madhya Pradesh. Arun Yadav, the former head of the Madhya Pradesh Congress Committee, on Wednesday said that no matter which BJP leader is campaigning in the state, it won't return to power. Yadav went on to make a distasteful remark on Prime Minister Narendra Modi's deceased father saying "even if PM's father visists MP it won't affect the breeze of support for Congress".

Modi ji can come. His senior, if any, can come. Nadda ji is coming here anyway. Modis father can also come here if he wishes, we have no objection. But there is a breeze of support for Congress in Madhya Pradesh, for change - we can see this clearly, Arun Yadav can be heard saying in the video from a press coference on Wednesday.





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BJP Hits Back At Yadav

Reacting to Arun Yadav's remarks, Union Minister Mahendra Nath Pandey said, "BJP will win and that too under the leadership of PM Modi." Notably, BJP President JP Nadda is scheduled to visit Madhya Pradesh ahead of the state assembly elections later this year.

Also Read: CM Shivraj To Launch 'Ladli Behna Yojna' Ahead Of Priyanka's Rally In Jabalpur

The BJP has had an almost uninterrupted stint in power in State since 2003 except for when the Congress ruled for 15 months between the end of 2018 and early 2020 when the BJP toppled the Congress government with the help of Jyotiraditya Scindia in March.

Also Read: Bajrang Sena Merges With Congress Ahead Of Madhya Pradesh Assembly Polls

Scindia resigned from the Congress and joined the BJP in March 2020 and his move toppled the Kamal Nath government just 15 months after its formation, paving the way for the BJP to form government.
New Delhi: The Ashok Gehlot-led Rajasthan government on Tuesday suspended IAS and IPS officers along with five others for manhandling a hotel staff in the Ajmer district. The brawl reportedly took place post-midnight on Monday at the hotel Makrana Raj and was caught on CCTV cameras.

Those suspended have been identified as Ajmer Development Authority Commissioner Giridhar, Officer on Special Duty (Gangapur city police) Sushil Kumar Bishnoi, Patwari Narendra Singh Dahiya, constable Mukesh Kumar and lower division clerk Hanuman Prasad Chaudhary. A departmental inquiry has also been ordered against them.

In their complaint, the hotel management alleged that the officers and some policemen attacked the hotel staff with sticks. Both the officers were in an inebriated state during the fight, the complainant alleged.



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A case has now been registered at the Gegal police station of the Ajmer district and the probe is underway.

IPS officer denies charges

IPS officer Sushil Kumar Bishnoi, however, said that the hotel employees have made 'false' allegations.

He was recently appointed as the OSD of the newly-formed Gangapur district in Rajasthan.

Meanwhile, the Rajput community has reportedly given a memorandum to Rajasthan Tourism Development Corporation (RTDC) chairman demanding action against the police personnel.
Health tech companies have found it increasingly difficult to secure funding as of late, but that didn't stop Helium Health, a Nigerian health tech company, from reaching its goal.

Helium Health uses technology to efficiently and effectively manage healthcare records in Africa. It also provides access to credit for healthcare providers through HeliumCredit, which is where the company plans to invest a good portion of its funding round.

Don't Miss: Why Silicon Valley Elites Are Betting On This Startups Vision For Reuniting American Families

Additional Information On Helium Health And Its Funding Round

The series B funding round was led by AXA IM Alts with participation from Capria Ventures, Angaza Capital, 23andMe Inc. Founder Anne Wojcicki, and Flat World Partners. Previous investors  which include, Global Ventures, LCY Group, Ohara Pharmaceuticals Co. Ltd. and Tencent Holdings Ltd., among others  also participated in the round.

See Next: Thanks to changes in federal law, anyone can invest in healthcare startups

Launched in 2020, HeliumCredit provides credit facilities to healthcare entities, including hospitals, clinics, pharmacies and diagnostic centers, enabling them to acquire medical equipment, purchase medications and pursue business growth.

To date, Helium Health has issued over $3.5 million in credit to approximately 200 medical establishments via HeliumCredit.

In parallel with the announcement of its financial round, Helium Health revealed plans to introduce HeliumCredit in Kenya within the year. The firm also envisions expanding its credit portfolio to include 1,000 medical facilities by 2024, in cooperation with the U.S. International Development Finance Corp. (DFC).

"We believe in a future where good healthcare is a reality for all Africans, not just the few. We are deeply committed to supporting both private healthcare providers and public health stakeholders with finance, technology and data to achieve that vision. We are delighted to have such seasoned healthcare investors accompany us on our journey," said Adegoke Olubusi, Helium Health co-founder and CEO.



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Helium Health aspires to emerge as the top technology ally for public health organizations, aiding the execution of their programs and strategies across Africa. Previously, Helium Health garnered financial support from entities like the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and MSD for Mothers for the implementation of projects under their maternal health program strategies.

"We have seen firsthand the evolution of Helium Health over the years. The leadership team has a deep understanding of Africa's healthcare sector and knows how to build products that meet its nuanced needs," said Noor Sweid, managing partner of Global Ventures.

See more on startup investing from Benzinga.

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This article Nigerian Health Tech Company Helium Health Secures $30 Million In Series B Funding Round originally appeared on Benzinga.com

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 2023 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.
New Delhi: Honouring the contributions of legendary officer Lt Gen PS Bhagat, Indian Army chief Gen Manoj Pande on Wednesday said the treatment of Pakistani prisoners of war post-1971 war was so good that they wished that their officers were as good as their Indian counterparts in ensuring the welfare of the troops. "After the 1971 Indo-Pak War, 90,000 Pakistani Prisoners of War were to be housed in camps in central command (with Lt Gen Bhagat as commander in chief). This entailed urgent construction of shelters, provision of amenities, putting the logistics in place, ensuring security arrangements and coordination," Gen Pande said while addressing a memorial lecture.

He said Lt Gen Bhagat ensured that every amenity that the POWs were entitled to, including canteen stores, postal facilities, and medical coverage, was made available in the true spirit of the Geneva Convention. He said in some cases, Lt Gen Bhagat even ordered an accommodation occupied by his own troops, vacated for the prisoners of war.

Also Read: Who Is IT Minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar, The Intel Engineer Who Founded BPL Mobile Before Joining Politics

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"Hence, it was no surprise that Pakistani POWs had only praise for the way they were treated in India, and often remarked that they wished their officers were like Indian officers in the way they took care of their troops," Gen Pande said.

After the crushing defeat in the 1971 war, India had taken 90,000 Pakistan Army troops as prisoners after they surrendered before them. The defeat of the Pakistan Army led to the creation of Bangladesh, formerly East Pakistan.

Also Read: Who's Arifa Jan, Kashmiri Enterpreneur Behind Reviving Traditional Namda Craft, Training Over 100 Women

Lt Gen Niazi was the senior-most officer to surrender and had stayed in India for many months during which he, along with fellow prisoners of war, were well looked after by the neighbour.
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Wednesday refused to entertain a plea seeking to prevent a 'mahapanchayat' called by Hindu outfits in Uttarakhand and registration of an FIR against hate speeches allegedly targeting members of a particular community.

The 'mahapanchayat' is slated to take place on Thursday. A vacation bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Ahsanuddin Amanullah asked advocate Sharukh Alam to avail remedy available in law and granted her liberty to approach the high court or any other authority concerned.

"We are not short-circuiting the legal process. There is a high court and district administration, you can approach them. Maintaining law and order is the responsibility of the state government, why do you think no action will be taken if the matter is brought to its notice? You should have faith in the high court", the bench said.



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Alam stated that posters and letters have been written asking members of a particular community to leave Uttarkashi and despite their being a continuing mandamus in the matter of hate speeches that police have to register an FIR suo motu, no action has been taken.

"The material suggests that FIR needs to be registered under UAPA. A maha panchayat is scheduled to be held on June 15 and they have given an ultimatum to the district administration to remove members of a particular community by June 15", Alam said and urged the bench to look into the material before the court.

Communal tension has been brewing in Purola and some other towns of Uttarkashi district after two men, one of them Muslim, allegedly tried to abduct a Hindu girl on May 26. Subsequently, posters were pasted by unidentified people on shops owned by Muslims, asking them to leave the town before a 'mahapanchayat' called by Hindu organizations in Purola or face consequences.
New Delhi: The Indian Army paid tribute to one of its most illustrious officers, Lt Gen PS Bhagat, by organising the first Lieutenant General P S Bhagat Memorial Lecture on Wednesday. The lecture focused on the theme of Legacy of Lt Gen Prem Bhagat- A Visionary and Strategic Leader. The event was graced by General VP Malik (Retd), Former Army Chief, who delivered a keynote address and shared many inspiring stories from the life and career of Lt Gen Bhagat. The Chief of the Army Staff, General Manoj Pande, along with Former Chiefs General VN Sharma (Retd) and General M M Naravane (Retd), also attended the lecture, as well as senior veterans and serving officers and civilians. The aim of the lecture was to honour the contributions of Lt Gen Bhagat and to learn from his exemplary leadership and charisma.

Who Was Lt Gen PS Bhagat

Lt Gen PS Bhagat was a legendary soldier who served as the first General Officer Commanding-in-Chief of the re-raised Northern Command. He was also an outstanding professional and a prolific writer. He made history by becoming the first Indian soldier to receive the prestigious Victoria Cross in World War II, when he was a young second lieutenant. He displayed extraordinary courage and determination by clearing minefields under enemy fire for 96 hours without a break, despite suffering from an ear injury and three mine explosions.



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Also Read: Who Is IT Minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar, The Intel Engineer Who Founded BPL Mobile Before Joining Politics

'Saviour Of Lucknow'

Lt Gen Bhagat was also known for his innovative and humanitarian approach to various challenges. He saved the city of Lucknow from flooding in September 1971, by using trucks loaded with stones and boulders to plug the breach on the Gomti River. He earned the title of the saviour of Lucknow from the local newspapers for this feat.

Gracious Treatment Of Pak POWs Post 1971 War

He also treated the 90,000 Pakistani prisoners of war with dignity and respect after the 1971 Indo-Pak War, ensuring that they had all the amenities and facilities they were entitled to under the Geneva Convention. He even vacated some of his own troops accommodation for them. His gracious treatment of the POWs won their admiration and gratitude, and they wished that their officers were as good as their Indian counterparts in taking care of their troops.

Also Read: Who Is IAS Officer Niyaz Khan, The Pro-Brahmin Officer Who Wants Muslims To Go Vegetarian?

Lt Gen Bhagat was a visionary and strategic leader who left an indelible mark on the history of the Indian Army. His legacy is a source of inspiration and pride for all Indians. The Indian Army salutes him and remembers him with reverence and respect.
New Delhi: Actor Tirthanand Rao, who has worked with ace comedian-actor Kapil Sharma in Comedy Circus Ke Ajoobe, in a shocking turn of events, tried to allegedly end his life during a Facebook LIVE session. In the live video on his official Facebook page, Tirthanand accused his live-in partner of driving him to an extreme point. He made several shocking claims in the video and shared details of his troubled personal life.

In the Facebook LIVE video, Tirthanand Rao said, "I am in debt of Rs 3-4 lakh because of this woman. I have known her since October last year. She had filed a police complaint against me in Bhayandar and I didnt even know for what reason. Then she would also call me and say she wanted to meet."

"The woman is responsible for my current financial and emotional state," he added. The actor stated that the two were in a relationship since October, blaming her for his condition. He revealed that the woman has filed a police case against him and is allegedly threatening him to marry her.



cre Trending Stories

In the middle of his FB Live session, the actor drank insect repellant. Watching his troubled state of mind, reportedly his friends reached his house and he was rushed him to the hospital. Aajtak.in quoted a police constable as saying, "We saw that the door of his flat was open and a dog was also present in the room. When we called out to Tirthanand, we found him in a state of half-consciousness. We took him straight to the hospital."

Incidentally, this is not the first time that Tirthanand Rao has attempted to take an extreme step. In December 2021, he tried to end his life and in a similar Facebook Live video session made the revelation and called his assistant, as per News18.

(Disclaimer: If you need help or know someone who does, please reach out to the nearest mental health specialist or expert.)
New Delhi: Bollywood legend Dharmendra's grandson Karan Deol is all set to marry his girlfriend Drisha Acharya this month and the wedding festivity has already kickstarted with Roka ceremony which took place on Monday night in Mumbai. It was an intimate family affair and saw Deols under one roof. Sunny Deol did come out to greet the paps and did a photo-op session with brother Bobby Deol and cousin Abhay Deol.

WHEN IS KARAN DEOL'S WEDDING - DATE CONFUSION

Well, looks like the grand big fat Punjabi wedding is on June 18, as per ANI but earlier there were some media reports carrying June 16 as the D-Day locked for the main event. Karan Deol and Drisha Acharya's wedding ceremony will take place at Taj Lands' End in Bandra, Mumbai reportedly. The bride and groom did manage to keep their wedding details under wraps till the very last minute. From their Roka ceremony, many pictures and videos later went viral on the internet. Karan and Drisha were seen cutting a huge four-tier white cake in one of the viral videos.

cre Trending Stories

Poonam Dhillon's daughter Paloma Thakeria was also pictured at the wedding.

WHO IS DRISHA ACHARYA?

According to IANS, Drisha, who's based out of Dubai, where she works at a travel agency, have been seeing each other for quite some time. They got engaged a couple of months back at a private ceremony and are going to get married this month. Drisha is the great-granddaughter of acclaimed filmmaker Bimal Roy. She is based in Dubai, where she works as a manager at a travel agency.

Karan made his Bollywood debut with 'Pal Pal Dil Ke Paas', directed by his father, recently got engaged to his ladylove on the occasion of the marriage anniversary of his grandparents Dharmendra and Prakash Kaur in a quiet ceremony attended by the two families. On Valentine's Day earlier this year, Karan was photographed in Dubai with a mystery woman, who was none other than Drisha Roy.

On the work front, Karan will be seen soon in 'Apne 2', which also stars his grandfather Dharmendra and uncle Bobby Deol.
Key Insights

Institutions' substantial holdings in North American Construction Group implies that they have significant influence over the company's share price

A total of 7 investors have a majority stake in the company with 50% ownership

Recent sales by insiders

Every investor in North American Construction Group Ltd. (TSE:NOA) should be aware of the most powerful shareholder groups. We can see that institutions own the lion's share in the company with 67% ownership. Put another way, the group faces the maximum upside potential (or downside risk).

Because institutional owners have a huge pool of resources and liquidity, their investing decisions tend to carry a great deal of weight, especially with individual investors. Hence, having a considerable amount of institutional money invested in a company is often regarded as a desirable trait.

Let's delve deeper into each type of owner of North American Construction Group, beginning with the chart below.

Check out our latest analysis for North American Construction Group

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About North American Construction Group?

Institutions typically measure themselves against a benchmark when reporting to their own investors, so they often become more enthusiastic about a stock once it's included in a major index. We would expect most companies to have some institutions on the register, especially if they are growing.

North American Construction Group already has institutions on the share registry. Indeed, they own a respectable stake in the company. This suggests some credibility amongst professional investors. But we can't rely on that fact alone since institutions make bad investments sometimes, just like everyone does. It is not uncommon to see a big share price drop if two large institutional investors try to sell out of a stock at the same time. So it is worth checking the past earnings trajectory of North American Construction Group, (below). Of course, keep in mind that there are other factors to consider, too.

Institutional investors own over 50% of the company, so together than can probably strongly influence board decisions. It looks like hedge funds own 12% of North American Construction Group shares. That's interesting, because hedge funds can be quite active and activist. Many look for medium term catalysts that will drive the share price higher. Mawer Investment Management Ltd. is currently the company's largest shareholder with 15% of shares outstanding. Meanwhile, the second and third largest shareholders, hold 7.9% and 7.7%, of the shares outstanding, respectively. Martin Ferron, who is the third-largest shareholder, also happens to hold the title of Chairman of the Board. In addition, we found that Joseph Lambert, the CEO has 1.0% of the shares allocated to their name.

On further inspection, we found that more than half the company's shares are owned by the top 7 shareholders, suggesting that the interests of the larger shareholders are balanced out to an extent by the smaller ones.

While it makes sense to study institutional ownership data for a company, it also makes sense to study analyst sentiments to know which way the wind is blowing. There are a reasonable number of analysts covering the stock, so it might be useful to find out their aggregate view on the future.

Insider Ownership Of North American Construction Group

While the precise definition of an insider can be subjective, almost everyone considers board members to be insiders. Management ultimately answers to the board. However, it is not uncommon for managers to be executive board members, especially if they are a founder or the CEO.

I generally consider insider ownership to be a good thing. However, on some occasions it makes it more difficult for other shareholders to hold the board accountable for decisions.

Our most recent data indicates that insiders own a reasonable proportion of North American Construction Group Ltd.. Insiders have a CA$72m stake in this CA$713m business. We would say this shows alignment with shareholders, but it is worth noting that the company is still quite small; some insiders may have founded the business. You can click here to see if those insiders have been buying or selling.

General Public Ownership

The general public, who are usually individual investors, hold a 12% stake in North American Construction Group. While this size of ownership may not be enough to sway a policy decision in their favour, they can still make a collective impact on company policies.

Next Steps:

It's always worth thinking about the different groups who own shares in a company. But to understand North American Construction Group better, we need to consider many other factors. Consider risks, for instance. Every company has them, and we've spotted 2 warning signs for North American Construction Group you should know about.

If you would prefer discover what analysts are predicting in terms of future growth, do not miss this free report on analyst forecasts.

NB: Figures in this article are calculated using data from the last twelve months, which refer to the 12-month period ending on the last date of the month the financial statement is dated. This may not be consistent with full year annual report figures.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.



This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.

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Investing in stocks inevitably means buying into some companies that perform poorly. But the long term shareholders of Grand City Properties S.A. (ETR:GYC) have had an unfortunate run in the last three years. Regrettably, they have had to cope with a 65% drop in the share price over that period. The more recent news is of little comfort, with the share price down 46% in a year. Furthermore, it's down 12% in about a quarter. That's not much fun for holders.

Since shareholders are down over the longer term, lets look at the underlying fundamentals over the that time and see if they've been consistent with returns.

Check out our latest analysis for Grand City Properties

In his essay The Superinvestors of Graham-and-Doddsville Warren Buffett described how share prices do not always rationally reflect the value of a business. By comparing earnings per share (EPS) and share price changes over time, we can get a feel for how investor attitudes to a company have morphed over time.

Grand City Properties saw its EPS decline at a compound rate of 38% per year, over the last three years. This fall in the EPS is worse than the 30% compound annual share price fall. This suggests that the market retains some optimism around long term earnings stability, despite past EPS declines.

The graphic below depicts how EPS has changed over time (unveil the exact values by clicking on the image).

It might be well worthwhile taking a look at our free report on Grand City Properties' earnings, revenue and cash flow.

What About Dividends?

When looking at investment returns, it is important to consider the difference between total shareholder return (TSR) and share price return. The TSR incorporates the value of any spin-offs or discounted capital raisings, along with any dividends, based on the assumption that the dividends are reinvested. Arguably, the TSR gives a more comprehensive picture of the return generated by a stock. We note that for Grand City Properties the TSR over the last 3 years was -60%, which is better than the share price return mentioned above. The dividends paid by the company have thusly boosted the total shareholder return.

A Different Perspective

Grand City Properties shareholders are down 43% for the year (even including dividends), but the market itself is up 6.4%. However, keep in mind that even the best stocks will sometimes underperform the market over a twelve month period. Regrettably, last year's performance caps off a bad run, with the shareholders facing a total loss of 9% per year over five years. We realise that Baron Rothschild has said investors should "buy when there is blood on the streets", but we caution that investors should first be sure they are buying a high quality business. I find it very interesting to look at share price over the long term as a proxy for business performance. But to truly gain insight, we need to consider other information, too. Take risks, for example - Grand City Properties has 6 warning signs (and 1 which shouldn't be ignored) we think you should know about.

We will like Grand City Properties better if we see some big insider buys. While we wait, check out this free list of growing companies with considerable, recent, insider buying.

Please note, the market returns quoted in this article reflect the market weighted average returns of stocks that currently trade on German exchanges.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.



This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.

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Many investors define successful investing as beating the market average over the long term. But in any portfolio, there are likely to be some stocks that fall short of that benchmark. Unfortunately, that's been the case for longer term Manawa Energy Limited (NZSE:MNW) shareholders, since the share price is down 35% in the last three years, falling well short of the market decline of around 8.0%. And over the last year the share price fell 26%, so we doubt many shareholders are delighted.

Since shareholders are down over the longer term, lets look at the underlying fundamentals over the that time and see if they've been consistent with returns.

See our latest analysis for Manawa Energy

While markets are a powerful pricing mechanism, share prices reflect investor sentiment, not just underlying business performance. One way to examine how market sentiment has changed over time is to look at the interaction between a company's share price and its earnings per share (EPS).

Although the share price is down over three years, Manawa Energy actually managed to grow EPS by 0.6% per year in that time. Given the share price reaction, one might suspect that EPS is not a good guide to the business performance during the period (perhaps due to a one-off loss or gain). Alternatively, growth expectations may have been unreasonable in the past.

It looks to us like the market was probably too optimistic around growth three years ago. Looking to other metrics might better explain the share price change.

Arguably the revenue decline of 37% per year has people thinking Manawa Energy is shrinking. After all, if revenue keeps shrinking, it may be difficult to find earnings growth in the future.

You can see below how earnings and revenue have changed over time (discover the exact values by clicking on the image).

We consider it positive that insiders have made significant purchases in the last year. Even so, future earnings will be far more important to whether current shareholders make money. This free report showing analyst forecasts should help you form a view on Manawa Energy

What About Dividends?

It is important to consider the total shareholder return, as well as the share price return, for any given stock. The TSR is a return calculation that accounts for the value of cash dividends (assuming that any dividend received was reinvested) and the calculated value of any discounted capital raisings and spin-offs. So for companies that pay a generous dividend, the TSR is often a lot higher than the share price return. We note that for Manawa Energy the TSR over the last 3 years was -19%, which is better than the share price return mentioned above. And there's no prize for guessing that the dividend payments largely explain the divergence!

A Different Perspective

While the broader market gained around 5.5% in the last year, Manawa Energy shareholders lost 23% (even including dividends). Even the share prices of good stocks drop sometimes, but we want to see improvements in the fundamental metrics of a business, before getting too interested. Longer term investors wouldn't be so upset, since they would have made 4%, each year, over five years. It could be that the recent sell-off is an opportunity, so it may be worth checking the fundamental data for signs of a long term growth trend. It's always interesting to track share price performance over the longer term. But to understand Manawa Energy better, we need to consider many other factors. Like risks, for instance. Every company has them, and we've spotted 2 warning signs for Manawa Energy (of which 1 makes us a bit uncomfortable!) you should know about.

Manawa Energy is not the only stock that insiders are buying. For those who like to find winning investments this free list of growing companies with recent insider purchasing, could be just the ticket.

Please note, the market returns quoted in this article reflect the market weighted average returns of stocks that currently trade on New Zealander exchanges.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.



This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.

Join A Paid User Research Session

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People making $250K a year in Portland pay more than $100K in taxes  here are the top 5 US cities where Uncle Sam hits high earners the hardest

People making $250K a year in Portland pay more than $100K in taxes  here are the top 5 US cities where Uncle Sam hits high earners the hardest

An annual income of $250,000 will put you firmly in the top 10% of earners in the U.S., but in some cities your purchasing power would be less than half of that figure due to taxes and the cost of living.

Don't miss

High-income earners in Portland, Oregon, are penalized the most in taxes when jumping from $100,000 in salary to $250,000, according to a new study by SmartAsset, a consumer-focused financial information provider.

People making $250,000 a year in Portland effectively pay about 41.1%, or at least $102,750, back in taxes, the study reveals. When adjusted for the local cost of living in the City of Roses, their purchasing power drops to $120,542.

Portland, however, is far more affordable compared to metropolitan hubs like New York City and San Francisco, where high income earners also face heavy tax hits but much steeper living costs.

Here are the top five U.S. cities where Uncle Sam hits high earners the hardest  and what you can do about it if you fall into that tax bracket.

Cities with the highest tax rates

On average, people making $250,000 per year in the 76 largest cities in the U.S. pay about 34% in taxes, according to the SmartAsset study.

Meanwhile, taxpayers who make $100,000 in the same 76 cities are subject to a tax rate thats nearly five percentage points lower at about 29.3%.

The five cities with the highest tax rates for $250,000 earners are:

Baltimore: 41.3%

Portland: 41.1%

New York: 39.5%

San Francisco: 39.5%

Honolulu: 38.5%

Portland was rated the least favorable city for high income earners because the tax rate spikes from 33.6% for those earning a $100,000 salary to 41.1% for those earning a $250,000 salary  a 7.5% jump and the highest increase in taxes between these salary levels in the 76 cities.

In comparison, residents with a $250,000 paycheck in New York, San Francisco and Honolulu are taxed roughly 6% more at this income level than those earning a $100,000 salary.

Read more: Americans refuse to let higher prices derail their travel plans  10 tactics to keep your summer vacation on budget

Purchasing power and the cost of living

You cant determine someones purchasing power just by looking at their tax rate. You also need to factor in the cost of living in their city.

This includes the price of housing, groceries, utilities, transportation and other goods and services. For this study, SmartAsset used cost of living index data from the Council for Community and Economic Research for the third quarter of 2022.

Despite having the highest tax rate for $250,000 earners, Baltimores cost of living is significantly lower than uber-expensive cities like New York, San Francisco and Honolulu  at just 8.1% higher than the national average, compared to 83.6%, 82.8% and 86%, respectively.

If you look at the price of housing alone, the average Baltimore home value is $178,704 as of June 12, according to Zillow. This pales in comparison to the average home values reported by Zillow in New York County, San Francisco and Honolulu  at $1,199,964, $1,273,464 and $799,779, respectively.

Its not surprising, then, that in Baltimore, a $250,000 salary goes a lot further  at $135,798  after factoring in taxes and cost of living, than in New York City, San Francisco and Honolulu, where the same salary feels more like youre making just short of $83,000 in all three cities, according to SmartAsset.

What can high income earners do about it?

If youre a high income earner feeling the brunt of Uncle Sams tax rates, you could consider moving to a city with a lower tax rate  but remember that employers could adjust your salary based on the cost of living in your new city or state.

If you earn $250,000 for a job in New York City, you might not retain that salary if you were to move and do the same job in Memphis, Tennessee, for instance, where SmartAsset notes the cost of living is 13.8% lower than the national average.

Most of the lowest effective tax rates on $250,000 are in places with no state income tax, such as Seattle and Spokane in Washington; Plano, Austin and Dallas in Texas; Miami and Orlando in Florida; Reno and Las Vegas in Nevada; and Nashville, Tennessee.

Its also important to note these cities often compensate for that tax revenue loss in other ways, like levying higher property or sales taxes. You have to understand the full picture before making a move.

If youre not keen to hit the road, there are other things you can do to manage your tax liability  like making the most of tax-friendly retirement vehicles.

For instance, you can max out your 401(k) with pre-tax contributions, which could lower your taxable income by $22,500 in 2023. If you dont have a retirement plan at work, you can contribute up to $6,500 ($7,500 for those 50 and older) to a traditional individual retirement account (IRA) this year, again lowering your taxable income.

If youre enrolled in a high-deductible health plan, you can also make a $3,850 tax-deductible contribution to a health savings account (HSA) in 2023  which has been described as the ONLY investment account that is truly 100% tax-free.

Finally, if youre not concerned about reducing your taxable income, but youd still love to turn the tables on Uncle Sam, you can invest in real estate investment trusts (REITs) that rent to the U.S. government. We all pay taxes, so why not get some money back in quarterly distributions?

What to read next

Thanks to Jeff Bezos, you can now use $100 to cash in on prime real estate  without the headache of being a landlord. Here's how

Heres how much you need to make to be in the top 1%, 5%, and 10% in the US  and 4 tips to help you get there

Owning real estate for passive income is one of the biggest myths in investing  but here is 1 simple way to really make it work

This article provides information only and should not be construed as advice. It is provided without warranty of any kind.
It looks like Petron Malaysia Refining & Marketing Bhd (KLSE:PETRONM) is about to go ex-dividend in the next 4 days. The ex-dividend date is usually set to be one business day before the record date which is the cut-off date on which you must be present on the company's books as a shareholder in order to receive the dividend. The ex-dividend date is an important date to be aware of as any purchase of the stock made on or after this date might mean a late settlement that doesn't show on the record date. Thus, you can purchase Petron Malaysia Refining & Marketing Bhd's shares before the 19th of June in order to receive the dividend, which the company will pay on the 4th of July.

The company's next dividend payment will be RM0.25 per share, on the back of last year when the company paid a total of RM0.25 to shareholders. Last year's total dividend payments show that Petron Malaysia Refining & Marketing Bhd has a trailing yield of 5.0% on the current share price of MYR5. Dividends are an important source of income to many shareholders, but the health of the business is crucial to maintaining those dividends. We need to see whether the dividend is covered by earnings and if it's growing.

See our latest analysis for Petron Malaysia Refining & Marketing Bhd

Dividends are typically paid from company earnings. If a company pays more in dividends than it earned in profit, then the dividend could be unsustainable. Petron Malaysia Refining & Marketing Bhd is paying out just 22% of its profit after tax, which is comfortably low and leaves plenty of breathing room in the case of adverse events. Yet cash flow is typically more important than profit for assessing dividend sustainability, so we should always check if the company generated enough cash to afford its dividend. Thankfully its dividend payments took up just 28% of the free cash flow it generated, which is a comfortable payout ratio.

It's encouraging to see that the dividend is covered by both profit and cash flow. This generally suggests the dividend is sustainable, as long as earnings don't drop precipitously.

Click here to see how much of its profit Petron Malaysia Refining & Marketing Bhd paid out over the last 12 months.

Have Earnings And Dividends Been Growing?

When earnings decline, dividend companies become much harder to analyse and own safely. If earnings fall far enough, the company could be forced to cut its dividend. With that in mind, we're discomforted by Petron Malaysia Refining & Marketing Bhd's 5.6% per annum decline in earnings in the past five years. Such a sharp decline casts doubt on the future sustainability of the dividend.

Another key way to measure a company's dividend prospects is by measuring its historical rate of dividend growth. Since the start of our data, 10 years ago, Petron Malaysia Refining & Marketing Bhd has lifted its dividend by approximately 6.0% a year on average.

To Sum It Up

Is Petron Malaysia Refining & Marketing Bhd an attractive dividend stock, or better left on the shelf? Petron Malaysia Refining & Marketing Bhd has comfortably low cash and profit payout ratios, which may mean the dividend is sustainable even in the face of a sharp decline in earnings per share. Still, we consider declining earnings to be a warning sign. In summary, it's hard to get excited about Petron Malaysia Refining & Marketing Bhd from a dividend perspective.

While it's tempting to invest in Petron Malaysia Refining & Marketing Bhd for the dividends alone, you should always be mindful of the risks involved. Our analysis shows 2 warning signs for Petron Malaysia Refining & Marketing Bhd that we strongly recommend you have a look at before investing in the company.

Generally, we wouldn't recommend just buying the first dividend stock you see. Here's a curated list of interesting stocks that are strong dividend payers.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.



This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.

Join A Paid User Research Session

Youll receive a US$30 Amazon Gift card for 1 hour of your time while helping us build better investing tools for the individual investors like yourself. Sign up here
Banqa Nevada-based crypto payments and savings platformfiled for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on Tuesday, according to court documents.

The filing arrives days after crypto custodian BitGo signed a letter of intent to acquire Banqs parent company, Prime Trust, amid swirling rumors that the latter firm was facing insolvency.

In its written reorganization plan, attorneys representing Banq claimed that Banqs troubles began back in 2021 because of mismanagement under former CEO Scott Purcell.

After Purcell resigned alongside two other executives late that year, the companys board of directors discovered that Purcell and the others had secretly transferred large amounts of company data and assets to their newly founded company, Fortress NFT Group. This included the vast majority of [Banq] employees, trade secrets, intellectual property, technology, business opportunities, and equipment.

Banq later faced legal challenges from N9 Advisors related to a $3 million unsecured promissory note that Purcell presented to N9 in July 2021. Attorneys believe N9 is a substantial investor in Fortress.

As a result of the Purcell defendants misappropriation of the debtors assets and the expenses associated with defending against the claims of N9 Advisors in the Florida Action, the debtor was left with insufficient resources to resume its business operations, wrote attorneys.

In other bankruptcy documents, Banq listed $17.72 million in assets and $5.4 million of liabilities.

Scott Purcell is also a former CEO of Banq parent Prime Trust, and affiliated companiesincluding Binance.US, Abra, and Swanfaced withdrawal delays last week. Redemptions on TrueUSD stablecoins through the custodian were similarly forced to a halt.

Crypto Lender Delio Freezes Withdrawals Citing 'Market Volatility'

Swan confirmed late last month that it had transferred all client assets to both BitGo Trust and Fortress Trust. Later, Strike CEO Jack Mallerswho previously touted Prime Trust as a partnerannounced last week that Strike had moved its infrastructure in-house to provide custody for customers Bitcoin and USD.

The BitGo CEO explained during a Twitter Spaces last Friday that his company likely wouldnt have gone forward with an acquisition deal if Prime Trust was financially healthy.

They basically spent too much money, he said, adding that the companys monthly burn going through last summer was just garbage.
If we want to find a potential multi-bagger, often there are underlying trends that can provide clues. Firstly, we'll want to see a proven return on capital employed (ROCE) that is increasing, and secondly, an expanding base of capital employed. If you see this, it typically means it's a company with a great business model and plenty of profitable reinvestment opportunities. However, after briefly looking over the numbers, we don't think Schindler Holding (VTX:SCHN) has the makings of a multi-bagger going forward, but let's have a look at why that may be.

Understanding Return On Capital Employed (ROCE)

For those that aren't sure what ROCE is, it measures the amount of pre-tax profits a company can generate from the capital employed in its business. Analysts use this formula to calculate it for Schindler Holding:

Return on Capital Employed = Earnings Before Interest and Tax (EBIT)  (Total Assets - Current Liabilities)

0.18 = CHF970m  (CHF12b - CHF6.9b) (Based on the trailing twelve months to March 2023).

Therefore, Schindler Holding has an ROCE of 18%. On its own, that's a standard return, however it's much better than the 15% generated by the Machinery industry.

View our latest analysis for Schindler Holding

roce

Above you can see how the current ROCE for Schindler Holding compares to its prior returns on capital, but there's only so much you can tell from the past. If you'd like, you can check out the forecasts from the analysts covering Schindler Holding here for free.

What Can We Tell From Schindler Holding's ROCE Trend?

In terms of Schindler Holding's historical ROCE movements, the trend isn't fantastic. Around five years ago the returns on capital were 30%, but since then they've fallen to 18%. On the other hand, the company has been employing more capital without a corresponding improvement in sales in the last year, which could suggest these investments are longer term plays. It may take some time before the company starts to see any change in earnings from these investments.

On a side note, Schindler Holding's current liabilities are still rather high at 56% of total assets. This effectively means that suppliers (or short-term creditors) are funding a large portion of the business, so just be aware that this can introduce some elements of risk. Ideally we'd like to see this reduce as that would mean fewer obligations bearing risks.

Our Take On Schindler Holding's ROCE

To conclude, we've found that Schindler Holding is reinvesting in the business, but returns have been falling. And with the stock having returned a mere 0.5% in the last five years to shareholders, you could argue that they're aware of these lackluster trends. As a result, if you're hunting for a multi-bagger, we think you'd have more luck elsewhere.

While Schindler Holding doesn't shine too bright in this respect, it's still worth seeing if the company is trading at attractive prices. You can find that out with our FREE intrinsic value estimation on our platform.

While Schindler Holding isn't earning the highest return, check out this free list of companies that are earning high returns on equity with solid balance sheets.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.



This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.

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Stuart Alderoty, the chief legal officer at Ripple, is calling for a new investigation into the former U.S. Securities and Exchange Commissions (SEC) director Bill Hinman.

Specifically, he wants to unearth the reasons behind his 2018 speech on crypto transactions and the application of the Howey test.

In that speech delivered in June 2018, Hinman stated that Ethereum (ETH) shouldnt be considered a security as it was sufficiently decentralized, something that caused confusion when the SEC later sued Ripple Labs for allegedly selling $1.6 billion worth of XRP as an unregistered security.

The documents related to Hinmans speech were formally unsealed and made public on Tuesday, shedding light on the internal discussions that occurred among SEC staff at the time.

Delving into the behind-the-scenes events, Alderoty now claims that Hinman invented factors that should be taken into consideration when determining what sufficiently decentralized actually is.

3/A refresher: Hinman, as Head of the SECs Corp Fin, gave a speech in June 2018 declaring that a token is not a security once it becomes sufficiently decentralized and he invented factors to consider when making a sufficiently decentralized determination.  Stuart Alderoty (@s_alderoty) June 13, 2023

He also urged the SEC to remove the speech from its website, as well as initiate an investigation into the former director.

An investigation must be conducted to understand what or who influenced Hinman, why conflicts (or, at the very least, appearances of conflicts) were ignored, and why the SEC touted the speech knowing that it would create greater confusion, said Alderoty in a lengthy Twitter thread Tuesday.

13/An investigation must be conducted to understand what or who influenced Hinman, why conflicts (or, at the very least, appearances of conflicts) were ignored, and why the SEC touted the speech knowing that it would create greater confusion.  Stuart Alderoty (@s_alderoty) June 13, 2023

According to Alderoty, the emails provide clear evidence that Hinman ignored multiple warnings that the speech contained made-up analysis with no basis in law and created greater confusion in the crypto market.

Despite the SEC repeatedly flip-flopping on the significance of the speech in litigation, it remains on the agencys website, said Ripples chief legal officer.

Hinman ignored SEC concerns

Citing parts of the documents, Alderoty also argued that the unsealed emails show dissent among SEC officials regarding certain aspects of Hinman's speech and that Hinman ignored their concerns.

Now lets look at what senior SEC officials directly said to Hinman about his speech as he was drafting it, he wrote. Head of Trading and Markets (T&M) said, because the list of factors is so extensiveand appears to include things that go beyond the typical Howey analysiswe have concerns this might lead to greater confusion on what is a security.

Alderoty added that Hinman ignored those concerns.

6/Head of Trading and Markets (T&M) said, because the list of factors is so extensive  and appears to include things that go beyond the typical Howey analysis  we have concerns this might lead to greater confusion on what is a security. Hinman ignored those concerns. pic.twitter.com/2xTzKGHITj  Stuart Alderoty (@s_alderoty) June 13, 2023

The Howey test is a legal framework used by the SEC to determine whether a particular transaction qualifies as an investment contract, and thus, a security. While the Howey test was originally formulated in the context of traditional investments, the Wall Street regulator has been applying it to cryptocurrencies to assess whether certain tokens or coins should be classified as securities.

According to Alderoty, T&M also directly asked Hinman to tie his newly invented factors more closely and explicitly to the Howey analysis. Again, Hinman ignored the suggestion.

He also noted that T&M and the Office of General Counsel (OGC) pointed to Hinman skipping over the threshold jurisdictional question of whether a digital asset meets the legal standards of a security.

9/T&M and OGC noted Hinman skipped over the threshold jurisdictional question of whether a digital asset meets the legal standards of a security. He jumped to asking whether SEC oversight could (in Hinmans view) be beneficial. Hinman ignored this regulatory gap. pic.twitter.com/xchm9h5If0  Stuart Alderoty (@s_alderoty) June 13, 2023

Hinmans speech should never again be invoked in any serious discussion about whether a token is or is not a security, stated Alderoty. Unelected bureaucrats must faithfully apply the law within the constraints of their jurisdiction.
Aidan Murray ryanair pilot

Ryanair has sacked its chief pilot following an investigation by the airline into pattern of repeated inappropriate and unacceptable behaviour towards junior female pilots.

Aidan Murray, 58, was dismissed on Tuesday evening after a two-week investigation of alleged breaches of the airlines anti-harassment policies.

It followed an anonymous tip-off two-a-half weeks ago claiming that Mr Murray had harrassed four junior female pilots. There are no allegations of sexual contact, sources close to the airline said.

Mr Murray allegedly told the women in messages that they had an amazing body and an amazing ass. He went on to ask the women for pictures of their bodies, sources claimed, promising that they would not be shared.

Ryanairs investigation led to eight female members of staff aged between 21 and 32 providing statements and giving evidence alleging misconduct by Mr Murray.

It is believed that Mr Murray initially contacted the women directly via text message with offers of support in their careers. Subsequently he began changing rosters  as he was able to do in his role as chief pilot  so that he regularly flew services alongside some of the women.

As chief pilot, Mr Murray had to fly a minimum number of services to maintain the validity of his pilots licence, typically around once a month.

Chief pilots are typically responsible for flight crew training and safety. Primarily a management role, the person is also normally in charge with ensuring compliance with the relevant laws and regulations.

The Ryanair investigation is thought to have revealed that on about two-thirds of the flights he changed the rosters of three of the junior female pilots so that he flew alongside them.

Mr Murray was appointed chief pilot in the middle of 2020. The allegations of misconduct are believed to have taken place over the last 12 to 18 months. Ryanair is thought to have investigated whether the behaviour was more widespread among senior pilots. The eight women that provided evidence said that no other pilots had displayed similar behaviours to Mr Murrays.

Ryanair has provided counselling to the people affected by the allegations. One of the original four named in the anonymous complaint is understood to have left the airline, one requested a change of base and two others have asked for roster changes.

Mr Murray was interviewed on three occasions as part of the Ryanair investigation. He was suspended last Thursday and dismissed on Tuesday. He has a right of appeal until early next week.

Darrell Hughes, Ryanair chief people officer, told staff in an email on Wednesday: We regret to advise all of you that last evening we terminated with immediate effect the employment of the Ryanair DAC chief pilot (who was appointed in 2020).

This decision follows an investigation over recent days which identified a pattern of repeated inappropriate and unacceptable behaviour towards a number of female junior pilots, which was in breach of our anti-harassment policy.

We are determined to ensure that all our people can come to work in a safe and secure environment.

Mr Murray was one of the main speakers at the International Air Safety Summit in 2021. According to his biography, he had over 30 years experience in the aviation industry, is an instructor on the Boeing 737, operated for over 26 years with Ryanair.

The biography read: Aidan held several management roles in Ryanair and led many flight operations projects which enhanced Ryanairs safety and efficiency, including: winter operations, electronic flight bag, electronic flight plans, post-pandemic return to normal operations, and most recently, Ryanairs 737-8200 [MAX] entry into service.

Mr Murray could not be reached for comment.

A spokesman for Ryanair said: We do not comment on queries relating to individual employees.

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The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission today said it had not decided on whether to clarify new crypto rules after Americas biggest crypto exchange Coinbase made a special request for the top regulator to do so.

In a Tuesday filing, the Wall Street regulator said it has not decided what action to take on Coinbases rulemaking petition.

It comes after the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuits judge Cheryl Ann Krausewho noted the SEC's lawsuit filed last weekordered the SEC to reveal whether it has decided to deny Coinbases petition. That petition, filed last year, asked the SEC to clarify its rules on which assets should be regarded as securities and how to regulate digitally native securities.

The SEC last week hit Americas biggest crypto exchange with a lawsuit, alleging that it operated for years as an unlicensed securities exchange and elevated its interest in increasing its profits over investors interests.

Coinbases Chief Legal Officer Paul Grewal said on Twitter that the SEC repeat the fallacy that they havent made any decision on new crypto rules, adding that they refuse to commit to any deadline despite the Court's explicit order.

1) they repeat the fallacy that they haven't made any decision on new crypto rules; 2) they refuse to commit to any deadline despite the Court's explicit order; 3) they instead "anticipate" making a "recommendation" in 120 days; and most importantly... 2/5  paulgrewal.eth (@iampaulgrewal) June 13, 2023

The SECs Coinbase lawsuit is part of a broader crackdown on the industry, pushed by Chairman Gary Gensler, who has repeatedly said that all digital coins and tokensexcept for Bitcoinare securities.

A day before suing Coinbase, the SEC had hit Binance, its American sister exchange Binance US, and its boss Changpeng Zhao, with 13 civil charges.

In its crypto crackdown this year, the SEC also targeted American digital asset exchanges like Kraken and Gemini for allegedly selling unregistered securities.

Cathie Wood Slams the SEC, Claims Coinbase Will Come Out a Winner

Gensler, who became the SEC boss in 2021, even hinted last week the cryptocurrency industry wasnt welcome in the States. We dont need more digital currency, he said, adding that the digital asset world was built on non-compliance.

Coinbases stock, which trades under the ticker COIN, was today priced at $52.40up 3.6% in 24 hours.
At the moment the risk to reward looks favorable for two affordable auto stocks that could have more near-term upside. Outside of Blue Bird Corp (BLBD) and Commercial Vehicle Groups (CVGI) attractive stock prices, they are starting to check boxes in terms of growth and value.

Lets take a look at why now may be a good time to invest in both of these top-rated auto stocks at their current levels.

Growth and Diversification

As a manufacturer and producer of school buses and related parts, Blue Bird has an intriguing end market with schools and the education system having significant importance to society. Blue Bird also offers alternative fuel applications and produces propane-powered and compressed natural gas-powered school buses.

Signaling Blue Birds growth potential, earnings are forecasted to climb swing from an adjusted loss of -$1.15 a share last year to $0.54 per share in fiscal 2023. More intriguing, fiscal 2024 earnings are projected to skyrocket another 165% at $1.43 per share.

Earnings estimates have trended higher over the last 60 days and Blue Birds sales are now expected to climb 42% in FY23 and rise another 10% in FY24 to $1.25 billion.

Zacks Investment Research



Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

In regard to end markets, Commercial Vehicle Group is also attractive with its products produced for the global commercial vehicle market. Supplying interior systems, vision safety solutions, and other cab-related products has given Commercial Vehicle Group an extensive reach to the heavy-duty truck market, the construction market, and other specialized transportation markets.

Commercial Vehicle Groups earnings are expected to soar 86% in FY23 at $0.95 per share compared to EPS of $0.51 in 2022. Plus, FY24 earnings are projected to jump another 15% at $1.10 per share. Earnings estimates are nicely up over the last 60 days. On the top line, sales are forecasted to be up 4% this year and rise another 3% in FY24 to $1.05 billion.

Zacks Investment Research



Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

Performance & Valuation

Blue Bird stock has continued to soar this year and is now up a very stellar +102% with Commercial Vehicle Group up +46%. This has easily outperformed the broader indexes and topped the Zacks Auto, Tires, and Trucks sectors +40%.

Zacks Investment Research



Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

Despite their impressive rallies, what makes Blue Bird and Commercial Vehicle Group stock still stand out is the price to sales investors are paying relative to their respective industries.

Price to Sales Discount: With Blue Bird stock trading at $21 a share, investors are paying $0.62 for every $1 of sales the company makes. Blue Birds P/S ratio of 0.62X is attractively below its industry average of 1.53X with the optimum level being less than 2X and the S&P 500s average at 3.71X.

Zacks Investment Research



Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

Looking at Commercial Vehicle Group, investors are only paying $0.33 for every $1 of sales the company makes. With Commercial Vehicle Group shares trading at $9 its P/S of 0.33X is well below the optimum level, the benchmark's average, and its own industry average of 1.65X.

Zacks Investment Research



Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

Takeaway

Blue Bird and Commercial Vehicle Group stock both land a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) at the moment. In addition to this, these stocks have an overall A VGM Zacks Style Scores grade for the combination of Value, Growth, and Momentum.

The opportunity to invest in the growth of companies that have a niche in the broader auto sector is intriguing as there is often an essential or constant need for their business. This scenario makes Blue Bird and Commercial Vehicle Group worthy of consideration and their impressive rallies could continue.

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Commercial Vehicle Group, Inc. (CVGI) : Free Stock Analysis Report

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By Laurie Chen

BEIJING (Reuters) - Strikes at Chinese factories have surged to a seven-year high and are expected to become more frequent as weak global demand forces exporters to cut workers' pay and shut down plants, one rights group and economists say.

Exports and factory output in the world's second-largest economy tumbled in May, as looming downturns force the United States and Europe to pare back orders for goods made in China.

Some factories closed or are struggling to pay wages or severance for laid-off workers as a result, according to Chinese labour researchers. That has led to a spike in labour disputes that hurts consumer and business confidence just as it was recovering from three years of COVID-19 curbs, they said.

"We believe that the drop in manufacturing orders and that factory closures will continue," said Aidan Chau, researcher at Hong Kong-based rights group China Labour Bulletin (CLB).

"Bosses want to cut costs by simply dumping workers."

CLB recorded over 140 strikes at factories across the country in the first five months of this year, the highest since the 313 recorded during the same period in 2016.

The rights group's data is mostly based on protests reported on social media, some of which CLB has been able to verify through contact with unions or the factories, although not all reports are verified.

Many of the strikes are concentrated in China's manufacturing heartland of Guangdong province and the Yangtze River Delta, and involve exporters, including from garment, shoe and printed circuit board factories, CLB said.

In one video referenced in CLB's mapped log of nationwide strikes, dozens of female workers at Zhong Min Sportswear Goods Shenzhen Ltd. Co. walk out of a factory compound.

The video was published on May 24 on Douyin, China's version of TikTok, and captioned "this boss paid off law enforcement and is cheating workers' money".

Another video posted by the same user shows a factory manager reading a document denying workers compensation, while workers demand that an independent third party intervene.

In another video published on May 26, a handful of workers stand on the roof of Shenzhen cable factory Xin Dian Cable Ltd. Co., holding a banner that says "the boss owes us wages". Another video published last week shows the company's workers debating compensation with a company lawyer.

"You need to collect workers' grievances and pass them on," one female worker says.

Reuters verified the location of the videos and photos through matching the signage and building features with street view data, but could not confirm the timing of the protests. Calls to Xin Dian went unanswered. A person picking up the phone at Zhong Min said she could not comment.

The Douyin users did not respond to messages from Reuters. Participants in protests are often monitored by security forces.

China's Ministry of Public Security, Ministry of Human Resources, the Shenzhen police and the All-China Federation of Trade Unions - a state-run umbrella organisation for all unions in the country - also did not respond.

INSTABILITY RISKS

Chinese factories, which produce a third of global manufactured goods, form complex supply chains that ultimately rely much more on exports than domestic demand, leading to giant trade surpluses in the $18 trillion economy.

Manufacturers make use of a workforce of hundreds of millions of rural migrants, many of whom are on temporary contracts or hired informally, labour activists say.

This leaves workers vulnerable to unpaid overtime, impromptu pay cuts, or layoffs without due process or compensation, as factories look to reduce costs.

Workers find it hard to win in any conflict. Security forces intervene early to disperse protesters and censors scrub evidence of disputes on social media.

Labour unions were central to the Communist Party's proletariat beginnings but play only a marginal role in modern authoritarian China.

However, some analysts say factory strikes could become a political headache for the Party.

"Firms are adapting to the reality of overcapacity through pay cuts and layoffs," said Xu Tianchen, senior China economist at the Economist Intelligence Unit.

Job and salary cuts "will not only be detrimental to growth, but could also become a source of instability," Xu said.

(Reporting by Laurie Chen in Beijing; Additional reporting by Nicoco Chan in Shanghai; Editing by Marius Zaharia and Sam Holmes)
Chinese researchers achieve carbon dioxide column concentrations

Xinhua) 08:25, June 14, 2023

A staff member charges an electric bus at a charging station in Hangzhou, capital of east China's Zhejiang Province, Nov. 21, 2019. (Xinhua/Huang Zongzhi)

BEIJING, June 13 (Xinhua) -- Chinese researchers have obtained the global carbon dioxide column concentrations of the polar regions at night time.

The preliminary comparison accuracy of the data exceeded one ppm.

The data comes from a satellite that was launched by China last April, carrying atmospheric carbon dioxide and hyperspectral aerosol detection laser radar.

China has been expecting to detect aerosols more accurately by hyperspectral technology and to monitor both aerosol and carbon on one satellite. And the country's carbon peak and neutrality promise needs basic data support of high precision carbon distribution.

The launch marked that the country has taken the lead in realizing high-precision laser remote sensing of global greenhouse gases and aerosols.

Previous measurements mainly relied on a passive spectrum, that is, the sunlight reflected by the atmosphere. However, passive spectral measurement has limitations when there is no sunlight coming out.

The researchers from the Shanghai Institute of Optics and Fine Mechanics under the Chinese Academy of Sciences proposed a method in which the laser is emitted on the satellite and reflected from the ground for quantitative measurement.

They also achieved a stable and high energy output of multi-band frequency in one laser radar.

(Web editor: Zhong Wenxing, Liang Jun)
To find a multi-bagger stock, what are the underlying trends we should look for in a business? Amongst other things, we'll want to see two things; firstly, a growing return on capital employed (ROCE) and secondly, an expansion in the company's amount of capital employed. If you see this, it typically means it's a company with a great business model and plenty of profitable reinvestment opportunities. So when we looked at United U-LI Corporation Berhad (KLSE:ULICORP) and its trend of ROCE, we really liked what we saw.

What Is Return On Capital Employed (ROCE)?

For those who don't know, ROCE is a measure of a company's yearly pre-tax profit (its return), relative to the capital employed in the business. Analysts use this formula to calculate it for United U-LI Corporation Berhad:

Return on Capital Employed = Earnings Before Interest and Tax (EBIT)  (Total Assets - Current Liabilities)

0.12 = RM45m  (RM396m - RM38m) (Based on the trailing twelve months to March 2023).

So, United U-LI Corporation Berhad has an ROCE of 12%. In absolute terms, that's a satisfactory return, but compared to the Building industry average of 8.4% it's much better.

Check out our latest analysis for United U-LI Corporation Berhad

roce

Above you can see how the current ROCE for United U-LI Corporation Berhad compares to its prior returns on capital, but there's only so much you can tell from the past. If you'd like, you can check out the forecasts from the analysts covering United U-LI Corporation Berhad here for free.

What The Trend Of ROCE Can Tell Us

We like the trends that we're seeing from United U-LI Corporation Berhad. The data shows that returns on capital have increased substantially over the last five years to 12%. Basically the business is earning more per dollar of capital invested and in addition to that, 21% more capital is being employed now too. This can indicate that there's plenty of opportunities to invest capital internally and at ever higher rates, a combination that's common among multi-baggers.

The Key Takeaway

To sum it up, United U-LI Corporation Berhad has proven it can reinvest in the business and generate higher returns on that capital employed, which is terrific. Since the stock has only returned 37% to shareholders over the last five years, the promising fundamentals may not be recognized yet by investors. So exploring more about this stock could uncover a good opportunity, if the valuation and other metrics stack up.

One more thing, we've spotted 3 warning signs facing United U-LI Corporation Berhad that you might find interesting.

While United U-LI Corporation Berhad isn't earning the highest return, check out this free list of companies that are earning high returns on equity with solid balance sheets.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.



This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.

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Key Insights

Using the 2 Stage Free Cash Flow to Equity, VERBIO Vereinigte BioEnergie fair value estimate is 72.30

VERBIO Vereinigte BioEnergie's 40.65 share price signals that it might be 44% undervalued

Our fair value estimate is 20% higher than VERBIO Vereinigte BioEnergie's analyst price target of 60.13

In this article we are going to estimate the intrinsic value of VERBIO Vereinigte BioEnergie AG (ETR:VBK) by projecting its future cash flows and then discounting them to today's value. This will be done using the Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) model. Don't get put off by the jargon, the math behind it is actually quite straightforward.

We generally believe that a company's value is the present value of all of the cash it will generate in the future. However, a DCF is just one valuation metric among many, and it is not without flaws. If you want to learn more about discounted cash flow, the rationale behind this calculation can be read in detail in the Simply Wall St analysis model.

Check out our latest analysis for VERBIO Vereinigte BioEnergie

The Calculation

We use what is known as a 2-stage model, which simply means we have two different periods of growth rates for the company's cash flows. Generally the first stage is higher growth, and the second stage is a lower growth phase. To begin with, we have to get estimates of the next ten years of cash flows. Where possible we use analyst estimates, but when these aren't available we extrapolate the previous free cash flow (FCF) from the last estimate or reported value. We assume companies with shrinking free cash flow will slow their rate of shrinkage, and that companies with growing free cash flow will see their growth rate slow, over this period. We do this to reflect that growth tends to slow more in the early years than it does in later years.

Generally we assume that a dollar today is more valuable than a dollar in the future, so we discount the value of these future cash flows to their estimated value in today's dollars:

10-year free cash flow (FCF) estimate

2023 2024 2025 2026 2027 2028 2029 2030 2031 2032 Levered FCF (, Millions) -248.5m 20.4m 49.1m 32.2m 164.7m 236.9m 309.8m 376.7m 433.9m 480.4m Growth Rate Estimate Source Analyst x3 Analyst x3 Analyst x3 Analyst x1 Analyst x1 Est @ 43.84% Est @ 30.76% Est @ 21.60% Est @ 15.19% Est @ 10.71% Present Value (, Millions) Discounted @ 7.1% -232 17.8 40.0 24.5 117 157 192 218 235 243

("Est" = FCF growth rate estimated by Simply Wall St)

Present Value of 10-year Cash Flow (PVCF) = 1.0b

After calculating the present value of future cash flows in the initial 10-year period, we need to calculate the Terminal Value, which accounts for all future cash flows beyond the first stage. The Gordon Growth formula is used to calculate Terminal Value at a future annual growth rate equal to the 5-year average of the 10-year government bond yield of 0.2%. We discount the terminal cash flows to today's value at a cost of equity of 7.1%.

Terminal Value (TV)= FCF 2032  (1 + g)  (r  g) = 480m (1 + 0.2%)  (7.1% 0.2%) = 7.1b

Present Value of Terminal Value (PVTV)= TV / (1 + r)10= 7.1b ( 1 + 7.1%)10= 3.6b

The total value, or equity value, is then the sum of the present value of the future cash flows, which in this case is 4.6b. In the final step we divide the equity value by the number of shares outstanding. Relative to the current share price of 40.7, the company appears quite good value at a 44% discount to where the stock price trades currently. The assumptions in any calculation have a big impact on the valuation, so it is better to view this as a rough estimate, not precise down to the last cent.

dcf

Important Assumptions

We would point out that the most important inputs to a discounted cash flow are the discount rate and of course the actual cash flows. If you don't agree with these result, have a go at the calculation yourself and play with the assumptions. The DCF also does not consider the possible cyclicality of an industry, or a company's future capital requirements, so it does not give a full picture of a company's potential performance. Given that we are looking at VERBIO Vereinigte BioEnergie as potential shareholders, the cost of equity is used as the discount rate, rather than the cost of capital (or weighted average cost of capital, WACC) which accounts for debt. In this calculation we've used 7.1%, which is based on a levered beta of 1.148. Beta is a measure of a stock's volatility, compared to the market as a whole. We get our beta from the industry average beta of globally comparable companies, with an imposed limit between 0.8 and 2.0, which is a reasonable range for a stable business.

SWOT Analysis for VERBIO Vereinigte BioEnergie

Strength

Debt is not viewed as a risk.

Weakness

Earnings growth over the past year underperformed the Oil and Gas industry.

Dividend is low compared to the top 25% of dividend payers in the Oil and Gas market.

Opportunity

Annual revenue is forecast to grow faster than the German market.

Good value based on P/E ratio and estimated fair value.

Threat

Annual earnings are forecast to grow slower than the German market.

Next Steps:

Valuation is only one side of the coin in terms of building your investment thesis, and it is only one of many factors that you need to assess for a company. The DCF model is not a perfect stock valuation tool. Preferably you'd apply different cases and assumptions and see how they would impact the company's valuation. For example, changes in the company's cost of equity or the risk free rate can significantly impact the valuation. What is the reason for the share price sitting below the intrinsic value? For VERBIO Vereinigte BioEnergie, we've put together three relevant aspects you should further research:

Risks: To that end, you should be aware of the 1 warning sign we've spotted with VERBIO Vereinigte BioEnergie . Future Earnings: How does VBK's growth rate compare to its peers and the wider market? Dig deeper into the analyst consensus number for the upcoming years by interacting with our free analyst growth expectation chart. Other Solid Businesses: Low debt, high returns on equity and good past performance are fundamental to a strong business. Why not explore our interactive list of stocks with solid business fundamentals to see if there are other companies you may not have considered!

PS. Simply Wall St updates its DCF calculation for every German stock every day, so if you want to find the intrinsic value of any other stock just search here.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.



This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.

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(Bloomberg) -- Visa Inc., which is investing $1 billion in Africa over the next five years, plans to train and fund financial-technology startups to help it tap businesses and consumers on a continent where McKinsey & Co. estimates that up to 90% of financial transactions are conducted using cash.

Most Read from Bloomberg

The San Francisco-based technology firm plans to train 40 startups and fund a few each year, Andrew Torre, Visas president for Central and Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa, said at the Bloomberg New Economy Gateway Africa forum in Marrakesh, Morocco, on Wednesday.

Investors in Visa have grown increasingly worried about the companys growth prospects in developed markets like the US, where digital payments are already widely adopted. That makes Africa, home to more than 1.4 billion people  about a third of whom dont have access to financial infrastructure  a growth market for Visa and Mastercard Inc. Visa expects fintechs to help it access as many as 50 million merchants that dont use digital payments.

This is how were going to reach the 1.4 billion consumers that are out there, Torre said in an interview on Wednesday. Were really interested in enabling these fintechs to be able to go into these markets and work with our existing ecosystem.

In a report published in August, McKinsey estimated that Africas financial services market could grow at about 10% a year to top $230 billion in revenue by 2025. Visa, which increased its employee strength in Africa by 50% in the past two years, plans to open a new office in Tanzania. It already has 10 offices on the continent.

Africas median age of about 20 years is the worlds lowest, according to McKinsey. A growing number have gained access to mobile phones for the first time, offering opportunities for Visa and its rivals.

Thats a really powerful set of factors, Torre said. Everyone has handsets, so its easier to reach them. Its a really good recipe for us investing and growing.

--With assistance from Mike Cohen.

Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek

2023 Bloomberg L.P.
New Visa initiative to support Africas Fintech start-ups and entrepreneurs, providing training, connections, technology, and investment opportunities for up to 40 fintechs each year

MARRAKECH, Morocco, June 14, 2023--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Visa (NYSE: V) today announced the launch of the new Visa Africa Fintech Accelerator program to help enable Africas expanding start-up community through expertise, connections, technology, and investment funding. The initiative was introduced by Visa Executive Chairman Alfred F. Kelly Jr. at Bloomberg New Economy Gateway Africa in Marrakech, Morocco.

The Visa Africa Fintech Accelerator will enable up to 40 start-ups each year to accelerate and grow through a three-month intensive learning program focused on business growth and mentoring. Following the program completion, Visa intends to further support fintech growth with capital investment in select participating businesses, while accelerating their commercial launch through access to Visa technology and capabilities.

The launch of the Africa Fintech Accelerator program follows Visas recent pledge to invest $1 billion in Africas digital transformation and its long-term commitment to advancing Africas economies and driving inclusive growth. Fintech startups throughout Africa can apply to be part of the program through two application phases each year, starting from July 2023. With more than 1,000 Africa Fintech start-ups taking part in the Visa Everywhere Initiative* (VEI) competition in 2022, finalists from Africa country editions this year will be invited to join the accelerator program.

"Africa has one of the most exciting and admired fintech ecosystems in the world, bringing outstanding entrepreneurial talent to a young digital-first population that is growing fast," said Alfred F. Kelly Jr., Executive Chairman, Visa, Inc. "Visa has been increasing our investments in Africa for decades and strengthening partnerships throughout the continent to support the next wave of innovation and growth. Our new Fintech Accelerator will bring expertise, connections, and investment to Africas best fintech start-ups so they can grow at scale."

The support for participating fintechs will help further strengthen the payment ecosystem by fast-tracking new innovations and technologies that provide solutions to challenges that are unique to the African continent, and which can further advance Africas digitization. In line with Visas corporate purpose to uplift everyone, everywhere by being the best way to pay and be paid, this support of Africas fintechs will facilitate additional opportunities to expand financial inclusion.

"Africas fintech community is at the forefront of payments innovation and connecting more of the unbanked with access to the digital economy," said Otto Williams, Head of Partnerships, Products and Solutions, Central Europe, Middle East and Africa, Visa. "Visa has been working with this innovative community to create new programs and solutions to help fintechs scale, while giving access to Visas technology and partner ecosystem. Through the new Visa Africa Fintech Accelerator, we are looking forward to working with more brilliant entrepreneurs and companies to shape the future of money."

In addition to its $1 billion pledge to Africa, Visa has recently introduced several business initiatives and programs to further advance the payments ecosystem in Africa. These include:

Establishing local operations in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia and Sudan to help support and strengthen the local financial ecosystem. Visa has 10 offices across Africa from which it supports payments in all 54 countries.

Unveiling the first dedicated Visa Sub-Saharan Africa Innovation Studio, in Nairobi, Kenya, to provide a state-of-the-art environment to bring together clients and partners to co-create future-ready payment and commerce solutions.

Introducing and expanding new technologies that help African consumers and merchants make and receive digital payments, such as Tap to Phone to turn a simple mobile phone into point-of-sale terminal, as well as lowering remittance costs through innovative solutions like Visa Direct.

Establishing Visa as the fintech partner of choice, working with innovators and entrepreneurs, including through the Visa Everywhere Initiative program, with dedicated country programs in South Africa, Kenya and Egypt.

Launching new programs to support womens empowerment together with financial partners, including Shes Next, which is bringing funding, mentoring and networking opportunities to female entrepreneurs leading growing SMBs in Egypt, Kenya, Morocco, and South Africa.

Collaborating, with partners, to advance financial literacy in several languages, including the first Arabic version of Practical Money Skills in Egypt.

*About Visa Everywhere Initiative (VEI)

Visa Everywhere Initiative is Visas global open innovation competition that sees startups pitch their innovative solutions to solve tomorrows payment and commerce challenges. The program first launched in the U.S. in 2015, and quickly expanded into a global program. To date, nearly 12,000 startups have applied to the program  many of which now work with Visa or its clients. In addition to monetary prizes, VEI winners gain access and exposure to Visas vast networks of partners in the banking, merchant, VC, and government sectors. The winners also benefit from receiving recognition from one of the worlds most trusted and valuable brands.

About Visa Inc.

Visa (NYSE: V) is a world leader in digital payments, facilitating transactions between consumers, merchants, financial institutions and government entities across more than 200 countries and territories. Our mission is to connect the world through the most innovative, convenient, reliable and secure payments network, enabling individuals, businesses and economies to thrive. We believe that economies that include everyone everywhere, uplift everyone everywhere and see access as foundational to the future of money movement. Learn more at Visa.com.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230614005002/en/

Contacts

Constantine Panagiotatos

Global Corporate and North America

cpanagio@visa.com

+1 6507038675

Lesego Charlie

Sub-Saharan Africa

lcharlie@visa.com

+27826591674

Jagruti Mistry

Visa North Africa

jamistry@visa.com

+971566824213
Vodafone

Vodafone and Three have pledged to improve mobile internet services for millions of customers after announcing plans to create the countrys largest mobile network.

Bosses at the two companies said the long-awaited merger will transform connectivity and level the playing field as rivals race to roll out faster and more reliable services.

Vodafone and Three pledged to invest 11bn in their combined 5G network over the next decade, creating up to 12,000 new jobs in the wider economy.

Margherita Della Valle, Vodafone chief executive, said the merger was great for customers, great for the country and great for competition.

The announcement is a major breakthrough for Vodafone and Three, which is owned by Hong Kong-based CK Hutchison, after a protracted period of negotiations.

The two sides began discussions about a tie-up more than a year ago but faced repeated delays amid wranglings over price and the ousting of Vodafones chief executive.

Yet the deal is still likely to face intense scrutiny from regulators owing to concerns about the impact on competition and national security.

The newly-combined company will serve 27 million customers, eclipsing the 24 million on Virgin Media O2s network and 20 million for BT-owned EE.

While Vodafone and Three have insisted the deal will not lead to higher prices for consumers, reducing the number of UK operators from four to three is a contentious move. A previous attempt to merge Three with O2 was blocked by the European Commission in 2016.

Vodafone and Three have insisted the mobile landscape has changed dramatically since then, arguing that they currently lack the scale to invest in infrastructure and compete with rivals.

They also pointed to the abundance of so-called mobile virtual network operators, which offer a greater retail choice to consumers.

However, the deal faces a review by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), with industry watchers expecting a full investigation that could last for 18 months.

Dan Ridsdale, director of TMT at Edison Group, said the companies had made an overt pitch to try and allay regulatory concerns.

He said: For the CMA, the equation is likely to come down to how much they take into account the consumer benefits from the promised acceleration to the roll out of 5G, gained through economies of scale, versus the competitive risks from concentrating market power.

Karen Egan, an analyst at Enders Analysis, added the regulator had been rather hawkish in recent months, pointing to its decision to block Microsofts $69bn (54bn) takeover of Call of Duty video games maker Activision.

A CMA spokesman said: Both Vodafone and Three are key players in the UK communications market  with millions of consumers and many businesses relying on their services  so its right that the CMA reviews the impact this deal could have on competition.

For rivals BT and VMO2, the main concern will be spectrum  a key battleground in telecoms.

The combined business will hold just under 50pc of total UK spectrum, exceeding a 37pc cap imposed by regulator Ofcom in 2017.

While that cap may be increased in a market with only three operators, it is likely that rivals will demand a redistribution.

Both BT and VMO2 will also be looking for assurances around existing mobile mast sharing deals.

A Virgin Media O2 spokesman said: Such a large transaction needs to be carefully scrutinised to ensure competition is not harmed and that consumers do not miss out.

Bosses will also be hoping to stave off national security concerns linked to Threes Chinese owner, which is controlled by the 94-year-old Hong Kong billionaire Li Ka-Shing.

Sir Ian Duncan Smith, the former Conservative Party leader, has urged officials to block any transaction over fears it could place sensitive UK infrastructure in Beijings hands. Vodafone holds a number of government contracts.

There are also lingering questions about job losses as the companies remove duplicated roles and retail sites. It comes just a month after Vodafone announced it will cut 11,000 jobs globally.

The Unite union branded the merger reckless and urged the Government to intervene.

The two sides have insisted the deal will have a net positive impact on jobs across the UK, even as Vodafone and Three slim down their operations.

They have also played down concerns about national security, pointing to CK Hutchisons long presence in the UK market.

Alongside Three, the conglomerate also owns Superdrug, Eversholt Rail, UK Power Networks and Northumbrian Water.

In a further nod to national security concerns, the structure of the merger puts the combined business firmly in Vodafones control.

Under the terms of the deal, which does not involve any cash, Vodafone will take a 51pc stake in the joint venture, while Three will hold the remaining 49pc. Vodafone will then have the option of taking full control of the combined business after three years, provided its value reaches a minimum of 16.5bn.

After months of tricky negotiations, Vodafone and Three will breathe a sigh of relief that a deal has finally been reached. But as regulators turn their attention to the smallprint, the companies work is far from over.

They will want to package this up in the best way possible to regulators while pouring as much cold water as possible on any perceived security concerns, says one industry source. They dont need this to be a fight or for backbench Conservatives to start kicking off.

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On todays episode of WHAT THE TRUCK?!? Dooner is talking to FreightWaves Rachel Premack about the drama over at Yellow. The carrier has told the Teamsters it will be out of money by August, but the union says its not going to bail the company out again. Well find out if Yellow can survive and what will be left of it.

Tiger Cool Express, LLC shuts down.

Remcoda CEO Remy Garson has doubled down on nearshoring. Well learn about its recent strategic acquisition in Colombia and how he thinks nearshoring will reshape supply chains.

Optyms Chris Torrence and Danny Zeenberg put a FreightTech spotlight on AI. Is it living up to the hype in trucking and is this still a business about people?

Justin Martin has the latest on the I-95 collapse; if drivers prefer check calls over tracking; a new headlight meme at truck stops; lunatic Lyft drivers; why the 80s hit different; and whats ahead at the Future of Supply Chain in Cleveland.

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A man who is awaiting a bank robbery trial in Stafford County and other trials elsewhere was convicted of a serious felony charge Tuesday for an incident that occurred in jail.

Karl Christopher Mitchell, 34, was found guilty of aggravated malicious wounding by a jury in Stafford Circuit Court. He will face the possibility of up to life in prison when he is sentenced Aug. 24.

According to evidence presented by prosecutor Lori DiGiosia, the charge stems from a July 15, 2021, incident in the Rappahannock Regional Jail during which Mitchell attacked one of his cellmates with a metal food tray.

The victim had his head split open in the attack, which stemmed from a disagreement about the existence of Satan.

Mitchell was in jail as the result of an April 2021 bank robbery at the SunTrust Bank in North Stafford and multiple thefts in Fredericksburg, Culpeper, Fauquier and Hanover.

The bank robber got away with an undisclosed amount of money after handing a teller a note in which he implied that he had a gun.

The bank robbery trial is now scheduled for Sept. 6 in Stafford. Mitchell has insisted on a jury trial, even though he has already admitted to the crime in open court and during a police interview. He has also admitted to at least some of the thefts, court records show, saying he needed equipment for a landscaping business he was starting.

Mitchells criminal history dates back to his juvenile years, when he skipped bond in Stafford after being arrested for throwing a trailer hitch through a car window. He fled to Georgia, where he was arrested for two bank robberies and spent 12 years in prison.

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Fredericksburg police are hoping an undisclosed cash reward will spur leads in the most recent city homicide.

Antione Fox, 19, was shot multiple times early Saturday in the 1700 block of Lafayette Boulevard. He was on the ground bleeding and unconscious when police and rescue workers responded to a 911 call about 3:30 a.m. He was pronounced dead at the scene after lifesaving efforts were unsuccessful, city police spokeswoman Sarah Morris said.

Police said several vehicles in that area had been struck by bullets and multiple cartridge casings were recovered. It appeared that more than one gun was involved in the incident.

No suspects had been identified as of Tuesday evening. Morris said police are hoping that the offer of a reward will provide information that will lead to the arrest of Foxs killer and give his family closure. Morris declined to reveal the amount of the proposed reward.

City police made the same offer following the March 26 slaying of 18-year-old Jasiah Smith in the Bragg Hill area. Two people were later arrested, but it is unclear if the reward played any role in the arrests.

Anyone with information is asked to call city police at 540/373-3122. Anonymous tips can be made by sending a text to 847-411 and texting FPDtip followed by the tip.
Stafford County elementary and middle schools will start slightly earlier this coming school year, officials announced Wednesday.

The School Board heard a presentation on the new bell schedule during a work session Tuesday afternoon.

All county elementary schools  except for Rockhill Elementary, which begins at the same time as the high schools  will start five minutes earlier, at 8:25 a.m., and end five minutes earlier, at 2:55 p.m.

Middle schools will begin and end 10 minutes earlier. The morning bell will ring at 9:20 a.m. and dismissal will be at 3:50 p.m.

The adjustment comes after a year-long study of bus route efficiency and a promise made to middle school families and staff to see if there was a way for their school day to end earlier.

Dismissal was at 4 p.m. for middle schools this past year. Deputy superintendent Chris Fulmer told School Board members that shifting dismissal time 10 minutes earlier will have a positive effect on recruitment and retention.

The school division has tweaked its bell schedule several times in the past few years, attempting to solve problems posed by bus driver shortages and the pandemic.

We implemented last years bell schedule coming off the prior year of trying to make traffic improvements and build up our bus driver pool, Fulmer said. We had a 60-minute bell gap (between start times for the different tiers) that pushed our start and end time for our last tier, middle school, to 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., which is on the later end. Our goal was to evaluate that and see if we can make some improvements this year.

Fulmer said he believes the adjustments will also result in savings for the division, which was having to pay overtime wages to drivers who went over their contracted hours due to the wait time between bus runs.

He said he believes the new schedule can save the division up to $225,000 per year, but wants to watch how it plays out this coming fiscal year before building that savings into future budgets.
A 19th-century piece of envelope with a postage stamp on it from Danville that was sent during the Civil War is expected to sell for more than $3,000 during an auction in New York later this month.

The 1861 stamp is one of less than a dozen Danville provisional stamps in existence and it has not appeared at auction since 1967, according to a statement from H.R. Harmer Fine Stamp Auctions, one of the oldest philatelic auction houses in the country.

Philately is the study and collection of stamps.

Danvilles stamp is not only one of the most beautiful stamps produced, but it is also one of the rarest, Charles Epting, president of H.R. Harmer, told the Danville Register & Bee during a telephone interview. Were left with just nine examples of the Danville stamp.

The item to be auctioned includes a small piece of dark-yellow or golden envelope with a white square stamp featuring a red floral design that says, Paid 5 cents W.D. Coleman P.M. The latter initials stand for postmaster.

The stamp and envelope is postmarked Oct. 8.

Postage stamps came to use in the 1840s, but many people were reluctant to use them. But by the late 1850s, just before the start of the Civil War, the majority of the U.S. population was using them, Epting said.

But once the war began, U.S. stamps were illegal in the Confederacy. The Confederate States of America was left trying to figure out how to set up its own postal service.

Early on, when people were going to the post office, the postmasters couldnt supply them with anything, Epting said.

Dozens of Southern postmasters began making their own stamps, creating provisional postage stamps that could only be used in their individual post offices, Epting said.

They made the stamps and stamped envelopes in place of federally issued stamps.

It was a way of supplying their customers with what they had become accustomed to, he said.

The Danville provisional stamps represent a very rare instance of a postmasters ingenuity in a time of need, Epting wrote in a news release. It also gives you an appreciation of how the Civil War affected every corner of peoples lives, including how they communicated with each other.

The 1861 Danville stamp is by far the finest example of the Danville stamp, he said.

To own any Danville stamp is a real privilege, but this one in particular is the nicest, Epting said.

In the years following the Civil War, collectors would place ads in newspapers seeking stamps.

There was this cottage industry of trying to track down rare Confederate stamps in the decades after the Civil War, Epting said.

The earliest known person to have had the 1861 Danville provisional stamp was a French stamp collector, Philipp von Ferrary. It was in his collection offered in auction in 1922 in France. It ended up back in the U.S. and appeared at an H.R. Harmer auction in 1956, Epting said.

Von Ferrary is known in the world of philately as perfecting the practice of stamp collecting, Epting said.

The reason it [the 1861 provisional stamp] is so well preserved for the last century is because it has been handled by the most advanced, educated collectors, he said.

The upcoming June 21 public auction, which will also be online, will be offering the ninth of 10 installments of the Erivan Collection of United and Confederate States Postal History.

The Danville provisional stamp is part of the collection of Erivan Haub, who was born in 1932 and died in 2018. A German businessman and philanthropist who loved American history, he spent decades curating a collection of U.S. stamps and postal history that documents the rise of America in the 19th century and beyond, according to the release.

Danvilles 1861 stamp was last put up for auction 56 years ago, and Epting said he expects it to bring in far more than the $3,000 starting price.

If this brought in north of $10,000, it wouldnt surprise me, he said.

The Erivan collection is one of the most comprehensive and important holdings of American postage stamps ever assembled, and its appearance at auction marks a watershed moment for the hobby of philately, according to the news release.

Past auctions have included an envelope carried by Pony Express to Abraham Lincoln that sold for $330,000, as well as the famous Blue Boy stamp of Alexandria which brought in $1.18 million, according to the release.

H.R. Harmer typically holds auctions about two to four times per year, Epting said.

Stamps are more than just collectibles or pieces of paper, he said. The stamps invention by British social reformer Rowland Hill around 1840 was revolutionary, Epting said.

It revolutionized the way people communicated with one another, he said.

Previously, mailing letters was prohibitively expensive and affordable only for the rich. Also, postage rates were complicated, Epting said.

Hill thought it should cost the same to mail a letter anywhere in Great Britain, he said.

The invention was the spark that set the world on fire, Epting said. In a decade or two, there were postage stamps across the globe.
Tax values out of control

Editor,

When is enough, enough and when is the Nebraska Legislature going to do something about our steamrolling property tax increases and valuations?

The current property tax system is driving people from their homes, farms, and businesses they have worked for all their lives to build.

Last year we got those pink cards because the school boards, city and county governments wanted more money. Now because property valuations are rising, they will end up with even more moneymore added value for them to tax you on. I am willing to bet they will not reduce the levy rates to adjust for what they asked for and what they will get due to valuation increases.

The sad thing is, as the tax value of my property continues to increase, none of that value has ended up in my bank account. My income, needed to pay my property taxes, has not increased enough, or at all, to pay for any of the increases coming in property taxes. The current system is nothing more than a legal way to steal your money.

I do not think we need property tax relief when we pay our income taxes. The whole system needs to be changed to prevent the out-of-control purchase pricesbig moneydriving tax valuation out of sight for the rest of us. Why should everyone else pay the toll for those that want to spend big money because they can?

The cost of just buying the day-to-day necessities is out of sight and out of control. Our federal government will not or cannot help us because they are too busy investigating IRS, FBI, Homeland Security, Department of Justice, Trump, the Bidens, Clintons and LBGTQ rights, just to name a few.

This is not a democracy and equality. This is extremism either to the left or right of anything that could be considered a center. I just hope someday our local, state and federal governments can get back to doing what they are supposed to be doing, defending the Constitution and serving the people.

If I had to say one word about the state of our country, it would be insanity.

Shawn Qualley

Tekamah

Good city government?

Editor,

Here we go again.

The City of Tekamah has sent out its annual letter requiring testing of back flow devices on lawn sprinklers. It states if this testing is not completed by June 13th, my water service can be discontinued. So, the city will effectively shut down my household if I do not submit to this testing.

Here are the facts as I see them. The Citys municipal code in section 7-230 states Households that have backflow devices will be responsible for the maintenance and repair of said devices and for the annual backflow testing as required by Nebraska HHS Title 179 NAC 22-004 item (6)(d).

Nebraska HHS Title 179 NAC 22-004 item (6) does not have a paragraph (d). However, it does have a paragraph (7)(d) regarding the annual testing which includes this exception Title 179 NAC 22-004 item 7.d. does not apply to lawn sprinkling systems, with the exception of those with provision to inject toxic substances including lawn chemicals.

My lawn sprinkling system has no provision to inject substances, so, logical person that I am, Title 179 NAC 22-004 (7)(d) exempts my system from the annual testing requirement. I accept responsibility for the maintenance and repair of my lawn sprinkler system, just as I accept responsibility for everything else in my household. I dont need the city to dictate testing of a device on my lawn sprinkler that is exempted by the very regulation the city uses to justify the testing.

I pay my real estate taxes which includes the city tax of $2,252.52 for tax year 2022. I also pay the citys water and sewer fees which are less than $20 each during the winter months, but exceed $100 each during the heat of the summer. The metro areas of Omaha and Des Moines (where I have also lived) base sewer rates on the water usage during the winter months, rather than gouge residents for water usage on lawns during summer months (which does not flow through the sewer). Apparently, our elected representatives in city government dont have enough imagination to figure this out.

The citys adopted budget for the fiscal year ending Sept. 30, 2023, includes total revenues exceeding $3.75 million. It also shows total expenditures of $4.7 million which includes almost $1.4 million for capital outlay. The reality is, Tekamah arguably has the worst streets of any similar-sized city in Nebraska. Tekamah has a long history of allowing deferral of maintenance on necessities like streets, and now Tekamah has millions in deferred maintenance on our streets.

If you are dissatisfied with the current state of the city affairs, contact your elected representatives and demand better government.

Rod Rudebusch

Tekamah
Saunders County Sheriff Chris Lichtenberg says he is lucky.

He only has rope burns on his hand and fingers after the suspect in a high-speed chase  through two counties on Monday  almost ran him over as she allegedly tried to evade a spike strip he had deployed.

Lichtenberg said he was attending a training seminar in Blair Monday afternoon and, when driving home from Washington County, became aware of the high-speed pursuit. The suspect was Itsamar S. Ramirez, 28, a career criminal from Lincoln, who had allegedly evaded officials from the Fremont Police Department and the Dodge County Sheriffs Office.

After the pursuit was called off for a third time, Lichtenberg explained, the suspect was spotted by Wahoo Chief of Police Joe Baulder.

The Wahoo police chief actually saw the vehicle at a convenience store in Wahoo, notified us over the radio that he had seen the suspect. He followed it normal driving out of Wahoo and basically kept us updated where it was, Lichtenberg said. One of our deputies got in behind (the Wahoo police chief) and they continued northbound on Highway 109. There wasnt much traffic, so the deputy contacted me and asked if he could deploy the spike strip.

The Saunders County Sheriffs Office has a detailed policy on pursuit of criminal suspects, a document and procedure that is required under Nebraska state law.

Lichtenberg said he then authorized the spike strip deployment. He stopped and began to set up his own spike strip on Nebraska Highway 109.

I was actually coming back from training in Blair. I was up in the northern part of the county on Highway 109, and I said, go ahead, lets see what happens, and if she starts to run on him, I could start to set up and deploy spikes, the sheriff explained.

Thats when, Lichtenberg said, the suspect was seen driving toward him. As the driver noticed the spike strip being set up by the sheriff, she allegedly drove off the road to evade the device, Lichtenberg added.

That maneuver almost caused Lichtenberg to be hit, an incident that emergency dispatchers frantically described over public radio channels for other law enforcement and listeners.

That wouldve been me, Lichtenberg said of the dispatchers descriptions of an officer almost being hit by the suspect.

She basically had gone down into the ditch to avoid the spikes, and I was parked on a field-drive road. I continued to try to pull the spikes across the road into a ditch area so I could get her spiked, he said. In doing that, she came right at me.

It was fairly close. The spike strips rope actually caught her vehicle and ripped out of my hand, so I have a small, a little bit of injury to my one hand from the rope on the spike strips.

The spike strips used by Saunders County have a length of rope for a handle on each end of the spiked areas which deputies use to extend the spiked portion of the device across the roadway.

I was holding onto the rope end of it. Our (spike strips) kind of accordion out, but there is a rope we use to pull the strip in the front of the vehicle. It is basically a rope burn on my hand and then a burn down in pretty deep on my one finger.

Lichtenberg said he does not believe Ramirez wanted to run him over, but it was a frightening experience in hindsight.

I dont think she was intentionally trying to drive over me. But, she was definitely driving in a reckless manner disregarding the safety of others, he said.

Lichtenberg said while he has deployed spike strips in the past and been near vehicles, hed Probably not been this close to being hit.

Had I tripped or something, Im not sure if she would have run me over or what, he said.

Ramirez was alleged to briefly resist arrest following her vehicle crashing into a ditch, but was taken into custody and transported to a local medical facility before being released, arrested and then booked into the Saunders County Jail on a $250,000 or 10% bond.
Student safety and wellbeing is priority number one in local schools, officials with the Fremont Public Schools Board of Education were told during their Monday, June 12, meeting.

Kevin Kavan, the FPS coordinator of district security, gave the board of education and other officials a lengthy and detailed report on all aspects of student safety, security and wellbeing  from fire and tornado drills to efforts to ensure students are protected from harm.

Kavan, a former sergeant with the Nebraska State Patrol who was hired at FPS in May 2018, said the district takes a layered safety approach which sees all administrators, teachers and assorted staff receive safety training.

The layered approach, he explained, includes locked doors at campuses, secured entrances, having a school resource officer in the district as well as inter-agency radio systems that connect to local law enforcement agencies such as the Fremont Police Department and the Dodge County Sheriffs Office and the county dispatch center.

I think we do a good job of training everyone, Kavan said, while admitting improvements to safety training could be made in regard to mid-year hires, classified staff and substitute teachers. We have a great working relationship with (the Fremont Police Department).

The schools within FPS utilize what Kavan described as a Standard Response Protocol, which he noted consists of the ideas of, hold, secure, lockdown, evacuate and shelter.

Most of our buildings are in secure mode all day. The high school is a little bit different because people come and go all day, he said.

Kavan also explained what each term in the SRP means, and focused on lockdowns, which he said, just announcing a lockdown creates anxiety for students.

Some examples of lockdowns, he added, included an incident in which local law enforcement officials conducted activities near a school.

Lockdowns can occur if there was an incident like at Linden Elementary School when a search warrant was going to be executed in close proximity (to the school), Kavan said.

One incident the district is still probing, Kazan noted, is the Jan. 26 incident when a teacher discovered a student at Milliken Park Elementary School who had a handgun which had a loaded magazine inserted into it.

The teacher escorted the fourth-grade student to the principals office and Fremont Police were called to the school and took the student into custody while confiscating the semi-automatic pistol. No one was injured in the incident.

We still dont know what happened at Milliken Park and why we didnt lockdown, Kavan said of the incident.

In regard to the evacuate principle, Kavan said schools in the district, do it all the time and noted that the State of Nebraskas Department of Education require the district to do 10 fire drills at every campus each school year, which he said in his opinion is, a little bit overdone.

Kavan said the district conducted 10 fire drills, two tornado drills and two bus evacuation drills at each FPS campus in the past 2022-23 school year. He also noted that district policy requires two lockdown drills to be completed each school year as well.

When the lockdown drills are done, Kavan said he and other planners attempt to make them unique and challenging for staff.

Were going to throw a wrench in there, he said of the lockdown drill simulations. Everyone knows were going to do it, and thats not really reality. It just isnt reality.

Kavan also said the key to surviving and reacting to a safety incident such as a school mass shooter was being prepared.

Whatever you do, be prepared. If bad things are happening the hall, what are your actions going to be, he said.

As Kavan began to discuss assorted higher level elements of the school districts security plans and protocols, FPS Superintendent Mark Shepard intervened and warned him to keep some information private.

Some of the things Kevin does, we dont just want out in the public, Shepard said. We dont want to discuss some of these in open session.

Kavan agreed, stating, There are things we dont want the public to know, for safety purposes.

One area of security that piqued the interest of board members was discussion of high-tech security measures, such as the use of Raptor Technologies school safety software as well as camera systems in each campus facility.

Raptor Technologies software is currently installed at the Fremont High School, the Fremont Middle School and also the Johnson Crossing Academic Center, Kazan explained. The software is a check-in system in which any visitor to the campus has their background checked against a national database of sex offenders.

(Raptor) will give an alert  John Doe just tried to check in, and he is a sex offender, Kazan explained.

There have been only three alerts of registered sex offenders attempting to enter a school since the technology was implemented several years ago.

Several board members asked why other schools do not have the technology, to which Kazan replied, It all comes down to cost.

The Raptor software is being purchased for Washington Elementary School for the 2023-24 school year, Kazan said, but the cost  a $2,200 installation fee along with $1,049 in annual subscription costs  was prohibitive to adding the program to other schools.

In smaller elementary (schools), you typically know more of the parents. In high school, there are more visitors, Kavan said of one reason why smaller campuses are not yet outfitted with the software.

Shepard told the board that the district, will continue to add buildings as we can.

The other tech-related issue Kavan discussed was security cameras in each district facility, which he noted vary between buildings in regard to the model and type of camera as well as age of the devices.

The elementary cameras, they are terrible, Kavan admitted. It would be great if all of them (across the district) were the same.

At the conclusion of the presentation, Shepard stressed that student safety is the top goal of every employee, teacher and administrator at Fremont Public Schools.

The superintendent also said very modern new cameras are going to be installed in the districts three newest elementary schools, an effort which was aided by the bond passage allowing for new campuses to be built and others renovated and expanded.

Safety and security is just a never-ending process. Everything ages. If dollars are not an issue, youd refresh (cameras) every year, Shepard said. (Security) is an ongoing budgetary item. The bond issue really jump-started that process. It put us ahead by leaps and bounds.
A 28-year-old Lincoln woman was arrested on 10 charges on Monday, June 12, after allegedly leading law enforcement officials on a multi-county high-speed chase that began in Fremont and ended in Saunders County.

The suspect is alleged to have evaded capture by four different law enforcement agencies on five different occasions across two counties, including one incident in which she caused injuries to Saunders County Sheriff Chris Lichtenberg, before finally being caught.

In a press release, Lichtenberg stated that Itsamar S. Ramirez, 28, of Lincoln was finally captured after 5 p.m. when officials deployed the last of four sets of spike strips, causing Ramirez to lose control of her Jeep.

After getting to State Highway 79, the suspect continued west then southbound past Prague where two other attempts to deploy spikes were unsuccessful, Lichtenberg stated. Near 1858 County Road 27, a Saunders County Deputy successfully deployed spikes and the suspect lost control trying to avoid them.

In a Tuesday telephone interview, Lichtenberg described the pursuit, and also said he was pleased with his deputies and other law enforcement officials actions during the chase, which he said was done responsibly and ensured the safety of the public.

(At the end) the suspect swerved at a fairly high rate of speed, causing her to lose control, and her vehicle nose-dived into an embankment causing her airbags to deploy, he said. Her vehicle came to a stop. I and another deputy boxed her vehicle in so she could not leave. She briefly resisted, but we controlled her and arrested her.

Ramirez was alleged to be armed with a shotgun as well as in possession of methamphetamine.

Lichtenberg said the chase was halted due to danger to the public by four different law enforcement agencies on four separate occasions before the final pursuit and deployment of the spike strips.

The sergeant before I got back in the county made the right call calling off the pursuit so we didnt endanger the public. I was happy with the way everything else went, the sheriff added. There was a low amount of traffic and I didnt feel we endangered anyones lives continuing the pursuit. It ended up being successful.

Suspect accused of seven other evasion allegations

According to Lichtenberg, Ramirez is accused of allegedly being involved in, seven pursuits in the last week in the Lincoln area and ran from Fremont Police and Dodge County in two incidents, earlier on Monday, June 12.

He said Ramirez is already facing unspecified charges in Lancaster County, and he believed she would also be eventually charged in Dodge County in relation to allegedly fleeing from police officers and deputies in Fremont.

Ramirez has a lengthy record of criminal court cases in Nebraska dating to 2010 when she was only 15 years old. In December 2020, she was declared a fugitive from justice for violating terms of her probation in Iowa.

In January 2021, she was transferred to Nebraska probation officials after residing in Pottawattamie County, Iowa, where she was convicted of two felony counts related to methamphetamine and placed on seven years of probation in lieu of being sent to prison in the Hawkeye state.

Following the end of the pursuit on June 12, Ramirez was first transported to the Saunders County Medical Center for treatment, but was then released from the facility, arrested and transported to the Saunders County Jail.

Ramirez is charged with the following allegations: suspicion of speeding, traveling 93 mph in a 55 mph zone; suspicion of failure to stay in lane; suspicion of driving while license is revoked from DUI, a Class 4 felony; suspicion of possession of a controlled substance, methamphetamine, a Class 2A felony; suspicion of possession of drug paraphernalia; possession of a firearm by a prohibited person, a Class 1D felony; alleged willful reckless driving; suspicion of flight to avoid arrest, a Class 4 felony; suspicion of possession of a stolen firearm, a Class 2A Felony; suspicion of having an open alcohol container in a motor vehicle.

Monday pursuit spanned two counties

The alleged pursuit on June 12 began in Fremont, where Ramirez is alleged to have evaded both Fremont Police Department officers as well as Dodge County Sheriffs Office deputies. The pursuit weaved through assorted city streets in Fremont, with law enforcement officials unsuccessful in attempts to end the chase which at times reached 80 mph.

I believe there were two different incidents. The Fremont police initiated a short chase, but they terminated their pursuit fairly quickly because they have a fairly restrictive pursuit policy, Lichtenberg said in a telephone interview. A short while later, a Dodge County sheriffs deputy saw the vehicle and initiated a second pursuit.

Lichtenberg said in the press release that Saunders County officials were notified of the chase at about 4:28 p.m., when officials from the Dodge County Sheriffs Office relayed their deputies were, in pursuit of a silver Jeep without license plates headed southbound on U.S. Highway 77 from the Platte River Bridge.

As the pursuit neared State Highway 92, Dodge County terminated their pursuit and shortly after, Saunders County also terminated due to high traffic volume on State Highway 92, he stated.

In a telephone interview on Tuesday, Lichtenberg said a highway construction project in the area was deemed extremely problematic and dangerous in regard to the pursuit, and the chase was terminated at that time.

With the Dodge County pursuit, we were just basically getting in position and ready to continue the pursuit. Then, due to her coming up to the Highway 77-Highway 92 junction  weve got road construction there with single lane traffic, he said. The sergeant on duty called everyone off and said, Do not pursue this vehicle due to the danger because of traffic and such. We did not continue that chase, and a short time before that, Dodge County had terminated their chase, too.

Lichtenberg said officers from the Nebraska State Patrol had tried to deploy spikes two different times on State Highway 79, but Ramirez somehow evaded the devices and continued to evade officials.

At approximately 4:58 p.m., (an official from) the Wahoo Police Department observed the suspect vehicle at a convenient store in Wahoo and followed it out of town to State Highway 109, Lichtenberg stated. Once northbound on State Highway 109, Saunders County and Wahoo (police) initiated another pursuit.

It was this point in the pursuit, Lichtenberg stated that law enforcement officers deployed spike strips near State Highway 109 and County Road U in an attempt to stop Ramirez. However, that effort was unsuccessful, he noted, due Ramirez allegedly, taking the ditch and nearly hitting the deputy.

That deputy turned out to be Lichtenberg, himself, who had deployed his own set of spike strips in an effort to stop Ramirez.

It was fairly close, he said of the encounter, which left him with rope burns on his hand and fingers.

Lichtenberg said the chase continued to Cedar Bluffs, where the Ramirez is reported to have turned westbound on Nebraska Highway 105 before she was finally stopped with another spike strip deployment.

We would like to thank Wahoo Police Department, Yutan Police Department, Nebraska State Patrol, and Prague Fire and Rescue for their assistance today, Lichtenberg stated. It was a great job by all involved to get this suspect into custody.
Its a chance for people to engage in fun activities while learning some serious facts.

And for firefighters like Pam Pabian, its an opportunity to share life-saving information, which can help avert tragedies.

The public is invited to the Bob Tichota Fire Prevention Family Fun Day from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, June 17. It will take place at Fremont Lakes State Recreation Area Activity Center, Lake 16, 4349 W. State Lakes Road (go south on County Road 19, off U.S. Highway 30). A valid state park sticker is required to enter the park.

More than 500 people attended the event last year. All activities  including kids games, demonstrations and firetruck rides  along with food at the event are free.

Pabian, the fire prevention coordinator, noted the wide range of activities that have been featured in recent years.

Some include the Omaha Public Power District (OPPD) Respect trailer which provides information on electricity.

The Nebraska State Patrol brings a rollover/seatbelt simulator, which shows how a seatbelt works in a vehicle rollover collision.

A 911 Dispatch representative teaches kids how to properly use this service to call for help and stresses not to dial it unnecessarily.

Ponca Hills Suicide Yellow Ribbon Prevention of Omaha will provide information on signs people can watch for in loved ones.

A Union Pacific representative will teach about crossing safety.

Pabian said a smoke trailer experience is also part of the event and Smokey the Bear will be on hand to greet guests.

Children will be able to play in water from two aerial firetrucks.

We have all kinds of kids activities and games, Pabian said.

A fishing game has proven popular. With this game, children fish over the side of a deck for a prize. They answer a fire prevention question to reel up a prize.

Attendees are treated are treated to free food  hamburgers, hot dogs, chips and cakeas well.

Pabian noted that the name of the annual event was changed this year to honor the late Bob Tichota of Blair.

Tichota, who was 90 when he died in February 2022, was a longtime proponent of fire prevention activities. The East Central Nebraska Fire Prevention Co-op is comprised of 13 surrounding departments that developed the fun day event years ago and is hosting it.

Pabian said the event is paid for via donations. She cited the importance of the event in averting fires and other life-threatening situations.

The whole purpose of this program is to prevent fires and accidents  so they dont happen  because then youre saving lives, youre saving property, she said. Its just a good thing.
BOCA RATON, Fla.  Before Fred Kalfon began exercising at the Grey Team veterans center a couple months ago, the 81-year-old rarely left his Florida home.

Parkinson's disease, an inner ear disorder and other neurological problems, all likely caused by the Vietnam vet's exposure to the infamous defoliant Agent Orange, made it difficult for him to move. His post-traumatic stress disorder, centering on the execution of a woman who helped his platoon, was at its worst.

Treatment through the federal Department of Veterans Affairs didn't work, he said.

I felt stupid the way I walk around and stumble, said Kalfon, who led a medical aid unit as a first lieutenant in 1964-65. I was depressed.

But after months in a veteran-specialized gym and recovery program, the retired pharmaceutical researcher and sales manager is socializing and has thrown aside his walker for a cane.

He's among the latest of 700 veterans of all ages working with the Grey Team, a 7-year-old organization combining personalized workouts, camaraderie, community outings and an array of machines in a 90-day program targeted at improving physical and mental health.

It's the machines, sure. It's the therapy you are taking. It's the (staff's) encouragement  they are there all the time for you. They are caring. Caring makes a difference, Kalfon said.

The nonprofit center, located in a converted warehouse in Boca Raton, Florida, gets its name, in part, from the brain's nickname: gray matter." Many of the vets who apply and are accepted into the free program suffered head trauma in battle or have PTSD.

What we have created here is really magical, said Grey Team co-founder Cary Reichbach, 62, a physical trainer and former Army police officer. The goal, he said, is to get the vets off medications for their mental and physical ailments when possible. Even after completing the program, participants can still workout, hang out and participate in outings.

With the government saying vets are 50% more likely to kill themselves than non-veterans, Reichbach is proud the center helps combat that statistic.

We want to tackle the suicidal ideation before it even starts, he said.

He concedes suicide prevention is easier because the center doesnt accept clients who are homeless or have uncontrolled addictions.

I wish we had the funding to tackle those issues, he said.

The Grey Teams program features an array of machines using infrared light, lasers and sound waves meant to relieve stress, heal mental and physical wounds and help the vets sleep without the use of pharmaceuticals. The program is run by a primary team of seven, including a medical director.

Drugs are overutilized in other veteran programs, such as those in VA hospitals, often because they have a budget and they have to spend it, Reichbach said.

Ohio State University psychologist Craig Bryan, a former executive director of the National Center for Veterans Studies, said the successes of the Grey Team program are not surprising given the selective participant pool.

They are selecting from a subgroup with less severe problems," said Bryan, a former Air Force captain who now works with the VA.

His skepticism also extends to the effectiveness of the machines.

To my knowledge, theyve never been rigorously studied so its hard to know if they have any benefit at all and/or if they have side effects or cause harms, Bryan said. Exercise is a common feature of many therapies and treatments that have demonstrated efficacy for PTSD, depression and suicide risk."

University researchers are collecting data that Reichbach said he believes will show his program's treatments work.

Reichbachs 93-year-old father, Ed, offers hugs and back slaps to everyone entering the Grey Team lobby. Sometimes the Army vet and former university professor drops to give 10 rapid-fire pushups  a demonstration to give older vets a jolt on their first visit.

We have to get them in here, thats the difficult part," he said.

Upstairs in the center's safe space community area, Navy vet Bill Tolle discussed his service as a meteorologist and oceanographer from 1983 to 1990. As a petty officer second-class stationed in Puerto Rico, Hawaii and Antarctica, he never experienced combat.

But in 1988, Tolle witnessed a plane crash at his Antarctic base that killed two people. A year later, he sustained a back injury in a helicopter crash. The back-to-back traumas left him with PTSD. He worked as a firefighter and then a registered nurse in an inner-city emergency room. His PTSD led to alcoholism.

I really wasn't familiar with what PTSD was. I always thought it was combat-related, Tolle said. For years I went untreated and it got progressively worse.

He finally was diagnosed in 2016 but didn't get treatment until 2020 through a residential VA program. He then lived at the Salvation Army, which introduced him to the Grey Team.

Tolle is a believer in the center's machines.

My thinking was foggy, at best. A lot of short-term memory stuff. I would forget. I can now think things through, resolve things, he said. My whole cognitive function is sharper.

In the centers gym, Kalfon talked about walking through Vietnam jungles still wet with Agent Orange, the herbicide sprayed by the U.S. from planes to kill the brush where enemy soldiers hid. It has been linked to veterans health problems.

His health began failing about seven years ago. First, a heart attack and quintuple bypass. Then the neurological problems. His health insurance agent told him about the Grey Team and he applied, seeing it as a last hope.

For about two months, Kalfon has been coming to the center three times weekly. He can now walk up stairs and has set a goal to jog 3 miles.

When I can do that, he said, I think I will have accomplished everything I need.

Photos: How a Florida nonprofit is helping veterans overcome PTSD
A Colorado Springs contractor is facing felony theft charges after investigators say she took money from prospective clients without providing the agreed upon services.

Erica Jayne Johnson, 37, owns Jayne of All Trades, which according to her LinkedIn profile has been an active company in Colorado Springs since 2010.

In addition to felony theft, Johnson also is charged with money laundering, court records show.

Johnson accepted $153,500 from a customer for improvements to a short-term rental property, but the customer claims that Johnson provided nearly none of the work, according to an arrest affidavit.

Investigators allege in the affidavit that Johnson accepted the work in December 2022 despite her general liability insurance being canceled earlier that year, and her building contractor license being suspended years earlier. When the customer attempted to contact the engineer Johnson claimed to have hired for the project, the customer was told that the engineer hadn't spoken to Johnson in more than a year.

The affidavit states that Johnson did hire a crew to demolish the sunroom on the customer's property. But because Johnson's contractor license was suspended, she should not have conducted the demolition project, and "had no way to legally do the work," according to the affidavit.

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Affidavits for other cases involving Johnson contain similar allegations. One Colorado Springs couple allegedly provided Johnson with $32,562 for window replacements and the installation of a heat pump, and a Colorado Springs man allegedly provided Johnson with $27,114 for a roofing project. No work was completed for either project.

None of the victims received their money back, and all claim that Johnson cut off contact with them when they requested refunds or explanations for why the work wasn't completed.

Johnson's contractor license had been suspended since 2020, according to one of the affidavits, meaning she had no way to legally conduct any of the work she accepted in 2021 or 2022, the years in which the majority of the allegations against her took place.

Johnson, who is free on bond, is scheduled to make her next appearance in 4th Judicial District Court on June 21 for an arraignment on four of her six pending cases.

The Jayne of all Trades website is no longer online, and Johnson did not respond to requests for comment from The Gazette.
Nearly 11 years after 19-year-old Kara Nichols was reported missing in 2012, her alleged killer's trial finally began this week.

The trial against Joel Hollendorfer  accused of killing Nichols on Oct. 10, 2012  began on Monday with jury selection, but attorneys were given the opportunity to give their opening statements to the 14-person jury on Tuesday morning.

Prosecutor Christina Perroni gave her opening statements, and began by showing a picture of Nichols to the jury.

"This is Kara Nichols... before she met the defendant, Joel Hollendorfer," Perroni said displaying a picture of Nichols at her high school graduation.

"And this is her after (meeting Hollendorfer)," Perroni said as she displayed a new picture showing what she claims is Nichols' body wrapped in trash bags at the bottom of a dirt pit.

Perroni outlined the prosecution's belief during her opening statement that Hollendorfer in the early morning hours of Oct. 10, 2012, strangled Nichols to death before burying her body on top of a horse's grave at his family's farm near Black Forest in El Paso County.

Perroni used her opening statement to remind the jury that the actions of Hollendorfer are the ones to be questioned during this trial, and not the actions of Nichols.

Nichols' work as an escort brought her into contact with Hollendorfer, work that Nichols was partaking in to maintain her drug addiction, Perroni alleged during opening statements.

To close opening statements, Perroni asked the jury to remember one thing as it relates to Hollendorfer in this case: "Admit what you have to, deny what you can."

For nearly 10 years Hollendorfer denied having ever met Nichols, stating that he was in contact with her on Oct. 9, 2012 after agreeing to pay Nichols for sex via an advertisement she posted online, but that she never showed up that night.

Perroni alleges that changed in 2022 when Hollendorfer's ex-wife was re-interviewed by law enforcement after she had initially been uncooperative with the investigation. Perroni claimed that Hollendorfer told his ex-wife that he killed an escort and buried her body at his family's farm near Black Forest, which eventually led to Nichols body being discovered there later that year.

"Can't deny that connection anymore," Perroni told the jury.

During the defense's opening statement, given by attorney Eli Huscher, the jury was informed of one key part of Hollendorfer's alleged confession to his ex-wife that was left out by Perroni: That he killed Nichols by accident.

Huscher at no point in his opening statements tried to claim that Hollendorfer didn't kill Nichols, but rather that Hollendorfer killed Nichols accidently, and that Nichols' drug usage played a large role in he death.

"This was a tragedy, not a murder," Huscher told the jury. "When we talk about murder we talk about intent, deliberation. You are not going to hear those things (from the prosecution)."

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Huscher went as far as to say that they will be asking the jury to convict Hollendorfer of tampering with physical evidence for disposing of Nichols' body.

"He did something awful, he did," Huscher said. "When he buried her (Nichols) body that was the wrong thing to do."

However, Huscher stated that Hollendorfer can not be convicted of first-degree murder because Nichols' death was caused accidently via consensual choking during sex combined with Nichols' use of heroin. Huscher claimed during his opening statement that El Paso County coroner Leon Kelly will confirm that Nichols had been high on heroin at the time of her death, something Kelly testified to at Hollendorfer's preliminary hearing last year.

Kelly testified at Hollendorfer's preliminary hearing in November that someone intoxicated on a significant amount of heroin would potentially be more likely to die as a result of brief strangulation where a healthy person would not, and that Nichols had a potentially lethal level of drugs in her system.

"They (the prosecution) want you to use that anger, and that sadness to convict Joel Hollendorfer of murder," Huscher said to close his opening statement.

Seven witnesses testified on Tuesday, the first of which was Paul Nichols  Kara Nichols' father.

Paul Nichols' testimony was short, as he briefly discussed with the prosecution how he reported his daughter missing to law enforcement on Oct. 10, 2012, after her roommates informed him that she had not returned home after leaving the night before.

Testimony was also heard from two of Nichols' roommates at the time  Jeremy Swope and Archie Escobedo. Swope testified that on Oct. 9, 2012, Nichols told him she was going up to Denver for a modeling job and would return the next day. Swope testified he became concerned when Nichols did not return home the next day.

Escobedo, Paul Nichols and Kara Nichols' ex-boyfriend Jeremy Rodriguez all testified on Tuesday that Oct. 9, 2012 was the last time any of them heard from Kara Nichols.

Further testimony was heard from former El Paso County detective Tammy Gugliotta, who spoke about how Hollendorfer first became a suspect in Nichols' disappearance in 2013.

Gugliotta testified that Hollendorfer first became a suspect in the investigation when law enforcement reviewed Nichols' phone data in 2013, which showed that the two were speaking to each other on the evening Nichols went missing, and that the final known location of Nichols' phone was around Black Forest, near where Hollendorfer's family farm is located.

Kevin Clark, a former crime analyst for Colorado Springs police and the current director of crime strategies and intelligence for the 4th Judicial District Attorneys Office and the final witness on Tuesday, went into further detail regarding Nichols' phone data.

Clark testified that Nichols' phone data showed her heading northeast from her Colorado Springs home before being pinged for the final time near Black Forest just before midnight.

Hollendorfer's trial will resume on Thursday morning, he faces two charges for allegedly killing Nichols: first-degree murder and tampering with physical evidence. If convicted of the first-degree murder charge, Hollendorfer will be sentenced to life in prison.
The El Paso County Sheriffs Office is seeking the publics help in identifying a man suspected of burglarizing a Falcon business early Saturday morning. Photos posted to Twitter by the Sheriffs Office show the suspect dressed in black attire and entering an SUV.

The suspect walks with a limp and has his right arm in a sling, according to the Sheriffs Office.

Those with information should call the Sheriffs Office tip line at 719-520-7777 or Crime Stoppers at 719-634-STOP.
Gov. Jared Polis will be in town Thursday, where he will give a localized version of his annual State of the State address.

Registration is now closed for the speech Polis is scheduled to give at Weidner Field at 3 p.m.

The Colorado Springs Chamber of Commerce & EDC is hosting the event that will be a post-legislative recap of the General Assemblys recently finished 2023 legislative session and what is to come in 2024.

Each January, Polis also delivers a State of the State address as governor before the General Assembly gathers in Denver. He typically speaks in Colorado Springs a few weeks after the address at the state Capitol, but this year Polis pushed it back so he could discuss the 2023 legislative session, a Chamber & EDC spokeswoman previously said.
Second gentleman Douglas Emhoff will travel to Colorado this month to attend the Aspen Ideas Festival, the White House announced Wednesday.

Emhoff, the first Jewish spouse of an American president or vice president, will participate in the festival's panel discussion on combating antisemitism on June 26. He will be joined by panelists Dr. Liz Sherwood-Randall, White House homeland security advisor, and Eric Ward, executive vice president of Race Forward. Journalist Katie Couric will moderate.

Emhoff and Sherwood-Randall will also participate in a roundtable discussion at the festival to talk about the U.S. National Strategy to Counter Antisemitism, released last month.

The first-of-its-kind strategy outlines over 100 steps federal agencies committed to implementing to combat antisemitism, and calls for specific action from Congress, state and local governments, faith leaders, businesses and individuals. The strategy aims to increase awareness and understanding of antisemitism and Jewish American heritage, improve safety and security for Jewish communities, reverse the normalization of antisemitism, and build cross-community coalitions to counter hate.

"I will not stand idly by and allow antisemitism to poison our society," Emhoff said during the launch of the strategy on May 25. "... It is on all of us to put an end to the visceral hate that we are seeing across our nation. We cannot normalize this."

Responding to Trump charges, Ken Buck says he 'wont support a convicted felon for the White House'

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This comes as antisemitic incidents in the U.S. rose 36% in 2022  marking the third time in five years that incidents of harassment, vandalism and assault targeting Jewish people and communities were the highest ever recorded, according to an audit by the Anti-Defamation League.

Jewish people make up only 2.4% of the U.S. population but are the victims of 63% of reported religiously motivated hate crimes, NPR reported.

Since becoming second gentleman, Emhoff has hosted and attended events around the world aimed at fighting antisemitism. He hosts the White House's Passover celebration each year, hung a Mezuzah on the front door of the Vice Presidents Residence for the first time, and convened a roundtable of Jewish leaders at the White House to discuss the rise in hate in December.

This will be the second time Emhoff has visited Colorado this year, the first being in March when he toured the National Renewable Energy Laboratory in Golden to highlight the Biden/Harris administrations commitment to advancing clean energy and women in science, technology, engineering and math.

The Aspen Ideas Festival is an annual week-long event hosted by the Aspen Institute, bringing together hundreds of speakers from various fields to discuss current ideas and issues in the U.S. and worldwide. This year's three-part festival will be held from June 21 through June 30.

Maj. Gen. Maurice Rose honored with monument at Colorado Capitol
U.S. Rep. Ken Buck said on Tuesday that he won't support Donald Trump's reelection if his fellow Republican is found guilty on felony charges alleging the former president illegally kept classified documents and blocked government efforts to retrieve them.

"As I said, he's innocent until proven guilty," Buck, a Windsor Republican and former federal and state prosecutor, told CNN's Dana Bash. "After the trial, if he is convicted of these charges of mishandling this information, of knowingly concealing his actions, I don't think  I certainly won't support a convicted felon for the White House."

Trump pleaded not guilty to dozens of felony counts at a federal courthouse in Miami shortly after Buck spoke with Bash. Trump is the first former president to be charged with federal crimes. Trump has insisted he did nothing wrong and called the charges political persecution.

During an appearance Tuesday afternoon on the cable network, Buck called the allegations made by the Department of Justice "very serious" and told Bash that Trump's mounting criminal cases have "got to be distracting" to voters, potentially endangering Republican chances of winning the presidency next year.

Buck noted several times that prosecutors still have to prove their case in court but expressed concern about the gravity of the allegations.

Congressman Buck joins Dana Bash on CNN's Inside Politics to discuss Trump indictment

"I think the allegations are very serious," Buck said. "I think there were national security implications from having documents in an unsecure area. I think that the prosecutor really went into a lot of detail to explain to the American public why it was necessary to indict a former president."

Buck said that he shares concerns with others "on the right" over whether the law regarding classified documents has been applied equally.

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"But I do think that there were allegations of criminal conduct in other situations, where criminal charges could have been brought against Hillary Clinton and others," Buck said. "That doesn't excuse his conduct, but it certainly raises questions about equal treatment under the law."

Buck added: "That's my only concern here."

Buck said that "the results will speak for themselves," adding, "But we still need to explain to the American public why is it that there's an apparent disparate impact?"

Asked by Bash whether he is concerned, as a former prosecutor, that Trump appeared to have defied a subpoena, Buck responded, "It goes beyond that."

"He hid documents, you know, purposely putting them in a shower, purposely putting them on a stage," Buck said. "So, there clearly is an intent to hide, there was an intent, that he knew it. He talked to his attorneys about these documents. No doubt that it was a difficult situation."

Saying he is concerned about the precedent set by searching a former president's home, Buck added, "That is just unseemly in this country. I don't know what the answer is, whether there were alternatives or not."

Buck noted that during the 2016 presidential campaign Trump called Clinton "unfit for the White House" because of the way she handled classified information, saying she "wasn't even qualified to have a low-level State Department job."

"So, I think his words have set the standard that America will look at in determining whether he is fit for president," Buck added.
The Rev. Roger Butts, interim minister at All Souls Unitarian Universalist Church, couldnt sleep the night of Nov. 20. Some 700 people had come through the doors of his church that day for three vigils of a mass shooting that happened at a queer nightclub in Colorado Springs the night before.

So he sat in his Archie Bunker-style favorite chair and began writing.

I have all these friends who are clergy people, and I decided to write to 10 of them and say I really think we need a letter that asks for an end to hate speech and affirms in direct language our acceptance of the LGBTQ+ community, Butts said.

He received enough positive response that he invited other clergy to sign the letter.

The idea was to express our sadness and grief that theres so much hate speech around this community and to just say despite all of our differences the one thing that we affirm is that theres beauty, worth and dignity in that community, Butts said.

A total of 53 clergy representatives from denominations including Mennonite, Baptist, Episcopalian, United Methodist, Lutheran, Presbyterian, Unitarian Universalist, Congregational, United Church of Christ, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the Community of Christ, nondenominational community churches, two local Jewish synagogues, a Zen school and a Buddhist center signed the letter and sent it to The Gazette.

The letter published in the Nov. 27 edition of the newspaper and online at gazette.com.

Despite our different theologies and approaches, we wanted to say you may have heard about religions that want you to change  ours are not among them, Butts said. We want everybody to grow in wisdom and spirit, but we dont believe ones gender identity is in need of change.

The primary call is for the community to end the "political, civic and religious hate speech" against LGBTQ+ people and provide "unconditional affirmation."

The group also wants to "convene a summit to address specific policies that will create a "safe space" for the LGBTQ+ community. And the faith leaders want residents and candidates for public office to sign a "Not in Our Town" pledge to "address hate and bullying and create safe communities for all."

Many congregations that backed the letter are considered progressive churches known for supporting LGBTQ+ people, Butts said, but others are not so public about their views.

I am proud of the fact that this is so interfaith, and its not the usual suspects  there are all kinds of folks, he said.

But not everyone who received an invitation to sign the letter did.

One faith representative thought it was too Judeo-Christian, Butts said. Another said it was not in line with the theology of their organization.

I say to my siblings on that side of the aisle, love people more than your ideas, love people more than your theology, love people more than your politics, Butts said. I am not going to spend any time worrying about those who didnt sign, he said. All we can do is bear witness to our deepest values.

Among those who dont agree with the letter's messages is Colorado Springs resident Joseph Ford, who has taught classes on Bible studies.

Its absolutely horrible what happened, but the way the clergy is responding saying we affirm what youre doing at the club or at home or wherever and its fine  but its not what the Bible says, he said.

We should absolutely love them, but they need the gospel as much as anybody including the killer, and thats not hate to tell somebody that," Ford said. Thats love because you want to save their soul; their soul is whats important.

The letter is off track because it only shows the loving side of Christianity, Ford added.

Theyre saying Jesus loves you, but he doesnt expect you to change, which is not true, Ford said. Jesus does love everybody. He does not love sin or condone sin.

The Rev. Mike Cole, interim pastor of Faith Presbyterian Church, said he signed the letter not on behalf of his congregation but on behalf of himself.

I felt it important to state to the community at large, and particularly the LGBTQ community, that theres no place for hate in our community, he said. Also, that there are people of faith who want to welcome and encourage all of Gods children.

Cole said he hopes that the letters call for action will decrease the divisions in our community and the open hatred and hostility that the LBGTQ community receives.

The Rev. Jen Williamson, a minister at Grace and St. Stephens Episcopal Church, signed the letter because the church wanted to show it stands in solidarity with all those affected, and were a place where everybody is welcome and affirmed."

In the Episcopal church, you can be LGBTQ and be a bishop, a priest, a minister, she said.

We do marriages, which some people may not know because its not the first impression people get from churches, Williamson said. We are a safe space, a place of love and acceptance.
Former Britt Police Chief Mark Anderson's attorney responded to the Globe Gazette's inquiry after Anderson was fired by the city council last week.

The statement from Madison Fiedler-Carlson reads:

"During (Thursday) evenings closed session, the Britt City Council confronted Police Chief Mark Anderson with concerns about incidents that they had known about for months and, in some cases, even years. Although no one had thought it necessary to reprimand Mark about the incidents at the time, he directly addressed the Councils stated concerns last night. The Council then voted unanimously to fire Mark.

"The timing is extraordinarily suspicious. The Council fired Mark just three days after the City filed its Answer to Marks lawsuit alleging that Mayor (Ryan) Arndorfer and others violated his civil rights by sexually harassing and retaliating against him. The termination appears to be shameless additional retaliation.

"Citizens are entitled to expect better from public officials who are tasked with using our tax dollars wisely and for legitimate purposes. No one should have to endure a work environment where they are sexually propositioned and asked for nude photographs or where they are punished for reporting it.

"Mark is devastated at the loss of his job as Police Chief, but he has received enormous support from the citizens of Britt. Although he never wanted to be in this position, he is more determined than ever to see this through."

Jaki K. Samuelson, attorney for the City of Britt, also released a statement to the Globe Gazette.

"The City of Britt terminated Chief Anderson's employment on June 8, 2023, due to performance issues unrelated to his pending litigation against the city."

Arndorfer's attorney has not responded to multiple phone messages.

Anderson sued the city and the mayor for sexual discrimination and retaliation May 12.

Anderson filed complaints with the Iowa Civil Rights Commission and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission on Dec. 2, 2021. The ICRC issued a right to sue letter Feb. 21, and Anderson filed suit May 12.

The lawsuit claims after Anderson was hired in September 2017, he was added to a group chat that included Arndorfer and former Councilman Chad Luecht, who according to council minutes resigned in April. The petition states all involved are homosexual, and Anderson was using the group as support because he was going through a divorce.

The petition claims that in late 2017 and early 2018, Luecht and Andorfer began treating Anderson differently, sending him inappropriate and sexually graphic messages via the text group and Snapchat. Anderson allegedly told them he was not comfortable with the messages, but they did not stop.

On Jan. 13, 2020, Anderson told City Administrator Deb Sawyer about the group chat and what was going on. She then told Luecht to stop, which he did, but Arndorfer allegedly did not stop sending inappropriate messages via Snapchat after Sawyer told him to stop as well.

Anderson allegedly received another explicit message July 1, 2021. He did not respond to Arndorfers message. Later in July, Anderson received a 1.5% pay raise, while other members of the department received 6% raises.

The petition alleges two violations of the Iowa Civil Rights Act for discrimination based on sex and sexual orientation and one violation of the Iowa Civil Rights Act for retaliation.

A trial scheduling conference is scheduled for July 7.
A recent survey of law enforcement in Cerro Gordo County has revealed that 100% of police officers and sheriffs deputies are required to wear body cameras whenever on duty.

According to the survey conducted recently by the Globe Gazette, the Mason City Police Department, Cerro Gordo County Sheriffs Office and the Clear Lake Police Department have a total of 87 body cameras available for use.

Few agencies remain camera shy Data gathered from October 2022 to May 2023 shows of the 142 agencies that answered questions on camera availability or use, 93 said they had both body and dashboard cameras for at least one of their members and vehicles.

Data gathered from October 2022 to May 2023 shows of the 142 agencies that answered questions on camera availability or use, 93 said they had both body and dashboard cameras for at least one of their members and vehicles.

Bodycams can help hold officers accountable, said Jeff Fick, a criminal justice instructor at North Iowa Area Community College.

I think it has helped in a lot of ways. First and foremost, (bodycams) really help with the report writing process, Fick said. It helps hold officers more accountable. Its pretty clear-cut when you have video evidence of exactly what happened.

Mason City Police Chief Jeff Brinkley said bodycam footage can be reviewed for a number of reasons, including being a new officer, an incident review, verbal or de-escalation skills, routine reviews, supervisor initiated complaints or a formal complaint. He said training is key for officers, and body cameras can help with that.

We have completed a wide variety of training throughout the years to help our officers recognize how they can be more self-aware and intentional about high-stress encounters and situations, Brinkley said. This training has included bias awareness, verbal de-escalation and influence, and recognition of autism-Aspergers, to name a few.

Cerro Gordo County Sheriff Kevin Pals said any time there is a complaint an internal investigation is triggered. His office also conducts bodycam footage spot checks at least once a month.

Were trying to check our people to make sure theyre following our policies and procedures all the time, Pals said.

He added that the state of Iowa requires officers be trained every year on implicit bias and de-escalation. Some of the training is done locally and other training is conducted at the Iowa Law Enforcement Academy in Johnston.

Former Clear Lake Police Chief Pete Roth said any use of force is reviewed by a supervisor to determine if that use of force was within the departments guidelines. He said his department operates similarly to other local departments when it comes to triggering an investigation.

If you are referring to when a supervisor would review video footage, then generally: receipt of a personnel complaint, a review of a use of force or pursuit, or for routine/random performance checks and evaluations, Roth said.

According to the survey, the Clear Lake Police Department received zero complaints of excessive force between 2017 and 2022 and just one (2022) complaint of racial profiling that was determined to be unfounded.

Mason City Police had 11 reports of excessive force and two complaints of racial profiling in that timeframe, while the Cerro Gordo County Sheriffs Office had no complaints of either type. No officers or deputies have been fired or placed on leave at any Cerro Gordo County department.

Fick said body cameras have benefited law enforcement officials in multiple ways. He said not everyone remembers things the same way in the heat of a charged moment. Bodycams can help strengthen public trust in law enforcement agencies as well.

Fick said making sure officers are self reporting if and when mistakes are made also is important in earning and keeping the public trust.

That can help, and that can benefit public trust within the community, he said. If you have trust within the community it might mean you have more cooperation.

North Iowa History: Police photos Judge Boynton Check forger in court Kitts & Hardy Kitts trial DeWayne Frampton M.A. Pelham portrait IHP Warren Tilton Fred Buchner, portrait IHP Calvin Anderson portrait Lt. Cletus Stangl, IHP H. Jack Lien MCPD portrait Ronald Thielen, MCPD Jim Fountas, MCPD Sgt. Pete Hall, IHP Sgt. Delmar Smith, MCPD Kenneth Kruggel, MCPD Harold Thomas, MCPD Friederich Langen, IHP MCPD badge #45 for Carey Wendell Stream, IHP Chief Stanley McClintock Al Schloemer portrait Dennis Wasicek portrait Sgt. Wendell Stream Denny Gerdom IHP Carl Condon IHP Sally Hamblin dispatcher Auto theft school Ron Carpenter, portrait C.S. Tyler Roger Brown, IHP Iowa-Minnesota troopers at border Iowa-Minnesota troopers at border Ed Christensen at Sheriff's Office Ed Christensen at Sheriff's Office Sheriff Jerry Allen Police Station cornerstone Captain Walt Reindl, MCPD Larry Davis, portrait MCPD Michael Montgomery, portrait MCPD New police station New police station Sheriff Jerry Allen, portrait Garvin Ward, portrait Prince Philip, Wes Greenan Judge Butler portrait Auxiliary policemen WWII Chief Patton Chief Risacher Chief Wolf Jewell, Duane 1971 John Wallace Kleinow, Eugene Leo Alstott Lt. Cletus Stangl, IHP Patton, EJ 1934 Police and fire chief 1949 Police and Fire depts. police car Police dept PB 40 police patrol car Policecars copy Policecars Police roster 1919 Police roster 1920 polslots1.jpg polslots2.jpg Ray Oulman Ray Oulmanold Risacher Roll call briefing at old station Schiffman and squad car Scott, Greg and Dennis Rye SL195 Remington shells.jpg 2 boys at Sheriff's Office SL1017 Old police station when built.jpg Police station 1930s Dr. Houlahan fingerprinted Boy Scouts at station Blizzard and Highway Patrol Police with new boats Buchanan.jpg Sheriff's convention Jack Burnette, Highway Patrolman John Wallace Ed Christianson portrait Pierce with kids John Wallace giving auto instructions Safety meeting G-Man BC Coulter Jack Gordon murderer Abel's wrecked safe Risacher and Wolfe in 1939 Sheriff Tim Phalen Dreher murder suspect Colwell murder Rock Falls bank robbery Allie Allen Murder house Blanchards Jewelry robbery Highway patrolman checking brakes Incendiary pencil demonstration Incendiary pencil Policemen taking tests Soondergaard and Quintard arrested Soondergaard and Quintard arrested Soondergaard and Quintard arrested Soondergaard and Quintard arrested Robbery at Newberry's Klipto safe cracked Ventura bank attempted robbery Robbery at First Methodist Church Police map Glen Wilson Stork at police station Thornton robbery footprint Blackout control center at police station For he's a good fellow Sheriff with two boys Murderer Kaster at Sheriff's Office Murderer Kaster at Sheriff's Office Man caught with furs out of season Frank Brothers arraigned for manslaughter Man with a gun Liquor Vandalized schoolhouse Capture of escaped convicts Brake inspection in front of P.D. Highway Patrolmen with illegal ration books Peace officer conference training Patrol by Junior Chamber of Commerce Attempted jailbreak Highway patrol and Breenan Wolfe and Phalen horse race Wolfe and Phalen horse race Grand Jury Police training on arrest Officials check plans in front of P.D. Officers find ammunition in car Police with guns 1945 Sheriff make big haul of liquor Officer Bruns next to car Highway patrol with booze Mrs. Bauer leaves inquest F.B.I. training session Richard Pierce Portrait Highway patrolmen at accident scene Clear Lake bike accident Electrocution scene Highway patrol with loot Policemen's wives club Wrecked coupe Mott murder scene Police chart Near drowning Highway Patrolmen with Eldora escapees Highway Patrolmen with Eldora escapees Policemans wives club Holmes accident Murder at Blue Ribbon Tavern Murder at Blue Ribbon Tavern Reese IHP Police map Sidewalk DeWilde auto robbery SL33730.jpg Police with Easter Seal Society Police convention Thomas Runyan Thompson, Gerald 1965 Tommy Carroll Untitled-2.jpg Untitled-3 Untitled-4 Verhelst murder case.jpg Wallbaum Walskog1 Walskog2.jpg Zenor police cars
A Mitchell County man, Nathan Gilmore of St. Ansgar, accused of first-degree murder is asking the court to suppress evidence his attorney says was acquired illegally.

According to court filings, a human skull was found at the Cedar River Greenbelt Trail Park near Mitchell on Feb. 4, 2022. A body was later located nearby on April 5, 2022, and identified as Angela Bradbury, 29, of Mason City.

Numerous interviews were conducted with Bradbury's family, friends and acquaintances prior to a March 30 meeting between investigators in Des Moines. Gilmore was allegedly not mentioned in the interviews or meeting.

During the meeting between investigators, officials from the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation Intelligence Center used specialized software from FOG Data Science to analyze electronic device "signatures" in the area of the park where Bradbury's remains were located.

Once a personal device is located, the software allows law enforcement to build a detailed map of the time and locations where a particular device has been over the last two years.

The software allowed investigators to narrow their focus to devices of six persons, one of whom was Gilmore. Gilmore's attorneys argue no warrant or judicial oversight was obtained by the state before obtaining the data.

The motion states without the FOG data, Gilmore would never have been targeted by law enforcement. At least 12 search warrants were drafted and executed on Gilmore after the FOG data was collected. Gilmore's attorney's argue those warrants and the evidence collected during the execution of those warrants were obtained illegally.

A suppression hearing has been scheduled for June 23.

Gilmore is said to have picked up Bradbury in Cerro Gordo County near the correctional facility April 6, 2021, and drove her to a home in Mason City. Bradbury later voluntarily left with Gilmore to travel to St. Ansgar where Gilmore lived. Bradbury was not heard from again.

A forensic review of Gilmore's phone turned up disturbing messages in which Gilmore vaguely describe details of a stabbing death. Another search turned up a drawing of what appeared to be a satanic goat head, along with a series of numbers.

The drawing had blood droplets on it, and the numbers corresponded with the date Bradbury went missing, as well as the latitude and longitude coordinates of the Green Belt trail.
Often the only material things that remain from an existence wiped out in the Holocaust, hundreds of priceless silver pieces are on track to be returned to descendants of the original Jewish owners lost to Hitlers Third Reich.
Iowa U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley said Monday a document alleging a criminal bribery scheme involving President Joe Biden references alleged audio recordings of conversations, including between a foreign national and Biden.

Grassley made the comments Monday on the Senate floor.

The document  an FD-1023 form used by the FBI to log unverified accounts from confidential human sources  was shared with some members of Congress last week after Republicans threatened to hold FBI director Christopher Wray in contempt of Congress if he did not turn over the form.

Grassley has called for the document to be made public and accused the FBI of political bias.

According to other members of Congress who viewed the document, it alleges that Mykola Zlochevsky, president of the Ukrainian energy company Burisma, paid $5 million to both Hunter and Joe Biden to avoid a corruption investigation.

The claim was investigated by former President Donald Trumps Department of Justice in 2020 and found to be lacking evidence, according to a statement from Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., the ranking member on the House Oversight Committee.

Members of the House Oversight Committee viewed a redacted form of the document on June 8 after the committees chair, Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., subpoenaed the FBI to provide the document. On Monday, Grassley said he had viewed an unredacted version of the document, which included the claims about the alleged recordings of conversations with President Biden and Hunter Biden.

Grassley said the FBI document says the foreign national, which others have identified as Zlochevsky, has 15 recordings of conversations with Hunter Biden and two recordings of conversations with then-Vice President Joe Biden.

These recordings were allegedly kept as a sort of insurance policy for the foreign national in case he got into a tight spot, Grassley said.

Grassley has said before he does not know whether the accusations in the document are true.

We arent interested in whether the allegations against Vice President Biden are accurate or not, Grassley said in an appearance on Fox News this month. Were responsible for making sure the FBI does its job, and thats what we want to know.

Grassley pushed the FBI to release the full, unredacted document to the public. An FBI official said in May that releasing the document could jeopardize other FBI investigations and the trust of confidential human sources.

Getting a full and complete 1023 is critical for the American people to know and understand the true nature of the document and to hold the Justice Department and FBI accountable, Grassley said Monday.

The allegations contained in the document were investigated by the Department of Justice under Trump's former Attorney General William Barr, Raskin said, as part of an investigation into allegations of bribery brought by Trumps then-personal attorney Rudy Giuliani. The Justice Department found no supporting evidence of the claim and closed the investigation in August 2020, Raskins statement said.

Biden said on June 8 the allegations were a bunch of malarkey.

This is yet another fact-free stunt staged by Chairman Comer not to conduct legitimate oversight, but to spread thin innuendo to try to damage the President politically and get himself media attention," White House spokesperson Ian Sams said. "As Senator Grassley admitted, they arent interested in whether or not the accusations are accurate, which rings even truer now that its been publicly reported that the Trump Administrations Justice Department looked into this claim three years ago and found nothing credible."
Bunuel wrote:

The inmates of Arizona state prison who are selected by the state forest department to work as wilderness firefighters eat in the same cafeterias, sleep in the same campsites, and wear the same uniforms as their professional counterparts do, defying the rigid relationship barriers enforced inside prison walls.





A. defying the rigid relationship barriers enforced

B. defying the relationship barriers enforced rigidly

C. they defy the rigid relationship barriers enforced

D. an arrangement to defy the relationship barriers that are enforced rigidly

E. an arrangement that defies the rigid relationship barriers enforced

they

better arrangement

It took me a whooping 2:25 to get this correct but I will try and take a swing at it.B & D are out because we need adjective rather than an adverb (please correct me if I am going in the wrong direction).C doesn't have anything to refer to for the pronounA & E are left outE is awhich says clearly that this whole arrangement defies the .........Let me know if I reached the answer in a wrong fashion
Danville is offering incentives officials hope will encourage home building in the city to meet demand and alleviate a housing shortage.

The Danville Industrial Development Authority voted 4-0 during its meeting Tuesday morning to approve three grant programs to spur residential development.

The vote means the IDA will be the conduit for those grant programs.

One incentive, the conditional real estate tax grant program, provides grants to builders of single-family and multi-family developments in the form of real estate tax relief.

The other two grants will provide reimbursement for developers for city fees they pay for projects, and for costs for preliminary engineering reports and financial reports.

We have a gap in our housing market that needs to be filled by product, Danville City Manager Ken Larking told the Danville Register & Bee on Tuesday afternoon. These incentive programs might be necessary for what may encourage developers to build single-family and multi-family developments in our community.

Danville needs more than 1,000 additional homes to meet demand generated by nearly 4,000 jobs expected to come to the Dan River Region through next year, according to a housing demand study completed last year by the Danter Company.

The citys housing supply is low due to lack of new-home construction over the last several years, the study found.

Danter Company Founder and President Ken Danter gave a presentation on housing demand in Danville during the Southern Virginia Regional Housing Summit at the Institute for Advanced Learning and Research last August.

About 3,900 new jobs are expected to come to the Danville market through 2023, including 1,300 anticipated for the Caesars Virginia casino, Danter pointed out. However, the permanent Caesars Virginia casino project is not expected to open until late 2024.

Another 2,600 jobs will come from more than a half-dozen other economic development projects, he said.

That will drive up housing demand, with 1,059 new housing units needed to meet that  including 921 apartments and 138 single-family homes, Danter said.

In addition, 1,366 units are needed  760 apartments and 606 single-family homes  to satisfy pent-up demand, he added.

Those figures add up to 2,425 homes that must be built to meet housing needs due to both job-driven and pent-up demand.

As for the IDAs decision Tuesday, Board Chair Neal Morris and members John Laramore, Philip Hall and Robbie Woodall voted in favor of the grant programs.

Members Kristen Barker, David Cumbo and Russell Reynolds were absent.

It helps provide developers with a pathway to help streamline the process and help encourage them to come to our community to help fulfill housing need, Danville Economic Development and Tourism Director Corrie T. Bobe said during an interview after the meeting. 

With $1.4 billion in investments announced and almost 4,000 new jobs that will be coming over the next few years, we understand that in order to continue to grow as a region, to grow as a community, we need to ensure that were providing ample housing options for every price point, Bobe added.

Under the conditional real estate tax grant program, qualifying developers of single-family projects with an investment of at least $5 million and at least 50 units would receive up to a 15-year incentive including a grant of 100% of the increase in value of taxes paid on the property based on the first assessment year.

To qualify for any of the three grants, the projects must meet the criteria shown in the Danter report.

They would receive grants covering 50% of the increase in taxes in subsequent years through the 15th year.

For example, a development assessed at $5 million taxed at the current real estate tax rate of 84 cents per $100 of assessed value would see a $42,000 tax bill. That bill would be covered by the grant for the first year, with the grant providing $21,000 in tax relief on that bill for the remainder of the 15 years  if the property were assessed at the same value during those remaining years, with the same real-estate tax rate.

Those developing multi-family projects would receive up to a 10-year-incentive including 100% of the increase in value of taxes paid on the property in the first year, and then 50% for years two through 10. The grant would be available for those projects with a minimum of 60 units and a minimum investment of $6 million.

To qualify for the city fee reimbursement, single-family and multi-family developments must meet the same investment and development requirements as those for the real-estate tax relief. In addition, the development must be complete in five years.

The incentives that were approved today, and the IDA being the conduit to help implement the incentives, really will make projects within the city of Danville much more appealing to local, regional and national developers, Bobe said.
The General Directorate for Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises presented a new brochure featuring Luxembourg's creative industries at an event of the Luxembourg Creative Industries Cluster hosted by 1535 Creative Hub Differdange. Developed by Luxinnovation in close collaboration with the General Directorate for Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises, the publication highlights the importance of the creative industries for the country and promotes the matchmaking platform just made available to Luxembourg's creative industry stakeholders.

Composed of more than 2,400 companies and employing an estimated 14,600 people according to the sector mapping developed by Luxinnovation in 2020, the creative industries form a vibrant part of Luxembourg's economy. The creative industries sector generates economic value, contributes to job creation and provides creative input for other economic fields.

To further highlight the support to the sector, the General Directorate for Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises presented a new creative industries brochure at the Creative Industries Cluster Afterwork Session organised by Luxinnovation. The publication introduces the sector and its 12 industries and highlights the objectives of the Luxembourg Creative Industries Cluster that is managed by Luxinnovation. Designed with a sustainable perspective, it has deliberately been kept brief and timeless with additional, more time sensitive information  including a video featuring Minister Delles as well as Sasha Baillie, CEO of Luxinnovation, and Kristian Horsburgh, Creative Industries Cluster Manager  available online via QR codes.

"As the national innovation agency, our role is also to encourage and stimulate interactions and collaborations between different sectors," Sasha Baillie points out. "Creatives in our country have great potential that can directly benefit all other economic and industrial players. The Luxembourg Creative Industries Cluster facilitates this connection, for the benefit of companies and the economy in the broad sense."

The brochure therefore invites creatives to connect to the new creative industries online community set up by Luxinnovation. The virtual community gives creatives access to their peers and help them build relationships with creatives who have converging interests. They can for example be able to post cooperation requests when looking for partners to grow their business. Being part of this national creative hub will also increase their exposure within the creative sector and towards future clients.

"I find the connections that can exist between entrepreneurship and creativity fascinating and I strive to find ways for creatives to derive value from their work. As manager of the Luxembourg Creative Industries Cluster, my job also consists of putting creative industry players in contact with other departments of Luxinnovation which can provide them with valuable support in the development of their activities and access to national and European public funding," says Kristian Horsburgh.

The brochure can be downloaded on: www.luxinnovation.lu/publication.

Press release by the General Directorate for Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises and Luxinnovation
ProKidney, Corp., a Winston-Salem company focused on development of treatments for chronic kidney disease, will establish a biomanufacturing plant with staged investments of up to $458 million in Guilford County, officials announced on Tuesday.

The company will create up to 330 jobs, with the average annual salary estimated at $74,636. The current average salary in Guilford County is $57,190.

ProKidney has agreed to buy a 210,000-square-foot facility and 22 acres in 73 Business Center, a Class A industrial park off Greenbourne Drive near Interstate 73. The facility is expected to be completed by 2027 and the jobs created by the end of 2028.

Innovative life science companies like ProKidney understand that North Carolina offers the key ingredients for business success, Gov. Roy Cooper said in a news release. Our leadership in this important industry sector is recognized around the world, thanks to the specialized workforce training and education systems that support North Carolinas biotech companies.

The Greensboro City Council has approved $13 million in incentives for the company, and the Guilford County commissioners have approved more than $15 million. The company is also eligible for a performance-based state Job Development Investment Grant of $5.1 million.

I think the money is very well spent, Greensboro Mayor Nancy Vaughn said. There are audit procedures in place to make sure that the jobs are actually hired and  that theyve made the commitment  to our community  almost half a billion dollars  before these incentives are paid out.

Although ProKidneys lead product candidate Renal Autologous Cell Therapy (REACT)  patented, proprietary cell-based therapy  has not yet passed clinical trials or received official FDA approval, the construction of a new facility is another step in the companys journey to becoming a fully-integrated, commercial-stage biotechnology company. REACT has already received guidance from the FDA and EMA to support its ongoing clinical programs.

Treatment of chronic kidney disease is among the largest single expenses incurred by the US health care system. In 2021, there were over 2,000 reported deaths from kidney disease in North Carolina, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

ProKidney is focused on preserving kidney function in patients with a high risk in kidney failure. Late stage CKD patients, Stage 3b4, are a key target population for the potential REACT therapy.

According to ProKidney, the REACT product has the ability to formulate the patients healthy cells into a personalized cell therapy product, which is then re-injected into the damaged kidney.

Prokidney states that their preclinical studies indicate that REACT may migrate throughout the kidney, resulting in an improvement in renal function and histologic structure, including decreased interstitial fibrosis and inflammation.

A representative of ProKidney confirmed that its headquarters will remain in Winston-Salem, a point echoed by local economic officials.

This isnt a move, its an expansion, Greensboro Chamber of Commerce CEO Brent Christensen told the News & Record.

Christensen added that the Triad has become an attractive destination for the life sciences industry because of the strength of the labor force.

This company couldve gone anywhere. Boston, Texas, California. This is an opportunity to capitalize on the development going on at High Point and NC A&T, Christensen said.

Dr. Tim Bertram, CEO of ProKidney, said the company considered many factors in determining where best to build future commercial manufacturing capacity for REACT.

Because of North Carolinas depth and breadth of biotechnology talent, the advantage of locating the plant near our headquarters and pilot manufacturing plant in Winston-Salem, NC, and the states interest in continuing to grow its biotechnology industry, we determined that adding manufacturing capacity here in Greensboro would be in the best interest of ProKidney.
RALEIGH  North Carolinas own Patrick McHenry, who represents our 10th District in the U.S. House of Representatives, helped negotiate the debt-ceiling compromise that President Joe Biden signed on June 3. Not surprisingly, McHenry described it as a major accomplishment. Huge relief to actually see a bipartisan bill make its way through the House and Senate and get a presidential signature, said McHenry, a key ally of House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, and honored to be a part, even a small part of this big undertaking in divided government.

North Carolinas own Dan Bishop, who represents the neighboring 8th District, is a frequent critic of the speaker and voted against the deal. Not surprisingly, Bishop described it as a disaster and a huge loss for the American people. McCarthy got rolled, he tweeted.

As for the rest of the states congressional delegation, all the other House members voted in favor of the deal except 2nd District Democrat Deborah Ross, who was absent. Sen. Thom Tillis also said yes. Sen. Ted Budd said no.

Im not going to argue that the debt-ceiling bill was unimportant. And if Id been in Congress, Id have voted for it, given that it will save taxpayers a bit of money and somewhat strengthen work requirements for public assistance. But I can also understand the unenthusiastic response of fiscal conservatives, both inside and outside government. Our federal budget is massively out of balance. Bringing it into balance at some point in the not-too-distant future  which I view as both an economic necessity and a moral imperative  will not happen through such low-stakes negotiations.

Of the $6.3 trillion the federal government is spending this year, current revenue will fund only $4.9 trillion. Washington is borrowing the remainder, $1.4 trillion. What would be necessary to close such a deficit? Well, Congress and the administration could attempt to close the gap with more revenue. But if you think a 29% increase in the federal tax burden wouldnt jolt our economy into a deep recession  and motivate well-lawyered individuals and companies to game the system  you live in fantasyland.

On the other side of the ledger, that $6.3 trillion in expenditures consist of $4.6 trillion for mandatory items (debt service plus Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and other welfare programs) and $1.7 trillion in discretionary spending. In theory, we could balance the budget by whacking the latter category by 82%. Keep in mind, though, that this category includes national defense, education, energy, transportation and a host of other popular  and in some cases essential  programs.

Cutting discretionary spending will be necessary, yes. Heck, Im conservative as they come, but I think additional revenue will be necessary, too, as part of a lasting and politically salable solution (though Id opt for selling federal assets and closing loopholes over raising tax rates).

The inescapable math of the problem, however, is that unless our elected officials are willing to reform the entitlements that comprise most of the federal budget, their claim to care about federal debt shouldnt be taken seriously. Indeed, the math gets even more inescapable when you consider the fact that entitlements will make up a larger share of federal spending in the future than they do today. Americas population is aging. The ratio of retirees to workers is growing.

We need to reduce Social Security benefits for retirees with above-average incomes. We need to do the same for Medicare coverage, while also reforming the way both Medicare and Medicaid compensate providers for medical services. We need to encourage Americans to save more for their own post-retirement needs, including their long-term care, and to rely more on their own children and grandchildren rather than expecting other peoples children and grandchildren to close the gap.

We should have initiated such entitlement reforms decades ago. That would have made them easier to adjust to. Every year we delay the inevitable, the transition gets harder. Its time for those in positions of leadership to earn that label.
WENTWORTH  After interruptions by COVID-19, The Charlie Poole Music Festival, a proper celebration of the legacy of one of Rockingham Countys true musical legends, saw pickers and families pour out for two days of music on June 9-10.

Held at Rockingham Community College beneath tents, the event drew seasoned top musicians from the region and beyond, as well as young pickers and fiddlers.

This weekend at the Charlie Poole Music Festival was just magical, said its director and co-founder Louise Price of Eden.

Some of the most incredible talent, both the performers and the contestants, were there sharing with an enthusiastic audience. We had so many wonderful volunteers, sponsors and supportersit couldnt have happened without them, she said.

And, visitors got a chance to see what a jewel of a campus we have at Rockingham Community College  all to celebrate the worlds most famous mill workerCharlie Poolea banjo player who transformed the world of music.

The winner of the festivals top prize, the $1,000 Grand Champion Banjo Award, was Trevor Holder of Salem, Va.

Price said she will provide a complete list of all of the prize winners in different categories later this week.

Born in Statesville on March 22, 1892, the banjo-picking Poole grew up in Alamance County in a cotton mill village, going to work in the mills as a child.

Around 1918, Poole moved to the Spray community, now a part of Eden, where he worked in the spinning room of Spray Cotton Mill.

Throughout his childhood, Poole had a love for music and even crafted his first banjo from a gourd.

By the time he was 8 or 9-years old, he had learned to play proficiently.

And it was no time before he would become famous for his three-finger picking technique he would showcase around the nation with his band The North Carolina Ramblers.

The popular group recorded 36 albums and sold sold more than 600,000 copieswith songs named Dont Let Your Deal Go Down and The Man Who Rode the Mule Around the World.

The influence that Charlie Poole and The North Carolina Ramblers had on American roots music and continue to have on country music is like no other, music historians agree.

In an effort to celebrate the accomplishments of Poole, considered one of the most overlooked important country musicians in history, Price, along with Marianne S. Aiken, founded the Charlie Poole Music Festival in 1996.
If you are into agriculture, music and eating meat then a new festival outside Helmville might be calling your name.

Old Salt Festival all takes place on the Mannix Ranch in the Blackfoot Valley, June 23-25.

Eat meat: Montana's Cole Mannix on agriculture as conservation Mannix says eating meat doesn't have to be at odds odds with a healthy, natural world.

"Celebrating the important role of livestock in managing land and as part of the food system, Old Salt Festival blends wood-fired cooking of local beef, lamb and pastured pork with compelling music, art and spoken word from the region." said a press release on the event. "The experience will nurture meaningful and lasting rural-urban connections toward a better food system, more respectful relationships with each other and the rest of the natural world."

The three days and two nights of camping will feature:

A 40-foot cinder block cookfire with three grand meals centered around local beef, lamb and pork prepared by Eduardo Garcia of Montana Mex, Elias Cairo of Olympia Provisions, Jarret Foster and Mona Johnson of Tournant PDX

Fourteen bands, including Brent Cobb, Riddy Arman, Eli West Trio, Summer Dean, Jalan Crossland and The Lucky Valentines

Speakers on land, wildlife conservation and food, including David James Duncan, Debra Magpie Earling, Chris Dombrowski, Nicolette Hahn Niman, Diana Rodgers, and Ed Roberson of Mountain & Prairie

A "General Store" with goods from makers and artists from around the region

Founded in 2020, Old Salt Co-op is a rancher-owned meat company that provides high-quality food for those who want to invest in the health of Montana soil, water and wildlife. With over 400,000 acres of private and leased public lands under management by member ranches and counting, Old Salt does whole animal butchery for Montana livestock and uses in-house restaurants and special events to build a direct-to-consumer market for beef, lamb and hogs.

"Come hungry and leave inspired!" said the press release.
DECATUR  The Decatur Public Schools Board of Education said goodbye on Tuesday to the attorney who served as the district's legal counsel for 12 years.

Brian Braun died on May 24.

Superintendent Rochelle Clark, holding back tears, told Braun's family members who attended Tuesday's regular meeting that Braun had given so much to Decatur Public Schools. Past board members Andrew Taylor, Regan Lewis, Sherri Perkins, Kendall Briscoe and Beth Nolan attended to show their respect.

Clark said she made countless, countless calls to Braun to ask his advice and he was always only a phone call away.

Brian was my esteemed colleague and a remarkably knowledgeable and hardworking individual, she said.

Lewis was the only past board member who chose to speak when Clark invited them to do so, and she said as an attorney herself, she learned much from Braun.

Clark and board secretary Melissa Bradford hugged Braun's family members as they presented them with a plaque commemorating his work for the board and told them five trees would be planted in Israel in his memory.

We loved him dearly, Bradford said.

As the board got down to business, they approved hiring Mistie Rodriguez to serve as principal at Eisenhower High School. Rodriguez was unable to attend the meeting, but board President Bill Clevenger said he hoped to introduce her to the community soon.

The board also approved a new contract with Aramark for food service for the upcoming school year, after a presentation in which Aramark's Scot Gregory showed the changes the company plans, with monthly limited-time offers of dishes such as Chipotle cheesy bean nachos, special events like waffley Wednesday and an increased variety of fruits and vegetables, along with a brief explanation of the national school lunch program's requirements for nutrition guidelines. Students can build their own meals as long as they choose at least one fruit or vegetable serving along with two other items such as proteins and grains, and in the high schools, Aramark will offer meals to order, with options of popular entrees. Regular feedback sessions with students will allow the company to alter food choices according to student preferences.

Board Vice President Jason Dion said one thing he had noticed was how much food students throw away from their school lunches, and Gregory said some buildings offer a share table, where students can place items they don't want for other students to take. Aramark hopes to increase the number of buildings with that option.

21 photos of Decatur high school activities through the years
Decatur Public Schools released the following timeline of events that officials say led up to Tuesdays announced closing of the two Dennis Lab School buildings. It has been edited for clarity and brevity.

Oct. 24: First meeting between Superintendent Rochelle Clark and Dennis administration to discuss next steps for the future of Dennis Lab School, its grade-level separation and staffing needs.

Nov. 2: Clark met with Dennis administration to further discuss future needs, including space for more classrooms and furniture.

Feb. 7: Clark and district administration attended Dennis faculty meeting to discuss school needs and set up for 2023-24 school year. Staff raised concerns that included issues with the heating, ventilation and cooling systems, ceiling leaks, wood damage under carpet and more. Clark also discussed revising grade levels.

March 7: At a faculty meeting, Clark and district administration tell staff they are still trying to get a structural analysis scheduled, preferably on a day with few students in attendance.

April 17: Clark talked with Dennis assistant principal about what Dennis team felt would be best for both campuses. Staff wanted to keep grade levels status quo for 2023-24 school year and to conduct an equity audit of fixtures and furnishings compared to other facilities.

May 30: Initial structural analysis completed on-site at both Dennis Lab school buildings by Philip Holthaus, structural engineer with Champaign-based Bacon Farmer Workman Engineering and Testing, Inc.

May 31: Both facilities closed, based on the initial analysis findings.

June 1: Klinger & Associates from Quincy completed an in-depth study of both Dennis Lab School buildings and sent the final analyses to district administration late in the day on Thursday, June 8.

Tuesday: Administration announces both Dennis Lab School buildings will be closed during the 2023-24 school year.

Photos: Eisenhower High School Class of 2023 Commencement

Photos: MacArthur High School Class of 2023 Commencement
DECATUR  Rahiam A. Shabazz is either a ruthless home invader and armed robber who terrorized a Decatur family or someone caught up in offenses committed by others who doesnt deserve the barrage of felony charges leveled against him, according to arguments made by attorneys in the case.

A jury began the process of wading through the evidence Tuesday in a Macon County Circuit Court trial against the 23-year-old defendant that is expected to take all week. Shabazz is pleading not guilty to nine charges including home invasion, armed robbery, armed violence and aggravated battery.

With extra penalty add-ons for the use of weapons in the crimes, Shabazz faces the prospect of spending most of the rest of his life in prison if convicted.

Special Prosecutor Kate Kurtz said the charges all date to Nov. 20, 2018, and involved armed raids by Shabazz and accomplices on three Decatur homes within minutes of each other.

She told the jury that Shabazz and his friends were looking for guns and valuables and had pistol-whipped and beaten several victims before targeting a house in the 400 block of North 33rd Street.

Here, Kurtz said, they clubbed to the floor a grandfather who tried to resist them before turning their attention to the victims 6-year-old grandson. (The grandfather) sees his grandson walking into the living room at gunpoint, pushed over the edge of the couch and a gun is put into his grandsons mouth with the words Where is it? Or I will shoot him, Kurtz added.

The prosecutor told the jurors that none of the victims were able to identify which of the suspects did this, and none of them were able to identify Shabazz as being among the thugs who robbed them.

But Decatur police, already investigating the earlier home invasions and swarming into the area in response to a 911 call, had the 33rd Street house surrounded and confronted and chased down the robbers as they fled.

Kurtz said Shabazz had been tracked by a police canine and was found hiding under a vehicle in a driveway a short distance from the crime scene. Cash, a gun and several spare magazines stolen from the home were found nearby.

The prosecutors said other guns stolen during the night of crime were found tossed in several yards as the robbers fled, and one of those weapons had Shabazzs fingerprint and DNA on it.

Ladies and gentlemen, Rahiam Shabazz and his friends, what they did on November 20, 2018, forever changed the lives of multiple families, Kurtz told the jury.

But also in Illinois it is called home invasion, armed robbery, armed violence and aggravated battery.

Defense attorney Susan Moorehead told the jurors they will be confronted by lots of evidence and prosecution claims, but they are the ones to decide just how many of the charges have been proved against her client.

What I am asking you to do is not to throw the baby out with the bathwater, she said. I am asking you to consider exactly what this defendant did and what crimes, if any, he may have committed and not simply shrug your shoulders and say Oh, he was there with that gun, he must have done it.

Of the other defendants in the case, Byron D. Theus, 23, pleaded guilty to two counts of aggravated kidnapping and a charge of home invasion in August and was sentenced to 33 years in prison. And in October Dondrion L. Austin, 23, also received a 33-year sentence after admitting charges of home invasion and two counts of aggravated kidnapping.

Another man charged in connection with the crimes, Raymond D. Graham, 27, was sent to prison for six years in April of 2021 after pleading guilty to a charge of home invasion.

And a fifth defendant, Mikhail D. Gordon, 21, is due in court Thursday for a status hearing on charges including home invasion, armed robbery, armed violence and aggravated battery.

The Shabazz trial continues.

2023 mugshots from the Herald & Review Lourash Hirstein Phillip Gehrken Joseph A. Williams Jetrevius O. Jarrett Edwards King-Woods Wilson Derrickson Colby J. Park
There are dozens of questions that need to be answered.

Dennis School's two campuses have been deemed "structurally compromised," meaning students won't be attending classes there in the fall.

Officials of Decatur Public Schools are in the process of determining where students from the Mosaic campus and the Kaleidoscope campus will attend classes come August.

But before the questions, we're thankful the structures were declared unfit while empty. Teachers and staff were barred from the school last week.

By this week, the decision to keep everyone away from the building was correctly questioned with a parent's thought, "It was OK Tuesday but it wasn't on Wednesday?"

A second analysis after last week's I stumble when I read this phrase. Is it needed? was quickly commissioned and completed, reiterating the early decision.

No decisions have yet been reached about where Dennis' more than 500 students will attend school this coming year. The school year is set to begin on Aug. 14, and the district hopes to keep the students together. Officials are hopeful that decision can be made at or before the boards scheduled June 27 meeting.

The district has no timeline as of yet for determining whether to refurbish or replace the closed buildings.

Dennis staff had concerns which they brought up in one of the regularly scheduled meetings that administration holds with building staffs. One teacher reported that when the band practiced, her classroom shook. That was one reason for asking for a structural engineer to examine the buildings.

Thankfully, the early warnings were heeded. We saw what can happen when warnings are ignored when an apartment building collapse in Davenport, Iowa, earlier this year. Some variation of that nightmare scenario could have been repeated here with children in the building.

But that didn't happen.

There are enough things that did happen that will provide hard questions that will have to be answered. But for the time being, safety and relief have won the day.

LOOKING BACK: Decatur's Dennis School HISTORY CORNER: A LOOK BACK History Corner: A Look Back HISTORY CORNER: A LOOK BACK HISTORY CORNER: A LOOK BACK HISTORY CORNER: A LOOK BACK HISTORY CORNER: A LOOK BACK HISTORY CORNER: A LOOK BACK 2019 2019 2019 2013
ABINGDON, VA.  A hearing focused on a consent decree in a federal lawsuit over the Bristol Virginia Landfill drew just one member of the public to Abingdon on Tuesday.

That speaker told Senior District Judge James P. Jones that the agreement lacks scope and depth.

The public hearing on the landfill-related consent decree between Bristol, Virginia, and Bristol, Tennessee, was held at the Abingdon Federal Building and Court House.

In his comments to the public, Jones explained that it is important that public opinions be included in the consent decree, as the Landfill has not only impacted both cities financially, but has also impacted the health and wellbeing of residents from both sides of Bristol.

Jones also expressed his concerns over how the city of Bristol, Virginia, which has had a recent history of financial troubles, plans to meet the financial requirements in the decree.

Bristol, Virginia, City Manager Randall Eads, who is also the city attorney, explained to the court that the city is actively working, alongside its financial advisors, to secure the funds needed to meet the settlement requirements, which they estimate will cost around $50 to $60 million.

Eads emphasized under oath that the city has already secured $15 million and is working with the state and federal government to secure around $30 million in funds.

Joel Kellogg, president of HOPE for Bristol, who was the only member of the public to attend the hearing, told the court that, in his opinion, the settlement lacks both scope and depth, as it does not include permanent monitoring of emissions from the Landfill.

Under the Clean Air Act, the consent order now goes to the Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Justice, who now have a 45-day period during which they can add their own comments.

Jones explained that he will rule on the case once those 45 days have passed.

Outside the courthouse, after the hearing, Kellogg expressed his gratitude toward Jones for allowing for public comment and expanded on the concerns he shared in court.

Were thankful that Judge Jones that he actually had the foresight to ask for public comment on this because, as he stated, this is this is a huge issue for our communities, Kellogg said.

The consent order as it stands, as I said today in the courtroom, is willfully inadequate in its depth and scope, Kellogg said. There is a lack of protections for our community, theres no permanent air monitoring, so we had to come out and enter into the public record our concerns that this landfill needs to be monitored for at least the next 50 years.
ABINGDON, Va.  More than 150 educators, health care professionals and community leaders gathered Tuesday for Virginias first Community Schools Conference, held at the Southwest Virginia Higher Education Center in Abingdon.

The nationwide Community Schools initiative works to build partnerships between community organizations and public elementary and secondary schools to meet the educational, physical, and emotional needs of students, families and the community.

Community Schools expands the resources available to families with school-aged children, creating a wider net of support that extends beyond the classroom, said Travis Staton, president and CEO of United Way of Southwest Virginia. Our hope is that everyone who attended todays conference left with a deepened understanding of community schools and how this framework can strengthen our communities.

The agenda included speakers from the Virginia Department of Education, Mount Rogers Community Services, and the Coalition for Community Schools.

Hasan Davis keynote focused on his experience through education, justice, and social support systems, and how he transitioned from Hasan Davis, Juvenile Delinquent to Hasan Davis, Juris Doctor.

Staton was also on the agenda and highlighted the connection between a trauma-informed approach in school and future workforce preparation.

The evidence-based approaches within Community Schools can significantly influence a childs ability to learn, which often determines how successful they will be later in life. By increasing access to health care, which includes mental health, and empowering educators with trauma-informed practices, we strengthen communities across Southwest Virginia.

For more information on the Community Schools initiative, type bit.ly3p5LAnu into your web browser.
HICKORY  The Catawba Valley Woodcarvers Club will meet from 1-3 p.m. Saturday, June 17, at the Klingspor Woodworking Shop at 856 21st St. Drive SE (Sweetwater Road) in Hickory.

Meetings are open to the public and to anyone interested in woodcarving. Youths (younger than 18) must be accompanied by an adult. The minimum age is 14. The meeting will follow COVID protocols, and members and guests are encouraged to wear masks.

The meeting topic will be whittling a turtle.

Club members are going to carve the turtle from the WCI summer 2023 issue No. 103. Everyone should note, too, that Dwayne Gosnells carving of a caricature pirate captain wheel assisted pirate is the featured caricature this month.

The club business session will include plans for the annual October carving show.

Members are invited to bring any woodcarving tool that they dont currently use, and donate them to the Visitor Loaner Took Kit, a project that will provide a carving knife to a meeting visitor.

Members and visitors are encouraged to bring completed woodcarving projects to present in the show-and-tell portion of the program.

Members are encouraged to donate items such as tools and wood for raffle prizes at the meeting.

The club consists of about 40 Hickory-area woodcarvers of all skill levels, from hobbyist to professionals. The club meets on the third Saturday of each month at the Klingspor Woodworking Shop.
Every second and fourth Thursday, Patricia Viles brings in an array of cookies and other sweet treats for Hickory Museum of Arts Coffee in the Coe attendees.

Museum executive director Clarissa Starnes said she started Coffee in the Coe Gallery in 2016 because it gives people a chance to talk about life and art and to be able to hear each other and learn from each other.

During the second week of June, the conversation focused on artist Charles White and the shifting narrative of Black art.

Until July 30, the Coe Gallery is home to Charles Whites exhibition A Little Higher, featuring a variety of his linocut, oil wash, charcoal and lithograph pieces.

Starnes said the caliber of Whites work, along with the opportunity for the community to learn from the strong content it provides, are the reasons the museum chose his art for exhibition.

Were trying to show exhibitions that are inclusive and representative of all people, using all different mediums, Starnes said.

An Artist for the People, said one sign in the Coe Gallery.

Although his art focused nearly exclusively on African American subjects, he believed his work had a broader appeal, stating, I like to think that my work has a universality to it. I deal with love, hope, courage, freedom, and dignity  the full gamut of the human experience, Hickory Museum of Arts exhibition website says.

They didnt know his name, they still dont know his name, but they loved him and got energy from him because he affirmed them and spoke through them to something within them that burned and cried out for a name and an image, said Lerone Bennett Jr., author of The Shaping of Black America.

Whites works, including Cats Cradle in 1972; Jubilee, 1974, Wanted Poster #14a, 1970, and many others speak to the systemic injustices faced by African Americans.

White, who died in 1979, knew intimately the challenges Black people faced in the United States. White won scholarships to two art schools but was denied entry. He eventually found acceptance at and later graduated from the Art Institute of Chicago in 1938, according to information about White on the website for the Hammer Museum in Los Angeles.

Dacy Shute with the Hickory Public Library took the opportunity to use Whites work to open a discussion about what it means to preserve history as well as bring minority voices to the forefront.

People attending the Coffee in the Coe discussion also viewed two TED Talks, Can Art Amend History? with Titus Kaphar and How Art Gives Shape to Cultural Change with Thelma Golden.

Kaphar spoke about his early days in an art history class where his professor chose to not teach the section on Black art history and how he, as a Black man, had the realization that he would have to seek out this information that was so important to him on his own because those around him didnt have the time to teach it.

This sparked a conversation between Coffee in the Coe attendees about sculptures, some of which have been taken down across the South because of controversial historical backgrounds.

We cant erase our past, but we can look at it in a different perspective, said Coffee in the Coe attendee Priscilla Carney.

Attendees discussed Civil War-era statues as monuments to people that some may or may not have considered to be a hero.

Attendee Jennifer Shumacher said, Every human being is flawed, so I have a problem with this person being on a pedestal.

Starnes asked, Who is allowed at the table? She asked people to contemplate the decisions about what goes into curated collections as well as what gets put on the streets for people to see.

Starnes said change in representation starts with adding more diversity to the voices that are allowed to make these decisions.

Coffee in the Coe attendee Diane Harney answered the question: Who curates these collections? She said, Mostly white people whose biases come through whether they intend to or not.

Dianna Wilson said she heard a congressman say, If youre not at the table, you could be on the menu. She said getting the community actively engaged can spark change.

Be in the room when it happens, Wilson said.

The Hickory Museum of Art will hold an encore presentation, the first encore Starnes said she can remember from an exhibition, An Evening with Charles White in the Drendel Auditorium at the SALT Block on June 16, from 7-9 p.m. with free admission.
The bestselling author of "Eat, Pray, Love" is pulling her forthcoming book from publication after facing online backlash, which is baffling the literary community.

Elizabeth Gilbert said Monday that she has removed her upcoming release "The Snow Forest" from its publication schedule indefinitely out of respect for victims of the ongoing war in Ukraine.

"Last week I announced the upcoming publication of my most recent book called 'The Snow Forest,'" she began the video posted to social media on Monday. Gilbert set the novel in mid-20th century Siberia and it followed a group of people who removed themselves from society to resist the Soviet government and industrialization.

"But over the course of this weekend, I have received an enormous, massive outpouring of reactions and responses from my Ukrainian readers expressing anger, sorrow, disappointment and pain about the fact that I would choose to release a book into the world right now  any book, no matter what the subject of it is  that is set in Russia," Gilbert continued.

"And I want to say that I have heard these messages and read these messages and I respect them. And as a result, I'm making a course correction. And I'm removing the book from its publication schedule.

"It is not the time for this book to be published. And I do not want to add any harm to a group of people who have already experienced, and who are all continuing to experience, grievous and extreme harm. So that is the choice that I have made," she said.

The announcement of the novel, originally set to publish in February 2024  a month that would mark the second anniversary of the Russian invasion of Ukraine  angered Gilbert's Ukrainian readers, who accused the author of painting a sympathetic portrait of Russians while ignoring Ukrainian ecocide and genocide.

When Gilbert announced its publication last week, she shared that she'd written the novel in isolation while living in the middle of nowhere during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Distanced from culture and humanity, Gilbert was inspired by the idea of being far removed from society, which reminded her of an article she'd read years before about a family that hid in the Siberian wilderness for half a century, devoid of human contact. This planted the seed that would later grow into "The Snow Forest," she said.

"This is a book that is going to take you into the deepest realms of the Siberian taiga," Gilbert said, "into the heart and mind of an extraordinary girl born into that world, a girl of great spiritual and creative talent raised far, far, far from everything that we call normal."

By the time Gilbert announced that she'd decided to pull the book from publication it had already received hundreds of one-star reviews on Goodreads, slamming both the novel's Russian setting and characters.

While her decision to indefinitely halt publication was applauded by many on social media, it disappointed others, who called Gilbert's decision self-censorship and a dangerous precedent to set for authors and artists.

"The idea that a novel about a family fleeing religious persecution from Communists is in any way 'pro' Russia is not only absurd  it's also the exact same argument of potential 'harm' wielded by the crusading book banners in American schools," novelist Leigh Stein wrote for UnHerd. "But more importantly, her self-cancellation sets a dangerous precedent for authors who lack her wealth, career stability, and clout."

"If writers have to participate in the creator economy to earn a living in this industry, what happens when their audience demands a product recall? A novel can take many years to write; there's no way to predict whether you'll sell it to a publisher, let alone predict how geopolitics will impact the public reaction to your work. If we can't stomach novels set in countries that have dark and ugly stains on their records, I have bad news for anyone writing fiction about America," Stein concluded.

On Monday, Suzanne Nossel, the chief officer of the free-speech advocacy group PEN America, issued a statement obtained by the L.A. Times responding to Gilbert's preemptive and "wrongheaded" decision.

"It is regrettable that Elizabeth Gilbert felt it necessary to delay the publication of a novel set in Russia. Ukrainians have suffered immeasurably, and Gilbert's decision in the face of online outcry from her Ukrainian readers is well-intended," Nossel said. "But the idea that, in wartime, creativity and artistic expression should be preemptively shut down to avoid somehow compounding harms caused by military aggression is wrongheaded. The timing of the uproar, right after Gilbert announced the forthcoming publication, makes clear that those objecting have not yet had a chance to read or judge the work itself.

"The publication of a novel set in Russia should not be cast as an act exacerbating oppression. Fiction and culture are essential to supporting mutual understanding and unleashing empathy. The choice of whether to read Gilbert's book lies with readers themselves, and those who are troubled by it must be free to voice their views. We hope Gilbert might reconsider and we urge others to rally around the on-time publication of her book, and the principle that literature and creativity must not become a casualty of war."

Gilbert's publisher, Riverhead Books, did not immediately respond to the L.A. Times' request for comment.
Trujillo named to deans honor list

CEDARVILLE, OH  Samantha Suta Trujillo from Harrisburg, majoring in Visual Communication Design, was named to the spring 2023 deans honor list at Cedarville University.

This recognition requires the student to obtain a 3.75 GPA or higher for the semester and carry a minimum of 12 credit hours.

Located in southwest Ohio, Cedarville University is an accredited, Christ-centered, Baptist institution with an enrollment of 5,082 undergraduate, graduate, and online students in more than 150 areas of study.

Garcia graduates from Jacksonville State

JACKSONVILLE, AL  Miguel G. Garcia of Kannapolis graduated from Jacksonville State University on April 29 with a degree in Emergency Management.

More than 900 students received undergraduate and graduate degrees as part of the universitys spring commencement ceremony at JSU Stadium.

Nancy Grace, famed victims rights advocate and television legal analyst, was awarded an honorary doctorate and served as keynote speaker. The ceremony is archived on YouTube and the digital commencement program is available online.

Local students graduate from Lee University

CLEVELAND, Tenn.  Lee University congratulates more than 560 students who received their academic degrees on May 6.

Students are: Amy Elizabeth Harrell of Concord, Bachelor of Science in Nursing, and Jakob Grant Rebsamen of Matthews, ,Bachelor of Science in Pastoral Ministry and in Business Administration Summa Cum Laude.

Lee University is a private, Christ-centered university located in Cleveland, Tennessee, in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains.

Shingledecker receives academic honor

ATCHISON, Kan.  Benedictine College has recognized those students who have distinguished themselves academically during the last semester. Oscar Shingledecker of Concord was recently named to the deans list for the spring semester, which ended May 9.

Any full-time student carrying a minimum of 12 hours and a perfect 4.0 grade point average through the spring term is named to the presidents list. Full time students with 12 hours and a grade point average of 3.5 are named to the deans list. Of the 2,234 students on campus for 2022-2023 academic year, 166 made the Presidents List and 698 made the deans list.
The project to replace R. Brown McAllister STEM School is more than halfway finished, according to an update provided to the Cabarrus County Schools Board of Education on Monday night.

The new school, which will be 116,000 square feet and is being designed for a capacity of 756 students, is 52 percent completed, according to a PowerPoint presentation from Brian Cone, CCS director of Architecture, Planning and Construction.

Were on the downhill slide though theres quite a few days to go within the project, Cone told the school board.

It is being built on the existing school site, which consists of approximately 32 acres located at 541 Sunnyside Drive. There will be 46 classrooms.

Construction for the school began in July 2021 and is expected to be completed in late spring of 2024. The school will open August 2024.

YCH Architects designed the new facility while Rodgers Builders has been overseeing construction.

Total construction of the building is estimated to cost $41 million, of which about $18 million has already been spent.

The existing school exit will be closed for the entire summer so work can be completed on the new entrance/exit. Work on the north entrance of the new school began Monday.

On May 23, a topping out ceremony was held to mark the last and highest beam that was set. First grade students watched from the playground as the beam, which was signed by the school body and staff, was hoisted into place.

The plan is to eventually redevelop the current R. Brown facility to become the new Mary Frances Wall Center. Feasibility studies will start once the students are in the new school, Cone said.

Cabarrus County plans to allocate $11 million for CCS to help with the redevelopment.

The school board also:

Recognized Hickory Ridge High alumnus Josiah Hailey Young, who is one of four U.S. Presidential Scholars from North Carolina. A Morehead-Cain scholarship winner, Young will be attending UNC-Chapel Hill to study at the UNC KenanFlagler Business School.

Approved school fees for the 2023-2024 school year. Of note, parking fees will increase from $25 to $30 next school year, while instrument usage fees will also increase from $25 to $50.
Gem Theatre summer matinees are back

KANNAPOLIS  School is out and summer is here! Its time to enjoy $2 Summer Matinees at the Gem Theatre in Kannapolis. Enjoy an affordable, family-friendly movie every Tuesday at 10 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. between June 13 and Aug. 8.

Gem Theatre Summer Matinee Schedule

June 20  The Emoji Movie

June 27  Peter Rabbit 2: The Runaway

July 5  Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs (note this is a Wednesday)

July 11  The Angry Birds Movie

July 18  Space Jam: A New Legacy

July 25  Paw Patrol

Aug. 1  Lyle, Lyle Crocodile

Tickets may be purchased online and group sales are available at Gem Theatre, The Showplace of Kannapolis, North Carolina (gem-theatre.com).

ECHS seeks donations for military display

MT. PLEASANT  One part of the mission of the Eastern Cabarrus Historical Society is to preserve artifacts relating to the history of this region and to make them available to the public. The ECHS Museum features more than two dozen rooms, each with a unique theme relating to an aspect of Cabarrus County history.

One of those rooms, The Military Annex will be updated this year and the society needs help from the public, especially veterans, to achieve that goal.

The museum seeks to display world history at a local level by representing local residents who served after 1946, including in any of the following: Korean War, Cuban Missile Crisis, Vietnam War, Panama, Beirut, Grenada, Bosnia, the Cold War, Desert Storm, Desert Shield, Iraq, Afghanistan, and War on Terrorism. Artifacts relating to this era will be used to improve and refresh The Military Annex display.

Says ECHS president Nick Luciano, The Eastern Cabarrus Historical Society is honored to have the opportunity to share the stories of brave Americans who are real-life heroes. When we share their history, we preserve their legacy. In sharing their legacy, real heroes never die.

The museum cannot accept loans of historical artifacts, only donations. The donation policy is available on the ECHS website (echsmuseum.org) under the Resources tab or by calling the museum office.

Financial donations toward the update of this room are also appreciated.

Housed on the campus of the former Mt. Pleasant Collegiate Institute and its predecessors, Western Carolina Male Academy and North Carolina College, the Eastern Cabarrus Historical Society is a non-profit organization committed to restoring and preserving the rich history of eastern Cabarrus County.

Kannapolis opens drive-up kiosk

The new Customer Service Kiosk is available at Kannapolis City Hall, 401 Laureate Way.

The drive-up kiosk is in the parking lot and Kannapolis utility customers are welcome to pay their utility bills 24/7.

The fully automated kiosk accepts cash, check and credit cards. You may also pay your bill by mail, online, by telephone and automated bank draft.
Ann Street United Methodist Church335 Ann St., Concord. Pastor: Rev. Randy L. Wall. In person and Facebook Live worship at 11 a.m. Sermon: Help Wanted: Experience Required. Scripture: Acts 1:21-26.

Bethpage United Methodist Church109 Fellowship Ave. at West C Street, Kannapolis. Pastor: Rev. Gary McDonald. Christian Education at 9 a.m. Worship at 10 a.m. Sermon: The Joy that Sets Us Free. Scripture: Philippians 2:1-11.

Bogers Chapel United Methodist Church1775 Flowes Store Road E., Concord. Pastor: Eric Shaver. Sunday school at 9 a.m. Worship in-person or Facebook at 10 a.m.

Calvary Lutheran Church950 Bradley St., Concord. 704-782-6923. Pastor: Rev. Debbie Frye. In-person worship at 8:30 a.m. (Casual Worship) and 11 a.m. (Traditional Worship with Childrens Church). Coffee/Cookie Social from 9:30-11 a.m. Adult Sunday School at 9:45 a.m. Childrens Area and Nursery available all times. All services livestreamed and available anytime on the Calvary Lutheran Concord YouTube channel  easy access through our website http://www.clconcord.org or church app Calvary Lutheran Church  NC. All are welcome. Sermon Topic: More Like Jesus. Series: Sent Like Jesus.

Center United

Methodist Church1119 Union St. S., Concord. Pastor: Rev. Tony Allen. Sunday School for In Betweens and young adults at 9 a.m. Worship at 10 a.m. Nursery is provided during the worship service. Website is www.centerumcconcord.org. Join us for our service!

Crossroads Church220 George W. Liles Parkway, Concord. Pastor: Lowell McNaney. Live worship streamed on Facebook, Crossroads Concord Church app or mycrossroads.co website at 9:30 a.m. and 11:11 a.m.

Crown Pointe

Baptist Church703 Tennessee St., Kannapolis. Pastor: Rev. Doug Crawley. Sunday School at 9 a.m. Worship at 10 a.m. in the sanctuary, or view online at our Facebook page. Series: Return of the King. Sermon: Earths Best Days. Scripture: Revelation 19:1-20:10 ESV.

Eastside Missionary Baptist Church199 Elgin Drive, Concord. Pastor: Rev. Stephen Burrow. In person services: Sunday School at 9:30 a.m. Worship services at 10:30 a.m. and 6 p.m. Recorded worship services and other information at EastsideMissionaryBaptist.org. You will be welcomed. Practice social distancing.

Epworth United Methodist Church1030 Burrage Road NE, Concord. Pastor: Rev. Bill Roberts. Guest Speaker: Chris Hughes. Sunday School at 9 a.m., followed by worship at 10 a.m. We welcome all to join us in person, or you may livestream or watch the recorded service at our website at www.epworthnc.com. Sermon: No Tools Required. Scripture: Matthew 9:35-10:8.

Forest Hill United Methodist Church265 Union St. N., Concord. Senior pastor: Rev. Mandy Jones. Associate pastor: Rev. Wes Judy. We are open for in-person worship. Contemporary worship at 9 a.m. Sunday School/small groups at 10 a.m. Traditional worship at 11 a.m. Both the contemporary and the traditional worship services will also be livestreamed at foresthillumc.org or facebook.com/foresthillumc, in case you dont feel like being here in person.

Harmony United Methodist Church101 White St. NW, Concord. Pastor: Rev. Thad Brown. Sunday school is at 10 a.m. followed by our worship service in the sanctuary at 11 a.m. Bringing the message this Sunday while Pastor Thad Brown is on vacation will be Mike Furr, a member of Harmony. Sermon: A Fathers Love. Scripture: Exodus 20:12; Matthew 7:9-11; Matthew 6:25-26; Matthew 18:12-14; John 3:16. We welcome you to join us in worship! Service is live on Facebook.com/HarmonyUnitedMethodistChurch and we welcome all who are unable to join us in person to worship with us online. For more information, call the pastor at 704-791-2883 or the church at 704-782-8237.

Jackson Park United Methodist Church715 Mable Ave., Kannapolis. Pastor: Laurie Knoespel. Adult Sunday School at 9:30 a.m. Worship at 10:30 a.m. Nursery will be provided during worship service.

Kirkwood

Presbyterian Church900 Klondale Ave., Kannapolis. Pastor: Rev. Dennis B. Craft. Worship at 11 a.m. in church sanctuary on Sundays. No mask restrictions. Sermon: Father Knows Best.

McGill Baptist Church5300 Poplar Tent Road, Concord, in-person services. Pastor: Rev. Steve Ayers. If you have not taken the COVID-19 vaccine, wear a mask. McGill will stream a worship service Sunday at 10 a.m. on www.facebook.com/mcgillbaptistchurch/ and on YouTube. The services will be live and also available on recording afterward. Third Sunday after Pentecost. Sermon: Hope. Scripture: Psalm 116:1-2, 12-19; Romans 5:1-8; Matthew 9:35-10:8-23.

Midway United

Methodist Church108 Bethpage Road, Kannapolis. Pastor: Rev. Craig Allen. Come join us on Sunday morning at 9 a.m. for Sunday School and 10:30 a.m. for worship. Our service is also livestreamed on the web at midwayunitedmethodistchurch.org or facebook.com/midwayUMC. Led by Gary Shelton, Lay Leader. Sermon: Christmas Decorations.

Mt. Mitchell United Methodist Church6001 Old Salisbury-Concord Road, Kannapolis. Pastor: Joel Locklear. Sunday School at 9:45 a.m. (Adult and Children classes.) Worship at 11 a.m. in person or on Facebook. Sermon: The Purpose of Gods Love. Scripture: Romans 5:1-18.

Multiply Church Concord150 Warren C. Coleman Blvd. N., Concord. Pastor: Rev. Douglas Witherup. 8:30 a.m. service held at 280 Concord Parkway S., Suite 15, Concord. Services at 150 Warren C. Coleman Blvd. N., are worship and sermon at 9:30 a.m. and worship and sermon at 11:15 a.m.

New Gilead Reformed Church, ECO2400 Old Salisbury-Concord Road. 9:40 a.m.: Adult Bible Study. 10 a.m.: Sunday School. 11 a.m.: Worship in the Sanctuary, also live on Facebook.

Oak Grove

Baptist Church200 Sims Parkway, Harrisburg. Pastor: Rev. Franklin D. Watkins. 10 a.m.: In-person worship service and Facebook Live and YouTube Live. Sermon: Blessed By The Best Father. Scripture: Psalm 1:1-6.

Second Presbyterian Church1578 Dale Earnhardt Blvd., Kannapolis. Pastor Sue Black, minister. Rev. Aaron Price, assistant pastor. Sunday school at 10 a.m. Worship at 11 a.m. with guest singing group from Cornelius, and the Rev. Farrar Griggs leading the worship service. Sermon: We Are Witnesses. Scripture: Acts 10:34-43.

St. Johns

Reformed Church 901 N. Main St., Kannapolis. Pastor: Rev. Chris King. Sunday school for all ages at 9:30 a.m. Worship Service at 10:30 a.m. Website  www.ourstjohns.org. Email/phone- ourstjohns@gmail.com / 704-932-3656. Fathers Day. Sermon: Such a Great Sacrifice; Such a Great Faith. Scripture: Genesis 22:1-14.
Microsoft has patched 70 CVEs in its Patch Tuesday releases for June, with this being the first month after a while in which no disclosed or publicly exploited zero-days have been fixed.

Apart from fixes for Windows and other common products, Microsoft also issued patches for CVEs for AutoDesk and GitHub.

Among the 70 CVEs, six were rated critical, 62 were rated important and one each rated low and moderate.

Satnam Narang, senior staff research engineer at security firm Tenable, said: "Two remote code execution vulnerabilities were patched this month in Microsoft Exchange Server, which has been a ripe target for attackers over the last few years.

"Both flaws are rated as important but are considered more likely to be exploited compared to some of the other vulnerabilities patched this month.

"Unlike past Microsoft Exchange Server flaws that were rated higher and did not require authentication, these vulnerabilities require an attacker to be authenticated.

"That said, attackers can still potentially exploit these flaws if theyre able to obtain valid credentials, which is not as difficult as youd expect."

Adam Barnett, lead software engineer at security firm Rapid7, noted that the volume of patches was typical compared with recent months: 94 in total.

"For the first time in a while, Microsoft isnt offering patches for any zero-day vulnerabilities, but we do get fixes for four critical Remote Code Execution vulnerabilities: one in .NET/Visual Studio, and three in Windows Pragmatic General Multicast," he added.

"Also patched was a critical SharePoint Elevation of Privilege vulnerability."

Barnett said SharePoint administrators should start by looking at CVE-2023-29357, which provided attackers with a chance at gaining administrator privileges on the SharePoint host, provided they possessed spoofed JWT tokens.

"Microsoft isnt aware of public disclosure or in-the-wild exploitation, but considers exploitation more likely. At time of writing, the FAQ provided with Microsofts advisory suggests that both SharePoint Enterprise Server 2016 and SharePoint Server 2019 are vulnerable, but neither the advisory nor the SharePoint 2016 Release history list any related patches for SharePoint 2016," he pointed out.

"Defenders responsible for SharePoint 2016 will no doubt wish to follow up on this one as a matter of some urgency. Microsoft also explains that there may be more than one patch listed for a particular version of SharePoint, and that every patch must be installed to remediate this vulnerability (although order of patching doesnt matter)."

Commenting on the three CVEs - CVE-2023-32015, CVE-2023-32014, and CVE-2023-29363 - for Windows Pragmatic General Multicast, Mike Walters vice-president of Vulnerability and Threat Research and co-founder of Action1, a vendor of risk-based patch management software, explained that PGM was a protocol used for reliable multicast data delivery in Windows operating systems, commonly used for applications like video streaming and online gaming.

"These vulnerabilities have a high CVSS rating of 9.8 and pose a serious risk. They can be exploited over the network without requiring privileges or user interaction," he said.

:Affected systems include all versions of Windows Server 2008 and later, as well as Windows 10 and later.

If the Windows Message Queuing Service is running in a PGM Server environment, an attacker could send a specially crafted file to achieve remote code execution. To mitigate this vulnerability, consider checking if the Message Queuing service is running on TCP port 1801 and disable it if not needed.

"However, be cautious as this may impact system functionality. It is generally recommended to install the available patch instead of relying solely on mitigation strategies."
An Australian law firm's bid to try and use a court injunction to prevent publication of material stolen during a ransomware raid is unlikely to have any effect on the attackers behind the intrusion, a security professional says.

Australian law firm HWL Ebsworth was hit by the Alphv ransomware gang earlier this year. The attackers released the first lot of stolen data, including passport copies and other documents, on the dark web on 2 June.

The company sent a message to the media on Tuesday  iTWire was not included  saying it had obtained an injunction from the Supreme Court of NSW which aims to prevent the attackers from making the stolen material public.

According to a report in The Age, HWL Ebsworth also claims the order prevents "media from reporting reporting any details from the data".

Brett Callow, a seasoned ransomware researcher with the New Zealand-based security firm Emsisoft, told iTWire that this was not the first time a ransomware victim had tried this tactic.

"New Zealands Waikato District Health Board and the Irish Health Service Executive are among the other organisations to have taken similar courses of action, and its a somewhat risky strategy," he said.

"On the one hand, the inunction may dissuade casual looky-loos from accessing the data and also stop reporters from using it as the basis for stories.

"On the other hand, its unlikely to stop Alphv from releasing the data and may actually provoke them into releasing it more quickly or distributing it more widely than they otherwise would.

"When US company Southwire obtained injunctions against the Maze ransomware group and its Web host, Maze started to release the data on a Russian cyber crime forum with a note inviting people to, 'Use this information in any nefarious ways that you want'.

A report about the Southwire incident in The Wall Street Journal points out that legal experts had opined that such a tactic could help victims protect themselves from the legal fallout after a breach.

According to the Australian Cyber Security Centre, Alphv, which is also referred to as BlackCat or Noberus, was first detected in late 2021.

"[It is] related to previous ransomware variants BlackMatter and DarkSide, which was used in the attack on Colonial Pipeline in May 2021," it said.

"The operators of Alphv have reportedly sought to recruit former members of the BlackMatter, DarkSide and REvil groups, and several similarities have been identified between the tactics, techniques and procedures of both Alphv and BlackMatter ransomware actors."

HWL Ebsworth, which describes itself as "one of Australia's leading commercial law firms across key areas". has offices in Sydney, Canberra, Melbourne, Perth, Adelaide, Brisbane, Darwin, Hobart and Norwest.
COMPANY NEWS: Aiven, the open source cloud data platform, today unveiled Bring Your Own Cloud (BYOC), a way for companies to get the most out of their public cloud investments without losing control of their data.

BYOC lets customers deploy Aivens managed data services directly to their AWS, Google Cloud, or Microsoft Azure accounts, giving them the flexibility to use the cloud platform of their choice for compute, storage, and networking - and allowing them to consolidate their cloud spend with that provider to amplify their cost saving opportunities.

According to advisory firm IDC Research, public cloud adoption in both Australia and New Zealand is expected to continue to rapidly increase in pace and size during the next four years as organisations seek to increase their capabilities and optimise costs. Public cloud spending in Australia is set to grow by 83% from $12.2 billion in 2022 to $22.4 billion in 2026 while New Zealand public cloud spending is expected to almost double in size and grow from NZ$2.6 billion in 2022 to NZ$5.1 billion in 2026. In fact, 55% of workloads for Australian organisations will be hosted on public clouds by 2025  a testament to the massive demand for public clouds for local companies.

Though local companies are spending more on cloud than ever, managing cloud spending continues to be a top challenge. To address this issue, many companies turn to the discount programs offered by the major public cloud providers, which can significantly reduce the cost of cloud infrastructure. But these programs come with a price: a multi-year commitment that imposes restrictions and limits flexibility. With BYOC, Aiven gives companies another choice: a way to take advantage of the substantial discounts on infrastructure offered by the public cloud vendors while running services from Aivens trusted open source data platform, including PostgreSQL, Kafka and OpenSearch.

"In the days of increased regulations and privacy, customer data security is paramount. Companies should have control over where and how their data is housed and processed," said Aiven vice president of product management Jonah Kowall.

"With Aivens Bring Your Own Cloud, companies have the freedom, flexibility, and choice to fully control their data security and processes. Aiven makes it easy for customers to provision and manage services across their organisations, and includes around-the-clock monitoring and peace of mind of a 99.99% uptime SLA."

According to Aiven JAPAC staff solutions architect Troy Sellers, We are seeing a surge in public cloud adoption across Australia and New Zealand. While the appetite for public cloud adoption is strong, Australian businesses are hyper aware of the associated costs and will be ocusing on cloud cost management, especially with the current economic climate. BYOC will allow businesses from enterprise-sized organisations through to SMBs to save costs on infrastructure and operations, future-proof their data capabilities and move at speed within the existing environments that they have already adopted, all on the cloud of their choice. With data sovereignty and industry compliance requirements set to play a key role in the IT decision-making process, Aiven's BYOC brings organisations the freedom, flexibility, and choice to fully control their data security and processes.

Aivens BYOC is the ideal solution for companies that use many cloud services or operate in regulated industries like healthcare or financial services with strict requirements for where data lives. It connects a customers AWS, Google Cloud, or Microsoft Azure account to the Aiven platform in a secure way using industry standard VPCs and role-based access controls. This makes it possible to deploy Aiven services directly in their cloud infrastructure, giving them control of their data while also cutting cloud costs and meeting cloud commitments. Early Aiven BYOC customers have reduced their overall cloud spend by an average of 30%.

Availability

Aiven BYOC is ideal for customers with favourable purchasing agreements for cloud infrastructure or specific requirements for security and control. It can be deployed on AWS, Google Cloud, and Microsoft Azure, and is available now to new and existing Aiven customers with an enterprise support contract and a minimum monthly spend.

About Aiven

Headquartered in Helsinki and with hubs in Amsterdam, Berlin, Boston, Paris, Singapore, Sydney, Tokyo, and Toronto. Aiven provides managed open source data technologies, such as PostgreSQL, Apache Kafka and OpenSearch, on all major clouds. Through Aiven, developers can do what they do best: create applications. Meanwhile, Aiven does what they do best: manage cloud data infrastructure. Aiven enables customers to drive business results from open source data technologies that trigger true transformations on a global scale. Most recently, Aiven achieved a $3 billion valuation and has now raised $420 million total funding backed by its investors Atomico, Earlybird, Eurazeo, IVP, Lifeline, Salesforce Ventures, and World Innovation Lab.

To learn more about Aiven, visit aiven.io and follow @aiven_io on Twitter.
COMPANY NEWS: South Korea-based money transfer operator (MTO) E9pay has partnered with Currencycloud, the experts simplifying business in a multi-currency world, to launch its E9pay Collection Service which will enable Korea-based merchants, SMEs, ecommerce players and exporters to quickly send and collect funds worldwide, starting with the US.

By integrating Currencyclouds APIs into its existing platform, E9pay has been able to develop and launch its E9pay Collection Service allowing, for the first time, Koreas SMEs and merchants to collect cross-border payment funds in a convenient way. The new service is key to E9pays goal of facilitating international payments for Koreas globally-focused B2B market.

E9pay CEO Hyuk Goo Jeon says, We are launching our new collections service called E9pay Collection Service with a well-trusted, global brand in Currencycloud. We expect this service to grow exponentially in the years to come as more of Koreas merchants and businesses use it to transfer funds worldwide, faster and at lower cost than they are currently experiencing.

Currencycloud country manager Australia Nick Briscoe says, E9pay has led the way providing individuals in South Korea with a remittance service to over 126 countries. With the launch of their Collection Service, they are now able to give Koreas merchants the ability to seamlessly collect multi-currency funds worldwide. We are delighted to be part of their customer-focused solution.

About E9pay

E9pay is the first company to acquire the Overseas Remittance Business No.1 License from Ministry of Economy and Finance (MOEF) of South Korea, providing overseas remittance and receipt services to and from 126 countries as of March 2023. E9pay boasts global partnerships with major players in the market. As a trusted leader in overseas remittance in Korea, which is growing rapidly, E9pay obtained Innovative Financial Service from MOEF, which was provided financial services differentiated from existing financial techniques by utilizing new IT technologies, E9pay provides secure real-time transfers so that beneficiaries can receive money safely through innovative Korean Open-Banking service.

About Currencycloud

Banks, Fintechs and businesses everywhere can make bigger, better, bolder leaps with Currencycloud, a Visa solution.

Currencycloud gives businesses the capability to move money across borders, and transact globally in multiple currencies, fast. Experts at what they do, their technology makes it easy for clients to embrace digital wallets, and to embed finance into the core of their business - no matter what industry theyre in.

Since 2012, Currencycloud has processed more than $200 billion to over 180 countries, working with banks, financial institutions and Fintechs around the world, including Starling Bank, Revolut and Lunar. Based in London with offices in New York, Amsterdam, Cardiff, Australia and Singapore, Currencycloud works with partners including Dwolla, GPS and Mambu to deliver simple, clear cross-border infrastructure solutions for clients. They are regulated in the UK, Canada, US, the EU and Australia and were acquired by Visa in December 2021.
COMPANY NEWS: AMD CEO, Lisa Su opened AMDs, major announcement in San Francisco which focused on new data centre processors and AI. You can watch everything that happened in the videos below. Transcripts have been included. The AI announcements can be seen here.

Lisa Su Opens the Show

Good morning. Good morning. How's everyone doing this? Morning. It is so exciting to be back here in San Francisco with so many of our press and analysts and partners and friends in the audience, and welcome to all of you who are joining us. Across the world. We have a lot of new products and exciting news to share with you today, so let's Go ahead and get started.

At the end, we're focused on pushing the envelope in high performance and adaptive computing to create solutions to the world's most important challenges. From cloud and enterprise data centres to 5G networks to AI, automotive, healthcare, PC's and so much more, AMD technology is truly everywhere and we're touching the lives of billions of people every day. Today, we're here to talk about our newest EPYC data Centre processors.



Our upcoming instinct accelerators and our growing AI software ecosystem. Now taking a look at modern data centres, what you really. Need is the highest performance. Compute engines across the board. Today we lead the industry with our EPYC processors, which are the highest performing processors available. We also offer the industry's broadest portfolio, which allows us to really optimise for the different workloads in the data centre. Whether you're talking about instinct, GPU accelerators built for HPC and AI, or you're talking about Fpgas or adaptive Socs or smart mics and GPUs from our Xilinx and Pensando acquisitions.



What we'll show you today is how we bring all that together and really expand our portfolio with our next generation data Centre and our AI offerings. Now, since launching EPYC in 2017, we have been laser focused on building the industry's best data centre CPUs. Is now the industry standard in cloud given our leadership, performance and TCO across a wide range of workloads. Every major cloud provider has deployed EPYC for their internal workloads as well as their customer facing instances. Today, there are more than 640 EPYC instances available globally, with another 200 on track to launch by the end of the year. Now looking at the enterprise, EPYC adoption is also growing and especially for the most demanding and technical workloads. Whether you're talking about financial services or telecom or technology or manufacturing or automotive customers and many, many more, they're really choosing EPYC based on our performance, our energy efficiency. And our better total cost of ownership.

And that momentum is. Just growing as we ramp our 4th Gen EPYC Genoa processors. General features up to 96 high performance, 5 nanometers, and four cores. It has the latest IO that includes PCI Gen 512 channel. DDR5 memory and support for CXL. We launched Genoa actually last November and it had leadership, performance and efficiency. And since then there. Have been other products that have come to market. But if you look today, genera is still by far the highest performance and the most efficient processor in the industry.



So let's just take a look. At some metrics for Genoa. Starting first with the cloud, integer performance is key. Using spec and freight and comparing to the competitions top of Stack, EPYC delivers 1.8 times more performance. Looking at the enterprise, if you look across Java workloads or virtualization or ERP workloads, 4th Gen EPYC is up to 1.9 times faster. And perhaps the most important piece is in modern data centres, energy consumption has become just as important as overall performance. And when we designed general, we actually designed that with that in mind. The idea that yes, we want leadership performance, but we must have best in class energy efficiency.



And that's what 4th Gen EPYC does we deliver up to 1.8 times more performance per Watt than the industry compared to the using the industry standard spec power benchmark. And what that means is that Genoa is by far the best voice for anybody who cares about sustainability. So when we talk to customers, many of them are telling us actually they need to refresh their data centres and they really. Need to consolidate. And get a better footprint and get a. Better operating cost?



This is actually. The perfect place for gentlemen and it really. Shines for these types of consolidations. Now looking at. AI, we're going to talk about a GPUs shortly, but actually today the vast majority of AI workloads are actually being run on CPUs. In general, is also the best CPU for AI. The best way to look at AI performance is actually to look at a broad set of end to end workloads, and so we use the industry standard TPC XA benchmark that actually looks at end to end AI performance across 10 different use cases and a host of different algorithms. And what we. See, in this case is EPYC is 1.9 times more performance than the competition. Now you can. See, I'm tremendously excited about Genoa and all of the applications that our customers are running on Genoa, but it's best to hear directly from our partners.



So I'm really excited to introduce our first guest, one of our most important cloud partners to talk about how they're deploying Genoa in the public cloud. Please welcome our good friend. AWS Vice President Dave Brown. Thank you so much for being here with us...

AWS Vice President Dave Brown

Lisa Su

Today, yeah, yeah. We have been so much has been going on. You know, we've been on this long journey and partnership together. Can you talk a little bit about our partnership?



David Brown



Lisa and thank you for having me. Thank you. For the opportunity of being here today. I'm excited to. Talk about our partnership and how AWS and AMD are continuing to collaborate to advance technology. For our customers and AWS, we're constantly innovating on behalf of. Our customers and have helped. The most reliable and secure global cloud infrastructure. With the broadest. And deepest portfolio of instances to support virtually every type of customer workload. AMD and AWS has been on a journey together since 2018, when AWS was the first to introduce the AMD EPYC based instance in the cloud, delivering 10%.



Savings over comparable X86 EC 2 instances. And as customers used and benefited from these instances, they requested additional and based instance types to run a broader set of applications. And together we have introduced over 100 AMD EPYC based Amazon EC2 instances. Your purpose with acute intensive and memory intensive workloads and justice. Last year we introduced our first instance optimised specifically for high performance computing based and processes HPC 6A and that delivered up to 65% better performance over comparable EC2X86 based compute optimised instances. Workloads such as computational fluid dynamics.



Lisa Su



Hey, we love the work with your team. I mean, it has been such a journey over all these years and we love the 100 plus instances now, you know the breadth of your offerings is amazing that we always talk about what can we do with our current customers and how do they pick from our technology. So can you tell us a little bit about customers?

Dave Brown



Absolutely. So we have a broad range of customers. It's significantly from the cost savings with. AMD based EC2 instances. For examples of how enterprise customers have invested these cost savings into innovation to improve their businesses include TrueCar. A digital automotive marketplace. One of my favourite tools, they sought ways to operate more efficiently and increase development velocity so they can invest the money saved into innovating for car buying experience and TrueCar optimised its AWS. Other industry infrastructure I. Have to 25% from a combination of choosing the AAD instance family for its Co infrastructure.



As well as right sizing instances with. A WS recommendation tools. A sprinkler. Another customer is a purposeful web platform for businesses to manage customer experiences on modern channels. But with the scale. At which sprinkler operates. It is to optimise its robust architecture for cost and performance. A sprinkler has been an early adopter. Of our first generation. AMD based DC-2 assistants for general purpose. Uploads are M5A instance and when they move to Amazon EC2M6 say the next generation sprinkler saw 22% faster performance and 24% cost savings over the previous generation. And then in the HPC space DTN, they run weather and data models that deliver sophisticated high resolution outputs. That require could require continuous processing for vast amounts of data from inputs across the globe. A DTN users Amazon EC2's HPC 6 instances, powered by AMD's EPYC processes to run computer intensive HPC workloads and through the agility, elasticity and efficiency of running HPC workloads on AWS. He has effectively doubled his high resolution global weather weather modelling capacity from two times a day to four times a day.

Lisa Su



I love what we're doing together with customers. It's really great to hear those examples. I think both AMD and Amazon and we've really shared this passion for enabling our customers to do more without our technology. Now I'm even more excited, Dave, about what we're doing next together. So can you talk a little bit about what's next? For our partnership, absolutely. So one of the.

Dave Brown



Things we can. Continue to see is increasing demand from customers to run workloads faster while getting better price performance in AWS and to help address customer needs, we're building new EC2 instances enabled by the unique combination of the 4th generation and EPYC processes together with the AWS Nitro system. Now the AWS Nitro. System is the. Foundation for every single EC2 instance, enabling us to deliver performance, secure and efficient infrastructure. And by combining the 4th generation AMD EPYC processes and the. AWS Nitro system. We've unleashed the full capability of the next Gen AMD processors. And deliver a significantly good performance. For our customers.

Lisa Su



Yeah, I mean, we're so excited about. What we're doing together with. You, with Genoa, with Nitro, with all of. Your resources at AW S. Let's talk about what that means for customers.

Dave Brown



Well, today we're very excited to announce the preview of Amazon EC2M7 a general purpose. Licences powered by the 4th generation and the EPYC processor. And based on our special. And based on our spec, infect. M7A. Has been designed to provide the best X86 performance and price performance per VCPU within the Amazon EC2X86 general purpose. M78 instances offer. A major leap. In performance with. 50% more computer performance than M6A the previous generation.



We think workloads including financial applications, application service, video transcoding, simulation modelling they would. All benefit from the M7A. M7A. Instances also offer. New processor capabilities such as AVX 3512. The DN. I B4. 16 to enable customers to get additional performance and bring an. Even broader range. Of workloads to AWS. And as I mentioned earlier. M7A instances are in preview today. Customers can sign up for the preview and with general availability coming in Q3. Of course, AWS will be bringing Genoa tomorrow. These two instances. So our customers. Can do more with this new. Level of performance overtime. Lisa, we're also very excited. That AMD will be using these instances.



Lisa Su



Yeah, I mean, absolutely, Dave by the way. Did you guys hear that? He said 50% more computer performance. It's just amazing Gen on Gen performance and we're so excited that we're going to see Genoa throughout. This C2. We truly appreciate the partnership with AW that they've you know, they're such. An important partner. For our own IT environment as well. So we're using AWS today for our data analytics workloads and we appreciate all of your flexibility and capabilities there, but with the new general. Expanded instances, we're going to expand our partnership to include some of our highest performing technical workloads such as EDA.

Dave Brown



Well, Lisa. Really great to be here with you to kick. Off this event. We're excited about the performance and the price performance benefits. We're able to deliver for. Our customers and I can't wait to see how our joint customers will innovate with this technology.

Lisa Su introduces Bergamo



We're super excited with the new M78 general instances reaching public preview and you know, we really believe that this is a step function improvement. In performance that you can get in the public. Cloud, we're looking forward to delivering even more capabilities for our customers with these cases. And when you look across the industry, we're actually really pleased with the response that we're getting on Genoa. Based on the leadership and also delivering across a broad number of build purpose server workloads. So I also want to. Say today that Oracle is announcing today also new Genoa, standard HPC and dense IO instances that are expected to enter general production starting in July.



Now I'll say. Overall, general is ramping very nicely and you'll see a number of other public instances and customers coming up. Over the coming weeks and months. But what I did say earlier is that. Data centre workloads. Are becoming increasingly more specialised, requiring optimised computing solutions. Use and of course AI accelerators and that. What makes AMD special? Our breadth of our data centre and I compute portfolio actually provides a significant edge because you can use the right compute for the right workload.



So now let's talk about plotting. Cloud native workloads are actually a very fast growing set of applications. They're really, let's call it, born in the cloud. They're designed to take full advantage of new cloud computing frameworks, and they run as kind of like microservices. So you split up sort of large amounts of code and you make put them into smaller processes and then they can be scaled independently to enable 24 by 7 uptime. The optimum design point for these processors are actually different than. General purpose computing. They're actually very throughput oriented and they benefit from the highest density and the best energy efficiency.



So all of these factors actually prove the development of Bergamo. Bergamo is actually our first EPYC processor designed specifically for cloud workloads. So let me tell you a little bit about Bergamo leverages all of the platform constructure that we already developed for Genoa and it supports the same next Gen memory and the same IO. But it allows us with this design point, to expand to 28 cores per socket for leadership, performance and energy efficiency. In the cloud. Now I'm very happy to show you, drew, can I Have my chip please?



As you guys know, I love. My chips, our chips, our. Chips. I'm very happy to show you Bergamo. This is our new cloud native processor and what we have here is actually a new compute die. So the compute dye is different from Genoa using our triplet technology. Each of these eight compute dyes has sixteen of our. Zen 4 cores and then.



We use the same 6. Nanometer IO dye used by general. In the centre. So let me talk a little bit about how we do this. If you take a look at the core, the 74C4 is actually an enhanced version of the Zen 4 core. It's actually a great example of our modular design approach. When we originally designed the Zen 4 core. Optimised for the highest performance before Zen 4C is actually optimised for the sweet spot of performance and power, and that actually is what gives us the much better density and energy efficiency. And the way we accomplish this is that we actually start from the exact same RTL design as Zen four, and that gives us 100% software compatibility.



And then we optimise the physical implementation of. Zen 4C. For power and area, and we also redesigned the L3 cache hierarchy for greater throughput. So if you put all this together, the result is a design that has 35% smaller area and substantially better. Performance per Watt. Now from a product standpoint, what does this mean? What it means is the only real difference between general and Verbo is. The CD portrait look. So we use the same socket. We swap out the Denos CPU triplet and we put in the bergamot CPU triplet and what you have is.



Each of the 8 compute. Triplets on Bergamo contains twice the number of cores. As was on Genoa and. That's how we get to 128 cores per socket. But importantly, as I said, it's fully software compatible and it's also fully platform compatible with general. And what that means for customers is they can easily deploy either bergamote or Genoa, depending on their overall compute needs and their overall workloads. And so we really tried to leverage the overall platform investment in AMD. So let me show you some of the. Performance metrics on. Bergamo, if you compare Bergamo or competitions top of stack what you'll see is just incredible performance. We're delivering up to 2.6 times more performance across a wide range of cloud native applications, whether you're talking about web front end or in memory.



Analytics or very heavy transactional workloads? And then if you. Look beyond that. In terms of, you know, looking at sort of the overall density of? First of all, again, is significantly better than the competition in compute density and energy efficiency. So what we see is more than double the number of containers per server and two times the energy efficiency in Java workloads. Now as you can tell, we are incredibly excited about bergamot as well and the benefits it will bring. To our cloud customers. So I'm happy to say that bergamot is shipping in volume now to our hyperscale customers. And as I said earlier, I always like. To talk about how customers are using our solutions. So to hear more about how one of the world's largest cloud companies plans to deploy Bergamo and. Welcome, minus Vice President of Infrastructure Alexis Bjorlin. To the stage.

Lisa Su talks to Meta's Alexis Bjorlin

Lisa Su



I mean the partnership that we've had with Meta is just incredible. I mean, you guys are known for really pushing the envelope and hyperscale computing and you know really combining not just the engineering leadership but also you know the commitment to open standards and. Slightly running your infrastructure at scale for like you know lots of. Applications and billions of people so can. Share a little bit about how we're working together.



Alexis Bjorlin



Absolutely. So as you know, Meta and Andy have been collaborating on EPYC server design since 2019. These collaborations have been expanding over time with Milan and Genoa and now Bergamo. We work closely to customise AMD's EPYC architecture to meet Metas, power efficiency and compute density requirements. These optimizations include all layers of the hardware and software stack, including Zen cores, SoC composition, firmware, kernel performance, telemetry and software to deliver best in class performance per TCO. For our compute infra.



We've also shared our learnings around reliability and maintenance and have helped improve the EPYC to server designs for all hyperscale deployments as well as, as you know, with all of our platforms we open source and we open source the AMD Milan based server design via the Open Compute Project in the past and we intend to do the same. With our latest Bergamo. Generations high volume servers, so we really appreciate working. Together with your team. And your support.

Lisa Su

On this. Oh, absolutely. Alexis, you have a commanding team. Let. Me say, but we love the. Work that we do with your team. I mean, you know. The point infrastructure at your scale does present some. Unique challenges and. And we learned a. Lot along the. Way you know can. You talk a little bit about some of the work we've done together. To address those requirements.



Alexis Bjorlin



Absolutely. And as you know, we've deployed hundreds of thousands in AMD servers and production across our global data centres and fleet that are running thousands of workloads in service of WhatsApp. Instagram, Facebook, and across. Our product groups. We've also deployed AMD servers for video transcoding and storage systems and are using AMD CPUs on our AI compute platforms. So as you know, we've shared our workload learnings together with AMD and are working together as we address issues and scaling as they arise.



And you're right, you know. Our scale is massive and our scale and our generational grant rate naturally strains our suppliers. But early on in our partnership, we had concerned, you know, we had concerns about a. We have about. Andy's ability to scale alongside us and meet our demand as we aggressively built out our data centres. But over the years, AMD. Has consistently delivered to meet these commitments, whether with your supplies or your technical product road map innovation. So we've been thoroughly impressed. And we've learned that we can rely on Andy to deliver time on time again.



Lisa Su



I really want to say, on behalf of all of our engineers, thank you for that. You know, we worked really hard. We truly value our partnership and you know, as we've said before, we love learning, innovating and code developing with our partners and some of the insights. Have actually helped us shape what bergamot should be. So as one of the leading cloud companies talk about Bergamo and how it fits into your plans.



Alexis Bjorlin



Absolutely we are incredibly excited to be preparing to deploy Bergamo as our next generation high volume generative compute platform for meta. We're seeing significant performance improvements with Bergamo over Milan on the order of two. And 1/2 times.



Lisa Su



I'm sorry, did you say Two 1/2 times?



Alexis Bjorlin



TCO improvements over Milan as well, so you make it pretty easy on me, Lisa. We love products that make both our technologists and our business teams and happy. So building upon the core silicon innovation that AMD has enabled with Birdman, we've partnered with. The several other optimizations that help our workloads, including dense compute chiplets recorded cache ratios, power management and manufacturing optimizations that help us pack a high number of these servers into a rack and deliver rack level performance for TCO improvements as well, so that the flexibility of your chiplet strategy from Bergamo we're also pleased to have an IO intensive server. Option that we. To leverage for HTD and flash storage platforms. So with our focus on enabling new products for our customers as well as capital efficiency with thrilled to unlock the benefits of bergamot for our entire. Family of apps.



Lisa Su



Well, again, thank you, Alexis. We are so excited to be working closely with you guys on promo and really looking forward. Not just deploying bergamot, but also all that we'll do together in the coming years. So thank you again for joining me. Today and thanks for your partnership.

Alexis Bjorlin



Thanks so much, Lisa.

Dan McNamara, SVP of AMD Server Business is introduced by LIsa

Lisa Su

You know, we're so excited to hear stories like this where, you know, meta is deploying, you know, broadly bergamot. But most importantly, it's really broadly across the spectrum, including things like, you know, Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp. That we use every day. As well as a. Number of other services. So as you. Can tell we're incredibly proud of. Our 4th Gen EPYC family, but. There's a bit more. On the CPU side here, so to tell. More about how we expand our portfolio to deliver leadership in technical computing workloads. Let me invite Senior Vice President. And general manager. Of AMD server business Dan McNamara to the stadium.



Dan McNamara



Thank you, Lisa, and good morning, everyone. So one year ago, June, we rolled out our portfolio for EPYC. Different workflows and we are super excited today to begin. Two new products. You just saw how we optimised Fortune EPYC for for cloud native computing with Bergamo, I'm going to spend some time showing you. How we also optimised? EPYC for a different set of data centre workloads. Technical computing.



So for enterprises. And firms that design and build physical products, engineering simulation. Is business critical? These companies need the top engineers in the industry supported by the best computing infrastructure. Companies that can move faster and more efficiently are differentiated by getting the market faster, with more innovative and higher quality products and deliver this under a reduced OpEx budget. So with these goals in mind, we developed our second generation of the AMD 3D V cache using the same integration cache on core chiplets.



But we're now supporting more than a GB of L3 cache on a 96 core CPU. A larger cache feeds the CPU. Faster with complex data sets, and there's a new. Dimension to processor and workload optimization. We first introduced this technology. Last year with Milan X. And now we bring it to Fort Gen EPYC pairing. It with the high performing Zen 4. Core that you. Just heard about. So today I'm super excited to be announcing availability for Gen EPYC processors with AMD3DB cash code name Genoa X. Performance studies from 16 courts and. 96 courses that are socket. Compatible with general.



General acts helps unlock the potential of the world's most important and demanding workloads and technical computing. Now let's spend a minute on these workloads. From aircraft engines to the most advanced semiconductors, the rapid design and simulation of new products is imperative. In today's market. So I'll Genoa is the fastest general. Purpose silver processor in the market. Genoa X takes this performance to. A new level for technical computing. And we're delivering all of those performance in conjunction with our partners, including digital manufacturing software from Altair, Antis and Disso and EDA software from companies like Cadence, Seniors and Synopsis.



We continue to work closely with these solution fibre spray and optimised environment for our mutual customers. Now let's take a look. At some of the performance you'll see with these solutions. Let's start with some widely deployed CFD and FDA workloads. In blue, you see our high score count General X processor in grey you see the top stack signal processor. What this data shows is that across these applications, the 90. 6 core general. Across the delivers more than double the performance. Maybe you're comparing? Props with the same number of cores.



The performance advantage remains is very, very clear. So all this performance and software will be qualified in service from the industries top OEMs. And the platform. Featuring general X will be available next door. We see surely appreciate our software OEM partnerships as we increase the number of solutions to further serve the technical purity market. With industry-leading performance and efficiency. So companies can also leverage the public cloud to run these simulations at top performance. So for more on that, I'd like to welcome Nidhi Chappell from Microsoft to the stage.

Nidhi Chappell, GM Azure, HPC and AI at Microsoft

Dan McNamara

Thank you for joining us so. We have a strong. Partnership on technical compute across Azure and I'd love for you to share with. The audience about this partnership and our treatment.

Nidhi Chappell

So far, yes. We've been on a mission together for some time now, Microsoft, and indeed we have a strong collaboration and we have a joint goal. We wanted to make sure that we could deliver. Unprecedented performance for high performance compute. As our enterprise customers wanted to accelerate their digital transformation, they wanted. Make sure that critical workloads like each PC could come along and really benefit from the scale and reliability and efficiency of cloud. So on that call, we started our partnership back in 2019 with the introduction of our first hvi that featured first Gen Epic processors.



This is the time we ran 10,000 core simulation. And we thought, wow, we can run. 10,000 cores and. Then we upped our own game in 2020. We launched our. Second generation processor with the second second generation Epic. We got into the top 10. Super computers and we started to really catch momentum. In the market. We started building on our momentum and in 2021 we had the third generation HP series that went live to customers across the planet. The day Milan was launched. And last year, we enhanced this even further, right? We actually announced that we would upgrade our uh, the third generation series with the Indies 3D, we cache which provides 80.



More performance for our customers. At no additional cost. In just four years, we have delivered 4X performance for all of our HPC customers.



Dan McNamara



So I must admit with. HPV 3 and MULLANIX, we did have a lot of fun as two as two teams, but and we also brought a lot of ISP partners and customers to the table and it was really an exciting product but. I think we. Have some more exciting news to share today? So aren't you? Tell us about the. Future of Azure computing.



Nidhi Chappell



Absolutely. So today we are announcing the general availability. Of 4th generation of our HPC. Egg along with that. We have a new mini optimised HPC virtual machines which we're. On the Azure HXC series now both of our HV4 and our HX actually featured the AMD three DV cache. We're just talking about and it also features that with our Internet and offering. Which allows our HPC workers to actually scale very well. Now if you look at our 4th generation HBO series, it offers 1.2 terabytes per second of memory bandwidth. You pair that up with the two axe improvements that we have seen in compute density, and now suddenly we can deliver 4 1/2 X. Faster HPC workloads. This can be workload.



Weekly Dynamics, financial modelling, weather simulation. Virtualized rendering of Falstaff. And this is. The beauty of actually combining the efficiency we get from A&D and the the scale of cloud. That's on our HP V4 on the Ajax series, we are actually taking the offering, the ultra low latency memory latencies along with the 3D V cache and a massive 1.4 terabytes of system cash. Now for some of the. Workloads that are. Any data intensive like silicon design structure analysis, this will deliver 6X performance which is phenomenal. So for a lot of these customers, what this means is they can now fit a lot of their existing workflows either on the same number of cores, fewer number of cores. And overall have a much better total cost of ownership because we save a lot on the software licences.



So really see 66 performance, a lot more savings and you pay that up with best in class Azure managed file system. Azure offerings on orchestration of our workloads and end to end our customers will see significant performance in the cloud just fantastic.



Dan McNamara



So one of the things. You and I talk about a. Lot is how do we enable? Our customers to solve their biggest problems. And I thought it might be a good opportunity to talk about some customers with HP for.

Nidhi Chappell



Absolutely. The true test ultimately is the customer adoption. So I have two customers that I wanted to talk about today. One is petronet. So, as everybody knows, Petronas is a global energy company. They spend hundreds, hundreds of countries worldwide, and they're actually the first one to use the new 4th generation. Series now with petronet. They are trying. To see how they can take the. Upstream work, you know, this is where they do highly quantitative. Interpretation seismic processing. And these workloads really need. Massive memory bandwidth. They need the capability of high performance computing. And this is where. And we worked very closely actually with AMD to make sure that we could bring these new VMS.



We could actually combine with. Combine that with a lot of our AI tools and really accelerate the work that they are doing in geophysicists there and help them make decisions faster. Along with performance though, you know Petronas also has a commitment to get to a corporate sustainability object objective and with Azure, because we are going to be 100% renewable energy by 2025, we not only allowed petrol to actually. Get to their performance objectives, but we are also getting them to be able to get to net 0 carbon emissions by 2020. Fifty 2050 for that. All in all. What this means is as customers look to performance scalability of cloud, they can really benefit from the offerings that we have.



This was on the HPV 4 after I look at the Ajax seeds, the multimedia announced HX series, I want to talk about St Michaels. So St Micro is a leading semiconductor company and they are actually the first ones to use our Azure X virtual series. Again, this is a brand new offering from US and St Micro is going to use this for designing their next generation of chips. You know, so a lot of their RTL simulations now. RTL simulation especially you know as the process technology becomes deeper and deeper, requires much, much lower memory latency and large memory footprint, which is perfect for Ajax series. So what?



Etx allowed a St micro to do is they were able to pack in a lot more of their simulation. Jobs in each VM, which in turn meant they needed fewer VMS. They could do it far more efficiently with it, with some experiments that they have done. St Micro has been able to save the simulation town. Time down by 30%. So what that means is, you know, there's silicon engineers can actually look at a lot more design possibilities. They can improve product quality because they're now doing a lot more validation, but. Ultimately, they can bring products to market faster and they don't have to worry about anything. They can do all of this in cloud because.

Dan McNamara



Yes, it's just fantastic. So it's great to see. Not only HDP 4 come to. Life, but see the. Customers adopting across industries, so really exciting. And we can't wait to help grow this going forward. And I just want to. Say thank you for the partnership and thank. You for coming to see us today.

Forrest Norrod, GM Data Center Solutions Business Group

Dan McNamara



OK. Another just great example. Of how we're partnering with our customers to as far. Better own customers so. The VM is based. On Genoa, X are now available with Microsoft HPV 4 and HXX. The power companies that bring. The most innovative products to market? So General X is just one example. Of how we're optimising for different workloads. You also heard more about general. And bergamo. Today, our final piece of the. Zen 4 portfolio with Ciena. Which is optimised for telco and edge workloads. Sienna will deliver maximum performance and energy efficiency in a cost optimised package and. We will tell you all about this. Later this year. We'll bring that to. Market in the. Second half of. The year.



So now. Let me turn it over to Forrest Norrod, GM Data Center Solutions Business Group to talk about how the modern data. Centre is evolving and what that? Means for data centre infrastructure. Thank you.



Forrest Norrod



Thanks in AMD is delivering the industry's best set of workload optimised CPUs. Beyond the CPU, the workload optimised data centre needs to be 1 where every high value workload is supported by high performance engines. Is energy efficient and is adjuvant, meaning it is easy to deploy, manage and secure. That's our vision of the data centre. And I'd like to bring on Jeff Marrone of Citadel Securities to talk about their workload, optimised data centre built within the Jeff welcome. Jeff, thanks for coming and and maybe you could tell us a little bit First off about about Citadel and Citadel Securities.

Jeff Maurone, MD & COO of Citadel Securities

Jeff Maurone



Citadel is really two firms. First, we are the world's most profitable hedge fund managing about $60 billion, but Citadel Securities is the world's largest market making firms. This is where. I work and what I'm here. To talk about what does that mean so as. A market making. Firm we provide buyers and sellers financial investors opportunities to buy or sell any asset as competitive price. This at massive scale, so on any given day in the US equities market, 25% of shares that change hands pass through one of our systems. We do that for our equities options, ETFs, treasuries, and a variety of other assets that exchanges around the. So now if you think. About us from a technology perspective.



It's best to think of us as real time predictive analytics. We developed complex pricing models that predict where the market's going sometimes to the millisecond or microsecond scale, and then as quickly as possible. We deliver those prices to the market. Now there's really 2 technology platforms that underpin this business. 2 platforms with very, very different workloads. First, there's a computational research platform that we use to develop these strategies and test them. And then there's. An ultra low latency platform that we use. To respond very quickly. Wireless and sellers and. Underlying both of these forms, there's a complex monitoring layer to make sure that those models are always performing safely and effectively.



Forrest Norrod



Great. Thanks for the overview. And now let's dive into each one of those tell tell us more about the research platform.



Jeff Maurone



Yes. So let's talk about research. Research for us means developing hypotheses about where market prices are going, expressing those. Hypotheses in code and then testing. Them, but here's. The catch testing for us means releasing those strategies in a simulation of the entire market and seeing how they perform under a variety of different environments and scenarios. And so the complete platform that we need.



To to do this demands enormous scalability and a real real focus on workload optimization. So as an example, all of this research which runs in the public cloud reaches a peak demand of about million concurrent cores and relies on a market data archive of nearly 100 petabytes. In late 2020, we transitioned. All of that workload to. AMD and saw a 35% improvement in research performance. And so then it took here is where ethics innovation, particularly in memory bandwidth, really unlocked. A different level of performance for our business. That's fantastic. That's an enormous problem with very impressive scale. There are not many workloads that require a million.



Forrest Norrod



And we're proud that you've trusted us. Then if it provides you that performance, now tell us about the training platform, because I think that's a little bit different story.



Jeff Maurone



Very different, very different. So here's where we're vastly different, and I would say the polar opposite. Many of the hyperscalers we heard from just a few minutes ago. So densification and virtualization are. Simply not welcome in this platform and in fact we have both invested massive resources internally and with AMD as our partner. To take microseconds, nanoseconds and soon ecosex.



Ends off our latency. And every one of the cores that run in this platform run in some of the most expensive data centre real estate in the world. Expensive because it is as physically close as possible to the centres of financial markets, right? So here is where our AMD partnership is all. If there is a packet of market data that. Is passing through that platform. It is guaranteed to go through. A solar flare net. And for the most latency sensitive strategies that we run, Xilinx FPGA's are absolutely essential, quite frankly. They bring to market strategies and models that otherwise would never see the light of day.



Forrest Norrod



You know Jeff. Citadel is securities is obviously a great example of the theme that we've been talking about, which is workload optimization and the need for workload optimised solutions, and you certainly have two very different problems.



Jeff Maurone



Absolutely. And in in, in research, we look very similar to a hyper scaler but in low latency trading we look about the. Office opposite and AMD has done an excellent job of understanding complex, multifaceted customers like Sino Securities. And I look forward. To continuing to innovate on products that make a difference for our business and improve how financial markets function.



Forrest Norrod



Well, thanks very much Jeff. Thanks for being here today. But more importantly, thanks to the trust. And partnership over the years.

Forrest Norrod discusses AMD's new Data Centre technologies

Forrest Norrod



A million cores of EPYC CPUs in the cloud deliver optimised performance for the research simulations and trading strategies, and how alveo Fpgas deliver the ultimate? And performance for the trading and market making systems. But he also introduced you to another important aspect of AMB and the data centre which is our network portfolio for Citadel.



This means high performance solar flare NICs, giving them the ultimate and low latency and high performance to power millions of stock trades per day. In a highly competitive marketplace together computing and networking engines are becoming increasingly important to optimise and optimise together to deliver the performance, efficiency and agility needed in that optimised data centre. And so at any MD, we recognise that networking represented an increasing, increasingly critical element of the data centre infrastructure that needed to be optimised for data centre workloads and that's hence motivated our acquisition of consignment.



Because the complexity of the data centre. Continues to evolve. And the latest step with hybrid cloud and the extension of cloud computing out to the edge is an incredibly important model, but the channel. That come with that. Model are significant. Now. The first challenge is inherent to a cloud virtualization gave us higher utilisation and agility, but also introduced overhead to ensure that workloads. Were separated and secured.



For the network complexity is exploded as compute and storage systems spread across the data centre and applications no longer run on a single system. Managing these distributed resources is complicated, and securing the data centre is even harder with an expanding attack system and much more to monitor, and you've got to monitor, particularly without further taxing the systems. So today we have a very complicated cloud environment. The agility of the cloud is paid for with overhead in each server and typically separate appliances to provide infrastructure services. The CPU tax and many cloud deployments can be 30%. Or even more.



For the hypervisor and infrastructure software. Load balancing, security and other appliances, major cost and a pain. Point to manage. Some of The Pioneers in cloud computing, you heard from 1:00 earlier today recognise the complexity and overhead that was being introduced by the architecture and created the concept. Of the D. AMD and our consultant team evolved the concept of the DPU beyond the sea of cores to the world's most intelligent data flow processor. What I believe is the best networking team in the industry. The team we acquired with been subtle. Step back and took a fundamental look at the problem and created a purpose built architecture to be able to provide complex services including security, software defined networking and telemetry at line rate while simultaneously being programmable. To accommodate customers, differing needs and future group the architecture.



Now if we put this P4 DPU into each server, we can free the CPU from its overhead. With the DQ in each server, we offloaded the virtualization overhead and brought the infrastructure and security services to the point of use. Eliminated or dramatically reducing the need for set of external appliances and further improving the agility by simplifying manage. Network and resource management of all of the servers for uniform. And perhaps most importantly, dramatically improving the TCO of the cloud by freeing the CPU resources to do what is really needed run the workloads. Offloading that cloud and virtualization overhead is exactly why we first deployed our A&D pensando P4 GPU and smart knit, making it easy to add the DPU to each server and allowing us to tackle the overhead and freeing the server for productive use.



But they also dramatically improved security paradigm. Following such as firewall protection on all East West traffic distributed across distributed applications, encrypting all of that traffic, and finally providing telemetry. Without taxing the CPU, it allows security systems to. Have early warning. Of threats and anomalies in the network. I'm proud to say that indeed consigned to smart mix are deployed now in major clouds, and enterprises can get this solution today alongside A VMware vSphere project monitoring. The smart Nic has been a fantastic innovation, but as we work with data centre innovators across the industry, we've recognised that the value proposition of the DPU extends well beyond the smart.



The same DPU silicon and software platform is now. Deployed in the itself. Where many of the same performance, efficiency and agility benefits can be shared amongst a group of servers. And there is another bonus to this approach. This can just as easily be deployed into an existing infrastructure as well as designed into a new. Great phrase. Case in point for this is Microsoft's Azure accelerated Connexion services, which is in public preview today and is powered by our pensando P4 GPU's, providing dramatically higher Connexions per second, and network performance for customers embracing.



That capabilities and we're very excited about that. And so now we're bringing that same concept to the enterprise, the start switch developed with our partners at HP Aruba. It's an innovative switch built on the industry standard. Switching silicon and AMD T4 GPUs. Traffic flows through the Du's to deliver offload infrastructure and security services. That provide the data centre, not just better efficiency but enhanced security and observability. And those benefits can be realised well beyond the walls of the data centre into the myriad of edge computing applications that depend on security, performance and agility.



Deploying the same architecture and software platform at the Edge means that the endpoint has a common level of security and manageability with its counterpart servers back in the data centre and those Connexions between the data centre and the edge are as secure as possible. So putting it all together, you can deploy a few servers in retail location with smart mix providing security and manageability. Consistency everyone. With Sienna EPYC CPUs providing transformative energy efficiency, and. Performance and Lu influence accelerator cards powering latency sensitive AI applications to enhance the retail experience and security.



The full AMD portfolio can provide similar benefits to telco deployment. Smart city applications, amongst many others. And so I hope that in this first half of our presentation, we've given you insights into how AMD is helping our customers evolve their data centres. And make them more. Both in the cloud as well as in the enterprise with workload optimised solutions that address the most pressing problems for the hybrid cloud net.



Next, let me invite Lisa Sue back to the stage to discuss how we're helping our customers address their next evolution in the data centre, incorporating AI into all they do. Thank you.

AMD's announcements regarding AI are in this separate article.
COMPANY NEWS: Hitachi Vantara, the modern infrastructure, data management and digital solutions subsidiary of Hitachi, today announced two new global partnership agreements with Cisco. The agreements bring Hitachi Vantara into Ciscos service provider and solution technology integrator (STI) partner programs, respectively, enabling Hitachi Vantara to seamlessly integrate Cisco technologies with its storage products and position the company as a leading data centre infrastructure and hybrid cloud managed services provider.

Click to learn more about Hitachi Vantaras relationship with Cisco: Win in the data-driven world | Hitachi Vantara

Many businesses are grappling with the complexities of data management and intelligence as they manage their expanding hybrid cloud footprints. According to IDC, 40 percent of companies will depend on multi-partner technology agreements by 2024 to address these concerns. Coinciding with the STI agreement, Hitachi Vantara now includes the Cisco UCS X-Series servers in its offerings to deliver a complete converged infrastructure solution. The server line becomes part of the Cisco and Hitachi adaptive solutions portfolio which pairs Cisco compute and networking with Hitachi Vantaras Energy Star-certified Virtual Storage Platform to offer customers one of the most reliable, resilient and environmentally friendly IT infrastructure solutions on the market. The solution is now available for Hitachi Vantara customers, helping address a growing market need for converged data centre infrastructure.

As a member of Cisco's service provider program, Hitachi Vantara offers consumption-based managed services to Cisco customers looking for data centre and hybrid cloud services. The services can help address a critical shortage of skilled workers in the IT industry, enabling enterprises to adopt new and emerging technologies more effectively and rely on a trusted organisation in Hitachi Vantara to streamline their hybrid cloud operations.

Hitachi Vantara and Cisco have been trusted partners for more than two decades, and these agreements are important additions to the innovative relationship these global technology leaders have built, said Hitachi Vantara senior vice president of strategic partners and alliances Kimberly King. Successful partners adjust to meet customers needs, both for today and for the future, and these developments do just that by offering the data-driven solutions and services they need the most.

As customers seek to simplify their data centre operations, providing converged infrastructure solutions with managed services capabilities from two trusted global vendors can help them reduce risk and optimize their business outcomes, said Cisco vice president of global strategic partners and co-sell Nick Holden. Together, Hitachi Vantara and Cisco make it easier for customers to navigate complex hybrid data centre and storage solutions.

Were seeing a clear shift in market dynamics and consumer preferences that calls for integrated solutions, particularly from industry leaders like Hitachi Vantara and Cisco, said IDC vice president of channels and alliances Steve White. These types of alliances are crucial to address a growing list of enterprise challenges that include sustainable practices, solution complexities, governance and supply chain issues, among others.

For more information about Hitachi Vantaras partner program, visit https://www.hitachivantara.com/en-us/partners/become-partner.html.

Additional resources

 Blog: Hitachi Vantara, Cisco Bring the How to Cisco Live!

 Blog: Partnering on the Planet

 Blog: How Hitachi Vantara and Cisco Teamed Up to Fight Data Traffic Jams

 Blog: Driving Partnerships Through 2023  Cisco Live! Amsterdam

 Blog: Hitachi Vantara and Cisco Zoom-In On Video, IoT Management

 Blog: Hitachi and Cisco: A Lesson in Digital Transformation Leadership

 Blog: The Power of Partnering  Cisco Live!

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A few days have passed since the Justice Department informed former President Donald Trump that he had been indicted. Some of the main issues involved, both legal and political, are becoming clearer than they were in the first frenzied hours after the news broke.

First, the politics. The early indications are that predictions that Trump supporters would rally around him in the event of an indictment appear to be true. A poll by CBS News and YouGov found that 76% of likely Republican primary voters said the indictment was politically motivated. When asked if the indictment would change their view of Trump, 61% said it would not change their view at all, while 14% said it would change their view of Trump for the better. Just 7% said it would change their view of Trump for the worse, and 18% said it depends, meaning they weren't really sure.

In a Reuters-Ipsos poll, 81% of Republicans said that "politics was driving the case." Reuters reported: "The indictment did not appear to dent Trump's standing in the Republican nominating contest for the 2024 presidential election." So the answer, at least for now, to the question of whether the indictment would hurt Trump among Republicans is no.

There are two other groups who factor into the political calculation  the Republican presidential candidates and GOP lawmakers on Capitol Hill. Reporters being the way they are, almost every prominent Republican within a mile of a microphone is being asked to declare a position on the Trump indictment.

The Republican presidential contenders are in a difficult spot. They know that most Republican voters believe Trump has been unfairly targeted for years. And they know the numbers above, in which large majorities of Republicans said the latest charges against Trump are politically motivated. So, on one hand, they have an interest in telling voters what they want to hear, which is that Trump is being politically targeted.

On the other hand, they are running against Trump, not with him. If the indictment weakens Trump politically, his Republican opponents will benefit. So now, we are seeing some of those candidates try to walk a fine line  decrying what some call the weaponization of the government against Trump but at the same time acknowledging that the charges against him are serious.

Immediately after the indictment, Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL), the leading challenger to Trump, tweeted, "The weaponization of federal law enforcement represents a mortal threat to a free society." DeSantis suggested that Trump was a victim of the "uneven application of the law." But at the same time, DeSantis noted that he, DeSantis, had to observe classification rules scrupulously when he was in the Navy. The implication was clear: The president should observe those rules, too.

Nikki Haley and Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC) have both said the case against Trump is serious, with Haley saying that if the allegations are true, then Trump was "incredibly reckless with our national security." Mike Pence, Trump's former vice president, has chosen to demand more information. "The American people have a right to know why it was necessary for the first time in history to bring an indictment of this nature against a former president of the United States," Pence said.

On Capitol Hill, some of Trump's strongest supporters remain steadfastly on his side. That's not a surprise, given that some of them are from districts in which Republicans are even more supportive of the former president than the polls suggest.

Next, the legal side. The first thing to say is that a lot of respected legal voices believe the indictment is a very serious document. "I was shocked by the degree of sensitivity of these documents and how many there were," former Attorney General William Barr told Fox News. "If even half of it is true, then he's toast."

That doesn't mean Trump doesn't have defenses. For example, information at the heart of the indictment appears to have come from Trump's attorneys, whom special counsel Jack Smith forced to testify in spite of attorney-client privilege. Smith received court approval, but as Lawfare noted, a trial will examine that approval and "raise questions about the limits of one of the most sacrosanct principles in our legal system, attorney-client privilege."

Trump can also argue that, as president, he was allowed to decide what documents should be sent to the National Archives and Records Administration as "presidential records" and what documents he would keep. What if he kept records that were clearly presidential in nature? He might argue that he still had that authority, and his defense will surely explore the limits, if any, of that authority.

Then there is the question of the seriousness of the documents Trump is charged with mishandling. The indictment said they are among the government's most sensitive secrets. This is how the indictment described them:

The classified documents Trump stored in his boxes included information regarding defense and weapons capabilities of both the United States and foreign countries; United States nuclear programs; potential vulnerabilities of the United States and its allies to military attack; and plans for possible retaliation in response to a foreign attack.

What could be more serious than that? On the other hand, the description is still vague. It could, in fact, describe lots of information that is available in the public domain. A Trump trial, if there is one, could reveal how widely the specific information cited by Smith was distributed inside the U.S. government. Was it extremely closely held? Or much more widely available? That could make a difference in the jury's assessment of the seriousness of Trump's actions.

Finally, Trump defenders  perhaps not Trump's lawyers in court, but Trump's defenders  will argue the big picture, that the Biden administration has taken a dangerous step in indicting a former president. "The Biden administration crossed a constitutional Rubicon this week," University of California, Berkeley, law professor and former Bush administration Justice Department official John Yoo wrote. "For the first time in our history, an executive branch held by the incumbent political party indicted the leading presidential candidate of the other main political party."

More from Yoo: "Biden administration officials must explain why prosecuting Trump for misuse of classified documents justifies disregarding two centuries of constitutional practice."

That is perhaps the most important question of the entire Trump prosecution: Should it be done at all? Were there other, less constitutionally consequential ways of dealing with Trump's behavior? The Biden administration has given its answer. The final resolution of that question will take a long time.

(COMMENT, BELOW)




MATTOON  Fred Stump, charged with impersonating a deputy sheriff of Coles County, was held by Judge Gibler this morning under a bond of $500, to await action by the circuit court grand jury. Stump was arrested on complaint of Mrs. Pearl Huddleston, who claimed that on the evening of June 5, while she was riding in an automobile with George Harold on the state road, a short distance south of the Old Folks' Home, she was accosted by Stump and placed under arrest by him, he pretending to be an officer. Stump, on the witness stand before Judge Gibler, admitted that he had accosted Mrs. Huddleston and Harold, but denied that he claimed himself to be an officer. He said when he accosted Mrs. Huddleston and her escort, the two were seated in an automobile parked along the highway. He said he mistook Mrs. Huddleston and Harold for someone else, and when he discovered his error, he apologized to them...SHELBYVILLE  The jury in the case of Joseph Bailey, Joseph Donivan and James Martin, indicted for burglary and larceny, returned a verdict of guilty. The petition for a new trial was denied by Judge Jett. The verdict carries with it a penalty of one to twenty years in the penitentiary at Chester. Attorneys for the men announced they would appeal the case. The three men were captured at Nokomis on May 1, after a chase by the Anti-Horse Theft Association. William Rice, night watchman at Oconee, discovered five men loitering near a business building in Oconee the night before, and becoming suspicious of their actions turned in an alarm. The men jumped into an automobile and fled, with the officers in pursuit. A short distance from Oconee they abandoned the car, which was found to have been stolen from an Oconee garage, and escaped by running across field. Three of them were arrested at Nokomis the next day. When arrested a complete outfit of paraphernalia was found on the men consisting of several revolvers, a supply of cartridges, a can of dynamite, fuse with caps attached, file, soup, two new Rand-McNally Illinois road maps, searchlights, skeleton keys, masks, etc. all carried in a rubber sack.
MATTOON  The third annual Juneteenth Celebration will provide family activities and live art on Saturday from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Peterson Park.

The Mattoon event, hosted by The RealiTea ProjecT Inc. and Faith Alliance for Racial Justice, will include live dance performances from Chicago-based Breathe & Movement African Dance Company.

Breathe & Movement features Pan-African dance performances while the company entertains and educates on African history and culture.

Antonio Toni Picasso Burton will have live art featured at the event.

Burton, a Decatur native and Eastern Illinois University alum, attended the Juneteenth Celebration in 2022 where he featured an art piece where everyone in attendance was able to add to the art tapestry.

Some wrote down their favorite quotes or poems and others added handprints in paint until the art piece became a community effort.

Resource tables are an added addition to this years celebration to provide information and resources.

The entire event is free and will include desserts and refreshments.

The provided food is from Black-owned restaurants including Revival City Donuts in Charleston, Zestys Chicken Wings in Charleston and Wood NHog Barbeque from Champaign.

The first Juneteenth Celebration in Coles County was held by The RealiTea ProjecT Inc. two days after Juneteenth was made a federal holiday in 2021.

Approximately 50 to 100 people attended the first celebration and the number grows each year, according to Taneya Higginbotham, project manager of The RealiTea ProjecT Inc.

Higginbotham said each year the local community responds well to the event, and the celebration receives support from various businesses.

Juneteenth, also referred to as Freedom Day, Jubilee Day and Emancipation Day, commemorates the anniversary of the end of slavery in the United States on June 19, 1865.

The history and significance of Juneteenth What is Juneteenth? Juneteenth commemorates the 1865 delivery of General Order #3 Chattel slavery in all states wasnt abolished until the end of 1865 Juneteenth celebrations originated in Galveston, Texas, starting in 1866 The first land to commemorate and celebrate the event was purchased in 1872 and is now a public park South Dakota was the last state to make Juneteenth a legal holiday Juneteenth has been celebrated in Mexico for more than 150 years The last enslaved people in the US werent adopted as citizens until 1885 Festivities became more commercialized in the 1920s during the Great Migration Juneteenth officially became a Texas state holiday in 1980 Juneteenth recognized as a federal holiday in 2021
UNC Chapel Hill is starting a statewide initiative to help lower the number of youth suicides.

Carolina Across 100 said Tuesday it is collaborating with UNC Suicide Prevention Institute on the initiative.

Suicide is the second leading cause of death for youth ages 10-18 in North Carolina, and the third leading cause of death for those ages 19-34, according to the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services.

Carolina Across 100 is tackling the critical challenges facing the people of North Carolina, UNC Chapel Hill Chancellor Kevin Guskiewicz said in a statement.

By partnering with local communities and listening to one another, we are finding solutions and collaborating to develop answers together.

Suicide is destroying families across our state, and this new endeavor will work to address the urgent mental health challenges at its root.

DHHS said that people who survive attempted suicides are in need of both physical and psychological care.

Over the next 12 months, Carolina Across 100 and the institute will work to establish community-level groups focused on implementing strategies to prevent suicide and suicidal ideation and improve resources available for mental and behavioral health.

Communities may apply to participate in the program through July 28. The application is available at https://carolinaacross100.unc.edu/wellbeing.

Participating communities will work with local government agencies, school systems, institutions of higher education, health-care providers and faith- and community-based organizations,

Carolina Across 100 is a five-year initiative charged by Guskiewicz and housed at the School of Governments ncIMPACT Initiative.

The mission is to form meaningful partnerships with communities in all 100 North Carolina counties to respond to challenges stemming from or exacerbated by COVID-19.

The plan is to collaborate in identifying community needs and target populations, aligning existing resources and programs, and developing plans to implement evidence-based prevention strategies.

The institute was created in September with a $25 million commitment from William and Dana Starling to the UNC School of Medicines Department of Psychiatry. The gift empowers experts at Carolina to offer innovative and compassionate care to North Carolinians.

The institutes role will include providing participating communities with expertise in selecting the proven interventions that best suit their communities, and then help implement those interventions in an effective and sustainable way.
A Winston-Salem man was robbed and shot early Wednesday in the citys northern section, authorities said.

Winston-Salem police responded at 1 a.m. to a reported shooting in the 5100 block of Old Rural Hall Road, police said.

When officers arrived, they found Emmanuel Christopher Nickerson, 29, suffering from a gunshot wound outside a neighbors home, police said.

Nickerson was taken to a local hospital for treatment of his non-life threatening injuries, police said.

Investigators determined that Nickerson had come home when he was approached by two suspects, police said. The suspects then stole Nickersons vehicle and personal items.

During the robbery, Nickerson was shot, police said.

Anyone with information regarding this incident can call Winston-Salem police sat 336-773-7700, Crime Stoppers at 336-727-2800 or its Spanish line at 336-728-3904.

Crime Stoppers of Winston-Salem/Forsyth County is on Facebook.

The Text-A-Tip program at 336-276-1717 allows people to text tips, photos and videos to the police.
The Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools Board of Education joined other school districts on Tuesday in opposing bills that would expand the voucher program to anyone in the state wanting to attend a private school, regardless of income.

By a 6-3 vote, the school board voted to pass a resolution requesting that the General Assembly reject two versions of voucher-expansion bills that strip income eligibility requirements for the Opportunity Scholarship program.

Alex Bohannon, the vice chairman of the school board, requested the resolution be put on the agenda of the boards policy committee. Once the committee passed it, it went to the school board for a full vote.

The public has expressed to us that they want us to advocate for the district to elected officials in Raleigh, Bohannon said. The passage of resolutions such as this one is one way the board can advocate for itself. Its a way of making a statement that if not done properly, bills and initiatives can be harmful to public schools.

According to the resolution, the bills would dramatically reduce available revenue that should be used to fulfill the constitutional rights of North Carolinas 1.5 million public school students. The loss of revenue would create pressure on local school budgets.

The state funds local schools based on enrollment, which is certain to drop as students take advantage of vouchers.

The bills are part of a legislation package that prompted Gov. Roy Cooper to declare a state of emergency for public education in May.

Coopers office said in a press release on Monday that 25 school districts across the state have passed resolutions opposing legislation that it says would harm public education. In addition, 19 superintendents have sent letters to legislators expressing concern over the proposed voucher expansion.

One issue for school board members voting for the resolution is that private schools are not held to the same accountability standards as public schools.

Board member Robert Barr said in a committee meeting preceding the board vote that he wished there was a way to compare the academic outcomes for public schools vs. private schools.

Board member Leah Crowley answered that the playing field is not level because private schools can select the students they want.

Whoever comes through the door (in public schools), is who we have to serve, she said. And all these schools have the ability to deny students, and thats intrinsically not fair, and the assessment piece is intrinsically not fair.

Barr said he was trying to understand the motivation for the legislation.

I hate to get into the political thing because were all here for kids. If you are a taxpayer and youre paying money to the state government, shouldnt there be an opportunity to choose which school your child goes to? The second thing, and I know we can get kind of sarcastic, but Im trying to think it through. Do we understand the intent of our legislature for this bill? Barr asked.

Thats a weighted question, board member Richard Watts responded.

One perspective is that theyre trying to do something to public schools, Barr said. Another is that theyre trying to give students a choice.

According to an analysis from the Office of State Budget and Management, the local school district could lose an estimated $8.4 million or 2 percent of its funding from the state in fiscal year 26-27 if the voucher program is expanded.

The legislation being considered by the General Assembly provides no stabilization money to help districts that may experience dramatic shifts in funding. Several other states that have expanded their voucher programs have included such hold harmless funds.

Passed by the General Assembly in 2013, vouchers, or Opportunity Scholarships as they are called in North Carolina, were initially for those students eligible for free and reduced lunch. Income eligibility requirements have loosened incrementally over the years.

The House version of the expansion program named Choose Your School, Choose Your Future, would strip the income eligibility requirements currently in place for families to receive a voucher, providing, at least, a 45% scholarship to all North Carolina students.

The N.C. State Education Assistance Authority, which oversees Opportunity Scholarship program, reports that 24,524 students received the scholarship in 2022-23.

Those students include 212 students at Gospel Light Christian School and 197 students at Salem Baptist Christian School, both in Winston-Salem. Those schools have among the highest number of scholarship recipients in the state, according to the authoritys figures.

School board members Alex Bohannon, Crowley, Deanna Kaplan, Sabrina Coone, Trevonia Brown-Gaither and Richard Watts voted in favor of the resolution. Barr, Susan Miler and Steve Wood opposed the resolution.
As downtown Lincoln continues to see development eastward, Open Harvest's $4.4 million relocation from South Street to the Telegraph District seems to make sense.

"Look around us," said Jason Ball, president and CEO of the Lincoln Chamber of Commerce, pointing toward a skyline suddenly dominated by apartment buildings and businesses in an area that was left for dead a couple of decades earlier.

"Anytime you're going to expand higher-density living options for people, you're going to need food options conveniently located for folks  particularly those that live and work downtown and aren't going to be in their cars all the time," Ball said. "They need that within walking distance."

Open Harvest, the Lincoln co-op grocery store that was founded 48 years ago, helps to fill that void, Ball said.

On Wednesday, community members gathered at the site of Open Harvest's new location, 330 S. 21st St., for what was dubbed a groundbreaking for the 10,000-square-foot space that had been used for storage by Allo Communications.

The renovation project is scheduled to be completed early in 2024 and will provide Open Harvest with some amenities that aren't available on South Street, said Amy Tabor, general manager.

"This place checks a lot of boxes for us," she said.

It's a much bigger space, she said. In addition, the Telegraph parking lot will provide ample parking, which was limited on South Street.

Also, the apartments are more than 100 feet away from the new store site, which adheres to city bylaws that prevented Open Harvest from selling beer and wine at the South Street store because houses are too close.

Those perks matter, but the one thing that kept coming up in customer surveys as they searched for a new home was location.

"We kept hearing 'Please don't go too far,'" she said. "We've served the core of Lincoln, pretty much our whole existence and you know Lincoln has grown a lot in the last 40 years."

Despite Lincoln's growth in all directions, Open Harvest hasn't strayed too far geographically  a short walk, actually  since opening its doors in July 1975.

Open Harvest's founders, Tabor said, saw a community need for "good wholesome food" and they sprung into action by pooling their resources to form a buying club.

That eventually led to its first storefront at 27th and Randolph streets, which was soon outgrown and prompted the move to South Street.

Today, 25% of the food sold at Open Harvest  totaling more than $1 million each year  is made or grown locally.

"That means local dollars stay within our local economy," while supporting a local marketplace for local farmers and producers, said Lincoln Mayor Leirion Gaylor Baird.

But any move  even one to a bigger space with more perks  doesn't come without a few tears.

"Our move from our current store is bittersweet as it holds memories for many people," Tabor said. "... But this move is critical to our future success, and we are thrilled to find a new home not too far away."

The move comes in the midst of an ambitious fundraising campaign that has seen them raise more than $1.5 million of the $2 million goal.

Open Harvest did so by sending letters to its membership  about 2,300 in total  asking them to consider investing in the co-op through preferred shares, with a minimum investment of $1,000.

The rest of the $4.4 million needed has come through a combination of loans, grants and donated funds.

The store also received a $200,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture that is available to grocery stores that operate in areas considered "food deserts."

The USDA defines a food desert as a tract of at least 100 households located more than a half-mile from the nearest supermarket with no vehicle access.

"Having food availability in this area is essential," Ball said.

15+ essential places for college students off campus in Lincoln Yia Yia's The Mill First Friday Black Market Trails Iguana's Union Plaza Bourbon Theatre Ivanna Cone SouthPointe Mall Hurts Donut Movies Pioneers Park Farmers market Lee's Chicken Brass Rail Nebraska Capitol Holmes Lake Park
At the last in a series of town hall-style meetings across the city, Lincoln Police officials described nightmare scenarios that officers could hypothetically face as they lobbied for the public's support Monday night for the purchase of an armored vehicle.

The Police Department doesn't need the public's go-ahead to buy the $350,000 vehicle, which is expected to closely resemble the Lenco BearCat that the Lancaster County Sheriff's Office unveiled in October after ordering it earlier last year.

But the department, which plans to use seized money to pay for the armored truck, sought the public's approval anyway in an hourlong meeting Monday night at the Auld Pavilion Recreation Center, where officials pointed to standoffs, active shooters, water rescues and airport disasters to help explain why, exactly, LPD needs such a vehicle.

"We have needed one  I've been asking for one for about 15 years," Assistant Police Chief Jason Stille told a crowd of about 20 southeast Lincoln residents who attended the town hall.

Stille, who leads the Police Department's SWAT Team, recalled an instance a decade and a half ago when the unit faced rifle fire amid a standoff and had to turn to the FBI  the nearest agency with an armored vehicle at the time  for support, a process that Stille said took 90 minutes.

"If one of us was dropped out in the open or a citizen was shot out in the open or we needed to necessitate an evacuation of a home that's close by, help was about an hour and a half away," he said.

And that timeline assumes a vehicle is made available at all.

"When it comes to equipment from other cities that we might need, which would be mutual aid, they can say no because they may need it," Police Chief Teresa Ewins said.

"That's a decision a boss has to make. If I'm gonna ask Omaha, 'Hey, can you send us your BearCat?' Most likely, they're gonna say no because they need that equipment as well."

The Police Department has rarely been denied when requesting another agency's armored vehicle. The department's SWAT Team has requested armored vehicle support 78 times over the past decade and has been denied nine times due to "maintenance issues or lack of trained personnel," according to an informational packet police handed out to residents at Monday's meeting.

And the math has changed in the years since the shootout that Stille described, as the Sheriff's Office secured its own armored vehicle and the Nebraska State Patrol added two "light" armored vehicles to its fleet, giving the Police Department easier access to mutual aid than relying on the FBI's field office in Omaha.

The last time the SWAT team requested an armored vehicle  amid a standoff in north Lincoln in early May that ended when a 49-year-old man died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound  it took around 30 minutes for the Sheriff's Office to respond with its BearCat, Stille said.

Still, the assistant police chief insisted LPD still needs an armored truck of its own.

"Like, Omaha, I don't think they would tell you  they're getting a new one, they don't want to get rid of their old one," he said. "Why? Because sometimes, you need two."

The crowd of residents at the Auld Center largely agreed with Stille's assessment, offering broad support for the vehicle's purchase mixed with hints of skepticism about its potential use.

"I think it's a great idea," said 76-year-old James Brewer, who was among the group of attendees invited to the meeting through neighborhood association announcements or email blasts, since the department didn't post details about any of its four town halls on social media ahead of time.

"You can't put money over life, whether you're an officer or you're a civilian," Brewer said, suggesting the vehicle could help save lives. "It's worth it. You've got my vote."

Tim Thaden, a 69-year-old attendee, came away with a similar fiscal calculus.

"I think if you just used it to save one officer's life, $350,000 is cheap," he said.

The money was a source of pride, too, particularly for officials on hand, including Ewins, who said she "like(s) the idea of making drug dealers pay for things that we have."

Some expressed concerns over the potential use  or misuse  of such a vehicle, which invoked memories of the at-times destructive protests that broke out in Lincoln after the murder of George Floyd at the hands of police in Minneapolis in 2020.

"I certainly see reasons for it," said Mary Barton. "I do think that there is  just like when we had what we called the riot after George Floyd, when the officers were all lined up in front of the courthouse, all dressed in full gear.

"All that did was upset the crowd. And the next night, when (the police) were inside, it defused much more quickly. I think there's a fine line with bringing a vehicle like that, depending on the situation."

Barton said "looking tough" shouldn't be sufficient grounds for LPD to deploy the vehicle should they go through with the purchase.

Stille, for his part, agreed.

"You're a woman after my own heart," he said. "You can be my policy adviser. How about that?"

The assistant police chief acknowledged that law enforcement's glaring presence on the city's streets amid the most destructive night of protests did seem to provoke demonstrators  a lesson, he said, that Lincoln "learned at the same pace as pretty much every other city in the United States."

Police officials said they plan to use the truck as sparingly as possible, and Ewins said she or Stille would be required to give the green light for any deployment of the armored vehicle.

Stille said the department, which he said has been met with "overwhelming support so far," will meet with Lincoln's City Council before moving forward with the purchase.

Though it won't be subject to council approval, District 2 Councilman Tom Duden, who represents southeast Lincoln on the city's governing body and was one of two council members to attend Monday's town hall, is already on board.

"This equipment they're talking about is a no-brainer, folks," he said.

Photos and videos of protests in Lincoln over George Floyd's death
This story is part of a larger package examining body camera usage by local police agencies. The main story can be found here.

Whether an officer is publicly identified after shooting a member of the public in Nebraska seems to depend on two key factors: what agency the officer works for and whether the gunshot victim dies.

Over the past decade, local police agencies have proved to be inconsistent on when  or if  they identify their officers involved in police shootings, sometimes releasing their identities within a few days of such a shooting and sometimes refusing to ever identify involved officers publicly, according to a Journal Star review of 10 years worth of media reports.

In Nebraska, grand juries are convened to review law enforcement actions in fatal shootings to investigate whether police committed criminal wrongdoing. Even if officers are cleared of such wrongdoing, a transcript of the grand jury proceeding  which includes the involved officers name  is made available for public review.

But grand juries arent convened to review nonfatal police shootings.

The Nebraska State Patrol has consistently declined to identify troopers who shoot members of the public  even when those gunshot wound victims die  largely because the agencys contract with the state troopers union prevents the public identification of troopers under internal investigation, leaving grand juries as the only outlet for identification.

"We do not release the names of officers involved in officer-involved shootings," State Patrol Col. John Bolduc said at news conference in May. "We never have. And that policy is not likely to change anytime soon."

The U.S. Marshals Service  which has been involved in three police shootings in Lincoln since 2014, though only one of them was fatal  has taken a similar approach. Deputy U.S. marshals who have shot people in Lincoln over the past decade have only been identified through grand jury transcripts or criminal court proceedings, according to the review of media reports.

The Lincoln Police Department has grown increasingly hesitant to identify officers involved in shootings since the city hired Chief Teresa Ewins to lead the department in September 2021, according to the review.

In four Lincoln Police-involved shootings from 2015 to February 2021, the police department identified its involved officers at news conferences long before grand juries were convened to review the actions of law enforcement.

But in the two police shootings since, department officials have declined to publicly identify the investigators who witnessed or participated in the incidents, deferring instead to the grand jury process.

"It's gonna be up to  to really me looking at the assessment, looking at the threat against the officers that could be posed, Ewins said in May, following the shooting of Chace Abney at the hands of LPD and State Patrol investigators who remain unidentified.

It may go to a grand jury, she said. And so, we can't give you information until we understand where it's gonna be going."

Deputies with the Lancaster County Sheriffs Office have been involved in two shootings since 2013, including one fatal shooting.

In both instances, Sheriff Terry Wagner has publicly identified the deputies involved.

Review of police shootings in Lincoln since 2013 1. Douglas DaMoude, May 30, 2014 2. Tyson Hubbard, March 5, 2015 3. Tareik Artis, Sept. 22, 2015 4. Zachary Grigsby, Nov. 29, 2015 5. Germichael Kennedy, June 26, 2016 6. Thomas Sailors, Jan. 5, 2018 7. Christopher Brennauer, Dec. 29, 2018 8. Joseph Francis Cimino, Oct. 8, 2019 9. Hailey Stainbrook and Christian Alexander, Feb. 20, 2021 10. German Pedraza, Nov. 24, 2021 11. Chace Abney, May 1, 2023
The Nebraska Supreme Court has rejected a Lincoln man's argument that he deserves a new trial because the evidence in his case may have been among the drugs stolen from the State Patrol's evidence room.

Gabriel Muratella's attorney argued Muratella wouldn't have pleaded no contest to attempted possession with intent to deliver if he'd known about the misconduct by an evidence technician.

He's now serving an eight- to 12-year sentence for it.

In November 2021, more than two years after Muratella's sentencing, his attorney got an email from the Lancaster County Attorney's Office disclosing that his case had been identified as part of a Nebraska State Patrol drug-related investigation.

The letter said: "You are advised that it is possible that during the time any drug-related evidence in this case was in the custody of NSP, it may have been directly or indirectly maintained by or otherwise subject to the oversight of the former evidence technician," referring to Anna Idigima.

Idigima and George Weaver Jr. are facing sentencing later this summer in federal court for conspiring to steal and sell more than $1.2 million worth of narcotics from the patrol's evidence facility.

In February, the Supreme Court heard arguments in Muratella's case.

Deputy Lancaster County Public Defender Chelsie Krell said Idigima was in the chain of custody for the 18 grams of methamphetamine that Muratella was accused of trying to possess.

While it wasn't clear if she did anything wrong with the evidence in his case, the implication is that she may have, making Muratella deserving of a new trial, Krell argued.

She called it a "hopefully very rare circumstance where we have egregious misconduct by a state actor."

In district court, the state didn't oppose the motions and conceded that if Muratella were allowed to withdraw his plea it wouldn't retry him. But the judge ruled that Muratella couldn't ask for a new trial because he didn't have a trial. He pleaded no contest.

In oral arguments, the Nebraska Attorney General's Office said the ruling was the correct one and that Muratella should have filed a motion for post-conviction relief instead but didn't and now it's too late.

In a decision Friday, Chief Justice Michael Heavican said while Muratella contends his right to trial by jury was compromised because Idigimas indictment destroyed the chain of custody for the seized methamphetamine, they found no merit to the contention.

"Nothing Muratella asserted in his affidavit has any bearing on the officers testimony that Muratella attempted to obtain the earbud case, the officers identification of the methamphetamine, its preliminary weight, the positive field test, or the admissions Muratella made to his probation officer," Heavican wrote.

Photos: Protesters, supporters gather in Miami ahead of Trump court appearance
When plainclothes narcotics investigators shot a Nevada man amid a confrontation in a west Lincoln parking lot last month  wounding the 35-year-old who later died of his injuries  the instance marked the 11th police shooting in the city over the past decade.

Chace Abney, who is alleged to have fired one round from a handgun before Lincoln Police and Nebraska State Patrol investigators returned fire, is the 12th person to be shot by police across 11 separate police shootings in Lincoln since the beginning of 2014, according to a Journal Star review of a decade's worth of local media reports.

Police in Lincoln have killed nine of those shooting victims  all nine of whom were armed, believed to be armed or reportedly reaching for guns  and grand juries have cleared officers of criminal wrongdoing in eight of the nine fatal shootings, according to the media reports.

A grand jury hasn't yet been convened to review Abney's death, but when one is, jurors won't review body-worn camera footage of the incident as part of their probe into investigators' actions in the lead-up to the May 1 shooting.

That's because the unidentified investigators who shot Abney  members of the Lincoln-Lancaster County Narcotics Task Force, an interagency unit that also includes Lancaster County Sheriff's Office deputies and University of Nebraska-Lincoln Police officers  weren't wearing body cameras.

Though UNLPD has been using body-worn cameras since 2007 and the State Patrol since 2014  the same year that Lincoln Police officials began exploring an expansion of their use of such cameras after piloting the devices with four bicycle officers  possibly only one local police shooting in the past 10 years was actually captured in bodycam footage.

Lincoln police agencies inconsistently identify officers who shoot members of public Over the past decade, local police agencies have proved to be inconsistent on when  or if  they identify their officers involved in police shootings.

There was definitively no body-worn camera footage in eight of the 11 police shootings in Lincoln over the past 10 years, despite the increasingly widespread use of bodycams, according to media reports.

In two of the three other police shootings  the nonfatal shooting of Christopher Brennauer at the hands of Lincoln Police officers in 2018 and the fatal LPD shooting of Zachary Grigsby in 2015  it's unclear if body-worn cameras were in use.

Media reports from those shootings don't mention body-worn cameras. The Lincoln Police Department's public information office forwarded multiple inquires about bodycam use in those shootings to Police Chief Teresa Ewins, who did not respond and who declined an interview request for this story.

Few agencies remain camera shy Data gathered from October 2022 to May 2023 shows of the 142 agencies that answered questions on camera availability or use, 93 said they had both body and dashboard cameras for at least one of their members and vehicles.

Data gathered from October 2022 to May 2023 shows of the 142 agencies that answered questions on camera availability or use, 93 said they had both body and dashboard cameras for at least one of their members and vehicles.

Assistant City Attorney Tonya Peters, the department's legal adviser, said the city "does not possess a body-worn camera video for either incident," though it is unclear if such footage ever existed.

The double-fatal shooting of a Wyoming couple in February 2021 at the hands of two Nebraska State Patrol troopers and a Lincoln Police officer marks the only police shooting in Lincoln over the past 10 years in which bodycam footage definitively existed, according to media reports and the grand jury transcript.

And in that instance  in which police fired 37 times at Hailey Stainbrook and Christian Alexander following a pursuit through northwest Lincoln  the bodycam footage investigators reviewed did little to help police accurately describe the events that led up to the shooting.

In Lincoln's two police shootings since then, the police involved haven't been wearing bodycams because of their positions on a specialized narcotics task force.

Abney's killing in May and the November 2021 fatal shooting of German Pedraza both involved Lincoln-Lancaster County Narcotics Task Force investigators, who wear plainclothes, drive unmarked cars and do not wear bodycams.

The Lincoln Police Department's body-worn camera policies don't mention which officers under what circumstances are required to wear bodycams. In fact, the set of policies governing LPD's use of bodycams and other recording systems does not explicitly require any officers to wear bodycams.

The Lincoln Police Department declined to answer questions about body-worn camera use among narcotics investigators, citing the looming grand jury probe of Abney's shooting death.

The department's public information office also forwarded questions about apparent loopholes in LPD's bodycam policy to Ewins, who did not respond.

Chief Sheriff's Deputy Ben Houchin, whose agency employs one investigator on the Narcotics Task Force, said it simply isn't feasible for the plainclothes group to wear bodycams because of the nature of their day-to-day surveillance of suspected drug dealers and users that requires them to blend in.

"I mean, you can't have a T-shirt on and try to do surveillance on foot and have a body camera," Houchin said. "It just isn't going to work on that portion of it."

However, members of the other local specialized police task force  the Area Metro Fugitive Task Force, which includes full-time officers from LPD, the sheriff's office and U.S. Marshals Service  often do wear body cameras when pursuing alleged fugitives, Houchin said, despite the fact that members generally wear plainclothes.

Houchin said the sheriff's office and local police investigators on the Metro Fugitive Task Force have cameras attached to the tactical vests they put on when apprehending fugitives.

Investigators on the task force have shot three people in Lincoln since 2014, including the nonfatal shootings of Thomas Sailors in January 2018 and Tareik Artis in 2015. Members of the task force also shot and killed Tyson Hubbard in 2015.

All three Metro Fugitive Task Force shootings over the past decade have been carried out at least in part by deputy U.S. marshals on the unit  though a deputy marshal and sheriff's deputy each fired shots at Artis.

None of the task force's shootings have been caught on bodycams, according to media reports, in part because deputy U.S. marshals in Nebraska still aren't equipped with body-worn cameras, according to Jaime Galindo Jr., the chief deputy U.S. marshal for the District of Nebraska.

Galindo said the Marshal's Service is in the middle of rolling out bodycams to deputy marshals in its 94 districts across the country, though he said he wasn't sure when exactly they would arrive in Nebraska, suggesting it could be as soon as next month or as late as 2024.

The longtime chief deputy who has served in the role since 2013 said the decision to outfit deputy marshals with bodycams came down to "the accountability, right, that the body-worn camera brings to the job that we do."

"It's something that our agency and our leadership has been at the forefront (on), making sure that, 'Hey, we need to be out there and making sure that we get these for our deputy U.S. marshals across the country,'" Galindo said.

When the cameras arrive, the deputy marshals will be among the last police in Lincoln outfitted with bodycams.

It's unclear if BNSF Railway Police  a somewhat obscure police force that nonetheless carried out a fatal shooting in Lincoln in 2019 that was not captured on bodycam video  are outfitted with body-worn cameras. A spokesperson did not respond to an inquiry about the force's use of the cameras.

Still, the increase in use of body-worn cameras in Lincoln over the past decade has not been accompanied by an increase in police transparency  in large part because of a vague exception in Nebraska's public records law that allows law enforcement agencies and municipalities to withhold records that "constitute a part of  (an) investigation," effectively prohibiting disclosure of all body-worn camera footage to the public.

The city has repeatedly relied upon the exemption to deny Journal Star requests for body-worn camera footage  a practice that state senators have aimed to curb through the introduction of multiple bills in recent years that would have required law enforcement agencies to release bodycam footage to the public and news media in a narrow set of circumstances.

Sen. Danielle Conrad of Lincoln became the latest lawmaker to make such a bid when she in January introduced LB366, which would have amended the state's public records law to make records requests more affordable for Nebraska residents while barring agencies from withholding bodycam footage linked to deaths in police custody.

Conrad's bill, like a similar effort brought by former Lincoln Sen. Matt Hansen in 2021, faced opposition from law enforcement officials at a Government, Military and Veterans Affairs Committee hearing in March  including from Lancaster County Attorney Pat Condon, who hinged much of his opposition to the bill on what such a change would mean for the potential prosecution of an officer.

"It all goes back to the right of an individual to have a fair and impartial trial," said Condon, who said he would not mind if law enforcement agencies released footage in cases that don't result in prosecution.

A grand jury has not called for a law enforcement officer to face criminal charges in any police shooting in Lincoln over the past decade, but for Condon, the potential for such an indictment is an obstacle in the timely release of bodycam footage in police custody deaths.

Grand juries typically aren't convened to review deaths until months after the fact in Lancaster County  and sometimes longer elsewhere in the state.

Conrad, the daughter of a longtime deputy sheriff, said Condon's opposition to her proposal ignores legal devices at his disposal, such as jury sequestration or out-of-jurisdiction jury selection, to combat any influence the release of bodycam footage might have on a criminal trial.

And, she said, the inconsistent and rare release of body-worn camera footage in the state calls into question the efficacy of bodycams as a means for police accountability  the impetus of their use.

"What you have is law enforcement deciding what we get to see and when we get to see it, and sometimes they pull stills off of the body cameras instead of providing the full footage," said Conrad, whose bill did not make it out of committee but will be automatically refiled when Nebraska's Legislature reconvenes in January.

"And I think that that really turns our strong public records laws on their head. Because the default position should be toward the public's right to know."

At times, law enforcement officials claim to agree. Houchin, the chief deputy sheriff, said the release of bodycam footage in critical incidents or when deputies are accused of wrongdoing would benefit the authorities "99.9% of the time."

But, he said, the county's prosecutors have objected.

"I understand their point, but it would be nice that  (when) I'm sitting here knowing everything is rock solid and there's questions out in the public, and then they're like, 'Well, they're hiding something,'" Houchin said, describing a hypothetical situation featuring public calls for the release of bodycam footage.

"Well, no, we're not hiding anything. And we at the Sheriff's Office want to be as transparent as we possibly can."

Houchin said he wouldn't characterize the differing views between the county offices on bodycam footage as a "disagreement," but the sentiment that legal advice is a roadblock on law enforcement's path to transparency is not unique to the sheriff's office.

Ewins, Lincoln's police chief, said in a March interview that she could imagine situations or circumstances that might call for the release of bodycam footage, particularly if its release could diffuse tensions or "stop violence or protest" in the aftermath of a police killing.

"And as long as its done responsibly, I dont have an issue with it," said Ewins, whose agency has not released bodycam footage to the news media in her 21 months at the helm.

"But we need to be responsible about it. And we need to have policies, procedures, the city attorney involved," she said, before saying her and the city's legal counsel "have differing opinions" on the matter.

After indicating he would participate in an interview and then assuring he would answer an emailed list of questions, Yohance Christie, the city's attorney, ultimately did not respond to inquiries seeking comment in time for publication.

And Ewins, who acknowledged that the department's written bodycam policy does not mention the release of video captured, described the city's process for releasing footage in the kind of de facto terms that state statute, in its deference to each agency, allows for.

It would be my discretion," she said, "and in consultation with the city attorney."

Review of police shootings in Lincoln since 2013 1. Douglas DaMoude, May 30, 2014 2. Tyson Hubbard, March 5, 2015 3. Tareik Artis, Sept. 22, 2015 4. Zachary Grigsby, Nov. 29, 2015 5. Germichael Kennedy, June 26, 2016 6. Thomas Sailors, Jan. 5, 2018 7. Christopher Brennauer, Dec. 29, 2018 8. Joseph Francis Cimino, Oct. 8, 2019 9. Hailey Stainbrook and Christian Alexander, Feb. 20, 2021 10. German Pedraza, Nov. 24, 2021 11. Chace Abney, May 1, 2023
PORTLAND, Maine  Ann Allen loved going to church and the after-school social group led by a dynamic priest back in the 1960s.

The giggling fun with friends always ended with a game of hide-and-seek. Each week, the Rev. Lawrence Sabatino chose one girl to hide with him. Allen said when it was her turn, she was sexually assaulted, at age 7, in the recesses of St. Peters Catholic Church.

I dont remember how I got out of that cellar and I dont think I ever will. But I remember it like its yesterday. I remember the smells. The sounds. I remember what he said, and what he did," she said.

Allen, 64, is one of more than two dozen people who have sued the Roman Catholic Diocese of Portland, Maine, over the past year, seeking delayed justice since lawmakers allowed lawsuits for abuse that happened long ago and can't be pursued in criminal courts either because of time limits or evidence diminishing over time.

More survivors are pursuing cases as states increasingly consider repealing time limits for child sex-crime lawsuits. Vermont was the first state to remove the limits in 2019, followed by Maine in 2021 and Maryland this year.

Under current law, Nebraskas statute of limitations prohibits civil lawsuits brought against institutions  including churches  by victims of child sex abuse once a victim has turned 33 years old.

Attempts to revise Nebraska law have been made in the past, including by the late Omaha Sen. Rich Pahls, who introduced LB833 during the 2022 legislative session, which sought to completely eliminate limitations for civil suits involving child sexual assault. The Judiciary Committee advanced the bill to the floor but it was never debated. A similar attempt by Lincoln Sen. George Dungan was made during this years session but his bill (LB174) did not advance.

Other states  Michigan, Rhode Island and Massachusetts  are poised to take action before their legislative sessions end.

"The momentum is irreversible," said Marci Hamilton, CEO of CHILD USA, a think tank aiming to prevent child abuse and neglect.

In April, Maryland lifted time limits on child sexual abuse lawsuits against institutions less than a week after the attorney general detailed decades of abuse of more than 600 children by over 150 priests associated with the Archdiocese of Baltimore.

Other states, meanwhile, have briefly removed the statute of limitations on lawsuits for childhood abuse. More than 10,000 lawsuits were filed when New York set aside time limits for two years.

Across the country, those lawsuits have targeted churches, summer camps, Scouting groups and other institutions accused of enabling pedophiles or turning a blind eye to wrongdoing.

More states eliminating the limits would help achieve justice and prevention, according to advocates who say survivors tend to keep the trauma to themselves, backed by new research suggesting survivors typically come forward in their 50s.

More and more people come forward as they realize that theyre not alone, said Michael Bigos, one of Allens attorneys, whose law firm has brought 25 lawsuits since last June and is evaluating more than 100 additional potential cases, including about 65 targeting the Portland diocese.

In his law offices, Allen looked at a photo of herself at her first communion at St. Peter's, which serves what was once Portland's Little Italy neighborhood and hosts a popular street party each summer.

The photo was taken after the assault. Her joy and exuberance are gone. When I look at it, I see a pretty damaged child, she said.

Sabatino quickly became part of the fabric of St. Peters when he arrived in 1958 after leaving another church where parents reported to police that he had sexually abused their 6-year-old daughter. The priest was warned by the Diocese of Portland not to engage with children or play games, but was soon doing both.

Parishioners, including Ann Allens family, invited him into their homes. He visited her familys beach house.

Allen thought she was lucky when she was selected to hide with him. But the abuse became a dark secret she carried for decades.

She never considered telling her parents. Allen said she didnt think anyone would believe her.

As a school principal in California, Allen was protective of children, especially those who reported abuse. She would try to help them and say the right things  things she wished had been done for her. Then, she went home to curl up in a ball," she said.

But her secret came bubbling back when she returned to Maine and had to confront her past, she said.

Robert Dupuis tells a similar story.

He was 12 years old in 1961 when he was abused by the Rev. John Curran in Old Town, a riverside city in Maine. Decades later, he sought help from Alcoholics Anonymous when his marriage was in jeopardy. He acknowledged the abuse in group therapy, at around age 55, and the revelation changed his life.

It healed me and it freed me from holding back, the 74-year-old said.

His marriage and friendships have improved, he said. Now, he encourages others who have been abused to come forward.

Most of Maine's newly filed civil lawsuits target the Diocese of Portland, accusing leaders of ignoring accusations against priests like Sabatino and Curran, or simply moving them to new parishes, allowing the abuse to continue.

Diocesan officials concluded that allegations against Sabatino and Curran were credible. Both have long since died.

Maine removed its time limits in 2000 to sue over childhood sexual abuse, but not retroactively, leaving survivors without recourse for older cases. Changes in 2021 allowed previously expired civil claims. The Legislature also is considering easing the statute of limitations on criminal charges for sexual assaults of children.

For Patricia Butkowski, it was 1958 when her family alerted police that she said Sabatino assaulted her at a parish in Lewiston. After the diocese transferred him to Portland, Allen and others became victims.

Im now at 70 feeling emotions and allowing myself to feel emotions that I never knew I had. Anger is at the top of it. Im like a volcano spewing and theres just so many emotions, and anger at the church," she said.

Butkowski, who now lives in Oklahoma City, wants the church to apologize and acknowledge the wrongs done to her and others so she can "hopefully regain some sort of faith before I die, she said.

What was done to me by the priest damaged my soul, she said. I dont have a soul anymore. Its broken.

Portraits of resilience: Survivors of clergy abuse tell their stories Patrick Shepard Dorothy Small Salvador Bolivar The Charbonneau sisters Jacob Olivas Mark Belenchia John Vai
Saunders County Sheriff Chris Lichtenberg says he is lucky.

He only has rope burns on his hand and fingers after the suspect in a high-speed chase through two counties Monday almost ran him over as she allegedly tried to evade a spike strip he was deploying.

Lichtenberg said he had attended a training seminar in Blair on Monday afternoon and was driving home from Washington County when he became aware of an earlier high-speed pursuit.

The suspect was Itsamar S. Ramirez, 28, of Lincoln, who had allegedly evaded officials from the Fremont Police Department and the Dodge County Sheriffs Office.

After the pursuit was called off for a third time, Lichtenberg explained, the suspect's car was spotted by Wahoo Chief of Police Joe Baulder at a convenience store in Wahoo.

Baulder followed the car at normal speed out of Wahoo and kept other law enforcement apprised as it continued northbound on Nebraska 109.

The Saunders County Sheriffs Office has a policy on pursuing criminal suspects as required under Nebraska law.

Lichtenberg said he authorized the spike strip deployment and stopped to set up his own spike strip on Nebraska 109.

I said, Go ahead, lets see what happens, and if she starts to run on him, I could start to set up and deploy spikes, the sheriff said.

Lichtenberg said he saw the suspect driving toward him, but she also noticed him and allegedly drove off the road to evade the device.

"I continued to try to pull the spikes across the road into a ditch area so I could get her spiked, he said. In doing that, she came right at me. It was fairly close."

The near-miss left him with a rope burn on his hand and a deep burn on one finger.

I dont think she was intentionally trying to drive over me. But, she was definitely driving in a reckless manner disregarding the safety of others," he said.

Ramirez was taken into custody. After being taken to a local medical facility, she was released, arrested and then booked into the Saunders County Jail.

Top Journal Star photos for June 2023
RACINE  Three years after George Floyds death, the trend for more police accountability continues.

Part of the effort includes the use of body cameras and dash cameras.

At the City of Racine Police Department, all 160 sworn officers are required to wear body cameras when on duty.

The department has 17 bodycam licenses, and each camera costs $678.03, according to Sgt. Kristi Wilcox, the departments public information officer.

She said the cost is spread out over a five-year contract, which includes a warranty and the replacement of each camera every 30 months.

All of the departments 38 patrol cars also have been outfitted with dash cameras.

Every sworn RPD member is assigned a body-worn camera, and all training is complete with the AXON cameras. This is the second generation for RPD and replaces the Panasonic Arbitrator Series.

AXON provides a more robust back-end client for download and retrieval of recorded video, RPD Chief Maurice Robinson said in a statement. A robust body-worn camera program positions RPD to be transparent and accountable in matters of officer/citizen interactions.

According to policy and procedure document 146, RPD adopted the use of body-worn cameras to accomplish the following objectives:

To more accurately document events, actions, conditions and statements made during arrests and critical incidents so as to enhance officer reports, collection of evidence and testimony in court.

To enhance the police departments ability to review probable cause for arrest, arrest procedures, officer/suspect interaction, evidence for investigative purposes, as well as officer evaluation and training.

To more accurately reflect interactions between the police department and members of the public in order to create transparency and enhance public confidence.

The types of contacts include, but are not limited to, duties of an investigatory nature, enforcement actions and interactions with members of the public in the performance of an officers official law enforcement duties, unless an exception applies.

According to the departments policy and procedure 1945 document, The minimum retention time that ordinary data will be saved on the designated server is 180 days, unless otherwise marked for a longer retention period.

The retention period for video recordings varies from 180 days for an equipment check or 10-39 Run to 2,555 days for felony-related incidents.

Retention time is unlimited for homicide and internal affairs investigations.

Shift/unit commanders review the bodycam recordings from members under their command biweekly for classification and case number entry.

The footage is stored remotely through a cloud-based storage system, Wilcox said, which is located in several secure locations throughout the country.

Few agencies remain camera shy Data gathered from October 2022 to May 2023 shows of the 142 agencies that answered questions on camera availability or use, 93 said they had both body and dashboard cameras for at least one of their members and vehicles.

Data gathered from October 2022 to May 2023 shows of the 142 agencies that answered questions on camera availability or use, 93 said they had both body and dashboard cameras for at least one of their members and vehicles.

Nakeyda Haymer, the Voices of Black Mothers United state lead and Racine County Violent Crime Reduction coordinator, has helped organize events to promote positive relationships with law enforcement and community members.

She said requiring officers to use body cameras creates a level of safety.

In addition, community accountability is created because an officer is not always in the wrong, she said.

The officer does have a job to do; they are supposed to be enforcing laws, she said. If we are breaking laws, it goes both ways. So thats another thing when we promote positive policing and create these spaces, is to see them as people first but then also realize that we have a responsibility as community members, too.

The Caledonia Police Department has 34 body cameras deployed; everyone except the chief and deputy chief have one, according to Lt. Gary Larsen of the CPD. The agency has had them since June 2020.

The Village of Caledonia has a five-year contract with Motorola, which includes cloud storage for the video. The cost for the five years is $153,593.58.

Officers are able to enter the case number and tag videos by incident category from the body cameras touchscreen.

The tag entered determines the length of time the video is saved, ranging from 120 days for a general or squad check incident to seven years for a felony or use of force incident.

The officers want the cameras and had no issues incorporating them into their daily activities, Larsen said. They ensure that what the officers are doing is memorialized in a video format.

Larsen added that body cameras are protection for officers if a false allegation is presented, and vice versa as protection for citizens because the officers actions can be viewed.

If there were wrongdoing, it can be addressed and makes what the officers are doing more open to the public, Larsen said. It is a positive for the judicial side as well and results in fewer cases going to trial.

Access to bodycam or dashcam video footage falls under Wisconsin open records law.

According to Wisconsin Statute  19.32(2): a public record is, Any material on which written, drawn, printed, spoken, visual or electromagnetic information or electronically generated or stored data is recorded or preserved, regardless of physical form or characteristics, which has been created or is being kept by an authority.

Police bodycam and dashcam footage fall under this definition.

More information about making an open records request for police bodycam or dashcam footage in Wisconsin is available at doj.state.wi.us.

WARNING, GRAPHIC: Body camera video of fatal police shooting of Da'Shontay King
BURLINGTON  A former teachers aide accused of being intoxicated at school will lose her drivers license for six months after pleading guilty Monday in a related drunken driving case.

Amy Francisco, 45, of Burlington, pleaded guilty to operating with a prohibited blood-alcohol content, in exchange for prosecutors dropping a charge of operating while intoxicated.

Racine County Circuit Judge Maureen Martinez approved the plea deal Monday on a day when Francisco previously had been scheduled for trial on the non-criminal municipal citations.

In addition to losing her driving privileges for six months, the former Waller Elementary School teachers aide must pay $861 in fines and costs, and she must undergo alcohol and other drug abuse assessment.

Once her driving privileges are restored, Francisco must for one year use an ignition interlock device, which will disable her vehicle unless she can pass an alcohol breathalyzer test.

Burlington Municipal Court prosecutor Terrance Kallenbach could not be reached for comment on the plea deal.

Defense attorney Robert Keller declined to comment.

Francisco was arrested near her home Oct. 10 after colleagues at Waller Elementary School called police and reported that the special education teachers aide appeared to be intoxicated on the job.

Police stopped her in traffic a short time later and reported finding her with a blood-alcohol content of 0.26  more than three times the legal limit for driving. She told officers she was drinking before work because she feels unappreciated at work and at home.

She immediately resigned her position at Waller Elementary. She got a new job at Trailside Elementary School in Waterford, but has since lost that job, too, along with her state license to work as a teachers aide.

17 unusual alcohol laws that could get you busted across the world 17 unusual alcohol laws that could get you busted across the world Nudes and booze are a no-no, New York City Keep the booze away from the communion wine, New York State No hooch on a horse, California Dry by default, Tennessee Perpetual Prohibition, Kansas Mommy-and-me martinis, Ohio No tippling till the polls close, Alaska Sober for Santa, Allegany County, New York Happy hour hindrance, Massachusetts Straw-sipping at the daiquiri drive-thru, Louisiana Cold beer crime, Indiana Banned bottomless brunch, Oklahoma Wasted while at home, Utah Hands off the barkeep, Nebraska Don't bring your cows home drunk, United Kingdom Whipped for wine consumption, Saudi Arabia Keep your beer unadulterated, Germany
The Wisconsin Legislature on Wednesday approved a bipartisan package intended to increase lower-cost housing for Wisconsinites, including through the creation of loan programs to build infrastructure, convert vacant commercial buildings into homes and rehabilitate housing above commercial businesses.

Another measure would expand an existing home-rehabilitation program, and a fifth would seek to limit the ways local governments can step in to stop new housing developments.

The bills now head to Democratic Gov. Tony Evers, who would likely sign most of the proposals into law.

Predominantly written by Republicans, the package seeks to respond to the state's ongoing housing crisis, with older adults retiring from work but remaining in their homes, leaving fewer places to live for working Wisconsinites.

"One of the biggest challenges that we have ... is that with all the folks who want to live and work, retire and play here, we are in a shortage of housing, and that's one of the things that we have really focused on," Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, R-Rochester, said about the bills before their passage.

Lawmakers also are trying to increase the incentives for younger adults to move to the state.

The states 65-or-older population is expected to increase by 334,000 by 2030, but the number of adults under 65 will fall by 130,000, according to the Wisconsin Counties Associations nonpartisan research arm, Forward Analytics.

Lawmakers had been working on the package for several months. The bills came out in late May, just after Republicans on the Legislature's finance committee stripped provisions from Evers budget seeking to spend $270 million to increase lower-cost housing.

The state defines housing as being affordable when occupants spend no more than 30% of their gross income on living costs, including utilities, according to the Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority, or WHEDA.

One measure, AB 264, would create a no-interest loan program to fund infrastructure, such as plumbing and sidewalks, for lower-cost and senior housing developments. Under the draft measure, 75% of the loans under the new program would go to fund lower-cost housing infrastructure development and 25% would be for senior housing infrastructure.

Another proposal, AB 265, would provide no-interest loans to rehabilitate housing on the second or third floor of a building that has a main floor used for commercial space. The measure would require the housing to have been constructed at least 40 years earlier, be vacant and to constitute lower-cost housing.

That measure would allow $20,000 for each loan or 25% of the total rehabilitation cost, whichever is less.

AB 266 would limit the ability of residents to block new housing. Unlike other proposals in the package, no Democratic legislators sponsored this bill.

The measure would require local governments to approve housing-development proposals that are "consistent with local zoning, subdivision regulations and comprehensive plans," according to the Legislative Reference Bureau. Developers would be allowed to sue if a local government denies a proposal that abides by local rules.

Another measure, AB 267, would expand eligibility for WHEDA's housing rehabilitation loan fund. The bill would open the program up to remove asbestos or other internal environmental hazards; replace an interior wall, ceiling or flooring; or fix a home's plumbing. The proposal would allow WHEDA to make low- or no-interest loans.

Finally, AB 268 would create a loan program for developers converting vacant commercial buildings into lower-cost or senior housing. The loan program, administered by WHEDA, would require the developers to create at least 16 housing units. Under the bill, 25% of the money would be set aside to fund senior housing projects.

That proposal would allow for the no-interest loans to amount to 20% of each project cost or $1 million per project, whichever is less.
Chongqing's museum displays history of Palace Museum antiques

Xinhua) 08:28, June 14, 2023

A tourist visits a museum displaying the history of Palace Museum antiques moved there during World War II in southwest China's Chongqing, June 10, 2023. The museum is located in a former foreign firm, where nearly 4,000 cases of antiques were stored during wartime.

The items from the Palace Museum, also known as the Forbidden City, were moved to Chongqing in late 1930s when Japanese troops invaded Beijing.

During the Japanese bombing of Chongqing in the following years, the foreign firm placed a Swedish flag on the roof, which protected the building from being targeted.

After the war ended in 1945, the antiques were returned to Beijing. (Xinhua/Huang Wei)

Tourists visit a museum displaying the history of Palace Museum antiques moved there during World War II in southwest China's Chongqing, June 10, 2023. The museum is located in a former foreign firm, where nearly 4,000 cases of antiques were stored during wartime.

The items from the Palace Museum, also known as the Forbidden City, were moved to Chongqing in late 1930s when Japanese troops invaded Beijing.

During the Japanese bombing of Chongqing in the following years, the foreign firm placed a Swedish flag on the roof, which protected the building from being targeted.

After the war ended in 1945, the antiques were returned to Beijing. (Xinhua/Huang Wei)

Tourists visit an exhibition at a museum displaying the history of Palace Museum antiques moved there during World War II in southwest China's Chongqing, June 9, 2023. The museum is located in a former foreign firm, where nearly 4,000 cases of antiques were stored during wartime.

The items from the Palace Museum, also known as the Forbidden City, were moved to Chongqing in late 1930s when Japanese troops invaded Beijing.

During the Japanese bombing of Chongqing in the following years, the foreign firm placed a Swedish flag on the roof, which protected the building from being targeted.

After the war ended in 1945, the antiques were returned to Beijing. (Xinhua/Liu Chan)

Tourist select souvenir at a cafe of a museum displaying the history of Palace Museum antiques moved there during World War II in southwest China's Chongqing, June 10, 2023. The museum is located in a former foreign firm, where nearly 4,000 cases of antiques were stored during wartime.

The items from the Palace Museum, also known as the Forbidden City, were moved to Chongqing in late 1930s when Japanese troops invaded Beijing.

During the Japanese bombing of Chongqing in the following years, the foreign firm placed a Swedish flag on the roof, which protected the building from being targeted.

After the war ended in 1945, the antiques were returned to Beijing. (Xinhua/Huang Wei)

Tourists select souvenir at a cafe of a museum displaying the history of Palace Museum antiques moved there during World War II in southwest China's Chongqing, June 10, 2023. The museum is located in a former foreign firm, where nearly 4,000 cases of antiques were stored during wartime.

The items from the Palace Museum, also known as the Forbidden City, were moved to Chongqing in late 1930s when Japanese troops invaded Beijing.

During the Japanese bombing of Chongqing in the following years, the foreign firm placed a Swedish flag on the roof, which protected the building from being targeted.

After the war ended in 1945, the antiques were returned to Beijing. (Xinhua/Chu Jiayin)

Tourist rest at a cafe of a museum displaying the history of Palace Museum antiques moved there during World War II in southwest China's Chongqing, June 10, 2023. The museum is located in a former foreign firm, where nearly 4,000 cases of antiques were stored during wartime.

The items from the Palace Museum, also known as the Forbidden City, were moved to Chongqing in late 1930s when Japanese troops invaded Beijing.

During the Japanese bombing of Chongqing in the following years, the foreign firm placed a Swedish flag on the roof, which protected the building from being targeted.

After the war ended in 1945, the antiques were returned to Beijing. (Xinhua/Huang Wei)

A tourist visits a museum displaying the history of Palace Museum antiques moved there during World War II in southwest China's Chongqing, June 10, 2023. The museum is located in a former foreign firm, where nearly 4,000 cases of antiques were stored during wartime.

The items from the Palace Museum, also known as the Forbidden City, were moved to Chongqing in late 1930s when Japanese troops invaded Beijing.

During the Japanese bombing of Chongqing in the following years, the foreign firm placed a Swedish flag on the roof, which protected the building from being targeted.

After the war ended in 1945, the antiques were returned to Beijing. (Xinhua/Chu Jiayin)

Tourists visit a museum displaying the history of Palace Museum antiques moved there during World War II in southwest China's Chongqing, June 10, 2023. The museum is located in a former foreign firm, where nearly 4,000 cases of antiques were stored during wartime.

The items from the Palace Museum, also known as the Forbidden City, were moved to Chongqing in late 1930s when Japanese troops invaded Beijing.

During the Japanese bombing of Chongqing in the following years, the foreign firm placed a Swedish flag on the roof, which protected the building from being targeted.

After the war ended in 1945, the antiques were returned to Beijing. (Xinhua/Huang Wei)

People enjoy a concert in celebration of the second anniversary of the opening of a museum displaying the history of Palace Museum antiques moved there during World War II in southwest China's Chongqing, June 10, 2023. The museum is located in a former foreign firm, where nearly 4,000 cases of antiques were stored during wartime.

The items from the Palace Museum, also known as the Forbidden City, were moved to Chongqing in late 1930s when Japanese troops invaded Beijing.

During the Japanese bombing of Chongqing in the following years, the foreign firm placed a Swedish flag on the roof, which protected the building from being targeted.

After the war ended in 1945, the antiques were returned to Beijing. (Xinhua/Huang Wei)

This photo shows the scenery seen from a museum displaying the history of Palace Museum antiques moved there during World War II in southwest China's Chongqing, June 12, 2023. The museum is located in a former foreign firm, where nearly 4,000 cases of antiques were stored during wartime.

The items from the Palace Museum, also known as the Forbidden City, were moved to Chongqing in late 1930s when Japanese troops invaded Beijing.

During the Japanese bombing of Chongqing in the following years, the foreign firm placed a Swedish flag on the roof, which protected the building from being targeted.

After the war ended in 1945, the antiques were returned to Beijing. (Xinhua/Chu Jiayin)

This photo shows a museum displaying the history of Palace Museum antiques moved there during World War II in southwest China's Chongqing, June 10, 2023. The museum is located in a former foreign firm, where nearly 4,000 cases of antiques were stored during wartime.

The items from the Palace Museum, also known as the Forbidden City, were moved to Chongqing in late 1930s when Japanese troops invaded Beijing.

During the Japanese bombing of Chongqing in the following years, the foreign firm placed a Swedish flag on the roof, which protected the building from being targeted.

After the war ended in 1945, the antiques were returned to Beijing. (Xinhua/Huang Wei)

This photo shows an exterior view of a museum displaying the history of Palace Museum antiques moved there during World War II in southwest China's Chongqing, June 12, 2023. The museum is located in a former foreign firm, where nearly 4,000 cases of antiques were stored during wartime.

The items from the Palace Museum, also known as the Forbidden City, were moved to Chongqing in late 1930s when Japanese troops invaded Beijing.

During the Japanese bombing of Chongqing in the following years, the foreign firm placed a Swedish flag on the roof, which protected the building from being targeted.

After the war ended in 1945, the antiques were returned to Beijing. (Xinhua/Chu Jiayin)

This photo shows an exterior view of a museum displaying the history of Palace Museum antiques moved there during World War II in southwest China's Chongqing, June 10, 2023. The museum is located in a former foreign firm, where nearly 4,000 cases of antiques were stored during wartime.

The items from the Palace Museum, also known as the Forbidden City, were moved to Chongqing in late 1930s when Japanese troops invaded Beijing.

During the Japanese bombing of Chongqing in the following years, the foreign firm placed a Swedish flag on the roof, which protected the building from being targeted.

After the war ended in 1945, the antiques were returned to Beijing. (Xinhua/Huang Wei)

Tourists visit a museum displaying the history of Palace Museum antiques moved there during World War II in southwest China's Chongqing, June 10, 2023. The museum is located in a former foreign firm, where nearly 4,000 cases of antiques were stored during wartime.

The items from the Palace Museum, also known as the Forbidden City, were moved to Chongqing in late 1930s when Japanese troops invaded Beijing.

During the Japanese bombing of Chongqing in the following years, the foreign firm placed a Swedish flag on the roof, which protected the building from being targeted.

After the war ended in 1945, the antiques were returned to Beijing. (Xinhua/Huang Wei)

A tourist visits a museum displaying the history of Palace Museum antiques moved there during World War II in southwest China's Chongqing, June 10, 2023. The museum is located in a former foreign firm, where nearly 4,000 cases of antiques were stored during wartime.

The items from the Palace Museum, also known as the Forbidden City, were moved to Chongqing in late 1930s when Japanese troops invaded Beijing.

During the Japanese bombing of Chongqing in the following years, the foreign firm placed a Swedish flag on the roof, which protected the building from being targeted.

After the war ended in 1945, the antiques were returned to Beijing. (Xinhua/Chu Jiayin)

Tourists visit a museum displaying the history of Palace Museum antiques moved there during World War II in southwest China's Chongqing, June 10, 2023. The museum is located in a former foreign firm, where nearly 4,000 cases of antiques were stored during wartime.

The items from the Palace Museum, also known as the Forbidden City, were moved to Chongqing in late 1930s when Japanese troops invaded Beijing.

During the Japanese bombing of Chongqing in the following years, the foreign firm placed a Swedish flag on the roof, which protected the building from being targeted.

After the war ended in 1945, the antiques were returned to Beijing. (Xinhua/Huang Wei)

(Web editor: Zhong Wenxing, Liang Jun)
After hours of negotiations behind closed doors, Republicans on the Legislature's budget committee put off any vote Tuesday on whether to slash the University of Wisconsin System's budget by $32 million in an attempt to gut funding for diversity, equity and inclusion offices and programming.

The cuts, proposed by Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, R-Rochester, had been expected to be taken up by the GOP-controlled Joint Finance Committee as part of its deliberations over the 2023-25 state budget. But by the time committee convened late Tuesday night, it had taken System funding off the agenda.

If ultimately approved, the cuts would come as 10 of the System's universities are projected to fall a combined $60 million short of the money they say they need to continue current spending. They wouldn't force the System to specifically eliminate DEI, but would largely erase any benefit the System might see from increased in-state undergraduate tuition, which is expected to bring in an additional $38 million.

Jenny Toftness, chief of staff for Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, R-Rochester, confirmed the proposed cuts, first reported by the Associated Press, to the Wisconsin State Journal earlier Tuesday. Vos said he estimated the cost to cut all DEI funding would be $32 million. Vos had called on the System to cut all DEI positions last month, claiming the offices have contributed to racial divides.

System spokesperson Mark Pitsch declined to comment, saying the System would wait to see what the committee does.

The stated purpose of the Systems DEI offices is to improve the human condition for all, especially those of diverse racial and ethnic identities, nationalities, social and economic status, sexual orientations, gender identity/expressions, ages, physical and mental abilities, religious beliefs or political ideologies.

System President Jay Rothman had announced plans to ban the use of diversity questions in written job applications in May following Vos' comments about DEI offices. In the announcement, Rothman said the intent was to eliminate "political litmus tests" and was an effort to double down on diversity efforts by encouraging political diversity among faculty.

A new diversity chief, who is tasked with overseeing DEI across the System, started Monday.

The fight over DEI follows upheaval over free speech and diversity on System campuses. The Systems free speech survey, conducted last fall, showed the majority of students feel university officials should disinvite speakers thought to be offensive in at least some circumstances and that conservative students are more likely to hide their opinions in class than their peers of other political leanings. The survey also found that most students felt instructors worked to promote discussion in the classroom.

The System had requested a $435.9 million boost in the upcoming two-year state budget, including $28 million that would come from the states general fund in the first year and $77 million in the second year.

Gov. Tony Evers' budget proposal included an additional $305.9 million for the System, which officials warned would leave the door open to increases in tuition for in-state undergraduate students.

If approved, the proposed GOP cuts would eliminate the $8.25 million bump the state Legislature gave the System in the 2021 budget cycle and dig into a portion of the $58 million boost the System received in the 2019 budget.

Evers slammed the planned cuts in a statement, saying it was clear that Republicans "have no real or meaningful solutions" to solving the state's workforce issues.

"Make no mistake, Speaker Vos and Republicans short-sighted move to gut our UW System by tens of millions of dollars is about one thing  Republicans decadelong war on higher education institutions in our state."

Assembly Minority Leader Greta Neubauer, D-Racine, said in a statement that the state's universities cannot be expected to remain competitive with out-of-state schools without proper funding.

There is no logic to Robin Vos decision to cut $32 million from (the) UW System's funding," she said. "Targeting UW for DEI positions and initiatives is offensive and will have far-reaching and detrimental effects for our state."

Wisconsin's public technical colleges are slated to receive a proposed $9.4 million boost over the next two years, despite also having diversity goals such as facilitating discussions to dismantle systemic racism and evaluating whether its policies and practices promote equity.

Photos: UW-Madison's 170th commencement


Covenant School in Nashville, Tennessee

By Rob Morse, June 12, 2023

Republican Governor Bill Lee of Tennessee asked for a Red Flag law. Im not sure if the governor is working for the voters or surrendering to the press. There is no solid definition of what a Red Flag law really means and the Governors proposal seems to have shifted over time. In general, Red Flag laws allow the government to confiscate someones guns. Beyond that, the details vary. In this case it looks like the Governor is working harder to please the press than to make us safer.

The issue of red flag laws in Tennessee was driven into the spotlight when another murderer with mental health issues attacked the public. In this case, it was a woman who now dressed like a man who attacked a privately run Christian school in Nashville. Police responded quickly to shoot the murderer. The Covenant school was a gun free zone so there were no armed defenders at the scene when the attack started. The 28 year old murderer killed three 9-year-old children and three adults before police officers stopped her.

Our childrens safety at school is a concern to almost everyone. It is certainly a concern of a Governor who needs a soundbite answer to questions from the press. The concern that I have is that most of the public safety laws passed in haste are actually ineffective and harmful. A firearm purchase waiting period sounds good. It lets the governor say he did something to protect the children. Mandatory waiting periods simply dont stop mass murderers, though waiting periods often leave a domestic abuse victim disarmed.

Mass murderers are obsessed, but mass-murders are not acts of emotional impulse. Mass-murderers usually plan their attacks in detail over several years. The murderer in Nashville wrote a lengthy manifesto. She bought seven firearms over time. Passing a waiting period bill lets the governor say he did something and the press would never question if waiting periods actually protect our children. .....
1. Yes. Voters across the city filled the seat in the first place. Voters should decide again.

2. Yes. An election is much preferable to back-room decisions among council members.

3. No. The charter calls for the council to fill the vacancy by appointment. Follow the rules.

4. No. An election would be expensive, both for the city and for the potential candidates.

5. Unsure. An election seems more transparent, but its not the perfect answer.

Vote

View Results
KEARNEY  Lana Peister of Kearney has announced her intention to run for the Nebraska Legislature and claim the District 37 seat currently occupied by state Sen. John Lowe of Kearney.

Lowe is in his second four-year term and Peister is the first candidate to announce for that position.

"As a lifelong local Buffalo County resident, a devoted wife, a small business partner, and a 20-year registered nurse, Lana is passionate about helping people in her community," according to her announcement.

"Lana's commitment to service extends beyond her professional life," according to her press release. "She is active in her local church and volunteers with many local and regional organizations, including having served on the Kearney Area Animal Shelter Board.

"Her impressive educational background includes a bachelors degree in psychology from UNK, a bachelors in nursing from Creighton University, and a masters degree in Nursing Education from Methodist College, making her uniquely qualified to understand and address the needs of her community," Peister said in her press release.

She said she intends to be a "voice of conservative values" and she "stands for freedom from vaccine and mask mandates, protecting the unborn, and advocating for available housing and local business incentives."

Peister said she supports lower taxes, voter integrity and the Second Amendment addition, she is a proponent of lowering tax burdens, voter integrity, and the Second Amendment.

"I have seen and personally experienced unruly policies. I am putting myself on the front line to be a voice for those who cant or dont know how yet, he said. I am not a politician, I am a professional woman with a strong work ethic."

She said as a state senator she will "build upon the work of Senator Lowe by promoting economic growth for small businesses and maintaining a high standard of morals."
KEARNEY  Investigators are attempting to determine what caused a fire on Monday that severely damaged a home in north-central Kearney.

Early investigation points toward an electrical appliance or wiring malfunctioning.

Firefighters were dispatched to the fire at 11:02 a.m. and had it under control by 12:01 p.m. Nobody was in the house at 4210 First Ave., but there was significant fire damage in the attic and garage.

The owner of the house was reported to be Lori Utemark.

According to the KVFD report, firefighters observed heavy black smoke and flames coming from the garage and heavy smoke coming from the eves of all four sides of the home. KVFD crews cut a hole in the roof to allow heat to escape.

Utemark told firefighters she wasn't home when the fire started. The majority of the damage was confined to the garage and attic. However, the home had an extensive amount of smoke damage throughout the interior.

The Nebraska State Fire Marshal's Office was called to assist KVFD in determining the origin and cause of the fire. The KVFD report said the preliminary investigation indicates the fire was caused by a malfunction of an electrical appliance or an electrical component inside the garage.

The Red Cross was called to assist the homeowner. All KVFD units returned to service and no injuries were reported.
Kenosha police continue to investigate multiple shootings after three people turned up at separate local hospitals with gunshot wounds late Tuesday.

One of the three, a 19-year-old man, died before he could be flown to Milwaukee for treatment. Police said he was killed in a presumed homicide.

The incident was reported at around 10:10 p.m. with men facing gunshot wounds arriving at Aurora Medical Center.

One of the men was the 19-year-old who died and the other was a 21-year-old who was transported to a Milwaukee-area hospital with serious but non-life-threatening injuries.

Later, a second vehicle from the same incident arrived at Froedtert Pleasant Prairie Hospital with a 20-year-old man facing gunshot injuries.

The 20-year-olds injuries are not life-threatening, according to police.

Officers were on the scene late Tuesday in and around the 2200 block of 60th Street, according to police radio traffic at the time. Officers canvassing the area noted several people in the area heard multiple gunshots.

The parking lot of the Grace Lutheran Church was blocked by police tape Wednesday morning and afternoon, and multiple officers were canvassing the area. Along with officers interviewing residents, a K-9 unit was going house to house Wednesday morning.

Church officials said they were informed by police that there may have been a shooting in the church parking lot. No church or food pantry activities were scheduled for Wednesday, according to Interim Pastor Stephen Gifford.

In a media release Wednesday morning Public Information Officer Lt. Joseph Nosalik said there has been little to no cooperation regarding the Tuesday night incident among those involved. No one is in custody.

Kenosha, we cannot accept that disputes will be solved by gunfire and we must hold those accountable who are responsible for the shootings. Police need your help, Nosalik said. Our children, our families, deserve to live in this city without having to worry about when and where another shooting will be. We need to work together to be able to do this.

Anyone with information is asked to contact the Kenosha Police Departments Detective Bureau at 262-605-5203. Those who wish to remain anonymous can contact Kenosha Area Crime Stoppers at 262-656-7333.

Neighbors react

Area resident Robert Jorgensen said the sounds of gunfire woke him up Tuesday night.

The noise woke me up, Jorgensen said. I came out on the porch and the police department was everywhere.

Jorgensen said he saw about 20 officers responding to the area after the shootings. Jorgensen said some of people he believed had information regarding the incident didnt want to cooperate with the police department.

This is not a good neighborhood, Jorgensen said. I heard one say to the officer we do not want to talk with you.

Jorgensen said he then went back inside his apartment.

An area resident named Debra, who declined to give her last name, said she often uses the bus stop in front of Grace Lutheran.

Its sad and it doesnt make sense to be that close, Debra said. I go over there to catch bus. ... I dont get it. I just dont get it. Its sad.

One longtime area resident who wished to remain anonymous said she hopes there isnt a rise in gun violence this summer.

Where are these guns coming from? the woman said.

This was the second incident in less than a week involving shootings with multiple victims.

At 1:30 a.m. Sunday, police officers patrolling the area responded to gunfire with shooting victims in the 6800 block of 26th Avenue. One victim at the scene had a gunshot wound in an upper extremity. A second gunshot victim self transported to a local hospital. Both victims had injuries that were not life-threatening, according to police.
Faced with a tight labor market and labor shortages, Republican lawmakers in at least 10 states  including Wisconsinhave been pushing proposals to loosen child labor laws to allow children as young as 14 to work in more hazardous occupations, longer hours on school nights and expanded roles, including serving alcohol in bars and restaurants.

The measures have drawn condemnation from child welfare advocates and warnings from federal regulators that some of the proposals may run afoul of U.S. child labor laws under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act.

The consequences are potentially disastrous,  said Reid Maki, director of the Child Labor Coalition, You cant balance a perceived labor shortage on the backs of teen workers.

The child labor regulation rollbacks come even as the Department of Labor said early this year that child labor violations have increased by nearly 70 percent since 2018. That included the Labor Department fining one of the nations largest meatpacking sanitation contractors early this year $1.5 million after investigators found the company illegally employed more than 100 children at locations in eight states cleaning bone saws and other dangerous equipment, often using hazardous chemicals.

Those violations are at the far end of the teen labor issue.

Still, thats enough for us to want to throw out a big yellow caution flag for states considering these rollbacks in teen labor laws.

Closer to home, in Iowa, Gov. Kim Reynolds last month signed into law measures to allow 16- and 17-year-olds to serve alcohol in restaurants and to work in currently prohibited jobs as part of a work-based learning program.

Those jobs include tasks such as woodworking, operating power saws and demolition  which were previously banned. Faced with Democrat opposition, the law dropped a proposal that would have allowed minors to work in jobs involving explosives and poisonous dyes.

The new Iowa law permits teens as young as 14 to work up to six hours a day during the school year and to work longer in the evenings  up to 9 p.m. Thats up from four hours a day under the old law. During the summer months, the new law allows 14- and 15-year old employees to work until 11 p.m.

The U.S. Department of Labor issued a letter saying Iowas new on hours for 14- and 15-year-old employees violates federal standards which dictate that workers under age 16 can only work up to 3 hours per day during the school year.

That would indicate that, even under the old law, Iowa has been violating federal standards. Labor officials say more than a dozen states are out of compliance and have been for years.

In Wisconsin, similar to Iowa, Republican lawmakers are pushing a proposal to allow 14- and 15-year-olds to serve alcohol in bars and restaurants. To be clear, were not talking about 14-year-old bartenders here. Were talking about teenagers being allowed to carry food and alcoholic beverages from the bar to the table, just as adult servers do. Thats not something wed go to the mat to oppose.

But we need to take a larger perspective on teen labor. The fact is that, according to government data, nearly 34% of Americans ages 16- to 19 had jobs in April. That compares with 30% four years ago in the last pre-pandemic summer.

Part of that is likely due to rising wages which have lured workers back into the workforce as the threat of COVID has waned. According to government statistics, hourly pay has jumped 5% from last April to this year at retailers, amusement parks and restaurants  compared to a typical increase of 3%.

Before we begin trashing child labor laws, we should let the employment market sort itself out and see if rising wages  and perhaps incentives for seniors to continue employment and more opportunities for immigrant workers  will resolve our labor pinch without putting it on the backs of our teenagers.
Rep. Chris Smith is seen speaking during a special hearing of the Congressional Executive Commission on China on North Korean refugees and the imminent danger of forced repatriation from China in Washington, June 13. Yonhap



The Congressional Executive Commission on China held an emergency hearing in Washington on Tuesday to urge China to fulfill its obligations as a United Nations member and protect North Korean asylum-seekers.



Members of the commission and key witnesses argued that nearly 2,000 North Korean defectors in China may face forced repatriation once North Korea reopens its border with China, which has been shut during the COVID-19 pandemic.



"Close to 2,000 North Korean refugees are reportedly held in detention centers near the China-North Korea border," Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ), chair of the executive commission on China, said.



"Once North Korea lifts its COVID-19-imposed border closure policy, these refugees will likely face forced repatriation, despite the Chinese government's international obligation to protect asylum-seekers," he added in his opening remarks.



The special hearing comes amid speculation that North Korea may lift its border closure imposed by the pandemic.



Pyongyang announced earlier this month it has adopted a new law designed to beef up inspections of export and import goods, further fueling the speculation that it may soon reopen its border with China.



"There are credible rumors that the North Korea-China border will reopen soon because North Korea, which is facing more starvation reminiscent of the Arduous March, must increase exports to, and imports from, China," noted Suzanne Scholte, president of Defense Forum Foundation, a nonprofit human rights activist group based in Virginia.



"The terrifying fear for all of us human rights advocates is that China's first export to North Korea will be the nearly 2,000 North Korean children, women and men currently detained, at least half of whom are believed to have been attempting to reach South Korea," Scholte added, according to her statement released by the commission.





Robert King, former U.S. special representative for North Korean human rights issues, is seen speaking during a hearing before the Congressional Executive Commission on China in Washington, June 13. Yonhap
National Security Adviser Cho Tae-yong speaks to reporters at Gimpo International Airport in western Seoul, June 14. Yonhap



National Security Adviser Cho Tae-yong said Wednesday there should not be any actions that go against the development of South Korea-China ties, apparently referring to the controversial remarks of Beijing's top envoy to Seoul.



Cho made the remark to reporters when asked about Chinese Ambassador Xing Haiming's recent comments that those who "bet on China's loss" in its rivalry with the United States "will definitely regret it." The ambassador's remark was interpreted as a warning to Seoul against aligning itself with Washington.



"When it comes to South Korea-China relations, it is the Yoon Suk Yeol government's unchanging position that we should develop the relationship between South Korea and China in a healthy manner, placing the two core keywords of mutual respect and common interests at the center," Cho said at Gimpo International Airport in western Seoul before departing for Tokyo to attend trilateral talks with his U.S. and Japanese counterparts.



"In that regard, I believe there shouldn't be any actions that are unhelpful to and go against the healthy development of South Korea-China relations," he said.






Gwangju District Court / Korea Times file



A regional court has ruled a Cambodian activist who led pro-democracy movements for his home country in Korea should be granted refugee status, legal sources said Wednesday.



The district court in Gwangju, 270 kilometers south of Seoul, has sided with the Cambodian asylum-seeker and nullified the local immigration office's decision not to recognize his refugee status.



The court cited concerns that he could face political persecution if returned home.



He entered Korea with a nonprofessional work visa in 2015, and organized rallies and protests calling for political freedom in his country.



In 2019, he served as a leader of the youth wing of the Korean chapter of the Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP), which had been banned by the Cambodian government.



A Cambodian court issued summonses to 68 CNRP activists abroad, including him, on charges of treason and incitement in November 2020.



He applied for refugee status in 2020, arguing he could face potential oppression from his home country.



But the Gwangju immigration authorities rejected the request, citing insufficient grounds to support his claim. His subsequent appeal to the justice minister was also dismissed, and he filed an administrative lawsuit with the Gwangju court.



The court ruled in favor of the plaintiff, noting he played an active and leading political role, enough to draw attention from the Cambodian government, and that he has a well-founded fear of persecution due to political opinion if he returns home. (Yonhap)




By Nurul Sarifah



JAKARTA, Indonesia  From its sustainable image and futuristic design, to its collaboration with BTS in promoting its IONIQ cars, Hyundai is ahead of its peers when it comes to the younger generation's electric vehicle (EV) dreams.



Korean culture, especially K-pop, has a huge influence in my home country of Indonesia, which is also one of the reasons why Hyundai is so well-known. A survey organized by BTS fans  also known as ARMY, with more than 562,000 respondents  had Indonesia ranked in the top three countries for fans with almost 40,000 ARMY fans coming from the country.



However, earlier this year, we fans received disappointing news: Hyundai would be working with Indonesia's Adaro Minerals, an oil, gas and coal mining company, to supply "green aluminum" for their cars, including their EVs.



Hidden behind promises of "green aluminum" was the truth: The so-called green aluminum would be manufactured at a new 1.1 GW coal power plant in Kalimantan, an area of outstanding natural beauty in Indonesia.



BTS' members have spoken about their love of nature and their desire to care for the environment and it was incredibly disappointing when a company with a reputation for sustainability (and represented by our idols) chose to sign an agreement that will harm our Earth  so ARMY fans fought back.



Through the Hyundai Drop Coal campaign, a play on the song titled "Mic Drop" by BTS, we demand that Hyundai not use the dirty aluminum from Adaro so long as they are using coal, and instead, they should source their aluminum from sustainable alternatives like solar and wind.



We also launched a petition with our demands, which had more than 10,500 signatures from people in 68 countries, including Indonesia, South Korea, Japan, the U.S., the U.K., Canada, Australia, Thailand, Singapore and the Philippines.



Indonesian ARMY fans wrote an open letter to Hyundai Executive Chair Chung Euisun to express their disappointment, saying; "Hyundai could be the start of something truly green and great by withdrawing from Adaro's aluminum as long as it is powered by coal."



Indonesia is vulnerable to the climate crisis, being on the Ring of Fire and experiencing extreme weather events caused by climate change. It also suffers from serious air pollution, something South Korean people can relate to, which is why we were exceptionally disappointed by Hyundai's decision to go ahead with the agreement with Adaro.



Hyundai is at a crossroads. They have the opportunity to take the lead in making consistent sustainable choices, including re-thinking their agreement with Adaro as long as coal is involved.



There are other options; Indonesian state-run smelting company Inalum chose to use renewable energy over coal because it is significantly cheaper, and global retail giant Amazon set a record for the most renewable energy purchased in a single year (2022), with 133 projects in 11 countries, including Indonesia.



According to Market Forces, a climate action group that focuses on exposing institutions that finance environmentally destructive projects, Hyundai's agreement with Adaro to purchase 50,000 to 100,000 tons of aluminum a year from this smelter as stated in their agreement, will increase their Scope 3 emissions by 3 percent to 6 percent and harm its public goal of achieving carbon neutrality by 2045.



Hyundai holds great sway over ARMY and K-pop fans mostly coming from the younger generation, that's why we were happy to receive a reply from Hyundai - which arrived on the 10th anniversary of BTS' debut - acknowledging our concerns and opening the door for further conversations with us.



This is their time to show a strong position in fighting the climate crisis and the will of true sustainability by announcing that they will produce their car with clean energy only. Youths represent the next generation of consumers  Hyundai should consider its decisions to produce cars that do not do harm to the environment and our future.





Nurul Sarifah is the 23-year-old lead campaigner for Kpop4Planet, a fan-led climate action movement, from Jakarta, Indonesia.






This photo shows hundreds of German Protestants attending a church service that was generated almost entirely by artificial intelligence in Nuremberg, Germany, June 9. AP-Yonhap



The artificial intelligence chatbot asked the believers in the fully packed St. Paul's church in the Bavarian town of Fuerth to rise from the pews and praise the Lord.



The ChatGPT chatbot, personified by an avatar of a bearded Black man on a huge screen above the altar, then began preaching to the more than 300 people who had shown up on Friday morning for an experimental Lutheran church service almost entirely generated by AI.



"Dear friends, it is an honor for me to stand here and preach to you as the first artificial intelligence at this year's convention of Protestants in Germany," the avatar said with an expressionless face and monotonous voice.



The 40-minute service  including the sermon, prayers and music  was created by ChatGPT and Jonas Simmerlein, a theologian and philosopher from the University of Vienna.



"I conceived this service  but actually I rather accompanied it, because I would say about 98 percent comes from the machine," the 29-year-old scholar told The Associated Press.



The AI church service was one of hundreds of events at the convention of Protestants in the Bavarian towns of Nuremberg and the neighboring Fuerth, and it drew such immense interest that people formed a long queue outside the 19th-century, neo-Gothic building an hour before it began.



The convention itself  Deutscher Evangelischer Kirchentag in German  takes place every two years in the summer at a different place in Germany and draws tens of thousands of believers to pray, sing and discuss their faith. They also talk about current world affairs and look for solutions to key issues, which this year included global warming, the war in Ukraine  and artificial intelligence.



This year's gathering is taking place from Wednesday to Sunday under the motto "Now is the time." That slogan was one of the sentences Simmerlein fed ChatGPT when he asked the chatbot to develop the sermon.



"I told the artificial intelligence 'We are at the church congress, you are a preacher  what would a church service look like?'" Simmerlein said. He also asked for psalms to be included, as well as prayers and a blessing at the end.





This photo shows hundreds of German Protestants attending a church service that was generated almost entirely by artificial intelligence in Nuremberg, Germany, June 9. AP-Yonhap



"You end up with a pretty solid church service," Simmerlein said, sounding almost surprised by the success of his experiment.



Indeed, the believers in the church listened attentively as the artificial intelligence preached about leaving the past behind, focusing on the challenges of the present, overcoming fear of death, and never losing trust in Jesus Christ.



The entire service was "led" by four different avatars on the screen, two young women, and two young men.



At times, the AI-generated avatar inadvertently drew laughter as when it used platitudes and told the churchgoers with a deadpan expression that in order "to keep our faith, we must pray and go to church regularly."



Some people enthusiastically videotaped the event with their cell phones, while others looked on more critically and refused to speak along loudly during The Lord's Prayer.



Heiderose Schmidt, a 54-year-old who works in IT, said she was excited and curious when the service started but found it increasingly off-putting as it went along.



"There was no heart and no soul," she said. "The avatars showed no emotions at all, had no body language and were talking so fast and monotonously that it was very hard for me to concentrate on what they said."



"But maybe it is different for the younger generation who grew up with all of this," Schmidt added.



Marc Jansen, a 31-year-old Lutheran pastor from Troisdorf near the western German city of Cologne, brought a group of teenagers from his congregation to St. Paul. He was more impressed by the experiment.



"I had actually imagined it to be worse. But I was positively surprised how well it worked. Also the language of the AI worked well, even though it was still a bit bumpy at times," Jansen said.



What the young pastor missed, however, was any kind of emotion or spirituality, which he says is essential when he writes his own sermons.





Jonas Simmerlein, theologian and philosopher from the University of Vienna in Austria, gestures in front of a slogan reading 'The time is now' during an interview with Associated Press in Nuremberg, Germany, June 9. AP-Yonhap
Flying isn't always the most enjoyable part of a vacation and some of the biggest airports in America can challenge even the most patient traveler.

But not every airport has to cause frustration. There are a lot of smaller airports, even ones near big cities like Los Angeles or major vacation destinations such as Yellowstone National Park, that offer a charming experience.

On the latest episode of PennyWise, host Nat Cardona talks with Sally French of NerdWallet about her article: 9 of Americas Most Charming Airports

French's list highlights airports that offer unbeatable views, unique amenities and a great atmosphere. To qualify for this list, airports also had to have fewer than 1.5 million arriving passengers in 2022. By comparison, Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International had more than 37 million arriving passengers in 2022.

Before you book your next trip, give these airports your consideration.

About this program

Nat Cardona is host of PennyWise as well as Lee Enterprise's true-crime podcast Late Edition: Crime Beat Chronicles. Lee Enterprises produces many national, regional and sports podcasts. Learn more here.
Frances Sordahl Day, age 93 of Enterprise, AL, passed away Monday, June 5, 2023 at her home.

Memorial services will be held at 2:00 p.m., Friday, June 9, 2023 at Searcy Funeral Home and Crematory Chapel with Dr. Danny Wiggins officiating. Inurnment will follow in Meadowlawn Cemetery at a later date. The family will receive friends one hour prior to service time. In lieu of flowers memorials may be made to Disabled American Veterans Chapter 9, Enterprise Coffee County Chapter, P.O. Box 310972, Enterprise, AL 36331 or a charity of your choice.

Due to Frans Norwegian heritage, Fran and Bob sponsored countless Norwegian soldiers and their families while the soldier attended flight school at Fort Rucker. After 20 years of sponsorship they were awarded St. Olav medals, which were the highest medals awarded to civilians by the King of Norway. They also received recognition for their dedication, friendships and hospitality during this time.

She was preceded in death by her husband, Bob Day; a daughter, Michaela Jackson and a son, Chad Robert Day.

Survivors include her daughter, Candace Hargraves, Arab, AL; five grandchildren: Josh Elledge (Anna), Nashville, TN; Rebecca Hargraves (Brandon), Birmingham, AL; Ryan Peltier (Pete), Nashville, TN; Tiffany Watkins (Bryan), Enterprise, AL; Rob Hargraves (Amy), Birmingham, AL; seven great-grandchildren: Jackson, Emma Catherine, Madison, Lucas, Poe, Maggie and Max; several cousins, nieces and nephews; along with many lifelong friends and loved ones.

You may sign the register book or send condolences to the family at our website: www.searcyfuneralhome.com.
QUESTION: If heat rises, why is the top of a mountain colder than the bottom?

ANSWER: The sun beats down on the Earth. The air at the surface of the Earth is warmed. Warm air rises. Air pressure decreases as we go up in the atmosphere, which means the air is expanding. Air that is expanding as it rises is cooled. The temperature of the air decreases about 3.5 degrees Fahrenheit for every thousand feet of altitude. The term for this rate of air cooling is adiabatic cooling rate.

When air is pressurized, it gets hot. That is why a tire pump feels warm when you pump up a bicycle tire. Just the opposite occurs when air is expanding. If you let the air out of a tire, the valve stem feels cool or even cold. Same thing when you use a spray paint can. The nozzle feels cool.

Also, mountains have less water vapor overlying them. So mountains are cooled by radiation into space more than lowlands. The temperature on Mt. Everest, altitude slightly less than 30,000 feet, can be as low as minus-one hundred degrees Fahrenheit. But on a good day in May, a climber can expect around -15 degrees Fahrenheit.

Mountains can perform some amazing feats. In the United States, air rises up the western slopes of mountains, cools, and gives up its moisture. Cool air cant hold as much moisture as warm air. As the air reaches the top of the mountain, most all the moisture in the air has been wrung out. The western slopes of mountains have a lot of rainfall and lush vegetation. On the other hand, the eastern slopes, and beyond, are dry and the vegetation consists of sage and tumbleweed.

We witnessed such phenomena some time ago when we spent a week motoring through Oregon and Washington. The rich farmlands of the Willamette Valley are on the western side of the Cascade Range where rainfall is plentiful. The cities of Medford, Eugene, Corvallis, Salem, and Portland lie in this fertile plain that is 150 miles long and about 25 miles wide. The Cascade Range hosts Mt. Rainier, Mt. St. Helens, and Mt. Hood. But the countryside on the eastern side of the Cascade Mountains is arid, pretty much treeless.

The same is true of the Rocky Mountains. The western slopes receive plenty of rainfall and snowfall. Numerous ski slopes dot the western side of the Rockies. East of the Rockies is drier and often needs irrigation to grow crops. Early explorers termed this area the Great American Desert. The discovery of minerals and the Ogallala Aquifer transformed the Great American Desert into the Great Plains, among Americas most profitable areas.

Send comments and questions to: lscheckel@charter.net.
June Dairy Month is a special time in Wisconsin. As summer starts, we celebrate the many hardworking Wisconsin farmers and processors who make our state a leading source for quality dairy products across the U.S. and worldwide.

Wisconsins dairy industry gives us much to be proud of and to be grateful for, both during June Dairy Month and all year long. Rooted in a history older than the state itself, dairy has played a pivotal role in Wisconsins past and continues to remain vital today, contributing to both our economy and to our way of life, from Bayfield down to Beloit and from Hudson to Baileys Harbor. The industry will remain integral to our future, thanks to farmers and processors across the state, and consumers across the world.

There are thousands of dairy farms in Wisconsin which account for nearly a quarter of all dairy farms in the U.S. It is the dedicated individuals who work on these farms, haul milk, process dairy, and sell the finished products, who contribute to our states $45.6 billion annual dairy economy. They have also helped to make Wisconsin the number one state in the nation in total cheese production, with 25 percent of all cheese in the U.S. being made right here in the state.

We can also be proud that Wisconsins dairy products are well-known and appreciated far beyond our own borders. Later this month, DATCP staff and I will travel to the United Kingdom for a weeklong agricultural trade mission. During that time, we will facilitate buyer meetings, make store visits, attend marketing briefings, and meet with government officials to market and promote Wisconsin agricultural products to various industry and economic development organizations in the UK. This work is supported by the Wisconsin Initiative for Agricultural Exports, and I am hopeful that this effort will increase connections with buyers across the Atlantic Ocean, helping to create additional business opportunities for Wisconsins agricultural producers and processors.

This June, I encourage all of you to support our states dairy industry by choosing Wisconsin-made milk, butter, yogurt, ice cream, and cheese. You can also attend one of the many June Dairy Breakfasts happening around Americas Dairyland throughout the month. These events allow attendees to visit and learn about local farms while enjoying a delicious breakfast made with fresh Wisconsin dairy. To find a farm hosting one of these events near you, visit https://www.wisconsindairy.org/national-dairy-month/Dairy-Breakfasts.

To learn more about how DATCP works to serve and support Wisconsins thriving dairy industry year-round, visit datcp.wi.gov. As I raise a glass of ice-cold milk, I wish everyone across Wisconsin a happy June Dairy Month!
When we talk about African-American history in Vernon County, we usually focus on Cheyenne Valley, a community founded in the 1850s in the Town of Forest. Several free Black and multiracial families settled there before the Civil War, and freed slaves joined the community after the war. One of those families, the Craft family, lived in Cheyenne Valley for many years but then moved to Viroqua in the late 1880s.

Two summers ago, the Vernon County Historical Society hosted a guided walk at the Viroqua Cemetery featuring several local historical figures, including Jefferson Craft. As we prepared for the event, we discovered that while Jefferson was indeed buried there, his plot didnt have a gravestone.

Last summer, a number of local people made donations to help erect a small stone over the graves of Jefferson, his wife Lottie, and their young daughter Delia. The stone went up last fall, and now we are ready to dedicate it. A free public event will be held on Monday, June 19, at 6 p.m. at the Viroqua Cemetery, located at 429 Hickory St. Bring a lawn chair or something else to sit on if youd rather not stand the whole time.

This story has a Civil War connection, and local American Legion members will provide an honor guard ceremony during the dedication event. Jefferson Craft is listed on the 1890 census, Special Schedule for veterans, as having served in the Civil War as a Private in Company G of the 2nd Wisconsin Cavalry, with an enlistment date of 11 July 1862 and a discharge date of 25 October 1865. This information is found nowhere else that weve seen  hes not on any rosters or in any other records.

Jefferson was Black, and probably living in the south and enslaved at the start of the war, so we dont know how he ended up in a Wisconsin unit before the Emancipation Proclamation. Possibly he was employed by the unit, serving as a horse handler or a drayman  something other than a soldier, at least to begin with. Perhaps he joined the unit when it passed through his home area in the south, wherever he was living.

The dedication will also include the story of the Craft family, as told by local actor Dodie Whitaker portraying Lottie Craft. The Christian faith was important to the family, and the Rev. Margaret Hoversten will bless their new gravestone. Refreshments will be served afterward in the gazebo. Rain date is Monday, June 26.
Rob Abraham remembers when video cameras were first introduced to La Crosse law enforcement three decades ago. He said it didnt take long for police officers to embrace the technology.

They quickly realized that the camera was their best partner, said Abraham, who retired from the La Crosse Police Department as deputy chief in 2021.

Bodycams attached to police officers uniforms and dashcams attached to patrol cars are becoming the norm in area police departments, particularly larger ones that can fit them into their budgets. The cameras are generally supported by law enforcement officers, even as departments face challenges logging and archiving the footage.

The first police cams in La Crosse date to the early 1990s, when cameras were affixed to La Crosse Police Department squad cars. Abraham said there was some early hesitation from officers who had never been recorded by a video camera.

We saw that kind of worry  someones looking over my shoulder. There was obviously some pushback on that, Abraham said.

He also recalled technological challenges. The dashcams were introduced before the widespread use of digital recording.

This was back in the days of VHS tapes, Abraham said. You were basically running a VHS unit in a vehicle, and there were already electronic issues  tapes getting caught and things of that nature.

Despite the glitches, police soon welcomed the chance to record their encounters with the public.

It got to the point where officers wouldnt want to take out a squad car if the camera was down, he said. Those salty veterans who said they didnt want a camera now wouldnt even go out in a vehicle unless that camera was working.

Even as technology improved, the dashcams had their limits. They could only record police activity within camera range of the squad car, and much of the audio and video collected from a fixed location was of marginal quality. Bodycams, which were introduced to La Crosse police in 2018, allow almost every police contact to be recorded.

La Crosse Police Chief Shawn Kudron said the latest bodycam technology has proved to be reliable.

The body-worn cameras are very durable, and we have had very few issues, Kudron said. Officers very seldom forget to turn on their cameras as it becomes second nature to them when they are responding to a call for service.

Onalaska Police Chief Charles Ashbeck agrees. His department began using bodycams in 2021, and he said its rare when a police officers contact with the public isnt recorded. He said bodycams in Onalaska are activated by a squad cars emergency lights and that officers normally remember to turn them on if theyre away from their squad car.

La Crosse County Sheriff John Siegel said his officers have worn bodycams for less than a year.

We love having (bodycams), Siegel said. Weve had officers asking for them for a long time.

He said bodycams are attached to an officers uniform with a magnetic clip and generally stay secure even during a physical encounter with a suspect or while walking through wooded terrain.

Ashbeck said the only downside from bodycams is editing and storing the footage. Video is considered an open record under Wisconsins Open Records Law, and law enforcement agencies are required to keep bodycam footage for at least 120 days. It can be longer if an investigation is ongoing.

Siegel said its his goal to keep sheriffs office video for two years.

I know that the statute is 120 days, but I would like to be able to go back farther than that, Siegel said.

The process is complicated by federal privacy laws that require redactions for anything that reveals personal information. For example, video must be redacted if footage reveals information on a persons drivers license.

We can spend up to three hours on one video, Ashbeck said.

Ashbeck said his department has hired a person who works 23 hours a week solely on video redaction. He said the position could easily be 40 hours.

Police departments also must field open records requests for footage. Ashbeck said his department receives 800 requests per year.

Few agencies remain camera shy Data gathered from October 2022 to May 2023 shows of the 142 agencies that answered questions on camera availability or use, 93 said they had both body and dashboard cameras for at least one of their members and vehicles.

Data gathered from October 2022 to May 2023 shows of the 142 agencies that answered questions on camera availability or use, 93 said they had both body and dashboard cameras for at least one of their members and vehicles.

Siegel said it has become customary for citizens to accompany requests for a police report with a request for the corresponding video. Neither Onalaska nor the sheriffs office charge a fee to provide the video unless its a request for multiple incidents.

Kudron said video isnt the only method to keep police officers accountable. In 2020, the city added a section to its website where citizens can submit complaints, compliments and other feedback to the department.

He said the department also has a fair and impartial policing program that reviews how implicit biases impact policing and how to reduce those biases.

The La Crosse Police Department takes the concerns of citizens and the sharing of approval very seriously, Kudron said.

Ashbeck said bodycams can go a long way toward addressing citizen concerns about police behavior.

In my experience, the vast majority of officers are trying to do the right thing, he said. That doesnt mean there arent some bad ones out there, but most are trying to do the right thing and know these cameras are going to back them up. They hold police officers accountable, and they hold our citizens accountable.

IN PHOTOS: La Crosse County Law Enforcement Memorial Ceremony La Crosse County Law Enforcement Memorial Ceremony La Crosse County Law Enforcement Memorial Ceremony La Crosse County Law Enforcement Memorial Ceremony La Crosse County Law Enforcement Memorial Ceremony La Crosse County Law Enforcement Memorial Ceremony La Crosse County Law Enforcement Memorial Ceremony La Crosse County Law Enforcement Memorial Ceremony La Crosse County Law Enforcement Memorial Ceremony
Wisconsin Republican leaders and conservative political activists will meet Friday through Sunday at the La Crosse Center for the partys annual state convention, a year ahead of the 2024 U.S. Senate and presidential elections.

U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson will deliver a speech Saturday, and and Third Congressional District Rep. Derrick Van Orden will appear as part of a congressional panel.

Assembly Speaker Robin Vos and Senate Majority Leader Robin LaMahieu will speak at Saturdays state legislative leaders panel.

A full list of speakers and times for the 2023 Republican Party of Wisconsin Red to the Roots State Convention has not been released.

Video messaging by Republican presidential candidates will be shown and the Republican National Committee will provide an update on the 2024 Republican National Convention in Milwaukee.

During non-election years, the state Republican Party does not endorse candidates but delegates will debate the rules and adopt resolutions for next years endorsement process.

No candidate has officially announced a bid to challenge Democratic incumbent Tammy Baldwin for her U.S. Senate seat.

Fridays events focus on training Republican activists and county leaders. The event concludes Sunday with a prayer breakfast.
Guided cave tours at Mississippi Valley Conservancys Kickapoo Caverns nature preserve will be offered to share information about the beneficial role of bats and the importance of protecting their native habitats. Kickapoo Caverns, an 83-acre nature preserve near Wauzeka, includes one of Wisconsins longest cavern systems that serves as hibernation site for several bat species.

Due to declining bat populations in North America in recent years, scientists have conducted research and helped to create public awareness of bats, their beneficial role in ecosystems around the world, and what can be done to protect them, according to a press release from the group. Of particular concern is white-nose syndrome, a debilitating fungal infection that disrupts the hibernation of bats. Cave tour participants will have the opportunity to learn more about bats and what can be done to protect them.

If you go WHAT: Bat Ecology Cave Tours WHEN: Saturday, July 22; 4 small group tours from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. WHERE: Kickapoo Caverns Nature Preserve, 54850 Rhein Hollow Road, Wauzeka COST: Free REGISTER:: www.mississippivalleyconservancy.org/events INFO: Contact Sarah Bratnober at sarah@mississippivalleyconservancy.org or 608-784-3606 ext. 8.

Many supporters have made it possible for the conservancy to protect the property and to guide visitors through the its limestone cave. Home to four bat species, the cave includes underground pools, a 40-foot-high cathedral-like chamber, and stalactites. As winter home to several threatened bat species, the cave is available for tours only during a short period each summer when the bats are away from the cave. A recent upgrade to the property was conversion of the small building at the entrance of the cave to house an interpretive display from which visitors can learn more about the cave and its winged inhabitants. The display was created with support from the Natural Resources Foundation of Wisconsin, the Crawford County Community Fund, and the DNRs Wisconsin Bat Program.

For protection of the cave and the safety of attendees, the tours will be limited in size and duration. Registration is now offered on a first-come, first-served basis on the Conservancy website. The tours are part of the Conservancys 2023 Linked to the Land series of outdoor events.

Getting to the cave requires a 20-30 minute-long uphill hike that can be challenging on a hot summer day. Agility and stamina are also required for the cave tours that involve steep stairways and some passages with low overhead. The minimum age for cave tours is 7 years old.
HOUSTON, Minn.  Alice the Great Horned Owl may be 26 years old and retired, but her education legacy and stardom still continue.

New York Times bestselling author Jennifer Ackerman timed the research for her new book, What an Owl Knows perfectly. COVID was in full swing and the International Owl Center in Houston was shut down and just starting its virtual owl expert speaker series, a winter series of Zoom presentations by owl researchers from around the globe. The series included a presentation on Great Horned Owl vocalizations by International Owl Center executive director Karla Bloem.

Ackerman went on to interview many of the presenters, including Bloem, and traveled to Brazil, Italy, Serbia, Australia and elsewhere to learn first-hand, in the field, from a variety of researchers. She also conducted innumerable interviews with other researchers. The result is a fresh and engaging look at owls: all the latest research plus correcting overgeneralizations that have been around for decades.

Alice the Great Horned Owl and the research Bloem has conducted on the species leads the chapter on owl vocalizations. The chapter also contains a long look at Eurasian Eagle Owl vocal research by Marjon Savelsberg in The Netherlands. Marjon is one of the Owl Centers YouTube chat room moderators who has gone on to conduct her own research using her mobility scooter and automated recording units.

You can purchase the book at the International Owl Center (the first 100 copies have autographed bookplates) or in the Owl Centers online store, which can be found at www.InternationalOwlCenter.org. By purchasing the book from the Owl Center, proceeds directly support the centers owl education and research.
Follow along for live updates as former President Donald Trump makes a public statement after his court appearance on charges accusing him of illegally hoarding classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida. The indictment marks the first time in U.S. history that a former president faces criminal charges by the federal government he once oversaw.
Democratic Gov. Tony Evers said Wednesday he would veto any state budget that includes a proposed $32 million, Republican-backed state funding cut aimed at eliminating University of Wisconsin System diversity, equity and inclusion efforts.

As first reported by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Evers reportedly told a group of reporters during a tour of a Monroe-area cheese manufacturer that any attempt to cut the Systems budget would be a ridiculous effort.

To cut, at this point in time, the University of Wisconsin System when we have a $7 billion surplus is irrational, Evers reportedly said during the tour. Im hopeful that will change before the budget is passed.

Evers comments came after Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, R-Rochester, said the Legislatures GOP-controlled budget committee would cut funding for the UW Systems diversity programs.

Speaking to reporters late Wednesday, Vos appeared skeptical of Evers veto threat.

Sometimes you can believe in something very fervently, but at the end of the day, you weigh the totality of the bill and you say, on balance, its much better ... to have it passed than not, he said.

If Evers does veto the document, the Legislature wouldnt pass a new budget until around October and Evers would have to explain to voters why new money wasnt being spent, Vos said.

If Evers vetoes the budget in its entirety, it would be up to the Legislature to send the governor another budget for him to sign. Republicans are just short of a supermajority in the Assembly, meaning the Legislature cannot override Evers vetoes.

Evers veto threat comes just a few weeks before the states 2023-25 spending plan is slated to take effect. If Evers doesnt sign a budget by July 1, the state would continue operating using spending levels set in the previous two-year budget.

Evers spokesperson Britt Cudaback didnt immediately confirm Evers reported veto threat. System spokesperson Mark Pitsch said in a statement that officials remain hopeful that the state will be an active partner in helping the UW System develop the talent Wisconsins workforce is counting on.

Vos proposed cutting $32 million from the Systems budget Tuesday, an amount he estimated was what the System spends on DEI employees and programming over the two-year budget cycle. Vos called on the System to cut all DEI positions last month, claiming the offices have contributed to racial divides.

Diversity offices

Asked by a group of reporters why he called for cutting the $32 million for diversity offices and positions, Vos early Wednesday said, The goal is really fairly simple. Its to say that if youre at the UW System, on any one of the campuses, you should be able to be taught and you should be able to learn. It should not be indoctrination, where youre only allowed to have one point of view.

And they use taxpayer dollars, which, as they tell me, we dont have enough people to be in engineering. We dont have enough folks who are teaching an awful lot of careers, Vos continued. But boy are they able to find millions of dollars to put money into a curriculum and to an ideology, because thats really what DEI is. For people on the left, it has become their new religion.

The Legislatures GOP-controlled budget committee punted on taking action on the UW System budget on Tuesday after Vos said the committee would strip the DEI funding from the Systems budget. Committee co-chair Rep. Mark Born, R-Beaver Dam, didnt tell reporters Wednesday when exactly the Joint Finance Committee will take up UW System funding.

If ultimately approved, the cuts would come as 10 of the Systems universities are projected to fall a combined $60 million short of the money they say they need to continue current spending. The cuts wouldnt force the System to specifically eliminate DEI but would largely erase any benefit the System might see from increased in-state undergraduate tuition, which is expected to bring in an additional $38 million.

Speech survey

The fight over DEI follows upheaval over free speech and diversity on System campuses.

The Systems free speech survey, conducted last fall, showed the majority of students believe university officials should disinvite speakers thought to be offensive in at least some circumstances and that conservative students are more likely to hide their opinions in class than their peers of other political leanings. The survey also found that most students think instructors worked to promote discussion in the classroom.

Wisconsins public technical colleges are slated to receive a proposed $9.4 million boost over the next two years, despite also having diversity goals such as facilitating discussions to dismantle systemic racism and evaluating whether its policies and practices promote equity.
Robin Fritz, a 5-foot-1-inch woman in her early 60s, was terrified when she was tackled by a sheriffs deputy in Sullivan County, Tennessee, she said in a civil rights lawsuit filed last year.

The encounter came after she confronted a teenage neighbor who she said was driving recklessly. In the suit, Fritz said she asked deputies called to the scene to wear a mask or observe social distancing during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, at which point one deputy showed a hostile demeanor, pinned her to the ground and arrested her.

As the multimillion-dollar suit moves forward, her attorney, James W. Friauf, lamented that there apparently is no video of the incident. The sheriffs office does not use body cameras, and Friauf said he was unaware of any bystander footage.

Video would make a huge difference, Friauf told Lee Enterprises and Type Investigations. We would hope it would conclusively show her being assaulted and basically substantiate all the allegations in the complaint having to do with the law enforcement officials. But unfortunately, there are no cameras.

That makes it basically a case of he said, she said, according to Friauf.

When asked about the lawsuit, Sullivan County Sheriff's Office Capt. Andy Seabolt said the agency could not comment regarding pending litigation, and County Attorney Dan Street declined to answer questions about the case.

In the three years since the murder of George Floyd was caught on a bystanders phone camera, law enforcement agencies large and small across the nation have invested in body-worn cameras, also called BWCs, and dashboard cameras for patrol vehicles.

But even as cameras have proved crucial to documenting cases of police brutality, some agencies have yet to fully utilize them.

Most law enforcement agencies surveyed have cameras

As part of a seven-month investigation, Lee Enterprises and Type Investigations reached out to more than 170 law enforcement agencies across much of the United States seeking information on topics including diversity, citizen complaints and the use of cameras.

Of the 142 agencies that answered questions on camera availability or use, 93 said they had both body and dashboard cameras for at least one of their members and vehicles.

Twenty-four agencies said they had bodycams but no dashcams. Sixteen said they had only dashcams.

Only seven said they had neither bodycams nor dashcams.

Few agencies remain camera shy Data gathered from October 2022 to May 2023 shows of the 142 agencies that answered questions on camera availability or use, 93 said they had both body and dashboard cameras for at least one of their members and vehicles.

Data gathered from October 2022 to May 2023 shows of the 142 agencies that answered questions on camera availability or use, 93 said they had both body and dashboard cameras for at least one of their members and vehicles.

The largest of those is the 249-member Sullivan County Sheriffs Office, whose deputies were involved in the encounter with Fritz. Seabolt, the sheriffs office captain, wrote in an email that the offices lack of cameras has been a budget issue; however, in-car video systems for patrol deputies are currently in the procurement process.

Even agencies that have cameras may not require their use. The Appomattox County Sheriff's Office in Virginia, for instance, said it had 12 body cameras but that no sworn members were required to wear them on duty. Officials with the sheriff's office could not be reached for comment.

The majority of agencies that responded to questions about cameras (about 77 percent) mandated or planned to mandate bodycams for at least some officers in the field. Some said they required use by all officers on patrol, for instance. Others said they required use for all sworn personnel or all uniformed officers.

Let's just say this, said Brandt Parsley, public information officer for the Bloomington Police Department in Illinois, there is no gray area in our policies. It's a 'shall.' You shall have your body camera activated.

He added, Every possible police scenario that the Bloomington Police Department gets sent to, our bodycam is running.

Dashcams, which some agencies used as early as the 1960s for traffic enforcement but became more common in the 1980s, were also used widely among the respondents, with more than half of the agencies that gave information on dashcam usage indicating that all or nearly all patrol vehicles had cameras.

Camera use on the rise in US

The agencies that responded to the Lee survey had a higher level of camera usage than the Department of Justice found using a sample survey in 2016. Then, nearly half of general-purpose law enforcement agencies in the U.S. had some body-worn cameras. Among those agencies, 60 percent of local police departments and 49 percent of sheriff's offices had fully deployed their body cameras to all intended personnel.

Mary Fan, author of the book "Camera Power: Proof, Policing, Privacy, and Audiovisual Big Data said increased camera usage stems at least in part from protests that followed the 2014 slaying of Michael Brown, an unarmed Black teen, in Ferguson, Missouri, a largely Black suburb of St. Louis. Brown was shot and killed by Darren Wilson, a white then-police officer.

Before 2015, it would have been astounding to have such widespread coverage by police-worn body cameras, she said of the adoption levels seen in the Lee data. But since 2015, after the protests and pain of Ferguson, where there was a huge dispute about what really happened and no (police) cameras to record  an unlikely coalition of folks that are usually not united, so civil rights and civil liberties organizations joining with police chiefs came together, she said.

Still, state mandates for cameras were a few years off. Before May 2020, the month George Floyd was murdered, South Carolina was the only state to require broad adoption of body-worn cameras, according to a database on body-worn cameras on the National Conference of State Legislatures website.

By May 2021, six states had joined South Carolina in mandating the statewide use of body-worn cameras by law enforcement personnel: Colorado, Connecticut, Illinois, Maryland, New Jersey and New Mexico.

Law enforcement, civil rights and civil liberties organizations have called for more body cameras in part to improve safety and create a record that wouldnt rely on recollections from citizens or police.

Camera footage is used in settings including court cases, internal investigations and officer and deputy training. Dozens of respondents to the Lee survey said they follow state open records laws or require a Freedom of Information Act request or state equivalent to release footage. A few require a court order or leave release up to the agency head.

Law enforcement leaders and police reform advocates alike say camera use by police can increase transparency.

What were known for is kind of this eye of truth, said Regina Holloway, vice president of global strategic community impact for Axon, maker of the Taser and a popular line of body cameras.

We want to know  we meaning the community  wants to know what is happening during day-to-day interactions between our community and police, she said.

Have cameras increased public trust in police?

As an accountability tool, the results of increased camera use have been mixed, said David Schultz, a professor of political science at Hamline University in St. Paul, Minnesota, and a visiting professor of law at the University of Minnesota.

If we're talking about ultimately, How has it impacted police behavior? Has it affected public trust?  It really is a mixed bag at this point, he said.

I guess, for people who were hoping that these bodycams would bring about some significant change in police behavior in the country, that should come as a disappointment.

In a 2019 report in Criminology & Public Policy, researchers looked at 70 studies on the impact of cameras on officer behavior, officer perceptions, citizen behavior, citizen perceptions, police investigations and police organizations.

Although officers and citizens are generally supportive of BWC use, BWCs have not had statistically significant or consistent effects on most measures of officer and citizen behavior or citizens views of police, the report read.

Yet other studies suggest that body cameras are making a difference. Jessica Huff is an assistant professor in the School of Criminology and Criminal Justice and co-director of the Violence Intervention and Policing Research Lab at the University of Nebraska at Omaha.

As a doctoral student at Arizona State University, she wanted to find out if body-worn cameras reduced disparities in police behavior in communities of color. Her research was published in a May 2022 report in Criminology & Public Policy.

After looking at more than 900,000 policecivilian interactions in Phoenix from November 2015 through November 2018, she found that when body cameras were activated in Black neighborhoods, the odds of arrest decreased by nearly 40 percent. However, body cameras did not have the same moderating influence on arrest levels in Hispanic neighborhoods, her research showed.

Huff said she was not aware of research that shows definitively, when citizen complaints are filed, which side benefits most from having the encounter recorded on tape.

In Sullivan County  which had a 2020 population of 158,163 and was about 93 percent white  nine complaints of excessive force were filed against members of the sheriffs office between 2017 and 2022, according to data submitted by the sheriffs office to Lee Enterprises.

Capt. Seabolt of the Sullivan County Sheriff's Office wrote that he was unsure about whether camera footage would have been helpful or not.

However, he wrote, an investigation was conducted on each allegation and the determination was made at the conclusion of the investigation.

One complaint the agency determined to be "founded" resulted in prosecution, according to the survey data submitted by the sheriffs office.

Bodycams cost too much, some say

Depending on the size of the agency, launching a body camera program can mean an investment of tens of thousands of dollars for the equipment, training and data storage.

In Hobart, Indiana, which had a 2020 population of just under 30,000, the system price tag has kept Hobart Police Chief Garrett Ciszewski from signing the department up.

"Bodycams are a great tool," Ciszewski said. "Unfortunately, they're just cost prohibitive."

Ciszewski said the first quote the Hobart Police Department received for 50 body cameras was close to $500,000. When the department looked into available government grants, he said, they would only cover about 20 percent of the cost. He listed the cost of video storage as another financial barrier.

Several of the agencies Lee surveyed that have neither type of camera  including the Anna Police Department in Illinois, Augusta County Sheriff's Office in Virginia and Bonne Terre Police Department in Missouri  also cited costs or departmental priorities.

If I have the choice between putting a bullet-resistant vest on an officer or a camera, Im going to go with the vest every time, Bonne Terre Police Chief Douglas Calvert said. Its a matter of needs and wants. I have to have fuel, personnel and equipment. A camera would be a nice want; its just not a need right now.

East Chicago, Indiana, is in the process of purchasing body cameras this year, and theres a high probability the Farmington Police Department in Missouri will get body cameras after years of having only in-car dashcams, officials with those departments said.

St. Francois County Sheriff's Department in Missouri, which reported having neither type of camera, could not be reached for comment.

Of the agencies in the Lee survey that offered information on how they funded their cameras, grants, local funds and asset forfeiture programs were among the top sources.

Recognizing that cost could be a barrier, in May 2015, then-President Barack Obama announced a plan to help agencies buy 50,000 body-worn cameras within three years. That September, the Justice Department said it had awarded grants totaling more than $23.2 million to 73 local and tribal agencies in 32 states to expand the use of body-worn cameras and explore their impact.

A DOJ list of agencies that received grants includes the Carlisle, Pennsylvania, Police Department ($43,500); the Omaha, Nebraska, Police Department ($67,500); and the Waynesboro, Virginia, Police Department ($36,445).

At least three of the agencies that submitted data for the Lee survey used money from the COVID-inspired American Rescue Plan Act. That includes the 1,102-member Indiana State Police; the 145-member Niagara Falls Police Department in New York; and the 68-member Portage Police Department in Indiana.

In other cases, the companies that make the cameras helped fund their adoption. The 118-member Danville Police Department in Virginia began testing body camera technology as early as 2011, when it participated in a pilot program with Axon, then known as Taser International. The department reported having 147 body cameras in the survey.

Some police unions have sought to block camera use

Beyond the price tag, the pace of body camera adoption appears to have been slowed in some cases by reluctance from within law enforcement.

In a number of jurisdictions, police unions resisted body cameras or wanted really strong limits on when they had to record, what the recordings would be used for, etc., Fan said.

For example, in 2020, the Washington, D.C., police union asked a court to block the mandatory release of body camera footage and names of police officers involved in shootings. A D.C. judge denied the request.

And some officers have expressed concerns that body cameras could be used to invade their personal privacy or that recordings would be used by supervisors or others who wanted to unfairly analyze officer conduct, according to a commentary on Body Worn Camera, a website that receives funds through a grant from the Justice Department.

Conversely, Patty Bates-Ballard, who consults with police agencies and other organizations on diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives, noted that officers looking to hide inappropriate behavior can obscure the camera lens while audio continues to pick up shouted commands, for example, giving the impression someone is resisting when they are not.

I think officers are figuring out ways to get around it, she said. So in my view, we need bodycams, but we also need people to be willing to stand in and video from a distance. We need pole-mounted cameras.

Schultz, the Minnesota political science professor, says hes encouraged by the role of civilian and body camera footage today, compared to its role three decades ago when a bystander filmed the Los Angeles police beating of Black motorist Rodney King. That footage did not persuade a suburban Los Angeles jury to find the officers guilty of wrongdoing.

There's more skepticism in our population now than there was 30 years ago, and more of a demand to hold police officers accountable, he said, noting that the change has followed what seems like a "constant barrage of stories," some with accompanying footage, showing inappropriate behavior on the part of some law enforcement officers.

"A lot of people have become I think a little bit incredulous regarding what the police are doing, Schultz said. We clearly seem to be having a shift in public opinion and attitudes, and maybe there's some way that it's fit in, all these videos have fit in, in terms of shifting broader public opinion about being more skeptical of police officers."

The fact that we're holding police, what appears to be, a little bit more accountable now than with Rodney King is a good thing.

Lee Enterprises reporters Alison Burdo, Lauren Cross, Lizzie Kaboski and Analisa Trofimuk contributed to this report. Research by Emma Davis of Type Investigations. Karen Robinson-Jacobs is a member of the Lee Public Service Journalism team and a Type Investigations reporting fellow.

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On Tuesday, June 20, two events will highlight the economic opportunity of a rural clean energy economy.

At 11 a.m. Vernon Economic Development Association (VEDA) and community members will gather at 1201 N. Main St. in Viroqua to celebrate the power of their 2023 solar installation. From 3:30 to 6:30 p.m., Ethos Green Power Cooperative (EGPC) will hold an open house at their new facility at 203 Power Drive, adjacent to VEDAs Food Enterprise Center, to celebrate 10 years building solar power in southwest Wisconsin.

Vernon Economic Development Association has been working for more than three years to bring solar energy to the Food Enterprise Centers main operations. The Food Enterprise Center is a multi-tenant facility owned and managed by VEDA. The center houses 28 businesses that support more than 345 jobs in this rural area, with 98 employees on site.

Ethos Green Power Cooperative designed and installed a 100KW solar array of 180 panels and as a ground-mounted system on the south lawn of the building located at 1201 N. Main St. in Viroqua. Xcel Energy completed their inspections and the system went live in March of this year.

Since 2013, EGPC has installed 10,000 solar panels for more than 4000kW of solar power. As customer-owned solar power becomes more commonplace, a new rural energy economy will bring good work for younger generations. EGPC is worker owned and operated, employing 20 people in our local community.

According to Susan Noble, executive director of VEDA, The electricity generated supports our common areas that serve tenant small businesses and refrigeration coolers produce and dairy product storage for VEDAs Community Hunger Solutions program, which brings nutritious food to community members who lack access. This solar project is a critical part of our sustainability plan and is a long-term solution that fosters a stronger, more stable community.

Mike Breckel, president of VEDAs Board of Directors, said, It is clearly a powerful investment which will save $300,000 in electricity costs over 25 years that can be put towards other operations and helping more businesses grow. The total cost of the project was $180,000, entirely supported by community contributions. Breckel remarked, We appreciate the generous financial donations from community members including Bill Putze, Kevin Schlicht, Charlie Knower, Bill Brooke, Robert Danielson, Becky Comeau and Robert Karp.

Grants were also received from Focus on Energy, Solar for Good, Solar Moonshot, the BQuest Foundation, Associated Bank, GoMacro, and Vernon Communications and EGPC Community Power Program. VEDA would not have accomplished this project without their significant contributions, said Noble. We are grateful for their partnership and support.
Geneva Lake Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) Post 2373 held patriotic Memorial Day observances on Monday, May 29, including a parade through downtown Williams Bay and a solemn ceremony honoring the nations war dead at the Veterans Memorial at lakefront Edgewater Park, overlooking picturesque Geneva Lake.

Williams Bay-based Geneva Lake VFW Post 2373 serves Williams Bay, Fontana, Walworth and Lake Geneva.

A combined crowd estimated at around 700 attended both Memorial Day events.

Solemnly set apart as a day for honoring and mourning U.S. military personnel who have died while serving in the United States armed forces, Memorial Day has been a Congressionally-recognized federal holiday since 1887. Memorial Day has its roots in post-Civil War Decoration Day observances, which were first held beginning in May 1866 to decorate the graves of Civil War military casualties.

The parade featured around 20 participating groups, including the American Legion Riders, the Geneva Lake VFW Post 2373 Honor Guard, the Williams Bay High School Band, the Walworth County Sheriffs Department, the Williams Bay Fire and Police Departments, and a variety of local nonprofit civic groups and service organizations.

Following a 10:15 a.m. flag-raising ceremony at Sherwood Lodge Assisted Living, Post 2373s 10:45 a.m. parade kicked off at Cherry and Clover streets and processed along Geneva Street to Edgewater Park in downtown Williams Bay, where solemn Memorial Day observances were held at 11:15 a.m.

The solemn Memorial Day program at Edgewater Park included a from-memory recitation of the World War I poem In Flanders Fields by Williams Bay High School freshman Lauren Schnobel, recipient of VFW Post 2373s 2022 Eighth Grade Leadership Award.

Nine-year Geneva Lake VFW Post 2373 Commander Ron Grabski, of Williams Bay, a Bronze Star U.S. Army veteran of the Vietnam War, delivered the ceremonys keynote address.

During the year we celebrate many holidays, Grabski noted.  They include New Years Day, Valentines Day, Easter, the Fourth of July, Labor Day, Thanksgiving, Christmas and others. Memorial Day is different. It is not a celebration. It is a day of sacred remembrance of those who gave their lives so that we can celebrate those days as a free nation. To be very clear, while sometimes necessary, there is no glory in way. There is only death and destruction ... Those we honor today were called to be part of something bigger than themselves. They were ordinary people who responded in extraordinary ways in extreme times. They rose to our nations call because they wanted to protect a nation which has given them, and us, so much. Millions of Americans have fought and died on battlefields here and abroad to defend our freedoms and way of life. Every country in the world knows that the American soldier can be their greatest friend or their worst nightmare. It is for them to choose.

Grabski reflected on the sacrifices of the nations war dead and veterans, enumerating their myriad contributions to the fabric of American society under the Constitution and Bill of Rights.

Freedom is not free, Grabski noted. It is, in fact, very expensive. It is the soldier, not the minister, who has given us freedom of religion. It is the soldier, not the reporter, who has given us freedom of the press. It is the soldier, not the poet, who has given us freedom of speech. It is the soldier, not the campus organizer, who has given us freedom to protest. It is the soldier, not the lawyer, who has given us the right to a fair trial. It is the soldier, not the politician, who has given us the right to vote. It is the soldier who salutes the flag, who serves beneath the flag, and whose coffin is draped by the flag, who allows the protester to burn the flag.

A wreath-laying ceremony was conducted at the Post 2373 Veterans Memorial at Edgewater Park, with the wreath laid by veteran Paul Rodgers, president of the Williams Bay Lions Club.

Flags and flowers were placed at the wreath by Williams Bay School District Administrator Dr. William White and Williams Bay Eighth Grade Leadership Award recipient Joshua LeBaron; Post 2373 VFW Wisconsin School Teacher of the Year nominee Kristine Griffin and Faith Christian Eighth Grade Leadership Award recipient Lauren Schmidt; Lake Geneva Regional News reporter and columnist Eric A. Johnson; and Barrett Memorial Library Director Joy Schnupp.

As long as one member is still alive, the Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States will render tribute to our heroic dead, Grabski said. On this day, forever consecrated to our heroic dead, we are assembled once again to express our sincere reverence. This monument represents the resting places of the many departed comrades who served in all wars. Wherever the body of a comrade lies, the ground is hallowed. Our presence here is in solemn commemoration of all these men and women. An expression of our tribute to their devotion to duty, to their courage and patriotism. By their services on land, sea and in the air, they have made us their debtors, for the flag of our nation still flies over a land of free people. We will now have the laying of the wreath as we pay our respects to our departed comrades. In so doing, we offer solemn tribute to all comrades wherever they may rest.

Following a ceremonial rifle salute by the Post 2373 Honor Guard, Williams Bay High School Class of 2023 senior Leeza Patterson played the Civil War era military bugle call Taps, composed by Union Army Brigadier General Daniel Adams Butterfield (1831-1901) in 1862.

Officially recognized by the U.S. Army in 1874, Taps became a standard component to U.S. military funerals in 1891 and remains so today.

The Willaims Bay High School Band, under the direction of band teacher Nate Weirick, played the Star-Spangled Banner national anthem and On, Wisconsin, the official state song since 1959.

The Williams Bay High School Choir, under the director of vocal music teacher Jessica Miles, sang the Armed Forces Medley musical tribute to the nations armed forces branches.

Pastor Sean Walker, of Chapel on the Hill in Geneva, gave the ceremonys opening and closing prayers.

Geneva Lake VFW Post 2373 will conduct solemn Veterans Day observances on Saturday, Nov. 11 at the Williams Bay Lions Club Pavilion at Edgewater Park along Geneva Street in downtown Williams Bay.

IN 16 PHOTOS: Geneva Lake Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 2373 - 2023 Memorial Day Parade, Williams Bay 2023 Geneva Lake VFW Post 2373 Memorial Day Parade, Williams Bay. - VFW Post 2373 Honor Guard 2023 Geneva Lake VFW Post 2373 Memorial Day Parade, Williams Bay - Williams Bay Police Department 2023 Geneva Lake VFW Post 2373 Memorial Day Parade, Williams Bay - American Legion Riders 2023 Geneva Lake VFW Post 2373 Memorial Day Parade, Williams Bay - Walworth County Sheriff's Department 2023 Geneva Lake VFW Post 2373 Memorial Day Parade, Williams Bay - Barrett Memorial Library 2023 Geneva Lake VFW Post 2373 Memorial Day Parade, Williams Bay - Williams Bay Lions Club 2023 Geneva Lake VFW Post 2373 Memorial Day Parade, Williams Bay - Troop 237 Boy and Cub Scouts 2023 Geneva Lake VFW Post 2373 Memorial Day Parade, Williams Bay - Troop 8105 Daisy, Brownie and Girl Scouts 2023 Geneva Lake VFW Post 2373 Memorial Day Parade, Williams Bay - Como Critters VFW Discover Williams Bay.JPG 2023 Geneva Lake VFW Post 2373 Memorial Day Parade, Williams Bay - Faith Christian School 2023 Geneva Lake VFW Post 2373 Memorial Day Parade, WIlliams Bay - Kishwauketoe Nature Conservancy 2023 Geneva Lake VFW Post 2373 Memorial Day Parade, Williams Bay - Williams Bay High School Bullodogs Marching Band 2023 Geneva Lake VFW Post 2373 Memorial Day Parade, Williams Bay - WIlliams Bay Historical Society 2023 Geneva Lake VFW Post 2373 Memorial Day Parade, Williams Bay - Williams Bay High School History Club 2023 Geneva Lake VFW Post 2373 Memorial Day Parade, Williams Bay - Williams Bay Fire Department
Arab-China Business Conference: the Shift Toward China Intensifies

June 13, 2023, 2022 (EIRNS)The 10th Arab-China Business Conference, held June 11-12 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, drew more than 2,000 participants, and signified the shift of Saudi Arabia and other Gulf countries towards business and economic growth with Chinaas U.S. Secretary of State Tony Blinken impotently flails his arms. Hosted in Saudi Arabia for the first time and organized by the Ministry of Investment of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the conference was held in partnership with the General Secretariat of the League of Arab States, the Chinese Council for the Promotion of International Trade, and the Union of Arab Chambers.

It followed Chinese President Xi Jinpings epoch-making meetings March 6-10 in Beijing with Saudi and Iranian representatives, resulting in the normalization of Saudi and Iranian relations, bridging the Sunni-Shia divide. Then on March 28, Saudi Arabias cabinet approved a memorandum on granting the Kingdom the status of a dialogue partner in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization on the Sept. 22, 2022.

On May 28, the New Development Bank, founded in 2014 at the BRICS summit in Fortaleza, Brazil, announced that it was in talks with Saudi Arabia to become the banks ninth member, stating: In the Middle East, we attach great importance to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and are currently engaged in a qualified dialogue with them.

Notably, in 2022, trade between Arab countries and China surged to a substantial $430 billion, a 31% jump over the level in 2021. Of that, Saudi-China trade represented $106 billion. Earlier this year, China agreed to build a steel plant in Saudi Arabia, which neither the United States and Britain has ever deigned to do. In the last two days, 30 trade deals worth $10 billion have signed at the Riyadh conference, but that is just the beginning. The highlights include a $5.6 billion agreement between the Saudi Investment Ministry and Human Horizons, a Chinese developer of autonomous-car driving technologies and manufacturer of electric cars, to establish a joint venture for automotive research, development, manufacturing, and sales; and a $250 million deal between Saudi railway company SABATCO and CRRC, Chinas state-owned manufacturer of rail transit equipment, to manufacture rail cars and wheels in Saudi Arabia. CRRC is worlds largest supplier of rail transit equipment with the most complete product lines and leading technologies, including for high-speed and maglev.

The two U.S. visits to the Riyadh, on May 7 by National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan (May 7) and on June 9 by Secretary of State Antony Blinken (June 9), during which they advised Saudi Arabia to decrease its connection with China, seem to have fallen on deaf ears. While Saudi Arabia will firmly maintain ties with the United States, it appears that the tide is shifting. No longer will Saudi Arabia be the Wests watchdog in the Arab world. On June 11, when asked about U.S. criticism of Saudi Arabias ties with China, Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman replied, I totally ignore it.

The Arab-China Business conference was capped by Dilma Rousseff, new president of the New Development Bank, who delivered the closing keynote speech on June 13, saying: China and Saudi Arabia have the potential to re-write the rules of the global energy market leading the way in diversifying currencies and embracing new models of economic collaboration. This partnership can also inspire the Global South to expand the intra and extra regional trade, offering greater possibilities for countries that are marginalized by the traditional international financial system.
Senator Grassley Exposes Recordings of Bidens Influence-Peddling in Ukraine

June 13, 2023, 2022 (EIRNS)An executive at Ukraines Burisma gas company, where Hunter Biden was paid over $50,000 a month while his father was Vice-President, evidently made 17 audio recordings of his conversations with both Hunter and Joe Biden. Yesterday, Sen. Chuck Grassley said that the executive made the tapes as a sort of insurance policy in case he got into a tight spot. Further, a politicized FBI has apparently been doing all it can to hide the existence of the recordings.

Joe Biden has bragged in January 2018 about the muscle that he had applied to Ukraines government in December 2015 for the firing of Ukraines top prosecutor, Viktor Shokin, who was investigating corruption at Burisma. Biden related how he had threatened that the U.S. would cancel a $1 billion loan guarantee to Ukraine unless the government submitted to his demand. Since the U.S. had spent $5 billion, as Victoria Nuland claimed, to overthrow Ukraines government in 2014 and install the new guys, Biden might have viewed it as the U.S.s right to specify who should be in office and who should be pushed out.

The existence of the recordings was exposed by a highly credible confidential source of the FBI who had dealings with Burisma executives, beginning in 2015. The FBI reports of the source have been buried by the FBI for years. In May, Senator Grassley, and Rep. James Comer, acting in his position as Chairman of the House Oversight Committee, cited an FBI whistleblower who had earlier this year reported that the FBI was deep-sixing any investigation into the charges that as Vice President, Biden had taken bribes. The FBI documents on the recordings, and a lot more, were known to the whistleblower. However, the FBI first denied the existence of the documents and then ignored a subpoena from the Congress. Only after Representative Comer explicitly threatened to hold FBI Director Christopher Wray in contempt of Congress did the FBI deliver a redacted version last week.

Yesterday, Senator Grassley, who, along with a few select members of Congress, had been allowed to read the original, unclassified, documents, made clear that the redacted version omitted the reference to the recordings. He said that one key omission was the reference that the foreign national who allegedly bribed Joe and Hunter Biden allegedly has audio recordings of his conversations with them. Seventeen total recordings. He urged the Justice Department to release a full, unredacted copy of FBI files that allegedly outline a criminal bribery scheme between the Biden family and Ukrainian energy firm Burisma Holdings. It would also, very likely, raise questions as to why the FBI failed to pursue the investigation.

Biden has called the bribery allegations a bunch of malarkey, and claimed that he had singled out Shokin for firing, actually because Shokin was not going after corruption. It should be recalled that Donald Trump was impeached for calling upon Ukraines cooperation in investigating the seedy affair. That was considered an abuse of foreign policy, while the overthrow of the legally elected government in Kiev, the selection of Ukraines next rulers, or the dismissal of Ukraines top prosecutor do not meet that standard.
Honduran and Chinese Presidents Hold Historic Meeting in Beijing, Signing 22 Accords

June 13, 2023, 2022 (EIRNS)Chinese President Xi Jinping and his guest, Honduran President Xiomara Castro, met yesterday at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, as part of Castros historic state visit to China. Aside from their public meeting, after which the two witnessed the signing of 22 bilateral agreements and memoranda of understanding, they also met privately, before attending the state dinner held to honor the Honduran President. Castro is the first Honduran President ever to visit China, and as Xi Jinping pointed out, she is also the first female President of her country.

The joint declaration issued following their meeting, indicates a wide range of exciting cooperation opportunities across the political and economic spectra, beginning with Honduras decision to actively participate in the Belt and Road Initiative. It also supports the Global Development Initiative ... supports the Global Civilization Initiative and the Global Security Initiative proposed by the Chinese side and is prepared to actively participate in same, recognizing their important role in responding to global challenges.

Both heads of state expressed great satisfaction at the cooperation documents signed during Castros visit, too numerous to detail here. But the Honduran Presidents remarks at the open part of her meeting with Xi really give a sense of the quality of this event. She told Xi that, having experienced the cruelty of the neoliberal system that followed the 2009 coup against her husband, President Jose Manuel Zelaya, her goal is to achieve real and equitable human development to obtain real independence. Thats why were here. Our priority, she said, is global and domestic security. We have the possibility to define, plan and execute joint investment projects with co-financing for infrastructure, roads, ports, airports, telecommunications, energy, food security, research, science, technology, railroad construction between the Atlantic and the Pacific and a Free Trade Agreement which takes into account our asymmetries. The history of art and culture are essential in this relationship with China, as well, she said.

In his remarks, Xi commented that Castros visit opens a new chapter in the history of bilateral relations which has a special and important significance. He noted that she had faithfully followed through on her electoral promise to establish relations with China, which, he said, is a historic decision that demonstrates a firm political will. Xi said, since becoming President, you have led the Honduran people to stand up for themselves and to reach new achievements in the countrys development. I sincerely congratulate you for that.... China will unwaveringly develop friendly relations with Honduras, will firmly support its economic and social development, and is prepared to be a good friend and partner, with mutual respect, equality, mutual benefit and common development. Our bilateral relations will be guided by a perspective that is both strategic and for the long term, he said.

Both leaders recognized that history and the world are changing in ways never before seen, and both are prepared to jointly defend the international order based on international law and the UN Charter and true multilateralism. Xi committed to open Chinas market to specialized Honduran products that could previously only reach the mainland by going through Taiwan. China will also begin negotiating a Free Trade Agreement with Honduras and a special trade mission led by Chinas deputy trade minister will travel to Tegucigalpa in July to begin that process.
A major discovery of ancient art in Italy will go on show this month in the capital, Rome. Researchers found the more than 2000-year-old Etruscan and Roman statues in the area of Tuscany.

Italy is opening the works to public view at the citys Quirinale Palace starting on June 22.

A retired garbage man helped in the discovery of the statues, which lay in mud at the ruins of an ancient spa.

Italian scientists announced the find in November. Experts called it the biggest collection of ancient bronze statues ever found in Italy. Some said it was a major finding that would "rewrite history.

Researchers found the statues in 2021 and 2022 in the village of San Casciano dei Bagni. The village still has public baths in operation today. Researchers had long suspected ancient ruins could be discovered at the site.

The first few attempts to locate the ancient baths, however, were unsuccessful.

Then former garbage man and amateur local historian Stefano Petrini had an idea. He remembered that years earlier he had seen bits of ancient Roman columns on a wall on the other side of the public baths.

When Petrini took researchers to the place, they knew they had found the right spot.

"It all started from there, from the columns," Petrini said.

Emanuele Mariotti is head of the San Casciano archaeological project. He said his team had been getting "quite desperate" for evidence when Petrinis information came through. They discovered a shrine at the center of the ancient spa complex.

The statues found there were offerings from Romans and Etruscans who looked to the gods for good health.

One of the most amazing finds was the so-called "scrawny boy," a statue about 90 centimeters high, of a young Roman with a bone disease. A small piece of writing has his name as "Marcius Grabillo."

Italian culture ministry archaeologist Ada Salvi said the muddy statue looked like the representation of an athlete. But, the expert saw it differently after the piece had been completely cleaned.

It was clear that it was that of a sick person," Salvi said.

More unusual offerings were also among smaller objects in the discovery. These include egg shells, pine cones, medical tools and a 2,000-year-old piece of hair.

"There's a whole world of meaning that has to be understood and studied, Salvi said of the finds.

More Treasures

Workers permanently closed the spa about 1600 years ago. The warm mud of the baths protected the statues.

Digging will begin again in late June. Mariotti said more ancient objects are sure to be found in the coming years. The experts say they may find another six or 12 statues noted in a document found at the site. The archaeologists think that it may have been left by Marcius Grabillo.

"We've only just lifted the lid," Mariotti said.

After the Rome showing, the statues and other objects are expected to be given a home at a new site back in San Casciano.

Retiree Petrini hopes the treasures will bring "jobs, culture and knowledge" to his village, which is struggling with depopulation like much of rural Italy.

But he does not want to take credit for the discovery.

"Important things always happen thanks to several people, never thanks to only one," he said. "Never."

Im John Russell.

Alvise Armellini reported on this story for Reuters. John Russell adapted it for VOA Learning English.

_____________________________________________________________________

Words in This Story

spa  n. a place where people go to improve their health by swimming or bathing

column  n. a long post made of stone that is used as a support

archaeological  adj. relating to archaeology, a science that deals with past human life and activities by studying the bones or tools of ancient people

desperate  adj. having little or no hope

scrawny  adj. very thin in a way that is not healthy
Lawmakers in several U.S. states have passed limits on discussions of race, gender and sexuality in classrooms. Some students say the measures targeting parts of their identity have made them feel less welcome in American schools.

The first time Tennessee student Harmony Kennedy remembered experiencing racism was in elementary school. On a playground, a girl picked up a leaf and said she wanted to clean the dirt from Harmonys skin.

In 2021, Tennessee started passing legislation that could limit the discussion and teaching of Black history, gender identity and race in the classroom. To Harmony, the laws possible effects are crushing.

When I heard they were removing African American history, banning LGBTQ, I almost started crying, said Harmony, who is 16. LGBTQ is short for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or queer.

Conservative leaders in some states have strongly pushed for the new restrictions. Those lawmakers say the restrictions are necessary to fight against liberal ideas in schools. Activists and school boards have pushed for such moves, too. They say teachers need more oversight to make sure learning materials are appropriate.

Books have been removed from some school libraries. Some schools have continued call transgender students by the name they had before they changed to a different gender.

Some teachers are worried of breaking new rules. As a result, they have avoided discussions related to race, gender and other divisive issues.

Neutrality policy impacts

Leo Burchell goes to a school outside Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. In late 2020, during the pandemic school closures, he started using different pronouns. He started wearing different clothes. He cut his hair shorter, too. The changes, he said, felt right.

First he asked teachers to use they/them pronouns instead of she/her. Then he asked that they use he/him pronouns when talking to him.

I changed my name to Leo, and for a while it was tough, he said. I told the people close to me, but I wasnt ready to come out to everybody yet

Leos school is part of the Central Bucks School District. Over the last year, the board has barred employees from using students chosen names or pronouns without parental permission.

The board passed what it called a neutrality policy. The policy is meant to prevent social and political advocacy in classrooms. But opponents say the measure targets LGBTQ students.

One man told the school board in a meeting that transgender people presented a risk of violence in bathrooms. Leo expected another adult in the room to intervene in what felt to him like hate speech. But no one did.

So, at the next board meeting, Leo spoke up. Attacking students based on who they are or who they love is wrong, he said. Leo has spoken up at other meetings since then.

Leo said he worries about what school will be like for younger transgender students.

It really just breaks my heart to know that some of my friends, you know, might not want to go to school anymore, he said. Students face backlash after speaking up

In Harmonys freshman-year English class, a boy started playing with his face mask and joked, I cant breathe, just like George Floyd, Harmony remembered. Floyd, a Black man, was murdered in 2020 by policeman in Minnesota. His death led to nationwide and worldwide protests.

Harmony told her teacher, who said she was sorry it happened but there was not much she could do.

Harmony said the incident was a reminder of why it is important to teach a full version of American history. A law passed by Tennessee in 2021 banned schools from teaching several ideas on race and racism. Because of the law, many teachers now avoid discussions related to race.

After the incident, Harmony decided to join the Forward Club. The group works to support cultural and racial inclusion at her mostly white high school. The clubs members come from diverse backgrounds.

At times, students who speak out against new policies have been targeted. In Williamson County, Tennessee, where Harmony goes to school, a political action committee (PAC) accused another high schools Black student union of promoting segregation. The PAC posted the time and place of the student group's meeting on social media. Elsewhere, transgender students who have spoken up about bullying have faced insults on social media.

Harmony said she has had to go outside of school to learn about Black culture and history. Her experience in high school has led her to want to attend a historically Black college.

Harmony said she wants to be able to go to school like any other teenager and focus on learning. But she said she will continue to speak out for what she believes in.

My sister is going to be an incoming freshman this year, she said, and I want her to have a safe learning environment where she doesnt have to really deal with all the ignorance and things.

Im Dan Friedell.

And I'm Dan Novak.

Dan Novak adapted this story for VOA Learning English based on reporting by The Associated Press.

Quiz - LGBTQ, Students of Color Feel Less Welcome under New US State Laws Start the Quiz to find out Start Quiz

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Words in This Story

gender  n. a person's own sense of being male, female, some combination of male and female, or neither male nor female

oversight  n. a mistake made because someone forgets or fails to notice something

appropriate  adj. right or suited for some purpose or situation

transgender  adj. of or relating to people who feel that their true nature is as a member of the opposite sex

pronoun  n. a word such as I, he, she, you, it, we, or they that is used instead of a noun or noun phrase

tough  adj. very difficult to do or deal with

advocacy  n. the act or process of supporting a cause or proposal

diverse  adj. different from each other

segregation  n. the practice or policy of keeping people of different races, religions, etc., separate from each other

bully  v. to frighten, hurt, or threaten

ignorance  n. a lack of knowledge, understanding, or education
Four native children survived a plane crash and 40 days alone in the Amazon rainforest in Colombia. Now, a custody battle has started among their family members.

The children are siblings, or brothers and sisters. They range in age from 1 to 13. They remained hospitalized Monday and are expected to stay there for several more days. During that time, Colombia's child protection agency is speaking to family members to decide who should care for them after their mother died in the crash on May 1.

Astrid Caceres is head of the Colombian Institute of Family Welfare. She said in a radio discussion that a caseworker was assigned to the children at the request of their mothers parents. The grandparents are competing for custody with the father of the two youngest children.

Caceres added that it was be possible that the children and their mother experienced abuse. The most important thing at this moment is the childrens health, which is not only physical but also emotional, she said.

On Sunday, grandfather Narciso Mucutuy accused Manuel Ranoque of beating his daughter, Magdalena Mucuty. Ranoque is the father of the two youngest children.

Mucutuy told reporters that the children would hide in the forest when Ranoque and his daughter fought.

Ranoque told reporters that there had been trouble at home. But he called it as a private family concern and not gossip for the world.

When asked whether he had attacked his wife, Ranoque said: Verbally, sometimes, yes. Physically, very little. We had more verbal fights.

Ranoque said he has not been permitted to see the two oldest children at the hospital. Caceres did not provide a comment on why Ranoque could not see them.

On May 1, the children were traveling by plane with their mother from the Amazonian village of Araracuara to the town of San Jose del Guaviare. The planes engine failed. It fell off radar a short time later. A search then began for the three adults and four children who were on the plane.

For more than a month, the children survived by eating cassava flour and seeds as well as some fruits they found in the rainforest. The children are members of the Huitoto Indigenous group.

The siblings were finally found Friday, 40 days after the crash. They were flown to the capital, Bogota. Then they arrived at a military hospital, where they have received mental health services and other support.

As they recover, the children have spoken with family members about their time in the jungle. The oldest, Lesly Jacobombaire Mucutuy, said their mother was alive for about four days after the crash before dying, Ranoque said.

The plane was found two weeks after the crash in a thick area of rainforest. The bodies of the three adults were recovered, but there was no sign of the children. That led people to hope that they were still alive.

Soldiers in helicopters dropped boxes of food into the jungle. Planes fired off flares at night to light up the ground for search teams. Rescuers also used speakers to send a message recorded by the children's grandmother telling them to stay in one place.

The children were finally found last Friday about five kilometers from the crash in a small opening in the jungle. General Pedro Sanchez led the search effort as chief of the military's Special Operations Command.

Relatives and officials have praised Lesly for guiding her younger siblings through the 40 days in the jungle. The youngest child turned 1 while they were missing.

Im Caty Weaver.

Dan Novak adapted this story for VOA Learning English based on reporting by The Associated Press.

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Words in This Story

custody  n. the legal right to take care of a child

gossip  n. information about the behavior and personal lives of other people

radar  n. a device that sends out radio waves for finding out the position and speed of a moving object

indigenous  adj. produced, living, or existing naturally in a particular region or environment

flare  n. a light that shines brightly and briefly

relative  n. a member of your family
South Koreas Truth and Reconciliation Commission said last week it will investigate the cases of 237 more South Korean adoptees. The adoptees suspect their family history records were changed to make their adoptions possible in Europe and the United States.

The new cases in the investigation involve foreign adoptees in 11 nations. All involve adoptions that took place between 1960 and 1990.

More than 370 adoptees from Europe, North America, and Australia registered applications last year demanding that their cases be investigated.

The commission said last December it would investigate the first 34 cases. It noted that the records of many adoptees sent to the West had clearly been changed. It said the records falsely described the adoptees as being orphans, or not having living parents. It also said the records falsified their identities.

The commission said most of the applicants claim their adoptions were based on falsified records meant to make their adoptions possible.

Some applicants asked the commission to look into abuses they say they experienced at South Korean orphanages or under the care of their foreign adoptive parents.

Of the 271 cases accepted by the commission so far, 141 are those of Danish adoptees. They include members of the Danish Korean Rights Group. Other cases include 28 U.S. adoptees and 21 Swedish adoptees, officials said.

The commission is examining the applications in the order they were registered. Officials have said it is likely to investigate the remaining 101 cases, too.

History of adoptions

About 200,000 South Koreans were adopted by parents in Western countries over the past 60 years. They are believed to be the worlds largest group of foreign adoptees.

Most were placed with white parents in the United States and Europe during the 1970s and 1980s. During that time, South Korea was ruled by back-to-back military dictatorships. The military government focused on policies meant to increase economic growth. The government saw adoption as a way to reduce the number of people to feed, remove the social problem of unmarried mothers, and deepen ties with the democratic West.

The military government created special laws aimed at increasing foreign adoptions. Those laws let adoption agencies get around widely accepted child relinquishment practices. To relinquish in this case means to give up possession or control of something.

Most adoptees were registered by agencies as orphans found abandoned on the streets, even if they had family members who could have been easily identified. That practice has made it hard for South Korean adoptees to know their roots, or family history.

It was not until 2013 that South Koreas government required foreign adoptions to go through family courts. The change ended a long policy that permitted agencies to control child relinquishments and international adoptions.

Im Ashley Thompson.

Kim Tong-Hyung reported this story for The Associated Press. Gregory Stachel adapted it for VOA Learning English.

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Words in This Story

adopt  v. to take a child of other parents legally as your own child

apply  v. to ask formally for something (such as a job, admission to a school, or a loan) usually in writing

focus  v. to cause (something, such as attention) to be directed at something specific

abandon  v. to leave and never return to (someone who needs protection or help)
Former U.S. President Donald Trump appeared in a court in Miami, in the U.S. state of Florida Tuesday to face 37 federal charges.

The current presidential candidate told the judge in the case that he is not guilty of all charges. The charges are related to classified government documents that he took after leaving the White House.

After appearing in court and making his plea, the court released Trump with no restrictions on his movement.

The U.S. Justice Department says Trump ignored demands to return the documents and tried to hide them.

Government lawyers say the documents include top secret files on U.S. nuclear and defense programs. The charging document, called an indictment, said that the former president showed classified documents to others two times.

The indictment says that, once Trump was no longer president, he was not permitted to have or keep classified documents.

Of the 37 counts in the indictment, 31 of them relate to willfully holding national defense information. The other counts are related to a suspected conspiracy, obstruction and false statements.

The indictment says Trump conspired with Waltine Nauta, an assistant, to keep the documents and hide them. Nauta is also charged with making false statements to federal officials.

The government's legal action

U.S. special counsel Jack Smith is leading the government effort against Trump. Smith attended the hearing but made no statement.

On Friday, Smith said while announcing the charges, We have one set of laws in this country, and they apply to everybody. He added that Trump, like any defendant, must be considered innocent until proven guilty.

Smith noted that laws protect national defense information and are important to the safety and security of the United States. And Smith said his office would seek a speedy trial before a jury of Florida residents.

At Tuesdays hearing, the judge ruled that Trump cannot talk with witnesses about the case, except through his lawyers.

After the hearing, Trump stopped by a bake shop where supporters sang Happy Birthday to him. Trump, who will turn 77 on Wednesday, said, Some birthday Weve got a government that is out of control.

Other actions against Trump

In March, a government lawyer in the state of New York charged Trump with 34 counts of criminally falsifying business documents. That indictment made Trump the first former president to face criminal charges.

In May, a jury in New York City found Trump guilty of sexual abuse and defamation of a writer E. Jean Carroll. The former presidents lawyers are seeking a new trial in that case.

Trump also faces investigations in Washington, D.C., and Atlanta, Georgia over the 2020 election dispute.

Im Mario Ritter Jr.

Mario Ritter adapted this report for VOA Learning English from Associated Press and Reuters sources.

____________________________________________________________________

Words in This Story

plea n. a defendant's answer to a lawsuit or to a criminal charge

obstruction n. something that blocks action

apply v. to have relation or a connection

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LEXINGTON  A second reading was held for an ordinance that would restrict commercial vehicle parking in residential areas during the Lexington City Council meeting on Tuesday, June 13

City Manager Joe Pepplitsch had said city staff was recommending adding a specific commercial vehicle definition to the city code and adding restrictions regarding their parking in residential zoning districts.

Pepplitch noted the city receives many complaints about semis, semi-trailers, panel trucks, etc., parking on residential streets. Its more prevalent than people think, Pepplitsch said.

The definition for commercial vehicles in the city code would be, truck-tractors or semi-trailers, panel trucks and any commercial hauling trailers.

The section in the code regarding trucks and commercial vehicles parking in residential districts was proposed to read, In all residential zoning districts, the parking of trucks and commercial vehicles is expressly prohibited on any residential zoned lot or on any street or public property within a residential zoning district or adjacent to residential property.

The parking of commercial vehicles in those areas wont be a violation if:

Trucks or commercial vehicles being used for the purpose of delivery of pickup of goods in a residential area , with loading and unloading not to exceed one hour

Unloaded trucks classified as one ton or less which have no malodorous, offense, foul or noxious odors

Trucks or commercial vehicles being used in connection with construction, repair, service or moving operations may be parked in a residential area while the construction, repair, service or moving operations are actually in process.

During the first reading last month, council member Steve Smith asked about parking a commercial vehicle in a drive way. Pepplitsch said the proposed parking code was written to not allow these types of vehicles to be parked in those zones at all.

Pepplitsch acknowledged there are two sides to the issue, on one hand are business owners who own the vehicles and might park them on their property or on the street in front of the property.

On the other is the surrounding neighborhood who may take issue with such large vehicles taking up space on a street or being parked in front of their own properties.

When asked by the council about penalties for infractions, Pepplitsch said the council could implement a warning at first and then followed by a penalty. Failure to abide by the city code is typically a $500 fine.

No public comment or input on the parking restrictions was mentioned during the meeting.

The proposed parking ordinance was approved on second reading by the council; it will be brought back for a third and final reading at a future meeting.

The council also approved two pay requests including the 21st from Walters-Morgan Construction for the 2021 Wastewater Facility Improvements project in the amount of $249,360.94.

A second change order, an increase of $18,250.00 from Walters-Morgan for the Wastewater facility project, was also approved.

The second was the first request Bert Gurney for the 2020 Wastewater Equipment Procurement  Bid D project in the amount of $69,087.60.

The council also approved the close out documents for the Revere Circle and Prescott Circle Improvements project. The third and final pay request was $10,040.79.

The last item was an inter-local agreement with the Dawson County Mutual Finance Organization and naming Pepplitsch to represent the city on the governing board.

The mutual finance organization has been in place for the last 20 years and includes county municipalities and rural fire districts.

Recently, the Nebraska Legislature changed the requirements that the agreements have to be updated every three years.

The council then entered executive session to discuss real estate negotiations for 30 minutes; no action was taken after the session was ended.
China yesterday criticized new sanctions imposed by the United States on companies believed to be involved in training Chinese military pilots and aiding weapons development.

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin urged Washington to stop abusing export control measures to hobble Chinese companies.

The United States has repeatedly overstretched the concept of national security, abused state power, unwarrantedly suppressed Chinese companies, and wantonly disrupted the international economic order and trade rules, Wang said at a daily briefing in Beijing. It has reached a level of unscrupulous hysteria.

China demands that the U.S. immediately correct its wrong practice of politicizing, instrumentalizing, and weaponizing economic, trade, and sci-tech issues with a pretext of human rights or military-related issues, Wang said.

Yesterday, the U.S. government placed 43 entities on an export control list over national security and foreign policy concerns. The list includes both Chinese and foreign companies.

Among those listed were Frontier Services Group Ltd., a security and aviation company previously run by Blackwater founder Erik Prince, and Test Flying Academy of South Africa, a flight school under scrutiny by British authorities for hiring retired British military pilots to train Chinese fliers.

The companies are barred from receiving U.S. exports for activities deemed contrary to U.S. national interest.

Other companies were sanctioned for aiding development of Chinas hypersonic weapons and the modernization of its army, the Commerce Department aid.

Two companies  Beijing Ryan Wende Science and Technology Co. Ltd. and Xinjiang Kehua Hechang Biological Science and Technology Co. Ltd.

While the two countries spar over national security and human rights issues, they are also working to keep lines of communication open to avoid an accidental conflict.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is expected in Beijing later this week, in a visit previously postponed due to an alleged Chinese spy balloon that traveled across U.S. territory in February. MDT/AP
Citi Research noted in a report that, according to industry sources, Macaus gross gaming revenue (GGR) for the first 11 days of June may have reached approximately MOP5.5 billion. This implies that the average daily GGR for the past week is expected to be around MOP529 million, an increase of about 18% compared to the first four days of June.

The surge in revenue is believed to be mainly due to the number of visitors driven by Jacky Cheungs concerts held from June 9 to 11, the note said.

The broker is maintaining its forecast for the citys GGR in June at MOP13.5 billion, representing a 57% increase compared to June 2019 levels  which is seen as a positive outcome by the operators.

In a recent interview with the Times, Wilfred Wong, president of Sands China, warned that the big test for the industrys recovery would be the results of June and July, typically, a slow season for gaming.

In May, revenue from the casino sector skyrocketed by an impressive 366% year-on-year, totaling MOP15.6 billion. The monthly earnings were boosted by a five-day national holiday, which saw approximately 300 travel groups and nearly 500,000 visitors. The number of visitors increased by over 262% compared to the May Day holiday last year and recovered to about 62% of the level seen in 2019 before the Covid-19 pandemic.

Analysts had previously forecasted that casino floor revenues would reach a new post-pandemic high.

The ongoing robust recovery, according to the firm, indicates elevated baseline demand levels, similar to what was observed during the Lunar New Year in late January this year.

In just the first four months of this year, gross gaming revenue surpassed the total amount generated in the entirety of last year. It recorded MOP49.23 billion, which is 16.7% higher than the MOP42 billion recorded in 2022.

For the first five months of 2023, revenues aggregated MOP64.93 billion, representing a significant 172.9% year-on-year increase. PC
Acting President O Lam of the executive branch of the Municipal Affairs Bureau (IAM) has recently told the press that should Japan decide to pour potentially nuclear-contaminated water from the Fukushima Power Plant into the sea, the bureau will immediately expand the import ban on Japanese food products to include produce from nine prefectures. Currently, imports of produce from Fukushima is barred. Imports from the nine surrounding prefectures must come with a nuclear safety certificate and undergo quarantine. O added that tests on imported food, especially those from Japan, will be increased.

Related
A Macau man whose spending and cross-boundary travels were restricted by a Zhuhai court due to a debt accounting to RMB230,000 was arrested in Shanghai as he attempted to take a flight back to Macau. The man had owned a restaurant in Zhuhai and sourced produce from a woman up to March 2021, when he closed the restaurant. At that time, he owed the woman the outstanding debt. As he was not permitted to leave mainland China pursuant to a court order, he tried to transit via Shanghai to return to Macau. Upon check-in, the airline discovered the court order so he was apprehended.

Related
Fox News sent Tucker Carlson a cease-and-desist letter over his new Twitter series, Axios reported yesterday [Macau time], amid reports of a contract battle between the conservative network and its former prime-time host.

Carlson was ousted from Fox in late April, less than a week after Fox agreed to pay Dominion Voting Systems nearly $800 million to settle an explosive defamation case. The network provided no explanation for the firing, but a wave of reports on damming text messages and other statements Carlson made during his time at Fox have since piled up.

Since leaving Fox, Carlson kicked off a Tucker on Twitter series  arguing that Twitter was the only major remaining platform that allows free speech as he denounced news media. The series, which has published two episodes so far, has appeared to escalate contract tensions between Carlson and Fox.

Fox has demanded Carlson to stop posting videos to Twitter, The New York Times also reported Monday  as the networks lawyers accuse Carlson of violating his contract, which runs until early 2025 and restricts his ability to appear on other media outlets. Meanwhile, Carlsons lawyers have said the network breached the contract first.

A spokesperson for Fox News Media and attorneys representing Carlson, Bryan Freedman and Harmeet Dhillon, did not immediately return The Associated Press requests for comments. MDT/AP
Sociedade de Empreendimentos Nam Van, S.A. accused the local courts of lacking impartiality in their decision to accept the retrieval of several land plots in the Nam Van Lake area, the developer said in a press conference earlier this week.

At stake is still the courts decision to accept and validate the retrieval of several land plots in the Nam Van Lake area, previously awarded to Nam Van, due to the expiration of the development time set in 25 years.

Now, as the government has commenced development on those plots, the company has again protested a decision they consider unfair.

Adding to this is the fact that several businessmen linked to the company have also been implicated in the so-called Public Works case. The case was in relation to the actions of several local businessmen, contractors and real estate developers as well as two former Public Works bureau heads (Jaime Carion and Li Canfeng).

These businessmen were found guilty of several criminal offenses including corruption of government officials and have been convicted to jail terms. Their convictions have been appealed, however a ruling has yet to be delivered.

The government has issued a statement in response via the Government Information Bureau, which recaps the case of the expired land plots from the governments perspective and according to the decision of the several Macau courts cases. The government added that the whole process was very transparent and conducted according to the law, and that the company had the opportunity to appeal from the previous rulings of the various courts before the Court of Final Appeal reached a final decision on the case.

Regarding the criminal case, the government reiterated that the courts exercise judicial power independently and under the law, and no one can, in any way, exercise any pressure to interfere in the process [and consequently in the final decision].

In the press conference, representatives of the development company had hinted that there the two cases were linked, suggesting that the pending criminal case in relation to several businessmen connected with the company were brought as a form of retaliation against the companys reluctance to return the land plots.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas began a visit to China yesterday that comes as Beijing is seeking a larger role in Middle East politics and competing for energy resources.

In announcing the visit, Chinas Foreign Ministry said China was willing to help broker relations between the Palestinian Authority and the Israeli government that have deteriorated to the lowest level in recent years.

The ministry did not say who Abbas would meet in Beijing or give other details of his four-day visit.

Increased fighting over the last year between Israel and the Palestinians in the West Bank has resulted in the deadliest period of violence between the sides in years in that territory.

The visit also comes after China hosted talks between Iran and Saudi Arabia that resulted in the two restoring diplomatic relations.

That development was seen as representing a diplomatic victory for China as Gulf Arab states perceive the United States slowly withdrawing from the wider region.

But it remains to be seen how far the reconciliation efforts between Iran and Saudi Arabia will progress. The rivalry dates to the 1979 revolution that toppled Irans Western-backed monarchy.

State broadcaster CCTV quoted Foreign Minister Qin Gang as saying that China supports the resumption of peace talks between Palestine and Israel as soon as possible on the basis of the two-state solution, and is willing to play an active role in this regard. MDT/AP
Sands China recently held a seminar to mark the 30th anniversary of Macau SARs Basic Law, attended by around 100 of Sands Chinas management team.

The seminar took place on June 2 at The Venetians Adelson Advanced Education Centre as part of the Sands China Distinguished Speaker Forum Series. Guest speaker Ho Teng Iat, vice chairman of the Committee for Liaison with Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan, and Overseas Chinese, shared their insights.

Wilfred Wong, President of SCL said, Sands China is pleased to provide this seminar to enhance professionalism. We hope it deepens our team members understanding of the Basic Law, its protection of Macau residents rights, and its contribution to the citys development. We thank Ms. Ho for her valuable insights.

During the seminar, Ho shared her experience of the creation of the Basic Law, highlighting its achievements. She emphasized its role in ensuring a smooth transition for Macaus return to China and the successful implementation of the One Country, Two Systems principle.

Sands China employees asked questions during the Q&A session.

The Sands China Distinguished Speaker Forum Series aims to promote professionalism and enhance employee knowledge for Macaus development as a global tourism center.

Sands China continually improves its professionalism through various initiatives, benefiting over 63,000 participants to date.
On April 30, 2023, Uzbekistan held a referendum on amendments to the countrys Constitution. The referendum was preceded by an ambitious propaganda campaign calling on people not to be indifferent and to actively participate in the referendum. However, the controversial text of the draft Constitution appeared to be worked out in closed cabinets of the Constitutional Commission without broader engagement of experts and civil society representatives. Loud propaganda, in the spirit of Soviet tradition, contrasted with the silence of ordinary citizens and their very low level of awareness of the content of the document subjected to the vote.

BACKGROUND: One year after gaining its independence  on December 8, 1992  Uzbekistan adopted its first Constitution as a newly independent state. It was symbolically called Karimovs Constitution relating it to the first President of the new state, Islam Karimov. International experts and media positively evaluated that Constitution as a strong, cohesive and fundamental main law of the country, providing for democratic governance and basic human rights.

In the 30 years since, Uzbekistan was often subjected to criticism for non-democratic governance, human rights abuses and violation of constitutional norms and other laws of the country.

In December 2016 a new President  Shavkat Mirziyoev  was elected for a five-year term. He was re-elected for a second term in October 2021 and acquired substantial popularity as a reformist and a progressive leader in Uzbekistan as well as abroad. Despite relatively successful economic reforms, Uzbekistans political regime has remained autocratic. Rampant corruption, nepotism, a low level of qualification of officials, and in many instances a dysfunctional parliament caused political stagnation. In his December 2022 address to the parliament and to the people, Mirziyoev said, among other things, that a regime of manual control persisted in state governance, reflecting inefficiency of the entire political system where individuals, governors or the president, not institutions and rules, determine the course of policy.

In late 2021, Mirziyoev stated that Uzbekistans existing Constitution needs amendments reflecting the new reality and the new tasks the country is facing. He initiated a corresponding organizational and political process towards drafting the new text of the Constitution. A Constitutional Commission was set up consisting exclusively of deputies in Oliy Majlis (the parliament). Independent experts and civil society representatives were not involved in its work. It was announced that a web portal was created to collect suggestions from citizens regarding the necessary amendments.

The first draft Constitution was prepared by June 2022 and published for public discussion. Protests occurred in Uzbekistans Karakalpak Autonomous Republic, where the local population did not accept the draft in which the sovereign republican status of this province was deleted. This was the first negative reaction to the proposed draft Constitution, which revealed the overall poor-quality work of the Constitutional Commission.

IMPLICATIONS: The President later announced that the process should not be rushed and that work on the draft should continue. The referendum, expected to be held in 2022, was postponed and by the end of the year a new text of the Constitution was prepared. In the spirit of Soviet public communication, it was surprisingly announced that 27 new articles were included and about 65 percent of the old Constitution was amended, thereby creating the impression that the more amendments, the better. When the final draft was ready, a substantial propaganda campaign was launched, which excluded any open critique concerning concrete articles and chapters.

Meanwhile, the articles that were in most need of amendment were not changed while articles that did not need to be amended were improved with certain additional paragraphs. For example, the proposed Preamble of the Constitution says that the history of Uzbekistans statehood covers a period of over 3,000 years, which is very debatable. This statement in the Preamble is irrelevant to the Constitution, which is not a historical document.

The first article of the new draft says that Uzbekistan is a democratic, legal, social and secular state. The latter three new words were included in this article making it very ambiguous because such notions as social and secular state are not well defined and hide controversial meaning.

The article about the khokims (provincial, city and district governors) was left untouched. While demands have been raised to introduce the long-awaited election of khokims, this amendment was not included. Khokims will continue to be appointed from above, making them omnipotent and incentivizing abuses of power.

The presidential term was changed from five years to seven years, a constitutional amendment that no one has been able to convincingly explain and justify. Actually, in the history of independent Uzbekistan, the presidential term has been arbitrarily changed several times: from five to seven years in the early 2000-s, then from seven to five years, and now again from five to seven years. Such ridiculous manipulation with laws cannot but profoundly distort the democratic political process and creates the impression that the entire exercise is aimed at prolonging the current regime. Indeed, this raised allegations that the incumbents term can now be nullified and that he can be re-elected for two more terms of 7 years each. Some MPs and lawyers have justified that that he will have a legal right to re-nomination.

It would also be desirable for the Constitution to include a norm according to which independent candidates who are not party members can be nominated for parliamentary elections. However, unfortunately, such a norm was not included.

By and large, the new text of the Constitution contains several deficiencies, mistakes and controversies. Moreover, there is very low public awareness of the content of the Constitution  the main law that will determine the lives of Uzbek citizens for many years ahead. This was revealed by sociological surveys and journalists interviews among ordinary people, as well as the observations of several experts.

The referendum passed in the Soviet spirit, with an Hurrah! so to speak, where 90 percent of votes were cast in support of the Constitutional Law. This figure, even if it is real, hardly reflects actual support of the Constitutional Law based on real awareness among citizens of its content, since the text was prepared without nationwide public and critical discussion. Rather, the referendum once again manifested the Soviet syndrome: loud propaganda called on the people not to be indifferent to the constitutional amendments, whereas the people remains indifferent and tacitly accepts any proposal or decision from the top, believing that the leadership is always right.

The referendum revealed at least three obstacles to democratization in Uzbekistan, namely: a) low level of public political literacy; b) a low level of professionalism and qualification of the Constitutional Commission as well as those involved in the propaganda campaign; and c) an increasing cult of personality of the president. In the coming years, the state and the nation of Uzbekistan will face the essential challenge of overcoming these obstacles or face their further exacerbation.

CONCLUSIONS: The work of the Constitutional Commission was non-transparent and very formal, and in this sense irresponsible from the point of view of national interests. The main law of the country should have been the product of a creative endeavor involving the whole nation.

Solemn and loud nationwide propaganda calling on people not to be indifferent and actively participate in the referendum contrasted with a silent, passive and conformist public opinion on the one hand, and opportunistic political parties and political elites on the other. Notably, Uzbekistan has over the last several years demonstrated significant progress in economic, social, cultural, educational, technological, infrastructural and other reforms, which attracted greater international attention to the country.

However, Uzbekistan cannot boast of any major political reforms, which so far remain very modest and insignificant. After more than thirty years of independence, it could be assumed that the time is ripe for accelerating Uzbekistans democratization, however, this prospect remains very much under question.

Through the theatrical referendum, Uzbekistans Constitution was put to the essential test. Whether the renovated Constitution will really contribute to democratization and acceleration of political reforms in the country remains to be seen. Many of the, so to speak, added values of the Constitution did not constitute improvements to Karimovs Constitution, but rather added new controversies and problems that will remain until the next amendment process in an uncertain future. In all likelihood, real rather than ostentatious improvements of the main law of the country will be left to coming generations.

Dr. Farkhod Tolipov holds a PhD in Political Science and is Director of the Research Institution Knowledge Caravan, Tashkent, Uzbekistan.
Three people were slain in the streets of the English city of Nottingham in early morning attacks yesterday that culminated with the suspect mowing down three pedestrians with a van, leaving one in critical condition, police said.

A 31-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of murder and police said they believe he acted alone. Nottinghamshire Police detectives were working with counterterrorism officers to try to establish a motive.

This is an horrific and tragic incident which has claimed the lives of three people, Chief Constable Kate Meynell said.

Two of the three people killed were students at the University of Nottingham.

We are shocked and devastated by the news, the school said in an announcement.

Students canceled the graduation ball that was scheduled yesterday evening.

Police did not disclose how the three people were killed but said the first attack occurred around dawn when two people were found dead on an inner-city road. A third body was later found on a different street.

Witnesses described a horrifying scene in the city center about 90 minutes later when the van ran into pedestrians at a street corner and then fled.

Lynn Haggitt was on her way to work when a white van pulled up beside her at 5:30 a.m. She saw the driver look in his mirror and spot a police car approaching slowly from behind without its lights on. The driver then accelerated and struck a man and woman at a street corner, she said.

He went straight into them, he didnt even bother to turn, Haggitt told reporters. The woman went on the curb, the man went up in the air, there was such a bang, I wish I never saw it, its really shaken me up.

The driver then sped through the city center with police on his tail, she added.

She said the wounded man appeared to have a head injury but was helped to his feet. The woman was sitting on the curb and appeared to be OK.

The third pedestrian was struck on the same street, police said. All three were hospitalized, with one in critical condition.

We believe these three incidents are all linked and we have a man in custody, Meynell said. We are keeping an open mind as we investigate the circumstances surrounding these incidents and are working alongside Counter Terrorism Policing to establish the facts, as we would normally do in these types of circumstances.

The attacks occurred in at least three different places and the suspect was arrested in a fourth location.

Kane Brady, a student at the University of Nottingham, said he awoke to shouts of armed police and heard what sounded like a gunshot outside.

He said he saw officers holding stun guns and a man being dragged out of the van and pinned on the ground.

I saw him getting arrested, him trying to resist, he told GB News. When they opened the van, I saw a large knife being pulled out and then straight away thats when police closed off both roads.

Photos showed the hood of the van dented and cracks in the windshield.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak called it a shocking incident and asked that police be given time to investigate the crime.

My thoughts are with those injured, and the family and loved ones of those who have lost their lives, Sunak said.

Images on social media showed police, some with rifles, standing near cordons at several locations in the city center.

The citys tram network said it had suspended all services.

Nottingham is a city of about 350,000 people some 110 miles north of London. JILL LAWLESS & BRIAN MELLEY, LONDON, MDT/AP
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Wednesday, June 14, 2023  edition no. 4266
June 29,1932 - June 9,2023

CROSS PLAINS a Doris Corinne Hayes, age 90 of Cross Plains (Mount Horeb) went to her Lord on Friday, June 9, 2023, after succumbing to dementia, with her family by her side. She was born on June 29,1932, on the Broughton homestead in Albany Wis., to Otto and Hazel Sale.

Doris graduated from Black Earth High School in 1950, and shortly after moved to Madison. In 1953 she married Charlton "Chuck" Hayes at Vermont Lutheran Church. Together they had two sons, Charlton "Chuck" IV and Douglas "Doug."

To enhance the family's income, she began working part time while her boys were in school in the early 1960s. While common today, it was quite unusual for the time. In 1971, she and Chuck began a business to provide services to the banking industry where she worked until they sold the business in the 1980s. In 1985 Doris was able to begin working in her dream job as a tour guide at Little Norway in Mount Horeb where she worked for 19 years.

Doris and Chuck were creative supporters of the Madison Scouts Drum and Bugle Corps. She began cooking for the corps training camps in 1969 and was later featured in a State Journal article about what it took to feed 100 or more hungry teens. For years Doris along with other corps mothers tailored and mended uniforms; sewed hundreds of kerchiefs, flags and sashes.

In 1971, Doris and Chuck began a souvenir enterprise to support the corps selling first souvenir pins and later corps t-shirts, and the extremely popular Scout Uniformed Pink Panther. In 1975, Doris and Chuck started a travel business for senior citizens (Golden Badgers) utilizing tour buses owned by the Madison Scouts Drum and Bugle Corps. This not only provided affordable travel for seniors but also generated revenue for the corps when the buses were not needed for the corps summer tours.

Doris was a member of the Vermont Lutheran Church and previous chairwoman of their annual Lutefisk Dinner, a proud and committed member of the Sons of Norway, a member and past president of the Vadres Samband Norwegian heritage organization, a member on the board of directors for the Norwegian American Museum and Genealogical Center, and a member of the Madison Scouts Corps Backers Club.

Doris was known for her unbounded energy which was more than the equal of people half her age. She enjoyed sewing, needle crafting including hardanger embroidery (which she taught) and other traditional Norwegian styles. She was also skilled at rosemaling and especially loved her friend, Elle, visiting from Norway so that they could paint together. She enjoyed travelling around the world but especially to Norway to visit friends and family.

Until being diagnosed with dementia she enjoyed get-ting out with her little motorhome (Fun-Wagon) and camping whenever the mood struck. Even after her husband, Chuck, died she kept up their tradition of 5 O'clock conversation and a Manhattan.

Doris is survived by her two sons, Chuck (wife, Vivian) and Doug (fiancee, Debbie); three grandsons, Ben, Nate and Chris; and many nieces, and nephews. She was preceded in death by her parents; loving husband, Chuck; brothers, Grant and Marlin; and by her sister, Loreen.

Visitation will be held at GUNDERSON CAMACHO MOUNT HOREB FUNERAL AND CREMATION CARE, 500 N. Eight St., Mount Horeb, from 2 p.m. until 6 p.m. on Friday, June 16,2023. A funeral service will be held at VERMONT LUTHERAN CHURCH, 9886 Vermont Church Road, Black Earth, at 10 a.m. on Saturday, June 17,2023, with a reception to follow. In lieu of flowers, please consider donating to the Vermont Lutheran Church, the Vesterheim Museum or Agrace HospiceCare in Doris' name.

Online condolences may be made at www.gundersonfh.com.

Life should not be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well-preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used-up, totally worn-out and loudly proclaiming. ..Uffda 'Whata Ride!"

Gunderson Camacho Mount Horeb Funeral & Cremation Care 500 N. Eighth St. (608) 437-5077
Dua Lipa has been "hurt" by the UK Government's rhetoric towards Albanian migrants.

The 'Levitating' hitmaker was born in London to Kosovan-Albanian parents and hit out at the "small-minded" comments made by ministers such as Home Secretary Suella Braverman, who singled out "Albanian criminals" when discussing immigration last year.

Dua told the Sunday Times newspaper: "Of course it hurt. All those words thrown around about immigrants? I always felt London was an amalgamation of cultures. It is integral to the city. So when you hear the government talk about Albanians, for example, it hurts.

"It's short-sighted and small-minded, but it's the way a lot of people think. No matter how we try and change the rhetoric, there will always be those who think, 'Immigrants are coming into the country and taking jobs!'

"However, immigrants who have come here have earned their keep by working incredibly hard. There needs to be more empathy, because people don't leave their country unless they have to out of necessity, out of fear for their family."

Dua is not afraid to speak up on political issues but is wary of throwing her support behind certain politicians.

The 27-year-old star explained: "As much as I like being vocal about politics all over the world, I'd stay away from politicians.

"I just think more carefully about aligning myself with that aspect now. It's different when I talk about certain rights, but I've realised that no matter how much you want to believe someone is a good guy, they end up letting you down."

Meanwhile, the pop sensation has been delighted by the response to the launch of her book club on her Service95 platform and is thrilled that the project has inspired young people to get reading.

Dua said: "I've had a great response. People say that their kids started reading because I posted about books. Everything is so bitesize now, but reading takes you from that.

"It's cool to encourage younger generations to read, which maybe isn't instilled in them because of social media. I know reading has been on a decline, but I read everywhere."
WASHINGTON  A Virginia man who told his wife  and a federal jury  that he had "fun" at the U.S. Capitol riot was sentenced on Friday to six years in prison for attacking police as he stormed the building.

The Justice Department sought a prison sentence of 15 years and eight months for Markus Maly for his role in the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection.

A prosecutor described Maly, 49, as a "lifelong criminal" with 33 prior convictions on his record, including two for battery of a law enforcement officer. But the judge who sentenced Maly noted that most of his crimes date back to his 20s.

Maly insisted that he merely "occupied space" in the crowd and denied attacking and pepper-spraying police.

The judge said jurors had ample evidence to convict Maly of assaulting police.

"It's not that you were there and 'occupying space.' It's that you did these things and kept doing them that day," the judge told him.

Prosecutors say Maly is one of several Capitol rioters who tried to profit from their notoriety, portraying themselves as patriots, martyrs or political prisoners as they solicit donations from supporters.
McFarlands former village president was charged Monday with first-degree sexual assault of a child for an alleged series of incidents in 2021 and 2022 that involved a 5-year-old.

Bradley P. Czebotar, 74, of McFarland is scheduled to appear in court on July 13.

Czebotar was village president in McFarland from 2012 to 2021, when he decided not to run for reelection. Two years earlier, he was reelected by just two votes.

According to a criminal complaint filed in Dane County Circuit Court:

The Dane County Sheriffs Office was notified in May 2022 after a report of a child being sexually assaulted in McFarland. The 5-year-old victim had told her mother on three occasions that she had been touched inappropriately by a man identified as Czebotar, who had told her he would go to jail if she ever told anyone.

During a forensic interview at Safe Harbor Child Advocacy Center, the girl said Czebotar referred to the act as a magic trick.

The girl said she decided to tell someone about the incidents because she thought if she didnt, it would get worse.

An attorney for Czebotar did not immediately respond to an email message left Tuesday.

If convicted, the charge carries up to 60 years of combined prison and extended supervision.

Who are they? WI children reported missing as of May 6 These are recent reports of missing children made to local law enforcement. If you think you have seen a missing child, contact the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children at 1-800-THE-LOST (1-800-843-5678).
Madison police said Tuesday they are seeking public help in identifying the suspect in a battery on the Far East Side earlier this month.

The man in the accompanying picture hit a woman in the back of the head, knocking her to the ground, as they got off a bus in front of East Towne Mall on June 4, police said.

Police ask anyone who can help in identifying the man contact Madison Area Crime Stoppers at 608-266-6014 or online at P3Tips.com. Individuals contacting Crime Stoppers can receive a reward of up to $1,000 for tips that lead to an arrest.
To some its a dream job: getting paid to taste cheese and pizza. And since the part-time job posting went viral, the Center for Dairy Research at UW-Madison has had about 135 people apply for five positions.

Not that its not a good job or anything, but I think sometimes people see us as fanciful. Its just eating cheese, said Brandon Prochaska, the centers sensory coordinator.

But when people see us operate, theyre kind of impressed with how intensive it is, how quickly we can evaluate things, he said.

Dream Job? Here's Your Chance To Get Hired As A Professional Cheese Tasterhttps://t.co/V5JpZixjOO#cheesetaster #dreamjob  NDTV Food (@NDTVFood) June 12, 2023

The tasters consider 15 to 20 attributes of a pizza, he said. Not just whether it tastes good or bad, but everything from its appearance to how it stretches, flows and blisters.

Sometimes theyll evaluate two pizzas at a time, one thats cooling down and another right out of the oven, Prochaska said.

The center is looking to boost its pool of about 15 dairy testers, who get paid $15 per hour for a gig thats usually about seven hours a week, he said.

The testers could also possibly evaluate butter, milk, cheese powder and yogurt, Prochaska said.

We pretty much cover just about any dairy product, he said. Ice cream tends to be the exception because UW-Madisons food science department has expertise in that area.

The application period opened June 2 and closes June 21. After that, the center will conduct interviews.

The posting says the center is looking for people passionate about all types of foods, but especially cheese, pizza and other dairy products.

I will only accept this post if my official title is Cheese Taster Laureate. https://t.co/B6EGrlfUdL  Scott Eberhardy (@scotteber) June 10, 2023

New hires will be trained to describe appearance, texture, taste and aroma for research and product development purposes, the post says.

Panelists should expect to be tasting up to 24 cheese samples and 12 pizzas a week along with other foods, the ad says. Tasters need to be available for up to three sessions a week with each session lasting about three hours.

Mark Johnson, a senior scientist at the center, said tasters spit out the cheese products after sampling them.

You have to cleanse a palate basically between samples and if you swallow it, youre going to maybe regurgitate a little bit of that, plus you get full, he said.

Also, some of the samples simply arent that good, Johnson said. He compared the tasting job to a cheese contest where the judges always spit out their samples without eating them.

Shelby Anderson, a spokesperson for the center, said so far the posting has gotten attention from at least 15 media markets, including Tampa, Florida; Chicago; Cleveland; and one in India. CNN and NBC have also covered it.

Prochaska said some of the tasters are students who graduate, and some are external people who leave for one reason or another.

The position has been posted three times before, but this is the first time there has been this level of interest, he said.

Prochaska said new hires arent expected to be expert tasters or have had previous experience. They just need the right level of interest, the right attitude and availability, he said. The center trains the tasters and gives them the skills they need.

There are specialized scales and terminology that we use that people probably havent been exposed to before, but they learn all of that as they go along, he said.

The training phase generally lasts about three months, Prochaska said. He loves training people to be tasters and also works as a tester himself.

To get paid to taste stuff, to me thats the dream job, he said. Things that taste as delicious as cheese and pizza  its hard to turn that down.

Take a look at 'Immersive Van Gogh'
WASHINGTON  U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken will travel to China this weekend as part of the Biden administration's push to repair deteriorating ties between Washington and Beijing and keep lines of communication open, the State Department said Wednesday.

Blinken will be the most senior U.S. official to visit China since President Joe Biden took office. His visit was initially planned for early this year but was postponed indefinitely after the discovery and shootdown of what the U.S. said was a Chinese spy balloon over the United States.

Since then, however, there have been lower-level engagements between the U.S. and China despite ongoing hostility and recriminations over both sides' actions in the Taiwan Strait, the South China Sea, China's refusal to condemn Russia for its war against Ukraine, and Washington's allegations that Beijing is trying to boost its worldwide surveillance capabilities, including in Cuba.

The State Department said Blinken spoke to his Chinese counterpart, Foreign Minister Qin Gang, Tuesday night to confirm his trip, which will begin on Sunday. Blinken will leave Washington late Friday.

"While in Beijing, Secretary Blinken will meet with senior PRC officials where he will discuss the importance of maintaining open lines of communication to responsibly manage the U.S.-PRC relationship," the department said, using the acronym for the People's Republic of China. "He will also raise bilateral issues of concern, global and regional matters, and potential cooperation on shared transnational challenges."

Two senior U.S. officials downplayed the prospects for a significant breakthrough on the wide array of problems between the countries during Blinken's visit. Instead, they said it is aimed at restoring a sense of calm and normalcy to high-level contacts.

"This is a really critical series of engagements that we'll have in Beijing at a crucial time in the relationship that we again hope will, at a minimum, reduce the risk of miscalculation so that we do not veer into potential conflict," said Daniel Kritenbrink, the top U.S. diplomat for East Asia and the Pacific.

"We're not going to Beijing with the intent of having some sort of breakthrough or transformation in the way that we deal with one another," he said. "We're coming to Beijing with a realistic, confident approach and a sincere desire to manage our competition in the most responsible way possible."

"We're clear-eyed about the PRC," said Kurt Campbell, the top Asia expert at the National Security Council. "We know efforts to shape or reform China over several decades have failed and we expect China to be around and to be a major player on the world stage for the rest of our lifetimes.

"As the competition continues, the PRC will take provocative steps  from the Taiwan Strait to Cuba  and we will push back," Campbell said. "But intense competition requires intense diplomacy if we're going to manage tensions. That is the only way to clear up misperceptions, to signal, to communicate, and to work together where and when our interests align."

In its readout of the Blinken-Qin phone call, China's foreign ministry said Qin urged the United States to respect "China's core concerns" such as the issue of Taiwan's self-rule, "stop interfering in China's internal affairs, and stop harming China's sovereignty, security and development interests in the name of competition."

Blinken, who will be the first secretary of state to visit China since 2018, expects to meet with Qin on Sunday, as well as China's top diplomat, Wang Yi, and possibly Chinese President Xi Jinping on Monday, according to U.S. officials.

The trip will take place amid myriad complications in U.S.-China relations, which steadily declined dating back to the Trump administration, starting with trade and industrial espionage.

Those concerns grew rapidly to include human rights concerns over the treatment of Uyghur Muslims and other minorities in China's western region of Xinjang, Hong Kong, Tibet, and increasing Chinese aggressiveness toward Taiwan, and then escalated over questions about the origin of the COVID-19 virus.

Blinken's visit came out of a meeting in Bali last year between Xi and Biden, who agreed that the world's two largest economies must remain in contact and take precautions to ensure there are no miscalculations in their global rivalry that could lead to conflict.

The trip came within a day of happening in February but was delayed after the spy balloon incident. Beijing insists the craft was a weather balloon that strayed off course.

Contacts after that took place, but they have been rare as tensions have risen over China's conduct in the South China Sea, aggressive actions toward Taiwan and support for Russia's war against Ukraine.

This month, China's defense minister rebuffed a request from U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin for a meeting on the sidelines of a security symposium in Singapore.

However, shortly after postponing his trip to Beijing, Blinken met briefly with Wang at the Munich Security Conference in Germany. CIA chief William Burns traveled to China in May, while China's commerce minister traveled to the U.S. Biden's national security adviser Jake Sullivan met with Wang in Vienna in early May.

More recently, the top U.S. diplomat for the Asia-Pacific region, Daniel Kritenbrink, traveled to China last week along with a senior National Security Council official to finalize details of Blinken's trip.

Photos: US rebuilding military presence in Philippines Philippines US Military Philippines US Military Philippines US Military Philippines US Military Philippines US Military Philippines US Military Philippines US Military Philippines US Military Philippines US Military Return Philippines US Military Philippines US Military Philippines US Military Philippines US Military Philippines US Military Philippines US Military Philippines US Military Philippines US Military Philippines US Military Philippines US Military Philippines US Military
Kenosha police continue to investigate multiple shootings after three people turned up at separate local hospitals with gunshot wounds late Tuesday.

One of the three, a 19-year-old man, died before he could be flown to Milwaukee for treatment. Police said he was killed in a presumed homicide.

The incident was reported at around 10:10 p.m. with men facing gunshot wounds arriving at Aurora Medical Center.

One of the men was the 19-year-old who died and the other was a 21-year-old who was transported to a Milwaukee-area hospital with serious but non-life-threatening injuries.

Later, a second vehicle from the same incident arrived at Froedtert Pleasant Prairie Hospital with a 20-year-old man facing gunshot injuries.

The 20-year-olds injuries are not life-threatening, according to police.

Officers were on the scene late Tuesday in and around the 2200 block of 60th Street, according to police radio traffic at the time. Officers canvassing the area noted several people in the area heard multiple gunshots.

The parking lot of the Grace Lutheran Church was blocked by police tape Wednesday morning and afternoon, and multiple officers were canvassing the area. Along with officers interviewing residents, a K-9 unit was going house to house Wednesday morning.

Church officials said they were informed by police that there may have been a shooting in the church parking lot. No church or food pantry activities were scheduled for Wednesday, according to Interim Pastor Stephen Gifford.

In a media release Wednesday morning Public Information Officer Lt. Joseph Nosalik said there has been little to no cooperation regarding the Tuesday night incident among those involved. No one is in custody.

Kenosha, we cannot accept that disputes will be solved by gunfire and we must hold those accountable who are responsible for the shootings. Police need your help, Nosalik said. Our children, our families, deserve to live in this city without having to worry about when and where another shooting will be. We need to work together to be able to do this.

Anyone with information is asked to contact the Kenosha Police Departments Detective Bureau at 262-605-5203. Those who wish to remain anonymous can contact Kenosha Area Crime Stoppers at 262-656-7333.

Neighbors react

Area resident Robert Jorgensen said the sounds of gunfire woke him up Tuesday night.

The noise woke me up, Jorgensen said. I came out on the porch and the police department was everywhere.

Jorgensen said he saw about 20 officers responding to the area after the shootings. Jorgensen said some of people he believed had information regarding the incident didnt want to cooperate with the police department.

This is not a good neighborhood, Jorgensen said. I heard one say to the officer we do not want to talk with you.

Jorgensen said he then went back inside his apartment.

An area resident named Debra, who declined to give her last name, said she often uses the bus stop in front of Grace Lutheran.

Its sad and it doesnt make sense to be that close, Debra said. I go over there to catch bus. ... I dont get it. I just dont get it. Its sad.

One longtime area resident who wished to remain anonymous said she hopes there isnt a rise in gun violence this summer.

Where are these guns coming from? the woman said.

This was the second incident in less than a week involving shootings with multiple victims.

At 1:30 a.m. Sunday, police officers patrolling the area responded to gunfire with shooting victims in the 6800 block of 26th Avenue. One victim at the scene had a gunshot wound in an upper extremity. A second gunshot victim self transported to a local hospital. Both victims had injuries that were not life-threatening, according to police.

About nine hours later, Illinois authorities notified Kenosha police of a gunshot victim at an Illinois hospital who may have been shot in the Sunday crime scene, according to police.
After months of discussion, culminating in last week's bipartisan agreement between the state's Democratic governor and GOP legislative leaders, the state Legislature on Wednesday approved an extensive bill to increase state aid to local communities across Wisconsin.

The measure, which would boost state funding using a portion of the state's 5% sales tax, passed the Senate with a 21-12, with five Democrats and seven Republicans opposed. It then passed the Assembly 68-26, with five Republicans and 21 Democrats opposed.

The measure will now head to Gov. Tony Evers, who will almost certainly sign it into law.

The local aid bill, as well as a separate bill increasing education funding, were forged as part of the deal last week between the Legislature's GOP leaders and Evers to increase local aid, also known as shared revenue.

Speaking with WTMJ-AM Wednesday morning, Evers said the final agreement is "really, really important" for Milwaukee and Milwaukee County.

Evers said it's likely some Democratic lawmakers would oppose the bill, but he added, "at the end of the day, it's the right thing."

"Its a win for Wisconsin and its the right thing to do," Evers added. "Everybody gave some and thats the way its supposed to work in a divided government."

Democratic lawmakers pushed back against several policy items included in the extensive bill, including measures to bar local governments from putting advisory referendums before voters and another barring local health officials from closing a business for more than 30 days to help control an outbreak or epidemic.

"This Frankensteins monster of a bill should be slaughtered today," Sen. Chris Larson, D-Milwaukee, said. Larson was joined by fellow Democratic Sens. Tim Carpenter and Lena Taylor, of Milwaukee, Dianne Hesselbein, of Middleton, and Kelda Roys, of Madison in opposing the bill.

GOP Sens. Julian Bradley, of Franklin, Robert Cowles, of Green Bay, Rob Hutton, of Brookfield, Andre Jacque, of De Pere, Chris Kapenga, of Delafield, Steve Nass, of Whitewater, and Rob Stafsholt, of New Richmond, also voted against the bill.

Jacque said in a statement he opposed the bill due in part to "backroom deals that ostensibly bail out Milwaukee after decades of fiscal mismanagement."

"In the end, that was too high a price to pay for me to support this legislation," he added.

The Assembly Republicans who voted against the bill are Reps. Ty Bodden, of Hilbert, Janel Brandtjen, of Menomonee Falls, Tom Michalski, of Elm Grove, Jessie Rodriguez, of Oak Creek, and Chuck Wichgers, of Muskego.

Thirteen Assembly Democrats voted for the bill, with 21 opposed.

The Senate and Assembly on Wednesday also passed a separate education bill, which proposes several spending boosts, including per-pupil aid increases for school choice and independent charter schools and increases to the minimum per-pupil revenue limit for school districts, from $10,000 to $11,000.

The agreement last week on the two proposals was announced one day after the Legislature's top Republicans said they would remove provisions allowing Milwaukee and Milwaukee County to increase their sales taxes to fund pension debt from the local funding measure unless they reached a deal on it with Evers.

The question over whether Milwaukee and Milwaukee County voters or elected officials should have final say on local sales tax increases to address mounting pension obligations became a sticking point between Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, R-Rochester, and Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu, R-Oostburg

The original proposal required city and county voters to approve the tax increases, something that Vos supported but Evers and LeMahieu were against, preferring to have local officials vote on any increases.

Ultimately, both GOP leaders and the governor agreed to allow the city and county officials to raise local sales taxes if they approve the measures with a two-thirds majority.

The revised proposal also allows Milwaukee County to increase its 0.5% sales tax by 0.4 percentage points, while Milwaukee could impose a 2% sales tax.

Vos said the deal to increase per-pupil private voucher funding  giving K-8 students an $1,101 increase and giving high school students nearly a $3,000 increase  helped persuade him to remove the public referendum requirement in Milwaukee.

To help support local governments, the state would divert 20% of the state's 5% sales tax to all local communities. Republicans have been adamant those funds must be directed to local services like police, fire and emergency services.

Wisconsin's shared revenue program was created in 1911 and initially provided local municipalities 70% of state income tax collections, while counties and the state received the remaining 20% and 10%, respectively.
Wisconsin families devote a significant share of their income to child care and that could increase as federal aid to support child care centers runs out, according to a report on child well-being released Wednesday.

The annual Kids Count report by the Annie E. Casey Foundation found that the average annual cost for center-based child care in Wisconsin is $12,415. That is 11% of the median income of married couples and 36% of the median income of single mothers.

Wisconsin has the 18th-highest annual center-based child care costs in the United States, the report found.

Federal funding that provided more than $300 million to support child care centers during the COVID-19 pandemic dropped to $90 million this month and will end in 2024.

The program funds extra pay for staff and center operating costs.

As the federal money expires, child care centers could raise their tuition and further burden parents, said Ruth Schmidt, executive director at the nonprofit Wisconsin Early Childhood Association.

When youre removing millions of dollars of monthly revenue, that money has to be made up in some place, Schmidt said.

One child care center, which formerly received $47,000 in monthly funding through the Child Care Counts program, saw its funding reduced in early June and it will be soon be zeroed out entirely, she added.

A survey released in December of 1,173 Wisconsin child care providers found that 27.1% of providers said they would have to close without their current financial support.

Joyce Hall, a single mother of seven who lives on Madisons East Side, receives government support for five of her children, ages 2 through 11, to attend child care. But every few months she has to pay a $700 to $800 copay, which she said is difficult to afford along with other costs such as food.

Its a struggle to find child care, Hall said. I think its gotten worse, for myself and people I speak to.

Hall works at local nonprofit Freedom Inc. and as a real estate agent to pay for her familys costs, she said. She added that she has to take into account both cost and distance from her house when searching for new child care options. Her children go to child care on the South Side, and Hall often has to leave work early to pick them up.

The government needs to give more control to the parents and make child care more accessible if funding is available, she said. Its failing, especially in the Black community.

The report also found that problems with child care systems on a national level disproportionately affect the financial well-being of families of color, including immigrant families.

Evers plan

Gov. Tony Evers has earmarked $340 million in his proposed 2023-25 budget to continue the Child Care Counts program. But it is uncertain if that funding will make it into the final budget, Schmidt said.

The state has for years faced a child care shortage that worsened during the pandemic. Prior to the pandemic, there were 57 child care slots for every 100 children with parents working outside the home, according to a UW-Madison report. The number of statewide slots decreased by 17.4% during the pandemic.

And the states child care industry has already been experiencing major staffing shortages. The December survey found that 63.3% of Wisconsin centers were experiencing staffing shortages, with 79.8% of workers facing burnout and exhaustion.

Uphill battle

If the state Legislature is unable to include adequate funding for child care centers to replace the federal program, centers could face staff shortages and other problems, Schmidt said. Those could include a reduction or removal of bonuses, higher turnover and an inability to hire additional staff.

This is a huge uphill battle, said Schmidt. While the money is there in Wisconsin, the question is whether there is enough political will.

The child advocacy organization Kids Forward noted that the median pay for child care workers in Wisconsin is $12.66 an hour.

The child care crisis in Wisconsin has reached a boiling-over point, Michele Mackey, CEO of the Wisconsin advocacy group Kids Forward, said in a statement. If the state Legislature wants to address the hiring shortage, they need to start with ensuring accessible and affordable child care.

The Legislatures Joint Committee on Finance is scheduled to take up the budget for the Department of Children and Families on Thursday.

The Kids Count report ranked Wisconsin 10th in economic well-being for children, seventh in education, 16th in health, and 18th in family and community. Despite the high ranking in education, the report found that 55% of children ages 3 and 4 were not in school, 64% of fourth-graders were not proficient in reading and 59% of eighth-graders were not proficient in math. All of those scores were worse than in the last Kids Count report.

About 1 in 3 child care workers are going hungry About 1 in 3 child care workers are going hungry
While its not final just yet, the Legislatures Joint Committee on Finance has voted to support funding for the new Science and Heath Sciences Building for UW-Eau Claire.

Its about time.

The vote should have happened several years ago, and the delays will cost Wisconsin taxpayers. The $231.3 million needed to finish the project is far more than it needed to be, had legislators followed through and funded the second portion of the project more promptly.

Legislators previously allocated $110 million for the building, with the rest pending. No one can accuse the Legislature of being hasty in its second vote. What initially looked like something close to a 50-50 allocation ballooned, with the second part skyrocketing along with construction costs. The delays became an undeniably costly blunder by the Legislature.

Chancellor James Schmidt surely shares that frustration, though you didnt heard that from him when the vote went through. He said he was sincerely grateful for the allocation. Thats good politics, and its probably also true. But you have to think there was a considerable measure of relief under the surface.

Phillips Hall is six decades old. It dates to a time when many of todays approaches in science were in their infancy, if they existed at all. The scope of scientific progress in the past few decades is remarkable. It means what once was a perfectly usable facility doesnt meet todays needs.

Local legislators always supported the project, and they deserve credit for that. It didnt matter which party they were from. Their actions were always favorable to the work that remained and, while it would have been nice if they could have carried their colleagues along, thats not always the way politics works.

Work is scheduled to begin next year. It will mark a new beginning for the universitys science studies, one that is important for the schools hopes for attracting students and outstanding educators.

When completed, the five-story building will feature a top-floor greenhouse and space for the universitys various science programs. Thats more important than it sounds. Theres a tendency to think of science as monolithic. After all, the classrooms that served us in our high school years were flexible enough to handle everything from chemistry to biology.

But the reality is that the deeper studies become the more specialized their approach must be. Space set up for a biochemistry class might not be the right place for a scanning electron microscope. Being able to design the spaces for their needs right from the start will clearly be to the departments advantage.

UWEC isnt the only area university celebrating. UW-Stout received funding in the vote for the Heritage Hall renovations. That was among the universitys top priorities, and near the top for the system as a whole.

The university said Heritage Halls renovations will allow UW-Stout to double the number of students who study in it. Thats significant. The university likes to point out that it is the only polytechnic university in Wisconsins system, and that creates opportunities and approaches that are unique to it.

A strong educational system is essential to a modern economy. Virtually every job has been altered, some beyond recognition, but technologys advance. Staying ahead of that curve, or at least not too far behind, requires strong educational resources. This funding is a step in that direction for northwestern Wisconsin, and were glad to see it.

Even if it was later than hoped.
Jan. 23,1934-June 9,2023

MADISON-Thomas Haskell Garver, of Madison, Wl, age 89, died on June 9,2023, in Madison, Wl.

He is survived by a brother, John T. Garver, of Central Point, OR.

"Tom Garver was born in Du-luth, MN, on January 23,1934. He attended high school at the North Shore Country Day School in Winnetka, IL, received his BA from Haverford College, Haverford, PA, an MA in history of art from the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities; and worked as a curator and director of several American art museums for almost 30 years.

He served as an assistant director of the Fine Arts Exhibitions of the Seattle World's Fair in 1962, and subsequently became assistant director of the Rose Art Museum at Brandeis University, Waltham, MA. In 1968, Tom became the founding director of the Newport Harbor Art Museum (now Orange County Museum of Art) in California, a museum he was to run twice, with a five-year period between as curator of exhibitions at the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco,

In 1980, Tom moved to Madison to assume the directorship of the Madison Art Center (now Madison Museum of Contemporary Art). He left that position in 1987, subsequently pursuing many contemporary art related projects which included organizing art exhibitions for several American art museums as well as building (with Natasha Nicholson) the art collection of the former Rayovac Corporation, a company for which he also worked as consulting archivist.

From 1994 to 2001, Tom served as business agent to the late American photographer, 0. Winston Link, who was best known for his photographs of the last years of American steam railroading. Following Link's death, Tom became the organizing curator of the 0. Winston Link Museum in Roanoke, VA, which opened in 2004. Tom worked as an assistant to Winston Link in New York City in the mid-1950s and wrote and lectured on Link's work throughout the United States for many years.

Tom Garver was the author of two books, a monograph on the paintings of the late George Tooker, and the other on the railroad photos of Winston Link. He wrote introductions for several other books on American art and photography in addition to more than 50 catalogue essays for exhibitions of American art and photography. He also wrote articles on art, historical technology and numismatic (commemorative) medals which were published in several national magazines.

At Tom's request, there will be no funeral or memorial service, but a friend will travel to San Francisco with a thimbleful of his ashes which will be sent into the air from the center span of the Golden Gate Bridge, a structure Tom regarded as being one the few creations of humankind which truly complement and enhance its natural environment."

The above was written by Tom in August of 2020. Those who love him wish to add, at this time of his passing:

Tom was wicked funny, in an offhand and deadpan way that cracked people up. He was intensely protective, loyal, and generous to his loved ones. He was always thinking creatively about ways he could benefit the lives of others, especially young people, and right up to the end was devoted to projects in that vein, including organizing an ongoing video biography course in a local alternative high school, and had a pending proposal to create an arts incubator in another local school. He also volunteered at Second Harvest food bank and Agrace Hospice.

He was a fixture and active participant in his church, First Unitarian Society of Madison-as much for its Frank Lloyd Wright history and aesthetic as for its commitment to social justice.

He was a board member of Wright in Wisconsin, the sponsor of the annual FLLW "Wright and Like" tour. He served on the City of Madison's Alcohol License Review Committee and would sometimes ride with police officers at bar time to see how things were at closing time.

His travels, consultancies, friends, and acquaintances in the art world and beyond gave him international and enduring friendships, and LOTS of great stories.

He was intensely interested in analog machinery, inspired by Winston Link but spreading to fascination with antique cameras, clocks, and surveying equipment. He belonged to organizations devoted to these interests and published in their journals.

He loved Bach pipe organ music (another analog machine) as well as French organ literature. He was a member of the Organ Historical Society. He loved orchids and tended dozens. He loved saucer magnolias and spent hours in the Arboretum in May watching them bud, bloom, and fade.

A bright light has gone out in the world. Tom will be profoundly missed as he was greatly loved.
TWIN FALLS  The World War II bombers have landed and the stunt pilots are headed this way.

The airshow set for Saturday is all coming together, and organizer Jim ODonnell is flying high.

Its good to see it, said ODonnell, co-chair of the group Joslin Field Celebration Inc. He hasnt done it himself, having re-joined the group last year after recovering from some health problems.

But he has been busy, even on Tuesday, having a 6 a.m. meeting as various loose ends are tied up. Hes confident the Saturday show will be one to remember.

I think it will be an exciting show for people to watch, ODonnell said. And we have good support from our sponsorships.

Those sponsorships have kept the cost low. There is no admission charge, and a parking pass can be purchased online for $10.

Organizers have lined up act after high-flying act  and not just planes. Representatives from two skydiving teams will be there to show their skills.

The theme of the event is a salute to the airport itself. Its a celebration of its 75 years of operation, and the official name of the airshow is Joslin Field Celebration.

The day of its dedication in 1948, there were bands, crowds, dignitaries and, of course, airplanes.

The same four elements will be there on Saturday.

Joslin Field, Magic Valley Regional Airport, is named after Sgt. Raymond Ralph Joslin, the first airman in Twin Falls County killed during World War II. He was part of a B-17 crew that was shot down in 1942 over the Solomon Islands.

Because of that tie-in, ODonnell was grateful when the Commemorative Air Force, a nonprofit that has been a major force in keeping vintage warbirds flying, agreed to bring their B-17, named Sentimental Journey.

Its special, being one of just four B-17s that are in flyable condition.

That is pretty impressive when you think about it, ODonnell said.

In addition to the B-17, the CAF has also flown in its B-25. Named Maid in the Shade, it flew 13 combat missions over Italy and two over Yugoslavia. Local residents might recognize it as it has been here before, but the B-17 is in Twin Falls for the first time.

The two aircraft flew into Joslin Field on Monday and a welcoming ceremony was held afterward. People can book flights on the aircraft through Sunday.

Visitors to Joslin Field have passed by the Lockheed T-33 Shooting Star, displayed on a pedestal, as they enter the airport property. Appropriately, Greg Colyer, a pilot from San Francisco, will be in town to fly his T-33, ODonnell said, and another T-33 will be on display.

Another key piece of Joslin Field is the Douglas DC-3. A pair of the aircraft were at the airport on May 1, 1948, when United and Empire airlines kicked off commercial air service to Joslin Field.

A Times-News article from that date details how 4,000 shivering people, cold because of a snow squall, gathered at the airfield that day to mark the date, reportedly the first time in aeronautic history when two major airlines opened commercial flight service from the same airport on the same day.

Both airlines flew in DC-3s to mark the occasion, and Joslins parents attended the event.

There was music as well during that cold day. To give tribute to that, the Twin Falls Municipal Band will perform for an hour before the airshow.

The airshow begins at noon and will end at 3 p.m. Heres a rundown of some of the performers:

Nathan Hammond

started flying the DeHaviland Chipmunk, known as GhostWriter, in 1998, quickly learning the techniques and nuances of skywriting and airshow flying. The skywriting of Hammond has received recognition on National TV, USA Today, and major news outlets for his aerial displays at airshows, festivals, and sporting events. Hammond flies the GhostWriter in an action-packed routine full of loops, rolls, and verticals, held tightly in front of the crowd. He is the recipient of the 2023 Bill Barber Award for Showmanship, making him among the best in the world, O'Donnell said.

Melissa Dawn Burns

will perform powerful aerobatics in her Edge 540. She is a professional aerobatic pilot, world record holder skydiver and world champion BASE Jumper. A four-time member of the US Unlimited Aerobatic Team, Burns is the top-ranked female competition pilot in the United States and has ranked top 3 in the world.

Mark Peterson

, who started flying at the age of 6 in a Piper Cherokee Arrow with his father, Ed, is expected to perform in his P-51 Mustang. He acquired the aircraft in 2005, and since then, Mark has accumulated more than 1,700 hours in warbirds and strengthened his love and admiration for the aircraft.

Danny Sorensen

will perform with his one-of-a-kind biplane, the BF9-2, that he designed and built himself. It is the only plane of its kind on the airshow circuit. In addition to its unique design, the plane also has some autographs, including that of the Candy Bomber Col. Gail Seymour, who dropped candy from his plane to German children during the Berline airlift from 1948-49.

Brad Wursten

is a breakout star in the airshow industry and has has logged nearly 4,000 hours in 50 different types of aircraft. His airshow performance is jam packed with one-of-a-kind stunts and maneuvers exclusive to his act.

In addition to performers, there will be lots of static displays and aircraft exhibits, many of them with tie-ins to Joslin Field, ODonnell said. An F-15 from Mountain Home Air Force Base will also be on display and perform a fly-by.

Your news on your smartphone Your story lives in the Magic Valley, and our new mobile app is designed to make sure you dont miss breaking news, the latest scores, the weather forecast and more. From easy navigation with the swipe of a finger to personalized content based on your preferences to customized text sizes, the Times-News app is built for you and your life. Dont have the app? Download it today from the Apple App Store or Google Play Store.

Maid in the Shade: Flying museum keeps WWII memories alive A deafening roar replaced the sputtering as Brown revved the 1,700-horsepower engines and spun the old girl at the end of the runway.
Mountain lions continue to be active in the Wood River Valley.

Idaho Departments of Fish and Game officers from the Magic Valley region were contacted on Monday after a domestic goat was found killed and cached by a mountain lion near a residence south of Bellevue. The owners of the residence raise livestock on their property, and the goat was found cached in one of their outbuildings.

Following the report, Fish and Game officials made the decision to deploy a trap for the lion because it had preyed on livestock in proximity to a residential area.

The area where the attack occurred has had several mountain lion sightings and at least one encounter with a resident over the last several months.

On Monday evening, a mountain lion trap was deployed at the location where the goat was found.

Early on Tuesday morning, a juvenile male mountain lion, estimated to be 18 months old and independent of a female lion, was trapped and then euthanized by Fish and Game officers.

Weve been learning from other states and Canadian provinces that juvenile or sub-adult mountain lions are more commonly involved in human-wildlife conflicts, according to Regional Wildlife Manager Mike McDonald. Based on anecdotal information weve gained from the number of reports and sightings throughout the Wood River Valley we suspect we have a healthy population of juvenile lions throughout the area.

Since Jan. 1, the Magic Valley Region has recorded nearly 60 reports of lions, primarily in Hailey and Bellevue.

While the majority of the mountain lion reports have been in the winter, there continues to be reports of lions in Hailey and Bellevue.

If a person encounters a lion, they should remember these safety tips:

Never run away from a mountain lion. The lions instinct is to chase and ultimately catch what they perceive as a potential prey.

Never turn your back on a lion. Always face them while making yourself look as large as you can. Yell, but dont scream. A high-pitched scream may mimic the sound of a wounded animal.

Slowly back away while maintaining eye contact with the lion.

Safety equipment you may choose to carry could include bear spray, a noise device, like an air horn, and if you walk in the dark, a very bright flashlight.

If you are attacked, fight back!

When lions or any other wildlife becomes a public safety issue, the most humane and responsible option, particularly when dealing with predators, is often to euthanize it, but that isnt a decision that Fish and Game staff takes lightly.

Our Fish and Game staff, working with Wood River Valley partners has put a significant amount of energy into education and outreach about how residents and visitors can be responsible and safe when around wildlife Magic Valley Regional Supervisor Craig White said. As wildlife biologists, we dedicate our careers to managing healthy and robust wildlife populations, and the last thing we want to do is euthanize an animal.

Residents are encouraged to notify Fish and Game if you see a mountain lion within your community or neighborhood.

If a person is attacked or a lion shows aggression towards a person that should be immediately reported by calling 911. If a person has any encounter with an aggressive lion or if a pet or livestock is attacked, that should be immediately reported to the Magic Valley Regional Office at 208-324-4359.

Two young mountain lions from bobcat traps south of Twin Falls From Idaho Fish and Game: Our conservation officers received a call to assist a trapper who had incidentally caught two young mountain lions i
CSI to host writing conference in October

The College of Southern Idaho will host a writing conference this fall to showcase the talents of Idaho high school and undergraduate college students.

The Writing Matters Conference, set for Oct. 5-7, is modeled after the National Undergraduate Literature Conference held each year at Weber State University, according to a news release from the school.

The CSI Department of English, Languages, and Philosophy is serious about building learners acuity in the arts of ready and writing, Dr. Clark Draney, a CSI distinguished professor of English, said in the release. We are very interested in giving Idahos aspiring writers those kinds of experiences and bringing their best selves to the discussion about why writing matters.

Students can submit their original work through Aug. 18 online at https://www.csi.edu/writing-matters/submissions.aspx. All forms of work  personal essays, literary criticism, short stories, poetry and short documentary films on literary topics  will be accepted. Applications may be submitted in English or Spanish and dual enrollment students across Idaho are also encouraged to submit their work.

For more information, call Draney at 208-732-6810 or email cdraney@csi.edu.

First Federal raises $17,600 for local charities

First Federal Bank raised $17,600 for local charities during its fifth annual Magic Valley Rock, Paper, Scissors Tournament of Champions at the Twin Falls Downtown Commons.

The winners:

First place  Andra Johnson, Harris CPAs, $10,000 for Broken Hearts Rescue

Second place  Amy Box, A Box of Barks, $4,000 for Friends Furever Animal Rescue

Third place  Jennifer Cook, Farm Bureau Insurance, $2,000 for Valley House Homeless Shelter

Fourth place  Jade Sparrow, The Ellis Team at Farm Bureau, $1,000 for Jae Foundation

Best introduction  Tyler Skidmore, 208 Real Estate, $600 for Rising Stars Therapeutic Riding Center

I still cant believe that I won! Not a bad gig to make $10,000 in three hours for a good cause, Johnson said in a news release. Im thrilled to know this gives the organization the ability to change the lives and outcomes for many small pets.

Also:

The Region IV Development Association , which serves the eight-country region of the Magic Valley, will host a workforce housing symposium on Thursday, June 29, beginning at 10 a.m., at the Herrett Center on the campus of the College of Southern Idaho. For more information, call 208-732-5727 or go online to www.RIVDA.org.

, which serves the eight-country region of the Magic Valley, will host a workforce housing symposium on Thursday, June 29, beginning at 10 a.m., at the Herrett Center on the campus of the College of Southern Idaho. For more information, call 208-732-5727 or go online to www.RIVDA.org. The average price for a gallon of gasoline in Idaho opened the week at $3.97, up eight cents from a week ago, 22 cents from a month ago and the 10th-highest price in the United States, according to AAA Idaho. The national average, meanwhile, was at $3.59.

 Times-News
We made history for the second time when former President Donald Trump was arraigned on Tuesday in federal court in Miami on 37 counts related to him (allegedly) taking, hiding and then lying about his possession of classified documents.

Its the first time in history a former president has been charged with federal crimes. This follows his arrest and arraignment earlier this year in New York City, where he faces multiple counts related to falsifying business records and violating campaign finance laws.

I will repeat what I said after Trumps first arrest: This is not a time for anger or rejoicing. It should be a time of somber reflection that we are at a point in our nations history where a former president is being credibly charged with crimes in two different states. More trouble could be on the way in Georgia and Washington, D.C.

It should also be a time where Americans take an objective look at the facts  of which there are plenty of in the classified documents case. If you have not read the 49-page indictment, I feel its your duty as a citizen to do so. These were not some willy-nilly classified documents detailing evacuation procedures in Yellowstone National Park. These were top-secret files dealing with nuclear arsenals and war plans. Heavy stuff.

Furthermore, the criminal complaint is filed under oath, and the allegations carefully considered by the prosecuting attorney. In addition, this document is a so-called speaking indictment which means it goes into great detail about the facts that led to the charges. Whether you want to believe the allegations or not, the indictment is the product of a meticulous investigation that will, likely, find its way before a jury.

Until then, Donald Trump is considered innocent until proven otherwise (he pleaded not guilty to all charges on Tuesday) and he will be afforded all rights available to Americans under our judicial system. All of that is as it should be.

But enough of the sober talk. Whether youve read the indictment or not (Im guessing you havent), many of you no doubt believe the fix has been in against Trump from the very beginning. If it is, this is one of the worst fixes in recent memory.

Quote I will repeat what I said after Trumps first arrest: This is not a time for anger or rejoicing. It should be a time of somber reflection ...

For starters, the special counsel bringing the charges filed the case in south Florida instead of Washington, D.C. If the fix were in, this case never would have left the Beltway where fully 90% of voters chose Joe Biden for president. The jury pool in South Florida will be much friendlier to Trump than D.C. Thats mistake No. 1.

Mistake No. 2 was filing the case in a judicial department where there was a one-in-four chance that Judge Aileen Cannon would preside over the case. And, in fact, thats exactly what happened. You may remember her as the Trump appointee who, earlier in the classified documents case, made several rulings favorable to Trump, before being reversed and publicly humiliated by the conservative 11th Circuit Court of Appeals. If this case were fixed, she is the last judge (aside from maybe Clarence Thomas) the prosecution wants presiding over a trial.

Finally, if youre someone who thinks the fix is in, then you also think its being orchestrated by President Joe Biden (assuming you think hes actually the president), which means you also think hes a doddering old fool. As such, the fix is being manipulated by a guy who may be walking into a door as youre reading this. If thats the case, the fix should be going down in flames like Biden down a staircase.

If somber reflection is not in your wheelhouse, at least consider that as far as government conspiracies go  assuming you believe that  this one is a dumpster fire. Were the fix really in, this case would be in Washington, D.C. in front of a friendly judge under the orchestration of Merrick Garland. None of that could be further from the reality.

Even someone who thinks the fix is in can see that.
A Chinese navy training vessel berthed in the Philippines on Wednesday for a rare port visit as the two countries contest reefs and waters in the South China Sea.

Dragon dances and a brass band greeted the 165-meter (542-foot) Qi Jiguang in Manila to mark its final stop on a Southeast Asian tour through Vietnam, Thailand and Brunei.

Its a goodwill visit, Chinese ambassador to the Philippines Huang Xilian told reporters.

Comissioned in 2017, the ship conveys the concept of mutual trust concerning Chinas peaceful development, read a leaflet distributed by its crew to visitors.

FRIENDLY VISIT. Members of the Philippine Navy wave Chinese and Philippine flags as they welcome the Chinese naval training ship Qi Jiguang at Pier 15 in Manila on Wednesday, June 14, 2023, for a three day port call. Danny Pata

Beijing claims most of the strategic South China Sea including waters close to Philippine shores, ignoring a 2016 international tribunal ruling that voided its claims.

Chinese coast guard or navy vessels routinely block or shadow Philippine ships carrying out supply missions to islands in the disputed sea that host Philippine garrisons.

In February, Manila accused a Chinese ship of shining a military-grade laser at a Philippine coastguard boat escorting a supply vessel to the Spratly Islands.

The Qi Jiguang, which is larger than any Philippine warship or coastguard vessel, is the first Chinese navy ship to visit the Philippines since President Ferdinand Marcos assumed office last year.

Mr. Marcos has vowed that Manila will not lose an inch of territory as unease grows in the region over Chinese maritime activities.

He said last week that ties between the Philippines and China were evolving but denied he was shifting away from Beijing.

As to the differences between China and the Philippines, certainly they exist, but it is not something that will define our relationship, Mr. Marcos added.

His more assertive approach contrasts with that of his predecessor Rodrigo Duterte, who attempted to woo the Asian power to secure infrastructure deals and other investments.

The Duterte government welcomed several Chinese navy warships to the Philippines during his term as president from 2016 to 2022.

He personally set foot on board three Chinese vessels including a destroyer and a frigate that docked in his hometown of Davao City in 2017.

The Qi Jiguang is in Manila until Saturday and will be open to the public for two hours each day, the Chinese embassy said.

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Completing an evacuation plan for Filipino migrant workers in Taiwan  which is constantly under threat of invasion by China  should precede any US relocation of refugees from Afghanistan to the Philippines, Senator Imee Marcos said Wednesday.

This developed as Philippine Ambassador to the United States Jose Manuel Romualdez debunked insinuations that the American proposal for Manila to allow the entry and temporary housing of Afghan nationals was kept secret from the public.

Marcos, who chairs the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, said the evacuation plan should be the immediate goal of humanitarian and disaster response efforts with the US under the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA).

The US is preparing an evacuation plan for its citizens in Taiwan, and so is Indonesia for its 350,000 migrant workers, she noted. Will we be ready or reactive?

Despite the assurance of the Department of Foreign Affairs last April, Marcos doubts that a comprehensive evacuation plan is already in place for some 150,000 Filipino domestic workers, caregivers, factory employees, and fishermen in Taiwan, should China move to occupy what it considers its renegade province.

No details, no drills. Military exercises have focused on retaliation, not rescue, the senator said.

We need answers to how OFWs will assemble amid a widespread scramble to leave. What flight or shipping routes will give them safe passage through a military blockade? What transport will be used, where will they dock, and how often will they fetch Filipino evacuees so that everyone gets out as quickly as possible unharmed? she added.

Senate Minority Leader Aquilino Koko Pimentel III joined Marcos in criticizing the US request. He said housing the foreigners was a good humanitarian act on the part of the Philippines but emphasized the question remained for the reason behind it.

My question is: How come the US cannot do all those temporary measures, the processing and the hosting themselves on US soil? Pimentel stressed.

Im sure the US has better and bigger existing buildings for this use than us, he said.

Marcos said the US plans to relocate Afghan refugees to third countries like the Philippines should be a secondary concern for us.

The US is rushing to ease its backlog of more than 70,000 Afghans seeking special immigrant status since August 2021, when American troops withdrew from Afghanistan as the Taliban took over, she stressed. (See full story online at manilastandard.net)

Come August this year, the expiry of a two-year humanitarian parole that allows Afghan refugees to reside and work in the US could complicate the situation if the US Congress fails to act, the senator said.

With time constraints to process a myriad of special visas, the vetting of refugees may become less thorough and pose security risks for third countries, Marcos warned.

Many of them have no documents to prove their work relationship with the US government or companies, particularly spies for the military, she added.

Giving refugees a decent life in the Philippines will require employment and allocating resources such as food, water, and electricity, which may be subject to local shortages, the senator said.

Romualdez  the senators cousin  said it was a good thing Marcos was calling for an inquiry because there is no secret about this.

The envoy said the probe would ensure transparency and provide accurate details on the proposed arrangement with Washington.

Romualdez also clarified that the US proposal is being studied carefully and that all security angles are being reviewed.

Once this has been completely reviewed, it will be brought up for approval, the diplomat told GMA News Online.

Citing information from sources, Marcos said the refugees, who are said to be US supporters, will be transported directly into the Philippines from Afghanistan.

Agreeing to the US request will open the Philippines to substantial risk from individuals who pose a threat to national security and public safety, the senator added.

But Romualdez clarified that under the US request, Afghan nationals, who will be arriving in batches, will be staying temporarily in the country until such time their special immigrant visas are issued.

They are not going to live here. This is not even a refugee issue, this is a processing issue, Romualdez said. Its more of a legal matter and if we can do that.

The Filipino envoy said Washington first made the request in October, even as he lamented the malicious reports that he is strongly pushing for the US request despite objections from other government agencies, such as the DFA.

As envoy, Romualdez said it is his duty to relay communications and requests from the host government.

Romualdez said President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., as chief architect of foreign policy, will be the one to decide on the matter once the review process by the Presidential Management Staff and other concerned government agencies is completed.

Citing the Philippines historical tradition of providing sanctuary to refugees in the past, the diplomat said the US sees the country as a place they can trust and will do such a humanitarian act of allowing them to process all of these people who worked with the US government in Afghanistan.

These people and their families might be in danger in an act of reprisal, he said. And the most logical place is a trusted ally like the Philippines.

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Orders Cabinet to scramble budget, avoid depleting quick response funds of LGUs

LEGAZPI CITYPresident Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Wednesday ordered national agencies to cover 90 days of relief assistance to evacuees of the areas around restive Mayon Volcano to unburden local government units (LGUs) responding to the disaster.

Three months, government scientists and local experts say, is the estimated maximum period of unrest in Mayon, which state volcanologists said could unleash a more vigorous type of eruption as it already is spewing lava and ashes.

The President visited Albay province, landed in Legazpi City, and conducted an aerial inspection of the areas affected by the increasing activity of the volcano, particularly around Guinobatan town.

ALL HANDS ON DECK. President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. attends a situational meeting with DOST Secretary Renato Solidum Jr. (right) and Bicol Gov. Edcel Greco Lagman at the Albay Astrodome on Wednesday, June 14, 2023, as Phivolcs warned of a more vigorous eruption of Mayon Volcano. Marcos first conducted an aerial inspection of the affected areas and visited an evacuation center at Guinobatan Community College. Alfred Frias, PPA Pool

Albay Gov. Greco Lagman said the province would need at least P196.7 million to continue supporting evacuees for 90 days.

The President responded by telling his Cabinet to study the proposed budget, as Albays P30-million quick response fund could only sustain evacuees for about 14 days.

Let us be prepared to take as much of the load as soon as possible off of the local government units so they can have  we dont know if a storm will come (to Albay), or something else might happen, so they can still have reserve (funds), Mr. Marcos said in Filipino.

We will not consume their quick response fund, number one, President Marcos said during a situation briefing at the Albay Astrodome in Legazpi.

Number two, we should use as a working number: a minimum of 45 days. The 45 days to 90 days come from both the science of DOST (Department of Science and Technology) and the experience of the locals. When we were asking them, How does this go?, they said 45 to 90 days. So thats the working number well use, he added.

Mr. Marcos came from South Cotabato, where he spearheaded the distribution of various government assistance, including livelihood and training support, to the residents and farmers in the Mindanao province.

He apologized for the hours-long delay in his attendance at the launch of South Cotabatos modern rice production program, after the plane he was in suffered technical issues and had to turn back to the airport.

Also during the meeting in Albay, Secretary Rex Gatchalian assured the President that the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) has already dispatched 153,000 food packs for the 90-day cycle for Albay.

Mr. Marcos visited the Guinobatan Community College evacuation center to assess the condition of the evacuee families being housed there and also led the distribution of government assistance.

According to the report of the Office of Civil Defense (OCD) in the Bicol Region, the DSWD, Philippine Red Cross, Ang Probinsyano Partylist, LGUs, private groups, and non-government organizations have so far provided a total of P29.2 million worth of assistance to the evacuees.

The OCD also said it sent both food and non-food items, and water, sanitation, and health (WASH) equipment to Albay.

These relief items include 3,200 sacks of rice, 320 rolls of sakoline, 1,101 hygiene kits, 424 OCD family packs, and one water filtration vehicle to be deployed by the provincial government to affected localities.

A total of 4,400 families or 15,676 individuals were displaced by the disaster, mostly from seven Albay municipalities and cities: Camalig, Ligao City, Daraga, Guinobatan, Malilipot, Santo Domingo, and Tabaco City, the OCD reported.

Of the total number of displaced families and individuals, 4,215 families, or 15,017 persons have sought shelter in 22 evacuation centers, while 185 families, or 659 persons are temporarily residing elsewhere, according to the OCD.

The agency also reported that a total of 120 livestock such as carabaos, cattle, and goats were moved to safer grounds from the danger zones in the municipalities of Daraga and Malilipot.

President Marcos and DOLE representatives turned over a check worth P49 million as

the Departments Tulong Panghanapbuhay sa Ating Disadvantaged/Displaced Workers (TUPAD) assistance to local chief executives of the affected municipalities.

The President was accompanied by Special Assistant to the President Anton Lagdameo, Presidential Communications Secretary Cheloy Velicaria-Garafil, and Defense Chief Gilberto Teodoro.

In South Cotabato, the aircraft that was supposed to bring the President to the province encountered a technical problem, Garafil confirmed to reporters.

She said the plane had to head back to Villamor Air Base in Pasay City after encountering a technical issue, after which Mr. Marcos used a different aircraft.

The Philippine Air Force (PAF) said in a statement released the planes technical problem was nothing serious.

The G280 command and control aircraft that flew this morning with the President onboard had to return to base a few minutes after takeoff due to a minor technical issue on the aircrafts flaps operations, the PAF said.

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Dakar, Senegal  An Al-Qaeda-linked jihadist group on Tuesday claimed responsibility for an attack last week in Malis deeply troubled north that killed two United Nations peacekeepers.

Mali has been grappling with a political and security crisis since 2012 when separatist and jihadist rebellions broke out in the north, later spreading to neighbouring Niger and Burkina Faso.

The UN peacekeeping force in Mali, called MINUSMA, said a complex attack involving an improvised explosive device and direct fire targeted a patrol Friday near the town of Ber, in the Timbuktu region.

The victims were from a contingent from Burkina Faso, the mission said.

The Support Group for Islam and Muslims, or GSIM according to its Arabic acronym, said it had staged the attack.

The claim was made on its propaganda site Al-Zallaqa, the SITE intelligence group said.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Tuesday urged streamlining the decade-old peacekeeping mission in Mali, whose military leaders have clashed with the West and turned to Russia.

In a report to the United Nations Security Council, which will vote on June 29 on extending one of the UNs most dangerous missions, Guterres called for a reconfiguration of the mandate of the force that was first launched in 2013.

He acknowledged uneven results from MINUSMA but pointed to the importance of the coming year, with Malis junta promising  despite deep scepticism  a return to civilian rule.

With Mali entering a crucial period leading to the return to constitutional rule, its continued presence remains invaluable, Guterres said, referring to MINUSMA.

The GSIM was formed by the merger of four groups: Ansar Dine, the Macina Liberation Front, Al-Mourabitoun and the Saharan branch of Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb.

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Kano, Nigeria -More than 100 people died in north central Nigeria after a boat carrying families returning from a wedding sank in a river, police and local authorities said on Tuesday.

The river boat was ferrying people in Kwara State from neighbouring Niger State, local state police and the state governors office said, without giving details of the cause.

So far we have 103 people dead and over 100 rescued from the boat accident, Kwara State police spokesman Okasanmi Ajayi told AFP by telephone.

Search and rescue is still ongoing which means the toll is likely to rise.

Kwara State governors office said the victims had been returning from a wedding in Niger State to Kwaras Patigi district.

River boat accidents are common in Nigeria, usually caused by overloading of vessels, poor maintenance, disregard for safety regulations and heavy flooding during the rainy season in Africas most populous country.

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Just what kind of image does our government really like to project to the outside world about who we are as a people?

Once again, the government has an OFW problem in its hands.

The standoff between the country and Kuwait with regard to our domestic helpers is, however, frozen with both countries unwilling to budge from their respective positions.

Kuwait considers our domestic workers who run away from their violent employers to seek help from our embassy and be housed in shelters a violation of Kuwaiti laws.

The Philippines, on the other hand, considers it a dereliction of duty if it cannot provide assistance to its citizens in distress  and rightly so.

As a consequence, Kuwait has canceled the issuance of any kind of new visa to any Filipino who wishes to travel to Kuwait with the exception of those who have existing valid work contracts in that country.

We have chosen not to respond by matching what the Kuwaiti government did perhaps, due to the statement of PBBM a few weeks ago that he does not like to burn his bridges on this issue because doing so would close all avenues for a future rapprochement.

He said this during an interview when some hotheads in the government wanted to react in kind like issuing a total OFW deployment ban to Kuwait.

About two weeks ago, however, Kuwait announced it has started negotiations to hire Ethiopian domestic workers ostensibly to replace Filipinos.

Whether this was a show of force on Kuwaits part we do not know.

The government has chosen to remain quiet except to say we are ready to sit down to settle whatever issues the Kuwaiti government is alleging.

This was followed by the DFA saying we will not apologize for taking actions to protect our citizens which is like saying we are not backing down.

If we look at this recurring problem, it is evident this needs careful study to come out with a long-term solution to this perennial issue of foreign employers treating our domestic workers brutally.

The number of OFWs being repatriated or have been repatriated from Kuwait should already tell us the extent and gravity of the problem.

Yet, we still seem to project the desire to settle the row with Kuwait so that we can continue sending domestic workers to that country because the salary of domestic workers there is reputedly the highest in the Middle East.

I hope I am reading this thing wrong but if that is the intention of the government, it is the wrong move.

Considering the repeated problems being encountered by our women who work basically as indentured servants in foreign lands, we still want to preserve this deplorable program.

At this stage of our economic development wherein the government has been working hard to be able to graduate to a high middle income economy in a year or two, we should have started a program of gradually lessening the number of domestic workers we send abroad.

But this is clearly not the case.

It begs the question why we want to keep on doing this to ourselves.

Just what kind of image does our government really like to project to the outside world about who we are as a people?

And speaking about country brand, our country is not even within the top 60 in the world, according to one study I read, that has a country brand while some of our neighbors are already on the list.

This means the world does not know what to make of us Filipinos.

How can we really expect other countries to take us seriously or have a positive image of our country and people if we ourselves do not believe that national pride is important?

For instance, achieving a high middle income status for the country means having arrived at a certain level of development that requires us to act in a manner befitting that level.

Continuously sending domestic helpers abroad is not the way to do it.

We should now be focusing our attention on sending skilled and professional workers so that we will not be known as the number one source of domestic helpers.

As far as I know, there is no other country that has a program of exporting women labor the way we do.

Some people might say we cannot eat pride when people need work.

After all, there is nothing to be ashamed about hard work as long as it is honest. True enough, but in the real world, what is happening to many of our women is painful and gut wrenching.

Remember that worker who fell to her death cleaning a window in a high rise building and the other murder victims being brought home in coffins?

These should spur the government to find a way to end this appalling program.

In the final analysis, this is a failure on the part of many administrations because they failed to institute workable programs to train these women with a trade so they can earn money here instead of going abroad to work in a difficult to monitor environment.

Yes, they send foreign currency to fill the coffers of the government that is always on deficit spending but at a huge social cost to Filipino family life.

The only long term solution to this problem is to start a process of gradually reducing the deployment of domestic workers until we reach zero deployment. The question is, will the government have the political will to bite the bullet and do it?

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Trend Micro Incorporated (TYO: 4704; TSE: 4704), a global cybersecurity leader, published a new research uncovering the inner workings of cybercrime organisations. The report, Inside the Halls of a Cybercrime Business, examined the operations of small, medium, and large criminal groups. The report details a day in the lives of employees and how they operate within hierarchies that increasingly resemble legitimate businesses as the group expands.

While small cybercrime groups typically consist of a few members operating under a partnership model  most of whom usually have day jobs on top of their role in the group  employees of larger organisations tend to lead lives similar to corporate workers at legitimate software companies. Large cybercrime organisations tend to have corporate-like departments such as human resources (HR) and information technology (IT), and might even have employee-of-the-month recognition programmes and performance reviews.

Ian Felipe, Country Manager, Trend Micro Philippines, shares, The criminal underground is rapidly professionalising  groups are beginning to mimic legitimate businesses that grow in complexity as their membership and revenue increases. At the same time, many Filipino businesses are grappling with high cyber risk levels and a challenging threat landscape. In a recent survey we conducted, nearly 40% of Filipino IT leaders rated their organisations cyber risk levels as at the very least high, and nearly half of businesses believe that it is impossible to futureproof their cybersecurity as threats are always changing. To that extent, understanding cybercriminal operations can go a long way in helping to stay ahead of threats and enhance cyber preparedness. This report will aid investigators in the ongoing fight against cybercrime by helping them better understand the entities they are dealing with.

Using examples where Trend Micro collected the most data from law enforcement and insider information, the report examined three types of cybercrime organisations based on size.

Small criminal businesses (e.g., Counter Anti-Virus service Scan4You):

A day in the life of an employee: Members often handle multiple tasks within the group and also have a day job on top of this work

Members often handle multiple tasks within the group and also have a day job on top of this work Typically, one management layer, 1-5 staff members, and under US$500K in annual turnover

Comprise the majority of criminal businesses, often partnering with other criminal entities

Medium-sized criminal businesses (e.g., bulletproof hoster MaxDedi):

A day in the life of an employee: Members work full-time for the group, managing various tasks within an eight-hour shift

Members work full-time for the group, managing various tasks within an eight-hour shift Typically have two management layers, 6-49 employees, and up to US$50m in annual turnover

They usually have a pyramid-style hierarchical structure with a single person in charge

Large criminal business (e.g., ransomware group Conti):

A day in the life of an employee: Members work from home based on a rigid, predictable schedule, and communicate frequently with their line manager about productivity and performance  similar to remote workers at legitimate corporations

Members work from home based on a rigid, predictable schedule, and communicate frequently with their line manager about productivity and performance  similar to remote workers at legitimate corporations Typically have three management layers, 50+ staff, and over US$50m in annual turnover

Implement effective OPSEC and partner with other criminal organisations

Those in charge are seasoned cybercriminals and hire multiple developers, administrators, and penetration testers  including short-term contractors

They may have corporate-like departments (e.g., IT, HR) and even run employee programs, such as performance reviews

Knowing the size and complexity of a criminal organisation can provide critical clues to investigators, such as what types of data to hunt for. Understanding the size of targeted criminal organisations can also allow law enforcers to priorities better which groups should be pursued for maximum impact.

To read a full copy of the report, please visit: https://www.trendmicro.com/vinfo/us/security/news/cybercrime-and-digital-threats/inside-the-halls-of-a-cybercrime-business

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P&HCC recognized

Patrick & Henry Community College (P&HCC) was awarded the Southwest Workforce Development Award by Community Colleges of Appalachia for its partnership in the MHC Startup and Grow programs.

P&HCC partners with the Martinsville-Henry County Chamber of Commerce with these programs to challenge business owners to develop and enhance a business plan that can be executed to better serve the residents of Martinsville and Henry County in a variety of ways.

C-PEG [Chambers Partner for Economic Growth] has been offering this tremendously successful entrepreneurial boot camp with Patrick & Henry Community College for 7 years. The program would not be possible without the generosity of the Campbell Family Group, the George Lester II Fund and the Anonymous Fund through the Community Foundation Serving Western Virginia, Chamber President and C-PEG Executive Director Brenell Thomas said.

Over the years, C-PEG has obtained grant funding from the Tobacco Region Revitalization Commission and SOVA Task Force grants. These partners have made it possible for C-PEG to meet the needs of many small businesses with the valuable training but the cash and in-kind resources to ensure these businesses succeed, Thomas said. The collaboration continues to strengthen our local economy through the Startup MHC and Grow MHC programs.

In the seven years the program has operated, 322 graduates have received $571,824 in cash and in-kind support, which has created 271 jobs.

MHC Startup and Grow has generated nearly $4.5 million in new capital in our community, P&HCC President Greg Hodges said. More importantly, program graduates have an 87% 2-year success rate compared to the national average of 50% for new businesses to remain open for two years.

We are especially proud that graduates represent our diverse community with nearly half representing minority groups and more than half being female  leading to an increase in female and minority owned businesses in our area as well, Hodges said.

DAISY Award

Sovah Healt-Martinsville Critical Care Unit Registered Nurse Ashley Mills was awarded The DAISY Award for Extraordinary Nurses, which recognizes the super-human efforts nurses perform every day, a press release states.

Mills was nominated for the award by a patient who witnessed the kindness and professionalism Ashley provided while caring for her mother.

I feel it so necessary to thank Ashley for her selfless service in the care of my mother. She was genuinely supportive and in tune with her care. She was knowledgeable of my mothers pain and quickly took much needed measures to provide medicines. Ashley was attentive and treated my mother with such dignity, the patient said in the release.

Ashley is an exemplary nurse who makes a tremendous impact on the patients she cares for, and I was pleased to present the DAISY award to her, Sovah Health  Martinsville Chief Nursing Officer Lindsay Crumpton said.

In addition to being kind and compassionate, Ashley continues to grow as a professional as she recently completed her Bachelor of Nursing degree and is on her way to finishing a masters degree in healthcare leadership. We are so proud of her, as well as all our nurses here at Sovah Health that continuously dedicate themselves to care for our community, Crumpton said.

ACU honor roll

Abilene Christian University named Whitney Watkins of Martinsville to the Spring 2023 Deans Honor Roll. Watkins is a sophomore majoring in communication disorders and was among more than 1,200 students to be named to the list.

To qualify for the Deans Honor Roll, students must be registered for 12 or more credit hours and earn a grade point average of 3.6 or higher.
The Henry County Sheriffs Department announced on Sunday that the D.A.R.E. program has returned to Henry County after a 20-year hiatus.

The Drug Abuse Resistance Education (D.A.R.E.) is a highly acclaimed program serving millions of school children around the world by giving kids the skills they need to avoid involvement in drugs, gangs and violence, according to the D.A.R.E. International website.

On Friday, Henry County deputies Jeff Jones, Ashley Norton and Gabe Hagwood graduated from the Virginia D.A.R.E. Training Center in Culpeper County after successfully completing an intense two-week training course, a Sheriffs Office release stated.

The course includes an initial 80-hour training course for law enforcement officers who will teach the K-12 D.A.R.E. curricula, the Virginia D.A.R.E. Training Center website states.

The newly trained deputies will begin building relationships and educate youth in Henry County on a wide array of topics such as durg and alcohol awareness, vaping, social media safety, bullying prevention and teen mental health, the release states.

The program, as taught around the world, focuses on general life skills education to encourage and support good decision making for a safe and healthy life, the release stated.

The need to educate the youth of this community about these issues is paramount to the Henry County Sheriffs Office, said Col. Wayne Davis, chief deputy with the Henry County Sheriffs Office. We believe that educating our youth about these dangers is the first step in preventing the next generation of substance abusers.
Last month, a Marion man was charged by police officers with a variety of drug-related offenses.

On Friday, May 19, officers with the Marion Police Department responded to 100 Seagle St. in Marion due to information being received that Marcus Pendley, 33, was at the location. Officers were attempting to locate Pendley, who had active warrants for his arrest for failing to appear for court, according to a news release.

Pendley was in a separate structure on the property, and placed under arrest without incident. While being searched, a pistol was found in his waistband along with $2,860 in cash. There was a bag found with Pendley that contained other narcotics and narcotic paraphernalia, which has been submitted to the North Carolina State Crime Lab for analysis.

Sgt. Matt Huggins arrested and charged Pendley with the following:

One count  trafficking in amphetamine

One count  trafficking in opium or heroin

One count  possession of methamphetamine

One count  felony possession of Schedule II controlled substance

One count  possession of stolen firearm

One count  possession of firearm by felon

One count  simple possession of Schedule III controlled substance

One count  possession of drug paraphernalia

Pendley was placed in the custody of the McDowell County Jail under a $230,000 bond, according to the news release.
With help from some grant money, McDowell Arts Council Association is bringing keys to kids in McDowell County.

McDowell Arts Council Association (MACA) has partnered with Ben Folds charitable organization Keys for Kids, the North Carolina Arts Council, and the North Carolina Arts Foundation to bring keyboard programming to participating students at Old Fort Elementary and North Cove Elementary schools, according to a news release.

MACA is one of seven organizations from across the state that was chosen for this pilot program. And MACA was also the only organization to run Keys for Kids as an in-school program. Five keyboards were donated by Casio and MACA received a grant of $10,000 for instructional time and other necessary materials. Local pianist/composer, Nathan Shirley, served as instructor teaching 125 students twice a week over the course of 18 weeks.

The program was also able to make use of keyboards that had been acquired by music teacher Jill Young for Old Fort Elementary, so Shirley was able to teach groups of 15 students at a time.

I wasnt sure if teaching 15 kids at once would be possible, but Principals Jill Ward and Adam Wiseman were both very enthusiastic, said Shirley. I pushed the students hard, teaching them the basics of reading rhythm, pitch, how the keys on the piano are laid out, and the basics of piano technique. They were up to all of this, working very hard. Im happy to say they exceeded my expectations, learning a huge amount in a relatively short period of time.

Years ago, I taught private piano lessons full time, he added. While I enjoyed teaching, it was obvious that piano lessons were out of reach for most families. That fact always bugged me, but I couldnt think of a solution to it. I later devoted more time to writing music while teaching on the side. Thanks in part to a grant from the North Carolina Arts Council, I recently finished writing the seven-book piano method series, Piano Revealed. When Susan (Pyatt-Baker), executive director at MACA, contacted me about a new grant to start up group piano lessons, I was very excited as I saw it as a possible solution that might give a lot more kids the opportunity to learn piano.

Keys for Kids is a charitable initiative established by N.C. musician Ben Folds. Its purpose is to provide young people in North Carolina who express an interest in learning to play piano but have limited opportunity the access to appropriate lessons and instruments at little or no cost.

Folds credits early exposure to music as a child growing up in Winston-Salem as the impetus and inspiration for his own creative journey as a professional music artist, according to the news release.

Working in conjunction with the Arts Foundation and Arts Council, Keys for Kids will create a statewide network of arts partners providing free or affordable access to piano and keyboard education for school-age youth in North Carolina. As resources are available, partner sites will receive funding, keyboard donations and access to branding materials to raise the visibility of their program.

Donations to the program can be made to MACA, P.O. Box 1387, Marion, N.C. 28752 or www.mcdowellarts.org/donate.
Nevertheless, scientists saw more of several inflammatory cytokines in the blood and cerebrospinal fluid of the mice, increases that could be detected one and seven weeks after infection. In their white matter, the microglia  brain cells that support neurons and eat cellular debris in the brain  were much more active than normal, an abnormality that persisted seven weeks after infection.

After mild COVID-19, analysis of gene activity in single cells uncovered more microglia with high levels of pro-inflammatory molecules called chemokines and more activity in genes involved in inflammation. The genes expressed in microglia after COVID-19 overlapped closely with those expressed by microglia in other disease contexts, including cognitive decline in aging and in neurological conditions such as Alzheimers disease. This finding lines up with prior work linking microglial reactivity to poor cognitive function.

Microglial reactivity was particularly high in the hippocampus, a brain center involved in learning and memory. The researchers found that one of the elevated chemokines called CCL11 can directly cause microglial reactivity specifically in the hippocampus. The formation of new neurons in the hippocampus of the mice was impaired, likely due to the cytokine changes and the increased reactivity of microglia.

After infection, the mice also showed changes among cells in the white matter that help coat the neurons in insulating myelin. The cells that create myelin, called oligodendrocytes, were harmed by mild COVID-19, with the number of mature oligodendrocytes and cells destined to be oligodendrocytes declining in the brains of mice following SARS-CoV-2 infection. The researchers also found a loss of myelin, evident as a decrease in the density of myelinated axons in the white matter, which could be detected by one week and persisted seven weeks after infection.

Because other viral infections can cause brain inflammation, the researchers studied brain changes in mice after mild respiratory infection with H1N1 influenza, the viral strain that caused the 2009 swine flu and 1918 Spanish flu pandemics. The goal was to compare cognition-linked molecular changes after H1N1 to those seen after COVID-19. One week after infection, the H1N1 flu and SARS-CoV-2 infections caused similar patterns of cytokine elevation in the central nervous system, microglial reactivity and loss of oligodendrocytes in white matter. But seven weeks after infection, although the cytokine profiles had some overlap, including increased inflammatory chemokine CCL11, they differed. Effects on the hippocampus were similar in the two types of infections, but microglial reactivity and oligodendrocyte loss in white matter were not present after seven weeks following H1N1 infection.

The shorter-lasting and less-severe brain changes seen in mice after H1N1 infection are consistent with less prevalent reports of cognitive symptoms after this type of infection, highlighting that respiratory infections can change the brain even if the virus does not infect the brain, the researchers said.

Human data similar to animal findings

To further confirm their findings, the researchers examined data from brain tissue collected from a small group of people who had died suddenly in New York City in the spring of 2020. The human brain tissue came from five people who died with incidental SARS-CoV-2 infection (meaning they died for reasons that may have been unrelated to COVID-19, such as accidents); four people who died with known COVID-19 symptoms, including two who had been hospitalized in intensive care; and nine people in the control group who died without SARS-CoV-2 infection. People with SARS-CoV-2 infection were examined for lung injury and were not found to have had the most severe form of pneumonia. These people had no evidence of brain infection. However, those with COVID-19 had greater microglial reactivity than those in the control group, in a pattern that matched what was found in the mice.

In another group of 48 people who developed long COVID-19 with cognitive symptoms, the inflammatory cytokine CCL11 blood levels were elevated compared with those of 15 long- COVID patients who did not have cognitive symptoms.

Monjes team is already conducting research on medications that could alleviate brain fog after chemotherapy, and they plan to investigate whether these drugs are helpful after SARS-CoV-2 infection.

While there are many similarities to cognitive impairment after cancer, there are probably differences, too, she said. We need to test any potential therapies explicitly for COVID.

Monje is a member of Stanford Bio-X, the Stanford Institute for Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine, Stanfords Maternal and Child Health Research Institute, the Stanford Cancer Institute, and the Stanford Wu Tsai Neurosciences Institute.

Scientists from Yale University, the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, the Mount Sinai School of Medicine, New York University Grossman School of Medicine, the National Cancer Institute, the Uniformed Services University of Health Sciences, University of Iowa, the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner (New York City), and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute (at Yale and at Stanford) also contributed to the research.

The research was supported by the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (grants R01NS092597, NS003130 and NS003157), the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (grant R01AI157488), an NIH Directors Pioneer Award (DP1NS111132), the Robert J. Kleberg, Jr. and Helen C. Kleberg Foundation, Cancer Research UK, the Waxman Family Research Fund, Fast Grant for Emergent Ventures at the Mercatus Center, and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute.
The National Teachers Union (Sinprof) denounced Tuesday that the majority of Angolan education agents are not receiving their May salaries, without any explanation from the Government.

Speaking to the media, Sinprofs Secretary-general said that only teachers from Luanda and Benguela provinces and only one school in Huambo province have been paid so far.

Unfortunately, the government is not fulfilling the maxim of President Joao Lourenco in the part of communicating better. We have already consulted both the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Education  it is not the Ministry of Educations fault, because it does not pay salaries  but the Ministry of Finance, unfortunately, does not say the real reason for this delay, Admar Jinguma revealed.

According to the unionist, it is only speculated that it is a cash flow problem, but as teachers cannot speculate, they have to have concrete things.

We have already consulted them at the highest level, unfortunately, they dont tell us where the problem is, stressed the union leader, mentioning that doctors and nurses were in the same situation.

Admar Jinguma said that they will continue to apply pressure, but if the situation persists they will have to take other measures which, for now, he did not want to advance.

What we want from the government is transparency. It doesnt cost anything to come out and say: gentlemen, we wont have the money on time for reason X or Y, he appealed.

The Secretary-general of Sinprof recalled that this situation of salaries paid late has been dragging on since February. This situation has been going on since February, that we are receiving salaries irregularly, he said, lamenting the difficult situation of teachers, which has caused a high rate of absenteeism.
Cape Verdean public television (TCV) has invested about one million euros in a technological modernization project that marks the migration from the analog system to high definition as of June 13, according to an official source.

The information was provided to Lusa news agency by Margarida Fontes, administrator for the channel area of the only public television in Cabo Verde, which today launches the new platform for production and broadcasting of content, in a ceremony to be presided over by Prime Minister Ulisses Correia e Silva.

According to the official, since 2011 TCV has gone digital, but the system was already obsolete, bringing dangers, including drops in emission.

The platform that started working Tuesday allows the interconnection of production and emission of contents from the arrival of the journalist at the ingest, through the redaction, editing and sending for emission.

So it is a structuring project, but also an emergency one, because television was already dependent on this platform. We could not stop investing or go back, stressed the administrator of the Cape Verdean Radio and Television (RTC), a company created in 1997, after the merger of the national radio and television.

Therefore, instead of us having disintegrated poles of content production, it is a digital system that allows the journalist to produce and the editor to follow up his work until its emission, continued the journalist.

The responsible advanced that it is an investment of 110 million escudos (997 thousand euros), contracted by RTC with the bank, with the States guarantee. Among the platforms features is the connection with the newsrooms on other islands of the country, with the correspondent in Lisbon and with the digital platforms.

It is an equipment that allows agility, modernity, noted Margarida Fontes, saying that TCV is responding to a great demand of Cape Verdean viewers, who often criticize the quality of images, especially in direct broadcasts.
Congo launched Tuesday Police+program (Support for the professionalization of the police and the creation of model police stations) funded by the European Union (EU).

The program, worth $5.2 million, will improve detention facilities in police stations in the cities of Brazzaville and Pointe-Noire of Congo.

The program stretches over 42 months and aims at strengthening the role of the Police in the criminal justice chain, to improve citizens access to justice, the state-run news agency ACI reported.

It also comprises three components, namely monitoring and control of the penal chain, renovation of infrastructures to set up a model of pilot police stations, and training and mentoring of law enforcement officers, to consolidate police capacities in respect of human rights.

The project was initiated following the 2018 Chacona police station tragedy, the EUs envoy to the African country Giacomo Durazzo said. Thirteen people, mainly youngsters, died in July 2018 while in police custody in capital Brazzaville, as result of torture.

The financing agreement was signed last month and targets three priorities: democracy, human rights, and participatory governance.
Military observers from 8 countries took part, on Tuesday, in operational training at Cap Draa (north of Tan-Tan), as part of the 19th edition of the combined Moroccan-American exercise, African Lion 2023.

The military land maneuvers, which took place on the maneuvering area at the mouth of the Oued Draa in Tan-Tan, in preparation for the African Lion 2023 closing exercises scheduled for next Friday in the same area, saw the participation of units from the Royal Armed Forces and the American Armed Forces.

The operational training included heavy artillery shells, Moroccan-American armored vehicle fire, and infantry maneuvers aboard heavy armored personnel carriers.

They were also marked by the execution of an operation using military equipment from military engineering units, aimed at breaching the barriers set up by the enemy. The equipment used triggered a large explosion to destroy these barriers, enabling friendly units to continue their progression through secure corridors, as part of attack and counter-attack missions.

The military maneuvers were monitored on site by Major General Mohamed Makboub, Commander of the Draa Valley military sector, and by military observers from 8 countries, namely Sierra Leone, Egypt, Liberia, Portugal, Cabo Verde, Pakistan, Azerbaijan, and Hungary.

Following the maneuvers, several military observers said they were impressed by these exercises, in terms of both planning and organization.

In this context, William Preston, Sergeant First Class in the US Armed Forces, said he was impressed by the level of organization of these maneuvers, stressing that the coordination has been really perfect.

Lieutenant-Colonel Geoffroy ST Gal de Pons, representative of the US Embassy in Brazil, expressed his delight at being present in Morocco for the first time, saying that this combined exercise would further strengthen the partnership between Morocco and the United States.

He emphasized that the African Lion exercise is aimed at preserving peace and security on the African continent.

Jas Gbondo, Air Commodore of the Sierra Leone Air Force, underlined the exceptional level of this military exercise, expressing his pride at taking part, as an observer, in these military maneuvers, whose level of coordination between the participating military forces is excellent. I can say that this military exercise was a real success, he said.

For his part, Gee Charto Bobby, Sergeant First Class in the Armed Forces of Liberia, expressed admiration for the high level of this well-planned and coordinated exercise, underlining the importance of African Lion drills in strengthening security in the Sahel and Sahara region.

As part of the parallel humanitarian activities of the African Lion 2023, a field medical-surgical hospital has been deployed in the local community of Rasmouka in Tiznit Province.

The multidisciplinary health facility, mobilizing doctors and nurses from FAR and the US Army, has been operational since May 30, offering medical and surgical services to the local population.

Up to Monday June 12, this field hospital had welcomed 7,800 patients, who had benefited from more than 24,500 medical and surgical services.

In addition, 300 surgical procedures were carried out, 1,450 pairs of eyeglasses distributed and 7,800 prescriptions issued.

African Lion is a combined joint exercise organized each year by FAR and the US Armed Forces.

The exercise, which will run until June 16 in seven Moroccan regions (Agadir, Tan-Tan, Mehbes, Tiznit, Kenitra, Benguerir and Tifnit), is an annual event that contributes to consolidating Moroccan-American military cooperation and strengthening exchanges between the armed forces of different countries with a view to promoting security and stability in the region.
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Fusobacterium (white dots) is highly expressed near the uterus (endometrium) of endometriosis patients. Credit: Professor Yutaka Kondo

A research group from the Graduate School of Medicine and iGCORE at Nagoya University in Japan, has discovered that using an antibiotic to target Fusobacterium reduced the formation of lesions associated with endometriosis, a gynecological disorder characterized by endometrial tissue usually found inside the uterus being found outside it. Their findings suggest an alternative treatment for this disorder. The study was published in Science Translational Medicine.

Endometriosis affects one in ten women between the ages of 15 and 49. The disorder can cause lifelong health problems, including pelvic pain and infertility. Although it can be treated using hormone therapy and surgical resection, these procedures sometimes lead to side effects, recurrence, and a significant impact on pregnancy.

The group led by Professor Yutaka Kondo (he, him) and Assistant Professor Ayako Muraoka (she, her) from the Nagoya University Graduate School of Medicine, in collaboration with the National Cancer Center, found that the uterus of mice infected with Fusobacterium had more and heavier lesions. However, mice that had been given an antibiotic to eradicate Fusobacterium saw improved lesion formation.

The team's findings strongly suggest that targeting Fusobacterium is an effective non-hormonal antibiotic treatment for endometriosis. Dr. Kondo praised the potential for easier diagnosis and treatment. "Eradication of this bacterium by antibiotic treatment could be an approach to treat endometriosis for women who are positive for fusobacteria infection, and such women could be easily identified by vaginal swab or uterus swab," he said.

This study also shows the benefit of looking at upstream events to determine causative agents. The initial finding was that a protein called transgelin (TAGLN) was often upregulated in patients with endometriosis. This was unsurprising because the protein is associated with processes that are important in the development of endometriosis.

However, this finding led them to determine that transforming growth factor beta (TGF-) seemed to cause the upregulation of TAGLN. Since TGF- is released by macrophages, the natural anti-inflammatory response and immune regulation cells of the body, this led them to conclude that these macrophages were being activated in response to Fusobacterium.

"In this study, we demonstrated that the Fusobacterium-TAGLN-endometriosis axis is frequently dysregulated in endometriosis," said Dr. Kondo. "Our data provide a strong and novel rationale for targeting Fusobacterium as a non-hormonal antibiotic-based treatment for endometriosis."

Clinical trials of antibiotic treatment for human patients are ongoing at the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Nagoya University Hospital.

More information: Ayako Muraoka et al, Fusobacterium infection facilitates the development of endometriosis through the phenotypic transition of endometrial fibroblasts, Science Translational Medicine (2023). DOI: 10.1126/scitranslmed.add1531. www.science.org/doi/10.1126/scitranslmed.add1531 Journal information: Science Translational Medicine
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Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain

Wait times for people in Washington jails to get into state psychiatric facilities continue to "skyrocket" five years after a settlement promised to prevent that from happening, a court monitor told a federal judge in Seattle on Monday.

In downtown Seattle, federal Judge Marsha J. Pechman of the U.S. Western District Of Washington heard arguments in a civil dispute that's gone on for nearly 10 years, regarding the rights of people in jail to access basic mental health services. Three more days of testimony are expected as the court, state officials and advocates try to decipher a way forward after years of a settlement agreement have not fixed the problem.

In the meantime, the state has racked up millions of dollars in fines, court cases are delayed, and people with mental illnesses are stuck in jail for months, at a cost to their own health and to local jails who care for thempotentially serving more time than they would if they were sentenced criminally.

Dr. Danna Mauch, the court monitor for what's known as the Trueblood Settlement, testified Monday that the current wait times are the longest she's seen in the history of the case. In fact, wait times are worse than in 2015 when state officials faced initial litigation.

Asked during cross-examination if she would describe the current wait times as "unprecedented," Mauch said, "That's one way to characterize it."

This week's court hearing was called after plaintiffs with Disability Rights Washington accused Washington state officials of being in breach of their 2018 settlement agreement, which states people need to be provided evaluations within two weeks, to determine whether they are competent to stand trial, and treatment within another week.

According to the court monitor's early data from April, people in jail are now waiting an average of 130 days before they're admitted to a state facility for inpatient services.

Under the settlement, people in jail can receive compensatory sanctionsmoney from the state to make up for the excessive wait times defendants face. In addition, DSHS has paid an estimated $98 million in contempt fines as of November, the most recent data immediately available. Millions more in fines are suspended due to the terms of the settlement agreement, but could potentially be leveraged by Pechman if she finds the state is not doing enough to keep wait times down.

State officials argue that both inside and outside the settlement agreement they are making progress on a number of programs to help people with mental illnesses, including the 988 hotline that serves Washington residents in crisis, a crisis facility that opened in Spokane and mobile crisis response teams that de-escalate crisis situations. Coupled with a future hospital currently under construction on the Western State grounds, officials stress they are working to meet the demands of the settlement agreement but are just facing overwhelming demand for services.

Officials with King, Pierce, and Snohomish counties who previously submitted amicus briefs in the case say their counties are left with the financial burden of taking care of some of the sickest defendants in their jails, while they await beds at a state facility.

"We are grouped at the bottom of the hill," David Hackett with the King County Prosecuting Attorney's Office testified Monday, referencing the public safety crisis local municipalities face when people are not able to get services at state facilities.

"Everything runs downhill."

However, state officials say part of the reason for the delays is that local prosecutors are sending more and more people to competency services. At Monday's hearing, Pechman echoed that thought, shooting back, "Let's look at who has a choice at stuffing that pipeline."

Another sticking point among the parties has been the growing population of a particular kind of patient known as a "civil conversion." These patients switch from being detained within the criminal legal system to a separate, civil system where they receive involuntary treatment because they're believed to be a danger to themselves or others.

As local prosecutors push for civil conversions in order to keep defendants off the streets and in care, those patients are competing with Trueblood class members for a limited number of available beds at state facilities like Western State Hospitaland that's been leading to backlogs.

The Trueblood Settlement, named for Cassie Cordell Trueblood, a public defender and plaintiff in the original case, aimed to prevent detained people from being warehoused in jail before they've had a fair trial. In 2014, when the class action first started, the American Civil Liberties Union of Washington and Disability Rights Washington also joined to represent the class members.

A compromise with state officials came the following year, establishing timelines for people in jail to access services.

The last major settlement occurred in 2018, when officials at the Department of Social and Health Services agreed to provide competency evaluations within two weeks and restoration treatment within another week.

Wait times improved slightly the following year, but the COVID-19 pandemic ravaged progress. State facilities were forced to quarantine patients to mitigate outbreaks, creating backlogs as fewer patients were admitted. At the same time, they lost staff to burnout and more competitive salaries elsewhere.

In the coming days, officials with the Washington Health Care Authority and DSHS are expected to also testify, including describing how defendants are triaged and prioritized into state beds.

2023 The Seattle Times.

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
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Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain

Researchers from McGill University and Ontario Tech University published a new Journal of Marketing article that examines the drivers of specialty drug diffusion.

The study is authored by Demetrios Vakratsas and Wei-Lin Wang.

A notable trend in the pharmaceutical industry is the development of specialty drugs to treat complex, severe diseases, often with a limited number of patients. Of the 219 new drugs (or new active substances, NASs) that were launched in the U.S. between 2014 and 2018, 136 (62%) belonged to specialty classes. In 2017 alone, specialty drugs accounted for 32 of the 42 NASs.

Specialty drugs are produced using advanced biotechnology and often fill unmet patient needs. They treat complex, critical diseases, but also come with high risks of adverse events and are extremely costly.

For example, in 2018, specialty drugs accounted for 49.5% of total medicine net spending ($344 billion) in the US even though they represented only 2.2% of the 5.8 billion prescriptions. Because of high costs, their prescription is subject to prior insurance authorization, which requires documentation on the appropriateness of the treatment for the patient.

Despite the proliferation of specialty drugs, little is known about the drivers of diffusion. What is the role of scientific evidence? And do marketing activities influence prescriptions by physicians, who are mainly specialists? This new study finds that clinical studies affect the diffusion of new specialty drugs through a multi-stage scientific evidence production process.

The researchers propose a framework of specialty drug diffusion, which is motivated by two principles.

The combination of novelty, complexity, and importance of specialty drugs necessitates that prescribing physicians must quickly develop an extensive knowledge base to make appropriate and timely evidence-based decisions. Specialty drug prescribers are predominantly specialist physicians who have the motivation, opportunity, and ability to directly source and process scientific information to make evidence-based decisions. Thus, evidence emerging from clinical studies for a specialty drug should be critical for its diffusion.

The importance of scientific evidence

The scientific evidence production is a process consisting of three stages: (1) unpublished clinical studies, (2) evidence published in medical journals, and (3) clinical guidelines. Because of the high potential benefits of specialty drugs and the severity of the diseases they treat, the researchers expect specialty drug prescribers to extensively source information from all scientific evidence production stages to evaluate a drug's utility or net benefit for patients.

Moreover, they expect direct-to-physician marketing (personal selling and journal advertising) to have a weaker or even negligible effect given the ability of prescribing physicians to source information directly from the scientific evidence production process.

As Vakratsas explains, "Our findings support the idea that the influence of scientific evidence production on specialty drug diffusion is seen through all three stages of its production process. We also find that both journal advertising and personal selling have no significant effect on diffusion, confirming our expectations."

To further validate these findings, they study the diffusion of a non-specialty drug and find that in terms of scientific evidence production, only uncited publications (i.e., publications in medical journals not cited in clinical guidelines) and clinical guidelines influence prescriptions, but not unpublished clinical studies. Moreover, separate analyses by physician specialty status reveal that clinical guidelines influence only specialty physician prescribers and detailing has a significant influence only on general practitioner prescribers.

"Our study offers a framework to help pharmaceutical firms evaluate returns on scientific evidence production. We underscore the need for changing the focus from published clinical results to the consideration of all three stages of the scientific evidence production process. Our implications show that focusing only on publications will lead to an underestimation of the returns on scientific evidence," says Wang.

Lessons for Chief Marketing Officers

These findings suggest that scientific evidence is the dominant driving force for the diffusion of specialty drugs. This provides the following opportunities for Chief Marketing Officers:

Engage physicians and patients in clinical study protocol design to produce customer-led innovation. Patient engagement may not only increase enrollment and reduce protocol amendment costs, but also increase drug relevance to the target patient population.

Install processes to systematically monitor patient and physician input and assess its impact on scientific evidence production. Shifting the focus to engage with patients and physicians has the potential to optimize marketing efforts given marketing's capabilities to glean customer insights.

Develop closer involvement in the production of innovation, which could lead to increased marketing influence within the firm.

Pharmaceutical firms could commit to innovation and quality at the prospect of a high scientific evidence ROI for specialty drugs. This in turn will improve the quality of life for patients, enhance productivity, and minimize the burden of the disease.

More information: Demetrios Vakratsas et al, EXPRESS: Scientific Evidence Production and Specialty Drug Diffusion, Journal of Marketing (2023). DOI: 10.1177/00222429231177627 Journal information: Journal of Marketing
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Correlation of log-transformed vitamin D and albuminuria values. Blue filled color circles represent DM with neuropathy, while green filled circles present DM without neuropathy. The size of the circles represent BMI values, with increasing values corresponding to larger circle size. Correlation was tested using Pearsons test with significance indicated by p-values less than 0.05. Credit: Cells (2023). DOI: 10.3390/cells12010198

People with diabetes run the risk of nerve damage if they at the same time suffer from vitamin D deficiency, research suggests.

Called neuropathy, the nerve problem which gets worse over time, afflicts 50% of patients in the United Arab Emirates, according to the research's lead author Dr. Bashair M. Mussa, Associate Professor at the University of Sharjah's College of Medicine.

Science illustrates that "about 30% to 50%" of patients with type 2 diabetes experience neuropathy at a point in their life, Dr. Mussa states.

However, Dr. Mussa's study, published in the Cells, finds that neuropathy is at the highest documented rate among UAE's diabetes patients.

The research involved 600 Emirati patients from University Hospital Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates. The cross-sectional study examined data in retrospective, using patient medical records at the UAE's University Hospital Sharjah. Data showed that 50% of the respondents suffer from neuropathy, particularly pain and muscle weakness of different body parts, which aggravates gradually.

Scientists have examined how and why diabetes patients develop neuropathy, but Dr. Mussa's research stands out in attributing the nerve disease to Vitamin D deficiency.

"It is well documented that about 30% to 50% of the patients with diabetes develop neuropathy during their lifetime," she adds. Diabetic neuropathy, she notes, is "associated with high rates of morbidity and mortality in addition to economic burden."

The high rate reported in Dr. Mussa's study is worrying given the fact that the International Diabetes Federation (IDF) reports type 2 diabetes prevalence in the country to be at 16.3% compared to 9.3% worldwide.

Diabetes prevalence among UAE population is forecast to skyrocket to 21.4% by 2030, Dr. Mussa says.

The research shows that diabetes patients without neuropathy enjoy better Vitamin D status compared to those having muscle nerve issues. The statistics in the data reveal Vitamin D deficiency in neuropathy-afflicted patients to be at least double that of neuropathy-free patients.

These findings are interesting because normally a sunny country like the UAE is not supposed to have such a high rate of Vitamin D deficiency. However, the scorching sun present almost every day of the year makes people avert sunlight during the day, the study notes.

Dr. Mussa says patients with neuropathy in her study "had a long-standing diagnosis of diabetes" of over 10 years. "They were overweight or obese and were deficient in vitamin D compared to patients without neuropathy.

"This highlights the necessity of designing large-scale studies that involve multiple centers in the UAE to further understand the risk factors and predictors that are associated with diabetic neuropathy," notes Dr. Mussa.

Scientific literature has documented improvements in diabetic neuropathy even if patients are given vitamin D supplements for only a short time.

More information: Tahra Al Ali et al, Investigating the Association between Diabetic Neuropathy and Vitamin D in Emirati Patients with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus, Cells (2023). DOI: 10.3390/cells12010198

Provided by Sharjah's College of Medicine
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See-through 3D model that shows the axon (red), medium spinal motor neuron (green), and astrocyte converging at the synapse (yellow). Credit: Center for Translational Neuromedicine, University of Rochester and University of Copenhagen

Scientists have created one of the most detailed 3D images of the synapse, the important juncture where neurons communicate with each other through an exchange of chemical signals. These nanometer-scale models will help scientists better understand and study neurodegenerative diseases such as Huntington's disease and schizophrenia.

The new study appears in the journal PNAS and was authored by a team led by Steve Goldman, MD, Ph.D., co-director of the Center for Translational Neuromedicine at the University of Rochester and the University of Copenhagen. The findings represent a significant technical achievement that allows researchers to study the different cells that converge at individual synapses at a level of detail not previously achievable.

"It is one thing to understand the structure of the synapse from the literature, but it is another to see the precise geometry of interactions between individual cells with your own eyes," said Abdellatif Benraiss, Ph.D., a research associate professor in the Center for Translational Neuromedicine and co-author of the study. "The ability to measure these extremely small environments is a young field, and holds the potential to advance our understanding of a number of neurodegenerative and neuropsychiatric diseases in which synaptic function is disturbed."

The researchers used the new technique to compare the brains of healthy mice to mice carrying the mutant gene that causes Huntington's disease. Prior research in Goldman's lab has shown that dysfunctional astrocytes play a key role in the disease. Astrocytes are members of a family of support cells in the brain called glia, and help maintain the proper chemical environment at the synapse.

The researchers focused on synapses that involve medium spiny motor neurons; the progressive loss of these cells is a hallmark of Huntington's disease. The researchers first had to identify synapses hidden within the tangle of the three different cells that converge at the site: the pre-synaptic axon from a distant neuron; its target, the post-synaptic medium spiny motor neuron; and the fiber processes of a neighboring astrocyte.

To do so, the investigators employed viruses to assign separate fluorescent tags to the axons, motor neurons, and astrocytes. They then removed the brains, imaged the areas of interest by multiphoton microscopy, and used a technique called infrared branding that employs lasers to create reference points in the brain tissue, which allowed the researchers to later relocate the cells of interest.

The team then examined the brain tissue using a serial block-face scanning electron microscope located at the University of Copenhagen, a research tool created to study the smallest structures of the brain. The device uses a diamond knife to serially remove and image ultrathin slices of brain tissue, creating 3D, nanometer scale models of the labeled cells and their interactions at the synapse.

"The models reveal the geometry and structural relationships between astrocytes and their partnered synapses, which is important because these cells must interact in a specific manner at the synapse," said Carlos Benitez Villanueva, Ph.D., senior associate in Center for Translational Neuromedicine and first author of the study. "This approach gives us the ability to measure and describe the geometry of the synaptic environment, and to do so as a function of glial disease."

In the brains of healthy mice, the team observed that astrocytic processes engaged with and completely enveloped the space around the disk-shaped synapse, creating a tight bond. In contrast, the astrocytes in Huntington's mice were not as effective in investing or sequestering the synapse, leaving large gaps. This structural flaw allows potassium and glutamatechemicals that regulate communication between cellsto leak from the synapse, potentially disrupting normal cell-cell communication.

Astrocyte dysfunction been linked with other conditions, including schizophrenia, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, and frontotemporal dementias. The researchers believe this technique could greatly improve our understanding of the precise structural basis for those diseases. In particular, they point out that this technique might be used to evaluate the effectiveness of cell replacement strategies, which replace sick glial cells with healthy ones, for treating these diseases.

Additional co-authors include Hans Stephensen and Jon Sporring with the University of Copenhagen, and Rajmund Mokso with Lund University in Sweden.

More information: Carlos Benitez Villanueva et al, Astrocytic engagement of the corticostriatal synaptic cleft is disrupted in a mouse model of Huntington's disease, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (2023). DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2210719120 Journal information: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences